Sarma (Stuffed cabbage)

Sarma is a traditional winter preparation in Slovenia. At the end of autumn, the stores start selling sauerkraut and sour turnips. I remember the first time I had sauerkraut; the sour taste was a shock. Well I was not expecting the sour taste; I had never heard of sauerkraut and assumed it so be normal cabbage at the work canteen. However, now I really like the tartness. Sauerkraut is healthy and yummy. And goes so well with meat or salad. This preparation uses the whole head of sauerkraut. Each leaf is stuffed and tightly rolled with minced meat and then is slowly cooked in tomato-based gravy. A family food. Tastes better when cooked in bulk. You cannot really make 6! The time taken is not worth it. Also, it is one of those preparations that tastes best when cooked in bulk, and the same recipe used for a smaller quantity doesn’t bring out the same wow.. However, it is so good and stays for a few days. And the older it is the better it tastes!  Saves us from cooking later. Traditionally, it is cooked a couple of days before New Year. After the late night parties on New Year’s Eve, people wake up late the next day. And you have the yummy sarmas already ready on the table to enjoy with your family the first day of the year..

 You can print the recipe for your kitchen here: PRINTABLE RECIPE

INGREDIENTS:

(Makes around 35 sarma)

1 whole head of sauerkraut

500g beef

500g pork

1 big onion

100g rice

3 cubes of beef stock

1cup tomato puree

1sp thyme

1tbsp red pepper powder

2 ½ tbsp flour

2tbsp fresh parsley

1 slice of bacon (1cm thick, ~15g)

Oil

Salt

Pepper

Boiling water (as required)

METHOD:

1.      Mince both the beef and pork meat. Finely chop the onion.

2.      In a wok, heat 6tbsp oil. Add the onion and cook for a minute.

3.      Add the minced meat and cook on high heat until it is no more pink and the water that the meat left dries.

4.      Reduce the heat to low. Cook for around 20 mins until the onion softens, mixes well with the meat and is almost no more visible.

5.      Add the rice and season with salt and pepper. Cook for 5 mins.

6.      Add ½ cup water and cook for 10 mins more.

7.      Add the fresh parsley. Remove from heat and let it cool a bit.

8.      Gently take a leaf off the sauerkraut head. Pound the stem a gently so that it becomes easy to fold. Put 1-1.5 spoon (depending on the size of leaf) of meat mixture at the base of the leaf and tightly fold from all sides. Set aside with the open side down. (There is no need to tie or seal.) Repeat the process with the leaves until the meat mixture is used.

9.      If there is still a bit of sauerkraut left, finely chop it. [Optional step.]

10.   Layer a large pot with chopped sauerkraut (Optional). Arrange the rolled sarmas in the pot in layers with the open side down. Cover the sarmas with hot water.

11.   Put the pot on medium heat and bring it to boil. Add two cubes of beef stock. Cook on low heat covered for ~ 40 minutes.

12.   In a pan, heat 4tbsp oil. Quickly stir in the flour and let it get color.

13.   Add 1cup tomato puree, thyme, red pepper powder and mix well.

14.   Add 3cups of hot water and 1 beef stock cube.

15.   Bring to boil and add the tomato gravy in the sarma pot.

16.   Add bay leaf, and bacon slice.

17.   Cover and cook on low heat for 30-40 min.

18.   Serve with polenta or mashed potato.

NOTE:

The bacon is used for giving flavor and smell (and not for eating really). A sausage can be used instead.

Sarma taste good (better!) the next day.

Freshly minced meat brings out best flavors.

There is no stirring during the whole cooking of the rolled sarmas, or they will open and break. Take care to keep on low heat all the time to avoid burning of the bottom.

Salmon with poached pears

I am Bengali so of course I love fish. And salmon is one of my favorite fishes available here in Europe. It is tasty, oily, succulent.. Its oil reminds me somewhat about Bengal’s favorite Hilsha, though both of them are much different in all other respects.  Therefore, whenever I get a nice piece of salmon from the fish market, I cannot just wait to go home and have it. This time I decided to keep it simple. I would just fry it with a crispy skin. To counter balance the oily taste, I decided to serve it with poached pears. The pears would be poached in milk without much addition of extra sweetener. The subtle sweetness of the pear was what I was looking to bring out. Clove is one of my favorite spices and I decided to incorporate its flavor subtly in both the poached pears and salmon. The final result was a delicious combinations of subtle flavors.

