Hello Steemit Community!
I will be sharing variety of things. i.e. Crypto currency, recipes, games and/or movies.
If you're wondering why I wrote nutritional info that b/c my undergrad and graduate degree were both in nutrition.
My first first few recipes.
Paneer (Homemade cheese)
Paneer is the basis for a variety of dishes—appetizers, main-course meals, and even desserts. You're going to prepare your paneer differently depending on what you want to use it for. Be sure you know what you want to make before you start making your paneer!
Ingredients:
8 cups (half gallon) milk
Use 2% for making sweets; whole milk for appetizers and meals
¼ cup gluten-free (lemon) juice or vinegar (Don’t have gluten issues)
Supplies:
Large saucepan
Strainer
Muslin cloth or cheesecloth
How to do it:
If you're using lemon juice, prepare a ½ cup of hot water, mix it with lemon juice, and set it aside. If you're using vinegar, pour ¼ cup at room temperature and set it aside.
Pour the milk in a large saucepan over medium heat. Constantly stir the milk so it doesn't burn in the bottom of the pan.
Once the milk just begins to boil, remove it from heat. Gradually stir in the lemon juice or vinegar. The curd will begin to separate from the whey.
Continue to stir for 5 minutes. Once the curd has separated from the whey, drain the whey with a strainer lined with cheesecloth or muslin cloth (For a true Indian experience, use muslin cloth--it's most commonly used in India.)
If you used lemon juice, wrap the curds in your cloth and rinse them under cold water to get rid of the sour taste. If you used vinegar, you don't need to rinse.
Put down those curds and stop right there. Now things get mildly complicated.
Important: The amount of water in your curds—now your paneer--determines what you can use it for. Desserts need paneer with more water than do main dishes and appetizers.
If you're making a dessert, you can start removing water.
Press the paneer under a heavy object for 1 hour. The longer you press it, the firmer it becomes.
Take ½ tablespoon of paneer in your palm. Rub it with your fingers for 15-20 seconds. If you can make a firm, smooth ball, you've removed the right amount of water. If it's soft or crumbly, it still has too much water. Keep pressing it.
From this point, turn to whichever recipe you're using and follow the instructions from there.
If you're making a main dish or appetizer, don't remove water just yet.
Before pressing the paneer, knead it enough so it begins to hold itself together, but not so much that it starts to crumble.
Press it under a heavy object for 2 hours to remove more water, making it firmer.
From this point, turn to whichever recipe you're using your paneer for (even if it's not in this book). If you make too much, don't worry—you can freeze it to keep it longer.
Nutritional Information:
Milk- Good source of Vitamin B1, B2, B12 and it contains small amount of Niacin, Pantothenic acid and Vitamin B6. Contains fat soluble vitamins A, D, E, and K.
Lemon – Very high levels of Vitamin C and it has decent levels of both Potassium and Vitamin B6.
Vinegar – Vitamin B1, B2, B6, folic acid and Vitamin C.
Desserts
Rasgullas
Rasgullas are sweet paneer balls soaked in chilled sugar syrup.
Recipe makes:
Paneer made from a half-gallon of 2% milk should yield 15-20 balls.
Ingredients:
1½ cups sugar
4 ½ cups water
Dessert paneer balls (frozen or fresh)
Pressure cooker
Supplies:
Pressure cooker
Paneer Ball Preparation
You know how you made a ½ tablespoon ball to check the moisture? Repeat that process to make your paneer balls.
If you're using pre-made frozen paneer balls, thaw them before cooking.
Other stuff
Paneer balls double in size after being cooked in syrup, so make sure your pressure cooker is big enough to handle this. If it isn't, no big deal. Just cook them in multiple batches. Disaster averted!
Alternate way to cool your pressure cooker: without opening it, place it in the sink and pour cold water over it.
How to do it
Mix the sugar and water in your pressure cooker at medium high heat. Bring it to a boil.
Add your paneer balls and close the cooker. Once the cooker starts steaming (about 5 minutes), turn it to medium heat and cook for 7-8 more minutes.
Turn off the cooker and wait a few minutes to let it cool before opening it.
Cooked rasgullas will initially be spongy. Remove them from your cooker and refrigerate them. This reduces sponginess and gives them a soft texture.
Let them warm to room temperature or serve them chilled!
Nutritional Information:
Milk- Good source of Vitamin B1, B2, B12 and it contains small amount of Niacin, Pantothenic acid and Vitamin B6. Contains fat soluble vitamins A, D, E, and K.
Sandesh
Recipe makes: 24 pieces
Ingredients:
Dessert paneer (recommended fresh)
½ cup sugar
¼ teaspoon ground cardamom
For Decorating:
2 tablespoons crushed pineapple
2 tablespoons sliced pistachios
Supplies:
Large saucepan
Preparation:
Frozen paneer must thaw before cooking. We recommend fresh paneer so you don't have to wait for it to thaw. But if you're okay with that, freeze away.
Take your big mass of paneer and knead in the sugar and cardamom until they're evenly distributed throughout.
Add the paneer to a large saucepan over low heat. Begin to stir it. The paneer will start getting softer like dough. After 6 minutes, remove it from heat and keep stirring until all of it is soft like dough. If it begins to crumble, remove it from heat immediately.
Let your paneer cool for 5 minutes. Knead it again while it's still warm for a few minutes.
Divide your paneer into 24 balls of equal size. ½ tablespoon should make 2 balls.
On each ball, softly make an indent with your thumb. Be careful not to press so hard to break them.
Decorate the indent with crushed pineapple and/or some sliced pistachio. Up to you.
They're served chilled! Refrigerate them for a few hours and you've got yourself some quality sandesh.
Nutritional Information:
Milk- Good source of Vitamin B1, B2, B12 and it contains small amount of Niacin, Pantothenic acid and Vitamin B6. Contains fat soluble vitamins A, D, E, and K.
Pineapple- Small amount of Vitamin C and manganese (were only using it for decorating)