Chocolate Cake

Ingredients:
• 1 cup malai or cream or unsalted butter
• 1 cup sugar
• ½ cup cocoa powder
• 2 tsp vanilla essence
• 2 eggs
• 2 cups self-raising flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 lemon
• 1 cup icing sugar
• ½ cup Milk
Preparation:

Preheat oven to 200c. Mix cream with sugar and beat until light and fluffy. Add ¼ cup cocoa and one teaspoon vanilla essence. Mix well then add eggs and mix again. Add the flour and baking powder and mix well. The mixture will be quite runny. Pour into a greased and bottom-lined round or square cake tin. Bake for 45-50 minutes, until risen and cooked when tested with a skewer. Remove from oven and cool on wire rack. When the cake is still slightly warm overturn and remove it from the cake dish in a plate. Dissolve 2 teaspoons sugar in ½ cup water and juice of ½ lemon and spread over the overturned cake to moisten it.
To make chocolate icing, beat remaining ¼ cup butter and vanilla essence, then gradually add icing sugar and beat until light and fluffy. Mix remaining cocoa with two tablespoons water add juice of ½ lemon then add to mixture and beat until well combined. Spread over cooled cake.

Traditional Christmas Feast @ 9 Kamnath Contd....

Rich Dark Christmas Pudding

Ingredients:
• 300 gms Currants
• 300 gms Raisins
• 120 gms Plain Flour ( Maida)
• 1 tsp Salt
• 1 tsp ground Ginger
• 1 tsp grated Nutmeg
• 1 tsp grounded Cinnamon and Cloves
• 240 gms Amul Lite
• 120 gms Fresh breadcrumbs
• 120 gms Sugar
• 60 gms Glaze Cherries
• 60 gms Almonds blanched
• Few pieces rind of Oranges finely grated
• Few pieces rind of Lemon finely grated
• Juice of 1 Orange
• 2 Eggs
• 1 tsp Vanilla essence
• 2 teaspoons Cocoa
• 2 teaspoons treacle
• 6 tbsp Brandy, Rum or Whiskey
Preperation:
Wash and pick the currants and raisins and dry thoroughly. Mix the chopped the currants, raisins, cherries, almonds, and orange and lemon rinds in a bowl and put half the rum and keep in the fridge overnight. Remove 30 minutes before making the pudding. Sift the flour, salt and spices into a large mixing bowl. Stir in the Amul lite, bread crumbs and sugar. Now stir in the soaked dry fruits and peels. Stir these into the prepared dry ingredients. Beat the orange juice with the eggs and vanilla essence and pour into the bowl. Add the treacle and mix until thoroughly blended. Turn the mix over into a greased pudding basin. Cover the basin securely with double thickness of grease paper and tie securely. Place in a pressure cooker and cook till done. When ready, remove cover and replace with fresh grease proof paper. Turn out into a hot dish. Pour a little warmed brandy round the dish and light before bringing to table. Serve with rum or brandy sauce.

Rum Sauce For Pudding

Ingredients:
• 1 cup whole milk
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 ½ teaspoon cornflour
• 3 tbsp. butter
• 1 teaspoon rum (add more, if desired)
• 3 Vanilla essence
Preperation:
In heavy saucepan, add milk, sugar, and butter. Cook until hot over medium-high heat. Dissolve cornflour in small amount of water and add to hot mixture. Stir until thickens. Remove from heat and add vanilla essence and rum flavor and food color. Serve over the pudding.

Traditional Christmas Feast @ 9 Kamnath

Whole Roast Chicken Stuffed With A Bread Crumb Stuffing Seasoned With Herbs.

Ingredients:
• 1 roaster chicken, about 4 pounds
• Butter
Marinate:
• Yogurt
• ½ teaspoon thyme
• ½ teaspoon parsley
• ½ teaspoon oregano
• ½ teaspoon rosemary
• Salt
• Pepper
• 2 spoons garlic paste
Stuffing:
• 1 chopped onion
• 1 chopped tomato
• ¼ cup butter
• ½ teaspoon dried leaf thyme, crumbled
• ½ teaspoon chopped fresh parsley
• ½ teaspoon oregano
• ½ teaspoon rosemary
• 1 cups soft bread crumbs
• 1 beaten egg
• 1/3 cup milk
• 6-8 cloves garlic paste or finely chopped
• salt and pepper
Roasting:
• Green onions
• Beans
• Carrots
• Potatoes
Preparation:
In a large vessel mix the yogurt, herbs, salt and pepper, clean the chicken and marinate it with the mixture of yogurt, herbs, salt and pepper for atleast 3-4 hrs in the refrigerator. Remove the marinated chicken from the fridge about 30 mins before stuffing. In a vessel, melt ½ of the butter over low heat; saute chopped onion then add the tomatoes and cook till done. Add the herbs, garlic and bread crumbs. Stir in egg and enough milk to make dressing moist. Season with salt and pepper. Spoon stuffing into cavity of chicken; close by sewing or with a piece of foil. Rub chicken with butter and truss it. Cut the green onions and place them in the roasting pan. Place chicken breast side up on the green onions. Arrange the vegetables around the chicken in the roasting pan. Roast stuffed chicken at 375° for about 30 to 35 minutes, basting several times. Then turn the chicken upside down and roast for another 30 – 35 minutes. Let chicken stand for about 15 minutes before slicing.