Spoonful of Delight

Oranges and Love

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah) — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 09:48:00 PST

Recipe: Orange Mini-Icecream-Cakes

The blogosphere is buzzing with excitement for Valentines day... Have you planned anything special for your loved ones?

But what exactly is true love?

Is it "selfless care for the good of another"?

Or "Deep emotional attachment towards another person".

These definitions seem incomplete to explain the entirety of love.

Here is an interesting write-up about it.

Even though it is arguable that any day is perfect to show your special someone that they are indeed the centre of your universe, it is still nice to have a day appointed for it and to hear about the things people do for each other on this day :)

Weighty Wins

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah) — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 04:25:00 PST

Recipe: Salted Almond Praline

As I look back on the past year, I realize that I have grown...

The only problem is that all my growth has been in size and that too horizontal ! :(

The funny thing is that I didnt look so fat when I looked at myself in the mirror.... It's only in photographs I looked ballooned up. (Later J informed me that the mirrors in our house actually makes one look thin!) When clothes got tighter, I just assumed that the fabric had shrunk and murmured to myself that they dont make clothes the way they used to!

Years go by

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah) — Sat, 07 Jan 2012 23:29:00 PST

Another year has drawn to a close.

And a brand new one has blossomed.

Reason for the Season

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah) — Thu, 22 Dec 2011 06:50:00 PST

Recipe: Honey-Roasted Almonds

It's Christmas time !!!!

The house is filled with the fragrance of freshly baked plum cakes, cookies and other Christmas goodies.

There's an excitement in the air as friends and family plan their holidays, put up the Christmas tree and decorate their houses.

People are rushing to get the perfect gift for loved ones and trying to be Santa for their little ones.

Many like to celebrate this season by helping people in need.

Baking away the Blues

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah) — Mon, 12 Dec 2011 20:15:00 PST

Recipe: Plum n' Pom Cake

Last week, my son and I caught a big bad bug... After a couple of sleepless nights and a couple more sick days, I was down in spirits too... Scary mountains of work were looming large! Or probably it was just that "work" has a way of seeming gigantic and insurmountable when we are sick. To make it worse, I was at the verge of losing the chance to do something I had so much wanted to, all because of the bad timing of the fever.

By the end of the week, I was depressed, irritated, sick and was also driving everyone around me nuts. I needed some serious brightening up...

Warmth in a Dish

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah) — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 10:56:00 PST

Recipe: Pasta with Crunchy veggies, mushroom and sausages in white sauce.

It was a cloudy and wintry Saturday morning. The cold wind blowing through the windows sent shivers across the house. I was all set to make a fiery red fish curry with a generous drizzle of coconut milk to beat this cold weather hoping that the heat of the red chilli powder, the tang of the malabar tamarind and the creamy comfort of coconut milk would knock us out of our hibernation-like existence. The fish was thawing on my kitchen counter and I was getting all the ingredients ready for the curry... I broke open the last of my stock of coconuts and to my dismay it was rotten inside....

Frozen Fruity Passions

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah) — Thu, 17 Nov 2011 10:56:00 PST

Recipe: Passion Fruit Frozen Yoghurt

In my childhood days, even though my mother had a full-time job which took up 9 hours of her day, I remember her slaving over a hot stove before she left for work to ensure that her family had good and nutritious food to eat. Since we had ravenous appetites, we would eat up whatever she made for us. After that, when she was away at work, my brothers and I would raid her kitchen cupboards :) This is not because we were hungry or anything. But because we knew for sure that she would have stashed away some goodies like nuts or dried raw mango pieces or jaggery in order to cook something special for us when she got time.

After our kitchen-cupboard-raiding-and-gobbling escapades, we made it a point to keep everything back just as they were. Later, when she would look for the stashed stuff to cook something with it, the boxes and jars would be much lighter and when opened, they would be empty most of the time :) And we all would have a hearty laugh when she would claim that there isn't any corner in the house where she can stock food items for longer than a day thanks to super sleuths like us.

