Lime Pie

Happy Pie Day! It's 3/14, at 3:14pm, and here is your pie. That's 360 degrees of dessert with a diameter of 9 inches, for those of you mathematically-minded. Me, I just like an excuse to eat PIE.
-AnglophileinLA

Lime Pie for Pie Day!

Ingredients
• 1 Keblar Graham cracker pie crust
• 2 (14-ounce) cans condensed milk
• 1 cup regular lime juice
• 2 whole eggs
• Zest of 1 lime

Directions
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.
Combine the condensed milk, lime juice, zest and eggs. Whisk until well blended and place the filling in the pie shell. Bake in the oven for 25 minutes and allow to chill in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours.

How to bring Lime Pie to the KICKASS PIE level



There was a New Orleans style restaurant in Santa Barbara years ago, since gone out of business, that had the best keylime pie. And they served it with a sauce on the side that was so cool and creamy next to the tart lime pie that it just brought the pie-eating experience to a whole new level. After much experimentation, I found out that it was cream cheese blended with milk and sugar. So simple, so delicious.



1 small container light cream cheese

1/4th cup milk (to start)

Sugar



I do this by taste every time – but basically, you’ll blend the cream cheese with the milk until it is of a pourable consistency. Then add sugar until you like the taste. I’m also thinking of adding a bit of lime juice to it the next time I make it, just to give it a little kick. Now, pour it over a piece of lime pie or serve it on the side with a spoon.

Orange Curd Tartlets

One more recipe that uses Oranges - and I still have more oranges on my counter to go through. Oh boy. And, I'm out of eggs. Anyways, this is an elegant dessert worthy of fancy dinner parties and afternoon tea. Make it one day ahead, or at least a few hours ahead of time, since it needs time to cool and set.
-AnglophileinLA

Ingredients for the curd:
½ cup fresh squeezed and strained orange juice
Zest from 1 orange
½ cup sugar
2 eggs, beaten
1 cube (¼ pound) unsalted butter, cut into 6 chunks

The process:
Start water boiling in a small pot - you'll be cooking the curd in a metal bowl resting on top of it.
Combine juice, zest and sugar in the lightweight metal bowl. Whisk in the eggs and stir constantly over medium heat. Keep the whisk moving slowly so the eggs have no chance to scramble.

Add one chunk of butter and keep whisking. When the chunk starts to look a little raggedy, add another chunk. Keep adding another chunk as each previous one starts to move through the raggedy stage to the melting stage. Keep the whisk moving slowly all the while. When all chunks of butter have melted, whisk for about 5 minutes more, until the curd thickens and coats the back of a spoon. Do not overcook.

Remove from the heat and immediately strain the curd into the tartlet shells. STRAINING IS IMPORTANT. Then, immediately cover with plastic wrap so a skin doesn't develop on the surface of the curd. Let chill overnight if possible.

Chocolate Coated Tartlet Shells

I used the roll-out Pillsbury pie crusts that come 2-in a box. 1 pie crust made 3 tartlets by just laying them over the creme-brulee ramekins and cutting around the edges. Then I just pressed the crusts into the ramekins, poked fork holes in, and pre-baked according to the directions on the box.

Meanwhile, using the same doulbe-boiler technique as the curd, heat a half cup of chocolate morsels with a spoonful of butter in a metal bowl resting on top of a pot of boiling water. Stir constantly, and when it's gooey, take a culinary brush (mine is silicone, works really well), and paint the insides of the baked tart shells with chocolate. Let harden and cool before you pour in the curd.

Cranberry Orange Shortbread Cookies

Another use for a mountain of oranges is dessert. And Cranberry Orange Shortbread cookies are one of my favorites, especially for tea time.
-AnglophileLV

Ingredients
•1/2 cup dried cranberries, chopped fine
•1 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
•10 tablespoons softened butter
•1/2 cup confectioners' sugar
•finely grated zest of 1 orange
Optional: finely chopped almond slivers (for a Morroccan touch), or Chai Masala (for an indian touch)
 
Preheat oven to 325.
Mix everything together and roll the thick dough out until it is 1/4th of an inch thick. These cookies do not rise, so you have to flatten it out to cookie-thickness. Then cut out your cookies with a cookie cutter, or the lid of a jar of yeast (that's what I did), and lay them on a lightly greased cookie sheet.
 
Bake for 20 minutes, until lightly browned on the bottoms.
 
Makes a little under 2-dozen.
 
Now - for extra flair - I spread melted Ghiradelli chocolate on half of each cookie. You can't go wrong with dark chocolate and orange. Yum.

