BAKED ROSHOGOLLA WITH MANGO

            

It was a long standing wish to blog about a baked roshogolla / rasgulla, ever since Kolkata started making it. Few of our friends are already back from there, I got my "patali gur".... date palm jaggery for the season, you know I do not allow the men to lament about not being able to have "shitkaleen pithe-puli" anymore, I do them as much as I can. The man used to love, "pithe puli", now losing interest; the son enjoys without knowing what "piths-puli" are! I got my "panchphoron" packets too, I must say the "Bengali Panchphoron" and "Panchphutan" we get here are slightly different combination of spices. We can always prepare it in our kitchen though. 

Kolkata is already making Baked Roshogolla and Baked Bonde for a couple of years now, now I hear some renowned outlets are preparing Baked ChamCham too! I however find the store bought ones too sweet to my taste buds..... I am not a sweet lover by birth as of 'ilish' and 'mutton.' I was not allowed to eat sweets that I loved... the fried ones. Till date Roshogolla rules in my side of the family, the senior's side goes for variety. Our son grew up loving Roshogolla and Bonde, he was this small since when every evening he had to have two roshogolla / rasgulla. Its been quite for sometime that I am trying my hands on roshogolla / rasgulla at home, with reduced amount of sugar. This baked version of Roshogolla was done last week for the first time and it was successful.... why not share it during the New Year celebration! The nation we stay and it's neighbours are mango lovers just like this family.... so my version of baked roshogolla had to be modified further into BAKED ROSHOGOLLA WITH MANGO! 

By the way, what your plans are for the New Year I do not know... if you are planning to eat and merry.... do keep my version of baked roshogolla / rasgulla in your dessert menu! This family is going for a week long vacation on the first day of 2018.... to to to.... a quaint place not too far ....... from the sea to the sea do we tread! I will try to capture some ecstatic moments with the nature and us.... the us moments is a question mark given my mens' severe dislike for it. The blog too needs some rest! Once back, we can go ahead with some "poush shankranti pithepuli" shares .... reliving childhood!

This BAKED ROSHOGOLLA WITH MANGO recipe of mine is done with less sugar given my health condition.... also that we are now used to having less sugary desserts just like the people of the island do! I always feel if you are staying away from home elsewhere, you need to get along with it's food and culture to some extent and be able to call it your second home. Take the example of me, I love eating rice with soya sauce and green chilli, loved that dessert of black glutinous rice served with a scoop of vanilla ice-cream in the husband's office party. I have not stopped loving 'bhaja bhuji.... bata buti' either, I can instantly say a hi to people with similar food habits given they consider the amount of grey matter in me! 

Both sides of our family are from "opar bangla" with different kind of cooking.... The maa-in-law with a literal high nose would serve a big "aar mach er lyaja" on my plate and at the same time would say amra oshob kochu-ghechu khaina.... That is exactly when I was unable to have a bit of that lucrative piece of "Aar." I used to take a bus way back from the work place  the next day to the parent's home to have a plate of piping hot rice with "kochupatai mora kanchki maacher bora"..... for such secret missions I always lied to the in-laws saying we have a staff meeting after school. Small gestures, few soft words make dumbos like me happy. Our parents indeed fed us everything in turns not going beyond limits! 

Anyway, for this particular Bengali dessert recipe of BAKED ROSHOGOLLA WITH MANGO, I have not followed anyone as such though I know there are as many as the Google search engine can gather, some of my blogger friends too have done it I know! However, the idea of adding fruits to it is drawn from Master Chef Sanjeev Kapoor and the idea of adding cornflour to the malai mix is drawn from the wonder woman, the Late Tarla Dalal. 

Why Mango of all fruits?... Well, the people of this island do not eat roshogolla but I wished for a roshogolla share today... Mango is always there at home, we love it and the people of the island too... let us sew them together! Why pomegranate?.... I firmly believe if you can prepare those 2-tier... 3-tier cakes, roshogolla / rasgulla is not a big deal either! Come let us do it following few stepwise pictures I could manage.... 

Roughly Inspired by....
Master Chefs Sanjeev Kapoor & the Late Tarla Dalal

INGREDIENTS : [for the rasgulla]

Milk : 1lt
Semolina : 1/3tsp
Lemon Juice : 1/4small cup
Sugar : 1small cup 
Water : 2 coffee mug
A soft cotton white piece of cloth
A strainer and a wide mouthed bowl

3-4bIce Cubes to stop the paneer get cooked further

INGREDIENTS : [for the milk & mango malai]

Evaporated Creamer : 250-300 ml

Mango Extract : One Coffee mug
Sugar : 2-3 tbsp
Corn Flour : 1tbsp
Kewra Essence : 2-3 drops

Yellow Edible Colour : Few Drops [Optional]

FINAL ASSORTMENT : [for the BAKED ROSHOGOLLA WITH MANGO]

The Roshogollas.... We get 7-8 medium sized from a litre of milk
The Milk & Mango Malai
An aluminium foil bowl or any bake proof bowl

METHOD :

For the roshogolla, we will take 1litre of milk in a vessel and let boil. Once it comes to boil, we will add the lemon juice. As the milk curdles, switch off gas immediately. Cover and let cool.

