Yumsilicious Bakes

Chocolate Fudge Cake with Salted Caramel Buttercream And Dark Chocolate Fudge Frosting

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 10 Sep 2014 19:43:00 +0000

Here I am, up at 1 am, surrounded by not one, not two, but FOUR different types of cookies around me! Yes!!! I have finally taken this seriously & I'm testing recipes every spare minute I can find, which with work, gym & a social life is almost impossible! So it's the sleep that's getting sacrificed, and honestly, I'm loving every minute of it. Being so busy that you end up collapsing in bed is my form of bliss!

After spending the last two hours researching the ratios & hows & whys of chewy caramel (to use in caramel stuffed cookies), I finally remembered this post that has been pending for 4+ months! I made this cake in one of my random bursts of inspiration & craving. The recipe was actually bookmarked long ago, and my team at work was constantly asking for something after discovering the blog, which is actually kept quite a secret because the follow up question is always - WHY DON'T YOU BAKE ANYMORE??

But one day - maybe I was feeling generous - I decided to do as they wanted & make an indulgent, rich & sinful cake. This cake just went on to prove how much I actually love just stepping into a kitchen & coming out with a delicious plate of trouble in a few hours. I don't know which was more fun, the cake making process, or the happiness when I saw the smiles on the people who ate it, or the taste of the cake itself! The cake is light yet full of chocolatey goodness, and the salted caramel buttercream is something you'd want to take a long bath in, it's that rich while still tasting smooth and dream like. Top it off with a simple chocolate fudge frosting, and you've got heaven on a plate, just like that!

Chocolate Fudge Cake with Salted Caramel Buttercream
Recipe from Martha Stewart via Sweetapolita
Yield: Three 6-inch round layers
Serves: 8+

Ingredients
1 1/2 cups (180 g) all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups (300 g) sugar
3/4 cup (90 g) dark unsweetened cocoa powder
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1/4 cup (60 ml) vegetable oil
3/4 cup (190 ml) buttermilk
3/4 cup (190 ml) hot brewed coffee
2 eggs, room temperature, lightly beaten
2 tsp vanilla

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350° F (180°C). Grease & line three 6-inch round cake pans with parchment paper.
In the large bowl of your electric mixer, sift together all the dry ingredients. Add all the remaining ingredients and beat until just mixed. The batter will be quite liquidy.
Pour into prepared pans and bake for 30 minutes, until a skewer inserted comes out clean and the top feels springy to the touch
Cool to room temperature on wire racks. Refrigerate until ready to assemble.

For the Salted Caramel Swiss Buttercream filling
Yield: 4 cups - You may be leftover with approximately 1/2 cup

Ingredients
1 cup (200 g) sugar
1/4 cup (60 ml) water
1/4 cup (60 ml) heavy cream
generous pinch of sea salt
1 1/2 cups (3 sticks / 340 g / 12 oz) unsalted butter, at room temperature
4 large egg white
1 tsp pure vanilla extract

Instructions:

First, we have to make the salted caramel to cool and keep aside, ready to add into the buttercream
In a medium saucepan, mix together 1/2 cup + 2 tbsp (130 g) of the sugar with the water. Boil over medium heat. Brush down the sides of the saucepan with a dampened pastry brush to prevent crystallization. Don't stir the mixture at all from now on, you can however, gently swirl, occasionally.
Remove from heat and carefully add the cream, whisking until smooth. Be careful of the sputtering. Whisk in the sea salt & vanilla, set aside to cool.
Now it's time to make the buttercream. In the large bowl of your mixer, beat cubes of the butter until pale & fluffy, about 3-5 minutes.
In a clean bowl, combine the egg whites & sugar. Place bowl over simmering water, whisking occasionally until the sugar dissolves, reaches 160° on a candy thermometer and the mixture doesn't feel gritty when rubbed between two fingers.
Remove the bowl from the heat and whisk on medium speed for about 5 minutes. Increase the speed and whisk until stiff peaks form, about 5-6 minutes. The bowl should now be at room temperature. Reduce the speed to medium-low, and add in the beaten butter, one cup at a time, whisking between each addition.
Using the flat beater, add the cooled caramel, beating until smooth, about 3-5 minutes.
Your buttercream is ready :) Store in the fridge until ready to use.

For the Dark Chocolate Fudge Frosting
Yield: ~5 cups - You will be leftover with approximately 1.5 cups

Ingredients
1/4 cup + 2 tbsp (45 g) unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder
1/4 cup + 2 tbsp (90 ml) boiling water
1 1/2 cups (3 sticks / 339 g /12 oz) unsalted butter, room temperature
1/2 cup (63 g) confectioners’ sugar
pinch of salt
1 pound (454 g/16 oz) good-quality semi-sweet chocolate, melted and cooled

Method:

In a small bowl, combine together the cocoa powder & the boiling water, stirring until the cocoa has dissolved
In a large bowl, beat together the butter, sugar & salt using a flat beater, until pale & fluffy - about 5 minutes
Reduce speed to medium-low and add the melted chocolate, beating until combined. Add in the cocoa mixture and beat until well incorporated.

To assemble:

Split the layers into halves. Lay the bottom half of a layer onto a cake plate/board. Lay strips of parchment along the sides of the cake to ensure an easy clean up.
Scoop out about 1/5th of the filling onto the cake layer. Flatten out using an offset spatula. Add another cake layer on top and repeat the process until you have laid out all six layers. Ensure the top layer is the inverted bottom of one of the three cakes, to get a perfectly flat top.
Crumb coat with a light layer of the dark chocolate fudge frosting. Refrigerate.
Now ice the sides & top of the cake with the frosting - an offset spatula, a straight spatula & a bench scraper are your best friends during this, as is a good turntable - I use something similar to this.
Lay on your preferred candy of decoration (I used a Ferrero Raffaello)
Serve at room temperature

Strawberry Lattice Pie

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 06 Jul 2014 16:50:00 +0000

Pie is just one of those feel good things, isn't it? The happiest & the most, um, romantic - not in the I'm in love kind of romantic, but more like the this is something that's been happening in homes all over the world for more years than I've been alive - thing to me is probably taking steaming hot pie with bubbling berry filling out a hot oven with a nice thick oven glove. Or maybe that's just me, I can romanticize just about anything.

But once a few weeks ago (yes, I've become lazy), I felt the urge to make something that would make my heart swell with pride on making something nice that would make the house smell wonderful, while still being nonchalant about it since it really wouldn't be a big deal. And with strawberries on the market just about everywhere & nice big box of them lying on my dining room table, it all just fell together perfectly. Making a simple double crust wouldn't be enough, this HAD to be a lattice pie because that's the imagery I'd grown up with. Not knowing how to make one didn't matter. It had to be done. And after following Simply Recipes' instructions, it was done. No problem. Nothing to be scared of really, it was - forgive me for this - easy as pie ;)

I made the crust in my KA this time rather than laboring with the pastry cutter. So much easier

Look at those beautiful specks of butter. Flaky crust alert :)

Such gorgeous strawberries that it felt like a sin to cut them up.

Admittedly, this isn't the best, but pretty good for a first try, right? Any tips for the next time?

Strawberry Pie
For the pie crust
I used my favorite pie crust recipe

For the filling
Adapted from Happier Than A Pig In Mud

4 cups strawberries, sliced thick
1/2 cup [60 g] flour
1/2 cup [100 g] sugar
A couple pats of butter-optional
1 egg yolk - To paint over pie - optional
Sprinkling of coarse sugar - optional

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350 F [180 C].
Roll out & place one half of the prepared dough on the bottom of a greased pie pan. Add pie weights, separated from the dough by a layer of foil or parchment paper [I use some grains that I've kept solely for this purpose]. Bake for about 15 minutes until lightly browned. Remove & cool to room temperature.
De-hull & chop the strawberries into 3-4 pieces [you don't want to cut them too small]. Add sugar & allow to sit for 10 minutes. Now toss with the flour till well coated, and add into the baked bottom layer. The mixture should come well up to the top of the pan
Add the pat of butter, if using. Prepare the lattice [follow the instructions linked above]. Use a brush & paint the beaten egg yolk over the pie. Sprinkle the sugar on top.
Bake for 40-45 minutes until mixture is bubbling & pie is golden brown
Enjoy hot, with some ice-cream to the side :)

DIY : Homemade Granola Bars

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 26 Jan 2014 13:34:00 +0000

Happy 2014!! While I’ve made just about zero resolutions because they never seem to last beyond a week, I do have very high hopes for this year! I’ve just joined the #100HappyDays bandwagon, hopefully I see this through. If you want to cheer me on, I’m doing it on Instagram, come say hi! A few encouraging should go a long way in pushing me to do it for THREE and a HALF months, probably the longest commitment I’ve ever made! If you’re doing it too, tell me & we’ll cheer each other on.

