II Edition of Ramadan An Event to Share – Chapter 9

~ Huma ~ 8 Comments
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Last week we welcomed a duo of sister in laws at our event. And this time its a trio of three friends , Da Three Broomstick. Fascinated by the name?? Ya I was. Lets peek into their post to see who are faces behind  DaThreeBroomsticks

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They used to share their cooking on their facebook profiles and it was one little picture of a muffin posted by Chef Honey-dukes on her profile, that did it! Her friend Urooj liked the picture and advised her to start food photography. They continued their chat and The Three Broomsticks was born!
Initially it started with 3 girls, but the 3rd got the news of her first baby and was unable to continue with the pace of the other two. Now, The Three Broomsticks is run by Chef Urooj and Chef Honey-dukes.
We both are pure Harry Potter hard core fans and that’s why we have chosen this name for our website. We are not chefs but both of us are pursuing this career and have big plans for our passion in the near future. We also crave to open up a restaurant together inshallah. That would be a girl-café only J InshaAllah! But for now, The Three Broomsticks is it!
We both are from Pakistan and former class mates. Unfortunately, the sacred occasion of Ramadan is considered to be a total FOOD FESTIVAL in Pakistan by general population, although you also got to see this nice, pious environment during the Holy month. The trend to perform Salah and taraweeh in masjid increases to almost 100% and you can feel an actual shield of Allah’s noor enveloping the whole society. But, the fact remains that people, media and society in general have made this month of ibadah into a month of eating more and more and more and it’s a never ending race. This is how both of us see Ramadan-in-Pakistan. Although, it provide us a great opportunity to come up with more great recipes and cook to our hearts out, we do NOT. We simplify our dinning order more during this month.
The recipes we are going to share with you all were not made in Ramadan in our kitchens. They are simple snacks which can go along well with Ramadan table idea. 


Today we both are sharing with you the recipe for Ultimate Espresso-sive Naan Khatai  & Crispy creamy Béchamel rolls

Ultimate Espresso-sive Naan Khatai


Ingredients
  1. 1 cup ghee
  2. 1 cup caster sugar
  3. 2.5-3 cups all-purpose flour
  4. 3/4 cup gram flour (besan)
  5. 1/4 tsp baking soda
  6. 1 tsp green cardamom powder
  7. 1/4 tsp nutmeg powder
  8. 1 tsp instant coffee powder
  9. 1/2 tsp powdered sugar/icing sugar
  10. 1/4 tsp salt
Preps
  1. Beat coffee powder and water together in 1 tbsp of milk/water and set aside.
  2. Measure all other ingredients.
  3. Preheat the oven.
On with it
  1. Beat caster sugar with ghee till well incorporated.
  2. Add salt and beat well.
  3. Add cardamom, nutmeg, baking soda and gram flour. Beat well again.
  4. Using your hands, star adding flour in small batches and knead till you get desired consistency (see tips below).
  5. Roll the dough in equal balls.
  6. Using your thumb, make an indentation in the middle of each naan khatai.
  7. Fill each indentation with 2-3 drops of pre-pared coffee mix. Spread inside using your finger.
  8. Place on a greased baking sheet.
  9. Bake for 20-25 minutes at 200 degree Celsius, till light golden from above and light brown at the bottom.
Tips by Chef Urooj

  1. Keep rubbing the flour off your hands after each addition. 
  2. If its sticking to your hands, its a sign that you can add more flour, but do not exceed from 3 cups of flour.
  3. place the naan khatai at 1 inch from each other as they expand during baking. 
  4. You can use 1/2 ghee n 1/2 cup oil but don’t substitute ghee completely with oil as it has its own  importance and taste in this recipe.
Creamy Bechamal rolls:


Ingredients
  1. 2 pcs chicken breasts
  2. 1 tbsp ginger-garlic paste
  3. 2 cups milk
  4. 1/4 cup butter
  5. 3 tbsp all purpose flour
  6. salt as per your taste
  7. 1/2 tsp black pepper powder
  8. 1/2 tsp oregano leaves/powder
  9. 1 green capsicum
  10. 12-16 prepared roll wraps
  11. 1 piece coal

Preps
  1. Chop the capsicum real thin.
  2. Cook chicken with ginger-garlic paste in some water until done.
  3. Thinly chop the chicken.
  4. Thaw the refrigerated roll wraps.
  5. Red hot the coal on direct flame and put on aluminum foil.
On with it
  1. Melt butter in a pan.
  2. Add flour, stirring vigorously with a whisk to a thick paste.
  3. Start adding milk, little by little, stirring continuously, to avoid forming lumps.
  4. When the sauces reaches a nice thick smooth consistency, remove from heat and add seasonings.
  5. Mix well and add chicken and capsicum.
  6. Put the aluminum foil containing red hot coal on the sauce, drop 2 drops of oil and lid the pan immediately.
  7. Open after 10 minutes.
  8. Fill up the wraps with the smoked filling and freeze for 25-30 minutes before frying.