Place the clean piece of cloth on top of a strainer and place it on the bowl. Pass the paneer through it. The whey will be deposited in the bowl which you can use in curries, making dough or preparing another batch of paneer as I have seen my mother doing.

Tie the piece of cloth tight to the kitchen tap. Let all the excess water drain. I will suggest 5-6 hours time for it! Best if you prepare the chana at night and hang overnight! Once done, take down and untie the piece of cloth, the paneer looks like below.

Take it in a plate and mash... keep kneading for 10-12 minutes, add the semolina and knead for another 10 minutes. We are ready to prepare the balls which Cristine does for me.

We are simultaneously boiling the small cup of sugar and water alongside. The ratio of sugar and water is different here, why should we use more sugar if we are baking it with malai.

Once the sugar syrup has boiled for 5-6 minutes, gently drop the chana balls to it. Cover immediately. Let boil at medium heat for about 20 minutes before you uncover. They are done by now.

Let us prepare the milk & mango malai! Mix together the mango extract & 1 tbsp sugar, cook for few minutes stirring continuously, take down!

Take 11/2 coffee mug of  evaporated creamer in a deep bottomed vessel and bring to boil. Take out some, dissolve the corn flour & sugar in it, add!

Let it boil for 10-12 minutes, add the sugar and condensed milk now. Stir in the cooked mango extract & keep beating with a beater! Take down after 5-6 minutes!

Take a bake proof bowl and arrange the rasgullas and mango pieces on it. Pour the milk & mango malai atop. It is now ready to be baked.

Preheat the oven to 180*C. Place the bowl at the centre! Bake at 180*C for 30-35 minutes or till it is brown atop and we are done. 

Actually, I did them in my mini-toaster oven, you have to settle your own time!

MOCHAR BORA O AADA DIYE MOONG ER DAL

"Aada Diye Moong er Dal, Ghono Doodh Er Chana, Shobai Boley Dena Dena, Diley Je Amar Ghar Cholena"...... the rest of the lines I forgot, even the name of the writer! The mother used to sing for her kids! When it comes to blogging, shouldn't this give me the utmost pleasure to blog about what & where I belong to? Did not I create this space to share what I grew up eating, dishes that are vanishing from the scenario with such a pace? It is good to move ahead in life, else we stagnate but it is not that wise to forget all about the roots! A balance is much required in all aspects of life. As I always say I have made my blog a "khichdi"one which was not intended to! It is also true that along the way I have made friends from  many walks of life, that blogging about a MOCHAR BORA O AADA DIYE MOONG ER DAL pre Xmas is difficult on emotional ground! That pretty woman from the west, a BigB and curry fan does not deserve a lau ghonto either from me during the Xmas. I tell her I will live a life like her once the son completes his studies.... She told they saved each penny while bringing up their kids.... now that they are established.... I enjoy my life to the fullest! Didn't I instantly see my mother in her .... I did! 

I will not think twice before blogging about a cake during the Xmas, you must consider and reconsider that I am not good at pies and tarts..... The xmas fervour may not be over yet, but I will not stuck in there, a majority of my readers do not know what a tart is! I remember last year when I blogged about a cake, one young girl commented "didi, I do not have a microwave, can you post a cooker made cake?" Till date I have not conformed to her, the guilt is on! To prepare a perfect cake on a cooker requires a certain amount of skill that I need to learn.... In fact a lot of things are required to be learnt to call myself a proper food blogger.... I do not even comply to that  norm of having the required props for the blog! I simply barge into certain blogs just to get a visual treat, while some others I like for their diligence, their thorough understanding of the pulse of their readers and delivering accordingly.... there are still some who became a part of my life! You are welcome until you expect me to observe and think! I will not do that as I am ruled by my heart...... anyone in the "real" world who "deliberately" hurts is instantly bid a good bye ... my plastic smile at you will say I just tolerate.... after all we are social beings! Coming to that unknown girl whose words still haunts me got lost somewhere may be, if you still follow my posts, you may like to prepare today's share of MOCHAR BORA O AADA DIYE MOONG ER DAL .... an authentic Bengali recipe  done following the family recipe.

This family's love for fries and fritters is known to all by now, it is a must in an all vegetarian day! The men's hatred for vegetables is handled this way compromising heavily on the health part but not on a regular basis. I do have a saviour in a variety of kofta curries and in that universal aloo, haha! I would really seek some expert advise about the benefits of Aloo / Potato.... are they really healthy? I do not always go by the wiki tales! At this home if a vegetarian bottle gourd / lauki / lau ghonto is made, this lady will eat some extra grains which she is not supposed to, the senior is okay with it if there is a nice fish or meat curry too, the junior will not touch and gorge on the meat curry! If there is a "Chingri diye lau ghonto"... the man and his wife are happy and happier respectively, the junior will pick up the prawns and leave the rest! What if I prepare a Lauki Kofta? Both the men will eat with luchi / porota, provided there is a meat curry! So I do them in turns trying to keep everyone happy.... even this "pathetic in mathematics" woman has to do this much of calculation! 

