Tag: Dry Nuts

Carrot Halwa | How to make carrot halwa?

Juicy moist sweet carrot halwa with cashews and raisins
10/21/2016 6:45:02 PM vindhyadesai

Carrot halwa is a famous Indian sweet made from grated sweet carrots, sugar, milk, ghee all sauteed till it turns into a sweet, soft halwa. This light orange coloured sweet is loved by children and is a good way of getting children to eat some carrots. The halwa is flavoured with elaichi and along with added cashews and raisins this halwa is fit to be laid out for a feast.
This is one of those sweets where you do not have to check whether it is set or worry about making a threaded sugar syrup. The only thing to get this halwa to a soft and moist consistency is to stop sauteing it at the right time so that it is moist enough and does not dry out. The pictures below illustrate at what stage the halwa needs to stop cooking.
This will surely be a hit with everyone and is a good sweet to prepare in large quantities. It is easily portable and is a crowd pleaser. It can be served both as a sweet or dessert. Fancy it up a bit by serving with vanilla ice cream right on top. Do try more halwa and other sweet recipes from FOI. ... “Carrot Halwa | How to make carrot halwa?”

Kaju Katli | How to make kaju katli? | Cashew Barfi

Nutty, fudgy, everyone’s favourite with the goodness of cashews, kaju katli
10/18/2016 10:21:39 PM vindhyadesai

Deepavali/Diwali is just round the corner. I started preparing for it over the weekend and with only a few days to go I have recipes lined for Deepavali to be posted on FOI. Kaju Katli or cashew barfi is the most loved sweet both by kids and adults. This is the safest bet when distributing sweets as most people love it! I am no exception to that and I can eat many of these in one day, just chew them all up (I try not to though :)). It seems like a very complicated recipe to make but with only a few ingredients it can be one of the most easiest sweets to make if you get the consistency right. Follow stepwise to ensure you get the right consistency right from making the cashew powder to making sugar syrup to the dough consistency. More Deepavali recipes and festival recipes for you try! Happy preparation for the festival of lights! Let’s begin on a sweet note. ... “Kaju Katli | How to make kaju katli? | Cashew Barfi”

Gasa Gase Payasa | Khus Khus Kheer | Poppy Seeds Payasam | How to make gasa gase payasa?

Cooling, easy on the stomach gasa gase payasa
10/04/2016 9:48:35 PM vindhyadesai

Gasa-gase or poppy seeds or khus-khus are pungent oil seeds which give a very unique flavour to dishes. It can be added to breads, to gravies or in our very own Karnataka cuisine it is made into a payasa (liquid sweet). It is not as thick as usual payasa/payasams/kheer. It is liquidy and can be consumed as a beverage. Gasa-gase payasa has unique cooling properties, along with the gasa-gase seeds, it has jaggery (bella/gur), cardamom (elaichi), coconut milk (or grated coconut) and milk. It is a must have dessert during festivals in Karnataka. Along with bisi-bele-bhaat this is a delicacy and is consumed warm/cool as a beverage during or after lunch. This dish has a special mention in wiki under Indian cuisine. This is frequently made by my MIL and I learnt this recipe from her. She generally adds desiccated coconut (kobbri/copra), here I have added coconut milk. Sometimes I add grated and ground coconut. The little raisins pop in the mouth when drinking this unique payasa and it tastes great! This is a light sweet for ongoing Navratri festivities. ... “Gasa Gase Payasa | Khus Khus Kheer | Poppy Seeds Payasam | How to make gasa gase payasa?”

Pista Doodh | Pistachio Milk | How to make pista elaichi doodh?

Creamy, thick, nutty, light green, pistachio doodh/milk
9/18/2016 7:44:49 PM vindhyadesai

A thick milk based drink is a real energy booster especially after fasting. If it has dry nuts added to it the energy, fibre, taste quotient increases that much more. Light emerald coloured pistachios are not only pretty looking nuts their health benefits are also innumerable. They are one of the foods that helps in weight reduction as they are rich in dietary fibre and are known to reduce heart related ailments. They are also known to regulate sugar content and keeps diabetes at bay.
Like I mentioned, the health benefits of this wonder nut are next to endless probably. Their rich nutty flavour imparts a beautiful coarse texture, fragrance and colour when added to milk and also helps thicken milk. More flavour is added by elaichi or kesar (saffron) or both. Enjoy the creamy, nutty flavour of this rich flavoured milk! This is also a great drink for festivals like Holi, Naga Chauthi/Panchmi, Ram Navami. Other milk based drinks to try. ... “Pista Doodh | Pistachio Milk | How to make pista elaichi doodh?”

