Ricotta Ras Malai

Ingredients:

For the patties:

Ricotta Cheese - 15 oz
1/4 C sugar

For the milk mixture:

4-5 C Milk
2-3 tbsp. sweetened condensed milk
1 tsp cardamom powder
1/4 C Sugar  or more to suit your taste
few strands of Saffron/Zafran
1/2 tsp Kewra Water/ rose water

Sliced Almonds / Pistachios for garnish


Method:

In a heavy bottom vessel , heat milk on medium low heat, stirring occasionally, till it thickens or reduces to half . Add sugar, cardamom powder,condensed milk and saffron.Cook for a few mins.  Turn off the heat, let it cool slightly , now add kewra water.  Let it cool completely and refrigerate till ready to use. 

Preheat the oven at 350 degrees F.In a mixing bowl, whisk together the ingredients for patties ,ricotta cheese and sugar.  Mix well. Grease a 8X8 glass baking dish, pour the ricotta cheese mixture and bake for 25 - 30 minutes or until ricotta cheese looks pale yellow and has turned slightly golden at the edges. A way to test if ricotta is ready to take out of the oven , would be to insert a toothpick and see if it comes out clean. Let it cool completely.Now with a round cookie cutter, cut small round patties, you could also cut squares if you like.

Arrange the baked ricotta rounds in the serving dish, pour the cooled milk mixture and refrigerate for at least half an hour. Serve chilled.

Enjoy !

Notes:

• You could make the milk mixture and the ricotta rounds at least 3 days in advance. Remember to store them separately.
• Mix them the day you would like to serve them, so they don't be too soggy or break apart.
• You could also use half and half or evaporated milk or even add some heavy cream for added richness.
• I used a glass baking dish, but you could use any, the baking time may vary in that case
• Also if you want you patties thinner use a bigger baking dish, baking time may vary if you do.
• Adjust the quantity of sugar and flavoring to suit your taste, you dont have to add the exact amount mentioned in the recipe, you could  make it more sweeter, use less /more of cardamom or kewra

Sending it to Jagrutis, Grand Festive Feasts event.

Eggless Custard Powder Cupcakes

Few days back I came across this recipe on Easy Crafts and wanted to try it. So when my son asked for a cake I knew exactly what I was gonna bake.
After looking up for more similar recipes, I decided to go with this one made by Nithya of 4th sense cooking. I followed the recipe closely, the only difference is I baked my cupcakes at 375F for about 15 mins.

I tried an eggless cake recipe for the first time and I did not miss the eggs at all, infact I forgot to cream the sugar with the butter and added it to the flour mixture, the cakes still turned out to be super moist, but my muffin tops were dry, I guess I should have baked them at a lower temperature or for less time.

(Recipe by Nithya of 4th Sense Cooking)

Ingredients:

11/2 C All purpose flour(maida)
3/4 C Custard powder(vanilla flavor) 
3/4 C powdered sugar 
2 1/4 tsp. baking powder 
3/4 C butter, at room temperature
1 C Milk


Method:

Sift maida, custard powder and baking powder together.

In a bowl, beat butter and sugar until creamy. Add the sifted flours to the butter sugar mixture and mix well. Add the milk gradually and beat slowly until everything comes together.

Preheat oven to 375°F . Line the muffin tray with liners.

Fill muffin cups with batter up to 3/4th and bake it for 15-20 mins at 375°F or 190°C. 

Check if cooked by inserting a skewer in the center. Once done, allow it to cool on a wire rack for a while.

Sending this to Srivallis Kids Delight - Easy to make Snacks under 30 mins. event hosted by Rujuta

P.S. Check out my other blog "the halal foodie " ,  subscribe and follow to keep in touch. I look forward to see you there :)

Naan Chips

I love chips and dips.  I make it almost everytime I host someone or also for a quick evening snack. Though its easy to buy Pita chips, its much easier to make them at home besides you can flavor them any which way you want and come up with any variation. Like this time I made Naan Chips.

After every party, I always have leftover Naan, if not much atleast some, but I do. So I come up with different ways of reusing them. Like this Pizza. Last time I made these chips, they came out perfect.I love them best when they are still warm , with a creamy dip or even guacamole. They do have excellent shelf life though and can be made ahead of time , which makes it ideal for parties.

Ingredients:

Roghani Naan , sliced into wedges

dried oregano (or any dried herb or spice u like)

salt (I used kosher salt)

black pepper powder (I used freshly ground )

extra virgin olive oil.(evoo)

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 400 F.

Put the naan wedges in a large bowl, pour some evoo, sprinkle salt, pepper and oregano . Toss with your hand so the wedges are slightly coated with the oil and spices. Spread on a baking sheet and bake for 8 to 10 mins or until slightly browned. Remove from oven and let the cool slightly.

I am sending this to Ayeshas Anyone Can Cook event. , Naynas Lets Cook Speedy Snacks event and Vardhinis Bake Fest #5 hosted by Kalyani.
 
