30.9.13

A little about "Metime" & Weekly Menu Plan

Its getting nice and crispy around here.. a reminder that the good sunny days will soon be gone. while the good weather lasts I have been trying to squeeze some time out everyday to spend outdoors. a little walk in the neighborhood ... some "me-time" just to release the daily stress and shed off some calories ....  


since i weaned the little one off and started blogging food, keeping a check on my weight has not been easy. while i was becoming wary of the gradual weight gain, i had not realized how much i was putting on on a regular basis. and then one day i realized... the sudden realization was frustrating. after brooding and fretting over it for a while i decided to consciously do something about it... 


on first impulse i tried crash dieting. but that lead to further weight gain, since i craved for a quick relief when the hunger pangs struck. then i tried conscious eating. that is, i tried eating more raw than cooked food, eating gluten free food and snacking on fruits instead of cookies or cakes. while that helped plateau the weight gain curve, it did not slope it down. so i had to resort to more rigorous routines... and began going to the gym...


for the last few days, I have been going to the gym regularly. I do a moderate gym routine on alternative days and on the days when my son is at home i jog him to the park and do free hand exercise there while he is enjoys himself in the swing or in the slides. while my efforts have not yet been reflected in the weighing-machine, it has certainly made a difference in other fronts. lately, I feel a lot less stressed, more energized and somewhat happier and more content..  taking the time out to care a little for myself on a everyday basis has been mentally uplifting. even my son seems to be enjoying my baby steps towards fitness. he always shouts at me saying, "run, mamma, run..." whenever i tend to pace down on our way to the park....

thought i'll share my experience with you.. inspire you a little perhaps... just in case you have been holding back from regular exercise and some "me-time" thinking that it is selfish to take as good care of yourself as you have been taking of your family and loved ones ....


 Weekly Menu Plan 29/9 -5/10/2013   
SundayAngel Hair Pasta with PW's Spaghetti Sauce
Homemade Chicken Patties with Homemade Beer- glazed Buns(recipe coming up)

MondayDorie's Nicoise Salad with Bread, Dessert
Tuesday
Aloo Paratha with dhal
Dal with Green Beans and Aloo Posto with Steamed Rice

WednesdayEscarole and White Beans with Vegetables and Bread

Thursday

Kitchen on Holiday*
Friday
Kitchen on Holiday*


SaturdayKitchen on Holiday*


* Thursday onwards we are taking a little holiday to enjoy the fall colors in White Mountain, NHMore on that next week..

Take Care and have a good week !

27.9.13

Homemade Apple Cider

While Apple Picking was fun, what we realized over the week was that eating the 10 lbs of apples.. raw isn't that fun.


no matter how much you like apples you cannot eat too many of them. so i looked up if i could make some cider at home. turns out you can. if you have 3 hours in hand. agreed 3 hours is a lot of time. but you really do not have to do much. just quarter the fruits and cook them with the spices and 3 hours later sip on the best apple cider ever...


  
Homemade Apple Cider 
Recipe Source: Gimme Some Oven
   
   ingredients
       
  • 10 medium sized apples (I used an assortment of  Ida Red, Mutsu and Jonamac.
  • 1 orange
  • 3/4 cup light brown sugar
  • 4 sticks of cinnamon
  • 1 tbsp of whole cloves
  • 1 tsp whole allspice
  • 1 whole nutmeg or 1 tsp ground nutmeg (I used the latter)
  • water to cover (see notes below)
  • 1-2 tbsp molasses*
*skip molasses if you are using dark brown sugar.


