“Cake baking has to be, however innocently, one of the great culinary scams: it implies effort, it implies domestic prowess; but believe me, it’s easy.”
Nigella Lawson
Pumpkin Pie Spice and Walnut Loaf Cake with Buttermilk Frosting. I’ve waited to bake a pumpkin tea cake for long. This humble fall vegetable is entirely charming, so full of promise, yet so underrated!
Over the years, the season has continued to inspire me. It’s a culinary delight to see the number of pumpkin dishes falling into the inbox day after day. From pumpkin soups, to waffles, to chili, scones, smoothies and so much more tumbling in, it was but natural for me to roast more pumpkin. Felt right!
I roasted a large batch the other day. Half headed for pumpkin soup. That recipe inspired my mother to make a similar soup, a vegetarian version. She roasted a bunch of vegetables on the side, didn’t use stock, and yet came up with a winner! The remaining puree was reserved for cake!
This Pumpkin Pie Spice and Walnut Loaf Cake with Buttermilk Frosting is based on the buttermilk pound cake which I make very often. I tried to keep it nice and healthy, with a generous dose of whole wheat flour. The pumpkin and pie spice added a nice deep dimension to it. I knew the kids would love it. The boy LOVES anything with pumpkin pie spice.
The frosting was simple, yet finger licking good. Quite close to tasting like a salted butter caramel sauce, but sans the caramel. It’s quick and easy to make. Complimented the cake really nicely.
As always, it’s difficult for my fidgety hands to leave well alone. I had a rather large cinnamon scroll that a sweet cousin had sent me. And I thought some marzipan art was in order. Despite being rushed for time, my hands got down to kneading the last remaining marzipan from Finla. I had a field day.
Making pumpkins with marzipan is no rocket science. It’s a step back into playschool and such a load of fun. I made some a few years ago for this cake with homemade marzipan. I love the way simple garnishing can add a pop of colour and add oomph to a loaf cake.
It tastes just as good without the ‘decor’ but the kids {read young adults} fought for marzipan bits and bobs! I love the slight bitterness the marzipan has. Not to sweet and a 100% delicious.
[print_this]Recipe: Pumpkin Pie Spice and Walnut Loaf Cake with Buttermilk Frosting
Summary: This Pumpkin Pie Spice and Walnut Loaf Cake with Buttermilk Frosting is based on the buttermilk pound cake which I make very often. It’s healthy with a generous dose of whole wheat flour. The pumpkin and pie spice added a nice deep dimension to it. Buttermilk frosting and marzipan make it festive.
Preheat oven to 180C. Lightly grease a 9 X 11″ loaf tin, line the bottom.
In a bowl, whisk together both flours, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Add the walnuts, stir well to distribute evenly.In a large bowl, crream the butter and both sugars until lligh and fluffy.
Beat in the eggs, followed by the vanilla extract.
Next beat in the pumpkin puree and pumpkin pie spice.
Add a third of the flour mix and beat in on low speed, then a half the buttermilk. Repeat again, ending with the flour mix.
Turn into prepared tin and bake at 180C for about an hour, until the tester comes out clean.
In the meantime, make the frosting and cool completely.
Buttermilk frosting
Place all ingredients in a heavy bottom pan and bring to a simmering boil, stirring constantly until the frosting thickens.
Remove from heat, strain into a bowl or jar and cool completely.
Rainbow Cake for Pinktober. Ever tried baking with an 18 year old. Maybe , I should rephrase that. Ever tried with an 18 year old teen like mine who has a rainbow baking obsession? It’s a LOAD of work! LOTS!! Beware … but the fruits are sweet! Cut a slice and you know it’s so worth all the dishes, the messy kitchen, the batter splattered walls with ‘Ooops I did it again Mama!’, ‘Can Coco lick the bowl? Please?’
