Inspired by Rasayana -a South Indian sweetened banana fruit salad sweetened with jaggery and garnished with freshly grated coconut and slivered almonds, these muffins are egg-less and made with the goodness of whole wheat atta. The ethereal aromas of saffron and cardamom and hints of coconut take this ordinary muffin on a different level. The fat of choice here is ghee which lends a heavenly twist.

Simple, fussfree and super easy to bake cute little paper muffin cups or a cake pan and fit for weekdays, in lunch boxes, after school snacks, even for a weekend potluck party or to just indulge that sweet tooth!

Ingredients:

2 medium size over-ripe bananas (with lot of brown spots)
2-1/2 tbsp ghee
1/4 cup whole milk at room temperature
1/4 cup powdered jaggery
big pinch of saffron
powdered cardamom from 6-7 pods (about 1/2 tsp)
2 tbsp slivered almonds plus 2 tbsp for garnish
2 tbsp unsweetened desiccated coconut

3/4 cup whole wheat flour (chapathi atta)
1/2 tsp aluminium-free baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp sea salt

Method:

Line paper muffin cups on a baking tray and keep aside.

Preheat oven to 350°F

Mash bananas to a puree using a hand blender (makes about 1 cup)

In a mixing bowl, beat ghee and powdered jaggery with a whisk until cream-colored, fluffy and light. Add banana puree to the beaten ghee mixture and sprinkle powdered cardamom

Powder saffron in a mortar and pestle. Sprinkle saffron powder to milk and stir well.

Whisk together banana puree, sweet cardamom ghee mixture and saffron milk

In a separate mixing bowl, whisk all the dry ingredients to mix well. Add the dry mix to the wet mix and gently whisk to combine. Fold in desiccated coconut and slivered almonds.

Scoop out batter into the paper muffin cups until 3/4th full leaving room for the muffins to rise. Garnish with slivered almonds pressing them gently to stay put.

Place the baking tray in the middle rack of the oven and bake at 350°F for 25 mins or until tooth pick comes out clean and the irresistible aroma fills the kitchen. Do not over bake.

Take muffins out of the oven and allow to cool on a wire rack.

Serve warm at tea time or with a side of your favorite ice cream. It is great to eat on its own.

Read full post: Banana Coconut Saffron Muffins

Keeping the Traditional Karanji in mind I thought of treating the Spinach lovers and the Spinach avoiders by using Spinach, Pistachio nuts, Jaggery, Honey, Whole wheat flour, Semolina, Dry coconut, Sesame seeds, Poppy seeds and other Indian flavourings in the filling.

Ingredients:

Prep Time: 45 minutes + 02 Hours of Resting time of the dough.
Cook time: 25 minutes
Serves: 25 small sized karanjissssss
Cuisine: Maharashtrian- Fusion
Course: Mithais (Indian Sweets)

Ingredients and Quantity:
Ingredients for the filling:
Spinach leaves without stem – 01 bunch, medium size.
Jaggery, grated fine- ½ cup
Honey- ½ cup
Pistachio nuts powder- 02 tsp
Roughly chopped pistachio nuts- 06 tsp
Raisins- 10 gm.
Whole wheat flour-1/4 th cup
Semolina- ¼ th cup
Dry coconut, grated- ¾ th cup
Sesame seeds- 01 tbsp.
Poppy seeds- 1 ½ tbsp
Pure Ghee /Peanut oil- 1 ½ tsp
Green cardamom powder- ½ tsp.
Nutmeg powder- a pinch

Ingredients for the outer crust:
Semolina- ¼ th cup
All-purpose flour- 1 ¾ th cups
Salt- ¼ th tsp.
Sugar- ½ tbsp..
Pure ghee- 1 ½ tbsp.
Milk – ½ cup or as required

For covering the dough:
Muslin cloth ,Damp / moistened- ½ metre

For Deep frying:
Pure Ghee /Refined Oil- as required for deep frying

For removing excess of oil / ghee from the Karanji:
Kitchen absorbant paper- 06 nos. big.

