Angel Food Cake w/Lime glaze & Raspberry whipped cream

The weather is slowly getting cold here in the North east and we had our first snow as well for the season.I was not ready when we had the snow fall over the weekend especially because of our trip to Florida, which was very warm.My daughter, however, enjoyed the snow and tried to make a snowman.After so much activity, it is nice to be back home and eat Dal and rice.We are still in the process of unpacking, with laundry piled up high.Overall, at the moment, my house in an embarrassment.

Before our trip, we had a party at our house, a potluck party and when everyone got main courses and sides, I made this Angel Food cake.At first, I was skeptical to serve the cake with Raspberry whipped cream.If it did not go well with the cake, I was ready to eat it all by myself.My love for Raspberry creams started when I made the filling for Macarons.Since Angel food cake is a very light cake, I combined Raspberry Jam with Light whipped cream.It was perfect but for those of you who don't have much fascination for fruit fillings and toppings, you can eat as is or with a dollop of whipped cream.

Adapted from Emeril's

• 1 cup Cake flour
• 1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
• 1 1/2 cups egg whites,about 12 eggs
• 1 tsp Cream of Tartar
• 2 tsp Lime juice (The recipe calls for lemon but I used limes)
• 2 tsps + 2 1/2 tbsps Lime juice
• 1 tsp cold water
• 1 1/2 tsps Vanilla extract
• 1/4 tsp almond extract
• 1 1/4 cups confectioners' sugar,sifted
• 1 tsp grated lemon zest
• Pinch of salt

Procedure

• Preheat the oven to 350F
• Do not grease the pan
• Using 2 parchment papers, (about 8X12 in size), sift the cake flour and 1/4 cup sugar 4 times, going back and forth between the papers
• Sift 1 cup of granulated sugar on another paper
• Beat the egg whites in a DRY bowl (absolutely no moisture) until foamy
• Add the salt, cream of tartar, 2 tsps lime juice juice, water, vanilla and almond extracts.
• Increase the speed to medium-high and beat until the whites are nearly stiff.
• Lower the speed to medium-low and beat in the sifted sugar, 2 tablespoons at a time, until the mixture forms stiff peaks yet is not dry.(Follow the instructions of adding 2 tbsps at a time. Learned the hard way)
• Sift 1/4 of the flour mixture on top of the beaten egg whites. Using a large rubber spatula, gently fold together. Repeat this 3 more times with the remaining flour mixture, each time folding very gently together.
• Pour the batter into a 10 inch tube pan and run a knife in the batter to take out any air bubbles
  
• Bake the cake until the top is lightly golden and the cake springs back when touched lightly, about 45 to 50 minutes.
• Invert the pan and let it cool for an hour or so.
  
  
  
  
• Run a knife around the inner and outer edges of the cake pan to loosen it from the sides.
  
• Combine confectioners' sugar, lime juice, and zest and stir until smooth. (The glaze should be thick enough to cling to the sides of the cake yet still fluid)Adjust it as needed. If the glaze is too thin, add a bit more confectioners' sugar. If too thick, add more citrus juice. Spread the glaze over the top of the cake, allowing some to drip down the sides. Let the glaze set before serving the cake.
  

Raspberry Cream

4 oz of light whipped topping (You can find that in the freezer section)
4 oz of Seedless Raspberry Jam
2 tbsps of powdered sugar

Combine them together and refrigerate it until you are ready to use.
Based on you sweet you like, you can skip the sugar or add more sugar.



Make it, eat it and enjoy it,

Hugs,
Shri

French Macarons with Raspberry Buttercream

Over the past few weeks, I have come across some wonderful macaron creations in blogs, be it Daring Bakers' Challenge or otherwise-Masterpieces, I must say!I have admired the Daring Bakers all along and I am simply awed by the cookies/cakes they bake and every time I want to join, I cannot muster the courage.
They don't call it a challenge for no reason, do they?I have tried making Milan cookies and as you can guess,they were in no shape to pose for my camera!The french macarons, on the other hand, tasted fantastic although the shape was slightly flat or should I say without feet as they call it in the DB circle?My guess, I made some mistake while whipping up the egg whites .Once you start eating these macarons, you cannot stop with one!

