Corn Capsicum Masala with Gulab Jamuns for ICC

Dear All,

Hows everyone doing? I hope the sun is shining bright in your side of the world :-)  This post is little late but better late than never right? For this months Indian Cooking Challenge Srivalli chose Gulab Jamuns, one of the most favorite indian sweet of all time. This was also the first time I prepared gulab jamuns using khoya and they turned out to be simply melt in mouth type! Making khoya at home is little time consuming but if you use ready made khoya than making gulab jamuns at home is so very easy and quite simple too.

Recipe for Gulab Jamuns:
1 cup khoya (250 gms)
1/2 cup maida (all purpose flour)
1 pinch of baking soda
Oil/Ghee for frying

Recipe for Sugar Syrup:
1 cup of sugar
1 1/2 cups of water
few saffron strands
4 Cardamon pods
2 tsp of rose water

Procedure for Gulab Jaums:

• For jamuns, mix khoya, maida and baking soda together. Knead together and make small balls.
• For sugar syrup, heat together all the ingredients and let is simmer for 10 mins until one thread consistency is reached.
• Deep fry the jamuns on low heat so that they are cooked evenly.
• Remove and drain excess oil on paper towels.
• Add the jamuns in sugar syrup and let them soak in syrup for 3 to 4 hours. You can also keep them over night.
• Serve warm and to top it up add a dollop of vanilla ice cream :-)

Winter has already started here, its the time of the year for shawls and pullovers, good old morning walks have returned. Its the time of the year when you feel lazy and getting up early in the morning sounds like climbing a mountain. Its also the time when we crave for something warm and welcoming especially during the nights. On one such chilly evening I prepared Corn Capsicum Masala a perfect combo with rotis and pickle.

Ingredients for Corn Capsicum Masala:
1 cup sweet corn (200 gms)
2 medium green capsicum, chopped
2 medium tomatoes, quatered
2 medium onions, quatered
2 green chillies
1 tsp ginger paste
1 - 2 tsp fresh cream (malai can also be used)
1 - 2 tsp oil
2 bay leaf
1 cinnamon stick
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
1 - 2 tsp sugar
1 tsp coriander powder
1 tsp cumin powder
1 tsp garam masala powder
Salt to taste


Procedure:

• Grind together tomatoes, onions, green chillies and ginger paste with very little water into a smooth paste.
• Heat oil in a pan, add in bay leaves, cinnamon stick and tomato-onion paste. Fry for 3 to 4 mins until raw smell of onion disappears.
• Now add in the masalas, capsicum and sweet corn. Add little water if required.
• Cover and cook for 10 to 15 mins until well cooked. Make sure you have enough water so that the curry doesnt get burnt.
• Just before serving add in fresh cream and give a quick turn.
• Serve warm with hot rotis or phulkas.