Strawberry Pie Dessert - Welcoming The Summer

Strawberry, strawberry and strawberry everywhere be it cosmetics or desserts, even shakes. I just love the flavor and smell of fresh strawberries. Every time I find something of that flavor or smell, I just but that product. Few days back, luckily I got a pound of fresh ripe strawberries from the local grocery shop. I can't tell how happy I was.

The other day was Valentine's Day. So time to celebrate love. And to make my love feel special, I deiced on ordering his favorite food. The time I saved from cooking the meal, I used it in making the dessert. After all the saying goes like - All's well that ends well.

Strawberries helped me in pleasing his taste buds, as I made a romantic Strawberry Pie. Romantic being the day of love and as its wonderful aroma and flavor set the mood. I tried making my first tart or crust. And the filling was all love. These days you can get the crust from food shops too and the dessert will be ready in minutes.

Ingredients

For Crust

1 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup butter, cut into small cubes
1/3 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt

For Filling

1 bar cream cheese (softened)
1/4 cup sugar
3-4 cup strawberries, hulled and halved
3 tbsp corn starch

Makes 8 servings

Method

* Blend flour, butter, sugar, and salt until moist crumbs form in a food processor for around a minute.
* Transfer the dough to a 9-inch round tart pan with a removable bottom.
* With floured fingers, press dough evenly into pan and up sides. Dip a dry-measuring cup in flour, and use it to press dough firmly into bottom and against sides of pan.
* Freeze crust until firm for about 10 to 15 minutes.
* Preheat oven to 350°
* Using a fork, prick crust all over. Bake until golden, 25 to 30 minutes, pressing down gently once or twice with a spoon during baking if crust puffs up. Cool completely in pan.
* For making the filling, in a medium bowl, mix cream cheese and sugar until smooth; spread mixture evenly in bottom of baked crust (still in tart pan).
* Chop half of the strawberries and place them into a saute pan
* Add one cup of sugar combined with three tablespoons of corn starch.
* Cook strawberries and sugar/cornstarch on medium heat.
* Using a whisk, crush strawberries as they soften and continue cooking on low heat for 10 minutes. Remove from heat.
* Take the other half of the strawberries and into the sauce prepared.
* Pour the strawberry pie filling into your perfectly baked crust.
* Chill the pie for about 2 hours.




Note: To prevent the delicate crust from breaking, leave it in the pan while assembling and chilling tart. Remove the tart from mold tart just before serving.

Low Calorie Chocolate Mousse For A Perfect Summer Dinner

Weekends are a great way to relax and to hangout with old friends. From the last many weekends I have been relaxing. So this weekend I chose to invite two of our friends, in fact my husband's. But over a period of time I have gelled with the husband and wife so well that it seems we have been friends from years. For a lovely couple like this, with whom I and my husband really love to spend our time, I had to take utmost care in preparing the food to their likes.

After lingering on a lot many dishes, I decided on the menu. Then started for the preparations. I checked on the ingredients. Most of them were there. What were not, I sent hubby dear to pick them from the market. Good music, engrossing chit chats and the warmth of old friends is the quintessential core of perfect entertaining on a superb weekend. And hence, finalizing the menu is not just the end of the worries for the host. Setting the table comes next with deciding on the cutlery, dinnerware and the decor.

Initially I was a bit skeptical about the dishes I chose. But the dinner was delightful, and the conversations we shared from movies to our daily woes over fresh was simply exceptional. I was glad that they enjoyed each of the dishes. It started with garlic vegetable soup followed by pesto pasta and baked garlic mushrooms. Ended with the drooling chocolate mousse. I preferred to make everything quick and light so that I have time to chat with them and not get tied in the kitchen.

