SAVATHI BEEJADA PAYASA

"Savathi Beeja" sounds strange, right! you must be thinking its kinda seed, right? No, its not! Savathi Beeja is a kinda vermicelli, which is made using All purpose flour/ maida. They look like seeds, thats why the name "Savathi Beeja". Donno Why the prefix is "Savathi"?

Ingredients:-

Savathi beeja- 1 cup
Sugar- 1 cup
Milk- 2 cups
Cardmom Powder- 1/4 tsp
Roasted cashew, raisins-1 Tbsp

Procedure:

• Pour milk to a sauce pan, bring it to boil.
• Add sugar and stir until it dissolves.
• Stir in Savathi beeja, cook until they become soft.
• Add cardmom pwdr, roasted cashew, raisins.
• Serve hot.
  

PUMPKIN PIE

I wish all my blog readers " A Very Happy & Prosperous New Year", May 2009 bring good health, wealth and happiness to all of us.

I made pumpkin pie for new year, my hubby was desparate to cut the pie before I offer it to my camera God! thats why u see a slit in the pie :)))

Ingredients:-

Unbaked deep dish pie crust -1 (9 ")
Sugar -3/4 cup
Ground cinnamon -1 tsp
Salt -1/2 tsp
Ground ginger -1/2 tsp
Ground cloves -1/4 tsp

Eggs -2 Nos.
Pumpkin- 1 medium sized
Evaporated Milk -12 oz can (Nestle Carnation is preffered)

Procedure:-

• Cut pumpkin into 2 halves, and pressure cook (2-whistles will be enough).
• Remove the outer skin from cooked pumpkin.
• Beat the cooked pumpkin in blender( qty shd be around 3 cups).
• Combine sugar, salt, cinnamon, ginger and cloves in small bowl.
• Beat eggs lightly in large bowl. Stir in pumpkin and sugar-spice mixture. Gradually stir in evaporated milk. Pour into pie shell.
• Preheat oven to 425 F.
• Bake for 15 minutes. Reduce temperature to 350 F, bake for 40 to 50 minutes or until knife inserted near center comes out clean. Cool on wire rack.
• Serve immediately or refrigerate.
  

APPLE PIE

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!! Hope you all had good time with your family and friends on Christmas day. I was thinking to bake something for christmas, had lots of apples so made apple pie. There are so many ways to make pie, but this is the simplest method. Apple pie is a delicious desert! kids love it for sure.

For Crust

All purpose flour -2 Cups
Salt - 1 tsp
Butter- 2/3 cup
Cold water -6 tbsp

• Mix softened butter, salt, flour with a fork until crumbly.
• Add 5 tablespoons water and mix well, adding more water if too dry.

For Filling
Apples-6 Nos.
Sugar -3/4 cup
All purpose flour - 2 tbsp
Ground cinnamon - 1 tsp
Butter- 2 tbsp

• Core, peel and slice apples.
• Combine sugar, flour, cinnamon in a bowl.
• Add apple slices and mix well.
• Take 1/2 of the pastry and roll flat with rolling pin.
• Line a 9" pie plate with the pastry.
• Fill with apple mixture, dot with butter.
• Take the remaining pastry dough and roll flat, place rolled sheet on top of apple pie mix.
• Crimp along edges creating a scalloped edging.
• Take a knife and cut slits into top pastry for steam to escape.
• Bake in a 400 oven for 50 minutes or until crust is brown.
• Let cool and serve.

DUMROOT

Few days before halloween we had gone for apple picking, in the same farm pumpkin patch was there too, got to see many sorts of pumpkin smallest- biggest, different shapes, colors.......it was fun! After seeing all those orange colored eye catching pumpkins i picked one thinking of making Pie which Americans prepare during halloween. But somehow cld not do it ...poor pumpkin was laying in the kitchen corner for many days, rather i shd say months :) Thank God pumpkin won't perish easily.....finally ended up in making "Dumroot".

Ingredients:-

Grated pumpkin- 3 cups

Milk- 2 cups

Sugar- 1 cup or as required

Cardmom pwdr- 1/2 tsp

Clarified butter/ghee- 4 tbsp

Cashew, raisin, almond pcs- 2 tbsp

Procedure:-

• Heat clarified butter/ghee in a pan and fry cashew, almond, raisins, keep aside.
• Sqeeze and take out the water from grated pumpkin as much as possible.
• In remaining ghee, fry grated pumpkin for 10 minutes.
• Mean while, keep milk for boiling on another stove, boil till milk reduces to a cup.
• After frying grated pumpkin, add milk and keep stirring till all the milk evaporates.
• Now add sugar, cardmom powder. Stir till halwa leaves sides and bottom of pan.
• Turn off the heat. Add fried cashew, almond and raisins.
• Serve hot/chilled.

