Wish you all a very happy and prosperous Deepavali/Diwali.
Ever since we returned from India, I have been thinking about making something for Diwali. But somehow it never went from just a thought to action. One month of not stepping into kitchen, has it’s effect on me still. I asked V to hang the Diwali lights in our patio. I was planning to call that our celebration. But then,I wanted to have something special for this festival.
Beetroot halwa was on my mind for a while now. I distinctly remembered the taste from childhood. I almost always have beetroot in my refrigerator as it is one of Ishaan’s favorite vegetables. I decided to make some halwa yesterday.
As you can see, it is quite easy to make, perfect for a person who has active toddler pulling on her legs all the time!. The only time consuming part is grating the beetroot. Beetroot is quite hard to cut when it is very fresh. But after a few days in fridge, it becomes a little soft. That’s when I used it. It was quite easy to peel and grate. For any other dishes, I cook the beetroot with skin and then peel and cut it. But here, beetroot has to be grated fresh.
Adjust the sugar based on sweetness of beetroot. I would suggest starting with 3/4th the quantity I mentioned below. Then increase it if required. The ones I used were quite sweet (compared to ones I tasted in India recently).
You can add some cashews fried in ghee. I loved the pure halwa, so I did not add any dried fruits. It came out just like I had imagined, just the way I remember it from my aayi’s kitchen. The halwa decreases considerably after cooking, so keep that in mind while making it. Some people add milk to it and make it on the same lines as carrot halwa .
Ingredients: 2 cups peeled and grated beetroot 1 cup sugar 2 tea spns ghee (you can reduce it to 1 tea spn) 1/2 tea spn cardamom powder
Method: Heat ghee in a thick bottomed kadai. Add the beetroot. Keep mixing it once in a while. Keep the heat on medium to avoid burning. When it looks cooked and reduced in quantity, add sugar. Mix. Let it cook down. When the mixture starts looking dry, take off heat. Add cardamom powder, mix. Serve warm or chilled. (Add cashews fried in ghee on top if required).
Serves : 2 Preparation time : 30mins
Pictorial:
In May, we visited our cousins in Boston. V’s cousin’s wife, we call her Poornima vaini, makes delicious chicken dishes. Every time I visit her, I learn something from her. She pampered us with this grilled chicken, biryani and many more. She had taken this to a get together and it had become a huge hit.
What makes these kababs stand out is the kasuri methi. It gives an awesome taste to this. She also adds some vinegar and marinates the chicken overnight. I am not very fond of vinegar and usually do not keep it in my pantry. So I added lemon juice. I cut the chicken into small pieces, so I just marinated it for 2hrs. A little bit of red food color can also be added to give it a nice bright red color (I did not use color).
Ingredients: 1 lb (0.4kgs) chicken 1 tea spn ginger pieces 1 tea spn garlic pieces 3-4 green chillies 1 tea spn cumin powder 1 tea spn chilli powder 2 tea spns vinegar or 1 tbl spn lemon juice 1 tbl spn thick yogurt 1 tea spn kasoori methi Salt
Method: Make a paste of ginger, garlic and green chillies. Add this paste, chilli powder, cumin powder, vinegar (or lemon juice), salt to chicken pieces. Leave it in the refrigerator for about 2hrs. Now add thick yogurt, kasuri methi. Keep aside for another 30mins. Grill the chicken. Serve hot.
Serves: 3-4 Preparation time : 40mins
PS: I use tender breast pieces of chicken for all my chicken dishes. If you use thighs or any other parts, adjust the time accordingly. Adjust the spice according to your taste.
Pictorial:
