Carrot Date cake

Passion cake

Carrot and date cake is a rich and moist cake full of grated carrot and dates. It has great flavor especially when its covered with a cream cheese frosting. The interesting part is that while those pretty orange flecks of grated carrot give the cake color and texture along with sweetness and moisture, its flavor is almost indistinguishable.

Deceptively named, carrot cake more closely resembles a quick bread in construction (all the wet ingredients like the eggs and sugar are mixed together and all the dry ingredients are mixed together and then the wet is added to the dry) and final consistency (it is usually denser than a traditional cake and has a coarser crumb).

Ingredients

2 cups maida

1 cup grated carrots
1 cup finely chopped dates

3 eggs

1 &1/2 cups vegetable oil

1&1/2 cups powdered sugar

3/4 tspn baking powder

1/2 tspn baking soda

pinch of salt

1 teaspoon vanilla essence

Process

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. In a medium bowl, stir together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside. In a separate bowl, beat eggs. In a spearate bowl, mix together oil, powdered sugar, and vanilla by hand. Add to this the beaten eggs. Now gradually stir in the maida, and then the carrots and dates. Pour the batter into the prepared pan, and spread evenly.Bake for 40-50 minutes in the preheated oven or until a small knife inserted into the cake comes out clean.

Beetroot croquette

Beetroot cutlet

Croquette is basically a serving of minced meat or vegetables encased in breadcrumbs and potatoes, flattened into disks, and then deep-fried. The croquette was originally a French invention that gained a world-wide popularity as a fast-food with the advent of burgers. In India, it is known as "cutlets" or "tikkis".

Beetroots are used widely the world over by cooking them into yummy vegetable dishes, pickling them, utilizing them in salads, and even in making soup. The health benefits of including beetroots in the diet were known since the olden days.

Beetroot is packed with carotenoids and flavenoids that are known to possess antioxidant activity, folic acid, iodine, phosphorus, Vitamins A,B, and C and many substances that are benefcial for our health.

Apart from cooking, beetroot can also be used to add colour any other recipes that call for a red color. Just grate a little beetroot and squeeze the juice to add color to the recipe.

Although there are many benefits of eating beetroots, most of the people do not really like to eat them. However, there is no harm in trying to tempt people into eating beetroots by trying out simple yet tasty beetroot recipes. One such recipe is that of beetroot cutlets. A no-fuss easy and quick recipe that turns out yummy cutlets that none can refuse even though they may hate beetroots.

Ingredients:

3 small beets

1 medium boiled potato

1/2 tsp grated ginger

1 tsp red chilly powder

1 tsp dhaniyajeera powder

1/2 tsp garam masala powder (optional)

2 tbsp semolina or breadcrumbs

Salt as required

Process:

Wash beetroots. Peel skin from beets and boiled potato. Then grate beets and potato. Add all the other ingredients and salt and mix well. Now,make small lemon-sized balls. Spread semolina on a plate. Take the lemon-sized ball into your palm and flatten it like a tikki and pat with semolina on both sides. Shallow fry this on a hot tawa or deep fry and serve hot with ketchup or chutney of your choice. It tastes wonderful with date tamarind chutney.

Lentil dumplings in yoghurt sauce

Dahi vada

Dahi wadas are fried lentil dumplings prepared using skinless split black gram dal (urad dal) and served with loads of yoghurt (dahi). Dahi wadas are my top favourite in chaat items. They are easy to prepare (you just need some preparation ahead of time like soaking the dal).

Fresh Dahi Vada is very refreshing and easy to digest. Dahi wada is generally served as an evening snack though for me it qualifes to be in the dinner category.

So without further ado, here is one of the numerous delicacies that I crave for.

Ingredients:
1 cup skinless split black gram dal (urad dal)
3-4 cups yoghurt
1 tsp red chilli powder
2-3 tsp roasted cumin (jeera) powder
pinch of rock salt (kala namak) - optional
salt
Oil for frying

Process:
Soak the dal overnight. Grind it adding as little water as possible to get a coarse paste, a batter similar to that of medu wada. It would be better if you don’t add water at all but if you think your grinder won’t coperate just add necessary water little by little. Add salt and mix.

Heat oil in a pan. Make small lemon-sized balls with your hands using a wet hand and place the batter into the hot oil and deep fry it until both sides turn golden brown. Fry all the wadas and keep aside.

Take care to keep the flame on medium to medium high as if the oil is too hot, the wadas will turn crisp on the outside but the center will not be cooked and if the flame is too low and the oil is not hot enought, the batter will soak in too much oil.


Take water in a bowl, and put all the wadas into the water. After soaking them for about half an hour, take out the Vadas from the water and squeeze out the excess water by pressing the vadas with your hand. The best part of it is that most of the oil will get squeezed out too.

