Tag: easy to make

Categories
Curry Daal Gluten-free Healthy foods Indian Lentils Low carb Maharashtrian Protein salad Vegan Vegetarian

Pendpala- a dry masoor daal curry

Daal or lentils are an integral part of the Indian cuisine. Its used in many forms, with skin, without skin, powdered, roasted, raw and so much more. In parts of India where the water is scarce, not enough fresh vegetables, you will see a predominant part of region’s cuisine. If you visit Rajasthan, the western state of India, you will see so many dishes that made with Chick pea flour, like Gatte ki kadhi, Kachori etc.

Hearty Solapuri meal

Solapur, the town I come from is situated in the middle of state Maharashtra. There are no rivers or water bodies near Solapur and the summers are brutal. All of this means that the cuisine relies on shelf stable ingredients more than the fresh vegetables or fish. You will see use of Jowar and Bajra more than the wheat and rice. Jowar and Bajra and drought tolerant and need much less water than growing wheat or rice.

Millets like Jowar or Sorghum and Bajra or pearl Millet are excellent source of nutrients. They provide lots of essential nutrients not only to the human beings but it’s also gentle on the soil

Typically farmer, or those who do lot of physical labor, and come from neighboring villages for work, often pack a hearty lunch of Jowar Bhakri, peanut chutney and some dry subji. The subji is dry which prevents it from getting soiled in the hot weather of solapur. Often times it has lentils or chickpea flour

One such preparation is Pendpala. I don’t know how the name came about but I can guarantee you, it’s plain delicious. Full of protein, it’s is a a great compliment to the bhakri and completes the meal

I love that all of the ingredients needed to make this are shelf stable and easily available.

What makes it absolutely delicious is the Kala Tikhat, a special spice mix from Solapur. It’s a combination of many whole spices, along with onion and garlic. I will share that recipe soon. It’s made a few times a year and can be used in many recipes.

I learnt this from Anusaya. Anusaya is help at home but she is much more than that. She is family. She has been coming to our house for the last 45 years. I have rarely seen even family members as loyal as she is 🙂

Kala Tikhat

Some people call it Daal Kanda, which translates to Lentil Onion, and some also make it with toor daal. I make the Pendpala with Masoor daal and serve it with sorghum bhakri, peanut chutney, Green Tomato chutney and raw onion. A complete, balanced, wholesome, protein packed, gluten-free vegan meal 🙂

Print

Masoor Pendpala Solapur style

Spicy, delicious lip smacking daal recipe, easy to make

Course Appetizer, Side Dish
Cuisine Indian, Maharashtrian, vegan, vegetarian
Keyword daal, lentils, vegan, vegetarian

Ingredients

  • 1 Cup Split masoor daal
  • 1 Onion Chopped
  • 2 Garlic cloves
  • 2 Tbsp Oil
  • 1 Tsp Turmeric Powder
  • 1 Tsp Salt
  • 4 Tbsp Roasted peanut powder
  • 1 Tbsp Chopped cilantro
  • 1 Tbsp Kala Tikhat
  • 1/2 Tsp Red chili powder optional

Instructions

Prep

  1. Soak the daal for 20-30 mins

  2. Drain the water

Cook

  1. Heat the oil in a wok. Add turmeric, and chopped onion and garlic.

  2. Cook the onions and garlic till soft, ensure that its not too burnt

  3. Add the drained daal, salt and stir to mix

  4. Cover and cook till the daal is soft on low-medium flame . We dont want it to be mushy. It should be cooked but hold its shape. It takes about 8-10 mins

  5. Add kala tikhat and red chili to taste

  6. Add peanut powder , cilantro and mix well

  7. Serve with Bhakri

Categories
Cakes chocolate dessert Not sure

Triple chocolate cake

I am not a chocolate person, I know I know that sounds completely absurd , who can not like chocolate etc etc. I do like to have a bite of good quality dark chocolate but not crazy about chocolate cookies, cakes, brownies etc. So I don’t end up making a lot of things unless kids want it or some guests are coming over.

So today is my very good friend’s birthday. Last year for her birthday her husband brought a really nice mango mousse cake, but she kept looking for chocolate. It was so funny when he hubby said well there are chocolate curls that are on top of the mousse cake, and you should have seen her face. Anyway to say the least I knew that I had to make a special chocolate cake for her this year.

Until I tasted the chocolate in a museum of chocolate when I visited Antiqua Guatemala a couple of years ago. Antigua is a beautiful city in Guatemala. I fell in love with its cobbled stone streets, to beautiful architecture to lovely doors and so much more. I loved that however small the homes might be, each of them had a courtyard, and you know I am a sucker for courtyards. My dream home will have a large wrap around porch with a beautiful courtyard.

