3 recipes for the Christmas table

Prati nas i na društvenim mrežama!

Basmati rice with peas and almonds
 
Ingredients:

• 1 cup (250 ml) of basmati rice or any other rice of your choice
• 4 cardamom pods
• 2 cups of water
• 3/4 teaspoon of salt
• 1/4 teaspoon of turmeric
• 3 tablespoons of butter or oil
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 6 cloves
• 1/3 cup of blanched almonds
• 1 cup of frozen peas
   

Preparation:

1. Wash, strain and dry rice.

2. Crush the cardamom pods in hand.

3. Boil water, salt and turmeric in a two-liter pot.

4. In another two-liter pot heat the butter or oil on slow fire. Add cinnamon, cloves, cardamom and almonds and gently stir-fry, until almonds turn golden.

5. Add the rice and fry it for two minutes, or until the rice grains assume white translucent color.

6. Pour the water which you have previously boiled, into the rice,. Add the frozen peas. Stir and let the water boil. Reduce the heat, cover the pot and let the rice cook on slow fire for 15-20 minutes or until it absorbs all the water.

7. Serve hot.

 
You can also add vegetables of your choice: carrots, potatoes, cauliflower, to the rice.

Spanakopita (triangles with spinach and feta cheese)
 
Ingredients:

• 2 large bunches of spinach
• 5 tablespoons of butter
• 1 teaspoon of black pepper
• 1 teaspoon of asafetida (optional)
• 1/4 teaspoon of nutmeg
• 2 tablespoons of flour
• 3/4 cup of milk
• 250 g of feta cheese (chopped)
• 1 package of filo pastry (375 g)
• 2 tablespoons of breadcrumbs (optional)
• 1 cup of butter or oil (for brushing on pastry layers)
   

Preparation:

1. In a large pot, bring to a boil spinach, three tablespoons of butter, salt and pepper. Reduce the heat, cover the pot and cook until the spinach becomes soft and all the liquid has evaporated.

2. In another pot, melt two tablespoons of butter, add asafetida and saute it for a few seconds. Add nutmeg and flour and saute for one more minute. Remove the pot from the heat and slowly add the milk. Return the pot to the heat and cook while stirring for several minutes, until the sauce boils and becomes thick.

3. Remove the sauce from the heat. Mix cooked spinach, sauce and cheese. Leave the mixture to cool. If the mixture contains too much liquid, add two tablespoons of breadcrumbs.

4. Cut the pastry into long, 9 cm wide strips. Brush two strips with butter. Layer one buttered strip on top of another.

5. Place one heaped tablespoon of filling on the end of each double pastry strip and fold over to form a triangle, covering the filling (see the picture).

6. Brush each triangle with butter or oil and place them on a baking sheet. Bake at 180 C for 20-30 minutes, or until the triangles become golden-brown.

Dwaraka burfi – sweet chickpea squares

Ingredients:

• 300 g of butter
• 275 g of sifted chickpea flour
• 275 ml of milk
• 275 ml of water
• 250 g of brown sugar
• 25 g of cashews or walnuts
• 2 tablespoons of grated coconut

Melt the butter in a medium-sized pot. Add chickpea flour and fry, stirring over low heat to prevent burning.

After 15 minutes, when the flour becomes golden-brown, remove it from the heat.

In another pot, boil together milk, water and sugar. Add cashews or walnuts and grated coconut, and then pour the syrup in the pot with chickpea flour.

Cook,  constantly stirring, 3-5 minutes over low heat until mixture thickens and becomes less sticky.

When the mixture cools down and hardens, place it on the table and cut into squares.

Decorate each square with a half of a walnut, a cashew or chopped pistachios.

Required time for preparation and cooking: 25 minutes

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