Kheer tarts

Its that time of the year when Calcutta dresses up in its fineries to welcome Ma Durga. The little nip in the air and the fragrance of the Shiuli phool (night jasmine or harshringar) are the heralds of Durga Puja - a festival which is incomparable to others. The zest and enthusiasm to dress up in new clothes and visit pandals all across the city is seen in every Calcuttan irrespective of them being Bengali or not. The intricacies of the beautiful work done in Pandals makes everyone hold their breath and wonder at the hard work that has been put in, only to be demolished after the Puja is over. 

As with any other festivity, Durga Puja is also synonymous to great food. Grand plans are chalked out which includes pandal hopping and eating out. From street vendors to five star hotels, every place is packed up with people and each place tries to give the best and attractive offers.

Since the blossoming of Shiuli phool marks the beginning of the month of this festivity, I wanted to incorporate it in my picture shoot. Along with Vishal, my husband, we hunted down many flower vendors but did not find any. While buying some vegetables, I asked the lady vendor in Bangla, "Didi, shiuli phool kothaye pabo?"(Where will I find Shiuli flower?) She smiled and said, "Aamake aage bolte, aamaar badi samne koto phool maati te pode thake" (Why did you not tell me earlier. In front of my house, these flowers are found fallen on the ground) She was sweet enough to ask me to come the next day and collect it from her. And that is how I got these humble little fragrant flowers for the shoot!

The idea of this recipe has an interesting story too. Last month while visiting a Gurudwara, 3 hours away from Calcutta, we happened to cross one of the small towns called 'Kheerpai'.The name intrigued us all and we were contemplating the place to be famous for a certain kheer served in a pie form. Since I wanted the dessert to be bite sized, I experimented with these Kheer tarts. I was fortunate to find some nolen gur from last year in my fridge. You can try the same with normal sugar and enjoy this month of festivity. 

Ingredients :

Tarts : Makes 6-8 tarts

• 1/2 cup all purpose flour
• 25 gms butter, cut in cubes, cold
• 3 tbsp powdered sugar
• 1 tsp milk
• cold water, as required for kneading

Kheer :

• 500 ml milk, full cream
• 1 rice, washed (I used Gobindbhog)
• 2-3 tbsp nolen gur(date palm jaggery) You may use sugar or sugarcane jaggery

Procedure : 

Tarts : 

Take flour and butter in a bowl and rub the butter cubes with the flour till the mixture resembles breadcrumbs (in texture).

Mix in the powdered sugar and add milk.

Now add cold water 1 tbsp at a time and knead to get a smooth dough. Do not over knead.

Wrap the dough in a cling wrap or plastic sheet and refrigerate for half an hour. 

Take a little bit of the dough and press it against the tart mould. Starting from the center press out the excess dough and remove it. 

Take a fork and make holes on the dough in the tart mould. 

Refrigerate the tart moulds again for 10-15 mins.

Meanwhile, preheat oven to 180 degree Celsius.

Place the tart moulds in the oven and bake for 10-15 mins.

Kheer : 

Pour milk in a thick bottomed pan and bring it to a boil.

Lower the flame and add the washed rice.

Let the milk cook, on a medium flame, stirring in between till it reduces to half its original quantity. 

Once the milk has thickened to the desired consistency, turn off the heat.

Wait for a couple of minutes and then add the grated/crushed nolen gur. Mix well. Adjust sweetness to your liking.

In case you want to use sugar, add it once the milk has thickened and still on the flame. 

Preheat the oven to 180 degree Celsius.

Add a spoonful of the kheer in the tart shells and bake for 5-10 minutes.

Cool and garnish with some chopped pistachios, cardamom powder and some grated nolen gur.

This recipe is part of Kolkata Food Bloggers ongoing event : Puja week-Mishti special 

Happy Durga Puja

Amrita

Sindhi Food Festival, Taj Bengal, Kolkata

An invite to a Sindhi Food festival at Taj Bengal, Kolkata, made me sit and wonder about my knowledge of their food. After all I am a Sikh, and Sindh (now in Pakistan) was once a province of undivided Punjab. Therefore, their food must be very similar to ours. At least that's what I thought before I began my quest to understand the intricacies of a cuisine which has influences from the invasions of Mughals, Arabs and Turkhans. 

