THE KITCHEN AFFAIRE

Valentines Day Special

2015-01-10T16:33:00.000-08:00

Appam

2014-02-05T20:13:00.002-08:00

Appam is one of A's favorites. So that was among the first few dishes I tried making when we were newly weds <3. And thanks to Divya of Easy Cooking for this easy and "made from scratch" recipe which comes out looking beautifully lacy and tasting delicious. A loves it, so do I. Here comes the recipe as it is...

Courtesy: Easy Cooking

Ingredients

Raw rice – 1 C
Cooked rice – ½ C
Grated coconut – ½ C
Salt to taste
Baking powder – 1 t
Sugar – 1 T
Eno Fruit salt – 1 sachet

Method

Soak the raw rice for 4-6 hours.
Grind to a smooth batter adding the cooked rice and grated coconut and enough water.
Add the baking powder and salt.
Mix well and keep it covered for 8-10 hours.[I keep it overnight]
Next morning add sugar and mix well,add more water if the batter is too thick-it has to be of pouring consistency.
Just before you start making the appam,add eno fruit salt to the batter.
The batter will froth up instantly,mix gently.
Heat a non stick appa chatti[appam pan] or any non stick kadai.
Pour a ladleful of batter into the pan when it is hot and swirl the pan in a clockwise motion spreading the batter to the sides of the pan.
Swirling the pan gives the appam the customary pretty lace edges and a spongy centre.
Close the lid and cook on medium heat for about 2-3 minutes.
Place the appam into a plate and serve hot with Stew, kadala curry or any non-vegetarian curry.

Poori Bhaji Masala

2014-02-03T08:00:00.000-08:00

A and me love to try new stuff but there are days when we love to indulge in some of our favorite "not so healthy" dishes. One among that is Poori Bhaji masala. A reminiscence his college days when I make this. Those were days when he used to travel from home to his college in local trains. And those trains used to sell hot and yummy Poori Bhaji masala for breakfast. Good times for sure! So here is our weekend cheat food special for you guys out there.. :)

Poori

Ingredients

Wheat flour - 2 C
Yogurt - a teaspoon
Warm Water - 1 C (as needed to prepare the dough)
Oil - to deep fry

Method

Knead the dough (with yogurt) by gradually adding warm water.

Keep aside for 10 -15 mins.

Roll them into small (not too thin) circles.

Heat oil in a pan and wait till it gets hot.

Test heat by dropping a lil' piece of dough into the pan, if the dough rises up instantly, it is ready.

Drop the pooris one by one into the hot oil.

Once you drop, pat the top of the poori lightly until it swells up into a ball.

Let the other side cook.

Make sure it turns into a golden color on both sides.

Yummy poor is are ready to be served hot.

Bhaji

Ingredients

Potatoes - 3
Onion - 1
Curry leaves - 1 T
Mustard seeds - 1⁄2 t
Cumin seeds - 1⁄2 t
Green chillies - 6
Turmeric powder - 1⁄2 t
Salt - To Taste
Oil - 3 Tablespoon
Chooped ginger - 1⁄2 t

Method

Pressure cook/Microwave potatoes and cut/mash them.
Cut onions lengthwise and slit the green chillies.
Heat oil in a pan.
Add mustard seeds.
When they splutter add cumin seeds.
Now add the curry leaves, green chillies and ginger and fry for a while.
Add turmeric powder and mix it well.
Add chopped onions and saute till the onions turn golden.
Now add potatoes and 1/2 a cup of water. Add salt to taste.
When it comes to a boil cover and cook it on a low flame for about 10 minutes.
Sprinkle some lime juice on top.
Serve hot with puris.

Note:

I add some garlic (2 pods) at times too since we love the smell of it. You can add it along with the ginger.

Health Fact: Garlic is good for the stomach

Super Moist Chocolate Cake

2013-12-27T07:59:00.000-08:00

Courtesy: Marias Menu

Maria made 9 inch loaf & 10 standard size cupcakes with the below specified qty

Ingredients

Milk – 1½ cups
Butter – 100 gms (1/3 cup + 2 tbsp approx)
Oil – ¼ cup (I used sunflower oil)
Coco Powder – ½ cup ( I used Hershey’s)
Self Raising Flour – 1 cup (Refer notes for substitute)
Egg – 1 beaten, room temp
Baking Soda – ½ tsp (refer notes)
Sugar – 1 cup + 2 tbsp (250 gms)

Method

Preheat the oven at 180 C/350-375 F, a few mins before baking.
Heat together milk, butter, oil & coco powder till the butter melts. Let it cool to room temperature.
Add flour, baking soda, sugar & beaten egg to the cooled wet ingredients. Beat it well using an electric beater or hand whisk till it is mixed well. You can either use it to make cupcakes or cake.
Bake in the preheated oven for 15- 20 mins for the cupcake & 25- 30 mins for the loaf cake.
For cupcakes: Line your cupcake tin with paper liners (I use 2 liners per cupcake) & pour 3 tbsp of batter in each case. I’m referring to the standard size muffins here.
For cake: Grease your cake tin well & line with parchment/baking paper. Pour the batter.

