“You have to find what sparks a light in you so that you in your own way can illuminate the world.”
Oprah Winfrey
Moong Dal Halwa, Dark Chocolate Nut Clusters, Baklava from scratch … how can we not go sweet on Diwali, the festival of lights? The halwa is special. The recipe is from the very sweet, talented and humble Chef Kunal Kapur, of Indian Master Chef fame. Masterchef Kunal Kapur judged a charity cook-off between a few chosen ones from the canola India Facebook contest and a couple of food bloggers. The chosen contestants came together to cook some healthy Diwali treats, in canola oil, for the underprivileged children from the NGO – Katha.
With an attempt to “Lighten up Diwali” for underprivileged children, Canolainfo joined hands with Masterchef India Judge Kunal Kapur to put together an inspiring afternoon and some delectable Diwali treats.
Phase I was online: inviting all food enthusiasts to upload a recipe of an interesting Diwali treat in order to participate in the “Light Up This Diwali With Canola Oil” contest sponsored by Canolainfo. Top 3 contestants were selected/invited to attend a charity cook-off, along with a few bloggers, at Banarsidas Chandiwala Institute of Hotel Management and Catering Technology wherein Masterchef Kunal Kapur judged the cook-off and interacted with the contestants. All the contestants were given recipes to make, in canola oil. The best out of all – Ms. Deeba Rajpal, chosen by Chef Kapur was given a hamper from Canolainfo. This was phase II of the event.
For the last and final phase, the Diwali treats made by contestants of the cook-off, was served to children of Katha, a non-profit that promotes children’s literacy. The event concluded with the children enjoying a healthy meal cooked in canola oil, put together for them along with an interactive session with Chef Kapur.
The spirit of the season took over. My first competitive cooking competition, which initially had me on the edge. Once we got talking, time really flew by. The entire experience was amazing. From weighing ingredients, working in a very very basic kitchen with just a bunch of utensils, shared space and basic ingredients, one simple dessert recipe bought us all together. It was a sense of community. That we had the timer on for 40 minutes was challenging is a small way. None of us had ever made a moong dal halwa before, let alone in oil. This was Chef Kunals recipe. It was cooked in oil versus clarified butter, then the oil was drained off. The texture was very interesting as there was a small portion of semolina in it that added texture to the halwa.
Otherwise a pretty straightforward recipe, the only important thing while cooking a halwa is to give it some TLC. Patience while roasting halwa is a virtue you need to develop. Hurry it up and you might not get the prefect end result! Kunal was a gem. Interacting with everyone, dropping pearls of wisdom when needed, the key was to keep your ears and eyes open! Suddenly, there was a twist. We had to incorporate any one of each the available fruits and spices in the halwa.
On offer were cheekus, bananas, oranges and limes. The spice box offered nutmeg, cinnamon, cloves, mace, cardamom etc. I opted for orange and nutmeg, and infused the sugar syrup with a whole orange, chopped up, peels bruised and grated nutmeg. It was a beautiful halwa in the end. I loved doing it. I won first place for mine too. Happiness!!
Time really flew by. Before we knew it , we headed for Katha, an amazing and beautifully done up school. Seeing Chef Kunal interact with the bright eyed, eager enthusiastic kids was an emotional and satisfying experience. He has a gift, a special gift. Within 10 minutes he had broken ice and had all the kids literally eating out of his hands.It was time well spent!
It was a nice launch of the festive season. With sweet cravings arising with Diwali, it wasn’t long before I hit the sugar on fast track. It’s just once in a while that I go on a sugar overdrive. Mr PAB and the lad had been on my case for moong dal halwa.
So that had to be made on priority. Dark chocolate nut clusters was what I made as gifts to a few folk that I like gifting over Diwali. I enjoyed doing them a lot, packing them onto pretty white platters, finished with a hand made card from the daughter. Coco was right in the middle of everything as usual!
Then of course, I got bitten by a terrible bug. I had some home made phyllo left over form the Daring Baker challenge {for savoury pot pies which I still have to post}. I made the pies using homemade phyllo as the base pastry. I doubled the pastry because I have wanted to make that baklava once again.