My early memory of hearing the word Sindhi in relation to food was from my Grandmother which was for a vegetable variation of Kadhi. Punjabi Kadhi is more full bodied with onion and besan Pakodas in it while the Sindhi Kadhi which we used to eat was a lighter version with a variety of vegetables in it. Another dish I grew up knowing as a part of Sindhi food was their delectable breakfast dish called Dal pakwan. I would simply love the crispy pakwans paired less with the dal and more with the tamarind chutney my aunt would serve it with. And who can miss hearing a word or two about their Sai Bhaji. But that was just about it, my knowledge of Sindhi cuisine.

With invites like these it is naturally more of a learning experience for food lovers like us and I was happy to be there representing Kolkata Food Bloggers. 

The beautiful rural and rustic interiors of Sonargaon, the Indian restaurant at Taj Bengal makes you transport back to a village setting. The walls have been given a mud look, the vessels used are traditional and there is even a faux well which adds to the grand charm of dining there. 

While we waited for Chef Haresh Keswani who is a master in Sindhi cuisine, we were served a light and refreshing drink called Matho which is basically buttermilk with boondi. As I was telling my mom later on, basically a thin liquid version of a boondi raita. Drinks like these are very common in that part basically to beat the harsh heat. 

Out tables were soon adorned with huge and beautiful Thali's which were showcasing the choicest of dishes representing Sindhi food. Sindhi food as we learnt from the chef himself is basically very simple food with minimal spices.
For starters we relished on a simple Sindhi Fish fry and Sanna Pakora which was basically crispy vegetable fritters. 
Our vegetarian fare had stars dishes like the famous Sindhi Kadhi which personally disappointed me as it was nothing like the kadhi I have been eating. Chef Haresh enlightened us by telling that original Sindhi Kadhi is not curd based and is made only with besan. The Sindhi Sai Bhaji was a clear winner as I could see most of us finishing it off from our plates. This was a seemingly simple dal and spinach preparation. Another dish usually cooked as part of homely meals was the Tri dali Dal. 
Our Non-vegetarian dishes were the Handi Murg which to me was like a very homely cooked onion based Punjabi chicken dish. The Phote bhugal gosht was lamb meat cooked in a rich gravy and flavoured with cardamom. 
To pair the dishes we had Bhuga Chawaran which was rice cooked in caramelized onions giving it that lovely light brown colour. In the bread section we had Koki masale wari which was parantha with Sindhi masala. 
The Tamatan ji chutney (sour tomato chutney) was a lovely accompaniment with the dishes. 
For Desserts, we were served Baata jo Seero which is a broken wheat halwa with assorted nuts. Also served were Nariyal ji mithai and Moong dal halwa. 

On display were the mainstays of the Sindhi cuisine-dals, papads, wadis, makhane etc

Chef  Haresh Keswani

You can relish Sindhi food at Sonargaon, Taj Bengal as a part of their ongoing festival till the 13th September, 2015 as Lunch and Dinner.  

The vegetarian Thali is priced at Rs 1700/ + taxes

Non vegetarian Thali at Rs 2100/ + taxes

Sea Food Thali at Rs 2400/ + taxes

Amrita

Swiss Apple Roesti

Knowledge about food and food habits of specific regions intrigue me in a special way. My interest invariably lies in the understanding of the dessert of a particular region. The more I dig into it the more I realize that it such a vast area of interest, one which personally I am a big fan of. I keep hunting for dessert ideas from different countries and love to try them out in my humble kitchen. 
Swissotel, Kolkata had invited KFB for their Swiss National Day celebrations some time back. Celebration of such sorts are a great learning experience for us where we are exposed to authentic taste of the dishes and are educated about some traditional dishes from the region. We had the grand opportunity to have GM Mr Marco Saxer and Executive chef Mr Pranay Singh sit with us and talk about Swiss Food. Along with some other dishes discussed what enthralled me was the description of this dish called Swiss Apple Roesti. Mr Saxer was very particular about having this dessert on the menu and found a video on Youtube to help the chef make it. 
All of us were stunned by the simplicity and the flavours of this dessert. Crispy chunks of bread with apple pieces sauteed in French butter with a beautiful hint of cinnamon was truly a winner dessert for all of us. We were told that the French butter was specially imported for this dessert. It was served with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and the dessert was drizzled with some vanilla sauce. 
I instantly knew that I just had to try this dessert at home. The high end French butter was replaced with the dairy white butter which is unsalted. Good quality red apples were bought for it especially and a loaf of brown bread was kept for 2 days to make it stale. The entire process takes hardly 5 minutes because all you need to do is throw in a large chunk of butter in the pan and get your bread crisped in it. Add in the chopped apples, sugar and cinnamon and you are done. 
The video is a must watch for the detailed and hilarious take on the traditional Swiss dessert. 
  

