Gajar ka Halwa also known as Gajrela is an Indian Carrot Pudding that’s prepared with ghee, carrots, milk, sugar, cardamom, and nuts. This is a Punjabi dessert that is widely popular in North India, especially during the winter months and Diwali season. This nutritious Gajrela can be enjoyed both or cold, I personally love my Gajrela hot (without nuts).
Carrot Pudding
Just with a few ingredients you can make this perfect sweet dish – Gajar Ka Halwa. Traditionally, it is made with fresh red carrot, ghee, mava and lots of dry fruits. There are many different ways of preparing Gajar ka Halwa, some make it with evaporated milk while others use condensed milk. In this recipe, I used homemade khoya, made with milk powder and it’s taste delicious.
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Ingredients : Grated Carrot – 2 cups Ghee – 1/4 cup Sugar – 1/2 cup Khoya or mawa – 1/2 cup Chopped Dry fruits – 1/2 cup (Almonds, Cashews, Raisins, Pistachios) Green Cardamom powder – 1 tsp A Pinch of Himalayan salt
Method :
Wash, peel carrot and make coarse by using food processor. It yields up to 2 cups of coarse carrots.
Heat ghee in a deep pan and add coarse carrots. Saute on medium heat for 10 minutes.
After 10 minutes, sugar with salt and cardamom powder. Simmer until it thickens. It takes about 10 minutes.
Now add khoya and mix well. Cook for 3-4 minutes on low heat.
Cakes are unsurprisingly everyone’s favorite, be it a birthday, anniversary or any other occasion or just have a slice of cake with tea or coffee. This cake is a delicious, sinful cake that is healthier, tastier, and eggless, butterless – Isn’t it wonderful? Made with whole wheat flour make it healthier with the crunch of dry fruits. This cake recipe is easy, super moist, and rich in chocolate flavor. This is everything that makes a cake all the more exciting.
No Egg, No All Purpose Flour, No Butter
Whole wheat flour adds more nutrition, fiber, nutty and tasty flavor, to baked goods and other flours based ( all-purpose flour) recipes. However, this flour can sometimes make the finished product seem drier and produce a coarser texture than using a more refined all-purpose flour.
Healthy Chocolate Cake
Adding the right of liquid is essential when baking with whole wheat flour, as the flour tends to absorb liquid more slowly. The general rule of thumb is to add an extra teaspoon of liquid (water, milk, or buttermilk) for each cup of whole wheat flour used.
Tea Time Cake – Healthy Wholesome Treat
No Egg, No All Purpose Flour, No Butter | Healthy Chocolate Cake
Don’t have an Oven or Microwave? Don’t worry, you can still bake this chocolate cake in your stovetop. Baking at home also gives you control over the quality and quantity of ingredients that go into the making of the cake. This eggless chocolate cake recipe makes it easier and fuss-free to make the classic cake for people with inhibitions over eggs that too without compromising on its flavor. Eggless cakes can be tricky, but they don’t always have to be complicated. This one here is sweet chocolatey flavor and light moist texture make it perfect to celebrate any occasion 🙂
Loaded With Healthy Dry Fruits
Ingredients : Whole wheat flour – 1 & 1/2 cups + 2 tsp Brown sugar – 3/4 cup or 1 cup Cocoa powder – 1/4 cup Milk – 1 cup Mix of nuts & seeds – 1 & 1/2 cups Refined oil – 1/4 cup Baking powder – 2 tsp A pinch of Himalayan pink salt
Toss chopped dry fruits with flour. Then add chopped dry fruits and mix them well. Keep mixture aside.
Wet ingredients – In a grinder mix brown sugar, oil, milk and grind them until smooth mixture.
Mix both dry and wet mixtures together. Now cake batter is ready.
Put prepared batter into a greased square pan. Add dry fruits of your choice over batter and with help of spatula press nuts gently.
Tab the pan on a countertop to release any large air bubbles.
Put the pan into the preheated wok and bake it for 1 hour 10 minutes.
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Tips:
Adjust sugar according to your taste.
Baking time may vary.
If baking in Oven: Bake in the preheated oven at 180 deg Celsius or around 360 Fahrenheit for about 60 minutes. The baking time may vary. So keep checking the cake after 40 to 45 minutes.
Kadai or Wok Cake
HOW TO BAKE THE CAKE IN KADAI (WOK)
In a heavy bottom kadai add a cup of salt or sand. Place a steel stand in a wok. Cover and preheat the kadai on high heat for about 8 minutes. (Adding salt at the bottom ensures that the kadai doesn’t burn. Heavy bottom kadai acts as oven and ensures even cooking from all sides). I never used salt in my baking because I use a heavy bottom kadai (Prestige Brand) and I am baking for the past 2 years in the same kadai. It works perfectly fine. But, it depends on the brand, quality of the kadai.
