Pavlova!

This one is out of Nigella. I wasn't very convinced when I found out what pavlova is, but, despite the disastrous ending, it was quite yum. FAR too sweet. I'll use about 2/3rd the sugar when I make it again. Halfway through the meringue, my electric beater died. We were far too tired by then to beat it by hand. So we just baked it half beaten, and topped with very tart kiwis, and skipped the cream entirely.

Challah bread

When I went to diners on the Upper West Side, especially, EJ's on 81st and Amsterdam, They used to make Challah French toast. I always wondered what it was. One day our water was a cute jewish boy who bantered a lot, and he talked me into trying challah. I loved it. He also taught me to pronounce it heh. I had no idea why it was special etc, but I had to learn to make it. So when Israeli friend offered to teach me to bake I said yespleasechallah! With a little help from Peter Reinhardt.

No-bake Strawberry Cheesecake

I've adored cheesecake ever since the first time I ate a real one, not the eggy, gelatinous ones we get here in India as a rule. When I was in college, we discovered this bakery in Khan Market (I can't even remember the name, but it doesn't exist anymore so it doesn't matter I guess) that had divine blueberry cheesecake for the decadent sum of seventy rupees. (My daily budget was about 50), and as a special treat we'd go eat some occasionally. I've met many more of note, like the strawberry one at the deli at the southeast corner of central park, and lets never forget Rocco's in the West Village. Most recently it was the blueberry at Big Chill, in Khan Market again. So when my kind friend offered to teach me how to make one, I nearly peed in excitement.

So heeere it is at last my loverlies. Adapted from here.

This was part of the mad six-hour baking marathon some days ago. Also from then is the challah, the knish, the stew and the pavlova. It's best left to set overnight so make it the day before.

Orange Yoghurt Cake

Now, it's been a while since the sistah introducted me to smitten kitchen, and I have been DYING for a chance to try out some of her stuff, especially the non chocolate desserts. It being the gramma's eighty-sixth, I decided to make her lemon cake. But there aren't enough lemons around, and deffy not nice ones. It is also orange season, and we have these that I think are clementines, but we call them khinu. So I decided to tweak it a bit. And add cream cheese frosting. Which didn't really work out too well cos I wanted it more like a glaze and it wasn't, and I suck at icing cakes so it took a gorgeous looking cake and made it look lame. But. The flavours went wonderfully. Still, I want to make this one plain some day. My soaking syrup wasn't very syrupy, but the ohh the moistness! I was also making it in a tearing hurry so I didn't have time to document the process. Next time!

Potato Knish!

On my first non jetlagged day living in New York, my cousin's girlfriend, just done with law school, was kind enough to babysit me all over town. She took me a bakery somewhere on Columbus (never went back cos I'm too lazy to walk TWO avenue blocks) in the 80s, and fed me this amazing Jewish thing, Knish. I swear it was like the samosa made for me, because it has no spices, only delicate flavours and such lovely pastry!

This weekend, three (four?) years later, my dear Israeli friend came over for a big cookout and taught me to make it. Along with challah bread, no bake cheesecake, and a pavlova. But more on those later.

Potato Mushroom Thingummy

I know, I know, I need a better name.

This morning I found a packet of mushrooms that had to be cooked. I also needed something for lunch. The only other vegetable (yes yes) in the house was potatoes. Much googling came up with lovely, drool-inducing things like potato mushroom gratin and so on, but they really were pushing the trying to eat healthy boundaries. Plus I simply didn't have the time before I left for work. So I invented this.

Spinach and Mushroom Soup

So the supermarket had the most GORGEOUS mushrooms and spinach yesterday. Of course, I bought too much. The joys of having a maid meant that when i got home from work I had me a big pile of chopped veggies! I figure it's time I made something here that's mildly healthy!