Til Ladoos - Sesame Jaggery Brittle

In early November last year, the news broke on social media, as news breaks these days, that Tarla Dalal, India's celebrated cook book author, had passed away. As the news spread, the unanimous reaction was not for the loss of a cook book author but for a loss of a teacher. Almost every home cook who heard the news reminisced how they first started cooking, by learning from her books.

Her appeal lay in her life story that many could relate to. She didn't go to any fancy culinary school, rather it was marriage that prompted her to learn how to cook. From there she went on to take cooking classes and eventually, published her first cookbook, 'The Delights of Vegetarian Cooking' in 1974. She would go on to build a food empire, with over 150 cook books to her credit.

So, what was the secret behind her popularity? A couple of things, I believe. She catered solely to India's vast vegetarian population and took in to account their religious and social compulsions. Her recipes were tested and simplified for the novice cook in such a way that if you followed her recipes to their last step, they would never fail you. Look around my blog and you will see many of my posts on Indian food are her recipes and till date, none of her recipes have disappointed.

But, even more crucial was what she taught us through her books. She taught Indians to move out their comfort zone when it came to food. This was much before the age of television cook shows and the Internet and food blogs. Why, it was even before India had opened her doors to the outside world.

We were hesitant and at times, even ignorant about food outside our individual communities. She taught us not only about India's diverse cuisine but also introduced us in small doses to global cuisine. And her students were delighted that from their home kitchens, not only were they exploring Indian food but also the world's.

So, you had a South Indian woman trying her hand at paneer korma, a Punjabi favourite and a Gujarati lady attempting a Thai green curry or Italian cannelloni, even if it was a much altered version that catered to an Indian, vegetarian palate. And to keep up with the times, as Indians were confronted with lifestyle diseases, she even came out with cookbooks for diabetics and those battling hypertension and obesity!

Rather than being some intimidating, highly qualified professional chef with supersonic knife skills, she had a personality that reminded many of a family aunt or friend who you would turn to for a trusted recipe and advice. So, when I decided that I wanted to make til ladoos, a traditional Indian sweet that is made in the winter, I naturally turned to her website and it did not disappoint.  

For those not in the know, these ladoos are best described as having a texture similar to a brittle that is then rolled into balls. The ingredients, sesame seeds and jaggery are considered by Indians as traditional foods to fight the winter blues.

The recipe is a very simple one. Do take care while rolling them as they can be a bit hot to handle. These are a personal favourite and I reckon, for many of you out there too!

Thank you Tarla Dalal, for teaching us Indians to cook and to step out of our predictable, comfort zone when it came to food and explore diverse cuisines, from India and the world!! RIP!

White Chocolate And Coffee Truffle Brownies .. .. Baker-in-Disguise Turns Two!!!

A few days back, late into the night, I looked at the date at the bottom right corner of my screen and I kept looking. And then it struck me, it was on this day, two years back, I started this blog as a tentative, unsure effort with absolutely no clue on how it would all play out. Two years?!!? Time, sure, does fly by!

 

And as with all important anniversary dates, one can't help but reflect on the year gone by..

 

The first thing that jumps out at me is how I learnt to stand back a little, as with my photography, so too with the blog. No longer did I excessively obsess about blog stats or whether I got a blog post up every week or how could I get more page views. I stepped back and simply enjoyed myself.

 

I put it down to a little confidence in myself. By the end of the first year, I figured, notwithstanding all my clumsiness, I could follow a recipe to its conclusion and at times, even put my teeny personal twist to it. It wasn't about baking the best ever brownies or the fanciest cake or the most perfect, spectacular looking loaf of bread.

 

 

It was about reaching out and sharing with you something that had bought a smile to my face and I hoped it would be the same for you. It could have been a book or a sheet of music or the fruit of the season or the weather of the moment.

 

And as for the food, it was about anything that piqued my interest, be it a new technique or an old classic. Yes, I had my posts of grainy photographs and unimaginative writing that make me cringe, but this year the blog was a truer medium of self expression!

 

I'd say it was the tiny amount of confidence that I talked about earlier but more importantly, I owe it to you, the reader of my blog. When you dropped by for a post or you stayed for some time looking around or you came back again. When you read my post silently or you tried a recipe or you appreciated a photograph. Whether you knew me personally or you met me through this blog, I treasure every visit and every word of encouragement. Words will never be enough to express how grateful I am that you appreciate what I do!

