Coconut Overnight Oatmeal

  

Ingredients

 ⅓ cup old-fashioned rolled oats  

⅓ cup unsweetened coconut milk beverage 

Pinch of salt 

⅓ cup dried apricots 

1 tbsp hazelnuts

1 tsp maple syrup / honey

 

Instructions

Combine oats, coconut milk and salt in a jar or bowl. Cover and refrigerate overnight. In the morning, heat if desired. Top with apricots, hazelnuts and maple syrup. 

 

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Oats, Mixed Fruit bars

 Ingredients

Oats ½ cup

Raisins  1/3 cup/ 50 gm

Cocoa 1 tbsp

Sesame seeds 1 tbsp

Almonds 70 gm / ½ cup roast and  chop them

Add all them together

Dried  apricots ½ cup chopped

Prunes ¼ cup chopped

Peanuts 1 cup roasted, remove skin, chop

Dates ½ cup chop mix with coconut milk 3 tbsp blend

Banana 1 mash  add to all the other ingredients, mix well

Put in a tin with parchment paper, level it, bake @ 180 C for 20 minutes

Col and cut into bars

Dark chocolate 150 gm, melt in microwave, add some chopped peanuts, mix well

Coat bars the well, refrigerate for 30-40 minutes, cut into smaller pieces

 

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https://kneereplacement-stickclub.blogspot.com. for info on knee replacement

https://cancersupportindia.blogspot.com  for info on cancer and health related topics

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Cranberry-Apricot Baked Brie

  

 

Ingredients:  

dried cranberries - 1/3 cup (chopped) 

Dried apricots - 1/3 cup (chopped) 

Almonds - 1/4 cup (sliced) 

Honey - 1/4 cup 

Thyme - 1 1/2 tsp. (chopped fresh) 

Ground black pepper - as needed 

Salt - 1/4 tsp. 

Puff pastry - 1 sheet (frozen) 

Brie cheese - 1 wheel 

Egg white - 1 

 

Preparation: 

Preheat the oven to 400°F. 

 

Then, combine cranberries, apricots, almonds, honey, thyme, and 1/8 teaspoon salt and pepper in a medium bowl and set aside. 

 

Roll puff pastry to a 12-inch square. 

 

Trim the top rind off Brie and center the cheese on the pastry. Top with the fruit mixture. 

 

Then, beat an egg white with 1/8 teaspoon salt in a small bowl and brush some egg wash along pastry edges and cover the brie with the pastry edges, twisting into a topknot.

 

Chill in the freezer for 15 minutes. 

 

Once done, brush lightly with egg wash, place on a parchment-lined baking pan and bake for 35 minutes.

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Plum cobbler

 I had some plums thinking it will be sweet. Sad just the opposite. What next to do, to save the money that I had sent to buy them, was to make some healthy cobbler ! I used to make Apple cobbler, which was a fav with the family especially to have it in winter, a delight to eat the hot apple cobbler. I did it in the microwave, you can cook part over gas, then bake in oven.

Ingredients

plums

apricots ( optional) 

sugar

flour

butter

nuts chopped

Preparations

In a micro safe dish, I roughly chopped plums, sprinkled sugar and wee bit of water to cook it for 2 minutes, stirred for another 2 minutes. As if I felt it was soft, I kept it aside.

 As I had plenty of dried apricots, about a big cup full of I soaked by pouring hot water for about 30 minutes or till soft. Then removed the seeds, put the pulp in the mixer jar to make a paste. To this paste, in stead of adding all purpose flour, I added the kanji flour, which  had flours of almonds and some other nuts. I added some ghee, instead of butter and spread the mixture over the plums, topped with chopped nuts, micro high for about 8 minutes on microwave. The top was firm. Honestly I forgot that I had kept it in the microwave, went for lunch, then when I entered the kitchen, I realised that  the cobbler was ready. I cut and tasted it, I liked it, could have been a little sweeter. I forgot to take the photo, as I served to some guests and my physio, who all said it was good.

Enjoy your cobbler, if the fruit is too sour to eat. To make the topping healthy, I add another fruit to avoid adding more sugar for the sake of my guests, who are diabetics ! 

