Saffron Tuiles With Saffron & Pistachio Diplomat Cream

And I am still enamored with tuiles! I had planned to make saffron tuiles with a creamy filling as one of the desserts for hubby's birthday. Made the batter with a generous pinch of the precious strands from my new box of saffron. Much to my disappointment,  I could not detect the aroma of saffron in it. Bah! The batter was promptly chucked into the fridge. A day and a half later, I baked the tuiles anyway. The flavor and the aroma they exuded made me fall in love with tuiles all over again! All the saffron needed was a good soak!

I wasted no time in making some saffron and cardamom pastry cream, lightened it with some whipped cream. A drop of rose essence and some sliced pistachios to finish. Think really creamy kesar -pista kulfi filled in dainty saffron wafers. Traditional Indian dessert flavors fill the French cookies in this easy, make-ahead dessert, Saffron Tuiles With Saffron And Pistachio Diplomat Cream.
 

For The Saffron Tuiles (makes about 40 tuiles, depending on size and shape)

Ingredients:
Unsalted Butter - 45 grams /  3 tablespoons, melted and still very warm
Sugar - 130 grams / 2/3 cup / 4.625 oz    approximately
Egg whites, large - 90 grams/ 3 large
All Purpose Flour - 60 grams / 1/4 cup 3 tablespoons

Saffron strands - 1/2 heaping teaspoon, crushed (or more)
Crushed cardamom - 1/4 teaspoon (optional)
Salt - 1/8 teaspoon
Yellow gel color - a streak or two, use very carefully (optional)
More butter to grease the pan liners


Equipment - Baking trays or pans or cookie sheets, heavy duty aluminum foil dull side up. Small cups, small box (like you smallest box of baking powder) rolling pin for shaping. A cooling rack.


Procedure:  If baking cookies right away, preheat oven to 150 degrees C / 300 degree F. If baking cookies later, just mix the batter as mentioned below. I highly recommend resting the batter overnight to get the best of the saffron aroma and flavor.

If you would be using foil, measure the size needed to line your tray or pan. Cut carefully making sure you do not cause major creases. If there are any small creases smooth it out. Wrinkles will mar the appearance of the cookies. Line your pan(s) foil dull side up. Using a silicon brush, grease the foil with butter lightly  but thoroughly. I used my 9'' square tin. I could bake 2 at a time. So be warned, you will need patience to bake these in batches if using a small oven. Quarter the recipe if patience is not among your virtues.

• Stir the saffron in the very warm butter. In a small bowl, whisk together all the ingredients till well blended. This won't be like regular cookie batter, rather spoon- able. Let the batter rest for at least 10 minutes or keep covered in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Overnight will bring out the flavor of saffron better. The batter firms up slightly on refrigerating.
• Drop level teaspoons of batter 2 inches apart on the prepared foil. Using the back of a spoon, spread the batter evenly in strips or in 2 1/2 inch rounds or oval or other shape. This will look almost translucent. If using multiple trays, you could spread the batter and keep the trays in the oven one by one. A test batch of one or two will tell you the right amount of batter for the shape and size of cookies you need. 

• Bake cookies of similar shapes and sizes using the same amount of batter for each batch to get the same results. Don't forget to note down the baking time. The cookies will be really crisp when cool and will be delicate enough to shatter even with gentle pressure.
•  
• Bake for about 10-11 minutes. The time depends on the thickness of the cookies. Watch very carefully, bake till the cookies are golden brown half or three quarters way to the center, but still pale in the center. I baked the cookies till they turned golden all over. If the cookies are not baked thoroughly, they won't be completely crisp when they cool. But be careful not to burn them. Rotate pans if using a large oven and multiple sheets. I baked for about 11 minutes. 
• Remove the cookies sheets or pans from the oven and set them down, let cool completely. Carefully lift the entire foil with the cookies out.Very carefully and gently, peel the foil from underneath the tuiles. Set the cookies down very gently on a tray or airtight flat box if you don't want to shape them. 
• After baking all of the cookies, keep your rolling pin or cup or little box (to make cylinders) right beside the oven if you want to curve it. You won't have time to turn, go to the table and then shape. Very gently put one cookie at a time on the sheet and then in the oven (at 150 C)  for 40-60 seconds till it becomes very soft and flexible. Then shape. They harden very very quickly as in a matter of 4-5 seconds, so its really important that you work very quickly.  So timing is the most important thing.
• They will be really really delicate, so handle the cookies with care. Store in an airtight container. Alice says they can be airtight for at least a month.

