Foodies' Cravings

Cinnamon Raisin Cookies

2012-09-11T14:48:00.000-07:00

2 cups brown sugar
1 cup butter
2 eggs
3 cups flour
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 3/4 teaspoons baking soda
3/4 cup milk
3/4 cup raisins

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Cream together the sugar and the butter. Mix well and then add in the eggs. Combine the flour, cinnamon and baking soda and then add to the creamed mixture. Last, stir in the milk and raisins. Drop by spoonfuls onto an ungreased cookie sheet and bake for 10-13 minutes. Cool.

Blueberry Cake - Starbucks style

2012-09-07T19:26:00.002-07:00

It's been ages since I blogged. Last weekend, my bro came home and asked if I could make some blueberry cake for him. Well, I asked him if he wanted muffins or cake and upon insistence set out to make some "cake". He has a sweet tooth while I don't so here's what I ended up making that finally satisfied both our taste preferences.

The ingredients I used are:

Butter - 1/2 cup
White sugar - 1/2 cup
Salt - 2 pinches or 1/4 tsp
Vanilla extract - 1 tsp
Eggs - 2 large/extra large (separate the yolk from the white but retain both)
All-purpose flour - 1 1/2 cup
Baking powder - 1 tsp
Whole milk - 1/3 cup
Fresh blueberries - 1 1/2 cup
White sugar - 1/4 cup
All-purpose flour to roll in the blueberries - 1 tbs
Brown sugar - 1/2 tsp

Preparation time: 15 mins
Cooking time: 50 mins

Its a very simple process and starts with preheating the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
In the meantime, grease and flour an 8 inch square pan or a circular one.

Now, cream butter and 1/2 cup sugar until fluffy. Add some salt and vanilla. Separate eggs and reserve the whites. Add egg yolks to the sugar mixture and beat until creamy.

Combine 1 1/2 cups flour and baking powder; add alternately with milk to egg yolk mixture. Coat berries with 1 tablespoon flour and add to batter.

In a separate bowl, beat whites until soft peaks form. Add 1/4 cup of sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, and beat until stiff peaks form. Fold egg whites into batter. Pour into prepared pan. Sprinkle top with remaining 1/2 teaspoon brown sugar.

Bake for 50 minutes, or until cake tests done.

You don't need to pay "Star bucks" to get that home-made taste.

Asparagus dry curry

2011-04-29T06:20:00.000-07:00

Coming up next is my version of 'Aloo putt' but with a major replacement of asparagus for potatoes.

Tilapia - the American way

2011-02-28T18:17:00.000-08:00

It's okay to pamper yourself once in a while with foods that crash all calorie count. Especially when its done with fish, there's nothing called as diet guilt.

Oven temperature - 400 degrees F
Preparation time - 15 mins
Cooking time - 20 mins

Ingredients:

4 oz lean white fish fillets ( I prefer tilapia)
Paprika (per taste)
Cooking spray
2 tsp thyme
1/2 tsp finely chopped rosemary
1 medium lemon
Salt (per taste)
Pepper (1-2 tsp)
2 tbsp finely chopped parsley.
1/4 cup butter ( I use a bit lesser)

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Line a cookie sheet with foil and lightly coat it with some cooking spray.

Arrange fish in a single layer and lightly sprinkle paprika, salt and pepper. Lightly coat fish with some cooking spray and bake uncovered for 12-15 mins.

In the meantime in a small bowl, combine butter, thyme, rosemary, 1/4 tsp salt. grate 1/2 tsp of lemon rind and add to the butter mixture. Cut the lemon in 4 wedges and serve squeezing lemon juice over each fillet. Sprinkle evenly with the parsley and spoon equal amounts of the butter mixture on top of hot fillets.

