autumn crisp

I’ve always had a soft spot for Septembers. Till today, nothing says “beginning of new year” like first day of school. Plus there is sth very special about early autumn… the colors, the light, this elusive golden glow of the fall and unmistakable crispness in the air. Funny as it may be, I long for this time of the year when I can pull out all my woolen clothes, wrap myself in knitted cardigan and spend endless evenings over mug of hot tea.

Goa provides rather different experience. September ends the monsoon and the whole state prepares for the coming season. Rain stops, sun comes out and tourists flood the beaches. Even with that in mind, I couldn’t stop myself from bringing a little autumn to our house – the only way I know how. And that, of course, means cinnamon!

Filo Apfelstrudel 

6-9 filo sheets

5-8 tsp of melted butter

3-4 apples

Juice from 1 lemon

50g brown sugar

Cinnamon to taste

Handful of raisins (or cranberries)

Handful of walnuts (or almonds)

Slice the apples into thin slices, mix with lemon juice and set aside for 10 minutes. Drain any liquid and mix apples with sugar, cinnamon, walnuts and raisins.

Prepare filo sheets. How many you use and how you roll them up is really up to you. You can just pile few sheet, fill them with apples and roll. OR…

Place filo sheet on baking paper or baking mat and brush with 1 tsp of butter, place another sheet on top of it and brush again. Place 1/3 of apple filling on the longer edge of filo and roll. Prepare 2 more filo sheets, place ready roll and 1/3 of apple filling on the edge and roll again. Repeat once more, then seal the edges and brush the final roll with butter. Lightly cut the top layer the way you will slice your strudel later. Bake for 30 minutes in 180-200 degrees – until golden brown and crispy.

Dust with icing sugar and serve. If you want to be extra decadent, you can add vanilla ice cream or whipped cream!

Carrot cake

1 ½ cup of flour

¾ cup of brown sugar

2-3 tsp tea masala or ginger bread spice mix

2 tsp baking soda

1 ½ baking powder

½ tsp salt

4 eggs

½ cup vegetable oil

¼ cup greek yogurt

2 cups shredded carrots

1 cup shredded pineapple

1 cup of nuts

Cheese frosting

500 g cream cheese

3-4 spoons of butter

½ cup of icing sugar

Vanilla extract to taste

Three important things to note: I usually make it with half of the ingredients, so the full recipe will result in much higher cake than the one on the picture; I use both carrots and pineapple leftover from juicing and the cake is still very moist, the cake is best after few hours in the fridge (though I can never wait that long for the first slice).

Mix dry and wet ingredients separately and thoroughly, then mix together. Mix carrot, pineapple and nuts and fold it into the mix. Bake 40-50 minutes in 180 degrees. You may want to divide the batter in half and bake separately. In some ovens the cake may not set properly if baked in one go.

Let it cool down.

Mix cheese, butter, sugar and vanilla until smooth and refrigerate until the cake is cool.

Cut the cake in 2-3 layers (if you baked it in two batches, you have layers already made). Spread the icing evenly between the layers and the top of the cake. Refrigerate for few hours before serving.