CARROT KHEER

Ingredients:-

Carrot - 5 nos.
Milk - 1 ltr
Sugar - 3/4 cup
Almond- 10 nos.
Cashew- 10 nos.
Cardmom pwdr- 1/4 tsp

Procedure:-

• Chop carrots into big pieces and cook till soft. (either in cooker or in a vessel).
• Keep milk for boiling.
• Grind cooked carrot, almond and cashews together into a smooth paste.
• When milk thickens a bit ( when it becomes 3/4 ltr) add sugar and ground paste, stir well, bring it to boil.
• Stir in cardmom powder.
• Serve hot or cold (by refrigerating it).

CARROT HALWA

I used to make carrot halwa in a different style, used to cook carrot in cooker, tastes okie dokie. This time my friend Punjabi Kudi helped me by sharing typical Punjabi Carrot Halwa recipe. It was AWESOME!!!!!!

Ingredients:-

Shredded carrot- 3 cups
Milk- 2 cups
Sugar- 1/4 cup or as required
Cardmom pwdr- 1/2 tsp
Clarified butter/ghee- 4 tbsp
Cashew, raisin, almond pcs- 2 tbsp

Procedure:-

• Heat clarified butter/ghee in a pan and fry cashew, almond, raisins, keep aside.
• In remaining ghee, fry shredded carrot for 10 minutes.
• Mean while, keep milk for boiling on another stove, boil till milk reduces to a cup.
• After frying carrot, add milk and keep stirring till all the milk evaporates.
• Now add sugar, cardmom powder. Stir till halwa leaves sides and bottom of pan.
• Turn off the heat. Add fried cashew, almond and raisins.
• Serve hot/chilled.
• Serve it with vanilla ice-cream, its a best dessert forever.

FRUIT SALAD

Ingredients:-

Apple- 1 no.
Banana- 1 no.
Grapes- 1 cup
Peach- 1 no.
Plum- 1 no.
Water melon- 1 cup
Custard powder (Brown & Palson preferred)- 1 tbsp
Milk-1 cup

Procedure:-

• Mix Custard powder with 1/4 cup water and keep it aside.
• Bring milk to boil and custard mix to it, cook for 5 minutes.
• Refrigerate the custard for 1-2 hrs.
• Mix all the cubed / diced fruits and pour custard before serving.

GODHI PAYAS / CRACKED WHEAT PUDDING

Ingredients:-

Cracked wheat- 1 Cup

Powdered jaggery- 1 cup

Water- 4 cups

Cardmom pwdr- 1/2 tsp

Poppy seeds- 1 tsp

Grated dry coconut- 1tbsp

Fried cashew, raisins- 1 tbsp

Procedure:-

• Cook wheat with water in cooker till soft( 2 whistles).
• Add powdered jaggery and stir well.
• Cook for 10 minutes.
• Then add cardmom powder.
• Sprinkle poppy seeds, grated coconut ,cahsew and raisins.
• Serve hot or chilled.

HI 5 DESSERT

First of all, I would like to thank Mr. & Mrs. Mummigatti for sharing this recipe. They invented this dessert and I named it as "HI-5 DESSERT" as this yummy dessert has 5 layers.

Ingredients:-

Serves- 6

Lady Fingers - 15 Nos.
Sugar- 1/2 cup
Heavy Cream -1 cup

Whole Milk - 1 Cup
Pound cake ( sara Lee preferred)
Vanilla Icecream - 6 scoops

Choclate or coffee icecream - 6 scoops
Roast cashews for dressing

Lady Fingers

Pound Cake

Procedure:-

• Mix the sugar, cream and milk. Warm the mixture to get the sugar dissolved completely ( donot overheat), transfer this to a flat bottom bowl.
• Dip each lady finger in the cream mixture and lay on the bottom of the serving bowl. Cover the base of bowl with as many lady fingers needed.
• Pour any remaining cream and milk mix over the bed of lady fingers.
• Warm the vanilla ice cream just enough to make it soft and spreadable. ( almost the consistency of cream cheese)
• Spread the vanilla icecream on top of Lady Finger bed.
• Make slices of cake and spread them over the vanilla icecream ( better to dip them in Milk)
• Warm the Choclate ice cream just enough to make it soft and spreadable.
• Spread the Chocolate icecream on top of cake layer.
• To finish top layer ,Spread roast cashews on top.
• Chill it for 2 hours before serving.
  