Meanwhile in another bowl, take the curd and whisk it without adding any water. Add salt to it also rock salt if you want and roasted cumin powder and mix properly. To serve, scoop out the wadas on to a shallow bowl & add some of the curd. Pour date tamarind chutney liberally on top. Sprinkle a little rock salt, roasted cumin powder, and chilli powder and serve.








The batter freezes well for upto a week. Alternatively, you can make the vadas and store them in an air-tight container in the freezer for quite a while and when required just thaw the amount of vadas you need.

Spinach paratha

Palak paratha

Palak paratha is a great way of enjoying the goodness of spinach. This Indian recipe for the unleavened flatbread is a bit different from the traditional stuffed version of parathas and the best part is that you will not realize that you are eating spinach.

Palak paratha is made with fresh spinach leaves, whole wheat flour, and spices and can be served with curry, pickle, and a cup of yogurt. It can be eaten at breakfast, lunch or dinner and is a perfect food to take for a picnic.

The recipe which I had seen from my moms recipe book called for bajri (pearl millet) flour or a mix of millet flour and whole wheat flour, but since I had no millet flour at home I decided to make it with only normal whole wheat flour.

Ingredients:

2 cups Whole Wheat Flour

4 cups Palak

1/2 cup cilantro

2-3 pods of garlic

1/2 inch ginger

1/2 tsp ajwain seeds (carom seeds or bishop's weed)

1/2 tsp cumin seeds

3-4 green chillies

1 tbsp garam masala powder

Pinch of asafoetida

salt to taste

Yoghurt (as needed to make a soft dough)

Oil/Ghee (Pan-fry)

Process

Chop palak finely. Add all the above ingredients to it and mix well. Add yoghurt as required and knead to a smooth dough. After making into a smooth dough, smear oil(a spoonful) all over the dough to prevent drying up. Keep it closed for about an hour. Then when ready to eat, make parathas and serve hot. You can serve them with yoghurt, chutney or pickle of your choice.

Dal vada

Yesterday it was raining the whole day and what better on a rainy day than a cup of tea and hot bhajis. Well I was not in the mood of eating onion bhaji so decided to make dal vada instead.

Ingredients:
1 cup skinless Moong dal
1/2 cup urad dal
3-4 green chillies (+/- to taste)
1/2 inch ginger
2-3 garlic pods
1 small onion (finely chopped)
few twigs of cilantro
salt to taste
Juice of 1/4 lemon
Oil for deep frying

Process:
Soak moong daal and urad dal in water water for 4-5 hours. Then grind the moong and urad dal along with ginger, garlic, and green chillies adding as little watter as possible until it turns into a coarse paste. Add all the other ingredients to it and mix well. It is the trapped air in the batter that makes them light and fluffy. Make lemon sized balls out of this. Heat oil in a wok or fryer. When the oil is ready, drop the batter balls ito the oil using your fingers. Fry gently on medium fire turning over frequently until they turn lightly golden brown. Remove from oil and keep aside on an absorbent paper.

Serve them hot with sweet and sour tamarind chutney or any other sauce of your choice.

Date tamarind chutney

Date tamarind chutney is a popular Indian sweet and sour sauce. This tangy chutney is used as a dip or stir-in sauce for numerous Indian snacks like samosas, sevpuri, panipuri, bhelpuri, dalvada, tikkis, and chaats.

Dates act as a fantastic natural sweetener and work very well in lieu of other sweeteners. The acid pulp of tamarind is a natural astringent and is very useful for cutting bland tastes. Tamarind tends to go well especially with dal or lentil dishes.

Ingredients:
100 gms tamarind (remove seeds)
200 gms dates (pitted)
grated jaggery (optional)
2-3 cups water
Salt to taste
1/2 tsp red chilli powder

Process:
In a saucepan, put the tamarind, dates, and water and cook on a medium flame till the dates and tamarind are soft. Turn off the flame and allow it to cool. Use a mixie to blend the mixture together into a smooth sauce. Next, strain tihs mixture through a strainer into a container. Strain it out completely so that you get a smooth consistency. It should not be too runny. Add salt, red chilli powder. Taste it and see. If you feel it is still a bit sour, you can add grated jaggery per taste. Chill and serve.

Tips:
1. As a general rule, take twice the amount of dates or more compared to tamarind. I hardly use jaggery when I make this chutney.
2. Many of my friends make this chutney in bulk and store it in the deep freezer. It keeps very well for a month or so. Just keep it in an airtight freezer container. Whenever you want to use it, just take it out, thaw, and use it. It tastes just fine every time you use it.

