Category: Sweet bits

On the sweet side.

Peach Puff

My sister-in-law made an amazing Napolean (Mille-feuille) cake and the curious in me asked too many questions. So much so, she packed me home a bag of 1 lb (Russian) pastry sheet. It occupied the freezer until an occasion (Labor Day cook-out ) presented itself. I confess, in the past, I have laboriously made puff pastry from scratch, with buttering and rolling and folding on and on. For hours. All on chilled slabs.

But the store-bought one was a breeze! Here is a fruit pinwheel. Enjoy!

SPECIAL TOOLS:

Muffin pans.

INGREDIENTS

Makes 6.

  • 1 lb puff pastry
  • 2-3 peaches, pitted and thinly sliced into moons
  • little EVOO to spray the muffin pan
  • Peach or any other jam

METHOD

Thaw the frozen pastry and work while it is pliable but still cold. If it gets too warm, leave in the refrigerator for a few minutes. I unwrapped the sheet on parchment, placed another layer of parchment on top and rolled thin. Score the rectangle to make 6 equal-sized strips.

Keep the muffin tray ready by spraying with EVOO.

Work with each strip at a time (keeping the others between parchment in the refrigerator, else it may get too warm). Brush the jam and place 2 to 3 layers of halfmoon peaches with the curved sided of the moon facing out (see picture). Fold the strip over. Roll tightly and place in muffin cup.

Bake at 375 F for 30-40 mins or until golden brown.

NOTES, HINTS, TIPS:

  1. My muffin tray had 6 cups, so I made 6 large puffs. But if yours has 8, you could make 8 delicate puffs from 1 lb of puff pastry.
  2. This was inspired by youtube’s Delish recipe.
  3. You could garnish with powdered sugar.
  4. Mille-feuille (thousand leaves) is a mathematical pastry. Let me explain. Repeated folding and rolling gives you 3^6 = 729 layers. It is rounded off to one thousand. If you repeat the process again (which is not usually done), you will get 3^7 = 2187, way larger than one thousand. QED.

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Two-Way Gajar Halwa

No added sugar, no ghee!! Then, is it any good ? I have it from my fussiest that indeed it is finger-licking good.

Here is a little, soft primer on “you are what you eat” or what La Nutritionista says. Added sugar –such as cane sugar or honey or maple syrup or agave or any syrup– toys with one of your body organs (say, pancreas via insulin) while sugar, such as in fruits or vegetables, can be viewed as contributing to the total calorie intake . The latter has more leeway than the former in your meal planning. So averting added sugar in favor of natural sugar may be a sound strategy.

Back to the carrot pudding. The sweetness in this halwa comes from the natural sugars in dried apricots. With a tiny dose, the halwa replaces your breakfast cereal, and, with a stronger dose turns into a dessert . Moreover, it is embarrassingly simple to make. Enjoy both-ways!

SPECIAL TOOLS:

Microwave; food processor (or grater), coffee/spice grinder.

INGREDIENTS

Serves 4.

  • 2 cups finely grated carrot + 1 cup milk
  • 3 dried apricots finely diced, and nuked in microwave with 1/2 cup water for 2 mins until very soft and fragrant
  • 2 tbsp powdered raw cashews + 2 tbsp whole raw cashews + 2 tbsp raisins
  • 1/2 tsp cardamom powder
  • Optional topping: 1 tbsp mulberries soaked in 1/4 cup black cherry rum

METHOD

Place ingredients (except cardamom) in a microwavable bowl. Cover loosely with damp kitchen towel and nuke at 50% power for 20 mins or so (in intervals of 8 mins, say).

When done, mix in the cardamom powder. Serve hot or chilled.

