Shrikhand with Mango Pulp

Ingredients:
2 cups yogurt made from whole milk
1 can condensed milk
1/2 cup mango pulp
2-4 green cardamoms, powdered
3-4 drops of rosewater
Pinch nutmeg
A few almonds or pistachios, blanched
 

Preparation:

Hang the yogurt for about 45 minutes in a fine muslin cloth until all the water drains away.
Remove yogurt from the cloth and transfer it into a clean bowl.
Add condensed milk, mango pulp, rosewater, nutmeg, and cardamom powder to thick yogurt.
Blend all the ingredients until you get a creamy paste.
Garnish with blanched nuts of your choice.
Chill and serve.














 

Shrikhand

Ingredients:

2 cups yogurt made from whole milk
1 can condensed milk
2 tablespoons sour cream
2-4 green cardamoms, powdered
3-4 drops of rosewater
Pinch nutmeg
A few almonds or pistachios, blanched

Preparation:

Hang the yogurt for about 45 minutes in a fine muslin cloth until all the water drains away.
Remove yogurt from the cloth and transfer it into a clean bowl.
Add condensed milk, sour cream, rosewater, nutmeg, and cardamom powder to thick yogurt.
Blend all the ingredients until you get a creamy paste.
Garnish with blanched nuts of your choice.
Chill and serve.

Coconut Laddoos

 

Ingredients:
300 grams dessicated coconut
1 can (14oz/396 g) sweetened condensed milk

1/2 teaspoon cardamom powder

1 tablespoon unsalted butter

Few slivered almonds or pistachios for garnishing (optional)

Preparation:
Take a heavy-bottomed or a non-stick pan. Heat it over the medium flame.

Add butter and melt.

Add condensed milk, cardamom powder and dessicated coconut in the pan.

Stir the mixture over medium to low heat until it starts to thicken (it takes 5-10 minutes) and rolls easily into balls.

Turn off the flame. Cool the mixture and roll into balls.

Roll the balls in coconut powder to coat the surface.

Garnish with slivered almonds or pistachios and serve.



Mysore Pak

Mysore Pak is a popular south Indian sweet dish and is very tasty.

Ingredients:
2 cups bengal gram flour (besan)
2 cups melted butter (unsalted) or ghee
2 cups sugar
11/2 cups water
1/3 teaspoon cardamom powder (optional)

Preparation:
Take one cup of melted butter or ghee in a pan.
Add bengal gram flour into the ghee and fry until golden brown on low heat.
Meanwhile take another heavy bottomed pan.
Add sugar and water into the pan.
Boil on medium flame until it becomes one thread sticky syrup.
Add stir fried gram flour and cardamom powder.
Continue to stir on medium heat.
Add remaining butter or ghee slowly with continuous stirring.
When mixture starts to move freely leaving the ghee on the sides, transfer the mixture into a greased tray.
The mixture sets very quickly. With a sharp knife cut it into squares or desirable shapes. Garnish with sliced almonds.
Store at room temperature or keep in refrigerator.

Pineapple-Orange Punch

My kids love this punch

Ingredients:
1quart pineapple juice
1quart orange juice
2quarts (1litre) ginger ale
1tblsp freshly squeezed lime juice

Preparation:
Combine juices and ginger ale in a large punch bowl.
Stir well.
Add required ice cubes and serve cold.

Note: Make sure juices and soda are kept in refrigerator before mixing. Lime slices can also be added as garnish and for a flavor. Additional sugar is not required as juices and soda contains enough sugar.

Pedas

Pedas are delicious Indian dessert good for any occasion. This recipe is very quick and easy to make.

Ingredients:
2 cups instant dry milk powder (Nestle Carnation)
1 can (14 oz) condensed milk sweetened (Nestle Carnation)
1 stick (4oz) unsalted butter
1/4 teaspoon green cardamom powder (grind fresh)

Preparation:
Melt butter in a pan on a medium to low heat.
Add milk powder and condensed milk into the melted butter. Mix thoroughly.
Add cardamom powder for additional flavor.
Continue to stir for 4-5 minutes until the mixture starts to thicken.
Turn off the flame and bring the mixture to room temperature.
Grease your hands with butter and make flat balls or roll in desired shape.
Place them on a plate.
Garnish with coconut powder or slivered almonds or pistachios or cashews.
Keep in refrigerator to set for an hour and serve.
Pedas can also be served at room temperature but store in refrigerator.

Tips:
You can use cookie cutter to give some fun shapes to pedas. Kids enjoy doing this for holiday season.
Food color (a pinch) can be used to give saffron or yellow color to pedas.
Rose essence (few drops) can be combined with cardamom powder to give little exotic flavor.
No additional sugar is required.

Pan Fried Salmon

It is a great simple fish recipe. It can be paired with any red or white wine.

Ingredients:
1 pound fish fillets
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper powder
1/4 tsp red pepper powder for extra spice (optional)
1/2 tsp garlic paste
1 lime, freshly squeezed
1/2 tsp cumin powder
1 tbsp yogurt
2 tblsps oil or butter for better taste
Coriander leaves, finely chopped for garnishing

Preparation:
Rinse fish fillets and pat dry before marination.

