GUEST POST! GUJIYAS BY RADHIKA AGRAWAL!

 

I love festivals, and I’ve done so from as far back as I can remember. While I’m not big on religious pomp and ceremony, the entire atmosphere (to be incredibly clichéd) when there’s a major festival coming up is exciting. Lucky for me, I grew up in a multi-faith household, so even between Holi, Diwali and Christmas, there was always something “coming up soon”.

 

Diwali’s coming up in a few days, and in my head I’ve already been making rangoli and painting diyas for a few days now, so I figured I’d help my mum make all the Diwali-related stuff she usually does. Or, if I’m being honest, to observe her and take pictures.

 

Coming up today and tomorrow are her recipes for Gujiyas and Mathrees (it would be much easier to write these names in Hindi). Neither is specifically a “Diwali” preparation, they’re fairly no-fuss, and they taste much much better than the store-bought versions (mostly because these are made in oil, not ghee). Try them out this festive season, or anytime during the year, you won’t regret it J

 

I couldn't think of how to describe Gujiyas to those who don't know what it is, so I quote Wikipedia: "Gujia, a cuisine of North India particularly UP, MP and Rajasthan is a sweet dumpling made with suji or maida flour/wheat flour and stuffed with khoya. Several regional cuisines in India feature dishes similar to gujia but with different fillings."

 

I’ve never been able to like a Gujiya that’s from a store, because they’re sickeningly sweet (mostly because they’re doused in sugar syrup or chaashni).  These are fairly easy to make, and are way crisper and lighter than anything any halwai ever made. Also, to make matters more convenient, gujiya moulds are easily available these days (at least in Delhi) and can be used to make the process of pressing and sealing them easier.

 

Makes about 20

 

What You'll Need:

 

For the dough:

 

2 cups Maida/All-purpose flour

 

¼ cup Milk

 

½ cup Ghee (melted)

 

2 tbsp Suji/Semolina

 

 

For the filling:

200 gm Khoya (Khoya is essentially a milk derivative made of either dried whole milk or milk thickened by heating in an open iron pan. It is similar to ricotta cheese, but lower in moisture and made from whole milk instead of whey. This is easily available at stores selling milk and milk products)

 

4 tbsp dessicated coconut (this adds an interesting flavour to the Gujiya)

 

150 g sugar (powdered)

 

½ tsp cardamom powder

 

1 tbsp Suji/Semolina (for some texture)

 

3 tbsp chopped almonds (optional)

 

How To:

 

1. For the dough: Mix the Maida and Suji well. Add the ghee – the texture at this point should be like breadcrumbs. Add the milk, and using cold water, knead the dough. Cover with a damp cloth and keep aside.

 

2. For the filling: Next, in a deep bottomed wok or kadhai, lightly roast the Suji for the filling until golden brown and keep aside. In the same pan, mash and roast the Khoya until golden brown. Mix the Suji and Khoya, and let it cool.

Note: Don't hesitate to be creative with the fillings, you can use cocoa/cinnamon or whatever your imagination thinks will be delicious.

 

3. Add the sugar, coconut and almonds.

 

4. Making Gujiyas: Make small spheres of dough. Using a rolling pin, roll each one into a circle about 4 inches in diameter.

 

5. If you’re using a mould, spread a circle of dough over it. Moisten the edges with water (or water mixed with very little Maida) – this helps seal the Gujiya. Spoon in one tablespoon of the filling in the centre on one side, and fold one side of the mould over the other. Remove excessive edges. Keep under a damp cloth until you make the others.

 

 

6. To make these without the mould, you’ll follow the same steps, only that once you fold one side of the dough circle over the other, resulting in a sort-of semicircle, use your fingers or a fork to press the edges together and make a design on the edges.

7. Deep fry the Gujiyas (about 5-6 at a time) in any oil until they’re light golden, and cool.

 

 

DIP DE DOODLE DIP

“I believe when life gives you lemons, you should make lemonade...and try to find someone whose life has given them vodka, and have a party.”
― Ron White

 

Tis' the season for Taash parties and parties mean finger food and dip - here are 5 of the Reluctant Chef's (easiest) and yummiest dip recipes!

