I can't really tell you how many times I have though of making these scones. Now I'm a big F.R.I.E.N.D.S. fan, and every time those guys ordered a scone at Central Perk, I always wanted to try one myself. So one day as I was passing by a bakery, I decided to get one. I tried a Blueberry scone, and it was delicious! Ever since then, I had alway wondered if I could be able to make it myself. And every time I was like..."I couldn't possibly do that...I can't bake that well...You know...Crispy and firm from the outside, crumbly and soft from the inside...May be some things are better left to the pros". But one fine day, I was like..what the hell...lets try out.
So this was my first attempt at making scones, and let me tell you, this has opened up a wide variety
of combinations that I am gonna try now. This time, I made Cranberry scones, and they were perfect! With very few ingredients, this is a quick recipe. I would suggest using fresh Cranberries or any berries of your choice. Now this ain't Fall, and its difficult to get fresh cranberries this time of the year. So, I had to settle with the dried cranberries. Should not affect the taste though...you could use the fresh, or frozen or dried cranberries.

So here it is...the recipe for Cranberry Scone, from the Boy who Cooks...

Cranberry Scones Recipe | How to make Cranberry Scones prep time 15 min baking time 18 min total time 33 min Course: Dessert Taste: Slightly sweet, Crispy and firm from the outside, and crumbly and soft from the inside Ingredients: For the Scones:      2 Cups All purpose flour      113 gm 'Cold' Unsalted Butter, cut into small cubes      1/3 Cup Sugar      2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder      2/3 Cup Cranberries      1/2 teaspoon salt      1 teaspoons vanilla extract      2/3 Cup Whole fat Milk      Lemon/Orange Zest (optional)      Almond halves for garnishing For the Glaze (Optional):      1/3 Cup Sugar      2 teaspoons Vanilla extract      2 tablespoon Milk Recipe: Preparing the Scones: Preheat the oven to 400 degree F and grease the baking pan with butter In a bowl, add the Flour, Sugar, Baking powder and salt, and mix it well Now add the cold butter cubes to the mixture. It is very important that the butter cubes be cold to give the rich texture to the scones Using a fork or knife, cut the butter into crumbs while mixing it with the flour mixture Do not kneed the mixture. There should be butter crumbs in the mixture at the end Now add the cranberries and the lemon/orange zest and mix well Add the Milk and vanilla extract and mix it Do no kneed the mixture, just mix it well using a spoon till it forms a rough dough Spray some flour on the table surface and place the round dough on it Flatten the dough to about 7 inch diameter Cut it into triangles using a knife Brush the top with some milk and garnish with almond halves and sugar Put the scones in the pre heated oven for 18 min They should be done by now. Check by inserting a tooth pick Remove the pan from the oven and let it cool Preparing the Glaze (Optional): Combine the glazing ingredients mentioned above Stir till it forms a smooth mixture Apply the glaze on the scones using a spoon  Garnish with the glaze. Serve warm.

Well, the picture alongside says it all. This one is a gem...not just because it tastes like heaven and will be a perfect answer for your chocolate cravings, but because it is the easiest thing to make. I mean literally...you just cannot go wrong here. And it is ready within 20min. Say good bye to the rather expensive truffles that you buy for christmas. Oreo cookie crumbs blended with cream cheese and coated with a crispy layer of chocolate! If thats not heaven then what is?! You can choose between Milk Chocolate, Dark Chocolate, White Chocolate to coat these truffles...any combination and still it will be the perfect dessert.
The ingredients are easily available, and chances are that you already have them at home. This was one of the first desserts I ever tried making. So believe me...this is a child's play.

So here it is...The heavenly Oreo Chocolate Truffles recipe, from the Boy who Cooks...

Chocolate Truffles Recipe | Oreo Truffles Recipe prep time 10 min cooking time 15 min total time 25 min Course: Dessert Taste: Like Heaven Ingredients:      1 packet (16 ounce) of Oreo chocolate sandwich cookies      1 packet (8 oz) Cream Cheese      2 packets of Baker's Semi sweet baking chocolate Recipe: Crush 40 Oreo cookies using a grinder and remove it in a bowl Add the softened cream cheese and mix well till blended (should be at the room temperature to mix well) Make round shaped balls using this mixture Refrigerate the balls for about 10 min Meanwhile, crush the remaining 5 Oreo cookies in the grinder. We will use them for garnishing Melt the baking chocolate in another bowl Dip the Oreo chocolate balls in the melted chocolate and coat it well Place the well coated chocolate balls in a dish While the chocolate coating has still not frozen, sprinkle the cookie crumbs on top Refrigerate for some time, till the chocolate coating is well set and firm Instead of the Baker's Semi sweet baking chocolate, you can also use the Hershey's white chocolate to coat your truffles.

