Chocolate Candy | Late Sweet Start to 2013

I know we are in the second week of 2013. I know I am late. But now I am back and happily blogging. Normally I start a new year with some baked treat. -Be it cookies or cakes or anything it should be baked. I get a feeling that if I post a baked dish then I will be baking more the whole year. Of course its just a superstition which I will be breaking this year. 

How and Why?

My OTG gave up after almost 4 years of faithful (also faultful) service.So I have to break this NewYear tradition of mine. Is 13 unlucky for me. ?

No,Never!

Coz for me there is chocolate to lean on to and what you see a simple yet perfect chocolate bark/candy to kick start the New Year. And ofcourse my microwave is working. Mine is just the basic microwave without convection btw.

Its very simple, and took just 1-2 minutes in the microwave.

Ingredients:

Dark/Semi sweet chocolate: 1 bar or atleast 1/2 cup +

Flavouring agents: Vanilla extract/ Orange blossom water: 1-2 drops (optional)

Toppings:
Crushed Cereal, cookies, chopped nuts and dry fruits, chocochips: as much as you want

Preparation:
Place the chocolate in a microwave safe bowl and microwave it in short bursts of 30 seconds stirring each time. Mine took around 1 minute and 30 seconds. The time depends on the power of your microwave but make sure you dont burn the chocolate.

Spread the chocolate onto a parchment lined and preferably chilled baking sheet into a 1/4' thick square.

Evenly sprinkle the toppings onto this layer and slightly press it especially dry fruits and nuts so that it looks embedded in the chocolate.

Place the baking sheet in the freezer for about 15 -20 minutes so as to set it fully. Actually it just hardens at room temperature. Mine did but better to chill so that it fully firms up.

Take out, break into pieces and enjoy .You can gift these neatly bundled in cellophane.

OR enjoy with icecream.

An Update: My new OTG has arrived. Can't wait to bake in it.2013 is good for me it seems. Enjoy the candy.See you soon..

Mini Pear Crisps

I had some pears with me and I was searching for a good recipe when I saw these mini crisps in Parents magazine These are simple crisps which are low sugar and are prepared in small individual bowls or rather bake and serve bowls.These being mini are baked for a small amount of time than the normal crisp which is made in a larger dish.But I tried these in the microwave and they came out perfect.

Ingredients:
Pears: atleast 2 peeled,cored and cubed

All Purpose Flour: 1 tbsp
Sugar: 1 tbsp
Spice Powders : optional: I used cinnamon,ginger and clove powders

Maple Syrup: just a squeeze

Muesli/Granola : 2-4 tbsp : homemade or storebght: I used homemade muesli
Dates: chopped : few (I did not use)


Preparation:

Mix together the flour,sugar and spice powders if using. Peel,core and cube the pears.To these add the flour mix and mix well so the the pear pieces get coated with it.Arrange/add the pear into the serving bowls which ought to be microwave safe.

Top the pears with a squeeze of maple syrup and sprinkle granola/muesli  and chopped dates on top.

Microwave for about 3 minutes at 100% power or until the pears are cooked and the muesli is toasted and the top looks golden brown.Serve warm optionally topped with ice cream or vanilla whipped cream.

Start with 1 and 1/2 minutes first.You can see the pears bubbling and they look reduced and mashed and generally the quantity of fruits in thee bowl will look reduced..No need to completely cook/bake the pears unless you like so.Also my muesli had dryfruits like figs  and apricots so I did not add dates at the top.But the original recipe had it and so you can do it if you like.Also since the muesli was spiced with cinnamon and other spices,I added a little of these powders to the flour and sugar.You can avoid this or even add spices of your choice.Also ifyou like avoid the sugar in the flour mix and then add/squeeze more maple syrup/honey after arranging the friot pieces in the bowl.

The dish was not overly sugary and is very easy to make thanks to the microwave.You can instead also bake it in the oven for 20 minutes at 350F.But microwave is preferable here and especially when guests are there this low sugar or healthy and fruity dish can be whipped up in serving bowls itself and served.Also the time of the dish varies with the size of the bowl as well.Earlier or when I first tried it,I used medium sized bowl and it took just 1 and half minutes for 2 bowls at one go.The second time I used glasses ,okay just like that- and it took 3 minutes.So the cooking/baking time varies depending on the type of dish and also on the wattage of the microwave.