Method:

For the filling:
Wash and blanch the spinach leaves in very hot water for 02-03 minutes, Drain the water and refresh under cold water to retain the green colour of spinach.
Puree the spinach in a food processor / mixer. In a non-stick pan add spinach puree to that add honey ,coarsely ground pistachio nuts and roughly chopped pistachio nuts- 02 tsp. and reduce till a thick consistency. Keep aside to cool
Broil / dry roast each ingredient separately i.e. the coconut, sesame seeds and poppy seeds in a heay bottomed non-stick pan, until it turns light golden brown. Do not burn.
Do not mix. Keep each ingredient separately.Let the ingredients cool down .
Now in a food processor /mixer ,blend coconut, sesame & poppy seeds separately to a coarse texture.
In a non-stick pan lightly roast the semolina in ghee till it turns golden brown. Keep aside.Roast the whole wheat flour as for semolina
Put all the filling ingredients in a food processor/ mixer ,including the flour, semolina, cooked spinach mixture ,coarse powders, jaggery, cardamom and nutmeg powder together and blend them till they form a coarse paste keeping in mind that the beautiful green colour of the spinach is retained. Add roughly chopped Pistachio nuts and raisins. Mix well ,Keep aside.

For the crust:
Heat ghee in a non-stick pan. Once the ghee has melted turn off the flame and keep aside.
Add in the all-purpose flour, semolina, sugar and salt into a large glass bowl. Make a depression in the centre of the dry ingredients and pour the hot ghee into it mixing it into the flour thoroughly with your finger tips i.e. just like short crust pastry. Knead the flour and other ingredients slowly by pouring the milk a little at a time.
Once the dough is semi-soft, cover it with a damp muslin cloth and set it aside to rest for at least 02 hours.
Divide the dough into 25 small portions and shape into balls. Roll out each ball into a circle, put a small portion of the prepared filling in middle, fold over to make a semi circle and thinly flute the edges to seal it well.

For the Frying:
Heat sufficient ghee in a kadai and deep fry the karanjis on medium heat in till they are crisp and a pleasant golden colour.
Drain on absorbent paper and allow to cool completely.

For the Serving:
Serve the Maharastrian Karanjis with a healthy twist , which are now ready to be served.

Chef tips:
1. The dough is covered with a damp muslin cloth to prevent it from drying.
2. My reason of using spinach in the Karanji is usually people think of spinach only when it come to Palak Paneer or Palak corn, I thought of creating something out of the box.It reminds me of the Jingle “Taste Bhi Health Bhi”.
3. Kids usually avoid eating spinach, what could be better than this.

This delicious melt-in- your mouth appetizer will steal the thunder out of your meal!!!! Succulent chicken chunks wrapped with cheese, fresh cream, broiled dried fenugreek leaves, and freshly grounded spices, grilled or barbecued sprinkled with lemon juice, accompanied with Onion laccha salad and mint -coriander -yogurt chutney.

Ingredients:

Prep time: 00 Hrs 20 Mins Cooking time :00 Hrs 20 Mins Serves: 04 Person(s)
Ingredients:
Chicken leg without skin, boneless- 500 gm. cut into 02 inch cubes
First Marination:
Ginger paste- 01 tbsp.
Garlic paste- 01 tbsp.
White pepper powder- 01 tsp.
Green cardamom powder- ¼ th tsp.
Salt-02 gm.
Raw papaya paste- ¼ th cup (It is a tenderizer)
Second Marination:
Green chillies- 04 nos.
Fresh coriander leaves- 03 tsp.
Cheddar cheese, grated- 05 tbsp.
Corn flour- 02 tsp.
Fresh cream- ½ cup
Hung curd- ½ cup
Dried fenugreek leaves (Kasoori Methi),
broiled- 1 ½ tsp.
Nutmeg powder- ½ tsp.
Mace powder- ½ tsp.
Salt- To taste.
For basting the chicken pieces:
Pure ghee/ Melted butter / Canola oil- 1 ½ tbsp.
For Sprinkling:
Lemon Juice- 01 no.
Chaat masala – 1/4th tsp. (Optional)

Method:

First Marination Time- 35 minutes.
Second Marination Time- Overnight in a refrigerator covered with cling wrap or minimum 03 Hours.
Oven Temperature: 425˚F.
For the first marination:
Clean and wash chicken pieces thoroughly.With a kitchen napkin / paper kitchen towel, pat dry the pieces to remove excess of moisture in it.
In a glass bowl, combine the chicken pieces with ginger & garlic paste, green cardamom powder, salt, pepper and raw papaya paste. Mix well. Cover with a cling wrap and refrigerate for 35 minutes.
For the second marination:
Remove the marinated chicken pieces from the refrigerator and keep aside.
Coarsely grind green chillies and fresh coriander leaves without water using a mortar and pestle.To this ground mixture add grated cheddar cheese, corn flour, fresh cream, broiled kasoori methi , hung curd, nutmeg powder, mace powder and salt- To taste.
Now add the marinated chicken pieces to the second marinate.Keep it covered with a cling wrap refrigerated, overnight.
For preparing the Malai Kabab:
Remove the bowl from the refrigerator and keep aside for 25 minutes.Preheat the oven to 425˚F in a grill mode for 10 minutes.On a baking sheet, place an aluminium foil sheet. Take the skewer rods and insert the chicken pieces. Keep it on top rack of the oven for 10 minutes. Drizzle the remaining marinade on them and drizzle little melted ghee / melted butter / Canola oil over the chicken pieces.
Once it is done, turn over the skewer rods and keep it for another 10 minutes.
For serving the kebabs:In a serving plate, serve the kebabs very hot sprinkled with lemon juice and chaat masala (optional) and accompanied with onion laccha salad and mint-coriander-yogurt chutney.
Chef tips:You may add an egg to the second marination, if you are marinating the chicken pieces for 03 hours and not overnight.I prefer that the chicken be marinated overnight so that it is much juicer, flavourful and aromatic.Drizzling with the leftover marinade and melted pure ghee/ melted butter/ Canola oil keeps the chicken kebabs juicy and tender.You may use a tandoor or barbecue for the kebabs.You may sprinkle a little chaat masala before serving the kebabs.

There are many childhood favourite sweets which I love to devour till date…but among all I like these Deep fried Indian Cookies, which are called Khajoor (diamond shape is sometimes referred as khajor shape in urdu language…so many be the name khajoor, as these cookies are cut in diamond shape mostly)…These are not so sweet in taste and the heavenly aroma of cardamom lifts your spirits. My mom use to make these when we are visiting friends or relatives. She even makes these to carry with us on train trips or to family picnics and mostly during our winter/summer holidays. I find these very indulging and yum.

Ingredients:

1 cup whole wheat flour
½ cup Semolina
½ tbsp. Baking Soda
1 cup Sugar
½ tbsp. Green Cardamom /Elachi powder
3/4 cup Milk
3 tbsp. Ghee, melted
3 tbsp. Cashew nuts, fried and roughly chopped
Oil, fro deep frying

Method:

In wide bowl mix whole wheat flour with semolina, baking soda, sugar, cardamom powder and fried cashew nuts. Mix well. Add ghee slowly and using your fingers mix gently until you get crumbs.
Now slowly add in milk and knead the dough gently with your fingers till you get thick dough. Rest the dough for 15 minutes by covering.
Heat oil in a heavy bottom cooking vessel or kadai for deep frying and in the meanwhile using your fingers knead the dough until you get smooth dough easy enough to roll.
Apply ghee/oil to the rolling surface and pin. Roll the dough to 1’inch thick circle and using a knife cut into diamonds. Alternatively you can use cookie cutter to cut into desired shapes or you can make pattern using fork.
Deep fry the cut diamonds by dropping by one by one in to hot oil. Fry till brown on both the sides. Remember not to burn them. Fry on low flame for 2-3 minutes and then on medium till done. You can see cracks forming on the diamonds.
Remove using a slotted spoon to remove excess oil. Cool and store in an air tight container.
These can stay fresh for 2-3 days when stored in a clean and dry air tight container.

Read full post: Khajoor – Deep Fried Indian Cookies

Malabar Prawn Curry is a recipe from the coastal regions of South India, KERALA, which is aptly called “God’s Own country”. Because of the abundance of coconut trees in Kerala, it finds it’s exclusive presence in Malabar Cuisine. Malabari Cuisine is from the Southern Part of Konkan Coast, which is quite different from the Northern Konkan cuisine namely Malvani and Gonmantak. Usage of Tamarind and Curry leaves is the signature of Malabari Cuisine. This recipe has a burst of flavor with the tanginess of tamarind, great flavours of curry leaves and the sweet taste of coconut milk.