I have a special announcement, 10 days and two posts later I finally get to introduce my other blog "the halal foodie " on Lazzat..

I hope you welcome it with the same love and support, so check it out, dont forget to subscribe and follow. I look forward to see you there :)

Thank You for the ones who already did.

Veggie Pesto Pizza n Homemade Strawberry Mint Pops

Pizza is my go to recipe for quick fix dinners. Its even quicker and less messier if you have the store bought pizza crust waiting to be baked in your refrigerator. What I like about a pizza is, just like biryani, you can never go wrong ! Atleast thats how kind it has been to me :) I have yet to come across a well made pizza that I did not like. 

If you know someone who just wont eat their veggies, this is the way to go, hide it all under a layer of cheese :) 

What I did to make this pizza is drizzle some extra virgin olive oil on a store bought pizza dough, spread some home made pesto (for recipe click here and scroll down) layered it with sliced tomatoes, red onions, baby spinach lots of mozarella and Monterey Jack, some salt n pepper and some dried oregano. Baked it using manufacturers instructions and Voila ! Dinner is served.

Its best if you make your own Pizza dough or buy some from your local pizzeria. A packet of this in your fridge will always come handy to rescue dinner.

Its been a mix of crazy hot and crazy pleasant days here, and to beat one such crazy hot day heat I made these...Strawberry and Mint pops. Super easy and super delicious. Just blend some strawberries (fresh or frozen) with a bunch of mint leaves , add sugar if and as much needed to suit your taste, a dash of lemon juice just to brighten things up and freeze them in ice pop moulds. Enjoy it on a hot summer day, you will never go back to store bought ice pops ever again !

Update:

These quick and easy recipes have been sent off to Ayeshas Anyone Can Cook Event

Butter Pecan Cookies and Awards

I am glad to announce that over the past few days Lazzat has bagged few awards, courtesy of Fathima and Nithu . A big Thanks to both of you and I  do accept these with much appreciation.

Fathima  presented these awards

and Nithu presented these awards

Update : I would like to pass on these awards to Asha, Cham, Aruna, PJ, Priya,  Shaheen and Yasmeen 

Since it was such a joyful week I thought it would be apt to share a simple, quick and delicious, melt in your mouth sweet treat with you. So presenting the butter pecan cookies...

These are sooo easy and sooo delicious , you gotta try these. Not too sweet, melt in your mouth goodness. Its an eggless recipe, so you can actually taste the batter and make necessary changes or tweak the recipe, have fun with it ! The ingredients are as follows:

Ingredients:

1 C (or 2 sticks) butter, room temp,

1/2 C pdrd sugar, plus more for coating cookies

1 3/4 C all-purpose flour,

1 C finely chopped pecans,

1 tsp. vanilla extract.

Method :

Preheat oven to 270 F.

Using an electric mixer at low speed, cream the butter and sugar until smooth, add vanilla and gradually add the flour. Mix in the pecans with a spatula. Line the cookie sheets with parchment paper.With floured hands, take out about a tbsp. of dough and shape it into rounds or crescents or squares. Place the cookies at least an inch apart and bake for 40 minutes. Roll them in more powdered sugar while still warm. Cool completely on wire racks and store in airtight containers.

Walnut Cookies

When I got to know about Anupama's Picnic Food event, the first thought that came to my mind was that it was a brilliant theme , just on time for the labor day weekend !! Good thinking Anupama :)

My idea of ideal picnic food is something which can be made ahead of time (usually), which need not be served warm/hot, does not become soggy, and is easy to serve, eat and clean up.

Stuffed parathas, frankies, spiced rice varieties, sandwiches, one pot meals, soups, savoury rolls, snacks like cakes, cookies, dhokla, sago kichdi, chivda, bhadang , kebabs ,spiced nuts, chips , nachos , fresh fruits n juices etc.... etc.... etc. I was so inspired by the many options one has, that I decided to dedicate a category for picnic foods on my blog :) .....hopefully you will see me sharing some recipes fit for picnics there. For now I am sending this quick and simple Walnut cookie recipe for this event ....Fun in the Sun

If you have never made these cookies , I highly recommend trying out this recipe at least once. The whole process is so simple, and the aroma when these are baked is soooooo good ....you must try it to believe it. So lets get started.

Ingredients:

2 cups flour
2 cups ground walnuts,(I used mini chopper to grind )
2 sticks butter, room temperature,
1/3 rd cup sugar,
½ tsp salt,
1.5 tsp vanilla,
powdered sugar.

Method:

Mix flour, ground walnuts and salt and whisk them together. Beat butter and sugar for 1.5 minutes scrapping the sides of the vessel. Add vanilla and the flour- walnut mixture. Beat till it just mixes well n comes together. Scoop out cookies using a tbsp. measure just to ensure they are of same size.

Roll in desired shapes.

Align on parchment paper and bake at 325 for 17- 19 mins., turning around half way through once.

Remove and let cool for 1 or 2 mins. (not more) , roll them in pdrd. sugar. This recipe will yield approx. 25- 30 cookies