The first time I had made it was for the Daring Bakers two years ago. That was a beautiful challenge, and still evokes great memories. ’twas was only when I began rolling the phyllo, that I realised I was a glutton for punishment. WHY??? It was a rather long drawn exercise, with me cursing myself all along. Yet, I DID IT!Once you pop the layered and cut baklava into the oven, you feel like you’ve conquered the world. Once you take it out an hour later, pour the infused honey syrup all over it, you begin to smell sweet success! Just looking at the tin the next morning, and you realise it’s been so worth every bit of heartache and hard work! You can find the baklava recipe here, though I used a slightly different phyllo pastry recipe.
The dark chocolate nut clusters are easy. They are just tempered dark couverture chocolate with nuts mixed in, then dropped in spoonfuls on butter paper and allowed to set in the fridge.
Hope you have a safe and bright diwali. Eat a lot of sweets, light up some lamps, share loads, laugh lots!
[print_this]Recipe: Chef Kunal Kapoors Moong Dal Halwa
Summary: This simple and very rustic dessert is a die hard Indian Classic. We may not ask for it specially but if it is served especially in winters then it is difficult to resist. Often this halwa is laden with desi ghee making it a difficult for many to savour. But this recipe uses canola oil that is very light and healthy. Initially the recipe uses good quantity of canola oil but later in the recipe you will find that most of the oil is strained and what remains is perfectly cooked Halwa, which is with the goodness of canola oil. Serves 4
Prep Time: 10 minutes Total Time: 40 minutes Ingredients:
Moong dal— 150 gms
Sooji – 25gms
Canola oil – 200 ml
Sugar – 150 gms
Water – 150ml
Green cardamom powder – ½ tsp
Pista sliced – 2 tbsp
Method:
Soak the moong dal in sufficient water overnight. Drain all the water completely and grind it to a fine paste.
In a karahi heat canola oil and sooji. On slow flame cook soji till it browns. Now add the moong dal paste. On medium heat cook the paste till it is thick and finally oozes out the oil {should get to a light brown, the colour of wood}
Remove from fire and transfer to a metallic fine strainer/sieve. Let the oil drain out. Wait for a couple of minutes. During this time mix water, sugar and cardamom powder and bring it to a boil and remove. { I infused the syrup with the rind and pieces of 2 oranges, saving a few cross slices for garnish}
Place the paste back in a karahi and start the fire. Heat it and add the sugar syrup carefully. Now cook till all the water is absorbed and there are no lumps. If you see any lumps just add little water and reduce it again.
“If it be not ripe, it will draw a man’s mouth awry, with much torment, but when it is ripe, it is as delicious as an apricot.”
Captain John Smith
Dark Chocolate & Persimmon Mousse … light, smooth, deep and delicious. The persimmon puree adds a pop of colour that welcomes fall with it’s bright orange like nothing else. OK maybe a papaya, but then the papaya lacks the translucent jelly like beauty of this special fruit.
A couple of years ago, we landed in Sydney on a cold night. I headed straight for the kitchen since I knew my sweet Ukrainian friend would always have something special waiting for me. I was duly rewarded… a line of persimmons sat neatly on her windowsill. It was instant fruit therapy, but they weren’t ripe, she pointed out.
Cut to now. After waiting almost forever I gently inquired at my local fruit & vegetable vendor why persimmons, or Ramphal/Amarphal as they are locally referred to, weren’t showing up yet. You see Ruchira in Islamabad had already excitedly announced their foray, made a mousse and waxed eloquent about this delicious fruit.
I immediately developed persimmon withdrawal symptoms! Must have been my lucky day, because the guy at the shop came back two minutes later saying I should have asked for something else. He cranked open a fruit crate to uncover lines of persimmons, that too hachiyas, the variety I so love! They were all tickled pink that I asked for something and it popped out of the crate! I was chuffed!
Of course they were unripe. Very firm, very hard and barely a deep orange. Bite into a persimmon at this disastrous stage and you will be sorely {or surely} punished! It’s a strange fruit. When unripe it’s very edgy and astringent. Make the mistake, and you might never come back to it.
