Bombay Pav/Pau

Any person who comes from Bombay ( I still cannot call the place Mumbai) will always love the 'Bombay/Mumbai Pav'. This bread is used for making Vada Pav, Pav Bhaaji, Kutchi Dabeli, Keema Pav, Maska Pav and so many other yummy things.

I have a Laadi Pav  recipe from 2012 - I have always got amazing results. But, I have always tried to mix and match the ingredients to get it as close to the Pav from the local bakery back home as possible. 

This one hit a home run. It was exactly as Khan Uncle made it in his small bakery at Evershine nagar in Malad. The pav from his bakery were used for making all the yummy delicacies at home. I miss all this.... but, am happy to be able to make my own stuff too. I always say.... Yeast is my best friend. 

Ingredients

3/4 cup warm water (100 F) - do not use hot water or else it will kill the yeast
2 teaspoons (tsps) yeast (active dry yeast)
1/2 cup warm milk (100 F)
2 tablespoons (TBS) sugar
1/2 tsp salt
4 TBS melted butter OR Olive Oil
3 to 3 1/2 cups Bread Flour/All Purpose Flour 
1 TBS butter to put on the top of pav (optional)

Method

In a mixing bowl add the warm water and sugar and yeast and let it sit for 10 minutes till it becomes a frothy mixture - this shows that the yeast is active and that its proofed.
Add the warm milk, salt, butter/oil, garlic powder, pepper powder, italian seasoning and mix well. Now add the flour one cup at a time and mix well till everything is incorporated. I used only 3 cups flour in this stage.
Take this sticky dough on the counter - you may add a little dough (1 tablespoon at a time) to get a soft dough (it will still be a bit sticky). Knead this dough very well for 7 to 10 minutes. This is important to get the gluten going.
Make it into a ball and keep it in a big bowl that is greased with some oil. Let it sit covered in a warm place for 11/2 hours untill it gets double in size.
Punch the fluffed up dough and knead again for a minute. Make 15 equal portions (medium pav size) or 24 equal portion (small size). Place these on a  greased 9X13 pan in a line with a little space in between each roll. Cover it with a kitchen towel and let it sit in a warm place for 45 minutes till the rolls have doubled in size.
Preheat the oven to 380 F. Bake in the oven for 12 to 15 minutes till the tops of the rolls become brown. I try and tap the tops and when it sounds hollow, I know its done.
Remove from oven. Take the butter and smear it on the top of the pav with a brush when its hot - this will give it a beautiful glaze. This is an optional step. Let it cool on a wire rack before serving.

Whole Wheat Pav

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups lukewarm water

2 1/4 tsp yeast (1 packet)

4 TBS sugar

1/4 tsp salt

3 TBS vital gluten (powder)

2 1/2 to 3 cups wholewheat flour

1 cup Bread Flour or All Purpose Flour

4 TBS butter (melted)

Method

Add water sugar and yeast and let it sit for 10 minutes to allow the yeast to bloom. To this add the melted butter, salt and 2 1/2 cups wheat flour and 1 cup All purpose Flour /Bread Flour and vital gluten. Mix it well and then knead it. I used a stand mixer to do this - but, it can be done by hand too. If the dough is wet, add 1 TBS wheat flour at a time to knead and get a soft round dough. Knead the dough for 8 to 10  minutes. Grease a pot with oil and add the dough to it, cover and let it sit in a warm place for 1.5 hours or untill its doubled in size. After the first rise, punch the dough and get all the air out. Knead it well and make 15 equal portions and makeinto smooth rounds. Lay them in a 3 colums and 5 rows pattern in a 9X5 tray. Cover and let it rise in a warm place for an hour. Preheat oven to 400 Degrees Farhenhite. Place the raised pavs in the oven and bake for 12 to 15 minutes till the tops are a golden brown. Get them out of the oven and brush with butter on the top (this is an optional step). Golden soft wholewheat pavs are ready to be savored.

Bun Maska

Corona Virus has kind of taken over the World. We have been in quarantine for 15 days now. I have stepped outside the house only to go to the backyard or to walk to the post box. 

Well, quarantine has its fun times too. As movie lovers, this is the time we are catching up on tons of movies. Weekdays are still quiet busy for the hubby and the baby as they both have work and school respectively. However, weekends are filled with movies and lots of popcorn. 

Yesterday we watched this cute Netflix Original movie called 'Maska'. Maska means butter in Hindi. The movie is a lighthearted coming of age story centered around a century old Irani Cafe. These cafes were a hightlight of South Mumbai. Not many exist now, but a few that do still serve this amazing bun maska with Irani chai and a lot of other goodies. These cafes are owned and run by people belonging to the Parsi community in India. 

I was watching the movie, but wa secretly salivating thinking about Bun Maska and Irani Chai.

So, today morning - woke up and got this bun started and waited with eager breath for it to be baked.

Yum Yum Goodness.

Ingredients

1/2 cup lukewarm water
3 tablespoons sugar
2 1/4 teaspoon active dry yeast (1 packet)
4 tablespoons butter (melted)
1 cup lukewarm milk
3 1/2 cups Bread Flour or All Purpose Flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 tutti fruti or raisins
2 tablespoons milk (to brush the tops)
oil for coating the dough


Method

in a stand mixer add the water, sugar and yeast. Let the yeast bloom for 5 to 0 minutes. Now add the milk, salt, butter and flour. Mix it at a very slow speed till everything is intergrated. Once integrated, inscrease the speed and let the mixer knead the dough. If the mixture looks too wet, add 1 tablespoon flour at a time to get a soft dough. Knead the dough for about 10 to 12 minutes. This can be done by hand too and believe me when I say, its a very theraputic experience. At the end, add the raisins or tutti fruti and mix well.

Once done, coat the dough with oil and let it rest covered in a warm dry place. In about an hour or hour and half (depending on the heat and humidity of the place) the dough would rise in volume, almost double. Now get it out and give it a nice punch to get all the air out. punch and knead for about 3 to 4 minutes. Now grease a 9X13 cake pan with oil. Make 15 small rounds of the dough. Make smooth rounds and place them in the pan with space in between. Cover and let it sit in a warm place. About 45 minutes or an hour later, the dough would have risen. Prheat the oven to 380 degrees farenhite. Take a brush and brush the tops very softly with the milk. Be very careful, as you do not want to get any of the air out and deflate the dough.

