Sweets for Diwali : Microwave Besan Laddu

I love Besan Laddus and it is also my daughter's favorite sweet. With very little time on hand as mentioned in my previous post decided to make another quick-fix sweet in the microwave.

Ingredients:
1cup besan (chickpea flour)
1/4 cup ghee
3/4 cup sugar
3-4 pods of cardamom

Powder the sugar and cardamom in the mixer to form a fine powder. In the microwave safe dish, mix the ghee and besan thoroughly. Microwave on high for about 7-8 minutes stirringl every other minute. Check this mixture to ensure that there is no raw besan smell and it is well roasted. Allow it to cool completely.  Add the powdered sugar and cardamom, mix well and form small round balls. Decorate as required.

Sweets for Diwali : Microwave Doodh (Milk) Peda

Diwali is just a day away, I am working on Sunday and through Diwali. With very little time on hand and determination to make sweets at home, I decided on a couple of quick fixes as suggested by dear Anasuya aunty.

I saw lots of variations of this quick and easy sweet recipe all over the internet and finally came up with this version. Never enjoyed microwave cooking as much as making instant Doodh Peda this morning. All you need is three ingredients and three minutes of microwave cooking time. Yes, that's right - just three minutes (or a little more in some microwaves) to make this delicious peda.

Ingredients:
1 tin sweetened condensed milk
4 cups milk powder
50gms butter

Melt the butter for 10 seconds in a microwave safe dish. Combine the melted butter, condensed milk and milk powder and mix thoroughly. Microwave on high for three minutes, stirring every one minute. The cooking time actually varies for each microwave. The mixture will get to a crumble consistency - that is when you know it is done. Remove from microwave and allow to cool. Grease palms and form small round pedas. Decorate with dry fruits.

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.

Caperberry, Dickenson Road : Restaurant Review

‘Provocation of Desire’ is what “caper berry” means in Hebrew and namma Caperberry lives up to its name for sure.

When Chetan Kamani, a foodie, organized an elaborate continental vegetarian dinner and tasting session at Caperberry for the Foodies in Bangalore group I was thrilled and marked the date on my calendar for two reasons; I love European cuisine and it was my first dining experience at Caperberry. And boy, what an experience it was!

We were treated to an elaborate six course dinner cooked using a food science called molecular gastronomy!

And that's right - a six course spread with a variety of exotic dishes - something like this;

Warm carrot and fennel soufflé with almond cream 

 Pan tossed asparagus, yellow bell pepper and tofu with honey chilli glaze

Avocado and mint gazpacho; Avocado cannelloni with cucumber and jalapeno's

 Tomato and roasted beetroot with feta cheese, arugula and sherry vinaigrette

 

Cauliflower and roast garlic risotto with panko crusted broccoli

Potato, goat cheese and onion perogi with herb butter sauce and sour cream

Spinach and ricotta gnocchi with char-grilled vegetables and pesto rosso

Roasted red and yellow bell peppers, sauerkraut and feta stuffing and paprika sauce

  

Ratatouille stuffed grilled portobello mushroom, saffron polenta, olives, garlic, chilli and extra virgin olive oil

Mixed beans cassoulet, wilted spinach and tomato basil sauce

 

Beet and honey caramel centred sponge cake with pineapple-celery sorbet

Baked pumpkin cheesecake with caramelized walnuts and orange sauce

Every course served was a visual and gastronomic delight. Food not only tasted good, but looked good as well. Quality of food in terms of freshness and flavour, presentation and service - just about everything was par excellence.

Every dish had a distinct flavour and there was nothing that I did not like or was not good. However, a special mention of the carrot and fennel soufflé for its delicate texture and flavour, the avocado cannelloni with cucumber and jalapeno dip for its yumminess and the way the avocado was painstakingly rolled, mind-blowing spinach and ricotta gnocchi and the beet and honey caramel centred sponge cake – I’d never had a dessert as delicious as this ever! 

Last but not the least – we had a demo of cryo cooking (cryo is Greek and means "icy cold") as part of the molecular gastronomy culinary trend. Basically, liquid nitrogen and dry ice become gases at room temperature, leaving no residue in the food at all. This technique has now become popular to make smooth ice creams and flavoured bubbles. Here, litchi flavoured cream balls were dropped into liquid nitrogen to make extremely smooth bubbles that are firm on the outside and soft inside. 

I popped a bubble into my mouth and it burst into cold and smooth litchi flavours that quickly melted away.

This post would be incomplete without mentioning the hosts – Shruthi & Abhijit Saha who co-owns Caperberry. Abhijit was constantly looking for feedback and very patiently heard what each guest had to say. And Shruthi - warm and friendly person that she is, put everyone at ease and took excellent care of the guests.

Caperberry is an expensive restaurant, but then, it is worth the money spent.

I am already looking forward to my next visit to, and that says a lot for sure.

Verdict: 5/5