Chef Yogesh Amin, head of department-ITM Institute of Hotel Management, Navi Mumbai, shares these simple recipes.
Tricolour Idlis
Ingredients
For the idli batter
- 3 cups par boiled rice/ukda rice
- 1 cup urad dal
- 1 tbsp fenugreek seeds
For saffron colour batter
- 1 carrot peeled and grated
- ¼ inch ginger
For white colour batter
- 1 cup desiccated coconut
- ¼ inch ginger
For green colour batter
- A small bunch of spinach leaves washed and blanched for 2 to 3 minutes
- ¼ inch ginger
Method
For making basic idli batter
- Take rice and urad dal in separate bowls and wash both evenly.
- Add fenugreek seeds in the rice bowl. Fill both the bowls with water and leave the urad dal and rice to soak overnight/ upto four hours.
- Wash and blend the grains. Start with the rice and grind along with fenugreek in the blender adding 1½ cup water. Make a thin consistency batter and continue the same with urad dal.
- Mix both batter in a bowl. Add 1 tsp salt and keep it in a warm place to ferment for approximately 10 to 12 hours.
- Once done, divide the batter into three equal parts.
For saffron idli
- Blend carrot and ginger in a blender by adding some salt.
- Blend to make a fine consistency puree.
- Add the paste into one of the idli batter portions. Mix well to incorporate the colour and adjust salt as per requirement.
White colour idli
- Mix desiccated coconut with salt to prepare white batter.
Green colour idli
- Blend spinach along with chopped ginger and make the puree.
- Add it into the remaining idli batter. Adjust with salt and mix well.
To prepare the idlis
- Pour the batter in a greased idli mould.
- Do not overflow the mould with the batter.
- Steam the idlis in a tightly closed steamer and cook for 8-10 minutes.
- Turn off the gas and let it sit for 5 minutes.
- Remove from the mould and serve hot with sambhar and coconut chutney.
Tricolour Coconut Gulkand Ladoo
Ingredients
For saffron ladoo
- 4 carrots, washed peeled and cut
- ½ cup fresh desiccated coconut
- ¼ cup condensed milk
- 1 tsp gulkand
- 1 tsp ghee
- A few strands of saffron (for extra colour)
White ladoo
- ½ cup fresh desiccated coconut
- ¼ cup condensed milk
- 1 tsp gulkand
- 1 tsp ghee
- 5 pods cardamom
For green ladoo
- 4 betel leaves
- ½ cup fresh desiccated coconut
- ¼ cup condensed milk
- 1 tsp gulkand
- 1 tsp ghee
- 2 tbsp milk
- 3 cups of desiccated coconut for the outer covering of the ladoo
Method
To make saffron ladoo
- Blend carrots along with little water and make a paste.
- Heat a pan over the flame and set the flame to low.
- Add desiccated coconut and ghee and mix well for 2 to 3 minutes
- Add carrot paste and condensed milk into the pan and incorporate all together and cook till dry.
- Transfer the ladoo mixture in a bowl and leave it to cool down.
- Apply some ghee on your palms, take small portion of the mixture and flatten it on your palms.
- Stuff 1 tsp of gulkand in the centre of the mixture, close the sides and make a round shaped ladoo.
- Roll the ladoos in desiccated coconut and keep aside.
For white ladoo
- Heat a pan, add ghee, condensed milk and desiccated coconut into it and mix well for 2-3 minutes.
- Transfer the ladoo mixture in a bowl and leave it to cool down.
- Apply some ghee on your palms. Take a small portion of the mixture and flatten it on your palms.
- Stuff 1 tsp of gulkand in the centre of the mixture. Close the sides and make a round shaped ladoo.
- Roll the ladoos in desiccated coconut and keep aside.
For green ladoo
- Blend betel leaves a blender by adding milk into it to make a fine green paste.
- Heat a pan, add ghee and desiccated coconut into it and mix well for 2-3 minutes.
- Add betel leaves paste and condensed milk into the pan and incorporate all together and cook till dry.
- Transfer the ladoo mixture in a bowl and leave it to cool down.
- Apply some ghee on your palms. Take a small portion of the mixture and flatten it on your palms.
- Stuff 1 tsp of gulkand in the centre of the mixture. Close the sides and make a round shaped ladoo.
- Roll the ladoos in desiccated coconut.
Tricolour Mousse
Ingredients
- 500 gm sweetened whipping cream
- 150 gm fresh cream
- 20 gm gelatin powder (veg)
- 2 gm kesar strands
- 20 gm almond powder
- 1 tsp almond essence
- 7.5 gm pistachio powder
- 1 tsp pistachio essence
- Few drops of green food colour
Method
- Take 10 ml of warm water in a bowl. Add gelatin. Mix well and keep aside.
- Divide this into three portions.
- In a small cup add kesar strands along with milk and keep it aside until it releases colour.
- Pour whipped cream in a bowl. With the help of a cream blender, blend until it forms a soft peak.
- Once done, add fresh cream into it and calmly fold it together. Divide this into three equal parts in three different bowls.
- For saffron colour layer, take the saffron and milk mixture, extract the strands from it.
- In one of the cream bowls, add saffron and milk mixture along with one part gelatin and fold it together.
- For the white layer, in the cream bowl add another part of geletin, almond powder, almond essence and fold it together.
- For the green colour layer, take the remaining cream, add the leftover gelatin, pistachio powder, pistachio essence and few drops of green food colour and fold it together.
- Take three piping bags and fill them with different colours.
- To serve take a tall glass. Pipe in the pistachio cream followed by almond cream and kesar cream on top.
Would you like to share an interesting recipe or cooking video?
Please do send your recipe/video to us at getahead@rediff.co.in (Subject: My Recipe) along with your name, location and, of course, the recipe.