Bake it in the oven for 15 minutes. The tops should look nice and golden brown and when you tap it, it should be hard and sound hollow. Get it out of the oven and let it cook. After 15 minutes, remove it on a cooling rack. Seperate the buns. Cut it int he middle and slater with some yummy butter (maska) and relish the yummy goodness.

If you want it to be a bit sweeter. After the first raise, add some sugar to it before kneading and shaping it into pavs.

This maska pav with Irani chai is like heaven in your mouth. Took me back to the Irani Cafes.

Honey Oat Bread (Can be made in a Bread Machine too)

Bread Baking is a hobby and a passion. The waiting with baited breath to get the yeast to rise and the kneading of the dough and then the wait to get the dough raised to double its size only to punch it down and knead it again. And of course the best part - the aroma of freshly baked bread when it spreads through the house.

I know I know - its too dramatic on my part. But, that's exactly how I feel about baking a bread at home. Its pure excitement. Of Course the family loves home baked bread and that's a big perk in itself.

We bake a bread at home every week. We try to go through just one loaf of bread in a week - so as to give other food items a chance to be part of our consumption too. No other reason. We believe in equality.

I have been baking a whole wheat bread for a long time. Wanted to incorporate oats too. There are a lot of recipes out there. Somehow, it never interested our palette. I tried experimenting and finally came up with this recipe which is a keeper. The bread is a little different texture wise as it is a bit crumbly compared to a white bread or a whole wheat bread - but, its soft and airy and has a beautiful aroma. Can be toasted and had with jam or butter or if you are not a fan of toasting it, you will like it just like that too. We love to toast it on a pan with a drizzle of ghee (Clarified butter) - yummmmm!!!!!!!

Ingredients

1 and 1/4 cup warm water (do not use hot water)

1/3 cup honey

2 and 1/4 teaspoon active dry yeast (1 packet)

4 tablespoons oil (I use olive oil)

1 and 1/2 cup oats flour (I used old fashioned oats that were ground in a blender)

1 and 1/2 to 2 cups bread flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

some extra flour (for kneading if you are not using the breadmaker)

Method

In a stand mixer add the warm water, honey and yeast. Let the yeast bloom. This should take about 5 to 10 minutes. Now add the salt and oil and the oats flour and bread flour (1 and 1/2 cups). Start stirring the mixture. If you see its a little loose, add 2 tablespoons of bread flour at a time and mix well. You should get a soft dough which forms a round on the dough hook, but is sticky to touch.
Mix it with the dough hook on medium speed for about 10 minutes. You could do this by hand too. Remove the dough out and mix it with oiled hands and put it back into the greased bowl. Cover and let it sit in a warm place for about 1 hour until it rises to double its size.
Once its doubled in size. Punch it in the bowl to release all the air. Get the dough out on a clean counter. Mix it well with hands and knead it for about 5 to 7 minutes. Spread some flour on the counter and using a rolling pin roll the dough into a oval shape. Now roll one end of the dough and connect the seams. Place it in a greased 9X5 bread loaf pan with the seam side down. Cover with a soft cloth and let it rise in a warm place for about 45 minutes to an hour.
In the last 15 minutes of its rise - preheat the oven to 350 Fahrenheit. Place the loaf pan carefully in the oven and let it bake for 30 to 35 minutes. After 30 minutes, check the bread, if you tap the top and it sounds hollow, you know the bread is cooked.
Remove the bread form the oven and immediately and carefully remove the bread onto a cooling rack. let it cook completely before you slice it.
This bread stays good for 3 to 4 days outside or for a week in the fridge.
Enjoy this yummy bread.

Notes

• Before baking, you could brush the top lightly with a mixture of equal parts honey and warm water and sprinkle some oats on top - to get a beautiful look.
• You can bake this bread in a breakmaker too. I have used my WestBend breadmaker with the white bread setting for 1 and 1/2 pound loaf. Just add the ingredients in the inner pot and start the cycle. 

Apple Pie Cake (with a crunchy cinnamon sugar topping)

Apple pie is one of those American Desserts that makes you go 'yes please!'. I have always loved apple pie with the flaky crust and the gooey apple cinnamon filling. Well, I had no patience to make the pie crust and I wanted to have an apple pie. What is the next best thing to do? Yes, you try and make a cake that tastes like the apple pie.
While I was looking for pie crust recipes - I had stumbled upon this cake recipe. Something that had been on my mind but never got to the oven. I took inspiration from this recipe at 'Pinch of Yum'
I tweaked the recipe a bit in terms of the sugar I used (used a little less than mentioned) and the amount of apples I used too (used a bit more - just because I did not want to munch on raw apples). I also had an orange sitting on my table, so used the zest and the juice. Was not my intention to change the recipe......... lets just say.....it happened.
We loved the cake. It tasted good warm and cold. And we had it with a side of vanilla ice-cream on one occasion too.

Ingredients

1 cup brown sugar

1/3 cup vegetable oil

1 egg

1 cup buttermilk

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 1/2 cups All Purpose Flour

2 cups chopped apples

1 teaspoon allspice powder

1 teaspoon orange zest

4 tablespoons orange juice

1/2 cup sugar

1 tablespoon butter

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Method

Preheat the oven to 325 F and grease a 9X13 pan. 

Cut the apples into small pieces and add the orange juice to it (this will prevent it from browning). Sieve the flour, allspice powder, baking powder and baking soda together and keep aside. In a bowl, mix the brown sugar, oil, buttermilk and egg. No need to beat the mixture. To this add the vanilla extract and the orange zest and mix well. To this add the dry flour mixture and incorporate the mixture well. Add the chopped apples and incorporate everything well. I used a spatula to do this. Pour the batter into the 9X13 pan and spread it evenly using the spatula. 

Mix together the butter, cinnamon powder and sugar. Using your fingers spread this mixture on top of the batter very evenly. Pop it into the oven.

The recipe said bake for 45 minutes. Insert a toothpick and check for doneness. If it comes out clean, your cake is baked, if not, you need to bake for another 5 to 10 minutes. 

At 45 minutes my cake was still very raw. So, I had to bake for another 10 to 15 minutes. 

Remove from oven and cool a bit. Slice and serve warm with vanilla ice-cream or just like that. 