NOTES, HINTS, TIPS:

  1. The traditional halwa is slow cooked for hours with generous amount of sweetener and ghee. My daughter is the fussiest eater I know and a fierce critic. She found this lighter version of halwa finger-licking good!
  2. You can powder the raw cashews in a spice/coffee grinder. About 1 1/2 tbsp cashews yield 2 tbsps of powder.
  3. In pressure cooker: Place ingredients (except cardamom) in a pressure-safe bowl and pressure cook for 15 mins.
  4. Recommendation by AHA/CDC is to limit the consumption of added sugars to a few teaspoons a day. Check the different resources in your country for the exact recommended number that best matches your health profile.
  5. For the sweeter version of the halwa use 6 dried apricots in 3/4 cup water. Surprisingly, when the apricot cooks in water it is fragrant like a mithaiwala’s sugar syrup!
  6. The recipe is inspired from Indian Instant Pot Cookbook, by Urvashi Pitre (that used about 1/4 cup sugar and 2 tbsp ghee).

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Sakura Rice Pudding

When the much awaited cherry blossom (sakura) tea arrived, all the way from Japan, it was a little anticlimactic to see “Lipton” stamped on it. Nevertheless, the floral scented tea did not disappoint! So much so, that I tried a sakura-infused rice pudding. It turned out even more delicious. Enjoy!

SPECIAL TOOLS:

Coffee/spice grinder, microwave.

INGREDIENTS

Serves 2.

  • 2 cups milk
  • 4 sakura tea bags
  • 2 tbsps powdered brown rice (coarsely ground in a coffee/spice grinder)
  • 1 tbsp sugar (or more, to taste)
  • Garnish: raisins or Blackstrap molasses or berries or pitted, halved cherries

METHOD

Heat the milk to scalding (about 3-4 mins in microwave). Place the tea bags and let steep (for about 1 hour). Remove the teabags and add the rice powder to the milk and cook in microwave till thickened (at 60% power for 5 mins, stir and repeat two more times). Add the sugar and mix well. The mixture thickens as it cools.

Serve hot or chilled with the garnish.

NOTES, HINTS, TIPS:

  1. This is a simple, entirely-in-microwave rendition of a rice pudding.
  2. I used 2% milk, but any milk will do, even skimPlus. After adding the tea bags, to get a stronger extraction, you can nuke it for a 1 minute.
  3. The rice can be ground in a spice grinder or coffee grinder. It should not be a very find grind: coarse is good.
  4. Blackstrap molasses? See https://purba.blog/2023/07/30/horchata-matcha-with-blackstrap-molasses/
  5. This is similar to Indian kheer, or, phirnee/firni. Another variation is to set it in individual ramekin or even blancmange molds. Inverting from a mold would need the consistency to be even thicker.
  6. Garnishing sakura (cherry blossom) pudding with cherries reminds me of the Japanese dish called oya-ko (parent-child) donburi which refers to chicken-egg. Oya-ko being cherry blossom-fruit.
  7. Lavender pudding with lychee. I have used lavender to scent the pudding and chopped lychee as garnish. Has been a big hit. You can get culinary dried lavender buds from your spice/tea store, if it is fancy enough 🙂 Make sure it is culinary. It is indeed worth the trouble to locate such a source.
  8. Cardamom infused pudding. The Indian in me, of course, has infused rice pudding with cardamom, with incredible results.

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Horchata Matcha with Blackstrap Molasses

Mexican horchata with Japanese matcha tea. The rice and the molasses combo is reminiscent of my Indian grandmother’s rural kitchen. It has become my favorite kick-back, unwind, Sunday afternoon latte and is sure to challenge all your lattes. Enjoy!

SPECIAL TOOLS:

High powered blender or Nutr.

INGREDIENTS

Serves 1 solo drink.

  • In 1 1/2 cup water in a mason jar, soak overnight:
    • grain: 1 tbsp brown rice OR millet +
    • flavor: 1/3 stick cinnamon OR 2-3 whole cardamoms +
    • nuts: 1 tbsp almonds OR pecan+
    • a dash of Himalayan pink salt
  • Green matcha tea: 1 tsp matcha powder, with 1 tbsp hot water, well mixed
  • Sweetener: 1 tbsp blackstrap molasses

METHOD

Run the horchata ingredients with the water through a blender or Nutr and strain back into the mason jar. Heat and add the green tea and the sweetener.

