Double Treat- Rasgulla and Rasmallai

Rasgullas when I hear this word my mouth waters and it always bring back my memories with bengalis during my childhood days. I have only eaten this sweet in either bengali homes or in homes where my friends parents had east indian origin. Rasgullas literally means juicy balls....I know it sounds corny...but if u can excuse the people who named this sweetmeat I guess it is one of the delicious sweets you will ever eat. My mom who is a superb cook has never made it herself. This led me to the belief that it very difficult to make. But as I tried it a few times to figure out the correct recipe it is one of the simplest recipes I have ever made. Rasmalai is simple variation of normal rasgullas. The only difference is that in rasgullas the cheese balls dipped sugar syrup but in rasmalai it is dipped in sweetened milk.

Ingredients:

For Gullas:

1. 1/2 liter full fat milk( to make cheena or cottage cheese).
2. 2 tbsp white vinegar.

For Sugar Syrup:

1. 2 cups of Sugar.
2. 4 cups of water.
3. 2-3 drops of rose essence(may exclude this if you don't like the smell).

For Sweetened Milk:

1. 2 cups of Milk.
2. 1 tin (14 oz.) condensed milk.

Preparing Gullas or Cheese Balls:

1. boil the 1/2 liter full fat milk.
2. when the milk comes to boil , remove from flame and add the 2 tbsp of white vinegar to the milk to curdle it.
3. Cook for about 15 minutes maintaining the temperature at 185ºF. Higher temperature will make it cheese hard and rubbery like Paneer. Remove from heat and let the mixture cool for five minutes.
   
4. Line a colander with fine cheesecloth or I use a large handkerchief (clean one). Transfer the contents into the lined colander. Now use the four ends of the handkerchief to make knots and hand it some place to drain the liquid for an hour.
5. now open the knotts and remove the drained cheese lump.
6. kneed this lump in a wok for five minutes into a smoother and finer lump.
7. Make balls of cheese of the desired size of rasgullas.

Preparing Sugar Syrup:

1. Mix 4 cups of water and 2 cups of sugar in a bowl.
2. Bring it boil and keep boilling for 15 min to make a thin sugar syrup.

Finishing Touches to Rasgullas:

1. Add the cheese balls to the boilling sugar syrup.
2. Cover the bowl with a perforated plate and allow the cheese balls to pressure cook at this same temperature in the boiling syrup for 10-15 minutes.
3. Remove the bowl from fire and allow it to cool for 10 mintues. Add the 2-3 drops of rose essence to the syrup.
4. Refrigerate and serve the dessert on any occasion.
   

For sweetened milk :

1. Mix the milk and condensed milk together.
2. Boil the mixture for about 5 minutes.
   

Finishing Touches to Rasmalai:

1. Bring about 4 cups water to boil .
2. Add the cheese balls to the boilling water.
3. Cover the bowl with a perforated plate and allow the cheese balls to pressure cook at this same temperature in the boiling water for 10-15 minutes.
4. Remove the bowl from fire and allow it to cool for 10 mintues.
   
5. Remove the cooked cheese balls from the water and squeeze them to remove water in them.
6. Now add these cooked cheese balls to the sweetened milk and cook them for about 10 minutes.
7. allow the mixture to cool and Refrigerate the rasmalai before serving.
   
8. To decorate you can add chopped up almonds and pistachios.
   

Besan Ke Laddu /kadala maavu orandai / farina de pois chiche boule

I Like these laddus for their crunchiness. Hope u would enjoy them too...on ur big and small occasions.

Ingredients:

1. 200 gms Besan/ Gramflour/ chichpeak flour .
2. 2 cups of sugar .
3. 100 gms of ghee/nayyi/clarified butter.
4. 50 gms of oil.
5. 2-3 pods of ilaichi/elakai/cardamom.
6. 10 - 15 kaju/ mundri /cashews halves.
7. 10-15 dried grapes/ draksh.

