Ayesha's Kitchen

Thinking of doing Tea time series.... are you interested?

Eid Mubarak everyone! ❤️ Sending peace and love, especially to those in Palest*ne during this difficult time. I hope this Eid brings comfort and a step closer to peace. Let's keep praying for a brighter future, filled with joy and free from war. I'm truly heartbroken by the ongoing conflict and wish for peace for everyone in Palest*ne. Praying for a swift resolution and lasting peace this Eid.

Day 30 of Ramadan

30th Recipe

GUR SHIKANJI/ GUR LEMONADE

Ooooooh aaaaah ooo lala

Ingredients:

1.5 litre chilled water
½ cup fresh lemon juice
1 cup gur (jaggery) (broken into pieces)
1 tbspn heapful kala namak (optional)
Ice to serve

Method:

✨️Combine gur, kala namak, lemon juice & 1 cup of water in blender and blend until all the gur in dissolved.
✨️Pour this mixture in your serving jug and add rest of the chilled water. Stir. Adjust salt if needed.
✨️Add ice if needed and serve chilled.

Day 29 of Ramadan

29th Recipe

PASTA GRANDE

Crowned crowd pleaser....

Ingredients:

500 gms chicken mince
100 ml tomato paste
200 ml pasta sauce (1 kg tomatoes, cut into chunks, sprayed with olive oil, salt, thyme, oregano and rosemary, broiled for 35 mins of 200 degrees Celsius or until crusty, mashed and passed through sieve)
4 tbspns sweet chilli sauce
2 small cans/ 2 cups of champignons (button mushrooms) ( I used champignons because they taste better in this recipe?
1 bell pepper/ capsicum (chopped into small dices)
1 tbspn red chilli flakes
1 tspn cracked black pepper
1 packet of spaghetti (I use 1 packet of San Remo)
Salt to taste
2 tbspns of minced garlic

FOR WHITE SAUCE

2 cups whole milk
2 tbspns flour
100 gms butter
2 tbspns sharp parmesan cheese (optional)
Salt and pepper (be careful with salt as we have added salt in the pasta as well plus the cheeses are a bit salty too)

FOR TOPPING

Mix of shredded Mozzarella (1cup), Cheddar( ½ cup) and (4 tbspns) Parmesan.
Some Italian herb mix
A bell pepper sliced
4 tbspns oil

Method:

✨️Heat oil in a pan and fry chicken mince. Break it into pieces when sautéing. Add garlic when the chicken changes its color and cook until the water from the chicken dries.
✨️Now add all the sauces (pasta sauce and sweet chilli sauce) and tomato paste and mix. Add champignons and bell pepper and cook for 5 minutes on medium heat with the lid on.
✨️Add salt, pepper and chilli flakes. Stir and remove from heat.
✨️Boil some water in a big pot and add a generous pinch of salt. Add spaghetti and cook until al dente’.
✨️Drain the water and keep the boiled spaghetti in the colander under running cold water and separate them with your hands. When the spaghetti is all separated and the starch is drained turn off the water and keep the spaghetti aside in the colander for 2 minutes. Now add the spaghetti in the tomato and chicken mixture.
✨️Preheat the oven to 200 degrees Celsius on broil mode.
✨️For white sauce, melt some butter in a sauce pan, add some Italian herb mix and flour. Saute until the flour starts turning light brown. Add milk with constant whisking and cook until the sauce thickens. Add parmesan cheese, salt and pepper and turn off the flame.
✨️Put the pasta in the baking dish, pour over the white sauce and then cover with a layer of mix cheeses, capsicum slices and herb mix and broil for good 20 minutes until the cheese looks bubbly and golden from the top.
✨️Take out the dish from the oven very carefully and let it rest for good 10 minutes. It will allow it to settle down a bit which will make it easier for you to cut the portions. Serve hot.

Day 28 of Ramadan

28th Recipe

Keema onion samosa is my Pakistani delicacy which is very famous during Ramadan. I remember growing up eating from our local sweet shop “Mehmood Sweets” in Lahore and always tried to figure out the recipe…. so here it is (even better than that) finally after numerous tries…… from my kitchen to your kitchen ❤

Ingredients:
350 gms beef mince (finely minced)
1.5 medium sized onions (coarsely chopped)
Salt to taste
1 tbspn red chilli flakes
½ tspn freshly crushed cumin (not powder or seeds)
1 tbsp chaat masala
A generous pinch of carom seeds
4 tbspns oil for frying
4 tspns whipped yogurt
A generous pinch of kasoori methi (crushed)
1 tspn mix of ginger and garlic powder (not crushed or minced)
2 tbspns finely chopped fresh mint leaves
2 Thai/ small green chillies, chopped fine

