Tuesday, August 21, 2007

Kesaria (A Saffron flavored sweet delicacy) AND Many Thanks Are In Order...AND Independence Day Parade Pics

That's me, enjoying a hot cup of my favorite lemon grass tea along with buttery crisp Shrewsbury Biscuits and Bakarwadi straight from my beloved bakery, back home :)

OOPS! forgot to upload my picture, so that makes it just the tea tray with the goodies ;) .......
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No nonsense, Real biscuits mind you! Not low fat, not fat free, not sodium free, no substituting butter with water (sheesh! is that even possible? ) :) Suffice to say, these are not your flax seed cookies....LOL, they are the real McCoy :)
All thanks, courtesy The Cooker! And here's to The Cooker for taking me along for a walk down memory lane :)


Many Many Thanks to Sweet Sia, Archana, Laavanya, Prema & Athika for these beautiful awards!
Thank You Ladies for these cute buttons!





All the bloggers who take time out of their busy schedule to click pictures, post recipes and encourage others with their comments definitely ROCK, in my dictionary, and you know that!
A big Thank You to each & every blogger who takes the time to comment on my posts, makes me smile :)
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Keeping in the tradition of passing these on, I would like to pass the Rockin' Girl Blogger Award to:

Aarti - Aarti's Corner
Priyanka - Lajawaab
Sukanya - Hot & Sweet Bowl
Ramya - Mane Adige
Kribha - En Samayal Pakkam
Pravs - Simply Spicy
Mytheree - Try This Recipe
Lakshmi K - Veggie Cuisine
Madhavi - Veggie World
Saju - Chachi's Kitchen
Raaga - The Singing Chef
Anusha - Talimpu
Lata - La Gourmet Chef
Shilpa - Aayi's Recipes
Madhu - Ruchii
Swapna Susarla - Tastes From My Kitchen


I would like to pass on the Schmooze Award to:
Archana - Tried & Tested Recipes
Asha - Foodies Hope
Sig - Live To Eat
Sia - Spice Corner
Trupti - The Spice Who Loved Me
Kajal - Kajal Dreams
Tee - Bhaatukli
Musicals Kitchen
Coffee - The Spice Cafe
Bee - Jugalbandi
Laavanya - Cookery Corner
Prema - My Cookbook
The Cooker
Latha - Masala Magic
.
I would also like to Thank Bureka Boy for not only guiding me to buy a grinder but also finding a great deal on the web for the same, is that cool or what! Thank You Bureka Boy! You Rock!
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Just realized that I do not have very many sweet dishes on my blog, so thought of posting one of my favorite, quick to make desserts.
Kesaria



4 cups milk
1 lime/lemon
pinch kesar(saffron)
1-2 tbsp sugar
2 pinches elaichi(cardamom) powder
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1. Heat 3 cups of milk, bring to a boil.
Note: Whole milk gives a thicker texture to the sweet, but 2% works well too, here I've used 2%.

2. Add juice of half a lime and stir. Let curdle. Add more lime juice if the milk does not curdle. Let rest for 5 minutes.

3. Add half portion of kesar into the hot mix.

4. Drain the whey and collect the chenna into a bowl. The mix must be moist, do not strain all the whey like in paneer.

5. Add the remaining cup of milk, sugar, kesar & elaichi powder and blend in a mixer.

6. Add into individual bowls and refrigerate for 4/5 hours till set. Whole Milk sets very well.

7. Enjoy a delicious chenna based light dessert!

Recipe adapted from here.



Here are some pictures from the 60th Independence day parade held on Sunday the 19th August, in one of my favorite cities, NYC!


Enjoy.....
























67 comments:

bee said...

that parade is way cool. congrats on your well-deserved award, and thanks for passing one on to me. btw, i am eating a shrewsbury bik right now.

Richa said...

whaaaaaat? u too r a shrewsbury fan!! good to know!yup, that parade was a lot of fun :)

Arts said...