Banana Cake

2011-02-27T18:42:00.000-08:00

Ingredients:

Bananas- 3 large ones ripened well.
Butter – ½ cup or 1 slab (softened at room temperature)
Sugar – 1 cup (crushed)
Brown sugar – 1/5 cup (just for a touch of brown sugar taste)
All purpose flour – 1 ¾ cup
Baking powder – 1 tspn
Baking soda – ½ tspn
Egg – 2 large eggs (at room temp)
Salt - 1/4 tspn
Vanilla essence - 1 tspn

Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Combine flour, salt, sugar, baking soda and baking powder and set aside. In a mixing bowl mash the ripened bananas well and to it add lightly beaten eggs, butter, vanilla essence and combine. Now, fold in the flour and powders and make sure you don't overmix the ingredients. Retain the "chunky" look of the cake batter. Take a 9 X 5 X 3 pan and grease it with some butter and pour over the batter. Bake until bread is golden brown and a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean, about 60 minutes. Place on a wire rack to cool and then remove the cake from the pan. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Yummy blueberry muffins

2011-02-16T13:10:00.000-08:00

Baking time: 20-25 mins
Preparation time: 15 mins
Oven temperature: 400-425 degrees F.

Ingredients:

2 cups – blueberries. (Rinse them well at the nodes.)
2 ½ cups – all-purpose flour
1 tsp salt
2 large eggs
¼ cup butter (melted at room temperature) and ¼ cup veg. oil
2- 2 ½ tsp baking powder
1 cup buttermilk
1 1/4 cup sugar plus 1 tsp
2 tsp vanilla essence
2 tsp brown sugar.

Getting blueberries ready:
Step 1: In a small saucepan set over medium heat, combine one cup of blueberries with one teaspoon sugar. Bring it to a simmer. Stir frequently while cooking until berries have broken down and mixture has thickened. Notice the quantity reduces to about 1/4 cup. Remove pan from heat; set aside and let cool to room temperature.
Step 2: Sprinkle a scant tbsp of all-purpose flour over remaining the other cup of blueberries and toss to coat; set aside.

Pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees F.

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt. Now, in a medium bowl, whisk together sugar and eggs until mixture is pale yellow, thick and fluffy. While whisking, slowly pour in melted butter and oil and mix well. Whisk in buttermilk and vanilla until completely incorporated. Make sure you don’t whisk too long. It’s ok if you find lumps here and there. Using a spatula, gently fold in the egg mixture and the flour coated blueberries (of Step 2) into flour mixture until just incorporated. Do NOT overly mix.

Now in a standard 12 cup muffin pan, place the muffin cups/papers and start distributing the batter. Make sure the batter just fills in the cup without mounding since the next step would be to place a teaspoon of cooked berry mixture above the batter in 12 cups. You could either mix the berries with batter or have them just as topping. Sprinkle just a pinch or two of brown sugar as the final topping.
Place in oven and increase temperature to 425 degrees F. Bake muffins. Depending on how long you took to prepare the batter, it can take anywhere between 20-23 minutes for the muffins to bake. As usual, prick a toothpick into the center of muffins to test if they’re done. Ready muffins will leave no trace on the toothpick. Take them out and let cool.

Banana Cake coming up...

2011-02-01T18:47:00.000-08:00

Thanks to my in-laws at home, I've got back to honing my culinary skills. Low sugar banana cake is my m-i-l's favorite and sometimes mine, too, the recipe of which I'll post, shortly.

Tortilla soup

2011-02-01T17:36:00.000-08:00

I have to ask my colleague why this is called tortilla soup when there are no tortillas in it. Anyways, what's in a name? I enjoyed this lip-smacking, give-me-more response arousing soup in the holiday potluck at office, this Christmas season. My colleague was kind enough to share his recipe with me and from then onwards I haven't stopped making this soup at the drop of a hat.

Main Ingredients:

4 chicken breasts - cooked and cut into sizeable chunks. (I usually rub ginger and garlic paste and some salt to the chicken before cooking it.)

1 large jar Mountain beans -(Alternatively, 2-3 cans of Great Northern Beans, drained)

1 medium size jar Chi Chi Salsa (hot or medium spice level)

1/2 bar or 4 oz. Monterey Jack Cheese

1/2 bar or 4 oz. Monterey Jack Jalapeno Cheese

1 regular size can Chicken broth ( best is if you can use the broth in which you previously cooked chicken.)

