Waffles

I don't need to tell you how good waffles are. They are the perfect vehicle for cream, honey, syrup, berries or chocolate. Or you can go the savoury way with gravy, chicken or cheese. Either way, waffles are amazing.

Waffle batter is pretty similar to that of pancakes but there is one prominent distinction - butter. Not that pancakes dont call for butter, but waffles always call for a fair amount of butter. Butter is what gives waffles its crisp light texture and ensure that it releases easily for the waffle iron. The more butter in the batter (sounds like a tongue twister no?), the richer, crispier the waffle. For lactose intolerant peeps, you can substitute 3tbsp vegetable oil for evey 4tbsp butter.



Makes approx. 8 waffles

2cups flour
1tsb baking powder
1tbsp castor sugar*
1/2tsp salt
3 eggs
1 1/2 cup milk
1 cup melted butter**

*Since I was going to top my waffles with whipped cream and strawberry compote, I went a little low on the sugar in the waffle batter. 1tbsp sugar is also perfect for making savoury waffles. If you will be eating the waffles as is, add in another tbsp of sugar

** Use 4tbsp of butter for a 'low calorie' waffle, 8 tbsp (or 1 stick) for a classic fluffy waffle or 200gms for the crunchiest waffles ever

In a large bowl mix all your dry ingredients i.e: flour, baking powder, sugar and salt. In another bowl, mix in the wet ingredients i.e: eggs, butter and milk. Ensure that your melted butter is not hot while mixing it with eggs. Make a well in the centre of the dry ingredients and pour in the wet ingredients. Whisk to combine.

Heat the waffle iron until your indicator shows its ready. Ladle on the waffle batter, enough to cover around 2/3rd of the grid surface. Close the lid. My waffle maker takes 7-10mins to make a batch of waffles. Cooking time will depend on individual waffle makers. A waffle is ready when steam stops emerging from the cracks of the iron. If you lift the top and the waffle shows resistance, it means that the waffle is still not done.



Waffles can be kept warm in an oven on low heat. This will also help retain its crispiness until you are ready to serve. Leftovers can be refrigerated for 2-3days or frozen for several months.

I served mine in two batches: one with strawberry compote and whipped cream, and the other with some irish cream and whipped cream. Yummy in my tummy!



Tip: you can separate the eggs and beat the whites separately and incorporate for a lighter, fluffier waffle

Cinnamon Rolls & more

Sugar. Spice. And everything nice. These were the ingredients chosen to create the perfect little roll. My kitchen this week was transformed into the best smelling place on earth. Imagine the smell of warm freshly baked bread, fresh ground cinnamon and melting butter - it's probably what the evil witch used to lure Hansel and Gretel. Yep, sweet dreams are made of these.

And they taste as good as they smell. I'm guessing most people don't attempt making these at home thinking that they are just too much work and too time consuming. Well, think again. This dough is as easy to make as cake batter. Actually, minus the yeast, it practically is cake batter - flour, sugar, milk, butter, eggs.

I truly believed I had self control until I made these. It is just too irresistible and hence perfect to serve for breakfast on Christmas day. Just wait till you smell them baking,  it's probably what Santa's factory smells of. I want to bottle this scent and wear it forever!




Adapted from Epicurious.com

For the dough:

1 cup milk
3 tbsp unsalted butter
3 1/2 cups (plus more for rolling and dusting) all purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
1 large egg
3tsp active dry yeast (if using the powder form double this quantity)
A pinch of salt

For the filling:

3/4 cup brown sugar
2 tbsp ground cinnamon
1/4 cup melted butter

For the glaze:

1 cup cream cheese
1tbsp milk or fresh cream
2 cup powdered sugar
1/4 cup melted butter
1 tsp vanilla essence
2 tbsp Amarula or any other liquor (optional)

Combine milk and butter in a bowl and microwave until the butter melts. The mixture should be warm and not piping hot. Pour into a large bowl. Add 1 cup flour, sugar, egg yeast and salt. Using your hands or a stand mixer stir to combine. Add the rest of the flour and mix till the flour is incorporated. The dough should be sticky but should also pull away from the sides of the bowl.

Lightly flour your kitchen work surface. Turn the dough out and knead until smooth and elastic. Add some more flour if the dough is too sticky. After kneading for about 5-8mins the dough should come together to form a smooth ball. Lightly oil a large bowl and transfer the dough, turning it to coat. Cover the bowl with cling film or a kitchen towel. Let it rise for approx 2 hours or until the dough is double in volume.

Punch down the dough gently with your knuckles. Transfer again to floured work surface. Roll the dough out to form a large rectangle. You can also cut out the dough to give the desired shape.



