WHAT MAKES A PERFECT CUP OF HOT CHOCOLATE? Lecinqblog style!



YUMMY FROTHY HOT CHOCOLATE

 In the US ,it is simply called HOT-CHOCOLATE .In some other countries they call it COCOA.

In recent years too many variations have occured to the original simple recipe.

For me, the plain ole SIMPLE recipe tastes the best.
 No additions ,no toppings whatsover!

In this above picture what you see is a VEGAN HOT-CHOCOLATE.
The above picture was taken in 2009.
2009 was my second holiday season after having gone vegan.
I vaguely remember that I became vegan sometime in august or september of 2008.

The older non-vegan recipe that I MADE prior to 2009 used a bit of Animal breast milk to add to the richness.
But, this one?  100% PLANT PRODUCTS and I am being VERY HONEST here when I say that IT TASTES BETTER.

For one, it doesn't smell of something "body fluid" like and it is tastier too.(people who drink animal milk on a regular basis might not be able to appreciate the OFF SMELL of animal milk.But once you go vegan for a long time, when you attempt to drink animal milk once again, your nose clearly tells you about the off smell )

This HOT CHOCLATE has the perfect balance of lighter notes where you need it and the rich notes where you need it and This hot chocolate is fragrant on its own without the addition of any cinnamon at all!

WHAT MAKES A PERFECT HOT-CHOCOLATE?

1/ It must be served in a large cup and very hot.
Just to compensate for the cold weather outside and also a large serving keeps you hydrated in the cold(yes cold weather dehydrates you too) ..(Btw, apparently it is summer in some countries in december? blah,folks from those countries, just drink it hot anyways will ya? :) )

2/It must made from cocoa powder rather than those PROCESSED YUCKY PREPACKAGED SYRUPS. Use a good quality un-adulterated cocoa powder,k?

3/The final hot chocolate must not be too gluggy or thick , nor must it be too thin...Somewhere in between is just the right thing,k?

4/It should not be too sweet.The charm of a hot chocolate is for us to appreciate the slight bitterness and the aroma of the cocoa which btw is MESMERIZING.

5/Try and froth your hotchocolate during preparation..The froth kinda oxidizes stuff and brings out an added layer of taste.(must like coffee)

6/This above vegan hotchocolate DOESN'T contain any soymilk.According to me, soymilk INTERFERES with the chocolate taste.

7/DON'T add any spices .ruins the chocolate experience

8/DON'T add any marshmallows(which btw are melted animal hooves!) .again,they just ruin the pure chocolate experience.

POSTNOTE: Recipes not included due to plagiarism concerns.I device and design my own recipes all the time and I am saving up all recipes for a FUTURE VEGETARIAN COOKBOOK.

(Interested Cookbook publishers/food magazines/book agents/TV production houses , Please quote a valid office postal address and phone number along with your work email while sending a proposal to me.I regret to say that I am unable to respond to people contacting me with no OFFICIAL postal address or office phone number)

TAGS:HOT_CHOCOLATE,BEVERAGES,HOT_DRINKS,COCOA,HOLIDAY_DRINKS,VEGAN_HOT_CHOCOLATE

THE SCIENCE BEHIND THE SHAPE OF A BUNDT MOULD-HOLIDAY CAKES-MINI BUNDT

FESTIVE LOOKING BUNDT FRUITCAKES

Look AT that picture! Very festive looking and very enticing,no?
I love fruit cake.I already wrote another blog entry about Why I love making fruit cake during the holiday season .Go read it first.
This blog entry is more about the COOKING SCIENCE behind the BUNDT

WHAT IS A BUNDT?
A bundt is,simply put, A CAKE WITH A HOLE

HOW DOES A BUNDT GET A HOLE?
Simple ! It is cooked in a special bundt mould which looks more like a GUTTERED RING OF METAL. We pour the cake batter in this "metal Gutter of sorts" and then bake it.
Voila ! Cake with a hole in the center

DOES THE BUNDT MOULD HAVE A SCIENTIFIC REASON OR IS IT YET ANOTHER FANCY CAKE SHAPE?
Well, contrary to what people might assume that a bundt is just some fancy cake with a hole , the real bundt moIld was possibly made for scientific reasons.