-
 the method
  • wash the apples and oranges thoroughly and roughly cut them in quarters and place them in a large stock pot. you do not need to peel or de-seed the fruits.
  • add the whole spices and 1/2 cup of sugar to the pot, fill the pot with water till it is almost full and bring it to a boil. 
  • stirring occasionally, cook the fruits uncovered over medium heat for about an hour. 
  • if you are using molasses and/or ground nutmeg, stir them/it in at this point. then cover the pot, reduce the heat and simmer the juice for another 2 hours.
  • while the fruits are cooking, periodically mash them using a spoon or potato masher.also taste and adjust the sugar and spices.
  • when the cider is ready allow to cool. then sieve off the fruit pulp and the whole spices through a cheesecloth and serve it hot or refrigerate. 
  • be sure to heat cider before serving. it tastes best when slightly warm.
the only thing that you need to keep in mind is that the pot in which you are cooking should really be big. otherwise the end product is going to be thick and pulpy and the you'll really have to work hard to squeeze out the cider through the cheesecloth. also the yield will be less. this happened to me. so i thought i should mention it.

Sending the first two photographs of Homemade Apple Cider to "The Colour Me Photography Challenge Series" ~ Colour Me Brown, a photography event at +Priya's  place The Humpty Dumpty Kitchen. 

Also Sharing this at the following weekly parties..

26.9.13

Blueberry Corn Mini-Muffins (Pioneer Woman)

This month, Zoe from Bake for Happy Kids, Joyce from Kitchen Flavours and Anuja from Simple Bakingchose Ree Drummondas, the Pioneer Woman as the star chef  for the event Cook Like a Star. Initially I wasn't very excited about it. the thing is Food Network telecasts her cooking shows at odd hours... meaning the show timings are not at all convenient for me. in fact all i remembered of her show was the fact that I "had to" switch off the TV exactly when Ree Drummondas came on the screen. I had forgotten the reason and had somehow assumed that I probably hadn't liked the little bit I had ever seen of it.. so I wasn't planning on Cooking like a Star this month. but then i thought of trying out just the simplest of the recipes.. only to find out that her recipes just like her website is adorable-addictive. ever since I have been visiting her website regularly for her recipes and other stories.. she always keeps it real and yet entertaining enough for you to want to go back for another scoop. 

while i have tried a few other recipes by the Pioneer Woman in the last couple of weeks, i do not have many pretty pictures to show. they just didn't turn out right. however husband has been asking me to cook some of them again.. so most likely there will be many more Pioneer Woman recipes on the blog soon. now the first of her recipes that i tried... the Blueberry Corn Muffins.


since it is currently the blueberry season, i am sure everyone around is baking their favorite version of these corn muffins.. just in case your recipe isn't the one that PW shared, reconsider it... for hers is really good. the thing that sets it apart from the other recipes that I have seen and tried is the fact that she uses dried blueberries instead of fresh ones. Oh don't cringe at the idea of dried blueberries. they are really good. i oven dried a cup of blueberries using this recipe and was duly rewarded. now its your turn. trust me. these muffins are worth that extra step and oven drying the blueberries isn't that complicated. simply toss a cup of blueberries with a teaspoon of honey and bake them on a sheet of parchment paper at 225 degrees F for about 2 hours or until shriveled but still supple. while PW does not mention the honey coated version of dried blueberries, I think it is a nice addition to the recipe since the honey coating helps the blueberries stay afloat instead of sinking into the batter...  

okay now PW's recipe for the Blueberry Corn Mini-Muffins...
Blueberry Corn Mini-Muffins (makes 24)
Recipe Source : The Pioneer Woman
 ingredients 


  • 1 cup yellow corn meal
  • 1/2 cup all purpose flour
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1 tbsp baking powder
  • 2 tbsp sugar
  • 1 cup buttermilk (1 used the combination: 1 tbsp + 1 cup minus 1 tbsp of milk )
  • 1/2 cup milk
  • 1/2 tsp baking soda
  • 1 egg
  • 1/4 cup shortening, melted (i used unsalted butter)
  • 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1/2 cup oven dried blueberries(see discussion above for oven dried blueberries)* 
*PW suggests using 8oz of dried blueberries by weight.
-
 the method

