Srivalli of Spice Your Life has started this wonderful Indian Cooking Challenge, where every month one recipe will be given and everyone should follow it and post it on the same day. This month was trial and we all had to make Rava Laddoo's. What day better than today, being our anniversary and also we finalized on a house. I waited for today to make it. I had made them before but a bit differently. I followed her recipe and this is much easier than what I used to follow and tasted better too. Thanks Srivalli for this lovely challenge. This were so easy to make too. Here is Srivalli's recipe.

Ingredients

Makes - 10 Laddoos of normal size

Rava / Semolina - 1 cup
Sugar - 1 cup
Ghee - 25 gms
Milk - 25 ml
Cardamom powder - a pinch
Cashew nuts - 10 whole nuts
Raisins - 10 nos
Grated fresh coconut - 25 gms


Method

1. Heat 2 tsp of ghee in a kadai. Roast cashew nuts and raisins. Once the raisins balloon up, remove and keep them aside.
   
2. Roast the grated coconut. Remove and keep aside.
   
3. Add the remaining ghee and roast the Rava till its well roasted and aroma starts coming out.
   
4. In a bowl, take all the roasted Rava, Nuts, Coconut and add the Cardamom powder.
5. Add the sugar. Mix well.
   
6. Slowly add the warm milk into the bowl. Check if you are able to gather as balls. When you find that milk added is enough to get you laddoos, transfer it back to the kadai and cook on sim for 2 mins.
   
7. Mix well and then cover it and let it rest for 2 mins.
   
8. Then immediately make laddoos.
   

The June Daring Bakers' challenge was hosted by Jasmine of Confessions of a Cardamom Addict and Annemarie of Ambrosia and Nectar. They chose a Traditional (UK) Bakewell Tart... er... pudding that was inspired by a rich baking history dating back to the 1800's in England.

This was a lovely challenge, I made 2 tarts one was a pear tart and the other I use Rasberry Jam. The pear tart was over in seconds where as the other one was forgotten in the oven and next day mom turned on the oven in the morning and the poor thing got burnt. We all were really sad since we wanted to have that for breakfast. Anyways I will surely be making this again. Thank you for the lovely recipe.



Bakewell Tart…er…pudding

Makes one 23cm (9” tart)
Prep time: less than 10 minutes (plus time for the individual elements)
Resting time: 15 minutes
Baking time: 30 minutes
Equipment needed: 23cm (9”) tart pan or pie tin (preferably with ridged edges), rolling pin

One quantity sweet shortcrust pastry (recipe follows)
Bench flour
250ml (1cup (8 US fl. oz)) jam or curd, warmed for spreadability
One quantity frangipane (recipe follows)
One handful blanched, flaked almonds

Assembling the tart

1. Place the chilled dough disc on a lightly floured surface. If it's overly cold, you will need to let it become acclimatised for about 15 minutes before you roll it out. Flour the rolling pin and roll the pastry to 5mm (1/4”) thickness, by rolling in one direction only (start from the centre and roll away from you), and turning the disc a quarter turn after each roll. When the pastry is to the desired size and thickness, transfer it to the tart pan, press in and trim the excess dough. Patch any holes, fissures or tears with trimmed bits. Chill in the freezer for 15 minutes.
   
2. Preheat oven to 200C/400F.
   
3. Remove shell from freezer, spread as even a layer as you can of jam onto the pastry base. Top with frangipane, spreading to cover the entire surface of the tart. Smooth the top and pop into the oven for 30 minutes. Five minutes before the tart is done, the top will be poofy and brownish. Remove from oven and strew flaked almonds on top and return to the heat for the last five minutes of baking.
   
4. The finished tart will have a golden crust and the frangipane will be tanned, poofy and a bit spongy-looking. Remove from the oven and cool on the counter. Serve warm, with crème fraîche, whipped cream or custard sauce if you wish.
   
5. When you slice into the tart, the almond paste will be firm, but slightly squidgy and the crust should be crisp but not tough.
   

Jasmine’s notes:

• If you cannot have nuts, you can try substituting Victoria sponge for the frangipane. It's a pretty popular popular cake, so you shouldn't have any troubles finding one in one of your cookbooks or through a Google search. That said, our dear Natalie at Gluten a Go Go has sourced some recipes and linked to them in the related alt.db thread.
  
• You can use whichever jam you wish, but if you choose something with a lot of seeds, such as raspberry or blackberry, you should sieve them out.
  
• The jam quantity can be anywhere from 60ml (1/4 cup) to 250ml (1cup), depending upon how “damp” and strongly flavoured your preserves are. I made it with the lesser quantity of home made strawberry jam, while Annemarie made it with the greater quantity of cherry jam; we both had fabulous results. If in doubt, just split the difference and spread 150ml (2/3cup) on the crust.
  Annemarie’s notes:
  
• The excess shortcrust can be rolled out and cut into cookie-shapes (heck, it’s pretty darned close to a shortbread dough).
  

