Bhapa Sandesh with Cranberry Sauce : Fusion Delight

Everything is going fusion these days. Talk about Music, Movies, Fashion or Food... Mmm, now thats talking :) We create many fusion recipes without knowing in our daily lives. Do you remember that Chapathi wrap you prepared for your kid, or that baked samosa you had with Tea last weekend. And hey, what about that Lentil Soup with Indian Spices you had after Thanks Giving party. Well, we do that all the time, dont we ?

This fusion recipe has been taken from Sukanya's Blog Saffron Streaks with whom I am being paired this week for Radhika's event Blog Hop. It was hard to choose the recipe from a range of all wonderful and amazing posts she has. I was actually confused between her Mughlayi Paneer and Begun Basanti, but then this dessert ruled them all. So wonderfully penned details and bful pics, I was stuck on the page and immediately wanted to try this. So, here I am with a little altered recipe since I did not have Strawberries handy that day. Worked out with Cranberries  equally good and tangy in taste. You can try either one of them, even a mix of berries for a refreshing and authentic Fusion :)

Here is a request, please use Full fat milk in this recipe. I used skimmed milk and the result was not that soft, so unlike its fatty kin. Please show some courage and use sugar also generously, although this recipe doesnt call for more. But just a suggestion to make you love this amazing dessert even more :)

Ingredients:

2 ltr Full Fat Milk 

1/2 cup Curd, to curdle 

1/2 cup Sugar 

Handful f berries , chopped

1 tsp of Rose or Kevda Essence.  

For Cranberry sauce

1 cup fresh or frozen Cranberries 

1/2 cup Apple juice 

1/4 cup Orange juice 

1/2 cup Sugar 

Method:

First boil the milk and when it comes to a boiling point, immediately turn  the flame to low and gradually start adding curd to let the milk curdle. Keep stirring frequently in between. Curdling with Curd takes a little more time than other souring agents such as Lemon juice or Citric acid but works best in this case. If it doesnt work, you can use any other souring agent as you like. Drain the paneer and store the whey water for later uses. 

Squeeze the Paneer a bit, not taking out the entire juice out of it and start kneading gently with your palms. Within 3-4 min it will start getting smooth and pliable, knead it for 2 more min.

Mix sugar, essence and chopped berries gently with the paneer. Sugar should be incorporated well.
Transfer into a bowl and steam for 8-10 min. I steamed in a microwave for 10 min and it worked well for me.
Meanwhile, prepare cranberry sauce. Mix all the ingredients in a pan and cook on medium flame for 5 min. Stir and simmer for next 8-10 min till it gets all tender, mushy and juicy. Turn off and let it cool off at room temperature.
Let the Cranberry sauce and Bhapa Sandesh both are cool enough, spread the sauce on top and chill it in Fridge for like 1-2 hours.
Serve chilled :)

Specially for Radhika's Blog Hop this week

Nayna's Red and Green Christmas 

Eggs in Tomato Gravy : Kashmiri Style

When I was staying in Hostel with friends, I had a Kashmiri roomie with me. She did not know any type of cooking. Nothing, not even tea. I was the one doing all the cooking and stuff and she used to do the dishes for both of us. It worked that ways. But since, I was and am a pure vegetarian, she could never taste the non-veg dishes at home, specially not the authentic Kashmiri ones. One day, suddenly she gasped and cried for her own cuisine and we started search all across New Delhi for authentic Kashmiri food. Unfortunately, there was none in our vicinity. To prove her continuous bragging about the richness of her cuisine, she tried to make a dish for me. Replacing chicken with egg in that recipe. She took help from her Mom over phone and created something even she was not aware of. :)

But the end result was amazing. I had never tasted this kind of egg curry in my life. Yes, it was sort of egg curry, but a very different yet simple one. Since then we used to have this almost every fortnight, off course I did the dishes for those days :D

I am still not sure whether this is the authentic Kashmiri recipe or not. But am giving this a benefit of doubt since her Mom dictated her how to cook it. She used to have it with rice ( Oh Gosh ! she even ate dry Okra subzi with rice ), but I love it with Naan or plain chapathi.