Chocolate Marble Cake (Hot Milk Cake Method)

Mr. A turned a year older and wiser this Tuesday. As always - his birthday cake is always a new trial. Thankfully it has always been a hit and never a miss. Imagine your birthday cake going bad with no backup. This year Lil Miss A insisted on a chocolate cake - she only wants everything in chocolate flavor. Well, our birthdays are just another day for her to get excited and so we obliged. I had told her that it will not be a full chocolate cake, but will have some vanilla (white) cake too She was excited as long as I promised the frosting was going to be chocolate. Well, this girl sure knows what she wants.
So the search for something new started. I always wanted to bake this old method of baking cake. It was a cake during the depression era - it uses the most basic ingredients - and as described, it is so sweet and soft on its own, that it feels like a rich dessert. I stumbled upon this recipe on pinterest with only a picture of the written recipe (no source) - but, this is such an old recipe that the origin is not known and its simple and common. You will find so many blogs and sites with the same recipe. 

There is something about old recipes that has an old world charm and they are simple and you feel like a part of history. Also, a great tasting dish makes them all the more special.

The cake is a vanilla cake - but, since Lil Miss A wanted it to be a chocolate cake - that is what she got with the addition of the chocolate syrup in half the batter.

Ingredients

For the cake

4 eggs at room temperature
2 cups sugar
2 cups All Purpose Flour
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup milk
1/2 cup butter (1 stick)
1/4 cup chocolate syrup (I used Hershey's syrup)

For the frosting (ganache)

1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup white chocolate chips
3 tablespoons milk
1/2 teaspoon coconut oil/butter

Method

For the cake

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit.
Sift together the flour, baking powder and salt and keep aside. In a saucepan, warm the milk and the butter till the butter melts and there are bubbles formed on the side of the milk.
In a big mixing bowl, beat together the sugar and the eggs until they become nice and fluffy. This should take about 10 minutes. It should look like its doubled in size. Add the vanilla extract and mix well. Add the milk and butter mixture and mix well till all is incorporated. Add the flour mixture 1/3 at a time and fold it in. Do not over mix but fold in to get a smooth batter. This batter will be a little more thin than other cake batters.
Grease a bundt pan and add half of the vanilla batter into it. In the other half, add the chocolate syrup and mix well till all is incorporated. Pour this mixture over the vanilla mixture.
Bake it in the preheated oven for 50 minutes to an hour. After 50 minutes check to see if a toothpick inserted comes out clean - if yes, the cake is done - else let it bake for another 5 minutes before checking.
Once done, remove it from the oven and let it cool for 10 minutes and then remove from the mold onto a wire rack to cool completely.

For the frosting (ganache)

In a bowl add the semi sweet chocolate chips and 2 tablespoons milk and microwave for 30 seconds - stir it well and microwave for another 30 seconds. Add 2/3rd part of the coconut oil and mix well till smooth. Let it cool a bit. In the same manner get the white chocolate ganache made.
Added them both to two ziploc bags and sealed it shut by removing all air. Make a small opening in the tip. Spread the ganache - one at a time on the completely cooled cake. Cut the cake and serve with coffee or tea or just like that.

Orange Blossom and Cardamom flavored Madeleines

These french cookies have been on my to-do list for a couple of years. I wonder why I never got to making them. About a year ago, I even went and purchased the madeleine mold from a store - and it was lying there in my basement along with all my other baking accessories. 

They are so easy to make - they look so cute - and they are delicious to taste. It is a cookie but has the texture of a cake. These are just amazing.

I had just got this bottle of orange blossom water and wanted to use it. Orange Blossom water is used a lot in Lebanese/Arabic cooking. Mind you - it does not have a citrus aroma, it is more flowery. Just as the name says, it is orange blossom water. But, the smell is divine. Ofcorse, the best thing to combine with it was crushed cardamom and that how this flavor came up.

The Madeleine Mold

Ingredients

2/3 cup sugar

2/3 cup butter (melted and cooled)

3 large eggs  at room temperature

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

2 teaspoons orange blossom water

1 teaspoon crushed cardamom

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 cup all-purpose flour, sifted

powdered sugar, for garnish.

Method

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit

Sieve/Sift together the flour and baking powder into a bowl and keep aside.

In a mixing bowl, add the sugar and eggs and mix well with an electric mixer till its nice and thick like a sauce. Add the orange blossom water, salt and cardamom powder and mix well. Now add the cooled melted butter and flour and baking powder mixture and fold it gently into the wet mixture until fully incorporated.

Refrigerate this mixture for atleast an hour. Very important step to get the famous hump on a Madeleine.

Grease and dust a madeleine pan. Add the batter to the prepared pan - 1 tablespoon into one well (I used a standard madeleine mold). Bake 12-14 minutes or until lightly golden around the edges. 

Remove from oven and cool in the mold for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely and dust some powdered sugar for garnish.

I got almost 30 madeleines from this batter - since I have a mold that makes 12 madeleines at a time - I had to use it 3 times.

Orange Bundt Cake

I had these 3 huge Oranges staring at me through my fridge drawer. My child only eats clementines and I like them too as they are the closest thing to the oranges we get back home. What do I do with these oranges was the question. And then I saw the tub of sour cream in my fridge too. I do not use sour cream much - I had this tub from the day we had made tacos. It was used as a garnish - so, the tub was still too full.
A fresh and citrusy orange pound cake is what came to mind. So, the zesting of the oranges started with the juicing of the same. Then came the big bowl to mix along with the electric mixer and the eggs and the other few things.
Lil Miss A was super excited to be helping mommy bake a cake. Her contribution or rather critique........... why is the cake batter not orange if its an orange cake? So, thats the only artificial thing that I added. But, the cake turned out just like any pound cake - moist and citrusy and very fresh. Added the sugar glaze to please Lil Miss A.


Ingredients

For Cake

1/2 cup butter (room temperature) or oil
1/2 cup sour cream
2 tablespoons orange zest
3 eggs (room temperature)
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 cups All Purpose Flour (APF)
1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt

For Glaze

2 tablespoons orange juice
1 cup confectioners sugar
1 teaspoon orange zest

Method

For Cake

Pre-heat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
Sieve the flour and baking powder through a mesh into a bowl and keep aside.
Add the butter and sugar to a bowl and beat it to get a nice soft creamy mixture. I use and electric mixer - but, a good old whisk and your hands can do the trick too. To this add the eggs and beat till you get a nice frothy mixture. Now add the sour cream, orange zest and salt and mix till it is a well incorporated mixture.
To this mixture add the flour in three batches and fold it in with a spatula - in intervals. Do not overmix. Just fold the flour into the wet mixture and get a nice flowing batter.
Grease and dust a bundt pan and add the prepared batter to it. Tap it on the kitchen counter 3 to 4 times to let any air bubbles to escape.
Bake in the pre-heated oven for 45 to 50 minutes or till a toothpick inserted into the middle of the cake comes out clean. Remove from oven and let it cool for 15 minutes before getting it out of the mold and cooling on a wire rack.

