Plum upside down cake

Why did i have the urge to make this cake? Well, we had guests over for a meal during the Christmas hols and since i was recovering from the long vacation i had just taken i decided to pick up dessert from sainsburys instead of painstakingly making one. I picked up a Plum upside down cake and man it was glorious. Loved it to the last bite and then went back and got more. The Christmas season was soon over and so was the cake. I needed some more and so decided to try it at home and that's it I'm done with trying it at home :)

The plums were a little tarty/sour and i wonder why..also, if at all i try it again, i think il go for the canned plums/peaches/pineapple.

For the topping

Ripe, firm red plums- 5, cut into 8 wedges each

Butter- 1 tbs

Brown sugar- 1/4 cup

For the cake

All purpose flour- 1 cup

White granulated sugar- 2/3 cup

Baking soda- 1/4 tsp

Baking powder- 3/4 tsp

Yogurt- 2/3 cup

Egg- 1 large

Salt- a pinch

Vanilla essence- 1 tsp

Nutmeg- a pinch (optional)

Cinnamon powder- 1/4 tsp (optional)

Preheat the oven to 175C, butter an 8 inch pan and keep ready.

Pit the plums and slice into 8 wedges each. In a saucepan, melt the butter and brown sugar and all the plums to this sauce. Cook them until the sugar dissolves and the juices from the plums become syrupy.

Arrange them as below and spoon the rest of the syrup over the plums.

In a small bowl whisk together the flour, baking pwd, baking soda, the nutmeg, cinnamon pwd and salt.

In a mixing bowl, whisk together sugar and butter till light and fluffy. To this add the egg and milk, mix well. Pour in the flour mix bit by bit and combine well. Pour the batter over the plums and bake until a tooth pick comes out clean, about 50 to 55 mins.

Cool on a rack and after about an hour invert the cake onto a plate.

Notes: When you cook the plums make sure you don't over do it because they can actually come apart

Be extremely careful while turning the cake upside down, because, as you can see, mine hasn't come out that great..patience is a good thing to have while doing this :)

There was a distinct taste of cinnamon which i really didn't like and id suggest you avoid it unless you are a big fan of the flavour.

I am also thoroughly excited because Reflections has awarded me with my first ever blog award. Thank you so so much. I am not too sure how this is done but I'm anyway flaunting it here. Do tell me if I'm wrong. I am also not sure if i have to tag others..which i shan't..so i leave it to whoever follows it to feel free and grab the award. I tho am thoroughly pleased (huge grin).

Vegetable Pulao

I'm back after my 6 week vacation in India and loving every minute of it. Haven't started cooking, full fledged, but putting together stuff here and there. The holiday season is in full swing and so we have just been chilling out at home cuddling up on the sofa with hot chocolate and watching silly movies. Also went and shopped quite a bit on Boxing Day....the crowds were crazy but i still loved every bit of it. I'm not bragging for long..I'm seriously lazy to type and even lazier to take pics of the food i make. So here's one from the drafts which i made just 2 days before i left to India when we had a couple of relatives over for dinner. I think this is the first time ever that a pulao has turned out this well for me. Ro was beaming from ear to ear.

I followed maria's recipe to the dot except that i sauteed one small onion and 2 green chillies (slit) after the spices, added the peas and carrot and mixed well. Then added the rice and cooked it altogether till done.

Chicken soup for the soul on a cold day like today

It sure is getting cold and in the two years we have been around, we have never used the heater this much..and its not even winter yet! The Paris trip planned for Christmas has been scratched because we realised we wouldn't enjoy the place with the biting cold creeping in through the clothes....and with the amount of walking we might have to do, it isn't that rosy a picture and id hate Paris instantly. Now i really don't want to hate the most romantic city in the world do i?

Soups are a new addition to our system and it wasn't soon that i realised it was one of the easiest dishes to make and a whole, fulfilling meal that too. Ro however wants all the possible veggies in it including my current enemy 'the broccoli.' This is a 'cream of chicken' infused recipe which turned out really tasty. I have put in a whole lotta veggies, which are optional, or you can add whatever you have at home.

