On the road to "Domestic Goddess-hood"...

Latest Obsession: Lemon Bars

2015-04-14T01:45:00.002+05:30

Sometimes I feel like Olaf, the adorable snowman in Frozen. Because like Olaf, I've always loved the idea of summer, and sun, and all things hot...Only thing we don't agree on, Yellow! Yes, crimson and chartreuse are all nice, but nothing says summer like yellow. And yellow and snow goes well together, whatever you say Olaf!

Along with the sun, I love the riot of colors everywhere during summer. It always seems to me that I have accidentally landed in one end of the rainbow. But more than anything else, I love the sight of a lemon tree laden with bright yellow fruit. We have one such tree in our backyard. The past two years at home, thanks to that tree a whole host of deliciously tart lemon flavored goodies ended up on our table. Last year, our parents on their way back home visited an aunt who lives in Hunsur. Geetha Aunty sent some lemons home for me to use. Those were beautiful, smooth skinned bright yellow lemons, nothing like the knobbly, sometimes shapeless ones in our backyard. Deciding what to do with them took another two days, finally inspiration struck in the form of mini lemon bars. I found a recipe online, baked them immediately and it was true love! The bright yellow, tangy, lemon bar and my taste buds haven't lost contact since that first taste.

Notice my very beautiful cake stand with my beautiful-ler lemon bar ;)

some of my earlier efforts

But trouble never stays too far. As usual, I had an untimely craving for lemon bars and just had to bake some right then. Problem, dearth of pretty lemons from Geetha Aunty! Well the good old Meen-Puli had to come to my rescue! Remember the knobbly, misshapen lemons from the backyard that I mentioned earlier, they're called meen-puli (puli is citrus, meen is fish, it's named so because it's used mainly when cooking fish...also this is not the Gambooge of Kerala). I substituted these fatter, uglier cousins of the beautiful, bright yellow, smooth skinned lemons in my recipe, made some changes and let the oven do it's job. End result: Unforgettable! It seems the uglier cousin did have some redeeming qualities, after all! You see those ugly, knobbly things are a lot more juicier than those perfect lemons, and all that juice served to tart up the lemon layer and make it Lemon Heaven. And for all of us who love lemons, you can't aspire for anything more. From then, the meen-puli has been crowned the official 'Tart' agent in my kitchen. Moral of the story: Don't judge a book by it's cover or rather lemon for it's unblemished skin!

With that spectacular result, you would think I would've stopped experimenting. Hah! more fool you, if you entertained such thoughts. It's me, I never pass up a reason to bake or eat! After 6 tries I think I have perfected the Lemon Bar. I have taken a simple American baked product and elevated it to something that is swoon-worthy. I took Ina Garten's recipe from Smitten Kitchen, added a bit of magic beans here, a pinch of pixie dust there and waved a wand! Voila! We have the "All Tarted-up Lemon bar''. Name sounds a little OTT doesn't it, but then again, this tongue tingling lemon bar is over the top with it's bold and bright color, surprisingly fresh and sharp taste and just the right marriage of sweet and tart flavors.

It looks more like a lemon tart doesn't it, but it tastes so much better...believe me

So yellow, so beautiful

Finally the recipe, now if you can't find any meen-puli, don't pull a face and slap our fore-head. Use the prettier lemons (i.e; the normal ones).

All Tarted-up Lemon bar (Lemon n Lime Bars)

Now that's a slice of Lemon Heaven!

Ingredients
For the crust:
1/2 pound unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 cups flour
1/8 teaspoon sea salt

For the lemon layer:
6 large eggs at room temperature
2 3/4 cups granulated sugar
1 tablespoons grated lemon zest (2 to 3 lemons)
1 tablespoon grated lime zest(2 to 3 limes)
3/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/4 cup freshly squeezed lime juice
1 cup flour

Confectioners’ sugar, for dusting

Directions
Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F) and grease a 9 by 13 by 2-inch baking sheet, then line it with two layers of aluminum foil making sure you leave an overhang on all sides, this just makes your life easier..

For the crust, cream the butter and sugar until light in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Combine the flour and salt and, with the mixer on low, add to the butter until just mixed. Dump the dough onto a well-floured board and gather into a ball. Flatten the dough with floured hands and press it into the greased baking sheet, building up a 1/2-inch edge on all sides. Chill.

Bake the crust for 15 to 20 minutes, until very lightly browned. Let cool on a wire rack. Leave the oven on.

For the lemon layer, whisk together the eggs, sugar, lemon and lime zest, lemon and lime juice, and flour. Pour over the crust and bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or about five minutes beyond the point where the filling is set. Let cool to room temperature.

Cut into rectangles and dust with confectioners’ sugar.

Notes* I find you need a bigger pan to bake this in, and if you don't like pieces of zest peeking in your cake, just blitz it with the sugar in a mixer, you solve two problems at once with powdered sugar and zest without losing the flavor. You might need to cover the top with foil, halfway through the baking time to prevent the top from getting scorched.

Sometimes obsession is a good thing, huh! Well, Until next time then...

Happy Baking!

Why are we such a callous society?

2015-03-17T01:27:00.000+05:30

For the past few weeks there has been innumerable debates on various platforms about a particular documentary by Leslee Udwin. Before we jump into the whys and the why nots, lets talk about what the hype is all about.

A few weeks ago, an Israeli born British film-maker released a documentary produced by the BBC. The subject of the documentary, the December 16th gang-rape of Jyothi Pande, also known as Nirbhaya to the general public. Now this subjected has been debated and shouted across all platforms and the horror is still fresh in our minds, what with the rapists still happily breathing in jail while the poor parents who have lost their daughter battle it out in courts for justice. With all this happening, do we really need someone to come and interview those criminals and their like-minded lawyers and then air their psychopathic views to the world? She then goes ahead and says that the documentary is a mirror which reflects the mentality of the Indian men. Where does she get off saying that? What does it say about the mentality of the person who gave screen space to those animals who brutally murdered and violated a young girl? She lets him justify his action! Isn´t that worse?

Then comes the part with the public opinion which was divided into three major parts. One part justified and supported Leslee for her actions and parroting her words that the documentary is a mirror and protested against the ban. Next we have the section of the society which was vehemently opposed to the documentary, supported the ban and questioned the film-maker on her motives. Finally we have the majority of the people who lived in ignorance of the documentary and if they possessed any knowledge of it decided it was a non-issue. I for one, belong to the second type and I am opposed to the documentary. My question is, what is the necessity? Had the film-maker considered the emotions of the victims family and friends, of their pain and loss? The BBC goes about lecturing the Indian Government about the Freedom of expression, for the sake of ratings is it okay to forget about the right to privacy? When she is questioned, the film-maker turns tail and runs, why, if she is as innocent as she claims to be? It almost seems like it´s their only way to show our country in a very bad light. Previously it was another British filmmaker who showed us in a bad light with Slumdog millionaire, now it´s Leslee Udwin with ´India´s Daughter´! Looks like she´s hoping for an Oscar too with all the hype she has created.

Then there are those who sit and talk of rape statistics in other nations, compare it and call them ´rape capitals´. What is this, the rape olympics? It´s a heinous,brutal crime that we are discussing here, not a burger eating competition to dismiss it so lightly! Instead of comparing the statistics why don´t we try to eliminate this evil? My opinion, fire that idiot surveyor and employ more personnel for protection. If this documentary where that creature blames the victims and his lawyers support him is aired, our country will suffer more. These creatures who have no conscience will take it into their heads that any crime will go unpunished. My message to Leslee Udwin, people in glass houses should not throw stones! If you want to make a documentary about rape, do it in your country. And don´t you try to put our men in a corner, not every Indian male is a rapist or supporter of that evil. Do not malign an entire country because you met a few horrible excuses for human beings.

Sweet, sticky and spicy...

2015-02-15T16:06:00.001+05:30

Am talking of lamb chops children. If you thought something else, then you definitely gotta wash your thinking with some Harpic! Dirty Rotten Scoundrels! Anyway back to the topic on hand...Lamb chops. I always feel so immensely happy when there is something as robust as red meat for a meal, don't you? I get excited just thinking about it. Imagine pimping up an ordinary meal with some meat that has been slathered with this spicy, sticky and sweet marinade and dropped on a hot, sizzling pan till it is caramelised, juicy and falling off the bone. Ahhh, just warms the cockles of my cold, cold heart. And if you're eating this after months of depriving yourself of meat, you'll see heaven for a little while at least. I know I did. I swear to you, if you're not careful you might eat up your fingers, that's how tasty they are.

Normally I'd put up a picture at this point. But there was nothing left by the time I found the camera. I think it would be fair to say that the lamb chops disappeared at the speed of light. The idea for this recipe sadly is not original. The credits go to Nigella (my kitchen goddess) and Ravinder Bhogal (who in my opinion is a little fake). I know, I know...that is an unusual combination, if ever there was one. Nigella's spicy lamb chops are simplicity itself as she refers to it, but I felt that it lacked some zing, it needed something to make it more Indian to suit my taste buds. Sorry, Goddess. Lets introduce Ravinder at this point. For the most part, I feel Ravinder's recipes are unnecessarily complicated. But surprisingly her lamb chops were quite close to what I wanted. So came the idea to experiment on my own till I had the perfect lamb chops recipe.

~~And since I don't have any pictures to post~~,lets get right to the recipe. Now I have pictures!

Sweet, sticky and spicy Lamb Chops with Mint and pomegranate Raitha
Serves: 5-6

Lamb Chops
Ingredients:

Lamb Chops - 500 gms, cleaned
For the marinade:
2 teaspoons Fennel seeds, roasted till dark and ground
2 teaspoons Coriander powder, roasted till dark (take care not to burn)
2 teaspoons Paprika powder
1/2 teaspoon Ground pepper
3-4 Birds eye chillies, chopped very fine (adjust to your taste)
2 teaspoons Kodava Pork masala, recipe included below (I find that this particular ingredient makes the lamb chop taste even more exotic)
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 tablespoon Apple cider vinegar
1 teaspoon Ginger garlic paste
4 tablespoons Tamarind pulp
1/4 cup powdered Jaggery or palm sugar
Salt to taste

Directions:
1. Mix all the ingredients for the marinade together in a large, shallow dish until you have a thick but spreadable paste. Dilute with a little oil if necessary, but don't thin it out too much.
2. Rub each lamb chop with the marinade, massage the meat so that it's well coated with the marinade on all sides. Place the lamb chops in the dish with the marinade, cover with cling and refrigerate for about 5-6 hours.
3. When ready to cook, preheat the oven to 200 degrees Celsius.
4. Place an oven-proof deep-bottom dish on medium-high heat, drizzle a bit oil on the pan. When it starts to smoke, place each lamb chop on the heated pan and cook on each side for about 2 minutes or until well caramelised on both sides. Take the dish off the heat, pour over the left-over marinade and cover with aluminium foil on top.
4. Place the dish in the preheated oven and bake for about 30-40 minutes until they are cooked. Serve hot with mint and pomegranate raitha.

Mint and Pomegranate Raitha
Ingredients:
1 cucumber, de-seeded and diced finely
1 cup thick yoghurt
1/2 a pomegranate's seeds
a small handful of mint, chopped roughly
2 teaspoons sugar
1/4 teaspoon chaat masala
1/4 teaspoon Paprika
1/4 teaspoon Sumac powder
5-6 Pistachios, roughly chopped
Salt, to taste

Directions:
1. Into a medium-sized bowl, add the yoghurt, cucumber, half the pomegranate seeds, mint, sugar, salt and other spices. Mix well.
2. Garnish with the rest of the pomegranate seeds and roughly chopped nuts. Refrigerate until you serve.

Kodava Pork Masala
Now, being a Kodavathi, I can tell you how treasured this recipe is. Each family will have a recipe that differs slightly from others, because they each have a special ingredient that will enhance the taste. And every single one of those people are tight-lipped about their recipe, lest it gets out. This here is a basic recipe.

Ingredients:
4 tbsps whole coriander seeds
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tbsp peppercorn
1/2 tsp mustard seeds
Few grains of fenugreek seeds
3-4 dry red chillies

Directions:
1. Roast all the ingredients separately until dark, but not burnt. Grind all of it to make the powered dark masala. Store in an air-tight container.

* With all the aromas of the roasted spices wafting around your kitchen, you'll feel like the 'Mistress (or master) of spices'.

Notes:

I put the lamb chops back on a hot pan (without oil) once they were out of the oven, just for a few minutes to make sure they were cooked. We don't like out meat cooked rare. This also made sure the chops were extra caramelised and juicy.

