Lemon cake, a cup of coffee and a few memories...

I have always been a chocolate lover forever. I have obsessed over all kinds of anything chocolate. But off late I am in love with citrus cakes and desserts. And cheesecakes. And even ice creams. So I came across this recipe of lemon cake and lemon curd as a topping. Lemon curd has always intimidated me and that is why I have stayed away from it this long. But this recipe of making lemon curd was super easy and fail proof. I totally enjoyed making, baking and then eating as well. HA ha ha..... 

I have made this lemon cake twice so far & really can't get enough of it! The second time I made it, well, it was quite an emotional bake for me. The first time I had made it for my dad, that was a few years back during Eid. He was a diabetic, but even so he had eaten a full slice of this cake. He had messaged me then "Your cake was fantastic" I still remember how happy I was upon receiving that message from him because I was particularly having a bad day. That messaged just lit me up. I still have that saved in my phone. So when I made the same cake a few days back, I was quite emotional that he wasn't around to enjoy my cake...

So here's the recipe...

Lemon Cake:

You will need

1. 275 gms or 2 and 1/2 cups plain flour
2. 300 gms or 1 and 1/2 cups powdered sugar
3. 1/2 tsp salt
4. 1/2 tsp baking soda
5. 1/2 tsp baking powder
6. 170 gms butter at room temperature
7. 4 large eggs, at room temperature
8. 1 cup milk
9. 2 tbsp oil
10. 2 tsp lemon extract
11. zest of 2 lemons

Method:

1. In a bowl, sift in all the dry ingredients together. Then add in the butter which is at room temperature. Now with the help of an electric mixer, combine all the ingredients together till it comes to a crumb state.
2. Now in a separate bowl, add in all the wet ingredients and whisk it lightly with a fork.
3. Add half of the wet ingredients mixture in the butter mixture, whisk it well with taking intervals to scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl to make sure there is no dry flour left. Slowly add the remaining wet mixture in the first bowl and mix it well.
4. Pour the batter in a greased pan and bake it at 180 degrees for 30-35 mins.
5. Let it cool in the pan for 10 minutes and then later overturn onto your serving platter.

For the Lemon curd, you will need

• 3/4 th cup sugar
• 1/4 th cup cornflour
• 1 cup water
• 2 large egg yolks, lightly beaten
• 2 tbsp butter
• 1 tbsp lemon zest
• 4 tbsp fresh lemon juice

Method

1. Combine sugar, cornflour and water in a saucepan over medium heat. Stir consistently till the mixture thickens and boils. This will take app. 3-4 minutes.
2. Continue boiling for another minute. Keep stirring.
3. Remove pan from heat and spoon half cup of this mixture in the bowl of egg yolks. Stir quickly until well combined.
4. Return the egg mixture back to the hot saucepan. Keep it on medium heat, keep stirring and cooking till the whole mixture thickens and the color turns yellow.
5. Remove from the heat and then add in the butter, lemon zest and the lemon juice.
6. Cool it completely and then pour it over the whole cake.

I had made it for a small party at home and it sure is a crowd pleaser. 

Bake it. and enjoy it!!!

Are you a Banana? Coz I find you a-PEEL-ng !!!

Obviously this post is about some recipe involving bananas. And that line is not mine. Again, obviously!!!

So I just love bananas, and anything made with them. And banana bread is something which I can have anytime, with my morning coffee or my evening tea or just any. hour.

This recipe I eventually have after doing some experiments with a couple of other recipes. You can make banana bread and also banana muffins with this recipe. If you want them extra gooey and if you are a chocolate lover, just throw in the batter a bunch of chocolate chips before baking and you have the perfect dessert to impress just anyone. And yes, serve it with a double scoop of vanilla ice cream. Or without it. It tastes delicious just the same...

My small tip when I do my baking is I keep 2 dry bowls before beginning. In bowl no.1 I add in my sifted dry ingredients and in bowl no.2 I combine all my wet ingredients. For me, this makes my baking fairly easy and mess free. 

So here's the recipe.

This is all that you will need:

• 1 cup toasted walnuts or pecans
• 1 and 3/4th cup plain flour
• 3/4th cup powdered sugar
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/4th tsp baking soda
• 1/4th tsp salt
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 2 large eggs (if the eggs are small use 3 eggs) lightly beaten
• 1/2 cup butter, melted and cooled down to room temperature
• 3 over ripe bananas, mashed. (This is approximately 1 and 1/2 cups)
• 1 tsp vanilla essence

Method:

1. In bowl 1, sift and add in all the dry ingredients. Whisk them one time for extra airy mixture.
2. In bowl 2, mix together all the wet ingredients and beat them lightly with a fork.
3. Now add the contents of bowl 2 to bowl 1. With the help of an electric mixer or simply using a whisk, bring together all the ingredients till they are well combined.
4. Do not overmix the batter because you want the batter to be chunky and not smooth. If you overmix, that will yield a tough and leather-like product.
5. Add in the nuts and gently fold.
6. Pour in a greased loaf pan and bake for 45 mins approximately.

