Cake was one of the first things I learnt to bake when I was still a schoolgirl. Over the years, I have made many cakes, both simple and complicated, but a favourite that I keep returning to is this Chocolate Walnut Cake.
A restaurant that was a favourite with us in Singapore was Aglio Olio. We would go there two to three times a week. The restaurant offered pasta with a Singaporean twist through the use of chilli padi. I tried various permutations and combinations till I succeeded in getting the taste right.
Creamy goodness
Ingredients
(Serves 3 persons)
Penne pasta 1 cup cooked al dente
Cream 1 cup
Mushrooms 250 g, sliced
Onion 1 small, chopped
Garlic 3 cloves, minced
Chilli padi 5, chopped (or 3 green chillies chopped)
Coriander leaves chopped
Salt to taste
Pepper powder 1 tsp
Peperoncino flakes 1 tsp
Cheddar cheese 1/2 cup, grated fine
Olive oil 2 tbsp
Method
Heat the olive oil in a heavy bottomed frying pan. Don’t let it smoke.
Add the onion and chillies. Reduce the heat and fry till the onion becomes transparent.
Add the garlic and fry till the raw smell is gone.
Add the mushroom and sauté till the mushrooms are cooked. Add 1/4 cup water.
When it boils, add the cream. Stir well.
Add the salt, pepper powder and peperoncino flakes. Stir and add the pasta. Switch off the heat.
Serve hot, garnished with coriander leaves and cheese.
When I was working on the newspaper desk in Singapore, we would start work at the unearthly hour of 4.30 am and the one thing that kept us going was that we would take turns to bring in warm bread for an early breakfast. One of my colleagues used to make this really divine banana bread. My banana bread recipe is based on hers though I have tweaked it to add nuts and raisins and also sour cream to make it more moist. This has been a hit with my family for more than 20 years. In fact, my sister-in-law said this should be my retirement plan: to make and sell banana bread.
I make this in the bread maker and so it is super easy. I set it for baking overnight and it is ready for breakfast the next morning.
Ingredients
Vegetable oil 1/3 cup Sour cream 1/4 cup Eggs 2, beaten All-purpose flour 1 1/2 cups Brown sugar 2/3 cup Baking powder 1 tsp Baking soda 1/2 tsp Salt 1/2 tsp Vanilla essence 1 tsp Bananas 2, mashed Walnuts 1/2 cup Raisins 1/4 cup
Method
Add everything to the bread-maker pan in the order given above. Set it to Sweet or Cake setting depending on your machine.
When done take it out and let it cool. Slice and serve.
In 2013, when Bitcoin was fledgling currency, a Forbes magazine reporter tried an experiment: live for a week on just Bitcoin. It was hard as few places accepted Bitcoin.
It seems a weight watcher’s dream as she said she lost 5 pounds in the week because she was forced to walk, her only transport being a cycle a friend rent out for half a Bitcoin. Fast forward to today and in the TV hit show Billions, Axe offers his employees bonus in the form of hundreds of thousands of Bitcoin.
Anyway, the reporter ended the week offering to buy fellow Internet enthusiasts a sushi dinner at a restaurant that would accept Bitcoin. She expected 15 persons, but more than 60 turned up. The dinner cost $957 plus tip and she paid 10.354 Bitcoin. Last week, Bitcoin was trading at a high of around $20,000, making that dinner payment around $200,000.
Garlic cloves are said to be good for your health, but fresh green garlic is even better. It is available only for a limited season in winter. Fresh green garlic is easier to consume than garlic cloves as the smell is less pungent. It can be had in salads or made into a chutney. This chutney goes well with paranthas or chilla.
Ingredients
Fresh green garlic 10 stalks Green chillies 5 Coriander leaves 1 cup Mustard seeds 1/2 tsp Oil 1 tbsp Asafoetida 1/2 tsp
Method
Clean and chop the green garlic stalks. They look like spring onions, but are thinner.
Blend them with the green chillies and coriander leaves. Try to use as little water as you can.
Add salt.
Heat the oil in a small frying pan and add the mustard seeds and asafoetida. When the mustard seeds stop sputtering, add it to the chutney.
This chutney will stay fresh in the refrigerator for up to two weeks.
Indian Chinese has evolved into a separate cuisine with dishes that have become international favourites though some of them will can certainly not be found anywhere in China. I dare anyone to find Gobhi Manchurian in Manchuria. A favourite Indian Chinese disof mine is Vegetarian Chowmein.
Ingredients
(Serves 4)
Hakka noodles 150 g Carrots 2, peeled and cut into thin strips Cabbage 1 medium, sliced Beans 5, cut on the slant and sliced Onion 1 large, sliced Capsicum 1 large, sliced Vegetable oil 5 tbsps Ching’s Secret Vegetable Chowmein Masala 1 packet Salt to taste Soya sauce 1 tbsp Green chilli sauce 4 tbsps Red chilli sauce 1 tbsp Vinegar 2 tbsps
Method
Boil the noodles in salted water till cooked. I use Ching’s Secret brand and follow the instructions on the packet. The noodles turn out perfect every time.
