June 19, 2013
7:19
Creamy Dal Makhni | North Indian sidedish for Steamed Rice and Rotis!
» ‎ S A R A' S C O R N E R

Dal Makhni is a north Indian sidedish. It is also called Maa ki Dal. last weekend was craving for something different and tried this. It was very delicious with steamed basmati rice or rotis/chapathis

Ingredients
Split Urad dal with skin - 3 cups
Black eye bean/Karamani (white)- handfull
Onion - 2 nos
Ripe tomato - 2 nos
Garlic - 1no
Ginger - 1 tablspn
Cream - 2 tblspns (Nestle)
Red chilli powder - 1/2 tspn
Garam Masala powder - 1 tspn
Kasoori methi - 2 generous pinch
cinnamon - 2" piece
Oil - 2 tblspns
butter - 1 tblspn
Salt

Preparation method
wash, rinse, soak urad dal and black eyed bean over nite.(see notes)
Pressure cook with 1tspn of salt for 4 whistles.
In a kadai, add little oil, fry 1 chopped onion, garlic and 2 tomatoes till raw smell goes. cool it. grind to fine paste.
Now in the same kadai, add 1/2 tspn butter add cinnamon, rest of the finely chopped onion, ginger and sauté till the onion are slightly brown.
Add the grounded mixture, red chilli powder, garam masala powder mix boil well. Now add the dals. crush kasoori methi and add now. The consistency should be not too thick or thin, it should be pouring consistency.
Add 1/2 tspn butter.
Add the cream and mix well. Just boil once.
Off the stove.
Finally garnish with love.

Serve hot with basmati rice/rotis.

Notes: If you forgot to soak at night, you can soak morning in hot water.
You can use whole urad dal and Rajma for this.
I have used more cream, you can use cream to just garnish.

5:13
Tiramisu from Rhubarb and Gingerbread
» ‎ My Kitchen Treasures

Tiramisu from Rhubarb and Gingerbread

4:06
Kanelbullar–Swedish Cinnamon Buns
» ‎ What's For Lunch Honey?

How fast time trickles through our fingers. For me this blog is a fantastic journal of how my year progresses, noting my ups and downs and making me aware to live my life consciously and with purpose. I find it helpful to be able to click on a past post, reading through the paragraphs of what...

[Read the rest of this post on my website]

3:04
Masala vadai recipe |How to make masal vadai---Snack recipes
» ‎ Creative saga...

This is one snack prepared in south usually for afternoon tea or coffee. This is extented verison of dal vada or parappu vadai we usually make during the festivals. Only thing is...

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2:59
Dingri Dolma - Mushroom Paneer Masala Recipe - Awadhi Cuisine
» ‎ For The Cook In Me
The name Dingri Dolma (or Dhingri Dolma) struck me as funny the first time we read it on a menu in one of our favourite Andhra recipes in Singapore. TH ordered it since the Dingri Dolma had two of his favourite ingredients - paneer and mushroom, a popular Awadhi dish from Lucknow beautiful because of its Mughal and royal influence. We both fell in love with the dish instantly and each time we go back to that restaurant, it's very hard to pick anything else knowing that their Dingri Dolma is so delicious.

Even then, it never occurred to me to make Dhingri Dolma at home although I cook with paneer and mushrooms all the time. Then one day, while talking to Dassana, she mentioned that she had made Dingri Dolma from Jiggs Kalra's book Prashad which she highly recommended. She was kind enough to send me a picture of the recipe page and I followed the recipe verbatim except to reduce the ridiculous amount of ghee mentioned in the recipe. The restaurant version of Dingri Dolma has some gravy whereas this version was semi-dry but we loved it.

Dingri Dolma is an Awadhi or Lucknowi dish and its simplicity really shone through in this recipe. I served it with some jeera rice and homemade curd and we had a lovely lunch that day.
DINGRI DOLMA (MUSHROOM PANEER MASALA) Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 15 minutes
Serves 4
Recipe source: The highly recommend book Prashad by Jiggs Kalra (buy in US, or much cheaper in India)

Ingredients:
- 2 cups of button mushrooms, quartered (fresh or canned)
- 1 cup of crumbled or grated paneer
- 2 tbsp of ghee
- 1 tsp of black cumin / shahjeera / caraway (called cake jeerakam in Kerala)
- 1 cup of chopped onions
- 1 tsp of ginger, grated
- 1 tsp of garlic, grated
- 1/2 tsp of red chilli powder
- 1 tsp of pepper powder
- 1 cup of chopped tomatoes
- 1/2 tsp of garam masala (I used Kitchen King masala)
- A small bunch of coriander leaves (cilantro) chopped
How to Make Dingri Dolma:

1. Prepare all the ingredients first since cooking this dish just involves adding them one by one to your heated pan.

2. Heat ghee in a pan and add the caraway seeds.

3. When they sizzle, add the onions. Saute until light brown. Follow with the ginger and garlic and fry until fragrant and the moisture leaves the mixture.

4. Next, add the chilli powder, pepper and salt and stir to combine.

5. Throw in the mushrooms, mix, and cook for 3-4 mins.

6. Add the paneer and cook for another 3-4 mins, stirring occasionally.

7. Add the tomatoes next and mix well. Stir and cook for another 5 mins until the tomatoes are soft and almost mushy.

8. Finally, sprinkle garam masala on top, garnish with chopped coriander leaves and remove from fire.

Serve Dingri Dolma hot with roti, jeera pulao, vegetable pulao, etc.
For more recipes, visit www.cookingandme.com

1:13
Chocolate Kajjikayalu | How to make Chocolate Karanji
» ‎ Spice your Life

For the final day of making Indian Sweets with Chocolate Twist, I selected Kajjikayalu or Somas. I had recently made Somas with the regular Dry Coconut, Fried Gram filling. This is the most common filling used in this sweet when made in south. In North, they also use Khoya as filing. However this coconut, fried gram filling is very sweet on it's own. So I decided to go ahead with this.

Infact I had saved up some filling from the previous batch and used Dark Chocolate to blend with it. The dark chocolate after being mixed with the filling, wasn't so dark as such. For a moment I was thinking if I should mix in the cocoa powder to the dough. Then decided that will be too much. As expected this was an instant hit and I have requests for this to be made again.
Anyways I realized that we have lot of potential to twist the Indian Sweets with Chocolate. I rather assume that kids these days would love chocolate in any way if offered.

I thoroughly enjoyed making this theme and I knew this was one theme that was taken up and done ahead of time as I knew the results was going to be rocking!

The recipe is same as the Somas I recently made. I halved the recipe and got about 15 Somas. The chocolate blend tasted like a truffle. I have a seriously thought of making a laddo or a truffle with the remaining filling and dark chocolate

Chocolate Kajjikayalu | Chocolate Somas Recipe

For the Outer Covering:

Maida / All purpose flour - 1 cups
Melted ghee - 2 tsp
Salt - 1/4 tsp
Water to mix

For layering

Melted ghee - 2 – 3 tbsp
Maida for dusting

How to make the outer dough

Take the flour in a wide bowl, mix flour, salt & ghee with enough warm water to knead to a smooth dough.

Sprinkle a little water, cover with a damp cloth and keep for 30 mins

Knead again and make 3 small balls of uniform size & roll out 3 chapathis of about the same size - 8-9”

Apply a little melted ghee uniformly on one side of a chapathi, sprinkling a little dry flour & place a second chapathi over it.

Follow the same procedure again.

Roll the 3 chapathis into a tight roll.

Cut into equal sized pieces.
For the Filling:

Refer the filling that I made for Somas

Dark Chocolate - 50 gms

How to make the filling:

Heat a non stick pan, quickly warm pottukadalai along with grated copra, poppy seeds. After couple of mins, remove and allow to cool.

In a mixer, take the sugar, roasted ingredients, run for couple of minutes to get a fine powder. Mix all ingredients together.

Once the filling is ready, mix it with dark chocolate and blend well.

Making of Kajjikayallu

Roll out the dough into a disc and place it on the mould. In the centre, place a spoon full of the filling and fill forward and ensure you seal it well. Continue with the rest and keep it ready.

Heat oil and when it is hot, gently in 4 somas and fry in batches.

Decrease the flame & splash oil on them from around with the ladle.

When cooked on one side, turn over & fry.

You must fry on a low fire, turning them over a few times, till the bubbles subside completely. When cooked on low flame, the somas become crisp.

When the somas are cooked on both sides, drain to a kitchen towel.
Notes:

If you cannot get copra, dry the freshly grated coconut well in a microwave on a plate on medium high till crisp & powder.

Don’t over stuff the somas, since the filling tends to come out when dropped in oil.

To make sure the sides are sealed well, you can make a paste of flour and water and spread on one side and enclose well.

Somas
Nuvullu Kajjikayalu
Kajjika
Pappulu Kajjikayalu

Check out the Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing BM# 29

June 18, 2013
17:30
Misal Pav
» ‎ Cook's Hideout
Blogging Marathon# 29: Week 3/ Day 3
Theme: Course Wise Meal from any State - Maharashtra/ Lunch Dishes
Dish: Usal-Misal Pav
After 2 days of easy one-pot Maharashtrian dishes (Masala Bhath & Vaal Khichdi), today's dish is slightly elaborate and spicy. It's a great dish to entertain as well. I remember one of our dear Marwari friend serving this for dinner and it was probably one of the best tasting Misal Pav I've ever had. Being a rice obsessed South Indian, I was initially skeptical if that sprouts curry with bread on the side is going to fill me up -- but I was really surprised how filling and delicious that combo can be.
I referred to quite a few blogs for the recipe, but in the end I stuck with Sangeetha @ Kothiyavanu's recipe. Her pictures were gorgeous and I loved her step by step explanation. This dish is a little time consuming with quite a few steps involved, but the final dish is well worth the effort. I've tried to explain the process as clearly as possible.

Traditionally this dish is made with sprouted moth beans, but I used a combination of sprouted moth & moong beans. First step is to cook the sprouted beans with some spices to make the Usal. This Usal is then cooked in a spicy gravy and topped with farsan, sev, chivda etc. to make Misal, which when served with pav makes Misal Pav.
I used store bought Goda Masala for convenience, but if you want to make your ow, then here's the recipe. Sangeetha's post also has the recipe for Goda Masala. You can also substitute with good old garam masala.Ingredients:
For Usal:Sprouted Moth and/or Moong Beans - 2cups
Onion - 1 small, chopped
Ginger+garlic paste - 1tsp
Red chili powder - ½tsp
Turmeric powder - ½tsp
Goda Masala or Garam Masala - ½tsp
Salt - to taste

For Spicy gravy for Usal:
Onion - 1 medium, finely chopped
Tomato - 1 medium, finely chopped
Tamarind pulp - 1tbsp
Grated Coconut - 3tbsp
Garlic cloves - 3
Ginger - 1" piece
Ground Coriander - 1tsp
Ground Cumin - 1tsp
Turmeric powder - ½tsp
Red Chili powder - ½tsp
Goda Masala - 2tsp
Sugar - ½tsp
Mustard seeds - 1tsp
Salt - to taste
Cilantro - for garnish

Method:
- Prepare the Sprouts: Heat 2tsp oil in a pressure cooker; add onion and cook until it turns translucent. Next add all the other ingredients and mix well. Add 3-4cups of water and cook for 3-4 whistles or until the beans are completely cooked. If not using a pressure cooker, then cook in the pan for around 30 minutes.
- Make Spicy Gravy: Heat 1tbsp oil in a pan, add onions, ginger and garlic, saute until onions turn slightly browned around the edges. Next add ground cumin, coriander, chopped tomatoes and grated coconut. Cook till tomatoes turn mushy. Let the mixture cool a little bit. Then grind it to a paste.
- Heat 2tbsp oil in a pan, add mustard seeds and once the seeds start to splutter, add the ground masala paste, red chili powder and turmeric. Cook until oil starts to leave the sides.
- Now add the cooked beans along with tamarind pulp, goda masala/ garam masala, salt and little water to get a gravy consistency. Usal is now ready.
- To make Misal: Top each serving of Usal with farsan, sev, chiwda, finely chopped onions, cilantro and a squeeze of lemon. Serve with Pav or Chapathi. Enjoy!!
We ate our Misal with homemade Pav (recipe coming up soon). Lets check out what my fellow marathoners have cooked today for BM# 29.

17:12
What a Vegetarian does with a BBQ. Part 2 of a continuing series.
» ‎ A Life (Time) of Cooking

Beautiful wintery days continue, clear skies, sunshine, happy moods. And the trialling of the BBQ continues to see what can be cooked in this no-fuss, not too much washing up, sort of a way. If you haven't see it already, take a look at Part 1 of this BBQ series to see Grilled Fennel with Lemon and Parmesan and Grilled Broccoli with Preserved Lemon. Roasted Carrots with Pomegranate Molasses, BBq'd Cheese on Sourdough, BBQd Caramelised Bananas Continue reading →

14:56
Stuffed Mushroom in the Oven
» ‎ Bong Mom's CookBook

Sometimes I think I am desperate to put every thing I see on my blog. Lovely things. Things that I could have admired, soaked in their beauty and just let them live in my memory. But no, I want them to be here, to share with you all. Like say this cute red tubewell at an arboretum I had refused to visit. Or this Father's Day gift that the girls made. The gift coupon idea was from

12:30
Mango popsicles for summer
» ‎ Ahaar

Lil A's new favorite is ice-cream and Popsicle! He demands one every day now. Considering that he wouldn't even eat ice-cream till he was almost 2, this is quite a turn-around. When we ran out of his recent stock, I casually mentioned to him that we should make some popsicle at home. I shouldn't have, or at least I shouldn't have till I had all the ingredients to make it right then!

For the next two weeks he asked me, much like the 'Are we there yet?'Verizon guy, "when are we making the popsicle?" He planted this bug in my head. I became all excited about trying to make popsicles at home. I ordered the mold and set to work with him one Friday afternoon and we had popsicles ready by the time we went for a playdate with Nina.

The evening was well-spent in the company of mango popsicles. Nina, her brother, and parents and all of us enjoyed our very own homemade mango popsicles.

The last one was shared the next day by Aswin, Lil A and me. Lil A was so excited about getting his turn that he would yell "to me, to me," instead of "me too, me too."

We are already planning colors and flavors for the next round. I can see a tasty summer before us.

Ingredients:
(makes 10 popsicles)
2 1/2 mangoes - I used fresh Indian mangoes, you can also use frozen mangoes
1 cup whole milk
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup condensed milk

Method:
Cut and chop all the mangoes
Add them in the blender and make it a smooth paste or a chunky one depending on your taste.
Put them in the mold and freeze it for atleast 5-6 hours. Overnight is better.
Run the mold under cold water (no hot water) until the sticks loosen. Enjoy the taste of summer!

11:12
Toasted Couscous Salad (with spicy yogurt dressing)
» ‎ Stories from an Indian Kitchen!!

A quick post with a very simple recipe. Toasted couscous salad with cucumber and apples is kind of perfect for a hot day. You can vary the veggies and fruits in this recipe to suit your needs easily. Don't like or have green chillies, use some cayanne or black pepper or omit altogether. Whatever you do, it tastes just fine. One Year Back - Eggless Vanilla Bundt cake Two Years Back - Baby Shower Cake Three Years Back - Quinoa Chickpeas Pulav Ingredients: Israeli couscous - 2 cups...

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6:04
Sweet Corn Chicken Soup
» ‎ Sailus Food

Sweet corn chicken soup is a classic soup among Indo Chinese recipes. An easy soup recipe made with cream style corn and shredded chicken is very flavorful. The post Sweet Corn Chicken Soup appeared...

Read rest of the story at my blog, http://sailusfood.com.

5:19
What are some good nutrient dense foods to feed my vegan 19 month old son?
» ‎ Sugar and Spices

Question by LadyWhite: What are some good nutrient dense foods to feed my vegan 19 month old son? Trying to keep it interesting… Plenty of fat… He loves a bit of spice as well Best answer: Answer by Alli Wmy little vegheads really like veggie chili chalked full of every bean i can put in [...]

4:17
Goodbye Terrible Twos and Welcome Troublesome Threes! Happy 3rd Birthday to My Darling Lil Dumpling....
» ‎ Passionate about Life 'n Spice...

My dearest, darling, little menace Lil Dumpling,You are going to be THREE this Sunday! Let’s get over with the cliché first, “How time flies!” Holy macaroni, when did you turn 3?! Seriously!!!...

