Tag: summer


Aug
2014

Zesty Peaches & Cream Mini Bundt Cake

categories: Baking, Cakes, Desserts, Summer

Zesty Peaches & Cream Mini Bundt Cake1

Hiya.. I hope you all had a wonderful Independence Day long weekend. Ours was relaxed and lazy and juust perfect. Monday was tough indeed. Today was only bearable because I had this cake in my life. First bite into it and I instantly regretted making a mini version because this was over in seconds!! So to save you from regret I suggest you double the following recipe and make 2 mini bundts! 😉

The combination of orange, peach and cream cheese is blow-your-mind-off-amazing! This mini bundt is supremely moist unlike the dry, crumbly pound cakes we all dread. It turns into a piece of heaven drizzled with the vanilla glaze. Isn’t this mini size so cute! Give this a go before the peach season officially ends.

Enjoy & eat it all up! 🙂

 

Zesty Peaches & Cream Mini Bundt Cake4

 

Zesty Peaches & Cream Mini Bundt Cake

Yields: 1 6-inch bundt | Serves: 6 | Prep time: 15 minutes | Bake time: 30 minutes | Total time: 45 minutes

Ingredients:
For Cake:
  • 1/4 cup peach cubes (about 1 medium /2 small peaches, peeled & pitted)
  • 1/2 Tbsp all-purpose flour
  • Zest of 1 Naval orange
  • 1/3 cup sugar
  • 1 large egg
  • 1/4 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
  • 2 Tbsp cream cheese, at room temperature
  • 2 Tbsp freshly squeezed orange juice
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1/2 tsp orange extract
  • 1/2 cup all purpose flour, sifted
  • 1/2 tsp baking powder
  • Pinch of salt

For Glaze:

  • 4 Tbsp powdered sugar
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 tsp milk or cream (add more to adjust the consistency)

Directions:

  1. Preheat the oven at 160°C / 325°F. Grease 6-inch mini bundt pan with oil/butter. Set aside.
  2. Put the prepared peach cubes in a bowl. Sprinkle the peach cubes with all purpose flour. Stir lightly, just until peach cubes are coated with the flour.
  3. In a medium mixing bowl, add orange zest and sugar and rub it together with your fingers to release the natural oils from the zest. Add butter and egg to the bowl. Cream together butter, egg, sugar & zest with the whisk or using hand held mixer. Whisk in cream cheese, orange juice, vanilla and orange extract. Slowly and carefully, mix in all purpose flour, baking powder and salt. Do not overmix.
  4. Fold in the prepared peach cubes to the cake batter and pour the batter in the prepared bundt pan. Bake for 26-28 minutes or until the toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let the cake cool in the bundt pan for 5 minutes before inverting on a cooling rack to cool completely.
  5. For glaze: Combine powdered sugar, vanilla extract and milk, adding a teaspoon of milk at a time until glaze reaches desired consistency.

 

Zesty Peaches & Cream Mini Bundt Cake2

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Aug
2014

Skinny Summer Popsicles

categories: Desserts, Ice-creams, Summer
Skinny Summer Popsicles1
I love popsicles any time of the day. Be it for breakfast, an afternoon snack or dessert. I mean who doesn’t, right?! This one here is so refreshing and healthy without addition of any sugar, be it refined or unrefined. Just some fresh fruit pieces blended along with little bit of fruit juice. It’s a perfect pick-me-up treat using all the gorgeous summer bounty on offer. I bet you can’t stop at just one!
Hope you all are having a great Monday!
xx
Skinny Summer Popsicles
Yields: 4 popsicles | Prep time: 5 minutes | Cook time: 0 | Freeze time: 4-5 hours/overnight
Ingredients:
Puree 1:
  • 6 slices fresh pineapple
  • 1/3 cup pineapple juice (freshly squeezed or packed)
  • Pinch of salt
  • Zest from 1/2 orange
Puree 2:
  • 1/4 cup cherries, pitted
  • 1 medium nectarine, cored
  • 1/2 cup freshly squeezed orange juice (from about 1 orange)
  • Pinch of salt

Directions:

  1. Puree 1: In a blender, blend together pineapple slices, pineapple juice and salt. Stir in orange zest to it and divide the puree among 4 popsicle moulds.
  2. Puree 2: Wash and wipe the blender dry. Add all the ingredients mentioned under puree 2 in a blender and process until smooth. Top the popsicle moulds with puree 2, dividing equally.
  3. Insert stick in the centre of each mould, cover and freeze for about 6-7 hours. To demould, run the moulds under warm running water for 30-50 seconds. Enjoy!

*Recipe can be easily doubled or tripled or quadrupled!

 

Skinny Summer Popsicles2

 

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Jul
2014

Italian Summer Pasta Salad

categories: Dinner, Lunch, Salads, Spring, Summer

 Italian Summer Pasta Salad1

 

After radio silence for 3 weeks, I’m back. Again. Can’t say for how long but I am here. So how are things guys? Here, monsoon has almost arrived and summer is officially over (for good!). But here I am, with a huge backlog of summer recipes. What am I to do when all these days I have been cooking all things “summery” regularly but not getting time to post them. Let’s just say that it is still summer somewhere in the world, right?! 😉

I love anything and everything Italian so when I came across this pretty looking salad on Sommer’s amazing blog I knew I had to get to it pronto. It is so good and SO refreshing! Zests of orange and lemon, al dente pasta, orange chunks, tiny tomatoes and torn basil all tied together with olive oil and Parmesan cheese. What’s not to love? Must try, whatever time of year it is for you.