Tips by Chef Honey-dukes:
  1.  Keep the flame low. The higher the flame, the thicker the sauce gets and more chances of lumps formation.
  2.  Keep the sauce really thick, so that it would be easier to fill it in the wraps.
  3. Add little milk and whisk with a heavy hand if any lumps are formed to smooth out the sauce.
  4.  Don’t add more flour if seems runny. Just keep stirring on low flame, it will thicken up.

To check more about them visit them @ blog, Facebook
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II Edition of Ramadan An Event to Share – Chapter 8

~ Huma ~ 7 Comments
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Her post Muttamaala – Egg Garlands had me enchanted and I hopped over to see who this blogger was.Was amazed at the simplicity and the way she presented all her recipes. A mother of three and a very talented blogger Hasna from  HasnasDelights is sharing with us Ramadan drink Gudbud Falooda.  I am definitely  making this  for my  iftar after seeing this yumm pics.Not to keep you all waiting.Over to you Hasna .
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Ramadan Kareem to all of you. I’ve been a follower of Gheza-e-shirin since years, but got a chance to know Huma personally since we started an event together Ahlan Ramadan. Her blog title in itself is a different and innovative one which seeked my attention initial days. Thank you Huma for inviting me to be a part of your wonderful blog.
Ramadan in summer’ is challenging for the Islamic followers ,especially those residing in the middle-east, who must go without food or drink for 15 hours this year. We should make effort to keep the sugar and fluid levels balanced in our body. Sip on water throughout the evening;atleast 8 glasses by bedtime. Serve yourselves and your family a dessert of fresh fruits and nuts, which are much more healthier than chocolates and candies. 

A tall glass of fruity rich Gudbud Falooda is a delicacy in summers, especially during Iftars. I try to invent various ways to please my fasting kids in a healthy way, without forcing them to take-in fruits- fresh and dry, nuts etc. This is one such delicious healthy treat to your kids, if you can substitute healthy ice creams instead of regular ones. Ice creams are not a must though. Using no-sugar ,low-fat ice creams during Iftars is a healthy approach. Having too much sugary and fatty meals during Iftar develop many health issues, dizziness, lack of energy for night prayers etc.
This faloods is inspired from Masterchef contest in which Chef Ajay Chopra Challenges its contestants to prepare a giant Gudbud Falooda. I didn’t include all those layers; instead used those layers of which ingredients were available in my kitchen pantry.  Roohafza jelly can be substituted by any jelly of your choice, add one or two extra layers of different colored jellies; You can use normal sevai instead of Roohafza sevai etc. Choice and taste is yours 🙂

 Ingredients:
(Makes 4 glasses)

Basil seeds 2 tbsp
Fruits , chopped (apples,papaya, kiwi,banana,dates etc. )
Ruh hafza Jelly /A packet of red Jelly * ( You can use any one)
Ruh hafza Sevai/ Ordinary Sevai ( You can use any one)
Mango mousse
Ice Cream
Nuts

Roohafza Jelly:

Gelatin                1 tbsp
Cold water          2 tbsp
Roohafza            1 cup
Water                  1/4 cups, at room temperature
Salt a pinch

Falooda Sevai:

Roohafza 1/4 cup
Water 1/4  cup
Cornflour 1/2 cup

Mango Mousse:

Mango pulp          400g
Gelating                1 tbsp
Curd                      1/2 cup
Whipping Cream   175ml ( a little more than 1/2 cup)
Water                     2 tbsp


Method:
1.Soak 1 tbsp Basil seed/Sabja in Roohafza and 1 tbsp in water separately for 10-15 minutes.
2. Make Roohafza Jelly or any red colored Jelly
Mix gelatin in cold water. Heat water and dissolve the gelatin mixture in eat. Don’t boil it as gelatin becomes inactive when boiled. You can either use double boiler. Mix roohafza and salt with the dissolved gelatin mixture. Pour into a mould and place it in the freezer to set.

3.Prepare mango mousse:

  • Melt gelatin in water.
  • Whip the cream and place in the fridge.
  • Using a muslin cloth, drain some of the water from the curd to make it thicker.
  • Mix the mango pulp and curd.
  • Add gelatin and lighlty mix.
  • Fold the shipped cream into the mango pulp and curd mixture ( make sure that the mixture is combined well. If you don’t do this, the layers will deparate when the mousse is setting)
  • Pour into a mould and place in the freezer to set.


4.Prepare Falooda Sevai:
  • Take Cornflour in a pan. 
  • In a separate bowl, dissolve Roohafza in water. Add the Roohafza mixture in corn flour and mix well till flour is dissolved. 
  • Place the pan over a high flame and bring to boil while stirring continuously.
  •  Keep stirring till the mixture becomes thick, leaves the sides of the pot and turns almost transparent.
  •  Turn off the gas. While the mixture is still hot, spoon into a sevai maker and press out the falooda noodles into ice cold water. 
  • Make sure you press out the whole batter in one go. Do not wait for it to cool or the batter will become rubbery and unusable. Let the noodles remain in the cold water. Strain the noodles just before you are ready to assemble your falooda.


