A Whirl of Aromas

A Letter from me to you

2010-07-20T07:44:00.002+01:00

Hello Everyone,

Hope you are all doing fine..Thanks Archana of Spicyana for remembering me!Others have asked about my inaction too in the past, one of them being my friend Sumitha.Since I took a break from blogging, life has shown us(me and my family) a different path.We had a new addition to our family and now he is one naughty toddler.We are also going through other changes in our lives,meaning situations in life,which is still holding me back from doing my favourtie thing-experimenting, cooking up new dishes,and then blogging about them.

But I do promise you all, that I will return.Afterall,one can't ignore ones's inner calling for long!So,here's wishing this happens soon,and do watch this space for more!

Wish you all of the best in your lives!

MAIDA MYSOREPAK

2008-01-09T14:33:00.001Z

Wish you all a very Happy New Year!

My blog has remained largely untouched by me since the last 3 months because of changes in my routine.My daughter started school and with it,came other things that needed to be set into routine.(Needless to say,I now have a new respect and admiration for working women who have kids and are also avidly maintaining excellent blogs).I hope I will be able to attend to my blog much more regularly in this new year.I feel sort of guilty not being able to read all of your blogs,and post new recipes myself.I guess that is another tag that comes with being a mum...but I digress..

Ever since I first learnt how to make mysorepak,I always wanted to try if there was any other flour I could use for this, since I find that gramflour(Besan) with which this sweet is traditionally made, does not agree with many people.So in order to usher in the new year,I decided to experiment with maida.And the rest is history,as they say.

The ingredients and measurements are pretty much the same as in the traditional mysorepak, but I tend to use a little less ghee, so I think this recipe might help you understand it a bit better:

Ingredients:1 cup Maida/All purpose flour

1 & 1/2 cups white sugar

3-4 cups ghee

Cardamom seeds from 5-6 pods,ground into a powder

Method: Heat the ghee in a pan .It should be really hot.In the meanwhile,add 1/2 cup water to the sugar and let it melt on heat.Now,cook the syrup to the consistency of 1 string.To test whether the syrup is of this consistency,carefully take a little drop of syrup between your forefinger and thumb and then,bring your free finger(not the one with the syrup) to the other, and join.then pull your fingers apart ,about 1 cm apart, and see it it forms a string.With the measurements that I have given, this should be achieved easily.

Now, once the syrup is ready, take it off the stove.Now sieve the flour into the syrup and mix quickly so as to form a paste.Be careful not to form lumps and return it to medium heat.Now add a ladle full(about 1/2 cup) of ghee to the paste and cook, stirring all the time.Once the ghee is all absorbed into the paste,add more ghee.As the mixture cooks, it begins to form a honeycomb like structure .Immediately, add the ground cardamom and mix thoroughly.Then pour it immediately into a greased thali or baking tray.Cut into pieces immediately and set it aside to cool.

My Notes:Since this was the first time I tried this,I was sceptical of how it would turn out.But it did very well.The consistency of the cooled mysorepak was a bit harder than the traditional mysorepak.But it still turned out very nice.While I was making it, the flour and syrup mixture suddenly looked very thin to me.I was thinking that the next time I make this, I am going to add some cornflour to the all purpose flour,so as to give it a lighter,melt in your mouth type texture, and to fasten the cooking time.I know that in cakes,cornflour tends to give a very light texture which is why I am suggesting this.If you try this out,do let me know if you had any troubles.

As in traditional mysorepak made with besan,the amount of ghee used depends entirely on what stage the batter reaches the honeycomb texture.In the besan mysorepak,the ratio of ghee to besan is 2:1, but when I made this,it took more ghee to reach the honeycomb texture which is why I mentioned the amount of ghee as 3 to 4 cups.

HAPPY VIJAYA DASAMI/HAPPY BIJOYA!

2007-10-21T17:11:00.000+01:00

Hello Dear friends,

Wish you all a Very Happy Dussehra!Dussehra being the festival of Good destroying the Evil,I am glad to say that it has certainly had a positive effect on my health.I am now feeling much better.
Well friends,I would like to invite you all to partake of the Naivedyam(offering to the Mother Goddess)which I prepared today.It consists of Garelu(Deep fried lentil patties),Pongali(sweet pudding made of rice and yellow mung lentils with milk,ghee and jaggery) and Daddojanam(Curd rice,seasoned with mustard,ginger,asafoetida,salt,red chillies, and fresh chopped coriander.

Enjoy!

I am Back,friends

2007-10-09T10:15:00.000+01:00

Hello everyone,

Thank you for your concerns about me.I had a really busy but good vacation this time.I stayed in India for 6 weeks and came back to London on Sept 17th.My little lady started her nursery school from Sept 20th.I have not been feeling very well since I came back.Low haemoglobin levels have forced me to take things a bit slower from now on.I will start blogging again from next week onwards.Meanwhile I am just taking the time to rest and catch up with my daughter's new school routine.

I am going to start clicking pictures and writing drafts from this week so maybe next week I will have something up for you to read and enjoy.

Cheers

Vini K

GRIDDLE SCONES and a HOLIDAY!!!

2007-07-26T16:05:00.000+01:00

Scones are a favourite breakfast treat in England and Scotland.The First scone recipe I made was a savoury one.Then recently I found another recipe for scones which are made on a griddle or tava.I was so happy that I did not have to preheat my oven.Most important,these can be whipped up in a very short time.

Ingredients:225 gms plain flour

1 tsp baking soda

2 tsp cream of tartar

25 gms margarine/butter

25 gms white granulated or caster sugar

150 ml milk

Method:Heat a griddle/tava on medium heat, and smear some butter/fat over it to keep the scones from sticking to the griddle.

Now,mix the flour,baking soda,and sugar well.Add the margarine/butter and rub with your fingers till it resembles fine breadcrumbs.

Add the milk and mix with a fork to a soft consistency where it holds together.

Flour your counter or a chapathi rolling board.With floured hands,divide the dough into 8 equal pieces.Take each piece and knead lightly on the board and flatten it to about 1 cm thick,about 3-3.5 inches in diameter.Place on hot griddle.Cook on medium heat until each side is golden and the scone is puffed up.Don't cook on high heat or the scones will collapse upon removing from heat, and the insides may still be raw.Best eaten fresh but can be stored and reheated for the next day as a snack or even breakfast.

My Notes:These tasted exceptionally good warm,freshly made, with some butter.I used soya milk in place of milk since I am lactose intolerant.They still turned out good.If you donot have cream of tartar,don't panic.

Instead of the plain flour and cream of tartar,you can also use self raising flour with 2 tsp baking powder.I have made these using both ways and they turned out good either way.

And now,what holiday,you ask?Well,the last three months have been more than agonising for me since we were not able to plan our yearly vacation to India.Well finally the gods decided to smile upon us, and we travel this saturday to India!So,it is a short goodbye from me to all of you, and see you again in September.I donot know if I will have much access to internet at all once I leave Hyderabad,so I can't promise that I will be around much.I will try though, and hopefully,come back rejuvenated with lots more recipes to share with you all.I will also be able to try out many of my favourite recipes from you all after I come back as I am planning to get some much needed kitchen stuff this time.Wish me luck,friends.See you soon then.These scones are all that I have had as breakfast all of this week since I started packing and cleaning before leaving for India.That is how fast you can make these-it takes literally 20 mins from start to finish!

WHOLE WHEATFLOUR NANKHATAI and a MEME

2007-07-20T12:10:00.000+01:00

As I write this post,I am biting into a yummy nankhatai that I made yesterday.Years ago,when we were young kids(5-6 yrs old),my mother used to have a round oven with a glass top manufactured by Paramount and which came with a recipe book.The first thing that she made was Nankhatai.And I can never forget its melt in the mouth texture and taste.The taste of that nankhatai still lingers in my mind and recently it started enticing me even in my dreams!so much so I had to make the nankhatai instead of just dreaming about Mummy's nankhatai.But I did not have that particular recipe which used butter instead of ghee.So I had to search for an authentic recipe.Vaishali's recipe came to my rescue.I made a few modifications though,so here is the recipe:

Ingredients:1 cup all purpose flour

1 & 1/4cup wholewheat flour(chapathi atta in plain terms)

1 &1/2 tsp baking powder

12 tbsp ghee

1 cup sugar

Seeds from 12 pods of green cardamoms

Method:Grind the sugar along with the cardamom seeds in a food processor until very fine.

Mix the two flours,ground sugar and cardamoms and the baking powder.Mix well with a fork or a whisk so that the baking powder is distributed evenly.

Now add 5-6 tbsp of solidified ghee to the flour mix, and mix with your hand to form a mixture with the texture of fine breadcrumbs.

From this point on,add ghee by the tablespoon,judging how much would be needed to make a pliable soft dough that holds together.The dough should hold its shape and not look dry.

At this point,what I did is to shape small balls out of this,about 1 inch in diameter and arranged them on lined baking sheets,spaced atleast 2 inches apart.I also flattened them a little.Then while the oven was getting heated,I put them in the fridge for about 15 mins.I baked them directly from the fridge.By this time,they were cool enough to hold their shape well in the heat of the oven and yet puff up like buttons.

I baked them at 350F/180C/Gas Mark 4 for 20 mins until they were lightly browned at the edges.

My Notes:These tasted so yummy ,that by now I have gobbled up atleast 15 of these little beauties in a matter of two days!

Now for the Meme that Sunita tagged me for:

Mathematics as for so many if us, is not my best subjects.I was never good at it and infact,was quite ashamed of the fact as long as I was in school.Only when I was in class Tenth,I was lucky enough to get a very good teacher who gave me the confidence to try my hand at maths.But I never ventured into that after my High school finals.I chose to do what I was good at-Literature.

I was afraid of the dark until I was almost 17 yrs old.As a child I had a bad attack of measles and psychologically as well a physically took very very long to recover from it.I used to feel that there is a huge lion which is going to pounce upon me from behind whenever I went into the dark.A lot of self discipline finally helped me overcome it,but it wasn't until recently that I read that severe illness can cause these fears and phobias too.

I used aspire to be a writer some day.I remember there used to be broadcast a teleserial by famous Marathi actor and director Amol Palekar which had 3 sisters as the main characters.I used to identify myself a lot with the second of the three as I am also the second of three girls, and like that girl in the serial,loved reading.I used to dream that I would have a big library of books which I would read all my life.

I was not mentally prepared to marry until I was 25.I had always wanted to study and get a good job.I also wanted to stay back and look after my parents.But right then,my dear hubby stepped into my life and boy,has my life changed since December 2000!

I never had much confidence to do all those co-curricular activities when in school.My sisters were both quite good but for some reason,I preferred to hide my face behind books.

I used to hate regular study as a school girl(I know,not a good example at all for my little one, and wouldn't want to tell her until she finishes her education hee hee).So I would borrow lots of story books from our school library and hide them in my history and geography as well as science books.And read them slyly.

I am very independent by nature and do not like anybody telling me how to do things .I prefer to learn to do things on my own.I think that is the best way to learn.I learnt reading like that, and cooking too.I started baking on my own when I was in class ninth, about 13 yrs old.My parents also somehow treat me a little different from my sisters.The one thing I am proud of is that everyone in my family thinks that I am much stronger(mentally and emotionally) than anyone else.I have always been bugged by the fact that I was never good at maths and never got a good teacher to teach me the right way.But then,we all have our regrets and God gives us other powers to compensate for what we do not have.I believe I have proved myself amply by determining to learn things that I always wanted to do-cooking gourmet dishes, and most important,cake decoration.I cannot remember for how long I have had the desire to do an exquisitely iced cake.I have not reached that point yet but I am sure I will do it.And all this without any formal classes.I finally feel proud that even though I could not do better at maths,God has given me the ability to learn things on my own.

PS:sorry if I got too elaborate..:)

CHECKERBOARD CAKE

2007-07-13T15:45:00.000+01:00

As promised,here is the recipe for the checkerboard cake:

Ingredients:3 oz/85 gms baking chocolate

4 cups/508 gms cake flour

2 cups/400 gms sugar

1 tsp salt

1 &1/3 cup/316 ml milk

1 cup/225 gms butter

1 tbsp Vanilla extract

4 eggs

2 tbsp baking powder

Method:Melt chocolate over hot water and keep aside to cool.

Combine together flour,sugar,baking powder,and salt.Stir with a fork or a whisk until well mixed.

Add the butter and 1 cup milk.Beat until well mixed.You can do this either by hand or a hand mixer.

In a separate bowl,whisk together the eggs,vanilla and the remaining 1/3 cup of milk.Add to the flour-butter mix in 3 parts.Beat well after each addition until the mixture looks homogenous.Remember to scrape the sides of the bowl after each addition.

Divide the batter into half and add the melted chocolate to one half,Mix thoroughly.

Grease and flour three 9 inch round pans.Line the bases if you like.

Now,Place the divider in one pan, and pour the chocolate mixture in the outermost and innermost rings.Pour some white mixture into the middle ring.Remove the divider carefully and place it in another pan.Repeat the above step.

Take out the divider carefully and wash it.Dry it well and place it in the third pan.In this one,pour the white batter in the outermost and inner most rings and the chocolate mixture in the middle one.

Bake in the preheated oven for 25-30 mins.Let cool in pans for five minutes and then take out onto wire rack to cool the cakes completely.

Assembling the cake:

Use a thin layer of chocolate buttercream to join the layers together,with the white-chocolate-white cake in the middle and the chocolate-white-chocolate cakes forming the upper and lower layers.

Ice with the buttercream and decorate as wished.

The Chocolate butter icing :

85 gms Baking chocolate

6 tbsp/90 ml Milk

3 cups/380 gms sifted icing/confectioners sugar

6 tbsp/90 gms Butter

1 tbsp Vanilla extract

Method:Melt the chocolate on low heat.

Heat milk to boiling and immediately remove from heat.Add confectioners sugar and beat thoroughly.

Add melted chocolate and mix well .Cool to lukewarm.

