Eid special - Sewaiyan

The Holy month of Ramadan has ended for our muslim friends.They are religiously celebrating Eid al Fitr. During school days, Eid used to be the most looked forward festival being in the gulf.I had many really nice neighbours who used to share their delicious food over the festive season.Muslims friends would share delicious iftar goodies and eid biryanis, hindu friends share their onam and vishu goodies and we used to in turn share our christmas goodies.

I take this opportunity to wish all my friends celebrating this Holy Festival a blessed Eid!

Dates Almond Kulfi

The summer is here in full swing(yes already) wonder how the next few months are going to be here!My LM had two weeks of holidays and she kept pestering us for ice cream.Here in our house whenever we buy a pack of readymade icecream we all have sore throats even before we eat the ice cream!I don't know if its a matter of chance or coincidence, so this time I told her I'll make kulfis for her.

Mango pannacotta with jaggery glazed nuts

The Mango season is almost over and I have to post atleast one recipe else I wouldn't bedoing  any justice to the King of the Fruits.

I agree Mangoes are super yummy to eat as it is but its so tempting to get used in desserts the fantastic aroma of the mango sitting in the fruit basket fills the whole kitchen.

When I heard the name Panacotta i was wondering what it is?When i read about it i was anxious to try it and what better than a Mango Panacotta.

You need
Mango pulp of 2 mangoes
Milk (boiled and cooled) 2 cups
Condensed milk 4 tablespoons
Water 1 cup
Gelatin 5 gms/1 sachet

For the jaggery glazed nuts see here  .

• Peel and chop mangoes and grind in a blender with some milk.
• Mix the pulp with the remaining milk, add the condensed milk to this and stir well.
• Heat water until hot (not boiling) add the gelatin and mix well.
• Strain the water + gelatin mix and our along with mango + milk mixture.
• Pour into desired moulds or serving bowls and refrigerate until done.
• Garnish with few pieces of mango or glazed nuts. 

Creamy mango pannacotta is ready : ) Enjoy!

Sending this to  Foodabulous Fest Event  organised by Simply TADKA and hosted by Sajina Bishar of Saju's Tastes

Mango pannacotta with jaggery glazed nuts

The Mango season is almost over and I have to post atleast one recipe else I wouldn't bedoing  any justice to the King of the Fruits.

Almond Fudge Balls

Its my sister's birthday she's really far from us now enjoying life but we miss her and her lil tiny tots too much.I made these fantastic almond fudge balls for her.We both love sweets and share a lot of common interests especially baking :)

One of the reasons this blog keeps going is because she keeps asking me for recipes and I'd like to keep record of the recipes i try out for people like her and also for my own reference at any point in time.

For those like her who don't have time with kids around this has to be an ideal quick to make fudge ball.

 Preparation time half hour + setting time

You need
Toasted Almonds 1 cup
COndensed milk about half cup
VEgetable oil/butter 2 tablespoons
Unsweetened cocoa powder 1 tsp
ALmond slivers to garnish each ball

Muffin liners or foil paper to wrap them

- If you have plain almonds add them to a hot pan and toast until crisp.Let this cool down.
- Add this to a mixer/blender and powder it finely.Add the condensed milk and oil and blend well.
- Scrape all of the almond mix and mix the cocoa powder well with a spatula or if you like to lick off your hands use them.
- Grease hands well and make balls and keep a sliver of almond on each of them.
- Refrigerate for 3-4 hours until set.
- Yummy chocolate almond fudge balls are ready to go!

Tips :
- I added a little honey which gave this glossy look but it got a little loose.
- You can add condensed milk lesser or more according to the sweetness you need but if you add lot more then it would get difficult to roll into shapes.

Sending this to JCO - Cyber style potluck party

Almond Fudge Balls

Its my sister's birthday she's really far from us now enjoying life but we miss her and her lil tiny tots too much.I made these fantastic almond fudge balls for her.We both love sweets and share a lot of common interests especially baking :)

Chocolate Oreo Shake

Happy Fathers' Day to all the dads and all those who love and adore our dads.Not to forget the dads of our lil ones.Just to see the man in the house manage kids is a pleasure relief all in itself.I made this shake especially for my DH who is an ardent chocolate lover.

We all love chocolates some love them more and all kids adore Oreo.I know there are tons of recipes with Oreo and this is just one simple one i made today because it was just too hot to even think about tea.

Making a shake isn't rocket science, You just need a couple of things and a blender :)

Cold Milk 2 cups + 1 cup water
Condensed milk 1 small tin 90gm
Sugar extra to taste
Oreo cookies 3+ more to serve
Unsweetened Cocoa powder 1 tablespoon(i used Hersheys)

• Just blend everything in the blender.

 To serve - Pour into glasses of your choice and spoon the froth onto each glass and sprinkle Oreo cookies broken in halves and a touch of coffee powder (for the grown ups).Chill before serving.

Enjoy a lovely chocolate overloaded shake :) 

Sending this to Kids delight @ Sizzling Tastebuds  and Valli from Spicing your life , 

Chocolate Oreo Shake

Happy Fathers' Day to all the dads and all those who love and adore our dads.Not to forget the dads of our lil ones.Just to see the man in the house manage kids is a pleasure relief all in itself.I made this shake especially for my DH who is an ardent chocolate lover.

