Lemon Bars

Lemon Bars are crisp shortbread crusts topped with a tangy lemon filling, and has this perfect balance of tart and sweetness. I prefer the bars not too sweet so I have reduced the amount of sugar used in the lemon filling. The recipe is from Joy of baking - a good collection of recipes for all kinds of bakers.

Shortbread Crust:

1/4 cup(1/2 stick)unsalted butter, room temperature
1/8 cup confectioner's(powdered or icing) sugar
1/2 cup all purpose flour
Pinch of salt

Lemon Filling:

1/4 cup granulated white sugar
1 egg
fresh lemon juice (juice of one large lemon)
1/2 tsp grated lemon zest
1 tbsp all purpose flour

Method:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter, or spray with a non stick vegetable spray, an 8 x 8 inch pan.

Shortbread Crust: In the bowl of your electric mixer, or with a hand mixer, beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the flour and salt and beat until the dough just comes together. Press onto the bottom of your prepared pan and bake for about 20 minutes, or until lightly browned. Remove from oven and place on a wire rack to cool.

Lemon Filling: Beat the sugar and eggs until nice and smooth. Add the lemon juice and zest and stir. Fold in the flour. Pour the filling over the shortbread crust and bake for about 15-20 minutes, or until the filling has set. Remove from oven and place on a wire rack to cool. Cut into squares and dust with powdered sugar.

Makes ~ 8 bars

Saffron butter cake with orange glaze

This recipe is from the book "Gale Gand's Short and Sweet" gifted by a good friend of mine. Its loaded with quick and yummy desserts and is a treat for someone with a sweet tooth like me! Thanks a ton Soumya!

The saffron and butter give it a rich yellow color. The glaze is what makes the cake very moist.

Ingredients:

1/3 cup orange juice
3/4 cup all purpose flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup(1 stick) butter, softened
1/2 cup plus 1/3 cup sugar
2 eggs
2 pinches of saffron

Method:

Heat the oven to 350 deg F. Butter a loaf pan and line with parchment paper. In a pan, bring the orange juice and saffron to a boil, turn off the heat and let cool.
In a bowl, combine the flour, baking powder and salt. Beat the butter until creamy, add sugar and beat until fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time. Add the dry ingredients and mix well. Add half of the orange juice mixture and mix well. Reserve the remaining juice. Pour the batter into the loaf pan and bake for about 30-35 minutes.

For the glaze: Stir remaining 1/3 cup sugar into the orange juice until the sugar is dissolved.

When the cake is done, let it cool for few minutes. Turn the cake onto a cooling rack. Peel the parchment paper. Using a pastry brush, spread the glaze all over the cake and let it soak in. Repeat until all the glaze is used.


Serve the cake at room temperature. If tightly wrapped and refrigerated, the cake will last upto a week.

Serves 4

Shrikhand

Shrikhand is one of the popular dishes in Maharashtra. And it happens to be one of my favorite desserts. It goes very well with pooris.

Ingredients:

2 cups fresh yogurt
1 cup powdered sugar
1/2 tsp cardamom powder
1 tbsp milk
pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
few saffron strands
chopped pistachios for garnish

Method:

Mix the saffron strands, nutmeg and cardamom powder in milk and keep aside. Place the yogurt in a muslin cloth(or a thin white cloth). Tie the ends of the cloth together and hang it for atleast two hours. Once all the water from the yogurt has drained, pour it into a bowl. Add powdered sugar, saffron milk and beat well until there are no lumps and everything is well blended. Refrigerate for an hour. Serve as is, or with pooris.

Serves 4

Holiday Treats - Part I : Plum Cake

Its that time of the year, when you bake n bake until you drop, and that's exactly what I did :))

While in the US, I used to love the holiday season. Everywhere you go, you see christmas lights..switch on the radio, hear those wonderful chrismtas carols...switch on the tv (used to love watching food network shows during the holidays) - you see chefs baking cookies, cakes, pies, puddings and so on....I did miss that festive spirit here in bangalore.


Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to you all!


Plum cake:



Ingredients:

All purpose flour - 1 cup
Baking powder - 1 tsp
Cinnamon powder - 1/4 tsp
Nutmeg powder - 1/4 tsp
Cloves powder - 1/4 tsp
Dry Ginger powder - 1/4 tsp
Raisins - 1/4 cup
Dates - 1/4 cup
Plum, Cherry, Cranberry, Tutti Frutti - 1/4 cup
Gold Rum - 1/4 cup(optional)
Cashewnuts(chopped) - 1/2 cup
Butter - 1/4 pound/4 oz/1 stick
Sugar - 1 cup
Sugar - 1/4 cup (To make caramelized sugar)
Eggs - 3
Salt - 1 tsp
Vanilla extract - 1 tsp
Almond extract - 1/4 tsp

Method:

Slice the dried fruits and coat them with 2 tbsp of flour. Mix the fruits with rum and keep this closed at room temperature for one day. Chop cashews and smear them with almond extract and keep them also closed for one day. Next day,sieve flour, baking powder, cinnamon powder, nutmeg powder, cloves powder and dry ginger powder together. Add fruits, nuts to the flour and mix well.