Beat butter in another bowl until creamy.Add a pinch of salt,vanilla and the cooled chocolate mixture.Beat vigorously until smooth and creamy.Spread immediately.

I use The Perfect Buttercream recipe from Baking911 and it is literally,perfect except that I use only a small quantity of shortening and a major portion of butter.Sometimes I use all butter.

My Notes:I always use margarine for my cakes, and this one is no exception.you can use it too,if you are concerned about your intake of too much saturated fat.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY,V!!

2007-07-03T14:54:00.000+01:00

Life has become so busy all of a sudden,instead of finding myself time to blog and read more blogs about food,read books and spend my time in a leisurely manner,I am now running out to finish my chores both at home and outside before the kid comes home from the nursery.Coupled with all that,the weather here has been very rainy here and pretty dampening.And so the days passed by until a little bird reminded me that it is hubby's birthday soon.And with that began one more errand of frantic shopping amid plans of what to make!

Finally I decided to make a cake and a very simple dinner.Then comes the kid into the kitchen and says,"Mom,its my birthday today.Can you make me a cake (pronounced "kaik",dutifully in UK accent,learnt at the nursery)please?"So I decided,OK,just a small cake.

Here are the pictures of the cake I made.This first one, a heart shaped one is for Little A,who wanted to cut a cake along with her dad.Her friend Neel helped her cut the cake.

This is a plain chocolate cake,made in two layers and sandwiched with chocolate buttercream.The stars have been piped using whipped heavy cream.They held up their shape beautifully.

This one is the cake I made for dear V.I really am blessed to have him by my side in this life.Apart from being so good to me in general and never complaining,
not once has he grudged when I wanted to buy the numerous cake pans--fancy,plain
et all, the icing sets,the weighing scales and the measuring cups and spoons (which ,however many I have,I am not satisfied)!Now that surely makes me a foodie if not anything else.OK,so back to the main person in this post(
V somehow always admires all the fancy things I do,like decorating cakes, and baking marble cakes and the like.Which is why he was very happy when I made him this:

This cake was made in a checkerboard cake pan set in 3 layers and frosted with chocolate buttercream.My first attempt at dipping the strawberries in white chocolate was not that bad afterall.

The recipe is a very simple one, and can be found online too.I used the recipe that came along with my checkerboard cake pan set.For the heart shaped cake,I used only half the recipe with the chocolate and baked it in two 7 inch heart shaped pans.

ORANGE TARTLETS:A forgotten post revived by AFAM

2007-06-25T14:25:00.000+01:00

As usual,my heart started craving to bake something new this time.So I searched my recipe collection for something .This is an orange flavoured tartlet which tastes excellent fresh.I found that it stays fresh for atleat 3 days in an air tight tin.

Ingredients for Almond Pastry: 100 gms Plain Flour

2 tbsp ground almonds

50 gms Butter

1 egg yolk

1/2 tsp Almond essence

1/2 tsp salt

Flour for rolling out the pastry

Ingredients for the Filling: Grated rind of 1 orange(1 tbsp of orange rind)

50 gms ground almonds

75 gms caster sugar

1 egg white

Ingredients for the icing: 50 gms Icing sugar

1 tbps orange juice
Method for making the shortcrust pastry:While making pastry,the butter has to be chilled always.Cut the butter into the flour with a fork.For this pastry,Mix the flour with the ground almonds,and salt.Cut the butter into the flour using a fork or a pastry cutter if you have one.I used two forks.The consistency should be like that of fine breadcrumbs.Meanwhile,preheat the oven to 375F/190C.

Add the egg yolk and a few tablespoons of water.Add water by the tablespoon so as not to make the dough too soft.You should have a tight dough.Roll out and line twelve mini tart tins.

The Filling: Mix the orange rind,ground almonds and caster sugar.Whisk the egg white in a clean dry bowl till stiff peaks form.Fold gently into the orange rind-almond mixture.Fill the lined pastry moulds 2/3 full .Bake for 20-30 mins.The tops will have risen and browned a little.

Mix the icing sugar with the orange juice and when the tartlets are completely cool,pipe a swirl over them.

My Notes:I had posted this in my initial days of blogging.I am now sending this to Sharmi for the AFAM Orange Event for this month.The sweet girl that she is,she told me that it is ok if I sent in an older post.

HOT N SOUR VEG STIR FRY

2007-06-16T18:08:00.000+01:00

I love chinese food-it is so fast to whip up and good to eat.So when I came across this recipe,I could not help noting it down so as not to forget it.When I made this,I was surprised by the taste.Of course,I did adapt it to my requirements.So without much ado,here is the recipe:

Ingredients:1 red pepper/1/2 cup of sliced red pepper

2 medium sized carrots(about 1 cup)

1 bunch spring onions

175 gms broccoli or cauliflower

100 gm baby corn

100 gms mangetout(known as snow peas in US)

2 cloves garlic

1 inch piece ginger

3-4 fresh green or red chillies

2 tbsp sunflower oil

2 tbsp soy sauce

1 tbsp honey

juice of 1 lime

450 gms medium chinese noodles(straight-to-wok variety)

OR

An equal weight of cooked maggi/any other dry noodles

Method:Slice the carrots and peppers into thin strips.Remove seeds from pepper.

Slice the baby corn into half lengthwise.chop spring onion into diagonal slices.cut the mangetout similarly.

Using a fine grater,grate the ginger and garlic(If you have a mortar and pestle,crush it Indian style).Now chop the red chilli finely.

Heat oil in a wide mouthed frying pan/wok.Add the garlic,ginger and chilli and fry for a few secs on high heat.Now add the carrots and pepper.Stir fry for 2 mins.

Add spring onions,broccoli/cauliflower,corn and mangetout.Stir fry for 2-3 mins until veggies start to wilt.

Meanwhile, if you are using maggi or other dry noodles,cook your noodles in plain water.Drain and keep aside.Don't cook them too soft.If you use the ready to use noodles,you need not cook them.

Now mix together the soya sauce,lime juice and honey and mix into the veggies.Add the noodles and stir until heated through and mixed properly.

Serve hot.

My Notes:The original recipe uses 450 gms of straight-to-wok traditional medium noodles.I made them using both normal maggi noodles as well as straight to wok noodles.Both versions were very good.You can always increase the spice if you like it that way.

This is very light upon the tongue-all the flavours gel together very well.The abundance of the vegetables in this dish also makes it quite healthy as well as satisfying.

EGGLESS SOOJI NANKHATAI

2007-06-05T15:49:00.000+01:00

I have been trying to eliminate the use of eggs in my baking,of late. I think my tastes are changing these days.I came across a recipe for cookies made with semolina which sounded very different to me.It does not even have baking powder or baking soda.How different?well,read on:I made changes to the recipe to suit my taste and working methods.

Ingredients:125 gms margarine/butter(I used Flora original spread)

150 gms all purpose or plain flour/maida

75 gms Semolina/sooji(the one used for upmas etc)

75 gms soft brown sugar/raw cane sugar/light brown sugar

25 gms ground almonds

1 tsp vanilla essence

8-9 pods of elaichi/green cardamom,powdered

Method:Preheat the oven to 375F/190C/Gas mark 5

Beat the margarine with the sugar until light and fluffy.Add the vanilla essence and

Mix the flour,semolina and ground almonds.

Add this into the margarine-brown sugar mix in two batches,mixing well to form a dough.

Knead lightly to a tight dough.Make sure that the dough does not stick to your hands.

Oil a baking sheet lightly or use a greaseproof paper to line it.

Make 3/4 inch diameter balls of the dough and flatten a little with your palms.Place it on the baking sheet.

Do this for all the cookies.Then use the tines of a fork to press the cookies vertically as well as horizontally,making a check pattern on top.Bake for 20-25 mins.In my oven it took 25 mins.

Take out the cookies when you see the sides browning lightly.They will still be soft but don't be disheartened.These cookies dry up fairly well as they cool and take on a nice crunch once they are completely cooled.

My Notes:These cookies turned out great,not too sweet either.Great accompaniment to tea or coffee.For all my readers wondering what to do if you cnnot find brown sugar,simply substitute with white sugar.Normally in India the sugar is of larger granules,and if that is the case with you,all you need to do is to run it through your food processor to make a powder of the sugar.

ARITI DAVVA AAVA KOORA/Banana Stem Curry

2007-05-24T11:00:00.000+01:00

My mother never was, or is, a gourmet cook.Her philosophy of cooking is to keep it simple always.Her methods have had a lot of influence over how I cook our daily meals.But among everything else she cooked,the one thing that stands out in my memory is her Ariti Davva Koora(except for her sambar and chaaru of course).Ariti Davva is literally,the tender stem of Banana trees.It is ivory coloured,but like banana,blackens in no time when exposed to air.We had a very nice lady as our domestic help when we were younger.Janakamma or Janko as we fondly called her,would very patiently chop the banana stem,removing fibres and chopping it into very small pieces and putting them in diluted buttermilk to stop it from turning black.My mother would then cook curries using them.

The particular texture of ariti davva is what attracts me.It is very porous and absorbs flavours really nicely.The stem itself,as you will have guessed now,is full of fibre.That is why,even after it is cooked,it retains its crunchiness which is just wonderful.

Cutting the stem is a time taking task.First,the outer blackened layer is removed.Since it has lots of fibre,it is then usually cut into thin slices and the fine fibres which stand out,are taken off.Then the slices are chopped into really small pieces and put into diluted buttermilk to prevent it from becoming dark on exposure to air.But once this has been done,it cooks very quickly.I chopped it in the morning and kept it ready for the night to make the curry.

Aava is telugu for Mustard.Mustard and rice are soaked in water for some time so as to soften the mustard grains and then ground into a fine paste.This paste is usually added to curries at the end.It gives a really nice flavour.

On a recent trip to the Indian grocery store,I was lucky enough to find a piece of banana stem.I immediately grabbed it,having longed to eat it for as long as 6 years.So without much ado,here is the Ariti Davva curry that I learnt from my mother:

Ingredients:2 cups finely chopped Banana stem

1 tsp split urad dal

1 tsp mustard

2 dry red chillies,broken into 2-3 bits

2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp turmeric

6-8 curry leaves

For the Mustard paste:2 tsp mustard seeds

1 1/2 tbsp raw rice

3-4 dry red chillies

1 lime sized ball of tamarind,soaked and juice extracted

or

1 tbsp tamarind paste

Method:Soak the mustard and rice along with dry red chillies in some water for atleast 2 hours.This will soften the mustard seeds.

Heat 2 tbsp oil in a pan.Add the urad dal and mustard seeds and let them brown and splutter.Add the dry red chillies and curry leaves.

Now add the drained banana stem pieces.Mix well and let cook for 2 minutes.Now add turmeric and salt, and add 1/2 cup water to it.Close the pan and let it cook on low till the banana stem feels softer.You can test by putting a small piece in your mouth-it should feel crunchy but cooked.

Drain the water from the mustard and grind it along with rice and chillies to a fine paste.

Add the tamarind juice or paste(if using paste,dilute with a little water) to the cooked banana stem.Make sure that there is some water left in the pan.If not,add some more water before adding the tamarind paste.This is a gravy curry,so you do need some water.

Now once the curry is heated through,and comes to a boil,add the finely ground mustard-chilli paste.Mix well and take off the heat.

Once mustard is added,donot let the curry cook on heat as the mustard will turn the curry bitter.

Serve with hot steaming rice and a dollop of ghee.

My Notes:This curry goes very well with rice, and chapathis as well.We had it with chapathis yeaterday and it was a great combination.

Thanks to Lakshmi K of Veggie cuisine who started the RCI,I have had this wonderful chance to delve into the beautiful memories of my past and recreate one of my timeless favourites.
I would like to submit this for this month's RCI Andhra Cuisine hosted by Latha of Masala Magic.

.

KOTTIMEERA- MAMIDI PACHCHADI & MENTHI MUKKALU

2007-05-16T14:38:00.000+01:00

I have been very busy lately,but not so busy not to notice the advent of summer.Mango is the fruit of Indian summers.I remember the countless days we spent as vacations with my Ammamma and Tatayyagaru(we call them Amma and nannagaru anyway(that is telugu for mother and father) .My grandfather would buy us loads of ripe mangoes to eat in the hot afternoons while my grandmother got loads of raw and sour mangoes which were used to make numerous pickles every summer.How I miss all those pickles that my Ammamma made lovingly for all of us!

Mangoes here in UK aren't anywhere near to the Indian varieties like banginipalli,kobbari mamidi,etc.Neither are the raw ones any better.The skin is a nice green.But the moment you cut it open,there lies the yellowing flesh smiling at you ,smelling sweet,while it dawns upon you that you cannot make a truly savoury dish like mamidikaya pappu(mango dal) or Pachchadi(chutney) with it.Well,not so this time.I found nice fresh,raw and sour mangoes this time.It had been a long time since I had prepared any fresh chutneys of note,so I decided to make chutney with the mangoes.

here goes my Coriander-Mango chutney :

Ingredients:1 cup mildly sour mango pieces(skin peeled)

4 cups loosely packed fresh coriander leaves,washed

5-6 green chillies

3-4 tsp salt or as per your taste

Method: Wash the coriander leaves.I used only the leaves as the stems were too fibrous.

Peel the mango and chop into small pieces.

Put it all together along with the salt in a blender or a food processor.I had to put in some water as well,to make my blender motor crush the leaves and the mangoes.An indian style mixie or a food processor will definitely do a good job.Grind to a fine paste.

At this stage,you can add tadka/popu/seasoning to it if you like.Just heat a tablespoon of oil,add half a teaspoon of mustard seeds and 2 pinches of asafoetida.when the mustard splutters,pour it onto the chutney .

Serve this with idli,dosa,uthappam,or mix it into hot rice or upma.You can even use this as a spread for sandwiches.Use it on chats,bhelpuri,hot samosas,kachoris,whatever you fancy!Enjoy!

I served it with Dosa and idlis.I made those small idlis in the microwave using my mini muffin mould.

