Making Naan Bread for an Exceptional Indian Meal

  by CHRIS RAWSTERN

Photo: pignoutny.com

Naan has become highly popular in the US these days. What makes this interesting is that in India naan is traditionally made in a large clay community tandoor oven, something the common household generally does not have. This means that naan is not commonly served in the home. Other types of flat breads such as puri, roti, or parathas among others, are made easily on a hot flat iron or pan in the home. Indian restaurants serve naan breads, both in India and here in the US. Naan is mainly a northern Indian bread, also found in nearby countries such as Pakistan and Afghanistan. 


Naan seem to come in many and varied styles. Some are soft, thick and completely flat, while others are thin and almost crisp with large bubbles baked in place. Whatever the recipe you find, it is generally made with flour, yeast, milk or water, ghee, yogurt and salt. Other additions such as egg are possible. The yeast dough is made and allowed to rise, then formed into teardrop shaped flat breads. In a clay tandoor, the large disc of dough is placed against the side of the clay oven, sticking there to bake. This happens very quickly, as the heat is very intense. 


Making these breads at home can be accomplished in various ways. Baking them on an outdoor grill is the most similar in concept, delivering the high heat needed. They can also be made in a home oven over fairly high heat, either on baking sheets or on a pizza stone allowed to heat for at least a half hour in advance.

Naan Bread

1 packet instant rise yeast 1 pound all purpose flour, or mixed with half whole wheat flour 1 teaspoon salt 1 cup lukewarm milk 1/2 cup yogurt 2 tablespoons ghee
Combine the first three ingredients and set aside. Mix together the wet ingredients and pour over the dry ingredients, and stir to combine. Once mixture comes together, knead for 10 minutes, and then set aside to rise until doubled in bulk. Punch down dough and divide into 6 portions. Roll or pat out thinly into a large circle, then pull on one end to stretch to the traditional teardrop shape. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes on a pizza stone in a 475 degree oven, or on baking sheets. If making over a grill, set over high heat, close lid and check after 1 minute. If well browned, flip for 1 minute or more until done on both sides.

Once naan are baked, they can be brushed with melted ghee and left as is, or sprinkled with nigella seeds or poppy seeds. The ghee can be melted with smashed garlic to infuse the flavor and then brushed over the baked breads. Coarsely ground coriander seed can also be sprinkled over. In India, breads are the utensils for eating a savory curry dish, kebab, or other. Bits of the bread are used as a scoop for the food, without the use of a fork. However these breads are eaten, it is no wonder they have become so popular. Give them a try and find out for yourself.

Thank you for taking the time to read my article. I hope it was informative and helped you along your own culinary journey. Visit my Web site A Harmony of Flavors my Blog at A Harmony of Flavors Blog my Marketplace A Harmony of Flavors Marketplace or Facebook page, A Harmony of Flavors. I hope to see you there soon.

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Baking Different Types Of Cake For Different Occasions

 By Emma Darling 

Photo: yahoo.getit.in
 
Birthdays can seem like they're all celebrated the same way, going out for a meal with friends or family and ending the night by going to the pub for a few drinks. For many this can become almost like a chore, and they'd much rather get together with a group of people and go out somewhere new that they've never been to before. As a way of changing different celebrations people could try a number of things, making suggestions is the most obvious, but also deciding to bake a different kind of cake, which could spark everyone into realising they always do the same thing for every occasion.
A victoria sponge cake is the staple English cake, and always appreciated by anyone who eats it. These are usually baked for people's birthdays, and can seem like a really boring cake once you've had it a few times. To mix things up, baking a different cake for birthdays is a great start, but ensure victoria sponge cake is still used for occasions such as christenings or baptisms, as these are occasions not many people celebrate, meaning the cake will always be appreciated.

Birthday cakes can be switched to something slightly more obscure, such as peach filled cupcakes. These are simple cupcakes made with a sponge recipe, however they contain a peach in the middle which is still slightly gooey, meaning there's a surprise at the centre of every cupcake for people to discover as soon as they bite into it. These can be lightly decorated with icing and candles to make up the numbers for a birthday cake, and they introduce fruit as a treat to children, a concept not commonly taut with foods such as chocolate so freely available.

Key lime pie, whilst not necessarily being a cake, can be used to spice up celebrations such as anniversaries for someone's parent's wedding or their own. Since the cake has no specific occasion to be used for, it could form the basis of meeting new people. As new neighbours move onto a street people could go over to them with a key lime pie as a sort of house warming present, since it has key in the name. This works as a great ice-breaker and could make people feel very welcomed onto the street of their new home.

Changing the use of cakes like this is the first step on the road to having a range of new and different celebrations for different occasions. It's always nice to slip back into the old routine and have victoria sponge with a birthday, but many people want to change things up, and this is a tame and subtle but effective way of doing so.