Ingredients:

1. 1 kg Tomatoes, chopped medium size
2. 5- 6 eggs
3. 1 tbsp Mustard oil
4. 1 tsp Cumin seeds, salt, turmeric, Garam Masaala, Black pepper each
5. 1 ½ tsp red chilli powder
6. 2-3 green chillies, chopped small
7. 7-8 garlic pods, crushed and minced

Method:

1. Hard boil the eggs with a pinch of salt in the water. Salt prevents the eggs from cracking and make them easy to peel off.
2. Meanwhile, heat oil in a pan. Add cumin seeds and splutter.
3. Add all tomatoes and green chillies. Cook covered on a medium flame for about 7-8 minutes.
4. By this time the eggs would have been boiled properly. Take them out, peel them and poke them with a fork several times. Be careful not to break the egg apart, just poke it. Keep aside.
5. Add garlic and spices to the tomato mixture. Combine well and keep cooking covered for another 4-5 minutes.
6. Now, add eggs into the sauce and fold them good. The sauce should go inside them.
7. Cook for another 12-15 min, folding eggs 3-4 times in between. Finally the sauce will be thick and rich and NOT runny.
8. Turn off the flame and keep the dish covered for 5 min before serving. Eggs should absorb all the spices very well.
9. Garnish with black pepper and Garam Masala.

Notes:

1. This recipe is supposed to be hot in taste. Please be generous with Red chili powder, as eggs absorb a lot of hotness.

2. Before serving keep the eggs in gravy for atleast half hour to let eggs absorb flavours well. 

Goes to Radhika's Unique Event : Hibernative food 

Reposting to Archana : Lets Go back to Roots
Ramya's Egg Recipes

Cheese vada

This vada came out as a result of leftover stuff last weekend. I had boiled potatoes to make Kachaalu with khichdi in the afternoon. Some were left, so I mixed them with some leftover bread and cheese and this instant terrific vada turned out extremely crispy from outside and cheesy from inside...These melt in the mouth crisp balls are a sure hit for parties and kids.

Tomato puree provides a tangy and unique taste to this weekend treat. It got space as an evening snack for us and we enjoyed to the core. :)

Ingredients:
1. 1 cup boiled potato, mashed thoroughly
2. 1 cup freshly made breadcrumbs ( I used wholewheat bread , 2 were enough for this much amount )
3. 1/2 cup boiled peas, crushed slightly
4. 1/2 cup cheddar and Mozzarella cheese mix
5. 1 tsp salt, turmeric, coriander powder, red chili powder each
6. 1 tsp poppy seeds ( khuskhus )
7. oil for deep frying
8. 1/2 cup coriander leaves , chopped
9. 1 tomato, pureed
10. 1/2 tsp black pepper for garnishing.
11. 1 green chili, chopped very fine.

Method:
1. Mix all the ingredients except Cheese, black pepper and coriander leaves together and knead well. Keep aside for 15 min.
2. Divide the dough into 7-8 equal balls.
3. Now, flatten the ball with your palms slightly, fill in the 1/2 cheese and fold together into a ball.
4. Heat the oil in a deep pan on high first so that its very hot. Turn the flame on low now and deep fry the balls  . Keeping the flame low in this step is very important, else the balls will burn from outside and will be raw from inside.
5. Garnish with cilantro and black pepper. Serve with chutney of your choice.