Before I happily share this authentic Bengali way of doing MOCHAR BORA O AADA DIYE MOONG ER DAL, I had to recall those unhappy moments before the mathematics examination.... I never could get why the two trains had to meet at some point and create ruckus in my life.... That does not mean I faired well in literature either! You know a couple of my childhood buddies follow this blog, any kind of lie will catch their radar! The poor mother never could digest the fact that her daughter is an average and does not miss a single interview of those promising boys and girls on television till date. With that gloom and guilt on my mind, I try to follow her footsteps in the kitchen at least. 

Mocha is Banana Blossom.... we do chop it and prepare a vegetarian dish with coconut, potato and black chana or a non vegetarian version with shrimps. At times we reserve the innermost portion, slice them and batter fry! I am sorry I should have taken the picture for a better understanding. Anyway, rice.... dal... and fritters is something we love on an all vegetarian day, the platter you see below is incomplete.... the onion, lemon and green chilli is missing! Mochar Bora is done in our family with slices made from the inner most part of the banana blossom.... Of the various Bengali dals, this moong dal done with ginger is common and simple! Both goes well with rice, the dal will go with South Asian Breads too!

INGREDIENTS : [for the Banana Blossom fritters]

Slices from the innermost portion of Banana Blossom : 5-7
Rice Flour : 1/3small cup
Gram Flour : 4tbsp
Nigella Seed : 1/2tsp
Green Chilli : 2 chopped 
Red Chilli Powder : 1tsp
Turmeric powder : I tsp
Salt : As Required
Sugar : 1/2tsp
Oil : 100ml to deep fry

INGREDIENTS : [for the Split Green Gram with minced ginger]

Moong Dal / Split Green Gram : 1small cup
Turmeric Powder : 1/3tsp
Minced Ginger : 1tbsp
Dry Red Chilli Powder : 2 halved
Cumin Seed : 1/4tsp
Bayleaf : 1big or medium
Green Chilli : 2 slitted
Salt : As Required
Sugar : 1tsp
Oil : 1tbsp [authentically mustard]

METHOD :

Let us prepare the dal first. Bengali dals are little watery and mashy... what is the english of "daler kanta?"... stirrer?.... we use that! Moong dal is little thicker!

Dry roast the dal till light brown, take it in a bowl and wash under running water 2-3 times.

Pressure cook adding half of the turmeric, salt as required and 1 coffee mug of water up to 2 whistles! Let cool.

Heat oil in a wok, temper with the cumin seeds first, stir. Add the bayleaf, halved dry red chillies and half of the minced ginger. Give a quick stir, add some salt and turmeric! Stir for half a minute at low heat.

Now add the boiled moong dal. Add 2 coffee mugs of water in the pressure cooker, mix with the remaining residue of the dal and pour in to the wok. Stir and let the dal boil for at least 5 minutes at low heat.

Add the slitted green chillies, half of the minced ginger and the sugar. Stir and let boil for another 2-3 minutes. Add salt and water if only required, else do not.

Transfer to a serving bowl.

For the banana blossom fritters, we need to discard the stem end of the inner most part of the banana blossom. Slice them at medium thickness, do not forget to rub your palms with few drops of oil before slicing.

Wash and pressure cook up to 4 whistles at low heat adding salt and turmeric. Once cold, discard the water.

Apply little salt on them again. Let us prepare the batter now! Take together the rice flour, gram flour, salt, turmeric, sugar, nigella seeds, red chilli powder, slitted green chillies together in a bowl.

Add water little by little and prepare a batter of paste like consistency.

Heat enough oil for deep frying in a wok! Coat the banana blossom slices very well with the batter.

Fry both the sides well till they are brown and crisp.

Once done, transfer them on to tissue paper.

Serve the Mochar Bora fresh and hot with Aada Diye Moong er Dal and piping hot steamed rice! Let me know you enjoyed it or not!

NOODLES ........ A DESI TOUCH

Wasn't I too eager to share this "bengali chow chow" from the 80's on my blog though I fear by tomorrow morning I may be thrown out of this beautiful island.... "aloo, dim, peyaj, roshun-lanka kuchi diye chow bhaja korcho eei deshe boshe?".... How dare you? Even I do not know from where I had drawn the courage to cook noodles the way we grew up eating, breaking all the norms of cooking it the way as is done authentically.... but I strongly felt I will blog about this NOODLES........ A DESI TOUCH some day, never knowing it will be today! If you are an 80's kid from India or to be precise from any middle class home from Bengal, you will definitely agree with me that this is how noodles was prepared in our homes..... by our homes here I mean the small towns of Bengal, and of the Kolkata suburbs including the entire Northern Kolkata.... I do not know how the kitchens of Ballygunge or Southern Avenue worked.... those were the "posh areas" of Kolkata after all! 

