Christmas fruit cake

Christmas and cake go hand in hand. This cake has a touch of rich fruits and exotic spices like cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger. This recipe will seem to be long and complicated, but it is simple if you weigh all the ingredients well and grease/ line the cake tin before you begin.

Prepare the fruit cake

In pan mix dark brown soft sugar (500gm) , double cream ( 300ml)  and spices –mixed spices (1 tbspn), grounded cinnamon ( 2 tbspn), grounded nutmeg (1/4 tbspn) and grounded ginger (1 tbspn). Mix well and bring it to a boil on low heat. (Do not caramelise the sugar). Remove from the heat and keep it aside.

In a mixing bowl wisk eggs (6 nos) into a smooth paste now add flour (1 kg) and stir well. Add baking soda (1 tbspn) and Butter. Then add finely diced fruits like :-  ( sultans -250 gms), raisins ( 250gms), Currants ( 250 gms), dried apricot ( 250gms), glacier cherries ( 250 gms ), dried pineapple ( 250 gms), citrus peel ( 250 gms) , pitted prunes( 250 gms). ( These finely diced fruits are soaked overnight in orange juice (4 tbspn). Mix the mixture well.

Spoon the mixture in a well prepared tin. Line the round cake tin with a parchment paper. Preheat the oven to 150C/300 F/ GAS 2.  Bake the cake for 3-31/2 hrs. When the cake is cooked remove from the oven and let it cool in the tin.

When cold remove from the tin and feed the cake with boiled orange juice. Wrap the cake in aluminium foil and leave it in cold dark place for 2 days. The cake can be preserved for 2 months before icing. However feed the cake everyday with small amount of boiled orange juice or cold brandy or whisky. 

I have made this cake non-alcoholic using orange juice.

Enjoy the cake and Merry Christmas. This cake can stay for 2 months. 

Preparation time: 40 minutes

Cooking time: 3 hrs

Recipe: non vegetarian

Non alcoholic

All photograph's and text copyrights Trupti Rane's Spice Recipes and Trupti Rane's Spice Moments . Do not reproduce, copy without permission. All rights reserved.

Visit : www.truptiranespicerecipes.com  

Please use this recipe as a guideline and use your discretion to make the recipe or to make a substitution in the recipe. As results vary according to one's skills. 

Spinach and red pepper

This vegetable dish is easy, quick and tasty.

Preparation and cooking:

1. Wash baby spinach (180 gms) and pepper ( 1 nos)  in running tap water.
2. Chop spinach, red pepper, red onion (1 nos), garlic ( fat 4-5 cloves)  and red chilli (1nos). Keep them aside.
3. Add oil to a saucepan (1 tbspn) . When the oil is warm add garlic to it, followed by cumin seeds (1tspn), chopped red chilli and red onion.
4. Sauté the above mixture on medium heat.  
5. Then add turmeric (1 tspn) , kokum ( or tamarind 2 nos) , jaggery  ( ½  tspn). Mix well
6. Now add chopped spinach and red pepper.
7. Sprinkle salt (¼  tspn or as per taste). No sooner the salt is added, spinach will release water. Let the spinach and red pepper cook in this water.
8. Add chilli powder (½ tspn), olive oil (½ tspn) and kitchen king masala powder (1 tspn).
9. Sauté well on low heat until the mixture is tender and releases oil.
10. Serve hot with flat bread. 

    Recipe: Vegetarian

          Preparation time :10 mins

          Cooking time : 15 mins

All photograph's and text copyrights Trupti Rane's Spice Recipes and Trupti Rane's Spice Moments . Do not reproduce, copy without permission. All rights reserved.

Visit : www.truptiranespicerecipes.com  

Please use this recipe as a guideline and use your discretion to make the recipe or to make a substitution in the recipe. As results vary according to one's skills. 

Fish fry (Mumbai/Bombay and Malwani style)

This is a simple and easy to make recipe. Mumbai is famous for fish and I just love Pomfret and Kingfish. Try this spicy and delicious recipe.

  

    

Preparation :

Step A : Cleaning the fish

1. You can select small Pomfret fish with cut marks or Kingfish steaks or Pomfret steaks. 
2. Clean and wash the fish well in running tap water. 
3. Then add salt to the fish and keep aside.

