Gul-Amba

My mom prepares this dish for me every year at the outset of summer - I don't remember a single year when she did not make it. But yeah, earlier she used to make it for her daughter, now she makes it for her grand-daughter. This dish can be made sweet or sweet & sour. I prefer the khatta-mitha taste better. Gulamba tastes best with chapathi. When I was a kid (or to be honest way beyond that), I would never bother to look at what vegetables were made whenever gulamaba was at home - just chapathi and gulamba for both the meals :)

Ingredients:

• 1 Cup Green Raw Mango (grated / cut into small pieces)
  
• ½ Cup Jaggery pieces
• 1 Tsp Cardamom Powder
• 1 Tbsp Ghee
• 2-3 Cloves
• 4-5 Black Peppers
• Few Cashews (optional)

Method:

1. Peel the outer skin of mango. Cut into small pieces or grate.
2. In a pan, take ghee and add cloves and pepper. Saute for a few seconds and then add raw mango pieces and cashews. Saute for 2-3 minutes.
3. Now add jaggery pieces gradually and keep mixing well till they melt. The amount of jaggery to be added depends on how 'khatta' the mango is, and how sweet you prefer the dish!
4. Add cardamom powder and turn off the heat.
5. Allow it to cool. Store in a clean and dry container. Can be kept for about 12-15 days.

This is my entry for this month's Monthly Mingle - Kids Lunches.

Pineapple Upside Down Cake

I had never heard of this cake until I started baking. I attended a one day baking course where I got to know about this upside down cake. It is cakes like this, which are not available at a bakery (atleast around here), that make me feel nice about making cakes at home :)

Ingredients:

• 3 Tbsp Melted Butter
• ¾ Cup brown sugar
• 6 Pineapple rings (canned)
• Few Cherries
• ½ Cup Butter
• ½ Cup Sugar
• 4 Eggs
• 1 Cup Maida
• 1 Tsp Baking Powder
• ½ Tsp Salt
• ½ Tsp Cooking Soda
• 1 Tsp Pineapple Essence

Method:

1. In a 9-inch square cake pan, melt butter; sprinkle with brown sugar. Arrange pineapple and cherries on sugar, making a design.
2. In a glass bowl, cream the butter and gradually add sugar and beat until light and fluffy.
3. Add beaten eggs, essence and again beat well.
4. Sift maida with baking powder and soda.
5. Add sifted dry maida and beat until smooth pouring consistency.
6. Pour over pineapple design. Bake at 180° Celcius for about 40-45 minutes.
7. Cool for about 5 minutes before turning out onto a serving plate

Punjabi Bhindi Masala

Paneer and Bhendi are the first dishes that come to my mind whenever we have vegetarian guests coming over for lunch. This preparation is a particularly good option - simple to make, fabulous to taste and "rich" to look!

Ingredients:

• 250 gms Bhindi (Lady Finger)
• 3-4 Onions
• 4 Tomatoes (puree)
• 1 Tsp Ginger-Garlic paste
• 1 Tsp Dhania Powder (Coriander Powder)
• 1 Tsp Red Chilli Powder
• 1 Tsp Kasuri Methi
• 1 Tsp Garam Masala Powder
• 5-6 Tbsp Oil
• Chopped Coriander leaves (for garnishing)
• Salt to taste

Method:

1. In a pan, take 2-3 tbsp Oil and fry the lady finger. Remove them from the pan and set aside.
2. In the same pan, add more 2-3 tbsp oil and fry onions.
3. Once the onions become soft, add ginger-garlic paste and sauté.
4. Add dhania powder, red chilli powder and sauté again.
5. Add tomato puree and salt and cook till the masala leaves the edges of the pan.
6. Add the fried bhindi to the masala. Cover and cook for 2-3 minutes.
7. Once the bhindi is cooked, add crushed kasuri methi and garam masala powder.
8. While serving, garnish with corrainder leaves.