For Glaze

Mix all the ingredients together from the 'For Glaze' section when the cake is baking. When the cake is completely cooled - pour it over the top of the cake very evenly. Let it set for about half and hour and then slice the cake.

Mango & Cardamom Cake (using ready made mango pulp)

Mango - the king of fruits. And if its the Alphonso mango............ well, then you know you have hit the jackpot.

Mango season in India is like a festival. These mangoes are expensive in Bombay and other citis and in those beautiful coastal villages where my ancestors hailed from - mangoes grow in abundance. Alphonso mango is grown in Ratnagiri and the surrounding areas.
Mango season is a family event - and every family makes it special in their own way. My mother used to make fresh mango pulp by grinding the pulp and adding sugar to it and then bringing it to a boil and preserving it in glass bottles which were frozen in the freezer. This way we enjpyed Alphanso mangoes all year through.

Nine years ago I moved to the United States with my husband. I have not tasted an Alphonso mango or any Indian mango for that period of time. I have eaten those Mexican mangoes - but, they are not like the Alphonso or the Kesari that we get back home. I remember the other varieties too. In our native village it was the most amazing ishad mango and then my aunt had a mango tree in her yard which grew the most sweetest mangoes called 'got'.

Well - thats the mango saga from back home in India. Here we do get mango slices at the Indian store. They are the frozen ones and are good for making mango milkshakes, mango lassis and even mango shrikhand (amrakhand).

I always have a can of mango pulp at home. At times I do not get those fresh mango slices and that's when this comes in handy. It is loaded with sugar I know - but, having one handy always helps. Below are the two pulps that I have in my pantry.
Both images were sourced from the net (I just did a google image search for mango pulp cans) 

I had opened one can and had some of the unused pulp inside

my fridge. Had to use it up before it got bad. So, finally gave in and made the mango cake. I have not been a fan of fruit cakes ever (except the banana bread) as these cakes turn a bit dense. But, I was pleasantly surprised at how this cake came out spongy and moist and had the right amount of spring to it. The addition of cardamom took it to a whole different level. The beautiful golden hue on the cake is what spring and summer are made of............. yes, we need that here. These below freezing temperatures are kinda getting annoying now.

Ingredients

1/2 cup butter
3 eggs (at room temperature)
1 cup mango pulp
1/2 cup sugar
2 cups All Purpose Flour (Maida)
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup milk
1 tsp cardamom powder

Method

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Grease a cake pan - I used a bundt pan. But, you could use a 9X13 (inch) baking pan. Or you could even get 20 to 24 cupcakes out of it.
Sieve the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cardamom powder and salt and keep it aside.
In a mixing bowl - beat the eggs till they are nice and fluffy. Add the sugar and mix well till it gets dissolved. Add the melted butter (make sure it is not hot) and milk and mix well for about 5 minutes. Now add the mango pulp and fold the mixture lightly till everything is integrated.
Add the flour mixture and fold it in using a ladle. Mix it well till no lumps can be seen. Be careful not to overmix.
Pour it into the pan and bake for 30 to 40 minutes. After 30 minutes check to see the doneness using a toothpick. Insert the toothpick in the middle of the cake and remove - if its clean, its done - else let it bake for another 5 minutes before checking.
For cupcakes the baking time will be in between 8 to 12 minutes.
Remove onto a cooling rack and cut after its cooled down.

Tutti Frutti Cake

 I had got about 4 huge packets of tutti frutti from the Indian grocery store during Christmas. I used only 2 of those packets to make the Christmas Cake. 1 packet was given to a friend. So, I had 1 whole packet lying in my freezer. I had to make use of it before next Christmas. So, made this tutti frutti cake when a friend came visiting for some chai (tea) and cake.

What is Tutti Frutti??? I got a nice explanation from Wikipedia (Tutti Frutti)

"Tutti frutti (from Italian "all fruits", also hyphenated tutti-frutti) is a colorful confection containing various chopped and usually candied fruits, or an artificially created flavouring simulating the combined flavour of many different fruits. It is often used for making a tutti frutti ice cream flavor.

Fruits used for tutti-frutti ice cream include cherries, raisins, and pineapple, often augmented with nuts.[1] In the Netherlands, tutti-frutti (also "tutti frutti," "tuttifrutti") is a compote of dried fruits, served as a dessert[2][3] or a side dish to a meat course.[4][5] In Belgium, tutti-frutti is often seen as a dessert.[6] Typically, it contains a combination of raisins, currants, apricots, prunes, dates, and figs.

In the United States, tutti-frutti can also refer to fruits soaked in brandy or other spirits, or even to fruit fermented in a liquid containing sugar and yeast.[7]

In India, tutti-frutti refers to candied raw papaya. These are always small cubical pieces often brightly colored. The most common color being red, tutti-frutti are also available in rich green and yellow colors. These are used in various bakery products including cakes, milk-breads, cookies, dilkhush and buns. Tutti-frutti is also used in cold deserts as toppings for the ice-creams and sundaes. They are also used in sweet paans and sangeet (paper-masala)"

Ingredients

3 eggs at room temperature

1 cup milk

1/3 cup butter

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

2 cups All Purpose Flour (APF)

1 cup sugar

1 cup tutti frutti (dust it with 1 TBS APF)

1 tsp vanilla essence

1/4 tsp salt

Method

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Grease a cake pan - I used a bundt pan. But, you could use a 9X13 (inch) baking pan. Or you could even get 20 to 24 cupcakes out of it.
Sieve the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt and keep it aside.
In a mixing bowl - beat the eggs till they are nice and fluffy. Add the sugar and mix well till it gets dissolved. Add the melted butter (make sure it is not hot) and milk and vanilla essence and mix well for about 5 minutes.
Add the flour mixture and fold it in using a ladle. Mix it well till no lumps can be seen. Be careful not to overmix. Fold in the tutti frutti.
Pour it into the pan and bake for 30 to 40 minutes. After 30 minutes check to see the doneness using a toothpick. Insert the toothpick in the middle of the cake and remove - if its clean, its done - else let it bake for another 5 minutes before checking.
For cupcakes the baking time will be in between 8 to 12 minutes.
Remove onto a cooling rack and cut after its cooled down.