You can print the recipe for your kitchen here: PRINTABLE RECIPE 

 

INGREDIENTS:

(Serves 2)

1 pear

2 pieces of salmon (~200g each)

200ml milk

50ml water

2tbsp honey

10 cloves

Salt

Olive oil

METHOD:

1.       Peel, core and quarter the pear.

2.       Put the milk, water, honey and half the cloves in a pot. Heat until honey dissolves and the liquid is warm.

3.       Put the pears in and reduce the heat. Poach the pears for 15-25 minutes depending on the type of pear. Take care that the pears do not turn mushy. Let it cool in the liquid itself.

4.       In the meantime, season the salmon pieces with salt.

5.       Heat a greased pan. Add the rest of the cloves.

6.       Put fish in the pan skin side down and hold it down for a minute.

7.       When almost the whole fish is cooked (changed color), flip over and cook the other side for a minute.

8.       Serve each salmon piece with two pear pieces (without the poaching liquid).

Pumpkin quiche

We had some pumpkins from a friend. And I was planning to cook them over the long weekend we had. I love pumpkin, but savory dishes. I do not have much liking for sweets. I would love to make pumpkin pies someday, to cook something new, but I know for sure that there will be no one to eat it. Therefore, it had to be a savory pumpkin weekend. And this time I wished to try something new other than my favorite Bengali preparations. I always find quiche interesting, a nice way to try incorporating new ideas. So this lovely pumpkin quiche was on the first preparation to be on the menu. And it turned out so deliciously good!

You can print the recipe for your kitchen here: PRINTABLE RECIPE 

INGREDIENTS:
(Serves 4)

500g of pumpkin or squash

2 large onions

8 sheets of phyllo dough

3 eggs

1/2 cup sour cream

1/2 cup milk

1 cup diced smoked cheese

1 stem of rosemary

1 stem of lavender

1/4 cup sage leaves

Salt

Pepper

Olive oil

METHOD:

1.   Cut the pumpkin into bite size cubes. Toss it with olive oil, salt and pepper. Add a stem of rosemary, lavender and few sage leaves.

2.   Roast pumpkin in a preheated oven at 180°C for about 30 minutes and set aside.

3.   In the mean time, slice onion.

4.   Heat oil in a pan and sauté the onion until tender.

5.   Add 1/4 cup water. Reduce the heat and cook covered until golden brown with occasional stirring (around 40 minutes) (caramelize). Add little bit of water if it tends to get dry.

6.   Line a 26cm pie dish / spring-form pan with the phyllo sheets. Brush each sheet with oil and layer them on top of each other. Let the ends hang from the sides.

7.   Lightly beat the eggs. Add in onion, pumpkin, 2/3 of the cheese, sour cream, milk, salt, pepper, remaining of the sage leaves finely chopped. Gently mix.

8.   Pour the mixture in the pie dish. Sprinkle the remaining cheese on top.

9.   Gently fold the hanging phyllo edges on the side.

10. Bake at 200°C for 40 minutes or until set.

11. Let it stand for 5 minutes more before serving.

Mango Panna Cotta

I wanted some easy simple and no-bake Italian dessert. And the panna cotta idea sounded great. I had some mango pulp can and decided to make mango panna cotta instead of a plain one. The first idea was to mix the mango pulp in the milk-cream mixture. Then I thought better. Why do not I make two separate mixtures and pour them in a beautiful layer? And why to de-mold it? Instead I will use some wine glasses. I had seen some pictures of some layered desserts (I think it was Tiramisu) served in glass, and decided to use the idea. It was smooth and creamy, fragrant with mango and cardamom. It looked great and tasted even better. What a yummy creamy evening!

You can print the recipe for your kitchen here: PRINTABLE RECIPE

INGREDIENTS
(Serves 12)

400ml milk

400ml cream

200ml mango pulp

Gelatin for 1lt liquid

8-10 cardamom pods

1/2cup sugar

Chopped almonds for garnishing

METHOD:

1.       Toast the cardamom pods. Crush gently and remove the seeds from within. Pound into a fine powder with mortar and pestle.

2.       Mix 250ml milk and 250ml cream in a pot and add half the cardamom powder. Bring the milk-cream to a lukewarm temperature.

3.       In the meantime, prepare the gelatin according to directions on the packet for 500ml of liquid.

4.       Take the milk-cream off the stove. Add sugar and dissolve it. Add the gelatin until completely dissolved.

5.       Pour equal porting of the mixture in little serving bowls/dessert glass/wine glass etc (or in a tray if the plan is to de-mold and cut later while serving).