Layering Falooda:

Layer 1: Roohafza Sabza
Layer 2: Fruits
Layer 3:Plain Sabza
Layer 4:  Jelly ( Cut into Diamonds/ Cubes)
Layer 5: Black Grapes
Layer 6: Red Sevai
Layer 7: Mango Mousse

Layer 8: Nuts
Layer 9:Ice cream
Drizzle little roohafza, dried rose petals(optional) and nuts on top


Variation:

You can pour little rosemilk (prepared with roohafza and milk ) to the glass of layered falooda before adding ice cream.— 


To know more about Hasna check our her blog, Facebook

II Edition of Ramadan An Event to Share – Chapter 7

~ Huma ~ 5 Comments
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Ramadan is a month of sharing and giving. So thought why not invite a blogger who help us make a wonderful gift to share with our loved ones. Nielouphar Abdurahiman also known as Neelu from PrettyPaperstudio is sharing with us wonderful craft project. Lets check what Nilu has in store for us.
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Thank you Huma for inviting me to share a ‘craft’ recipe on Gheza-e-Shirin this Ramadan.
Just as we were anticipating and gearing up for Ramadan, we are now closing towards Eid Al Fitr. If you are like me, and I know you are, you would be looking for ideas to make this Eid even more memorable than the previous ones. 
            
Hence, I thought of sharing this step by step tutorial on making party favor bags yourself at home. This year, let’s give Eidi in favor bags that we made ourselves.

Supplies Required
Favor bags
Kraft paper or cardstock
Circle punch
One hole punch
Twine
Washi / Decorative Tape
Brads (or embellishments)
Black marker
Method
1. Place your favors inside the bag and fold the envelope to close. I love using a bone folder or ruler to give a good uniform crease. (Pardon my old, shabby ruler)

2. Punch out circles from the kraft cardstock using the circle punch to make gift tags. If you do not have a circle punch, you could simply use scissors. You could also cut out tags in shapes other than circle. 
3. With the one hole punch, punch a tiny circle as shown in the picture. This is for the twine to pass through.
4. Pass the washi tape across the bag vertically. Washi tapes are basically masking tapes with designs and easily adds a beautiful affect to your crafts. They are forgiving as in you can peel them off after sticking without damaging the surface.  
5. Write your message on the tag with the black marker.
6. Once you finish writing your message on the tag, pass it through the twine.
7. Tie the twine across the favor bag just as the washi tape.
8. Finish with a brad or any embellishment you like.
Your party favor bag is now ready for giving away. Making your own party favor bags not only lends a handmade touch to your giveaways but also allows you to get creative and play with cute stuff.
I hope you will try this tutorial out. If you would like to get in touch with me or read similar posts, you can visit www.neelusjournal.com.Thank you for having me!
 Thanks Neelu for sharing this project with us. To interact more please check out her blog, website, facebook

Sulemani Halwa – Guest Post for Saffron Pudding

~ Huma ~ 8 Comments
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Life has been with ups and downs from the start of Ramadan. On the eve of Ramadan, ammi was detected with Cancer. All four of us were too shattered beyond thinking as she is our pillar of strength. Not only for  us but the entire family. Saturday and Sunday being holiday in India we were with muddle  of thoughts on what to do and how take it further. As if my heart was bleeding, remembering her hugs , her warmth , her eyes full of love. It was more saddening for me as  I could not be with her due to my responsibilities here when she needed me. Life is tough. 
On Monday, the reports confirmed  that this was an early stage and we can cure it. The same day we told her about the results and so like her she took it on with a smile. Her positive attitude and her belief in Allah made things so easy on her. When I called her asking her how she was, she said completely fine. Why do you worry? Jo Allahpak ne mujhe diya maine har cheez khushi se kubool ki hai to yeh bimari kyun nahi.(I have accepted each thing, Almighty has given me with a smile on my face so why not this disease). So true are her words. All the others surrounding her were full of worry and she was as usual taking it on like a stone scattered on a pathway which has to be removed.For all those reading this, a request to please remember her in this holy month and pray she overcomes this battle with cancer.
But during this period my belief in Allah and his rasool has been more stronger day by day. As if  he is testing my patience with how I handle things. I don’t know if I have succeeded in his eyes but know for one thing for sure that my Allah will be there to guide me and keep me in his circle of blessings. Each day as it passes, I have started to thank him for so much goodness, happiness he has bestowed over me.

Life moves on and we have to fulfill our commitments and promises we have made. Few months back, I had promised my dear friend Fatimah who blogs at  Saffron Pudding, about the guest post in Ramadan.

Saffron Pudding  has been one of my favorite blogs and I love the way how Fatimah’s posts  surround around her family specially the recipes shared by her grandmother. This takes be back to the time where a young girl  i.e. me was  eager to gain knowledge of everything my nani (Mother’s mother) had to offer. 
   So friends, today I am doing a guest post for one of my  favorite bloggers. Sharing a ramadan recipe, Sulemani Halwa.

To know more about this Heirloom recipe, check out her space. Here