But allow them to sit out on the kitchen counter {or windowsill}; be patient, VERY PATIENT. Mine took almost 3 weeks to ripen. They will turn a bright, translucent orange, evenly coloured, with a few blackish spots; very soft to touch. The time is ripe to chill them and dig in, or just dig in if you can’t wait any longer! Sweet as honey and slippery like jelly, it’s an amazing fruit!
I HAD to make something with the puree. Unfortunately, only one hachiya was completely ripe, the fingertips sinking right into the fruit when I gently pressed it. Some quick thinking later I decided to make a dark chocolate mousse {inspired by this two ingredient winning recipe by Hervé This}. Had to keep the dieting diva in mind as she is off on another hair brained dieting venture.
The chocolate had to be dark {as it’s good for dieting she announced as she readily nibbled away on my precious stash}. 85% dark Lindt it was, and then a tasting later I figured it could use some low fat cream and a dash of sugar. The Dark Chocolate & Persimmon Mousse is so rewarding to make, considering just a combination of chocolate and water can yield something so magical.
I added a dash of Grand Marnier {very optional}. It gave very slight orange undertones, enhancing the taste of the mousse gently. I did add a small dash to the persimmon puree as well to tie the flavours in. Separated by a layer of unsweetened low fat cream, it was a dessert we enjoyed!Any dessert serving followed by ‘Can I have more?‘ is a sign of success! This Dark Chocolate & Persimmon Mousse was one such example!
[print_this]Recipe: Dark Chocolate & Persimmon Mousse
Summary: The dark chocolate mousse is fab on its own. Sensuous, smooth, satisfying, intense … everything that good quality dark chocolate promises to be. Top it with seasonal fruit, persimmon in this case, and some low fat cream. Mousse recipe adapted from here, inspired by Hervé This.
Prep Time: 5 minutes Total Time: 40 minutes Ingredients:
Pulp of 1 large ripe hachiya persimmon + 1 tsp grand marnier {latter optional}
Method:
Place a large mixing bowl on top of another slightly smaller one, filled with ice and cold water (the bottom of the large bowl should touch the ice). Set aside.
Put chocolate and water (also sugar and/or liquor if you’re using) in a medium-sized pan and melt the chocolate over medium heat, stirring occasionally.
Pour the melted chocolate into the mixing bowl sitting on top of ice and water, and start whisking with a wire whisk (or an electrical hand-held mixer) until thick. Watch the texture as you whip and make sure not to over-whip as it will make the mousse grainy.
Add 100ml low fat cream and whip to mix
Divide between 6 serving glasses/goblets
Chill for an hour to set.
Divide remaining 100g low fat cream between the 6.
Chill for an hour. Divide the persimmon pulp between the 6, garnish with mint leaves if desired.
“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!
“Food is a central activity of mankind and one of the single most significant trademarks of a culture.”
Mark Kurlansky
Life can be strangely coincidental at times, or maybe it is just the trend of the times. My recent amaranth obsession is at an all time high, and then I got an invite for the launch of a very very interesting book Centre of Science and Environment – First Food, A Taste of India’s Biodiversity. The locavore in me jumped to it. What’s not to love about celebrating local produce?
A live wire opening introduction to the book by CSEs petite and very talented Sunita Narain had everyone’s attention. A cause close to my locavore heart, I was thrilled to see how beautifully local and rather unknown ingredients have been woven into the book. A lot of historical cuisine connect runs through the book, emphasising time and again that food is personal, and that everyone has a food story. The book, authored by Sunita Narain & Vibha Varshney, attempts to share India’s rich, diverse and largely unexplored culinary tradition. Paired with vivid food memories and a deep emotional connect, it does a brilliant job!
Sunita Narain is an Indian environmentalist and political activist as well as a major proponent of the Green concept of sustainable development. She has been with the India-based Centre for Science and Environment since 1982. She is currently the director of the Centre and the director of the Society for Environmental Communications and publisher of the fortnightly magazine, Down To Earth. The recipes in First Food have been curated from Down to Earth.
Importantly, it makes the mind think. Think out of the box, as also question how far we will be pushed as a community before we realise that we are losing a whole lot of local food wealth falling prey to imports. To make the environment flourish and to add economic value to local produce, getting to the roots of traditional food is essential.
