Choco'range Cheesecake.

Because you don't live near a bakery doesn't mean you have to go without cheesecake says
Hedy Lamarr . Well in my case even if i was near a bakery i could not eat a cheesecake as i would not get a vegetarian one!, So the only option for me is to make one.
Well cheesecake was in my cook list since the past 10 years, ya!! u read right 10 years! A aunt of mine had made this yum strawberry cheesecake about 10 years back and i always thought id make it, somehow it never happened until the Daring Bakers challenged :)
The April 2009 challenge is hosted by Jenny from Jenny Bakes. She has chosen Abbey's Infamous Cheesecake as the challenge.

I always get hesitant when i have to use tofu as a egg substitute, i m worried about the tofu taste being dominant. So had to make sure i choose strong flavours to cut down tofu's taste.
I went a lil safe, by using the same choco-orange combo as i had done before. The crust was oreo's mixed with choco-almond digestive biscuits, made some candied orange Peel's for the orange flavour.
Trust me it just was heavenly. All my friends who got a bite worth size to taste , loved it!! I m sure to make it soon again but next time try the unbaked version.
I loveeeeeeeeeee cheesecake!!!!
I have to sincerely thank Noveleats for providing the recipe. Thanks a million for sharing such a lovely recipe with us. :)
I followed her recipe mostly, except for changing the flavours:)
Here;s my version of ..

CHOCO'RANGE CHEESECAKE.
200gms Silk Tofu
200gms Cream cheese (i used Philadelphia)
3/4th cup sugar
1/2 cup milk
2tsp vanilla essence
2tbs lemon juice
4-5 tbs candied orange peel's (chopped)
3tbs Cornstarch
1 Bar of milk chocolate
1 Bar of bitter chocolate
*Melt the chocolate on a double boiler and keep aside.

For the crust-
One pack oreo biscuits.
One pack Choco-almond digestive biscuits.
* You can use your choice of crust in accordance to your taste.

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Drain the tofu, Add the tofu, Cream cheese and blend till smooth. Then add rest of the ingredients except for Lemon juice, chocolate and orange peels.
Blend till smooth paste. Divide the mix into two parts. Add the melted chocolate in one and add the orange peels with lemon juice in the other mix.
Prepare the crust by crushing the biscuits and layering it on a greased cake tin. I used a regular rolling pin and a ziploc to crush my biscuits.
As far as the cake tin is concerned its always better to use a springform. I used a regular one as i dint have a springform.
The verdict to this tofu-cheese cake is DOUBLE thumb's-up!! As i read all the post;s i now feel i could have tried the water bath which i dint. Next time id know the difference if it actually makes it more creamier or not. Also one thing i really enjoyed was the pieces of candied orange zest bumping in with the vanilla -sour cheese flavour, it was some what like the classic meets the hip-hop!
One thing is for sure, Its sinful in every term!!

Mixed Marwadi Dal

Somehow i get a urge to cook something different everyday. Something which is not too fancy, can be packed for hubby;s lunch-box, Tasty and goes with the theme of a weekday lunch/dinner. He loves all kinds of dal's, and it gets so boring to make the same thing again n again. I keep craving for diff kind of lentil recipes.

This was the best time to bump into the Tried and Tested event which is hosted byAparna this month which is featuring Lisa's Kitchen.I visited Lisa's blog for the first time and was stunned seeing the variety of vegetarian food. Loved her collection!! Me being a vegetarian myself made it easy to choose a recipe from her blog to blog for.

I choose the Mixed Marwadi daal.. It tastes heavenly with hot roti;s splashed with ghee. I followed lisa;s recipe to the T. Here; the recipe http://foodandspice.blogspot.com/2008/04/marawadi-mixed-dal.html
Trust me its a must try!!

Mexican Stir-fry Rice

Its always fun to cook for kids, they seem to relish their food if it is of their taste and the smile that comes along with it is .. priceless!! All kids love diff colours in their food, My daughter is almost 2 years now and yet understands her taste completely.She lovessssss Rice in any form. SO wen i saw Trupti;s event which she is hosting this month, which is cooking for Kids and that too mainly using Rice i was sure to participate. Cooking for Kids event is a master mind of Sharmi of Neivedyam
SO here i made Mexican stir-fry rice using read kidney beans along with some veggies.

I love this recipe for the fact that it is quick to make, is enjoyed by all, healthy, and colourful too :)

1cup uncooked rice 1 cup white onions, sliced 2 crushed garlic cloves pinch of turmeric pwd 1 sliced green pepper 1 tomato, chopped 1 cup mixed boiled vegetables 1/4th cup boiled Red kidney beans Drop of Tabasco Oil Salt

Wash and soak rice for about an hour or more. Boil the rice and set aside.Heat oil in a pan and add Onion slices, saute till golden brown, add garlic and turmeric pwd, saute for a few more minutes. Set this mix aside and in the same pan saute the green pepper. for a min. Add the remaining mix vegetables, beans and the onion mix. Saute everything well enough until veggies are tender. Add salt and a drop of Tabasco. Add Ur boiled rice and mix well. Serve hot with curry or curd!! :)