I remember all the boys and girls in the college who hailed from those upscale areas, ahh this primitive girl found them kind of alien! If my friends Sushi and Indi or one dear "chutu"are reading this, please do not mind.... I speak generally in most cases. About "Chutu".... I really need a proper mind and post to talk about this super woman. This Indirra Sengupta joined our school pretty late, all the boys and girls would stare at her with such an awe! I used to watch her, her aura had a spell on me but never imitated her..... I just cannot be anyone else, someone loves herself too much! She might have learnt the near proper way of preparing noodles but she never stopped from doing it the way as this NOODLES ..... A DESI TOUCH was done in the family.

It was 1982 perhaps when Maggi flooded the Indian market, did plain noodles came into our lives before that? I cannot remember! I remember both of us siblings had this Bengali style noodles around 6 - 6:30pm while watching "Jonny Soko and His Flying Robot"...... This was the scenario in most of the homes then. Those ladies were relieved perhaps to get a quicker option to "luchi, porota, torkari.".... I have literally tortured our mother making her do paratha / poori every day.... two times, never realising she also needed to stay off from the kitchen in the evening. This went on till I was in the university.... the guilt disturbs a lot these days! My men are far more decent, they can survive on sandwiches. I am the one who cannot buy this idea, there is a kind of identity crisis and that guilt.... what I am here for then? Poori / Paratha / Samosa has to happen in my kitchen, this oats thing is becoming a spoilt sport in my life! Yet, I must admit that a bowl of oats with fruits in the morning is keeping me away from that "24/7 hungry kaya mode".... that is something to feel happy about! 

I do not want an untimely exit just to facilitate another woman to get in, take over my kingdom and throw out my son. Readers do I really need to say what the answer was? Just in case you wish to... its plain, clearcut.... "in India, life time imprisonment is for 14 years, I have long passed that and living with you for 20 years.... I will never do that historic mistake again".... So people..... please do not take it to your heart if he  had not said hello to you for a long time or had not wished on your birthday or anniversary. He lives in his own world, I in mine; we do chill until one day I burst out my complaints against him!

Coming to this NOODLES.... A DESI TOUCH, it is done with potatoes, scrambled eggs, onion, garlic and chillies. Initially, our mother used ajinomoto, but stopped later! My aunt and my husband's aunt went to the extent of adding peanuts, coriander leaves and turmeric powder to it, I cannot do a blunder of that magnitude, I have to stay in this island as of now! I had one Punjabi colleague in the school I worked after marriage, Namrata Negi.... she added a specially made Punjabi masala in her noodles.... I simply loved both the taste and aroma of it. I will go ahead with the recipe of NOODLES...... A DESI TOUCH as was done at our home .... though I loved how the aunts and the colleague did!

INGREDIENTS :

Noodles : 3-4 small packet of any variety
Egg : 4-5 [scrambled]
Onion : 1big [peeled, washed, cubed]
Garlic : 3- 4 cloves [minced]
Green Chilli : 2-3 [chopped]
Potato : 1big [peeled, washed, cut lengthwise]
Carrot : 1big [peeled, washed, cut lengthwise]
Green Pea : 1/2small cup
Green Chilli dipped Vinegar : 1/4small cup [to be soaked for at least 5-6 hours]
Light Soya Sauce : 2tbsp
Black Pepper Powder : 1tsp [coarsely ground]
Tomato Ketchup : 2-3tbsp
Salt : As Required
Oil : 4tbsp + 1tbsp

METHOD :

Boil enough water in a heavy bottomed vessel, adding a little salt and 2-3 drops of oil in it. Once the water has boiled for 5 minutes or so, add the broken pieces of noodles.

With another boil, we will immediately switch off the gas stove and transfer the entire content to a big strainer. Let all the water drain away which may take 10-15 minutes. Alternatively, you can soak the noodle cakes in hot water for 3-4 minutes & strain!

Transfer the boiled noodles to a bowl and add 1tbsp oil to it, mix well so that all the noodle strings are coated with oil. Keep aside.

Get all the ingredients ready on the kitchen counter. We need to rub the carrot and potato cubes with salt.

Heat 4tbsp oil in a wok or wok pan. Add the minced garlic and stir till they are little burnt and you get that lovely aroma.

Add the onion cubes and stir for a minute. Add the chopped green chillies, potato and carrot cubes, stir.

Now cover cook for 3-4 minutes, we need to check in between not allowing the veggies to burn. If required sprinkle little water.

Remove the cover, check if the carrots and potatoes are almost done. If so, add the green peas and stir for a minute!

Add the scrambled eggs and tomato ketchup now and fold in everything very well.

Add the boiled noodles and mix.

Add the black pepper powder, chopped green chillies soaked in vinegar, light soya sauce and fold in very well. Add salt if required.

Stir at high heat for 2-3 minutes and its done! Use two ladles to stir!

Transfer to a serving bowl and we really do not have any hard or fast rules about having it in our family! We just have it hot and fresh, hence hardly do I pack it for their lunch box! How about you?

BEETROOT .. BUTTERMILK... NUTS.. NUTELLA .. A CAKE..