Sweet shortcrust pastry

Prep time: 15-20 minutes
Resting time: 30 minutes (minimum)
Equipment needed: bowls, box grater, cling film

225g (8oz) all purpose flour
30g (1oz) sugar
2.5ml (½ tsp) salt
110g (4oz) unsalted butter, cold (frozen is better)
2 (2) egg yolks
2.5ml (½ tsp) almond extract (optional)
15-30ml (1-2 Tbsp) cold water

Method

1. Sift together flour, sugar and salt. Grate butter into the flour mixture, using the large hole-side of a box grater. Using your finger tips only, and working very quickly, rub the fat into the flour until the mixture resembles bread crumbs. Set aside.
   
2. Lightly beat the egg yolks with the almond extract (if using) and quickly mix into the flour mixture. Keep mixing while dribbling in the water, only adding enough to form a cohesive and slightly sticky dough.
   
3. Form the dough into a disc, wrap in cling and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes
   

Jasmine’s notes:

• I make this using vanilla salt and vanilla sugar.
  
• If you wish, you can substitute the seeds of one vanilla bean, one teaspoon of vanilla paste or one teaspoon of vanilla extract for the almond extract
  

Frangipane

Prep time: 10-15 minutes
Equipment needed: bowls, hand mixer, rubber spatula

125g (4.5oz) unsalted butter, softened
125g (4.5oz) icing sugar
3 (3) eggs
2.5ml (½ tsp) almond extract
125g (4.5oz) ground almonds
30g (1oz) all purpose flour

Method
Cream butter and sugar together for about a minute or until the mixture is primrose in colour and very fluffy. Scrape down the side of the bowl and add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. The batter may appear to curdle. In the words of Douglas Adams: Don’t panic. Really. It’ll be fine. After all three are in, pour in the almond extract and mix for about another 30 seconds and scrape down the sides again. With the beaters on, spoon in the ground nuts and the flour. Mix well. The mixture will be soft, keep its slightly curdled look (mostly from the almonds) and retain its pallid yellow colour.

Annemarie’s notes:

• Add another five minutes or more if you're grinding your own almonds or if you're mixing by hand (Heaven help you).
  

I have been away from my blog for a long time and even though I completed this challenge on time I could not get to post it. Its taking me a while to get back to the swing of things. I am so very late in posting this.

I made a veggie version, just sauted some onions, carrot, beans, cabbage, capsicum and green onions with some garlic salt and pepper. I liked the pan fried version more than the steamed ones, though my husband liked the steamed ones better.

Thank you for this lovely challenge.

Click here for the recipe

Hello friends, its been so long I have been able to post anything due to different circumstances. But am back now and will try to catch up for the lost time.

Here is the most loved and easy to make Mattar Aloo, this is a saviour when you don't have much in your fridge.

(Serves 2)
Ingredients

2 medium potatoes, cut in quarters
1/2 cup frozen peas
1/2 cup chopped onions
2 big tomatoes / 2 tbsp tomato paste(or as per taste)
1/2 inch ginger
1 green chili
1/2 tsp coriander powder
1/4 tsp red chili powder
pinch turmeric powder
salt to taste
fresh coriander leaves for garnish
1 tbsp oil

Method

1. Puree the tomatoes, ginger and green chilies. Keep aside. If using tomato paste, then just grate the ginger and chop the green chilies and keep aside.
   
2. Heat oil in a cooker.
   
3. Add the onions and fry them on medium high till they are golden brown.
   
4. Add the coriander powder, red chili powder and turmeric powder.
   
5. Mix well and cook for a minute, till the oil separates.
   
6. Add the pureed tomato and cook on medium high till the oil separates.
   
7. Add the peas and potatoes. Saute for a few minutes.
   
8. Add 1.5 cups of water.
   
9. Close the cooker and after 2 whistles, turn it off.
   
10. Let the steam out naturally.
    
11. Boil the curry till required consistency, adding more water if needed.
    
12. Garnish with fresh coriander leaves and serve.
    

This recipe is my mothers, and everyone loves it, its simple to make. I found this recipe in one of her old books and quickly wrote it down.

