Spinach and Chilli Straws with Yoghurt Dip

Last week, Indians celebrated their Independence Day and fortunately for all of us, August 15th fell on a Thursday. And that can only mean one thing.. an eagerly anticipated looong weekend!! Whether you took a much-needed vacation or you stayed at home, at some point over the weekend, you would have met up with family and friends.

 

 

There is something so relaxed and informal about lazy weekend brunches. It is about easy-going conversations, raucous laughter, good food and those simple pleasures that help you forget about that long list of pending things-to-do, even if its just for a few hours.

 

And then invariably, the 'remember when..' stories will start. Those timeless stories from your school or college days that have  already been repeated a million times. Not only have you heard them before, you probably were witness to the incident. And yet you laugh so hard, that by the end of the story, you are laughing and crying at the same time.

 

 

Helping those stories along are endless rounds of drinks and of course, the munchies that go with those drinks. Munchies in bowls that are conveniently placed on tables around you, so that you can reach out to them, without even realising it. Remember there is no place for dieters at weekend brunches!!

 

In that list of munchies, these spinach and chilli straws find a place. I found them in the 'Popina Book of Baking'. Isidora Popovic describes them as "crispy, fiery straws to die for with a glass of cold beer and a light dip." In other words, a perfect munchy!!

 

 

What caught my attention was the spice mix that she uses to flavour them with. It reminded me of the Methis Puris I had blogged about last year during Diwali. And the final product is almost like them, except with a different shape. Although, what Isidora's Serbian palate found fiery, my Indian palate found mild. If you can handle a bit of spice, I would recommend upping the red chilli content.

 

Else, these straws are crispy and the kind you will keep eating and then at some point, wonder why are you feeling so full that you can't eat another one. With the yoghurt dip, they are a perfect match to be washed down with a cold drink. The yoghurt dip is a favourite at home and can be had along with chips or even as a healthy filling for a sandwich.  

 

 

I hope you had a lovely weekend. Mine got the perfect ending, when a darling flatmate from University announced the birth of his beautiful, baby daughter. Parabens, meus amigos!! 

Buttermilk Scones with Plum Jam

Some pairings are just meant to be. Calvin and Hobbes, Batman and Robin, Cain and Abel, Taylor and Burton, Popeye and Olive Oyl, Pav and Bhaji, Bennett and Darcy, Fish and Chips, Tom and Jerry, Yuri and Lara, Vanilla Ice-cream and Chocolate Sauce, Asterix and Obelix, Gin and Tonic, Yin and Yang and so on. Well, add one more to the list .. Scones and Jam!!

This is a post that should have come up a few weeks back. I first made a batch of these scones, the day after I made my jar of plum jam. They were so good that we finished them before I had a chance to photograph them. So, I finally got round to making a second batch yesterday before the jam ran out.

These scones are along the lines of British scones. They are made even lighter by the use of buttermilk rather than the more traditional option of cream. Also, these are not sweet scones but plain ones with a hint of salt. I prefer that the sweetness come from the jam alone.

The final product is light and moist at the same time. According to the 'Hairy Bikers', the hallmark of a good scone is that you can pull it apart without any resistance rather than cutting them in half. The scones from this recipe pass that test with full marks. And that plum jam, I have already introduced to you earlier, is just perfect, even if it's me saying so!!

These scones are best served warm, just out of the oven. I had them with just some jam but you could have them with some butter and jam. And since these are not sweet, you can even add some herbs to the mix and they would be excellent with some soup.

This takes 15 minutes to put together and another 15 minutes in the oven. So, in thirty minutes, you have a delightful tea-time treat.

Now, how 'bout you tell me, some of your favourite pairings?? 

Sticky Toffee Pudding

For all the romance of the rains, there is also the practical side of everyday life in the monsoons. There are the traffic snarls, the breakdown of public transport, the smelly, damp clothes, the overflowing drains and lest we forget, the groaning and moaning of everyone around of how they can't take any more rain. And then just to prove a point, the rain gods decide to go all out over the weekend, complete with lashing rain and howling winds.

 

 

You know it is completely futile to even think of stepping outside. So, you either curl up with a good book, see a movie that you've already seen before, write a blog post on how much you love the rains or simply, make yourself a hot drink and stare out at the insanity of the weather gods!!

 

And then you make your way to the kitchen and decide to make yourself a hot pudding that will warm you up, in sharp contrast to the wet, damp weather that has started dampening your mood too. Knowing me, it should have been chocolate but I had a packet of fresh dates lying around. With Ramzan going on, the stores are filled with dates from the Middle East. So, what better time to put them to use and make some warm, sticky toffee pudding.

