Veg Bowl

Thandai

2021-03-24T20:33:00.005+05:30

How to make Thandai | Easy Thandai Recipe

Holi is just around the corner and I have been dreaming of all the lovely Indian sweets and treats I can make and bring over here to refresh this space. Holi, the Indian festival of colors, marks the end of winter and commencement of spring. No Holi is complete without bright and vibrant colors, balloons bursting with colored water, the lavish thandais, mouthful of gujiyas and some good lyrical Hindi Bollywood numbers to tap your feet to as you get soaked in a concoction of colours.

I stayed away from partaking in this festival for most part of my life. My earliest memories of Holi dates back to the early years spent in Mumbai where the morning of the festival saw friends and neighbors from the colony flocking in the common areas of the building, smeared in psychedelic colors, throwing water baloons and smudging gulal at everyone in sight. Spirits high, air misty and hued, voices high pitched in celebration, it was a frightening sight for an eight year old. As a kid I stayed holed up under my mom's old sewing machine for most part of the day, quite terrified at the sight and sounds of those faces smeared in boisterous colors. It wasn't my kind of celebration.

Years have passed since the little girl who was once petrified of Holi now enjoys the sight of colors. Over years, I've let go my inhibitions and participated in it's celebrations during to my stay here in the US. Miles away from home, the need to connect and bond with Indian community is strong and comforting. Indian festivals give that opportunity. People, food and celebrations bring joy and positivity.

Sumptuous food and drinks is an integral part of Holi celebrations. No Holi is complete without a tall glass of Thandai, the fragrant spiced milk drink, made with amalgamation of ingredients like milk, saffron, nuts and spices. Come on over and let's make some soul-satiating drink that is delicious, cooling and an excellent thirst-quencher.

Thandai

INGREDIENTS

1 tablespoon fennel seeds
1 tablespoon poppy seeds
1 tablespoon melon seeds (optional)
1 teaspoon peppercorns
Pods from 6 green cardamoms
10 almonds
10 cashews
1/2 teaspoon rose water
1 cup warm water
1 litre milk (replace by soy milk / oat milk / almond milk for vegan version)
Sugar (as per taste)

DIRECTIONS

Soak the fennel seeds, poppy seeds, melon seeds, peppercorns, cardamom pods, almonds and cashewnuts in a cup of warm water for 30 minutes. Then grind the soaked ingredients into a fine paste and keep aside.

In another small bowl, soak the saffron strands in warm milk and set it aside for 30 mins.

Next, in a pan bring milk to boil. Add sugar to your preference, stir well and simmer till the sugar melts in the milk. Add the ground thandai paste to the milk. Mix well and simmer for 2 to 3 minutes. Turn off the heat, add the rose water and let it sit covered till it comes to room temperature. Then refrigerate it to chill for atleast 2 to 3 hours or preferably overnight. Garnish with some crushed rose petals, saffron strands and chopped almonds and pistachios. Serve chilled!

Note: I mention melon seeds as optional since they are not easily available where I stay. However traditionally Thandai uses melon seeds. Though it doesn't affect the flavor much incase you skip it.

Sous Vide Strawberry Cheesecake Pots

2021-03-22T15:30:00.003+05:30

How to make Sous Vide Strawberry Cheesecake Jars | Easy Cheesecake Pots Recipe

For long, I have stayed away from baking desserts or breads that require me to take that additional step of caution, such as wrapping cake tins with foil, or placing ramekins in a water bath or creating steam to bake crisp crusted breads. For this reason, I haven't made cheesecakes in a while. I love them and seeing the small bites of the silky sweet cheesy treats, especially during the Christmas Eve holiday parties always brings joy and smile to my face.

Making cheesecakes at home aren't tricky anymore, especially after discovering a new alternative to cook them to perfection. Making these Strawberry Cheesecake Pots in my new KitchenBoss Sous Vide Cooker to celebrate the daughter's birthday earlier this week on Monday was such an absolute delight! The cheesecake was cooked to perfection and most of the job was done unattended. I love desserts in jars, and making sous vide way has got to be my new favorite. It cooks unattended, there's no overcooking, results are perfect because the temperature is regulated, I love serving individual portions and the longer life because of the sealed mason containers - these are good enough reasons for me to love sous vide. I've been experimenting with quite a few recipes the sous vide way and I've been able to ferment a big jar of yogurt and dosa batter successfully! Loving the ease of using my new KitchenBoss Sous Vide Cooker, hence will be using it more often.

For the uninitiated, Sous vide means “under vacuum” in French. This technique has been long used by restaurant chefs to slow cook the food in a water bath for longer time at a precisely regulated temperature, which makes food more succulent and retains the flavors. And now KitchenBoss has made access to this gadget so much easier by bringing this to our homes.

I have a giveaway going on my Instagram handle so I can introduce to the world of Sous Vide cooking too! Yes, it's a KitchenBoss Sous Vide Cooker Newest Model (G320) Giveaway!

KitchenBoss has generously agreed to select one of you to receive their newest Sous Vide Cooker (G320) for free and learn about their feedback! If you’re interested, you could participate now by following these steps:

1. Like the post and leave a comment.
2. Follow @kitchenboss_official and @vegbowl on IG On March 26, 5:00 pm (PST)

KitchenBoss will randomly select and tag the lucky audience in a comment underneath this post and he/she is going to receive a direct message from @Kitchenboss_official on IG on how to proceed. This giveaway is open to USA only. But if you know of your relatives and friends who reside in the US or have a US shipping address, you are free to participate too.

Sous Vide Strawberry Cheesecake Pots

INGREDIENTS

For the base
8 Lotus cookies
1 ½ tbsp melted butter

For the filling

226 gm cream cheese (I used 1 pack of Philadelphia Cream Cheese)
1/3 cup condensed Milk (I used Nestle Milkmaid)
1/4 cup thick Greek yogurt
1 tsp vanilla extract

DIRECTIONS

For the cookie base, pulse the Lotus cookies and butter in a food processor until it forms a coarse mixture. Take 2 tbsp of this mixture and press them to the bottom of 4 mini mason jars. Keep the jars in the refrigerator for 15 minutes. Meanwhile proceed to make the cheesecake filling.

In a bowl whisk the cream cheese until smooth. Next add condensed milk, yogurt and vanilla extract. Whisk till well blended. Divide the prepared cheese batter into the 4 mason jars that was layered with biscuit butter. Leave about 1 1/2 inches of room at the top of each jar for the cheesecake to expand slightly during the cooking process. Tap the jar against the counter top gently to remove any air bubbles and smooth out the top with a spatula. Cover the jars with lids and seal it just enough to close, but do not tighten them.

Cook the cheesecakes:

Place the sous vide cooker in a pot of water and set it to temperature of 194 deg F at 1 hour. Once the water has come to the set temperature, place the jars in the water and cook for an hour. Once coked, remove the jars carefully and allow them to cool. For the best tasting cheesecake, refrigerate the jars for atleast 4 hours or overnight to allow them to set well before serving.

Make the strawberry topping: Finely blend 6 strawberries with 1 cup water and 1/2 tsp agar agar powder. Pour it into a pan and cook on medium heat till it comes to a rolling boil stirring well continuously. Turn off the heat and allow to cool slightly. Pour over the prepared cheesecakes till it fill up to 1/2 inch in height. Place the pots in the refrigerator for the topping to set well.

Recipe Notes

Use only thick Greek style yogurt or hung yogurt for this recipe. Homemade yogurt will have to be strained through cheesecloth overnight till it's water is drained out and it's thick for use.
You can top the Cheesecake with any fruit compote of your choice. It goes well with fresh fruits, berries and a dollop of whipped cream too.
You can also make these cheesecake pots the traditional way in a preheated oven, placing the mason jars / ramekins in a water bath and baking them for an hour. The lack of eggs here really helps and is not missed, yet the cheesecake is moist and decadent.

Aloo Poha | Batata Poha

2021-02-19T21:55:00.007+05:30

How to make Aloo Poha | Batata Poha Recipe

Batata Poha is a very popular breakfast dish from Maharashtra made with onions, potatoes (batata) and beaten rice (poha). Poha is a common breakfast dish made across India, with each state having its own subtle variation and names. There are numerous recipes for making poha, the recipes varying from one family to another, each with their own way of preparing it.

Kanda Poha and Batata Poha were made regularly at home. Karnataka has it's own variation called Avalakkibath which is quite similar to Kanda Poha, but has the addition of urad dal and channa dal in it, with garnishes of fresh grated coconut. Batata Poha though was always called as Batata Poha, and never Avalakki. Mornings with plate full of Poha, tall glass of warm milk and off we went to school full and nourished till noon.

This was also a breakfast made when we had guests over, or on days when mom was running out of time to prepare breakfast. Potato, in general is a loved ingredient by many, so that meant less fuss. I now make this Maharashtrian-styled Aloo Poha / Batata Poha regularly at my home and my family enjoys it well as much as I do.

Batata Poha | Aloo Poha

INGREDIENTS

2 medium sized potatoes, peeled, chopped and diced
2 cups poha/beaten rice (thick variety)
2 tbsp oil
1 tsp turmeric powder
1 tsp mustard seeds
1 sprig curry leaves
2 green chillies, finely chopped
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 tbsp roasted peanuts
Salt to taste
1 tsp sugar
Juice squeezed from 1 lime
Fresh coriander leaves to garnish

DIRECTIONS

Wash the beaten rice thoroughly and drain the water. Add turmeric powder and salt, mix well and keep aside. While the poha blooms, proceed to prep the rest of the ingredients such a chopping potatoes and onions.

Heat oil in a fry pan, add in the mustard seed and let it splutter. Add the chopped onions and stir fry for 30 seconds till they are transclucent in color. Next add the diced potatoes, torn curry leaves and green chillies. Stir fry for a couple of minutes till the potatoes are cooked, yet have a bite. Add in the soaked poha/beaten rice. Turn heat to medium low and gently mix all the ingredients. Cover and cook for atleast 5 mins. Once cooked, remove from heat, add sugar and squeeze juice from 1 lime. Garnish with roasted peanuts and chopped coriander leaves.

You can cut down the cooking time by using boiled potatoes before hand. You can add the potatoes into the tempering oil, stir-fry well and allow it to cook. That way the potatoes get a slight crunch. This however takes a longer time and consumes more oil, hence I avoid this version. The one that I make is a quick, healthy and less time consuming since the potatoes are pre-boiled and need no further cooking. Addition of a teaspoon of sugar and lime is optional, but this really adds an edgy flavor, which is typical to Maharastrian cuisine.

An alternate version of this called Kanda Poha, where onions are used instead of potatoes is quite a common breakfast. This breakfast is not just simple and healthy, but also filling to keep you going for long.

*This post was updated and republished recently.*

Vegan Crepes with Strawberry Coconut Cream

2021-02-11T10:24:00.009+05:30

Vegan Crepe Recipe with Strawberry Coconut Cream.

Vegan Crepes 👆🏼 for your Valentine's Day. Are you looking out for an inspiration to make your Valentine's Day morning better? Or may be a dessert if you don't wish to bake? I have just the right recipe for you. A quick and easy Breakfast Crepe that's eggless and vegan and you can make and serve them under few minutes to please your Valentine 🥰. Crepes are versatile. They can be served as breakfast, main course or even desserts! This recipe I have for you is very adaptable to a savory version and you can serve it with any accompaniment of your choice. Stir fried mushrooms with spinach is my favorite! Think of it as an instant dosa. Slather some Mango Jam or stuff it with Indian styled Stir-Fried Potatoes.

