Butter Crisp Cookies

Butter Crisp Cookies is a very simple Cookie yet delicious. The Ingredients which I have used in making them are the ones which is available in every kitchen but make sure you put the ingredients in exact proportions .


Ingredients 
All purpose Flour : 2 1/2 Cups
Butter : 1 Cup
Baking Powder : 1 Teaspoon
Sugar  : 1/2 cup [Powdered]
Vanilla Essence : 1 Tablespoon
Milk Powder : 1 Tablespoon
Salt : 1/2 Teaspoon
Cashew nut : 2 Pieces for Decoration. [Optional]

Method 
Cream butter and then beat them gradually.
Add the Vanilla essence and beat them till light and fluffy.
Sift Flour , Milk Powder , Sugar , Baking Powder thrice.
Knead the The Flour mixture with the butter mixture for 5 minutes with fingers. Do not use your palms in kneading just the fingers.
Shape them in small balls. Place on greased baking sheets and press a small cherry / Dry Fruit in the center of each ball.  
Bake on a high rack for 17-18 minutes for 200 degrees Centigrade.

Tip: If you want glaze on the cookie , just brush egg white on top of the cookie just before baking.

Tandoori Chicken

Tandoori Chicken

I m sure all non-vegetarians specially in India love Tandoori Chicken. Many feel that Tandoori Chicken can only be sold from the shop as only then it the chicken is crispy on the outside and tender from the inside.

Well , to all those people i would say it possible to make it in your home with your oven. I made it this Monday for evening snacks and my parents loved it.


Ingredients
Chicken Legs : 3
Ginger Garlic paste : 4 Tablespoon
Red Chilly Powder : 4 Teaspoon
Tandoori Chicken Powder : 2 Teaspoon [Optional]
Gram Flour (Besan) : 2 Teaspoon
Lemon Juice : 3 Tablespoon
Salt To Taste.
Kasoori Methi : 2 Teaspoon Crushed
Ghee : 4 Tablespoon

For Serving 
Onion : 1 [Sliced in rings]
Chaat Masala : 2 Teaspoon

Method 
Make 3 slits each in the the chicken.Marinate Chicken with Ginger-Garlic paste , salt and 2 Teaspoon of Red Chilly powder for 5 minutes.

Put a big bowl upside down in a pressure cooker. Place the chicken on the surface of upside down bowl and steam for 10 minutes. Make sure the water should only reach 1/3 rd depth of the bowl.

Now mix Tandoori Chicken Masala , Salt , remaining Red Chilly Powder , Gram Flour , Lemon Juice along with 3 Tablespoons of water and make a paste. Apply this mixture over the chicken.

Preheat the oven on 200 degrees. Put the chicken in the oven for 15 minutes at the same 200 degrees.
After 15 minutes , take out the chicken and put Ghee on it properly and cook again for 5 minutes .
After 5 minutes , Smear Ghee again and cook again for another 5 minutes.

Its Ready .Take it out. Sprinkle Chaat Masala , Lemon Juice ,Kasoori Methi and serve Hot.

Tip: If You have an Idli stand , you can put the chicken on it its top rack and steam.

Malai Kesar Kulfi

Kulfi

Kulfi is a traditional Indian Ice cream which has its own royal taste. Every time i made them at home , my friends and relatives always demanded for the recipe so that they could try it at their 

home.

So, here I am with an easy home made Kulfi. The recipe is quick 

but it takes time to set.

Ingredients:

Full Cream Milk : 1 litre

Sugar : 1 cup

Corn Flour : 2 Teaspoon

Pistachios : 1 Teaspoon (Sliced)

Cardamom Powder : 2 Teaspoon 

Saffron : Few Strands

Method:

Boil Milk in a thick bottomed pan ("Degchi") and and boil till the

quantity almost becomes one third.

Mix the corn flour in some water and add slowly to it stirring continuously to give it a nice thick consistency.

Add sugar and all other ingredients and cook for another 5 - 6 minutes stirring continuously to avoid burning of the milk at bottom.

Let it cool and refrigerate it till it hardens. After it hardens ,Blend it in the blender for 2 minutes.

Refrigerate again and blend it again.

After this process of refrigerating and blending twice is achieved . Finally , pour the mixture in a Kulfi mould and refrigerate it.

Its Ready. Plate it with Faluda and Rooh-Afza.

Tip: To get the Kulfi easily out of the mould , keep the mould in water for 2 minutes and it comes off easily with the lid.

Healthy Sanwich

This afternoon I was extremely tired after cleaning and dusting my room and was in no mood to cook. So, made this very innovative and easy to make sandwich which was yummy, filling and healthy.

Ingredients:
Bread: 4 Slices. (I used Multi grain Bread, though any bread can be used)
Mushrooms: 2 pieces
Onion: 1 medium
Tomato: 1 medium
Capsicum: 1
Carrot: 1 Grated.
Lettuce Leaves: 2
Mayonnaise: 2 Tablespoon
Tomato Ketchup: 2 Tablespoon
Chili Sauce: 1 Tablespoon
Pepper: 1 Teaspoon
Cheese: I Teaspoon Grated (Optional)
Red Chili Powder: 1 teaspoon (Optional)
Salt to Taste

Method:
Chop all the vegetables finely except Lettuce Leaves.. Microwave the Chopped Mushroom on high for 3 minutes so that they become cooked.

