GUJIYA RECIPE WITH STEP BY STEP PICTURES

For me making Gujiya means festivals. Though in most households Gujiya is made during Holi but in our house they were made on both Holi and Diwali.
A few days before Holi and Diwali, me, my mom and my grandmother would sit together at night and prepare Gujiyas through the night and it used to be so much fun with some old movie running on the national channel and our endless gossips.
I remember my incentive used to be a small katori of khoya and piping hot Gujiya right out of the kadai and I must tell you that a Gujiya right out of the kadai when the khoya inside is still hot tastes heavenly.
I've made a very small quantity, as this was the first time I was making it right from scratch and that too alone. These ingredients gave me about 25 Gujiyas so you can accordingly double the ingredients if you want to increase the quantity.
This is how Gujiyas are made at my home, I'm sure different households must be having different recipes and different methods of making this yummy traditional indian sweet, GUJIYA.

INGREDIENTS

FOR THE COVERING

Maida (all purpose flour)  2 cups

Oil or ghee 1/4 cup

Water(luke warm) as required to knead

FOR THE FILLING

Khoya or mawa 250gms

Powdered sugar 1/2 to 1/3 cup

 (increase or decrease depending on your taste)

Dry nariyal or gola  1/2 cup

( you can use desiccated coconut if dry nariyal or gola is not available)

Chironji/chiroli 1 table spoon

Raisins/ kishmish or any other dry fruits as per your taste

(I've only used kishmish here)

Black cardamom/badi elaichi  2-3 powdered

For sticking the edges of gujiya my mother used to make a paste of maida and water which uses about a spoon of maida and water just to get a paste like consistency. You can even use plain water to stick the edges.

METHOD

FOR THE COVERING

1. Take maida and rub the oil/ ghee into it with your finger tips till you get a bread crumb like texture.

2. Start adding water slowly to make a firm dough. Cover the dough and keep aside.

FOR THE FILLING

1. Take khoya/mawa in heavy bottomed pan or kadai and start cooking it on low flame. Keep stirring it till the time ghee oozes out of it and it leaves the sides of your pan and comes together. Keep aside to cool completely.

2. Once completely cooled add the powdered sugar, dry(grated coconut), chironji/chiroli, kishmish/raisins, black cardamom/badi elaichi.

3. Mix everything together, check the taste and if you want to add more sugar you can add it at this point. 

ROLLING AND SHAPING THE GUJIYA

1. Take the dough and roll into small lemon sized balls. Keep them covered with a moist cloth.

2. Start rolling them one by one to get a circle of around 4-5 inches.

3. If using the gujiya sancha or the gujiya mould, place the rolled circle on it.

4. Apply water on the edges.

5. Add about 1-2 spoons of filling in the center, depending on the size of your mould.

6. Close the mould together, applying pressure at the edges.

7. Remove the extra dough which is left outside.

8. Open the mould and carefully remove the shaped Gujiya out of it. Check that it is sealed nicely from all sides or else it might open at the time of frying.
If you know how to shape them with your hands, without using the mould you can do that. It takes a little more time. I tried making a few with hands. You just have to seal the edges and start folding it like a rope from one side till you reach the other end.

9. Keep shaping the Gujiyas one by one and keep them covered under a moist cloth.
10. Heat oil in a kadai and slowly slide the Gujiyas one by one into the oil. Do not over crowd the kadai, add according to the size of  your kadai.
11. Once they turn light brown from one side turn them with a light hand to get evenly browned from the other side too.
12. Remove from the kadai and place them on a kitchen paper towel . Grab one at this point and relish :) Fry all the Gujiyas in the similar way and let them cool completely before storing them in an air tight container.

PICTORIAL GUIDE

FOR THE COVERING

1. Take maida and rub the oil/ ghee into it with your finger tips till you get a bread crumb like texture.

2. Start adding water slowly to make a firm dough. Cover the dough and keep aside.

FOR THE FILLING

1. Take khoya/mawa in heavy bottomed pan or kadai and start cooking it on low flame. Keep stirring it till the time ghee oozes out of it and it leaves the sides of your pan and comes together. Keep aside to cool completely.

2. Once completely cooled add the powdered sugar, dry(grated coconut), chironji/chiroli, kishmish/raisins, black cardamom/badi elaichi.