Anyway, the first thing that’d make me happy is losing the 10 kilos I’ve gained in the past year and half that just don’t seem to go away. Began gymming last month, and had been living on granola bars for the hi-energy post workout snack. But the problem was, I’m way too picky and only ended up eating one flavour, over and over, out of the measly 3-4 that are available in this country.

Baking healthy food has always intimidated me, especially in Bombay, because of the weird ingredients you find in the recipes, like flax seed, brown rice syrup etc. So even if I DID want to try, the ingredients stopped me [flax seed is actually available very very easily in Bombay, it’s just called something else]. But since I was sick of eating the oats & chocolate flavour, I spent half of a Sunday browsing recipes and doing some research to find a manageable recipe. And I know everyone says this, but you’d be surprised at how easy it was, it took literally 10 minutes of prep, and that includes looking for the ingredients in all the cupboards of the kitchen.

I’ve made this recipe thrice in 2 weeks, and have learnt that a higher molasses:honey ratio is needed to make the bars sticky enough to not crumble. The ones pictured here are 1:1, but a 3:1 ratio I made before this was perfectly compact, stayed together, and was crunchy to perfection. A 2:1 ratio will also work and is the third combination I tried, which were my favourite. You get the flavour of the honey and the stickiness of the molasses for perfect gym/work/school snacks.

Homemade Granola Bars

Adapted from The Kitchn, a LOT of Google, trials & some error

1 3/4 cups old-fashioned oats
1 cup crispy rice cereal, puffed millet, high-fiber cereal mix, crushed pretzel sticks, or any other crispy grain or cereal
1/2 cup chopped nuts (I love walnuts, peanuts & almonds)
3/4 cup dried fruits (I love dates, figs & raisins)
1/2 cup syrup (I love 2:1 molasses:honey ratio)
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 - 1 tsp spices, like cinnamon or pumpkin pie spice (optional)
3 tsp peanut butter or 1 tbsp cocoa powder (optional for firmer bars)

Instructions

Preheat your oven to 350 F [180 C]. Grease and line a baking pan with parchment, leaving some overhang on the sides so it's easy to pick up.
Toast the nuts, oats and rice cereal on low until they become almost crispy, about 10 minutes. Optional is soaking the dried fruits in hot water for 10 minutes to make them softer, I chopped them small & don't feel the need. If you do choose to do this, make sure you dry them with a paper towel before using.
In a small bowl, warm your syrups of choice for about 15 seconds till it becomes looser in consistency. Add the vanilla, salt and other spices, if using, and mix well.
In a large bowl, pour out the nuts, oats, rice cereal and dried fruits. Pour the warmed syrup mixture, and the peanut butter / cocoa powder, if using. Mix well.
Pour out this mixture onto the prepared sheet. Pack extremely tightly or else you will end up with crumbly bars. The greased bottom of a measuring cup works well for this. Pack them up to your desired height, it doesn't need to match the size of your pan, as you can see in the picture below, the mixture holds shape pretty well.
Bake for 20-25 minutes for chewy bars, add another 5 minutes for crunchy bars (I love them just around the 25 minute mark)
Let them cool completely, this is very important. Once completely cooled, cut into bars of desired size & store in an airtight container. Pack 2-3 of these into your boxes everyday and see your weight drop.

Gooey Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Bars

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 08 Dec 2013 09:49:00 +0000

These bars...

They're just pure sin!

And I polished off more than half a pan myself late one night *embarrassed smile*

So I'm never making them again... especially given that I've just realised I've gained 10 kilos over the last year & need to lose it by the end of January!

But you totally should... Just make sure you have lots of people around that you can gift them to, they're not all that fattening if you eat 1-2 bars like any normal human being would, but unfortunately these are the sort that make you want to curl up in your favorite pyjamas, play your favorite movie and munch on till you forget you were ever trying to diet! They've got oats, so they're sorta healthy too!

Gooey Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Bars
Adapted from Recipe Girl
Makes one 9x13 pan, or 24 bars

For the Gooey Chocolate filling:

2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
One 14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk
2 tsp vanilla extract

For the cookies:
1 cup [2 sticks / 226 g] unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup light brown sugar
1/2 cup [100 g] granulated white sugar
1 large egg
1 large egg yolk
1 tbsp vanilla extract
2 cups [240 g] all-purpose flour
1 cup quick-cooking or old-fashioned rolled oats
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt - omit if using salted butter
2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350 F [180 C]. Grease and line a 9x13 pan with parchment paper or strong foil, leaving enough overhang to lift the bars out of the pan.
For the gooey chocolate filling: In a small saucepan over extreme low heat, melt together the chocolate chips & condensed milk, stirring constantly, until the chocolate has melted. Take the pan off the heat, stir in the vanilla and set aside to cool.
For the cookie: In the bowl of your mixer, beat the butter and sugars together until light and creamy. Beat in the egg, egg yolk & vanilla.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, oats, baking powder, baking soda and salt (if using). Add this to the butter mixture, beating just until incorporated. Stir in the chocolate chips.
Divide the dough into two halves. Use one half and press down lightly in the bottom of the pan until it's more or less an even layer. Now pour the cooled chocolate mixture on top, spreading to create an even layer.
Add dollops of the remaining dough on top of the chocolate layer, it's ok if it doesn't cover it completely, I chose to have quite a bit of the chocolate layer peeking through.
Bake 20-25 minutes until golden brown. Cool completely, then cut into bars (refrigerating these bars for half an hour just before cutting will give you neater bars, allow to come back to room temperature before serving)

Chocolate Truffle Tart

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 13 Oct 2013 14:23:00 +0000

What do you when craving strikes? A craving so bad that a piece of your favorite chocolate bar, brownies that you love munching on day or night, or even the mud cake from your favorite restaurant in the city won't do? And even better, what do you do when this craving strikes at 2 am on a working night, with a persistence that you know won't subside?

If you're me, you make this tart that you'd bookmarked a while away but never gotten around to making. It's perfect because it's quick, and no weird ingredients, just the pantry basics. With a nice dollop of ice cream, in less than an hour you're golden, with the intense craving fulfilled and a euphoric feeling about you.

The original recipe from Gourmet uses chocolate Nabisco wafers for the crust, which aren't available here. I've seen some variations of it with a normal pâte sucrée, but since I was trying to satisfy a mean craving, I went with a gorgeous chocolate tart dough by Johnny Iuzzini. And what a great decision that was...the biscuity tart base went perfectly with the rich, dense chocolate filling, highlighting the richness of the filling even more and yet standing out by itself as a great dessert. And the best bit? No pastry cutter, keeping the butter cold, oh so delicate touch needed, I made this in my KA!

Chocolate Truffle Tart

For the Chocolate Tart Dough
Recipe from Dessert FourPlay by Johnny Iuzzini [India | USA | UK]

10 tbsp [114 g] cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces
3/4 cup sugar
1 tsp salt [omit if using salted butter]
1 large egg
1 large egg white
2 1/2 cups [300 g] all-purpose flour
1/2 cup [40 g] unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tsp baking powder

For the chocolate filling:
Adapted from Gourmet.com
1/2 lb [8 oz] fine-quality bittersweet chocolate (no more than 60% cacao if marked), coarsely chopped
3/4 stick [6 tbsp / 90 g] unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1/3 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup [50 g] granulated sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 tsp vanilla extract

Equipment needed:
9 inch springform pan or an 8 inch tart pan & two 4 inch tart pans

Instructions-

For the chocolate tart dough: In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until soft. Add the salt [if using], the egg and the egg white, beating between each addition.
In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, cocoa powder and baking powder. Add this to the butter mixture, and beat till it comes together.
Shape into a round disc, wrap in cling film and refrigerate for half hour.
Preheat oven to 375 F [190 C], and roll dough out after refrigeration [I always roll out between sheets of parchment / cling film]. Line the tart pans of your choice, then put a layer of parchment, and fill with pie weights or coins. Bake for 20 minutes.
For the chocolate truffle filling: Melt the chocolate and butter together over low heat. Cool to room temperature
Add the eggs, the heavy cream, sugar, salt and vanilla extract. Pour into baked chocolate tart shells and bake for 20 minutes, until filling is just slightly jiggly in the center.
Serve warm with a dollop of ice cream

Chocolate Marble Bundt Cake

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sat, 13 Jul 2013 12:03:00 +0000

4 months since the last post on this... 4 (or a little less) months since life has taken a full turn, and everything I knew to be normal changed.