This is my  entry to SHF #69: Bite Size Desserts hosted at Aparna's, an event by Jennifer, the Domestic Goddess.This surely can be finished in 2-3 spoonfuls. The fruity dish also visits MEC: Fruits hosted at Nivedita's,an event by Srivalli. Both of you bear with me.,my pics are not that good.

Microwave Muesli

Muesli is a breakfast cereal usually consisting of uncooked oats in milk/yoghurt base.It usually requires soaking of oats in milk/yoghurt/condensed milk base for several hours or overnight so that it reaches the muesli or the porridge stage at the time of consumption usually breakfast.But these days several dry forms of mueslis are available.As per wiki these dry forms are just a mix of oats,fruits,nuts along with whey or milk powder and sweetners.I wanted to try out dry muesli at home as I have been seeing a lot of these in stores and also felt that they are easier to make or use as compared to soaking oats overnight.I hit jackpot when saw this excellent microwave recipe for dry muesli from Green Gourmet Giraffe.I have slightly adapted it to make it oil/fat free and used apple sauce along with honey to obtain dry muesli.

Ingredients:
Oats: 1.5 cups
Coconut Grated: 4 tbsp (I used fresh. Can also use sweetened flakes as well)
Wheat Germ: 4 tbsp
Sunflower Seeds: 2 tbsp
Flax seeds: 1 tbsp
Sesame Seeds: 1 tbsp (I used white)
Mixed Nuts: Chopped :4 tbsp (I used pecans )

Apricots: chopped: 4 tbsp (I used bright yellow Turkish Apricots for some colour)
Dried Figs: chopped : 4 tbsp
Raisins: 2 tbsp
Currants: 2 tbsp

Apple Grated: 1 small apple peeled and grated or approx 5 tbsp
Honey: 1/4 cup
Vanilla: 1/2 tsp
Cinnamon ,Clove Nutmeg: optional :as per taste
Salt: 1/4 tsp

Preparation:

Microwave in a bowl,peeled,grated apple (roughly 5 tbsp when packed and measured) for 1 minute at 100% power.I went for another 30 seconds so that the apple turned entirely mushy. Just 1 minute is also enough.Add honey,salt,vanilla and cinnamon+cloves+nutmeg if using to the saucy apple mix and microwave until bubbling for 1-2 minutes.Start at 30 seconds as it took just 50 secs for me.

Meanwhile,in a big microwave safe bowl,mix in oats,wheat germ,coconut,sunflower-sesame and flax seeds.Also add in the chopped nuts.Pour the liquid into the oats mix and mix everything well.Microwave at full power for about 4-10 minutes,stirring the mix each minute till the entire mix turns roasted and browned.I did it 7 times.Stir in the chopped figs,apricots,raisins and currants and mix everything well.Break up the clusters of oats if any and cool completely and store in an airtight container preferably in the fridge as apple has been added.

The muesli was not that "appley " or spicy.So the use of spices is optional and as per taste.There was an aroma of spices while cooking/toasting but when tried as such the muesli tasted of oats,dried coconut and toasted nuts.You can add sweetened coconut flakes instead of fresh as I have done.I used the spices to get the apple pie like aroma but the only aroma afterwards is the toasted oats.Also if you do not want/have the apple,you can use any fruit puree or vegetable oil itself.Oil was used as a binder it seems in the original and also add some richness.But I replaced it with apple puree/sauce.

You can serve it adding milk,condensed milk adding fresh fruits or just as you serve store bought muesli/granola or cornflakes.

UPDATE on 15th July 2010: The muesli being made completely in the microwave is also going to grace Valli's Breakfast table at 365 Days of Microwave Cooking.

Whole Wheat Currant Scones - Microwave Version

These are simple scones which I had bookmarked from Diverse & Daring Baker Blogger Aparna and they turned out quite well.

