Celebration of chocolates (Part 3)

This is the last and concluding recipe of this chocolate cake series. The recipe I am sharing today is an Eggless Chocolate Coffee cake which is delightfully simple to make. This is a very moist and gooey cake. Chocolate and coffee together gives a coffee toffee flavour. I hope you all have liked these recipes as much as I have enjoyed baking them... happy baking!

 

Oil-3/4 cup

Milk-1/2 cup

Flour-11/2cups

Sugar-2cups

Curd-1/2 cup

Cocoa powder-3/4 cup

Baking powder-1tsp

Baking soda-1/4 tsp

Roasted coffee powder-2 tsp

Vanilla essence-1tsp

Boiling water-1/2cup

Choco chips-a handful

 

1.    Mix oil and sugar together. Add milk to this and continue to whisk.

2.   Add curd to this and whisk till bubbles come out. Add vanilla essence to this mixture.

3.   Add all the dry ingredients together like flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt and add to the curd mixture.

4.   Now add boiling water to the cocoa powder and ensure that there are no lumps. Add this to the cake mixture and mix well.

5.   Mix the coffee powder with few drops of warm water and add that also to the above cake mix.

6.   I threw in a handful of choco chips just to get that extra chocolaty flavour.

7.   Preheat oven to 190-200 degree. Grease a 9 inch baking tin and pour the cake mixture into the tin. Bake for 30 -40 mins or till the skewer comes out clean.

8.    Do not try to turn the cake over once you take it out from the oven until it has completely cooled down. This is a soft cake and it may break if you try to do so.

 

 

Celebration of Chocolates ( Part 2)

In the second part of this series I will be sharing with you the recipe of Chocolate Orange Cake. I picked this up from a TV show but unfortunately I don’t remember the name of the chef. The flavours in this cake are amazing and chocolate and orange are a match made in heaven. There are three stages involved in preparing this cake which may seem cumbersome but the end result is really impressive.

Ingredients

Orange – 1

Eggs – 4

Sugar – 1 ½ cups    

Flour – 2 cups

Milk – 1 cup

Cocoa powder – 1 tbsp

Drinking chocolate – 6 tbsp

Baking powder – 1 tbsp

Walnuts – ½ cup (optional)

 For the sugar syrup

Sugar - ½ cup

Water – ½ cup

Lemon juice - 2 – 3 tsp

 For the chocolate glaze

Butter – 100 gms

Condensed milk – ½ tin

Drinking chocolate – 4 tbsp

Cocoa powder -2 tbsp

 For the cake

1.    Blitz the orange in the food processor. If you like you can keep a few pcs of the skin of the orange in the processor also along with the pulp for that great orangy flavour.

2.   Mix all the liquid ingredients together followed by the dry ingredients.

3.   To this mixture add the orange and the walnuts. Dust the walnuts with flour before adding to the mixture.

4.   Grease a 9 inch baking tin and bake for 30 – 40mins or till the skewer come out clean. Take the cake out and let it cool.

For the sugar syrup

1.    Boil the sugar and water together till it comes to a string like consistency. Add lemon juice to this.

2.   Take a large toothpick and prick the cake all over. Pour the sugar syrup over the cake. The syrup will be absorbed by the cake within a few seconds making the cake very moist.

 

For the chocolate glaze

Heat butter along with condensed milk. Add cocoa powder and drinking chocolate powder to this and stir continuously. In the beginning it may seem the butter is too much but once you stir for some time it starts coming together. Take it off heat and keep on stirring. Pour over the cake and let it cool in a fridge. You can decorate with orange pieces.www.google.co.in

Celebration of chocolates (Part 1)

My city is all decked up and glittering with decorations and colourful flags, set to welcome Lord Ganesha. I have been hearing drum rolls everywhere throughout the day marking the beginning of the weeklong celebrations. The festivities have rubbed on me somewhat and have inspired me to do this tri part series on chocolate cakes. I will be sharing with you in this series three different flavours of chocolate cakes with three different recipes. Hope that you will also bring in the celebrations into your kitchens with these delicious cakes. The first cake in this series is the Chocolate walnut cake. This recipe is based on Hershey’s chocolate cake recipe.

chilligarlicandme

Ingredients

Flour - 2 cups

Castor sugar - 2 cups

Eggs – 2

Baking powder – 1 ½ tsp

Baking soda – ½ tsp

Milk – 1 cup (warm)

Cocoa powder – ¾ cup

Oil – ½ cup

Boiling water – 1 cup

Vanilla essence – 2 tbsp

Walnuts – ½ cup (chopped)

Though this is based on Hershey’s recipe but I have made slight changes in the process of making it.