My personal favourites from mom's stashes were olives in brine, tamarind in gooey jaggery syrup and dried raw mango pieces. Yes, I loved all things that were sour and tangy (and no, not just pregnant women crave for such things). This love of sour and tangy foods runs in the family - mom, grandmom, my cousins, my son, all of us love it.

Passion fruit is one among the favourite fruits in my house and the passion fruit variety that grows in my parent's farm is very sour and tangy. Its sweet and fruity fragrance is so wonderfully intoxicating.

Creamy Greens

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah) — Mon, 07 Nov 2011 11:17:00 PST

Recipe: Palak Paneer / Pan-grilled paneer cubes in a creamy spinach gravy

Palak is not very common in the traditional cooking of my hometown. Amaranth on the other hand, is very much favoured - infact it is cutivated in every home garden and periodically harvested for quick stir-fries with coconut and light spices (commonly known as "cheera thoran" and "cheera mulagittathu" in my native language). And hence for a long time, "spinach" meant amaranth leaves to me and we never ventured into having any palak dishes.

One fine day, long ago, I was out with friends at a restaurant. Palak paneer was ordered by one of them. The moment I tasted the luscious, creamy green gravy with buttery paneer cubes, I loved it immediately. And I could hear the foodie in me say - move over amaranth, palak is here to stay! Since then, palak shared the same position in this foodie heart of mine as the other green leafy veggies. And I absolutely love my greens.

Festival Bright

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah) — Tue, 25 Oct 2011 09:19:00 PDT

Recipe: Ribbon Pakoda / Kokkuvada

Isn't it interesting how "darkness" is usually associated with "evil" and "light" with "good"? One of the meanings of the word "darkness" is "the absence of light"....

A small flame is all it takes to dispel darkness...

It is that time of the year again, when the houses are adorned with small clay lamps which are filled with oil and lighted in order to signify the triumph of good over evil. The air is filled with the smoke of bursting fire-crackers and sounds of laughter and mirth fill the streets as the festival of Diwali is celebrated.

The Perfect Ending

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah) — Mon, 24 Oct 2011 05:48:00 PDT

Recipe: Passion Fruit Yoghurt Panna Cotta with Pomegranate

As much as I love the perfect ending to a good story or movie, I also love having a perfect ending to a wonderful meal. But most of the times that I have guests over I'm usually fussing over the other things such as the starters and the main course or tidying up the house, making sure at least most things are in their place.

This finally leaves me with no time to plan for and make an elaborate dessert. And I end up serving the easiest dessert I can think of - which is mostly store-bought ice-cream with some custard and fruits.

Tagged and Pan-Grilled

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah) — Sun, 09 Oct 2011 07:55:00 PDT

Recipe: Pan-Grilled Potatoes with Oregano and Olive oil

Maintaining a food blog is not as easy as it looks. Cooking is one of my favourite things to do. And for a person like me, who gets easily bored with the usual food at home, it comes naturally to experiment and try out different things.

But photographing the results and documenting it needs a lot of time, patience and (most importantly) good, natural light. Even though I cook almost everyday, the only time I get to click good pictures of the food is during the weekends. The other week days, I am unable to photograph because I am at work for all the times of the day that have the best light. And hence most of the cooking and photographing for the blog happens during the weekends.

The rest of the work that goes behind every blog post - reading about food and photography, deciding what to cook for the blog, editing the pictures, writing down the post, reading and re-reading the post goes on slowly in the next 1-2 weeks, whenever I can squeeze it in or sometimes even during the weekend, that is, if I am not too exhausted with all other things that are packed into it.

Inspite of all the hard-work, having a blog on something that interests me does give me an immense sense of satisfaction. It is my creative outlet, my stress-buster and best of all, I get to meet (virtually) so many talented people with similar interests.

All the World's a Stage..... for Food

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah) — Mon, 03 Oct 2011 08:54:00 PDT

Recipes:
Easy Fried Rice
Mushroom and Cauliflower in soy and garlic sauce

Is the media bringing the countries of the world together? I was trying to cook Chinese food, inspired by an Australian show, in an Indian kitchen a few weeks back. There are many food-related shows on TV which tantalizes the viewer to try out different cuisines and dishes from all across the world.

