~ The Purple Foodie ~

The best birthday ever!

2009-11-05T23:55:00.005+05:30

So I got the most awesome things for my birthday today (I turn 23!). Celebrations got an early start yesterday morning when I got two packages in the mail. One was the Ottolenghi cookbook that Hilda sent me (for the giveaway I won a few days ago) and the bigger surprise was a pack three books I’ve had on my wish list for months from Flipkart. THREE books! I remember the first time I emailed Tapas , I was whining about their high prices for cookbooks when compared with Amazon. Now is when I bite my tongue for drawing that comparison because Amazon certainly won’t remember my birthday! Thanks, Tapas.

(L-R: Ottolenghi Cookbook, Barefoot Contessa – Back to Basics, Ratio, A Sweet Life in Paris. Those in India, head to Flipkart)

Orangefoodie gave me the most unexpected gift. After a fun day together just as we were saying goodbye for the day he asked me to look into the car boot where I found this HUGE box – I ripped it open to find a LE CREUSET saucepan! It was quite dark so I asked him if it had a lid. “Ya one of them has a lid”. WHAT? One of them? Ran back to the boot and ruffled things up to find a Le Creuset baking dish. I still can't believe I’ve gone from owning zero to two pieces of Le Creuset in a day.

Every time I’d go through the kitchenware department I’d ogle at the gorgeous, gorgeous Le Creuset cookware. Never did I expect him to go and buy the expensive cast iron cookware. I'm a happy, happy girl now! Not just that, he even remembered an old Google doc I’d created with a list of movies centred around food and downloaded all of them for me to watch along with Top Chef, Iron Chef and Good Eats (we’re Food Network deprived here, people).

( Le Creuset Saucepan + Baking dish)

At home my parents gave me a “Best daughter” card and my sister got me a pair of jeans I’d been eyeing for a bit! She even decorated the place with streamers for me (love you sis!).

Oh and I made a chocolate walnut mud cake for myself in the morning. I couldn’t stop myself from cutting one sliver after another and wolfing it down – it was so good. Recipe in a day or so.

PS: Please excuse the excessive use of exclamation marks. I’ve tried hard to curtail them.

Pie Dough 101 + Simple Apple Pie

2009-10-31T00:39:00.009+05:30

I think an apple pie is one of the first things I baked when I got an oven. I used a pie dough recipe from a nondescript local book and didn’t pay much attention to baking blind (we will get to this shortly). Back then, this was an unnecessary step that the naïve me thought I could do without. I didn’t know the technique behind it, nor the importance as I had only begun exploring the hows and whys of baking.

After poring over my favourite books and reading up quite a bit on the subject of pie dough over the years, I have come to understand them a little better. I love how Alice Water has been so descriptive through every step – you should probably buy The Art of Simple Food just for this chapter, if nothing else.

I don’t believe that there is THE pie crust recipe and that just that one recipe is absolutely foolproof, because with pie, it’s more about the technique and timing - at the end of it, it's flour, butter and liquid put together.

Making a pie crust isn’t such a nightmare for me as prepping seafood but here are some pointers I have grown to live by:

The refrigerator is your best friend. Start with chilled or frozen butter and keep putting the dough into the fridge in between steps. In fact, refrigerate everything – the ingredients and the pie dish. Especially when you’re living in a warm place.
Work with the ingredients quickly. They must, must, must remain cold at all times. A pastry cutter works beautifully, but a food processor or a KitchenAid will do things much faster. Or at least I’d like to think so because I just love my KitchenAid.
Use ice water. Not water with ice in it, but ice with water. I fill the measuring cup with ice cubes and then add water until it reaches the rim of the cup.
Don’t add in all the liquid at one time. The amount you need will vary depending on the humidity. It will also be a lot lesser if you’re adding an egg yolk to the pie crust.
A wet dough it better than a dry one that will crack while baking – add water a tablespoon at a time. If it falls apart like sand, it is too dry. Remember, it will get drier in the oven.
I like to add an egg yolk for its golden hue; it also prevents gluten development resulting in a tender crust.
I’ve read good things about vinegar additions in the pie dough. I have yet to try it from the recipe in Molly’s book, but vinegar is supposed to prevent gluten development (awesome for bread, but not for the said pie we are about to bake) and help achieve the much coveted texture.If you have, let me know!
Butter or shortening? They say using shortening yields a more flaky crust. I use all butter because I’m just biased. I’d like to try lard to, but I don’t have access to any.
Can you see the butter in the dough? That’s your answer to a flaky crust. It’s as simple as that. When you see the butter, you are assured of flakiness. Why? Because the dough will envelope the butter and form tiny pockets, and with heat, the butter in these pockets will melt and pie crust will puff up with the steam (same principles as puff pastry). Flaky crust!
I prefer using metal pans as opposed to ceramic ones to achieve a crispier crust and for an even crispier base, place the pie pan on a pizza stone or a thick baking sheet.
If I want a crumbly crust, I simply press the dough into the pie dish. And for a flaky one, I roll out the dough.
After watching how easy is to roll out the dough (thank you Rachel Allen), sandwiched in a clingfilm, I’m a fan of the method. You won’t even need flour for dusting. Also, when you’re rolling out the dough, it should feel a little tough to roll out. This way you know that the butter is absolutely cold.
Once rolled out, peel off the upper sheet of cling film and gently invert the rolled dough into the pie dish. Again, be gentle.
After transferring the dough into the pie dish, first press the dough into the dish and then trim off the edges. Otherwise you will end up with shorter edge. Yes, I’m talking from experience. Also, correctly fitted dough stays put when it is baked and doesn’t shrink. Crimp the edges if you want it to look a little fancy.
Baking blind is important. It will dry the surface of the crust and help maintain the texture when baked again with the filling. Another nifty trick I picked up when watching Rachel Allen Bake was that she’d brush the inside of the pie after its partially baked with a beaten egg and pop it into an oven for another few minutes. This seals the pie and gets you another step closer to a non-soggy base.
To blind-bake, after fitting the rolled out dough into the pie, place a piece of parchment in it and fill it with beans or pie weights. More than that I love this tip from Dorie Greenspan – you should butter the inside of the pie crust, before placing a piece of foil and beans for blind baking. Yay for extra butter!
While baking blind, if you think the edges are browning quicker than you think, wrap some aluminium foil around it.
When to bake blind? Rule of thumb: for fruit and liquidy fillings bake blind.
Add your own tips in the comments and share what you think is absolutely necessary to achieve that perfect crust!

Now go on and bake your favourite pie!

Pie Dough

Minimally adapted from: Dorie Greenspan

Yield: 9 inch single crust

1 ½ cups all purpose flour

2 tbsp caster sugar

1 ½ stick butter

1/4th cup ice water

1 egg, beaten

In a bowl, stir the dry ingredients together.
Add the pieces of cut butter into this and either cut with a pastry cutter or food processor until the mixture looks like coarse breadcrumbs with a lot of larger pea sized chunks of butter as well.
Add the water a spoonful at a time until the dough holds itself together without being too dry.
Transfer this to a Ziploc bag and put it into the refrigerator for an hour or the freezer for a little lesser time.
Butter a 9 inch pie dish and pop it into the freezer as well.
Now roll out the dough between two sheets of cling film. Transfer to the pie dish, press into the dish and refrigerate it for another 30 minutes or until it has firmed up. Poke some holes into the crust with a fork.
While the pie crust is chilling in the freezer, preheat the oven to 400F/200C.
Butter the shiny side of the foil and stick it tightly to the crust. Fill with dried beans and bake for 25 minutes.
If the crust has puffed up then push it back down with the back of the spoon. Now brush this with some beaten egg and pop it back into the oven for another 5-7 minute minutes.
Let this cool before filling it in with anything. Remember, this is partially bakes. for a fully baked pie crust, pop it back into the oven for another 10 minutes or until golden in colour.

Cinnamon Apple Filling:

4 granny smith apples – peeled, cored and sliced

4-5 tbsp sugar

1 tsp cinnamon
2 tbsp butter

Sprinkle 2 tbsp sugar and ½ tsp cinnamon on the base of the pre-baked pie crust.
Arrange the apples in a concentric fashion starting out on the edge and moving inwards.
Sprinkle the top with the remaining cinnamon and sugar. Dot with a little butter.
Bake the pie for 15-20 minutes until the apples look like they’re done.
Glaze with some jelly + water mixture for a shiny look.
Serve with whipped cream or mascarpone cheese. YUM!