For Ganache:

Whipping cream – ½ cup
Baking chocolate – ¾ cup (Hershey’s semi sweet chocolate chips work well)

Place the baking chocolate/ chocolate chips in a bowl.
Heat the whipping cream on low flame till small bubbles start appearing around the edges.
Pour the heated cream to the bowl with choc chips.
Let it rest for 5 mins. Whisk it using a manual whisk.
This will give you a liquid consistency ganache.
If you want to thicken the ganache for spreading, place the bowl on some ice & whip it. It will start thickening.
Spread the ganache on cooled cupcakes/cake.

Maria says " The original recipe calls for baking powder. But I’ve read somewhere that for chocolate cake, baking soda is good. The explanation for that is Baking soda will react with coco powder and gives a darker colour to the cake. I used castor sugar for the recipe for easy blending of ingredients. However you can use the regular sugar. Substitution for self raising flour – to get 1 cup self-raising flour, add 1½ tsp baking powder+ ¼ tsp salt to 1 cup all purpose flour. (source: http://www.joyofbaking.com/IngredientSubstitution.html)"

Egg Puffs

2013-01-01T07:39:00.000-08:00

The thought of egg puffs brings back fond memories of my college days. The bakery near my hostel sold the tastiest puffs in the world. That too, egg puffs. An egg puff and Sharjah shake was always the popular combination at that hangout. It was just fantabulous. I was trying to recreate that aroma and taste. Though I couldn't match that taste, it was pretty close. :)

Ingredients

Puff pastry sheets : 1
Eggs : 3
Chopped onions : 2 cups
Ginger paste : 1 T
Garlic paste : 1 T
Coriander Powder : 1 t
Garam masala : 2 pinch
Turmeric powder : 1/4 t
Red chilli powder : 1 t
Salt as required
Oil : 3 T

Method

Preparing

Thaw the pastry sheet by leaving it out in room temperature for about an hour or so.

Boil the eggs and take the shell.

Cut each egg vertically(lengthwise)into two halves.

For the stuffing

Heat oil in the pan. Fry onion until it gets brown.

Then add ginger and garlic paste. Fry till its smell goes.

Then add garam masala, coriander powder and red chilly powder.

Add egg halves, fry for 2 minutes.

Egg filling is ready now.

Setting everything

Slowly unfold the sheet and cut into 6 square pieces.

Roll each piece with rolling pin to make it little thinner.

Put egg half in each of them along with onion Gravy, bring two corners into middle and close them with help of little water.

Preheat oven to 350 degree Fahrenheit.

Place the prepared puffs on a baking tray and bake for 30 to 45 minutes or till they turn golden brown.

Fruit Punch

2012-12-30T21:43:00.003-08:00

This drink is perfect to serve to guests at a party/get-together. Not only is it a refreshing drink but also a beautiful one. Really! Just look at the pics :) Dont you think so? I have to say thanks to my friends for introducing us to this drink. We had it a couple of times and fell in love with it. So when we had guests this time we thought this would be a winner. And it was.. Everybody loved it.. :)

Ingredients

Pina Colada non alcoholic frozen fruit mix - 1 can
Dacqri (red color) - fruit/strawberry mix - 1 can
Pineapple flavor fanta soda - 1
Ice cubes - 2 C
Oranges, sliced - 2
Mint leaves - a sprig
Cold Water - a cup

Method

(Prepare the drink right before the guests come - max15 mins before)

Mix Pina Colada and Dacqri fruit mix in a large bowl or a beverage dispenser (as seen in the pic).
Add the Pineapple soda to it and mix.
To this, add the rest of the ingredients and give it a quick stir.
Close the dispenser with the lid.
Your fruit punch is ready to be served.

Parippu Vada (Lentil Fritters)

2012-12-22T22:08:00.003-08:00

Ingredients

Chana dal (split bengal gram/kadala parippu) – 2 C
Onion – 1, finely chopped
Green chilli – 3, finely chopped
Ginger – 2 t, finely chopped
Curry leaves – 2 sprigs
Kayam (asafetida) – 1/8 t
Salt - to taste
Oil for deep frying

Method

Wash and soak chana dal in water for 2 hours.
Drain the water completely and make sure that the dal is dry.
Coarse grind the drained dal (do not add water) for a few seconds. Make sure not to grind it to a smooth paste.
Add rest of the ingredients except oil to the ground mix and gently mix together.
Make small balls with the ground mix.
Heat oil for deep frying pan on high flame.
While the pan gets hot, flatten the balls in your palm.
When oil is really hot, reduce the flame to low-medium and add the vada/fritter.
Fry till the vadas (fritters) become golden brown or if you like it extra crispy, fry till you get a darker shade.
Drain excess oil on a tissue paper.
Serve hot

Notes: Its always better to flatten the fritters just before you fry it. This will help it from getting broken.

