Chocolate Almond Biscotti

The name biscotti is derived from 'bis' meaning twice in Italian and 'cotto' meaning baked or cooked.
Biscotti is said to have originated during Columbus's time and credited to an Italian baker . They became so popular that every province developed their own flavored version. Because of their long storage ability they were an ideal food for sailors, soldiers, and fisherman.

Most European countries have adopted their own version of biscotti: English - rusks, French - biscotte and croquets de carcassonne, Germans - zwieback, Greeks - biskota and paxemadia, Jewish - mandelbrot, and Russians - sukhariki
The sticky dough is first shaped into a 12 inch (30cm) log and baked until firm. After a short cooling period, the log is sliced into diagonal slices and baked again to draw out the moisture thus producing a crisp, dry textured cookie that has a long shelf life. Recipes containing butter or oil will have a softer texture and will not keep as long as the traditional recipes that only use eggs to bind the ingredients together.

-----Joy Of Baking

Finally I made a bakery item from scratch!It is so easy that I wonder why people go and buy it from Starbucks spending 7 Dirhams for each piece!!! I think you can make about 16-20 biscottis at home,with the amount with which u can buy 2 pieces at Starbucks!

Since India was ruled by English,we better know it as Rusk,I ate the most original in shape and taste(the most original has aniseed in it for flavouring) in Delhi, Chandni Chauk, when I went there I was expecting 'kabhi khushi kabhi ghum' type of place,with kajol type gals dancing in it....'banno ki saheli........'
Hey can anybody say this tongue twister in a single go.."Chandu ke chacha ne chandu ki chachi ko,chandni raat mein,chandni chauk mein,chaandi ke chammach se chaashni chataai"

uff.. bollywood has influenced me a lot,much to my husband's chagrin..lol

OK back to the rusk,when we were visiting Delhi, we liked it so much that we brought back dozens of it home,and due to its long shelf life enjoyed it for days..
I made it from the recipe here

You can read on for a novice baker's version:)
Ingredients:
3/4 cup whole almonds, toasted and chopped coarsely
2/3 cup granulated white sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1.5 bar milk chocolate(galaxy,dairy milk,hersheys)chopped or chocolate chips

Method:
--blanch and chop the almonds
--chop the chocolate bar into small pieces.
-- preheat oven to 350 F, place the chopped almonds in a baking sheet and toast in oven for about 10 mins(I did not blanch jus chopped it)
--Line the baking sheet with a parchment paper.
--Now in a bowl or tray sift togeather flour,baking powder and salt
-- In bowl of your electric mixer (or with a hand mixer), beat the sugar and eggs on high speed until thick, pale, and fluffy (about 5 minutes). (When you slowly raise the beaters the batter will fall back into the bowl in slow ribbons.)
--Slowly add the flour in it,beat till it is mixed well
--Then fold in the chopped almonds and chopped chocolate .
--After a good mixing the mixture will be a sticky cohesive mass,grease ur hands with oil, or better what I did is filled a bowl of water,dipped my hand in the water and brought togeather the dough to a log shape,
--Transfer it to a baking sheet and place in oven at 350F,let it bake till it is firm on touch it will take around 20-30 mins,
--Then take it out and let it cool for sometime,Then slice the log horizontally into thin slices using a serrated knife.
--Now place the slices on the baking sheet and bake for 10-15 mins, then take out and turn over the slices and again bake for another 10 mins or until crisp and golden in color

Enjoy!!!



P.S: Sorry for the unclear pictures,the pictures are taken from my mobile, as my camera has gone on a business trip with my husband to Finland,on his way back he is going to stop over at Zurich :(
I asked him to get a cowbell from there, the one Kajol buys from ZUrich in DDLJ....oh again see what bollywood has done to me!

Bird's Nest

This appetizer looks like the nest of a bird,therefore it is named bird's nest, a must try for people with kids,they will love it,my kids loved it:)
Of late I have become a nostalgic soul,I miss my old days so much that I keep thinking of it all the time,is there a problem in me or is everyone like that?
College days were fun! I miss all my friends, everybody is dispersed in one or the other corner of the globe,I just wish those days never ended, those were days filled with fun and mischief.

If only life had a rewind button! We could go back to the days where life was so simple without any responsiblities or commitments and bloody expectations from everyone,days spent pampered by everyone...

But life in reality is hard like rock without any rewind button.lol.
Ok bored you all with extra special 'gyan'.This avtaar of mine appears every now and then,when I feel that, why did we ever grow.... life should have been the way it was. but no we have to face the reality..
Sometimes looking at Huda I feel how blissful she is,so innocently ignorant with this world and its politics...you know sometimes ignorance is a form of bliss...seriously!
Ok ,sorry I will go on and on..with my nonsense...so better get going with the recipe

Ingredients:
1)chicken boneless-500 gms
2)potatp-3 medium
3)ginger garlic paste-2 Tbsp
4)salt
5)pepper-1 tsp
6)egg-2
7)shredded mozarella cheese-1/2 cup
8)zeera powder-1 tsp
9)garam masala- 1 tsp
10)Seviyan(sheerqorme waali)-1 cup (crushed)



