Vermicelli Kheer

This is a quick fix dessert when you are running out of time while concentrating on the elaborate cooking during festive days! Yes! Just limited ingredients needed to prepare this full filling Kheer.. 

So here's the recipe!

Serves: 5 - 7
Prep time: 10 Mins
Cooking time: 15 Mins

Ingredients:
Vermicelli/Semiya - 400 gms
Sweetened Condensed Milk - 400 gms [i.e. 1 tin, I used Milkmaid]
Boiled Milk - 1 liter
Elachi powder - 1 tsp
Ghee - 4 Tbsp
Dry Fruits [ Cashews, dry grapes, pista] - As per choice

Method:

- Heat ghee in a pan add the cashews and dry grapes and fry till golden brown, drain and   Keep it aside, 
- Now add the vermicelli and fry it golden brown, You can skip this step if you are using roasted vermicelli.
- Once vermicelli gets the golden color pour in the boiled milk and stir to soak the vermicelli completely.
- Add condensed milk and keep stirring. Sprinkle the elachi powder.
- Allow to cook in medium flame by stirring occasionally, Make sure it doesn't gets burnt.
- Add in half quantity of the fried nuts to the kheer & stir, Save the rest for garnish while serving.
- Once the vermicelli is cooked switch off the flame.

Note: While serving if you find the kheer to be very thick, add in warm milk or warm water to loose.

Tastes best when served chilled! :)  Enjoy!

Agar Agar Pudding

During Ramadan, Agar Agar Pudding is a Must-have dish for iftar, because it adds goodness of fiber to the empty stomach.  Agar agar has no calories, no carbs, no sugar, no fat and is loaded with fiber & it’s free from preservatives.

Amazing isn't it! And for those who've not come cross agar agar you can see those white dried sea weeds in the above picture.

So Here's the recipe!

Prep & Cooking time: 30 Mins
To set: 1 hr

Ingredients:
Agar Agar/China grass - 20 gms
Milk - 1 cup
Badam paste - 2 tbsp
Sugar - 3-4 tbsp
Rose milk essence - few drops [or any essence of your choice]
Water - 1/4 cup

Method:

- Soak some badams in warm water and peel the skin and grind it to smooth paste & keep it aside.

- Boil the milk add the badam paste and mix well and allow it to boil once, add sugar stir further & switch off the flame.

- Boil water add agar agar to it and stir it occasionally until it dissolves and switch off.

- Add few drops of essence of your choice to the milk i added rose milk flavour; also pour in the agar agar mixture that has been dissolved in water to the milk and stir well.

- Now pour the mixture in a flat square dish and allow it to cool, by the time it sets completely, pop it into the freezer to set further, Because it tastes best when served chill.

After an hour Agar Agar pudding is ready to relish! cut them into diamond shapes and refrigerate them in air tight box, This has to be consumed within 2-3 days.

Note:
You can also add vanilla essence and add any food color of your liking to make it more colorful to attract kids. As you know it's rich source of fiber & an easy way to make kids eat! :)

No Bake Mango Cheesecake

Recipe Source: Fondbites.com

Since it's the very 1st post of my blog! I wanted to start it on a sweet note :) An new found passion in me "Cooking" I'm so excited to get connected with you all through my recipes.. Stay tuned for more diverse recipes..

Since summer is hitting hard here in chennai! And we are getting grilled in the sun! the only happiness for this climate is our lovely golden babies.. Yes.. Yes.. The mangoes! Yum.. Who doesn't like them!  2 wholesome months of mangoes at my house.. Now that the season has slowly started fading i really wanted to try my hands on this beautiful cheesecake

Hmmm..  So getting back to the recipe which i found very unique in fondbites.com.

Ingredients:

Base:

• Digestive biscuits – 200 gms
• Butter – 60 gms, melted.

Cheesecake:

• Paneer – 200 gms
• Condensed milk – 400 ml, I used Milk maid
• Fresh cream – 200 ml, used milky mist
• Mangoes – 400 gms, chopped
• Agar agar/China grass– 15 gms
• Water – 4 tablespoons

Top coat:

• Mango – Puree 1 Mango
• Agar Agar/China grass– 10 gms
• Water – 2 tablespoons

Method:

1. Process digestive biscuits in your food processor and add melted butter to it. mix well and keep it in a separate bowl.

Grease the bottom and sides of an 8 inch spring form pan.  If you do not have a spring form pan, you can also use small ice cream bowl's or smoothie glasses. I didn't have a pan so i opted the later.

2. Mix butter and crushed biscuits well and cover the bottom of the prepared glass and press it tightly and evenly. [I did it    with the help of an tumbler to press the biscuit mixture firm.] Keep in freezer to set until you continue doing your rest of the recipe.

3. Grate paneer and add it to your mixie along with condensed milk and grind on high speed for couple of minutes until it      has pureed really well and smooth. Add the mixture to a bowl and mix together with fresh cream.

4. Puree mangoes into a smooth fine paste and heat it up in a heavy bottomed sauce pan until it is just hot. Do not let it  boil. Add the puree into the paneer-condense milk-fresh cream mixture.

5. Add agar agar [15 grams] in water and heat it up. Let it boil for couple of minutes once it's completely dissolved, Switch off  and add this into the mango mixture and mix well until combined.

6. Take the glass from the freezer and fill it up till 3/4th of it and tap the glass gently few times to get rid of any air bubbles, & return the glasses carefully into the freezer again. Let it be in for minimum of 1.5 hours.

7. Topping: Puree mango and heat it up in a heavy bottomed saucepan until just hot. and transfer in a bowl.

8. Add agar agar [10 grams] in water and heat it up. Let it boil for couple of minutes once it's completely dissolved, Switch off  and add this into the pureed mango and mix well.


9. Check if the cheesecake has set and once set pour the mango jelly on top and tap it once to release air bubbles if any and again put it back in freezer to set firm.

It might take an hour or more to set completely.  You can also let it set over night.  Always keep it refrigerated and serve chilled.

I've topped it with chopped mangoes and a pinch of the remaining biscuit mixture. You can decorate as per your creativity!

Notes:

You can use gelatine instead of agar agar, If you use gelatine, then use hot water to dissolve the same.

Incase if you are out of fresh mangoes, you can also go ahead with canned mango pulp.