Other Sweet Treats Archives - Page 10 of 10

For as long as I can remember, I have associated rains with comfort food. And comfort for me means warm, crispy on the outside and soft on the inside, deep-fried, with a hint of spice…that kind of food. The category of food that best fits this kind of craving would be fritters, beignets or pakoras as they are called in India. And, that’s not all! You did know about my little sweet tooth, didn’t you..? So, I next visualise the deep-fried fritters tossed in sugar and spice and then drizzled with honey or some kind of a rich sauce and then served with ice cream on the side. Oh…why am I so obsessed with sweet things!

Apples and bananas are fruits that I generally have at home. So when the craving struck, I was instantly chopping, mixing, frying, humming to myself…while the rain flooded my balcony and my mind with memories. I chose to make a choux batter as I love the way they turn out..puffed up, airy, crunchy little beignets. They tend to be lighter than a normal fritter. If it helps to make you feel a bit less guilty about eating this, you do give your arm a little workout when you whisk vigorously while blending the ingredients together.

I also made 4 eclairs out of the batter before mixing in the apples. They were puffing up in the oven while I was frying the beignets. I ate several before I was convinced to remove a few for photographs. It was comforting indeed watching the rain with a plate of these addictive little pastry puffs and thinking about flavour pairings for the eclairs. What did I tell you! I am so very…TOTALLY obsessed with desserts!

Apple and Cinnamon Beignets with Cinnamon Sugar and Butterscotch Sauce (adapted with variation from Taste.com)
Yields 18 small Beignets

1 granny smith or any tart-sweet apple, peeled, cored and finely chopped
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
vegetable oil for frying

For the choux batter
60g butter, chopped
2/3 cup water
2/3 cup plain flour
3 eggs, lightly beaten

Cinnamon sugar
1/2 cup castor sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Butterscotch Sauce: Use this recipe.

Make the cinnamon sugar: Combine sugar and cinnamon in a bowl.

Make choux pastry: Combine butter and 2/3 cup cold water in a saucepan over medium heat. Cook for 3 to 4 minutes or until butter has melted and mixture just starts to boil. Reduce heat to low. Add flour. Cook, stirring, for 2 to 3 minutes or until mixture comes away from side of pan and forms a ball. Set aside for 5 minutes to cool slightly. Using a wooden spoon, gradually beat in eggs until well combined and dough is glossy. Stir in apple and cinnamon.

Heat oil in a deep frying pan over medium-high heat. Drop 1 level tablespoon mixture into pan. Repeat, making 6 fritters. Cook for 2 to 3 minutes each side or until golden and cooked through. Using a slotted spoon, transfer beignets to cinnamon sugar. Toss to coat. Transfer to a plate. Repeat with remaining dough. Serve drizzled with butterscotch sauce and with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream.

Poached pears in a beautiful pink raspberry puree and served with a homemade chocolate sauce.

All the dessert lovers of the world, in my opinion belong to two broad categories. The chocolate lovers and the non-chocolate lovers (do they even exist?). Okay, let me rephrase that…the chocolate lovers and the fruits-over-chocolate lovers. And of course, there are the ones like me who fall somewhere in between. The ones who like to enjoy the best of both worlds!

Poached pears make for a fancy yet healthy dessert. Though I have experimented with various fruits, pears are my favourite poach-able fruit. Not only do they take in the colour and the flavour, of the poaching liquid (which can be totally customised to your preference), they are pretty simple to cook with a handful of ingredients and can be made ahead in time. At one time, I was so obsessed with poaching pears in different combinations that I think I would have to create a separate category if I had to blog about them. The bottom line is, that the possibilities with them are endless.

There are so many varieties of pears to choose from but I personally prefer to use the Bosc pears as they retain their long slender shape well. Though it’s a fairly simple process, they key is not to undercook or overcook the pears. What we are looking for is a firm fruit, cooked evenly, without resistance when you cut through with a spoon. For this purpose, the pears need to be turned around in between. Also, letting the pears cool down in the liquid, intensifies the flavour and colour.
The chocolate sauce complements the deep flavour of the raspberries and elevates the dessert to a whole new level. I have included a non dairy version of the sauce too that will be slightly thinner than the first one but tastes almost as good. You can have the poached pears warm or cold. I like them warm with a bit of whipped cream to go alongside.

Raspberry Poached Pears with Chocolate Sauce
Serves 4

1 cup frozen raspberries
1 cup sugar
4 cups water
4 Beurre Bosc pears, peeled and cored

For the chocolate sauce
100 g dark chocolate, roughly chopped
1 cup pouring cream/single cream
25 g butter

For a dairy free, chocolate sauce
1 tbsp castor sugar
½ cup cocoa
¼ cup boiling water

Trim the bottom of the pear to make a flat surface so it can stand upright. Retain the stems for a nice presentation. Combine all the ingredients except the pears in a large saucepan. Over medium heat, bring it to a boil, stirring in between till the sugar dissolves. Reduce the heat to a simmer and gently add the pears. Cover and cook till tender turning in between until cooked evenly. To test this, poke with a fork. Remove from heat. Let the pears stand in the poaching liquid till cool. Remove the pears and strain the liquid to remove seeds or any fruit bits that may be present.
Pour the liquid back to the saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce it till it reaches a syrupy consistency. Keep aside.

For the chocolate sauce, heat cream in a saucepan over medium heat, bring to a simmer, add the chocolate and whisk until melted, add the butter and continue to whisk until well combined.

For the dairy free version, combine sugar, cocoa and boiling water in a small bowl and whisk together until smooth.

To Serve, place a poached pear on a plate. Pour over the reduced raspberry sauce. Drizzle with warm chocolate sauce. Add a dollop of whipped cream or pipe little flowers of whipped cream around the pear.