Ingredients

4 cup skimmed milk
1½ cup water for china grass
10 grams unflavored china grass (chopped)
2 tbsp sweetener (sugar free)
3 tbsp cocoa powder
2 tbsp low fat milk for cocoa powder
2 tsp coffee powder
2 tbsp warm water for coffee powder
2 tbsp low fat cream

Method

* In a pan combine china grass with water and cook on low heat till it is dissolved, stirring from time to time.
* Strain with a strainer and let it cool.
* Dissolve cocoa powder in 2 tbsp milk and coffee powder in 2 tbsp water, separately.
* Boil milk in a pan.
* Add the china grass mixture, sweetener, cocoa powder paste, coffee powder paste. Mix well and cook over a low flame for around 10 minutes, stirring continuously.
* Remove from heat and let it cool for few minutes.
* Add the cream and mix well.
* Pour the mixture into small cups or bowls.
* Chill them for 4 to 5 hours.
* Garnish with chocolate sprinkles. Serve chilled.

Custard Trifle - A Sweet Celebration

The occasion was Rakshabandhan, a festival for brothers and sisters. My brother came. Its been a month since I last met him. Hence, the time was indeed special and so I had to make something special too to match up with the occasion and taste buds of my brother, who is a great foodie and had a sweet tooth like me. So what best came to my mind was a Trifle, excellent for a summer dessert with layers of cream custard , fruits, mass of sponge cake and juice of fruits.

Custard Trifle is more easy, if you could get a ready made sponge cake from the market. It is one of the typical desserts of the English cuisine. The ingredients are distributed in layers by the sponge cake as separation with cream or custard as the last layer. I wanted a break from chocolate, so i opted for a custard one. With small variations, you could make a chocolate, lemon, or strawberry trifle. Although making a trifle is very easy but to make the best trifle you should star preparations a day before.

Ingredients
1/2 kg sponge cake
3-4 tbsp orange juice
1 apple chopped
2-3 bananas chopped
5-6 strawberries chopped
5-6 raspberries
1/2 cup pineapple chopped
2-3 vanilla custard powder
2 cup whole milk
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 cup whipped cream
few nuts chopped

Method

Making Custard

* Boil milk in a heavy bottom saucepan.
* Lower the heat and add 2-3 tbsp of sugar according to your taste
* Meanwhile dissolve custard powder in 2-3 tbsp milk.
* Add this in the milk. Keep on stirring till it becomes thick.
* Remove from heat and let it cool.

Making Trifle

* Mix all the fruits and sprinkle some sugar on them. Refrigerate them for around one hour.
* Slice the cake in 2-3 layers horizontally. Place one layer in the base of a deep large glass bowl.
* Pour 1 tbsp of orange juice on the cake layer.
* Spoon the fruits over the sponge. Spread the custard over the fruit. Then add another layer of cake following the same process.
* Leave the flavor to develop overnight in the fridge.
* Whip the cream until it is firm, fold in sugar to taste, and spoon on top of the custard.
* Sprinkle chopped nuts and some fresh fruits to decorate.

Rice Pudding With Orange Flavoring

There are many of us who have a strong urge to have something sweet from time to time. And when we are invited for dinner by any of our friends, colleagues or relative, what we look forward to is desserts. And I am just that kind of a person. No matter how good might be the food, I make sure that I have space reserved in my tummy for the dessert. Although any dessert means a lot of calories even if most of the steps have been carried out to reduce the calories. Still that has no relation with the craving.

To end this craving I made, rice pudding this weekend finally. And while I was making it, a wonderful thing happened, it started raining. Initially I wanted to have a chilled dessert but when I was through, I couldn't resist and ate it when it was warm. Rains had made the temperature dip and in that cool weather when I had this warm dessert, it was such a heavenly feeling. The orange flavoring gave such a wonderful aroma and a change from the traditional rice pudding.

Ingredients

For rice pudding
1 cup rice
3 cup milk
1 cup cream
1/2 cup coconut milk (optional)
1 teaspoon cardamom powder
3 tbsp caster sugar

For flavoring

1 cup orange juice
2 tbsp honey

Method

* Before making rice pudding, wash and soak rice in water for half an hour.
* First prepare the flavoring. For it in a saucepan add orange juice and honey and boil on medium heat till it thickens like syrup.
* Set it aside to cool.
* Take another saucepan and boil milk.
* Drain and add rice to the boiling milk, reduce heat to low and cook for some time, stirring continuously.
* Cook till the rice is soft and the milk is thickened.
* Add cardamom powder, cream and sugar. Stir and set it aside to cool.
* Refrigerate for an hour.
* Serve in chilled bowls with orange flavoring on top.
* If you want you can add chopped nuts.