I have given you the exact recipe and procedure from the site and the link to the site.
Yields 30 two-inch cookies
From chef Alex Trouan, L'Artisan Macaroon

2 1/3 cup confectioners' sugar
1 1/2 cup almond meal
5 egg whites
Pinch of salt
2 1/2 tablespoons granulated sugar
Red food coloring

Filling
1/2 cup egg whites
1 1/4 cup sugar
1/2 pound room-temperature butter
3/4 cup raspberry jam

Preheat oven to 325°.
Sift confectioners' sugar, then add to almond meal in a bowl.
Whip egg whites with salt on medium speed until foamy. Increase the speed to high and gradually add granulated sugar. Continue to whip until stiff peaks form - the whites should be firm and shiny. Add a few drops of food coloring and keep whipping until desired hue is reached.


With a rubber spatula, gently fold in confectioners' sugar and almond meal into egg whites until completely incorporated. The mixture should be shiny and flow into itself when folded. When small peaks dissolve to a flat surface, stop mixing. Be careful to not over mix.

Fit a piping bag with 3/8-inch round tip (or bigger size for large macaroons). On a few sheets of parchment paper, draw circles 1-2 inches in diameter 1-2 inches apart. Flip the parchment paper over so the penciled side is on the bottom. Fit one baking sheet inside another one to double the insulation, then place the parchment paper into the baking sheet. (The doubled baking sheet facilitates smooth macaroons.)

Starting in the center of each circle, pipe the filling onto the circles, extending the filling out to the edge of each circle.


Bake 17-20 minutes. Remove macaroons from the oven. Let cool on baking sheets. When completely cool, slide a metal regular or offset spatula or paring knife underneath the macaroons to remove from the parchment.

For the filling: Warm egg whites and sugar over a double boiler until the sugar is dissolved. Transferred to a standing mixer and whip until cool. Once cool (slightly below room temperature), add the softened butter to the bowl, a little at a time, and whip until fluffy. Once all butter has been incorporated, add the jam and whip until incorporated.

Pair macaroons of similar size, and pipe about 1/2 teaspoon of the filling onto one of the halves. Sandwich with the other half and freeze for 1-2 hours to allow flavors to blend together. Bring back to room temperature before serving. Well-wrapped macaroons may be frozen for up to three months.


Note:You get Almond meal in Specialty stores, that is if you cannot find in the regular grocery stores.In case you cannot find almond flour, use sliced blanched almonds (not slivered) and finely pulse them.

Have fun,

Carrot Halwa

Hope you had a great Diwali! I am sure most of you living outside of India will agree with me that it is hard to get the same atmosphere as in India especially on Diwali-the diyas, crackers, home made sweets and the visitors at home!As much as I want my daughter to enjoy the same way I did during my childhood and growing up years, I know it is not possible. We try to make it as much fun as possible and as close to Indian Diwali that we can.
We put the clay diyas, wear new clothes (usually that will be just my daughter),light up the sparklers (they are the only ones we can burn in our county) and follow the family tradition of feeding the kids with sweets after they burn the crackers!
We do that for 3 days consecutively and we save a few crackers for Nagula Chavithi which comes after a couple of days of Diwali.We did no different this year.This diwali's sweet in my kitchen is Carrot Halwa.

• 1 Kg (2 lbs) Carrots, grated
• 1 liter of Whole Milk or 1 can of Evaporated Milk+1 can of Sweetened Condensed milk + Milk (about 2 cups = 16 oz) The combination of evaporated, condensed and regular milk should equal a liter, about 32 oz
• ¼ cup sugar
• ¼ cup Ghee
• 1 tsp of ground cardamom
• 3 tbsps Whole milk powder/Mava powder
• Handful of Cashews and raisins fried in ghee, separately

Procedure

• Heat milk and add grated carrots in a heavy bottomed vessel.
• Cook for about 10- 15 minutes until the carrots have absorbed majority of milk/liquids.
• Add Sugar and Cardamom and let it simmer for about 20 minutes until all the moisture from the liquids evaporated and the mixture is coming together.
• Add Ghee and the milk powder.Cook for a few minutes.
• Garnish with nuts
  

Note

• Adjust the amount of sugar to taste, I had a relatively mild halwa as I did not want to add too much sugar but feel free to do so if you like. Also, if you use condensed milk in the recipe, which I did, you may not need too much sugar.
• You can add more ghee if you don't like it dry.

