Forgive me Father for I have sinned...

Apparently this is gonna happen to me in the near future, for as the heading says I have sinned. Of the seven deadly sins, I seem to have committed at least 3 in the last few weeks. Now, before you get any ideas it was Greed, Envy and Pride. You see, I wanted to eat some Fried Ice-cream smothered in Chocolate Sauce with a sprinkling of nuts on top. Then, I envied all those who were eating just that and then what did I do? As if committing two sins weren't enough, I gave into my craving and made some Fried Ice-cream and...I was so proud of my creation, I gloated. I smothered it in chocolate sauce, sprinkled a few nuts on and tucked in like the greedy little piggy that I am. There you have it, three big sins in one evening! 

But the storm clouds, flesh and days, though scary do not really bother me. I mean, if I hadn't indulged my craving; then yeah, I would've been scared and really ticked off! But now, replete as I am...I say to the Good Lord, 'Bring it on'! That is, if He is ticked off, which am pretty sure the all-knowing Lord wouldn't be, having tasted Fried Ice-cream. If not, that'd be a real pity indeed! Not to be worried, I am pretty sure, the Lord can whip up a batch for Himself with my recipe.

Would you just look at that! How can the Lord be ticked off with that on offer?

 For those of you like me, who crave for ice-cream even in the chilly evenings of winter, this is the perfect dessert. If you feel it's too cold outside to eat ice-cream, just fry it. It follows the same theory of heating up something that is cold, I think. Once the ice-cream is fried, slosh some glossy, thick chocolate sauce over it. Lo and behold, you've got a marriage made in heaven! Now add some crunch with a sprinkling of chopped nuts. And you've just elevated it to a whole new level. With each mouthful, you get to savour the decadence of the chocolate, the heart-warming crunch of the hot crust and the icy-cool, still not melted ice-cream. Yumm! You know, there are very few things I think the Chinese have got right...this is definitely on top of that list.

Recipe

Fried Ice-cream with Chocolate Sauce

(Feeds as many or as few as you want/ or have the patience to fry)

Ingredients

500ml Vanilla Ice-cream 

1 pack Brittania Vita Marie Biscuits, crushed roughly

2 eggs, beaten well

Oil for deep frying

To Serve

Chocolate Ganache 

Chopped almonds

Directions

1. Line a tray that fits into your freezer compartment with foil. Using an ice-cream scoop, form 6 balls of ice-cream and place on the prepared tray. You can shape it slightly between your palms, but not for too long. Freeze for at least 2 hours.

2. Spread the biscuit crumbs on a shallow dish. Take each ball of ice-cream out of the freezer and give it a roll in the biscuit crumbs until neatly coated. Return to the freezer immediately. Freeze for a further 30 minutes. The reason I recommend taking each ice-cream ball out is so that the other ice-cream balls don't melt while you finish rolling all of them.

3. Once your 30 minutes are up, again taking each crumbed ice-cream out roll it in the beaten egg until you've coated it. Then quickly roll it in the crumbs until you have an even coat. Repeat with the rest of the ice-cream balls and freeze for 40-50 minutes. If you want a thicker crust, repeat the process again. I always do.

4. Heat the oil in a deep-bottom pot. Now remember that you want the oil to be really hot, so that the crust browns almost immediately. Leave it too late, you risk the ice-cream melting in the oil. Believe me, you don't want that. To check if the oil is really hot, drop a tiny bit of  the crushed biscuit into the oil and if it browns immediately it's hot enough. Lower the crumb-coated ice-cream one at a time into their oily bath. Fry till golden brown, about 30-40 seconds. Remove and place on plate. 

Enrobe the deep-fried, golden goodness with that silky chocolate ganache and add a smattering of chopped almonds and serve immediately to your awed guests and wait for the praise. Repeat with the rest. Oh! and don't forget to stuff your face too. Trust me, you wan't regret it.

Chocolate Ganache 

Ingredients

8 ounces (227 grams) semisweet or bittersweet chocolate, cut into small pieces
3/4 cup (180 ml) heavy whipping cream
2 tablespoons (28 grams) unsalted butter

Directions

Place the chopped chocolate in a medium sized heatproof bowl. Set aside. Heat the cream and butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. (Can also heat the cream and butter in the microwave.) Bring just to a boil. Immediately pour the boiling cream over the chocolate and allow to stand, without stirring, for a few minutes. Stir gently (as you do not want to incorporate air into the ganache) with a spoon or whisk until smooth.

Now go fry yourselves some ice-cream while I have a discussion with God.

