Red Carrot Cashew Halwa Recipe

In India, Halwas are prepared in various typesand carrot halwa being one of them. Though taste wise carrot halwa made from red / orange carrot doesn't make much difference, but the ones made from red are more appealing to the eyes :).A good thing about this dessert is that you can indulge them without feeling much guilty as amount of ghee and sugar used is less in comparison to other desserts. 

Ingredients :

Fresh Carrot - 1 kg
Milk - approx 1 litre ( you can use full fat milk for richness )
Sugar - 1 -1 1/2 cups
Ghee -3-4 tbsp ( can add or reduce this quantity)
Cardamom  - 5-6
Cashew nuts,almonds & raisins - as much as you like

Method :

• Wash,peel the skin and grate carrot using food processor or by hand grater.
• Add about 1 tbsp of ghee in a wide thick pan or kadai. Roast nuts.When they are golden brown in color,remove and keep aside.
• To the same pan add grated carrot and saute for abt 5 mins.Carrot will turn slightly pale in color..
• Now add milk and cook uncovered on medium flame.Let the carrot cook in milk .Stir once in a while.Continue the process till the carrot drinks almost all milk. This will take almost 30-40 mins.
• When the mixture is almost dry ,add sugar and mix well. You can observe that carrot mixture again liquefies and changes in color.
• Stir at regular intervals and cook till sugar dries up and mixture turns thick .This may take about 10 mins.
• Now add remaining ghee .You will observe that the halwa will get a nice glaze after the addition of ghee.
• Add cardamom powder, roasted dry fruits and mix well.Continue to cook till the carrot halwa acquires desired consistency (i-e) the halwa when turned forms a single mass .
• Switch off the flame and serve hot /at room temp or chilled .Remains fresh for about a week if refrigerated in a container.

Dry Fruits Laddu Recipe

This recipe is childhood favorite.People who don't have a sweet tooth too would surely get lost relishing these delicious " Dry fruit Laddus " . Made using lots of nuts , they are not just delicious but very very healthy..one of the best food during winters .Diwali is round the corner , whats more exotic than these dry fruits laddus .

Ingredients : Makes about 20 laddus .

Badam - 1/2 cup
Dry Dates -1/2 cup
raisins - 1/2 cup
Cashews - 1/2 cup
Pista - 1/2 cup
grated Dry Coconut - 3 cups
Poppy seeds - 1/2 cup
Jaggery - 2.5 cups
Ghee - 1/2-3/4 cup
For flavor
Cardamom - 4-5 nos

Cloves - 3-4 nos
Mace - a small piece
Nutmeg - little grated




Method :

• Chop all the dry fruits to thin long pieces . 
• Dry roast all the flavoring ingredients ie cardamom , cloves,mace etc and crush to powder .
• Dry roast poppy seeds such that they are aromatic . 
• Take a kadai /a pan and take a tbsp of ghee.
• Add ghee and fry till they get nicely puffed up like popcorn . Mine was not of good quality so didn't puff as desired . Once done , keep aside .
• In the same kadai /pan , fry almonds, raisins,cashews, pista and dates separately until they are crisp .Add little ghee each time.
• Add the roasted nut , roasted poppy seeds,dried coconut and flavor powder in a big bowl. Mix well.
• Now make jaggery syrup . Take the kadai / pan and add jaggery . Add little water to it say 1/2 cup . Bring it to boil and let the jaggery melt and turn thick 1 string consistency.
• Meanwhile heat ghee . 
• Pour the jaggery syrup , hot ghee into the mixed nuts mixtures . 
• Mix everything well . 
• When the mixture is warm enough to handle , take a handful of it and roll to form laddu . 
• Store dry fruit laddus in air tight containers and relish as and when required . Stays good for atleast a month without refrigeration . 

rava ladoo recipe

kids just love these laddus.many people saying that making rava laddu is difficult ! One needs to make the perfect syrup, etc .Two ways of making Rava Laddo, one by using sugar syrup and other one by adding sugar powder.Sugar syrup method is easier,also laddus made from this method turn soft and are easy to roll.Flavor wise both of them taste great. 

