Semolina Cucumber Cake#SundayFunday

I have already posted a cucumber cake recipe, that is eggless and made with idly rava, this one is totally different and unique. This cucumber that I got is directly from the framers field again that is the big yellow cucumber if you see the early recipe you'll get the information about that cucumber.

This cucumber had hardly any seeds, was so cool and had a sweet taste. I grated 3/4 of the cucumber and the remaining we sliced and enjoyed.

Ingredients
3 Cups Packed Cucumber - see notes
2 Cups Jaggery
2 Cups Fine Semolina/Rawa
1 Cup All Purpose Flour
1 Cup Freshly Grated Coconut
3 Eggs
100 Grams Butter
3 Tablespoons heaped Ghee
1 Teaspoon Baking powder
1/2 Teaspoon Baking soda
A few drops of Vanilla essence

Method

Wash and peel the cucumbers and cut them vertically, scoop out the pith (seeds). Grate the cucumber and then lightly squeeze out the juice.

In a big vessel add the semolina, jaggery, cucumber, coconut, and stir well till there are no lumps. Finally add the ghee and butter stir again till well incorporated and keep it for soaking minimum for an hour. 
Grease cake tin with ghee or butter.
Preheat oven at 180°C for about 15 minutes.

Sieve the flour, baking powder and baking soda and mix it properly. 
Beat the eggs and pour it into the batter and whisk it well then add the flour and and fold it into the batter.

Pour the batter into the prepared tin bake it for an hour.

Perfectly baked Semolina Cucumber Cake. 
My Notes
Taste the cucumber before you grate it, if it's bitter do not use it.
Do not squeeze the cucumber of all the juice then the semolina/rawa will not get enough moisture to soften.

Depending on the size of the tin, moisture in the cake batter and oven used the baking time may vary between 1 hour to 1 hour 20 minutes.

You can't unmold this cake, so cut the desired pieces in the pan itself and gently lift it.
If you want a brown surface you can change the oven settings to the 'Broil/Grill' mode for the last 3 minutes (I did it), brown crust adds to the taste.
Adjust the jaggery to your taste.

Labels: Cake, Cucumber, Healthy, Semolina, Coconut, Jaggery, Sunday Funday,

• Cucumber and Avocado Salad from A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Cucumber Raita from Cook with Renu
• Cucumber Rosettes from Amy’s Cooking Adventures
• Roasted Apricots, Cucumber, and Tomato Gazpacho with Alioli from Culinary Cam
• Semolina Cucumber Cake from Sneha's Recipe
• Sesame Cucumber Radish Salad from Food Lust People Love

Atola - East Indian#SundayFunday

Atola is a traditional East Indian rice pudding that it made with newly harvested rice. This is basically a vegan, gluten free, no sugar, no oil , no ghee or butter, it has just 3 basic ingredients i.e. new rice , coconut milk , jaggery as a sweetener and is flavored with cardamom powder. It's delicious and creamy.

This is made only once a year with rice from the new harvest, on All Souls Day. The rice should be new as new rice is sticky and this is what we want. But if you don’t have rice from the new harvest then use any other rice.

All Souls’ Day, is a day dedicated to the dead and it is observed on 02 November every year. As per the Catholic church, it is the day of Commemoration of All The Departed Souls. Masses are offered for the dead. People also visit and decorate the graves of their loved ones.

Serves 4 - 5
Measurement of 1 Cup = 200Ml
Ingredients
¾ Cup Rice
1/3 Cup Chawli/Black Eyed Beans
1 Liter Thin Coconut Milk -Homemade
250Ml Thick Coconut Milk ( first extract)
160 Grams Jaggery - I used organic
½ Teaspoon Cardamom powder
¼ Teaspoon Salt
Method
Wash and soak the black eyed beans for 6 -8 hours.

In a deep vessel/pot add the rice, chawli beans, salt and

the thin coconut milk, bring it to boil and cook until the rice and chawli beans are soft ( keep stirring in between since this will stick to the bottom of the pot and get burnt).

Once the beans and rice are cooked this will thicken,

now add the jaggery , keep stirring it till the jaggery melts (taste, it if you want it sweeter than add more jaggery accordingly, for us the sweetness is just right) and the pudding comes to a boil. 

Add the cardamom powder and the thick/first extract coconut milk, let it come to a slight simmer. Switch off the flame.

This will thicken as it cools.

Enjoy this warm. Super yummy & delicious!!

Labels: Rice, Homemade, Coconut Milk, Jaggery, Cardamom Powder, Pudding, Sweets & Desserts, East Indian, Sunday Funday,  Vegan, Gluten free, No Oil Or Butter

Today for Sunday Funday Camilla of Culinary Adventures with Camilla, has chosen this theme for us Día de los Muertos - which is The Day of the Dead. 

