Menu Enter a recipe name, ingredient, keyword...

Isingcakes's interview



Interview by Laurence Interview by Laurence

We interviewed Isingcakes!

Visit the blog: ISingCakes... and more.


See profile page and recipes



Hello Isingcakes, so tell us...


When did you begin your blog and what inspired you to start it?


Ever since we moved to UK, our palates have been yearning for the true Indian taste in food we eat. Very few restaurants satisfied our likings. I love sweets, especially Indian sweets. Again, the lack of good outlets serving these made me think and apply my cooking skills. Now in the English kitchen, I enjoy cooking traditional as well as other cuisines. Baking was a Eureka which I am surprised at times about:) Well, I realised, I could manage cooking and baking altogether. Rather than jotting the recipes down in a diary, my husband suggested me about the virtual world and blogging. And here we are....

In your wildest dreams where will your blog take you as it develops?


I began as a tiny dot in the blog world and I think I still have loads to explore. Yet, if I had to dream I can see a lovely book printed for the next generations for authentic Indian food.

What is your favourite dish of all time?


My mother's home made chapati with a simple vegetable side dish is my all time favourite. This is so because, I rarely get to eat her preparations made with lots of love and care.

Your photos are great, in your opinion what makes a dish beautiful?


I am a novice when it comes to using a camera. Whatever I click is all because of the observations and the helpful tips given by my blogger friends. I am glad I can talk to my camera better now to make the dish look beautiful. In my opinion, the right plating, the right amount of colours, apt props and the light matters in a dish to look beautiful in a photograph.

Do you have a secret weapon in the kitchen?


If it is an Indian dish, my spice box(masala dabba) is the secret weapon. However, I have my passion as the best weapon to drive to churn out dishes!

What is your earliest memory involving food?


Ah!! Visiting the sweet(mithai:Indian dessert) shops in Indian streets as a kid. If you haven't tried any Indian desserts yet, wait and watch I will fulfill our desire very soon.

Are there any chefs that you admire in particular?


Rachel Allen is my favourite. I like her way of churning out bakes and cooking out of the things in your kitchen. Simplicity is what I like about her.

Tell us more about your project involving Kamalabai Ogale


I am also, writing about Kamalabai Ogale's recipes from her book Ruchira. My aim is to cook each and every recipe she has put up in her book and rise to the standards she has created. I am so much hooked on to this book now that I am creating and collecting my work inspired by Kamalabai's recipes at one place on Facebook called as Ruchira Videshini. This is to bring in a revolutionary thinking in bringing Marathi cuisine on every table around the world in a modern way. This of course is possible only when we create within the frameworks of traditional cooking but with modern thoughts. As Kamalabai has stated in her book,Samadhanache janma Swaypakgharat hote, that is... true satiety has entered my kitchen, hence my household, through this book which is of course my cookery Geeta(Hindu Religious Book).

Which Gourmandize recipe would you recommend? (if none take your fancy add your own and share it with us!)


I love all the recipes in Gourmandize. I would like share mine if you do not mind. My Chai Masala Coffee Drizzle cake.
To make the streusel:

Flour 175g

Butter 100g

Soft brown sugar 100g

Chai spices 1 tbsp(blend of cinnamon, pepper, cloves, fennel, star anise, dried ginger)

Mix all these ingredients till coarse and crumbly. Set this aside.

Bake a normal base cake using the measures:

Plain flour 220g

Soft Brown Sugar 220g

Butter 220g

Eggs3

Baking powder 1.5 tsp

Baking Soda 1/2 tsp

Greek Yoghurt 3/4 cup(I used Total Greek Yoghurt)

In this case I added coffee extract

Sieve the flour with the raising agent.Keep aside.

Cream the butter and sugar. Add the eggs, one at a time. Beat.

Add in a part of yoghurt followed by the sieved flour spoonful at a time and fold.

To the finished mix add the coffee extract. Preheat the oven at 180 degrees.

In a greased pan, add in half of the batter. Top this with a part of streusel. Spread the rest of the batter on the streusel. Finally, spread the rest of the streusel and bake the cake at 180 degrees for an hour.

Cool on a cooling rack.

Brew a tablespoon of coffee and mix with 1/2 cup of icing sugar. Drizzle on the cooled cake. Enjoy it with any beverage you love....this cake with warm spices is apt for the subzero temperatures here in UK!!

Any last words or message for our readers?


Please stay connected through my Facebook Page

My blog www.isingcakes.wordpress.com



Thank you Isingcakes for answering our questions and see you soon!
Published by Laurence - 29/08/2013



If you are a blogger, a chef, working in the food industry or have a website about food and cooking, and you would like to share with our community, please contact us!
We would be happy to feature you on our site.

Comment on this interview