Recipe adapted from here : FX cuisine on Youtube

Ingredients : For 2 servings

• 1 apple
• 2 slices bread (stale) (I used brown bread)
• 50 gms white butter
• 2 tbsp powdered sugar(or more)
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon powder(or less)
• handful of pomegranate kernels 

Procedure : 

Cut bread into bite sized squares.

Chop apples in bite size too after removing the seed and with the skin on.

Take butter in a pan and as it melts add the bread. Let it get crisp from both sides which can take 4-5 minutes.

Remove from heat and add the chopped apples and the powdered sugar. 

Mix in the cinnamon powder.

Sprinkle the pomegranate kernels on top and serve with vanilla ice cream. 

Happy Roesti Relishing

Amrita

Chocolate Salami

Raksha Bandhan or Rakhi has been a fairly simple festival in my house while I was growing. Being Sikhs, we have adapted a lot of our customs from Hinduism and therefore we celebrate a simplified version of it which means no tilak and Pooja. I remember seeing my Aunt perform the morning fast before tying the sacred thread on my Father and Uncle's wrist but as children we never had to do that. As children, I would tease my younger brother that being a girl is so lucky as you get 2 gifts in a year, one on birthday and another on Rakhi. At home, Mom would make some bread rolls for breakfast and thus our Rakhi would be over with some sweets. 

This year, Vaanya, my daughter will get to tie a Rakhi on my nephew. I see a part of my childhood in her and am looking forward to see her enjoy the day with her little brother. She is naturally too small to understand the importance of Rakhi but I am sure with time she will cherish these moments just like me. 

This year I wanted to try a rather very simple sweet. Something which does not require much work and is done in a jiffy. Therefore I decided to play with these Chocolate Salami where there is no definite recipe and you can add just about anything that you want. 

Chocolate Salami or Salame di cioccolata or Salame de chocolate is a traditional Italian and Portuguese dessert which is made from dark chocolate, broken bits of biscuits or cookies, butter, eggs and alcohol like rum or port wine.

A misleading name, Chocolate Salami is named because of its appearance where the dessert is shaped like a log and is cut in roundels while serving.

I skipped the eggs and got an intensely rich, rum laden chocolatey goodness in this dessert. For a children's version I used milk chocolate and skipped the nuts and fruits. Instead I added some cake pieces, biscuits of my daughter's choice and some almond powder. 

This dessert has endless variations. Go ahead and enjoy making and relishing it this festive season.

Ingredients : Makes around 7-8 slices of the chocolate salami

• 200 gms dark chocolate, chopped
• 1/4 cup cream(I used Amul)
• 2 tbsp butter
• 3-4 pieces of Marie biscuits or any digestive biscuits
• 1/2 cup of assorted nuts and dried fruits(I used almonds, walnuts, cashews, pista and cranberries)
• 2-3 tbsp rum (optional, may be substituted with orange juice)

Procedure : 

Dry roast the nuts and chop them fine. Mix with the chopped cranberries and keep aside.

Roughly break the biscuits in medium sized chunks and keep aside.

Heat cream in a pan. Be careful not to burn it.

Remove from heat and add the chopped chocolate to it. Mix it well so that the chocolate melts.

Now add the butter and mix. 

Throw in the nuts and biscuits and give it a stir. 

Allow this mixture to cool and thicken for around 4-5 minutes, or more if required.

Put this, now thickened mixture, onto a cling wrap and give it a log shape. Twist both the ends to secure it.

Pop it in the refrigerator for 3-4 hrs. 

In between take it out and roll it to maintain the shape.

Slice it and serve.

Note : For a children's version I used milk chocolate instead of dark one and added digestive biscuits, chocolate biscuits, cake pieces. I also added 1 tbsp of almond powder instead of the chopped nuts. And yes, the rum has been omitted there. 