No.. there's no death, there's no life-threatening illnesses that happened. Just a lot of drama, a lot of confusion, and a lot of re-thinking of life. Which is why I've been away from the blog so much.. I've just lost all motivation. I didn't even know Google Reader had shut down!

I logged on last week because I finally managed some time.. and saw that I couldn't read any of my blogs anymore. I've begun using Feedly for now, what are you guys using?

Anyway... on to the cake. Over a year ago, I'd excitedly ordered this bundt pan, and got a friend to lug it over for me, since finding one in India at that time was next to impossible. And then I used it once, it's been sitting on my table ever since.. I kept it there as a reminder to use it. After seeing it everyday and not using it, finally a day after my birthday, I picked it up and went in to the kitchen. Figured baking would be my birthday gift to myself.

And I realised.. I'd forgotten how much I absolutely love baking. What a stress buster it is. How calming the measuring and scooping out of ingredients could be.. how therapeutic watching the mixer turn regular ingredients into gorgeous batter could be, and how enjoyable the sense of letting go and relying on the oven was. The anticipation of watching the oven work its magic and turn regular batter into a thing of joy was the perfect birthday gift.

As was this cake. It's the perfect coffee cake, it's light yet rich, and not sickeningly sweet. I forgot to marble the cake, and instead just ended up layering it, but it was just an aesthical flaw. I found the recipe over at Food Librarian, whose I Like Big Bundts activity is the first thing that shows when you look for bundts. When I clicked over and saw that the recipe is from my favorite book, Baked , I was sold!

Make this cake now. It's a crowd pleaser! Also, please do tell me how you guys are managing without Reader, is Feedly really the best option?

Marble Bundt Cake
Adapted from Baked: New Frontiers in Baking

Chocolate Swirl
6 ounces dark chocolate, coarsely chopped
1 tsp unsweetened dark cocoa powder

Sour Cream Cake
1 cup [2 sticks/226 g] unsalted butter, at room temperature
2 1/4 cups [450 g] sugar
4 large eggs
16 ounces sour cream - I used homemade sour cream, so the weight will vary
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
3 1/2 cups [420 g] all-purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt - omit if using salted butter

Instructions -

Preheat oven to 350 F (180 C). Grease and flour a 10 cup bundt pan (Mine's a 12 cup).
Chocolate Swirl - In a medium saucepan, melt together the chocolate and cocoa on extremely low heat, stirring constantly. Set aside to cool to room temperature.
Sour Cream Cake - In the bowl of your mixer, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Scrape down, then add the eggs one at a time, beating between each addition. Now stir in the sour cream and vanilla, and mix till incorporated
In a large bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda & salt (if using). Add this into the butter mixture in three additions, mixing just till incorporated between each addition, do not overmix.
Scoop 1/3 of the ready batter (approximate is fine) into the chocolate mixture, and stir until evenly mixed.
Pour half of the remaining batter into the bundt pan, and level with a spatula. Scoop the chocolate batter on top of this in dollops, it's ok if some of the white batter peeks through. Using a knife, swirl through the batter. Now pour the remaining batter on top, and swirl with a knife again.
Bake for about 1 hour, or until a knife inserted comes out clean. You might need to tent the top with a foil if you feel it's getting too brown.
Cool to room temperature and remove from pan. Serves 6-8.

Strawberry Lemon Curd

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 18 Feb 2013 17:44:00 +0000

Excuse the horrible picture, it's taken from my phone. Will try and update post later.

I feel like a broken record, each time I begin writing a post for this blog, the same words come to me 'sorry for being away for so long'! I don't know what it is or what to do, but somehow I just can't seem to find time to even bake, let alone blog. Must. Repair. Now. Hopefully you'll see a change soon.

Even when I do decide to make something, it doesn't go too well. It was time for this month's Secret Recipe Club post, and my assigned blog was A Teaspoon of Spice. This blog actually challenged me, since it's run by two dieticians! And everything I put on this blog is usually an indulgence, a dessert for when a person's down in the dumps, or just generally having a craving.

It's strawberry season here in India, and I was looking for something to make with them. I've been meaning to bake these cupcakes, or a strawberry pie since forever, but as you can guess, never got around to doing it. I found the perfect recipe, that I knew would work for the new lack of time Avanika. It was shamefully easy, but I think the kitchen was annoyed at being ignored, I had quite a mishap with the blender, I ended up covered in burning hot strawberry sauce. Buttttt... You guys ought to be proud, instead of giving up, I sat down to chop all 3 cups of strawberries again and re-made the sauce. I'm hoping this means the laziness has finally gone away.

This sauce isn't as thick as a lemon curd, but is the perfect breakfast accompaniment, along with some toast, or drizzled over some sponge cake and cream. The lemon balances out the sweetness of the strawberries, and there's just a hint of puckeriness. But probably the sense that is tingled the most on eating a spoonful of this is the smell. It is just divine, it makes you want to jump into a pool of the curd and never come out!

Strawberry Lemon Curd
Adapted from Teaspoon of Spice
Yield : About 2.5 cups

3 cups [250 g] fresh chopped strawberries
1/2 cup + 1 tbsp [110 g] sugar - adjust depending on sweetness of strawberries
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
2 tbsp cornstarch
2 egg yolks
1/8 tsp salt
1 tbsp butter

Instructions -

In a large saucepan over medium-high heat, combine the chopped strawberries, sugar and lemon juice. Bring to a boil, then reduce to simmer for about 7-8 minutes.
Allow to cool for about 10 minutes [Important, in case you have a similar mishap]. Blend until smooth.
Pour back into saucepan. In a small bowl, combine the cornstarch and the egg yolks. Pour into the strawberry mixture, and cook on medium-low for about 1 minute, till it thickens and a finger swiped across the spoon leaves a clear path.
Add the salt and butter. Allow to cool in the refrigerator for at least an hour. Enjoy :)

Chocolate Espresso Biscotti

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 21 Jan 2013 17:32:00 +0000

Finally. I stepped back into the kitchen after almost 2 whole months. I'd been on this serious dieting = working out bender, to lose the extra pounds, and an added motivation was my sister's wedding, which just about finished. I've taken a week or so off from the gym+diet, so ofcourse the first thing I wanted to do was eat something chocolatey.

When you're craving something bad, deciding what to make is quite a task. Luckily, it was a made a little easier because I had to bake something for this month's Secret Recipe Club. I had Veronica's blog, My Catholic Kitchen as this month's assignment. Going through this blog was super fun, and one of the few where I had tons and tons of options. Since I was craving a fix bad, I picked the one whose ingredients were already at home. Biscotti has also been something I've always meant to try making, but never really gotten around to.

It was surprisingly easy to make too. About 10 minutes of prep and they were in the oven. Biscotti translates to 'twice baked', and the waiting period between the two baking bursts were the hardest part. I actually contemplated leaving one of the logs as is, and eating it like a giant cookie. But I was good, and I baked both the way they're supposed to be baked. These are so crunchy and light, they're the perfect start to my mornings. And, they're not even that unhealthy :)

Chocolate Espresso Biscotti
Adapted from My Catholic Kitchen

1/3 cup butter, softened
2/3 cup white sugar
2 eggs
2 tsp espresso coffee
1/4 cup cocoa powder
2 tsp baking powder
2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 cup mini chocolate chips

Instructions -

Preheat oven to 350 F. Line a cookie sheet with parchment.
In the bowl of your mixer, beat the softened butter until creamy. Add the sugar, and beat until light and fluffy. Now add the eggs, one at a time, beating between each addition. Also mix in the espresso.
Sift together the cocoa powder, baking powder and flour. Add to the previous mixture, it will be very thick. Mix in the chocolate chips.
Divide the dough into two parts, and shape them into flat logs, about 2-3 inches thick. Bake for 30 minutes, until the top feels done.
Remove from oven and cool for an hour on a wire rack. Now slice the logs diagonally, about an inch thick. Line the bars up on the cookie sheet. Bake for another 10 minutes, or until the biscotti are crisp.
Munch on with a cup of steaming coffee :)

Baked Apples

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 17 Jan 2013 04:14:00 +0000

Oh god. I can't even begin, can't believe my last post was two whole months ago! Thank you for all your concerned mails, they're the push I needed to come back and post. Nothing really happened for me to stop posting, but a lot has happened. I began working on the very day of my last post, and I'd been getting used to not having all the free time in the world. I was also getting over a bad breakup, so I went from having way too much time, to having absolutely none.