Vegan Crepes

INGREDIENTS

1 cup all-purpose flour (can be replaced with whole wheat flour for healthier version, but the taste will differ)
1 1/2 cups unsweetened milk of your choice
2 tbsp neutral flavored oil
1/4 tsp salt

DIRECTIONS

Blend all the ingredients in a high speed blender until smooth. Allow it to rest for 20 mins. Heat a griddle pan and drop a small laddle of batter on it. Swirl it gently from the center to the edges to form thin crepes (similar to dosa). Cook for a minute on medium low heat. The sides will lift off easily when cooked. Carefully remove and serve it on a plate. Top with Strawberry Coconut Cream (recipe below), sliced strawberries, bananas and drizzle of maple syrup.

Strawberry Coconut Cream

INGREDIENTS

1/2 can full-fat coconut milk, refrigerated for 24 hours
2 tbsp. strawberry jam (homemade or store-bought)
1 tsp. vanilla extract

DIRECTIONS

Beat the cold coconut cream on medium speed for 4-5 minutes. The cream should become light and fluffy. Add in the strawberry jam and vanilla extract, and beat until incorporated. Adjust the jam to your taste and sweetness. Serve immediately along with the crepes.

Mini Sweet Bell Pepper Rice Bath

2021-02-09T17:58:00.006+05:30

How to make Karnataka Style Rice Bath | Easy Capsicum Rice Bath Recipe

'Rice Bath' is a common term used in Karnataka for dishes made with cooked leftover rice. It's a spiced rice where vegetables are added to make a nutritious and wholesome meal. The recipes differ from one family to another with many swearing by vaangi bath powder, and others using the readily available stash of sambhar or rasam powder. I keep it simple by using homeground sambhar powder that comes from my mom's kitchen. I've seen my mom do it that way and I've been following it ever since.

Rice Bath is made in a kadai or a large wok, unlike pulao or biryani where rice is cooked raw along with spices. It's a great way to revamp leftover rice and turn it into something more wholesome and scrumptious. This is also my go-to base recipe for Tomato Bath. I've used mini sweet bell peppers here, but it works equally good with capsicum, greens or vegetables of your choice.

Mini sweet bell peppers are tossed in a garlicky, onion and tomato base and stir fried with rice. Some frozen sweet peas are added too. Sambhar masala goes in for the heat. Sometimes I pep it up with red chilli powder when in a mood for spice. And finally I round it off with lemon juice for acidity and top it with roasted cashews for the crunch.

Mini Sweet Bell Pepper Rice Bath

INGREDIENTS

2 tbsp oil
1 tsp mustard seeds
2 garlic, finely chopped
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 sprig curry leaves
2 green chillies
2 tomatoes, finely chopped
8-10 slit mini sweet bell peppers
2 cups of cooked basmati rice
2 tsp sambhar powder
Salt to taste
Juice from 1 lemon
Roasted cashews and coriander leaves to garnish

DIRECTIONS

Heat 2 tbsp oil in a cast iron wok, add 1 tsp mustard seeds and let it splutter. Then add 2 chopped garlic cloves and 1 finely chopped onion and fry for few seconds. Next add torn curry leaves and chopped green chillies and fry for few seconds. Add about 2 tomatoes, finely chopped and fry till they soften and reduce in volume. Add 1/2 cup frozen peas and cook for a minute. Then add about 10 slit mini sweet bell peppers and stir fry for a minute. Add 2.5 cups of cooked basmati rice, 2 tsp sambhar powder and salt to taste. Stir the rice and masalas well so that the flavors are well incorporated. Cook uncovered for another 2 minutes on medium low heat. Remove from heat and add juice from one lemon. Garnish with roasted cashews and coriander leaves. Serve with a side of chilled yogurt or raita of choice.

Easy Tiramisu (No Raw Eggs, No Alcohol)

2017-03-01T09:55:00.005+05:30

Make Tiramisu without raw eggs| Easy Tiramisu Recipe

I love baking cakes. Simple, quick and easy frost-less cakes are my kinds. The bare minimum, one bowl kinds. Also, by that I mean, they should come together with least effort, have less frills, are presumably uncomplicated to make, like a simple chocolate cake, or a tea cake without having to fuss over any frosting; the one that you can nibble plain as a snack. A fresh baked fruit bread that goes into the oven and is out on the plate in under an hour, enjoyed with a slather of butter alongside a cup of hot beverage, or for that matter, a pound cake or coffee cake with strudel topping fits my list well too. They are the kinds you sink your teeth into when a sudden craving to savor dessert hits yours sweet spot at ungodly hours. That's my kind-a-cake.

Now, here's some word of truth. You see, I'm wary of baking tall towering cakes that have layers upon layers of sponge soaked in sweet juices and sandwiched with cream and fruits. Their surface embellished with delicate frosting of either whipped cream or fancy buttercream, topped with garnishes of fruits, chocolates and other fares make them elements of beauty, and treat to the eyes. Their delicateness is seen from the knee deep effort going into making them, hours sacrificed into adorning, an exercise of thought, patience and dedication. They demand attention and honor as they gleam tall on pedestal, deserving an applause. They mark a perfect score for being the right celebratory desserts to raise a toast to honor an occasion.

Such cakes are fantastic, but not the everyday kinds. Neither do I have such occasions to celebrate that often, nor do I have the immense amount of patience (read motivation) needed to dole out multi tiered cakes that can be my pride and my pal's envy. Even when few odd urges to bake such cakes trigger, I have flopped miserably, often ending up with torn crumbs, messy fingers and merely half the cream in my mouth, not to forget the mounting annoyance caused by the cake failing to abide by my whims and fancies. I end up in exasperation, it's vexation so palpable that I resolve not to bake a tiered cake in months to come. Patience is truly a virtue, for all those who have it.

But then there are cakes like this Tiramisu that go-betweens. They don't take much of an effort to put together, but are celebratory enough to grace an occasion and make it rave-worthy. They have all of charms of layered cake but with minimal labor. You can make them in wine glasses and serve individual helpings or have a free standing cake that beams layers of cake and cream. They are so simple to make and taste so darn luscious that it can put a elaborate cake into shame!

It was for Christmas eve party that I first made this Tiramisu cake and ever since then it has gone on repeat at home. You'll see them from the different photographs I took on two different occasions. Any why not! It's possibly one of the most easiest exotic looking dessert that tastes luxuriously rich, and indulgent and looks hours worth of effort, while it really isn't. This Italian celebratory dessert made by layering coffee spiked cookies, and sweet mascarpone cream, with a dusting of chocolate is a perfect dessert for any occasion or a celebration. Its simple, yet sophisticated. Put it on a cake stand, make it your centerpiece and it's sure to bring applause.

Traditionally, the cream for Tiramisu is made using mascarpone and zabaione (which is a custard made from egg yolks and sugar). This is a far simpler version where no raw eggs or alcohol is used, hence an ideal dessert for young kids too. Try this recipe at home and I bet you will love the ease of making it!

Easy Tiramisu (No Raw Eggs, No Alcohol)

INGREDIENTS

1 cup mascarpone cheese at room temperature (227 gm)
1 cup heavy whipping cream, chilled (236 ml)
1/2 cup sugar + 2 tbsp. for the coffee brew
28 Italian ladyfingers or Savoiardi cookies
1 cup very strong brewed coffee
1 tbsp. cocoa powder or grated chocolate for dusting

DIRECTIONS

1. Prepare a strong brew of coffee by mixing 2 tbsp. of instant coffee granules into 1 cup of hot water. Stir in 2 tbsp. of sugar and mix well till the sugar dissolves. Set aside.

2. Next, in a medium bowl, whip the chilled heavy cream and sugar with an electric whisk till near stiff peaks are formed. Carefully add in the mascarpone cheese into the whipped cream and fold gently till its uniform. Note - I added a tsp. of instant coffee granules into mascarpone cheese to intensify the coffee flavor. You can add a few tbsp. of coffee flavored alcohol instead.

3. Line the pan (either a cake pan or a loaf tin) with a plastic wrap so that it overlaps and hangs on the sides. This will help in easier and cleaner removal of the cake.

4. Pour the warm coffee decoction into a wide bowl. Dip each ladyfinger cookie one at a time, until soaked but not soggy and place them side by side on the bottom of the lined pan. Don't soak the cookies too long, else it will cause them to fall apart. I do this by dipping only the upper half of the ladyfinger (the sugar crusted side of the cookie) into the coffee decoction, placing the dipped side facing up. Consume half of the cookies in case you want 2 layers, and one-third of cookies in case you plan 3 layers. I do not suggest going above that as it can make the cake cutting quite flimsy and prone to dismantle. You can also layer the cake in a round film-lined tin, breaking the ladyfinger to fit the rounded sides as you go.

5. Spread one-third of the sweet mascarpone cream over the ladyfingers. Repeat with a second layer of espresso-dipped ladyfingers, this time arranging them in the opposite direction. Top again with another one-third of the sweet mascaporne cream. Repeat again if you want to go another layer, spreading the remaining mascarpone cream on top. Finally dust with the grated chocolate.

6. Cover with Tiramisu cake with plastic wrap. Refrigerate it for at least 4-5 hours or preferably over night.

7. To serve, remove from the refrigerator, undo the plastic wrap and dust with grated chocolate powder.

Mushroom Makhani Restaurant Style

2017-01-26T09:43:00.004+05:30

How to make Mushroom Makhani | Easy Mushroom Makhani Recipe

It was in brief period of time, sometime in June last year when spring was fading out unhurriedly, giving itself into the summer warmth, and the temperatures were just about steadily poised in their pleasant 60s, that I felt a sudden urge, an unfounded obsession over mushrooms. I had no idea what triggered it. I must have been under the weather, or must be the sight of damp mulch springing off paunchy shoots while the mist shroud in, or may be the birthday party I attended late spring where stuffed baked mushroom caps was all I ate because it was beyond delicious and I could barely take it off my mind for several days after the party. I'd go out for walks and randomly sight odd pairs of mushrooms sprung on peat soil and tree trunks, watch them in awe, and strike a sudden temptation to cuddle my hands around a bowl of warm mushroom soup. In my strong desire to savor them, I toyed the idea of cooking them for all three meals a day, crooning over mushrooms on toast for breakfast, mushroom biryani for lunch and this mushroom makhani for dinner. I had the fortune of sparing my family to bear this marathon brunt of mine as they were summer vacationing back in India, visiting relatives and friends and enjoying the glorious ripe seasonal mangoes in kilos, while I boggled silly over these fungi. Insane you may have called me, had you sneaked into my lunch box, or my dinner plate that week, that, my meals were inadvertently smeared with mushrooms in their ensemble. I would visualize them in my shopping for groceries - the buttons, shiitakes, oysters, portobellos everywhere. Umbrella caps in supple tones of milk and tans - some pumped up, some stout, others squat, and shaggy, unkempt in their mannerisms, their piggy stems ballooned underneath, their tender skins crust with dirt and mire that needed gentle strokes in water bath to glisten their starkness, leaving their glamorous gills unhurt on the underside of their caps. None the less glorious in all forms.

After marking a day on calendar and striking it off with meals rigged with mushrooms, I was out and about that obsession for a while, staying away from aisles at grocery stores, thinking beyond its capacity. I relieved this obsession, so glad at it; its yearning so deep and willingly conspiring, much like echoing phrases from Paulo Coelho's The Alchemist, "When you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it." I conspired it. I achieved it.