 

 

And so to celebrate two years, I baked something that I would make if we were to meet in person for a cup of coffee. Because, increasingly this is what baking has come to mean to me. A way to reach out to people and share with them something, simple and fuss-free that would make them smile and their eyes light up!!

 

These truffle brownies tick all the right boxes. You've tried brownies and then you've tried brownies with their gazillion variations. But, you cannot get through life without sampling these little beauties. No one can not love them!

 

I have the lovely 'Popina Book of Baking' to thank for this beautiful gem of a recipe. These are extremely easy to make and crowd pleasers. The coffee ensures that despite all the chocolate decadence, these brownies don't get overpoweringly sweet. The white chocolate pieces not only provide a visual contrast in a sea of chocolate blackness but also some much needed textural crunch. Pair a chocolate brownie with a coffee chocolate truffle and this would be their love child, destined for higher glory!

 

 

As I enter another year of blogging, I want to bake more savoury and gluten free and learn to cook more  of India's diverse cuisine. More importantly, I want to hear from you. What do you like? What do you not like? Am I stuck in a rut with respect to certain aspects? Should I be doing something differently? Is there something you'd like to see more of on this blog? Please tell me.. I am listening.

 

I'll wait to hear from you. Till then, I'll leave you with a most heartfelt 'THANK YOU'!!

Dark Hot Chocolate

It was a quiet start to the year for me. Down with the flu, I made myself a cup of hot chocolate and decided to make a mental list of resolutions for the year ahead and reflect on the lessons from the past year. But, halfway through the cuppa, all that thinking got me drowsy and I thought to myself, since when did life turn out as intended or as anticipated. So, I ditched the list but that cup of hot chocolate, I kept. If you must know, I even splashed some coffee liqueur into it!!

No one can not like hot chocolate. I like mine with dark chocolate and flavoured with cinnamon and orange. And this one is no ordinary "milk with sugar and cocoa" hot chocolate. This is milk with some cream that is infused with cinnamon and orange zest, heated and then poured over some chopped chocolate. The hot, flavoured milk will melt the chocolate and result in the most delicious, thick hot chocolate that just keeps getting thicker and more chocolaty as it cools.

Depending on your taste, substitute the dark chocolate with milk chocolate if you want it sweeter and play around with milk-cream ratio to get the desired consistency.

I leave with you some of my favourite cookbooks that have enthralled and inspired me ever since I've started writing this blog. Some have taught me, some have appealed to my fuss-free nature, some have taught me to work with fresh and seasonal produce and some have simply spoken a language I could connect with.

A dear friend recently told me, "The best is yet to come..". With that beautiful sentiment in mind, I wish you and yours, all the best that life has to offer in 2014!! Happy New Year!!

Highlights Of 2013

There is never a better time to look back at the year than on its last day. It's a different thing that towards its last few months, 2013 seemed to be in a bit of a hurry but that discussion is for another time. I leave you with some of my top posts of the year. Some of them are my personal favourites and some of them are yours. Please do let me know which was your personal favourite and if I have missed out any!

 

Party safe tonight and I'll see you in the New Year!! Happy 2014, all you beautiful people! 

• Victoria Sandwich Sponge Cake / Croissants Et Petits Pains Au Chocolate 

Chocolate And Vanilla Marble Cake

And then for tea time, we had some cake, of course!

Continuing from yesterday's post, where I shared the spoils from an afternoon of baking. First, for lunch we had a savoury quiche and then for our afternoon cuppa, I stuck to the old-fashioned, homely charm of a butter cake. You might get adventurous and fancy from time to time but ultimately home baking is about the classics and you can never go wrong with a pound cake.

 

There is something so comfortingly simple about a pound cake, complete with that ruptured, rustic top that has a charm of its own. There are many adaptations to a basic pound cake with the addition of lemon zest or orange zest or dry fruits or even, chocolate chips.

This chocolate-vanilla marble cake is my favourite version of the classic. I am not really sure but I suspect it appeals to my inner child to see those swirls of chocolate and vanilla play around with each other and result in that 'marbled' effect.

 

The recipe is the same for a basic pound, butter cake. Then half the batter is flavoured with cocoa powder. Alternate spoonfuls of the two batters are placed in the cake tin and then with a skewer, you gently draw swirls.

 

The final result is just delightful. You have the firm but light texture that you expect from a sponge cake. You can not only clearly see the two flavours but you will also taste them distinctly when you bite into a slice. Apart from the visual beauty of that marbling, the interplay between the sweet vanilla batter and the slightly darker, not-too-sweet chocolate batter ensures that the cake is not cloyingly sweet.