No Macarons Here

2009-10-27T01:02:00.007+05:30

Photos courtesy: Kiris'

Here for the Daring Bakers challenge? Sorry, but I didn't quite make it through.

This month's challenge was French Macarons - something I’ve wanted to try for a long, long time. My heart would skip a beat when I’d see photos of Macarons at Ladurée or Pierre Hermé. So what if I couldn’t go France, I could surely try and make these at home, couldn’t I? Or so I thought. But that’s just one part of it. For when I did decide to make them a few month ago, I’d hear horror stories about how complex the technique is and how macaron making is almost close to impossible. I wanted to conquer my macaron-making fear, but I knew the one way that I truly would – a Daring Bakers challenge.

So when I learned that Macarons would be the challenge for the month, I was ecstatic. I read the recipe over, decided on my flavor (hazelnut, but of course), did my fair share of research and video watching and set aside an entire Sunday to make macarons – from the very scratch, mind you – right from making the almond+hazelnut flour. I had a good time through this, especially because I was in la-la land dreaming away of the perfect macarons. I really did.

Little did I know things would be drastically different a few hours down the line. Let’s not go on, but instead just snap off the band-aid (mostly for myself) and say it as it is – my macarons didn’t have feet. Flat, limp, lifeless masses of egg, sugar and nuts. A total waste of ingredients - my heart cried.

I'm not sure where I messed up. Did I not whip the egg whites enough? Well, of course I did - I even held the bowl over my head with the egg whites - that's how stiff they were. Did I not use eggs at room temperature? Yes, I did. They sat out overnight just so that I was certain they'd be at room temperature when I'd bake with them. How about leaving the piped macarons to sit on the counter for 30 minutes before baking? Did that too, and not just 30 minutes but a good 3 hours.

Now, I can either wonder what went wrong or strive to make these again. I'm going to chose option number two. I didn't have time to give these a second shot. But I sure as hell am, and will look to Tartelette for inspiration (who else?!).

Before I stop rambling, you have got to see this adorable artwork! These aren't macarons but they are made of clay! And the entire box is smaller than a matchstick. Don't believe me? Check this photo: I've never seen human fingers look this gigantic.

Photo courtesy:PetitPlat by SK

The 2009 October Daring Bakers’ challenge was brought to us by Ami S. She chose macarons from Claudia Fleming’s The Last Course: The Desserts of Gramercy Tavern as the challenge recipe.

Dulce de Leche cake with Vanilla Bean

2009-10-24T10:51:00.007+05:30

Flour, butter, sugar and eggs are the most important ingredients for a baker. And I’ve been having a hard time for the past few days because we have been faced with a short supply of butter in the market. Yes, butter. The butter I have been wanting to drench my toast with (topped with Nutella, even better!). The butter I wanted to use for herb butter mushrooms. The butter that makes everything better (watching Julie and Julia has its influence, alright!).

I was itching to bake and I could not for the life of me find a way around this (no butter substitutes, please). As luck would have it, my grandmom had a handful of sticks stocked up in her freezer and she sent some to me!

I had seen an eggless cake recipe on Divine Taste and couldn’t resist making something similar just for the lovely crumb. When I saw the recipe, I instantly knew I’d use Dulce de Leche instead of condensed milk. And then later it struck me that steeping the vanilla in milk would add so much more depth to the flavor instead of using extract.

One point to note here is that besides the sweetened condensed milk, there is no sugar added. I found that I needed something to increase the sweetness in the form of an icing – I drizzled some milk-sugar icing, you could use anything. Most might be stumped about a recipe that doesn’t call for eggs, but this recipe works beautifully without them and yet results in a soft, moist cake. I have finally found my go-to eggless recipe!

just look at the specs of vanilla!

Dulce de Leche Cake with Vanilla Beans Steeped Milk

Inspired from: Divine Taste

Yield: A 9 inch cake or 1 8 inch bundt cake + 4 cupcakes

7 fl oz / 200 milk

1 vanilla bean, split and scraped

8 oz. / 225g flour

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

14 oz. / 400gm dulce de Leche (oh, you must click though - just for the photos!)

110 gm/1 stick butter

4 tbsp yogurt

For the icing

125g icing sugar

2-3 tbsp milk

Scrape out the innards of the vanilla bean and stir it into the milk along with the remains of the bean. Simmer for 2-3 minutes and remove from heat. Let this continue to steep for at least another 30 minutes.
Grease tin generously with butter. Preheat the oven at 175C/350F.
In a bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder and baking soda.
In a large bowl beat the butter and the dulce de leche together until it is combined. Mix in the yogurt and beat again.
At this point, reheat the milk until it is hot and mix it with the butter and dulce de leche mixture.
Fold in the flour mixture, with a spatula.
Pour the batter into the cake tin and bake for 35-40 minutes for an 8 inch bundt cake or a little longer for a 9 inch cake at 175C/350F.
To make the icing, put the icing sugar in a small bowl and add 1 tbsp of milk at a time to moisten the sugar. Keep stirring and add the milk a little at a time until the icing is thin enough to drizzle from a spoon. Drizzle this icing over the cooled cake. Did you know the tines of a fork work beautifully for this?

Banana Bread with Chocolate Chips and Crystallised Ginger

2009-10-19T03:32:00.005+05:30

Doesn’t everyone just love a thick slice of banana bread?

And coupled with a glass of cold milk or a dollop of whipped cream, it makes for an offer that is hard to turn down.

But what if it has crystallised ginger and a good handful of chocolate chips thrown in? Yes. Just as I thought – you will sit up, take notice, and quickly bookmark this recipe.

Or you won’t. Crystallised ginger in banana bread? Uh, no way!

I would have been one of the folks in the second category if I were to try the recipe 6 months ago. Worse still, I’d skip the candied ginger all together (I didn’t know how easy it is to make!). But luckily for me, I not only made some really awesome crystallised ginger, but also had a delicious gingerale concentrate in the process. Just as soon as I began relishing candied ginger, I went back to the banana bread recipe in Molly Weizenberg’s book, A Homemade Life. Here, she extolled the goodness of banana bread with crystallised ginger and chocolate chips and said that, “the flavours of banana and chocolate get along so well, and the ginger makes it even better, cutting through its richness with its spicy heat.” I knew I had to make it.

Like most recipes that call for banana, this one too requires ripe bananas. But, I’m not a huge fan of a strong banana-ey fragrance in the bread and neither do I fancy using bananas that are dark, black, spotted and ugly. I always use bananas that are ready to be eaten. Also, once this is baked, you will be tempted to eat this straight out of the oven, but hang on, the banana bread tastes a lot better the next day. Just let the flavours play together overnight – you will taste the difference, I promise! Oh, and the best part is finding the pockets of melted chocolate as you take one bite after another.

Banana Bread with Chocolate Chips and Crystallised Ginger
Yield: 1 large loaf that serves 8
Adapted From: A Homemade Life

6 tbsp / 3 oz. / 90g. butter
2 cups all purpose flour
3/4th cup sugar
3/4th tsp baking soda
½ tsp salt (skip this if you’re using salted butter, like me)
3/4th cup semisweet chocolate chips
1/3rd – ½ cup crystallised ginger – chopped finely or into strips for a more recognisable bite.
2 large eggs
1 ½ cups mashed bananas (approx 3 large bananas)
1/4th cup yoghurt
1 tsp vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Grease a 9- by 5-inch loaf pan with butter or cooking spray, and set aside.
In a small bowl, melt the butter in the microwave or atop a double boiler. Set aside to cool.
In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking soda and salt. Add the chocolate chips and crystallised ginger. Set aside.
In a medium bowl, lightly beat the eggs with a fork and add the mashed bananas, yoghurt, melted butter, and vanilla and mix well.
Pour the banana mixture into the dry ingredients and gently fold in the batter with a silicone spatula, incorporating all the dry ingredients until it looks like it has come together. It’s okay if it looks kinda lumpy.
Pour the batter into the loaf tin and bake in the oven for 50-60 minutes, or until a skewer comes out clean.
Let the banana bread cool in the pan for 5 minutes before transferring to the cooling rack.
Cut yourself a slice, because you can hardly wait – and let the entire loaf cool completely.

Outrageous Cheesecake Swirled Brownies

2009-10-14T01:58:00.008+05:30

The Baked brownie recipe + the most delicious cheesecake recipe = outrageous cheesecake swirled brownies.

Oh yes, this is for real.