The other dish that I made using these mangoes is called Menthi Mukkalu,literally meaning Mukkalu(pieces,referring to mango) in a fenugreek(menthi)spiced base.This is a very famous and simple dish that most households in Andhra make.This is a kind of instant pachchadi.

The basic thing for this is the spice powder needed for the dish.I usually make a small amount during the summers.

Ingredients:

For the spice powder:2 tsp mustard seeds

2 tsp fenufreek seeds

Roast them separately till the mustard starts popping(do this without oil), and the fenugreek/methi also splutters and takes on a nice brown colour, and has lost its raw smell.Grind it together in a coffee grinder or processor and keep in an airtight container.

The rest of the ingredients:

2 medium sized raw mangoes,peeled and chopped into small pieces(about 1.5 cups of chopped mango)

1.5 tbsp salt

1 tsp turmeric

4 tbsp grated jaggery/gud/bellam

4 tsp chilli powder

2 tsp of the mustard-methi powder

Method: Take a clean bowl, and mix the mango pieces with all the ingredients mentioned.Put this into a clean and dry glass jar and keep it aside for atleast 12 hours.

Soon after mixing everything together,the salt will start to drain the water from the mangoes and that will inturn melt the jaggery,creating a very fragrant sweet and wour sauce in which the mango pieces pretty much float around.

After soaking for atleast 6 hours,the mango pieces become very nicely flavoured with the fenugreek and jaggery.This really tastes very good with Utthi pappu or Mudda pappu (Plain old cooked toor dal,seasoned with nothing but salt and turmeric).It is good to eat on its own too.

It has been a really long time since I participated in any of the blog events.So this time,I am sending this to Deepa for the AFAM-mango event.

BAKLAVA

2007-04-28T18:37:00.000+01:00

OK,friends,I thought I am being a little too lazy so I decided to post the Baklava recipe today lest the week's routine work takes its demonic hold on me!

Ingredients:500 gms Phyllo dough

500 gms of mixed nuts-I used walnuts,almonds,pistachios and cashews

250 gms of unsalted butter

1 cup sugar(granulated white)

1/2 cup Honey

1 tsp cinnamon powder

Method:First thing,preheat the oven to 350F/180C/Gas mark 4.

Chop the nuts finely.You have to really chop them fine as it gives the final product a good texture.I had a few big pieces left and I did have trouble cutting the baklava where those big pieces were lodged.

Mix the nuts with the cinnamon and keep aside.

Now for the phyllo part:

Open the package and lay the sheets open.Immediately cover them with a kitchen towel so that the sheets do not dry up.Damp kitchen towels did not work for me as I had to throw away some of the soggy sheets.

Take a 9 by 13 inch pan and brush it generously with melted butter.Phyllo does not have any fat in it,so it does need the butter.So don't skimp on it.If you find that the sheets do not exactly fit your pan,just fold over the remaining part of the dough over.

Lay one sheet in the pan.brush it with melted butter,then lay another sheet.Continue till you have 8 sheets layered.Now spread about 1/4th cup of the chopped nuts on the sheets.Top with a layer of phyllo,brush again with melted butter.Layer two sheets like wise, and spread 1/4 cup nuts and so on until you finish the nuts.

Finally,layer 8 more of the sheets brushing them with butter after each layer.Take a very sharp knife and score it into diamonds or squares as you wish.make sure that the cuts go down to the base of the baklava.Then,bake it for 45-50 mins.The baklava should be a nice golden brown and crisp.

While you are baking the baklava,make your syrup.Combine the sugar and honey with the water and cook until the sugar melts.Then lower the heat and let it simmer for about 25 mins.Let the syrup cool completely.As soon as the baklava comes out of the oven all done,pour the syrup onto it and leave it to cool.Once it is cool completely,take out of the pan and serve.This stores well in an airtight box.Store it in layers.

My Notes:I halved the recipe.You can make the syrup using sugar too.Just substitute the honey with sugar and follow as usual.I made this in a 9 by 5 inch pan.Mine doesn't look all that good because my camera phone refused to comply with me that day!

BTW,Phyllo dough or sheets can be found in the freezer section of your grocery stores.A very
good thing to remember is never to cover your phyllo sheets with damp paper towels.I used a kitchen towel to cover my phyllo sheets and it worked wonderfully.

Once the phyllo is thawed,never refreeze it.It might become a soggy mass(atleast that is what happenned to a 3rd pack that I had taken out and refroze later.

I have read over the internet that you should either pour hot syrup on cold baklava or vice versa.Doing this prevents the Baklava from becoming soggy.So choose what suits you and go ahead.This is a real attention grabber.The process is a bit laborious but you will be rewarded in the end,I promise you!

New Updates, and Some of my Recent Work

2007-04-18T13:54:00.000+01:00

Hello friends,

I am so very thankful to you all for your concerns and wishes.The happiest update is that Ananya has now adjusted well to the nursery.Today it is exactly one month since she started going.Today she waved a very happy "bye" to me.I felt so relieved I could have danced then and there!

In between,I managed to bake a few cakes,and decorate them.Here are a few snaps:

I baked this Van Cake for my friend M's son Neel.He turned 3 this year on 12th this month.He had a grand party with all the lovely food cooked by his mom.

Here is another peek:

I baked this Barbie cake for my friend D's daughter Aditi,who turned 2 on 17th this month.

Aside from that,I tried making Baklava for the first time from a recipe that I had copied into my computer long ago.I will post the recipe with my modifications in my next post.Take a look at the result:I had only made a small quantity,so I could not take pictures of individual pieces-they went direct from the pan to our mouths!:)

I am glad to say that I can be back to posting regularly now.Thank you all,once again,for your wishes.

My break continues

2007-04-09T20:39:00.000+01:00

My dear friends,

Thank you all ,for your concern.I am still very much around.Just getting used to life with a kid in the nursery.Ananya still has problems in adjusting, and that means more attention from mom!:)I cannot say when I will be back to blogging.But I am hoping it will be pretty soon.Meanwhile,I will be visiting your blogs,dear friends, as and when possible, and ofcourse,leaving my comments.I just hope this break is not too long because I started this blog as an outlet for myself!:)

A belated Happy Easter to you all!Keep smiling.

A little break from Blogging

2007-03-22T12:29:00.000Z

Hi dear friends,

Thank you for your concern,dearest Trupti and Supriya!This was a forced break for me.Lots of things happening around.Most important of all,Mrs.Sinusitis decided to give us a visit with her two most famous assistants, cough and fever.What more can I say except she literally pushed me to the side and took over the whole household.I have absolutely no idea what we ate all these days.Most of the time it was hot pepper rasam mixed into mashed rice.We were on baby food for a week almost!(all mashed,and soft).

Secondly, Ananya started going to the nursery last week.So, a few hiccups there and my online life was completely disrupted due to these two main incidents in recent weeks.Thankfully she is doing fine now.I can take a breather as Mrs.Sinusitis decided to leave us finally.Her assistant cough is still around but we are doing much better now.

I will start blogging by next monday at the most as I need to fill up my draft folder now with great recipes and photos.See you all soon then friends!Cheers!

PAV BHAJI

2007-03-08T21:23:00.000Z

Friday night dinners are always special for us.It is our little celebration:That we can sleep a little late the following morning,and that I don't have to wake up early to pack Hubby V's lunch.Normally Ananya does not sleep long after I have woken up so Saturday and Sunday mornings are tension free for me because then I do not have to worry about having to cook with her in my hands (yes,she is 3 yrs old now and still wants to be picked up and cuddled for at least 10 mins after she wakes up) .So as usual this last Friday I was worrying over what to make:Worrying because I had been busy all day with different chores,went to visit friends because Ananya insisted on playing with her friends, and had little time left to actually plan what to make.Then came the final blow(well,sort of):Hubby V wanted Pav Bhaji!Now I do make bread and pavs often but using active dry yeast would push our dinner time to 10 pm!Then memory came to my rescue:I remembered having bought a pack of instant yeast,so the only thing to do was to search for a recipe which would make a good pav/bun.

I found it HERE

The only thing I did was to to shape the buns as usual,not the way mentioned in the recipe.The result was an incredibly soft bun.Very tasty when eaten warm from the oven.

Added on 9th March:I did not use the egg glaze suggested in the recipe.Instead,I just brushed the buns with some soft butter.Ghee can also be used.Only thing is to brush it with ghee/butter as soon as you take it out of the oven.

The Bhaji was not a difficult task.I had chopped some carrots and tomatoes earlier in the week.I looked into my freezer and found frozen peas,and viola!the bhaji came together:

Ingredients:1 cup chopped carrots

1 cup green peas(frozen or fresh)

1 cup chopped potato

1 big onion(about 3/4 cup)chopped

1 cup chopped tomato

1 tsp grated fresh ginger

1 tsp grated fresh garlic

3-4 green chillies

2 tsp Pav Bhaji masala

Coriander leaves for garnishing

Method:Boil the vegetables in a pressure cooker.If you have a microwave steamer,all the better and faster.

Heat oil in a pan and add the ginger and garlic.Fry till they turn light brown.Add onions and chopped green chillies.Let fry till onion is pinkish in colour, and turns translucent.Add the chopped tomatoes.mix well,cover and cook till tomatoes are soft.

Add the pav bhaji masala to the tomatoes and mix well.Now add the boiled vegetables to the mix and keep mashing the vegetables using a ladle.The mix should be nice and mushy.If you have steamed your veggies in the microwave,you will need to add 1 cup water to the bhaji to make it to a thick gravy type consistency.

Once you have mashed the veggies,you do not need to cook the curry for long-just about 5 mins.Take it off the heat and add juice of half a lemon and chopped coriander,mix well and cover till ready to serve.

Preparing the Pavs:Slice the pavs into to using a bread knife or any serrated knife.Apply a thin layer of margarine(better than butter health wise)and toast the buns on a hot griddle until the pavs turn light brown.Serve the buns with the hot pav.

FIGHT PLAGIARISM

2007-03-06T16:38:00.000Z

Photo courtesy:Sandeepa of Bong Cook Book

I respect the printed word.More than that,I respect the brain behind it.and by that I mean the one who has actually created it,not the one who copies it.That is why I was so shocked when
I read about Yahoo's content theft from Suryagayathri's blog.I also applaud Inji pennu for organising this protest.I am also active on another forum where me and a few other members were victims of plagiarism.Fortunately,the technical staff over there immediately took note of our complaints and the plagiarising member was barred from the forums.When small websites can do that,why not Yahoo?Why should they not apologise for a mistake committed?

Plagiarism is indeed a very annoying plague that eats away at creativity.Yahoo,you being the big corporation here,why don't you set an example by apologising?You will only gain more respect from us if you do that.

We bloggers blog our of our own interests, but that does not mean that you can just lift content from us without so much as an acknowledgement of the source!We put in a lot of effort to write up our posts and put on pictures.Ours is a labour of love.Please respect that.and acknowledge us.That is all we ask,apart from an apology to Suryagayathri and other bloggers from whom content has been stolen.

MARBLED MINTY KOFTAS IN A TOMATO GRAVY

2007-03-01T19:34:00.000Z

Life does tend to become monotonous at times,but blog events are such a wonderful inspiration to cook and experiment when everything else fails to excite.For the JFI potato which is being hosted by Vaishali,today I wanted to create something very exciting and new with the humble potato.This is what I came up with:Marbled koftas.Marbled,you ask?Well,read on to find out!

Ingredients:2 big potatoes(Boiled and mashed)

1 cup of peas(boiled and mashed)

1 big onion(about 3/4 cup,chopped)

5-6 medium sized tomatoes

1 clove of garlic

1 inch piece of ginger

3-4 green chillies

1 tbsp garam masala

2 tbsp mint paste(Grind mint leaves in the processor till fine)

1 teaspoon amchur

Coriander to garnish

1/4 cup Yogurt,beaten till smooth

1 tbps each cashews and raisins

Method:First,boil the potatoes and peas.Mash the potatoes along with 1/2 tsp of salt and keep aside.

Now,mix the peas with the mint paste,1/2 tsp salt, and mash ,doesn't matter whether it is a coarse mash or a fine one.

Now spread the mashed potato on a piece of waxed paper or cling wrap/plastic wrap.spread the peas paste over it evenly and sprinkle with chopped cashews and raisins.

Pick up one end of the wax paper and roll slowly.The potato will break,so don't worry.This is how it is going to get the marbled effect.Roll roughly into a thick roll,then break off small pieces and make smooth balls out if this mixture.Coat in a thin batter of cornflour and water and deep fry till golden brown.

In a deep pan,heat 2 tbsp oil and fry the chopped onions,garlic,ginger and green chillies till brown.Add chopped tomatoes, and cook till they are softened.

Cool for 5 mins,then grind into a smooth paste in the blender,adding 1 cup water.

Now put this paste into the pan again with amchur,garam masala,salt and chilli powder,if needed.

Let it come to a boil.Reduce heat and let it simmer for 10 mins.

Mix in 2 tablespoons of smooth yogurt.

In a deep dish,pour the gravy,then arrange the koftas in the gravy.Garnish with chopped coriander and yogurt and serve immediately with hot parathas.

My Notes:You can bake your koftas instead of frying,though I must admit,frying it gives it a very good taste.

Potato being the versatile vegetable it is,you can even spice this potato mixture a bit and make bondas out of it.Enjoy!We had it for dinner today and we all liked it.Ananya even had some plain koftas with sauce!

Update:It has been a long time since I contributed to VKN's FAHC cook book.So I decided to send in this one for FAHC.

CHEESE AND SUNDRIED TOMATO SCONES

2007-02-22T16:52:00.000Z

Eversince I saw Asha's post about scones,I was wondering if there was a way I could make savoury scones.Our local store named Somerfield brings out a great magazine every month with lots of recipes and meal ideas,though I cannot use them all as most are based on non-vegetarian ingredients.But I found a great recipe for a savoury scone,the recipe of which I had pinned into my file of recipes.I tried them out recently and they came out great.So without much ado,here is the recipe:

Ingredients:175 gms Self rising flour

1.5 tsp Baking powder

1 tsp chilli powder(not in the original recipe:just my addition)

50 gms butter

60 ml milk

1 egg(I omitted the egg, added a little more milk)

50 gms Grated mature cheddar cheese

50 gms Finely chopped sun-dried tomatoes

Method:Preheat the oven to 400F/200C/Gas mark 6.

