Cake House

It's been really long since I made some Indian sweet. With the festive season coming close, it's the right time to indulge in some sugary treats and so I bring you this easy to make yet very delicious Nariyal Ki Barfi. Nariyal ki barfi or coconut fudge is a must make sweet for the weddings in Mathur community and is called Pili barfi for it's yellow color. The sweet which is decked with silver foil, saffron strands and dry fruit slivers is arranged on a big thaal or plate and is send to the grooms family along with the other goodies as a token to mark the beginning of the celebration. The soft, melt in your texture of this sweet is loved by all in my family and it is so easy to make that I end up making a batch of this goodness for all the festivals. Keep the consistency of sugar syrup in check and you will nail this recipe. Here is how to make this simple yet very delicious Nariyal Ki barfi. All you need is Grated fresh coconut - 3 cups Ghee - 3 tbsp Sugar - 1 cup Water - ...

Phirni is a traditional Indian dessert where grounded rice is cooked with milk till it is creamy and thick. Usualy kesar and cardamom are added to enhance the flavor of phirni. I have already made a kesar ilachi phirni before, so this time though to flavor it with rose. Gulab phirni came out very delicious. It was rich and creamy with a subtle flavor from the fresh rose petals and rose water. Here is the recipe. All you need is Full cream milk - 1 liter Rice - 1\4 cup Rose petals - 2 tbsp ( chopped, use the petals of local variety of rose. The hybrid ones doesn't have good flavor and smell ) Sugar - 1\2 cup Rose water - 1 tsp Slivers of almonds and pistachios for garnishing Method of preparation Soak rice in 1\2 cup of water for 3-4 hours. Grind in a blender to make a coarse paste. Heat the milk in a heavy bottom pan. When the milk comes to a boil, add the ground rice. Keep stirring to avoid the rice sticking at the bottom of the pan. Simmer the heat and cook for 30-40 minutes, til...

Mathri is a snack which is mostly found in all Indian homes and is enjoyed with morning or evening tea. There are many variations to make mathris and each house has it's own recipe passed on through generations. In the earlier times when there were so little ready made options available, home made snacks were relished with great pleasure. I remember having a small cabinet in my dining room specially used to store all the home made snacks and pickles. Ladoos, mathris and home made namkeens were always there along with a range of pickles. When the festivals approached, this cabinet used to be packed with variety of stuff which was made specially during that particular festival. Now that holi is around the corner, I thought to make all the special treats that we enjoyed as a kid during this time. The list is long and I will try to make maximum number of things, but to start with here is the easy recipe of crispy and crunchy Methi mathris which can be stored for a few days in an airtig...

Aloo bhujia is dry snack made with chickpea flour and potatoes. It can be enjoyed as evening snack with a hot cup of tea. Here is an easy recipe to make aloo bhujia at home. Do give it a try. All you need is Potato - 1\2 cup ( Boiled, peeled and grated ) Besan - 1 cup Oil - 1 tbsp and for frying Salt - 1 tsp Chaat masala - 1\2 tsp and 1\2 tsp for sprinkling on top. Red chili powder - 1\2 tsp Heeng - 1\4 tsp Baking soda - a pinch Lemon juice - 1 tbsp Dry pudina powder - 1\2 tsp Method of preparation Mix besan, grated potato and oil in a pan. Mix together nicely. Add salt, 1\2 tsp chaat masala, red chili powder, heeng, baking soda and lemon juice. Mix nicely. Add very little water and knead to make a tight dough. Cover and keep the dough for 10 minutes. Heat oil in a pan. Divide the dough in 4 parts. Fill one part in the sev press fitted with fine net. Press the sev press over the hot oil. Simmer the heat. Fry till golden brown from both the sides. Remove from oil on a kitchen tissue lin...

Rasmalai is an Indian sweet made with Milk. The milk is curdled and the cheese is collected and drained of any whey. It is then made into small balls and cooked. These balls are then soaked in reduced milk flavored with cardamom and saffron. You will definitely fall in love with this sweet in first bite. It is also very easy to make at home and the result is wonderful. Do give it a try. Here is the recipe. All you need is Full cream milk - 3 lt ( preferably cow's milk ) Lemon juice - 3 tsp Arrowroot powder - 4 tsp Baking soda - a pinch Sugar - 1 and 1\2 cups and 1\4 cup Water - 4 cups Cardamom - 2-3  ( crushed ) Cashew nut - 2 tbsp Cardamom powder - 1 tsp Saffron - a good pinch Rose water - 1\2 tsp Yellow food color - a small pinch Dry fruits slivers for garnishing Method of preparation Heat 2 lt milk in a pan. Switch off the heat when it comes to a boil. Add lemon juice. The milk will curdle immediately. Let it rest for 5 minutes. Drain the curdled milk in a cheese cloth. Wash the...

Crispy and crunchy namakpare are a great snack to enjoy with a cup of hot ginger tea. This snack takes me back to my childhood. There always used to be a box full of namakpare in the house and every evening with tea, my nani used to  keep these with other dry snacks in huge plates for all of us to munch on. I too always make namakpare for Diwali and Holi, though in a very small amount. The trick to make crunchy namakpare is to knead the dough, as tight as you can and fry them on very low heat. Here is the recipe. All you need is All purpose flour \ Maida - 1 cup Semolina \ Fine sooji - 2 tbsp Salt - 3\4 tsp Carom seeds \ ajwain - 1\2 tsp Clarified butter \ ghee - 2 tbsp Lukewarm water - to knead Oil for frying Method of preparation Mix maida, sooji, salt, ajwain and ghee in a bowl. Mix nicely. Add a tbsp of lukewarm water at a time and mix to make a tight dough. Cover and keep the dough for 10-15 minutes. Heat oil in a heavy bottom pan. Divide the dough in 2 parts and roll each in ...