The brownie batter (the baked recipe, nothing less) is topped with a generous dose of cheesecake batter and swirled for the happy marbled effect, and then finally scattered with a good handful of semisweet chocolate chips. With a little time in the oven, this soon transforms into a dense, intensely chocolatey brownie that has subtle flavours of cheesecakiness (yes, this is a word in the Purple Foodie household) in some places, and tangy, thick layers in other places.

You know what inspired me to make these? The photos of the cheesecake brownies on Deb's blog. I kept going back to the post again, and again, and again, until I finally baked them over the weekend.

Although I was predominantly filled with a lot of excitement, there was a wee bit of trepidation; for as most Baked recipes go, the brownie recipe calls for a lot of bittersweet chocolate (12 oz. at that!). And if you’ve been reading this blog long enough, you know that real chocolate is a precious commodity here and in its absence, I’m reduced to using chocolate compound. I. Hate. Compound. So I'm going to say goodbye to chocolate rich desserts for now. But these brownies? You have got to try them. Like they say, they're the shiz!

Cheesecake Swirled Brownies

Yield: 24 bars

1 portion brownie batter (Super Rich, Fudgy, Gooey, Intensely Chocolatey Baked Brownies, no less)

1/3rd portion cheesecake batter

½ cup semisweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350°F/175°C. Butter a 9x9 light coloured baking pan or line it with baking parchment.
Pour the brownie batter into the tin.
Dollop the cheesecake batter over the brownie batter, leaving spaces for the brownie batter to be visible.
With a butter knife, swirl the cheesecake batter into the brownie batter and fold the brownie batter over the cheesecake batter for a very visible marbled effect. This works way better than using a skewer.
Scatter the chocolate chips and bake for 45-50 minutes or until a wooden skewer comes out clean. I usually switch off the oven when the wooden skewer comes out *almost* clean and let them sit in the oven because they will continue to cook.
Let the brownies cool before cutting them into squares. If you want very clean cuts, refrigerate the brownies for a few hours before slicing.
They are wonderfully gooey when warm and fudgy when cold. Have the way you prefer.

My Favourite Tomato Basil Sauce

2009-10-10T11:21:00.006+05:30

I despise eating food off the shelf – the boxed, canned, frozen, heat-and-eat kind. I always wonder what sorts of preservative must have been used in it to maintain that shelf life. I especially think that something like a tomato sauce should never be bought because it is so easy to make!

Let the onion and garlic work their magic with some extra virgin olive oil and then add to it some flavourful, ripe tomatoes and a handful of fresh basil and you have yourself some delicious tomato sauce ready in no time.

I make this tomato sauce often and use it a lot for pizzas and pastas. I especially love adding extra basil. And now that I have it growing on my window, I can go plucking as many leaves as I want. The next step of course would be using my own tomatoes (seeds have sprouted and the plant is growing beautifully, thank you for asking).

Tomato Basil Sauce

4 tbsp / 60 ml extra virgin olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
3-4 cloves garlic, minced
2 green chillies (optional – depending on how hot you like your sauce)
2 lb. / 900g tomatoes
1 oz. / 30g basil leaves

Bring a large pot of water to a boil and plonk in the tomatoes. Cut an X on the bottom of your tomatoes for easy peeling.
Place them in the boiling water for a minute and then remove with slotted spoon and place in ice bath for the skin to easily peel off.
Cut, core and seed the tomatoes.
Heat the olive oil over medium heat and add the onions. Cook until translucent. Add the minced garlic and chillies, if you are using them.
Add the tomatoes and salt and simmer for about 20 minutes. You can whizz it up with a stick blender to get the consistency you like (I like a blend of smooth and chunky).
Chop the basil leaves just before adding to the sauce so that they’re still green. Simmer for another 2 minutes.
Use as a sauce for your pasta or pizza within a week.

Pear and Ginger Cake with Walnuts

2009-10-04T14:38:00.003+05:30

A few days ago my dad brought the most juicy pears home. They were small and so full of flavour that after downing as many as I could fresh, I decided to make a pear cake I'd been meaning to try ever since I saw the recipe in a cute little Marks and Spencer baking book my cousin gifted to me.

What intrigued me was the addition of ginger to complement the pear. A simple cake batter flavoured with a hint of dried ginger (though next time I'm going to try fresh or a combination of the two) and topped with sliced pears and a generous sprinkling of walnuts. SUPER YUM!

You know what's the worst part of blogging about this cake? That I cannot eat it as I type, like all the other things I make.

Pear and Ginger Cake with Walnuts
Yield: 1 8/9inch cake that serves 8-10 people
Adapted from Easy Baking, Marks and Spencers

200g / 7 oz butter
200g / 7 oz sugar
200g / 7 oz all purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tbsp ground ginger
3 eggs
450g / 1 lb pears – peeled, cored and sliced
1 tbsp raw sugar or granulated sugar (for sprinkling)
50g / 2 oz walnuts, chopped

Preheat the oven to 180C/350F and grease a 8 (preferably) or 9 inch round tin and line it with parchment paper.
In a bowl whisk together the flour, baking powder and ground ginger.
In another bowl, beat the sugar and 175g/6oz butter together. Add the eggs, one at a time.
Reduce the mixer speed and add the flour mixture or fold it in by hand.
Spoon this mixture into a prepared tin and arrange the pear slices on top of the cake. Sprinkle with the 1 tbsp of sugar, dot with the remaining butter and scatter the walnuts on the pears.
Bake for 35-40 minutes or until a skewer comes out clean. Let it cool slightly before cutting yourself a slice.

From Parathas to Puff Pastry and Palmiers

2009-09-30T00:29:00.011+05:30

I have always wanted to try puff pastry, but never had the courage or motivation to make it. In the heart of hearts, I knew I'd only attempt it in the form of a Daring Bakers Challenge. So when the Daring Bakers Challenge for the month was announced, I was ecstatic! I made these well in advance as opposed to most of the challenges where I've procrastinated (and enjoyed every minute of it!); but this time I just didn't feel like writing up a post for it. Or rather, I didn't feel like writing at all since the 2 year anniversary post. Instead of posting this on Sunday, I spent the weekend making this cute yet comprehensive visual archive of all my posts. So back to the challenge - let me tell you about my attempts at making Puff Pastry.

First attempt: Disastrous!

What happened: Given that I made this during the day (30C+ weather here) the butter was never cold enough and the dough didn't survive a single turn without the butter oozing out. I ended up making a royal mess and was covered in flour by the time I decided to call it a day. The folding wasn't perfect either. When I knew I couldn't go on, I chilled the dough, let the butter form chunks and then fished that out of the cold dough so that I could reuse it for my second attempt. Out of the 450g of butter I salvaged a good 250g. Now what do I do with that rich, buttery dough? Well, I will just make some parathas (thick, layered bread) and buttery rotis (thin, delicate bread)

Half glass full: Super buttery, flaky parathas

How to make parathas: Photo

Second attempt: Success!

What happened: I followed the instructions to the T: I literally smashed the butter down onto the inch-thick sheet with all the might of a 5'2" girl(I didn't do the first time around). I then methodically counted the turns and chilled after every turn, keeping in mind the weather conditions. And after the 6 turns, I let the dough sit in the fridge overnight just so I was certain about the butter being absolutely firm. With a lot of anticipation and doubt, I rolled out the dough, cut out circles, placed it on the Silpat, and put it into the oven. I stood staring at the oven door without batting an eyelid for the first batch. There it was. Right in front of me, I could hear it sizzle; I could see the butter froth. It was rising! Oh yes, it was! A moment of joy, elation and relief - I finally made puff pastry! But hang on, the moment of truth lies in the tasting. I waited for it to cool (oh yes, you HAVE to - the large amount of butter will make your mouth burn if you don't!) and I took a bite of the Vols au Vent and the palmiers and instantly felt so proud of myself. I MADE SOME AWESOME PUFF PASTRY -wohooo!

I filled my Vols au Vent with Dulce de Leche and my oh my, was that the best decision I made. Butter rich puff pastry + milky caramel goodness = Love. And the cinnamon sugar mini palmiers? They were just too cute to eat. They looked as if they were made for a doll house!

Result (you already know, but just for the record): Light, buttery airy puff pastry for the Vols au Vent that rose beautifully and some palmiers just because I like how adorable they look.

How to make puff pastry: Click for printable recipe!

Blog checking info: The September 2009 Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Steph of A Whisk and a Spoon. She chose the French treat, Vols-au-Vent based on the Puff Pastry recipe by Michel Richard from the cookbook Baking With Julia by Dorie Greenspan.