Much of this recipe I share today is a remake of my recipe for Paneer Makhani, so you make the makhani gravy ahead of time and prepare the actual curry just before serving. The makhani gravy is sinfully delicious on it own, but when you throw in mushrooms, they take on a new level of deliciousness. The meaty texture of mushrooms complement the creamy gravy, giving it depth of flavors. This rich dish is fit for parties and celebratory occasions, but if you want to give yourself a break from mundane home cooking and serve up some exoticism on weekends for your family, then this be it.

Mushroom Makhani

INGREDIENTS

1 cup of prepared Makhani Masala (refer here)
200 grams button mushrooms
1/4 cup cream (adjust to your taste)
1/2 tsp. of kasuri methi or dried fenugreek leaves
Fresh coriander, cream for garnish

DIRECTIONS

Prepare the Makhani masala as in recipe mentioned here. It should yield approximately about a cup of thick gravy.

In case you are using refrigerated or frozen gravy, remove from the fridge and allow it to come to room temperature. Add 1/2 cup water and bring it to a simmer.

If you have prepared the gravy masala fresh, then to the simmering gravy, add 1/2 cup of water and diced mushrooms and bring it to a boil. Stir and cook covered for 10 minutes. Once the mushrooms are cooked, add the cream and simmer for 2 minutes. Transfer the Mushroom Makhani to a serving bowl and garnish with more fresh cream, ginger juliannes and coriander leaves. Serve hot with rotis, naans or kulchas.

Carrot Saaru | Carrot Rasam | Indian Carrot Soup

2017-01-06T10:28:00.000+05:30

How to make Easy Carrot Saaru, Easy Carrot Soup

All through the fall, I stocked pumpkins at home in sheer keenness to make a good pumpkin soup that I could share with you all. I was amused, delighted beyond words to watch pumpkins everywhere, on market stands and home fronts, in malls and on window sills, on blog feeds and in ad mailers. Our favorite grocery stores smelled warm from pumpkin spices and its produce. Our office had spice infused fresheners in the lobby to welcome guests. The coffee was not spared either, flavored with pumpkin spice in it too! Tell me, who wouldn't be lured? So each time we stepped out grocery shopping, along came a pumpkin or its sibling in form a squash, that made its way into our shopping cart, judiciously sized to suit two meals for us as a family.

On a seasonal high note, I did make soups and stews, and plenty at that, laboriously skinning the peels, slicing and dicing them, and boiling them to pulp over pot of stock. I choose not to bake, rather simmer over a pot on stove, as that's a task I like to leave for days far less busier than weekdays, when I don't have the time to worry about our over-sensitive fire alarm screeching off at the slightest variation of warm air emanating from the oven. That's another story to say. The soups though did turn out creamy, and deliciously vegan, not necessarily warranting any fat or cream in regard to heighten the flavors or their sumptuousness. But they got gulped down faster than I expected, hot and steaming, ladles after ladles, cold fingers wrapped around the warm bowl for comfort, either dunked by toasted garlic bread or tossed along with piping hot rice, savored snugly in our warm dining area while the leaves were busy shedding under the seasonal transition.

It happened so, that each time I planned a soup, I was swooned by the dire beauty of the squash and pumpkins, that I shot several preps of them much ahead of sunset in the noon. By the time the squash was sliced and diced, cooked, pureed and boiled to perfection, finally seasoned to be served, it was time sun called his day and the darkness overcast the late noons in its thick black bile. I finally gave up on presenting my super-creamy-vegan-butternut-squash-soup here, instead, the year end holiday baking mania took over the house bringing more cheer to otherwise gloomy noons.

We've step foot into the new year, and I've welcomed it with my arms wide open. I have no resolutions that pound my mind hard, so there's none really to make. But I realize this blog is devoid of soups and I want to fill that space. I need to make a beginning, and here's one that fills the bill so well. Apt in time, a recipe for a good Indian soup in the beginning of a new year. It can't get better than this.

I pray this year croons high hopes, brings truck loads of good luck, fab health and immense happiness, and heaps of enthusiasm to live the year ahead positively. I should have been rolling in trays of sweets or brought a dessert along here, commemorating the new year and reminiscing 'oh whatta year 2016 was for me!', because it was gratifying in good sense, and worthily etched into our memory with a fair balance of highs and lows, but instead, I have come along with bowls of warm and comforting homemade carrot soup that clamors itself so South Indian. This is what makes me the happiest - simplicity in a bowl. It defines what I would love my year to look like - simple, clean, uncluttered and subtle in my living and approach.

Carrot Saaru | Carrot Rasam | Indian Carrot Soup

Prep Time: 15 mins | Cooking Time: 15 mins | Serves 4

INGREDIENTS

2 carrots, chopped
2 cups water
1 tbsp. tamarind paste
1 tsp. sambhar powder
1/2 tsp. turmeric powder
Salt to taste

For Tempering:

2 tsp. oil
1 tsp. mustard seeds
1/2 tsp. asafoetida powder
1 sprig of curry leaf
1-2 whole red chillies torn

DIRECTIONS

Boil the chopped carrots along with 2 cups of water and turmeric powder until they are fork tender. I pressure cook them on 2 whistles as its quicker to do so. You can pan boil it if you do not have a pressure cooker. Once done, allow it to cool and blend it to a puree in a mixer.

Transfer the carrot puree into a thick bottom pan. Stir in the tamarind paste, salt and sambhar powder. Add additional water to adjust the consistency of the saaru / soup. I like to have this saaru slightly thicker than our traditional rasams as it brings out the texture and flavor of carrots well. Bring the saaru to a rolling boil and then simmer for about 2-3 minutes. Turn off the flame and set aside to temper.

To temper, heat oil in a small pan. Add mustard seeds and allow it to splutter. Add the asafoetida powder, torn red chillies and curry leaves and fry briefly for few seconds. Turn off the flame and add this to the prepared saaru. Serve hot with steamed rice or drink them steaming hot right out of soup bowls.

Christmas Fruit Cake for Yummy Food

2016-12-25T22:20:00.000+05:30

How to make Christmas Fruit Cake | Easy Christmas Fruit Cake Recipe

There's something extremely gratifying about making your own cake and gifting your loved ones with yours. Usually, its days ahead of Christmas that I begin with the process of soaking fruits in booze and later bake them into a fruit cake that sits for a couple of days before being brought out to share. Each year, we have our family, parents, sister, brother-in-law and few close friends to whom the cake goes out to. Beyond celebrations, we seek joy in togetherness, sharing and the art of giving.

My dear friend Lubna is hosting a virtual Christmas party at Yummy Food this year. Ever since her invite, I was left to ponder what I could take along to the potluck, that, it should not only be apt for this celebration, but can also be enjoyed by the young and old without reservations. I scuffled through many options I had on mind - cookies, breads, gateau cakes, or petite fours? None gripped my mind stronger than one. Soon it was sorted. My heart was set on this Fruit cake, and nothing seemed more gratifying than sinking my teeth into a good Christmas Fruit Cake that's speckled with fruits and nuts, bursting with flavor from spices, and left plain without frosting. Simple, yet rich, its gloriously satisfying even with a small piece. Its a tradition to solemnly indulge in Kuswar, (the assortments served during Christmas) for someone like me who grew up in Mangalore. I'm away from home, oceans away from my family whom I miss dearly, so this fruit cake had to be it. Its a thing I delve into every single year, because, it brings back many fuzzy memories of home, family and friends in Mangalore.

I've made many fruit cakes in the past, like this, this and this, each with subtle variation in the recipe and fruits used, all decadent and boozy in nature. I was armed with a kitchen scale, measuring out by grams to the tee, in my initial years, but now a measuring cup does the job well as I can tell well if the cake will bake to perfection or not by the look of its batter. A good Fruit Cake holds a special space in my heart, it doesn't matter if the fruits are soaked over months or made in an instant like the one I have at Yummy Food's party today. Its a simple cake, but packed with flavors from spices and fruits that makes it so luxurious and indulgent. I stick by using a non-alcoholic mulled fruit drink in my recipe, so you don't have to worry if you have a young kid to cater to, but feel free to substitute with a booze or fruit juice of your choice.

So join me over on Yummy Food as we celebrate this season of reflection and celebration. We'll soon leap into the new year that brings along more hopes, positivity and strength. Come let’s bake this cake to celebrate the last leg of 2016 and welcome 2017 with arms wide open. Before you hop over, here's me wishing you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Cinnamon Rolls with Cooked Vanilla Frosting

2016-12-21T20:35:00.001+05:30

How to make Cinnamon Rolls with Cooked Frosting | Easy Cinnamon Rolls Recipe

With Christmas around the corner and less than 4 days to go before you can sing Hallelujah, the Lord has come, I thought I'll peep in to help you with a lovely classic breakfast for your family to wake up to this Christmas morning. Its typically Western, hearty and sweet to call your morning off to a good start, supple enough that you may want to lay your head on it and snooze again, gives you the comfort of your bestie's company, and is the festive sorts that you can set up on table for your guests to dessert on.

For the longest time, I've had aversion to cinnamon in all things sweet. Let me not even get to the whys of it, for all I know, cinnamon in my arena existed best in the legion of savories, given the exception for a good Christmas fruit cake where it favorably unites with clove, cardamom and other spices, veiled in a way that it does not hit your senses directly and ruin the flavor. But, here it comes finally, the world coveted Cinnamon rolls looming right out of my kitchen to yours. I’m close to being a convert, convincingly not a cinnamon-dessert-hater anymore. These don’t look a lot like the traditional rolls. I mean they are not enormous in size to consume your palm, certainly not the perfect looking rolls that stand flawlessly edged shoulder to shoulder giving them a clean rip, nor do they bask in the sugary coated frosting that sinks into every groove merrily.

I would probably rechristen these as cinnamon pull apart rolls; owing to the pans I had and the amount of dough I made, they ended up this way. But they are cinnamon rolls essentially, so let's stick to that. They don’t snatch away the authenticity from the traditional ones. They smell great in and out of the oven, are near identical in their recipe, forgiving the eggs in the dough. They sat squishing in an eight inch round baking pan, my ideal dish to bake a nice chocolate cake in, but this time around they doubled up as my bread pan too, saving me gracefully from sunken cockeyed bread had I baked them in my ten inch dish instead. They nudged for space as they puffed up on their second sitting, and, by the time they were out they looked glorious in their golden crevices and sugar burnt hunches, flattering into characteristic pull apart rolls that need to be forked by the thumb and forefinger to tear them apart from their siblings. There’s a fun thing to it, to tear it apart in submission in an imperfect way and dunk it in milk over giggles and laughters with our little girl while tapping our feet to the melodies of Christmas jingles. That’s when you know you are up for a good start to a holiday season.

The frosting is purely optional. As for a daily bread, I would stay away from frosting these. They are sweet on their own and make a wonderfully perfect Sunday breakfast with a slather of some salted butter, or cream cheese and coffee by the side. But we are in a holiday season, and that calls for some adornment on the table to give it a festive ring. I have a clean, less sweeter old fashioned cooked vanilla frosting recipe that works really well for me. Since the bread is sweet by nature, a lighter frosting like this one is pleasing to our tastes. Unlike the traditional frosting where you mix milk to confectioners’ sugar till you get a desired consistency, this one is far better version that gives me a similar thick pour-able consistency, albeit far less sweeter than the original version. Give it a try, may be you'll fall for these too.