It's Xmas.... what else could I do?.... There might be many other things to be done but I am not a versatile cook you all know .... cake is safer, however poor I am at it! Considering all my readers and followers, I kept this baked delight .... BEETROOT.. BUTTERMILK.. NUTS.. NUTELLA... A CAKE...... egg free, plain and simple ..... there can always be some like me who gets fever at the thought of baking. This cake was part of a special menu earlier this week, many of you know from my shares in different public forums. I however feel, on this special day I will prepare everything at home.... a day when we were given the greatest gift of our life years back! Since I remain quite busy on that particular day, and given my inability to make proper use of the icing colours, I will go for the most simple and hassle free bake with the simplest decoration. Moreover, I will not spend 50 dollars buying ingredients of which I may not be able to make good use of, my family prefers plain sponge cakes! Anyway, I found it wiser to get a jar of nutella and do the topping... tore some leaves from my table top indoor plant, flowers are there in store always... and there it is... not that classy but good taste wise. I did have a small share from this BEETROOT.... BUTTERMILK.... NUTS.... NUTELLA.... A CAKE and now I am compensating for the sin with what?.... Oh God! Oats and watermelon.... anything I hate has to be accompanied by something I love... in this case watermelon is a love... anytime pleasure!

I again say and will stick to it, "onek paap korechi jiboney tai oats khetey hocchey.".... Oats is not a matter of joke for me, specially after packing their lunch box with poori & paratha! God is not always kind to me.....

Why should the Almighty be kind to me? I am kind of judgemental... my list of dislikes is this big, but I give people the liberty to dislike me too .... its mutual! In a word, I disliked immensely when a Smita Patil danced to the tune of "aaj rapat jaye to humhe na uthaio"..... she is meant for an "Akaler Sandhaney" or Shabana is meant for a "Paar".... or both in an "Arth".... a movie too close to my heart and the daddy did allow me to watch it while at school.... The deceased old man helped me to garner interest and love for finer things in life! 

I remember, while I first joined Facebook I may have shared few clippings of "Arth".... thats when someone messaged me "Are you depressed S?" Awww what a joke! That was my immediate reaction.... after that I lost all kinds of "social connection" with the person... cannot even say "depression choro, cake chalega?".... The immediate answer would be..... there are better people to feed me cakes and patties than you.... better I tune in to a Chaplin or ask Mrs. Funny Bones... what about sharing the Sunday Times columns... we are waiting! Even these celebrities crack jokes on us.... Milind Soman does a 15k in Mumbai.... is it a news for us?.... He will do it in half an hour.... we want bigger news from the Ironman! I am again going offtrack... let me share this decadent, cake recipe which may not be authentic of any place but is good and yum to try at least for once! I have used everything that is available at home like beetroot paste, buttermilk, cashew nuts, walnuts, nutella for this BEETROOT.. BUTTERMILK... NUTS... NUTELLA.. A CAKE! Shall we do it together now?

INGREDIENTS :

Refined Floor : 1coffee mug
Baking Soda : 1/3tsp
Beetroot Paste : 1small cup
Butter Milk : 1/3medium cup
Condensed Milk : 150ml
Sugar : 1/2small cup
Cinnamon Powder : 11/2tsp
Oil : 1medium cup
Vinegar : 1tbsp
Cashew Nut : 10-12 [halved]
Walnut : 10-12 [halved]
Nutella : As much required for the topping...

METHOD :

Take the refined flour, baking soda, cinnamon powder in a bowl and mix together well! I do not sieve, need to buy a proper one... so sieve if you may!

Beat the oil and sugar together for 5-6 minutes if you are doing it manually like me! Add the buttermilk, condensed milk, sugar and vinegar now and whisk further for 3-4 minutes.

Add the beetroot paste and keep beating till bubbles are formed. Add the flour mix little by little and keep beating until all of the flour mixture is incorporated well and the batter is light and fluffy.

I use my table spoon to whisk the batter, while the electric one rests in the cupboard with the cookie cutters!

The cake batter is ready!

Take the halved cashew nuts and walnuts in a bowl and microwave at low power for a minute!

Arrange the nut pieces nicely atop the batter once we have transferred the mixture to a bake proof bowl.

Preheat oven to 180*C.

Place the bowl inside atop the low wired rack and bake for about 36-40 minutes at 180*C. I bake in the convection mode of a microwave oven, so you adjust your's accordingly.... I am not an expert!

Once cool, turn over onto a plate!

Apply nutella atop as much as required!

Decor as you wish and enjoy the sin.

ROSE & FRESH MINT COCONUT CREAM ICE-CREAM WITH WALNUT & PISTACHIO

Wondering why an ice cream share during the winter? What if I get selfish and say why should I bother for others, I stay in an island with tropical weather and can have ice cream every hour of the day! How would you feel?.... Much irritated, right? I remember.... when "rationer chal" .... that is when the subsidised price of rice meant for a particular, but a larger section of India had a sudden rise, some people around said.... "it does not matter to me, I do not eat that poor quality rice!".... I wondered then, I wonder always  if we think or treat an issue like this, a country is bound to degenerate, extremist forces with rise... if you do not provide us our basic needs, we will snatch it! From that belief we are here today taking shower in walnuts, salmon, cod and what not, planning a short break in our neighbouring country's happening resort atop water.... A father who loved to tell us the story of how he was chased by the 60's Kolkata police and had to take shelter in "secret homes" at times ..... has a son who changed his political allegiance all of a sudden!.... 

