Pumpkin Cheesecake

"A pumpkin(Pie, cookie or Ice cream) a day, keeps the doctor away"

The Pumpkin mania begins before Halloween. Pumpkin spice for cookies & soups, pumpkin spice lattes at Starbucks , beauteous pumpkins everywhere at doorsteps, stores , offices. After peaking at Halloween this transcends into pumpkin pies and various desserts for Thanksgiving.

Definitely had to make pumpkin something this year - maybe a cheesecake. But before that I needed to know why do we eat pumpkin pies and desserts for Thanksgiving . Here's why, " The pilgrims probably didn't have pumpkin pie per se at the first Thanksgiving because they didn't have an oven to bake the crust in. This squash, which dates back 9,000 years to Mexico, had been cultivated by the Native Americans for centuries, roasted or boiled for survival. The pilgrims might have made stewed pumpkin by filling the shell with a mixture of orange flesh, milk, honey and spices and baking it in ashes, but the first pumpkin pie did not appear until 1670."(courtesy: organic authority.)

Alright then ...with my curiosity satiated, I quickly scrambled for a way to bake my cheesecake. Thanks to Paula Deen, I found just the one . It was scrumptious and made me smile. Oh, the joy of trying wonderful new recipes .

You need :

Crust:

1 and 3/4 cups graham crackers

3 tbsp light brown sugar

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1 stick melted butter

Filling:

3 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese, at room temperature
1 (15-ounce) can pureed pumpkin
3 eggs plus 1 egg yolk
1/4 cup sour cream
1/2 cups sugar

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon fresh ground nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
2 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

This is how you make it:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

For crust:In medium bowl, combine crumbs, sugar and cinnamon. Add melted butter. Press down flat into a 9-inch spring form pan. Set aside. (Disclaimer : I was strapped for time so did not make the crust, but used a store bought one.)

For filling: Beat cream cheese until smooth. Add pumpkin puree, eggs, egg yolk, sour cream, sugar and the spices. Add flour and vanilla. Beat together until well combined.Pour into crust. Spread out evenly and place in oven for 1 hour. Remove from the oven and let sit for 15 minutes. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 4 hours.

Make sure to really watch out for the cake otherwise it will get burnt. Serve with a dollop of whipped cream

Pumpkin Cheese Cake

Kesari

Diwali harks the beginning of the the Festival season that goes on nonstop till the end of the year . So excited its here ! With celebrations comes guilt free eating and for me that guilty pleasure would be mithai. I will repent later but for now I have to have all that ooey-gooey sweet delicious-ness.

This year, I wanted to try something new so I went looking for some inspiration. Wait....!!! How about that kesari served at the local south Indian restaurant(which shall remain nameless here) . I skipped past the pineapple and the mango version and decided to stick with just plain kesari for now. Lets see how this turns out and then I shallst get more adventurous.

You need:Sooji/Rava/Semolina -1/2 cup

Sugar-1/2 cup

Water-1 cup

Ghee- 2 tbsp

Saffron- a few strands

Milk-3 tbsp

Chopped dry fruits(raisins, pistachios, almonds)

Cherry- 1 (for garnish)

This is how you make it:

Soak saffron in warm milk.Heat ghee in a pan , roast the dry fruits and keep aside. Now, roast the rava in the pan( in the ghee still left in the pan) for about 6 minutes . Add the saffron milk mixture, water and keep stirring to avoid lump formation. Fold in the sugar and cook . Add the roasted nuts , stir a little bit more and take it off the stove. Garnish with glazed cherry and serve.

I offered this as bhog(oblation) for the Diwali pooja and got glowing reviews from my friends and neighbors as well . I loved that the saffron/kesar imparted a vibrant yellow color to the kesari-so festive!

Kesari - Mission Successful

An offering to Goddess Lakshmi for Diwali

Try it and let me know how your kesari turned out. Happy mithai making.

Happy Diwali

My favorite Diwali wish this year ...

"Troubles as light as air, love as deep as the ocean, friends as solid as a diamond, and success as bright as the lustre of gold... This is what we wish for you this Diwali. May darkness never touch you and may your life always be lit with joy, happiness and prosperity. "

Rangoli to brighten up your place

Some home made Kesari and gulab jamun to sweeten your palate (recipes to follow in the next few posts)

Have a happy and safe Diwali . See you soon.

Christmas Recipe 3 - Cornish Hen with Fresh Herbs and roasted potatoes

And now onto the third and final recipe for the Christmas spread I prepared -Cornish Hen with fresh herbs and roasted potatoes.You will find a little backdrop on cornish hen Here.