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4:05
Sorakaya Kofta Curry | Lauki ka Kofta Curry ~ Side Dish for Roti
» ‎ Cooking 4 all Seasons

The week passed up quite quickly, with the school reopened for the kids and things became hectic again. This weekend went off as quickly it came in and I didn't' do my usual elaborate meal.
Today's Kofta curry is made with Bottle gourd and the gravy came out very well. I guess this is a recipe that Amma saw in some channel or something. Both Amma and Athamma watch these TV Cookery shows without fail. And when I get back home, it's really so funny hearing what all these chef do in the name of innovation. Not only impressing the audience, but making them their mouthpiece is a commendable job. Meaning Athamma peaches their recipes so much and tells me that I should try it out. I tell her that I have so many recipes yet to make, I surely wouldn't want to try from the shows.
Anyway coming to the recipe, here's a delicious and low cal kofta curry, that makes a great side dish for rotis. Sorakkai Kofta Curry

For the Koftas:

Grated Bottle gourd - 1 cup
Wheat flour - 1/2 cup
Besan / Gram Flour - 1/2 cup
cooking soda a pinch
Salt to taste
Red chili powder - 1/2 tsp

Grate the bottle gourd, squeeze the excess water.

Take the squeezed out bottle gourd in a bowl, along with the rest of the ingredients. Mix it all together.

Now add the squeezed out water and slowly make a dough that's stiff. Divide into small balls, making sure it doesn't break up. Steam cook for 10 mins.

Once done, shallow fry for couple of mins. Keep it aside.

For the gravy

Cooking oil - 2 tsp
Ginger Garlic paste - 3/4 tsp
Green chili, chopped
Tomato puree - 2 cups
Red chli powder - 1 tsp
Salt to taste
corn flour paste - 1 tsp with 1 cup water
coriander leaves

In a bowl, mix the corn flour in a cup of water to a lumpless liquid.

In a non stick pan, heat oil, saute the ginger garlic paste, along with green chilies. Next add the tomato puree, red chili powder and salt. Bring to a boil. Now pour the corn flour mix.

Simmer and let it thicken.

When the gravy is cooked and thick enough, add the fried koftas and garnich with coriander leaves.
Check out what Vaishali and Champa have made for their weekend.

0:08
Chocolate Gulab Jamun | How to make Chocolate Gulab Jamun
» ‎ Spice your Life

After seeing that the Chocolate Kalakand was a hit, I started thinking what else can be twisted with chocolate. When my relatives visited us, I thought of making gulab jamuns. However I didn't get time and those ready mix packets were lying around still. When the idea came to mind, I was so happy that I could do something new with the old stuff.

I knew my kids won't eat gulab jamuns, so making it with chocolate, I was sure they will love it. Since it was a sweet I safely thought I could do it once they go to sleep. The many memories of Amma making it late night came to mind. Since childhood, all birthdays and special festivals are marked with Gulab Jamun making. Amma always used to make it late night and by morning, I would eagerly wake up to see those fried balls turned as monsters after dunking all the syrup.

In all her experience of making gulab jamun, I don't think we have ever had a failed experience. And the batch used to last couple of days depending on the occasion. I like it cold and hot as well. I was surprised that though I practically grew up with this sweet, I have never made in my kitchen with a ready mix, other than the times I made for Indian Cooking Challenge. During this challenge, I had made from the scratch each time I made.

Thinking of this sweet, also reminds me of my friend who made it for the first time when we were kids. She thought one has to roll out the balls big before frying and soak. So she made huge balls and soaked. Once these got soaked, they turned out to be tennis balls! We had such fun teasing her on her experiment.
So using a ready mix was a first time experience for myself. When I had set up to make, I was debating if I should use melted chocolate or Cocoa powder. I settled with Cocoa powder with a chocolate bit as a stuffing. I knew somehow adding the cocoa might make the dough sticky. As expected it did towards the end. Care should be taken to add water little by little to get a stiff dough.

My brother's family had come down the day I made this and the kids were so busy. I hurriedly packed some for my colleagues and they were surprised that I would think of such combinations. Everything was licked clean, with some comments like they didn't know if it was halwa or gulab jamun. One batch towards the end, got disintegrated into the sugar syrup and I didn't remove it out.

After knowing that the taste was awesome, I offered to my kids and I was so glad that both Konda and Peddu loved it. Chinnu refused to eat though being tempted to note that it was chocolate. However after the first gulp, he was sticking to my side. Konda pointed out to me that maybe Chinnu wants another bite. I saw Chinnu nodding his head and looking sheepishly wanting another bite. So you know end of the story, the entire bowl was finished within minutes. I had to tell my friends that what they tasted was the last of the chocolate gulab jamun. And the next will happen if I make it again. Surprisingly hubby dear who doesn't like anything twisted or fusion, said this was very good.

Chocolate Gulab Jamun

Ingredients Needed:

For the Jamun

Readymade Gulab Jamun Mix - 1 packet (250 gms)
Cocoa powder - 3 tsp
Dark Chocolate bits for the stuffing
Water - 1/4 cup for every 1 cup mix

For the Sugar Syrup

Sugar - 200 gms
Water just enough to cover
Cardamon powder

Oil for Deep frying
Ghee - 2 tbsp to be added to the cooking oul while deep frying

How to prepare Chocolate Gulab Jamun

In a wide bowl, empty the gulab jamun mix. I measured it out to be 2 & 1/2 cups.

Add cocao powder and mix well. Now slowly add water by 1/4 cup and knead to a soft and pliable dough. Let it rest for 10 mins.

Heat a kadai with oil and ghee, Keep it on low.

For the Sugar Syrup

In a pan, take the sugar and mix with water. Bring to boil, remove scum if any. Then again cook for 15 mins on medium flame. As such for this syrup, we are not particular about the thread consistency. The sugar should boil for 15 mins in low flame.

Once done, cover with lid and keep it ready.

Frying the Gulab Jamuns.

Divide the mix into small balls, stuff the chocolate bits in between and enclose it well and gently drop into the oil. Make sure the oil is on low - medium flame.

Fry in batches for best results. And flip it on all sides to cook the balls to colour.

Once it's done, it takes about 3 -4 mins or less, drop the fried balls into the simmering sugar syrup.

Notes:

Since these jamuns are dark in colour, it's quite hard to make out when these are cooked. So check it out for 3 - 4 mins. It should be done.

Also once the syrup is made, continue to keep it on flame when you are dropping the fried balls.

Once all the balls are fried, let it soak in the sugar syrup for a while. Most we keep it overnight.

Sending this to Kalyani who is hosting my Kid's Delight Event, themed on Kids Party Ideas.
I am sure kids would love these chocolate twists!

Check out the Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing BM# 29

June 17, 2013
19:23
Zucchini and Spinach Savory Pancakes with Harissa
» ‎ Daily Musings

Zucchini and summer time go together. It seems easy to grow and I have read and heard stories of people running away from their neighbors and friends because of the generosity that comes when you...

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17:30
Vaal dal Khichdi
» ‎ Cook's Hideout

Blogging Marathon# 29: Week 3/ Day 2
Theme: Course Wise Meal from any State - Maharashtra/ Lunch Dishes
Dish: Vaal Dal Khichdi
Day 2 of BM# 29 and I'm doing 'Maharashtrian cuisine-Lunch dishes' theme. Today's dish is also another one-pot meal, but this time its a legume and rice combination, Vaal Dal Khichdi. Nupur @ One hot Stove is one of my favorite bloggers and she happens to be a Maharashtrian. So I have perused her blog a lot for this week's theme :-)
When I saw her post for Vaal Khichdi, I went out and bought Vaal dal to make the dish. Vaal is slightly bitter, but the addition of tamarind and jaggery tames it a little bit in this dish. My 5 year old didn't dig the bitterness, but I enjoyed it quite a bit. So thanks to Nupur for introducing a new legume.
Read more »

5:33
Spicy Egg Fry
» ‎ Aayi's Recipes

5 years ago, if someone had told me I would be a big fan of cast iron, I would have laughed. “There is no way” I would have said. I had this myth in my mind that cast iron takes a lot of oil. The first entry of cast iron …
The post Spicy Egg Fry appeared first on Aayi's Recipes.

4:58
Mango kalakand recipe | how to make mango burfi -- mango recipes
» ‎ Creative saga...

Mango burfi was on my to do list.I have had them a number of times from sweet shops in India and always loved the prominent taste of mango in them. Its years since I...

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1:02
Easy Vegetable Biryani Recipe (Pressure Cooker-Rice Cooker Method)
» ‎ For The Cook In Me
I always turn to my trusted rice cooker when it comes to making an easy vegetable biryani on a busy weeknight or lazy weekend. Biryani is often seen as time-consuming and needing many ingredients but it needn't be that way. Often, I just make this one-pot, healthy, and easy vegetable biryani with whatever vegetables I have in hand and it makes a wholesome meal with some raita and papad. I have quite a few different biryani recipes in here so check it out if you want some variety.

So if you are not a biryani purist (and for my sake, I hope you are not!), then this one-pot vegetable biryani that you can make in your pressure cooker or rice cooker may be just the thing you need in your life. I use store-bought biryani masala because I am not the kind pf person who makes biryani masala at home but you can use freshly ground spices if you are feeling up to it. I have done that once or twice but find that biryani masala works just as well. Another option is to temper with whole spices which would give your biryani a much lighter colour but it would taste awesome either ways.

VEGETABLE BIRYANI RECIPE (RICE COOKER METHOD) Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 30 minutes
Serves 4

Ingredients:
- 1 cup of basmati or any long-grained rice
- 2 cups of mixed vegetables, chopped (I use what I have in hand - broccoli, carrots, beans, cauliflower, peas, corn, baby corn, capsicum, etc)
- 2 tsp of biryani masala (or 3 cloves, 3 cardamom, 1" piece cinnamon, 1 star anise)
- 1 fistful of mint leaves
- 1 small bunch of coriander leaves (cilantro)
- 1/2 tsp of turmeric powder
- 1/2 tsp of cumin seeds
- 1 tsp of coriander powder
- 2-3 green chillies, minced
- 1 tsp of red chilli powde (adjust to taste)
- 2 large onions, sliced
- 1/2 cup of curd (optional)
- 1 tbsp of ghee
- A few cashew nuts or almonds (optional)
- 1 tsp of ginger garlic paste
How to Make Veg Biryani in Rice Cooker:

0. Wash the rice and and soak it in some water while you go about with the rest of the preparations.

1. Heat the ghee in a wide pan and roast the nuts (if using) Drain and add the sliced onions and roast until golden brown. Set aside half of it and add ginger garlic paste. Saute until fragrant.

2. Next, add the green chillies, chilli powder, turmeric, coriander powder, cumin, and some salt. Saute until the spices are roasted - about 1 minute.

3. Top off with the chopped vegetables and mix well. Add the biryani masala and the chopped mint and coriander leaves (see notes on how to use whole spices).

4. Transfer this to your rice cooker pan and add about 2 cups water and the curd - the measurements will vary according to rice cooker used - and the soaked rice. (See notes for pressure cooker biryani method)

5, When the rice is done, open immediately and give it a good stir-through when still hot. Add the reserved roasted nuts and onions. Garnish with more coriander leaves and sprinkle some lemon juice if desired.

Serve with papad or chips and a nice cooling raita.

Notes:
1. If using whole spices instead of the biryani masala, add it first to the hot ghee and then roast the onions. You will also need to increase the amounts of cumin and coriander powder to make sure the spice levels are right. Of course, adapt this to personal preference
2. If using the pressure cooker, I highly recommend only cooking for about 2 whistles, otherwise the vegetables will turn to mush. I generally use the rice cooker for vegetable biryani and it gives great results
3. A biryani is one of those dishes where you need to play around with the ingredients and make it your own. Don't be afraid to experiment, I always do and my vegetable biryanis never look or taste the same every time
For more recipes, visit www.cookingandme.com

June 16, 2013
22:20
Does anyone have any home made ketchup, mayo, and mustard.?
» ‎ Sugar and Spices

Question by ohyeah: Does anyone have any home made ketchup, mayo, and mustard.? I can’t use any type of sugar or honey due to Candida problems. Thanks!!! Best answer: Answer by Mrs. Synyster Gatesketchup: tomato paste vinegar salt touch of onion powder abit of water to make it thinner What do you think? Answer below!

21:18
Crunchy Maple Cinnamon Coconut Granola | Breakfast Foods
» ‎ Annarasa
I have always loved granola and Swiss style muesli - they are the go to breakfast or even snack for me. Until some years back I would always have a box both in my pantry. Then I started making oats for breakfast and I came to love porridge with warmed milk, honey, and fruit. Cooked oats are especially great on cold winter mornings - hearty, filling, and so tasty.

Summer however is a whole different time around here. Its so hot on some days, I'd just rather eat a cup of yogurt and fruit than to even attempt setting foot in the kitchen. So in the summer I make granola. Easy to make and store, it makes for the perfect summer breakfast with chilled milk. Slice some nectarines, apricots, or strawberries and you will jump out of bed every morning just for the pleasure of digging into this healthy treat.

Ingredients:
4 cups oats (old-fashioned)
3/4 cup coconut flakes
3/4 cup almonds, chopped
1/4 tsp salt
3 tbsp olive oil
1/4 cup maple syrup
1/4 cup honey
1 tsp cinnamon, ground

Method:
1. Place the oil, maple syrup, and honey in a small saucepan. Warm gently until all are blended. Set aside.
2. In a large mixing bowl, bring together the oats, coconut flakes, chopped almonds, ground cinnamon, and salt. Toss to distribute all ingredients evenly.
3. Pour the blended syrups over this dry mix and toss to ensure that it coats all ingredients.
4. Spread the mix on a large baking sheet and bake in a preheated oven at 275 F for about and hour.
5. Remove from the oven. Cool completely. Save in glass jars.
6. The granola will be good for up to 3 months.
7. Enjoy with chilled milk.
Good to Know
- If you cannot find maple syrup, replace it with an equal amount of soft brown sugar. Ensure that it is completely melted in step 2 before pouring it over the dry ingredients.
- At 275 F the granola should not begin to over-brown at the edges. However, if you like, remove the baking tray from the oven at the 40 minute mark. Using a large heat proof spatula, move the granola around so as to redistribute it on the tray. Continue baking for the remaining 20 minutes.
Vegan Substitute: Replace the honey in this recipe with an equal amount of agave nectar or brown sugar or brown rice syrup.

Like this recipe. Tried it. Leave me a comment:)

All content, text and photographs in this blog, unless otherwise noted, are Copyright of © Annarasa 2007 - 2013. All Rights Reserved. Kindly do not reproduce without permission.

17:30
Maharashtrian Masala Bhath
» ‎ Cook's Hideout

Blogging Marathon# 29: Week 3/ Day 1
Theme: Course Wise Meal from any State - Maharashtra/ Lunch Dishes
Dish: Masala Bath
Today we start 3rd week of Blogging Marathon (BM# 29) and my theme for this week is 'Course Wise Meal from any State'. I wanted to try dishes from Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra or Uttar Pradesh. Luckily I found a newspaper cutout with Maharashtrian recipes that my MIL got for me 3 years ago.
For the first day I made Masala bath from the paper. It is a one-pot dish, that is spicy, filling and packed with vegetables. I love these kind of dishes where you put all the ingredients in one pot and don't have to worry about side dishes, convenient for weeknight meals.
Read more »

16:54
Banana Dippers for you and Dad
» ‎ Indian Food Rocks

So much for posting once a week! But, remember that I said we hit the ground running in June? We did.

Fathers with their children
Happy Father's Day!
Read on...Contents & images copyright © 2003 - 2013
Indian Food Rocks
http://www.indianfoodrocks.com

11:30
Chocolate Kalakand | How to make Chocolate Kalakand
» ‎ Spice your Life

We are starting the third week in Blogging Marathon. I am going to be sharing one of my kids favourite ingredient cooked in different avatars, yet it blended so well that it goes to show that one can't get just enough of this. Yes I am talking about Chocolate. Many months ago, when I was browsing something I saw that Sanjeev Kapoor had released his new book on Chocolate, and it supposedly had Indian twists to it. Well I was hooked to the thought and decided I would surely try my hand at making some Indian sweets with Chocolate twist.
My first try was making the Chocolate Shrikhand. I simply loved it, of course Konda liked it though I know it would take a while for the boys to get used to Shrikhand. Having said this, this must be one of those themes that I planned on making soon and knew it would be easy to make these without fear.
The chance came when we decided to visit my sil's place. I always bake cookies for them and mostly on the previous night. We mostly leave early morning and imagine making this at midnight and hoping it would set. As it was just us at home, we had overflow of milk and somehow I realised that I should make use of the milk instead of baking new cookies.

Chocolate Kalakand

My adventure with 6 litres of milk on that day was amazing. First I made paneer with 3 litres, set out to make the other dish, however made a mistake. So had to slash it into the fridge to be handled later as Kalakand. I had decided to make Chocolate Kalakand, for the simple reason that boys won't touch if it was a white sweet. With the remaining 3 litres of milk, I asked Konda to help me with the dish. I will be sharing the details much later of course.
Now proceeding with the story, the paneer that had sugar already mixed was quite hard, having been in the fridge for more than 6 hrs. I proceeded to make Kalakand in microwave as there is nothing to beat this method. After ensuring this will set, I had set it on the table and went to sleep. Imagine my joy when these got cut as pieces so beautifully. So there was that last moment click for the final shot! To say that everybody loved the sweets I took, was an understatement. I have always been thankful for the appreciation and warmth my relatives show, when I bake cookies for them. However these sweets got me much more. Because Athamma was so proudly telling her relatives that I always bake biscuits for them, so I made these sweets instead for a change. With a crowd of 20+, including some 7 kids, it's not a wonder that the sweets got over the same day. I was one happy person, to say the least!
Now for the most delicious sweet that one can make. You can make it the same way as I originally made the Kalakand. The dish I share today is a modified one because of the mishap. I had cooked paneer and sugar together for a while. Then proceeded to make this sweet as the other dish didn't turn out. Anyway I must say this surely unforgiving sweet.