Shrewsbury Biscuits.. Love them.. esp frm Kayani Bakery, east strreet, Pune.. missing that yummy taste.. kai milala tula mala jalawun?? :P

Kesari is something new for me.. i am short of ideas when it comes to making sweets for guests.. have one added to the list now..

mom sent me a sorya (chakli press).. so am busy with frying shev and chaklis/murukkus before my college starts next month :D

Congrats for the awards and thanks for passing one to me :)

Tee said...

Can I join you for tea? chaha barobar bakarwadi...ajun kay pahije ;)
Shrewsbury biscuits at Kayani's Bakery in pune are the best! never eaten such good biscuits ever...
Kesaria looks too good and so easy to make...i love chenna based desserts!
Congrats on the awards..you deserve each of them ! And thanks for passing on the award to me :)

TBC said...

Congrats on all the awards!:-)
I love those cute glasses of yours & your pretty teapot.I have a similar one. You drink tea like that everyday?Now how fancy is that!I only use mine when we have people over . The rest of the time, I am just happy looking at it :-)
Isn't kesar very expensive?

Richa said...

thanks aarti! shev ani chakli, arreywah frying season distoy :) now, kon konala jalavtoy? kesaria nakki try kar, whole milk vaparlyas pharach chan set hoto :)

thanks tee! yes please do join in :) yes, chenna based sweets are my fav as well. hee try kar, avdel tula, ani phar soppi ahey recipe!

thanks tbc! yup, i do love my teapots, one of my friends has an excellent collection from all over the world :) kesar is the costliest spice of them all, but one needs just a pinch for the flavor, which is unbeatable! out here spanish saffron is about 7/8 bucks for 2 gms, which lasts for a looooong time. enjoy....

Laavanya said...

Nice parade there Ruchi and Congrats on the awards! You deserve them. The first snap makes me wish I had that in front of me - nice combination of tea, biscuits and bhakarwadi.
I love desserts made with chenna and this seems simple enough and yet so delicious. Hope to try it sometime soon.

swapna susarla said...

Hi Richa
Congratulations for the awards!!sure u deserve it.The tea pot is looking so beautiful!!the goodies are yummy!!
I am very thankful to u for passing the award to me.

TheCooker said...

Afternoon tea in ishtyle!
Congrats on your awards....all well deserved.

Jyothi said...

Kesaria looks pretty healthy and lovely too. All the photos are just beautiful and congrats on awards. You deserve it dear. Thanks for sharing.

sra said...

Congrats on the awards, Richa! The dessert is v different - what do you mean by 'set?' Do you mean it thickens in the fridge?

Suganya said...

Hi Richa....
Thank u for passing me the award... Nice to see the independence day parade pics... Sweet sounds delish!.....

Sharmi said...

congrats on the well deserved award Richa. that sound like a great parade. where in NY?
the Kesaria looks very tempting.

Padma said...

Oh man, I missed the parade in NYC...so tell me seems you enjoyed it so much...hey those bhakarwadis are of Chitale's (Pune) was lil curious on them...I love them so much...and once again Congratulations on those well deserving awards...

musical said...

Haanji Richa, congratulations! You surely rock, girl! and those bisuits: sweet torture!! Shrewsbury, aha! ab main aur kya kahun.....

and i miss NYC! thanks for the pictures (and many thanks for the award too, dear!). Kesaria is a great idea for a quick dessert :).

hugs,
musical.

Aruna said...

Richa, Pardon my ignorance abt Shrewbury biscuits...Now can u please tell me where I can find some in the US ????

themistressofspices.wordpress.com

Anonymous said...

Thanks Richa!
for the passing the lovely award to me and for stopping by my blog .Kesaria is a new sweet for me. Will try it out sometime
thanks
madhavi

FH said...

Kesariya rocks Richa, yum! Shrewsbury biscuits are short breads, right? Look great, watch out for my biscuits tomorrow!;D
Thanks for the award, enjoy your your's as well.You do rock:))

Seema Bhat said...

