Basil Salt

Salt makes it all good doesn’t it? As much as I love my sugar, I cannot imagine food without salt. Salt cannot be had on its own but as soon as you add it to something, magical transformation happens. It is as though the dish suddenly comes alive!  And what if that salt is flavoured ? Continue reading “Basil Salt”

Coffee Cake with purple grapes

The sun, with all those planets revolving around it and dependent on it, can still ripen a bunch of grapes as if it had nothing else in the universe to do.

-Galileo Galilei

I bet Galileo also loved his grapes for he chose grapes to explain the miracles of nature so beautifully! Grapes are one of my favourite fruits as well. I wait for the grapes season to arrive so that I can feast on them, especially the purple ones! Also there are endless possibilities of creating desserts with grapes and I never miss such an opportunity. Continue reading “Coffee Cake with purple grapes”

Siena Panforte – spread the festive cheer…

What brings smile to your face when you think Christmas ? For me its the Christmas cakes and bakes! And most of all the very festive fruit cake! As you travel around the world, the fruit cake varies slightly depending on the local ingredients. But the key ingredients remain the same, more or less – candied and/or dried fruits, nuts and spices. The cake can be optionally soaked in spirits and could be decorated. It can sometimes even be chocolate flavoured. And some could have yeast in them. Continue reading “Siena Panforte – spread the festive cheer…”

Gingerbread Cookies

Christmas tree decorations have always fascinated me.  My daughters loved the ritual of decorating the tree and getting presents which they then thought Santa had left them. When you bake all the ornaments that go on the Christmas tree, the fun doubles up because the house fills up with the holiday spirit as the sweet smell of ginger, cinnamon and cloves coming out of the oven spreads . And decorating the cookies with the icing makes you so cheerful! Continue reading “Gingerbread Cookies”