Ingredients:

Whole Wheat Flour: 2 cups

Baking Powder: 4 tsp

Salt : a pinch (only if using unsalted butter)

Butter Cold : 3/4 cup cubed

Milk: 5 tbsp

Brown Sugar: 4 tbsp +

Currants/Raisins: 3/4 cup (I used currants though the original recipe had raisins)

Preparation:

In a big bowl,mix together wheat flour,baking powder and salt if using unsalted butter.Add in chopped cubed butter and pinch and fluff and mix everything till it resembles breadcrumbs.Fold in sugar and currants/raisins.Add milk and gently combine to form a dough.

Do not overknead the dough as it may toughen the scones.Gently pat the dough into a square and cut into 8-9 pieces.

Place the pieces on a paper towel in the microwave turntable and microwave on full power for 3 minutes or more till a toothpick comes out clean.Let it rest for atleast 2 minutes in the microwave.

Serve warm with clotted cream,jam or as such.

I found that the currants are less sweeter and would like to increase the sugar next time I make them.Also I felt they were a bit crumbly than the normal convection oven scone but that could be because I was overcautious while forming the dough.The scones were ready under 15 minutes and I am still surprised that scones can be made in the microwave!.

Anyway,the scones are onway to MEC:CelebratingBloggers by Srivalli and currently hosted at LuvGoodFood.

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Update on 25.03.2010- These scones are perfect for Breakfast or as anytime snack.These are definitely going to grace JFI:Breakfast,an event by Indira of Mahanandi and currently hosted at VeggiePlatter.

Jajaria

This is a simple Rajasthani desert made of yellow or white corn or rather a simple but delectable halwa made of corn.I had seen the dish in an old issue of Tarla Dalal's magazine which had a microwave version of the dish though I think the same is available at her site also.Anyway I had a single corn cob and so decided to make it.The quantity was just enough for one person and so I think you should go for atleast 2 corn cobs.The recipe if using microwave is very easy and so I have added step by step pictures as there is not much to write.Anyway here it is

Ingredients:

Corn Cobs: atleast 1

Milk: 1/4 cup +

Sugar: 2-4 tbsp +

Cardamom Powder: as per taste

Preparation:

Remove the leaves,wash and grate the corn in a microwave safe bowl.The quantity came around to 6 tbsp.The grating will also produce little liquid from the corn and looks like...

Microwave the grated corn on full power for one and half minutes.It took me 1.30 minutes thgh the original recipe stated more than that for 2 corn cobs.So I suppose the change in time depends on quantity as well as power of the microwave.The thing to note is the grated corn should get cooked and the cooked aroma and the evaporation of its liquid is the key to it.It looks like...

Add milk to this -again depends on quantity.I added around 6 tbsp of milk and microwave it again on full power till the milk gets reduced and the sweet thickens.Mine took just 1 minute.

Add required sugar and cook again for 30 secs -1 minute on 100% power till the sugar blends in with the sweet .

Take out. Add cardamom power and serve.

The quantity was just enough for one person.

The dish can also be made on stove top though it may require constant stirring so that it does not burn.Microwave makes it easier.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Fudge

This is a simple fudge that I prepared in minutes using a microwave.I had seen the foolproof fudge recipe in Nestle site and decided to give it a makeover using some excess ingredients I had in my pantry.I decided to make a double layered fudge with a chocolate layer as a base and a peanut butter layer on top.The result was a bit sticky but very tasty fudge.

Ingredients:
Chocolate Fudge:
Condensed milk:1/3 cup
Baking chocolate -I usedsemi sweet - 2 oz/square
Nuts: 1/4 cup (optional)

Peanut Butter Layer:
Reese's cups: 4 no:s (0.75 oz each)
Peanut Butter: 3 tbsp
Condensed Milk: 3 tbsp

Preparation:
Chocolate Fudge:

Grate the chocolate and add it to a microwave safe dish along with condensed milk.Microwave at 100% power for about 1 minute.You can see the milk almost boiling and the chocolate start melting.Take it out,mix well so as to get chocolate liquid,stir in chopped nuts if using and pour into a well greased dish and smoothen it with a spatula.