Oh those biscuits there look like short breads and if they are I am sure gonna love them. Kesaria... I love that name. Nice recipe and belated happy I day buddy.

Manasi said...

Love Shrewsbury biscuits!!! esp. from Kayani bakery in Pune!!!
That parade looks like a lot of fun and enthu!!
Congrats on the award!!!

Suganya said...

Richa, Yr kesaria is bookmarked. I dont have the patience to curdle the milk, so am thinking of tweaking yr recipe a bit.. Lets see whether it works!

Cynthia said...

Hey Richa, this was a fun post! Congrats on all the awards and to the awardees!

Priyanka said...

Ah how i miss NY.... Kesaria is new to me.... sounds delicious Richa... will try it out as soon as i m done with my exams:)congrats on the award- its well-deserved and thanks for passing on the award. thats really sweet of you.

Anonymous said...

Hi Richa,
Congrats on well deserved awards.
And thank you for passing it to me.
Kesari looks beautiful,very new kind of drink to me. Thanks for sharing those parade pictures.
Corn on the cob looks fantastic, I have to try that.

SeeC said...

Kesaria is awesome.
Congrats on your awards.

Lovely pictures richa. Nice to know about the celebration

Richa said...

thanks laavanya! yup tea time is bliss time :) dessert is quick n tasty, lemme know if u try it.

thanks swapna & u r most welcome! glad u enjoyed it.

thanks tc! tea pot madhla chaha pinyacha jara veglas joy ahey, for me. thanks again.

thanks jyothi, appreciate ur comments dear.

thanks sra. yes it does thicken as it cools, with whole milk it sets totally like a pudding or so, with 2% it's a bit runny :) lemme know if u try

Richa said...

thanks sukanya & u r most welcome dear!

thanks sharmi, yes it is a tasty dessert, do try. parade was on madison, was fun :)

thanks padma! yes it is chitale :) available here now, but usually the stock seems a bit stale to me, but once in a while gotta' do with whatever u get :)

thanks musical. glad could revive some of ur nyc memories sweetie :) haanji shrewsbury is a different entity altogether he!he! try the sweet, it's yum :) thuannu award deke mannu bada changa lageya.

Richa said...

thanks aruna. unfortunately it is not available here, as far as i know & trust me i wud know if it was sold here he!he! available only in our beloved motherland :)

thanks madhavi & u r most welcome dear! do try it, it is quick n tasty.

thanks asha & u r most welcome dear! do try kesaria. look frwrd to ur bisc tomo.

thanks seema, yup they r like shortbread, just 100 times better he!he! enjoy....

Richa said...

thanks manasi, yes kayani it is :) parade was a lot of fun, though it rained. enjoy....

thanks suganya, if u r thinking of blending store bot paneer, it may not work, not sure if it will blend smooth. anyway lemme know...

thanks cynthia.

thanks priyanka & u r most welcome dear. do try it, good luck for ur exams.

thanks Madhu & u r most welcome. do try it. it's the right time for corn as well.

thanks seec. parade was fun, kesaria is a quick tasty dessert. enjoy...

Coffee said...

My dear Richa....... you are an absolute charmer...... there are few blogs I don't miss to visit even if I am loaded with work and yours is one of them! :) I would love to know you.

IF you are a shrewsbury fan..... I am an AC! ;)Thanks for sharing the parade pics with us...... it was such a pleasurable sight. :)

And thank for the award as well! :)

indosungod said...

Richa, Congrats on those awards. The tea tray looks inviting. NYC is a favorite for me too, makes me feel like home.

Bhawna said...

Hi Richa,
Congratulations for all deserving awards, My friend is from pune have to try this Kayani bakery. lol
all the best

Roopa said...

Congrats on the award Richa! you desered it rightly and you are one lovely blogger whom i love to visit.
The parade pics look so lively i bet you guys had a great time.

the saffron sweet looks yumm! i love anything with this flavour

archana said...