Dear Lord,

I know I have sinned, but seriously can you blame me? It was your fault really. It was you who gave the idea to that wretched man who invented fried ice-cream. Had you not done that, we wouldn't be having this conversation at all. Well if you're still angry, here's a thought. The next time you're down here we can have that discussion on how many 'Hail Marys' I owe you. Or maybe I can make some fried ice-cream for ya. :) So what say, forgiven? ;)

P.S. we can always say that evil-spawn Satan put us in the way of temptation. With all the blame the guy gets, what's another? :P 

All my love,

Chaitanya

Birthday Bliss with Chocolate Devil's food cake

I celebrated my birthday last month and her's a look at the cake. I baked Nigella's Chocolate Devil's food cake. It was sinfully chocolaty and pure bliss in my mouth...need I say more!

The just frosted cake

cake in the fridge

just look at that amazing frosting...it took all of my almost non-existent will power not to lick the entire bowl

I'd baked the cake and frosted it the night before my birthday, so I refrigerated it till the next day. Now that is what you delicious anticipation! I couldn't wait until morning to cut the cake, but wait I did. Which just made it all the more better.

my birthday cake

I sprinkled some edible silver colored pearls and my mom placed a violet from her garden on the cake. It was absolutely lovely.

cutting my luscious cake

Happy Birthday to me...Here'a slice for you...

Mum and dad took me to Mysore for the day. They got me a piece of jewelry as a gift. Oh! just before we went to the jewelers Mum took me to temple, which as far as I have seen, is almost always closed when we go to Mysore. But this day it was open and I even got a laddoo as prashad. ( I know not much to get excited about...but this sort of thing never happens to me).

Sitting on the silver swing, mum and dad sure do look regal

We went to the restaurant at Hotel Metropole for lunch. I just love the old world grandeur of the place. As soon you enter it, you feel like you've been transported to a different era. I feel it represents the glory of bygone days, when Mysore was among the richest provinces in Princely India. They've retained all the original woodwork and furniture. The crystal chandeliers are so beautiful they take my breath away. The mirrors in their restaurant...Oh, those are masterpieces, am so in love with them. One day if they find it missing, it will definitely be me. ;)

Crystal chandelier in foyer of Hotel Metropole...I wish I could have one

At least I got a picture underneath the chandelier... I feel like a princess :)

All in all, it was a really great day. And I even did a spot of shopping before I got back. It was a wonderful birthday.

The Happiness Brownie for Chocoholics

I know I just posted a brownie recipe recently, but this is different. It is The Happiness Brownie for Chocoholics and I am a serious Chocoholic. That brownie is the easy everyday version. Not that this one isn't easy...it is, and you need only one saucepan. That alone means a good recipe according to me since I hate washing up! And I don't really need a reason to bake some brownies. They make me feel happy and take away all my worries. And also, they can be whipped up in a matter of  minutes. If it's a quick and easy fix, it's good enough for me.

Wouldn't you feel happy when these are out of the oven? I know I was...

This recipe for brownies is from Stephanie Jowarski's Joy of Baking to which I've made some changes to get a very moist, fudgier and chocolate overdosed brownie. And the addition of sugar covered almonds makes it a wonderful treat, hence the name 'The Happiness Brownie'. Mind you, Stephanie just called them Brownies, I made some small changes to the recipe...added a few things here, mixed in a cupful of love, a tablespoon of joy and some more stuff and there you have it...The Happiness Brownie! (Ha! got you...I got you all thinking I hit my head real hard!).

The Happiness Brownie

So without further ado, here's the recipe for The Happiness Brownie as I call it. And the next time, I am going to use Salted Honey Roasted Almonds and Pretzels too...Ooohhh!!!

The Happiness Brownie

Makes 16 normal sized brownies or 24 smaller brownies

INGREDIENTS

10 tablespoons (140 grams) unsalted butter

1 1/4 cups (250 grams) granulated white sugar

3/4 cup (75 grams) unsweetened cocoa powder, preferably Dutch processed

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

2 large eggs, room temperature

1/4 cup full fat milk

1/2 cup (65 grams) all-purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup (60 ml) sour cream (full or reduced fat)

1/2 cup (85 grams) semi sweet or bittersweet chocolate chips (optional) 

1/4 cup Sugar covered Almonds

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C) and place the oven rack in the center of the oven. Line the bottom and sides of an 8 inch (20 cm) square pan with aluminum foil. (The aluminum foil should hang about two inches (5 cm) over the sides of the pan to make it easy to lift the brownies from the pan.)