These Scrumptious balls roll to :~

Monsoon Medley from Sukanya

Srav's Cooking Concept - Appetizers

Denny's Serve it - Fried 
Jabeen's Iftar Nights

Ayessha's Anyone can cook  

Be My Guest : My first Event

Hi Friends,

Atithi Devo Bhava !! That’s the motto we Indians follow, well at least most of us do  :).. . Keeping this in my beliefs, I came out with my first Event, ‘’Be My Guest’’. I have always been interested in observing different bloggers Writing style, their recipe description, photographs and off course, Innovative recipes. And trust me, I gasp every time I see something wonderful on a blog. How amazing things are there in this blogosphere .. Creative, interesting, innovative... I wonder when would I be able to reach that level where new bloggers will look up to my blog as I do for the veterans here.

I have seen many bloggers writing Guest posts for other blogs, which is off course very generous and lovely of them. So when this idea floated in my mind, I thought it should provide an opportunity specially for the beginners like me, to get a chance to know their favourite bloggers in detail. I wanted to introduce those veterans in a new light of my own, whose posts I admire and look forward to so that the Blogosphere get to know them better :)

Although this is precisely not an event, since it will be a dedicated post from one person. But here in this series, the Guest post will be published 1st of every month. I will study their Blog and will discuss some of their best  recipes, pics and other posts ( acc to me ). I would also request the person to shed some light on their experiences and ventures in this arena, so that I can weave them in the post. This will be exciting for me to study one blog every month in depth and extract the goodness of it, and it should indeed be useful to my readers and friends to get to know that person and their Blog more..

Friends, if you have any suggestion for me on this event or if you want to be a part of it and provide me with a chance and pride to know you better, please mail me at : nupurs.kitchen@gmail.com. Once again, kudos to all of us for keeping the lights burning !!

Guest Schedule :

Dec 2011 : Anu Shoj of Anuz Healthy Kitchen 

Garlic Pesto Pull Apart Bread

Everything is Hard unless you make it easy ... I love this quote .. Its applicable on many things in life.. It is always easier to look at things and then quit even without trying . Many does it, including me sometimes. Like looking at this Garlic Pull Apart roll. Whenever I used to see the pics at some blog, the first thing turned into my head was '' Next time''... It always seemed so difficult for me to convince my own self for baking them. But last weekend, I tried and get on with the recipe .. And needless to say, it paid off well.. So girls, at least with cooking, never stop trying ..

I modified the recipe a little bit according to my convenience and taste. Like, I added pesto to it which off course gave wonderful results but made the rolls a bit soggy by next day. So you can have it optional, unless you are consuming all the stuff the same day.. Warm and aromatic.. Although the taste of pesto was an amazing addition to it, I must say. Also, I have used a little bit of whole wheat flour as well, just to reduce my guilt. But that worked and the rolls were not less soft or crunchy than their APF kin.

For those who love Garlic, these rolls are perfect partner for tea time. You can make them a bit herby too, although I have only used Coriander. Am not that comfortable with any other herb. The combo of garlic and coriander works best for me.

Ingredients:
1. 2 cups All purpose flour
2. 1 cup whole wheat flour
3. 1 1/4 cup warm water
4. 1 tbsp Active dry Yeast
5. 1 tsp salt
6. 1 tbsp sugar
7. 2 tbsp Olive oil / Butter
8. 1 egg white OR 1 tbsp milk for glaze ( optional )

For Garlic Spread:
1. 7-8 garlic pods, crushed and minced
2. 1 tbsp butter, at room temperature
3. 1/2 cup coriander leaves, chopped
4. 1/4 cup Pesto

Method:
Pour the yest into the warm water and let it froth for 10-12 min. Mix everything together for dough and knead it to a smooth pliable dough ball.
Apply oil on top and wrap the bowl with a cling film. Keep it in warm oven for 45 min to rise till it gets almost double its size.
By that time prepare garlic spread by mixing everything together.
Knock out the air from the dough by pressing it and kneading again for 2 minutes. Roll down half of the dough into a rectangular shape and almost 1/2 inch thick. It should not be very thin.

Apply the garlic spread generously over it. Roll it and then cut into 4-5 parts depending on the length of roll.
Place the rolls adjacent to each other in a greased baking sheet, but do remember to place them vertically. Repeat the process with the remaining dough.

