Balekayi Palya

 

Balekayi Palya. When we visit our parents, one of the first things that get planned (even before we reach their place) is the food! My father takes the lead, asking us for our preference before he goes out to buy vegetables. Considering my mother's fairly vast repertoire of lip-smacking traditional cuisine, not so easy to decide! Also considering my three siblings, their spouses, plus our kids, there are too many palates to please when we all gather. This time around, the popular vote for the meal was for balekayi palya, saaru (rasam), huli (sambar) and rice, the star being the palya. 

Balekayi in Kannada is raw plantain and I have fond memories of eating different types of palya made by my mother. Part of the umm... charm was squabbling over the slightly charred bits of the stir-fry.  We would so look forward to the meal, eat some palya with plain steamed rice, some with rasam and then finally some with curd rice.  Simple meals are often the most satisfying, especially with the mother hovering around, serving generously!

This is not a dish you could make in a hurry as peeling the plantains and grating them can be a bit messy. The grated plantain is mixed with some rawa, wheat flour, spices, oil and salt. Then fried in a generous amount of oil until cooked and crisp. Well worth the effort of course! 

I did not have my standard measuring cups, measured using another cup set which looked a bit suspiciously un-standard to me! Please take this as a rough estimate, remembering that more of wheat flour will make the palya sticky, whereas a bit more oil won't hurt :) Be generous with the spices and you will have a winner!

Balekayi Palya (Serves 8 -10)

Ingredients
Raw firm plantains, grated 7 cups-  (about 5 medium sized ones)

Bansi rawa - 5 tablespoons

Wheat flour - 3 tablespoons (read note)

Salt - to taste

Red chilli powder - 2 tablespoons

Hing - a generous pinch

Oil - 2 tablespoons + 1/3 cup (Yes, this is quite a bit, but necessary! Do not skimp)

Mustard - 1 teaspoon

Urad dal - 1 teaspoon

Chana dal - 1 teaspoon

Turmeric - 1 teaspoon

Hing - a pinch

Method : The plantains need to be raw, green and very firm. If you do buy them ahead, keep them immersed in water as it prevents them from ripening.

Oil your hands, peel and grate the plantains using a fairly large holed grated. A thin holed one may make the palya mushy.

Mix together the wheat flour, bansi rawa, salt, chilli powder, 2 tbsp oil, hing and salt. Mix this lightly but thoroughly into the grated plantains. Heat the remaining oil in a heavy bottomed wide pan. Add the mustard, let it sputter. Then the chana dal, urad dal, hing and turmeric. Once the dals turn golden brown, add the plantain mixture. Mix well, cover and cook on low heat. Do not add any water. Cook till done and crisp, mixing gently 2-3 times in between, making sure you scrape out the palya from the bottom. Take care not to over mix or the palya will be mushy. Turn off the heat, keep covered for a few minutes. 

Serve hot with steamed rice and rasam.

In case you thought I am experimenting with the camera, of course not! It is just me trying to manage a couple of pictures  in the chaos with the hungry clan waiting for their meal!

Carrot Halwa / Gajar Ka Halwa

Carrot Halwa. One of Inida's most adored traditional desserts despite being fairly ubiquitous. An easy and versatile dessert made practically in every home and restaurant. Effortlessly goes from homey to rich and richer to suit individual preferences. But hardly ever fails to please! Not surprisingly, even mothers in our Bollywood movies make Gajar Ka Halwa so often. Its a favorite comfort dessert during winter, a convenient make ahead sweet dish for guests. Grated carrots slowly cooked in milk, sugar and ghee, garnished liberally with nuts, fragrant with cardamom and saffron. What's not to love?  

Carrot halwa is one of those 'safe' desserts which requires very little by way of technique nor needs you to spend a great deal of time. So even if you are a reluctant cook, you can easily win a thumbs up for your first attempt at it. Unless of course you burn it while you are busy WhatsApping or Instagramming about the halwa during its last few minutes on the stove! With the festival of lights around the corner, how about trying this simple dessert if you haven't  tried your hand at it yet? I like it less rich, not very sweet. If you do not approve, tweak it every possible way and we will still remain friends. 

So what we do is cook the carrots in a lot of milk till it is reduced and absorbed quite a bit to make a creamy halwa. You could cook the carrots in a pressure cooker or microwave but then it would not taste quite the same. If you ask me that is.

Carrot Halwa 

Ingredients - To make about 6 servings, half cup each

Grated carrots - 4 cups ( 1/2 kg approximately)

Ghee - 4 tablespoons or more as desired (divided use)

Cashew nuts - 1/4 cup, broken or halved

Whole milk (3.5%) - 4 cups / 1 liter (no low fat please!) 

Sugar - 6-7 tablespoons 

Saffron - a generous pinch

Crushed cardamom - 1/2 teaspoon

Method : Peel and wash the carrots. Grate them using a grater with medium sized holes, measure. Soak the saffron in a teaspoon of warm milk. Set aside.

Heat 2 tablespoons ghee in a heavy bottomed pan. Fry the cashew nuts till golden, drain and keep aside. Add the carrots to the remaining ghee and saute for a couple of minutes on low heat. 

Add the milk and cook on medium heat. Stir occasionally. The carrots will soften and cook as the milk reduces slowly. Keep scraping back the milk solids which accumulate at the sides of the pan back into the halwa. This will give it more richness.

