Sugar ‘ Spice

Asian Beef Short Rib…Sugar & Spice recipes

Sugar & Spice with Yudhika - Asian Beef Short Rib served with Coconut Rice

Sugar & Spice with Yudhika – Asian Beef Short Rib served with Coconut Rice

I have a big heart for South East Asian flavors….lemongrass, coriander, coconut and chilli. On Sugar & Spice last week, I showcased these flavors dedicating an entire episode to highlight the delicious cuisine.

On the menu, a slow cooked Asian Beef Short Rib with a fragrant home-made paste, slowly simmered in coconut milk and to go with that a lightly scented coconut rice, dotted with peas. If you are short on time, the beef rib can be prepared in an AMC Speedcooker but remember to reduce the liquid to prevent the sauce turning into a soup….during the show, I used a normal pot…when I say normal I mean I use a fabulous AMC pot for this and not a pressure cooker.

Don’t forget to catch the show on Dstv’s Home Channel 176 or you can tune into Mela on Sundays on SABC 2 for a weekly dose of delicious too!

Asian Style Beef Short Rib by Yudhika Sujanani  cooked with lemongrass, chilli, garlic and coconut milk

Asian Style Beef Short Rib by Yudhika Sujanani cooked with lemongrass, chilli, garlic and coconut milk

Asian Beef Short Rib

Ingredients

1kg beef short rib

For the paste:
2 inch piece of ginger
2 stalks lemongrass, chopped (white parts only)
4 – 6 green chillies, chopped
4 garlic cloves, crushed
5 cloves
45ml sunflower oil
1 onion, chopped

50ml sunflower oil
1 – 2 cinnamon stick
1 bay leaf
30ml red chilli powder
2,5ml turmeric
10ml coarse salt

8 lime leaves

500 – 600ml coconut milk
Coriander, to garnish

Place the cloves, chillies, onion, garlic, and ginger into a blender.
Process until smooth.

Heat the sunflower oil in an AMC Pan.
Add the cinnamon sticks and bay leaf.
Once the whole spices are fragrant, add the fragrant paste.
Saute until the moisture evaporates.
Add the red chilli powder and turmeric.
Stir for 3 – 5 seconds, then add the beef short rib.
Coat the rib with the fried paste, scraping the pan to prevent burning.
Add the salt and stir well.
Pour in the coconut milk, add the lime leaves and loosen the spices that are stuck to the base of the pan.
Lower the heat and simmer until the beef is tender.
Once the beef is cooked through, simmer uncovered until the sauce thickens.
Place on a serving platter and garnish with fresh coriander.

Pea and Coconut Rice by Yudhika Sujanani

Pea and Coconut Rice by Yudhika Sujanani

Pea and Coconut Rice

Ingredients

50ml sunflower oil
45ml desiccated coconut
375ml basmati rice
600ml water
150ml coconut milk
Salt to season
250ml frozen peas
Coriander, to garnish

Heat the sunflower oil in an AMC pot until warm (not hot).
Add the desiccated coconut and stir to heat.
Add the curry leaves and stir for a few seconds.
Stir the basmati rice into the fried coconut.
Add the water, coconut milk and salt.
Reduce the heat to low and cover with a tight fitting lid.
Once the rice has steamed through, add the frozen peas and cover with a tight fitting lid.
Check the rice, ensuring it does not stick to the bottom of the pot and burn.
Leave to stand for 2 – 3 minutes until heated through.
Garnish with fresh coriander.

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Sugar & Spice with Yudhika: Almond Crusted Paneer

Yudhika prepares Almond Crusted Paneer on the Home Channel's  Sugar & Spice

Yudhika prepares Almond Crusted Paneer on the Home Channel’s Sugar & Spice

Caught up in the whirlwind of cooking classes, tv shoots and just amazing times, blogging sometimes takes a bit of a beating! I am back on track and please stay tuned to the blog, social media and the Home Channel to catch up on the latest episodes of Sugar & Spice on DSTV’s 176.

Here is a recipe from last week’s show, focusing on vegetarian meals! I marinated paneer in a tandoori style paste and patted on a handful of flaked almonds to form a crust…bake in a hot oven and serve with mint chutney! You have the perfect and quite unusual oven baked paneer.