If there is some garlic spread left, apply it on top of the rolls. Brush some egg white or milk for glaze over it. I applied milk but the result with egg is best. You may sprinkle Sesame seeds on top for that extra crunch and look. Allow to prove ( rise ) for 20 min.

Meanwhile heat the oven at 180 degrees. Bake for 25-30 min and let it rest for next 10 min.
Enjoy warm but beware of the hot garlic oozing out.. just have patience and enjoy every bite :)

Off to Bake Fest from Vardhini
Krithi's Serve it - Savory Bread
Srav's CC- Holiday Baking
Kalyani's Global Food Fest

Broccoli Pasta in Mascarpone Sauce... Utterly Delicious

I am not one to skimp on rich/fried foods, love it all. I don't believe in deprivation and certainly love indulgence - though in moderation. Cant think of eating that way on all the 7 days of the week. 2 days of fried and a little luxurious foods? No issues - make it up by way of expending them more by way of  working out or doing more physical work and eating sensibly the remaining 4 days. I  know I know, not that easy.. Even get on to me many times.. Well, This pasta is in the middle of it - Not your typical "health" food but not a sinful fiesta either. Just an indulgence which won't make me guilty. And the best part is - yes, haven't come to that part yet -  is the time it takes to make this and the effort involved. Its a joke! Extremely easy to put together with minimal ingredients.  Play around with the recipe as per your palate - its very versatile.


I personally think Mascarpone Cheese and Pasta are pair made in heaven! Just 1 tbsp added to pasta makes it mindbogglingly delicious! To enhance the nutritive value of this recipe, I have added Broccoli to it along with a little of pine nuts for that extra crunch. It was all an experiment but rendered awesome results. Off course, Whole wheat Pasta offered a great contribution in making this a healthy recipe and my guilt of having Cheese was overcome :)

Ingredients:

1 cup whole wheat Pasta , boiled according to the Packet instructions. 

For the Sauce

1 can of organic crushed tomatoes

few garlic cloves

1 onion

fresh basil, handful chopped

three big tablespoons of mascarpone cheese

salt & pepper

1 tbsp Fresh Cream

1/2 cup grated Broccoli

1 tbsp Butter

For Garnish

1 tsp Pine nuts

1 tbsp grated Parmesan Cheese

Method:

Cook the pasta according to package directions. Drain the pasta. Reserve at least a cup of the pasta cooking water. The starch from the pasta in the water will help thicken your sauce.

In the same pot, over medium heat, melt the tablespoon of butter. 

Chop the garlic cloves very finely. Add the garlic to the melted butter and cook about 3 minutes until soft but not brown. Add the chopped Onion and suate till brown.

Add the basil leaves and tomatoes  and cook covered for next 2-3 minutes, stirring in between to avoid sticking. Combine grated Broccoli and cook for next 2-3 min. 

Next, pour in mascarpone Cheese and the cream, stirring frequently until smooth. Add the pasta water a little at a time until you have the desired thickness of the sauce.

Add the Parmesan cheese and Salt and pepper to taste. Keep stirring at low flame for next 2 min. Turn off the flame. 

Add the pasta and toss to coat evenly. Sprinkle with 2 tablespoons finely chopped chives for the final touch :)

Off to Kalyani's Global Food Festival 

and Sreelu's Thanks Giving Vegetarian Food 

Broccoli Paneer with Sesame

Broccoli is said to be the most hatred vegetable after Brussels Sprouts. Even I have to make verious attempts to inculde this wonder veg in our diet.  Sometimes in the parantha, sometimes in rice, this has been an invisible supplement in our daily meals. My hubby doesnt like the texture of Broccoli, even Cauliflower.. tsk tsk .. :( 


But when I saw  this recipe on a blog and tried it last week.... Or bas,  Brocoli Brocoli naa rahi :) :)

Tossing it with paneer was the only motivation factor for my husband. But once he had this, no stopping ... :) I have made this thrice since then . Its my dedication to all Paneer lovers like us ... he he.. A Superfood with all the nutrients and power boosters. This recipe is soo tasty and easy to make, am sure you wont stop at one. 

