Vegetable Biryani

1. Cook the rice

1 cup long grain Basmati rice

2-3 cloves

4-5 black peppercorn

3 cardamom pods

1 small bay leaf

A small piece of cinnamon

3 cups of water

1 tbsp. oil/ghee

Salt as desired

2. Make the vegetable sauce or gravy

200 gms Mushrooms or any vegetable

1 cup yogurt/curd

1 tbsp. ginger-garlic paste

1 tsp. red chilly powder

2 tsp. garam masala

2 cardamom pods

1/2 tsp. caraway seeds

1 tbsp. oil/ghee

2 tbsp. of brown onion (from the list below)

Salt as desired

3. For layering the biryani

2 large onions (browned in oil)

1/4 cup chopped mint leaves

8-9 saffron strands

1 tbsp. warm milk

A little wheat dough to cover the pan

Preparation

1. Cook the rice: Washand soak the rice for at lest 2 hours while you assemble and prepare all the ingredients for the biryani. Drain the rice. Heat 1 tbsp of oil/ghee in a kadai/wok and add cardamom and all the whole spices in it and cook for a few seconds. Add the rice in it and fry the for two minutes till it becomes transparent.

Heat water at the same time and pour the hot water in the spice and rice mix in the wok. Let it cook for about 7-10 minutes at medium heat till the rice is 3/4 done. Do not cook the rice fully.Drain the extra water from the rice and spread the rice in the wok to let it cool.

Meanwhile peel and slice the onions and shallow fry them in oil till they turn dark brown in color. Keep them on a layer of tissue paper. Take out 3/4 of the fried onion and grind it into a coarse paste. Keep the rest for layering the biryani. Soak the saffron strands in warm milk for 10 minutes. Clean and chop the mint leaves finely. Knead the wheat flour with water to make dough.

2. Make the vegetable sauce/gravy: Wash and slice the mushrooms or vegetable finely. Carrots, peas, cauliflower, beans, corn and colored capsicum blend very well in a biryani.

Heat oil in a wok and add caraway seeds in it. Add ginger garlic paste, sliced vegetables and fry for another minute. Add garam masala, salt, chilly powder and the ground fried onion paste in it and fry for one more minute. Beat the curd lightly with a fork and pour it over the vegetable mix in the wok. Add 1/2 cup water if the curd is too thick and let it simmer for about 5-7 minutes at medium heat.

3. For layering the biryani: Traditionally a biryani is layered in an earthen pot for the rustic look and earthy flavors. You could use any steel vessel for the same.

Pour a ladle ful of vegetable gravy in the vessel which will make the first layer of biryani. Add 2-3 ladles of cooked rice as the second layer. Sprinkle the rice with a tsp. of saffron and milk mixture. Add the reserved fried onions and a little of chopped mint leaves over it. Make a third layer with vegetable sauce and cover it with a fourth layer of rice following the saffron milk, fried onion and mint leaves. You can add a couple of tsp. of butter or ghee on top of the rice layer if you wish for extra flavors.

Cooking

Cover the vessel with a tight lid and secure the lid with the dough as shown in the picture and place a heavy object such as grinding stone on the lid. This will help the in letting the biryani cook in its own steam and also preserve the freshness and flavors of the spices & condiments. Keep a thick pan or tawa on flame and put the handi or vessel on it. This process is called giving 'Dum' to the biryani.

Cook the biryani for about 20-30 minutes at slow flame. Take off from the pan/tawa and keep aside for a couple of minutes to let the flavors get infused in the dish. Remove the dried out dough from the sides of the cover and break open the seal.

Do not mix the biryani, let there be different layers of plain rice, saffron colored rice and mushroom rice while you serve. Biryani is best eaten with a fresh yogurt raita and veggie salad.

How to Make a Cake From Vegetarian Chocolate Cream

CAKE INGREDIENTS:

60 g low-gluten flour,
12 g cocoa powder,
45 g fine sugar,
30 g vegetable oil,
70 g water,
1/4 tsp (1.25ML) vanilla extract,
1/2 tsp (2.5ML) baking powder,
1/8 tsp (0.625ML) baking soda

VEGETARIAN CHOCOLATE CREAM INGREDIENTS:

150 g chocolate syrup,
10 g low-gluten flour,
10 g corn starch

DECORATION: chopped nuts

BAKING: in the middle of the oven, 185° C for 10 minutes

PROCESS:

Sift flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and baking soda mixture into one big bowl, then add some sugar and mix it even.
Add some vegetable oil
Mix with a rubber spatula.
Add a little bit water, but don't stop the mixing.
When the paste is more or less ready, add vanilla extract and again, mix (if you have no vanilla extract, just skip this step).
Pour the well-mixed paste into an 8-inch square baking pan paved with greaseproof paper or tin foil, spread the paste evenly in the pan.
Pre-heat the oven to 180 ° C and then put in the pan and bake for 10 minutes or so, take out the cake for cooling.
Prepare the vegetarian chocolate cream. Pour chocolate syrup into the milk pan, add some sifted low-gluten flour and corn starch and mix evenly.
Heat the milk pan. While heating, keep stirring the mixture (use a wooden spoon or heat-resistant silicone spatula. Stir frequently so that the syrup won't be overly-burnt at the bottom.
When the syrup is boiling, turn off the heat and soak the milk pot in cold water. Keep stirring while the chocolate syrup is cooling. Fully cooled syrup will become very thick and creamy. Voila, the chocolate cream is done.
When the cake is fully cooled, cut it into 4 pieces.
Take one piece of cake slice and coat with a layer of chocolate cream. Put a second cake slice on the top and coat with chocolate cream. Put on a third cake slice and chocolate cream coating, and finally put on the last piece of cake slice. Put the finished cake into the refrigerator for more than two hours so the taste of the cake will become denser.
Take out the refrigerated cake and cut off the irregular edges, then cut into three helpings. Top the cake with chocolate cream, and sprinkle some chopped nuts as decoration.

Colored Dessert

Ingredients:-

- 1/4 cup of unsweetened dark cocoa powder

- 2 tablespoons of red gel food coloring

- 1/4 cup of hot water

- 6 tablespoons of softened unsalted butter

- 2 tablespoons of vegetable shortening

- 1 2/3 cups of sugar

- 3 large eggs at room temperature

- 1 cup of buttermilk

- 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract

- 2 1/2 cups of cake flour

- 1 teaspoon of salt

- 1 tablespoon of apple cider vinegar

- 1 teaspoon of baking soda

Process:

- In a mixing bowl, take the vegetable shortening and butter and beat them using an electric mixer at medium  
   speed until smooth.

- Add the sugar and blend some more.

- Break in the eggs, one by one, and blend well at low speed.

- In a separate bowl, whisk together the red food coloring, cocoa powder and hot water.

- Set aside to cool.

- Whisk the flour and baking soda using a fork. Divide this mix in two equal parts.

- Add the buttermilk and vanilla to the cooled cocoa mix.

- Now add one-half of the flour mix to the cocoa-buttermilk mix and blend at low speed.

- Add the rest of the flour to the egg-butter mix and combine well to get an even batter.

- Now fold the two separate batters together and stir in the vinegar lightly.

- Preheat the oven to 325F.

- Line or grease a 9-inch cake pan.

- Pour the prepared batter in the pan.

- Bake in the preheated oven for about 1 hour at 325F.

- Remove from the oven when the cake is done. Let it cool to room temperature.

To serve the cake you will need:

- 1 1/2 cups of cream cheese frosting

- 1 packet of chocolate bark

To prepare:

- Crumble the cooled cake in a mixing bowl.

- Add the cream cheese frosting and mix well.

- Make small balls of this mix by rolling it between your palms.

- Freeze the balls for 2 hours.

- Melt the chocolate bark in the microwave and stir till smooth.

- Dip the frozen cake balls in the chocolate and roll slightly to cover from all sides.

- Place the chocolate balls on a parchment sheet and let them sit until firm.

- Drizzle some dark caramel sauce over the chocolate balls.

- Let them cool in the fridge till it is time to serve.

Stuffed Cabbage Rolls

Ingredients:

2 quarts water
1 large head of cabbage, green or red
2 tablespoons butter (substitute Butter-Flavor Crisco for a vegan version)
1 large onion, chopped
3 cloves of garlic, chopped
2 cups cooked white rice
1 pound ground turkey (substitute 1 package Morningstar Farms Cooking Crumbles for a vegetarian/vegan version)
Salt and pepper to taste
1 tablespoon dried parsley
2 celery stalks, chopped fine
1 green pepper, chopped fine
4 cups tomato sauce

Directions:

Boil two quarts of the water in a large pot. Core the cabbage and carefully peel off the individual leaves, running under hot water if necessary to loosen them. Boil the leaves two at a time for two to three minutes minutes. Remove the cooked leaves to a collandar. Reserve two cups of the cooking water. Cut out the bottom of the center vein on each leaf.

Melt the butter or Crisco in a pan and add the onion and garlic, sauteeing until golden brown. Remove from heat and mix the onion and garlic mixture in a bowl with ground meat, rice, salt, pepper, parsley, green pepper, and celery.

Place 1/4 to 1/3 cup of the rice mixture on each cabbage leaf. Roll the leaves up by folding in the sides, then rolling from the bottom of the leaf. Carefully place the finished rolls back in the pot used to boil the water. The rolls do not need to be perfect, by any means, as long as they are placed close together in the pot.