Tomato Dal

The much loved andhra "tomato pappu" is expectedly my hubby's favourite too. There are many ways to make this dal. The most simple one being cooking tomatoes, onion and dal together and finishing off with tadka. This one is more spicy and tangy! Tastes best when made in ghee.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup Toor/Tuvar Dal
• 6 Tomatoes (diced)
• 1 Onion (finely chopped)
• 3-4 Dried Red Chillies (halved)
• ¼ Tsp Turmeric powder
• 5-6 Garlic cloves (finely chopped)
• 1 Tbsp Coriander powder
• 2 Tbsp Ghee/Oil
• 1 Tsp Mustard seeds
• 10-12 Curry leaves
• 1 Tsp Asofoetida powder (Hing)
• Salt to taste

Method:

1. Wash the dal, add 3 cups of water, turmeric, and pressure cook till soft. Once the dal is cooked mash the dal to a fine paste and set aside.
2. Heat oil/ghee in a pan. Add mustard seeds. As they start spluttering add curry leaves, chopped garlic, red chillies and asofoetida powder.
3. Now add chopped tomatoes. Cover and cook on medium heat till the tomatoes turn soft.
4. Add salt, coriander powder and allow to cook for 2 minutes.
5. Add the mashed dal. Add water if the dal is too thick. Cook for 4-5 minutes on medium flame.
6. Garnish with chopped corriander and serve with hot rice, papad and pickle. Yum!

Palak Paneer

We visit a Punjabi restaurant quite often, but never tried their veg fare until recently when we visited with some "veg only" friends. We ordered Palak Paneer - it turned out very different from the usual ones we have had. The most unusual thing was that the palak was ground with dried red chillies and the mustard tadka. I tried it at home and it came out quite well!

Ingredients:

• 250 gms Paneer (diced)
• 2-3 Bunches of Spinach/Palak
• 3-4 Dried Kashmiri Chillies
• 4-5 Garlic cloves (finely chopped)
• 1 Onion (chopped)
• 1 Tsp Mustard
• 1 Tsp Garam Masala Powder
• 1-2 Tbsp Butter
• 1 Tsp Sugar
• Salt to taste

Method:

1. Wash and drain the water from spinach. Chop it coarsely. In a pan boil water and add the chopped spinach. Let it cook for 2 minutes. Strain it and run cold water over the boiled spinach. This way it retains the "fresh" green colour.
2. Once cool, grind the spinach with dried red chillies. Use only Kashmiri chillies.
3. In a pan, melt the butter and add mustard seeds. When they crackle add the chopped onion and fry till translucent.
4. Add garlic and fry till garlic turns slightly brown.
5. Now, add the spinach paste, salt and sugar and let it cook uncovered for 2 minutes.
6. Add the Paneer pieces and let it again cook for 2 more minutes. Do not cover and cook as the spinach might turn darkish in colour.
7. Add garam masala powder and switch off the flame.
8. Garnish with grated paneer or fresh cream and serve hot!

Tip: For step 6 above, I prefer the paneer as is, without frying it. If you prefer fried paneer, deep fry the paneer upfront and immediately put them in water. This will keep the pieces soft and prevent them from becoming chewy.

Hawaiian Salad

We had this salad in a Pizza joint and loved it. The pineapple adds wonderful flavour! The salad in the Pizza joint had mayonisse dressing but at home I prefer not to use mayonisse. Instead I made a dressing with curds and olive oil.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup Pineapple (diced)
• ½ cup Boiled Macaroni
• ½ cup Onion (diced)
• ½ cup Yellow/Red Capsicum (diced)
• ½ cup Carrots(diced)
• ½ cup Cucumber (diced)
• 4-5 Salad Leaves
• ½ cup Thick Curds
• 3-4 tbsp Olive Oil
• 1-2 tsp Sugar
• Salt to taste

Method:

1. Cut onions, carrots, pineapple, capsicum into small cubes. Break the sald leaves (do not chop) into medium size pieces.
2. For the dressing, combine curds, salt, sugar and olive oil. Mix well.
3. In a serving bowl, put in the vegetables and toss in the dressing. Serve chilled.

Tutti-Frutti Cookies

The recipe for these cookies is from here. Before I started blogging I used to bookmark reciepes that appealed to me. This one was bookmarked long time back. I like the fact that the cookie dough can be stored for a month. But be assured it won't last that long!

Ingredients:

• 1 cup Maida
• 1 tsp Baking Powder
• ¼ tsp Salt
• ½ cup Butter
• ½ cup Sugar
• 1 Egg
  
• 1 cup Desiccated Coconut
• 1 cup Tutti-Frutti

Method:

1. Sift together flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
   
2. Beat together butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the egg and beat again. Stir in flour mixture, coconut and mixed fruits. Mix until dough forms.
   
3. Divide the dough into 2 portions. Shape into rolls and wrap them in wax paper or cling film. Refrigerate for at least 4 hours or overnight.
4. Slice the dough logs into thin slices with a serrated knife. Bake them at 175° C for 10 to 12 minutes or until pale golden.
5. Remove and let cool on wire rack.