In a medium saucepan melt the butter (can also melt the butter in the microwave). Remove from heat. Stir (or whisk) in the sugar and cocoa powder. Whisk in the vanilla extract and eggs, one at a time, mixing until the sugar is dissolved. ( It will look like there's too much sugar, keep stirring and you will get there). Add the milk and stir well until you have a smooth and glossy batter. (By this stage the sugar will have mostly dissolved).

Sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Fold this flour mixture into the batter. Finally, fold in the sour cream and chocolate chips (if using).

Pour into the prepared pan and smooth the top, rap the sides of the pan to remove any air bubbles. Scatter the top with the sugar coated almonds (Roll the sugar covered almonds in a little bit of flour so that they don't sink to the bottom of the pan). 

The brownie batter in the pan

Bake for about 28 -30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center has moist crumbs clinging to it.Remove from oven and place on a wire rack to cool to room temperature. Then, to make the brownies easier to cut, cover and place in the refrigerator for two hours or until firm. When ready to cut the brownies, lift the aluminum foil out of the pan and, with a sharp knife, cut the brownies.

And serve them as they are or with whipped cream and berries or Ice-Cream and Chocolate Sauce with chopped nuts or just eat them however you want to.

* Note: As you all can see, I haven't lined the pan with aluminum foil, for one I didn't have any and secondly it was easier to just grease and dust it with flour. And there was no difference in texture. But DO NOT OVERBAKE THE BROWNIE...believe me you won't be happy and the brownie definitely won't be happy because it'll dry out.

Leftover Brownies can be stored in the refrigerator for 4 days or upto 3 months in the freezer. ( But who's ever heard of 'Leftover Brownies'!).

I like to just zap them in the microwave for 30 secs before I eat 'em...it just feels right!

Well, until next time...Happy Baking!

Happy Birthday Nigella, here's a Chocolate Irish cream cake for you...

Today is Nigella Lawson's Birthday. For those of you who don't know me, I think of Nigella as my Guru. She according to me is the best cook ever and is also one of the reasons why I love baking so much. She makes it all so easy, breezes into her beyond amazing kitchen, fiddles around with all those doodads, throws a few things together and Voila! you have a visual treat right before your eyes, which just makes you wish you could somehow wrangle an invitation to her house for a meal. And she does all this while she looks like a million bucks, for someone who is always around food! If I did that, I'd probably look like a freight train! (Scary image in my head now, definitely need to do some Power Yoga). 

Even if I cannot be a part of her birthday celebrations (for now, I hope I get to meet her someday) I thought she deserves a beautiful cake (which I would eat on her behalf). And well, it's just another excuse to bake a cake. And it couldn't be just anything... it had to bold, brassy and beautiful, in other words something that says Nigella or sort of describes her. I know she likes chocolate (who doesn't?) so I made a chocolate cake with Irish Cream.

Happy Birthday Nigella

I've always wanted to bake a cake using Bailey's. And lazy person that I am, I've always managed to come up with some excuse or the other. Most used was the lack of Bailey's Irish cream whiskey at home. The other day when we were at an aunts place for dinner, I found a bottle of  her Home-made Irish Cream and asked if I could borrow it. The original recipe called for Bailey's and since I didn't have any, I've used the homemade version. I've also added chocolate so the cake has a more intense chocolate flavor. It also made the cake more moist and delicious.

Irish Cream Chocolate Cake
Ingredients
250g plain flour

My very cute measuring cup and spoon set...was a gift from mum

1 1/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt (omit if using salted butter)
60g cocoa powder

40g Good quality dark chocolate, chopped (or you can use chocolate chips)
300g sugar
250ml strong coffee (any temperature)
210g butter, cubed
375ml Baileys (or other Irish Cream liqueur, homemade works too as long as it's good) ( I used a li'l more approx 400 ml)
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 160C, grease and line an 8 x 8 inch tin.
Sift together the flour, baking soda and salt in a bowl and set aside.
Put the chopped chocolate, cocoa powder, sugar, coffee and butter in a medium saucepan and place over medium heat, whisking frequently until the butter and chocolate has melted and the sugar dissolved. Allow to cool for 10 minutes.
Stir in the Baileys Irish cream into the liquidy chocolate mix.

Add the eggs one by one, mixing thoroughly after each addition. Stir in the vanilla extract.

