I have two reasons to celebrate.A couple of days ago I was contacted by the people at CSN store to host a giveaway and I am thrilled!I am sure you already know about this store which has 200+ websites and tons of stuffs to choose from.I am already in love with their dinnerware collection and am still in the process of visiting their other stores.
The second reason is that this is my 500th post!At last it has come after two and a half years!! Well actually this is no big deal,but for me its another reason to celebrate.
So come on dear friends,let's celebrate with a giveaway and a sweet treat.Now all you need to do is take a bite of this sweet treat and leave a message in the comments section telling me about you favorite sweet dish fit for celebration.[If you really like my recipes,you can also follow my blog /subscribe to the recipes through mail.This is purely optional :)].And it would be great if you can spread the word about this giveaway.
Your comments are welcome from today till the 10th of August 2010 and on the 11th I shall pick a random winner who gets a $100 gift certificate from the CSN store!You can shop online in one of their 200+ websites with this certificate.
Since the CSN store ships goods to the residents of USA /Canada,the others who leave the comments, if selected ,can pass on their $100 gift certificate to their friends / relatives living in these areas.
Now lets get to the sweet treat.I made these Kaala Jamuns a few days ago.Kaala Jamun can be described as a cousin of our dear Gulab Jamuns.There are a few differences though[and that's why I call them cousins :)].Kaala jamuns use panner and khoya and are fried to a darker shade.I however did not cook them very dark and turned out to be like gulab jamun in appearance.
I came across this recipe @ Chef In You.DK's Kaala Jamuns were so tempting that I had to prepare them at home.The original method is to use ghee to deep fry,as it imparts a rich taste but I used oil.
I used:
Khoya/ Maawa /Paal khova - 1 cup [I used store brought khova]
Paneer - 1/4 cup
Maida / All purpose flour-1 tablespoon
A few teaspoons of milk
Cardamom powder- a pinch
Water-1 1/2 cups
Sugar-3/4 cup[I used sweetened khoya so used less sugar]
Oil to deep fry.
- Grate / crumble paneer and khoya into a large bowl.
- Add maida and cardamom powder and use a little milk to make a dough.[It should not be sticky]
- Meanwhile heat water in a pan and put in the sugar.Stir till it dissolves.[Put in a spoon of milk into the sugar solution and in a while the impurities will float on top.Strain and again put it back into the pan.]
- Simmer and check for the one string consistency.[Take a little syrup in a ladle and touch a drop with your index finger.Touch your thumb to the forefinger and take the fingers apart to check].If a single string is seen,take it off the flame and transfer into another vessel.
- Heat oil in another pan.
- Make small balls of the dough and keep ready.
- Drop them in batches and fry on medium flame till they are dark brown / black.
- Drop the fried balls into the prepared sugar syrup.
- Serve once the balls soak up the sugar syrup.[You will notice that the kaala jamuns increase in size once they are soaked.]
Sending this tasty dessert to Umm Mymoonah @ Taste of Pearl City who is hosting Iftar Moments and to Nupur's BB6
Bon Appetit and don't forget to leave a comment to be a part of the giveaway
Labels: Diwali Sweets, Giveaway, Paneer, Sweet temptations
