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Showing posts with label Styles. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Styles. Show all posts

11/10/2010

Cheesecake Cooking Styles

At one time, while athletes in Ancient Greece began competitive events at the Olympic Games, making pieces of cheesecake began, which essentially comprised three staples: cheese, wheat flour and sweetening. They beat each of the units jointly till it arrived at a pasty consistency. They baked the assortment, chilled and dished it out to supply athletes with the vitality they needed to compete. This represented the birth of the cheesecake.

The Roman Empire then captured Greece and adopted the glorious treat and scattered it throughout Europe and whatever districts they invaded. Since then, the basic cheese, flour and sweetener, superseding whatever ingredients were indigenous to the country that embraced the cheesecake recipe. Ricotta and mascarpone by the Italians, Neufchatel by the French people, quark cheese by the Germans and cream cheese by the American natives substituted the familiar white Greek cheese. In time, this significant event in culinary history sealed the way for many different trends in producing the cheesecake.

The European Cheesecake

The Europeans represented the first to embrace the cheesecake recipe. They were as well the first to go for various versions in the conventional cheesecake. There are many nations who have also based their personal expressive style on making cheesecakes and they include Italy, France, United Kingdom, and New Zealand.

First, the United Kingdom and New Zealand cheesecake is alike. Their cheesecakes are broadly speaking cold desserts using neither baking nor cooking. Creating cheesecakes, those nations used fragmented digestive biscuits mixed with butter and compressed into a dish to build a bottom layer. They used fillings or toppings, which in the main consist of sugar, cheese, cream, milk and gelatin blended collectively.

In Italy, there are two ways of making cheesecakes, the Roman and Italian style. Roman style cheesecakes use ricotta-like cheese and honey blended with flour and traditionally formed into loaves. There are also more recipes that involve bay leaves, applying these to preserve the treat. Today, baking Roman style cheesecakes is still popular in Italian areas, which upheld the culinary traditions after the downfall of Rome.

But then, Italian style cheesecakes are the modern-day variations of the Roman cheesecake. These cheesecakes use either mascarpone or ricotta cheese and substitute honey with sugar. They also excluded using bay leaves and passed on other new-age ingredients, like: barley flakes and vanilla extract. Commonly, this cheesecake is drier in comparison to American style cheesecakes and often presented with tiny scraps of crystallized fruit.

A light cheesecake is the principal description of French cheesecakes. These cakes have gelatin as the Chief holding ingredient and are mostly only 3 to 5 centimeters tall. This cheesecake accomplishes its light flavor and texture from the Neufchatel cheese. To a greater extent, discovering French cheesecakes out-of-doors in marketplaces at the South of France and good pastry shops in Paris is the best way to find them.

The American Cheesecake

In the United States, cheesecakes normally depend on cream cheese instead of the French Neufchatel. Among the commonest cheesecakes in America is the New York style cheesecake. Setting up this method a delicatessen uses cream cheese, dense cream, eggs, and egg yolks ready to add a fluid consistency and fullness.

New York style cheesecakes are likewise recognized as Jewish style and are baked in a particular 13 to 15 centimeter tall spring form pan. There are as well additional recipes of the cheesecake that employ lemon and cottage cheese for clear-cut flavor and texture.

9/13/2010

Bengali Food - Ancient Cuisine of 2 Styles of Cooking and a Fish Stew Recipe of Hot Spice and Flavor

Bengali food is an ancient cuisine dating back to early Buddhism. It is made up of the cooking of West Bengal, which is part of India, and East Bengal, which is part of Bangladesh. In early Buddhist and Bengali writings of the 10th and 11th century, there is mention of the abundance of produce that could be derived from good agriculture.

Although rice is a staple food throughout Bengal, there are two distinct styles of Bengali cooking. In East Bengali food, there is great emphasis on fish and dal (a spicy bean stew that is a mainstay of the area). The food of West Bengal is distinguished by the liberal use of poppy seeds.

Much of the distinctive taste of Bengali food comes from the mustard plant and mustard oil. Mustard is used in three ways: The oil is used to fry foods, the greens are used as a cooked vegetable, and the seeds are crushed to make a hot spice.

Fish and prawns are very common in both cuisines. West Bengalis usually get their fish farm-raised from estuaries, while East Bengalis get the majority of their fish from the big rivers of the region.

This fish stew recipe uses ingredients and cooking techniques common to both West and East Bengal, and is very popular in both cuisines. Many Bengali cooks will add a couple of vegetables to the dish, such as eggplant and potatoes that are diced small. Some ingredients have been changed to accommodate Western availability.

Spicy Bengali Fish Stew

Ingredients:

Salt to taste

1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric

1 teaspoon hot paprika

1 1/4 pounds cod, sea bass, or halibut steaks, cut into 2-inch cubes

3 tablespoons mustard oil (can be found in Indian or Bengali markets) or vegetable oil

4 medium onions, finely chopped

4 large garlic cloves, crushed

4 fresh green chiles (jalapenos or finger-like chiles), seeded and finely chopped

1/4 teaspoon ground cumin

1/4 teaspoon mustard seeds

1/8 teaspoon ground cloves

1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/8 teaspoon ground cardamon

1 1/2 pounds ripe tomatoes, cut in half, seeds squeezed out, and grated through the largest holes of a grater.

1 tablespoon fresh cilantro leaves, chopped

1/4 cup water

1/2 cup whole plain yogurt

Directions:

On a plate, mix together the salt, 1/4 teaspoon of the turmeric, and the paprika. Dredge the fish steaks on both sides of the mixture.

In a large skillet, heat the mustard oil (or vegetable oil) over medium-high heat. Brown the fish on both sides, turning once, for about 3 minutes total. Remove and set aside.

Add the onions and garlic to the skillet. Cook until soft, or about 15 minutes, stirring frequently. Add the chiles, cumin, mustard seeds, cinnamon, cloves, cardamon, and the remaining 1/4 teaspoon of turmeric. Cook for 2 minutes, stirring, then add the tomatoes, cilantro, and water. Reduce the heat to low, and cook until the sauce is thick, or about 15 minutes.

Add the yogurt and salt to taste and stir to blend. Return the fish to the skillet and simmer, covered, until the fish flakes, or about 10 minutes. Be careful that the broth never gets too hot, as the yogurt will separate. Serve immediately, over rice if desired.