If you follow me on
Instagram and
baking book announcement, you would have noticed the baking frenzy which is happening in the house. Most weeknights are dedicated for cookie experiements, and weekends, in between spending time with my Popette, is also the time to do the photo shoot and fresh bakes like cakes and pastries. This inadvertently leave not much time for regular blog updates.
So I'm bringing you guest posts every now and then, not to just fill the gap but most importantly to feature those talented bloggers whose work I admire. One blogger friend who graciously guest post today is
Rafeeda. You would remember I guest posted for Rafeeda's space
Sweet Tooth Raf recently with my
Mee Bakso. Rafeeda, despite only been blogging for few months has made her space so popular with her authentic traditional dishes as well as the delights of puddings, cakes and gorgeous drinks. Rafeeda is also hosting this month's cook-along on
Kerala Kitchen FB page, so do check that out too!
So without further ado, let's see what Rafeeda has prepared for us today...
Salaam everybody, this is
Rafeeda, who blogs at The Big Sweet Tooth. If you ask me my experience in
blogging, I’ve been just around for a little more than three months, but with the
support of very good friends like Jehanne that I have got during these months,
I feel so blessed that my little page is attracting at least some attention.
A little introduction
about myself – I am a working mother of two beautiful daughters and the wife of
a very supportive gentleman. I reside in the ever growing hub of the Middle
East, Dubai and I hail from the southern state of Kerala in India. My whole
life has been over here and that explains why I love Lebanese food more than
our normal Keralite food. My blog name is very synonymous to the way I am –
with a terrible sweet tooth, which I hope some dentist could take off and throw
it far far away so that I could have some control on my ever-burgeoning
weight!! Having said that, I guess food blogging and dieting just don’t go hand
in hand!
When Jehanne suggested
about a guest post, I was really apprehensive. First of all, my pictures don’t
go even 10% to what she clicks. I am waiting for her to start her photography
tips, so that I could really take some lessons from it. Secondly, my focus is
on very simple recipes that are perfect fodder to the lazy-head that I am,
without any complications whatsoever. So I really didn’t know if I would fit
into her things. But as she wanted me to pen something down for her, which she
said would be like a “recess” for a blog, and then I thought, why not? In fact,
Jehanne is one of the most humble bloggers I have come across who is an
absolutely sweetheart and doesn’t even make you feel that she is the author of
an upcoming series of cookbooks!!! Amazing, isn’t it?
The recipe I thought I
would share with her is a very simple pudding. As usual to most of my foods,
this too has a story. I have this habit of treating my colleagues occasionally;
I should say that they are one of the biggest motivating forces behind my
little space. One time, one of them handed over a 500 ml bottle of tender
coconut water and told me, “Rafeeda, I guess you should make something with
this for us.” My head started calculating as to what all other stuff I had in
the pantry. As soon as I was back from office, I pulled out the can of coconut
milk, the other can of condensed milk and the agar-agar (china grass) strands
that was remaining. I had mentally jotted down what I was going to do. However,
as I would not have liked it, I suddenly landed up with a headache. I didn’t
want to cook, and I had already promised the dessert as well. I immediately
soaked the agar-agar in water, microwaved it to be melted, and just dumped it
along with all the ingredients in a blender and blended it to glory. I poured
it into moulds and kept it in the refrigerator overnight. Somehow, I knew
something was wrong but the egoistic me didn’t accept the fact.
The next day, I opened up
the fridge and voila, I had these still wobbly desserts staring at me. It
hadn’t set!!! Now what do I do? I went
to the office with a sober expression and told my colleagues, “Sorry guys, but
the thing I thought I would make for you didn’t come out well.” They were very
understanding and didn’t really mind that I hadn’t got it for them. But then I
was really upset. So once I was back from office, I poured all the mixture into
a saucepan and cooked till all the agar-agar melted, then poured it back into
the moulds and the next day, I had a really set pudding, which tasted awesome.
I am really glad that my colleagues enjoyed and really appreciated it.
So the moral of the story is:
Never cook when you are not in a mood to. You can screw up even a basic recipe then!!!
Double
Coconut Pudding
Serves 5
(depending on the size of the mould)
Ingredients:
500 ml tender coconut
water
400 ml coconut milk
1 can (14 oz) condensed
milk
1 packet (125 gm) cream
10 gm agar-agar strands
(china grass)
200 ml water
A pinch of salt
Sugar, if needed
Method:
Soak the agar-agar strands
in water for 15-20 minutes till soft. Combine the tender coconut water, coconut
milk, condensed milk, cream and salt and mix till smooth. Bring to heat, on
very low flame. Meanwhile, transfer the soaked agar-agar with water into
another saucepan and bring to heat. Stir occasionally both pans and cook till
the agar-agar is melted. Do not boil the coconut milk mixture, just keep it on
very low flame.
Once the agar-agar is
melted, pour it into the coconut milk mixture and continue stirring it till
well combined and the agar-agar is completely melted into the mixture. Check
for sweetness and add sugar if needed. Switch off the heat, pour it into moulds
and allow cooling. Cover with cling film and refrigerate for a couple of hours
till set.
To serve, flip it onto a
plate and serve cold with tutti-frutti and coconut slices.
Notes:
1.
I didn’t use any
sugar, so the dessert was mildly sweet. Add sugar if you want.
2.
If cream scares
you, omit it! But the cream gave it a really nice texture.
3.
You can
substitute the agar-agar with gelatin, if required.
Once again, thank you so
much, Jehanne for this beautiful opportunity to be featured on your lovely
space. I am seriously honored. All I can wish you is all the very best in your
future endeavours.
