Author: Rajeshree Gandhi

Life is a journey of evolving roles, each with its own beauty and wisdom. From the structured world of academia to the ever-evolving realm of homemaking, I have embraced each phase with passion and grace. When my children settled into their own lives, I found myself with a renewed sense of purpose—to document and share the wealth of knowledge I have gathered over the years.

During the lockdown, I realized that my experiences in cooking, home remedies, and life’s simple yet profound lessons could serve as a source of inspiration for others. Meticulously and with great concern for the palate, gut health, overall well-being, and the emotional gratification of savoring each preparation, I began crafting a collection of love-filled, cherished recipes, time-tested remedies, and stories woven with warmth and wisdom.

I write under the name "Rajeshree's Kitchen", where I share detailed recipes—the kind that provide exact measurements for ingredients like salt and water, which are often left to personal interpretation in most other kitchen blogs. Additionally, I include practical tips with clear reasons behind them, ensuring that every piece of advice is rooted in understanding and experience. My aim is to make cooking approachable yet precise, helping readers not just recreate dishes but truly connect with the joy of cooking.

This endeavor is my way of preserving traditions, sharing insights, and connecting with those who seek both knowledge and comfort in life's everyday moments.

Categories
Faral

(52) Kutidara na dhokla.

Farali Dhokla

Ingredients:

  • 3 cup Kutinodaro.(Buckweed)
  • 3 cup water
  • 1 cup curd.
  • 3 Green chillies cut it into rings.
  • ½ inch ginger paste.
  • 2 tsp. Salt.

Method:

  1. In deep sauce pan take kutinodaro and wash with water for one time only.
  2. Add water and curd . Mix thoroughly and keep aside for atleast 4 hrs.
  3. After 4 hrs. pulse it in mixture for 1-2 times if daro is too course otherwise use as it is. Add ginger, chili rings and salt. Mix thoroughly.
  4. Heat dhokla vessel with water on high flame.
  5. In 7 inches dhokla thali, add ½ cup batter . Spread evenly and steam it for 10 mins.
  6. After 10 mins.remove dhokla thali and cut it into dimond or square pieces.
  7. Drizzle ghee over it and serves hot with Farali Chutney, green coconut chutney.
Farali dhokla.
Categories
Sweets

(49) Rava Ladoo

Makes 14 Ladoo.

Ingredients:

  • 1 cup Rava(suji).
  • 1 cup Sugar powder.
  • ½ cup ghee ( ⅛ cup optional use as needed).
  • 2 pinch of Cardamom powder.

Method:

  1. In one frying pan add ghee and heat up on slow flame.
  2. Add rava in hot ghee and roast.
  3. Stir continuously for 10-12 mins. Rava turns aromatic , light and crunchy.
  4. Turn off the flame but stir continuously.
  5. After 5 mins .you can feel it warm( not hot) add powdered sugar ,Cardamom powder and mix with hand .Take small portion of the mix and press down tightly in your fist to shape Ladoo( round ball).
  6. If it doesn’t bind then heat up ⅛ cup ghee or more as you needed. I used ½ +⅛ cup ghee.
  7. You can store rava ladoo for one month in air tight container at room temperature.
Categories
Hot Drinks

(48) Turmeric Milk

Serves 2. 250 ml each.

Ingredients:

  • Milk 500 ml.
  • ¼ tsp. Turmeric powder.
  • ⅛ tsp. Carom seeds(Ajwain)(optional).
  • ½ tsp.Ghee(optional).
  • 2 tsp. Sugar (optional).

Method:

  1. Heat milk and sugar up to boiling.
  2. Side by side heat tempering vessel with ghee.
  3. Once ghee melts add carom seeds.
  4. As soon as crackling sounds starts ,pour it into milk.
  5. Give one more boil and turmeric milk is ready.
  6. Ideally to be served hot as it is or first strain and then serve.
Categories
Healthy food Rejuvenating food Winter tonic food

(47) Chavanprash

Ingredients:

  • 1kg Amla.
  • 1 kg Sugar or Jeggary or 500 gms Jeggary and 500 gms date’s pulp.
  • Spice powder.
  • 1cup Basil leaves.
  • 1 cup ghee.