Sticky Toffee Pudding is a modern British classic that consists of a moist, date cake that is served with a toffee sauce and vanilla ice-cream or custard. For the recipe, I turn to another modern British classic, Nigel Slater. Yes, he's becoming a favourite out here!!

 

Like many British desserts, this dessert comes together very easily. The instructions are straightforward for the pudding and the toffee sauce.

So, what's the verdict?? The date pudding is delightful. It is moist, not too sweet and surprisingly light. The little bits of date that you encounter as you make your way through the dessert is what makes it special.

I wasn't a fan of the toffee sauce and found it cloyingly sweet. I'd recommend it only for the sugar fanatics. Come to think of it, I could have added some coffee to the sauce, that would have paired well with the dates and taken the sweet edge off the sauce. Next time!!

 

 

If you ask me, have the date pudding as a tea-time treat, without any added frills. It is lovely, just as it is, straight from the oven, warm and moist. A perfect accompaniment while you watch the rains, by the window with a warm cuppa!!

 

Linzer Cookies aka Jam Biscuits

Many a blogger will tell you how blogging has helped them discover hitherto unknown aspects of their personality. For me, working with food, fresh produce and props has helped me discover my personal sense of colour and aesthetics. Another unexpected one has been the discovery of me as a 'jam lady'. Funnily enough, I don't eat that much jam but I do enjoy making them. My mother, of course, can't get over how her kitchen klutz of a daughter found her inner jam lady!! C'est la Vie!!

So, how does this jam lady make her jams?? Well.. they are made with the fruit of the season, without any commercial pectin and not cloyingly sweet. I am not pedantic about their consistency. As long as it's spreadable, I am good to go! And this weekend, I made a jar of plum jam. Plums have a natural tartness which in my dictionary makes them a perfect candidate for jams.

 

And when you make jam, you've got to make jam biscuits. Whether they were made at home or bought from the supermarket, every one has had their fill of them as a child. Mine came from the local, neighbourhood bakery!

The ones I am sharing with you today are the cookie version of the Austrian classic, Linzer Torte. Originated in the early 1700s, the Linzer Torte is nothing but a posh Jam Tart that is filled with black currant preserve and then topped off with a lattice crust. The cookies use the same principle but a different presentation. It is two almond flavoured cookies that sandwich a layer of jam. The upper cookie has a cut-out in the centre that lets the jam peek out.

I made these cookies in two batches. I nearly gave up with the first batch. This is an extremely soft dough that wasn't helped by the extreme humidity that we are facing these days, thanks to the rains. The dough kept breaking and poor quality cookie cutters had a pair of flower cut-outs looking like a pair of eyes that people carve on the pumpkin during Halloween. If you look in the background of some of the photographs, you will get a glimpse of them.

 

Highly frustrated, I switched on the air-conditioning and decided to go with one big cut-out in the centre. This plan worked a lot more smoothly.

Are these cookies worth the effort?? Most definitely yes! The almonds are toasted and the resultant nuttiness enhances the flavour profile of these cookies. Once completely cooled, you will taste the subtler flavours of cinnamon and lemon. And topping it all off is that plum jam that retains a certain tartness that cuts through all the sugar while the jam itself gets more.. jammy! And the fruity freshness that bursts through is simply delightful.

 

The cookies taste even better the next day as the jam helps the cookies to soften and the flavours to mingle. So, if you have time on your hand, these cookies are worth your time and effort.

 

As a child, the fascination of jam biscuits was in seeing the vibrantly coloured jam peek out through the cookie. All these years on, the same fascination endures!!

Baked Apricots with Lemon Tea

Ever since I started blogging, I have become more attuned to local and seasonal produce. Look back at my earlier posts and you will notice the local, seasonal calendar of fruits is what guides the subject of my posts. This year, we've had a good and bountiful stone fruit season and I have had my fill of these fruits, fresh and ripe, just as they are!

But, as the season draws to a close, you can sense that the best of the season's produce is behind us. So, I have been looking for ways to prolong this season, with desserts and bakes that celebrate these fruits that aren't in their prime any longer. For instance, apricots rarely make an appearance in Indian markets, a fleeting one at most. So, when I saw a mound of them, freshly arrived from North India, I just had to buy them because for all my proclaimed love for fruits, I've never tasted a fresh apricot. Sad but true!

 

 

Unfortunately, while these fruits had the most beautiful colour, they were sadly lacking in flavour. So, I turned to my most trusted advisor on how to cook with the fruit of the season, Nigel Slater's Ripe. I can't praise this book enough and it hasn't disappointed till date.

