Chakali

Preparation time:- 30 minutes
Frying time:-30 to 45 minutes
Makes:- 20 to 25 numbers
Chakali:-

Hi everybody sorry for posting late,but i guess everybody must be still preparing the snacks. This is a really  yummy,crispy, spicy and easy recipe i have learned from my sister.From long time i wanted to try this recipe but because of some or the other reason was not able to give it a try. But this time i made my mind and tried 

this recipe which turned out really yummy. But the only thing is?, it needs more oil for frying.But must try very yummy and crispy and easily melts in mouth.So here is the recipe.
Ingredients:-
1)Plain Flour or Wheat flour (Chapati Aata) 2 cups
2)Yellow lentils or Mung dal 2 table spoons
3)Red chili powder 1/2 tea spoon
4)Green Chilies crushed 3 to 4 numbers
5)Garlic grated 1 tea spoon
6)Ginger grated 1 tea spoon
7)Coriander seeds and cumin seeds powder 1 tea spoon
8)Sesame seeds 1 table spoon
9)Chopped coriander 1 table spoon(Optional)
10)Dry fenugreek leaves or Kasuri methi 1 tea spoon (Optional)
11)Butter 1/2 table spoon(Optional)
12)Oil For frying
13)Salt to taste
Special Things required:-
1)One cotton cloth
2)One string
3)Hammer
4)Chakali Mould
Method:-
1)Spread the cloth on a flat surface,pour the plain flour or chapati flour onto it,collect all the corners together and twist in clock wise direction,and tie tight with the help of string to form a potli or parcel(Refer the pictures)
3)Wash mung dal and put 3 table spoons of  water in it.
4)Pour water in the bottom of a pressure cooker, place the base cooker plate,place the mung dal vessel on top of it,cover it with a plate, and on top of that place the flour potli/parcel.
5)Cover the cooker and take 3 whistles
6) When the cooker cools down, immediately remove the potli and beat with the help of a hammer to break it into powder,break all the lumps,the flour should be lumps free at the end.
(This step is really tricky, u have to be very fast in breaking the flour as it hardens too fast if not broken immediately )
7)When the flour is free from all lumps add in green chilipaste,ginger,garlic paste,salt,butter mix well
(Adding butter is totally optional)
8)And add cooked mung dal from cooker and mix well to form a soft dough,if the water is needed other than the dal , then take little bit water to form a soft dough
9)Apply  some oil to the chakali mould ,and insert the dough log into it.
10)Heat oil,apply some oil on aluminium foil pieces,make round chakali shape with the help of chakali mould on the foil pieces. Transfer the chakali gently from foil onto the frying spoon.
11)When the oil is very hot then slide the chakali slowly from frying spoon into the oil and slowly slide it in to the very hot oil. Fry on high flame untill the chakali is firm and then fry on low flame till golden and cooked from inside.
(The oil should be very hot(or boiling) every time you slide the chakali in the oil,other wise it will melt in the oil)And transfer on a paper towel, when cold store in a airtight container.
                                                 ENJOY!

Indian snack/Shankar pale/ shakkar pare

Preparation time:- 20 minutes
Frying time:- 30 to 45 minutes
Serves:- Approximately 2 kilo grams.

