Monday, January 31, 2011

Eggplant Salad from Romania - Salata de Vinete


Eggplant has been popular in almost all the cuisines around the world.You roast it,make gravies or fritters or stirfries,it enhances the dish. Roasted eggplant especially has found various uses across cuisines.Be it the Indian Baingan bharta where it is mixed with onion-tomato-spices gravy or Turkish patlican salatasi where roasted eggplant is mixed with yoghurt and olive oil or Arab baba ghanoush or Muhammara where roasted eggplant is mixed with spices or  salata de vinete the Romanian and even Hungarian style salad or spread.

 Here grilled or roasted eggplant is peeled,mashed and added with onions and sunflower oil to obtain the salad which is then served as an appetizer spread.The mashing or handling of eggplant is done with a wooden or plastic knofe /spoon as there is a popular belief in Romania that metal spoon may blacken the eggplant!. Well, the salad or the spread turned out to be good and here it is.I have adapted this from this blog post though have also referenced several google mentions

Ingredients:
Eggplant: 1 roasted/grilled

Onions: finely minced/grated: 2-3 tbsp
Sunflower oil: 4 tbsp +
Salt: as per taste
Lemon Juice: 1/2 tsp

Preparation:
Roast the eggplant either in the oven or directly on the gas or in a pan(grill). Allow them to cool a bit and then peel them. Make sure you remove all the charred skin. Then cut the flesh into half, lightly salt them and allow them to drain all the juices for atleast 1 hour.

Once drained,mash the flesh with a wooden spoon. Rememebr ,the belief - metal blackens the eggplant!. Er, I used normal ladle,it did not blacken,but I am no Romanian to comment.Anyway,mash the flesh manually or using a blender to get a fine paste.

Start drizzling oil and fold in as much as possible, just as you would do for a pesto or while making mayo. Here I added little oil,folded it in,repeated the process. The eggplant changes colour and almost doubles in volume. Mine became almost 1.5 times. The quantity of oil depends on you. You can keep on adding oil to get a silky smooth paste. 

Foldin finely minced onion,a dash of lemon juice and adjust the salt.Serve as a spread. Traditionally it is served with bread and tomatoes and roasted red peppers. I made bread canapes wherein I spread bread circles with the salad and topped with tomato slices. 


It was like biting into low spicy baingan bharta. But it felt great and different. Rather than going for typical spreads this has earthy taste to it and I feel it was filling as well.You can add pepper to spice it up as well. Also instead of drizzling oil,you can add light mayonnaise though I presume it masks the smoky eggplant taste.

Anyway this along with Waldorf salad is off to Only Salads at Prathibha's, an event by Pari.
This also finds its way to DNSW: E at Akilas where it joins all the dishes whose name start with E.



Sunday, January 30, 2011

Yakh-dar-Behesht : Ice in Heaven

This is a quick fix pudding from Iranian which is actually prepared during summer to beat the sweltering and yes, its name literally means "Ice in Heaven" and it truly takes you to heaven. It is similar to firni/phirni or fereni in Iranian as like firni it also uses rice flour. The only difference I found was the use of cornstarch or even wheat starch which sets the pudding instantly. I have browsed through several recipes and here's my recipe that uses the minimum quantities required for 2-3 bowls.

Ingredients:
Rice flour: 2.5 tbsp
Cornstarch: 2 tbsp and 2 tsp
Milk: 1 and 1/4 cup (preferably cold/room temp)
Water: 1 and 1/4 cup (preferably cold/room temp)



Rosewater
Sugar: 1/4 cup or as per taste



Toasted Chopped Pistachios: for garnishing
Preparation:
Dissolve cornstarch in cold water.Dissolve rice flour in cold milk.Combine the two together and bring to a slow boil in a heavy bottomed pan.Stir regularly and cook until it thickens. This will take only few minutes or barely 5-7 minutes.Add sugar and rosewater as required. Continue cooking for few more minutes until the sugar dissolves and the pudding thickens,while stirring regularly. This may take another 2-3 minutes.

Pour into serving bowls and chill in the fridge.If you leave it outside then a skin may come.Serve as dessert garnished with chopped pistachios and/or dried rose petals etc.


Taste it to live it.You can feel the spoon,cutting through the fluffy clouds or pillowsof heaven and your tongue will take you there. OMG, this is THE BEST. Enjoy each and every moment.

This also is visiting AWED:Iran at Sweet Artichoke,an event by DK.