After 8 minutes, lower the heat and put baking tin in a kadai. Cover a lid and bake bread for 60 minutes. After 60 minutes check cake with a knife, if the mixture does not stick, it means the bread is done. If batter still sticks to knife then again bread for another 10 minutes.
Besan Dhokla is one my favorite breakfast. Dhokla is a Gujarati recipe made using besan, baking soda or Eno, and tempered with curry leaves. This vegetarian snack is an ideal dish for occasions like kitty parties, family get together or picnic. It is protein-rich, healthy and very easy to make with very few ingredients.
Dhokla is not only tasty but is healthy and nutritious too as it made by steaming instead of frying. Also Besan (Gram Flour) which is its main ingredient, has fewer calories and more proteins as compared to wheat flour. Dhokla is very easy to make and can be enjoyed as a snack at any time of the day. It is also a great option for a light and healthy breakfast.
Steamed Gram Flour Sweet Savory Cake
Ingredients: For Dhokla: Besan – 1 cup Curd – 1/2 cup Water – 1/2 cup Oil – 1/2 tsp Eno or Baking Soda – 1 tsp Turmeric – 1/2 tsp Juice of one lemon Salt to taste
For Tempering: Black mustard seeds or Rai – 1/2 tsp White sesame seeds – 1 tbsp Curry leaves – 8 Oil – 1/2 tbsp Water – 1 & 1/4 cup Green chili – 2 Juice of one lemon Sugar – 1 tbsp Salt – 1/2 tsp
Steamed, Juicy Besan Dhokla
Method:
Mix all ingredients mentioned under dhokla except Eno. Keep it aside for 10 minutes.
Keep 2 cups of water in a deep kadhai and put a stand in it. Cover it and let it boil for 5 minutes. Now add Eno in a dhokla batter and pour 1 tsp of lemon juice over it. Mix it well.
Pour Dhokla batter into greased pan and steam for 15-20 minutes. Check with a toothpick if it cum out clean then it’s done. Allow dhokla to cool completely.
For Tempering: Heat oil in a small pan, first add the mustard seeds. Let them pop first. Now add chopped chilies and then white sesame seeds and curry leaves.
In bowl mix water, sugar and add this mixture to tempering and boil for a minute.
Then switch off the flame and add lemon juice. Mix it well.
Then pour this hot mixture over steamed besan dhokla and cut into the desired shape.
Healthy Way To Start Your Day – A Glass Of Goodness
A Glass Of Goodness
Loaded with fruits, this Mixed Fruit Milkshake is a must try for summers. A refreshing blend of fresh fruits like papaya, bananas, mangoes, and apple. Garnish with dry fruits and roasted sunflower seeds this milkshake recipe is enough to make your summer days delightful.
Summer Drink
Ingredients : For Milkshake: Mango – 1 small Apple – 1 small Banana – 1 Chopped Papaya – 1 cup Sugar – 1 tbsp ( optional ) Chilled milk – 2 cups
For Garnishing: Chopped Mix dry fruits – 1/2 tbsp Pomegranate seeds – few for garnishing Roasted Sunflower seeds – 2 tbsp
Refreshing Summer Drink
Method :
Mix all above milkshake ingredients with 1 cup of milk and blend until smooth.
Now add remaining 1 cup of milk and blend everything together.
Garnish with dry fruits, pomegranate, and roasted sunflower seeds.
Eggless Cherry Orange Cake is a moist and delicious fruit cake. It could also be called a Whole Orange Cake because the entire orange (peel, juice, and pulp) is used. It is perfect served with a warm cup of tea or coffee. In Orange cake generally, we use juice or zest of orange. But in this cake, I used “boiled orange”. Yes, boiled orange with peel, juice, and pulp. It will give you a perfect & full flavored orange cake. Oranges Lovers do try this cake.
Eggless Cherry Orange Cake
Ingredients :
Flour – 1 cup
( I used 50:50, Whole Wheat Flour: Maida or All Purpose Flour )
Malta Orange – 1
Cherry (deseeded) – 1 cup
Powdered White Sugar – 1/2 cup
Cold milk – 1/2 cup
Refined Oil – 1/4 cup
Vanilla custard powder – 1 tbsp
Baking powder – 1/2 tsp
Baking Soda – 1/2 tsp
A pinch of salt
Boiled Orange Cake
Method:
Boil whole orange (with skin) in a pressure cooker with 2 cups of water (cook in low flame till one whistle ) or in a saucepan put 2 cups of water and orange. Boil it for 60 minutes covered in low flame.