Indian snack/Shankar pale/Shakar pare:-

                                               HAPPY DIWALI

Happy Diwali to all my visitors, followers,friends and dear ones. As Diwali is here everybody's kitchen must be filled with inviting aroma of delicious sweets and snacks.I have started my Diwali snack and sweet preparation with this sweet snack and my kids favorite snack shakkar pare or  Shankar pale.This crispy and mouth watering recipe,i have learn from my mom very easy and yummy,if you follow the proportions correctly you would never go wrong. In my family it is liked eating with tea or coffee or just plain as biscuits because of its biscuit like texture. Sorry for posting it too late as my daughter was not well, so couldn't get time to post it.Now she is all well .So here is the recipe
Ingredients:-
1)Water or Milk 1 cup
2)Unsalted Clarified butter or Pure ghee 1/2 cup + 2 table spoons
3)Sugar 1 cup (I used CSR white sugar which is not very sweet,you can adjust the quantity as per the sweetness of sugar you use)
4)Plain flour or Maida as much as fits in the water and butter/ghee mixture until a stiff dough forms.
Method:-
1)Mix water or milk,clarified butter/ghee and sugar in a vessel
2)Allow this mixture to boil for 2 to 3 minutes and until the sugar gets dissolve. and allow it to cool down to a lukewarm temperature. Add the plain flour as much as needed to form a stiff dough (Refer the pictures, approximately 4 and 1/2 cups to 5 cups plain flour is needed to form a stiff dough )
3)Allow it to stand for 15 minutes.
4)After 15 minutes role a small portion into a round medium thick chapati or circle (The chapati should not be very thick or thin,it should be medium thick)and cut out the diamond shaped pieces or square pieces with the help of a pizza cutter(Refer the pictures).
5)After cutting ,apply some butter on a knife and run the knife through this diamond or square pieces(Refer the picture).
6)Heat the oil/ghee and fry on medium heat till its cooked from inside and pink from outside.(Refer the picture.Adjust the heat between medium heat to low heat while frying so that it gets cooked from inside)
7)Remove on a paper towel.Finish the remaining dough in the same manner. And serve after cooling with tea, coffee or just as biscuits.                          
                                                              ENJOY!

Dry fruit Laddu/Dinkache Ladu

Preparation time:-20 to 30 minutes
Makes:-20 to 25 Laddus 
Dry Fruit Laddu/Dinkache Ladoo:- 

These laddus are very yummy and easy to make.Usually made for a nursing mother to strengthen bones,as these laddus contains edible gum which is one of the calcium source, gives heat to the body.So usually these are eaten in winter days. I have learnt this recipe from my mom.This is a complete nutritious dish, best for kid's morning breakfast,specially in winter days.My kids love these laddus.But i suggest to give and eat only1 to 2 laddus per day as these laddus are heavy to digest.so i dedicate this recipe to all new moms.
Ingredients:-
1)Raw cashew nuts 2 cups
2)Raw almonds 2 cups
3)Pitted dry dates 1 and 1/2 cups
4)Edible gum 1/2 cup
5)Desiccated/Shredded coconut 3/4 cup
6)Sugar 1 and 1/2 cups to 2 cups
7)Clarified butter/Shudh Ghee 2 cups
8)Green Cardamoms crushed 3 to 4 numbers
9)Nutmeg powder 1/4 teaspoon(Optional)
Method:-
1)Coarsely grind cashews,and almonds separately
2)Coarsely grind dry dates ,keep 1/4th cup aside and again grind the remaining to a fine powder,keeping aside the coarsely ground dates is totally optional. (If the dry dates are not dry enough then ,preheat the oven to 180° celsius and heat the pitted dry dates for 2 minutes and remove from the oven,let it cool,it will become dry and that makes grinding easy, be particular about the heating time otherwise it might get burned)
3)Grind sugar to a fine powder
4)Now mix together Ground almond,cashew, finely powdered dry dates and powdered sugar.
5)Dry roast desiccated/shredded coconut on low flame stirring continuously till color changes to pink,(This is an optional step,do not over roast the coconut)
6)Add this roasted coconut,crushed cardamom and nutmeg powder into the mixture in step-4,and mix everything nicely with the help of your hands or spatula
7)Heat 1/4 cup of ghee,and fry the edible gum until it puffs up.(Refer the picture)
and add them into the above nut and coconut mixture,mix well
8)Now finally, pour in the melted ghee/clarified butter,mix well.
9)Now you can eat it as a powder if you like or shape them into round ladoos by rolling the small
amount between your palm and fingers.And store them into a airtight container,outside or in the refrigerator
(If keeping in the refrigerator microwave them for 5 seconds before eating.)Yummy ladoos are ready.
                                                    ENJOY!




Sending this recipe to Diwali Bash


Also sending to Navratri 2012 Event

Kesar Pista Rabdi/Basundi..

