Ideas for Indian Cooking Program

Hi Bipasha,

you can look up on sanjeevkapoor.com he has a section for microwave cooking and decide on ingredients that you might find in the groceries near you.

I would suggest Basundi:

Ingredients:
1. Whole milk
2. Sugar
3. nuts of your choice.

Heat the milk and reduce it to half by volume in the microwave add sugar and nuts and serve it chill.

-Vidya

Originally Posted by Jithiks

Hi Bipasha,

Did you make the indian recipes for the cooking program?

Can you share how the program went and what all did you prepare? We are eagerly awaiting to hear from you !

Cheers
Krithika

me too me too me tooo

want to hear how those kids prepared the indian dishes and what was on menu

thank u jithiks. let me try it out. i was looking for it. me & my husband love puffs. & i want to make it at home. let me try now.

Originally Posted by Jithiks

Hi Bipasha,

I have included the recipe for VEGGIE PUFF here. Though it may seem long, if you make the stuffing the previous day, it is easy to prepare the puffs next day morning.
Anyway, it is upto you. If you feel this is too laborious for this library programme, you can always try this at home on a relaxing day and enjoy this tasty snack with .


RECIPE FOR VEGGIE PUFFS

Puff Pastry Sheets:
These are available in Walmart and the brand name is Pepperidge farm.
They also have pastry shells sold separately and these contain only 6 shells per packet.
I usually make 18 puffs from one packet of puff pastry sheets( these are 2 separate sheets – 9 puffs out of each)
These need to be stored in freezer. When ready to use, thaw them in room temperature for abt 45 mts to an hour.
Stuffing:
Ingredients:
· Potatoes- 9 or 10 medium sized
· Carrots – Chopped or Shredded
· Peas – Frozen or fresh

Spices:
· Dhaniya Powder ( I usually make them with dhaniya (coriander seeds), channa dal and red chillies which are dry roasted in a kadai and coarsely powdered in a blender)
· Jeera (Cumon seeds)
· fennel seeds (Sombu/Saunf)
· Turmeric powder (Haldi/Manjal podi)
· Asofoteida Powder (Hing/perungayam)
· Salt (according to taste)
Preparation Method:
1. Pressure-cook the potatoes in the pressure cooker. Drain the water, peel the skin and mash them. Add the dhaniya powder, turmeric powder, salt, and asofoteida to this and mix this well. Keep this aside.
2. Heat a kadai /pan and add a little amount of oil.
3. To this add, jeera, fennel seeds.
4. After they heat up, add turmeric powder and asofoteida powder.
5. Add the chopped/shredded carrots and the frozen peas.
6. Now add the dhaniya powder and salt according to taste.
7. These need not be cooked fully on the stove since they will be completely cooked when baking in the oven.
8. Now combine the mashed potatoes with the carrots and peas. Let this cool down.
(You can make this stuffing the previous day also and store it in the fridge.)
Meanwhile the puff pastry sheets will be thawed and easy to handle. Keep them on the wax paper when cutting them according to the desired shape. You can also add a bit of all purpose flour under the sheets so that they do not stick)
9.They can be cut into rectangles/squares/triangles. I usually make them in rectangle shapes.
10.Place the stuffing in the rectangles and close them tight by pinching the sides with a little water/flour.
Make sure they are not over filled since they may be burst at the seams when baking if there is too much filling. Poke the puffs gently with a fork before placing them in the oven. This acts as a vent for the steam and the puffs retain the shape well.
11. Preheat the oven to 400*F (this may take 10-15mts depending on the oven’s capacity)
12. Place the stuffed puffs on a cookie tray in the upper section (lined with aluminum foil) inside the oven for abt 20-25mts. Make sure it is not very near the heat. Place them well spaced as they tend to get bigger when baking.
It is better to keep a close eye on the puffs when they are baking even though it takes 20mts.
VOILA!! You have GOLDEN BROWN PUFFS WHICH ARE CRISPY ON THE OUTSIDE AND SOFT ON THE INSIDE!!
Take them out; let them rest for abt 2 mts. Then they are ready to eat!!
They are a sure hit all the time whenever I make them at home for parties, potlucks etc.
When making more puffs, you can make them in batches.
Hope you have fun making and tasting them just like I do all the time!

Thanks,
Jithiks (Krithika)

Hi All,

Today I had the Indian Cooking for Teens program at the Library.And It was a success!!!!
Everyone loved the food...they appreciated that it was easy to make.
As I didnt have acces to a stove I had to end up with Sandwiches and Mango Lassi.
But they loved it.Esp the mango lassi.
I thank you all for helping me with the recipes..

Bipasha

Hi Bipasha,

I've been eagerly waiting to hear the update from you and here you are...

So Sandwiches and mango lassi...uh?

What type of sandwiches did you make?

Great to know that it was a success ! Were you the only one to contribute the indian items..or were there others too? Can you please elaborate?

Cheers
Krithika

Originally Posted by bipasha

Hi All,

Today I had the Indian Cooking for Teens program at the Library.And It was a success!!!!
Everyone loved the food...they appreciated that it was easy to make.
As I didnt have acces to a stove I had to end up with Sandwiches and Mango Lassi.
But they loved it.Esp the mango lassi.
I thank you all for helping me with the recipes..

Bipasha

Hi Krithika,

I made a tri colour Sandwich with Coriander Chutney and tomato Ketchup.The kids liked that a lot.
And Aloo Tikkis .which I prepared before hand in the kitchen and described them the process of preparing them.
Since the program was about Indian Cooking I was the only one to present.
Sine there were seats left for others to accomodate Adults with Children also came in!!
They were glad to know that Indian cooking be easy!!
I got a chance to talk about the tradition of India like how we make Ghee at home .
Also I got to knw that they loved Indian breads like Naan and Bhatura
It was a pleasant experience for me..

Bipasha

Hi Bipasha,

Looks like you a great time making and participating in the programme.

They must have really enjoyed the food and sure making ghee at home would have been a revelation to them !

Keep spreading the goodness of our Indian cooking !

Cheers
Krithika

Originally Posted by bipasha

Hi Krithika,

I made a tri colour Sandwich with Coriander Chutney and tomato Ketchup.The kids liked that a lot.
And Aloo Tikkis .which I prepared before hand in the kitchen and described them the process of preparing them.
Since the program was about Indian Cooking I was the only one to present.
Sine there were seats left for others to accomodate Adults with Children also came in!!
They were glad to know that Indian cooking be easy!!
I got a chance to talk about the tradition of India like how we make Ghee at home .
Also I got to knw that they loved Indian breads like Naan and Bhatura
It was a pleasant experience for me..

Bipasha