Saffron, Cardamom And Pistachio Diplomat Cream - Makes about 2.5 cups

Whole milk - 2 cups / 480 ml
Saffron strands - 1/2 teaspoon, heaping
Cardamom, crushed - 1/2 teaspoon
Rose essence (or rosewater, read note) - 2 drops
Egg yolks - 108 grams / 6 large
Granulated sugar - 1/4 cup / 50 grams
All-purpose flour  - 48 grams - 6 tablespoons
Unsalted butter - 30 grams / 2 tablespoons
Pistachios, sliced - 1/2 cup
Sweetened whipped cream, chilled - 1 - 1.5 cups or as needed , read note
A tiny tiny streak of yellow gel color (optional) 

Method:

• Suspend a fine meshed strainer over a medium sized heat proof bowl. Set this near your stove. Have a spatula ready nearby.

• In a medium sized saucepan, combine the milk, saffron and cardamom. Heat till just before the boiling point. Turn off the heat. Cover. Let infuse for at least half an hour. After half-an-hour heat again and bring to a boil.

• In the bottom of another medium sized heavy saucepan, off the heat, beat or whisk the egg yolks, rose essence and 1/4 cup sugar.  Whisk in the flour until fully incorporated.

• Whisking all the time, using a small ladle, drizzle the hot milk mixture into the egg yolk mixture, just a tiny bit at a time. Very gradually, add all the milk. Do not rush this process. 

• Bring the saucepan to your stove and heat it over low heat, whisking constantly, until it begins to bubble. Once bubbling and fairly thick, remove it from the heat. Do not heat for very long as the cream will turn very thick and tough to press through the sieve. Immediately stir in the butter until combined, without waiting, press through the strainer (a workout!)
•  Press cling wrap to the surface, chill till needed. You could refrigerate this for up to 3 days.

• Gently fold in the whipped cream into the cooled pastry cream. Add the color if needed. Stir in the pistachios. Keep this covered and chilled until serving time.
•  Just before serving, fill in the tuile cups or cylinders. Garnish with fresh rose petals and serve immediately.

Please note : Good quality saffron gives great flavor. Use rose essence very very carefully as even a drop more can be excessive. The smell must be there but not quite. Use food grade rosewater  if you can find it. I have used sweetened whipped cream so the sugar in the pastry cream has been reduced greatly. If using unsweetened cream for whipping, increase the sugar in the pastry cream. I have used pastry cream and whipped cream in the ratio of 2:1. Vary it as you like.

You could try adding some sliced pistachios in the tuiles batter as well if you don't want to shape them. I did not add as it would be difficult to shape.

The amount of pastry cream you will need depends on the number and size of tuiles. 

Endless possibilities, so easy, love, love tuiles! Expect to see more of these here, later if not very soon!

Mawa Cake & Bolinhas De Coco - Daring Bakers In India!

This month's Daring Bakers challenge takes us to Goa for some semolina and coconut cookies, Bolinhas de coco and to the Irani cafés in India for some mawa cake!

Aparna of  My Diverse Kitchen was our August 2013 Daring Bakers’ hostess and she challenged us to make some amazing regional Indian desserts. The Mawa Cake, the Bolinhas de Coco cookies and the Masala cookies – beautifully spiced and delicious!