Ragda patties

Ragda patties is a popular fast food snack. It is usually found at places or stalls that offer chaat-based items like belpuri or panipuri. Main ingredients in this dish are, as u must have already guessed, the ragda and the patties. Ragda is prepared by boiling dried green peas in water along with flavouring agents like turmeric powder, asafoetida, and salt until they are almost dissolved. The patties are pan-fried and are mashed potato cutlets. Just before serving 2–3 patties are covered with the stew-like ragda and are garnished with finely chopped onion, coriander leaves, sweet tamarind chutney, and some spicy chutney (optional).

This is an excellent snack though for me it is a meal in itself (I like it so much that I hate to have anything else after that).

Ingredients:

For patties:

3 large potatoes

3-4 green chillies (+/- to taste)
1/2 piece of ginger

1/4 bunch Cilantro

1 tsp sugar

Juice of 1/2 Lemon

Salt to taste

For ragda

1-2 cup green dried peas soaked overnight

1/2 tsp turmeric powder

1 pinch asafoetida

salt to taste

To garnish

Onions – chopped finely

Cilantro - chopped finely

Cumin powder

Chaat masala

Sweet tamarind chutney

Process:

For patties:

Boil the potatoes and mash it well. Add green chillies, ginger, cilantro, salt, lemon, and sugar and mix well. Then divide the potato dough into small portions, I had about 8-10 small round portions. Put the potato mix on your palm and flatten it into a small patty. Heat oil on a flat skillet. When it starts sizzling, put the patties and shallow fry them on each side on medium heat for 2-3 minutes till they turn golden brown. Let it cool on paper towel to drain the excess oil.

For ragda:

Pressure cook the soaked green dried peas. Pour it in a thick bottomed pan and add turmeric, asafoetida, and salt to it. Let it cook on medium heat for roughly 5 minutes. Then mash some of the green dried peas in the gravy to make it thick and to give it a nice consistency.

Assembling ragda patties:
Put 2-3 potato patties in a deep bowl. Add ragda on top of it generously so that the patties is immersed in the ragda completely. Add 2 tsp of tamarind chutney and garnish it with onions, cilantro, jeera powder, and chat masala. Serve hot.

Karanji

Ghughra/Karanji

This is a traditional sweet made especially for Diwali by one and all with a little bit of variation in the recipe. Ghughras are flour dumplings which are stuffed with a sweet mixture of fresh or dry cocunut, sugar, cardomom powder, ground cashews and almonds, and raisins and then deep fried. The health conscious often bake them instead of frying.

As you bite into each ghughra, its crunchy texture along with the subtle sweet flavor of dried coconut and sugar laced with the aroma of cardamom stretches into every bite and leaves you craving for more.

Ingredients:

For Dumpling:

2 ½ cup maida

Pinch of salt

3 tablespoon hot oil

Water as needed for kneading the dough

For filling:

3 cup dry coconut

2 cup powdered sugar

½ cup dry fruit powder (Almond, cashew nut, Pistachios)

2 tsp Charoli/chironji (Other names: Cudpah Nut or Buchanania latifolia)

2 tsp cardmom powder

Raisins (I like to put lots of it)

Ghee for frying Ghughras

Process:

For Filling: Take the dry coconut and roast it in a pan till it turns brown. When it is cool, grate it and keep aside. In a mixing bowl, mix in the grated coconut, powdered sugar, cardamom, dry fruit powder, and charoli. There your filling is ready. This filling can be made in advance. It stays well for upto 10-15 days as all the ingredients used are dry, just be sure not to add the charoli and the raisins because the filling will not stay for long if these two ingredients are added.

For Dumpling:

Sieve the flour. Add salt. Add hot oil to the maida. Mix it well. Now add some water and knead lightly. Keep adding water as required and knead into a soft but pliable dough, not too soft. Set aside and cover with a damp cloth. Let it remain for an hour or so. Divide the dough into small equal sized balls and roll each ball with the rolling pin into a thin puri. Place a spoonful of filling on one side, fold over, and pinch it down into half-moons. For a proper ghugra, the twisted edge is key to traditional presentation. This takes practice and patience. Also it means longer time to prepare them. I learnt this watching my mom make it during Diwali (and also eagerly helping her out thereby ruining many of her ghughras in the process). Prepare all the ghughras and cover it with a damp muslin cloth.

Heat enough ghee in a wide vessel to deep fry the stuffed ghughras. Drop 3-4 ghughras into the ghee slowly and deep fry them till golden brown turning them carefully to the other side so that it cooks on all sides. Deep fry on medium heat. Cool and store in air tight containers.

They can be stored for upto two weeks or so.

Tips:
1. The correct frying medium is oil for all savouries and ghee for all things sweet.
2. The pinching of the dumpling is very very important prior to twisting it as this thins the dough. If you do not do this, the final edge will be thick and will stay under-cooked or it may taste too doughy.
3. Ghughra moulds can be used (they are available in any indian store or market). When using moulds, place the rolled dough ball in a greased ghughra mould and fill it up with a tblsp of filling mixture on one side. Moisten the edges of the round and fold one side of the mould over the other. Remove the excess edges and reuse.