!. Mix all the dry ingredients like flour, baking powder, baking soda, sugar except the cocoa powder together.

1.    Mix the cocoa powder in the boiling water and keep aside.

2.   Now beat the oil with the eggs till they are mixed well. Add the cocoa mix to this and keep on mixing.

3.   Add all the dry ingredients to this mixture.

4.   Now add the milk. Mix well and ensure that there are no lumps. The mixture will be thin.

5.   Coat the chopped walnuts with flour and add to the cake mix.

6.   Grease a 9 inch baking tin and pour the cake mixture into it.

7.   Preheat the oven to 190 to 200 degrees and bake the cake for 30 to 40 mins. Do check the cake by putting a skewer in the middle whether it is cooked before taking it out from the oven.

 

 Let the cake cool down before taking it out from the cake tin. You can serve the cake just like that or decorate it with a butter cream frosting with shaved chocolate and chocolate chips.

 

 

stuffed bhavnagari chillies

I found these gorgeous bhavnagari chillies with my local vendor and I immediately grabbed them to do this little experiment with them. So today I leave you all with the recipe of this delicious experiment. Generally, I do the stuffing of the chillies with potato or paneer but I thought of layering the stuffing, so you will find a layer of potato in the bottom, with tomato relish above that, topped with grated cheese.

 

Ingredients                                            Serves - 4

Bhavnagari chillies – 3

For the potato filing

Boiled potatoes – 2 (medium size)

Onion- 1 (chopped finely)

Green chillies – 1 (chopped finely)

Salt – as per taste

Turmeric -1/2 tsp

Ginger garlic paste – 1 tsp

For the tomato relish

Tomatoes -2

Onion – 1

Garlic – 3to 4 pods

Tomato puree – 3 to 4 tbsp

Salt – as per taste

Sugar – a pinch

Cheese-   ½ cup (grated)

Oil - for frying.

 

1.    Wash and dry the bhavnagari chillies. Slit them lengthwise into two halves. Deseed them and you will get the pocket to put your stuffing. Keep the chillies aside and do the stuffing.

2.   Now for the potato stuffing, heat 2 tbsp oil in a pan. Mash the potatoes. Add onion to the oil and sauté till they turn golden. Add ginger garlic paste to this.

3.   Now add the mashed potato along with turmeric, green chillies and salt. Sauté for few minutes till potatoes are mixed well with all the ingredients. Take it off the heat and let it cool.

4.   Now let’s do the tomato relish. For the relish, chop the garlic pods, onion and tomatoes very finely. Heat oil in a pan and add the garlic. Once the garlic turns golden add the onion and tomatoes. Sauté till they turn soft. Now add tomato puree along with salt and sugar and keep on stirring till oil separates from the sides. Take it off the heat and let it cool down.

5.   For the assembling, put a layer of potato stuffing in the bavnagari chilli and then put a layer of the tomato relish on top of the potato layer. Now top it all with a layer of grated cheese and grill it or microwave it for 4 to 6 min on high power.

 

It is ready to serve. You can serve it as a starter or as a side dish.

Tip: Please ensure that both the layers of the stuffing are equally proportionate otherwise the flavours of one layer will overpower the other.

 

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Roasted pork ribs with stir fried vegetables

 Love, love and love pork in any form and in any shape. I cannot stop myself from overeating every time somebody puts it in front of me. The recipe I am sharing today is so sinfully delicious that my husband often refers it as heavenly. The overnight marinating makes the pork so succulent that it actually falls off the bone and it hardly takes any hard work from your part.