Paneer Pizza

2012-09-06T20:25:00.002-07:00

Ingredients

Pizza Dough: Makes enough dough for two 10-12 inch pizzas

1 1/2 cups warm water (105°F-115°F)
1 package (2 1/4 teaspoons) of active dry yeast (check the expiration date on the package)
3 1/2 cups bread flour (can use all-purpose but bread flour will give you a crisper crust)
2 Tbsp olive oil
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon sugar

Pizza

Olive oil
Cornmeal (to slide the pizza onto the pizza stone)

Pizza Sauce

Garlic - 2 cloves, minced
Onion - 1/4 chopped
Green bell pepper - 2 T, chopped
Tomatoes, crushed - 10/14 Oz can
Italian seasoning (dried Basil, thyme, rosemary, oregano) -1 t
Tandoori Masala - 1 t
Red chilli flakes - to taste
Pepper - 1 t
Sugar - 1/4 t
Salt - to taste
Basil Leaves - Fresh

Topping

Mozzarella or Parmesan cheese, shredded
Bell peppers, stems and seeds removed, thinly sliced
Onions, thinly sliced
Cherry tomatoes, chopped
Paneer
Corn
Italian seasoning
Jalapeno peppers

Method

Pizza Dough

In a large bowl, add the warm water. Sprinkle on the yeast and let sit for 10 mins and rise.
Mix in the olive oil, flour, salt and sugar and knead for about a minute.
Continue kneading until the dough is smooth and elastic, about 10 minutes.
If the dough seems a little too wet, sprinkle on a bit more flour.
Place the dough in a bowl that has been coated lightly with olive oil.
Turn the dough around in the bowl so that it gets coated with the oil.
Cover with plastic wrap. Let sit in a warm place (75-85°F) until it doubles in size, about 1 to 1 1/2 hours (or several hours longer, a longer rise will improve the flavor).
If you don't have a warm spot in the house you can heat the oven to 150 degrees, and then turn off the oven. Let the oven cool till it is just a little warm, then place the bowl of dough in this warmed oven to rise.
If you want to make ahead, you can freeze the dough in an airtight container for up to two weeks.

Pizza Sauce

Heat a pan with a tsp of olive oil.
Add the garlic, onion, bell pepper and saute for a few mins.
Add the crushed tomatoes, salt, pepper and italian seasoning along with the tandoori masala, sugar and red chilli flakes.
Lower the heat and simmer cook for 30 mins.
Add water (less than 1/4 of a cup) little by little if the sauce becomes too dry while cooking.
Add a tsp of julienned basil leaves and mix.
Keep the sauce aside.

Tomato Dosa

2012-08-24T17:39:00.000-07:00

There are days when you want to eat something new but not put in a lot of work to it. :P Yeah.. The fact is, I was lazy but in a mood to eat something other than the regular stuff. And so, here I was blog hopping, as usual, and there I go.. I land on this awesome recipe for Tomato dosa by Sharmis Passion. Thanks to her for this lovely recipe. :)

Yummy red colored dosas! Bliss :) We loved it.. Here is the recipe for you guys ..

Ingredients

Dosa Batter - 2 C
Tomato - 2 chopped
Garlic - 4 chopped minced
Coconut - 1 T
Red Chillies - 2
Jeera - 1 t
Curry leaves - few chopped
Red chilli powder - 1/2 t
Oil - as needed

Method

Saute the tomatoes in a tsp of oil until mushy and the raw smell goes.
Once it cools, grind to a fine paste by adding coconut, garlic and red chillies and little water.
Add jeera, curry leaves , red chilli powder and the tomato coconut paste to the dosa batter and mix well.
Heat a dosa pan, keeping in low medium flame take a laddle full of the batter and spread it evenly starting form the center slowly outwards in circular motion.
Drizzle lil' oil along the edges of the dosa and cook for 2 mins.
Flip on the other side and cook until done (a min).
Serve hot with any chutney.

PS: If you ask me, this does not even need any chutney. Its awesome just like that :)

Coconut Macaroon

2012-06-10T08:39:00.002-07:00

Some days the mood to bake comes at odd times. Yesterday was one such day. I was done with cooking and cleaning up. It was almost 11 PM when I felt like baking something quick. That was when I thought of these yummy coconut macaroons.

They came out so yummy too :D We loved em..

Source - Taste of Home

Ingredients

1-1/3 cups flaked coconut
1/3 cup sugar
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/8 teaspoon salt
2 egg whites
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Method

In a small bowl, combine the coconut, sugar, flour and salt.

Stir in egg whites and vanilla; mix well.

Drop by rounded teaspoonfuls onto greased baking sheets.

I used the heart- shaped cookie cutter ;)

Bake at 325° for 18-20 minutes or until golden brown.

Cool on a wire rack.

Yield: about 1-1/2 dozen.

Lemon Cake - by Barefoot Contessa

2012-06-02T22:10:00.003-07:00

This is one yummy and perfect Lemon Cake recipe I found in the Food Network website. The recipe comes from none other than Food Network's famous program, Barefoot Contessa, hosted by Ina Garten. One bite into this cake and you will forget all about your diet ;)

And I thought why not bake such a yummy cake for our friends 25th wedding anniversary. And thats what I did.. :) What do you think? :)

Courtesy: Food Network

For the cake

1/2 pound unsalted butter, at room temperature
2 1/2 cupsgranulated sugar
4 extra-largeeggs, at room temperature
1/3 cup grated lemon zest (6 to 8 large lemons)
3 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoonbaking powder
1/2 teaspoonbaking soda
1 teaspoonkosher salt
3/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
3/4 cup buttermilk, at room temperature
1 teaspoonpure vanilla extract