Onions - 1 small bulb (finely cut)

Olive oil - 1 tsp

Cilantro - 1/2 cup (optional)

Black pepper powder - 1tsp (optional)

Preparation time: 5 mins
Cooking time: 10 mins

In a deep crock pot/vessel, heat olive oil and saute onions. Before the onions turn brown, add salsa and let it simmer on low. Then add beans and cheese. Cook on low heat until the cheese melts and soup is heated through. Add cooked chicken chunks and heat the soup on medium/high. Take care that nothing sticks to the bottom of the pan and for that you need to stir the contents with a ladle or spoon. Switch off the stove. Garnish with cilantro & black pepper powder before serving the piping hot soup.

Ummm!

Tortilla soup

2011-01-27T19:07:00.000-08:00

Mexican Tortilla soup coming up soon...

Crispy murukus

2011-01-27T18:23:00.000-08:00

Being far away from my land, not having a store than I can quickly run to get something to munch on I settled for making some crispy snacks myself at home, this evening. Going thru' the pantry contents - murukus seemed to be the best option. These are the ingredients and measures I used but did I mention you need a 'sancha' or muruku maker or mould?

Ingredients:
Rice flour - 1 cup
Urad dal (black gram) flour - 1/4 cup
Butter - 2 tbsp (melted at room temperature)
Sesame seeds - 1tbsp
Salt - 1 tsp
Chilli powder - 1 tsp
Cumin seeds - 1 tsp
Oil - 2 cups
Muruku maker

Combine all the dry ingredients and mix butter until you notice that small lumps form. Take warm-hot water and mix with the earlier mixture taking care there's not too much liquid in the dough.

In the meanwhile, heat oil in a pan on high. Butter the insides of the mould. Put the aforementioned mixture into muruku maker (sancha/mould) and once the oil is really hot, press the sancha to drop some spirals of dough into the oil. Fry the muruku spirals until they turn lightly golden brown and drain them on a paper towel.

Once all the muruku spirals are cooled down, preserve them in an airtight container.

Besan Omelette without Egg/ Sprouts roll

2008-08-25T18:13:00.000-07:00

My desi cooking community brought forth an entry from my dear friend, Chitti. I'm only posting on her behalf. Besan omelette without egg is the title - sounds interesting, doesn't it?

Ingredients:

Besan flour (shanaga pindi)- 2 cups
turmeric (pasupu)- 1/2 tspn
chilli powder- 1 tspn
yogurt (curd)- half quantity of besan
salt(to taste)
water (to thin the consistency)
Green gram sprouts (green pesara sprouts)
onions (finely chopped)- 1/2 cup
lemon juice(1 tbspn)
tomatoes- 1/2 cup finely chopped
oil- 1/2 tspn

Method:

1. In a bowl, mix these ingredients to a fine paste or batter like you'd do for a dosa-----shanaga pindi, salt, turmeric (pasupu), chili powder (mirapa podi), yogurt (curd) and water.

2.Next, in another bowl mix these----Green gram sprouts, salt, onion, lemon juice (nimma rasam), tomato.

3. In a pan, put little oil and make dosa out of the besan batter and make it thin and let it fry on both sides until it becomes crisp.

4. Once you cook it both sides, put the sprouts mix on one side and fold the dosa to contain it and heat for 2 more minutes.

5. Yippee! it's ready to eat.

Thanks Chitti for this quick veggie breakfast dish. Can I call it 'Sprouts roll' for a more healthy appeal? Thanks!

Coconut chutney - the Kerala way...

2007-11-30T17:52:00.000-08:00

Ingredients:

Coconut grated - 1cup
1 medium sized onion cut into quarters
Garlic - 2 cloves
Ginger - 1/2 inch piece
Mint leaves - 10-12 leaves
Curry leaves- 2-3
Green chilies - 3-4
Salt to taste
Lemon - 1 small (squeeze juice)

In a hot pan, with a teaspoon of oil, saute all the ingredients except lemon for 3-5 mins. Then grind all the ingredients except lemon to a fine paste. Mix limejuice to the ground chutney and serve with dosa, idli, vada or any breakfast item.

