Nolen gurer Ice Cream

Ingredients
• Nolen gur or Date Palm Jaggery  - 3 tbsp
• Fresh cream – 1 cup 
• Full cream milk – 1 cup 
• Whole milk cream powder – 1 cup 
• Powder sugar – ½ cup

Method :
1. Put the nolen gur into a blender jar , add fresh cream , milk, whole milk powder, powdered sugar and blend till smooth.
2. Pour the mixture into an ice cream container with a tight fitting lid. 
3. Then put the container into the refrigerator for 8 hours  till it is set. But remember to stir the mixture after  every one hour  for the first 3 hours.
4. Place scoops in stemmed glasses or plate or bowl . You can use liquid nolen gur above the servings for garnishing. 

Servings – 6 person 

Chicken Parmigiana

It is a classical Italian dish. It can be served along with Pasta or one can have it as the main dish with good Italian wine.


Ingredients
• Egg – 1 
• Bread crumbs – ½ cup
• Boneless chicken breast – 2
• Red pasta or home made tomato sauce – ½ cup
• Mozzarella cheese – ½  cup 
• Parmesan cheese grated – ¼ cup 


Method
1. Preheat oven to 175 degrees Celsius. Take a medium sized baking sheet and grease it lightly.
2. Pour egg into a small bowl. Place bread crumbs in a separate shallow bowl.
3. Dip chicken pieces  into egg, then roll it over  bread crumbs.
4. Place coated chicken  on the baking sheet and bake in the preheated oven for 40 minutes or until the chicken is  pink and juices run clear .
5. Pour ½ of the pasta sauce or homemade tomato sauce into a baking dish. Place chicken pieces over sauce , and cover with remaining sauce.
6. Sprinkle mozzarella and parmesan cheeses  on top.  
7. Put it back into  the preheated oven for 20 minutes .

Doi illish or Curd Hilsa

Doi Illish or curd Hilsa has very similar looks to that off mustard (or sarshe) hilsa, but taste-wise it is completely different.

Ingredients:

• Hilsa fish – 4 pcs 

• Curd – ½ cup 

• Poppy seed – 2 tbsp paste 

• Mustard paste – 3 tbsp

• Turmeric powder – ½ tsp 

• Green chillies – 4 

• Salt – as per taste 

• Sugar – ½ tsp

• Kalanji seeds – ½ tsp 

Method:

1. Clean the hilsa pieces and pat dry them .Season them with salt and turmeric powder.

2. Now heat mustard oil in a wok, and slowly put the fish pieces one by one and fry them lightly. Remove the fish pieces after they are fried and keep the oil aside 

3. In a bowl, mix curd, poppy seed and the mustard paste. Add turmeric powder. Add some fresh oil to the wok and temper with the Kalanji seeds and let them splutter.

4. Turn the heat to low and add the mixture of curd, poppy seeds and mustard paste and green chillies. As the oil starts separating, add the fish, salt and cup of water. Cover and cook for some time. 

5. Garnish with a few drops of fresh mustard oil and green chillies, serve with hot steam rice.  

Dry Fruit Chikki or Dry Fruit Brittle

By birth I am a Bengali but by heart I am a die-hard fan of Punjabis, be it their attitude to laugh at themselves, or their ways to celebrate with an open heart, or their food. Having spent the golden period of my life in Delhi,  I got to spend a lot of time with the Punjabis, and been part of their celebrations.  On the day of Lohri today,  I am thousands of miles away but have found my own way to celebrate Lohri.  

Wish a very Happy Lohri to my friends

Here is an easy recipe of dry fruit chikki 
Ingredients

• Almonds – ½ cup (cut in halves)
• Cashew nuts – ½ cup (cut in halves)
• Pistachio flakes – 1 tbsp 
• Cardamom powder – ¼ tsp 
• Sugar -3/4 cup
• Honey -1/4 cup 

Methods:

1. At first dry roast cashew nuts in a hot non stick pan .  Then dry roast almonds.
2. Now, put  sugar onto the non-stick pan and let it melt on low to medium flame. Stir it to prevent from burning. When sugar  melts completely, add honey, almonds, cashewnuts, cardamom powder and mix well.
3. Now pour the mixture  on parchment paper and spread it evenly. Sprinkle pistachio flakes.
4. Gently roll it with greased rolling pin. 
5. After 3 to 4 minutes make square (or diamond shapes) marks  with sharp knife and allow it to cool.
6. Separate the chikki into square  or diamond shaped pieces and store in an air tight container.