Happy Raksha Bandhan

Amrita

Opéra Cake

Birthdays are a special day in my household for more reasons than one. For the baker in me, it is a day to put my hands on a long awaited cake that has been on my list for a long time and that finally gets to see the light of the day. With my husband Vishal's birthday falling on 27th last month, I needed to try a rather special cake. And so it had to be the coveted Opera cake, the French classic cake which I have been scared to try because of the sheer number of elements it has. 
The Opera has an equally amazing history too. Story goes that in 1955 French pastry chef Cyriaque Gavillon, working at the legendary Dalloyau shop in Paris, invented the Opera while wanting to create a cake with complex layers in terms of texture and taste. His wife, Andrée,  told him that it reminded her of the famous Paris Opera house, which eventually was the name given to the cake. 

Another story goes that the cake was invented in the Paris Opera to help people stay awake through the final acts of the lengthy shows being heavy coffee laden. 

An Opera cake consists of thin layers of almond sponge called Jaconde which is moistened with a coffee syrup and is then sandwiched with layers of coffee buttercream and chocolate ganache. The cake is then topped with a chocolate glaze. Traditionally the cake is adorned with a edible gold leaf and has the word 'Opera' piped on it.

This cake was even more special and was the right choice for Vishal's birthday as both me and Vishal are ardent fans of music. We love to spend our time singing songs while Vishal strums his Guitar. Music is the key to our hearts and holds us close together. 

The cake turned out a winner as everyone who got to taste it loved it. Being very critical about my own cakes, I found the sponges a bit over soaked but that was not an issue with anyone else.

My over excited daughter was much more eager about her Papa's birthday and made a very sweet card for him. 

Recipe adapted from : Joe Pastry

Ingredients and Procedure: 

Jaconde (Sponge cake) : 

• 3 egg whites
• 2 tbsp granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup almond meal
• 1/2 cup powdered sugar
• 3 eggs
• 1/4 cup all purpose flour
• 1 tbsp clarified butter, melted

Preheat oven to 200 degree Celsius.

Grease and line a jelly roll pan 28X21 cm with baking paper and then grease it again.

Take egg whites in a bowl and whip till soft peaks. Add granulated sugar and beat again till stiff peaks. Keep aside.

Take whole eggs and almond meal in a bowl and beat till light and foamy for about 3 minutes.

Add flour and mix.

Incorporate the egg whites in 3 additions carefully with gentle mixing. 

Fold in the melted clarified butter.

Pour batter in the prepared pan and spread with a spatula.

Bake 8-10 minutes.

Cool and flip it over baking sheet. Carefully peel the baking sheet and keep aside.

Can be refrigerated for a day. 

Coffee Buttercream : 

• 3 egg yolks
• 1/2 cup powdered sugar
• 2 tbsp water
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 200 gms butter, at room temperature
• 1 tbsp instant coffee powder
• 1 tsp hot water

Dissolve coffee powder in hot water and keep aside.

Take egg yolks in a bowl and whip for 5 minutes.

Prepare sugar syrup by combining sugar and water in a saucepan and allowing the sugar to melt. When the mixture starts bubbling, remove from flame and pour the syrup in a steady stream over the egg yolks while beating continuously. 

Add the butter and vanilla extract and whip together. 

Add the coffee mixture and mix. 

Refrigerate for further use.

Can be made a day in advance.

Chocolate Ganache : 

• 1 cup chopped dark chocolate
• 1 cup cream (I used Amul )

Heat cream in a pan. Take care not to scald it.

Remove from heat and add the chopped chocolate. Mix well and keep aside.

Can be refrigerated.

Coffee flavoured cake syrup : 

• 1/2 cup water
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 tbsp instant coffee powder

Dissolve sugar in hot water and add coffee powder.

Cool and keep aside.

Chocolate glaze : I made a ganache instead of the traditional tempered chocolate topping

• 1/2 cup chopped dark chocolate
• 1/2 cup cream

Heat cream and add chocolate. Stir and mix well.

Keep aside.

Chocolate writing : 

Melt a little chocolate and add few drops of vegetable oil to it. Mix well and put in a piping bag and use. 

Assembly : 

Cut the Jacondes in half(to get 2 rectangles).

So you have 4 layers Jaconde sponge.

Take a layer and apply coffee syrup. 

Apply layer of ganache.

Apply coffee buttercream layer.

Put another sponge and apply coffee syrup.

Repeat with ganache and coffee buttercream with all layers till the top.

Pour the chocolate ganache on top. 

Let it firm up in the fridge.

Trim edges from all sides to show the neat layers.

Happy Opera Relishing

Amrita