 

1. Super Healthy Hung Curd and Creamilicious Tuna 

 

 

2. Golden Glowing Honey Mustard

 

 

3. Ultimate Lemon and Garlic Hummus

 

 

4. Virtuous Cilantro Pesto

 

 

5. Super Smooth Cauliflower

 

WINDING UP THE SUMMER

"Summer will end soon enough, and childhood as well."

 - GRR Martin

 

I've realized I've developed a strange ritual for using things I buy. I'm very excited when I've made the purchase, which I follow with a phase of building anticipation before I start to use it. Everyday (or periodically during the day) I'll look at whatever it is and look forward to opening the packaging. When I can't take it anymore, I tear through the packing and hop around gleefully. A week of joy follows in which time I manage to get used to whatever it is.

 

The next stage of enthusiasm develops when something is about to run out. I get myself in a whirl over what I liked, disliked and research potential substitutes. I wait impatiently for the tube to empty or the pages to run out or whatever the appropriate conclusion is to happen already so I can move on to the next thing. Throwing away an empty jar/bottle/can or stowing away a full notebook comes with such a (completely misplaced) sense of achievement.

 

It's not easy though. Waiting for the last dregs of hair serum, smidge of body butter in the jar, drops of oil in the bottle to be used up while shiny, new thingamajigs languish in a drawer. But that's the rule. You have to finish what you've started before you move on to the next thing. So I'll wait. Wait and try to be patient, because whether good or bad, there's something new on the way.

 

I feel that way about the summer right now. The next 3 months are my favourite in the year. There will be birthdays, parties, holidays, decorations, occasions to dress up and lovely weather... but I'm waiting. For the last few days of this summer to wrap up. Before we start pulling out sweaters and getting blouses made, here's a look back at my favourite moments on the blog this summer:

 

1. No self respecting Indian food blogger should talk about the summer without talking about mangoes. These mango recipes were so much fun (and so easy)!

 

 

2. Reviewing some of the restaurants I love - Yeti, Carnatic Café, Yum Yum Tree and Ploof. These are places I go to all the time and am sure will be visiting again in the winter. Writing about places I like is so much more enjoyable than ranting about the ones that disappoint me.

 

Filter Coffee at Carnatic Cafe

Pecan Pie at Ploof



Sushi Brunch at Yum Yum Tree

Everything at Yeti =)

3. Finally cracking the recipe for good hummus! This was quite the personal cooking milestone!

 

 

4. Discovering that you can get haleem delivered from Hyderabad to your doorstep! Still can't wrap my head around it!

 

 

5. Putting together the first Reluctant Chef guide! The whole process of compiling (and consuming) this cheese platter was a labour of love pulled together on a gorgeous, rainy weekend.

 

 

Okay now hurry up and be winter already.

MANGO YOGHURT HONEY POPSICLES

“Forget art. Put your trust in ice cream.”
― Charles Baxter, The Feast of Love

 

Pursuant to the Ice Cream Making Disaster of 2012 I'd given up on the idea of frozen desserts. Then the Delhi summer kicked in and forget baking a cake, I didn't even want to look at a slice. The thought of hot fudge had started to seem vile. Thanks to some inspiration from Radhika though I decided to try my hand at popsicle making.

 

The result is this sweet, super healthy, bursting with fruit and honey freshness popsicle. Once again, add as much of any ingredient as you like. Play around with the mix till it tastes right to you. Couldn't be easier =)

 

 

Recipe from Radhika Agrawal

 

What you’ll need:

 

Mango

Yoghurt

Honey

Popsicle Mold

 

How to:

 

1. Puree the mangoes and mix all the ingredients together. Pour into molds and refrigerate overnight.

 

2. If you want the layers you see in the picture, pour in either the mango or the yoghurt honey mix first and wait for a couple of hours for it to firm up. Once firm, add the other ingredients.

Note: You can make more and thinner layers for more of an effect. You’ll just have to keep pouring and waiting for it to freeze.

