Around The World On Your Plate

Ingredients: 3/4 cup of powdered sugar 1/4 cup of sugar 1/2 cup of cocoa powder (dutch processed) 3 ounce of grated bittersweet chocolate (Hershey's) 1/2 tsp of instant coffee powder Method: Grate the bittersweet chocolate and set aside. Sift in all the ingredients except the bittersweet chocolate. Once everything is well combined, add in the grated bittersweet chocolate and mix well. Store it in an air tight jar. To make yourself a cup of hot chocolate, heat 1 cup of milk and add in 2 tablespoons of chocolate mix and stir well.  Depending on how sweet you like it, you can add more sugar. Enjoy!

Ingredients: 2-1/2 cups all-purpose flour and extra for dusting 1 teaspoon active dry yeast 1/2 teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon sugar 1/4 cup warm water 3/4 cup milk 4 tablespoons of butter divided 1/2 teaspoon of cardamom powder (or to taste) Sesame seeds (optional) 1 cup sweetened desiccated coconut (see tips if using fresh coconut) Method: Start by warming up 1/4 cup of water to about 110 degrees Fahrenheit, to this add 1 teaspoon of yeast and 1 teaspoon of sugar and set aside to activate. In a separate bowl, sift in the all-purpose flour and salt and set aside. Now to the yeast mixture, add 2 tablespoons of butter (room temperature) and 3/4 cup of milk and mix well. Knead a dough mixing the above flour and yeast mixture.  If the dough turns out sticky, you can add a little extra flour, I used about 2 tablespoons extra to make it into a soft dough. In a well-oiled bowl, place the dough and cover with cling wrap and keep i...

Ingredients: 1 cup cooked daliya (broken wheat) Finely chopped vegetables like bell pepper, carrot, potato, some green peas 1 sprig of curry leaves 1-2 green chillies slit length wise (or to taste) 1 sprig of cilantro to garnish 1 teaspoon of lemon juice 1 teaspoon of clarified butter (ghee) 1 tablespoon of oil 1 teaspoon of mustard seeds A pinch of asafetida 1/2 teaspoon of urad dal 1/2 teaspoon of channa dal 1 teaspoon turmeric powder Salt to taste. Method: Start by cooking daliya ahead of time either in microwave or in a cooker with a teaspoon of ghee in it. In a pan, heat oil and add mustard seeds and let them pop, next add asafetida, urad dal, channa dal and stir it well.  Once it starts to develop color, add the green chillies and curry leaves along with turmeric powder and stir for a few seconds. Now add in all the vegetables one by one and stir them well and let them cook. Now add the cooked daliya along with s...

Ingredients: 1 cup and 2 teaspoons of condensed milk 3 tablespoons of whole milk 1 cup of heavy cream 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract 1/3 cup and 1 tablespoon of cocoa powder (depending on how strong you want it) Chocolate chips and nuts (optional) Method: Start by mixing condensed milk, vanilla extract, and whole milk in a bowl.  To this slowly add in the cocoa powder little at a time and mix well making sure everything is well incorporated. Once everything is mixed well and lump free, set it aside. Now in a separate bowl, pour in the heavy cream and whip it using a hand held mixer or a simple whisk.  Whip it till soft peaks start to form. Once the whipped cream is ready, slowly fold in the cocoa mixture into the heavy whipped cream.  Once its all incorporated well, add in the nuts and chocolate chips and pour this into a pan lined with some parchment paper. Cover this with some cling wrap, making sure it touches the ic...

Ingredients: For the bun: 1 tablespoon active dry yeast. 1 teaspoon sugar. 2 cups all purpose flour (extra for dusting) 1 cup water. For the filling: 1 teaspoon ginger garlic paste A combination of vegetables can be used like bell pepper, green peas, broccoli, mushroom, cabbage. Scrambled tofu and finely chopped cooked rice noodles also can be added. 1 teaspoon of soy sauce 1/2 teaspoon salt or to taste 1/2 teaspoon of pepper or to taste 1 teaspoon oil Method: For the bun: To one cup of warm water, add sugar and yeast and set aside until it gets foamy (about 5 minutes) In a separate bowl sift in flour and salt.  Make a well in the center and add the above yeast water mixture and knead a soft dough.  Make sure the dough is not too hard, add water/flour accordingly to make it easy to work with. In a well greased bowl, put the dough to rest and double in a warm place in your kitchen, covering it with a cling wrap or a kitchen towel for an hour. F...

Ingredients: 2 ounce or 1 cup of cooked spaghetti 1 cup snow peas (stings removed) 2 pods of garlic crushed 2 green chillies slit lengthwise (optional) 1/2 teaspoon Italian seasoning 1 tablespoon olive oil Salt to taste Parsley to garnish Method: Cook spaghetti according to package instructions. In a high sided pan heat olive oil and add crushed garlic and slit green chillies.  (Use of green chillies is completely optional).  Saute over medium heat for 30 seconds. Add in the snow peas and saute well until well coated with oil.   Now add the italian seasoning.  Once everything is well combined, add the noodles and mix well.  Season with salt. Garnish with parsley and serve hot. Enjoy! Note: 1.  If you like it tangy, you can add some lemon juice. 2.  You can also top it with some freshly grated parmesan cheese,