Coconut Dosas

2007-11-30T16:42:00.000-08:00

It's been a long time since I blogged on breakfast items so lemme start that right away.

Ingredients:

Urad dal- 1 cup
Rice - 2 cups
Puffed rice/poha - a handfull
Methi seeds - 1/2 tspn
Finely grated coconut - 1/2 cup

Soak rice, urad dal, puffed rice and methi seeds together for at least 6-7 hrs before you grind them to fine paste/batter. Now, add finely grated coconut and mix it thoroughly with the batter and set it aside for 6-8 hrs to ferment. Keep it in a warm place to allow faster fermentation process. You could add a pinch of baking soda or a 1/2 cup of curd to hasten the process too.

The consistency of the batter should be such that when you dip your finger in it and take it out, the batter should fall off your finger by the time you say aloud 7,77,777 (seven lac seventy seven thousand seven hundred and seventy seven...phew!) However, with experience you'll soon be able to judge the right consistency, don't worry.

Now on a griddle or a non-stick pan, put 3 drops of oil and spread it out evenly. Heat the pan, take a big spoonful of batter and put in the center of the pan, spreading it out evenly until you get the required size of dosa. Sprinkle a teaspoon of oil around the dosa and once it starts turning brown flip it onto the other side. After a minute take it out of pan and serve hot with sambar, tomato chutney or even peanut chutney.

Yummy dosas...ammai more dosai plz... ;)`

Meat ball curry

2007-11-28T19:46:00.000-08:00

This curry is so simple if I buy the ready-made meat balls and just mix the curry with it. But, would I or anyone relish just the same as something made authentic with your own portion of ingredients in the warmth of your own kitchen? Debatable!!!

Ingredients:
Minced Meat- 2 lbs
Coconut-1 small
Salt to taste
Ginger- 1 " piece
Green Chillies- 4-5
Onion- 2 medium sized
Vinegar- 2 tbsp

Now, for the Masala:

Dhania/ Coriander Powder- 2 tbsp
Chilly Powder- 1 tspn
Pepper corns- 1 tspn
Clove- 4 - 5
Cinnamon- 2 one-inched pieces
Fennel seeds - just about a pinch
Cumin seeds- 1tspn
Turmeric Powder- a pinch

For meat balls:

Onions chopped finely- 1cup
Egg-1
Green Chillies - 4-5
Ginger- 1" piece
Salt to taste
Bread crumbs (Optional)- 2tbsp

Preparation time: 30 mins Cooking time: 45 mins

Grate coconut and strain its liquid into 3 cups by adding water continuously. Mix well the ingredients to prepare meat balls with the minced meat. Make small meat balls and keep them aside.
Now, grind all the ingredients for the masala finely. Sauté onion, ginger, green chillies and curry leaves. Add the masala and sauté till oil separates. Add half the coconut liquid. After it boils add vinegar and put the minced meat balls and cook well. Add the rest half of the coconut liquid before removing from fire. Serve hot.

Schezuan chicken

2007-11-14T11:22:00.000-08:00

Quick Chicken Recipes is what I would categorize this recipe under. I love to make this dish for dinner when I can actually have time to relish and savor.