Method

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Grease and flour 2 (8 1/2 by 4 1/4 by 2 1/2-inch) loaf pans. You may also line the bottom with parchment paper, if desired.
Cream the butter and 2 cups granulated sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes.
With the mixer on medium speed, add the eggs, 1 at a time, and the lemon zest.
Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a bowl.
In another bowl, combine 1/4 cup lemon juice, the buttermilk, and vanilla.
Add the flour and buttermilk mixtures alternately to the batter, beginning and ending with the flour.
Divide the batter evenly between the pans, smooth the tops, and bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour, until a cake tester comes out clean.
When the cakes are done, allow to cool for 10 minutes.
Remove the cakes from the pans and set them on a rack set over a tray or sheet pan;
Allow the cakes to cool completely.
Your yummy lemon cake is ready to be served :)

Gulab Jamun

2012-04-10T23:16:00.000-07:00

We love Gulab Jamun. Even better if its home-made. :D I wanted to make it from scratch. Not using the ready-made mix. And thats when I came across a couple of great recipes online. And finally ended up mixing and matching the recipes. Anyhow the GJs came out awesome. I took some to my workplace too. They loved it and so did we :D Check out the recipes guys!

Ingredients

1 C dry milk powder

3 T all-purpose flour

2 T ghee (clarified butter), melted

1/2 t baking powder

1/2 C warm milk

1 pinch ground cardamom

1 quart vegetable oil for deep frying

1 1/4 C white sugar

7 fluid ounces water

1 pinch ground cardamom

Method

In a large bowl, stir together the milk powder, flour, baking powder, and cardamom.
Mix in the melted ghee, then pour in the milk, and continue to mix until well blended.
Cover and let rest for 20 minutes.
In a large skillet, stir together the sugar, water, rose water and a pinch of cardamom.
Bring to a boil, and simmer for just a minute. Set aside.
Fill a large heavy skillet halfway with oil.
Heat over medium heat for at least 5 minutes.
Knead the dough, and form into about 20 small balls.
Reduce the heat of the oil to low, and fry the balls in one or two batches.
After about 5 minutes, they will start to float, and expand to twice their original size, but the color will not change much.
After the jamun float, increase the heat to medium, and turn them frequently until light golden.
Remove from the oil to paper towels using a slotted spoon, and allow to cool.
Drain on paper towels and allow to cool slightly.
Place the balls into the skillet with the syrup.
Simmer over medium heat for about 5 minutes, squeezing them gently to soak up the syrup.
Serve immediately, or chill.

Deviled Eggs

2012-04-03T22:26:00.000-07:00

This is something I had wanted to try since long. Thanks to a pot-luck party the other day, I got to try this.. And we all loved it :) Check it out..

Ingredients

6 hard-cooked eggs
2 T mayonnaise
1 t Sugar
1 t white vinegar
1 t prepared mustard
1/2 t salt
Paprika

Method

Slice eggs in half lengthwise; remove yolks and set whites aside.
In a small bowl, mash yolks with a fork.
Add the mayonnaise, sugar, vinegar, mustard and salt; mix well.
Stuff or pipe into egg whites.
Sprinkle with paprika.
Refrigerate until serving.

Hubby's Birthday Cake *

2012-03-22T22:54:00.000-07:00

I found my passion for cooking after I got married.. :) And it was only then that I came to know how much I loved baking too ... So much that I was always yearning to go for baking lessons.

It was early feb when this idea got to me. I was thinking what to do for hubby's bday. I wanted to bake him a beautiful cake for sure. Thats when I thought why not join for cake decoration lessons and bake a nice lil' cake for him. And tada. Thats what I did. I enrolled for the Wilton Cake Decorating basic course and baked this lil' cake for him.. I baked a chocolate cake first and covered it with buttercream icing. Mixed colors and used piping to decorate :)

He totally loved it :) So did I..

Wilton Cake Decorating Basic Course

2012-03-16T22:59:00.000-07:00

This was the first cake I decorated during the Wilton cake decoration course. A simple pound cake. Used piping to decorate it. I was a lil' short of the buttercream icing, hence the cake is peeping out at the corners. :D Still, not pretty bad for a first timer. Right? ;)

I loved the color combo. I was just trying to make it look as cute as possible. ;)

Round Up Of Veggie/Fruit A Month Event - Lemon

2012-03-03T07:28:00.001-08:00

Finally, its time for the Round Up friends.. I am so glad that I got to host this event. You guys made it perfect with your amazing recipes.. :)

I was amazed to see the number of dishes you can make using lemon. I always tied lemon with lemon juice alone. Now thats what I call ignorance!! I am glad I dont think so anymore.. Lemon has a wide variety of uses in both the culinary and non-culinary world. It is used for aromatherapy, face cleansing (and many more things) apart from the huge list of culinary uses such as baking, pickling and so on.

Here are the lip-smacking recipes from our friends.

The first one comes from Janet. This combination of braised tempeh and green beans with lemon-sesame sauce is surely going to make you guys hungry. I am telling ya.. check it out.. And be sure to check out her space "The Taste Space"..

The next one comes from Rasya Srinath of "Veg Food & Me". Her tangy lemon pickle makes me want to go home even more. Feeling hungry right? Me too..

Hema is sharing her Lemon Custard Cakes with us. And boy, dont they look cute.. Do check the recipe at her space "Aromatic Cooking"

Surabhi's lemony lemon rice is one of my all-time favorite comfort food. Check out the recipe at her space "My Cook Book".

