Palak Soup

Ingredients

• Spinach 1 bunch

• Oil 1 tablespoon

• Cinnamon 1 inch stick

• Black peppercorns 15-20

• Cloves 5

• Black cardamom 3

• Bay leaves 2

• Ginger,finely chopped 2 tablespoons

• Garlic,finely chopped 1 tablespoon

• Onion ,finely chopped 1 medium

• Green chilli,chopped 1

• Bottle gourd (lauki/doodhi) 1/4

• Carrot 1/2 medium

• Salt to taste

• Milk 1 cup

• Black pepper powder a pinch

Method
Heat oil in a non stick pan. Add cinnamon, black peppercorns, cloves, black cardamoms, bay leaves, ginger and garlic and sauté. When garlic turns light brown, add onion and sauté. Add green chilli and mix.

Cut bottle gourd and carrot into small cubes and add. Roughly chop spinach and add. Sauté for a minute and add 5 cups water. Add salt and mix well. Cover and cook for 8-10 minutes.

Add milk and mix and let the mixture comes to a boil. Cool slightly, transfer into a mixer jar and grind into a paste.

Strain this mixture into a bowl. Transfer it back into the pan and bring it to a boil.

Transfer shorba into a serving bowl, sprinkle some black pepper powder and serve hot. 

Chilli Chicken

Ingredients

• 1 kg boneless chicken
• 2 tbsp soya sauce
• 2 tbsp green chilli sauce
• ajinomoto a pinch (optional)
• salt according to taste
• black pepper according to taste
• 3-4 chopped green chillies
• 1 tbsp choped garlic
• 1 tbsp cornflour
• 2 tbsp all purpose flour (maida)
• 1 egg
• 2 medium onions diced ( square pieces)
• 1 capsicum or green pepper diced  (square pieces)

Directions

1. Marinate the chicken in soya sauce, egg, salt, pepper, ajinomoto, flour, cornflour, half garlic and green chilli sauce for 1 hour.
   all the tablespoon ingredients should be added half in the marinade, if soya sauce is 2 tbsp then add 1tbsp in marinade and the other half while cooking.

1. After 1 hour, fry the chicken pieces till they are brown and keep them on a tissue paper to absorb the excess oil.
2. Now in the same oil add chopped garlic, green chillies, fry for 2 minutes, now add fried chicken, onions and capsicum. Saute on high flame, add all the half ingredients- salt, pepper, ajinomoto, soya sauce and green chilli sauce.
3. Add 1/2 tsp vinegar
4. Serve hot with fried rice or noodles. 

Mutton Korma

Ingredients:

• ½ kg Boneless mutton.
• ½ tbsp cumin.
• Coconut paste. (½ cup)
• Ginger, Garlic paste (1 tbsp each).
• Onions. (Finely chopped 1 cup)
• Poppy seed paste. (½ cup) Coriander powder 1 tbsp.
• Red chili powder ½ tsp.
• Turmeric powder ½ tsp.
• Bay leaves 2 pcs.
• Cloves 6-8 pcs.
• Nutmeg powder 1/8 tsp.
• Green elaichi 6-8 nos.
• Cinnamon sticks A few.
• Oil 4 tbsp.
• Salt to taste.

Instructions:

Dry cloves, elaichi, jeera, cinnamon sticks and nutmeg powder have to be roasted and then ground to a fine paste.
Heat some oil in a saucepan, add bay leaves and chopped onions and sauté. When the color of the onion changes to brown, add ginger and the garlic paste. Put in the boneless mutton and stir, mix in the ground masala, turmeric and red chili powder. Pour some water, add salt to taste and boil till the mutton becomes soft and tender. Add the paste of poppy seeds, coconut paste along with the roasted coriander powder. Boil for another ten minutes. Garnish with coconut paste and serve hot.

Coconut and Lemon Curd Cake

Ingredients:

• Flour 335 gm
• Icing sugar 225 gm
• Butter (soft) 125 gm
• Coconut 125 gm
• Baking powder 1/2 tsp
• Milk 1 cup
• Curd 1 cup
• Whisked egg 1
• Lemon 1
• Lemon essence few drops

Instructions:

Preheat oven at 180 degree.

For Lemon Curd: Hang curd in a muslin for sometime to drench all the water.

Then add lemon juice and mix well, keep aside.

In a mixing bowl combine sugar, butter and mix with electric beater. When sugar is fully dissolved, add egg and mix. Add flour and baking powder to the mixture and fold. If the mixture seems thick/hard, then add a little milk and fold. When mixture becomes creamy, add coconut and lemon essence.
Grease a round mold and pour half of the mixture into it. And then make a layer of lemon curd.
Now pour rest of the mixture to the sides (over the curd layer).

Bake for 40 minutes but check the cake after 30 minutes. Take out the cake from mold when it cools down a little.

Garnish with icing sugar and coconut powder or frost it with whipped cream and grated coconut.