Hole in one

FOODIE/ Chef Kishi Arora makes perfectly asymmetrical desserts

At 26 years of age, how far would you go to satiate a midnight hunger pang? Open a pack of noodles, cook and eat... right? Wrong. Especially if you are Kishi Arora "" the girl who had a pyjama party at home and decided to make samosas from scratch at 2 am for one of her girlfriends who felt like eating "chaat".

A pastry chef, Arora, now executive chef at Mad Over Donuts, India's first doughnut chain, was a commerce topper at the Sri Ram College of Commerce. And to literally put icing over this cake, she followed up this feat by joining the Culinary Institute of America (CIA) where once again she received the best international student scholarship.

While working with the Four Seasons Hotel as a dessert chef, Arora realised the extent of her creativity. It was here that as a chef she had to come up with a new dessert every day... a task she took so seriously that she even managed to get some hotel engineers involved when she went to them with PVC pipes to have them slit from the middle for dessert filling.

Unlike other chefs who hold their recipes close to their heart, Arora enjoys spreading the taste and technique. In fact, mention a dessert and before you know it, she'll be reciting the recipe to you.... a long procedure that almost always ends with "it's really easy to make".

Before she chats with us, she runs to her room and comes out with pictures of some desserts she made at CIA. She starts with a huge cake decorated with sunflowers. "These," she says, "were all made by me and they are all edible. This was the first cake I baked." More pictures follow, including of a fruit cart made entirely of chocolate that won her a gold prize, and of a cake depicting autumn with edible dried leaves and fruits. "It took me an entire day and a half to make just the decorations for this cake. The cake itself only took two hours," she laughs.

Back in India now, Arora's tryst with MOD began when she met director Lokesh Bharwani. With no distinct passion for doughnut eating, Arora and her director decided to start MOD. "In fact, doughnuts are probably at the bottom of the pyramid when it comes to making desserts for any chef." But Arora was certain she'd come up with something unique here too. And so, when her diabetic mother complained of not being able to eat any doughnuts, Arora created savory doughnuts with spices and mushrooms and corn and cheese.

What she prepares for us is white chocolate mousse with lacquered fruits. One can't help but notice her attention to detail and decoration. "I don't think a dessert should be perfectly decorated because if it's perfect then you won't want to spoil it by biting into it. I believe a dessert will look edible and taste good only if it looks handmade and asymmetrical"... reason enough for Arora to have taken up pottery classes... "I want to be able to mould my desserts with my hands," she signs off. FAVOURITE RECIPE

WHITE CHOCOLATE MOUSSE WITH LACQUERED PEACHES, PEARS AND GRAPES

For white chocolate mousse

250 gm white chocolate
130 gm butter
6 egg yolks
1½ cup cream
70 gm sugar
15 gm gelatine

Melt chocolate and butter over a Bain Marie (double boiler). Whip yolks to ribbon stage. Add gelatine powder to warm chocolate mixture. Mixture will separate. Continue to mix until it recombines and becomes smooth. Mix chocolate into egg yolks. Mix till smooth. Whip cream with sugar to soft peak. Fold into chocolate mixture which should be at room temperature. Chill to set.

For lacquered peaches, pears and grapes

2 peaches
6 grapes
1 pear

For the peach glaze

½ cup sugar
3 tbsp water
3 tbsp peach puree
¼ tsp vanilla essence
2-3 mint leaves

Split peaches in half, remove pits. Rub peaches in sugar syrup (rub into the skin so hair gets coated on skin). Roast peaches for four minutes skin side down and four minutes after turning. Let them cool on glazing rack. For peach glaze, boil all glaze ingredients and cool. Toss peaches, pears and grapes in the glaze and cool. Arrange on a plate and with a spoon add the white chocolate mousse and garnish with some caramel and chocolate decorations.