2 Years, Gratitude, and Red Velvet Cupcakes

2009-09-23T01:00:00.007+05:30

It’s hard to believe that 2 years have gone by since the time I started this blog. Sometimes it feels like I’ve been blogging forever and other times I feel like a newbie. Irrespective, I’ve had an awesome time here; learning new things and meeting new people has been very enriching (at the risk of sounding overtly formal).

Just to track progress, some changes that I’ve noticed...

Starting from a blue Thisaway theme (should have captured a screenshot, for keepsake) theme to this customised blog design, I love tweaking the blog layout.
My cookbook collection that has grown from 2-3 books to 50 odd (and still counting).
I find myself moving away from cooking and falling more and more in love with baking with each passing post.
Better photographs!
And pretty much everything from my 1st blog anniversary post still stands.

Whether you’ve read the blog since the time I started, or hopped on this delicious journey a few months ago, or have just been around for the last 30 seconds – thank you! Thank you for reading. Thank you for your comments. Thank you for your e-mails. Thank you for your tweets. It really means the world to me.

The cupcakes are just wonderful - red (of course!) and soft and moist. And the cream cheese icing is to die for! I couldn't stop licking it as I waited for the cupcakes to cool. I was reminded of the first time I tried a very Ameircan red velvet cupcake at Magnolia bakery. I'm sure they originated in some fairytale. The recipe is from the Hummingbird Bakery Cookbook, so I think I can't stop extolling the recipe right about now.

Red Velvet Cupcakes

Adapted from: The Hummingbird Bakery Cookbook

Yield: 12 cupcakes. Double the recipe for 2 9 inch layer cakes.

Reference: There is a really helpful red velvet cupcake comparison on The Way The Cookie Crumbles. Also, please make sure you either use the cup measurement or the metric measurement. Don’t swing in between! Like most red velvet cucpakes, this recipe calls for vinegar, but I didn't use it. Instead, i doubled the amount of baking soda required.

4 Tablespoons / 60g. butter, at room temperature
¾ cup / 150g. sugar
1 egg
2 1/2 / 10g. Tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tbsp / 20ml. red food coloring
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup / 120ml. buttermilk or well beaten yoghurt
1 cup plus 2 Tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt (if you’re using unsalted butter)
1 tsp teaspoon baking soda

Preheat the oven to 170°C/350°F.
In a bowl, whisk together the flour and baking soda.
In another bowl, beat butter and the sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy and well mixed.
Turn the mixer up to high speed, slowly add the egg and beat until everything is well incorporated.
In a separate bowl, mix together the cocoa powder, red food colouring and vanilla extract to make a very thick, dark paste. Add to the butter mixture and mix thoroughly until evenly combined and coloured (scrape any unmixed ingredients from the side of the bowl with a rubber spatula).
Turn the mixer up to slow speed, add a third of the flour mixture, then half the buttermilk, a third of the flour, half the buttermilk, and ending with the rest of the flour. You can fold in the last third of flour by hand.
Spoon mixture into cupcake mould line with paper or into silicone moulds.
Bake for about 20-25 mins or until a toothpick inserted into the cake comes out clean.
Let cool completely before frosting the cakes.

Cream Cheese Frosting

(again, double recipe to frost a 2 layer 9-inch cake)

2 1/3 cups / 300 g. icing sugar, sifted

3 Tablespoons butter / 50g. room temperature

4 ounces / 125g. cream cheese, cold

Beat the powdered sugar and butter together in the bowl of a stand mixer fit with a paddle attachment. Mix on medium-slow speed until it comes together and is well mixed. Mine kinda looked crumbly.
Add the cream cheese all at once and beat on medium to medium-high until incorporated.
Turn the mixer to medium-high and beat for 5 minutes, or until the frosting becomes light and fluffy. Be careful not to over beat or the icing might get runny.

Apple Chips

2009-09-20T23:54:00.001+05:30

I love apples. As a kid, apples were my favourite fruit.

But, then when I grew up, apples stopped being seasonal. With their all year round availability (and multiple varieties at that), they suddenly weren’t something I pined for. Now with the apple season in full swing, I’m reminded of the local, seasonal apples I grew up eating – not the shiny, waxed, supermarket ones. I’m thinking of making a whole bunch of things to cherish their versatility; starting with apple chips.

Apple chips make a very fun, light snack. The first time I made these I had such a great time asking everyone to guess what it was (made sure they didn’t resemble apples). Nobody could guess! Besides being a light snack, they are awesome added to a granola mix and make stunning garnishes for desserts as well.

Apple Chips

2 gala or granny smith apples

2 tbsp sugar

½ tsp cinnamon

1 tbsp lemon juice

Water

Turn the oven on its lowest setting.
Fill a bowl with 1 cup cold water and the lemon.
Holding a mandoline over the bowl, slice the apples, letting them fall in the water immediately. This prevents premature browning of the apples.
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or Silpat and place the apple slices on the sheet after shaking off the excess liquid off it.
Sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar (this will make the apple slices brown though, so skip the cinnamon if you want them white).
Push it into the oven for 1.5-2 hours, until the apple slices are crisp. Try not to finish these in one go!

Brownies from Baked NYC

2009-09-18T01:16:00.003+05:30

Okay, so these really aren’t from Baked, NYC, but from their book, Baked: New Frontiers in Baking. And truth be told – these are the best brownies I've come by in a long, long time; I have fallen in love with brownies all over again! (If you think I'm exaggerating, go check with Oprah). As if the brownies weren’t delicious on their own, I gilded the lily by making three variations of them – walnut, chocolate chip, and hold your breath – Dulce de Leche! I’ve gobbled down too many brownies to publicly admit and I only wish I had the foresight to save a piece just so I don’t miss them terribly while writing this post.

just look at the pockets of Dulce de Leche!

I absolutely loved how the Black Forest Cookies turned out the last time I tried a recipe from the Baked book so I blindly followed the recipe without making any major changes ( I granulated sugar instead of ½ a cup of light brown sugar because of lack of availability). Love this book – strongly recommend it!

I began by putting things for the recipe and squealed as I weighed out the ingredients – 11 heavenly ounces of 60% cacao chocolate. Oh the joy, the joy! And 5 eggs? This has got to be R.I.C.H.! And don’t forget, we’re making three types to make it all the more fun!

three type - walnut, chocolate chip and Dulce de Leche!

Just look at the ooey-gooey brownie – I mean, really, how can you not feel like running to the pantry to check if you’ve got enough chocolate or flour to make this? Go ahead, you know everyone wants you to. And then thank me, the baked boys and everyone in between.

Here you go...!

Super Rich, Fudgy, Gooey, Intensely Chocolatey Baked Brownies
Adapted from: Baked
Yield: 24 bars

1 1/4th cup all-purpose flour
1 tsp salt
2 tbsp dark unsweetened cocoa powder
11 oz. dark chocolate (60-72% cacao)
1 cup / 2 sticks / 225 g butter
2 cups granulated sugar
5 large eggs
2 tsp vanilla extract

Additional toppings:
Walnuts
Chocolate chips
Dulce de Leche

Preheat oven to 350°F/175°C. Butter a 9x13 baking pan or line it with baking parchment (I used a 9x9 square, light coloured tin).
Whisk the flour, salt and cocoa together. If you’re going to be using salted butter, you should skip the salt here.
In a large bowl put together the butter and chocolate and set it over a pan of simmering water until the chocolate and butter are completely melted and smooth. Add the sugar and stir so that it dissolves faster and is well combined.
Once the mixture is at room temperature, add in 3 eggs and whisk until combined. Add the remaining two eggs and vanilla.. Do not overbeat!
Fold in the flour mixture into the bowl ful of chocolate goodness until just combined. Again, don’t overdo – better to have a few streaks of flour than an overmixed batter.
Pour the batter into the tin and top a third with chopped walnuts, another third with the chocolate chips and the final third with dulce de leche spooned over (this being dense will sink into the brownie batter giving you gorgeous pockets of South American goodness in every bite).
Bake for 30 minutes until a wooden skewer comes out without being drippy (it won’t be all that clean in the dulce de leche section – this will always be gooey!)
Remove from the oven and let it cool completely before cutting into pieces.

Tip: A brownie will continue to cook even after you’ve removed it from the oven. So it’s okay to remove it when it’s just slightly underdone. Wait until it’s completely cooled to cut.

Storage: Tightly covered, these will keep for 3 days. Sometimes these even get better after 24 hours. But don’t really bother because they’ll be gone in a flash.

