Zaiqa

During my visit to the market for the weekly groceries today, I saw this huge pile of sweet potatoes that were so fresh with earth still on them and they were huge in sizes and I could not resist buying it. On the way back home, the only thing I was thinking about was that absolutely delicious Ratalu ki kheer my Ammi used to prepare for us during my childhood.

Sweet Potato

Kheer is Milk pudding, flavored with a hint of cardamom seed powder, or a few saffron threads and various fried nuts and dry fruits for a little crunch and aroma. Several kinds of vegetables and grains, which do not have a very strong flavor of their own are used to make kheer. Sweet potato, White potato, Opo squash(kaddu), Rice, Vermicelli, etc., which have an affinity to milk are preferred.

Orange-fleshed sweet potatoes are rich in antioxidants, potassium, and an excellent source of dietary fiber and vitamin A and vitamin C. Vitamin A helps our bodies fight infections and lets us see better in the dark, promote healthy skin and hair. When I was a kid, I remember I and my siblings enjoyed boiled sweet potato cut into cubes and dipped in sugar. Those morsels were ultimately delicious and an occasional treat.

The subtle sweetness of this humble tuber~Sweet potato, also called as Ratalu in Urdu, is perfect for preparing a delicious kheer out of it. Today I tried to recreate my Ammi version of this dessert in my kitchen. الحمد لله it was good, and I enjoyed every bit of it.

Ratalu ki Kheer – Sweet Potato Milk Pudding (Low fat Version)

Ingredients:

Sweet Potato – 700 kg (I used orange fleshed sweet potato, you can also use white fleshed sweet potato for this dish)
Evaporated milk (2% partly skimmed) – 370 ml (I used Carnation brand)
Sugar – 1/4 cup + 1 tbsp
Cardamom powder – 1 big pinch (optional)
Toasted slivered/chopped nuts like pistachio and almonds – 1 tsp, for garnish

Ratalu ki Kheer – Sweet Potato Milk Pudding

Method:

1. There are two ways to cook a sweet potato.
Pressure cook them: In a pressure cooker add the sweet potato and pour in cool fresh water enough to cover the sweet potato and pressure cook until it is tender, approx 10-15 mins on medium heat. To check if it done, pierce the tuber with a knife, if the knife goes into it effortlessly, it is done, if not let cook for just a further few minutes. Once done, drain in a colander, let cool slightly, peel the skin while still warm.
Steam them: Slice ½” thick slices (peeled or not). Place in steam basket over a pot of water. Cover, turn heat to high, bringing water to boil, cook for 7 to 10 minutes. Fork test for completion, they should pierce easily and the skins will be very tender.
I pressure cooked them.

pressure cooked sweet potato, ready to be peeled

mashed sweet potato

2. Mash the sweet potato in a bowl and keep aside.
3. In a milk saucepan, pour in the evaporated milk and add sugar and bring it to a boil at medium heat. Once boiling, reduce heat to simmer, add the mashed potato and using a heavy wooden spoon, mix it well, mashing it well in the milk so that there are no large lumps. Let cook for 3-5 minutes. Add the cardamom powder and remove from heat. Serve in small bowls and garnish with toasted nuts. You can also sprinkle a few fresh rose petals for a gorgeous look.

This low fat and creamy Sweet potato pudding goes to Meeta’s ‘Monthly Mingle‘. Sudeshna of ‘Cook like a Bong‘ is the guest host this month for this event with a theme of ‘Winter Fruits and Vegetables‘.

Luv,
Mona

Out of all the curries that I prepare using chicken, this is perhaps the one I prepare most usually at home for meals. Home made ginger-garlic paste and yogurt, fresh lemon juice helps tenderize the chicken, and both the yogurt and tomatoes render a subtle sour flavor which balances out the sweetness of the shallow fried onions in the curry. Fresh roasted coriander seed powder and fresh cilantro add a wonderful aroma.

