Gajar Halwa

Ingredients:
2 lbs of Baby Carrots
1/2 cup of Milk or Water
1 can of Sweetened Condensed milk
1/2 cup Milk powder
2 Tbsp of Butter or Clarified butter
1/4 Cashew nuts or sliced Almonds
1/4 Tsp of Cardamom powder

Directions:
Add the carrots, butter and milk to a pressure cooker. Mix well and pressure cook on medium heat for 2 whistles about 7-8 mins. Turn off flame and let the steam release on its own.
Once the pressure cooker is ready to be opened, turn on flame again and keep it on medium and mash the carrot with a potato masher. Bring the carrot milk mixture to get dry and continue to cook for 10-15 mins until the mixture thickens and becomes a bit grainy.
Add the condensed milk and cardamom powder and mix well. Let it cook for another 5-7 mins. Adjust the amount of condensed milk to suit your sweetness levels.
Add milk powder, this helps to give a mawa like texture to the halwa.
Next add the roasted cashew nuts or choice of your nuts. Mix well.

Recipe Courtesy Bajias Cooking

Rasogolla in a Pressure Cooker

Ingredients:

2 liters full cream milk

2-3 tbs lemon juice/Vinegar

2 tbs semolina

4 cups water

2 cups and 4 tbs sugar

½ tsp freshly ground cardamom

Preparation:

Bring the milk to a boil over a medium flame. Stir occasionally to ensure the milk does not burn. When the milk begins to boil, add the lemon juice or vinegar and mix well.

When the curds begin to separate from the milk, turn off the fire and leave the milk aside for 10 minutes to let the curdling process finish.

Strain the cheese and wash it well under running water - to remove all the lemon juice from it.

Now put the cheese in a cheese cloth and hang for 1 hour to completely drain all the liquid from it. Or squeeze properly if you don't want to wait that long.

Put the drained cheese into a mixing bowl and begin to knead it. Continue till all the lumps are removed and the cheese is absolutely smooth. When this happens the cheese will begin to release its fat and your hands will feel greasy. The success of your Rasogolla making effort depends on how smooth you knead the cheese, so give it your best shot! I usually set the timer to 20 minutes and start kneading, first 10 knead the cheese then add the semolina and sugar to the cheese and knead for another 10 minutes.

Mix the sugar, water and cardamom powder in a pressure cooker and bring the mixture to a boil on high heat. Make sure the cooker is large enough to accommodate the finished Rasogollas, as they will expand to double their size while cooking in the syrup!

While the sugar syrup boils, divide the dough into small marble-sized balls and roll between your palms till smooth.

Gently add the balls to the sugar syrup and pressure cook on high heat for 2 whistles. Then lower the heat to medium low and let the cooker seat for 20 minutes.After 20 minutes switch off the flame and allow the Rasogollas to cool completely before serving them. They will have expanded to almost double their original size and will be delicate when hot. Chill for few hours before serving the Rasogollas.

Fruit and Nut Chocolate

Ingredients:

12 ounces dark chocolate/milk chocolate
1/4 cup sliced almonds, pistachios, lightly toasted
1/4 cup raisins, dried cranberries
1/4 cup dried apricot

Preparation:
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Place two thirds of the chocolate in a glass bowl. Microwave in 30-second spurts until the chocolate is just about melted. Add the remaining chocolate and repeat until the last pieces are nearly melted. Stir with a silicone spatula to finish the melting process. (If you don’t have a microwave, you can melt the chocolate in the top of a double boiler.)

Now add the fruits and nuts mix it properly.

Pour the chocolate onto the parchment paper, and spread with the spatula to create a rectangle of about 12 x 8 inches. Refrigerate until hard, then break into pieces and store in an airtight container.