Candied Ginger + Ginger Ale

2009-09-15T00:28:00.010+05:30

Have you ever candied something? Maybe some orange or lime zests? If you haven’t, I urge you to give it a go. I only realise now what I had been missing out on all this while once I candied some ginger this morning. What’s more, it put my skepticism about candying at rest - waaay easier than I ever thought. Also, something I didn’t expect – these babies are addictive!

Given I have zero experience with candying this seemed like a good challenge (note to self: macarons will be the next challenge). I also needed an excuse to use the candy thermometer I’d bought ~~but never used~~, in addition to proving to my mom that I do use the gazillion kitchen tools I keep buying. But more importantly, I wanted to make it because I have been itching to try Molly’s Banana Bread recipe (stay tuned!) in which candied ginger plays a very important part.

Candying ginger is quite straightforward, actually - You have to slice the ginger thinly with a sharp knife or a mandoline, then boil it twice in water, simmering for 10 minutes each time (make sure to reserve the water for an awesome ginger ale concentrate which I will tell you about in just a bit). Next, put the boiled ginger pieces with the sugar, water and a pinch of salt. Let it come to a boil and then let it simmer until it has reached a consistency of thin honey or 225F/106C on a candy thermometer (making sure people who complain about your precious kitchen gadgets are watching). Drain, toss in sugar, and set it on a cooling rack to dry up!

I’m munching on these just as I type – addictive, I tell you. And just as a final stamp of approval, grandma gives these a two thumbs up because this is excellent after meals as a digestive.

Candied Ginger
Recipe source: David Lebovitz

1/2 pound / 225g fresh ginger, peeled, sliced thinly
2 cups / 400g sugar, plus additional sugar for coating the ginger slices, if desired
2 cups / 1/2l water
pinch of salt

Put the ginger slices in a non-reactive pot, cover with water, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and let ginger simmer for ten minutes. Drain, and repeat one more time.
Mix the sugar and water in the pot, along with a pinch of salt and the ginger slices, and cook until the temperature reaches 225F/106C.
Drain very well while the ginger is hot, so the syrup will drain away better and sprinkle the drained slices with caster sugar as you toss the ginger in a bowl. Spread the ginger slices on a cooling rack for a few hours or overnight, until they're somewhat dry.
Alternatively, you could let the ginger sit in the syrup for an hour or overnight and even store the ginger slices in its syrup.

Storage: The ginger, packed in its syrup, can be stored in the refrigerator for up to one year. Tossed in sugar, the pieces can be stored at room temperature for a few months.

Ginger Ale
Yield: 6 servings

Leftover ginger water from boiling
Leftover sugar syrup from candying
½ cup water
½ cup sugar
Juice of 3 limes (or half per serving)

Simmer all of the above except the lime for 5-7 minutes until the sugar has dissolved and the syrup is beginning to thicken. Turn off the heat. The syrup will continue to thicken. Once cool, transfer to a jar if you're not going to be using it all up.
In a glass, add 4-5 tbsp of the concentrate, juice of half a lime and club soda and stir. Drink up!

Crispy Apple Crumble Anyone?

2009-09-05T22:57:00.008+05:30

You: So what is this apple thing that you’ve made today?

Me: Umm, apple crumble (or is it crisp?). I think they’re kinda the same thing.

You see, the thing is, I’m not sure what the difference between a Crisp and a Crumble is. With a little help from Google, I’ve come across various explanations - each one having a tone of being the ultimate authority on the subject. And in spite of reading so much, I was left more confused than educated about the difference between the two. So I tweeted (Oh thank goodness for Twitter!). It’s way better than a search engine.

The result: There was a consensus about the ingredients involved – that is, a Crumble topping is more buttery and a Crisp has oats and even nuts in it.[The Kitchn has the exact opposite stand though]. But the most straightforward point was that you need to take the names quite literally - a crisp is, well crispy (oats+ nuts) while a crumble is softer, more with the texture of shortbread. Why didn’t I think of that! *smacking my head* On the other hand, Helen highlighted what was playing on my mind: Crisps are American and Crumbles are English. And this to me seems like the safest bet, given that the ingredients used differ from person to person.

People involved in the discussion: Alice, Ashley, Helen, Kamran, Tom, Fnord, Kristin, Harvester Crew - Thank you, guys! And for those of you who are not on twitter, do you need another reason to hop on?

So how will I conclude this Crisp vs. Crumble debate? Well, let’s just call this a Crispy Apple Crumble, shall we?

Crispy Apple Crumble
Recipe source: The recipe is loosely based on recipes I’ve seen in Crumbles and Cobblers by Maxine Clark (I bought the book simply because the photographs of the juicy, rich desserts were so alluring). I’ve used them as a base for the recipe with addition of ingredients on a whim and using up my last two apples.
Yield: 2 servings

2 Granny Smith apples, cored and diced
2 tbsp Brown sugar
½ tsp ground cinnamon (I much prefer grating a cinnamon stick with a microplane to get the most potent fragrance)
2 tbsp / 30g / 1oz. cold butter, cut into cubes

Topping:
½ cup oats
½ cup flour
1/4th cup granulated sugar
1/4th cup brown sugar
1/4th cup walnuts, chopped
5 tbsp / 75g / 2.65 oz. cold butter, cut into cubes

Preheat the oven to 350°F/175°C.
In a bowl, toss together apple, brown sugar and cinnamon, until well coated.
Grease an ovenproof dish with butter and transfer the apples to it. Dot with cold butter. Set aside.
In another bowl mix together the ingredients for the topping. Cut the butter into the mixture with a pastry cutter. Refrigerate this for about 10 minutes if you’ve got the time.
Spread chunks of the topping mixture over the apples and bake for 35-40 minutes until the apples are done.
If the apples are rather juicy, you might have to drain off the excess juices halfway through baking.
Sneak in a few bites while still in the oven, under the pretext of making sure there isn't too much liquid in there.
Serve with vanilla icecream with caramel sauce or even better, Dulce de Leche.

Chocolate Chip Pound Cake

2009-09-02T10:20:00.005+05:30

It’s established. This chocolate chip pound cake is comfort food. You know why? Because I ate this cake for three meals straight. Only this. Just so you know I’m not exaggerating, I will tell you the sequence of events. I ate this for dinner the evening I made it. Then, for breakfast the next morning, slathered with Nutella and sliced bananas in a sandwich (a fulfilling breakfast, to say the least). And then more slices of the chocolate chip pound cake later for lunch.

Most people have their favourite recipe for pound cake. And how drastically different can it get, anyway? It’s POUND cake. So this cake is clearly not something people would gush about and say "OMG I have got to add this to my list!" But what makes this humble cake something quite wicked is how its limits are stretched to make a delicious sandwich. You could even toast the slices slightly before spreading the Nutella. Here is how:

Chocolate Chip Pound Cake
Yield: 1 large loaf
Adapted From: Baking From My Home To Yours

2 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt (omit if you're using salted butter)
2 sticks / 225g butter
1 cup granulated sugar
4 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
½ - 2/3 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350°F/175°C. Butter a 9x5 inch loaf pan.
Sift the flour, baking powder and salt together.
In a stand mixer or with a hand held mixer, beat together the sugar and butter until light and fluffy.
Add the eggs 1 at a time, beating for a couple of minutes in between additions.
Add the vanilla extract.
Either fold in the dry ingredients by hand with a spatula (always better, so you don’t end up over mixing) or reduce the speed and mix in the flour.
Finally, stir in the chocolate chips.
Bake the cake for 40-60 minutes or until a skewer comes out clean.
Once baked, let the cake rest for about 15 minutes before you remove it from the pan to transfer to a cooling rack.
Slice it. Eat it.

Stuffed Eggplant Goodness

2009-08-26T01:05:00.006+05:30

Over the past weekend, while I was catching up on my feeds, my heart skipped a beat when I saw a beautiful photo of stuffed eggplants on La Tartine Gourmande. The stunning visual was enough to convince me to make them (heck, isn't that always the case?)

On my weekend grocery trip, I made sure to buy a firm and plump eggplant to make these stuffed shells of goodness. Grandma's tip: run your finger over the eggplant and look closely - there shouldn't be any tiny holes on it or you'll have company when you cut it open.

I’m telling you, this is one heck of a recipe that’s awfully flavourful and indescribably comforting. You will find yourself take one quick bite after another and will find it hard to share. I promise. What I also like about the recipe is that is excellent to make ahead of time and then reheat just before you want to eat it. This is one comfort food you should not deprive yourself of.

