Caramel Pudding

Have you ever had a dream…to eat something…you keep dreaming…thinking and one day you either go out and order it or in my case…make it…what was my dream you ask??? The ans is Caramel pudding

This time around, had some condensed milk (Amul Mithaimate) with me so made this with that and all the other ingredients available at home…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ingredients:

Condensed milk : 100 ml
Eggs: 3 nos
Sugar: Add if required ( i added 2 tsp in addition to 100 ml of condensed milk)
Milk: 375 ml
Vanilla Pod: 1 nos

Sugar for caramel: 3/4th cup
water 1 – 2 tbsp

Method:

1. In a thick bottom – shallow pan, add the 3/4th cup sugar and water.
2. Heat the pan at a low – med flame till the sugar caramelizes and reached a golden yellow colour.
3.  Pour the caramel into an 8 inch round cake mould and let it cool.
4. Slit a vanilla pod length wise, add it to milk and bring the milk to a boil in a vessel.
5. Then add the condensed milk to it and mix well.
6. Let the milk mixture cool and come to room temperature.
7. In a separate vessel, break the three eggs and whisk it.
8. Once the milk mix reaches room temperature, add the eggs and mix well.
9. Using a fine strainer, strain the milk and pour on top of the cooled caramel.
10. Cover the cake mould with aluminium foil.
11. Fill a pressure cooker with 2 -3 inches of water.
12. Place the cake mould inside the pressure cooker and cook / steam the pudding on med flame for 15 – 20 min (do not use the whistle).
13. The pudding is ready when one can see that the pudding still wobbles on the top.
14. To serve, chill the pudding, run a knife around the edges of the mould to loosen the pudding, flip the pudding on a serving plate, cut slices and serve…

A snack & then some sweet

Bread and cake making is in the air…so here is something new,

A stuffed veggies calzone and a thandai flavoured cake (this cake was just yummm….flavours of badam, saunf, black pepper, melon seeds and khus khus..so Indian and yet a cake)

Goodies @ A Hundred Hands (1st & 4th Nov, 2012, Bangalore)

 

 

A Hundred Hands is a nonprofit trust whose mission is to help those directly involved in the creation of handmade art, crafts and homemade foods, to earn a fair and sustainable livelihood from their work…

This year the Hundred hands event is happening from 31st to 4th Nov at 4, AshleyRoad, Behind Hotel Ajanta,off Brunton Road Bangalore .560025

 

 

Come join me at this event on 1st and 4th Nov…here are some goodies i will be bringing…

The goodies all have a Karnataka flavour to them…

 

 

 

 

Whole wheat jaggery cake with toasted coconut and cashews

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mango and pistachio cake with smooth mango flavoured cream topping

 

 

 

 

 

 

Coffee flavoured banana bread / cake

 

Also a very interesting raagi bread with lots of flavour…see you there…

World Bread Baking I – Raisin & Walnut Bread loaf

You know what tomorrow is… Oct 16th and that means it is World Bread Baking day…

To celebrate this Monika Manchanda ( Sin-A-Mon) has created an event in Facebook for all to….to..well bake bread..so lets bake..

Remember the rosemary rolls that i made some time back…well here is a variation to that…

Ingredients:

Maida: 250 gms
water: 170 – 180 ml
Unsalted butter: 10 gms (2 tsp)
salt: 1 tsp
Fresh yeast: 7.5 gms (1.5 tsp)
Granulated sugar: 10 gms (2 tsp)
Walnuts: 30 gms (chopped)
Raisins: 30 gms
Olive oil: to grease the mold

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 200 degree C.
2. Measure all the ingredients and set aside.
3. Take the yeast, sugar and 40 – 50 ml of the measured water in bowl and let it sit for a min or so (till we see little bubbles forming)
4. Sieve the maida on the platform, add the yeast & sugar solution to it and start kneading.
5. Add the salt and continue kneading.
6. Add water little by little and knead till the dough becomes a thick mass, at this stage add the butter and knead the dough till all the butter is incorporated into the dough.
7. Continue kneading and add water little by little till the dough becomes nice and soft and spongy.
8. At this stage, place the soft dough inside or under a bigger vessel and let it rest for 10 – 15 mins.
9. Once the dough is rested, knock out or remove the air in dough by flattening the dough with hand.
10. Roll the dough into a thick sausage.
11. Grease the loaf tin / bread mold with oil and set it aside.
12. Place the dough inside the bread mold and let it proof in a warm place for at least 30 – 40 mins or till the dough doubles in vol / size.
13.  Bake in the oven for 15 – 20 mins / till when you hit on the top of the dough one hears a hollow sound.
14. Remove the bread from inside the bread mold and let it cool before slicing…

Rich chocolate cake and a birthday !!!

