Chai-spice Chocolate Biscuits

This is an easy to make, crumbly, spicy, and flavorful snack that goes well with a hot brewed cup of tea on a winter day.

Ingredients:

All purpose flour	3 cups	–
Baking powder	2 tbsp	–
Chai masala	1.5 tbsp	You can also use ground ginger instead
Cinnamon	1.5 tsp	–
Brown sugar	1/2 cup	–
Salt	1/2 tsp	–
Vegetable oil	1/3 cup	–
Milk	1.25 cup	Use non-dairy milk for vegan-izing
Vanilla extract	1 tsp	–
Semisweet chocolate	5 oz	You can either break the chocolate into bite sized chunks or use chocolate chips

Procedure:

• Preheat oven to 400°F and line cookie trays with baking sheets.
• Mix dry ingredients together – flour, baking powder, chai masala, cinnamon, sugar, and salt.
• Now add chocolate bits/chips.
• Add wet ingredients now – oil, milk, and vanilla extract.
• Mix till ingredients are almost well mixed – oatmeal consistency. Do not over mix.
• Take a small ball of dough (about 1.5 tbsp) and lay it on the cookie tray. Gently press.
• Repeat till all the dough is laid out on the cookie tray. You may sprinkle some sugar on the top if you wish to do so.
• Bake for 15 mins or till the surface starts turning slightly brown.
• Cool, and enjoy with chai tea. Store in air-tight container.

Note: The chai masala contains a blend of spices including black pepper. So some of you might find it spicy. If you have any food allergies, please check ingredients.

Tres Leches Cake

‘Lush’ is the word I would pick to describe this cake. Tres Leches, a Latin-American dessert, is a sponge cake that is soaked in three different kinds of milk (hence the name). I had this in a birthday party and immediately fell in love with it. I requested my friend Colin to send me the recipe and he was kind enough to share it with me. Here it is.

Ingredients:

All purpose flour	1 cup	–
Baking powder	1.5 tsp	–
Salt	1/4 tsp	–
Large eggs	5	separated
Sugar	1 cup + 3tbsp	–
Whole milk	1/3 cup	–
Vanilla extract	1 tsp	–
Sweetened condensed milk	12 ounce can	–
Evaporated milk	14 ounce can	–
Heavy cream	1 pint + 1/4 cup	–

Procedure:

• Preheat oven to 350°F and grease and flour a 9×13 inch baking pan.
  
• Combine the flour, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl. Set aside.
• Add the egg yolks and 3/4 cup of the sugar to a mixing bowl.
• Beat them until very light in color.
• Then add the milk and vanilla and beat until just combined.
• Pour this over the flour mixture and stir gently to combine. Do not beat.
• In a clean mixing bowl, beat the egg whites until soft peaks form (Use ‘High’ setting if you’re using an electric whisk).
• Add 1/4 cup of sugar to the egg whites and beat until the mixture is stiff but not dry.
• Gently fold the egg whites into the bowl with the other ingredients. Don’t overmix; stop just short of everything being totally mixed together.
• Spread the batter in the baking pan and bake the cake for 35 to 45 minutes; or until a toothpick comes out clean.
• Remove the cake from the oven and allow it to cool completely in the pan.
• When the cake is cool, invert it onto a platter and poke holes in the surface with a fork.
• Combine the sweetened condensed milk, evaporated milk, and 1/4 cup heavy cream.
• Slowly douse the cake with the milk mixture, getting it all around the edges and evenly coating the surface. Much of the liquid will be absorbed into the cake, but expect some to pool here and there. This is desired.
• Allow the cake to sit and absorb the liquid for atleast 30 minutes.
• Whip 1 pint heavy cream with 3 tbsp sugar until thick and spread it all over the top and sides of the cake.
•  I skipped the last step and just had the cake. It was delicious by itself without the whipped cream. Also, I prefer the cake refrigerated for a couple of hours.
• Slice, serve, and enjoy!

Coconut Macaroons

This is a simple, delicious, and easy to make recipe adapted from the book “Joy of Cooking.”

Ingredients:

Condensed sweetened milk	1 cup	–
Egg white	1	–
Vanilla extract	1.5 tsp	–
Sweetened coconut flakes	5.5 cups	–

Procedure:

• Preheat oven to 325°F.
• Line baking trays with cookie sheet.
• In a large bowl, mix the condensed milk, egg white, and vanilla extract.
• Now add the coconut flakes and gently mix till the ingredients are evenly mixed.
• Take about one tablespoon full of the mixture and gently pat it on the tray. The macaroons must be placed 2 inches apart from each other.
• Bake for 22 to 25 minutes until the macaroons start turning golden brown.
• Take out the baked macaroons and let them cool for 5 minutes. Now turn them upside down and let them cool for 5 more minutes.
• Store in an air tight container. Depending on the size, the measurements provided here must yield about 35 to 40 macaroons.