The butter should not be too soft.Cube the butter into small pieces and rub into the flour until you get the consistency of fine bread crumbs.

Add the milk to the flour(if you use egg,beat it with the milk before adding to flour) along with the grated cheese and the chopped sun dried tomatoes.Mix well until you have a smooth dough.

Roll into a round about 3 cm thick(I rolled it out thinner and it came out fine).

Cut into scones using a round cutter ,or if you donot have a cutter,use a knife to make either squares or triangles.

Place on a baking tray lined with baking parchment and bake for about 15 mins until well risen and golden brown.

Serve warm.I served these sliced,and warm with some tomato sauce on top.This is yummy,for a quick breakfast or a snack.

My Notes:The original recipe yield is 6 scones but with the thickness recommended,I would have got about 3-4 3 inch scones.

I rolled out the dough a little thinner and the scones were great!I also omitted the egg and used a little more milk,about 2 tbsp more.

This is very yummy served warm and freshly made.But I stored them in air tight boxes and these were great reheated in the microwave for a few seconds.

You could serve these with any sauce of your choice.Enjoy!

This is my entry to Coffee's MBP event.I just hope she is going to excuse my lateness!

TIRAMISU:MY VERSION

2007-02-17T13:58:00.000Z

Tiramisu literally means,"Pick me up" in Italian.It is traditionally made using Marsala,or any other wine.Sometimes coffee liqueur is added to it to bring out the coffee flavour.There are thousands of recipes for Tiramisu.Originally,it is made using whipped raw egg whites.There are versions where Kahlua or Tia Maria are also used to flavour it.You can read more about Tiramisu HERE.

When I was newly married,living in New Jersey(USA),we used to have weekly potlucks-just the ladies and kids.So one day we decided to have a grand potluck party for the husbands as well.I tasted Tiramisu for the first time when one of my friends' husband had made it specially for the partySince then,I have always wanted to make it.The creaminess of the custard and the whipped cream along with the coffee-soaked sponge fingers is absolutely delicious.

So started my search for the recipe.And I found loads of them.There was only one major hurdle-the wine.One time I bought Tiramisu at one of the stores here, and it had Marsala wine in it.I then found out that I did not like the taste of wine at all.I started thinking what to do.The next ingredient that was hard to find was mascarpone cheese.So with a little help from HERE
I put together some mascarpone cheese.

A little inspiration from HERE,the use of templates to dust the cocoa powder helped me to create a gorgeous looking dessert at home.Thanks,Archana!
Ok Ok,I'll stop the blabbering now and take you to the recipe straightaway:

Ingredients:20 Savoiardi fingers/sponge fingers

1 tbsp Instant coffee dissolved in 1 cup hot water

568 ml whipping cream or, double cream(UK)/heavy whipping cream(US)

For the Custard:1 cup milk

2 teaspoons custard powder/cornflour(UK)/cornstarch(US)

3/4 cup sugar

For the Mascarpone cheese:

450 gms of mascarpone cheese

OR

350 Gms Medium fat cream cheese

1 tbsp unsalted Butter

1/4 cup double cream(UK)/heavy whipping cream(US)

For assembling:Either one 9 inch springform pan or small individual bowls.

Method:First,make the custard.Now normally this recipe uses a zabaglione,which is a custard made by adding beaten egg yolks to milk and then stirring it over a double boiler until it thickens.I don' normally make egg custards,so I took a shortcut here.I used normal custard powder.If you donot find custard powder(although with so many Indian all over the world now,I doubt it)you could use cornstarch to thicken your milk.If you are using cornstarch,add 2 teaspoons of vanilla essence to flavour the custard.

Cool it a little(say,2-3 mins,not more) and then lay a piece of baking parchment on top of the custard and put it in the fridge until cool.Please donot use wax paper.You could also use cling film/plastic wrap although I don't recommend it cos I donot think plastics coming in touch with hot food make it safe enough for consumption.This is to prevent a layer forming over the custard.

Now,for the mascarpone cheese:If you can find mascarpone cheese,well and good.Otherwise,this version works very well.It was really close to it.Let the butter and cream cheese come to room temperature.Beat well to combine both, then add in the heavy/double cream.Mix until incorporated.Donot whip.

Once the custard is cool,take it out of the fridge and add the mascarpone cheese into it and mix well.

Mix the instant coffee granules into hot water and let cool.

Whip the cream until soft peaks form and keep in a cool place(Do this last so that you can use it as quickly as possible without melting it.

The Assembly:You could use the whole sponge fingers as they are,just dip them very quickly into the coffee and lay in the bottom and sides of the pan.I made individual ones,so I sliced the fingers into two and then again cut them into half to fit my serving bowls.These fingers become soggy very quickly so if you find that your cookies are absorbing too much liquid by the dunking method,use a pastry brush to coat them with the coffee.I sliced my sponge fingers and they were thinner so I brushed my sponge fingers with the coffee.

Now,layer 2 tbsp of the mascarpone cheese-custard mix onto the first layer of the cookies(for individual servings or half of the custard for a 9 inch pan.Top with some whipped cream(a thin layer will do:In fact,most recipes do not have the whipped cream in the first layer).Now,prepare another layer of the cookies by dunking in/brushing with coffee.Lay them on the whipped cream evenly.Once again,layer the remaining mascarpone cheese-custard mix over the cookies and then again top with the whipped cream.

Put some cocoa powder into a small tea strainer and use it to dust the top of the tiramisu.Refrigerate for at least 6 hours.

You could sprinkle grated chocolate instead of the cocoa powder too.

My Notes:I made it the very first time for V Day and it turned out very good indeed.

I have only made it in individual servings and it yielded me 9 very generous servings.If you like smaller portions,make it in one big pan so that you can take out smaller portions.Although once you start eating it,you will not stop until it is all finished.

It took me close to 2 hours to prepare the whole thing:right from the custard,the mascarpone cheese to the assembly.

You could even make the custard one day and assemble the whole thing the next day.

I used medium fat cream cheese and part skimmed milk as that is what I had at home.Full fat cream cheese and whole milk would be great.

Tired of reading the whole thing?But you will be in 7th heaven after those 6 hours.I assure you.So go ahead,give it a try.Pamper yourself a little.After all,you can afford a nice treat once in a while,can't you?

Added on 18th Feb:This may look very difficult to make but once you get all your ingredients ready,then it is really easy to do it.I wanted to bring some beauty to the way it looks,which is why I piped my whipped cream.You could just spread it plainly with a knife or spatula.Making the custard using custard powder really makes the job easier.I would love to hear how it turned out for you!

HAPPY VALENTINES DAY!Some tears,some Tiramisu and some chocolate mousse,And- loads of kisses for my little one!

2007-02-14T16:01:00.000Z

Happy Valentines day To you all,dear friends.I hope you all had a nice and memorable time with
your valentine.

I was making plans to celebrate this special day when yesterday, my little one fell and had a head injury.She required some stitches and I was in no mood to go ahead with the celebrations.The way she cried and the injury she got,put me off of everything else.Fortunately for me and her,she slept well last night and played as usual today.

Looking at her bubbly and cheerful self made me think that she deserves a special treat for the sweet one she has been.She amazed me yesterday by not crying even once when the doctor was putting the sutures on her scalp.She proved the doctor wrong!That's my brave little girl!

So to make her feel special and loved even more,I made a special dessert for her which she loves-Chocolate mousse with grated chocolate on top.

And for my Valentine,my dearest Hubby V,I made Tiramisu.

I also decided to send this as my entry to Trupti's Little Chefs in the Kitchen series.Here is my little one helping me mix the cheese for the Tiramisu:
I will be updating my blog with the recipe for Tiramisu very soon but for now,enjoy the photos!

This is also my entry to Pooja's Valentines special.

MURUKKU

2007-02-12T12:57:00.000Z

I first blogged about murukku when I started this blog. But the recipe that I used that day was a little different .Try as I might,I did not get the perfect spiral shapes out of the dough-the dough kept breaking off.So I delved into my faithful friend-my recipe diary and fished out this recipe.Here it is:

Ingredients:1 cup/200 gms Urad dal

3 cups/400 gms Raw rice

2 tbsp butter

2 tsp Jeera/Cumin seeds

1 tbsp Sesame seeds

2 tsp salt

2 tbsp chilli powder

500 ml of vegetable/canola oil to deepfry the murukkus.

Method:Soak the raw rice in water for 2 hours.Drain the water and grind to a smooth batter to the consistency of dosa dough.

Meanwhile,dry-roast the urad dal in a skillet until the dal emits a nice aroma and turns a nice light brown.

Cool until lukewarm and then grind to a fine powder using your mixer.

Now Heat the oil in a deep and wide skillet/kadhai.

While the oil is heating,add the finely ground urad powder to the rice paste,and then add the other ingredients from butter to chilli powder.Make a soft and pliable dough ,using water only if needed.The dought should form a nice ball without cracking.Keep it covered with a wet papertowel as the dough has the tendency to dry out.Whenever you feel it dries out,add a few drops(only drops,no more) and knead well with your hand.

Now break off a lime sized ball of dough and place into the murukku maker.Press our murukkus onto pieces of parchment/wax paper.I cut 4 inch by 4 inch squares of baking parchment and pressed my murukkus onto them.Carefully transfer them into hot oil. This is the murukku maker I used.

Test the oil before putting your murukkus in:Put a small piece of dough into the oil and see how it reacts.If it sizzles and comes up immediately,oil is ready.But if the dough browns too quickly,reduce the heat.Medium heat is best for making crisp,light murukkus.

Depending upon how wide your pan is,you can add upto 5 or 6 murukkus.I pressed out murukkus of 3 inch diameter.Fry till they turn golden brown.Drain on paper towels and store in air-tight tins.

My Notes:I used Sona Masoori rice.I have made these with Basmati rice in the past and they came out a little softer.I also find that with new rice,the murukkus are not so crispy,they turn softer after cooling down.

The butter is essential as it make the murukkus light and they melt in your mouth.

You could adjust the chilli powder according to how hot you would like it.I generally use less chili because my daughter won't eat anything with chillies in it!

My New Cake Decorating Project

2007-02-08T19:37:00.000Z

After my daughter's birthday party,quite a few of my friends wanted to learn how to make the cake that I had baked for my daughter.So today I was busy with that and I taught my friends how to make the cake.My friend Ruchi wanted me to decorate the cake as well,so that is what I did this evening.here is the cake I decorated today:I was not entirely satisfied though,because the writing got a little irregular.But I am learning...

The only difference is that for both my daughter's birthday cake as well as this cake ,I used margarine instead of butter.This cake was baked in a 9 inch square pan and I increased the proportions too.This is quite an easy and versatile recipe which can be adapted to any flavour.Here are the proportions I used today:

25o gms of self rising flour

250 gms of margarine

250 gms of sugar

5 eggs

1/2 tbsp vanilla essence/extract.

The original recipe for the cake ,mixing method and the temperature for baking the cake can be found HERE.

THE BIRTHDAY PARTY

2007-02-05T15:33:00.000Z

Hello dear friends,

I am back!We had a grand party yesterday.It was a lunch party.Ananya loved the cake and was very very eager to open her gifts as well.She has got beautiful gifts from all of her friends here.The party went well and everyone enjoyed the food.

I had prepared Coconut rice ,Navratan Korma,Sambar,Bobbatlu(Puran poli),Curry puffs and DahiVada.My friend Mahua made my work easier by taking on the task of making PalakPaneer(and might I add,she makes the best palak paneer I have ever tasted).There were a total of 25 guests and 9 kids.

All of my friends pitched in to help me while I was making the preparations for the party.Some helped in decorating the room while others helped me while I was preparing the vadas for the Dahi Vada.One of my friends helped me make the coconut rice,so all in all,it was a great time we had together.

I am thankful to all of my friends who helped me.Here are some pictures of the food:

Cupcakes for the kids:
The Party Platter:

Clockwise in the bigger plate:Coconut rice,Curry puffs,Navratan Korma and Palak Paneer.

Clockwise in the smaller bowls:Sambar,Puran Poli,Cake,Dahi Vadas.

The Birthday Cake was a Strawberry,Vanilla and Chocolate layer cake sandwiched with a thin layer of buttercream and iced with buttercream flavoured with a strawberry extract and a few drops of red food colouring to give it a nice pink.I could not take a better picture of the cake,as you all know how it is with a nervous birthday girl surrounded by her friends all eager to get the cake cutting underway and having the cake.I am hoping some of my friends might have a better picture of the cake so as soon as I get a nicer picture,I shall post it here.And of course,there was the ubiquitous Coke and the Fanta.

I made the cupcakes for the kids as most were about 2 or 3 yrs of age.I tried a little experiment by making three layer cupcakes, and thankfully,they came out well.One of my friends told me that even though they are for kids,they were great.I guess,all Mums might have had a taste of the cupcakes too.You all know,that kids are interested in cake so long as there is cream, and the leftover is always for Mom to finish off!

I am glad that the party was a success and we all had a good time together.I was very very tired at the end of the day,but the best thing was that my friend Deepa brought us some freshly made hot coffee in the evening when all the guests had departed.It freshened us up a bit but most importantly,made me realise that life is no good without the affection of loved ones.I will remember this party to the end of my life because not only did I cook for 25 people,but also without all the help from my friends,I would never have been able to do it.Through out the week when I was busy shopping for the party(the veggies,disposables,gifts for kids)I would leave my daughter with my friends and they took care of her for me for a few hours every day.Even on the day of the party,I left my daughter at my friend Deepa's place until I had finished some preliminary work.I cannot tell you how blessed I feel I am to have such good hearted friends.And I am glad to have you all too,to read your wishes and comments for Ananya and appreciation for me makes me feel so proud.Your comments on the heart shaped cake I made for Ananya boosted my confidence a lot and this time,even though I made 3 layers and larger amounts of the cake,it was literally a breeze.Thank you All of You,for being with me all the time!God Bless you all and keep you happy.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY,ANANYA!