Peanut butter Fudge:

Microwave the reeses cups for about 40-50 seconds at 100% power till the start to melt and the biscuity/cookie base start appearing .Take out whisk well,add 3 tbsp of peanut butter and again microwave for 10 secs.Take out,add 3 tbsp condensed milk and microwave again at 100% power for 20 seconds or till the milk starts boiling.Take out,whisk well and then spoon over the chocolate fudge.Let the layers come to room temperature and then chill the dish for atleast 2 hours in the refrigerator.I kept mine for several hours and then cut up into squares and serve for a festive dessert.

If you do not have baking chocolate,then you can use Cadbury's or any branded chocolate.If you want to use chocolate chips then you may have to use unsalted butter while melting in the microwave.Do check this recipe,if you want to use chocolate chips instead of chocolate.If you do not like/have peanut butter,then feel free to completely omit that layer.If you do not have Reeses cup then I assume you can use any confection of your choice (Cadbury's chocolate eclairs)or even choco chips or peanut butter chips in which case you need to use around 1/2 cup peanut butter.You can simply spoon the peanut butter fudge over the base chocolate fudge or try spreading it and then give swirls on it or whatever way you wish.I spooned it over and tried spreading it and the design I ended up with was not so good.Hence,you may find the pics not upto the mark.

The taste was ofcourse peanut buttery in the first bite which gives way to crunchy nuts and gooey chocolate and is heavenly.The festive fudge is onway to MEC:FestiveFoods at SpiceClub.

Ruth's Carrot Cake -Easy Microwave Version

'Eat Cake ' by Jeanne Ray talks about the life and its changes of Ruth, a mom of two.In midst of an unemployed husband,quarreling parents etc she sort of gains strength by baking cakes and that too with several and exotic variations.Well the book which contains 24 pages of recipes, is a delight foodwise and is a light read with an expected fairytale ending where all the things become right and 'you live happily ever after'. Well, eat you cake and day dream!. Out of the several recipes one I liked was 'Ruths carrot cake'.I halved it,made it eggless and spiced it up and then 'microwavized ' it and here it is

Ingredients:
Dry Mix:
Cake Flour: 1/2 cup (Substitute: 7 tbsp APF + 1 tbsp cornstarch)
Whole Wheat Flour (aatta): 1/2 cup
Cinnamon,cloves,nutmeg,ginger powdered,cardamom : generously use your choice or combo of spices: around 1/2 tsp +
Baking Powder: 1 tsp
Baking Soda: 1/2 tsp
Salt: 1/2 tsp

Wet Mix:
Yoghurt/Buttermilk: 1/2 cup OR 2 eggs
Vegetable/Canola oil: 1/2 cup
Honey :10 tbsp
(I used Honey + maple Syrup)


Carrots: peeled,grated 1.5 cups
Walnuts/Pecans/Cashew nuts: optional :1/2 cup (I used cashewnuts)

Preparation:

In a medium bowl,whisk together the dry items -cake flour,whole wheat flour,salt, baking soda,baking powder and your choice of spices.If you do not have cake flour,then you can substitute it by using All purpose flour and/or substitute it by mixing 7 tbsp of APF with 1 tbsp of for 1/2 cup of cakeflour.Cake flour makes the cake spongy and light and the substitutions work fine and I used the second one.

Peel,grate carrots and keep aside.

In a big bowl,whisk the wet items of honey,oil and yogurt together.Add in the dry mix and whisk together till well blended and a liquid batter is formed.Fold in carrots and optional nuts.I added cashewnuts.

Pour the batter in a microwave safe and completely greased container/dish -I used a heart shaped container and the batter came to a little more than half of the pan.

Microwave at 100% power (HIGH) for about 8 minutes or more until you see the cake pulling out from the edges of the container and the tester inserted in the centre comes out clean.Cool completely in the pan.Serve cutting into wedges with a frosting or whipped cream,ice cream or as such.

The cooking time depends on the machine.I started at 6 minutes but it took 2 more minutes and I pulled it out exactly when 8 minutes were completed.Also allow the cake to rest in the dish completely before cutting.I allowed it to rest just 10 minutes and then inverted it and found that an edge on the reverse side was not that browned and also the cake was crumbly.But still I proceeded with tasting and clicking pictures of the cake.The leftover cooled completely and I found that the cake looked perfect than I had clicked.So ensure that the cake rests for about 1-2 hours or let it chill in the fridge before cutting.