However good life seems to be, it is not guilt free! We have much shifted from the ideology that perhaps got us together years back. Now I tell him .... boss show me the pictures of the toilet before booking a resort or a hotel..... hypocrisy has reached new heights right here! However, the husband says we still and always will represent the working class, yet the confused self has to prepare and have a bowlful of ROSE & FRESH MINT COCONUT CREAM ICE CREAM WITH WALNUT to ease the situation and do what I enjoy doing... recollecting memories! Indeed there was another one besides the daddy's indoctrinated stories, for five long years I had to give a patient ear to someone's happening stories.... S you know those girls at the tennis court look so wow in their minis, you know S yesterday evening I had a fabulous TT match with one Rapunzel in the club.... and this S ran to that girl for her roll number or to the other for her address within the periphery of the school .... Thank God, there were no G plus or Face Book or Twitter in those days, that someone would have employed me to hack "pretty girls' " social media accounts. That someone was selfish enough never to enquire about my likes and dislikes!.... Obviously, I would not have told that I loved gazing at those little, homebound steps of someone after school .... I am too self-respecting to be a beggar! I whispered "eei chotto chotto paye cholte cholte thik pouchey jabi, jekhaney jete chash,"..... 

I was longing for a bigger environment called a college, where I wished to make a lot of friends without allowing anyone to come too near to me..... rest, for sharing all the tension and pain, I had one "T"..... You see after so many years, I have not learnt how to hold a tennis or a badminton racket, neither could transform myself how much that someone taught me how important it is to have a beautiful face!...... I fell in love with a non glamorous job called cooking, yesterday was my first experience with Pita Bread served with Mixed Dal Cutlets.... I will not share it in the blog unless I perfect them with practice.

The entire evening yesterday was spent doing this platter.... I am a bit exhausted... Hence, I will go ahead with a very simple. frozen dessert recipe as this ROSE & FRESH MINT COCONUT CREAM ICE-CREAM WITH WALNUT & PISHTACHIO and go for a long walk with the ear phones on! By the way, indeed alluring are some of the authentic Bengali shares around, I will get back to them next week.... You are  only making me greedy and jealous at the same time.... slurp... slurp...

How much of irrelevant, stupid stories laced with utter lies and imaginations do I feed my readers, the recipes I / we share are full proof. How did this ROSE & FRESH MINT COCONUT CREAM ICE-CREAM WITH WALNUT  & PISHTACHIO happen? You know how I hate wastage.... what was to be done with the leftover coconut cream that I used for the prawn malaikari the other day?.... Once opened, it gets spoiled within a day or two even if we refrigerate.... So I had to make good use of it. The coconut cream was too much of a good quality.... creamy... I always store a rose syrup for adding to the son's smoothies and iced drinks, mixed nuts are kept to keep me away from my hunger pangs, I grow my own mint leaves.... the idea of assorting them together happened naturally.... the nocturnal senior too should have something or the other while watching television .... No, we do not go by the diet or health rules always. The ice-cream thing is a family love, we have it anytime and I think I have made a good use of the coconut cream.... No wastage, few ingredients, no bake, less guilt frozen dessert as this ROSE & FRESH MINT COCONUT CREAM ICE-CREAM WITH WALNUT & PISHTACHIO was a pleasure to have.... You must try it to trust me! 

INGREDIENTS:

Coconut Cream : 50ml

Fresh Cream : 300ml [I think I used 2 tins of Nestle]

Full Cream Milk : 1litre

Rose Syrup : 4-5tbsp

Sugar : 1/4small cup

Fresh Mint Leaf : 7- 8 

Chopped Walnut & Pistachio to garnish

METHOD :

Boil the full cream milk until half or even less and let cool completely.

Wash the mint leaves and chop roughly.

Take all the ingredients except for the chopped walnuts & pistachio in a blender and pulse for 3-4 minutes, taking a pause at very minute.

Pour in to a container and cover. Refrigerate for an hour. Take out and blend for about 2-3 minutes with an interval after a minute.

Pour in to a container. Microwave the chopped walnuts & pistachios for a minute and add half of them to the ice-cream mixture and stir.

Arrange the rest of the chopped nuts atop the mixture, cover and freeze for at least 5-6 hours or overnight. Enjoy with a sinful piece of cake or just as a dessert!

LEMON & NUTMEG FLAVOURED COCONUT CAKE

The situation or the occasion is such that I had to take that tremendous pressure of baking ... ahh else some of my dear friends will take it to their heart.... take the example of Bianca Castafiore who is not in the right spirit at the moment either! However, baking a cake is never a cake walk for me, rather like a catwalk .... that too when you discover  some fresh 'borboti' hanging when out on a walk or a bunch of fresh 'laal shak' adorns your kitchen counter!.... Thats pretty painful ya! A winter wet market in Kolkata / India means greens and loads of greens.... from 'peyajkoli' to 'palong shaak'....

