Chocolate icing!

250gms Cooking chocolate bar

50-100ml Milk

Using Microwave:

• Cut the bar in cubes and microwave it in low heat for 30 secs. Remove it and mix it and again heat it for 30 secs. Continue doing it till the chocolate melts.
• After all the chocolate melts keep adding 1 tbp of milk at a time and mix it. Check the consistency how you want it to be. Don't make it too thin.

Tips:

• If you heat the chocolate continuously for more than 1 min it will burn. So be patient when you are doing it.
• If you add the whole milk at once it will break or separate.
• Once you start to add the milk please don't over mix it. The more you mix after adding milk the more it tends to separate.

Using regular stove:

• Take a large cooking pot and fill it half with water. Take another small vessel which fits into this. Here you are creating a double boil method.
• Add the chocolate cubes to this small vessel and keep string it continuously till the choco melts.
• Now add milk 1 tbp at a time and mix it gently. Once the desired consistency is reached stop adding milk.

Tips:

• If you add the whole milk at once it will break or separate. 
• Once you start to add the milk please don't over mix it. The more you mix after adding milk the more it tends to separate.

I prefer to use regular stove rather than microwave.

Mango Jam!

1 kg of Mangoes

2 cups Water                                         

500 gms Sugar                                         

1/4 Tbp Citric Acid(Nimma uppu)    
1 Tsp of Mango essence        

1 Cup Pectin                                         

Method:

• Cut the mangoes in to pieces. You can use both cut mangoes or the juice mangoes. 

• Grind the above mixture and using a soft cloth ( I used cotton cloth) squeeze out the juice into another cooking pot.
• Now add the sugar, citric acid, mango essence, pectin (Details below) and bring it to boil. This should take about 5-10 mts.

• Now pore it into glass jars once you turn off the stove. Let it cool down n set.

Tips:

• Stir now and then after adding the sugar. When it starts to boil remove the froth and throw it.

• Transfer it immediately into the glass jars. Coz then it looks like the one which we buy from the shop ;-)

• Close the lid immediately so that it creates vacuum. 

• For 1Kg of fruit we add 500gms of Jam sugar.

• Don't forget to sterilize the glass jars. To sterilize them boil them in water for about 10-15 mts. 
• For people living out of India you can find jam sugar separately. I used Gelier Zucker 2plus1. This contains the gelling agent pectin, the citric acid and the preservative sorbic acid. If you are using this jam sugar please don't add citric acid, pectin and sugar from the above list.

Homemade Fruit Pectin: 
Pectin is a natural carbohydrate found in fruits, causes jam or jelly to set.

• Combine 1 kg (2 lbs) sliced unpeeled apples and 750 mL (3 cups) water. 

• Simmer 30 to 40 minutes, adding water as needed. 
• Drain through moistened cheesecloth. To clear, heat the fruit juice to a boil and can or freeze the pectin for later use. 

Pectin Test:
To determine if a fruit juice has enough pectin for jelly, do a pectin test.

• Stir together 5 mL (1 tsp) fruit juice with 15 mL (1 tbsp) of non-methyl alcohol. (This is a poisonous mixture, so do not taste it and destroy it immediately after the test.)

• If the juice forms one big clot, which can be picked up with a fork without breaking, it has sufficient pectin. If the juice is low in pectin, several small clots will form.

•  If a clot doesn’t form, simmer gently to reduce the water content of the juice. 

Egg less Microwave cake!

1 cup Sugar     
1 cup Whole Milk  

1 n 1/2 cups All purpose flour (Maida)   

3 tbp Coco Pwd                      

1/2 tsp Backing powder              

1/4 tsp Baking soda          

1/2 tsp Vanilla essence                

3 tbsp (optional) Sunflower oil                      

1 tbsp Lemon juice                       

Method:

• Add sugar and milk and whisk until the sugar is dissolved well in milk.
• Add all purpose flour, baking pwd, baking soda n coco pwd using a net (put it in a net n stir it. This is done to avoid lumps.)
• Mix milk and all the dry ingredients together to form a batter.
• Add vanilla essence n oil and mix well.
• Add lemon juice at the end and mix it quickly.
• Grease a microwave safe bowl and transfer this batter and microwave it for 5mts in High.

Remove it n check it in the middle if the knife comes out clean its done. Run a knife along the sides n transfer it to a greased plate by inverting it. Do it in less than 5 mts after u remove it form the microwave.


Tip:

• You can also replace oil with 100 gms of unsalted n melted butter.
• Adding lemon juice will react with the baking pwd n baking soda and create bubbles.
• Make sure in your microwave safe bowl there is enough place for the batter to become double. Don't fill more than half.
• Once you transfer in to the microwave safe bowl give it a tap twice so that there are no air bubbles in between.

Dry Bhindi Masala!

400 gms Bhindi

2 large Onions

1 large Tomato

3 tsp oil

1/2 tsp cumin seeds

1/2 tsp mustard seeds

Few curry leaves

1/2 tsp of Turmeric

1/2 tsp of chilli pwd

Salt according to taste

Fry Masala n make pwd of it:

1/2 tsp oil

2 large tbp of Peanuts (almost 2 handfuls)

1 tbp of sesame seeds

1/2 tbp of coriander seeds

1/2 cup of dry grated coconut

1 dry chilly

Method:

• Cut Bhindi in length wise in 4 parts and in 2 inches length.
• Adding 2 tbp oil fry them in a non sick pan until cooked (sticky part is gone) and keep them aside adding little of salt to it.
• To the same pan add 1 tbp oil and fry cumin seeds, mustard seeds, curry leaves. Once they start to splatter add onions and fry them till they are half cooked.
• Add tomato and cook until it is soft. Add turmeric pwd, chilli pwd n little salt.
• Add the grinded pwd and cook until it starts to leave oil.
• Now add fried bhindi and mix well.
• Serve it with hot rice.

