Cranberry Walnut Loaf

 This cranberry bread is delicious and colorful. Fresh cranberries, walnuts, fresh orange juice, and zest add flavor to this quick and easy bread. I made this bread under an hour for the holiday breakfast at work.

Ingredients:

2 cups all purpose flour

3/4 cup granulated sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

3/4 teaspoon salt

1 cup chopped fresh cranberries

1/2 cup chopped walnuts

3/4 cup orange juice

1 large egg

2 Tablespoons vegetable oil

1 Tablespoon orange zest

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 9x5- inch loaf pan.

2. Combine flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl. Add cranberries and walnuts. Stir well until well coated.

                                      

3. Mix together orange juice, egg, oil, and zest in a medium bowl until combined.

                                                               

4. Pour liquid mixture over flour mixture. Stir until just blended. Spoon batter into the prepared pan.

                                         

5. Bake in the preheated oven until a toothpick inserted into the center of the loaf comes out clean, about 50 min. Let the loaf cool in the pan for 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.

                                         

Palada Pradhaman

 Palada Pradhaman is a traditional dessert from Kerala. It is rice pudding made with milk, ada, sugar, and caramel. Ada is a thin pasta made by spreading a thin layer of rice batter on a plantain leaf and steam cooked. The pasta is then cut into strips and then into small bits of pasta. This is then dried and stored. You can find ada in the Indian market. Ada pradhaman can be made in two different ways; milk and sugar or jaggery and coconut milk. Ada pradhaman is offered as prasadham (sacred food) in the temples in Kerala.

I made ada pradhaman with milk and sugar today for our anniversary. Adding caramel gave a unique taste and pink color to the pradhaman.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup ada

4 1/4 cups (1 liter) whole milk 

1/2 cup sugar

2 Tablespoons sugar for making caramel sauce

1/4 cup water

Method:

1. Rinse dry ada under water. Boil 2 cups of water in a saucepan. Remove from stove. Add rinsed ada and set aside for 15 minutes.

                                         

2. Strain the ada and rinse under cold water. Set aside. It should be al dente.

3. Take milk in a heavy bottomed pan or uruli. Cook milk on l to bring to a boil. Stir and simmer for 5 minutes.

                                         

4. Stir in 1/2 cup sugar. Boil on low medium flame to reduce to half, about 45 minutes.

                                        

5. Now add the ada and stir. Simmer until it thickens, about 20 minutes. 

                                       

6. Meanwhile, to make caramel, place 2 Tablespoons sugar in a saucepan on low medium heat. Stir continuously when the sugar starts to melt and change color (amber).

                                       

7. Gently add 1/4 cups water while stirring constantly, to make the caramel syrup. Remove from stove.

                                       

8. Stir caramel syrup to the boiling pradhaman, and simmer for 2 minutes. Turn the stove off. The pradhaman will be a beautiful pink color.

                                       

9. Serve palada pradhaman hot or cold.

                                                 

Notes:

1. You can make the pradhaman without caramel as well. For this method follow the steps 1-5. Remove while pradhaman from stove while it is semi-runny consistency. Then add 1/2 teaspoon powdered cardamom.

2. You can add cashew nuts roasted in ghee to the pradhaman.

3. Make sure you rinse the ada in cold water so it does not get over cooked and stick to each other.

Pradhaman or pal payasam (kheer) doesn't require cashew nuts (my husband likes cashew and raisins in all payasams.

Badam (Almond) Halwa

Badam (almond) halwa is a popular Indian sweet. The traditional way to make this sweet is to soak almonds, skin them, grind to paste and cook on low heat for a long time. You can also use almond flour to make the halwa. All you need for this sweet is almond flour, sugar, ghee, saffron soaked in milk.

Ingredients:

1 cup almond meal

3/4 cup sugar

3 Tablespoons ghee

1/4 cup warm milk

1 pinch saffron 

Method:

1. Soak saffron in 1/4 cup of warm milk. Set aside.

                                                             

2. Heat 2 Tablespoons ghee in a heavy bottom pan. Add almond flour and roast on medium low heat for 2 minutes.   

                                                              

3. Add the saffron milk and sugar to the pan. Stir in 1/2 cup water. Cook on low flame. Cook until the mixture leaves the sides of the pan, into a ball, adding 2 Tablespoons ghee in-between. Cook for about  8-10 minutes. 

