Headline: Give into the magic of cinnamon

Logo: Master Chef

Kandla Nijhowne

Blurb: Sometimes a fragrant cake that goes well with coffee is all it takes to fix a bad winter day!

Winter is all about hot meals and warming spices like cinnamon, cloves, mace and nutmeg. Cinnamon is commonly used to infuse aroma into our curries, drinks and even cakes. It has several medicinal properties, is rich in antioxidants and helps keep heart ailments and diabetes at bay. A coffee cake is a term given to cakes that go well with a cuppa. They usually don’t have any coffee in them. Here is a simple bake that is fragrant, soft and moist. It can even be dressed up with some whipped cream frosting when desired.

Cinnamon Swirl Coffee Cake

• 2 cups maida

• 1 tsp baking powder

• 1/2 tsp baking soda

• 1/2 tsp salt

• 1/2 cup butter (113 gm, unsalted)

• 1 1/4 cup powdered sugar

• 2 eggs

• 1 tsp vanilla essence

• 1 cup buttermilk (240 ml)

• 1/4 cup brown sugar

• 1- 1 1/4 tbsp cinnamon powder

Method

• Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius. Grease and dust an 8 inch cake tin and line with paper.

• Beat the sugar, butter and vanilla till really fluffy.

• Add the eggs one by one, beating between additions.

• Sieve together the maida, baking powder, soda and salt, and then add in three installments to the whisked mixture, alternating with the buttermilk.

• In a separate bowl mix together the brown sugar and cinnamon.

• Now pour half the batter into the cake tin then follow with sprinkling half the cinnamon mix over it.

• Add the remaining batter into the tin and scatter the rest of the fragrant sugar over it.

• Take a skewer or toothpick and swirl it through the batter to blend the cinnamon flavour into the mix.

• Bake for 45-50 minutes, then check by inserting a skewer in the centre of the cake. If the skewer pulls out dry, the cake is ready.

• Slice into wedges and serve warm or cold.

Note: A substitute for buttermilk – heat up a cup of full fat milk, stir in a spoonful of lemon juice and keep aside for 10 minutes. The milk is ready when it has split slightly. Quantities of cinnamon powder in the cake can be reduced if you so desire.

(Nijhowne is a Chandigarh-based culinary expert)