Chocolate log

Chocolate Chili Rocky Road is a simple yet impressive dessert. Perfect to take along as a gift for a friend to your next dinner party; It can be made days ahead. What I enjoy most is the option of adding your personal favourite nut, chocolate, and biscuit! Pick the best dark chocolate you enjoy, yes you may use your favourite milk chocolate too. 
The Marzipan adds to the luxurious feel. The Chili is such a huge burst of flavour to the palate, don't frighten yourself off before having tried it out once. The pistachios give it sweetness and a punch of green and perhaps the best substitute for these are Macadamia nuts. A delicious, fun to prepare family recipe.

Serves 12 persons.

Ingredients


300 gm  broken ginger biscuits
200 gm  broken walnuts
200 gm chopped pistachio
1/2 cup  pickled sweet and slightly hot red round peppers 
200 gm marzipan in small pieces

600 gm dark chocolate
8 oz salted butter
2 tbsp golden syrup
2 tbsp cognac 

In a bowl toss together  the biscuits, walnuts, pistachios, peppers and marzipan 

Melt over simmering water the dark chocolate, butter golden syrup and cognac

Spoon the dry ingredients into the melted chocolate mixture.

Prepare a loaf pan approximately  22cm x 12cm or 9x5 inches by lining it with a overlarge piece of cling film that should be falling over the sides.

Pour into the prepared loaf pan. Put it into the fridge and allow it to solidify. Then close the cling film and leave to store.

Tips
Dried cranberries or tart cherries can be substituted for the pickled peppers.
Rum can be substituted for cognac.
Corn syrup can be substituted for golden syrup.
Crisp sweet butter biscuits are easily interchangable for ginger biscuits.
Can be frozen for up to 1 month.

For wonderful Parsi Food recipes click The Art of Parsi Cooking; reviving an ancient cuisine.

 For more amazing recipes try
Niloufer's Kitchen French Bistro
or
Niloufer's Kitchen Spanish Tapas

Readers Comments
11th October 2017
Aniheeta K. Cooper I love love the chocolate log...I've made it twice and received compliments for the same. I added candied ginger chopped finely to it with dried cranberries instead of the chilli pepper rounds...

Tangerine Mandarin Mousse

    

Narangi nu Souffle | Tangerine Mandarin Souffle

 

My childhood in a bowl! The smooth, fluffy, cloud-like texture; the subtle sweetness of orange with a burst of lemon; and the chilled dessert (always prepared in the very same souffle dish my mum had), melting in my mouth after a delicious overload of Dhansak and jhinga na kavab with all the trimmings, is my food memory of lazy Sunday afternoon meals with family and friends. The leftovers of this dessert were fought over, and it was a fight worth winning. Back in the day, homemade souffles and mousses were always treated with great envy. They were a treat on any day.   

While the freshly squeezed juice of any variety of oranges will work, mandarins or tangerines, narangis or kinoo, give it the freshest flavour.

I am sharing this amazing family recipe of over 75 years with the hope that its simplicity helps the recipe continue its journey for many decades more.

Serves 6

 

Chill a 6-cup glass bowl or 6 ramekins

 

7 g/ 0.25 oz packet of gelatine

4 eggs, separated

1 cup sugar

1 cup orange juice, freshly squeezed

1 lemon-juiced

1 lime-juiced

¼ tsp salt

1 cup whipping cream – see tips

Bloom the gelatine by dissolving the packet in 1/4 cup of water and waiting 3-5 minutes for it to swell.

In a pan, combine all the ingredients: egg yolks, beaten well; sugar; juices of the orange, lemon, and lime; and salt.

Cook the mixture over a low flame, stirring constantly until it thickens and coats the back of a spoon. Remove from the fire and, while still hot, add the bloomed gelatine, stirring until all of it is dissolved. 

Beat with an electric beater till smooth and sieve it through to ensure there are no egg or orange pieces left in the mixture. It must be chilled over an ice bath or in a chiller until it is ''just set''. It must still be very wobbly but not runny.

In another bowl, whip 1 cup of cream until it forms soft peaks but not stiff peaks. Fold the cream into the orange mixture.

In a clean bowl, whip together 2 egg whites until stiff but not dry.

Gently fold 1/3^rd of the egg whites into the orange mixture. Then add the rest of the egg whites very lightly, folding them in gently until just mixed. Pour into the chilled bowl or individual ramekins immediately, as it will start setting. Cover it with clingfilm or a lid.

Refrigerate before serving with fresh oranges. 

 Tips

To bloom properly the water should be at room temperature.

Whipping cream has 35 % fat and works well. Single cream has 18% fat, double cream has 48% fat, and clotted cream has 55% fat.

Chilling the dishes first will keep the souffle from separating or melting, especially if your kitchen is very hot.

 Photo courtesy Niloufer Mavalvala 

For more amazing recipes click and download

Niloufer's Kitchen: French Bistro

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00J2KMB4C

Read about the Huffington Post article by Niloufer's Kitchen. 
Click now The French In My Food

French Apple Tart

French Apple Tart

An apple pie without the cheese is like a kiss without the squeeze  -Park Benjamin, Sr. 
Taken from a rhyme in England in the 1750's this proverb was printed in Park Benjamin's Evening Tattler Newspaper in New York City.  Hartford Connecticut and Boston is where he was educated and first worked as a lawyer but instead moved on to becoming a publisher. This phrase has since caught on universally.  


Contrary to the name this apple tart was created by the Dutch a long time ago. It is the addition of cream cheese and icing sugar to this pie that makes it lean toward the French cuisine. 