Mix all the Vegetables except Lettuce leaves in a bowl with Mayonnaise, salt and Pepper powder.
In a plate Put tow bread Slices adjacently. ON each put one Lettuce Leaf and top it up with the mayonnaise mixture. Finally put the tomato ketchup and chili sauce along with the grated cheese. Put the other two slices on each of them to cover them.

Grill the sandwich in microwave for 6 minutes. Give 3 minutes on each side.
It's ready! Serve it with Ketchup.

Tip: For Veggies you can use Grated Paneer , Corns , Bell peppers , Peas. It's totally up to you.

Mandi - The Local Veggie Vend

Mandi.

They say India is all about Snake Charmers and temples. What those people dint know is India is the land of diversity in terms of everything from culture, cuisines or styles. You name it and we have it all diversified. We always have believed in consuming everything fresh straight from the kitchen without freezing and storing it for days.

This Saturday I got this golden opportunity to see the most colorful combination of India, the weekly Mandi of Noida.

Mandi is mainly a place where all local vegetable sellers get together and sell those fresh fruits and vegetables at a comparatively lesser price. Generally, it's once in a week in a particular location and then these sellers move to another location to sell them on a different day. Well, I was lucky enough to live in a place where it happens on Saturday. So, my father and I armed with 2 jute designer vegetable bags went there.

The sight of the mandi was spectacular with all the vegetable sellers sitting in a proper line displaying their vegetables and shouting their own roll calls to attract the customers. The vegetables were fresh and looked beautiful all decorated in a line. The ripe rich tomato was shining in its own way while the Halloween Pumpkin had its own charm. There were altogether 3 varieties of apples of different price ranges for people of different section to have their own share of keeping the doctor away.

What really was surprising about this local bazaar was that not only there were fruits and veggies but also plastic crockery stall having all sorts of colorful tiffin and steel utensils. It was really lovely to see a little kid plucking her mother's sari and telling to buy her yellow tiffin and not that red one. The cost comparatively less again than the big supermarkets.

The sale of bangles and other feminine stuffs arrested my attention. Women throng towards the seller to buy a fair deal and have their own set of collections to compliment them with their own attire.

We filled our bangs with the fresh vegetable to complete our quota for a week and I also go tiffin to store my cookies. All in all it was an amazing experience and all you readers out there… Don't miss a chance if you get a chance to visit one!

Apologies for not so clear picture quality as couldn't take my Nikon there! 

Have a Happy Weekend!

Thanks!

Spices

Hello!

While helping my mom drying spices on the terrace yesterday , I realized how important they are for any dish. All possessing  their own specific color and shape and most importantly their taste.
Those Fiery Hot Red Chillies to those soothing Green cardamom , each have their own style.

Ever wondered how tasteless our dishes would simply be without these beautiful tiny creations of God ...
Using them properly and in required amount is also very important.

Dal Makhni

Hello!
Its been raining  here in Noida and the rain water seems to make the environment a little more cozy . With mom and  dad being at home due to the shower spell  today ,  I decided to treat them with a sumptuous lunch of Dal Makhni and Jeera pulao.
Dal Makhni is a traditional Punjabi Preparation  which is extremely tasty as well as nutritious.Its time consuming but today with the availability of modern kitchen appliances , it can be made within a short time.Generally its prepared on some important occasions  like marriages and parties.

Ingredients :
1 Cup Whole black lentil (Whole Urad) soaked overnight
1/2 Cup Red Kidney Bean (Rajma) soaked overnight 
2 Teaspoon Cumin seed (Shahi Jeera)

2 Dry red chillies
2 Bay leaves
3 Medium sized onion finely chopped 
2 tomatoes pureed
3 Tablespoon Ginger Garlic paste 
3  Teaspoon Turmeric Powder 
2 Teaspoon Red Chilly Powder 
2 Tablespoon Garam Masala Powder
2 Teaspoon Coriander powder
1/2 Cup Fresh cream
50 gm  butter
3 Tablespoon Milk
3 Tablespoon Refined Oil
Salt to Taste.

Method : 
Heat oil in a pan. Add cumin seeds , bay leaves and dry red chillies (broken into two) . As the cumin seeds splutter and gives aroma ,  add chopped onions and sauté it till golden brown. To the it add purred tomatoes and cook till the tomato loses its rawness and gives a nice red color. After this put the ginger garlic paste and fry it till 2-3 minutes. To this mixture add the turmeric , coriander and Garam Masala powder and cook it for another 3 minutes. Finally , add milk and 4 tablespoons of cream and fry it till they add the color to the mixture. The spices mixture is ready for the dish.
Now in a pressure cooker add both the pulses along with 6 cups of water. Add the spice mixture, salt  and top it with butter and the remaining cream . Set the pressure cooker and cook it for good 50 minutes on medium flame.Its cooked now . Remove the cover of the pressure cooker and cook for another 5 minutes while mashing the cooked pulses with the wooden spatula to make the consistency smooth. Its 
done!Decorate it with fresh cream.
Its is eaten both with rice as well as chapatis/nan.

Tip : If you have forgotten to soak the pulses overnight  you can easily do it by soaking them in warm water in a Thermos flask.. Within few hours the the pulses soak water and become soft.

Thanks!