Do taste the marinade before you spread it over the chops, so that you can adjust it to your taste.

All this talk of Lamb chops has got me drooling again. And since there is nothing left over after our greedy piggy behaviour from last night; I just gotta satisfy my cravings with something else. Talking of Greedy pigs, it's unfair isn't it to liken our greed to that of piggies, considering they don't even eat Lamb chops. Poor Souls!

Until next time then,

Happy baking and stuffing yourselves.

Forgive me Father for I have sinned...

2015-02-09T00:06:00.000+05:30

Apparently this is gonna happen to me in the near future, for as the heading says I have sinned. Of the seven deadly sins, I seem to have committed at least 3 in the last few weeks. Now, before you get any ideas it was Greed, Envy and Pride. You see, I wanted to eat some Fried Ice-cream smothered in Chocolate Sauce with a sprinkling of nuts on top. Then, I envied all those who were eating just that and then what did I do? As if committing two sins weren't enough, I gave into my craving and made some Fried Ice-cream and...I was so proud of my creation, I gloated. I smothered it in chocolate sauce, sprinkled a few nuts on and tucked in like the greedy little piggy that I am. There you have it, three big sins in one evening!

But the storm clouds, flesh and days, though scary do not really bother me. I mean, if I hadn't indulged my craving; then yeah, I would've been scared and really ticked off! But now, replete as I am...I say to the Good Lord, 'Bring it on'! That is, if He is ticked off, which am pretty sure the all-knowing Lord wouldn't be, having tasted Fried Ice-cream. If not, that'd be a real pity indeed! Not to be worried, I am pretty sure, the Lord can whip up a batch for Himself with my recipe.

Would you just look at that! How can the Lord be ticked off with that on offer?

For those of you like me, who crave for ice-cream even in the chilly evenings of winter, this is the perfect dessert. If you feel it's too cold outside to eat ice-cream, just fry it. It follows the same theory of heating up something that is cold, I think. Once the ice-cream is fried, slosh some glossy, thick chocolate sauce over it. Lo and behold, you've got a marriage made in heaven! Now add some crunch with a sprinkling of chopped nuts. And you've just elevated it to a whole new level. With each mouthful, you get to savour the decadence of the chocolate, the heart-warming crunch of the hot crust and the icy-cool, still not melted ice-cream. Yumm! You know, there are very few things I think the Chinese have got right...this is definitely on top of that list.

Recipe

Fried Ice-cream with Chocolate Sauce

(Feeds as many or as few as you want/ or have the patience to fry)

Ingredients

500ml Vanilla Ice-cream

1 pack Brittania Vita Marie Biscuits, crushed roughly

2 eggs, beaten well

Oil for deep frying

To Serve

Chocolate Ganache

Chopped almonds

Directions

1. Line a tray that fits into your freezer compartment with foil. Using an ice-cream scoop, form 6 balls of ice-cream and place on the prepared tray. You can shape it slightly between your palms, but not for too long. Freeze for at least 2 hours.

2. Spread the biscuit crumbs on a shallow dish. Take each ball of ice-cream out of the freezer and give it a roll in the biscuit crumbs until neatly coated. Return to the freezer immediately. Freeze for a further 30 minutes. The reason I recommend taking each ice-cream ball out is so that the other ice-cream balls don't melt while you finish rolling all of them.

3. Once your 30 minutes are up, again taking each crumbed ice-cream out roll it in the beaten egg until you've coated it. Then quickly roll it in the crumbs until you have an even coat. Repeat with the rest of the ice-cream balls and freeze for 40-50 minutes. If you want a thicker crust, repeat the process again. I always do.

4. Heat the oil in a deep-bottom pot. Now remember that you want the oil to be really hot, so that the crust browns almost immediately. Leave it too late, you risk the ice-cream melting in the oil. Believe me, you don't want that. To check if the oil is really hot, drop a tiny bit of the crushed biscuit into the oil and if it browns immediately it's hot enough. Lower the crumb-coated ice-cream one at a time into their oily bath. Fry till golden brown, about 30-40 seconds. Remove and place on plate.

Enrobe the deep-fried, golden goodness with that silky chocolate ganache and add a smattering of chopped almonds and serve immediately to your awed guests and wait for the praise. Repeat with the rest. Oh! and don't forget to stuff your face too. Trust me, you wan't regret it.

Chocolate Ganache

Ingredients

8 ounces (227 grams) semisweet or bittersweet chocolate, cut into small pieces
3/4 cup (180 ml) heavy whipping cream
2 tablespoons (28 grams) unsalted butter

Directions

Place the chopped chocolate in a medium sized heatproof bowl. Set aside. Heat the cream and butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. (Can also heat the cream and butter in the microwave.) Bring just to a boil. Immediately pour the boiling cream over the chocolate and allow to stand, without stirring, for a few minutes. Stir gently (as you do not want to incorporate air into the ganache) with a spoon or whisk until smooth.

Now go fry yourselves some ice-cream while I have a discussion with God.

Dear Lord,

I know I have sinned, but seriously can you blame me? It was your fault really. It was you who gave the idea to that wretched man who invented fried ice-cream. Had you not done that, we wouldn't be having this conversation at all. Well if you're still angry, here's a thought. The next time you're down here we can have that discussion on how many 'Hail Marys' I owe you. Or maybe I can make some fried ice-cream for ya. :) So what say, forgiven? ;)

P.S. we can always say that evil-spawn Satan put us in the way of temptation. With all the blame the guy gets, what's another? :P

All my love,

Chaitanya

Food Glorious Food, in Udaipur

2014-11-05T18:51:00.000+05:30

When I was in Udaipur, we spent most of our evenings in Chandpole which is the older part of town on the banks of The Pichola Lake and the City Palace. This is the Udaipur that they advertise to the world. It's colorful, bursting to the seams with teeny weeny alleys and houses which seems like it's made for miniature sized people. These alleyways have tinier stores selling lamps, books, silver jewelry, fake antiques, henna tattoos, gaily colored cotton apparel, leather goods, silk paintings, mosaics, the ever-present Rajasthani jutti (pointy shoes) and even lessons in Marwari/Mewari cuisine. Scattered among these are several eateries which vary from downright seedy (by which I mean stomach revolting) to the utter posh cafe like the Greek/French/German Bakeries. But we didn't go to any of these during first few days, NOPE...we were taken to the FC Restaurant (a.k.a Friends Club). Now do not go ahead and assume it was something like the palace in Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani! This seedy corner in a very beautiful part of Udaipur's Old Town is neither a Club, nor should it be called a restaurant. I have mentioned seedy once already right, so am gonna call it shabby next, with shoddy service and crappy food (If it should be called food!). The only saving grace, it's right on the banks of the lake, which IS prime real estate, if you ask me and even better the view of the City Palace bathed in golden light (artificial, but very clever lighting). The staff comprises of one very harassed waiter who will inform you that half the stuff printed in the menu is unavailable and the bar offers only beer (The cheap variety) and really cheap rum! As if Udaipur is in Barbados or some other fancy tropical setting, Rum indeed! Am gonna go on a limb and say there is a cook in their teeny, weeny kitchen, coz the thought of that sad faced waiter managing the kitchen/bar and the till is just depressing. And to top it, the restaurant (lets call it that for now) has poor lighting and lives off the 'Golden Glow' from the palace on the opposite side of the lake (Scrooge much!). The reason am telling you this is coz none of our faces are visible in any of the pictures. The restaurant has a beautiful doorway though (Okay another plus point, I agree I can't count...but it's deceiving, okay), it's intricately carved wood which I'd bet my last penny is antique, but don't be fooled by this...It really is an awful place. Which says something about us for going back again! Not all us wanted to, but a group always has some penny-pinching dumbshit who won't even consider an alternative.

Speaking of the alternative, there are two places (for those on a budget) that is definitely not to be missed. First lets talk about Ambrai in Ameth haveli, coz am just in love with this place (also proves I have brilliant taste coz I wanted to go there first, and the rest said no assuming it would tear a hole in their pockets). It's a Haveli Hotel (no surprises why I love those) again, on the banks of the lake, but even better their restaurant area not only shows you the City Palace, but also the Taj Lake Palace (remember Octopussy, if you don't know...go watch it now idiot!), Gangaur Ghat which is right next to it and if you would just turn your neck all swan-like just a bit, you can see the Oberoi Udaivilas (from Yeh Jawaani hai deewani). Ambiance: beautiful subtle lighting, mood music and warm staff (as in plural). Food & Drink: Amazing, do try the Dhungri Maas (comes with a lump of coal sizzling on top). I liked the Margarita (or maybe it tasted good coz I'd been craving some as mentioned in my previous post). Cost: I felt moderate (more along the lines of that bloody FC with better everything). The pool is to die for...it's right opposite the garden, but hidden in the shade of fragrant Frangipani trees (makes you itch to take a dip). Mind you, the restaurant here serves lunch only in peak season ( October-February) and anyway dinnertime is more exciting, so no bother.

View of Taj Lake Palace from Ambrai

The City Palace

Mohit, Shraddha and I in Ambrai

Next place, The Lake Picchola Hotel, which by the way is right next to that awful FC! This is another Haveli Hotel, on the banks of the lake, they even have a jetty and the wrought iron staircase has bougainvillea! As you enter, you find a cobblestone pathway with a beautiful garden and leafy palm fronds (mystifying...I felt it looked right out of an Arabian Palace) which leads to the concierge and restaurant. The chandeliers, lamps and mirrors in this place I tell you are just breathtakingly beautiful. My eyes popped at the opulence. Highly polished antique wood furniture and antique fans whirring over my head (woohoo, I was in heaven for a while). The staff, warm and welcoming. I've just told you about the ambiance. Food & Drink: Excellent, we loved the Laal Maas and Ker Sangri. I had a Grey Goose Martini which was really good. Cost: Moderate and again that stupid FC cost almost the same. They do have a rooftop Pool and restaurant called 'Upre', but we didn't go there. This place has the most amazing washrooms, Shraddha and I just loved it, the mirrors, fancy antique-y faucets and all! By the way, this place has been around a really long time, it was built in 1559 A.D.

Laal Maas and ker Sangri

Told you we fell in love with the washroom

Yeah well, if you had to stay in KVK for 10 days you'd be excited too when you saw all those fancy stuff!

And for those who want something cheaper still, you have the German Bakery or Cafe Edelweiss as it's known. Do not step into the French or Greek Bakeries, these places just have fancy names and nothing else to offer, though the cold coffee in the French Bakery is not all that bad (or that was just because Jahnavi and I were really tired and thirsty). The Greek bakery does not have a single Greek pastry to save their name, and I went in expecting to eat Baklava! Although the German Bakery doesn't have any German cuisine, you still can get a lovely apple pie, chocolate almond tart, decent sandwiches/ burgers and a lovely refreshing lemonade. There were several other things on display, but I didn't try them. This cafe is really a hole in the wall kind of place, tucked in between two shops selling artwork near the lake.

Chocolate almond tart, or whats left of it

It's cute how they serve lemonade

There is another place called 'Savage Garden' which I wanted to visit solely because they featured it on a TV show 'Highway on my plate with Rocky and Mayur' on NDTV Goodtimes. Rocky and Mayur had some nice things to say, but my friend Mohit said it was 'Bakwaas'! They serve Italian food with an Indian twist, if you're interested.

Then there is 'Millets of Mewar' for those of you who want or are interested in experimenting with vegan (I like to call it pretend vegan, they serve egg) food. We did go there, and I found it too Bleh! They cater mainly to the foreign clientele and am sure most of them go back disappointed. The food is ok, and for Gods sake do not try their juice, so not worth the grimace that they induce upon tasting! The ambiance is decent and quite interesting actually, but it is expensive.

See Shraddha's expression after a sip of that God-awful juice.

Finally, for those with a sweet tooth like me, Udaipur is your haven. Really, from kulfi on the street, steaming Gulab Jamuns in tiny sweet stalls to Malai Ghevar in Jodhpur mishtan Bhandar. It's a sweet paradise. But for heaven's sake do not miss out on that Malai Ghevar, unfortunately I do not have a picture to show...we ate it up so fast. It's the devils incarnate itself and I better stop typing right now, or am gonna end up cleaning drool from my keyboard. Sigh! I am strengthening my resolve to go back sometime in the near future. After all, I still haven't seen the Lake Palace or Udaivilas or Sajjangarh Fort!

And the next time I'll tell you all about my experiments with that Chocolate Almond Tart from Udaipur.

Until then, Loads of love...

Chaitanya

I hate Udaipur Airport!