Chocolate Chip Cake

Ingredients:

1 box yellow cake mix
1 (4oz) box instant vanilla pudding
4 eggs
1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 cup water
1 cup mini semi-sweet chocolate chips
confectioners’ sugar, for dusting

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease and flour a bundt pan.
2. In large bowl, combine cake mix, vanilla pudding, eggs, sour cream, oil and water. Mix well, then stir in chocolate chips. Pour batter into prepared pan and bake for 1 hour or until a toothpick, when inserted into cake, comes out clean.
3. Allow to cool 15 minutes in the pan, then loosen sides and invert onto a plate. Optional: After cake has cooled completely, dust lightly with confectioners’ sugar.

Raisin Cake

Ingredients:
1 cup of butter, softened
1 cup of sugar
1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
3 eggs
1 1/2 cup of plain flour
1 teaspoon of baking powder
1/2 cup of milk 
1 cup of golden raisins
Butter, to serve

Preparation:
Preheat oven to 350 F. 
Brush a 9 x 19 cm loaf pan with melted butter to lightly grease. Line the base with non-stick baking paper. 
Use an electric hand mixer to beat the butter, sugar and vanilla in a medium bowl until pale and creamy. 
Add the eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition until the mixture is combined. 
Sift together the flour and baking powder. Fold half the flour mixture into the butter mixture and stir in half the milk. 
Repeat with remaining flour mixture and milk until well combined. Use a metal spoon to fold in the raisins. Spoon cake mixture into prepared pan and smooth the surface. 
Bake in preheated oven for 1 hours or until a skewer inserted into the center comes out clean. 
Remove from oven. Set aside in the pan for 5 minutes before turning onto a wire rack to cool. Cut into slices and serve warm or at room temperature with butter, if desired.

Hummingbird Cake

Ingredients 

3 cups flour (gluten free or regular)

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg powder

1/4 teaspoon all spice powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup granulated sugar

1 cup packed light brown sugar

3 large eggs, room temperature

1 cup vegetable oil

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 cup fresh pineapple, crushed 

1 cup Shredded carrot

3 over ripe bananas 

For Cream Cheese Frosting:

1 cup chopped pecans/walnuts
Parchment paper to line bottom of the cake pan

1 ½ sticks unsalted butter, chilled

3-8 ounce packages of cream cheese, chilled

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 ½ cups powdered sugar, sifted

Preparation:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Butter and flour 3-9 inch round baking pans. Trace the bottom of the pan (for all three pans) onto parchment paper, cut out circle and place in the bottom of each pan.

In a sifter over a large mixing bowl combine the flour, cinnamon powder, nutmeg powder, all spice powder, baking soda and salt. Sift into the bowl. Set aside.

In a second large mixing bowl combine the granulated and brown sugar; stir to combine. Add the eggs and stir briskly by hand or an electric hand mixture to combine all ingredients into a smooth mixture.

Whisk the oil and vanilla into the sugar/egg mixture until combined and smooth.

Add the flour mixture all at once and hand stir (do not beat) to combine the mixture fully.

To crush the pineapple: Place 1 cup of finely diced fresh pineapple in a medium mixing bowl and using a potato masher, crush the pineapple. Add the fruit and juice to the batter. Also add the mashed banana, carrot and the pecans. Stir just until combined; do not over stir.

Divide the batter evenly between the three pans. Tap the pans on the counter top to release any air bubbles and place in the 350 degree oven for 25-30 minutes until cake bounces back to the touch and a toothpick inserted in the cake comes out clean.

Allow to cool in pans on racks for 5 minutes then turn out onto cooling racks to fully cool before frosting. Be sure to peel off and discard the parchment paper.

*If you don't have over ripe banana then place bananas on a cookie sheet with peels left on. Bake in the oven for 12 minutes until the skins are black (the bananas may leak which is fine). Remove and let cool until they can be handled. Peel bananas, place in a small mixing bowl and mash. 

Instructions for Cream Cheese Frosting:

Cut sticks of chilled butter into 1 inch pieces and place in the bowl of a standing mixer (can use a hand held mixer if needed). Beat on low speed, gradually increasing speed to medium until the butter is still cool but has softened together (about 3 minutes).
Cut the cream cheese into 1 inch strips and add to the butter. Mix at medium speed until fully combined, and smooth.
Add the vanilla and slowly add the sifted powdered sugar. Beat until well blended, increasing speed to beat on medium-high for 3 minutes or until the frosting becomes light and fluffy.
Fold in pecans by hand.

