Vanocka - Christmas special Bread

  Vanocka is a sweetened braided bread, with full of flavors from Czech Republic and Slovakia.  Apart from sugar, this bread also has loads of almonds and raisin to give a  sweet hint and has aroma  from nutmeg and lemon zest. 

This bread involves braiding in three batches, and stacking them all up.  They have to be pinned through toothpicks or grill sticks so that the layer don't collapse.  The real trick is to equally divide the dough into nine counterparts for braiding, which can be efficiently done through weighing machine. 

After baking this yeast-raised bread, there was an strong hint of aroma around my home, resembling the plum cake. Each slice was a bit dense yet sweetened with a lemony flavor.   We ended up devouring this beautiful braided bread.  Merry Christmas to all, and thanks to Swathi Iyer for suggesting such a exotic bake. 

Opera cake - Baking partners challenge

    This month's Baking partner challenge was suggested by Savitha,  Opera cake is an famous french pastry where almond flavoured sponge is filled with  coffee buttercream and chocolate ganache with an liberal soaking of coffee syrup.  The final layer is glossed with tempered chocolate and is refrigerated overnight for the coffee flavour to infuse.

The first time, I tried almond sponge, it completely broke, and yes, sadly landed in garbage.  After watching an lot of youtube vidoes,   I gave them another shot.  Yayy... my sponge came out right!  I, divided the recipe by one third as I had an small oven, with baking tray supporting 9 inch by 10.5 inch.  This cake requires an lot of labour, so prepared sponge by day one.  Day two,  morning, prepared syrup, ganache and buttercream.  Assembled by evening and refrigerated overnight, this cake was ready for consumption by third day.

One bite into this pastry, was fabulous with an strong hint of coffee and some chocolate.  Initially, I was  worried when both sponge recipe and buttercream recipe demanded eggs.  But, this pastry had no eggy smell at all.  They were soft and delecious, like Bakery bought ones.  I never though that I could make them this delecious, thanks to Savitha and Swathi Iyer for bringing out such an challenging recipe.

Shrikand cookies

Cookies are always an essential bites at home.  They lift up every occasion and cheers us all.  Following Zebra cookies, here comes Shrikand cookies, made by hung curd.  This fusion cookie starts with rich flavour and ends on an sour note. 

Their speciality is their cake-like crumbly texture, appealing to crowd of all age.   I had them garnished with cardamon, almonds and saffron to coincide with traditional shrikand.  Here, everybody enjoyed the bite and are  having an good time :)  Hope you guys try and let us know.  

Pottukadalai laddu - 5 ingredient fix

  Hi!  Anybody watching, '5 ingredient fix' at Fox traveller?  I, surely do.  It is so amazing how the host prepares a range of dishes with only five ingredients each.  This pottukadalai laddu is dedicated to the same tag :)  Not only this laddu charms us with handy ingredients, but requires very minimal time, making them a stress-free dessert to do.

 This, is my kid's favourite and everytime I make them, she jumps with joy.  Not only this pottukadalai is an good source of energy, but is also advisable remedy for excessive menstrual phase.  This whole batch required only 4 tbsp of ghee/ clarified butter.  So, this can be considered an healthier dessert as well.  

Chocolate rocks , an sweet come-back :)

Hi guys :)  Happy children's day :)  So, this sweet/dessert is for those tiny-tots.  You don't require any fancy tools for making these.  They are very simple and can be made by juniors themselves as well :)  So, why not make this interesting project for them?  Well, the best part of candy-making is that you can always monitor what goes in.  Here these chocolate rocks, are an combination of dark chocolate and almonds, making them healthier option not only for kids, but  for adults,as well.

These crispies can be served with tea.  I have made them using Morde branded dark compound, (I bought them  at Q-mart, Hyderabad) which is used in making  home-made chocolates. If not dark compound, you can use your favourite dark or milk chocolates as well.  And almonds can be replaced by an mixture of dry nuts or any of your favourite.  You can store them in air-tight container, and keep them refrigerated. 