  • preheat oven to 400 degrees F and grease a mini-muffin pan.
  • in a bowl, combine corn meal, flour, salt and baking powder. 
  • in a separate bowl add buttermilk, milk, baking soda and egg and beat the sugar into it. now stir in the dry ingredient mixture into it. 
  • then stirring constantly add the melted butter into the batter. 
  • add the vanilla extract and with a light hand stir in the dried blueberries into the batter.
  • pour the batter into the prepared mini-muffin pan, trying to make sure that the blueberries get distributed evenly.
  • transfer the pan to the preheated oven and bake for 20-22 minutes, until the muffins turn golden brown. 
  • then enjoy with Vanilla flavored butter as PW does or slather some jam and serve...you'll enjoy it either way..


by the way, if you are wondering about my choice of props for the photographs... 
well  thats what happens in a house where you are out numbered by beings of the opposite gender.. sometimes the only fancy props available are shiny toy cars and action figures ;-)

Have a good day !

I am linking this post to the event Cook like a Star, organised by Zoe from Bake for Happy Kids Bake for Happy Kids, Baby Sumo from Eat your heart out and Mich from Piece of Cake.    

You can read more about the event here.

Also sharing this with the following food events...

25.9.13

Bootleg Crouu....nuts # Baking Partners September Challenge

This month Swathi of Zesty South Indian Kitchen challenged the Baking Partners to make the latest sensation in the world of pastry ... the celebrated  'Cronut™'. Earlier this year Chef Dominique Ansel launched this unique pastry in Dominique Ansel Bakery, New York. Since then this pastry has accumulated a big fan following around the world. Though it is often described as a hybrid of croissant and doughnut, it appears that resurrecting a copy-cat recipe of the trademarked 'Cronut™' has  been quite a challenge for many accomplished pastry Chefs around the world. However some of them have cracked the code.. and brought the pastry to the doorsteps of the enthusiastic home bakers. Chef Jessica Yang is one of them and here is her recipe of BootLeg cronuts that we tried for this months baking challenge.


Though Crouu..nuts are deep fried pastries, Swathi chose to challenge the Baking Partners with this recipe as it incorporates the techniques of making puff pastry and yeasted doughnuts...  though i was initially very excited as the prospect of learning both the techniques, standing on the other side of the 3 day process I no longer feel the same way. the whole process is long, tedious, tiring and painful. it completely drained me off all the excitement and enthusiasm. admittedly these pastries taste good but I wouldn't dare making them at home again. I'll rather be crazy for a day ... sacrifice a few hours of sleep and take the early morning train to NYC .. and stand in a long queue outside Dominique Ansel Bakery along with hundreds of other crazies like me for a bite of awesomeness ....than toil myself to death hoping to create a magic that i know I'll never be able to create in my kitchen in LI... just 60 miles away from DABakery.....

anyway since i completed the challenge I thought i might as well share my experience with you... just to tell you what i have been up to lately..