Marinated Paneer crusted with flaked almonds ready for the oven....Sugar & Spice with Yudhika on the Home Channel

Marinated Paneer crusted with flaked almonds ready for the oven….Sugar & Spice with Yudhika on the Home Channel

Almond Crusted Paneer

Ingredients

4 litres full Cream Milk, preferably Clover
180ml white vinegar

Boil milk in a thick bottomed pot and stir continuously to prevent the milk from sticking.
Once the milk comes up to the boil, remove from the heat.
Pour the white vinegar around the pot and gently move the milk – do not stir.
If the mixture still looks milky, add a little more vinegar.
Leave aside for 30 minutes.
The curd should float to the top and form a thick layer.
Place the curd in a strainer and use the back of a spoon to press out the excess whey.
Tip the curd into a muslin cloth and mould it into a ‘cake’.
Place the paneer on a chopping board and place a large pot filled with water on top.
This will help the excess moisture drain away.
Leave to drain for 2 hours.
Place the paneer in a zip seal bag and store in the refrigerator for up to 2 days.

Yudhika’s tips:
Always use full cream milk when making paneer.
Leave the paneer on the draining board while it is being pressed – the whey can cause a mess.
If the paneer is too soft, leave it unwrapped in the refrigerator to firm up.

For the marinade

60ml chickpea flour
10ml Curry me Home Magic Masala or Indian Rub
20ml red chilli powder
2,5ml turmeric
5ml ajwain seeds (carom or lovage)
10ml garam masala
5ml ground black pepper
60ml fresh cream
50ml yoghurt

50g flaked almonds
Salt, to season
Sunflower oil, to drizzle

Place the spices, chickpea flour, yoghurt and cream into a bowl.
Stir well until the marinade is smooth.

Place a piece of baking paper onto a roasting pan or baking tray.
Drizzle with a little sunflower oil and spread two tablespoons of the marinade over the paper.
Place the paneer on top and coat in the remaining marinade.
Season with salt and gently press the flaked almonds over the marinade.
Drizzle with sunflower oil.

Bake in a preheated oven at 200 degrees celsius for 12 minutes or until the paneer is golden brown.
Serve with mint chutney.

Spicing it up on Sugar & Spice…Saffron Apple Cake

Yudhika Sujanani's Portuguese episode on Sugar & Spice - DSTv 176

Yudhika Sujanani’s Portuguese episode on Sugar & Spice – DSTv 176

We are on the 5th episode of Sugar & Spice on DSTv’s Home Channel. I have been completely overwhelmed by the response and the emails and messages have been heart warming. Thanks to all of you for following the show and including some of my recipes in your cooking repertoire.

I do cook a fair bit of Indian dishes everyday, whether at Holi Cow or for my family…we love traditional Indian food but that doesn’t mean it isn’t the only cuisine that I prepare. Italian, Middle Eastern and Moroccan recipes are some of my favourites but also Portuguese cuisine! Portuguese food and I don’t mean the Nando’s type peri peri chicken, is popular and the Lusitoland festival shows just how popular it is.

On this season of Sugar & Spice, I have been stepping out of my curry zone and doing some of my other favourites with you…I challenged myself only allowing two Indian themed episodes. The team decided on Italian, Moroccan, Chocolate, Mediterranean, South East Asian and a whole episode dedicated to the love of chocolate!

This week features a Portuguese influenced Brazilian Pork and Bean stew with orange and cocoa….yes, it does sound a bit like a dessert and not a common combination for the South African palate but believe me, it does work like a charm. The Mozambican Style Prawns cooked in a buttery juice with onions, garlic and stock….and a Saffron Apple Cake with home-made custard!

We have the Portuguese to thank for making spices a part of global cuisine….and we also have them to thank for the Goan Indian Vindaloo….more about the Lamb Vindaloo later!

No matter what the theme is, the Home Channel together with Spar and AMC Cookware have given me an opportunity to share my love of all things spicy with you….it has been an amazing adventure so far and looking forward to the next season!

Yudhika's Saffron Apple Cake on The Home Channel

Yudhika’s Saffron Apple Cake on The Home Channel

Here is the recipe for the Saffron Apple Cake…this is a beautiful fruity cake and the appearance makes it impressive. You can use mixed spice, cloves, and cardamom to flavour the batter but I stuck to the classic cinnamon. For more recipes from Sugar & Spice, log onto http://www.thehomechannel.co.za and click on the food show tab.

Ready to serve...Yudhika's Saffron Apple Cake drizzled with home-made custard!

Ready to serve…Yudhika’s Saffron Apple Cake drizzled with home-made custard!

Saffron Apple Cake

Ingredients

Few strands of saffron
6 large Granny Smith Apples
15ml lemon juice
5 eggs, separated
225g butter
225g sugar
30ml ground almonds or coconut flour
370g cake flour
185ml full cream milk, room temperature
15ml baking powder
5ml vanilla paste or essence
5ml cinnamon
Pinch of salt

30ml sugar
Icing sugar, to dust cake

Pre-heat oven to 170 degree celsius.
Grease and line a 10 inch loose bottomed cake tin.