  • Courtyards of Antigua

The chocolate museum was just fantastic It was fascinating to read about the history of cacao beans and how it was used as a currency in those days, and how the chocolate was made.

A stone on which the cacao beans are ground

So I started my research my focus was to make sure that it has rich chocolate flavor and also that I need to incorporate coffee in this. Based on what the man at the chocolate museum told me, coffee helps enhance the chocolate flavor and vice versa. I also had watched an episode of Pati’s Mexican table where she added a cup of boiling water in her chocolate cake to make it moist. So all of that combined and settled on this recipe very close to a recipe by Stella for the cake. Instead of using the Swiss buttercream, I decided to make a simple ganache frosting and it worked really well.

What I like about this recipe:

  1. The cake batter comes together in one pot
  2. You can make both the cake and the frosting base a couple of days ahead, and put it together on the day of the party
  3. Its rich, decadent and yet not overly sweet

So if you have a special occasion or you are in a mood for chocolate cake, this is a perfect recipe.

I also have a video for the recipe, check it out !

If you give it a try, let me know how you like it 🙂

Print

Bourbon Cherry Upside Down cake

Decadent chocolate cake with boozy caramelized cherries

Course cake, Dessert
Keyword cake, chocolate, dark chocolate
Author Anagha

Ingredients

Ingredients

For the Cake: This batter makes three 8inch round cakes

  • 340 g Unsalted butter about 3 sticks; 340g
  • 1 1/2 cup brewed black coffee alternatively take 4 tbsp of instant coffee with hot water
  • 90 g Unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 175 g Dark chocolate roughly 72%
  • 450 g light brown sugar
  • 1 Tbsp vanilla extract
  • 1 Tsp salt
  • 6 large eggs cold from the fridge
  • 3 large egg yolks cold from the fridge
  • 250 g All-purpose flour
  • 1 tablespoon Baking soda

Cherry topping

  • 1 Cup Sugar
  • 6 Tbsp Water
  • 6 Tbsp Butter
  • 25 Pitted Cherries

Instructions

Method

  1. Heat the oven to 375 F

  2. Line , three 8 inch round cake pan line with parchment paper

Cherry Topping

  1. Mix the cherries , sugar and butter together

  2. Pour in the bottom of the cake pan

  3. Cook for 10 min till the sugar is little caramelized

  4. Take out the pan and add the bourbon & salt

Cake

  1. Pre-heat the oven to 350 F
  2. Combine butter and coffee steel pot over low heat. Once melted, remove from heat, then mix in cocoa and chocolate, followed by brown sugar, vanilla, and salt. Mix in eggs and yolks, then sift in flour and baking soda.
  3. Mix well till you see no dry flour spots

  4. Pour the batter in the prepared pans

  5. Bake until cakes are firm for about 30 minutes (a toothpick inserted into the center should come away with a few crumbs still attached)
  6. Cool cakes directly in their pans for 1 hour, then invert onto a wire rack, peel off parchment, and return cakes right side up.

Tools used :

KitchenAid Standmixer

Wilton Cake pans

Categories
dessert Drinks & Coolers Fat Free Fusion Gluten-free Indian Italian Vegan Vegetarian

Kokum Granita

Summer is almost here  and I have all these amazing memories of different summer vacations I have taken.

I remember waking up to beautiful mornings with the birds were chirping, and scent of various flowers filled the air. One of the birds was called Tambat, which translates to Coppersmith. It makes a sound of a hammer beating down a sheet of copper, I guess that’s where it got its name from. After waking up we would wash up, I still remember those big copper earns filled with water.

My Mami a typical woman from Konkan, unadulterated love, simple life and always a smile on her face that’s how I remember her. She would make beautifully scented rice porridge  which would be served on a giant leaf of a Moochkund tree, which is also called ‘dinner plate’ tree. It was simply dressed with a touch of ghee and salt.

Muchkund Leaves

There were bounties of summer like Karvande, Jambhul, but best part about that vacation used to be mangoes, mangoes for breakfast ,Mangoes for lunch, mangoes for snack Mangoes for a drink, what more can one ask for. I still remember very vividly the room full of mango is layered beautifully on a bed of hay. My aunt would tell us to go look for the ones that are ripe and then the party started.

We would wander around in the village, on the paths paved with Chire, a red stone from that region, leading up to the temple. There was a small pond near the temple called Ban Ganga, we would explore around and head home when the stomach started growling.