Chocolate Kalakand Recipe

Homemade Paneer – made from 3 litres milk)
Milk powder – 1 cup
Sugar - 2 -3 cups
Condensed Milk – 200 gms
Cocoa powder - 3 tbsp
Cardamom powder a pinch
Pistachio handful
Clarified Butter – 1 tsp

Method to prepare:
Check out my normal way of making Kalakand in Microwave
However since I had paneer that already had the sugar mixed in, I add milk powder, condensed milk, cocoa powder and made.
In a microwave safe bowl, take paneer, milk power, cardamom powder, mix. Finally add half tin of condensed milk. Micro for 4 mins and 30 secs.
Remove and add the cocoa powder, 1 tbsp of ghee. Mix well and put it back. Micro for 1 min more.
Remove and pour over a greased pan. Sprinkle finely slivered pistas. Let it cool down completely before cutting into small pieces.
It takes about 30 -40 mins to cool down to be cut into pieces.

Notes:
I have listed the steps as I normally make the kalakand in mw. However in this recipe, I had cooked paneer and sugar together for 5 - 7 mins. So the process was even more simplified and I adjusted the sweetness based on the sugar content as found.
If you are in a hurry to eat off, you don’t have to wait for it to cool down. I know the hot kalakand will be very delicious, similar to our palkova.
I had cooked it a bit more to make sure the shape sets in. I used a greased square pan to set the kalakand
I set it overnight or rather 5 hrs or so.

The best part was seeing Peddu and Chinnu enjoying this. They don't eat Indian Sweets and since this was chocolate, they didn't even say no. It was all thumbs up for the dish!

Sending this to Kalyani who is hosting my Kid's Delight Event, themed on Kids Party Ideas.
I am sure kids would love these chocolate twists!

Check out the Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing BM# 29

11:08
Split Moong Dhal and Green Peas Dosa
» ‎ Spicy Tasty
Looking for some easy, tasty and new recipe???? This Split Moond Dal and Green Dosa is a healthy and tasty recipe which will taste like Pesarattu. But it is less time consuming and it is something different than a usual Dosa. Thanks to my cousin for this wonderful recipe.

Time of Preparation : 40 minutes
No of Servings : 2
Spice level : 2 out of 5

Ingredients:
- Split Moong Dhal – 1/2 cup
- Green Peas ( I have used frozen) – 1/2 cup
- Ginger (chopped) 2 tsp
- Green chillies – 2
- Salt – to taste
- Oil – 6 to 8 tsp
For Seasoning:
- Oil – 2 tsp
- Cumin seeds – 1 tsp
- Onions (finely chopped) – 1/4 cup
Method of Preparation:
1. Soak the the split moong dal at least for half an hour.
2. If your using fresh green peas, boil it until soft and keep it aside.
3. If you are using frozen green peas just microwave it for 2 minutes and keep it aside.
4. Now grind the moong dhal with green chillies and ginger until smooth.
5. Now add the green peas and grind them to a smooth consistency.
6. Heat oil in a pan and add the cumin seeds and onions.
7. Fry till the onions become soft and add to the Moong Dhal and Green peas batter.
8. Add required amount of salt and check if the batter is of regular Dosa batter consistency.
9. Make round shape of around 6″ diameter and add a tsp of oil.
10. When they turn golden brown turn the other side.
11. Leave it for 2 minutes until it is done.
12. Tasty green peas dosas are ready.
13. Serve hot with Coconut chutney or Peanut chutney or even with Idly podi.

0:09
TRADITIONAL ENGLISH BREAD AND BUTTER PUDDING
» ‎ IN LOVE WITH FOOD

The weather has changed dramatically...fresh, sunny, summery salads have given way to more substantial, heavier comforting foods as it rains incessantly outside...comfort food calls out..
Can we leave indulging the sweet tooth behind? Todays recipe is perfect for misty monsoon showers...sweet, cinnamony, thick, buttery and warming...

Ingredients-
8 slices white bread with crusts- cut in halves
(Any type of leftover bread can be used)
2 large tbsp soft yellow butter
1/2 cup powdered sugar
2 cups full cream milk
2 large eggs
A large pinch cinnamon
A pinch of nutmeg
Handful of raisins/ sultanas
1/2 tsp vanilla essence ( optional)

Method-
Butter the bread and arrange half of it in an overlapping way on to a buttered ovenproof dish. Preheat oven to 180 C.
In a large bowl combine eggs and sugar and beat well, slowly pour the milk and then the rest of the ingredients.
Pour over the arranged bread slices and cover with remaining buttered bread, pour rest of milk and egg mixture on top, bake for half an hour till browned and bubbly.
Serve warm with clotted cream.

June 15, 2013
18:30
Blogging Marathon # 30 - 3 Day Marathon for 4 weeks!
» ‎ Spice your Life
As months roll on themselves, we find ourselves going to plan for the 30th Edition of Blogging Marathon. This won't have been possible if not for my energetic friends without their enthusiasm for all sorts of crazy themes I come up with.

The best compliment and something that made me so happy was when PJ told me that she has her this page ready and keeps checking for the announcement. She eagerly waits for the themes to be announced and it feels like giving your exams. I was so touched with her words. Of course each of the BM members show such dedication and commitment to their themes, that I try to push myself to get the best theme possible.

Now before I digress and keep talking for hours, let me proceed!

For those of you who are landing here for the first time, then please check out these posts on Blogging Marathon, you can read about all the history, the thought process that's gone in everything in one place in the BM#18 intro
For details on BM held every month, check out the Blogging Marathon page. Once I get all details I will be updating this page. Bloggers taking part in this marathon need to just link back to this page.
The entry is again by Sign ups and each theme will again have only 4 bloggers on first come first basis.
And because of the new rules I will not be able to accept late sign ups as it will become extremely hard for me to manage otherwise. If you feel you want to do it, please decide ahead, else you can join later.
Commenting on the week blogger's post is mandatory.
And subscription to the group will be monthly basis.
If you want to know how the Blogging Marathon started, read the first edition
So the 30th edition will 3, 4, 5 July 10, 11, 12 July 17, 18, 19 July
24, 25, 26 July
Please email me at spicingyourlife@gmail.com latest by 23rd June along with your theme.
FYI: Requests to join after 23rd June will not be accepted.
Mandatory rules for this Blogging Marathon are as below:
- Should take up 2 weeks of BM without fail. It can be any two weeks.
- Will have to post on all 3 days with 2 weeks without fail
- Same theme can't be taken by one blogger.
- Should follow the accepted theme all 3 days, meaning if you choose one topic like Rice, you should post all rice based recipes all 3 days.
- Should link to the Blogging Marathon page.
- Is expected to actively give feedback on others post.
- Mandatory reading and commenting on fellow participating member.
Each theme can be selected by four bloggers on first come first bases.
Other rules will be mailed to the individuals.
Themes for BM # 30th will be the following:
Since having this theme is to make sure my Kid's Delight event gets good entries, I thought it makes sense to have two themes based on the hosting time.
Kid's Delight - Finger food for Kids Party (3,4,5 and 10,11,12) Kid's Delight - Summer Special (17,18,19 and 24,25,26)
Please note Kid's delight posts be it for the BM theme or the event, needs to be kid approved. Which means you get your kid, your young relatives or neighbors approve what you have made. Would surely appreciate a note on who liked it and their age group. This way we can tag it properly.
Another thing can be that you as a kid liked the particular dish. Else it will not be eligible for both the events.

Kid's Delight - Finger Food for Kids Party (3,4,5 and 10,11,12)
Kid's Delight Edition for June will be hosted by Kalyani. She is calling all moms to make Finger Food for Kids party. Finger Food as you know is anything that are individually served or handled by hand. So ideally all mini versions that will suit the little ones will be great. I guess you can make both sweet and savory!
Kid's Delight - Summer Special (17,18,19 and 24,25,26)
Mireille who is going to host the next edition wants to do a Summer Special.

With the heat of summer, she decided that it would be great to serve some Room Temperature/Chilled Foods. Basically, any food not served hot - anything from sandwiches and salads to ice cream, chilled desserts and smoothies.

Cooking with Curds

Has to be used as a savory dish. can be a gravy, rice, dal

Dallying with Dumplings

Dumplings are cooked balls of dough. They are based on flour, potatoes or bread, and may include meat, fish, vegetables, or sweets. They may be cooked by boiling, steaming, simmering, frying, or baking. They may have a filling, or there may be other ingredients mixed into the dough.

Dumplings may be sweet or savoury. They can be eaten by themselves, in soups or stews, with gravy, or in any other way. While some dumplings resemble solid water-boiled doughs, such as gnocchi, others such as wontons resemble meatballs with a thin dough covering.

Again you can't do only fried dumpling for all days, it has to be one method each day!

Combo Dishes

There is something special about certain dishes being paired. While most dishes in Indian cuisine is always paired with something or the other, there are specific ones that are famous. I requested my BM friends to share their cuisine combo dishes and we nearly hit on 106 such dishes. Some were something I have never heard.

So I decided to pick about 15 dishes from the list. And you can select any 3 and do this theme. Recipe is yours, however it has to follow the cuisine specific. Meaning if you are going to do Adai Avial, which is a specialty of Tamil Nadu, you got to follow the cuisine rules.

There are some very common dishes I only hope everybody won't end up doing Kadhi Chawal!

Adai Avial
Daal Moong Satpuro
Tonak -Pav
Matar poori with aalu ki subzi
Stuffed dal poori with Alalu ki subzi
Kadhi chawal
Puttu Kadalai curry
Fritatas with garlic bread
thavala vada-coconut chutney
vathakulambhu-keerai kuttu
sodhi-inji puli
Bun Samosa
Rasgulla with Rabdi
Peas kachori -Dum aloo
Poori Aamras

Tea Kadai Menu

As in any state, Tamil Nadu has it's own specific dishes that are featured in the roadside tea shop. The list may run a long line, however I have shorten to just these.

In one of the FB groups that I am member, I saw a menu card that listed out this. So this theme is inspired from that Menu card and I hope there are many takers for this theme. I know couple of sets are quite hard, so I included two simpler ones. Again I hope people don't settle for simpler things. Like Masala Vada and Samosas are not allowed!..:)...I simply gave this because a roadside tea shop is incomplete with these dishes!

Each day should be from one of the list:

1. Butter Biscuits, Kelveragu Biscuits, Rusk
2. Kamarkattu, Jav Mittai, Seeni Mittai,
3. Pattani Kasalai, Ver Kadalai, Uppu Kadali
4. Kadali Urundai, Ellu Unrundai, Pori Unundai,
5. Bread Butter Jam, Coconut cream bun
6. Masala Vada, Onion Bajji, Samosa,

Eg: The dishes can be Butter Biscuits, Seeni Mittai, Bread Butter Jam

All the posts should be posted along with Tea/ Coffee.

Get it Rolled!

Any dish that's either served as a roll or cooked as a roll.

Example Seek Kabab, Almond rolls.

Again it can't be just sweets on all days. Each day should feature one category.

Savory Baked Dishes

As the name says you can bake savory dishes and it can be cakes, cookies, casseroles, pies etc

Special Theme - Do three weeks and for the 4th week you get to do the special theme.
Your native special recipes: The recipe can be anything, any category. Only thing is it has to be your native special.

This is accepted only for the 4th week (and should have done all three previous weeks).
******************************** Please spread the details if you want your friends to be part of this marathon.
Let's gear up for another non stop blogging!

15:23
Q&A: what can i use as a preservative for gelatin?
» ‎ Sugar and Spices

Question by thunder_chunky: what can i use as a preservative for gelatin? i need to find a preservative for a gelatin mixture, i am making some ballistics gel and i need something to preserve it for at the most 2 months. i can’t freeze it and i can’t find oil of wintergreen. i have heard [...]

8:24
Mango icecream recipe | Easy icecream recipes | No machine required
» ‎ Creative saga...

I have never really tried making icecream at home. Infact I buy it rarely too.My mom used to make icecreams at home,no fancy flavours and all. It used...

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June 14, 2013
17:39
What a Vegetarian does with a BBQ. Part 1 of a continuing series.
» ‎ A Life (Time) of Cooking

My beautiful and precious daughter and her family gave me a BBQ for my birthday this year. I must admit to being a bit perplexed with the thought of a BBQ -- what on earth would I use it for besides the odd bit of haloumi and, well, it does whole grilled eggplants really really well. Last week I spent a day cooking using the BBQ. I am convinced now, and life in The Kitchen will never be the same. :) The BBQ is one of those with a cover, so you can grill or bake or roast. With it came a vegetable basket, a hotplate for things like onions, and a pizza stone. See recipes for Broccoli with Lemon, Fennel with Parmesan, Roasty BBQd Potatoes, Whole Pumpkin. Continue reading →

17:00
Dapka Kadhi (Gujarati Kadhi with Moong dal Dumplings)
» ‎ Cook's Hideout

It has been quite some time that I made anything for Indian Cooking Challenge. When I see Valli's email announcing the dish of the month, I get excited and plan on making it, but some time between the announcement and the actual date of posting I either completely forget about it or don't find the time to make it.
Anyway I didn't want to miss this month's challenge because kadhi is one of my favorite dishes, But I don't make it often because my husband doesn't eat milk/ yogurt based dishes and so I avoid making them when he's around. Lucky for me, he's been travelling and I went ahead and made this yummy kadhi with moong dal dumplings.
Read more »

15:55
Bhetki Macher Kalia Jhol and story of Jamai Shoshthi
» ‎ Bong Mom's CookBook

Bhetki Macher Jhol Tomorrow, today Friday is Jamai Shoshthi. My Ma had called last week and then again yesterday night, lamenting the fact that she will not be there to feed her jamai--son-in-law-- a rich sumptuous meal on the day. Staying far away, she is robbed of this pleasure most years. If I am honest, neither the jamai nor me miss it all that much. Going on a cooking frenzy, on a hot

12:19
Summer Avocado, Cucumber, and Olive Salad | Farmers' Market Days
» ‎ Annarasa
Saturday mornings during the summer months are reserved for a round of the Farmer's Market!! Its fun to walk around the square, looking for fresh local produce, munching on a bakery item while sipping coffee. Farmer's Markets are truly a family affair around here. Farming families selling their wares and city families hunting for salad greens, honey, maple syrup, and cheese.

The first time I visited the Market I was both surprised and delighted at its size and the variety of goods available. I remember seeing for the first time the Amish shops selling the most amazing looking baked goodies from fresh fruit pies to breads and chocolates. The doughnut seller with countless different glazed home made doughnuts, and the varieties of cheese - from goat's cheese to blue cheese all made locally within a 100 mile radius. But what excited me most were the fresh vegetables and leafy greens - especially the tomatoes, bell peppers, arugula, amaranth, and kale! Vegetables that are perfect for salads!!

Today's recipe is a fresh salad made partially from locally sourced produce - an avocado salad with crisp cucumbers, tomatoes,crunchy onions, and olives!! Season with lime juice, salt, pepper, and parsley and you have the perfect accompaniment for pizza, calzones, or even pasta.

Ingredients:
2 avocados
1 cup grape tomatoes, halved
1 cucumber, cubed
3/4 cup black olives, quartered
1/2 medium onion, diced
1/4 cup parsley, minced
Salt to taste
1/2 tsp black pepper powder
Juice of 1/2 key lime

Method:
1. Halve the avocados, remove the stone, then the peel. Cube roughly.
2. Place the cucumber, onion, olives, and tomato in a large mixing bowl.
3. Add all the seasonings and mix well.
4. Throw in the chopped avocados .
5. Stir gently to ensure that they are evenly spread.
6. Enjoy immediately.
Food Event: Healthy Diet - Diabetic Friendly Recipes @ Priya's Versatile Recipes.
Vegan Recipe

Like this recipe. Tried it. Leave me a comment:)

All content, text and photographs in this blog, unless otherwise noted, are Copyright of © Annarasa 2007 - 2013. All Rights Reserved. Kindly do not reproduce without permission.

11:51
Corn Tacos with Mexican Slaw & Poblano Dressing
» ‎ Akshayapaatram

Dear Foodies, I've been waiting all year long to share this recipe here. I discovered fresh corn tortilla's and tacos last summer and they were my staple food for a good month or two. But it was way past fresh corn season by the time I got around to putting the recipe together. This year I hope its right not time so you guys can enjoy it as much as I do. Summer in SD is not until July or...