I've also been working hard to lose the almost 10 kgs I gained in the past year, with all the staying away from home and long traveling. So baking has been a complete can't do. But craving did strike the other day, one I couldn't ignore. Spent hours online looking up cheesecakes and chocolate cakes and pies and whatnot. Realised that none of those could be made without completely ruining the diet. Looked up some healthy stuff. Long story short, these baked apples were on the table within the hour
.

And they were quite amazing, surprisingly. I love apples baked into anything, but didn't expect to like a plain apple with some stuffing so much. This has saved me from jumping off a cliff in desperation because of the diet. It's made life quite bearable, each time craving hits, I just pop a few apples into the oven, it really is quite simple. The apples get perfectly soft, just a hair's breadth away from mushy, and the nuts provide a much needed textural complement. If you aren't on a diet, you could eat this hot, with some cold, melting ice cream scooped on top. HEAVEN♥

Baked Apples
Recipe from Simply Recipes

4 large good baking apples
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 tsp cinnamon - If you love cinnamon as much as I do, up this to 2 or 2.5 tsp
1/4 cup chopped pecans - I had walnuts on hand, used those, no biggie
1/4 cup currants or chopped raisins
1 tbsp butter
3/4 cup boiling water

Instructions -

Preheat oven to 375 F (190 C). Wash the apples well. Remove the cores, leaving about 1/2 inch on the bottoms. If you don't have an apple corer, a paring knife will do just fine. Make sure to have about an inch wide hole, so that there's enough space for the stuffing. Use a spoon to clear it out. Place the apples in a 8x8 baking pan
In a small bowl, mix together the brown sugar, cinnamon, pecans/walnuts and currants/raisins. Divide this mixture evenly between all the apples. Top each apples with a dot of butter (1/4 tbsp each).
Pour the boiling water into the pan, around the apples. Bake for 35-40 minutes, until soft and tender, making sure to stop before it gets mushy. The skin slightly releasing from the rest of the apple is a good sign of when it's done. Test with a knife, the knife should meet no resistance. Remove from oven and baste several times with the pan juices.
Serve, along with some ice cream if you can afford to indulge :)

DIY : Homemade Whatchamacallit Bars

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 19 Nov 2012 17:41:00 +0000

(Update Dec 2012: Picture of a new batch)
(Sorry about the crappy picture, clicked these in the night and finished them, I'll make some more soon and update the post)

Who else loves these bars? They were quite the nostalgic trip for me, I remember eating them as a child, before we moved to India, and absolutely loving them. They still aren't available in India, but I had ordered a box of them while I was in the UK, so up until a few months ago I was happily enjoying them, being reminded of their awesomeness.

Ofcourse, coming here I missed them a lot, but never considered looking up a recipe for a homemade knock-off, even though I have made or seen quite a few other candy bars. Until I got this month's Secret Recipe Club assignment that is. Chris's blog, Mele Cotte, has been on my reader for ages, and all the desserts she posts has made it one of my top blogs. I was super pumped to get her blog this month. I went to her recipe index, totally prepared to spend a day or two trying to decide what to make, as I usually do. And while a lot of recipes stood out to me, as soon as I saw these bars, I was sure. I couldn't believe my eyes, and cursed myself quite a bit when I realised I could have been making these bars for ages.

They are super easy to make, especially if you have butterscotch chips. I didn't, and made my own butterscotch sauce, which took all of 5 minutes and has already become a staple in my house. I want to play with that recipe just a bit more, and I'll post it after I'm done. The most difficult part is waiting for the chocolate to set, and the anticipation of knowing how close they reach to the real deal, which is a LOT. I am in love with these, they are so good, and I know the pan's going to be over in no time. Luckily, its an easy recipe to be addicted to!

(Update Dec 2012 : Picture of a new batch) Look at that luscious peanut buttery caramel oozing out. There goes the diet.

Homemade Whatchamacallit / Peanut Butter Rice Krispy Caramel Bars
Recipe from Mele Cotte

1 cup light brown sugar
1 cup white corn syrup (I used honey)
1 cup peanut butter
1/3 cup butterscotch chips
6 cups Puffed Rice Cereal (like Rice Krispies) (for Indians, kurmura is about the same thing, though Iused Rice Krispies)
2 cups good-quality bittersweet chocolate

Instructions -

Grease and line a sheet pan. Set aside. Place the Rice Krispies in a large bowl, that allows space for mixing.
In a medium saucepan, mix together the sugar, corn syrup / honey, and peanut butter. Melt, remove from heat and add the butterscotch chips/sauce. Stir until melted completely
Pour this mixture over the Rice Krispies, and stir/toss to coat evenly. Transfer into the prepared pan, and try to form a nice even layer. Refrigerate to set.
Once the Rice Krispies are set (about 10 minutes), cut them into large bars. Re-line the same pan, or use another large pan lined with foil.
Melt the chocolate in a double boiler / microwave. Using a fork, dip each bar into the chocolate, ensuring it is coated on all sides, and lay onto the prepared foil lined pan. Allow the chocolate to set ; enjoy.

Lemon Custard Cakes

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 09 Nov 2012 16:40:00 +0000

[Update - Somehow an older draft got published, added the missing bits again. Sorry]

Somehow, even though I love the puckeriness of lemons, I don't really bake with them as much. This was a recipe that my Mom actually found. Yes, she still bakes on occasion, and this was while I was away so she couldn't get me to make it instead. Ever since then, she's been raving about it, also wanted me to try the recipe when there, but I never got around to it. After countless requests for it since I'm back, I finally got around to making it, and it was quite quick to make, so I don't even get why I was procrastinating. I think I don't do well with requests / orders, since baking is something I inherently do for myself.

Anyway, I made these, and there's some weird science magic that happens with them. You make a normal souffle sort of batter, but once it's baked, it separates into a lemon custard-y layer on the bottom, and a cakey, light souffle ish thing on the top. It's quite fascinating actually.

I made some in these little pans I got from Urban Dazzle, which is quite the awesome shopping site for kitchen stuff and home stuff, I've got my eye on quite a few things. I'm so happy that online shopping has finally arrived in India, and I can now buy my bakeware easily.

Since Mom was insisting on it so much, I doubled the recipe, and ended up baking some in mugs. The mugs had a tiny almost cake layer too, they provided quite a journey of texture, while the shallow pans provided a good crispy crust / custard ratio. I actually can't decide which I liked more, and I know I'm going to make them in both the next time I make these.

And there will be a next time, I'm sure. The lemon is perfectly pucker-y but not overly so, and the textures are just, FUN. You really should try this one.

Lemon Custard Cakes

Adapted from Martha Stewart
Yield - 6 ramekins

3 large eggs, separated
1/2 cup [100 g] granulated sugar
2 tbsp all-purpose flour
2 to 3 tsp grated lemon zest,
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1 cup milk
1/4 teaspoon salt
Confectioners' sugar, for dusting

Instructions-

Preheat oven to 350 F (180 C). Place 6 ramekins in a large baking / roasting pan, there isn't any need to grease them since you'll be serving them in the same ramekins. Place a kettle of water to boil.
In a large bowl, whisk together the egg yolks and the sugar until light and fluffy. Whisk in the flour. Also whisk in the milk, lemon zest and juice.
In another bowl with clean beaters, whisk the egg whites to soft peaks, along with the salt. Fold the whites into the yolk mixture, the resulting batter will be quite thin.
Pour into the waiting ramekins, about 3/4 full. Pour the boiling water into the larger pan, so that the ramekins are halfway submerged into the water. Bake for about 25 minutes, until the tops are nicely brown. Serve.

Oatmeal Raisin Coconut Chocolate Chip Cookies.. or Cowboy Cookies

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 22 Oct 2012 16:17:00 +0000

These cookies sure have a long name, don't they? I tend to like names that give you an idea of the food, but I think I'm pushing it with these, so Cowboy Cookies it is, though I'd love if anybody gave me the reason behind the name

Whatever they're called though, they are absolutely amazing. I made about 2 dozen, an hour ago, and with only 3 people in the house right now, there's about a dozen left. And these were the big bakery style ones, a little bigger than my palm. I totally love those more than the small cookies, because there's such a journey of texture from the outside, crunchy crisp to the chewy almost soft center.

These are high up on the top cookies I've ever eaten, and I have eaten a LOT. From a lot of different parts of the world too, but I keep coming back to the classics, and the larger size. This was made for October's Secret Recipe Club post, from A Spoonful of Thyme. There were a lot of recipes that caught my eye, especially since I have now started cooking occasionally, for fun. But I'm still keeping the blog dessert focused, so I had to change my choices. Even still, there's no lack of options, it's been one of the best blogs I've had, with the kind of choices available.

Make these cookies. My top 10 has to be enough to make you want to try them!