Thursday, January 27, 2011

Iranian style Kidney Beans

This is a simple gravy of Kidney beans which is supposed to be Persian style and is adapted from Mollie Katzen's Vegetable Heaven.I have adapted this from this site. The recipe is pretty much easy where cooked beans is added to a tangy gravy and is cooked to dry but since I was serving this with herb rice I went for a thick gravy.

Ingredients:
Red Kidney beans: presoaked and cooked: 1/2 cup

Olive Oil: 2+ tsp
Onion: chopped finely : 1 small
Garlic: 1 big clove crushed/minced

Cumin Powder: 1/2 tsp
Cinnamon: 1/2 tsp +/-

Orange Juice: 1 tbsp
Lemon Juice: 1-2 tsp
Tomato Paste: 2 -3 tbsp
Jalapeno/Red/Green Chilly: 1 slit

Salt: as per taste

Preparation:
Cook kidney beans and keep aside. If you are planning a dry dish,then drain out most of the water used for cooking the beans.

Heat oil in  pan.Add chopped onion.Saute till transparent.Add chopped garlic,cumin,cinnamon and salt.Saute till the raw smell goes. Add in orange juice,lemon juice and mix well. Add tomato paste and little water from the cooked beans and let it simmer for a few minutes.Add beans(with water for a gravy) and slit jalapeno/ red/green chilly and let it simmer for about 15 minutes.You can add in more water as per your preference of gravy or let it cook untl dry.Adjust the salt prior to serving.

Serve warm as a gravy with rice or if dry stuff it into pita and serve.I did the first option.


A simple gravy where orange juice is also used in addition to lemon and tomato for tanginess. I do not know what else this serves.The gravy is excellent with rice and next time I will be trying it out as a stuffing.

The delectable gravy is on way to AWED:Iran at Sweet Artichoke,an event by DK.



BTW, do you know how we finished off the Iranian Feast? Here's a glimpse..




Monday, January 24, 2011

Sabzi Polo - Iranian Herb Rice

Sabzi Polo is a wonderful polow /pilaf/pulao dish from Iran made using mixed fresh herbs. It is usually served with grilled white fish during the Norouz or Iranian New Year. I found an excellent recipe from here and made accordingly.The main thing to be considered while making sabzi polo  is that rice is half cooked first and then mixed with herbs and finished cooking. The way the dish is done is interesting atleast the recipe I followed was. I served it with Persian style Kidney beans.

Ingredients:
Basmathi Rice: 1 cup

Mixed Fresh herbs: chopped : I used cilantro,parsley,dill,spinach and methi leaves.
Scallions: 1-2 including the green part.

Salt& Pepper: as needed per taste
Cumin Powder: 1/2 -1 tsp
Cinnamon power: 1/2 -1 tsp
Oil: 1-2 tsp

Melted Butter: for garnish (optional)

Preparation:
Wash basmati rice and soak it in salted water for atleast 6-8 hours or overnight.

Bring a big pot of water to boil.Add in the rice and let it cook till half done. Drain the rice and wash it in cold water to prevent further cooking and keep aside.

Rinse and chop the herbs and keep aside.

Take a suitable vessel,grease the botton  with oil .Spread a layer of rice evenly on the pot.You can give it a tight press so that it spreads evenly.Sprinkle little salt,pepper,cumin and  cinnamon.Top the layer with half of the herb mix and lightly fluff to mix.I did not fluff and had got alternate white and green layers.Top the herbs optionally with more spices and salt. Top this with another rice layer and repeat the rice-herb layering process to get three rice layers and all the herbs and rice are used up.

Cover tightly with a lid and steam in a pressure cooker for about 45 minutes to 1 hr and 35 minutes depending on the cooking time of the rice. I went for 1 hour by which time the herbs were all cooked and their juices had spread into rice.

Serve warm topped with melted butter -I did not use butter- along with grilled fish or kidney bean gravy or anyother gravy or raitha of your choice.You can slightly mix in the layers before serving.



To be honest I was sceptical how the rice would turn out.But I have had more successes than failure with rice dishes and was partially confident that it would be good. The only addition from my part was the use of pepper. The spices mentioned would not be enough to heat up my tastebuds,hence pepper which also goes well with the herbs.

Use the herbs according to the taste. Fenugreek or "shanbelileh" in Persian had the least quantity mentioned in the recipe and so I used just few tablespoons. Where as spinach and cilantro were used more and mostly dominate. I used dill and parsley in minimal quantities and they just add a hint to the rice. A cross section of the rice will look like..



