Jal Jeera (Jal = Water, Jeera = Cumin)

Ingredients
1/2 Kg. Imli
1 Kg. Sugar (fine grounded preffered)
3 – 4 Green Chillies
1 Piece of Ginger
Black Salt (as per your taste)
White Common Salt (as per your taste)
Roasted Jeera
Pudina (Mint Leaves as toppings)
2 Lemons
Namkeen Boondi

Method
Wash Imli with water.
Soak Imli in water along with Sugar, Adrak and Green Chillies.
After 8-10 Hours ,mash the soaked ingredients and sieve them into a bowl.
Put 2 Litres of Water into the Mixture.
Put Lemon Juice and the rest of the ingredients in mixture.
Mix them all well . Put Pudina Leaves into the mixture.(The drink is ready . JAL JEERA , Colour: Muddy Brown, Consistency : Clear Soup Like) Refrigerate the JAL JEERA for 2 hours. Before serving, Add Boondi to each seperate serving. ( Boondi floats on top making the drink more crispy.)

The one who controls the senses by the trained and purified mind and
intellect, and engages the organs of action to selfless service is
considered superior.

Perform your obligatory duty, because working is indeed better than
sitting idle. Even the maintenance of your body would not be possible
without work.

Work other than those done as a selfless service (Seva) binds human
beings. Therefore, becoming free from selfish attachment to the fruits
of work, do your duty efficiently as a service to Me.

Evert asked me ” Dear Chef, I used to live in Tanzania some 40 years ago. There was an Indian place where they served an appetizer at teatime that looked like small (steamed)spiced (chickpea) balls with a yoghurt dipsauce. I can’t remeber the name but I think it was a bahji. Could you think of anything it could be from my inadequate description. The taste was so good that I would love to be able to make them myself and share with my friends. (My Indian friends could not help me out as it could be a vegetarian dish from another region) If you could help it would be much appreciated.

Answer : From your description, it appears that it could be Dahi Bhalla or Dahi Bada, or a “Boondi Raita”. Let me post both the recipes here.

Boondi Raita

600 ml Yoghurt
1/4 tea spoon pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon sugar
1 tablespoon chopped fresh mint or coriander

Soak the boondi in water for about 10 minutes. Squeeze lightly and set aside. Beat the yoghurt smooth with fork, add the salt, pepper and sugar and stir until the sugar dissolves. Fold(put in and mix well) the moist boondi in yoghurt. Refrigerate. Sprinkle with chopped mint or coriander leaves. Serve chilled.

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For years, the journey of Indian food from the kitchens of expatriate Indians to the tables and hearts of the British populace has been mind-boggling. This week’s resource aims to put together
over 900 Indian Restaurants in the UK which serve Asian Cuisine. Nicely categorized into different regions and counties, the site lists the full contact details, along with a map which gives you precise directions to reach there.
http://www.tandoori.co.uk/

Lentil Stock is good for plants !
a. Use the water used for washing dals and rice to water the plants. This water is very rich in nutrients and acts as a fertilizer.
b. Remove yellow food stains from table mats, etc., by applying a paste of detergent and water to the stained areas and keep in the sun for an hour. Wash like your other laundry.

Ajwain comes from the Oregano and Caraway family. Its usage is almost confined to Central Asia and Northern India. A common ingredient in Arabic dishes, its strong aroma is enhanced by roasting or frying and goes well with potatoes or fish. Ajwain is much used as a medical plant in ayurvedic medicine (India). Mainly, it helps against diseases of the digestive tract and fever. The following link has the recipe to Ajwain Lassi – an appetizer beverage taken before meals.
http://www.bawarchi.com/contribution/contrib1909.html

Smart Tip: So you have that excess of Pie Dough left and can’t figure out what to do with it? Roll the dough out to about 1/4″ thick. Place on jelly roll pan, sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar mixture, then bake in 375 degree oven until lightly browned. A delicious sweet treat!

“Haldi” is nothing but Turmeric (Curcuma Longa). Turmeric is the root of a tropical plant related to GINGER. Though native to the Orient, this spice is now also cultivated in India and the Caribbean. It has a bitter, pungent flavor and an intense yellow-orange color. In Biblical times, turmeric was often used to make perfume, a comment on its rather exotic fragrance. Today it’s used mainly to add both flavor and color to food. It’s also a primary ingredient in MUSTARD and is what gives American-style prepared mustard its bright yellow color.