Cinnamon Rolls with Cooked Vanilla Frosting

INGREDIENTS

For Cinnamon Rolls:

2 1/4 cups all purpose flour
3/4 cup milk (I used full fat milk)
1/4 cup butter
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 cup coconut sugar
1 tsp. active dry yeast (or rapid rise)

For the Cinnamon Sugar Filling:

1/4 cup light brown sugar
1 tbsp. cinnamon powder
2 tbsp. melted butter

For the Cooked Vanilla Frosting:

1 cup full fat milk
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/3 cup coconut sugar
1/4 teaspoon vanilla

DIRECTIONS

Heat the milk and butter in a large sauce pan till the butter has melted into the milk. Remove from heat and add in the sugar. Stir well and allow it cool down to lukewarm. The milk should be tepid enough to activate the yeast, but not too hot, else will kill the yeast.

Transfer the warm milk to a large mixing bowl and sprinkle yeast into it. Let it sit for 10 minutes, so that the yeast can feed on the sugar and froth.

Next, add flour starting with 1/2 cup at a time and stirring well as you go. Once it forms a loose batter, add the next half cup of flour and stir well. This will help activate the gluten in the dough and yield soft supple dough, resulting in a good, fluffy bread. Continue using all of the flour and stir well with each addition till it comes together to form a sticky dough. Knead it for a minute or two till its soft and supple.

Place the dough in an oiled deep dish and cover it with a dish cloth. Let it rise in a warm place for about 2 hours. By this time the dough should double in size.

Transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface. I use the clean kitchen counter top that provides me ample space to work my dough on. Using a flour dusted rolling pin, roll the dough into a thin long rectangle. Brush it generously with melted butter. Prepare a mix of sugar and cinnamon powder and sprinkle it generously all over the dough.

Starting at the longer edge side, roll up the dough as tight as you can till forms a long log. To avoid opening up, place the seam side down. Using a cleaned knife dipped in flour, cut the log into slices of 1.5 inch each. Butter a 8x8-inch round baking tin. Place the rolls into the buttered tin, next to each other. Brush the rolls with some melted butter. Set aside to rise again for 45 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Bake the rolls for 25-30 minutes or until the bread is golden brown in color. If the top of the bread seems to change color sooner, while the underside still seems uncooked, cover the top with an aluminium foil and continue to bake till done.

Remove from oven and allow it to cool completely. Frost as desired.

For the frosting, combine milk and flour in a saucepan. Cook over medium low heat, stirring constantly, for about 3-5 minutes. The mixture should thicken and come to a boil. Add in sugar and stir well. Boil till the mixture coats the back of a wooden spatula, i.e. of custard consistency. Turn off the heat. Stir in vanilla essence. Cool completely. Before serving, whisk the frosting really well and swirl using a spoon on the cinnamon rolls.

Healthy 3 Ingredient Banana Oatmeal Cookies

2016-12-17T10:28:00.005+05:30

How to make Healthy 3 Ingredient Banana Oatmeal Cookies Recipe

The calendar on the bottom of my screen reminds me each day how fast we are getting close to the end of December. That means, we are just 2 weeks away from waving goodbye to this year (stop twitching your eyes, will you!) and, we are only 7 nights away from Christmas! 7 nights, that's just about a week. Yes, yes, just about a week I said! Sooner we bat our eyelids, that will be snapped away too. Now hope you are not smirking at me or raising your eyebrows in an oddly muddled way! If you did, then I assume you have sprung up on your toes and are heading right to your desk to grab that paper and pen to sort your Christmas shindig. So by this time around next week, I imagine the table will be laid out, and cutleries matched up, stockings set up high on the window sill where the fairy lights are twinkling in a chord, rushing through last minute gift wrapping and cookie plating, and in the reclusive spot of your home there may be a party planned with folks boisterously chiming in Merry Christmas while sipping away some eggnog.

I don't mean to scare you by any means. While we are nearly there in the last lap of the year with another 15 days to go, we are still left with the best few days of 2016 to live with. I wanted to knock your door and remind you on that. By that I mean, I wouldn't want you to burn out and hyperventilate planning the whole carte du jour for the D-day celebrations, rather take it slow and easy, plan with a breather, living the last few days of this year insanely happy, making it a memorable one.

We got the taste of our real winter snowfall yesterday that lasted a couple of hours. By end of the day, all the white snow flaked icing was one into a slushy mess. Predictions are it will continue to snow over the week, slipping into weekend. This morning we woke up to see our world swallowed by mesmerizing white everywhere. I dumped myself in layers and layers of warmers, mufflers and whatnot, yet, chill air was strong enough to render my eyes watery, feet numbed and nose tips frosted. By the time I was home, my coconut massaged hair had frozen to thick dreadlocks and my toes had lost their sense of belonging. Today was the coldest winter I've ever witnessed in my life, and this is just the beginning, an experience worth a memory, a teaser to what lies in the months ahead. Now I'm seriously thinking of a balaclava, no matter how comical I may seem.

In the run to year end celebration, I've turned on my oven to warm up our home and bake some delectable goodies. Between churning out my favorite fruit cakes that will go out to friends and colleagues, I have some healthy cookies baking on the side, that serve as an instant solace to curb the cravings of my little girl and me. While the air is heated and scents of fruits and spices waft through the kitchen, these cookies are made instantly with left over bananas, some oatmeal and chocolate chips, just 3 ingredients put together into a loose dough and baked to form soft cake like cookies. They are an instant ramification of salvaging some near dying overripe bananas that are honey sweet and boost of potassium in abundance. They are healthy, have no fat, can be customized to your will by replacing chocolate chips with nuts and raisins of choice, are gluten free, dairy-free, can be easily passed on for breakfast or on-the-go snack at odd hour with no guilt. Now that's what you need on your hand while you are raking your brain sketching out the Christmas menu. Go ahead and bake these along too.

Healthy 3 Ingredient Banana Oatmeal Cookies

Prep Time: 5 mins | Bake Time: 12 mins | Yields: 9 medium sized cookies

INGREDIENTS

1 large overripe banana
1/2 cup quick-cooking oats*
1/4 cup chocolate chips*
1 tsp. vanilla extract (optional)

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 350°F.

Mash the bananas in a medium bowl. Add the oats, vanilla extract and chocolate chips. Stir in well to form a loose dough.

Using an oiled spoon, drop a tablespoonful of the cookie dough to a baking tray. Flatten them down gently into a disc shape if desired.

Bake for 12-15 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool on a cooling rack. Serve with tea or coffee or take as an on-the-go snack.

Notes:

* Use gluten-free oats for gluten-free option
* Use vegan chocolate chips for vegan option
* Replace the chocolate chips with raisins or nuts like almonds or walnuts for a nut based option
* Vanilla extract is optional but highly recommended for more flavor. You can do without it however.

Cranberry Thokku

2016-12-05T11:10:00.004+05:30

How to make Cranberry Tokku, Easy Cranberry Pickle, Cranberry Relish

I started blogging in a time when the internet world had taken to blogs burgeoning everywhere like little mushrooms enticed by rains. There was an unfaltering gush of novel, unexplored cuisines, recipes, ingredients and more, all brimming on various sites with their evocative photographs and stories, each compelling and competing by themselves to make a mark on the space. I'd viciously eye those berries and stone fruits that would pop up randomly every now and then, in seasons and festivities, their crimson reds, navy blues and sunlit ambers marrying blissfully into butter, sugar and flour to settle into marvelous looking desserts - desserts that could trigger hunger at odd hours of the day and post hefty meals; leaving me much in envy of being unable to get my hands on them back in time, while the world around rejoiced in celebration with such food.

That said, what did not make much of an appearance on the web space were fresh, glossy, scarlet red cranberries. There were several recipes out there that had them in scones, breads and cakes, mostly used in dried form, the kind of ones that are drowned in sugar and shriveled to douse the tart flavor. For a while, now that these are easily accessible in India, I too made my convenience with using the dried varieties in our favorite mincemeat recipe that sat bathing, cramped up with other dry fruits and weighed down by nuts in a heady spiced rum concoction for months before being brought out to be baked into Christmas Fruit Cake.

I had never seen fresh cranberries in the past till I came to the US. With dried cranberries available on ease, it was what it was known to me. For several years till lately, I was tricked into assuming that cranberries were akin to karonda, or karvanda (as known in Kannada), the tart-sweet Indian berries commonly used erstwhile in Indian pickles. I was excited about cranberries being karvanda, for two reasons.

One, I had never seen a karvanda bush, nor tasted its fruit in ripe, however I grew up hearing my dad often commend his love for these extinct pickling fruits, reminiscing how he missed watching his mother and grandmother collect the tart green berries off the bushes that grew in their backyard while the summer set in, of how they let them mature in brine for weeks, hand pounded the fresh spices and amalgamated them for months in sun to be pickled. Those were his memories, far and few, raved and deemed. For me, in rare times that I met a marinated young karvanda berry eye to eye, it was always camouflaged, heavily absorbed in red spices, and tart from being infused with bite sized mangoes pieces, served as delicious pickles alongside other dishes in odd occasions of weddings or family gatherings. Hardly an acquaintance to delineate something about.

Yet, those who grew up in the North of India may spin you tales of their childhood spent twiddling around the karonda (as they call it) bushes in the backyard of their aunt's, grandma's or friend's home, plucking them and popping it to their mouths with puckered face; karonda being more popular in the North of India than in the South where I grew up.

For second, Karavanda wasn't popular in generation of our times by any means; at least, it wasn't regarded high as the imported peers were. No one told us how good they were, no magazines or food channels professed it high, nor did our Sunday markets run its produce, probably because a lot of our Indian population was either disinterested to honor it or the ones like me, had hardly known it by trait. For a long time I did not know what it was called in English, or if it did exist in the lexicons of English circles. On the other hand, we had newspapers and magazines that constantly spoke of how fab cranberries were in beating the beast out of cancers and UTIs, tipping off cranberries to be our very Indian karavanda, and how our long forgotten fruit had captured attention in the West and that it may be touted as a superfood, pronto. Internet added to that fad with burst of knowledge.

My assumptions may have been misleading me, but thankfully I know today that karonda is karonda and cranberry is cranberry. Both live in separate worlds, with different identities, in their own identities that can't be swapped. It took me a trip to Nantucket in summer to realize this. That's where I saw the process of cranberries being grown and harvested, much unlike the trees that my grandmother harvested from, but bog flooded and cragged from vines. I came back home with a bag full of organic cranberries to turn them into a desi relish!

That brings me to this interesting recipe I have to share with you today. A mod-western ingredient with a traditional twist. The east meets west kinds. An old wine in a new bottle. This cranberry chutney, a dip, or more traditionally a thokku. Its very Indian at heart, its spices and the flavor - piquant, tart and delicious in a tiny blob on the side to any dish. You drag a lump of it with your fingers and mix along with steaming hot rice or simply scoop a small portion with your roti or dosa and relish it. Its makes a kicking dip to tortilla chips or even khakras, and that's exactly how I've zinged up over the past couple of evenings alongside my tea.

Cranberry Tokku

INGREDIENTS

2 cups fresh cranberries
5 tbsp. vegetable oil
2 tsp. red chilli powder
1 tsp. fenugreek seeds powder
1 tsp. asafoetida (hing)
1 sprig curry leaves
Salt to taste

DIRECTIONS

Heat vegetable oil in a kadai/ wok. Add mustard seeds and fry till it begins to splutter.