I hope the above pictures describe me pretty well and also the reason why it takes 3:45 minutes for me to complete a half marathon..... but yes, December in Kolkata is also about fresh bakes, and a ritualistic visit to the St. Paul's Cathedral or to the Park Street area, picnic starting with oranges in the bus and ending with 'mangsho bhaat' around 4pm, nonetheless to say "poush sankrantir pithe puli" is one major attraction. I wished to go simple and rustic today, there was a lot of rich cooking yesterday and the sight of food is not giving me much of comfort. In fact, this morning I planned not to go ahead with any recipe sharing in the blog, then back home from my walk and gym, I had a super soft chicken filled "bao"... local steamed bun... felt happy enough to share a Xmas friendly recipe for all my readers and friends who are celebrating... Even we do celebrate or celebrating Xmas since childhood with oranges & local bakery fruit cake. After the high nose senior came into my life, he started taking me out for turkey and wine if he was in town during the winter .... So "cake to banti hai yaar".... By the way, if you have come across my self boasting post of the platter I cooked for someone yesterday, you will pardon me for being so once a year. 

This morning, I felt there was nothing much to boast of compared to what the yesteryear ladies did on such special days.... starting from "panch rokom bhaja to chaler payesh"... not less than 10-12 dishes or even more... and they did not click pictures like me either. I was really expecting few people to take it on me, they did not .... a slice of this simple LEMON & NUTMEG FLAVOURED COCONUT CAKE for each one of you.

By the way, I will not give myself the sole credit of creating this recipe, neither can I give credit to anyone! Tell me how to?.... I perhaps had taken little from here, a bit from there... now totally forgot what from whom ... "kar theke kon angsho ta jherechi money kortey parchina chai, haaha"..... Do not expect this horrid baker to treat you all with a proper Xmas  cake.... I am not the one who will get all the ingredients required for it... moreover I myself will have all the wine before soaking the ingredients in it and start all kinds of drama to seek the attention of my men. Better I do an easy bake like this LEMON & NUTMEG FLAVOURED COCONUT CAKE so that you can have it as your teatime snack not only during Xmas season but on any day..... each day of our life counts! 

In this cake, I have used eggs with a mention of an alternative to it. It should work. Cheers to all those who consider a cake batter as "shinni".... just my kind!.... Please do shed off the idea of asking me questions on Physics, Chemistry, Mathematics or about text books as such before entering through that door.... hope you guys are kind enough not to cause me an untimely heart attack. 

I think I am done with all my rubbish for the day and can dive straight into this basic cake recipe with coconut, lemon jest and nutmeg.... I am kind of allergic to artificial flavours, prefer natural flavours on my food.... Thai food is hence very much of a favourite... that Kaffir lime leaf... aha... Come let us bake this soft, with full of fresh flavours.... LEMON & NUTMEG FLAVOURED COCONUT CAKE together.

INGREDIENTS :

Refined Flour : 1coffee mug
Baking Soda : 1/ 4 tsp

Baking Powder : 1 tsp
Plain Yogurt : 1 medium tea cup
Sugar : 1 small tea cup
Oil : 1 small tea cup
Lemon Jest : 1 tbsp

Lemon Juice : 2 tbsp
Nutmeg Powder : 1tsp
Shredded Coconut : 1/2coffee mug

METHOD :

Take the refined flour, baking soda & baking powder in a bowl and mix well.

Take the sugar, oil, plain yogurt, lemon juice in another bowl and use a hand beater or an electric blender to beat. 

Once done, add the paste to the flour mix, add the shredded coconut, nutmeg powder and I used a hand beater to beat for 5-6 minutes.

Grease a cake tin with a little oil. Pour the batter in to it. I placed a wok on the gas top & placed a wired ring atop it, heated for 3-4 minutes!

I placed the cake tin atop the heated wired ring & baked on the stovetop for an hour at minimal temperature!

Once done, we would take the cake tin out & let cool; then turn over on to a plate.

Enjoy a slice or two with your tea or coffee!

TIL NARKOL BATA MURGI

Well, I do not know how authentic Bengali this TIL NARKOL BATA MURGI dish is... Someone counter questions.... "few days back you said you prefer giving Bengali names to dishes that are authentic, traditional Bengali!".... Aww ... did not I tell you too that I am the most confused personality around who you will see contradicting her own self most of the time.... haha.... There are a couple of reasons for this.... I am one Uncle Podger's daughter who is gradually advancing towards dementia... Second, I am too lazy and lack the brain to observe, analyse things and act sensibly... I heavily depend on my eyes and heart. What attracts my eyes, the heart responds to it with some restrictions though! Life may not be that simple, people who refuse to do some brain exercise makes life as transparent as water for their own convenience.... rest to accept it or not is up to you. 

Two days back I suddenly wished to wear a saree, do up my face and asked Cristine to click few pictures. The son came back from the school and called Mumma a freaking mad! The senior comes back from the office, the wife says the son called me lame, fat and mad... Come on... my readers know what the answer was.... "wifey you only taught him to stand up for the truth always!".... You see that evening I was cooking both of their favourite.... chicken.... this time TIL NARKOL BATA MURGI.... I continued with the fight though but with whom?.... I told very soon I am going to leave you and be with someone who will eat everything I cook and in big amount.... The answer is again obvious .... go ahead... I am pretty sure no man on earth can stay with you more than a week.... when he sees you eating up his head for every little thing!.... That is true... eight years in this island... while going to the north... I take a sit in a south bound train..... get down midway and call him if I cannot see any official around. The brain needs some exercise to prevent such forgetfulness. .... but this attribute of mine is since my birth... 