Method:

--Wash the chicken pieces and put it in a pressure cooker along with ginger garlic paste,salt,pepper and some water and cook till the chicken is very soft,if there is any water remaining cook till all the water is absorbed.
--separately boil the potatoes,then peel and mash and keep aside.
--Now shred the chicken pieces,add to it the mashed potatoes,zeera powder,garam masala,check for salt and pepper if it is less you can add now,if you want you can add chopped cilantro,but thats optional, then add some lemon juice.
--Mix everything nicely such that a homogeneous mixture is formed.
--Now take portions of the chicken mixture,grease your hands with oil and form a ball of the mixture, now make a well in it using your index finger,add about a teaspoon of the mozarella cheese in the well,now press the mixture on top of the well such that the cheese is enclosed in it, make a ball, and repeat this with the rest of the mixture, you will be able to make aroun 25-30 balls with the mixture, the size should be that of a tennis ball.
--You can freeze this at this point if you want this to be used later,but first freeze it on a plate for a couple of hours and then when it has frozen,take it out from the plate and put it in a freezer bag and freeze.
--Put the frying pan on heat with some oil in it to shallow fry.
--Now break the eggs a in a bowl and whip a little ,such that the egg yolk and egg white mix well.Dip the chicken ball in the egg ,such that it is coated with it on all sides.
--Put the crushed seviyan in a shallow plate,roll the checken ball coated with egg in seviyan such that the crushed seviyan get stuck on the chicken ball.
--Now shallow fry this ball in frying pan till all the sides turn golden brown, repeat with rest of the mixture.
--Enjoy it warm...
Weather in Dubai is changing,its not hot at all, not cold, I enjoy this pleasant weather in our balcony,with my coffee mug and the Bird's Nest, watching the trafffic jam on the road from Dubai to Sharjah or Sharjah to Dubai :-)

Leftovers.......

Food and drink are great bounties of Allah Ta`ala. Every grain of food and every drop of water or any halaal drink must be greatly appreciated. Wasting is the way of shaitaan. Allah Ta`ala says: "Indeed those who waste are the brothers of shaitaan. Verily shaitaan was most ungrateful to his Rabb" (S:17,V: 27). We have been especially warned against wasting food and drink. The Quraan-ul- Kareem proclaims: "Eat and drink and do not waste, verily Allah does not love those who waste." (S:7, V:31)

GROSS INGRATITUDE
Delibrately wasting even a little food is an act of gross ingratitude. Ingratitude draws down the wrath of Allah Ta`ala, as is clearly mentioned in the Quraan: "If you are grateful I will grant you increase (in your bounties) and if your are ungrateful then verily my punishment is very severe." (S: 14, V: 7)

UTENSIL SEEKS FORGIVENESS
In the beautiful Deen of Islam (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) that after eating he would lick the
utensil clean with his finger and not leave behind even a tiny speck of food and drink. He would even lick his fingers clean of any food particles. He ordered his followers to also do the same, as has been mentioned in many Ahadith. In fact, great virtues have been mentioned for this. In a narration of Tirmizi it has been mentioned that Rasulullah (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) said: "The one who eats in a plate, then licks it clean (with his finger), the utensil seeks forgiveness for him." In another narration it is mentioned that the utensil prays for him in the words: " May Allah free you from the fire as you have freed me from shaitaan (by not leaving any food behind for shaitaan)" (Mishkaat)., true manners and etiquettes have been taught. Among these etiquettes is to appreciate every ni'mat (bounty) of Allah Ta'ala. This includes every grain of food and every drop of water. Hence, it was the practice of Rasulullah (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) that after eating he would lick the utensil clean with his finger and not leave behind even a tiny speck of food and drink. He would even lick his fingers clean of any food particles. He ordered his followers to also do the same, as has been mentioned in many Ahadith. In fact, great virtues have been mentioned for this.

In a narration of Tirmizi it has been mentioned that Rasulullah (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) said: "The one who eats in a plate, then licks it clean (with his finger), the utensil seeks forgiveness for him." In another narration it is mentioned that the utensil prays for him in the words: " May Allah free you from the fire as you have freed me from shaitaan (by not leaving any food behind for shaitaan)" (Mishkaat).

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Today was the fifth roza here in Dubai.Ramzan has brought a very busy schedule for me,and I bet to everybody,yeah I am dishing out things everyday ,but I am not able to find time for the photos,coz I usually get done a couple mins before iftar,
but nevertheless you should definitely try this out, since during ramadan,there is lot of leftover,coz you are full with all the snacks and fruits,there are lots of leftovers, like chana chaat,or any gravy or anything like this of a thick gravy kind,you can transform that leftover to a very tasty snack,I named it bread pakoda(:-D),yeah.