Instructions for Cake Assembly:

Place the first layer of cake upside down (the bottom of the cake will be frosted) on the serving plate. Cover with 2/3 cup of frosting. This will be a thin covering.

Place the second layer of cake right side up (flat cake bottom onto the frosting) and frost the top of this layer with 2/3 cup again (note: I found I needed just a bit more to cover this layer).

Place the last cake layer with cake right side up and use the remaining frosting to cover top of cake and the sides.

Allow cake to stand at room temperature 30 minutes before serving and store any uneaten cake in the refrigerator. Cake best when made the day prior to serving!

Recipe courtesy http://boulderlocavore.com 

Cherry, Pistachio, and White Chocolate Biscotti

Ingredients:

3 cups all purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 cups brown sugar
3 eggs
2 tablespoons olive oil
Juice of 1/2 orange
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup raw pistachios or sliced almonds or half and half
1 cup dried cherries or cranberries
(optional) 3/4 cup of white chocolate chunks

Preparation:

Preheat oven the 350. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper or a silpat.  In a large bowl, whisk together the flours, baking powder, and salt. In a medium bowl, whisk together the sugar, eggs, oil, and orange juice. Stir the sugar mixture into the flour mixture, add the nuts and dried cherries; mix with your hands.

Shape the the dough to 3-4″ wide loafs, about 8-10″ long  and place on the cookie sheets. Bake for 25 minutes, remove and cool for 2-3 minutes before cutting the loaves into 1/2″ wide slices. Return to the baking sheets and pop back in the oven for 5 minutes to crisp. Enjoy with tea and a good book.

Eggless Banana Chocolate Chip Muffin

Ingredients:
11/2 cups all-purpose flour
3 large bananas, mashed
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup whole milk
1/4 cup chocolate chip 
3/4 cup white sugar
1/3 cup butter, melted

Preparation:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Coat muffin pans with non-stick spray, or use paper liners. Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, chocolate chips and salt; set aside.

Combine bananas, sugar, milk, and melted butter in a large bowl. Fold in flour mixture, and mix until smooth. Scoop into muffin pans.

Bake in preheated oven. Bake mini muffins for 10 to 15 minutes, and large muffins for 25 to 30 minutes. Muffins will spring back when lightly tapped.

This will yield 12 large muffins.

Tip: If you are using egg then substitute 1 egg to 1/4 cup milk.

Besan Ladoo

Ingredients:
2 Cups Gram flour or besan
1 Cup Powdered sugar
3-4 Tbs Clarified butter or ghee
Handful of coarsely ground Almond
Handful of Watermelon seeds
Pinch of Cardamom powder

Preparation:
In a non stick pan heat clarified butter then add gram flour/besan to it.
Add cardamom powder to it.
Roast besan well in low flame with constant stirring until it turns golden in color. It will take 7-10 minutes.
Keep the besan aside and let it cool down to warm temperature.
While the besan is warm add coarsely ground almond, watermelon seeds and powdered sugar.
To make the ladoos, take about 2 tablespoons of warm basen mixture into your palm. Gently press the mixture between your palms to form a smooth, round ball. The ladoos are usually about the size of a golf ball, but you can adjust the size as you prefer.
Garnish with pistachio or almond .
Leave the ladoos on a plate to cool to room temperature before putting into a covered container.

Recipe courtesy Bajia's cooking.

Manda pitha with sweet moong dal stuffing

Ingredients:

1 cup rice flour

1 1/2 cup water

1 cup moong dal soaked in water for 4-5 hrs

Handful of coconut cut into bite size pieces

1/2 cup sugar or to taste

1 tsp ginger cut into slice

Pinch of salt

Pinch of cardamom powder

Preparation:

For the filling, strain the moong dal properly. Now put the dal in a blender and pulse it 4-5 times. If water needed add spoon by spoon to the blender. Careful do not add too much water. make to a very coarse paste.

