Childhood nostalgia captured in a jar!

Making jams and preserves is a great way to enjoy the season's bounty long after the season has ended. Winters are long past but we are still savoring its citrusy bounty in my orange marmalade - slathered on a whole wheat toast or just spooning some of it into the yoghurt.

In yesteryear preserving seasonal fruits, was more for keeping things when they were available in plenty. In today's time when you get practically everything all the year round, the reason for preserving fruits appears to be entirely different - it is indeed the health bug which has bitten the more aware and the more affluent. Homemade stuff seems a healthy, unadulterated option and also as it is sure to taste more superior to anything found on the supermarket shelves.

I am often asked how exhausting it must be to stand in the kitchen overseeing and closely monitoring the entire process ... fruits being selected, washed, being chopped, soaked, stirred and so on ... yes there is undoubtedly a whole lot of effort involved in handling all that fruit, weighing, testing the jams and preserves for a set ... but it doesn't seem a task because I enjoy doing it. In fact a sense of calmness engulfs me and I am totally focused on the task at hand. It's a great feeling to be able to relate to something so delicious particularly when you sense and feel the freshness, the taste and health that is embodied in it. The best part comes when each batch is to be is the sampled and  you wait anxiously to see the reaction ... is it a big and instant smile, a somewhat forced one, or worse unable to elicit a reaction. Fact is that the appreciation of  family and friends is so cherished  and makes it all worth it and it is only when the acceptance is unconditional and near unanimous that I feel that yes this is ready for being put in the market. 

If you, like me grew up with Enid Blyton’s you would understand my fascination for strawberry jam - served with scones and clotted cream! The secret to a good strawberry spread lies in retaining its fresh flavor and texture. Strawberry is a low pectin fruit, so results in a soft spread preserve. This is by far the easiest jam to make and tastes delicious too. I like my jam with chunks of strawberries in it - gives a feel of savoring the real fruit. 

So here goes my simple recipe for a mouthwatering strawberry preserve which would leave you yearning for more!!!

Strawberry Preserve

500 grams strawberries

300 grams sugar

Juice of 1 lemon

Wash and hull the strawberries. Then cut the fruit into half and the larger ones can be chopped into quarters.Put the strawberries in a preserving pan and simmer gently till they soften a bit.

The fruit simmering in the sugar syrup

Then add the sugar and stir on a low heat till the sugar dissolves. Then turn the heat up and add the lemon juice. Cook on a rolling boil till the setting point is reached. When thick enough to set ladle the jam into sterilized jars and seal. 

Try this simple recipe ... the result is nothing short of divine.

Wintry treat - Gajar ka Halwa

According to the Hindu calendar we are in Basant Ritu (spring season). Basant panchami which falls in the first week of February heralds the onset of spring and the end of winters, which would translate in to an amiable weather. The weather in Delhi though has been anything but pleasant, there has been no let up in the cold and one is definitely missing the sunny days that one is used to.

All the same winter is almost on its last legs and so are the winter vegetables which we have been enjoying for the past few months. The vegetable market is still flooded with winter greens- spinach, fenugreek, coriander and juicy carrots, peas, cauliflower but gradually they will start losing flavor and will taste off seasonish. I decided to make all the winter specials that we enjoy before they run out.

On my last trip to the vegetable market I bought a bagful of carrots ostensibly for juice but somewhere  there was a thought that one of the days when I am less busy I would get around to making 'gajar ka halwa'.

In every day cooking I don't stress too much on perfection but for special things avoid taking short cuts and so though this halwa is very labor intensive and took a whole lot of time  but all the effort was so worth it. The slow cooking process works well as then it does not require constant monitoring and you can multitask whilst standing in the kitchen.

It might be immodest of me to say so but it tastes fabulous and if any of you are craving a good desi sweet then do drop in for some homemade treat.

The recipe below would make 'gajar ka halwa' - better than any halwai - try it and you would stop eating the halwai's typical ' khoya' ka halwa.

Happy binging - warning ... don't blame me for losing the battle of bulge!!!

Gajar Ka Halwa (Carrot Fudge)

1 kg carrot

2 litres whole milk

8 tablespoon desi ghee (clarified butter)

300 gms castor sugar

1 teaspoon cardamom powder

A handful of fried cashewnuts

Peel the carrots, wash them well and then grate them. Take a heavy bottomed wok, (kadhai) add the grated carrots and 5 tablespoons of ghee and sauté the carrots on medium heat till all the water dries up and the carrots take on a darker hue. Now add the milk in it and mix it well. Let the mixture simmer on low heat till the milk is almost dried up. Keep stirring the milk and carrot mixture frequently in between when it is cooking otherwise it might stick to the pan.

Once the milk gets absorbed add the sugar, increase the heat, stirring continuously. When the halwa starts coming together add 3 tablespoons of ghee and stir the halwa till it starts leaving ghee on its sides. Switch off the burner and add the cardamom powder. Serve hot garnished with the fried cashew pieces.

    

Besan ki barfi / Indian fudge - with a twist

I have grown up watching my nani making huge amounts of sweets and savory snacks (enough to feed an army). So did my mother though to a lesser extent, but by the time I grew up this trend had dwindled a lot. Old timers still lament about those good old days when everything was made at home and now they have to make do with packaged and processed stuff with all kinds’ of  chemical additives and preservatives.

For most of us who have grown up gorging on our desi mithai there is nothing to beat it. Making mithai at home might seem tedious but it is totally worth the effort, it tastes way too better not to have a go at making it yourself. As for me, I am into this new phase where homemade is the new mantra and I am  very bemused at how ultimately, we take comfort in  and go back to doing things that we grew up with.

This besan barfi is also known as the seven cup barfi, a popular Indian sweet. I have modified it a bit and gone easy on the ghee and sugar in keeping with today's times and here I am sharing my own version of it. I have added some whole wheat flour which gives it a better texture and adds a nice nutty flavor to it. The barfi turns out soft and fudge like and keeps well. It is very easy to make, doesn't take too much time, and tastes absolutely delicious. So here you go -

Besan ki barfi

Besan Ki Barfi

3/4 cup besan (chick pea flour)

1/4 cup atta (whole wheat flour)

1/2 cup desi ghee (clarified butter)

1 cup dessicated coconut

1 cup sugar (powdered)

1/2 teaspoon elaichi (green cardamom) powder

1 cup milk 

20 almonds thinly sliced

Grease a square pan or tray with ghee. Take a thick bottomed heavy kadai (wok) and pour in the ghee, besan and atta and roast the two on low heat. This roasting helps in removing the raw taste of the flour. Add in the dessicated coconut and half of the finely sliced almonds. Stir constantly till the mixture turns nice brown. This would take around 15 minutes.

Now add the powdered sugar and the milk and stir continuously to prevent the mixture from sticking to the bottom. Continue to cook till it starts thickening and begins to leave the sides of the pan and comes together, then switch off the burner.

Pour the hot mixture  into the greased pan and level it out with a spatula, then sprinkle the remaining sliced almonds on top.

Let it cool down then cut into diamond or square pieces and enjoy.

Indian fudge