Apple Cake

Apple Cake

            On a recent holiday to Kesroli palace fort in Alwar , I ate one of the most delicious coffee cakes. The flavours were so subtle that despite being a baker myself I had to ask the chef " what is it that I can feel but not pinpoint in it?" To my surprise the magical element was Grated Apple.. Yes!! and it tasted divine.

With apple season round the corner I decided to try  adding apple to one of my favorite basic cake recipes.. and Bingo! the cake was so delicious that it was eaten in a day..:P

I don't know much about varieties of apple. Nor do i care. they just needed to be juicy nd fresh. I used Shimla apples that have just started flooding the market.

here's the super Tasty easy Apple cake  for every1.

You need

125 gms Maida

125 gms castor or regular Sugar

100 gms Butter ( I use Amul/salted for this one)

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 tsp baking powder

few drops of lemon extract or lemon juice

1 apple peeled and grated.

pinch of powdered cinnamon 

pinch of nutmeg

How to make

1) Pre heat oven at 180 degrees. Dust a baking pan or  line with parchment paper.

2) In a large bowl mix Eggs, Sugar & Butter till fluffy. 

3) Add vanilla, lemon extract, Cinnamon and Nutmeg.

4) Mix the baking powder and flour. add flour to the butter mixture.

5) Peel and grate a large apple. And quickly add to the batter before it oxidizes.

6) Mix gently and pour in the prepared tin.

7) Bake for 40 minutes at 180 degrees Celsius.

And the delicious cake is ready to consume.. :P

Home-made Vanilla Ice - Cream

  Ice-cream is one of most preferred dessert.. Every one I know loves Ice-cream. But very few want to make it at home. Alright, I know the most difficult part is to get the creamy frothy texture of a store bought one. But trust me, it can be easily achieved using an Ice cream maker. Mine is a simple one which has a bowl and a motor attached spatula. I just have to freeze the empty bowl in the freezer a day before I want to make an ice-cream. The bowl gets cold and then I can pour in any batter . The consistency is just right.
this particular recipe taken from www.joyofbaking.com is just perfect. I have though altered it since i have reduced the amount of egg yolks and the sugar. but it is Heavenly anyway. In the recipe I have used a vanilla bean . In case you don't have it you can use vanilla extract. Result may not be same but is good enough.

You need
300 ml milk
300 ml fresh cream
4 large egg yolks
160 gms sugar
Vanilla bean or vanilla extract

How to make:

In a pan let the milk boil with the whole vanilla bean. After a boil take out the bean , cut it into half length wise and using back of a knife scrape the seeds. Discard the pods and add seeds to the boiling milk carefully. The seeds add a great look to it.
Simmer milk and add cream to it and let the cream warm . DO NOT boil the milk with cream or it will separate.

In a separate bowl whisk together egg yolks and sugar well.

Carefully add the hot milk and cream mixture into the egg & sugar one. While adding milk constantly stir the mix.
In case you are adding vanilla extract then you can add it at this stage.

Warm the milk nd egg mixture on a Double boiler. Which is a heat proof bowl over a simmering water vessel.
Once the custard is thick enuf to coat the spoon take it off heat.
 let the mixture cool in a refrigerator for 5-6 hours.

Get you Ice -Cream maker ready as per the instructions on its manual.
 slowly pour the batter into it and start the machine. It may take between 20-30 minutes depending on your machine.

You may find the ice-cream soft at this stage. You can freeze it overnite in an air tight container.
Enjoy with hot chocolate syrup or Brownie.. :)

Easy Chocolate Squares

            I am back to Blogging after nearly a year.. a year full of activity  but total laziness to blog anything at all.. been archiving pictures of what I made but never got around posting them.. Thank God for FACEBOOK which reminded me this morning that there has been no activity on the page..:)
now for this renewed beginning, as the cadbury Dairy Milk ad says "Kuch meetha ho jaaye". what better way to begin than a chocolate recipe.

             The best thing about this recipe is that it hardly takes any time and is so yummy that it finishes before you know. Before we talk about the recipe let me tell u a few things about ingredients. In terms of chocolate to use you have a lot of options. It can be chocolate buttons or cooking chocolate bars. Often I have read people mention percentage of cocoa in the chocolate or a great brand. Personally i really never found any difference .. but if you prefer a certain brand go ahead use that.. i buy whatever that i can considering i live in a smaller town and it is a bit of a luxury to choose brand.. and never found any difference in results..you may opt for semi sweet or dark chocolate depending on your taste preference.
the original recipe is from www.chefinyou.com but i have tweaked it to my liking.