Then, put the moong dal in a cheese cloth and steam it for 20 minutes.

After it get steamed properly, place the dal in a plate add sugar, ginger, coconut pieces and cardamom powder. Knead the mixture very well so that the sugar get dissolve in the dal. And make small balls.

In another non-stick pan boil the water. Add little salt in the boiling water and stir. Reduce the flame, add the rice flour while stirring continuously.

Whisk well so that no lumps remain. Cover with a lid and keep aside for about 5 minutes.Grease your palms with a little oil and knead the dough while it is still warm; if the dough cools it will get lumpy.Make even size small balls of the dough using oil. with the palm make a big hole out of the ball.Or you can roll the ball out to around 3 inch diameter.

Add one ball of the filling into the dough.Bring all the ends together and press to seal. Prepare a steamer by adding water, a teaspoon of oil and heat it till the water comes to a boil. While the water is simmering, place the pithas on a greased steamer plate and steam for 6 to7 minutes.Once the pithas are cooked they will turn translucent.

Individual Cheese Cake

Ingredients:
Crust:

1 Cup graham wafer crumbs or crushed digestive biscuits (I used sunfest biscuit crumbs)

1 Tbs granulated white sugar

2 Tbs butter melted

Filling:

2 - 8 ounce packages of cream cheese, room temperature

2/3 cup granulated white sugar

2 large eggs, room temperature

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 teaspoon grated lemon zest

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 300 degrees F and place oven rack in the center of the oven.

Line 12 muffin cups with paper liners. 

For Crust:

In a small bowl combine the crumbs, sugar, and melted butter. Press a heaping tablespoon of crumbs onto the bottoms of the 12 muffin cups. Cover and refrigerate while you make the filling.

For Filling: 

In the bowl of your electric mixer beat the cream cheese on low speed until creamy and smooth. 

Add the sugar and beat until combined.

Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating until incorporated. 

Add the vanilla extract, lemon zest and beat until incorporated.

Remove the crusts from the refrigerator and evenly divide the filling among the 12 muffin cups. 

Bake for about 18 - 22 minutes or until firm but the centers of the cheesecakes still wobble a little. Remove from oven and place on a wire rack. 
Let cool and then cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate.

Double Chocolate Chip Cookies

Ingredients:

2 cups All purpose flour

1 cup White sugar

1 cup Brown sugar

1 tsp Baking soda

2 Eggs at room temperature

1 cup Butter at room temperature

2/3 cup Coco powder

1 cup Semi sweet chocolate chip cookie

1/2 cup Walnut chopped (optional)

1 tsp Vanilla essence 

1/4 tsp Salt

Preparation:

Preheat the oven to 375° F 

In a bowl mix all purpose flour, coco powder, baking soda and salt.

In an another bowl cream butter and white sugar with a hand mixer, add brown sugar beat the mixture until gets creamy.

Add vanilla essence and mix again, then add egg one at a time and mix.

Now add the dry ingredients in three parts and mix.

At last add chocolate chips and walnut and mix it properly.Drop by rounded tablespoon onto ungreased baking sheets.

Bake for 8 to 10 minutes or until cookies are puffed. Cool on baking sheets for 2 minutes; remove to wire 

racks to cool completely. 

Cake Pop

Ingredients:

Vanilla Cake(baked and cooled)

2-3 Tbs Vanilla Butter cream Frosting

Lollipop Sticks (I use the skewers cut into half)

1 Cup of semisweet chocolate chips

Large Block of Styrofoam or Florist Foam (for drying cake pops)

Candy sprinkles

Preparation:

Bake the Vanilla Cake and let it cool completely. Then, in a large bowl,crumble the cake into small crumbs by hand.