I prefer to crack the eggs into a separate bowl and then add into the batter, so you don't get any eggshell pieces by mistake

you should have a smooth glossy batter after mixing in the eggs

Add the flour mix and whisk gently until everything is incorporated into the batter.

be gentle while incorporating the flour mixture

Pour the thin batter into the prepared tin and rap the sides of the tin a few times to remove air bubbles. Smooth the top of the batter using a wet spoon to remove any air bubbles.
Bake for 1 hour, after an hour put foil on top of the cake and continue for another 25-30 minutes, or until a skewer inserted into the middle comes out with only a few moist crumbs

Cake in the oven

Let cool completely before dusting with icing sugar if desired. (we finished the cake way too soon, so it's not dusted with icing sugar...and I left the paper doilies I flicked from the Orange County soup bowls in my aunt's bag! I wanted to use it as a template for dusting the icing sugar on the cake for a nice pattern ).

Yum yum yum :)

Note* The batter is very very runny and may look like it will never cook, but don't worry it will. Just make sure not o shake the pan at all when it is in the oven.

Do not over bake the cake as it will dry out.

You can use a vanilla bean instead of the extract, just split the bean and scrape the seeds into the batter.

And lastly, it is very dense, very moist, intensely chocolaty and a very very boozy cake...you might get a li'l tipsy, so just don't feed it to your kids.

Now go bake some and tell me how it was.

Until next time, Happy Baking!

Remembering 2013 with a luscious chocolate pie...:)

Happy New Year to all of you.

So quickly the days go by, and here's another year to look forward to. New resolutions, new hopes and dreams (or in some cases the same old hopes and dreams!), new goals and so on. I feel the last year went by too fast or maybe in my case I just might have missed a few months in 2013! I must have slept through or they just sped by...am not really sure. You can definitely say that by looking at my posts, erratic is the best word I could come up with...

Now 2013 wasn't at all bad, it was in fact a pretty good year for me. I did a lot of baking, even though I might not have posted as much on the blog about it. I'd baked a 4 layered Chocolate Fudge Cake with Chocolate Buttercream Frosting in September for my brother's birthday (Sorry don't have a picture). I made 5 Apple Tarte- Tatin's for a neighbors kitty party. I came up with a new recipe for Sweet n Sour Chicken (which is heavenly by the way) and made Lasagna from scratch (Yes, including the Lasagna sheets). Conducted a baking class too, where I made an AMAZING Chocolate Ganache Tart. Red Velvet Cupcakes which blew everyone's mind. And the one bowl Chocolate cupcakes with buttercrem frosting and silver dragees, which looked as great as it tasted. Oh! did I mention I made Croissants from scratch (tedious but totally worth it) and the Passion fruit Panna cotta fit for Gods.

And the bad stuff, in my baking class, we tried baked doughnuts (I don't know what made me do this, when the yeasty fried ones I've always made worked so well for me...stupid healthy stuff) and one of the girls put in a tablespoon of baking powder instead of a teaspoon, the result...disgustingly acrid tasting doughnuts...blech...yuck ( and a few choice words that I cannot use here!). Another time, my Cinnamon- Sugar Pull apart Bread which worked perfectly every single time and is a family favorite, decided to go Kaput on me...It was a soggy run down mess and just refused to cook, it sort of resembled the boys' dessert from Masterchef Australia's Girls V/s Boys first challenge...Eaton mess I think they decided to call it (It looked like crap by the way...they should've named it Disgusting mess! But I can assure you mine looked way better even though it wasn't cooked in the center).

And just when everything was going great, 2013 dealt me a BIG Bang in my face. I have this very bad habit of  imagining how I'd feel if something were to happen to me, and the worst part is sometimes it comes true (not in a good way). For example, this one time a cousin of mine jammed her finger in the car's door and I always wondered how it'd feel, and a few years later I jammed my finger in the car's door! And I can tell you it definitely wasn't pleasant...you'd think I would've learnt my lesson from that. But no, two other cousins had surgeries and I wondered how it'd feel ( I know...I know...very stupid, considering my track record) and guess what! I had to undergo an emergency appendectomy in bloody December! Oh, the horror...post-op is not a place for someone like me, I annoyed the hell out those nurses asking for water and pillows and whatnot! And the worst part nobody gave me FOOD for 4 days!!! And all this just before an interview I was supposed to attend. Well, this sure taught me to never, ever, ever wonder about such things!

Anyway I decided that to remember all the good, bad and ugly parts of 2013, it warrants a Pie...and not just any pie, it's a slice of chocolaty goodness topped with whipped cream and chocolate shavings or in other words a luscious Silky Chocolate Pudding Pie!

