Let there be 'cake'

Vanilla Bean Cupcakes With Dulce De Leche Frosting

Sula Vineyards, Nasik

I had a chance to visit Sula Vineyards thanks to a cousin's location wedding and was suitably impressed with the locale. I've been to the Chaddsford Winery in Pennsylvania, USA a few years ago with a full tour so I was looking forward to this, especially since India isn't really known for producing wine. 

Opening with the fact that India is a "new world" wine country, our tour guide took us around the Sula Vineyard production facility, from the crushers to the fermentation tanks. The process seemed pretty similar to what I remember although this time around the tour guide had to deal with some gruelling questions on the quality of the wine and how it is maintained in India. I don't think many were really satisfied with his answer, but I'll tell you this, the vineyard is beautiful to be in.

While harvesting season is mostly in and around April, we had to deal with empty crushers and no bottling, but the weather on the other hand is probably a lot better this time of the year. After the tour, we stopped by the tasting room and the brownie just had to be tried. Sadly I was a bit disappointed - it was more a chocolate cake than a brownie, and looked way better than it tasted. However the overall atmosphere and feel weren't dampened much.

The rest of the team nearby offered to try the house red wine of Sula - the Dindori Shiraz - which the tour guide raved about. I wasn't fantastically impressed, in the sense, it didn't give me the "Wow, that is a great wine" feeling, but it was a good wine - smooth and tasted good. There was a hint of berry as promised.

Overall, you should visit this place once, especially if you are in India. The tour and area seemed quite popular, with people swarming in over the weekend, with tons of little kids, much to our surprise. I'll tell you this though, it makes a great wedding location.

How to cure a cheesecake infatuation

I have now taken my infatuation with the creation of the perfect cheesecake to the next level. Trying to figure out different ways to make the cheesecake set is an interesting if difficult feat. I trawl through cookbooks religiously on a regular basis, for a little light reading of course, as any aspiring cook would do.

Though some would bake the humble cheesecake for the new york style, others put gelatine in to set the cream cheese. I have found the perfect alternative, inspired by the bite sized demonstration, using white chocolate in the cream cheese helps it to set firm. Whats more, it actually tastes of that creamy velvety chocolate and adds a new level of richness to the cheesecake, as opposed to the tasteless nature of gelatine or agar agar.

Whatever the event, try this cheesecake on for size, you will not be disappointed. Different variations of the fruit coulis can be tailored to your own tastes, as per my previous mango cheesecake, but remember not to overdo the sugar content. A cheesecake should be sweet and I prefer the coulis a little tart to offset the balance of sweet cream cheese and crunchy nutty biscuits with sharp fresh fruit. Remember folks practice makes perfect, keep experimenting and find the balance that suits you, if mascarpone (which is amazing by the way) is too cheesy for you, stick to Philadelphia. If you would like a baked cheesecake, experiment with the recipe that uses eggs, but always follow these simple rules.

1. Biscuits: usually a biscuit with a crunch, digestive biscuits, hobnobs, shortbread.

2. Cream Cheese: Philadelphia, mascarpone, cottage cheese, low fat cream cheese is all fine.

3. Toppings: I love berries on cheesecakes, and most recipes point you in this direction, but look at the fruit you have in your fruit bowl, I found a mango and tested out my hypotheses; largely being that cheesecakes are amazing with most fruits, as long as you consider the sharpness and sweetness of each fruit on its own and alter the sugar content of your cheesecake to match. Chocolate is also a great topping. Use your imagination.

4. Have fun. There is no point of being in a kitchen if you are not going to have a little fun, a little drama when the utensils crash and the blenders hum, is what makes the cheesecake or any other dessert turn out beautiful.

With regards to the title 'How to cure a cheesecake infatutation': if any of you ever figure this out, please do not contact me. I like to be blissfully unaware of the fat and calorie content of my cheesecakes, for what is a dessert if not a little indulgence every now and then.