Father's Day Spl

Last month on Mother's Day my DH got me few dresses and took me out for dinner, he made me feel special on that day. So, on Father's Day I wanted to make something special for him.Tit for Tat!!!!!! ( hehehe in a good way) . Thought of making something which both my DD n DH like. I made Pizza, Chocolate cake( got Pillsbury ready mix, baked it but icing and strawberry arrangement is my work), Strawberry smoothie and Hi-5 dessert. Everything turned out good. It was fantabulous!!!!!

RASAMALAI

Rasamalai is one of my favourite dessert. This is the first time i tried to make rasamalais and they turned out very soft and delicious.

Ingredients:-

Receipe for 10-12 rasamalais:

Milk- 4 cups
Lime juice- 2-3tsp
Water- 2 cups
Sugar- 1 cup

For Ras/juice:
Milk- 2 cups
Sugar- 1/4 cup
MTR Badam mix- 2-3 tsp
sliced almonds, pistachios- 1 tbsp

Procedure:-

• Add 4 cups of milk in a vessel and turn heat to medium high.
• When milk starts boiling add lime juice.
• Keep stirring until milk completely curdles and separates from water.
• Strain it in a muslin cloth and collect paneer, run cold water to remove taste of lime.
• Tie a knot and squeeze the paneer to remove water content.
• Keep the paneer in a dry cloth for about 15 minutes so that dry cloth absorbs the water content from paneer fully.
• Kneed the paneer properly and make equal sized flattened balls.
• Meanwhile add 2 cups of water and 1 cup sugar in a clean cooker pan, bring it to boil.
• Add paneer balls in the boiling syrup, close the cooker lid with whistle.
• After one whistle turn the heat to low for 5 minutes and turn off the heat.
• Keep the rasagullas in fridge for 4-5hrs.
• For Ras:-Add 2 cups of milk and 1/4 cup sugar in a sauce pan, bring it to boil.
• Boil the milk until it becomes 1.5 cup, keep stirring to avoid burning of milk at bottom of pan.
• Add MTR Badam mix and stir it.
• Take out the rasagullas/paneer balls from refrigerator, squeeze them softly to remove excess syrup.
• Add them in the boiling ras, cook for 4-5 minutes.
• Refrigerate the rasamalais for 2-3 hrs.
• Garnish with sliced almond and pistachios.
• Serve chilled.

RICE PUDDING

Rice pudding is very easy to make, consumes less time, serves as a healthy dessert.

Ingredients:-

Rice- 1 cup
Sugar- 1 cup
Milk - 4-5 cups
Cardmom pwdr-1 tsp
Fried raisins, cashews- 1 tbsp each

Procedure:-

• Pressure cook rice with milk.
• Add sugar, cardmom pwdr stir well.
• Finally add raisins and cashews.
• Serve hot or refrigerate it to serve cold.

SHAVIGE PAYASA / VERMICELLI PUDDING

Shavige payasa or Vermicelli pudding is the easiest and quickest dessert one can make. This is the must and should sweet for all the festivals and ceremonies, be it naming ceremony, wedding, even for death anniversery and this is the first item to be served on the lower right corner of plantain leaf.

Ingredients:-

Shavige/ Vermicelli (broken)- 1 cup
Sugar- 1 cup
Water- 2 cups
Ghee-1 tbsp
Milk-1 cup(If thin consistency is needed, add more milk)
Cashew, raisins- 1tbsp
Cardmom pwdr- a pinch

Procedure:-

• Heat ghee in a sauce pan, fry cashews and raisins, remove them from ghee.
• In remaining ghee, fry vermicelli till they turn golden brown.
• Add water in a vessel, bring water to boil then add sugar.
• When sugar dissolves add vermicelli, cook till soft on medium heat.
• Add boiled milk, cardmom pwdr and cashew, raisins.
• Stir it well and remove from heat.

The picture below shows drying of raw vermicelli.