Christmas Fruit Cake | Kerala Fruit Cake

I made this cake two days before Christmas, stored it carefully feeding it with rum every day and then on the D day, I shared it with friends, devoured it to hearts content and then totally forgot about it. Today when I was going through my food pics, I found this and I came to realize that I had missed posting this for Christmas. Well now that I have found it, I am not going to spare another moment to share this recipe with you. Its the best and just like all other christmas cakes it gets better and better. I have been following this recipe for the past 2 years but each time I use a different pan and do not flour it believing that the non stick coating would do its job but finally I would end up with the cake sticking to the pan. So this time I made it a point to grease the pan, line the pan with parchment paper and grease and flour the pan too. And look how neat and yummy the cake looks!!!

Recipe adapted from here ~*What U Need*~ For soaking the dried fruits Dry fruits - 1 1/2 cups ~ Raisins, dates, pineapple, apricot, cranberries, dried papaya, dates, almonds, cashews Rum - as needed (I used CaptianMorgans. U need to immerse the fruits completely in rum and then refill as and when you find the amount reducing) Caramel syrup - 2 tbsp (2tbsp sugar + 1 tbsp water) For Caramel Syrup to be used in cake Sugar - 3/4 cup Water - 2 tbsp Hot water - 6 tbsp For the cake: Butter - 1/2 cup, room temp Powdered sugar - 1 1/4 cups Eggs - 2, separated All purpose flour - 1 1/4 cups Baking powder - 1 tsp Baking soda - 1/2 tsp Salt - a pinch Coarsely powdered nuts - 1/2 cup(almonds and walnuts) Orange Zest - 1/2 tsp Vanilla Extract - 1 tsp Cinnamon powder - 1/4 tsp Clove powder - 1/4 tsp Cardamom powder - 1/4 tsp Nutmeg powder - 1/4 tsp Jeera powder - 1/4 tsp Ginger powder - 1/4 tsp How I Made it: Heat 2 tblsp sugar with 1 tsp water on medium heat until the sugar melts and browns up. Take off the heat and carefully add the water and stir well. Atleast 2 weeks in advance , chop all the dry fruits and place them in an airtight container. Pour the rum on top of it, add the caramel syrup and allow to soak. On the day of baking, heat 3/4 cup of sugar with 2 tbsp water in a saucepan. The sugar will start melting. COntinue heating till the syrup turns brown or almost black in color. Take it off the stove and add the hot water and stir well. Allow to cool. Preheat oven to 350F and grease your cake pan. Sift together all the dry ingredients with the spices. Add the powdered nuts, mix well and keep aside. Beat the butter with powdered sugar until smooth and creamy. Add the egg yolks one at a time and mix well until well incorporated. Add in the dry ingredients slowly and mix until combined. Add the Vanilla essence, orange zest and Caramel syrup and combine everything together. Strain the rum soaked fruits (save the rum), and coat the fruits with some all-purpose flour and add the fruits into the cake batter. Fold the fruits into the cake evenly. Beat the Egg Whites until soft peaks form, add powdered sugar and continue to beat until the peaks look stiff and glossy. Gently fold the egg whites into the cake batter. Pour the cake batter into the cake pan and bake for 1 hour or until a toothpick inserted into the cake center comes out clean. After taking the cake out from the oven, immediately pour 2-3tblsp of the saved rum over the cake. Allow the cake to cool for 15 mins and then flip the cake pan onto a wire-rack. Once cooled brush the sweet rum all over the cake. Keep the cake covered with aluminium foil/plastic wrap and brush the cake with more Rum everyday until you cut the cake.

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Apple Crisp | Apple crisp with cake crumbs| Leftover recipes

If you are into cake decorating or if you are a frequent cake maker for friends and families and if you are like me who hates dumping that excess cake crumbs then you would also be hunting for recipes and ways to use them. I generally make cake pops and gift it to kids in my apartment but the last time I made some butter cake I had very little crumbs leftover which led me to browse for recipes. Since nothing got me interested, I started putting things together randomly and this happened. Its perfect served warm with a dollop of icecream and a shot of amaretto. Tip: You can replace the apples with berries, peaches or seasonal fruits of choice.