Aloo methi sabji

Here is a recipe with methi and aloo that goes really well with chapatis or as a side with rice and dal n best of all it can be prepared in a jiffy. I got this recipe from one of my friends and made this yesterday for the first time. It turned out really well. The slightly bitter methi taste goes well with the crispiness of the potatoes.

Ingredients:

2 medium potatoes, boiled (peeling optional) and cubed

2 cups methi,washed and chopped

2 tsp oil

Salt to taste

For tempering:

1/2 tsp mustard seeds

1/2 tsp cumin seeds

2 tsp urad dal

1/4 tsp asafoetida powder

1 tsp red chilli powder

1 tsp freshly ground black pepper

Process:

Heat 1 tsp oil in a pan and add the chopped methi to it. Stir fry on high heat until it has wilted and then remove from the heat and keep aside. In another pan, heat the remaining 1 tsp of oil and add the tempering ingredients. Then put in the boiled and cubed potatoes and stir carefully at regular intervals to mix the ingredients taking care not to break the potatoes. Add salt to taste. Let the potatoes fry over medium heat until they begin to crisp a little. Add some oil to the pan if required. When the potatoes are done to your liking add the methi and mix in carefully. Serve hot with chapaties or as a side dish with rice.

Palmiers

Palmiers, a centuries-old French recipe with many many layers of dough and 100% butter that makes each bite of the petite Palmiers irresistibly flaky. It's an enticing and unique pastry that tastes even better with whipped cream or just a touch of honey.






Palmier (pal-mee-ay) is the French word for a palm tree and these cookies are said to resemble palm leaf (I don't see the resemblance though). They are made from a rich, buttery, and flaky dough n sprinkled with sugar n nuts. In French, puff pastry dough is called "pâte feuilletée".

Traditionally the recipe is time consuming and labor intensive (I cheated with the frozen puff pastry though as I'm always searching for shortcuts :D). The commercially available puff pastry sheets are a good substitute.


These quick and easy pastries make a lovely wonderful snack with "une tasse de café " or "une tasse de thé ". Palmiers can be made upto two days in advance and kept in a tightly sealed container. They should be served at room temperature or reheated in a 300 degree oven before serving.


I kind of followed the Pepperidge Farms recipe though made a few changes.

http://www.pepperidgefarm.com/RecipeDetail.aspx?recipeID=26056



You can keep the prepared frozen puff pastry in the freezer. Then, whenever you want to bake, remove the roll from the freezer. Thaw for 15 minutes before you slice it to keep the dough from crumbling and bake as directed below.


Ingredients: One Pepperidge farm puff pastry sheet
Sugar (per taste)
Powdered nuts (Almonds, cashews)
Coconut powder

Process:
Thaw the puff pastry. In a bowl combine the coconut powder, almond n cashews powder, and sugar. Unfold 1 sheet of the pastry. Spread 1/2 of the combined powder mixture on a clean surface and roll the pastry sheet into a rectangle. Repeat the same for the other side too. Roll it to an even thickness.


Starting at the short side of the rectangle, roll the pastry toward the center of the sheet stopping at the middle. Then repeat so the rolls meet in the middle. Trim the ends with a knife.

I forgot to take photos when rolling the sheet. So I googled n found one site where u can see step by step photos for folding the pastry. Here is the link. Click the link The changes I did to the folding procedure was that I rolled it a bit and sprinked more of the combined mixture after each fold.


After the thrid step as shown in the pic, cover it with a plastic wrap and refrigerate it for an hour or so. Then, when you are ready to bake, preheat the oven at 425F. Take the pastry sheet out from the fridge, thaw it for around 15 minutes and then proceed the fourth step of cutting the sheet into 1/2 inch slices. Press each slice gently with your palm and place them on a lightly greased baking sheet(or lined with parchment paper). Keep 1 1/2 inch space between each slice.

Bake them for 7-8 minutes (time varies depending upon the oven) so its better to check them in between as they tend to be brown very fast due to the sugar. Remove from the oven and turn the pastries over. Bake for 5-7 minutes more or until golden. Transfer to wire rack and let cool completely. Serve hot or at room temperature.









I like to call them Little Hearts as they are heart shaped. Perfect in time for Valentine's Day.

Jaggery

Gudh







Description:
This coarse unrefined sugar is made from the sap of various palm trees or from sugarcane juice. Jaggery is not purified and therefore has all the quality of the juice itself. It comes in several forms; the two most popular being a soft honeybutter texture and a dark solid cakelike form.

