Gulab Jamun

Gulab Jamun is a favorite dessert at our house. The kids and hubby always fight over the last one. It's very easy to make and will definitely satisfy your sweet tooth!

Ingredients for the dough:

• 1 3/4 cups of powder milk (I use NIDO brand)
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 2 tsp yogurt
• 4 Tbsp flour
• 1 egg
• 4 Tbsp oil

For the syrup:

• 3 cups sugar
• 5 cups water
• 5 cardamons, cracked

Directions:

• Bring, water, sugar and cardamons to boil and continue to boil while preparing dough.
• In a small sauce pan, heat canola oil on medium heat. About 1-2 inches of oil should be good.
• In a medium sized bowl, combine all dough ingredients. I find it's easiest to use your fingers. The dough will appear dry at first, but keep combining.
• Roll dough into 1-inch diameter balls until smooth. This will make between 16 and 20 Gulab Jamun. Of course you can make them bigger or smaller to your liking.
• Fry Gulab Jamun, 4 at a time in medium hot oil. Make sure to stir continuously while frying. When they reach a medium brown color, remove from oil. Continue to do this until they are all fried.
• Add all the Gulab Jamun to the syrup, lower heat to medium, and allow to boil for 10 minutes.
• After 10 minutes, turn heat off and allow to come to room temperature (or you can eat them hot if that's what you like).
• Refrigerate and serve with a little bit of syrup.

Okra (Bhindi) with Spices & Coconut Milk

Ingredients:

1 pound okra

3 Tbsp ghee (clarified butter) or vegetable oil

2 onions, finely chopped

1 tsp minced garlic

1 tsp minced ginger

1 tsp ground coriander

1 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp paprika

1/2 tsp ground turmeric

1/2 tsp chili powder

5 tomatoes, coarsely chopped

1 3/4 cups canned coconut milk

salt to taste

- Cut the okra into 1 inch (2.5 cm) slices and set aside. Heat the ghee or oil in a large skillet. Add the onions and cook over low heat, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes, or until golden. Add the garlic and ginger and cook, stirring occasionally, for 2 minutes.

- Add the ground coriander, cumin, paprika, turmeric and chili powder  and cook, stirring constantly, for 2 minutes, or until the spices give off their aroma. Add the okra and cook, stirring for 3 minutes.

- Increase the heat to medium, add the tomatoes and stir in the coconut milk. Season with salt to taste and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat, cover and let simmer for 25-so minutes, or until the okra is tender. Serve immediately. Serves well with basmati rice and raita (yogurt sauce) as pictured above.

Biscotti

American-Style Biscotti

American-style biscotti are lighter and more tender than their Italian counterparts. They are hard enough to dunk in coffee or tea and they don't fall apart easily. Once you make this easy recipe, you won't want to drink coffee or tea without having a biscotti nearby!

Ingredients:

• 6 tablespoons (3/4 stick, 3 ounces) unsalted butter
• 2/3 cup (4 3/4 ounces) sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract (or almond extract)
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 2 large eggs
• 2 cups (8 1/2 ounces) flour (unbleached, all-purpose)
• 1 cup unsalted almonds or other nuts (lightly roasted)

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease (or line with parchment) a large (about 18x13 inch) baking sheet.
2. In a medium-sized bowl, eat the butter, sugar, salt, vanilla (or almond extract), and baking powder until the mixture is smooth and creamy. Beat in the eggs; the batter may look slightly curdled. Lower the mixer speed, add the flour, and mix until smooth. Finally add the nuts and mix very gently. The dough will be quite soft and sticky, but should hold its shape when you drop it from a spoon.
3. Transfer the dough to the prepared baking sheet, shaping it into a rough log about 14 inches long. It will be about 2 1/2 inches wide and about 3/4 inches thick. 

      4.   Bake the dough for 25 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool on the pan anywhere from 5       to 25 minutes. Five minutes before cutting, use a spray bottle filled with room-temperature water to    lightly but thoroughly spritz the log, making sure to cover the sides as well as the top. Softening the crust just this little bit will make slicing the biscotti much easier.

Out of the oven, ready to slice.

