[ Beat the heat ] I called my friends over for a dinner before Ramzan (Ramadan). Due to the heat everyone wanted easy cool food. I made some salads, which will be featured in Bangla Hues pretty soon. But today, I will give you the Strawberry ice-cream recipe, I did for them. Well, you can call it fro-yo, ice-cream or even a cooler. It has essentially 3 main ingredients. However you can always improvise. I added two magic ingredients to make it more textured and balanced. All you need is some frozen strawberries, rich creamy Greek yogurt and condense milk.…
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[ Steaming goodness ] Two years back, during my sons’s activity project I had to learn making Bhapa Pitha. For a strange reason I always thought making Pitha (Bangladeshi desserts) is tough. Now that I can make an entire cake and decorate it too, I know making pitha can be tiresome but never impossible. Hence these days I make pitha at home, and don’t drive my mother in law crazy to make pithas for me. Bhapa Pitha is perhaps the most famous pitha. It is essentially a rice cake filled with molsasses and coconut. But I don’t like coconut in…
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[ The glamorous Pav ] Watching chefs make pavlova on screen always made me want to eat. I am not foond of sweets much, hence never tried it. Few days back I invited my cousins and wanted to cook unusual food. Thus, I set my mind on Pavlova. The reason is a) it adds glamour and b) I am sick of cake. I followed Nigella Lawson’s recipe with my twist. This recipe can feed up to 5 to 6 people comfortably. Beating the egg white is a tricky thing. Remember to keep the utensils grease free for meringue to stiffen…
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[ A slice of ovaltine ] I have realized, I can’t live without cake. I thrive on cake, be it baking or eating it. I am addicted to the warm smell of freshly baked cake. I started baking because I love to eat cake. Now, as it is my business, i get to eat less and bake more. However, if I am not doing orders for few days, I suffer from cakelessness and bake to boost my mood. In office my afternoon snack is a cup of milk tea with Star Bakery’s vanilla loaf cake. It makes a delicious afternoon…
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[ Little munch little tangy ] This is my first post of a 10 episode salad fiesta. I am very much fond of salads. These recipes will be filling and healthy at the same time. You can consider this as a reminder to myself to eat fresh healthy food. There are times I have weird cravings. I feel I will die if I cannot have them, this cashew nut salad was one of those. First, this is something I will have any given moment any day. Second, this is very easy to make and makes a great dish for small…
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[ Oozy Boozy Classic Christmas Cake ] It is almost 30 days to Christmas, and time for the perfect Christmas cake. This has been a ritual in my home to make cake and cookies for Christmas. In Bangladesh, not many people bake Christmas cakes. But my love for cakes has just given me another good reason to dance around in my kitchen and prepare the ultimate fruit cake infused in orange juice or brandy. My friends come over on Christmas Eve and we eat together and cut the cake with a bang. I love to decorate it with whipped cream…
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[ Yogurt in a cup ] I have always loved yogurt, and of course the sweet one, preferably bought from my favourite sweet shop. The creamy, thick sweet and little tangy flavour was my staple, that I regularly took with Chira or pressed rice. My mom always make yogurt in home. Every night she sets her milk in a left over yogurt mix for next day’s intake. But as she used to make sour one, I preferred to avoid it always. Sour yogurt used to make me vomit. Until very recently, two three years back, I first tried to eat…
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[ Chocolate cup cake ! ] I have been baking like a mad person for last 4 days. I have a big order and hence the madness. My hands are aching and can sleep for hours, I am so tired. While working on my cakes I decided to give a post on chocolate cup cakes. I have tired a zillion recipes, I still try new chocolate cake recipes whenever I get one. Hence I have come to a conclusion there is nothing called a perfect chocolate cake recipe. I like the chocolate cake that has, chocolate and coffee bitterness,…
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Aamra Pickle ! Aamra (June plum or dondong) a local fruit you get almost everyday of the year but to get the best kind, look for it now. Sharaat gives you some of the best Bangladeshi fruits like peyara (guava), aamra and aata (custard apple). I have already made 60 jars of guava jam as a part of my preserving ritual. Now it is the turn for aamra. Aamra, a natural source of vitamin C. This is rich with antioxidant properties which help to prevent various types of cancer, improves digestion and immune system. Aamra makes excellent pickle. It…
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Spaghetti with crab meat Just got some crab meat from market today. I am dying for some crab linguine, however as I don’t have linguine I will substitute it with some simple spaghetti. I have my version for it, I usually don’t go by rules when I cook. I cook what tastes good to me. You can get crabs in almost all super stores. Some keep washed clean crabs; some even keep just crab meats. I got one of those crab meat ones. For cooking I use my chili oil. My olive oil is infused in some real hot red…