Yum...yum...yum

Now, the recipe for the Silky Chocolate pudding, I got from Smitten Kitchen. You can have the pudding as it is, or you can jazz it up a li'l and make a Pie with it. The Chocolate base is my creation...but feel free to experiment and  make your own crust. And I topped it with whipped cream only because I was jobless and I had a pack lying around which I've wanted to try for ages. You can skip this...but why would you, it's whipped cream, it tastes amazing and it's not like it'll kill you right! And down here's how I made this wonderful confection which warms the cockles of your heart :)

Oooooh chocolate...please pretend you didn't see the mess on the whipped cream

Silky Chocolate Pudding Pie Serves 6 to 7

Here's what you'll need:

For the Chocolate Base

1/2 cup - digestive biscuits, crushed coarsely ( I used Vita Marie Gold)

1/2 cup - Bourbon biscuits, crushed

1 tablespoon granulated white sugar

2 tablespoons Drinking chocolate powder (I used Cadbury's)

1/2 teaspoon salt

5 tablespoons of butter, melted

Directions

Mix all the dry ingredients together and add in the butter and combine. Now press this slightly wet mixture firmly onto the base of your pie dish or if making individual servings, into bowls. Cover and refrigerate while you make the filling.

For the Pudding

1/4 cup (30 grams) cornstarch
1/2 cup (100 grams) sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt
3 cups (710 ml) whole milk
6 ounces (170 grams) semi- or bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped (or 1 cup good chocolate chips)
1 teaspoon (5 ml) pure vanilla extract
Directions
Combine the cornstarch, sugar and salt in a medium saucepan, Slowly whisk in the milk, in a thin steam at first so that lumps don’t form, then more quickly once the cornstarch mixture is smoothly incorporated. Place over medium-low heat and stir occasionally, scraping the bottom and sides. Use a whisk as necessary should lumps begin to form. After 10 minutes or so (slower over lower heat is better, to give the cornstarch time to cook), before it starts to simmer, the mixture should begin to thicken, enough that it will coat the back of a spoon. Add the chocolate, and continue stirring for another 2 to 4 minutes, until chocolate is fully incorporated and mixture is quite thick. Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla.

If you’re concerned about lumps: Run mixture through a fine-mesh strainer.

Remove the pie base from the refrigerator and pour the pudding mixture in. Cover with plastic wrap on top of the pudding and smooth it gently against the surface before refrigerating, about 2 to 3 hours.

To serve, remove the plastic wrap, top with whipped cream and chocolate shavings. Eat!

If you are not making pie (your loss), distribute among individual pudding cups or one large serving bowl, and chill until it is cool and set, about 2 to 3 hours. Cover with plastic wrap on top of the pudding and smooth it gently against the surface before refrigerating, to prevent pudding skin from forming.

Until next time, Happy Baking! and have a blessedly wonderful New Year :)

My Fail proof Brownie Recipe

Brownies...just saying the word makes me think of warm, chocolatey and chewy slices of goodness which will instantly put anyone in a good mood. A brownie will make you more friends than anything else. And why not, when it tastes so good! And I am sure that anyone with access to an oven would have baked a brownie at least once in their lives. Brownies can be used for just about anything...for example, You have messed up big time and need to say sorry - bake some awesome brownies, pack it very well and give it to the person...and you will definitely be forgiven. Have some guests coming at the last minute for dinner and you have no dessert, whip up brownies, serve with whipped cream and caramel or chocolate ganache...Voila! you have a 'killer' dessert. Your child has a bake sale at school, make a batch of brownies. So many uses for such a simple thing!

Here's what wikipedia has to say on the subject: "A chocolate brownie is a flat, baked square or bar developed in the United States at the end of the 19th century and popularized in both the U.S. and Canada during the first half of the 20th century. The brownie is a cross between a cake and a cookie in texture.[1] Brownies come in a variety of forms. They are either fudgy or cakey, depending on their density, and they may include nuts, frosting, whipped cream, chocolate chips, or other ingredients."

Now, everyone has their own version of the best brownie recipe. Considering the amount of brownie recipes available on the internet, it's a definite possibility that everyone has at least a few recipes in their kitty. As they are fairly easy to bake and use only a few ingredients, none of which are fancy stuff ( unless you plan on wowing the audience with brownies using Ghirardelli Chocolate or Valrohna or even Hershey's Cocoa for that matter) it's inexpensive too. And moreover most recipes don't call for a stand mixer or even a handheld mixer for that matter (which is definitely a plus point according to me), and use only about two bowls at most which reduces the washing up (this I love, because I hate washing up!). I take laziness up a notch by spreading out some clean papers and sieving the dry ingredients on them ( see, I reduced washing up by using only one bowl).

I definitely have more brownie recipes than most, I have a whole book-full! I have every conceivable kind of brownies - chocolate, triple fudge brownies, s'more brownies, pretzel ganache brownies, blondies and even a lemon and lime brownie (this is my all time fav!)...and many many more! The brownie recipe below is one that I can whip up last minute, as this is a no effort brownie and I mix this using a whisk. And as the title says, it is a fool proof recipe!