 

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https://cancersupportindia.blogspot.com  for info on cancer and health related topics

https://GSiyers home remedies.blogspot.com   is the latest addition to my blogs  

 

Apricot Shortbread Bars

  

For the Shortbread Crust and Crumble Topping:

• 3 cups (360g) all-purpose flour
• 1 cup (200g) granulated sugar
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 1/2 cups (340g or 3 sticks) unsalted butter, cold and cut into small cubes
• 1 large egg, lightly beaten
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

For the Apricot Filling:

• 2 cups (about 350-400g) dried apricots, roughly chopped
• 1 1/2 cups water
• 1/2 cup (100g) granulated sugar (adjust to taste depending on apricot sweetness)
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 1/4 teaspoon almond extract (optional, but highly recommended for depth of flavor)
• Pinch of salt

 Prepare the Apricot Filling:
* In a medium saucepan, combine the chopped dried apricots, water, and sugar.
* Bring the mixture to a simmer over medium heat, stirring occasionally.
* Once simmering, reduce the heat to low, cover, and cook for about 15-20 minutes, or until the apricots are very tender and most of the liquid has been absorbed. Stir occasionally to prevent sticking.
* Remove from heat. Stir in the fresh lemon juice, almond extract (if using), and a pinch of salt.
* Allow the filling to cool slightly. For a smoother filling, you can use an immersion blender to pulse it a few times, or transfer it to a food processor and pulse until it reaches your desired consistency (some prefer it chunky, others smoother). Set aside to cool completely while you prepare the crust.

 

2. Prepare the Shortbread Dough:
* Preheat your oven to 375°F (190°C). Grease and flour a 9×13 inch baking pan, or line it with parchment paper, leaving an overhang on two sides for easy removal. This is highly recommended.
* In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the all-purpose flour, granulated sugar, baking powder, and salt.
* Add the cold, cubed butter to the flour mixture. Using a pastry blender, your fingertips, or a food processor, cut the butter into the flour mixture until it resembles coarse crumbs with some pea-sized pieces of butter remaining. If using a food processor, pulse in short bursts.
* In a small bowl, lightly beat the egg with the vanilla extract.
* Add the egg mixture to the flour and butter crumbs. Mix with a fork or your hands just until the dough starts to come together. Be careful not to over-mix; the dough should be crumbly but hold together when pressed.

3. Assemble the Bars:
* Reserve about 1 1/2 to 2 cups of the shortbread dough mixture for the topping.
* Press the remaining dough evenly into the bottom of your prepared 9×13 inch baking pan. Use the bottom of a measuring cup or your fingers to create a firm, even crust.
* Spread the cooled apricot filling evenly over the shortbread crust, leaving a small (about 1/4 inch) border around the edges if possible.

4. Add the Crumble Topping and Bake:
* Crumble the reserved shortbread dough evenly over the apricot filling.
* Bake in the preheated oven at 375°F (190°C) for 30-35 minutes, or until the topping is golden brown and the edges are lightly browned. The filling might be bubbling slightly.

5. Cool and Cut:
* Remove the pan from the oven and place it on a wire rack to cool completely. This is a crucial step! If you try to cut the bars while they are still warm, they will be very crumbly and fall apart. Cooling completely allows the filling to set and the shortbread to firm up. This can take at least 2-3 hours at room temperature, or you can speed it up in the refrigerator after an initial hour of cooling.
* Once completely cooled, if you used parchment paper, lift the bars out of the pan using the overhang. Place on a cutting board.
* Using a sharp knife, cut into squares or bars. For cleaner cuts, you can chill the bars slightly in the refrigerator before cutting, and wipe the knife clean between cuts. 

 

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https://kneereplacement-stickclub.blogspot.com. for info on knee replacement

https://cancersupportindia.blogspot.com  for info on cancer and health related topics

https://GSiyers home remedies.blogspot.com   is the latest addition to my blogs  

 

Khubani ka Meetha- Dried Apricot Halwa

 It's a fruity jam-like dessert made with apricots.

Ingredients

Around 30 khubani or dried apricots 

2 cups of water 

3 tsp sugar (slightly more or less depending on the sweetness of the dried apricots

1 tsp lemon juice 

Sliced almonds 

For custard

1-litre full-fat milk

½ cup vanilla custard powder 

1 cup sugar 

 

Preparations 

Making the recipe commences a night prior, soak the dried apricots in about 2 cups of clean drinking  water. The next morning, the dried apricots would have soaked water and swollen up. 

Remove the apricots but retain the water it was soaked in. Chop the apricots or mash them lightly to extract the seed. Lightly mash the fruity part of the apricots. The seeds contain small variants of almonds in them, crack open the seeds to extract the nut. Keep the nuts aside for use later. 

