with Mary Anne Mohanraj
Um, Mary Anne, maybe you are slightly pushing the capacity of that particular pot. 
10 second video of bubbling mulled apple cider + honey + jaggery. (It’s the honey that makes it bubble up so high…)
(Flash sale later today, comment if you’d like to be tagged into it. Seed packet soaps, apple cider marshmallows, books. Always books.)
Marshmallows mixing, faster.
I bought myself a present back in March, to celebrate the cookbook launching: a new mixer in cobalt blue, with a glass bowl. I have to admit, the Cuisinart I had previously is actually a little easier to use — the components aren’t as heavy. So I’m not sure I’d recommend the Kitchen-Aid for general use. But if you want something pretty that you’re happy to leave sitting out in the kitchen, don’t mind that it’s a little heavier, and love watching your marshmallows and batters mix up in the glass bowl, it’s certainly a treat.
As for me, now I have a back-up, which is good for when I’m production cooking. Not a lot of that right now, but when the pandemic is over and we re-launch the cookbook with lots of events, I think both mixers will be in heavy use. Maybe I can have Kavi or Anand on one and me on the other.
10 seconds of soothing mixer action, for apple cider & honey marshmallows.
Funfun. Also, I have a new mixer, which is pretty (deep blue! clear glass bowl which lets you see marshmallows whipping up and transforming!), but which I don’t know how to use. Pro-tip — test your tools in advance!
Heh. Couldn’t find my mini scone pan, and with close to a quadruple batch, would’ve spent forever baking if I’d used it anyway, so I just went for tray bakes. I’ve seen triangular scones and round scones — not sure I’ve ever seen rectangular scones? And I think I overworked it slightly (or Kevin did), as the consistency is kind of halfway between scone and cake. But, y’know, delicious.
Will let these cool, then make a jaggery & brown butter glaze. Some of them are going out in a birthday present treat box tomorrow; the rest will be frozen and set aside for the September Patreon treat boxes. If I don’t want to be frenzied when it’s time to send those out, it seems like it makes sense to make and freeze as much as I can in advance.
I think I want to make some kind of lime & coconut bar next, probably drizzled with white chocolate. Coconut in the crust sounds tasty.
Recipe for the scones here: http://serendibkitchen.com/…/banana-scones-with-cranberry-…/
Taught Kavi how to make marshmallows today. (Video in a week or two.) She said she really likes cutting marshmallows and finds it very peaceful — “I could have a shop where I did this all the time!”
Of course, cutting one tray of marshmallows isn’t exactly the same as spending all day doing it every day.
Kevin made creme brûlée for Kavi’s French-themed birthday, and Kavi got to try torching for the first time.
She excitedly texted her friends afterwards: “I got to use a flamethrower!”
I’m feeling particularly frugal these pandemic days, so it seemed like the right time to try cooking with dandelions. I mostly dig them out of my garden, but they keep coming back, and I had no trouble harvesting enough to gather a cup of dandelion petals. I wish I’d saved the roots too, as apparently when roasted they make a coffee-like ice cream. Next year — I’m out of dandelions now.
I honestly wasn’t sure I’d like this! But it turns out I love it — I kept going back to the ice cream churn to see if I could scrape out a little more before rinsing it out. I think this is delicious, and well worth your time.
I ended up using a clover honey picked up at our local store, Carnivore Oak Park, one that came advertised as being loaded with pollen, I assume because pollen is supposed to be good for you? I don’t know — something new to research. I would recommend choosing a mild honey, to let the subtle dandelion flavor shine through.
I served mine with fresh mango — springtime and summer mixed together in a bowl.
*****
Dandelion & Honey Ice Cream
The flavors here are delicately floral / herbal — this reminds me of Indian ice cream, oddly enough, maybe because I’m more used to honey and floral rose flavors there? It takes like sunshine on a warm spring day.
Ingredients:
* 1 1/2 cups heavy cream
* 1 1/2 cups half and half
* 1/2 cup mild honey
* about 1 cup dandelion petals
* 1/4 tsp salt
* 6 egg yolks
1. Harvest about 2-3 cups of dandelions (grown in an area that’s free of pesticides / herbicides), rinse well, and let dry. Remove the petals, being careful to separate out and discard the bitter green leaves and stem. You’ll need about 1 cup of dandelion petals for 1 batch of ice cream. (This part is a little time-consuming, but fun to do with a willing child, should you have one on hand.)
2. Combine cream, half-and-half, honey, salt, and dandelion petals in a saucepan. Turn heat to medium for a few minutes to bring the temperature up, then turn down to a simmer, stirring the whole time. When it’s simmering (with little bubbles around the edge), remove it from the heat and add the dandelion petals. Let steep for 30 minutes.
3. Strain the dandelion blossoms out, pouring the cream into another container (one with a spout will make the next step easier, such as a glass measuring cup). Rinse the saucepan to cool it and return to stove.
4. Add egg yolks to the pan and whisk in the cream mixture. Turn the heat to low and continue to whisk until it thickens to a custard (thick enough to coat the back of a spoon).
5. Remove from heat and pour back into the container you used before. Chill in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours.
6. Churn in an ice cream maker. If you like, stir in a few more dandelion petals at the end for a pretty presentation. Perfect for a picnic in the grass.
I went for a sunshine-y sunburst pattern for the seeni sambol star bread. My shaping could use a little work, so don’t look too closely at the details. But so, so tasty, and what a fun way to present seeni sambol for a party, instead of a stack of buns. Someday, we’ll have parties again, I promise.
Will post recipe tomorrow, along with recipe for dandelion & honey ice cream, today’s other experiment. Now, must sleep.
Kavi helped me make star bread for the first time today — I did a bake-a-long with Pooja Makhijani teaching us. Super-happy with the results — it’s so damn pretty. I can’t stand it. And making the twists was VERY satisfying.
My first one was chai-spiced: sugar, cinnamon, cardamom, clove, nutmeg, ginger, black pepper. Mmm…. I have a second going in the oven, a savory one — will post details soon.
I don’t have a recipe for you, because I’m not sure where Pooja got the one we used, and I don’t want to share it without permission, but if you follow the King Arthur Flour recipe for star bread, just add 1/2 teaspoon of the other spices listed above to the cinnamon and sugar, and you should end up with something very close to mine.
I brought it warm to the kids to eat for a last treat before bed, after our nightly Doctor Who. They were VERY happy. It’s half-gone already.
