Shahi Tukda : Valentine Special

Shahi Treatment for The Prince Charming : Shahi means Royal, and what better way to make your husband feel royal on Valentine's day than to cook his favourite meal and top it all with a royal dessert :) As it was a working day, i decided to arrange a surprise for him...Yes, the usual surprise cards, aromatic candles, love messages in tiffin box, a photo collage, a bottle of wine, some homemade choclate muffins.... All this was definately making him smile. But i guess the way to a man's heart is definately through his stomach...when i cooked his favourite chicken dish for main course, that got him showing me all his teeth :)) And i topped it all off with this dessert....A super fun filled valentine's :) 
Basundi ( Recipe uploaded earlier ) (  http://cookininpajamas.blogspot.in/2014/01/basundi-sweetened-milk.html ) is one of his favourite desserts.. so i normally make it once a month...So, to make something special for Valentine's , i decided to make Rabdi ( More thickened milk ) and top it on the shahi tukda. 

I had never tried this dish before, had only eaten at several restaurants. But making it was super easy and super fun ! Makes for a good sweet craving, and  a dessert everyone will enjoy at your home :)

Ingredients :

Milk - 1 Litre

Sugar - 1/3 rd cup

Water - A little

Ghee - To fry the bread slices

Saffron - a few strands 

Milkmaid ( Sweetened condensed milk ) - 2 tbsp ( This is optional, you can totally skip this or if you want, can add 1-2 tbsp of sugar instead )

Chopped nuts - almonds, Pistachios, Cashews, raisins ( Any of your choice for garnishing )

Bread slices - 4

Recipe :

Soak saffron in about 2-3 tbsp of milk.

Bring milk to boil in a non stick or a heavy bottomed pan. Reduce the heat to sim, and bring the milk to 1/2 of it's original...Keep stirring in between. It will start becoming thick and changing colour.

Now add the condensed milk ( or sugar ). If not, just add the saffron-milk mixture. Keep stirring again and reduce the milk to 1/2 of it's consistency ( comes to about 1/4th of it's original consistency ). It has to be of pouring consistency and not too thick. 

Let it come to room tempertaure. And then keep it in the fridge to cool. This is called Rabdi.

Meanwhile, take sugar in a saucepan and fill it with water just enough to cover the sugar. Let it come to a boil, and then simmer it for around 3-4 minutes more..( Remove a drop and see if it sticks to your finger, and forms a thread... That's when you know it's done)

Now Take the bread slices and cut it's edges. Now cut them diagonally into triangle shapes ( You can cut each slice into 2 or 4 parts, i prefer cutting them into 4 ). Heat ghee in a pan. Now fry the bread slices in ghee on medium/low flame till they become crisp and brown. Its important that the slices be crisp.

Remove and soak on a tissue paper. Now dip them into the sugar syrup for about 10 seconds and arrange them on the plate. Add the cool rabdi on top and garnish with chopped nuts.

Enjoy in the royal dessert... Tastes Heavenly delicious....:))

You can add the sugar syrup to the rabdi and even eat rabdi as a dessert in itself. Adjust the sugar content according to taste.

Alternatively, you can make shahi tukdas and store it in fridge. It stays for about 3-4 days.

Happy Cooking :)

Coconut ladoos

"The best thing about having a sister is having a best friend forever". I love this quote and by God's grace, i have been blessed by some of the very sweet sisters as cousins. They have been there with me through thick and thin and they always lend a silent support in everything i do. Just when i started this food blog, i really got some encouraging statements by one of my little sister and another sent me a list of recipes to try out ! One such sister is Mrinalini Kulkarni ( we call her Mona tai - Tai in Marathi language means elder sister).

Monatai and me have grown up together. We used to eat in one plate, wore each other's clothes, shared all the deepest secrets and yet, given each other the space we needed individually. She is married to a loving husband and has 2 beautiful children now. Just a few days back, i had mentioned her about me having 1/2 a tin of condensed milk ( the other 1/2 i had used in making kheer) and what do i do with it, when she gave me this easy quick recipe of coconut ladoos. So this one's dedicated to Monatai.

Coconut ladoos is a melt in your mouth recipe that you can make for special occassions like Ganesh Chaturthi, Navratri or any festival. Now that Diwali is coming, i thought to post this recipe. Its a good substitute to the besan and rava ladoos that are normally made in every home ( though they taste yummy too!!! ). Try this 4-ingredient recipe and your ladoos are ready in no time !!! :)

Ingredients :

Condensed milk ( Milkmaid ) - 1/2 tin

Dessicated coconut - 2 cups ( you get readymade packets in market)

Cardamom powder - 1/2 tsp ( optional )

Pistachios - Chopped lengthwise ( to garnish )

Recipe :

Heat a pan and mix condensed milk with 1 n 1/2 cup of dessicated coconut ( keep the half cup aside ) and keep stirring it on low flame. The mixture will start leaving the sides of pan.

Add cardamom powder. 

Remove from heat and let it cool.

Take the remaining dessicated coconut in a plate. Roll small ladoos of the mixture into this coconut. If the mixture is sticking to your hand, apply little oil on palm.

Garnish with pistachios.

Happy cooking :)