I have to commit one thing, I am obsessed about bread-baking. I got motivated from the blog food52. When I saw so many people could make it. I thought of trying it. My first attempt was to try a recipe from red star yeast’s website and it was a regular loaf that I tried. It came out so well that I went crazy that I have try lot more recipes and keep trying trying more different types of bread. So, then I gave dinner rolls a try and they also came out really nice. Although, these attempts were successful , there were several moments when my yeast would not be foam up and so it would spoil the bread. Yeast is the crucial component in bread baking. (more…)
I know I know I have been really busy. But, I just started working. Oh my gosh, I really don’t get enough time to post recipes. Last to last week I participated in a Dessert Sugar Slam at a local high school athletes sports association. It was a fundraiser. There was a chili -cook off competition as well. But I only participated in Dessert Sugar Slam. I had decided way before the competition that I would participate and make cupcakes. But, as the competition was coming closer I started freaking out. Actually, we had to prepare for at least 200 attendees. I was skeptical in how am I going to complete this task of baking and frosting , not only that we had to transport them to the venue of the competition.
At one point I had decided not to participate and then all of a sudden I thought no I should , whether I win it or lose it. It’s an opportunity to test my skills and ability to bake for 200 people. That’s a huge number. Finally, I thought of making sheet cakes and red velvet would be the flavor of choice. As I had made up my mind, I started whipping up the batter one by one and dedicated whole afternoon in baking all the cakes. I had decided to make the frosting on the day of the competition which was a huge risk in itself. But then I had no choice after having made the decision to participate. It was make it happen moment in Heidi Klum’s words. (I am fan of project runaway). So sad Helen is out.
As I started frosting my cakes, I was out of cream cheese and butter for the frosting and had 3 more cakes to frost. My judgement in terms of quantities of frosting proved to be wrong. I love disasters. I had to rush Mr. Handsome to get me some more of the ingredients from the store. And, finally I frosted my cakes like frosting fairy in just 10 minutes frosted all the 3 remaining sheet cakes. Meanwhile Mr. handsome transported them in the car.
The venue was just 10 minutes away from where we lived. So, we were there in time, actually we were late. As people had not started walking in, I count it as on time. Hehee..And, then people started coming and tasting our cake gave us lot of compliments. I was on top of the world. All of sudden I forgot about how tired I was. People would tell us that those who have tasted our cake ,suggested them to come out and try our cake. Cool..right, yes. I was all hopes for winning it.
Some people would come and talk to us and then ask us our table number so that they could vote for us as there were three prizes. First place, second place and people’s choice. So let me share the recipe of this tasty red velvet cake. I have adapted the cake from Martha Stewart blog. And, have made it several times. You should also try it. It is the best.
I guess first I made it when I had invited friends for mozzarella making potluck. Then also lot of them really loved the cake. I made them as cupcakes. Here’s a picture –
Cupcake bouquet and extra cupcakes
Then, I have baked it for so many birthdays and also for my husband’s holiday party I made this same red velvet cake. Here’s the picture.
For the cake I followed exact recipe, but for the frosting I had reduced sugar from 4 cups to 2.5 or max 3 cups. I don’t like too sweet frosting or for that matter any thing overly sweet. But if you like sweetness go ahead with original cream cheese recipe provided in this link.
Finally, leaving you all with the sheet cake picture and me getting the trophy and my obsession with Rose piping. I did not win the first prize which came out as a surprise to us and many of the other attendees who told us we deserved to win, because the first prize winner had used ready made chocolate syrup instead of any frosting. But, I am totally happy for all that love that people showed us. And, I could only wish best for the winning team. But, I won the second trophy.
Red Velvet cake at Dessert Sugar Slam!Me receiving the trophy!
Ingredients: For the Dough 3 cups All Purpose Flour 2 Teaspoon salt 2 Tablespoon sugar 2 Tablespoon Extra Virgin Olive Oil 1 package of yeast 1 cup warm water, 110 degrees Method: Take warm water and add the yeast and leave it for 2-3 minutes till it becomes foamy/ frothy. If you are not confident …
I absolutely love scones for breakfast or with afternoon tea. Previously, I have tried making scones, but somehow they didn’t come out the way they really should have been. I have not failed so miserably with any other baking stuff. Seriously, something so easy and delicious was not coming out the way it should have …
Okay, so this is my first post being part of Daring Bakers Challenge. For all you people who do not know what daring bakers is should know its a fun community of bloggers who participate in a monthly challenge shared by another blogger. We all make whatever the challenge is and show it at the …
It’s Ganesh Chaturthi, Lord Ganesha’s happy birthday. India, celebrates festivals in the form of birthdays of Gods and Goddesses. Ganesha, is the son of the Shiva and Parvati. He is a symbol of prosperity and good fortune. Lord Ganesha, is invoked at the beginning or starting of any new endeavor or auspicious occasion in life.
Individual Blueberry Pie Serve 2 Ingredients : 1/2 All Purpose flour pinch of salt 3 Tbsp of Sugar 5 Tbsp of Cold butter cut into cubes 2 or more Tbsp of Ice -Cold water Teaspoon of almond extract handful of blueberries or any fruit of your choice 3 or more Tbsp of Sugar 1 Tbsp …
Cardamom Pistachio Shortbread Cookies Cardamom and pistachio is match made in heaven. Or I am just exaggerating. Because I love both the flavors. These cookies are readily available in India in most of the states. Specially, they are available in South of Gujarat state known as Nan Khatai.