Blueberry Blitz Cake

Blueberry Blitz Cake

Serves 6

I found a raspberry buttermilk cake recipe in an old Bon Appetit, but as usual, I didn't have the ingredients to make anything out of that silly magazine. So, I went with what I had: Buttermilk, a lemon, and a cup of blueberries. It turned out terrific. Perfect for coffee in the morning, tea in the afternoon, and dessert in the evening. --AnglophileinLA

Ingredients:

1 cup all-purpose flour

½ tsp baking powder

½ tsp baking soda

¼ tsp salt

½ stick unsalted butter, softened

2/3 cup sugar, plus 1 Tb sugar divided

¾ tsp vanilla extract

1 large egg

Zest from 1 lemon

½ cup well-shaken buttermilk

1 cup frozen blueberries (or any berry, raspberry works well too)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees with rack in the middle.

2. Grease a 9-inch round cake pan.

3. Whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.

4. Beat butter and 2/3 cup sugar with an electric mixer until pale and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add vanilla and lemon zest, then add the egg and beat well.

5. Mix in flour, alternating with buttermilk, mixing until just combined.

6. Spoon batter into cake pan, smoothing the top.

7. Scatter the cup of blueberries evenly over the top, then sprinkle with the 1 Tb sugar.

8. Bake until cake is golden and a toothpick in the middle comes out clean, about 25-30 minutes.

I would be tempted to do a Moroccan spin on this with cinnamon, cardamom, orange rind and orange flower water instead of the lemon zest and blueberries. The buttermilk cake base is so versatile.

Pineapple Upside-down Cake

I’m still using the leftovers from my Luau last week, and I’ve been staring at this pineapple trying to figure out what to do with it. We don’t drink that many Mai-Tais, and I already made pineapple fried rice. But then I found a recipe for Pineapple Upside-down cake that used fresh pineapple (instead of canned), and decided to try it out with a couple of my own additions: rum and orgeat syrup. I’ve seen a number of pineapple cake recipes that use almonds and almond extract, but I didn’t have those—I did have the orgeat syrup though. --AnglophileLV

Pineapple Upside-Down Cake

INGREDIENTS
1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted
2/3 cup packed brown sugar
3 cups fresh pineapple - peeled, cored and cut into 1 inch chunks
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
2/3 cup white sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Adding up to 3/4 cups liquid, combine 1 Tb dark rum and 1 Tb Orgeat Syrup with milk

DIRECTIONS
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).

In a small bowl stir together the melted butter and the brown sugar; spread the mixture evenly in a well buttered 9 inch round cake pan. Pat the pineapple very dry between several sheets of paper towel, and arrange it evenly on top of the sugar mixture.

Sift together flour, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon.

In a large mixing bowl, cream the softened butter with the sugar until the mixture is light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Stir in the vanilla. Add the flour mixture in three parts alternately with the milk mix, beginning and ending with the flour mixture. Beat well after each addition. Spread the batter evenly into the prepared pan.

Place the cake in the middle of the oven. Bake for 45 to 55 minutes, or until a tester comes out clean. Let the cake cool in the pan on a rack for 15 minutes. Run a thin knife around the edge, and invert the cake onto a plate. Serve the cake warm or at room temperature.

English Trifle

English Trifle

An old favorite of mine and a perfect cool dessert for hot summer weather – especially with all the fresh berries at the farmers markets. It's also quick to make if you use a few shortcuts like Cool Whip and instant pudding. --AnglophileLV

Ingredients:
Fresh raspberries
Cool whip (my Aunts would insist on whipping actual cream, but why put yourself through that?)
Sarah Lee pound cake
Raspberry jam or preserves (real sugar only – HFC is the DEVIL)
Vanilla Pudding
Slivered almonds
Sherry OR Amaretto
A deep bowl or trifle dish

Directions:
1. Make the vanilla pudding (can also use custard) according to package directions and refrigerate. I have also used instant pudding packs when in a hurry.
2. An English trifle is a layered dessert, so to begin, slice half of the pound cake into ¼ inch pieces. (you’ll need to slice more as necessary, but there is often leftover pound cake you can freeze for later).
3. Start making little jam sandwiches: spread the raspberry jam on a piece of pound cake and place another slice of pound cake on top. Repeat until you have enough jam sandwiches to cover the bottom of your trifle dish.
4. Drizzle Sherry over this layer so it soaks in (but doesn’t soak) the pound cake.
5. Spoon Vanilla pudding over the jam sandwich layer and smooth out.
6. Add another jam sandwich layer, drizzle sherry, spoon pudding over – and repeat until you reach the top of the trifle dish. The final top layer should be a thin one of the pudding.
7. Top with a layer of Cool whip and decorate with fresh raspberries and slivered almonds.
8. Serve with a really big spoon.