Ingredients for spice powder:

  • 2 Bay leaves(tej patta).
  • 2 inches Cinnamon Stick (Dalchini)
  • 20 gms. Dry Ginger powder (Sunth).
  • 20 gms. Bamboo silica( Vanshlochan).
  • 20 gms. Long peppers ( Pipri).
  • 10 gms. Naag kesar.
  • 10 gms. Nutmeg (Jaiphal).
  • 15 pcs. Green cardamom ( Choti elaichi).
  • 10 gms. Black pepper ( kalamiri)
  • 10 gms. Cloves (lavang).
  • 10 gms. Brahmin powder.
  • 2tbsp. Cumin( jeera)
  • 2 tbsp. Fennel( Saunf).
  • 10 gms. Shatavari powder.
  • 10 gms. Punarnava powder.
  • 10 gms Ashvagandha powder.

All dry ingredients you will get either from grocery shop or from Ayurvedic store.

Method:

  1. Make a smooth paste of Basil leaves and keep aside.All dry ingredients except which are in powder form, grind it into fine powder. Sieves all dry ingredients and keep aside.
  2. Wash and wipe good quality Amlas .
  3. Keep all Amlas in pressure cooker and pour 2 cups of water in it.
  4. Cooks up to 3 whistles.
  5. Pressure releases ,open cooker and strain water from the cooker. Preserve this water for making Amla squash ( sharbat)
  6. Deseed them and make pulp in mixture.
  7. Melt ghee in thick deep sauce pan on slow flame and mix amla pulp and Basil pulp .Stir continuously for 2-3 mins.on high flame.
  8. Add Sugar or finely chopped Jeggary or mixture of jaggery and date’s pulp and mix thoroughly .
  9. On high flame ,stir continuously for 10 mins.
  10. Add spice Powder and continue stir for 5 more mins. on slow flame.
  11. Chavanprash is ready now.
  12. Improve your immunity by having one teaspoon of chavanprash every morning with hot plain milk, masala milk or turmeric milk
Categories
Sweets Winter tonic food

(46) Golpapdi

Sukhadi

Ingredients:

  • 1 cup tightly filled wheat flour
  • ¾ cup melted ghee.
  • ½ cup finely chopped jaggery.
  • 1 tbsp white sesame seeds.
  • Ghee for greasing plate.

Method:

  1. Grease the 9 inches plate well with ghee to set the golpapdi.
  2. Heat non-stick kadhai or thick sauce pan with ghee on slow flame.
  3. Once ghee slightly hot,add flour and mix with spatula. It will be like thick lumpy paste.
  4. Roast flour on slow flame till it becomes airy and light with two shade darker then flour and aromatic.
  5. As soon as flour is roasted ,turn off the flame and add sesame seeds and jaggery .
  6. It will melt , quickly mix it and pour into greased plate.
  7. Spread quickly and even out the surface by gliding movement with the help of small steel dish .
  8. Let it cool down slightly,While it is still warm slice into desire shape ( square or dimond) and size.
  9. Remove each piece very gently and serves either warm or cold.
Golpapdi

In winter for making simplest winter tonic food add 1 tbsp.dry ginger powder and 1 cup mixed dryfruit powder like Almond, Cashew, Pistachio and walnut. Add ½ cup extra finely chopped Jaggery and ¼ cup melted ghee or as required. At the time of mixing jaggery after swich off flame add all above ingredients.

Categories
pesto Quick Cooking Tips

(44) Basil Pesto

1cube=1 tbsp.

Ingredients

  • 250 gms basil leaves.
  • 1 less spicy green chilli finely chopped.
  • 3 tbsp.lemon juice.
  • 2 cubes of process cheese( 20 gms each).
  • 50 gms. Parmesan cheese powder.
  • 1 cup Virgin olive oil.
  • 1 ½ tsp. Salt.
  • ½ cup Walnut 
  • ¼ cup Pine nuts

Method:

  1. Grind walnuts and Pine nuts into coarse powder on pulse mode of grider so that nuts will not release oil during grinding.
  2. Place the washed basil leaves into the bowl of food processor and pulse several times.
  3. Add finely chopped chilli, grated cheese, Cheese powder, Walnut and Pine nut powder. Mix well with help of grinding in the pulse mode.
  4. While the food processor is running, slowly add the olive oil in steady small stream. Adding the olive oil slowly, while the processor is running, will help in emulsifying and otherwise oil will separate.
  5. Add salt , run again food processor for mixing and Basil pesto is ready. Enjoy in pasta, mix in to dips, savory waffles,as a pizza sauce, sandwiche spread, salad dressing, toss with vegetables or as you want. But serve it with love and smile.
  6. For storing fill up ice tray with pesto, freeze and then unmould and store in freezer container or ziplock bag. When you want to use , defrost it. Frozen basil cubes shows little colour difference due to oxidation but taste remains same.

