Non Alchoholic Spiced Sangria#SundayFunday

When we visited Spain, enjoyed having different flavors of sangria, they were all alcoholic. Sangria is a typical Spanish beverage and it’s usually made with wine red or white, chopped fruit and some sweetener. Once you taste this drink your hooked to having more than glass at a time. Here I am making this awesome drink spiced nonalcoholic with  apple juice.    Let me tell you this is also divine and irresistible. 

Had guest for breakfast who do not have tea or coffee, hence decided to make this drink. Made it the previous evening and kept it in the refrigerator to chill. But as this was brewing , the house was full with aroma of spices and sweetness ... that was drawing me to kitchen to taste it. Oh My God! it tasted divine. You must try this. My guest were flabbergasted after tasting this drink.

Ingredients

A Liter Apple Juice
6 Whole Cloves.
2 Cinnamon sticks
1/2 cup Orange Juice or 2 Tablespoon Heaped Orange Powder ( I added orange powder)
2 Tablespoons Apple - finely diced per glass
Juice from 2 Limes or as per taste
2 Tablespoon Fresh ginger - peeled and thinly sliced

Method

In a large pot , add apple juice, orange juice or powder, cloves , cinnamon stick and ginger, give it a quick stir, bring it to a boil, then cover let it simmer for 5 minutes on low flame. Cool, strain the juice, add lemon juice, taste and adjust sweetness or tartness by adding orange / lime juice as per your taste. Cover and chill in refrigerator for few hours before serving. 

 Serve chilled with diced apples and enjoy.....

Labels: Juices, Spain, Non-Alcoholic, Apple,Orange juice, Sunday Funday, Healthy, Mocktail

For our event called Sunday Funday, wherein we share recipes our families will love to enjoy on a Sunday. The Theme For this Sunday is Marvellous Mocktails.

• Amaretto Sour Mocktail  by Food Lust People Love
• Baby Yoda Soda from Amy's Cooking Adventures 
• Blackberry Virgin Mojito by Making Miracles
• Color-Changing Nam Dok Anchan (Butterfly Pea Flower Lemonade) from Culinary Adventures with Camilla
• Frozen Strawberry Margarita Mocktail  by A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Non Alchoholic Spiced Sangria by Sneha's Recipe
• Virgin Margarita from Palatable Pastime

Shortbread Cookies - Scottish#EattheWorld

A quick delicious Scottish Shortbread cookies. Shortbread is one of the most famous Scottish biscuits and eaten around Christmas time and is an essential part of a traditional Scottish New Year.
Ingredients
170 g Butter
85 Grams Caster Sugar
½ Teaspoon Vanilla Essence
250 Grams All Purpose Flour
½ Tablespoon Milk Powder
A Pinch Baking powder

Method

Take a bowl add butter, caster sugar, cream it well. Add vanilla essence, all purpose flour, milk powder, baking powder, mix it lightly bring the flour together like a soft dough. 

Cling wrap the dough and lightly make it into a smooth round ball. Refrigerate the dough for at least 20 minutes. 

Using the rolling pin roll the dough like a slightly thin sheet and cut them with a fluted cookie cutter 

or a round one and transfer into baking tray and baking them into 180°C for 12 - 15 minutes. 

Let them cool dust them with icing sugar ( this is optional).

Labels: Scotland, International Cuisine, Biscuits & Cookies ,United Kingdom, Eat the World, Shortbread, Eggless 

Check out all the wonderful Scottish dishes prepared by fellow Eat the World members and share with #eattheworld. Click here to find out how to join and have fun exploring a country a month in the kitchen with us! 

