This was my first challenge with the exciting Daring Kitchen and I was so thrilled to find that the Baker's Challege was the Battenberg cake, in honour of the Queen's Jubilee. I have been wanting to make this cake for years. I often like to read cookbooks just for the sake of reading them. Some of my favourites are the cookbooks from England my mum used to have. I always come across this cake and am always intrigued by it's chequered pattern. Funny thing, I never had a Battenberg the entire time I lived in England. My parents weren't big packaged cake eaters and ones they did buy were because I insisted, usually a Victoria Sandwich or Mr Kipling's jam tarts. I don't remember seeing Battenbergs at any cake shop or bakery. There is a story behind the whole Battenberg cake; that it was made in honour of Queen Victoria's granddaughter's wedding to a Prince Battenberg. This is the most well known story but chances of it being true are quite slim as well as the fact that the coloured four chequered cake represents the four Battenberg princes. Whatever the story, the cake is beautiful to look at and incredibly tasty with the marzipan covering. The marzipan adds that extra nutty ... continue reading...
Vegetable Frittata
My father in law has been visiting from San Antonio this week and all we've done is eat. I swear, I feel 40 pounds heavier. It's not bad enough that my brother left a couple weeks ago and all we did when he was here was...eat. We do go see the sights and the beautiful mountains, but we also eat...a lot. I have been making breakfast almost everyday and if you knew how I felt about breakfast, you would be very proud of me! What doesn't help is that my husband took time off work, and because he's home I feel compelled to make it special for him. At this point in time, I have literally given up on any kind of a diet or watching what I eat. I have no will power when you wave a beautifully, golden brown croissant in my face. Right after my father in law leaves next week, my best friend from Houston arrives on the weekend, and we together, are notorious eaters! Right as she leaves, my sister and her family arrives in July. Phew! See my dilemma? How am I to ever lose all this weight with company coming every week and me having to cook for them?! I love having my family and friends visit and I thoroughly enjoy cooking for them but I am feeling quite heavy already and ... continue reading...
Kale, Feta and Potato Phyllo Rolls
Having totally derailed the eating healthy train the other day by consuming ghastly amounts of Eton Mess, I tried to redeem myself by eating greens again. In my defence, the Eton Mess was not "unnatural," I mean it was all real food with organic cream, fresh strawberries and low fat meringue cookies. I don't feel totally guilty... I'll keep telling myself that. Kale is an incredibly healthy green and lucky for me, I actually quite like it. Most of the time we eat it just baked in the oven with some sea salt, like kale crisps. They get devoured very quickly at our house and are made two to three times a month. I like kale crisps but I wanted to use kale in something else other than just crispy leaves. I find a lot of soups and stews that use kale but I am not very fond of the chewiness of kale in that preparation. I decided on a kale and feta pie, like a spanakopita but with kale instead of spinach. It would have been easier to make the pie, but I figured the children would like the rolls better because they are neat little packages and everyone gets their own and it's not as messy. They were not too difficult to roll as long as they were moistened with some olive oil. ... continue reading...
Eton Mess
Back in my young and carefree days when I was a teenager in London, I often spent the summer days at Regent's Park which happened to be right across from our flat. Most summers we were travelling to India or Pakistan but on the holidays when we had family visiting us, we would have to amuse ourselves in London. I actually loved staying in London because I always had friends who were also pottering around. I enjoyed the plane ride to India but after a few weeks of heat, humidity and bugs, I was so ready to come home. Many a day, my friend Sian and I would meet at the picturesque bridge in the park that marked a half way point for us. This bridge in the summertime was something out of a Monet painting. Brightly coloured flowers spilled over the sides of the bridge and onerous vines entwined through anything that allowed free passage. The air was filled with laughter of little children and often with music from the pavilion across the way. Here bodies lay sprawled across the lawn enjoying the music and the warm rays. The little canoes on the lake would be gliding through the shimmering water, as graceful as the swans that shared the lake with them. Sian and I would walk for hours; ... continue reading...
Indian Style Braised Beef with Rainbow Chard
It seems that I am constantly losing the eating healthy battle. I know it's a lifestyle and on the whole, I make sure we do eat healthy, but sometimes its so hard to be in the mood to cook after you have spent all day running around. The desire to cook balanced meals goes right out the window. Eating healthy is not difficult if there is say, just you. However, in my family I have 3 teens/preteens (girls at that, one vegetarian,) and a 7 year old boy and my husband who might as well be a child also. When they were younger, I could enforce healthy eating and I did. I still keep no soda in the house or potato chips/crisps and pretty much no junk food. Unfortunately for me, the supermarket is walking distance form my house, so when they have a bit of money, off they go to buy all the things I don't keep in the house! It's a battle that I am sorely losing. This is all the more reason I make sure that I cook all food from scratch and make the meal as well rounded as possible. Believe me it's not easy for me because as I get older, I am more picky than all of them. There are so many things lately, that I have developed an aversion to. I don't know if my medication affects me or it's ... continue reading...
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