I DIDN'T GOOGLE up the Bundt...But , Given the SMARTIE PANTS, PHYSICIAN WOMAN THAT ALSO COOKS AND LOVES SCIENCE WHILE SHE IS AT IT,
I am going to attempt to CONCOT a theory by myself.

HERE GOES MY PERSONALLY CONCOCTED THEORY"

SERVING SIZE BUNDT CAKE

Most cakes if NOT cooked for the required period in a dry baking oven, end up being UNCOOKED in the center.
The reason why a cake ends up uncooked in the center is mostly because that is the part to which the heat takes longest to reach.
The edges of the cake are usually in contact to the sides of the cake tin.
The bottom of the cake lies in contact with the bottom of the cake tin.
The center top of the batter is where it is not in contact with any hot metal during the baking period.

HERE IS WHERE THE BUNDT mould HELPS..
When there is no batter in the center, then we AVOID the possibility of having an uncooked batter.Right?

Also, because of its "GUTTERED RING" SHAPE, it allows a greater surface area of contact of the cake batter with a hot metal surface during baking.That ensures EVEN COOKING.

Also, given that there is no batter in the center, we will be able to cook the whole cake in a shorter time,and thus will end up with a more MOIST CAKE for the same time of cooking.

There ya go, THE SCIENCE OF COOKING of Bundt.
LOL.
Just had to let my nerd out in the food blog

I see far too many DUMB FOOD BLOG on the net. I figured, I must REVAMP the whole FOOD BLOG SCENE by throwing in a dash of SCIENCE BANTER into it.(I know I know, ALTON BROWN quickly comes to mind.I like him too)

POSTNOTE: Recipes not included due to plagiarism concerns.I device and design my own recipes all the time and I am saving up all recipes for a FUTURE VEGETARIAN COOKBOOK.

(Interested Cookbook publishers/food magazines/book agents/TV production houses , Please quote a valid office postal address and phone number along with your work email while sending a proposal to me.I regret to say that I am unable to respond to people contacting me with no OFFICIAL postal address or office phone number)

tags:desserts,cakes,bundt,fruticake,holiday_cakes,baking

How to make a HOLIDAY FRUIT AND NUT CAKE- Vegan cake recipes

These pictures are from 2009.

Each year,I get into FRUITCAKE BAKING MODE sometime around november....Just to remind myself of the "fruitcake times" from childhood.
My father used to get a lot of fruitcakes as CORPORATE gifts during the Holiday season .He also used to get a lot of fruit baskets and greeting cards during holiday season. Our fridge used to be stuffed with all the food gifts he got given during that season.Needless,each year, the whole of december and january , I would end up eating large slices of fruitcake each afternoon after I came back from school...YUM...Awww,childhood memories!

I just included three STEP BY STEP-HOW TO MAKE A FRUITCAKE pictures in this blog entry.



I haven't gone into details of the recipe , Just a simple THREE STEP pic collection

STEP 1 =SOAK

STEP 2 =BATTER

STEP 3 = BAKE

THIS IS A VEGAN RECIPE..

How did this vegan fruitcake taste compared to a non vegan one?

Actually, In all honesty, It tasted fresher and just as tasty .Infact,if I gave it to someone and never told them it was vegan,they would not know the difference.Except that, they might find it TASTIER THAN USUAL.

TAGS:vegan,cakes,baking,fruitcake,Fruit_and_nut_cake,soaked_cakes,holiday_cakes,food,food_pictures

POSTNOTE: Recipes not included due to plagiarism concerns.I device and design my own recipes all the time and I am saving up all recipes for a FUTURE VEGETARIAN COOKBOOK.

(Interested Cookbook publishers/food magazines/book agents/TV production houses , Please quote a valid office postal address and phone number along with your work email while sending a proposal to me.I regret to say that I am unable to respond to people contacting me with no OFFICIAL postal address or office phone number)

My favorite Snack to lounge with-FRESH FIGS !