Chicken- 1 large piece, bone in

Leek- 1, shredded

Cauliflower- 1/2 cup

Carrots- 1/2 cup

Soup cube- 1, diluted in some water or just crumble it (I used Knorr)

Water- 1/2 cup (or just enough to cover the veggies and the chicken)

Salt and pepper- to taste

instant Soup- 1 sachet (i used Knorr again, a 5 minute soup sachet)

Put in the veggies, chicken and water into a large stock pot over medium heat. Crumble a soup cube into the water and give it a good stir. Cover and cook. After about 15 minutes, take the chicken out and shred it...the meat will be way too tender and will come off easily. Put it back into the pot along with the bone and continue on high heat, this time without the lid on. Leave it on for another 30 minutes and towards the end add an instant soup sachet into it as per instructions and season with some freshly ground pepper powder and salt. Make sure it doesn't boil. If you want to make it creamier, add some low fat milk as well.

Serve immediately with some croutons or garlic bread.

Notes: The Knorr instant soup is optional..i used it to get a more thicker and creamier soup.

Leeks are important..it completely changes the flavour.

The bone in piece is also an additional flavour enhancer, but you can also use boneless pieces.

Gobi/ cauliflower Manchurian

We are in the process of adding broccoli and cauli's to our daily food and i must say i hate broccoli and so does Ro but he tries hard to eat it and doesn't complain. We try to include it in our soups and its still raw and horrible. For me, its more like keeping the one and only broccoli floret till the last gulp and then try and chuck it without Ro looking. But he manages to catch me just before that and i have to chew it like a mincing machine and swallow it with great difficulty. Cauli's also are not that great in soups, but not as bad as broccoli so i manage to eat that. We had left over caulis from one of the soup sessions and i couldn't handle it raw again. So i tried out a Manchurian recipe which turned out great, although Ro was eating my head while i was preparing it saying, 'I'm hungry whats there to eat, il die of hunger etc.' So pardon the 'not so presentable pic' which i had to hurry through.

I mixed the recipe from mariasmenu and from another blog and came up with this. Also, Swarhas an interesting recipe for gobi Manchurian on her blog.

Cauliflower florets- 2 cups

To marinate:

Corn flower- 2 tbs

Maida- 1 tbs

pepper pwd- 1/2 tsp

Water- enough to make a loose paste

Salt- to taste

Oil- enough to fry

Bell pepper- 1, sliced into cubes

Onion- 1, thinly sliced

Green chillies- 2, slit lengthwise

Ginger garlic paste- 1 tsp

Soy sauce- 2 tbs

Tomato sauce- 1 tbs

Chilli sauce- 1 tbs (i didn't have any so i made a paste of 1/2 tsp of vinegar and 1 tsp of Kashmiri chilli pwd)

Pepper pwd- 1 tsp

Spring onions- to garnish

Salt- to taste

Boil the cauliflower florets for about 5 minutes, drain it completely and dry on kitchen towels. It must be completely moisture-free

Mix all ingredients in the 'to marinate' section with enough water to make a loose paste (not too watery though). Dip the florets in this mixture and deep fry in hot oil. Drain on paper towels.

In a frying pan, heat some oil (leftover from frying) and sautee the onions, bell pepper and green chillies till they become soft. To this add the Ggp and sautee well, till the raw smell goes. Next, add all the sauces, pepper and salt and mix well. In goes the fried florets and combine well with the sauces and masala. It must be well coated. Add some spring onions to enhance the taste, or just garnish it when you are ready to serve.

Notes: I don't like the florets completely coated with cornflower, so i don't over do it

Bell pepper is optional, but it brings an authentic Chinese taste to it, i think!

I marinated the florets in the refrigerator for over an hour which was quite accidental, but i guess it was for the best.

Fry the marinated florets in oil till crunchy brown and serve it with garlic mayo mixed with a bit of tomato ketchup and it serves as a great starter. Have tried it a lot of times.

Pan seared Scallops with a Thai Sauce

This is our first time with scallops and i must say i wasn't too disappointed. Ro got all excited at the prospect of making a scallop dish and he completely took over. We paired it with noodles stir fried in a spicy Thai sauce and a Chardonnay to accompany the spicy, tangy food.

Scallops- 8 to 10 meduim ones

Olive oil- 2 tbs

Salt and pepper- for seasoning

Sauce:

Olive oil- 2 tbs

Fish sauce- 1 tbs

Lemon juice- of half a lime

Dry red chillies- 2 crushed (we used 1/2 a tsp of Thai massaman paste)

Garlic- 2 cloves, thinly sliced

Butter- 1 tsp

Coriander- 2 tsp,finely chopped. We used the dried ones..fresh would be apt

Wash the scallops and pat dry

Warm a wok (or large frying pan) over medium-high heat (allow pan to warm up at least 1 minute). While the pan is warming up, use a paper towel or clean tea towel to gently dab any remaining moisture from the scallops.