Steamed in Microwave

Chopped broccoli 

Ingredients :

1. 2 cups full of broccoli florets, wahsed. 

2. 1 tsp veg oil

3. A pinch of Asafoetida 
4. 1 tsp Cumin seeds
5. 1 tsp Sesame seeds
6. 1 large green chilli , chopped
7. 1/2 tsp brown mustard seeds
8. 1/2 cup of curry leaves
9. 2 large onions, thinly sliced
10. 2 cups of Paneer cubes
11. 2 tsp of ginger garlic minced together
12. 1 tsp lemon juice
13. Salt to taste
14. 1 tsp Black pepper


Method :


1. Trim the Broccoli florets and steam or boil them for 5 minutes. They should be tender but firm, not mushy. Keep aside after draining. 
2. Heat the oil in a pan and add Heeng, Cumin seeds, Sesame seeds, Mustard seeds, Chilli and Curry leavs together. Toss them together for 1-2 minutes till seeds starts to splutter. 
3. Add onions into it and cook till they get brown. Dont overcook everything or it will get burnt. 
4. Throw in the Paneer, Minced ginger-garlic and salt. Cook covered for around3-4 minutes. If paneer sticks to the bottom of the pan, sprinkle some water to it. 
5. Add broccoli to this now and mix thoroughly. Cook covered for another 1 minute. 
6. Add lemon juice and black pepper at the end and keep covered for another 1 minute.. 


Done dana done ... !!!

The final Relish 

Sent to DD's Quick and Easy recipes Event 

Palak Paneer: Vegetarian Delight !

In my advent of adding Spinach to every bit and course, I had forgotten to cook my very favorite dish, Palak Paneer for a long time. It used to be my life line whenever we went out for dinner with my non-veg crazy friends... I usually dont like Paneer dishes in every restaurant, some people mix funny ingredients with it. To  make it rich they add a lot of cornflour or arrowroot, or even Tomato Ketchup..  and that really spoils the taste of this evergreen luxury dish. I seriously like to keep it simple sometimes, just tomato and paneer with minimum spices.. Love that flavour. Anyways, on most of these occasions, I ordered Palak Paneer as an escape from enormous tasteless options and most of the times, I found it good enough to cherish.

At home too, its a very healthy dish and best for people who dont like spinach but adores Paneer. Provides a whole lot of nutrients with a  rich taste.I have never learnt the recipe from anywhere but from trial and errors.. Not to brag but I love the way I cook this, have always been tempted to prepare it often. Its my favorite way to add nutrition to taste or rather taste to nutrition  :)

I add a pinch of cinnamon and  Sugar which provides that extra sweetness that neutralizes the so called bitterness of  Spinach. With the cornflour mixed with milk, it gives an extra richness and creamy texture to the curry which goes very well with the paneer.

Ingredients:
1. 3 cups chopped Spinach
2. 1 cup paneer, cubed
3. 2 large tomatoes, chopped
4. 1 large onion, chopped
5. 4-5 garlic cloves, minced
6. 1 tsp ginger, minced
7. 1 tsp ghee
8. 2-3 green chilies, chopped
9. 2-3 red dried chilies
10. 1 tsp Cumin seeds, turmeric, Coriander powder each
11.  A pinch of asafoetida, cinnamon
12. 1 tsp Kasuri Methi
13. Salt to taste
14. 1 tbsp Corn flour
15. 1 cup milk
16. Thinly sliced ginger pieces to garnish
17. a pinch of sugar