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11:30
Dapka Kadhi ~ Gujarati Special | How to Make Dapka Kadhi | Indian Cooking Challenge - May
» ‎ Spice your Life

For the Indian Cooking Challenge in May, we decided to make Dapka Kadhi, a Gujarati Special.

As always I again have a story to share, this month also I sort of was undecided on what to take up. That's when I ate a very delicious Chili pickle that my colleague's Mom sent across. I immediately wanted to try, however it was getting postponed as her mom was busy. Finally when I did get the recipe, the climate took a turn and became very gloomy. Now a climate that never steps down, becomes dull I decided Gods were not willing me to make this. I was again in square one.
Now I have couple of very dedicated ICC members who always ping me, if I don't announce the challenge. I confess if not for these lovely friends, I might not get so motivated to continue this Challenge. I am so glad that Vaishali mailed me. As usual I told her what I had in mind and since it won't work, asked her to suggest something. She wrote back suggesting Dapka Kadhi ~ Gujarati Recipe. I announced it right away.
Then comes the most interesting part. Nupur, who also joins me every month wrote wanting to know what the challenge was. When I told her that I had suggested Dapka Kadhi, she wrote back saying she had soaked moong dal for making this dish for the dinner. Now this is really psyched is what she said. I would say we had a telepathy! Anyway she shared couple of tips, which unfortunately I couldn't share on the private blog. She said her friend suggested her to add methi seeds to the soaking moong dal. I wanted to make this on the last day. The events at home were so hectic that I found it extremely hard to cook this on time. I had to serve dinner to everybody and ate this finally at 10 pm. I was skeptical on how it might taste, I was blowed by the taste. It was a bit spicy, however the dumplings were so delicious.

I had asked Nupur how it tasted, she also replied that she loved it. And said she uses her own regular Kadhi recipe. I already have made punjabi kadhi, so wanted to see how she makes. Must say it was so yummy.

Definitely a keeper recipe!

Dapka Kadhi
Adapted from Tarla Dalal

Soaking Time: 4 hours
Preparation Time: 5 mins
Cooking Time: 10 mins
Makes 4 servings

Ingredients Needed
1 recipe kadhi (Refer Below)

For The Dapkas

Yellow moong dal (split yellow gram) - 1/2 cup
Oil - 2 tsp
Green Chilies - 2 medium
Garlic - 2 cloves
Ginger 1"
Sugar - 1/4 tsp
Soda a pinch
Salt to taste

For The Garnish
Finely chopped coriander (dhania)

For Serving
Rice

How to make the Dapkas

Soak the moong dal in enough lukewarm water for 3 to 4 hours. Drain and keep aside.

In a mixer, take the drained moong dal along with garlic, ginger and green chilies and blend to a fine paste.

Transfer the mixture to a deep bowl, add sugar, soda bi-carb and salt and mix well. Keep aside.

How to proceed

Just before serving, bring the kadhi to a boil, add the dapka batter a little at a time using your fingertips to form dumplings and simmer for 5 to 7 minutes till the dapkas starts floating on top.
Garnish with coriander and serve hot with rotla.

Tarla Dalal also suggests the following tips

While adding the dapkas, add one dapka and wait for it to float up. If it does not float, this means the batter is too thin. Add a little besan to the dapka batter and try again.

Alternatively, put small dapkas in a small microwave-safe plate and microwave on high for 20 seconds.

For the Kadhi
Adapted from Nupur

Ingredients Needed

Besan - 2 tbsp
Curd, beaten - 1 & 1/2 cup
Water - 4 -5 cups
Salt to taste
Turmeric 1/2 tsp
Red chilli powder, Dry mango powder, Coriander powder - 1 tsp each
Bay leaves 1 - 2
Cumin Seeds - 1/2 tsp
Galic, minced - 2 cloves

For tempering

1/2 tsp Asafoetida, black pepper, mustard seeds, black salt (opt) each
Dried red chillies - 2 long
Onion, sliced thin ( I didn't add) - 1
Curry leaves few
Cooking Oil 1 tsp

How to make the Kadhi

If curd is not sour, mix salt, red chilli powder, turmeric, dry mango powder, coriander powder with the curd and keep aside for 2-3 hours. It will grow sour. If its already sour, mix all the spices for 10 min and keep aside.

Add besan to this mixture and beat really well. There should be no lumps formed in the mixture. Add in some water to get consistency. Will hardly take a minute or two.

In a Kadhai, dry roast the cumin seeds and bay leaves. When they splutter, add the minced garlic and tomato puree and saute for some time on low flame.

At this point, pour in this curd-spice-besan mix with the remaining water. Give a nice stir to combine well. Keep the flame to medium-high. When the Kadhi starts boiling, just turn it to low .

Now after this, let Kadhi keep simmering for next 30 min, so just keep stirring after every 4-5 min to avoid lumps.

Meanwhile, lets prepare the Moong dal paste. When the Kadhi is ready, add the Dapka and let it simmer.

In the another pan, splutter mustard seeds. Add Asafoetida and stir for few sec. Throw in curry leaves, dried red chilies and rest of the spices. Roast on low flame for 30 sec.

Drizzle this tadka over the simmered Kadhi and turn off the flame. If you are adding the onions, heat oil in the same pan and roast onion in that till brown.

Garnish with Coriander leaves / Kasuri Methi and fried onions.

Serve with rice.

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8:31
Raspberry Limeade with honey
» ‎ Daily Musings

DC summer weather is predictably hot, humid and icky. When the mercury hits 90F there are public service announcements to drink water and not to stay in the sun for too long. What a pampered lot I...

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8:20
Q&A: How do i make a dish i’m cooking LESS sour?
» ‎ Sugar and Spices

Question by DeliciousPoop: How do i make a dish i’m cooking LESS sour? I’m making a nice pot of chilli and after a taste test, it tastes quite a bit sour… the only source i could imagine the sourness coming from is the canned tomatoes. The green peppers i seriously doubt added any sour to [...]

6:51
Kerala Egg Roast
» ‎ Sailus Food

Egg roast with Appam is the best breakfast food combination among Kerala style recipes. Nadan egg roast is flavorful and one of the best Indian egg dishes. The post Kerala Egg Roast appeared first on...

Read rest of the story at my blog, http://sailusfood.com.

6:37
Gummadikaya Pulusu or Pumpkin Curry
» ‎ Amma Cheppindi

Gummadikaya Pulusu Ingredients and Proceed: Gummadikaya or Pumpkin - 1 kg (chopped to big bite size pieces with skin on, here I have used dark green skin, pumpkin) Heat a deep flat nonstick pan, add 3 tbsp oil, once hot add 1 tsp Mustard seeds, 1 tbsp Chana Dal, 1 tbsp Urad dal, 2 pinch of Fenugreek seeds, 4 split Red chillies, 1 sprig Curry leaves, 4 slit Green chillies (Indian

0:56
Eggless Milo Cake Loaf | Eggless Baking| Easy Kids Recipe!
» ‎ S A R A' S C O R N E R

I am into baking after very long time. Since its summer holidays for the elder one, he has been asking me to bake muffins, but then when I saw this Eggless cake in Sangee's blog, just changed a few things and tried. It was delicious. Still I am amateur baker, this was a good one.

Ingredients
All Purpose Flour/Maida - 1.5 cups
Milk powder - 1/2 cup
Sugar - 1/2 cup
Baking Soda - 1 tspn
Baking powder - 1/2 tspn
Curds - 3/4 cup
Vanila essence - 1/2 tspn
Milo - 2 tblspns
Olive Oil - 1/2 cup
Salt - generous pinch
Hot water - 1/2 cup(if required)

Preparation Method

Preheat the oven to 350 F, grease the baking tray I used bread tin.
Seive/sift APF, milk powder, baking soda, baking powder, salt, milo and sugar. Mix all well in a bowl.
Now beat the yogurt/curds to smooth, add vanilla essence, mix well.
Add the dry ingredients and mix slowly in one direction.
Finally add olive oil give a quick stir.
Pour in the tray, if you wish you can add chocochips or nuts.
If the batter is too thick add little milk or hot water.

Bake for 30 mins or till the tooth pick comes out clean. I just added gems since my son wanted it.

Eggless Milo Cake Loaf is ready to eat. Serve it for Breakfast with Coffee/Tea.

Notes - Milk powder and Milo are sweet. You can reduce a bit of sugar if you want. NSDJTKZBGKKK

June 13, 2013
23:44
Banana Mango Milkshake Recipe (Vegan Option Included)
» ‎ For The Cook In Me
Banana Mango Milkshake is a delicious and filling breakfast option if you are a lazy cook in the mornings or just want something quick and healthy. I have made a vegan version with coconut milk and a regular milkshake with cow's milk and love both. Take your pick!
This mango season has been very kind to us. Usually, the mangoes we buy in Singapore are average at best and I am nostalgic about the hot Kerala summers and mango memories at this time of the year. But this year, I got amazing mangoes at Mustafa and bought them by the kilo. They are definitely more expensive but oh-so-totally worth it if you are mango lover like it.

I generally don't make fruit milkshakes or smoothies unless I have excess amounts of fruits I need to use up. But this mango banana milkshake was really a wonderful weekend breakfast for TH and I. I got the idea to use coconut milk in my milkshake to make it vegan, from Dassana. I experimented with a bit of coconut milk and didn't mind the taste so went with it on day one. On day two, I just used fresh cow's milk and it was delicious.

I have read and heard about how banana and cow's milk is not a great combination and that it often creates lethargy. I have had my fair share of banana milkshakes (in the form of Sharjah Shakes) and never faced an issue but let's not argue with ayurveda, ok? Try this milkshake with coconut milk and stick to it if you like the taste. Otherwise, just use regular milk, whatever works best for you.

{Also check out this super creamy and delicious Avocado Mango Milkshake Recipe} BANANA MANGO MILKSHAKE RECIPE Preparation time: 5 minutes
Serves 2

Ingredients:
- 1 ripe banana
- 1 ripe mango
- 1 cup of light coconut milk or regular milk
- 2-3 drops of vanilla essence (optional)
- 1 cup of cold water, more or less
How to Make Banana Mango Milkshake:

1. Peel and chop both the fruits. I refrigerated them overnight to keep them chilly.

2. Throw all ingredients into whichever blender you own. I use my stick blender for fruit milkshakes and smoothies and it does a good enough job.

3. Blend away until smooth and of pouring consistency. If too thick, add more coconut milk/milk or water.

That's it. Pour into glasses and serve chilled. You can refrigerate this for about an hour but I highly recommend consuming fresh fruit milkshakes immediately. Add a splash of honey or some sugar if your fruits are not sweet enough.
For more recipes, visit www.cookingandme.com

15:33
Avocado Raita
» ‎ Cook's Hideout

I recently borrowed 'My Indian Kitchen', by Hari Nayak from the library. This is one of the beautiful Indian cookbooks I've ever seen. All the food photos are so colorful and well captured that it makes me want to cook each and every recipe in the book. I've to return it soon, so I'm trying to cook as many dishes as I can.
This avocado raita caught my attention because it sounds so different and tasty. Creamy avocado with yogurt and some spices, that's it--that's all there is to this simple Raita, but it tastes amazing. Author suggests serving it with Kebabs and Rotis, but I've eaten it with rice and just as is -- it tastes great any way.
Read more »

4:54
Patali Gur er Payesh
» ‎ A Mad Tea Party

Some time last year, I was finally able to lay my hands on three beautiful blocks of Patali gur (also called Khejur gur or nolen gur in Bangla) from West Bengal. Even though Sroboshi no longer worked with us in the office in Delhi, she sent the promised gur, that had arrived with her parents […]

June 12, 2013
21:45
Green Chutney for Chaat - Mint Coriander Green Chutney Recipe
» ‎ For The Cook In Me
I have been making green chutney (hari chutney) for years now. This mint coriander green chutney goes with all types of chaat, masala papad - this is the same green chutney or dip Indian restaurants serve with papadas as soon as you sit at your table - a spread for sandwiches, with dhokla and pakoras, heck, I even serve it with South Indian bajjis. One of my favourite ways to use green chutney is in a sandwich with cheese. Just these two ingredients and bread makes for an amazingly quick snack.

The reason why I have never shared the recipe is because the green chutney I make at home wasn't the best. I mean, it still works great with chaat and in sandwiches but I had a feeling it could be better. And so I never bothered sharing my just above-average green chutney recipe here.

Then, Jey, Raks, and I met for tea at Jey's place one day and that's where this story takes a happy turn. She had make dhokla and some green chutney to go with it and it was fabulous! I immediately asked her for the recipe and realised it was Raks' recipe. The missing link between mine and this green chutney was the amount of garlic and the addition of chaat masala. I had been adding way too little garlic and no chaat masala at all! Instead, I was adding roasted jeera powder instead and some sugar. I still like the bite of jeera in green chutney and the mild sweetness but I reduced the amount in this batch and altered proportions to make it my own. Hello, green chutney perfection!

Chutneys are a great way to add an extra something to your meal very easily and I make a large-ish batch of this green chutney and store in the refrigerator for up to a week. This is great when TH needs a quick breakfast - all he needs to do is spread some chutney on toasted bread, add slices of cucumber or tomato or both, sprinkle some salt, and take large bites. He loves savoury sandwiches for breakfast and this is a clear winner which doesn't require any interference from me in the mornings. Green chutney sandwiches work equally great for tea time snacks for kids after school and as a quick snack for parties too.

{Check out my Mint Chutney Cheese Sandwiches. I use a different chutney in that sandwich}
GREEN CHUTNEY FOR CHAAT (MINT CORIANDER CHUTNEY) Preparation time: 10 minutes
Makes ~ 1 cup

Ingredients:
- 2 cups of fresh coriander leaves (cilantro)
- 1 cup of mint leaves, packed
- 2-3 of green chillies (I like a less spicy green chutney - adjust to your taste)
- 1/4 cup of chopped onions
- 2 cloves of garlic (the large kind, if smaller, use more)
- 1 pinch of roasted cumin / jeera (optional)
- 1 heaping tsp of chaat masala
- 1/4 tsp of sugar
- A squeeze of lemon or lime juice
How to Make Green Chutney:
Grind all ingredients together with enough water and salt to a smooth chutney. Adjust ingredients and taste as you grind because from what I have seen, personal preferences change a lot with this chutney

These proportions make a perfect chutney to me and I have nailed it down in my head and make no changes anymore. You can store this chutney in the refrigerator for up to a week but freshly made chutneys always taste be

Enjoy green chutney with chaat, paani puri, as a sandwich spread, as a dip for masala papad, pakora, etc, and with samosas!
For more recipes, visit www.cookingandme.com

20:42
Baked Potato Wedges | Kids Snack Recipe!
» ‎ S A R A' S C O R N E R

I have had Potato Wedges at restaurant in Panama, first time I tried at home and liked it a lot. This was suggested by my hubby. Now my family loved it.

I had not put any spice so kids will definitely love it.

It was finished soon, before I could photo shoot it. This photo is just out of the oven.

Ingredients
Potato - 4 nos(big)
Olive oil - 1 tablespoon
Parsley Flakes - 2 pinches+
Salt - 2 pinches

Preparation Method
Preheat oven to 200 C for 10 mins
Wash, scrub the potatoes and cut into wedges. do not remove skin
In a bowl add olive oil, salt and parsley flakes. coat the potatoes and line in the baking tray.
Bake for 20 to 30 mins. Insert a tooth pick and see if the potatoes are cooked.

Take out and serve immediately with a dip. Mayo or Cheese dip.

Notes - If you love spicy do add pepper powder.
You can also use Oregano.

19:07
Red Kidney Beans with Paneer flavored rice - Rajma Paneer Biryani - Pressure Cooker Method
» ‎ Daily Musings

Occasionally I get the urge to eat some fancy food. Not the restaurant kind but home made and done quickly. At these times a pulao or a biryani fits the bill perfectly. It is my go to fancy meal. I...

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18:28
Sundried tomato and roasted garlic bread
» ‎ Food, In The Main...

Tell you what, I'm really enjoying baking bread. I can say quite definitively that I'm no longer afraid of working with yeast - instant or fresh. I've actually got into the rhythm of baking two loaves of bread (sometimes three) pretty much every other Saturday. They're mostly a mix of white and wholewheat bread for everyday use, and sometimes I bake a third loaf which might be a flavoured one, to go with soups and suchlike.

The bread loaves get sliced - and I'm getting pretty good at cutting even, thin slices, even if I do say so myself - divided into half-loaves and fed to the freezer, stored in bags labelled with the date of baking. That way I get to rotate recycle use up the bread, oldest ones first. Yep, I'm THAT organised. It's kind of disconcerting, even to me. Or especially to me, because only I know just how alien this behaviour is to me.

