Orange Caramel Custard is yet another version of the quintessential ‘Caramel Custard’ that showed up on our frugal dessert table quite often when we were young. This one is slightly more luxurious, and not like the wobbly one we had as kids from the armed forces. It’s also deliciously orange flavoured, the orange pairing brilliantly with the slightly burnt caramel. Steaming it in the pressure cooker is a breeze. Quick too!I’ve made several versions of this deliciousness. Just a custard, steamed it, baked it too, done a saffron caramel as well. There is something about classic desserts. They allow you to play with the basic recipe infinitely, and never cease to amaze. I’ve had a few misses too, and yet, even if the custard wasn’t perfectly set, it’s ALWAYS been great to taste!
Which is why I love making this Orange Caramel Custard. Even though I’m not an ‘egg custard‘ person, also far from being a sweet toothed one, the ease of making this keeps the family happy. What’s not to love about a five minute prep for a fast track dessert that you can make in advance. Flavoured ever so beautifully with the rind of keenus {local oranges available through winter in North India}, the way the zest pairs with the burnt sugar caramel in nothing short of magic.It takes so little to make something so good. Do try making it!
Yet another version of the quintessential ‘Caramel Custard’ that showed up on our frugal dessert table quite often when we were young. This Orange Caramel Custard is slightly more luxurious, and not like the wobbly one we had as kids from the armed forces. It's also deliciously orange flavoured, the orange pairing brilliantly with the slightly burnt caramel. Steaming it in the pressure cooker is a breeze. Quick too! You can always bake it, though it will take about an hour to cook.
Prep Time 5 minutesminutes
Cook Time 20 minutesminutes
Total Time 4 hourshours25 minutesminutes
Servings 4people
Ingredients
Caramel
3tbspgranulated sugar
Orange Custard
1 1/2cupsmilk 375ml
250mlsingle cream
2eggs
Zest of 1 keenu/orange
1/2tspvanilla bean paste {or 1vanilla extract
3tbspsugar
1 1/2tbspcornflour
To top
Fresh seasonal fruittoasted nuts etc
Instructions
Caramel
Take the 3 tbsp granulated sugar in a 7" cake tin. Heat gently over flame until the sugar begins to bubble and gets caramelised to a golden brown. Be careful not to burn it as it goes from brown to black really quick. Don't leave it unattended.
Once the sugar is golden brown, turn off heat, and swirl the pan around to coat the bottom {and sides if you like} with the carmelised sugar.
Place on counter to cool, and leave for the caramel to set, 5 minutes usually.
Orange Custard
Place a trivet in a large pressure cooker and cover it with water. Water should be about an inch or two above the trivet.
Place all ingredients for the orange custard in the jar of blender. I use the KitchenAid Artisan Blender. Whiz at high speed to blend.
Once blended, pour over the caramel. {You can starin it if you like}.
Tightly cover the tin with aluminium foil, and gently place on trivet in pressure cooker.
Turn on the heat, and cook WITHOUT WHISTLE, for 15-20 minutes. Allow to cool in pressure cooker.
Once cool, take out gently, and leave to chill, covered, for 4-6 hours, preferably overnight.
To serve, place a slightly deep or ridged flat plate/pie dish over the tin, and swiflty turn over. The caramel custard will release some liquid that the platter should have space to catch.
Top with fresh seasonal fruit, toasted walnuts etc. Serve chilled.
Mushroom Cashew Rosemary Soup, yet another favourite soup I created with available pantry ingredients a few days ago. Simple to make, beautifully flavoured and quite creamy because of the cashews within, I’m going to make this often. Like an earlier soup I recently made, this one too is thickened with oats {and cashews this time} making it healthy, delicious and gluten free too. I’m sure you’re going to love this one as it is a great winter warmer, just right for the current cold spell we are experiencing.
