ahmi

One of our Friend Anitha used to tell about Delhi Carrot and the halwa she makes with it. When i found some Delhi Carrots from street vendors in Tnagar, i could'nt stop me buying 1/2 kg. i repeatedly questioned the selling lady, whether this is carrot or radish. only after her confirmation i bought it. those carrots were in the colour of pinkish red. they are so lengthy too. i reserved the carrots for the weekend dessert.


Unfortunately, i did'nt have ghee on hand, but thats for good. This halwa came out beautifully and tasted Great without Ghee. if you dont believe me, do try it without ghee and find out. Even i did'nt add milk to this halwa. indeed it tasted Good. enough of me raving about my own creation.


This is such a simple recipe with just three ingredients. 1/2 Kg of carrots could make only for two / three servings of carrot halwa.

Ingredients:
(Recipe for two dessert lovers)

Delhi Carrots                                                                                          1/2 kg.

Sugar                                                                                                      1/4 cup

Roasted Cashews                                                                                          5





Method:

Grate the Carrots finely.

Heat a Skillet or Pan, roast the cashews and keep aside.

In the same pan, add the grated carrots and roast them for a minute.

Add 1/4 cup of sugar to the pan and give a stir.  the sugar melts and the carrot has to be cooked in it.

Keep stirring in between for 8 - 10 minutes, till the water content is fully absorbed and the halwa comes together to the centre of the pan without sticking to the sides of the pan. Add roasted cashews and serve warm.



Note: Use Delhi carrots for this vibrant colour. i did not use any food colour for this halwa. nor i did'nt do any photoshop works, to show this halwa bright!


Serve the Halwa warm with a scoop of ice-cream.

* You can reduce sugar and add sweetened Khoa towards the end to make it rich.
* You can add Ghee, to make the halwa Fat-rich.
* You can add cashews, pista's at the end to make the halwa cholestrol-rich.

Ingredients for the Wheat Crust:

Wheat Flour - 2 cup's + 2 tbsp(for dusting)
Cold Butter - 100 gms
Salt - a pinch
Baking Powder - 1/4 tsp
Ice water - 1/2 cup



How to Prepare the Crust/ Pie Shell?


Ingredients for the Filling:

Mushroom - 200 gms
Onions - 2
Spring Onions (Green Part) - 1 cup (chopped)

Butter - 2 tbsp
Pepper Powder - 1 tsp
Salt to taste

Eggs- 3
Milk - 1 cup
Cheese - 2 tbsp grated [Mozarella or Cheddar cheese]

* I added comparitively less cheese, but usually the recipe will call for atleast 1/4 of cheese.


How to Prepare the Filling?

Life has so many challenges ahead for us now. Right from Career, School for the kid,  everything is still on hold, and we are really fighting hard to play it all smoothly from the pause mode. Hope everything will get smoother. Other than that, had bloggers meet, where i got a chance of knowing all nice bloggers and now i can call them as blog-friends. every blog-friend were so sweet and nice. then my kid got holiday's, so i need not tell you all, why i was not spotted here often.

Holiday fever caught us and cooking new dishes becomes my job. As a Brinjal Fan, i was longing to prepare this Baingan aur Mirch ka Saalan. i got this recipe from Nita Mehta's Cook in Minutes. it was really made in minutes.close to quarter of an hour, if i need to mention the duration.

If you think, that this Gravy is a Spicy Dish, then you are wrong. Its Tangy and Thick Gravy. If you need it to be spicier, add some chilli powder or have a bite of green chilli's then and there while having the gravy;)
The fried soft brinjals compliment with the tanginess of the gravy, and i think thats the uniqueness of the gravy.


Recipe Source: Nita Mehta's Cook in Minutes
Ingredients:

4 Green Chilli's
5 Purple Brinjal's - sliced in round shape's (refer picture)
Tamarind paste - 2 tsp's
Chilli powder  - 1 tsp
5 tbsp Oil
1/4 tsp Mustard
1/2 Onion - finely chopped
Curry Leaves - 1 sprig
Thick Milk - 1/4 cup or Fres Cream - 2 tsp's

To Grind:

2 tbsp sesame seeds
2 tbsp peanuts
1 tsp grated coconut
6 flakes of garlic
1 inch of ginger
1 tsp Cumin
2 tsp's of corriander powder
a pinch of turmeric powder
Juice of half of a Lemon

 Grind the above all together into a smooth and thick paste with 2 tbsp of water.


Method:

Heat Oil in a Thick Bottomed pan, add slitted green chilli's and fry them. after frying remove it from oil.
Then add round sliced Brinjal's to the oil and fry them for 5-7 minutes till they are cooked and turn into golden colour. once the brinjals are cooked remove them from oil.

add mustard, curry leaves to the oil and let the mustard splutter. now add frinely schopped onion and fry them till they turn translucent.

Now add the grounded smooth paste and mix with the onions. add 2 cup's of water and tamarind paste and bring them to boil.

Then add the fried green chilli's and brinjals to the pan and mix well. Let the gravy simmer for another 2-3 minutes. Then remove the gravy from the flame and add 2 tsp of fresh cream or 1/4 cup of thick milk.

Serve with Rice or roti's.

The Climate in chennai is Chill, with lots of Rain. For this chill climate, nothing other than soup on table makes you comfortable. As me and my son love to have soup, i find different soups from other blogs and create it at home. two days back i soaked lots of beans to prepare these mixed beans soup and then searched at many blogs and found the prepation is more similar to Indian Curry.

Most of the recipe called for some broths, you can use vegetable broth or just go with plain water, like what i made. the other ingredients mentioned in the recipe are, Chilli Powder, Corriander powder, cumin powder and little curry masala powder. Now say, does'nt it sound like Indian Curry Ingredients?

Beans to Soak:
soak 1/4 cup of each beans overnight.

Kidney Beans / Rajma
Cowpeas / Kaaramani
Brown Chickepas
Chickpeas
Mochai / Hyacinth

Ingredients:

Onions - 2
Tomatoes - 2
Garlic - 3 cloves
Bay leaf - 1
Cinnamon Stick - 1 inch
Cloves - 2
Olive Oil - 1tbsp
Dried Parsley or Oregano - 1 tbsp
Water or Vegetable  Broth - 3 cup's

Chilli Powder - 1 tsp
Corriander Powder - 2tsp
Cumin Powder - 1/2 tsp
Curry Masala Powder - 1/4 tsp (optional)

Method:

In a Wide Pressure Cooker, heat a tbsp of oil, add cinnamon stck, cloves, bayleaf and saute them. next add finely chopped onions and fry them, on next, add finely chopped tomatoes , crushed garlic pieces and mix along with onions and fry them.

Add chilli powder, salt to taste, corriander powder, cumin powder and curry masala powder and mix well with the onion-tomato mix.

Next add overnight soaked beans to the onion-tomato-masala mix and give a mix. add 3 cups of water and mix well. close the pressure cooker with its lid and put on its whistle and let the cooker be on high flame till it whistles 4-5 times. switch off the flame and let the pressure releases and open the cooker.

Sprinkle some Dried Parsley or oregano and serve hot.


I served the Soup with some Wheat Foccacia. It filled our tummy very much. With all the beans you get the necessay protein and energy. wheat gives the needed fibre content. It was a simple and hearty meal together.