Quark Cheese-DIY

Quark

When we did the alphabet marathon Nandini had made quark. The first time I had heard of this delicious cheese. I had to make it.

Various cuisines feature quark as an ingredient for appetizers, salads, main dishes, side dishes and desserts

Quark Cheese

Recipe Source: here 

Ingredients:

• 3 ½ cups milk
•  ¼ cup curd
•  ¼ cup water

Method:

• Bring the milk to a boil and let it cool completely.
• Meanwhile blend the curd and water to get your buttermilk.
• Add buttermilk and mix
• Let it rest undisturbed for 24 hours in a warm corner of the kitchen
• One full day later, line a sieve with cheesecloth (or a thin kitchen towel). Place this on a bowl with at least ½-ltr capacity to collect the drained whey water
• Pour the curds into the lined sieve and secure. Pull the edges together and twist it up or secure with a rubber band
• Place the entire apparatus in the refrigerator for 24 hours
• Remove the cheese from the cheesecloth and keep refrigerated in an airtight container. 

Linking to PJ's event "Say Cheese" for Srivalli's Kid’s delight.

Hi! First time here? Well then you are Most Welcome! I hope you keep coming back for more here. If you are my regular visitor then Thanks, for you encourage me to experiment more!! I would like you to please click on my link below and like my Facebook Page. I will be happy if you can follow me on on Twitter too!

 

Ricotta Cheese-DIY

 

Ricotta Cheese

Cheese in used in all walks of life from Charles de Gaulle saying, “How can you govern a country which has 246 varieties of cheese?”  Or “Age is something that doesn’t matter unless you are a cheese.” Luis Bunuel!

Books like,” Who moved my cheese?”” I moved your cheese” then there are cheesy lines cute and flattering pickup lines and of course the most famous “say cheese”!

So what exactly is cheese?

Wikipedia again… :D

“Cheese is a food derived from milk that is produced in a wide range of flavours, textures, and forms by coagulation of the milk protein casein. It comprises proteins and fat from milk, usually the milk of cows, buffalo, goats, or sheep. During production, the milk is usually acidified, and adding the enzyme rennet causes coagulation. The solids are separated and pressed into final form. Some cheeses have molds on the rind or throughout. Most cheeses melt at cooking temperature.”

There are apparently hundreds of cheese world around. The difference is produced by styles, textures, flavours, the animal’s diet, fat content, herbs used among many other things.

“In a few cheeses, the milk is curdled by adding acids such as vinegar or lemon juice. Most cheeses are acidified to a lesser degree by bacteria, which turn milk sugars into lactic acid, and then the addition of rennet completes the curdling. Vegetarian alternatives to rennet are available also.

Cheese is valued for its portability, long life, and high content of fat, protein, calcium, and phosphorus. Cheese is more compact and has a longer shelf life than milk, although how long a cheese will keep may depend on the type of cheese. Generally speaking, hard cheeses last longer than soft cheeses, such as Brie or goat's milk cheese. .”

Tempted to be a specialist in cheese? Well you will be called a cheesemonger and you need to train for it.

Cheese the origin of which is predates recorded history.

Wondering what is happening here? Then for  watch this space for 3 do it yourself cheeses.

Let’s start with ricotta cheese, which is a flexible cheese and can be used in appetizers, regular meal or a dessert and the bonus is it’s easy to make.

Since I forgot I had this cheese in the fridge it came out like a harder than anticipated ball, but tasted as yum.

Ricotta Cheese

Recipe Source: Foodiliciousnan
Ingredients: 

• 1 litre milk 
• ½ fresh cream or malai (you can use heavy cream) 
• ½ cup curds/ yogurt 
• 1 tsp vinegar 
• ½ tsp salt

Method:

• Mix all the ingredients in a large vessel and bring to a boil, till 
• the whey and curds separate.
• Line a sieve with muslin or cheese cloth pour contents in the sieve.
• The whey water drip for 15 minute and then strain any remaining liquid with your hands
• Ricotta cheese is ready!
• Stays good refrigerated for 3 days.