I’m not a huge soup person and don’t have great expertise in making them. I stick to a few basics, and really make soups in a hurry, often throwing in whatever I can salvage in ten minutes. Yet with these brrrrr freezing cold days and the mercury dipping day after day, sometimes soup is all that warms the soul. I like subtle flavour in my soup. I also prefer them creamy to clear possibly because I don’t know how to make a good clear soup.
Maybe it’s time to sharpen my skills as I had a really good miso soup a few days ago, and that was amazing. Until I get there, sharpen my skills a little, here’s one of my favourite soups for now. With cauliflowers literally falling off carts this winter, it’s a great way to use the humble vegetable.I did make a finger licking good roasted cauliflower salad the other day. So garlicky, so good! I loved how well the cauliflower roasted in the dressing, how beautifully the fresh beet greens and rocket from the garden complimented it. And oh, the pom pearls that add fresh flavour and a burst of colour. Would you like the recipe?
Mushroom Cashew Rosemary Soup ... truly a winter warmer!
Simple to make, beautifully flavoured and quite creamy because of the cashews within, Mushroom Cashew Rosemary Soup is a winter favourite. Thickened with oats and cashews makes it healthy, delicious and gluten free too.A great winter warmer!
Prep Time 10 minutesminutes
Cook Time 20 minutesminutes
Total Time 30 minutesminutes
Servings 2people
Ingredients
2tbspbutter
1larger onionchopped
5-6clovesgarlicchopped
1/4cupcashews
200gbutton mushroomssliced
1TSP dried rosemary
1sprig fresh rosemary
1cupWater
1cupmilk
2tbspquick cooking oats
Salt & pepper to taste
balsamic vinegar
Instructions
Heat butter. Saute onions and garlic, then add cashews, saute.
Stir in mushrooms and saute on high for minutes.
Add rosemary, saute for 10 seconds, then add water andilk.
Bring to simmer, add oats, bring to a boil, them simmer 5 minutes.
Blend slightly for chunky finish (or smooth if you like), then return to pan
Season with salt and pepper, add balsamic vinegar, and simmer for 5 minutes.
If you'd like thicker soup, simmer a little longer.
Lamb Mince Capsicum / Keema Capsicum … a one wok / kadhai dish which is certain to tantalise the taste-buds, keep you warm this winter, basically comfort food at its best. The dish has origins in India & Pakistan, a recipe that’s changed hands several times over. It’s quite different from how I used to cook a similar recipe earlier, and this one tastes loads better. It’s quite fuss free, a recipe I from an old aunt.Very often, you’ll find curries and lamb dishes that originate from the Indian subcontinent to have loads of ghee / clarified butter, fried onions, lots of ‘bhunoing‘ or roasting over low flame etc. Often too, the list of spices and ingredients are not everyday pantry ingredients. This Lamb Mince Capsicum / Keema Capsicum is different by way of process and also by way of ingredients. It uses simple everyday spices, the only exception being dried mint. That in any case is a great addition to any kitchen pantry and adds great oomph to food!I love that this is flavoured simply by 3-4 spice powders, coriander {dhania}, turmeric {haldi}, roasted cumin {bhuna zeera}and Kashmiri red chili {degi mirch}. Also, just two herbs here, the more fascinating of them being dried mint. Dried mint adds a certain earthiness and depth to the recipe, one that I haven’t experienced before. I usually use fresh mint since I have loads growing in my patch the year round. Dried mint was refreshing this time around!The rest of the ingredients are very common to Indian curries and stir fries … onion, tomato, ginger, garlic, green chilies, yogurt {Greek yogurt as that’s what I had in the fridge}, and an optional dash of lime juice. And the process is a no brainer too. Take a read!Just cook the mince over low heat for a while, add the spices and chopped ingredients, cover and cook, throw in vegetables if you like. I added capsicum since that’s all I had. Alternatively, you could use flat beans {sem as we call them here}, peas, potatoes, green chilies or even bitter gourd if you like. Towards the end, Greek yogurt, more fresh coriander {I like to add LOADS}, a dash of lime if you like tangy.Then just give it a squeeze of lime {optional}, slit green chilies {very optional} and a nice drizzle of clarified butter/ghee {MUST}… and enjoy!