This too is on its way to  AWED:Iran at Sweet Artichoke's, an event by DK. And hey more on the gravy in the next post,.. watch this space for more...


Thursday, January 20, 2011

Thai inspired Pumpkin,Rice & Coconut Milk Soup

This is a simple soup which goes thai way with the addition of lemongrass,ginger and chillies. I had seen several Thai style pumpkin soups and even Jamie Oliver's Pumpkin Laksa with rice.Though I wanted to try them, I did not have kaffir lime leaves as well as galangal.So hence the 'inspired' in the title. But the soup was hearty and thick and was surprisingly consumed in less time than expected. So here is my simple soup.

Ingredients:

Pumpkin: 1 cup peeled & cubed
Rice: white or Jasmine : 1/4 cup
Turmeric Powder: a pinch (optional)

Vegetable Oil: 2  tbsp
Fresh Red Chillies: 1+ as per taste
Ginger : 1.5 inch piece minced
Lemongrass: chopped: barely 1 tsp (remove the outer thick part and chop)

Shallots/Pearl Onions: 4 tbsp chopped (can also use onions)

Coconut Milk: atleast 1.5 cups
Water: 2 cups + as needed to cook

Preparation:
Wash and drain rice and keep aside. Chop the chillies and mince the ginger. Remove the tough outer parts of lemongrass and chop the inner slightly soft part. Chop the onions/shallots/pearl onions into bite size or small pieces.Peel and chop the pumpkin.

Heat oil in a big saucepan. Add in chopped chilly,lemongrass and ginger and let it sizzle till a lemony aroma spreads around. Add in shallots/onions and saute till it becomes transparent.

Add in cubed pumpkin,saute for 1 minute or so.Add in little salt,turmeric powder and 2  cups or more of water.Bring to boil.Add in the rice and let it boil. Reduce to a simmer and let it cook optionally covered until both rice and pumpkin and cooked through and start to turn mushy.Check inbetween and keep on adding more water as needed.

Turmeric is added just for making it look more yellowy. Naturally pumpkin purees into a yellow mix. So this is optional.I added to make sure of the yellow colour.

Let it cool for a few minutes. Alla or most of the water would have been absorbed by the pumpkin and rice and we can see than they start to thicken on sitting. Puree the semi dry mix adding 1 cup coconut milk (preferably thick). You can adjust the coconut milk quantity as well to get a fine puree.

Return the soup to the pan,add in more water/coconut milk as needed to adjust the soup consistency and heat through.Serve with toasted pepitas or other accompaniments.




A hearty and silky smooth soup which mainly has the aroma of rice,taste of pumpkin and coconut milk and heat of chilli. The soup thickens on sitting. So at the time of serving add more water/coconut milk and heat through and serve. You can add or reduce the quantity of spices as per taste or even add different spices like cumin for a slightly different taste.

A warm bowl is visiting NCR:Soups with Rice at Lisa's.




Wednesday, January 19, 2011

Peanut Butter Pasta

I never ever thought I would combine PB and pasta. The idea was put to me when dear Madhuram  mentioned it in one of her posts. Still,I was wondering how the sweetness or peanutty taste will work for me when I came across this recipe in Eat me delicious.The recipe is originally from  The Garden of Vegan cookbook.I have adapted it as per availability of spices and sauces and turned out a fabulous savoury pasta with vegetables.

Ingredients:
Dried Pasta : half a pack or for 2 persons atleast.
Veggies: 1/2 cup +  (mixed vegetables like carrots,corn,peas etc): chopped into bite size pieces

PB Sauce:
Peanut Butter: 4 tbsp
Hot Water: 1/4 cup
Soy/Coconut Milk/more Water: 1/4 cup (I used water)
Soy Sauce: 1 tbsp or more
Ginger - 1 medium size piece finely minced
Garlic: 1 -2 cloves minced
Cayenne Pepper/ Chilli Powder: : 1/4 tsp + as per taste
Salt &Pepper: as per taste

Preparation:
Prepare the pasta as per package instructions. In the last few minutes of cooking,add in the mixed veggetables to the pasta pot and cook .Drain keep aside.

Mix together peanut butter with hot water first. Stir well so that a smooth lumpfree sauce is obtained.Mix in other sauce ingredients into it and stir a well..Taste & adjust the seasoning.

Remember that pasta is cooked in salted water.Soy sauce,and peanut butter also has salt.So salt acordingly.
Pour the sauce on top of the pasta and toss  well. Serve at room temp or warm.