A. Marination:
Marinate fish fillets in all the ingredients above except for oil used for shallow frying and coriander leaves used for garnishing.
Keep marinated fish fillets for 1 hour at the room temperature or in refrigerator for 2 hours.

B. Panfrying
Heat oil or butter in a pan.
Put marinated fish fillets in a heated pan and fry 3 minutes per side or until crisp brown.
Drain extra oil on a paper towel and transfer it to a clean serving plate.
Squeeze few drops of fresh lime and sprinkle pepper powder over the fillets.
Garnish with coriander leaves and serve hot.

ZaikaBharat: Smoked Chilli Sizzler

ZaikaBharat: Smoked Chilli Sizzler: Ingredients: 2 tbsps oil 3-4 red whole chillies 1-2 inch ginger, sliced 3-4 cloves garlic, finely chopped 1 medium size onion...

Smoked Chilli Sizzler

Ingredients:
2 tbsps oil
3-4 red whole chillies
1-2 inch ginger, sliced
3-4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 medium size onion, sliced
1 tsp honey
1 green bell pepper, thick slices
1 red bell pepper, thick slices
½ tsp black pepper powder
4-5 sprigs fresh coriander leaves, finely chopped
4-5 sprigs of spring onions, chopped roughly
1 tbsp elephant brand soy sauce
Salt to taste


While the oil gets heated in a pan, put the sizzler plate for heating.

Preparation:
Heat oil in a pan.
Add whole chillies, chopped onion, ginger, and garlic into the hot oil. Stir for 1 minute.
Add green and red bell peppers. Cook on high heat for 1 to 2 minutes just enough that they remain crunchy.
Add spring onions, soy sauce, honey, and pepper powder. Stir all on high heat for 1 minute.
Add salt if necessary as soy sauce is salty. Keep aside from the flame.

Sizzler
Take the hot sizzler plate. Place it over the base very carefully. Add the above vegetables into the sizzler.
Garnish it with coriander leaves and add little butter for a sizzling effect. Serve hot immediately.

Moong Sprouts Salad

This salad is very healthy, filling, nutritious, delicious, and diet friendly.

Ingredients:
1/2 cup moong sprouts
1/2 cup channa (bangal gram) sprouts
1/4 cup chopped red cabbage
2 green chillies, finely chopped
1 medium size onion, diced
1 medium size tomato, diced
1/4 cup celery, diced
1/4 cup green peppers (capsicum, diced
1 medium size cucumber, diced
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon chaat masala
1/4 cup sliced/slivered almonds
1 tablespoon coriander leaves, finely chopped
Salt to taste

Preparation:
How to make sprouts at home:
Soak moong or channa dal overnight and drain all the water. Transfer soaked dal onto a wet muslin cloth (or any cotton cloth). Tie the ends of the cloth and keep them in warm dark place (oven is a better place and can be kept undisturbed).

OR sprouts can also be grown in glass or a plastic container. Place a piece of cotton/muslin cloth to cover the top of the container. Secure it with elastic band.

Note: Make sure you keep the sprouts moist by sprinkling little water over them.

You should be able to get good sprouts within 2-4 days depending on the type of seed and the length of the sprouts.

Salad Preparation:
Place moong and channa sprouts in two separate bowls.
Add salt to taste to each bowl and keep them in the microwave for one minute (for each one) to get rid of the raw flavor of the sprouts.
Transfer both the sprouts (moong and channa) together in a deep bowl.
Add all the ingredients as listed above including the spices.
Mix them really well and serve.

You can save these sprouts for long time inside the refrigerator (without adding any cut vegetables and the spices).
I love this healthy salad.

Panjiri Laddoos

Ingredients:
4-5 cups ghee or butter (adjust accordingly, some people like dry)
(make sure butter is unsalted)
2 cups wheat flour (atta), roasted (make sure not to burn it)
1 cup besan, roasted (make sure not to burn it)
1/2 cup suji, roasted (make sure not to burn it)
2 cups almond powder, coarsely ground
1 cup walnut powder
1/4 cup ginger powder, optional (if you like)
1/2 cup raisins
1 teaspoon freshly ground green cardamom power
1 tablespoon fennel powder (sonff powder), optional
4-5 cups sugar powder (adjust according to the degree of sweetness)
1 cup, mixture of slivered almonds, cashews, walnuts, and pecans

Note: Roast atta, besan, and sujji separately for better flavor. Roasting requires continuous stirring on medium to low heat so that it is evenly roasted.

Preparation:
In an open saucepan add ghee/butter.
Add all the ingredients as listed above except the sugar.
Keep stirring for about 3-4 minutes over low heat until the mixture gives nice aroma.
Add sugar and stir for about 2-3 minutes until it blends in well with the mixture.
(add more sugar if required)
Add mixture of slivered nuts and stir.
Allow it to cool and serve hot as such or make round balls (laddoos).
Store it in air tight container.