 

Baking this cake reminds me why I enjoy baking. Its about simple ingredients resulting in a beautiful cake that is homely, rustic, delicious and meant to be shared with family and friends amidst some gossip and giggles. All that's left is a cup of tea!

 

Chicken And Spinach Quiche

After weeks of lacklustre baking, I got bitten by the baking bug yesterday in a big way. I don't celebrate Christmas, so I had the whole day as a holiday where I chose to stay home and bake up a storm. Ma was a bit bewildered with all the sudden action in the kitchen. I'm holding the weather responsible for this spurt of enthusiasm...the joys of a tropical winter!!

 

 

First up, for lunch I baked a chicken and spinach quiche. After all the sweet pie and tarts that this blog has seen, a savoury quiche has been on my mind. I went with a filling of cooked chicken, spinach, cheese and some celery, for some added herby flavour. Celery is one of my favourite herbs to add to food. So, I even raised the profile of the crust, by adding some celery to the pastry. It is a subtle touch that adds bags of flavour to this pie.

 

You can play around with your filling, as per your taste. Off the top of my head, I can think of mushroom, cheese and thyme, chicken and mushroom or even spinach, corn and ricotta. Just don't be stingy with the filling. I have used an egg-cream-milk mixture to bind the filling together. If you aren't generous with your filling, you run the risk of tasting more of the egg mixture, making it taste more like a frittata. I think I managed to get the right balance.

 

 

The filling was just right. My main ingredient was the chicken, with the spinach and celery giving not only some veggie flavours but also some needed visual texture. The creamy egg mixture binds it all together without in any way overpowering the other ingredients.

 

This quiche is a rustic and hearty dish, perfect for any family dinner. Make it as a part of a larger spread or if its just two of you, then it's a meal all by itself. I would, however, recommend some sort of green salad to infuse a certain freshness to help counter all the eggy creaminess of the filling. Come to think of it, this quiche would be perfect picnic food too, with its beautiful flavours and easy portability.

 

 

I do apologise for the poor quality of the photographs. We've been experiencing some overcast weather for the past few days and the lack of natural light has really affected these pictures. Moreover, I took them in haste with everyone waiting for lunch to start!!

 

Now, come back tomorrow and I'll tell you what we had for tea! Yup, it was a busy day in the kitchen!!

 

Gingerbread Men And Women

It does not matter whether you personally celebrate Christmas or not. In a month of holidays and partying, its just another excuse to celebrate. For the past few weeks, food blogs have been putting one Christmassy post after another. Procrastination, of course, saw me waiting till the very last for this post. At least, I got it up before Christmas!

 

I decided on the gingerbread theme. Its just so Christmassy.. you never hear of anyone making gingerbread biscuits, any other time of the year. It's only for Christmas!! And its a family affair, with everyone from kids to adults discovering their inner artist when it comes to decorating them.

 

Only one hitch .. I couldn't find any gingerbread cookie cutters, neither in Bombay nor in Delhi. Luckily, a darling sister-in-law carted these all the way from Down Under. I got the whole family, gingerbread man and woman and the kiddies, a boy and girl.

 

One you have the requisite cookie cutters, its all pretty straight forward. The dough is made in a food processor, then rolled out, cut up and baked. Once cooled, that's when the fun begins.

 

 

My advice to you, enlist the help of all those around you.. kids and adults alike. I did it all by myself and let's just say, I have new found respect for all the professional cookie decorators out there and their craft.

 

The photographs speak for themselves.. I am not the most creative nor the most patient. I did try to get creative with red accents on the clothing and red lippy for the girls. I strung all the kids together as a garland. And all my friends out there, do notice the curly hair on the women.. that's my personal touch!

 

 

And for all the observant ones out there, Rudolph the reindeer also makes an appearance, complete with his red nose. If you can't find him, look for the upside-down gingerbread boy in the garland. Go ahead and have your laugh for the day!!

 

Aside from all the decorating, there is also the taste of these cookies. It essentially has the texture of a shortbread with a mild ginger taste that matures with time. These would make an excellent addition to the cookie platter but they will be even better as edible Christmas tree decorations!! Engage the kids and you can imagine the fun with each one unleashing their artistic potential on these cookies.

 

 

Like I said earlier, whether you celebrate Christmas is immaterial. There is a spirit of love and celebration out there, embrace it and spread the joy. Wishing all of you a very Merry Christmas and a beautiful festive season!!