Mango Cheesecake

This is quite amazing and interesting at the same time that I am a popular baker amongst my friends and family yet, I have posted just one cake on my blog so far but I have shared recipes of some other baked goods like muffins, rolls, cookies and stuffed bread that you can check the recipe of in my previous posts (click on the highlighted text to get the recipes) There is a valid reason behind not doing more cake posts yet which is that, I have been covering seasonal recipes mostly but you will see a lot of baking; cakes and muffins in the future, In Sha Allah (God Willing)

The recipe that I am going to share today is something that I tried both my hand at making as well as for tasting it for the first time. It is a cake, yet a no-bake one and a very delicious, rich and decadent dessert that almost everyone loves and is known as a Cheesecake! 

I've eaten a baked cheesecake many times and it is one of my most favorite desserts but unfortunately, I've never tried making it at home ever besides, in this scorching heat, I am avoiding turning my oven on and then sweat away while trying to prepare some baked goodies! Hopefully, as soon as the weather gets a little mild, I'll get my baking mode on again but I do have a few recipes saved in my archives that I shall be posting on my blog in future.

Since cheesecake is also a family favorite so I thought to try making it with mangoes but keeping in mind the heat index, I wanted a no-bake version of it. I then looked for different recipes on the web and came up with a recipe by making a few exceptions to the ones I liked. I used fresh Pakistani mangoes for this recipe but you can use the canned pulp in place of the fresh mango's puree. Another great thing about this recipe is that you can use any other fruit you like instead of mangoes to make your favorite fruit flavored cheesecake. You can make this cake into single servings too if you like. The wonderful thing about this dessert is that my parents loved it though they are not a fan of these kind of cakes so, I was one happy being! This recipe has undoubtedly become another family favorite now :)

Get your dessert cravings unleashed today! :D

Mango Cheesecake 

Ingredients:

Base:

Digestive Biscuits/Graham Crackers: 20-24 

Butter: (softened) 1/2 cup/113 gms/4 ounces 

Granulated Sugar: 4 tbsp.

Filling:

Mango Pulp/Puree: 1 cup
Cream Cheese: 8 ounces/225 gms

Heavy Whipping Cream: 250 ml/1 cup

Gelatin Powder/Agar Agar Powder: 3 tbsp.Lemon Juice: 1 tbsp.

Topping:

Mango Pulp/Puree: 1 cup

Gelatin Powder/Agar Agar Powder: 3 tbsp.

Method:

1. Put the biscuits/crackers along with the sugar into a chopper and chop them into fine crumbs. 
2. Add softened butter to the crumbs and put this crumb mixture into a 9 inch round spring-form tin.
3. Press down the crumbs in to the base of the cake tin either with the help of the back of a spoon or a bottom of a glass. Let it reach up to an inch around the walls of the tin. Refrigerate till set. 
4. Whip the cream with a help of a stand mixer or a whisk till stiff peaks are formed. Set aside.
5. In another bowl, add the softened cream cheese and beat until smooth. Add lemon juice and mix well.
6. Prepare the gelatin/agar agar powder according to the instructions on the package. 
7. Add whipped cream and the mango pulp/puree to the cream cheese mixture and mix well. 
8. Add the gelatin/agar agar to the filling mixture and mix well.
9. Take out the prepared base tin from the refrigerator and pour the cream cheese mixture over it. Level it with the help of a spatula. Cover with a cling wrap and refrigerate until set. Takes about 6-8 hours.
10. Once the cheesecake sets in the fridge, prepare the topping by mixing mango pulp/puree with the prepared gelatin/agar agar. 
11. Take out the cheesecake and pour the topping over it. Cover with the cling wrap and refrigerate again till sets. Better to leave overnight in the fridge before serving.
12. At the time of serving, loosen the sides of the cake with a knife by running it along the edges against the sides of the pan. You can wet the knife with hot water to do this step more easily.
13. Remove the sides of the spring-form pan and gently lift away the side. Slide the spatula under the pan bottom and keeping sliding as far as possible to loosen the base from the cake. Remove it carefully. This step can be left out.
14. Gently lift the cake and place it onto the serving platter.  
15. Serve chilled.

