Biscuit ( American )

Ingredients:
All purpose flour -  325 gms ,
Baking pwd - 2 and 1/2 tsp ,
White sugar -  1 tbsp ,
Cold butter ( salted ) - 113 gms ( cut into small cubes ),
Cold milk  - 180 ml ,
Egg - 1 ( beaten ).
 Egg - 1 ( beat egg with 1 tbsp of milk or water  for egg wash ).

Method :
 Pre heat oven to  - 205 C , baking time  is 10 to 15 minutes .


Take a bowl and sieve together flour and baking pwd in a bowl and then add sugar .
Beat egg and than pour it in the measuring cup containing the milk  .

Cut the cold butter into the flour into a course crumbs .
You can use a knife or pastry cutter or gently mix the flour and butter with your fingers .

Once the flour turns into a coarse crumb ,make a well in the center .

Use a spoon to gently mix the dough.
Than just gently incorporate the dough  with your hand .

We dont have to mix the dough with a heavy hand .Just make  a rough ball .
Dust the  counter with flour and transfer the dough on to the counter .

Knead few time and than make a 8 inch circle .

Gather all the sides and tap gently to make it even .
The dough has to be 1/2 inch thick .
Take a 2 and 1/2 inch round cutter   or glass and dip the end of the cutter in flour and then make round cut outs and place them on a greased tray .
If you dont have a cutter just make triangles or squares with a knife .But make sure to coat the knife with flour each time you use it .( the dough will not stick to the blade )
As you cut the dough ,the left over dough can be gathered  again into a circle and cut , till a small dough is left 
Brush the biscuits  with egg wash .

After 15 minutes insert  a toothpick if done .

You can have it warm  with a stew or soup .
Enjoy with a spread of  jam , cream or butter  and  a hot cup of tea .

This biscuit is amazing  and you dont need a knife to cut it .
Best when eaten the day it is baked and  is still warm .
Can be kept for few days in a container at room temperature.
If you plan to have it next morning for breakfast just warm it in the oven .
Makes 12 biscuits .

Chocolate Eclairs

Ingredients for making Pate a choux dough ( light pastry dough ),
Milk - 1/2 cup ,
Water -- 1/2 cup ,
Butter -  3 oz or  85 gms - room temperature - cut into small cubes ,
All purpose flour - 1 cup ,
Egg - 4 ,
Granulated sugar - 1tsp
Egg wash - 1 egg with 1 tbsp of water .

For filling and topping
Pastry cream - 1 to 2 cup ,
Chocolate ganache - 1/2 to 3/4 cup .


Method :
Crack  all the eggs in a  bowl and keep aside .
Take a pan and add milk ,water and butter and keep on heat .

Keep stirring the milk  till the  butter melts and the milk reaches a boiling point .

Sieve  the flour add put sugar in it and keep aside .
As the milk starts to boil , add the flour and keep stirring till it forms a lump and forms a smooth dough .

Take the pan from heat and keep stirring with a wooden spoon till the dough is luke warm .

Add the egg one by one and keep beating till all the eggs are incorporated .
Beat till  the paste is smooth .( you can use a blender )

Fill the pastry  dough in  the piping bag with a straight  big size noozle .
Pre heat oven to 232 C
Line the tray with butter paper .
With the piping bag make 3 1/2 inch long eclairs  on the butter paper .
With the tip of your finger  using water, tap the ends if sticking  out .
Brush the bars with egg wash .

Transfer the tray to oven and let it bake for 10 minutes in 232 C .
Turn the tray to 180 degree and change the temperture to 190 C.
Bake for 15 minutes more .
Take out the tray and leave to cool for 5  minutes on tray.

Transfer  the butter paper  with the eclairs on wire rack and leave it to cool for 15 minutes .

Gently remove the eclairs from the butter paper  and put on wire rack .
You will see split or holes in the eclairs .

These hole will help in filling the eclairs with pastry cream .
Let the eclairs come to room temperature than only can we pipe in the sweet pastry cream .


Sweet pastry cream 
Egg yolk - 2 ,
Sugar -  half of 1/4 cup ,
Corn starch - 1/2  tbsp ,
Milk - 3/4  cup ,
Vanilla essence - 1/2 tsp .

Method - 


Put milk in pan to boil ,add vanilla essence .

Take a bowl and whisk egg yolk ,sugar and cornstarch till light and pale  .

As the milk come to a boil ,remove the pan  and add few tbsp of the hot milk to the the  beaten egg yolk  mixture  and keep whisking till  2/3 of  the hot milk is poured  into the bowl   .

Transfer  the whisked egg milk mix  to the 1/4  hot  milk pan and whisk and put on heat again .
Keep stirring .
As  it comes to a boil  , the cream will thicken .

Close the gas. 
 Sieve  the pastry cream through a strainer if there are any lumps .

Cover with a cling film and let it come to room temperature .Keep the cream pastry in the fridge to cool till the eclairs are ready to be filled.

Transfer  the cream to a piping bag to fill the eclairs .




Chocolate Ganache 


Dark chocolate - 125 gms ( into very small pieces  with a knife  
Heavy cream - 1/2 cup .

Pour the milk in a measuring cup and microwave for 30 seconds  .Then again microwave for 30 seconds more .
Pour the boiled  cream over the chocolate and whisk until the chocolate melts and the ganache is smooth .

