New Delhi: The time of the year has arrived, when we gear up to celebrate women's power and honour all the women in our lives who have been by our side always. Women in a variety of roles—mother, sister, spouse, daughter, or mother—enrich and improve our lives by being a part of them. Every year on March 8, we commemorate International Women's Day to honour and show appreciation for the women in our lives. We can never express enough gratitude to women for being such an amazing part of our lives and for making them simpler, better, and more beautiful.
So, if you are planning to organize a party on this occasion, or celebrate with your friend and family, here are some interesting party recipes shared with ABP Live, by Sreyashi Dey, who is a pastry chef and also runs her blog- SeaSalt by Sreyashi, where she shares her recipes and little tips related to baking.
1. Fudgy Chocolate Brownies:
If you are craving something sinful and ultra-chocolatey, look no further! Easy and fudgy with gorgeous crinkle tops, here are my chocolate brownies!
Ingredients:
- All-purpose flour– 150 g
- Cocoa Powder (Dutch-processed)– 30 g
- Whole Eggs– 2
- Caster sugar/ Granulated sugar– 100 g
- Brown sugar– 80 g
- Salted butter– 110 g
- Dark compound chocolate– 100 g
- Chocolate chips– 75 g (You can also chop up your dark chocolate and use that in place of chocolate chips)
- Vanilla extract– 3 ml
- Concentrated coffee– 15 ml
- Walnuts (optional)
Procedure:
- Before proceeding with the recipe line your choice of baking dish with parchment paper. Then preheat your oven to 180° C / 356° F.
- Place the chocolate and butter together in a bowl and melt either in a microwave or a double boiler and set aside.
- In a separate bowl, sift together the flour and cocoa powder. Give it a whisk until homogenous and set aside. This is the dry ingredient mixture.
- Crack the eggs into a mixing bowl and start whipping with a hand-held mixer equipped with the whisk attachment. Start at a low speed. Gradually increase to medium, then high speed. Keep whipping until the eggs have increased in volume and look thick and frothy.
- Add the sugar and vanilla extract. Whip until ribbon-like, i.e., when you lift the whisk, the batter should fall in a thick line like a ribbon.
- Slowly drizzle the melted chocolate and butter mixture into the egg batter while whipping constantly on a low speed.
- Add in the dry ingredients. With a silicone spatula use the cut-and-fold method to mix this in. Be careful as to not deflate the batter.
- Add the coffee syrup and mix it with your spatula.
- Add nearly all of the choco-chips (set aside some to sprinkle on top). If using walnuts add them now. Mix in gently.
- Pour the batter into the parchment-lined baking dish. Spread out with a spatula or the back of a spoon to make it level. Sprinkle the remaining choco-chips on top
- Bake in the preheated oven for 30 mins. The fudgy chocolate brownies are now ready!
2. Bread and Butter Pudding:
This is a no-effort dessert with minimal ingredients, ones you probably already have at home. This is perfect to serve in gatherings and parties!
Ingredients:
- Loaf bread– 4 slices
- Fresh cream (25% butterfat content)– 180 ml
- Milk– 150 ml
- Whole eggs– 2 nos.
- Egg Yolk– 1 no.
- Vanilla Essence– a few drops
- Raisins– 20 g
- Butter– 40 g
- Honey– 25 g
- Cinnamon– 5 g
Procedure:
- Choose any oven-safe dish for this recipe. Butter this baking dish generously.
- Cut off the sides of the bread slices. Make triangles by cutting each slice in halves/quarters. Butter one side of each triangle.
- Arrange the slices on the baking dish, buttered side up. Sprinkle a layer of raisins. Drizzle some of the honey on top.
- To make the custard – Break two eggs and separate the yolk from a third. Add the eggs, the egg yolk and all the remaining honey in a mixing bowl and give it a whisk.
- Next, combine the milk and fresh cream in a pan and heat until a light simmer. Do not let it boil.
- Temper the egg mixture by pouring a thin stream of the hot milk and cream mixture into the egg bowl, whisking constantly. Continue this process until you have poured the entire milk and cream mixture into the eggs. Whisk in the cinnamon powder and vanilla essence.
- Strain the custard through a sieve/muslin cloth to get rid of any potential lumps and curdled bits.
Pour the custard into the baking dish over your bread slices until they are nearly 2/3 submerged. Place some more raisins on top.
Optionally, sprinkle some more cinnamon powder on top.
Let this sit undisturbed for around 30 minutes for the bread to soak up that lovely custard. Meanwhile, preheat your oven to 180°C/ 356° F.
Bake the bread and butter pudding for around 30 minutes until the top looks beautifully golden brown.
Optionally sprinkle some icing sugar on top. The Bread and Butter Pudding is ready! Serve warm with a drizzle of honey or a scoop of vanilla ice cream!
3. Fruit Pavlova:
A bright and tropical Pavlova will instantly brighten up any party!
Ingredients:
- Egg whites- 4
- Sugar- 200 g
- Cornflour- 7 g
- Vanilla Essence- a few drops
- Whipping Cream- 100 g
- Fruits- Any, sliced
Procedure:
- Preheat your oven to 120 C/228 F
- The most crucial component of a Pavlova is its meringue base. To make a meringue, start with an absolutely clean and dry bowl. Crack the eggs in a separate bowl and separate the yolks from the whites. Place the egg whites in the clean bowl.
- Add the sugar to it. Place the bowl over a double boiler. A double boiler is basically a bowl placed over a pot of simmering water so as to not come in direct contact with the heat source. With a whisk, keep whisking the egg whites until the sugar has all dissolved. If you touch the egg whites with your fingers, they should not feel grainy at this stage.
- Now, start whipping the egg whites with a handheld mixer until peaks form. The meringue should be looking glossy after being whipped. Add in the cornflour and whip until combined
- Place the meringue in a mound on a baking sheet. Make designs or peaks on the side with the back of a spoon or a silicone spatula. Make sure the centre of the meringue mound is flat so that you can place your fruits here later.
- Place the meringue in the preheated oven. Reduce the temperature to 100 C/ 212 F. Bake for 1 hour and 30 minutes. After the meringue is baked, let it sit in the warm oven for an hour more.
- Take the meringue out of the oven carefully so as to not break it. Place this on a serving plate. Meanwhile, whip the cream to medium peaks.
- Layer this cream on top of the meringue and place your sliced fruits beautifully all around.
- The Pavlova is now ready! Cut into slices to serve.