SHEER KHURMA / ROASTED VERMICILLI KHEER

Food is a universal language and a great way for people of different cultures and backgrounds to bond.  Marking the end of Ramadan is Eid-al-Fitr, a holiday gathering of families, friends, food and music. Since we are nearing the end of Ramadan, so I decided to make this delicious and tasty sheer khurma as a dessert today. The celebration of Eid is incomplete without sweet, yummy and traditional food prepared and served to the guests and one of those is Sheer Khurma. Sheer Khurma is a rich Mughlai dessert made with roasted vermicilli and roasted dry fruits. Eid-al-Fitr is the event of sweetness, joy and happiness. Eid-al-Fitr is dedicated to the celebration of traditional desserts. The festive season is approaching as Eid-al-Fitr moon is about to sight.    
     Dessert is mostly referred to a final sweet course that concludes a meal, but those with a serious sweet tooth will agree that anytime is dessert time. Celebrate Eid in a grand way with the royal sheer khurma!!! This aromatic silken pudding finds its origins with the Mughals and in Urdu translates to 'sweetened milk with dried dates and pure ghee/ clarified butter. Recreate this simple and authentic recipe at home and celebrate good times with family and friends.

INGREDIENTS:
1/2 lit Milk
Thin Whole Wheat Vermicilli[ broken seviyan ]
8-10 Seedless Dates
10-12 Almonds, chopped
10-12 Cashewnuts, chopped
9-10 Pistachios, chopped
1 tablespoon Raisins
1 tablespoon Chironji
1/2 Cup Grated Coconut
1 tablespoon Khus Khus/ Poppy Seeds
7-8 Saffron Strands
Pinch of Jaiphal / Nutneg Powder
1/2 Cup /as per taste Sugar
2 tablespoon Ghee/ Clarified Butter

METHOD:
STEP 1 - Heat a non-stick pan with 1 tablespoon ghee, add broken vermicilli in it and roast well.

STEP 2 - Remove from the pan and keep aside.

STEP 3 - In the same pan, add more ghee and roast the chopped nuts for 3-4 minutes stirring often.

STEP 4 - Remove roasted dry fruits and keep them with roasted vermicilli.

STEP 5 - By that time, heat milk in a sauce pan.

STEP 6 - Pour the milk in a wide pan, let it boil.

STEP 7 - Add saffron milk with some /nutmeg/ jaiphal powder.[see notes]

 STEP 8 - Add sugar as per your liking and mix well.

STEP 9 - Add roasted vermicilli and nuts in it.

STEP 10 - Cook the seviyan on low heat for 8-10 minutes till they become soft.

STEP 11 - The milk will also thicken and reduce in volume.

STEP 12 - Taste the sheer khurma and if required add more sugar and mix well.
STEP 13 - Switch off the flame and stir well.Serve the sheer khurma hot or cold.

Serve the sheer khurma hot or chilled.

NOTE: *Soak the saffron strands in 2 tablespoon warm milk.

              *We get seviyan from the market which is specially used for making this dessert or you can use seviyan which is usually available.
              *The real taste comes out if pure ghee with a wonderful fragrance.
              *If like add few drops of rose water at the end with some chopped rose petals.

WHOLE WHEAT PRESSURE COOKER CAKE

How to make a cake in  a pressure cooker or how to make cake without oven. I was forced to take my pressure cooker to bake this best-ever-easy whole wheat cake. I never imagined I will post this, this just happened to me due to some unexpected circumstances. I am sure few of my readers like this recipe. Even I am very happy after trying this easy, simple recipe and it was awesome experience. Believe me, it only takes about 35 minutes and you get the same soft and fluffy cake that you can expect from an oven. I can say this as I have experienced it in front of my eyes and now presenting you to believe it. So give it a try and experience it personally. 

INGREDIENTS:

1 Cup Wheat Flour

½ Cup Powdered Sugar

1/3 Cup Milk Powder

1 teaspoon Baking Powder

½ teaspoon Baking Soda

½ Cup Milk

2-3 drops of Vanilla Essence or Other Flavored Essence

1/3 cup Unsalted Butter

½ teaspoon Cake Gel
2 tablespoon Tutty Frutti

METHOD:

STEP 1 - Take butter in a bowl and melt it by double boiling method.

STEP 2 - Take all dry ingredients flour, sugar, milk powder, baking powder, baking soda in a bowl and mix it well. Sieve with a fine sieve for 3 times.

STEP 3 - Add melted butter, milk, vanilla essence in it and mix it again. Add dry tutti-frutti and add cake gel and give a nice stir. [see notes]

STEP 4 - Grease and dust a mold. Remove the excess flour from the mold.

STEP 5 - Pour the cake mixture in it.

STEP 6 - Put the mold in the cooker with the steel ring at the bottom in the cooker

and close it without gasket and whistle.