Since I made this anyway, why not send it to FIL-Ghee, hosted by Sanghi of Sanghi's Food delights?

Have fun,

Chocolate Pots De Creme

This recipe caught my eye while I was going through Food Network Magazine.It was made in a blender by Food Network's Sarah Copeland!I was eager to try it given that it is made in a blender and more than anything, the name sounds fancy!LOL!
Besides that, my daughter is a big milk addict and likes to eat anything chocolatey!This goes to her!

Serves 6 to 8
9 oz Semi Sweet Chocolate,Chopped
1 1/2 cups Whole Milk
1 1/2 Cups Heavy Cream
2 egg yolks,lightly beaten
5 tbsps granulated sugar
1/4 tsp Salt
1tbsp confectioners' sugar

Place the chopped semi sweet chocolate in a blender.
Combine whole milk, 1 cup heavy cream, egg yolks,sugar and salt in a pan and bring it to boil by stirring constantly, about 5-6 min.



Cook until it is thick and coats the back of a spoon.
Pour immediately in the blender.
Beat it until it gets smooth, scraping down the sides with a spatula.
Pour it in small cups and refrigerate it until set, at least 2 hrs
Place the remaining heavy cream and confectioners' sugar in the blender and beat it until soft peaks form.



Top the pots de creme with Cream.

This delicious dessert is off to FIL:Milk hosted by Sanghi and CFK:Chocolate hosted by Hema, an event started by Sharmi of Naivedyam.

Off for now:)

Shri

Pineapple-Mango Upside Down Cake

A few years ago, it all started when I was throwing up food as soon as I finished eating. After evaluating me, the doctor decides to send me for an Ultrasound for any esophagus problems but to everyone's surprise they find a lesion in my liver. The next step was to find out if that was benign or malignant growth. While Cancer in general is bad, Liver Cancer is supposed to be worse!After a few tests, the doctor had asked me to go for a biopsy-a procedure I dreaded!I can still remember to this day how every one around me including me were prepared for a 'potentially unfavorable test result'.I went through biopsy and it took a few days to know the result.That was the toughest time of all..The Waiting period.Thanks to God, I was not diagnosed with Cancer, they stated the tumor as a benign tumor!But then I felt, it was close!I was very young then doing my Masters and ready to start a new job!I am not quite sure how I would have taken if I had cancer but since then I don't take life for granted.That was a night mare for me and there was not a single day I did not cry during the 2 month ordeal!When I look back,it seems like a trivial thing but at the time, it felt overwhelming.

Having said that, true heroes are people like Armstrong or Barbara who actually fought Cancer.

I was planning on some other dish for this event, but the cake seemed apt as the pineapple rings remind me of the LIVESTRONG bands!

Adapted from Martha Stewart's Pineapple Mango upside down cake from Martha's Baking Handbook

I followed the recipe almost exactly except for using a different dimension pan

1 9 inch Spring foam pan or 8 X 8 square pan

10 tbsps unsalted butter
1 Medium Pineapple ,peeled and cut cross wise 1/4 inch thick
1 Ripe Mango, peeled
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp baking powder
1 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1 tsp Vanilla extract
1/4 cup sour cream

Preheat the pan to 350 F.
Grease and line the baking pan with parchment paper.
Using a 3 inch cookie cutter, cut 3 rounds from the pineapple.Using half the size of the big cutter (about 1 1/2 inch cookie cutter), remove the centers of the cut out rounds.You could discard this or eat it:D You will get rings with holes in it.