Method:

1. Take the seed out from the cardamom pods and grind them to powder using pestle. Keep aside.
2. Take a wok or pan, heat it on a low-medium heat.
3. Add ghee and oil mixture to pan/wok.
4. When u can smell the ghee, add cashew halves to it.
5. now keep stirring and observe the color of the cashews.
6. Add besan when the cashews turn light golden brown.
7. mix besan, dried grapes, ghee+oil and cashew mixture well.
8. cook this mixure till the besan changes its color and u see the ghee separating from the besan slightly.
9. Take the pan/wok off the flame and allow it to cool till the mixture cools down(warm to touch).
10. now add the cardamom powder and sugar to the mixture .
11. mix everything well so that cardamom and other things are uniformly distributed.
12. Take some amount of this mixture in ur palm and form balls.
13. place them in a small plate and allow it to cool completely.
14. store in a dry and air tight container.
15. Enjoy!!!!!!!

My Recommendations:

1. Keep a close watch on the besan while cooking.
2. Keep stirring to avoid burning besan.
3. Buy a coarse variety of besan for these laddus (I have tried these laddus with both smooth and coarse besan ..I like coarse besan better ...as it gives more depth to laddus)

Chatpate Dahi Vadas

Dahi Vada or Yogurt Dumpling (sounds funny and absurd) is one of the most common chaats made in any north indian household. I have very fond memories of eating dahi vadas in my friends' birthdays.. it is one of the most ubiquitous items in kids' birthdays other than chhole puri , cake and gulab jamuns. One obvious reason for its popularity is it is very easy to make and store.
Ingredients:

1. Dhania/Coriander/ Cilantro.
2. Tamarind-Date Chutney.
3. Dahi/Yogurt (beaten).
4. Vadas(soak them in normal water when hot).
   
5. 1/2 Teaspoon Red chillies Powder.
6. 1/2 Teaspoon of Toasted Jeera/Cumin seeds powder*.

Assembling:

1. Squeeze water out of 2 vadas into a bowl.
2. Mix yogurt , salt (as per your taste), sugar (as per your taste).
   
3. Add generous amount of yogurt and 2-3 tablespoons of tamarind- date chutney.
4. sprinkle some red chillies powder and jeera powder in the bowl.
5. garnish with dhania.

(*) - take a skillet and heat it . When it is hot, add jeera and toast it till it is golden brown in color. grind it using a pestle or by crushing it with the back of a table spoon.

My Recommendation:
- mix the yogurt, jeera powder, chillies powder, salt , sugar to sort of make yogurt chutney.

Vada

Ingredients:

1. 1 .5 cup Urad dal (split and without husk).
2. salt.
3. black or white pepper powder.
4. 500 gms oil.
5. coriander/ cilantro/dhania leaves.
   

Equipment:

1. Blender.

Method:

1. soak dal in water for about 5-6 hours.
2. separate the soaked dal and water .
3. grind the dal in blender, also add coriander leaves. Add as less water as u can add to get a thick paste.
4. add the salt and pepper powder as per ur taste to the dal paste.
   
5. heat the oil in wok.
   
6. when u see slight smoke coming out the heated oil..then add small portions (golf ball) of this paste into the oil.
7. remove when golden brown in color.
   

Tamarind-Date Chutney

Ingredients:

1. Base ball size amount seedless tamarind.
2. Base ball size amount date-palm paste .
3. 1/4 teaspoon red chillies powder.
4. 1/2 teaspoon sugar.
5. pinch of salt.
   

Method:

1. Soak the tamarind in about 4-5 cups of warm water for about 15 min.
2. Squeeze out the pulp in the water using the hands till u feel all the pulp is in the water and only tamarind skeletons are left in water.
   
3. filter out the skeleton using hands.
4. now transfer the water with tamarind pulp in a bowl and put it on the stove over medium heat.
5. add to this tamarind water the date paste, 1/2 teaspoon sugar and 1/4 teaspoon chillies powder.
6. allow it to boil for about 20 mins (but keep stirring continuously).
7. remove from heat when it has reached a consistency of beaten yogurt or thick consistency.
   