Pour oil into a heated wok. When the oil is well heated, add the onions. Add all the vegetables and stir fry on high heat for two minutes.
Add the salt and sauces.
Add the cooked noodles and Ching’s Secret masala and toss well.
This is a quick and easy pudding that can be whipped up in less than 10 minutes. I make this for impromptu dinner parties and winter lunches. It goes well with vanilla ice cream or toffee sauce.
Ingredients
(Serves 4)
All-purpose flour 3/4 cup Butter 100 g Sugar 1/2 cup Cinnamon powder 1 tbsp Bananas 3 (2 mashed and 1 sliced) Eggs 2, beaten Milk 2 tbsps Baking powder 1 tsp
Method
Melt the butter in a rectangular baking dish for about 30 seconds.
Add the beaten eggs and sugar to the butter. Mix with a whisk.
Add the flour, cinnamon and baking powder and whisk well.
Add the mashed bananas and milk and mix all the ingredients till well blended to form a thick batter.
A comfort food and a favourite with my son throughout his schooldays was Mac and cheese. I used to make it three or four times a week. I use sharp English mustard and chilli flakes, which impart a unique flavour to the dish.
The chilli flakes add a piquant flavour
Ingredients
Elbow pasta 2 cups All-purpose flour 3 tbsps Butter 2 tbsps Olive oil 2 tbsps Salt to taste Pepper powder 1 tsp English mustard 1 tbsp Milk 1/2 litre Cheddar cheese 1 cup, grated Italian herbs 1 tbsp, dried Peperoncino chilli flakes 1 tbsp
Method
Boil 6 cups of water with 2 tbsps of salt. Add the pasta and cook till al dente. Drain.
Add the butter and olive oil to a heavy bottomed saucepan. I use Amul salted butter as I feel it gives a better flavour to the dish.
Add the flour and sauté on low flame till the raw smell of the flour is gone.
Add the milk gradually, whisking all the time. Add salt, pepper and mustard. Add the Italian herbs. Cook till the sauce thickens. It should not take more than three minutes.
White sauce
Layer the pasta, white sauce and cheese in an oven proof dish. My trusted dish that I bought from John Lewis in London almost 15 years ago is the one I always use to make mac and cheese. Sprinkle the peperoncino chilli flakes on top.
This cake will appeal to even those who don’t like very sweet desserts. The mix of buttercream icing and fondant keeps the sweetness balanced to a level that will suit most palates.
Elegance in white
Ingredients
All-purpose flour 1 cup Salted Butter 180 g Eggs 3 Sugar 3/4 cup Baking powder 1 tsp Vanilla essence 1 tsp Milk 3 tbsps Fondant 250 g
For the buttercream icing: Unsalted butter 250 g Icing sugar 1 cup Cream 1/4 cup
Method
Cream the butter and sugar in a stand mixer.
Add the eggs one by one.
Sift the flour and baking powder and add it to the mixing bowl, a spoonful at a time.
Add the vanilla essence and milk.
Pour the batter into a round greased 9 ” cake tray and bake at 160 degrees C for about 40 minutes. Test with a toothpick. It should come out clean.
Cool the cake on a rack.
Mix softened butter and icing sugar well. Add the cream in a slow stream while whisking the icing. If the icing is too liquid, add more icing sugar.
Slice off the top of the cake to get a flat surface.
Apply the buttercream icing with a butter knife. Dip the knife into hot water and smoothen the surface.
Refrigerate for at least two hours to stabilise the icing.
Knead the fondant to make it pliable.
Dust the work surface with icing sugar and roll out the fondant into a circle of 1/4 inch thickness. Put it on the cake. Pat it on using a cake smoother. Go over the sides as well. Trim the excess fondant.
Knead the cut fondant and roll it out. Using a star-shaped cutter, cut out three shapes. Cut out three leaves. Draw the veins using a butter knife.
Attach the cutouts to the cake using a little water. Attach tiny balls of fondant to the centre of the flowers. Use fondant strings to link the flowers.
Roll out two strings from the remaining fondant and twist it to form a rope. Attach it to the bottom of the cake.
I came across this book on Amazon and the blurb had me hooked. I am always interested in new dishes, especially vegetarian ones. The Himalayan foothills is a stone’s throw from where I currently live and this made the book doubly interesting to me.
The Leaflet has an excerpt from her book and it made me want to acquire it as soon as I can. It even has a recipe for finger millet and wheat flour halwa ( Mandua aur atte ka halwa), which sounds healthy and delicious at the same time.
In an interview with Thoughtfox, she said that the book originated from a forgotten file consisting of information on “herbs and kitchen friends”, compiled for a grandchild. The herbs and kitchen friends play a really important role in the book that offers knowledge about herbs found in Uttarakhand and the region around and their use over the ages. They are well blended into recipes that are easy to follow and sound delicious even as you read them.
Chills & Chillies 