One Year, and Chocolate and Salted Caramel Cupcakes

This month I complete one year of blogging! When I started, I wanted a place where I could document all my recipes and the changes I had made to them. It was a place where I could keep a record of my little kitchen experiments. After 12 months of this (yay!), blogging has almost become like a way of life for me.

I find myself thinking about ingredients, food styling and photography whenever I see a new recipe that excites me. I don’t look at food as just something to eat now. I make a big effort at creating food that is visually appealing as well. I shop for cutlery now! When I travel, instead of clothes, I look for interesting mats/ bowls/ plates/ anything that I can maybe use to display food.

I have developed a growing interest in photography. I get into intellectual discussions with photographers about the best light and angle! It is like I am discovering a whole new me.

I think about twists I can make to everyday food so that it gets more interesting. The kind of books I read has varied.  Instead of fiction, I turn to cookbooks and chef biographies as a bedtime read. I even research on the history of the different kinds of food that I cook, and this has taken my knowledge to another level altogether.

I have met so many people through my blog – it has made me, a recluse, social! So many nice things have occurred; I have been featured in the Deccan Chronicle and gone on to write some columns for them. I have even written for the Twenties Hacker! I had the opportunity to meet one of the chefs I admire most, Ritu Dalmia, and even cook with her! I have become so much more confident and sure of myself.

I am so happy that I started blogging. I bought myself ‘Cake Days’ (the cookbook from the Hummingbird Bakery) as a Blog anniversary present and made the Caramel Cupcakes from it.

The instructions are different from the usual method of cake making but it all comes together beautifully in the end. Instead of the icing they suggested, I just used some salted dulce de leche as frosting. I cannot stop gushing about how great these are!

Chocolate and Salted Caramel Cupcakes

Adapted from Cake Days (USA / UK / India)

Makes 12 – 16 cupcakes

Ingredients

80 gms unsalted butter (I used salted, and skip the additional salt in the recipe)

280 gms castor sugar (I ran out and used powdered sugar instead)

240 gms all purpose flour

1 tbsp baking powder

¼ th tsp salt (skip this if using salted butter)

240 ml whole milk

½ tsp vanilla essence

2 large eggs

150 gms dulce de leche

Additional dulce de leche for frosting

Method

1.       Preheat the oven to 190 C or 375 F. Line a muffin tin with muffin liners.

2.       Sift the flour and baking powder. Keep aside.

3.       Whisk together butter and sugar until fluffy. Beat it until it is really light and fluffy. Add the flour, baking powder and salt. Mix on low speed until crumb like in consistency. Don’t mix too much at this stage.

4.       Place the milk and vanilla essence in a jug with the eggs and whisk by hand until combined. Pour 3/4^th of this mixture into the dry ingredients and mix together on low speed. Then increase the speed to medium and keep beating until smooth and thick. Add the remaining milk and the dulce de leche and continue to mix until all the ingredients are incorporated and the batter is smooth. The batter might look a little runny but it bakes perfectly.

5.       Divide the batter between muffin cases (2/3^rd full) and bake for 18 – 20 minutes or until well risen and springy to the touch.

6.       Cool it for ½ an hour on a wire rack and then frost it with the additional dulce de leche. I used all of the remaining 250 gms. 

The Flavour Thesaurus by Niki Segnit

With this book, I feel like Hermione Granger in the Hogwarts library, taking down a huge dusty book from the topmost shelf of the loneliest corner of the library and discovering what a well kept secret it was.  I feel like it’s a magical book – that each time I open its pages, I will come across some new information, something I didn’t spot the last time I read it.

Ever since I gifted myself this book last year on my birthday, I have wanted to write a review.  I was really scared to do so as I did not feel that I could ever do justice to it.

 The ‘Mighty’ Flavor Thesaurus, as I call it, is a compendium of 99 flavors and their pairings and seeks to give ‘recipes, pairings and ideas to the creative cook.’ It is divided into 16 categories like roasted, cheesy, earthy, brine and salt, woodland, citrusy and fresh fruity. Each category has a number of flavors and their pairings range from the traditional (apple and cinnamon) and contemporary (chocolate and chilli) to the bizarre (strawberry and avocado).  

Each pairing is also accompanied by a short description regarding why the pairing works and how to use the flavors together. Apart from that there are numerous recipes, personal anecdotes, tips from chefs all over the world, scientific facts,  and even restaurant reviews! At no point of time does the book get boring. It is a heady, imaginative, creative, inspiring and an extremely informative mix of history and culture (for example, did you know that in 1993, the Clinton’s pastry chef made gingerbread White House and no fewer than 21 marzipan likenesses of Socks, the cat?).  

This book makes you travel the world through its pages. You can visit Thailand to learn how to mix coconut and bananas, understand chocolate and chilli in Mexico or even stop over for a meal at El Bulli in Spain.