Loved the pb in the pasta.The dish balances sweetness of pb,the chilli powder etc. This has become a regular in my lunch menu. Truly a keeper recipe.Please do not go by the clicks which were hurried through,the pasta was fabulous.

The pasta visits Presto Pasta Nights at Girlichef, an event by Ruth.

Tuesday, January 18, 2011

Bademjan Pollo & Mast o' Khiar - Persian Eggplant Rice & Cucumber Dip

Persian cuisine or Iranian cuisine is diverse like the Indian cuisine.Each province has its own way or style of cooking and there are a variety of herbs and rices and other side dishes most of which are with meat.I have read that Iran is a non friendly state for vegetarians/vegan. but I have come across rice dishes where meat is actually optional as well. Pollow or pollo  is Iranian pulao or pilaf as it is also known in UK/Europe. It can be made with rice along with variety of herbs and vegetables.Here rice is cooked in a broth along with veggies/meat and based on the veggies and meat added there are several types of pollos.

I was searching for eggplant recipe when I found this recipe for Bademjan Pollo. This is the only site where I have seen this  recipe and it was meat free. I am not sure whether it is an authentic dish,but surely veggies are added to pollos.The recipe had lots of oil involved which I have reduced or kept to minimum and have made it slightly my way. I served it with mast o khiar a simple yoghurt -cucumber raitha albeit Iranian style. I have looked through several sites for the dip  and they have the same simple basic  recipe as that of raitha.

Bademjan Pollo (Iranian rice with Eggplant)
Eggplant or Bademjan  is like 'potato of Iran'and there are several eggplant dishes but with meat a well.You can have it in dips,sides,main etc and this is a simple main course where it is folded into rice.

Ingredients:
Eggplant: 1 cup cubed

Veg Oil: 2-3 tbsp + 4 tbsp

Onion: 1 chopped thin

Basmati Rice: 1 cup
Tomato: 3-4 medium
Salt & Pepper: as per taste


Dried Dill weed: 1-2 tsp

Preparation:
Cube the eggplant into bite size pieces and salt it. Let it sit for atleast half an hour when it lets out the bitterness. After atleast 30 minutes,squeeze the eggplant pieces and drain them on paper towels.Chop the onion into long thin pieces. Blanch the tomatoes in hot water and peel and chop them into small pieces.

Heat 4 tbsp of oil in a thick bottomed pan,add in oniion and saute till it starts to brown. Add in rice and stir till it starts to brown and dry.Make sure there is enough oil for this.Add in the blanched,peeled and chopped tomatoes,salt ,pepper and enough water as needed to cook the rice. Bring to a boil,reduce,cover and cook till rice is (almost) done.This depends on the cooking time of basmati used.

Meanwhile heat 2-3 tbsp of oil in another pan. Add in the drained eggplant pieces and saute till they start to brown. Drain them on paper towels for removing excess oil.

Once the rice is almost done, fold in the eggplant pieces. Sprinkle dill and mix well.Cover the dish with a lid wrapped in towel and steam for about 10-15 minutes till the flavours blend.

What I did was,I folded the eggplant pieces when rice was almost cooked,then transferred everything to a smaller dish,covered with a lid and put the dish in a pressure cooker /steamer and steamer it for about 5-10 minutes till everything gets blended and cooked.This is my way rather than the mentioned Iranian way.

Serve the rice with cucumber dip or raitha.



Mast o Khiar- Iranian Yoghurt & Cucumber Dip

This is s simple dip or raitha as we can say,where seedless cucumbers are mixed into thick yoghurt spiced with salt,pepper and dried mint. The name literally translates to yoghurt (mast) and cucumber (khiar - remeber it is called kheera in Hindi).Normally Persian cucumbers are used which are similar to seedless ones.

Ingredients:
Cucumber : 1 preferbly seedless,though any thing will do.

Yoghurt:1 cup + as needed
Salt & Pepper: as per taste

Dried Mint: 1 tbsp or more.

Preparation:
Dice the cucumber into small bite size pieces optionally peeling and deseeding it.

Take yoghurt in a bowl,add in the salt,pepper and dried mint. Mix well. Fold in the cucumber pieces.Adjust the salt and seasonings and serve with pita or rice (as I did) or chips/crackers as a dip.You can even see pictorial representation of this here.




The combo was perfect. The rice was hearty. The taste was excellent as with any spiced rice and the way of making was interesting as well. The dip reeked of mint which I had added more,but it was refreshing.Hearty meal from Iran it is.