Apple Strudel – An Austrian speciality dessert

Flaky and crispy layers with juicy apples served with a homemade custard
08/20/2016 4:22:11 PM vindhyadesai

Thin puff pastry layers with crunch of sugar and juicy fragrant apples baked inside, served with custard and vanilla ice cream, sounds like a great combination for an indulgent dessert. This dessert is a speciality dish from Austria very famously made in one of its cities, Vienna. So here is Dish 6 from the World Cuisine Series from Austria. It is a pastry based dessert made with apples, puff pastry and other dry nuts. Strudel apparently is a word from German language. Traditionally, homemade strudel is a rolled pastry with fillings inside. The first time I tried it, I made it in the traditional way (few photos included from v1). The next time I tried it I made it into a cross between a French apple galette and an Austrian apple strudel, looks exotic and is super scrumptious. This is a very decadent dessert, go easy on the portions but enjoy it once in a while. ... “Apple Strudel – An Austrian speciality dessert”

Hayagreeva | Hayagreeva Maddi | Kadalebele payasa

Festive and authentic hayagreeva maddi
08/04/2016 11:02:37 PM vindhyadesai

Hayagreeva maddi is a payasa/payasam dish from Udupi region. I made this for Bheemana Amavasya but it can be made for many festivals. It is simple to make, the only detail to pay attention to is when you are cooking gram dal/chana dal/kadale bele. Before we begin the recipe, I would like to mention a little *story/legend* associated with the origin of ‘Hayagreeva Maddi’, I read in a book.
Once there was a sculptor who was trying to make an idol of Lord Ganesha, however all his efforts in making the sculpted idol turned into the head of a horse. He finally gave up and sculpted the idol into the shape of a horses’ head and stashed it away. One night, the Lord himself appeared in the scluptors’ dream and blessed him and asked him to donate the horses’ head idol that he had sculpted to Sri Vadirajaru. The same night Sri Vadirajaru also dreamt about the idol. The next day the sculptor brought in the idol and Sri Vadirajaru established the idol in Sonda in Sirsi, Karnataka. Everyday he started worshipping the idol and as offering/naivedya he made Hayagreeva Maddi a payasa made of gram (horses’ favourite food) and jaggery. Make this authentic and traditional dish from Karnataka for an upcoming festival 🙂 ... “Hayagreeva | Hayagreeva Maddi | Kadalebele payasa”

Dil Pasand | Tutti Frutti Stuffed Bread

Childhood favourite, colourful, fruity, dil pasand, tutti-frutti stuffed bread
07/31/2016 1:43:40 PM vindhyadesai

The most sought-after, after school treat of the 90’s. Dil Pasand along with Dil Kush were the two types of special stuffed breads available in bakeries. Old style Iyengar bakeries still do sell them. I love the tutti frutti pieces along with the coconut filling inside the bread. The outer cover is a soft and layered sweet milk bread. It tastes so good when eaten warm directly out of the oven. It truly is one of my ‘dil pasand’ (liked) snacks. There are quite a few steps to make this, plan your recipe well, I have given some pointers to make, baking dil pasand a joy! ... “Dil Pasand | Tutti Frutti Stuffed Bread”

Mango Kulfi | Aam Kulfi

Dreamy creamy mango kulfi flavoured with pista, elaichi and kesar
07/24/2016 12:46:39 PM vindhyadesai

The most preferred dessert when you are looking for an authentic traditional recipe. Mangoes and thick milk flavoured with elaichi, kesar and pista-badam that is a dream combination of ingredients. It used to be made using thick milk rabri/rabdi and adding flavours to it. As the recipe has evolved over the years, it is made with condensed milk, evaporated milk etc. The thick mixture is then frozen in matkas (earthernware pot) to make matka kulfis. Now, one can buy kulfi moulds from shops or even use glasses to freeze kulfis.
One of the mango dishes I made this summer. Enjoy creamy mango kulfis! Try out other mango recipes ... “Mango Kulfi | Aam Kulfi”

Seviyaan Kheer | Whole Wheat Seviyaan Kheer | Shavige Payasa | Vermicelli Kheer

Creamy and delicious seviyaan kheer with roasted dry nuts
07/14/2016 9:40:46 PM vindhyadesai

This is one of the most common sweets/desserts made in India for any festive occasion. For festivals, celebrations, weddings, functions, seviyaan kheer/shaavige kheer is a default option. It tastes good at room temperature or warm or even chilled. I have used whole wheat seviyaan (thin and long) and added less sugar. Add more sugar if you like and add more milk if you want the consistency to be thinner. Chopped dry nuts like almonds, pistachios, cashews and raisins add a wonderful aromatic flavour and crunch. I have dolled up my vermicelli kheer, it is one of my favourite desserts and I love it slightly chilled. ... “Seviyaan Kheer | Whole Wheat Seviyaan Kheer | Shavige Payasa | Vermicelli Kheer”

Oats porridge with toasted nuts and raisins | Oatmeal with dry nuts

Healthy oats porridge with crunchy toasted dry nuts
07/02/2016 5:09:46 PM vindhyadesai

When people think of porridge they are not very excited about it and if it is made of oats it might further drive them away. Oat is a cereal grain rich in dietary and soluble fibre and is known to lower bad cholesterol. Oatmeal or porridge need not be boring or tasteless. If it is made the right way it can be very tasty.
Do not buy the microwaveable variety instead buy regular unrefined whole bran oatmeal. Make porridge in milk, it will be very tasty and creamy. Adding in a handful of toasted nuts spikes up the health quotient of you oatmeal. Oatmeal or porridge oats are best for making porridge whereas old fashioned rolled oats can be used for making oats upma, cereal bars, crisps etc. ... “Oats porridge with toasted nuts and raisins | Oatmeal with dry nuts”