Atola- East Indian by Sneha's Recipe
Caldo Tlalpeño by Food Lust People Love
Dia de Los Muertos Sugar Skull Cake by Amy’s Cooking Adventures
Enfrijoladas de Pollo by A Day in the Life on the Farm
Fiambre Rojo for Día de los Muertos by Culinary Adventures with Camilla
Pan de Muerto (Mexican Day of the Dead Bread) by Karen's Kitchen Stories
Pan Seared Tilapia with Shrimp by Palatable Pastime
Taco Casserole by Making Miracles
Vegetarian Tortilla Soup by Mayuri's Jikoni

Chach- A Dessert Soup - East Indian#Soupswappers

What is Chach? That's a question many will be asking! This is an East Indian dessert soup which is made with sweet potatoes on Maundy Thursday. This is also called by many East Indians as Gorache. My mother made this every year on Maundy Thursday and we loved it. She made it without tapioca pearls, this is my addition to it. My hubby loves this Chach too. He had it as his meal, two bowls full. This dessert Soup is, no oil or butter, sugar free, vegan and gluten free too.
Make 3 Bowls
Ingredients
220 Grams Sweet Potatoes- cut into thick roundels
1/3 Cup Sabudana/Tapioca Pearls
180 Grams Jaggery - chopped
1 Medium Size Coconut - to make coconut Milk
1 Teaspoon Cardamom powder
A Pinch of Salt
Method
Wash the sabudana/tapioca pearls in water 2 times then soak it in water till an inch above the pearls. Keep this covered for at least an hour or two.

Wash and peel the sweet potatoes and cut into medium thick pieces.

This should be the thickness or else they will melt when cooking. Soak them in water, keep aside.

Now let's make the Coconut Milk

Peel all the brown part of the coconut we require only the white meat, chop it into pieces

Then grate it in a blender jar.

Warm 4 cups of water.

In big blender jar add the grated coconut, add 250Ml warm water and run the blender for 2 minutes. 

Take this out into a fine muslin cloth and squeeze out all the coconut milk 

this makes the first thick extract. Keep this extract a side.

Again add the coconut from the muslin cloth into the blender jar 

add 250Ml warm water and again run the blender for 2 minutes.

Remove this into the muslin cloth and squeeze out all the coconut milk this makes the second extract, 

pour this into a airtight bottle . These are the two bottles (250Ml Each) that I filled and labeled thick and thin coconut milk.
If you require another thin extract you can do this process again by adding just a cup of water. After this you cannot extract any more coconut milk. Use can use how much you want and freeze the remaining coconut milk.

To Make the Chach

In a large pot/pan add the 2 cups thin extract of coconut milk , salt and the sweet potatoes slices. Place this on medium low flame and let it cook for 5 to 7 minutes or till nearly done, stirring once or twice in between. 

When the sweet potatoes are nearly done then add the tapioca pearls and give it a quick stir, let this cook again on medium low flame till done/ transparent and the sweet potatoes are fully cooked, do not make them mushy they should remain whole. 

Now add the jaggery and let it melt and comes to just a boil. Add the thick extract of coconut milk and give it stir, bring this to just a boil. 

Switch off the flame add the cardamom powder.

Serve into large bowls and enjoy warm!!
Labels : Dessert Soup, East Indian, Soup, Sweet Potato, Jaggery, Cardamom Powder, Healthy, No Oil Or Butter, Vegan, Gluten free, Soup Swappers, Homemade, Coconut Milk

For Soup Swappers April 2021, we asked to "Share a soup that provides a link to your ancestry". and our Host is Sidsel of Sid's Sea Palm Cooking. 

• Apong Meling's Sinigang from Culinary Adventures with Camilla 
• Blomkål- og ostesuppe (Cauliflower and Cheese Soup) from Sid's Sea Palm Cooking
• Chach- A Dessert Soup - East Indian from Sneha's Recipe
• Cock-a-leekie Scottish Chicken Soup from Making Miracles
• Mulligatawny Soup from Magical Ingredients
• Scottish Red Lentil Soup from Pandemonium Noshery 
• Ticinese Minestrone from Karen's Kitchen Stories

Bora Berry Tart#BakingBloggers

Bora berries are a popular fruit from India. It is commonly found at road side carts. 

As kids we use to buy this fruit to eat after school and enjoy it with salt. I go climbing the forest hills every day this fruit is widely available there, we collected these and made this tart for my friends. 

Ingredients
For the Shortcrust
200 Grams All Purpose Flour
100 Grams Butter

A Pinch Salt 

1 Tablespoon Water

For the Coconut Filling
1 Tablespoon Butter - softened
1/4 Cup Sugarcane Jaggery
1 Egg
1/2 Cup Coconut flour - Homemade
50 Grams All Purpose Flour
Pinch Cinnamon powder  & Nutmeg powder
1 Tablespoon Milk
1/2 Cup Bora Berries - deseeded and chopped
Bora Berries for garnishing as required

Method

Mix all the ingredients to make the short crust pastry. Work the dough well out and smooth and let it stand for at least 1 hour in refrigerator. 
Remove the dough from the refrigerator (if refrigerated longer than 1 hour, let stand at room temperature until workable). Unwrap and roll out between 2 lightly floured large sheets of parchment paper or plastic wrap to a round according to the size of the pan ( used a 6.1/4 inch tart pan). Transfer the dough to the tart pan. Ease the dough into the pan corners and press the dough against the fluted sides of the pan. If some sections of the edge are too thin, reinforce them by folding the excess dough back on itself. Run the rolling pin over the top of the tart pan to remove the excess dough. Prick the bottom and sides of the dough all over with a fork. Set the dough-lined tart pan on a large plate and refrigerate for 20 minutes.