I hope Sweet Artichoke accepts the combo  for AWED : Iran, an event by DK.


Sunday, January 16, 2011

Shanghai Bok Choy Stir Fry

Bok Choy or pak choi as it is also known is a Chinese vegetable belonging to the cabbage family. Along with napa cabbage, bokchoy -literally known as small white vegetable with it white stems and green leaf reminiscent of celery rather than the traditional cabbage- is grouped as Chinese cabbage.There is another variety of bokchoy known as baby bokchoy or Shanghai bokchoy which are smaller than the normal bokchoy,but given time may grow into normal bokchoy. You can also check out the differences between varieties of bokchoy here.

I got a bunch of baby bokchoy from my nearby store and immediately tried a stirfry with it. I have adapted this from Jude of Applepiepatispate where she had made a spicy stirfry with chillies.

Ingredients:
Baby Bok Choy: a bunch
Fresh Red Chillies:1 or 2 as per taste
Garlic Cloves: 2-3 medium
Peanut Oil: 1-2 tbsp
Salt: as per taste

Preparation:
Clean the bokchoy by trimming the bottom and separating into stalks. While separating you may end up with a small baby in the middle of the stem. This is known as bokchoy heart.Keep it as such and do not separate it into two.Clean the stalks thoroughly in several changes of water as they may contain sand/grit. Once clean pat dry with paper towels. Keep aside.

Chop the red chilly and the garlic cloves into chunks.

In a wok.add in oil.When it shimmers,add in the chilly and garlic.Stirfry for a few seconds so that the  garlic turns aromatic but never burns.Add in bokchoy leaves and stirfry for 1-2 minutes till they start wilting. Add in salt and check the taste.Serve immediately.



Mine was correctly coooked,but by the time, I clicked pics,it looked mushy,so bear with me.The dish is quick and whole and taste and spicy.
You can also reference Jaden of SteamyKitchen for another simple stirfry.

Thursday, January 13, 2011

Winter Warmer from Miss Masala

Days are hotting up but chill is still there. The weather makes you feel lazy and want to curl upwith a nice book and optionally munch on something that you obviously had not cooked.Aha,its a wish. Apart from such wishes we still feel the need for hot soup in the evenings and this is a simple tamatar shorba from Mallika Basu or Miss Masala which is actually the name of her cookbook. Simple,quick and spicy.

Ingredients:
Tomatoes: 4-5 medium -big size chopped

Cumin Seeds:1/2 tsp
Garlic Cloves: 2-3 small sliced/crushed
Oil: 1-2 tbsp

Fresh Red Chilly: 1 chopped
Brown Sugar: 2+ tsp depending on heat of the chilli
Cilantro/Coriander: 1 tbsp chopped

Dried Fenugreek Leaves (Kasuri Methi): 1/2 tsp soaked in 2-3 tbsp hot water

Salt:as per taste

Preparation:
Chop tomatoes into small pieces. Peel,mince/crush garlic cloves.

Heat oil in a thick bottomed pan. Add in cumin seeds,and garlic. When they sizzle,mix in tomato pieces,brownsugar,sliced red chilly,cilantro chopped and a pinch of salt.

Cook in high flame stirring occasionally until the tomato turns pulpy mess.Meanwhile soak the dried fenugreek leaves or kasuri methi in hotwater. Remove the pan from heat,stir in the methi and puree the contents using a hand blender or normal blender (after cooling).

Adjust salt and enjoy piping hot.



This is supposed to be a Mughlai style soup.Normally,Mughal cuisine can be medium hot to hot hot.The spiciness of the soup depends on the chillies used.If your chilly is mild then adjust the sugar accordingly.If using fresh green chillies, then make sure,you remove them before blending. The Kasuri methi is used to balance the sweetness of the tomatoes and sugar with the spiciness of the chillies.It adds a tangy taste and enhances the soup.I tried it first with green chillies when it was very spicy,but second time with mild chillies. My family preferred it second time while personally preferred the first time.Do adjust the ingredients as per your taste.

This soup warms T&T:Quick Indian Cooking at BengaliCuisine,an event by Lakshmi.

Tuesday, January 11, 2011

Waldorf Salad

Waldorf salad is a simple salad of apple,celery and walnuts with mayonnaise or thick yogurt. The salad was first made at the Waldorf Hotel in the 1890's and is quiet popular. It is usually served an a light meal or appetizer. I have adapted the salad recipe from Simply recipes to make my simple salad.I had never thought much about the apple -mayo combo,but the mixed flavoured salad was a hit at home and the taste was much better than expected.