8. stain the little by little this whole liquid using a medium sized strainer by using a spoon into a new bowl.
9. see the bottom of the stainer it would have a lot of pulp ...do not discard this swipe this using the spoon and add to the strained liquid.
10. taste it and if u feel that u need any thing like chillies powder , salt or sugar add according to ur taste.
    

Party Recommendation: Add little amount of cinammon and clove powder to make it smell good and different.

Chocolate Brownies with Almonds..Yummm!!!!!

Mummmm.....Brownies...I think a good part my adult life has been spent being a chocolate addict..I can eat almost anything that has chocolate in them. Whenever and wherever I have a craving for eating or buying something to eat I usually end up buying chocolate. Chocolate brownies are a big part of this spiritual saga. As I have been splurging good part of my money on brownies, I thought of trying to make some of my own. So guys lets get going .......

Ingredients:

1. 12 oz. Hershey's semisweet chocolate.
   
2. 1 stick butter (unsalted).
3. 2 eggs.
   
4. pinch of salt.
5. 1 cup of all purpose flour.
6. about half cup of chopped almonds.
7. 1 tea spoon of vanilla extract.
   
8. 1 1/3 cup of sugar.
9. 2-3 toothpicks.
10. one 8x8 cake pan.
11. 2 medium sized bowl for mixing ingredients.

Method:

1. Start the oven to heat to about 350 degrees F.
   
2. Fill some water in a medium sized vessel.
3. heat this water almost to boil.
4. take it off the fire.
5. put the stick of butter( leave some small portion to butter the pan) and about 6 oz of chocolate pieces in a small china bowl.
6. place this bowl in the bath of water. (Make sure the water is low enough and would not get mixed with the butter and chocolate. keep stirring the contents in the bowl occasionally & till the whole chocolate and butter mixture melts down.
7. Now add all the sugar to the chocolate and butter mixture but keep mixing the sugar...to form a uniform smooth liquid.
   
8. add vanilla extract to this mix.
9. now add eggs one by one into this chocolate butter mix...but beat the eggs into this mixture before adding the next one.
   
10. in another bowl sieve 1 cup of all purpose flour and the pinch of salt.
11. now add this flour to the chocolate and butter mix slowly and keep folding the flour to mix it in with the chocolate and butter evenly.
12. Grease the 8x8 cake pan with the left over butter evenly.
13. pour the whole batter into it and place it in the preheated 350 degree oven ...medium rack for about 25 min.
14. add the remaining chocolate pieces and chopped almonds into the mixture and mix well.
    
15. After 25 min check the brownies by inserting the toothpick in the middle to see if the brownies are almost done* ...
16. take the pan out and let it cool for about 1 hour .
17. take out the brownie and cut it into pieces to eat.
    

(*) - if u see chocolate liquid on ur toothpick-NOT DONE
- if u see moist lumps of chocolate on ur toothpick-ALMOST DONE
- if u see a clean tooth pick -OVER DONE

NOTE: Keep the brownies outside the refrigerator to keep them soft and moist.
Variation: add walnuts or pecans or pistachios....

Yummy Malpua's

Malpua is one of the very popular north indian sweet during holi "Festival of Colour". This was the first time I tried making it. I got the recipe from my mother in law and They turned out to be yummy and very easy to make.

INGREDIENTS:

1. 1 cup sooji/ semolina/rava.
2. 1.5 cups maida/all purpose flour.
3. Milk .
4. 250 gms Oil or ghee.
5. 600 gms of sugar .
6. 2.5 cups of water.
7. pinch of baking powder.
8. 1 teaspoon ilaichi/cardamom (powdered).
   

METHOD FOR PUA'S:

1. Mix sooji, maida, milk, cardamom and baking powder into a batter of beaten yogurt consistency.
2. Place it in a warm area to let it rise for about 6-8 hours.
   
3. Heat oil or ghee or mix of both in the pan.
   
4. When oil is starts lightly smoking take a spoon ful of batter and put it in the oil to form disks.
5. Remove when golden brown.
6. Soak them immediately in the sugar syrup for about 5 minutes.
   