Method:
Heat a non stick pan and dry roast the onions till brown. Sprinkle some water if it gets sticky. Add spinach, chopped green chilies, salt, turmeric, coriander powder and half of the chopped tomatoes and cook covered for 4-5 min till it gets wilted and mashed up.
Now, blend this mixture in a blender coarsely in a blender. Remember not to blend it for a long time, else it will get all mashed up. We just need a coarse mixture.
Heat ghee in the pan and splutter cumin seeds. Add cinnamon, kasuri methi and asafoetida and fry for just 15-20 sec.
Add garlic, ginger, rest of the tomatoes and red dried chilies. Combine the blended spinach and paneer cubes and simmer for 5-7 min.
In a bowl of milk add cornflour and a pinch of sugar. Gradually add in this mixture to the cooked spinach and stir well. Cook for another 10-12 min stirring frequently in between. Turn off when the milk blends completely with the Spinach.
Garnish with sliced ginger and some grated paneer, serve hot with Chapathi or Rice.

Off to Radhika's Winter Carnival 

Sreelu's Thanks Giving Recipes:

Easy low fat Bread Pudding

Cooking while watching Big Boss is fun. Last Autumn when I was new to this country, Big Boss was a Supper mate for us. And now while it has started again, I can recall those initial days. Exciting yet Boring, those days were good enough for me to explore the area so well that I now know every nook and corner. With wonderful new friends, new job and Lovely Husband; I feel content. Touch Wood :)


So, coming back to cooking. When you are happy, the only problem is that you want to eat more good food :(.. At least thats the case with me. And then I keep on cooking Sweets, which btw I loved to core ( but then, who doesnt ). This bread pudding is one such quick fix to my Tongue tickling.


Bread Pudding is an easy and rich Pudding. Its an English delicacy with immense flavour and can be made with leftovers in kitchen. It doesnt need any special preparation to start with and that quality makes it even more adorable. This version of Bread Pudding which I have cooked, is a quick and low fat one. But it amazed the taste buds as good as its rich akin. I have used a bit of Kewra Essence ( Actually I ran out of Vanilla Essence that day ) but that gave the recipe a subtle Indian taste which was just amazing. With a hint of Cardamom and Nutmeg, this Bread Pudding was a perfect fusion of English and Indian tastes. Also, the mistake which I did was that I used a bit less Milk which finally made the dish dry. So I have increased the quantity for reference of you guys. I have used honey by replacing some amount of Sugar, and it also provides glaze to the final dish.

Ingredients:
1. 4-5 White Bread pieces ( I used Oaty bran white Bread )
2. 1 Egg
3. 2 cups Skimmed Milk
4. 1 tsp Kewra Essence
5. 1/4 tsp Cardamom, Nutmeg powder each
6. 1/4 cup Sugar
7. 1/4 cup Honey
8. 1/4 cup Raisins soaked in 1/2 cup warm milk ( I used more but better use this much only, learnt lesson )
9. 1/2 cup Butter + 1 tsp Olive oil
10. 2 tbsp Apricot / Strawberry preserve ( optional, I ran out of it while taking pics )

Method:
Grease a Baking Dish with Olive Oil. Spread the layers of bread overlapping each other. Drizzle honey over the bread. 
In a bowl, whisk together egg, milk, butter and sugar to form a frothy creamy mixture. Add the spices, kewra essence and whisk again for few seconds. Spread this mixture over the bread layer. 
Sprinkle the soaked Raisins on top of it. Bake for 20-25 minutes. Stand out for 5-7 min for cooling it a bit. 
Spread the chosen jam over the pudding evenly while serving... Love it :)

Notes:
You can increase the quantity of butter for a richer texture and experience. 
Replace the low fat milk with cream for luxurious taste :D

Linking it to :

Sameena's Festive Sweet Recipes

Gayathri's Sweets and Desserts  associated with Paris' Only Event theme. 

Anu's -Diwali Festival Of Lights

Kalyani's Global food Event

Wish you all a very Happy Diwali and a wonderful New year :)