Short Crust Pastry

Adapted from Le Cordon Bleu

Short Pastries have a crumbly, slightly crisp, texture. Make sure you work in a cool environment when making short pastries and use chilled ingredients. Handle the pastry lightly and as little as possible. Heavy handling results in heavy, or tough, pastry.


Pate Sable - is a rich biscuit-like crust. It is sweeter than Pate Sucree and maybe used as a crust for tarts, or for making plain dessert cookies.

Pate Sucree - is a lightly sweetened pastry enriched with additional egg yolk and flavoured with vanilla. It can be used for tarts and all sweet pastry.

Pate Brisee - is the French equivalent of the classic short crust pastry.

Far East Style Sweet Buns

 I admit I have been a stranger to my own blog recently. Theres just sooo much to do in the kitchen these days that I hardly have time to write recipes.

This morning I made it a point to wake up earlier than usual just to write up this recipe and share it with all you beautiful people who requested for it. And why not! These pillowy soft bread formula should be in every bakers repertoire of recipes.

Anyone who bakes regularly will tell you that bread baking isn't exactly rocket science but it sure is a lengthy process. Writing about it is just as lengthy. So without further ado I give you the ultimate soft bread recipe. Adapted from various Far East Recipes

Makes 16 buns

Brownies

I know its been a while... I was on a long break (Sorry Yeshey Aji...hoping to score some brownie points with this recipe *wink wink*) ..but I am back once again and what better recipe to start off than Brownies!!

Some people like their brownies fudge-y whilst others like it more cake-y.
Lets just say this recipe is something in between and it can be altered to your liking by making slight changes. If you like it cake-y add one more egg to it. Adding baking powder gives it that crust formation on the top.

I like chopped roasted walnuts added to my brownies but you can either omit it entirely or replace it with choco chips or any other type of nut.

Warm and Rustic Carrot Cake

As I sit down to share another recipe, I wonder why this carrot cake recipe wasn't shared with you earlier. Lack of photos maybe...Hmmm...
Carrot Cake has been my all time favourite of cakes and I know quite a number of friends who love it too.
These little orange-y specks of carrot not only enhances the look of this rustic cake but they also contain useful amounts of vitamins. And as if that wasn't enough nutrition for a day, I add eggs and a generous amount of walnuts too!

Tiramisu (making it from scratch)

Last week we celebrated my hubby's birthday. By 'we' I mean the two of us with our dear friends here in Bangalore, the usual suspects.....

Incidentally, Rishi's birthday (one of our friends who resides upstairs) also falls within the same week and for the past few years or so we have been celebrating a combined birthday for the two of them.

My hubby kept saying tiramisu...tiramisu .... so I thought why not....What better occasion than this to make the most sensuous of all Italian desserts, Tiramisu!

Light and Fluffy Donuts (Doughnuts)

Coated with chocolate ganache or glazed and sprinkled with sugar, the temptation to sink your teeth into a soft and fresh donut is irresistible...
Having tried out different recipes and not particularly happy with the end result, I continued my search for the perfect donut recipe.....until today.
Today I made a batch and I can finally share this recipe with everyone out there because these turned out just the way you would want them - light and fluffy!

How to make Mascarpone Cheese at home..

Yes...I now make my own Mascarpone Cheese...How cool is that!
Hahah...
My hubby wanted a Tiramisu cake for his birthday and I thought why not...
But mascarpone which is one of the key ingredients isn't easy to find here in India..and when you do finally find some you realize that it is bloody expensive (Rs 500/- or more for a meager 250g!!!)

So I did my homework...read a lot...surfed even more...and guess what I found out? that you can make your own mascarpone cheese! at home... and that too with just two simple ingredients!