Pineapple Upside Down.

Pineapple Upside Down Cake

An old classic with a new twist. It looks like it is Van Gogh's birthday here. The art credit goes to a friend across the seas who is truly an amazing lady and ever so obliging. You can use any 

25cm / 10-inch pan you like, round, square, or even a specially manufactured one in the shape of a flower! 
You can use peaches or apricots if you prefer. Fresh or canned pineapple, both are fine. Use maraschino cherries if you want to add colour. Walnuts if you want to add texture. The choice is yours. 
Design the bottom of the pan as best you like, as it will be the top of the cake when you turn it upside down.

Wonder if it is Picasso or Van Gogh celebrating a birthday?

Preheat the oven to 175 C |350 F

For the Base you need

1/2 cup sugar
1/3 cup melted salted butter
12 rings of pineapple; brushed with rum 
About 15 pieces of walnuts

For the Cake
3 large eggs at room temperature
1 cup sugar
1 1/2 cup sifted all purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 /2 tsp salt
2/3rd cup pineapple juice plus 1 tsp vanilla essence + 1 tsp rum (optional to substitute it for another teaspoon of vanilla  extract)


Step 1 Melt the sugar in the cake pan over low heat until it has caramelised to a nice golden amber color. 
Pour the butter all over and twist the pan around to ensure it has reached all over. 
Decorate with pineapples and walnuts. Keep aside 

Step 2 With an electric beater, whip the eggs until very light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. 
Slowly add the sugar, lowering the setting of the beater to the lowest. Gently fold in the sifted flour, baking powder, and salt. Add it alternately with the fruit juice and vanilla extract. 

Gently pour it over the ready fruit and caramel in the pan. Give it a slight shake and put it into the oven to bake for 30 minutes. Test with a skewer to see if it's clean. Do not go all the way down to test it. 
The cake will also begin to leave the sides of the pan. 
Remove it from the oven and wait for 3 minutes. Place a large platter over the cake and turn it upside down. Let it rest for 10–15 minutes. This will allow the juices to all come down well. Keep it in a warm, dry place rather than in a draught at this time. 
It tastes best when fresh. Serve it with fresh cream or ice cream.


Tips
If the cake has not left the sides, run a flat butter knife over it before you turn it over. 

If you do not have enough juice left over from a fresh pineapple, substitute it for any juice like orange, lemon, or a mix of them. Do not omit the exact liquid quantity.

Read more about my cuisine called Parsi food and its history and culture and heritage in my cookbooks The World of Parsi Cooking: Food Across Borders and The Art of Parsi Cooking; reviving an ancient cuisine.
For more delicious cakes download,
Niloufer's Kitchen: Persian Fusion


Photo credit Kainaaz R Patell.

Frangipane FruitTart

Frangipane Tart

What a wonderful idea when the base is the shell and the filling. How much simpler could anything be yet taste delightful.  Try this wonderful fruit tart. You can use peaches, pears, apples, plums, oranges or any of the berries. I love pears and am going to use them for this recipe.

Frangipane is originally referred to as almond cream scented with like the beautiful Frangipani trees. Named after the Marquis Frangipani it is very popular in Europe particularly in France, Italy, Spain and Switzerland to serve an assortment of individual frangipane fruit tarts in cafe`s. They continue to be my personal favourite to date. 

Prepare an 8/10 inch/ 21 cm pan with parchment lining and butter. 
or Four individual ones in a 31/2 inch/9 cm round pie plate

1 cup ground almonds
1 1/2 cups sugar
3 eggs
3/4 tsp vanilla
pinch of salt

2 small ripe pears
spice of choice,  1/4 tsp cinnamon
1 tbsp apricot marmalade +  Optionally 1 tbsp rum to glaze

In a bowl mix the dry ingredients with a wooden spoon.
Add the eggs and vanilla, Give it a good stir with the spoon. It will be a thick liquid.
Pour 3/4th in the pan. Lay out the pears fanned out, pour the remaining over and around it.
Bake in a preheated oven of 350F/180C for 30 minutes. Test with a skewer  to see if  cooked through. When still hot brush with the glaze made of the marmalade and rum. Serve warm on its own or with salted caramel ice cream or delicious creme-anglaise ar a caramel sauce.

Preparing the caramel sauce

In a pan, on a medium high flame melt

1 1/4 cup sugar

Swirl over the heat until beautifully amber coloured.

Remove from the fire and add 1 cup of cream over the caramel; This will splatter so be careful.

Add 1/4 tsp sea salt

1 tbsp of Tahitian Vanilla

Optional 2 tbsp Rum

Tips
Lightly toast the ground almonds in a warm oven for 10 minutes before mixing it with the sugar. This refreshes the almonds and ensures it does not clump together. It keeps the frangipane" light"; hence it is an important step.
Choose the spice according to the fruit. Some of the other choices are nutmeg, ginger, all spice or cardamom.

Pour it into one large or 8 to 12 small tartlets. While this recipe does not need a pastry base it works well if you prefer to have one. Reduce baking time to just 8-10 minutes if its in a mini tartlet. While picking the size of the tartlet it works best if the diameter of the tartlet is slightly larger then the length and breadth of the fresh pear you plan to top it with. You may need to buy some additional pears to cover the individual pear tarts.

To make your own sweet short crust pastry 

The skewer test must come out clean. Pierce where there is no fruit.

For more delicious recipes download 
Niloufer's Kitchen: French Bistro
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00J2KMB4C



Enjoy my published cookbook The Art of Parsi Cooking; reviving an ancient cuisine.

Kainaaz R. Patell

Today at 8:06am

Niloufer Mavalvala, thank you for this most wonderful recipe, your pear tart turned out rich and cinnamony, with the right balance of flavours. I paired it with some finger lime flavoured whipped cream.