Next add the red chilli powder, fenugreek powder and the asafoetida into the oil and fry for 5 seconds. Do not allow spices to burn.

Add the torn curry leaves and fry for few seconds till they turn crisp.

Reduce the flame and add the fresh cranberries. Stir them in to coat all the spices. Cook till they pop and begin to reduce in volume. Using the back of spatula, gently mash them. Add in salt to taste and stir continuously until the cranberries soften, reduce in volume, and begin to lump, and the oil begins to separate.

Remove from heat and allow to cool completely. Store in air tight ceramic or glass containers.

Notes:

* You can add a tablespoon of jaggery to balance the tart incase you do not like the sour taste of the thokku.
* Fenugreek powder is bitter on its own, however when fried in oil it imparts a lovely flavor to the dish. It's the heart of this thokku and hence do not skip this ingredient.
* If you plan to store this over the counter for couple of days, its important you do not skip the amount of oil suggested. However, incase you plan to make a smaller quantity that will be consumed in a day or two, you can reduce the oil content. Oil helps in longer shelf life of any pickle.
* If you don't like heat, reduce the amount of chilli powder. We love our pickles spicy, so you may find the red chilli powder on slightly higher side. The heat of the chillies is also dependent on the kind of chilli powder you use. Hence use it judiciously.

Healthy Raw Brownies

2016-11-24T11:14:00.002+05:30

How to make Healthy Raw Brownies | Easy Raw Brownie Recipe

Be thankful for what you have; you'll end up having more. If you concentrate on what you don't have, you will never, ever have enough. - Oprah Winfrey

Its Thanksgiving tomorrow and under five weeks, we'll be well into Christmas, my favorite time of the year when all else goes still and only food and festivities shall prevail. I am excited and am so looking forward to it. As for now, there isn't a grand event of celebration lined up for tomorrow, but, we'll take joy in the holiday to follow, time for togetherness and bonding over relaxed morning, lazying noon and a slow evening. Hurray to no work, no deadlines, no meetings for a day. We'll wake up late in the bed, follow a laid back routine and lavish a little on a good homemade breakfast. The day calls for my time in kitchen, where get to I play with pots and pans, may be tossing up some flour, butter and sugary goodness into a ton of fruits to come up with something worthy for Christmas. A cake is in store, a Christmas fruit cake that I can hopefully talk about in posts to come. We'll have our family at the table, the three of us, savoring lunch in an austere way, which in itself is a small celebration to do on a weekday - bringing in tit-bits of our weekend-ness, in a little modish way.

Meanwhile, I have these super healthy brownie treats for you to feature on your Thanksgiving table. I made them this summer, though they don't pertain to any seasons. They are treats you can make year round. No seasons attached. You can make them for your Thanksgiving dessert menu or keep them handy to treat your guests over a cup of coffee or just carry them on your hiking trip to give you adrenaline boost. There's no sugar in them, no butter whatsoever, no flour, no guilt too. And no no! I am not on diet if you ask so. But I thought I should be a little considerate and save you from splurging way too much before the year end celebrations kick in. There's a lot awaiting there, Christmas on its way, New Year dinner to follow, so you may want to treat yourself slowly and sanely before getting there. These little treats don't steal away the joy of splurging, mind you. They are delicious as is in small bites or you can make them in a wonderful no-bake pie base with fancy toppings. Hope these make your Thanksgiving table a little more glamorous.

Raw Brownies

Prep Time: 5 mins | Pulse Time: 10 mins + 2 hrs refrigeration | Yield: 12 pieces

INGREDIENTS

2 cups of medjool dates
1/2 cup of roasted almonds
1/2 cup of raw walnuts
3 tablespoons of raw cacao powder
2 tablespoons of maple syrup

DIRECTIONS

Blend the almonds and walnuts in a food processor until they form a crumbly mixture. Then add the dates and blend again till dates are pureed. Next add the cacao and maple syrup and blend again. The mixture will come together in form of a dough. If its wet to handle, add in some walnuts and pulse again.

Place the mixture into a baking tray. Refrigerate for two hours or freeze for one hour so that it sets well. Cut into slices and serve. Store in an air tight container and keep them refridgerated for freshness.

Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

2016-11-07T10:09:00.002+05:30

Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies | Easy Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies Recipe

In our direct sight, right outside our balcony are two young, strong maple trees that stand next to each other in a row. They are probably the last of few trees in our region to hold on to their deepest summer greens, while across the street, the one that we take to drop our daughter to the school bus stop, the towering maples have turned into fiery red, fancy yellows, even burnt browns, scattering themselves on sidewalks and spilling over streets in favor of the autumn's climax that we saw a week ago. The leaves trodden path smell of gentle rot, casting that sweet autumn perfume in air, as many wear their bare-dare look and poke their woody nibs high into the murky skies.

By the time the first streak of sun rays hit our home, we are wide awake, our hair strewn, usually done with brushing and sipping a cup of hot ginger tea for the two. We are at a point when we begin nudging our daughter out of her sleep. That takes us a two-man effort to canoodle, our attempts to wake her up over several minutes - the husband and I, at times her dear grandma adds in too, to pull her off the bed and tow her to the bathroom to start her day with. By this moment there's enough light curtailing the darkness of dawn, and the two maple trees outside our home are well in our sight. We watch it every morning in exhilaration for its transformation, awaiting patiently as it takes its turn to move from greens to yellows, and then to browns. For all the autumn we have seen this season, these two are holding on to their cavernous greens. Did I not say they were strong?

Yesterday, this Saturday morning, voila! The magic unfolded. Leaves changed hues, turning themselves to beautiful golds and bronzes, some earthy greens and blazing reds splashed in random - autumn's treat to us. The curtains stayed open all day long, the doors left ajar despite the chill air, providing us with a better sight and coverage to the trees overall, as we stepped out excitedly to snap a few moments to be treasured. For the next couple of days, the magic shall prevail till they turn matte coppers, sway feebly into air, and pile up in heaps of burgundies and russets on the ground below, before the snow flakes engulf them in uniform of black and white.

With fall around, there's an awesomeness in air that makes home baking more gratifying. With the year end coming closer, and the holiday spirit in air, desserts will make their prominence on family lunches and dinner gatherings. Oatmeal and Chocolate Chip Cookies are just the perfect things you could bake this season. They'll add more charm to your coffee trays that will roll in as guests visit you. If not, consider them gifting to your loved ones and bring joy to their celebrations.

The recipe is adapted from All Recipes. In my quest to find a good recipe for eggless version of Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies, I researched a bit and tried a couple of recipes with varying results. I highly suggest this recipe, albeit minor modifications. I advice you do not cut down on the fat content in this recipe, and balance the brown and white sugars to the below said, that is, if you care for crisp cookies. The cookies do spread a bit, so place them well. We are a family that loves crisp cookies, very Indian in that aspect, so I like to flatten these cookies with a fork before baking. The recipe here will make you a batch of about 16-18 medium sized cookies depending on how much you fill your tablespoon with. If you wish to bring fall to your cookies, add a nice helping of sweet cinnamon and heady nutmeg powder to this recipe. So pull your pans out, warm up your oven and let's bake a batch of these Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies.

Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

Prep: 10 mins | Cook: 12 min | Makes: 16-18 cookies

INGREDIENTS

1 cup salted butter
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
3/4 cup white sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 cup boiling water
2 cups rolled oats
1 1/2 cups semisweet chocolate chips (I used mini chocolate chips)

DIRECTIONS

Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Line the cookie tray with baking / parchment paper and set aside.

Bring the butter to room temperature, and beat it with brown sugar and white sugar till its light and fluffy. Add in the vanilla extract and all-purpose flour to this and mix.

Next in a separate bowl, dissolve a teaspoon of baking soda in boiling water. Add this to the above mixture and stir gently.

Stir in the rolled oats and raisins and mix them in. Drop by tablespoonful into a tray lined by baking / parchment paper. Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for about 10-12 minutes. Don't over bake.

Remove from baking tray and allow them to cool completely on a wire rack. Store them in a air-tight container.

Kodubale and Happy Diwali!!!

2016-10-30T21:00:00.003+05:30

How to make Kodubale | Easy Kodubale Recipe

It's eve of Diwali today, that time of the year I look forward to the most with great yearning and excitement. Its around this time I hit my best stride. I'm the happiest, consumed by thoughts only positive, blurring out all negativity and pessimism, guzzled with happiness, reflection, joy and celebration, irrespective of how high or low the year may have been. I hope yours was a fantastic one and continues to be so in the year ahead. I wish you a wonderful Diwali, and a year filled with good luck, health and prosperity. Wish you all a Happy Diwali and a prosperous New Year!

Right now as I write this, I sit on my dining table overlooking our balcony lit with tiny serial bulbs, running end to end, hung over the balcony parapet like wet jeans on cloth liners, its warm LEDs creating a bokeh effect on the hindsight in a very soothing way. Our little girl has been running around the home in sheer excitement of the festive hoopla. I miss the sounds of zameen chakras, rockets and phooljhadi (flower-pots) bursting in the vicinity, that reminds me of home back in India; but in a few minutes from now we'll head out to the local temple about 5 miles from home, where sounds of bursting crackers and rings of temple bells will chime alongside families wishing each other Happy Diwali. There's community get together - with prayer, celebrations, food and musicals to round off the night. Also, with parents around, our home is smelling of kodubales and shankarpalis and that's nothing short of what Diwali has been for us - food and celebration, both in plenty.

Before I head out, I'll leave you with this recipe for Kodubale, a traditional Indian savory snack that we grew up eating way too often, that there came a point when I hated it by heart. After I moved to Bangalore, I did not eat them for years. And then slowly, there came a time when I went back to eating them on my occasional trips to Mangalore, where they are made in plenty. It wasn't with much fervor though, but I know why so. Kodubales are made plenty in Mangalore - every bakery stocks them, every house stocks them, they are gifted too. They stay fresh for long, so most homes will serve you with a plate of these alongside tea. Women in most households have a recipe of their own, so they either whip up batches and stock by larders or they rush out to the nearest bakery to buy them the moment they hear a guest is about to arrive. My relatives even brought them along to gift whenever they visited us. Eventually it was overdosed and I saw aversion to it.

Of what I remember, these require no occasion to treat upon really. You make them on whim, serve your guests, feast them on festivals, snack on them in evenings with your tea, or simply carry them on your bus rides to munch on when odd hunger pangs strike. They are fried ofcourse, but they won't do much harm as a lot of the rice flour in the recipe is immune to absorbing oil. So you'll have a delicious savory that you can eat guilt free. I highly advise not experimenting these with baking, as they can obviously end disastrous. But if you have courageous nerves that I don't have, and you are successful at baking these, please share your tips with me. I will be overwhelmed to hear from you. On another note, you can control the amount of heat to your liking. I love these spicy, but if you like them low on spice, use a milder chilli powder for the heat. They are delicious I bet!