3. Mix everything together, check the taste and if you want to add more sugar you can add it at this point.

ROLLING AND SHAPING THE GUJIYA

1. Take the dough and roll into small lemon sized balls. Keep them covered with a moist cloth.

2. Start rolling them one by one to get a circle of around 4-5 inches.

3. If using the gujiya sancha or the gujiya mould, place the rolled circle on it.

4. Apply water on the edges.

5. Add about 1-2 spoons of filling in the center, depending on the size of your mould.

6. Close the mould together, applying pressure at the edges.

7. Remove the extra dough which is left outside.

8. Open the mould and carefully remove the shaped Gujiya out of it. Check that it is sealed nicely from all sides or else it might open at the time of frying.

If you know how to shape them with your hands, without using the mould you can do that. It takes a little more time. I tried making a few with hands. You just have to seal the edges and start folding it like a rope from one side till you reach the other end.

9. Keep shaping the Gujiyas one by one and keep them covered under a moist cloth.

10. Heat oil in a kadai and slowly slide the Gujiyas one by one into the oil. Do not over crowd the kadai, add according to the size of  your kadai.

11. Once they turn light brown from one side turn them with a light hand to get evenly browned from the other side too.

12. Remove from the kadai and place them on a kitchen paper towel . Grab one at this point and relish :) Fry all the Gujiyas in the similar way and let them cool completely before storing them in an air tight container.

HAPPY HOLI AND HAPPY COOKING!! 😊

FRUIT CUSTARD RECIPE

Fruit Custard is the simplest and a very quick dessert to make. When my daughter suddenly demands something sweet, I quickly make fruit custard for her and add whatever fruits are available in the house at that time.

I love the taste of grapes and mangoes in the fruit custard but as both of them are seasonal fruits I sometimes make fruit custard only with apple, bananas and pomegranate.

INGREDIENTS

Milk  500 ml

Custard powder 3 table spoons

Sugar   4 table spoons

fruits of your choice

METHOD

1. From the 500 ml milk, take about 2-3 table spoons milk in a bowl and keep aside.

2. Heat the remaining milk in a heavy bottomed pan and let it cook over medium flame.

3. Once the milk starts boiling, add sugar to it and cook over medium flame.

4. Add the custard powder to the milk that we had kept aside and mix it nicely so that there are no lumps.

5.Turn the flame to low and add the custard paste to the boiling milk and stir well or whisk with a hand whisk so that no lumps are formed.

6. Cook on low flame till the custard starts to thicken. The custard will thicken more once cooled so adjust the consistency accordingly.

7. Remove from the stove and let it cool.

8. Once completely cooled you can add the chopped fruits of your choice or else chill the fruit custard in the refrigerator and add the fruits just before serving time. I added apples, bananas, grapes, kiwi and strawberries. You can add whichever fruits you have at home and enjoy your custard.

PICTORIAL GUIDE

1. From the 500 ml milk, take about 2-3 table spoons milk in a bowl and keep aside.

2. Heat the remaining milk in a heavy bottomed pan and let it cook over medium flame.

3. Once the milk starts boiling, add sugar to it and cook over medium flame.

4. Add the custard powder to the milk that we had kept aside and mix it nicely so that there are no lumps.

5.Turn the flame to low and add the custard paste to the boiling milk and stir well or whisk with a hand whisk so that no lumps are formed.

6. Cook on low flame till the custard starts to thicken. The custard will thicken more once cooled so adjust the consistency accordingly.

7. Remove from the stove and let it cool.

8. Once completely cooled you can add the chopped fruits of your choice or else chill the fruit custard in the refrigerator and add the fruits just before serving time. I added apples, bananas, grapes, kiwi and strawberries. You can add whichever fruits you have at home and enjoy your custard.

                                     HAPPY COOKING!! 😊

PIZZA BASE RECIPE (PART WHOLE WHEAT)

Pizza is a favourite in most households now and if you have kids, how can you stay away from pizza but at my place not just the kids but I too love pizza the only difference is that I love it with all the toppings available whereas the kids prefer it only with cheese or a little bit of sweet corn.

I've used part whole wheat along with all purpose flour(maida) for making these pizza bases but you can use full maida too if you wish too but I can assure you that the ones with wheat flour turn out equally tasty and will be gobbled up in no time.

The most important part while making a pizza base is activating the yeast, if you get that right your pizza base is going to turn out perfect.These pizza bases can be made in advance and stored upto a week in your fridge and upto a month in the freezer. Just cling wrap them nicely and store them in a container and thaw them before use.