Flavor/Aroma:
Jaggery has a sweet winey fragrance and flavor that lends distinction to whatever food it embellishes. It has a heady aroma and delicious flavour somewhere between brown sugar and molasses. Jaggery has a heavy caramel-like aroma which is slightly alcoholic. The taste is very sweet and mushy.

Jaggery has a special flavour that cannot really be substituted by sugar although brown or demerara sugar is the closest equivalent.

How to select:
Jaggery ranges from mustard yellow to deep amber in colour depending on the quality of sugarcane juice. The former is used to spread on breads and confections while the dark solid version serves to make candies and granola bars called chikki in India.

Use:
Jaggery is used in many dishes. You need small amounts of it for most dishes. The following are some of the examples: For the South Indian "payasam", jaggery is simmered with cooked rice and a variety of condiments and nuts. "Chikki" is made by adding nuts to melted jaggery and cooling the mixture in thin slabs. In rural India, tea is sweetened with jaggery instead of sugar. It is added to vegetables along with spices for the sweet and sour taste found especially in Gujarati dishes. It adds the necessary touch of sweetness to hot curries. It is added along with lentils to make a dough which is stuffed inside whole wheat flour dough to make a heavenly flat griddle bread known as puranpoli. Also, used in Indian sweet dishes like "Kheer"and several deserts instead of sugar because of its nutritious value.

Jaggery is used in traditional and cultural events as a gift to mark sweetness and auspiciousness.

How to store:
Store in an airtight container in a cool dry place.

Health benefits:
Jaggery is believed to have great nutritive and medicinal value and it has the reputation of being a 'medicinal sugar'. It is prescribed for use in the Ayurvedic system of medicine. Jaggery contains proteins, minerals, and vitamins which are essential constituents for the body. It is also a potent source of iron and has a higher iron and copper content than white sugar. Also, it is a superior product among natural sweeteners with regards to the vitamin contents. It is said to purify blood, regulate liver function, and keep the body healthy. It is also very useful in health problems like dry cough, cough with sputum, indigestion, constipation etc. It purifies the blood, prevents rheumatic afflictions and disorders of bile and possesses nutritive properties of high order. Being a completely natural product it's keeping quality is very poor and needs very specific conditions.

Tips:
Tired of using the hammer and knife method to break down large chunks of jaggery, follow the easy breezy method of using the microwave. Microwave large chunks of jaggery in a bowl for 20-25 seconds or so and they are soft enough to be crumbled easily.

Spring onion besan pancakes

Pudla/Dhirde


Pudlas in Gujarati or dhirde in Marathi is a quick and simple snack. It can be made as a snack or even as a light dinner. There are days when you are just too tired to cook anything elaborate. At that time pudlas are a convenient option.

There are quite a few kinds of Pudlas using different ingredients and different flours. I like the spring onion ones. So here is the recipe for it. It tastes fabulous when served with ketchup.

Ingredients:
2 cups gram flour (besan)
Spring onions one bunch
1/4 tsp turmeric powder
1/4 tsp chilli powder
1/4 tsp dhaniajeera powder (optional)
Asafoetida 1 pinch
Oil
Salt (to taste)

Process:
Mix all the ingredients together. Add water little by little to avoid lumps and make a thick batter like pancakes. Keep this aside for an hour or so. Smear a little oil on a heated tava. Pour out a large spoonful of batter on the tava and spread it with the back of a spoon. Let it cook. When done turn and cook the other side. Remove when crisp. Serve hot with ketchup.

Garlic

Description:
Garlic is used in cuisines throughout the world. It is indispensable in Chinese, Italian, and Mexican foods. Garlic looks pretty similar to onion except that the bulb is segmented into cloves seemed to be covered with what looks like tissue paper ;) It has been used for both culinary and medical reasons. The plant has been used to protect against infections, to lower blood cholesterol and fat levels, and to help with digestion and modern research has confirmed these effects.

Storing:
Store fresh garlic in an open container (away from other foods) in a cool dark place. When properly stored unbroken bulbs can be kept up to 8 weeks though they will begin to dry out toward the end of that time. Once broken from the bulb, individual cloves will keep from 3 to 10 days. It is kept in an open container as it "breathe" and allowing correct air circulation will extend its shelf life.

Do not store garlic heads and cloves in your kitchen fridge. If garlic is refrigerated then it is likely to go soft and mouldy. The same problem can occur if garlic is stored in a sealed plastic container.

Freezing:
If you are making garlic paste, then add a tablespoon of hot vegetable/canola/sunflower cooking oil to the paste and mix well. This ensures that it stays fresh for longer. Spread the garlic out in a ziploc bag in a thin layer so that its easier to remove and lay it flat in the freezer. When needed, just break off the amount needed and re-zip the bag.

Curry leaves

Appearance: Small, green leaves.







