Baking

Grilled Tomato Chicken with Herbed Corn

August 30, 2017 By Asha Shivakumar

Juicy, moist, and flavorful. This grilled tomato chicken with herbed corn is made with tomato powder and other spices. It’s a perfect dish to entertain with.

Trying to settle back into the swing of things, a.k.a. the routine after a two and half month summer break, has been pretty crazy. I feel like I have a long list of things I need to take care of, but feel like a caged parrot, screaming his lungs out to no avail. Now, I’m getting back to work, and trying to get blog posts up. Testing recipes and shooting….

Easiest Moist German Chocolate Cake with Saffron-Coconut Cashew topping and an Announcement

June 6, 2017 By Asha Shivakumar

A moist easy moist German Chocolate Cake smothered with saffron coconut and cashew, almost like a coconut burfi on top. It’s simple to make and quite an addictive cake.

I wanted to tell you, and then, I’d tell myself, I’ll tell after my next deadline was met. Two weeks ago, at around noon, I heard a knock, I opened the door and was handed a big brown package. I opened it and there was a yellow note which said, “check and return by….”. It was my manuscript for review. It hit me. I am officially going to be a COOKBOOK AUTHOR!!

There, I said it and it feels WONDERFUL. Honestly speaking, one of the things I wanted to do was, to shout out loud and tell you all that someone wants to publish my recipes. I had to wait, and it was, in a way easy for me. I was overwhelmed and nervous with a giddy sort of excitement….

Baked Nippat/ Spiced Cracker with peanuts

June 1, 2017 By Asha Shivakumar

These baked Nippat, or spiced crackers, are loaded with peanuts and sesame seeds. Make a huge batch and store in air tight container, and they are perfect with a cup of coffee or tea.

The kids are days away from summer break, and I cannot wait.

Indian summers were special. As I open my bedroom double door at a little past 8.00 a.m. to walk onto my balcony, the smell of magnolia hits me. I try to seize the moment. The air has a slight touch of warmth in it. After a brief rendezvous with the smells and sounds of birds, I run in to start the day. Mum has already started off breakfast, but it’s at a more leisure pace than usual. She was on a break too, a two month long break from her work to stay with me on my summer vacation….

Rustic Spring Sweet Kale and Egg Tart

May 24, 2017 By Asha Shivakumar

I absolutely enjoy turning salads into something special and this Rustic spring sweet kale and egg tart is one of my favorite ways. Easy to entertain with and put together. I am so happy to partner with Taylor Farms to bring this recipe with one of my go to salad kits.

When I moved from India some 20 and more years ago, I was shocked when people served salads. It always left me hungry and craving for my carbs. Eating habits are something we grow up with and I did not grow up having salads, yes a cucumber salad with onions and tomatoes, if you can even call a salad. That was the most adventurous I got.

As years went by, I really have come to love a good hearty salad. Given a choice, salads are not something we gravitate towards, even on a healthy day. Although not a huge fan of having salads on it’s own, I’ve found ways to incorporate and enjoy a good healthy green salad. I may have a wee bit of an obsession to add salads to everything. I add it to stir fry, noodles, even my South Indian style potato fry….

Ultimate Mexican Frittata with Leeks and Potato Hash stuffed with Tortilla chips

May 8, 2017 By Asha Shivakumar

These are a loaded, ultimate Mexican Frittata with leeks and potato hash is stuffed with tortilla chips. It is spicy, filled with veggies, and a perfect Mother’s Day brunch.

I love being a woman. Being a woman is very empowering. Being born as a woman is a celebration in itself.

I look at women differently now. Each face has its story. Some more intense than others, some deeper than others, but we all do carry a story. Few vocal, and few are thinkers. Oscar Wilde’s quote, “a woman’s face is her work of fiction” is often quoted to remind us that what’s on the surface may have little connection to what we’re feeling. Women are deeper….

Rhubarb-Pistachio Mini Cakes & A Giveaway!

May 1, 2017 By Asha Shivakumar

These Rhubarb Pistachio Cakes are made with olive oil, and can be made in a cake pan or mini muffin tins like this. The rich pistachios combined with cardamom make for a tasty, addictive treat. Thanks to Revol for sending me some of their pretty pieces.

Happy May!!

A favorite month of mine, mother’s day and a special birthday.

As spring is setting in, I immediately dream of warm days, long evening walks, and vacations. Light sunny days, and mildly cool nights. I struggle to choose between Autumn and Spring; I love them both.

Subconsciously, salads make more of an appearance. My humongous cane fruit basket is filled with fruits and summery melons. There are rolling hills to one side, and strawberry and vegetable patches to the other. I stop by every week at the local farm, and the guy fondly asks how the kids are and gives me an extra basket of strawberries.…

Stuffed Shortbread Cookies with Walnut-Fig-Cocoa Halwa/ Kolooche

November 29, 2016 By Asha Shivakumar

This is ridiculously delicious and incredibly impressive. What if I said it was ridiculously simple too?

If you’ve followed me along in my food journey, you know very well that I love to create fancy food with a twist. Also, I’m not very picky. I like simple food that has a punch and is pleasing to the eye. I can’t ice cakes, and I can’t decorate fancy cookies. Still, I do love pretty things.

…

Apple Cake-Pancake with Candied Walnuts

November 5, 2016 By Asha Shivakumar

Happy November!!! Happy Fall!

Fall is absolutely my favorite season, for its beautiful rich dense colors and the chill in the air. While summer has its own glory, this time of the year brings out the warmth, coziness, and hospitality in all of us. The plethora of colors we see when we go for a walk is unmatched, although living in the Bay, the fall colors are not easily seen.