Ingredients:
1 tbsp corn oil (Mazola)
1 tbsp sesame oil
2 chicken breasts, boneless & skinless, cut into 1-inch cubes
2 tbsp cornstarch
3-4 cloves of garlic, minced
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 tbsp rice wine vinegar
1/2 red bell pepper, julienned(cut into long thin strips)
1 carrot, julienned
1/4 cup chicken broth
1 tbsp light brown sugar
1 bunch spring onions, cut diagonally in 1-inch pieces
Hot cooked rice

Preparation time: 15 mins

Heat the oils in a wok over high heat. Now, toss the cubed chicken breast in a bowl with the corn starch to coat. Then add the chicken and minced garlic to the wok and stir-fry until the chicken is lightly browned. Take care not to brown the garlic. Add the remaining ingredients except the spring onions. Cover and cook for 3-4 minutes. Next, add the spring onions. Cover and cook for 3 more minutes. Serve with hot, cooked rice or fried rice. Doesn't that taste yum? Uhmmm! of course, it does :)

Tandoori chicken or Murg-e-Tandoori

2007-11-13T13:10:00.000-08:00

Mughlai recipes are such mouth-watering dishes but they often are accused of being hard, time-consuming, tiring preparations. I'd like to share my process and bury that myth away but remember you prepare the chicken in advance and cook it the next day. So if you thought you'd prepare and cook the same day...then you'll be disappointed.

Ingredients:
1 medium sized chicken - cleaned and skinned - about 2 lbs
1 cup yoghurt well beaten
1 tspn of garam masala
Cumin and red chilli powder - 1 tspn each
4-6 whole red chillies made into a paste with some water
2 tbsp ginger & garlic paste
2 tbsp lemon juice
2 tbsp oil
Li'l butter for basting
Salt to taste
Finely cut onion rings, lemon wedges, and finely chopped cilantro leaves for garnishing

Cooking time: 15-20 minutes

Make slits on the chicken to let the ingredients soak in. Apply a mixture of red chilli powder, half of the lemon juice and salt to the chicken and keep aside for about 45 mins. Whisk the yoghurt in a bowl and combine the rest of the ingredients. Mix well and rub this marinade well into the chicken and refrigerate preferably overnight or at least for four hours. Remember you want this to turn out delicious :)

Skewer the chicken and barbeque it in a traditional hot clay oven (Tandoor) if you're lucky and have one or on an open hot grill for about 12-15 minutes or till the chicken is almost done on all the sides. Baste the chicken with butter and roast for another 3 mins. Thats it. Garnish with onion rings, lemon wedges, and finely chopped cilantro.

I'm sure this wasn't as hard or tiring as it first seemed to be. Savor it - chomp chomp :)`

Lemon Rasam

2007-11-13T12:25:00.000-08:00

Piping hot rasams are my favorite on cold days when all that you want to do is just snuggle happily inside covers and watch your favorite movie sipping hot soup aka rasam.

Ingredients:

Cooked Toor Dal - 5 tbsp (red gram)
Cumin seeds - 1 tspn
Black pepper corns- 3/4 tspn
Turmeric powder - a pinch
Chopped coriander/cilantro and curry leaves - 1 1/2 tbsp
Lemon - 1 big sized
Water - 2 1/2 cups
Powdered asafoetida - a pinch
Salt, sugar - to taste

Cooking time: 15 mins

Cook dal to a smooth paste-like consistency. Now, slit the green chillies lengthwise. Crush coarsely and add all the ingredients (except lemon) in water and allow it to boil for a few minutes. Takes about 10-12 mins to let the taste mingle. Switch off the stove and squeeze juice from the fresh lemons. Heat a teaspoon of oil and for seasoning add a little mustard to that. When the seeds crackle, pour on top of rasam along with a pinch of asafoetida. Close the lid and keep aside for few minutes to let the aroma stay. Serve with steamed rice and ghee.

I love to serve this as a soup by straining the rasam using a strainer to remove pepper and cumin remnants. Garnish it with a stem of cilantro and sip it away to glory. Uhmmmm!