7. Remove and place them on a mesh to drain the excess syrup.
   

METHOD FOR SUGAR SYRUP:

1. In a large vessel mix sugar and water.
2. Keep heating and stirring it using a spoon.
3. Keep testing the sugar syrup's consistency using the syrup sticking to the back of your spoon.
4. When the syrup from the spoon makes a strand between ur fingers remove from fire.
   

Decorate the Malpua's with sliced almonds and pistas.

Note: If you want to add a special taste to your malpua add few fennel seeds to it while making the batter... they taste superb.

Strawberry Lassi/Smoothie

Strawberry Smoothie is a nice filler food. When ever I am hungry and have to make something to quench my hunger in a jiffy I make this. But in case if u do not have a ready supply of yogurt then try replacing the yogurt with milk and u get Strawberry Milkshake....

INGREDIENTS:

1. Strawberries 4-5 in number.
2. 1 cup of Yogurt / Dahi.
3. 3 -5 tablespoons of sugar.
   

EQUIPMENT REQUIRED:

1. Blender.

METHOD OF PREPARATION:

1. Add strawberries, yougurt and the sugar in the blender .
2. Blend all the ingredients in the blender at high speed or smoothie setting for about a minute repeat if required.

Note:
I would recommend buying frozen strawberries and keeping them in ur freezer to enjoy smoothies all year round.

Making Ghee (Hindi) / Nayyi (Tamil) / Clarified Butter (English)

Ingredients:

1. 200 gms. Makkhan(Hindi) /Vennai(Tamil) /Stick of Unsalted Butter
2. Kadai/ Bandli/ A Heavy bottom saucepan
3. Chalni/ Vadigati/ Filter

Method:

1. Heat the saucepan on a low to medium fire for about 2 min.
2. Add the stick of butter to this heated saucepan and keep the fire going.
3. Monitor the color of butter heating in the pan every few minutes. (look for a frothy appearing on the top.. also if u slightly blow on this frothy formation .. u can look at the color of melted butter.
4. If the color is almost golden remove from fire and place the saucepan away from the fire to cool.
5. Filter this golden color liquid into some dry bottle to store ( can store it without refrigeration even for a year or so).

Taste Caution:
Keep an eye on how long u cook the butter...because if u keep it long ...u will burn the ghee and it will taste like something charred....

Uses:
In India butter is used anyfood for e.g. in Rice to give it the ghee smell by adding a drop or two. In indian sweets it is one of the main ingredient like butter used in America for baking...

To Learn more check out this link: Ghee

Dahi (Hindi) / Thayir (Tamil) / Milk Curd or Yogurt (English)

Read This before you start your journey of making yogurt at home for the first time.

Ingredients:

1. 250 gms. Milk (I have put 250 gms for u guys to try this without wasting a lot of milk ...if ur the first timers to make yogurt)
2. About 2 tablespoons of live dahi culture.
3. A heavy bottomed saucepan.

Method:

1. Pour the 250 gms. of milk into the saucepan.
2. Keep the saucepan with milk on medium fire.
3. Keep this saucepan on the stove till the milk comes to a boil.
4. Remove from the fire and place at some place to cool.
5. Say about after 15-20 mins (time varies according to the amount of milk boiled) check to see if the milk has reached about luke warm in temperature.
6. Add about half of the culture to this milk and keep this saucepan at some place at room temperature for about 5-6 hours..
7. Wallah u have yogurt.

Authors Recommendations:
1. I personally use full fat milk. I think some fat is good for health.
2. For the live culture (though i got it from a friend) I have heard the Dannon yougurt is good see the ingredients to see if it has live culture...
3. I check to see if the boiled milk has come down to luke warm temperature by slightly inserting my pinky finger in the milk and if u pull out ur finger then the milk is too hot and if ur just feeling a pinchy heat then probably its at right temperature. If ur milk has already cooled off don't worry and warm it a little to get it to luke warm temperature. AND YES I WASH MY HANDS BEFORE.... :-)
4. I personally prefer making the yougurt in the night time that ways u have the finished product in the morning to enjoy.
5. Put the saucepan with the culture and milk in a lightly warmed oven( switch off the oven if u warmed it before placing the saucepan) throughout the night that ways oven maintains the temperature and helps the formation of curd...even if it is a cold season outside...

