Tiramisu without Alcohol

"Life is uncertain. Eat dessert first."

~Ernestine Ulmer

 

                 It has been a while since I posted any dessert recipes on the blog. It is not that I seldom make any desserts. In fact, desserts are one of the frequently made items in my kitchen nowadays. But they get polished off pretty fast that nothing would be leftover  for me to photograph after the onslaught. And hence this long interval before posting an actual dessert recipe..

         Tiramisu is a popular coffee flavoured Italian dessert,  made by layering ladies finger biscuits( savoiardi) dipped in Strong coffee, layered with a whipped mixture of egg yolks, egg whites, mascarpone cheese and cream. Usually alcohol like rum is used in the mixture. But as I wanted an alcohol free version, I made it without alcohol.

                 This time I made Tiramisu when the boys were busy with their games. I whipped up everything almost in a daze and shoved it off into the fridge to set, with a secret smile of triumph. But it was not long before the boys smelled something was up and came straight for it, digging into the fridge. So I had to dish out the dessert prematurely and was at a loss when they insisted at having it right then before photographing.

               As it was weekend, the husband came to the rescue and offered to take the snaps while I dealt with the boys... So each one was given a piece of Tiramisu on the condition that they wouldn't ask for more until their father was done with photographing.
       And whoever said pricky preschoolers are killjoy, boy! I am with you ;)
 And don't tell me, the husband's clicks are 'far better than mine' and has a 'tinge of creativity n commitment'... blah blah.. because, I have heard that before ;)

        As the dessert was not given enough time to set,the pieces were a bit distorted with the filling slipping out in places when cut. But who cares! The minute, the dad was done with the shots, the boys digged in and the dessert was gone even before the lunch was served.
   Guess what! The ten month old girl is already dessert crazy and had a piece all by herself!
Later, I was caught musing aloud...'Boy! Did I ever thought I could store half of it for the next day or so...? Well! No way! What a strange notion!

Chocolate Almond Biscotti

            The cold days (and even colder nights) are here. This year the chill is creeping in very slowly ( too slowly it seems). So my son still refuses to wear his sweater while going to school and comes back cold and hungry...
            These days, the kitchen pantry need to be stocked with all kinds of eatables ranging from cookies to corn flakes. As the hunger pangs are high in the winter season, the boys come to the kitchen in search of snacks, every now and then. If you don't have goodies stocked, then you are sure to get exhausted with their constant nagging to make something for them. So I decided to make something with a longer life span than muffins, so that I could store them for future use.

             I haven't made Biscotti , before; but have been planning to make one for sometime..They are twice baked biscuits originated in Italy and has an oblong shape and are usually baked with nuts like almonds or pistachios in it. Baking twice,makes them very dry and could be stored for long periods of time. As I have hardly any time for serious baking and cooking these days, I thought it perfect to make a big batch of biscotti and store it right away for the ever hungry boys :). The fact that it is practically a no-fat version of biscuits, made it all the more appealing to me because, after all am I not the person who polishes off the boys' left over food, every time?;) So if it's a low fat version, then the better for me..

            My elder son loves both chocolate and almonds. That's simply why I selected this simple recipe of  Chocolate Almond Biscotti. The product was a little bit dry, which was expected, but the combination of chocolate and almonds was fantastic, which gave the biscotti, a bity, nutty texture.

          At last I have a big jar of biscotti waiting to be attacked by two hungry little boys...:)

The Recipe:
(makes about 20 to 24 biscotti)
(Adapted from David Lebovitz' ROOM FOR DESSERT)

Things you need:
1 3/4 cups all purpose flour
2/3 cup (135g) granulated sugar
2 large eggs
2/3 cup (110g) semi- sweet or bitter sweet chocolate chips
2/3 cup (110g) blanched whole almonds
1 tsp baking pdr
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
1/4 tsp salt

Method:

• Preheat oven to 180 degree C (350 degree F). Toast almonds for 8 to 10 minutes or until, lightly browned and fragrant. Let it cool and then coarsely chop and set aside.
• Line a baking sheet with parchment paper
• In a bowl, beat the sugar and eggs on high speed until thick, pale and fluffy.(about 5 min). Beat in the vanilla extract. In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder and salt. Add the egg mixture and beat until combined. Fold in chopped almonds and chocolate chips.
• Transfer the dough to a well floured counter and roll into a log shape, about 30cm long and 3 1/2 inches wide. Place on the baking sheet and bake for about 25 minutes or until firm to touch.Remove from oven and let cool for 10 minutes on a wire wrack.
• Reduce oven temp to 165 degree C (325 degree F). Transfer the log to a cutting board and cut into about 1/2 inch slices, on the diagonal. Place the biscotti, cut side down, on the baking sheet. Bake for about 8 to 10 minutes, turn slices over and bake for another 8 to 10 min or until golden brown.
• Remove from oven and let cool. Store in an air tight container.

