Simple and easy version of Gulab jamun

A simple Gulab jamun made with simple ingredients at home and It tastes equally good as the original one!!!

Simple & easy Gulab Jamun

Take 2 ½ cups dry milk powder. Add ½ cup all purpose flour ( maida) , 1/8 th 
tsp cooking soda and 1 ½ cups heavy cream. Knead well till a soft dough is made. 
Add the cardamom powder. Make small balls and fry in oil/ ghee till golden brown. 
Put in sugar syrup as explained Below.


 For Syrup

• Sugar : 500 gms/17.64 ounces
• Cardamom : 7-8
• Water : 2-1/2 cups

 Bring the water, rose water and sugar to boil. Add saffron to it,
remove from heat. Keep aside.

suji and maida mixed halwa.

Ingredients:
1)suji-100g
2)Maida-100g
3)sugar-100g
4)milk 2 cups
5)mixed dry fruits shredded(raisins,cashews,almond)
6)coconut dessicated for garnishing
7)ghee-3 tbsp
8)vegetable oil-4 tbsp
9)ilaychi powder-1/2 teaspoon

Method:-
1) Mix the oil and ghee and heat it in pan.
2) roast the suji till golden brown.
3)roast maida seperately with little oil in a microwave or pan till brown.
4)mix maida and suji in one pan and add ilaychi powdre
5)add dryfruits and saute 2 mins.
6)add milk and 1 cup water.
7)add sugar.
8)keep on steering.
9)cover with lid on for 5 mins.
10) remove the cover and keep on steering till oil separates.
11)garnish with coconut.
12)serve hot

tomato chutney....an old recipe from my grand ma

Its a typical chutney with ripe tomatoes and a mixed version of Bihar and Bengal...

this yummy goodness tastes its best with everything.with paratha ,poori, sandwiches, pakora...

it requires very less and easily available ingredients which we usually have in our kitchen.

Ingredients:-

1.Red tomatoes -500 g

2.saboot zeera-1 teaspoon

3.lal mirch whole-2 pcs

4.tejpatta-2

5.salt 2 teaspoon

6 sugar-1 cup

7 jaggery-1 cup

8.oil-2 teaspoon

Method:-

1.put the oil in kadahi,add zeera,lal mirch,tezpatta.let it cracle.

2.put tomatoes diced unevenly.

3.add salt and cover the kadahi so that tomatoes release water.

4.after 20 mins add sugar and jaggery.

5.simmer it 30 mins on low heat till the consistency is like jelly.

6.serve hot or cold as side dish.

Cabbage sabji can be interesting TOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!

Hya!!! I know very few people who love sabji made out of cabbage......my mother-in-law will always change her mind of having a dinner too hearing the name cabbage!!!Once  I made bandhgobi ki sabji with my recollected super duper ideas...and she loved it!!! I tell u wat??? addition and subtraction of few things can make our daily meal interesting too...with keeping in mind our HEALTH above everything else......
just wanted to share with u my v.1 version which is combi of north indian style cabbbage veggie tempered with south indian style!!

Ingredients:

1.cabbage finely chopped -500 g

2.green peas frozen or fresh 250 g

3.potato diced in samll pcs -1

4 red onion sliced into thin wedges-1

5.capsicum optional finely chopped -1

6.turmeric powder-1/2 teaspoon

7.coriander powder-1/2 teaspoon

8.zeera powder -1/2 teaspoon
9 black pepper powder-1/2 teaspoon
10.chat masala-1/2 teaspoon
11.vegetable oil 2 tablespoon
12 salt to taste
13.sugar-a pinch

For tempering:
whole zeera,black mustard seeds,curry patta,green chillly

Method :-

1 In a kladahi add oil all the tempering and let it crackle for 1 min
2 add onions let it be browned.
3 add potato cubes let it be browned.
4 add cabbage and peas and saute on high flame for 2 mins.
5 add all the spices one by one and saute it.
6.keep on high heat.
7.spronkle little water to keep moist.
8.serve with paratha or rice...

TAWA And PANEER...combi makes an awesome veggi delight!!!!!!

Although many recipes require no special utensils,others do...so our special veg delight tawa Paneer cant be prepared without a tawa.sharing with you A SIMPLE ,TASTY,YUM,STYLISH RECIPE!!!!!
JUST DIG IN !!!!!!!!!!

