Baked Bread Pudding

Baked Bread Pudding

Puddings can be baked!!!?

Till I watched Nigella Lawson making this delicious pudding I was not aware that bread pudding can be baked.

 I wanted to make it but I forgot all about it in my schedule.

When Valli announced this Mega Marathon where I decided to make Baked Bread Pudding again I forgot. Then Swathi for Baking Partners asked us to make brioche there she said the left-overs can be made into bread pudding!!

Needless to say that I saw to it I had left-overs and “Fired the Oven This April”!!

Baked Bread Pudding

Ingredients:

• 4 brioche bread, day old
• 2 tblspn butter, melted
• 3 eggs, beaten
• 2 cups milk
• ¾ cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 tblspn cranberries or raisins

Method:

• Preheat oven to 180°C/350°F.
• Break the day old bread into small pieces and add them to a bowls you want to bake in. I got 6 bowls for my bread.
• In a bowl beat eggs, milk, sugar, butter and vanilla till well mixed.
• Pour over bread and lightly push down with a fork until bread is covered and soaking up the egg mixture.
• Garnish with cranberries or raisins.
• Bake in the preheated oven for 45 minutes, or until the top springs back when lightly tapped.
• Serve warm. Tastes best with ice cream.

Baked Bread Pudding

Come back again tomorrow for a yummy bake...

Day 2

Check out the Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing BM# 51

An InLinkz Link-up

Hi! First time here? Well then you are Most Welcome! I hope you keep coming back for more here. If you are my regular visitor then Thanks, for you encourage me to experiment more!! I would like you to please click on my link below and like my Facebook Page. I will be happy if you can follow me on on Twitter too!

 

Devilled Eggs/Deviled Eggs/Eggs Mimosa

Devilled Eggs/Deviled Eggs/Eggs Mimosa

Do you have trouble getting your kids to eat boiled eggs?

I have!

Okay they are fit enough to eat fried eggs everyday but that too gets “boring”!

So I tried this eggs I have not made a long long time now.

Devilled eggs as they are spelt in UK and Deviled eggs in the US, these are also called eggs mimosa.

In the west they are served with the yolk mixed with mayonnaise and mustard, but many other variants.

Devilled eggs are usually served cold. They are served as a side dish, appetizer or a main course, and are a common holiday or party food.

Needless to say they disappeared as I was clicking pictures and elder one complained that she got none. Must be the younger one had finished her share also. So plan accordingly.

Devilled Eggs/Deviled Eggs/Eggs Mimosa

Ingredients:

• 6 eggs, hard boiled
• 1 onion, chopped fine
• 1 green chilli, chopped fine
• 1 tblspn tomato ketchup
• Salt
• Red chilli powder

Method:

• Shell the eggs and cut them in two.
• Remove the yolk and mix with onion, green chilli, ketchup, salt and red chilli powder.
• Check the seasoning.
• Stuff the egg yolks in the egg white cavity.
• Serve.

Devilled Eggs/Deviled Eggs/Eggs Mimosa

Linking to Varadha’s and Srivalli's Kid's Delight.

Check out the Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing BM#49

Hi! First time here? Well then you are Most Welcome! I hope you keep coming back for more here. If you are my regular visitor then Thanks, for you encourage me to experiment more!! I would like you to please click on my link below and like my Facebook Page. I will be happy if you can follow me on on Twitter too!

 

Anda Bhurji Wraps/ Scrambled Eggs Wrap ~Indian style

Anda Bhurji Wraps/ Scrambled Eggs Wrap ~Indian style

The doctor has suggested that I serve my girls more protein. Being vegetarian at home I depend on daals and sprouts as the main source of protein.

The girls have learnt to shut me off when I am telling them to eat daal, usal which I cook in generally like here but these options here , here , here or here I forget many times. Missal is also something they are not too keen on these days. So I have to rack my brains.

The other day the younger one and I went to CCD and we had 2 wraps. One was chicken and the other was egg wrap. She choose chicken but preferred my egg wrap, did I have to think?

After two weeks, yes else it would be" we ate this just now", I made the Anda Bhurji Wrap. Next time I plan to add some veggies in the bhurji.  This wrap is ideal for Tiffin box and "I am hungry but want something different snack."

There is a lot of confusion if egg bhurji is same as Akuri from the Parsi cuisine or scrambled eggs. There is a vast difference between the three. I realise I do not have these everyday dishes posted will rectify asap.

