Making a fondant ribbon rose

A fondant ribbon rose is an easy sugar flower to make, classy enough to adorn a wedding cake or sufficiently playful to sit atop a toddlers Birthday cake. Even without much practice you can make one flower per minute from pre-cut fondant ribbon. I made all the flowers for Sarah’s Birthday cake while watching a movie. You just can’t beat that convenience!

Two slightly different methods of making these flowers are here and here

6 comments Cakes and Cookies, How to ?

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Our little girl turns three today...

16 comments Cakes and Cookies

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Pineapple mousse with a hint of rum

Homemade desserts used to be very simple in the times when I was a kid, payasams were made whenever an occasion called for celebration, custard was considered fancy, un-churned ice creams of varying degrees of toughness were all considered exceptional. For everything else, there were local bakeries and ice cream parlors to turn to, from cream horns to jelly rolls they got it all covered for us.

On those days of simple living, only one fruit stood on its own as the whole dessert course for a non vegetarian feast in our neck of the woods, and that was not mango but pineapple! A piece of pineapple served along with Biriyani on some social functions hinted that no ice creams will be served thereafter. The fruit seemed like a perfect ending for the feast packed with a riot of flavors. Even now, I couldn’t agree more!

Pineapple mousse with a hint rum – Egg less and super easy!

Pineapple – 1 can (10-12 oz)

Evaporated milk – ½ cup

Sugar – 1 cup

Confectionary sugar -1/2 cup

Heavy whipping cream 2 cups

Caramelized almonds – 1 cup (recipe follows)

Plain gelatin – 1 ½ tbsp

Artificial rum extract – ½ tsp (optional)

To prepare nuts, caramelize 2 tbsp of sugar in a thick bottomed pan. When the color turns to golden brown turn off the heat and add 1 cup of thinly sliced almonds. Mix with a fork to coat the nuts with caramel. Spread on a cookie sheet lined with aluminum foil. Crush with hands when cooled. Store up to a week in an airtight container.

Puree pineapple along with the syrup in a blender till very smooth. In a thick bottomed vessel combine 1 cup of sugar with pineapple puree. Cook till the mixture boils; keep boiling for 5 more minutes with constant stirring. Add evaporated milk, stir well. Dissolve gelatin in 3 tbsp of hot water, add to the pineapple mixture with constant stirring. Add rum extract, stir well, and turn off the heat. Let the mixture cool completely on the kitchen counter. When the mixture is at room temperature start whipping heavy cream with ½ cup of confectionary sugar , whip till soft peaks form. With a fork beat the pine apple mixture to break up lumps if any. Slowly fold in the whipped cream in 3-4 batches. Spoon the mousse into ramekins. Sprinkle with crushed caramelized nuts, chill for at least 6 hours before serving. Serves 12.

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Ginger chicken wrap – Indian style

Life is keeping me busy this week; I will try my best to come up with an enormously boring drown-out post in a couple of days. Meanwhile just to keep you entertained, here is our favorite Indian style ginger chicken wrap recipe complete with chutney yogurt and a truck load of vegetables :)

Ginger chicken wrap

Flat bread (Naan/Chappathi/Lavash/Tortilla)

Baked spicy ginger chicken strips ( recipe follows)

Baked /grilled vegetables (Zucchini/egg plants/bell peppers etc.)

Onions thinly sliced

Tomatoes, sliced

Lettuce, chopped

Cilantro/Jalapeno /green onion, finely chopped (optional)

Chutney yogurt (recipe follows)

Lemon (Optional) - to taste

Layer vegetables and chicken pieces on the flat bread, sprinkle with chopped herbs, squeeze 1/4th of a lemon over if you wish, add a dollop of a chutney Mayo. Wrap it up and enjoy!

Baked ginger chicken strips

Boneless chicken strips (approximately 6x2 inch) 12 nos
Ginger chopped 3 tbsp
Jalapeno chilies (seeds removed) 2 nos
Cumin ¼ tsp
Salt ¼ tsp
Paprika (Optional) ½ tsp
Turmeric (Optional) ¼ tsp
Yogurt 1 tbsp

Grind all ingredients except chicken to make a fine paste. Rub the spice mix over chicken pieces, marinate for 20 minutes to over night. Preheat oven to 400oC. Arrange the chicken pieces on a wire rack kept on a baking tray. Bake for about 20 minutes or till the chicken pieces are cooked. Chicken pieces can be grilled too.

Chutney Yogurt

Green yogurt 1cup

Grated coconut (fresh/dry) 2 tbsp

Ginger paste ½ tsp

Crushed cumin ¼ tsp

Cilantro ¼ tsp

Salt To taste

Mix everything together in a bowl using a wire whisk, refrigerate till use, keeps well up to 1 day.

7 comments Breads and Rotis, Indian

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Lavender-Caramel Pots de Crème

I smell fall in the air, rains are back, looks like it is time to head indoors once again. Each season holds its own charm, but from a food blogger's perspective having pure natural sunlight around for more time is definitely an advantage. Summer is also a ‘props” bounty time, walk out and pluck a bunch of flowers and leaves from the patio or backyard and your photos shine!

We are back from a short but invigorating stay with friends at the coast. I still hear the ocean in my head, but it is time to get back to the usual, what else could do the trick than making a simple no fuss comfort dessert perfumed with home grown lavender blossoms!

Eggs 2 whole + 1 yolk
Evaporated milk 1 cup
Milk 1 cup
Sugar ¾ cup + 2 tsp
Dried lavender blooms ¼ tsp


Heat the oven to 325oC
Heat two tsp sugar in a thick bottomed pan till it is golden brown.

Turn the heat to low and add couple of tablespoons of milk, increase the heat and stir well till no caramelized sugar clumps remain.

Add the rest of the milk, evaporated milk and cook till the mixture boils, turn off the heat.

Add the lavender blooms; let it seep for about 10 minutes. Sieve the hot milk to remove the blooms.

In a bowl, beat sugar, eggs + yolk with a whisk, start adding the hot milk ¼ cup at a time beating thoroughly after each addition.

Divide the mixture between ramekins or Pots de Crème jars, till the ramekins are 3/4 th full. (Baby food jars works well too). Lift foam formed on the top using a clean paper towel or a spoon.

Keep the ramekins/jars in a casserole dish and keep in the oven. Pour hot water in the dish till the ramekins are about 3/4th immersed in water.

Bake for 30 minutes, remove from oven , let it cool at room temperature for half an hour, the Crème will be a bit wiggly in the middle, but it will set as it cools down.

Cover the crèmes with a plastic wrap and chill for 1-2 hours before you enjoy it.

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