Stuffed Eggplants
Adapted from: Beatrice Peltre
Yield: 2 servings

2 medium or 1 large eggplant
Olive oil (for sprinkling)
Salt and pepper, to taste
2 tbsp olive oil
½ tsp ground coriander
½ tsp ground cumin
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
2 medium ripe tomatoes, coarsely chopped
1 bay leaf
1 cup paneer or whole milk ricotta (I used crumbled paneer)
1/3 cup finely grated parmesan
1 tbsp chopped fresh cilantro
2 sausages or 2 slices ham, finely diced, or omit this if you're vegetarian (I used chicken sausages)
1 egg, beaten
Extra fresh cilantro, chopped (for sprinkling)

Set the oven at 400°F/200°C.
Halve the eggplant lengthwise. Place them in the baking dish, cut sides up. Drizzle generously with olive oil and season to taste. Bake for 20 minutes or until tender.
Scoop out the eggplant flesh with a spoon and mash it gently with a fork.
In a skillet, heat the 2 tablespoons olive oil over medium heat. When it is hot, add the coriander, cumin and chopped garlic to it. Cook over medium heat, stirring often, for 2 minutes, or until the garlic is fragrant.
Add the tomatoes, bay leaf, salt, and pepper. Cook, stirring often, for 3-4 minutes.
Stir in the eggplant flesh. Continue cooking, stirring occasionally, for 7 minutes or until the mixture is pulpy and well flavored. Discard the bay leaf.
Lower the oven temperature to 375°F/190C.
Stir the paneer/ricotta, parmesan, cilantro, sausages/ham, salt, and pepper into the eggplant mixture. Once the mixture is little cool, stir in the beaten egg. Fill the eggplant shells back with the stuffing. Reserve some of the parmesan for later.
Return the shells to the baking dish. Sprinkle with olive oil. Bake the eggplant for 30-40 minutes or until the shells are tender when pierced with a skewer. During the last 10 minutes of baking, sprinkle the reserved parmesan on top of the eggplant for a golden, cheesy finish!
Plate it. Eat it.

Again, go make this – your family will love you more. I’m talking from experience.

Za'atar and Feta Pizza

2009-08-23T13:04:00.003+05:30

A few weeks ago I discovered a new local restaurant with a wood fired oven. With the quality of ingredients on the pizza and the smoky flavour from the oven, I was sold. Since then, I’ve been having sporadic bouts of pizza craving.

When I’m low on supplies, I just stand in front of my refrigerator and stare at it, hoping something materialises. This time around I gaped until my mind paired the tub of feta with the za’atar. Perfect! I’d mix the za’atar with some extra virgin olive oil until it is spreadable then brush it on some pizza dough (oh, the craving!) top it off with some crumbled feta. Why didn’t I so this sooner?! I used the whole wheat pizza dough recipe I got off Oprah’s website and made two thin crust pizzas. After taking a bite from the first one, I realised it needed a kick, so I added some chopped jalapenos to the next one I made and finally achieved the flavour I was looking for.

Za’atar and Feta Pizza
Yield: 2 thin crust pizzas

Pizza dough (1/2 of the recipe on Oprah or enough for 2 thin crust pizzas)
Cornmeal for sprinkling
4 tbsp za’atar
4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
8-10 pickled jalapenos (depending on how spicy you like your pizza)
200g/ about 8 oz. feta cheese, crumbled

Roll out the pizza dough thinner than you’d like your pizza crust, because the bread’s going to rise.
Transfer the dough to the baking stone or a thick baking sheet sprinkled with cornmeal.
In a small bowl, mix together the olive oil and za’atar. Add enough olive oil until you get a spreadable mixture (since sometimes the za’atar contain roasted wheat which tends to absorb the oil).
Generously brush the rolled out pizza dough with the za’atar mixture.
Dot the pizza with crumbled feta.
Bake for 8-10 minutes in a preheated oven set at 250°C/500°F or as high as your oven can go (if it’s higher make sure to watch the pizza closely because it’ll be done in no time!)
Slice it and serve.

Buckwheat Pancakes (Blinis)

2009-08-20T23:57:00.005+05:30

You know what’s the best part of being a food blogger? You meet so many like-minded people. It’s only with them that you can whine about not finding cacao nibs where you live, or figure out why you’re having a bad photo day, or wonder why your yeast isn’t bubbling up already. A place that is especially good for such rants is Twitter.

One such day I tweeted about my curiosity about buckwheat because it's really hard for me to find it here. In response to that, I had a package waiting for me at home with the aforementioned buckwheat and basil seeds and saplings (again, she heard me cry about how my plant almost died when I went to Goa). Who is this kind person, you’re thinking? It’s vindee from Passionate about Baking!

As soon as I got my hands on the package I made sure I put the precious little saplings in the soil and scattered some seeds in another pot as I thought about what I’d make with some “exotic” buckwheat. Just as I was looking through The Art of Simple Food by Alice Waters a recipe for buckwheat pancakes stared at me in my face. I’ve never made yeast pancakes before so this would be fun, I thought. But what I was more excited about was that this needs to be made with egg whites folded in; and this is a pancake making method I’ve been meaning to try for a while.

I absolutely loved how fluffy the pancakes turned out to be with the folded egg whites. I'm going to do this for my pancakes henceforth. Also, it’s best to keep the batter ready a day before so that these can be made without any fuss the next morning doused in butter and your favourite jam.

Buckwheat Pancakes (Blinis)
Yield: 4 servings
Adapted from: The Art of Simple Food by Alice Waters

12 tbsp milk
¾ tsp dry yeast
50g buckwheat flour
50g all purpose flour
4 tbsp sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract

Peach and Cherry Jam + Butter to serve

In a small bowl mix together the yeast and milk. If you are confident of your yeast, you don’t need to wait. But if you’re like me, and are only satisfied when you see the yeast bubble up with your own eyes, then wait and watch. Next, mix this up with the two egg yolks.
In a large bowl stir together 25g buckwheat flour, 25g all purpose flour and sugar. Stir in the wet ingredients until well mixed. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled in volume. (This is called a sponge).
Now add the remaining buckwheat and all purpose flour along with the 6 tablespoons of milk to the sponge. Mix well. Let this rise for another hour.(You can let it rise for 4-5 hours at a cool room temperature). Stir in the vanilla extract.
When you want to fry the blinis, whisk the egg white until soft peaks are formed. Fold this into the batter until well incorporated.
Drop the batter by the spoonful on a lightly buttered griddle and let it cook until the corners start drying up. Flip over and cook for another minute or two.
Serve warm with a good knob of butter and your favourite jam.

Vanilla Bean 101

2009-08-17T01:40:00.009+05:30

When I was in college, I remember an economics class where one of the basic financial instruments was called a vanilla bond. Having never seen a vanilla bean before, the only thing associated it to the basic ice cream flavour and didn’t pay much heed. Years later when I had my brush with the real stuff, I took offense to the term. How can anyone use vanilla in the context of being something so commonplace? It is anything but plain and boring! I’m convinced that there has been a mistake somewhere along the line and the misrepresentation stuck. Vanilla adds flavour. Vanilla enhances flavour. There is nothing apart from good vanilla that can make a baker happy. And it's no surprise that vanilla takes the number one spot on my list.

Vanilla is expensive and that’s why you should careful about what you buy. Good vanilla bean is moist, bendy and typically over 6 inches in length. A colleague of mine at work, Dhruv, shared these tips on how to buy vanilla:

The bean should be aromatic and feel dense when held.
Wrap the bean tightly around your forefinger. If the bean remains intact, you’re good. If the bean crumbles, you know that the bean is a little old and not at the peak of its flavour.
After you’ve unwrapped the vanilla bean from your finger, and you see an oily residue, it goes to show that the beans are concentrated with oils and are full of flavour; a good sign.
When you cut the bean at either of the ends, you should see oil bubbles oozing and not just the vanilla caviar.

As for storage, vanilla beans are best stored in wax paper or plastic wrap and then placed in an airtight container in a cool, dark place. Just make sure not to refrigerate it because it tends to get mouldy.

I’d heard of double strength and triple strength vanilla, and it sounded like a tempting purchase, but I soon learned that it isn’t really a matter of concern for most of us home bakers. It is just something used by professionals when they’d rather use more concentrated extract in lesser quantity so as to maintain the colour of a pristine white icing that requires vanilla flavourings sans the brownish tinge.