Emma Darling has written many articles about different baby topics, she's most recently been working on articles involving baking products from a baby boutique online as she is enjoying her baking with her two daughters.

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Easy Summer Crock Pot Recipes

 By Reggie Bean 

Photo: thetasteplace.com
 
Summer is a great time for crock pot recipes. It may be hot and humid outside, but you still need to make dinner for you and your family. You can't barbecue every day. The weather won't let you. Sandwiches and salads can be delicious, but sometimes you want a hearty meal at the end of the day. When I come home from work, I don't want to come home to a sandwich. I already had that at lunch time. Ordering out is nice every once in a while, but that can get expensive really quick, especially if you have a large family. With crock pot cooking however, you can make just about anything for dinner without heating up your whole house like your oven does. With that in mind, I present to you some easy summer crock pot recipes for you to try.
Barbecued Chicken and Vegetables

What you need:

• 2.5 lbs boneless skinless chicken thighs
• 1 c barbecue sauce
• 1/2 c water
• 4 medium potatoes, unpeeled and cut into eighths
• 8 carrots, cut into 2 inch pieces

What you do:

• Layer potatoes and carrots in the bottom of a 4-6 quart crock-pot. Layer chicken on top of veggies. Pour water into crock. Spread sauce over chicken with brush. Cook, covered, for 8 hours on low, or until chicken and veggies are tender.
Swiss Steak

What you need:

• 2 lbs round steak, 3/4 inch thick
• 15 oz can tomato sauce
• 1 celery stalk, sliced
• 1 large carrot, chopped
• 1 large onion, sliced
• 1 t salt
• 1/4 t pepper
• 1/4 c flour
• 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce

What you do:

• In a medium bowl, combine salt, pepper and flour. Cut steak into serving size pieces. Add steaks one at a time to flour mixture; coat. In bottom of crock pot add onions, meat, Worcestershire, carrots, celery and tomato sauce in that order. Cook, covered, on low for 8 -10 hours.
Cheese Ravioli and Sausage
What you need:
• 1 lb Italian sausage without casing, browned and drained
• 9 oz package refrigerated cheese ravioli
• 24-28 oz jar spaghetti sauce
• 141/2 oz can Italian style diced tomatoes, undrained
• 1/2 c Mozzarella cheese, shredded
• 1/2 c Parmesan cheese, grated

What you do:

• Combine sausage, spaghetti sauce and tomatoes into crock-pot; mix well. Cook, covered, for 7 hours on low. Mix in ravioli, cover and cook for 30 minutes. Turn off slow cooker, top with cheese and cover. Let stand for 5 - 10 minutes, or until cheese is melted; serve.
Country Style Pork Ribs

What you need:

• 4-5 lbs country style pork ribs
• 2 (14.5 oz) cans stewed tomatoes or Italian style tomatoes, diced
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 1 large green pepper, chopped
• 2 celery stalks, sliced
• 1/2 c red wine or red wine vinegar
• 1/2 c water
• 1 t beef or chicken bouillon granules (whatever is in your pantry)
• 3 T olive oil
• garlic salt to taste
• salt to taste
• black pepper to taste

What you do:

• Heat oil in a large skillet. Rub ribs with garlic salt, salt and pepper. Add ribs to skillet and cook over high heat until browned on both sides (1-2 minutes per side). Add ribs and remaining ingredients to 6 quart crock-pot and cook, covered, for 8 -10 hours on low.

For more recipes, cooking articles and food related links, visit Easy Breezy Recipes at http://www.easybreezyrecipes.com

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How to Choose a Catering Menu for Your Wedding

By Aaron S Douglass  

Photo: theblushbride.com

Choosing a menu is an important and sometimes difficult part of planning a wedding. On average, over 50% of a wedding budget is spent on food and drink, so it's vital to the success of the day that the menu is correctly chosen.
There are many key factors which will influence a menu choice, some of which are listed below:

The season: will the weather be hot or cold? What sort of ingredients are available and will they be of a good quality? Asparagus is a lovely vegetable to have on your wedding day but it is only produced in the uk for a couple of months of the year. There are many websites which give good advice on the seasons and what produce is available, your caterer should be able to advise you on this also.

The venue: does it have adequate facilities? Is there an appropriate space for your chosen catering? Is there a local product which could be used to create interest in your menu. For example if you have chosen a farm setting, does it produce anything you can use such as cheese or meat?

Ethnic or religious influence: there may be a percentage of your guests who, for example, do not eat pork, in this case a hog roast would be a bad idea. A lamb roast might be a suitable alternative.