Preparation time:-15 minutes
Cooking time:-1 and 1/2 hours 
Serves:- 2 to 4

Kesar-Pista Rabdi/Basundi:-

This is a sweet condensed milk based dish made by boiling the full cream milk on low heat for a long time until it becomes dense,some sugar, spices and nuts are added for the flavour. Best when served cold. The Hot jalebi and Cold rabdi is the best combination,and goes well with hot malpuas also.This is one of the favorite dessert in my family and friends.I have made this several times for potlucks,and different occasions,but never note down the proper measurements,so could not be able to share the proper recipe with the friends.Recently i have made this on my Daughters BirthDay and decided to note down the proper measurements so can share with u all. The most interesting thing about this i like is ,when it is cool and out of refrigerator you can add many flavours to it like you can add strawberry puree and strawberry essence to form Strawberry Rabdi, you can add mashed custard apple to form Custard apple Rabdi or Sitafal Basundi,this one is my favorite,it tastes yummy,you can add crushed oranges and little bit orange juice to form Santrani Basundi or Orange Rabdi,add mango pulp and mango pieces to form Mango Rabdi so you can have variations from the same dish, isn't it amazing?.and yeah if you pour it in kulfi mould and keep it in the freezer overnight,yummy kesar pista kulfi will be ready...:).(But remember you can add all these flavours only when it is cold ,otherwise you will end up with a curdled Rabdi...:)) So here is the recipe.

Ingredients:-
1)Full Cream milk 1 liter
2) Sweetened condensed milk 1/4 cup +2 tablespoons
3)Pistachio sliced 1 tablespoon
4) Cashew Nuts crushed  7 to 8 numbers
5) Charoli/Chironji 1 to 1/2 tablespoon
6)Cardamoms crushed with 1/2 teaspoon of sugar 3 to 4 numbers
7) Saffron strands 1/4 teaspoon or 7 to 8 strands
Method:-
1)Heat milk in a deep vessel on low flame for 30 minutes.Stir it after 15 to 20  minutes.(Or till fat saturates on top and milk starts boiling it will take 30 minutes,keep an eye so that it won't stick at the bottom)
2)After heating the milk for 30 to 40 minutes transfer it into a nonstick deep pan or kadhai.
3)Boil on high flame stirring continuously for about 3 to 4 minutes or until it starts boiling.
4)Again reduce the flame to low and let it boil for 15 to 20 minutes by stirring and scraping the edges and bottom in every 5 minutes .(This will keep the milk circulating in the pan and prevent sticking and boiling over).
5)After boiling for 15 to 20 minutes (or till the color of the milk changes to little yellowish from white or the quantity of the milk reduced to little less to half.Refer the pictures)add in crushed cashew nuts and Charoli/chironji,mix well
6)While the milk is boiling make sure that the milk is not sticking at the bottom of the pan.(If that happened transfer the milk to another fresh pan/vessel).
7)Let it boil on low flame for another 5 to 7 minutes again keep stirring every 3 minutes and scraping the edges and bottom of the pan.
8)Now after 5 to 7 minutes add in condensed milk stir well and continue boiling for 15 minutes, stirring and scraping in every 2 minutes.(At this stage you have to be very particular about stirring and scraping as the chances of milk sticking to the bottom are more)
9)After 15 minutes add pistachios by saving 1/2 teaspoon for garnishing .
10) Let boil the milk for another 15 minutes on low flame stirring and scraping in every one minute.(Boil the milk for 15 minutes or till the thick consistency,mine took 15 minutes. Refer the pictures.)
11)After 15 minutes turn off the heat,soak the saffron in 1 tablespoon of warm milk(take the normal milk don't soak in boiled milk)for 5 minutes add in crushed cardamom or cardamom powder,mix well.and after 5 minutes add in saffron soaked in warm milk.
12)when the milk is cooled down completely refrigerate it for at least 3 to 4 hours. Transfer it in a serving bowl.Garnish with pistachios and serve cold.

(Note:-You can add a little bit sugar if you want but as i am using sweetened condensed milk ,i feel as per my taste, sugar is not needed,so i didn't use the sugar)
                                             
                                                    Enjoy!     