My fail Proof Brownie Recipe
Ingredients:
All purpose flour 1 1/3 cup
Granulated sugar 2 cups
Cocoa Powder 3/4 cup (use a very good quality, I use Hintz or Hershey's)
Baking Powder 1 tsp
salt 1/4 tsp
Chopped nuts 1/2 cup
4 large Eggs (lightly beaten)
Vegetable Oil 2/3 cups
Vanilla extract 2 tsps
Milk 2-3 tbsp
Assorted nuts 1 cup ( to scatter on top of the brownie)

Directions:
1. Preheat the oven to 350 F (180 degrees Celsius). Line and grease a 9 X 13 baking dish.
2. Sieve the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and salt. Add the sugar and 1/2 cup of chopped nuts and mix well ( The nuts should be well coated with flour so that they don't sink to the bottom when you bake the brownie).
3. In another bowl, mix together the lightly beaten eggs, the vegetable oil and the vanilla extract. Add the dry ingredients gradually to the wet ingredients and mix until just combined. Add two tablespoons of milk to the batter and mix until combined. If the batter feels too thick add another tablespoon of milk and mix until just combined. Do not over mix.
4. Pour into the prepared baking dish, scatter the assorted nuts on top (if using) and bake at 180 degrees Celsius for 30-35 minutes or until a skewer inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove from the oven and let cool completely. Cut and serve. Yields 24 pieces.

Until next time,
Happy Baking!

So much for my steely resolve...

People who want to lose weight really shouldn't know how to cook, let alone make wonderful, full of calorie- desserts! I really hate myself right now. When I left home last month, I'd promised myself that I wouldn't bake or make anything that was loaded with calories, because, to quote my cousin Tanya- I put on weight if I breathe too much! And I've been pretty strong too, for someone who has a serious sweet tooth (and also has Anand sweets right opposite her house!). I stuck to a no rice diet, exercised religiously and even went to yoga thrice a day sometimes (overzealous much!). But two days ago, my steely resolve flew out the window as did the promise not to eat anything sweet.

It all started with the half finished loaf of bread in the fridge (damn you half finished bread loaf!). Last month, when I was home, I had this mad craving for bread pudding. I know what you'll think; of all things in the whole wide world, I wanted bread pudding. But it's not any ordinary soggy bread pudding I wanted, it was Nigella's Chocolate chip bread pudding! And the way she describes it get's your mouth watering. Since I didn't have all the ingredients she used, I made up my own recipe and the result an amazingly soft, crisp on top, slightly soggy at the bottom bread pudding with melting chocolate chips! Two days ago, I spied some bread in the fridge and I decided to make some again, since Tanya's just got braces for her teeth and can only eat soft food...and what better soft food than bread pudding. Again most of the stuff we needed, we didn't have them and we borrowed from our very nice neighbours. And once again the recipe doesn't fail and I have three adoring fans.I don't have a picture to upload coz it was finished so fast.

Soaked bread cubes packed with chocolate chips

After the bread pudding I was guilt ridden. I know I shouldn't have, but then I couldn't. And then I made Panna Cotta with Passion fruit jelly yesterday! I'd promised my aunt whose a vegetarian that I'd make something she could eat, so the panna cotta. The best part about it, well other than that it was fantastic, was that I told that idiot boy (read cousin Tushar) that I ate all the passion fruit! Bazinga! He ate most of the passion fruit without sharing, so I'd say he deserved it ( well, apparently not enough...coz he got a share of the panna cotta). Any way, I ate that too...so I have to do some extra exercise (youch). Here's a picture of the damn panna cotta with passion fruit jelly.

I love this...don't you?

Oh and here's a picture with my cousins Tanya and Tanu 

the one in black's Tanya, the pink lady's Tanu...The other one's obviously me the pretty one! :D

And now the recipe...I know Anton Mosimann's bread pudding is the best (or so I hear, I've actually never tasted it or attempted to make it either). But until I do, (or probably even after I taste Anton's) this is the most amazing bread pudding! EVER!