Tip:

• Wash and dry the vegetable before hand to avoid too much stickiness.
• Don't fry bhindi continuously. The more you fry it the more you are increasing the stickiness. Fry it occasionally. 
• Try using a wide pan to fry the vegetable.
• Distribute the salt in two parts. Half add to the bhindi and the other half to the onion-tomato mixture.
• When you are frying the masala. Add the ingredients in the following sequence: oil, peanuts, coriander seeds, sesame seeds n chilly, coconut. 

Bendi chutney or Okra chutney

To serve 4 people:

Ingredients:
• 500 gms of Bendi or Okra's
• 3-4 tbps of oil
• 2 big tbp of urad dal
• 5 dry red chillies
• Very little tamarind (small marble size)
• Asafoetida a pinch
• Pinch of turmeric
• Salt to taste


Method:
• In a pan add 3tbpsof oil and fry bendi. Fry till they don't stick to each other. Some of them may turn into little black in color. Cool it after it is done.
• Heat oil in an another pan add urad dal and fry for about a minute. Add asafoetida and dry red chillies. Fry till are cooked.
• Grind the above fried tempering (tadaka) into a coarse mixture. Add tamarind just for taste.
• Now add the cool fried bendi to the grinder and just grind it into a coarse mixture. Serve it with hot rice.


Tips:
• Don't fry bendi often. The more you keep frying it the more sticky they become.

Tomato-Yoghurt Chutney

 To serve 4 people:

Ingredients:
• 500gms of yoghurt
• 2 tbps of oil
• 3 large tomatoes
• 3-4 methi seeds
• 1 teaspoon of cumin seeds
• ½ teaspoon of mustard seeds
• 1 tbp of urad dal
• 2 dry red chillies
• 2 green chillies
• Asafoetida a pinch
• Pinch of turmeric
• Salt to taste
• Coriander to garnish

Method:
• To the yoghurt add salt and turmeric powder.
• Heat oil in a pan add methi seeds, urad dal and fry for about a minute. Add cumin, mustard, asafoetida and dry red chillies. Fry till they start to pop up. Now add green chillies.
• Add chopped tomatoes and fry till they are cooked. Add this to the yoghurt mixture once it cools down.
• Garnish with coriander and serve it with rice.

Mixed Fruit Jam

These are the fruits I used. You can also add some other seasonal once like mango, papaya etc. But do not add Guava coz it will have too many seeds. Also change the ratio of different fruits according to your taste.

Mixed fruit total 1kg :

Grapes                                       300 gms

Bananas                                     200 gms

Strawberry                                 200 gms

Apple                                         200 gms

Lemon                                        2 Tbl

Water                                         1 Cup

Mixed fruit essence                     5 drops

Strawberry essence                     2-3 drops

Red Color (optional)                   2 drops

Sugar                                          500 gms

Citric Acid(Nimma uppu)             1/4 Tbp

Pectin                                          1 Cup

Method:

• Wash the grapes and soak them in warm salt water for about an hour. Meanwhile cut rest of the fruits.

• Add all the fruits in a cooker and add water. After one whistle remove it and let it cook. Add Lemon juice.

• Grind the above mixture and using a soft cloth ( I used cotton cloth) squeeze out the juice into another cooking pot.
• Now add the sugar, citric acid, pectin (Details below) and bring it to boil. This should take about 5-10 mts.

• Now pore it into glass jars once you turn off the stove. Let it cool down n set.

Tips:

• Stir now and then after adding the sugar. When it starts to boil remove the froth and throw it.

• Transfer it immediately into the glass jars. Coz then it looks like the one which we buy from the shop ;-)

• Close the lid immediately so that it creates vacuum. 

• For 1Kg of fruit we add 500gms of Jam sugar.

• Don't forget to sterilize the glass jars. To sterilize them boil them in water for about 10-15 mts. 
• For people living out of India you can find jam sugar separately. I used Gelier Zucker 2plus1. This contains the gelling agent pectin, the citric acid and the preservative sorbic acid. If you are using this jam sugar please don't add citric acid, pectin and sugar from the above list.

Homemade Fruit Pectin: 
Pectin is a natural carbohydrate found in fruits, causes jam or jelly to set.

• Combine 1 kg (2 lbs) sliced unpeeled apples and 750 mL (3 cups) water. 

• Simmer 30 to 40 minutes, adding water as needed. 
• Drain through moistened cheesecloth. To clear, heat the fruit juice to a boil and can or freeze the pectin for later use. 

Pectin Test:
To determine if a fruit juice has enough pectin for jelly, do a pectin test.

• Stir together 5 mL (1 tsp) fruit juice with 15 mL (1 tbsp) of non-methyl alcohol. (This is a poisonous mixture, so do not taste it and destroy it immediately after the test.)

• If the juice forms one big clot, which can be picked up with a fork without breaking, it has sufficient pectin. If the juice is low in pectin, several small clots will form.

•  If a clot doesn’t form, simmer gently to reduce the water content of the juice.