Now for the filling: spread butter over the dough. Mix brown sugar and cinnamon in a bowl. Sprinkle this cinnamon sugar evenly over the butter. Ensure that you leave 1/2 inch border. Roll the dough into a log. You can pinch it gently to keep it rolled up. with seam side down, cut the dough into 1/2inch to 1inch sized slices.



Grease your baking dish and arrange rolls cut side up. It is ok if there is barely any space between rolls. Cover the baking dish with cling film or a kitchen towel and let the dough rise again for 4-50mins.



Preheat the oven to 200°C. Bake rolls for approx 20 mins or until the tops are golden.



Remove from the oven and invert immediately onto a rack to cool. Once cooled, turn the rolls right side up.



For the glaze, beat all ingredients together until smooth. Drizzle on top of the rolls. Serve warm or at room temperature.



The best part is that I had a lot of trimmings left by cutting the dough to a rectangle. So I got to experiment with different fillings. Pictured here is a giant roll stuffed with some cherry jam that I had in my pantry.



Besides the classic cinnamon filling, I recommend trying chocolate chips, dessicated coconut, nuts, caramel or even fresh fruits.

FYI: Butter, eggs, milk and sugar slow down yeast activity. Regular bread rises quickly but since this roll involves all of the above, the bread may rise more slowly or not quite as much as usual. There is nothing wrong with the yeast or the bread, it's just that for recipes as rich as these, you just need patience :)

Eggs Benedict

How do you like your eggs?

If you have ever seen 'Runaway Bride' (and I'm sure you have, Richard Gere and Julia Roberts are almost impossible to resist), you must be familiar with Eggs Benedict. Not only is it Maggie Carpenter's (Julia Roberts) favourite way to eat eggs, it's also probably the most indulgent way to eat an egg. Picture this, crispy ham on a buttery toasted muffin...silky, poached egg slathered with a thick and luscious hollandaise sauce...drooling yet? Eggs Benedict is a breakfast classic and a perfect way to begin an indulgent day. For its pure decadence, I include this in my Christmas cooklist

Eggs Benedict has so many components, so much technique, that it can make it's way to a Masterchef Pressure Test. And because its full of so many moving parts, I'd almost never endeavour to make at home. I would file this dish right under Pavlova and Macaron in the list of things I'd rather leave to professional chefs. Which is why this dish is put together by Shrey.



Serves 1:

For the Hollandaise:

2 egg yolks
1tbsp lemon juice or vinegar
1/2cup butter
Salt and pepper to taste

For the Eggs Benedict:

2 rashes of bacon or ham
1 English muffin cut in half. I used a bagel instead. You can really use any type of bread
2 tsp white vinegar
2 eggs
Salt and pepper to taste
Hollandaise sauce
Parsley to garnish (optional)

Make the hollandaise sauce first:

Melt the butter in the microwave. In a bowl, beat together the rest of the ingredients. Next combine the melted butter with the eggs slowly and a little at a time (you'll probably need a little help at this stage). If you add the whole batch of melted butter, the eggs will curdle and you'll end up with a chunky sauce. Instead, slowly drizzle the melted butter in a thin stream, whisking the eggs the entire time. This technique is emulsification. You are looking for a smooth creamy sauce probably as thick as mayonnaise.



Cut the bagel in half and toast. Crisp up some bacon or ham in an oven or in a hot pan.

To poach eggs:

Half fill a non stick skillet with water. Add the vinegar and bring to a simmer. Break the eggs into two separate ramekins or bowls, taking care to not break the yolks. Gently tilt the bowl and let the egg slide out into the water. Repeat with the other egg as well. Reduce the heat to a gentle simmer

Cook for 2-3mins or until the egg white has set and the yolk remains soft. Remove with a slotted spoon.

Note: The vinegar is used to help coagulate the egg and helps it set faster. If you are tasting vinegar in the egg, then you've added too much



To assemble:

Lay the bacon slice on top of the bottom half of the bagel. I skipped using the meat completely as this dish is already pretty heavy. Gently place the poached eggs on top of the bacon. Season with salt and pepper. Spoon the hollandaise sauce over the eggs. Sprinkle some chopped parsley on top and enjoy!



Tip: Instead of hand whisking the hollandaise, put it in the blender.

To the eggs benedict hesitant: you can do it! The key is to prep everything before you start. Do your bacon in the oven, eggs on the stove, bread in the toaster and hollandaise in the blender. It's like conducting an orchestra, so many parts which come together so deliciously, its like music to your ears.

P.S: I like my eggs scrambled but I'm warming up to eggs benedict

The Mother Of All Sandwiches

Melted marshmallows FTW! Please, please try it...it will change your life! You can use it as a sweet dip or as frosting or smeared over crackers...my imagination is going crazy. I'm not going to rant about how awesome this sandwich is (just take my word for it) and let the pictures do the talking.