Mixed Vegetables Curry

2007-11-13T12:09:00.000-08:00

Ingredients:

1 cup mixed vegetables sliced and boiled (carrot, cauliflower, beans, peas, potato etc.)
1 tomato sliced thin
1 cup coconut grated
1/2 tspn ginger grated
1/2 tspn garlic crushed
3-5 green chillies
1 tbsp sesame seeds
1/2 tspn each cumin and mustard seeds
1 tspn red chilli powder
salt to taste
1 tspn lemon juice
2 cloves
1" piece cinnamon
2 tbsp butter or 1 tbsp oil

Cooking time: 20 mins

Boil the vegetables and drain the water. Keep the stock aside. Now, blend together coconut, chillies, sesame seeds, cinnamon, cloves to a good paste. Heat butter , add mustard and cumin seeds, and allow them to splutter. Then add ginger, garlic and the above paste. Stir fry for about 3-4 minutes. Now, add vegetables except for tomatoes and add 1/2 cup stock. Cover, simmer for about 5 minutes. Add salt, chilli powder and tomatoes and cook till the gravy is thick. Serve hot with parathas or rotis. It's not only healthy food but also easy to prepare yummy food.

Uggani / Buggani / Puffed Rice Pulihora

2007-11-09T12:21:00.000-08:00

My husband laughs heartily at the very mention of this word - Uggani/Buggani. But I don't somehow see anything funny in that word. Perhaps, because it brings back fondest memories of my childhood in Kurnool where in every nook and corner of the city you could hear vendors calling out this name and selling this delicacy. It's layman's biryani which even the poorest of the poor can afford to get a mouthful. Now didn't I say it a mouthful?
Ingredients:

Puffed rice 250 gms
One big sized onion - finely chopped, lengthwise
4-6 green chillies - made into paste
1 tspn salt
1 lemon
1 tbsp oil
Turmeric - a pinch
Mustard seeds 1/2 tspn
Urad dal 1/2 tspn
Curry leaves 6-8
Red chillies - 2-5
1/2 tspn each of cumin
Roasted chickpea powder(putnala pappu) - 1 tbsp
Roasted peanuts - 1/4 cup

Cooking time: 15 mins Preparation time: 10 mins

Take a big vessel with a colander inside and fill it half with water. Now add puffed rice and dissolve it for a few seconds in water, allowing them to soak in some water. Exactly after 5 minutes, remove the colander from water with rice. Take handfuls of puffed rice and firmly squeeze the water out. What must stay behind in water is dust and chaff of the puffed rice.

Now, in a large frying pan over medium heat, heat one tbsp of oil and fry the mustard and cumin seeds, red chillies and curry leaves in oil. Add onions, saute them until they turn pink and then add green chilli paste. Saute the contents until they turn from bright green to light green color. Take care not to let that go brown or you get a weird taste. Finally, add a pinch of turmeric and salt and stir them all once while slowly turning off the heat.

Next, add this hot onion mixture immediately to puffed rice along with roasted peanuts and roasted chickpea powder. Mix them all together and add more salt if needed. Remember you can garnish with cilantro leaves and serve it hot as a snack or breakfast item.

Just before eating don't forget to squeeze a few drops of lemon for a more tingling, tangy and yummy taste. Aha! good ole' days.

Dal Fry - the South Indian Way

2007-11-09T11:47:00.000-08:00

I wanted to make Dal Fry the South-Indian way and wohoo! it turned out superb.

Ingredients:
1/4 cup toor dal (kandi pappu/yellow lentils)
1/4 cup moong dal (split green gram/pesara pappu)
1/8 cup masoor dal (split red lentils/erra pappu)
1/8 cup channa dal (chick peas/chanaga pappu)
3-4 green chillies
2 stalks curry leaves
1/2 tspn garlic grated
1/2 tspn ginger grated
1/2 tbsp lemon juice
1 onion finely chopped
1 tbsp chopped coriander/cilantro
1/2 tspn each cumin & mustard seeds
1/2 tspn red chilli powder
1/2 tspn turmeric powder
1/4 tspn garam masala
salt - 1 tspn or to taste
3 tbsp ghee or oil.

Cooking time: 25 minutes Preparation time: 7 mins

Mix all the dals after washing thoroughly and soak for 10 minutes. Pressure cook till they're done into a soft paste (approx. 3 whistles). Cool cooker, remove dal, beat with hand beater if the consistency is not soft enough.