Pom Koek (Belgian Coffee Cake)

Belgian food has been described as having French finesse but served in German quantities. Being part Belgian, I can attest to this--my family puts on feasts. In fact, my Belgian great grandfather was one of the best French Chefs in depression-era Chicago. I have just a little bit of family pride where cookery is concerned. Unfortunately, the old goat didn't write his recipes down - so his descendents have relied on cookbooks and genetic "chefly intuition" to become excellent home cooks.

This is my first foray into trying Belgian recipes- a coffee cake made with real coffee. And a lot of spices. True to my Belgian roots, I put even more spices than the original recipe called for, and added a sweet streusel layer between the cake. We Belgians never cook simply. That's the French influence. --AnglophileLV

Pom Koek (Belgian Coffee Cake)

Ingredients for the Cake
3 cups flour
1/2 cup sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
(can also add 1/4 tsp. nutmeg, ginger, and cardamom)
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup honey
1 cup hot coffee
1 egg
1/3 cup vegetable oil

Ingredients for the Yummy Layer
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
(optional) 1/2 cup chopped pecans or almonds
2 tablespoons butter, melted

Directions
1. Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Prepare a 9" by 4" in loaf pan by lightly greasing the sides.
3. Mix together dry ingredients (flour, sugar, baking soda, cinnamon & cloves).
4. In a separate bowl, quickly mix 1 egg. Spoon in and mix the honey, coffee, and oil.
5. Quickly fold in the dry ingredients - mixing just enough to combine without toughening the batter.
6. Pour half the mixture into the pan.
7. Mix the ingredients for the "yummy layer" and spoon quarter sized dollops over the batter in the pan. Then cover with remaining coffee cake batter.
8. Fold into pan and bake for 30 minutes. Use a tooth pick to see if center is done.
9. Serve warm plain or with butter.

Choco Log

In this post you will get to know a little bit more about me. I did my schooling in Coimbatore, India. My education started in St.Josephs, an all girls Catholic school, also known as Hell. Fresh from America, I was a different type of F.O.B. I want to say I was brilliant from day one, but I think it was because of my accented spoken English that I was sent off to Grade (called Standard here) 1, instead of kindergarten. The first 6 months were torture beyond torture. In fact, I have no memories of it. But I somehow passed year 1 and moved on 2nd grade. It was supposed to get better but it didn't and after 3 whole years, I finally escaped to what I was convinced was paradise for the next few years: Stanes Higher Secondary School. This school was, at the time and until I graduated in 2001, the best school in the city and possibly the state. It was a co-ed school and we had two sessions of physical education a week! Nothing else mattered to me then: 2 whole sessions!! awesome! I went from a failing/barely passing student to ranked #10 amongst 150-200 students. Life was pretty damn good. It was also the school that my 7 years senior brother was enrolled in.

The fact that it was co-ed didn't bother or excite me apart from the fact that my classmates were suddenly less meaner to me and I could play with anyone. My class had 5 girls and about 55 boys. The ratio stayed more or less the same [contrary to the picture above] for the total years that I was there with the girls reaching a maximum of 12 in one year.

Until 6th grade, the subjects we studied sound lame: General knowledge, English, Maths, Language, Science, and Environmental sciences. But starting 6th, we were suddenly more adult. Besides Eng, Maths, and Language (Hindi for me), we now had Botany, Zoology, Chemistry, Physics, history, geography. The boys had to join N.C.C (sort of like Boy Scouts) and us girls had to take Home Science.

Home Science, I believe, we had to take for the next 2-3 years . It was termed the lamest class ever but I secretly enjoyed it. Maybe not so secretly, since I ended up getting a certificate and trophy of sorts for being pretty damn good. However, the majority of girls didn't even make an attempt to be good so I just may have lucked out there. We learned different stitches (hemming, herring bone, chain stitch), to make dolls, to cook, to make cool stuff out of lame junk. Basically it was an arts and crafts class.

Why the history? Today, in the year 2009, I happened to find my notebook from that class. I also found a few recipes that we attempted to make in a dingy room with our teacher. I loved the one described below but I haven't made it since I was in 6th grade but since my blog is the only thing permanent in my life right now, the recipe gets a new place. I plan to make it one day and the picture will be posted but until then...