Bhurji or anda bhurji, egg khagina as it is called in Pakistan is very simple dish. In fact my hubby  and I used to always wait to see if we had omelette or bhurji when we were newly married.  We used to say an omelette that did not come out from the pan easily was made bhurji. :D

In case you do not eat eggs make it with paneer I promise its just as yummy.

To make Anda bhurji wrap you will need

Anda Bhurji Wraps/ Scrambled Eggs Wrap ~Indian style 

For the wraps:

Anda Bhurji Wraps/ Scrambled Eggs Wrap ~Indian style

• 3 whole wheat chapattis
• 3 slices cheese slices
• Tomato sauce, to taste
• Spring onion to garnish

 For Egg Bhurji:

• 2 eggs
• 2 onions, finely chopped
• 1 green chillies or as per taste
• 1 inch ginger, finely chopped
• 1 tsp coriander leaves, chopped
• 2 Tbsp vegetable oil 
• 1 tsp red chilli powder
• 1 tsp turmeric powder
• Pav bhaji masala (as per taste)
• Pinch of hing
• Salt as per taste

 Method: 

Let's make Anda Bhurji first...

• Whisk the eggs gently with a spoon and set aside.
• In a non-stick heat oil add onions, hing, green chillies, and ginger to it. Sauté.
• Add pav bhaji masala, red chilli powder, turmeric powder and salt.
• Now add the eggs and keep whisking them until cooked.
• Garnish with the rest of coriander leaves.
• Divide in 3 portions.

To assemble the wraps...

• On a plate lay the chapatti spread and lay the cheese slice. 
• Add a portion on leaving about a quarter of the chapatti free.
• Dot with sauce. (Since Akanksha smothers hers with sauce this has a lot more sauce that I will like to add.)
• Fold the quarter over the filling and roll the chapati in a tight roll.
• Serve.

 Note:

You can use a Pita bread in place of chapati. 

Check out the Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing BM#48

Hi! First time here? Well then you are Most Welcome! I hope you keep coming back for more here. If you are my regular visitor then Thanks, for you encourage me to experiment more!! I would like you to please click on my link below and like my Facebook Page. I will be happy if you can follow me on on Twitter too!

 

Blintzes from Russia

 

Today on in the Mega Marathon which has been christened as “Around the World in 30 Days” let us visit Russia!

If you are about my age you will remember the Span and the “Adventures of Misha.” How I used to wait to see what she came up with next.

Apeksha, my elder daughter has been always after me for pancakes. And as I was researching Russia for some reason she borrowed the laptop, the rest is history this was the page that I was on. If that was not enough after that she was trying to convince me to do crêpes as a Sub-category in street food….

On the day I made these Blintzes it was pouring and we had a lot of guests. The idea was to remake the dish for better pics. Never got down to it. Hope to remake these delicious Blintzes again soon!

According to Wikipedia, “A blin (pl. blini), blintchik (pl. blintchiki) or blintz is a type of thin pancake.  Blintzes are thin pancakes that typically lack a leavening agent and are similar to crêpes, whereas blini are typically thicker and include a leavening agent.^”

Traditionally Russian blini are made with yeasted batter, which is left to rise and then diluted with cold or boiling water/ milk. When diluted with boiling water, they are referred to as zavarniye blini and were baked in a Russian oven. Though the blini are pan fried they are cooking of blini is still referred to as baking in Russian.

 French crêpes made from unyeasted batter (usually made of flour, milk, and eggs) are also common in Russia.  Flours used for making blini range from wheat and buckwheat to oatmeal and millet, although wheat is currently the most popular.

Blintzes are made in Jewish cuisine too; blintzes that are stuffed with a cheese filling and then fried in oil are served on holidays such as Chanukah (as oil played a pivotal role in the miracle of the Chanukah story) and Shavuot (when dairy dishes are traditionally served within the Ashkenazi minhag). Blintzes are called "blinchiki" in Russian, and are ordinarily stuffed before frying a second time. Fillings include chocolate, mushrooms, meat, rice, mashed potatoes, and cheese.

Blintzes are the traditional meal in Lithuania during Fat Tuesday.

Buckwheat blini are part of traditional Russian cuisine. They are also widespread in Ukraine, where they are sometimes known as hrechanyky (Ukrainian: гречаники), and Lithuania’s Dzūkija   region, the only region in the country where buckwheat is grown, where they are called Grikių blynai.”

