In a long list of variety of ladoos, sev ladoo, are by far my favorite. I still remember when I first tasted it, it was little ball of heaven. Unfortunately, I used to only have them once a year, but after making them myself, I will most definitely try and make them as often as I can. 

Ladoos are a type of Indian sweet, most often made during festivals, weddings, and any celebratory event. I always thought it was a difficult process to make these, but  they are quite simple to make, but it require time.  I know I must sound like a broken record because most of the things I have attempted to cook has been pretty straight forward and simple. But I must say that these turned out really well, in fact so well that I airmailed them to my sister and she ate 7 of them in one sitting!

Prep time: 60 minutes
Makes: 46 ladoos

Ingredients:

300g roasted Vermicelli
2 1/4 cup Khoya (Mawo)
60g fine sugar
1 cup almond
1 cup pistachio
2 tbsp Ghee
Saffron (a pinch)
2 tbsp Milk
Cardamom powder to taste

Method:

Grind almond and pistachio separately into a powder. Khoya comes packaged as a block of cheese, the best method is to grate it. 

In a large bowl, combine almond, pistachio, khoya, sugar, and a pinch of cardamom powder. 

In a small bowl add a pinch of saffron and then add milk. Microwave it for few seconds (`30 sec)- enough for it to dilute with the milk. Add this to the mix above.

Crush the vermicelli into small pieces. In a pan heat ghee on high and then add vermicelli. Since the vermicelli is roasted it only needs to be cooked for few minutes. Stir continuously until it is warm. Then add vermicelli to the large bowl containing rest of the ingredients, and mix it well, combining all the ingredients. 

Then roll the mixture into small round-shape balls. That is it! 

Let me know how it turns out. 

Sweets

10:32:00 PM

Over the weekend I baked for the very first time! I decided to make pistachio biscotti. It sounds fancy,  but if you have experience baking before it is very doable. The recipe I used is from My Indian Kitchen by Hari Nayak. I have tried his recipe before (here), and just like before this recipe was also simple and easy to follow with good results.

Since this was my first baking experience I found it difficult to work with the sticky dough, in hindsight I should have used the mixer, instead of 'folding' the dough myself. I think it will take a few more sessions before I become comfortable with baking. 

Prep time: 30 minutes
Makes 26 biscotti

Ingredients: 

*1 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1 cup unsalted pistachios
2 tsp grated orange zest
*3 eggs beaten

Method:

Preheat the oven at 350 degrees. In a bowl, mix flour, sugar, baking powder, pistachios, and orange zest. Make a well in the center, then add eggs and fold them into the mixture to make a sticky dough.

Divide the dough into two equal sections on a clear floured surface. Using your hands roll each section into a log approximately 1.5 inches in diameter. Place each log onto an oiled baking tray (cooking sheet would work better, but I didn't have any), leaving space between for spreading.

Bake for 30 minutes. Remove the logs from the oven and allow it cool. Decrease the oven temperature to 275 degrees.

Once the cookie logs have cooled down, using a knife cut the logs into slices. Place the cut-side down and return them to the oven for approximately 20 minutes, or until the cookies are slightly brown on the sides--turn them once for equal baking.  

Note
* The original recipe calls for 1 cup of flour and two eggs. However, in my case the 2 eggs were not sufficient for the mixture to turn into dough therefore I added one more egg and some extra dough as needed. 

Baking

11:01:00 PM

One of the most refreshing summer drink made by mom is a yogurt based drink with little bit of jeera (cumin). It is deceptively simple to make. Believe it or not this was my first time making it, and it turns out the blender does all the work!

This is drink often served with biryani and can be salty or sweet (lassi). I have tried the sweet version, but my preference is for salty.

Prep time: 5 min or less
Serves: 3 glasses

Ingredients:

2 cup plain yogurt
1/2 tsp cumin powder 
salt (to taste)
2 cups water
1 cup ice (or water)
Mint (for garnish)

Method:

In a blender add yogurt, cumin powder, salt, water, and ice. Blend until the mixture becomes frothy. And that's it!

Pour the mixture into glasses and garnish with mint.  

Notes:

You can adjust the quantities yogurt and water based on the consistency you want. 

If you are planning on serving at a later time, do not add ice while blending, otherwise it will loose its consistency.  Add couple of ice cubes or keep it chilled in the refrigerator. 

Drinks

9:48:00 PM

Over the weekend I made a simple tandoori masala chicken dish. This is one of the dishes that is universally appealing whether you like Indian food or not. It is a very simple, straightforward, and great for the summer get-togethers. I served the chicken with a side of cabbage and onion slaw. It provides a nice balance of sweet and tangy. 

For the chicken:

Prep time: 10 minutes

Cook time: 45 minutes

Ingredients

12 piece of skinless chicken drumsticks

3/4 cup plain yogurt

2 tbsp ginger-garlic paste

1.5 tsp Tandoori Masala (readily available at Indian grocery store)

2 tbsp Olive Oil

Salt (to taste)

Method:

Prep the chicken by making a small slit on each side. Transfer the chicken into a bowl and add yogurt, ginger-garlic paste, tandoori masala, and salt to taste. Mix well and set aside in the refrigerator for 1-2 hrs.

After 1-2 hrs, transfer the chicken and the marinade to a oven pan and broil on low until the chicken is cooked thoroughly (about 45 minutes). About half way through make sure to turn the pieces over. 

For the cabbage-onion slaw:

Prep time: 15 minutes

Ingredients:

1 small red cabbage

1 medium size red onion

 salt (to taste)

1.5 tsp sugar *

1/3 cup vinegar*

Method:

Thinly slice the cabbage and the onion, the thinner the better. In a bowl mix the cabbage, onion, salt, sugar, and vinegar. Let the mixture soak before serving.

*I would recommend you adjust the sugar and vinegar according to your taste, balance of sweet and tangy.

chicken

11:37:00 PM

There is nothing like a home made dessert. A couple days ago I decided to attempt my very first dessert. The egg pudding is one of those desserts that requires few ingredients but the taste is satisfying and so delicious. The pudding turned out well, but it just 'cracked' when I turned it over. 

Ingredients:

For the caramelization:

3 tbsp sugar
*3 tbsp water 

In a cooking pot add sugar, and water *(enough water to to wet all of the sugar). Heat the mixture on high, occasionally swirl the pot for even spread until the sugar start turning golden brown. Set aside.

For the egg pudding:

3 cups of Half & Half
3 eggs
4 tbsp sugar
Vanilla Essence 
Yellow food coloring

Method:

In a bowl combine and whisk Half & Half, eggs, sugar, a couple drops of vanilla essence, and a pinch of yellow food coloring. 

Crack the caramelized sugar, then transfer the whisked egg pudding mixture to it.

In a pan create a water bath, and warm it on the stove top. In a preheat oven (350 degrees) place the water bath and in it place the egg pudding mixture. Bake for 35-45 minutes (looks like this when done).

Let the pudding cool and then refrigerate. To serve, flip the pudding upside down in a serving dish.

Enjoy!

Dessert

10:18:00 PM