Serves 8

Note: add sugar, according to your taste, to both the filling and topping if you want your cheesecake sweet.

That's all Cheesecake fanatics! :) The amount of ingredients can always be adjusted according to your taste and desire. I hope you enjoy making and having it. Until next time, keep sharing the goodness of this greatest blessing, that has been bestowed in abundance upon us the lucky ones, with the less fortunate ones.
Thank you and please remember in your Du'as/prayers! :)

*Not be duplicated, rewritten or published without permission- Thank you!

  

Mango Chutney

When the mango season is upon us in this region, we tend to make the most of it by preparing whatever we can with this luscious pulpy fruit! Not just in its ripe form but even when its raw and a complete opposite of its ripened self in terms of flavors and texture yet, equally delicious!
I have shared a couple of recipes by using fresh Pakistani mangoes in my previous posts on the blog. You can check them in the list of recipes.

At my household, my Mom makes Acchaar (pickle) with raw mangoes, called Kairee in Urdu, and also Chutney with it. She never made these before and only started making after we moved to Pakistan. She got the recipe from her Khala (maternal aunt) of both and since then, we've never had store bought Achaar :) But Chutney is something that she has only made a couple of times in all these years and the only reason because nobody is that fond of it in my family except for me and it also lasted for an entire year every time since I was the only one who ate it.
I love pairing it with a flaky, crispy plain Paratha (a flat bread made with using Ghee/Butter) any kind of stuffed Paratha and Daal Chawal (lentil curry with boiled rice) 

Washed Kairees are peeled 1st

Then cut into thin chips

Last year I made this Chutney with my Mom's help. She did all the preps and I just cooked it and took the photos although I wasn't blogging at the time but it sure was on my mind that maybe some day I will :) I used to take photos with my iPhone, that I still do, that's why my photos aren't anywhere near to all those fancy photos I see on my fellow blogger's blogs but I'm happy with mine at the moment and trying to improve my photography skills while still using my iPhone :)

So, this Mango Chutney we made last year and shared with everyone. The best thing about this Chutney is that it can stay well in the refrigerator for up to an year but only if you have canned it right and the temperature of the fridge hasn't been fluctuating. The best time of making this Chutney is now as the raw mangoes available in the market are not completely raw and you get some ripened bits of it with the fruit too. The method of making this Chutney is time consuming and the entire preparation requires patience but its totally worth it! 

Let's get some spiciness unleashed today! :D

Mango Chutney

Ingredients:

Raw Mangoes (Kairee): 2 kg/4.40 lbs
Granulated White Sugar: 6 cups/1,206 gm/3 lbs
Salt: 1 tbsp.

Red Chili Powder: 1 tsp.
Red Chili Flakes: 1 1/2 tsp.

Garam Masala Powder: 1 tsp.
Turmeric Powder: 1/2 tsp.
Garlic Powder: 1/4 tsp.
Ginger Powder: 1 tsp.

Green Cardamom Powder: 1/2 tsp.
Cumin Seeds: 1 tsp. (Roasted)
Carom Seeds:1/2 tsp.
Nigella Seeds: 1 tsp
White Vinegar: 1/4 cup
Water: For boiling
Almonds: 1/2 cup (blanched)
Sultanas: 1/2 cup

Method:

1. Wash and peel the raw mangoes. Slice them and discard the stone/seed and cut them into thin chips.
2. Take plenty of water in a large pot and boil the mango chips. Once start boiling, turn off the flame after 2,3 minutes.
3. Drain out all the water by putting the boiled mangoes into a colander.
4. In another heavy bottomed, non-reactive large pot, put the boiled mangoes along with all the ingredients except for the vinegar, almonds and sultanas. Mix well.
5. Let this cook over medium heat. You'd see that once the sugar and rest of the ingredients are mixed with the mangoes, a lot of juices will be released. keep stirring the mixture from time to time.
6. Once the juices released starts boiling, lower the flame and let it cook for 20-25 minutes while again stirring regularly. 
7. After 20-25 minutes, you will see that the juices have thickened. We are aiming at a jam like texture therefore, if you feel that the chutney has thickened enough then turn off the flame otherwise cook for a few minutes more.
8. After the Chutney is cooked, add the vinegar and stir well. 
9. Now add the almonds and the sultanas and mix well.
10. Let the Chutney cool down a little before pouring it into the sterilized jars. To find out how to sterilize the jars, please look at my post of Strawberry Preserves/Jam here.
11. Can stay good up to an year.

Yields: 3 1000 gm jars

That's all, Chutney Addicts! :) The quantity of the ingredients can always be adjusted according to your desire and convenience but do stick to the ratio. I hope you enjoy making and eating it. Until next time, keep sharing the goodness of this greatest blessing, that has been bestowed in abundance upon us the lucky ones, with the less fortunate ones.
Thank you and please remember in your Du'as/prayers! :)

*Not be duplicated, rewritten or published without permission- Thank you! 

Mango Kulfa

Kulfa is a traditional Pakistani/Indian ice-cream that doesn't need to be churned. It is a summer dessert that's not just served at traditional occasions, dinners, parties but also is enjoyed regularly to beat the heat. Authentically its made with full fat milk, Khoya (milk solids), cardamom powder or saffron and nuts and then frozen till set. It is then cut into slices and served. The same mixture is poured into cone-like moulds to turn them into popsicles called Kulfi.

Kulfa/Kulfi is also added into a milk dessert-drink called Falooda in which a special kind of vermicelli is used along with thickened full-cream milk called Rabri, nuts, chilled milk, and soaked basil seeds called Thukm-e-Balanga is Urdu and is a very popular and refreshing dessert.

Kulfa mixture should be chilled before freezing to prevent crystallization.

During the mango season, I try to make full use of the fresh fruit available in abundances here by incorporating it into the desserts, jams, chutneys e.t.c. I've shared the recipe of my Mango & Coconut Frozen Yogurt on the blog already but this year I have also tried making Salsa with it. The recipe of my Mango Salsa can be found here. 

As I am more of a dessert person and I most definitely like our traditional Kulfa. My family always gets annoyed when I suggest we get the family pack of it every time we have ice-cream for dessert as no one else is a fan of it at mine :D But I had never tried Mango Kulfa before. My best friend Fayee was preparing a dessert for her sister's baby shower and during one of our conversations, she mentioned that to me. I then had to ask her for the recipe of course as I was intrigued and wanted to give it a try at home myself. I got the basic recipe from her that I had to improvise a bit cause of me being me :D I hope she doesn't get offended after reading this but I felt my version turned out more like Kulfa and hers was just a no-churn version of a homemade mango ice-cream :P She used canned pulp but I made pulp with fresh mangoes. You can use the canned one if fresh mangoes aren't available; we do not want any excuses to not to try this dessert. I also used white bread slices as the addition prevents crystallization, added cardamom powder, saffron essence and garnished the Kulfa with some chopped pistachios. I couldn't share my creation with her because of her living in a different country but she did approve of the photo of it I sent her :) My family however loved it and while I'm typing these lines, I got a request from my sister to make it again as she got a peek of the photo of the Mango Kulfa on the computer screen :D

Let's get some dessert love unleashed today, cooks! :D

Mango Kulfa

Ingredients:

Mango Pulp: 1 1/2 cups (made with 2 large mangoes or use canned instead) 

Condensed milk: 1/2 cup.

Evaporated milk: 1/2 cup.

Full Fat Cream: 1 cup.

Full Fat milk: 1 cup.