Kodubale

Prep: 30 mins | Cook: 20 min | Makes: 3 dozens

INGREDIENTS

Dry Ingredients:

2 cup rice flour
3/4 cup roasted split bengal gram (huri kadale)
1/2 cup desiccated dry coconut (powdered copra)
1/4 cup maida / plain flour
1 sprig finely chopped curry leaves
1 tsp. red chilli powder (I use a spicier one, such as Guntur chilli powder)
2 tbsp. sesame seeds
1/2 tsp. good quality asafeotida
Salt to taste

Other Ingredients:

2 tbsp. hot ghee
Oil for deep frying

DIRECTIONS

In a mixie, pulse the roasted gram into fine powder and keep it aside. Mix all ingredients mentioned under dry ingredients list along with roasted gram flour and make a well in the center. Add hot ghee and mix into the flour. Add just enough water to knead it into a firm dough.

Pinch out lemon sized balls of the dough and roll them using your palms into a long, 1 cm thick rope. Cut the rope into 7-8 cms long strips. Bring the 2 ends of the strip together and pinch its ends to form a tear drop shape. Alternatively, you can bring the either ends together and pinch them to seal, thus forming a round bangle shaped ring. Prep all of the dough and keep it ready for frying.

Meanwhile, as you prep the dough, heat up oil in a kadhai / wok to medium low heat. Test by dropping a small ball of dough. It should sink first and raise up to the surface. Once heated to this stage, drop the prepared kodubales into the hot oil and fry them in batches on medium low heat till they are golden brown in color. Do not clutter many in each batch as they need to be cooked through well. The temperature of the oil is key in making good kodubales as hotter oil will tend to crisp the kodubales faster, while the centers may still be uncooked. Remove from oil and drain on a kitchen paper. Allow them to cool completely and store them in dry airtight containers. They can be stored and stay fresh for about 2 weeks.

Classic Buttermilk Waffles with Peaches and Blueberries

2016-09-30T01:25:00.000+05:30

So it came finally. The tail-end of September wagging its way out and giving way to the rolling acorns and lazying dawns of October. I feel giddy and selfish at the moment, with all that summer, and its bounty warmth we are parting away. I'm unwilling to let go of the September coziness, its weather so impeccable, yet, October is right around the corner knocking to besiege. For our little girl, it holds promises of play-a game of picking the fallen acorns and bringing them home each evening to fill her jar of what she calls her little craft goodies. She counts by numbers and makes sure no one gets to mess around with them. The sun is up late these day, like us on Sundays, stretching out at ease and retiring to bed sooner than should.

October, my herald, you are finally here! Riding along with Autumn, bringing all things nice and beautiful in its direction. So have I heard, from D and my colleagues, books and magazines. You are D's love more than mine. He lauds you with a twinkle in his eye, like a teenager dizzy in infatuation. You are his season, his reason for admiration. I've been waiting for you eerily, the hallelujah he's been all about. D is a huge fan of you; he's a sucker for colors, the leaf peeper, our foliage tracker, the nature lover, a sincere admirer. "You MUST watch fall colors, there's nothing like it", he'd say all the while. I'd reel in excitement, like in glee of a kindergartner counting on her Christmas gift. With several videos and photographs of autumn spreading its golden hues that D had been aptly sharing with me on watsapp over the past 2 years, I wondered if this was so surreal in pictures, what the heck would it look like in real. I had seen the spring and the summer landscape of New England, narrowly gotten glimpse of winters, their snow capped rooftops and bare tress too. Of what was remaining to witness was this season sandwiched between summers and winters -the autumn, or the fall as they call - the transition - getting into the skin of winters.

So you are here, out of your closet after months of solemnly hiding; playing with my sunshine, my daily dose of Vitamin D. You frisk us with your bouts of chill, make us miss our morning alarms, after all its still gloomy outside, sky blemished with neutral hues of blacks and whites dangling high, it has us snuggling longer with curled toes in our beds. You make people on walks wear boots and scuffle in their coats, their hoods still flapping their backs. You peek-a-boo the sun, filling skies with grays. You daub our backyard with shades of reds, burgundies and browns. You make the poor squirrels run helter skelter, scouring for their hibernation. Those sparrows are gone too. You spill acorns, pluck crisp maples and oaks, line them on our sidewalks to crackle as we tread on.

You know I am excited, I want you around. I've been waiting, waiting this long. I am anxious though about the chill ripples you'll bring soon. I smell your autumn perfume, the air sweet in its giving. I worry for those naked trees, all their browns you'll soon skin away. I worry for the squirrels, hoping they'll stay warm. I worry for the flakes that will come pouring down, the streak of gloom, and the white blanket you'll engulf all things with. I worry about winters, of what I've heard and seen, about shoveling the driveway, of making it to office on time, and being back home. I worry for my daughter burying herself into layers of warmth. I worry for myself. I can't bear cold even as I am prepared. I worry what you'll soon bring along.

I want to hold on to this for a while longer. I fear losing these golden sweet peaches, the last of my summer treasures as you'll soon fill them with apples, winter squash and sweet pumpkins. Not that the apples won't be welcome, but I lament my berries were long gone; what's left of it is a handful of them sought from our berry picking days, clung in clusters, glued by ice, sitting high in my freezer, their box cover identical in color as these navy beauties. Just by chance.

These waffles don't have much to speak for, except that they are belong to realm of classics, and ofcourse have some buttermilk in them like their name suggests. They were made inspired from one of the cookbooks I rented from the library last year, jotted down roughly on scraps of kitchen towels and placed randomly in between pages of a cookbook I own.

I made these a few weeks ago, in a brand new waffle pan that I put to use since I received as a gift from my cousin's wife last year. I met her for the first time after several years, and we bonded very well. I love such gifts that conjure up old memories each time I use it. Peaches and blueberries make a light summery topping. Maple syrup brings the right touch of sweetness to these waffles. Overall its the right kind of breakfast for these days - warm and comforting for those lazy Sunday mornings.

Classic Buttermilk Waffles

Prep: 10 mins | Cook: 5 min each | Makes: 5-6 waffles, 6" in size

INGREDIENTS

Wet Ingredients:

1 cup buttermilk*
1/2 cup melted butter
2 eggs
2 tbsp. vanilla extract

Dry Ingredients:

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 tbsp. sugar
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt

To serve:

Pure maple syrup, sliced peaches and fresh blueberries, to serve

DIRECTIONS

Preheat the waffle iron as per your manufacturer's instructions.

In large mixing bowl, beat together all the wet ingredients, i.e., the buttermilk, melted butter, eggs and vanilla extract until they are light and fluffy. In a separate bowl, mix together the dry ingredients well.

Transfer the dry ingredients into the wet mixture and stir them together gently with a wooden spoon till they are just combined.

Using a measuring cup, spoon out about 3/4 cup of the batter onto center of hot waffle iron and spread it around to spread on the waffle pan. Waffle pan sizes can differ based on manufacturers. Depending on your pan and your first waffle, you can increase or decrease the amount of batter needed for subsequent ones. Alternatively, refer your waffle maker’s manual for the recommended quantity of batter. Close the lid of waffle pan and allow it to cook till the lights go off and the waffle pan stops steaming from the sides. It usually takes about 5 minutes to turn golden brown.

Carefully lift the waffle and serve immediately. Top with pure maple syrup and fresh blueberries and sliced peaches.

Notes: Incase you do not have buttermilk at hand, you can prepare one by mixing 1 scant cup milk with 1 tablespoon lemon juice or vinegar. Whisk well and allow it to rest for 10-15 minutes. The prepared buttermilk should thicken the milk slightly. Use as required.

Alternate option is to use watered down yogurt. Whisk water into plain, unsweetened yogurt until you get a buttermilk-like consistency. The amount of water needed to thin down will depend on the thickness of your yogurt. I like to use 1/2 cup water to 1/2 cup of thick Greek style yogurt.

Chocolate Black Forest Ice Cream

2016-09-21T19:45:00.000+05:30

How to make Black Forest Ice Cream | Easy Chocolate Black Forest Ice Cream Recipe

I am clueless how months have flown by since my last post here. Let me put excuses aside and so that you know, let's get started with first things first. While many guessed, for the ones who remained uninformed, I made a big move from India to the US about 6 months ago. That was way back in the mid of March when the snow caps here in Connecticut were on the verge of melting and the spring sat on its edges awaiting to set in. From the summer heat of Bangalore to the ceasing winters of New England, I moved in with 2 huge suitcases packing all that meant the world to me.

It took me a while to settle down to the demands of not-so-new-anymore place, work and routine. And believe me, while it wasn't hard at all, I did not have it all easy either. It was life at work that was most consuming. Caught up in a new place, with new folks, new skills to learn and new team to work with, I was jostling myself with an identity crisis. I worked on many weekends and put aside blogging for a while for the sheer busyness and lack of motivation. And when we had time off, we hit the road and traveled places to make most of the summer.

We also have my parents over here right now. That's a big joy and great support knowing that our little girl has just started school and will be back home in the noon to house full of folks she loves and is pampered by the most. They will be around till the mid of November to witness the glorious fall season. That tells you our kitchen has been the busiest place at home where most of the action is seen. You can hear whistles of pressure cooker go by at regular intervals. You can smell pots of steaming rice and sambhar bubbling away. We just got done with guLiappams and chutney for breakfast this morning. Right now, potatoes are being boiled for Aloo Parathas tonight, the husband's all time favorite. And there's this Chocolate Black Forest Ice Cream sitting in the freezer to be devoured for dessert at will.

I made a repeat of these brownies last weekend. I also had a can of condensed milk, a box of fresh cherries and some leftover cocoa powder awaiting to be consumed. So it turned out that this Chocolate Black Forest Ice Cream was a well timed recipe to make use all that I had been wanting to consume. The cherries I used here were fresh sweet ones. You can make do with frozen ones too. Roasted walnuts are quite optional, but give a lovely crunch to this ice cream and pair really well with the brownies. If you aren't a fan of chocolate ice cream, but love brownies, try skipping the cocoa powder while making ice cream and leave it plain old vanilla. Don't forget to stir in the cherries and brownies, because that's what makes them Black Forest :). For a more decadent, richer, adult version, I highly recommend using rum soaked cherries in place of fresh cherries. Drizzle some hot chocolate sauce before you serve this to your chocolate loving guests and I would probably call that death by chocolate!

Chocolate Black Forest Ice Cream

INGREDIENTS

400 ml heavy cream, cold
200 grams condensed milk, preferably cold
2 tbsp. good cocoa powder
1 tbsp. vanilla essence
1/4 cup chopped roasted walnuts
1/2 cup chopped fresh cherries
1/2 cup crumbled / bite sized chocolate brownie chunks

DIRECTIONS

To prepare the chocolate ice cream, whip the heavy cream till it doubles and holds soft peaks. Then add the condensed milk, vanilla extract and cocoa powder. Continue to whip until the mixture is smooth and fluffy and holds soft peaks, about 1 minute.

Transfer half the prepared ice cream to a loaf tin or your ice cream container of your choice. Top it with half of the brownie chunks, cherries and walnut. Using a fork, gently swirl so that the nuts, brownies and cherries mix into the ice cream.

Top this with another layer of prepared ice cream, followed by topping of the remaining half of the brownie chunks, cherries and walnut. Swirl again gently.

Cover with a lid or plastic wrap and allow the ice cream to set in the freezer for at least 4-6 hours. To serve, remove from freezer and place the ice cream in fridge for 10 minutes to soften. Using a warm ice cream scooper, spoon out the ice cream and serve.