Banana & Coconut Bread (not cake) - with yeast

I met Dillon Kesur on one of those food forums on facebook - and his rustic cooking and his love for food instantly caught my attention. He is just amazing with yeast and wild pears and edible flowers. He can cook any kind of food. The best part being - he is a very humble human being - needless to say I grew to admire him and connected with him on social media. I have learn a lot from him.

The other day he posted a picture of a banana and coconut bread using yeast - yes, it was actually a bread. Loved the flavors he used and how beautiful the crumb looked. I had to bake this bread. Thankfully, I did have 2 brown bananas that needed to be put to good use. I wanted to make it a bit sweeter as I cannot give up sugar completely - so, I added a bit of sugar to the dough. It turned out to be an amazing lightly sweet banana and coconut bread with hints of sesame. It was loved by my bread loving husband Mr. A and even our Lil Miss A.

Thank you Dillon for another gem of a bread recipe.

As he explained in his recipe - if you know the Jim Lahey No Knead Bread and the Ken Forkish Method (you can google them both) - making such breads becomes easy. 

I did not have any sourdough starter - so used yeast directly and made the sticky lacey dough along with the flavors of the bread. But, if you have a sourdough starter (I have the recipe for Sourdough Bread which has the starter recipe at the very beginning) make use of it.

Ingredients

2 bananas - mashed
1/2 cup coconut flakes
1 1/2 cups milk
3 cups bread flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 tablespoons sugar (optional)
2 cardamom pods - crushed (optional)
1/2 teaspoon active dry yeast
2 tablespoons sesame seeds (for topping)

Method

In a large bowl combine mashed banana, coconut flakes, sugar, milk, cardamom,flour, yeast and salt and mix with a wooden spoon till all is blended well. and you get a goopy and sticky mixture. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and let it rest in a warm place for about 16 to 18 hours.
After the 16 to 18 hours the dough will have almost doubled in size and will be covered in bubbles.
Remove the dough on a lightly floured work surface and fold it over on itself about 2 to 3 times.
Use a little flour to keep dough from sticking to work surface or to your fingers - do not use more then 1 tablespoon at a time and not more then 4 tablespoons in total (else the bread will become dense). Shape dough into a ball. Take a parchment paper and put some flour on the surface. Place the round shaped dough, seam side down and cover with a huge bowl. Let it sit for 2 hours undisturbed.
When it is ready, dough will be more than double in size and will not readily spring back when poked with a finger.
About one and half hours after you have kept the dough for its second rise preheat the oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit. Put a 6- to 8-quart cast iron pan in oven as it heats. After 2 hours of the dough resting - carefully remove pot from oven. Pick the parchment paper with dough inside and slide it into the pot. Shake pan once or twice to get even dough distribution. Sprinkle the sesame seeds on the surface. Cover with lid and bake 30 minutes, then remove lid and bake another 15 to 30 minutes, until loaf is beautifully browned. Cut after it has cooled down and relish with some coffee or tea and a dollop of butter.

No Knead Crusty Bread

I baked this no knead crusty bread last year (2014) on 29th January. I know I am posting the recipe after a whole year. Well, this bread does not need any introduction nor a recipe. The recipe is by Jim Lahey of Sullivan Street Bakery - a simple google search and the recipe will pop up. But the crust and the texture makes this one awesome bread.

Its a very simple bread to make - uses minimal yeast and no muscle power either. Just needs time 20 to 24 hours.

Ingredients

3 cups all-purpose or bread flour, more for dusting
1/4 teaspoon instant yeast
1 1/4 teaspoons salt
1 1/2 cups water
cornmeal or wheat flour or bread flour as needed

Method

In a large bowl combine flour, yeast and salt and water and mix with a wooden spoon till all is blended well. and you get a goopy and sticky mixture. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and let it rest in a warm place for about 16 to 18 hours.
After the 16 to 18 hours the dough will have risen almost double and will be covered in bubbles - just a proof that the yeast is working.
Remove the dough on a lightly floured work surface and fold it over on itself about 2 to 3 times.
Using just enough flour to keep dough from sticking to work surface or to your fingers, gently and quickly shape dough into a ball (be careful not to use too much flour) - its the water in the dough that makes the crust so crunchy and the crumb so beautiful.
Jim Lahey says to use a cotton towel to get the second rise - but, I used parchment paper. Put some cornmeal on the parchment and put the shaped dough seam side down on it and covered with a huge bowl and let it rise for the next 2 hours. When it is ready, dough will be more than double in size and will not readily spring back when poked with a finger.
About one and half hours after you have kept the dough for its second rise preheat the oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit. Put a 6- to 8-quart heavy covered pot (cast iron, enamel, Pyrex or ceramic) in oven as it heats. When dough is ready, carefully remove pot from oven. Pick the parchment paper with dough inside and slide it into the pot. Shake pan once or twice to get even dough distribution - do not worry about the shape, it will straighten out as it bakes. Cover with lid and bake 30 minutes, then remove lid and bake another 15 to 30 minutes, until loaf is beautifully browned. Cool on a rack.

Be very careful when you are handling the pans inside the oven - use proper oven mittens to remove it from the oven and to put it back in. It is very very hot.

Easy & Quick Baked Doughnuts with a Chocolate Ganache Glaze

My kiddo whom I lovingly refer to as 'Little Miss A' is a huge huge doughnut lover. She has loved those dunkin doughnuts for a long time. Now, she looks at pictures and asks me to make them at home. Guess, shes just like her Dad - ask mom to make something and she will do it types. No complains there. I love to cook food for these two most important people in my life - and it makes me very happy when I see them savoring every bite. Its like 'Mission Accomplished'
Now, traditional doughnuts are fried and then to top it they also have that sugary glaze - too many calories to indulge in on a regular basis. So, I was very fascinated when I saw these doughnut baking pans. I purchased one to make them for her. I saw quite a few recipes that used cake mix to make these baked doughnuts. I do not use cake mix and hence I kinda put baking these aside. Untill this Monday - 'Little Miss A' just sat breathing down my neck - saying doughnut doughnut since she woke up in the morning. So, the evening was spent in making these yummy fluffy treats.
She was happy - and I got the stamp of approval from her dad too.