Sugar: according to taste (add only if the mangoes aren't sweet enough)

Bread slices (edges removed): 2 (the addition prevents from crystallization)

Green Cardamom Powder: 1/4 tsp.

Saffron Essence: 1,2 drops

Chopped Pistachios: 1/4 cup (save some for garnishing)

Method:

1. Put everything into a blender and whiz until well blended. 
2. Pour the prepared mixture into an airtight plastic, freezer-safe box and let it chill well before placing it into a freezer.
3. Freeze it for 8-10 hours or over-night and cut into slices/pieces once frozen. 
4. Sprinkle some chopped pistachios on top before serving.
5. The same mixture can be poured into the Kulfi/Popsicle moulds instead for the individual servings. Enjoy!

Serves 4-6

That's all cooks! :) the amount of ingredients can always be adjusted according to your taste and desire. I hope you enjoy making and having it. Until next time, keep sharing the goodness of this greatest blessing, that has been bestowed in abundance upon us the lucky ones, with the less fortunate ones.
Thank you and please remember in your Du'as/prayers! :)

*Not be duplicated, rewritten or published without permission- Thank you!

Premio Dardos Award Nomination- yay!

Four months into the blogging world and an award nomination already! Yes, I'm truly honored as I'm just a beginner and have to learn a lot but all thanks to this lovely fellow blogger Roy who blogs by the name of "Piece of Cerebrum" for nominating me. She not just shares about the traditional Bengali Indian recipes but gives us the insight into her culture and heritage too, through her writing. I love the caption of her blog "a piece of 'mind' in writing" :)
Do check out her interesting blog here

My heartfelt gratitude to her once again for nominating me for this award! :)

So, what is it all about? 

Upon being nominated, the rules that we have to follow are:

☆Thank the giver and link their blog to your post.

☆Pass the award on to other bloggers of your choice and let them know that they have been nominated.

-This is for the ones who didn’t understand the meaning of this award(which includes me)
The Premio Dardos {means Prize Darts in Spanish} and it exists to acknowledge the values that every blogger shows in their effort to transmit cultural, ethical, literary, and personal values every day. These stamps were created with the intention of promoting fraternization between bloggers, a way of showing affection and gratitude for work that adds value to the Web.

☆I will add a new edge! I would love to know you fellow blogger/foodie & so I request you to say 3 things about you. Keep it fun! It needn’t be food related :) :)
If you don’t own a blog then you could make a Facebook or Twitter post too.
Don't forget to drop a link below for all of us to read. :)

Since I'm still new at blogging and have begun to meet some great and successful bloggers who are really nice people as well therefore, I'd be able to nominate just a couple of fellow bloggers at the moment. They are truly deserving of this award also. So, here are my nominations. Do check out their work, people. You'd really love the time and effort they put in to bringing all those wonderful posts to us and that also quite regularly. Kudos to them!

I'd like to nominate Byron Thomas of "Pretty Practical Pantry" 1st. I love his work and he has not only been sharing some great recipes with all of his readers but he's truly a gem of a person also and has been always supportive to all of his fellow bloggers including me :) Do check out his pretty and mouthwatering healthy, vegetarian recipes here. While you're at his blog, don't forget to check out his "Crafts & Decor" section as well where he has shared that how he transforms an old furniture piece into a totally new one and how he made a beautiful blanket in 4 months so, be prepared to get highly impressed! :) You'd fall in love with his Christmas decorations as well! :)

My 2nd nomination will be a South African sister who now resides in Dubai. She is neither a trained chef nor does she hold any certificate in culinary arts yet, she'd amaze you with her cooking skills, creativity and photography that shall tempt you to get your hand at trying her lovely recipes. Now imagine how talented she would be who baked a cake successfully at the age of 8, you gotta be kidding me! But not at all respected ladies and gentleman. Do check out for yourself here :)