Heat the saffron strands in a dry pan for 30 seconds or microwave for 10 seconds.
Leave the saffron to cool and then crush lightly with your fingertips.
Peel and core the apples.
Cut the apples in half and slice thinly.
Lightly toss in the lemon juice to prevent the apples from discolouration.

Beat the egg whites until foamy and gradually add 15ml of from the 225g of weighed sugar until stiff.

Cream the butter until light in colour and gradually add the sugar.
Continue beating until light and fluffy.
Add the egg yolks with a teaspoon of flour and beat for a few seconds
Add the almond or coconut flour.
Gradually add the flour alternating with milk.
Add the baking powder, salt, cinnamon, crushed saffron and salt.
Beat well until the batter is smooth.
Lastly fold in half the stiffly beaten egg whites to ‘loosen’ the batter.
Fold in the remaining egg whites.
Pour the batter into the prepared tin and smooth with a spatula.
Arrange the apples starting out at the centre and angling each piece working in an outward concentric pattern so its starts to look like a flower.
Use the smaller pieces to fill in the gaps – do not press the apple slices deep into the pastry. The should have a raised appearance.
Sprinkle 30ml sugar over the apples and bake in a pre-heated oven for 30 – 35 minutes or until the cake is golden brown and shrinks away from the side of the tin.
Leave to cool slightly and dust with icing sugar.

Serve with home made custard.

French Style Custard

250ml fresh cream
5ml vanilla paste
2 egg yolks
70ml sugar

Heat the cream with vanilla paste, stirring continuously to prevent it from scorching.
Once the cream comes to the boil, place the egg yolks and sugar in a mixing bowl.
Mix the egg yolks and sugar into a paste and pour the hot cream over – this is an important step, do not add the eggs into the hot cream as this will cause the eggs to scramble.
Whisk the mixture and pour back into the pot.
Place the pot back on low heat and whisk continuously until the custard thickens.
Remove from the heat.
Lay a piece of plastic wrap over the surface of the custard to prevent a skin from forming.
Serve drizzled over the sliced saffron apple cake.

Sugar, spice and all things nice….Date Chocolate and Pecan Pie

Sugar & Spice with Yudhika Sujanani on DSTV's Home Channel 176

Sugar & Spice with Yudhika Sujanani on DSTV’s Home Channel 176

It’s been an eventful week with the first episode of a whole new season of Sugar ‘n Spice airing on The Home Channel. It’s pretty special because up until now, I have been doing short food inserts on Saffron TV, Great Expectations on Etv and appearing on SABC 2’s MELA! When the Home Channel approached me earlier this year, I was gobsmacked at their offer and thrilled to have my first very own show!

Taking it up a few notches from a food insert, it’s taken us 4 months to complete the series and it’s been a roller coaster ride with my family, team and the crew! I have once again been incredibly lucky to work with such amazing people from the Channel….big thanks to Michael Porter and Simphiwe Gamede, the crew…Africa Vezi and Sipho, who tolerated many crazy out take moments, takes and re-takes, and the awesome team at Holi Cow….for the early mornings, long nights, and my long prep sheets! And then, there are those special people who always find a moment in their day to send me a beautiful message of love and encouragement…thanks to my the people out there on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter for the food love and sharing my posts and links…thanks and thanks again! And my family, who I am most thankful for….what you see on telly isn’t just me, you see the team effort with me being the ‘front lady’ and that also includes the crazy make up artist/stylist…Stavroula Georgakis! Spar has once again sponsored our ingredients and AMC Cookware just keep me cooking in their fabulous pots! I just realized how big this team really is…it’s huge!

Episode one...Pecan pie with dates and chocolate by Yudhika Sujanani

Episode one…Pecan pie with dates and chocolate by Yudhika Sujanani

In the first episode, we spiced up old favourites…leftover butternut was recycled into a delicious salad with hazelnut dukkah and prawns, a french chicken casserole got a spicy makeover with saffron, chilli, cumin and coriander…and the classic pecan pie was turned into a chocolately one with dates too!

For more information and recipes from the show, check out The Home Channel’s website or follow them on Facebook and Twitter, http://www.thehomechannel.co.za/shows/food/sugar-and-spice

Yudhika's Sugar & Spice...check out the show times on DSTV's Channel 176

Yudhika’s Sugar & Spice…check out the show times on DSTV’s Channel 176

I first made this recipe for Eid last year. It’s fruity, crunchy, buttery and purely decadent! Here is the recipe for pecan pie with dates and dark chocolate.