‘I’m gonna make Papa a rainbow cake for his birthday! Coco’s gonna help me!‘ Coco was game of course … and the day began tediously! First to get the child out of bed, then to get her out of a shower, then to get her off the phone. By the time I was at my wits end, she was ready to paint the kitchen in rainbow colours! ‘Let’s start now!!‘
October 1st marks the beginning of breast cancer awareness month all over the world. American Cancer Society uses this time to boost their campaign to raise awareness to breast cancer and to inform people that there is now a 98 percent rate of survival if the cancer is detected early. October is the month where you will see pink ribbons everywhere, which has been the national symbol for breast cancer awareness since it was first introduced back in 1991.
It took us all day to get the cake going. Six layers and a small oven, only 2 baking tins and a load of power cuts, yet we marched on. Much to my chagrin, she took naps in between while I washed and cleaned the kitchen after every ‘round‘. Once again, be warned … there is tons of washing up!
Time for the frosting. We ‘amicably’ settled for a salted caramel butter-cream icing {after a battle of sorts of course}. It’s a delicious frosting and soon she was spooning more into her mouth than onto the cake. A few disagreements later, in this incessantly hot October, she ‘splooshed’ the icing on. That was when the Dad called from work. ‘Is the cake PINK he asked? My cake is always the Pinktober cake.’
Next cue! PINK!! It’s nice to have a daughter who loves art. Also nice to have some marzipan on hand. She had fun doing the letters, the ribbon {that she was well aware of as it’s an annual feature} … the rest was a breeze. She did the whole cake on her own!
One slice later, the rainbow knocked our hearts away! This is the absolute joy of a birthday cake. Despite it being a butter rich cake, with an indulgent buttercream frosting, the Rainbow Cake is a fantastic ‘once in a while‘ baking adventure. A big {read greedy} slice is definitely on the sweeter side, but a thin slice hits all the right chords!
The cake tasted even better the next day, and being a butter cake, it keeps really well for a few days. However, the kids nibbled away at it and it was soon gone. The daughter later said that she was surprised I even let her make one! She knows that I barely ever make such heavily ‘buttery’ cakes. Then again, she has a thing for rainbows and a passion for baking rainbow cupcakes and cakes.
This cake was worth every dish I washed, worth the million times I cleaned the batter splattered counter and wall tiles, worth all the spoons she licked and all the piping bags she used up! It’s a fun cake to bake. You must try it for a special occasion bake!
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Recipe: Rainbow Cake
Summary: This is the absolute joy of a birthday cake. Despite it being a butter rich cake, with an indulgent buttercream frosting, the Rainbow Cake is a fantastic ‘once in a while‘ baking adventure. We loved the salted buttercream frosting. Cake adapted minimally from the Whisk Kid
Red, orange, yellow, green, blue, and purple gel food coloring
Filling
400ml low fat cream
100g icing sugar
few drops almond extract
Topping
200g sugar
2tsp water
100ml low fat cream
1/2 tsp salt
vanilla extract
170g salted butter
100g low fat cream
200g icing sugar
Method:
Cake
Preheat oven to 180C. Brush six 8-inch-round cake pans {or as many 8-inch cake pans as you have, reusing them as necessary} with shortening. Line bottom of each cake pan with parchment paper; brush again and set aside.
In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder and salt; set aside.
Cream together butter and sugar. Slowly add egg whites and mix until well combined. Add vanilla and mix until fully incorporated. Add flour mixture and milk in two alternating additions, beginning with the flour and ending with the milk. Mix until well combined.
Divide batter evenly between six medium bowls. Add enough of each color of food coloring to each bowl, whisking, until desired shade is reached. Transfer each color to an individual cake pan. Transfer to oven and bake until a cake tester inserted into the center of each cake comes out clean, about 15 minutes {working in batches if necessary}.
Remove cakes from oven and transfer to a wire rack; let cool for 10 minutes. Invert cakes onto a wire rack; re-invert and let cool completely.
Place the bottom layer on serving platter {or lazy Susan} and spread with about a cup of buttercream. Repeat for remaining layers.I placed an adjustable dessert ring around the cake to hold the layers in place.
Refrigerate until set, about 30 mins to an hour.
Using an offset spatula, cover cake again with remaining frosting.
Salted Butter Caramel
Place sugar and water in a deep saucepan and simmer undisturbed until the sugar caramelises to a golden brown. Add the cream {CAREFULLY as it will splutter}, take off heat briefly to mix in, then return pan until it all comes together to a smooth sauce.