It makes laugh on writing this post. Because I have this blog account since 2 years and finally I am blogging my recipes and with only few recipes I am also celebrating the anniversary. So, to celebrate today, I thought I would share this tasty, delicious, nutty, blueberry snack cake which an absolutely favorite of my husband and me.
I might have made this several times. Every time it comes out perfect. I just do not want to change anything about it.
Here’s a glimpse of the cake before I share the recipe.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9-inch square baking pan.
Whisk together the flour, cornmeal, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl.
Using an electric mixer or a food processor, cream the butter and a cup of the sugar together until smooth. Add the eggs, milk, vanilla, and lemon zest and process or beat until smooth. Spoon the flour mixture into the processor or bowl and pulse or beat just until the flour is incorporated. If the batter is in a food processor, transfer it to a large bowl.
Sprinkle the blueberries over the batter and gently fold them in, just until combined. In this way of mixing berries they settle down at the bottom of the dish, but if you want the blueberries to stay afloat in the cake then I would suggest you mix the berries with 2 tablespoons of dry flour and then mix it in the batter.Scrape the batter into the prepared pan, smoothing the top. Sprinkle with the nuts and then with the remaining 1 tablespoon of sugar.
Bake until the nuts are deep brown and a tester inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean, 40 to 45 minutes. Place the pan on a wire rack to cool. (The cake can be wrapped well and stored at cool room temperature for 1 day or frozen.)
Cut into any shape and serve it with a dollop of ice cream or a cup of iced-coffee. It’s darn hot outside.
I absolutely cannot wait to dig into the cake just as it is out the oven. Trust me that smell of blueberries along with lemon is absolutely divine. Personally, I do not like the flavor or taste of the cake once it is stored in the fridge. If I have to , then I prefer to heat it a little bit in the oven and then enjoy it.
I regularly submit recipes to Food52 site. The site has inspired me to take up extreme challenges and enjoy loved home baked treats. There are some really fantastic home cooks on the site. GO and check it out for yourself.
I took this Biryani to a food 52 potluck and everyone loved it. I accompanied this with some pomegranate raita. Try it, anytime anyone makes Biryani remember they really love you. Because its laborious to make it.
How to prepare rice:
2 cups Basmati Rice, soaked in water for atleast half an hour
salt to taste
1 cup Fried onions
1/2 cup coriander leaves and mint leaves, chopped
1/4 or less cup warm milk
few strands of saffron
1 cardamom pod
1/4 cup fried cashews
Boil water in a deep pot and once the water comes to boil, add the rice along with cardamom pod , cloves, salt into the pot. Boil the rice till they are 70 % cooked. Do not over cook them, we need all grains separate. If we will overcook it , it will become mushy. Once, the rice boils, take it off the stove and rinse it gently under cold water in a strainer to stop them from overcooking. if you wish, remove the cardamom pod and cloves and discard them. Leave the rice aside.
Take warm milk and slightly crush the saffron strands with your palm and add it to the milk. Mix it well and let it stand. Leave it aside.
vegetable layer
1/2 cup Potatoes, sliced into long pieces
1/2 cup Boiled green peas
1/2 cup carrot, chopped into long pieces
1/2 cup cauliflower cut into florets
1/2 cup green beans
1/2 cup Green bell pepper, you can also use mix of all three colors of bell pepper
1/2 cup paneer cubes , optional
puree of 1 large tomato
1 cup plain yogurt
2 teaspoons ginger / garlic paste
1.5 teaspoons or little more of green chilli paste
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 teaspoon fennel seeds
pinches turmeric powder
1/2 teaspoon garam masala powder
1 teaspoon red chilli powder
2 to 3 teaspoons Biryani masala powder, I prefer “Shan” special biryani masala which is easily available in any Indian grocery store
salt to taste
Take oil in a pan, add cumin seeds and fennel seeds, after few seconds add the vegetables one by one and cook them till they are well cooked. You can also roast vegetables in the oven for few minutes till they are nicely done. Once they are cooked , remove them in a bowl and leave it aside.
Again , take some ghee or oil in a deep pan, add the ginger, garlic and chilli paste and saute for two seconds till they start leaving off oil and then add the tomato puree, mix it well.
once the puree starts leaving the sides of the pan, add the spices : turmeric powder, red chilli powder, garam masala, and biryani masala. Mix it well . Let it cook for few more seconds and add whisked yogurt.
And, finally add the all the vegetables, boiled peas, chickpeas and cottage cheese (paneer cubes) into the tomato mixture and season it well with salt. Taste the spice level and the salt and if you want you can add more biryani masala or red chilli powder. but, consider the fact that we are going to layer these vegetables with plain salted rice so it would balance out the level of spices evenly.
Mix the warm saffron milk into the rice and leave just a little bit of it for the last part
Assemble the Biryani – Now is the time to layer our biryani and finally assemble every step. In a greased oven safe bowl or ceramic dish , layer the vegetable mixture and spread it nicely and evenly then layer it with saffron rice, sprinkle some cashewnuts, fried onions and mint leaves and coriander leaves. Again layer the vegetable mixture and repeat the steps of layering and final layer should be rice layer , sprinkle the remaining fried cashews and onions, mint leaves and drizzle the leftover saffron milk all over the rice. cover it with a foil paper and cook it in a preheated oven for about 20 to 30 minutes at 350 F.
Once done, remove the baking dish from the oven and let it come to room temperature and remove the foil and serve it.
Serve it hot with some cooled cucumber and carrot raita or pomegranate raita, and papad.