In a kadhai or saucepan, keep the flame low to medium, add the chopped apricots and lightly mash them, due to the soaking they become very soft and mash easily. Add the sugar and stir it well. Cook the mixture until the apricots mash and get a jam-like texture. You can add a few drops of lemon juice just to balance out the flavours. Cook for another minute and turn off the flame. 

Preparing the custard is very easy. Preferably use the vanilla variant, as that complements the khubani flavours very well. 

Boil the full-fat milk until it thickens and reduces in size. Now remove a cup of milk add sugar to the remaining milk and boil some more. 

In the cup of milk, add the custard powder and dissolve everything well. Make sure no lumps remain in the mixture. 

Very slowly add the custard mixture to the remaining milk, and cook it for a few minutes until the mixture thickens. 

Remove from the flame and allow it to cool. Once cooled, you can refrigerate it to get a thick and creamy vanilla custard. 

This step can be done the previous night, so the next day you have chilled custard ready. 

To serve, preferably take a glass or see-through serve ware to show the layers of the dessert. Spread a thick layer of the custard at the base. Top it with a layer of the khubani ka meetha. 

Garnish it with the nuts extracted from the kernels of the apricot. Enjoy!

 

https://gscrochetdesigns.blogspot.com. one can see my crochet creations  

https://kneereplacement-stickclub.blogspot.com. for info on knee replacement

https://cancersupportindia.blogspot.com  for info on cancer and health related topics

https://GSiyers home remedies.blogspot.com   is the latest addition to my blogs  

 

Panchmewa Chikki

Ingredients

 
1/2 cup cashews
1/2 cup almonds
1/4 cup walnuts
2 tbsp pistachios
2 tbsp chironji in Tamil- chara paruppu, charoli in Hindi

2 tbsp dried apricots (khumani)
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 10-12 strands of saffron
- 1/2 tsp cardamom powder
- 1/4 cup ghee
- 1/4 cup water

Instructions
 

Soak the almonds in hot water for half an hour, then peel and dry them on a towel for a while. Coarsely grind all the ingredients except a few cashews, almonds, and walnuts.

Chop the remaining nuts and soak the saffron in a little warm water. Dissolve the sugar in water to make a one-string syrup, and mix in the cardamom powder and saffron.

Heat ghee in a pan and roast the cashew powder over medium heat, followed by the almond powder, and then the walnut powder. Roast them just enough to avoid changing their color.

Turn off the heat and mix in the chopped nuts, combining everything well. Gradually mix this into the warm syrup gently.

Spread the mixture evenly in a greased tray, once it cools slightly, cut into desired shapes and serve. The chikki can be stored for 2 weeks too, if it lasts that long in a clean, dry tight container.

https://gscrochetdesigns.blogspot.com. one can see my crochet creations  

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https://cancersupportindia.blogspot.com  for info on cancer and health related topics

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Ricotta Apricot Almond Cake:

   

Ingredients

200 gm all-purpose flour

150 gm ground almonds

10 gm / 2 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

150 gm granulated sugar

2 large eggs

250 gm ricotta cheese

120 ml vegetable oil

1 tsp vanilla extract

100 gm dried apricots, chopped

1 tbsp honey (for glazing)

1/4 cup sliced almonds (for topping)

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 175°C (350°F). Grease and line an 8-inch round cake pan with parchment paper.

 

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, ground almonds, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon.

 

In a separate bowl, whisk together the sugar, eggs, ricotta cheese, vegetable oil, and vanilla extract until smooth and well combined.

 

Gradually add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir until just combined.

 

Gently fold in the chopped apricots, ensuring they are evenly distributed throughout the batter.

 

Pour the batter into the prepared cake pan and spread it evenly.

 

Bake for 35-40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

 

Once baked, allow the cake to cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then transfer it to a wire rack to cool completely.

 

Drizzle honey over the cooled cake and top with sliced almonds for garnish.

 

Slice and enjoy your delicious Ricotta Apricot Almond Cake!

Note-

You can substitute the apricots with other seasonal fruits such as peaches or plums for a different flavor profile.

This cake stores well at room temperature for up to 3 days or can be refrigerated for longer freshness.       

                                                                                                                                   https://gscrochetdesigns.blogspot.com. one can see my crochet creations  

https://kneereplacement-stickclub.blogspot.com. for info on knee replacement

https://cancersupportindia.blogspot.com  for info on cancer and health related topics

https://GSiyers home remedies.blogspot.com   is the latest addition to my blogs