Ingredients

For Doughnuts

1 cup All Purpose Flour/Maida

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon vinegar

1/4 cup oil (I used canola)

1/4 cup yogurt

1/4 cup water

1 egg

1/2 teaspoon vanilla essence

For Chocolate Ganache Frosting

1/2 cup chocolate chips

2 teaspoons milk

1/2 teaspoon butter

colorfull funfetti for added garnish

Method

To make the Ganache

microwave the chocolate chips, milk and butter in a bowl at 30 second intervals 2 times. Mix well till you get a nice and velvety chocolate sauce. Let this sauce/ganache cool down before you frost the doughnuts.

To make the Doughnuts

Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.

Add sugar, salt, flour, baking soda in a mixing bowl. Mix well and let it sit aside.
In another mixing bowl add oil, yogurt, water, egg, vanilla essence, vinegar and mix well till everything is combined. Now add this mixture into the dry mixture and combine everything well. Do not overmix.

Grease your doughnut pan with oil. 

You can use an icing bag, a doughnut pouring bottle, those ketchup bottles you get or just a simple ziploc back (cut a small hole in the corner to pour the batter). Add the batter to the doughnut mould/pan - just fill half of it (as shown in the picture) 

Bake for 10 to 12 minutes till the tops turn a nice golden brown. Remove them from the pan and let them cool on a wire rack. The color should be like its in the picture below.

Dip the doughnut in the ganache and then let ti sit on the wire rack. You can sprinkle some funfetti for added color.
Savor with a cup of coffee or with a glass of milk.

We baked a total of 12 doughnuts with these measurements. If you do not have a doughnut pan - you can make them in a mini muffin pan (they will resemble doughnut holes) or even a cupcake pan (here the baking time may vary - just insert a toothpick and see its baked through in 12 to 15 minutes)

Savoury Kugelhoph - We Knead to Bake # 7

Month no. 7 and that means its time for bread #7. For the month of July Aparna decided tht we all should make a savory bread, as many had asked for it. Well, thats how the 'Kugelhoph' was decided.
I have learnt a lot from being a part of the 'We Knead to Bake' group and enjoy baking these yummy breads.
Aparna who pens at My Diverse Kithen  comes up with these new breads and there is a lot of leaning for someone like me.

Kugelhopf (also spelt as Kugelhupf, Gugelhupf, Gougelhof, Kugelhoph, Kugloff Kuelopf, Kouklouf, Köjlhopf, Koejelhopf, Koïlopf, Köjhupf!) is a yeasted sweet cake well known in the Alsace region of France, as well as in Germany, Switzerland, and Austria, and variations of this are also found in some countries of Eastern Europe

The note below is what I picked from wikipedia

A Gugelhupf, Guglhupf or Gugelhopf is a southern German, Austrian, Swiss and Alsatian term for a marble cake or Bundt cake. Supposedly the part "Gugel-" is a variation of the Middle High German word gugel (hood), and the part "-hupf" is a variation of "Hefe" (yeast). Folk etymology says that the "-hupf" part comes from the German word hüpfen (to jump), as the yeast dough literally "jumps out of" the cake pan.
In Hungary the spelling is kuglóf, in Croatia and Serbia the spelling is kuglof, in France kouglof and in Romania it's called guguluf. In the Czech Republic and Slovakia, it is called bábovka, and in Poland babka. In the Republic of Macedonia the cake is known as куглоф (transliterated, kuglof). In Upper Austria it has a different name: "Wacker" or "Wacka". In Slovenia, the standard word is šarkelj. In Western Slovenia, it is also known as kuglof, and in Central and Eastern Slovenia, kugluh.
A two-colored Czech version called "Bábovka". The dark brown portions of the crumb contain cocoa.
Gugelhupf is a big cake and has a distinctive ring shape or the shape of a torus. It is usually eaten with coffee, at coffee breaks.
Gugelhupf consists of a soft yeast dough which contains raisins, almonds and Kirschwasser cherry brandy. Some also contain candied fruits and nuts. Some regional varieties (Czech, Hungarian and Slovenian) are also filled, often with a layer of sweetened ground poppy seeds.
It is baked in a special circular pan with a central tube, originally made of enamelled pottery. Similar pans are used for making Bundt cakes, a cake baking pan shape in the US derived from the Gugelhupf.
The Gugelhupf was the sweet chosen to represent Austria in the Café Europe initiative of the Austrian presidency of the European Union, on Europe Day 2006.

Well, this bread/cake is a sweet version - but, Aparna decided that we make the lesser known savory kugelhoph. The savory Kugelhoph traditionally has diced ham or bacon added. But, we tried and kept it vegetarian.

I followed the recipe that Aparna has on her blog, except for the addition of tomatoes - the link for the same is here

Ingredients

3 to 3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp instant yeast
1 tsp salt (or to taste)
75gm butter, at room temperature
3/4 cup milk
2 eggs, beaten lightly
1 tsp oil
1/3 cup chopped green bell peppers
1 cup onions, finely chopped
1/2 cup diced cheddar cheese (preferably sharp)
1/3 cup coarsely chopped walnuts
1 1/2 tsp coarsely crushed black pepper
1 tsp dried thyme

Method

This can be done by hand but it will be a bit sticky to handle, so use of food processor or stand mixer is recommended. Put 3 cups of flour, yeast, and salt in the bowl of the processor. Pulse a couple of times to mix. The add the butter, a little at a time, and process till incorporated.
Add the warm milk and process till mixed. Now add the eggs and process till mixed. You will now have a soft and sticky dough. Knead some more, adding more flour, a little at a time and just enough till the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl. Do not be tempted to add more flour than absolutely necessary.
Your dough will be very soft, elastic and just short of sticky. Transfer the dough to an oiled bowl, cover and let it rise until double in volume. This can take from 1 1/2 hours to 2 1/2 hours!
In the meanwhile, heat 1/2 a tsp oil in a pan. Add the chopped green bell pepper, the tomato and a pinch of salt and stir-fry till the raw smell disappears but the vegetables are still crisp/ crunchy. Remove and keep aside. To the same pan, add the remaining 1/2 tsp oil and sauté the onions with a pinch of salt till they turn golden brown. Remove and add to the bell peppers and keep aside.
Grease an 8” kugelhopf mould or bundt pan well especially around the centre (or whatever pan/ tin you plan to use). Place some of the chopped walnuts in the bottom of the mould. If you’re using a loaf tin or brioche moulds, then don’t do this. Instead press in the walnuts on top of the dough after the second rise, just before baking.
Once the dough has risen, deflate it. Then work the cheese, stir-fried onions, bell pepper and tomato, the remaining walnuts, black pepper and thyme into the dough. The best way to do this is to flatten the dough out and spread all this over the surface, fold the dough over and then knead it. This will ensure a more uniform incorporation of the “filling”. The dough will be a bit sticky, so use a scraper to help you with the kneading. Do not add more flour!
Roll the dough into a longish log, long enough to fit into the mould comfortably. Lift the “log” of dough and place it in the mould in a circular fashion and pinch the two ends together to close the “circle” of dough. Cover and let the dough rise for about an hour or so, until it reaches the edge/ rim of the mould.
Bake the Kugelhopf at 200C (400F) Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees for about 35 to 40 minutes until the top is golden brown and sounds hollow when it is tapped.
Unmould the Kugelhopf and let it cool on a rack. Slice and serve. This Kugelhopf should serve about 10 people and is also good for breakfast, as a snack or served with a simple soup.