2014-11-04T13:00:00.000+05:30

As I've already mentioned in the heading I hate, hate, HATE the airport in Udaipur, which is exactly why it's taken me so long to write about it. I had to leave unexpectedly and booked a last minute flight out of that godforsaken airport. I left the guest house bags packed neatly (I have OCD) and trundled in a shaky Tuk Tuk (auto rickshaw) on a road which shouldn't be called a road! Those woes aside, the skies open up and decides to pour down buckets on us poor travelers. As I was tearing up a little at the thought of leaving Udaipur so soon, without even completing the things on my itinerary, the melodramatic me decided to take the rains as a sign of the city crying at my departure. (I told you I was melodramatic). What with all this, I managed to reach Maharana Pratap Airport with my bones rattled and a growling tummy, but still in one piece. Little did I know that my troubles were just beginning.

At the check-in counter this heartless Airline official coolly informs me that my baggage is overweight! Not by any small amount, 5 kilos overweight and also puts in saying I have to pay an extra 6000 Rs/. I spat back saying I wouldn't. He then asks me to discard a bit to make it lighter, which I then proceeded to do. I looked like a crazy old bat with my luggage gaping like someone's guts spilled over! You can imagine how my OCD self reacted. Removed a few non-essentials and he says still 3 kilos overweight, and then says wait at the end of the check-in line and he'll think up something. Finally after ages, he informs me I can carry some of my stuff as hand luggage....in wait for it...Polythene bags! Desperate as I was, I did just that! I ran around Udaipur Airport with my luggage gaping open for anyone to peek in and stuffed in polythene bags like an uncivilized idiot. Lord, I looked like a Kabadiwallah about to catch a flight! Hilarious for others, torturous for me. The dumass official said the flight was full, which was why I resembled a Kabadiwallah. Finally managed to stow all my crap in and dumped myself in my seat (thankfully that idiot saw fit to give me one next to the window). As the flight prepared for take-off I realised the flight was not "full" as that lyching, cheating, no-good airline official had told me earlier! As if that wasn't traumatic enough. I had to repeat the whole procedure in Mumbai airport too (note that I didn't say I hate Mumbai airport...am in love with that place. If I was allowed, which sadly I know I won't be, I would dance all around the runway. It is sooo beautiful, right out of my fairy-tale dreams...Wait! do they allow weddings on runways, that'd be awesome! Note to self: check up on 'runway weddings'.). And to top it all, I made the Bangalore flight wait.

But sometimes the troubles you face are totally worth it. I sat next to this amazing person on the Udaipur flight, Cyrus Ilavia your words will always stay with me, they were educational and inspiring. On the Bangalore flight I or rather she chose to sit next to me and then on me...She was 4 and beautiful and entertaining.

She's cute isn't she? And a drama queen like me :)

What more could one ask for! I know...kinder, decent airline officials who aren't liars and increased weight on the baggage limit. I mean 15 kilos is like peanuts...why would you do that to us? You can't even shop for anything with that limit, you dumbshit!

Love from a very harassed,

Chaitanya

Fun in the Sun: Good times in Udaipur

2014-07-12T18:45:00.000+05:30

Hi all,

Please don't say Oh Lord! she's back!...I've been in Udaipur for the past few weeks. And it's not like my trip to Jodhpur earlier for my friends wedding. I am here as part of a fellowship. Yes! I am not unintelligent as I had assumed. Or were the fellowship people looking for wacky, not right in the head kinda people? Ok don't answer that!

Well, it all started with a very funny interview. After which I was very sure I wouldn't get into the damn fellowship. Damn! those people can ask questions! And you will leave with your bubble burst. It felt like they asked the same question a million different ways...even when I told them very explicitly that I had no answer to their questions. And your private life which you want to stay that way...will NOT stay that way! He asked me if I was in a relationship! For Gods sake, who does that? I wasn't cowed, just lost all hopes on the interview and ricocheted back...How does my being in a relationship affect your fellowship? what does it have to do with your fellowship? Ha! sometimes you need to throw these buggers on their patooties! The man had no answer and I was satisfied with my pettyishness. Anyway I left Koramangala saying it was a stupid waste of time, but I did have fun. And as fate would have it (or rather the fellowship people were unintelligent) I received an email saying I was accepted into the fellowship (Proof of my intelligence!). Well, they do say some things turn up unexpected in life.

After much wheedling and persuasion, ranting and raving (both mum and I participated), begging and howling, throwing shitty tantrums and making puppy eyes at my dad...my folks agreed to send me! (mind you, mum tried to stop me at the airport too). Flight change in Delhi was a traumatic experience...even with the air-conditioning on the terminal was like an oven (in all this imagine me running around like a duck with two bags in hand!). Next part...AMAZING...I flew business class to Udaipur! ooh nice! Landed in Udaipur and waited and waited and read a very boring current affairs book! (Yup...I finished and understood it!). Finally hitched a ride with a friend to Krish Vigyan Kendra (KVK)...this was where we fellows spent our carefree training days. First look...slightly disappointed, but manageable. After all I was back in the same place as Dad after forty years! Next, met fellows and decided to roam around the city doing some sight-seeing. I went to city palace. For those of you who don't know me...I love anything historical, and I would give my right arm (not really...metaphorically used, please note) to be part of princely India. I hopped, skipped and danced all around the palace...forced others with better cameras to take pictures of very beautiful me! (I am conceited okay...deal with it!) And then had a very disgusting lunch I'd rather forget but don't have the good fortune to have selective amnesia! Shopped, shopped and shopped some more. Saw two beautiful lakes, went boating in one (I curse the others who didn't want to go boating in Lake Picchola! But then I got to go again...so it's alright). Went to a temple and struck up a conversation with some random old lady...she was nice though! And finally at 8:30 P.M went back to KVK to meet the rest of the gang. And that was just the 1st day.

Shraddha and I were fascinated with the fancy washrooms in The Lake Picchola Hotel :)

A Rolls-Royce Phantom II, who can resist that, especially if Roger Moore drove around town in it!

Bhargav Mistry with the Sarode at Hulchul cafe

Hulchul Cafe at Shikshantar

The drum circle in Hulchul cafe...the frenzied pace of the music and the beats pulse in your blood

Shraddha and I spending a lazy sunday afternoon on Gangaur Ghat

Now I wish I could've done that...though I hate those who treat the pristine waters as a bathhouse, it was fun to watch the kids cool off in the heat

Silk Bound Books

Normally I am not the sort who would eat Gulab Jamun, But this one Sweet Stall in Old town got me hooked...anyone would drool at the sight of the steaming Gulab Jamun

Fascinated as I was with this doll house like structure, I wonder how the residents manage in such cramped quarters...I'd get claustrophobic.

Lights on at Lake Pichhola...looks like it's out of a fairytale

When I ran around the City palace and Lake Picchola waving my arms and screaming 'Bats in my hair!' Gawd, emabarassing!

Now am more like a localite, I sit at Gangaur Ghat waiting for the sunset and the palace lights to come on and the bats (how can I forget them!) to fly haphazardly in every direction. I eat malai ghevar at Jodhpur mishtan bhandar, dal baati choorma at Santosh Bhojanalaya and sit in the seedy FC Restaurant with amazing views but horrible food! We even walked 12kms in the middle of the night to get back to KVK...all thanks to Guruji Rahul Nainwal, who told us it was only 5 or 6kms at most! My feet were torn, I was sleep deprived (as was Lucky for 4 days and wanted to sleep on the footpath!) and it was 4 in the morning, but I was in great spirits! By the way the Guruji left Udaipur without treating me to the margarita that he owed me! Next time I drag him to Ambrai! (Evil genius me!) Early morning dips in Badi lake, where one particular fellow tested the water displacement theory and almost emptied the damn lake! (what the hell was he thinking? that he was as light as Gai?) Trek to Nimaj mata temple where I got 'Prashad' (Cow dung) on my clothes! (Mom, I felt like Cheppudira Raju uncle!) Got freaked by some stoner dude, almost got gored by some stampeding cow, ate loads and loads of kulfi (coming back from lunch, I would almost look like a dog with it's tongue hanging out). Met my margarita sis, Pooja Warrier! Designed a funky sleeping bag and got an awfully designed dress in return! Shopped on the roadsides for clothes and anklets. Ate street food! Basically did everything I normally wouldn't dream of doing. It was a good few days of fun and sun (more sun though!). Made some wonderful friends for life! Lots more to do still...have to check out the vintage car collection, some restaurant called savage garden, Kumbalgarh, Chittorgarh, Sajjangarh, the lake palaces and Udaivilas Palace, Nathdwara, shikshantar's hulchul cafe, Jodhpur (again, am in love with this place) Jaisalmer...so much to do in so little time!

All this while I had only one prayer, please rain a little bit, it's way too sunny for someone from Coorg! And after days and days the rain gods have obliged. But dear rain gods, I asked for little rain not enough to build a dam! Cool down a little dudes! We'll take it slow...a little rain per day is not much to ask is it (preferably in the nights). Ok.

Now if you're looking for a recipe, I haven't got one. I am here for a fellowship, not recipe testing! But I will be good and post an easy recipe sometime. Until then, you just have to listen to my adventures in Udaipur or wherever I happen to go.

Love,
Chaitanya

Sweet Potato Bundt Cake with Rum-Spiked Dates

2014-06-12T15:37:00.000+05:30

This was one of those cakes that I wanted to try for a long, long time...but never got around to making it. Either for lack of the main ingredient, sweet potato or just plain laziness. One evening, sitting out in the verandah with mum, I happened to mention something about this cake. Mum was intrigued and the very next day she got some sweet potatoes for me. Even then, it took me a few more days to get myself together and go bake. The cake is definitely on the boozier side, and that got my dad's and my vote. The original recipe called for rum plumped golden raisins. And since I had run out of raisins, I used dates instead.

any cake that has rum and dates makes for a brilliant treat... don't you think?

All you have to do is....

Sieve the dry ingredients...set aside
Grease the bundt tin and dust with flour...

Beat some eggs and sugar till light and frothy and nearly doubled in volume.

The electricity in our house decide to go on a long vacation when I put the eggs in the bowl and I had to do the whole thing by hand. Entirely feasible, but kills your arms with all that exercise. Make this cake regularly, and you'll definitely have beefy, mom arms! But don't let that stop you, do try it once.

Add the rest of the wet ingredients and then...

Fold in the mashed and boiled sweet potato alternating with the dry ingredients and combine.

Pour batter into prepared pan and bake...

Ok...now you have to remember that we had no electricity at home because the transformer blew up in flames. And the cake had to be baked in a gas oven that definitely belongs in the Victorian era! It's temperamental and dysfunctional. Enough to give any baker the heebie-jeebies! But still, my mum wouldn't give up, she said lets give it a try and allow the cake to bake at a lower temperature but for slightly longer than the time specified by the recipe. The lower temperature is because the oven refuses to go beyond 150-165 degrees Celcius. And after all that explanation I present to you the slightly burnt cake...but don't hold it against me, blame the neanderthal gas oven!

Here's a slice...

This recipe makes a very large cake, so there's plenty for everyone. Share a slice of the cake with family and friends on a cold evening with a cup of steaming coffee!

Sweet Potato Bundt Cake with Rum-Spiked Dates

makes a very large cake, serves 16-20

recipe adapted from Mary Allen at http://whisktogether.wordpress.com/

Ingredients

3/4 cup dates, chopped into bits
1/3 cup dark rum, plus more if needed ( I always need more)
3 cups flour, plus more for the pan
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon kosher salt, plus extra for salting the water ( I used flaked sea salt, you can use table salt if you don't have it)
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
3 large sweet potatoes (I didn't use 3, I find that 2 large ones are more than enough)
4 large eggs
2 cups sugar
1 cup vegetable oil
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3/4 cup buttermilk (make your own by adding 3/4 tablespoon of vinegar or lemon juice to 3/4 cup of milk and allow to stand for 5 minutes before using in your recipe).

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour a 10 inch bundt pan.
2. For 30 minutes or so, soak the dates in the rum. Sift together the flour, baking powder, soda, salt and spices.
3. Prep the sweet potatoes while the dates are soaking: peel and cut into 1″ pieces. Boil in a large pot of water until tender. Pour them into a colander to drain. Next, mash them and measure out 2 cups. I would suggest passing the pulp through a fine mesh strainer, so you don't get any of the fibers in your cake.
4. With your mixer (use a whisk attachment if available), beat eggs and sugar together until light and fluffy – about 2 minutes. Add vegetable oil and vanilla.
5. Drain dates BUT keep the liquid!!! Add 1/4 cup of that drained liquid to the batter (I added all of it). Add the 2 cups of sweet potato mash to the batter. Mix to combine.
6. Next, you are going to do the alternating method. This is when you add about one third of the flour. Then, half the buttermilk. Another 1/3 of the flour. The other half of the buttermilk. Finally, end with the rest of the flour.
7. Fold in the soaked dates. Pour into your bundt pan and bake for 80 minutes (about 50 minutes into the baking time, cover he top of the cake with aluminum foil to prevent the top from burning) . Cool 10 minutes and then turn upside down onto a wire rack. Allow to cool completely before cutting and serving the cake.

