US Masala turns One! Celebrating with Nutella Donuts and a Giveaway

inally the day is here. US Masala is One today. Since the day I started my blog an year ago I have wondered if I would be able to nurture it so it stands the test of time. One year is not too long but it sure does give me immense confidence to go on.
I like to think of my work as a child that I have seen be born, grow up and mature - through different templates, colors, picture sizes, fonts, gadgets - all within the past three hundred and sixty five days. Besides the obvious benefit of keeping me busy, giving me a chance to experiment and learn new recipes, US Masala has given me the unmistakable opportunity of knowing a large number of wonderful people throughout the world - yes all of you my readers. I am totally and completely amazed at the response US Masala gets from its readers. You make me feel all warm and fuzzy with all your encouragement, so a big Thank You to you all. My stats tell me how immensely loved my site is. It is very humbling and makes me more passionate about what I love doing.
It would not be unreasonable to say that food blogging has changed my life in ways I never imagined. It has taught me is to follow my passion and to admire and enjoy the simple things in life - a food-photo that comes out well, an experiment that succeeds, a thoughtful comment left on a post. The creativity, thinking, writing, history, everything. To all my readers - Thank you for being a part of my life and letting me and US Masala be a tiny part of yours. Love you all!

Moving on to some movie-awards-style thank-yous. Jokes apart, first and foremost I definitely have to thank mom. Its a two fold appreciation, one lending me the 'cooking gene' and the other to teach me how to do anything. Its all her.
Thanking hubs would diminish the value he adds to my work. A big hug and thanks, that is basically all I can say for him. For the show to go on, he is one who is behind the camera. My little sous-chef, my dearest princess daughter who with her little hands does great things to help me do what I do. Bless your heart dear.
Through this past year, Papa has always supported me and encouraged me. There is not a single post that he has missed yet and even comes up with ideas on what I can make next.
I also have my little bro to thank who I think somewhere still doubts that his crazy sister can cook but is my most constructive critic out there.

Now lets talk about food.
Where I come from, special events are always celebrated with sweets. These are delicious little treats, fried dough balls filled with Nutella, how can you argue with that. Hot out of the fryer, you blow on them (yes its okay to blow on your food in privacy :) till they cool down just enough and then chomp away... yes you can close your eyes to when you eat, it adds to the pleasure.

Ingredients: recipe source Tartelette

Makes about 14 donuts

Powdered sugar ........................... 1/4 cup

Ricotta cheese ............................. 8 ounces

Eggs ......................................... 3
Salt .......................................... 1/2 tsp
Vanilla extract ............................. 1 tsp
All-purpose flour ........................... 1 cup  + 2 tbsp
Baking powder ............................. 2 tsp
Nutella for piping

Canola/vegetable oil for frying
Powdered sugar for dusting

Method:
1. In a large mixing bowl, stir together the eggs, sugar, ricotta, salt, and vanilla extract. Add the flour and baking powder, and mix until just combined.

2. Heat oil in a deep pot on medium heat. Drop a tablespoon of batter into the oil and cook for about 3 minutes on one side and 2 minutes on the other side.

3. Place the balls into the oil 4-5 at a time. Do not make the doughnuts too big as the outside will brown too quickly and they won’t cook through. Don’t overcrowd the pot - you will probably need to fry the doughnuts in three batches. Cut one doughnut open to make sure it’s cooked through before removing the rest of the batch from the oil. When the doughnuts are cooked, scoop them out and allow them to drain on paper towels. Repeat with remaining batter.

4. Dust the doughnuts with powdered sugar and pipe Nutella into the center of each one. These doughnuts are meant to be devoured warm out of the fryer, so make them just before you’re ready to eat them. ENJOY!

!! GIVEAWAY !!

t's celebration time here at US Masala and I plan to share it with all you wonderful folks out there by way of a giveaway. It's really simple. Just comment on this post for a chance to win the coveted prize! Yes there are some rules too, read the fine print below for more detail.


Giveaway Rules
1. Leave a comment on this post with the answer to the questions- 

   a) What is the main reason you like US Masala?

   b) What kind of recipes you would like to see more on US Masala?

2. Must follow the blog

3. Winner to be selected via random lottery by me

4. Anonymous entries are not allowed

5. Please be advised that in order to participate, you need to be willing to provide me with your email and full postal address. These will be required to ship your prize to you.

6. I will ship anywhere in the world! So this Giveaway is open for all my readers.

7. Entries open till midnight July 25th 2011.

Now for the prize. Yes its a cookbook. But not any cookbook. Its a cookbook by the chef that I have revered and followed for over a decade now. I am sure you have heard about Sanjeev Kapoor (google him if you haven't :)) who is one of the most celebrated chefs of Indian cooking. This is one of his latest cookbooks that compiles over 500 of his favorite recipes that are most suited for the modern kitchen of today.

So go for it.

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