Last but not the least is my turn.. Yup.. I thought a lot and finally decided upon a Lemon Cake.. And the fact is that it came out so nice.. Really.. check it out.. I even took it to a friend of ours who were celebrating their 25th anniversary.. Here is a look :)

Thank you so much all of you for all the encouragement friends. I hope you enjoyed the event and loved all the recipes. See you all soon..

Announcing Veggie/Fruit A Month Event - Lemon

2012-02-03T21:57:00.000-08:00

Days fly by so fast!! Really!! It feels just like yesterday that I hooked up for this wonderful event (Veggie/Fruit A Month ) chartered by our dearest Priya of Mharo Rajasthan's Recipe. A huge thank you to you Priya for including me. :)

Lemon is the star of the month. Lemon refers to both an evergreen tree and its yellow fruit. Lemon has n number of uses from the simple everyday lemon juice (lemonade) to a lemon marmalade. Pickled lemons are also a very popular Moroccan delicacy.

Now coming back to the event there are some rules for this event -

"Lemon" has to be the star ingredient in the dish.
Prepare a vegetarian recipe (eggs are allowed)
It has to be a brand new recipe folks, No archives please (breakfast, lunch, dinner, dessert - the word is anything :)).
Use of the logo is mandatory to help spread the word about the event.
Link your post to this announcement and to Priya's main event page.
Non bloggers are as always welcome just send your name, recipe and a picture and you are in.

Please send me your entries between Feb 01st to Feb 29th to gopikanambiar@gmail.com with 'Lemon' as the subject. And do include the following details -
Your Name
Name of the blog
Recipe Name
Recipe URL
Photograph of your dish. Please make sure the picture is not large.

The event round up will be posted by March first week. I am sure you guys had fun at the last event held @ Raji's - Vegetarian Tastebuds.

Cant wait to see you guys come up with slurpy delicious Lemony recipes :) Welcome to my our event :)

Stuffed Bun

2012-01-10T21:41:00.000-08:00

My dear friends. Wish you all a very Happy New Year. I know this is too late but as they say better late than never ;) Ours was a quiet new year, how about you guys?

I know that its been so long that I posted something.. I have been too busy. Well, its a very bad excuse but it is the fact. Surprisingly, I did not start the new year with a sweet dish (I loveee sweets). I made stuffed buns. Yeah.. They came out awesome. You guys have to try this out. This will be awesome lunch idea for kids and adults too. Non-messy and easy to pack. Check them out..

Ingredients

For the filling (Egg)

Eggs, boiled and chopped - 2
Cauliflower, chopped - 1/2 C
Carrot, grated - 1/4 C
Green peas - 1/4 C
Onion, chopped - 1
Ginger-garlic paste - 1 T
Green chilly, chopped - 1
Turmeric - 1/4 t
Pepper powder - 1/2 t
Garam masala - 1/2 t
Fennel powder - 1/2 t
Salt - To taste
Oil - 2 T

Method

Heat oil in a pan .
Once hot, add the ginger-garlic paste and green chillies.
Saute till the raw smell goes and add onion.
When the onion turns light brown/transparent, add all the powders.
Mix well for a few mins and add the vegs, eggs.
Mix till the vegetables are partially cooked.
Remove from fire and allow to cool.

Ingredients

For the Bun

All purpose flour/maida - 2.5 C
Active dry yeast - 2 t
Warm water - 2 T
Sugar - 1 T + 1 T
Milk - 1/4 C
Oil - 1/4 C
Egg - 1 beaten
Egg white - of 1 egg, for egg wash
Salt - to taste
Sesame seeds - 2 T

Method

Dissolve the yeast in warm water along with 1 T sugar and keep aside for 10 mins.
Add the all purpose flour (Add 1 C now. You will have to add more while kneading the dough), sugar, milk, oil and salt into a bowl and mix until you get a smooth paste.
To this, add the beaten egg, yeast, rest of the all purpose flour and knead until you get a soft dough (add flour little by little).
Keep the dough covered in a warm place for around 2-3 hrs (the dough will rise in volume by that time).
Knead the dough lightly and make large lemon-sized balls out of it.
Flatten the dough balls and fill with the stuffing (1T or 2 T).
Shape it back into a ball.
Arrange the stuffed balls on a greased foil and let them rest for 10 - 50 mins.
Meanwhile, preheat the oven at 350 F for around 15 mins.
Beat the egg white to a smooth foamy paste and apply it over the buns and sprinkle sesame seeds.
Bake the stuffed buns for 20 - 25 mins or until their surface becomes reddish brown in color.
Yummy Stuffed buns are ready :)

Banana Choco - Chip Muffins

2011-12-25T21:55:00.000-08:00

Its Christmas!!! Merry Christmas to all my dear friends and fellow bloggers :) And this is my 100th post. Whoppiieee.. Isn't that awesome? I know. I feel so great. And to celebrate, I baked these yummy Banana Choco - Chip muffins from my dearest friend Gaya3's blog - My Pressure Cooker.