Allow the ganache to sit for 5 to 10 minutes before using .
As it cools it will thicken so you can just micro wave for 10 seconds if you think the ganache is too thick or add a few tbsp of hot milk or cream .
Once the eclairs are cool make holes on both the ends of  eclairs or use the holes which are already in the eclairs  to fill in the pastry cream .
You can make slits in the sides of the eclairs as i find  it easier to pipe the pastry  cream .


Once the pastry cream is  pipped in the eclairs ,than just dip the top upper  part of eclairs in the chocolate ganache and keep aside in a plate  .

Once all the eclairs are dipped with the chocolate ganache , keep in the fridge to cool for half hour  .

It is very delicious dessert and very light to eat .

Makes 18 eclairs.

Shami Kebab

This is manoj `s recipe :) I have tried making like him but his kebab`s were melt in the mouth .

Thanks Manoj for this nice recipe .

Ingredients :

Lamb meat boneless - 500 gms ( bite size ),

Chana Dal - 350 gms ( soaked overnight ),

Ginger paste - 1 tsp ,

Garlic paste - 1 tsp ,

Onion - 4 ( big - chopped ),

Turmeric pwd - 1/2 tsp ,

Red chilli - 2 to 4 or according to your taste( whole ),

Green chilli - 2 to 4 according to your taste ( whole ),

Cloves -  1 tsp ,

Black cumin  seeds or shah jeera - 1 tsp ,

Small cardamom - 15 ( i have put whole you can use the seeds only ),

Black pepper pwd - 2 tsp ( i have used whole ),

Cinnamon stick - 2 inch broken into 1/2 inch ,

Mint and green corriander  leaves - 1/2 cup each - chopped ,

Salt to taste .

Ghee to shallow fry .
NOTE  I have made this dish according to the recipe given, as large amount of chilli is used.( 15 Green and 15 red chilli)
But my recommendation is that use just few chilli or  according to your taste.

Method :

Drain the water from the soaked dal .

Take a cooker and put all the above ingredients -Soaked dal ,Small chunks of meat ,ginger garlic paste ,chopped onion ,red chilli ,green chilli ,turmeric pwd ,cloves ,cinnamon ,black cumin ,small caradamom ,chopped mint and corriander leaves and salt .

Close the lid and put the heat on high .

As the cooker gives one whisle lower the heat and let it simmer .

Wait for the cooker to give 5 to 6 whisle in low heat .

Close the gas .

Wait for the cooker to cool  . ( 15 minutes ).

When you open the lid , you can discard  all the whole red chilli squeezing its juice .( I discarded half the red chillies only, as i wanted my kebab to be hot .

Transfer the contents  of the cooker to a kadhai to dry the kebab mix .

Raise the heat to medium to low and  dry the mix using a laddle to crush the mixture to a smooth paste like texture . It will take 10 to 15  depending upon your consistency .You can raise the heat to high if your texture is smooth and you only need to dry .I had to crush in slow heat to make the texture right .

Taste salt and if you see any spices  which have  not crushed you can discard it .

Close the gas when the kebab is dry and the mixture  is binding .

Leave to cool

As the kebab cools the mixture will become more firm .

Make small balls and flatten them and round the edges .

Take a non stick pan and pour ghee to shallow fry the kebabs in low heat .

Turn sides so that both the sides are evenly fried .

The heat has to be low .

Serve the kebabs with salad and mint raita .

Makes 28 kebabs .

Profiteroles ( Pate A Choux )

Ingredients :
Milk - 1/2 cup ,
Water - 1/2 cup ,
Salted butter - 85 gms ( room temperature ),
All purpose flour - 1 cup ,
White sugar - 1 tsp ,
Eggs - 4 .

Method :
Pre heat oven to 232 C .
Wet your baking tray with little water and than place the butter paper on your baking tray .
Take a bowl and sieve the flour and then add sugar to it .Mix it .
Take out the eggs from the shell  and put in a bowl .We have to add one at a time .
Take a pan and put 1/2 cup milk ,1/2 cup water and 85 gms butter to boil in low heat till it comes to boil .

As the milk butter mix  comes to boil add the flour and keep stirring till it leaves sides 

.It will take only a minute or less than that .
.Remove from heat and keep stirring or mixing  till the dough is luke warm .

If the dough is hot and we add eggs than there are chances the egg will cook so we have to avoid that .The dough should not be cold too otherwise the will become hard .
Add egg one at a time and keep beating till all the eggs are incorporated .

The dough will take a form of sticky paste and the texture will be smooth .

Put your paste in your pipping bag with a straight  big  nozzle .
Pipe the dough into the tray by holding the bag straight and make  2 inch size balls .

Dab the tip of the ball with a little water in your finger  as the sticky dough end sticks out .
Put the tray in the pre heated oven 232 C for 10 minutes .
Lower  the temperature to 190 C and bake for  another 15 minutes .

Take out the tray and leave it to  cool .

When they are cold ,halve them from center  and  you will see they are hollow inside  .
 Scoop one spoon of icecream  in the hollow part and cover with the top .
It will melt in your mouth .
Only thing is since the profiteroles are very soft so put icecream only when you are serving  them otherwise they will turn soggy .
Enjoy this french pastry while they are fresh .