Punjabi Cuisine

Ingredients:

• Besan (gram flour)- 2 cups
• Sugar – 1 1/2 cup
• Ghee – 1 cup
• Almonds (chopped) – 1 tspn
• Pistachios (chopped) – 1 tspn
• Cashew nuts (chopped) – 1 tspn

Preparation:

• Heat ghee in non stick pan and mix besan over low heat.
• Keep stirring so lumps don’t form.
• When you smell the besan and seems cooked, remove it from heat and aloow it to cook
• Add sugar and nuts. Mix thoroughly.
• Make small about  golf size balls from the mixture.
• Ladoos are ready to be served.

Ingredients:

• Almonds – 2 cups
• Sugar – 2  1/2 cup
• Kesar (for color) – 2 drops
• Ghee – 1 cup
• Milk – 1 cup

Preparation:

• Soak the almonds in hot water for 1 hour.
• Remove the almond skin and grind to a paste with the milk.
• Make sugar syrup by adding sugar to the water, boil it until its consistent.
• Add the almond paste and cook till it thickens.
• Add the kesar color
• Add ghee slowly while stirring continuously on low heat.

Ingredients:

• Carrots – 2 lbs
• Milk – 4 cups
• Cardamom seeds – 1 tspn
• Water – 3/4 cup
• Ghee – 3 tbspn
• Raisins – 2 tbspn
• Almonds – 2 tbspn
• Pistachios – 2 tbspn
• Sugar – 2 cups

Preparation:

• Soak the raisins in water for about half hour.
• Wash and grate the carrots.
• Boil the water, when it comes to boil, add the carrots and cook for about 10 minutes.
• Add the milk and cook on low heat for 1 hour.
• Add the sugar and stir while the sugar is dissolved and milk evaporates.
• Add the ghee and simmer for 3 minutes.
• Add the cardamoms and raisins. Mix well.
• Remove the gajar halwa and garnish with almonds and pistachios.
• Serve either cold or at room temperature.

Ingredients:

• Milk – 4 cups
• All purpose flour – 1/4 cup
• Suji – 1/4 cup
• Ghee – 1 1/2 cup
• Water

Preparation:

• Boil the milk until it is reduced to half the original quantity.
• Roast the suji until light brown.
• Add to the milk along with flour. Mix until no lumps remain.
• Heat the ghee in a pan.
• Pour the batter in a glass so it is easy to pour it in the pan.
• To make the malpura, pour the mixture in the pan, about the size of pan cakes.
• Cook them on both sides. Make sure they don’t become crisp.
• To make a sugar syrup, by adding the milk to the pan with sugar.
• Dip the malpura in the syrup.
• Serve hot or cold.

image credit: http://indiansnap.com/special-holi-offer-at-radisson-blu

Ingredients:

• Rice (washed and drained) – 1 cup
• Milk – 5 cups
• Cardamom seeds (crushed) – 4
• Almonds(chopped) – 2 tbspn
• Saffron (soaked in little hot milk) – 1 pinch
• Pistachio nuts(chopped) – 1 tbspn
• Sugar – 1/2 cup
• Raisins – 8 – 10

Preparation:

• Put the rice, milk and cardamom in a heavy bottomed pan.
• Bring the milk to boil and keep stirring until the rice are soft and grains start to break.
• The milk to should become little brownish
• Add almonds, pistachio, saffron, and raisins.
• Cook for 3 minutes
• Add sugar and keep stirring until completely dissolved.
• Remove the kheer from heat.
• Serve either warm or cold.

Ingredients:

• Milk – 3 cups (for Paneer)
• Milk – 3 cups (for malai)
• Cardamon (choti elaichi) – 1/2 tspn
• Sugar – 2 cups (for syrup)
• Sugar – 1/2 cup (for malai)
• Pista – 2 tspn
• Cashew paste – 1 tbsp
• Chopped almonds – 2 tspn
• Lemon Juice – 2 tbsp
• Water –  2 cups
• Saffron – pinch

Preparation:

Paneer

• Boil milk in heavy bottomed pot while stirring continuously.
• When milk comes to boil, add lemon juice slowly so the milk cuddles (paneer).
• Pour the paneer into a cloth while the water drains out of it.
• Pour cold water on the paneer to get rid of the lemon flavor.
• Allow it drain completely while squeezing the cloth
• Make small balls, smaller than golf balls and flatten slightly.

Rasmalai

• Boil water in a pressure cooker with sugar and when it comes to boil add the paneer balls.
• Close the pressure cooker and cook for 7 minutes.
• After the balls are cooked, they should double in size. Keep them aside.
• Now to prepare the malai, add milk and sugar to heavy bottomed pan along with cashew paste, a pinch of saffron, and cardamom on medium setting.
• Boil for 20 to 30 minutes so the milk gets reduced to 2 cups.
• Take out the paneer balls from the pressure cooker and press them so water is removed from them.
• Add the balls to the boiled milk
• Garnish with pista and almonds
• Keep it in the fridge and serve it chilled.