Jali Pitha

As the name suggests it's a net-like flat bread called Jali Pitha in Bangladesh. It goes best with meat bhuna or daal. 

Ingredients:
1 cup Rice flour (preferably made from parboiled rice)
1 cup milk
2 cup water
1/2  tsp salt
1 tb Oil
2 eggs

Mix everything to make the batter.

• Heat a medium nonstick fry pan. 
• Pour 1/3 cup and roll around to cover the whole bottom of the pan. 
• After approximately one minute when the edges lift up, turn it over and cook for another minute. 

You can reduce the timings depending on the intensity of the heat.

If it's sticking and not coming off easily, your pan is not hot enough. 

Jhotpot Mishti Doi (Quick Sweetened Yogurt)

MISTI DOI (NO BOILING, Quck and easy)

Mishti Doi or sweetened Yogurt is the ultimate Bengali dessert. If you can get it right, it will win the hearts and minds of your guests every time, and with my recipe you cannot go wrong! 

Obviously, this recipe is for those who live abroad and try hard to recreate the Deshi Doi they miss so much. Everyone knows, it is a hit or miss thing, It can be a disaster if you are having guests and you just found out that your Doi did not set. You can only look at the liquid pot of frustration in despair and brace for the impending embarrassment. No no no, despair not, with my recipe you won't take a chance and the best part is that it takes only an hour! 

Ingerdients

1 kg Greek yogurt (full fat)
1 can sweetened condensed milk. (If the Caramel version is available in where you live use it instead, because that will give you that distinctive colour. But taste will be the same. Alternatively, you can use some caramel syrup or saffron for colour.)
1 cup cream (optional)
½ tsp salt

Process:

It couldn't be simpler:
Mix it all up slowly and carefully not to get air bubbles in.

Place in pre-heated oven at 100c for 1 hour (1.5 hour for extra thick).
Bring it out, let it cool then chill.

Make it a day in advance. 

Lemon Posset

Possets are generally made from lemon or other citrus juice, cream and sugar. Eggs are often added. ... The word "posset" is mostly used nowadays for a cold set dessert loosely based on the drink, containing cream and lemon, similar to syllabub. Source: Wikipedia. 

This is a divine tangy-sweet dessert, very easy to make and very refreshing after a heavy meal!

Ingredients:

• Grated skin of 1 lemon
• Lemon Juice of 2 lemons
• Saffron or Nutmeg
• Sugar 1/2 cup
• Double Cream (Heavy Cream) 1.25 cup / 300ml / 10.5oz

Process:

• Add sugar to the cream
• Add any of the flavourings of your choice (saffron, nutmeg, cinnamon, cardamon etc)  
• Bring the cream to boil in a pan or in microwave for 2-3 minutes
• Add half of the grated lemon skin and the lemon juice and stir until sugar is dissolved
• Pour into the 6 ramekins or small serving cups.
• Sprinkle the remaining grated lemon skins on top
• let it cool and then chill in the fridge for at least four hours. 

Butternut Squash with Coconut milk & Prawn

It's a spicy, sweet, hot and creamy curry. Easy to cook!

Ingredients:

• One Butternut squash (মিষ্টি কুমড়া ) peeled and cut in chunks
• Oil 2 tbsp
• Garlic 3-4 cloves chopped
• Onion 1/2 chopped
• Salt 1 tsp
• Curry powder 1 tsp
• Paprika powder 1 tsp
• Coconut milk 1 can (1.5 cup)
• Vegetable Seasoning 1 tsp
• Sugar 1 tsp
• Lemon juice 1 tbsp
• Prawn 500 gm
• Red chilli
• Spring onion (পেঁয়াজ পাতা ) 

Process: cook in the following order:

1. Hot pan or wok
2. heat oil
3. Garlic > fry to golden brown
4. Add Onion > fry till soft
5. Add Salt
6. add some water (1/4 cup) to prevent spice from burning
7. Add curry powder, paprika and cook for 2 minutes.
8. Add squash, coconut milk, seasoning, sugar, lemon juice > Stir, cover, turn the heat down and simmer for 20 minutes.  
9. after 20 minutes add the Prawn and cook for 5 minutes.
10. Garnish with chopped spring onion and red chilli

