Jell - O ...... with a twist !!

Hello Everyone .... it's almost mid week, just 2 days away from weekend ! Isn't that good news...
I am pretty excited about this weekend. I have a pool party coming up exclusively with some lovely ladies ..... oops girls ! They like being called girls better ;-). Well I agree ...... we are only as old as we think to be !!
Arshi my friend's daughter just turned one,so there is another reason to celebrate. Yah you guessed it right..... there is a birthday party on the cards too. Nothing can get better than eating good food (especially when you don't cook it) and spending time with friends.

Well that is the reason why I already started thinking about the weekend on a Wednesday !!
So if you still haven't planned your weekend ...... go ahead right away. Summer is ticking away my friends.
And summer reminded me of this cool delight that has been sitting in my draft for a while .... It is so easy that I ignored posting it. But trust me it is a sure shot way to awww your guests with zero effort. Or simply keep some in your fridge for those moments of craving !!
Preparation Time 5 minutes
Freezing time - 1 hour
Serves - 5
Ingredients
Sugar Free Jell - O - 2 packets
Vanilla Ice cream - few scoops
Chopped Fresh Fruits to Garnish
Method of Preparation
1 I used two packets of sugar free Jell - O (strawberry flavor) for this preparation.You may use your choice of brand and your favorite flavor.
I followed the instruction on the cover to set the Jelly.
Boil 2 cups water and stir in the Jell - O mix (two packets) till completely dissolved . Stir in one cup cold water. (I used 1 cup cold water instead of 2 for more consistency and sweetness. You may also use Seltzer/Soda water instead of water.
2 Pour the mixture into small glasses.
3 Put it into your refrigerator and let it freeze.
Serving Tips
Remove from fridge just before serving. Add few scoops of vanilla ice-cream on top. Garnish with your choice of fruits.

Nankhatai

The Indian Cookie ......

The sweet aroma of cardamoms and sugar filled the air. I was baking cookies for the first time .... and I could not hold my excitement. I opened the oven and screamed ... 'J come over .... just check out my cookies'. While they were still hot and soft, I handed over one of them to him and looked at his face with anticipation.He finished this one and wanted one more .... I got my answer !!

I let the cookies cool down and stored them in a cookie jar. I noticed J scurrying to the kitchen more often ... only till I discovered a clean cookie jar sitting on the self.He had finished it all in a day !

Preparation Time - 30 minutes

Ingredients

All purpose flour - 1 cup

Semolina - 2/3 cup

Gram Flour - 1 cup

Cardamom - 5

Powdered Sugar - 2/3 cup

Salt - 1 pinch

Butter - 1 stick

Baking Powder - 1/2 tsp

Milk for kneading

Method of Preparation

1 Combine semolina, gram flour, all purpose flour and baking powder. Mix well and keep aside.

2 Keep butter in room temperature to make it soft.

3 Crush the cardamom and mix with the flour mixture(semolina + All purpose flour + Gram Flour)

4 Once the butter is soft add powdered sugar to it and mix well to form a thick butter sugar mixture.

5 Slowly add the Flour mixture to this butter and sugar. Knead it to make a dough (like atta). If required add little milk to make a soft dough.

6 Pinch out small balls from the dough and flatten it a bit. You can stick a dry fruit to it if you wish.

7 Grease a cookie sheet with some oil or butter. Place the cookies on it. Make sure there is at least an inch gap between the cookies as they expand while baking.

8 Pre heat oven to 350 degrees F . Place the cookie sheet and bake for 15 minutes.

9 Remove cookie sheet and allow it to cool down. Remove cookies from the sheet and store in an air tight container.

Notes

Make sure the dough is soft.

Do not heat the butter to make it soft. Allow it to be in room temperature and mix sugar only when it softens.

Ensure that there is space between the cookie while baking else they will stick to each other.

Do not flatten the cookie much. They expand and flatten by self when baking.

Variation

You may try using oil instead of butter.

Use sugar as per taste.(less or more).

Other Names

Cookies, Gram Flour - Besan,All purpose flour - Maida, Semolina - Suji,Cardamom - Elaichi

Fried Bananas

I hope all of you had a wonderful weekend. This weekend I was in the process of de cluttering my kitchen. I got inspired by one fellow blogger(http://onehotstove.blogspot.com/2010/05/bb4-whats-lurking-in-kitchen.html) ........ As I scanned through my pantry, I saw some All Purpose Flour and fennel seeds at the end of their self life. A couple of Bananas waited on the self to be trashed away if not consumed the very day. I was not very motivated to eat those bananas as is. I was unsure what to do with these ingredients combined together. Suddenly I remembered eating fried bananas with ice cream in a Thai Restaurant. Voila ....... I used my instincts and prepared this dish. I not only saved myself from the guilt of wasting food but also came up with a great recipe.