Budget: a big, important factor in planning your wedding catering. There is no point dreaming of fillet steak and caviar if you can only afford chicken. Try to be original about your choices but bear in mind that over-complicating your menu to make up for not being flashy will only make things difficult. Choose interesting and exciting options, but keep them simple. This is really hard, no one wants to have a 'budget' wedding but trying to have an expensive wedding when you can't afford it is a bad idea. Work with what you have or up your budget. If you order fillet steak but it comes in cheap, it probably will be cheap, badly cooked, poor quality, foreign and tough. On the other hand a talented caterer will make an inexpensive cut of meat such as leg of lamb into a beautiful dish, much better than the poor quality steaks. Something you'll be proud to serve you most treasured friends and family.
Tip: Watch out for lamb shanks, they tend to be very poor quality, 'boil in the bag', with a shelf life of years due to preservatives and pasteurization.

Your own tastes and preference: the most important factor in choosing your wedding day menu is making sure you get what you want. You can easily get too wrapped up in pleasing (or trying to impress) your guests. Be yourself, try to show your guests what you are like as a couple, give them a taste of the experiences you've had and the discoveries you've made along the way. This is your chance to show your friends and family what an individual, cultured and original person you have grown up to be. This should be your finest hour (or two).

One more point to consider in planning your wedding menu is the table plan. Most couples do not realise what a challenge this is before food even becomes an element. Keep it simple. Having multiple food options served to different people in the room can seem like a good idea, you want your guests to have the choice of what they eat. "What if they don't like lamb, we must have a chicken option", "what about the vegetarians, we must have a veggie option", "Kids wont eat lamb or chicken, we must have some kids food", "Aunty Brenda only eats cabbage and chickpeas, she must have this as an option". Suddenly your menu is long and complicated, now you have to gather your guests choices and compile them on the table plan. Just when the pressure can't get anymore you have the task of making a table-plan. It's a nightmare, couples often say afterwards: I wish we'd kept it simple.

Design your menu around enjoying your day and don't forget about the lead up to it. The whole experience should be easy and fun. Keep this in your mind as it wonders into dreamland. Easy and Fun.

Should you require more advice or help on plan your own wedding menu, don't hesitate to contact Gastro Catering at http://www.gastrocatering.com. We provide unique and exciting wedding catering for all budgets.

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Excellent Potato and Spinach Soup

 By Michael Miji 

Photo: static6.depositphotos.com
 
This is now my favorite soup. It is easy and cheap to make, takes about an hour, and doesn't need exotic ingredients which would require extra shopping. Like just about all of my favorite recipes, it doesn't require many utensils, so clean-up isn't a big deal. As given, this is a vegetarian dish. Use this recipe as a base if you want, adding whatever is in the fridge that your creativity thinks would rock. Here's all you really need.
• 4 hefty potatoes
• 1 bodacious onion
• 1 can of condensed milk (12 fluid ounces = 354 ml)... regular whole milk will work also.
• (Optional, but worth it) handful of spinach per serving. Savoy spinach, the older kind with dark green, crinkly and curly leaves, is much preferred.
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 2 tablespoons minced garlic (or half this amount of minced fresh garlic)
• quarter teaspoon of finely minced fresh ginger
• sprinkle of oregano
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 teaspoon finely crumbled feta (or other) cheese per serving (optional)
Peel, and the dice potatoes. Start them at boiling in a two-quart or larger saucepan with enough water to cover them. The potatoes will need to boil about twenty-five minutes. They'll get to boiling faster if you put a lid on the saucepan. While they're getting there, add salt, pepper, oregano, ginger, and garlic. When they start boiling, turn down the heat to a medium boil so crap doesn't spit all over the stove. When boiling starts; set your cooking timer for twenty-five minutes.
While waiting for the boil to start, dice that big onion. Add it to the potatoes. They probably aren't boiling yet. That's fine.
Stir and taste occasionally to adjust the salt and pepper and other spices. When the timer goes off, turn down the heat to a low simmer, add in the butter, and mash the potatoes by hand with a potato masher for minute or so. It's fine to leave them a little chunky. Add the can of condensed milk. Stir it in and jack up the heat so it comes to a medium boil again. Keep stirring so nothing burns on the bottom. Milk tends to do that. Get the soup back up to a boil and keep it there for a minute or two, constantly stirring the bottom. Toss in a big handful of spinach if you've got it, stir it in and let it boil for another half-minute- just until the spinach is overcooked and looking spooky. Turn off the heat. Ladle into bowls that aren't so large, unless this will be your entire meal. Sprinkle on just a little bit of feta or whatever fragrant cheese you might have. A couple croutons would be dandy.
Serves four to six

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Choose The Right Catering Clothing

By Arron Gale  

Photo: russums-shop.co.u
 
It's critical to dress appropriately when you work in a kitchen, so catering clothing matters a lot. The following post will give you some guidelines regarding proper clothing when it comes to culinary life.