6.       Cover with plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator for 2-4 hours (or until set).

7.       Mix 200ml mango pulp, 150ml milk, and 150ml cream. Add cardamom powder.

8.       Put it on low heat and warm it to lukewarm temperature.

9.       Prepare gelatin for 500ml of liquid according to directions on the packet.

10.   Remove mango mixture from heat. Add sugar if necessary and dissolve.

11.   Mix with gelatin until the gelatin dissolves completely.

12.   Remove the panna cotta from the fridge and unwrap. Top each serving with equal amount of mango mixture.

13.   Cover again and refrigerate for another 2-4 hours (or until set).

14.   Garnish with chopped almonds and served chilled.

Narkel gur naru (Coconut balls with jaggery)

The soft of my palm would get this strong burning sensation as I tried to make but uniform balls from this coconut mixture. I would grease my palms more and go for the next balls. And in between making the balls, one would jump in my mouth. I am only tasting you know. This is my memory of making these narkel naru (coconut balls) during the festive days of my childhood. They were meant to last at least a week. But the glass jar would be empty in days. I loved it. Especially the ones my grandma used to make with milk and no jaggery. So when this time I ventured to make the naru I decided to combine both the ways. Also this time I used the fresh coconut instead of the coconut flakes from supermarket (thanks that my parents brought the little hand coconut scraper, hard to use but so worth it). I had some jaggery. And I always love putting a lot of milk and then evaporating it to get the nice creamy taste. As expected, they were just gone in days!!

 You can print the recipe for your kitchen here: PRINTABLE RECIPE

INGREDIENTS:

(Makes ~ 40)

1 medium sized coconut

(3cups coconut flakes)

½ cup jaggery/molasses

1ml full cream milk

½ cup milk powder

METHOD:

1.       Break the coconut in half and finely grate the flesh (without the inner brown skin).

2.       In a heavy bottomed pan, mix together grated coconut, crumbled jiggery, milk powder and 250 ml milk. Mix well with a wooden spoon to form a uniform mixture.

3.       Now put the pan on moderate heat and add the rest of the milk.

4.       Reduce the milk and cook until it leaves the side of the pan into a uniform mass. Take care so the bottom does not burn.

5.       Grease your palms and quickly make balls pressing between you palm and fingers while the mixture is still hot/warm.

6.       Can be stored in glass jars for a week or so, or in the refrigerator for a bit longer.

NOTE:

The balls should be made while the mixture is still hot/warm. When it gets colder it becomes crumbly and difficult to form the shapes. I know it is hard when it is hot!

Coconut flakes form supermarket can be used. But the juicy fresh coconut tastes much better and should be used if possible.

Methi paneer

For the most important day of Durga puja celebration, it was a complete Indian menu, even though a simple one. The main course was supposed to be achari chicken with flavor of different spices. Hence for the side dish, I decided on something simple and on the sweetish side. This paneer (young cheese) dish with the beautiful fragrance of fenugreek and ginger was the best choice. Simple and delicate.

You can print the recipe for your kitchen here: PRINTABLE RECIPE

INGREDIENTS:

(Serves 4)

250g paneer

1 tbsp fenugreek seeds

3 tbsp dried fenugreek leaves

1 tbsp ginger paste

2 cups milk

2 tbsp raisins

1 sp coriander powder

Salt

Sugar

Ghee/ Butter

METHOD:

1.       Heat ghee, add the fenugreek seeds and let them crackle until fragrant and black. Remove the fenugreek seeds. This ghee fragrant with fenugreek will be used for further cooking.

2.       Cut the paneer in small cubes and fry until golden brown. After frying soak in warm salt water for half minute, drain and keep aside.

3.       In the same wok, add grated ginger and fry on low heat for a minute.

4.       Add milk, coriander powder, salt and a pinch of sugar. Simmer on low heat for around 5 minutes.

5.       Add dry fenugreek leaves, raisins, and fried paneer cubes. Increase the heat and bring it to boil.

6.   Serve hot.

Stuffed pumpkin

I had this nice round small pumpkin (kabocha squash I think, not particularly sure). Recently I was going through these recipes of stuffing. Therefore bringing both together to make a stuffed pumpkin was the next idea. I have also taken a fancy on celery recently. Though the flavor is a bit too strong for me, I like it a lot when used in minimum to give a hint of subtle aromatic flavor. And since winter is almost here, the sausage had to form a part of the dish too. I am sure to cook it again in future during the pumpkin season. In the meantime I will be use the stuffing to stuff other things or incorporate in some different way in my food.