Some tips on Haldi

* Add a pinch of turmeric powder to the oil before adding green vegetables. The vegetables will retain their greenness better
even after cooking.
* Although turmeric is added to dishes in daily cooking, a nice way of taking it daily is to use one teaspoon of turmeric powder
in a cup of warm milk.
* For treating wounds, make a paste and apply twice a day. Fresh or Dry Turmeric is also used in saline gargles for relief from
a sore throat.

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Here is how to make the “Vegetable Stock”

To make it, you can use all kinds of vegetables except broccoli and cauliflower which can overpower the flavor. The flavor will vary slightly depending on what you have used. Tomatoes can also dominate the flavor, so use them sparingly. Asparagus, contrary to popular opinion is a good ingredient adding depth and richness to the stock.

Making vegetable stock is a great way to clean out the refrigerator of food that is less than fresh, don’t limit your stock making ingredients to whole vegetables. Start saving peels (well washed, of course) and trimmings while you cook. Your stock will be strained before being used, and all those unattractive peels will be gone, but they will have imparted a lovely flavor to your stock. Some excellent vegetables (and vegetable scraps) to use are: onions, garlic, potatoes, sweet potatoes, squash, carrots, celery, mushrooms, peas, corn (empty corn cobs can also add lots of flavor to veg. stock), parsley, green beans, beets, bell peppers, scallions, green onions, shallots, fresh basil or other herbs, etc., etc.

You can also add some fruit or fruit scraps to your vegetable stock ingredient mix. Apples, pears and even pineapple works well.
Oranges can also help and give a nice flavor particularly if you are going to use the stock in a soup or stew. A good rule of thumb is to have about half solid ingredients to half water. It’s a good idea to throw in a tablespoon or so of whole black peppercorns and a bay leaf or two for added flavor. Cover your ingredients with the water, bring to a boil and let simmer for about an hour. Cool and strain to remove any pieces of vegetables, fruit or scraps. That’s all there is to it.

Of all the festivals celebrated in India, Diwali is by far the most glamorous and important. Enthusiastically enjoyed by people of every religion, its magical and radiant touch creates an atmosphere of joy and festivity. “Diwali” means an array of lamps. Every home — lowly or mighty, the hut of the poor or the mansion of the rich — is alight with the orange glow of twinkling diyas (small earthen lamps) to welcome Lakshmi, Goddess of wealth and prosperity.

Two Cottage-Cheese Sweets :

Sandesh

Ingredients

• 400 Grams Cottage Cheese (Paneer)
• 125 Grams Sugar (Food Processed,Blended)
• 10 Small Elaichis(Green Cardomom)
• 3 -4 Silver Foils(Vark : Optional)
• Kesar(saffron) Petals.

Method
Mash Cottage Cheese and Sugar well.
Ground Elaichis and add them to the Paneer Mixture.
Set the Mixture Flat in a Thali and Cut it into Round , square or rectangular pieces .
Apply Silver Foil and Kesar On top of it.

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Lord Krishna, the Supreme Indian Deity discusses the subject of food in the Holy Geeta scriptures as follows:
“Food which promotes longevity, intelligence, vigour, health and cheerfulness and which is sweet, bland, substantial and naturally agreeable, is dear to the Sattvic (Altruistic) type of men. Purity of mind follows from the purity of diet.” Here, he emphasizes a pure vegetarian diet which is light, soothing, and easily digested. A Sattvic diet is composed of clarified butter, milk, fruit or fruit juices, rice, sesame, and almonds, and should have a sweet taste in general.

Cookies: Tips and Time Savers
1. Don’t have time to roll out dough, cut into shapes and decorate your cookies? Opt for drop or bar cookies instead. They taste
just as good with half of the work, so you can get out of the kitchen twice as fast!
2. Decorated cookies look and taste so delicious, but making frosting  can be extra time consuming. Buy several containers of ready-made white icing at the grocery store and add food coloring to it to achieve the desired colors. Your cookies will look great,
you’ll save yourself a lot of time, and no one will be the wiser.

- Sonzy.

Welcome to Sonzy’s Kitchen. A Very Happy New Year to all of you. Starting Jan 2008, I have changed this into a blog.
Indian Cuisine with its unique blend of spices and diverse styles of cooking of different Indian states has evolved continuously for over 100 years. Here, at Sonzy’s Kitchen, we attempt to demystify the methods and styles with which Desi-chefs and Indian Moms prepare the food served in India.
Bon Appetit !
- Sonzy.