Seeded / Herbed Bagels

Ingredients:

Bread flour        - 450gms
Dried yeast        - 1x7g sachet
Sugar                 - 4 tblspoon
Salt                    - 2 tblspoon
Sprinkles           - 2 tspoon I used Poppy seeds and sesame seeds
Herbs                - of your choice I used italian mixed herbs
Water                - Boil the bagels


Method:

Pour the yeast sachet and 1 tbsp sugar into a large bowl, and pour over 100ml warm water. Leave for 10 mins until the mixture becomes frothy and bubbly.
Take 200ml warm water into the bowl, then stir in the salt and half the flour.
Keep adding the remaining flour and mixing with your hands until you have a soft, but not sticky dough. Mix in the herbs if you want to make them s herbed bagels.
Knead it for another 10-12 mins until the dough starts to feel smooth and elastic.
Shape into a ball and put in a clean, lightly greased bowl.
Cover with clingfilm and leave in a warm spot until doubled in size, about 1hr to 1 1/2hr.
Pre-Heat the oven to 200C.
On a lightly floured surface, divide the dough into 10 pieces.
Shape each piece into a flattish ball, then take a wooden spoon and use the handle to make a hole in the middle of each ball.
Put the spoon into the hole, then twirl the bagel around the spoon to make a hole about 2-3cm wide. Cover the bagel loosely with cling film while you shape the remaining dough.
Meanwhile, bring a large pan of water to the boil and tip in the remaining sugar.
Slip the bagels into the boiling water, 2 t a time.
Cook for about 1-2 mins, flipping over in the water until the bagels have puffed slightly and a skin has formed.
Remove with a slotted ladle and drain away all excess water.
Sprinkle over your choice of topping and place on a baking tray lined with parchment.
Bake in the oven for 25 mins until browned and crisp from both sides.
To check if they are cook well, the base of the bagel should sound hollow when tapped.
Leave the bagels to cool on a wire rack, then serve with your favourite filling, cream cheese or soups.

Tri-Colour Layered Vegeterian Biriyani

Ingredients:

Basmati rice                        -3 cups soaked and drained
Ghee                                    -2 tablespoons
Mixed Vegetables               -2 cups Boiled (Cut in fine chunks, carrots, beans, peas, sweetcorn, potatoes, cauliflower)
Green chilli paste                -2 tspoon
Ginger paste                        -2 tspoon
Garlic Paste                         -2 tspoon
Onions                                 -2 medium cut in julienne
tomato                                 -1 big finely chopped
Fresh coriander leaves        -2 heaped tblspoon finely chopped
Edible Food Colours           -a pinch each (Red, Orange, green)
Mixed Nuts and Raisins      -2 tablespoon roughly chopped and roasted
Whole Spices:
Mustard Seeds                     -1/4 tspoon
Asafetida                             -1 pinch
Bay Leaf                              -1
Black cardamom                 -1
Cinnamon stick                   -1 inch thin stick
coriander seeds                   -1/4 tspoon
Black pepper                       -whole 4-5
Cloves                                 -2
Grounded Spices:
Turmeric powder                -1/2 tspoon
Amchoor Powder                -1/2 tspoon
Coriander powder               -1/2 tspoon
Garam Masala                     -1/2 tspoon
Salt                                      -to taste              


Method:

Preparing the rice:
Cook your the basmati rice, the regular way you use. Just let them not cook fully. Take them off from flame once they are half done.
I cook my rice in Microwave after soaking them in hot water for 5 minutes and run the microwave for 15 minutes. I drain out the remaining water and keep them covered to let them cook in their own steam.
Once rice are done. Divide them into 3 bowls. Add different food colours to each bowls and mix well.

Preparing vegetables for layering the biriyani:
Take a deep pan and heat the ghee, put the whole spices into the oil.
once whole spices starts to crackle add the onions to it.
After sauteing for 2 minutes, add the chilli, garlic and ginger paste into it. Saute for 2 more minutes and you will start to smell the cooked garlic and ginger fragrance.
No add the chopped tomatoes, cook it for 2 more minutes.
Now add the grounded spices to the mix. Mix it well and cook it for 5 minutes covered with a lid.
Once the spice mix starts to leave the ghee, add the boiled vegetables to it. Mix it very well and sprinkle 1 spoon of water to it.
Now cover it and cook it for 2 minutes, so that vegetables soak the spice and salt into them.
You can mix 1 tblspoon of fresh coriander into the veggies. If you wish you can add your mixed nuts into the veggies or keep them for garnishing.
I mix the nuts with veggies else my kids avoid to eat them.

Layering the Biriyani:
Now take a deep glass or microwave safe bowl.
Sprinkle some fresh coriander at the bottom of the bowl. If you want to use your nuts for garnishing sprinkle them at bottom of the bowl.
Now make 1st layer with Red rice.
spread the veggies on to Red rice for second layer.
Now make 3rd layer with green rice.
Again spread the remaining veggies onto green rice for 4th layer.
Orange rice will be the last layer of your biriyani.
Press it well, so that all the layers are sticking together well.
Now cover the bol and cook it for 4-5 minutes in the microwave.
Take it out of the microwave and let it cool down a bit before you are ready to take it out into serving plate.