Flavour/Aroma : They have an aroma reminiscent of curry and citrus fruit with a slight, very mild, bitter after taste.

Description:
Curry leaves look like somewhat small leaves from a lemon tree. Fresh curry leaves are shiny dark green with no yellow spots on them nor are they wilted. They are sold with the branch and stems attached. Remove from the branch and discard the stems. You can find packets of fresh curry leaves in the fresh vegetable section or in the refrigerated area of your local Indian grocery shop. They are mainly used as an aromatic flavoring for most curries and dals. The leaves when lightly fried in oil or ghee release a wonderful fragrance and when used in dals/kadhi enriches them by its unique appetizing aroma.

Storing:
For extended use, place stems in between paper towels and seal in a zipper bag. Store in the crisper for as long as 2 weeks. Change the paper towels in between if it becomes too moist/damp.

Green chillies

Description:
We cannot think of Indian cooking without a dash of green chillies. Slit, sliced, chopped or diced, we just have to add a few green chillies to add that tang to our food. There are hundreds of different varieties of chillies ranging from very mild to scorchingly hot. The strength of the chilli depends on the amount of capsaicin, a volatile oil, in the seeds and pith. It is this oil which can burn the skin and eyes. As a general rule the darker the color of the chilli, the hotter it is. If you're not sure of the strength of the chillies you are using, use it in moderation to start with and then taste the dish and add more if need be.



Storing:
Green chillies are known to have bacteria around the stem. This leads to early spoilage. So when storing them, snap off and remove the stems, wrap them in paper towels, and put them in a ziploc and refigerate. The advantage of ziploc is that the chillies can be flattened so that they lie almost in a single layer. As the contact area is reduced, if one spoils, the chances of the spoilage spreading quickly to the others reduces. Also it saves space in the crisper. The paper towel absorbs any lingering moisture. If you find that it is becoming too damp, change the paper towel.

Freezer:
Just grind some green chillies and make green chilli paste and refrigerate it. This will stay good for a month or maybe more. Ensure a longer life by adding a tablespoon of hot vegetable/ canola/sunflower cooking oil to them and mixing well. Alternative: Serrano peppers is a good alternative if you cannot find green chillies or are too lazy to go to the Indian store.

Rasgulla/Rasmalai

Rasgulla

Rasgulla is a popular sweet made with cottage cheese/paneer. My mom makes lovely rasgullas at home. I tried it once or twice when in India but at that time mom was around me to see if I was doing things the right way. Now it is me alone :)







For gullas:

Ingredients:
1/2 gallon Whole Milk
2 Tbsp Lemon Juice
2 tsp all-purpose flour

Process:
In a heavy bottomed pan, put in milk and bring it to boil. When it starts boiling add lemon juice and stir continuously until the milk curdles completely. Let it cool and set. Then drain using a muslin cloth so that just the solid part remains, called the "paneer". Hang it under the sink or put the cloth-covered paneer in a bigger bowl which will collect the water dripping from the mixture. The intention here is to separate the solid curdled milk residue from the water or liquid part. Keep it covered for at least a couple of hours and drain the excess water by pressing the cloth. Note that there must not be any water remaining else the paneer balls will break when put in sugar water. When the water is completely drained, remove the paneer from the muslin cloth and take it in a bowl. Add 2 tsp of maida and knead it well using your hands to form a smooth mixture. This will now look like "paneer" or cottage cheese. You have to knead it for a long time to make it really really smooth. Divide the paneer into equal parts and roll each part into a ball taking care to see that there are no cracks on the surface. Dust the back of a flat plate (thali) lightly with some flour (maida) and place the rolled paneer balls onto it.

For Ras:

Ingredients:
2 cups sugar (+/- to taste)

2 cups water

2 tsp Cardamom

Saffron a few strands (optional)

Process:

In a heavy bottomed pan, add 2 cups of water along with 2 cups of sugar. Let the sugar melt in the water and boil to make a sugar syrup, then add in the paneer balls keeping a good distance between each of them and cover with a perforated or partially covered lid. After about 2-3 min, sprinkle some ice cold water into the pan. Reoeat this 5-6 times and boil for 20-30 minutes. To check if the rasgullas are done, on touch the rasgullas should spring back and they should retain its shape when pressed. Rasgullas expand to at least four times their original size. The cooking time varies largely depending on the size of the rasgullas. Let it cool. Serve chilled.

Rasmalai

Rasmalai is simple variation of normal rasgullas. The only difference is that in rasgullas the cheese balls are dipped sugar syrup but in rasmalai it is dipped in sweetened milk after dipping it in sugar syrup.

There are many different ways to make rasmalai starting with the authentic method with milk and then several shortcuts that use Ricotta cheese or even store-bought rasgullas. Depending on the time you have at hand, you can choose any of three methods. Personally, I prefer it being made the authentic way, the taste is simply marvelous. But if I do not have much time at hand, then the shortcuts really help. I will explain in detail all the three methods.