-- Bread Pakoda:

Ingredients:
1)Bread(depending on the amount of leftover you have)
2)leftover gravy(I used chana chaat,where the chickpeas were all mushy and soft)
3)besan-1 cup
4)chilli powder 1 tsp
5)turmeric 1/4 tsp
6)ginger garlic paste 1/2 tsp
7)salt
8)cilantro 2 tbsp
9)chopped green chillies 2nos

Method
--Mix all the ingredients from 3 to 9 and make batter using the necessary amount of water
--Take a bread slice,spread the gravy on the bread generously,cover it up with another bread,now press this,either in a sandwich maker if you have,or grill or in a waffle maker,so that the 2 breads are stuck well and gets a bit crispy,
-- now, cut diagonally so that 4 triangles are formed, now dip this triangular bread piece in the besan batter and deep fry.

do try it out! its worth trying and lemme know weather you like it

--Chicken puffs


Then day before yesterday I made this chicken from zaiqa.net, it turned out good,but again due to to excessive snacking there was a batch of leftover chicken.
The next day,thats yesterday, I made puffs using the puff pastries, and used this chicken as its filling, I tell you ,it was very good.
So puffs are ready in 10 mins,you just have to thaw the puff pastries and then fill in the leftover chicken and then seal it and coat it with beaten egg and then put it in oven, and carry on with other work,this way you are avoiding the wastage of food, and also adding variety to your menu without having to waste much of your time.


Enjoy!

Dill fritters

Come Ramadan and we think of Iftaar, the yummy delicacies that are made especially for this month,but every house has it's must-have dish for ramadan, though the ramadan spirit is similar throughout,but the foods differ.
Back in Hyderabad,haleem was the food of the season, haleem was(still is) made at houses for iftaar party,or in hotels in a huuuuuuuge pot, one single person could not hold that big spoon to stir,then dahi vada,pakoda and boiled chana dal seasoned with lemon pepper and salt and cilantro, were the must haves everyday and of course dates!
Then in TN, a very nutritious porridge is a must have, along with crispy onion samosas.
And here in Dubai, Harees is a must,must-have. How is harees different from haleem?
that was the same doubt I got when I first heard of Harees.
Haleem is a spicier version,and harees is not spicy. If your taste buds are on the spicier side then you will find harees bland.

But due to easy availability of harees here during ramadan, I get Harees from take away ,and then alter it by giving a spicy tadka to it,so that harees is transformed to haleem:D, so much for these spoiled taste buds!

Ok, so inshallah when I make these ramadan specialities will definitely post,
but for now, one of my favourite,dill fritters(soya pakoda),if for some reason you cannot find dill, then you can replace it by chopped curry leaves.

I learnt this from my aunt,back in hyderabad, who is a very good cook.
I generally enjoy it all by itself,but my husband dear likes to dip it in a dash of tomato ketchup.
I find it easy to make and very tasty.So, here we go

Ingredients:
Urad daal-1/3 cup
Moong daal -1/3 cup
chana dal-1/3 cup
onion finely chopped-1 medium
cilantro chopped-1/2 cup
dill(soya)-1/2-1 cup chopped(depending on how much it's flavor you want)
ginger garlic paste-1/2 tsp
green chillies-3 chopped
turmeric
red chilli powder
salt
baking soda 1/2 tsp
oil for deep frying.

Method:
--Soak the dals for 2-3 hours after washing them.
--Grind the dals coarsely,so that the ground mixture is not a paste ,but semi ground.
--Put in the rest of the ingredients, and mix well.
--Heat oil in kadhaai or frying pan,when its hot lower the flame(lowering of flame later makes the inner part of the fritter get cooked well) and spoon in the batter .
--After spooning in the batter wait for about 30-50 secs and then turn the fritter, and fry till it gets golden .
--Take it out on a paper towel so that it absorbs the excess oil.
--Enjoy the fritters with tomato sauce.

my first post

Hello,

this is my first post to the bloggers.......Google has been my savior in the matters of cooking.. as i did not know much of cooking....every time i have to cook... i search on net the recipe then get started,,,,,,recently i discovered the concept of the food logs..when i was searching for the recipe of marag.....its a stew kinda dish that is usually served in the marriages in Hyderabad.....so i found its recipe by nabeela...in trial and error blog....wow that was great...i loved what turned out...thank u nabeela....anyways then i found another blog IFR by manisha...which had very good recipes as well....thank u too manisha.......

anyways here is my all time fav French toast...and very easy too

4 bread slices cut diagonally
3 eggs
ginger garlic paste 1/2 tsp
red chilly powder 1/4 tsp
turmeric 1/8 tsp
salt...well accd to ur taste
coriander leaves finely chopped
oil about 1/2 cup to deep fry

In a bowl mix all ingredients except the bread...and mix using a fork...after it is mixed well
heat oil in a saucepan when it is hot enough lower the flame, and dip the bread in the egg mixture and deep fry, till it is golden brown in colour ..drain it on a paper.. and serve hot with tomato sauce.

If u have a sweet tooth then u can use sugar instead of salt,chilly powder,turmeric g/g paste and coriander leaves,
same procedure
beat the eggs with the sugar,,,,after the sugar is dissolved dip the bread in the egg mixture and deep fry.
the toast will be caramelized toast... and its yummy even when is not hot.
hope u like it