Recipe -- Banana Cake

Ingredients (american measuring cup used, 1 cup = 250 ml)

• 4 medium to large ripe or over ripe bananas - 300 gms or 0.66 lbs
• 1.5 cups whole wheat flour/atta
• 1 tsp baking powder
• ½ tsp baking soda
• a pinch of salt
• ½ cup organic unrefined cane sugar or regular sugar
• ⅔ cup any neutral flavored oil (i used sunflower oil)
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 10 halved walnuts, chopped or any dry fruits of your choice (optional)

Instructions

1. preheat your oven at 180 degrees C/350 degrees F. if using a regular oven, heat both the top and bottom elements. for a microwave convection oven, just preheat the oven.
2. peel and chop the bananas. add them to a bowl and mash them with a fork. you can also use a blender to mash the bananas.
3. add sugar, oil and vanilla extract.
4. stir very well so that the oil mixes with the banana puree and the sugar dissolves.
5. sieve whole wheat flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt directly in the bowl. you can also sieve these separately and then add them to the wet ingredients.
6. fold the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients very well.
7. add the chopped walnuts and fold again. apart from walnuts, you can also add raisins, pistachios or any dry fruits of your choice. chocolate chips or cacao nibs can also be added.
8. pour the batter in a greased or lined loaf pan ( 7.5 x 4 x 2.5 inches) or round cake pan (7.5 x 2 inches).
9. gently tap and shake the pan. place the pan in the center rack if using a regular oven or OTG.
10. bake in the preheated oven at 180 degrees C/350 degrees F for 45 to 50 mins or till tooth pick inserted in the cake comes out clean. if the top of the cake starts browning then cover the top with an aluminium foil or butter paper. * check notes
11. when warm or cooled, slice and serve banana cake plain with tea or coffee.

Notes

depending on the temperature in your oven and the size of your pan, the cake might take less or more time than mentioned here. the temperature varies from oven to oven. so take your call and keep an eye. the benchmark is that a tooth pick inserted in the cake should come out clean.

Recipe -- Besan Puda

Ingredients:

• 1 cup besan (gram flour) (available in Indian grocery stores)
• 1/4 cup rice flour (optional)
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup water
• 1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds (jeera)
• 1 teaspoon chopped green chilies
• 1 cup shredded zucchini (Italian squash)
• 1 tablespoon chopped cilantro (green coriander)
• About 6 tablespoons of oil to cook

Method

1. Shred the zucchini with the skin and keep aside.
2. Mix all the dry ingredients together: besan, rice flour, cumin seeds, and salt. Add the water slowly to make a smooth batter, the
   consistency of pancake batter or Dosa batter. Add the green chilies, cilantro, and zucchini. Mix well.
3. Use  a non-stick skillet and place on medium-high heat. Test by sprinkling a few drops of water on it. Water should sizzle right away.
4. Pour about 1/2 cup of the batter into the skillet and spread evenly with a back of spoon. Starting from the center, spiral the batter outward evenly to form a circle about 7″ in diameter.
5. When batter starts to dry, gently spread one teaspoon of oil over it. Wait about 30 seconds; flip the puda using a flat spatula.
6. Press the puda lightly all around with the spatula to make the puda cook evenly. Turn the puda three to four time, until crisp and brown on both sides.
7. Repeat for the remaining pudas.

Tips:
Spread the batter quickly, or it will begin to dry and will be difficult to spread.

Serving Suggestions:

1. You can serve the puda with yogurt, chutney, spicy pickles, or ketchup.
2. Pudas can also be served as quesadillas. Fold the pudda with shredded cheddar cheese, sliced tomatoes, or roasted vegetables.

Variations

1. Zucchini can be replaced with finely chopped spinach, shredded potatoes, or  finely shredded cabbage.
2. If you make the puda without vegetables, do not use rice flour. This will cause the pudas to be very dry.
3. Cilantro can be replaced with  ground coriander powder.

Recipe -- Cherry Cobbler

Ingredients:

1/2 cup butter
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup white sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup milk
2 cups pitted sour cherries
3/4 cup white sugar
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Place the butter in a 9x13 inch baking dish, and place in the oven to melt while the oven is preheating. Remove as soon as butter has melted, about 5 minutes.
2. In a medium bowl, stir together 1 cup of flour, 1 cup of sugar, and baking powder. Mix in the milk until well blended, then pour the batter into the pan over the butter. Do not stir.
3. Rinse out the bowl from the batter, and dry. Place cherries into the bowl, and toss with the remaining 3/4 cup of sugar and 1 tablespoon of flour. Distribute the cherry mixture evenly over the batter. Do not stir.
4. Bake for 50 to 60 minutes in the preheated oven, until golden brown. A toothpick inserted into the cobber should come out clean.

       

Pregnancy - Second Trimester

Checklist
- Felt sleepy during afternoons - used to take short naps
- Appetite increased
- Bulge started to show
- Felt travel sickness
- Had saffron with hot milk and ghee everyday
- Used to carry dryfruits, cut apple and pomegranate in small Tupperware boxes to work.
- Carried layers of clothing -- shawl, sweater, socks, earbuds
- Bought three loose cotton kurta pyjamas with duppattas and supplemented with the layers
- Increased intake of water
- Had leg cramps and used to very lightly massage limbs, back and chest.

 

Baby Milestones

June 29 -- Started sitting without support
July 11 -- Started consonant sounds -- baaa, maaa, paaa
July 25 -- Started crawling and sitting up by himself

Pregnancy - First trimester

Felt uneasy around 5-6 weeks and went for home pregnancy test. Went for doctor checkup on my wedding anniversary. Our anniversary gift !!! Any from the ordinary like sense of nausea, headache, excessive hunger, tiredness may be signs..

Checklist -- Things to do:

1. Find a good gynaecologist near your home or office and get tested. Usually ultrasound is done after 6 weeks gestation
2. Drink lots of water (at least 1.5 liters per day .. Keep one slice bottle for reference). Body gets heated up plus uterus will start needing more water. 
3. Take folic acid, calcium, iron and multivitamin everyday.. Ask your paed to write a brand if you want..
4. Eat one banana and one apple everyday. Eat any other fruits also but ensure you eat these two daily. Banana to avoid constipation and apple for antioxidants. Pomegranate is also very very good. Avoid mango, papaya and pineapple only. (My paed had asked me to go slow on coconut water also as it is known to aggravate morning sickness )
5. Eat couple of badam, dates and walnut everyday. Other dry fruits not very beneficial.
6. Never skip a meal cause you might get head aches and acidity and you can't take any medicines to treat either. 
7. Strict no to any over the counter medicines including dart, sinarest, gelusil etc. Crocin also to be taken only after consulting your paed. Take steam baths and rub Vicks for your headaches, strictly avoid anything else.
8. First trimester is very important as people can't still see you are preggy and you may also forget sometimes. So consciously ensure you don't lift anything heavy including a pressure cooker and don't overstrain yourself with work. Take people into confidence whenever required and they will understand. Else say doctor told you so.. 
9. Get lots of rest.
10. Pls note you may need your office leaves in last trimester, so judiciously use them.