Preheat oven to 180 degrees . Set the dough-lined tart pan on a baking sheet, press a  foil into the frozen tart shell and over the edge and fill with  ceramic pie weights or beans. Bake for 15 minutes, rotating halfway through the baking time. Remove from the oven and carefully remove the foil and weights. Continue to bake until deep golden brown, 5 to 8 minutes longer. Set the baking sheet with the tart shell on a wire rack and cool to room temperature.

In the meanwhile let's prepare the filling. 

In a bowl mix butter, jaggery till smooth. Add the Coconut flour, flour, eggs, milk and cinnamon and nutmeg powder. Mix it all well add  the  chopped bora berries and  fold in well.

Once the tart shell is cooled completely then fill the coconut paste mixture and arrange the bora berries on top. 

Bake the tart for about 35-40 minutes or until golden at 180 C. Do the poke test to see if it's done in the center (if anything sticks on the fork or tooth pick, it will need some more baking time).  

Cool it and slice it

Enjoy!!

My Notes

I made my own Coconut flour, by drying the scraped coconut in the oven for 30 minutes a 100 C. Then  ground the dried coconut to a fine flour. Store it in a airtight container.

Lables : Tart , Baked, , Bora Berry, Homemade, Coconut Flour, Jaggery, Baking Bloggers, Healthy, Sweets & Desserts

Baking Bloggers

Baking with Summer Berries

• Bora Berry Tart by Sneha's Recipe
• Lattice Top Blackberry Pie by Palatable Pastime
• Lemon Blueberry Bundt Cake by Simply Inspired Meals
• Make-Ahead Mixed Berries Baked Oatmeal by Hardly A Goddess
• Mini Fruit-topped Pavlovas by Food Lust People Love
• Mixed Berry Bubbly Pies by Sid's Sea Palm Cooking
• Mixed Berry Cheese Danish by Cookaholic Wife
• No Churn Roasted Strawberry Ice Cream by Caroline's Cooking
• Roasted Blackberry-Cherry Tomato Chutney On Venison Medallions by Culinary Adventures with Camilla
• Strawberry Crisp with Pepita & Chia Seed Topping by Faith, Hope, Love, & Luck Survive Despite a Whiskered Accomplice
• Strawberries 'n' Cream Scones by Home Sweet Homestead
• Strawberry Shortcake Bars by A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Strawberry Shortcake Cookies by Karen's Kitchen Stories
• Vegan Lemon Raspberry Layer Cake by The Baking Fairy

Gorkeri Sweet & Spicy Mango Pickle

The Gorkeri Recipe is a traditional Gujarati Raw Mango Pickle that is made sweet and spicy with jaggery. It's a pickle you will love.  My friends who tasted this recipe loved it.

Ingredients  

350 Grams Green Raw mangoes - cubed - see notes

120 Grams Jaggery - grated
2 Tablespoons Heaped Yellow Mustard Seeds or Whole ( this variety is used for pickling , if you don't get it powder normal mustard seeds )
1 Tablespoons Level Red chili powder¼ Teaspoons Rock salt¾  Teaspoon Heaped Turmeric powder
Mustard oil or Sesame oil as required
2 + 2 Teaspoons Sea Salt

Method

Wash and clean the mangoes , pat dry, peel  and remove the seed. Chop into small cubes .
Mix turmeric powder with 2 teaspoons heaped salt and coat  the mango cubes with it .
Let it rest for an hour or more . After an hour or so drain the water it leaves and steam cook lightly for 8 - 10 minutes but not very mushy . Keep aside  to cool completely.

Meanwhile dry roast yellow or whole mustard seeds till it leaves an aroma ( taking care not burn them). Cool and then powder it. 

Take a pan , heat sesame oil ( I used this), add the powdered jaggery , add the powdered spice , red chili powder,  add the marinated steam cooked mango cubes after patting dry into the mixture . Keep the flame on low and let the jaggery melt, stirring it so that it does not burn. Stir the whole mixture lightly taking care not to mash the mangoes. Take off flame after jaggery is completely melted.

Let it cool completely ( I left it overnight covered) before you bottle it in a clean sterilized glass jar . This Gorkeri pickle stays good for months . I have added oil one inch above the pieces. If you want it with less oil then keep it in the refrigerator. Use a dry spoon to remove the pickle. 

Tastes excellent with khichdi, theplas , rotis , phulkas and bhakris.

My Notes :

I had purchased 530 grams mango , after cleaning, cutting and chopping the mangoes measured 350 grams.

Labels : Mango, Pickle, Jaggery, Gujarat, Homemade