Grape and Almond Clafoutis - Eggless - A French Dessert

Grape Clafoutis, a delicious and light French dessert. Clafouti is a French country dessert, something bewteen a custard and a cake, with fruit thrown in.  The recipe is easy and flexible – throw in any fruit you like, and serve the clafouti warm or at room temperature.

Method

200 Grams Fresh Grapes
1/3 Cup Gulab Jamun Mix
2 Tablespoons Ground almonds
2 Tablespoons Condense Milk
3 -4 Tablespoons Milk
1/2 Tablespoon Sugar powder
1/4 Teaspoon cinnamon powder

Method

Preheat the oven at 150 degrees.

Take a  fluted flan or pie dish and lightly butter the inside surface. Take the stalks off the grapes and place the grapes in the dish. Pack them in quite tightly. Sprinkle the sugar powder over it and keep this aside.

In a mixing bowl add the gulab jamun mix, ground almonds, condense milk, cinnamon powder, mix well. Add milk a tablespoon at a time and lightly beat with a whisk to mix well to make this a pouring consistency.

Pour this batter over the grapes and put into the oven. Cook for 25-30 minutes until the mixture sets and the top turns a golden colour and it starts leaving the sides. 

Take from the oven, allow to cool a little, and serve with whipped cream.

Served straight from the oven with whipped cream, a clafoutis is like a fruit flan without the pastry crust. This is easy to prepare and makes for healthy eating.

Labels : Cakes, Continental Cuisine, Blogging Marathon, France, Grapes, Almond

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Vegetable Puffs

Here's a simple snack for a party. Takes hardly any time to put together, and totally delicious. These can be prepared well in advance and kept.

I have lot of memories associated with Vegetable Puffs. My mom used to get this for me very often. I like both the sweet and savoury version. Nowadays I make this puffs often using homemade puff pastry sheet, making them at home gives you a different joy that just cannot be explained. I made these for a party in my house and they turned out superb with crispy outer layer and delicious filling.

Ingredients:

1 Pastry sheet
4 Potatoes
2 Carrots
1/2 Cup Beans
1 Onions – finely chopped
4 Green chillies –  finely chopped
1/4 Teaspoon Turmeric powder
1 Teaspoon Coriander- Cumin powder

A pinch of Garam masala powder
1 Tablespoon Coriander leaves – finely chopped
Salt as required
1 Tablespoon Oil

Method

Take a pastry sheet from freezer and thaw for 30 minutes.

Boil the potatoes,peel and cut into small pieces or mash them lighlty .

Heat oil in a pan, add chopped onions fry till translucent, then add the beans, carrots, green chillies and fry for  few mintues.  Add turmeric, salt, coriander cumin powder and fry well.  Cover and cook till veggies are cook.  Then add mashed potatoes and fry for 3 -4 minutes.  Take down from flame add the garam masala powder and coriander leaves.  Mix well and keep to cool.

Slowly unfold the pastry sheet and cut into  square pieces. Roll each piece with rolling pin to make it little thinner.

Put about 2 tablespoons of vegetable filling in each of them, applying little water over the edges.  Fold the puff and lightly press the edges.  Arrange them in a tray (do not grease the tray) and lightly brush them with milk.

Bake in a preheat oven to 180  degree. Place the prepared puffs on a baking tray and bake for 20 to 25 minutes.

Tastes good when warm with tomato ketchup.

Linking this to Srivalli's Come , join us for breakfast event and her Blog Anniversary Mela

Labels: Starters, Blogging Marathon, Pure Veg, Puffs

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Chocolate Orange Buns

I had to make something filling for friends for breakfast. As usual lots of things come to your mind.  But I wanted something that could be prepared the previous night as I go for my walk very early .  Opened my recipe book and found this pic glaring at me, now this is the apt recipe for our breakfast.  Got the ingredients together and ta da  started my preparation.  By the time these were ready it was 11pm.   When my friends had them next day they thrilled because they looked like roses.   

