Wordless Wednesday – 182

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Recipe – Nectarine Filled Vanilla Sponge Cake

 

So after making the delicious compote I still had some juicy Nectarines left. Cakes filled with seasonal fruits have always been my favorite.  So here is a simple recipe for a soft golden vanilla flavored sponge cake filled with rose-tinted Nectarines.

Choosing the fruit:

Pick up fresh firm fruit that is ripe and not bruised. It should yield when touched slightly.

Preparing the fruit:

Wash  the fruit and cut it in slices. Remove the stone. Place the slices in cold water.

Ingredients:

Flour – 200 grams

Eggs  4

Melted butter (room temperature)- 200 grams

Sugar – 200 grams

Vanilla Essence – 1 teaspoon

Nutmeg – 1/4 teaspoon

Cinnamon – 1 teaspoon

Baking Powder – 1 teaspoon

Nectarines – 6 small or 3 big ones

Method :

Preheat the oven to 170 degrees.

Grease an eight inch pan with some butter and dust with a little flour . Keep aside.

Sieve flour and baking powder. Keep aside

Separate the egg yolks and whites in two bowls.

In a bowl beat the butter and sugar till they mix well and make a smooth paste.

Add one yolk at a time into the mixture and keep beating in both directions for one min each.

Add Vanilla essence, nutmeg and cinnamon and mix well.

Now, beat the egg whites till frothy and light. (It should form peaks)

Add this to the other mixture slowly and fold it in with a wooden spoon.

Once the mixture is smooth and nice add the flour slowly in two batches folding it gently till the batter is mixed well.

Take the greased tin  sprinkle some brown sugar and line some sliced fruit in it then gently pour half the batter in it.

Make another layer of the fruit and pour the rest of the batter on top of it.

Level the top with the back of the spoon.

Place the tin in the center of the oven for 30 min or till the needle comes out clean.

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Once the cake it done and the needle test comes out clean let it rest on the rack for sometime to cool.

Use the knife to loosen the edges and your cake it ready to eat. Serve warm or cold with whipped cream or Vanilla ice cream.

The lip smacking moist cake may not be pretty to look at but it is full of fruity tangy sweet flavors in each bite. I kept the cake for at least two days in the fridge and thought it tasted better than the day it was made.

Try this fruitilicious recipe and let me know how it was received.

Do read the Nectarine Compote Recipe Here 

Chunky Sweet and Tangy Nectarine Compote

 

On my recent visit to Shimla I picked up boxes of seasonal produce like Nectarines, Cherries, Apricots etc. The fruits got devoured in no time but I managed to save a box of Nectarines to make a chunky compote and a fruit filled vanilla sponge cake.

Sweet and delicious, Nectarines are low cal and packed with antioxidants, minerals and vitamins.

Enjoy this simple recipe of chunky Nectarine Compote with grilled chicken / fish, as a fruit spread on toasts or just spooned over plain yogurt or ice cream.

Nectarine Compote 

Ingredients 

2 Cup coarsely chopped Nectarines

1 tablespoon Honey (Less honey will keep the sweet n sour flavor of fruit intact)

1 teaspoon Salted Butter

Flavor combinations 

Lemon zests (1/2 a teaspoon)

1/2 inch Cinnamon stick

1-2 cloves

or

1-2 All Spice Berries

1 Star Anise

2-3 Black Peppercorns

1/2 inch Grated Ginger

Method :

Take ripe Nectarines that yields to the slight pressure when touched.  Prefer firm fruits which are not bruised and have reddish-orange background.

Wash and chop them coarsely. (remove the stone but don’t peel the skin)

In a thick saucepan add the salted butter and melt it on low flame till it bubbles. (watch out that it doesn’t turn brown)

Now mix the spices, fruit, honey and add to the pan.

Add enough water to cover the fruit.

Cook the mixture over medium high flame.

Stir occasionally

Cook till the fruit is soft

Once the fruit is soft remove the saucepan from heat and let it come to room temperature.

 Transfer to a glass jar or a bowl.

Keep it air tight once it cools completely.

You can keep it in fridge for at lease two weeks.

psst.. I added two tablespoons of plum wine to the ready mixture at the end and stirred it in gently.  Lip Smacking .. 😀

TIPS

 You can use all the  seasonal stone-fruits  like peaches, plum, nectarines for this compote  to make it more flavorful.

For some more fun you can add Bourbon instead of water or even a little Brandy. Get creative and serve it chilled.

Wordless Wednesday – 181

 

You and Me – The Unsigned Poem

CONCESSION

I painted myself

in a corner of your room

I painted myself in invisible ink

so you don’t know I am there

watching you secretly

sometimes you stop

whatever you are doing

and look in my direction

and I really have to keep my heart still

lest you recognize the familiar beat

That afternoon

when the sun was concentrated

in a shaft of light

that fell on the corner

where I stood

you, fresh from the shower,

had come and stood in the pool of light

that had gathered at my feet

looked at me with a strange light

in your eyes

and slowly traced your finger

over my invisible form

lingering over my lips

then

at the base of my throat

and further down

my heart beating wildly

under the tip of your finger

for a moment I had thought

the heat from your naked body

would end my little secret

and bring me to life

but

you turned got dressed

and went without a glance

since then I am trapped

in my own image

invisible to you

invisible to me

painted

in one corner of your life

starved for attention.

(First published on Memoirs Of A Homemaker)