ICED ITALIAN CREAM CAKE...for my 30th!

This time,I just didn't want a birthday cake for my birthday. I don't know why but when Jobin started asking me about what cake I wanted for my big day, I couldn't decide on any. Finally I told him that I didn't want a birthday cake and I didn't have a reason to give him for that choice of mine.Then he told me that they both (Father & Son ) wanted to make a cake for me.I agreed to it with the condition that they can cut it the day after my birthday ;-)

Anyhow, I agreed to join them and we chose a cake that I have been eyeing for a very long time. It was an Italian Cream Cake by Trisha Yearwood. It's a pretty straightforward cake loaded with calories! Since it was my birthday,I didn't care for the calories.It's a day to celebrate and not sit around counting how many grams of fat a slice of cake has,right?
Ian was very eager to help his Appa in baking the cake. Every single time I turn on the mixer,he is by my side. It was the same this time as well. We have to be a bit careful when he is around as he likes to add an extra cup of flour or an extra tablespoon of baking soda to the mix!

This cake is super spongy,moist and delicious! It is filled with sweetened coconut and pecans, a very Southern thing! The crunch from the two were irresistable! I still cannot believe that it's been 3 years since I made the 30 layered Nutella Crepe Cake for Jobin's 30th! Time sure flies! I had made a list of stuff that I wanted to achieve before I hit 30 last January...you can call them New Year resolutions too! I had only 5 months to achieve them and yes,I have ticked off the main thing off my list! I hope this new decade has plenty of good stuff in store for me. I am pushing myself into doing new things now and I really hope it's for the best!
Also, have you guys heard about Food Panda? You can search, choose,order food online from your favourite restaurants and it will be delivered for you !

ICED ITALIAN CREAM CAKE
Serves 12-15

Ingredients:
Cake:
1 stick unsalted butter,at room temperature
1/2 cup vegetable shortening
2 cups sugar
5 large eggs,separated
2 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup buttermilk
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup chopped pecans
1 cup shredded sweetened coconut

Frosting:
8 oz cream cheese,at room temperature
1/2 stick unsalted butter
1 pound confectioners sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup chopped pecans

Method: 
Cake: Preheat the oven to 350F / 180 C and prepare 3 9 inch cake pans.

Sift flour and baking powder together .In a large bowl,beat the egg whites to stiff peaks. In another bowl, beat together butter,shortening and sugar until pale and fluffy. Add in the egg yolks one by one and beat well after each addition,15 seconds each. With the mixer on low speed,add the flour and buttermilk alternately,starting and ending with flour.Fold in vanilla,pecans and coconut. Divide the batter among the tins and bake for 22-25 minutes. Let it cool in the pan for 10 minutes and then turn them out onto a cooling rack and let them cool completely.

Frosting: In a large bowl, beat together cream cheese and butter till fluffy. Add the confectioners sugar and vanilla and beat well to incorporate. Frost the cake as desired and scatter the chopped pecans on top.

 

CHICKEN KOFTE NOODLE SOUP

Soup is like my soul food! Chicken soup for my soul, would have been a better title but then that would have been too cheesy, right? I always loved soup and I always order soup whenever we eat out. When I was little, Appan used to tell me not to order a soup because that would fill my stomach and I wouldn't eat anything else,later. I still ordered it and ate everything else. So, later he stopped asking me not to order a soup before having a meal.

Soup is like a full meal to me. Even now, when we go out, I order a big bowl of soup and eat just that. I make soup very often at home, no matter what the weather is like. Hot or cold, I love a bowl of piping hot soup! Even though we are a soup loving family,it never appeared on the blog. There are so many things like that which does not appear here because I make them for our dinner and it's not the best time to photograph my favourite things :)

I usually make the American chicken noodle soup but this time, I had some ground chicken with me and Ian loves finger food! So, to kill two birds with one stone, I baked some kofta's for him using my favourite recipe and the remaining ones went into our soup. It was delicious! Here's how I made it:

CHICKEN KOFTE NOODLE SOUP
Ingredients:
For the kofte:
1 lb ground chicken
2 garlic cloves,minced
1/4 cup onion,grated
3 tablespoon cilantro
1 tablespoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon cayanne
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg

For the soup:
4 tablespoon olive oil
5 fat cloves garlic, chopped fine
2 carrots, cut into rounds
2 sticks of celery, sliced
5 cups chicken stock
50 grams rice noodles

Method: Kofte : Mix all the ingredients together,with light hands and refrigerate for 2-3 hours. Form small balls using wet hand and keep aside.
Soup: In a large pot, heat oil and saute the garlic for 30 seconds. Add the veggies and cook for 10 minutes or until they soften. Add the chicken stock and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer and slide in the kofte gently into the soup.Let it continue to cook for 15 mins. Add the noodles and cook for another 5 mins more. Check for seasonings and adjust to your taste. Serve hot!

We are in India right now, been here for the past 3 months. Ian is enjoying every second of his stay here,so am I. We will be returning soon and I am hoping (like always!!) to keep this space updated regularly. Now that Ian is getting bigger, I am hoping things will be smoother than before. He is an easy child and I am hoping he would get easier ;)