Chocolate Fudge

A quick and easy recipe. This is a treat for kids (they will love it) but not recommended for weight watchers !

Ingredients :

Sweetened Condensed Milk	1 tin (400)g
Chopped Nuts (almonds, cashews & pistachios)	100 gms
Cocoa	½ cup
Butter	50 gms
Sugar	¾ cup

Method :

• Pour condensed milk into a non-stick or a thick bottomed pan.
• Add butter, sugar, cocoa and nuts into it.
• Stir on gentle heat till the mixture leaves the sides of the pan.
• Pour evenly into a greased plate.
• Allow to cool.
• Cut into squares.

Preparation Time : 20 mins

Cooking Time : 25 mins

Makes about 35 pieces (1 inch squares)

Note:

When the mixture is slightly cooled, make the incision and when completely cooled, cut it into squares or else the pieces may not come out in even shapes.

Date Rolls

Diwali is here!!! I remember my mother slogging in the kitchen to prepare the traditional Diwali sweets a week or ten days before. And her sweets would be really fantastic. I chose the path of least resistance! The sweets I choose to make this Diwali will be easy, tasty and also presentable.

Ingredients :

Dates (seeded)	250 gms
Marie Biscuits	250 gms
Butter/ghee (optional)	2 tbsps
Cardamom (optional) powder	7-8 pods
Water (warm)	About 1 cup
Sugar powdered (optional)	1 tbsp

Method :

• Soak dates in warm water for about an hour.
• Deseed if any and grind to a paste and keep aside.
• Crush biscuits ( Do not powder it.) and keep aside.
• Put the ground date paste in a non-stick pan and heat it on a low flame.
• Keep on stirring till all the water has evaporated and it has dried.
• Add butter /ghee (optional) and stir the mixture for about five minutes.
• Take off from heat.
• Then add the crushed biscuits little at a time and mix until all the crushed

biscuits are added.

• Add cardamom powder and mix well.
• Knead the whole mixture with your hand.
• Then take a handful of the mixture (roughly the size of the tennis ball and roll it on a smooth surface using both your hands till you get a long sausage shape.
• Cut it into desired pieces.
• Finally sprinkle the powdered sugar through a sieve over the Date Rolls.
• When cooled, store it in an airtight container.

Note :

Butter/ghee, cardamom and sugar can be omitted in the recipe and it still turns out good.

While rolling the mixture, apply a little butter/ghee/margarine on the palms of your hand and also on the surface of the board to avoid sticking and for smooth rolling.

Vegans can use margarine instead of butter or ghee (clarified butter).

Watch out for my next easy recipe: Chocolate Fudge.

Tabouleh

My close (Lebanese) friend Ms. Nana Turk introduced me to this wonderful tasty salad. I owe this recipe to her. Since I enjoy Lebanese cuisine, I have learnt quite a few recipes from her.

Ingredients :

Bulghur wheat	1/2 cup
Parsley	1 small bunch
Fresh mint	1 small bunch
Tomatoes	3-4
Spring onions	1 small bunch
Capsicum	1
Lemon	1 (juice of 1 Lime )
Black pepper	1 tsp
Salt	1 tsp or as per taste
Olive oil	1 tsp

Method :

• Wash & soak the Bulgur wheat in a bowl for half an hour.
• Then drain it completely and keep it aside.
• Wash parsley, mint and tomatoes and chop them finely.
• Finely chop the onions.
• Add all the finely chopped vegetables to the drained bulgur wheat and mix it well.
• Sprinkle black pepper and salt and add the olive oil.
• Toss this gently.
• Decorate it with a sliver of Green Pepper.
• Serves 4

Note :

This is an Arabic/Lebanese salad. As you can see it is very colourful and tasty (take my word for it !) too.

In this recipe, I have slightly Indianised it. Instead of Bulgur wheat, spring onion & parsley, I used broken wheat, onion and coriander leaves.

Romaine Lettuce leaves are also used for decorating this salad.

Info :

Tabbūle is a Levantine Arabic word meaning literally "little spicy".

Source:

Wikipedia