Congrats Richa for the awards and thanks for passing them on :)
Tuza backyard, kettle, biscuits and bakarwadi mast dista ahet.Kesaria me try nakki kareen. Khoopach vegli recipe ahey.
Parade chaan diste pun Priyanka chopra kuthe ahey ? :D
Ticha TOI madhye photo pahila hota :)
BTW Kesaria chamchya ni khanya sarakhe ahe , set hoe ka ? Pasty sandesh sarkhe lagate ka ?

Srivalli said...

Richa...congrats...and the kesaria looks very yummy...thanks for sharing the independence pics with us...

Srivalli
www.cooking4allseasons.blogspot.com

J said...

And I thought you were sharing bhakharwadi and shrewsbury biscuit recipes with us! Having it all alone, just not fair!!

Viji said...

Congrats on the award Richa. Nice photos. Kesaria looks good. The parade photos are worth sharing Richa. thanks. Viji

Raaga said...

Hmmm... lovely drink.

And congrats Richa. Well deserved awards.

And thank you so much for passing one on to me. Hugs girl.

And hey, it is 60 years of Independence and the 61st Independence day... unlike birthdays, India's first I-Day was in 1947 itself :-)

Mahek said...

hi
Thanks for the photos!!!
we had a visual journey

Mahek said...

richa
comments warun kalale ki tu marathi ahees mhanun, great next time comment marathi tun pathavnyacha prayanna karin..

Arts said...

just mailed u the story :)

Richa said...

thanks coffee! such sweet words, u r making me blush now :) maney pan tara blog bau ajj gamey che, u seem to be such a lively person, wud love to know u better too, sweetie :)
BTW AC su che? And u r most welcome dear, always a pleasure visiting u, i always come back re-charged :)

thanks isg! yup, NYC ROCKS!

thanks bhawna. enjoy....

thanks Roopa! it is always such a delite visiting u, learn a lot from you & ur enthusiasm. do try the sweet, it's quick and YUM :)

Richa said...

thanks archana! it was a great pleasure passing the award to you :)
priyanka la pahila, pan from far, she is in one of the photos, but have to stretch far to see ;)he!he!
Kesaria try kar, very subtle sweet taste. jar whole milk vaparlas tar ekdum set hotey ani u can hv with a spoon. 2% madhye u can drink as a thick smoothie or still take it spoon by spoon, which is what i do. yup, u can say jara pasty sandesh sarkha, pan easier to make :)

thanks srivalli! glad u enjoyed them dear.

thanks jyothsna! come on over, lets hv tea with the goodies :)

thanks viji. i knew u wud appreciate the pics, glad to share them.

thanks raaga! glad to pass the award to u sweetie.
I know what u mean about the 60/61, but we sure had fun at the parade :)

thanks mahek!jaroor marathi madhye comments kar, it's fun reading.

arts, lemme' go chk :)

Pravs said...

Thanks Richa for passing the award to me !!! Just got back from seattle .... didn't have acess to net for few days. wow i am thrilled ! Kesari drink looks really yummy.

Anonymous said...

Congrats for the awards dear and thanks a lot for passing it on to me.
Looks like you had loads of fun in parade. It looks like India. Though I would never want to live in NYC, I love to see such desi fare :).

Latha Narasimhan said...

Hi richa,
congrats for those awards! Kesariya is looking heavenly. Thanks for those pictures!
when is Hara and safed appearing?

Saju said...

Thanks for award! I love the parade pics. The dessert looks yummy

evolvingtastes said...

Richa, you always know how to post a crowd-pleasing recipe. This one looks terrific starting right from the title. And that cooker, she is so sweet.

Congratulations on the awards!!

Bong Mom said...

What a lovely tea, can I come over ? And then I can also Congratulate you in person for all your awards which you totally deserve :)

Raaga said...