Holidays are heaven. No doubt. We just got back from our lil' vacation to the picturesque ski resort of Santa Fe & Taos, New Mexico. It was amazing. Perfect place for the christmas holidays --- It was white Christmas.. The whole place was covered by a soft white blanket of snow. I know that a lot of you guys live in places where it snows during most of the year. But my friends, I come from Texas or going further down, I come from South India where you never see even a flake of snow. Here is a pic from the trip. :D

Ingredients

Bowl 1

All-purpose flour - 1.5 C
Sugar - 1/2 C
Baking powder - 1 1/2 t

Bowl 2

Ripe bananas (about 2 large - mashed) - 2 C

Egg - 1

Butter, melted - 1/2 C

Milk - 1/4 C

Chocolate chips - 1/2 C

Method

Preheat oven to 350° F/180 C. Line twelve muffin cups with muffin liners.
Mix bowl 1 items in a large bowl and bowl 2 items in another one. Stir wet mixture into the dry one, but do not over-mix.
Pour in the batter into the muffin liners upto about 3/4th capacity and sprinkle few chocolate chips onto the muffins.
Bake for about 25-30 minutes until muffins rise and turn golden. Allow it to cool for atleast 15 minutes.

Yummy muffins ready to be devoured :D Happy Holidays Friends :)

The Gingerbread Man - * Its Christmas *

2011-12-02T06:09:00.001-08:00

The spirit of Christmas is everywhere. The twinkling lights on the Christmas trees, decorations on the mantles, angels and reindeer dancing in the front yard. Aww.. I love this season. Hubby and I enjoy driving by the beautifully decorated residential localities. Even the malls and streets have the holiday mood. And a lot of parties too ;) Its so much fun to meet all your friends and have a great time together.

With so much holiday spirit around us how could I not bake anything!! And here I am baking or making the perfect Christmas treat "The Gingerbread Man". :) Aren't they cute? So here is a fresh batch of gingerbread cookies for all you folks out there. Lets welcome the holiday season :)

Recipe : Simply Recipes

Ingredients

Unsalted butter, room temperature - 1 stick or 8 T
Brown sugar/ Jaggery - 1/2 C
Honey - 1/2 C
All purpose flour/ Maida - 2 1/2 C
Ginger powder - 1 T
Cinnamon - 1/2 T
Nutmeg powder - 1/2 t
Black pepper powder - 1/4 t
Baking powder - 1 t
Baking soda - 1 t

Method

Heat the oven to 350F.
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Add the dry ingredients together to a bowl and keep aside.
Mix butter and brown sugar till it turns creamy.
Add honey and continue mixing till fluffy.
Now add the dry ingredients to this mix and beat till it starts looking like rubble.
Take the dough and knead it lightly to form a smooth ball.
Flatten, wrap and chill in the refrigerator for an hour.
Sprinkle your work floor with some flour.
Roll out the dough to 1/8" thickness using a rolling pin.
Cut out the gingerbread man using the cookie cutter.
Place them on the baking sheet and bake for 8-10 mins.
Once baked, let is sit and cool on the sheet for 5 mins.
When they are completely cooled, store them in an airtight tin.

Vegetable Pilaf or Pulao - An Easy Version

2011-12-02T06:04:00.001-08:00

Last day I was expecting a friend of mine for lunch. So I thought I need to make something special for her. She loves rice so I thought the best way to treat her would be by cooking a rice dish for her. When I thought of a rice dish, the first thing that came into my mind was the Vegetable Pilaf. Vegetable Pilaf is among the dishes that I keep experimenting with again and again and againg. :D Until now I did not feel that it was good enough to be showcased. :) This time it came out just the way I always hoped for. The aroma was awesome and so was the texture. We loved it. Here is the recipe for all you guys out there :)

Ingredients

Basmati Rice, Uncooked - 3 C
Onion - 2 C
Carrot - 1 C
Green beans - 1 C
Green peas - 1 C
Ginger garlic paste - 1.5 T
Green chillies - 3
Cumin seeds - 1 t
Bay leaves - 2/3
Cloves - 4
Cardamom - 1"
Star anise - 1
Mace - 1/2 t
Turmeric powder - 1 t
Red chilli powder - 1 t or as per taste
Water - 3 C
Salt - to tasste
Oil/Ghee - 3 T

Method

Wash and soak the rice for an hour. This will help you cook the rice faster.
Meanwhile, chop onions and rest of the vegetables.
Heat some oil in a large pan and add cumin seeds.
Add all the spices (Cloves, cardamom, bay leaves, mace, star anise).
Saute till the raw smell goes.
Add onions and stir well.
Once they are soft and transparent, add the ginger-garlic paste and saute.
Add the vegetables and stir well.
Sprinkle salt and cook covering the pan for 5 mins.
Add turmeric powder, red chilli powder and garam masala and stir again.
Drain the rice and add it to this mix and stir well.
Add water and cook covered for 10-15 mins.
Now when you open the lid, the aroma that spreads will be mouth-watering.

I guarantee :) Serve this yummy pilaf with a Raita.