After boiling allow orange to cool down completely. Then remove its pulp and remove pith from the skin.
Wet mixture: In a grinder mix sugar, oil, cold milk, boiled orange (with the skin after removing pith) and grind into a smooth batter.
Toss cherry with 1 tbsp of whole wheat flour and keep it aside.
Dry mixture: Sieve flour, baking powder, baking soda, vanilla custard powder, salt. Add tossed cherry and keep it aside.
Mix tossed cherries with dry and wet mixtures. Mix them well.
Put prepared batter into a greased pan and tab the cake pan on a countertop to release any large air bubbles.
Put the cake pan into the preheated pressure cooker and bake it for 1 hour 10 minutes.
Tea Time Cake
Tips:
Use Malta Orange for the best result.
Don’t reduce the quality of sugar otherwise, the cake will taste bitter.
Baking time may vary.
If baking in Oven: Bake in the preheated oven at 180 deg Celsius or around 360 Fahrenheit for about 1 hour 10 minutes. The baking time may vary. So keep checking the cake after 40 to 45 minutes.
Baking With Whole Wheat
Pressure Cooker Method:
Grease the baking tin with oil and dust it by sprinkling whole wheat flour over greased surface evenly. Pour the mixture into the greased baking tin.
Important Notes:
Use the baking tin of 6 inches in diameter, so that it can easily get into the pressure cooker.
Use a 5-liter pressure cooker. It should be big enough to hold the baking pan.
Baking Tin should be made of Aluminium.
If baking tin comes into direct contact with the base of the pressure cooker, it can burn ( overbake ) the cake. So use pressure cooker container which has big holes in it or any aluminum small stand.
No gasket and whistle are needed. Remove them before baking.
Don’t add water to the pressure cooker.
Pressure Cooker Cake
How to Bake In A Pressure Cooker?
Heat the pressure cooker on high heat for 2 minutes. Use sea salt or sand as a layer inside a cooker. Put a steel stand on a layer of salt or sand.
Now put the cake tin containing the cake batter ( Do not put water inside the pressure cooker).
Close the pressure cooker lid and do not put the whistle on the lid. Remove the gasket (rubber ring) from the lid.
Lower the flame after 2 minutes. Let it bake for 50 -60 minutes on low flame. After 60 minutes check cake with a knife, if the mixture does not stick, it means the cake is done.
If batter still sticks to knife then again bake for another 10 minutes. Do not open the lid immediately.
People’s preference for either tea or coffee is rooted in their genes. Being a Pahadi, Chai is like a drug to us – “One cuppa chai is all we need”.
Beaten coffee is very different from the regular coffee which we make using instant coffee powders. This coffee is deliciously creamy, rich and frothy. I am not a big fan of coffee but I had beaten coffee at my friend’s place and I loved it.
Thank you, Isha Dabral for this wonderful beaten coffee recipe.
The reason it is called Beaten Coffee as the process involves beating the coffee and sugar mixture to incorporate air into it. When hot milk is added to this frothy coffee mixture, it releases air making a thick froth on top of the cup.
The process of beating the mixture though takes a good 20 minutes if using your hands. I used hand blender to beat my coffee mixture and all it takes is 5 minutes for it to reach the perfect light and foamy consistency and the taste is just perfect and no muscle work.
Hand Beaten Coffee | Two ways – Hot Cappuccino & Hot Chocolate Cappuccino
For 2 cups
Ingredients : Coffee – 2 tsp Powdered Sugar or Brown Sugar – 4 tsp or ( as per your taste ) Water – 1 tsp Hot milk – 2 cups Cocoa powder – 1 tbsp
Method :
Mix all the above ingredients ( except hot milk & cocoa powder ) in a cup.
Now beat this mixture with a spoon or with hand beater. Beat the mixture continuously for 4 to 5 minutes.
After a while, the mixture will be light brown in color and also so thick that it will not drop off the spoon if turned over.
Now boil the milk and add 2 tbsp of beaten coffee mixture in a cup and add hot milk. Stir and enjoy.
For chocolate flavor, add 1/2 tsp cocoa powder beat the coffee gain for a minute. Then add add 2 tbsp of beaten chocolate coffee mixture in a cup and add hot milk. Stir and sprinkle some chocolate chips.
Mad About Cooking 