Now that you've all been made aware of my weekend baking activities and the resulting follow-ons - which information I'm sure has been of great interest, by the way - let's get to the sundried tomato and roasted garlic bread that is today's recipe. By rights it should have been posted two months back, because that's about when I made it... but never mind that. The bread is really nice with soup, but I was happy to eat it by itself, with no adornments, because it was that tasty. Can't say better than that, can I?

By the way, if you don't like a strong garlic flavour, use less of the roasted garlic paste... and if your thing is to wilt every living thing within a 10-metre radius with your breath, by all means use MORE garlic paste, as much as you want. At least Dracula won't get you.

Recipe for: Sundried tomato and roasted garlic bread

Ingredients:

3-1/2 cups (15 oz) strong white bread flour
2-3 tbsp olive or other oil of choice
2 tbsp double concentrated tomato paste
1 tbsp roasted garlic, roughly mashed
1/4 cup chopped sundried tomatoes in oil (but leave out the oil)
1 htsp salt
About 300 ml warm water
1/2 tbsp instant yeast

Method:

1. Place the flour in a deep bowl and mix in the instant yeast and salt.
2. Then add the roasted garlic, tomato paste, and chopped sundried tomatoes

along with 250 ml of the warm water and mix together till the flour begins to form a rough dough. Cover and let it rest for 10 minutes to absorb the water.
3. Now knead again, adding as much of the remaining 50ml water as required, to make a dough that is not exactly sloppy but also not hard or dry either.
4. Pour 1 tbsp olive oil on your worktop (make sure your worktop is clean first!) or kneading board and spread it around a bit. Turn the dough out onto the oil and start kneading, pushing the dough away from you with the heel of your hand, turning it a quarter, then repeating the pushing/turning movement. Add more oil to the worktop if the dough starts sticking again, and continue kneading. Occasionally scrape your hand clean of dough.
5. After about 8-10 minutes, the dough should be elastic and only a little tacky. Now grease a large bowl (I use Pam spray, but you can use more oil if you like) and place the dough in it, turning it around to completely coat it in the oil. Cover the bowl and place in a warm place for the dough to rise and more or less double in volume. This can take between 1-2 hours, or even longer - there's no way to accurately predict how long it might take, so I can't give you a precise time.
6. Once the dough is risen, punch it back down. Sprinkle a couple of tbsp extra flour on your workspace and put the dough on it. Shape it into a round ball, place on a baking tray (flour the top of the dough lightly if you like) and cover with a clean tea-towel. Let the dough rise again for 45 min to an hour. Use a sharp knife to slash a 1-cm deep cross into the top.

7. Preheat your oven to 180C/350F and put the dough in to bake. Let it bake for 25-30 minutes - the top should be a nice golden brown and the bottom should sound hollow when tapped.

Remove the loaf to a wire cooling rack and let cool completely. Serve sliced, with soup.

16:57
Best Chocolate Chip Cookies
» ‎ Spicy Tasty
This is one of the best (or the best) Chocolate Chip Cookie I have ever had. No wonder it was featured in the New York Times. I came across this recipe in pinterest and decided to give it a try. I am glad I did and these are hands down the best CCC ever. It is loaded with chocolate. The bread flour and the cake flour does the magic. Try these delicious cookies and share with your friends and family.

Preparation time: 40 minutes

Yield: 18 cookies

Ingredients:
- Cake flour – 2 cups minus 2 tablespoon (8 1/2 ounces)
- Bread flour – 1 2/3 cups (8 1/2 ounces)
- Baking soda – 1.25 tsp
- Baking powder – 1.5 tsp
- Salt – 1.5 tsp
- Unsalted butter – 2.5 sticks (1.25 cups)
- Light brown sugar – 1.25 cups
- Granulated sugar (white sugar) – 1 cup + 2 tbsp (8 ounces)
- Large eggs – 2
- Vanilla extract – 2 tsp
- Bittersweet chocolate chips – 1.25 pounds
- Sea salt for sprinkling (optional)
I used semi sweet chocolate chips instead of bittersweet chocolate. Method of Preparation:
1. Sift all the dry ingredients, flours, baking soda, baking powder and salt.
2. In a mixing bowl whip butter and sugars using a mixer until creamy, for about 3 to 5 minutes.
3. Add eggs one by one mixing well after each addition.
4. Stir in vanilla extract.
5. Reduce the speed and add the dry ingredients in three batches and mix until just combined. Do not over mix.
6. Slowly incorporate the chocolate chips. Remove the mixer and mix well using a spatula.
7. Press plastic wrap against the dough or tightly cover the bowl with a plastic wrap and refrigerate it for 24 to 36 hours before baking.
8. Whenever you are ready to bake, preheat oven to 350ºF.
9. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a non-stick baking mat. Since I didn’t have both on hand, I drop the cookies directly on the sheet. But lining helps in preventing the brown bottom cookies.
10. Using an ice cream scoop the dough onto baking sheet leaving enough space between each cookie.
11. Make sure you turn horizontally any chocolate pieces that are poking up, it will make for a more perfect cookie.
12. Sprinkle some sea salt if you like the salt bite. I skipped this step.
13. Bake for 13 to 15 minutes or until golden brown on top but still soft.
14. Transfer the cookies to a wire rack for 10 to 15 minutes. Serve warm.
15. Repeat the procedure for the remaining dough or refrigerate it for upto 72 hours and bake fresh everyday.
Note:

The original recipes calls for bittersweet chocolate discs or Valrhona fèves (oval-shaped chocolate pieces, are at Whole Foods). But I used semisweet chocolate chips. I also used a little less amount than how much the original recipe calls for. So adjust to your taste.

Actual baking time given was 18 to 20 minutes. But I baked for only 13 minutes. So baking time may differ depending on your oven.

9:57
Kurma Masala Podi
» ‎ Spice your Life

For the final day under Spice powders, I wanted to record a simple masala that Amma makes. This is mostly used for Non Veg dishes, however the vegetarian dishes turn out well too. The aroma of the freshly ground spices can't be matched. Amma always makes it fresh and never compromises on this fact. I guess this makes a huge difference to the final dish.
Even when I try my best to follow her recipes to T, I have always heard comments that Amma's dishes taste different. Since I can't comment on the non veg dishes, I know something must be unique. Then she told me that apart from the regular garam masala she adds, she adds this masala as well.
The only difference with the vegetarian version is, most times the ingredients that go into this podi are sometimes added as such as paste. Either ways I know the spice blend adds an extra touch. I made extra and froze a box. When you are using for a vegetarian kurma, all you need to do is add a teaspoon of this to the gravy in the final stage and bring to a boil. Kurma Masala Podi

Ingredients Needed

Poppy seeds - 2 tsp
Whole Pepper - 1 tsp
Cumin - 1 tsp
Coriander - 1 tsp
Cloves - 2
Cinnamon - 1"
Cardomon - 2

How to make the Kurma Masala Podi

Dry roast all the ingredients in a hot pan and toss around. Allow to cool and once cooled, grind to an almost smooth powder.

Note:

Keep only the quantity that you need handy, freeze the rest in a box or a ziplock bag.

Check out the Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing BM# 29

8:51
Mommy, I want a Cheese Burger Cake!
» ‎ A Cook @ Heart
I have questioned, I have doubted, I have spent sleepless nights, shed tears and laughed out loud, loved with all my heart and soul... for 5 years, I have been up and down this roller coaster, every day and loved it.
The young 'un turned 5, so very quickly. From butter ball to a smart and handsome boy with a merry twinkle in his eye.
We celebrated his birthday in a quiet way at home as it was a weekday and the poor baby was unwell, a day earlier, he had 'water and sand day' in school and he caught the bug there. The nurse called me from her office saying that he had thrown up and was running a temperature. I rushed to school, full of anxiety, he was sleeping in the nurse's office, curled up, looking tiny and his backpack on his shoulders and a paper crown on his head ( he distributed treat bags on that day as it was a holiday on his birthday and the teacher fitted him with the usual paper birthday boy crown and everyone sang the birthday song). I felt a stab of pain, looking at him, laying down on his side, the nurse could have had some sense and taken his backpack off his back! I gently lifted him in my arms and he hugged me and lay his hot, fevered brow against my neck and said, "it was the Popsicles Mommy, they made me eku (throw up)".
A day later, on his birthday, he was better, but weak and no appetite. but he wanted to cut a cake! So when he was napping, I made a small cake, no fuss, and quick (we had planned a party over the weekend with his little friends and their families)

This was a simple layered Vanilla cake layered with whipped and cream cheese frosting and strawberry jam/ jelly, the chocolate words were made by melting candy melts, putting the melted chocolate in a piping bag and tracing the letters.

By the day of the party, he was fine and up to his usual antics! For once, I did not complain, well, not too much and only once threatened to 'cancel the party if you do not stop jumping from chair to sofa'. What can I say in my defense? I had a lot on my hands, with his illness, the party planning, prepping....

This year, he wanted a Cheese Burger Cake. Unlike most 5 year olds, who want a super hero cake, my sonny boy had cheese burger on his mind. we took inspiration from youtube- Rosanna Pansino, a video that my son watched, repeatedly, fascinated, first because of the cat and later for the cake.

The idea of the cheese burger had taken firm hold. I was happy, this is an easy cake to make!
Here is a look at the cake, just as I finished it, right in time for the party (minutes before the party, actually!)

I used 2 Butter cake (box) mixes.

The bottom of the 'bun' was baked in a 9 inch round pan as was the brownie 'meat patty'
The top of the Burger bun posed a challenge, the 2 quart Pyrex bowl was not big enough, so I used a 'Kadhai'(Indian wok) that I have. It was a perfect fit (whew!)

The cakes and the brownie patty were cooled. The cakes had to be leveled. The Frosting was my usual,whipped and cream cheese frosting.
The frosting is perfect for us, it has slight tanginess that is not unwelcome, it is mildly sweet and light and airy, unlike butter cream frosting that uses a high ratio of butter to sugar ratio (1:4), yikes!
The cream cheese gives it sturdiness and the frosting did not melt or misbehave in any way, despite the heat.

I used Wilton's Brown color and added it slowly to the cream to get a tan shade to resemble a bun.
I skipped the 'sesame seeds' on the bun as I could not find any candy coated sunflower seeds and felt no inclination to make any at home.

The 'lettuce, tomato and cheese' slices were fruit roll ups ( found in any grocery store), I used a leaf pattern cutter (from my Wilton kit) and pulled the leaf a bit to give it a lettuce-y look and round cutter (use any cookie cutter) to cut out the tomato slices.

Notes:
1. Bake the cakes and brownie a day ahead. chill in the fridge and then level. this reduces the crumbs
2. Brush the cakes (leveled side) with a simple sugar-water mix, to seal in the crumbs and keep the cake moist. don't overdo it.
3. Chill the mixer bowl and beaters in the freezer until you are ready to frost.
4. Pull out the heavy cream and cream cheese at the last moment.
5. Frost the round cake ( bottom part of the burger bun) and place the brownie 'patty' on top. make sure the patty and cake are aligned perfectly.
6. Gently, place the 'lettuce leaves' under the brownie patty .
7. Alternate the 'tomato' and 'cheese' on the brownie and press the corners to make them stick ( they will stick as the fruit roll ups are - well, sticky)
8. Frost the top Bun, separately and use a big, flat spatula ( pancake spatula) to pick up the bun and VERY carefully place it on the brownie patty, aligning it perfectly, you get one chance to get it right!
9. Top with candy coated sunflower seeds, this is optional.
The cake was a hit and most importantly, the Birthday Boy was thrilled! His eyes reflected the happiness and I felt like I had won a billion dollar lottery!

Our guests made the party really special with their wholehearted participation and the love and good wishes they showered on the birthday boy (and the generous gifts they gave made him one happy boy!)

Here are a few pictures of the party I'd like to share with you all and a small flashback ( thanks to my Mom!)
The Venue ( left) and our little guests ready to play games (right)

Flashback!
Enjoy the rest of the week! See you soon.

7:02
My Inner Bengali And The Green Beans Bhorta
» ‎ when my soup came alive

I have told you about my pan-Indian looks, about my inner Malayali. Now here's another story.

A few months ago, a relative of mine wrote his life story in which he mentioned my great-grandfather (henceforth referred to as GG), who was his uncle. Apparently, my GG liked living well and was given to spending a lot of money. One of his expenses, I hear, was on getting a cook from Bengal to come down to where he lived in current-day Andhra Pradesh and make rasgullas for him and his family.

I wish my grandmother was around to tell me more about GG, who died before I was born. I knew he was wealthy and had a temper, but not much beyond that.

Many years ago, even before the blogs came into my life, I discovered Bengali cuisine through a book. I took a fancy to it and would often make something from that book, a no-frills affair which tried to pack three or four recipes into a single, short page. I usually experiment with vegetarian food as it's simpler and I took a liking to mustard oil and panch phoron. I even made a chorchori with vegetable peels!

Gradually, the blogs, including my own, entered my life, and during some discussion in the comments, Sandeepa once asked me if I was Bengali, or if The Spouse was. We are not, but I wonder if my GG's predilection for rasgullas and the length he went to for them, commissioning a Bengali cook, worked its way into the gene pool and manifested as my love for Bengali food. I don't eat even one rasgulla a year, somehow, but I do make something or the other from my Bengali cookbooks.

Now, of course, I have one more, Sandeepa's, and what I found utterly fascinating in that book was the green beans bhorta, a Bangladeshi recipe.

It HAS to be a thick paste she said, when I checked with her, and I was a little disappointed, because I thought it would be another chutney, and a chutney's nothing exotic for us in the South, if you kept aside the fact that it was made green beans. I would have liked it to be a coarse, multi-textured affair, just so it would be new and different. And the recipe called for fried shrimp to be ground with the mix too - I thought I would fold it into the bhorta but I ended up grinding them in anyway. (My inner Bengali prevailed.)

I was wrong - it was as unlike any chutney I've ever made or eaten, or even unlike any Bengali food I've ever eaten or made. It calls for sauteing, in a little mustard oil, a small onion, sliced, four to five cloves of garlic, eight green chillies and four cups of chopped green beans, in that order, till the beans are cooked. Cool it down and grind it with half a cup of grated coconut and fried shrimp. It has to be a thick paste, so if it has become loose or watery, dry it up in a lightly oiled pan. Garnish it with chopped coriander.

I made enough for three meals and finished it in two days. The shrimp is optional, of course. When ground, it imparts a rather strong flavour/aroma to the mix, and you can choose to leave it out or retain it as garnish for a variation.

Here's the bit of Sandeepa's book that stuck in my mind. Food, she says, is "life wrapped in a soft egg roll with slices of crunchy onion and bites of feisty green chilli." She arranged for me to get a copy of the book, and as soon as I got it, I read the introduction (and the acknowledgements where yours truly is mentioned). This sentence is from the introduction. I got thinking about life, eggs, onions and chillies and even made omelettes for dinner the next couple of days! The book is as hilarious and as full of joie de vivre as her blog. I know that whenever I want a laugh, all I have to do is read a chapter, or even a portion of it, and I'll be happy.

bengali green beans This feed contains copyrighted photos and text from http://www.whenmysoupcamealive.blogspot.com. If you are not reading this material in a feeds aggregator or by e-mail subscription, the site you are viewing may be guilty of copyright infringement. Please contact srablog (at) gmail (dot) com.

5:49
From Plate to Page: Creativity Unleashed in Ireland
» ‎ What's For Lunch Honey?

One never knows how the dynamics and mechanics of a group will function. It’s an intricate matter bringing 12 people together, each from different parts of the world, with different personalities, characters and desires. The drive has to flow in positive directions and the synergy between the group...

[Read the rest of this post on my website]

June 11, 2013
21:21
Vegetable Hakka Noodles
» ‎ Spicy Tasty
This is the simplest way of making Chinese style noodles. In this recipe I have added many veggies of different colors. The vibrant colors will make anyone to eat it. Since we are adding lots of veggies it is a healthy meal for kids too .

Time of Preparation : 20 minutes
No of Servings 2
Spice level : 3 out of 5

Ingredients:
- Hakka Noodles – 1 packet / 200grams
- Oil – 3 tsp
- Onions – 1/2 cup (finely chopped)
- Garlic – 5 cloves (grated)
- Bell peppers (I have used 3 colors of bell peppers) – 1/2 cup each color (thinly sliced)
- Cabbage – 1 cup (thinly sliced)
- Carrot – 1 ( 1″ thinly sliced)
- Beans – 10 (1″ thinly sliced)
- Soy sauce – 2 tsp
- Green chilli sauce – 3 tsp (you can replace red chilli sauce too)
- Salt – to taste
- Black pepper – 1/4 tsp
- White pepper – 1/4 tsp
- Spring onions – for garnishing (finely chopped)
Method of Preparation:
1. Boil around 8 cups of water. When the bubble starts to come add the noodles with little salt and few drops of olive oil.
2. Boil for just 2 to 3 minutes or until the noodles is 80% done.
3. Drain them in a colander and wash it with cold water and keep it aside.
4. Heat oil in vessel at maximum heat. Now add the chopped onions.
5. Fry till they become translucent and add the grated garlic followed by the bell peppers, carrots and beans.
6. Fry for 2 minutes and add the chopped cabbage.
7. Add the soy sauce and green chilli sauce and add little salt now.
8. Fry till the veggies are half cooked and add the noodles.
9. Combine well and now add the black pepper and white pepper.
10. Garnish with the spring onions.