Linking to PJ's event "Say Cheese" for Srivalli's Kid’s delight.

Hi! First time here? Well then you are Most Welcome! I hope you keep coming back for more here. If you are my regular visitor then Thanks, for you encourage me to experiment more!! I would like you to please click on my link below and like my Facebook Page. I will be happy if you can follow me on on Twitter too!

 

Vegetarian Shawarma Recipe for Quatar

Vegetarian Shawarma

We love Shawarma now !

It was introduced to me by my elder daughter as I was constantly complaining that she does not eat at home. “What do you eat at Miramar that I cannot make?”   Now throw this challenge to a teenager and be prepared to face the consequences.

She took me to Miramar and fed me Shawarma.  She was shocked that I did not like it. It was bland and I felt not something as good as she described.  

Somewhere around that time it was Wine Festival better known as Grape Escapade  and after our visit there   all of us , we are about 20 of us here ,wanted something to eat.  Most places were closed so we went for Shawarma.  Me grumbling that what muck we have to eat, and imagine 18 of them pouncing on you telling you are you crazy….

This time the place was better and the Shawarma was awesome. Both my husband and I liked it.   

Mint Chakkah~ A Creamy Curd and Mint Dip

Mint Chakkah

Does this picture remind you of Ice cream? 
Do you crave to have it? Well so do I?
But waits its not ice cream but a Creamy Curd and Mint Dip!! 
Tastes awesome!!
Its called Chakkah !!

Chakkah is thick and creamy strained yogurt served in Afghanistan either as a dip or a sauce. It is also used as an ingredient in many Afghani dishes.

 Mint Chakkah

Mint Chakkah

Recipe Source:My Diverse Kitchen
Ingredients:

• 2 cup   curds
• 1 clove of garlic, finely minced
• 2 tbsp fresh mint, finely chopped
• Salt to taste

 Method:

• Using a cheese cloth hang the curds for 2 -3 hours. (As I do not like the smell of the cheesecloth, after I remove the curds I prefer to use a fine nylon strainer for the job.
• The result of the hanging should be a creamy and not dry.  
• Mix the yogurt and the garlic in a bowl. Do not beat.
• Cover and refrigerate till required. 
•  Just before serving, stir in the salt and half the chopped mint.
•  Garnish with the remaining mint and serve.
•  This makes 1 cup of Minty Chakkah.

 Notes:

• This Chakkah should have a nice but not too strong, flavour of garlic so add as much garlic you need to get that.

An InLinkz Link-up

Check out the Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing BM# 44

Hi! First time here? Well then you are Most Welcome! I hope you keep coming back for more here. If you are my regular visitor then Thanks, for you encourage me to experiment more!! I would like you to please click on my link below and like my Facebook Page. I will be happy if you can follow me on on Twitter too!

Afghani Bolani/ Boulanee e Katchaloo/ Potato Spring Onion Stuffed Flatbread

Afghani Bolani/ Boulanee e Katchaloo

Today on join me in Blogging Marathon " Around the World in 30 days"!

When I checked the net for my entries to the blogging marathon around the world the first place I checked was Afghanistan and I kept checking if I am looking at Afghani cuisine.  The reason being the Indian spices used stood out. Yet the food was distinctly different.

Later, much later it struck me, in fact Aparna mentioned so I realised  that Afghanistan being located on the historically important trade route called the Silk Route/ Silk Road  meant that Afghani cuisine is influenced by the trading communities on the route. So the Afghani cuisine has the influences of Iran, Pakistan, India, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan and China.

I was requested street food at home so I am generally blogging street food, generally because occasionally I have been side-tracked by some delicious recipes that are not street food that have beckoned me!

So let’s begin with Afganisthan!!

Cheddar and Sage Scones

Cheddar and Sage Scones

First I would like to thank Swathi for giving me this opportunity to suggest bakes here at Baking Partners. 