The recipe calls for honey instead of sugar and I used a mix of honey and maplesyrup .You can also substitute honey by using cornsyrup or mixing sugar and water and then adding it to the wet mix.If you are completely omitting honey then can remove the baking soda as well.The cake is correct tasting s honey is used and but not overly sweet .It is airy and light and little spongy due to the use of buttermilk/yoghurt.You can use 2 eggs instead of yoghurt or anyother egg replacer in which cake increase the baking soda to 1 tsp.The aroma from the oven was not that good and I was thinking it was a flop cake even afte the first bite,but second bite onwards it felt right.

Now lets see what other bookclub members have put forth and get ready for the cakefest:

Jaya was the first to post a review on the book here followed by Ann who came up with a Pista-Cardamom cake from the same book and Simran who gave a twist to the pista cardamom cake and made a tropical Almond cup cake with coconut essence!

The carrot cake is also on way to SriValli's MEC: September

Apple Brown Betty for PotLuck Party

A brown betty is a simple American dessert made by layering fruits and buttery sugared and spiced bread crumbs (breadcubes) and baked till cooked.Usually apples or berries are used for this.This dish is similar to cobbler and crisp but very fussfree compared to these.What distinguishes the brown betty from the others is the use of bread crumbs.There are several regional versions available as well with many or few differences either in the use of spices,nuts or layering ,some using bread cubes etc like an Appalachian version starts layering with the breadcrumbs and adds specific spices to the apples, etc.Thus the dish is very flexible and you can follow your vision of making this dish.It was perfect when I microwavized the basic version I found here .

Ingredients:
Apples: 2 cups peeled,cored and cubed (3 medium apples)
Lemon juice: 1/2 small lemon (optional)
Orange/Lemon zest optional

Breadcrumbs: 1/2 cup
BrownSugar: 1/2 cup
Walnuts (or any nuts): chopped handful
Butter: 2 tbsp + more as needed

Cinnamon powder/Clove Powder/ Ginger Powder: as required (OPTIONAL)
(can use cardamom powdered as well)
Salt: optional

Preparation:

In a big bowl,mix together brownsugar,breadcrumbs,nuts and spices.To this add melted and little cooled butter (2 tbsp) and mix well.I melted butter by microwaving it for 15-20 seconds in a mw safe bowl.Also you can optionally add salt to this as it brings out the flavour.Since I used salted butter,I avoided this.

Peel core and cube the apples.Optionally to prevent darkening,mix it with lemonjuice and if you like add orange/lemon zest to it.

Grease microwave safe serving bowls with little oil/butter/spray and layer few cubes of apples in it.It looks like....

Top the apple layer with the little bread crumbs mixture -needed as much to cover the apples.

Top this with second layer of apples.

Top this apple layer again with bread crumbs mixture.Repeat the process for another layer or two making sure the breadcrumbs layer is the topmost.I went for two layers only.Sprinkle/dot the top layer with crumbled/chopped butter.

Microwave on high power for 4 minutes or until the buttermelts,the apples release juice and get cooked and everything blends in.

Instead of sprinkling butter or in addition to it,you can also add around 3-4 tbsp of applejuice/water to it.This makes it more appley and moist and a puddingy texture.I didnot do this, so I think mine has got a dry top.A single serving bowl takes around 3-4 minutes,and a big bowl takes around 4-5 minutes.You can use two bowls (or three) at a time and the time depends on the power of your microwave and may vary 1 or 2 minutes.

This dish is on way to Microwave Easy Cooking:Potluck party hosted this time by the creator herself,Srivalli.

Baked Apple for Emma

Emma by Jane Austen tells you about the life of Emma - a clever, rich, spoilt girl and the way she deals with life.Simply speaking,the story full of parties,balls etc in England starts with Emma hating Knightley but ends up being engaged to him .Now to give it a filmi twist,Knightley is her Didi ka Devar.Before you start thinking about the film,lets think how food comes to play in this.