Home made Chicken Pizza

           

               This most widely popular and incredibly soft bread with generous toppings of vegetables and sauces topped with admirable slathering of cheese is said to have an Italian origin.... Though I'm too much fond of its Pizzeria variety, I hadn't dared to try it at home for so long fearing I would make a disaster of the most popular topped bread in the world which has the greatest appeal among kids and adults alike. But the fact that the restaurant variety is far too costly and more towards the oily side made me think again. Now I had to do the undoable. My experiments on this incredibly versatile bread started right from the microwave ovens and after a couple of failures and disappointments, I slowly started to get the hang on things.

                 One thing I learned (the hard way) was microwave oven is not suitable for making pizza if you really want it to have a nice golden crust on which you would go gaga over. At home you have a plethora of choices on inexpensive toppings which would turn out quite fantastic that you would have to succumb to the temptation and hanker of making it again and again until you get a Pizza Hut clone. Making the bread light and airy is one thing while getting the admirable crust is another... Most of the cook books specify a 3 hour rise for the dough but leaving it overnight to leaven is a trick I learned from the rave reviews of pizza enthusiasts after too many fizzers. Also the fact that pre cooking the dough before topping would make it even more rattling was something I learned on the way..

Coming to the recipe:

Things you need:-

Makes two large Pizzas

For the Pizza Base:

All purpose flour / Maida           -      2 cups
Yeast                                        -      1 tsp
Sugar                                        -      3 tbsp
Salt                                           -      1/4 tsp
Butter                                       -      25 g
Warm Milk                               -      1/2 cup

Sauce:

Tomato Ketchup                      -       1/2 cup
Onion Powder                         -       1 tsp
Garlic Powder                         -       1 tsp
Origano                                   -       1/4 tsp
Salt                                         -       1/4 tsp
Sugar                                      -       1/2 tsp

Topping:

Tender Chicken breasts                        -    250 g
Black pepper powder                           -    1/2 tsp
Onion sliced                                         -    1 medium
Cabbage, sliced                                    -    1/2 cup
Bell pepper sliced                                 -    1/2 cup
Tomato, seeded and diced                    -    1/2 cup
Black salted olives, pitted and sliced      -    1/4 cup
Mushrooms, diced (optional)                 -    1/4 cup
Salt  to taste
Garlic, minced                                       -   1/2 tsp  
Powdered origano                                 -   1/2 tsp                  
Shredded mozzarella cheese                  -     2 cups

Others:

Extra virgin Olive oil                         -    2 tbsp

Procedure:
    
To explain the procedure, I think I would start right at the bottom and work my way up to the toppings..
Prepare the Pizza base:
Mix the yeast  with half teaspoon of sugar and two tablespoons of warm milk and keep for 10 minutes to raise. The milk should not be too hot. Hot milk would kill the yeast where as moderately warm milk provide adequate condition for the yeast to flourish and raise. Mix the flour, remaining sugar, salt, butter and the raised yeast and kneed by adding warm milk little by little, until a smooth dough is formed. Keep it overnight in a closed container to raise.
Prepare the sauce:
Mix all the ingredients given under Sauce and keep aside. You can alternately use just tomato ketchup as the sauce.
Prepare the topping:
Cut the chicken breast into small and thin pieces. Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a frying pan and cook the chicken by  adding little salt and black pepper powder and sauting in oil for 10 minutes or until the water in the chicken dries up. Remove from heat. If you are using mushroom, then cook it like wise. Mix all the sliced vegetables and chicken and mix it with minced garlic and a little salt.
Final cooking:
Preheat the oven at very high temperature(about 450 degree F) for 10 minutes. Grease the pizza pan with olive oil and sprinkle it with a little flour. This helps to bake the under side of pizza to a golden brown crust which is very lovable. Take the raised dough and press the air out and kneed until smooth. This dough is for 2 large pizzas. So divide the dough into two, take one part and press it on to a pizza pan and roll out with hand or a rolling pin. If you have a pizza stone it is much better. In that case preheat the stone in very high temperature for some 5 minutes and then press the dough on to it. Then bake the dough for 5 to 10 minutes at 450 degree F or more and take out from oven. If you are making it in a pan, then roll out the dough on the pan and preheat at the highest possible temperature for 5 minutes.Then apply the sauce over the base. Over this spread the vegetables and chicken. Sprinkle with powdered origano. Top it with as much cheese as you like.Top it with some more olives. Dribble some olive oil on to the edge of the pizza. This helps to make a nice crust. Then keep the pan with the pizza again into the oven and bake at high temperature(450F or more) until the cheese melts and the edges become golden coloured and blistered. Take it out and transfer it to a serving plate. Repeat this with the other part of dough. Cut and serve hot.