The mother still says... "tui rastai berolei chinta hoy amar... rasta par hosh, kichui dekhish na!"... The answer,.... "tumi jano amar kichu bishleshon kortey birokto lagey.... aajkaal ektu kortey hoy boley asojjo lagey".... Most of the time on my walks, I get lost but I explore a new avenue too! I manage to come back home anyway.... how long I do not know.... excuse me if I missed to smile at you on some mornings, I may have been lost somewhere else! I do not miss the salt, turmeric or the right amount of spices on my dishes.... 'coz I am a foodie, 'coz I love to cook, 'coz I usually share dishes after tasting a bit of it.... I am not fond of chicken but may have just one piece and the gravy.... I can assure all chicken lovers will swear by this TIL NARKOL BATA MURGI.

Coming to the point why I gave a Bengali name TIL NARKOL BATA MURGI to this dish without knowing its authenticity, I would defend myself saying I indeed have seen 'til murgi' shares in a couple of Bengali groups but never bookmarked them. Using sesame paste for a meat or fish curry is not a family thing on either side, that does not mean that the entire Bengal does not do it at their homes.  I am not my mother-in-law who will ask the daughter-in-law right after marriage to adapt only the food and habits that 'her' family follows... do not tell me only the males cause pain to us. 

The readers may curse me and accuse me of speaking ill of the husband's mother.... I do not really care  as long as I am taking good care of her 'worldly' needs.... as long as I am speaking the truth. Her pain is not being able to control my life, an exception in her entire family.... My pain is she robbed me of my self-respect in front of her helpers too, insulted my parents [our mother] at any given chance. Till date, she is suspicious of my cooking skills and has to express it over phone because she will never accept my ability, she never  does understand the emotional needs of people! 

My readers should know I try to be honest with life!.... I tried some Roomali Roti to go with the TIL NARKOL BATA MURGI, but I failed.... so went ahead with the multigrain atta poori.

That was also not the right kind of wok for doing Roomali Roti.... I will keep on trying my hands on it... it is not a matter of joke. I had to prepare some grilled tofu, cherry tomato, broccoli alongside for me, and that wonder of the world happened!.... My men had it!.... I excused them for calling me lame, mad and fatso. 

The TIL NARKOL BATA MURGI is done with minimal ground spices... we do not require them at all..... a thick paste of toasted white sesame seed and shredded coconut works wonder for this semi-dry curry. If you want the colour of the gravy to be whiter, skip the red chilli powder and use few more green chillies. Come let us do this semi-dry chicken curry together and enjoy with roti-paratha-poori or rice. For the multigrain atta poori we follow the same recipe for plain atta poori. The super simple grilled veggies was even easier, wash and marinate the tofu, broccoli and cherry tomatoes with black pepper powder, salt and butter and grill for 5-6 minutes, turn, brush with butter and grill for 4-5 minutes.... I am trying to be friendly with such stuffs. Now do not tell me ... S....  Jane Fonda eats only that grilled stuff.... if my men shows me the door, you will not give me shelter at your home!

INGREDIENTS :

Chicken : 1kg [cut into standard size, I prefer to buy younger ones]
Garlic Paste : 2tbsp
Ginger Paste : 1tsp
Onion Paste : 3tbsp
White Sesame Seed : 11/2tsp [toasted till light brown]
Shredded Coconut : 1small cup
Green Chilli : 2
Lemon juice : 1/2small cup
Red Chilli Powder : 2tsp
Turmeric Powder : 1tsp
Bayleaf : 1
Salt : As Required

METHOD :

Wash the chicken pieces thoroughly, and marinate with half of the turmeric and chilli powders, salt and lemon juice for 2 hours.

Heat the oil in a wok and temper it with a bayleaf. Add the onion paste and fry at low heat for 2 minutes.

Add the ginger and garlic pastes and stir at low heat for another two minutes. Add the rest of the red chilli and turmeric powders, salt as required and stir 2-3 times.

Add the chicken pieces along with the marinade and fold in well. Stir at high heat for 2-3 minutes. Reduce heat to minimum and cover the wok.

In a blender prepare a paste with the dry roasted sesame seeds, shredded coconut and the green chillies. Reserve in a bowl.

We will uncover the wok and stir the chicken every 5 minutes. After about 15 minutes, remove cover and add the sesame seeds, shredded coconut and the green chilli paste. Fold in very well. Cover again.

We need to check every 2-3 minutes, cooking at low heat helps to release water and we may not require to add water at all. This adds to the flavour and taste of this semi-dry curry.

If you require water, add a medium cup only... but try to avoid. The chicken curry should be ready in 35 to 40 minutes.

Enjoy with piping hot steamed rice, roti-paratha-poori! Do not forget to have a healthy vegetarian sides either!