Murghi ka Salan – Chicken Curry

Murghi ka Salan – Chicken Curry

Ingredients:

Chicken, with bone – 800 gm, skinned and cut into 10-12 pieces
Home made Yogurt – 1/2 cup
Home made Ginger garlic paste – 2 tbsp
Fresh Lemon juice – 3 tbsp
Red chilli powder – 1 1/2 tsp
Salt – 1 1/2 tsp
Turmeric powder – 1/4 tsp
Canola oil – 3 tbsp
Yellow Onion – 2, large, peeled and finely chopped
Green cardamom – 4
Black peppercorns – 8
Cloves – 3
Cinnamon stick – one 2″ stick
Dry-roasted Coriander seed powder – 2 tsp
Tomatoes – 4, large, ripe and red, finely chopped
Cilantro/Kothmir – finely chopped, 1/2 cup, loosely packed

Method:

1. In a large mixing bowl, add yogurt, ginger garlic paste, lemon juice, red chilli powder, salt and turmeric. Using a spoon or a whisk, mix well. Add the chicken pieces and mix well to coat all the pieces with the marinade. Marinate for 1 hour, covered, in the refrigerator
2. Later, before you start cooking, remove the chicken from the refrigerator and leave on the countertop to bring it back to room temperature. Continue cooking.
3. In a large heavy bottomed non-stick casserole dish at medium high heat, pour in oil, and as soon as it warms up add the chopped onion and stir fry until it is nice and evenly golden brown in color. Add the cloves, cinnamon stick, cardamom, black peppercorns, coriander seed powder and mix well. A wonderful aroma emanates. Fry them for a minute along with onions, later add the chopped tomatoes and mix well. Cover with a lid and let cook for 4-5 minutes. Add a few splashes of water and let cook until tomatoes are all mushy, add the marinated chicken with all the juices and mix well. Let cook uncovered for 5-10 minutes. Later, lower the heat to medium, pour in 2 to 3 cups warm water and mix gently. Cover with the lid and let cook for 30-40 minutes or until the chicken is tender and well-cooked. Remove from heat and add the chopped cilantro and gently mix well. Serve.

Suggested Accompaniments: Serve the curry along with Khushka and Tamatar dal, or along with Parathas, and a vegetarian side-dish of your choice for a delicious meal.

Luv,
Mona

During my childhood, this spongy vegetable ranked among the toppers in my list of disliked vegetables . The only way I would eat them was when these eggplant discs were deep fried till crisp on the edges with a soft flesh in the center, and lightly seasoned with red chilli powder and salt while still warm. But today, eggplants seem to have become one of my favorite vegetables over time and I somehow end up getting a few eggplants home most usually. There are so many delicious preparations that can be made out of this  simple vegetable, for ideas I recommend going through this cookbook – Eggplant – More than 75 delicious recipes, it will make you fall in love with eggplants.

Indian eggplants ~ cut into chips

I am sure even you all will enjoy these eggplant chips, my childhood favorite, as an accompaniment to your meals.

Taleh Baingan – Deep fried Eggplant discs

Ingredients:

Baingan/Aubergine/Eggplants – 4 (I used baby eggplants as shown in the picture, you can even use Japanese eggplants)
Red chili powder – 3/4 tsp or to taste
Salt – to taste

Taleh Baingan – Deep fried Eggplant discs

Method:

1. Cut the eggplant into half inch thick slices and soak them in surplus salted water in a mixing bowl.
2. Heat oil to deep fry in a kadai or wok at medium heat and as soon as it is warm enough. Drain the eggplant discs and gently slide them in the hot oil, and deep fry in batches on both sides until the color is changed to a golden brown color and the outer edges are wrinkled.
3. Remove using a slotted spoon into a wire mesh strainer for the excess oil to drain away. Immediately sprinkle the fried discs while warm with the red chilli powder and salt on both sides. Serve immediately and enjoy while still warm.

Luv,
Mona

Aloo ke Cutlets/Potato croquettes is a popular snack food in India, usually enjoyed as chaat. Whenever I have time on hand, what I do is, prepare these in bulk and freeze or refrigerate them to store for future use. Everyone at home enjoys them as a side-snack to meals, and I have a quick snack on hand.