Take off heat, add salt and vanilla extract. Allow to cool completely.
Frosting
In a large bowl, beat together the salted butter, cream and icing sugar until smooth and fluffy.
Slowly pour in the cold salted butter caramel and continue whipping until firm and smooth.
“The great thing about cake is it doesn’t feel like work. You forget about work. Kids, adults, they all get the same look in their eye when they’re decorating cakes… that’s the magic right there.”
Duff Goldman
Pastel de Tres Leches or Three Milk Cake … a cake that impressed and how! Love the Daring Baker challenge this time. having missed the earlier two challenges, I went straight into it very early this month. I did think it could turn out soggy, but no! Turned out to be one of the best cakes ever!
Inma of la Galletika was our Sept. 2013 Daring Bakers’ hostess and WOW did she bring us something decadent and delicious! Pastel de Tres Leches or Three Milk Cake, creamy yet airy, super moist but not soggy.. just plain delish!
My earliest memories of Tres leches goes back to a visit to Dallas in 2007. The Pastel de Tres Leches or Three Milk Cake was very popular among the Indian community there. Maybe in many ways it reminded folk of a popular Indian sweet, the milk cake. While visiting some Indian friends there, they were very excited to serve it up.
I was disappointed. It was sadly soggy and not worth all the fuss. Thereafter have seen references on and off to the cake, but it’s never been interesting enough to make one at home. Until now of course! Just the introductory lines were good enough for me to take on the challenge. ‘Decadent & Delicious?’ Yes please! Searched my mind for ideas, searched the net for variations. Not much out there.
Tres leches are simple cakes, delicious nonetheless. Me being me, had to go a step further. Fruit had to feature in here somewhere, somehow. I decided to get brave and make a layered Mango Pastel de Tres Leches or Mango Three Milk Cake. Of course I did some important pre planning, some in the head and some on the simmer!
The Pastel de Tres Leches is a cake that is very popular in Central and South America. It is a super moist, light, airy and super delicious sponge cake soaked in the three kinds of milk {evaporated milk, condensed milk, and heavy cream}. Tres Leches is a very light cake {especially if made without butter}, with many air bubbles in its crumb. This distinct texture is why it does not have a soggy consistency, despite being soaked in a mixture of three types of milk.
This recipe slightly adapted from an interview given by one of Mexico’s best Pastry Chefs, Paulina Abascal, to the magazine Revista Secretos de la Pastelería Caserais, produces a super moist yet light Tres Leches. True to the word, this was declared as one of the best cakes we’ve eaten. Light, moist and delightfully flavourful, the mango just added the oomph!
The three milk mixture is a combination of condensed milk {I always have some on hand}, evaporated milk and cream. While the west consumes tonnes of evaporated milk every year, it’s not a popular concept in India. It was time to make some. Evaporated milk is merely normal milk boiled down to reduce its water content. Simple!
Simple enough, and with a little pre planning, a cakewalk! Did the sponges on day 1; made the evaporated milk too. Assembled everything on day two, and we cut the cake on day 3! The cake needs a little while to soak in all the good milk, to get matured in flavours. I layered the sponge with fresh diced mango and whipped low cream {stabilized with gelatin}. You can always used canned fruit, peaches, tropical fruit bits etc.
Since it needed an overnight rest, I was kind of confident that the cream would set. Of course I was thrilled to see that it all came together beautifully when I demolded it the next day! It will behave even better in the winter. I’ve got to make this cake again. I did have left over milk mixture as expected, even after giving the layers a generous soaking.
I was tempted to make an iced milk shake out of it, but then a pound cake came to mind. Since it had been flavoured with lemon extract, I made a Tres Leches Wholewheat Lemon Pound Cake, basically soaked the warm cake in the remaining tres leches concoction. FAB!! Even that was appreciated and how! Will share the recipe soon!