2007-01-29T20:34:00.000Z

Hi Aunties,Uncles and friends,

I am 3 years old today!I am a big girl now,although Mummy still thinks I am a small "big girl"..Anyway, Mummy made me a cake and all my friends came over.It was a party only for me and my friends and for those who could not come for the cake cutting,Mummy agreed to go and give them some cake!It was fun.My mum and dad bought me a new dress,and I got some gifts too today.I love playing with my friends.

I love strawberry juice ice cream(my version of the colour PINK:D),so Mummy made me a clifford-big-heart-cake(my way of saying HEART SHAPED CAKE).Take a look at the cake and enjoy.Mummy is going to make another big cake for the big party this weekend.

Mummy is posting some pictures here,so take a look and enjoy!I wish you were all here too for my party.Oh,I forgot to tell you,Mummy made me vanilla and strawberry cake..I loved it and so did my friends.:)

And this was all left of the cake but Mummy saved it specially for me...I love you,Mum!

Thank you all who sent me Birthday wishes,hugs and kisses.I truly enjoyed yesterday.

Enjoy!

Love,

Ananya.

Hello Friends

2007-01-26T19:24:00.000Z

Hello Everyone,

Today is Republic Day!I wish I could watch all those parades that are shown on TV from Delhi.They used to be such enjoyable times when we would get laddoos and the day off from school!I wonder where all my school friends are now,haven't been in touch with them since I left school.But I am so glad to have many more friends now,more than I could ever imagine.Online and offline,I never had so many friends before.Thank you all for being my friends.

I have been busy all these days.My daughter's 3rd birthday is coming up and I am busy planning a party for her.Special thanks to dear Supriya for asking where I have gone!I will be able to post and visit you all only after Feb 4th,so please do bear with me.Thank you.

Take Care.

HAPPY SANKRANTHI

2007-01-17T10:40:00.000Z

Happy Sankranti, to you all,dear friends.This time I have to post without any pictures because the goodies got over before I could even take a picture :).I had prepared Pulihora(Tamarind rice),Bobbatlu(Puranpoli), and Poha laddoo.

We had a small function to celebrate Bhogipallu for my daughter Ananya.All the ladies(My friends here) and their kids came home in the evening.I lit the lamp in front of the Altar.Then I mixed up some soaked black chana,purple grapes,flowers,and copper coins(1 p coins here are made of copper).Then I sprinkled this mixture 3 times over each kid's head.We then put Akshintalu(Rice mixed with turmeric and used to bless younger people)on them and did the Arati .The kids really loved it and after the function,they continued playing,pouring this mixture over their heads again and again, and giggling all the while.One of my friends also celebrated this function at her house for her 1.5 yr old daughter.We all went to her house.

My daughter definitely enjoyed all the attention given to her specially.We bought a new frock for her, and she was ready to be adorned with bangles,and my pearl chain.She sat like a very good girl all the while when we were pouring the bhogipallu over her head and also when we were giving her the Arati.

This function is for young children and is done to remove the "Evil Eye" as it is said that kids attract the evil eye more than others.Traditionally,small grape sized fruits called REGIPALLU in Telugu, are used.In hindi,these are called BER and in Bengali,they are called KUL.In Orissa,these are found extensively and used to make pickle which is very tasty and can be eaten by itself.Since these are hard to find in countries outside India,we use either cherries,grapes or other berries like blueberries,etc.I had to refrain from using blueberries though,because it leaves a very ugly stain on clothes and carpets and with kids jumping up and down,this seemed a very real possibility.After the function,these fruits and flowers along with the coins are given to the domestic servants working in the household.Since they are used to remove the evil eye,it is said that these should not be consumed by the family or the child for whom they have been used.

Swapna has a very good article on her blog about this function.You can find the article HERE .

Hope you all had a nice time with your family too.

Correction:The Bengali name of BER is KUL as my friend and fellow blogger Sandeepa pointed out,so I have edited my post too.Thank you Sandeepa!

LIME PICKLE

2007-01-07T17:14:00.000Z

Pickles are an integral part of the average telugu diet.Lime/lemon is a perfect fruit that lends itself very well to pickles and preserves.Ever since I saw Indira's Lime pickle post,my taste buds have been tingling for a taste of lime pickle.Normally we buy ready made pickles from stores,as carrying pickles to the UK is not an option we have because of weight limitations.I have experimented with simple pickles in the past, and hence the lime pickle was just a matter of time.The credit goes to Indira, though,who provides exact measurements for this.I have heard of a variety of lime pickle that is made in North India,which has black salt and ajwain(caraway seeds).I did not have any recipe to start with though,so I borrowed Indira's and gave it my twist.Here is my version(I had to modify on the amount of salt and lemon juice too):

Ingredients: 8 small thin skinned lemons

8 teaspoons sea salt

2 teaspoons turmeric

Juice of 6 lemons

4 tablespoons chilli powder

1 teaspoon Dhaniya/coriander seeds

1 teaspoon Methi/Fenugreek seeds

1 teaspoon ajwain powder(Roast the ajwain and powder it)

1 teaspoon Saunf(Fennel)seeds

2 teaspoons black salt

1/2 tsp Asafoetida/Hing

75 ml oil(preferably gingelly/sesame oil,peanut/sunflower will do)

Method: Cut the lemons into quarters,mix with the salt,turmeric and the lemon juice and keep aside for 5 days.Keep mixing it about once in 2 days so that the salt is dissolved well.

On 5th day,Roast the Fenugreek/Methi,Dhaniya/Coriander,Ajwain(also known as Bishop's weed/Thymol) and Fennel/Saunf and grind to a fine powder.Roast the Fenugreek separately until the seeds start popping and become brown.Don't let them get too dark.Powder and add to the lemon pieces along with the coriander ,fennel and thymol powders.

Let these marinate for 3 days.

On the 4th day of marination,heat 75 ml of oil in a pan, and add the asafoetida/Hing to the hot oil.Let the oil cool until warm,then add the chilli powder to it.Pour over the lemon pieces and mix well.

Put the pickle into the jar again and let it sit for atleast 10 days.The longer it sits,the better.In India,generally pickles are given a time of atleast 2-3 months before they are opened for consumption.My grandmother says pickles(these are generally made in India in the summers,in April and May when the sun is at its hottest) should sit until the rains start(which is about 3 months later in August/September),to soften up.And how true that is!Pickles taste really heavenly after the 3 month resting period.

My Notes:Pickle cannot be made out of the thick skinned big lemons that are commonly available in US and UK(Been there,done that).You could use limes instead.I was lucky enough to get the Indian type small yellow thin skinned lemons to make my pickle with.

CHANDRAKANTHALU/CHANDRAKANTHA SWEET

2007-01-04T12:10:00.000Z

As always, a new beginning is always sweet.So here is how I started my new year:With fresh chandrakanthalu.Chandrakanthalu are a traditional sweet made with yellow moong dal,mostly in Coastal Andhra ,and usually for Sankranti which is the Harvest Festival for people in Andhra,falling in mid-January every year."Chandrakanthalu" literally means "rays of the moon", and rightly so:Inside the crispy brown shell,
,you will see a nice,off-white colour to it.So without much ado,here is the recipe:

Ingredients:2 Cups yellow split moong dal(Pesarapappu)

2 Cups sugar

1 Cup fresh(preferable) or dry coconut,shredded/grated

5-6 pods of green cardamom(Elaichi)

Oil,to deep-fry

Method: Soak the dal for 30 mins in water.Drain and grind coarsely,without using much water.

Smear a plate with ghee and keep it aside.

Now put the sugar into a thick bottomed pan and add 1/2 cup water and put on heat.Let the sugar ,melt and form a one string syrup.Add the ground dal into this sugar syrup.Make a powder of the cardamom and keep aside.

Once you add the dal to the sugar syrup,you have to keep stirring so it does not stick to the bottom and burn.Anything in sugar syrup tends to burn quickly.Once the mass thickens and forms a mass around the mixing spoon,add the elaichi powder and coconut along with 2 teaspoons of ghee.Mix well and immediately pour into the prepared tray or plate.Smoothen with a flat spoon and let it cool for 2 mins.Mark into squares with a knife ,wiping the knife every so often.

Let the pieces cool completely.Now Heat oil in a deep pan and deep fry these pieces till golden brown.Care has to be taken while frying because they tend to stick to the bottom of the pan,so keep stirring all the while when frying.Once they start to brown,keep a close eye and take out as soon as they turn a nice golden brown.As they already have sugar,they will tend to burn easily.Drain on paper towels and serve immediately or at least on the same day.They do keep well for at least 4 days but are best eaten immediately.

Yield:About 64 pieces,1 cm thick and 1 inch square.

My Notes:I used dry coconut in this.I have made these numerous times now, and find that even of the soaked dal is ground fine,these turn out fine.So don;t worry if you have ground the dal too fine.Only thing to keep in mind is that the texture should be like a halwa when you take it into the prepared plate.While frying,some pieces may develop cracks over the surface but that does not affect the taste in the least.So,enjoy!These would go perfectly well with a cup of authentic andhra filter coffee, or even Asha's Masala Chai.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!WELCOME,2007!

2007-01-01T15:22:00.000Z

My Dear friends,

MAY THE NEW YEAR BRING YOU LOTS OF JOY AND HAPPINESS

MAY YOUR DREAMS ALL COME TRUE

MAY YOUR LIFE BE BRIGHT LIKE THESE FLOWERS

MAY YOU SPREAD CHEER ALL AROUND YOU.

All the best of wishes from me and my family to you and yours.

Have a nice day,dear friends.

SUNNY COCONUT BUNS

2006-12-31T16:38:00.000Z

I have been making these buns since the last 7 months now.I actually made it up in order to use up some dry coconut that I had,which was not enough to make anything else,plus I had some dough leftover from making buns.Anyway,these turned out great and so here it is:My entry for JFI Coconut:

Ingredients:

For Bread Dough: 200 gms All purpose flour or maida

50 gms soya flour

2 tsp Active Dry Yeast

2 tsp sugar

1/2 cup Milk,warmed

1/2 cup water,warmed

1 tsp salt

2 tbsp ghee

Some more flour to knead the dough

For the Filling:

12 teaspoons Dry Coconut/fresh coconut(Grated)

2 tsp salt

1 tsp Red chilli powder/2-3 fresh green chillies chopped finely

1/2 tsp Garam Masala powder

2 tbsp lemon juice/Juice of half a big lime(US)/juice of 3/4 indian lemon

1 Teaspoon Turmeric

A few curry leaves or 2 tsp chopped coriander leaves

Method: Prepare the bread dough: Warm both the milk and water , and sprinkle yeast on the milk.Add 2 tsp sugar .Sugar helps yeast to grow.Set it in a warm place until the mixture starts frothing.This will take about 15 mins.

Put both the flours into a mixing bowl,add salt and mix well.Make a well in the centre , and pour the yeast mixture into it,along with 2 tbsp ghee.

Mix with a fork until all the flour is incorporated.You may need to add upto 1/2 cup more of flour in order to knead it .Now dust your countertop with some flour and invert the bowl onto it.Once the flour is on the countertop,dust your hand with flour and knead the dough until it feels elastic.If the dough is too sticky,add some more flour.But take care not to add too much or else the rolls will be dense.

Coat a large bowl with oil and put the dough into it.Cover with a soft kitchen towel and keep it in a warm place to rise.It will take about 1 hour in a really warm place.

Meanwhile,prepare the filling by mixing all the ingredients.

Once the dough has risen,punch it down gently to release all the air,and divide it into 12 portions.

Oil your hands a bit and then knead each ball gently and flatten it on your palm.Now place 1 tsp of the filling on the flattened ball and close it completely.Prepare all the balls in a similar way and then place them on an oiled bun tray or a baking sheet.

Cover with a tea towel and let rise again in a warm place.This takes about 20 mins.

Meanwhile,preheat the oven to 400F/200c.Once the buns are risen,bake them in the preheated oven for about 15 mins.As soon as they come out,brush the tops with some butter or ghee(Clarified butter).Let cool.

These taste great with a hot cup of tea.I have taken these buns on our trip to the zoo,museums, and what not.

My Notes:I made these without the soya flour this time as I ran out of soya flour.They came out great and we finished off atleast 6 soon as it came out of the oven!

Tagged By Trupti

2006-12-30T12:24:00.000Z

Hello everyone,

I hope you all are having a nice time with the holidays and celebrations and lots of cooking and dining!We are just enjoying our little princess's antics these holidays as the weather is a little too erratic here in London.She has learnt rhymes,and songs from all the programmes she watches on BBC.They have excellent programmes for pre-schoolers,for which I am sooo thankful(I would not have known what I would have done without all those interesting songs,rhymes and crafts that they show to keep the kids engrossed).

Well friends,I got tagged bythe wonderful mom of Siddharth and Sahil, Trupti for a Meme,so here is My Meme:

3 Things that scare me:

1.Scorpions and all eight/more legged creatures.

2.The flowerpots burst on diwali(for those who donot know:These are cone shaped filled crackers with a wick on the pointed top part which is lit and it bursts into a thousand bright stars):(I once burnt my hand on diwali with this).

3.The thought that I cannot have a routine for myself.

3 people who make me laugh:

1.My younger sister Prashanti(She always has the right joke to narrate at the right time)

2.My daughter Ananya who imitates everything I do,including the way I dry my long hair.

3.Veteran Hindi actor Mehmood.

3 Things I love:

1.Baking.

2.Reading(I am now forbidden to read Anything as long as my daughter is awake:She wants to read,that's why!!).

3.Photography.

3 Things I hate:

1.Double standards.

2.Shabbiness.

3.Disorderliness.

3 Things I don't understand:

1.The first one has to be MATHS,of course.

2.All things technical in nature.