Using your hands stir in just enough frosting to hold the mixture together. If you add too much frosting the cake balls will be soggy. Too little frosting and the cake balls will fall apart, especially when dipped. So add the frosting gradually and really work into into the cake crumbs, as the amount you need totally depends on the type and texture of your cake.

Roll the mixture into golf ball sized rounds. Place the cake balls on a parchment or wax paper lined baking sheet. After forming the cake balls, cover the baking sheet with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator until they are firm, but not frozen. 

Once the cake balls are cold, it is time to melt the chocolate chips. 

You can do this in the microwave or in a heatproof bowl placed over a saucepan of simmering water. 

If using the microwave, place the candy melts in a microwaveable bowl and heat on medium for about 1 minute. Stir and continue to heat on medium, at 20 second intervals, until the candy melts evenly. If the melted candy is too thick, gradually stir in about 1/2 - 1 tablespoon flavorless oil. You want it to flow easily from your spoon. (This prevents the candy coating from being too thick, which makes the cake balls hard to dip and may cause cracking.) At this point you may want to transfer the melted candy coating to a small deep bowl so when dipping the cake pops they can be completely submerged.

Remove the cake balls from the refrigerator and one by one, dip the sticks about 1/2 inch into the melted chocolate and then insert about halfway into the cold cake balls (the melted candy acts like a glue). Don't insert the sticks all the way through the cake balls or they will crack.Before you starting dipping the cake balls have a large thick block of Styrofoam (or florist's foam) on hand to stick the cake pops in for drying.

Then, one by one, dip the cake pops straight down into the melted candy coating.Dip, don't roll, the pops completely into the coating. Rolling can cause crumbs to get into the coating. Then lift the cake pops out of the coating and let the excess coating run off, turning the pop so you get an even coating of candy. You can also very very gently tap the stick on the side of the bowl to help with this. At this point you can sprinkle the still wet candy coating with candy sprinkles, sanding or sparkling sugar, edible pearls or glitter, chocolate jimmies, finely chopped nuts, crushed cookies, dried coconut, or even crushed candy. 

The cake pops need to dry upright, so gently insert the end of the stick into the Styrofoam and let dry or refrigerate it to speed up the freezing process. Once dry, the cake pops can be covered and stored, at room temperature or in the refrigerator, for about 3-4 days.

Vanilla Cake

Ingredients:

Salt – 1/8th tsp

Baking Soda – 1/2 tsp

Baking Powder – 1 tsp

Unsalted Butter – 4 tbsp, softened

Sugar – 1 cup

Large Eggs – 2

Warm Milk – 1/2 cup

Vanilla Essence – 2 tsp

All purpose Flour- 1.25 cup

Preparation:

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees F/180 degrees C.

Butter the sides and bottom of the baking tray and lightly dust with Flour and remove excess.
Mix and Set aside.
In a mixing bowl, cream the Butter and Sugar together on low speed with a hand blender.
Once creamed, break in the Eggs into the batter and incorporate well.
Add in the Vanilla Essence and mix.
Add in the sifted dry ingredients and the Milk alternately in the batter.
Beat till it is all done and incorporated well into a smooth batter.
Once done, take out of the oven and allow to stand for 10 minutes, loosen the edges and then flip onto a cooling rack.
Serve warm or allow to cool and store for a later time.
In a bowl, sift all the dry ingredients – Flour, Baking Soda, Baking Powder and Salt.
In the loaf pan, pour the batter.
Bake for 40-45 min. Insert a toothpick to make sure it is baked.

Molten lava cake

My friend’s 2 year old son had just learned the Happy Birthday song. He always burst into the song when he sees cake. My husband’s (he calls him kaku) birthday was coming up.  He wanted to sing the happy birthday song in presence of a cake for his kaku. The opportune day came and I started to look into my refrigerator on what should I make for desert.  I also wanted to clean up my refrigerator as I would be leaving for an extended time on vacation.  I wanted to make falooda- but my husband hates it when I ask him to go to the market for one product.  I opened my refrigerator and was able to find among other things- half a gallon of milk, 2 eggs.  I thought of making rice kheer, but it would take a long time with continuous stirring.  Just then I recollected having seen a lava cake recipe in www.Showmethecurry.com. 