Glaze

The recipe does call for a glaze, but I did not make it. Firstly because I was so tired from all the mixing by hand and watching out so the Victorian era gas oven didn't burn my cake ( which it managed to do anyway!) and mainly because I felt the cake was quite sweet on it's own and didn't need any more help from the glaze, or it'd be overpoweringly sweet and will put most anybody in a Diabetic Coma!!! But if you still feel you need it here's the recipe...

1/2 cup packed dark brown sugar
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
3 tablespoons whipping cream
1 tablespoon reserved rum from cake recipe

To make the Glaze: In a saucepan mix the sugar, butter and cream. Bring to a boil and then let it boil another 3 minutes. Take the pan off of the heat. Add 1 Tbsp. of the reserved rum or fresh if you ran out.

Using a toothpick (or skewers because they are longer), poke a bunch of holes into the cake. Drizzle 1/3 of the glaze on the warm cake. Now wait 15 minutes. Add the rest of the glaze. Now, let the cake cool completely.

*The glaze should be poured on a warm cake, not a cooled cake.

Enjoy with a hot cup of coffee!

Until next time,

Happy Baking!!!

Pineapple fluff...an easy, peasy, light dessert

2014-06-11T22:56:00.000+05:30

First lets start with the definition of 'fluff'. Here's what I found on http://dictionary.reference.com/ , Fluff - a soft, light, downy mass; example- a fluff of summer clouds. And this is exactly how I would describe this dessert. With every mouthful, you feel like you're eating a soft, downy, sweet and pillowy cloud! With the added bonus of pineapple chunks scattered in the mixture. Pineapple fluff was one of the first desserts I learned to make, probably around 17 years ago. And I still make it very often, because we all love it. And even though it has cream, it's not one of those desserts that will make you feel heavy and bloated. And you know what, I didn't know until this evening that this is quite a famous dessert in Sri Lanka. I always assumed only a few of us knew (shows how much I really know!). All thanks to the search God called Google! And it uses only 4 ingredients (that can be found in any kitchen) and 3 utensils (unless you're really messy). Now I guess I can be elevated to Angel status ( I am not yet up for Godliness, not sure I can handle it)! :)

I forgot to include light cream in the picture, but you can always pretend it's a healthy dessert :)

Here's the recipe for one of the easiest desserts ever, you'll be thanking me for ever.

Pineapple Fluff

see the frothy air bubbles on the surface, this is what makes this dessert so light

Ingredients
1 can - Pineapple in syrup or juice (canned pineapple)
5 tablespoon - granulated white sugar
1 tablespoon - gelatin granules ( sprinkle the gelatin over 2 tbsp of water in a small bowl and set aside to sponge)
400 ml - light cream ( I used Amul)

Directions
Drain the pineapple and pour the juice/ syrup into a medium sized saucepan. Cut the pineapple into small chunks and set aside.
Into the saucepan with the juice/ syrup, add the sugar and place on medium heat. Stir till the sugar dissolves.
When the juice/syrup starts to simmer, take off heat and immediately add the sponged gelatin and stir till completely dissolved. Set aside to cool.
When the sweetened syrup/ juice cools slightly, strain the mixture to remove any impurities and transfer it to a mixer jar and allow to cool completely. Then place the mixer jar in the refrigerator for about 20 minutes or until almost set, but with a nice wobble.
Plug the mixer jar in and blitz the mixture until nice, white and frothy ( it always reminds me of sea foam). Give it a stir and blitz again for a minute and refrigerate again for 20 minutes or until almost set.
Blitz the contents of the jar again after 20 minutes, then immediately add the cream and give a quick blitz to mix it all in.
Pour into a serving dish ( or ramekins if you want individual servings), add the chunks of pineapple and lightly stir with a spatula to spread it evenly. Cover with cling and allow to half-set on your kitchen counter for 20 minutes and then place the dish in the refrigerator until completely set. Serve chilled.

you can see the pineapple chunks at the bottom

You can substitute Lychees for the pineapple, just reduce the amount of sugar slightly. Anyway taste and go from there.
See, all done in just a few steps, didn't I tell you it was easy-peasy! Now go make some for yourself.

Oh! We went on the fisherman's Coracle in the Harangi Backwaters near our house. Here's a picture of the sunset from there.

spectacular...isn't it?

Until next time,
Happy Baking!!!

Bitten by the Blondie bug!

2014-06-11T19:58:00.000+05:30

Have you ever seen something on a TV show and decided on the spot that it was the best thing ever a person could think of, and you want to just grab it from the stupid person hosting the show and greedily eat it all up? This happens to me on a very regular basis. And it is also what happened when for the first time I saw someone making Blondies on a cookery show. I decide right then and there I had to taste it, and to taste I had to bake some blondies. Granted, it took a few (or rather more than a few) years till I actually made them. I ran around for a few years baking everything else but blondies. But all the time, blondies managed to stay in the back of my mind. And finally, one fine day, the day that chocoholics dread happened...I ran out of cocoa powder and chocolate! Imagine my horror! But no worries, the blondies that were consigned to the back of my mind came to the rescue...And so the blondie came to be a hot favorite and also found a permanent place among my treasured recipe books. Here's a picture...

don't they look nice...ok ignore the not so well cut piece...ok fine I might have nibbled on it

It seems these days everybody's baking blondies. And you can find any number of versions you want online. So it happened, that like everyone else I too was bitten by the blondie bug! ( don't go thinking of blondies and bugs together...that's just plain gross!) Now, don't get me wrong...just because I am prosing on and on about blondies, it doesn't mean I love them more than brownies. Brownies are my all time favorite, as you might have noticed from the recipes I've put up earlier.

Ok, now for the definition...in simple words, a blondie (if you can't tell by it's name) is a brownie without the chocolate. As nice as blondies are, they are no match to a chocolatey, gooey, fudgy brownie. I think blondies were made by a Choco-hater (do those things actually exist???). Or the person who made them first, must have run out of chocolate (like me). Any way, the history really doesn't matter to me, as long as it tastes good.

I love chocolate vermicelli

Enough chit-chat, and off to the recipe we go. I am not sure where exactly I got this recipe from, but whoever came up with it...here's a tight hug and a big thank you for an amazing blondie!

White Chocolate Blondies

Ingredients
1/2 cup Unsalted butter
5 oz. (142.5 gm) White chocolate, chopped
1/2 cup granulated white sugar
1/2 cup light brown sugar, packed
2 large eggs
11/2 tsp Vanilla extract
1 cup all purpose flour
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 cup chocolate vermicelli (sprinkles)
1/4 cup swirled chocolate chips (picture below for reference) You can use normal chocolate chips if you can't find these.

I found these at a specialty store

Directions
Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius. Grease an 8 inch (20 cm) square pan and line it with aluminum foil.
Melt butter in a small saucepan, add the white chocolate to the hot melted butter and stir till all the chocolate has melted and is smooth. Alternatively, put the chocolate and the butter in the microwave and melt in short bursts till smooth.
Stir in the sugars into this chocolatey mixture. Next, whisk in the eggs and vanilla extract until the mixture is smooth.
Sieve the dry ingredients together and fold into the sugary chocolate mixture until almost incorporated, then tip in the chocolate chips and half of the chocolate vermicelli (reserve the other half to sprinkle on top of the batter). Fold in gently, but do not over-mix.
Pour the batter into the prepared tin and scatter the rest of the sprinkles on the top and bake for about 30 minutes or until a skewer inserted in the center comes out clean.
Remove the blondies from the oven and allow to cool in the tin for 15 minutes before turning out of the tin and cutting into neat squares.
Serve warm or cold, with a cup of coffee. Perfect!
Can be stored in an air-tight container for upto 3 days or frozen upto 6 months (if it lasts so long).

Well, that's all for now...until next time,
Happy Baking!!!

Nothing says Summer like Strawberry Creamsicles

2014-04-05T16:35:00.001+05:30

Creamsicles and popsicles bring back wonderful memories of childhood summers.We were never allowed to eat the popsicles sold by vendors with their pushcarts because our folks were worried if they were hygienic. So mum came up with the idea of making it at home. Those days we just set them in ice trays or in cups with some small bamboo sticks in them to use as popsicle sticks. It was absolute joy to sit and lick them for hours. Of course, it was hell for our mum what with all the popsicle dripping all over our clothes. But even with all that, it didn't stop us from raiding the fridge for the frozen treats.

Now you get all these fancy popsicle moulds like Zuko and whatnot, which just makes your life so much easier. I didn't have any of those and everyone knows all about my laziness when it comes to washing up, so I used plastic cups and stuck spoons in them since I didn't have anything to act as popsicle sticks. They were so easy to remove too...all I had to do was warm them a little by rolling them slightly between my palms, gave the spoon a twirl and out they popped! Here's how they looked...

I didn't bother making it fancy, mainly because I was in a hurry to finish it. I just poured the puréed strawberries in first and then added the cream mixture on top. So it froze with nice abstract swirly patterns. If you want a fancier looking one, you'll have to make the fruit purée first and let it set in the freezer before pouring the cream mixture on top, or you can have several layers too (This requires a lot of time and patience, both of which I am almost always short of!). So here's the recipe for you. It's so easy you can probably do it in your sleep.

Strawberry Creamsicle

Makes 6-8 servings

Here's what you'll need:

1 cup fresh strawberries

1/4 cup caster sugar

juice and zest of half a Lime

For the cream mixture:

1/2 cup Light cream (I used Amul cream, and using light cream gives you a lighter creamsicle with lesser calories)

1/4 cup caster sugar

1 vanilla bean, split and the seeds scraped out. (if you don't have any at hand use 1/2 teaspoon of pure vanilla extract)

For Garnish:

Extra strawberries

Here's how you do it:

1. Strawberry Purée: Put the strawberries, caster sugar, lime zest and juice in the blender jar and blend till puréed. Pour the mixture into popsicle moulds or lightly oiled plastic cups, stick a spoon in to the cups and freeze until set. It takes at-least 2-3 hours.
2. Creamsicles: Pour the light cream, caster sugar and vanilla seeds into the blender jar and blend for about a minute or two until the sugar is dissolved. Pour the cream mixture over the already set strawberry purée. Add the extra strawberries into the cream mixture in the cups (This gives you something to bite), and freeze for 2-3 hours until set.
3. To unmould: Slightly warm the cups by rolling them between your palms, twirl the spoon slightly to loosen and give a slight tug to unmould your creamsicle. I f you are using popsicle moulds, dip them in hot water for a few seconds to unmould. Enjoy your creamsicle.

Note: You can use any fruit of your choice and adjust the sugar content to your taste.

Until next time,
Happy Baking!!! :)

Birthday Bliss with Chocolate Devil's food cake

2014-03-12T20:07:00.002+05:30

I celebrated my birthday last month and her's a look at the cake. I baked Nigella's Chocolate Devil's food cake. It was sinfully chocolaty and pure bliss in my mouth...need I say more!

The just frosted cake

cake in the fridge

just look at that amazing frosting...it took all of my almost non-existent will power not to lick the entire bowl

I'd baked the cake and frosted it the night before my birthday, so I refrigerated it till the next day. Now that is what you delicious anticipation! I couldn't wait until morning to cut the cake, but wait I did. Which just made it all the more better.

my birthday cake

I sprinkled some edible silver colored pearls and my mom placed a violet from her garden on the cake. It was absolutely lovely.

cutting my luscious cake

Happy Birthday to me...Here'a slice for you...

Mum and dad took me to Mysore for the day. They got me a piece of jewelry as a gift. Oh! just before we went to the jewelers Mum took me to temple, which as far as I have seen, is almost always closed when we go to Mysore. But this day it was open and I even got a laddoo as prashad. ( I know not much to get excited about...but this sort of thing never happens to me).

