Kiwi Quark Mousse - With Zespri Kiwifruit!

Kiwifruit aka Chinese gooseberry.  Familiar, but not quite.  But fascinating it has always been!  The egg shaped, far from attractive fuzzy exterior, reveals a pretty seed flecked interior in an intriguing shade of green.  And now a gorgeous yellow too I discover, thanks to this event by Zespri International at ITC Gardenia last month.  I know this post comes late, blame it on the festive season, the inevitable sweets and savories galore.  And then some!

At ITC Gardenia, Chef Yogen Datta and team demonstrated a few recipes to showcase the versatility of the fruit which can be used in everyday dishes as well as exotic ones.  Kiwi Cheesecake, Carpaccio of Kiwi with Silken Tofu,  Rucola, Kiwi & Rosemary Salsa,  Sushi with a Kiwi twist,  Kiwi Caprioska and Kiwi Sangria were among those demonstrated to us. 

Zespri International is owned by over 2,500 kiwifruit growers of New Zealand.  They claim that the fruit they grow comes with the highest assurance of quality.  Along with the conventionally grown fruit, they also sell organic kiwifruit, both green and yellow.  The fruit always comes with a Zespri sticker, so be sure your fruit has it if you are looking for those grown by them. 

Zespri Green Kiwifruit  are tart-sweet, sweeter when ripe.  The yellow ones, Sun Gold Kiwifruit are sweeter with a tropical flavor.  The green ones sometimes may need to be stored for sometime before they are ripe enough, whereas the yellow ones are always ready to eat. 

Choosing and storing : Look for plump fruit with a smooth skin and no bruises.  If you are looking for ripe ones, choose those which yield to gentle pressure.  Those not ripe yet can be left on the counter for a couple of days to ripen.  If you want to hasten the ripening process, put the kiwi in a paper bag with a banana or apple. When it is ripe enough and you  don't want it to ripen further, store in the refrigerator for 1-2 weeks.  I gather, the fruit is enjoy best chilled and is ripe enough, but not mushy! Mushy ones can probably be used in smoothies.

To eat the ripe fruit, just cut it into half, scoop the flesh out and dig in!  The flesh of the Kiwi fruit is very soft and you could cook it into mush in a matter of seconds.  I prefer to eat it as is or as a topping or in a salad or just pureed to use in a dessert.  

Nutrition : Nutrition dense kiwi fruit is supposed to be very rich in calcium,  potassium and fiber.  It has a very low glycemic index too, perfect for the health conscious!

Here is what I made with the fruit.  As I mentioned earlier, the kiwis got my attention a bit late! A simple yet refreshing Quark Mousse topped with Kiwi Fruit.  I have been dreaming of this as a filling in my cake since the time I made this mousse. 

Kiwi Quark Mousse : Inspired By Deeba Rajpal. 

Serves 6.

Ingredients: 

Homemade Quark, well drained : 1 Cup

Whipping cream - 1 cup to get 2 cups whipped cream ( I have used sweetened non-dairy)

Sugar - 2 tablespoons or more to taste (read note)

Pure Vanilla extract : 1 teaspoon

Kiwi fruit puree - 1/2 cup

Sliced Kiwis and fresh mint for garnish.

Method : Whisk together the quark, sugar, vanilla and kiwi fruit puree.  Whip the cream to soft peaks.  Gently, fold it into the quark.  Spoon into dessert glasses. Cover with cling film and chill for 4-5 hours.  Garnish with fresh kiwi slices and fresh mint leaves just before serving. 

Please note : If using unsweetened cream, add more sugar as needed.  You may also need to stabilize the mousse with agar agar or gelatin. In the picture above is with Amul cream which did not hold up very well. It works very well with non-dairy cream though. 

Add a touch of wholesome green or yellow to perk up your salad or dessert with some kiwifruit for a change!  For more information on Zespri Kiwifruit, please do check their website.

Soulfull's Adai, Raagi Dosa Mix And Raagi Flakes - A Product Review

 “One should not attend even the end of the world without a good breakfast.” - Robert A Heinlein

Nothing can really make me skip a meal, specially breakfast, my post-walk ravenous tummy doubly ensures that! The South Indian breakfast staple dosa appears at least twice a week on the table. I, umm..OK..let me blurt it out again, I mostly buy my dosa batter...now please don't look at me like that!!  I have a very strange problem with my batter fermenting properly and I am too lazy to make my own batter in my mixer. I have not had great experiences with instant dosa mixes earlier, so when Soulfull sent me their dosa mixes and raagi flakes for a product review, I was looking forward to see how these would turn out. They currently have launched Instant rawa dosa mix, adai mix and raagi dosa which they claim is low fat and sodium as well.

Here is what Soulfull says

 Adai is traditionally made with a mix of lentils, rice, spices and red chillies which gives the dosa its characteristic reddish color. The lentils are soaked, ground with the spices. If you enjoy your dosas spicy, this protein rich dosa makes a great change from the regular ones. The mix took a little more water than the proportions mentioned on the pack, but it was quite tasty with a very predominant flavor of hing. The batter was easier to spread and made thinner crispier dosas hours after it was mixed. The kids enjoyed their evening snack with spoonfuls of onion-coconut chutney. Hubby doesn't relish adai, but for the kids and me,  Soulfull's gluten free ready mix of adai surely makes it to my grocery list!

 

Though considered to be good for infants and diabetics due to its rich fiber and nutrition content Raagi /finger millet / nachini, is a relatively less used grain. My daughter who at first frowned at the dark colored dosa, took a reluctant bite and then happily ate it with her chutney. A winner here! The peppery rawa dosa mix though was not a hit with us, so I may not buy it again.

The raagi flakes come in six flavors, chocolate, cocoa-lite, banana, strawberry and Tiramisu (interesting!). They little perfectly shaped flakes are crisp and claim to be 97% raagi. The flakes are just about sweet, which is a refreshing change from sweet cereals, perfect for the health conscious and diabetic people. The original flakes are not sweet, so will go well for savory snack ideas as well. Cocoa lite and banana have very mild cocoa and banana flavors. I like eating these flakes as a snack with fresh fruit and chilled milk..but my kids (being kids) did not take a liking to it...a more chocolaty version for them perhaps?

Summing up, even for the dosa made from scratch lovers, the dosa mixes are surely good and handy for those busy mornings or lazy brunch on a weekend. The flakes may appeal in some flavors to the adult palate rather than that of kids. Whole wheat flakes in good flavors perhaps? Yes, I think that would be great!

 Soulfull products are currently available at Brown Tree, Spar outlets, Food Hall and Natures Basket outlets in Bangalore. The products will shortly be available at  Total Mall, Food World & Nilgiris. Soulfull plans to also launch health mixes, muesli  and energy bars. Thanks Soulfull and look forward to more healthy and promising products from you!