Thank you Imma for offering this delicious challenge. We loved it to bits. I enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed the recent Momofuku’s Crack Pie challenge, maybe more! Thank you as always Lisa ofLa Mia CucinaandIvonne of Cream Puffs in Venicefor hosting this fabkitchen!! Do stop byhere to see what the rest of the Daring Bakers have been soaking up!
[print_this]Recipe: Mango Pastel de Tres Leches or Mango Three Milk Cake
Summary: Three-Milk Cake it is a super moist, light, airy and super delicious sponge cake soaked in the three kinds of milk (evaporated milk, condensed milk, and heavy cream). Tres Leches is a very light cake (especially if made without butter), with many air bubbles in its crumb. This distinct texture is why it does not have a soggy consistency, despite being soaked in a mixture of three types of milk.
Prep Time: 45 minutes Total Time: 1 hour 30mins plus chilling Ingredients:
Vanilla sponge cake
5 large eggs (separated)
125g vanilla sugar
2 tsp pure vanilla extract
1 tsp lemon extract
140g all-purpose (plain) flour (sifted)
For three milks syrup
1 can (400 gm) sweetened condensed milk
1 can (340 gm) evaporated milk
240g low fat cream {20% fat}
2 teaspoons lemon extract
Topping and filling
400g low fat cream {20% fat)
50g icing sugar
1 tsp gelatin {dissolved in 2 tbsp milk}
1kg mango, peeled diced {to fill and decorate the cake)
Method:
Vanilla Sponge Cake
Preheat oven to 180°C. Prepare 9” (23 cm) round cake pan
Separate the egg whites from the yolks.
Beat the egg whites on medium speed, 3 – 5 minutes.
When soft peaks form slowly add the sugar in small batches.
Whip until stiff peaks form about 5 minutes. Set aside.
In a medium bowl beat egg yolks at medium-high speed for about 5 to 6 minutes, or until the egg yolks become pale colored, creamy and puffy. Stir in vanilla.
Pour the egg yolks over the egg whites, gently fold until just combined trying not to lose any volume from the mixture.
Fold in the flour little by little in the form of rain. Mix until just combined (over-beating will result in a denser, flatter cake).
Pour the batter into the prepared pan.
Bake in the preheated moderate oven for 25 minutes or until the toothpick comes out clean
Let it cool
Once cool, split the cake in half, flip the top of the cake and place it on a base. Poke using a fork holes all over the cake to better absorb the three milk soaking liquid.
Three milks syrup
In a saucepan add the sweetened condensed milk, evaporated milk, heavy cream and cinnamon stick, bring to a boil, reduce the heat and continue boiling for 5 minutes. Remove it and let it cool.
Once it is cool, add the rum or any other flavoring you are using
Gradually brush all the milk soaking liquid into all sides of the cake (including the cut surfaces) until all absorbed. Best to rest the cake in the fridge overnight to complete the soaking process.
Topping
Whip the cream, when soft peaks form, add the sugar little by little, continue whipping until stiff peaks form about 2 mins.
Decoration
Layer some whipped cream on the bottom layer and cover with canned or fresh fruit and decorate the top layer with whipped cream and the fresh or canned fruit.
“The first meal was an object lesson of much variety. My father produced several kinds of food, ready to eat, without any cooking, from little tin cans that had printing all over them.”
Mary Antin
Everyone Can Cook… yet another new cookbook from award winning Michelin starred chef Vikas Khanna. I loved his earlier ones, ‘My Great India Cookbook’ and ‘Modern Indian Cooking’. Vikas writes for the global audience, and his books are full of food stories and personal connects. The title of this book seemed rather straightforward… or so I thought. I expected a simple, basic cookbook, encouraging everyone to cook. The catch lay in the word CAN!
Surprise! Surprise! The can refers to the CAN in the tin industry as in canned foodstuff. Possibly a first in this genre of cookbooks that I have seen in India, I was a little skeptical when I received the book for review. It was only when I read Vikas’s foreword, that I understood and appreciated his sentiments behind the book.
He talks about his first Christmas in America in 2000 where he cooked in the kitchen of the New York Rescue Mission. In his words, “It was here that I first saw canned food and the thought that moved me was how cans were touching lives through food”. Twelve years later, he was approached to conceptualise recipes for a book using canned ingredients. In his own way of giving back to the community, he educates the reader about the industry through this book.