Serve hot or iced.

NOTES, HINTS, TIPS:

  1. Here is a stronger horchata: In 1 cup water in a mason jar, soak 1/4 cup rice +1/4 cup almonds + 1/3 stick cinnamon, overnight
  2. Blackstrap molasses has all the goodness of a regular sweetener but –almost impossibly!- is also an ingredient of clean eating. Check https://www.webmd.com/diet/health-benefits-blackstrap-molasses
  3. The horchata is adapted from https://www.thehealthymaven.com/iced-horchata-latte/.
  4. For the hot version of the tea, I use the microwave to warm the horchata (1 min at 60% power; but you may want to adjust with yours).

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Urfa biber Brownies

Just before setting off to Istanbul, coincidentally, a brownie recipe came my way with the famous raisin-ish, maroon colored Turkish pepper from the Urfa region. The pepper was already gracing my pantry. I adapted the recipe to all-pantry-ingredients for a quick, no-fuss, no-guilt brownie that promises to stun your palate. You will not miss the flour-laden version. Believe me. I may have even done the unthinkable. I packed some for the ten hour flight that awaited me. Enjoy!

SPECIAL TOOLS:

Oven.

INGREDIENTS

  • 1 can (15 oz). black beans, rinsed and drained + 3 large eggs + 3 tbsp EVOO + 1 tsp vanilla essence
    + 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder + 1/2 cup slivered almonds + 1/2 cup sugar
    + 1/2 tsp baking powder + 1/4 tsp salt + 1 1/2 tsp Urfa biber
  • Garnish: Maldon sea salt

METHOD

Run all ingredients (except garnish) in food processor till smooth. Pour into a greased (with EVOO) baking pan and bake at 350 F for 20-25 mins.
Sprinkle sea salt. Let cool and cut into pieces.

NOTES, HINTS, TIPS:

  1. The food processor is powerful enough to mix all the ingredients together. But if you plan to mix by hand, then mix the dry and wet ingredients separately before put them all together.
  2. You can increase the amount of sugar in the recipe, if you prefer sweeter versions.
  3. If you prefer, you can line the baking pan with parchment, instead of greasing it.
  4. You can test the done-ness with a toothpick and adjust the baking time.
  5. The excess brownies can be frozen in freeze bags.

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Stuffed Turkish Apricots

I am looking forward to my upcoming Istanbul trip. In anticipation of the exquisite cuisine that awaits me, here is a dirt simple, 2-ingredient, super-quick amuse bouche that is astonishingly mind-blowing as well. Enjoy!

SPECIAL TOOLS:

Microwave.

INGREDIENTS

  • 6-8 Turkish dried apricots (without sulphates!)
  • 1/2 cup drained yogurt
  • Topping (optional): crushed walnuts or pistachios

METHOD

Rehydrate the apricots in a cup of water by microwaving for 2-3 minutes. Let cool. Stuff each apricot with a tsp of drained yogurt. Optionally sprinkle with crushed nuts and lightly pour the apricot syrup (from rehydration).

Serve warm or cold.

NOTES, HINTS, TIPS:

  1. DO NOT USE THIS TREATMENT ON DRIED APRICOTS WITH SULFUR DIOXIDES. For these poach in apple juice gently over the stove, till softened.
  2. Note there is no added sugar in the recipe. Just the natural sugars in the apricots. For this minimal treatment, I would avoid the ones that use sulphates.
    Surprisingly, the warming of the apricots in water (albeit in the microwave for a few scant minutes) turns the whole house redolent with the aromas of an Indian mithaiwala‘s ! Many Indian sweets revolve around sugar syrups of various consistencies.
  3. The recipe was inspired by a master class from CIA.

On Memorial Day, these apricots were stuffed with gajar halwa and topped with ground pistachio (from Istanbul) and cashewnuts. The apricot was gently, poached in the microwave, 1 minute at a time, until tender. Was a smashing hit, even with the most pernickety.

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