Mami would have a drink ready for us, made from the Kokum or ratamba as its called in that region. Gorgeous garnet, ruby color, delicious taste and thirst and heat quenching, this used to the the perfect treat after a walk in the village.

Kokum Sherbat

Fast forward to 2018 when I went to Sicily with my family. I fell in love with Italy and would love to live there some day. We enjoyed some amazing foods and a few of the favorites originated in Italy. Cannoli, Arancini to name a few. One of those dishes is Granita, a refreshing icy treat that comes in all kinds of flavors. It so reminded me of the Barf Gola we get in India.

Gelato

The best part was that the granita is enjoyed at breakfast with brioche, dessert for breakfast, what more can one ask for.

So today’s recipe is my summers relived, Kokum granita showcases two of my favorites, konkan and Sicily.

Print

Kokum Granita

A refreshing summer dessert with tangy and sweet flavors

Servings 4

Ingredients

Ingredients

  • 3/4 cup Kokum Agal without sugar
  • 2 1/2 cups of water
  • 1 1/2 cup sugar
  • 1 tsp Cumin powder
  • 1/2 tsp salt

Instructions

Method

  1. Bring 1 cup of water and sugar to a boil. Keep stirring till sugar dissolves.
  2. Keep aside. Stir in the rest of the water. Taste and add more sugar if needed
  3. Add cumin powder and salt and stir.
  4. Put this mixture into a baking tray, keep it in fridge for 2-3 hours. The mixture will start freezing around the edges slowly. Take the tray out and scrape the frozen part with fork, and put it back in the freezer.
  5. Keep repeating till all of the mixture is frozen into fine ice.

Serve it in a bowl.

Recipe Notes

You can make this a couple of days ahead, just make sure to scrape it with a fork right before you serve

You can also serve it with cream or ice-cream 

You can serve it at breakfast with brioche 

Categories
Appetizer Healthy foods Indian Maharashtrian Side dish Snack Vegan Vegetarian

Kairchi Daal

Gudhi padwa is celebrated in Maharashtra, India as a new year. Across India the same day is celebrated by different names but the spirit is the same. We look at nature, and you can see that spring is in the air and this day is the celebration of the new beginnings. Bengali celebrate ‘poila boishokh’ , Keralite celebrate Vishu and so much more.  Not just in India but even Zoroastrians celebrate ‘Nowrouz’ which marks the first day of the spring. On this day they have a platter newly sprouting wheat is always on the table along with other things. 

I feel you feel like celebrating if you just look around. Where I live, there are beautiful blossoms everywhere, when I go for a walk, I see beautiful wildflowers, mustard fields with yellow flower and just a sense of rejuvenation. 

We went for a beautiful hike in a state park and saw so many beautiful wild flowers, it was just breathtaking. 

I picked a few of these and decided to make a Gudhi using those. 

In India, especially in Maharashtra we celebrate Navratri which starts on Gudhi Padwa. Often there are Haldi Kunku which is a gathering for women, an informal social gathering. The celebration is for a goddess and I remember very fondly my Aai coming up with amazing ideas for decorations. One year we had recreated a famous garden from southern india, another year was a beautiful swing made with flowers and plants. As a kid I loved helping Aai with this event.

This is also the season when you start seeing Green mangoes on the tree in India. So naturally traditionally two dishes using the green mango are always made for this haldi kunku, Aam Panhe, a drink made with cooked green mango & jaggery and the second is this , Kairichi Daal.

I love both of these things very much. Today when I picked up the green mango to make this, it turned out not very sour but the kiwis I picked up from the farmers market were so sour, so voila, a new dish is born. I added some Kiwi and the results were quite delicious.

It a super easy recipe, hope you guys like it. If you have any such traditions, I would love to know about them. 🙂

I have also written the recipe in Marathi, hope thats useful to some.

Print

Kiwi Green Mango Lentil Salad

This is a typical dish made during the spring while the mangoes are still green and tart. Soaked lentils add a perfect crunch to this salad

Ingredients

साहित्य

  • 2 Cups Chana Daal
  • 1/2 Cup Peeled and grated Green Mango
  • 2 Kiwi Peeled and chopped
  • 3-4 Green Chili paste
  • 1 Tsp Salt
  • 1 Tbsp Sugar
  • 1/3 Cup Freshly grated coconut
  • 1-2 Tbsp Chopped mint leaves
  • 1 Tbsp Chopped cilantro

For tempering

  • 3 Tbsp Oil
  • 1 Tsp Mustard seeds
  • 1 Tsp Cumin seeds
  • 1/4 Tsp Asafetida
  • 3 Dry red chilies
  • 1 Sprig Curry leaves

Instructions

Method

  1. Soak the lentils for 4-5 hours at the least 

  2. Drain and crush them in mortar pestle, make sure you don’t make a fine paste

  3. Mix sugar, salt, coconut, mint, cilantro in the crushed lentils. Once its completely mixed, add the kiwi and green mango. 