Ingredients
200g Paneer Block
1 Onion
2 Tomato
4-5 Sweet Peppers
1/4 Spoon Turmeric Powder
1 Spoon Red Chilli Powder
1/4 Spoon Jeera Powder
1/4 Spoon Corriander Powder
1/4 Spoon Aamchur Powder
Salt to taste
Oil

Method
Cut the paneer into squared pieces, onions and tomatoes into the medium sized pieces
Slice the sweet peppers
On a tawa add some oil and shallow fry paneer pieces on high heat but till light brown in colour. Keep aside
In same oil add chopped onion and cook till light brown in colour. Separate from oil and keep aside
Cook sweet peppers in same oil and keep aside
In same oil, add tomato pieces and cook till almost done.
Add red chilli powder, turmeric powder, jeera powder, corriander powder and Aamchur Powder and saute for 2-3 minutes
Add paneer pieces, onion, sweet peppers and salt to taste.
Mix well and cook for another 4-5 minutes and serve warm

Notes
I didnt want to add any fancy items in there nor i wanted to add more spices etc to make sure it is not too spicy. Well I loved the taste as it was it had perfect combination of mild spices with the soft paneer.
I used nonstick tawa with sides to it - that helped me in managing it while mixing well :)

LITTI CHOKHA...A BIHARI DELICACY...

I've been always fond of litti chokha....It feels as if just few days back when we were kids,whenever twas raining litti chokha was on-demand and  all of us got involved in the preparation....days have passed like a wink of an eye...Now being married in Patna,''THE PURE BIHARI BAHU'' litti chokha has become an integral recipe in almost all the festival.
On this holi bash I prepared it for some of our friends who are though south Indians a huge fan of  litti chokha.
Sharing with you a patna version of eating it with baigan and aloo ka chokha or bharta and chicken curry..
Even I tried this for the very first time...and its really awesome!!!!



INGREDIENTS
For Atta (flour) dough: 
1½ cup: Whole wheat atta (Littis are more crunchy if made with maida) 
¾ to 1 cup: Regular or fat-free yogurt (dahi) 
(Make dough from atta using yogurt and NOT water. The dough should be soft and fully kneaded. Keep aside covered.) 


For Filling: 
1 cup: Sattu (a special gram flour) 
4 cloves: Garlic, finely chopped 
1 inch: Ginger, finely chopped 
2 or more: Green chilies, finely chopped 
½ cup: Fresh dhaniya (cilantro) leaves, finely chopped 
½ tsp: Mangrella (nigella or onion seed) 
2 tbsp: Mustard 
1 tsp: Ajwain (thyme) 
1 no: Lemon juice 
1 or 2 tbsp: Mircha achar masala (fillings from the red chili pickle) Salt to taste

METHOD


Mix all the filling ingredients with sattu together nicely. Add ¼ to ½ cup water to make the stuffing moist and easy to fill.
Now make 8 balls from the atta (flour) dough. Dust each ball with dry atta and make a patty roughly 2.5" to 3" diameter in size with hand. You don't need a belan (rolling pin) for this.
Stuff 2 to 3 tsp sattu filling in the center of the patty and close it from all sides.
When all the littis are stuffed, pre-heat the oven to 375 F and put all the litties on a foil and bake till one side is brown or black spots come on the litti surface. Then turn over the litti and bake for few more minutes until that side is brown as well.
Take out and dip in pure ghee or butter and serve with achar or dhaniya (cilantro) chutney and/or baigan ka bharta. 

Chicken Tikka in.....DINNER 4 HUBBY'S BIRTHDAY!!!!!!!!

After marriage the most important thing to keep the love and passion alive is to do different programs.
My husband's birthday was programmed to be a lovely night with his favourite food and few frenz!

So this is how I did it!  With Good humour,yummy food  and lots of love!!!!!!!

CHICKEN TIKKA WITH VEGGIES

its is an easy-to-cook dish in which with loads of attitude!!chicken chunks are marinated in special spices and then grilled on skewers. This is one of India's most popular dishes.

Ingredients:

1 pint of live natural yogurt
1 Tablespoon Cumin powder
1 Tablespoon garam masala
1 Teaspoon Coriander powder
1 Teaspoon haldi powder
1 Teaspoon chilli powder
Juice 1 lemon
8 cloves garlic - crushed
1 inch grated ginger
Red food colouring
4 Chicken Breasts Cubed
1 Lemon

Cooking method for Chicken Tikka

Mix the spices, colouring, lemon juice, ginger and garlic up into a paste with a little water and stir in well with the yogurt to make a tandoori marinade. Marinate the chicken in the marinade for 2-60 hours. Preheat the oven to it's highest heat for at least 20 minutes. Shake off excess marinade and place chicken pieces AND VEGETABLES OF UR CHOICE on skewers on a wire rack in the oven. Cook for 15-20 minutes and check the chicken is cooked by piercing the thickest piece with a skewer, if the juices run clear it's cooked, serve with a wedge of lemon.

simply chinese ...

VEGGY MANCHURIAN


When We eat these deep fried vegetable balls in a soya-based sauce, do not let mundane things like the weighing scale bother US!!!!
dig into these deep-fried delights and enjoy every bite!