Blintz

Recipe Source: Tony Avey

Ingredients:

  For The Blintzes:

• 2 cup Maida or APF
• 2 cup milk
• 2 tblspn sugar
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 tblspn oil
• 2 tblspn baking powder

Ingredients for the Filling:

• 1 cup fresh paneer, crumbled
• ¼ cup cream
• 1/8 cup sugar
• 1 egg yolk (optional)
• 2 tsp fresh lemon juice
• 1 tsp vanilla
• Pinch of salt

Method:

• Blend all of the blintz ingredients together using a blender or electric hand mixer. You can blend with a fork too but remember that the batter should not have any lumps.
• Warm up a non-stick tava/skillet until hot.
• The tava/skillet is ready check the heat . Sprinkle a drop of water and if it sizzles on the surface of the of the tava , your tava is ready. If the water pops or jumps out of the pan, the skillet it too hot—let it cool slightly before starting.  
• Grease the tava/skillet generously with cooking oil.
• Pour the pancake batter using a 1/3 cup into the pan.
• Tilt the pan in a circular motion till the batter coats the entire bottom of the pan in a large, thin circular shape.
• Cook for 60-75 seconds until the edges of the blintz brown and the bottom of the blintz is lightly golden. The pancake is done when the centre of the pancake's surface is dry and slightly tacky to the touch.
• Remove the pancake with a spatula and place it on a plate.
• Keep the blintzes separated by pieces of butter paper or paper towels to prevent the blintzes from sticking together.
• Similarly cook all the blintzes.

Now make the filling:

• Put all of the filling ingredients into a chutney bowl of the blender and pulse it. The filling should not be smooth. But should be well blended.
• Now let’s assemble the blintzes
•  Put about 3 tblspn of filling on the lower part of the blintz, about an inch from the edge.
• Now fold the lower edge of the blintz covering up the filling, say about till the centre.
• Now fold the sides of the blintz inward, as though you’re folding an envelope.
• Roll the blintz up and over the filling like a burrito, tucking the edges in as you roll.
• Finish them all. Then let’s fry them…
• Heat about ¼ cup of oil in a non-stick pan over medium until hot.
•  Cook the blintzes in batches see that you have enough space to turn them easily in the pan. Gently lay the flapside down in the oil (take care the oil is hot).
• The oil will sizzle after 1 ½ to 2 minutes flip carefully the blintzes. They will be brown and crispy.
• Fry the flipped side again for a 1 ½ - 2 minutes till they are browned evenly.
• Serve blintzes warm as they are or topped with fruit topping, sour cream, applesauce, whipped cream or maple syrup.

Check out the Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing BM# 44

An InLinkz Link-up

Hi! First time here? Well then you are Most Welcome! I hope you keep coming back for more here. If you are my regular visitor then Thanks, for you encourage me to experiment more!! I would like you to please click on my link below and like my Facebook Page. I will be happy if you can follow me on on Twitter too!

Savoury Corn Fitters from New Zealand

Savoury Corn Fitters

Now that school has reopened I have a problem what do I give in the kiddos tiffin box?

To add to my woes she does not have a breakfast, barely gulps down a small cup of milk. 

 She comes home for lunch but she wants something delicious in her tiffin box. Her idea of delicious and mine are mine are poles apart.

 The day I give something she does not want we end up having the tiffin uneaten but loaded with excuses like I had to go to the staff room as I am the CR etc.

About this time I was researching recipes for this trip around the world. I fell for the simplicity of these delicious corn fritters. It also what doctor ordered an egg…

Sorry those who do not eat eggs replace it with 1 tblspn of egg replacer or 1/3 cup of cream.

The original recipe has cheese and ham included but I did not add as I did not have time to grate the cheese and ham I do not do. Please feel free to use them if you like it.

Also the original recipe used flour or maida, APF I replaced it with oats. Another thing she refuses to eat.

The whole thing went down well with tomato sauce. Infact she ate one of the fitters before she left for school… Ahhhhhhh relief!!

