Easy Taco Dip

Taco dip originated in Mexico and it is a meal in itself.   Those nibblers in your party will enjoy this as well.  .  When served with corn chips or tortilla chips taco dip makes a good appetizer for any get together.  This taco dip is less fattening as I haven’t used sour cream in it.  I have used hung yogurt which is a healthy alternative.  This dip is very easy to make. Since I use salsa to perk it up, guests don’t shy away from taking second and third helpings till all is gone.

Ingredients:

1 cup(8 oz) cream cheese,  1 cup hung yogurt or fat free sour cream, 2 cups salsa, 1 tsp chives, 1 tsp red pepper flakes, 1 tsp black pepper, 1 tsp lemon juice, 1 tsp seasoned salt, 1 cup shredded iceberg lettuce, 2 large tomatoes diced, 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese, 1 cup black olives

Method:

Combine cream cheese, hung yogurt, salsa, spices and lemon juice and mix well with an egg beater.

Spread on the bottom of the large shallow glass dish.

Top with shredded lettuce, tomatoes, cheese and black olives.

Serve with baked tortilla chips.

 Note: You can put taco seasoning instead of other spices and lemon juice.

Sooji Ladoo

Ladoo is a ball shaped sweet popular in every region and state of India.  It is made of flour, sugar and other ingredients like ghee, nuts and flavors.  It is often served at festivals and other occasions like birth and marriage etc.  Ladoo comes from the Sanskrit word “ladduka” meaning a small ball.  Common flours used for ladoo include besan(chickpea flour), rava or sooji(semolina) and nuts.

This Diwali we got lots of almonds as gifts.  I wanted to make use of those.  So I tried making the rava ladoo which was very easy to make.  it came out to be tasty as well as nutritious.

Ingredients:

1 cup sooji or rava or semolina, 1 cup powdered sugar,  ½ cup ghee,  ½ tsp cardamom powder, ½ cup roasted almonds, ½ cup milk

Method:

Roast sooji in a heavy pan and put it aside.

Now melt ghee in a pan, add roasted sooji and sugar and stir it well.

Add chopped roasted almonds and cardamom powder and turn off the flame.  Mix it well and take out the mixture in a deep flat dish.

Let it cool off...  Now take a small portion of the mixture, add one tsp of milk and make a ball.  Repeat the same process till all ladoos are made.

These ladoos can stay out of refrigerator for a week.

Sandesh : a healthy sweet

All over India, the gastronomic culture of Bengal is well known for its affinity towards sweets, especially rosgolla and sandesh. Most Bengali sweets are made of milk turned into Chenna, sugar, spices, fruits, nuts, coconut and now a days even chocolate.   Sweets are an essential component of Bengali hospitality.  Bengalis send sweets to friends and family on every meaningful occasion.

The word “sandesh” means a message.  In olden times when a message or invitation was sent in Bengal, this special sweet was always sent along.

Being a light sweet, Sandesh is healthy as it supplements a good source of protein, carbohydrate and sugar thereby providing energy.  Sandesh comes in more than a hundred varieties.

I made this Bengali sweet on the occasion of Diwali.  Once I successfully made it, I realized this was the easiest sweet I have ever made.  I feel it is worth sharing it with my blog readers.

Ingredients:

Milk 1 ½ liter, 1 tbsp white vinegar, 2 tbsp water, ¾ cup plus one tsp sugar, a few strands of saffron, 1 tbsp milk, a few drops of yellow color.

Method:

Boil milk in a heavy pan.  When it reaches a boiling point pour vinegar and water mixture on this boiling milk and stir it lightly with a big spoon.  Lower the flame.  When milk starts cuddling, turn off the flame.  Let it sit for 10-15 minutes. Now drain it through the cheese cloth and hang it on your sink tap so that all water drains up in an hour.

Soak saffron in a tbsp of  milk and let it sit for a while.

When all water drains up, take out the cheese or chenna and mix it well in the food processor for eight minutes by adding sugar to it.  Add yellow color and saffron mix milk.

Cook on a very slow flame in a heavy pan stirring continuously with a wooden spatula.  Make sure not to overheat the chenna mix as it might turn grainy and leave fat.  It should be neither too dry nor too moist.  Should be like a soft dough.

Immediately make small balls or any other shape you like.  Garnish with crushed pistachio or any other way if you like.