Directly or indirectly, it impacts millions of lives – thousands of families who provide fruits, vegetables, meats etc. to the canneries, people who work at the canneries, people who transport the cans to the market, those who purchase the cans – even those who collect the cans and take them to recycling centres. In India, rag pickers are considered the main cog in the recycling wheel; they work in underprivileged conditions. For every copy of the book sold, Hindustan Tin Works, the brainchild behind the book, will contribute a part of the proceeds towards the upliftment of this underprivileged community.
Everone Can Cook is a reflection of just how large-hearted he is. I didn’t realise that the canning industry supports such a large community, fosters relationships, helps farmers. Of course it gets the freshest produce preserved for consumers with little loss of nutrition too. The good thing about steel, the primary material used to make cans, is that it can be recycled infinitely without degradation of quality. Recycled cans also inspires art … Andy Warhol type art, or recycled can art!!
Living in the plains of North India, we don’t realise how blessed we are. We tend to take fresh produce for granted. How often would you reach for beets and carrots in a can, or say canned mushrooms? India is not a huge user of canned foods. It is only now that you see shelves in local bazaars lined with canned foodstuff, a lot of it imported.
Yet in retrospect, cans were the accepted norm in certain food areas when we were young. Cheddar almost always came out of the round Amul tin, baked beans on toast {a standard of the armed forces breakfast menu} canned again. How can I ever forget condensed milk? We grew up on it, stealing spoonfuls out of the can when no one was looking.
Cut to now, condensed milk is something I always have on hand. My favourite cheesecake, Dark Chocolate Orange Yogurt Eggless Cheesecake has a can of condensed milk as it’s main ingredient, as do my eggless brownies. Of course my version of Saffron Rice Pudding also uses it. Other canned things I like to stock up is tomato puree, coconut milk & cream, and fruit bits. I did a delicious Tropical Cream Pie with canned fruit bits a while ago … won me first prize in a contest!Everyone Can Cook is divided into easy sections like starters, soups, meat, poultry, vegetables, desserts, beverages etc. I hope it will make the Indian audience look at canned food in new light. The book offers refreshing ideas and innovative ways to use canned food. The good thing is that it makes you think differently. I especially liked the Peach & Sundried Tomato Chicken Tartlets, Lamb Goulash, Coconut Curry Mango Chicken, Cheese Chili Soup, Chili Crab Mini Falafels, Roasted Peaches with Coconut Walnut sauce & Orange Lychee Pineapple Juice. So much you can cook out of a can!
The phirni custard was delicious; the fruit pairing quite interesting. It’s a book that makes you think out of the box can! It also makes one appreciate the contribution of the lesser known canning industry to our food centric lives, an industry we tend to take for granted. Did I mention the pictures in the book? Beautifully styled and leaping off pages!
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Recipe: Phirni Custard with Mixed Fruits
Summary: An all time favourite dessert, this Indian rice pudding is a celebration of the earthy taste of basmati rice, saffron and a surprise element…canned fruits. You can serve it warm or chilled. This Phirni Custard with Mixed Fruits is a decadent vegetarian dessert ‘From Everyone Can Cook’ by Vikas Khanna
Serves 4-6
Prep Time: 10 minutes Total Time: 40 minutes Ingredients:
1 cup basmati or long grain rice {washed, soaked for 10 minutes & drained}
3 1/2 cups whole milk
1 can sweetened condensed milk
1 tsp saffron strands {dissolved in 3 tbsp warm milk}
1/2 tsp cardamom powder
1/4 cup sugar {optional}
1 small can mixed fruit in syrup {drained well}
Method:
Combine rice with 3/4 cup milk in a grinder. Grind to a coarse paste.
Bring the remaining milk to a boil over medium high flame, add rice paste, reduce flame to low and cook, stirring continuously till the rice is cooked. Stir in the condensed milk, saffron {with milk} and cardamom powder {and sugar if using}. As soon as the mixture thickens, remove from flame.
Divide the phirni custard equally into 6 bowls, top with mixed fruit and serve.