My version of Chocolate Bread Pudding with Chocolate Chips

Ingredients

250g - Stale bread (either white or brown) with the crust on, cut into cubes

100g - Chocolate chips ( dark or milk chocolate), I always add extra

2 eggs, at room temperature

500 ml full fat milk

1 tbsp - brown sugar (light or dark)

1/4 cup - granulated white sugar

1 tbsp - good quality cocoa powder

2 tsp - vanilla extract

2 tbsp - dark rum, optional

1 tbsp - freshly brewed strong coffee, optional

1 tsp - cinnamon powder

4 tsp - demerara sugar, for sprinkling

Instructions

1. Tip the cubed stale bread onto a greased round pie dish (approx. 23cm). Sprinkle the chocolate chips on and make sure to mix it well with the bread, so that they're evenly distributed.
2. In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk, brown sugar, granulated white sugar, cocoa powder, vanilla, cinnamon powder, rum (if using) and coffee (if using), until all the sugar is dissolved. Pour this mixture over the bread and chocolate chips.

3. Squish the bread cubes down slightly using your fingers and allow it to soak for 20 minutes.
4. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius. Sprinkle on the demerara sugar over the pudding mixture and bake for 30 - 40 minutes.

Serve hot with whipped cream or ice cream, or else just enjoy it as it is with a cup of coffee.

*If your bread isn't stale, then leave slices to dry first, for a while, on a wire rack before cubing and using.

Until next time (I will tell you about my love for Chuck Hughes)...Happy Baking!

How Do I bake when there's no power or even post on this blog???

I know I haven't posted anything in a while and now I am trying to make for it by writing 2-3 posts on the same day. I won't say I've been really busy, because I have and I haven't been busy; make whatever of that you will. I have been just plain lazy. I went back home to Coorg in June and the day I reached, it started pouring and still hasn't stopped. And to make it worse we had no power for weeks together (I felt like I was in a an episode of that TV show Revolution). Oh! and the icing on the cake (a cake that wasn't baked coz there was no power!!!) we had Elephants living in our coffee estate! The happy Pachyderm family ( daddy elephant, mommy elephant and a very mischievous and destructively happy baby elephant) decided to park their humongous bottoms next to the Jack-fruit tree which is very close to our house (I could actually see them from the bedroom). For three nights in a row they'd walk all over the place, did some intelligent construction so that their naughty Li'l baby didn't fall into our lake and gave our poor dogs a fright! Well all's good now, coz the pachyderm family decided they were better off in the forest.

Since I didn't bake anything, here's another recipe from the baking class...This is not as simple as you expect it to be, but if you read the ingredients list and the recipe thoroughly and follow the instructions you can't go wrong. And you'll have a beautiful cake as proof!

Marble Cake

Ingredients:

5 ounces (140 grams) bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, chopped

1 tablespoon brewed coffee (optional)

2 1/4 cups (295 grams) all purpose flour

2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup (170 grams) unsalted butter, room temperature

1 1/4 cups (250 grams) granulated white sugar

3 large eggs, room temperature

1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

1/3 cup (80 ml) sour cream or plain yogurt, room temperature

1/2 cup (120 ml) milk, room temperature

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C) and place rack in center of oven. Butter, or spray with a non stick spray, a 10 inch (25 cm) bundt or tube pan ( If you don't have one, use a normal round pan).

In a heatproof bowl, placed over a saucepan of simmering water, melt the chocolate with the coffee. Remove from heat and set aside to cool to room temperature.

Meanwhile, in a separate bowl, sift or whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.

In the bowl of your electric mixer (or with a hand mixer), beat the butter until smooth. Gradually add the sugar and continue to beat until the mixture is light and fluffy (about 3-5 minutes). Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in the vanilla extract and sour cream.

With the mixer on low speed, alternately add the flour mixture and the milk to the batter, in three additions, beginning and ending with the flour. Remove a little more than half of the batter and place into a separate bowl. To the remaining batter stir, or beat, in the melted chocolate. Place the batters into the prepared bundt pan by alternating spoonfuls of vanilla batter with the chocolate batter. Then, with the end of a wooden skewer or knife, gently draw swirls through the batter to marbleize  it ( make swirly patterns on the cake). Don't over mix.

Bake for about 35 - 40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center just comes out clean. Remove from oven and place on a wire rack to cool for about 20 minutes before removing the cake from the pan to cool completely. Can dust the top of the cake with cocoa powder or powdered sugar (I don't do this, what's the point of going to the trouble of making all those swirly patterns just to cover it up?). Serve warm or at room temperature. This cake is best the day it's made, but it will keep for a couple of days at room temperature or it can be frozen.

Well then...until next time... Happy Baking!

Baking Classes, power yoga classes and going crazy at a Book Fair in Bangalore!