When you step foot into a bistro you need to make sure that's you're properly attended; food hygiene and safety are critical because they make the client feel safe. Even though chefs are not always seen by the public, the moment they appear in front of their clients they must look presentable and clean. Clean catering clothing is like a moral obligation. When preparing the food, chefs should have some extra clothes to change because if they get dirty they cannot appear in front of their customers like that. The following lines to exhibit some of the most vital piece of catering clothing a chef should have.

To begin with, it's vital to possess a chef's jacket because it will protect your real clothes and it will make you look like a professional in the kitchen. Be sure that you change your jacket if you have too much food on it; if a food inspector comes in a sees you all dirty, he might penalize the restaurant.
Don't forget about chequered trousers because they can be extremely useful in the kitchen. But they are chequered in a simple way in order for people to be aware of the fact that they are used only in food preparation. Chefs should also wear chequered hats while pot washers may wear red hats. Either they are kitchen assistants, Second or Third chefs or Sous Chefs, all those involved in the cooking process must have a considerable number of uniforms so that there will always be an extra one if needed. When it comes to catering clothing, shoes are additionally important.

A kitchen space can be extremely wet and slippery; therefore, you need to have adequate footwear in order to be comfortable and stay safe. Choose to stay safe and make a smart investment; don't purchase cheap shoes and go for high quality items that will last longer. Good quality catering clothing will keep you safe at the workplace and it will help your business run smoothly. However, there are several additional aspects you might want to consider when cooking.
Kitchens, serving areas and also food storage must be kept as safe and clean as possible. Stocking your refrigerators correctly, constantly checking their temperature and paying attention to the freshness of produce are completely key to the well-being of a cafeteria, restaurant or other catering environments. Flaws are not permitted in the kitchen; therefore, personal hygiene matters tremendously. After they handle raw ingredients, members of the staff must wash their hands and the utensils used in order to avoid cross contamination.

If you wear appropriate clothing at the workplace, you'll show everyone you are professional thus maintaining your reputation unbroken. In the end, if you want people to come back to your place you need to set an example and offer unparalleled services.

RedStone is the leading online supplier of catering supplies for more details visit http://www.redstonecatering.com/chef-supplies/chef-clothing.html. In only a short period of time, an effective distribution base has been created and numerous satisfied customers rely on us to supply in the United Kingdom.

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Cake Decorating With Edible Paper

By Theresa Happe  

Photo: bakedecoratecelebrate.com
 
We may be headed in the paperless direction in work, home and office environments, but not when it comes to desserts. If you can create it with paper, you can make it edible and a print, photo, pattern, words, etc. can be incorporated into cakes, cupcakes, cookies and other desserts. Edible paper is really an icing sheet, icing rolled out very thin. Anything you can do creatively with paper can be done with edible paper.
Printed Designs
The printing of any design, whether it's scanned or printed from your computer, can be done in edible ink on to an icing sheet. The icing sheets come in both legal and letter sizes to fit in your printer. The printer you use must be devoted to this type of printing because the toxins from regular ink should not touch food products.
The same technique applies for transforming any photo in your computer into an edible one. You've probably seen this on cakes from Baskin Robbins and other custom bakeries. You can create them yourself on a full icing sheet or icing sheets that have been pre-cut to standard photo sizes. You can then take those images and apply them to buttercream or fondant cakes or to gum paste. You can create a picture frame out of gum paste, too, which can stand on top of the cake.
Cutting
Icing sheets come in a variety of colors and in chocolate. They can be embossed, quilled, stamped, or simply cut with scissors to create any shape you want. Let's say you want to decorate a cake with hearts. You could take red and pink icing sheets and cut out hearts either with scissors or a punch, found in most craft stores.
For $10, you can get a bucket of different plastic craft scissors in Michaels. They have all different types of designs to create zigzags, wavy lines, etc. Any of these scissors can be used to cut out a border for the side of the cake, create a lattice pattern, create boxes, etc.
The list of possibilities is endless. In fact, if you look around your craft store, you'll find all kinds of inexpensive tools that can be used to transform icing sheets into fabulous designs for your baked goods.
If you're already experienced in cake decorating, you'll be amazed what you can do by combining printed icing sheets with isomalt. You can create jewelry by punching out circles of a design and then putting them in the silicone molds. You can cut out letters and apply isomalt over it to make interesting, 3D words or monograms.
Paper may be going out of style for most, but it's just picking up momentum in the cake decorating world.

Theresa Happe is a cake decorator and fan of Icing Images, where you can find edible paper and supplies for printing and cutting it.

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