My 3rd nomination is of a very talented cooking expert who not only blogs but conducts cooking classes as well as does catering. Wow! Manal's recipes are close to my heart because she shares Middle Eastern recipes on her blog that really takes me back to the time when I was growing up in the K.S.A and easily got all of those delicacies and enjoyed eating them but now, thanks to her that I can prepare them at home. Do visit her blog here to get some taste of the Middle Eastern cuisine :) 

My 4th and final  nomination is of a very talented blogger who happens to be my neighbor as well :) Yes, an Indian dental surgeon who has a penchant for healthy vegetarian cooking and has a very interesting blog name " Veggie bus on a simple route" She shares delicious, healthy and lovely looking recipes on her blog. Here, I'd like to take the liberty of mentioning that also that she sure is a woman of multiple talents as she's a Bharatnatym trained dancer as well. I'm impressed! Visit her lovely blog here :) 

These are my nominations, folks :) I hope to connect with more bloggers in future and hope to make some more friends in this process. I feel all of the bloggers who take out time to share about their passion, talent and the part of their lives truly deserves to be appreciated. Hats off to all the talented people out there! 

Now, as the last part of the rules state that I have to share three things about myself so, I would say that I am at the loss of words when it comes to talking about myself :) But I can say that I love to learn new things everyday. I love to travel and to connect with like minded people. I love to know about different cultures and believe in this mantra that "Live and let live" :)

On this note, I'd like to thank once again for this nomination and to all of my respected nominees, I really appreciate your work! My words couldn't do justice to your talents and that includes yours too, Roy! :)
Look forward to reading all of the acceptance posts so, don't forget to link me up :)

Enjoy and keep doing the best that you all are doing already! :) 

Mango Salsa

Mango in a salad?! Well, honestly speaking, I couldn't think of it until I had it for myself and won't be exaggerating when I say that I really loved the sweet and sour flavors blended together in the form of a salad! When Mexicans can have it then why not us Pakistanis have it too with our very own Pakistani mangoes! Yeah baby, bring it on! :D  

On a more serious note, my late Dada Abu (paternal granddad) May his soul rest in peace, used to love eating sliced fresh mango with Roti (Pakistani flat bread) and when I saw that for the first time, of course being a kid it was something quite amusing and surprising for me and I thought that how can you eat fruit and that also with Roti?! As I grew older, I came to understand that you have to have your taste developed as you acquire taste for certain food in your adulthood. Just like I love eating bittergourd now but as a kid, it was too bitter for my taste buds just like any other kid but, I still have to try eating Mango with Roti yet ;)

I served it with our dinner

Two days ago, I thought to make something different for my taste buds by specially keeping in mind that I'm going to use mango as the key ingredient of that dish for my 'Mango Fiesta' theme and yet, this time it should be savory as I have already posted one dessert on my blog. The recipe of Mango & Coconut Frozen Yogurt can be found here. So, I decided to make a salad to be served with dinner and decided to make Mango Salsa. I had all the ingredients on hand except for the Jalapenos but I had some homemade pickled green chilies hence, thought to use them. In the Mexican Salsa they don't add mint but I had some fresh mint leaves lying in the fridge plus, I love the flavor of mint esp. in my salads so in goes that too. Mixed all the fresh vegetables, mangoes, lots of lemon juice and Voila! The final product was something that vanished within minutes and I was like one happy kid who got her favorite candy! Although in this case the happiness was cause of everyone liking what I served to them :D 

Salsa is served as an appetizer in Mexican cuisine but I served it as a salad with our dinner as it is similar to our very own Pakistani salad called Kachoomer (mixed cut up salad)

Amigas/Amigos, let's get some Mexicana Unleashed today! :D

Mango Salsa

Ingredients:

Mango: 1 large (peeled, sliced and cut into small cubes)

Onions: 1 medium sized (finely  chopped)

Cucumbers: 2 medium sized (chopped into small cubes)

Tomatoes: 2 medium sized (chopped into small cubes)

Bell Pepper: 1 medium sized (chopped into small cubes)

Pickled Green Chilies: 2 medium sized (finely chopped)

Fresh Coriander: 1/4 cup (chopped)

Fresh Mint: 1/4 cup (chopped)

Lemon: 1 medium sized

Salt: 1/4 tsp

Method:

1. Put the mango cubes and all of the cut up vegetables into a large mixing bowl.
2. Squeeze lemon juice over them and add the salt.
3. Mix everything together well. 
4. Take out into a serving bowl. Chill well before serving. 
5. Serve as an appetizer/starter with Tortillas, Corn Chips or fresh vegetable sticks or as a salad.