Rich, milky, laced with cardamom, topped with cashew nuts or even almonds, mawa cakes are a trademark of the Irani cafés. The texture is slightly dense, reminiscent of a pound cake says Aparna. She challenged us to make mawa cake with home made mawa. Basundi or rabdi, which I used to make often earlier, is just a couple of steps shy of mawa or khoya, but surprisingly I have not made it at home so far. In case you live somewhere where you do not have easy access to it, take heart, its easy to make, but needs patience.

I have made Mawa cakes earlier, though lighter textured, less rich ones. But I did wanted to bake this one too, just for the fun of making mawa at home and not to miss this challenge hosted by Aparna. It was fun indeed!

Mawa Cake :

I have halved the recipe and baked the cake in an 3 cup capacity bundt pan, remaining batter in 2 small muffin cups.

Ingredients
For the Mawa:
1 litre (4 cups) full fat milk

For the cake:
1/2 cup (1 stick) (120 ml) (4 oz) (115 gm) unsalted Butter (soft at room temperature)
3/4 cup (180 ml) packed crumbled mawa
1-1/4 cups (300 ml) (10 oz) (280 gm) castor sugar
3 large eggs
5 to 6 cardamom pods, powdered, (about 1-1/2 tsp powdered cardamom)
2 cups (500ml) (9 oz) (260 gm) cake flour
1 teaspoon (5 ml) (5 gm) baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup (120 ml) milk
1 teaspoon (5ml) vanilla extract (optional)
Cashewnuts (or blanched almonds) to decorate (about 18 to 20)

Directions:
1. First make the “Mawa”. Pour the milk into a heavy bottomed saucepan, preferably a non-stick one. Bring the milk to a boil, stirring it on and off, making sure it doesn’t stick to the bottom.

Turn down the heat to medium and keep cooking the milk until reduces to about a quarter of its original volume. This should take about an hour to an hour and a half.

2. The important thing during this process is to watch the milk and stir it frequently to make sure it doesn’t stick to the sides or bottom of the pan and get burnt. The danger of this happening increases as the milk reduces and gets thicker.

3. Once the milk it has reduced to about one fourth, 1/4 quantity, lower the heat to low and let cook for a little while longer. Keep stirring regularly, until the milk solids (mawa) take on a lumpy appearance. There should be no visible liquid left in the pan, but the mawa should be moist and not stick to the sides of the pan.

4. Remove the pan from heat and transfer the mawa to a bowl and let it cool completely. Then cover and refrigerate it for a day or two (not more) till you’re ready to make the cake. It will harden in the fridge so let it come to room temperature before using it. You should get about 3/4 to 1 cup of mawa from 1 litre (4 cups) of full-fat milk.

To bake the cake : Pre-heat your oven to moderate 180°C/350°F.

1. Beat the butter, the crumbled mawa and the sugar in a largish bowl, using a hand held electric beater, on high speed until soft and fluffy.

2. Add the eggs, one at a time, and beat on medium speed till well incorporated. Add the vanilla and milk and beat till mixed well.

3. Sift the cake flour, baking powder, cardamom, and salt onto the batter and beat at medium speed and well blended. If you cannot find cake flour, place 2 tablespoon of cornstarch in the bottom of your 1-cup measure and then fill it with all-purpose (plain) flour to make up to 1 cup.

4. Grease and line only the bottom of an 8 inch (20 cm) spring form pan. Pour the batter into this and lightly smooth the top. Place the cashew nuts (or blanched almonds) on top of the batter randomly. Do not press the nuts down into the batter. A Mawa Cake always has a rustic finished look rather than a decorated look.

5. Bake in a preheated moderate oven for about 1 hour until the cake is a golden brown and a skewer pushed into the centre comes out clean. Do not over bake the cake or it will dry out. If the cake seems to be browning too quickly, cover it will aluminum foil hallway through the baking time.

6. Remove from oven and allow it to cool for 10 min in the tin. Release the cake, peel off the parchment from the base and let it cool completely.

