I guess blogging everyday puts such a mental strain, that sometimes I wonder what to put down at the beginning of each blog post. Seriously, I am blogging at such a mad pace only to finish off the amount of drafts I have in my list. You may be wondering, "What's wrong with her? She has a lot of drafts, so she should relax!" Yes, I wish I could but sometimes when I look at the dates that I have saved certain drafts, it does come with a huge shock to me as to how long it takes for what I have cooked to appear on the blog.
For example, the time this cake was baked... never mind, I don't think I have to dwell on it. It was one of my sneak bakes when D and umma had gone for their medical check ups. When she came back, she saw the cake on the cooling rack and was a bit upset. She does not mind small cakes, but then this one was quite huge as per her! And as it normally happens, before we can even enjoy a nice big slice, guests come in and take away a huge chunk of the cake leaving us only leftovers and craving for more! Exactly what had happened with the Banana Crumbs Cake that I had baked... hehe... At least then umma feels satisfied that the whole lot of "sweet" did not land up only in our tummies... But I must say that this is a guilt free cake, with wholewheat and the goodness of dates, and hardly any ingredients to make it. My first bake with dates, this is and definitely going to be a repeat feature...
For example, the time this cake was baked... never mind, I don't think I have to dwell on it. It was one of my sneak bakes when D and umma had gone for their medical check ups. When she came back, she saw the cake on the cooling rack and was a bit upset. She does not mind small cakes, but then this one was quite huge as per her! And as it normally happens, before we can even enjoy a nice big slice, guests come in and take away a huge chunk of the cake leaving us only leftovers and craving for more! Exactly what had happened with the Banana Crumbs Cake that I had baked... hehe... At least then umma feels satisfied that the whole lot of "sweet" did not land up only in our tummies... But I must say that this is a guilt free cake, with wholewheat and the goodness of dates, and hardly any ingredients to make it. My first bake with dates, this is and definitely going to be a repeat feature...
Wholewheat Dates Cake
Makes a 9 inch cake
Recipe adapted from here
30 dates, pitted and chopped
2 cups milk
3/4 cup oil
2/3 cup sugar
2 cups wholewheat flour (aatta)
1 tsp baking soda
2 cups milk
3/4 cup oil
2/3 cup sugar
2 cups wholewheat flour (aatta)
1 tsp baking soda
Method:
Preheat the oven to 180 degrees. Grease and flour a 9 inch pan well. Set aside.
Soak the dates in milk for at least 6 hours.
Mix the wholewheat flour and soda in a bowl. Grind the dates, milk and sugar to a smooth paste. Empty into a bowl. Whisk in the oil till well combined. Sift in the dry ingredients and mix with a whisk till smooth and no lumps are formed. Pour into the pepared tin.
Bake for 45 minutes or till skewer comes out clean. Cool in the tin for sometime. Then transfer to a wire rack and cool completely. Slice and enjoy this guiltless pleasure...
Notes:
1. The original recipe asks to preheat the oven to 200 degrees and I did that. My oven got so hot that as a result the top of my cake cracked, just like how it happened for my Black Forest Cake! So it is suggested to preheat at the same temperature that you are going to bake, it is much safer and better for the cake!
2. Adjust the sugar as per the sweetness of the dates.
3. You can add nuts for some additional crunch, which I didn't add.