Note: Coconut milk not only thickens the pudding but also make it tastier.

Raspberry Parfait - A Fresh Fruit Dessert

Its been raining lately, humidity is on the high and heat is still on giving the signal that summer us no where to go. Back from work, I was craving for having something chilled and as I have a sweet tooth so of course a dessert. But was in no mood to make something elaborate which would take most of my time and energy. Then came to my rescue Parfaits. Easy to make and yummy to eat. A parfait is just a dessert made with by combining layers of cream, ice cream, fruits, nuts, syrups and served in tall glasses.

Layered desserts with lot of fruits and cream are so elegant that whenever you serve them, guests get excited even before tasting them. Here I have made raspberry parfait. But you can make others also replacing raspberry with cherry or blackberry or by combining all the berries.

Ingredients

2 cup fresh raspberries
2 tbsp granulated sugar
1 cup cream cheese
2 tbsp caster sugar
1 cup heavy (whipping) cream
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Method

* Wash and drain raspberries and place in a small bowl.
* Add granulated and set aside for some time.
* In a mixer add cream cheese, vanilla extract and caster sugar and blend or add in a bowl and whip till the mixture is fluffy.
* Slowly pour the cream, beating until all of it is mixed and the mixture is thickened.
* Crush the raspberries a little with a spoon or you can blend them too.
* In chilled champagne glasses or wineglasses place a layer of raspberries followed by the creamy mixture. Repeat this as much as you want with creamy layer in the end.
* If you want it to be more chilled, then refrigerate it for half an hour and then serve in glasses.
* Garnish it with a fresh raspberry and serve.

Hazelnut Affogato - The Perfect Coffee Dessert

Served at many Italian restaurants or coffee shops, an affogato is an espresso based dessert or a beverage. Excellent for summers. " Affogato al cafe" means "drowned in coffee" as per the Italian language. You can make an affogato at home all you need is a strong coffee or espresso and scoops of ice cream. For topping you can even add different syrups or caramels.

Hazelnut affogato is a treat in summers. Easy to make, it is equipped with the goodness of hazelnuts, the best known source for Vitamin E. You can either add hazelnut syrup or hazelnut caramel. Both go well in affogato. The good thing is that you can further experiment to make different affogatos, only thing to keep in mind is the ratio of various coffee drinks and ice cream flavors. So brew some coffee and make great affogatos to beat the heat.

Ingredients

* 2 tbsp espresso shot
* 2 scoops vanilla ice cream
* 3 tsp hazelnut syrup

Method

* Take chilled glasses and add the espresso shot in it.
* Over it add the scoops of vanilla ice cream.
* Pout hazelnut caramel or syrup over the ice cream
* If you want you can garnish with chocolate chips.

Strawberry Yogurt - A Healthy Summer Dessert

Strawberry yogurt with strawberry and yogurt as main ingredients is a healthy dessert in summers. Yogurt being an excellent source of protein, calcium, riboflavin and vitamin B 12 and strawberry being rich in folic acid and numerous other minerals. Hence, both form an excellent healthy combination.


Ingredients

2 cup yogurt
1/2 cup strawberry chopped
1/2 cup milk
1 tbsp custard powder (vanilla or strawberry)
3 tbsp sugar/sweetener
1 tbsp honey
few fresh strawberries

Method

* Take 2 tbsp of milk and dissolve custard powder in it
* In a pan add remaining milk, sugar and the already made custard powder
* On a low flame cook while stirring continuously till the custard thickens and becomes creamy
* Let it cool for 10 minutes
* In a blender blend chopped strawberries, then add yogurt, honey and custard and again blend for a minute
* Pour in chilled bowls and let it cool in a refrigerator for half an hour
* Serve chilled, garnishing with fresh strawberries

French Toasts With Cream And Syrup

This is an excellent dessert with the toasts being moist, soft, and rich in flavor, a perfect ending to summer dinners. Along with cream they just taste delicious. The source of this recipe is my mother. For every girl, her mother is her source of inspiration in most of the things in life be it food, life or marriage. Food is one thing which we learn from our mothers, by doing initially small tasks then making great meals.