Preparation Time - 15 minutes

Serves - 2

Ingredients

Ripe Bananas - 2

All Purpose Flour - 1/2 cup

Sugar - 1.5 tsp

Fennel Seeds - 1 tsp

Cardamom - 2

Milk - 2 tbsp

Salt - one pinch

Baking Powder - one pinch

Oil for frying

Method of Preparation

1 Cut the bananas into thick slices

2 Mix All Purpose Flour and Milk to make a thick batter

3 Crush Cardamoms and fennel seeds and add to the batter.

4 Mix sugar,salt and baking powder.

5 Heat oil in a deep pan/ kadhai to medium-high.

6 Dip the banana slices into this batter to form a coating and deep fry.

7 Fry till golden brown on both sides.

8 Remove on a paper towel to soak any excess oil.

Serving Tips

It tastes great as a snack. Combine with Vanilla ice cream when hot and serve as a dessert.It is a great way to camouflage bananas and feed kids :)

Notes

Heat the oil well before frying. This helps soak less oil when frying. Add milk slowly when making the batter to avoid making the batter watery.In case you are allergic to milk, use water instead.

Variation

Try using brown sugar instead.Use Sesame seed instead of fennel seeds and coconut milk instead of milk

Other Names

All Purpose Flour - Maida, Fennel Seeds - Saunf,Cardamon - Green Elaichi.

Kheeri - Rice Porridge

Odiyas' are known for their sweet tooth. No festival, marriage or celebration in Odisha is complete without Kheeri.No matter how elaborate the menu is, it has to end with a bowl of hot Kheeri. My mother and grandmother used to prepare this dessert often ......... I guess that was an easy and smart way to feed cranky kids like me with some good amount of milk and rice !!

As I start writing this recipe, I can feel the sweet aroma of this dessert coming from my mom's kitchen.

Preparation Time - 60 minutes

Serves - 6

Ingredients

Basmati Rice - 1/3 Cup

Whole Milk - 2 litres

Cardamon - 4

Sugar - 1 cup

Salt - 1 pinch

Ghee - 1 tbsp

Bay Leaves - 2

Dry fruits for garnishing

Method of Preparation

1 Wash rice and spread on a paper towel to dry

2 In a thick bottom vessel (I use a pressure cooker),put ghee and Bay leaves. Add rice and stir for a minute.

3 Add all the milk to the rice.

4 Crush the cardamons and add to the milk. Also add sugar now.

5 Keep the vessel on medium heat. You will have to stir the milk at short regular intervals. Else the milk may stick to the bottom or get burnt.

6 When the rice softens and the milk becomes thick in consistency, switch off your stove.

7. Add a pinch of salt and stir well.

Garnish with dry fruits and serve.

Serving Tips

Serve chilled.

Notes

Kheer tastes best when cooked over medium heat. It allows all the flavor and aroma to infuse within each other. Make sure you stir the milk often, else the rice may stick to the bottom of the vessel and get burnt.

Variation

You may add condensed milk once the rice is thoroughly cooked. It increases the consistency and makes it more rich.

Instead of Cardamons you may use keshar as well for flavor. Rose water may also be used.

Other Names

Ghee - Clarified Butter,Bay Leaves - Tej Patta

Rasgulla

It is customary to many Hindu traditions to have something sweet on auspicious occasions and festivals. So, I thought of beginning my blog with a very popular sweet from India - the Rasgulla, which has it's origin from the holy land of Puri Jagannath in Odisha. The dish has been the traditional offering to the Hindu goddess, Lakshmi, the consort of the Puri temple's main deity,Lord Jagannath.

Rasgulla are fresh cottage cheese (paneer) dumplings in sugar syrup.

Preparation Time - 30 minutes

Ingredients

(Makes approx 15 mid size rasgullas)

Milk 1/2 Gallon or 2 litres approximately

Sugar - 1 Cup
Cardamom -3

Vinegar - 2 tbsp

Method of Preparation

1 Bring milk to a boil and pour 2 tbsp of vinegar to it. Wait till the milk curdles and becomes cheese.

2 Shift this cottage cheese into a mushlin cloth or a soft cotton cloth and drain the water.

3 Keep the cheese in the muslin cloth under cold running water. This will remove the smell of vinegar from the cheese and also cool it down. Now sqeeze out all water from the cheese.

4 Remove this cheese to a dish and kned the cheese for 10 to 15 mnts to make it a soft dough.

5 Now divide the cheese into equal halfs and roll them between your palms to make small smooth balls. Once you prepare all the balls of cheese keep it aside.

6 Now take three cups of water in a pressure cooker and mix one cup of sugar in it. Crush the cardamom and put it into the sugar syrup. Stir it so that it dissolves and bring the solution to a medium boil. Now slowly put the cheese balls into the sugar syrup and close the pressure cooker with the lid. Keep it on medium heat for 5 -7 minutes. Remove from flame and open the cooker when cooled. (Ensure that you remove it before the first whistle comes).

Remove it to a dish and serve cool.

Notes

Make sure that all the water is properly drained, else it may break the Rasgulla. Also make sure you do not over boil them in the sugar syrup or they may turn out hard.

Variations

For flavour of the sugar syrup youmay use saffron or rose water.

Other Names

Cottage Cheese, Chhena , Home made Paneer