Chole Bature

With the onset of spring, here comes one of the most awaited festivals of the year – #HOLI. People all around are soaked in the colors and enthusiasm days before Holi and honestly it brings a smile on my face every time I see such happy faces all around. The street vendors have popped up here and there with all their paraphernalia and have displayed an array of colors, pickari, masks and various other crazy stuff. But then, as I say, there is one king which rules any festival or celebration.. Any guesses what’s it?? Yes…FOOD .So keeping in tune with the preparations of Holi I will be making some fluffy and super delicious #Chole #Bhature to kick start your Holi celebrations (c’mon don’t think about those calories for a day as you can always hit the gym and burn them away  …(oh Wow!!It rhymed…ha ha!!  )

North India is the hub of mouth-watering delicacies and Chole Bhature rules the street shops, #dhabas as well the high end restaurants.. As a child the XXL sized breads I.e. bhatures always fascinated me .I would always order the same food without failing and the love for it has still not faded away. :) :)

For friends who do not know about this dish, Chole is a chick pea curry served with Bhature which is a kind of deep fried flat bread .It can be served for breakfast as well as lunch. It is super easy to cook and can be served in any get together, parties and festival. Join me while I start making this savory and I promise you a tasty and wholesome meal within an hour. (Though there are a few preparations which we need to do beforehand to get the perfect taste)

Ingredients:

For Chole

1) Chick peas -2 cups

2) A small cloth in which we will put a tea spoon of tea leaves and a few pieces of gooseberry. (amla)

Tie the ends properly so that nothing comes out of the pouch.

3) Four big tomato and a make puree

4)3 Green chillies slit

5) Ginger paste -2 tea spoon

6) Cumin seeds -2 table spoon

7) Coriander powder-1 tablespoon

8) Dried mango powder- 1 tea spoon

9) Pomegranate seeds- 1 tea spoon

10) Chat masala – 1tea spoon

11) Black salt- ½ tea spoon

12) Salt to taste

13) Oil –approx. 2 table spoon

14) Turmeric powder

15) Asafoetida- 2 pinch

13. Bay leaves

14. Garam masala powder- 1 table spoon

15) Juice of a lemon

16) Coriander leaves for garnishing

¾ tea spoon of baking soda

Bhature

1)      All-purpose flour -450 grams

2)      Semolina powder – half cup

3)      Sugar- 1 tea spoon

4)      Salt to taste

5)      Refine oil-3 tea spoon and 1 tea poon to be kept aside which will be used after kneading.

6)      Baking Soda -1 tea spoon

7)      Thick sour curd -1 cup (approx. 100 gram)

8)      1 cup lukewarm water

Note: Keep some all-purpose flour aside for rolling the bread.

PROCEDURE:

Things which we need to keep ready before hand.

1)      Soak the chick peas in clean water for overnight. Next day drain the water and keep it aside.

2)      Put the chick peas in a pressure cooker .add two to three cups of water, a little bit of salt,3/4^th tea spoon of chick peas and the pouch which contains the tea and gooseberry.(This technique gives  very good colour to the food)

3)      Let it boil till 5-6 whistles. Drain them and keep aside.

Please note: that the chick peas should be so supple that it should become powder like when pressed with fingers.

4)      In a big bowl take the all-purpose flour. Put the semolina powder, 3 tea spoon oil, sugar, salt, baking soda and the curd into the all-purpose flour. Mix then well .Add lukewarm water little by little and make soft dough. Again take some oil and spread it in your palm and knead the dough till such time the surface of the dough is very plain and all the sugar has melted. Cover it up with a lid and keep in warm place for around 2-3 hours.

Procedure to make the Chole:

1) Take a wok and put some oil in it.

2) Put the cumin seeds, asafoetida (hing) and slit green chillies

3) Add the bay leaves, ginger paste, cumin powder, coriander powder, dried mango powder, pomegranate seed powder and fry it till the oil starts leaving the surface.

4) Add the tomato puree and keep cooking it till the raw smell evaporates.

5) add the chat masala powder and black salt .Put some of the chick pea water which we had kept aside. Cover the vessel and let it cook for 2 minutes.

6) Put the chick peas and the Garam masala powder.

7) Cover the lid and let it cook for 15-20 minutes in low flame.

8) Garnish with chopped coriander and some lemon juice

Procedure for Bhature:

1)      Take a vessel and put oil for deep frying. Heat the oil till it’s very hot.