You need

• 350 gms of any cooking chocolate chopped or chocolate buttons
• 400 gms Tin of condensed milk ( Nestle milkmaid wud do)
• pinch of salt
• 2 tablespoons cocoa powder
• 2 tablespoons of butter( unsalted) if using salted Amul etc don't add extra salt
• Cinnamon or any other spice if you like ( optional)
• 200 gms assorted nuts roughly chopped ( cashews, almonds, walnuts etc)

How to Make

In a large heatproof glass bowl mix chopped chocolate/ buttons, condensed milk, salt, butter, cocoa powder and spices if using.


Heat the mixture using double boiler.. a double boiler is essentially a glass bowl kept above a simmering pan of boiling water. the water shud not touch the sides of glass bowl. this way chocolate melts using indirect heat of steam.

Once the chocolate melts add the chopped nuts. and pour the mixture into a square tin lined with greased baking or parchment paper. Let the mixture cool. refrigerate for 2-4 hours .

Once set u can cut squares of your choice out of it. And wrap using a chocolate wrapping paper. Or better just eat it like that..:)

KASHMIRI PULAO

Rice can be an extremly versatile grain.. pulao or pilaf is equally versatile ... same rice grain can taste really different with addition of different ingredients and spices.
This kashmiri pulao uses some very basic ingredients yet is very yummy. the best part is the chopped fruits and nuts which add crunch to the pulao.

You Need
• 1 cup basmati rice
• 2-3 cloves
• 1/2 tsp nutmeg powder
• 2-3 green cardamom
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 green chilli, sliced thinly
• 1 tsp ginger-garlic paste
• few tbsp of ghee
• 1 cup of mixed nuts ( almonds,cashews, walnuts and raisin)
• 1 cup milk + few strands of saffron
• 1 cup water
• chopped fruits (grapes and apples )

How to Make
In a pan roast dry fruits using little ghee. Set aside
In another pan add ghee . Add all the spices ( nutmeg, cloves, cardamom, bay leaf and cumin)
Add ginger garlic paste and chillies.
Add washed rice and saute rice till aromatic.
Add milk and water. Cover and cook.
Add nuts just before rice is fully done.
Serve hot garnished with fruits

THAI RED CURRY PASTE

You Need

7-8 fresh or dried red chillies
1 cup chopped french shallots ( u can use white of spring onions)
about 2" long fresh galangal chopped
8-10 garlic cloves, chopped
about 3-4 tbspoon fresh coriander , leaves and stem
few kafir lime leaves ( can use dried ones available in super markets)
3 stems lemon grass , white only
Grated lemon rind ( grate a lemon using simple grater. taking care only the rind is grated)
Spices
1 tbsp coriander seeds
2 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp black peppercorns
2 tsp salt
2 tbsp oil

Paste
Lightly roast coriander and cumin seeds in a pan and grind them along with all other ingredients adding a little water in a processor. Process till it becomes a fine chutney/ paste.
This paste can also be stored in freezer and used whenever needed.

To make the curry.
• Heat oil in a wok and add chopped onions. Saute.
• Add curry paste( 2-3 tbsp) and cook over medium heat.
• Add 2 cups coconut milk ( ready available or fresh milk out of grated coconut)
•To extract coconut milk. Make a fine chutney of a fresh coconut. Squeeze juice using a sieve.
• Reduce heat and simmer
• Add some sliced galangal and kafir lime leaves.
• Add 1 teaspoon sugar, 2 tsp lime juice.

You can add any vegetable/ mushrooms or meat ( steamed or boiled a bit ) to this curry. and cook.

CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES

The Chocolate Chip Cookie is perhaps America's most famous cookie. It was invented in 1930 by Ruth Wakefield, who was the owner of the Toll House Inn in Massachusetts. The story goes that one day she decided to add small chunks of a Nestle's Semisweet Yellow Label chocolate chips to her butter cookie dough. These 'chocolate chip' cookies were an instant hit with her customers and word of their popularity reached the Nestle company. Nestle must have realized that adding small chunks of their chocolate bar to cookie dough would appeal to the mass market because by 1939 Nestle had already developed, and was selling, small chocolate morsels (or chips) in a yellow bag. Nestle then went on to buy the rights to the Toll House name and to Ruth Wakefield's 'chocolate chip' cookie recipe. They called her recipe "The Famous Toll House Cookie" and printed it on the back of the Yellow bag of chocolate chips.
While i was reading all this on http://www.blogger.com/www.joyofbaking.com I was really tempted to try it and the cookies turned out quite decent actually..( despite the fact that i am not so keen on chocolate) i have used brown sugar as well but you can use regular white castor sugar. There is also a very interesting video on how to bake them on http://www.goodhousekeeping.com/

you need
11/4 cup flour
3/4 cup sugar ( mix 1/4 cup brown sugar with 1/2 cup white sugar)
1/2 unsalted butter
1 egg
vanilla essence
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup semi sweet chocolate chips.. (hershey's or nestle whichever)

method
· Mix flour , baking powder and salt and seive.

· In a bowl whisk sugar & butter till it's frothy.

· Add the egg and vanilla essence.

· Add flour and mix to make a loose batter.

· Add chocolate chips and mix. if you find the batter very soft refrigerate for 1/2 hour.

Take an ice-cream scoop and drop spoonful onto an ungreased baking tray. keep some space about 2" in between two cookies so they can expand.

· And bake in a preheated oven at 190 deg for about 12-15 minutes.

· Put it on a wire rack for cooling before storing.

Nankhatai

I am really not sure of the origin of these really rich fatty biscuits.. or can they be called biscuits??
I have relished them at bakery shops but since i started making them myself they taste even better..( even at the risk of your waistline..) they are very easy to make and very quickly as well..
The ingredients are simple and we have them at home all the time..
you need
2 cups flour ( i go half maida half whole wheat flour)
1 cup powdered sugar
1 cup ghee ( unsalted butter if u want)
a pinch of soda bi carb ( baking soda)
a handful of cashew nuts powdered

Mix sugar and ghee in a bowl and whisk well using blender.
Mix flour , powdered cashews and baking soda well.
Add flour to wet ghee mix.

Make a soft dough. it doesnot need any water or milk and would form a crumbly dough.

Preheat oven to 180 deg centigrade and grease a baking tray.

Make small pedas out of the dough and gently press then.. do not flatten ..

Make a cross using a knife lightly.
Bake for about 15-20 min. they will look soft but will get little firm on cooling.
Enjoy..:)

PHIRNI

Kheer is perhaps one of the most common dessert dishes made in north indian homes... smallest of occasion or celebration kheer would be there with puris ... Phirni's though are not so common.. i first tasted phirni at rajputana shereton courtesy my chef friend... and the way they serve it as an individual portion in a miiti ka bartan makes it yummier.. later when i tried the recipe at home it turned out even easier..

The most difficult part is getting the rice to be ground into grainy consistency.. the problem was solved when i found packets of ground rice rawa in local super markets.. this made the whole recipe a matter of minutes..( okay almost 60 min still easy..)

YOU NEED

1 liter milk

60 grams rice rawa

60 grams sugar

elaichi powder

saffron leaves 3-4

kewra essence

Method

Put milk for boiling in a heavy bottom pan. let it boil till it is reduced to 2/3 rd of actual quantity.

Add 60 grams rice rawa and keep stirring occasionally so it does not stick to the bottom.

Add saffron and elaichi for flavour. Cook till the rice granules are almost translucent.

Take off the flame. Let it cool a bit.

Add sugar to the slightly cooled phirni. Mix well. Add Kewra essence.

Garnish with finely chopped pista..

RASAM

The easiest way to eat is to order idli sambhar from the neighbourhood place.. hehehe... yes till you discover the joy of homemade Rasam and Sambhar.. honestly i find most restraunt sambhars very spicy.. would anyday prefer homemade to it..
on one of these visits to Crosswords i had casually picked up a south indian cook book.. Simply south by Chandra Padmanabhan.. and it turned out an excellent book. it had vegetarian recipes from all southern states.. and very simple.. it was a delight to try them..
the recipe of rasam given below is hers with very smallish changes suiting a north indian pallate.. the powder can be made and stored in a jar for quite some time..