Once its baked completely, let it cool completely inside the pan, and then remove it from the pan.

Bake it, eat it, enjoy it!!!

Is French Toast really French ?!?!

It has always intrigued me why is French toast really called French?? Does every yummy & delicious thing belong to the French ***eyeroll***
So I did a little of fancy research on the internet to answer this question & also because I dearly love my french toast...

So, apparently, the usual French name for French toast is "pain perdu" which means "lost bread" because it's preparation is a way to reclaim stale bread or otherwise "lost bread". Yeah, but that doesn't prove that French toast originated in France right?! And also I learnt that French toast is also called "Bombay Toast" or "German toast" or "Gypsy toast" or for that matter just "eggy bread". Aha!! Not every insanely tasty dish can be claimed by the French people. Now that I have established that crazy important fact, lemme tell you how it's made. I like my French toast just the way they are, but today for breakfast, I made some strawberries & orange compote, well just because I was feeling a little fancy shwancy today morning :)

You will need:

1. 3 eggs
2. 200 ml milk
3. Sugar, as per your requirement
4. Vanilla essence, 1 tsp
5. Salt, a pinch or 2

Beat the eggs & the sugar well. Then add in all the other ingredients. Take a slice of bread & soak it well in the batter. Then fry it in a pan with a little butter. Cook till both the sides are well cooked & a little crispy on the outside. The idea is to have a nice outer crust keeping the inside of the bread soft & gooey. You can have it with a drizzle of honey or maple syrup or sprinkled sugar. Or with some fruit compote. Or ice cream. Or nutella. Well, the possibilities are endless!!!

For making the strawberry & orange compote, you will need:

Quartered strawberries

Orange segments

Sugar

Just combine all of the above in a saucepan. Simmer on high till sugar is dissolved. Then simmer on low flame till its reached a runny jam texture. 

All you need is a fork & knife or just your fingers (which is what I actually do) & dig in!!

Happppy Eating :)

**Yah those extra P's because I am usually food-high happy after I eat French toasts!!!

The Magic in our lives - Mum's Cooking!!!

Home cooking!! How comfortable does it sound, especially when you are talking about your mum's cooking. There is this warmth in her cooking which makes you feel loved...protected...among many other things. Then it does not matter whether you are a teenager or a grown up woman. Mum's cooking is sometimes all you need when you are having a bad day(s). 

The recipe that I am about to share here is one of Mum's. The beauty of the recipe which I love so much is the sheer simplicity of the ingredients & method of cooking & yet full of flavor and so delicious. Go ahead, give it a try, you won't be disappointed :)

You will need:

500 gms of fresh & good quality mutton

5 fresh & ripe & juicy tomatoes

3 green chillies, slit in the middle

1 cinnamon stick

salt & water

Firstly, put the meat & cinnamon & salt in a pressure cooker. Add sufficient water in it & pressure cook till the meat is tender.

Meanwhile, in a different pot, take some oil & once the oil is hot enough, add in the thinly sliced tomatoes. Cook on a low flame till the tomatoes have liquidized completely. Now add in the cooked mutton, discard the cinnamon and add in the stock as well. Adjust the salt. Add in the slit green chillies. Now let it cook on a low flame till the water has been reduced to a little more than half of the stock quantity.

Now, this gravy is supposed to be of a little soupy consistency but not really watered down. The Kadhai Gosht is best when eaten with normal chapati or roti. No fancy shwancy of naan or bread or anything of the sorts.

Happy Eating :)

The Popeye Pasta

I used to run away from spinach & any spinach related food. My mum used to make me eat spinach leaves as salad in my childhood & I used to not like it at all. I mean which kid loves eating leaves anyway ?! However, I value spinach now, a lot. If used properly spinach enhances the taste of any recipe & it also is so healthy & nutritious. One of my fav recipes is the chicken roulade which I make with stuffing of blanched spinach & cottage cheese. And, lately I tried making spinach pasta which tasted so divine!!! Just a few simple ingredients but what a yummy dish they brought together.