Step B : Marination

1. Soak in water red Kashmiri chillies (7 nos) , coriander seeds (1 tbspn), garlicpods (3-4 nos) , cumin seeds (1 tbspn) and fennel seeds (1 tbspn) for half an hour. 
2. In a blender add the above soaked ingredients and malwani masala powder (1 tspn) and grind to a fine paste.
3. Marinate the fish with the above paste. Add salt (1 tspn) and lemon juice (1 tbspn) to it. Fill the cut marks properly with the paste.
4. Keep the marinated fish aside for 20 mins.

Cooking :

Step C : Frying

1. Spread out rice flour on a plate (1cup) 
2. Add to the flour, semolina (3 tbspn)  malwani masala powder (1 tspn) , salt (2-3 pinches), turmeric        (1 tspn) mix the dry flour well. .
3. Wrap the marinated fish in this flour. 
4. Heat oil on a flat griddle or tava and shallow fry the fish. 
5. Sprinkle some lemon juice on the fish.
6. Fry fish till it is crispy and brown. 
7. Turn over and fry for some more time. 
8. Shallow fry the fish from all sides. 
9. Look for the desired brown or golden brown charring.

Recipe: Non vegetarian

      Preparation time : 30 mins

      Cooking time : 15 mins

All photograph's and text copyrights Trupti Rane's Spice Recipes and Trupti Rane's Spice Moments . Do not reproduce, copy without permission. All rights reserved.

Visit : www.truptiranespicerecipes.com  

Please use this recipe as a guideline and use your discretion to make the recipe or to make a substitution in the recipe. As results vary according to one's skills. 

Misal

Misal Pav is a spicy street food available in Mumbai. It is also a popular maharashtrian snack.

  

Preparation and cooking

Step A Usal : I used matki ( brown moth beans) to make this usal. However one can use white peas or white beans as you fancy. 

1. Add (3 tbspn) oil to a medium size saucepan. Add garlic and ginger paste (1 tspn). 

2. Then add finely chopped onion (1 nos), finely chopped tomatoes (1 nos)  and curry leaves ( 4-5 nos)

3. Add to the above mixture chilli powder (1 tbspn) , garam masala (1 tspn) and salt to taste.

4. Mix well and cook till the mixture secretes oil. 

5. Then add water (1 cup)  and immediately close the saucepan with a lid. Let the mixture simmer for 1 minute. Oil will now separate to the top.

6. Then add boiled matki ( 1 cup, soak matki in water overnight and then in the morning boil them), lemon juice ( 4 tbspn) and chopped coriander ( 1 tbspn) 

7. Let the mixture cook for 5 minutes. Usal is ready.

Step B :

8. Take some usal in a serving bowl, add bombay mix or farsan to it and garnish with chopped onion, coriander and curd.

9. Serve hot with pav or bread.

Recipe: vegetarian

Preparation time: 20 mins

Cooking time : 20 mins

      

All photograph's and text copyrights Trupti Rane's Spice Recipes and Trupti Rane's Spice Moments . Do not reproduce, copy without permission. All rights reserved.

Visit : www.truptiranespicerecipes.com  

Bombay Bhel

Bhel puri is a bombay street food. Every street, every beach and every hotel in mumbai will have this dish. It is quick and easy to prepare and is made from puffed rice. I love eating bhel puri on shivaji park beach or juhu beach simply marvellous.

Preparation and cooking:

1. In a bowl add bhel puri mix (5 cups). Then add diced onion (2 cups), diced tomatoes (2 cups), smashed boil potatoes (2 cups), finely chopped coriander (1 cup), finely chopped green chillies (3 nos), Tamarind chutney (1/4 cup or to taste), Lemon juice (1 nos) and mix well.

2. Then finely blend mint leaves, red chilles (1 nos) and chaat masala (1 tbspn)  into a paste. Add this paste to the above mixture and mix well.

3. Garnish with fine sev and coriander. 

4. Serve with flat papdi puri.

Recipe: vegetarian
Preparation time : 15 mins

      

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Homemade low fat Shrikhand, Piyush and fruit shrikhand with greek yoghurt

Shrikhand is a typical maharastrian dessert. Usually prepared during festivals like Gudi padwa. Piyush is the maharastrian version of lassi. Dadar in aamchi mumbai is typically famous for maharastrian restaurants. Panshikar restaurant at Ranade road -Dadar is famous for its shrikhand and Prakash hotel at Gokhale road dadar is famous for its Piyush. To be honest both were my favourite.

