PAPAYA HALWA / PAPITE KA HALWA

If you have a papaya that is not sweet and tasteless do not throw it...,,try out this delicious halwa. I couldn't believe it would come out so tasty. Everyone enjoyed it.




Ingredients:
Papaya ............. 1 large (ripe)
Sugar .............. 3/4 cup (adjust according to the sweetness of papaya)
Green cardamoms ... 4-5
Cashew nuts ............ handful
Desi ghee or oil ...... 4-5 tbsps
Milk

KARELE KA HALWA

Karela has various therapeutic properties and it is one of the healthiest vegetables. My mom-in-law used to make a variety of dishes with bitter gourd during my pregnancy and post delivery. This halwa is one of them. She added extra ghee and dry fruits but here I have reduced the quantity.





Ingredients:
Karelas / bitter gourds .... 3
Desi ghee / clarified butter .. 3 tbsps
Sugar .......

STRAWBERRY PRETZEL SALAD (Dessert)

Strawberry pretzel salad is a very easy and delicious dessert. It is neither too sweet nor salty. The taste is well balanced.








Ingredients:

Crushed Pretzels .... 2 cups

Melted butter ......... 3/4 cup

Sugar ...................... 1 cup +3 tbsps
Cream cheese .......... 8 ounces (about 225 gms)

Whipped topping ....  8 ounces ( about 225 gms)

Strawberry Jello / jelly ... 2 packets 

HONEY GINGER KULFI

Try out these honey ginger flavoured kulfis... a delicious and healthy treat in summer.

Ingredients:
Condensed milk ... 250 ml
Whipped cream ... 250 ml (I used malai blended with little milk)
Milk powder ........ 1 cup (use full cream like Amulya or Nestle)
Honey ................ 3 tbsps
Ginger juice ...... 3 tbsps
Almond powder .. 1/2 cup
Cardamom powder .. 1/4 tsp
Powdered pistachios ..

MANGO BOONDI / SWEET BOONDI / PRASHAD BOONDI

One more mango dish of the season... maybe the last one as the mango season has come to an end.
I tried out sweet boondi adding mango puree to the gram flour. It turned out perfect. We usually make sweet boondi as prashad during festive days and sometimes the fine variety of  namkeen sev is mixed together with the boondi to balance the taste.




Ingredients:
Gram flour/ besan .... 3 tbsps

MANGO MALAI SHAHI TUKDA / CRISPY BREAD ROUNDELS WITH CREAMY MANGO

Mango is my favourite fruit and I can never stop trying out more and more recipes each season. Here is a variation of the traditional Hyderabadi dessert, Shahi Tukda. I had some home made malai, which combined with mango pulp made an excellent topping.

Here goes the recipe.



Ingredients:

Bread slices ..... 4

Mango pulp .... 1 cup

Malai / home made cream .. 1/2 cup

Cardamom powder ....

AMRAKHAND POPSICLES / AMRAKHAND BARS / MANGO FLAVOURED FROZEN YOGURT POPSICLES

Amrakhand and Shrikhand are our family favourites. I always make them in large quantity when we entertain so that I can make some popsicles the next day from the left overs. These make a lovely summer treat specially for the kids.
I had posted the Amarkhand and Shrikhand recipes earlier in the blog. I am posting the procedure again to make it easier for you.




Ingredients:
 Hung curd ... 1

AMRAKHAND / MANGO SHRIKHAND

Amarkhand is a variation of Shrikhand which is a traditional dessert from the states of Gujarat and Maharashtra. It is made from hung yogurt, powdered sugar and flavoured with saffron and powdered cardamoms and mango pulp.
To get a nice and thick consistency it is better to make hung curd and pulp at home as the store bought pulp is thinner. While making amrakhand, the addition of saffron and

MANGO RASAYANA / AAMBYAACHI SHIKARAN

This is a traditional recipe of aamras from Karnataka and Maharashtra. In Karnataka it is known as Rasayana while the Mumbaikars call it Aambyaachi Shikaran. It is basically mango pulp with some jaggery or sugar, milk or coconut milk and cardamom powder for flavoring. My personal preference is coconut milk any day. Shikaran or rasayana can be relished all by itself or eaten with neer dosa or

CHAKKA PRADHAMAN / JACKFRUIT PAYASAM

This is traditional dessert from Kerala. Jackfruit is a delicacy there and many desserts are made from this fruit. One of them is this simple pradhaman made with the addition of jaggery and coconut milk. Some also add chana dal to it and I prefer it this way as dal gives the thickness and added flavours to the dish.

Ingredients:
Jackfruit ..... 1 cup
Chana dal .... 1/4 cup
Jaggery .......

STRAWBERRY BAKED YOGURT (Valentine Day Special)

This simple Greek Yogurt and strawberry based cheesecake-like dessert is inspired by the one I had recently in a restaurant during breakfast buffet. It can actually be served for breakfast as well. It is very easy to make with just a few ingredients. You can replace the strawberries with blueberries, cherries, raspberries, red currants or a mixture of assorted berries...bake a heart shape