Savoury Corn Fitters

Savoury Corn Fitters

Cuisine: Kiwi Cuisine

Recipe Source:Kiwi Faves 

Ingredients:

• ¼ cup red capsicum/pepper, chopped
• ¼ cup yellow capsicum, chopped
• 1 medium onion, chopped fine
• 1 ½ cup oats
• ¼ cup spring onion chopped
• Salt and pepper
• 1 eggs
• 1 can cream style sweet corn,1 tin
• ½ tsp baking powder
• rice bran oil for frying

Method:

• In a large bowl mix together the capsicum, spring onion, onion, salt and pepper mix well.
• Add the sweet corn, mix well.
• Add the oats and give it a nice good stir. Check the seasoning.
• Add the egg/ egg replacer, baking powder. Mix well.
• If you feel the batter is dry add a tblspn or two of water. The batter should be of dropping consistency.
• The original instructions said “Heat 2 tblspn of oil in a non- stick pan add a tableful of batter in the hot oil.”  I did that but then  preferred the method of adding the ladleful of batter  on the hot pan and then adding oil to the sides of the batter, much like how we add oil to a dosa but of course I need a little more oil than the dosa needs. And I did that from the second batch that I made on the same pan. Suit yourself.
• Fry till golden on both sides.
• Serve them with tomato sauce.

Notes: 

• I used the circular cookied dough cutter that i kept on the tava/ skillet and added the batter in it to get the perfect sized round shaped.

Savoury Corn Fitters

An InLinkz Link-up

Check out the Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing BM# 44

Hi! First time here? Well then you are Most Welcome! I hope you keep coming back for more here. If you are my regular visitor then Thanks, for you encourage me to experiment more!! I would like you to please click on my link below and like my Facebook Page. I will be happy if you can follow me on on Twitter too!

Nasi Goreng (Indonesian Fried Rice with Vegetables)

Nasi Goreng

Today we in our “Trip around the World in 30 Days” we stop at Indonesia for the alphabet I.

What can represent Indonesia better than Nasi Goreng?

Nasi Goreng is often described as Indonesia's twist on fried rice.

According to Wikipedia   Nasi Goreng has been called the national dish of Indonesia though there are many other contenders for the title.

The beginnings of Nasi Goreng are simple---- avoid wasting rice, just like fried rice.  The name suggests Nasi Goreng is literally meaning "fried rice" in Indonesian and Malay. In the pre refrigeration times frying the rice could prevent the propagation of dangerous microbes.

Potato Pancakes

Potato Pancakes

Potato pancakes are shallow-fried pancakes of grated or ground potato, flour and egg, often flavoured with grated onion or garlic and seasoning. Potato pancakes may be topped with a variety of condiments, ranging from the savoury (such as sour cream or cottage cheese) to the sweet (such as apple sauce or sugar), or they may be served  without any garnish. Potato pancakes are sometimes made from mashed potatoes to produce pancake-shaped croquettes.

Maybe I am doing a disservice by posting potato pancakes under Germany, in my trip “Around the World in 30 Days”, for they are associated with cuisines of many European and Middle East.

Potato pancakes are an old traditions in  Austrian ,  Belarusian ,  Czech,  German ,  Hungarian ,  Iranian,  Jewish , Yiddish,  Hebrew,  Latvian ,  Lithuanian , Luxembourg ,  Polish,  Russian,   Slovak ,  Ukrainian  and any other cuisines.  It is the national dish of Belarus.

In Swiss cuisine, the Rösti differs as it never contains egg or flour. It is a traditional favourite in southern Indiana during holiday festivities.

In the North-East of England (particularly County Durham), there is a popular dish known as tattie fish, because the pancake resembles a deep fried piece of fish. The pancake consists of flour, eggs, shredded potatoes and onions. You may add tomato or cheese to the mix. A form of potato pancake known as boxty is a popular traditional dish in most of Ireland. It is made in a similar way but using more starch. The British also brought the potato pancake to Zimbabwe, Africa when Zimbabwe was a colony of Britain. They are still eaten today too.

The Swedish version of unbound potato pancakes is called rårakor  When prepared with a batter of wheat flour, milk, egg, and shredded potatoes and fried like thin pancakes, they are called  raggmunk,  the word "ragg" means crispy and "munk" derives from the Swedish "munkpanna", which is literally translated as donutpan. Both kinds are enjoyed with fried pork and  lingonberry  jam.

 In Germany, potato pancakes are eaten either salty (as a side dish) or sweet with apple sauce, blueberries, sugar and cinnamon; they are a very common menu item during outdoor markets and festivals in colder seasons.

Chotpoti/A tangy Chaat from Bangladesh

Chotpoti

Hi! So you are joining me again today again for “Around the World in 30 Days’? Welcome! I will love the company… so today let explore B the second alphabet…

Actually the options for B are so many Bahrain, Barbados, Belgium to name a few  but since I was keen on choosing my neighbours I have chosen Bangladesh as my entry here.

It’s obvious the food in Bangladesh is similar to West Bengal. The street food here constitutes of delicious pitha, Chotpoti, puchka, jhalmuri, badam, and fried items.

