Color me Orange! (Pix Credit: Lukas, Berlin)

Holidays are back again! Time for all things exciting and beautiful. Holiday decorations, gifts, loved ones and not to mention the cakes and bakes.

To help you kick start the baking season, here is a quick tutorial on how to make dried orange peel that goes as a secret ingredient in many yummy cakes, bakes and savories. A little secret about the orange peels is that it curbs your hunger pangs too

Oranges are in season and orange peels go into garbage. A better way is to harvest all the orange peels, sit in the comfort of your chair and make candied orange peels that you can eat right out of your tin or add to your cakes.

How to make dried orange peel
Here is a simple recipe with no hard and fast rules for measurement. You will arrive at the best quantity of each ingredient after an attempt or two. Here is my personal favorite:

• Peels of 2 big oranges (having eaten the lovely fruit)
• Sugar – Handful
• Water – Enough to cover the peels

Having eaten the orange, collect the leftover peels.

With a spoon or a knife, clean the pith. The white part of the peel is slightly bitter and can be removed. If you like a bit of bitterness in your baked goodies, you can leave it on. I prefer scraping the pith as the dried orange peel tastes sweet and tangy.

Scrape the pith for making dried orange peels

Wash the peels thorougly and cut it into thick or thin slices.

Julienne Well - Cut orange peel into thin slices

You can wash the thin slices again before you boil to ensure all the scraped pith and little bits are left behind.

Strips of orange peel ready to become candy

Boil the peel in adequate water with sugar. You could leave it on slow fire for a while for the peels to become tender.

15 minutes should suffice.

Boil - to infuse the peel with sugary sweetness

Drain out the peels, spread it on a plate or tray and leave it out in the sun for 2 days.

Sun-kissed luscious strips

After two days, take a bite of this peel to see if it is done.

If it is crunchy and crumbles, it is done and dried.

Done and Dried

Stock on this dried orange peel which can last for months. You could simply chew on them (as they are addictive), add a few into your iced tea or hot tea, dip into molten chocolate and set it to dry or simply pop in a few into the cake or cookie batter.

Whats an orange cake without a peel within?

That was yummm!!!

But even yummier are the candied orange peels that follow the same procedure as above. The moment you drain the peels from the water, roll them in powdered sugar so that the peels are well coated and put it out to dry. You could also bake these to speed up your drying time.

I’d prefer the sun-kissed peels and day. I made quite a few of these but needless to stay that they are disappearing at a fast rate. You know why!

For all the christmas cakes, apple cinnamon cakes, carrot cakes and more, this one ingredient does wonders. Did I tell you that chocolate and orange is a killer combination?

So all you bakers, make you own box of candied peel and keep adding that yummm factor to your baking escapades!

You could also gift a box of these as goodies to someone who bakes. Hmmmm, thats a very thoughtful handmade gift.

Let me know if this helped. And if you too are munching it away

Hot, Crisp and Spicy Fried Arvi

This is neither a vegetable that figures first on your shopping list nor is a choicest pick when you go grocery shopping. This poor fella is usually left out in favor of the good looking luscious veggies. Cant blame it on looks alone, this one gives a nasty itch to your hands if you dont know how to treat (peel) it right.

Fuss apart, Arvi is a lovely little vegetable that packs in a lot of taste, texture and surprise. Also known as arbi or taro, this rhizome is a great filler and substitute for potatoes in curries and most dishes. Its leaves are edible too and make great wraps for steaming other delicacies.

My childhood memories are linked with arvi ka khatta, or even better arvi gosht ka khatta. This root goes well with any meat. It is equally tasty in simple and solo dishes. I guess it important how this vegetable is introduced to you as a child. Once you like it, there is nothing like it.

Here is my version of simple arvi fry. When you cook this, you should not worry about the slime, spice or quantity of oil. They all end up as a marvel in unison.

Cooking Colocasia Can Cause Craving

Here are the simple steps:

Mix arvi chunks with salt, chilli powder, dhania power and turmeric. Keep aside.
Temper hot oil with mustard seeds, dry chillies, curry leaves and garlic.
Add the masala coated arbi chunks to the tadka. Keep frying till done.
Thats it. The crispier the better.

My Notes:

• If you are new to colocasia, you will definitely end up with itchy hands. The trick is to peel this vegetable dry. The moment water comes in contact with its scaly skin, you will end up scratching your hands for a while…  swearing never to touch it again. But who said good things come easy?
• Most people pressure-cook before peeling. It makes your job a lot easy for its half cooked and less itchy.
• The key to tempering is to wait till the mustard seeds split and crackle. Then add the other  ingredients of tadka.

Now, is colocasia in your shopping list?

There are a hundred ways to make that quinnsential tomato chutney/ dip. This is our emergency lip smacking fix – a life saver.

All Time Chutneys - Tomatoes Tempered in Indian Spices

4 Red Tomatoes – chopped/ squashed
1 Onion – sliced
Cumin seeds
Red Chillies
Curry Leaves
Ginger + Garlic
Salt (as per taste)
Coriander leaves.

Heat oil. Add red chillies, cumin, curry leaves for tempering. To this tadka, add onions and ginger garlic paste and tomaotes. Add salt. Stir well. Garnish with coriander leaves.
Serve with other dishes.

Potatoes sauteed in red chillies, curry leaves and cumin seeds

Ingredients:
2 big potatoes
2 teaspoons cumin seeds
Handful of curry leaves
4 Red Chillies – Dried
Oil – as much as or little as you like
Salt, Chilli Powder, and Turmeric – to your taste
Coriander leaves for garnish

How I do it:
Heat oil in a wok.
Throw in the red chillies and cumin seeds. Splutter. Aroma.
Add curry leaves. Quick swish.
Add potatoes and the other condiments.
Fry on high flame till done.
Garnish.
Eat.