Sending this recipe to:- http://www.jagrutidhanecha.com/2012/09/event-announcement-grand-festive-feasts.htmlutm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed:%20jagrutidhanecha/lasJ%20(Jagruti's%20Cooking%20Odyssey)

Sending to Simply food :- http://www.simplysensationalfood.com/2012/10/announcing-eventcelebrate-navratri.html



Also sending to
http://enveetukitchen.blogspot.com.au/2012/10/navrathri-2012-event-and-give-away.html




Sending This recipe to:-
http://cooksjoy.com/blog/2012/10/diwali-bash-event-announcement.html

BAKLAVA

Preparation time:- 20 minutes
baking time:- 1 hour 25 minutes
Makes:- 28 to 30 pieces
Baklava:- 

Baklava is a rich,sweet pastry featured in many cuisines in the area once controlled by the Ottoman Empire in Central Asia and in the Middle East.It is made of layers of fillo pastry sheets and coarsely ground nuts/chopped nuts such as walnuts,pistachios,almonds or cashews and flavored in a variety of ways.One of the most critical ingredient in Baklava  that gives it a rich flavor is melted butter or clarified butter.Baklava comes in a variety of shapes and sizes.The traditional diamond shape is popular ,but i like square shape.Baklava serves well with just about anything,if your are a sweet lover.One important aspect of Baklava is that it has a relatively long shelf life even exposed to open air.Initially it looked difficult to me but its not,first time when i tried making ,it turned good but i was not happy with the upper layer as it was coming off, then? One of my friend and one Greek friend of friend of mine guided me ,thanks to both of them for taking time out and giving me some respected guidance. Still the upper layer was the problem,then i experimented by pressing it gently with my fingertips and sprinkled little bit water on the top layer all over before placing it into the oven and it worked well, hurraye. So this recipe is dedicated to my friends who guided me.

Ingredients:-
1)Pampas Fillo pastry packet one number(375gm)
2)Walnuts 1 cup +1/4 cup
3)Pistachios 1 cup
4)Almonds 1 cup
5)Bread crumbs 2 tablespoons
6)Sugar 2 tablespoons
7)Cinnamon Powder/crushed 1/2 teaspoon
8)Cloves 1 teaspoon(with tip crushed,this tip you can add in to the nut mixture,and the cloves we are going to use to press on each piece before baking ,this is totally optional,i have not used it)
9)Butter 1 block(275gm)+1/4 cup
Ingredients For Syrup:-
1)Sugar 3 cups
2)Water 3 cups
3)Lemon juice 1 teaspoon
4)Cardamom powder 1/2 Teaspoon(optional)
Method:-
1)Coarsely grind walnuts,pistachios and almonds in a mixer grinder
2)Mix all the dry ingredients together that is groundnuts and bread crumbs,cinnamon powder,crushed clove tip(Optional)and sugar, mix thoroughly.
3)Preheat the oven on 160° Celsius.
4)Grease the Baking tray with melted butter(Take the pan according to the size of the Fillo sheets or you can trim the pastry sheets according to the size of baking pan/tray either way is fine.).
5)Lay 5 Fillo pastry sheets one by one on tray brushing each with the butter(Refer the pictures).and the remaining sheets keep covered with the damp cloth so it won't rip.
6)So after the 5th pastry sheet,spread the walnut mixture on the Fillo sheet.Place the sheet on the top of it and brush gently to avoid ripping of the fillo sheet.
7)Repeat this until all finished,brush butter on last sheet on top.
8)Hold the tray tight and with a little pressure cut it in triangles,squares or diamond shape with a sharp knife.
Leave the butter in the cutting edges.(Refer the picture).
9)Press the top layer gently with the help of your fingertip and sprinkle 1 tablespoon of water all over on the top layer,before placing it into the oven.
10)Press in the clove on each triangle or square.(Optional)
11)And bake on 160° Celsius, on middle rack on fan- forced function or static function, i baked for 1 hour and 25 minutes OR till it becomes brown in color, keep an eye while baking it.(Adjust the cooking timings according to your Oven power)
12)While the Baklava is baking in the oven,mix the sugar and water in a vessel and boil it to form the sugar syrup for 15 to 20 minutes or the desired consistency reached,add in the lemon juice give it a stir and turn off the heat.(Refer the pictures for the consistency of sugar syrup).
13)As soon as the baklava is ready baked, remove it from the oven,and immediately pour the cooled sugar syrup onto hot baklava all over. Leave it uncovered for minimum 4 to 5 hours for a rich taste.
14)Garnish with Pistachio powder.      
                                                               ENJOY!