The past few months have been filled with fun and absolute craziness. I was in Bangalore at my aunt's place. The first few days I spent calling every yoga class in Indiranagar ( I had to lose all the weight from the baking spree). Most of them were either too far off or offered only 3 classes a week, BUT I had a lot of weight to lose (according to my mother... not me, I think am just well rounded with just the right amount of curves!). Finally after days of phone calls, I decided to try out Fit n Fine Power yoga centre (next to Namdhari's on the ESI Hospital road) and I actually enjoyed it. I didn't even mind getting up at 6:30 A.M and walking from home to the yoga class. Now I believe all those people who said yoga makes you feel better on the whole, and it's not just about losing weight. You have a positive attitude all throughout the day and you just feel better about yourself.

After yoga class I really didn't have much to do with my time, so when my cousin suggested that I start a baking class for kids at home I jumped at the idea. Tanya designed a very beautiful flyer for me and told all her friends about the classes. Three people attended my baking class ( I know...so much for all the big plans). There was Netra (Tanya's friend, who's always super excited about everything), Soni (our neighbour and Tanu's friend) and finally Tanu (my cousin). It was all in a rush, I got all the recipes printed out and all the stuff ordered in 3 days. The 16 days of those classes were so much fun (Of course, there were a few disasters with the power going off and all) and the girls managed to learn some great stuff. Here are a few pictures.

This is the poster that Tanya designed

These are the cupcakes we made in the baking class, it was a moist chocolate cupcake with buttercream icing and sugar beads...pretty no.

And finally the book fair at the Basava Samithi Hall...this is where we went totally crazy! This book fair happens every couple of months at the same place and they sell books by weight ( 100 Rs for 1 kilo, so you can imagine my excitement). The place is stuffed with all sorts of books and arranged neatly too. Last year, I took my brother with me to the fair and we bought around 6 kilo's (and I found Keith Floyd's cookbooks). This year, Tanya and I went twice and I guess we bought around 10 kilo's! Tanya and her friend Riya went through all the boxes underneath the tables for more books. I got Keith Floyd's cook book again along with the Ballymaloe cook book. All in all, a really really good bargain (coz most of those cookbooks cost an arm and a leg!).
 And finally here's a recipe from the cooking class.These cookies are amazingly moist and make a great snack.

Chocolate Chip Cookies

Makes about 3 dozen

Ingredients

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

14 tablespoons (1 3/4 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature

3/4 cup granulated sugar

1/4 cup packed light-brown sugar

1 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

2 large eggs

2 cups (about 12 ounces) semisweet and/or milk chocolate chips

Directions

1.   Preheat oven to 350 degrees (180 C). In a small bowl, whisk together the flour and baking soda; set aside. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the butter with both sugars; beat on medium speed until light and fluffy. Reduce speed to low; add the salt, vanilla, and eggs. Beat until well mixed, about 1 minute. Add flour mixture; mix until just combined. Stir in the chocolate chips.

2.   Drop heaping tablespoon-size balls of dough about 2 inches apart on baking sheets lined with parchment paper (or you can use aluminium foil to line the baking sheets) .

3. Bake until cookies are golden around the edges and set in the centre 10 to 12 minutes. Remove from oven, and let cool on baking sheet 1 to 2 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack, and let cool completely. Store cookies in an airtight container at room temperature up to 1 week (I assure you, there won't be any left to store).

For my very first post here's the recipe for Chocolate Wontons

I made these first for a neighbor who had a party at her place. These little parcels filled with chocolate are very easy to make and taste wonderful.

What you'll need:

1. Wonton skins- 12 nos. (I made these myself they are pretty easy to make, but if you get them...it'll save you some trouble!!!)

2. Good quality chocolate nuggets- 12 pieces ( I used Cadbury's Dairy milk...it's good enough but you could use chocolate chips as well...Dairy milk dries up quick and will not melt again.)

3. Water about 1/4 cup 

4. Cornflour - 1 pack

5. Oil for frying

6. Powdered sugar for dusting over the wontons.

How you make it:

1. Dust your work area with cornflour. Roll the wonton skins till they are very thin (thickness of the wonton skin should be approx 1-2 mm). Each wonton skin must be dusted with cornflour before you stack the next one on it, or it'll just stick together.

2. Take one wonton skin..be sure to dust the work area with corn flour often. Add a drop of water on the wonton skin, spread it with a spoon ( Using a pastry brush makes this easier). Place the chocolate nugget slightly off center and fold the corners so you have a triangle. Use water to stick the edges together.

3. Heat oil in a wok. Test with a piece of wonton skin, if the skin turns golden brown within a few seconds, it is ready. Fry the wontons till golden brown. ( Make sure all the edges of the wontons are sealed well, or else the chocolate will leak through and burn...really bad flavor!)

4. Place the fried wontons on a paper towel so that all the excess oil is absorbed. Dust with the powdered sugar and eat 'em hot..:)