Baked Doughnuts - We Knead to Bake # 6

We had baked these doughnuts in June 2013 in the 'We Knead to Bake' group with is the brainchild of Aparna who pens at My Diverse Kitchen

I loved doughnuts a lot.... well, loved is a wrong term as I still love them. However, once I knew they were these deep fried goodies, my love became rationed. I used to savor them on a very rare occasion. When Aparna said that we were going to bake doughnuts as bread #6, I was very very happy.

Well, my doughnuts turned out a bit flat, because I rolled the dough very thin and got a very big doughnut hole in the middle too, blame it on the katora/vati that I used to get the doughnut shape. But, overall - it was fun to bake these yummy things and even a good feeling to have a guiltfree baked doughnut. However, if you personally ask me - I would always go in for the deep friend doughnut, even if it means an occasional treat for me.

This recipe was adapted from Lara Ferroni’s Doughnuts

Ingredients

For the doughnuts
1/4 cup superfine sugar
1 cup warm milk (110 F)
1 tbsp active dry yeast
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp vanilla extract
2 1/2 to 3 1/2 cups cake flour (or all-purpose flour) divided, plus more for kneading
100gm butter, cut into 1 inch cubes

For the topping
75 to 100gm butter, melted
1 cup superfine sugar + 2 tablespoons cinnamon (more or less, depending on your taste), mixed together
OR
glazes of your choice (I used a readymade chocolate glaze)
OR
jam to fill your doughnuts

Method

Using a processor to knead helps but you can do this by hand.
Put the sugar, milk, yeast, salt and vanilla in the processor bowl and pulse to mix well. Add 2 1/2 cup cake flour OR all-purpose flour and process, adding a little more of the flour as necessary till the dough is thick and pulls away from the sides of the bowl.Now add the butter pieces one at a time and process till there no large chunks of butter are left in the bottom of the bowl. Now add a little more flour until your have a soft, pliable and elastic dough that is moist but not overly sticky.
Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and knead gently until the dough no longer sticks to your hands. Shape the dough into a ball and place in a lightly greased large mixing bowl., turning it to coat well. Cover and let it rise till double in volume. This should take about an hour.
Punch down the dough and roll out to a thickness of 1/2" (I rolled it thinner like a chapatti and hence those flat doughnuts). Cut out doughnuts using a doughnut cutter or whatever you have on hand to cut out 3” diameter with 1” diameter holes. If you’re making doughnuts to fill with jam, then do not cut out the holes. Place the doughnuts and the holes on parchment lined or lightly greased baking sheets, leaving at least 1” space between them.
Re-roll the scraps and cut out more doughnuts.
Let them rise for about 20 minutes or till almost double in size and then bake them at 200C (400F) for about 5 to 10 minutes till they’re done and golden brown. Do not over bake them.
Take them out of the oven and immediately brush them with the melted butter and then dip them into the cinnamon sugar mixture. If filling the doughnuts with jam, let them cool. Put the jam into a piping bag with a writing nozzle/ tip and press into the doughnut from the side and gently press out the jam into the doughnut till it starts oozing out. Jam doughnuts do not need too much jam to fill them. If glazing your doughnuts, let them cool completely and then dip one side of the doughnut in the glaze of your choice and let it set.

This makes about 15 doughnuts.

Semolina Banana Bread (Eggless)

have been experimenting baking banana bread with semolina flour. Finally got the recipe right and loved the outcome.

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups fine semolina (rawa)
1 1/2 cups milk
1/2 cup oil.ghee/butter
3 ripe bananas
1 cup sugar (you can make it 3/4 cup to make it a little less sweet - I did that)
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
pinch of salt
1 teaspoon cardamom powder
1 teaspoon nutmeg powder
1/2 cup coconut flakes/coarse powder (optional)

Method

Warm the milk a little  and add the semolina to it and mix well. Let this mixture sit for about 2 hours. In a mixing bowl, mash the bananas well and add the sugar and the oil/ghee/butter and mix. Add the baking powder, baking soda, salt, cardamom powder, nutmeg powder and mix well till everything is formed into an incorporated mixture. Now fold in the semolina and milk mixture and form a cake batter. Do not overmix.
Pour batter into a greased baking dish (9X5 loaf pan) and bake in a pre-heated oven at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for about 40 minutes. The toothpick test to see doneness - inset a toothpick int he middle of the cake, if it comes out clean, your cake is done.
Cool it on a wire rack and enjoy for breakfast or snack or as a dessert.

Strawberry & Banana Cake with semolina (rawa)

Baking is fun - Baking is passion - Baking is everything nice - Baking is indulgence - Baking............. well, you know I love baking. The oven, the heat, the batter, the dough, the process, the aroma and ofcorse not to forget the yummy goodies once out of the oven.
I have been baking banana bread with Semolina flour and All Purpose flour for sometime. Have been experimenting only with semolina - and I must say, the results are good and I am loving it.
I have tried a banana bread too with just semolina flour - shall update the recipe soon.
Here - I tired the famous smoothie combo - Banana & Strawberry in a cake form. My family liked it. 