BootLeg Crouu... nuts 
Recipe Source : KitchenSurfing Blog
 ingredients

  •    for the dough
    • 2 cups all purpose flour plus more for dusting the work table
    • 3/4 tsp salt
    • 1/3 cup sugar
    • 1/3 cup + 4 tsp milk (I used fatfree milk )
    • 1 1/2 tsp active dry yeast
    • 2 large eggs
    • 2 1/3 tbsp unsalted butter
  • for butter layer
    • 14 tbsps (1 cup minus 2 tbsp) unsalted butter
  • for frying
    • 2-4 cups canola oil 
    • water for brushing on top
    • cinnamon and sugar (4 tbsp sugar + 1 tbsp ground cinnamon)
  • for chocolate pastry cream (I followed this recipe)
  • for the chocolate glaze
    • 4 oz semisweet chocolate chips
    • 1/2 tbsp unsalted butter
-
 the method
  •  Phase 1
    • 30 minutes before dough preparation take the butter and the eggs out of the refrigerator and allow them to reach room temperature.
    • when ready to prepare the dough, combine all the dry ingredients, flour, salt, sugar and yeast in a bowl of your standing mixer.
    • heat the milk until warm, about 20-30 seconds in the microwave and add it to the bowl of dry ingredients. now add the eggs and butter and mix on low speed until everything is well incorporated. then mix on high speed for another 8 minutes. (note that the dough gets tougher as you mix. though the recipe instructs to mix on low speed for 3 minutes and then on high speed for 8 minutes, I was not able to knead on high speed for 8 minutes as one of the paddles of my hand mixer broke in the process. so unless your mixer paddles are sturdy enough, take a break in between or towards the end, knead the dough with your hands.)
    • remove the dough from the bowl, shape it into a ball and transfer the dough into a well greased bowl. to allow the dough to relax, cut a cross on its surface with a knife. then covering the dough with a plastic wrap, place the dough in a warm area and let it double itself. this takes about 30-60 minutes (in my case around 60 minutes.) after the dough has "poofed" transfer it to the refrigerator for at least 2 hours (or overnight).
  •  Preparing the butter for lamination
    • While the dough is chilling, prepare the butter for lamination. for this take 14 tbsps (2 sticks minus 2 tablespoons) of cold butter and cut the sticks lengthwise into half. now arrange the cut out pieces on a parchment paper in the form of a rectangle, cover the laid out butter rectangle with a second parchment paper and using a rolling pin even out the rectangle till it is approximately 4x6 inches. then wrapping the butter with a cling wrap, transfer it to the refrigerator and allow it to chill for at least 2 hours.
  • Phase 2 : Note this phase consists of 4 major steps wherein the fourth step is a repetition of the first three. Including the minimum intermediate chilling time, this phase should ideally take 6-7 hours. but for non-experts like me it might require an extra couple of hours. so be prepared for this ! I had allowed the dough to chill for 8 hours before starting phase 2. I hadn't read the recipe completely so i took a long break after the second turn that is the second step of phase 2 and continued the lamination process next day. though it apparently did not effect the outcome, I think it is better to follow the recipe and complete the lamination process at a single go...
    • remove the dough from the refrigerator and roll it out on a well floured surface so that a cross is formed with equal arms on all four sides. make sure that the center of the rolled out dough is big enough to envelop the slab of butter.
    • place the butter in the center of the cross and cover the four flaps so that the butter cannot be seen. the opposite flaps should not overlap when folded but should seal the butter inside meeting at the edges.
    •  1st turn
      • flour the surface and the dough so that it does not stick to the rolling pin. before beginning to roll out, press the dough down in order to expand it. turn the dough so that the shorter end faces you.
      • roll to expand the length of the dough. to ensure that the dough does not stick to the work table, add more flour whenever required.
      • when you have a rectangle that is 16 x 7 inches, fold the top third of the rectangle down, then fold the bottom third to cover it. turn the dough 90 degrees so that the opening resembles a book.
    • 2nd turn. (though you can do this step right away, I highly recommend that you wrap the dough in film and chill it for 30-60 minutes before doing the 2nd turn. )
      • like in 1st turn, roll to expand the length of the dough and repeat the subsequent steps, then turn the dough 90 degrees and gently press two fingers in the lower right corner to mark the number of turns. (marking the dough helps you to keep track of your progress and also ensures that the orientation of the dough is correct when you remove it from the refrigerator.) now wrap the dough and let it chill for atleast 1 hour. (this is the point where i took a break and decided to resume the lamination work the following day.)
    • 3rd turn. at this point the dough is hard. so gently pound it to warm the butter. if it is too cold the butter will separate and not spread as well as it should. repeat the previous steps. then turning the dough as in 2nd turn, mark the corner with 3 fingerprints. once again wrap the dough and return it to the refrigerator for 1 hour.
    • 4th turn. make the final turn, repeating the steps from 1-3 turns. then wrap the dough and chill it for at least 2 hours. 
  •  In the meantime prepare the chocolate pastry cream 
    • for the chocolate pastry cream, I followed the recipe from Around the French Table. It is the same one that i used as a filling for my chocolate eclairs. you can find the recipe here.
  • Phase 3 . from dough to crouu..nut
    • lightly dust the work table with flour and roll out the dough to approximately 2/3 the size of a sheet pan and 1/2 inch thick. make sure the dough stays cold. in case the dough starts to stick, return it to the refrigerator for 20-30 minutes and roll again when it is cool. transfer to a sheet pan with parchment paper, cover it with a film and chill before using.
    • line a sheet pan with parchment paper and grease it. once the dough is very cold, remove it from the refrigerator and using 2 ring molds, punch out the doughnuts and doughnut holes from the rolled out dough. (the recipe mentions that crouu..nuts do not fry straight unless the dough is very cold.) 
    • transfer half of the punched crouu..nuts to the sheet pan, leaving enough room for them to "poof."
    • brush the tops with water and stick the remaining halves on top. press lightly so that they stick together. place the crouu..nut holes on the same sheet tray leaving enough space for them to poof without sticking to each other. leave in a warm place until they have poofed, about 30-45 minutes.
    • now place the "poofed" crouu..nuts and the holes in the refrigerator for 1 hour or in the freezer for 15 minutes.
  • Phase 4 . frying the crouu.. nuts and adding the flavors..
    • when ready to fry, heat canola oil in pot around 3 inches high. test oil with a pinch of flour, if the flour foams it is ready for deep frying. Turn heat to low and place crouu..nuts in oil 1-2 at a time.avoid overcrowding the pot. turn and flip the crouu...nuts till they have evenly browned.
    • once it turns golden brown and looks well cooked, remove the crouu..nuts from the oil and place it on a paper towel and proceed to prepare the chocolate glaze.
    • for the chocolate glaze, melt 4 oz semisweet chocochips in the microwave and stir 1/2 tbsp of butter into it.
    • when the  crouu..nuts are no longer shiny, that is the extra oil has been absorbed in the paper towel, transfer them to a container with sugar and cinnamon and toss.
    • then dip the crouu..nuts in the chocolate glaze while it is still warm.
    • once the crouu..nuts have cooled a little, poke several holes and fill with the chocolate pastry cream... serve and enjoy !! 