Chop the remaining pineapple such that you have about a cup.Strain the chopped pineapple through a sieve to remove liquids from the fruit.

Slice the mangoes lengthwise, about 1/4 inch thick.Using the 1 1/2 inch thick cookie cutter, cut out 3 rounds from the mango slices.Chop the remaining mango to give about a cup of fruit.Place it in the sieve along with chopped pineapple.

Beat 2 tbsps of butter and brown sugar until fluffy.Spread the butter mixture in the bottom of the pan.


Sift the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt.Put the pineapple rings on the four corners of the pan , if using a square pan.If using a round pan, place the rings such that they form a triangle.



Place a mango round in the center of the pineapple ring.

Beat the 8 tbsps(1 stick) of butter and sugar until light and fluffy.Add eggs one by one, combining after each addition.Beat in Vanilla and add the dry ingredients(flour mixture)alternating with Sour cream, beginning and ending with flour.

Transfer the chopped fruit from the sieve to the cake pan.Discard the juice.

Spread the fruit on top of the cut out fruit evenly such that there are no gaps.

Pour the prepared batter on top of the fruit evenly.

Bake it in the preheated oven for about 50 minutes or until a skewer comes out clean.


Invert onto a cake plate and serve it with a scoop of ice cream.

This goes to LIVESTRONG with A Taste of Yellow hosted by Barbara of Winos and Foodies.

For now,
Shri

Brown & White, Burfi Bite! for CLICK

Its that time of the month and this month it is Bi-Color @ Jugal Bandi for CLICK!

Carrot Cake with Cream cheese Frosting

This is my first bake for the Sweet and Simple Bakes.Carrot Cake with the cream cheese icing is one of my favorite cakes and I was delighted to see that it is carrot cake this month! I love sitting in Barnes and Noble or Borders reading a good thriller and enjoying a luscious slice of spiced carrot cake. I have baked several cakes, mostly chocolate, but never a carrot cake. It is very rich with carrots and nuts and at every bite you get to taste ‘em!
My daughter is 2 today! And this cake goes to the cutie on her Birthday. Well, honestly, her first year was painfully slow but I have enjoyed every bit of her growing up in the 2nd year. Being a first time mom, it felt like a huge responsibility initially but I guess I am slowly growing into it myself! Having said that, I am not quite sure of her 3rd year-the terrible 2’s as they call it! Nevertheless, it is definitely a pleasure raising kids!

On to the recipe!
Changes I made: Raisins that you find in Indian grocery stores instead of Sultanas & ¼ tsp of All Spice instead of ½ tsp of Pumpkin Pie Spice.

6½ oz self-raising (self-rising) flour
½ tsp bicarbonate of soda (baking soda)
Pinch of salt
1 tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp freshly grated nutmeg
¼ tsp All spice
2 eggs
5 fl oz vegetable oil
7 oz light brown sugar
11 oz grated carrots
4 oz Raisins
3 oz walnuts, chopped

Cream Cheese Icing
3 oz cream cheese
3 oz softened butter
4½ oz icing sugar
½ tsp vanilla extract

For Decoration
Walnuts Chopped and grated carrots

Preheat the oven to 300F.
Grease a 5in X 9in loaf pan and line with a parchment paper.
Sift the dry ingredients-flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, All spice
Beat the eggs.
Add oil , brown sugar, carrots, raisins and walnuts
Now, mix the dry ingredients with the wet ingredients and combine the mixture such the ingredients are all well blended


Pour it into the prepared tin and smooth the top.
Bake it in the preheated oven for 1 – 1 ¼ hour or until a fork/skewer comes out clean.
Let it cool in the tin for 10 min and flip it onto a wire rack carefully and let it cool down completely.




Frosting: Beat the cream cheese and butter until combined well. Add confectioners’ sugar, vanilla extract and mix well. Spread the frosting on the cake after it is cooled down completely. Sprinkle carrots and walnuts!


This goes to Sweet and Simple Bakes, hosted by Maria and Rosie.