Add 2 Tbs oil to the frying pan and swirl around. Gently place the scallops in the pan, leaving enough space between so you'll have room to turn them. Cook the scallops for at least 2 minutes (or skin will tear) and while doing so, season with a pinch of salt and black pepper. Turn the scallops and season the other side with salt and pepper. Scallops are done when both sides have a nice crispy-looking crust and are firm to the touch. Remove cooked scallops from the wok/pan and drain on a kitchen towel.

For the sauce, place all ingredients in a sauce pan over medium heat-high. Stirring occasionally, warm the sauce for 1-2 minutes only, without actually cooking it. Add the seared scallops to the sauce or palce the scallops on a serving plate and pour the sauce over it.

Notes: The scallops must be very dry before frying them in order to achieve a good sear on both sides.

We made the sauce a bit runny so it teamed up as a nice side to the noodle dish.

Recipe has been adapted from about.com

Baked tuna steak with garlic and rosemary

Saturday brunch is completely taken over by Ro while i sit around watching something on TV or browsing and if i feel a bit enthu, id help him chop the veggies or something. But most probably, i avoid being in the same space with Ro which ultimately ends up in a fight about 'the masala containers don't go there' and the 'this is not how you should be doing it' sagas. So this Saturday was one of those days and i just sat and watched the episodes of HIMYM while Ro went out, bought fresh tuna steaks and decided to do a conti preparation.

This is a recipe from the BBC good food guide and we had it with jacket potatoes, steamed veggies and this new Belgian fruit beer we discovered called fruli.

Verdict: The fish was way too fishy for my taste and i ended up having left over pizza from the previous night. So I'm warning you, if you are not a big fan of fish (read bland and fishy), then this is definitely not for you. This is as Brit as it can get:) Also, the rosemary was a bit overpowering and i guess its an acquired taste.

All you need

Tuna steak- 1 or 2, about 200 gms (can be substituted with any white fish as well)

Roasted garlic- 3 cloves (drizzle the garlic cloves with some olive oil and salt, wrap them in foil and roast in a hot for about 10mins)

Dry red chilli- 1, crushed

A few sprigs of rosemary

Dry white wine- 3 tbs

A pinch of salt

Extra virgin olive oil- 25ml

Parsley- a few sprigs, chopped

Lemon- half, squeezed

Preheat the oven to 220C.

Make a paste of all the above ingredients (except the wine) and generously rub over the steaks.

Place a large aluminium foil, large enough to hold the fish steaks, on the kitchen top and cover with a baking paper, almost the same size. Fold over the edges so that both the foil and paper are joint at the edges. It should look like a bag.

Now place the marinated steaks into this and pour the wine over this along with the roasted garlic. Make sure you crush it a bit so that the flavours get infused with the gravy. Seal the bag and place inside the oven. The fish steams inside and so the bag has to be sealed well. Cook for 15 minutes. Once done, serve the steaks on a plate and pour the gravy over.

Notes: The same marinade can be used for white fish or even prawns

Jacket potatoes are the easiest. Cook them in the microwave for about 10 to 12 minutes, turning occasionally and once a knife cuts through easily, take it out and slice them into quarters, but not all the way. Apply some butter or load it with cheddar cheese and about 2 or 3 mins before the fish gets done, chuck the potatoes into the oven as well. This is just to melt the cheddar.

Beef Curry

This is a damn easy beef curry especially if you have a pressure cooker. I usually avoid buying beef out here cos after all the cleaning i am kinda put off the whole thing. It also somehow ends up tasting too beefy...i am sure all of you must be wondering what i mean..but yes i do feel its a lil too obvious for me. This curry however proved me wrong and turned out real well. It was more like a stew but went great with roti.

I followed Maria's recipe to the dot except i used the pressure cooker to do all the cooking. It cooked faster and was more convenient. I kept it on for 3 whistles on low fire and after it was cooked, added the thick coconut milk, stirring in between, till it started boiling. And ofcourse the tempering does the trick for me.

PS: Sorry for the lazy post. After the long break I'm now finding it difficult to start again. All i need is a kick..you know where:)

PPS: Ro asked me where the beef was in the pic and i said it was all under there. So sorry for the hidous pic as well.