Choco Log

Marie Biscuits ( these are very light cookies almost like crackers, often eaten with tea)- 1 large packet (say about 30 biscuits)
Icing Sugar - 250gms
Butter - 100gms
All purpose flour/maida - 250gms
Cocoa -50gms
Coffee- decoction - 2tbsp (I write it my notes to use 1/2 cup of instant coffee, but I'm not sure. just use something strong)

Method:

Add the flour to the decoction and mix well.
Dip each biscuit and arrange one on top of another to resemble a log/cylinder.
After this, make the cream by mixing icing sugar, cocoa and butter.
Coat the biscuit log with the icing but not too neatly so it appears like a log.
Decorate with white icing (butter 2ogms and icing sugar 50gms).

Comments:

Since I'm not in 6th grade anymore and not on the school budget, I would 1.attempt to make green icing and decorate the log to look like it has moss and leaves on it and maybe some flowers as well and 2. Somehow incorporate more chocolate in the dish, like coating the log in melted chocolate instead of icing :D

Baked Miniature Pumpkin

Yes, you can eat mini pumpkins! They’re not just for decoration – so go ahead, remove them from your table tops, pluck them from their nests of Indian corn and fall foliage, and stick’em in the oven. You won’t regret it.
--AnglophileLV

Baked Miniature Pumpkin Pies Sweet
1 each mini pumpkin (one per person)
1/2 Tbsp. brown sugar
1/2 Tbsp. butter
1/4 tsp. each ground cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves
Scoop of vanilla ice cream (optional)
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Cut off tops of pumpkins and scrape out all seeds and strings. Place butter and brown sugar inside the pumpkin and sprinkle with cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves. Put the pumpkin lid back on and place pumpkins in a baking pan. Bake for about 40 minutes or until tender. Optional: Serve with a small scoop of vanilla ice cream in the pumpkin.



Baked Miniature Pumpkins Savory
1 miniature pumpkin per person
Salt and freshly ground pepper
1-2 Tbsp. cream, milk, or mascarpone cheese
1 fresh or dried sage leaf
Grated Fontina or Gruyere cheese
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Slice off the top of each pumpkin, scoop out the seeds, and rub salt and pepper into the cavity. Pour in the cream, add the sage leaf and the cheese, replace the lid and bake in a pan until tender, 35 to 40 minutes.

Rose Water Fruit Salad

Picture obtained from a google search.

This is another Moroccan recipe I learned from a friend who spent some time there. It’s the perfect end to a complex spicy Moroccan dinner, like my Saffron Chicken with couscous, or tagines.
--AnglophileLV

Rose Water Fruit Salad (serves 6)
Ingredients:
• 1 1/2 cups water
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 cinnamon stick, broken in half (can substitute ground cinnamon)
• 1 teaspoon rose water
• 1 can mandarin oranges
• Blueberries
• Raspberries and/or blackberries
(any fruit you have on hand works with this – just experiment to find what you like best)

Directions
Stir 1 1/2 cups water and sugar in heavy medium saucepan over medium-low heat until sugar dissolves. Increase heat to medium-high. Add cinnamon; boil until syrup is reduced to scant 1 cup, about 10 minutes. Mix in rose water; cool.
Put berries and mandarin orange pieces in small individual bowls, and spoon syrup over them.

Wheat Laddoo (Pusuk laddoo!)

I wanted to start this blog off with (one of my) favorite desserts growing up.

In South Canara (Karnataka) Konkani it is called "choormundo" while in North Canara Konkani it is called "Goli." Because of my lack of sufficient Konkani knowledge when I was first introduced to it, I christened it "Pusuk" laddoo because of its tendency to just collapse. Pusuk is a word in Konkani which means, you guessed it, collapse/collapsed/collapsible.

To make 8-10 Laddoos

Ingredients:
Whole Wheat flour : 1 Cup
Powdered Sugar : 1/2- 3/4 Cup
Clarified Butter (Ghee) : 2 Tbsp
Cardamom (green) - 2 powdered

Procedure:
In a deep pan, add the Ghee. Allow it to melt. Then add the wheat flour and roast/fry it until it is brownish (not so much that its burnt, but just enough so you know its not doughy. I can tell by the color change and by tasting it).




Important: Allow it to cool. Then add the powdered sugar and powdered cardamom and mix thoroughly.





Finally--the hardest part--is to make the round balls/laddoos. There is a technique involved and I've videotaped my mom doing it. [Ignore the noise in the background].



Enjoy!