For The Vegetable Balls
3 cups finely chopped cabbage
1 1/4 cups carrot , grated
1/2 cup chopped onions
2 tbsp cornflour
5 tbsp plain flour
3 to 4 clove of garlic(lehsun) , finely chopped
1 slit green chilli , finely chopped
1/4 tsp m.s.g powder (optional)
salt and to taste
oil for deep-frying
For The Sauce
1 tbsp garlic , finely chopped
2 tsp finely chopped green chillies
2 tsp finely chopped ginger 
1 cup clear vegetable stock or
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp cornflour mixed with 1 cup of water
2 pinches of sugar
2 tbsp oil
salt to taste
Method 
For the vegetable balls:-

Combine the cabbage, carrots, onions, cornflour, plain flour, garlic, green chilli, ajinomoto, salt and pepper in a bowl. Mix well.
Shape spoonfuls of the mixture into small balls. If you find it difficult to form balls, sprinkle a little water to bind the mixture.
Deep fry in hot oil until golden brown. Drain on absorbent paper and keep aside. I being calorie cautious just shallow fry them and put them in microwave at high for 10 mins.
For the sauce:-

Heat the oil in r frying pan on a high flame. Add the garlic, green chillies,capsicum diced and spring onions and ginger and stir fry over a high flame for a few seconds.
Add the stock, soya sauce, cornflour paste, sugar and salt and little red colouring for a sensuous look and simmer for a few mins.Just before serving, put the vegetable balls in the sauce and bring to a boil.
I have made a habit of preparing the toddler version too, if I am preparing something spicy for us:) and it feels world to me when my kido says...yummmyyy!

CHICKEN MANCHURIAN

For The Chicken Balls

finely chopped chicken (preferably breast portion)-500g

1/2 cup chopped onions

2 tbsp cornflour

5 tbsp plain flour

3 to 4 clove of garlic(lehsun) , finely chopped

1 slit green chilli , finely chopped

1/4 tsp m.s.g powder (optional)

salt and to taste

oil for deep-frying

For The Sauce

1 tbsp garlic , finely chopped

2 tsp finely chopped green chillies

2 tsp finely chopped ginger 

1 cup chicken stock 

1 tbsp soy sauce

1 tbsp cornflour mixed with 1 cup of water

2 pinches of sugar

2 tbsp oil

salt to taste

Method 

marinade the chicken in soy sauce for 1 hour.

Combine the chicken onions, cornflour, plain flour, garlic, green chilli, ajinomoto, salt and pepper in a bowl. Mix well.

Shape spoonfuls of the mixture into small balls. If you find it difficult to form balls, sprinkle a little more cornflour to bind the mixture.

Deep fry in hot oil until golden brown. Drain on absorbent paper and keep aside. I being calorie cautious just shallow fry them and put them in microwave at high for 10 mins.

For the sauce:-

Heat the oil in r frying pan on a high flame. Add the garlic, green chillies,capsicum diced and spring onions and ginger and stir fry over a high flame for a few seconds.

Add the stock, soya sauce, cornflour paste, sugar and salt and little red colouring for  and simmer for a few mins.Add the chicken balls in the sauce and bring to a boil.Ready to serve!!!!!!!!!!!

my experiments with chocolate

This one is for those chocolate lovers, inspired from one of my favourite cook books and one of the TV show.


MOLTEN CHOCOLATY CAKE  WITH POACHED STRAWBERRY.....ITS YUM YUM!!!!


The cake is so  delicious and chocolaty that you cant go wrong. The use of high quality dark chocolate enhances the flavor of this delicious goodness.super moist lava cake that just melts in your mouth!!! sinful and TDF~~ :)

Chocolate Lava cake which has suddenly become popular due to an advertisement campaign by a pizza company is actually a delectable French dessert and can be made at home. Try this simple recipe.


Ingredients:-

100g dark chocolate (example, Cadbury Old Gold 70% cocoa), cut to small cubes

100g unsalted butter, cut to small cubes

 2 eggs
 50g caster sugar
 20g self-raising flour

for poached strawberry

cut strawberries and add to the hot sugar syrup.do not boil just cover with the lid for 30 mins.