~*What U Need*~ Apples - 2, cored, sliced Cinnamon - 1/2 tsp Brown sugar - 2 tbsp Lemon juice - 1 tsp Cornstarch - 1/2 tbsp Salt - a pinch For the crumble Leftover cake - 1 cup Rolled Oats - 3 tbsp Butter - 1 tbsp, cut into chunks Sliced almonds - 2 tbsp How I Made it: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Peel, core, and slice apples into 1/4-inch slices. Place apples in a large mixing bowl and toss with sugar, lemon juice, cornstarch, and cinnamon. Pour into individual ramekins or a small baking dish. In another large bowl, mix together the oats and almonds. Using a pastry cutter or your fingers, gently work in the cold butter until pea-sized lumps are formed. Toss in the cake crumbs. Top apples evenly with mixture and bake until apples are bubbly and topping is golden brown, about 45 minutes, rotating once halfway through cooking.

Serve warm or at room temperature with vanilla ice cream.

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Ragi Almond Cookies | Ragi Biscuits and MERRY CHRISTMAS

Its not going to be a white Christmas for us here. Its going to be chilly but not white like last year. We have been blessed with a beautiful weather this time but we do miss that white blanket. It just doesn't feel Christmassy. I have been cranking up my oven every single day for the past one week and pounds of butter are disappearing into cookies and cakes. I am done with all of my work, fruitcake has been baked and soaked with few coatings of rum, presents are wrapped and set under the christmas tree, cookie has been laid out for Santa though we don't have a chimney and we are all set to enjoy tomorrow. WISH YOU ALL A MERRY CHRISTMAS and let there be joy every day. Here is a simple and healthy cookie recipe for the day.

~*What U Need*~ Sprouted ragi flour - 1/2 cup Whole wheat flour - 1/4 cup Almond powder - 1/4 cup Unsalted butter - 1/4 cup Icing sugar - 1/2 cup Baking soda - 1/8 tsp Vanilla essence - 1/2 tsp Milk - 2 tbsp How I Made it: Roast ragi flour on a low flame till the raw smell goes off. Let it cool. Beat butter and powdered sugar till light and fluffy. Add vanilla essence and beat well. Sieve together ragi flour, whole wheat flour, almond powder and baking soda. Add it to the butter mixture. Knead well. Add 1 tbsp of milk to make the dough pliable. If it is quite dry add another tsp of milk and work. Once it is ready, take 1 heaping tbsp of the dough and press between the palms and shape it like a cookie. Arrange the cookie on a parchment paper and bake in a preheated oven at 350 F for 15 to 20 minutes.

Serve with tea or coffee.

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French Macarons ~ My first OK attempt!!!

Yeah, you heard me right. I got them right, well not perfect right but OK right. Atleast I got what makes a macaron, a macaron stuff right. I got the feet, I got the rise and I got them out of the parchment paper intact. So yeah, I made my first OK macarons. This is not my first time but gladly this is not my nth time too. The first time I made it, I didn't grind my almonds fine enough and so the second time I resorted to store bought ground almonds. And these macarons happened.

So if you are here for macaron advice, my first one would be to get a kitchen scale. Macarons are all about precision and cup measurements would never work out. Next grind your almonds fine but donot overwork it that the almonds start releasing their oils. If you are not confident enough then get store bought flour. Then age your egg whites, the older the best. Sieve the almond+icing sugar atleast thrice. Finally allowing the piped shells to dry till they are no longer tacky is super important. So why wait ;ets get going and bake some macarons.

~*What U Need*~ Ground almond - 50 gms Icing sugar - 100 gms Castor sugar - 20 gms Egg whites - 60 gms A pinch of salt How I Made it: Separate the egg whites and place in an airtight container. Refrigerate for 2 days. On the day of use, remove the container from the fridge and bring to room temperature. Weigh all the ingredients and set aside. Blend the icing sugar and ground almonds together with a food processor for around 1 – 2 minutes. Sieve the mixture thrice getting rid of the bigger bits, set aside. Whisk the egg whites with the whisk attachment at medium speed until frothy. Add the pinch of salt. With the mixer at medium speed beat until soft peals. Turn your mixer to high speed and gradually add the caster sugar beating till you get shiny stiff peaks. Gradually add the dry ingredients to your meringue in 3 additions. Gently cut and fold the mixture by means of a silicone spatula. Around 50 folds. You should get a smooth and glossy batter, with no visible dry ingredients just like lava. Attach a plain nozzle to the piping bag and fill it with the macaron mixture. Pipe the shells onto a parchment paper and remove the macaron template carefully. Tap the bottom of the baking sheet against your worktop in order to remove any peaks and large air bubbles. Leave the shells to dry for around 30 mins to 1 hour until no longer tacky. This is the most important step of all. Preheat the oven for 15 mins for 300F. Bake the macarons for around 10-14 minutes. Once the macaron is done, allow to cool for 5-10 mins and then remove from the parchment paper. Place them on a cooling rack and let them cool completely. Fill with chocolate ganache and then combine two shells. Store them in an airtight container inside the fridge up to 2-3 days.