Of all the shows, I like Masterchef Australia the most. Simply because, its all about the food and the various techniques to cook it. AND.. they showcase a variety of cuisines - not just Australian or European. In fact, I was surprised to see a Masterclass on Indian food :) And it was quite an interesting and different way of making a curry though staying true to the basic principles of curry-making.

A Cake for Celebrations

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah) — Thu, 22 Sep 2011 12:38:00 PDT

Recipe: Brandied Peaches, Bavarian Cream and Chocolate Gateau

In our quest for the perfect life, there seems to be hardly any time to sit down with loved ones and enjoy the simple pleasures of life. We seem to be in a rush all the time. With the rising cost of living and basic amenities, I wonder if we can ever slow down.

Life would have been unbearably robotic and monotonous, if weren't for the small celebrations of milestones, anniversaries, birthdays, etc. These have become occasions when close family and friends gather together and have a good time.

And what better dessert for such welcome interruptions in our race against time than.. cake! Just perfect to celebrate the occasion, to celebrate the wonderful people and mostly to celebrate togetherness.

Here is a cake that I made for 2 very special people to celebrate their years of togetherness on their wedding anniversary.

Toasty Trials

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah) — Tue, 13 Sep 2011 09:56:00 PDT

Recipe: Tomatoes on Toast

Is it just me? Or does it happen to everyone?

Just the thought of returning home from work sends my digestive juices to over-drive.

When faced with such extreme cravings, I usually end up grabbing the first thing that I can get my hands on which is usually the store-bought packaged snacks - mostly biscuits, Indian savoury deep-fried snacks, chikki, etc. And unfortunately, most of them are high in calories.

This is one of the easy-to-make, kinder-on-the-heart and satisfying snacks that I've recently discovered - Tomatoes on Toast and it doesn't take much time to whip up.

A Time for Payasam

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah) — Wed, 07 Sep 2011 12:04:00 PDT

Recipe: Parippu Payasam / Mung bean Pudding

So many events have been happening since the last few weeks and Onam is also here that I thought it was good to celebrate it all with something sweet, something smooth and silky and something that did not involve baking.

Do I hear you ask "What events?". Well here they are

The Price of Spice

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah) — Wed, 17 Aug 2011 06:21:00 PDT

There was a time long ago, when spices were more expensive than gold and India abounded in them. Of them, pepper was highly prized and often black pepper was referred to as "black gold". This brought many traders and explorers to the coasts of India in search of fortunes.

Flowers of the Field

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah) — Fri, 12 Aug 2011 12:52:00 PDT

"See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these."

I'm blessed with both a Mom and a MIL who love plants. They grow everything they can get the seeds / branch / sapling of.

They have always tried to impart this knowledge to me but ended up watching in confounded horror as every plant I touched or tried to grow just withered away!

The harsh truth was clear - I did not inherit the green-thumb-gene from mom and it seemed unattainable inspite of their patient guidance. Now my only hope is that my son has inherited this prized gene from his grand-mothers.

Blushing Beauties

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah) — Thu, 04 Aug 2011 22:36:00 PDT

Recipe: Blushing Beauty Cupcakes

Last month I had the wonderful opportunity of spending a few days with 4 sweet little girls aged between 7 months to 5 years - one is my friend's daughter and the other 3 are my nieces. I fell in love with their heart-warming smiles, their wonderful stories, their gentle play, innocent eyes and pink blushing cheeks.

Though I love my son's curious mind, wild imagination and spontaneous actions, I thoroughly enjoyed the calm and serene world of little girls.

These 4 little girls are the inspiration for these cute little cupcakes. I'd like to call them Blushing Beauty Cupcakes.

Apart from the fact that the batter for this cake can be easily whipped up in a blender (!), let me also tell you that there is a surprise ingredient in these. Can you guess what is the gorgeous pink colour on the top of these cupcakes?