Lets face it I am safe baker I prefer tried and trusted recipes, and a lazy baker for I hardly open the books I buy for baking (or cooking for that matter) for that matter take up elaborate recipes.

Now at Ahmedabad airport I had picked up The BBC Good Food Issue for two reasons one  it was a vegetarian one  and two there was a Gordon Ramsay recipe featured. Boy was I excited! Hardly sat in the plane and that was the first page I opened, but sadly will never make it as the recipe calls for phyllo sheets , something we do not get here and I have no patience to make  the sheets. So I just kept the magazine on the kitchen side shelf. I did not think I will use the magazine at all.

Then at work I saw Swathi’s message asking me to suggest bakes. I just casually mentioned savoury bakes like tarts, scone I was surprised when Swathi asked to make two.

 I panicked!

 Then I realised that at the back of my mind I had these two interesting recipes that I had noticed in the same magazine.  These scones are very simple and the only complaint against them at home was why only 8 pieces or rather make one more batch !   

Chana Madra~Indian State Himachal Pradesh

Chana Madra~Himachal Pradesh Cuisine

The beautiful state of Himachal Pradesh offers a wide range of lip smacking and savoury food items. The cuisine of Himachal Pradesh has a significant influence of the Punjabi and Tibetan style of food. The people of Himachal Pradesh prefer very spicy food items.

In their daily and regular routine Himachal Pradesh people have simple North Indian dishes that are easy to make and very tasty to eat. As compared to other states in north India non-vegetarian cuisine is more preferred. Traditionally, Himachali cuisine is dominated by red meat and wheat bread, thick and rich gravy, with aromatic spices, is used in abundance as the base of many dishes. Till recently tubers like potatoes and turnips were all they ate in the name of vegetables. Green vegetables, however, are increasingly finding their way into Himachali food

One of the most important food items of the people of Himachal Pradesh is Dal and Chawal or plain rice and pulses which is a very common food item of the north Indians. The simple preparation of rice and pulses provides a complete diet of carbohydrates and proteins, the two important components that helps in building healthy body.  Another delicious food of the region that is famous in is Roti Sabzi or flat bread made up of wheat and vegetable curry.  

However there may be local variations. For instance, in the barren regions of Kinnaur and Lahaul-Spiti, there is more emphasis on locally-grown coarse grains like buckwheat, millet and barley. In areas with a pastoral tradition, milk and its products are liberally used in cooking.

Cooked from flour of wheat and savoured with ghee or butter, Sidu is a well known cuisine of the state.

Patande is another important food item of the people of Himachal Pradesh. The Patande is well known dish in the Sirmour district of the state. Made from wheat, Patande is like a pancake and so is popularly known as the Indian Pancake of Himachal Pradesh.

Himachal Pradesh celebrates the Food festival of Dham. The variety of food items served here reflects the vibrant and dynamic yet simple life of the people of Himachal Pradesh. Dham is cooked only by botis (a particular caste of Brahmins who are hereditary chefs) who prepare for this elaborate mid-day meal begins the night before. It is served in courses on epattalsi or leaf plates.

 In the Chamba region, the typical menu for a dham would start with rice, moong daal (green lentil broth) and a madrah of rajma (red kidney beans) cooked in yoghurt. This is followed by boor ki kari and a dark lentil (mash daal). Topped by khatta (sweet and sour sauce) made of tamarind and gur (jaggery), the dham ends with the mittha (dessert) – sweet rice, liberally mixed with raisins and dry fruit.

Some of the other specialties of Himachal include Manee’, Madira, Pateer, Chouck, Bhagjery and chutney of Til.

Corn in Creamy Milk

I picked up this beautiful book in the Central Library,Panaji, Goa.

The author is Karen Anand. In fact I had typed out a great number of recipes from her book and the laptop crashed!!

Central Library, Panaji, Goa is an amazing place!  I have been told that the library is built and maintained on international standards. It is a pleasure to go there for not only the staff is so good but also the books are so beautifully arranged even an idiot will find the book he/she needs. The reading room is so very beautiful. Many a times I sit in the library and access my pending posts.