 A Day in the Life on the Farm: Scottish Smoked Salmon Pate 

Culinary Adventures with Camilla: Toad-in-the-Hole, Shortbread with Candied Ginger, and some Scottish Chocolates 

Sneha’s Recipe: Shortbread Cookies - Scottish 

Magical Ingredients: Scottish Tattie Scones 

Kitchen Frau: Cranachan (Raspberry, Whisky & Oat Cream Parfaits) 

Palatable Pastime: Scottish Tattie and Spent Grain Soup 

Sugarlovespices: Easy Traditional Scottish Crumpets with baking powder

Homemade Pineapple Rum#Improv

Since many of the imported liquor/liqueurs are so costly online, so I, love infusing alcohol, have made Homemade Limoncello, and this was a hit among my friends, made the Homemade Pineapple Rum too and this is a huge hit.

Although I am a social drinker, have it at a party or wedding celebrations, love making liquor infusions. This Homemade Pineapple Rum requires just 2 ingredients, one large pineapple and white rum, the process is super simple. Add freshly cut pineapple chunks/slices to a jar, top it with white rum, and then let it soak for 2 or 3 weeks, I soaked it for 3 weeks.

Ingredients
1 Whole Fresh Pineapple - cut into small chunk or thin slices
750 Ml White Rum

Method

Place the pineapple chunks/slices in a large, air-tight jar. 

Pour the rum over the pineapple, covering it completely. Seal the jar.

Allow the pineapple to soak in the rum for 2 - 3 weeks. Keep the jar in the pantry shelf. Lightly shake the jar and turn it over every day or alternate days.

After the infusion is complete, strain the liquor from the fruit.

I, started to strain then realized that, had, not taken a pic, so this half jar.

Store the infused liquor in an air-tight jar/bottle in the refrigerator for up to three months.

Enjoy this chilled, this is super delicious!!
Check this space to see the recipes for how I used this infusion.

Labels: Cocktail, Pineapple, Rum, Homemade, Improv Cooking Challenge, International Cuisine  

For Improv Cooking Challenge July’s theme is  Pineapple and Rum. Check out what the other bloggers have made:  

• Bloody Painkiller by Palatable Pastime
• Goldilocks Cocktail by A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Homemade Pineapple Rum by Sneha's Recipe
• Pineapple Mojitos by Cookaholic Wife
• Pineapple-Rum Granita by Culinary Adventures with Camilla
• Pineapple Tiramisu by Magical Ingredients  

Stuffed Gunda/Lasoda Pickle With Mango#Foodieextravaganza

Indian cuisine is incomplete without pickles. You will find hundreds of varieties in Pickles from different parts of India. Here is one type of pickle from North India, which is known as Leswa Ka Achar/Gunda/Lasoda Pickle. There are so many names for this Goonda, Gunda, Lasoda, Gumberry, Auriyaa Lasoda, Glueberries, Lahsyade in Himachal Pradesh.

This is a homemade Lasoda Pickle. Made the traditional way with authentic Indian spices all in your kitchen pantry, used mostly daily for cooking. 

Just 15 - 20 minutes of work and your will have a different spicy and yummy pickle. If you want less oil then please refrigerate this or else it will mildew and your effort will go to waste. This pickle fills  one kg jam bottle.

Ingredients  
250 Grams Gunda/Lasoda
1 Tablespoon Sea Salt
1/4 Teaspoon Turmeric
1/2 Cup Grated Pickle Mango
1/3 Cup Homemade Pickle Masala
Gingelly / Sesame Oil as required
1 Tablespoon Heaped Pickle Masala

Method

Heat 1 ½ to 2 cups of sesame oil till hot only, do not bring it to a boiling point. Let this oil cool completely.

Remove the gunda from the bunch. Wash them very well and dry it.

Then take each gunda and with cut it with a knife, press the gunda and remove/discard the seed, cap.

like wise do these to all, the seeds are remove.

The gunda's are ready for the next process.

Take a tablespoon of sea salt and apply it inside of each gunda, keep this aside.

Grate a medium pickle mango add the turmeric powder, pickle masala. Keep aside.

In a bowl mix the grated mango and homemade pickle masala well. 

Fill it in each gunda. 

They all are filled and ready. Sprinkle a tablespoon heaped pickle masala on the gunda and mix well.

Fill these stuffed gunda in sterilized bottle.