I hope you’re having an awesome weekend.
Stay cozy, it’s gonna be a rainy one! xx

 

Italian Summer Pasta Salad3

 

Italian Summer Pasta Salad

Recipe scaled down & adapted from A Spicy Perspective

Yield: 2-3 servings | Prep time: 15 minutes | Cook time: 15 minutes | Total: 30 minutes

Ingredients:

  • 2 cups whole wheat Farfalle pasta
  • 1 naval orange, zest and orange segments
  • 1 lemon, zest and juice
  • 2 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1 cup grape tomatoes, halved
  • 1/4 cup scallions, cut into 1 inch segments
  • 1/4 cup torn basil leaves
  • 3 Tbsp shaved Parmesan cheese
  • Salt and pepper

Directions:

  1. Place a large pot of salted water over high heat. Bring to a boil and cook the pasta according to package instructions. Drain the pasta and set aside to cool.
  2. Meanwhile, zest the orange and lemon. Place the zest and the juice of lemon in a large bowl. Add the olive oil and whisk. Peel the orange, gently break the segments apart and seed them. Place them in the bowl.
  3. Slice the tomatoes in half and add to the bowl. Then pour the drained pasta over the tomatoes and gently toss to coat. Add the scallions and basil leaves to the bowl and toss. Salt and pepper generously, about 1/2 tsp salt and 1/8 tsp pepper. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Note: I didn’t have scallions at hand so I had to skip them but they are highly recommended as it’d add some crunch & make the dish all the more flavorsome. 🙂

 

Italian Summer Pasta Salad2

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Jun
2014

No Churn Fresh Peach Icecream

categories: Desserts, Ice-creams, Summer
No Churn Fresh Peach Icecream2
Celebrating my 29th birthday today with this fresh peach icecream. It is a no churn treat and quite easy to whip up. Making icecream at home takes more time but most of it is not an active time plus all the steps are very easy to follow and the end result makes it totally worth it.
This icecream is a peach lover’s dream with peach chunks in every bite. Peaches cooked with brown sugar lends a caramelized taste to the icecream which I love! It freezes well and is quite easy to scoop too. I photographed it for the blog on the 3rd day of making it and it still scooped perfectly, just like a store-bought or a churned variety!! Plus, it is eggless. So indulge in this perfect summer treat over the weekend.
More update on birthday later!
Happy weekend you all!!
xx
No Churn Fresh Peach Icecream1
No Churn Fresh Peach Icecream
Yields: 2 liters | Prep time: 10 minutes | Cook time: 20 minutes | Chill time: 6-7 hours or overnight | Total time: About 7-8 hours
Ingredients:

  • 6 medium ripe yet firm peach, peeled, pitted and cubed
  • 1/4 cup brown sugar
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1 Tbsp vanilla extract
  • 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
  • 1 can (400 gm) sweetened condensed milk
  • 600 ml medium-fat fresh cream (I used 25% fat Milkymist Cream)

Directions:

  1. In a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, combine the peaches, brown sugar and salt. Cook until the peaches have softened and the mixture is thick and jam-like, about 17-20 minutes. Mash with a potato masher, stir in the vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg and condensed milk, and set aside to cool completely.
  2. With the hand mixer or stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, whip the cream until stiff peaks form, about 2-3 minutes. Gently fold the cooled peach mixture into the whipped cream until just combined. Transfer the mixture to two lidded liter containers (Do not pack it tightly). Freeze for at least 6-7 hours before serving.No Churn Fresh Peach Icecream3

 

 

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Jun
2014

Mango Cucumber Salsa

categories: Appetizers, Dips & Sauces, Quick Fix, Sides, Summer
Mango Cucumber Salsa1
Hi! Trying to compensate my absence with back to back posts. I need to blog all the summer recipes I’ve made before the rainy season officially starts and I am really lagging behind. I thought at least I’ll give you this mango salsa recipe before mango season is ends. This salsa is a perfect accompaniment to your chips and a great side to grilled chicken or lamb chops.
I don’t remember how many bowls of this sunshine I have devoured this summer. It is my absolute favorite. I eat chips just so that I can have salsa (or any other dips/condiment for that matter!!) and end up having it by spoonfuls in lieu of chips! I have a couple of peaches sitting in my fridge, waiting to be used up & I most certainly plan of turning them in to this salsa sans cucumber this evening (with mint of course!).
Enjoy& be patient.
Weekend is almost here! 😉
Mango Cucumber Salsa2
Mango Cucumber Salsa:
Serves: 2 | Prep time: 5 minutes | Cook time: 0 minute | Total time: 5 minutes
Ingredients:

  • 1 small red onion, finely chopped
  • 1 jalapeño pepper, seeded & finely chopped
  • 1 cucumber, finely chopped (about 1 cup)
  • 1 ripe mango, sliced, pitted & finely chopped (about 1 1/4 cup)
  • Salt & freshly cracked pepper, to taste
  • 1/4 cup fresh basil, chiffonade (can be subbed with coriander leaves)
  • Juice from 1 lemon

Don’t know what is basil chiffonade? – Pioneer woman tells you here!

Directions:

Toss all of the ingredients in a bowl. Refrigerate until ready to serve (about 3-4 hours max otherwise it turns mushy). Serve with your favorite chips or a meat of choice.

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