I have read only abridged version which mentioned no food and when I searched for a bit elaborate version the first thing that appeared was the term apples-baked apples,tarts,apple harvest, apple season etc.Baked apple seemed to be the chosen dish of the story and so I went ahead with it,but used the microwave.

Ingredients:
Apple: atleast 1 big
Filling
Brownsugar
Butter
Cinnamon powder
Ginger powder
Walnuts: handful
Salt: very small pinch

Preparation:
Mix all the filling ingredients together in a bowl.

Cut the stem of the apple and core the apple keeping the bottom intact.Refer Elise's Baked Apple recipe for directions.

Spoon the filling into the apple.You can fill 3/4th of the apple.

Keep the apple in a microwave safe bowl and add in around 1/4 cup of water into the bowl such that the end of the apple is immersed in water.

Microwave on 100% power for 2 minutes.

The water will start bubbling and the apple will get cooked and the juices may start flowing out of the apple and sometimes filling may get pushed out if the apple is filled completely.

Remove from the oven. Let it cool for few minutes and then remove slowly from the water bath.

Serve warm cutting into wedges/halves or as such(if small) along with your choice of accompaniments like ice cream, maple syrup, whipped cream ,jam etc or as such.

You can use as many apples as you like though the cooking time increases with each addition.I tried only 1 apple first and it came out in 2 minutes.You can use your choice of filling as well.

So Emma this is for you and also your creator Jane Austen but I am sure you may not have thought of such an inventionespecially living in Georgian England.Now Lets see what other bookclub members made for Jane Austen and her heroines

Simran made Tropical Fruit Tart for Emma

Rachel also Chose Emma and made Apple Tart
Aparna has send Crumpets for Emma
Aquadaze presents Butter Cake inspired by Elizabeth Bennet of Pride & Prejudice

Microwave Chocolate Rice Pudding

This is a simple Chocolate Kheer/Chocolate Rice pudding recipe made all the more simpler by cooking in a microwave.I always wanted to make chocolate rice pudding after seeing one in food network.Now I found a microwave kheer in my microwave cookbook by Tarla Dalal.So I sort of combined the two and voila a chocolate dessert within minutes.So here it is.

Ingredients:
Long Grained Rice: 3 tbsp
Milk: 1 cup + or -
Hot Water: 3/4 cup
Milk/semi/unsweetened Chocolate: 1 0z or handful of chocolate chip or 1 big square
Cocoa Powder: 1 tbsp
Sugar: 3 tbsp +
Garnish:
Cashewnuts:
Ghee

Preparation:

Clean and drain rice.In a big microwaveable bowl,add hot water and rice and microwave at full power (HIGH) for 8 minutes.Remove from the oven,cover and keep aside for atleast 10 minutes.After 10-15 minutes,lightly mash the grains,add cocoa powder,chocolate,sugar and 3/4 cup milk ,mix well and microwave again at full power for 3 minutes.Take out and add more milk (total almost 1 cup milk) to obtain the pudding of your consistency.Microwave again for 1-2 minutes and then cover and keep outside till serving time. Spoon in bowls and serve warm or at room temperature,garnished with roasted cashewnuts.

For roasting cashewnuts, mix cashew nuts in clarified butter/ghee(optional) and spread as a single layer in a flat microwave safe plate,microwave for 2 minutes or more till it starts browning.

I like my version to be thick.So I added only 1 cup of milk.Feel free to add more milk or condensed milk as well to obtain your consistency.Adjust sugar as per taste and condensed milk if using.Also chocolate can be more than 1 oz.The pudding thickens as time passes.So feel free to add more milk.The timings may change by a few minutes depending on your microwave.This easy chocolate rice pudding/chocolate kheer is on the way to MEC: Puddings hosted by Jayasree,an event started by Srivalli.I know its a last minute entry,but kindly bear with me.

Also the chocolate dessert is to celebrate a token of gratitude which is actually a token of friendship and appreciation by another Chocoholic Blogger Friend -Yasmeen .Thanks Yasmeen for this appreciation.

This dish is also to celebrate the wonderful fact that I am a part of Finest Foodies Friday this week by Foodie Blogroll-THANKS JEN,for this honour and appreciation.