List Of My Recipes

Categories
cold drink Health Drinks

(45) Amla Squash

Ingredients

  • 2 tbsp. Amla Murabba.
  • 250 ml. Water.
  • Salt as per taste.
  • 2-3 finely chopped Mint (Phudina) leaves.
  • 2 tbsp. ice crystals.
  • 1 tsp.lemon juice( optional)

Method:

  1. In one glass add crushed ice and Mint leaves.
  2. Add amla Murabba ,salt and water and mix it.
  3. Enjoy Amla Squash as it is or you can strain and use.
  4. If you want tangy taste then add lemon juice.
Categories
Health Drinks Hot Drinks

(43) Green Gram Soup

Moong Osaman

Serves 2 150 ml.each

Ingredients

  • 1/4 cup whole Moong.
  • 300 ml. Water
  • ½ inch grated ginger
  • 2 halved lengthwise and deseeded green chillies.
  • OR
  • ½ tsp. Black pepper powder.
  • 2 tsp.fresh lemon juice.
  • 1 tsp. Salt.
  • ½ tsp.turmeric powder.
  • 1 tsp. Sugar.
  • 1 tsp finely chopped coriander.

Tempering Ingredients

  • ½ tbsp. Ghee.
  • 1 tsp. Cumin(jeera).
  • 2 Cloves.
  • ½ inch Cinnamon stick.
  • 5-6 Curry leaves.
  • 1 pinch Asafoetida.

Method

  1. Wash and rinse moong 3 times ,add 300 ml water , place moong pot in pressure cooker and cook upto 3 whistles.
  2. After pressure releases,bland moong in blander and strain with the help of strainer.
  3. Add all spices in moong soup and boil on slow flame. Side by side heat tempering vessel and ghee in it. Add cumin( jeera) and wait for cracking .After crackling sound add Clove, Cinnamon, Asafoetida and curry leaves.
  4. Boil for 5 more minutes . Serves hot. Enjoy with steamed rice, pulao, biryani , khichadi, dalia or whole alone as diet food.
Categories
Breakfast snacks

(42) Vegan Omlette

Eggless Omlette

Besan Chila

Besan Pudla

Serves 4 Omlette.

Ingredients

  • 1 cup tightly filled chickpeas flour ( besan)
  • ¼ cup All purpose flour (maida)
  • ½ tsp. Salt.
  • ½ tsp.turmeric pd.
  • ½ tsp.red chilli powder.
  • Pinch of Asafoetida.
  • ½ tsp. Baking soda
  • ¾ cup water.
  • Oil for drizzling.

Method

  1. In one big mixing bowl sieves all dry ingredients.
  2. Slowly add water and make sauce like batter.
  3. Heat a lightly greased griddle.
  4. Pour the 1/4 cup batter onto the griddle and spread it evenly in circular manner.
  5. Drizzle oil at the edges and allow to cook till golden.
  6. Flip the Omlette and cook other side.
  7. Enjoy your eggless Omlette with red chutney and green chutney.
  8. You can also add finely chopped onion,tomatoes, green chillies, coriander leaves which will enhance the taste.
  9. On nonstick tawa you can make this without oil so it will becomes best food in Jaundice and for weight loss .
Categories
Breakfast snacks

(41) Malpuva (Pancake)

20-24 Malpuvas

Ingredients

  • 2 cups all purpose flour (maida).
  • 2 tbsp. Sugar powder.
  • 4 tsp. Baking powder.
  • ½ tsp. Baking soda.
  • ¼ tsp. Salt.
  • 1 ¾ cups milk .
  • 2 tbsp.melted butter or ghee

Method

  1. In one big mixing bowl sieves all dry ingredients.
  2. Add melted butter and mix thoroughly with dry ingredients.
  3. Slowly add milk and make a sauce like batter.
  4. Heat a lightly greased griddle(tawa) .
  5. Pour the batter on to the griddle using approximately 1/4 cup for each pancake.
  6. Spread it evenly in circular manner.
  7. Drizzle ghee or butter at the edges and allow to cook till golden .
  8. Flip the malpuva and cook other side.
  9. Serve the malpuva with Chocolate syrup,Honey or Rabadi or as you want.Serve with love and smile.
Malpuva with chocolate syrup

List Of My Recipes