Brownies! Who doesn't like a hot sizzling brownie with a scoop of vanilla ice-cream topped with chocolate sauce! Well frankly, I am getting a craving for it just as I write this post ;)

The rich creamy Malai Kofta has been my favorite North Indian curry since childhood. I am very picky when it comes to Malai Kofta. It has to be the exactly right amount of (slight) sweetness, mildly spicy...it has to be creamy... the koftas should be such that that they melt in your mouth. It was hard enough to get such a perfect preparation in restaurants in India, let alone the Indian restaurants in the United States (for those who don't know, the Indian restaurants in US serve excessively sweet curries). Within the first few weeks in the States, I had realized that if I wanted to eat good Indian food, I had to cook it myself. For a boy who a year ago had never even cut an onion, or could not even judge the proportion of salt in a curry, preparing Malai Kofta was kind of like a big achievement for me!

Here's what to know about Malai Kofta:
The kofta are the dumplings, usually made from a mixture of mashed potatoes and paneer (cottage cheese) with dry fruit stuffings(optional). You could just use paneer and avoid the mashed potatoes all together...but I prefer it with potatoes.
The curry is the typical North Indian style curry...slightly sweet, mildly spicy. The difference being, this one is much more creamier because of the cashew paste.

So here it is...the recipe for the rich creamy Malai Kofta, from the boy who cooks...

Malai Kofta Recipe | How to make Malai Kofta prep time 20 min cooking time 30 min total time 50 min Course: Main Type: Curry Cuisine: Indian, North Indian Taste: Mildly sweet, mildly spicy Ingredients: For Kofta:      2 medium sized potatoes – boiled and grated      300 gms paneer (cottage cheese) – grated      1/3 teaspoon red chilli powder      1/4 teaspoon garam masala      2 teaspoons cornflour      2 teaspoons almond powder      Salt as required For Curry:      3 medium sized onions      2 tomatoes      1/2 cup cashews      1 teaspoon Ginger + Garlic paste      1 teaspoon red chilli powder      1/2 teaspoon garam masala      1/4 teaspoon turmeric powder      3 cloves, 1 bay leaf, 2-3 green cardamom, 1.5 inch cinnamon stick      1 teaspoon kasuri methi      salt as required      sugar as required      2 teaspoon of cream      1 cup milk      1 cup water Recipe: Preparing Kofta: Mix the ingredients for Kofta in a bowl Stuff some dry fruits like broken cashews and raisins and make round medium sized dumplings Heat oil in a kadhai Coat the koftas with cornflour and fry them until slightly golden (Do not fry till they turn brown) The koftas are ready…keep them aside while we prepare the curry Preparing the Curry: Heat water in a vessel and boil onions, tomatoes and cashews in it for about 15 min Boiling onions removes the spiciness in it, which in turn helps making the curry just the right amount of sweet You know that the cashews are done when they start floating on the boiling water Make a paste of onions in a grinder Heat some oil in a kadhai and add the bay leaf, green cardamom, cloves and the cinnamon stick and fry a bit Add the onion paste and fry till it turns golden brown Add ginger + garlic paste and fry till the raw aroma goes away After boiling the tomatoes, remove their skin and puree them Now add this tomato puree to the fried onion paste Add the red chili powder, garam masala and turmeric powder Make a paste of the boiled cashews. Add some milk to it to better grind it into a smooth paste Add the cashew paste to the curry and fry for another 5 min Now add the milk and water to the curry Add salt and sugar as required Bring the curry to a boil and add crushed kasuri methi Add cream and stir. You can also add some food color (I prefer yellow for Malai Kofta curry) Add the previously made Koftas to the the curry  Garnish with chopped coriander leaves and dry fruits. Serve with Naan or Roti.