Baking is another option

It all started with me trying to bake a sponge cake for my wife on her birthday.
But once the batter was ready there was some problem with the power supply by which the oven would not work. That ended my attempt of the surprise cake for her Birthday.
When my wife discovered the batter she thought “if my hubby can bake a cake then why not me” (she was not into baking till then)
So she took over the second half (when the power was restored) and baked the cake which turned out pretty well.
That boosted her moral and she started experimenting with different types of cakes.
Now it was my turn to be surprised as she started churning out cake after cake with expert advice from my sister.
One day she announced “Hey you all want to have pineapple upside down cake?”
This was something new to me. I mean I always thought that the cashew fruit was the one who used to hang upside down whereas the pineapple used to stand erect where they used to grow wild around the huge pond (kolam) in our home town.
But once the cake was done, it was a visual treat as I could see the slices of the pineapple very clearly. The trick was to put these slices at the bottom and bake the cake. Once it is baked you turn it upside down and hey presto this is how it looks. I thought its worth a click. Its not only the slices but the complete cake has the pineapple taste as the juice is mixed in the batter. (oops I hope wifey won’t read this as I have given out the secret formula)


Then came the Brownies. These were a hit with all those who had it and they swore that they were much better than the expensive brownies that are sold at the Coffee Day outlets. Some even placed orders, especially the vegetarian ones. (with out eggs) By the way all ye veggies, serves you right if you don’t want to listen to what Gandhi said.


Before I proceed a word has to be put in about my sister who loves baking and this is what she had baked when we went to Bangalore to visit her. The minute it was kept on the table, I knew that it would finish in a jiffy so I took it out in the natural light and clicked it. The cherries on the top is the highlight I suppose.


OK coming back to the home front, it was a loosing battle for me. I mean here I was, spending money and trudging on the tread mill to loose weight and my wife went on churning out cake after cake in different sizes and tastes. How can I resist.
The lava cake is something that has to be seen when served. Before serving, the cake is made warm in the microwave and then a dollop of ice cream is added. You can literally see the middle of the cake “pop” up with the lava flowing out. Yummmm tasty.


Earlier baking was a tedious task with all those Aluminum baking vessels and greasing them and the ultimate task of removing the finish product from the mould without breaking it.
Now with the advent of the plastic moulds in Siliconflex material it’s a pleasure to bake. I tried clicking a product along with the mould so that you can have an idea how it looks.


Some of the cakes baked for Wedding Anniversaries and Birthdays.
The one below was for Dr Sudhakar and Cindy's 35th wedding anniversary.I am sure the cake matches that broad smile.


This was for Nikhil's brthday:


And this was for my sister's 25th wedding Anniversary:


As for the one below don’t go by the looks. It may look dull but its made with almond, peach and yoghurt. A different taste altogether.


As I was sure that the cakes would be a hit, I used to distribute them to the volunteers at the Flickr photo exhibitions held in Pune and also at the Flickr meet.
Then there was the cake and wine sessions at the Orkut FM meet
The below picture speaks for itself when it was distributed at a Flickr meet at RSI Pune which was sponsored by Captain Nandu Chitnis Though it may look like a posed photo, it is not.


Thanks to the quick reaction by Sahil who did a good job of clicking a lovely candid picture.

Coming back to me, I forgot how to bake a simple sponge cake.
(to see the complete pictures click on them)