Sitting on the silver swing, mum and dad sure do look regal

We went to the restaurant at Hotel Metropole for lunch. I just love the old world grandeur of the place. As soon you enter it, you feel like you've been transported to a different era. I feel it represents the glory of bygone days, when Mysore was among the richest provinces in Princely India. They've retained all the original woodwork and furniture. The crystal chandeliers are so beautiful they take my breath away. The mirrors in their restaurant...Oh, those are masterpieces, am so in love with them. One day if they find it missing, it will definitely be me. ;)

Crystal chandelier in foyer of Hotel Metropole...I wish I could have one

At least I got a picture underneath the chandelier... I feel like a princess :)

All in all, it was a really great day. And I even did a spot of shopping before I got back. It was a wonderful birthday.

An icy cool welcome to Summer with Strawberry Sorbet

2014-03-12T15:55:00.000+05:30

It's already March and Summer is here, bringing with it the sunny, sunny days. Bye, Bye winter with your bone chilling cold and dreary days. All through winter I am wrapped up in sweaters and thick socks all day long. Although it doesn't snow here, it's still pretty cold. But all that is gone now...my sweaters and socks are all bundled up in some corner until the next time I need them in June when the rains start and my summer clothes are all out from the corner I had thrown them in. And the best part our Strawberry patch is full of fruit. YUM!

One of our larger strawberry patches

strawberry hidden among the leaves

strawberry in the patch

These strawberries are not like the packed ones that are sold commercially. I guess these are the wild variety. As you can see in the picture below they vary in size and are a bright orangish red color, rather than the dark red colored ones you get in the packs. And the taste is also very different, these strawberries have a very nice balance of sweet and tart flavors, whereas the ones you buy are sometimes sickly sweet.

The strawberries I picked this morning

These strawberries can be used the same way as the ones you buy. But you might want to do a taste test to adjust the amount of sugar. I prefer it to be slightly tart so I leave them as they are. Last year, we had a good strawberry crop. Mum and I made 2 bottles of strawberry sauce. Each day we got a large bowlful, and we had to make the sauce daily. Finally when we didn't have any spare bottles left, so I made milkshakes twice a day (I think I can blame strawberries for adding to my weight) and we still had some left over. So the left over ones, we let it become squishy and soft ( just leave them for about a day or two to get to this stage) and we just put the pulp on our faces and hands (easy homemade fruit facial without any chemicals :))

This time, we've made another bottle of strawberry sauce. And while I hunt around for more fancy glass jars, I decided to do something else out of all those strawberries. And before the summer days get too hot and we start wilting in the sweltering heat, I decided to celebrate summer with a very nice strawberry sorbet. Sorbet is the perfect dessert for summer, it provides the icy cool we all search for in the heat of summer. And because it has no cream or eggs, it makes for a very light, refreshing dessert. So here's to the advent of summer with a bowl of strawberry sorbet.

My half finished bowl of glistening red strawberry sorbet

Strawberry Sorbet Recipe

Adapted from the recipe by Stephanie Jowarski

Serves 4

Ingredients

1/3 cup (80 ml) water

1/3 cup (65 grams) granulated white sugar

2 1/2 cups (454 grams) fresh or frozen unsweetened strawberries

1 tablespoon lemon juice

Zest of 1 lemon

Directions

Place the sugar and water in a small saucepan, over low heat, and stir until the sugar is completely dissolved (about 3-5 minutes). Boil the mixture for one minute then remove from heat. Pour the sugar syrup into a heatproof container, and place in the refrigerator until completely chilled (about an hour or so).

cooled sugar syrup

Meanwhile, thaw the frozen strawberries and then place the thawed strawberries in a food processor and process until the strawberries are pureed.

pureed strawberries in the food processor

Transfer to a large bowl, add the lemon juice and zest, and refrigerate until the mixture is thoroughly chilled. (If using fresh strawberries, puree the berries in the food processor, transfer to a large bowl, add the lemon juice and zest, and place in the refrigerator until chilled.)

Pureed strawberries with lemon zest and juice

Once the simple syrup and pureed strawberries are completely chilled, combine the simple syrup with the pureed strawberries. Transfer the mixture to the chilled container of your ice cream machine and process according to the manufacturer's instructions. Once made, transfer the sorbet to a chilled container and store in the freezer.

Frozen sorbet

The jewel red strawberry sorbet

Note: If you do not have an ice cream machine, then pour the mixture into a 8 inch (20 cm) or 9 inch (23 cm) stainless steel pan (sorbets will freeze faster in stainless steel), cover with plastic wrap, and place in the freezer. When the sorbet is completely frozen (3 to 4 hours), remove from freezer and let stand at room temperature until partially thawed. Transfer the partially thawed sorbet to the food processor, and process to break up the large ice crystals that have formed on the sorbet. (This step is what gives the sorbet its wonderful fluffy texture.) Place the sorbet back into the pan and refreeze for at least three hours, and up to several days.

Have a wonderful joy filled summer :)

Until next time, Happy Baking!

Panna Cotta with Passion fruit Jelly

2014-03-11T21:58:00.002+05:30

Panna Cotta is an Italian dessert which literally means cooked cream. It is generally believed to have originated in the Northern Italian region of Piedmont, although it is eaten all over Italy. Apparently similar versions of this dish are found in Greece, France and Finland. Wherever it is from, it is definitely one of the easiest and best tasting desserts that I know of...and I know quite a few!

According to Wikipedia ' It is not known exactly how or when this dessert came to be, but some theories suggest that cream, for which mountainous Northern Italy is famous, was historically eaten plain or sweetened with fruit or hazelnuts. Earlier recipes for the dish did not directly mention gelatin, but instead included a step in which fish bones were boiled; this is now known to extract collagen from the bones, which turns to gelatin.' (Okay that is totally disgusting). 'Sugar, later a main ingredient, would not have been widely available as it was an expensive imported commodity.' (No sugar!!! What the hell kind of dessert did they have? Thank God sugar is easily available now and is not expensive).

If I had known they originally used fish bones to make gelatin I wouldn't have gone anywhere near this dish. But those were the days when they didn't have packed gelatin and didn't even use sugar, so I might forgive them. Now life is a lot easier, you don't have to sweat it in front of a stove boiling fish bones to make gelatin when it is easily available in any store. You can buy powdered gelatin ( which I use) or gelatin leaves ( which I would have used if I could find them!). Either way it doesn't take any effort.

As for the recipe there are several versions that you can find on the internet, including some very weird flavors too. The best thing would be to get the basic recipe right and then dabble in your favorite flavors. My favorite recipe is from David Lebovitz. It's simple and straightforward, not to mention earth-shattering-ly wonderful in your mouth. I always love Passion Fruit and vanilla together. One very bold and tart and sweet (passion fruit) , while the other is mild and exotic and velvety (vanilla). The bold flavor of passion fruit complements the mild flavor of the vanilla and together they make the perfect dessert.

The first time I made panna cotta with passion fruit jelly, I set them in small glasses. I turned them onto plates with a very satisfying plop! heaped on a tablespoon of passion fruit granita and served it to the hungry horde.

In December I made these in several large dishes for a family function and at the end of the day (or rather night) not a scrap was left. So yummy they are. I am sure you'll enjoy them too. If you’re pressed for time, pour the Panna Cotta mixture into wine goblets so you can serve them in the glasses, without unmolding.

Panna Cotta with Passion fruit jelly Eight servings

Passion Fruit Jelly

2 teaspoons powdered gelatine
2 tablespoons water
300ml water, extra
½ cup (110g) white sugar
2 tablespoons orange juice
2 cups (500ml) passion fruit pulp (I like to keep the seeds, they provide a nice crunch to the jelly and i always use a little extra pulp)

Lightly grease eight drinking glasses or one large mould with any flavorless oil.
Soften the gelatine in the water and set aside. Place the extra water and sugar in a small saucepan over low heat and stir, brushing down the sides of the saucepan, until the sugar is dissolved. Stir in the orange juice, passionfruit pulp and gelatine mixture and strain. Pour into prepared glasses and refrigerate for 2 hours or until set.

You will need about 24 passionfruit for 2 cups pulp

Panna Cotta
4 cups (1l) heavy cream (or half-and-half)
1/2 cup (100g) sugar
2 teaspoons of vanilla extract, or 1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise (I recommend the vanilla bean, for extra oomph! It definitely makes the panna cotta more velvety).
2 packets powdered gelatin (about 4 1/2 teaspoons)
6 tablespoons (90ml) cold water

1. Heat the heavy cream and sugar in a saucepan or microwave. Once the sugar is dissolved, remove from heat and stir in the vanilla extract.

(If using a vanilla bean, scrape the seeds from the bean into the cream and add the bean pod. Cover, and let infuse for 30 minutes. Remove the bean then rewarm the mixture before continuing.)

2. Sprinkle the gelatin over the cold water in a medium-sized bowl and let stand 5 to 10 minutes.

3. Pour the very warm Panna Cotta mixture over the gelatin and stir until the gelatin is completely dissolved. Allow to cool slightly.

4. Divide the Panna Cotta mixture into the glasses with the already set Passion fruit jelly carefully, then chill them until firm, which will take at least two hours but I let them stand at least four hours.

5. Run a sharp knife around the edge of each Panna Cotta and unmold each onto a serving plate, and garnish as desired. Food fit for the Gods (and you n me) is ready to be devoured... :)

To make Panna Cotta with sheet gelatin: Soften 25g (approximately six sheets) in a liter of cold water for 5 to 10 minutes. Wring the sheets out and stir them into the warm Panna Cotta mixture in step # 4, until dissolved.
If you've got time and patience, use long shot glasses and place them slightly tilted in muffin tins and set the passion fruit jelly first, so you have a swirly pattern in your glass. Once set, pour the panna cotta mixture with your glasses straight and refrigerate till set. You can make several such layers too. It makes a visually stunning panna cotta.

By the way, I was supposed to post this last month, sorry for the delay!
Until next time, Happy Baking!

Roasted Chilli Garlic Potatoes

2014-01-15T22:35:00.001+05:30

This is my go-to recipe when we have unexpected guests or a last minute party. It makes for great finger food and the recipe can be altered to suit your needs. Again very little washing up or effort of any kind required, which just makes it even better for me. And even better...people of all ages love it. The best part it needs only the 3 things mentioned in the name itself with a li'l bit of seasoning and for extra oomph just jazz it up a little with some cut veggies or herbs or even bacon and cut sausages.

The potatoes roasting in the oven.

So here's how you make this very simple dish...

Wash and peel few potatoes and lot's of garlic (or less if you don't like garlic). Chop the potatoes (and sausage, if using) into 1 inch sized pieces and dice the garlic (and bacon, if using). Mix both together, add chilli flakes on top, sprinkle with salt and pepper (and herbs, if using), one tablespoon of oil and mix well so all the potatoes (and sausage, if using) are coated with oil. Transfer to a foil lined (so washing up becomes easy) roasting tray and place in a preheated oven at 190 degrees Celsius (374 F) for about 40 minutes or until the potatoes are golden brown. Serve Hot.

Until next time, Happy Baking!

The Happiness Brownie for Chocoholics

2014-01-15T22:04:00.000+05:30

I know I just posted a brownie recipe recently, but this is different. It is The Happiness Brownie for Chocoholics and I am a serious Chocoholic. That brownie is the easy everyday version. Not that this one isn't easy...it is, and you need only one saucepan. That alone means a good recipe according to me since I hate washing up! And I don't really need a reason to bake some brownies. They make me feel happy and take away all my worries. And also, they can be whipped up in a matter of minutes. If it's a quick and easy fix, it's good enough for me.

Wouldn't you feel happy when these are out of the oven? I know I was...

This recipe for brownies is from Stephanie Jowarski's Joy of Baking to which I've made some changes to get a very moist, fudgier and chocolate overdosed brownie. And the addition of sugar covered almonds makes it a wonderful treat, hence the name 'The Happiness Brownie'. Mind you, Stephanie just called them Brownies, I made some small changes to the recipe...added a few things here, mixed in a cupful of love, a tablespoon of joy and some more stuff and there you have it...The Happiness Brownie! (Ha! got you...I got you all thinking I hit my head real hard!).

The Happiness Brownie

So without further ado, here's the recipe for The Happiness Brownie as I call it. And the next time, I am going to use Salted Honey Roasted Almonds and Pretzels too...Ooohhh!!!

The Happiness Brownie

Makes 16 normal sized brownies or 24 smaller brownies

INGREDIENTS

10 tablespoons (140 grams) unsalted butter

1 1/4 cups (250 grams) granulated white sugar

3/4 cup (75 grams) unsweetened cocoa powder, preferably Dutch processed

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

2 large eggs, room temperature

1/4 cup full fat milk

1/2 cup (65 grams) all-purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup (60 ml) sour cream (full or reduced fat)

1/2 cup (85 grams) semi sweet or bittersweet chocolate chips (optional)

1/4 cup Sugar covered Almonds

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C) and place the oven rack in the center of the oven. Line the bottom and sides of an 8 inch (20 cm) square pan with aluminum foil. (The aluminum foil should hang about two inches (5 cm) over the sides of the pan to make it easy to lift the brownies from the pan.)