Ingredients
1 cup kabuli channa (Soaked in 3 to 4 cups of water for 10 - 12 hours), canned chickpeas can be used
1 tea bag or put 1 tbsp tea in a cheese cloth and tie it tightly
1.5 tsp fennel seeds/saunf
1.5 cups onion sliced
1/2 tsp black salt
1 tsp cumin seeds/jeera
1 tsp kalongi/onion seeds powdered
1 inch ginger, sliced
1 tsp garlic paste(optional)
2 tbsp thick tamarind juice (adjust to taste)
1 tsp ghee/oil
fresh coriander leaves for garnish

Method

1. Drain the soaked channa.
   
2. Pressure cook it along with the tea bag, fennel seeds, black salt and 1/2 cup of sliced onions.
   
3. After 4 to 5 whistles or till cooked well, drain the channas and reserve the water. Discard the tea bag.
   
4. Heat the ghee, add the kalongi and cumin seeds.
   
5. Once they splutter add the sliced onions, ginger and garlic. Cook till the onions are transparent.
   
6. Add the drained channa and cook for 2 minutes.
   
7. Add the tamarind paste and 1/2 cup of the channa water.
   
8. Mix well.
   
9. Cover and simmer for 10 minutes. The water would have dried up by now.
   
10. Garnish with coriander leaves and serve with Baturas.
    

I am sending this to Think Spice: Kalonji hosted by Dee of Ammalu’s Kitchen, started by Sunita.

April 2009 challenge is hosted by Jenny from Jenny Bakes. She has chosen Abbey's Infamous Cheesecake as the challenge.

I so love cheese cakes and never would have made it at home if it was not for The Daring Bakers. I chose to make a Mango Cheesecake. I followed the recipe to the T and just added 1/4 cup of mango pulp. Will make this more often with different flavours. Thank you Jenny.


Abbey's Infamous Cheesecake

crust:
2 cups / 180 g graham cracker crumbs
1 stick / 4 oz butter, melted
2 tbsp. / 24 g sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract

cheesecake:
3 sticks of cream cheese, 8 oz each (total of 24 oz) room temperature
1 cup / 210 g sugar
3 large eggs
1 cup / 8 oz heavy cream
1 tbsp. lemon juice
1 tbsp. vanilla extract (or the innards of a vanilla bean)
1 tbsp liqueur, optional, but choose what will work well with your cheesecake

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (Gas Mark 4 = 180C = Moderate heat). Begin to boil a large pot of water for the water bath.
   
2. Mix together the crust ingredients and press into your preferred pan. You can press the crust just into the bottom, or up the sides of the pan too - baker's choice. Set crust aside.
   
3. Combine cream cheese and sugar in the bowl of a stand-mixer (or in a large bowl if using a hand-mixer) and cream together until smooth. Add eggs, one at a time, fully incorporating each before adding the next. Make sure to scrape down the bowl in between each egg. Add heavy cream, vanilla, lemon juice, and alcohol and blend until smooth and creamy.
   
4. Pour batter into prepared crust and tap the pan on the counter a few times to bring all air bubbles to the surface. Place pan into a larger pan and pour boiling water into the larger pan until halfway up the side of the cheesecake pan. If cheesecake pan is not airtight, cover bottom securely with foil before adding water.
   
5. Bake 45 to 55 minutes, until it is almost done - this can be hard to judge, but you're looking for the cake to hold together, but still have a lot of jiggle to it in the center. You don't want it to be completely firm at this stage. Close the oven door, turn the heat off, and let rest in the cooling oven for one hour. This lets the cake finish cooking and cool down gently enough so that it won't crack on the top. After one hour, remove cheesecake from oven and lift carefully out of water bath. Let it finish cooling on the counter, and then cover and put in the fridge to chill. Once fully chilled, it is ready to serve.
   

Pan note: The creator of this recipe used to use a springform pan, but no matter how well she wrapped the thing in tin foil, water would always seep in and make the crust soggy. Now she uses one of those 1-use foil "casserole" shaped pans from the grocery store. They're 8 or 9 inches wide and really deep, and best of all, water-tight. When it comes time to serve, just cut the foil away.

Some variations from the recipe creator:

• Lavender-scented cheesecake w/ blueberries - heat the cup of heavy cream in the microwave or a saucepan until hot but not boiling. Add 2 tbsp of lavender flowers and stir. Let lavender steep in the cream for about 10-15 minutes, then strain the flowers out. Add strained cream to cheesecake batter as normal. Top with fresh blueberries, or make a quick stovetop blueberry sauce (splash of orange juice, blueberries, a little bit of sugar, and a dash of cinnamon - cook until berries burst, then cool)
  
• Cafe au lait cheesecake with caramel - take 1/4 cup of the heavy cream and heat it in the microwave for a short amount of time until very hot. Add 1-2 tbsp. instant espresso or instant coffee; stir to dissolve. Add this to the remainder of cream and use as normal. Top cheesecake with homemade caramel sauce (I usually find one on the food network website - just make sure it has heavy cream in it. You can use store-bought in a pinch, but the flavor is just not the same since its usually just sugar and corn syrup with no dairy).
  