Mango Kulfi

Last week we had some refreshingly cool rains and I was so tempted to make kulfis which have been on my to-do list for a while now.Just in time, I had half a dozen ripe Alfonso mangoes - all the more reasons to make kulfis now :)

Its such a delight to sleep late on rainy days and especially in a sweltering hot place like Chennai.I really miss the monsoons in Mumbai and how the hill tops would turn lush green in the showers...The rains had the same effect to the trees outside my kitchen and i just couldn't resist clicking them along with my kulfis.I woke up dreaming how to click my kulfis :) now you know i'm addicted to my blog!

Did i tell you we all enjoyed the kulfis while it was pouring on a saturday afternoon....how does that sound now.....great isn't it!These kulfis brought back a lot of memories from my childhood days when my dad used to bring various flavours of kulfis home....date,chickoo,mango,...yummy!

I was surprised at how easy these are to make, even when I read the recipe i was a little hesitant to try it out because i was wondering if i'd get the right consistency of milk and bla bla...But seriously you needn't bother its the easiest recipe ever and definitely a keeper!

Preparation time : cooking time: 30 mins + freezing time : overnight
Recipe source : Chef in You

You need:
Milk 2 and half cups (500ml)
Milk powder 1/4 cup
Condensed milk 1/2 cup
Sugar 1/4 cup
Mango pulp 1 cup

• In a heavy bottomed pan, heat milk, to it add the milk powder,sugar and condensed milk.Mix well and keep stirring until this reduces (i simmered it for about 15-20 mins) 
• Let this milk mixture cool down and then mix the mango pulp.
• Pour into kulfi moulds and stick an ice cream stick into each mould.
• Freeze the kulfis over night.

• How to serve: dip each mould in some regular tap water and the kulfis will slide out of the moulds.Serve them as it is or enjoy with nuts.

Tips:

1. Leave the stove unattended at your own risk, this mixture will definitely boil over even if you leave a spoon in it.I lost about one kulfi's mix because i went to sit for 5 mins.
2. The sugar and condensed milk make the kulfi a bit too sweet so you can adjust according to your taste or have it as it is.
3. I used the pulp of 4 really ripe Alfonso mangoes and i didn't strain it and we enjoyed some mango chunks in the kulfis.
4. Use any steel tumblers to set the kulfis i did just that.

Sending this to CEDD : Milk desserts @ Taste of pearl city , WTML @ Sizzling Tastebuds

Mango Kulfi

Last week we had some refreshingly cool rains and I was so tempted to make kulfis which have been on my to-do list for a while now.Just in time, I had half a dozen ripe Alfonso mangoes - all the more reasons to make kulfis now :)

My first gift and a easy dessert - Sago kheer/payasam/pudding

I had participated in a blog event - picnic desserts by Geetha @ SunMoon and potatoes.She contacted me a few weeks later that I was selected winner...yay! My first win in any event real or virtual :) I received my giveaway from Raven of Cook.Eat.Delicious who's the brain behind the CEDD events.I can't thank Raven, Geetha and all my lovely friends enough,who keep pouring in the beautiful words of encouragement and inspire me to go on :) I'm waiting to try something out from this beautiful book!

The recipe that got me this book is here - lemon muffins with lemon cream drizzle.

What better way to celebrate something good or just an excuse to indulge in some sweet craving :) 

This kheer/pudding is very easy to make.Payasam/kheer usually makes its presence in all indian banquets or meals as the dessert.This sago/javarisi payasam is so easy you can make it immediately.The only time it takes is to cook the sago beads.

You need

Sago/javarisi 1 cup
Condensed milk Half a cup of to your taste
Milk 1/2 cup
Water enough to cook the sago
Crushed cardamom 2 pods

Roast these in about 1 -2 tablespoons of ghee/clarified butter until brown
Raisins 1 tablespoon
Cashew nuts 1 tablespoon roughly chopped (or almonds)

•  Soak the sago beads in some water for 2 hours until they go translucent.Add enough water in a deep vessel and cook the sago until they go transparent.Keep checking for the water.This is will take some time about 10 minutes.
• Once the sago cooks, add the milk and cook it some milk and add the cardamom pods.
• Let it simmer for 5 minutes next add the condensed milk to adjust to your sweet tooth and throw in the ghee-roasted nuts and raisins.Turn off the flame.

• Enjoy some easy payasam/kheer hot or cold.

My first gift and a easy dessert - Sago kheer/payasam/pudding

I had participated in a blog event - picnic desserts by Geetha @ SunMoon and potatoes.She contacted me a few weeks later that I was selected winner...yay! My first win in any event real or virtual :) I received my giveaway from Raven of Cook.Eat.Delicious who's the brain behind the CEDD events.I can't thank Raven, Geetha and all my lovely friends enough,who keep pouring in the beautiful words of encouragement and inspire me to go on :) I'm waiting to try something out from this beautiful book!

The recipe that got me this book is here - lemon muffins with lemon cream drizzle.