19:35
Mango Peach Drink
» ‎ Stories from an Indian Kitchen!!

Why am I posting this? I have no clue. As an attempt to get back to regular blogging I can say. I have been really busy with lot of other things and cooking and baking has been to the basic needs of the family. So, even when it is not even a recipe, I am posting it in case it inspires someone to mix in these fruits. Combination of peaches and mango is very nice. One Year Back - Chocolate Almond Gelato Two Years Back - Home made rice milk Three Years Back - Vegan...

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18:19
Q&A: What should I put in chicken and dumpling soup?
» ‎ Sugar and Spices

Question by J?: What should I put in chicken and dumpling soup? Like for vegetables and spices? Best answer: Answer by char__c is a good cookerHere’s my step by step way to do it: This is a firm flat old fashioned dumpling like granny use to make: http://www.relishmag.com/asset/file/art/54/154/624914.jpg Keep it simple fo the best country [...]

17:30
Chana Dal Payasam (Bengal Gram Dal Kheer)
» ‎ Cook's Hideout

Blogging Marathon# 29: Week 2/ Day 3
Theme: Pick 2 Ingredients & Cook from a Book
Ingredients/ Cookbook: Chana Dal & Jaggery/ Dakshin
Dish: Chana Dal-Coconut Payasam
Dakshin -- Vegetarian Cuisine from South India is one of my go-to cookbook when I'm looking for a South Indian dish. This book has many easy to make recipes mostly from Tamil Nadu and few from the other Southern states. I was hoping to find a kuzhambu or sambar recipe with the ingredients from Valli's list.
But to my surprise, I stumbled upon this Payasam (Kheer) recipe with chana dal and jaggery. It sounded different and delicious. I had all the ingredients on hand and I made it right away. I wasn't disappointed at all, this is one of the tastiest payasams I've ever made. Its creamy, not too sweet and tastes great hot, cold or at room temperature (I know because I ate it at all temperatures :-)
Read more »

14:01
Chinese Sweet Corn Soup | Indo Chinese Kitchen
» ‎ Annarasa
We were suddenly faced with some rather inclement weather last week - rain, thunder, storms, and high winds!! It was pouring for 2 days straight which sent the temperatures tumbling. I decided we needed some good hot soup to make up for the chill. As were not in the mood for any creamy and heavy stuff, and I was clean out of tomatoes (tomato soup is my favourite), I decided on some sweet corn soup Chinese style. It never sits on the stomach but can fill you up too. As I got the ingredients together I realized that it has been ages since I made this soup. Luckily I had saved a tin of creamed corn in my pantry just for such a moment!!
Sweet corn soup is very much a staple of Indian lunch buffets around here and is as such much loved by all. However its flavour is very much a matter of taste. The restaurant versions are too salty - though I have never figured out why this should be the case! I have eaten this at pot lucks and when we visit friends and the flavour spectrum can be anything from mild to very hot!! We like our soup a little more balanced for flavour and so I always add both onion and celery to it. The combination and proportion of seasonings I use here are purely personal and I would encourage anyone who tries this recipe to start out with these proportions and the enhance the flavour as they prefer - be it increased sourness, more heat, or a sweeter taste.

Ingredients:
1 tin creamed sweet corn
1/2 cup sweet kernels
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 medium onion, chopped fine
1/2 cup celery, chopped fine
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
Salt to taste
1/4 tsp black pepper
1 tsp oil
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 tsp vinegar
1/2 tsp cornflour
11/2 cups water

Method:
1. Heat oil in a stock pan. Add the garlic, reduce the heat and fry for a minute. Now add the onions and celery fry till transparent.
2. Pour in the creamed sweet corn with the water. Stir, then add the fresh corn kernels. Bring to a boil, the reduce the heat and cook the soup for about ten minutes on a medium heat.
3. Add the seasonings and the cornflour. Cook another 10 minutes.
4. Taste and adjust for sourness or sharpness if required.
5. Enjoy hot with your favourite condiments.
Vegan Recipe
Like this recipe. Tried it. Leave me a comment:)

All content, text and photographs in this blog, unless otherwise noted, are Copyright of © Annarasa 2007 - 2013. All Rights Reserved. Kindly do not reproduce without permission.

12:00
Watermelon salad and Plenty
» ‎ Ahaar
A friend recently gave us a cookbook as a gift. I haven't received a cookbook as a gift in a while, so I was curious about this one. The book is "Plenty" by Yotam Ottolenghi, one of the hottest chef in UK, I hear. The book has a stunning photo on the cover and high reviews in press already.

I liked the way the book is arranged around a central ingredient: pasta, eggplant, squashes, fruits etc just to name a few. This vegetarian cookbook takes his columns that have appeared in Guardian and put them in a book form with some beautiful pictures. It made me want to cook with it immediately. And I did!

I have made a couple of recipes from this already. I will share them slowly. What I want to share today is the simplest recipe which is such a wonderful turn on watermelon. I have never really thought of making a salad with watermelon before. When I saw it in the book, I knew I had to try it for the little grilling party later in the evening.

The salad was just delicious. I tweaked a little bit with salt and pepper and served it immediately. We ate some as starter, some as side. The menu for the evening with friends was:
- watermelon salad
- grilled corn
- grilled mushroom
- grilled tofu
- grilled tandoori chicken
- Naan
- smashed potato with sauce
- chanar dalna
- and the dessert was some blueberry yogurt cake.
Ingredients:
(serves 4-6)

1 small watermelon
1/4 red onion
1/4 cup feta cheese crumbled
6-7 basil leaves torn
salt and pepper to taste

Method:
Cut the onion in thin slices. And cut the watermelon in small bite-size pieces. Mix them together. Add salt and pepper and mix one more time.
Now add the feta on top and then the basil leaves.
Add olive oil on top and serve immediately.
Enjoy.

10:34
Banana nutella icecream milkshake recipe - Kids food recipes
» ‎ Creative saga...

Nutella is a favourite at home.We just love it in anything. I use it in a number of things apart from spreading on a slice of bread or we just love to lick spoonfuls of...

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9:42
Chicken Vindaloo
» ‎ My Kitchen Treasures

Chicken Vindaloo

8:04
Sri Lanka Diary: Gallery Cafe, Colombo
» ‎ Lulu Loves Bombay

Geoffrey Bawa fans look no further than the Gallery Cafe in Colombo! An excellent spot to spend time in reflective glory.

8:00
Sprouted Peas Dal Recipe | Kid Friendly Dal Recipes
» ‎ Passionate about Life 'n Spice...

Learn how to make Sprouted Peas Dal ~ Sprouted green and yellow peas cooked in sweet and sour split pigeon peas lentil gravy It was a dull day yesterday. What looked a promising week full of...

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6:09
Zebra Cake
» ‎ Chutki Bhar pyar

This is a beautiful looking cake...without any icing or decoration. When u cut into this cake the alternate paterrns of black and white look so beautiful and it is tasty too. Now, I think u all know now why this is called a Zebra cake. This recipe was lying in my draft for a long time. I wanted to post this a long time back, but someow missed it. I have followed this recipe from the AZ Cook book blog. This is one super interesting blog for bakers. They have some amazing baking recipes... do Check it out. This is the recipe I followed. I will be anyways I will write it down again here as I always do..:) I didn't make any changes to the actual recipe. I just use 1/4 tsp vanilla essence instead of the powder...:)
These measurements are for a 9" Round cake pan.

Ingredients :

Eggs - 4 (Large)
Sugar - 1 cup
Milk - 1 cup
Vegetable / Canola Oil - 1 cup
All Purpose flour - 2 cups
Vanilla Essence - 1/4 Tsp
Baking Powder - 1 Tbsp
Dark Cocoa Powder - 2 Tbsp

Things needed :

Electric Hand mixer / OR stand mixer
Few mixing bowls
A wire whisk
9" Cake pan
Cake release / or butter/ oil to grease the pan

Method :

Preheat the oven to 350F (180C).

Lightly grease your cake pan with cake release or plain butter and flour method. You can even line your pan with a parchment sheet. I vouch by Cake release by wilton. It works like a wonder.

Start with taking 2 separate mixing bowls. One for the dry and one for the wet mixture. Let us start with the wet mixture first.

In a large mixing bowl, combine eggs, vanilla essence and sugar. Beat the mixture until it turns creamy and light in color
Now, add the milk and oil to it and continue beating until its well blended. In a separate bowl, combine all the dry items. Sieve the flour and baking powder together into the bowl. I normally sieve my flour n other dry ingredients so that they mix in properly and also there r no lumps of any sort in the mixture. Now using a whisk mix the dry mix so that the baking powder is mixed in well into the flour. Gradually add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients mixing in between every addition of dry mixture to wet...and beat just until the batter is smooth and the dry ingredients are thoroughly incorporated. (DO NOT OVERBEAT to prevent air pockets from forming in the batter.
The consistency of the batter should neither be too thick nor too loose. If the mixture is too thin, add a little more flour and mix well.

Divide the mixture into 2 equal portions. Keep one portion plain. Add cocoa powder to the other and mix well.

The most important part is assembling the cake batter in a baking pan. Start with the plain batter first. Use 2 big ladles. One for the plain batter and other for the chocolate one. First pour 1 big ladle of plain batter in the center of the greased cake pan. Now immediately take a ladle full or if the chocolate batter and pour in the center of the plain batter. Keep alternating between the plain and chocolate batter until both your batter r over. U can play with how many chocolate n plain rings you want in your cake.

Some tips from the actual recipe : IMPORTANT! Do not stop and wait until the previous batter spreads - KEEP GOING! Do not spread the batter or tilt the pan to distribute the mixture. It will spread by itself and fill the pan gradually. Continue alternating the batters until you finish them. The pictures below will guide you through

Bake in the preheated oven for about 40 minutes. Do not open the oven door at least the first 20 minutes or the cake will shrink and will not rise.
To check your cake for doneness insert a toothpick into the center of your cake. It should come out clean when ready.

Remove from the oven. Let the cake cool in the pan for 10 mins. Now run a small thin knife around the sides of the pan to loosen the cake, then invert the cake onto a cooking rack. Turn the cake back over and let cool. You can sprinkle the top of the cake with some powdered sugar or just leave it plain and Enjoy !!

Hope you Enjoy making and eating this cake. I don't have step by step pictures of this cake... But you can check the actual recipe for the assembly pictures. Enjoy !

4:21
[Book Review] Bongmom's Cookbook by Sandeepa Mukherjee + Beguni (Spicy Eggplant Fritters) with Dhonepata Chutney (Coriander Chutney) Recipe
» ‎ Siri's Corner

4:11
Kerala Vegetable Stew
» ‎ Sailus Food

Vegetable Stew recipe is a healthy, easy and quick to make dish among Kerala recipes.This vegetarian dish is served with Appam, Kerala style white pancakes. The post Kerala Vegetable Stew appeared...

Read rest of the story at my blog, http://sailusfood.com.

June 10, 2013
23:32
Tomato Thokku Recipe - Thakkali Thokku - Step by Step Recipe
» ‎ For The Cook In Me
Tomato Thokku is one of those condiments I make often and store in the refrigerator to serve with dosa, idli, chapati, rice, pretty much anything, on a busy weekday. A good tomato thokku is probably the easiest thing to make since most of the cooking time is passive and you can go about your other work while the thokku gets cooked on the stove. While not as quick to prepare as the tomato onion chutney, this tomato thokku has a longer shelf life and so I make it in larger batches.

Tomato thokku is probably the most flexible thing you'll make. You can add and subtract ingredients as you please and it lends itself really well to all variations. I add garlic sometimes, blend the tomatoes or add them chopped, throw in some minced bell pepper, the choices are endless. The version of thakkali thokku I am sharing today is the simplest and uses no onion or garlic.

I also find that adding a pinch of jaggery to tomato thokku really enhances the flavour. A pinch of sugar would work great too. Also, while adding whole pieces of tomatoes to the thokku gives it a nice bite, some may prefer a smooth tomato thokku to a chunky one. Now, a word about how I get the deep red colour in most of my dishes (in the recent past anyway).

During my last trip to Bombay, I brought back a packet of fiery red Resham Patti chilli powder from Food Spot (if you live in or visit Bombay, I highly recommend that store, it's a treasure trove full deliciousness, and no, they are not paying me to say this). Although the bright red resham patti chilli powder is meant mainly for pickles, I have been using it in pretty much everything and enjoying the lovely deep dark red colour it gives to dishes naturally. This chilli powder is stronger than the regular kind so a little goes a long way. If you are unable to find resham patti chillies, substitute Kashmiri chilli powder but remember that it's much milder and you'll have to adjust quantities accordingly.

TOMATO THOKKU RECIPE Preparation time: 5 minutes
Cooking time: 30 minutes
Makes ~ 2 cups

Ingredients:
- 1 kilo of ripe tomatoes (about 8-10 orange-sized ones)
- 1 tsp of red chilli powder
- 1 small piece of jaggery (or 3/4 tsp sugar)
- 1 strand of curry leaves
- 2 tbsp of oil
- 1/2 tsp of mustard seeds
- 1/2 tsp of fenugreek seeds / methi / uluva
How to Make Tomato Thokku:

1. Cube or puree the tomatoes and set aside. In a large, heavy-bottomed pan, heat the oil and add the mustard seeds. When they pop, add the fenugreek seeds and within 5 seconds (otherwise they'll burn), add the tomatoes.

2. Mix well and add the chilli powder, jaggery/sugar and some salt. Wash and throw in the curry leaves too.

3. Keeping the heat on medium, stir well and let the tomatoes let out water. Soon the mixture will become very watery. At this point, lower the heat to a simmer.

4. Continue to cook and stir occasionally until the tomato thokku cooks and becomes thicker.

5. After about 30 mins, it will be quite thick and most of the water would have left the thokku. Check for salt and spice level at this time and add more of either if required.

6. Cool completely and store in the refrigerator. Use as required always using a dry spoon. This thokku, if properly handled, will stay fresh for up to a week.

Serve Tomato Thokku with dosa, idli, uthappam, paniyaram, vada, upma, chapati, roti, rice, curd rice, parathas, nan, pretty much anything you want!
For more recipes, visit www.cookingandme.com

20:25
Instant Korma for Idly / Dosa
» ‎ Spicy Tasty
Thinking of a quick side dish for Idly/Dosa other than chutneys???…Here is the recipe for Instant Korma..Yeah Korma without grinding or without any veggies. I have never heard of Kormas without grinding any ingredient until I got this recipe from my Mother-in-law recently. But it tasted absolutely like Korma. I tried this and it tasted awesome .

Time of Preparation : 20 minutes
Spice level : 3 out of 5
No of Servings : 2 to 3

Ingredients:
- Onion (preferably red) – 1 1/4 cup (thinly sliced)
- Green chillies – 2 (slitted lengthwise)
- Garlic – 5 (crushed)
- Bay leaf – 1
- Cinnamon stick – 1″
- Cloves – 2
- Fennel seeds – 1 tsp
- Oil – 1 tbsp
- Salt – to taste
- Turmeric powder – 1/4 tsp
- Sambar powder – 1 tsp
- Besan flour – 2 tsp
- Coriander leaves – for garnishing
Method of Preparation:
1. Heat oil in a pan and add the bay leaf followed by cinnamon, cloves and fennel seeds.
2. Add the chopped onions and add some salt, garlic and green chillies.
3. Fry till the onions become translucent and now add the chopped tomatoes.
4. Fry for couple of minutes and add the turmeric powder and sambar powder.
5. Fry for 2 minutes and around 1/2 cup water.
6. Let it boil for another 3 minutes.
7. Now mix the besan flour with water without any lumps and add to the boiling curry.
8. Add more water if needed and boil for another 5 minutes.
9. Garnish with coriander leaves.
10. Serve hot with Idly, Dosa or even Chapati.

17:48
Biriyani Masala (Powder)
» ‎ Stories from an Indian Kitchen!!

Biriyani is one of the famous rice dishes of Southern India. Rice mixed with either vegetables or meat that is cooked in a rich array of spices make a meal by itself. This is one of those recipes which is a little elaborate to make but well worth the time and effort. All of a sudden, I wanted to eat it. I made this masala and ended up making the biriyani also. But, I shared it with my neighbors and didn't have any left by the time I decided to take pictures. So, that will follow soon when I...