In a medium saucepan melt the butter (can also melt the butter in the microwave). Remove from heat. Stir (or whisk) in the sugar and cocoa powder. Whisk in the vanilla extract and eggs, one at a time, mixing until the sugar is dissolved. ( It will look like there's too much sugar, keep stirring and you will get there). Add the milk and stir well until you have a smooth and glossy batter. (By this stage the sugar will have mostly dissolved).

Sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Fold this flour mixture into the batter. Finally, fold in the sour cream and chocolate chips (if using).

Pour into the prepared pan and smooth the top, rap the sides of the pan to remove any air bubbles. Scatter the top with the sugar coated almonds (Roll the sugar covered almonds in a little bit of flour so that they don't sink to the bottom of the pan).

The brownie batter in the pan

Bake for about 28 -30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center has moist crumbs clinging to it.Remove from oven and place on a wire rack to cool to room temperature. Then, to make the brownies easier to cut, cover and place in the refrigerator for two hours or until firm. When ready to cut the brownies, lift the aluminum foil out of the pan and, with a sharp knife, cut the brownies.

And serve them as they are or with whipped cream and berries or Ice-Cream and Chocolate Sauce with chopped nuts or just eat them however you want to.

* Note: As you all can see, I haven't lined the pan with aluminum foil, for one I didn't have any and secondly it was easier to just grease and dust it with flour. And there was no difference in texture. But DO NOT OVERBAKE THE BROWNIE...believe me you won't be happy and the brownie definitely won't be happy because it'll dry out.

Leftover Brownies can be stored in the refrigerator for 4 days or upto 3 months in the freezer. ( But who's ever heard of 'Leftover Brownies'!).

I like to just zap them in the microwave for 30 secs before I eat 'em...it just feels right!

Well, until next time...Happy Baking!

Happy Birthday Nigella, here's a Chocolate Irish cream cake for you...

2014-01-06T18:15:00.001+05:30

Today is Nigella Lawson's Birthday. For those of you who don't know me, I think of Nigella as my Guru. She according to me is the best cook ever and is also one of the reasons why I love baking so much. She makes it all so easy, breezes into her beyond amazing kitchen, fiddles around with all those doodads, throws a few things together and Voila! you have a visual treat right before your eyes, which just makes you wish you could somehow wrangle an invitation to her house for a meal. And she does all this while she looks like a million bucks, for someone who is always around food! If I did that, I'd probably look like a freight train! (Scary image in my head now, definitely need to do some Power Yoga).

Even if I cannot be a part of her birthday celebrations (for now, I hope I get to meet her someday) I thought she deserves a beautiful cake (which I would eat on her behalf). And well, it's just another excuse to bake a cake. And it couldn't be just anything... it had to bold, brassy and beautiful, in other words something that says Nigella or sort of describes her. I know she likes chocolate (who doesn't?) so I made a chocolate cake with Irish Cream.

Happy Birthday Nigella

I've always wanted to bake a cake using Bailey's. And lazy person that I am, I've always managed to come up with some excuse or the other. Most used was the lack of Bailey's Irish cream whiskey at home. The other day when we were at an aunts place for dinner, I found a bottle of her Home-made Irish Cream and asked if I could borrow it. The original recipe called for Bailey's and since I didn't have any, I've used the homemade version. I've also added chocolate so the cake has a more intense chocolate flavor. It also made the cake more moist and delicious.

Irish Cream Chocolate Cake
Ingredients
250g plain flour

My very cute measuring cup and spoon set...was a gift from mum

1 1/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt (omit if using salted butter)
60g cocoa powder

40g Good quality dark chocolate, chopped (or you can use chocolate chips)
300g sugar
250ml strong coffee (any temperature)
210g butter, cubed
375ml Baileys (or other Irish Cream liqueur, homemade works too as long as it's good) ( I used a li'l more approx 400 ml)
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 160C, grease and line an 8 x 8 inch tin.
Sift together the flour, baking soda and salt in a bowl and set aside.
Put the chopped chocolate, cocoa powder, sugar, coffee and butter in a medium saucepan and place over medium heat, whisking frequently until the butter and chocolate has melted and the sugar dissolved. Allow to cool for 10 minutes.
Stir in the Baileys Irish cream into the liquidy chocolate mix.

Add the eggs one by one, mixing thoroughly after each addition. Stir in the vanilla extract.

I prefer to crack the eggs into a separate bowl and then add into the batter, so you don't get any eggshell pieces by mistake

you should have a smooth glossy batter after mixing in the eggs

Add the flour mix and whisk gently until everything is incorporated into the batter.

be gentle while incorporating the flour mixture

Pour the thin batter into the prepared tin and rap the sides of the tin a few times to remove air bubbles. Smooth the top of the batter using a wet spoon to remove any air bubbles.
Bake for 1 hour, after an hour put foil on top of the cake and continue for another 25-30 minutes, or until a skewer inserted into the middle comes out with only a few moist crumbs

Cake in the oven

Let cool completely before dusting with icing sugar if desired. (we finished the cake way too soon, so it's not dusted with icing sugar...and I left the paper doilies I flicked from the Orange County soup bowls in my aunt's bag! I wanted to use it as a template for dusting the icing sugar on the cake for a nice pattern ).

Yum yum yum :)

Note* The batter is very very runny and may look like it will never cook, but don't worry it will. Just make sure not o shake the pan at all when it is in the oven.

Do not over bake the cake as it will dry out.

You can use a vanilla bean instead of the extract, just split the bean and scrape the seeds into the batter.

And lastly, it is very dense, very moist, intensely chocolaty and a very very boozy cake...you might get a li'l tipsy, so just don't feed it to your kids.

Now go bake some and tell me how it was.

Until next time, Happy Baking!

Remembering 2013 with a luscious chocolate pie...:)

2014-01-05T12:03:00.001+05:30

Happy New Year to all of you.

So quickly the days go by, and here's another year to look forward to. New resolutions, new hopes and dreams (or in some cases the same old hopes and dreams!), new goals and so on. I feel the last year went by too fast or maybe in my case I just might have missed a few months in 2013! I must have slept through or they just sped by...am not really sure. You can definitely say that by looking at my posts, erratic is the best word I could come up with...

Now 2013 wasn't at all bad, it was in fact a pretty good year for me. I did a lot of baking, even though I might not have posted as much on the blog about it. I'd baked a 4 layered Chocolate Fudge Cake with Chocolate Buttercream Frosting in September for my brother's birthday (Sorry don't have a picture). I made 5 Apple Tarte- Tatin's for a neighbors kitty party. I came up with a new recipe for Sweet n Sour Chicken (which is heavenly by the way) and made Lasagna from scratch (Yes, including the Lasagna sheets). Conducted a baking class too, where I made an AMAZING Chocolate Ganache Tart. Red Velvet Cupcakes which blew everyone's mind. And the one bowl Chocolate cupcakes with buttercrem frosting and silver dragees, which looked as great as it tasted. Oh! did I mention I made Croissants from scratch (tedious but totally worth it) and the Passion fruit Panna cotta fit for Gods.

And the bad stuff, in my baking class, we tried baked doughnuts (I don't know what made me do this, when the yeasty fried ones I've always made worked so well for me...stupid healthy stuff) and one of the girls put in a tablespoon of baking powder instead of a teaspoon, the result...disgustingly acrid tasting doughnuts...blech...yuck ( and a few choice words that I cannot use here!). Another time, my Cinnamon- Sugar Pull apart Bread which worked perfectly every single time and is a family favorite, decided to go Kaput on me...It was a soggy run down mess and just refused to cook, it sort of resembled the boys' dessert from Masterchef Australia's Girls V/s Boys first challenge...Eaton mess I think they decided to call it (It looked like crap by the way...they should've named it Disgusting mess! But I can assure you mine looked way better even though it wasn't cooked in the center).

And just when everything was going great, 2013 dealt me a BIG Bang in my face. I have this very bad habit of imagining how I'd feel if something were to happen to me, and the worst part is sometimes it comes true (not in a good way). For example, this one time a cousin of mine jammed her finger in the car's door and I always wondered how it'd feel, and a few years later I jammed my finger in the car's door! And I can tell you it definitely wasn't pleasant...you'd think I would've learnt my lesson from that. But no, two other cousins had surgeries and I wondered how it'd feel ( I know...I know...very stupid, considering my track record) and guess what! I had to undergo an emergency appendectomy in bloody December! Oh, the horror...post-op is not a place for someone like me, I annoyed the hell out those nurses asking for water and pillows and whatnot! And the worst part nobody gave me FOOD for 4 days!!! And all this just before an interview I was supposed to attend. Well, this sure taught me to never, ever, ever wonder about such things!

Anyway I decided that to remember all the good, bad and ugly parts of 2013, it warrants a Pie...and not just any pie, it's a slice of chocolaty goodness topped with whipped cream and chocolate shavings or in other words a luscious Silky Chocolate Pudding Pie!

Yum...yum...yum

Now, the recipe for the Silky Chocolate pudding, I got from Smitten Kitchen. You can have the pudding as it is, or you can jazz it up a li'l and make a Pie with it. The Chocolate base is my creation...but feel free to experiment and make your own crust. And I topped it with whipped cream only because I was jobless and I had a pack lying around which I've wanted to try for ages. You can skip this...but why would you, it's whipped cream, it tastes amazing and it's not like it'll kill you right! And down here's how I made this wonderful confection which warms the cockles of your heart :)

Oooooh chocolate...please pretend you didn't see the mess on the whipped cream

Silky Chocolate Pudding Pie Serves 6 to 7

Here's what you'll need:

For the Chocolate Base

1/2 cup - digestive biscuits, crushed coarsely ( I used Vita Marie Gold)

1/2 cup - Bourbon biscuits, crushed

1 tablespoon granulated white sugar

2 tablespoons Drinking chocolate powder (I used Cadbury's)

1/2 teaspoon salt

5 tablespoons of butter, melted

Directions

Mix all the dry ingredients together and add in the butter and combine. Now press this slightly wet mixture firmly onto the base of your pie dish or if making individual servings, into bowls. Cover and refrigerate while you make the filling.

For the Pudding

1/4 cup (30 grams) cornstarch
1/2 cup (100 grams) sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt
3 cups (710 ml) whole milk
6 ounces (170 grams) semi- or bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped (or 1 cup good chocolate chips)
1 teaspoon (5 ml) pure vanilla extract
Directions
Combine the cornstarch, sugar and salt in a medium saucepan, Slowly whisk in the milk, in a thin steam at first so that lumps don’t form, then more quickly once the cornstarch mixture is smoothly incorporated. Place over medium-low heat and stir occasionally, scraping the bottom and sides. Use a whisk as necessary should lumps begin to form. After 10 minutes or so (slower over lower heat is better, to give the cornstarch time to cook), before it starts to simmer, the mixture should begin to thicken, enough that it will coat the back of a spoon. Add the chocolate, and continue stirring for another 2 to 4 minutes, until chocolate is fully incorporated and mixture is quite thick. Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla.

If you’re concerned about lumps: Run mixture through a fine-mesh strainer.

Remove the pie base from the refrigerator and pour the pudding mixture in. Cover with plastic wrap on top of the pudding and smooth it gently against the surface before refrigerating, about 2 to 3 hours.

To serve, remove the plastic wrap, top with whipped cream and chocolate shavings. Eat!

If you are not making pie (your loss), distribute among individual pudding cups or one large serving bowl, and chill until it is cool and set, about 2 to 3 hours. Cover with plastic wrap on top of the pudding and smooth it gently against the surface before refrigerating, to prevent pudding skin from forming.

Until next time, Happy Baking! and have a blessedly wonderful New Year :)

My Fail proof Brownie Recipe

2013-11-17T12:19:00.000+05:30

Brownies...just saying the word makes me think of warm, chocolatey and chewy slices of goodness which will instantly put anyone in a good mood. A brownie will make you more friends than anything else. And why not, when it tastes so good! And I am sure that anyone with access to an oven would have baked a brownie at least once in their lives. Brownies can be used for just about anything...for example, You have messed up big time and need to say sorry - bake some awesome brownies, pack it very well and give it to the person...and you will definitely be forgiven. Have some guests coming at the last minute for dinner and you have no dessert, whip up brownies, serve with whipped cream and caramel or chocolate ganache...Voila! you have a 'killer' dessert. Your child has a bake sale at school, make a batch of brownies. So many uses for such a simple thing!

