Food Delights by Heena Zubair: August 2013

Friday 30 August 2013

In a bowl mash bananas and make it in to a fine paste, add vanilla essence and mix well. Keep aside
In another bowl add butter, salt and sugar, and mix well until smooth with a spoon or fork you can even use a hand blender.
Sieve the flour in a bowl and add baking powder, baking soda and mix it up. Now add the mashed banana and butter mixture to this and mix it nicely, also beat an egg and add to this.
Now take a oven safe cake tray and grease it with butter, dust the tray with little flour, remove the excess flour and pour the banana mixture in to it .
Bake this in a pre heated oven of 180 deg Celsius for 20 - 30 minutes (depends upon the oven you are using)
Do a toothpick test after 20 minutes , if the toothpick comes out clean then the cake is ready, if not bake it for another 5 - 10 minutes.

Note: You can also add the left over mixture in to muffin moulds and bake it.

In a vessel add milk and cook until it reduces to almost half the quantity. Add sugar and condensed milk and mix well.
Now add the roasted vermicelli and cook until the vermicille turns soft - approximately cook this for 7 - 10 minutes on medium to low flame.
While the vermicille is being cooked, take a small pan, heat ghee, add the chopped dry fruits, cardamom and cinnamon and roast this for a minute and add it to the sheer khurma also add the rose water, gently mix it and turn off the stove.

Sheer khurma is ready to serve.

Soak the almonds for 4 - 5 hrs. Peel the skin off the almonds.
Blend the almonds into a fine paste using very little milk, now add sugar to it and blend it again.
Heat ghee in a non stick pan, add the almond paste and cook on medium heat, stir constantly.
Continue stirring until the mixture thickens and starts leaving the sides of the pan.
Add cardamom powder, mix well. Remove the pan from the stove, whip the batter using a spoon in a circular motion for about 2 - 3 minutes.
Grease a plate and pour the batter in it, smooth en the surface of the mixture to about a quarter inch thick.
Let this cool for about 30 minutes, cut this into one inch squares or any shape u like.
Garnish it with Almonds or silver warq.
Cool this on room temperature and store it in a air tight container, if refrigerated this will last for a month.

Cut the edges of the bread and make small pieces of it.
In a bowl add the bread pieces, rice flour and curd, mix well with hands and now add rest of the ingredients and make a nice dough.
Now wet your hands with water and take a small portion from the dough and give this the shape of vada and deep fry in hot oil until golden in color.

Marinate the shredded chicken with soya sauce, red chilli sauce and little salt. Keep it aside for 15 - 20 minutes.
Heat oil in a non stick pan, add ginger garlic paste and fry this for about 30 seconds and then add the marinated chicken and saute it for 5 mins, now add tomato ketchup and fry the chicken until its cooked and dry, once it is done sprinkle pepper powder and keep aside.
In a bowl add chopped onions, poha , chat masala, red chili pwdr, salt, coriander and mix well. ( The quantity of poha should be equall to the quantity of chopped onions 1:1 ratio )
Let the mixture rest for about 10 - 15 mins. Now add chicken to the mixure and mix well.
Make a thick paste using maida and water , as this helps to seal the samosa.
Take one samosa patti , make a cone ( as per the packet instructions ) add a generous tbsp of the mixture in the cone and seal it using the maida paste.
Heat oil in a frying pan and deep fry the samosas on medium heat until golden in color.