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17:30
Strawberry Mango Gazpacho
» ‎ Cook's Hideout

Blogging Marathon# 29: Week 2/ Day 2
Theme: Pick 2 Ingredients & Cook from a Book
Ingredients/ Book: Strawberry & Mango/ Vegetarian Times
Dish: Strawberry Mango Gazpacho
I didn't have to look hard for today's recipe. As I was browsing through this month's Vegetarian Times magazine, I saw a very vibrant picture of this Strawberry Gazpacho and I really wanted to make it because the picture was so appealing and I had all the ingredients in hand. This was even before Valli announced this month's BM themes. So I knew right away that one of my combos was going to be Strawberry & mango.I made this dish twice already and it is so refreshing that I can't stop myself from eating the while bowl all by myself. This is a no-cook recipe and all the ingredients go right into the blender. Lime cilantro cream topping is completely optional, gazpacho tastes great without it as well.
Read more »

17:26
Green Peas Curry (Vatana Rassa)
» ‎ One Hot Stove

Green Peas Curry (Vatana Rassa)

11:30
South Indian Masala Powder ~ SIMP
» ‎ Spice your Life

One of the greatest pleasures of blogging has always been the friendship it has got me. I had lost touch with my school and college friends after marriage and after a while, it was all about family, kids, and working. One of the biggest changes that came into our life, was the constant mention of this blogger or that blogger. At one point, even Konda knew who this aunty was and what she blogs on..:)
Apart from the online interaction, talking and meeting these friends was the next greatest pleasure. Over the years I have met many friends in person, chat with some over the phone. One such wonderful person is Viji. I have been in touch with her since the beginning years and then joined for a group blog as well. Though for personal reasons, she has made her blog private, she was never shy or hesitant to share her recipes, knowledge or anything that one might want.
Viji Jeyakumar, authors Vcuisine, which was so very popular before she made it private. I know her space is still very popular among her readers. I rue the blogger's lack of response to fix some rudiment errors. She is unable to add more than 100 readers and hence I am unable to access her wonderful space. This SIMPas she calls, is one of the first recipes that attracted me to spice mixes. She uses this powder in such versatile ways that you will be left wonder stuck.
I finally had the pleasure of making this podi myself at home and have even packed something for later usage. I dedicated an entire meal to cook with this podi and I must thank Viji for the wonderful recipe.

South Indian Masala Powder

Ingredients Needed

Fried Gram - 1 cup
Urad Dhal - 1 cup
Coriander seeds - 1/3 cup
Sesame seeds - 1/2 cup

Red chillis - 15 nos
Whole Pepper - 2 tbsp
Cumin Seeds - 2 tbsp
Hing - 2 tsp
Fenugreek seeds - 1 tsp
Turmeric powder - 1 tsp

Tamarind - 1 big lemon size
Roasted Groundnuts - 2 tbsp
Cashew nuts - 8
Copra / Dry Coconut - 1/2 cup
Curry leaves - few

Oil: 1 tbsp
Salt a pinch

Preparation:

Fry all the ingredients separately. Add coconut at the end and raw jeera. Powder coarsely in the mixie. Add turmeric and hing powder. Keep it in the air tight container which is handy for making many dishes.

Notes

Viji suggests that this powder is a versatile one, which goes with any dish. Tamarind can be fried or microwaved or cut into small pieces before grinding. Adding tamarind or armchur powder (dry mango powder) will save us from adding lemon juice for dry dishes. Always add jeera at the end when all other ingredients are hot. Add the nuts at the end and give one run in the mixie.
Check out the Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing BM# 29

11:19
Q&A: What can I bake with milk, flour, sugar, butter, eggs?
» ‎ Sugar and Spices

Question by Caroline: What can I bake with milk, flour, sugar, butter, eggs? I got like water, some different spices, baking powder, yeast, a lemon… Give me some good ideas! Thank you! Best answer: Answer by negative_creepThis website is brilliant it lets you search by what ingredients you have and it comes up with loads [...]

9:13
Summer Colors ~ Bougainvillea
» ‎ Mahanandi

Royal Purple Bougainvillea in a Pot ~ Coloring the Frontyard Garage Space A brilliant performer, bougainvillea does well in hot Houston summer. Passionately colorful, passionately vibrant, passionately floriferous – they remind me of bright, eye-catching, gorgeously swirling Rajastani dresses of Bharath.

7:57
Green chutney Dal recipe | How to make dal using green chutney
» ‎ Creative saga...

I had already written in my last post about how handy green chutney is and how many recipes it can be used apart from from regular chats. Its also one way to...

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5:30
Appam Recipe
» ‎ Sailus Food

Appam recipe is made with rice and fresh coconut with or without yeast.Its popular among Kerala breakfast recipes that are healthy, simple and easy to make. The post Appam Recipe appeared first on...

Read rest of the story at my blog, http://sailusfood.com.

June 09, 2013
23:00
Mango-Chocolate Marble Bundt Cake for Home Bakers Challenge
» ‎ Cook's Hideout

For this month's Home Baker's Challenge, Sangeetha @ Spicy Treats picked an interesting cake combination with mango and chocolate. I was skeptical on how this combo would turn out, but the end result was moist and delicious cake that the whole family loved.
I baked it in my 6 cup bundt cake pan, but this cake can also be made in a 9x5" loaf pan or a 8" round pan. Also I added some wholewheat pastry flour to add some fiber and nutrition to the cake.
Read more »

20:02
South Indian Coconut Chutney Recipe for Idli Dosa (with Curd)
» ‎ For The Cook In Me
As I mentioned in the Tamil Hotel-Style Coconut Chutney post, South Indian chutneys come in many varieties and often are the best combination with idli and dosa. Fresh coconut ground with green chillies, roasted Bengal gram, ginger and tempered with mild spices - what's not to love? This variation of South Indian chutney has curd which lends a lovely body and sourness to the chutney and goes perfect with idli, dosa, and even masala paniyaram.

The gorgeous chutney you see in the pictures was made by my good friend Disha who hosted a lovely brunch at her place this Saturday for a few friends. I absolutely loved the freshness and mild sweetness in this chutney and asked for the recipe immediately. She had adapted it from Chandra Padmanabhan's Simply South.

Now, a quick word about Chandra Padmanabhan's cookbooks. Although Dakshin (US | India) is her more popular and award-winning book, I am partial to Simply South and have tried quite a few recipes from it. If you want a set of good cookbooks to guide you through South Indian vegetarian cooking, I recommend her books. I have all three of her books (her latest book is a compilation of best recipes from the past three with a few new ones added and I don't own this one).
SOUTH INDIAN COCONUT CHUTNEY (WITH CURD)Preparation time: 5 minutes
Cooking time: 5 minutes
Makes ~1 cup
Adapted from: Simply South by Chandra Padmanabhan (US | India)

Ingredients:
- 1 cup of grated coconut
- 1/4 cup of roasted Bengal gram (pottukadalai / bhuna chana)
- 3-4 of green chillies
- 1/2" piece of ginger
- 2 tbsp of chopped coriander leaves
- 3 tbsp of curd or plain yogurt(ideally with a bit of sourness)
For tempering:
- 1 tsp of oil
- 1/2 tsp of mustard seeds
- 1/4 tsp of cumin seeds
- 1 tsp of urad dal / ulutham paruppu / uzhunnu parippu
- 1/4 tsp of asafoetida / hing / perungayam
- 1 of dry red chilli, torn into halves
- 1 sprig of curry leaves
How to Make South Indian Coconut Chutney:
1. Grind together - coconut + Bengal gram + ginger + coriander + green chilies + salt to a smooth consistency adding about 3-4 tbsp of water
2. Add curd to this and mix well
3. Heat oil for tempering and add the ingredients for tempering in the order given
4. When the mustard start to pop, dunk the content into the prepared chutney and mix well
5. Serve South Indian coconut chutney with dosa, idli, adai, vada, uthappam, pakoda, etc.
For more recipes, visit www.cookingandme.com

19:30
Roasted Bitter Gourd with chili fried fish - nethili meen pavarkai varuval
» ‎ Daily Musings

On my occasional visits to the Srilankan store I stock my pantry with dried and fried fish products that serve as a nice crunchy addition to some of the stir fries and roasted vegetables. I decided...

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17:30
Potato Paneer Methi Curry (Alu Paneer Methi Curry)
» ‎ Cook's Hideout

Blogging Marathon# 29: Week 2/ Day 1
Theme: Pick 2 Ingredients & Cook from a Book
Ingredients/ Book: Paneer & Greens/ 660 Curries
Dish: Potato Paneer Methi Curry (Alu Paneer Methi Curry)
My theme for this week's BM is 'Cook from a Book'. But to make the theme a little more challenging Valli asked us to pick 2 ingredients from a list and then find a recipe from a cookbook. I got lucky and found the recipes quite easily this time (unlike the last time). The ingredients I picked for the first day are 'Paneer & Greens". I found a very simple and delicious recipe in 660 Curries by Raghavan Iyer. 660 Curries is usually the first cookbook I refer to when I'm looking for an Indian dish. As the name suggests there are 660 recipes to choose from and it is always tough to pick just one dish.
Read more »

17:30
Milagu Kulambu, Beans Kootu ~ Weekend Cooking
» ‎ Cooking 4 all Seasons

On Saturday I always plan to make something new and different from what we normally cook during weekdays. So planning on a vegetarian meal gives me an option to check out regional special dishes. I naturally turn to check out typical tamil nadu dishes and this week I thought I should make some Milagu Kuzhambu with some not so spicy yet bland Beans Kootu. Only the beans kootu also ended up being spicy.
One never knows a green chili and that's what happened to me as well. I added more chili than needed. So it ended up being a spicy kootu. Still it was a surprise when hubby dear said it was all fine with him. The Milagu kulambu is made with spice powder and can be done in a jiffy if you have the things ready.
This is what I packed for work as well and ended up a very spiced noon, if you must know. Spice as you know is what you add so you can control that anyways. On the whole, it was an experience I won't forget!
With school starting, I had a huge pile of books to be covered. I stayed up late to complete it, to have a hassle free Sunday. As always I end up remembering this event every year and it never ceases to amaze me the joy that I get, seeing neatly covered books. Books that hold new things to teach and the experience we get as we grow through it.

Milagu Kulambu

Milagu Kulambu powder - 2 tsp
Tamarind extract - 1/2 cup thick pulp (extracted from 25 gms tamarind)

To temper

Oil - 3 tsp
Curry leaves
Fenugreek seeds - 1 tsp
Mustard Seeds, Urad Dal - 1/2 tsp
Water as required
Turmeric powder a pinch
Hing a pinch

How to make the Milagu Kulambu

Make the Milagu Kulambu podi and store in air tight container.

Heat a Kadai with oil, temper with mustard, curry leaves, Urad dal, methi seeds. Then add the tamarind extract, salt, turmeric powder and enough water. Bring to boil.

When the extract reduces to half, add the milagu podi and simmer with a lid.

Cook till the kulambu is thick and oil comes out on the sides.

Beans Kootu

Ingredients Needed

Beans - 200 gms
Yellow Split Moong dal - 1/4 cup

Chop into fine pieces and mw both beans and Moong dal for 10 mins

For the Spice masala

Fresh Coconut - 2 tbsp
Cumin seeds - 1 tsp
Green Chilies - 3 -4 long

Chop everything and grind to a smooth paste using water.

For the temper

Oil - 1 tsp
Cumin Seeds - 1/2 tsp
Curry leaves
Salt to taste

In a non stick pan, heat oil temper with cumin seeds, curry leaves.

Add the boiled beans along with Moong dal. Bring to boil. Add the coconut paste. Simmer and cook with a lid covered.

Cook till the masala gets cooked well.

Serve with the Kuzhambu.

This is joining the Weekend Cooking that I do with Vaishali and Champa. Check out what Vaishali and Champa have made for their weekend.

14:15
Capsicum – Bittergourd Sidedish
» ‎ Aayi's Recipes

When I visited India last November, I spent almost a month and a half in Bangalore. My in-laws were at my MIL’s brother’s home that time. I stayed with them for a couple of days. They have a new cook at their home now. This cook comes around 11AM and …
The post Capsicum – Bittergourd Sidedish appeared first on Aayi's Recipes.

11:30
Milagu Kuzhambu Podi | South Indian Spice Mix for Kulambu
» ‎ Spice your Life

We are starting the second week of BM # 29th Edition. I am planning to make Indian Spice Mixes that aid and enhance the dishes. These Spice blends are versatile and can be used in many dishes. For the first day I decided to make this spice blend with Whole pepper. The famous Kuzhamus of Tamil Nadu can be so easily prepared by using this spice blend.
I rarely buy masala powders. Other than Pav Bhaji Masala and Chana Masala, I mostly make other things at home. I even prepare Channa Masala at times. I am planning to make Pav Bhaji sometime. For the next three days, enjoy the spice blends and use it for making different dishes.
This recipe was from my paper collection that I had filed. I have always been planning to try those recipes, finally getting around making it.

Melagu Kozhmbu Powder

Whole Black pepper - 4 tsp
Dry Red chilies - 10 - 12
Coriander seeds - 2 tsp
Asafetida a pinch
Curry leaves few
Salt to taste
Oil - 1 tsp

Fry all ingredients and grind like a powder, and keep it in a air tight container.

I made the Milugu Kulambu with this.
Notes

This can be used to prepare Melagu kozhumbu or Melagu kuttu and Melagu rasam.

Check out the Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing BM# 29

4:19
What are some of your favorite holiday-centric desserts?
» ‎ Sugar and Spices

Question by : What are some of your favorite holiday-centric desserts? I’m looking to make a few desserts to bring to my boyfriend’s family Christmas dinner and I want to try some new recipes out. Looking for some great desserts that will go well with spiced cider and hot coco. Best answer: Answer by VassilisA [...]

June 08, 2013
21:33
Aloo Poha (Batata Poha)
» ‎ Spicy Tasty
Aloo Poha or Batata Poha is a traditional Maharashtrian recipe made using flattened rice or Poha (aval) and potatoes. A simple and delicious recipe served for dinner or a healthy breakfast. It can also be made during Navaratri festival for serving your guests. You can use thin or thick poha for making this dish except that the soaking time varies.

Preparation time: 30 minutes

No. of servings: 4

Spice level: 3 out of 5

Ingredients:
- Poha (flattened rice or beaten rice) - 2 cups
- Big potato – 1 (boiled, peeled and cubed)
- Chopped onion – 1 cup
- Green chilies – 3 to 4
- A few curry leaves
- Mustard seeds – 1/2 tsp
- Cumin seeds – 1 tsp
- Urad dal – 1 tsp
- Peanuts – 3 tbsp
- Dried red chili – 1
- Turmeric powder – 1/2 tsp
- Oil – 3 tsp
- Salt to taste
Method of Preparation:

Wash and soak poha in water for 3 minutes. Strain through a colander and let it rest for sometime.

Heat 1/2 tsp of oil and roast peanuts. Transfer it to a plate. Heat a tsp of oil in the same pan and add mustard seeds and cumin seeds. Let it splutter.

Add urad dal, green chilies and half of the curry leaves.

When urad dal becomes golden brown add onions and saute until it becomes translucent. Add boiled and cubed potatoes along with salt and turmeric powder. Mix well, cook for a couple of minutes and finally add poha. Mix everything well and transfer the contents to a bowl.

Roast dried chili and the remaining curry leaves in a tsp of oil and add it to the poha along with roasted peanuts.

19:22
Tacos | Mexican Recipe!
» ‎ S A R A' S C O R N E R

After trying out Italian dishes now I am trying Mexican. My hubby is a lover of Italian, Mexican and Middle East food other than Indian Food. He has introduced me to many vegetarian dishes of different countries.

I have had tacos in Panama when I used to live there. After coming to Singapore, have not seen any restaurant, have to look for a Mexican restaurant. Got a sudden craving of Tacos and Nachos for hubby, so he bought readymade shells. Its mouthwatering and
delicious. My family really enjoyed, my son too liked it a lot.

Taco shells are made with corn and its like Papad.

Ingredients
Taco Shells - 10 nos
Kidney beans/Rajma - 2 cups/1 pkt
Onion - 2 nos(finely chopped)
Tomato - 3 nos(finely chopped)
Jalapeños/Green chilli - 1no(As per taste)
Cilantro/Coriander -1/4 cup finely chopped
Cheese/Queso
Salt

Preparation Method
Soak Rajma overnight in water. Pressure cook for about 5whistles.Drain the water.
Cool it and grind to fine paste with salt.
Mix finely chopped onion, tomato, cilantro with salt.
Take the shells first put kidney beans/rajma paste, then fill onion tomato mixture and top it with any cheese.

Enjoy Tacos!

Notes - I have not put cheese.

9:43
How to make Green chutney - Mint coriander chutney recipe - Basic kitchen requirements
» ‎ Creative saga...

A friend of mine makes this often. She had once made this for a get together as one of the side dishes and I asked for the recipe. I have also made this...

