Corn n Cheese Bruschetta

Yonks passed and I felt asleep, intoxicated with dreams and memories of past, the childhood and the adolescence. With each passing day I grew lazier and my inner zeal happened to run on a vacation. Sometimes a break is so badly needed, actually needed for good. So guys, with no regrets, I just returned from one.

As vacations are dreamed to be reposeful, I inevitably had some. With ounces heaping on, especially to a person who essays hard to put on some weight and still can't manage to get by any way, this amplification was a bountiful achievement. :P

Since I am talking about calories and weight gain here, I had to undergo a rich diet n regime, wo bhi mumma ke haath ka swadisht khana and then resting, watching television and sleeping the day long. This was perhaps like going to gym for weight reduction for others, which is definitely not as easy as it sounds. For a person like me, who doesn't like to sit even and keep working the max of hours with a small kiddo who keeps you on toes the whole while, this resting phase was not an easy intruder. But gradually it picked up, and indeed so well that now it's so damn tough to get back to the old routine. :P

I cooked and baked seldom in the last three months and was a binge eater most of the time. But then here comes the most beautiful thing I baked ever: scrumptious, beauteous, cheesy Bruschetta that I made with home-baked bread in my newie loaf tin.

The aroma of freshly baked home breads is irresistible. Much easier than it ever sounded to me, baking is just another world of cooking. To most of the Indians, as far as I have understood and known, baking is a not-so-easy type of a thing. Possibly the reason behind is an attempt that never took place, because once you start doing it, it slides smoothly and converts you to a baker soon. Yes, there are blunders and mistakes that might happen while baking, but who said you can make chapathis or curries flawless all the time. It's all that is there in your mind that makes it simple or tough, whether it is dealing with life situations or baking/cooking. So guys, here I give you an idyllic glance of what came out of my oven:

CORN N CHEESE BRUSCHETTA

Preparation Time: 20 minutes

Baking Time: 5-10 minutes (for the final toast/grill)

                     30 minutes (for baking the bread/base)

Makes 8 bruschettas

Bruschetta, from the Italian word "bruscare" meaning "to roast over coals" is made by toasting whole, wide slices of a rustic Italian or sourdough type bread. It is an antipasto from Italy whose origin dates to at least the 15th century. It consists of grilled bread rubbed with garlic and topped with olive oil, salt and pepper. Variations may include toppings of tomato, vegetables, beans, cured meat, or cheese; the most popular recipe outside of Italy involves basil, fresh tomato, garlic and onion or mozzarella. Bruschetta is usually served as a snack or appetizer. In some countries, a topping of chopped tomato, olive oil and herbs is sold as bruschetta.

Ingredients:
For the Base:

1. All Purpose Flour/Maida: 1 and 3/4 cup

2. Active Dry Yeast/ Instant Yeast: 1 tsp

4. Luke Warm Water: 1/4 cup

5. Butter/Olive Oil: 2 tbs

6. Warm Milk: 1/4 cup (use only if required) + 2 tbs for brushing

7. Baking Powder: 1/2 tsp

8. Curd/yogurt: 2 tbs

9. Salt: 1 tsp

10. Sugar: 1 tbs

For the Topping:
1. Sweet Corn Kernels: 1 cup
2. Capsicum/Bell Pepper: 1/2 (finely chopped)
3. Tomato: 1 (finely chopped)
4. Garlic Cloves: 5 (finely chopped)
5. Cheese (Mozarella/ Cheddar): 1 big cube
6. Olives: sliced
7. Olive oil/ Butter
8. Basil, dried herbs and oregano
9. Salt to taste
10. Ground Pepper
11. Chilli Flakes (optional)

Method:

For The Bread:

1. Add the yeast and sugar to luke warm water (1/4 cup) and let it stand for 10 minutes till it starts frothing.
2. Sieve the maida/all purpose flour; add salt and baking powder to it.
3. Now add 1 tbs butter/oil and yogurt to the flour and mix well. Make a well in the center of the flour and slowly pour in the yeast water mix. Keep on kneading and adding slowly till a sticky soft dough is formed. If you find that the water is not enough, then add in some warm milk slowly. The dough will be as soft as the dough we make for naan/chapathi.
4. Knead it well after greasing your hands with some oil, till the dough becomes pliable and soft (I did that for around 10 minutes). 
5. Now grease the outer dough with little oil to avoid drying and keep it covered with a wet clean cloth/cling wrap in a warm place for about an hour or more (till it doubles up in size).
6. After one hour, when it's doubled, deflate it gently with your palms and shape it into an elongated roll so as to fit in a bread loaf/mini french loaf tin.
7. Place the dough in the greased loaf tin.
8. Brush it with milk on the top.
9. Cover this with a wet, clean cloth/cling wrap and keep covered for almost 30-40 minutes (better an hour) for rising again. It should double up in size again and look well puffed.
10. Pre-heat the oven at 160 degrees Celsius for 10 minutes. 
11. Now transfer the loaf/cake tin on a baking tray and take off the cover/cloth/wrap. Bake for 25-30 minutes at 160 degrees Celsius till the top turns light golden brown.
12. Once it is baked, place it on a wire rack to cool.
13. On cooling, slice the loaf into 8 big pieces. The loaf will be crusty and hard on top but soft within. You can wrap it in a cling film and keep for some time to make it softer.
14. These bread slices can be used in multiple ways. You could make some fresh garlic breads, bruschetta, or just relish them with butter. 

Topping: 

1. For Bruschetta, drizzle some olive oil on top, dress up with garlic, and some grated cheese. Embellish further with olives, corn, bell pepper and tomato. Sprinkle basil, herbs, oregano, salt and pepper. 
2. Toast/grill for 4-5 minutes. If you want them crispier, increase the toasting time.
3. Also, you could go the other way. Toast the slices first till they turn crisp n light brown. Then spread some olive oil and follow with the toppings and serve as it is (without grilling/baking the topping). 
4. Traditionally, bruschetta are toasted over the embers of a fire, then rubbed with a clove of garlic and drizzled with your best extra virgin olive oil and sprinkled with salt. This is a great way of letting the true flavors of a fresh, golden-hued olive oil shine through. Also, it lends itself to a myriad of fresh and marinated toppings too, you are likely to find it generously topped with either chopped, ripe tomatoes and basil, a purée of fresh fava beans and garlic, sun dried tomato spreads, or whatever vegetables are in season at the time.

 

 

Suggestions:

1. If you are using instant yeast, use the same amount.
2. There's another way of making the dough in which all the ingredients are mixed together and dough is formed; no separate frothing of yeast in water is required. This is good when you are using instant yeast. Although I prefer the original method.
3. If the dough is not rising because of the temperature (i.e. it's not warm), you can place the dish containing the dough over a vessel filled with warm water (and not dipping in the warm water). This will help providing the right temperature for rising.
4. I kept the dough in the closed oven for rising, with the light on. This gave the perfect temperature and environment for rising, and it puffed up double in just 45 minutes. You can also keep it in sun-light which is warm enough to ferment it.
5. Baking timings vary according to different ovens, but this cannot be baked in a microwave oven without convection mode.  
6. I prefer to brush the dough with milk before keeping it for rising again. Don't touch the dough after it has risen, whether to shift, or out of curiosity. It will deflate it, and then it won't puff again and will sink in. If you want to brush it after rising, make sure you do it very softly, so as not to deflate it.
7. The risen dough looks well puffed, also it sticks to the neighboring balls, but don't try to separate that. Just transfer the whole tin to the oven and cut the baked loaf into slices once it has cooled down . 
8. If you wish to use eggs, you can skip the baking powder and curd/yogurt to the dough.
9. Bake the loaf only till the top turns light golden. If you bake it further, the upper crust will harden.
10. While toasting the bruschetta, make sure you do not over-toast else the base will over-char and go hard.
11. The toppings can change with the waves of creativity your brain forms. From spinach bruschetta to mushroom bruschetta, from mint leaves to thyme, just anything can empower it with its distinctive flavor.

Chandrakala (Stuffed Sugar-coated Pastry)

Chandrakala, sounds so similar to 'Chandrakanta' and thus takes me to the golden era of Doordarshan Cinema, those Sunday morning specials, the 'Jungle Book', ' The Ramayana', ' The Mahabharat' and then this color-blasted catchy story of the beautiful  princess 'Chandrakanta'. Though Chandrakanta has nothing to do with Chandrakala, except for the fact that both of them are surprisingly enticing. 

Well, I had my first encounter with this dainty delight some 3 years back when I saw it sleeping beside guziya in a sweet shop. It looked like guziya, but was roundy-round, and then had that shiny lustre to flaunt its beauty along with the lovely curls on sides. I was gazing at it with so much love and that day I thought that would try this for sure someday. Years passed in a flash of light and suddenly I went back to the memory lane, recalling this sweet and decided to make this for Diwali. I had no idea about how to turn it on sides and seal it, but had firm determination to give a try at least, and if it would not work, then I would switch to my regular guziya moulds and use up the mixture there. By God's grace, I learned to turn it after 3 unsuccessful trials. In the beginning, I didn't know how to go about and was trying to seal the edges with distant turns, but in the next two trials, the trick just clicked and I reached the moon (with no help from any videos o you tube! :P). 

CHANDRAKALA

Preparation Time: 30 minutes
Cooking Time: 30 minutes

Ingredients:
For the Pastry:
1. Maida/ All Purpose Flour: 3 cups
2. Ghee/ Clarified Butter: 1/2 cup (for the dough)
3. Warm Water: for preparing dough
4. Ghee/oil: for deep frying

For the Filling:
1. Khova/ Mava/ Reduced Milk: 200 gms
2. Powdered Sugar: 1/2 cup or as per taste
3. Chironji: 2 tbs
4. Almond flakes/bits: 1/4 cup
5. Raisins: a handful (optional)
6. Cashew Nuts: a handful (optional)
7. Grated coconut: 1/4 cup (optional)
8. Elaichi/ Cardamom Powder: 1 tbs

For the Sugar Syrup: 
1. Sugar: 3 cups
2. Water: 1 cup

 Method:

1. For preparing the dough, take the maida/APF in a bowl and add ghee to it. Mix well with your fingers till you get a crumbly structure. Take a handful of flour and press it hard in your fist; now rest it slowly on the loose flour and see if it can still keep up its shape. If the flour loosens immediately and falls apart, then you need to add a little more of ghee. The ghee should be enough to loosely bind it.
2. Now add warm water to prepare a soft dough (like that for poori). 
3. Cover it and let it rest for 20 minutes.
4. For the filling, take the khova/ mava in a heavy bottomed pan and heat it.
5. Keep moving the laddle continuously to avoid any sticking at the bottom. 
6. The khova will become loose on heating and will start melting. Keep stirring till it becomes slightly golden and starts leaving the edges of the pan.
7. Take it off fire and let it cool.
8. Once it has cooled down, add the powdered sugar, dry fruits, cardamom powder and grated coconut to it. 
9. The mixture might be slightly sticky if the khova has not dried well, but that will hardly make any difference in the taste. 
10. Keep the mixture aside.
11. In the meanwhile, when the khoya is cooling down, prepare the sugar syrup. 
12. Take 3 cups sugar and 1 cup water in a heavy bottomed wok/ vessel and take a boil with frequent stirring to dissolve the sugar completely . Simmer for 2 minutes and leave it warm.
13. For preparing the pastry, divide the dough into 20 equal parts and make small balls out of them. Also, divide the khova mixture into 10 equal parts and make small balls with each of them.
14. Now take two dough balls and roll them separately like small pooris.
15. Place one poori on a flat surface and place the khova ball in the centre of it. Wet the rim of the circle with some water using your fingertips. Now place the other poori over it to cover it completely. 
16. Now the main trick lies in curling and swirling the edges to give the perfect shape. Press the entire rim gently with your fingers to merge the two pooris or circles. Now start turning/bending the rim within, with each turn getting over the prior one, and thus making a chain like structure. This art of bending and twisting will come with time and practice, so have patience in your first go. It took 10 minutes for me to understand and figure out how to bend accurately, but then it just came automatically. 
17. Once the whole structure is well bound and locked, keep it aside, covered with a wet cloth. Stuff 3-4 pastries at a time and then start frying.
18. In the meanwhile, keep the ghee/oil for heating. The ghee should not be fuming hot neither cold. It should be be just right, that is when a part of dough is immersed, it should rise up immediately but not turn brown.
19. Keep the flame on medium-low, and slide the pastries in the ghee. Deep fry them on both the sides till they become golden.
20. Sieve them out and immediately immerse them in the warm syrup. Take them out after 30 seconds and carefully place them on a plate in a vertical position, so as to let the excessive syrup drain out.
21. If the sugar syrup has become too stringy, white and crystalline, then warm it again with a few drops of water.
22. The perfect syrup will always give a shine, while the overdone one will turn white.
23. Let the sweet rest for 30 minutes, so that the syrup coating can dry up. 
24. Serve with some almond flakes and loads of love. :)

