Home made Ginger Powder

Ginger Powder

I had baked some cinnamon cookies and taken to a get together we had at T's cousin's place to meet some visiting family...it was a big hit..everyone loved it.
T's cousins B,R & A...were planning to go to Pondicherry for a visit and so were we after a month, and they asked me whether I could bake some ginger cookies, cause a dear friend who stays in Pondi loves them.

Now ginger cookies require ginger powder - some time back I had bought some from the store, but did not like them - I could not get any flavour of ginger from it - neither did it smell like it nor taste much like it...not sure how old the product was...I had read that it is best to use it freshly made.

So that was the reason for me getting some fresh ginger from the market, washing, peeling, chopping in thin slices or pieces, and spreading it out on the plate for drying under the sun. 
It takes about a couple of days normally, but we had cold days, cloudy skies, and so it took a bit longer.

Dried Ginger Slices / Pieces

Put the dried ginger pieces in a dry grinder or coffee grinder or your regular mortar & pestle...and dry into a fine powder. If you want it very fine, sieve it and run it thru once more.

In the grinder

Take small quantities of ginger so that you can make it fresh again when you need it next.

This can be stored in a bottle in a cool dark place or the fridge for a couple of months at least. 

I have my ginger powder ready...have to go to the next step of making the cookies...am hoping I will be able to find the time for that before my trip...and will be able to surprise them with yummy ginger cookies.

Amla Murabba

Amla Murubba

This year the winter was pretty severe in all parts of the world...even in India certain parts had very low temperatures and almost snow like conditions.

Mumbai which generally had very mild winters - was also showing signs of unusual weather - colder than norm - but the main problem here was that it was not uniformly cold.....the temperatures kept fluctuating - warm - to pleasant - to cold - to chill...brrr.....

Nyways the above is just so that you know the reason for almost everyone coming down with cold, cough, flu....and the sniffles is the most irritating thing to go thru....
My sister who generally has morning sniffles had come up with a few remedies to take care of it...and so she decided she should share it with me too...and that is how I landed up with a big bag of amla.

Now I have never tried eating amla raw - do not know if you have - but it is very sour ( khatta )....tried to have it like a medicine....buuuuuuuuuut....not too successful...

So then what do you do with the whole bag minus the one I tried to eat.....T came up with one option - it seems when they were young they used to immerse amla in salted water - and after a couple of days eat it - so that was what we did with 2-3 amlas...( it is still soaking ....)
The balance I decided to try and make murabba....went thru the net - got a few different recipes - but generally got the gist of the method and ingredients and proportions ...then set out to make my own...
Murubba makes a very nice accompaniment to any meal...it's sweet sour combination gives a different tang to the taste buds...and so it is greatly appreciated.