As you enter the library you are greeted by a huge mascot of a person resting his/ her face on the palm. The best thing is it is made of tyres.  Different treads are used cleverly to draw your eye to different features.

This is not all there are metal sculptures made out of waste material on display. O by the way the Art and Culture is also in the same building but I have not as yet visited that area. The library has so much of a pull over me.

If you are in Goa please make it a point to visit the library.

No I am not doing a review on the Central Library like I said most of my lunch hours are spent there.

  

VadMorka

Generally cooked green capsicum is not favoured much at my place.

 But buying it is still done on a regular basis both by my husband and FIL. So finishing is my responsibility. Generally I use it as a garnish or when I do not stir fry it with a crunch, but when you have half a kg to finish before the next lot comes in over the weekend it’s a bit too much.

So I made this delicious VadMorka! I know that picture is not very appetising but believe me you will love the taste as a salad with rice and dal.

Lemon Coconut Bread

If you guys are wondering where I have disappeared it’s just that I am sooooooo overworked that I do not want to sit on the computer in the evening.

So I have been tardy in acknowledging your post and   those that have been posted at the event I am guest hosting. Please bear with me. It’s just this month (hopefully) then I am free.............. J

  Now coming to today’s post...

When I saw this month’s Egg-less baking challenge as Dimah’s Lemon Coconut Bread I was surprised at the combination. Never in my wildest dreams considered lemon and coconut as a combination in bread.

I also had a sinking feeling, as I know for sure this is something my girls will not like. I did consider sitting it out this bake but then that will never open my daughters to newer options, if not today, tomorrow, someday they will be interested in this combo! Live in hope!

Anyway now when I am posting this I was thinking that a dash of chilli in the mixture that is used as filling maybe they would have enjoyed it more.

Next time maybe, right now all my cakes are being looked at with a little bit of suspicion!! Don’t blame them……!

Chocolate Lamingtons

Lamingtons like I said yesterday was our July Challenge for the Eggless Baking Group. A group started by Gayatri where we try and convert bakes with eggs to egg less.

  I posted the Lemon Curd Lamingtons.   check these Chocolate Lamingtons out.

Low fat Dahi Vada

When Nupur announced her challenge this month it was to make either spring rolls or dahi vada.

 So what is new you will ask my dear the challenge that Nupur poses is different. She chooses a deep fried dish and expects you to make it not fried but search for different options other than fried. Interesting? Well do check it out. I am sure she will add newer members.

Now I have made baked spring rolls. Dahivada with a difference here has been made by my SIL so I did not know how else to make it. In no mood to trudge to the mall to search for the spring roll wrappers which I am sure will not be there, I decided to make dahi vada.How ??? was the question that worried me.

Cucumber Rolls~ A Blog Hop#18

My brother and SIL had come down with his bundle of joy for three days.

I was to make supari with my father’s help and show Pooja, my SIL, some simple cakes. But the supari is on my kitchen shelf and the cakes are just not made.  I do not know where the days flew! One 7 month old baby Ayan and he had all of us dancing!

Before they left Pooja made us a delicious pancake and ice cream dessert  will share the recipe soon. They left for the US yesterday but it feels like ages that they have gone and the house feels empty without Ayan. May be next time I will do better.

Today I have some more relatives though there is no baby involved here I will be busy   to add to my woes the computer is acting up and I am not getting my daily fix of visiting my friends. Will do so after they leave hopefully for by then the Rain God will be visiting us........ And life continues.

But for today’s Blog Hop Radhika the brain behind it has paired me with Jayanti of Sizzling Veggies. In case you have not been there you are missing a treat. The pictures are a visual treat and the recipes are mind blowing. I had a hard time trying to choose what I wanted. Had I made something when Pooja was here then it would have definitely been Almond Cherry brownies but that was not to be.

 I had to go to the internet cafe to get my recipe and the first thing I saw was these awesome cucumber rolls.  I had to make them.