I served the Lamb Mince Capsicum / Keema Capsicum with parathas one time, some toasted sheermal {sweetish Indian flatbread} another time. You could even give this a fusion and scoop them up with nachos for a snack with tea or drinks! More ideas … filling for lamb mince samosas!
Lamb Mince with Capsicum / Keema Capsicum ... a one wok / kadhai dish which is certain to tantalise the taste-buds, keep you warm this winter, basically it's comfort food at it's best. The dish has origins in India & Pakistan, a recipe that's changed hands several times over. The recipe uses simple pantry ingredients, is fuss free and gluten free as well!
Prep Time 15 minutesminutes
Cook Time 1 hourhour
Total Time 1 hourhour15 minutesminutes
Servings 4people
Ingredients
500glamb mince
1tbspclarified butter {ghee}
2large onionsfinely chopped
2tomatoesfinely chopped
5-6clovesgarlicfinely chopped
1piecegingerfinely chopped
2-3green chiliesfinely chopped
1small bunchfresh coriander, finely chopped
2tspdhania powder/ coriander powder
tsp½Kashmiri red chili powder / degi mirch
tsp½haldi powder/ turmeric
2tspbhuna zeera powder/ roasted cumin powder
Salt to taste
2capsicumsdeseeded, chopped
cup½Greek yogurtwhisked
Juice of ½ lime
Fresh coriander to garnish
1tbspghee to finish off
Instructions
Heat the glee in a heavy bottom wok. Add the lamb mince, stir well to break up any clumps. Allow to cook uncovered over low heat for 30-45 minutes until it cooks through and begins to change colour.
Add the onions, tomatoes, ginger, garlic, green chilies, dhania powder, haldi, degi mirch and bhuna zeera powder. Mix well, season with salt, ten cover and leave to cook over low heat for about 30 minutes.
Stir in the chopped capsicum, then the whisked Greek yogurt. Cook again covered over low heat until the liquid has evaporated 15-20 minutes.
Taste and adjust seasoning, add the lime juice if desired, more fresh coriander if you like. Drizzle over a tbsp of ghee.
Serve hot with naan, parathas, sheermal or tandoori roti.
Dark Chocolate Walnut Gateau … baking up for when the world’s lightest full frame DSLR comes over for a review. Well it’s a Canon, more specifically a Canon 6D Mark II, and you just know it’s time to add to the wishlist. Light, at a mere 685 grams, wifi enabled, a touch screen technology, good in low light, not sure what more you can ask for?Did they say adequate weather sealing too? YES!!Yes indeed, it’s a model that won me over even though I already use the Canon 5D Mark III. It seems a matter of luxury to have touch screen auto focus and even a shooting option with the touch screen. For a fleeting moment you might feel redundant since it’s a camera that appears to frame, focus and even shoot on auto! Yet once you get past that initial awe and excitement, this is a good feel, full frame snappy camera with a powerful processor.I speak from quite the non tech point of view but because I have always used Canon as a brand, I am a huge fan of the brand and quality products. I set off with a Canon PS40 when I began shooting, graduated to a G9, then an EOS 50D, and now use a 5D Mark III. Ever since I cut over to the DSLR beginning with a 50D, I used a Canon f/2.8 100mm lens for food photography. I’ve now graduated to an L series lens of the same specs and for me that’s the best lens to shoot food.The Canon 6D Mark II on review came with a kit lens, the 24-105mm f/4 which is pretty decent for a kit lens and the full frame camera. It has the image stabilisation feature that I find so useful, especially in low light conditions. Since I am used to shooting with the 100mm f/2.8 lens and used to the results that gets, it was only a matter of time before I snapped that onto the 6D body.
