Whipped cream from Dairy whipping cream.

       Hi friends, today's post is about Dairy whipping cream and how to whip them correctly to get those beautiful STIFF peaks.  Though lots of people prefer non-dairy version over dairy, because of the stability the former offers, nothing can beat the delicious taste of Dairy whipped cream.  I already have posted whipped cream from Amul tetrapack.  Likewise, for Instant cream from powder and non-dairy cream.  Please feel free to check those links.  I have included step-by-step pics for the cream, and yes look at those beautiful swirls below, aren't they gorgeous?  <3  <3

When it comes to Baking, it is a constant practice that leads us to a mouth-watering treat.  And yes, when I first made a batch, I flopped.  Following which, I made my second batch to get those beautiful swirls.  I have included my flopped attempt in my content as well so that you guys can be cautious and need not repeat the same.  

Dairy whipping cream - attempt#1

Ingredients used are
1/2 cup of Dairy cream (I used Saudia brand)
2 tbsp caster sugar

Before whipping cream, I refrigerated my bowl and blades for an hour.  In the chilled bowl, I added the cream.

And yes started to whip, whip and whip.

After a minute or two, gradually I added sugar while beating.  

After the sugar got over, my whipping continued for few minutes, but there was no sign of stiff peaks.  

The blades when taken out, went flat indicating no peaks.  I had no other way than to discard this batch and start fresh.

Dairy whipping cream-  attempt#2

This attempt, I ran out of time, so instead of refrigerating bowl, I froze them for 15 minutes.  But, please be patient enough to refrigerate the bowl for a minimum of 4-5 hours.

Ingredients I used are
3/4 cup of Dairy whipping cream (I used Almarai brand)
1/4 cup of icing sugar
1 tsp of vanilla essence

I added all three ingredients in a bowl and along with blades, I froze them for 15 minutes/

Wrapped the bowl with foil and this goes into the  freezer.

After 15 minutes, remove the foil and start to beat.

Within 3 minutes, I got beautiful stiff peaks, see the blades when removed gives us stiff peaks.

And yes, one more test is that if you tilt the bowl upside down, the cream should not fall down.

Yayy.... I nailed it.  

DON'T USE THE CREAM RIGHT AWAY TO PIPE.  Refrigerate them for an hour at least before piping.  And yes, look at that beautiful swirl.

So, what went wrong in my first batch.  I could come up with following reasons

1. My bowl and blades were not chilled properly, it's best to refrigerate them overnight.  Temperature plays a crucial role.
2. Icing sugar helps in stability way better than regular granulated sugar does. 
3. During my first attempt, I used a regular dairy cream.  During my Second attempt, I bought a Dairy whipping cream, so the specification of the cream also should matter.

Once you make them, you will fall in love with the milky taste of this cream.  Please feel free to drop your comments and I hope you do try them at home.  

Eggless Red velvet cupcakes

   Hi, friends!  With the shifting ahead, I completely lost track of my blogging.  And yes, we are  based in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.  My new home just got set and for the upcoming festive mode, I dedicate you my eggless version of Red velvet cupcakes with Cream cheese frosting.

Red velvet cupcakes are slightly cocoa flavoured and the mix of baking soda and vinegar are added to help the cake rise and retain the moist texture.  Since I didn't have vinegar at home, I replaced them with lime juice and it worked fine.  Super-moist cupcakes with a creamy, tangy frosting  were a total yum!   My family loved it.  Do try this and let us know your feedback.  

Kandhe Khas Khas

We  all have  that one  traditional dish, passed on generations after generations.  No matter however trendy the food gets, you always yearn for that delicious dish. Khande Khas Khas is one of them.  'Khande' meaning onions and 'Khas Khas' meaning poppy seeds, this dish is made of chana dal cooked with cubed onions and poppy seeds paste.  This recipe may differ from one family to another. My mother follows this, while my Mother-in-law avoids poppy seeds paste and cooks chana dal with onions.  But, I guarantee you will love this dish and make them quite often.  Combine them with roti or dosa, though they taste best with roti.

Please note that it is a spicy dish.  I have prepared them lightly spiced because my kid doesn't like too much of spice.  If you are preparing for your family, I suggest you add more chilly powder, accordingly.  

Shepherd's pie

   Shepherd's pie has a meat filling and is  lined with the crust made of mashed potatoes.  This savoury pie was traditionally devoured whenever there was  left-over of grilled meat.  I can also say that it's a comfort food.   With so much humidity around, all you need is a piping hot shepherd's pie and a good book to mark a great day.

I got this recipe from my mom's Morphy Richards oven guidebook.  They have beautifully twisted it according to our Indian palette.  This dish is a layered dish.  The layers start with  thinly sliced potatoes, followed by vegetable mince, lamb mince and topped with mashed potatoes.  This, in turn, is brushed with melted butter and some crumbled cheese.  When these layers are baked, all you get is aromatic and a crispy potato crust top, followed by soft layers of vegetables and meat mince and ends with potato slices. I flavoured meat mince with dill and totally  this pie had such complementing flavours that I ended up devouring them as such.  Alternatively,  you can dig them with roti as well.  

  The round  casserole, I used here is 15 cm in diameter and 5 cm depth.  The filling measurements are made accordingly.  You may have to twist the measurements according to your casserole's size. 

So, let's get started. 

Tiramisu cupcakes

  After making Mascarpone cheese, I didn't want to make this winner dessert right away.  I took some time to go through what I wanted.   With guests at home and my kid waiting to get pampered, I could not have settled less for the cupcake.  Yes, super soft and moist coffee cupcakes paired with Mascarpone cheese icing, with a hint of coffee on top.  I got this super-soft sponge recipe from Natasha's Kitchen. With coffee flavour infused, they were great even when had straight away from the refrigerator.

So, what's this Tiramisu?  What makes them so special and so romantic?  Tiramisu meaning 'pick me up' or 'lift me up', is a popular Coffee-based Italian dessert.  It is assembled with ladyfinger -(a sponge cake in a shape of a finger) dipped in coffee syrup and arranged with a layer of mascarpone cheese and whipped eggs, topped with cocoa.  It's this beautiful combination of coffee, cocoa, and cream that can light up the romance in the air.  <3  <3

So, let me hope that you agree with  the same and bake them for ur better half's ;)  ;)