Gajarachi Koshimbir (Carrot Raita)

It is a healthy, nutritious, colorful raita (koshimbir) recipe very tasty and very very easy to make. Keeping it simple is so simple!!

Preparation Time: 10 mins       Cooking Time: 5 mins        Servings: 4

Ingredients:
Grated Carrots - 2 cups
Salt - to taste
Sugar - to taste (optional)
Asafoetida (Hing) - a pinch
Green Chilli - 1 or 2 (Chopped)
Turmeric Powder - 1/2 tsp
Oil - 1 tsp
Cumin Seeds (jeera) - 11/2 tsp
Lemon Juice - 1 tbsp (Optional)

Method of Preparation:

1) Take 2 cups of grated carrots in a bowl. Add salt and sugar to taste (sugar is optional) and mix it well

2) Heat oil in a pan (or small kadhai used for tempering works best here). Add asafoetida and cumin seeds in it and sauté for few seconds till cumin seeds become dark brown. Add green chilli and turmeri powder and sauté for few seconds

3) Pour this tempering on the carrot mix in the bowl. Mix it well. (you can add lemon juice if you like)

Carrot Raita is ready to serve. Easy Isn't it?

Shrikhand - Puri

It is a very popular Maharashtrian Festive meal at its best. Shrikhand is made of hung yogurt and sugar. Puri is a soft fluffy fried bread made of wheat flour.

Preparation Time: 
For Shrikhand: 5 mins
For Puri: 10 - 15 mins

Cooking Time: 
For Shrikhand: 10 mins (excluding the time to prepare hung yogurt)
For Puri: 30 to 40 mins

Servings: 6 to 7

Ingredients:

For Shrikhand -

Yogurt - 4 cups (I prefer thick, creamy greek yogurt)
Cashew nuts - 8 to 10 chopped

Cardamom Powder - 1/2 tsp
Jaiphal powder (Nutmeg powder)

Almonds - 5 to 6 chopped

Saffron - 8 to 10 Strands soaked in 2 tbsp of milk

Sugar - 2 cups

For Puri - 
Wheat flour - 2 cups
Water - around 1/2 cup to make the dough
Salt (optional) - as per your taste
Oil - for deep frying

Method pf Preparation:

For Shrikhand:
1) Take a clean muslin cloth and take the yogurt in it. 
2) Tie the knot and hang it or keep heavy vessel on top of it to apply some pressure so that all the water falls away from the yogurt. Leave it like this for about 1 hour
3) Add this hung yogurt and sugar in a bowl and mix it well
4) Add saffron dissolved milk, cardamom powder, Jaiphal Powder, some chopped cashew nuts and some chopped almonds and mix well
5) Garnish it wish remaining cashew nuts and almonds

For Puri:
1) Make a tight dough by mixing wheat flour, salt (optional) and water
2) Knead the dough well by mixing little bit of oil. The final consistency should be smooth. It should not be too tight of too soft
3) Keep it aside for 15 mins
4) Make small balls out of the dough.
5) Roll it out in small circles (about 6  -7 inch in diameter) with thin-medium thickness. dont make it too thin. Start heating the oil for deep frying before you repeat this for all the dough 
7) Check the oil temperature to see if the oil is ready by dropping a small piece of dough in it. The dough should fry up immediately and come to the surface
8) Now drop the puri into the oil. While puri is slowly coming to the surface, make sure to keep ladling in the hot oil on the surface to puff up the puri.
9) Turn the puri and fry on both sides till it gets reddish brown or golden yellow (however you prefer)
10) Place it on a paper towel to drain off any oil