Serves 4-6

That's all folks! :) The spice level can always be adjusted according to your taste buds. I hope you enjoy making and eating it. Until next time, keep sharing the goodness of this greatest blessing, that has been bestowed in abundance upon us the lucky ones, with the less fortunate ones. Jazak'Allah Khair! (May Allah reward you) 

*Not be duplicated, rewritten or published without permission- Thank you!

Mango & Coconut Frozen Yogurt (Soft Serve)

Summer in this region is not the season that we look forward to but the only thing that makes us to welcome it with the open arms is that it brings sweet, juicy, pulpy and aromatic mangoes with it! So despite the scorching heat we have to endure with, we never say no to the king of fruits known as Mango! :)

The mango season is in its last leg now so for the love of mangoes, I thought to share a few recipes that are my favorite and are prepared by using this lovely and flavorsome fruit as the main Ingredient. Pakistani mangoes are undoubtedly one of the most delicious kinds and we have over 150 types of mangoes cultivated and available around the country. Mango in its raw form is used to make chutneys and pickles and when its ripened, you can not only make different types of drinks, desserts, salads, cakes, curries with it but in my opinion, its the best fruit to eat on it's own at any time of the day. Yes, I even eat it as my midnight snack :D 

That's how we eat it :D

I like having frozen yogurt that I make at home. Its not only easier to make but healthy too since it uses 'real' ingredients and I can eat a bowl full of it without feeling any guilt. I have already shared the recipe of my homemade Strawberry-Banana Frozen Yogurt with you and you can check out its recipe here. So this time when I planned to make frozen yogurt (honestly speaking I don't plan to make anything but it happens in a whim of the moment most of the time) and when I chucked the fresh mango cut into cubes in the freezer, I thought why not give this 'ordinary' mango yogurt a little special twist by adding some coconut to it so, without any further ado, I took out some dried coconut from my pantry, soaked it into some warm water for a few minutes and the next thing I know that it was cut into pieces and was blending away into my blender jug along with the mango cubes and the other ingredients :D So, ladies and gentlemen, here I present to you my another love which is known as Coconut! 
I love coconut so much since I was a little girl that my first baby tooth fell out while munching on the piece of the fresh coconut that my dad brought for us :D It was kind of a weekly practice of bringing fresh vegetables and fruits from the local vegetable market in Jeddah, K.S.A and along with the other fresh produce bought, coconut was a must. We siblings sometimes used to accompany our dad to the market but I wasn't that fond of going to it cause of it being too big and crowded plus the smell mixed together of all the vegetation being sold there never fancied me. 

The cracking of the coconut, draining its water and then taking out the flesh of the fresh coconut from its shell was done by my dad always. It was always an interesting sight for me to witness. The fresh coconut water was given to us that we hardly used to get a sip or two of but my most favorite part was the delicious fresh coconut that I still love eating with a passion. Ah memories! Before I drift away with my memories, let's get back to the recipe :) 

I blended the frozen mangoes and coconut with the chilled yogurt, I tasted the mixture to check the sweetness and guess what, I decided to take it out into the serving bowl and have it as a soft serve :D the sweetness of the fresh mangoes, nuttiness of the dried coconut and a little tanginess of the fresh, homemade yogurt was something that couldn't stop me from eating it right away like a greedy kid :D

Let's get some froyo love unleashed today, shall we? :D

Mango & Coconut Frozen Yogurt (Soft Serve)

Ingredients:

Unsweetened Plain Natural Yogurt: 2 cups (thick and preferably homemade. Greek yogurt can be used too) 

Fresh Mangoes: 2 medium sized Dried/Fresh Coconut: 1/2 cup (cut into small pieces)

Sugar: according to taste (leave out if the mangoes are sweet. I didn't add any)

Lemon juice: 1 tbsp.