She usually made french toasts with left over sugar syrup from other desserts in an effort to finish off the syrup. When breads are properly soaked in syrup they are moist and soft. A single slice is enough for a dessert after meals for a person. So, depending upon the number of guests slices can be taken. Sugar syrup can be made in advance and stored in refrigerator.

Ingredients

* 4-5 slices of bread
* Oil to fry
* 1 cup sugar
* 2 cup water
* fresh whipped cream

Method

* Remove the sides of the bread slices
* Deep fry them in a wok till they turn brown
* Take a skillet and mix water and sugar in it
* Boil on medium heat till the sugar dissolves and forms a thick syrup
* Let the bread slices and sugar cool
* Soak the slices in the syrup for half an hour and place it in the refrigerator until
cold
* Serve with freshly whipped cream and chopped nuts

Toffee Date Pudding - A Summer Dessert

I know my readers must be thinking that I have a sweet tooth. But that is true. I just love to have desserts after a sumptuous dinner. This is almost a craving. If someone invites me for dinner then a sweet dish is a must. I just love chilled sweets in summers. First of all they help in digesting and then make the meal complete. This is a recipe which is easy to make although takes a little time. Go gooey with this dessert. In summers you can serve it chilled and in winters you can serve it hot.




Ingredients
For the pudding base
1 cup seedless dates
1 cup boiling water
1 teaspoon soda bicarbonate
1/2 cup flour
5 eggs
1 tbsp butter
2 tbsp brown sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 tbsp vanilla essence
For Toffee Sauce
3 tbsp sugar
1/4 cup water
1 tbsp butter
1 tbsp glucose
1/2 cup cream
1/4 cup milk

Method
* Boil the dates in water. Then add soda bicarbonate
* Keep this mixture in refrigerator for few hours before making the pudding
* In a bowl mix butter and brown sugar foolowed by eggs.
* Add one fourth of the flour. Pour the soak dates and water in it and mix properly.
* Cream in the remaining flour and add baking powder followed by vanilla essence.
* Butter the baking mould and pour the mixture in it.
* Bake for 30 to 40 minutes at 160 degrees.
* For toffee sauce cook sugar, water and glucose till it turns into caramel color.
* Add butter and remove from heat.
* Add milk and cream together to the caramel. Mix it properly.
* Whisk till the mixture is smooth.
* In a plate place the pudding base first, then pour toffe sauce on it.
* Garnish with few nuts befor serving.

Mango Pudding - A Delicious Summer Dessert

India is the largest producer of Mangoes. But mango lovers are found all around the world. Because of its tasty juice, flavor and fragrance, they form a key ingredient of various desserts and drinks. Mangoes are not only delicious but are rich in vitamins, minerals and anti-oxidants. Also are high in fiber but low in calories and sodium.
This recipe is for all the mango lovers and the credit for this recipes total goes to my husband, who not only discovered it but also taught me. Normally mango puddings contain gelatin, but that is only for giving it the right shape. I love my mango pudding without it and I am sure others will also love it. Very easy to make and delicious to eat as a dessert after dinner in summer nights.

Ingredients

* 3 cup sugar
* 3 pureed fresh mangoes
* 2-3 cup milk (or 1 cup condensed milk)
* 2 eggs

Method

* In a large bowl, mix the mango pulp, milk, sugar & eggs
* Blend the mixture in a mixer
* Then in a vessel boil the mixer on medium heat till it gets to somewhat thick
consistency
* Let the mixture cool
* Then pour the mixture into small molds or serving bowls and chill in a
refrigerator until set for at least 3 hours.
* Before serving garnish it with mango slices