Before I decided on a menu for Xmas I thought about Cornish Hen with great trepidation because I was scared of cooking it.Why,you ask ..because I have never cooked a stuffed or roasted whole bird..chicken or turkey.Picking up a rotisserie chicken at Safeways or Fred Meyers is as far as I have gone(giggling just thinking about it).Besides,Iam from the land of curry :-) A roasted bird with just a little bit of seasoning could be a little bland for my taste if not marinated with the right spices(kidding)

However,my sister cooked a delicious turkey this past thanksgiving (pics of which I shall post sometime)and that gave me hope.She said I could do it too ..Yeah ,I thought let me not do a 15 pound turkey or 5 pound chicken but a 1 pound cornish hen I can do.

So,I bought a twin pack of Tyson premium rock cornish game hen and after much cleaning ,seasoning and roasting I was able to turn out a fairly tasty and nice looking bird :).Try it , its fun I guarantee you.


A frozen tyson cornish hen

You need :
1 cornish Hen (without giblets)
6 small red potatoes
Salt and pepper
3 cloves garlic, minced
6 fresh sage leaves, minced
1 tablespoon butter
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh herbs such as thyme, rosemary and sage, plus extra sprigs for stuffing cavity and garnishing plates
3 lemon slices
3 slices Onion(red/white/yellow)
Kitchen string (optional)

This is how you make it:
Since this bird was in the freezer for a while,I set it outside to thaw a day in advance.(yes it takes a lot of time to thaw)

Preheat oven to 450°F.Cut potatoes into small,bite-size pieces;toss with salt and pepper,garlic, and sage and place in a large, shallow roasting pan.Set in the oven.

Rinse the hen inside and out and pat dry with paper towels.Fold back wings.Rub with butter and sprinkle inside and out with salt and pepper.Sprinkle with finely chopped herbs,and place a few more herb sprigs into each hen’s cavity.Also stuff the onion rings and the lemon slices into the bird.You can tie the hen's legs together with kitchen string to hold shape,if you want.(I did not do so.)

Remove potatoes from oven and place the hen on top.Return to pan and roast for 50-55 minutes, or until the hen's juices run clear when thigh is pierced with a fork and a thermometer inserted in the thickest part of the thigh reads 180°F.

Remove the cooked hen from the pan and cover with aluminium foil for 10 minutes before serving.(why ?? if you slice right away ,the juices will drip and the bird will be bland.But if you let it sit then the juices are reabsorbed,bird will be taste better).

Garnish with fresh herb sprigs .To serve, place some potatoes and a piece of the hen you desire alongside mushroom-shrimp pulao and bean salad.

Christmas Recipe 2 - Green Bean Salad

Lets go to recipe number 2.This is a recipe my sister picked up from Food Network which I enjoy watching by the way.She and I made for the Thanksgiving getogether.I loved it so much that I had to make it again.Its so so simple and delicious (that's if you are a bean lover).I will admit that I do not know how to make too many things with beans apart from various kind of bhajis .This western take on them was super appealing to me.

Go ahead , try this and Iam sure you will love it.Thankyou to Ellie Krieger whose recipe this is:)

You need :
1/2 pound green beans, trimmed
2 tablespoons chopped walnuts
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh parsley leaves
2 tablespoons chopped red onion
2 teaspoons walnut oil or olive oil
1 teaspoon red wine vinegar
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
Salt and pepper

This is how you make it :
Bring a large pot of water with a steamer basket to a boil, add green beans and steam for about 4 minutes. Transfer to a serving bowl.
Toast the walnuts in a small dry skillet over medium heat until they become fragrant, about 2 minutes, and then transfer them to a small bowl to cool. Add the parsley and onion to the walnuts and stir to combine.

In another small bowl, whisk together the oil, vinegar and mustard. Toss the dressing with the green beans, top with the walnut mixture and season with salt and pepper.

Serve warm or at room temperature.

Christmas Recipe 1- Mushroom and shrimp pulao

I enjoyed writing about my afternoontea experience in British Columbia and based on the comments from some of you ,you all seemed to have enjoyed reading it too(apparently it took us all back to my Enid Blyton days).Thanks for reading and getting back to me.Hearing back makes me feel that Iam talking to someone and makes it all worthwhile :)

Some of my loyal blog friends read my xmas post and asked for the recipes for the Cornish Hen, Mushroom &shrimp pulao and bean salad .Here Iam posting them one at a time .

