Vasantham Central

1 tablespoon QBB
50 g cashew nuts, chopped
50 g raisins
3 large mangoes
80 g rice grains
700 ml water
1/4 teaspoon salt
400 ml milk
80 g caster sugar
10 cardamoms, pounded

Heat ghee and fry the cashew nuts till golden brown. Keep aside and fry the raisins in the same ghee till it puffs up. Keep aside.
Peel the mangoes. Dice the flesh of one of the mangoes. Put the flesh of the rest of the mangoes into the blender and blend into a puree.
Wash and soak rice in water for 30 minutes.
Drain the soaked rice grains and put it into a blender. Pour in the 800 ml water and blend the rice grains coarsely.
Pour into a deep saucepan and bring to boil over low heat until the rice becomes soft.
Add in the salt, milk and sugar and bring to boil till the sugar dissolves. Remove from heat.
Pour in the mango puree and add in the fried cashew nuts, raisins, the diced mangoes and the cardamom powder.
Combine well and serve hot or cold.

BANANA ROLLS WITH GULA MELAKA SAUCE
250 g palm sugar
180 ml water
3 tablespoons sugar (optional)
4 pandan, tied into a knot
3 medium eggs
½ teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons evaporated milk
6 slices bread
6 golden bananas (pisang emas)
2 tablespoons QBB
Oil for deep frying
METHOD

Put palm sugar, sugar, water and pandan leaves into a pan and boil till the palm sugar is dissolved and syrup thick. Strain and keep the palm sugar syrup aside.
Beat eggs, salt and milk together in a bowl.
Trim the crusts from the bread slices.
Place a bread slice on a chopping board. Using the fingers, press the bread slice lightly. Place a peeled banana on one end of the bread slice.
Roll up to encase the banana inside. Dip this roll in the beaten egg.
Heat QBB and oil for deep frying and fry the banana roll till golden brown.
Drain on absorbent paper and serve with the prepared palm sugar syrup.

FOR THE TOPPING

250 g dried apricots
200 ml strong Earl Grey tea
200 g caster sugar
3 medium eggs
grated zest of 2 lemons
100 g chopped pitted prunes
120 ml lemon juice
1 teaspoon baking powder
60 g plain flour
20 X 30 cm slice tin or muffin tins

1          Place apricots and tea in small saucepan. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and cook till apricots become soft and liquid has evaporated.   Let it cool and chop it up coarsely.
1          Grease and line a 20 x 30cm slice tin.
2          Cream the QBB and sugar until light and fluffy. Add 1 egg.
3          Fold in sifted flour. Press into the base of the prepared tin.
4          Bake 180° C for 15 minutes.
5          To prepare the topping beat together the sugar, eggs, lemon zest and lemon juice. Fold in baking powder and flour.
6          When the base is baked sprinkle the chopped cooked apricots and the dried prunes evenly and pour the lemon egg mixture over the top.
9          Bake for a further 25 minutes or until surface is golden brown.
10        Allow to cool completely before cutting.

50 g freshly grated coconut
200 ml plain yoghurt
1 tablespoon caster sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla essence

150 ml honey
1 tablespoon melted QBB
1 teaspoon vanilla essence
1 X 4 cm cinnamon, crushed into pieces
4 thick slices of sweet pineapple
50 g roasted pistachios, chopped
50 g roasted almond flakes

Place the first 4 ingredients into a cup and stir to combine well.
Place pineapple slices on a glass oven proof dish.
Pour the honey over it.
Roast in a preheated oven of 180° C for 15 minutes and turn the pineapple slices to roast the other side for another 10 minutes.
Cool it thoroughly.
To serve, place pineapple and some of the juice on a serving plate. Place 3 tablespoons of the prepared yoghurt over it and sprinkle with pistachios and almond flakes.

MANGO STRAWBERRY ENCHILADAS
TO MAKE THE FILLING
12 strawberries
300 g fresh mango cubes
100 ml freshly squeezed mango juice
80 ml thickened cream or evaporated milk
125 g cream cheese
50 g caster sugar
1 tablespoon lemon juice
grated zest of 1 lemon
4 soft flour tortillas
icing sugar for dusting
chocolate sauce

Squeeze 8 strawberries for juice. Strain and keep aside.
Cut the remaining strawberries into quarters.
Put the strawberry juice, cream, cream cheese, sugar and lemon juice into a blender and blend till smooth.
Stir in the lemon zest.
Warm the tortillas.
Place a portion of the cheese on one side of the tortilla.
Sprinkle with strawberries and cubed mangoes.
Roll up. Place on a dessert plate.
Dust with icing sugar lightly.
Drizzle with chocolate sauce before serving.

180 g caster sugar
150 ml water
100 g QBB, melted and cooled
150 ml evaporated milk or thick coconut milk
2 medium eggs, lightly beaten
220 g plain flour
1 ½ teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
¼ teaspoon salt
140 g caster sugar
3 bananas, sliced

Place the 180 g sugar in a small saucepan and heat gently until the sugar melts and caramelizes to a golden brown colour.
Remove from the stove and pour the water (must be careful – it will splutter)
Boil the caramel until the sugar is completely melted. Let it cool thoroughly.
Measure out only 300 ml of the caramel.
Combine the caramel syrup, melted QBB, evaporated milk and eggs together.
Sift flour, soda and salt together into a bowl. Stir in the sugar.
Make a well in the centre and pour the caramel mixture in stir gently to incorporate everything together into a lump free batter.
Grease little cups. Place 1-2 slices of banana at the base of the cup.
Pour batter into the each cup.
Place in a preheated steamer and steam for about 20 minutes or until a skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean.