Combine the tomato sauce and the reserved cabbage water in a bowl. Pour enough into the pot to almost cover the cabbage. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, then reduce the heat to low and simmer for two to three hours, gently pressing the rolls down into the sauce periodically. Add more of the tomato sauce and water mixture to the pot as needed. Let the rolls stand for a few minutes before dishing them up. Serve on beds of white rice or mashed potatoes.

Mushroom Manchurian

Ingredients

250g Mushrooms (I used chestnut mushrooms)
Oil for deep frying
Ingredients for the batter

150g of plain flour
6 tbsp. corn flour
3 cloves garlic, 5g knob of ginger and 1 large red chilli minced together
Salt to taste
1 tsp. of Chinese 5 spice powder
200ml water
Ingredients for the sauce

3 tbsp. soy sauce
4 tbsp. tomato ketchup (Groan. I know, but it's necessary in this recipe)
1 tbsp. caster sugar
1 ½ tbsp. rice wine vinegar
1 large red pepper, sliced
2 cloves garlic, chopped
2 green chillies, finely chopped
4-5 spring onions, chopped horizontally
1 tsp. Chinese 5-spice
2 tbsp. vegetable oil
Method

1. Heat some oil, in preparation of letting the mushrooms sizzle and swim in it- and that too dressed.
2. Wash and chop the mushrooms into bite sized chunks and set aside.
3. To make the batter, combine the ingredients and whisk together, we don't want any lumps but it should be pretty thick.
4. Coat the mushrooms with the batter and drop them, individually into the oil. Don't overcrowd the pan or else they'll stick together-that's not nice. When the mushrooms have achieved a golden brown colour, drain them on to kitchen paper to remove the excess oil.
5. To make the sauce, heat 2 tbsp. oil in a pan and then add the garlic, spring onions, green chillies and red pepper and stir-fry until the peppers have softened a little; this should take 3-4 minutes. Then add the soy sauce, ketchup, 5-spice, vinegar, sugar and stir through and bring to a gentle simmer, before mixing in thoroughly the mushrooms. Serve immediately to ensure that the mushrooms stay nice and crispy.

Brussels Sprouts

Most people don't like brussels sprouts, because most people eat them overcooked. Once you try a nice steamed one, just a little bit crunchy, it should have a great nutty flavor. They go well with garlic flavors, onions, and different mustards. This article lists some different ideas for cooking brussels sprouts in ways that are simple, quick, delicious, and low calorie.

When preparing your vegetable to be steamed, you'll want to let them sit for about ten minutes in a bowl of water. This way any dirt or debris that has collected under the leaves will find it's way out and float up in the water. Once you've got them cleaned, you'll want to either steam them whole, or cut them in half. Then you simply put them in your steamer, cooking them with whatever flavors you want (or adding the flavors afterward).

A nice simple way to eat them is to steam them with sliced onion, and then add melted butter, thyme, oregano, salt, and pepper. This is delicious and easy.

To compliment their great nutty flavor, toasted almond slivers to the end dish make a great addition. You can steam the brussels sprouts with some onion, and then mix it up with butter (optional, cut it out or use sparingly for a lower calorie dish) and some lemon juice, salt, and pepper.

To mix things up a bit and add some more vegetables in there, steam your sprouts with some new potatoes (quarter them and cook them on a separate tray for best cooking times). Once done, mix them up with some fresh chives, salt, and pepper.

Peppers also steam very well. Try steaming some peppers cut into strips with some brussels sprouts and then mixing them with some basil, mustard, butter, salt, and pepper. Whipping the flavors together with a fork and using them as a dip is a great way to really impress people, but still keep things really simple in the kitchen.

If you're looking for a great dressing for your vegetables, try mixing up some olive oil, lemon juice, Dijon mustard, a couple cloves of garlic, salt, and pepper. Pour this on the plate and then place your vegetables on top. This is a great, light, easy to make dressing that you can roll your sprouts in. Whatever other vegetables you decide to steam with it (peppers, asparagus, potatoes, carrots, etc) will taste great in this simple dressing.

Papad and Dana Methi

The two main ingredients namely curd and fenugreek seeds are quite nutritious for body. Curd contains calcium and minerals while fenugreek seeds are good for digestive system. The other main ingredient- Papad is readily available in the market. It is a snack eaten with meals like daal-chawal. Some people prefer to savor papad as appetizer.

I prefer to use papad made in urad daal or white lentils. Here is the procedure to make the delicious papad and dana-methi dish.

Ingredients:
Curd- 1 cup
Red chilly- 2 teaspoons
Turmeric- 1 teaspoon
Coriander- 1 teaspoon
Common salt- 2 teaspoons
Dana-methi/ Fenugreek seeds- 1 tablespoon
Ghee- 1 tablespoon
Cumin seeds- ½ teaspoon
Asafetida- a pinch

Boil a cup of water. Add fenugreek seeds. Leave it for half an hour. Strain the water and keep it aside. You can also soak the seeds in water overnight.

