Holi special- Malpuas

Growing up , one of the staple sweets made on any festival was the quintessential Bengali Malpua. While Malpuas are traditionally eaten on Holi in the north, they are very different from the Malpua of Bengal. Bengali Malpuas are made solely with flour while the north Indian ones have semolina in them. My mother would make Malpuas by the dozens and the memory of gulping down the soft sweetness was something that lingered on. When my aunt called this morning asking if I knew how to make the Malpuas, I knew it was time to try and recreate my mom's recipe. Malpuas can be eaten in several forms. Some like it hot, while some like it cold. Some like it soft while some like it crisp. Depending on how you like it, you could vary the softness and the crispness. For crispy Malpuas, fry them, dip them in the syrup and immediately remove them. If you like it soft like I do, let them soak longer before transferring them. This recipe makes 12 medium sized Malpuas.

For the  sugar syrup

• 2 cups sugar
• 1 cup water
• 3 green elaichi crushed

For the Malpuas

• 2 cups flour
• 2- 3  cups of milk ( enough to mix with milk to make a pancake like batter)
• 1 tsp baking powder
• a pinch of salt
• 1/2 tsp saunf/ aniseed
• 2 tbsp raisin ( optional)
• 1/2 cup grated coconut 
• oil to fry

Method

1. Add all the ingredients of the sugar syrup together and bring to boil till sugar melts and the solution is clear.  Remove from heat and keep aside
2. Mix the flour,  baking powder, salt and milk together using either your hands or a whisk making sure no lumps are formed . Add milk based on the consistency. The batter should be like a pancake batter.
3. Now add the saunf and raising and allow the batter to sit for 5-10 mins.
4. Heat oil and once it is hot, add 1/4 cup of batter to the hot oil. The batter will swell and begin to brown. Turn it on the other side till that is brown too . Keep the heat on medium hot as you don't want the inside of the Malpua to be undercooked. Fry it like you would fry besan pakoras :). Depending on your kadai, you could fry more than one Malpua at the same time.
5. Once the Malpua is brown all over, remove from oil and dip it into the sugar syrup.
6. Soak it in syrup depending on how you like it. If you want it crisp, roll it in syrup and immediately pick it up on a different plate, if you like it soft, let it soak longer till the next batch of Malpuas are fried.
7. Enjoy hot or cold and pour remaining syrup on all the Malpuas! 

Scones--- Vaishti style

My friend Vaishti is an incredible woman. I met her first as a student teacher at work, but our common interest of food, dogs and family got us closer. For the past 2 years she has been fighting colon cancer valiantly! When I went to visit her yesterday, her whole house smelled of baking...lovely Blueberry scones that she let me try :) The original recipe came  from allrecipes.com. It  uses only all purpose flour, but she modified them so that they contain more fiber from whole wheat and more protein from the almond meal flour. Overall result...just delicious!

Ingredients

3/4 cup whole wheat
3/4 cup all purpose flour
1/2 almond meal flour 
4 tablespoon sugar
2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon grated lemon zest
1/2 cup butter cubed
3/4 cup chopped walnuts
1/4 cup blueberries or raisin/cranberry
3/4 cup + 2 tablespoons buttermilk

Directions

1. In a large bowl combine flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt and lemon peel.
2. With a pastry blender or 2 knives, cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse meal. Mix in all but 2 tablespoons of the nuts and the raisins. Mix in buttermilk with fork.
3. Gather the dough into a ball and knead for about 2 minutes on lightly floured board.
4. Roll or pat out 3/4 inch thick. With a chef's knife cut into 3 inch triangles. Place, spaced 1inch apart, on a greased baking sheet. Brush tops with remaining 1 tablespoon buttermilk; sprinkle with the remaining sugar and the nuts.
5. Bake in center of 425 degree F (220 degrees C) oven about 15 minutes or until nicely browned. Serve warm with butter or jam.