Wednesday 24 September 2014

*Naan Chapatti soft and fluffy*


Many may ask „what’s Naan Chapatti” :-)
(click on the pic for a larger Image)
Well.... it is a two in one yummy Naan. I actually wanted to make naan as my friend brought me tasty cooked Payee on weekend. We (my hubby and i) love Payee and specially the sticky Shorba (curry) and that too with a soft naan that absorbs much of it …shlurp shlurp :D
 
I had to prepare ataa, so thought why not mix with yeast and make naans, then I had no mood to stand and bake in the oven, so I made the dough with which I can make them directly in the pan.
I make these often with Karahi Chicken and Seekhi  Kababs, as they give an ultra yummy taste with such dishes
 
 
 
 
All who have no oven, this here will make your life easy and believe me you will love making these again and again : )
I call them Naan Chapatti because they are soft and fluffy yet they look like chapatti and are not heavy like Naans that one can easily eat more than 2 :)
Normally many make naans with only plain all purpose flour, which is of course different in taste and prettier in color, I use mixed flour and the taste is equally delicious and the  naan chapatti looks very  lovely  in color too .
 
You can also make more in quantity and freeze them and just take out and thaw them  for 5-10 minutes and fry them in the pan with a spray of oil, they will be fresh as ever  and your family will think you’ve made them just now : )
 
So this is how I make them:
1 cup normal Chapatti flour (aataa)
2 cups all purpose flour ( I use organic flour)
1 tbs full dry yeast (makes 7 gram)
1 tbs salt
2-3 tbs of clarified butter (ghee)
Water as needed till the dough is soft and even
***With these measurement I made 12 naan chapattis***
 
*Dry yeast does not need time to froth so I add all together and knead the dough
*Make the dough soft, pat with greased hands and cover and keep an hour to rest
* The dough will rise but not like the Pizza dough, it will seems a bit more in volume
*Make normal balls as you make for chapatti and roll out each around 18-20 cm
* Heat your tawa or the frying pan (as I do) and spray few drops of oil before you put the chapatti on it
*Prick the naan chapatti criss-cross and spray few drops of oil again
(I use a spray bottle or a brush bottle for all parathaas and naan,so when I spray, it is like hardly 2-3 drops but no worries it is not at all like a paratha as you have to spray very slightly :)
 
*Use a spatula to twist the naan around, you will see it fluffing up and brown flowers will pop up as you see in this picture
 
*Turn the naan and do the same, prick, spray oil and move around with the spatula
* The naan will cook in no time as the yeast makes the dough really fluffy and it cooks fast
*Place the Naan chapatti in a hot-pot so it stays hot and really soft*we ate them the next day too, as I mentioned above, warm it the right way and you’ll enjoy the freshness the second day too : )
Good Luck, and do share your feed back with me, I’d love to know what results you get and how you liked them : )

 

 

Tuesday 23 September 2014

Walnut Halwa (Akhroot ka Halwa)

Halwa is worldwide famous, in Asia in Middle East in Europe, we the Asians call it Halwa, the Arabs call it Halawa and the Turks call is Helva and surely many other accents and spellings : )
(click on the pic for a larger Image)
Bascially a tasty fudge type sweet, made very often in all seasons with different Vegetables, fruits and nuts. For all my friends who have seen Halwa in a wet form  for example the Semolina Halwa or Carrot Halwa,and then in a firm form like Barfi or Chickpea flour Halwa, don’t be confused as  it is found in many ways and structures : )
 
This here is a Walnut Halwa, I make it in two ways, I like this way much more as I enjoy the crumbled milk taste, the other variation is to let it settle and cut out diamond pieces like Barfi.
A very rich and caloric Halwa indeed so better make and forget it in the fridge and take out every week to taste it in bits lol…
It is simple, needs good stirring and that’s it
I must honestly say that I don’t check my exact measurements  when I cook, but I did try to keep in mind what all I am putting in so I can share with you all : )
 
So this is what I did:
½ cup Ghee (clarified butter)
½ cup cooking oil
300 grams Nido dry milk powder (around 3 cups)
1 egg
1 tbs  crushed cardamom powder
125 gram brown sugar (1 ¼ cup)
½ cup condensed milk
250 gram walnuts (crushed coarsely, don’t crush till powder)
Save some for decorating the top
 
 
*heat the ghee and oil in a non stick broad wok/pan
*sprinkle the cardamom for few seconds till you smell the aroma
* add the dry milk powder and stir on a low flame as you need to fry it in a nice golden color not dark brown!
* keep the powder turning and twisting so the powder gets fried evenly
*as you see the brownish color, beat the egg and pour onto it and mix briskly
*you will see the powder
crumbling slowly, keep stirring
 
 
*this wil take around 20 minutes, be patient and keep stirring : )
*when the crumbles look nice light brownish, now add the sugar and mix all
*next add the condensed milk and mix well, the mixture will turn more crumbly
* I add sugar in the end so it stays crunchy and tastes really very different when you feel the crunch crunch eating it : )
 
*in the end add the walnuts and keep stirring so the walnuts also mix in well
* you have to keep moving it around till the ghee/oil starts showing up form sides and leaves the pan easily.
* turn out in any broad bowl or dish, decorate with walnuts and if you have the silver paper, as this gives the halwa that beautiful look too
 
 
Keep in fridge and avoid using wet spoons in it, it stays fresh and good till it is finished
Make for the coming Eid ul Azha and serve your guests and enjoy the praises : )