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1:12
Mutton Liver Fry
» ‎ Cooking 4 all Seasons

This yet another simple liver fry is a dish that my BIL made when we had visited them. As I was saying when we visit my sil, the cooking happens without anybody actually knowing who does what. Like in this thali, it was cooked by three different people over 2 hrs and it was nearly for 20 people. I took the majority time as I was making the Nawabi Biryani and Chicken Fry. Rest was done on the fly. And it's mostly my BIL who never appears to be cooking, but does it with ease.
My SIL complains that she does all the underdog job, while he appears to be the pro chef and just sautes the pan. Well he says anyways the final saute is what matters is what he replies! All in all, the liver fry was the quickest I saw being done. It hardly took any time and more over it was made in Pressure cooker.
They always go with a ground masala that they store for a day or so. And at times like this when we have to cook for huge crowd, we always grind the masala in the morning and keep it ready.
So we had the ginger garlic paste ground along with coriander leaves. Then the usual masala paste was also ready. Having these pastes handy helps us do the cooking much faster than you can imagine, especially when there is a huge crowd to please!
Mutton Liver Fry

Ingredients Needed:

Mutton Liver - 1/4 kg
Onions - 1 medium
Coriander, Ginger Garlic paste - 1 tsp
Salt to taste
Oil - 2 tsp
Red Chili powder - 1 tsp
Coriander powder - 1 tsp
Turmeric powder a pinch

Masala to be ground
Coconut - 1 tbsp
Clove - 2
Cinnamon - 1"
Cardamon - 1

How to make the Liver Fry

Wash and chop into small pieces

In a pressure cooker, heat oil, saute onions, then add the coriander ginger garlic paste. When it browns, add the liver pieces.

Saute for 5 mins, then add the ground masala along with the spice powders and salt. Simmer and saute for 5 - 7 mins till the masala look browned.

Add 1/4 cup water and cover with lid and pressure cook for 2 -3 whistle, or till the liver is cooked.

Once the pressure is off, remove the lid and cook on high for the excess water to evaporate.

Serve as side dish. This dish is more of a dry starter

My vacation is almost nearly the end, meaning Konda starts her school this Monday. So my days of relaxed mornings are matter of past. Will be seen rushing around without any cause! Because of the scorching heat, the reopening was postponed much to the delight of the kids.
Now the day is here and she starts her 8th grade. The never ending confusion over the second language is there, last year they removed Hindi and had Tamil. This year they removed Tamil and got back Hindi. I don't understand why govt should be playing on kids syllabus like this! I would surely want her to know both the languages.
Anyway here's wishing my sweetie pie all the best.

June 07, 2013
21:22
What can I do with this water-soaked block of firm tofu?
» ‎ Sugar and Spices

Question by atowneddie: What can I do with this water-soaked block of firm tofu? I’ve never cooked with tofu before, so I have no idea where to start. I’d like to make some sort of stir fry dish – to be eaten with white rice. What are some spices/ingredients that I can use to make [...]

19:20
Vanilla and Chocolate Instant Pudding Mix
» ‎ Stories from an Indian Kitchen!!

When I go grocery shopping with my kid, one of the things she asks me to buy her are the pudding. My older one likes vanilla pudding and the younger one likes chocolate. Luckily, the pudding cups come in combination of these two flavors so, if I buy a pack of these, both are happy. I always wanted to make pudding at home since the store bought ones are pretty high in sugar. I have made them before but this one was the quickest way by making the mix. With this mix, you can make pudding in about...

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15:07
Classic English Digestive Biscuits | Digestive Cookies
» ‎ Annarasa
The one biscuit that I came to love from my time in England is the English Digestive. Ubiquitous yet unobtrusive, this most English of biscuits has found a place in the heart of many a visitor an local alike. The story of the English Digestive goes something like this: Known originally as a Wheaten, this sweet meal biscuit came to be called a 'digestive' as the use of sodium bicarbonate in the recipe led people to believe that the biscuit had antacid properties. Though records of its existence in England go back to the 1870s, it is believed that such brown meal biscuits were sold by English bakers from the 1850s!

A classic English Digestive biscuit is made of coarse brown wheat flour, wholemeal, butter, vegetable, raising agents, sugar and a pinch of salt. Sometimes it is covered in milk or dark chocolate and this version is known as the 'chocolate digestive'. It is eaten with tea, more often than not by dunking it in the steaming liquid and then biting the softened end off!! It is also eaten with cheese, jam, and fruit.

As I browsed the Internet looking for recipes for this biscuit, I was disappointed to find that almost every recipe I saw included all purpose flour. Eventually I worked on a couple of recipes to drop the all purpose flour and used a combination of Atta (Indian Chappati Flour) and Whole Grain Whole Wheat Flour (read Hodgson Mill) to recreate this flavourful cookie. The result was a deeply satisfying biscuit that we enjoy with afternoon tea!!

Ingredients:
1 cup atta (Indian Chappati Flour)
1 cup whole grain whole wheat flour
1/2 cup unsalted butter (at room temperature)
1/4 tsp salt
3/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 cup confectioner's sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup + 1 tbsp milk, chilled

Method:
1. Place all the dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Mix.
2. Chop the butter into cubes and drop into the bowl. Using your fingertips, rub the butter into this dry mix until it begins to resemble bread crumbs.
3. Now add the milk one tablespoon at a time and work the mix into a dough.
4. Do this slowly and deliberately working the flour with your hands every time you add some milk.
5. Once the dough is formed, knead it until it softens.
6. Shape the dough into a log and refrigerate for 10 minutes.
7. Remove from the refrigerator, cut out a quarter of the dough, roll it out using a rolling pin to 1/8" thickness. Use a 2" round cookie cutter to cut out cookies. Place on a prepared baking sheet and prick with a fork.
8. Bake in a preheated oven at 350F for about 15 minutes.
9. Remove and allow to cool 3 minutes on the tray and then cool completely on a wire rack.
10. Enjoy with tea!!
Like this recipe. Tried it. Leave me a comment:)

All content, text and photographs in this blog, unless otherwise noted, are Copyright of © Annarasa 2007 - 2013. All Rights Reserved. Kindly do not reproduce without permission.

9:55
Strawberry Cream Tarts
» ‎ My Kitchen Treasures

Strawberry Cream Tarts

5:04
Tomato rasam recipe - without tamarind- quick and easy
» ‎ Creative saga...

I already posted this rasam in my post which included everything about rasam. But I am making a seperate post for this as I could post it in detail with step by step...

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1:00
Ricotta Pancakes Recipe - Nigella Lawson Ricotta Hotcakes
» ‎ For The Cook In Me
Pancakes or hotcakes, whatever you call them, are one of my favourite breakfast dishes. They are quick to put together, and you can go sweet or savory with minimum effort. These ricotta pancakes was our breakfast the first day we landed in Melbourne in April for a vacation. We were staying with a good friend, Lavanya and her family, and she whipped up these pancakes for us a couple of hours after we landed from an overnight flight. They were so so good! Paired with a homemade strawberry sauce, it was the perfect start to a perfect day in Melbourne.

I love NIgella Lawson's recipes and since I had had these ricotta hotcakes before, I knew they were delicious and worth repeating as soon as I got back to Singapore. The ricotta cheese makes the pancakes super light and there's less amount of flour in these compared to regular pancakes.

{Also check out my no-fail basic pancakes recipe}

Before I got into how to make Nigella Lawson's awesome ricotta hotcakes, a word about ricotta cheese. A few words, actually. Ricotta cheese is soft and crumbly, a cheese made with fresh whole milk and whey leftover from making cheese. A good substitute would be fresh paneer that hasn't been pressed into a block. You can make paneer, hang the cheese in a cheesecloth for a while and then use the resulting fresh, crumbly paneer the same way I have used ricotta in this recipe.

While maple syrup is the most common (and my favourite) pairing for pancakes, you can serve these with a pat of melted butter, jam, or any fruit coulis like this blueberry coulis. Honey works really great too.

The striking thing about these ricotta hotcakes is how incredibly light they are. You do add flour and cheese and what not, but the texture is amazing and all it takes is about 10 minutes to put the batter together. I urge you to try this delicious and easy weekend breakfast recipe as soon as you can get your hands on some ricotta cheese (or a good substitute as mentioned above)
RICOTTA HOTCAKES OR RICOTTA PANCAKES Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 15 minutes
Makes ~ 6 pancakes
Serves 2
Recipe source: Nigella Lawson's Ricotta Hotcakes

Ingredients:
- 1/2 cup of ricotta cheese (full fat works better)
- 1/4 cup of milk
- 1 egg, separated
- 1/3 cup of plain flour or maida
- 1/2 tsp of baking powder
- A pinch of salt
- 1 tsp of melted butter (or any neutral-flavoured oil)
- Maple syrup / honey / berries / butter, to serve
How to Make Ricotta Hotcakes:

1. Put the ricotta, milk, and egg yolk in a bowl and whisk until smooth.

2. Add the flour, baking powder, and salt to this and whisk until no traces of flour is left.

3. In another bowl, whisk the egg white until frothy. You don't need to break your arm doing this, just lightly whisk until bubbly and we are good. Add to the above mixture.

4. Whisk again lightly to combine and we have our pancake batter. Heat a non-stick or cast iron griddle and add some melted butter to grease it. i actually avoided this since I was using a non-stick pan. Add 1-2 tbsp of batter and let it spread naturally.

5. Flip when first side is golden brown and cook the other side until done.

Stack 'em up and dig in! Since we don't add any sugar to the pancakes, you can serve them with savory accompaniments too, like grilled mushrooms, scrambled eggs, etc.

Note - Generally, hotcakes are slightly smaller than pancakes and bite-sized. I made these in mini-pancake sizes though. It's entirely up to you, it's the batter and the ricotta deliciousness that matters anyway.
For more recipes, visit www.cookingandme.com

17:42
The Things I Don't Really Crave/Eat But Relish Making
» ‎ when my soup came alive

Mango relish/paagu manga
Sometimes, I don't quite know why I do the things I do.

Sometimes I buy maida to make cake to get rid of extra fruit, and then I am stuck with the maida so I make more cake after letting it sit in the pantry for months.

I made marmalade last year simply because my uncle and I had a conversation about thick-cut marmalade and it seemed very romantic to make marmalade. Of course, it wasn't.

I don't really crave these things, leave alone eat them. Today, I gave away the marmalade to a friend who invited me for lunch.

Then, overtaken by an overwhelming urge to have some Andhra-style bobbatlu (poli/holige) after Ugadi went by, I used the last of the maida from God knows when to make them. I don't think I've kneaded dough in the last 14 or 15 years, if I ever did. But I plunged into it, literally. At one point, I couldn't extricate my hand from the dough, I couldn't even find it, it got stuck in it. A frantic call to a friend then had me adding ghee to the dough and rescuing my hand. I managed to make the bobbatlu which turned out better than I expected for a first-time attempt and earned appreciation from The Spouse and The Refuge of Failed Experiments (aka The Office).

The next day I attempted another batch but of course by then I had tired of the whole thing so I kneaded the very last of the maida, a little more ghee and the filling together and made sweet rotis.

Convinced I could now make chapatis, also something I don't really crave or eat, I bought a packet of wheat flour which is now resting unopened in my pantry. I was reminded of it today when my friend, who had me over for lunch today, mentioned the cooking classes she had been attending and a keema khameeri paratha (there was a fourth word in the name, I've forgotten) and offered to give me the recipe. I didn't rise to the challenge as I did in the above instances. I declined. The wheat flour will probably be given away soon.

A few weeks ago, my colleague treated us to a lovely green mango jam-kind of affair. She called it 'paagu manga, Tamil for 'mango in syrup'. It was all gold and languid syrup, and the mango pieces had a great texture, having lost their crunch after boiling but having acquired toughness and shape after stewing in the syrup. This was her grandmother's recipe from long ago, she said, and they used the relish as an accompaniment to curd rice, dosas and chapatis.

Of course, I had to make it, though I draw the line at eating it with curd rice and dosas. Having seen people eating chapati and jam in the hostel, I am more open to the thought of eating it with chapatis. I'm not saying I will, just that I'm less resistant to that idea.

About two weeks ago, I went home to visit my folks and came back with four green mangoes. I used one for dal, one is still in the fridge and I used the other two for this.

There are many notes below the ingredients and the method as I messed up somewhere, and had to do a lot of repairing, but let's get the basic recipe out of the way.

The ingredients

1 cup mango - 3/4 cup of sugar (that's the proportion - I used two mangoes, peeled and cubed)

Some honey

Some powdered cardamom

A smidgen of salt (my touch - optional)

Method

Boil the peeled and cubed mangoes in water just enough to cover them. For just three minutes and drain them immediately. Dry them on a cloth for a few hours.

Then make a one-string sugar syrup and I did, with help from the Internet.

Put the mango pieces into the sugar syrup and let them soak for a few hours.

In the evening, stir in some honey, tasting as you go along, and the salt and powdered cardamom.

My experience

After I boiled the mango pieces for three minutes, they became soft, I didn't know if they would hold their shape at all.

The sugar syrup turned to a hard sheet of sugar at the bottom of the bowl and was all liquid on top - maybe the mangoes had oozed liquid as well but they were swimming in more syrup than I had made in the morning.

I was tempted to throw it out but I let it stay in the fridge for about five or six days during which I sought repair advice on Facebook and got a few suggestions, of which I took one - fish out the mango pieces with a slotted spoon, drain off the liquid and melt the sheet of sugar. When I did that, I ended up fishing out very little sugar so I added a splash of water and heated it. It caramelised and I abandoned the attempt.

Sitting in the fridge, the mango pieces seem to have absorbed some of the sugar and attained a texture somewhat similar to my colleague's own paagu manga.

I simply added some honey and the cardamom and salt to the mangoes. It looked runny and I was disappointed again, but I resolved to let it stay in the fridge for a few days.

It seems to be thickening.

I ate with my popped amaranth cereal for some texture, it wasn't enough to sweeten it, though.

All in all, I am very taken with its process of maturation.

How, or whether, I will eat it is another thing entirely.

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15:38
Bharela Baingan -- Eggplants stuffed with Peanut masala
» ‎ Bong Mom's CookBook

This bharela baingan or stuffed eggplant is our Gujarati Auntie's recipe. The Aunty who is the current babysitter but babies not being babies anymore who also helps me a little with housework. She makes some of her vegetarian Gujarati dishes and we are sold. Kadhi has always featured in my comfort food list, right there with alu posto-musurir dal and Thai red curry and now there is Lobia

13:28
Quick Vegetable Pulao in Pressure Cooker | | Lunch Box Series : LBS#71
» ‎ Cooking 4 all Seasons

When I was thinking about the rice dishes that I make, I realized that I mostly make them in pressure cooker. Pressure cookers are such integral part of my cooking that I fail to even mention that in most of my recipes. Having always a need to cook in short period, resorting to PC is the simplest thing one can do. Most days my cooking takes only about 40 - 50 mins, that includes the breakfast, lunch and sometimes even the kids meal as well.
So it's a mix of microwave and PC cooking. Now when I read in some forum about how one uses PC for this or that, I realized I even cook using this mostly and can't imagine my cooking without these gadgets. Today's recipe is all about having a quick meal to pack for your lunch box. Since I pack my lunch, I invariably end up making a one pot meal and nothing beats a quick vegetable pulao as this.

When I had read PJ saying that she has over 75+ Rice Recipes, I was curious to check out how many I have blogged. I was surprised to note that today's post is 130th. I can't even remember most of them, I will have to check them out again..:)

Quick Vegetable Pulao in Pressure Cooker

Ingredients Needed:

Rice - 2 cups

Whole Spices

Bay Leaf - 3 small
Cinnamon - 2
Dagad Phool - 2
Cloves - 2
Cardamon - 2

Onion julienne - 1 medium
Green chilies - 4 long
Onion puree - 1 medium
Ginger Garlic paste - 1/2 tsp
Tomatoes - 2 medium
Potato, Peans, Carrot, Beans - 2 cups
Coconut paste - 2 tbsp
Red chili powder - 1 tsp
Coriander powder - 1 tsp
Cumin powder - 1/2 tsp
Tumeric powder a pinch
Salt to taste
Oil - 2 tbsp

How to make the Vegetable Pulao

Wash and soak the rice for 15 - 20 mins

Heat the pressure cooker with oil, saute all the whole spices for 2 mins, then add the onion julienne, green chilies and ginger garlic paste.

Saute till the onions are cooked well. Now add the onion puree and continue cooking. Next add the chopped tomatoes, and let it simmer.

Once the tomatoes are soft, add all the cubed vegetables. Simmer for 2 mins, then add the coconut paste. Now add all the spice powders and combine everything well.

Add 4 cups water if you used regular short grain rice. Cover with lid and pressure cook for 3 whistles.

Once the pressure is off, transfer and serve with raitha.

5:10
Rajma Masala
» ‎ Sailus Food

Rajma Masala is one of the best Indian recipes in North Indian cuisine. Red kidney beans curry, prepared in a spiced onion tomato base and served with rice. The post Rajma Masala appeared first on...

Read rest of the story at my blog, http://sailusfood.com.