  4. Heat oil in a pan. Check if its hot by adding a couple of mustard seeds, if they splutter add the rest of the ingredients and saute for 30 secs. Make sure it does not burn 

  5. Add this tempering to the lentil mixture. The salad is now ready 

  6. Serve at room temperature

Print

Kiwi Green Mango Lentil Salad

This is a typical dish made during the spring while the mangoes are still green and tart. Soaked lentils add a perfect crunch to this salad

Ingredients

साहित्य

  • 2 Cups Chana Daal
  • 1/2 Cup Peeled and grated Green Mango
  • 2 Kiwi Peeled and chopped
  • 3-4 Green Chili paste
  • 1 Tsp Salt
  • 1 Tbsp Sugar
  • 1/3 Cup Freshly grated coconut
  • 1-2 Tbsp Chopped mint leaves
  • 1 Tbsp Chopped cilantro

For tempering

  • 3 Tbsp Oil
  • 1 Tsp Mustard seeds
  • 1 Tsp Cumin seeds
  • 1/4 Tsp Asafetida
  • 3 Dry red chilies
  • 1 Sprig Curry leaves

Instructions

Method

  1. Soak the lentils for 4-5 hours at the least 

  2. Drain and crush them in mortar pestle, make sure you don’t make a fine paste

  3. Mix sugar, salt, coconut, mint, cilantro in the crushed lentils. Once its completely mixed, add the kiwi and green mango. 

  4. Heat oil in a pan. Check if its hot by adding a couple of mustard seeds, if they splutter add the rest of the ingredients and saute for 30 secs. Make sure it does not burn 

  5. Add this tempering to the lentil mixture. The salad is now ready 

  6. Serve at room temperature

Categories
dessert French

A Pair of Swans

I met my husband on Dec 31st, got engaged on Jan 14th and we got married in April, between this time we met each other only a couple of times but we talked a lot on the phone. The phone bill ( which my dear parents had to pay) was a clear indication of how much we talked.

Our wedding took place in this town but my parents also hosted a reception in my town. Our family has lived there for four generations and knows so many people who enjoyed being a part of my special day. It was very nice to share our happy day with everyone.

The reception was open doors on a beautiful lawn and the stage was set such that we were overlooking a pool. The pool was full of jasmine and filled the air with amazing fragrance, there was also rose petals everywhere. The back drop against which we stood, had a pair of beautiful Swans, my parents thought those swans represented us, together, ready to fly into our world.

I came to the USA a week after I was married and that separation from my family was not very easy, I missed them very much. There was no internet at home and phone calls were expensive. I remember calling them once a week for 10 mins, it costed $1.25/ min to call India at that time. My dad loves to write letters and we love getting letters from him. In fact, we have an arrangement amongst us siblings about who gets the next letter. Each time Dad writes a letter, one kid gets the original and the rest get a photocopy. At that time, since I was the only one away from home, I always got the originals.

I used to wait everyday anxiously for two people, my husband who would come home at 6, and the postman who would bring letters from India.

My Baba like many other men, does not express his feelings very openly, but his letters exude love, advice, encouragement. In the first letter that Baba wrote, he expressed how he felt when I left India and came to the US. The whole family had come to see me off and Baba was of course there. His words, ” when you said good- bye to us and turned around, you two looked like the pair of swans ready to fly away from the nest’. I have read that letter at least 100 times, and I still cry every time I read it.

My husband made sure to everything possible to make that the transition was easy for me. I love him for that amongst many other things.

When I came to this country, I did not know much about different cuisines other than Indian, and my husband is the one who introduced me to different cuisines. One of the first fancy restaurants we went to was a french restaurant. I still remember eating many firsts like Escargot, Souffle and Profiteroles. I remember the pretty pair of Swans that we had for dessert. Each day is special with him but some are just etched in your memory and that dinner is one of them.

In Roman mythology Swans are sacred to Venus, they say Swans indicate eternal love. We fell in love after we got married and these swans indicate just that, our love for each other.

So swans have a very special meaning for me, the man who gave me life and the man who is my life.

Today’s post specially for our anniversary – it is all about love and I wanted to recreate that dessert from the french restaurant today.