 

I wanted something simple that didn't involve elaborate cooking. This recipe of gently poaching the fruit with lemon tea and vanilla was just what I was looking for. And it definitely did not disappoint. With ten minutes of prep and forty minutes in the oven, this recipe transformed a bland fruit into a dainty and elegant dessert.

The citrusy lemon awakens these fruits with their subtle zestiness while the vanilla and the star anise infuses it with a delicacy that washes over you with its simplicity. Paired with vanilla ice-cream, it is a subtle and light dessert that will be a perfect end to any meal.  

 

Much like a beautiful piece of music, all the flavours are in perfect harmony and this dessert enervates and calms at the same time. Try it once, it will awaken your senses!

 

Stone Fruit Tart

There is an old-fashioned charm and romance about a picnic in the park. It is about being a child all over again. And I am convinced that given a choice, most people would pack their picnic baskets with the same food that was in the picnic baskets of their childhood. And, if not that, then with the stuff they read about in their childhood books. Think Enid Blyton with hard-boiled eggs, jam sandwiches and lemonade.

 

So, why am I talking about a picnic in the park when its pouring buckets here in India. Well, because Facebook is bombarding me with photographs of my friends in the Western Hemisphere, out in the park, food laid out on the mat and them cheekily grinning into the camera whilst lazily sipping on their sangrias from mason jars!  

 



And, while I do love the rains, I really do, I wouldn't mind going for a picnic and stretching out on the green grass and mindlessly gazing at the blue sky. And I'd take this stone fruit tart along with me.

 

This tart would have definitely not been in my childhood picnic basket but when you are a food blogger, your friends expect something better than jam sandwiches! And, this tart is perfect for the occasion.

 

 

The tart is from one of my favourite baking books, 'The Popina Book of Baking'. What is unique about the tart is that the tart shell is filled with a sponge dough that is then topped off with fruits. As the tart bakes, the fruits will sink a little and the sponge dough will rise in places.  Once baked, you don't have to worry about soggy fruit or the filling oozing out, the sponge dough bakes like a cake making it ideal to transport and for picnics and travel.

 

 

I went with stone fruits but you could go with an assortment of berries like the original recipe or any fruit of your choice. But, remember not to be stingy with the fruit because they are the stars of the show.

 

As you bite into the tart, you will encounter an array of textures from the firm, tart shell to the soft, sponge dough to the ripe juiciness of the fresh fruits. It is the slightly tart, fresh flavour of the fruits that counters the sweetness of the sponge and tart brilliantly. For me, this tart celebrates the stone fruits of the season beautifully and that is reason enough to make this tart.

 

So, whether it is Central Park or Hyde Park or just, your cosy, dining table, this tart is a perfect companion for you and your friends!

 

Cherry Streusel Coffee Cake

I've been missing all June and I don't really have any excuse except to say that I just needed some 'time-out'. I can't even blame the summer heat anymore, 'cause the monsoon rains have arrived. And they haven't just arrived, they have thundered in and shown their might. The northern Indian state of Uttarakhand has borne the worst with unprecedented landslides and flooding. A thought and prayer for all the flood victims and a salute to our armed forces for their relentless recue efforts!!

As for the rest of India, we've also been getting more than our fair share of rains this month. And whether it is a lashing downpour or a persistent drizzle, on days like these it makes sense to stay at home and snuggle up with a good book by the window. And what's perfect to go with a good book, by the window, on a rainy day?? Why, a hot cup of coffee and some cake, of course!!

And that prompted me to make this coffee cake. A coffee cake is a regular butter cake that has a distinctive streusel topping. And no, it doesn't have coffee in it but rather implies that this is a cake that should be served along with a cup of coffee!! How's that for some baking trivia for your day?!

Its stone fruit season and there aren't too many recipes that work with fresh cherries apart from clafoutis and pie. That's when I decided to add a layer of fresh cherries, right beneath the streusel. The streusel is a combination of walnuts, cinnamon and chocolate chips. Although since I didn't have chocolate chips, I went with chocolate chunks. And while the chunks tasted great, they didn't really help with the visual appeal of the streusel layer!

So, this is not a good looking cake but don't judge the book by its cover. The fresh, juicy cherries, the toasted walnuts, the chocolate and the cinnamon, all complement and heighten the flavour profile of this moist, buttery cake and give you something new with every bite. This cake is open to adaptation - get imaginative with the streusel layer, leave out the cherries if you can't find any or try another fruit, plums maybe?! The cake engages your palate just as the page-turner that you read alongside, engages your imagination.

As for me, I'll get back to the book that has me completely engrossed. I'm currently reading, Khaled Hosseini's "And The Mountains Echoed". What's been occupying your book shelf lately?? Tell me!