I took this picture in 2009.

If I remember right, I did even write a blog entry about these figs in 2009.Look in archives for that article.

Finally,these last few months, I took the time to sort out all my old food pictures and decided to finally share some food pictures on this food blog..We all like food pictures, don't we?LOL

Included in this picture is a tiny glimpse of the NEWSPAPER I was reading that day too...I call this "LOUNGE AROUND SNACK" coz ..I usually sit down with my laptop and newspaper and a cup of coffee and  a nice fresh snack like a bowl of figs and essentially CHILL OUT...looking out of the window , staring at the blue skies and clouds.

TAGS:Figs,fruit,healthy_snacks,food_pictures,food

POSTNOTE: Recipes not included due to plagiarism concerns.I device and design my own recipes all the time and I am saving up all recipes for a FUTURE VEGETARIAN COOKBOOK.

(Interested Cookbook publishers/food magazines/book agents/TV production houses , Please quote a valid office postal address and phone number along with your work email while sending a proposal to me.I regret to say that I am unable to respond to people contacting me with no OFFICIAL postal address or office phone number)

Homemade and vegan> Date and Nut Chocolate cookies

I don't buy supermarket cookies.First off, they are either not CRISP enough for me or they are too "refined and processed" in "taste and texture".Some of them are too sweet too.Some of them are too chemical tasting and make me too thirsty after I eat them.

Needless to mention, at one point of life, I started making my own cookies at home.

After I went vegan in 2009, I started making vegan cookies too.

This picture was taken by me in 2011

Had a  pack of DATES lying around in my refrigerator..yeah, yeah, I refrigerate them .Decided to make DATE COOKIES.

The Recipe is my own , just like always.

Dates are a great source of iron and chock full of sugars.Sugars give energy...Thus, DATES ARE great energy foods to give to growing children or adolescent girls who have just attained menarche and tend to lose blood each month during menstruation and are also growing tall each day.

If you want to take a look at my other vegan cookies,Please search in my archives for VEGAN SUGAR COOKIES..

TAGS:dates,cookies,baking,energy_foods,Foods_to_given_growing_teens,vegan

POSTNOTE: Recipes not included due to plagiarism concerns.I device and design my own recipes all the time and I am saving up all recipes for a FUTURE VEGETARIAN COOKBOOK.

(Interested Cookbook publishers/food magazines/book agents/TV production houses , Please quote a valid office postal address and phone number along with your work email while sending a proposal to me.I regret to say that I am unable to respond to people contacting me with no OFFICIAL postal address or office phone number)

PRETTY FOOD PICTURE-CHOCOLATE MOUSSE ON CUTE BEDSPREAD

PRETTY FOOD PICTURE-CHOCOLATE MOUSSE ON CUTE BEDSPREAD

I am CURRENTLY a PRACTICING PHYSICIAN .However, I did complete TWO YEARS of college studying GENERAL BIOCHEMISTRY AND MICROBIOLOGY, Food technology,Food Microbiology and Biochemistry prior to deciding that I am more inclined to the CLINICAL SIDE of things and hence decided to get into MEDICAL SCIENCE .I did very well in medical school thereafter and am now a "kick-ass" doctor .My interest in "Food" and the "Science of cooking" continues to this day and explains why I now have a Food blog as part of my LECINQBLOG family.I seek to dispel FOOD FADS, food myths via this food blog.I seek also to increase health awareness by canvassing for healthier diets.

The bedspread you see in the picture is MY FAVORITE BEDSPREAD...yellow , with all sortsa cute sea animals on it..

Always, surround yourself with colors you like and especially the bedroom.DO NOT shy away from colors,BRIGHT colors.IMAGINE me sitting on this bed in 2009, over that pretty yellow bedspread, and eating this chocolate mousse and MURMURING to myself, "oh my gosh, this is so good!"

yeah,IMAGINE,do that!