Aloo Qimah Matar ke Cutlets – Potato croquettes
Makes: 14-15 cutlets

Ingredients:

White Potatoes – 6 or 7
Black pepper powder – 1 tsp
Salt – 1 tsp
Cooked peas (fresh or frozen)(thawed if frozen) – 3/4 cup

For Qimah:

Canola oil – 2 tsp
Minced Veal meat – 250 gms
Red chilli powder – 1/2 tsp
Salt – 1/2 tsp
Ginger garlic paste – 1 tsp

Aloo Qimah Matar ke Cutlets – Potato croquettes

Method:

1. Wash and drain the qimah. In a large sauté pan at medium high heat, pour in oil and as soon as it warms up, add the drained qimah and all the remaining ingredients for qimah and mix well. Let it cook stirring frequently until the qimah is completely cooked and well browned and all the moisture has been dried up. Remove from heat and keep aside to cool.
2. Wash and drain the potatoes. In a pressure cooker, add the potatoes and pressure cook for a few minutes until the potatoes are soft. make sure that you do not pressure cook for long such that the potatoes burst open. Open the cooker and drain the potatoes in a colander. Once they are warmish to touch, hold the warm potatoes using a kitchen towel in one hand, and peel them using the other hand. Place the peeled potatoes in a mixing bowl. Mash them well. Add the prepared cooled qimah, the cooked peas, black pepper powder and salt. Mix well.

potato+peas+qimah cutlets

cutlets stacked in a food storage box to be refrigerated

3. Shape the prepare potato mixture into patties as shown in the picture. Grease your hand with a little oil to aid in the process. Once the potato mixture is complete and the patties are ready, stack them as shown in the picture in a food storage box, in layers and sheets of aluminium foil separating them (store them this way if you plan to finish them all within one week). To eat, shallow fry a few of the patties in just a few drops of oil in a frying pan on both sides until light brown. Serve warm.

Tip: You can also prepare larger patty shaped potato cutlet and enjoy these shallow fried cutlets sandwiched between burger buns for a quick breakfast.

Tip: If you plan on storing these cutlets for a longer time, arrange the shallow-fried cooked cutlets and freeze them individually for 3 hours. Later, stack them all up in a food storage box and store the frozen cutlets for future use. To use, microwave them for a few minutes before you serve.

Luv,
Mona

Pumpkins, during this season are spotted galore at every food market and I had brought a beautiful Pumpkin home a few days back. After enjoying a warming Pumpkin soup, I prepared a simple Pumpkin ka Meetha, just similar to Gajar ka Meetha and Kaddu ka Meetha, and الحمد لله it was delicious.

Pumpkin slices, peeled and cubed

I prepared a very small quantity with left over pumpkin, and it was enough for me and my hubby. If you are thinking of preparing it for a bigger crowd, do increase the quantities accordingly.

Pumpkin ka Meetha/Halwa
Makes- 2 small bowls as in the picture

Ingredients:

Pumpkin – 350 gms, peeled and grated (I used Chinese/Japanese variety Pumpkin, however you can try using any Winter squash or Pumpkin variety instead)
Ghee – 2 tbsp
White Sugar – 1/3 cup
Milk – 1/3 cup
Khoa – 2 tbsp, finely grated
Cardamom seed powder – a pinch
Finely Slivered toasted Pistachio+Almond – 1 tbsp

Pumpkin ka Meetha

Method:

1. Cut pumpkin in slices. Peel and cut into cubes. Grate the cubed pumpkin. My food processor does the job in a jiffy.

grated pumpkin in the food processor bowl

2. In a stainless steel saucepan at medium high heat and add the grated pumpkin and dry roast it stirring it frequently until most of the moisture is evaporated and it is mostly dry. You will also observe a slight change in color and a nice aroma.
3. Pour in ghee and keep stirring it for 3 minutes. Add milk, khoa, sugar and cardamom powder. Let cook stirring frequently until all the milk has been absorbed, about 10 minutes. Once the halwa is dry, remove from heat and let cool. Once cool, refrigerate and serve garnished with toasted slivered nuts.

Suggested Serving: To impress your guests, serve the chilled meetha in mini pastry cases that are easily available in stores. You can name it as ‘Pumpkin Meetha Tarts’.

Luv,
Mona