Weekend comes and I always almost have waffles, muffins or pancakes. The thought that comes when I make these is that, they would come handy on the weekdays too. Guess what, I make 10 or 30, they are gone by Sunday evening.

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Baked Okra stuffed with Spiced Peanut Mix (Easiest Recipe)

September 20, 2016 By Asha Shivakumar

Indian food is quite simple, and this is a recipe which shows just that.

The vibrant, intensely colorful Indian food has found its way into many hearts. However, I do hear very commonly that “the spices are overwhelming.” I completely agree, especially for someone who is completely new to the array of spices Indian food has to offer, although it is not really too hard. In fact, I do tell many that you can always create an Indian flavored dish with ingredients you already have at home. It’s that simple.

I don’t exactly remember the first time I had it, but I do remember who taught me to make it. After that, I’ve never stopped. The best thing about this recipe is that you can use the spice mix for many vegetables: stuffed potato, stuffed cauliflower, stuffed bitter gourd, or you could even toss the spice mix in a beans curry! It’s all so good. This is a basic recipe, and a very popular one.

I definitely try to hold on to every part of Indian culinary culture I’ve learnt, and try to simplify it so that it’s attainable. I definitely think you’ll agree that this is one of the simpler recipes that’s still so authentic. I really hope you get to try it out.

Baked Okra stuffed with Spiced Peanut Mix

Prep time

15 mins

Cook time

20 mins

Total time

35 mins

Author: Ash

Serves: 4

Ingredients

Okra - 1 pound

Spice Stuffing mix

3 tbsp peanuts roasted and coarsely powdered
⅓ cup chickpea flour
⅓ tsp garam masala
1 tsp chili powder
½ tsp salt
1 tbsp sesame seeds
⅓ tsp cumin seeds
½ tsp sugar(optional)
2 tbsp canola oil
Bake at 400 degree for 20 minutes

Instructions

Prep the okra by wiping it with a damp cloth and trim off the ends and the top and set aside.
Mix all the ingredients for the stuffing mix and set aside.
Preheat oven to 425 degrees for 15 minutes.
Slit the okra/bhindi in the middle but not fully, it still needs to hold it's shape. Stuff 1 tsp of the mixture in the middle and line all in a baking tray.
Lower the temperature of the oven to 400 degrees.
Drizzle oil evenly over the okra and bake them at 400 degrees for 20 minutes or until the okra is completely cooked.
Serve it with rotis or soak them in yogurt and serve it with some rice.

Notes

This spice mix c an be stored in a bottle in the refrigerator for upto 2-3 months.

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Nectarine Pistachio Frangipane Cake / Tart

June 22, 2016 By Asha Shivakumar

Happy Summer my friends!!

I am looking forward to those summer cool night walks.

The foraging we do on our hikes.

The warmish sea that we can dip our feet in.

The late mornings.

The late nights.

Movies, Books and Cooking with boys.

We really do have so much to celebrate. The beautiful shining sun, the cool shade, the long talks with friends. Vacations and family.

The fresh bounty in the markets. The trees all showering us with their fruits. All the summer picnics, the gallons of lemonade, and beautiful summer cakes.

Let’s celebrate summer with this beautiful cake/torte/tart.

This definitely is a denser tart kind of a cake because it is baked twice. It’s quite an easy cake, but packs a huge presence.

The frangipane makes it rich, while the fruits make it fresh and summery. The cake base is my basic Orange cake that I used, and it works great every time.

Hope you get to make this beautiful cake this summer.

I will be in Indian this summer and can’t wait to write about it in future posts. I might do a post dedicated to Bangalore..

What are your plans?

HAPPY SUMMER!! Sending you all hugs.

Ash

5.0 from 1 reviews

Orange-Nectarine Cake with Pistachio Frangipane

Prep time

15 mins

Cook time

1 hour 30 mins

Total time

1 hour 45 mins

Author: Ash

Serves: 6-8

Ingredients

1¼ cups All Purpose Flour
1 cup Powdered sugar
1 tbsp baking powder
3 large eggs separated
5 tbsp vegetable oil
6 tbsp Orange Juice
Zest of one whole orange
pinch of salt

for the pistachio frangipane:

4 ounces shelled raw unsalted pistachios
¼ cup sugar
4 Tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature (½ stick)
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
1 large egg
1 Tablespoon unbleached all-purpose flour

to top the cake

1 tbsp sugar
Garnish with berries

Instructions

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Line the base and sides of a 20cm square or round baking tin.
Sift All Purpose Flour+baking powder+salt+ powdered sugar
Beat egg whites to soft peaks
Mix oil+yolks+orange juice+zest.
Add the dry ingredients, all purpose flour and everything with the oil, yolks, orange juice and zest. Mix well to incorporate everything.
Then fold in the egg white in 3 parts to incorporate well.
Pour in round pan and bake for about 30 minutes in a 325 degree oven or until it golden brown, will be not be cooked through. Let cool for 20 minutes until you can proceed.

For the Frangipane.

In your food processor, grind the pistachios, flour, salt, and sugar to a powder (or as fine as you can make it!). Add the butter and process until no longer visible. Add egg and vanilla, blending until it forms a smooth paste.
Spread the filling over the cooked base. To decorate like I have in the photos, cut the nectarines/apricots into diagonal strips, then slide each half onto a knife and fan over the pistachio frangipane. Alternatively, you could put the halves straight on or cut the stone fruits into slices and decorate as you wish.
Bake the cake in a 325 degree oven for 45- 50 minutes, or until they are golden and a skewer inserted into the pistachio comes out clean.Around mid point of the bake, turn the cake pan and sprinkle some sugar for the extra caramalised bits.
Leave in pan to cool.
Decorate with more berries and serve with some Ice cream.

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