3.Why God takes away good natured people when this world needs so much of them now?

3 Things on my desk:

1.My daughter's favourite DVDs so I can pop one into the DVD player when the demand arises:)).

2.My little diary in which I jot down my notes.

3.My Laptop(indispensable esp when blogging:))

3 Things I am doing right now:

1.Well,writing this meme.

2.Thinking of where to take my daughter out for the weekend.

3.Thinking,OMG,it is already 12.45 pm ,what am I going to do for lunch?

3 Things I want to do before I die:

1.Accomplish my dream of acquiring a Ph.D degree.

2.Learn Hindustani and Carnatic classical music.

3.See my daughter when she is all grown up and tell her about all the places she visited when she was a baby.

3 Things I can do:

1.Understand a little bit of computers(Hurray!Never thought I could make it this far!)

2.Make my way searching for exactly what I want,be it some information I want,or some place I want to visit.

3.I can cook, and bake and now,decorate too(without any formal training!)

3 Things one should listen to:

1.Your inner self.

2.Announcements in railway stations.

3.Kumar Gandharva's excellent vocal Hindustani music.

3 Things I would never want to listen to:

1.My daughter saying "NO" to every thing that I offer for her lunch/dinner.

2.Gossip:Telling one friend on another.

3.Always complaining that one doesn't have enough.

3 Favourite foods:

1.Mysorepak(My grandma makes excellent mysorepak)

2.Dahi wada(Lentil dumplings soaked in seasoned yogurt)

3.Anything made with Chocolate

3 beverages I drink regularly:

1.Water

2.Soy Milk

3.well,...water

3 TV shows/books I watched/read as a kid:

1.Enid Blyton's Fairy tales(Still love it)

2.The wonderful "Lucy Show" that aired on Doordarshan on wednesdays at 9.00pm,I think....(In the early 80's)

3.Mahabharat(My dad gave us excercise books in which to write what we thought of the weekend episode of Mahabharat)

3 of my dearest friends whom I would like to tag for this meme:

Swapna

Asha

Seema

Meme was fun,but so many things to say and such little space.Well,that's how life always is,isn't it?So much to accomplish and so little time to do that.

I hope you all have fun writing this too.Wish you all a Very Happy New Year!

Added:I tagged Asha but found later that she had tagged me too and she has written her meme already.So I would like to tag another great blogger friend,our very own Dilipji of Garam masala.

Merry Chirstmas To You All!!

2006-12-25T14:17:00.000Z

Wish you all a very very Merry Chirstmas,Dear Friends!I cannot thank you all enough for your continued support in the form of nice feedbacks..I Hope to continue gaining more friends in the next year.

Have a wonderful New year and let the year bring you all the wishes you hoped for.

Cheers and good wishes from

Me and My family.

CHOCOLATE SPONGE

2006-12-20T18:18:00.000Z

This is the recipe I used to make our anniversary cake.

Ingredients:4 Eggs

1 cup Castor sugar

1 1/2 tbsp Butter/Margarine

2 1/2 tbsp Cocoa powder

4 tbsp Boiling water

1 1/4 cups Self rising flour(See note below for substitution)

Filling and topping:250 ml heavy cream/double cream/whipping cream

4 teaspoons Confectioners sugar/Icing sugar

Grated dark chocolate for decorating

Milk chocolate kisses or any other small chocolates to decorate

Method:Heat the oven to 350F/180 c.

Grease two 9 inch round pans with butter and line the bases.

Beat the eggs until the yolks and whites are combined well.

Add the sugar in 1/3rd portions and beat till the sugar dissolves and the mixture becomes lemon coloured and thick.This will take about 15 mins.

Now add the butter and cocoa powder to 4 tbsp of boiling water and stir well to dissolve.The mixture should be smooth and lump-free.

Add to the egg and sugar mixture and beat well to combine.Add the flour by the tablespoon,just sprinkle on top and fold gently,but smoothly.

Divide the mixture into the two tins and bake for about 20-25 mins.

Let cool in the pans for 5 mins ,then invert onto cooling rack and let cool completely before frosting.

Filling:Mix the confectioners/icing sugar into the heavy cream/double cream and put in the refrigerator along with your beaters for atleast 3-4 hours.The colder the cream is,the faster it will whip.

Whip until stiff peaks form.

Place one layer of the cake on the serving plate.Brush the top lightly with simple sugar syrup(See note).Then put a 1/3rd of the whipped cream on the first layer,spread with a spatula or knife until evenly spread.Place the second layer on it,and repeat the icing.

With the remaining cream,frost the top and sides.Smooth the surfaces. Sprinkle grated chocolate on top.Take some of the grated chocolate in your hand and stick to the sides.I suggest that you place 3 inch wide wax paper strips under the base of the cake just to catch these chocolate gratings so that you can reuse them.

Now put the remaining cream into an icing bag fitted with a star tip.(I used my icing gun to do this).Pile swirls on top and little shells or whatever other design you prefer on the sides of the cake at the base.Decorate the swirls with chocolate kisses.I used star shaped chocolate that I had on hand.

My Notes:Self rising flour is all purpose flour mixed with salt and raising agents.If you cannot find this,make your own at home:Take one cup of sifted all purpose flour(Sift first,then measure by putting the flour into the cup loosely and levelling off with a knife),remove 2 teaspoons of the flour, and add 1 1/2 teaspoons of baking powder and 1/2 teaspoon of salt.This makes 1 cup,you can make your own and store it for atleast a few months(depending on when the baking powder expires).

Instead of castor sugar,just grind granulated sugar in the food processor.That is what I did.Castor sugar is just finer grained that granulated sugar.

For making simple sugar syrup,just heat equal quantities of sugar and water(by volume,not weight) until it reaches boiling point.

I like the texture of this cake.The mixture will be thinner than normal cake batters and this makes fairly thin layers of cake.But the texture is really spongy and goes very well with the whipped cream.I hope you will enjoy it as much as my family did.

Marriage Anniversary

2006-12-16T19:07:00.000Z

This is the cake that I made for our 6th marriage anniversary today,16th of december.I shall be posting the recipe and other details on Monday.I just wanted to share my joy with everyone,especially Swapna who put up beautiful flowers on her blog along with her wishes to us.
I thought this would be a good occasion to present to you all my daughter,who is turning 3 in Jan 2007.She is Ananya:(Her friend Vaishnavi calls her Aneena:))

Added on 20th Dec:Dear friends,Thank you all for the best wishes you have sent for us and our daughter.I have removed my daughter's photograph from this post for security reasons.I hope you will understand.

CURRY LEAVES SAMBAR/KARIVEPAKU PULUSU

2006-12-14T08:46:00.000Z

I got this recipe from a telugu weekly.I was pleasantly surprised by the taste of this pulusu.I must say though, that this is for someone who truly enjoys curry leaves in all its forms.I am one of those .I love any dish made with curry leaves.Curry leaves also provide good nutrients for hair growth.So all of you who are looking to improve your hair,this is a good way to get curry leaves into your diet.

Ingredients:2 1/2 cups of loosely packed curry leaves(about 20 sprigs)

2 tsp sambar powder

2 lime sized balls of tamarind/3 tsp tamarind paste

2 tsp rice flour/chickpea(besan)flour

2 medium sized onions,chopped fine

3 green chillies

2 tsp Jaggery(Optional)

For Tempering/Tadka/Popu

1 tsp Jeera/Cumin seeds

1 tsp mustard seeds

1/4 tsp Asafoetida/Hing

Method:Heat 3 tbsp oil in a pan and fry the curry leaves for a few mins.Grind this paste in a blender to a smooth paste,adding very little water.

Soak tamarind in warm water and extract the thick paste.

Heat 2 tbsp oil in a deep pan,add the cumin,mustard and asafoetida/hing along with slit green chillies.

As soon as these splutter,add the ground curry leaf paste.Fry until the paste leaves its raw smell,about 5 mins.

Now add 3 cups of water to this along with the tamarind pulp/paste.
Add the sambar powder,salt,and 1/2 tsp turmeric to it.Let this boil and cook for 10 mins.

Add the chickpea/besan flour or the rice flour mixed with 3-4 tbsp of water and the jaggery at this stage.Let cook until a bit thick.

Serve hot with rice.

My Notes:I did not have onions and jaggery on hand when I prepared this pulusu.It still turned out very good.I am sure anyone who loves the flavour of curry leaves will like this one.

Added on 18 Dec 2006:I have decided to send in this recipe for VKN's FAHC campaign.

EGGLESS SEMOLINA/SOOJI CAKE

2006-12-08T14:42:00.000Z

Since I started blogging,thanks to all the inspiration I got from friends in the blog world,my penchant for trying out new recipes is on the rise.So I fished out a recipe for an eggless sooji cake from Recipezaar.I was sceptical at first,but you can see the result for yourselves!

Ingredients:1/2 cup Sooji(Semolina)

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup yogurt/curd

1/2 tsp baking soda

2 tbsp vegetable oil

1 tsp green cardamom/elaichi powder

6-8 pistachios,sliced(Other nuts like cashews,almonds,and even raisins can be used)

Method: Preheat the oven to 350 F.

Line a 7 inch sandwich tin with greaseproof paper.This is important as the cake tends to stick to the pan.

Now mix the semolina,sugar,yougurt and oil.Mix well so that the batter is lump-free.Now add in the elaichi/cardamom powder and the baking soda.Add in the sliced pistachios,reserving some for garnishing.It helps to toss the nuts in a little plain flour/maida before mixing into the batter:It prevents the nuts from sinking to the botton.Mix well,pour into the prepared tin and bake immediately for 35-40 mins.

My Notes:I took the cake out after 35 mins and it was done.It was more like a baked sooji halwa,Best eaten warm.I suppose you could even out saffron in this to jazz it up a bit.I will do that the next time.

Also,this cake does not rise really high as it uses semolina and semolina results in a denser structure than flour.As you can see from the picture,it is about 3/4 inch high.

COCONUT CHIKKI / KOBBARI PAAKAM

2006-12-07T07:31:00.000Z

There are some things we can never forget.In my list of unforgettable things is this simple sweet which we used to buy in shops near temples in Andhra when we were very young. I can never forget the taste of the roasted coconut chips coated with jaggery.

Thanks to JFI-Jaggery,I managed to re-create this simple but classic sweet at home today.So here is how I made it:

Ingredients:1 big coconut

2 cups of grated jaggery

1 tsp green cardamom/elaichi powder

Method:Break open the coconut,and then carefully take it out of the shell.Now peel off the brown layer on the coconut and slice it into very thin chips,about 1 mm thin and 1 inch long.If you cannot take the coconut out of the shell intact then don't bother too much as the taste of this sweet lies in toasting it.

Preheat the oven to 325F and spread the chips on baking trays.I used trays lined with parchment paper.Put these chips in the oven for about 30 mins,until they turn a nice light brown and smell toasted.

Melt the Jaggery with 1/4 cup of water.Pass it through a strainer once to remove any impurities.Then put it back on heat again and keep boiling until it crosses the soft ball stage.

Now,I don't have a sugar thermometer and here is what I did:I took a bowl of cold water, and then put a small amount(maybe some drops) of the melted jaggery into the cold water.Then I tried to scoop it up with my fingers.The jaggery held shape and was soft and could be moulded.This is when I took it off the heat.

Now add the toasted and cooled coconut chips into the jaggery and mix well.Immediately,put it into a greased tray or tin and let cool.

Break into pieces when cooled and store.

My Notes: The yeild of the coconut chips will be dependant on the size of the coconut and this will in turn decide how much jaggery is enough for it.I measured the amount of coconut chips I got ,which was 2.5 cups(standard measuring cups).The jaggery used was according to that.If you have less than this amount,reduce the jaggery a little.
Bottomline:Make sure you have enough jaggery to coat all the pieces and hold them together once you pour them into a greased plate or tray.Too much jaggery will not be good as you want to taste the toasted coconut chips with just a little sweetness.

This is a good sweet to nibble upon when you crave that odd mid-morning snack or even a mid-afternoon snack.

I originally wanted to send this one for JFI Jaggery but could not,due to problems with uploading photos to blogger.Anyway,I hope you all enjoy this one too as much as you enjoy the other ,wonderful and diverse entries sent in.

UPDATE:Well friends,the gracious Kay agreed to accept my second entry for JFI Jaggery,so this is going to be my second entry to JFI.Thanks a lot,Kay!

Added on 18 Dec 2006:I have decided to send this to VKN,who is inviting recipes for the FAHC Campaign.

CARROT-CAPSICUM MASALA

2006-12-04T12:31:00.000Z

This is a curry that I often make, and my husband likes it too.I thought it would be good to share it with you all.So here goes:

Ingredients:2 green peppers,chopped into medium sized pieces(1 1/2 cups)

2 medium sized carrots chopped into small pieces( 1 cup)

1 medium onion,finely chopped(1/2 cup)

2 green chillies ,slit lengthwise

1 tsp fresh grated /minced ginger

1 tsp fresh grated/minced garlic

2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp turmeric powder

1 1/2 tsp chana masala/Chole masala

1/2 tsp of cumin/jeera seeds

1/2 tsp mustard/rai seeds

Method:Heat two tbsp oil in a thick based pan.Add the mustard and cumin seeds.When they crackle,add the ginger,garlic ,onions and chillies.Let them fry for a while.

Now add the chopped vegetables,and let saute for 2 mins.Now add 1 cup water to the curry and let it cook until the vegetables are soft and cooked.Now add the chana masala,turmeric and salt.Mix well.Make a paste of one teaspoon of cornflour with 3-4 tsp of water.Add this to the curry and it will thicken in seconds.Take off heat.Sprinkle with lemon juice and garnish with fresh coriander.Serve hot with chapathis.Goew well with fried rice or jeera rice too.

ALLAM PACHCHADI/GINGER CHUTNEY

2006-11-30T11:06:00.000Z

Ginger is a very good digestive.Ayurveda prescribes ginger to fire up a sluggish digestive system.It is soothing for colds and sore throat as well.It is the most commonly used spice in most Indian as well as south asian households.

