EGG FREE PANDAN CAKE

This was long due. I felt let me do it before Bengal dives totally into "Durga Pujo" fervour. I had four cakes in hand, felt let me stay strong with our loving island, it's neighbours today. I try to keep Bengal connection in most of my posts. Nonetheless to say, Pandan leaves / Fragrant Screwpines are called "payesh pata" there in West Bengal, if I am not too wrong. They are used to be packed in rice grain sacks to enhance flavour of a poor quality rice there. Yes, food adulteration is an issue there. I think Pandan Leaves is not considered important there like here. When we shifted to Barrackpore, our garden had a couple of this plant until lady of house uprooted, planted her series of flowering plants, "patabahars." 

Who would tell her Almighty's less fortunate children too need toilet areas to excrete. Even our pomerarian Jenny was strictly told to excrete ii terrace, finish off with her day's "hagoo+hishu" by 2pm.... on days of exception, mani had to take shower even at 9-10pm after cleaning job. My job was to shampoo her, get her good showers two- three days a week. The cleanliness freak us got her cough, cold quite often. It is our ignorance about pet life, care that took away her life early. Thereafter, we did not get one, its lot of emotional drain.... mani performed all rituals we do for a dead family member including eleven days of penance. The father took her body wrapped in "dhoti", "tulsi pata" to holy Ganges with assistance from my husband. The half and full atheists complied to our mother's wish. The brother was not in his senses for quite sometime, I was because I had an eleven month old on lap to look after. When I see pets around, Jenny's beautiful eyes come alive. 

Love has many manifestations, who are you, I  to make it rule bound? Set it free, only then it is real.... else it is only in "khatai kolomey", in "Facebook status".. Love is not mathematical Calculus Theory that you limit it to society set formulae. Come, set your minds free, have this vegetarian, sugar free  EGG FREE PANDAN CAKE using fragrant screwpine extract.

The senior is back home, went office. I anticipated this would happen, asked Cristine to prepare multigrain atta flour dough. You remember we had Aloor Dum in hand? The reason why I cook and keep food stuffed in the refrigerator. The son is at home today, breakfast of mine is proof why living room is dark in morning. Cristine does my "pooris" while I do it for men, Cristine too though not always. You know South Asian women lack ability to consider themselves as individual, to do something to please their own selves. It is pleasure to fry "pooris" for my men.... but I have to have freedom to think in my terms, live my own life. When the mother-in-law tried to impose her laws on me, I made it clear that its my life.... your friends, your relatives, your set of rules cannot define my life..... I will live my life my way, I will have my own set of friends, acquaintances who may not necessarily be in your list. You lived your life in your own terms, let me. She is nice otherwise. The thankful wife did fry them happily within few minutes of notice after failed plea he needs some rest. He is flying since last evening coming via Delhi.

Anyway, I do not mind if he visits his parents often which is his sacred duty, provided I am given to live life my way without any set rules. I I had to be economically independent to be in firmer position. 

The question is  are all working girls "independent?"..... Can they think beyond set rules? When did they last think about their own selves? Do not tell me you never wished to be humming butterfly flying beyond set boundary. Leave it, my fresh batch of "shona monger dal" has arrived, courtesy sister like brother's wife who got it from mani's prescribed shop, handed over to "T" dada. Then, if you have a brother travelling to Delhi in same day evening, he would definitely make it a point to meet his brother like "T" dada, send "didibhai" selfies of duo, even pictures of his bed, rest room where he will stay put & pee for next few days. When anyone travels, I cannot sleep well. I need good swim after this post, sleep until 6:30pm.... or should I go for long walk with my headphones on playing old Bollywood numbers?.... Where they take me is none of your business.... but the thing is if mumma has fried Babai's multigrain "atta pooris," she would want to fry them for him too instead of Cristine didi before settling out for long walk in an unstipulated path than normally prescribed humming"Chandni Raat Mein Ekbar Tujhe Dekha Hai". Thats a promise we must make .... to give our best for our own before spreading our wings for some me time with unknown. I think I should not care for my lunch time, set out for Punggol seaside, must do 10k, its about 2 years now I did not go for running event, must sign up for big December event.... the daddy is getting angry. My baby may be weird but two days back when all of a sudden I decided to record live procedure of cleaning a "pabda maach" .... he silently switched off television and retired to his room without any request from us. Mumma should not go out for her own pleasure without settling his lunch spread. Yesterday, it was only a 5:6km walk to old neighbourhood, thereafter a sweet plum+lime juice spoilt effort. Today, I need to be careful.

You can see I have used bottled pandan extract, few other ingredients for my vegetarian, fragrant screwpine flavoured EGG FREE PANDAN CAKE, beyond that is not in my capacity which I admit. It was done in month of June when my visiting family was here, all of us liked it though it was dense, moist in texture unlike fluffy ones we get island wide. Because it was decent, I decided to share recipe with all of you. Finally I could write my post. From that dark, noisy living room, I shifted to guest room with my morning cuppa, we need to concentrate on whatever we are doing.

This happens when our monkey is at home! Its easy to handle girl child I think.

INGREDIENTS :

REFINED FLOUR : 2COFFEE MUG

BAKING POWDER : 1TBSP

BAKING SODA : 11/2TSP

PANDAN EXTRACT : 2TSP

FULL CREAM MILK : 2MEDIUM SIZED TEA CUP

STEVIA POWDER : 1MEDIUM SIZED TEA CUP [YOU CAN USE SAME AMOUNT OF SUGAR]

VANILLA ESSENCE : 1TSP

OIL : 1 SMALL SIZED TEA CUP [CANOLA or SUNFLOWER or SOYBEAN any variety I use]

PROCEDURE :

Besides refined flour, I have used these few ingredients for pandan cake.

Take refined flour, baking powder, baking soda together, sieve & mix well. 

Take milk, oil, stevia powder or sugar, pandan / screw pine extract in clean blender. Blend it for 2 minutes at intervals.

Add wet mix to flour mix, beat with whisk or spoon for sometime. I do it clockwise, cut through middle.

We will do this for 4-5 minutes before we add vanilla essence. We will beat again for 2-3 minutes, pour into greased cake tins or aluminium foiled containers.

I do my bakes in convection mode microwave. I placed bake stand inside, preheated it at 180*C for 10 minutes.

Thereafter I placed one container filled with pandan leaf / fragrant screw pine cake batter on top of low stool.

I baked for 30-35 minutes at 180*C. Temperature of each oven differs, you must check temperature, cook time of yours' through a series of trial, error.