And did I tell you... when S went to Pune on a day trip, I made him bring back 1 kg of Bhakarwadi from Chitale Bandhu and LakshmiNarayanyanche Best Chivda!! The things we do for food... and the things we make our husbands do :-)

Sig said...

he he I was staring hard into the cup to see you enjoying the biscuits. :D Congrats on the awards sweetie, and thanks for mine too... Hugs..

Pooja V said...

I m a total kayani bakery shrewsbury fan !! I can eat them the whole day !! I had never heard of kesaria but it looks delicious. will definitely try it.

sunita said...

That was a lovely post indeed!Congrats on the well deserved awards.

Sia said...

i loved ur kesariya recipe richa...fantastic dish... somewhat reminds me of rasmalai in glass:) gonna try this very soon and will surely let u know.
independence day parade looks so cool. hope u guys had gr8 fun.
and congrats on award and thank u for passing it to me:) u r a sweetheart:)
sorry sweetie, i was too busy with work all these days n its getting hectic day by day.

Richa said...

thanks pravs & u r most welcome! do try and lemme' know!

thanks shilpa & u r welcome sweetie! yup parade was fun & NYC is way cool girl :)

thanks latha! hara aur safed bhi dooor nahi :) enjoy

thanks saju!

thanks ET! yup that cooker is sweet as can be & so inspiring :)

thanks sandeepa! sure sweetie, come on over, maybe we can have some luchi too he!he!

Richa said...

true raaga! have done many "wierd" things all for the blog! there is something in it, more power to blogging ;)

thanks sig! so did u see me in the cup!!! u r most deserving of the award & thanks for ur encouragement throughout!

thanks pooja v! kayani ki baat hee kuch aur hai, kay mahantes :) enjoy & lemme know if u try it

thanks sunita! nice of u to stop by.

thanks sia! glad u liked kesaria & the parade pics. do lemme know when u try it! i know i can always count on ur encouragement for my blog :)

Swaruchy said...

Cool Richa....The Kesari looks yummy :-)
Congrats on the awards dear :-)

Anonymous said...

Hi Richa, so much fun to see that photo of you drinking tea! ;) Your pics are lovely as always -- great to see the Independence Day parade in NY! Kesaria is something new to me, that I should try when I find some decent saffron. Congratulations to you on your well-deserved awards, too :)

Rajitha said...

that is so nice.. to have a parade like that. i think next yr, i will make a trip there. the teapot is adorable..

Rachna said...

hi richa...

bohot vadiya kesaria tussi banaya hai...im a big fan of any paneer-chenna ...yur is new to me and looks totally yummy..and great Iday pics... and a biiiig congrats for the awards!!!

Richa said...

thanks sirisha!

thanks linda! i'm so happy to know u like my pics, taking them is fun :) do try kesaria.

thanks rajitha! yup NYC is fun

thanks rachna! tussi jaroor try karna, thuannu pasand aooga :)

Kajal said...

Thanks for award my dear.......thank you very much.

Kesaria.....shu vaat chhe richa ek dam damakedar sweet dish chhe te pan milk ni pan gujju ma avi sweet nathi joy mai pehal. Saru sweeet ni recipe ek dam different chhe ane te kathi banavi te pan madi gayu....hu pan kearek try karish...Thanks for sharing.:)

Mythreyee said...

Hey awesome post and thanks buddy for the Rocking Girl Blogger Award. I am very happy to receive it. Sorry that I could not get back to you soon. I was on a job hunt and just got an offer as HR coordinator in a software company. Once again, thanks gal for the award.

Pragyan said...

Kesari sounds cool. Am saving it to try one of these weekends...will let you know how it goes :)

Prema Sundar said...

Congrats for the award and thanks for passing it to us.

Pooja Na(i)rayan said...

The picture looks so goos. I liked ur jeera baby alu, I am going to try it out for sure

SteamyKitchen said...

That looks AMAZING!!! Too bad its almost 10:30pm...and I am too lazy to cook.

Love your blog and thanks for entering the contest!