Espresso vanilla layered cake with chocoloate ganache icing

This is a simple adaptation of the all purpose pound cake (which simply means that you use equal quantities of sugar, butter, flour and eggs; each egg is considered equivalent to 50g). I have flavoured the pound cake with espresso and fresh vanilla, but feel free to make any combination you like. The chocolate ganache icing is really rich and makes the whole dessert go from mundane to amusing. I know I say this for every recipe I post, but honestly this one is a no-brainer. An easy recipe for those starting on the baking journey with little chances of going wrong. And yet, it looks fancy and tastes exotic!

The brown sugar in the recipe is not a must, but considering that this is an espresso cake, the brown sugar caramelizes beautifully giving it a lovely coffee brown colour. Like mentioned, I used fresh vanilla straight out of the vanilla bean, and if you try this once you wouldn’t want to go back to using that essence again. But again, you can tweak every recipe to suit your pantry (and your imagination).

Prep time: 20min

Cooking time: 1hr

Serves: 6-8 people

Ingredients

For the espresso cake

Instant coffee 4-5 tbsp (Use a dense flavoured coffee; I used Colombian)

½ cup warm milk

2 eggs, whisked

100g unsalted butter

100g brown sugar, powdered

100g plain all purpose flour

1 tsp baking powder

¼ vanilla bean, scraped OR 1 tsp vanilla essence

For the icing

150g dark chocolate, cubed

100ml double cream, whisked to form soft peaks, kept at room temperature

For garnish

Fresh strawberries, sliced

Method

Preheat oven to 180°C. Grease a non-stick cake tray with some unsalted butter. Keep aside.

Sift the flour with the baking powder. Add the vanilla essence/ fresh vanilla to the whisked eggs. Add the instant coffee to the warm milk and mix well. Keep aside.

Cream the butter and sugar in a huge bowl till soft and creamy. Now add the eggs and the flour alternatively, a little at a time, folding in gently. Add the coffee-milk mixture to the dough and fold in till evenly combined. Pour the dough into the cake tray and bake in a preheated oven for 30-40 min at 180°C (or until a strand of uncooked spaghetti inserted into the cake comes out clean).

Allow to cool on a wire rack for at least an hour. Now slice the cake into two layers with a cake knife. Keep the two layers side by side, ready for icing.

Melt dark chocolate in a double boiler till smooth and gooey. Combine the melted chocolate with the double cream and quickly pour half the icing over the top surface of the bottom layer of the cake. Now place the top later of the cake on the bottom layer and pour the remaining half of the icing on top of the cake. Garnish with fresh sliced strawberries and a dollop of double cream.

Lemon Tart

This one has been pending for a really long time. For those who love the tang and sharpness of the versatile lemon, this is the dessert to kill for. It consists of a beautiful buttery shortbread crust with a smooth and creamy lemon filling inside. I have tweaked the recipe a little bit to include cream cheese in the filling (unconventional, I know), but it hits the right chords with an almost cheesecake like consistency which is light, yet full of the tanginess and zest of fresh lemons. The topping of whipped creams tempers the tartness of the lemon filling, and gives it a nice fancy presentation.

Unlike the usual puff pastry, the shortbread crust is fast and easy to put together. Although we are going to pre bake the shortbread crust, there is no need to line the pastry crust with parchment paper, and fill it with pie weights to prevent the pastry from puffing up during baking. This step is eliminated when you freeze the tart shell before baking.

If you serve this tart the day it is made, the crust will be crispy and the flavour of the lemon intense; but if you refrigerate it overnight, the shortbread crust softens a bit and the sharpness of the lemon filling mellows. Either way, it’s delicious. And, it’s the perfect addition to a Sunday morning English breakfast.

There are no shortcuts to any place worth going; so we will go one step at a time. First the shortbread crust, then the filling, the baking, cooling and topping.

Prep time: 20min

Cooking time: 1hr 15min

Serves: 6-8 people

Ingredients

Crust

130g plain flour

35g icing sugar

1/8 tsp salt

113g cold unsalted butter cut into small cubes

Lemon filling

140g cream cheese, room temperature

100g caster sugar

60ml fresh lemon juice

2 large eggs

1 tbsp grated lemon zest

Topping

120ml cold heavy whipping cream

2 tbsp icing sugar

Method

Shortbread Crust

Lightly butter a non-stick 8-9 inch tart pan with a removable bottom. Place the flour, sugar and salt in a food processor and pulse till combined evenly. Add the butter cubes and pulse till the pastry starts to come together in small bread crumb-like lumps. Place the pastry in the prepared tart pan and using your fingers tips and knuckles, gently pressing the pastry into the base and up the sides of the pan. Use the back of a spoon to even out the surface of the pastry. Prick the bottom of the crust with a fork (so it won’t rise while baking), cover the tart pan with cling film and place the pastry crust in the freezer for 15-20 min to chill (so it won’t shrink while baking).

