Apple Crumble with Warm Vanilla Custard

What do you do when lots of apples get accumulated and you can’t eat them all up? Make an apple crumble – quick and easy! And then, some vanilla custard.

You would need 6 ripe apples, cored and diced, 5tbs sugar, 3 small sticks of cinnamon or to taste, 6 slices bread and 4tbs cooking butter

Preheat the oven. Meanwhile, peel, core and dice the apples (I got my husband to do it as I hate peeling and chopping). In a thick bottom pan, cook the apples along with 3tbs of sugar on medium flame. Throw in 2 sticks on cinnamon so the apples catch the cinnamon flavour. Cook covered and stir a bit to ensure that the apples don’t burn. This will take about 10mins. Once the apples are cooked and slightly soggy with a little syrup, turn off the gas. Run the bread slices, 1 cinnamon stick and 2tbs of sugar in a food processor or blender until coarse bread crumbs are formed. Mix the butter and bread crumbs mixture well. In a greased baking dish, spread the cooked apples evenly. Top the apple spread with a thick layer of bread crumbs taking care not to leave any gaps. Press the bread crumbs layer lightly. Bake in a pre-heated oven at 200 degrees Fahrenheit for about 20 minutes, or, depending on your oven, until the bread crumbs layer is crisp.

While the apple crumble baked, I made some vanilla custard with custard powder that I happened to have. I served the crumble warm with custard. You could also add a scoop of vanilla ice-cream.

Elephant Corridor Homestay, Coorg

Biddanta Estate - a 20 acre coffee plantation near Siddapura, Kodagu/Coorg district, houses the Elephant Corridor Homestay.  Run by the warm couple Nimmi and Viju Chengappa, the homestay truly lives up to its name as there are herds of elephants on an 'estate hopping' mission ever so often in the area.

The homestay section houses five bedrooms, an activity room, an open kitchen and a common outdoor dining area in the landscaped gazebo. The bedrooms in the new wing are pretty and cosy with a common kitchenette. In the old wing, the rooms are fuss-free with basic infrastructure, although the pet-friendly bedroom, in my opinion can be spruced up a little more - linen/blankets can be free of must. However, I would like to add that we spent such a lot of time in the outdoor, that all this hardly mattered.

The stay offers a rejuvenating experience for the senses what with gradients of coffee, silver oak and nandi trees providing a lush green treat, along with clusters of seasonal fruit trees and spices.  We woke up to the chirping of birds, ate yummy Kodava and Srilankan food made by host Nimmi (she has her roots in Srilanka - hence the Lankan food), lazed, spent quality time with the family, listened to some very interesting elephant (and other) stories from Viju and fell asleep to the songs of the insects.

Nimmi and Viju pampered us with delicious food - special mention of the crispy ceylon parathas (my husband's favourite), aubergine salad (Srilankan style), vegetarian and chicken curries along with paputtu (steamed rice cakes with desiccated coconut topping), and agastya leaf pakodas amongst other delectable delights from Nimmi's kitchen. Nimmi also makes fruit jams from the fruits grown on the estate. We sampled some lip smacking orange marmalade, passion fruit, mulberry and banana jams.  Viju introduced us to a great combination - idli with a blob of butter and some banana jam...it was yummm!

I get excited and nostalgic every time I see a passion fruit creeper or fruit as we had this plant in the house I grew up in, and my mom would always make fresh juice for my friends - and lots of them used to drop in just for the juice. I happened to mention this one evening to Nimmi, she quietly listened to my story and nodded. That night - she served one of the best desserts I have had in my life - passion fruit pulp with whipped cream! Thank you Nimmi...I was very touched!

Last but not the least, the hosts understand the dilemma of pet owners and welcome their guests' pets (in spite of having their own three dogs). My pet Subbi had a blast running scot free, chasing hens and chicken and playing ball with gay abandon.

Head to the Elephant Corridor if you want to ‘do nothing’, eat awesome food and have a good time without a big hole in the wallet. Plus, you can take your pet along.

Star Fruit Salad & Cocktail

I had completely written off the exotic star fruit from my list of favorites. I always thought it was either too sour, sweet or something in between. But that was until I read Chinmayie Bhat's blog on the star fruit salad. It looked so delicious I just had to try it. 

Few days after I read Chinmayie's post, I saw a fruit vendor selling star fruits. I was immediately reminded of the salad and decided to buy some and try making it with my own twist.

Typically, star fruits are in season from July through September in India. Guess I was lucky to find them in the middle of October. 

This salad is pretty easy. I basically tossed in whatever fruits and veggies I had at hand. And the best part is that everyone at home loved it!

Ingredients:
2 star fruits sliced
1 avocado diced
A bunch of Indian black grapes
2 tomatoes sliced
Chopped coriander
Chilli powder to taste
Some white til/sesame seeds
Salt to taste

Dressing:
2 tbs olive oil
Juice of I lime
1 tbs honey

Method
Arrange the cut fruits on a platter. Combine the dressing ingredients in a separate bowl and whisk. Drizzle the dressing over the fruits. Sprinkle salt, chilli powder and sesame seeds.

Star fruit cocktail

I used the leftover star fruit slices in a cocktail. Was pretty good even if I say so myself !

Combine 30ml vodka, 30ml white wine, 60ml  orange juice, some sprite, lots of ice and  2-3 slices of star fruit. Tangy and refreshing!

No Bake Nutella Cheesecake

A Sunday afternoon lunch at a friend's place called for some dessert! As I was feeling very lazy ( remember it was a Sunday), I wanted to make something in a jiffy with ingredients I had at hand. Thanks to my 9 year old daughter (who is addicted to nutella) I had an unopened jar and some cream cheese!

This cheesecake turned out to be a big hit! Sinfully yummy and very easy to make. Best part is that it is a no-bake cheese cake!

Ingredients:

• Pack of 4 Marie Biscuits
• 100gms cooking butter
• Half cup milk
• Half tsp Vanilla essence
• One big jar Nutella
• 200gms Britannia Creamcheese
• 3tbs Drinking chocolate powder for dusting
• A dash of Hersheys chocolate syrup for decoration

Coarsely crush the Marie biscuits (in a mixer). Add softened butter and milk and mix thoroughly. Press into a spring form pan or a flat pudding dish to form a base of about 1 inch. Refrigerate for 20 minutes.

In a food processor/hand blender mix the nutella, cream cheese and vanilla essence until well incorporated. Pour this mixture over the biscuit base and refrigerate for 6 hours or overnight. Before serving, dust a little drinking chocolate powder and add a dash of Hersheys chocolate sauce.