Puchka is Gol Gappe or Pani puri, pitha, jhaal muri I have made so I decided to make Chotpoti which I suppose will mean” chat pati” alias tangy.

Did it live up to its name?

Of course!!

It took me to the time when I as a child had travelled to Bhuneshwar and we had chaat one night on the streets of Bhuneshwar.

So come and join me for Chotpoti.

Komaj~ A Persian Date Bread With Turmeric & Cumin

Koma j~ A Persian Date Bread With Turmeric & Cumin

For this month in We Knead to  Bake we are baking  Komaj which is a Persian turmeric and cumin bread that’s filled with chopped dates.

I was skeptical about its acceptance at home and was right. Hubby refused to eat it! Since I suspected as much I made just 5 Komaj the rest I filled with cheese, chilli flakes and oregano. Sorry this I took  just one picture of the big roll I made and managed to delete that too.

Tthis dough has three rises instead of the usual two.

Lemon Bars

Lemon Bars

May 2014 Baking Partners challenge Swathi raised the bar by choosing bar recipes. So this time around we are baking  Lemon bars. 

This month challenge is suggested by Suja of Kitchen corner try it.  You can use any fruit, and any topping since this was my first time I decided to stick to the recipe. Is it possible? Well I changed my pan. Instead of the 9’ square pan I used the loaf pan which is 9 x 4 inches. That will account for my thick bars. Also my bars fell in love with my tin so much they refused to come out for  a pic. So you see my lemon muffins here. Guess I should have greased the tin a bit more.

Shaped Bread Rolls

My bread basket

In her introduction for Baking Partners #4 Swati said that as Thanksgiving is approaching, we were to make some dinner rolls. 

Our challenge is Shaped Dinner Rolls as baking bread is what most of us have tried. but this time we were to make them  going to add some technique not only make them taste great, but also look beautiful.

As a part of the challenge we were given two different recipes, one with egg and other without egg. We were to choose either one of it.  We were also to make changes top suit our taste and needs. The one mandatory thing was that we to try at least three shapes, from 7 different shapes given for challenge. The different shapes we were given were

1)         Clover leaf  2) Rose Shape 3) small braid 4) knot 5) crescent shape 6) Rosette or Kaiser 7) Lion house rolls.

Mousse~ A Blog Hop Week 21

For Blog Hop Wednesday Radhika paired me with Ruchira Hoon Phillip I was delighted as I was paired with someone I admired. Ruchira blogs at  Cookaroo  and she is amazing. If cooking is a passion then Ruchira is passion personified!

If you don’t believe me just check her recent posts where she has made a Flowerpot Cake, complete with the fondant flowers. The amount of patience she has to make these beautiful flowers and not to mention the research and the preparations (for one I hate the collecting of all the ingredients especially when I have to pick up things from two different parts of the city, thank Goa Panaji is a small place, but I still hate it). Then she has these Nutella Cake, brownies. These are just few examples there are many more. Do go through her place.

As I went through the blog I remembered a delicious mousse that I had seen and wanted to make for some time now but kept postponing. 

What better time than now and what better than chocolate.

Ruchira’s recipe serves 3 so I doubled her recipe.

I started by measuring out double the semi sweet chocolate, as the Supermarket has run out of my brand of Dark Chocolate and then opened the new packet of white chocolate.

 Can you imagine my shock to see no white chocolate inside?

 Then I read the cover and saw that it was milk compound and I assumed that white chocolate and milk compound is same. How I can make the same mistake again and again I do not know but there is some wiring problem in my brains I am sure.

Then I consoled myself as younger kid and I do not enjoy white chocolate that’s fine. Will have a shade darker mousse it will not black and white mousse but brown and light brown mousse.

Then as I was whipping the cream my elder daughter, Apeksha requested me not to make it just chocolate layers but to add a layer or whipped cream. So I ended up with 9 servings of mousse. 3 small and 6 big, small for the dieters and rest for us to hell with diet(ers).

Like most sweets in my house I expected there will not be many takers therein lay my mistake. Apparently the mousse was better than the local bakery; (“much much better” were the exact words! That is high praise from my 18 year old) and the mousse was much appreciated.

I am glad I took the pictures when I did for if I waited to setup my stage alias washing machine for my pictures …  I would have just post the recipe sans the pictures… for the pictures had to be taken today and by the time I came back from work there were empty glasses to greet me.  

For the original Black and White Mousse please click here.