Caramelizing sugar:

Use a heavy-bottom steel pot or saucepan with a handle. Place 1/4 cup sugar(distribute sugar in pan,not heaped) in the pot and add 2 tablespoon water. Turn the stove to high and place the pan on the stove and let it boil. Don’t stir the contents at all. As sugar melts and caramelizes, you may swirl the pan a bit once or twice. Within 7 -10 minutes, a cherry wood colored caramel forms. See that all sugar is melted completely.Remove the pan from the stove and very carefully add 1/4 cup HOT water to the caramel. Carefully hold the pan above the sink, and slowly add the water to avoid splashing. Stir the contents well . Keep aside to cool.



Beat the butter and sugar and until it is creamy. Add the egss, one at a time, and beat until combined. Add vanilla and caramelized sugar to this and mix again. Add flour ,a little a time,to the batter and mix thoroughly.

Grease a pan and line with parchment paper. Pour batter till half the pan and bake in a preheated oven at 350F for about 35-40 minutes. (please check after 30 minutes. Cooking time depends on the oven used and the depth of the pan)
Remove the cake from the oven and place it on a cooling rack. When cool, smear with 2 tsp of rum. Cover the cake completely with wax paper and then with aluminum foil. Keep in the refrigerator. Use after a week or two.



Serves 6

NOTE: The cake can be made without rum - it still tastes delicious with all the fruits and nuts.

Holiday Treats - Part II : Pistachio Almond Biscotti

Ingredients:

3 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
1 1/2 cups plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
Pinch salt
1 lemon zest
2 large eggs
2/3 cups slivered almonds
1/3 cup shelled pistachio nuts
1/4 tsp anise extract or 1 tbsp anise seeds

Method:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment. Beat the butter and sugar on medium speed until combined, about 1 minute. Add the flour, baking powder, salt and lemon zest and beat just until combined. Add the eggs 1 at a time, beating well. Add the anise extract and mix until combined. Add the nuts and mix with a spatula. Transfer the dough to a lightly floured work surface and shape it into a 12-inch-long log. Transfer the log to the prepared baking sheet and bake for 25 minutes or until pale golden brown. Cool for about 30 minutes.



Using a serrated knife, cut the log on the diagonal into 1/2 -inch-thick slices. Place the biscotti cut side up on the lined baking sheet and bake for an additional 14 to 15 minutes, or until golden brown and crisp. Cool completely on a wire rack. Store the biscotti in an airtight container.

Makes 30 cookies

Bread Pudding

This is a good recipe to make if you have lots of leftover bread at home. A good choice when entertaining a crowd as it can be prepared ahead of time.

Ingredients:

8 bread slices with edges cut
1 1/4 cup milk
1 egg
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup chopped nuts(cashews,walnuts,raisins)

For custard:

1 tbsp custard powder dissolved in a tbsp of cold milk
1/2 cup sugar
1 cup milk

Method:

For the pudding:

Blend the sugar, milk, essence and egg in the blender to get a smooth liquid. Grease a rectangular deep pan with butter and place 4 slices of bread to cover the bottom. Sprinkle one tablespoon of the nuts on it. Now pour the blended egg/milk mixture on top of it. Place a second layer of the remaining 4 bread slices, sprinkle the remaining nuts and pour the remaining mixture on it. Bake it in a oven for about 35 minutes(approx,may vary depending on the oven) at 375 deg F till done.


When tested with a thin knife(toothpick), the knife(tothpick) should come out clean. Take it out and cool for 10 minutes.

For the custard:

Heat the sugar and milk. When sugar is dissolved completely, add the custard and keep stirring. When the mixture thickens, take it off the fire and let it cool for 10 minutes. Pour this custard mixture on top of the baked dish and let it chill in the refrigerator for 2 hours. Cut it into slices and serve.



Serves 4

Semolina Burfi (Rave Burfi)

Ingredients:

1/4 cup semolina or fine rava(chiroti rava)
1/4 cup ghee
1/4 cup powdered cashews
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup fresh grated coconut
1-2 tbsp milk
1/2 tsp cardamom powder
saffron strands(optional)

Method:

Mix all the ingredients except cardamom powder, in a pan. Cook on medium high heat until the mixture comes together like a ball, without sticking to the pan. Swtich off the heat and add the cardamom powder. Spread on a greased plate and allow to cool. Cut into pieces and serve.

Makes 10-12 pieces

NOTE: Cashews can be substituted with almonds.