Wednesday, October 29, 2014

Cupcakes with a Desi Twist | Festive season goes on..

Come festive season people go for traditional sweets. Laddoos, halwa, kheer, et all appear in various avatars. Rich sweets that wow the taste buds and make the festive season more festive. Diwali especially is the time or festival where sweets lay a prominent role. We make sweets and share it with friends and family. 

But why make the same sweets again and again when we can go for something different and unique? 

Like a Kesar Khoya cream cupcake!


All this I got to know when I attended the cupcake workshop at Paparazzi restaurant, Royal Orchid Central, Bangalore.

The wonderful executive chef Hafizulla Baig explained he basic cupcake recipe(given below) and how we can add the different twist to it. He baked the cupcakes from scratch beating butter and sugar, adding eggs and finally the dry flour mix.

He divided this basic batter into three parts adding different flavours making three different types of cupcakes.

From this ...
to this..
the journey took around 20 minutes.

While we were waiting for the cupcakes to bake he also gave tips on improving the texture of cakes , the uses of different flours and art of perfecting breads.

At home we usually go for smaller measurements but here I saw cupcakes being made in bulk. This was also the first time I saw desi twists being done on cupcakes. Cupcakes are yummy but we could definitely make them yummier by adding a twist especially the desi twists.

So we can have a red raspberry cupcake with a Gulkand frosting, a vanilla cupcake with masala chai frosting. Whats more you can have jamoon frosting on cupcake as well.


I was sceptical at first when I heard of the gulkand in a frosting and that too when the chef tried it on red raspberry cupcake. But one bite and I was converted. I definitely would be trying the gulkand frosting on red raspberry one, while you can have your pick.



There were peanut butter cream, kahlua oreo frosting, jamoon and pistachio and the crowd blogger favourite ' masala chai'. Not to forget the second popular kesar khoya cream and the chili ganache frostings.

I am leaving you with the basic cupcake recipe (along with few pics),  which you can try out and enjoy with your own desi twists.Diwali will definitely go on and on with wonderful cupcakes.

BASIC CUP CAKE RECIPE
Butter -500gm
Castor sugar -500gm
Eggs -9nos
Flour -450gm
Baking powder -10gm
Milk        -250ml
Vanilla essence -2ml

METHOD
Preheat the oven to 180c 
Put the Butter and sugar in bowl and beat until pale and fluffy
Sift the flour and baking powder into the Bowl
Beat the eggs and vanilla and add to the bowl. Beat until just combined
Spoon the mixture into paper cases
Bake for 18 to 20 minutes until risen, golden and firm to the touch
Cool down to room temperature at least for 10minutes.
Pipe Desire Frosting and garnish it.

Next time instead of traditional mithais bake the unique desi cupcakes.They are perfect anytime and make any occasion special.


Drop in with friends and family at the Paparazzi restaurant,

Royal Orchid Central,
No. 47/1, Manipal Centre,
Dickenson Road,
Bangalore 560042

Tuesday, October 14, 2014

Britannia Nut & Raisin Cake | Everyday Delight

For all those on the lookout of something special for everyday, Britannia has launched its Nuts & Raisin Romance Cake. The product which comes in slab form is an exquisite combination of nuts & raisins and soft crumbly cake. 

No words are needed to talk about Britannia or its products. One of India's leading food brands and leader in Bakery and Dairy segments has popular biscuits/cookies like GoodDay, Tiger, Nutrichoice Marie gold etc in its portfolio. Most of the products are priced very low from Rs.2/- onwards with the intention of making it accessible for the people across all demographics. Fortified with essential nutrients the products are designed to meet the daily nutrition needs. With the latest offering of Nut & Raisin Romance cake, its takes indulgence and delight several notches high.


 The product is meant as an any time or all time snack and is perfect as an on-the-go snack. Conveniently priced at Rs.50/- for 160gm of cake in slab format, its premium packaging makes it impossible to miss at the shop counters. The delightful packaging and exquisiteness make it a perfect addition to your Diwali gift/mithai hamper as well. 

I am actually leaving you several pics of the cake which I took before devouring it. Actions definitely speak louder than words. But still in my words, when you crave brownies, warm the cake few seconds in the microwave, add a scoop of vanilla icecream and drizzle chocolate sauce and indulge. Satisfaction guaranteed ..


 Unfortunately no picture of that. As of now just read on & salivate.This idea of treating oneself was given by my friend who claims its fail proof. And surely I know that before long you will get your own pack,try it  and find your own way of indulging in the the delightful nuts & raisin romance.

Thursday, October 2, 2014

Sweet Potato Chaat | Festive, Filling & Healthy

Among my favourite veggies, sweet potato has a memorable place. I loved the sweet potato chips my mum used to make. This was one of my favourite childhood snacks. To be honest I never tried sweetpotato except as chips. It was later after marriage, I got to know this potato relative and started enjoying it steamed and seasoned and in chillies and breads etc.Slowly I got to know about the vegetable and different ways of preparations. I remember my friend who is from Bhopal telling how they do tadka to it and prepare as an evening snack. But the easiest was the best for me. Microwave it and turn it into a chaat. This is something I tried out from Nupur and it has given me the easy way out. 

Recently I tried another chaat version from here though you can find several such versions on googling. The vegetable is accepted while observing Navratri fast and is filling and healthy. Use of the Himalayan Pink Salt / Rock Salt/ Sendha namak makes the chaat perfect for festive fasting. Though ofcourse you can use common salt if you are not fasting. It can easily be put together and can be enhanced with additions like cucumber and apples.

Ingredients:
Sweet Potato: 1 cup atleast, steamed/microwaved ,peeled and cubed
Green Chillies : chopped: 1 small

Lemon Juice: as per taste
Chilli Powder, Chaat masala Cumin Powder, Salt/Rock Salt: as per taste

Cilantro/Coriander Leaves: chopped for garnish

Preparation:
Mix all the ingredients together adjusting the spices and garnish with coriander leaves. Serve in bowls as a teatime or anytime snack. 


You can add cucumber or apples to this as well. The recipe is too short but the dish is definitely tasty. Its been long since I posted a vrat/fasting recipe or rather any recipe. So I thought of starting with the easy one.Do enjoy the chaat .


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