Cook about 20 minutes. When there is still about 1/4 cup of milk left, add the sugar. Start with 6 tablespoons, add more if needed. The mixture will turn more liquid. Continue to cook, stirring often till you don't see any more thin milk at the bottom of the pan. About 10-15 minutes. It will be homogeneous and will come together in a nice mass. You can either let it remain slightly pudding like or let the moisture evaporate some more. In the pictures here, the moisture has been absorbed quite a bit. No I wasn't Instagramming,  just another variation I did not quite relish. I like my halwa very moist and creamy.  

Stir in the soaked saffron, nuts, ghee and cardamom. Cook for a couple of minutes, turn off the heat. Best eaten warm.

Time to bring out the diyas, the fairy lights and candles.  Isn't it sheer joy just to behold the beauty of something as simple as light? Hope this Diwali brings you a lot of happiness, have a happy and safe one!

Basundi - Creamy Milk Pudding

Long before butter and cream became the major culprits for shrinking my clothes, I had a standard dessert I would make quite often. Super rich and creamy, delectable Basundi. As a just married, new entrant in a kitchen all my own, the thought of cooking three meals a day was intimidating enough. I honestly don't remember making much at home by way of dessert as frequent visits to Baskin Robins and Corner House more than took care of the sugar cravings!

The perfect time to make this sweet dish was when the (only) gas cylinder was just replaced. The luxury of having the stove on for 3 hours non-stop without the fear of it flickering away half-way through! And then, chill it and present it to hubby with all the pride of a new bride in the kitchen. The left-overs would only taste even better eaten while I read my Sidney Sheldons and Mills and Boon!

The aroma of saffron from these tuiles lingered in my memory long after they were eaten. Milk and saffron were made for each other, (well, Romeo and Juliet can come later if you insist as it's Valentine's Day!) and I just had to make basundi! Brother and sister-in-law coming over for dinner was the perfect excuse to put that whole milk on the stove. Rich desserts are lighter on the conscience when meant for company!

My preferable time of the day to make basundi is after the lunch is cooked, when I do not have rasam or kadhi simmering on the next burner. Am all set with music and a book as all I need to do is just hang around the place and stir the milk as and when it calls for attention. Made early in the day, there is enough time for the pudding to chill and thicken further, dessert's ready by dinner time!

The basic recipe and the procedure broadly remain the same, slight variations depending on your preference and convenience. I like to put the milk on sim, though it takes a good 2 hours plus to reduce it. Lesser chances of the milk burning, a little easier on your arms and the milk tastes so good after simmering for so long! Please do it as you like.
 

Basundi : Creamy Milk Pudding laced with cardamom and saffron. A lovely summer dessert!

What you need : You will need a wide, thick bottomed kadhai / deep pan, big enough to allow stirring without the milk spilling out. A good strong ladle or a flat slotted skimmer to help break the layer of cream on the top of the milk effectively. A small clean plate near the stove to keep the ladle on when not in use. Be sure everything you use is really clean, free of any acidic substances as it may cause the milk to split. A small cup to soak the saffron in.

Ingredients: (Makes about 1 liter of Basundi, depending on how thick you want it)

Whole milk (at least 4.5% fat) : 3 liters / 12 cups

Sugar - 6 - 8 tablespoons

Saffron strands - a generous pinch or two

Cardamom powder - 1/2 teaspoon

Sliced pistachios and or sliced toasted almonds - 1/3 cup

Extra chilled milk and powdered sugar to adjust the consistency if needed on chilling.

• Bring the milk in the pan to a boil, reduce the heat to low.. 

• Reserve 2 tablespoons of hot milk from the pan, soak the saffron in it, cover and let infuse.
• Simmer the milk on low, checking every 8 -10 minutes.
  
• Using the ladle or skimmer, scrape the cream at the sides as and when it forms, back into the milk. 
• Break the layer of cream on top with continuous, stirring motions on the surface of the milk. Its important to break the layer of cream which will keep forming on the top too. Or you will end up with long bits of dry-ish cream in the milk. (Some people do prefer it that way).
• Avoid scraping the bottom as you may get unappealing brown bits here and there. Continue doing this every 8-10 minutes or so, while you keep a constant watch on the milk. Do not let the milk boil over or form too thick a layer of cream on top. Do not leave the milk unattended for more than 10 minutes.
• What we want to do is let the milk reduce, while scraping back every bit of cream into the simmering milk. What you do want is very thick pudding, full of bits of soft cream (not smooth like condensed milk, not grainy like mava / khoya). It will have lots of  soft cream bits, but will still be homogenous.
  
• The milk will become very thick and reduce to almost a third. You can reduce more or less as you prefer. This takes about 2.5 hours. Do remember, the pudding will thicken further on cooling.
• The time will vary depending on the quantity you are making, the pan and the heat given, so go by what you see in the pan.
• Five minutes before you turn off the heat, add 6 tablespoons sugar and the saffron infused milk. This may alter the consistency slightly, but the basundi will thicken again as it cools.
  
• Once you take it off the heat, cool, add the cardamom powder and the sliced pistachios. Taste. Add some powdered sugar if needed.
• Chill thoroughly. If the pudding is very thick on chilling, add some chilled milk little by little to adjust the consistency.
• Serve chilled, garnished with sliced pistachios.

Please note : Use whole milk with at least 4.5% fat for best results. Low fat milk will neither give the consistency needed nor enough yield. You could use a touch of rose water if you wish.