HALWA KEBAB

Hellloooooo,

And I'm back after a long week. Have been keeping unwell since the past few days. However, thanks to some idle laying on the bed, my mind desperately wanted to search something new. And what new could the 'glutton' in me search for than some new dishes! I watched the sumptuous 'moong dal ka halwa' (a dessert made from yellow lentils) preparation on TV that day. Then it struck me, what if a halwa tastes salty rather than sweet, while still remaining close to the essence or aroma of the original dessert. Well, I went on with an experiment. And to my utter delight, I can boastfully say that the experiment came out really well. So friends, here comes an Indian dessert with a salty twist: "HALWA KEBAB".

Ingredients:

1 cup Yellow Lentil, ½ cup grated Cottage Cheese, 2 tsp Chickpea Flour, a handful of roasted Peanuts, 1 tsp Cardamom powder, 2 tbsp Clarified Butter, ½ cup Milk, 1 tsp Fennel seeds, pulp of 1 ripe Mango, 2 tsp Poppy seeds, 5-7 Cashew nuts, 2 tbsp Jaggery, 1 medium sized Apple, 1 tsp Cinnamon powder, 1 tsp Black Pepper powder, 5 Mint leaves, Salt to taste.

For Garnishing: Mint, Cherries & Cashew nuts.

Procedure:

Soak the lentils for 30 mins  Then blend it into a fine paste. But make sure it’s not dry. Add little water if needed to get a medium consistency. To this, add 1 tsp sugar, fennel seeds, cardamom powder & salt to taste. Our aim is to create a salty taste with a hint of sweetness brought in by the sugar. Grind the roasted peanuts and keep it aside. Roast the poppy seeds until it releases a sweet aroma. Be careful not to burn the seeds. Blend the roasted poppy seeds together with the mango pulp, cashew nuts, jaggery & salt, to get a nice, thick smoothie. This will be our sauce. Meanwhile, cut the apple into fine pieces. Add chopped mint, cinnamon powder, black pepper powder & a pinch of salt, and mix well. Now heat clarified butter on a pan & pour in the lentil mixture. Keep stirring; else it would stick to the pan. Drop in the chickpea flour & grated cottage cheese, & keep stirring for 2 mins. Finally add the ground peanuts & the milk, & stir for another 1 min. This mixture is done. Now take small portions of the mixture and make small balls. One by one, press the balls in between your palms so that they become flat enough to fill in the stuffing. Fill them with little portions of the apple mixture & shape them back into round balls. And your kebabs are ready. Arrange the kebabs on a plate. Now pour the mango-poppy seed sauce generously over the kebabs. Garnish with mint, cherries & cashew nuts.

It's fast, simple & absolutely yummy. Do try out. You will definitely love it. :-)