This is a very versatile recipe, today I have shaped them like swans however you can make eclairs, cream puffs and even savory gougres with cheese. I have made these with coffee cream and that tastes amazing

Pate Choux Swans with orange blossom rose

Print

A Pair of Swans

Its a pate a choux pastry shaped like swans and filled with aromatic rose orange blossom cream 

Course Dessert
Cuisine French
Keyword choux pastry, pate a choux
Servings 8

Ingredients

Ingredients:

  • 1/2 cup  milk
  • 1/2 cup water
  • 1 stick of unsalted butter
  • 1 cup flour
  • 1/2 Tsp of salt
  • 2 Tbsp Sugar
  • 4 eggs

For the filling:

  • 1 cup heavy whipping cream
  • 4 tbsp powdered sugar
  • 1 tsp Rose water or orange blossom water
  • 1 tbsp dried rose petals for decoration

Instructions

Method:

  1. Take a sauce pan. Heat milk, sugar, salt and butter till the butter is melted. While the mixture is heating, get the food processor ready and the eggs cracked in a bowl/cup. 

  2. While the mixture is heating, get the food processor ready and the eggs cracked in a bowl/cup. 

  3. As soon as the butter is completely melted, add flour all at once and cook on low flame for about 2 mins. When the mixture starts sticking to the bottom of the pan, take it off the heat.

  4. Transfer the hot mixture to the food processor and start it on a low speed. Add one egg at a time to the hot mixture and keep processing till a nice homogenous mixture. The dough will be sticky but don’t worry.
  5. Preheat the oven to 375 F
  6. Fit a pastry bag with a large star tip.
  7. Fill the mixture in a pastry bag.

  8. Take a baking tray lined with parchment paper.  

  9. Make a tear drop, if you get pointy tips, with wet finger you can just gently tap it down.

  10. Draw swan neck with a small round tip 

  11. Now bake these in the oven for 30 mins. Once the baking is done, let them sit in the hot oven for another 7-10 mins. Take them out and let them cool. The swan necks would need much less time to bake so keep an eye 

For the filling

  1. Mix sugar, orange blossom water and whipping cream  and whip till you get a nice and firm cream. Keep it in a separate bowl.

Assembly

  1. Take the cooled pastry , you can cut a slit .Slice them horizontally and then cut the top in half.

  2. Fill the pastry with the flavored whipped cream 

  3. Attach the swan necks to the puff 

  4. Sprinkle some rose petal so they stick to the cream, and serve

Recipe Notes

If you want to serve these as cream puffs, you can make an opening at the bottom of the pastry and fill the cream with a round tip

You can pipe these and freeze them and thaw and bake when ready

Pate a choux pastry
Categories
Cookies dessert Not sure

Mokonut cookies

I don’t bake cookies much through out the year but around the holidays I try to make different cookies, try new recipes, and give some as gifts.

My family loves chocolate and especially dark chocolate, in fact we don’t buy any chocolate that’s less than 60% cocoa. I love ginger in all forms- in my tea, in chutney, ginger beer and candied ginger.

So what can be better than a cookie that has bittersweet chocolate and candied ginger.. everyone is happy.

 

This year I did not make many since I am traveling during the holidays, but when I got the latest Global Baking issue of Saveur Magazine, I knew I had to try a couple of recipes.

I loved the Swedish buns recipe so I made these St Lucia Buns inspired by that article. Those turned out amazing. I have a quick video on that, do check it out.

For these chocolate ginger cookies, you need candied Ginger, you can always buy it but I feel that it is so easy to make it at home that I always prefer that. If anyone wants a recipe for candied ginger, let me know and I would be happy to share.

I ended up making Buddha’s hand candies as well. If you have not tried using Buddha’s hand, you must, it’s just incredible. I love how it looks and smells, and you can use it like a room freshener.

I’m trying to make quick videos of the recipes I make, so I have posted the one I made for these cookies.

Print

Chocolate Ginger cookies

Fudgey center, dark chocolate, subtle heat from the candied ginger and the touch of salt flakes make for a decadent grown-up cookie. Perfect for the holiday parties or as a part of your dessert platter

Course cookies, Dessert
Cuisine American, French
Keyword baking, chocolate, cookies, dark chocolate, Ginger
Prep Time 3 hours 20 minutes
Cook Time 12 minutes
Total Time 3 hours 32 minutes
Servings 12
Author Anagha

Ingredients

  • 1 1⁄2 cups All purpose flour
  • 1 tsp Unsweetened cocoa
  • 1 tsp Baking Powder
  • 1/2 tsp Baking Soda
  • 5 Tbsp unsalted butter, softened
  • 1/3 cup Coconut oil
  • 1/3 cup Sugar
  • 1/4 cup Light brown sugar
  • 3/4 tsp Kosher Salt
  • 1 large egg
  • 4 Oz bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
  • 3 Oz Candied Ginger
  • Flaky sea salt(like Maldon) for sprinkling

Instructions

  1. In a medium bowl, sift the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, and baking soda, and set aside.

  2. In the bowl of a stand mixer  with the paddle attachment, cream butter, coconut oil, both sugars, and salt. 

    Cream on medium speed until pale and fluffy, it typically takes 1-2 mins

     Add the egg, and mix until combined.

