Broken Wheat And Nut Dessert ( Halwa )

This Indian dessert was my sister's innovation which I liked it very much and was simple to prepare.It had broken wheat,different nuts,milk and jaggery which makes it nutritious and tasty too! Instead of jaggery, sugar can be used.

This recipe serves six to eight people.

Ingredients	Quantity
Broken Wheat	1 cup
Milk	500 ml
Jaggery or Sugar	½ cup
Soaked Almonds	½ cup
Soaked Cashewnuts	½ cup
Raisins (Kismis)	2 tbsp
Cardamom Powder	1½ tsps
Clarified Butter or Ghee	2 tsp
Soaked Saffron (optional)	1 tbsp
Coloured Tutifruti and Raisins	for decoration

Method

1. Clean and wash the broken wheat and put it in a dish.


2. Add half the milk and half cup water and cook it in pressure cooker or microwave till soft.


3. Make a paste of the soaked almonds and cashewnuts with little milk and keep it aside.


4. Take the cooked broken wheat in a pan and add the rest of the milk and jaggery or sugar and cook together well.


5. Then add the nut paste,cardamom powder and ghee and stir well and cook till the mixture thickens.


6. Transfer the contents into a serving bowl which is ready for garnishing and decoration.


7. Heat ghee in a small pan and fry the raisins lightly.


8. Add this on the dessert and decorate it with coloured tutifruiti.

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Two-in-one Protein Rich Spicy Powder

Spicy powders are used a lot in Indian cuisine to enhance the taste of the dish,sometimes in curries, sambhar, rasam or for dosas, idlis, chaats or just like that to mix in hot plain rice with ghee. This powder recipe is two in one because it can be used as a dry powder as well as an instant chutney by reconstituting the powder with curds and water. This powder is loaded with proteins because of peanuts,roasted gram dhal, so, it is good for kids and has to be stored in the refrigerator for longer shelf life. The biggest advantage is for working people who have no time to make a fresh chutney everyday.The instant chutney is as good as the fresh chutney.

Try it! Makes two cups.

Ingredients	Quantity
Roasted Peanuts (with or without skin)	1 cup
Roasted Gram Dhal	¾ cup
Roasted Shredded Dry Coconut(optional)	½ cup
Chopped Coriander Leaves (Cilantro)	¾ cup
Chopped Green Chillies	¼ cup
Chopped Garlic (optional)	1 tbsp
Cumin Seeds (Jeera)	1 tbsp
Oil	1 tbsp
Salt	to taste

Method

1. Take a pan and add oil and heat it.Add the cumin seeds and fry.Then add the chopped coriander leaves, green chillies and chopped garlic and fry till the leaves wilt and are fried. Cool it.


2. The following steps are important and have to be followed carefully.


3. First powder the peanuts and gram dhal with coconut coarsely and keep it aside.


4. Then grind the coriander fried mixture separately.


5. Take a bowl and add the powdered peanut mixture ,coriander leaf mixture and salt and mix thoroughly .By grinding all the ingredients separately and mixing them , the final product will be powdery and not wet in consistency.If all the ingredients are blended together, then it will not remain a powder but it be wet and will be semisolid.


6. Store this powder in a jar in the refrigerator for further use.


7. This can be used in the powder form or as chutney. To make the chutney,take about three tablespoons of the powder in a small dish and add about half a cup of beaten curd and a tablespoon of water and mix it well with a spoon to a chutney consistency. If more salt is required it can be added and it can be garnished with a mustard seed tempering.

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Sweet Mango Delight

Since it is mango season now,this dessert has been made from mangoes and milk which the children and the whole family will enjoy. No eggs are used and is extremely easy to prepare.

Serves four to six people.

Ingredients	Quantity
Ripe Mango puree	1½ cups
Crushed Marie or Glucose Biscuits	1 cup
Melted Butter	3 tbsps
Powdered Sugar	1¾ cup
Hung Curd	1 cup
Cream	½ cup or more
Gelatin	1 tbsp
Water	4 tbsps
Cut Mango pieces for decoration	a few

Method

1. Take butter in a small dish and melt it either in a microwave or on the gas. Pour it over the crushed biscuits and mix it well and spread it evenly at the bottom of the serving dish evenly and firmly by pressing with your fingers.


2. Put this dish in the oven for few minutes till the biscuit mixture becomes firm and sets.Keep it aside.


3. Take a blender jar and add the ripe mango puree,sugar and blend well.


4. Then add the hung curd,cream and gelatin dissolved in warm water and blend it again till mixed well.


5. Pour this mango mixture over the biscuit mixture in the serving dish and decorate it with mango slices and set it in the refrigerator for a few hours.


6. Serve cold slices of this dessert.

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Apple Rabbadi

Rabbadi is a very popular milk dessert in India. It is made from whole milk which is boiled to more than half its quantity and garnished with dry fruits. I happened to eat this milk sweet at my friend's place which had grated apple added to it. I felt that by adding the apple, this sweet seemed to be more light and fruity and more nutritious. This sweet is simple to make but takes a long time because the milk has to be reduced to less than half its quantity. So, the milk mixture can be made before hand and the grated apple can be added just before serving.

Serves eight to ten people.

Ingredients	Quantity
Whole Milk	2 litres
Sugar	½ kg
Sliced Pistachios/Almond slivers	2 tbsps or more
Grated Apples	2 cups
Cardamom Powder	1½ tsps

Method

1. Take milk in a large pan and boil it well and reduce it to less than half its original quantity. The milk has to be continuously stirred or else the milk will burn at the bottom.


2. The colour of the milk will turn slightly brown in colour.


3. Then add the sugar and cook for sometime stirring it continously till it becomes thick and semi solid.


4. Add the cardamom powder and remove from heat.Let it cool.


5. Add the grated apple and mix throughly.


6. Transfer the whole thing into a serving dish and garnish it with pista or almond slivers.


7. Cool it well in the refrigerator before serving.

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