Ingredients

1 ripe banana

7 to 8 strawberries

1/2 cup milk

1 cup fine semolina (rawa)

3/4 cup sugar

1 teaspoon baking powder

a pinch of salt

1/2 cup butter/oil/ghee

1/4 cup milk or 1 egg

Pit the strawberries and puree it with the peeled banana in a blender - do not add water. Mix the 1/2 cup milk, the 1 cup semolina and the strawberry banana puree and let it sit for about an hour.
In a mixing bowl, take 1/2 cup oil/butter/ghee and add 3/4 cup sugar and mix well. Now add the milk or egg and baking powder and mix everything well. Add the semolina mixture and fold everything in together very well. Do not overmix once you add the semolina mixture.
Add the batter into a greased baking pan and bake in a pre-heated oven at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for about 30 to 40 minutes. To check doneness, just insert a toothpick in the middle of the cake, if it comes out clean, the cake is done.
Cool on a wire rack and enjoy.
Makes a loaf in 9X5 loaf pan or a flat bundt cake in a bundt pan (as I made mine)

Bialys - We Knead to Bake # 5

Bread No. 5 in the We Knead to Bake project was Bialys. I had tasted this bread at a friends place. She had bought them at a store bakery. We had it lightly toasted with some butter and it was accompanied by ginger tea. So when Aparna from My Diverse Kitchen said we were going to be baking Bialys......... I was very happy.

We Knead to Bake with bread no. 5 for the month of May in the year 2013 - yes, I am late in posting the recipe here. I had cooked quite a few things last year and baked a few things too. And also was a regular with the we knead to bake group. However, never got to posing the recipes here on the blog. Blame my health and the feeling of just lazing and doing nothing that had taken over my whole life last year.

Well - I am much better now and will be posting all the recipes to the food and to the baked goodies in the coming days.

The Bialys maybe thought of as a cousin to a Bagel but is quite different from it. For one thing, a Bialy is baked whereas a Bagel is boiled and then baked. A Bialy is round with a depressed middle, not a hole, and typically filled with cooked onions and sometimes poppy seeds. So it is not shiny on the outside with largish puffy bubbles on the inside. A good Bialy should have a springy soft crumb and a chewy and floury crust. A lot of people slather Bialys with butter or cream cheese but they are also nice as they are. Bialys are best when eaten within 5 to 6 hours of making them.

The name Bialy comes from Bialystocker Kuchen which translates as “bread from Bialystok” which is in Poland. Apparently, Bialys are rarely seen or made in Bialystock these days. In the days when there used to be Bialys in Bialystock, it seems the rich Jews ate Bialys with their meals, while the Bialys were the whole meal for the poorer Jews. In the early 1900s, many Eastern Eurpoeans, including the Polish, immigrated to the US and settled down in New York. Naturally, they also brought their Bialy making skills with them and that is how the New York Bialy became famous.

What lends Bialys their signature chewiness is the use of flour that is high in gluten. It is suggested to use bread flour if you can find it. Otherwise use all-purpose flour and add 1 tbsp vital wheat gluten (for the 3 cups).  If you cannot find bread flour nor vital wheat gluten, go ahead and make it with plain flour. You’ll still have very nice Bialys that are slightly softer.

One way to make them slightly chewier: just refrigerate the dough overnight after the first rise. The next day, take the dough out and keep it at room temperature for about half an hour. Then shape the rolls and proceed with the recipe. These Bialys are on the softer side so do not over bake them or they will dry out and become tough.

Bialys usually have a thin layer of caramelised onions and poppy seeds. I caramelized my onions with a hint or rosemary and some balsamic vinegar and they tasted yum.

This recipe is adapted from King Arthur Flour

Ingredients

For the dough

1 teaspoon instant yeast
1 tbsp sugar
1 1/4 cup warm water
3 cups all-purpose flour (use bread flour if you can find it or all-purpose flour + 1 tbsp vital wheat gluten)
1 tsp salt
Milk for brushing the dough

For the Onion Filling

1 tbsp oil
3 medium onions, finely chopped
2 teaspoon dried rosemary (crushed)
2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar
Salt to taste

Method

Make the dough first. If you are using bread flour or vital wheat gluten, then your dough will be tougher to knead so if you have a machine you can use, go ahead and use it. If you’re doing this by hand, just adapt the instructions to that.
Put the yeast, sugar, salt and flour in the food processor bowl. Pulse a couple of times to mix and then add the warm water in a steady stream. Knead until the dough comes together as a mass and then let the dough rest for 10 minutes. This will help the dough absorb water. Knead again, adding a little more water or flour (not too much) if you need it, until your dough is smooth and elastic but not sticky.
Shape it into a ball and put it in a well-oiled bowl, turning the dough till it is well coated. Cover and let it rise till about double. This should take about 2 hours. If you’re not making the Bialys right away, you can refrigerate the dough overnight at this point. When ready to make them, keep the dough at room temperature for about half an hour and then proceed with the rest of the recipe.
In the meanwhile, make the filling. Heat the oil in a pan add the onions, and sauté over low to medium heat. Sprinkle a little salt and continue sautéing until they become soft and turn golden brown in color. Add the rosemary and the balsamic vinegar and saute for another 3 to 4 minutes. Keep the caramelized onions aside to cool.
Sprinkle your work surface lightly with flour and place the dough on it. Divide it into 8 equal pieces and shape each one into a roll by flattening it and then pinching the ends together to form a smooth ball. (See this video for shaping the rolls) Place the rolls on a lightly greased baking sheet and cover them with a towel. Let them rise for about one hour (about  1 1/2 to 2 hours for refrigerated dough)  till pressing with a finger on the top leaves a dent.
Work on one piece at a time, while you keep the others covered so they don’t dry out. When the rolls are ready, pick them up one at a time and using your fingers, form the depression in the middle. Hold the roll like a steering wheel with your thumbs in the middle and your fingers around the edges. Pinch the dough between your thumb and fingers, rotating as you go and gradually making the depression wider without actually poking a hole through.
Remember not to press on the edges, or they will flatten out. Once shaped, you should have a depression about 3” in diameter with 1” of puffy dough around the edge, so your Bialy should be about 4” to 5” in diameter. Prick the centre of the Bialy with a fork so the centre doesn’t rise when baking.
Place the shaped dough on a parchment lined (or greased) baking tray leaving about 2 inches space between them. Place the caramelised onion filling in the depressions of each Bialy. Brush the outer dough circle with milk.
Bake the Bialys at 230C (450F) for about 15 minutes till they’re golden brown in colour. Cool them on a rack. Serve slightly warm or at room temperature. This recipe makes 8 largish Bialys.

This is a video on how to shape the Bialys - How to shape Bialy

This is a video on suggestions to eat a Bialy - How to eat a Bialy