A slice of gooey pecan nut pie with dates and chocolate...by Yudhika Sujanani for Sugar & Spice

A slice of gooey pecan nut pie with dates and chocolate…by Yudhika Sujanani for Sugar & Spice

Chocolate Date and Pecan Pie

Pastry:

120g butter
200g cake flour
65g sugar
1 egg

Rub the flour and butter together until the mixture resembles bread crumbs. Add the sugar and mix. Lightly beat the egg and knead gently into a soft dough.
Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and leave to rest in the refrigerator for 20 minutes.
Roll the pastry on a lightly dusted work surface until it is about 5mm thick and is large enough to line the bottom and sides of a 23cm loose bottomed pie tin.
Line the tin with the pastry and press down into the base and about 3,5cm up the sides.
Prick the base of the pastry with a fork and leave to rest in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.
Pre-heat the oven to 180 degrees celsius.
Place a piece of baking paper over the paper, cover with dried beans and bake blind for 10 minutes.
Remove the beans and the paper and bake for a further 10 minutes.
Leave the pasty case to cool completely.

For the filling:

125g butter
175g brown sugar
75ml golden syrup
3 large eggs
1 cinnamon stick
200g pecan nuts
90g chopped dark chocolate, chopped
75g chopped dates, chopped

Whipped cream, to serve

Place the butter in a 28cm AMC Chef’s Pan, and melt on low heat.
Add the brown sugar and golden syrup.
Stir until the sugar dissolves.
Leave the mixture to cool till slightly warm.
Remove the cinnamon stick.
Lightly whisk the eggs, then add the melted ingredients.
Scatter the pecan nuts, chocolate and dates over the bake pie crust, then pour over the egg mixture.
Bake for 20 minutes at 150 degrees celsius, then reduce to 140 degrees and bake for 30 minutes.
Leave the pie to stand for a minute and then remove from the tin.
Serve slices of the pie warm with whipped cream.

Sugar ‘n Spice Recipes – Yudhika’s Lamb Pizza Pie

Yudhika's Lamb Pizza Pie

Yudhika’s Lamb Pizza Pie

I love a good pie but it always leaves me feeling a bit guilty…too much butter or pastrex that is just a no no! Here is a great recipe for a delicious lamb mince-pie that has all the goodness of the mince with an oil free dough!

I have tried making this recipe in a few different ways…firstly with a buttery puff pastry…that made me join a 3 hour spinning class! It was so good but so bad for my girly curves. Then, I tried a cooked filling…which I thought turned out a little too dry after baking…I then marinated the mince in one of my exotic pastes made with a nifty Kenwood stick blender! While I was fiddling around, I ran out of time and ended up sandwiching the uncooked mince between the dough. It worked like a charm…the pastry was crispy and the meat filling was tender and deliciously moist.

The moral of my little blog is that….sometimes you can stumble across the greatest recipes when short on time…be prepared to be pleasantly surprised!

A slice of the pie???

A slice of the pie???

Lamb Pizza Pie

Dough:
10ml dried yeast
175ml warm water
5ml fine salt
250g cake flour

Lamb filling
500g lean lamb mince
125ml chopped coriander
10ml red chili powder
10ml smoked paprika
10ml crushed ginger
4 cloves garlic
2 green chillies
1 onion, diced
1 bay leaf
5ml cumin seeds
Salt and pepper, to season
40ml freshly squeezed lemon juice
60ml olive oil
60ml crispy fried onion slices
Spar Extra virgin olive oil, to glaze pie 30ml sesame seeds

Here’s how:

Combine the yeast and water.
Stir until the yeast granules dissolves.
Place the flour and salt in the Kenwood mixer with the dough hook attachment.
When the yeast mixture starts to bubble, add the yeast mixture and process until smooth (this will take a few minutes).
Grease the mixing bowl with non stick spray.
Place the dough back in the bowl and cover with plastic wrap or a damp tea towel.
Leave the dough in a warm place until it doubles in size – this should take about 30 – 45 minutes.

While the dough is resting, prepare the filling.
Place the coriander and spices in a large glass jug.
Add the garlic, ginger, green chilli, cumin seeds and the bay leaf.
Pour the lemon juice and olive oil into the jug and process with a Kenwood stick blender until smooth.
Place the lamb in a mixing bowl.
Pour the freshly ground paste into the bowl and mix well to combine.

Once the dough has doubled in size, divide it into two portions.
Roll the dough into two rounds about 30cm in diameter.
Place the second round on a greased baking tray.
Place the mince over the round of dough.
Sprinkle the brown onion and fresh coriander over the filling.
Spread the filling evenly and then cover the filling with the second round of dough.
Gently pull the dough and tuck it under the base of the pie.
Pour the olive oil over the top of the pie and use a pastry brush to oil the dough.
Sprinkle the sesame seeds over the pie.
Bake in a preheated oven at 180 degrees celsius for 20 – 25 minutes.
Leave in the hot oven for 5 minutes.
Slice and serve immediately.