• Rasam Powder
  1 1/4 cup dried red chillies
  2 1/2 cups coriander seeds
  1/2 tbsp cumin seeds
  1/2 cup black peppercorn
  2 sprigs curry leaves
  3/4 cup tuwar daal
  1/4 cup chana daal
  1 tsp tumeric powder ( do not roast)
  
  Dry roast invidual masalas, leaves and daals in low heat..
• The daals will turn light golden and masalas fragrant..
• Grind into a fine powder..

Simple Lentil Rasam

1 1/2 teaspoon tuvar daal
1 lime sized ball of tamarind
2 tsp rasam powder
1/2 tsp hing
salt to taste

1) Soak daal in water for 30 min and grind into a fine paste.. add about 1 cup water to the paste..
2) Soak tamaring and strain the juice/ pulp.. add about 3 cups of water to it ..
3) Add rasam powder , hing and salt to tamarind water and bring to boil uncovered for a few min till raw aroma of tamarind disappears..
4) Add the daal paste and cook till frothy..
5) Temper with ghee, mustard seeds, dried whole chillies, and curry leaves..

Serve...:)

LAAL MAANS

LAAL MAANS - MUTTON RAJASTHANI STYLE

Despite being a Vegetarian i have been cooking non - veg dishes for my husband who loves it and eats veg only for the sake of change in taste ;).. initially it is very difficult for people like me who had not seen raw meat let alone cook it.. even now i make an estimation of masala or meat done or not purely by experience since i don't taste it ..

Laal maans is a rajasthani mutton speciality. though there is nothing very special in the ingredients , it is the combination and ghee which makes it an aromatic curry.. u can choose to add more water or make it a thickish gravy.. i use pressure cooker since mutton takes longer to cook.. you can also experiment using a handi and cover it with a lid.. i am sure it will taste better..:))

1/2 KG MUTTON

MARINADE

100 gms Dahi

1 onion grated

4-5 cloves garlic grated

about 1" pc of ginger grated

salt to taste

turmeric powder 1/2 tsp

Dhania Powder 1 tsp

Red chilli pwdr 1/2 tsp

TEMPERING

Jeera (cumin)

Badi Elaichi 2 pcs

dalchini 1" pc

Laung 3-4 pcs

Bay Leaf 2 pcs

GRAVY

2-3 Medium onions chopped finely

4-5 Whole red chillies soaked in water and pureed into a fine paste.

2 tbsp ghee

METHOD

• 
  
  mix all the marinade ingridients in dahi and make a smooth paste.


• 
  
  marinate the mutton with this paste and leave for 2 hrs.


• 
  
  heat ghee and add all the tempering.. it will be nicely fragrant.


• 
  
  add finely chopped onion and fry till golden .. add the red chilli paste to it..


• 
  
  now add the marinated mutton pcs to it and stir fry till the fat separates..


• 
  
  add about 2 cups ( small) water and adjust salt.


• 
  
  in a pressure cooker cook it for about 20 min on low- medium flame.


• 
  
  if cooking in handi cover and cook for an hour or till cooked..


• 
  
  garnish with coriander leaves.

THAI GREEN CURRY PASTE

When we were growing up the only option to eat out for vegetarians was either Punjabi or South Indian. Even that had a typically common menu. Over the past few years a lot of other cuisines earlier unheard of have become popular. Now you have a Pizza Hut round almost every corner and swish new restaurants serving Sushi & Thai food.
Thai food has gained a lot of popularity in India. The reason i guess is because it tastes very familiar. few ingredients like the chillies and coconut are widely used in various Indian foods specially south Indian. despite that similarity it tastes very different from say a Goan coconut curry due to use of herbs like kafir lime leaves. The fish sauces and shrimp paste also adds a flavour. I really enjoyed Thai food in restaurants till a chef friend told me that shrimp paste is a very essential ingredient in it. Being a vegetarian that was a turn off and i decided to make Thai food on my own.
This recipe is from a cooking book bought off street in Bangkok. It tastes really good and is very easy to make.

you will need
6-7 fresh green chillies
1 cup chopped french shallots ( u can use white of spring onions)
about 2" long fresh galangal chopped
8-10 garlic cloves, chopped
about a cup fresh coriander , leaves and stem
few kafir lime leaves ( can use dried ones available in super markets)
3 stems lemon grass , white only
Grated lemon rind ( grate a lemon using simple grater. taking care only the rind is grated)
spices
1 tbsp coriander seeds
2 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp black peppercorns
2 tsp salt
2 tbsp oil

Paste
lightly roast coriander and cumin seeds in a pan and grind them along with all other ingredients adding a little water in a processor. Process till it becomes a fine chutney/ paste.
This paste can also be stored in freezer and used whenever needed.