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Easy Rasmalai | Ricotta Rasmalai | American rasmalai

Sweets are my weakness but I am not a sweet tooth. Well thats confusing, I know. Let me explain. I am not a person who is in desperate need of a dessert after every meal but when there is an availability I enjoy it to the fullest. I love gulab jamun with icecream and gajar ka halwa with ice cream and then there is rasmalai for which I am the greatest fan on earth, the one thing that I craved for during and after pregnancy. This recipe is the cheat's method to make rasmalai. Well it can never scale up to the original version where you have to knead the chenna, cook it and then dunk it in the ras . But for the 30 mins of labor that you put in, it yields good flavors.

~*What U Need*~ For the cheese discs: Whole milk Ricotta cheese - 15 oz Sugar - 1/4 cup Cardamom - 2 For the ras/syrup: Evaporated milk - 1 can Sweetened condensed milk - 1/4 cup Whole milk - 1/2 cup Sugar - 2 tbsp, ground with 2 cardamom Cashews, Almonds, pista - 1/4 cup, coarsely chopped How I Made it: Pre-heat the oven to 350 F. Powder 1/4 cup of sugar and cardamom and mix them with ricotta cheese. In a muffin pan, divide this mixture equally and bake for 20- 25 minutes until it is set. Let cool completely, and remove from pan. To make the syrup In a sauce pan, boil the evaporated milk , whole milk. Simmer on low flame and add the condensed milk and sugar. Simmer till the desired consistency is reached. Add the nuts, mix well and cool to room temperature. Add the cheese discs and chill overnight.

Serve chilled!!!

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Whole Wheat Cinnamon Sugar Banana Bread

If you have been following my blog, then you now know that I love banana breads. They are a handy way to use those heavily speckled bananas without throwing them in the bin. Last week saw the men in the house down with severe cold attacks. Fruits too a backseat and there were no takers for the bananas. The bananas got spots, the spots turned brown and finally I left them undisturbed from another two days. And then they were perfect, perfect to make banana breads. I went a step ahead this time and topped it with a cinnamon sugar and sliced almonds.

Adapted from here Mashed Bananas - 1 cup EVOO - 1/3 cup Maple syrup - 1/4 cup Brown sugar - 1/4 cup Eggs - 2 Salt - a pinch Cinnamon - 1/2 tsp Vanilla Extract - 1 tsp Whole wheat flour - 1 3/4 cup Baking soda - 1/2 tsp Hot Milk - 1/4 cup + 1 tsp vinegar Sliced almonds - 2 tbsp 1/2 tsp cinnamon mixed with 1 tbsp sugar How I Made it: Preheat oven to 325 F and grease a 9×5 inch loaf pan. In a large bowl, beat oil and maple syrup and sugar together. Add eggs and beat well. Stir in bananas and vanilla, then stir in the salt and cinnamon. In a bowl, whisk the flour with the baking soda. Whisk the flour into the wet ingredients and mix till combined. Add the milk and mix into batter until it is evenly distributed. Spread batter into the greased loaf pan. Sprinkle with cinnamon sugar and sliced almonds. Bake for 50-60 mins. Let the bread cool in the loaf pan for 5 minutes, then transfer it to a wire rack to cool completely.

Serve with tea or coffee!!!