5.   Reduce the oven temperature to 325 degrees F. Wait another 5 minutes, then cut the biscotti into 1/2 

      to 3/4 inch slices. When you're slicing, be sure to cut straight up and down, if you cut at an angle,       

      biscotti may be thicker at the top than the bottom, and they'll topple over during their second bake.

6.   Set the biscotti upright on the prepared baking sheet. Bake for 25 minutes. Remove from the oven 

      and transfer to a rack to cool.

7.   Store the biscotti in an airtight container, to preserve their texture. If they aren't as crunchy as you'd like, store them uncovered, overnight, to continue drying. Biscotti can be stored at room temperature for 1 week.

Apple Crisp

Not recommended for those on a strict diet...but it sure is yummy! 

Ingredients:

- 2 cups all-purpose flour

• - 2 cups rolled oats
• - 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• - 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg (optional)
• - 1 1/2 cups packed brown sugar
• - 1 1/2 cups (3 sticks) butter
• - 6 peeled, cored and sliced apples
• 
  

All ingredients mixed in bowl on left, apples sliced.

• 
  
• Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2. In a large bowl, combine the flour, oatmeal, cinnamon, nutmeg and brown sugar. Cut butter into mixture until crumbly.
3. Take half of the mixture and pat it into the bottom of a 9x13 inch baking dish.
4. Cover crumb mixture with apple slices, then sprinkle apple slices with remaining crumb mixture.
5. Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 45 to 50 minutes or until apples are tender.

Hamburger Buns

These hamburger buns are so easy to make and so delicious. Once you make them, you won't be able to buy buns at the store again!

Ingredients:

• 2 cups warm milk (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)
• 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter, melted
• 1/4 cup warm water
• 1/4 cup white sugar
• 4.5 tsp yeast
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 6 cups all-purpose flour
• *If desired, you could use 4 cups white flour and 2 cups whole wheat flour instead.

Directions

• In a large bowl, stir together the milk, butter, warm water, sugar and yeast. Let stand for about 5 minutes.
• Mix in the salt, and gradually stir in the flour until you have a soft dough. This can be done in a standing mixer or by hand. If the dough seems too sticky, dust with a little flour, if the dough seems too dry, sprinkle a little water.                  

After some kneading, this is how the dough should look.

                                                                                              

• Divide into 25 or 15 pieces (depending on how big you want the buns), and form into balls (see video below on how to do this). Place on greased baking sheets so they are 1-2 inches apart. Let rise for 30 minutes.

Buns before rising.

Buns after rising for 30 min.

• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Bake the rolls for 15 minutes. Brush with melted butter, if desired.

Right out of the oven and lightly brushed with butter.

And this is what we did with the buns!

Pakoras!!!

Pakoras are fried fritters enjoyed as a snack. They are very versatile and any combination of vegetables can be used in the batter. People especially enjoy them during the rain!

 Ingredients:

• 2 medium sized potatoes, chopped
• 1 large red onion, thinly sliced
• 1 medium sized eggplant, chopped
• 1 cup of chopped cilantro
• 2-3 green chillies, chopped
• 1-1.5 cups of Besan (chickpea flour)
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp turmeric
• 1/2 tsp chilli powder (use less if desired)
• 1 Tbsp coriander powder
• 1 tsp cumin seeds
• 1 tsp ajwain seeds 
• 1 tsp salt
• oil for frying

( tsp=teaspoon, Tbsp=tablespoon)

Directions: 

1. Chop finely: potatoes, eggplant, cilantro, and green chillies.
2. Slice onion thinly.
3. In large bowl, combine all vegetables, spices, besan and enough water to make batter. Batter shouldn't be too thin or too thick.
4. Heat oil (canola or vegetable oil preferably) on medium/high heat. 
5. To test if oil is ready, drop small amount of batter into oil. It should sizzle immediately.
6. With a tablespoon, drop batter into the hot oil. Only fry 4-5 pakoras at at time. Fry until golden brown on one side, then flip. When both sides appear golden brown, remove with a slotted spoon. Allow to cool on a plate covered with paper towels.
7. Enjoy with ketchup or raita!

From left to right: Potatoes, red onions, besan, cilantro, eggplant, chilli peppers.
The spices: baking powder, turmeric, chilli powder, coriander powder, cumin and ajwein seeds, salt.

The potatoes and eggplant should be chopped as shown above.

Pakora batter, ready to fry.