23.9.13

Apple Picking , Weekly Menu Plan & Apple Recipes

Today is the first official day of Autumn. While the fall colors are yet to show up in these quarters, we thought it would be nice to go apple picking while the sun is still warm and crisp... so that is what we did today... 
 
We went apple picking at Woodside Orchard ....
 

because, it was our first time in any orchard and this trip wasn't a very well planned one, we couldn't taste the apple wine or the cider at the cidery. we just had enough cash to get a peck of hand picked apples back.

 
Though apples are just apples for us, for those who understand, our peck was a combination of  Ida Red, Mutsu and Jonamac. unaware of what we would be bringing back home, last night i had pinned a few simple apple recipes that seemed healthy and interesting. now I'll have to figure out how to fit the varieties at hand into the recipes I had pinned....

 Weekly Menu Plan   
Sunday Pakoda Kadhi, Aloo Methi (Potato Fenugreek Stir Fry) with Rice
MondayCauliflower Peas Curry, Yellow Pumpkin Dal with Rice
TuesdayBandhakopi-r Ghonto(Bengali Cabbage Dish) with Venn Pongal
WednesdayChicken with Apple Gravy, Rice Pilaf and Green Beans
ThursdayBaby Spinach, Apple, Chickpea Wrap
FridayGozleme with Chicken balls in Yogurt Sauce
SaturdayLeftovers

In case you are also in the same boat and are seeking for some apple recipes... here are a few that we liked... 


Apple Carrot Agrodolce a simple salad that can be prepared in advance and enjoyed at room temperature

Warm Applesauce Spice BarsVegan Blueberry Banana Bread, Eggless Apple cake .. three utterly moist  cakes/ loaves that make nice weeknight desserts

and finally Nigella's Maple Chicken with Apple Cider... a wonderful, succulent, delicious dish that is perfect for autumn.



p.s : shared some more photographs of our afternoon in the orchards here.

