“It is the present that matters and how well we live it.
And the future, we need not worry. It is what we make of it!” Nos.tal.gia
Plum Ice Cream {eggless}. I knew I’d need more pink this October. Remember when I said I had frozen plums while baking the Wholewheat Plum Frangipane Galette. It’s a feeling of nostalgia to see summer and stone fruit season end, a season I wish I could stretch; hang on to forever maybe. I do love pears and apples too, but my love for stone fruit overrides all that.
The plums sitting in the freezer were not forgotten one single day. It’s strange how you think you can freeze, store away, forget about something, or rather hope to, but that very something remains niggling in one corner of your head. These plums were like that. Frozen for just over a month, yet calling my name every moment.
I had a plum granita in mind, but the boy loves creamy ice cream more. With summer having been left far behind, creamy ice cream screams comfort and happiness. The Plum Ice Cream hit the right notes. It was delicious, fruity, sweet, hints of tart and full of natural plum goodness. It was PINK too, a really pretty shade and a great fit for Pinktober {Pink + October}, which as you might know is breast cancer awareness month.
It has been a tradition for several years to mark October with a tinge of PINKon PAB; it begins with a PINK birthday cake for Mr PAB in the beginning of October. This year we had a special Rainbow Cake for him, baked by the ‘soon to be 18‘ daughter. She had a field day dressing it up too {in pinkof course, with the pinktober ribbon in marzipan!}.
Thought I’d tie up this post with an interesting Easy Doodle Recipe Contest being hosted on Blogadda. Ahem… I thought doodling would come to me easy, but I have to admit I considered throwing the towel in too many times. All those years of doodling in school and college, notebooks full of doodles instead of notes, abandoned me. I was inspired by the daughter’s free hand doodling in her notebooks. Take a look …
… and then maybe understand why I couldn’t even share my shaky hand, embarrassing attempt! Anyhow, I tried in the spirit of competition, and in the knowledge that sharing the PINK would only help spread the message even further! With a simple, yet powerful message from the WHO, it’s never too late to know more!
Here’s my attempt at digital doodling {my freehand attempt was really bad}. The recipe is simple, fun and full of natural goodness. I hope you enjoy making this ice cream. If plums are not in season, or if you haven’t got a nice lot frozen and stashed away like me, you could always reach for other fruit. Frozen berries like raspberries, strawberries, and even blueberries would work well here.
Do taste and adjust for sweetness and balance of flavours. Plums have a tart edginess so there is no need for a dash of lime juice here. If you choose a sweeter berry, you might consider adding a tbsp or two of lime juice. And vodka would work well instead of kirsch. Alcohol doesn’t freeze, so it helps keep home made ice cream softer. Kirsch contributes to elevating fruity flavours in stone fruit ice creams, enhancing the taste beautifully. Vodka on the other hand has a neutral taste and is great for all ice creams.
Doodling is hopefully something I’ll work on in future. You can find below the Thermomix version of the ice cream as that’s how I make mine. The quantities are the same for both, only the fruit is frozen in the TM version. I also like to keep all ingredients chilled when I make ice cream. It helps quicken the freezing process!
Summary: Fruity and bursting with natural flavours, this creamy Plum Ice Cream is a wonderful way to incorporating more fruit in your diet. With simple everyday ingredients, it’s a simple make ahead dessert option. Serve with slivers of pistachios for a pop of colour!
“A good meal soothes the soul as it regenerates the body. From the abundance of it flows a benign benevolence.”
Frederick W. Hackwood
It was the cover of the book the minute I unpacked the couriered parcel that took my breath away! Southern Flavours – The Best of South Indian Cuisine sent to me for review from Blogadda, the largest community of bloggers in India. Rich, vibrant, full of culture & authentic recipes,a book that would definitely catch my eye in the book shop! I have a special connect with South India where I spent 5 years of my childhood. While in school in Bangalore, most kids would carry neat round steel boxes with curd, lime or tamarind rice with that sinfully delicious looking bright red pickle floating in oil on top, the contrast between white rice and red pickle completely fascinating. Others would carry steel ‘tiffin‘ boxes {no tupperware etc} filled with pillowy soft freshly made idlis {steamed rice cakes} with the magical ‘gun powder’ crowning it!Those years gave me a strong connect with South Indian cuisine, which for North Indians seemed out of reach 25 years ago. When we got back to New Delhi, I remember piling into the car every fortnight {with the dals and rice soaked and drained}, with my mother driving several miles to get the mixture ground. Specialised grinders were hard to find. Then the overnight wait for fermentation to take place; then the next morning the precious coconut was dehusked and ground into chutney. The reward – light as air idlis and crisp buttery dosas!My taste buds still tingle at the very thought of that vibrant food, so this wonderful book was really welcome. I was tearing through it and hit the kitchen pretty soon. Mine being a well stocked North Indian kitchen, I was pretty short on fresh ingredients like coconut and tamarind {my last batch from a sweet reader of PAB has been used up}. To make up, I had a leafy curry leaves tree in my backyard, and loads of ginger, green coriander and fresh chilies on hand!My first stop had to be curd rice as I do make some once in a while. I was really embarrassed on reading the recipe in Southern Flavours as my earlier curd rice attempts fell short on every level. Was soon stirring a big bowl of this delicious authentic tempered ‘tiffin’ favourite from Down South. The bowl was scraped clean … mmmm! It was full of flavour, healthy and comforting!The next stop was going to be snacky, something for the kids who love lentil patties or medhu vadas {recipe follows}. These are like an Indian version of savoury doughnuts, but made with a lentil batter as opposed to plain flour. Healthier {though deep fried}, crisp and fabulous in winter! I didn’t get to the chutneys {dipping sauce} and the family enjoyed them crisp out of the oil!I had trouble getting them into dough-nut shapes the first time around {tough is the word}, and on my second batch 2 days later, I had marginal success. I think it’s an art I yet have to master, but they are taste great in any shape! I now have tamarind soaking for a chutney, ingredients on hand for tamarind rice, lime rice, rasam {like a clear hot spicy soup} … and so much more!This is a sneak into a book packed with authentic and old recipes from Chandra Padmanathan, who adds a little trivia to most recipes, which is what makes the book all the more interesting. You get transported to another era, sometimes a wedding, sometimes childhood, sometimes sweet potato season … a culinary connect on every page!
Summary: A popular snack, normally served with idli for breakfast, and at all auspicious occasions. It can also be served as a teatime or cocktail snack
Prep Time: 15 minutes Total Time: 40 minutes Ingredients:
1 cup husked, split gram dal {urad dal dhuli}
1/2 cup cooked rice
4 green chilles {I used 2}
1/2 tsp asafoetida powder {hing}
1/2″ piece ginger, peeld and grated
2 tbsp finely chopped coriander leaves
1 sprig curry leaves
1tsp salt or to taste
Oil for deep frying
Method:
Wash dal. Drain and soak in 2 cups water for 2 hours.
Drain completely. Add rice, green chillies, asafoetida powder and ginger. Grind to make a smooth batter, gradually adding 1-2 tbsp water.
Add coriander leaves, curry leaves and salt. Mix well.
Heat oil in a deep frying pa to smoking point. Lower heat to moderate. Wet your hands and flatted a ladle of batter into a 2″ round patty. Make a hole in the centre and gently slip into hot oil . {Beware of trying this if you are not used to deep frying. Please exercise great caution when working with hot oil. I make small balls of vadas by dropping the batter gently into the oil with a teaspoon.}
Fry vadai in batches, turning frequently, till golden brown and crisp.
Drain and place on kitchen towel to absorb excess oil.