Preheat the oven to 220°C. When the pastry is completely chilled, place the tart pan on a larger baking sheet and bake until the crust is golden brown, about 13 -15 minutes. Remove from oven and place on a wire rack to cool while you make the filling.

Reduce the oven temperature to 175°C.

Lemon filling

In a food processor or electric mixer, place the cream cheese and process until smooth. Add sugar and process until incorporated. Add the eggs and process until thoroughly combined. Add the lemon juice and zest and process until well blended and smooth. Pour filling into pre baked tart shell and bake for approximately 25 - 30 minutes or until filling is set. Transfer tart to a wire rack to cool and then cover and refrigerate until well chilled, at least an hour.

Topping

 Put your mixing bowl and whisk in the freezer for about 15 minutes. Then beat the whipping cream and powdered sugar until stiff peaks form. You can just spread the whipped cream over the filling or transfer the whipped cream to a pastry bag and pipe swirls over the entire surface of the tart. Refrigerate until serving time.

Mushroom and Pasta Quiche

If you have never made a quiche before, it’s time you try! I’m sure that by now you have mastered the art of making the perfect puff pastry. Now all you got to do is fill it with whatever you like, top it with cheese and bake it!

Mushrooms go beautifully with spinach and ricotta cheese, but that is a very common combination of ingredients. So mine is a bit different in that, it also has some cooked pasta in it, making it a whole meal. I have used whole wheat pasta, but use whatever you have at home. I use white wine to flavour many of my recipes, including this one, but spare it if you would prefer to. For non-mushroom lovers, try aubergine and olives with mozzarella cheese or mashed potatoes and tarragon/sage with cheddar.

Serves: 6 pieces

Preparation time: 30min

Cooking time: 1 hour 30 min

Ingredients

For the puff pastry

1 cup flour

25 g salted butter

¼ tsp salt

Sour cream/fresh cream as per requirement (about ¼ cup)

Others: Baking tin, parchment paper, blind weights (kidney beans or any other)

For the filling

Mushrooms, chopped medium

1 red onion, halved and sliced

1 yellow bell pepper, chopped medium

1 garlic pod, roasted as described in the bench notes below

½ cup white wine

2 sprigs fresh rosemary

1tbsp salted butter

½ tsp red chilli flakes

Ground black pepper

A pinch of nutmeg powder

Any pasta cooked as per instructions on the pack

1 cup grated cheese (any cheese will do)

1 egg, whisked

¼ cup fresh cream/ full cream milk

A pinch of sugar

Salt to taste

Method

Make the puff pastry as mentioned in the recipe that I have already posted. After blind baking, remove the puff pastry from the oven and allow to stand on the platform till you make the filling.

Preheat oven to 180°C.

Heat butter in a wide non-stick saucepan. Add the roasted garlic. Add a sprig of rosemary. Allow the garlic to brown. Add 1 tsp olive oil. To this add the chopped onions and sauté till they caramelize. Add the chopped mushrooms. Add salt to taste. Stir well. Deglaze the saucepan with white wine, and simmer for 2 min. Now add the chopped yellow bell pepper, ground black pepper, a pinch of sugar, a pinch of nutmeg, red chilli flakes, and salt to taste (if necessary). Remove from flame. Let cool for 5 min. Now add the cooked pasta, half the grated cheese, one whisked egg and cream. Stir till all ingredients are well combined. Ladle the filling into the puff pastry shell and bake in a preheated oven at 180°C for 30min, making sure the cheese has melted and browned.

Allow to cool for 5 min. Remove the quiche from the baking tray, slice and serve warm.

Bench notes

For recipe on how to make puff pastry see here.

Roasted garlic: Take a whole garlic pod (do not peel); smear it with a mixture of olive oil, butter, salt, pepper, and some fresh thyme. Roast in a preheated oven at 180°C for 15-20 or until browned and soft from within. Remove peel and crush with the back of a spoon to make a rough paste.