Cowboy Cookies
Adapted from A Spoonful of Thyme
Makes about 15 large bakery sized, or 2 dozen smaller ones

2 sticks [8 oz / 226 g] unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup [150 g] granulated sugar
3/4 cup [140 g] light-brown sugar
2 large eggs, room temperature
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
2 cups [240 g] all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt - omit if using salted butter
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 cups [150 g] old-fashioned oats
1 cup [6 oz / 170] semisweet chocolate chips
3/4 cup pecan halves - I left these out since I'm not a fan of nuts in cookies
1/2 cup [45 g] shredded unsweetened coconut
1/2 cup raisins

Instructions -

Preheat oven to 350 F [180 C]. Grease and line two cookie sheets
In the bowl of your mixer, cream together the room temp butter and both sugars, until creamy and fluffy.
Add in the eggs one a time, beating between each addition. Add the vanilla extract.
In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt, if using. Add this into the butter. mixture, beating just until incorporated.
Now beat in the oats, chocolate chips,raisins, nuts and coconut. Dollop about 1/4 cup onto the cookie sheets, and bake for 18-20 minutes, until edges are nicely browned and top is almost firm to touch.

Sunday Night Cake

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 17 Sep 2012 16:00:00 +0000

Soo.. Anyone know how to get rid of small moths in the house? Since my room was virtually untouched for 6 months, it had a few moths when I got back, that didn't seem to be going away. I put out some naphthalene balls, and now, I'm super sick, with the parents slightly sick. I think I just had an almost-suicide attempt :P

Anyway.. With the sickness, I've been cooped up at home since a few days. I was of course, craving some dessert, and with Secret recipe club's reveal coming soon, I started to browse through my assignment for the month. I got super lucky this month, because Jamie is a part of Club Baked, which essentially is TWD, except with the Baked series of books, that I absolutely LOVE!. And with their new book Baked Elements recently out, they've taken over my mind even more than usual.

I knew immediately I'd make one from their books, and focused in on the Sunday Night Cake because of ingredient availability at home. It's got a weird name, but apparently it's to indicate that you can whip this up in an instant, for family, on a lazy Sunday. And that is exactly what the cake is. Hearty, comforting, and just perfect. The cake is robust, and has an interesting taste with the cinnamon, very right for fall. And the frosting / pudding is super rich and intense, and gives the perfect balance. As I've said countless times, I'm not a fan of the powdered sugar American buttercream, but this puddingy frosting is perfect. I actually have some leftover and hopefully I should be up to trying it with something else too.

Sunday Night Cake

Recipe from Baked Elementsvia Cookin' with Moxie

1 3/4 cups cake flour - I used the substitute of AP flour + cornflour/cornstarch
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon (I used almost a whole teaspoon, I love cinnamon a little too much)
1 1/4 stick [5 oz / 140 g] unsalted butter - I used salted just fine, omit the salt of course
3/4 cup [150 g] granulated sugar
1/2 cup [110 g] packed light brown sugar
3 large eggs, at room temperature
1 cup sour cream - I used hung/greek yoghurt

Instructions -

Preheat oven to 350 F [180 C]. Grease and line a 9 inch square pan. I couldn't find mine, so I used to 6 inch round pans instead.
Sift together flour, baking powder, salt and cinnamon. Set aside.
In the bowl of your mixer, cream together the butter and the sugars till light and fluffy. Add the eggs one a time, beating between each addition.
Alternately add the flour mixture and the sour cream / yoghurt in a dry, wet, dry, wet, dry pattern. Don't over mix.
Pour into prepared pans and bake for 35-40 minutes, until a skewer inserted comes out clean. Cool on wire rack for at least half hour before frosting and serving.

One Bowl Chocolate Brownies

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 09 Sep 2012 13:20:00 +0000

Hello! I am super pumped today, I am officially done with my course. I handed that horrible pain of a dissertation in 2 days ago [now 5, it took me a while to get to completing this post], and I'm no longer a student! Ofcourse I'm not officially a post-graduate yet, need to wait for the results, but I'm pretty sure I'll make it :)

Even though I've done a ton of decorating classes, and made many layered cakes, somehow when it comes to comfort baking, I always turn to brownies. I'd seen these posted on Smitten Kitchen a few days before I submitted, and it stayed in my mind through it.

The recipe is a breeze to put together, and in half an hour I was munching on brownies :) They're super easy, and taste really fudgy and dense, just how I like it. I am not even ashamed to admit I ate the entire pan, paired with some ice cream or even plain.

I had some unsweetened chocolate in my travel hoard, but for those who don't, Deb has provided an alternate. Unsweetened chocolate manages to pack a punch in the small amount used though, so I'd probably suggest following another recipe or atleast doubling the amount of chocolate if you use semi-sweet.

Look at that gorgeously thick batter!

One Bowl Chocolate Brownies

Recipe from Smitten Kitchen

3 ounces [85 g] unsweetened chocolate, roughly chopped
1 stick [113 g / 4 oz] unsalted butter - I used salted and omitted the salt
1 1/3 cups [290 g] castor sugar
2 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp table salt
2/3 cup [90 g] all-purpose flour

Instructions -

Preheat oven to 350 F [180 C]. Line a 8x8 pan with parchment or foil, allowing some to extend over the sides to aid removal post baking
In a large pan, over a bain marie or in the microwave, melt together the chopped chocolate and butter.
Remove from heat and mix in the sugar. Add the egss, and then the vanilla extract.
Sift together the salt and flour into the mixture. Pour into prepared pan and bake for 20-25 minutes, until a wooden skewer inserted comes out clean.
Enjoy with some ice cream on the side.

Chocolate S'more Thumbprints

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 20 Aug 2012 16:14:00 +0000

Who saw the finale of Masterchef All Stars yesterday? I won't post any spoilers, but I was so so excited, that person is my absolute favorite, and my reason to watch the entire season! Technically, I shouldn't even be watching, since I'm approaching the deadline for my dissertation, and am hard at work, not leaving home for days sometimes. My laundry stack consists of only pyjamas and shorts -_- Fun times, right? Hopefully though, this is my last post while working on the dissertation, I should be done by the next one. Then I'll finally have time to make the rounds of the blogosphere, something I've missed a lot.

So today's post is for this month's Secret Recipe Club, and I got Melissa's Cuisine as my assignment. This was one of my better assignments, I had a ton of options, and would probably have made a few more things if I wasn't so busy, especially the one recipe that's been doing rounds of the blogosphere, and one that I'll probably be making very soon.

But I chose these thumbprints for now, mainly because I was in the mood for something sweet and indulgent. I had to make the marshmallow fluff from scratch since I haven't seen it in stores here, and it was a lot of fun making it too. I'll post about it sometime, after perfecting the recipe.

These cookies are crumbly, chocolate-y but not too much, and the frosting on top gives a fantastic contrast. Plus, they're just so much fun to look at.

Chocolate S'more Thumbprints

From How Sweet Eats via Melissa's Cuisine
Yield : About 2 dozen

For the cookies -
1/2 cup [113 g / 1 stick] butter, at room temperature
1/4 cup [40 g] brown sugar
2 tbsp [44 g] sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1 egg yolk
3/4 cup [90 g] flour
1/4 cup [22 g] cocoa powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup mini chocolate chips
1 batch marshmallow frosting [recipe below]
Graham cracker crumbs, of about 2 crackers

Instructions -

Preheat oven to 375 F [190 C]. Grease and line two cookie sheets.
In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugars, till light and fluffy. Add in the vanilla and yolk and beat till well incorporated.
In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, cocoa powder and salt. Now add this to the butter mixture, and mix just until incorporated.
Fold in the chocolate chips. Put about inch sized balls onto the cookie sheet, and make an indentation in the centres using your thumb.
Cook for 8-10 minutes, till the outsides seem firm. Cool on a wire rack till you prepare the frosting.

For the marshmallow frosting -
Recipe from How Sweet Eats

1 cup [226 g / 2 sticks] butter, at room temperature
1 tbsp vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups marshmallow fluff
3 cups powdered sugar, sifted

Instructions -

In the bowl of your mixer, beat the butter till it's creamy [about 5 minutes].
Add the vanilla and fluffy, and beat for another 3-4 minutes, till light and fluffy. Now add 2 1/2 cups of the powdered sugar and beat well. Add the remaining 1/2 cup in small additions, till it reaches desired consistency.
Using a tablespoon, or a piping bag if you wish, put a dollop on the cooled cookies.
Sprinkle on the graham cracker crumbs, and serve.