Also I am a FoodCandy Featured Blog since last few days.Thanks all for taking time to read and leave your esteemed comments on my amateurish/experimental attempts in cooking.

Microwave Apple Cheese Crisp

What I love about fruity dishes is that they can served as snack,breakfast,dessert.The apple cheese crisp I made is one such.In some cooksites you can see that crisps/crumbles come under dessert as well as breakfast category.I believe whatever time you serve,it should be tasty and healthy.

Crisp or crumble as it is also known is usually baked fruits topped with a crispy crust.I had made plum crumble before and similarly apple crisp/crumble ,but in the conventional oven.I got hold of a microwave apple crisp with a cream cheese filling and found that what took almost 50 minutes in the normal oven,took only 10 minutes in the microwave.If you can make it under 10 minutes and has fruits and grains then surely you can make it for breakfast :D.

Ingredients:
Apple Layer:
Apples: 2 peeled,cored and sliced or 2-3 cups
Sugar: 3 tbsp+ as per taste
All Purpose Flour/Cornstarch: 1 tbsp
Cinnamon: 1/2 tsp
Lemon Juice: 1 tsp (optional)

Cream Cheese Layer:
Cream Cheese : 2-3 tbsp softened
Sugar:2tbsp+
All Purpose Flour: 2 tsp
Milk/Soy milk: 2 tsp
Apple sauce: 2 tbsp

Top Layer:
Uncooked Oats: 5 tbsp
All Purpose Flour: 1/3 cup
Brown Sugar: 1/4 cup
Cinnamon: 1/2 tsp
Unsalted Cold Butter: 2.5 tbsp

Preparation:

In a microwave safe dish,mix together apple layer ingredients.Mix thoroughly and if possible spread them in a layer and microwave them from 3-5 minutes till they start to get cooked.In a small bowl,mix together the cheese and sugar until creamy.Add other ingredients for the cheese layer and mix well.Spoon the cheese mix over the apple layer and spread it evenly.

In another bowl,mix together oats,flour,cinnamon and brownsugar.Cut small pieces of cold butter into this and mix well till the mix resemble coarse sand grains.Sprinkle the oats-flour mix over the cheese layer.

Microwave the crisp uncovered,on high for 2-3 minutes until the apples are completely tender and the cheese and top layers are cooked well.

Fresh look from the oven..........

If you are using more apples,the timings may change.Always start with 2 minutes and keep on adding 30 seconds if needed.

Cut into wedges and serve as a dessert with icecream or as a grainy breakfast drizzled with homemade caramel sauce..

This easy crisp also goes to Pavani where she is currently hosting MEC: Cheese an event originally started by Fellow Runner: Srivalli.

THANKS CHAM,for reminding me.

You can see the cheese layer if you look carefully.Now while gorging on this,lets check out other fellow athletes as this is my entry on Day #5 of Recipe Marathon:
1) DK 2) Siri 3) Srivalli 4) Ranji 5)PJ 6)Medha 7)Priya 8)Bhawna 9)Raaji 10)Ruchii 11)Anu 12)Kamala 13)Roopa 14)Divya Kudua 15)Rekha 16)Divya M 17)Lakshmi 18)Raaga 19)LakshmiVenkatesh 20) Sripriya 21)Viji

Microwave Double Chocolate Brownies

Brownies are chocolate cakes-denser,richer than normal chocolate cake.They can be chewy or fudgy depending on density and ingredients included like cheese,nuts etc.I saw this microwave version in food network(as usual) and made little adjustments and got excellent results.Here's the recipe.

Ingredients:
All Purpose Flour: 1 cup
Unsalted Butter: 1 stick
Milk Chocolate:2 oz or as per your taste
Tofu: 1/4 cup+
Soy milk: little
Sugar: 1/4 cup /as per taste
Vanilla Extract: 1/2 tsp

Preparation:

Cut tofu into small chunks/cubes and puree it in the blender adding little soy milk.If you do not have soy milk,can use little water/milk or the melted butter-chocolate mix we will be making as well. as well.If you are not using soy milk then increase the tofu to 1/2 cup as this recipe uses 2 eggs and I have replaced those with tofu +little soymilk.Tofu gives problems while pureeing so be sure to add something to it before pureeing thoroughly into a creamy mix.