Ingredients                                                           Serves 4

Pork ribs -  4  (one per person)

For the marinade

Barbeque sauce – ½ cup

Garlic pods – 4 to 5 (crushed)

Red chilli powder -1/2 tsp

Dried thyme – ½ tsp

Olive oil – 1tsp

Salt- as per taste

Pepper powder- ½ tsp

 For the vegetables

Carrot – 1 cup (cubed)

Cabbage – 1 cup (cut in squares)

Capsicum- 1 cup (cubed)

 

Oil for frying - 1 tbsp

 

1.    Wash and dry the pork ribs. Put them in a zip bag. Now add all the items of the marinade in the zip bag along with the ribs and mix well with your hands. Seal the zip bag and leave it in the fridge overnight. It is as simple as that.

2.   Take the marinated pork ribs out from the fridge and bring it to room temperature.

3.   In non-stick pan seal off the pork ribs on both sides till they start changing colour.

4.   Put the pork ribs on a baking tray and roast in an oven at 220 degree for almost 30- 45 min. Turn sides in between. Season with salt.

5.   Take out the pork ribs and set aside. Don’t throw away the lovely juice from the pork ribs that are left on the baking tray.

6.   Heat one tbsp oil in a pan and put all the vegetables and stir fry for 4 to 5 mins.

7.   Now add the juice from the pork ribs in the pan. Sauté till the vegetables are cooked enough but ensure they do not lose their crunch. Season with salt and pepper.

8.    Now place the roasted pork ribs along with the vegetables on a plate.

 You can also serve this dish with a generous helping of French fries or mashed potatoes.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Green peas with soyabean nuggets

This is everyday cooking just tried to make it nutritious and tasty. The ingredients are easily found in every Indian kitchen. Soyabeans are the most inexpensive source of protein and is a good option for vegetarians.

 Ingredients

 Soyabean nuggets – 200 gms

Green peas – 100 gms

Onion – 1 chopped finely

Garlic – 1 tbsp chopped finely

Ginger – ½ tbsp chopped finely

Dried fenugreek leaves (kasuri methi) -   handful

Red chilli powder – 1 tbsp

Turmeric – ½ tsp

Tomato puree – 3 to 4 tbsp

Coconut milk -  1 to 2 tbsp

Salt – as per taste

Sugar – a pinch

Garam masala powder – ½ tsp

Oil- 2 tbsp

 

1.    Wash and soak the soya nuggets in water for 10-15 mins.

2. Heat oil in a pan and add the chopped onions. Saute till they turn translucent.

3. Now add the chopped garlic and ginger to the onion. Fry for some time and then add the tomato puree.

4. Add turmeric and red chilli powder to the pan along with a few crushed leaves of fenugreek. Add salt and continue to stir till the oil separates from the sides.

5. Now add the green peas and soya nuggets to this spice mixture and ensure that the nuggets are coated in the masala.

6. Once the peas and the nuggets are cooked in the masala, add the coconut milk and mix well. Add sugar, garam masala powder and fenugreek leaves to the curry. Give it a good stir and take it off from heat.

 

You can completely dry of the gravy or keep some .It tastes good both ways.

 

Turai (ivy gourd) with mixed nuts and coconut

This recipe is again from my mother’s kitchen. This was my brother's favourite as were growing up and I think it still is.

 Ingredients

Turai- 500 gms

Coconut grated – 150 gms

Cashews chopped – handful

Kishmish(sultanas) – handful.

Turmeric- ½ tsp

Red chilli pdr – ½ tsp (as per taste)

Ginger paste – ½ tsp

Cumin – ½ tsp

Salt – as per taste

Sugar – a pinch

Oil

 

1.    Wash and peel the rough edges of the gourd or turai. Cut it in half lengthwise and then thinly slice the halves.

2.   Heat oil in a kadai and add the turai. Stir fry for sometime and add turmeric and salt. Keep on stiring till all the water from the vegetable dry up.

3.   Add cumin, red chilli powder, ginger paste to the vegetable one after another and keep on frying.

4.   Now add the grated coconut, cashews and kishmish to the vegetable. Add sugar and saute for another few minutes and take it off from heat.

 

Serve hot with rice or roti.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hing ke samose or shingara

Samosas or shingara as we call in bengali, are an integral part of every Indian home and I absolutely love having them. My mom makes the most wonderful samoses with cauliflower and potato stuffing. Another place that I remember serving crispy and yummy samoses with ginger chutney was in Binnaguri. When I was working in Kolkata a small shop in Mirza Galib Street used to serve one of the best hing (asatifoetida) ke samoses. I have tried to recreate those samoses with help from my mother and it came out quite tasty.

Ingredients

For the stuffing

Boiled potato – 4 to 5

Peas – handful

Ginger- 1 tsp (crushed)

Asafoetida (hing) – a pinch

Green chillies – 1 tsp (chopped finely)

Black pepper - a pinch

Sugar – pinch

Ghee or clarified butter – 1 tsp

Salt – as per taste

For the dough

Flour – 2 cups or 300 gms approx

Baking powder – 1 tbsp

Oil – 10 to 15 ml

Salt – as per taste

Water -  as per requirement.

 It is better to do the stuffing first so that the mixture cools down before we put it in the dough.

1.    Heat little oil in a fry pan and add crushed ginger alongwith the hing. Be careful that they don’t burn.

2.   Add the boiled potatoes and the green peas. Saute for some time.

3.   Now add salt, green chillies, pepper, sugar one by one to the potato mixture and continue to saute them.

4.   Once the peas have softened turn off the heat and sprinkle ghee over the mixture. Leave it aside to cool down to room temperature.

5.   For the dough, mix baking powder and salt in the flour. Now add oil little by little to the flour. Keep on mixing with your fingers till it resembles sand grains. Now add water to this mixture and shape it into a soft dough. Keep this dough in the refrigerator for half n hour. This will make it easy to roll.

6.    Now divide the dough into equal portions and roll out into round shapes (14cms long approx). Do not roll out the dough too thin. Cut the rolled out dough into equal halves. Each half makes one samosa.

7.   Now take both the edges of cut strip of the dough and shape it like a cone and join both the ends using little water. Fill the stuffing in the cone and seal the mouth of the samosas again with little water.

8.     Deep fry them in sufficient oil till they turn golden brown.

9.   Serve hot with tomato sauce or chutney.

 

 Tip: To enhance the flavour of hing in the samosas you can add little hing to the water when you are mixing the dough or when you are sealing the edges.

 

 

 

 

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Strawberry & pomegranate mousse

Strawberry & Pomegranate mousse

Friendship is a process of knowing the other person which may sometimes happen instantly over a cup of coffee or it may take a few days or years. But whatever it maybe, once you are friends it really does not matter whether you have not spoken for days or not met them for years. You are on the same page as soon as you meet or as soon as you speak. It is indeed heart warming and brings such joy that cannot be explained in words. Yesterday, I had such a warm and glowing evening with old friends as we walked down the memory lane over strawberry & pomegranate mousse....

Ingredients

 Eggs -  3

Cream – 100 ml

White chocolate – 120 gms

Castor Sugar – ½ cup (as per taste)

Strawberry crush

Pomegranate kernels – 1 cup

 

!. Whip the cream till it gets to soft peaks while adding sugar to it.

2. Separate the whites and the yolks. Now whip the eggs whites till they come to soft peaks and set aside in a cool place.

3. Melt the chocolate on a double boiler and add the egg yolks and whisk thoroughly with melted chocolate.

4. Now mix the whipped cream with the egg whites with a spatula very gently. Be careful of not over doing it.

5. Now add the chocolate and egg mixture to this along with a few spoons of strawberry crush.

6. Now in a glass or mould put a layer of pomegranate kernels .Top it with a layer of strawberry crush. Now add few scoops of the mousse and top the glass again with some pomegranate kernels and strawberry crush.

 

Tip: If you are having problem with the mousse setting you can add gelatine to the whipped cream.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Panna cotta with jujubes

My son loves jujubes so I thought to make something with them just to brighten up his holidays, a little bit. So I made panna cotta with jujubes... its easy peasy!

Ingredients                                                 serves 4

Milk – 100 ml

Condensed milk – 100ml

Vanilla essence –

Jujubes – a handful

Gelatine – 1 tbsp

 

1.    Mix the milk and condensed milk in equal share and bring it to a boil. Let the milk simmer for a while.

2.   Add few drops of vanilla essence to the milk.

3.   Take one tbsp of gelatine and mix it with little warm water and let it bloom for some time.

4.   Remove the milk from heat and add the gelatine. Mix well.

5.   Take a handful of jujubes and put them in dessert glass or cupcake moulds. Pour the milk mixture on top of it.

6.   Let it set in the fridge for couple of hours.

Once they set, demould them and serve them upside down.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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