CHOCOLATE

Here is a simple recipe for home made chocolate which is a great favourite with my kids.

Ingredients.

1. Milk Powder 2 cups
2. Sugar 1 and 3/4th cups
3. Butter 1 cup should be soft should be kept outside the fridge for at least few hours.
4. Unsweetened cocoa powder 4 to 5 table spoons
5. Water 3/4Th cups

Method
Mix the soft (kola kola) butter, cocoa powder and milk powder well softly and keep it in a vessel.
Keep a metal tray or plate ready greased with butter.
Take a thick bottomed pan ( a pressure cooker can be used as it has thick bottom). add sugar and water and make it into a syrup. You have to boil it till you get the right consistency. The method to test this consistency is to put the syrup a drop or two in a small cup of water. you should be able to make a small ball out of the syrup with your fingers. (If not yet the right consistency the syrup will just dissolve in the water).
Now switch off the stove and put the milk powder, butter, cocoa powder mixture into the sugar syrup and stir thoroughly for about 5 to 7 minutes.
Pour this into the already greased tray . After fifteen minutes cut them into pieces with a buttered knife. This chocolate can be decorated with grated and slightly roasted almonds or cashew nuts or raisins. This should be added immediately after pouring into the tray.
Take out the pieces after it cools and eat it.

Custard with Fruits

This is a Dessert which can be made very easily and Served
Ingredients.

1. Milk Half Litre + quarter glass
   
2. Sugar 1/2 cup (or little more if you want it to be sweeter)
3. Custard Powder 2 and 1/2 table Spoon.
4. Fruits of your Choice

Method
Cut fruits like Apple (peel the skin), Banana, Mango, Pappya, Pineapple, Grapes . Add 1 t spoon of sugar and Mix well in a bowl. for the Above quantity of Custard, One Apple, one or two banana, a few pieces of Pineapple and few grapes and a bit of Pappaya and mango (if available) will be enough.
Take a thick Vessel for boiling the milk. Take 1/4 glass of milk boil it and cool it and keep aside first and then boil the remaining milk. Once the milk starts boiling put the sugar and keep stirring. Once the sugar dissolves, mix the custard powder in the cooled milk well and add it to the boiling milk and sugar mixture. Stir well. This will thicken the milk . Stir for 2 to 3 minutes and switch off the Stove. Custard is Ready.
Cool the Custard and keep it in the Fridge. Keep the cut fruits also in the fridge.
While serving put the Cut fruits in the serving Bowl and put the Custard on the top and can decorate it with a (preserved) cherry and Serve.

Vegetable Fried Rice

Ingredients

1. Pulav or Basamathi Rice 1 cup
2. Beans one small bunch
   
3. Carrot 1/4th of a Whole Carrot
   
4. Peas few (can use the frozen peas)
   
5. Capsicum 1/4th of a whole Capsicum
   
6. Potato 1/4th of a Medium size Potato.
   
7. Onion 1 small
8. Pineapple few pieces. (according to taste)
   
9. Green chilli one
10. Ginger one small bit
11. cloves 3 or 4
12. cardmom 3 or 4
13. Cinnamon stick one small piece
14. Badi Elachi 1 (if available)
15. Jeera 1/2 t spoon
16. Black pepper 4 or 5
17. Raisins hand ful
18. Cashew nuts a few
19. Ghee Few T spoons
20. Salt to taste
21. 1/2 t spoon of red chili powder
    

Method
Clean the Rice in water and drain the water and keep the rice wet in the vessel for one or two hours. (can wash and use the Rice directly if no time)
Cut all the vegetables and pineapple into small pieces . Keep the Onion and Capsicum separately. Break the Cashew nuts into small pieces.
Take a Kadai or Frying pan and put some Ghee and put the Cut onions into it. Fry it for some time till it becomes light brown. Drain the rice and put it into the Kadai and Fry it with the onions for 2 to 3 minutes. Add little kesari colour and also 1/4 t spoon of salt.
Keep aside.
Put some more ghee in the kadai and put the broken cashews. Once light brown add the Raisins turn few times and keep it aside.
Put little more ghee in the kadai and put the cut pineapples and fry for 2 to 3 minutes and keep aside.
Put one table spoon of Ghee in the kadai and put the Jeera, add the black pepper, cardmom, badi elachi, cinnamon, and cloves and stir for some time. Now add cut Capsicum and turn it few times and add the other cut vegetables. Add salt to taste and also the chili powder. Fry it for some time and switch off the stove.
Now take the Electric Rice Cooker Vessel ( can do it in the Pressure cooker or in the Micro wave oven also) Add layer by layer, the Rice and Onions, the Fried Vegetables, the Fried Pineapple and also Fried nuts. Add 1 and 1/2 Glass of water. And cook till done.
Mix well and Serve Hot.
This Fried Rice can be done if one or two vegetables or not available also and cooking oil can also be used instead of Ghee.
The side dish for this is a Pineapple Raitha which is easy to make.
Pineapple Raitha.
Method
While Cutting the Pineapple cut some more and keep aside.
In the hot Kadai add some cooking oil (Don't use Ghee for this as the Raitha has to be kept in Fridge and Ghee will solidify later.) and put some jeera and once it flutters, add cut Pineapple pieces. Fry for some time. add salt and little sugar (if you like the taste) and keep aside.
Add Curd or Yogurt to this and mix well and Raitha is ready.