Serves 1 (because why would you want to share something so awesome)

2 slices of bread
1 egg
1 tsp sugar
1 tbsp milk
1 tbsp butter
2 large marshmallows
4 strips of fried bacon (you can never have too much bacon)
1 tbsp nutella (try my homemade version)



In a bowl, crack open an egg and whisk. Add the sugar and milk and beat till combined. Melt butter in a flat bottomed pan. Dunk both slices of bread in the egg mixture and 'toast' in the buttered pan. Meanwhile, cook bacon in another pan till crisp.



Flip the bread once one side is golden brown. Once the other side is almost done, cut the marshmallows in half and place gently on top of one slice of bread. We place the marshmallows right at the end of cooking as it takes no time to melt. You want the marshmallows to be gooey while still retaining some of its shape (see pic below). Melting it through and through will result in major goop.



Once the bread is done, remove from pan and let it cool for a minute. Now its time to bring the sandwich together. Add the crisp bacon on top of the gooey marshmallows. Spread Nutella on the other slice of bread and place on top of the bacon to bring the sandwich together. Take a minute to marvel at your fine work, and then have a heavenly bite!

I dunno if its possible to make this sandwich more awesome, but you can try substituting the nutella for peanut butter and the bacon for banana.

Is is dessert? Is it a snack? Is it worth dying for? Hell yes!

Crackling French Toast

Don't you just love waking up to the smell of French Toast? The smell of cinnamonny, warm, buttery bread...so comforting! I've taken the traditional recipe and twisted it to this crunchy, crackling version. I wanted to name this post 'French Toast Crème Brule', since I had the same technique in mind. Unfortunately, since I don't own a blow torch (and I'm guessing neither do you), I'm going for a 'crackle' at the top instead of a 'burnt' caramel on top. You see the golden bits in the picture below?

Makes enough for 1

2 slices of bread
2 tbsp cream
1 tbsp milk
1 egg
2 tbsp powdered sugar
1 tbsp brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
Salted butter to fry

Optional:
A pinch of nutmeg
A pinch of cinnamon
1 tsp Grand Marnier

For the garnish:
3-4 strawberries
Chocolate sauce or ganache

Cut the crusts off the bread. I like mine with crusts et all so I skipped this step.

Tip: If you are making this for valentine's day or just want to splurge, I recommend you use Brioche instead of regular sliced bread. Trust me, it makes all the difference.

In a bowl whisk in all ingredients minus the bread, brown sugar and the butter.

Heat some butter in a flat bottomed pan. Dip the bread in the mixture. Turn the bread to ensure it soaks up the liquid evenly. Now 'fry' this in the buttered pan. Sprinkle the brown sugar on the top side of the toast. Once the bottom is golden brown flip over. The sugared top will face the heated pan now. The heat will melt the sugar and create caramelized bits on the toast surface. Remove from pan once both sides are golden brown.

As a alternate to this, if you have some time, I would recommend making caramel in a separate pan and spooning some over the top of the toast.

To serve, slice up strawberries and arrange to make a french toast sandwich. Drizzle with chocolate sauce.

Now how can you resist that?!

Instead of frying you can also pour the mix over the bread slices and bake them as a 'healthy' alternative.

Shakshuka

Shashouka means a 'mixture' in Arabic slang. Its a dish of poached eggs in a flavourful tomato sauce that originated somewhere in the middle east or north africa. Because egg is the star of this dish, it often features in breakfast menu. I find the dish very hearty, so its perfect for winter suppers. It is also a very community dish. It is usually served in the pan its made with some bread on the side. So you and your family need to just gather around the pan and dig in.

Never heard of it? It is also commonly referred to as eggs in purgatory. Buzzfeed even did a section on it!

Serves 4

1tbsp Olive oil
1 Onion
2 cloves Garlic finely chopped
1 can Tomato puree
1 Tomato finely chopped
2 medium Red Peppers chopped
1 Bay Leaf
1 tsp Chilli Powder
1tsp Cumin
1tbsp Harissa (optional)
1/2 cup Cheese (optional)
4 Eggs
Salt & Pepper to taste

Note: I roasted the peppers (see directions below) before adding them to this dish, but omit this step if its too much effort and you don't feel like it.

Roast Peppers: Place the peppers on a hot grill or oven stove flame. It will starting 'popping' so don't be alarm by the sound. Once blistered, put in a bowl and cover with cling wrap. Let it steam for 15-20mins. You can use them as they are or peel & deseed them to use.

Heat the olive oil in a pan. The pan should be large enough to hold the ingredients and shallow enough for the egg to not sink in. Add the garlic and onion and cook till its translucent. Add in the peppers, and cook for a minute. Now stir in the cumin, harissa and bay leaf. Add in the tomatoes & puree and let it simmer for 10-15mins. Stir occasionally. Discard the bay leaf and add in salt and pepper.