First let me tell you how to make ras malai the authentic way.

Ingredients:
For Malai:

(Follow the above procedure and make rasgullas)

For Ras:
Milk 1/2 gallon.
1/2 cup sugar (+/- to taste)
2 tsp Cardamom
2 tbsp Pistachios
1/4 cup Almonds and cashews
Saffron a few strands

Process:
For malai:
Follow the above procedure and make rasgullas.

For ras:
In another pan, boil milk on a slow flame till it is reduced to about half. Add cardamom, sliced nuts(cashews & almonds), and saffron. Keep stirring often till the milk mixture is thick enough to be poured over as a sauce. It should not be too thick but rather a little on the runny side. Let this cool.

For rasmalai:
Take each rasgulla and squeeze as much sugar syrup out from it as possible without letting the rasgulla crumble. Dunk the squished rasgulla into the milk, hold for a couple of seconds, and then release slowly into the milk allowing the rasgulla to assume it's original shape and size. As it does this, it absorbs the milk into every spongy air-pocket. Repeat this for each rasgulla until you have all the rasgullas floating in milk. Chill for a few hours before serving. Garnish it with crushed pistachios and a little it of cardamom powder just before serving. Enjoy!!!!


Rasmalai using Ricotta chesse

Ingredients:
Ricotta cheese (whole milk or medium size one, part skim)
Sugar- according to taste (I added half cup)
2 tbsp Crushed cardamom
Pistachios for garnish

Process:
Preheat the oven to 300 degrees Fahrenheit.
In a bowl, mix ricotta cheese and sugar and mix using a spoon. Beat until the mixture is smooth. There should be no sugar grains left in the batter. Spread the mixture in an oven safe pan and level it using the back of a spoon. Garnish it with cardamom n pistachios powder. Cover the pan with aluminium foil to avoid the brown color on top. Bake it at 300 Fahrenheit for approximately 45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the pan comes out clean. Let it cool and cut into desired shapes and transfer the pieces to another dish.

Alternatively you can try baking it in a mini muffin pan so that you will get individual pieces and will not need cutting.

For the ras, follow the above recipe. This too tastes good and is easy to prepare even for a big party.


Rasmalai from rasgullas:

Ingredients:
1 tin of Haldiram rasgullas

Process:
Open Haldiram Rasgulla tin and take out all the rasgullas and gently squeeze and flatten them by pressing in your hands. Since they r big, you can cut them in half using a knife.

Then follow the above procedure for ras and dunk the squished rasgulla into the milk. Chill for a few hours before serving. Garnish it with crushed pistachios and a little it of cardamom powder just before serving. Enjoy!!!!


There are many other methods like using Half n Half instead of whole milk or even sweetened condensed milk. I am yet to try these.

Peas Pulao

Matar Bhat

A really yummy and spicy type of rice with peas. In the Indian society, rice plays a very important part in daily diet. A meal is considered complete when finished with rice. The variety of rice and the number of recipes available for cooking rice is simply amazing. Just by adding few little spices n herbs one can turn plain boring rice into a very very pleasurable experience.





Ingredients:
1 cup Basmati rice
1/4 cup green peas
2 tbsp ginger-garlic paste
2 green chillies chopped (+/- to taste)
1 tsp Garam masala
1/2 tsp chilli powder
2 onions chopped finely
1 tomato chopped finely
Cilantro 1/2 bunch
Fresh grated coconut
2 tbsp poppy seeds
1/2 cup tomato puree
2 tbsp oil
salt to taste
Paneer (optional)
2 Cups of water for one cup of Basmati rice

Process:
Clean and wash the rice. Soak in warm water for 10 minutes. Drain and keep aside.

Take the cooker and put in 2 tbsp of oil. When oil gets hot, put in ginger garlic paste. When it becomes a bit brown, add the poppy seeds then add onions. Once the onions turn pinkish-brown, add the tomato puree. After 2-3 minutes when the tomatoes are done, add in the cilantro, green chillies, garam masala, chilli powder, and salt. Finally add in the freshly grated coconut and mix it well. Take care at this stage because if you tend to take too much time, the coconut gets burnt. Add in peas. Then add in rice and water and let it cook for 3 whistles. When done, remove from stove and let cool. Mix it well and serve.

Garnish peas pulao with fried onions, raisins, cashews and serve hot with Raitas.

