Gulab Jamuns

I’ve always been fascinated by the beauty of silver foils on Indian Mitais.But till now I didn’t get a chance to work with it,and so asked my sister to get it for me from Bangalore.She really struggled to find it out,and finally got it from a wholesale cake shop.Can anybody let me know where i can find these edible silver foils in Bangalore/Kochi?

I prepared these Gulab Jamuns when my friends came over, so that i could try decorate it with my silver foils.Gulab Jamuns as you all know is a classic Indian dish,where dough prepared with milk powder/mawa is fried and immersed in sugar syrup.

Ingredients:-

Milk powder – 1 cup (I prefer Nido brand)
All purpose flour – 1/2 cup
Baking powder – 1/2 tsp
Melted Butter – 2 tbsp
Whole milk – enough to make the dough
Oil – for deep fryingFor the sugar syrup:
Sugar – 2 cups
Water – 1 cup
Cardamom pods crushed – 2

Method:-

For Sugar syrup :

Combine all the ingredients for sugar syrup and heat it until the sugar is well dissolved in water.

For Gulab Jamuns:

Combine milk powder,all purpose flour,baking soda and melted butter in a bowl,add enough milk and knead it to make a soft dough.Divide the dough into 18-20 portions,take each portion and gently roll between your palms to make it a smooth ball.Cover the balls with a slightly damp kitchen towel.

Heat oil in a deep pan until it is hot and then lower the heat to medium.Now slowly put the balls in the hot oil and deep fry it,gently shake the pan so that the balls are browned evenly.You have to be very careful in maintaining the temperature of the oil,Gulab jamuns will slowly rise to the top if it is fried in the correct temperature.When they are browned on all sides,slowly remove it from oil and put immediately in the warm sugar syrup.

Keep them undisturbed in the warm sugar syrup for atleast 3o minutes and then serve hot/cold.I love warm Gulab Jamuns when served with vanilla icecream.

Cabbage Sprouts Thoran

Last week i’ve found this interesting leafy vegetable in an International market and decidied to try it out.Cabbage sprouts tastes similar to cabbage,but posesses a delicate bitter flavour.This is my entry for Mahanandi’s JFI-Greens.

Ingredients:-

Cabbage sprouts chopped – 2 cups
Green chillies chopped – 6
Shallots sliced – 6
Grated coconut – 3/4 cup
Garlic pods chopped – 2
Turmeric powder – 1/2 tsp
Jeera – 1 tsp
Mustard seeds – 1 tsp
Curry leaves – a sprig
Salt – to taste
Oil – as needed

Method:-

Grind grated coconut,turmeric powder,green chillies,jeera seeds and garlic into a coarse paste.Mix together chopped sprouts ,salt,shallots and the ground mixture well with hand.Keep it aside.
Heat oil in a pan and allow mustard seeds to splutter.Add in urad dal and curry leaves and fry for a minute.Now add the cabbage sprouts into the pan and mix well.Add little water,stir and cover it with a lid and cook in medium heat until done,stirring in between.Serve with rice.