Ingredients:

4 oz Semi-Sweet Chocolate chips
1 Tbs Butter (Room temperature)
2 Eggs (Room temperature)
1/3 cup Sugar
1/4 cup All-purpose Flour
Butter – for greasing ramekins

Preparation:

In a double boiler, melt chocolate.
In a medium mixing bowl, beat Eggs and Sugar until light and fluffy.
Once chocolate is melted, remove pan from heat and add in butter. Mix until the butter melts fully.
Add chocolate/butter mixture into the eggs, add all-purpose flour and mix until well incorporated.
Butter bottom and sides of ramekins (small glass/porcelain bowls) and pour in mixture about 3/4 way full.
Place ramekins on a baking tray and bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 10 – 15 minutes.
Serve hot with vanilla ice cream.

Pahala Rasgulla( Sweet Cheese Ball )

Ingredients:

2 liters full cream milk

2-3 tbs lemon juice/Vinegar

2 tsp semolina

4 cups water

2 cups and 1tsp sugar

½ tsp freshly ground cardamom

2-3 tbs rose water

Preparation:

Bring the milk to a boil over a medium flame. Stir occasionally to ensure the milk does not burn. When the milk begins to boil, add the lemon juice and mix well.

When the curds begin to separate from the milk, turn off the fire and leave the milk aside for 10 minutes to let the curdling process finish.

Strain the cheese and wash it well under running water - to remove all the lemon juice from it.

Now put the cheese in a cheese cloth and hang for 1 hour to completely drain all the liquid from it.

Put the drained cheese into a mixing bowl and begin to knead it. Continue till all the lumps are removed and the cheese is absolutely smooth. When this happens the cheese will begin to release its fat and your hands will feel greasy. The success of your Rasgulla making effort depends on how smooth you knead the cheese, so give it your best shot!

Now sprinkle the semolina, 1 tsp sugar and cardamom powder over the surface of the cheese and work it into the cheese to mix thoroughly.

Mix the sugar and water in a wide deep cooking pan and bring the mixture to a boil on high heat. Make sure the pan is large enough to accommodate the finished Rasgullas, as they will expand to double their size while cooking in the syrup!

While the sugar syrup boils, divide the dough into small marble-sized balls and roll between your palms till smooth.

Gently add the balls to the sugar syrup and cook for 20 minutes with the lid on. Make sure the Rasgullas are cooking in high heat.

In another sauce pan boil a cup of water. After 20 minutes remove the lid and cook the Rasgulla for another 20-30 minutes. In between occasionally add 1 tbs of boiling water to the Rasgullas (Adding water helps the sugar syrup to remains thin in consistency).

Allow the Rasgullas to cool completely before touching them. They will have expanded to almost double their original size and will be delicate when hot.

When cool, pour the rose water on the Rasgullas and chill for a few hours before serving.

Oatmeal chocolate chip cookie

• Ingredients:
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup rolled (old-fashioned) oats
• 1/2 cup coarsely chopped walnut ( optional)
• 8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature OR make it 1/2 stick and melt the butter
• 1/2 cup lightly packed light brown sugar
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 3/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degree F.

In a medium bowl, stir the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, oats, and walnut together with a whisk or fork.

In a large bowl, beat the butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar together for 30 seconds until blended. Beat in the egg until smooth and barely fluffy. With mixer running on medium high add vanilla until incorporated. Turn the mixer down to its lowest setting and gradually add the flour-oatmeal mixture. Blend just to combine, then mix in the chocolate chips.

Drop walnut-sized balls of dough onto a nonstick or parchment-lined cookie sheet at 3-inch intervals. With moistened fingers, flatten and round out the cookies a little. Bake for 9 minutes, turning the pan once for even baking. The cookies are done when they are lightly browned on top. Set the cookie sheets on a rack to cool.