Kesari Bhath (Habba oota or Festival Food)

Indian festivals and Indian weddings are all about the food. There’s a multitude of mouth-watering, finger-licking delicacies prepared to offer to the Gods at our festivals. Families come together on days like these to flavour a taste of simple Indian cooking. Traditional food which, sadly, is going so ‘out of fashion’ is the food that really satiates the soul. Sadly, my generation has lost touch with what constitutes the core of every Indian home. It’s literally what we are made of- our traditional cuisine.

Most of us are so consumed by learning how to make pizzas, pastas, cakes and puddings for our loved ones, that we have neither time nor energy left to experiment with those simple spices tucked away in mom’s Pandora box...remember the conglomeration of spices she packed, sealed, labelled and sent when you got married and didn’t know crap about cooking? It’s time you start using them.

I can’t speak for everyone, but I believe that we must all remain true to our genes. My husband will definitely appreciate a continental meal once in a while, but will be sure to say ‘You are the best wife in the world’ when I make him a simple rice-rasam-palya or masala dosa-coconut chutney meal. And I’m sure that’s what aloo paranthas or rajma-chawal do for husbands from North India. Eat what you grew up loving, and life will feel so much more real and gratifying.

So I decided to add some simple recipes I’ve learnt from my mum and grand mum, those that take me back to where I belong. The first, being this one.

Serves: 4

Preparation time: 30min

Cooking time: 15min

Ingredients

2 cups steamed rice (spread out to cool on a plate, so the grains don’t clump together)

1 ½ cup granulated sugar

5-6 cloves

5-6 green cardamom, peeled and ground

10-15 saffron strands soaked in 2tbsp warm milk

2 tbsp homemade ghee

Fistful of nuts, chopped: almonds, pistachios, cashew nuts, raisins

A pinch of nutmeg powder

Method
Heat ghee in a wide non-stick saucepan. Add cloves and nutmeg powder. Add the steamed rice and granulated sugar. Simmer and cook till the sugar melts and the mixture is dry yet sticky. Add the chopped nuts, ground cardamom and saffron strings. Stir for a minute on low flame. Add 1tsp of ghee and stir. Remove from flame and serve warm.

Bench notes
I used ‘sona masuri’’ rice to make the ‘kesari bhath’. ‘Basmati’’ rice makes it dry and gives it an undesired dry and grainy texture. So it is advised that you use a variety of rice that doesn’t dry and separate too much on cooking. The rice once cooked should be soft and light. Use your discretion, depending on the variety of rice used.

You can replace half the granulated sugar with palm sugar (khajoor gud). This gives it a beautiful flavour and golden colour.

Classic Thandai

Thandai reminds everyone of one singular festival, and that is Holi, the festival of colours! This dry fruit and saffron drink often mixed with ‘bhang’ (an intoxicating drink prepared from the female cannabis plant); is also offered to Lord Shiva during the festival of ‘Mahashivaratri’.  For those who have read Amish’s Shiva Trilogy, I’m sure you can connect the ‘smoking up from the chillum’ parts of Shiva’s story to this Indian tradition!

Summers are almost incomplete without this ‘taste bhi, health bhi’ drink. My version is alcohol free, but, feel free to customize and offer thandai shots at your next bachelorette!

Green food colour is often added to make this drink look authentic, but I refrain from using any external colouring agent. If you think it necessary, please go ahead.

Serves: 2

Preparation time:  15 min (does not include soaking time)

Ingredients

Almonds 5 nos

Pistachios 4 nos (for garnishing)

Melon seeds 1 tsp

Poppy seeds ½ tsp

Saunf or fennel seeds ¼ tsp

Green cardamom 2 nos

Peppercorns 5 nos

Dried rose petals 4 nos

Cold water 200ml

Sugar 50g

Saffron strings 4

Cold milk 200ml

Rose water 1ml

Kewra water 1ml

Method

Soak all the dry nuts, spices and dried rose petals in 100ml of water. Let it soak for at least 2 hours.

Dissolve sugar and remaining water together. Soak saffron strings in 20ml of warm milk.

Grind soaked nuts, spices and dried rose petals to a fine paste. Add the paste to the cold milk. Now, add in the prepared water and sugar mixture.

Pass the prepared drink through a strainer. Add in the soaked saffron. Chill the drink in the refrigerator for at least an hour. Garnish with chopped nuts and serve chilled.

Nachos with mexican beans and hot salsa

I can eat, drink, sleep, and walk nachos. My friends will vouch for it. In fact, they are so exasperated with my nacho gluttony that they refuse to go out to a restaurant with me if I order any! And yet, I give them the sad puppy look as soon as I’ve scanned the restaurant menu and found my nachos. They gawk at the sight of them first, but after a while...everyone digs into the sour cream or the hot salsa.  And before you know it, everyone’s trying to lick the melted cheese off their fingers. It’s fate.