Chocolate Oreo Cake.. Apologies for a long hiatus

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 01 Aug 2012 10:45:00 +0000

So. A new post on this blog. After almost a month and a half, that's quite shameful. But, this is what I'd been doing for a month, immediately after my last post.

I traveled to all those places, and then headed back to Warwick for my final week there. Because of a number of reasons, I decided to head home to do my dissertation (a 15,000 word essay), and leave a month earlier than most everyone. It's a whole other matter that those reasons aren't too valid right now, but hey, I'm home now, so what can I do. I was busy packing and saying my goodbyes, and I've been home for a week now, unpacking and saying hellos. It's only now that I've got some breathing time to actually write up a post. All you guys that are reading this and have stuck by me, I really, genuinely, thank you. I promise, none of that anymore.

And all you guys that left? I've got a great cake to try and win you back. Is a Chocolate Oreo Cake good enough? It should be, because this cake was amazing. Even more fun, just attacking the entire thing with some forks. There has never been a better feeling.

Look at that dreamy filling

Chocolate Oreo Cake

Avanika original - Individual components linked.

For the cake -
I used the recipe for this cake, from Chocolate Cakes. It's fast becoming my favorite, flavorful, yet sturdy enough to be torted and lifted and moved about {I'm quite rough with my cakes}. Make 1 batch of the recipe, and torte each cake it into 2 layers after it's cool.

For the filling -
1/2 cup whipping cream
2 tsp powdered sugar
About 20 oreos, cut into quarters

Instructions -

Whip the cream and the sugar together until fluffy. Gently fold in the pieces of Oreos.

For the frosting -
Again, I used the recipe from the cake I linked to, it's super easy, and one I use when I need something lighter and not sinfully rich. Follow the instructions to make one batch of the frosting.

Assemble -

Stack the first torted layer, flat side down on your cake board. Scoop on a 1/3rd of the filling.
Now add the second layer, pressing down slightly. Scoop on another third of the filling.
Repeat for third layer, and then add on the fourth, making sure the top of the cake has the bottom flat surface of a torted cake, so that it's completely straight and easy to frost.
Add a thin layer of the frosting - a crumb coat - and allow to chill for a few minutes in the fridge. Now add on the final layer, and decorate as desired. I like keeping it simple, to give off a homemade cake feel. Cut and serve :)

Granola Bars

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 18 Jun 2012 16:00:00 +0000

Hello hello hello! I am very excited today, I'm travelling through Europe for a month in a few hours of this post. My course is almost over, so I'll be heading back home after that, to do my dissertation. So I've been super busy packing up my room, feeling all crummy about leaving this place, and excited about travelling. My life has been all about bags and boxes since so long.

Even in the midst of this, though I was dreading removing some time to bake these, once I began baking, I felt absolutely relieved. Being in the kitchen (surprise surprise, even to cook!) really relaxes me.

This month's assignment was a real toughie, Thrifty Veggie Mama has mostly super healthy recipes, with tofu and stuff as ingredients in baked stuff too. It was a great challenge, and I finally found these granola bars that were super easy and amazing. I've never made granola bars before, but these were amazing. Perfectly chewy, not too sweet, and the chocolate on top is heaven.

Granola Bars

Adapted from Thrifty Veggie Mama

3 cups oats {I used regular old fashioned not quick}
1/2 cup crispy rice cereal {Optional. You could just add more oats}
1/2 cup liquid sweetener {I used half butterscotch syrup and half maple syrup}
2 T peanut butter
1 banana, mashed
1/2 c oil
1 tsp vanilla
1/4-1/2 cup dark chocolate chips

Instructions -

Preheat oven to 350 F (180 C). Line a 8x8 pan with parchment.
Mix together all ingredients except the chocolate chips. (Tip - measure out the oil first, and then the liquid sweeteners, it will flow out much better out of the measuring cup).
Bake for 20-25 minutes, and then sprinkle on the chocolate chips. Leave for a few minutes, then spread to form a layer. Allow to set for an hour in the fridge. Cut into bars and serve.

Chocolate Cookie Dough Cheesecake Bars

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 21 May 2012 16:18:00 +0000

I am just writing this post after submitting the last assignment of my life. I do have a dissertation due, but this is the last assignment ever. I'm pretty saturated with all the writing, so I'm going to keep this one short.

I was assigned Dancing Veggies blog, and had a lot of great options, but picked these bars, but forgot a step where I had to add the chips into the cookie layer. I made up for it by putting a chocolate layer on top, and these tasted amazing. I've changed up the proportions a bit, because I feel they need more of the cheesecake taste.

Chocolate Cookie Dough Cheesecake Bars

Inspired by Dancing Veggies

1 cup [120 g] flour

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 tsp baking soda
1 stick [113 g / 8 oz] butter
1/3 cup white sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1 cup chocolate chips - or alternately, you can add a chocolate layer like I did, following this recipe
For the cheesecake layer.
16 oz cream cheese
4 tbsp white sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla

Instructions -

Preheat oven to 350 F (180 C). Grease and line a 9x9 pan, with overhang
In a large bowl, sift together the flour, salt and baking soda.
In another bowl, cream together the butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Now beat in the egg and mix well.
Add the flours to the butter mixture, and mix until just incorporated. Fold in the chocolate chips, if using. Lay this onto the pan.
In a clean bowl, cream together the cream cheese, sugar, egg and vanilla. Pour onto the cookie dough layer. Bake for 25 minutes, until the center is a little jiggly and the sides are set.
Cool, and if using a chocolate layer, pour on top. Cut into squares and serve.

Celebrating 3 years of Yumsilicious Bakes.. And A giveaway to Celebrate

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 07 May 2012 20:52:00 +0000

Update : Winner announced at the end of the post.

Today, my little blog turns 3. Hard to believe. Thank you to everyone that has supported this blog, and loyally followed even though I had a period when life's little dramas made my slack off on the blog. Seriously, thank you. I hope you stick around, and now I'm trying to be a much better blogger. I've finally updated the About page too :)

Rather than write a heartfelt note to mark this day, I've decided to show you my top 10 recipes, that I always end up turning back to, and have made countless times over the years, though they're in no particular order, since it was hard enough to narrow it down to 10.

1. Chocolate Salted Caramel Cake from the awesome guys at Baked NYC

2. Chocolate Chip Hazelnut Truffle Cookies

3. Strawberry Cupcakes with Strawberry Swiss Meringue Buttercream

4. Outrageous Chocolate Cookies

5. Swedish Visiting Cake

6.Chocolate Hazelnut Ferrero Rocher Cheesecake

7. Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

8. Apple Pie

9. Fudgey, Goeey Brownies

10. Creamy Lemon Squares

Onto the giveaway. It's this beautiful 10 oz. Cornishware mug, part of their red collection

To win, you can do any of the following, leave one comment for each thing you've done -

1. Become an email subscriber [leave email address in the comment]
2. Like me on Facebook [leave name in the comment]
3. Share on Facebook, mentioning the page.
4. Follow my boards on Pinterest [leave name in the comment]
5. Follow me on Twitter [leave handle in the comment].
6. Tweet about the giveaway, mentioning @AvanikaYB.
7. Post a picture of a recipe you've tried from my blog on my Facebook page [extra entries - leave 2 comments if you do this]

~~Giveaway is open till May 19, 2012, worldwide. Good luck xx~~

Giveaway is now closed. Congratulations to the winner, Katrina for comment #4. I've sent you an e-mail.
Everyone else, thanks for participating, and the wishes. See you around xx

Foodbuzz 24x24 : Home Away From Home : Food is the Connection

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 02:58:00 +0000

I'm so glad to be doing a Foodbuzz 24x24 post this month. 24 bloggers create 24 different meals in the same 24 hours, and post on the same day, each having different themes, and different approaches. It's a very fun event, one that I'd been seeing about a lot, and now I'm so glad to be one of the participants.

So you guys know it's been about 6 months since I left India to study, yeah? This has, so far, been one of the best years of my life. I'm at a prestigious University, I'm learning more than I could imagine, I've found the nicest friends ever, and me, the person who burnt rice during her first attempt at cooking, can now make entire meals, that actually taste pretty good. I've become independent, my outlook on life has changed, and I can't wait to apply all of this in my real life, to work, to become productive.

But as much as I love this, there's one thing that always gets me back, the one thing that doesn't let me give my 100% here. Memories of home. They are difficult to deal with. Most of us have left home for the first time ever, and even of those who haven't, being halfway around the world, with a 9 hour flight separating home and here, is difficult to manage. One day when I was feeling low, I thought of planning this event. where we cook food from home, the food is one of the things we miss the most, of course. Having food from home just lifts me up, way too easily. I really do think food is the connection, it is the best thing to happen to this planet for sure.

