Sweet spreads

Churma ladoos wheat flour 500 gms ghee 200 gms jaggery 250 gms
cardamom a little ghee 1 cup poppy seeds, almonds & pistas for garnishing

take wheat flr. in a tray. add ghee & hot water & knead into a stiff dough. make small balls of this dough & fry them in ghee on medium flame, until light brown. cool & grind coarsely. Melt jaggery with ghee & add it to the churma mix. with cardamom pdr. & make ladoos. decorate with poppy seeds & finely cuts nuts.

Katt maida 200 gms khoya 100 gms pdr. sugar 100 gms ghee 300 gms
til seeds 2 tbsp raisins 2 tbsp almonds 2 tbsp cashew nuts 2tbsp

Mix 100 gms of ghee into the flr. & knead tightly with warm water. Make small round balls & bake in a pre-heated oven till brown. when the balls are cool, crumble & roast them & keep aside. Chop nuts fine. Now mix the jaggery, the roasted pdr., nuts & 100 gms ghee. Mix well & set it in a greased tray. Press it well with the help of a small cup. Now mix the pdr. sugar, til/sesame seeds in lukewarm ghee & make a fine paste & spread on the tray. Leave for 2-3 hours & cut into cubes.

Goodness of almonds

Almonds are a rich source of nutrients- Vit. E & protein. Almonds help in fighting diabetes & heart diseases & the presence of powerful nutrients like proteins, dietary fibre, mono saturated fatty acids (MUFA) & Vit. E make it a rich source of combating degenerative diseases such as diabetes & heart diseases. They are the best source of alpha-tocopherol form of Vit. E & are a great cholesterol lowering food.

Vegetable biryani- 1 packet of firm tofu 4 tsp almond oil 1 carrot
1 tomato 1 tsp of grated fresh ginger 1 tsp of garam masala
1/2 cup veg. broth 1/2 cup slivered almonds- roasted
Slice tofu horizontally into thirds & drain each third between paper towels for 30 min. Peel carrot & cut into small dice. seed & dice tomato. heat 2 tsp. of oil in a large non-stick pan, add carrot, cover & cook on medium heat, till almost soft. Add tomato, ginger, garam masala & broth & cook covered, stirring at times for 5-8 min. Remove veg. mixture & set aside. Cut tofu into 1" cubes. heat 2 tsp/ of oil, add tofu, cook on medium heat until golden brown. add the veg. mixture, add cooked basmati rice & stir gently. Roast almond slices & decorate.


Almond Phirni
1/3 cup blanched almonds 2/3 cup boiling water 5 tbsp rice flour
1 1/3 cup milk 2cups single cream 10 tbsp of sugar 2 tsp rose water
2 tbsp pista cut 2 tbsp blanched almonds cut 8 tbsp fresh pomegranate

For almond milk soak the balnched almonds in the hot boiling water for 30 min. & then blend into a fine paste in the same water. strain it through a double cheese cloth to get most of the almond milk out. Mix in the rice flour with almond milk & stir well & set aside. combine the milk, cream & sugar in a heavy bottomed pan & bring to a boil, reduce to simmer & add in the almond rive mixture. to avoid lumps keep whisking the milk while pouring it. Cook on slow fire until the mixture starts to thicken to coat the back of the spoon. cool it well. stir in rose water, cover & chill. to serve, spoon the mix. into chilled dessert cups & garnish with cut almonds, pistas & pomegranate seeds.

Goodness of grams

Chinese medicine uses green gram as a remedy for oedema, fever, headache & generalised anxiety & as a diuretic. It is also a folk remedy for arsenal poisoning & other mineral toxins.

100 gms of sprouted green gram contains 30 calories with 3 gms of protein, 6 gms of carbohydrate & 2 gms of fibre. Unlike other pulses green gram is free of flatulence causing agents. Hence it is good for convalescents & good weaning food for babies.