2)      Take off the lid from the dough. The dough must have bloated to some extent by now.

3)      Take some dry flour and spread on your palm. Now once again knead the flour for a minute.

4)      Make medium sized balls (approx. the size of a small apple)

5)      Take the ball and bind it with the dry flour and roll it in an oval shape as much as you can.

6)      Put it in the hot oil and press it so that it swells up. Turn it and fry the other side too. Fry till both the sides become golden brown.

Serve with chole and your yummy meal is ready!!

Happy Cooking!!

Madhumita.

#Homemade #Chocolate ... Perfect For any occasion :)

 It is said that Diamonds are a girl’s best friend but not for me… for me its #Chocolates… If you think of it, they are with you throughout your life…Be it Happiness, #celebration or #festivals nothing is complete without this best friend of mine.. It comes to my rescue when I’m In fix with #gifting #ideas.. It’s my companion when I’m depressed and a #booster when I’m trying to shed those extra kilos.(yes, you read it right because according research , Dark chocolate helps in curbing  fat )

So With #Valentine’s Day approaching what could be a more #romantic gift than #homemade chocolates with the essence of your love in it.

So why wait.. Dirty your hands...oops sorry!! Chocolate your hands and Join me to surprise the love of your life with these sweet, desirable sins ;) ;)

I’ll be making three kinds of chocolates. 1. Dark chocolate, 2.milk chocolate, 3.fruit and nut chocolate.Believe me when I say, these are too easy to make.

Ingredients:

1. Dark chocolate compound 250 grams

2. Milk chocolate compound 250 grams

3. Cocoa butter 40 grams

4. Cashew nuts- 8-10 (slightly roasted) (you can use walnuts, almonds etc too)

5. Raisins – 20

Method:

1)    Cut the dark and milk compound into very small pieces

2)    Make two separate double boilers and put the dark and milk compound in separate boilers. Keep it on medium to low flame throughout.

Note: do not let the chocolate come in contact with moisture. Use dry utensils and be extra cautious with the double boiler.

3)    Keep stirring at regular intervals add the cocoa butter to each and let it melt completely so that no lumps are formed.

4)    Once done take it out in a wide plate and let it cool.

Note: This process of heating and cooling is called tempering and this is the most vital step while we make chocolates.

5)    Fill the molds till the mark and pat a few times.

6)    Pat it a little so that the air bubbles escape and the keep it in the refrigerator for 15 minutes to set.

7)    Take them out on a plate and wrap them up with aluminum sheets so that no moisture enters it

Repeat the same process for Milk chocolates

For Fruit and nut chocolate.

A) Step 1 to 3 are same.

B) While tempering mix ¼ of the milk compound with the dark compound.

(Milk compound is sweeter and will add sweetness to the chocolate)

C) Fill the molds half way with the chocolate.

D) Put some fruit and nut mixture and again fill it up with chocolate.

E) Repeat steps 6 and 7.

Your assorted bunch of chocolates is ready to sweeten up your valentine’s day....Enjoy!!!

                  

Happy Cooking!

Madhumita

P.S - If you have any queries please write to me.I'll be happy to help you.

#Lal #Aloo #Payesh (#Shakarkand Kheer)(Sweet Potato #Pudding)

A sumptuous meal is relished by one and all but the cherry on top is when a #delicious #dessert accompanies it .Bring in some gossip ,some laughter and the experience becomes pure bliss. :) Isn’t it?I think most of us will agree to it that there have been times when our stomach is so full that we don’t even feel like talking about food let alone smelling or looking at it but one look at the dessert and your stomach has room to store them all… gorge! Gorge!  ;) 

Today’s recipe is for all those sweet lovers with a promise that this dessert will not add in to your calories. Sweet potato #pudding is a blessing for those who wanna be fit but cannot part away with their sweet cravings.They are said to be very rich in fiber and one serving contains less than 100 #calories plus it also balances #blood #sugar #levels. It is a very versatile vegetable and it can be had in any way you wish to so don't fear experimenting.I have also shared a different variation of it and you can try this out too.

http://spoonandtheneedle.blogspot.in/2014/10/easy-gulab-jamun-recipe-in-half-hour.html

So why wait…dig into this super delicious pudding :)

INGREDIENTS:

1. Sweet Potato – 2 (around 200 gms)

2. Powdered sugar –  4 table spoon or Jaggery – 50 gm (jaggery is a more healthier option and tastes equally good)

3. Cardamom powder – 1 tea spoon

4. Cloves- 3

5. Cinnamon Powder – 1 tea spoon

6. Oil -1 table spoon
7.Milk - 500 ml

8. Walnut and cashews – 8 pieces each or as desired.

PROCESS

1.      Prick the# sweet #potatoes and make small holes it it.(I find it easy with a fork so you can try it too)

2.      Put on the stove on medium flame and roast the potatoes by keeping them directly on fire.

Keep turning then from time to time so that the potatoes roast evenly (Please be extra careful with the flame and don’t burn yourself)

During this the sugar in the potatoes starts #caramelizing and your kitchen will smell heavenly.

3.      Cover the roasted potatoes with a lid for five minutes (This makes peeling the potatoes easier)

4.      Mash them and form a paste.

5.      Take some oil (you can use clarified butter as well  but I tried to keep it as healthy as possible and used rice bran oil)

6.      Put the cloves and fry them.

7.      Put the potato paste and cook it for 7-8 minutes. Keep stirring continuously .After a few minutes put the powdered sugar and let it melt .Keep stirring. When it turns brown in colour add the milk and cook it for a few more minutes. Add the cardamom and cinnamon powder.

8.      Put the #cashews and #walnuts and serve it.

Happy cooking!!

Madhumita :)

Bhapa Pitha (Stuffed Rice flour Dumplings)

There are some dishes which we love not only for its distinct taste but also because it brings back some sweet memories with it. Isn’t it??Growing up in a Bengali family there’s one thing which cannot go a miss on #Makar #Sankranti and that’s ‘#pitha’ …Making Pitha on this day  has been a tradition of our family and even today when I make them I miss my grandmother who taught me this delightful recipe . ‘#noler #gur’ or ‘jhola gur’ is the flavour of the season and in east India you will find innumerable sweets of this flavour around this season. In this dish too it adds to the aroma and taste which cannot go unnoticed.

Pitha is a rice flour dumpling with coconut and milk solids. It just melts in your mouth and believe me your taste buds will bless you for such a treat ;) Pitha which originated in Bangladesh is very popular in east India and there are innumerable ways of making them but I’ll be making one of the #easiest and #healthiest pitha which can be made in no time…But yes you do need to prep up for it beforehand.

So let’s get started and welcome our winter mornings with a plate full of hot pithas.

 

INGREDIENTS :

For the Dough

1)    Rice flour – 2 cups   (you can find  rice flour in any grocery store)

2)    Boiled water -1 cup

3)    Salt- ½ tea spoon

4)    Sugar 1 tea spoon

For the stuffing with coconut (you can experiment with any other kind of stuffing too)

Note: you can make the stuffing and keep in refrigerator to use when needed.

1)    1 grated coconut

2)    Jaggery -100 gm/Sugar -100 gm

3)    Cardamom powder- ½ tea spoon

4)    Oil- 1 table spoon   

PROCEDURE:

1)    For the stuffing take a wok and put some oil and heat it.

2)    Put the grated coconut and keep cooking it till the raw smell is gone and it starts becoming golden brown in colour.

3)    Add the jaggery and cook it till the jaggery melts.

4)    Add the cardamom powder .Keep stirring it so that nothing settles at the bottom.

5)    Turn off the flame when you see the mixture is cooked and you get the aroma of it.

For the Dumplings:

1)    Take the rice flour, salt and sugar in a flat bottom vessel and mix them together.

2)    Add warm water to it in small quantities to make soft dough.

3)    Take some of it at a time a roll to make a small ball.

4)    Make a whole in the centre to put the stuffing into it.

5)    Once you have put the dough seal it by bringing both the ends together. (It will look like a semi-circle.)

Note: you can give it any shape you desire provided the ends are sealed.

6)    In a steamer heat some water and put the raw pithas into it.
 

Note (If you don’t have a steamer .Put some water in a pot and tie a cotton cloth on it and tie the ends around the neck. Put the pithas on it and cover with a lid.)

7)    The pithas will be cooked within 20 minutes. If you see it’s not cooked then leave it on for 5 more mins.

8)    Serve hot with fresh jhola gur(Date palm jaggery syrup) or anything of your choice.

Do let me know how you found the recipe and also your memories of pithas.

Happy Cooking!!

Madhumita