Gulabjamun

GULAB JAMUN:-

Gulab jamun is all time fevourite in my family. And i guess very rare people dosent like GulabJamun.
As here in Australia, as per i know....khoya/ mawa for making GulabJamun is not available. And i have tried making khoya at home and tried making GulabJamun with it but no success..so found this perfect recipe.for making GulabJamun using milk powder. So lets start with the ingredients.

Ingredients for Gulab jamun dough:-                   

1) Milk powder 2 cups

2) All purpose flour/ Maida 2 tea spoons

3) Suji/Rawa 2 teaspoons (Soaked in 1 tablespoon of water for 10 minutes)

4) Unsalted Butter 2 teaspoons (Butter should be at room temperature)

5) Baking Powder 1/2 teaspoons

6) Milk approximately 1/4 cup ( Add the milk slowly at a time very little milk is needed)

7) Oil to fry

Ingredients for Sugar Syrup:-

1) Sugar 1 cup

2) Water enough to cover the sugar / approximately 2 cups

3) Few saffron strands

4) cardamom powder 1/4 tea spoon/ can use rose water (or both)

Method For sugar syrup:-

1) Take a deep pan, add sugar ,add water

2) Bring it to boil , add saffron ,stir in between , continue boiling till it becomes a bit liter than one thread consistancy 

Method for GulabJamun :-

1) Mix milk powder, all purpose flour and baking powder

2) Add butter, mix well by rubbing the flour between your palms

3) Drain all the water from soaked suji,and add it to the mixture, mix nicely by rubbing the mixture in ur palms, so that the suji gets mixed well, all over the mixture.

4) Add the milk slowly to make the soft dough.. Gently mix the mixture, do not apply pressure while mixing it. (Refer the picture for dough consistency, when you break one piece from the dough it should be granular inside, refer the photo for exact idea)
5) After the dough is ready, cover it with a damp tissue papaer or cotton cloth for  10 minutes.
6) After 10 minute divide it in small portions or as per the size of GulabJamun you want.( Refer the picture)
7) Roll these portions by pressing in between the palms in to a round dumplings orr u can roll them in oval shape.Many people like oval shape GulabJamuns.whatever you prefer.
8) Heat Oil in a kadhai or deep pan .The oil should be hot to a correct temperature, that can be checked by placing a small piece of dough in to oil,and it should stay at the bottom for 1 second and it should slowly float up, that is the right temperature for frying the GulabJamun.( to evenly fry the GulabJamun rotate the oil in kadhai with a wooden spoon very slowly, and then place the GulabJamun dumplings and keep stiring the oil till the Gulanbjamun becomes redish brown..(Be extremely carefull during stirring the oil as it can spill out from the kadhai onto the gas burner and fumes wil come out )
9) After the gulab jamun are ready place them on kitchen papers for 1to 2 seconds,by the time boil the sugar syrup,after one boil turn off the heat  and then add the Gulab jamuns slowly in the Sugar Syrup. ( The GulabJamun and the Sugar syrup both must be hot..)  Repeat the same for all batches. Remove the first added gulab jamuns in a bowl before boiling the sugar syrup again.
10) we can add more fun in this for kids, by adding the color in the dough.(Have a look at the pictures bellow) I have tried some by adding the pink color in the dough. My son and his friends just loved it,they were sooo amazed,surprised and excited too by seeing the colored  GulabJamuns inside, which made me smile and very very happy. U can serve these colored GulabJamuns as KalaJamun too.

Ingredients for Gulab Jamuns and Sugar Syrup

All ingredients for Gulab Jamuns mix together
and add butter

Pour in the milk little little at one time
and prepare the soft dough

The dough is ready

After the dough is ready check for its right consistency
 by breaking the piece from it which should look like khoya/mawa

Cover the dough for 5 minutes

Divide the dough in to small portions

Rool them in to round dumplings

Check the correct tempreature of oil for frying GulabJamun

Add the GulabJamuns slowly in the Oil

Stir the Oil round and round with a wooden spoon
very gently without spilling the oil out of the Pan

Add the GulabJamuns in to the hot Sugar Syrup when they are golden brown in color

Yummy Gulab Jamuns Ready

These are the colored Gulab Jamuns i tried

Malpua (Pancakes in sugar syrup)