BOLINHAS DE COCO (Cardamom Flavored Coconut Biscuits/ Cookies):

The notable thing about these cookies are they are made entirely out of semolina and fresh coconut (no flour). These cookies are a little crisp, crunchy on the outside and kind of cakey within when freshly baked. Cardamom and coconut make a fab pairing and I loved the flavor of the cookies. Am sure they would have been better texture-wise if I had not goofed up with the dough.

Ingredients:

2 cups (500 ml) (5-1/3 oz) (150 gm) fresh grated coconut, packed
1-1/2 cups (360 ml) (9 oz) (250 gm) semolina
1-1/4 cups (300 ml) (8-3/4 oz) (250 gm) granulated sugar
3/4 cup water (180ml) (6 oz) (175 gm) water
A pinch of salt
2 tablespoons (30 ml) (1 oz) (30 gm) ghee (clarified butter) or melted unsalted butter
2 large eggs
8 to 10 pods cardamom, powdered (about 1-1/2 teaspoon)

Directions:
1. Run the grated coconut in your processor or the small jar of your blender a couple of times so that the flakes are smaller and uniform in texture. Do not grind into a paste. Keep aside.

2. Put the semolina in a pan and toast/ roast it, over low to medium heat, until it starts giving off an aroma, and looks like it’s about to start changing colour. This should take a couple of minutes. Do not brown. Transfer the semolina into a bowl and keep aside.

3. In the same pan, pour the water and add the sugar to it. Place it on medium heat and keep stirring until the sugar dissolves completely. Once the sugar has dissolved, keep stirring the solution and let it cook for about 2 minutes. Turn off the heat. The sugar solution should just begin to start forming a syrup but is still watery. Do not cook until it forms a thick syrup.

4. Add the toasted/ roasted semolina and mix well. Then add the coconut, salt and ghee (or melted butter) and mix well. Put the pan back on the stove, and over medium heat stir the coconut mixture until it is really hot and easily forms a thick clump. This should take about 2 to 3 minutes.

5. Take the pan off the heat and let the semolina coconut mixture cool to room temperature. Transfer this into a bowl or container, cover and refrigerate for at least 8 hours, ideally overnight. For really fluffy biscuits/ cookies, the overnight rest is recommended.

6. The next day, take the dough out of the fridge and let it come to room temperature. ( I did the mistake of warming the mixture slightly to get it to room temperature faster as I had to go out. I should have just let it come to room temperature by itself, had to refrigerate the dough again to firm it up, but it did not come back to the same consistency).  Separate the yolks from the egg whites. Lightly beat the yolks with a fork to break them and add to the dough. Also add the powdered cardamom and mix well with a wooden spoon or fork.

7. Whisk the egg whites by hand until frothy and add to the dough. Mix well till incorporated.
8. You will now have a slightly moist and sticky dough. Refrigerate this dough for about half an hour so it firms up a bit.

9. Pre-heat your oven to moderate 180°C/350°F/gas mark 4. Line your baking trays with parchment or grease them well with some ghee or melted butter.

10. Take the dough out and pinch off walnut sized bits of dough. The dough should be firm enough to handle without difficulty. If the dough is sticking to your palms, lightly dust your palms with flour before shaping the dough. Roll the bits of dough into balls and then flatten them very slightly.

11. Decorate the top by marking criss-crosses (3 equidistant lines one way and another 3 crossing them at right angles), with a table knife. Press down a bit but not too deep or right through the biscuit/ cookie. Use up all the dough this way.

2. Place the shaped dough on the baking trays leaving a little space between them. Bake in a preheated moderate oven for about 20 to 25 minutes until they’re a golden brown and done. Mine took a little longer probably because the dough was a bit loose. Let them cool on the sheets for about 5 minutes and then transfer to racks to cool completely.

13. Store the biscuits/ cookies in airtight containers. This recipe makes about 4 dozen Bolinhas de Coco.

Thank you for the lovely challenge Aparna, it was fun doing this!