"Through my recipes and words, I'll relive my mum,
She who taught me to cook, and make it a chore fun.
As she sifted, measured & baked, raising an eyebrow to me
'Would you a spoon a dollop, and lick the batter to see?'
Hell yes, the best part of being sous chef it was!
Life in the kitchen, she said, is a life without laws...
So today, as I remember her smiles, frowns & rage
Wishing she was here, to taste my batter for a change!
I whip up a colourful treat, for mums everywhere,
Those that are, will be, or love one who endlessly shares.."
[Continued] Chapter 1: Food As I Knew It (1982-2008)
There is no better recipe, than one born out of disaster.
My parents lived in Bangalore for around 7 years from 1998-2005. Some of the most fun and exploratory years of our lives. During this time, I also had the opportunity to leave my boarding school, and do a short stint at a local school for a year. I was 16.
Joining a new school at 16 is hard. Everyone is already sorted in multiple levels of ‘cool’, and usually no one wants the new kid. But, fortunately for me, my packed lunches drew attention for swaps (and the girls were actually lovely and some of my closest friends till date!). Given the growing followers of my meals, I luckily made some great friends (yes, food can take you places). And so, my mother had to invite them over for lunch. It is what she did.
At 16 you are skeptical of anything your parents do. So I peered and critiqued every dish she put on the menu, and sulked around the kitchen while she prepped the day before my friends were coming over. As she sensed my disapproval, she jokingly said “aur kuch nahin toh dessert toh hai” - meaning “if nothing else works, the dessert will save the day”. Dessert was store bought ice cream. I loved my mums food, but was adamant there had to be at least one thing ‘teenager approved’ on the menu. She didn’t fight it.
India has a lot of power cuts. And they always come at the worst possible time. This time was no different. The electricity board must have sensed my anxiety and decided to cut off power the morning the friends were coming over. Thankfully most food was cooked and ready to go, but oh hell, what about the ice cream! This is where mum was supermum. Instead of biting her nails like I was, she swept in all her tools, and gave me her plan. She said, let’s make a trifle! ….Stay with me here.
My mothers’ trifles were famous. So I HAD to trust her here. Trifle is a layered dessert of cake, cream or custard and seasonal fruit. Ice cream is made of cream/custard, so melted ice cream can be used in place of custard for layering. But where was the cake? Ah, chocolate cakes were a backhand for my mother and she could bake one up with eyes closed. Even on the stove top (using a pressure cooker). An hour later, the kitchen smelled heavenly, and we were busy layering the cake with that melted ice cream and oranges. I was so proud of her. She most definitely sensed my love and relief.
My friends and I had a lovely lunch. Towards the end, one of them asked my mum “Aunty, you HAVE to give me the recipe for that dessert. It was spectacular”. We both just looked at each other and giggled. She then said “Shuchi made dessert today”.
Bangalore was full of such fun memories. But sadly it did not end well. But more on that another time with another recipe…
Todays’ recipe is dedicated to that ‘disaster’ trifle my mum conjured from the dark. These are mini party versions, and are soft, slightly boozy, bundles of sponge cake slathered with layers of custard, cream & sweet rum caramelised peaches. Not a fan of peaches? You can always replace with a soft fruit of choice (mango is another favourite of mine!).
Ingredients
1 medium round sponge cake [I used this easy recipe but you can buy one off a bakery as well]
For the custard [ I like making it from scratch, but for a quick (perhaps disaster saving) version, you can use store bought or a custard mix as well]
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 cup whole milk
5 green cardamoms, crushed
2 tablespoons brown sugar
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 teaspoon vanilla essence
A pinch of salt
Others
12 teaspoons + 1 tablespoon dark rum
1/2 cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons maple syrup
6-8 fresh ripe peaches, pitted and sliced (replace with tinned if out of season)
1 cup warm whole milk
Method
To make the custard, mix the milk, cream & crushed cardamoms, and bring to a simmer. Make a paste with a tablespoon of the warm milk mixture, corn starch & salt. Slowly add the corn starch paste to the simmering milk, stirring continuously, till the milk begins to thicken. Let it bubble for few seconds and then remove from heat. Discard the cardamom skin, and stir in the sugar + vanilla essence. Keep aside to cool.
Beat the cream with maple syrup till soft peaks form. Refrigerate.
Put the peach slices, along with a teaspoon of brown sugar, in a non stick pan on high heat. As the sugar begins to caramelise, add 1 tablespoon of rum and give it a quick toss. Remove from heat, and keep aside to cool.
Cut out 2 inch rounds from the sponge cake and slice each round in half. Layer one half at the bottom of your serving dish. (Depending on the size and shape of serve ware you are using, you could just put rough pieces of cake at the bottom as well). Soak it in some warm milk & a teaspoon of rum, and press it down slightly. Put a dollop of custard, followed by a dollop of whipped cream, and then a slice of the caramelised peach. Top with the other half of the cake and repeat the layers. Do this with all the rounds from the cake. Don't throw away the remaining corners & crumbles from the cake! Make extra portions with the leftover pieces of cake just for yourself!
This dessert tastes great after 24 hours, and even better after 48! Trust me, everyone will want the last pot.