While I was writing the recipe for this dish,I also realised that while I have posted pictures of some of my food ,I havent posted recipes for those .I guess thats how I started out,unknowingly titillating some of the readers with the pictures.yeah ..just pictures.(Gosh ,I was almost sadistic)

Well,high time I share the recipes .You ask which ones ???Well,I have piyaaz maach(fish cooked in spicy onion and garlic paste), aloor dom(bengali style),keema with vegetables,Doi maach(fish cooked in yogurt),khichudi, Labda (a lovely sweet-savory vegatble mix, bengali style),bandakopi torkari(cabbage with peas),baigun bhaja(panfried aubergine slices ),tomato chutney,khejur guder payish(rice pudding in date palm jaggery),rumali roti)...amongst others..Phew!!I need to stop,the list is getting too long)

Anyhow, so shall return to posting those unposted recipes intermittently .For now ,let me just get back to the pulao I made for Xmas :-)

You need:
2 cups -Basmati(or any other long grained rice)
1 cup sliced button Mushrooms
1 cup (thawed)- Shrimp (frozen precooked baby shrimp)
1 large sliced onion
1 Tsp- Cumin
2 Tbsp- Ghee or Oil
Salt to taste
Chopped corriander to garnish

This is how you make it:
Heat oil /ghee in a skillet and add the cumin.Once the cumin starts popping add the the sliced onions.Saute them till they are golden .Then add sliced mushrooms and shrimp and cook till they they are soft .

Now Add the 2 cups of rice and pour 4 cups of the water into the skillet .Add salt to taste and cover .Cook on medium heat Keep checking for doneness and cook about 20 minutes.Once the rice looks cooked , turn off the heat and let it sit.This leaves the rice fluff up.

Enjoy with Cornish hen, bean salad and yogurt:)

A very Merry Xmas

Hope everyone had a great Christmas .I know I did...good food and great times with family..what else does one need? Here's a picture story of all the food and festivities .


Here comes Santa Claus

The stage is set and Dinner is served


Cornish Hen with Fresh Herbs and roasted potatoes

Mushroom and shrimp pulao


Green Bean Salad

Shahi Tukda

Christmas with an indian flavor

Yay!!!

Iam back again to my food blog after a month and it feels good :-) to be writing about food once again .No long breaks this time.

Last friday , we had a christmas party at work (actually at someone's home after work) and we were all asked to get what we thought we would like to share from our culture .Me, I chose kesar pulao, butter chicken , vegetable cutlets (for appetisers) and saag paneer .

Butter chicken is a north indian chicken dish made with chicken cubes cooked in a spicy onion-tomato sauce to which almond-cashewnut paste is added for consistency and thickness .Usually food color is added but I did not add any and jsut stuck with turmeric .

Kesar pulao is an aromatic basmati rice cooked with clarified butter and salt to which raisins, cashewnuts and kesar (saffron) is added .YUM-O

Saag Paneer is a very popular North Indian dish as well .To prepare this I usually fry paneer( cottage cheese , this is not the cottage cheese in America .At the party I was telling what paneer is and how to make it .Here goes, squeeze a lemon in hot milk and let it seperate .Take the white residue and tie it up in a muslin cloth and let all the water drip .What remains is, paneer.You can crumble this or cut it up in cubes....I buy mine from the Indian store)

Vegetable cutlets are well, cutlets . Boil and mash potatoes and add peas, breadcrumbs, salt , black pepper and amchoor .Make little balls , flatten them and shallow fry them .Have them with corriander and/or turmeric chutney .

For dessert I took pumpkin pie .(and everyone knows what pumpkin pie is ).

All of the above were popular and here are some pictures .Enjoy


The Indian Twist


Kesar Pulao


Butter Chicken


Saag Paneer


Vegetable Cutlets


Pumpkin Pie


Merry Christmas every one :-)

Durga Puja fare

I become extremely nostalgic when Durga Puja is around the corner and miss home ..The pandals ,the endless fun, the camaraderie and the food...Since I no longer get that food I decided to make it myself and fill the void.For those of you who dont know what Durga Pooja is,Well, it is a prominent festival amongst bengalis in India .

My menu had the quintessential Khichudi(a mixture of rice, lentils ,veggies and spices),cabbage with peas,Labda(a funny name but dont get mislead by it )a delicious,aromatic& sweet-salty mix of vegetables like squash, aubergines and potatoes,seasoned with five spices and cooked in mustard oil),tomato chutney(I also added dates,rasins and cherries to the mix), Begun bhaja(sliced aubergines marinated in turmeric and salt and panfried in mustard oil) and the dessert was khejur gud paish (rice pudding cooked in palm sugar)...

Shubho Bijoya everyone !!



khichudi


Labda (yeah say that again ..its a funny name):-)


cabbage and peas


begun bhaja (aubergines pan fried in mustard oil)


tomato chutney


khejur gud paish(rice pudding made with palm sugar)