POSTNOTE: Recipes not included due to plagiarism concerns.I device and design my own recipes all the time and I am saving up all recipes for a FUTURE VEGETARIAN COOKBOOK.

(Interested Cookbook publishers/food magazines/book agents/TV production houses , Please quote a valid office postal address and phone number along with your work email while sending a proposal to me.I regret to say that I am unable to respond to people contacting me with no OFFICIAL postal address or office phone number)

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tAGS: #desserts #cakes #memories #bedspread #sea #yellow #pretty #cocoa #mousse #sleep #night #cute

Two Beans Two ways -Vegan sources of protein

This picture was taken by me in 2009 (if memory serves me right).

I went vegan sometime in the second half of 2009.I was ovolactovegetarian prior to that.I have never eaten meat in 33 years of my lifetime.Yet, I managed to grow to my current height which is an okay height for a female .So yeah, We don't need no meat to grow strong and tall.LOL

One of the commonest questions people ask me once they find out that I am vegan is "OH, BUT WHAT ABOUT YOUR PROTEIN NEEDS?"

Well, I am a DOCTOR...and I can assure you that BEANS are the BEST SOURCE OF PROTEIN FOR BOTH VEGANS AND NON-VEGANS ALIKE..

I actually wrote a separate blog entry about PROTEIN NEEDS way back.Please look in archives to find that article.

In This picture I have two different types of beans prepared in different ways.

Variety in cooking methods  helps increase palatability and allows for consumption of a greater quantity of food.

TAGS:vegan,beans,protein,food,food_pictures,pictures

POSTNOTE: Recipes not included due to plagiarism concerns.I device and design my own recipes all the time and I am saving up all recipes for a FUTURE VEGETARIAN COOKBOOK.

(Interested Cookbook publishers/food magazines/book agents/TV production houses , Please quote a valid office postal address and phone number along with your work email while sending a proposal to me.I regret to say that I am unable to respond to people contacting me with no OFFICIAL postal address or office phone number)

HOMEMADE-Newyork Style Plain Cheesecake

This picture was taken by me way back in 2007.I WAS NOT vegan then.I was Ovolactovegetarian then.

Out of all desserts, CHEESECAKE is one of my favorite desserts.

Buying and gobbling up tons of cheesecakes is just,OH SO EASY...

Attempting to make them just to match your needs is a whole other story..

Most commercial cheesecakes are "TOO EMBELLISHED" in my opinion.

Any topping essentially RUINS the simple classiness of a cheesecake.

Also, people have started  making chocolate cheesecake and other such flavored cheesecakes,which again ruins the simple classy rich taste of a plain cheesecake.

The concept of a cheesecake is all about SIMPLE decadence...not berry toppings and chocolate flavor.If you want chocolate flavor, go eat a rich chocolate cake,why the heck are you ruining cheesecake?...LOL

After much research on cheesecake recipes and cooking techniques, I decided to make my own cheesecake.

I LIKE PLAIN NEWYORK STYLE CHEESECAKE.

In my opinion,An AUTHENTIC cheesecake is BAKED..

I know a lot of people who just put a lot of flavored creme cheese on a biscuit base and freeze it and call it CHEESECAKE...

Well, a frozen anything is NOT A CAKE....essentially..DUH!

I made this cheesecake using a WATERBATH OVEN BAKE technique...

This was my FIRST ATTEMPT AT MAKING cheesecake...AND BOY , IT CAME OUT SO SO WELL...

Tags:cheesecake,Newyork_style_cheesecake,plain_cheesecake,baking,desserts,ovolactovegetarian,food,food_pictures

POSTNOTE: Recipes not included due to plagiarism concerns.I device and design my own recipes all the time and I am saving up all recipes for a FUTURE VEGETARIAN COOKBOOK.

(Interested Cookbook publishers/food magazines/book agents/TV production houses , Please quote a valid office postal address and phone number along with your work email while sending a proposal to me.I regret to say that I am unable to respond to people contacting me with no OFFICIAL postal address or office phone number)