Renu's Gulkand Ice-Cream

Gulkand is a sweet preserve of rose petals. It is a most delicious Ayurvedic preparation known to mankind. This beautiful and yummy ice-cream recipe is by my Bhabhi Renu. I haven’t tried it yet but my mom said it was yum :) I too will be trying it soon :)

Base

Ingredients

1/2 lt. Whole milk
120 gm sugar
1 tbsp + 1 tsp + 1/2 tsp + 1/4 tsp Cornflour
1 tbsp + 1 tsp + 1/2 tsp + 1/4 tsp GMS Powder
a pinch of CMC powder

Method
1. Mix all ingredients and boil
2. After the first boil, boil for 1/2 min.
3. Cool completely and Freeze

For Flavor

Ingredients

1 plane base prepared above
1/2 cup fresh cream
Rose essence 2 tsp
Gulkand 150 gms or 2 big tbsp
Rose red food color

Method

1. Put base of ice cream in a vessel.
2. Add essence and fresh cream.
3. Beat with beater for about 10 min.
4. Add pinch of color and gulkand spreading all over.
5. Mix with beater just for few seconds. Do not beat, otherwise gulkand's color will spoil the original color of ice cream.
6. Pour in a container and freeze till set.

Palak Paneer Paratha

Other day I met my very good friend Kaushika & she told me this yummy & healthy stuffed paratha recipe. I tried it in my kitchen & everyone just loved it :)

Ingredients

Dough

2 cups wheat flour

1/2 tsp jeera powder

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp ajwain

1/2 tsp red chilli powder

1 tsp oil OR 2 tsp cream or Malai

Water to make a medium soft dough

Oil or ghee to make parathas

Filling

1 cup finely chopped spinach

1/2 cup crumbled cottage cheese

1 onion finely chopped

2 tbsp or 1 cube grated cheese 

1/2 tsp chopped chillies

1/2 tsp jeera powder

Salt & pepper to taste

Method

Dough

Mix everything and make dough.

Keep aside.

Filling

Mix everything and keep aside.

How to Proceed

Divide dough into 6 parts.

Flatten each part and put little filling in each.

Make balls again.

Roll each ball to make rounds.

Cook on both side on hot griddle app,ting little oil or ghee.

Serve hot with vegetable raita.

Tips

Eat them hot ;)

Mango Kalakand

Summer in India for foodies is synonymous with the mango season. 

The King of fruits can be used to make numerous dishes & one of them is mango kalakand that can be prepared & served in any festival. 

Ingredients (makes 12 to 15 pieces)

4 + 2 cups milk

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 tsp elaichi powder

3/4 cup mango purée 

Few saffron strands in 1 tsp of milk

1/2 cup curds (for making paneer)

1 tbsp sliced pistachio for garnishing

Method

For Paneer

Boil the 4 cups of milk in a heavy bottomed pan over medium heat, stirring occasionally, making sure not to burn milk.

As the milk comes to a boil, add the curds gradually and stir the milk gently. 

The curd will start separating from the whey, turn off the heat.

Once the milk fat has separated from the whey, drain the whey using a strainer line with muslin cloth.

Wrap the curds in a muslin cloth and squeeze well. 

To take out the excess water, squeeze the wrapped paneer. Do not knead the paneer.

For Kalakand

Boil remaining 2 cup of the milk in a heavy bottom frying pan on medium high heat until the milk reduces to about a cup.

Make sure to frequently stir the milk as the milk burns easily in bottom of the pan.

Add mango purée keep stirring till the mixture thickens a little.

Add the sugar, ealichi powder & saffron and continue to cook.

Add the paneer and keep stirring until the mixture become soft lump and start leaving the pan from sides.

Pour it over greased plate keeping about half inch thick.

Sprinkle pistachio.

Let it cool for about one hour & refrigerate it for an hour.

Cut the kalakand in squares & enjoy fresh & delicious mango kalakand 

Tips

* Putting few spoons of water in pot before putting milk reduces burning the milk at the bottom of the pan.

* Do check for sweetness of mango to reduce or increase the amount of sugar.

* Make sure kalakand don’t become too dry.

* I used fresh mango purée in this recipe but it can be made with canned one. 

* You can make paneer with lemon juice or citric acid instead of curds, but then you have to wash the paneer in running water to remove the sourness. Personally I would suggest curds only as it makes soft paneer always.

Chocolate Cups

Chocolate cups lets you serve candies, mousses, and ganache in a delicious, edible container! You can do so much more with them. Here I'm giving the easy way to make edible chocolate cups, & you might start making them on a regular basis. 

Ingredients

Chopped dark chocolate 

Small paper cups, preferably the harder/sturdier ones

Small clean paint brush (optional)

Method

For this recipe, you will have to temper your chocolate. Tempered chocolate will taste better.

I recommend that you do not simply use melted (untempered) chocolate, as it gets soft at warm temperatures & tends to run down.

So begin by tempering your chocolate by following these directions.

For Tempering The Chocolate

Kitchen utensils required-

Double boiler, or a saucepan and heat proof bowl to fit snugly on top of the open saucepan

Rubber spatula

Method

Coarsely chop the amount of chocolate your recipe specifies

Place ⅔ of the chocolate in a double boiler over gently simmering water. Ensure the water does not touch the bottom of the double boiler or your chocolate may overheat and lose its shine and smoothness.

Melt the chocolate for just about 2 to 3 minutes.

Remove the chocolate from the heat & stir in the remaining chocolate; stir with a spatula from time to time.

Keep stirring the melted chocolate until it cools down, & return to the heat stirring gently until the chocolate is fully melted.

Once the chocolate is smooth & shiny, it is ready to be used for chocolate curls, as coating or for making chocolate cups.

Maintaining the Temper - If you leave the double-boiler assembled but remove it from the heat, the warm water in the bottom is usually enough to keep the chocolate tempered until we’re finished dipping. If the chocolate starts hardening, you’ll need to repeat all the steps to bring it back into temper.

Chocolate Cups

There are two methods of making edible chocolate cups -

A) For the first, you will want to take a spoon & fill each cup half with chocolate. 

Swirl the cup so that the walls are evenly coated with chocolate.

Now invert it over the bowl of chocolate, letting the excess drip out. 

Once the extra chocolate is gone, you'll be left with a thin, even coating on the sides & bottom of your cup. 

B) The second method involves using a small, clean food-safe paintbrush. Fill a cup about a quarter with chocolate, then use the paintbrush to paint the chocolate up the sides of the cup to the top. 

Try to create an even layer, & inspect the cups as you finish them to make sure there are no weak, streaky areas.

Let the chocolate cups set completely, either at room temperature or in the refrigerator. You can now fill them with ganache, mousse, ice cream, or any other filling of your choice. They can be left open on top, or sealed with more chocolate on top of whatever filling you choose.

Tips

* Chocolate cups can be made up to a week in advance. Store, covered, in the refrigerator or freeze for up to a month. 

* Try and find sturdy paper or foil cases to make the chocolate moulds as they will be easier to paint with the melted chocolate. If they are thin or flimsy, you can use a few layered inside each other to make them stronger. 

* These chocolate cups would also be great made with milk or white chocolate.