Eggless Pineapple Upside Down Cake

Pineapple upside down cake was on my list for a long time. I have been buying pineapples with the idea of cake in mind. But it eventually ended up in juice or jam. Recently, Sowmya of Creative Sage posted one. That brought the idea to the front again. during the weekend veggie shopping, I got one ripe pineapple. Decided to bake it on Sunday. But we had other plans. I thought this time too I should give the cake a miss. But somehow managed to bake it on Monday evening. I had bookmarked a recipe from JoyofBaking. I made it eggless with the use of flaxseeds powder and with slight changes in the ingredients. I got a moist cake

and was very happy with the result. The cake recipe can be made with variations to make different flavors. It had a perfect texture and not very dense in spite of using some whole wheat flour. It remained moist the next day too and has soaked in the flavors better.

Topping

Butter - 2 tblspn

Powdered Jaggery - 1/2 cup

Fresh pineapple slices - 7 nos


For the cake

All purpose flour - 1 cup

Whole wheat flour (Atta) -1/2 cup

Baking powder - 2 tspn

Salt - 1/4 tspn

Butter - 1/2 cup

Sugar - 1 cup

Vanilla essence - 1 tspn

Milk - 1/2 cup

Powdered flaxseeds - 2 tspn in 1 cup of water.



Topping

The original recipe asked for brown sugar which I didn't have. I was thinking of caramelizing white sugar instead of brown sugar. Then I remembered Sunita's recent dessert, where in she has used jaggery. I didn’t want jaggery to be overpowering so reduced to 1/2 cup in place of 3/4 cup of brown sugar as said in the recipe. Also used 2 tblspn less butter.

Add the grated jaggery and 2 tblspn of butter in a pan. Soon both will start melting and when it starts bubbling, remove. Transfer the melted jaggery and butter to the greased cake tin. I placed the slice pineapples on the syrup when warm.

Preparing the cake

Sift the dry ingredients together. Beat butter and sugar till light and fluffy. Mix the 2 tablespoons of flaxseeds in a cup of water. Add milk, flaxseed meal mixed with water and vanilla essence to the butter sugar mix. Slowly fold in the dry ingredients and mix it without any lumps, after each addition.

Bake in a preheated oven at 180 C for 50 minutes or till the top starts browning and the cake pulls from the sides. After removing from the oven, cool it for 10 minutes and invert it on a plate. With a scoop of ice-cream, the cake will make an exotic dessert.

Note: In place of fresh pineapple, canned slices can be used too.

The baking bug has caught on my sister too. After the recent Diwali purchase of a MW convection oven, she too is on a baking spree on weekends. I am delighted to see her first cake attempt turning successful, with my instructions over phone, inspite of the recipe on my blog.

My sister's first cake - Eggless Dates Cake

P.S. This is my 200th post. Thanks to all my fellow bloggers and readers for the inspiration and encouragement.

Swap Your Lightbulbs and Save the Earth

There is a new study out by the American Council for an Energy-Free Economy. here is an excerpt:

"Saving a kilowatt-hour through energy efficiency improvements is easily one-third or less the cost of any new source of electricity supply, whether conventional fossil fuel or renewable energy source."

We have already been hearing how fluorescent and/or LED lighting can save many kilowatt hours compared to incandescent. This study reinforces the notion that replacing energy hogging incandescent light bulbs in your home can contribute mightily to reducing global warming.

A penny saved is a penny earned, and a kilowatt hour saved is THREE kilowatt hours earned!

Peggy

Time’s Almost Up!

I know that most people like to wait until the last minute for things, but I don’t recommend it here.

On January 1st, 2010, a new law (AB1953) takes effect in California. It changes the amount of lead that is allowed to be in plumbing materials that come in contact with water. A little more specifically, if the part has more than 0.25% lead in the “wetted surfaces”, and the water that flows through it will be for human consumption, then it will be illegal to sell or install in California.

So angle stops (the valves under your sink), kitchen, bathroom and bar faucets (but not laundry faucets), all brass fittings and valves (but not shower valves) will all fall under this new law. (Other stuff may or may not, these were just some examples.)

Manufacturers are already getting rid of their inventories; selling them at discounts or pushing them into other states (only California and Vermont are affected by this new law). Our suppliers are offering deals, but we’re letting our inventory dwindle so we don’t get stuck.

This is the time for you to save some money, and you don’t want to wait until the last minute. Remember, the “last minute” is right around Christmas, so you’re not going to have any money!

If you wait until next year, you will end up paying more because the manufacturers are going to charge more. They had to spend money coming up with new processes or materials, which means new ways to make their items. If they have to spend money, it means they sell the item for more money.

It could also mean that the “new” item could have more plastic in it. If they could not find a way to make the item from metal that would meet the requirements of the new law, they may have made some parts plastic. Plastic is easy to make without lead, but it isn’t always as sturdy as metal.

So, to sum up…

- you could save money now because suppliers are selling their inventory at a discount.
- You will pay more later due to the increased cost of manufacturing.
- The part you get later may not be as sturdy as the parts currently available.

If you are thinking of having some plumbing work done, now is the best time to do it. And if you’re worried about lead content, just remember that California already has some of the toughest laws on lead in the country. It has been said that this new law won’t make an appreciable difference in the lead content in our water, but it will still be the law.

Still have questions? Call AB&R Plumbing today or visit our website.

South County - 949-642-7900

North County - 714-641-3200

Toll Free - 800-645-2689

Get your work done now to save money and “avoid the Christmas rush!”