In a microwave safe dish,melt the chocolate for 45-50 seconds in the microwave.Now add the butter stick to this and microwave again for 30-35 seconds.They may start melting but would hold their shape.Take out and whisk together to combine.Add sugar and whisk well.Add sifted flour+salt and whisk well so that all the flour is incorporated.Add the pureed tofu and vanilla extract to the mix and whisk well to almost smooth consistency.Top with chocolate chips and microwave for 3-5 minutes till the cake tester/tooth pick inserted in the centre comes out clean.

Closer Look........

Cool the brownie for minimum 15 minutes.Cut into wedges and serve as such or with whipped cream or icecream.

The microwave ovens vary.So start the melting process with 20 seconds and baking at 3 minutes.Mine was ready by 3:33 minutes,though the recipe called for 4:30 -5:00 minutes.Also use the chocolate you prefer-the actual recipe called for 2 oz of unsweetened chocolate and 1 cup of sugar,but I prefer milk chocolate and has used 6 rectangles of Hersheys milk chocolate bar -almost 9-10 squares of Cadbury's -and has reduced the sugar to 5-6 spoons(almost 1/4 cup).Adjust the sugar as per your taste and chocolate you have used.

The brownie was excellent considering the fact that it was ready in under 5 minutes.It was cake like and chewy and little portions stuck to the bottom of the dish-loosening a microwave brownie is tricky,but it was delicious-simply scrap the bottom of the dish and enjoy.Serve brownies anytime you like or serve warm as dessert with ice cream.

These Brownies are sure going to FIC:Brown along with Pecan Lace Cookies to make Sunshine Mommy break into a sunny smile.

They also go to Madhuram's Egg Replacement Baking Event where the current theme is Silken Tofu.

Microwave Bread Croutons

This is the easiest dish possible in microwave. I had run out of croutons and got this easiest recipe.I tried out with just one slice of bread and it was delicious.Thus I am blogging it.


Ingredients:
Bread cubed: 1 cup (Any bread can be used)
Dried Oregano:1/2 tspn
Garlic clove:1 crushed
Olive oil:1 tbspn
Salt:as per taste

Preparation:
Microwave the bread cubes for 1-2 minutes on high power till they become dry.



Crush the garlic clove and roast till golden brown in little oil.Add this to the bread cubes.Add oregano,pinch of salt and remaining oil to the dry cubes.Mix well till they are completely coated with oil and oregano. Microwave on high power for around 2 minutes.



The bread cubes will become hot and crisp.Serve with soup or salad or as a snack.

If prepared in large quantities store in an airtight container.
The timing varies with microwave and depends on the quantity as well. For larger quantities 1-2 minutes extra may be taken.


Garlic salt and/or onion powder can be used instead of crushed garlic.
Any seasoning can be used apart from oregano.

Oregano is basically an Italian-Greek-American herb and has got health benefits as well.It came to US during World War II and was known as pizza herb. It has got antioxidant properties as well.It is known as "Ajwain" in Hindi/Urdu.

Along with garlic it enhances the taste of basic croutons and tingles the taste buds.

Plum Preserve

This recipe I did after being inspired by Cham's microwave apricot preserve.I had plums in my pantry and wanted to try out something.I was vary as how they would turn out.So most of them went into Plum Crumble and remaining into this preserve.

Ingredients:
Rep Ripe Plums:1/2 cup
Sugar:1 tbspn
Cinnamon powder:1/4 tspn

Preparation:

Clean the plums and peel and chop them and remove the pits.In a microwave bowl,add and mix these ingredients.Microwave on high for 2 minutes.Then takeout and mix well.Microwave again for a few minutes.Check the microwave after every 1 minute and mash the big pieces if any.Take out and let it cool when all the water has evaporated.Once cooled store it in sterilized jars and refrigerate.Mine was over the same day as I had used a very small quantity and it was delicious.

This goes to SunshineMom for Food in Colors:Red

And also to EasyCrafts for WYF:Color