Pineapple Upside Down.

Pineapple Upside Down Cake

An old classic with a new twist. It looks like it is Van Gogh's birthday here. The art credit goes to a friend across the seas who is truly an amazing lady and ever so obliging. You can use any 

25cm / 10-inch pan you like, round, square, or even a specially manufactured one in the shape of a flower! 
You can use peaches or apricots if you prefer. Fresh or canned pineapple, both are fine. Use maraschino cherries if you want to add colour. Walnuts if you want to add texture. The choice is yours. 
Design the bottom of the pan as best you like, as it will be the top of the cake when you turn it upside down.

Wonder if it is Picasso or Van Gogh celebrating a birthday?

Preheat the oven to 175 C |350 F

For the Base you need

1/2 cup sugar
1/3 cup melted salted butter
12 rings of pineapple; brushed with rum 
About 15 pieces of walnuts

For the Cake
3 large eggs at room temperature
1 cup sugar
1 1/2 cup sifted all purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 /2 tsp salt
2/3rd cup pineapple juice plus 1 tsp vanilla essence + 1 tsp rum (optional to substitute it for another teaspoon of vanilla  extract)


Step 1 Melt the sugar in the cake pan over low heat until it has caramelised to a nice golden amber color. 
Pour the butter all over and twist the pan around to ensure it has reached all over. 
Decorate with pineapples and walnuts. Keep aside 

Step 2 With an electric beater, whip the eggs until very light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. 
Slowly add the sugar, lowering the setting of the beater to the lowest. Gently fold in the sifted flour, baking powder, and salt. Add it alternately with the fruit juice and vanilla extract. 

Gently pour it over the ready fruit and caramel in the pan. Give it a slight shake and put it into the oven to bake for 30 minutes. Test with a skewer to see if it's clean. Do not go all the way down to test it. 
The cake will also begin to leave the sides of the pan. 
Remove it from the oven and wait for 3 minutes. Place a large platter over the cake and turn it upside down. Let it rest for 10–15 minutes. This will allow the juices to all come down well. Keep it in a warm, dry place rather than in a draught at this time. 
It tastes best when fresh. Serve it with fresh cream or ice cream.


Tips
If the cake has not left the sides, run a flat butter knife over it before you turn it over. 

If you do not have enough juice left over from a fresh pineapple, substitute it for any juice like orange, lemon, or a mix of them. Do not omit the exact liquid quantity.

Read more about my cuisine called Parsi food and its history and culture and heritage in my cookbooks The World of Parsi Cooking: Food Across Borders and The Art of Parsi Cooking; reviving an ancient cuisine.
For more delicious cakes download,
Niloufer's Kitchen: Persian Fusion


Photo credit Kainaaz R Patell.

Fish Curry ~ Parsi Food

• Parsi Fish Curry

• Parsi food adores curries, particularly those with fish or prawns. Traditionally, it must be prepared with bone-in fish. Adding the whole fish is my personal favourite, as it adds to the flavour. The Western world, however, tends to eat fish fillets, and many are squeamish when served with a whole fish! Here I share my curry recipe with salmon fillets.

Smooth, deep and delicious the Parsi fish curry is hard to beat!

Serves 6 people

• 1kg/2.2 lbs fish
• 1 cup desiccated or freshly scraped Coconut
• 6 large flat dry red chillies
• 1 whole pod of fresh peeled garlic
• 1 small onion
• 1/2 tsp sugar
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 tbsp coriander powder
• 1 tbsp cumin powder
• 1/4 cup vinegar
• 1/2 tsp turmeric
• 12 curry patta/ leaves
• 2  slit green chillies
• 1 cup water
• 1/2 cup fresh tomato puree
•  1 tsp tamarind paste or kokum paste

• Grind together until fine, the coconut and red chillies. Now add the onion, garlic, sugar, salt and the coriander and cumin powders with the vinegar to make into a paste.

•  In a pan heat a tsp of oil and add turmeric curry patta/ leaves and the green chillies.

• Gently stir for a minute and add the curry paste. 

• Now add the water. Mix well, bring it to a boil, cover. Lower the heat and cook for 20 minutes. Now add the fresh pureed tomatoes and the tamarind or kokum. Cover again and cook for another 30 minutes on a very low steam. 

• Add the fish and bring to a boil for 5 minutes. Cover and close the stove. Let it rest for 10 minutes and serve with freshly boiled steaming hot rice.

• Tips

• Substitute 1 cup of coconut water for water if you wish. 
• If you cannot get tamarind or kokum use the juice of one fresh lemon or lime.
• 2 tsp of chilli powder equals the 6 large flat dry chillies, however the chillies do give the colour and flavour.
• Add 1/2 cup of coconut milk to make it creamier.

• My published cookbooks are available for sale through myself and on Amazon.

