Sara Dhanani

Archive for the ‘Dessert’ Category

Puddle cookies

In Cookies, Dessert, Favorite Recipes on September 26, 2011 at 12:18 pm

Chocolate Chip Fudge Cookies
makes about 24 large cookies

Ingredients:
1/2 cup cake flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon instant espresso powder or instant coffee powder (optional)
1 pound (16-ounces) bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
1/4 cup unsalted butter, cut into small chunks
1 3/4 cups granulated white sugar
4 large eggs, room temperature
1 Tablespoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup Crunchie bars chopped fine

Directions:
Sift together the flour, baking powder, salt, and espresso powder.

Melt the chocolate and butter in in the microwave, stirring until smooth.

In the bowl of your electric mixer, beat the sugar and eggs until pale yellow and thick, about 5 minutes. The batter will fall back into the bowl in slow ribbons. Add in the melted chocolate mixture and vanilla extract. Fold in the dry ingredients to the chocolate batter and mix only until incorporated. Stir in the crunchie crumbles. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate the batter until firm, about 1 hour or overnight (the most important step)

Preheat oven to 350-degrees F (177-degrees C) and place rack in center of the oven. Drop batter by 1/4 cupfuls onto prepared cookie sheets, spacing evenly. . Bake cookies 8- 9 minutes.  Do not over-bake. 

They will be chewy and incredibly divine!

Kulfi

In Dessert, Favorite Recipes on August 27, 2011 at 5:31 am

With Eid coming up next week, I’m dreaming of milky goodness like Kheer, Sheer Khurma and Ras Malia. Phoenix reminds me of Karachi, the tiled roofs, concrete homes, the date tree’s, the heat!! There’s a sense of peace here, or maybe its my state of mind. I’m feeling whole again, that inner restlessness is quietening down and focusing is becoming easier.

This is an excellent recipe for Kulfi. Its creamy and sweet with a delicate flavor and scent of cardamom. I may try some saffron next time. Traditional nuts used are Pistachios and Almonds.   I dint have any pistachios at hand so I used cashews and almonds.This recipe is inspired by Shayma from The Spice Spoon. You can find her recipe here.

Ingredients:

2 cups heavy whipping cream

1/2 cup almonds

1/2 cup cashews

1 1/2 tsp fresh ground cardamom

1/4- 1/3 cup of sweetened condensed milk

Method:

Grind the cashews and almonds in a blender till its almost flour consistency. It should still be a little toothy.

Heat the heavy cream in a heavy bottomed saucepan on a medium flame, till some bubbles rise to the surface. Add the powdered cardamom and nuts. Cook this on a low – medium heat till the mixture is almost boiling. Stir frequently while it cooks, so that the milk doesn’t stick to the bottom of the sauce pan. Add the condensed milk and continue cooking and stirring. Once its thick and coats the back of a wooden spoon, the kulfi is ready to be placed into molds.

Freeze at least overnight. This made 7 kulfi’s for me.

Watermelon Frosty

In Dessert, Week night meals on August 27, 2011 at 5:01 am

Last week, I bought a huge water melon. It looked so plump and juicy and its been over 100F every single day! We got tired of eating the giant watermelon and I found a few different ways of using this delicious fruit. One of them is a watermelon frosty! Some recipe’s had booze in them, but this one is non alcoholic. A splash of tequila would be great though!

Watermelon Frosty

Ingredients:

2 cups frozen watermelon cubes (without seeds or seeds removed)

1/2 frozen banana

2-3 tablespoons honey

Put all the ingredients in a food processor and process until the mixture is smooth. Add honey if more sweetness desired.

Risotto Rice Pudding

In Breakfast/Brunch, Dessert, Favorite Recipes on July 14, 2011 at 2:18 am

adapted from Joy the Baker.  

Risotto Rice Pudding with brown sugar

2 tablespoon unsalted butter

1/2 cup Arborio rice 4 cups milk ( whole milk)

1/4 cup brown sugar

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

pinch allspice

pinch of cardamon

1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract

almonds for topping

 

In a medium saucepan heat 4 cups of milk.  Bring the milk to boil and then turn off the flame and let it rest. In another saucepan, melt the butter.  Add the rice grains and stir to coat.  Pour in enough hot milk to cover the rice.  Stir with a wooden spoon while keeping the flame over the lowest setting. Allow the rice to absorb all the milk before adding just enough again to cover the rice.  Repeat this process until all the milk is used up. (this takes a while- but it is so worth it!, enjoy a cup of tea, read, relax and let the milk and rice do its magic). When you add the last bit of milk, also incorporate the sugar, salt, spices and vanilla. I let it cook till it was the consistency of chunky soup as I grew up with Kheer that was of a thicker consistency. The pudding is a beautiful golden brown color. It’s absolutely divine!

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Chocolate cupcakes with Espresso Buttercream

In Cakes, Dessert on June 7, 2011 at 4:34 am

 

 

Chocolate cupcakes (inspired by Ina Gartens Chocolate Cake)

2 cups sugar
1 3/4 cup all purpose flour
3/4 cup cocoa powder, sifted
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1 cup buttermilk, room temperature
1 cup strong coffee
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Line cupcake pans with cupcake papers.
2. Place sugar in the bowl of your stand mixer and sift in flour, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.
3. Add eggs, buttermilk, coffee, oil, and vanilla extract. With the whisk attachment, beat on medium speed for 2 minutes.
4. Scoop into liners about half to three quarters full. Bake for 35-40 minutes or until a cake tester comes out clean.
5. Let cool completely before frosting.

Espresso Buttercream: (adapted from http://www.thenovicechefblog.com/)
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
2 to 2 1/2 cups powdered sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 tablespoon instant espresso powder, mixed in 2 tablespoons water

 

Beat butter on medium high, for 3 minutes. Slowly add in 2 cups powdered sugar, about a half a cup at a time. Once it is fully incorporated, carefully add the vanilla extract and espresso powder/water mixture.

At this point check the consistency of the buttercream. You should be able to lift the beaters and have the buttercream hold its shape. If it is too loose, add more powdered sugar, again 1/2 cup at a time(I needed 2 cups more).