The Way of the Daring Baker: To Mix, To Knead, & then To Toss....

This Daring Bakers Challenge involved an excellent choice of recipe. It comes from Peter Reinhart's: The Bread Baker's Apprentice. This recipe Pizza Napoletana is simply lovely - and as described by Rosa of Rosa's Yummy Yums yields a beautifully tasty, thin, crispy, yet chewy pizza crust.

The Challenge
This challenge required the Daring Baker to try and use the tossing method for at least 2 Pizza Crusts. of course, a switch to the rolling method was permitted, but tossing was the key to the challenge. And the moment of the toss as it were had to be captured on film for all posterity!!!! Talk about taking it up a notch....

Masala Chana Dal Vadas | Spicy Lentil Fritters

This year I decided to make some typical and traditional treats for Diwali. Apart from the sakarparas and namakparas, I thought it might be a good idea to have some nice food from the South for Choti Diwali and something from Delhi for Diwali. So I made tamarind rice, masala vadas, and sambar on the 27th! And while I often make tamarind rice from scratch at home, I usually make my sambar using MTR sambar masala. I always plan to make the sambar masala at home but just never get round to it. So this time I decided I just had to make the masala at home and I did. And I have to confess - the sambar was the best I have ever tasted. Well, enough said about my adventures with masalas and onto the Masala Vadas!! (And of course, you might well ask: what did you make for Diwali? Keep tuned for some delicious Delhi Chaat!!)

Happy Diwali

Wishing you a very HAPPY DIWALI and a prosperous NEW YEAR!!

All text and photographs in this blog, unless otherwise noted, are Copyright of © Annarasa 2007. All Rights Reserved. Kindly do not reproduce without permission.

Paneer Bread Pakoras | Crispy Battered Bread & Cottage Cheese Fritters

Bread Pakoras are a ridiculously indulgent treat. Fresh bread, dipped in a batter of spicy chickpea flour is deep fried and served hot with a choice of spicy sauce. Its an all time favourite, sold at busy city spots by street vendors, often in day old newspapers!!!! As a kid I remember many a birthday party where bread pakoras made an appearance. And more recently, I was pleasantly surprised to see them at an Indian restaurant here.

Strawberries with Saffron-Cardamom Yogurt

Yes, it is the end of the summer, and we are in the pushing into autumn. But here's the last of the blush of summer in a really delightfully simple dessert. We love the lovely combination of textures and flavours that come together here: the tart strawberries, the thick yogurt, the fragrant cardamom, and incredible saffron. I hope you will love this one too :)

Ingredients:
2 cups Greek yogurt
2 cups fresh strawberries
1/2 tsp cardamom, powdered
1/2 tsp saffron strands
2 tbsp milk
2 tbsp brown sugar, divided equally

Method:

1. Warm the milk for 30 seconds in the microwave. Drop the saffron strands in the milk. Stir, cover, and set out for 5 minutes.
2. Place the yogurt and sugar in a large glass bowl. Whip the yogurt for 5 minutes. Add the cardamom powder and mix well.
3. Strain the saffron extract and pour it into the yogurt. Mix well and then cool in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours.
4. In the meanwhile, hull the strawberries and slice them. Place in a bowl and sprinkle with the remaining tablespoon of brown sugar. Place in the refrigerator until ready to serve.
5. Assemble the desert in individual bowls. Place a tablespoon of the saffron-cardamom yogurt in the bowl. Cover with two tablespoonfuls of the berries. On these berries, add a layer of the yogurt so that it covers the berries completely. Spoon two more tablespoons of berries on the yogurt and finally top with a spoonful of yogurt.
6. Repeat for all bowls. Serve immediately.

P.S. If you can't find any fresh strawberries, fresh frozen ones work just as well. Just follow the thawing instructions on the packet!!

This original recipe goes out to the Original Recipes Round-Up #4 hosted by Culinarty at Culinarty: The Art of Microwave Baking. This is a really interesting and unique event and I would encourage all readers with desire to create and learn to drop by and view the previous and current round-ups:)


All text and photographs in this blog, unless otherwise noted, are Copyright of © Annarasa 2007-2013. All Rights Reserved. Kindly do not reproduce without permission.