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Almond wreath

I should have been born in Paris or somewhere in Italy cos I love pasta and breads and petit fours and gelato. I could eat bread and sandwiches 24/7 and never crave Indian food. I could bake breads all day long and never go weak on the knees. I could smell the aroma of freshly baked bread for all eternity and still want to bake more. That is how much I love the art of baking. There is something about baking that calms your nerves. That contentment you get when you see the loaf rise as you peep through the oven door is boundless.

It was the same feeling with this bread too. Me and the huss love the Almond ring danish from Trader Joe's. The mild almond flavor that runs through every bite is heaven in a plate. Well I am not a danish specialist and that much butter usually intimidates me. So I thought of incorporating just the flavor in our daily bread. The almond flavor is just right and you get it in every bite. Its not as rich as the store bought one but its something for nothing.

~*What U Need*~ Whole milk - 6 tbsp, warm Instant yeast - 3/4 tsp Water - 1/4 cup Sugar - 1/2 tbsp Egg - 1/2 of an egg Salt - 3/4 tsp Unbleached all purpose flour - 2 cups Melted butter - 2 tbsp For the filling Almonds - 1/4 cup Egg - remaining half Almond extract - 1/8 - 1/4 tsp Sugar - 4 tbsp Butter - 2 tbsp How I Made it: Warm milk and water to 115F. Remove from heat and add the yeast and sugar. Mix and set aside for 10 mins. The mixture should have frothed. Take the flour in the bowl of your electric mixer and add the yeast water. egg and salt. Mix till everything is moistened, add the butter and knead with the dough hook for 5-8 mins. The dough should be smooth, but tacky. Oil the mixer bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and let the dough rise in the bowl for 1 hour. Mix the filling ingredients and set aside. Once the dough has doubled in size, take it on a floured work surface. Roll the dough out into a large rectangle. Gently spread a thin layer of the filling over the dough, grate butter on top leaving the dough bare around the edges. Now starting on one of the long edges, roll the dough into a long cylinder. Use a large knife to cut the dough down the middle, length wise, and open it up to expose the layers inside. Then alternate crossing the pieces over each other to create a braid. Shape into a ring and move on to a parchment paper. Preheat the oven to 350 F and allow the bread wreath to rise for 45 minutes. Bake for 22-30 minutes, until brown and crispy on top. Cool completely.

Serve with some milk.

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Mango Kulfi | Easy Sweet Recipes

I love kulfis. To describe them simple, kulfis are frozen rabris which is nothing but reduced sweetened milk. Kulfis remind me of my maternity days because I had a very big craving for these beauties when I was pregnant and the small kulfi stall in our office canteen was always my savior. They sold the best kulfis and I used to have one every week. I made these kulfis last week when those memories hit me. I had some canned mango pulp on hand and it found its way into the milk mixture to make these amazing mango kulfis.

~*What U need*~ Evaporated milk - 1 can Whole milk - 1/2 cup Sugar - 1/4 cup + 2 tbsp Mango pulp - 1/2 cup, I used sweetened so skipped the 2 tbsp sugar Almonds, Cashews - 1/4 cup Cardamom powder - 1/4 tsp How I Made it: In a wide pan, add the evaporated milk and whole milk and bring it to a boil. Reduce the flame and simmer for 6-7 mins. Add sugar and boil for 2-3 mins. Reduce the flame to low and add the mango pulp. Stir till dissolved. Add ground almonds and cashews and mix slowly for 5-6 mins. Add cardamom and remove from flame. Cool and pour into moulds. Refrigerate overnight till set.

Serve cool!!!

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Amrakhand / Aam Shrikhand / Mango Shrikhand

Well, pappu starts school tomorrow and we are a tad bit busy buying school supplies, lunch totes and fall jackets. Right now we are in search of a dinosaur face painted lunch tote which is really hard to find and which is driving us crazy. The little dino is so particular on that. With everything that is happening in our lives, I thought that it was time to celebrate life with something sweet. I had some canned kesar mango pulp on hand and this thick and luscious shrikhand is what happened.

~*What U Need*~ Hung Curd - 1/2 cup Fresh mango - 1 / mango pulp - 1 cup Sugar - 4 tbsp Chiroli nuts/nuts of choice - 1 tbsp How I Made it: Cut the mango to slices and blend till smooth along with sugar without adding water. Hang the curd in a muslin cloth overnight and discard the whey water(..or if you are like me you can use this water to knead chapathi dough). Alternatively if you have access to greek yogurt use the same. Take the yogurt in a bowl. Whisk till smooth and light. Stir in the mango pulp till blended.