    On low speed, add the flour mixture, and mix to incorporate. Mix in the chocolate and ginger until just combined.

  3. Turn the dough out onto a sheet of plastic wrap. Press and shape to form a 1-inch-thick rectangle, and wrap tightly. Refrigerate for at least 3 hours.

  4. For baking :

    Preeheat the oven to 375°F

    Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper. 

    Lightly flour a work surface and place the dough on top. Slice into 12 equal pieces. Roll each piece into a ball and transfer to the prepared sheets, leaving at least 1 inch between each. 

    Sprinkle with sea salt.

  5. Bake until the edges have crisped slightly, 10–12 minutes. Remove and let cool for 5 minutes on the baking sheets, then transfer to a rack to cool completely.

  6. Dont be tempted to bake longer, trust me this time is enough 

Note:

The first time I made a batch of these cookies I followed the exact recipe, but the second time I substituted the coconut oil with equal amounts of unsalted butter. Also, I added a pinch of dried ground ginger to the dry ingredients. Try this variation for flakier cookies!

Categories
Italian Main Dish milk Noodles Pasta

Lemon Goat cheese Ravioli

I have been a part of this cook book club and I am loving it. I feel its great because you are getting inspiration from the book and your co-chefs. Its amazing to see everyone’s take on the same dish, be it swapping out ingredients, cooking techniques or even plating.

This month’s author is  Yotam Ottolenghi and we are cooking from various books of his. I must tell you, you will fall in love with his book. I will be sharing many recipes, some just like he makes, some my variations.

Jerusalem is one of my favorite cook books, Yotam takes us down the lanes of Jerusalem. You can smell the breads from the bakery and halva on the streets.

I love the fact that he is so connected to his roots and that his cooking is simple. It speaks to you because the ingredients are honest and so are the techniques. There is a clear sense of sharing the recipes and it touches me. It focuses on various vegetables that we get through out the year and not limited to just carrots and bell peppers

Today I am sharing one of the recipes from his book Plenty. This has been my inspiration to making pasta and also make other things that I will be sharing soon.

cof

 

For the pasta

edf

3 tbsp olive oil
3 medium eggs
330g ’00’ flour, plus more for rolling
½ tsp turmeric
Grated zest of 3 lemons

For the filling

cof

300g creamy, mild goat’s cheese
½ tsp  sea salt
1 pinch chilli flakes
Freshly ground black pepper
1 egg white, beaten

To serve

2 tsp pink peppercorns, crushed
1 tsp roughly chopped tarragon
Grated zest of 1 lemon
Lemon juice (optional)

Method

Mix the oil and eggs. Put the flour, turmeric and zest in a food processor, add the oil and egg mix, and blend to a crumbly dough (it may require extra flour or oil).

Once the dough has come together and is smooth (you may need to work it a little by hand, too), divide it into four thick, rectangular blocks.

Wrap in clingfilm and chill for anything from 30 minutes to two days.

cof

Dust a work surface with flour. Take a piece of dough and flatten with a rolling pin. Set a pasta machine to its widest setting and pass through. Repeat, narrowing the setting a notch each time, until you reach the lowest setting. Place pasta sheets flat under a moist towel, so they don’t dry out.

sdr

Use a fork to crush all the filling ingredients together, apart from the egg white. Use a pastry cutter (or rim of a glass) to stamp out pasta circles roughly 7cm in diameter. Brush each with egg white and place a heaped teaspoon of filling in its centre. Place another disc on top and, with fingers dipped in flour, squeeze out any air as you bring the edges of the discs together. You should end up with a pillow-shaped centre surrounded by a 1cm edge. Tighten the edges until you can’t see a seam. Repeat with the rest of the dough, place the ravioli on a tray sprinkled with semolina, and leave to dry for 15 minutes. Cover with clingfilm and refrigerate for a day or two.

IMG_20170629_191556.jpg

To serve, bring a large pan of salted water to the boil. Cook the pasta for two to three minutes, until al dente, drain and divide between four plates. Sprinkle with pink peppercorns, tarragon and lemon zest. Drizzle with rapeseed oil, add salt and a squirt of lemon juice, and serve piping hot.

