Spiced Butters

Giving makeovers to your everyday butter is really easy.
Using different spice flavored butters is a wonderful way to introduce kids to the aromatic world of spices.

Spiced butters can be stored in the freezer for a 1-2 months. You can slice rounds of frozen spiced butter and store them in the refrigerator for 3-4 days.

Coconut Burfi with Kesar Milk Masala extract

Coconut Burfi is a very popular dessert in India and requires just 3-4 ingredients. I make it the easy way and do not make any sugar syrup.
Note: You could also use Cardamom extract instead of Kesar Milk masala extract.

Ingredients:

1 cup desiccated coconut
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup Milk
4-5 drops of Kesar Milk Masala extract

In a pan, add desiccated coconut, milk and sugar. Stir and cook till the mixture becomes thick. Keep stirring to avoid burning coconut at the bottom of the pan. Once the mixture is thick and all the milk has evaporated, add 4-5 drops of Kesar Milk masala extract. Stir and take the pan off the heat. Pour the mixture in a plate, press well and let cool. Once cooled, cut diamond shaped burfis.

Morning Walk

I love to go for my morning walk. Especially when its foggy :)

Tomato Rasam with extracts

Tomato Rasam is one of my favorites.
Madhuram of Eggless Cooking gave me a very quick and wonderful recipe for tomato rasam. She suggested the use of tomato paste which I found to be very interesting. I have made this rasam many times and have tweaked it a bit. I find Madhuram's recipes creative but simple and yummy. Check out her blog for some really good recipes for eggless cakes, cookies, etc.

Ingredients:

1 can Tomato paste
1-2 drops of Green Chilli extract
1 drop of Asafoetida extract
1-2 drops of Turmeric extract
2 drops of Garlic extract
1 drop of Ginger extract
1 tsp Rasam powder
!/2 tsp cumin seeds
very little oil
Salt to taste
1 cup of water ( add more if you want a bit thinner rasam)
Cilantro for garnish

Heat the oil in a pan. Add cumin seeds and let it splutter. Add tomato paste, water and rasam powder. Stir. Bring it to a boil and then reduce heat. Add turmeric extract, garlic extract, green chilli extract, ginger extract, asafoetida extract. Add salt to taste Let simmer for a minute or two. Take it off the heat. Garnish with cilantro. Serve hot.

Note that I am not using any tamarind. The canned tomato paste is perfect for this easy, breezy rasam :)

Doodhi Halwa with Cardamom extract

I love Doodhi the most when it is served in this sweet and simple Halwa avatar :)

Ingredients:

1 Doodhi (Bottle gourd)
1/2 can condensed milk
3-4 drops of Cardamom extract
( You could also use Kesar Milk masala extract )
Little butter


Peel and grate doodhi. Heat little butter in a pan, add grated doodhi. Cook for about 8 - 10 min . Add condensed milk and let the mixture cook on low flame for another 7-8 min. Take it off the heat. Add Cardamom extract. Stir and serve with some raisins or cashews sprinkled on top.

Another variation is to add Saffron extract to give this humble dessert a royal touch.

Ayurvedic Tea

This is one simple tea that can be helpful in curing cold.

1 drop Ginger extract
1 drop Cinnamon extract
1/2 stalk of Lemongrass

Steep lemongrass stalk in a cup of hot water for 10 min. To this add Ginger extract and Cinnamon extract. Add honey for sweetness if you like.
This tea really tastes delicious. Take this tea 2-3 times a day to relieve cold symptoms and congestion.

From my Backyard

From my backyard to yours, a look at Mother Nature's different looks on different days.

Oatmeal Raisin cookies with spices

This summer me and my kids have decided to do lot of baking. Its been just 2 weeks since my kids summer vacation started and we already made Banana bread a couple of times, made cupcakes and 2-3 kinds of cookies :)

Baking with kids is the most enjoyable way to spend summer afternoons.

We recently tried Beth's Oatmeal Raisin cookies recipe. These cookies came out wonderful and my kids loved them.

In my previous post, I mentioned the importance of cloves. This Oatmeal cookie recipe calls for 2 spices (clove & cinnamon) and is an excellent way to introduce kids to spices.

Here is the recipe with my slight variations.

• 1 cup butter, softened ( I know, its lot of butter. The original recipe calls for 1/2 cup butter and 1/2 cup butter flavored shortening. )
  
• 1 cup packed light brown sugar
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 3-4 drops of cinnamon extract
  
• 3-4 drops clove extract
  
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3 cups rolled oats
• 1 cup raisins

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

1. In a large bowl, cream together the butter, brown sugar, white sugar, eggs until smooth. Combine the flour, baking soda, cinnamon extract, clove extract, and salt; stir into the sugar mixture. Stir in the oats and raisins. Drop by rounded teaspoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheets.
2. Bake 10 to 12 minutes until light and golden. Do not over bake. Let them cool for 2 minutes before removing from cookie sheets to cool completely. Store in airtight container.
   

This is a good change from the Chocolate chip cookies. These cookies came out chewy and were ready to eat in less that an hour.