Method of preparation:-

1. Melt dark chocolate and butter using either the microwave , a hot water bath or a double boiler (note: do not use direct stove heat or the ingredients will burn).
2. In a large bowl, use an electric whisk (you can whisk by hand too but it’s more tedious) to beat the eggs and sugar till the mixture turns pale and frothy. This will take a few minutes.
3. Pour melted chocolate/butter you prepared in step 1, into the egg mixture prepared in step 2. Stir in the flour. Use a spatula to mix everything evenly.
4. Grease your ramekins with some melted butter (so that the cake will come off cleanly when it is baked). Fill the ramekin almost 3/4 full with the chocolate mixture and bake in a preheated oven of 180C (356F) for about 10 minutes. Mine took exactly 11 minutes. The cake is deliberately slightly undercooked so as to achieve its ideal consistency which is runny in the middle (hence the name fondant/molten/chocolate lava) but if you over-bake it, you will get a super moist chocolate cake which is yummy too.
5. When it is baked, remove ramekin from oven and let cool for 1-2 minutes. Use a spoon to gently loosen the edges. Carefully invert the cake onto serving plate.

6.Decorate with poached strawberry.

Note:-

serve with vanilla ice-cream and some dry fruits.
:) :)


CHOCOCHIPS COOK-IS

"These cookies are great...you get a double dose of chocolate! My kid loves them."

Ingredients

1 cup butter, softened

1 1/2 cups white sugar

2 eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 cups all-purpose flour

2/3 cup cocoa powder

3/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

1/2 cup chopped walnuts (optional)

Method of preparation:-

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).

In large bowl, beat butter, sugar, eggs, and vanilla until light and fluffy. Combine the flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt; stir into the butter mixture until well blended. Mix in the chocolate chips and walnuts. Drop by rounded teaspoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheets.

Bake for 8 to 10 minutes in the preheated oven, or just until set. Cool slightly on the cookie sheets before transferring to wire racks to cool completely.
:) :)

Chocolate Fondue

prepared chocolate frosting with sour cream to create a sweet dip that's perfect with fresh fruit. 'It's easy to keep the ingredients for this quick dessert on hand for kids,

''It's also decadent served with sugar cookies."

Ingredients

1 (16 ounce) container chocolate frosting

1 cup sour cream

Assorted fresh fruit

Directions

Combine the frosting and sour cream; spoon into a serving bowl. Serve with fruit for dipping. Refrigerate any leftovers.
:):)


Muffins made with drinking chocolate

since the day1 I have started watching food network channel,''Nigella lawson'' has become my favorite food anchor who is not a chef by profession but her recipes are from the heart of the home......I keep trying her recipes...sharing with u one of her classic muffins with my modified version ...with drinking chocolate instead of cocoa powder and white milk chocolate for a mild taste!!!!!!!! and gave it a tempting look with smarties which grabbed attention of my daughter:)

Ingredients

• 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 2 tablespoons best quality drinking chocolate powder
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 3/4 cup chocolate chips, plus 1/4 cup for sprinkling
• 1 cup milk
• 1/2 cup white chocolate chips
• 1/3 cup plus 2 teaspoons vegetable oil
• 1 egg
• 1 teaspn vanilla essence

Directions

Special equipment: Muffin tin with paper muffin cases

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Put the flour, baking powder, baking soda, drinking chocolate, sugar, and 3/4 cup of the chocolate chips(both the varieties) into a large bowl. Pour all the liquid ingredients into a measuring jug. Mix the dry and wet ingredients together, remembering that a lumpy batter makes the best muffins. Spoon into the prepared muffin cases. Sprinkle the remaining 1/4 cup chocolate chips on top and then bake for 20 minutes or until the muffins are dark, risen and springy.serve it topped with smarties....slurrrrrrrrrrrrpy yum!!!!!!

:):)

little doughnut with chocolate glaze!!!

Making a doughnut looks like a tedious task but its definitely not!!!!!!! believe me it was a huge hit in my first trial. This is the easiest recipe for cake doughnuts that I have used after watching Nigella's kitchen show. varying it with chocolate glaze.

Ingredients:-

• 4 1/2 c flour
• 4 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 eggs
• 1 c sugar
• 2 Tbs unsalted butter, melted
• 1 c milk
• 1 tsp vanilla

Sift together the dry ingredients.

Beat eggs with sugar until light. Add butter, milk, and vanilla. Add dry ingredients and mix until a soft dough is formed. Do not over mix. If dough is too soft to roll, chill it for an hour.

Roll dough out 3/8 inch thick on a floured surface and cut with donut cutters. Fry in 370 degree oil until golden on both sides, turning once.

Remove from oil, hold over hot oil for a few minutes to drain, and then finish draining on absorbent paper. While still warm shake in sugar, dip in chocolate glaze.

 For Chocolate Glaze:-

In a mug, microwave half of cup of milk with a teaspoon of butter (you'll use this later)

use the milk mixture 

In a bowl  mix:

1 cup of powdered sugar

2 Tablespoons of Hershey or cadbury Cocoa if not available use cadbury chocolate just melt it in microwave

3 Tablespoons of the milk mixture from above.

Put a slightly warm donut face down in the chocolate glaze, turn slightly and remove. Perfect!