Fusion

Ras Malai,a perfect cool dish for this summer.Thanks again Sri for choosing this for this month's ICC.Though I have tried Rasgulla in the same method I didn't know it was the same procedure but with milk syrup.The malais came out well of course few broke,but was good for the first attempt.I followed the same method expect that I added a pinch of food colour




You can find the recipe here

As I missed out last month's challenge,I was very much interested in joining this ICC more so the sweet being Ariselu which is popularly known as Adhirasam in Tamil.I remember my granny preparing for Deepavali in a very traditional way which was a really long procedure and a difficult one too.
But making in small quantity was easier and is a base to increase the number in future.I followed the second method and will try the first method very soon





This method yeilds about 8.

Ingredients Needed

Rice Flour - 1 glass (standard measurement)
Jaggary - 1/2 glass
Coconut grated - 2 tsp
Cardamom powder - 1/4 tsp
Water - 1/2 glass
Sesame seeds - 1 tbsp

Oil for deep frying.



Method
Add just enough water to jaggery and cook on high and remove scum
Once it starts boiling,add coconut you will see bubbles
At this stage,add the rice flour slowly and stir it together well
You will know when the consistency is correct
Till then keep adding the flour
Make a soft dough and make small balls
In a plastic sheet just press the rounds to poori size
Heat oil and deep fry till done

I regret of missing out last month's challenge and was determined to join for this month.So with all the hectic Pongal work over,made a quick halwa just now clicked a few shots and posted.This post of mine is as quick as making the halwa.
I followed Lataji's recipe of Moong Dal Halwa




Ingredients

Split (Yellow) Moong dhal - 1 cup
Ghee - 1/2 cup
Sugar - 3/4 cups to 1 cup (as per required sweetness)
Milk - 1/2 cup (Notes from Lataji - instead of water for the sugar, this gives the khoya added taste, Simran's recipe asked for water)
Cashews/ raisins roasted in ghee for garnish.



Method to Prepare:

Soak 1 cup moong dal overnight. Next morning, grind to a paste.

Heat a heavy Kadai, take initially only 1/2 of the ghee and heat it.

Add the dhal and stir continuously, not allowing lumps to form. This part is very tricky as the dhal cooks really fast, irrespective of the ghee.

Keep the heat at the lowest and keep stirring even after the dhal becomes thick.

Add the rest of the ghee intermittently and cook the dhal until aromatic and the ghee starts oozing out.

Meanwhile mix the sugar with water/ milk in a pan and bring to a boil. Add this slowly to the cooking dhal.

Keep the fir low at all times and break lumps if formed while adding the sugar and water/ milk mix.

Cook until the ghee surfaces.

Garnish with cashews and raisins.

Come Deepavali we see different brands of Gulab Jamun mixes with lot of offers to woo the customers.You would all agree to me that many of us like this wonderful sweet which has become easy to prepare with all the ready mixes.
With hectic activities this month I would have prepared using khova,but luckily we don't get it here.So I decided to make the jamuns from the scratch and definitely no regrets.As I've already mentioned in many of my posts somehow I never try out traditional recipes,but slowly I've started and sure will be an expert too ha..ha..
I followed Indo's recipe and used cooking oil instead of ghee and here is her version and happy to be a part of the INDIAN COOKING CHALLENGE and waiting for the next challenge.






Ingredients

Whole milk - 4 litres
Maida (all purpose flour) - 1/2 kg
Curd (yogurt) - 1 tbsp
Baking soda - 1 tsp
Sugar - 2 litres
Lemon - 1/2

Ghee - 2 cups for deep frying.

Method

To Make Khova

In a wide mouthed heavy bottom pan add the milk and heat it in a medium flame (add a couple of stainless steel spoons into the milk to avoid burning)

Reduce the milk for 3-4 hours till the milk solidifies and becomes thick.

Whip together yogurt and baking soda

To the khova add the flour and yogurt mixture and knead till it forms a pliant dough. (make sure not to add too much flour, just enough flour to make the khova pliant)

Make 3/4 inch diameter balls and set aside




Prepare sugar syrup

In a pan add the sugar and just enough water to cover the sugar. Heat till it comes to a boil.

Squeeze the half of the lemon (this is to avoid sugar crystals). Set aside.

Deep frying the Jamuns

Heat the ghee and deep fry the balls, adding a few at a time till golden brown.

Cool the balls and soak them in the sugar syrup.

Let sit for a few hours.

Normally ghee is recommended for frying the jamuns, but regular cooking oil can also be used.

MURUKKU is a part and parcel of every house in Tamilnadu and a favourite snack for many.But we make murukku only on special occasions like Krishna Jayanti and Deepavali and also in large quantities so I've never done it single handed.Iam happy that the ICC has given me the oppurtunity to make murukku totally myself.But we usually grind the rice in the rice mill,this time it was the mixie.Iam happy with the result but felt that the rice mill flour is a step ahead compared to the mixie version.Thanks Sri and I followed the same recipe without any changes.





Jantikalu or Muruku!

Preparation Time : 20 - 30 mins
Cooking Time : 20 - 30 mins
Makes : app 250 kg of Muruku
Cuisine: Andhra & Tamil Nadu

Utensils needed:
Muruku /Chakli Press.
Kadai

Ingredients Needed:

Raw Rice - 4 cups
Urad Dal - 1 cup
Water - app 1/2 cup or more

For Seasoning

Cumin seeds - 1 tsp
Sesame seeds- 1 tsp
Asafetida/ Hing - 1/2 tsp
Salt to taste
Butter - 75 gms

Method to prepare:

Wash and drain the rice. Shade dry the Rice for 1/2 hr. Dry roast the Urad dal to light brown. Allow it to cool.
If you are using more quantity, you can get it ground in rice mil, else use your mixie to grind both Rice and Urad dal.

First grind rice into a fine flour, keep it aside. then grind the urad dal to fine powder.

In a wide vessel, take both the flours along with salt. Mix well. Add cumin, Sesame seeds to the flour, mix well.

Whether you use Asafetida powder or the solid ones, you got to mix it in water, make sure it is dissolved before adding to the flour. If its not dissolved properly, when deep frying the muruku, there are chances for the hing to burst our due to air bubbles.

Mix in the hing to the flour and finally add the butter. Gather everything well and you will get more of a crumbling mixture. Now slowly add water and knead a dough which is little more softer than the puri dough.

Heat a kadai with oil enough to deep fry. Once the oil is hot enough, simmer to low flame.

Take the Muruku Aachu, wash and wipe it clean. Then divide the dough into equal balls. Fill the Muruku maker with the dough. You can either press it directly over the flames or press over a paper and gently slide it down the hot oil. But since the quantity mentioned here is less, you can press it directly over the kadai.

Cook over medium flame, using a slotted spoon, turn it over to other side to ensure both sides turn golden colour. You will know by seeing the colour that its cooked. Remove to a kitchen paper and store it in a air tight container.

Eagerly waiting for the next challenge and being a festive season Iam sure its going to be some sweet variety