Last weekend this is how it went:

Baked an eggless chocolate cake
Decorated it with lovely ganache, whipped cream and red cherries

Hand deliver it to a happy friend…..
Cake cutting with friends, kids and family….

Eat the yumm cake and have a delicious lunch……thanks Aditya and Renu

Potato and Spinach Quiche

In a mood for something savory and something different…a quiche it is…

Ingredients:

For the pastry:

Maida: 240 gms
Chilled and cubed unsalted butter: 130  gms
Salt: 1 tsp
Icing sugar or sugar pwd: 1 tbsp
cold water: 1.5 tbsp

For the filling:
Spinach:  200 gms
Cheese: 50 gms ( i used 2 cubes of amul processed cheese)
Eggs: 3 nos
fresh cream: 200 gms
Boiled potato: 1-2 nos
salt and pepper: according to taste
Nutmeg pwd: as per taste

Method:

I) Pastry

1. Sieve the maida.
2. Add the chilled cubed butter, salt and sugar pwd.
3. Pinch the chilled fat into the maida and then rub the fat (between your palms lightly) into the maida till you reach a consistency similar to bread crumbs.
4. Add the cold water and bring it together into a lump (care to be taken so that the dough is not over kneaded, if it is over kneaded, the pastry tends to become tough and brittle).
5. Place the dough onto a cling film or box and let it rest in the fridge for atleast 30 mins.
6. After 30 mins, flour the platform and roll the dough till it is say 4 – 5 mm. (Alternatively one could also roll the dough between two sheets of butter paper)
7. Once the dough is rolled, carefully lift it and place it onto a pie tin / mold (i have used a 8 inch pie tin with loose bottom).
8.  Press the rolled pastry evenly on the edges and sides, trim / cut any excess pastry.
9. Using a fork, prick the base of the pastry.

 Pic 1

10. Blind Baking the pastry:  Line the pastry with butter paper and fill it with dried beans (moong or chickpeas etc) and bake at 200 degees C for 12-15 mins till the edges are lightly brown (Shown in pic 1).

 Pic 2

11. Once it is a little cooled, remove the dried beans and bake for another 5-10 mins till the base of the pastry is also cooked and get a pale colour ( shown in pic 2).

II) Filling:

1. Cook / blanch the spinach and chop them finely. (Remove excess water from spinach before preparing the below mix).
2. In a bowl add the eggs, grated cheese, nutmeg pwd, cream, spinach, salt and pepper and mix well.
3. Slice the boiled potatoes thinly and set aside.

III) Bringing it all together:
Pic 3

1. In the pre baked pastry, lay the sliced potato as shown in pic 3.
2. Add the filling on top of the potatoes and bake for about 15-20 mins / till done at 170 degrees C ( the baked quiche should have a slight soft texture and not a completely firm texture).

3. Once it is cooled a little, remove the quiche from the mold, slice and serve. Njoy!!!

Kaddu Raita

Some time back M had this raita at a friend’s place and couldn’t stop talking about how simple yet tasty it was.  Yes it was simple and tasty and yes it was so light…

Ingredients:

Kaddu / large gourd: 1 nos
curd: 3-4 cups
salt: according to taste
Jeera / cumin seeds: 1 tsp
black pepper:  5 – 6 nos
Chopped coriander: 1 Tbsp

Method:

1. Grate the gourd / kaddu and cook it either in a cooker or steamer.
2. Once the kaddu is cooled, set it aside and add curd to it.
3. Roast the jeera and black pepper in a pan, till the jeera is light brown in colour.
4. Grind the jeera and black pepper to a fine powder and add it to the curd mixture.
5. Add chopped coriander leaves to the curd mixture / raita and  serve chilled.