Categories
Cookies Persian

Cardamom-Pistachio cookie

two cookies

I am not much of a baker. I love making desserts but baking is another beast which I hope to tame at some point. I make cakes, simple ones and I am always thrilled when they come out good. 🙂 I love trying new recipes if I get some inspiration. I love going to different ethnic grocery stores and looking for ideas, I am always amazed at the various new things I learn each time.

One of my favorite grocery store near my home is a Persian/middle eastern grocery store. Any time I go there, I come back with something new and that starts my experimentations.

It is holiday season and holiday means cookies and cakes and all those yummy treats. I wanted to make cookies but did not which one to pick, they are all so tempting. Traditional chocolate chip, oatmeal resin, Italian biscotti, indian nankhatai, german spice cookie to name a few. So I thought why not a take help from everyone and took  a poll on my facebook page.

And majority of you said that they wanted to see a recipe that is ‘something different’ or with ‘innovative flavors’. I thought of many ideas but somehow this one seemed perfect for the time.

Here I present my first Xmas Cookie ( there are man

Cardamom- Pistachio shortbread with orange blossom glaze

Pistachio-orangeblossom

It stole my heart and the whole house smelt like heaven ( and  a lot like Haleh Bakery).

It is so easy yet looks very fancy and eclectic, you can make the dough ahead of time, keep it wrapped in the fridge. When you want, 15 minutes and you will have fresh batch of cookies.

Print

Pistachio Cardamom cookie

Course cookies, Dessert
Cuisine Indian, Persian
Servings 4
Author Anagha

Ingredients

Cookie dough

  • 1 1/2 Cups All purpose flour
  • 1/2 Cup Powdered Sugar
  • 1/2 Tsp Salt
  • 1 1/2 Stick Unsalted Butter cut in cubes About 12 tbsp
  • 1/2 Cup Unsalted Pistachios, slightly toasted and chopped
  • 1 unit Egg Yolk, you can use chilled milk for vegetarian option)
  • 1/2 Tsp Ground Cardamom

For Glaze

  • 1 Cup Powdered Sugar
  • 1 Unit Egg White You can use 1 Tbsp Milk instead
  • 3/4 Tsp Orange Blossom water ( you can use Rose water as well)

Instructions

Cookies

  1. In a food processor pulse the pistachios, cardamom and flour till the nuts are a little chopped

  2. Add powdered sugar and pulse more

  3. Add the butter and pulse till you get breadcrumb texture

  4. Add the egg yolk/cold milk. Keep pulsing till the dough comes together

  5. Take the dough and roll it into a log. 

    Keep the log in the fridge for a couple of hours for the dough to harden

Baking

  1. Pre heat the oven to 325 F

  2. Slice the log into about 1/4 inch thick pieces and bake for 15-17 mins.

    Let it cool completely.

Glaze

  1. Mix all the ingredients to make the glaze.

Decorate

  1. Take the cooled cookies, top with a small amount of glaze, decorate cookies with sliced pistachios, dried rose petals, saffron strands.

Categories
Appetizer Indian Vegan Vegetarian

Soya Pyaaz Ki Seekh kabob

I love summers. Abundant produce, long days and backyard barbecues. I love anything and everything that comes off the grill. The smoky aroma it imparts to the food is so appetizing. We have grilled all the way till October, even when it is raining with an umbrella in the hand, umbrella not for us but for the grill 😉

Today it was a gorgeous evening, the first moon was in the sky. It marks the beginning of Ramdan.  It was not too hot, prefect temperature to have a meal on the patio.


I love summer produce and can almost go vegetarian in summer but then the kabobs call my name, and I melt.

This recipe today sort of helps me be vegetarian on Monday. It is perfect for the #meatlessmondays and the grill.

I love watching all food shows but there are some favorites and master chef is one of them. I loved the indian version more because there was Vikas Khanna and there was Ranveer Brar ;). Recently I got a chance to meet with Vikas Khanna( thanks to a dear friend)


A local organization Women’s now is hosting a cooking competition  and Ranveer will be the judge, so now I can not wait to meet Ranveer.