Here's what you will need:

• Pasta of your choice. I used the penne
• Blanched spinach, chopped finely
• Cream
• Grated garlic 
• Finely chopped onions
• A mixture of oregano, thyme, rosemary, chilli flakes
• Finely chopped green chillies

Boil the pasta in some salted water till it is al dente which is simply par boiled. Then in a separate pan, saute together the minced onions & garlic till it is fragrant & light golden in color. Add the blanched & chopped spinach along with all the seasonings. Saute it for 2 mins & then add the strained pasta. Mix well. Lastly add the cream & finely chopped green chillies. Adjust the salt. Toss well & serve immediately.

If you want to make this using chicken, then add the chicken after you saute the onions.

Have fun cooking & Happy Eating :)

The Healthy Woes of an Unhealthy Person, ahem ahem!!!

So, the healthy-eating phase of mine continues. I just hope that I just carry on with this till I get desired results. Hahahaha I can hear my alternate me laughing her ass off!!!

This health food rad is all so new for me. Although I have been reading & doing my research about it all, but being the foodies that we are, I won't lie that this is easy for us. But I try to make our healthy food edible **big-gulps** enough for us. For dinner tonight, we had the sprouts & veggies salad which I seasoned with dates & tamarind chutney. And also a bowl of fresh summer fruits like watermelon & muskmelon.

The salad is pretty simple & basic. The recipe for the date & tamarind chutney is below.

You will need:

• Soft dates, pitted 500gms
• Tamarind pulp 250gms (If you like it more tangy then adjust the amount accordingly)
• Roohafza (It is a concentrate of rose syrup. Add around 1 cup if you are bnot using any sugar)
• Salt
• Cumin seed powder, 1.5 tbsp
• Red chilli powder, 2 tsp
• Sugar, if required
• Chaat masala, 1 tsp
• Aamchur powder, 1 tsp

Just boil all the above till dates become very soft & mushy. Then leave to cool for a while. Later, blitz the entire thing with a hand blender or just in a mixie till everything is blended to a sauce consistency. 

Cool down completely to room temp. Fill in bottles & refrigerate. This sauce can be used upto a whole year. 

Happy 'Healthy' Eating :), 

Healthy and Tasty!! Is that even fairly possible??

Who said healthy can not be tasty?? Oops that was me talking to myself & justifying my need for cakes & pastries **eyeroll**

So I am trying to lose a bit of my weight & thought of giving healthy eating a try. This is my version of healthy & juicy baked chicken seekh kebabs & a salad that I put together of the things in my fridge - watermelon, mangoes, cucumbers, kafir limes.

You will need:
An assortment of boneless chicken breast pcs & leg pcs. If you really want it to be very healthy then you can skip the leg pcs.
Caramalised onions
Chopped green chillies & coriander leaves & mint leaves
Salt & pepper
Garam masala pdr
Ginger garflic paste
Few amount of grated cheese & some cream
Juice of half a lemon
Couple slices of bread

Process all of the above in a food processor till the whole thing comes together. Form log shapes and cover every individual kebab in wax paper or butter paper or foil. You can store these in freezer & use them whenever required. No thawing required, just leave them out for 10 minutes. Bake them in the oven for 12-15 minutes and rest them outside the oven for another 5-7 minutes. Once you open the paper, you will get these juicy kebabs. You can either have them with any salad of your choice or with hummus & pita bread or with the green chutney & parathas. The possibilities are endless.

I sure enjoyed eating something which was yummy & healthy as well.

Happy Eating :)

Gary Mehigan's Carrot Cake with Olive Caramel

To begin with, I am so obsessed with Gary Mehigan & George Calombaris that even I cant describe my obsession for them. My love for them started with the start of Masterchef Australia. And if I can make or bake or cook remotely anything to what and how they cook, I am literally on cloud 9!! So imagine my state of euphoria when I tried to make Gary's carrot cake with olive caramel.
It sounds weird right?! Who would think of olive caramel! But yet these people did think, and how!! 

I would like to think of this cake as a tasty yet a healthy cake!! Tasty because its a cake after all I mean whats a cake if it is not tasty? And healthy because its made from olive oil instead of your regular oil or butter or shortening. Now I have used the regular cake flour here, but if you want it to be more healthy you can bake this using wheat flour instead. The olive caramel is made using olive paste. Now olive paste is available in a few stores by the name tapenade but this includes garlic and oregano and other spices. So this clearly is not apt for desserts. You can make olive paste at home very easily. Just blitz a few olives in a food processor and you have olive paste ready. 