I’m sure you’d be interested in making your own vanilla extract. I made it a while ago, and am going to make a few more bottles of it thanks to Rajika who sent me a bagful of vanilla beans. The extract is especially good with ice creams because it has a vodka base and results in a much softer, delicate texture (since vodka freezing point is way lower at 27°C/16°F).

I have only recently discovered the goodness of steeping vanilla bean with peaches and cherries in hot water to infuse the flavour and letting it stand overnight for a super delicious jam. For this, simply cut the bean on either ends, make an incision through the length tough skin and scrape down to get your dose of pure vanilla goodness.

Once you’ve scraped off the vanilla, you can either stick the remaining bean into a jar of sugar for your very own vanilla sugar or dry it in the oven on a low temperature setting (115°F/45°C), grind it to a powder and use it in sprinkled over French toast or in cakes, ice creams or any place you’d like pronounced vanilla visibility. It would especially be great swapped with cinnamon in this cake , both in the batter as well as the sugar crust.

I came upon something quite unique – vanilla infused olive oil on Vanilla Garlic. Garrett suggests quite a few ways as to how this can be used, but the one I like the most is to use it over grilled fruit. I’m thinking it’d be great to brush peaches with this oil just before placing it on the grill. Unfortunately, I’ve got to wait another year before I get my hands on some peaches. Until then I’m going to occupy myself with other vanilla projects.

Have tips on using vanilla bean? Let's discuss in the comments section.

Triple Chocolate Devil's Food Cupcakes with Toasted Hazelnuts

2009-08-12T23:32:00.003+05:30

Whenever I need to bake something that is a little decadent, I better have a good enough reason for making it because sugar, butter and refined flour aren’t the three best words to use in this household. My mom’s been impressing upon me to cook something healthy instead of feeding my love handles with all the baked goodies. But I just can’t get myself to cook the way I bake; baking is way more fun and they photograph better as well. So what’s today’s baking excuse? My cousin is coming over!

I wanted to make a dense chocolate cake with chocolate chips and toasted hazelnuts and started looking through my books to find the right recipe for a good chocolate cake to which I could make the chocolate chip and hazelnut additions. My search came to an end when I found a recipe for Devil’s Food Cake in Jill O’Connor’s Sticky, Chewy, Messy, Gooey. However, I made drastic improvisations, like use yoghurt instead of buttermilk, granulated sugar instead of brown sugar and milk instead of water. So at the end of it, there wasn’t much left in common between the recipe I ended up with and the one in the book. But the cake, oh my, the cake turned out beautifully! So, so moist with the hot milk and yoghurt and wonderfully chocolatey with not one, but three types of chocolate – semi-sweet chocolate chips, cocoa powder and the best of all, 60% cacao dark chocolate.

This is going to be my to-go recipe for my chocolate cake. If you’re a fan of hazelnuts, then go crazy and add more of it in the batter and sprinkle some on top of the batter just before you push it into the oven. And I think this would be great with walnuts as well.

Triple Chocolate Devil Food Cake with Toasted Hazelnuts
Yield: 8-10 servings
(This recipe is perfect for a huge double layer cake. I made a few cupcakes and baked the rest of it in a 9 inch square pan.)

1/3rd cup cocoa powder
4 oz / 100g bittersweet chocolate (I used 60% cacao)
1 cup hot milk
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup / 200g yoghurt
½ cup / 1 stick butter
½ cup vegetable oil (flavourless, odourless)
2 cups / 400g granulated sugar (can reduce this by 50g if you don’t like it too sweet)
3 large eggs
2 cups /250g all purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
½ tsp salt
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
½ cup hazelnuts, chopped and toasted

Grease the cupcake moulds or the cake pans with non-stick cooking spray or butter. When using the pan, line it with parchment and spray another layer of cooking oil. Preheat the oven to 350F or 175C.
In a large bowl combine the cocoa powder and chocolate and pour in the hot milk. Stir till the chocolate has melted and the mixture is consistent. Stir in the vanilla and yoghurt.
In another large bowl or a bowl of a stand mixer, beat the oil and butter together until light on medium speed. Add the sugar a little at a time and beat until creamy. Beat in the eggs, one at a time; beating for about 1-2 minutes after each addition.
Sift the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt together. Reduce the speed of the mixer and add the ingredients in the following order – 1/3 flour, ½ liquid, 1/3rd flour, 1/2 liquid. Fold in the final third of the flour by hand using a large spatula until the flour is just combined.
Fold in the chocolate chips and hazelnuts. Reserve some to sprinkle on the top.
For a 9 inch cake bake for 25-30 minutes or 15-20 minutes for cupcakes, or until a skewer comes out clean. Let cool completely before unmoulding.

Cinnamon Cake with Caramel Apples

2009-08-05T23:33:00.007+05:30

There is something about cooked apples that instantly spells comfort food for me. I especially like how tart apples like granny smith hold their own in whatever recipe they’re used. Earlier, when they were unheard of here, my grand mum would lug them for me from London along with Kiwis (I remember hiding them at the back of the fridge, just in case she wanted to give a guest a taste of exotica). Back then I didn’t bake or cook, and cooking apples was an alien thought. But if I knew how beautifully the apples transformed with a little sugar, butter and heat into luscious caramel apples, I’d make them everyday.

Today, just I was going through my books, I chanced upon this recipe for the caramel apples. The photo was so enticing that I was instantly drawn to making them. And the timing couldn’t be more perfect because I had a few granny smiths in my refrigerator waiting to be used up. Along with apples go cinnamon, so I made a cinnamon cake with a cinnamon sugar crust; a trick I learned when making bread from the Bread Baker’s Apprentice. It’s such a simple idea, but once you do it, you’ll wonder why you never thought of it. Just as soon as the cake is out of the oven, brush it with butter, lots and lots of butter. Then roll it in cinnamon sugar and you will have the most amazing crust to the cake. Slice up the cake and top with the caramel apples and serve. Or after slicing the cake into wedges, slice them into halves horizontally and place the apples slices in between, much like a sandwich.

You can use the caramel apples with anything you fancy. My two favourites being vanilla ice cream, and of course, this cinnamon cake.

Caramel Apples
Yield: 8 servings
Adapted from: Jill O'Connor's Sticky, Chewy, Messy, Gooey

4 granny smith apples
1/3rd cup granulated sugar
1/3rd cup brown sugar
A pinch of salt
3 tbsp butter, plus a tiny knob to finish.
½ tsp vanilla extract

Peel and core the apples. Then quarter them and cut them into slices (not too thick). Set aside.
Melt the butter in a 12 inch sauté pan over a medium heat.
Add the sugars and stir until it is dissolved and the mixture is golden brown and bubbling.
Stir in the vanilla and the salt.
Add the apples and simmer uncovered, stirring frequently until the apples have cooked through; about 15 – 20 minutes.
After you’ve turned off the heat, thrown in the remaining knob of butter to coat the apples evenly. Serve warm with the cake that follows.

Cinnamon Cake
Yield: 8 servings

2 cups flour
2 tsp baking powder
½ tsp baking soda
½ tsp cinnamon
1 cup sugar
1 stick / 112g butter
2 eggs
½ cup yoghurt

Preheat the oven to 350°F/175°C. Butter an 8 inch square or circular pan.
Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon.
In a large bowl, beat the sugar and the butter with a hand mixer until light and airy, about 3 minutes.
Add the eggs one at a time, beating for a minute after each addition.
Reduce the speed now and add the flour in 3 parts and yoghurt in 2 parts alternately; starting and ending with flour.
You will have a very thick batter.
Transfer the batter in the buttered pan and even out the top with a spatula.
Bake for 50-60 minutes or until the crumbs are golden and a skewer comes out clean.
When the cake is just out of the oven, brush it with butter and roll it in cinnamon sugar. Or if you’d like, sprinkle it on top of the cake.

Please note: Serving caramel apples with this cake is mandatory.

We have a winner!

2009-08-03T01:09:00.002+05:30

I finally collated the data spanning comments, twitter, stumbleupon, facebook and email subscribers to pick a winner for The Sharper Your Knife, The Less You Cry. I listed all these on excel (too much work!) and then used random.org to help me select the winner.

And the winner of the book is Rajika! (No. 53 on the excel sheet).

Rajika, please mail me your address so that I can have this book sent over to you! :D

PS: in case you're wondering, "t" stands for twitter shout outs for the giveaway...

Milan Cookies

2009-07-28T08:05:00.008+05:30

I do not like marshmallow. There, I finally said it out aloud!

