BESAN SAAG

Ingredients
2 tbsp besan/gram flour
2 cups water
1 small eggplant
1 potato cut into big pieces
Salt – to taste
A pinch of hing
5 to 8 green chilies
1 tsp jeera
1 tbsp oil
Hand full curry leaves
½ tsp haldi
4 pieces dry mango/ aambeli
Coriander leaves (for garnish)

Ghantias: ½ cup besan , Salt – to taste, A pinch hing, ½ tbsp crushed coriander seeds, 1 tbsp oil & water as required

Method of making Ghantias: mix all ingredients together & make semi stiff dough. Make rolls & cut into 2 inches long pieces

Method
Mix besan & water together to make a batter. In a sauce pan, heat oil. When hot, add cumin seeds, chopped green chilies, asafetida ,and curry leaves. Allow it to temper. Add the gram flour batter to this tempered mixture & add eggplant, salt & haldi. Let it boil on a high flame. Once it starts to boil add dry mangoes, potatoes & Ghantias. Reduce the flame to medium low. & let it simmer once the Ghantias are cooked the besan saag is ready to be served.

Garnish with coriander leaves & serve with rice.

Bhatia Kadhi

Ingredients
1 cup water from tur dal ( the water in which you boil the dal)
2 tbsp besan
1 tsp jeera, hurba ( fenugreek seeds) , each
1 potato cut in big pieces
4 pieces suran/yam
4 pieces drumstick
4 pieces bhindi
4 pieces gavar
½ inch Ginger cut into small pieces
2 cups water
4 kokum
Some dry channa or black eye peas ( lubia) soaked
8 to 15 chilies as per taste cut into half
1tbsp oil
Salt to taste
½ tsp haldi
Sugar to taste
Hand full of curry leaves
A pinch of hing ( as we say in our language unchi vagarani)

Method

Mix the besan in water & keep aside
Heat oil in a sauce pan add jeera, fenugreek seeds, a pinch of hing. Then add curry leaves, chilies, ginger, suran, gavar, and channa/lubia & add the besan mixture. Add tur dal water, haldi & salt. Allow it to boil then add potatoes, kokum & drum sticks. Lower the heat to medium flame & let it cook for ½ hour.
Then check the seasoning & add sugar accordingly as Bhatia kadhi is should be a mixture of all flavors sweet , sour& hot. Now you can add bhindi & then cook till the bhindi is cooked. Now your delicious Bhatia kadhi is ready to be served with Dal chawal or mong chawal.
Note: you can even add banana to it & it changes a bit of flavor. You have to add the skin of the banana to get the taste, but discard it before serving. As a health alternative you can use canola oil it doesn’t affect the taste.

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Festive Cardamom Biscuits

Ingredients:

300 gm flour
125 gm castor sugar
200 gm chilled butter
1/2 tsp cardamom powder


To Decorate
2 tbsp castor sugar
edible food color


Method:

Mix flour, sugar and spice in a bowl. With your fingertips, rub in diced butter into the flour. When the mixture resembles breadcrumbs, knead it into soft dough.

Knead on a floured surface until smooth. Wrap the dough in a paper and chill for 30 minutes.

Roll on a floured surface till 1/8" thick. Cut and arrange on a baking tray. Chill for ten minutes.

Bake in a pre-heated oven at 170 degree C for ten minutes or until golden.

Dip each biscuit into a plain or colored sugar and cool before storing in an airtight tin

Pineapple Pastry

Ingredients:

8"2 plain vanilla sponge square
1 cup pineapples-chopped fine
3 tbsp pineapple juice/syrup
3 cups cream-chilled
1 tbsp sugar
cherries and pineapple slices for garnish

Method:

Whip the cream with the sugar, till it holds its shape. Be careful not to over beat, as it will turn into butter.

Place one sponge on the plate upside down, remove the paper and spread the chopped pineapple over it in a layer.

Spread a layer of cream over this and cover with the second sponge, upside down.

Remove the paper and sprinkle with the juice/syrup. Now cover neatly with a layer of cream. Cut into desired sized rectangles and decorate with piped whipped cream.

Garnish with the pineapple slice and cherries, chill and serve.

Home-Made Chocolates

Ingredients:

160 gm semi sweet chocolate
2 tbsp milk
1/2 cup nuts - chopped
1 tsp Vanilla/almond essence
a greased plate to keep the chocolates

Method:

Place chocolate and milk in a pan.

In a bigger pan, bring water to a boil and shut off the heat.

Immediately, place the pan with the chocolate over this hot water and stir slowly as soon as it starts to melt.

When the whole mixture is well blended take the pan off the heat immediately. Mix in the vanilla.

Stir in the nuts, and drop spoonfuls of mixture on the greased plate and leave to set. Your chocolates are ready.