Next, make a thin paste of the dry masala powders with little water. Heat 2 tbsp ghee or oil in a saucepan and add the chopped onions. Fry till the onions turn pink. Now, add the masala paste and fry for a minute more. Add dal and bring to boil. Simmer for almost 5-7 minutes. Empty the contents into a serving dish.

Just before serving give the tadka (seasoning/tempering) as follows: Heat remaining ghee/oil in a small saucepan, add cumin and mustard seeds. Allow them to splutter and add green chilli, curry leaves, garlic, ginger and fry for 3-4 seconds. Take the pan off the fire. After 2-5 seconds, add lemon juice and chopped cilantro for garnishing. Pour onto hot dal and cover for 2-3 minutes to retain the aroma. Stir and serve hot with plain or even jeera rice.

Egg Curry

2007-11-08T15:04:00.000-08:00

Just the other day I read in CNN that eggs are one of those 5 foods that should have a place in your diet. Can you believe that "eggs are high in dietary cholesterol, so they don't have a place in my heart-healthy diet" is just a myth? Read this 5 foods myth-buster to know more of a few heart-healthy diets.

Anyways, lets go ahead with our ingredients for egg curry.

Tomatoes - 2 large sized, diced
Onions - 1 medium sized, finely chopped
Green chillies - 3 slit vertically
Chilli powder - 2 tspn
Dhania/Coriander seeds powder - 1 1/2 tspn
Asafoetida - a pinch
Curry leaves - 5
Garlic cloves - 3 finely chopped or mashed
Turmeric - 1/4 tspn
Salt - 1 tspn or to taste
Garam masala - 1 tspn
Eggs - 4 boiled and halved vertically with shell removed
Oil- 1 tbsp

Preparation time: 10 mins Cooking time: 25 mins

Heat oil in a pan and add green chillies, garlic and curry leaves. As the garlic begins to change its color, add onions and saute well. When the onions turn transparent add turmeric, salt, dhania and garam masala powders. Mix the ingredients well and then add well diced tomatoes and asafoetida. Before water drains out of tomatoes, add chilli powder and mix the contents in the pan well. Now its time to keep the lid on the pan to let the tomatoes cook. It may take about 12 mins.

In a seperate pan, pour 5 drops of oil and place the vertically halved boiled eggs to fry. Let the base of the eggs get fried. Remember, the more the eggs get fried, the tastier they are to eat.

Once the tomatoes are cooked and appear as sauce on the pan, remove the lid and let the extra water escape. Now, add the fried eggs and let them soak in the gravy. Garnish with cilantro and serve hot. Tastes best with Aloo paratha, methi paratha, rotis, steamed rice or fried rice. Yummy!

Kheer

2007-11-08T13:45:00.000-08:00

Kheer, another special dessert for Diwali is one of my favorite sweets too. Tho' you get a lot of ready-to-eat kheers in retail outlets, nothing beats the taste and flavor of this homemade specialty.

Ingredients :
Long grain Rice 1/4 cup (washed and drained)
4-5 cups Milk
2-3 cardamom seeds (crushed)
2 tbsp. almonds (blanched)
A pinch of saffron strands, soaked in some hot milk
1 tbsp skinned pistachios (chopped)
1 tbsp raisins (optional)
5 tbsp sugar or as desired

Cooking time : 20 mins

Put the rice, milk and cardamom in a pan, bring to boil and simmer gently until the rice is soft and turning into a paste. Add almonds, pistachios, and saffron and simmer for 5-7 minutes. Add sugar and stir continuously until it is completely dissolved. Remove from heat and serve either warm or chilled. Garnish it with raisins for a more wholesome taste. Uhmm! lip smacking taste.

Badam Phirni/ Almond pudding

2007-11-08T13:21:00.000-08:00

Badam firni which is a highly nutritional dessert is made on special occasions in India, especially during Diwali - the festival of lights.