To make the curry.

• Heat oil in a wok and add chopped onions. Saute.


• Add curry paste( 2-3 tbsp) and cook over medium heat.


• Add 2 cups coconut milk ( ready available or fresh milk out of grated coconut)


• Reduce heat and simmer


• Add some sliced galangal and kafir lime leaves.


• Add 1 teaspoon sugar, 2 tsp lime juice.

You can add any vegetable/ mushrooms or meat ( steamed or boiled a bit ) to this curry. and cook.

STOCK FOR THAI OR CHINESE SOUPS

Vir Sanghvi writes in his weekly column Rude Food that he grades a restaurant with the quality of it's soup. To an extend this is true. Whenever trying a new restaurant I order a basic soup like cream of tomato or cream of mushroom ( since i am vegetarian and most Indian restaurants in India have these 2 soups at least). If the soup is good and made from fresh stock the food invariably turns out good. and if bad you know what to expect in your plate :)

Chinese/ Thai soup stock
This really amazing soup stock for Chinese or Thai soups is very versatile. It is flavourful and the slower it is cooked better it tastes.

In a pan take about 5-6 cups water and get it to boiling
In this boiling pot you add

• small pc of fresh ginger (1") chopped roughly


• chopped galangal ( Thai aromatic ginger)


• white only of 2 lemon grass stalk, smashed


• 2-3 cloves of garlic , smashed


• 1 cup shredded chinese cabbage


• 4-5 stalks of spring onions ( white only)


• a little sea salt or regular salt

Let the stock simmer for 1-2 hours and develop flavour. you can ad more water if needed.

Strain ( DO not blend) and use it as vegetable stock for Chinese or Thai soups.

THE HUMBLE TIKKA

TIKKA either chicken or paneer is perhaps the most recognised indian dish across world ...
most indian restraunts Indian or the regular would serve their versions of charred paneer or chicken often colored very bright orange. I don't though agree with the color part of it since there is not such great need of it.
Making tikka at home is quite easy and is not as difficult as it seems. The key to it is the marinade or the paste in which the paneer, mushroom or chicken is coated. I have noticed the more the time the better taste it has even with paneer. I often pierce the paneer with fine fork tip to enhance the flavour. One can use sharp knife to make gashes in meat.
I am here giving two different marinades and both have different tastes.

THE TANDOORI PASTE REGULAR.

Yogurt 1 cup
Cream 1 cup
Ginger/Garlic Paste 1 tsp
Garam Masala
Red chilli powder
Lemon juice
Cumin powder
Salt
Red color ( optional)

THE LEMON PASTE ( only for paneer and mushrooms)
Lemon Juice
Salt
Cumin powder
Chaat masala
Garam Masala

The leek potato soup

I have a constant companion for past few years. i love to call it my BIG BLACK BOOK. It contains small notes taken from friends and family, magazine cuttings and hurried notes taken down from the television shows. they are then altered/ edited/ improvised depending on the outcome of practical experience with the recipe . since i feel there is absolutely no fool proof recipe for a dish. it will need alteration to suit your palette. and for all those who frown upon the cook book chefs i will just say one needs skill even to follow cookbooks.. so stop frowning.

The leek and potato soup
this is the most simple yet amazing soup. though i confess it is on the milder side and if you don't have the taste bud it may feel bland. for the info sake leek is similar to onion rather it is onion family. the edible part of it is the white stalk and green leaves. easily available in the super markets. i use potato to add a bit of starch and thicken the soup while adding flavour.

serving for 2

2 stalks of leek
1 medium sized potato
dried basil leaves
crushed peppercorns to taste
salt to taste
olive oil for frying

method

clean and chop leeks like spring onions. dice potato finely.

• take olive oil in pressure cooker and saute the potato and leek for 2-3 minutes till the leek looks bit translucent.
  


• add dried basil leave and black pepper. add salt to taste.



• pour water and pressure cook it .



• blend it using mixer or hand blender and sieve it in a pan. don't add too much water or it will make it watery.



• simmer the pan for 5-7 min and adjust seasoning.




• you can add a little butter to get flavour.