Uses:
We south indians eat curd rice dialy..It is used to make raitas, lassi, mishti doi...and lot of other fun and tasty stuff....

To Learn more check out these link: Dahi and Yogurt

Essential Indian Spices in the Kitchen Pantry

I would urge an American or any non Indian who likes Indian cooking to go buy Indian spices from an Indian / Indo-European stores / Mediterranean stores (some spices used by them are the same as Indians). I would discourage u from buying these spices from any American stores. This is because these spices don’t go off the rack in these stores and as a result they are stale and as a result ur recipes would not have no smell.

These are the following spices that are used in Indian kitchens majority of the times:
Spices common to North and South Indian cooking:

1. Haldi (Hindi) / Manjal (Tamil) / Turmeric (English)
2. Jeera / Jeeragai / Cumin seeds
3. Rai / Kadugu / Mustard seeds
4. Lal mirch –sookha sabut / segapu vara molagai / dried red chilli
5. Til / Yellu / Sesame seeds
6. Elayachi / Elakkai / Cardamom
7. Dalchini / Lavanga pattai / Cinnamon
8. Laung / Lavangam / Cloves
9. Kaju / Mundri parupu / Cashew
10. Kukum ka phool / Kumkuma poo /Saffron flower dried
11. Ajwain / Omum / Omum/Carom seeds
12. Hing / Perungayam / Asafetida
13. Badam / Badam / Almond
14. Kismis / Drakchai / Raisins
15. Kali mirch / mulagu / Black Pepper
16. Lal mirch powder / Vara molagai podi / Red chilli powder
17. Tej patta / Brinji ilai / Bay leaf

All the north Indian use mainly use other spice powder like

1. Garam Masala.

2. Amchur / dried Mango powder..

South Indian use mainly these spice powder
1. Rasam Powder
2. Sambhar Powder

I think these masalas should be good enough for a novice indian cook…If ur buying any of these spices. A sort of comprehensive list of all the indian spices can be found in Wikipedia .

The Indian Dal..

There are many types of Dal we use in India...The recipe here can be used on almost any of following specified dals..to get a whole new and different taste to ur lunch or dinner.. Dals are eaten as a main course all over India. It is consumed either with Rotis (Hindi/Tamil) / Bread (English) made out of wheat flour or Chaval(Hindi) /Sadam(Tamil)/ Cooked Rice (English). Dals are the main source of Proteins for any vegetarians...and also a very good substitute for replacing protein that u get from animal source..In India it is very essential to eat at least lunch or dinner having dal served in it ...in one form or other.

TYPES OF Dal (Hindi)/ Parruppu (Tamil)/ Pulses (English):

We generally use dals broken in half and dehusked...but it also can be used as whole and with husk. If u want to use a whole seeds of these lentils the preparation procedure would be slightly different...and would take more time to prepare than the dals broken in half and polished. These dals can be bought in any Indian or any middle eastern stores by these names.
If ur a new cook i would suggest to try the daals broken in half first.. before proceeding to preparing the whole daals..

1. Toor Dal
2. Chana Dal
3. Urad Dal
4. Masoor Dal
5. Moong Dal

COOKING PROCEDURE

Ingredients:

1. 1 cup of any of the above mentioned dals.
2. 2 pods of lehsun(Hindi)/Poondu(Tamil)/Garlic(English).
3. 1 small or medium size Tamatar/Thakkali/Tomato.
4. small piece of Adrak/Ingi/Ginger.
5. 1 small Pyaz/Vengayam/Onion.
6. 1 tablespoon of cut kothmir or dhania patta/Kothamalli/ coriander or cilantro leaves.
7. 1 green chilli. ( if u like it hotttt...)
8. pressure cooker.
9. Knife.
10. measuring cup.