Fresh Mint Leaves, Desiccated Coconut, Mango Cubes : for garnishing

Method:

1. Peel the mangoes, slice them and discard the core. Now cut the sliced mangoes into small cubes. Put them into a freezer safe box or a zip-lock bag and freeze for a couple of hours.
2. If using the dried coconut, soak it into the warm water for a couple of mins to soften it and then cut it into small pieces without any difficulty.
3. Take out the frozen mango cubes from the freezer and put it into the blender jug along with the yogurt, coconut pieces, lemon juice and sugar (if using) A hand-held blender can be used too for this process.
4. Whiz/blitz all the ingredients together for a couple of mins till everything is well combined.
5. Take out into the serving bowls, garnish and serve immediately.

Serves 4 Notes:

1. If you don't wish to have the soft serve then follow the instructions of Strawberry-Banana Yogurt on the blog.
2. The reason of adding coconut into the small pieces is to have tiny bits of it into the yogurt at the time of serving. Desiccated coconut can be used instead if you do not wish for any texture.
3. Coconut can be omitted altogether for those who doesn't like it for any reason.

That's all mango lovers! :) the amount of ingredients can always be adjusted according to your taste and desire. I hope you enjoy making and having it. Until next time, keep sharing the goodness of this greatest blessing, that has been bestowed in abundance upon us the lucky ones, with the less fortunate ones.
Thank you and please remember in your Du'as/prayers! :)

*Not be duplicated, rewritten or published without permission- Thank you!

And the remaining of the soft serve that I made two days ago and was frozen. I took out some and enjoyed while typing this post. Such bliss! :D 

  

 

Gulab Jamun

Eid Mubarak everyone! Yes, I know Eid was last week and I am late in wishing it you all plus, I haven't posted anything for a month now but, its better late than never ;) Because of my quite busy and occupying schedule during Ramadan (Muslim's month of fasting), I haven't  been able to share anything new on my blog after my last post but I had been posting some easy and quick Iftaar (breaking of the fast meal) recipes on my Facebook page so, I had been very much around :) I hope you all had a wonderful Eid, had loads of sweet delicacies and shared them with not only your friends, family and neighbors but with everyone alike :) 

Eid is a Muslim holiday that marks the end of Ramadan and every Muslim celebrates it with much zeal and religious fervor. We are advised to make our fellow Muslims and the other believers the part of our celebrations. This gives the message of love, peace and universal brotherhood and that's the true beauty of Islam. Eid is celebrated for three days but the whole month of Shawaal (the 10th month of the Islamic calendar) becomes a month of celebration as the dinners and family get togethers are planned over the weekend just to be able to spend more time with our loved one's. As desserts are a universal symbol of celebration, we Muslims around the world prepare and eat different kind of desserts and sweets for Eid and in this region, we make Sheer Khurma (vermicelli cooked in milk with sugar and nuts) traditionally which is eaten on the Eid day after offering Eid Namaaz (Muslim's form of prayer) along with other sweets and confectioneries. Mostly people buy Mithai (Pakistani/Indian confectionery) from the Mithai shops but some like to prepare different kinds of it at home too and Gulab Jamuns are one of them.