Here's the recipe:

Ingredients are 
For the cake:

• 2 eggs
• 250 gm soft brown sugar
• 150 ml extra virgin olive oil
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 200 gm plain flour
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp ground cloves
• 340 gm grated carrots
• 100 gm sultanas/raisins
• 75 gm chopped walnuts
• double cream to serve

For the black olive caramel:

• 200 gm castor sugar or brown sugar
• 50 gm liquid glucose
• 100 gm black olive paste

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 160C.
2. Place eggs and sugar in a bowl and beat them well till the mixture is light in color and frothy. Gradually add the oil while continuing to beat. Fold in the all the rest of the ingredients.
3. Pour batter in a baking tray & bake for 40 mins or until the skewer inserted comes out clean.
4. Meanwhile, for black olive caramel, place sugar & glucose in a saucepan over medium high heat & cook until light brown golden. Remove from the heat and cool slightly. Whisk in the olive paste, whisking continuously. Strain through a fine mesh into a bowl. Keep warm.
5. Serve slices of carrot cake with spoonfuls of warm caramel & double cream alongside.

So here it is, go ahead, try it and you will know the goodness of carrots in a cake!!

Happy Eating guys :)

Profiteroles / Eclairs

Profiteroles are basically cream puffs which after the baking process puff up & are hollow from within. You can fill them up with any filling of your choice but traditionally it is filled with a combination mixture of pastry cream and custard and whipping cream.

At first just by the looks of it, the process of making a profiterole looks very daunting and high stage cooking skills level. But trust me, its not that difficult at all. Just a bit of patience is what you need, and come to think of it, at the end of everything you have your own masterpiece to devour :) :)

So here goes...

For the Pate Choux or the pastry you will need :

• 250gm milk or water
• 110gm butter, cubed
• a pinch of salt and sugar
• 140gm flour
• 3-5 eggs
• 1 egg wash + 2 tbsp milk which is to be used as egg wash

Method:

• Take a non stick pan. Put in the water or milk, butter, sugar, salt. Use a rounded wooden spoon to mix everything but first let everything melt on a very low heat.
• As soon as the butter melts, add in the flour & mix with the wooden spoon. Mix for exactly 30 seconds on low heat or till everything comes together.
• Now, turn on the heat to high & keep mixing for a couple of minutes. (So let me give you a little heads up here, this step here is a really very rigorous process its good hand workout and will make you literally sweat. All good things come with a price !!!)
• The importance of this step is because you need all the moisture removed away from the batter, such a rigorous mixing is required.
• Heat and mix it till you see a dry film on the pan.
• Remove the dough in a bowl. Beat it with an electric mixer for 5 mins or so, so that the remaining mixture is also released.
• Keep the mixer running and add in the eggs, one at a time. Mostly only 3 eggs are required but you need to see if the mixture is in piping consistency stop adding the eggs but minimum 3 and maximum 5 eggs are required.
• Now transfer the mixture into a piping bag. Over a parchment paper on a baking tray, pipe your eclairs.
• Brush egg wash over it. Bake for 40mins at 180C/400F
• Cool eclairs in oven for 10mins with the oven door slightly open.

For the pastry cream, you will need:

• 500ml milk
• 1 vanilla bean pod
• 4 egg yolks
• 75gm sugar
• 2 tbsp flour
• 2 tbsp cornflour
• 100ml cold heavy whipping cream

Method:

• Combine in a pan milk, vanilla bean & bring it to a boil. Once it bowls, turn off heat. Keep aside for 15 mins.
• In another bowl, place egg yolks & sugar. Whisk them together nicely till mixture is light & creamy.
• Add the flour and cornstarch. Mix well.
• Remove the bean from the milk. Pour some of the hot mixture onto the egg mixture & stir quickly to avoid curdling of the eggs. Now put this mixture back to the pan of hot milk mixture.
• Heat it whisking constantly till it turns a bit thick. This will take app 3-4 minutes.
• Remove this into another bowl. Place this over a bowl of ice cubes. Once it cools down, cover the cream with a cling film & refrigerate till its very chilled.
• Separately whisk the heavy chilled whipping cream & add it to the chilled pastry cream. Very slowly incorporate the whipping cream. refrigerate.
• Fill your pastry with this cream with the help of a piping bag.

For the chocolate glaze, you will need:

• 60gm bitter sweet chocolate
• 2 tbsp heavy whipping cream
• 1 tbsp honey
• 2 tbsp water

Pour hot cream over chopped chocolate. Mix well and then add the honey after the chocolate has melted completely. Add the water as well and mix well. Dip the top of the profiteroles in this glaze and refrigerate them preferably over night. Or if you can't wait till the next day to eat your hard work, just gobble them up right away. Well, that's what I did :) :)

Happy Eating...