Peanut Toffee

A few months back, after eating one of those store bought chikkis /peanut brittle, I wanted more and decided to make it in the house. So I go to B&N and skim through some barks and brittle books and grab this super simple and super chewy toffee. Don’t ask where I got this recipe from! No clue whatsoever.I guess noting down the source info started only after I started blogging!

Makes about 2 pounds

1 1 /4 cups unsalted butter, cut into chunks
3 1/3 cups fine sugar
¾ cup water
¼ cup light corn syrup
½ tsp salt
1 cup toasted unsalted peanuts, finely chopped
½ cup dried coconut
2 tsp Vanilla extract



Grease a pan (approx measurements: 10X15).
Place butter, sugar, water, corn syrup and salt in a pan and cook over medium heat.
Let butter melt and allow the sugar to dissolve.
Increase the heat and cook until the liquid is golden brown in color and measures 300F. (on a candy thermometer).
Turn off the heat and carefully mix the peanuts, coconut and vanilla extract.
Pour into the greased sheet.
Let it sit for at least an hour to cool and harden.


Note:If you use salted peanuts, skip the salt.

This goes to JFI:Peanuts hosted by Pavani of Cook's Hideout, event started by Indira of Mahanandi.

Shri

Mango Semifreddo with Salted Pistachios

Mangoes are my first love!Being an Indian, I have grown up eating Mangoes, more than any other fruit, and the best of the lot in umpteen varieties. My dad and I shared the same passion of eating mangoes- morning, noon and night. And NO!! No Kidding!! I can still manage to pull it off, if only I can manage to get the tastier ones. This is an Italian dessert with an Indian twist. Semifreddo in Italian translates to 'half cold'. Semifreddo tastes very much like ice cream except that you don’t need an ice cream maker to make this.

I have made and eaten Semifreddos for a while now. They make for wonderful desserts. You can make this using Canned Mango Pulp (If using this, I prefer canned version that you find in Indian stores) or you can remove the pulp from 3 mangoes to make a little over a cup. Of course the size of the mangoes will vary the yield of the pulp but the juiciest ones are those that are small to mid sized. For those who are first timers with buying Mangoes/juicing them, I suggest you use the canned version. You can also use the Nectars that you get in the Food Stores but the taste will alter. I add Cardamom Powder and Saffron Threads to bring out the Indian flavors. This is one decadent dessert and its hard to make it sound anything but tempting.

• Toast the Pistachios in a pan on low to medium heat for 2 minutes by continuously swirling the pan such that the nuts don’t get burnt.
• Set them aside Separate the eggs from egg white in separate bowls.
• Beat the egg yolks with Sugar until thick and pale yellow.
• Mix in the Mango pulp gently In a separate bowl, whip the heavy cream on medium speed for about 4 minutes until soft and thick; Don’t over beat the cream
• Combine the cream mixture with egg yolks' mixture
• In a dry and a separate bowl,beat the egg whites on medium speed until soft peaks form
• Adding a tablespoon sugar at a time, continue beating on high speed until firm peaks form similar to a meringue
• Fold in the egg whites into the Egg yolks and Cream mixture very gently
• Stir in the Cardamom Powder,Saffron threads and Pistachios, if using.
• Line a loaf pan with Parchment Paper.
• With an inch and a half overhang, line the loaf pan with a plastic wrap
• Pour the Mango mixture into the prepared pan
• Freeze for at least 6 hours
• To remove the Semifreddo, invert the pan slowly onto a plate
• If it is difficult to remove it, slowly run warm water on the bottom of the pan.
• Cut into slices and serve  
• 

Chocolate Fondue

Fondue- A communal dish made with Wine, Cheese and flour is typically eaten with bread. Fondue stems from the French word ‘fondre’ –to melt. This dish originated in Switzerland. It was considered a peasant dish and was a way to melt the hardened cheeses. The cheese and other ingredients are often melted in a fondue pot. You can find these pots in a lot of kitchen appliances’ stores in all fancy shapes and designs. You could also use a regular pot, which is what I used for this recipe. You need to keep melting the cheese/chocolate such that it does not stiffen up. I make this fondue by melting Chocolate instead of Cheese and substituting Almond extract for liqueur;).You could skip this almond extract if you would like.The best part of it is you can use this as a drizzle on any dessert or eat it all by itself as pure chocolate