Welcome To My Kitchen! My baking tools and kitchen gadgets I love

2016-03-13T00:05:00.000+05:30

This post has been long over due. Though this may look simple and straight forward, I can't emphasize how many months have gone over writing this post. And then it went into a hiding. Further to my post on baking essentials in my kitchen posted couple of years ago, I sat down to put another post on the tools and gadgets that I am obsessed with. When I began jotting down this post, I had no clue where to start from. There was so much to put down here that I wondered if I could do all on this post. Here is a humble attempt to share the most of what I thought was essential. This is not an endorsement for a product or brand, but I believe this will give you an insight of what I use in my kitchen and where I bought them from, with a sincere attempt to help all.

Baking Pans: Baking pans are available in various sizes, shapes, heights and makes. Sizes can vary from 3 inches and go up to 9 inches for home use. The pan to be used will depend on the quantity of cake batter you have. For most cakes, the batter should not exceed 3/4th the height of the cake pan, allowing sufficient space for cake rise.

Silicon make, non-stick or aluminium tins are most commonly available in Indian markets today. I commonly use either non-stick or aluminium tins for my bakes. While my aluminium tins require proper greasing and dusting of flour to prevent the bakes from sticking to the pan, the silicons and non-stick ones can be used directly. If you do not have an oven and are using microwave method, use silicon moulds. Most silicon moulds work well in microwave mode, however I suggest you check with your manufacturer.

Ovenproof Glass Bowls: I picked mine from couple of places and these are readily available in most supermarkets in Bangalore these days. Supermarkets like Hypercity Mall, Spar, Total Mall, Hometown, @Home, Jamaals, etc. in Bangalore sell good ovenproof glass bowls, pans in various sizes and heights. You have round, square and oval ones to choose from. I use glass bakeware extensively for baking savory goods. They are great for pastas, lasagnas and au gratins, where you can bake and present in the same dish. These are perfect for puddings, pies and cakes too, the ones that do not require to be transferred to another dish. Ovenproof Glassware generally require longer baking time, hence baking times will need to be adjusted accordingly.

Disposable Aluminum Pans: These are easily available in most Bangalore supermarkets. Infact I have seen many small vendor shops selling them too. So fetching them shouldn't be an issue. They come with aluminium foil base and cardboard paper cover. They are commonly used to pack n' parcel food and help in easy take-along while traveling. Bake your goodies and take them along your travel in the same casing. Mess free and easy peasy! And if you are not a regular baker and do not see the need to invest in bakewares these are cheaper, clutter-free options. I have baked brownies in them and taken them to parties and picnics with much ease.

Springform Pan: A springform tin has a bottom that is separable from the side. A clamp holds the pan together and opens to allow the side to easily be pulled away from the baked dessert. When I first ventured to baking, I almost considered this pan was a must for making cheesecakes and other desserts that are tricky to remove from their pans. Yeah it does help, but buy one if you really intend to bake such complex desserts. They aren't good for baking regular cakes otherwise as the batter may seep out from the pan base edges.

I love my springform pan from a brand called Prestige that I got from Bahrain. It's is a heavy gauze metallic one and extremely sturdy against any wear and tear. Another one I own is from a brand called Nordicware that I got from US, though its delicate and have never really used. Honestly, I craved for my springform pan when I did not own one. However since the past 2 years, I have barely used them apart from baking in them for Christmas. Do you really think you will bake a cheesecake that often???

Loose base Tin: A fabulous replacement for springform pans in Indian markets. I picked mine from Nilgiris supermarket in Mangalore. Grab one if you manage to get your hands on them. Most springform pans in India are imported and expensive. Loose base tin does the same job well. Ofcourse if you have a runny batter, I recommend you against using it.

Tart Pan: Tart pans come with shallow depth and fluted edges. They come in many different sizes and the ones with removable bottom makes it easy to neatly transfer a tart to a serving plate. The ones with deeper depth are used for quiche and shallower pans are used for delicate dessert tarts. Honestly, I am not a tart person and for the one that I own, I have never used it till date, except to bake this Apple Raisin cake once. I love its fluted edges though!

Pie Tins/Pans: Generally, pies are baked in a relatively deep pan with sloped sides that can hold a large amount of filling. Pie plates come in varieties, ranging from ovenproof glass, ceramic, heavy foil, aluminum, stainless steel and nonstick. I use a Tramontina brand pan that I bought from Jamaals, Forum Value Mall, Whitefield. I also bought a couple of mini pie pans that I bought randomly at some sale shops.

Muffin Pans & cases: Available in 24-, 12-and 6-cup pans, the standard muffin cup holds a scant 1/2 cup batter. Muffin pans are available in various sizes and come in capacities holding about 1/2 cup to 2 tablespoons batter.

I bake muffins and cupcakes quite a lot and hence these pans are definitely one of my most used items in my bakeware list. Muffin pans are very easily available in Bangalore, especially in most malls and supermarkets. I use a silicon mould with 6-cup pan, but you can go for aluminium, silicon or individual moulds. I often love using my jelly moulds to bake my muffins. I get my muffin pan and cupcake papers from Jamaals. I am not biased towards Jamaals here, but then I do buy a lot from them since they sell quality stuffs, hence recommend them for your purchase too.

Loaf Pan: Aluminum loaf pans can turn out tender cakes, while dark, nonstick or glass pans will produce a crunchy-chewy crust. Mine is a legacy aluminium loaf tin I borrowed from my mother and I love it. Apart from that I have a smaller sized loaf tin, again in aluminium for smaller bakes. Either ways, I use them a lot.

Bundt/Tube Pan: Also known as an angel food cake pan, this deep pan has a hollow tube in the center that promotes even baking. Mine is a standard aluminium bundt pan. Demoulding a bundt pan can get quite tricky, especially if you are impatient with it. Be sure you grease your pan really well and dust liberally with flour before baking. If you want to avoid this hassle of demoulding with butterflies in your stomach, opt for a non stick bakeware.

Ramekin: Ramekins are usually made of porcelain or earthenware and can be used for both sweet and savory dishes - either baked or chilled. I use ramekins from Clay Craft brand that I bought for a reasonable price of Rs. 70 per piece. It works like a charm in making individual 2 min cakes, warming butter in microwave or baking creme caramel.

Aluminum Sheets: Aluminium baking sheets are great for barbecues and grills as they are good heat conductors and will produce evenly baked and browned goods. I use them often to line my oven and keep it clean. They are great for packing food, especially parathas, tortillas and rotis.

Parchment Paper: These sheets are great substitutes for non-stick pans and are used as disposable non-stick surface. It eliminates the need to grease and re-grease pans for repetitive batches of baking like cookies or cakes. Do not confuse this to the wax paper, also commonly called as the butter paper that's commonly used in crafts and tracing. Wax papers are not great for baking as they can cause smoke in oven. I have personally tried this and can vouch for that! However you are good to use them in microwave cooking since the paper is mostly unaffected by microwaves, hence safe.

Kitchen Gadgets

Electric Stand Mixer: I get several requests from my readers on this one. Understandably, stand mixers are not so common in India and not of great help in our traditional Indian cooking. Often I am asked if it's worth that investment. I can vouch that it's not an essential for a home baker, especially if you have a hand blender at hand and you are not a professional baker. Yet, my Hamilton Beach Stand Mixer has been a fabulous companion in most of my bakes. It helps me whip up cream, make homemade marshmallows and knead my bread dough effortlessly. It's stand mixer with detachable blender option makes it space effective and an investment worth the dollars spent. I bought mine from the US. You can get one locally too, however, I am not sure how well they perform.

Kitchen Blender: I swear by my Hamilton Beach blender for most of my bakes. I pull it out for almost every cake, bake, whip or dessert I make. It's handy and makes my job easy. I certainly recommend this one.

Mixer Grinder: A must in my kitchen, especially in Indian cooking. Prior to owning a blender/stand mixer, I've used my Morphy Richard mixer grinder to whip creams too. That apart, it does an excellent job in mincing and grinding both wet and dry ingredients. I use it to grind the toughest of ingredients including cinnamon bark and nutmeg effortlessly. My life wouldn't be the same without my favorite mixer grinder. That's how much I adore it.

Tortilla Maker: I bought my Jaipan Roti/Tortilla Maker a few years ago when I was staying alone. It did help me avoid the hassles of rolling the dough thin or the need of separate tava to roast them. But I admit, nothing beats the art of making rotis the traditional way. Yet, if you are the one who avoids making rotis and tortillas because you hate rolling them thin and round, then this one will help you for sure. They make excellent papads and khakras .

Miscellaneous and et al.

Pastry Brush: I have spent minutes wasted over brushing glaze on bakes with spoon, fork, blunt knife, fingers and what not! My thumbs up for this one. Certainly helpful to brush milk, butter and egg whites on baked goodies.

Pastry Wheel: This rolling-bladed tool works well to cut pizzas, pies, pastry sheets. Not a must, but will be of great help! I use them in cutting shankarpalis.

Citrus Zester: If you are a lot into zesty bakes with citrus fruits, then this one is a must have. The zester peels away only the zest part of the fruit avoiding the bitter pith portion. Add the zest in your bakes and you'll totally love it's refreshing citrus punch.

Cookie Cutter: If a fancy shape is not what you crave, go ahead and use the rear of a glass bottle cap or the rim of a small steel glass. Cookie cutters are available in aluminum and plastic in various shapes, sizes and designs.

Rolling Pin: You would never find an Indian kitchen sans a rolling pin! Though this kitchen tool is used mainly to roll out dough, it's also handy for a number of other culinary tasks including crushing ice, crackers, flattening bread and shaping cookies. Rolling pins can be made of almost any material including brass, ceramic, copper, glass, marble, plastic and porcelain. The favored material, however, is good quality hardwood. The heavier pins deliver the best results because their weight and balance produce smoother doughs with less effort.

Grater: I own a couple of them and am huge fan of good graters. I have from micro to mini to noodle sized ones and use them extensively for cheese, chocolate shavings, ginger, nutmeg, coconut flesh, vegetable noodles, and butter. A must have in my kitchen.

Whisk: Whisks have been one of the most essential tools I use for whipping ingredients such as eggs and cream to incorporate air into them. The more wires a whisk contains, the more effectively it will incorporate air into a mixture.

Wooden Spoons: These are essential for my non-stick pans. Apart from this it's easier to mix batter because it does not cut into the batter, but rather, stirs or mixes it. I keep a variety of wooden spoons specifically for my baking projects. Always wash and dry wooden spoons after use. Allow them to air dry to avoid molds on them.

Measuring Cup and Spoons: are indispensable tools for the accurate measurement of dry and liquid ingredients. I highly recommend a good set of stainless steel measuring cups and spoons that will last long and are safe for prolonged use. Plastics ones are cheaper good alternatives if you are a beginner at baking.

Skimmer/Strainer: I spent several years not owning a strainer assuming that I would barely use it as I disliked sweating over pot of hot oil and frying batches of fried food. I sincerely wish I hadn't waited so long. Having a good strainer at hands eases out all your frying frills. It drains away excess oil and saves your energy from flimsy frying. Additionally, its a great skimmer for soups and stocks. It not just drains away water, but acts as a ladle for noodles and pasta. Occasionally, I use mine to drain away excess water from washed greens too.

The above list is quite extensive and I have jotted down common items I use regularly in my kitchen for baking purpose. I have probably not covered some basics like kitchen scales, rice cooker, pressure cooker (my lifeline), sandwich maker, steamer, chopper, knives, microwave, OTG and their brands I use, because I assume the list can go on and on and this holds true for most homes where you accumulate a lot over years. My gadgets and tools are not limited to the above, though this can sound quite an exhaustive list in itself. Over years I have collated enough and more than I desired to and it would put me to shame if I put them all here in a single post. Some of these have been my most trusted, beloved tools - a wise purchase, while some were just impulsive purchases. I do hope this serves as a guide for you and not a rule book in any sense. What works best for me may not work for you and vice versa. So, happy owning and happy baking!