                                       

To check for doneness of the halwa, take a little between your fingers and roll into a soft ball. It should no stick to your fingers. Remove from the pan and transfer to a bowl. Serve warm or at room temperature.

                                        

                                                              

Rawa Laddu (Cream of Wheat sweet balls)

 Rawa laddu is a popular sweet made during Diwali. It is a quick and easy to make treat, made with just 3 ingredients. Some people use the cream of wheat as such. Some people powder Rawa and sugar to a fine powder. I like to powder.

Ingredients:

1 Cup rawa (cream of wheat)

1 1/2-2 cups sugar (adjust according to taste)

1/8 cup broken cashew nuts, roasted in ghee

1 teaspoon powdered cardamom

melted ghee, required for binding

                                                           

Method:

1. Roast rawa to a nice golden brown. Remove from pan and allow to cool.

2. Powder cooled rawa and sugar in a blender to a fine powder. 

3. Place powdered mixture in a shallow bowl. Mix roasted cashew nuts and powdered cardamom into this.

4. Add some melted ghee (should be hot enough to touch) to a portion of the mixture in a plate. Scoop in hand immediately and form a tight ball.

                                       

                                                              

5. Repeat this procedure for the remaining mixture. Store in an air tight container.

                                                

Ash Gourd Halwa (Kasi Halwa)

I remember Kasi halwa or White pumpkin halwa being served at weddings while growing up in India. It is simple delicious dessert made with just pumpkin, sugar and ghee. I made this halwa during Navaratri this year. It was a great hit among guests.

Ingredients:

2 cups peeled and grated white pumpkin (Ash gourd)

2 Tablespoons cashew nuts

1 teaspoon golden raisins 

1 cup sugar

2 Tablespoons ghee ( clarified butter)

1  pinch edible camphor (optional)

1 pinch saffron strands

1 teaspoon cardamom powder

Method:

1. Wash pumpkin, peel the green skin. Grate the pumpkin. Gently squeeze the water from the pumpkin. Save the water.

2. Heat 1 Tablespoon ghee in a heavy bottomed pan, and roast the cashew nuts and raisins. Remove them from the pan and set aside.

                                                            

3. In the same pan, Add 1 teaspoon ghee and grated pumpkin and fry for 2 minutes. Add 1/4 cup of reserved water from the squeezed pumpkin. Cover and cook until soft, 10-12 minutes. Stir and mash intermittently to ensure even cooking.

                                     

4. Add 1 cup sugar (I used brown sugar), and stir until it dissolves. Add saffron and continue cooking over medium heat.

                                                                

5. Once the halwa thickens and leaves pan, add a pinch of edible camphor and cardamom just before removing from the stove. Stir in the roasted cashews and raisins.

                                                                 

                                                              

6. You will know the  right time to remove halwa from the stove, when you start noticing tiny white spots appearing in the halwa while mixing.

                                                              

Notes:

1. Grate the pumpkin evenly.

2. Cook the halwa on medium heat (especially after adding sugar).

3. Make sure to add only a tiny pinch of edible camphor.

4. Add sugar only after the pumpkin is cooked well.

Apple Halwa

 This Navaratri, I made a halwa every day, using fruits, nuts or vegetables. I had apple halwa at a friend's house. It was so good and I made it the next day. It is a simple sweet made with apple, sugar and ghee.

Ingredients:

6 small apples ( I used McIntosh and Gala) 

1 cup sugar, more if required

2 Tablespoons cashew nuts

3 Tablespoons ghee (clarified butter)

Method:

1. Wash, peel and core the apples. Grate the apple slices. You will have 2 cups of grated apple.

2. Heat 2 Tablespoons ghee in a heavy bottom pan. Roast the cashews to golden brown. Remove from ghee and set aside.

                                                              

3. Lower the heat to medium. Add grated apple and cook for 10-12 minutes, until soft, and moisture evaporates.

                                   

4. Stir in 1 cup of sugar (I used brown sugar). Stir till sugar dissolves. Cook on medium heat until the halwa thickens and separates from the pan. Stir in 1 Tablespoon ghee.

                                                              

5. Add cardamom and roasted cashew. Remove from pan.