Serving:
Once the biriyani cool enough to handle, take the serving plate.
Turn your serving side of the plate over the bowl as if your are covering it with the plate.
Carefully turn your bowl upside down over the serving plate.
Place the plate over the table or kitchen top.
Tap the bowl from all sides gently and lift it up.
Your will see the dome of rice and veggies, as the picture.
Your layered biryani is ready to serve with Raita or just plain yogurt.

Eggless Doughnuts (Filled / Glazed)

Ingredients:

Plain Flour                               - 1 1/2 Cup (+1/2 cup for dusting)
Warm Milk                              - 2/3 cup or 8 Tblspoon
Sugar                                       - 6 Tblspoon
Butter                                      - 1/4 Cup
Yeast                                       - 1/2 Tblespoon
Milk Powder                           - 2 Tblspoon
Oil                                           - To Fry

For decoration:

Dark Chocolate Sauce -  To Glaze
White Chocolate Sauce - To Glaze
Sprinkles or Whatever your kids love on their doughnuts!

Method:

Take  bowl and add the sugar and yeast to the warm milk. Stir and keep aside for 10 mins.
In a deep mixing bowl, add the flour, milk powder and mix well.
Once the yeast mixture is frothy add that in and knead to a sticky dough.

Add the butter and knead for 8-10 minutes. Once done, cover and let it prove for one hour.
Then take the flour sprinkle some of it and punch down the dough. Knead and then roll it dusting flour in between.

Roll it into ½ inch thickness and then cut it using donut cutter or a glass or cookie cutters. Using a 1 inch diameter cutter, make a hole in center as well.

Keep these in a tray and let them prove for another hour at a warm spot.

Heat some oil to fry these. Once the oil seems to be medium hot, throw in a small center of the doughnut to check whether its hot enough. If it starts bubbling after a second its ready.








Add the doughnuts and fry in med flame. Once fried transfer to a plate which is lined with kitchen towels.










Now let them rest for few minutes on cooling rack.

Now coat the donut with chocolate sauce and decorate however you wish. My kids did their doughnuts decorating job beautifully!!!

Ribbon Chakli

Ingredients

Gram flour/Besan               -1 cup,heaped
Rice flour                     -3/4 cup
Asafoetida/Hing                 -1/8 tspoon
Turmeric/Haldi               -1/4 tspoon
Black Pepper                       -2 tspoon, crushed coarsely
Carom Seeds/Ajwain      -1/2 tblspoon
Butter/Vegetable oil      -2 tblspoon
Oil                                      -For deep frying
Salt                                      -to taste

Method:

Sieve gram flour if you see any lumps.
Take both flours in a bowl,melt butter and add it to it.
Add crushed pepper and ajwain,salt,turmeric and asafoetida, Mix well.
Add enough water to make a stiff dough.But it should be smooth dough.
Take the sev press machine and press use the one eye/hole plate.
Fill the machine 3/4th with the dough and squeeze it either directly over the hot oil or over a greased ladle and then carefully flip in the oil.
I made them first on ladle and then placed them in Karahi, as I'm not good with the hot oil. It also keeps the shape better.
Make sure oil is hot enough, to check drop a small piece of dough, it should come up immediately. If the oil is not hot enough these chakri will soak a lot of oil and will be very oily.
I fried 4 at a time. Cook both sides until golden in colour in medium flame. sizzling sound should stop and bubbles should be reduced.
After placing Chakri in oil, flame should be turned to medium to ensure even cooking.
While flipping the Chakri in the oil be careful not to spill oil onto yourself.
Drain in paper towel and cool down before transferring to the airtight container.
Your Chakri are ready to serve with Tea or Coffee.

Note:
If, while pressing the dough, it breaks , pls sprinkle some water and smooth out the dough.
Check on the flame all the time as by the end of cooking, last batch can be turned dark brown as the oil will be very hot.

All Butter Cookies

Ingredients:

Maida / All purpose flour                               -2 cups
Butter                                                              -1/2 cup
Sugar                                                               -1/2 cup
Baking powder                                                -1 tspoon
Vanilla essence                                                -10 drops
Chocolate chips/drops                                     -1/2 cup

Method:

All the ingredients should be at room temperature.
In a deep big mixing bowl, put everything together into a soft dough. The dough should be soft not stiff. It may seem to be a bit crumbly to you but thats fine.

I made 2 batches once without chocolate chip and one with chocolate chip.
You can divide your dough into 2 parts and in one of the dough parts you can mix white or brown chocolate chips.
Now roll and cut in desired shape.

Stick chocolate drops or candies(Gems) over them .
Preheat your oven to 180°. Place them on the baking tray with the distance of 1 inch each.

Put in preheated oven at 180° for approximately 10-15 mins.
Please check in between as sometimes cookie size and thickness really matters for temperature.
If you want to make the dough with chocolate you can add 2 tablespoon of cocoa powder in it.
Place them on a cooling rack/tray once they are baked and out of oven.

Decorate them as desired once they are cooled. My kids love chocolate so I let them decorate with store bought kids friendly chocolate icing tubes. so they made hearts, swirls and flowers on the cookies.