Sandwich

Before I begin I would like to thank the Earl of Sandwich for popularizing sandwich.

 I had read in the Reader’s Digest that he had done quite a few experiments much to the discomfort of his family and no doubt after spending a lot of time and money when his experiments were discarded. The recent version that I read was that invented sandwich for practical purposes which was play cards not waste time eating.

 I tried searching for the article in RD, but could not find it, however here is one of the many that you can google for the history of sandwich. 

Whatever had it not been for him one of us would have had to reinvent the age old method of eating bread and meat/veggies in our case.

  

Sandwiches are served in different forms with meat or without meat, with veggies or a mix of both.

My kids love chutney sandwiches so when I tried this different filling in their sandwich I was unsure of the reactions, but when I did not get any complaints it is taken for granted that the sandwiches were enjoyed. I did not ask them “Aa Bail Mujhe MAar”! No thanks.

Cauliflower Salad

My friend Vidys’s mother made this delicious salad to go with her famous Prawns Khichidi.

Prawn Khichidi is something that we all relished and consumed and this was an ideal side dish.

Yes I do eat and relish Non-Veg. food I just do not cook it. Like my friend Sheetal knows fish is my dessert. No amount of cajoling on her part can make me eat it first with my rice or chapatti.  So she calls me all kinds of feline names but just for the awesome fish she brings for me I just let it slide by. Ha-ha!!

Coming to the salad here is what you will need.

Masuru Anna, BM #13, Day 5

My childhood memory of Masuru Anna or Curd Rice is when we used to travel by train.

Every holiday we used to take the train to come down to Dharwad from Nagpur. The train was Maharastra Express; the time needed was 48 hours with a changeover at Miraj.

The train used to reach Miraj late the next day in the afternoon. The food we used to carry was all over and we used to be hungry, Pantry Car was unheard of. After a mad hectic scramble we used to board Karnataka Express which used to be waiting just for our train.

By then we were seasoned travellers my sister and I used to run after the porter, Amma used to bring my toddler brother and some small handbags and Pappa used to go in search of food.

Invariably we had just Masuru Anna and lime pickle!! Masuru anna by then would be sour but we loved it!!

Sabudana Thalippeth

I would first like to thank all of you my friends for the lovely messages, prayers and thought that you have sent when I was feeling depressed.

 I do realize that I am just a small pawn in God's master plan and he will give me strength in the form of you guys. 

From now on I will take care of my health and blogging also for both are food for my life. They uplift me. I realize I cannot function without the other.

Cup Cakes~A Blog Hop

Blog hop this time Radhika has paired me with Priya of Now Serving!

If you know not Priya then you are missing deliciously simple recipes conceived out of a Mother’s love to nourish. Do visit her.  She is a multifaceted personality always helping others. She was one of the many who guided me when I started out from anonymous blogger to the present day avatar.

Now choosing from Priya’s place is difficult for I was like a kid in the sweet shop. But my niece had come over with her mom for just 2 days.

Micro wave Orange Cake~A Blog Hop

Since my husband & I have our birthdays just 4 days off one another we celebrate together. But this time I wanted to surprise him with a cake on his birthday.

Surprise has to be surprise does it not? So what better than a cake that cooks in the microwave and in 12 minutes when he is at walk, best time his evening walk?

So I baked this cake for him from Mom’s Corner by Rudra my partner for Blog Hop for this fortnight.In case you have not checked her corner till now do so now.Thanks to Radhika who is the brains behind the entire operation! You can join the gang subscriptions to the new version are open till the 15th  Dec.

Shahi Ande

From the time Radhika announced her Mughlai Event I know that there is one cuisine that I have not posted as yet the Mughlai cusine. In fact from the time I have become conscious of the middle age spread I have stopped making Mughlai cusine for the food is rich. But there are exceptions and here is one of them.

Respecting my FIL’s sentiments I generally do not cook eggs. But when he is out of station we eat live and drink eggs.