The images above are all with the kit lens and the ones that follow with the 100mm f/2.8. Such an absolute pleasure to shoot with the 6D. It’s snappy, it’s quick and has a great new processor and a large sensor. These relate to less noise in your images. The live view focus is also really fast and enviable, and the colours are great. The wifi function also means that you can instantly share images to different devices without the hassle of downloading to another device tethered, or via a card reader etc.For the modern day digital lifestyle, this is an amazing feature. It takes the ease of what the cellphone camera can do, and places it in a camera. You might argue that carrying a camera is cumbersome, and these days cellphones produce amazing images too. Then again, If you are like me and are used to a DSLR to take pictures, then there’s nothing else that can offer you the same satisfaction.For you then, the 6D is a good choice if it’s in your budget range. It begins at INR 1,32,000 and if you are a serious photography enthusiast, then it’s a great investment. Though it is always the eye that frames the shot, the person that visualises the frame, you need great equipment to deliver the result. With a full HD capability and an LCD that shoots upto 4 frames a second with less shake in a video, this just might be the camera to consider.I have this Canon 6D in my view even though I love my 5D Mark III to bits. I love the innovative approach Canon has. The latest features are a sign of responding to the ever changing dynamic times, making life simpler while improving on quality, and largely responding to user feedback. How else would you find built in smart device pairings, remote control functions via a smart phone and instant transfers to devices?
If you have questions do let me know. I’ll try and answer them. Canon is my brand of choice as I’ve used no other, and find it meets my requirements and more.
And for the record, I barely do any post processing as most folk who know me are aware. So with minimal fixes {if any}, these are basically just images straight from the camera. I’d love to play around with it more, figure out white balance better etc, but for now I’ll say adieu!
… oh, and before I forget, the Dark Chocolate Walnut Gateau is a delicious healthy alternative for dessert. It’s flourless, it’s wholesome, and chocolate of course! You could actually serve it without the topping, yet who wouldn’t mind added indulgence?
Chocolate and walnuts are a marriage made in heaven. Giving a favourite an even healthier twist, this cake comes with a serving of oats too. It’s flourless, gluten free, moist and delicious. Make it ahead as a tea cake or dessert.
Prep Time 5 minutesminutes
Cook Time 30 minutesminutes
Total Time 4 hourshours35 minutesminutes
Servings 8people
Ingredients
Walnut Oat Base
30gclarified butter {ghee}
150gwalnuts
40gquick cooking oats
15gbrown sugar
Dark Chocolate Filling
4egg yolks
50gbrown sugar
1tspvanilla beanscraped {or 1vanilla extract}
15gcoffee powder
100gdark chocolatemelted
2tbspWater
4egg whites
1pinchcream of tartar
50gbrown sugar
30goatmeal
1/2tspbaking powder
10gpowdered sugar for sifting
Mascarpone Caramel Cream
200gmascarponechilled
2-3tbspsalted caramel sauce
Salted caramel sauce to drizzle
Instructions
Flourless Gateau
Preheat oven to 180 C. Butter an 8" springform tin. Line the base with parchment paper
Walnut Oat Base
Run walnuts, oats and 1 tablespoon brown sugar in food processor till ground. Add the clarified butter/ghee and pulse till it all comes together.
Gently press this into the bottom and up the sides of the baking tin to form a base.
Dark Chocolate Filling
Place the egg whites in the bowl of the stand mixer. Add 50g brown sugar, pinch of cream of tartar and beat on high speed to stiff peaks. Reserve in a separate bowl.
Place the egg yolks in the same bowl of the stand mixer. Beat on high speed for 5-7 minutes until thick and mousse like. Add the remaining 50g brown sugar, coffee powder and scraped vanilla bean, and continue to beat for another 3 minutes. Gently stir in the oats flour and baking powder.
Fold in the melted chocolate and water.
Gently fold in the beaten egg whites, beginning with a quarter at a time.
Turn the filling over the walnut base and spread uniformly. Sprinkle over with 1 tbsp brown sugar
Bake for approximately 30 minutes, cool in the pan for another 15-20 minutes
Loosen sides, and leave to cool completely for about 2 hours. The centre will drop/sink
Chill, then top with the mascarpone cream.
Topping
Whisk the mascarpone until smooth.