Here's what wikipedia has to say on the subject: "A chocolate brownie is a flat, baked square or bar developed in the United States at the end of the 19th century and popularized in both the U.S. and Canada during the first half of the 20th century. The brownie is a cross between a cake and a cookie in texture.[1] Brownies come in a variety of forms. They are either fudgy or cakey, depending on their density, and they may include nuts, frosting, whipped cream, chocolate chips, or other ingredients."

Now, everyone has their own version of the best brownie recipe. Considering the amount of brownie recipes available on the internet, it's a definite possibility that everyone has at least a few recipes in their kitty. As they are fairly easy to bake and use only a few ingredients, none of which are fancy stuff ( unless you plan on wowing the audience with brownies using Ghirardelli Chocolate or Valrohna or even Hershey's Cocoa for that matter) it's inexpensive too. And moreover most recipes don't call for a stand mixer or even a handheld mixer for that matter (which is definitely a plus point according to me), and use only about two bowls at most which reduces the washing up (this I love, because I hate washing up!). I take laziness up a notch by spreading out some clean papers and sieving the dry ingredients on them ( see, I reduced washing up by using only one bowl).

I definitely have more brownie recipes than most, I have a whole book-full! I have every conceivable kind of brownies - chocolate, triple fudge brownies, s'more brownies, pretzel ganache brownies, blondies and even a lemon and lime brownie (this is my all time fav!)...and many many more! The brownie recipe below is one that I can whip up last minute, as this is a no effort brownie and I mix this using a whisk. And as the title says, it is a fool proof recipe!

My fail Proof Brownie Recipe
Ingredients:
All purpose flour 1 1/3 cup
Granulated sugar 2 cups
Cocoa Powder 3/4 cup (use a very good quality, I use Hintz or Hershey's)
Baking Powder 1 tsp
salt 1/4 tsp
Chopped nuts 1/2 cup
4 large Eggs (lightly beaten)
Vegetable Oil 2/3 cups
Vanilla extract 2 tsps
Milk 2-3 tbsp
Assorted nuts 1 cup ( to scatter on top of the brownie)

Directions:
1. Preheat the oven to 350 F (180 degrees Celsius). Line and grease a 9 X 13 baking dish.
2. Sieve the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and salt. Add the sugar and 1/2 cup of chopped nuts and mix well ( The nuts should be well coated with flour so that they don't sink to the bottom when you bake the brownie).
3. In another bowl, mix together the lightly beaten eggs, the vegetable oil and the vanilla extract. Add the dry ingredients gradually to the wet ingredients and mix until just combined. Add two tablespoons of milk to the batter and mix until combined. If the batter feels too thick add another tablespoon of milk and mix until just combined. Do not over mix.
4. Pour into the prepared baking dish, scatter the assorted nuts on top (if using) and bake at 180 degrees Celsius for 30-35 minutes or until a skewer inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove from the oven and let cool completely. Cut and serve. Yields 24 pieces.

Until next time,
Happy Baking!

I thought I'll talk about something other than food or recipes

2013-09-30T16:36:00.000+05:30

Since I started this blog I've only posted about my love for food, cooking and recipes. So, I thought I'll also share my love for other things. Lets start with my love for books. Whenever I am not baking, you'll definitely find me reading. I've so many books right now, I don't know where to put them...that does not mean I'll lend them! I've had awful experiences with people who borrow my books. They either think they can keep it for themselves or tear chunks off my precious original beauties (them idiots!humph). I buy books whenever possible, I spend most of my money either on books or baking ingredients. The salespeople at Crossword in Indiranagar even know what kind of books I like. Whenever I am in Bangalore I make sure I go to Crossword almost every sunday morning, it's like a ritual. And I always end up buying some book or the other, mostly because I feel I just cannot leave the book behind. I feel the books speak to me (overripe imagination and all).

And for all those of you who don't know what Books are, here's the definition of books from Wikipedia:
"A book is a set of written, printed, illustrated, or blank sheets, made of ink, paper, parchment, or other materials, usually fastened together to hinge at one side. A single sheet within a book is called a leaf, and each side of a leaf is called a page."
Interesting fact, again from Wikipedia: The word Book comes from Old English "bōc" which (itself) comes from the Germanic root "*bōk-", cognate to beech.^[2] Similarly, in Slavic languages (for example, Russian, Bulgarian,Macedonian) "буква" (bukva—"letter") is cognate with "beech". In Russian and in Serbian and Macedonian, another Slavic languages, the words "букварь" (bukvar') and "буквар" (bukvar), respectively, refer specifically to a primary school textbook that helps young children master the techniques of reading and writing. It is thus conjectured that the earliestIndo-European writings may have been carved on beech wood.^[3] Similarly, the Latin word codex, meaning a book in the modern sense (bound and with separate leaves), originally meant "block of wood".

Here's a list of a few of my favorite books (I can't name all of them in one post)-

Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen (my all time favorite)
To Sir, With Love by E.R. Braithwaite
Love Story by Eric Segal
Doctors by Eric Segal
The Godfather by Mario Puzo
Cleopatra's Daughter by Michelle Moran
Don Quixote (Don Quijote de la Mancha Completo) by Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra,
The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas
The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas
Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë
Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell
Othello by William Shakespeare
The Merchant of Venice by William Shakespeare
Black Beauty by Anna Sewell
David Copperfield by Charles Dickens
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest by Ken Kesey
The Importance of Being Earnest by Oscar Wilde
The Phantom of the Opera by Gaston Leroux
Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare
The Hunchback of Notre-Dame by Victor Hugo
Those pricey Thakur Girls by Anuja Chauhan
The Family by Mario Puzo
Prizes by Eric Segal
Princess by Jean Sasson
Mayada by Jean Sasson
Love in a torn land by Jean Sasson
The Sicilian by Mario Puzo

Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden
The Devil Wears Prada (The Devil Wears Prada #1) by Lauren Weisberger
The Boy in the Striped Pajamas by John Boyne
A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens
The Immortals of Meluha by Amish Tripathi
Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare
The Percy Jackson Series by Rick Riordan
The Palace of Illusions by Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni
Nefertiti by Michelle Moran
Child of the Morning by Pauline Gedge
P.S. I Love You by Cecelia Ahern
Chocolat by Joanne Harris
Rage of Angels by Sidney Sheldon
A Suitable Boy by Vikram Seth
Asura - Tale of The Vanquished by Anand Neelakantan
Asterix and Obelisk by René Goscinny

I will try and find links to the e-books for those of you who are interested in reading and post on this blog.

Until next time, Happy reading :)

The Real Coffee Cream!

2013-09-28T18:38:00.000+05:30

This post is dedicated to the infamous Coffee Cream. I really don't know where exactly this recipe came from, but I do know it's one of the easiest and best desserts ever. My aunt taught me how to make it first. From then on it's been served at simple dinner parties, as well as weddings. And since it's so simple and inexpensive to make, you can make it in large quantities as well.

Now the explanation behind the title of the post 'The Real Coffee Cream!'. It all started with showing a few of them how to make it, and then the recipe went viral with every Tom, Dick and Harry (or the ladies version of them, coz in Coorg only the ladies cook) knew about this and as long as it was made well I didn't mind. Random people came up and said it was a wonderful dessert and I liked it that they liked it too. Then there are a few people, who feel it's beneath them to ask another person for a recipe (especially if it's me) and come up with their own recipes. Now, I don't mind or care if the end result is the same and it tastes good (after all, everyone has their own version of roast chicken or bread pudding, and the same goes for this). The trouble is when they try fiddling around with ingredients and unnecessarily complicate a simple recipe and the end product not only looks awful but tastes awful too. And finally, there are a few more people who've come up to me and said "this is Ok, another person I know makes it better" ( and that too in front of other people...bitchy much!!!). The best one has been at a recent family wedding, where I had made Coffee Cream for dessert; a nosy-good for nothing-busybody comes up, lifts the serving spoon and smells it (the horror! shoves the spoon up her big, fat nose...idiot, we all gagged at the sight) and coolly asks me what it's called (even though there is a card right in front of her with the name of the dessert, silly old cow!), and when I explain it to her very nicely she turns her nose up at me and tells another person (who we both know doesn't know how to make it, and her version makes us all puke just looking at it!) makes it so much better than me! So I've finally decided it's better to ignore such stupid fools and share my recipe.

Now after all that explanation; Coffee cream is nothing but a cheats version of Coffee Panna Cotta, we just gave it another easier name! All you need is a tin a Sweetened Condensed milk, Good quality instant coffee, gelatin ,Heavy Cream and a blitzer. See, very simple na! All you need is 4 ingredients and people mess that up too, bah!

Coffee Cream (or rather Coffee Panna Cotta)

Time: It takes no time unless you count the setting time.

Serves: As many or as few as you want.

Here's what you'll need:
Unflavored Powdered Gelatin - 1 1/2 Tablespoons
Water - 6 Tablespoons
Good quality instant Coffee granules - 3-4 Tablespoons ( use 3 tablespoons if you don't want it to be too strong, and I use Bru Gold coffee)
Sweetened Condensed milk - 400 ml ( that's 1 tin)
Heavy Cream - 400 ml ( I use Milky Mist cream, you can use Amul if you want, though Amul is light cream the amount of gelatin is enough for it to set well)
Chocolate curls to garnish (optional)

Here's How you do it:
1. Empty the tin of sweetened condensed milk into a large blitzer jar.
2. In a small saucepan, heat the water until it comes to a rolling boil. Meanwhile, place the gelatin in a cup, pour the boiling water over and stir well and make sure all the gelatin is dissolved. You can strain it to remove any residue. Add the coffee and stir until completely dissolved. Let it cool slightly (not too much, it should still be warm or else the gelatin starts to set).
3. Pour the Coffee and gelatin mixture into the blitzer jar with the sweetened condensed milk and give it a good blitz, for about a minute or two. Check to make sure everything is mixed well.
4. Pour heavy cream into the jar and blitz immediately for less than a minute (make sure the cream is fresh or else it'll curdle and instead of a dessert,you'll have a disaster on your hands!).
5. Transfer the Coffee Cream into a glass dish, or into individual glasses, cover with cling film and let it set in the refrigerator for at least 4-5 hours. Serve chilled garnished with chocolate curls if you wish.

Note* You can make the same thing with Strawberries (or any berry), all you have to do substitute 200g of the berries in place of the coffee, and blitz the berries first, add condensed milk and gelatin, blitz again and finally add the cream and blitz and then set for 4-5 hours before serving.
If you don't dissolve the gelatin well, the gelatin granules settle at the bottom of your dessert and you'll have yuck-nog for dessert, so be very careful.

Until next time, have fun and Happy Baking!

So much for my steely resolve...

2013-08-31T17:59:00.000+05:30

People who want to lose weight really shouldn't know how to cook, let alone make wonderful, full of calorie- desserts! I really hate myself right now. When I left home last month, I'd promised myself that I wouldn't bake or make anything that was loaded with calories, because, to quote my cousin Tanya- I put on weight if I breathe too much! And I've been pretty strong too, for someone who has a serious sweet tooth (and also has Anand sweets right opposite her house!). I stuck to a no rice diet, exercised religiously and even went to yoga thrice a day sometimes (overzealous much!). But two days ago, my steely resolve flew out the window as did the promise not to eat anything sweet.

It all started with the half finished loaf of bread in the fridge (damn you half finished bread loaf!). Last month, when I was home, I had this mad craving for bread pudding. I know what you'll think; of all things in the whole wide world, I wanted bread pudding. But it's not any ordinary soggy bread pudding I wanted, it was Nigella's Chocolate chip bread pudding! And the way she describes it get's your mouth watering. Since I didn't have all the ingredients she used, I made up my own recipe and the result an amazingly soft, crisp on top, slightly soggy at the bottom bread pudding with melting chocolate chips! Two days ago, I spied some bread in the fridge and I decided to make some again, since Tanya's just got braces for her teeth and can only eat soft food...and what better soft food than bread pudding. Again most of the stuff we needed, we didn't have them and we borrowed from our very nice neighbours. And once again the recipe doesn't fail and I have three adoring fans.I don't have a picture to upload coz it was finished so fast.