That somewhat explains First Food, an interesting title in itself. Thought provoking too. To understand the vast economic system that runs behind each fruit, flower, leaf and grain, the book does a good job in bringing together a rich resource of information; food stories, environmental issues, intriguing trivia and of course interesting recipes.For me, it is also the ingredients that inspire. I love cooking with beet greens {thanks to Sangeeta’s vast knowledge}, and with turnip greens too {thanks to my mother who used to do it; still does}. Fermented pineapple kanji and beetroot kanji are on top of my list, thanks again to Sangeeta. These days, it’s popped amaranth in cakes and brownies, whole grain in cookies and so much more!
At the launch that night other than the very talented Sunita Narain, we had Prof Pushpesh Pant {a noted food critic and historian} and Vinod Dua {a food critic and one of the best known names in indian media} regale the rapt audience with their tales. The professor had the audience in splits “When Sunita first told me about the book I thought it was priced too high. Then when I read it, I discovered that it was priceless!“
Vinod Dua, the great orator and entertainer that he is, took to food centric quotes, prose and couplets, both Indian and foreign. Beginning with one my favourite food quotes by George Bernard Shaw, “There is no sincerer love than the love of food.“, he went on to read some best loved ones much to the delight of the audience!
It was a short and crisp launch ceremony, followed by a live food demonstration by master chef Manish Mehrotra of Indian Accent fame, and then dinner, all made from recipes in the book. It was impossible to get within hearing distance of this very popular chef, so we had to make do with queueing up for the dinner which was served alongside. The chefs special touch was discernible…
It was a vegetarian spread, as is the cookbook, and the food was mind blowing good! There was so much flavour, so much inspiration there that day. The bajre ki khichdi, the gahat ki dal, ker sangri ka paneer, til ke aloo, chaulai ka saag, drumstick leaves curry all delicious. There were accompaniments galore too. Savoury pancakes, stuffed parathas, chutneys, raita … plenty of flavour and plenty of old world charm. You’ll find all the recipes in the book!
I came home rather inspired. Early the next morning, I bought fresh amaranth greens or chaulai ka saag {also lal saag as it’s commonly referred to here} as it’s in season. Stirred up some chaulai ka saag, some chaulai ka raita, aloo chaulai ki sabzi and karonde ka khatta meetha achaar; most recipes from the book, others just inspired. Made mixed grain puris on the side {makki ka aata, chakki ka aata and besan}. Oh so satisfying and all wiped clean!
Here’s a quick recipe of Amaranth greens / Chaulai ka saag from the book. The books a great buy for recipes ideas and inspiration, a good feel narrative that takes you back to your roots. From herbs, flowers, leaves, fermented foods to summer coolers, it packs a pretty punch! I also like that the listed ingredients are short & sweet.
[print_this]Recipe: Chaulai ka saag {amaranth greens}
Summary: A quick, healthy and delicious stir fry that offers a highly nutritious side to an Indian meal.
Prep Time: 15 minutes Total Time: 30 minutes Ingredients:
500g chaulai {amaranth} leaves
2-3 whole red chilies
1 tsp cumin seeds
2-3 cloves garlic
a pinch of asafoetida
salt to taste
2 tbsps vegetable oil {I used clarified butter}
Method:
Wash the leaves and chop finely.
Heat oil in a deep pan. Toss in red chillies and cumin seeds. Add garlic and asafoetida. Stir.
dd the chopped greens and salt to taste.
Cover and simmer for 10-12 minutes. Let the water dry.
“If you really want to make a friend, go to someone’s house and eat with him…… the people who give you their food, give you their heart.” Cesar Chavez
Deep Dark Salted Butter Caramel Eggless Yogurt Cheesecakes … an attempt to create memories on demand! “Make me some memories!“, she commanded as she passed the bag around for a lucky dip at her farewell dinner. There is only one who could do fun and creative stuff like this. Ruchira!
I was suspicious; thought I might pick out a crab or something. The girl has a keen sense of humour. As usual, she surprised me. I was the privileged first to dip into the bag and I got a beautiful white platter with eye catching black artwork on it. I had seen it and admired it on her blog not a long time ago.