Makes around 18 Buns

Ingredients for Dough
4 Cups Flour
1 Tablespoon Coco powder
1/2 Cup Castor Sugar
1/2 Teaspoon Salt
1/2 Teaspoon Cinnamon powder
1/4 Cup Oil
1/2 Cup Glazed Cherries - chopped
2 Tablespoon Raisins - chopped
2 Tablespoons Orange Juice
2 Tablespoons Orange Jelly Crystals
2.1/2 Teaspoons Instant Yeast
4 Tablespoons Milk powder
1 to 1.1/2 Cup Warm Water - for kneading

Ingredients for the Filling
100 - 150 Grams Orange Marmalade
2 Tablespoons Butter - melted

For the Glaze
1/4 Cup Orange Juice
4 Tablespoon Orange Marmalade

Method
Mix all the ingredients for the dough well. then add little little water at a time and knead into a soft dough. Take this dough on to your kitchen counter and knead for 10 minutes till soft and smooth dough is achieved. Place this into an oiled bowl cover and leave it to rise till double in volume for about a hour or more.

Grease a muffin pan well and keep it ready.

Then when risen punch the dough and roll it into a square sheet about 1/4 inch thick. 

Then apply melted butter with a brush on the sheet well.

 Spread orange marmalade over it. 

Then roll into a thigh roll.

Divide this into 4 parts., then divide each part into 5 or 6 equal parts.

 Place them into the muffin pan and leave them rise till double in volume for about 45 minutes to an hour.

Preheat the oven at 180 degrees and bake these for 20 to 25 minutes.  Remove them from the muffin pan after 5 minutes and place them on a wire rack.  If you keep them lying in the muffin pan they will turn soggy.

For the glaze:

Heat the orange juice lightly add the marmalade and mix well.  Brush the buns with the glaze when they are out off the oven.

We had these with khawa, a herbed tea.

Labels : Breads, Chocolate, Orange, Blogging Marathon

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Orzo Pasta - How to make homemade Orzo pasta

Since we do not get Orzo pasta at here in India, I made this at home. I love making my own pasta, if you look at my blog you will see. This was very easy to make. This I made for the Libyan Cuisine - Soup with Chicken and Fresh Thyme. 

Ingredients

2 Cups All Purpose Flour

1/2 Teaspoon Salt

1 Egg

Water to knead  the dough

Method

Mix one egg with a pinch of salt, all purpose flour and add enough  water to make a nice smooth dough. Pull small bits and roll tiny rice like grains.   Keep them to dry on a plastic sheet for a day.   When dry store in a zip lock bag and use as and when required.

Boil water.  add the pasta and boil for 4 to 6 minutes, or until al dente, in salted water. Enjoy !

Labels : Pasta & Noodles, Homemade

Soup with Chicken and Thyme - A Libyan Cuisine

This month in Mena's Cooking Club, I am travelling to Libya. Here I have prepared a soup of Libyan cuisine. This soup is mainly  prepared during Ramadan. The recipe source is from here.  In this recipe Orzo pasta is used which we do not get in India, I surfed the internet and made this at home, which was very interesting and easy.

Ingredients
200 Grams Chicken legs - skinless
1 small Onion  -  finely chopped
1 small Tomato  -  finely chopped
1/4 Cup Parsley -  finely chopped
1 Tablespoon Tomato paste
1 Cinnamon stick
1 Bay leaf
3 Cardamom seeds - split
4 Cloves

6 Peppercorns
1 Tablespoon Olive oil
1/2 teaspoon Cayenne powder
1/4 Teaspoon Turmeric
Salt to taste
1 Teaspoon fresh Thyme

1 Chicken soup  cube
1/2 cup lisan asfour (bird's tongue) orzo pasta - Homemade

A litre water -  for making the soup

Method

Heat oil in a pot, add chopped onion, drop in the cardamom, cloves, cinnamon, peppercorns and bay leaf, stirring until the oil is infused. Add the chicken, tomato paste and stir. Add the cayenne, turmeric powder , fresh tomatoes, soup cube and parsley,  a cup of boiling water, cover and cook on low heat for 15 minutes. Then add the remaining  water and cook on medium heat for 45 minutes.

Remove the chicken pieces, cinnamon sticks and  bay leaf. De-bone the chicken pieces and cut into bite-sized chunks set aside. Add the remaining amount of parsley, and lisan asfour (orzo), cook for another 10-15 minutes.

Turn of the heat, drop the chicken pieces back in, rub a handful of fresh thyme between the palms of your hand straight into the pot, then give the soup a final stir.  Serve hot and enjoy....

Labels : Soup, Continental Cuisine, Healthy, Mena Cooking Club, Libya

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