Anyway, I got a few people into this, called people, and set this up for a Sunday brunch, since one of the facilities on campus for us is the use of a kind of hall, with a patio and fully furnished kitchen and servery. There were a lot of different people making a lot of different food, but on the basic menu was Biryani, and 3 Indian desserts - Gulab Jamun, Jalebi and Halva. It was a mess, as you'll see in the pictures, with so many people doing so many things, but it was one of the best days ever, I had such a great time. At home, I would never make desserts like Gulab Jamun and Jalebi, since they're a little involved, and are available way too easily anyway. But here, since I was craving a good Jalebi, I decided to make it, desserts was my department. And it was actually quite easy to do, surprisingly.

This was just half of the shopping we'd done for this one day. Realised that while I love planning, it isn't really that easy!

There were desserts, there was biryani.

There were random cocktails being made by different people -

And ofcourse, there was the Gulab Jamuns

Gulab Jamuns

Adapted from Ria's Collection
Yield - About 20-24

Ingredients:
For the dumplings
1 1/4 c milk powder
1/2 c flour
1 tsp baking soda
3 tbsp cold butter
A few drops of cold milk (not more than 1/4 cup)
Hot oil for deep frying

For the sugar syrup
1 1/2 c sugar
1 1/2 water
5 green cardamom pods, crushed [optional, but recommended]

Instructions -

In a large bowl, mix together the milk powder, flour and baking soda. Now add the cold butter, and rub it well into the flour mixture, till the butter is fully incorporated.
Now add the milk, a little at a time, rubbing it well into the dough after each addition, until the dough forms a cohesive ball, that is smooth yet still firm. It should not be crumbly.
Form into small balls [a little larger than a penny sized], and rub well between palms until the large cracks disappear.
Cracks will result in the dumpling breaking in the oil, but small cracks are normal, as you can see, in both pictures. The picture below gives you a reference for both size, and acceptable crack limit, if that's a thing. No that isn't me, that's a friend that was helping, I'm the one whose hand you can see to the left.
Now heat the oil for frying in a pan, the oil should be deep enough so that the dumpling can be easily submerged. The frying is the important part, else the centre does not cook. You need to give it a good 5-7 minutes to heat up on the stove, and then test by dropping one ball into the oil, along the sides of the pan. It should go to the bottom, and rise up to the surface slowly, taking about 10 seconds. [Next time I make this, I'll try and get temperatures for you].
Once the oil is ready, drop in about 4-5 dumplings, fry, and remove on a paper towel. Don't worry if they look black-ish, that's their color, they're ok as long as they don't burn. Fry all the dumplings, allowing the oil to heat back up at intervals.
For the sugar syrup - Now prepare the sugar strup by boiling together all the ingredients. Keep this on a low flame.
Drop the fried dumplings into the sugar syrup, and leave for 30 minutes to an hour.
Serve hot, with ice cream if you want, or just plain.

And my favorites, jalebi were also made. These actually go well along with gulab jamuns, since both need hot oil and sugar syrup to be made.

Jalebis

Recipe from Show Me the Curry via Ria's Collection

Note : Show Me the Curry have a video demonstration of this recipe, so if you're feeling intimidated, you could watch that.

Yield - About 25

Ingredients:
1 tsp yeast
1/4 cup warm water
2 cups [240 g] flour
1/8 tsp cardamom powder
2 tsp corn starch
1 tsp oil
1 tbsp yoghurt
3/4 cup warm water
Oil for deep frying

For the syrup:
1 1/4 cup [300 g] sugar
1 cup water
1 tsp lime juice
1 drop red food colour
1/4 tsp cardamom powder

Instructions -

Add the yeast to the 1/4 cup warm water, and set aside for about 10 minutes, till frothy and active.
Mix together all the remaining ingredients. Add the yeast mixture. Place the bowl of this mixture, covered with a lid, into another larger bowl, filled with warm water. Set aside for about 45 minutes to rise.
Once the 45 minutes are up, heat the oil, and prepare the syrup - just boil everything together, and reduce to simmer once the sugar is melted.
Now give the batter a mix, and pour into a sauce / ketchup [any type of squeezy bottle with about a cm wide nozzle]. This might not be too easy to do, since the batter is sort of dough-y, but it pours in eventually.
Using the squeezy bottle, pour the batter into the oil, moving your hand in a circular motion to make a spiral, and after about 4 rounds, move the bottle towards the centre of the jalebi to close off the end, and stop.
Flip to fry the other side, and once the bubbling reduces, transfer to the waiting syrup. Flip, and remove, making sure to not allow them to stay in the syrup for more than 30 seconds, or they will turn soggy. Transfer to an empty plate. Serve immediately
Once you've got the hang of the process, you can do 4-5 at a time.

I also made some halva, which is standard and easy for me, but I seem to have lost the pictures. You can see pictures, and my tried and trusted recipe at my earlier post [I didn't bother with the colors this time]. Halva is standard, easy Indian dessert, one that's actually made in every household.

Well. That was a long post. Hope I didn't lose too many of you mid-way. Try these recipes, they're desserts that every Indian loves, and it feels just like home. I know I felt amazing after accomplishing these recipes, and eating all of the things was reward enough :)

Chocolate Caramel Shortbread... Homemade Twix

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 23 Apr 2012 16:14:00 +0000

These bars! I've been waiting so so long to be able to post. For once, I made my Secret Recipe Club assignment almost as soon as I got it. Turns out, this isn't always the best idea, since I had to wait almost a month, and these bars were so good, it was like slow torture. They rank high up, in my top 10 recipes for sure. They had the perfect slightly crunchy crispy shortbread base, exactly like a Twix base, but more substantial, with more win in it. The caramel is a modified dulce de leche, just with extra butter and extra goodness. It was the perfect goeey, stringy soft caramel that I love. And ofcourse, the chocolate layer. I used good quality dark chocolate, and that just took the bars to a whole other level.

This recipe is one of the easiest I've made, but also is one of the best. I can't stop raving, I made the mistake of making only half a recipe, since I didn't have a big enough pan. I'm just waiting to go buy a nice big pan now so I can make a full recipe. Don't make the same mistake I did.

I got Sara's blog, which has probably given me the most options to pick from ever. Since I now cook, there were a few cooking recipes that I bookmarked too, but since I want to keep the blog only about baking, I picked this. Sara chose to decorate it with some colored white chocolate, and while I considered that, for me, nothing looks better than a nice smear of dark chocolate.

I always leave nice overhang so that removing and cutting becomes easy. I sometimes lay two strips of foil out in a cross pattern if the foil won't cover the pan entirely.

The shortbread, nice and golden brown-y, will make your house smell amazing!

One of the best things in this world!

Your finger should leave a dent like shown in this picture. This is post cooling, so it aim for a little runnier.

Chocolate Caramel Shortbreads / Homemade Twix

Recipe adapted from Cook with Sara

Shortbread Crust -
1 cup [2 sticks / 226 g] butter, softened
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
2 cups [240 g] flour
3/4 tsp. salt

Caramel Filling -
7 Tbsp. [100 g] butter
1/3 cup brown sugar
2 cans (14 oz each) sweetened condensed milk
Pinch of salt

10 oz. dark [or semi-sweet] chocolate, chopped
3 tbsp [ 42 g] butter

Instructions -

Preheat oven to 350 F [180 C]. Grease and line a 9x13 pan with parchment, leaving some overhang on the sides.
In a large bowl, beat together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Now add in the vanilla, the flour and the salt. Mix until just combined.
Pour into prepared pan, and pat the crumbs down lightly, to make sure they stick. Bake for around 15 minutes, until golden brown around the edges. Remove to cool completely.
For the caramel filling - In a large saucepan, combine together the butter, brown sugar, sweetened condensed milk and salt. Bring to a boil, constantly stirring. Reduce heat to medium low, stirring constantly and simmer until it turns a deep caramel color, about 15 - 18 minutes. Pour onto cooled crust, and refrigerate for an hour. It might seem runny at first, but the refrigeration makes it firm up a bit. Post refrigeration, your finger should make and leave a dent, as shown.
Once the caramel layer is ready, melt the chocolate and butter together. Pour onto the caramel layer, just making lines with the spatula if you want, and refrigerate for another hour.
Cut into bars, [I prefer using a pastry scraper], and serve.

Raspberry Strawberry Muffins

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 04 Apr 2012 00:21:00 +0000

I'm still getting used to having stuff like raspberries and blueberries available to me right at the store, whenever I want. It's so much fun, each time I buy some to use for baking, I end up eating them plain, or with breakfast or something. And then I have to wait till I visit the store again before baking, and the cycle repeats. I finally managed to keep some away, since I had my eyes on these muffins since forever.