Chill and serve topped with nuts of choice. Tastes best when cool.

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Palak Tofu

Just like avocado, the huss has an aversion for tofu. Paneer is welcome in his book but tofu is a strict no-no for him. But I buy it occasionally as in once a month because I like to include it in our diet atleast once a month for the sake of pappu. While I am still experimenting with tofu recipes, I have decided to give the basics a try first, like this palak tofu, tofu masala, kadai tofu etc.

Making palak paneer or palak tofu is a breeze. Blanch, grind and simmer ~ and the sauce is ready to go. And its a healthy way to use all your greens. Spinach is widely used but you can experiment with different greens like baby kale or baby collards. This makes a perfect side dish for chapathis and even better ~ jeera rice. You can add cream at the end to make it more rich or you can replace the milk with cream to give at even more richer taste and use butter or ghee to give at a restaurant style makeover.

~*What U Need*~ Tofu - 10 oz, cubed, extra firm Salt - a pinch Oil - 1 tsp Cumin powder - 1/2 tsp Garam masala - 1/2 tsp Chilli powder - 1 tsp For the sauce/ curry: Spinach - 2 cups, washed Water - 1/4 cup (I used the water that I blached the spinach in) Milk - 1/4 cup Almonds - a handful, soaked in warm water for 10 mins Ginger garlic paste - 1 tsp Green chilli - 1 Tomato - 1 Onion - 1, small, chopped Garam masala - 1/4 tsp How I Made it: In a pan, heat oil to medium heat. Add the chopped tofu and saute for 2 mins. Add the spice powders and salt and toss to coat. Cook for 8-10 mins. Meanwhile, boil water in a large pan, put the spinach and blanch for 2 mins. Remove and let cool. Add this to the blender with the water, milk, almonds, ginger garlic paste and blend well. Heat oil in a pan and add 1 tsp cumin seeds and allow to sizzle, add onions and fry till brown. Add the spinach puree and bring it to a boil, add the sauteed tofu and mix gently. Add garam masala and cook in medium heat for 10-15 mins. Taste and season as desired. Add 2 tbsp cream and remove from flame.

Serve hot with Naan or chapathis.

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Mughalai Chicken Biryani

By now, you should have known about our love for biryanis. When I say its biryani for lunch or dinner, the boys keep chanting the term till they get some on their plates... I love trying new biryani varieties when the mood sets in and it happened again last week.
It was a weekday and pappu was sound asleep taking his afternoon nap... I felt like doing something and reading a book didn't help... The kitchen seemed to be the destination and biryani the solution... I was going through my biryani booklet when I came upon this mughalai biryani.. The richness called my name and I didn't waste another minute resting on my couch...

~*What U Need*~ Chicken - 500 gm, cleaned Onion - 1, large, sliced Tomato - 1, large, sliced Ginger garlic paste - 1 tsp Green chilli - 1 Red chilli powder - 1/2 tsp Cumin powder - 1/4 tsp Coriander powder - 1 tsp Coriander leaves - 1/4 cup Mint leaves - 1/4 cup Oil/ Ghee - 2 tbsp Basmati rice - 1 1/2 cup Water - 2 cups To grind to a paste: Cashew - 1/4 cup Almonds - 1/4 cup Poppy seeds - 2 tbsp Yogurt - 1 tbsp For Briyani Masala Powder: Fennel Seeds - 1 tbsp Cinnamon - 1" Cardamom - 2 Star anise - 1/2 Cloves - 2 How I Made it: Dry roast the ingredients under biryani masala and grind in a coffee grinder. Soak the rice in enough water. Grind cashews, almonds, poppy seeds and yogurt to a smooth paste. In a pressure cooker, heat oil and fry the green chilli. Add the onions and saute till brown. Add the ginger-garlic paste and saute till the raw smell goes off. Add the tomatoes and fry till oil separates. Add the spice powders and biryani masala powder. Add the chopped coriander and mint leaves followed by the chicken. Once the chicken is half cooked and leaves water add the ground cashew paste and mix well. Add the soaked rice and water and pressure cook for 2 whistles.

Serve hot!!!

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