Stuffed Gulab Jammuns look more fancy

These beauties called Gulab Jamuns are certainly one of the easiest Mithais that can be made at home without going through any hassle and that also in not more than 30-35 minutes! Isn't that great! :D It is also one of the first desserts I learnt to make from my Mom and I remember, I was 14 at that time and wasn't able to contain my excitement at the first successful attempt of making them and not only did my Dad love them who is a Meetha (sweet/dessert in Urdu) lover but served them to my Chacha (paternal uncle) with a cup of tea and he literally loved them; the entire plate of the hot, syrupy, sweet and aromatic Gulab Jamuns was gone in no time!:D So you can have the idea yourself that they turned out just perfect, Alhumdulilah (Praise Allah) This Chacha of mine is so fond of tea that as soon as he used to enter our house, always requested me to make tea for him once he started liking the tea made by me and the same happens to date :) The love and appreciation of your family and friends not only encourages and motivates you to do your best always but gives you hope and strength to go through every ups and downs of life while keeping your head high so, make this addictive sweet by following this easy and a never-go-wrong recipe and share with your loved one's and with everyone who needs something/someone to put a smile on their face :) I make them by stuffing each Gulab Jamun with an almond but the choice of nut entirely depends on your desire; you can even leave it out and make plain Gulab Jamuns too. No hard and fast rule :)

Let the love of Mithai get Unleashed today! :D 

Gulab Jammun

Ingredients:

Milk Powder: 1 cup (any good quality brand but I use Nido)
All-purpose Flour: 3/4 cup
Semolina: (Sooji) 1 tbsp. (heaping full)
Ghee/Butter: (melted) 1 tbsp.
Egg*: 1 (medium sized)
Baking Powder: 1 tsp.

Fresh Cream: 3 tbsp.
Almonds: 20 (for stuffing) 

Saffron Essence: 1,2 drops (1/4 tsp of Green Cardamom powder can be used instead)

Oil/Ghee: 2,3 cups (for deep frying)
Desiccated Coconut/Mixed Nuts: For garnishing

Ingredients for the Sugar Syrup

Sugar: 2 cups
Water: 3 cups

Green Cardamom: 6-8


Method: 

1. Make the sugar syrup first by putting all the ingredients into a wide saucepan and cooking over medium heat while stirring to dissolve all of the sugar completely.
2. Bring to the boil and let it simmer over lowest flame for 3,4 mins. Turn off the flame and keep the prepared sugar syrup warm while you make the Gulab Jamuns.
3. Put the oil/Ghee in a frying pot/wok and place it over low flame to get warm. 
4. In a mixing bowl, put all the dry ingredients and mix them well.
5. Now add the egg, butter/Ghee, fresh cream Saffron essence/green cardamom powder. 
6. Mix all the ingredients until well combined and knead for a minute or so to form a smooth dough. If the dough feels sticky then cover the bowl and place it in the fridge for a few minutes to firm it. 
7. By working quickly, pull out a small piece of dough and flatten it a bit over the palm of your hand, place one almond in the middle, close and seal the dough by shaping it into a small ball. Repeat the process to make all the balls.
8. Start frying the balls into the medium hot oil over low flame in batches. Once they rise to the surface, continuously but very gently move the Gulab Jamuns around while frying, so that they get evenly browned.
9. Fry each batch for 6-7 minutes to make sure they are cooked through.
10. Drop them into the syrup and let them soak while you fry the next batch.
11. Let the Gulab Jamuns simmer for 10 mins. into the syrup over the lowest flame possible so that the Gulab Jamuns absorb almost all of the syrup. 
12. Take out all the Gulab Jamuns in to a serving bowl with/without the syrup and garnish with the desiccated coconut or any chopped nuts of your choice.
13. Serve warm or cold but Gulab Jamuns are best enjoyed warm. 

Makes 20 approx.

*To make Eggless Gulab Jamuns, simply replace egg with 2,3 tbsp. of milk.

That's all Mithai fans!:) I hope you enjoy making and having it. Until next time, keep sharing the goodness of this greatest blessing, that has been bestowed in abundance upon us the lucky ones, with the less fortunate ones.
Thank you and please remember in your Du'as/prayers! :)

*Not be duplicated, rewritten or published without permission- Thank you!