Alternatively, refrigerate the phirni custard qnd fruits separately and serve chilled.
“To me, the smell of fresh-made coffee is one of the greatest inventions.’
Hugh Jackman
Chocolate Cake & Coffee Patisserie Cream Trifles. The deep, sensual aroma of coffee steeping won me over! Are you devastated by the smell of fresh bread or cookies baking? Or onions in gently frying in butter? Roasting garam masala? Fruit stewing with vanilla beans? Or maybe coffee beans roasting? Fresh herbs? Freshly plucked tomatoes? I absolutely am. It’s an olfactory explosion of sorts.
When I was young I often woke up to the delicious smells of onions frying, a chocolate cake baking, a clarified butter/pure ghee dal tadka … but the most vivid memory was of the smell of wet earth after the first monsoon showers. To this day, the smell of wet earth takes me back to those childhood days when we used to race out to play in the rain. Pure nostalgia!Now more than ever before, my world is ruled by food aromas. Does your nose lead you to the kitchen? At home here, all day long, you’ll find folk following their nose into my kitchen. It’s the most happening place in the house. I baked a chocolate cake 2 days ago. Yet this coffee pound cake was on their mind. ‘Why didn’t you bake another coffee cake?’. The teens pestered me! Annoying? Yes!I’m an out-and-out coffee sort of person! The family is too. Fresh coffee beans roasting … nirvana. Takes me back to days down south. Every house would roast their own coffee. Ours did not, but the neighbours generously shared the aromas. What a beautiful heady feeling to wake up to. Instant upliftment.
I’m also a vanilla sort of person, mostly paired with fruit. The fragrance of splitting a plump vanilla bean and scraping the insides makes my day. That morning was good! Once the thermomix got down to making the creme patisserie {7 minutes is all it takes}, I had ample time to sit and take in the fragrance. My hands smelt so good.
Try reducing fresh strawberries and vanilla bean for a compote. The whole house smells beautiful. Seriously … never underestimate the power of smell. Walk into a good coffee shop and if you’re like me, you’ll fall into a trance! So to cut a long story short, I was MAD that my chocolate cake didn’t go down well. I counselled myself a little. I knew what went wrong. I had tweaked a good recipe and added more baking soda than necessary. Extra baking soda always plays spoil sport. Note to self : BEWARE in future!I almost trashed the cake yet knew the crumb was light. It was a good cake basically, so trifle was on my mind. I love it when cake obliges with neat little squares. Two minutes later, I was in coffee creme patisserie mode. Time to win the coffee lovers back! Pastry cream that smelt like heaven, felt smooth as silk. Asked the daughter to check for sweetness. She couldn’t wouldn’t stop spooning it into her mouth! Just one last spoon, she begged!
Trifles are great make ahead desserts. Also a lovely way to use up leftover cake. We love fruit trifles and we loved these Chocolate Cake & Coffee Patisserie Cream Trifles too. Deep coffee flavours, great pairing with chocolate, nice play of textures. The cake cubes soaked in a coffee syrup. A swirl of whipped cream might have completed the trifle. So tell me dear reader, is your life is ruled by good food aromas? What are the smells that awaken your senses? Are you convinced that if something smells divine, it must taste even better? Do you eat with your eyes first? And do you believe, like me, that the sense of smell, sight and taste are all interlinked to make our world more delicious?
Food, ingredients, aromas, the folk, the garden, the venue, memories, the ambiance … the entire connect weaves a delightful ‘spread’!
~For Indiblogger and Ambipur … ‘Smelly To Smiley!’ ~
Summary: We loved these Chocolate Cake & Coffee Patisserie Cream Trifles too. LOVED! Deep coffee flavours, great pairing with chocolate, nice play of textures. The cake cubes soaked in a coffee syrup. A swirl of whipped cream might have completed them! Serves 6-8.
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour 30 minutes plus cooling time Ingredients:
Chocolate buttermilk pound cake {recipe adapted from here}
Chocolate shavings to garnish {or/and whipped cream}
Method:
Chocolate buttermilk pound cake {you will have leftovers}
Preheat the oven to 170C.Line the base and sides of a 7″ round tin.
