Rasbhary Cake

Very different Cake...& really tasty :)

Ingredients:

3/4 cup Rasbhary (Cape gooseberries)
1/3 cup Unsalted butter at room temperature
2 tbsp Jaggery grated.
1/3 cup Sugar
1 cup Wheat flour

1/2 cup Rava
1 tsp Baking powder

3/4 tsp soda)
1/2 cup curd

2 tbsp milk
2 tsp Vanilla essence

Method
Pre heat the oven to 180◦C, lightly grease a 6" cake tin, sprinkle the grated jaggery over the greased base and keep aside.
Gently cook the berries in a pan with water just about covering it, when it softens and the skins start separating, take off the flame. Put the berries in cold water and peel carefully. Puree the fruit & sieve.

Sift the flour, thrice, with the baking powder & soda. Mix rava with the flour.

Cream the butter and sugar together till smooth and creamy. Add Curds & beat well.

Add the pureed fruit & mix well. Mix flour & rava mixture & keep beating.

Add milk but end with flour mixture.

Pour into the prepared cake tin and bake at 180◦C for about 20-25 minutes. Check at 20 minutes to see whether a toothpick poked in comes out clean.

Serve upside down, with jiggery side up.

Minestrone Soup

It is a thick soup of Italian origin made with vegetables, often with the addition of pasta or rice. There is no set recipe for minestrone, since it is usually made out of whatever vegetables are in season.

Ingredients (serves 4)

5 tomatoes

1 small beetroot

1/2 cup bottle gourd

1 small carrot

1 small stick celery OR Few basil leaves

½ tsp oregano

¼ tsp chili flakes

4 cups water/stock

Salt to taste

For garnish

4 tbsp stir fried vegetables (finely chopped)

2 tbsp boiled pasta (small)

Chopped coriander & grated cheese

Method

Pressure cook all vegetables with very little water and cool them.

Strain, add seasonings and stock.

Boil the soup.

Add stir fried vegetables.

Serve hot garnished with coriander & cheese.

Tips:

You can avoid celery if you don’t have, or use basil leaves instead.

Minestrone soup is little on the thinner side.

You can use any pasta in this.

I used stir fried green & yellow capsicum, beetroot, cabbage, carrot.

All stir fried vegetables should be finely chopped.

You can avoid cheese in the end.

Stir Fried Salad

This one I learned by eating many times at a popular restaurant, they denied me the recipe so I created my own, which turned out to be better then what I ate ;)

Ingredients (serves 4)

1 red capsicum chopped

1 yellow capsicum chopped

½ cup broccoli chopped

½ cup zucchini chopped

½ cup baby corn chopped

2 tbsp black olives chopped

½ cup cucumber chopped

½ cup tomato chopped

½ cup cottage cheese or tofu (squared)

Few salad leaves

½ tsp dried oregano

¼ tsp chilli flakes

Salt to taste

¼ tsp white vinegar or lemon juice

½ tsp olive oil

Method

First stir fry zucchini, broccoli and baby corn in little olive oil.

Cover the pan to make them little soft.

Add all vegetables except salad leaves & sauté for about a minute.

Put off the heat & add salad leaves.

Season with oregano, salt & chilli flakes.

Sprinkle vinegar or lemon juice.

Serve hot or cold.

Tips

Add salt to this salad only while serving or it will loose lot of water.

The veggies should be left little crunchy.

If you want you can add finely chopped garlic while frying in the beginning.

Coffee Mousse on Biscuit Crust

Mousse with Coffee.... deliciously sophisticated dessert perfect for the end of a candlelight dinner for two :)

Ingredients

1 cup roughly chopped milk chocolate
1/4 cup milk
1 tbsp powdered sugar
2 cups whipped cream
1 tbsp coffee powder dissolved in 1 tbsp warm milk

For Biscuit layer

1 cup coarsely crushed biscuits (8 to 10 pieces)

1 ½ tbsp melted butter

For Garnish
grated dark chocolate

½ cup Whipped cream

Few glazed cherries

Method

For Biscuit layer

Combine crushed biscuits and melted butter in a bowl and mix well. Divide the crust into 4 equal portions and place equal quantities into 4 individual bowls /glass. Keep aside.

For Mousse

Combine the chocolate and milk in a pan & melt on a double-boiler. Remove and mix well until no lumps remain & keep aside.

Combine the sugar and 2 cups whipped cream in a deep bowl and fold gently.

Add the chocolate-milk mixture and fold gently.

Add the coffee mixture and fold gently.

How to proceed

Pour equal quantities of the mixture into bowls over Biscuit layer and refrigerate for at least 3 to 4 hours or till the mousse sets.

Top each with a cherry and decorate with whipped cream.

Serve chilled garnished with grated chocolate.

Tips:
You can also melt the chocolate-milk mixture in microwave safe bowl and microwave on high for 30 seconds.

You can use any biscuit for the layer.
You can make this mousse without biscuit layer.