 
 

Suggestions:

1. The khova/mava should be fresh, else the whole sweet will get spoiled.
2. You can always keep the filling as sweet as you want. Since the pastry is already sugar coated, so I preferred keeping the filling mildly sweet. 
3. The dry fruits can be of your choice. If you wish to store this sweet for more than 2 days, then avoid using raisins and fresh coconut.
4. Avoid refrigerating, else the outer crust will go soggy.
5. It's always better to finish off khova sweets within 2 days else they need refrigeration, and then the crust doesn't remain the same crunchy. 
6. You can also make guziyas with the same filling and dough; just that the sugar syrup coating is not required there. 
7. If the sugar syrup is too thin, then it will not dry up and thus the sweet will stay slightly sticky, and if it is too thick and crystalline, then it will go all white white and flaky, so make sure you prepare the perfect syrup. Anyway, it will still be delicious. :)
8. Don't keep the rolled dough too thin, else it will break on bending and curling. 
9. Chandrakala generally has a thicker crust than Guziya.

Cooking Made Easy With Sugar/Sweets

No wonder, this month the surprise ingredient had to do something with the festive season, so I cheerfully concluded on 'Sugar/Sweets'.
Any kind of sweet is welcome and it might not necessarily have sugar in it; you could also use other sweetening substitutes like jaggery, honey or anything else. The motto is to keep the palate and tongue happy and sweet. :)

Surprise Ingredient for November:  
  Sugar/Sweets

     November 1 - November 30

Simple Rules to Participate:

1. The recipe should be vegetarian, though eggs are liberated for baking.
2. The recipe should have the surprise ingredient as a major in it.
3. Any number of entries are invited, fresh or archived, just that they need to be linked back to the event announcement page.
4. The use of logo is optional.
5. You have to like 'Spice and Sugar Tales' on 'Facebook'.
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Guest Post for Nupur: Kesar Badam Pista Kheer

Addiction is in nerves, not only for sweets as Diwali is approaching, but for blogging as it gives a food blogger that vigor and charm to bewitch the foodie world. This time I'm writing with immense love for a vivacious girl who blogs in a happening way at UK, Rasoi and Me. She is one of my favorite bloggers who lures with her beautiful writing skills and then those breath-taking pictures. I'm delighted to bring in this Kesar Badam Pista Kheer recipe for her 'Be My Guest' series. 
Get to her fantastic blog for utterly-butterly recipes to tempt your mind and entice your taste buds. 

For the recipe of this delicious-looking kheer, please make your cursor run on this link.