Ingredients:
Apple: 1 cored and chopped
Celery: 1/2 cup sliced
Walnuts:1/2 cup toasted
Raisins:1/4 cups
Mayonnaise: 2+ tbsp
Lemon Juice:1 tbsp
Salt & Pepper: as per taste

Preparation:
In a bowl, mix together mayo and lemon juice.Add salt,pepper as per taste.Mix in the apple,walnuts,raisins and celery.Serve on a bed of lettuce.



Surely appetizing salad. The after taste leaves you wanting more,I feel. Lettuce balances the entire taste and you are left feeling fresh.I used eggless mayo.You can also use thick yogurt instead for a healthier or low fat version. I used only little mayo or about 2 tbsp plus and got a light coating of the dressing on the items.Feel free to use more to make it look creamy and taste mayo-ish.The salad is very appetizing thats for sure.

Update on 18-jan-11: The salad is also my first entry to Only Salads at Chef & Her Kitchen and event by Foodelicious .


Friday, January 7, 2011

Pain d'Epices - French Spice Bread for Spicy 2011

Pain d'epices or literally Spice bread is a cakey quick bread from France and is also known aas French Gingerbread or Honey spice cake. The traditional spice bread is made using rye flour ,honey and spices like aniseed. But modern spice bread makes use of ginger. The bread which was based on the fermentation of rye flour in buckwheat honey traditionally used no leavening agent,but modern day bakers use soda or baking powder which makes it rise quickly.

I found an excellent recipe for this in Vegetarian times which was egg free and dairy free and used  tea for making the bread.I have made coffee cookies but this is my first with tea.I halved  the recipe and baked it in my mini loaf pan to get hearty and spicy quickbread.

Ingredients:
All Purpose Flour: 14 tbsp
Baking Soda : 3/4 tsp
Salt: 1/8 tsp

Orange Zest: 2 tsp
Cinnamon Powdered: 3/4 tsp
Cloves powdered: 1/8 tsp
Ginger Powdered: 3/4 tsp

Black Tea: 2/3 cup  or 10 tbsp
(Black Tea bag: 1 seeped in 10 tbsp boiling water for 3 minutes)

Brown Sugar: 2 tbsp
Honey: 1/3 tbsp

Dried Figs: 1/4 cup chopped
Almonds: 1/4 cup toasted and chopped

Preparation:
In a bowl,mix together flour,soda,salt,zest and the spices.I didn't add the zest er,..I umm,forgot.

In another bowl,mix together sugar and honey.Make tea as you normally do. Else in a big bowl,add 1 tea bag and pour hot boiling water (10 tbsp) and let it sit for about 3 minutes after which remove the teabag.

Pour the hot hea into the sugar-honey mix and stir well so that the sugar dissolves.

Make a well in the middle of the dry mix and pour the wet tea-sugar-honey mix.Stir to combine. Fold in the toasted and chopped nuts and chopped figs.

Pour the batter in lightly greased muffin pans or mini loaf pan. I used my 5 x3 mini loaf pan.Depending on size you may require 1 or 2 muffin or mini loaf pan.


Bake in a preheat oven at 350F for 25-35 minutes for mini loaves or 15-18 for muffins or till the tester comes out clean.

Cool in the loaf/muffin pan for 5 minutes after which loosen the edges and remove from the pans and cool completely on the wire rack.


Serve cutting into slices as a snack with tea/coffee/milk or with icecream as an after dinner dessert.

Excellent ginger bread and perfectly vegan as well.It was the ginger aroma that permeated during baking. I thought tea aroma may also be there,but it was nil or negligible.No wonder it is called French gingerbread. Ginger- sugar- honey combo dominates the taste.



The slices were not light but slightly heavy or atleast I felt so. And no butter,oil,milk or even soy. You can play around and add different types of nuts,varieties of honey,tutty fruity or candied citrus peels etc.You can even use the normal masala chai and avoid or add more spices for variation.For another or traditional pain d'epice ,check out David Lebovitz and Jacques Thorel .

Perfect treat this bread as it goes to Bakeomania at Cakes n' More where a perfect Cake Bible will be given away to a lucky winner.Wish I  am the lucky one.Keeping fingers Crossed.

The bread is simple to make with easy steps and is perfect for amateur bakers. So it also spices the Baking for Beginners - II at CookingUpSomethingNice.



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