Ingredients:

Prawns- 250gms

Coconut milk-1 cup

Tamarind paste-1 tsp

Curry leaves- a sprig

Mustard seeds-1/2tsp

Fenugreek seeds-1/2 tsp

Whole Red Chillies-2 to 3 nos

Baby onions- 3 to 4

Turmeric powder-1tsp

Kashmiri red Chilli Powder-1 tsp

Salt to taste

Juice of ½ lemon

Mustard Oil- 3 to 4 tsp
For the Paste:
Grated coconut-3/4cup

Chopped Ginger-1 tsp

Chopped Garlic-2tsp

Green Chillies-2 nos

Turmeric powder-1/2 tsp

Cumin powder-1/2tsp

Coriander powder-1tsp

Method:

Wash and clean the prawn. Marinate the prawn with 1 tsp turmeric powder, 1 tsp red chilli powder , 1 tsp salt and a juice of half a lemon for 30 minutes.
Take 1 cup of grated coconut and pour over 1 cup of boiling water and extract the coconut milk through a sieve.

Grind all the ingredients marked under Paste with some water and keep aside.

In a pan, fry the prawns on both sides in mustard oil for 3 to 4 minutes. Remove and keep aside.

In the same pan, add ,a little more oil, when it is hot, add the mustard and fenugreek seeds, once they start to splutter, add the curry leaves, dry red chillies, and the onions. Fry till the onions turns a little brown and then add the ground masala. Saute for 5 to 6 minutes or till oil comes out from it on medium heat. Add salt and tamarind paste and cook for further 3 to 4 minutes.
Now add the prawns and cook for 3 to 4 minutes and then add the coconut milk. Let it comes to a boil and then lower the heat and let the curry cook for 2 to 3 mts more. Switch off the gas and keep it covered to trap the aroma of the curry inside.

Serve hot with hot steamed rice and raita.

Read full post: MALABAR PRAWN CURRY

Assam, the beautiful state of North-East India has an incredible range of culture, awesome wildlife, the world famous Assam Tea, oldest oil refineries, famous Kamakhya temple and of course, the Assamese cuisine, which is characterized by very little use of spices but strong flavors. This Masor Tenga (Tangy Fish Curry), is an indispensable part of a proper meal in Assam. This is a light and tangy dish, and is one of Assam’s signature preparations. The key ingredient in a tenga is the use of a souring agent like lemon or tomato which lends the dish a tart tangy taste. I being a fish addict, when saw this recipe in one of a popular food forum, could not stop myself and recreated the same in my kitchen some days back. It can be best enjoyed with plain rice.

Ingredients:

4 nos of Fish pieces preferably rohu or katla, marinated in salt and turmeric powder for 15 minutes
1 big tomatoes Chopped finely
1 small Potato chopped
1 tbsp Mustard oil (MO) for frying the fish and for the curry
1/2 tsp Paanch foron
Salt- to taste
1 tsp Turmeric powder
1 no of Dry red chili
2 cups of Warm water
1 tsp Coriander leaves roughly chopped.
1 tsp Lemon juice

Method:

Marinate the fish pieces with turmeric powder and salt and leave for 15 minutes.
Heat oil in a deep pan and shallow fry the fish until lightly browned. Set aside.
Now, heat up 1 tbsp of mustard oil, almost to fuming and add the dry red chili, followed by the spoonful of Panch phoron. Once the dry spices release the aroma, add the chopped tomatoes and the turmeric powder, saute for a while and then simmer to make a pulp out of the tomatoes.
Then put the chopped potato, mix well, saute and simmer under a lid until oil separates. Once the potatoes are soft, put the water and then fish pieces, bring to boil and keep for 3-4 minutes, check the salt content and garnish with chopped coriander leaves.
If you want more sourness, add some lemon juice as per your taste and your fish tenga is ready to be relished.
serve with steamed rice.

Read full post: MASOR TENGA (TANGY FISH CURRY)