The variations are endless, but I cannot begin to emphasize how amazingly divine this particular recipe is, for the lover of apple pies. It is relatively quick to put together. The different parts can be prepared ahead but assembly and baking must be freshly done. It can be served with cream or a dollop of ice cream. Caramel and Vanilla being the best choices. My aunt Villie who shared this with me loved the combination and so do I. 

You may read more about The French In My Food an article  published in Huffington Post.

Cream cheese topped apple tart.

Freshly baked, the aromas are simply amazing.

The pastry of this tart is softly firm!

Pastry
This will fit a 9 or a 10 inch pie plate which is 22 to 25 cms in diameter.

In a food processor using the pulse button mix until it forms a soft ball leaving the side of the bowl.
Do not over beat. Remove on a flat surface and bring it together with your hands.

2 1/2 cups flour
1/4 tsp salt
200 grams/ 7 1/2 oz salted butter
100 grams / 3 1/2 oz icing sugar
2 egg yolks
1 tsp vanilla
2 tsp fresh lemon juice

Let this stand for 20 to 30 minutes. Roll out 2/3 rd of the dough and fit it into a pie plate. Bake this for 15 minutes on 350F/180C degrees. It should be slightly golden in colour and should be under baked.
Leave to cool.

Filling
4 cups thinly sliced peeled apples (approximately 1 kg/2.2 lb)
Sprinkle them all over with lemon juice ; 1 large lemon
1 cup sugar
2 tbsp flour
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp freshly scraped nutmeg
2 tbsp golden syrup
Mix well with a spoon

50 gms/2oz cream cheese

Toss it well and fill the empty pie crust with all of the filling; top with dollops of the cream cheese all over.

Roll out the remaining 1/3 rd dough, cut into long strips and make a lattice all over. Brush each of these with some milk or an egg wash to glaze.
Bake the pie for 45 minutes. Serve warm.

Tips
Use tart and firm crisp apples like granny smith for a great result. 
Any favourite sweet cream cheese will be delicious, even the commonly found triangle ones available in the super market. If you prefer substitute goat cheese, brie, camembert, softer cheddars, any of your favourites will be perfect.
The filling will have a lot of liquid once you slice and top with sugar and lemon juice. The flour should thicken the gravy while cooking it. 
Using fresh spices adds to the depth of this delicious tart.
Serving my salted caramel ice cream or Vanilla bean ice cream is perfect. 

To read about an ancient cuisine you can purchase my cookbooks called The World of Parsi Cooking; Food Across Borders and The Art of Parsi Cooking; reviving an ancient cuisine.  
For more delicious recipes click on 
Niloufer's Kitchen: French Bistro  


Photo credit Sheriar Hirjikaka

24th April 2020
Dinaz Garda
Thank you I enjoyed baking this and it was delicious.

Kainaaz Patell

19th September 2021

Frangipane FruitTart

Frangipane Tart

What a wonderful idea when the base is the shell and the filling. How much simpler could anything be yet taste delightful.  Try this wonderful fruit tart. You can use peaches, pears, apples, plums, oranges or any of the berries. I love pears and am going to use them for this recipe.

Frangipane is originally referred to as almond cream scented with like the beautiful Frangipani trees. Named after the Marquis Frangipani it is very popular in Europe particularly in France, Italy, Spain and Switzerland to serve an assortment of individual frangipane fruit tarts in cafe`s. They continue to be my personal favourite to date. 

Prepare an 8/10 inch/ 21 cm pan with parchment lining and butter. 
or Four individual ones in a 31/2 inch/9 cm round pie plate

1 cup ground almonds
1 1/2 cups sugar
3 eggs
3/4 tsp vanilla
pinch of salt

2 small ripe pears
spice of choice,  1/4 tsp cinnamon
1 tbsp apricot marmalade +  Optionally 1 tbsp rum to glaze

In a bowl mix the dry ingredients with a wooden spoon.
Add the eggs and vanilla, Give it a good stir with the spoon. It will be a thick liquid.
Pour 3/4th in the pan. Lay out the pears fanned out, pour the remaining over and around it.
Bake in a preheated oven of 350F/180C for 30 minutes. Test with a skewer  to see if  cooked through. When still hot brush with the glaze made of the marmalade and rum. Serve warm on its own or with salted caramel ice cream or delicious creme-anglaise ar a caramel sauce.

Preparing the caramel sauce

In a pan, on a medium high flame melt

1 1/4 cup sugar

Swirl over the heat until beautifully amber coloured.

Remove from the fire and add 1 cup of cream over the caramel; This will splatter so be careful.

Add 1/4 tsp sea salt

1 tbsp of Tahitian Vanilla

Optional 2 tbsp Rum

Tips
Lightly toast the ground almonds in a warm oven for 10 minutes before mixing it with the sugar. This refreshes the almonds and ensures it does not clump together. It keeps the frangipane" light"; hence it is an important step.
Choose the spice according to the fruit. Some of the other choices are nutmeg, ginger, all spice or cardamom.

Pour it into one large or 8 to 12 small tartlets. While this recipe does not need a pastry base it works well if you prefer to have one. Reduce baking time to just 8-10 minutes if its in a mini tartlet. While picking the size of the tartlet it works best if the diameter of the tartlet is slightly larger then the length and breadth of the fresh pear you plan to top it with. You may need to buy some additional pears to cover the individual pear tarts.

To make your own sweet short crust pastry 

The skewer test must come out clean. Pierce where there is no fruit.

For more delicious recipes download 
Niloufer's Kitchen: French Bistro
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00J2KMB4C



Enjoy my published cookbook The Art of Parsi Cooking; reviving an ancient cuisine.

Kainaaz R. Patell

Today at 8:06am

Niloufer Mavalvala, thank you for this most wonderful recipe, your pear tart turned out rich and cinnamony, with the right balance of flavours. I paired it with some finger lime flavoured whipped cream.