“कडबू” (Baked Stuffed Wheat Cookies)

October is one of my favourite seasons.In the midst of fall colours,a beautiful array of birthdays & anniversaries always lined up.A bunch of happiness and reason to celebrate with loved ones.

This 20th October,Aai celebrates her 62nd birthday!!Born is 1947, she is almost as old as Independent India.An economics graduate & perfectionist by choice,Aai chose to remain a Home-maker to shape my future so thoughtfully.

We have nothing in common,yet we are similar.She has been my best critic.While I lived in India,she managed everything so wonderfully for me.Realized her importance in my life only when I started living on my own in US (post marriage).She has been the oxygen supply for all these years and I truly miss her.

I have learnt the methodic way to work on details and achieve finesse from her.

There is a lot more to write & share.But,some things are better unsaid than said,and felt than expressed!

So,here’s a birthday recipe to express my feelings for you.Aai enjoys one of Nana’s (my mother’s father) favourite sweets “Kadbu” (Baked Stuffed Wheat cookies) a lot.So,following the festive mood,made these wonderful baked cookies for her.

Ingredients

• 1/2 muffin-full bowl of chana daal/gram-I cooked it in the pressure cooker with 1 cm deep water above the daal.The book just suggests to cook it and drain the water from it.No particular method to cook it is suggested.Instead of using the traditional Indian “puran yantra” (a sort of grinder),I used the blender and made a thick coarser paste of it.
• 1 muffin-full bowl of sugar or jaggery
• 1-2 tsp nutmeg powder
• 1-2 tsp cardamom powder
• 2-3 stands on saffron (my addition)
• khoya or khava (condensed milk powder or cubed)-Its an optional addition mentioned in the book,but I added a piece of kaju katli mithai.I did not roast it as mentioned in the book.
• dry fruits-I added 2 tbsp of dry fruit powder.
• 1 muffin-full bowl of wheat flour
• 3 tbsp of all purpose flour (my addition)
• 1 tbsp of oil
• ghee for frying-I baked the cookies instead of frying them.
• salt to taste
• 2 tsp poppy seeds

Total Time=Cooking Time+Preparation Time=20 minutes.

Stuff it ,Pattern it & Bake it Up

For the outer crust:I made a hard dough kneading the wheat flour & all purpose flour with oil and salt to taste.I made small dough balls for later usage (5 nos).

For the Stuffing:I saved on time because of pressure cooking the chana daal.I softened it with a spoon and added nutmeg powder,cardamom powder,sugar,dry fruits powder,saffron and khoya mithai to it.However,I did not add the roasted poppy seeds to this mixture.I mixed it well and put it in microwave for a minute or so.This mixture may be a little liquid,in that case add khoya or cooked chana daal to it.This shall allow the stuffing to remain within the crust and not burst open.

Pattern & Bake:I pre-heated my oven @ 350 deg F. I dipped small dough balls into the poppy seeds and rolled them into flat rounds/puris.I put the stuffing on the plane side (side without poppy seeds) such that the other half of the puri could cover it when folded.I sealed the edges of the half-circled unbaked cookie with fingers.I was in a mood to show off my brand new pastry wheel,so used it to create a pattern on edges.But,its not mandatory!

I put the uncooked cookies into the oven.And,in few minutes….crunchy,sweet cookies were on table.Traditional,yet modern “Kadbu”/"Baked-Stuffed Wheat Cookies” were all set for a click!!Cheers to Aai and a very happy birthday to her!

Bread Pudding

One good thing about being in the US is the opportunity to experience distinct international cuisines. Thanks to that, I could keep my mother well informed on Mediterranean food, making her stay in Egypt comfortable.

Bread is an interesting food preparation common to most international cuisines. The breads of kinds and sizes bewilder me most. Though bakeries in India produce great quality breads, I also appreciate the variety of breads offered here.

While flipping through the pages of Ruchira, I came across a recipe for Bread Pudding. It is one of the few recipes in the book having an egg as an ingredient. I found it interesting, simple and challenging too. The simplicity lies in the challenge to prepare this delicacy without the egg. The eggs here have a pungent odour that puts me off completely, so I don’t prefer to use them. Interestingly , Kamala Aji has insisted on the usage of a brown bread! That sure looks like a healthy option, n'est ce pas?

This was the second dish that I prepared for the "table for three kitty" at my place today!

Ingredients

• 1 cup of brown bread / white bread pieces. I used Safeway’s crushed wheat bread.
• 5 tbsp of sugar (depends on the type of sugar and taste). I added about 30 tsps of super fine sugar.Since I was going to bake the pudding the sugar quantity had to be slightly more.
• 1 cup of low fat milk
• 2 tbsp of unsalted butter / 1 egg / pure ghee. I used 2 tbsp of heavy cream. Egg less.
• 1.5 tsps of vanilla or other essence. I used vanilla essence which is available at most Indian and American grocery stores or marts.
• 1 apple/strawberries/other fruits. This is completely optional. There is another bread pudding recipe in the book with apple which could be merged into this one. However,I used some almonds and walnuts (finely crushed).
• 5 tbsps Rice flakes, that’s my addition to this recipe. Rice flakes shall impart the crunchy and crispy touch in a soft chewy bite.
• 1/2 tsp of baking powder (my addition).

Total Time =Cooking Time + Preparation Time = 40 minutes (max)

Pledging the Pudding

I immersed the pieces of bread in 1/2 cup of milk. If egg has to be added then one needs to beat it thoroughly and pour it over the bread. Since, I am not using an egg, the heavy cream, vanilla essence (or cardamom powder etc.), sugar and milk need to be whisked together until they lather enough. I poured this mixture over the bread, mashed it gently with my finger tips and added the baking powder, walnuts, almonds and rice flakes to it. Whipped it all together with a long stemmed steel spoon.

The book suggests that this bread mixture for pudding must be steamed in the pressure cooker and refrigerated. However,my Aai (mother) makes similar pudding but in a different way. I followed her concept of baking instead of the one given in the book.

Aai's Method

Aai puts the bread mixture in a sauce pan arranged on a medium-high flame, and covers it with a lid. One has to keep eyes glued to this pudding because it might just stick to the pan. It unveils an excellent aroma and that's when one knows it's ready. The upper side should be slightly pinkish while the bottom should be caramelized and crispy.

My Method

I refrigerated the wet mixture over night since my friends were going to be at my place next day for lunch and baked it inside the oven, pre-heated at about 300 deg F for about 15 minutes (instead of using Aai’s sauce pan approach).

You can eat it JLT! I prefer it with tomato sauce :)

In case you are using fruits, all you need to do is lay alternate layers of fruit & bread mixture into a pan. Once all the layers are set onto a greased pan, just put it on flame for a couple of minutes or bake it in the oven at 300 deg F (pre-heat, min, it may vary). 

Sweet Cravings fulfilled for the day! Hopefully, Kariz & Rids would stay alive for another of such lunch tortures in future!