In order to make gravy, I prefer to use curd paste. Remove the curd from fridge at least two hours before cooking the dish. Churn it well so that lumps are removed and a smooth paste is obtained. Add spices like chilly, turmeric, salt and coriander powder. Mix once again.

Place a kadai or frying pan on the stove. Pour ghee and heat for 2 minutes. Add cumin seeds and asafetida. Once they start to splutter, add the curd paste slowly. Keep sautéing for some time till you see the ghee afloat. Pour some hot water. After the first boil, add the boiled fenugreek seeds/ dana-methi. Stir for some time. Switch off the burner and add papad. Close the pan with lid for two minutes.

Papad is prepared with the help of lentils or pulses. The pulses like chana daal and urad daal are grinded to make flour. Dough is prepared using oil, spices and flour. It is important to maintain consistency in making dough. Sufficient oil should be put to increase the tensile strength of dough. Prepare small rolls or make small lumps. These rolls are cut into small pieces. It is important to make chapatti of the lump. It should be thin and dried in open sun. Once dried, I prefer to roast it. For the above recipe, I prefer to take two medium-sized papads. In case, it's difficult to make papad, you can buy from the grocery store too.

Papad and dana-methi dish is one of the traditional recipes of Rajasthani kitchen. It is extremely delicious when served with rotis or chapattis. The unique taste of fenugreek seed and curd is tantalizing for your taste buds. I prefer to serve when it's warm. If you opt for re-heating, it wouldn't be possible to savor the original and authentic taste.

Summer Fruit Salad

2 cup watermelon, cut into bite size pieces
2 cup cantaloupe, cut into bite size pieces
2 cup fresh pineapple chunks
2 cup strawberries, halved
2 cup fresh peaches, cut into bite size pieces
1 cup seedless grapes
1 cup kiwi, cut into bite size pieces
1/4 cup cold water
1/4 cup orange juice concentrate, thawed
1/4 cup limeade concentrate, thawed
1/4 cup lemonade concentrate, thawed
1 cup toasted pecans (optional)

Combine fruit in a large bowl. Combine the rest of the ingredients except for pecans in a smaller bowl. When mixed, pour dressing over fruit and toss to coat. Sprinkle pecans over the top. (I personally prefer this without the pecans.)

PANEER TIKKA

Ingredients :- 1. Paneer- cut into small pieces as per choice size.
                     2. Yogurat ( Dahi) - 1 cup
                     3. Ginger - Garlic paste - 2 tsp
                     4. Cornflour - 1 tsp
                     5. Turmeric - 1/4 tsp
                     6. Oil - 1 tsp
                     7. Garam masala - 1/2 tsp
                     8. Salt - as per taste
                     9. Kasoori Methi - 1 tbsp
                    10. Red chili - 1/2 tsp
                    11. capsicum - one

Process     :- Beat yogurt till smooth. Add all ingredients except paneer in yogurt. after some time add paneer
                    cubes to the yogurt. Marinate for some time.
                    At the serving time, grease the non stick tawa. place the paneer cubes and capsicum on it.
                    place the tawa on high rack and grill paneer for 8 minutes.
                    Turn side once in between.
                    If tikkas are not golden brown, grill for 1-2 minutes more. serve with chaat masala.

CHOCOLATE COOKIES

Ingredients :- 1. cornflour - 1 tea spoon
                     2. coco-powder - 1 tea spoon
                     3. sugar powder - 1/4 cup
                     4. Butter - 1/4 cup yellow butter
                     5. Baking Powder - 1/2 tea spoon

                     6. Refined Flour ( Maida) - 1/2 cup

                     7. Melt Chocolate - As required by choice

Receipe     :- Prepare Dough -Take one big bowl . put 1/4 cup yellow Butter in it than add 1/4 sugar 

                                                powder and mix both .  Than add one tea spoon cornflour. one tea spoon  

                                                coco-powder, half tea spoon Backing Powder and add half cup Refined  

                                                Flour (Maida) . After adding all these mix properly and make Dough.

                                               

                                               Than roll this Dough on marble or wooden platform with the help of rolling 

                                                pin After this cut small shapes from this dough. you can take shape cutter as 

                                                per your choice. Than put some melt chocolate on one cut piece and 

                                                spread it keep gap from all corners. put some water drops on corners of 

                                                this piece than put other piece on this piece and press corners . so both 

                                                piece can stick with each other and melt chocolate will not come out.

                      

                      Backing  -         keep Microwave ready in convection mode at 180 degree. keep all piece in 

                                                a tray and put in microwave for 20 minutes. 

                                               

                                                Now your cookies are ready to eat.