The anecdotes are hilarious and the observations are particularly witty. ‘Chocolate and Almond: is that what parental guilt tastes like?’ ‘People get superstitious about asparagus. Otherwise sane cooks will insist on cooking it in special pans, or turning the spears three times anti clockwise but never under the light of a full moon.’ ‘By reputation parsely is the Hail Mary to the sin of garlic breath.’ Other such gems dot each and every essay.

When I was not awed by the ceaseless imagination of the author, the food geek in me (or some would say the OCD part of me) thrilled at the neatness of the index, the alphabetical order, and the fact that I could find any pairing at any point of time just by referring to the flavor wheel.

This book is a must buy not necessarily only for the culinary geek but for anyone who enjoys food.

Buy it: US / UK / India  

Dulce de Leche

When I was a kid, it seemed like the entire human race loved to eat condensed milk straight out of the jar except me. I just didn’t seem to like to the taste, or even pretend to like it. It felt like there was a whole world out there of which I was not a part - like that one unpopular person in school whom no one invites to their condensed milk consuming parties.

Cut to 2012. And I discovered dulce de leche (dool  say – deh – leh chay). This is a South American sweet (though different forms may be found all across the world from Mexico to India) made from condensed milk and you can say it’s a form of milk jam if you like. Its basically a rich caramel sauce that can be used as a topping for desserts, in ice creams, a filling in cakes, cookies, cupcakes, as a spread on a piece of toast or eaten by itself!

The story goes that a woman was heating a mixture of sugar and milk in an army camp. Rushing to smooth out a discord between two captains, she forgot about her stove. When she returned, she found a smooth, rich and creamy jelly like substance in her pot that we now know as dulce de leche. A fortunate mistake indeed!

I had heard so much about this form of caramel that I decided to give condensed milk another chance. When I was looking for recipes, I found ones that seemed a little dangerous to me - recipes that involved immersing a can of condensed milk in boiling water for 3 – 4 hours. Uh – huh. No way, I thought. I do not want to like condensed milk that much. But then as usual, David Lebovitz came to the rescue. His method of making this is really simple. All you need to do is empty a can of condensed milk in a large shallow dish ( I used the one I make lasagnas in). The milk needs to spread out to caramelize well. It takes about 1 ½ hours in a hot oven. And the best part is that you can add sea salt, cinnamon, nutmeg or whatever you fancy to take the flavor to another level.

As of now, having gotten through the entire jar of dulce de leche, I’m quite content to call myself the queen of condensed milk. 

 Dulce de Leche

Adapted from David Lebovitz

Preheat the oven to 425° F (220° C).

Pour one can (400 gms/14 ounces) of sweetened condensed milk (not evaporated milk) into a glass pie plate or shallow baking dish. Stir in half tsp of sea salt.

Set the pie plate within a larger pan, such as a roasting pan, and add hot water until it reaches halfway up the side of the pie plate.

Cover the pie plate snugly with aluminum foil and bake for 1 to 1¼ hours. (Check a few times during baking and add more water to the roasting pan as necessary).

Once the Dulce de Leche is nicely browned and caramelized, remove from the oven and let cool. Once cool, whisk until smooth.

Store in the refrigerator until ready to serve. Warm gently in a warm water bath or microwave oven before using.

Plum and Peach Crisp

I find the monsoon weather a little puzzling. The moment I think that the heat is really oppressing and I need to make a dessert that is served cold, the weather takes a turn, there is a storm and I find myself wistfully thinking of something that is warm and comforting. In this season that has its own twists and turns, I thought of the apple pear crisp I had made a while ago and how it could be served both hot and cold. It could be eaten warm, out of the oven or even chilled the next day! Ah! Now that had so many possibilities. I remembered the lovely stone fruits that we get this season and thought I would replicate that using my favourite fruits – peaches and plums. Really, there is nothing in the world that beats a delicious crisp with a crumbly crust, and some fragrant fruit paired with a dollop of vanilla ice cream. 

I do not like my crisps and crumbles to be too sweet so I drastically cut down on the sugar. As the plums are quite tangy, I used less sugar and allowed the vanilla ice cream to provide the sweet edge. If you do not intend to serve this with ice cream, I suggest doubling the quantity of sugar with the fruit.

I made a really thick topping as I like a deep crust. You can use half the crust mix to line the bottom of the pan, put in the filling and use the remaining half of the crust as a topping.

I also like the fruit to retain its shape and texture and thus, I keep my baking time to a minimum – just enough so that the topping gets nice and golden and the fruit juices start bubbling along the sides of the dish.

Feel free to swap the fruits – mango and bananas would be a great combination as well!