STEP 7 - Keep the heat high for 5 minutes and then for 25 minutes on sim.

STEP 8 – Keep in cooker itself for next 5 minutes and cool it.

STEP 9 – Remove from the cooker and unmold the cake. Cake is ready to serve.

Just cut it in to small pieces and serve it with a hot cup of tea or coffee.

NOTES : * Milk should be at room temperature.

BREAD RAWA DOSA

Are you wondering what to do with those few slices of leftover bread lying in the kitchen??? Do you love dosas?? But feel boring and time consuming to make it often at home  because of soaking and fermentation process? Here is the easiest and excellent dish to clear off those left over bread slices as well satisfy your dosa craving. It is one of the easiest dosa one can make, though I always prefer the ground fermented dosa batter as nothing beats the taste and texture of dosas made the traditional way. But times one is looking for quick and easy breakfast solutions, so these instant recipes come in handy. If you use the white bread, the taste is similar to maida dosa. You can add tempering to the batter which adds lot of flavour to the dosa. Here I made plane dosa without tempering because my younger daughter love plane and crispy dosa. They turned out to tasty and very easy to make , so friends just give a try and let me know.

INGREDIENTS:

8-10 bread Slices

½ Cup Rawa / Samolina

1 tablespoon Rice Flower

1 teaspoon Oil

2 tablespoon Yoghurt

Salt as per taste

Water as needed to make the batter

METHOD:

STEP 1 – Remove the sides of the bread slice. Make small pieces of bread and crush them.

STEP 2 – Then add all the ingredients together and keep for 10 minutes.

STEP 3 – After 10 minutes, take this mixture in a mixer grinder and grind well with some water.

STEP 4 – Add water to make the consistency of batter like dosa batter cosistency. No lumps should be there in the batter.

STEP 5 – Now remove the batter in a bowl and add water if needed to make the runny.

STEP 6 – Heat a non-stick tawa with 2-3 drops of oil and spread the oil evenly on tawa with the help of tissue paper.

STEP 7 – Pour a ladle full batter on the tawa

and spread it with the back of the ladle like the regular dosa.

STEP 8 – Cover it for 3-4 minutes.

STEP 9 – Check if the dosa is ready or otherwise keep it covered for another 1 minute till crispy and golden in colour.

STEP 10 – When the dosa is ready just fold it and remove from the tawa and serve.  Make dosas with the rest of batter.

Serve the hot bread dosa with coconut chutney or any other your favourite chutney.

NOTE: If you like you can add tempering to the batter. Make a tempering with oil, cumin and mustard seeds, urad dal and curry leaves. Add this to the ready dosa batter and mix well and make dosa.

CRISPY CORN KEBABS

As my family is very fond of kebabs , I really want to try different kinds of kebab. Kebabs are very popular in Indian restaurants, veg as well as non-veg. Very simple, quick recipe which you can prepare in oven or you can grill in a grilling pan. Here I deep fried the kebabs as the original recipe calls.Corn kebabs which is mainly prepared by grating or blending the corn shells and mixing it with other vegetables. A perfect mouthwatering snack or appetiser which can be served as for party or even as a evening snack or perfect to serve on  rainy day with hot cup of tea. And can be used in many gatherings geared for children such as birthday to get them to eat more vegetables. Crispy on the outside and meltingly tender within, you will be surprised how many adults easily fall in love with these deep fried delights. Like any other kebab recipe, potatoes plays a major role in this recipe. However, corn kernels add nice flavour and taste to this kebab. I have already posted corn fritters recipe in my blog which is slightly different from this recipe but tastes equally delicious. Here I have given shape like kebab but you may shape them as per the choice.  

INGREDIENTS:

2 cups Potatoes, boiled, peeled and grated

1 cup Blanched Sweet Corn, pulsed roughly

4 bread slices crunched in mixie

2 tablespoon Besan flour

2 tablespoon Rice flour

¼ cup Coriander, finely chopped

1 teaspoon Ginger grated

1 teaspoon Garlic paste

1 tablespoon Green Chillies, finely chopped

1 teaspoon Garam Masala

1 teaspoon Jeera Powder

A pinch of Black Pepper Powder

1 small Onion, finely chopped

1 small Capsicum, chopped

Half Lemon Juice

Salt to taste

Other Ingredients:

Few ice-cream candy sticks

Oil for deep frying

METHOD:

STEP 1 – Mix all the ingredients of kebabs well and make a dough.

STEP 2 – Grease your hands with oil and make oblong shaped kebab inserting a candy stick in middle of it.

STEP 3 – Heat oil in a wide kadai. Deep fry them in hot oil till crispy and golden brown.

STEP 4 –Drain the excess oil on tissue or kitchen towel.

Serve it hot with green chutney, ketchup or any other dip of your choice.