Take 2-3 tbsp and whisk in the salted caramel sauce to loosen, the gently fold this through the remaining mascarpone. Taste and add more sauce if desired.
Top the chilled cake with this, add some salted caramel popcorn if you like.
Slightly warm a little more salted caramel sauce and drizzle over to finish.
Dark Chocolate Cinnamon Oat Pudding with Pumpkin Mascarpone Mousse … dessert that was waiting to happen. Some things are meant to be and this certainly was. It’s a little late but is headed off for the #virtualpumpkinparty hosted by Sara over at Cake Over Steak. I had pudding ready in the fridge and some fresh pumpkin puree that I made yesterday.
There’s something about the season. The minute summer ebbs away, I reach out for the pumpkin. More often than never, you will find some oven roasted pumpkin in the fridge. On luckier days, I’ll have already made it into a puree! I love the sweetness it offers, and the ease of use. This was breakfast a few days ago, a very inspired one actually. The fresh pumpkin puree that I made day before was calling my name. So was my hungry rumbling tummy.
Trying to stay more full and get healthier everyday with least fuss {and more veggies!}, this fall inspired breakfast bowl was goodness stirred together. Greek yogurt whisked with honey and a 1/2 cup of fresh chilled pumpkin puree. Some absolutely delicious granola and a drizzle of honey finished it off. I roast pumpkin for salad too quite often. This is one of my favourites, a tossed salad with chickpeas!
So you can imagine that I’m a huge fan of this humble vegetable and the #virtualpumpkin party was just the thing to grab my attention. I read it off Amisha’s instastory on instagram, and Sara was good enough to have me over, even though I was late. The requirements for the pumpkin party were simple … ‘share an original pumpkin-based recipe on your blog. It can be a dessert, a main dish, a cocktail, etc. – it just needs to incorporate pumpkin or a similar winter squash in some way.‘
So here I am, with a really simple, fast track dessert, which is quite healthy actually. The base is a Dark Chocolate Oat Pudding, slightly different from the one I shared here a few days ago. I skipped the walnuts, made the process simpler, and used cinnamon to tie in the flavours. The layers are chocolate pudding, spices sweet pumpkin puree, and a whipped pumpkin mascarpone mousse. I made tiny fondant pumpkins too!
Dark Chocolate Cinnamon Oat Pudding with Pumpkin Mascarpone Mousse
Dark Chocolate Cinnamon Oat Pudding with Pumpkin Mascarpone Mousse is a simple, fast track dessert, which is quite healthy actually. The layers are oat chocolate pudding, spiced sweet pumpkin puree, and a whipped pumpkin mascarpone mousse. Eggless, wholegrain & gluten free, it’s truly yum!
Prep Time 5 minutesminutes
Cook Time 15 minutesminutes
Total Time 4 hourshours20 minutesminutes
Servings 6people
Ingredients
Dark Chocolate Cinnamon Oat Pudding
400gmilk
200mllow fat cream
30gcocoa powder
1tspcinnamon powder
35gbreakfast oats
150gdark couverture chocolatechopped
75gbrown sugar
30ghoney
Pumpkin Mousse
Fresh pumpkin puree from 400g pumpkinchilled {100g+300g}
450gmascarpone
4-5tbsppowdered sugar {to taste}
2tsppumpkin pie spice mix
Pumpkin seeds to garnish
Instructions
Dark Chocolate Cinnamon Oat Pudding
Place all ingredients in a heavy bottom pan and simmer over low heat, stirring constantly until it begins to thicken.
Once it becomes as thick as a custard, take off heat, allow to cool, then puree with an immersion blender or blend in a food processor until smooth.
Pour into serving bowls / glasses.
Cool and then chill for 4-6 hours, preferably overnight.
Pumpkin mouse
Whisk the pumpkin puree with sugar to taste and the pumpkin pie spice. {Reserve the remaining pumpkin puree}
Whisk 100g of the pumpkin puree with about 100g of the mascarpone until smooth.