Ingredients :

Fine Rava / Fine semolina -  1 glass
Shredded fresh Coconut -1/2 glass
Ghee -1/4 glass
Sugar -3/4 glass or little less (depends on your sweet level)
Cashew,raisins
Cardamom

 Method

• Take a thick-bottomed kadai and little ghee to it. Fry the cashew nuts until light brown over low heat. Drain and transfer to plate.
•  Fry raisins in same ghee until they puff up, drain and transfer them to plate
• To the same kadai ,add rava ,coconut and remaining ghee .
•  Roast it over low heat until its color changes to very light brown and fragrant starts to come .Transfer to a bowl. Be careful , don't over roast .
• Next heat water(approx 1/2 glass) and sugar in the kadai over medium flame and stir continuously until sugar melts into syrup .
• The sugar syrup should be sticky and lightly one string consistency. Turn off the heat. Dont overcook the sugar syrup.
• Slowly add semolina-shredded coconut mix  in syrup and stir continuously to avoid lumps.
• Add cashew nuts, raisins and cardamom powder and mix well. 
• Allow it to cool at room temperature until warm enough to handle.
•  give them a shape of ball (laddu) with your palms.
•  Rava laddus are ready.Store in an airtight container and enjoy it at anytime you like. 

Mixed Nuts Brittle Recipe

Its so tasty ,very addictive and remains one of  favorites since childhood.There are many types of chikki one can make and the most common being Groundnut Chikki.this time let it be " Mixed Nuts / Dry fruits Chikki ".One can enjoy it as a snack or a dessert. It is crunchy and crispy just like brittle, and it’s sweetness comes from jaggery or sugar.They are quiet easy to make with just a few ingredients.Just that you need to be really quick towards the end.With festival season just around the corner, this must be the perfect time for you all to try this very healthy snack / dessert

Ingredients:

Mixed Nuts - 1 cup (Peanut ,Almonds, Pistachios and Cashew nuts equal quantity)

White sesame seeds - 1/4 cup

Sugar/ Gur( jaggery ) 3/4 cup

Ghee - 2 tsp + extra for greasing rolling pin and the foil or tray or kitchen slab.

Baking soda - 1 pinch 

Method:

• Firstly cut Peanut , almonds, pista and cashew nuts into thin slices.
• Heat a pan or kadai, add the sesame seeds and dry roast on a medium flame till they splutter.Remove and keep aside to cool.
• To the same pan add a tsp of ghee  and roast all the mixed nuts for about a minute or two.This will enhance the tastes of nuts.Remove and keep aside to cool.
• Grease the tray or aluminum foil with the ghee. Similarly grease the rolling pin which you’re going to use for flattening the Brittle.
• Next add a tsp of ghee to the pan. Rotate the pan such ghee gets coated to the pan.Add sugar ,spread and 2 tsp of water. 
• Keep the flame high and keep stirring.When sugar starts melting reduce the flame to low.
• Once the sugar melts its start changing its color. This is known as caramelization or browning of sugar.Keep stirring continuously.Sugar syrup will change to light brown color.
• When sugar changes to light brown color, switch off and immediately add a pinch of baking soda and roasted mixed nuts.
• Mix nuts and caramelized sugar well.Pour it over greased slab and flatten using rolling pin.
• When it is warm draw lines according to desired shape.
• Once cool cut and store in air tight container. Enjoy delicious crispy crunchy Mixed Nuts Brittle

Turmeric Benefits For Youthful Skin & Great Hair

Turmeric is known as golden spice of India.Turmeric is very low in Cholesterol and Sodium. It is also a good source of Vitamin C and Magnesium, and a very good source of Dietary Fiber, Vitamin B6, Iron, Potassium and Manganese.It has been used by  Ayurvedic and Unani practitioners in India from time immemorial.It is an essential ingredient in curry powder and also used in mustard blends and relishes.Turmeric is popularly used in cosmetic industry for preparing herbal products.

1. Anti-Bacterial Agent:

              Turmeric paste is still used to heal small cuts and burns. 

2. Facial Hair Control:

               If applied daily, it has been seen that turmeric helps to slow the growth of facial hair which is a problem faced by many women. 

3. Anti-Aging:

           Haldi powder or paste if mixed with equal amounts of besan and raw milk makes a great exfoliate and makes skin glow. Use this pack before bathing. Haldi helps to keep the skin looking young and fresh. As it contains many antioxidants, it is great for aging skin. It helps stimulate new cell growth and help keep the skin’s elasticity intact.

4.Pigmentation Stretch Marks:

             If you have pigmentation and discoloration then using turmeric will surely help. Turmeric is said to lighten pigmentation and even out skin tone. Stretch marks often become a problem for ladies and a mixture of turmeric, besan, and raw milk/rose water/yogurt will help lighten the marks and even out the skin tone. The pack should be applied daily and kept until it dries completely.

5.Cracked Heels:

           Make a mixture of castor/coconut oil and add a bit of turmeric powder. Apply this on your cracked heels and areas where your skin has become excessively dry. It is heal the cracked heels faster,and it also helps to make the heels softer.