FOR SAMOSAS
40 pcs of samosa sheet
2 tbspns flour mixed with ¼ cup water (slurry – to seal the edges of the samosa)
Oil for deep frying

Method:

✨️Heat oil and fry beef mince in it by breaking it, when it starts changing the color, add all the spices except kasoori methi and continue cooking. Add onion, mint & green chillies and mix and then add yogurt and kasoori methi and cook on low heat until the water evaporates.
✨️Remove from heat and transfer it to a plate to stop the cooking process and allow the mixture to cook for good 30 minutes.
✨️Now fold the samosa sheet into a samosa and put 1 tbspn of the mixture into it. Close the samosa and seal the edges with the slurry. Place it on a plate lined with butter paper.
✨️Keep making the samosas until the mixture & the sheets are finished.
✨️Refrigerate for 30 minutes.
✨️Fry on medium heat at 180 degrees Celsius until golden and crispy.
(Fry in batches of 6 or according to the size of your frying pan to avoid soggy samosas)
✨️Take out onto the wire rack and arrange them on your serving platter. (I said wire rack because a normal plate or a plate lined with paper towel will make it soggy, you need air to pass through to keep the pastry crispy, crunchy & flakey)
✨️Serve hot with tamarind sauce.

Day 27 of Ramadan

27th Recipe

SPECIAL PAPRI CHANNA CHAAT

A hit on every table, loved by all....

Ingredients:
2 cans of chickpeas/ 4 cups of boiled chickpeas
2 potatoes, medium sized, boiled and cubed
1 red onion, finely chopped
2 bengali green chillies/ 2 thai chillies finely chopped
A pinch of red chilli powder
1 generous pinch of crushed cumin
1 generous pinch of kaala namak
1 generous inch of chaat masala

FOR MINT SAUCE
1 cup fresh mint leaves
½ cup fresh coriander leaves
½ tspn roasted cumin
Some salt
½ tspn saunt
1 ½ cup thick yogurt
½ cup chilled water
2 tbspns date and tamarind sauce
2 tbspns caster sugar

FOR GARNISH
2 cups papri (fried spring roll/ small samosa sheets is the easy way to make it)
Chaat masala, as desired

Method:

🔶️Combine everything needed for channa mixture in a mixing bowl and mix.
In a separate bowl combine all the ingredients for chutney except yogurt, water and tamarind sauce.
🔶️Now it is up to you if you want to use mortar and pestle to crush it or you can mix grind it with the hand mixer. I prefer mortar and pestle because I am a traditional kinda chef but it depends on what you are comfortable with. If you are using a hand mixer or blender or grinder you can add that ½ cup of water then otherwise we will mix it as we mix in yogurt and tamarind sauce.
🔶️Check the salt and spices, adjust it to your liking.
🔶️Pour the yogurt sauce over the chickpeas and mix.
🔶️Take it out in the serving dish and refrigerate until served. Just sprinkle papri & chaat masala before serving or it will get soggy.
🔶️Enjoy!

Day 26 of Ramadan

26th Recipe

CHICKEN CREAM KEBABS

Soft as cotton, melts in mouth like cotton candy....

Lets get started....

Ingredients:
500 gms chicken mince (mix of breast and thigh meat)
1 small onion
5 – 6 green chillies
A bunch of coriander
1 tbspn ginger garlic paste
Oil for shallow frying

Spices:
Salt
Red chilli flakes
½ tspn cracked black pepper
1 tbspn coriander powder
1 tspn cumin powder
¼ tspn meat tenderizer
1 tspn garam masala
½ tspn fenugreek leaves
1 tbspn roasted gram flour

For Cream Glaze:
5 tbspns cream
1 tspn garlic paste

Method
🐔Chop onion, green chillies and coriander in food processor and add it to the mincemeat. Add all the spices as well and mix well with hands. Give a pulse in food processor for 5 seconds and keep aside for 10 minutes for resting.
🐔Grease your hands and shape the meat in seekh kebabs by either rolling it on the skewer or back of the spoon. Heat oil in frying pan and shallow fry the kebabs just to give a shape (half cook).
🐔In a separate pan saute garlic paste with no oil and add cream. Now gently transfer half cooked kebabs to this cream mixture and let it cook for 5 minutes or until fully cooked. Temper it with coal and serve hot.