Gently whisk/fold in the remaining mascarpone so as not to lose volume. {Gently add more sugar if required.}
Place into a piping bag fitted with a star nozzle.
Assemble
Divide the reserved pumkin puree over the set chocolate pudding using a piping bag. Level out gently.
Pipe the mascarpone pumpkin mousse over the pumpkin puree.
Zafrani Phirini | Saffron Almond Indian Rice Pudding… some desserts become your signature and this is one of those. I have been making phirini or rice pudding for years. Each time I try and simplify the process just a little more since I am always short on time. This time I really fast tracked the method {I’m quite proud of the result if I may say so myself} and it’s been highly praised by everyone who’s tasted it.I’ve made this 3 times already and each time the result is consistently good and consistently delicious. The better half calls it ‘out of this world good’ which is tall praise. He says it’s heavenly. I thought I must share it with you. The recipe uses very basic pantry ingredients and just needs some TLC! To make it special, I used a generous pinch of saffron. Saffron makes everything special. Festive too. I served it on Diwali. It’s a really really nice make ahead dessert. I shot it here with these beautiful Daniel Wellington watches I was recently gifted. I loved the way the colours and frame came together. So festive and pretty!This version of the rice dessert is ‘phirini’ which is an Indian rice pudding traditionally made of ground rice. The rice kheer is another similar variant but is made of whole rice simmered until soft. The textures and flavours vary vastly once cooked. Phirini is always served cold while kheer can be served either hot or cold. We prefer phirini at home.The Zafrani Phirini | Saffron Almond Indian Rice Pudding is vegetarian, it’s egg free and gluten free too. I’ve done a Tropical Coconut Milk Rice Pudding in the past as well. If you’re looking for a vegan option, then maybe you can use this recipe as a base and play around with it. Either which way, this creamy rice pudding is a delicious way to end a meal. Also a great ‘mid day snack‘ too if you are like my better half!The last time I shared the recipe I dry ground the rice a little with the almonds. This time around I made it a step shorter. Simpler actually. Instead of washing and drying the rice overnight, I just dumped the drained washed rice with almonds and a little milk into the jar of the blender. Soooooo much simpler, and definitely creamier too.This is by far the simplest way to rice pudding from scratch that I have discovered. The almonds that get ground with the rice elevate the taste of the pudding. The almonds act as a thickener too so the pudding gets thicker quicker. I let it set to a wobbly pudding. You can cook it some more if you like a thicker set variation. Try and set it in earthenware cups or kulhads. The earthiness is amazing. Try it!
Zafrani Phirini | Saffron Almond Indian Rice Pudding
Rich, creamy and delicious, this Zafrani Phirini | Saffron Almond Indian Rice Pudding is a delectable end to a meal. Egg free and gluten free, a generous dose of saffron makes the dessert shine.
Prep Time 5 minutesminutes
Cook Time 30 minutesminutes
Total Time 4 hourshours35 minutesminutes
Servings 8people
Ingredients
2litres full cream milk
1/2cupbasmati ricerinsed
1/2cupwhole almonds
1tin condensed milk
1/4tsppinch saffron strands
Slivered almonds & pistachiosaffron strands and organic rose petals to garnish
Instructions
Place drained rice, whole almonds and 1 cup milk in jar of blender. Process until rice and almonds are well ground.
Stir this into the rest of the milk, and pour into a heavy bottom pan.
Stir in condensed milk
Place over low heat, and begin cooking, stirring almost continuously else the rice tends to get lumpy, and the condensed milk will catch the bottom of the pan.
Cook for about 25-30 minutes, STIRRING OFTEN, until the rice is cooked and the phirini/pudding is thick.
Take off heat and add a generous pinch of saffron. Stir well.
The phirini/pudding will continue to thicken as it cools. You might need to add a little milk as the absorption quality of rice differs. Once it gets to room temperature, ladle into earthenware bowls, individual serving bowls etc to set. Garnish with saffron strands, almond/pistachio slivers, rose petals etc.