Now crack in the eggs. It helps to create a clearing or 'well' in the sauce and adding the eggs in it. You can now pop this in the oven to bake or cover the pan with a lid. I love the lid version as the whole egg poaches in the tomato sauce. Turn off the heat once the whites are set, but the yolks are still runny. I had some feta cheese from a food hamper someone gifted me. And I think it goes beautifully with this dish, but you can add in any cheese you have handy. Garnish with some coriander and dig in!

Tip: This dish is usually served with warm pita bread, but you can use any carb. I recently received a gourmet Mexican hamper, so I'm going to serve this dish with some exotic tortilla chips from it.
You can also go crazy with what you put in this dish. While I've made the veggie version today, you can add any meat or veggie combination. It is also an excellent dish to make with leftovers.

Frittata

A Frittata is an egg dish, kinda like a cross between a quiche and an omelette. Frittatas have saved me countless hungry nights. I can just whip whatever I have on hand to make a sumptuous meal. Its perfect to get rid of any leftovers. Your kids hate veggies? No problem...make a frittata!

Traditionally frittatas are eggs with some veggies and meat, thrown into a skillet. But I'm anything but traditional. I have these beautiful Chorizo sausages I got from Goa, which got me thinking on giving a Spanish twist to this Italian favourite. So I have decided to marry the Italian Frittata with the Spanish Tortilla de Patatas...and voila!

Ingredients:

(Serves 4)
6 Eggs
2 Potatoes
4 Cloves of Garlic
200gms of Chorizo
100gms Cheddar cheese

(Like I mentioned, you can use absolutely anything but the kitchen sink. I'm going for a Spanish twist, but feel free to try mushrooms, cauliflower, chicken...whatever you have in the fridge)

Pre-heat the oven to 200°Celsius. Chop up the chorizo into bite size pieces and sauté in flat heavy based pan. I don't add in oil as the meat releases its own oil as it cooks. Once the sausage is cooked, add in the garlic. In another pan, boil the potatoes with some salt, until cooked. Chop up potatoes into bite size pieces and add it into the sausage pan. Whisk eggs in a bowl and add add in grated cheddar cheese. Now pour this to the sausage mix. Tilt the pan to make sure the eggs settle evenly. Cook for a minute or two until you see the eggs at the edge of the pan beginning to set. Sprinkle some more cheddar on top (this will give a nice cheese golden crust)

 

Put the pan in the oven and bake for 10mins or until the eggs are set. Cool and cut into slices to serve.

To serve:
Frittatas are a meal in itself so you can serve a slice as it is. Or try it with some toasted garlic bread. Leftovers are nearly as good as out of the oven. I like to eat it as breakfast, or mush it into crumbs with some rice and soy for fried rice.

Fluffy Buttermilk Pancakes

Pancakes to me is synonymous with Sunday breakfast. This is such a breakfast classic. You can pair it with absolutely anything, from fruits to bacon, and it will still taste pretty damn good.

You will find two schools of thought when it comes to pancake making. One insisting on separating the eggs and the other that doesn't. I belong to the former category. I know its more effort, but its the only only way for fluffy pancakes. If you don't care too much for fluff and prefer a flatter flapjack, use whole eggs,

Ingredients:

2 Eggs (separated)
2 cups Flour
1 cup Buttermilk
4 tablespoons Sugar (varies on how sweet you want your cakes)
5 tablespoons unsalted butter ( melted and lukewarm)
2 teaspoon Baking powder
1/2 teaspoon Baking soda
1 teaspoon Vanilla essence
A pinch of salt
(optional: a shot of your favourite liqueur for added zing)

Separate the eggs. Put yolks in a large bowl. Add buttermilk and the butter to the yolks and stir to combine. In another bowl whisk up the egg whites till they are fluffy and form soft peaks.

In a third bowl combine your dry ingredients together ie: flour, sugar, salt, baking powder and baking soda. Add in the egg yolk mixture and stir still the ingredients loosely come together. Don't worry about the mix being lumpy. Now, gently fold the egg whites into the batter until incorporated.

Use a large, heavy skillet or griddle. If your Indian, use your dosa pan. Melt a tablespoon of butter and add the batter to the pan. Pancakes are ready to flip once a few bubbles appear on the surface and you can easily slide you spoon under. Flip till the other side is done as well.

Serve with:
The possibilities are endless! It is traditionally served with maple syrup, but my favorite is with Nutella, some bananas and my home made caramel sauce (recipe coming soon!). But it has known to go with ice cream, fruit, nuts, honey, whipped cream or any other sweet goodness you can think of. Or go the savory way of bacon and cheese.

Tip: I tend to mix the dry ingredients in a jar before hand and store it as a ready to use pancake mix. Makes the cooking time so much quicker.