Soaked bread cubes packed with chocolate chips

After the bread pudding I was guilt ridden. I know I shouldn't have, but then I couldn't. And then I made Panna Cotta with Passion fruit jelly yesterday! I'd promised my aunt whose a vegetarian that I'd make something she could eat, so the panna cotta. The best part about it, well other than that it was fantastic, was that I told that idiot boy (read cousin Tushar) that I ate all the passion fruit! Bazinga! He ate most of the passion fruit without sharing, so I'd say he deserved it ( well, apparently not enough...coz he got a share of the panna cotta). Any way, I ate that too...so I have to do some extra exercise (youch). Here's a picture of the damn panna cotta with passion fruit jelly.

I love this...don't you?

Oh and here's a picture with my cousins Tanya and Tanu

the one in black's Tanya, the pink lady's Tanu...The other one's obviously me the pretty one! :D

And now the recipe...I know Anton Mosimann's bread pudding is the best (or so I hear, I've actually never tasted it or attempted to make it either). But until I do, (or probably even after I taste Anton's) this is the most amazing bread pudding! EVER!

My version of Chocolate Bread Pudding with Chocolate Chips

Ingredients

250g - Stale bread (either white or brown) with the crust on, cut into cubes

100g - Chocolate chips ( dark or milk chocolate), I always add extra

2 eggs, at room temperature

500 ml full fat milk

1 tbsp - brown sugar (light or dark)

1/4 cup - granulated white sugar

1 tbsp - good quality cocoa powder

2 tsp - vanilla extract

2 tbsp - dark rum, optional

1 tbsp - freshly brewed strong coffee, optional

1 tsp - cinnamon powder

4 tsp - demerara sugar, for sprinkling

Instructions

1. Tip the cubed stale bread onto a greased round pie dish (approx. 23cm). Sprinkle the chocolate chips on and make sure to mix it well with the bread, so that they're evenly distributed.
2. In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk, brown sugar, granulated white sugar, cocoa powder, vanilla, cinnamon powder, rum (if using) and coffee (if using), until all the sugar is dissolved. Pour this mixture over the bread and chocolate chips.

3. Squish the bread cubes down slightly using your fingers and allow it to soak for 20 minutes.
4. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius. Sprinkle on the demerara sugar over the pudding mixture and bake for 30 - 40 minutes.

Serve hot with whipped cream or ice cream, or else just enjoy it as it is with a cup of coffee.

*If your bread isn't stale, then leave slices to dry first, for a while, on a wire rack before cubing and using.

Until next time (I will tell you about my love for Chuck Hughes)...Happy Baking!

Four posts in one day...ha! so much for laziness!!!

2013-08-27T21:07:00.002+05:30

I guess I am wired from all the yoga today, hence so many posts. Also, I felt a wee bit guilty about ignoring the blog for so long and decided that I better catch up and post some stuff. And also, I forgot to mention that I had baked 4 wonderful Tarte Tatin's for Anjali Aunty's kitty party and I got rave reviews for them. I baked another Tarte Tatin last week for my aunt's party, so I guess I can say I am getting to be quite an expert at baking them. After all they are so easy.

Tarte Tatin with Tanu's finger!

Also I came up with a new recipe for Sweet n Sour chicken. It all started with an intense craving for Sweet n Sour chicken when I was at home in Coorg; and since there are no great Chinese restaurants nearby, I had to make some myself. It was sooooo goood, I think I almost bit off the tip of my li'l finger (hee hee). See picture below. Recipe to follow soon.

ooohhh...I wanna have some now!

I also baked some Red velvet cupcakes. I am crazy about red velvet cupcakes, and who wouldn't be...they look so pretty and taste so good too! And they are so moist...add a little cream cheese icing on top and it's the bees knees! See picture below.

The red velvet cupcakes just out of the oven...I didn't put on any cream cheese frosting coz there were no cupcakes left to frost, we ate 'em all :)

And finally to the recipes...the recipe that I am sharing is one of my own and it's easy (a li'l time consuming, but all good things to those who wait or something along those lines). And it's another of the recipes from the baking class.

Mushroom Pasta Bake

Ingredients:

Pasta – 200g pack (You can get any pasta of your choice, farfalle, penne, rigatoni, macaroni, fusili, ziti, alphabet pasta, paprdelle, rotini, penne rigate, conchiglie, orecchiette, rotelle etc.)

Mushrooms – 300g (You can get any mushroom of your choice or mix them, button mushrooms, shitake, porcini, chanterelles, oyster mushrooms etc) (cleaned and chopped)

Olive Oil – 1 Tablespoon (or any cooking oil) plus 1 Teaspoon of oil for boiling the pasta.

Salt to taste

Worcestershire sauce – 1 Tablespoon

Crushed Black Pepper – 2Tteaspoons

Garlic – 4 large cloves crushed

Parsley – 2 Tablespoons (chopped finely)

Coriander leaves and stalk – 1 Tablespoon (chopped finely)

Mint leaves – 1 tablespoon (chopped finely)

Dried Rosemary – ½ Teaspoon

Dried Thyme – ½ Teaspoon

Dried Oregano – ½ Teaspoon

Dried Chilli Flakes – 2 tablespoon

Cheddar or Mozzarella Cheese – 200g (grated)

1 large onion cut into rings

1 large bell pepper (capsicum) cut into rings

1 large tomato cut into rings

For the Béchamel Sauce:

Wheat Flour – 100g

Butter – 100g

Warm Milk – 400ml

¼ cup pasta water

Salt to taste

Crushed black pepper – 1 teaspoon

Cinnamon or Nutmeg powder - ½ teaspoon

Instructions:

Fill a large saucepan with water, add 1 teaspoon salt and bring to a rolling boil. When the water starts boiling, add a teaspoon of oil, then add the pasta and give it a stir. Cover the pot and let boil for 15 to 20 mins. Keep stirring in between or the pasta will stick together and burn. Also, keep checking to make sure the pasta is not overcooked. It should be just cooked “al dente”.

Once the pasta is cooked right, then immediately strain into a colander to remove the pasta water. Reserve ¼ cup of the pasta water and set aside. Run cold water over the pasta to stop the cooking process and set aside.

In another pan, heat 1 tablespoon of oil, fry the crushed garlic and then add the mushrooms to the pan. Add salt to taste, Worcestershire sauce, pepper and the herbs and and sauté them till it is cooked. Add 2 tablespoons of the grated cheese and set aside.

To make the béchamel sauce, on low heat, roast the wheat flour till slightly brown, add butter and stir vigorously till you have a roux (the flour and butter mix to form a thin paste). Stir so that there are no lumps. Now pour in the milk and whisk continuously to remove all lumps, keep stirring until you feel the sauce thickening. Now add the pasta water, keep whisking, also add the salt, pepper and cinnamon or nutmeg powder. Whisk until you have a thick but pourable and smooth sauce.

Into a large baking dish, first add a 2 tablespoons of béchamel sauce and spread to cover the base. Now add the pasta and half the béchamel sauce and 2 tablespoons of grated cheese. Mix lightly. Next add the mushroom and cheese mixture and spread on the pasta. Spread the rest of the béchamel sauce and sprinkle half of the remaining grated cheese. Arrange the onion rings, bell pepper rings and tomato rings and sprinkle the rest of the grated cheese on top. Finally sprinkle the chilli flakes on top of the grated cheese.

Bake in a preheated oven at 200 degrees Celsius for 30 minutes or until the cheese melts and top is bubbling and is lightly golden and crisp. Serve hot with fresh garlic bread.
And for all you meat loving types who can't live without it, you can add minced meat or even sausage to the same recipe.

Until next time, Happy Baking :)

In loving memory of my Rusty

2013-08-27T11:25:00.000+05:30

On 6th August 2013, my best buddy our wonderful dachshund doggie passed away. We were all heartbroken, coz he'd been with us since October 2002. He was the most amazing dog ever and will be sorely missed.

Here are few things about my doggie I want you all to know (even if you don't want to know I am telling).
1. Rusty loved flowers (yup, he truly did) especially hibiscus (mostly red or orange colored ones, but he was fine with all colors as long as they were hibiscus). Every morning my Dad cleans the Prayer room and throws out the flowers, Rusty was ready for just this and moment he chucks the flowers, he'd start eating the stamens ( I don't know why...I guess he loved the taste).
2. Rusty was so scared of our other dog Roxy (I call her rakshashi or demon dog, coz she acts like one), he'd always leave a part of his meal for her or else that demon dog'd try to kill him.
3. He never ever ever left the house like the other dogs did, he'd just stay in front of the porch and not leave until my Dad put him back in his kennel.
4. For all the fear of Roxy, he never shared his biscuits like he shared his meal...and she knew not to mess with him for that biscuit.
5. Rusty loved coconuts, he'd keep the hard shell with him for days and keep digging into it until even the smell of the coconut is gone. Actually he ate most fruits...coconuts (especially tender coconut), avocado, jackfruit and even mangoes.
6. For some reason Rusty hated our Ganesh Bhatta ( the brahmin who comes to our temple for puja). Every Monday morning he'd refuse to get back in the kennel and when Ganesh Bhatta came inside he'd chase him all over the place.
7. This one time when my Dad had just come back a few months after his surgery he was alone at home and went upstairs to check the doors and windows. Rusty and Jojo (the dog we had before Roxy) searched all over and when they didn't find him climbed up the stairs to find him (Rusty never climbed stairs, being a dachshund he couldn't). Such was his loyalty and love towards our family.
8..And lastly, whatever I baked Rusty always got a share of it. He'd eat me up if hadn't given him a piece.

He was such a love, that li'l dog...so loyal and loving. We will all miss him, even that Roxy. She searched for 2 days and kept whining all the while (so much for bullying him all the while!).

Rusty

xxx

How Do I bake when there's no power or even post on this blog???

2013-08-27T10:51:00.001+05:30

I know I haven't posted anything in a while and now I am trying to make for it by writing 2-3 posts on the same day. I won't say I've been really busy, because I have and I haven't been busy; make whatever of that you will. I have been just plain lazy. I went back home to Coorg in June and the day I reached, it started pouring and still hasn't stopped. And to make it worse we had no power for weeks together (I felt like I was in a an episode of that TV show Revolution). Oh! and the icing on the cake (a cake that wasn't baked coz there was no power!!!) we had Elephants living in our coffee estate! The happy Pachyderm family ( daddy elephant, mommy elephant and a very mischievous and destructively happy baby elephant) decided to park their humongous bottoms next to the Jack-fruit tree which is very close to our house (I could actually see them from the bedroom). For three nights in a row they'd walk all over the place, did some intelligent construction so that their naughty Li'l baby didn't fall into our lake and gave our poor dogs a fright! Well all's good now, coz the pachyderm family decided they were better off in the forest.

Since I didn't bake anything, here's another recipe from the baking class...This is not as simple as you expect it to be, but if you read the ingredients list and the recipe thoroughly and follow the instructions you can't go wrong. And you'll have a beautiful cake as proof!

Marble Cake

Ingredients:

5 ounces (140 grams) bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, chopped

1 tablespoon brewed coffee (optional)

2 1/4 cups (295 grams) all purpose flour

2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup (170 grams) unsalted butter, room temperature

1 1/4 cups (250 grams) granulated white sugar

3 large eggs, room temperature

1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

1/3 cup (80 ml) sour cream or plain yogurt, room temperature

1/2 cup (120 ml) milk, room temperature

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C) and place rack in center of oven. Butter, or spray with a non stick spray, a 10 inch (25 cm) bundt or tube pan ( If you don't have one, use a normal round pan).

In a heatproof bowl, placed over a saucepan of simmering water, melt the chocolate with the coffee. Remove from heat and set aside to cool to room temperature.

Meanwhile, in a separate bowl, sift or whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.

In the bowl of your electric mixer (or with a hand mixer), beat the butter until smooth. Gradually add the sugar and continue to beat until the mixture is light and fluffy (about 3-5 minutes). Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in the vanilla extract and sour cream.

With the mixer on low speed, alternately add the flour mixture and the milk to the batter, in three additions, beginning and ending with the flour. Remove a little more than half of the batter and place into a separate bowl. To the remaining batter stir, or beat, in the melted chocolate. Place the batters into the prepared bundt pan by alternating spoonfuls of vanilla batter with the chocolate batter. Then, with the end of a wooden skewer or knife, gently draw swirls through the batter to marbleize it ( make swirly patterns on the cake). Don't over mix.

Bake for about 35 - 40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center just comes out clean. Remove from oven and place on a wire rack to cool for about 20 minutes before removing the cake from the pan to cool completely. Can dust the top of the cake with cocoa powder or powdered sugar (I don't do this, what's the point of going to the trouble of making all those swirly patterns just to cover it up?). Serve warm or at room temperature. This cake is best the day it's made, but it will keep for a couple of days at room temperature or it can be frozen.

Well then...until next time... Happy Baking!