 

You can print the recipe for your kitchen here: PRINTABLE RECIPE

INGREDIENTS:

(Serves 4)

1 small round pumpkin (~1.5kg)

1 small onion

1 large carrot

1 red bell pepper

2 green apples

2-3 cloves of garlic

1/2 cup milk

1 egg

1 cured pork sausage (in pair)

1/4sp celery seeds

1/4sp fennel seeds

1/2 cup chopped parsley

2tbsp chopped sage

Salt

Pepper

Oilve Oil

METHOD:

1.     Cut open the lid off the pumpkin. Clean the inside of strings and seeds. Brush with oil, salt, pepper.

2.     Bake the pumpkin in preheated oven at 180°C for 20 mins. Set aside.

3.     In meantime, dice the carrot, peppr, apples, onion. Crush the garlic cloves.

4.     Remove the casing of the sausage and gently crush it.

5.     In a skillet, heat oil.

6.     Add the onion and sauté a couple of minutes.

7.     Add the remaining vegetables, celery and fennel seeds. Season with salt. Add 1tbsp of sage and 1/2 of the parsley.

8.     Cook on low heat for 5 minutes, stirring often.

9.     Add the sausage meat. Break with the wooden spoon and cook until no longer pink.

10.  Lightly whisk the egg in a bowl with the milk. Add the vegetable-sausage mixture. Add the remaining parsley and sage. Make everything into a moist mixture.

11.  Fill the pumpkin with stuffing.

12.  Bake it at 200°C for 20-25 minutes, until the egg is cooked and the stuffing has risen a bit.

13.  Stand for 5 minutes, and serve with the lid on top.

Moroccan-style one-pot vegetables

This one-pot vegetable is a warm delight for the cold evenings of the coming winter. Growing up in Bengal, I am a lover of mixed vegetable preparations. I love how the flavors and textures of different seasonal vegetables marry into a delicious combination. I loved the subtle sweetness of pumpkin and apricots, the bite of the bell peppers, the texture of zucchini, the flavor of parsnips, and the hint of spice from the chili flakes. I am sure I will cook something similar again when I have an assortment of different vegetables in the fridge, or just like that for a warm healthy dinner.

You can print the recipe for your kitchen here: PRINTABLE RECIPE

 

INGREDIENTS:

(Serves 4)

100g leek

600g pumpkin

200g green zucchini

1 big red bell pepper

150g butter beans

100g carrot

100g parsnip

100g dried apricots

1/2sp turmeric

1sp coriander powder

1/2sp cumin powder

1/2sp chili flakes

600ml water

Fresh parsley and coriander

Salt

Pepper

METHOD:

1.     Cut leek lengthwise in half and then into slices.

2.     Slice carrot and parsnip. Coarsely chop the other vegetables. Chop the dried apricots.

3.     Pour water in a pot. Add turmeric, coriander, cumin and bring to boil.

4.     Add leek and parsnip. Bring to boil. Cook covered for 5 minutes on low heat.

5.     Add pumpkin, zucchini, bell pepper, carrot and bring to boil.

6.     Add beans, apricots, and season with salt, pepper and chili flakes.

7.     Cover the pan and cook on low heat for about 10 minutes or until the vegetables are tender.

8.     Season with freshly chopped parsley and coriander.

Aam sandesh

Bengal is famous for its three sweets mostly: Misti Doi (sweet curd), Rasogolla (soft cheese balls in sugar syrup) and Sandesh (fresh cheese sweets). The end of the festivity calls for some sweets. After the immersion of the idols, friends and family meet together to share warm hugs and wishes and end the almost weeklong festivity on a sweet note. Therefore, instead of going for some other desserts, I decided to try my hand for the first time on making sandesh. I had some mango pulp left and decided to flavor my sandesh with mango. While making it, I did not believe it would turn out so good. And how pretty they look. Like on the shelf of some sweet shop. Well, now I know I will not miss this particular Bengali sweet much!

 

 You can print the recipe for your kitchen here: PRINTABLE RECIPE 

INGREDIENTS:

(Makes around 30)

2lt milk

1cup milk powder

2cup mango pulp

1/2cup sugar

1/2sp cardamom powder

2tbsp lemon juice

Raisins

Small cupcake moulds

METHOD:

1.       First, make the chana. Put the milk in a thick-bottomed pot and bring to boil. Add 2tbsp lemon juiced diluted with warm water slowly to the boiling milk on low heat. Stir continuously and let the milk curdle.