• Tropical – add about a half cup of chopped macadamias to the crust, then top the cake with a mango-raspberry-mandarin orange puree.
  
• Mexican Turtle - add a bar of melted dark chocolate (between 3 and 5 oz., to taste) to the batter, along with a teaspoon of cinnamon and a dash of cayenne pepper (about 1/8 tsp.). Top it with pecan halves and a homemade caramel sauce.
  
• Honey-cinnamon with port-pomegranate poached pears – replace 1/2 cup of the sugar with 1/2 cup of honey, add about a teaspoon or more (to taste) of cinnamon. Take 2 pears (any variety you like or whatever is in season), peeled and cored, and poach them in a boiling poaching liquid of port wine, pomegranate juice/seeds, a couple of "coins" of fresh ginger, a cinnamon stick, and about a 1/4 cup of sugar. Poach them until tender, then let cool. Strain the poaching liquid and simmer until reduced to a syrupy-glaze consistency, then cool. Thinly slice the cooled pears and fan them out atop the cooled cheesecake. Pour the cooled poaching syrup over the pears, then sprinkle the top with chopped walnuts and fresh pomegranate seeds.
  

Some variations from Jenny (from JennyBakes):

• Key lime - add zest from one lime to sugar before mixing with cream cheese. Substitute lemon juice, alcohol, and vanilla with key lime juice.
  
• Cheesecakelets - put in muffin tins, ramekins, or custard cups. Try baking 20-35 minutes, or until still a little jiggly, and cool as before.
  

Click here to view what the other fellow Daring Bakers baked.

Its been so long posting something, feels good to be back. In March 2009 the daring bakers decided to make lasagnas from scratch and I happened to make double the quantity of dough. I had lots of left over dough and was planning to make ravioli, tortellini's and freeze them and that's how I realized I could make Stuffed Dal Dhokli, which I has been my favorite ever since I saw it in The Spice Cafe. I love her pictures and I think that's what inspired me to cook this, though I never loved it when I was small. But now every time I have some extra dough of any kind and its getting stale I make this, sometimes with a stuffing and sometimes not. There was this once that I had to make Muruku's and I used All purpose flour instead of Rice Flour, so yeah they too landed up as dhoklis. This is such a versatile recipe and do not forget to add the peanuts, they are the best part.

Ingredients

Dhoklis

I used about 1/2 cup of Spinach Pasta Dough

The Usual Dhokli recipe is as follow, you can skip the stuffing and just use the dough or use any other stuffing of your choice:

Dough
1/2 cup wheat flour
1/2 tsp red chili powder
1/4 tsp turmeric powder
salt to taste
1 tsp oil
water for kneading

Method

1. Mix all the ingredients except water.
   
2. Knead to a soft dough using the water.
   
3. Cover and keep aside till you make the stuffing.
   

Stuffing

1/2 cup boiled and smashed potatoes
1 green chili, chopped finely
a pinch turmeric powder
1/4 amchur (mango powder)
1/4 tsp cumin powder
1/4 tsp red chili powder
1/4 cup chopped coriander leaves
salt to taste

Method

1. Mix all the ingredients together and keep aside.
   

Assemble the Dhokli

1. Take a lemon size ball of dough.
   
2. Roll to make a 1/4 inch thick circle.
   
3. Using a cookie cutter or a bottle cap, cut small circles about 2 inch in radius.
   
4. Place little bit of the stuffing on each cut circle.
   
5. Close the sides of the circle over the stuffing and form a ball.
   
6. Flatten the ball to form a flat disc.
   
7. Continue the same till all the flour is used.
   
8. Cover and keep aside till the dal is made.
   

Dal Ingredients
1 cup boiled Toor Dal
1/4 inch ginger grated (optional)
1 tsp jeera
1 tsp mustard seeds
1 pinch hing / asefetida
1/4 tsp turmeric powder
1/2 tsp red chili powder
1/3 cup raw peanuts
1/4 cup chopped tomatoes
2 kukum flowers
2 tsp jaggery/gur
salt to taste
fresh coriander leaves for garnish
2 cups water
1 tsp ghee / oil
1 onion chopped and mixed with some salt and red chili powder

Method

1. Heat ghee and add the hing, the mustard seeds and cumin seeds.
   
2. Once they splutter add the tomatoes and ginger. Cook for a minute.
   
3. Add the dal with the 2 cups off water.
   
4. Bring to a boil.
   
5. Add the peanuts,red chili powder, turmeric powder, kukum, jaggery and salt.
   
6. Boil for 5 minutes.
   
7. Keep it on simmer and add the dhokli's.
   
8. Simmer for 10 minutes.
   
9. The dal dhokli is done once the dhokli float to the top.
   
10. Add the coriander leaves.
    
11. Serve immediately garnished with the onion.