List of Spices needed (For more infomation "Click me")

1. 1 teaspoon cumins.
2. 1/2 teaspoon turmeric.
3. 2 tablespoon oil (use corn oil).
4. Salt .

for added taste u can use (try ur dal without these ingredients and for party occasions we add these two masalas so spice it up and give it a different taste). for day to day cooking of dals these things are avoided as lot of hot n spicy things are said to be avoided in daily use..U can add it once in a while... :-)

1. 1 teaspoon garam masala.
2. 1 tablespoon amchur powder.
3. 2 bay leafs.
4. 1/2 cup Tomato sauce or 1 tablespoon tomato paste. ( i buy it from Walmart either hunt's or great value. buy the one without salt).

Method :

Cut all onion, tomato into medium small size cubes store them separately.. cut ginger, garlic, green chilli into very fine small pices using knife or u can also crush the ginger and garlic into paste. Also cut the coriander or cilantro.

1. Put the bottom part of the pressure cooker on a medium flame for about 1 min till it becomes slightly warm.
2. Now add the 2 table spoon of oil in it.
3. Add the cumin seeds.
4. Once the cumin seeds become light brown in color add ginger, garlic , onion.
5. IF U WANT THE PARTY PREP SEE THE ADDED INstructions BELOW ELSE GOTO STEP 7.
6. cook it till the onion becomes slightly red or brown in color.
7. Now add salt according to taste. ( would suggest just add less salt in case u don't have idea then ask people to add salt by themselves while serving according to their taste...this wouldn't kill u know...but more salt will...hahha)
8. add the tomatoes and half of the cut coriander and cook it for about 2 min.
9. now add the washed dal in it and again stir it for 2min allowing it to cook.
10. Add about 5 cups of water to this dal and cover the pressure cookers lid and put the weighted stopper or weight as we call it .
11. Increase the heat to medium high and cook it till u get about four whistles from from ur pressure cooker.
12. Switch the heat off. allow the cooker to cool for about 20 mins. Release the steam by slightly lifting the stopper. Once all the steam is released u can open the pressure cooker.
13. put the remaining coriander on the top to decorate the dal .

SERVING RECOMMENDATIONS:

serve it hot with rice (add few drops of ghee in the rice for nice taste) or rotis and yogurt on the side.

FOR PARTY PREPARATION:

1. add the 2 bay leafs , 1/2 teaspoon garam masala, and 2 tablespoons of amchur powder and stir .
2. now add the 1 tablespoon of tomato paste or the 1/2 cup of tomato sauce which ever u have and stir.
3. GOTO STEP 7 OF METHOD.

NOTES:

To reduce the heat in the chilies remove their seeds before cutting them.

Chai Garam

Chai is something that most northindians drink every morning like Americans drink coffee. The only difference being that most of us drink it with milk...though there are places where black and green tea is made without milk. I love chilled black tea and I really don't like green tea. I don't know why this is ...may beacuse I haven't tasted it made by some person who really knows how to brew green tea. I tried it myself once when my dad got green tea provided to him ( a box every day) in the Chinese hotel during an official visit.. in those days I was in college so my dad ( a non tea drinker) dumped it on us ( his college going kids - me and my sis) we used the green tea to make chai like we do and it was horrible...Anyways...so let me tell u how i generally make chai...and this is the easiest thing u can every learn to make.

Ingredients:

1. 1 teaspoon Black Tea.
2. 1/2 cup milk. (I use whole fat milk use which ever u like)
3. Sugar according to taste and health.
4. 1 Saucepan, 1 spoon, 1 filter.
5. 1/2 cup water.

Other additional things that can be added in Chai:
1. use ginger to make ginger tea ( i drink this daily in morning but it is given to clear soar throats and during cold)
2. use cardamom (it gives a totally different flavor to tea by giving it a completely different aroma...)

Method:
1. add the 1/2 cup milk and 1/2 cup water to the saucepan and put it on a medium flame.
2. add the sugar according to ur taste to it.
3. For Ginger tea (1 inch square) add crushed to the tea or for cardamom tea add 2 crushed cardamoms to the heating milk and water mixture.
4. when the milk and water mix starts boiling add tea leaves to it.
5. wait for about 2 mintues so that the color and aroma of the tea can be incorporated in milk.
6. remove the saucepan from fire and filter the tea into a cup to drink.
7. Enjoyyyyyyyyy.....