Ps: Do not open the steamer before the time is up or the cake will collapse. This applies to all steamed cakes.

BOILED FRUIT CAKE
380 g self raising flour
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
375 g mixed dried fruits
180 ml water
3 tablespoons evaporated milk
180 g QBB
150 g soft brown sugar
½ teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
grated zest of 1 lemon

greased and lined 19 cm X 19 cm square tin or muffin tins

Sieve the first 3 ingredients together.
Preheat oven to 180° C.
Grease and line a 19 cm X 19 cm square cake tin.
Place fruits, water, evaporated milk, QBB and sugar into a pan and bring to a boil.
Simmer for about 3 minutes or until the fruits plump up. Remove from heat and stir in the bicarbonate of soda. Leave to cool.
Add in the sifted ingredients and lemon zest and stir to mix well.
Pour mixture into prepared tin.
Bake for 60 minutes or until cake is done.
Turn the cake onto a wire rack and cool completely before slicing.

RAVA LADDU
4 tablespoons QBB
80 g cashew nuts, cut into small bits
50 g coconut, cut into small bits
50 g raisins
260 g semolina
15 cardamoms, pounded
150 g icing sugar, sifted
generous pinch of saffron
100 ml very hot milk (+ or -)

Heat QBB and fry the cashew nuts and coconut until golden brown. Put into a mixing bowl.
Fry the raisins in the same ghee until puffs up and place it inside the mixing bowl.
In a separate pan, dry roast the semolina until fragrant and transfer to mixing bowl. Add in the cardamom and icing sugar. Stir to combine well.
In the same pan, dry roast the saffron strands on very low heat. Crush it lightly and add it to the hot milk.
Sprinkle the hot milk over the semolina and form into tight balls, the size of a lime. Leave to cool before storing it in airtight container or wrapping in cellophane.

350 g grated coconut, preferably the white part only
1/2 teaspoon salt
350 g steamed and mashed pumpkin with 1 teaspoon QBB
220g glutinous rice flour
30 g tapioca flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
3-4 tablespoons hot water
120 g gula melaka, chopped

METHOD

Steam grated coconut for 10 minutes. Add in salt and toss well. Keep aside.
Put pumpkin, glutinous rice flour, tapioca flour, salt and hot water into a mixing bowl. Combine to form a pliable soft dough. If dough is too soft, add a little more glutinous rice flour
Cut dough into small pieces. Roll a piece of the dough with your hands. Flatter and put a little chopped gula melaka in the centre.
Seal the edge and roll into a round ball. Repeat with remaining dough pieces.
Bring water to boil in a deep pan. Drop the balls into boiling water until they float to the surface. Remove the cooked balls with a slotted spoon. Roll the cooked balls in the grated coconut and serve.

BANANA PANIYARAM
3 tablespoons QBB
80 g cashewnuts, chopped
60 g coconut chips, chopped
240 g self raising flour
200 g bananas or jackfruit, mashed
2 tablespoons sugar
70 g grated coconut
1 teaspoon pounded cardamoms
125 ml water
1/4 teaspoon salt
QBB for greasing ‘paniyaram mould’

Heat QBB and fry the cashew nuts and coconut bits until golden brown. Drain onto absorbent paper.
Mix all the ingredients except the QBB into a thick batter.
Leave it aside for half hour.
Heat a ‘paniyaram’ mould and grease it with QBB. When it is very hot drop tablespoons of the prepared batter in and shallow fry the fritters till golden brown, occasionally turning the fritters.
Drain on absorbent paper.

80 g ginger snap biscuits
50 g QBB, melted
100 ml orange juice
1 tablespoon gelatin
250 g plain cream cheese, room temperature
100 g caster sugar
200 ml milk
finely grated rind of 1 lemon
2 tablespoons lemon juice
400 g strawberries, halved or quartered
METHOD

Put ginger snaps into a plastic bag and crush till it becomes fine crumbs.
Add in the QBB and combine well.
Press about 1 tablespoon of this into the base of dessert bowls or glasses. Keep refrigerated.
Heat orange juice and dissolve the gelatin in it.
Pour into a blender. Put in the cream cheese, sugar and milk and lemon juice and blend till smooth.

Stir in the grated lemon rind.
Pour some of the prepared cheese mixture on top of the biscuit crumbs. Sprinkle with some chopped strawberries followed by more cheese mixture and strawberries.
Finally sprinkle with some of the balance of the biscuit crumbs.
Keep chilled.

250 ml water
1 tablespoon sugar
90 g butter, chopped
150 g plain flour
2 medium eggs
oil and ghee for deep frying

Combine water, sugar and butter in pan and stir over heat until butter is melted. Bring to boil.
Add flour all at once and stir vigorously over heat until mixture forms a ball.
Remove from heat, heat in eggs, 1 at a time, beat until thick and smooth.
Place mixture into a piping bag fitted with 1 cm star tube.
Pipe 6m tubes of dough onto board.
Deep fry fritters in batches until lightly browned and cooked.
Drain on absorbent paper, roll it in cinnamon sugar.

6 tablespoons sago
water for boiling sago
1 medium honey dew or rock melon
1250 ml water
200 g caster sugar or more or less
5-6 screw pine leaves, tied into a knot
pinch of salt
800 ml thick coconut milk or low fat milk

Boil the sago in water until transparent. Drain and leave it in water.
Peel, seed and dice the honey dew melon.
Bring the water to boil with sugar, screw pine leaves and salt until sugar dissolves.
Turn off heat. Add in the coconut milk, diced honey dew and sago. Remove screw pine leaves and discard.
Stir to mix well and serve hot or chilled.