Ingredients:

Almonds - 15-20

4 tbsp Rice flour

2 1/2 cups Milk

6 tbsp Sugar

Saffron - 8 strands

Cardamom /Ilaichi powder -1 tspn

Cooking time: 20 mins

Blanch and grind the almonds to a fine paste with 1/2 cup milk. Mix together the ground almond paste and rice flour and keep aside. Now, bring the milk to boil and add sugar. Stir continuously till the sugar dissolves. Set aside a tablespoon of hot milk with saffron strands dissolved in it.

Add the almond-rice mixture into the boiling milk along with the saffron. Stir continuously for a few mintues till the milk thickens and attains a custard-like consistency. Sprinkle in the cardamom powder for flavor. Take off fire and cool to room temperature. Pour into individual bowls, garnish with almonds and pistachios and refrigerate.

Tastes best when served chilled. Yummy delicious phirni. Just can't stop with one bowl :)

Spinach Corn/Palak Curry

2007-11-07T11:30:00.000-08:00

Spinach also called as 'pala-kura' in Telugu is one of my bro's favorites. While my bro' can eat up the entire curry made my way, I can't somehow understand how Popeye-the sailor man can gobble cans of raw spinach. God bless!

Ingredients:

Spinach - 1 1/2 lbs

Corn - 1 cup

Red Chillies - 3

Dhania/Coriander seeds powder - 1 1/2 tspn

Cumin powder - 1/2 tspn

Chilli powder - 2 tspn
Onions - 1 medium sized

Chana dal - 2 tspn

Curry leaves - 10 leaves crushed

Garlic - 3 cloves diced thin

Oil- 1 1/2 tbsp

Salt - 1 1/2 tspn

Preparation time : 7 mins Cooking time : 15 mins

Chop the spinach finely and keep aside. In a pan, heat oil and add garlic, red chillies and onions. Saute till the onions turn slight brown. Add curry leaves and chana dal to fortify the taste. Then add salt, dhania, and cumin powders and mix thoroughly. Now, add the finely chopped spinach and place a lid on the pan. Wait for 2-5 mins.

Let the water drain out of the leaves and cook the leaves. You may add one small cup of water if the leaves aren't yet cooked. Now add chilli powder. Remove the lid and cook allowing the extra water to vaporize. When the water vaporizes, tilt the pan to let the oil seperate from the leaves. As the oil seperates, put a cup of corn seeds into the oil and stir fry them. When the corn turns brown mix it with the spinach curry. Let the curry simmer till the leaves start sticking to the base of the pan.

Serve hot with parathas, rotis, naan or even rice and dal. Doesn't it taste yum?

Okra/Bhendi/Ladiesfinger Fry

2007-11-07T10:07:00.000-08:00

Simple yet crunchy, this dish is something one can have daily with rasam or dal and rice. Doesn't take too much time or effort or ingredients.

Ingredients:

Okra/ ladiesfinger/ bhendi - 2 lbs , cut thin horizontally

Oil- 1 tbsp

Mustard - 1/2 tspn

Chana dal - 1 1/2 tspn

Garlic cloves - 5 mashed

Coriander seeds/ dhania powder - 1 1/2 tspn

Cumin seeds powder - 1/2 tspn

Chilli powder - 2 tspn

Garam masala - 1 tspn

Salt - 1 tspn

Cilantro and Groundnut/peanuts powder, 1 tspn, for garnishing

Preparation time : 10 mins Cooking time : 20 mins

Heat oil in a pan and add mustard seeds. When they begin to crackle, add mashed garlic and chana dal. Don't let chana dal turn dark. Keep saute-ing. Now, add turmeric, salt, dhania powder, and cumin powder and saute well. Add thinly cut okra pieces and let the moisture drain out. Don't put the lid on the pan. When the okras are still moist, add chilli powder and stir once or twice. Remember the more you stir, the more the okras get messy and sticky. So minimize on stirring and saute-ing. Leave the pan on medium heat till the okras lose their stickiness which will be about 12-15 mins. Now add garam masala and mix the ingredients. When okras pieces have shrunk and become quarter their original size, add cilantro and groundnut powder for garnishing and serve hot.