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.
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