Thats what makes her special. Ruchira is different. She has a knack to make everyone happy, never rubs anyone the wrong way, is always in the middle of happening stuff, and is always ready with good advice.
How could it be difficult to create memories for someone so special. That she has left the country to follow her better half to a foreign posting left a lot of us with sad feelings. Yet, we know that wherever she goes , she will leave an indelible mark. She is uber talented, a walking food encyclopedia, the heart of a gathering, someone who has the lone capability of pulling everyone, including sworn enemies in …
Just baking these little Deep Dark Salted Butter Caramel Eggless Yogurt Cheesecakes made me happy. I had memories attached to every little ingredient, a connect at ever step. She loves steamed yogurt. So I thought I’d bake something I’ve baked a lot of of late … a yogurt tart.
It had to have caramel in it; thats her fave ingredient. For inspiration I turned to Smitten Kitchen. Ruchira loves Smitten Kitchen. With a passion. A deep passion. I do too, but nothing to beat hers. That recipe of Deep, Dark Salted Butter Caramel Sauce is a winner. So is the post. It places you in the lap of Paris, within sniffing distance of Le Beurre Bordier, a French salted butter.
The sniffs were very virtual of course, so in went a local salted butter. The caramel was allowed to get deep & dark as instructed; the end result finger licking good. I could see memories being woven. It was sugar high time as I licked the bowl clean after pouring the caramel into a jug. Then came the filling. I love condensed milk. More sweet. Next, the bittersweet ganache. More YUM! Must have been the breakfast I had skipped {tch tch}, but it left me sweetly satisfied!
These are indulgent little desserts. I think one can easily be shared between two. They are rich, deeply flavoured and oh so satisfying. Even better, they’re a great make ahead baked vegetarian dessert option. Sinfully good! As I recently said, I’ve been using a load of tinned condensed milk of late!
Other baked eggless yogurt cakes you might like: Dark Chocolate Orange Yogurt Eggless Cheesecake Cherry Yogurt Tart
[print_this]Recipe: Deep Dark Salted Butter Caramel Eggless Yogurt Cheesecakes
Summary: These Deep Dark Salted Butter Caramel Eggless Yogurt Cheesecakes are indulgent little desserts. They are rich, deeply flavoured and oh so satisfying. Even better, they’re a great make ahead baked vegetarian dessert option. Sinfully good!
Prep Time: 25 minutesTotal Time: 25 minutes plus chillingIngredients:
Biscuit base
200g digestive biscuits, crushed
100g melted butter
Bittersweet chocolate ganache
100g bittersweet chocolate {85%}, broken
100g low fat cream
2 tsbsp honey
Deep dark salted butter caramel sauce
200g granulated sugar
70g salted butter
60g low fat cream
Yogurt Filling
350g hung yogurt, thick
150g regular yogurt
1 tin condensed milk
Method:
Biscuit base
Preheat oven to 180C. Grease 4 X 3″ loose bottomed tartlet tins.
Mix the melted butter and the crushed biscuits. Turn into the bottom of the prepared tins and press to form base.
Bake for 10 minutes. Remove to rack. Cool.
Bittersweet chocolate ganache
Place chocolate and cream in a heatproof bowl and microwave for 1 minute. Stir well until smooth. Stir in honey.
Deep dark salted butter caramel sauce
Place the sugar in a deep heavy bottom saucepan and melt over medium low heat until dark amber. Swirl around if needed.
Add the cream and butter together. Be careful as it will splutter at first before it comes together. Stir to combine. Pour into a jug once warm else store in a jar. You might need to heat it gently before serving as it tends to harden in the fridge. {Can be made ahead}
Yogurt Filling
Place both yogurts and condensed milk in a large bowl and whisk until smooth.
Assemble for final bake
Preheat the oven to 180C.
Divide the bittersweet chocolate ganache between the tins, and smoothen over the biscuit base. Chill for 5 minutes.
Repeat with the caramel sauce, chill again. Finally pour over the yogurt filling.
Bake for just 10 minutes.
Take out of the oven, allow to cool. Then chill in the fridge for a couple of hours, or overnight.
Top with a drizzle of caramel sauce, whole buttered almonds and chocolate scrolls.
“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!
[print_this]
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.