4 oz Semi sweet chocolate chips
1/3 cup heavy cream, to make it smooth
1 tsp Almond extract, optional
Bamboo Skewers
Fruits like Strawberries, grapes, pineapple


Heat the chocolate and cream in a pan/thick bottomed vessel. Keep stirring until it is silk smooth. Add the extract and stir until the mixture is smooth. Pour it in a bowl, gather around the table and dip ‘em in.
Note: You may need to reheat the chocolate to keep it warm. I substituted a regular pot for a fondue pot.
This delicious Chocolate Fondue goes to A.W.E.D Swiss guest hosted by Sweatha of tastycurryleaf, and created by DK of ChefinYou.

Shri

Almond Fruit Tart

What is the best part of a meal? Of course,it has to be the dessert! On any given day, I can trade my entire meal for a decadent dessert.Filled with delicious fresh fruit, this tart is a light dessert that is appeasing to both the eye and the palate.
This recipe is an adaptation of Giada’s (Everyday Italian) Raspberry Almond Tart.

1 sheet of Pepperidge farm puff pastry (Thaw according to the package directions)
1 cup of whipped cream (You will find this in the frozen section near ice cream. Not the rediwhip spray)
1 egg lightly beaten
¼ cup powdered sugar
½ cup sliced/slivered almonds, toasted
1 cup fresh raspberries
1 cup blueberries
1 nectarine/peach sliced
1 tbsp of Almond syrup
Chocolate syrup and cocoa powder

Roll out the thawed pastry sheet and flour the sheet lightly. Cut ¾ inch wide strip from all the sides of the pastry sheet. Keep them aside.
Preheat the oven to 400F.Brush the sides with egg. Attach the strips on top of the edges such that it forms a shallow box/square.Brush the border with the egg. Poke holes on the sheet with a fork and bake it until golden brown. Mix the whipped cream, almond syrup and sugar well. Dont overdo it. Fold the almonds gently into the mixture. Spoon the mixture on the baked tart. Decorate with fruits. Drizzle with chocolate syrup and sift cocoa powder.Serve immediately.



This is my entry to the Sugar High Fridays, guest hosted by Mansi of funnfood, a brainchild of Jennifer of Domestic Goddess.

Have fun:)
Shri

Blueberry Pound cake

This recipe is an inspiration from a Blueberry cake Recipe (I found it at the back of a calendar) except, there is an orange element in my recipe. I was going to one of my friend’s place and I was wondering what to take and I thought why not blueberry pound cake! This cake is very moist and is very fruity and tangy.I feel it is just perfect for Spring or Summer.They make a perfect evening snack and go very well with a cup of coffee or tea.


8 oz Fresh blueberries
1 stick unsalted butter, room temperature
2 eggs
1 2/3 cups all purpose flour
1 cup sugar
1 tsp baking powder
½ tsp salt
½ cup milk
½ tsp lemon zest and orange zest (combined)

For the glaze:
2 tbsp lemon juice
1 tbsp orange juice
1/3 cup sugar

Grease a loaf pan and keep it aside.


Sift the flour to make sure there are no lumps. Add salt and baking powder. Whisk together the butter and sugar and then beat in eggs until soft. Don’t overdo it. Add the dry ingredients and milk (Slowly so that there won’t be any lumps-One after another) to the egg mixture. Now gently fold the blueberries and the citrus zest.

Pour in the pan and bake in a preheated 350F oven for about an hour or until a fork comes out clean.

Glaze: Combine the sugar and juices and heat until the mixture is in the consistency of sugar syrup. Pour it on the baked bread (as soon as it comes out of the oven) and let it cool completely before you take it out of the pan.

If you feel upto it, you can wrap the pound cake in a parchment paper and tie an elegant ribbon around it!!