17.9.13

Warm Applesauce Spice Bars # GYCO Applesauce Challenge

Its already been 2 months since GYCO Blackberry challenge. Hence time for yet another Get your Chef On ! This month Julie from White Lights of Wednesday and Jen from Four Mars and One Venus challenged us to make/bake something special with Applesauce. Since applesauce happens to be one of my favorite substitutes for butter and eggs I immediately signed up for it... howver a recipe in which the star ingredient is merely used as a substitute isn't really the recipe for GYCO.... right ? so i raked up the internet looking for a recipe which wasn't too complicated and yet felt special enough for a challenge. and yesterday afternoon I finally bumped upon The One.... "Dorie's Applesauce Spice Bars." While the recipe looked wonderful by itself I thought a little tweaking would be nice. So i modified the ingredient list a bit and traded the original brown sugar glaze for a warm honey glaze... the result was fabulous.. we loved the spiced up soft moist Warm Applesauce Spice Bars.... 


and I am sure you will too when you try it......



now the recipe... I adapted the recipe of the cake from Something Sweet By Karen and the idea of glaze from Alex Guarnaschelli's Warm Grape Cake . The original cake recipe is from Dorie Greenspan's Baking : From my home to yours. Thanks to Karen for publishing this recipe as part of Tuesdays with Dorie. It certainly rocks !

Warm Applesauce Spice Bars 
Adapted from Dorie Greenspan's Baking: From My Home to Yours
 ingredients
  • for the cake
    • 1 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
    • 1 tsp baking powder
    • 1/4 tsp baking soda
    • 1 tsp ground cinnamon
    • 1/4 tsp ground allspice
    • 1/4 tsp salt
    • 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
    • 1 cup light brown sugar
    • 2 large eggs
    • 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
    • 1 tsp vanilla extract
    • 1 Bartlett pear, peeled, cored and finely chopped
    • 1/2 oven dried red grapes or plum raisins (I used a 3:1 ratio of the two)
    • 1/2 cup chopped walnuts 
  • for the glaze
    • 1/4 cup honey
    • 3/4 inch knob of ginger, peeled and freshly grated
    • 1/4-1/3 cup golden raisins
-
 the method
  • center a rack in the oven and preheat it to 350 degree F. butter a 9x13 inch baking pan, line the bottom with a parchment paper. butter the paper, dust the floor and sides of the pan with flour and tap off the excess. (in case you are like me and do not have a 9 x 13 inch pan, prepare your small cookie pan. it works. that is what i used.) 
  • whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, allspice and salt, sift the mixture and keep it aside.
  • in a medium heavy bottomed saucepan melt the butter over low heat. add the light brown sugar and  whisk the mixture until the sugar melts and a smooth batter is formed.
  • remove the saucepan from the heat and whisking continuously, add the eggs one at a time. whisk until the eggs are well incorporated into the batter, then add the applesauce and vanilla extract and whisk until a smooth uniform batter is formed. 
  • once all the wet ingredients are well-incorporated, using a rubber spatula or wooden spoon, gently fold in the flour mixture, mixing only until they disappear. then mix in the pears, the raisins and nuts.
  • now scraping the batter into the prepared pan, smooth the surface with a rubber spatula and bake for 23-25 minutes until the cake begins to pull away from the sides of the pan and a knife inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean. (for me this happened exactly after 23 minutes.)
  • transferring the baking pan to a rack, let the cake cool completely. once the cake has cooled completely, after about 30-45 minutes, slice the cake into 2-1/4 x 1-1/2 inch bars and go ahead and prepare the glaze.
  • for the glaze, add the honey to a small saute pan and holding the pan over low heat, bring it to a light simmer. once the honey bubbles and turns light brown, add the freshly grated ginger and golden raisins to the pan. saute for another 20-30  seconds and then drizzle the honey glaze over the sliced bars and serve and enjoy with milk, tea or a scoop of ice-cream !

So that was my awesome Warm Applesauce Spice Bar for GYCO Applesauce...
Hope you enjoyed the recipe and will try it while apples and pears are still flooding your local grocery store. So much for today. Have a great week !


I shall be sharing this with the following food events...

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