Shrikhand means a product obtained from chakka and Samant bros in dadar is typically famous for their readymade instant chakka. But I like preparing shrikhand at home right from preparing the chakka. I have made the chakka for this Shrikhand with waitrose low fat greek yoghurt.

Shrikhand preparation:

Take low fat greek yoghurt in a white muslin cloth. Hang it till all the water is drained off. This process usually takes 3-4 hours.Now remove the yogurt from the muslin cloth and strain it well in a strainer to remove excess water. Keep this strained yogurt in the refrigerator for 1-2 hours.

Then add saffron strands to the warm milk until they dissolve.Now mix the strained yogurt above dissolved saffron and sugar in a bowl. Mix it well with a hand blender. Blend it in a nice smooth mixture. Add cardamon powder and nutmeg powder and blend well. One can also add mango pulp and blend to make amrakhand. Garnish with pistachios.

Piyush preparation:

Mix in a bowl shrikhand and butter milk. Add cardamon powder and nutmeg powder to it. Whisk till smooth and sugar dissolves. Refrigerate for 2 hours. 

Serve chilled garnish with pistachios and saffron. 

Fruit shrikhand preparation:

Add fruits to the serving bowl ( 2 cups chopped mixed fruits ) or chopped mangoes (2 cups). Add 1/2 cup shrikhand on top and serve immediately. I have added shrikhand and amrakhand on top. Garnish with pistachios.

Recipe: vegetarian
Preparation time : 15 mins

      

All photograph's and text copyrights Trupti Rane's Spice Recipes and Trupti Rane's Spice Moments . Do not reproduce, copy without permission. All rights reserved.

Visit : www.truptiranespicerecipes.com  

Please use this recipe as a guideline and use your discretion to make the recipe or to make a substitution in the recipe. As results vary according to one's skills. 

Pani Puri

Pani Puri is a popular street snack in Mumbai. If you go to Mumbai chowpatty (beach) you will see many pani puri vendors. Familiar as Pani Puri in Mumbai, Golgappas in Delhi and Puchkas in Kolkatta.

This recipe is quick and easy to make and home made pani puris are really a delight

Preparation:

Puri : Ready made puri packets are available in any Asian store. However if  you fancy making puris from scratch. Then mix 1 cup semolina (rava), 5 tbspn Maida, 1/4 tsp Baking soda ,1/2 tsp salt. little water and oil. Knead into a smooth dough and set aside. Then make small balls from the dough approx tennis ball size. Take one ball roll it round with your palms, then press it flat. Roll it out using a rolling pin to form a small even round disc, then use a small cookie cutter to cut each puri of diameter 2cm . Heat oil in a pan and fry puris. While frying press them in centre so that they puff up.

Pani: 
Sweet water

Soak 1 cup tamarind  and 1 cup dates in water. De-seed each tamarind and date well . Blend soaked tamarind, soaked dates ,1/4 cup jaggery ,1 tspn black salt and water in a smooth paste.  Strain and add water to this paste. Stir well

Spicy water: 

Blend and grind 1 cup coriander leaves, 1 cup mint leaves, 2-3 green chillies, 1 tspn chaat masala, 1/2 tspn black salt and water into a smooth paste.Strain and add water to this paste. Stir well

Stuffing:

1 mashed boiled potato, spouted green moong (or boiled moong), salted bundhi and boiled chicked peas.

Serve:

They are served filled with water (pani) , potato, sprouted moong, bundhi and chickpeas. Tap a hole in the centre of puri and add the above stuffing along with sweet and spicy water.

Enjoy home made pani puris.

 Recipe: vegetarian
 Preparation time : 15 mins

       Cooking time : 15 mins

All photograph's and text copyrights Trupti Rane's Spice Recipes and Trupti Rane's Spice Moments . Do not reproduce, copy without permission. All rights reserved.

Visit : www.truptiranespicerecipes.com  

Please use this recipe as a guideline and use your discretion to make the recipe or to make a substitution in the recipe. As results vary according to one's skills.