Malpua:-

 Malpua is popular in West Bengal, Bihar and Maharashtra where it is served during festivals along with other sweets. The batter for malpua in some areas is prepared by crushing ripe bananas or (in Bangladesh) coconut, Other variations of malpua use pineapples or mangoes instead of bananas. Bengali and Odiya malpua is traditionally made only with thickened milk.  Malpua is a popular sweet to make on the religious occasion of Holi.  Malpua is served by a jagannath tempel in ahmedabad daily as prasaad. I started making this because my Hubby likes it very much and my son also likes it very much. And i'm sure most of the sweet eaters likes this. So here is the recipe.

Ingredients:-
1 cup sooji(semolina)
1/2 cup plain flour(maida)
1/2 tin condensed milk(from 395gm tin)
3 table spoons finely crumbled paneer
1 pinch salt
1 and 1/2 pinch baking powder
1 & 1/3 cup water
For Garnishing:-
1 table spoon pistachio flakes
1/2 tea spoon cardamom powder
Ghee for frying
For Sugar Syrup:-
1 and 1/2 cup sugar
1 cup water
1 to 2 pinches cardamom powder

Method:-
1) In a vessel take water, add sugar in to it, let it boil for 5 to 8 minutes, by
stirring inbetween,till the thread consistency  (see the photo for reference)
 and add pinch of cardamom powder
2) In a bowl take sooji,add 1cup water and mix well,keep aside for 20 minutes
3) In to sooji batter add maida, pinch of salt, paneer, condensed milk and beat up to
a pouring consistency batter..(not very thin, see photo for reference),add pinch of baking powder at last
and mix well.,take care that no lumps should form..it should be a very smooth batter.
4) Heat ghee in a kadhai on medium flame, when it is hot pour the batter with the help of a spoon in to
it in a round shape,fry till golden in color , remove on a paper napkin
5) And finally add malpuas in the syrup keep it for 1/2 to 1 minute and remove it  into a serving dish
garnish with pistachio flakes,cardamom powder and saffron strands.Best when served hot.

Batter

Sugar Syrup:-

     

Check for one thread consistency

How to pour the batter in Ghee:-

Adding the fried Malpua puris in Sugar syrup and the Malpuas are ready:-

Malpuas Ready

sending this to
http://cooksjoy.com/blog/2012/10/diwali-bash-event-announcement.html

vermicelli kheer (Payasam)

Vermicelli Kheer

Vermicelli Kheer is all time favorite in my family. My mother makes vermicelli kheer very often for prasadam.Specially on the Hindu holy day of Chaitra shukla Pratipada known as Gudi Padwa(the beginning of the New year according to the Lunisolar Hindu Calender.  As it is all time favorite for most of the sweet eaters here is the recipe.
(For 1 Bowl)  
Ingredients :-
1 hand full of roasted vermicelli Strands (see thephoto bellow for referance)
1tbsp Ghee
3/4 cup of water
1 & 1/2 cup of full cream warm milk
4 tbsp sweetened condensed milk
1 tbsp sugar( can change the sugar quantity as per taste as we r using sweetened condensed milk)  
4 pinches Cardamom powder and few saffron strands
3 to 4 cashews,almonds, charoli(optional)
Method:- Following are the steps
step -1  In a vessel add ghee , let it become warm add pieces of 2-3 cashews and almonds roast for 1/2 minutes.
step - 2  add vermicelli strands roast for 1/2mints and add water..let it boil for 3 mints
step - 3  add 1 cup of warm milk(u can make the milk warm for 30 secs in microwave) let it boil for 5 minutes
step - 4  add condensed milk by stirring slowly till it get dissolved in the milk. Let it boil till it come to the semi thick consistency, during this boiling stir in between so it wont get stick to the bottom (see the photos for consistency.,do not make it too thick as it will become  thicker when it cools down) Crush the saffron strands in and let it boil once and turn off the flame.
step - 5 add cardamom powder stir it and pore in a bowl  and decorate with cashew pices, charoli(optional) and almond flakes.( we can make the cardamom powder by rolling the cardamom seeds and a few pinch sugar with a roller..it gives fresh fragrance)