Baked Yoghurt with Cinnamon and Orange Compote

The BBC Good Food magazine finally arrived in India! (Ok, it arrived in November but I’m writing this post now…Sue me!) Like any food fanatic, I was over the moon. Promptly went and subscribed for it and ran around like a headless chicken to get the first edition in my hand. Yes, I do love books with pictures in it… especially food pictures! Got the magazine back home and devoured it from cover to cover! Bliss comes in different ways to different people. I religiously book marked recipes to try and went and did my grocery shopping. Ain’t I the model foodie? But, days turned into weeks and now weeks into a month and I still hadn’t tried anything. The next issue arrived and I was determined to cook something from the first edition atleast! So obviously I picked the recipe that looked the most difficult, the most beautiful, the weirdest, the most challenging, the easiest! This recipe is more about combining ingredients than actual cooking, but it turned out to be quite the dessert! Maybe a little less cinnamon the next time and I’m bookmarking this recipe for easiest dessert ever. (Other than serving Ice cream of course!)

Baked Yoghurt with Cinnamon and Orange Compote

(Recipe Courtesy: BBC Good Food India, Nov 2011)

Cooking time: 20 mins

Serves: 6-8

What you need:

¼ tsp Ground Cinnamon

200 gms Fresh Cream

200 gms Condensed Milk

200 gms Yoghurt (Set Dahi)

2 Mandarins/ Seville Oranges (where the skin sticks to the fruit)

4 Tbsp Sugar

1 Star Anise

What to do:

In a bowl, stir together the cinnamon, yoghurt, cream and condensed milk until it attains a consistent texture. Pour the mixture into ramekins and bake at 120°C until just set – approx 15 mins. Turn off the oven and let it continue to cool in the oven. Refrigerate for a few hours and serve chilled.

For the compote: Zest the orange making sure to avoid the white pith (that imparts the bitter taste). Cut the oranges into pieces and deseed it. In a saucepan, add the orange, zest, sugar and star anise and simmer for 12-15 mins until reduced. Serve warm spooned over the cold yoghurt.

P.S. The original recipe said ½ tsp Cinnamon, but I think it overpowers the yoghurt. So I’ve reduced it to ¼ tsp or lesser.

Orange-Raisin Muffins

Winter in Bangalore (if it can be called winter at all!) is a lovely time. We have a crisp chill in the air but the sun shines brightly and the sky is a gorgeous blue with dots of white clouds. What is also wondrous at this time is Oranges. One of my favorite fruits. Orange juices in cartons might have all but killed the joy of eating one, but there is nothing like a sweet citrusy orange to add that zing to your morning brekkie or evening snack or dinner time…you get the drift! An orange is one fruit that I eat with utmost care, not because it’s delicate but because my grandmother (bless her soul) had fed us with scary stories. She claimed that if we swallowed an orange seed, an orange tree would grow in our stomach and sprout leaves from our ears! Yes, she was quite the graphic storyteller! In such circumstances, my sisters and I all but spat the seeds out as soon as it touched our tongues. And since we had a lovely balcony that overlooked the road, the recipients of the seeds would always be unsuspecting passers-by! We would duck and giggle and continue the attack. So it’s with fond memories that I look forward to orange season every year. Brings the little rascal out in me!

Orange-Raisin Muffins

Prep time: 15 mins

Baking time: 20 mins

Makes: 8-10

What you need:

3/4 cup sultanas/ raisins

2 Tbsp Honey

Zest and juice of 1 Orange

1/4 cup Milk

1 cup natural Yoghurt

50g Butter, Melted

1 egg

2 cups plain Flour, sifted

2 tsps Baking powder

1/3 cup Castor sugar

What to do:

Preheat oven to 190'C. Lightly greese a non stick muffin pan.

Place sultanas, honey, orange zest and juice in a small saucepan and bring to a boil. Remove from heat and allow to cool.

Beat egg, mix with milk, yoghurt and melted butter. Combine with the orange sauce. Add to the dry ingredients and stir until just combined. Spoon into prepared muffin pan and bake for 18-20 minutes. Cool on a wire rack. Makes a lovely addition to your morning cuppa!

P.S. The sultanas may seem like a lot, but all the orange flavor is concentrated in them. Also the sultanas are what give the muffin sweetness. IF you like you’re breakfast sweet, then go ahead and increase the sugar to ½ cup.

DO NOT leave the muffins in longer than 20 mins as they will turn as tough as hockey pucks. If you want to see a little more colour on the top of the muffins, give it an eggwash. (lightly brush some beaten egg over the muffin in the last 5 mins of baking.)