To Roast Or Not To Roast

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah) — Mon, 25 Jul 2011 12:11:00 PDT

Recipe: Pepper Roasted Chicken

Even though Indian cuisine boasts of a wide variety of thick luscious curries and spicy gravies, when it comes to chicken I have a liking for having it roasted/grilled. I simply cannot resist the wonderful aroma of roast chicken.

It had been cold and cloudy since the past couple of weeks in Bangalore. And I was craving for something with a zing to it...

Fruity Endings

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah) — Tue, 19 Jul 2011 12:02:00 PDT

Recipe: Banana Mango Tango

The best thing to do after a meal of kerala delicacies (apart from licking your fingers clean) is to mash a banana in your plate (the very same plate from which you just had your food), top it up with some fresh home-made curd and a sprinkling of sugar or a dash of gooey jaggery syrup, mix it up and slurp it down :)

That is my favourite ending to a "naadan" meal. The below dessert is a twist to that old classic :)

I'm sure there will be many such interesting closures to a meal. What are your favourite ones?

Red Meat with Red Chillies

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah) — Wed, 13 Jul 2011 04:06:00 PDT

Recipe: Beef Roasted with Red Chilli Flakes

Even though red meat has been getting a lot of bad publicity these days, I just cannot stop eating it completely. I need to get my dose of red meat at least once in 2-3 months. Besides, red meat is rich in iron. Eating it in moderation should be fine.

So here's what I made :)

Actually I made it sometime back and got time to write the post only last weekend.

A Time of Bliss

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah) — Wed, 06 Jul 2011 13:15:00 PDT

When it's finally that time of your life....
A time to be thankful for everything that has happened so far...
A time to show people how special they are ...
And a time to enjoy the sweet company of friends and family...
It's also a time you wished, you could stop time itself :)
Yes.. in such times, it's the perfect time to have a chocolate!!!
Make sure that it's one that you like best - be it dark chocolate or orange-flavoured or...

Convergence of Cuisines

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah) — Mon, 04 Jul 2011 05:56:00 PDT

Recipe: Beef in Chilli Garlic Sauce

The world seems to be converging, don't you think? There are people travelling to different lands and building homes there, different cultures inter-mingling and so on.

Man being the inquisitive creature that he is, has always been travelling and exploring new lands throughout history. Though in recent times, due to advances in aviation technology, travelling is much easier and more affordable.

Then again, who says that you have to travel to see the world. The power of the internet makes information about any place or anything available at our fingertips!

Amidst all this, there are different cuisines merging as people learn to adapt to different tastes and also as they try to adapt new tastes to their styles. The resulting convergent cuisine abounds in the best traits and tastes of multiple cuisines.

Mango Mania

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah) — Sat, 25 Jun 2011 04:48:00 PDT

Recipe: Mango Frozen Yoghurt / Mango Froyo

What is the best thing about a ripe mango?

Its sweet and fruity flavour?

The wonderful fragrance?

Or the juicy flesh?

Flavour Packed Awesomeness

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah) — Mon, 20 Jun 2011 14:33:00 PDT

Recipe: Tandoori Chicken with Olive Oil

Whoever said "The way to a man's heart is through his stomach" wasn't talking about my husband :) J is a person who eats just enough to get by - so unlike me, who dreams about chocolate, roast chicken and cheese-dripping Pizza slices all the time.

Probably that is why J is still the same weight as he was on his wedding day whereas I have gained many kilos and changed many sizes :P (though I will continue attributing weight gain to the rigours of a woman's life especially pregnancy :) )

There is just one dish in the whole wide world that J loves to indulge in - Tandoori chicken!!! So I learnt to make this dish early on in our marriage :) by buying some tandoori masala (Though I forget which brand it was) and following the recipe on the back of the pack :) The tandoori chicken made using that recipe was so simple and yet so amazing. And so I stuck to it all these years. But I guess it's pretty much a standard recipe.