Soulful Creations

  One day after I land, Maya ji made me some lovely authentic Maharashtrian vada pav (bread with potato mash, a spice mixture and hot green peppers). I never imagined that Vada Pav would be this really light meal despite being fried (so you can of course then imagine that it would be easy to shove a few down the food pipe!). That was my second breakfast by the way... I need to get the recipe from her, will post it later.

Chocolate bread: The original recipe for this bread comes from the lovely book Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day: The Discovery That Revolutionizes Home Baking I made a bunch of alternations to include different flours and go eggless on this one. Here is my version (halved the recipe that was in the book) Ingredients For the ganache: 2 oz semisweet chocolate 1/4 cup unsalted butter Yeast and egg susbstitutes: 1/2 cup and 12 tbsp lukewarm water 3/4 pkt active dry yeast 3/4 tsp salt 1/4 cup applesauce 1 tbsp flaxseed in 3 tbsp water 1/2 cup and 3 tbsp honey Dry ingredients: 2 cups all purpose flour 3/4 cup barley flour 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder 2 1/2 oz dark chocolate, cut to pieces Egg wash Method Melt butter and chocolate ("Ganache") in a microwave, do like 20 sec or so runs and keep an eye on it- do not let it burn. Set aside. Mix the ingredients listed as "yeast and egg substitutes" in a separate bowl. Once mixed add...

For quite a while, I have been interested in learning about different cultures especially their cuisines. I have decided something- there are about 195 countries in the world, most recipes in a given region seem to differ only slightly from their close counterparts, so this year I intend to cook (Vegetarian food, of course) dishes from different countries. Sort of compare and contrast in my mind the cuisines from different regions, you know. As a start- I present to you, a tandoor bread from Azerbaijan (akin to our naan) and tomato-yogurt soup from Afghanistan (akin to tomato kadhi) The recipe for Tendir Choreyi (tandoor bread) is modified from AZ cookbook Ingredients 1 package (1/4 oz / 7g) dry yeast 1 ½ cups (12 fl oz/375 ml) warm water 1 tsp salt 3 cups bread flour, plus extra for kneading 1 tbsp caraway seeds 1 egg yolk, for brushing 4 tsp nigella seeds Method Mix yeast with water until the yeast dissolves. Add the flour to a large bowl. Mix in salt and carawa...

Yes, I can... Finally I managed to bake some bread and a bread that has wild rice in it (do not please ask me why I am so enamored with wild rice). The only thing is wild rice is freaking expensive people. Yeah that is the most costly ingredient in this bread but it is all worth it in the end, innit?! So here goes, my own adaptation of this recipe here 1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour 1 package (1/4 ounce) active dry yeast 1 1/4 teaspoons salt 1/2 cup water 1/2 cup almond milk 2 tbsp butter, cubed 1 tbsp honey 1 tbsp maple syrup 1 cup cooked wild rice Method 1. In a large bowl, combine the whole wheat flour, 1/2 cup all-purpose flour, yeast and salt. In a small saucepan, heat the water, milk, butter and honey to 120°-130° (I used my judgement here as I do not own a thermometer). Add to dry ingredients; beat until smooth. Stir in the wild rice and enough all-purpose flour to form a stiff dough (I would have used about half a cup m ore flour and I think I acciden...

So after the disastrous cooking efforts the past two days, I woke up this morning determined to make this bread and make it well. Zopf is a traditional Swiss bread and it literally mean s "braid". This is my entry to A.W.E.D Swiss event . This event was originally started by D of " The c hef in you ". It is a fairly simple bread made with flour, yeast, butter and an egg. I got the recipe here and followed it through. Ingredients 1 package active dry yeast 1 1/3 c warm milk 1 egg yolk 2 tbsp bu tter, softened 2 1/2 cups flour 1 egg white 1 tbsp water Method In a large bowl, dissolve yeast in warm milk. Let stand until creamy, about 10 minutes. Add the egg yolk, butter and 2 cups of bread flour; stir well to combine. Stir in the remaining flour, 1/2 cup at a time, beating well after each addition. (Here I must added at least a cup more!) When the dough has pulled together, turn it out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic, abou...

It seems like it is finally spring here in the Boston area- at least in the next few days temperatures are lingering the upper 60's (I sound like a weather girl!). Anyway, I decided to welcome the 80's this weekend by making something delicious (Mind you, I did not know that it was going to turn out to be delicious). I made Fresh Pineapple-Zucchini bread, the basic recipe comes from here , but of course I had to experiment! Ingredient 2 eggs 3/4 cup white sugar 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 1/2 cup vegetable oil 3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon 3/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg 1/4 teaspoon clove powder 1 cup grated zucchini 1 1/3 cup fresh pineapple, pureed 1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour 1/2 teaspoon salt 3/4 teaspoon baking soda 3/4 teaspoon baking powder 1/2 cup chopped pineapple Method Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In another bowl, mix oil, eggs, vanilla, sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Blend in pineapple and zucchini. Stir flour mixture into zucchini mixture. Pour batt...