  The World of Parsi Cooking: Food Across Borders is a 3 award winning book. It has been self published in July 2019 and will be going into its second print in 2022. 

  The Art of Parsi Cooking; reviving an ancient cuisine was published in 2016 by Austin Macauley and continues to be available through amazon book depot book depository and from the publishers.

  Photo courtesy Niloufer Mavalvala 

Comments
31st July 2018
A favourite made with Prawn/Shrimp

Fish Roe ~ Gharab

Gharab or Fish Roe

A delicacy like the caviar of the Beluga and its various species, fish roe is the eggs of all other fish in its casing. An acquired taste it is cooked in many ways. Parsi food tends to add it to their Patia, or pickle it for longer shelf life. Keeping it simple here, I have fried it with a few spices. 

This is a pair of Cod Fish Roe. Snipped at the very top of the two pieces where they were attached.

Sliced fish roe, cooked and ready to eat. Its soft and delicious.

2 Large  fresh fish Roe
1/2 tsp turmeric
1 tsp red chillie powder
1/2 tsp salt

Wash the roe and  toss in a large bowl. Toss with the spices until it is evenly applied. 
Heat a large skillet with 3 tbsp oil. Once the oil is nice and hot place each piece of roe and cook for 5 minutes on each side. keep the flame on medium once the oil is heated and the roe is placed in. Turn only once and let it cook for another 5 minutes. Cover the pan, lower the heat and cook for 20 minutes until cooked through. Squeeze some fresh lemon juice while warm. Serve immediately.

Tips
Generally fish roe is sold in "pairs" and joined at one end. Carefully snip it into two being careful to ensure the grains dont start falling out while washing. Cut after you have washed the roe.
The fish roe must be at room temperature when you start to fry. Otherwise it will not cook evenly and start hardening up due to the shock of the cold and hot.
The oil must be hot before you place the fish roe in the pan or the skin will come out oily and not crisp.
You can rub the spices on the fish with your hands but your nails will become yellow and your hands may burn! But the result will be even spices everywhere.
In India and perhaps many other parts of the world you get many sizes and variety of fish roe dependent on the size of the fish. Some skin is thinner than others and it can burst while frying.

Fish roe is eaten as a delicacy and served as a side with other foods. It is also often pickled and savoured over a longer period of time.


For more Parsi cuisine  recipes click
Niloufer's Kitchen: Quick and Easy

Shrimp Tacos

Shrimp Tacos

Corn tortilla , Salsa and Chipotle Sauce? Served with a side of Key Lime coleslaw. Shrimp Tacos are simple to prepare. A picnic food to share with family and friends. 

6 corn Tortillas

For the Shrimp
1 lb/1/2 kilo  prawn/shrimp, shelled, de-viened and washed
salt to taste
1 tsp Jalapeno powder 
1 tsp safflower oil

Sprinkle the prawns with the salt, jalapeno powder and then toss it well into the oil. Marinate for at least 30 minutes or keep longer up to 24 hours in the refrigerator. Remember to bring it out to room temperature before cooking.

For the Coleslaw
2 cups thinly sliced cabbage
1 cucumber, into ribbons
zest of a lime
juice of half the lime 
salt to taste
2 tbsp  Chipotle  Mayonnaise


Toss all the ingredients together, and  then add the mayonnaise to coat it over.


For the Guacamole 
1 ripe large avacado
1 tomato
1 small onion or large shallot
a large handful of  fresh corriander
2 fresh mint leaves
1/2  a lime ; juiced
salt to taste

Finely chop all the ingredients and gently mix it together.

To prepare and assemble
Heat a large skillet. Add  half the shrimps and pan fry for 2 minutes on high. Turn them once. Keep another two minutes and remove. Repeat with the other half of the shrimps.
Heat each of the Tortillas on a flat crepe pan, skillet or tawa. You may keep them ready and warm in the oven if you wish. 
To fill, apply the guacamole all over the warm tortilla, place some of the prawns and top it with the slaw. Eat immediately. Do not reheat.


Tips

There are three types of Tortillas, corn, white flour and wheat flour. The corn ones are my preferred choice for this recipe.

Make the Guacamole ahead of time but keep it in an airtight container.

Keep the  ingredients of the slaw ready ahead of time but assemble it just before eating to keep it fresh and crisp.

Marinade the shrimps for 24 hours to get the flavours deeper and richer. If you cannot find Jalapeno powder use hot smoked Paprika instead. 

If you cannot find Chipotle Mayonnaise add a few drops of chipotle sauce in your mayonnaise with caution that it may be very hot.
Another Mayonnaise of choice is the Aioli which has great flavour to enjoy.

Click for Fish Tacos

For other recipes from NiloufersKitchen:Spanish Tapas


Photo courtesy
Tanya Vakil Fernandes