Khandvi (khamani)

Now who doesn't like this Gujrati delicacy. I always knew this as khamani. Again i always thought it is very diificult to make this. But its not that difficult rather the process is easy. The only thing that make a difference is to what consistency one cooks it

Ingredients
1/2 cup besan
1 cup thin buttermilk
salt to taste
2-3 pinches turmeric powder
1 tbsp oil

for seasoning
2 tbsp oil
1/2 tbsp mustard seeds
1 tbsp coconut scrapped (optional)
1 tbsp coriander finely chopped
2 pinches asafoetida (hing)
2 green chillies finely chopped
1 stalk curry leaves

Preparation

1. Mix water, flour, salt & turmeric to form a batter
2. Heat oil in a heavy pan, add batter. Stir vigorously and evenly to avoid forming any lumps
3. Cook till the mixture does not taste raw stirring continuously. When done (about 7-8 min) pour a laddleful in a large plate
4. Spread as thin as possible with the back of a flat spoon. Use circular outward movements as for dosas
5. When cool cut into 2" wide strips. Carefully roll each strip. Repeat for all plates
6. Place in a serving dish.
7. For seasoning sprinkle coconut and koriander all over the khandvi rolls.
8. heat oil in a small pan. Add mustard seeds, asafoteida, curry leaves and chillies and immediately pour over khandvi rolls.

Wow I already feel like making it again!! I was so happy when I made them that in all the excitement, I forgot to take a snap of them.

P.S. Photo added later after I made it recently :)

Raspberry Mousse

I saw this recipe on Food Network and immediately thought of trying it out. This is a very simple recipe and something that one can quickly add as a dessert. takes very little time and has very few ingredients

Ingredients

1 (15 oz) can of Ricota cheese (whole milk)
1/2 cp raspberry jam (preferably with seeds)
1 cup heavy whipping cream
3 tbsp powdered sugar

Directions
1. Break down Ricota cheese in a food processor
2. Add raspberry jam and mix together and keep it aside
3. Whip up some cream in a bowl and add sugar to it. Whip it up to a spreading consistency
4 Fold the whipped cream into the raspberry cheese mixture and pour it into serving cups
5. Chill it for about an hour and add fresh cut raspberries before serving

That's it!! We are done!!

Kaju Katli

This is something that every one likes. I haven't met a person as yet who doesn't love eating this. I used to see this only in mithai shops and had never ever thought that this would be so easy to make. But its really easy. Here goes the recipe

Ingredients

1 cup kaju
1 cup sugar
5 tbsp milk
2 tbsp ghee
1 tsp vanilla essence (optional)

Preparation

1.Soak cashews for 3-4 hours before preparation
2.Dry them on a paper towel
3.Grind cashews, sugar, milk and vanilla essence together
4.In a large frying pan heat ghee and then put the mixture prepared
5. Keep stirring till a powdery layer forms on the top
6. Pour it in a thali and cut diamond shaped katlis.

Nankhathai / Indian Cookies

As a child I used to love these. I remember a bhaiya ( as we called him) used to get lots of baked stuff in a tin box or trunk (the kind of those we used to see on TV in which people all their valuables locked up). I remebered the satisfaction they gave. Eventually after coming to US I nearly forgot about them. here I could get wonderful chocolate chip cookies and peanut butter cookies and many others. But someone just mentioned the nankathai's all the old memories came rushing back and my search for making them started. Now I knew if I wanted to eat them I have to learn to make them. So one of my friends gave me the recipe.

So here goes the recipe for making the most delightful nankhathai's

Ingredients

5 cups All purpose flour
3 cups sugar
1 cup gram flour (Besan)
1 cup oil (vegetable oil , canola oil)
1 cup ghee

Preparation

Mix the all purpose flour, gram flour, sugar, oil and ghee together. (Heat the ghee a little for a little crispy cookie)

Mix it well and keep it closed for about 2-3 hours. The ghee and the sugar should get absorbed well

Preheat oven at 275 F

Make nice semicircular shaped cookies and bake them at 275F for about 35-40 min or until they get a little brown on the lower side.

(Tip : to make nice semicircular shapes you can make them in shape of laddoos and cut them from the middle)

The most important thing - "No one can have just one" :)

Banana Bread

There was a lady in my husband's office who used to make Banana bread and sell each slice for a dollar as charity every Tuesday. My husband got it for me a few Tuesday's and I fell in love with it. The texture, the taste, it was just awesome. I kept on thinking how could someone make something that great at home. So with my search for this delicacy started. And I got it!! I got 2-3 ways of making a banana bread. I combined what I liked from each of them and what i had liked in that lady's banana bread. I tried it and voila!! I was so happy with the result. Since then I have been making it the same way and everyone who has it it likes it. So here it goes. Ok before we start one thing you should know about is the riper the bananas the better the bread. You know the point at which the banana becomes so ripe that u feel like throwing it. That's the kind of banana you need (although it is not that bad with less riper bananas). So when you get lots of bananas and they all ripe together and you donno what to do of them you can make this bread.

Special Item required - Loaf pan

Ingredients

2 cups - All purpose flour

3/4 cup - Sugar

3/4 cup walnuts

1/4 cup chocolate chips (preferably dark)

1/2 cup butter (unsalted)

3 bananas

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 tsp cinnamon powder

1/4 tsp baking soda

1 tsp baking powder

1 pinch salt (If you are using salted butter do not add salt)

Preparation

You need two bowls a bigger one to mix the dry ingredients and a smaller one to mix the wet ingredients

Ok so now lets get started

1. Roast the walnuts at 350 F for less than 10 min. Leave the oven at that temp while you preapre the mixes

2. Now in a large bowl mix all the dry ingredients together. Flour, sugar, roasted walnut (broken into small pieces), cinnamon powder, baking soda, baking powder, and chocolate chips. Keep this aside.

3. In another bowl mix the wet ingredients. Usually we put the eggs first. But if you don't want your bowl to smell of eggs u can add that later as we do not need to beat the eggs in this. Ok so add the butter (melted and cooled), the bananas (mashed), eggs and the vanilla extract. Mix it well .

4 Now lightly fold the wet mix into the dry mix. Do not beat it. or mix it too much. the result should be a lumpy mixture. if you mix it too much the banana bread will become rubbery.

5 grease your loaf pan and pour the mixture into the pan

6. Bake it at 350 for about 55 to 60 min. Insert a toothpick on the middle of the bread to check if it is done. If the toothpick comes out clean the bread is done.