Rich cherry and almond cupcakes

Ingredients :-

Butter - 125 gms
Castor sugar - 1 1/2 cups
Self raising flour - 2 cups
Eggs - 3
Lemon juice - 1 tbsp
Glace cherries - 1/2 cup
Baking powder - 1 1/2 tsp
Almonds - 8 tbsp


Method :-

Beat butter until thick and creamy, add the sugar slowly, beating continuously.Add the lemon juice and the eggs one at a time and beat well after each addition.
Sift flour and baking powder together and beat into egg mixture. Cut the cherries and the almonds into halves and add half of it and mix thoroughly.
Spoon the mixture into twelve well-greased, deep patty tins, sprinkle some of the cherries and almonds on top of each cup cake. Silver balls and raisins can also be sprinkled. Bake in a moderately hot oven for 18 to 20 minutes, or until cooked. Serve fresh.

Chicken Fritters

Ingredients:

Chicken(boneless) - 250g (cut into small pieces)
Refined flour- 1/2 cup
Cornflour - 1/2 cup
Black Pepper- 1/2 tsp
Chilli powder- a pinch
Bread crumbs- 1/2 cup
Salt- to taste
Water- 1/2 cup
Oil- for frying


For marinade-

Curd- 6 tbsp
Chilli powder- 1/2 tsp
Garam masala powder- 1/2 tsp
Cumin powder-1/2 tsp
Salt- 1/2 tsp
Lemon juice- 1 tsp

Method-
Marinade the chickens by mixing the curd, chilli, garam masala and cumin powder, salt and lemon juice. Rub it nicely on the chicken and keep it aside for half hour. Roast it for few minutes(max 5 min) and leave it to cool.
Add the flours, salt, black pepper, chilli powder, salt and water to make a thick paste.
        Dip the chicken pieces into this batter and roll it into the bread crumbs and deep fry it into batches. Take it all out in a paper napkin and serve it hot with sauce or any dip of your liking.

Note-
1. Take care that the chicken is not overcooked. Roasting is just to enhance the taste.
2. Batter should be thick, if needed, flour can be added.
3. I used fresh brown bread crumbs and the result was excellent!!

Kathal kabab

       

                                   

                                                

Ingredients -

Raw kathal (jack fruit) - 1/2 kg
Soaked gram daal ( channa daal) - 1 medium bowl (150 gm)
Minced Ginger -1 tsp
Minced Garlic  -1 tsp
Minced green chilli - 1 tsp
Red chilli powder - 1/2 tsp
Black pepper corns -5-6
Cloves - 4-5 
Black cardamom -1 small
Garam masala - 1/2 tsp
Bread crumbs - 1/2 cup
Salt - to taste
Oil -  for frying

 Method

1. In a pressure cooker put the kathal with 1 glass of water,
   add the pepper corns, cloves, and the cardamom, cook 
   until 2 whistles. Let it cool.
2. Take out the cardamom as it was just for flavour, 
     strain and replace boiled kathal in a big bowl, grind 
     it in a mixer smoothly. Keep it aside
3. Boil the channa dal in the cooker with 1/2 glass of water 
    until two whistle or cooked, let it cool. Grind it too, a bit
    coarsely.
4. Add the minced chilli, ginger, garlic, red chilli powder, salt
   garam masala and the bread crumbs and mix it nicely into 
  the dough. If sticky, more bread crumbs can be added.
5. Take a small ball size dough, flatten it in your palm giving 
    it a round kabab shape. Make all the kababs and deep fry 
    it in a frying pan. Serve it with mint chutney or any other
    chutney of your taste.


Note -  It is advisable to grind the kathal and channa dal      separately. If the kathal and gram daal is boiled together, it
 becomes sticky and it would not let the grinder move to 
 grind the remaining mixture.
 

Dhokla

Ingredients -

Gram flour - 2 medium size bowls (about 3oo gm)
Curd - 1 1/2 cups
turmeric powder -1/2 tsp
Ginger paste - 1 tsp
Green chilli paste - 1 tsp

Sugar grounded -1 tsp
Salt - 1/2 tsp
Bicarb soda - 1 tsp
Lemon - 1/2

For the seasoning (chaunka)-

Mustard seed - 1 tsp
Cari leaves - 2 tbsp
Sugar - 1 tsp
salt - a pinch
Green chillies - 3 to 4 (slit lengthwise)
Oil - 2 tbsp
Water - 1/2 cup
Chopped coriander - 2 tbsp
Grated coconut - 2 tbsp


 Method -

Sift the gram flour. Take a bowl and mix the flour with the curd and turmeric nicely. It should be of a thick consistency, keep it aside for overnight.

Now mix in the salt, ginger-chilli paste, sugar very gently so that 
the air doesn't go out.
Mix the soda and lemon juice in a small bowl and when it starts bubbling mix it in the flour and curd mixture.

Keep a steamer or a cooker ready, grease a dish which fits into the steamer thoroughly and pour the content into it.
Steam it until done (put an oiled knife through it after 12 minutes
 to see). Let it cool for sometime and cut into big cubes.

For seasoning-

In a frying pan heat oil and put the mustard seeds, when it splutters put the curry leaves, salt, sugar, chillies and stir it for a moment, pour the water into it and boil it for a while, remove it and pour it over dhoklas, garnish it with chopped coriander and grated coconut. Serve it with chutney.

Note - Curd should not be sour and if it is, mix milk in it.
           Batter should be thick and of equal consistency.
           Gas flame should not be low otherwise it will not rise.