Sift the flour with the cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Reserve.
Cream the butter and sugar. Beat in eggs one at a time, followed by the vanilla extract.
With beater on low add the flour and buttermilk alternately in three lots.
Bake for 50-60 minutes till the tester comes out clean.Cool in tin for 25-20 minutes, then gently remove from tin.
Cool completely, this cut into squares.
Coffee Cream Patisserie {Thermomix recipe}
Place all ingredients in bowl of thermomix and process to mix on speed 6 for 1 minute.
Turn the TM to 90C, speed 4 and set for 7 minutes. {You can add the vanilla bean shell if you like. I did}
Strain in a bowl and allow to cool. Stir often to avoid a film getting made on top. Cover with cling wrap, the plastic touching the surface, and chill until the cake cools.
Coffee syrup
Place all ingredients in a pan and simmer until the sugar dissolves. Allow to steep and cool until needed.
Assembling trifles
Place a handful of cake cubes in the base of serving glasses/bowls. Drizzle liberally with coffee syrup. Top with coffee pastry cream. Repeat again.
Finish with a few cubes of chocolate cake {drizzled with coffee syrup} and chocolate shavings. {Pipe over whipped cream if desired}.
Chill for about 2 hours before serving to allow the flavours to mature. You can assemble these a day ahead.
Note: You can make the Coffee Cream Patisserie by the traditional stove top method too using the above ingredients.
“You create something with your own hands, add a dash of your heart and when you see a satisfied diner relishing it, the feeling goes to your soul,”
Maurizio Raselli
It’s the passion, the energy, the enthusiasm, the free spirited and relaxed young chef who greets you. The emotions are infectious and before you know it, the charismatic Maurizio Raselli casts a spell over you. From there he effortlessly leads you into his chamber {read private kitchen, with a large glass window, well lit and fully equipped} for a therapeutic, unwinding, endlessly entertaining and interactive Italian cooking class. That’s what Camp Charmaine was about!
With poster boy good looks , a charm that can instantly disable, and a smile that can light a room, this young man is passionate about what he does. Hailing from the Piedmont region of Italy, Chef Maurizio Raselli is happy to be in India.
He thinks food, he celebrates food and believes in simple, good cooking. His mantra is clear. Use the best ingredients, keep it simple, do it from scratch, cook from the heart, use your head … discover the soul of a good dish! Every dish he created was gold standard! Effortlessly conversing with us, with his ingredients, with himself too, hands flying all over the place, he enjoyed every single moment!
We loved it too! Tremendously. It was a treat being invited to the camp held at the beautiful Hyatt Regency, New Delhi. A little bit about the concept. It’s the brainchild of young, enthusiastic and affable Vidhi Jatia {extreme right below}, the CEO & Director of Charmaine. Charmaine means ‘Charm’ and you can see the concept taking life right from the word go!
Charmaine is aimed at young girls and ladies who are wanting to learn about etiquette – social and communication skills, table manners and dining etiquette, grooming, hair and make up, fashion and styling as well as image consulting, nutrition, wine and wine glasses, wine and cheeses, cooking and plating dishes, cocktail making etc…. the list goes on! They do customised classes for beginners right up to advanced camps.
The interactive cooking session was stellar. Simple, unfussy, good quality ingredients and a load of elbow grease is the secret to Italian cuisine. “Read a recipe, then forget it“, he says! A diehard Italian cuisine fan, he learnt the tricks of the trade watching his grandmother cook.
Lavished generously with small handy tips, some amazingly simple yet so effective. It was a well set menu. We did 4 dishes, each one special, with flavours that pleased. Beginning with a simple, moorish green bean and potato salad, it was surprising how much flavour he incorporated into the almost humble salad. {catch the recipe at the bottom}.
Every ingredient was treated lovingly, right from handling the beans to chopping the spuds, he ENJOYED the process. Expertly tossing the dressing, not distracted by us talking nineteen to a dozen, Maurizio seems born to do this. The salad was outstanding in flavour, everyday ingredients beautifully paired.