Pita Bread & Hummus - A Mediterranean Night

2011-11-24T21:43:00.000-08:00

We love Mediterranean food. After Thai and Italian, Mediterranean wins our vote :) Well, I am not sure of this order though. :) Fadi's and Kasra are our current favorite Mediterranean eat outs. We are yet to try other new places. Nothing can beat the rich and creamy Hummus at Kasra. Nor can anyone beat the awesome Lentil Soup from Fadi's. But friends, if you think someone can, do let us know. We would loveee to try it out :)

So today, I was all determined to turn the first night of the long weekend into a Mediterranean night. I was all pumped up to cook a perfect spread. ahem ahem. Or at least a near to perfect spread. hi hi. ;) Cmon guys, it did turn out good. :) In fact, I successfully made Pita Bread, Tahini paste and Hummus. Whistle whistle!!! :) And the yummy spread was celebrated with a second round of wine ;)

Here is the recipe for you guys out there :) All thanks to this Mediterranean website - > DedeMed.

Ingredients

Flour - 3 C + 1/2 C for kneading
Salt - 1 1/2 t
Warm water - 1 C
Yeast - 1 Packet (7gms)
Sugar - 1 t
Warm water - 1/2 C
Olive Oil

Method

In a small bowl mix yeast, sugar and warm water.
Allow it to sit for 10-15 minutes.
In a large bowl mix flour with salt and make a well in the middle.
Slowly stir in yeast mix until well combined.
In another bowl, add olive oil and spread all over to keep dough from sticking.
Place dough in the oiled bowl, cover with a towel or plate, and allow it to sit for 3 hours in a warm place.
After 3 hours the dough will have risen.
Sprinkle flour on to table surface and knead dough for a couple of minutes.
Keep adding flour to surface to keep dough from sticking while you knead.
Form dough into small balls and let sit in a plate for 10 more minutes (I skipped this step :D).
Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
Roll our balls to 1/8 inch thick circular shapes and place on the flat cookie sheet or pan.
Cook for 3-4 minutes on each side or until lightly brown and dough puffs up.
Yummy Pita bread ready to be devoured. :)

Hummus

2011-11-23T18:53:00.000-08:00

How can I even dream of having a Pita bread without this yummy creamy dip --> Hummus of course. :) Like many other cuisines, Mediterranean was also introduced to me by my hubby dear. He loves Hummus and now, me too :D And thats how I ended trying to make it at home.

Ingredients

Yogurt - 1/4 C
Garbanzo Beans / Chick Peas - 2 C
Tahini (Sesame Seed Paste) - 1/2 C
Lemon Juice - 1/2 C
Garlic cloves - 3
Salt - 1/2 t
Citric acid - 1/4 t
Water - 2 T
Mint Leaves - a few

For garnishing

Parsley - 2 T
Cayenne Pepper or Paprika - 1 t
Olive Oil - 1/4 C

Method

In a food processor, add the garbonzo beans, garlic, lemon juice and salt, blend until smooth.
Next add yogurt, tahini, water, citric acid and mint leaves.
Spread the hummus in a plate and garnish with parsley, cayenne pepper and olive oil.
Serve with pita bread.

Adai / Lentil Crepes

2011-11-20T11:48:00.000-08:00

I ate Adai a couple of months back at one of our Tamilian friends place. I was surprised that I had not eaten this before, in fact, I was not aware of this dish. mmm.. Well, as they say, better late than never. :) But still, I did not try it soon enough. And last day, as I spoke with my mom, she said that she made Adai. I was like, " Oh mommy, I also wanted to make this.. ". Thanks to mum for reminding me :) Love her.. So there it goes. I tried the recipe today and Oh my, it turned out great. We loved it and had lots of them :) Here is the recipe for you friends..

Ingredients

Step 1

Raw rice / Idli rice - 1/2 C
Salt - to taste
Oil - 1/2 C
Boiled rice - 1/2 C
Toor dal - 1/2 C
Bengal gram / Chana dal - 1/4 C
Urad dal - 1/4 C
Green chilli -2
Red chilli -3

Step 2

Asafoetida -1/4 t
Onion, finely chopped - 2
Coconut, grated - 2 T
Curry leaves - a few
Cilantro leaves - a few
Ginger -1'' small bit
Drumstick leaves - a handful (optional)

Method

Soak rice and dal for 5 hours.
Grind rice and dal adding red chilli, green chilli, ginger and salt.
Make sure that the batter is not too thick or too watery.
Add asafoetida, onions, curry leaves, cilantro, coconut and drumstick leaves to the batter.
Mix the batter very well.
Meanwhile, heat a non stick tawa on medium high.
Pour a ladle of batter on to the tawa and spread it in circular motion.
Add a teaspoon of oil around the adai.
Allow it to cook until the ends start loosening.
Flip the adai and allow to cook for 2 minutes.
Once both the sides are cooked, remove adai from the tawa.
Serve yummy adai with chutney or milaga podi.

Notes

I did not get drumstick leaves - this is optional

Coffee Pudding by sweetums Gaya3

2011-11-07T14:18:00.000-08:00

Gaya3 and my friendship clicked from the very first day. Dunno what it was but it always felt like writing to an ol' friend with whom I haven't spoken for some time. We have n number of similar likes and dislikes even. If I don't stop now, I never will. :) So, in short, this post is by ~~guest~~ my bestest friends, Gaya3. Both of us are amateur cooks and have a lot of passion about cooking and baking. Ok enough of my yapping. You guys have to absolutely check out her blog here. :)

Over to my gurl ----> Gaya3

Guest post? ME? Are you insane? You must be joking or mocking or definitely taunting me !