Plum and Peach Crisp

Inspired by Dorie Greenspan

Serves 6 – 8

Ingredients:

For the filling:

4 medium size peaches, peeled and chopped

8 plums, peeled and chopped

½ cup sugar

1 tsp vanilla essence

1 tbsp flour

For the topping:

1 cup flour

1 cup brown sugar

¾ cup oats

A large pinch of cinnamon

A large pinch of ground cloves

115 gms/ 8 tbsp of butter (if using unsalted butter, add a pinch of salt)

Method:

1.       Preheat the oven to 350C or 180F.

2.       To make the crisp, add all the ingredients except the butter in a large bowl and sift it with your fingers to blend them. Melt the butter and add it to the mix. Use your hands to moisten all the ingredients thoroughly.

3.       For the filling, toss all the ingredients together.

4.       Pour the filling into a 8 inch baking dish. Scatter the crisp topping over the filling evenly.

5.       Slide the pan in the oven and bake for 30 – 35 minutes or until the topping is golden and the fruit juices are bubbling up all around the edges.

6.       Let it cool and serve warm or at room temperature with vanilla ice cream.

Chocolate Mango Banana Loaf

I call this my exotic tropical cake. It is dark, and the bits of mango in it remind me of a little bit of sunshine. It has the perfect texture, not too moist, not too dry. It’s  perfect for tea time, to be shared with friends on a lazy Sunday afternoon.

I found this recipe on Joy the Baker’s blog. This is one blog I would recommend to everyone! Her recipes are simple and reading her blog is like chatting with your best friend on the phone.

I tweaked her recipe a little by adding some cocoa powder and chocolate chips to the batter. This oomphed it up and added some glamor to the loaf.

The method is effortless though I do find chopping mangoes to be quite tiresome. When my grandma cuts one, its perfect, all the pieces are the same size. Somehow I can never achieve that and I’m glad that this loaf does not require perfection. I’m glad that I don’t have to waste fruit, trying to get the same size and shape (what always happens when I try and make cakes look pretty). Its only about enjoying your favourite fruit albeit a bit messily. Although I would suggest that the mangoes you use should be firm so that you don’t lose their texture when folding it in the batter. Also, the softer the bananas, the easier it is to mash them.

Go ahead and try it out before the mango season gets over. You know you want to!

Vegan Mango Banana Bread

adapted from Joy the Baker

makes one 9×5-inch loaf

3 medium or 2 large ripe bananas

1/4 cup olive oil

1/2 cup brown sugar

2 teaspoon  vanilla extract

11/2 cups all-purpose flour

½ cup cocoa

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 ripe mango, sliced into chunks

A handful of chocolate chips

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease and flour a 9 x 5-inch loaf pan.

In a large mixing bowl, mash the bananas well. Add the sugar, oil, and vanilla extract, and whisk briskly to incorporate.

Sift in the flour, cocoa, baking soda, spices, and salt. Use a wooden spoon to mix until the wet and dry ingredients are just combined.  Fold in mango chunks and chocolate chips.

Transfer the batter to the prepared pan and bake for 45 to 50 minutes. The top should be lightly browned and a knife inserted through the center should come out clean, or with just a few crumbs.

Remove from the oven and let cool for 20 minutes before transferring out of a pan and onto a wire rack to cool completely.

Banana bread will last, wrapped at room temperature, for up to 5 days… but you wont want to wait!!

Cold Coconut and Raw Mango Soup

I quite lose my appetite during the summer. The blazing heat and intense humidity of a tropical climate make me want to survive on just cold water or lemonade. It leaves me very doleful, to be honest.

So this month I thought of forgetting about baking and the oven and instead focus only on cool liquids and fresh salads, ice cream and sorbets. I wanted to eat stuff that was healthy, light and refreshing – preferably something that I could make without cursing the heat and wishing for an air conditioner in the kitchen.

The coconut and mango soup I made fit the bill effortlessly. Keep the ingredients ready and it can be made in a jiffy. Good Food magazine suggests that you drink it as is or mix it with plain boiled rice.

Cold Coconut and Raw Mango Soup

Serves 6

Ingredients:

1 tsp oil

2 green chillies

½ cup grated fresh coconut

2 medium raw mangoes, peeled and grated

1 litre, water

2 tsp salt

Tempering:

2 tsp oil

1 tsp mustard seeds

3 dried red chillies, torn into bits

1 sprig curry leaves

½ tsp asafetida

Method:

1.       Roast the green chillies in oil in a small wok. In a mixer, grind the green chillies, coconut and raw mango to a fine paste. Use a little water if necessary.

2.       Mix the ground paste with 1 litre of water. For the seasoning, heat the oil in a small wok and add the mustard seeds. When they splutter, put in the curry leaves, asafetida and dry red chillies.

3.       Pour the hot seasoning into the soup, add the salt and mix. I like having it cold – chill it for a few hours before serving.