My post for today is the ubiquitous Allam Pachchadi.It is a common condiment in most Andhra households.It goes very well with dosa,idli,even upma, and is best when mixed with hot rice and a dollop of ghee.I learnt this from my friend's mother when she had come over to visit her .This is also my entry for JFI-Jaggery which is being hosted by Kay of Towards a better tomorrow.So,without further ado,here is the recipe as I learnt from Aunty:

Ingredients:200 gms(about 1 cup)tamarind

Boiling water,to soak the tamarind

For Popu/Tadka/Tempering:

2 Tbsp split Urad dal

2 Tbsp Chanadal

5 gms block hing/asafoetida(Or,4-6 pinches asafoetida powder)

1 tsp methi/fenugreek seeds

1 tsp Mustards seeds

6-8 dry red chillies

75 gms(about 1/3 cup) Ginger,peeled and grated/chopped into small pieces

3/4 cup grated jaggery(about 100 gms)

Salt to taste

Method: Soak the tamarind in boiling water for 30 mins.

Extract the juice by squeezing the pulp with your hands.This method helps the chutney stay longer outside the fridge.Take out the pips from the pulp.Keep aside.Grate the jaggery now.

Heat 5 Tbsp oil in a pan.Add the urad dal,chanadal,muustard seeds and methi.Let it fry until the seeds turn brown and the mustard has popped.This needs to be done on a medium heat.

Take it out into a plate and let cool.Now,fry the red chillies and hing in oil.Once the chillies puff up,take them out and add to the urad-chana mix.

Once the mix is warm,put it into a grinder(I sed my coffee grinder attachment that came with my blender) and grind till coarse.If you like the chutney fine,then you can also grind the seeds till they are almost a fine powder consistency.

Now,add the ginger,tamarind and salt.Grind once more,till all the ingredients are mixed and ginger is minced thoroughly.

Add the grated jaggery and run the mixer once more,till the jaggery is all blended and the chutney is a homogenous mixture.Take out into a dry bowl and keep it covered.Serve with idli,dosa,or hot rice.

This stores well for atleast 1 week outside the fridge in good conditions.In the refigerator,it will keep atleast 15-20 days,though mine is always over long before that.

Note:I used ready made tamarind paste as I find that the tamarind available in London has a sweet after taste,and does not really go well with chutneys.

PALAKOORA AAVA-PULUSU

2006-11-29T10:46:00.000Z

The dish I am going to present today is a type of sambar made in andhra.Pulusu is neither sambar nor rasam,it lies somewhere in between.Both sambar and rasam rely on a mix of spices to give them the characteristic taste.Pulusu is made without using any spice powder whatsoever.The speciality of this dish is that mustard paste is used to give it that extra dimension.So,here is the recipe:

Ingredients:For Pulusu-

3 cups of chopped spinach(1 big bunch)

1 medium potato,chopped into chunks

1 medium onion,chopped into chunks

3-4 ladiesfingers cut into 1 inch pieces(Bhindi)

200 gms Anapakaya/sorakaya/dudhi/bottlegourd,chopped into chunks

1 whole drumstick cut into 3 inch pieces

3-4 green chillies

1 lime size ball of tamarind/2 tbsp tamarind paste

1/2 cup of cooked Tuvar dal/Arhar dal/Split pigeon peas

For Mustard paste-

1 tsp mustard seeds

2 tsp Raw rice

For Tadka/Popu/Tempering

1 tsp Mustard seeds

1/4 tsp methi seeds/fenugreek seeds

curry leaves

Hing/Asafoetida

Method:First thing,soak the mustard seeds along with the raw rice in 3-4 tbsp water for about 3 hours.

Meanwhile,prepare the vegetables.

Heat 3 tbsp oil in a deep and thick bottmed pan,and add the mustard,methi/fenugreek, and curry leaves.As soon as they splutter,add the chopped onions and chillies and saute for 3-4 mins.Now add the other vegetables and saute for 5 mins.Now add the chopped spinach and let fry for 1 min,just till spinach starts wilting.Then,add 3-4 cups(750 ml to 1 litre) water ,add salt to taste, and turmeric to it.Add the tamarind to this.

Put the lid on and let it boil until the vegetables are cooked.This takes about 20-30 mins on medium flame.

Drain the water from the soaked mustard-rice.Make a fine paste using a mortar and pestle.The mix should be very fine ground.

Once the vegetables in the pulusu are cooked and soft,add the mustard paste and the cooked tuvar dal.

Donot keep on heat for longer than 2 mins, as the mustard will give the pulusu a botter aftertaste if it is heated for long.

Serve hot with rice and papad.

Note:I did not have anapakaya and bhindi,so I omitted them.Vegetables like carrot and pumpkin can also be added.

This is my contribution to Pooja's Veggie of the week.

TOMATO RICE

2006-11-27T18:33:00.000Z

I first tasted this dish at one of our potluck parties here.It was made by my friend Ramya.This has become one of our favourites,as it is very easy to prepare too.I use my measuring cups for all my recipes as it is easy for me.

Ingredients:1 cup raw rice

1 1/2 cups chopped tomatoes(about 3 medium sized tomatoes)

2 tbsp coconut powder or grated fresh coconut

2-3 green chillies,slit lenghwise

1 tsp fresh minced/grated ginger

1 tsp fresh minced/grated garlic

1/2 cup chopped onion(one medium sized onion)

1 tbsp garam masala

2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp cumin seeds/jeera

1/2 tsp mustard seeds/rai

a few curry leaves

Method: Cook the rice seperately in a cooker.A soon as the pressure is released,take it out and fluff up the rice with a fork.

Heat 2 tbsp oil in a thich bottomed pan.Add the mustard and cumin seeds.Let them splutter,then add the ginger and garlic .once they lose their raw smell,add the chillies,and the onions.Fry the onions till they turn transparent.Now add the chopped tomatoes.I like to use a combination of cherry tomatoes and salad or plum tomatoes as the cherry tomatoes impart a slight tanginess to the dish.

Let them cook with a lid on until the tomatoes are cooked and soft.Add salt and the garam masala.Cook for i more minute, then add the coconut and curry leaves.Mix well and pour over the cooked rice.Mix well and serve hot with raitha.

POHA LADDOO

2006-11-23T14:42:00.000Z

Today is also the birthday of Sri Sathya Sai Baba,apart from being Thanksgiving day.I wanted to prepare some sweet for naivedyam as well as for thanksgiving day.I came across Chandrika's Aval Laddoo, which looked very easy to make.

I did not add the coconut(forgot to add!!) .I also decided to make it low calorie by using artificial sweetener in place of sugar.The result is an extremely light and crunchy Laddoo.Thanks for sharing the recipe,Chandrika.

2006-11-23T14:33:00.000Z

HAPPY THANKSGIVING EVERYONE!!!

Changing to Beta Version and template changes

2006-11-23T10:23:00.000Z

Hello Friends,

I just switched over to beta blogger.I am now thinking of changing my template.I am still adding you all to my blogroll,so please don't think I have forgotten to add you:-)Hope to see you all soon with more recipes.Please keep your comments coming.:-)

CARROT-POTATO ROLLS

2006-11-22T12:59:00.000Z

Me and my husband love visiting botanical gardens.After we moved to London,we heard of the Royal Botanic Gardens,Kew.We were told it is an excellent place to visit.We decided to take home made food with us and I started thinking what I could make.I had some bread dough left,so I made up these rolls,inspired by the famous cinnamon rolls.So without further ado,here is the recipe:

Ingredients:For the rolls:
200 gms All purpose flour or maida

50 gms soya flour

2 tsp Active Dry Yeast

2 tsp sugar

1/2 cup Milk,warmed

1/2 cup water,warmed

1 tsp salt

2 tbsp ghee

Some more flour to knead the dough

For the filling:
3 big potatoes,boiled

1 big carrot grated

1 tsp salt

1 tsp garam masala

1/2 tsp turmeric

1 tsp chilli powder

1 tsp amchur/lemon juice

1 tbsp fresh grated ginger

1 tsp fresh grated garlic

Method: Warm boththe milk and water , and sprinkle yeast on the milk.Add 2 tsp sugar .Sugar helps yeast to grow.Set it in a warm place until the mixture starts frothing.This will take about 15 mins.

Put both the flours into a mixing bowl,add salt and mix well.Make a well in the centre , and pour the yeast mixture into it,along with 2 tbsp ghee.

Mix with a fork until all the flour is incorporated.You may need to add upto 1/2 cup more of flour in order to knead it .Now dust your countertop with some flour and invert the bowl onto it.Once the flour is on the countertop,dust your hand with flour and keand the dough until it feels elastic.If the dough is too sticky,add some more flour.But take care not to add too much or else the rolls will be dense.

Coat a large bowl with oil and put the dough into it.Cover with a soft kitchen towel and keep it in a warm place to rise.It will take about 1 hour in a really warm place.

Meanwhile,prepare your filling.Boil and mash the potatoes completely.Grate the carrots and mox into the potatoes,along with salt,turmeric and chilli powder.In a small pan,heat 2 tbsp oil, add ginger and garlic until brown,add the garam masala and the amchur,if using.Immediately pour it onto the potato mixture and mix well.If you use lemon juice,add it at this stage.

Prepare your baking tin now.I used a 9" square,but an 8" square or round will work beautifully too.Just coat it generously with some butter or line it with parchment/greaseproof paper.

The dough should have doubled in size after about 1 hour.If not,let it rise some more.Now gently punch down the dough and then divide it into two balls. Roll out each ball into a square, about 1/4 inch thick and 9 inches by 6 inches .

Now brush the surface with a little milk(you can leave this step out too as the potato mixture is moist enough to hold on to the dough.).Divide the potato mixture into two portions .Spread the potato mixture on it with your hands on each portion.Roll up the square tightly.Using a table knife or a plain edged knife,cut it into 2 inch long rolls.Lift carefully and put it into a prepared tin.Repeat with the other ball of dough and the filling.Cover with a tea towel and let it rise again in a warm place.This will take about 30 mins.

Preheat the oven to 400F/200C.Put the risen rolls into the oven and bake for about 15 minutes.It may take a little longer too,around 20 mins.So check after 15 mins and if needed,bake it for a little longer.

Let the rolls cool in the pan for about 10 mins,then take them out and serve with any sauce of your choice.These are great eaten fresh.But you can also make them ahead of time and just reheat in the microwave oven for a few seconds.

This makes 12 medium sized rolls.
This is my entry to Nandita's WBB#7.

EGGLESS DATE AND NUT CAKE

2006-11-21T08:33:00.000Z

I love Dates.They are so full of nutrition that often I pop a few into my mouth when I crave a snack without a lot of fat in it and which also satisfies my sweet tooth.I remember having baked a date cake long ago(almost 8 yrs ago,to be frank!) and my sister always asks for that recipe.Unfortunately,I don't have that recipe anymore.And thus began my search for a date cake that would be only mildly sweet .I was surprised to find a recipe by Delia Smith which is low in saturated fat as well.I made a few changes to the recipe,so here is the recipe with the changes.You can find the original recipe at Deliaonline.So,here is the recipe with the changes I made:

Indgredients:175 gms stoned dates(About 3/4 cup)

225 gms All purpose flour/Maida(2 cups)

50 gms White sugar(1/3 cup)

25 gms Margarine-I used "I can't believe its not butter(1 tablespoon)

75 gms Walnuts

75 gms Cashews

1 tsp Baking soda

2 tsp Baking powder

1/2 tsp Cinnamon powder

1 Clove(I crushed it in the mortar with 1/2 tsp of sugar)

1/4 tsp salt

1 tsp Vanilla extract

1 tbsp Ground flax seeds

4-5 tbsps Water

Icing:110 gms Icing/Confectioners Sugar

1 tablespoon margarine

4-5 tablespoons warm milk

Method: Put the ground flax seeds along with the water into a microwave safe bowl and microwave it on high for 1 min.The flax meal will have absorbed some water and become thick.Set it aside to cool.

Heat the oven to 400F/200C and roast the nuts until they turn light brown,this takes about 8-10 mins.Let them cool,then chop coarsely.

Reduce the heat to 350F/175C.Line a 7 inch square cake pan with 4 inch high sides,with parchment or wax paperMy favourite trick to making wax paper is to spray a normal white sheet with oil and then use it to like my cake pans.We were living in a small town where parchment or wax paper was not really available,so I came up with this trick to reduce the mess a date cake can make.You can also grease your tin but if you do,grease it well with some shortening/ghee.This cake rises high and is moist too,so making it in sandwich type pans would make the cake too thin and dry.

Chop the dates and soak it in 1 cup(250 ml) of boiling water.Add baking soda and the margarine .Set aside.

Sift the flour with cinnamon powder,clove powder,salt and the baking soda.I generally measure it all, and them put it into a bowl and aerate it well with my wire whisk.

Once the flax meal has cooled,the consistency will be exacly like an egg,very slimy and gooey and almost mud coloured.Now take this into a mixing bowl and beat it with spoon.I like to use a flat melamine rice server to beat my cake batters with, as melamine does not absorb water.Add the sugar and beat well till the mixture is a little lighter in colour.

Crush the dates by hand to make a coarse paste.You can leave it like that if you like date chunks in your cake.

Add this to the mixing bowl and beat well.Now add the flour to this in two parts,mixing well to incorporate it fully.Lastly,add the chopped nuts.Coat the nuts with a little flour that you have measured for the cake.This prevents the nuts from sinking to the bottom after the cake has baked.

If the batter is a little too thick,you can add some milk,about 5-6 tbsps.I did have to add the milk to bring the batter to a pouring consistency.

Pour it into the prepared cake pan.Bake for 1 1/4 hours.The cake will smell done, and the top will spring back when touched lightly.I baked in in my anodised Silverwood pan and the cake was done in 55 minutes.

Mix the ingredients for the icing and pour over the cake.