The muffins are so good! They're more of the healthy kind, especially since I used half whole wheat flour, than say these muffins, that were just sinful. These are perfect to go with your morning coffee [or are you a tea drinker?], they aren't too sweet, and perfectly soft, with busrts of flavor with the ample berries in it :)

Raspberry Strawberry Muffins

Adapted from Gingerbread Bagels via The Keenan Cookbook
Yield : A round dozen, if you don't make them teeny tiny like me

3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup canola oil
2 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 cups [240 g] all purpose flour - I used half whole wheat flour and half all-purpose
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1 cup sour cream
1 1/2 cup mix of raspberries and chopped strawberries
About 2 tbsp of turbinado or any other coarse sugar, to sprinkle on top [optional]

Instructions -

Preheat oven to 375 F [190 C]. Line a cupcake pan with liners.
In a large bowl, beat together the sugars, oil, eggs, and vanilla extract.
In another bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda and salt. Fold this mixture into the above mixture, until just combined.
Now fold in the sour cream till incorporated. Add in the berries, fold and pour into prepared pan.
Sprinkle sugar on top, if using. Bake for about 25 minutes, until a skewer inserted comes out clean, and the tops feel springy. Enjoy xx

Chocolate Fondant / Chocolate Lava Cake / Molten Chocolate Cake

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 19 Mar 2012 16:00:00 +0000

Doesn't that look amazing? This is the elusive {or fussy} cake that goes by too many names. What do you call it? I prefer Molten Chocolate Cake. Anyway, I got Heidi's blog as my assignment this month, which had so so many recipes, that the choice became qutie difficult. Now that I've began cooking, a lot of her savory recipes seemed interesting too, but in an effort to keep this blog all about the good stuff, I decided to stick with a dessert recipe. Since her blog is translated to English, I chose one of the easier recipes, I didn't want to lost in translation. And this satisfies a craving too.

Managing the Facebook page for the Secret Recipe Club has made me quite active about it, so there's no chance anymore of me missing a post, which, with the new stricter rules, is a good thing. Go on and like the page, and while you're at it, like the page for this blog too :)

Molten Chocolate Cake

Recipe from Tasty Kitchen via Heidi's World

100 g dark chocolate {I used 64%}
1 stick [113 g / 8 oz] unsalted butter
2 tsp [30 g] cocoa powder
2/3 cup icing sugar
2 eggs
2 egg yolks
6 tbsp flour

Instructions -

Preheat oven to 425 F [220 C]. Grease and line ramekins with castor sugar, optional, but it helps.
In a double boiler, melt together the chocolate, butter and cocoa. Remove from heat, and sift in the icing sugar.
Now add the eggs and the yolks, mixing well between additions. Sift in the flour, until just mixed, being careful not to overbeat.
Pour into prepared ramekins and bake 13-15 minutes, till sides are set but the centre is still jiggly. You might want to have one test run first, since the timing is crucial for this sort of cake.
Serve with ice cream, whipped cream, or a dusting of icing sugar.

Almond Cake with Dried Fruit

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 02 Mar 2012 16:06:00 +0000

Here's another recipe that I'd made while back home. Figure I should post it now, or else it'll go to the never ending folder of recipes that I didn't post on time, and then it became too old to post. {Do any of you also do that, or is it just me? For some reason, I can't bring myself to post things I made too long ago} Anyway, I made this because we had some dried fruits at home that my Mom wanted me to use up, and she loves her simple, unadorned cakes anyway. It was actually she that found and picked the recipe for me. Slavery at its best :P

Anyway, since you probably know by now, I don't like simple plain desserts too much. I went about making this pretty unenthusiastically, even though the recipe is by someone I admire a lot, Jacques Pepin {who is also the Dean at my dream school. I figured it would be one of those cakes that my Mom and others would eat, and I would just taste. How wrong was I? I should have trusted one of my idols more. The cake was absolutely amazing. Proved to me that not all cakes need to be over the top indulgent to be sinful. The almond flavor in it made it super rich, yet light and simple. And the dried fruits gave a wonderful contrasting flavor + texture. I had dried strawberries, figs, cherries and pineapples on it, but I'm sure you could make do with much fewer kinds. We took it to my grandparents' house because they love getting such handmade gifts, and even they gobbled it down :) {they have the appetite of a bird, between the two of them!} I also think they'd look much prettier in individual servings, made in a muffin pan instead, so maybe some of you could try that and show me :)

Almond Cake with Dried Fruit

Recipe from Jacques Pepin via the Wayward Oven

115g almond paste - I processed 115g of almonds in the food processor, which is about 1 cup
¾ cup sugar
1 stick [113g / 8 oz] unsalted butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 medium eggs
¼ cup milk
Dash of salt
1 cup cake flour
½ teaspoon baking powder

For the syrup
2 tablespoons water
2 tablespoons whiskey, rum or cognac [optional]
2 tablespoons sugar

For the Garnish
1½ cups diced dried fruit (currants, peaches, apricots, pineapple)
¼ cup good apricot jam, diluted with 2 tablespoons water
8-10 mint leaves
1 cup Greek yoghurt for serving (optional)

Instructions -

Preheat oven to 180 C. Grease and line a 8 cm round pan.
Put the almond paste, sugar, butter and vanilla in a food processor and process for about 10 seconds. Add the eggs, milk, and salt and process for 5 seconds. Add the flour and the baking powder and process for another 5 to 10 seconds, or until smooth.
Pour the cake batter into the prepared pan and bake for 45 minutes, until a wooden skewer inserted comes out clean. Cool on a rack to room temp.
Combine the ingredients for the syrup in a small bowl. Using a spoon or pastry brush, moisten the cake with the syrup. Scatter the dried fruit on top of the cake. Brush on the diluted apricot jam and garnish with the mint leaves. Serve with the Greek yoghurt.

White Chocolate Oreo Brownies

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 20 Feb 2012 11:30:00 +0000

I've had a momentous achievement in the time between this post and the last. Wait for it...... I've finally learnt how to flip an omelette! Though I've tried a lot, the omelette ends up scrambled most of the time. Not this time though, it flipped beautifully and I had a gorgeous omelette like the ones they serve at cafes. I'm quite proud, even though I get how stupid this sounds, considering my utter lack of cooking skills, it's enough to have made my day. I've learnt how to make pasta and a few other basic things, and while it's turning out to be quite fun to cook, I think I'll learn properly once I'm back home, from Mom.

Anyway, back onto the brownies. SRC took a break last month, to do some re-arranging and a revamp of the rules. I am now officially handling it's Facebook page, which is a super fun thing to do. The group is turning out to be a lot of fun, I actually ended up missing it, and made my recipe almost as soon as we were given our secret assignments, more than a month ago.

This month, I received Eliot's Eats as my blog, which was super interesting because it's written by this couple, that keep their identity anonymous. The name comes from T.S Eliot. I haven't seen anonymous food bloggers around too much, so I was totally kicked by this, and the privelege of being anonymous is something I wish I had too, at times. There's just so much I could have been able to say. Their blog has a lot of stuff on travel and adventure, but I zoomed in onto the food stuff, and after quite some deliberation, picked these White Chocolate Oreo Brownies, that she too made for a SRC post. I'd never baked with white chocolate before, other than the occasional ganache, so I was quite pumped. And I bought a ton of oreos once, which I wanted to use up rather than just pig out on them.

These were so so good. They browned a little too much, but that's because I haven't gotten used to this new oven yet. They tasted amazing, not overly sweet as I had worried, and the Oreo's added amazing flavor. A great recipe to keep, especially when you need something quick and easy.

White Chocolate Oreo Brownies

Recipe from Hugs & Cookies xoxo via Eliot's Eats

1 stick [113 g / 8 oz] butter
1 cup [170 g / 6 oz] white chocolate chips
1/2 cup + 1/8 cup [ 150 g] sugar
2 eggs
1/2 tbsp vanilla
1 cup [120 g] flour
1/4 t. fine sea salt
15 oreos, cut into quarters

Instructions -

Preheat oven to 325 F [160 C]. Grease and line a 9x9 pan, leaving some overhang of the foil to make it easier to pull out later
In a small pan under low heat, melt the chocolate and butter, stirring constantly. Be careful, white chocolate burns easily, so use a double boiler if you're comfortable with that. Remove from heat.
Stir in the sugar. Now add the eggs and vanilla, mixing well. Fold in the flour and salt, stirring until just combined. Toss in the chopped oreos.
Pour into prepared pan, and bake for 30 minutes, until a wooden skewer inserted comes out clean. Enjoy :)