But what about s’mores, and rocky road ice cream shakes, and hot chocolate topped with cute little marshmallows? Nope.

To most this might sound strange; especially for those who’ve got fond memories of having it sandwiched between graham crackers or toasted over a campfire. Earlier, as a kid, when I was curious about marshmallows and finally had them on a trip to the States, I didn’t get what all the fuss was all about. Every now and then I pop one in my mouth just to see if my opinion is unchanged or not.

So for this time’s Daring Bakers’ challenge I was really happy that we could pick between Chocolate covered Marshmallow Cookies and the Milan Cookies; no prizes for guessing which one I chose to make.

It took me three attempts to get them just the way I like them. Sometimes I wish food network recipes were a little more elaborate (or I had a steady hand at piping!)

First I piped the cookie batter on the Silpat as soon as it was ready. This gave me an uneven shape.
To prevent that for the next batch, I refrigerated the batter so it’s firm up and be easier to pipe out and then I baked it immediately in the preheated oven. The shape turned out okay butUnfortunately, because the batter was still cold, I ended up with charred corners and slightly under baked centres.
In my final try, I piped the cold cookie batter on the Silpat and then let it stand for 30-40 minutes to come to room temperature and then baked it. Perfect results!

So although the recipe was small and got done in no time, I did learn a few important things about piped cookies!

Milan Cookies
Yield: About 36 cookies
Adapted from: Food Network

12 tablespoons (170grams/ 6 oz) unsalted butter, softened
2 1/2 cups (312.5 grams/ 11.02 oz) powdered sugar
7/8 cup egg whites (from about 6 eggs)
2 tablespoons vanilla extract
2 tablespoons lemon extract
1 1/2 cups (187.5grams/ 6.61 oz) all purpose flour
Nutella for the cookie filling

In a mixer with paddle attachment cream the butter and the sugar.
Add the egg whites gradually and then mix in the vanilla and lemon extracts.
Add the flour and mix until just well mixed.
With a small (1/4-inch) plain tip, pipe 1-inch sections of batter onto a parchment-lined sheet pan, spacing them 2 inches apart as they spread.
Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for 10 minutes or until light golden brown around the edges. Let cool on the pan.
Spread a thin amount of the Nutella onto the flat side of a cookie and press the flat side of a second cookie on top. (Do this only just before you want to serve the cookies or they ted to get soft).
Repeat with the remainder of the cookies.

The July Daring Bakers' challenge was hosted by Nicole at Sweet Tooth. She chose Chocolate Covered Marshmallow Cookies and Milan Cookies from pastry chef Gale Gand of the Food Network.

Zucchini and Goats Cheese Pizza

2009-07-24T01:51:00.006+05:30

Just when I was making the garlicky twists, I realised that I didn’t really want to make those twists that end up being just plain dough at the edges. You know how the bread near the corner always turns out to have much lesser seasoning, herbs and cheese? You feel like you have to eat it with a straight face and pretend to enjoy it as much as the flavourful herb one? I’m sure you’re nodding along right now. Instead, I thought I’d just cut off the dough at the ends and use it up where it shines through instead of being a ho-hum twisty.

What I did was put together the dough that was leftover from the sides while I was making those incredible garlicky twist to make a zucchini and goat’s cheese pizza! I had seen this pizza on Smitten Kitchen when it was posted and when I was left with the scraps of dough, it so happened that I had some zucchini and goat’s cheese waiting for me in the fridge. And to top that I had some fresh basil that I’d grown a few months ago, now in full bloom (much thanks to Deeba, who sent me the seeds all the way from Gurgaon! =))

Fresh basil

The pizza was so delicious. The herb filled dough and the fresh slivered basil made the cut for me. I can’t tell you how packed with flavour fresh herbs right from the pot can be. Had it not been for such happy coincidences I wouldn’t have made this pizza. But you shouldn’t wait for coincidences to get you to make this. Go on, make it and thank me later.

Zucchini and Goat’s Cheese Pizza
Adapted from: Smitten Kitchen
Yield: 1 10 inch pizza

10oz / 300g pizza dough (add in your favourite herbs for a flavourful pizza crust)
4 oz / 113g goat cheese, at room temperature
Few leaves of fresh basil, cut into thin slivers
1/2 medium yellow zucchini, sliced thinly
1/2 medium green zucchini, sliced thinly as well
Drizzle of olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste

Preheat the oven to 450F/230C degrees. Roll your pizza dough into a thin 10 inch circle and lay it on a tray or stone that has been dusted lightly with cornmeal.
With an offset spatula (more use than just icing cakes!) spread the cheese on the pizza dough. Sprinkle over salt and freshly ground pepper and scatter the fresh basil slivers over the cheese.
Arrange the zucchini coins in concentric circles over the goat cheese spread, overlapping them (alternate their colors to make it look pretty!) Drizzle with olive oil and finish with more salt and freshly ground black pepper.
Bake in preheated oven for 10 to 15 minutes, or until the edges of your pizza are golden brown and the zucchini looks roasted and a little curled up at the edges.
Transfer to plate, slice it up and share if you can. ;)

Garlicky Herb Twists

2009-07-21T23:21:00.009+05:30

I love using stumble upon to discover new food blogs and recipes, and a few days ago when I was getting my regular dose of stumbling, I came upon a recipe for herb and garlic twisty bread that instantly made me sit up, take notice and mark it as a high priority baking item. With a name that has herb and garlic in it, who wouldn't? I have got to admit, I have a thing for a recipe with garlic. Sometimes all I need to get convinced to try a recipe is to know that it had a good amount of garlic or maybe an interesting way to use garlic (remember the garlic infused oil in the baked fries? *swoon*). Don’t even get me started on roasted garlic; I could eat that for dessert.

This is one recipe that is so easy to put together. You can either use store bought pizza dough or make your own. The recipe calls for rosemary and thyme, but you can just as well use your favourite herbs. I usually don’t make the same thing twice (ah, the perils of food blogging), but I just had to make these a second time for two reasons: 1. the taste of the herby filling with garlic and parmesan was distinctively etched in my memory and 2.( ahem) the photos I took the first time weren’t quite up to the mark. I couldn’t not have these on my blog so I made these again!

Some things I learnt while making this the second time:

A moist dough is always better – it resulted in such soft and pillowy bread as opposed to a very chewy one with a stiffer dough.
More parmesan is always a good thing.
You can sub your favourite seasoning mixture for the salt and pepper which makes it more likable.
Don’t be shy to use more than the prescribed amount of herbs.

I urge you to go ahead and make these. Don't be surprised if you make a meal out it. Better still, serve it with your favourite garlicky dip and you'll be in garlic heaven.

Garlic Herb Bread Twists
Adapted from: Gourmet July 2009

1 tablespoon finely chopped rosemary
1 tablespoon finely chopped thyme
1 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano (2 ounces), divided
Salt and pepper or your favourite seasoning blend
1/4 cup olive oil
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 lb / 900g pizza dough, (or use store-bought)
1/4 cup finely chopped flat-leaf parsley

Preheat oven to 400°F with racks in upper and lower thirds. Lightly oil 2 large (17- by 13-inch) baking sheets.
Stir together rosemary, thyme, 1/4 cup cheese, 1/2 tsp salt, and 1/4 tsp pepper in a small bowl.
In a pan gently heat the olive oil and stir in the garlic until it just begins to sizzles. Turn off the heat immediately. Add 1/4 tsp each of salt and pepper to it.
Divide dough in half. Keeping half of dough covered with a kitchen towel, gently roll out other half into a 15- by 10-inch rectangle on a floured surface with a lightly floured rolling pin.
Sprinkle one half of dough with half of herb mixture, then fold dough in half crosswise from top to centre and then again from bottom to centre. Roll lightly to form a rectangle. Cut lengthwise into 9 strips (less than 1 inch wide) with a pizza wheel or a pastry scraper. Twist each strip from both ends and place on baking sheet, arranging twists 1 inch apart. Don’t worry too much if they flop back, you can just as well call them “rustic”. Next, brush with garlic oil and let stand while forming remaining bread twists.
Repeat process with the second half of the dough.
Bake bread twists, switching position of sheets halfway through, until golden (15-20 minutes total).
Meanwhile, stir together parsley and remaining 3/4 cup cheese in a shallow baking pan.
Immediately after baking, brush bread twists with remaining garlic oil, then roll in parsley and cheese until coated. Serve warm or at room temperature.