Mocha and almond biscotti

     Happy Independence day to one and all :) :) :)  Baking partners challenge for this month included four cookies from four different countries, when I first read them all were interesting and challenging in its own way.  But the biscotti from Italy, a twice-baked cookie drew my attention.  Personally, I felt this one to be more challenging and thanks to Swathi Iyer and Sandhya for recommending the same.  Biscotti is an perfect dip for tea and is flavoured with nuts.  It is more or less similar to our Indian rusk (tastewise and texturewise).  The cookie dough is first rolled into log, part-baked, sliced and finally baked again!  I flavoured them with coffee and almonds, result was wonderful!  Hubby luved to have it with tea

Source - www.joyofbaking.com

Ingredients required

• 1/2 cup or 75 gm of blanched whole almonds (which is later deskinned and finely chopped)
• 1/2 cup powdered sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1 tsp vanilla essence
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 11/4 cup all-purpose-flour
• 1 tbspn instant coffee powder (dissolved in 1 tbspn hot water)

Murgh pasanda

I am sure that you guys would have read this in many restaurant's  menu card.. So, what is this Pasanda??  It is a meal that originated at court of ancient Mughal Emperors. 'Pasanda' name was derived from Pasand, meaning desire in hindi.  This indirectly shows that it should have been emperor's ulitimate/desired dish.  Here, the meat from lamb leg (or chicken pieces) were marinated with yoghurt, chilly powder, other selective spices and were grilled to perfection.  What initially started as a kebab/grilled starter gradually transformed itself into mild creamy sauce with addition of cream, coconut milk and almonds.  Vegetarians can also replace chicken with mixed vegetable to have this dish which is 'full of desires' ;)

Phool makhana ki kheer

I think u wont be needing an introduction to phool makhana as already post of phool makhana curry is posted previously.  So let us see how to make nutritious kheer/ payasam.

Ingredients required

• 1 cup phool makhana/lotus seed
• Half litre milk
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup condensed milk
• 1/2 tsp cardamon powder
• 1/4 cup ghee roasted almond pieces

Method

In a deep vessel, add milk and phool makhana.  Heat under simmer flame till phool makhana gets cooked.  Now, mash the phool makhana with help of any utensil, (for instance, daal masher) such that phool makhana gets incorporated into milk very well.

Now add in cardamon powder, sugar, condensed milk, stir continously.

Garnish with almond pieces and serve hot... hmm.. it was very tasty... :)

I enjoyed it!!!!1

Carrot halwa

Carrot halwa is any-time-temptation.  Go ahead and give a try...

Ingredients required

• 1/2 kg carrots, grated
• 3-4 tsp khoya
• 1/4 cup powdered sugar
• 1/2 tsp cardamon powder
• 1/4 cup of  almonds, finely sliced
• 5-6 tsp of ghee

Method

Steam grated carrots for twenty minutes, keep aside

In a pan, heat ghee and roast sliced almonds till they are golden coloured, keep aside

In remaining ghee in same pan, add steam-cooked carrots and saute them, followed by adding sugar, khoya, cardamon powder.  Wait till sugar  and khoya dissolves

Top this with roasted almonds and serve hot

Milk Aur Badami Laddu Recipe | Easy Khoya Almond Laddu

These yummy laddus are rich, soft, and absolutely delicious! Made with homemade khoya and almonds, this simple sweet recipe is perfect for festivals, celebrations, or whenever you crave a quick homemade dessert.

The combination of creamy khoya, aromatic cardamom, and nutty almonds creates melt-in-the-mouth laddus that are both elegant and comforting. The best part is that this recipe requires very few ingredients and comes together effortlessly.

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Ingredients Required

• 1 cup khoya
• ½ cup powdered almonds
• A pinch of cardamom powder
• 2–3 tsp sugar

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Method

1. In a large bowl, combine khoya, sugar, and cardamom powder.
2. Mix and knead the mixture well until the sugar dissolves completely into the dough.
3. Grease your hands lightly with oil and roll the mixture into small laddus.
4. Roll each laddu in powdered almonds for a delicious nutty coating.
5. Serve at room temperature or refrigerate for a chilled treat.

These laddus can be stored in the refrigerator for up to a week — though they usually disappear much before that!

Milk Aur Badami Laddu is a quick and delightful Indian sweet that combines the richness of khoya with the goodness of almonds. Soft, creamy, and full of flavour, these laddus are ideal for festive platters, gifting, or satisfying sweet cravings at home. Try this easy homemade recipe and enjoy a melt-in-the-mouth dessert with your family and friends.