Coconut Cilantro Chutney

Coconut-cilantro chutney is a great example of how good raw food tastes when it is prepared with right ingredients especially when served with dosa, idli, vada, uttappa, or other South-Indian based dishes.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup Fresh grated coconut
3/4 cup Cilantro
1 tbsp Oil
1 tbsp Mustard seeds
1 tsp Urad dal
3-4 Curry leaves
Asafoetida
Salt to taste
1/4 cup Yogurt
Red chillies



Process:

Mix grated fresh coconut, cilantro, green chillies, yogurt, and salt in a mixer/blender for a little while. Remove in a bowl.

For tempering, heat oil in a small pan(tadka vessel), add the mustard seeds, urad dal, red chillies, curry leaves, and asafoetida.

Add this mixture to the chutney.

Sabudana Khichdi

Sabudanyachi khichdi

This is a typical maharashtrian dish and is made by almost every week and definetly on fasting days as it gives you all the required nutrition.

For the inexperienced hand making sabudana khichadi may sometimes end up as a gooey mess that stubbornly sticks to the kadhai/wok. The trick is to get the sabudana non-sticky and non-soggy. So, here is my sure fire recipe.







Ingredients:

1 cup sabudana/sago
1/2 cup Ground roasted peanut powder (keep it a bit rough)
1 medium potato
Thinly sliced 1-2 Green chillies (+/- to taste)
1 tsp Cumin seeds
3-4 tbsp Oil.
Salt to taste
Sugar
Cilantro to garnish
Lime juice

Process:

Wash the sago 2-3 times. Drain water completely. Cover and keep. Soak sago for at least 6-8 hours. Sprinkle a little water and mix it well at regular intervals. This ensures that the sago does not become over moist/lump...especially the ones bought in grocery stores in America tend to become soggy if kept soaked in water for a long time. After 6 hours, the sago should appear clear, translucent, swelled up and separate pearls.

Roast peanuts, peel off skin, and ground it into a coarse powder.

Heat about 2 tbsp oil in a kadhai/wok. Add the cumin, green chillies, and curry leaves. Then add thinly sliced potato and cook till tender. Add the sago and mix. Cover and cook for around 5 mins. After you remove the cover, you will notice that the colour and texture of the sago has changed and it is now a bit transparent. Once you see this, DO NOT cover to cook as it will make it sticky.

Drizzle about 2 tbsp of oil around the kadhai/wok. Add salt and sugar and mix well.

Cook for another 5-7 mins. Garnish with cilantro. Add a little lime juice.

Serve with a coconut cilantro chutney or plain yogurt.

Vegetable puffs

Here is a simple snack/appetizer when inviting guests over for dinner. It takes hardly any time to put together and is totally delicious. This warm layered pastry with a spicy vegetable filling is always guaranteed bring accolades from anyone who has a bite of it.

I was very fond of the vegetable puffs/pattice available in mithai shops back in India and missed it a lot when I came over to stay in USA. I did not like much the ones available in the Indian grocery stores here and so decided to make some on my own. With the store bought puff pastry sheets, making this lovely snack becomes a breeze.

Ingredients:

1 sheet Pepperidge Farms puff pastry sheet
1 big Onion diced into small pieces
2 Potatoes boiled n diced into small pieces
1 cup Frozen peas
Raisins n Cashews
Butter/Oil
1 tsp Cumin seeds
pinch of Asafoetida
1 inch Ginger
4-6 Green chillies or more
2 tsp Garam masala
pinch of salt

Pepperidge Farm puff pastry sheets are easily available in any of the American grocery stores in the freezer section. Be sure to buy the sheets as there are plenty of other Pepperidge products, shells, etc. available in the freezer section. In one pack, there are two sheets. One sheet makes 6 large size puffs. So depending on the amount you need to make thaw either just one or both the sheets.


Process:

Start off with thawing the puff pastry sheet. It usually takes around 45 minutes after you remove it from the freezer.

Meanwhile put butter/oil in a pan and let it get heated. Once heated add the cumin seeds, asafoetida to it and let it splutter for a while. Then add in the diced onions and saute on medium flame. Once the onions are pinkish brown in color, add in the cashews and stir it for a while. Once this is done, add in garam masala, turmeric, red chilli powder, ginger, green chillies and mix. After all the above spices are mixed in nicely add the peas, raisins, and diced boiled potatoes and salt and mix it well. Voila, your filling is now ready.

The puff pasty sheet is folded in three vertical sections. Once thawed nicely, cut along those lines so that you will have three long cut sections with you. Then cut each section halfway so that you have six pieces. On a well floured surface, roll out each piece so that it is even.

Preheat oven at 350 F.

Now you can place the filling in and seal the edges using water. Place onto a well-greased baking sheet and place it into the oven for around 40 minutes. Keep for more time if needed. They should have a brown biscuity feeling to it (similar to khari). Oven time may vary based on different ovens but to be sure when making for the first time one can just peek into the oven a little after 30 minutes and shorten the oven time if need be.

I will be uploading the pics soon.