Onto the risotto and I was ‘iffy‘. Shrimp, calamari and asparagus sounded exotic good, but I’m not a ‘seafood’ person and was apprehensive. The risotto used Maurizio’s rice of choice, Riso Scotti Carnaroli. He prefers carnaroli over arborio as it has a higher starch content. The risotto was simmering very soon…. This class was beginning to be really good. With 2 dishes to go, Maurizzio decided to show us his muscle power and within 1 few minutes was happily kneading pasta dough. Keep it simple he said. Too many egg yolks do not a tasty pasta make! With perfect eyeballing, he tossed flour, eggs, salt and olive oil …dashes of water, some serious {and well appreciated} kneading later, he left the dough to rest.
While the dough rested, the risotto was done. A nice generous helping of mature parmesan and butter later, it was plated to perfection, with another generous drizzle of EVOO!
With Ruchira quickly doing a taste test, she confirmed that it wasn’t ‘fishy’ at all. I was convinced and then couldn’t stop devouring spoonful after spoonful. Excellent! Creamy, fab texture, good bite, all the flavours just right. One of the best risottos we’ve had. Almost wiped the platter clean, even though we were yet be served lunch.By which time the pasta sauce was being expertly panned! It was very simple and yet very delicious. While the sauce gently cooked {begun with all ingredients in a cold pan so as to not give it a thermal shock}, the efficient chef turned his attention to rolling out the pasta. He spoke about tortini, tortellini and ravioli, dispelling several misnomers we had.
It was a treat watching him create the filling for ravioli. Simply blanch the spinach. Dunk into cold water and then press. Yes, he showed off his muscle power yet again, much the the glee of the ladies. All the liquid must be squeezed out, ALL of it! Then came some expert chopping. You would not like to get a leaf in your mouth he questioned? Would you?Make sure you don’t overstuff them, he warned. We need the bite of pasta as well as the filling.The sauce was as simple as it was delicious. Just enough to add some beautiful moistness to the pasta, some mature parmesan to give it the added luxury, some EVOO…and it was soon gone! He certainly created magic! Bravo!!
Soon it was time for tiramisu. In a matter of seconds he grabbed a HUGE bowl, separate the yolks and white and got down to whipping manually. He was now beginning to enjoy showing off his muscle power to the awed women! The yolks are the easy part he said, eyeballing some sugar into the bowl with the yolks. What unbelievably followed next were the whites. I have never seen egg whites come to stiff peaks whipped by hand in a matter of minutes. We all stared …
What a tiramisu that was. Maybe the best ever. Not too sweet, full of deep coffee flavour, no liqueur as was his choice, the zabaglione mousse and light. Creamy but sans cream, it was excellent.
We soon shifted to the table set at the beautiful Hyatt Club, a private seating and lounging arrangement. With newly done and refurbished interiors, it’s chic, relaxed, well lit and spacious. We devoured a lot fresh and delicious bread with our meal. Chef Bungla who heads the bakery at the Hyatt is one of the most unassuming and humble chefs around. He was sweet enough to part with some sourdough starter. And Maurizio presented us each with a jar of bruschetta topping he made.
Well I baked bread soon after. That with the topping was addictive good! Will share the recipe sometime soon! Until then, here’s the simple bean and potato salad that we loved!
Recipe: Green beans and potato salad, aged parmesan flakes, rocket leaves, mint and shallot dressing
Summary: Recipe courtesy Chef Maurizio Raselli, Hyatt Regency, New Delhi
Prep Time: 5 minutes Total Time: 20 minutes Ingredients:
80g diced beans
80g diced potatoes
5g shallot
10g EVOO
white vinegar
20g aged parmesan
rocket leaves
mint
parsley
almond flakes
Method:
Cook the beans in boiling water for about 5 minutes.
Trim the beans, and open them into two follwoing the natural line.
Cook the potatoes diced in water till soft.
In a bowl mix the beans and slightly mashed potatoes
Add the grated parmesan, EVOO< shallot brunoise with vinegar, mint leaves and chopped parsley.
Plate it nicely with some rocket leaves underneath and fresh grated parmesan on top as garnish.