ALOO PALAK MASALA(BABY POTATOES IN SPINACH GRAVY)

2006-11-08T09:30:00.000Z

This is my version of the very popular Aloo Palak.I made this once when I had nothing except some spinach and a few baby potatoes at home.I have used frozen spinach just because that is what I have on hand.You can use fresh spinach.

Ingredients:250 grams of frozen spinach/1 big bunch fresh spinach.

8 baby potatoes

1 tsp Garam masala

1 tsp Amchur powder

2 tsp Red Chilli Powder

1tsp turmeric powder

1 tsp dhaniya/jeera powder(equal proportions)

For paste: 1 medium onion

1 big clove garlic

1 inch piece ginger

Method: Chop the onion,ginger and garlic coarsely and fry in a few teaspoons of oil until brown and cooked.Cool,grind into paste and keep aside.

Boil the baby potatoes until soft and peel them.

In a thick bottomed,wide-based pan,heat 2 teaspoons oil and put the peeled baby potatoes in it.Fry on medium heat until the potatoes are lightly browned.Now,add the amchur,garam masala,and dhaniya jeera powder to the potatoes.Let it saute for 2 mins,then add the frozen spinach.You need not thaw it before using.I added frozen spinach directly to the pan.If you are using fresh spinach,just wash and chop it finely.Then add it to the potatoes.

Now put a lid on the pan and let cook until the spinach has cooked.This will take about 5 mins.

Now take off the lid and add salt and chilli powder.Let it cook for sometime.Add the onion paste,mix well.Add 1/2 cup water if the curry becomes too dry.

Garnish with chopped coriander and slices of lemon, and serve hot with parathas.

Yield:This makes enough curry for two persons.

MURUKKU

2006-11-03T18:05:00.000Z

I wanted to make something for Diwali this time.But my electric coil stove does not allow me to really do deep fried stuff easily.It takes very long for food to cook properly as well as brown at the same time.Finally,I borrowed a flat based,wide mouthed deep pan from my friend to make some murukkus.

Ingredients:1 cup Roasted Urad dal flour(Deskinned black gram dal)

3 cups rice flour

2 tbsp butter

1 teaspoon whole jeera(Cumin)

1 tbsp sesame seeds

3 teaspoons chilli powder(more if you like )

2 tsp salt

Oil to deep fry the murukku

Method: You need a murukku maker for this.If you have a cookie press,that works fine too.Infact,before I bought my murukku maker,I used my icing gun to make murukkus,although I must admit that was a tough task.

Roast the urad dal until pinkish in colour.Then,cool and grind to a fine powder.Mix this with the rice flour,salt,chilli powder,sesame seeds,jeera seeds.

Now add in the butter.This is important.Butter makes the murukku really light.Next,add enough water to make a tight dough.You may need about 3/4th cup.I did not measure the water-just eyeballed it guided by the consistency of the dough.

Keep the dough covered with a damp tea towel or paper towel.This is important as the dough tends to dry up otherwise.Heat oil in a deep pan.To test,drop a small piece of dough-it should come up immediately but not brown very quickly.

You will need a Murukku press for this.You can use a Cookie press too.

Fill a lime sized ball of the dough into the press.You need to use the disc with the single star for this.

Press out the murukkus into hot oil.Fry until golden brown.Take it out using a slotted spoon, and drain on paper towels.

When cool,store in air tight tins.This stays fresh for 15 days.

This dough is not pliable enough to make the round spiral shaped murukkus.It tends to break apart because it is made using flours.

I shall post another recipe which I use to make the spiral shaped murukku very soon.Until then enjoy this!

BURGER BUNS

2006-10-31T15:06:00.000Z

My Husband is a great fan of burgers.He asked me once ,why,when I bake so many cakes and cookies,I cannot bake a burger bun.So I grabbed this opportunity to learn bread making.I have experimented in the past,with bread making.I used recipes that came at the back of flour packs.Finally,I found this recipe which makes excellent burger buns.

Ingredients:1/2 cup warm water

1 tbsp active dry yeast

1 tbsp sugar+1/2 tsp for proofing yeast

90 ml warm milk

1 tsp salt

1/8th cup melted ghee(can also use shortening)

1 tsp Horlicks

1 1/2 +2/3 cups bread flour(can use normal all purpose flour)

Butter/milk to brush the buns

Sesame seeds to sprinkle on top

Method: Add the sugar and yeast to 1/2 cup warm water and let it sit in a warm place for 15 mins till it froths.

Mix 1 1/2 cups of flour with 1 tbsp sugar,melted ghee,warm milk,horlicks and salt.Add in the frothing yeast liquid.Mix with a large fork.Now add some more of the extra flour and mix till you get a ball that comes together.

Now,put the dough on your kitchen counter and knead till you get a semi - sticky,soft dough.You may need to add more flour as required.But take care not to add too much flour as the buns may become dense.You may need to smear your hands with some butter/ghee to knead the dough so that it will not stick to your hands.

Let the dough rest on your counter (You can also use a clean large bowl) covered with a kitchen towel or paper towels so as not to dry out the dough.After 10 mins,knead the dough gently 8-10 times,not more.Now coat a large bowl with oil and put the dough in it.Cover with a clean tea towel and put it in a warm place.Let it sit for about 1 to 1 1/2 hours.The dough will have risen and doubled in size.

Preheat the oven to 375F.

Gently punch down the dough and divide into 6 equal sized balls.Roll withthe hand to make smooth buns and flatten a little.Put them on a greased baking tray and cover again with a tea towel.Let it rise.This will take about 30-40 mins.

Brush the tops and sides of buns with butter or whole milk and sprinkle sesame seeds on top.

Bake the buns for about 20 mins.Keep checking after 15 mins.

I used skimmed milk and a little ghee to knead the dough smooth.The dough will get sticky,so smear your hands with a little oil/ghee/butter before kneading.

VICTORIA SPONGE CUPCAKES

2006-10-20T15:20:00.000+01:00

Hello everyone,

I made cupcakes today with the victora sponge cake batter.I have made this cake many times before, and I can tell you it is a no-fail recipe.Use it to make gateaus,sandwich cakes, or even trifle.So,without further ado,here is the recipe:

VICTORIA SPONGE CAKE

Ingredients:

150 gms butter

150 gms self rising flour

150 gms sugar`

3 eggs

2 tsp Vanilla essence

Method:Preheat oven to 375 F/180C.

Cream butter and sugar together until fluffy and creamy.Add the eggs one by one and beat well after each addition.

Add vanilla essence at this point.

Now add flour,mix until incorporated.Pour into two 8 inch round pans which have been greased and floured.Bake for 30 mins.Keep checking and cake is ready when a skewer inserted comes out clean.Cool .

2006-10-03T13:38:00.000+01:00

MARBLE CAKE

Some months ago,I bought a new heart shaped heavy aluminium bundt pan.A bundt pan has a tube in the centre, and high sides.Mine is about 3 inches in height.I so wanted to bake something in it, and this cake,that I got from joyofbaking seemed the perfect recipe for it:

Ingredients: 2 oz(55 grams semi-sweet chocolate

1 Tablespoon brewed coffee

2 ¼ cups (290 gms)cake flour

1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon baking powder

½ teaspoon baking soda

¼ teaspoon salt

½ cup(113 grams)unsalted butter

1 ¼ cups white sugar(granulated)

2 large eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla essence/extract

¾ cup(185 ml)sour cream

1/3 cup(80 ml)milk

Method: Preheat oven to 350F/180C.

Grease a 10 inch tube pan.A tube pan is one which has a central tube to facilitale even baking.The capacity of the pan must be around 12 cups.In order to check the capacity,pour water into it upto the rim and measure how much water it takes.

Boil water in a saucepan.Over the boiling water,place another bowl and melt the chocolate with coffee in this.Make sure the water does not touch the chocolate.

Sift together flour,baking powder,baking soda and salt.

Cream butter until soft, and then add sugar.Keep beating until light and fluffy.I like to powder the sugar as it dissolves much easier and the creamed mixture becomes much fluffier.

Beat each egg and add to the creamed butter.Beat well after each addition.Add vanilla essence to this.

Mix milk and sour cream.I used normal home made yogurt/curd.Incorporate flour into the butter mixture in three additions alternating with the milk and sour cream mix.

Remember to start with the flour and end with it as this makes for a much smoother mixture.

Pour half the batter into a separate bowl and add the melted chocolate to it.Stir well.

Place alternate spoons of white and chocolate batter in the pan.Pour the whole batter into it.Using a blunt knife or the handle of a long spoon,swirl the mixture once or twice.Don’t over do it,or the marble effect will be lost.

Bake for about 1 hour.Let the cake cool in the pan for 10 mins before removing the cake from it to cool completely.

This cake has a nice texture.I used normal All Purpose Flour/Maida as I could not find cake flour.Cake flour is a finer flour which is low in protein than normal all purpose flour.To substitute with all purpose flour,use 1 cup minus 2 tablespoons of maida for 1 cup cake flour.

I served this cake as it is.This would go well with ice-cream too.

BUTTER CAKE

2006-10-02T14:19:00.000+01:00

BUTTER CAKE

Ingredients:1 ½ cups all purpose flour,

1/2 tsp salt,

2 tsp baking powder,

1/2 cup butter,

1 cup sugar,

2 eggs,

1 tsp vanilla essence,

3/4 cup milk

Method:Preheat oven to 350 F/175C.

Cream butter and sugar till light and creamy.Add eggs abd beat till light and fluffy.

Sift flour with baking powder and salt.Add vanilla essence to the butter mix

.Now add flour,alternately with milk.Start with flour and end with flour.Batter will be smoother.

Pour batter into an 8 inch round pan (which has sides of atleast 2 inches) which has been greased and floured.Bake for 50-55 mins.Remove from pan,and cool completely.

You can add nuts,candied cherries,raisins, even fresh blueberries.Just remember to coat them with flour before adding to the batter.Otherwise,they sink to the bottom.

I I baked this cake in a pan measuring 6 inches by 9.5 inches,and I also used fresh blueberries in the cake instead of nuts. It was fabulous.

The Tower Bridge,London

2006-09-30T14:49:00.000+01:00

EGGLESS CHOCOLATE CAKE

2006-09-29T15:32:00.000+01:00

I have a small group of friends here in London,and we regularly have potlucks.It is a nice time for us as well as the kids.They get to see other people too(only Mummy is tooo boring,right kids?).So anyway,who can forget 15th of August?That is the day we gained independance from British rule.We decided to celebrate our independance day in our own way.We all prepared foods and decorated it as close as possible to our flag.We also sang the National Anthem.

I baked a chocolate cake, and an eggless one at that.So here is the recipe:

EGGLESS CHOCOLATE CAKE(WACKY CAKE)

Ingredients:

1 ½ cups all purpose flour

1 cup sugar(powdered)

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

3 tbsp cocoa powder

1/3 cup oil

1 tbsp vinegar(substitute with equal quantity of lemon juice if vinegar is not available)

1 cup cold water

Method:

Preheat oven to 350F/175C

Mix all the dry ingredients together.

Mix liquid ingredients separately and mix into the dry.

Mix just to combine and pour immediately into a 8 by 5 inch pan.bake immediately for 30 mins.

Donot delay as soda starts to react as soon as the liquid ings come in contact with the solid.

I made this in a rectangular non-stick dark finish pan.But in light coloured aluminium pans,it may cook a little longer.Check after 25 mins.

Icing:
100 ml heavy cream
3 tbsp icing sugar
A few drops each of red,green and blue food colours.

Chill the cream overnight.Also chill the whisk with which you are going to whip the cream.This makes the job easier and faster too.
Divide the cream into 3 portions,add red food colour to one portion,green food colour to another portion, and let the third portion remain white.

Now whip each portion until firm peaks form.You should do this in a cool place(Not near the stove )or else,the cream will not whip well.

Put the cream into the icing gun/bag(I find it easier to work with an icing gun) and pipe small whirls over the cake.Repeat with the three colours.For the Chakra,reserve a small portion of the white icing,add a few drops of blue food colour into it and gently fold it.Be careful not to deflate the cream.Pipe on the white potion in the shape of a chakra.

If your cream does deflate,put in back in the refrigerator and let it get cooler.Whip lightly again.

I chose to serve this cake directly from the pan.You can take it out,cool it completely, and then frost even the sides.In that case,you will need double the amount of heavy cream/double cream.

Introduction

2006-09-29T15:10:00.000+01:00

Well,as a beginning,I thought I should tell you all about how this passion for baking stirred in me.

I was about 8 yrs old then.There was a fair in our school and in one of the games,the prize was an exquisitely baked and decorated cake.

Now,this cake was made my Mrs.Prasanna Chandran,my biology teacher in class Tenth.She was known for her cakes in our school as well as the local community.

I was really impressed by that cake.It was decorated with white icing,with ribbons, sugar flowrers and small silver balls.How unfortunate that I donot have a picture of the cake that inspired me!But that day,my mother won the game and the prize cake came home with us.

Since then,I have always wanted to bake.I remember we used to have a round glass top oven sold by Paramount.It was electric,but in those days,with the frequent power cuts and low voltage problems,our cakes were not really perfect,but we liked them anyway!

When I was studying in secondary school,I started helping my sister make birthday cakes for us.We were three girls,so three cakes a year were a must.

In class 9th,I graduated to making the whole cake myself.It was a thrilling experience to see the cake rise and brown to a perfect golden colour.I baked biscuits too later on as the years passed by.

I would collect recipes wherever I could find them.Most were from the newspaper The Telegraph which would publish simple recipes in their sunday edtions.I wonder if they still do that,these days.

After I got married,I went to the US to join my husband.There I got a good opprtunity to try out new recipes.My husband was, (and still is)very forgiving,and never uttered a rude comment even if the recipes did not turn out perfect.I did have my share of failures and frustrations,but there you go,unless you experiment,how can you learn?

And as they say,experience is the best teacher.So,here I am today, having mastered a few recipes,still trying out new ones, and looking for more information on baking.

I do hope I have not saddled you down with my childhood memories.

I will be posting recipes soon,so don't forget to come back.