2.       When the milk is curdled completely leaving behind clear green liquid, strain well using a cheese cloth.

3.       Put the chana on a plate and kneading with the heel of palm to get a smooth dough (around 5 minutes). Now add the sugar and knead again to get a little oily and very smooth dough without any lumps.

4.       In a wok, mix the mango pulp, chana, milk powder, fresh cardamom powder. It will form a thick batter like smooth consistency.

5.       Cook the mixture on medium-low heat stirring continuously. Take care that the bottom does not burn.

6.       Cook until the mixture becomes thick and leaves the sides of the wok forming a smooth dough.

7.       Remove from heat and let it cool a little bit.

8.       Spoon the mixture into the moulds forming a nice little flattish balls.

9.       Garnish each with a raisin on top.

10.   Cool it before eating. (Can be stored in refrigerator for a couple of days.)

Suji halwa

It is the most simple and quick Indian dessert. One can eat it hot and cold. And its simplicity does not do any compromise with taste. There is this subtle balance of aroma and sweetness. A perfect for some quick sweet treat.

You can print the recipe for your kitchen here: PRINTABLE RECIPE

INGREDIENTS:

(Serves 2)

1/2cup semolina

1cup milk

~1/2cup sugar (a bit less)

3tbsp ghee

3 pods cardamom

1 bay leaf

1/4cup nuts and raisins

METHOD:

1.       Heat gree in a wok. Add bay leaf and cardamom pods.

2.       Add semolina and sugar. Stir well over medium heat until the semolina gets golden and sugar starts to melt. (Check the sweetness and add a bit more if not according to taste.)

3.       Add nuts and raisins.

4.       Lower the heat. Pour the milk and stir well continuously. The milk will get absorbed in the semolina while the later is cooked. It will form little lumps but not a mass. Add a bit more of milk if too dry.

5.       While still moist, remove from heat.

6.       Garnish with nuts and raisins.

Achari chicken

Last month when I was celebrating our greatest festival away from all the festivity, I decided to cook something good for each day of the festival. I tried several new recipes that will maybe appear in the blog some other time. The most important day of course had to have a complete Indian menu and chicken. Yet, in an effort to cook something new, I selected this recipe. Achar is pickle in Indian languages. It is much different from the vinegar soaked baby vegetables. It is bite size pieces of different fruits or vegetables in a complicated mixture of various whole spices and mustard oil that is sun dried for long and then stored in glass jars. Then for every lunch and dinner, it is used as condiment. Therefore, like its namesake, this particular chicken recipe uses different whole spices to give it an intricate flavor. Mustard oil and chilies make it spicy, while dried mango powder and lemon juice adds to the tartness. The result is a same finger-licking dish as the achar. It made the my festive day delicious!

You can print the recipe for your kitchen here: PRINTABLE RECIPE

INGREDIENTS:

(Serves 4)

750gm medium sized chicken pieces (boneless, skinless)

1/2sp fenugreek seeds
1 + 1/2sp mustard seeds
1sp cumin seeds
1sp fennel seeds

1/2sp nigella seeds or onions seeds
2 dried whole red chilies
2tbsp ginger garlic paste
1 large onion

1 large tomato
1/2sp turmeric powder
2sp red chili powder (or to taste)

1 green chili
1cup lightly beaten yoghurt
1tbsp lemon juice

1/2sp dried mango powder
Salt

Sugar

Mustard oil

METHOD:

1.       Heat oil in a wok. Add the mustard, fenugreek, cumin, fennel, nigella seeds, whole red chilies. Sauté until they start to crackle. (Take care the oil is hot enough before adding the spices so they do not burn.)

2.       Slice the onion and chop the tomato.

3.       Add the onion in the wok, and fry until golden brown and soft.

4.       Now add ginger garlic paste, chopped tomatoes, turmeric and chili powder.

5.       Mix well and cook on medium heat for a few minutes until the oil leaves the sides of the wok.

6.       Add the chicken pieces and mix well so that each piece is covered with the spice mixture. Season it with salt.

7.       Cook on medium heat with occasional stirring for about 10 minutes.

8.       Add 1/2cup water and cook covered on low heat until the chicken pieces are tender and succulent.

9.       Add the yoghurt, whole green chili and a pinch of sugar.

10.   Cook on low heat for a couple of minutes (so that the yoghurt do not curdle).

11.   Add dried mango powder and lemon juice.

12.   Stir to mix and remove from heat.