Crème Brûlée

Crème Brûlée, means burnt cream. My version of this classic rich dessert is easy and uncompromising ie.full cream, 

6 Servings

Ingredients: 

• 600 ml Double Cream (UK) or Heavy Cream (USA)
• 6 Egg Yolks
• 1/2 cup sugar (more or less to suit your taste)
• 1 tsp Vanilla
• 1/2 tsp Salt

Process: 

1. MIx egg yolks and sugar well
2. Warm up the cream in microwave (3-5 minutes) or on stove; do NOT boil
3. Add the warm cream slowly to the yolk-sugar mix while whisking continuously
4. Add vanilla and salt and mix well
5. Pour in 6 Crème Brûlée dish or Ramekins
6. Place them in a baking tray
7. Add warm water in the tray to come up to half height of the dishes. 
8. Place in the preheated oven to 125c for 30 minutes.
9. Take them out of the tray and let cool
10. Sprinkle some sugar (caster sugar is better as it will melt quickly) over them and caramelise the sugar with a blow torch. (no blow torch? place them under a hot grill until sugar melts)
11. Serve at room temperature. 

Satay Noodles

This is about turning a ordinary instant Ramen Noodle into a restaurant quality gourmet dish.

Ingredients:

1. Instant Ramen noodles (prawn or chowmein flavour) 1 packet
2. Ginger and Garlic shredded 1 tsp each
3. Peanut butter 1-2 tbsp
4. Chilli paste 1-2 tsp
5. Fish sauce 1 tbsp
6. Sugar 1 tbsp
7. Chicken (cooked on shredded) or Shrimp 1 cup
8. Cucumber shredded or shaved 1/2 cup
9. Carrot shredded or shaved 1/2 cup
10. Roasted peanuts 1 tbsp
11. Coriander leaves to garnish
12. Sesame seed 1 tsp to garnish

Process

• Boil water 2 cups of water
• Cook noodles for 3 minutes
• Drain
• Lower heat
• Add the accompanying seasoning that comes in the packet
• Add ingredients 2-7
• Stir and cook for 2 minutes
• Turn off heat
• Add Shredded cucumber n carrot 
• Decorate with couple of carrot and cucumber shavings
• Sprinkle the peanuts over
• Sprinkle sesame seed over
• Garnish with some coriander leaves and a splash of chilli sauce.

Bhuna Khichuri

Bhuna Khichuri is the ultimate comfort food for Bangali's in a cold or rainy day. If you are in UK, you are in right place for bhuna khichuri because it's cold and rainy almost everyday!

The proportions of ingredients are for 1 cup rice, which should be enough for two. To cook more, just multiply everything accordingly. 

Ingredients:

• Basmati Rice. 1 cup > washed and drained
• Mung dal. ¼ cup > washed and drained
• Chana dal. ¼ cup> washed and drained
• Salt 1 tsp
• Turmeric powder ¼ tsp
• Bay leaf 1
• Cinnamon. 2 one inch sticks
• Cloves 2
• Cardamon 2
• Red chilli 2
• Green chilli. 2
• Potato.  175g (approx 1 large) > Peel & Cut in about 1 inch size roughly.
• Carrot. 175g (approx 1 large) > Peel & Cut in about 1 inch size roughly.
• Peas. ¼ cup
• Cumin seed. 1 tsp. 
• Ghee/oil. ¼ cup
• Ginger & Garlic paste 2 tsp. 
• Vegetable seasoning 1 tsp (or 1 veg oxo cube) to enhance the taste. If you don't have it, just increase the amount of salt to compensate. 

Process: 

• Put everything in the rice-cooker and give it a good mix.
• Add water until the level is about half inch above the rice. 
• Seal the pot with a tin foil, put the lid on top, 
• Turn the rice cooker on (don't forget to push the lever down!)
• Set the timer for 1 hour.
• That's it, it's done. 

To serve: Garnish with some fried onion and green onion.  For extra flavour, drizzle some ghee over. 

It's good to go on it's own, but goes very well with Dim Bhuna or Meat / Chicken Bhuna.