The best part of making a pizza base at home is that you can make it in various sizes. I sometimes make bite sized ones for the kids or if I have a get together coming up at home, when I'm not in a mood to roll and shape them individually, I bake one large pizza base and bake it with one half having the toppings of kids choice and the other half with our favourites.

INGREDIENTS

4 cups whole wheat flour (aata)
2 cups all purpose flour (maida)
1 cup water ( you can add more later as required)
2 tea spoons instant yeast
1 tea spoon sugar
1 tea spoon salt
2 table spoons olive oil

METHOD

Let us start with the most important part which is activating the yeast. Though I'm using instant yeast here which can be added directly to the flour and does not require activating but just to be doubly sure that my yeast is perfect I activate it every time so that all my energy that goes into kneading the dough does not go waste.

1. To activate the yeast take the one cup water mentioned in the recipe, the water should be warm, too hot and it will kill the yeast and if it is cold the yeast will not get activated. Add sugar to the water, mix. Now add the yeast, mix it with a spoon and keep it covered in a warm place for 10-15 minutes or till it becomes frothy.
2. In a bowl take the whole wheat flour, all purpose flour and salt. Lightly mix it with a fork or spoon.
3. Once your yeast is frothy, add the yeast mix to the flour mixture and start mixing.
4. Once the dough comes together, take it out on a flat surface or your kitchen slab and start kneading. Add water as required. The dough is going to be sticky but do not add more flour.
5. Knead the dough really well for about 10 minutes or till the time you get a smooth and shiny dough.
6. Add the olive oil to it and knead again for about 2 minutes.
7. Grease a large bowl with olive oil. Shape the dough into a ball and place it covered in a warm place for 1 to 1.5 hours or till the time it doubles itself.
8. Once the dough is double in size, knock it down with your hands or punch it down. Divide the dough into small balls as per your requirement.
9. Apply some dry flour to the surface where you want to roll the dough. Roll it in a circle or whichever shape you prefer. If you want a perfect round just take a big lid from one of your containers and get an even circle.
10. Prick the rolled dough all over with a fork.
11. Preheat the oven to 200 degrees and bake the pizza bases for 5 to 7 minutes. Once done, place them on wire rack and let them cool completely.
12. You can cling wrap them and store them in your fridge or freezer or else just apply a bit of pizza sauce and toppings of your choice. Grate mozzarella cheese on top, bake again in a preheated oven for 4 to 5 minutes depending upon how crispy you want it to be or till the cheese melts. Relish your home made pizza 😊

PICTORIAL GUIDE

1. To activate the yeast take the one cup water mentioned in the recipe, the water should be warm, too hot and it will kill the yeast and if it is cold the yeast will not get activated. Add sugar to the water, mix. Now add the yeast, mix it with a spoon and keep it covered in a warm place for 10-15 minutes or till it becomes frothy.

YEAST 

SUGAR

                                               




2. In a bowl take the whole wheat flour, all purpose flour and salt. Lightly mix it with a fork or spoon.

                 




3. Once your yeast is frothy, add the yeast mix to the flour mixture and start mixing.


          

4. Once the dough comes together, take it out on a flat surface or your kitchen slab and start kneading. Add water as required. The dough is going to be sticky but do not add more flour.
5. Knead the dough really well for about 10-12 minutes or till the time you get a smooth and shiny dough.
6. Add the olive oil to it and knead again for about 2 minutes.

7. Grease a large bowl with olive oil. Shape the dough into a ball and place it covered in a warm place for 1 to 1.5 hours or till the time it doubles itself.

8. Once the dough is double in size, knock it down with your hands or punch it down. Divide the dough into small balls as per your requirement.

9. Apply some dry flour to the surface where you want to roll the dough. Roll it in a circle or whichever shape you prefer. If you want a perfect round just take a big lid from one of your containers and get an even circle.

10. Prick the rolled dough all over with a fork.

11. Preheat the oven to 200 degrees and bake the pizza bases for 5 to 7 minutes. Once done, place them on wire rack and let them cool completely.

12. You can cling wrap them and store them in your fridge or freezer or else just apply a bit of pizza sauce and toppings of your choice. Grate mozzarella cheese on top, bake again in a preheated oven for 4 to 5 minutes depending upon how crispy you want it to be or till the cheese melts. Relish your home made pizza 😊

         
                                  HAPPY BAKING!! 😊