Without further ado, I present to you an easy to make Mexican bean mix, and hot salsa to go with your nachos...for the girl’s pyjama party, the stag game night or the kids’ weekend picnic...or just for the sake of simple indulgence!

Serves: 2

Preparation time: 15 min

Cooking time: 45 min (including time for the beans to cook)

Ingredients

For Mexican bean mix

Mexican kidney beans, soaked overnight, washed, rinsed and cooked with salt

1 onion, chopped fine

1 green bell pepper, chopped fine

Mexican spice mix (available at gourmet stores, try brand ‘keya’)

1 garlic whole, unpeeled

Fresh curly parsley, chopped fine

Red chilli flakes

Juice of half a lime

Ground black pepper

A pinch of sugar

Olive oil

Salt to taste

For garnish

1 yellow bell pepper, julienned

Nacho liquid cheese (I use ‘Go’ Nacho Cheese)

Fresh curly parsley, 1 sprig

Extra virgin olive oil, to drizzle

Method
Roast a whole garlic (smashed up with the back of a knife) with olive oil, sea salt and some fresh thyme in a preheated oven at 200°C for 15 min. Remove, peel and use as required.

Heat some olive oil in a non-stick wide saucepan.  To this add the roasted garlic and onions; and sauté till well browned and caramelised. Now add the green bell pepper and stir for one minute. Add the cooked kidney beans. Season with salt, a pinch of sugar, pepper and red chilli flakes. Add the chopped parsley and the Mexican spice mix. Stir well; cover and allow the beans to soak in the flavours. Now partly mash the beans up and squeeze the juice of half a lime into the bean mix.

Serve up the nachos on a wide platter, layer with the bean mix, top it off with some nacho cheese and finally drizzle some extra virgin olive oil. Garnish with a sprig of parsley. Place in a microwave oven for 20 sec and serve warm with a hot salsa dip ( click to find my blog for this recipe). Make your own sour cream dip for a spicy and subtle mix.

Red velvet banana cake

I have never been able to stop myself from gorging on that banana cake slice they offer in flights. And I have always wondered what I can do to make it sound/taste more glamorous? As a fruit, banana doesn’t rate high on my list; but when I suffix the word 'banana' with the word 'cake', it doesn’t anymore seem like that boring fruit that mum pestered me to eat every day. So here's an inviting adaptation of an age old recipe - banana cake sandwiched with some rasberry preserve within. Yummy yum!


Make it for a birthday party, a romantic date evening or for a family picnic by the lake. It works for just about any occasion. It’s perfect even for post break-up blues, however; eaten with a large can of ice-cream :)





Serves: 4
Prep time: 15 min
Cooking time: 60 min (includes oven time)


Ingredients
60g (1/3 cup) softened salted butter
1/3 cup milk
1 tsp vanilla essence
1 small ripe banana (pureed)
110g (1 cup) plain flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 egg, beaten
100g (3/4 cup) caster sugar
1/4 cup rasberry preserve, beaten with 1tsp warm water
Baking tray




Method
Grease the baking tray with some softened butter and preheat the oven to 180°C. Beat egg till fluffy and keep aside. Sift the plain flour with the baking powder and keep aside. Microwave butter and milk for 2 min in a large bowl. To this add the vanilla essence, caster sugar and banana puree. Beat the mixture till creamy.


Now add the sifted flour and beaten egg alternatively, folding in gently with a spatula to get a lumpy batter of a soft dropping consistency. Do not over mix.


Spoon half the batter into the greased baking tray, filling half of the tray. Spoon the rasberry preserve onto the batter spreading it evenly to form a thin layer. Spoon the remaining half of the batter onto the rasberry preserve layer. Bake in a preheated oven at 180°C. for 40-50min.


Insert a strand of uncooked spaghetti through the cake to check if it is cooked. If it comes out clean, remove the baking tray from the oven and allow to rest on a platform for 15-20 min.


Coat the top surface of the cake with another layer of rasberry preserve. Serve with a dollop of fresh double cream.



Bench notes
The cake may take lesser or longer than 40 min to bake depending on the type of oven/ shape of tray/gooeyness of the over ripe banana.


You may replace the rasberry preserve with blueberry, strawberry or even pureed seasonal fresh fruit like mango or kiwi puree.


This recipe can be mimicked to make muffins or loafs, as the final cake is not very soft or crumbly.