This was my first reaction when Gopika asked me to do a guest post for her blog- THE KITCHEN AFFAIRE.

I remember denying vigorously stating that I was way too an amateur blogger/ writer/cook to blog myself, let alone the idea of doing an entire guest post. But wasn’t my newest and one of my best friends in the virtual space persistent! And she went on to say how this idea was perfect and how much this would mean to her if I did this.

Now when someone puts it like that (rather blackmail :-) ), you have no choice but to agree !

Though me and Gopz (as I call her) discovered each other just three months back, it astonishes me the extent to which we have gotten close. Just goes on to refute the assumption that two people needn’t meet in person to go on to become great friends, because the fact remains that we both are currently based in two continents and bonded instantly due to numerous similarities such as that we both are newly married, located away from parents, started cooking post marriage, love for reading and movies and most importantly, the ardent love for cooking /baking or to put it aptly -we are truly baking-crazy. Infact, not exaggerating or utilizing my writer’s license, we both ended up baking a banana bread and a zebra cake in the exact same month at around the exact same time with absolutely no prior planning. Would saying – “Great minds think alike” be too clichéd?

Oh ! Not to forget the passionate love we share for cakes/ desserts/ sweets/ chocolates/ baked goodies etc etc etc..

So I thought what would be more perfect to present here than a dessert to celebrate the sweetness of our newly found friendship, our blogs and to propose a toast to many more such friendships.

The recipe I have decided to share is that of a COFFEE PUDDING, which was initially experimented by my mom from the popular Malayalam TV show hosted by Dr. Lakshmi Nair. When I recently went home for Onam, I insisted that we make this so that I could capture it for this post. Here goes:

COFFEE PUDDING

(Serves approx 8 people)

Water- 0.5+1.5=2 cups

China grass/ Agar-agar flakes- 2.5 tbsp (I used these kinds which looked exactly like this and this)

Sugar- 4 tbsp

Instant coffee powder- 2 tsp

Sweetened condensed milk/Milkmaid - ½ tin of 395g (I used Nestle brand)

Fresh cream (or Whipping cream) – 1 cup/250 ml (I generally use Almarai or KDD brand)

Take ½ cup of water and soak the china grass flakes in it for about 15 mins. Boil the remaining water in a pan.Once it starts boiling, add the sugar and the coffee powder and keep stirring till the sugar gets dissolved.

Post that, lower the flame and add the soaked china grass mixture into this. Mix well and boil until the china grass flakes dissolve fully. This would take approx 10 mins. Now switch off the flame and allow it to cool. Pass this mixture through a strainer and please do not avoid this step as otherwise, some of the china grass strands might be found floating in the mixture.

In another bowl, add the condensed milk and the cream. Combine well with a balloon whisk or wooden spatula.

Now, incorporate both the mixtures and pour the final mixture into a greased pudding tray. Allow to cool completely under room temperature.Then refrigerate the same for 1-2 hours, which can be cut into wedges.

How to serve?

This can be served with some chocolate/butterscotch sauce or even with vanilla/coffee/butter pecan flavoured ice-cream, if you like or for that matter, just as it is.

Notes:

The original recipe uses gelatin. Inspite of being non-vegetarians, both me and mom are averse to using gelatin in our puddings. If using gelatin, use 2 tbsps instead .

When using cream, we preferred to use fresh cream which is generally produced daily and comes with a shorter expiry date as opposed to Nestle tinned cream. My mom has experimented with both and though not distinctive, she said the pudding with fresh cream tasted better.

The pudding tray can be greased with butter for easier unmoulding.

On setting, the pudding can be inverted just like one would do for a cake and be cut into various shapes as per your liking.

I further decorated it with Hershey’s semi-sweet chocolate chips and cadbury’s drinking chocolate powder.

This recipe can be doubled (which we tried) and I am assuming can be tripled as well.

The pictures you see is here is that of the doubled version and hence each wedge is thicker as opposed to that of a single version.

How we liked it ?

We loved the subtle coffee flavour and the creamy texture of the pudding. I personally also liked the crunch and bitterness of the chocolate chips accompanied with the slight hint of the drinking chocolate powder.

To my dearest Gopika, thank you so much from the bottom of the heart for this gesture. The emotional boost that you have given me by demanding and trusting me to do this can’t probably ever be expressed here.

THE KITCHEN AFFAIRE

Valentines Day Special

Appam

Ingredients

Poori Bhaji Masala

Super Moist Chocolate Cake

Egg Puffs

Fruit Punch

Parippu Vada (Lentil Fritters)

Paneer Pizza

Tomato Dosa

Coconut Macaroon

Lemon Cake - by Barefoot Contessa

Gulab Jamun

Deviled Eggs

****** Hubby's Birthday Cake *******

Wilton Cake Decorating Basic Course

Round Up Of Veggie/Fruit A Month Event - Lemon

Announcing Veggie/Fruit A Month Event - Lemon

Stuffed Bun

Banana Choco - Chip Muffins

The Gingerbread Man - *** Its Christmas ***

Vegetable Pilaf or Pulao - An Easy Version

Pita Bread & Hummus - A Mediterranean Night

Hummus

Adai / Lentil Crepes

Coffee Pudding by sweetums Gaya3

Hubby's Birthday Cake *

The Gingerbread Man - * Its Christmas *