Today’s recipe is based on his recipe. I made a few tweaks, it is a keeper


Ingredients

1.5 cup soya chunks or 1 cup granules

1 large potato

1/2 onion finely chopped

1-2 green chilies chopped

1 tsp Shahi Jeera

1 tbsp oil

1 tsp crushed coriander seeds

1/2 tsp red chili powder

1 pinch cardamom powder

1-2 drops of liquid smoke

A few mint leaves chopped

Cilantro chopped

Salt to taste

Method

  • Boil the potato, peel and mash well.
  • Soak the soya chunks in hot water for 15-20 mins. Drain and squeeze out excess water.
  • Pulse in the food processor to get a minced meat like consistency.
  • In a pan heat the oil, add jeera when the oil is hot. Sauté for a few seconds.
  • Add the chopped onions and chilies and sauté on medium heat till brown.
  • Add these onions to the soya mixture along with potatoes and rest of the ingredients.
  • Make patties and shallow fry in a pan or make long rolls and shape lo a kabob on a skewer. Cook till crispy outside.
  • Remember everything else is cooked so make sure you don’t let the kabob dry out.

I served it with a Rose-strawberry coconut smoothie with chia seeds, it seemed to somehow compliment the colors of the sky.

Categories
Breakfast French Kids favorite Snack Vegetarian

Leek, Potato & Goat cheese Galette with Pistachio Crust

Last few days have been very challenging, I consider myself a very strong person but it is amazing how vulnerable one gets when they are emotionally invested. I know it will be alright eventually but right now it hurts.  I really needed to do something that takes my attention away. So I have started lifting weights and  decided to try at least one new  recipe every week.

I love love brunches. You can try different things than your usual lunch and you are not rushed to have everything ready. Perfect for lazy mornings and occasions like Mother’s day. On the occasion of Mother’s day, I am sharing this recipe that can be a perfect addition to your brunch table. You can make the prep ahead of time and then comes together in less than 15 mins.

I love nuts, and especially pistachios. I am in love with combination of  green, pink colors you see in these raw nuts. I recently made a nice torte with pistachio crust and it was a major hit at my work.  Todays recipe uses the nuts in the crust, giving it a unique toasty flavor and crunch.


I had seen this recipe on Bon Appetit and have been wanting to make it. I have grown fond of goat cheese recently and loved the contrast of the tangy, creamy goat cheese against the caramelized leeks and sweetness of honey.

Goat Cheese & Leek Galette with pistachio crustPistachio Galette

 

Ingredients

For the dough

  • ½ cup shelled pistachios
  • 2½ cups unbleached flour
  •  1 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1 teaspoon sugar
  • 1 cup (2 sticks) chilled unsalted butter, cut into pieces

_MG_3035

Toppings

  • 1 tablespoon olive oil, plus more for drizzling
  • 1 large leek, halved lengthwise, white and pale-green parts only, finely chopped
  • ¼ cup  heavy cream
  • 4 ounces goat cheese
  • 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
  •  2/3 Kosher salt, freshly ground pepper
  • 4 tablespoons coarsely chopped dill, plus more for serving
  • 2 large Yukon Gold potatoes, thinly sliced
  •  1 large egg, beaten to blend Honey (for drizzling)
  • Crushed szechuan peppercorns
  • Flaky sea salt (optional; for serving)_MG_3039

Method

 Dough

  • Pulse pistachios in a food processor until coarsely ground. Add flour, kosher salt, and sugar and pulse until combined.
  • Add butter and pulse until a coarse meal forms.
  • With motor running, slowly add ½ cup ice water and process until dough comes together.
  • Transfer dough to a work surface, form into a ball, and flatten to a disc.
  • Wrap dough in parchment and chill 30 minutes.
Dough
crust

Topping

  • Preheat oven to 400º. Heat oil in a small skillet over medium-low; cook leek, stirring occasionally and being careful not to brown, until just softened, about 5 minutes.
  • Meanwhile, mix cream, goat cheese, and garlic in a medium bowl until smooth. Season with kosher salt and pepper. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment.
  • Transfer dough to a work surface and divide into 4 pieces.
  • Working with one piece at a time, roll out to an 8″ round.

Layer it up

  • Using an offset spatula, spread one-quarter of the goat cheese mixture on dough, leaving a 1″ border.
  • Top with 1 Tbsp. dill and a thin layer of potato slices. Drizzle with oil and season with kosher salt.
  • Top with one-quarter of the leeks. Fold edges over, overlapping slightly.
  • Carefully transfer galette to prepared sheet. Repeat with remaining dough and filling.
  • Brush crusts with egg wash. Bake galettes until crusts are golden brown and potatoes are soft, 30–40 minutes. If you want to make a vegetarian version, you can skip the egg and instead use some water mixed milk to brush the edges.

Cut slice

Original Recipe:

http://www.bonappetit.com/recipe/goat-cheese-leek-and-potato-galette-with-pistachio-crust#recipe-ingredients

en_USEnglish
en_USEnglish