Deep Fried Pastry in Safron Syrup Dessert [Gulab Jambu]

Ingredients:
For Pastry:
1.5 cups Carnation milk powder
0.5 cup all purpose white flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1tbsp margarine
0.5 tbsp plain yogurt
pinch of nutmeg, cardamom powder and saffron.
0.5 cup whipping cream
sun flower oil


For Syrup:
1.5 cups sugar
1.5 cups water
0.5 tsp vanilla essence
saffron
yellow food colouring

Mix the Carnation milk powder, flour and baking powder together. Add in margarine and mix until margarine forms small lumps. Add the yogurt, cardamom, nutmeg and safron.

Add in the whipping cream and a bit of water to bind. Knead for about five minutes until dough is no longer sticky, and resembles a bread dough. Tear into small pieces and shape into small oval balls. Should make about 20-25.

Prepare oil by heating to medium heat in heavy bottom pan. Oil is ready when it sizzles gently if breadcrumbs are dropped in. Do not over heat!

Deep fry the dough until evenly brown. Should be a golden colour on the inside.

Remove from oil and place on paper towel to get rid of excess.

Prepare Syrup:
Heat sugar, vanilla, colour, water, and add in saffron. Stir over heat until dissolved. Allow mix to come to a gentle boil, and remove from heat when sticky syrup is formed.

Transfer syrup to a glass bowl, and allow dough balls to soak for 30 mins before serving.

Pumpkin White Bean Soup

*This really isn't a favourite of mine, though it's been well received by my soup loving family. Then again, two of them are vegetarians. By choice.


The original recipe was derived from a healthy living calendar delivered to the house by the Heart and Stroke Foundation. Underneath the recipe, they offered the following health tip: "Research indicates that by age 50, one in four people will develop polyps which are a precursor to colon cancer. Resolve to schedule a screening this year- it's your best weapon in the prevention of colon cancer."

Wilde Oscar Says: A word of advice- if you don't know what a polyp is, do yourself a favour and don't do a google image search until after you've finished eating. 



Ingredients:
300 grams canned pumpkin puree
300 grams white navy beans
1/2 white onion
2 cups chicken or vegetable broth
0.5 cups water
1 cup cream
2 tbsp butter
1 tsp garlic powder (optional)
a pinch of dried thyme
salt and pepper to taste

Dice the onions and sautee them in the butter. Blend the white beans, onions and 0.5 cup of water until smooth. In a saucepan, mix the bean puree with the pumpkin, broth, and spices. Mix over medium heat. Gently Add in the cream and stir. Add additional water to achieve desired consistency.
Cover and cook on a low heat for about 15-20 minutes until warmed.


Wild Oscar Says: The success of this soup is actually largely dependent on the type of canned pumpkins you use. It can be more sweet than savoury, though the latter is definitely better (Make sure you don't accidentally use pumpkin pie filling- that's a whole different adventure).

Dulce de Leche Cheesecake

Ingredients

For the Crust:
2-3 cups crushed graham cracker crumbs
2 tbsps sugar
0.25 tsp ground cinnamon
8 tbsp (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted

For the Filling:
650 grams cream cheese
0.5-0.75 cup sugar
3 eggs
0.25-0.5 cup dulce de leche
2 tsp vanilla

For the Glaze:
0.66 cup purchased dulce de leche
3 tablespoons whipping cream

Grind up the graham crackers until you have only crumbs. Mix with the cinnamon and sugar, and coat liberally with butter. Transfer to a standard size (30cm x 22cm x 5cm) baking pan. Press crumbs into the bottom evenly to create a base, and place in an oven preheated to 160C for about 10 mins until golden. Remove and allow to cool.

Meanwhile, use a mixer to mix the cheese and sugar until creamy (~40 sec). Add in eggs one at a time and mix gently in between. Add in vanilla and dulce du leche and mix until smooth (~20 sec). Spread the filling evenly across the bottom of the graham crust pan and place in oven preheated to 160C. Bake until the center and edges are cracked. Use a pic to make sure the center is hardened- should take 30-40 mins. Remove and allow to cool.

Meanwhile, add the cream to the caramel and microwave for 10 seconds at a time. Mix. Repeat if necessary until smooth and pourable.

Pour the topping over the cooled cheesecake and place in fridge for at least 2 hours until the glaze has hardened. Remove and cut into bars.