Chocolate chip cookies and a Happy 2016

Wish you a very Happy New Year 2016

Let us start the new year with some freshly baked goodies. Make some cookies at home and enjoy.

Ingredients :

• All purpose flour – 2 cups
• Baking soda – 1 tsp
• Salt – 1 tsp
• Butter – 1 cup
• Brown sugar – ¾ cup
• Sugar  - ¾ cup
• Vanilla extract – 1 tsp
• Egg – 2
• Chocolate chips – 1 cup


Method :

1. Flour, baking soda and salt in small bowl.
2. Beat butter, brown sugar ,normal sugar and vanilla extract in large mixer bowl until creamy.
3. Add eggs one at a time beating well after each addition
4. Gradually beat in flour mixture. Mix choco-chips
5. Drop by rounded table spoon on to under-greased baking tray .
6. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes in 180 degree  Celsius until it turns golden brown .
7. Remove the rack from the oven and let it cool on baking tray for 5 mins.

Chicken Roast

Ingredients:

• Chicken – 1kg 
• Garlic paste – 4 tbsp 
• Ginger paste – 4 tbsp 
• Onion paste – 2 tbsp
• Tandoori masala – 2 tsp 
• Garam masala – 2tsp 
• Chilli powder -2 tsp or as per taste 
• Lemon – 6 tbsp 
• Curd – ½ cup 
• White oil – 6 tsp 
• Kashmiri mirch for colour and flavour
• Salt to taste

Method :

Marination
Cover the chicken well with salt, oil, curd, ginger garlic paste, onion paste, lemon juice, red chilli powder, garam masala, tandoori masala and kashmiri mirch for colour and flavour.
Use a knife to make slits on the chicken pieces which will help the marination cover the meat well on the inside as well.
Marinate at least for 12 hours but in case of a hurry, marinate for minimum 30 - 40 minutes. The longer chicken is marinated, tastier and juicy and juicy  it would be.

Roast/Grill
You can grill the chicken in an oven or roast it in a barbeque. 

If  you are using an oven, preheat at 200 deg Celsius.  You can put a piece of aluminium foil on the wire rack to save yourself from cleaning after wards. Make some perforations in the foil for gravy to seep through. Place a tray half-filled with water below the wire tray. This water helps in keeping the moisture in the chicken while it is baked and grilled. The surface of the chicken will not get hard. 

Put the chicken on the wire tray covered by perforated aluminium foil and. Bake it at 250 deg for about 45 mins. Turn over the chicken  ,  not more than 2 to 3  times.  Use a silicon brush to  oil the upper parts of the chicken , every time the chicken is turned over.  Put the oven to grill mode for 10 mins and turn both sides.

The chicken will turn red and you can check  if it is cooked using a fork.  Adjust the time accordingly.

For garnishing, one can use  lettuce leaves, onion wedges, baked potato etc. I have used baked cherry tomatoes and asparagus .

Serve hot after sprinkling some lemon juice, and garlic bread.


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Salmon Fish Cake with Parsley

A very easy and healthy party food - Salmon Fish Cake with Parsley

Ingredients

• Potato, diced in small cubes - 450gm
• salmon fillets - 350gm
• parsley - 1 bunch
• egg(beaten) - 1
• pepper powder - 2 tsp
• lemon juice - 2 tsp
• medium sized onion - 1
• olive oil/refined oil - 4 tsp
• flour - 4 tsp.

Method

• Boil potatoes and fish fillets. 
• Drain the excess water and mix them into a fine mash. 
• Add chopped onions, pepper powder, salt, 2 tsp flour and lime juice to a mash and mix it well. 
• Now shape the mixture into balls and flatten it. 
• Refrigerate for half an hour. 
• Dip the balls in beaten egg and roll it in bread crumb, then shallow fry in olive oil or refined oil .
• Serve with mayonnaise or mustard sauce.

This recipe was published in Hangla Hneshel, a Bengali Food Magazine.