Here is Radhika's super-nutritious take on popsicles:

Yummilicious Summer Fun

What you need:

2 bananas

 ½ pear, cored and peeled 

½ pineapple, cored and peeled

1 ½ cup fresh spinach

¼ cup orange juice

2 tablespoons lemon juice

 

The easiest recipe in the world:

Cut or break the banana, pear and pineapple into medium sized chunks. Blend all the ingredients together until smooth and pour into popsicle molds. Freeze for at least four hours. Slurp. No seriously, that's it.

 

Tips:

- You don't necessarily need to have popsicle molds handy. I couldn't find ours at home, so I used these cute ice trays. Regular steel or plastic bowls should work as well. Stick a spoon or ice cream stick in when its almost frozen if you really want to.

- We didn't have pineapple at home, so I used two small tetrapacks of Tropicana's pineapple juice, and substituted the orange juice in the recipe with one orange (with the seeds removed, of course) and used one pear to add some texture. 

- Taste before you pour into the molds - I thought it could do with some tanginess, so I doubled the quantity of lemon juice.

- If the popsicles get "too frozen"(for instance if you're having them the next day), they'll taste a bit too ice-y, so you could take them out of the freezer and stick them in the fridge for 20-25 minutes before you eat them. Personally, I thought they were best when semi-frozen.

HOT DOGS & WHY YOU SHOULD HAVE A MOVIE NIGHT

I believe in good food. - Bertrand Russel

 

 

Why you should be planning a movie night this weekend:

 

1. After a while all restaurants, clubs, pubs, bars, gastropubs and what have you, end up feeling like a tired (and expensive) routine.

 

2. Endless fresh popcorn.

 

 

3. You're not going to get the chance to pause, replay or fast forward a movie in a theatre.

 

4. If you're not planning a movie night for this weekend, pack a DVD, pack of popcorn, chocolate and a pair of pajamas as a gift for friend who needs some TLC. Movie night in a box!

 

My movie night box! I'm a terrible wrapper though.

 

5. By definition a movie night is about unwinding (if you had so much energy to spare why wouldn't you be out jigging it up somewhere?) so you don't need to bother with elaborate recipes, fancy cutlery or too much time spent prepping. Keep it simple stupid.

 

6. You're never going to have the same number of options in a theatre - rewatch an old favorite, set yourself up for a Tarantino marathon or giggle it up with a romantic comedy. The price of your DVD will probably be less than the cost of one ticket on a weekend.

 

7. This is one party where everyone can join in, tailor the menu and movie appropriately and you can make it about friends, family, kids or all of the above.

 

8. Movie theatre junk food is well know to be really, really bad for you. A large popcorn with butter is around 1,500 calories and a large soda contains the equivalent of 33 teaspoons of sugar. A typical movie snack combination (popcorn, soda and other junk) contains more calories than an average adult should consume in 1 day. Add to this the fact that it is really overpriced and often stale. At home you can make small choices and pick the best ingredients to make sure you keep the calorie count down and the nutrition values up.

 

I've used lean meat hot dogs with whole wheat buns to salvage these hot dogs from junk food hell.

 

What you’ll need:

 

Hot dogs

Hot dog buns

Ketchup

Mustard

 

How to:

 

Cook dogs as per package instructions, assemble. Douse with ketchup and mustard. Serve hot.

FOOFED UP RUM AND COKE

Always do sober what you said you'd do drunk. That will teach you to keep your mouth shut - Ernest Hemingway

These are so simple, they're perfect to put together for a movie night or any other low-fuss occassion. Either make a big batch and stick it in the fridge or lay out all the ingredients and let your guests fend for themselves. The addition of oranges and vanilla essence adds an interesting kick to the old favourite, the Rum and Coke.

 

Recipe from Martha Stewart

Serves 1

What you’ll need:

Ice

Coke
Vanilla Essence
Lime/Orange

How to:

Pile ice into a glass, pour Coke, add a tiny, tiny bit of vanilla essence and a squeeze of citrus. Garnish with a slice of lemon or orange and serve.

 

Yeah, they empty out pretty quickly =)