Ready for the finale.

Pour oil over it, the oil should be at least 2 inch above the gunda's. Check after 2 days the gunda masala will absorb some of the oil. Add oil again to cover it at least an inch above the gunda. 

Cap it and cover it with a clean cloth, enjoy after 15 to 20 days.

Enjoy this Stuffed Gunda / Lasoda Pickle With Mango.. yum yum..

My Notes
If you do not want to add too much oil then mix in ½ cup of oil and refrigerate this pickle, this shelf life is only 2 to 3 weeks.

Check the recipe index for other pickle recipes.

Labels: Pickle, Achar, Mango, Gunda, Lasoda, Homemade Pickle Masala, Gujarat, Foodie Extravaganza Party

We are celebrating National Pickle Month  at Foodie Extravaganza.
Camilla of Culinary Adventures with Camilla invited the members of Foodie Extravaganza to join her in celebrating this month. Let's take a look at what pickles are done for this party.  

• Haitian Pikliz by Magical Ingredients
• Homemade Pub-Style Pickled Onions by Food Lust People Love 
• Lemon Pickled Lotus Root by Palatable Pastime
• Pickled Ramps by Culinary Adventures with Camilla
• Pickled Rhubarb by A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Quick Pickled Zucchini and Red Onions by Karen's Kitchen Stories
• Stuffed Gunda / Lasoda Pickle With Mango by Sneha's Recipe

Homemade Pickle Masala/Achar Ka Masala

Indian cuisine is in complete without pickles. You will find hundreds of varieties in Pickles from different parts of India. In summer, generally pickles are made which can be stored for years and pickle masala is heart of any pickle. To make this pickle all ingredients are there in your pantry, there is nothing special that you will have to hunt for.

You can also add this masala to your vegetables and curries. If you are making sprouts salad add a pinch of this masala and your bland salad will be chatpata. It also tastes awesome with paratha, khakhra, roti or can be used in dal, veggies etc. Read my notes before you start making the pickle masala. 

Ingredients 
45 Grams Red Chilly powder 
25 Grams Turmeric Powder 
100 Grams Yellow Mustard Seeds 
½ Teaspoon Asafoetida 
45 Grams Fennel Seeds 
30 Grams Fenugreek Seeds
1 Tablespoon Sea Salt
1 Cup Mustard Oil

Method

Dry roast the salt a minute or two on a slow flame in a pan/tawa, so that all the moisture evaporates. Let it to cool completely before adding to the remaining ingredients.

In a small pan/pot, heat the oil on slow flame. Oil should be smoking hot. Let this cool completely.

Coarsely powder the yellow mustard and fenugreek seeds separately then mix all the rest ingredients well, in a bowl and keep aside.

Pour the cooled oil on to the spices and mix well. Make sure each spices blends perfectly..
Store in a air tight glass jar/ container tightly packed.

Easy, tasty, preservative free Homemade Pickle Masala/Achar Ka Masala is ready! Keep this mix handy and you can make pickles with minimum work load/effort. 

This is very handy for making any type of pickle(instant or long storage/yearly). If you have this ready Pickle Masala/Achar Ka Masala handy then you can make pickle instantly. Just make a big batch of this ready masala once and use it when ever needed. This masala stays good for 3-4 months on the pantry shelf or for a year if refrigerate (in the refrigerator the color does not change and is the same).
This  Pickle Masala mixed in oil is packed my sister in law. 
My Notes
When I make this masala for me, I do not add oil, but store it dry in the refrigerator in a airtight container.

The reason I, do not add hot oil to the masala is because if you add hot oil then the masala will turn blackish and you will not get this bright color to your pickle.  

In most pickle masala the salt content is more, I, do not add more salt, since when pickle is made with any ingredient salt is added to it. I try to keep the salt content less.

If you like the taste of asafoetida or any other spices more in your pickle masala then increase it according to your taste. For me the Pickle Masala is perfect.  
Labels: Pickle, Homemade, Pickle Masala, Preservative free