Paneer Makhani Restaurant Style

2016-02-14T15:47:00.002+05:30

How to make Paneer Makhani| Easy Restaurant Style Paneer Makhani

Back in the 80’s and 90’s, the only kind of restaurants we went out to as kids were the ones that served good North Indian cuisine. A good ambiance and décor was just one factor. A commendable restaurant however, was measured by the North Indian fare it served on its menu. A simple, hot Dal Tadka that had a great smoky flavor; the rich Palak Paneer in its deepest green hues - deeper the green, better the dish - that meant, it was stir fried better, hence it tasted better; Baingan ka Bharta dotted with cooked fresh peas and shreds of ginger juliennes, topped with fresh cream or melting butter, Choles and Rajamas that were spiced liberally and had a good layer of fat floating atop, the ladle going deep to stir it up gently before being served by the waiter; all of this usually formed an integral part of an Indian restaurant menu. This was either served with an assortment of Indian flatbreads like naans and kulchas or flavored rice like Biryanis and Pulaos.

No Indian restaurant menu though was complete without the quintessential assortment of gravies made from either the fragrant butter and cream based tomato sauce, or the white cream and nut sauce. Dal Makhani, Paneer Makhani, Malai Kofta, Veg Makhani, Paneer Butter Masala, Phool Makhani, Navratna Korma, Shahi Paneer and such alike formed the elite part of the menu. They weren’t the usual dishes most moms would cook at homes, hence relishing them at restaurants was a treat we looked forward to. I loosely remember how our palms smelt of makhani masalas after several hours of being back home from savoring the heavy North Indian meal at those restaurants.

Though, that was a thing of past. We no longer gauge a restaurant by the standards of Indian food served. There are plenty of global cuisines to explore from, so usually an Indian fare takes the least preference. We love settling to home cooked Indian meals most of the times, replicating restaurant styled dishes at home in the comfort of my kitchen. On a Valentine's Day, when the restaurants are brimming with crowd, here's a better way to cozy up your evening - with good home cooked food and music to make your day memorable with your loved ones.

I have a fantastic recipe for Paneer Makhani for you. It's a keeper for years to come and you may want to thank me for that. The heart of a good Paneer Makhani dish lies in its base, the rich and flavorsome tomato cream sauce that can be made ahead and stored for a couple of weeks in the freezer. Inspired by Soma's post here, I have loosely adapted her recipe for Makhani Masala, tweaked it a bit to get a beautiful recipe that makes an array of dishes with just one basic gravy. This is where you start and can further adapt it to make many more popular recipes that are usually found in Indian restaurants.

So this Valentine's Day, if you are running out of place to dine out or if you've made no fancy plans to spend the evening as you had wished to, whip up this restaurant styled recipe in your kitchen, lay your table, light your candles and surprise them with this dish in the warmth of your own home. And don't forget to tell them how much you love them. Ofcourse, if you don't, this Paneer Makhani will do that for you!

Paneer Makhani Restaurant Style

INGREDIENTS

For Makhani Masala

3 tbsp. butter / ghee / oil (more you use, better the flavor, hence do not reduce it)
2 green cardamoms, lightly crushed
1/2 cinnamon stick, broken
1/2 tsp. fenugreek powder (fenugreek seeds will also do)
1 green chilli, slit to half lenghtwise
1 tsp. fresh garlic paste (skip this for satvik version)
1 inch ginger, freshly grated
5 large ripe, red tomatoes, pureed to paste
1 tsp red chilli powder*
1 tsp. garam masala
1 tsp. kasuri methi, gently crushed
Salt to taste

For Paneer Makhani

1 block / 200 grams paneer, cut into cubes
1/4 cup cream (adjust to your taste)
Fresh coriander, cream for garnish

DIRECTIONS

To prepare the Makhani Masala:

Heat the butter / ghee / oil & add the green cardamoms, cinnamon stick. Fry for 20 seconds. Add the fenugreek powder / seeds and fry for another 10 seconds. Never let the fenugreek burn, else they will turn the dish bitter. Add the grated ginger, the garlic paste and fry them till the raw smell is gone. Next add the tomato paste and cook till it reduces and oil bubbles up from the sides of the pan. Add the red chilli powder, slit green chilli, garam masala, and salt to taste. Finally crush kasuri methi gently between palms and add it to the simmering gravy. At this point you can either turn off the flame, allow the gravy to cool and store the prepared Makhani Masala in air tight container and freeze it for future, or proceed ahead to prepare the Restaurant Styled Paneer Makhani.

To prepare the Paneer Makhani:

To the above simmering gravy, add 1/2 cup of water and cubed paneer and bring it to a boil. Stir and cook for 3 minutes. Finally add the cream and simmer for 2 minutes. Transfer the Paneer Makhani to a serving bowl and garnish with cream, ginger juliannes and coriander leaves. Serve hot with rotis, naans or kulchas. Pairs well with Jeera rice too.

Notes:

- The above quantity of Makhani Masala will suffice for this Paneer Makhani recipe. Should you make in larger quantities, you can easily double up the recipe and store them in the freezer.

- This is a rich dish and is supposed to be made with butter or ghee. If you want it to be healthier use oil instead of butter or ghee. However, you are compromising on the taste.

- The color of the gravy depends on the amount of cream and the red chilli powder being used. If you want a richer red color, use Kashmiri chilli powder. More the cream, lighter the color.

- Kasuri methi leaves are dry fenugreek greens. Its a MUST in this recipe and renders a lovely flavor. However, don't use a lot of it. It can be overpowering.

- In case you plan to make ahead and store the makhani gravy, then I recommend you use half a tsp. of the kasuri methi greens to the gravy. The other half tsp. can be added as you prepare the final dish. This will enhance the flavor of dish and fresh crushed green render amazing flavor to the dish.

- There are no onions used in this recipe. You can avoid the garlic for a satvik version. However do not skip ginger as it gives a lot of flavor to this dish.

Sabudana Vada & Pune Mémoire

2016-01-28T18:00:00.000+05:30

How to make Sabudana Vada | Easy Sabudana Vada Recipe

I spent a fairly large part of December living out of my suitcase traveling to Pune for work. Being my first visit ever to Pune as an adult I was looking forward to it. I’m told this is not my first time there. We lived for many years in Maharashtra and had crossed Pune en route on multiple occasions. The last time I was there, I don’t even remember. That must have been moons ago when I was a kid, most of which I can barely recall. And even if I did, it would do no good. Over decades, Pune is known to have seen oceanic wave of change the way Bangalore did. Nevertheless, it was a trip I lived and loved like I owned it.

I am taking you on a short walk to Pune through my eyes. Bear with me, these photos do no justice as I was without my real camera. All these captures were shot on my cell phone.

Vivacious and live. Modern, yet heirloom. It’s a city where warriors whisper their manifestation through their wadas in every nook. Where the stony edifices call out in solitude and their empty staircases in splashes of grey monotones make you weep. They take you back to school, to those history classes of 6th standard, leaving you in terrible guilt by reminding you how much you dreaded mugging Shivaji and Bajirao’s valor. Why I ask? Instead why didn’t our schools profess visiting these iconic citadels with their near-collapsing rustic wooden panes and ornate windows, that speak of their crumbling legacy and history entangled in this contemporary city. Echoes of bygones are heard in these architectural splendors. You wonder what lives have lived behind those warped doors. Their ruins and textures speak to you peeking from their pasts - from those granite slabs at the entrance of Shaniwar wada that etch their account, from their colossal wooden doors that weathered the centuries gone by; they once stood as epitome to the bygone Peshwa and Maratha reigns. You hear them whisper through cracks as they frail.

Pune is a sprawling city where urbanization is vastly seen in every spectacle that your eyes go. There are pockets of lanes and by-lanes that speak of their heritage caving their ways into modernization. There are wadas, forts and caves in the heart of city. Women draped in nauvaris haul carts heaped with fruits, weighing their daily sales. Men with kind eyes line the pavements, ride bicycles, and crowd the bazaars in their faded dhotis and topis, heavily dusty and pale from whites to browns. There are beautiful images of the daily Pune life that can't escape your eyes. Like markets crammed with fruit and vegetable vendors calling out to you. Kirana stores dotting the city all over. Wada-pav and sabudana wada bringing bliss to the common man’s appetite. Chitalebandhu and Kayani lending soul to early evenings. Marathi interspersed in sweet high tones; chalā chalā, puḍhē jā, kai jhālē. Sounds and smells of Marathi culture in everything, everywhere. It draws you into their culture, ties you with theirs.

Yet, if you tour the city as a tourist you’ll see a wave of urbanization. Buildings over buildings, like matchboxes stacked over each other, glued together. From a bird’s eye view, they look like cardboard cutouts in varying heights placed randomly. That’s how cities look like, right? Like blueprints in real time? Construction in every area. Flyovers at every stretch. Tall, wide ad banners in every sight, at every turn. You read in Hindi, it sounds like Marathi. A melodious rhythm that leaves you thinking their meanings. There are buildings called IT factories shaped in form of an egg, globe, geometrical structures of triangles, hexagons and pentagons, some lopsided and shapeless too, that seem like the architects’ messed up work. There’s keenness everywhere to cover them with tinted glass panes to hide the lives behind. They see you, you don’t. Instead, they reflect the bustling streets, the women behind carts, the men in faded dhotis, the bike riders, the car goers, the kirana dukaan, the traffic signals, the floating clouds, and the flying sparrows, like holding mirrors to the city. Its visible there for you to see. Like a slap you can’t turn your face away to. People and cultures merge, dissolving like water colors on paper blotched over each other. Some pockets murky, some clear, some overlapping into one another, each color varying in their depth and degrees. Overall it’s a beautiful blend of tradition and modernity, a beautiful picture you can’t ignore.

Pune, you are beautiful, no doubt. But I long to go back in time. To time when it spun back into history. Where the wadas came alive in their full splendor and their now dark staircases were filled with giggles and laughter from women of those times. Where modernity did not nudge the traditions and replace with this blend so quickly. Where the frail walls that stood strong to weather and time, spoke of valor. Where the cracks in cultures merged, the history disentangled itself and the heavens called for legacy to rule again.

In my ode to Pune, I bring this delicious Sabudana Vada from my kitchen to yours; a classical, traditional Maharastrian dish that I have loved for several years now. I made this in the fond yearning of the time spent there savoring local delicacies, sabudana khichdi, misal pav, vada pav and this sabudana vada. Its flavors sing to you in simplicity, bursting from the golden crisp pops of sago pearls, punctuated with potatoes, peanuts and chillies in each bite, each subtle and well blended. It's a thing you should try, incase you haven't.

Sabudana Vada

INGREDIENTS

1 cup sabudana / sago pearls
2 medium potatoes, boiled and mashed
1/2 cup roasted peanuts, coarsely ground
1 tsp cumin seeds
2-3 green chillies, chopped
2 tbsp. finely chopped coriander leaves
1 tsp. lemon juice
1 tsp. sugar
Salt to taste

DIRECTIONS

Wash the sago and soak it in just enough water to cover the pearls. Soak it for 4-5 hours or preferably overnight. In the morning, the pearls will be plump and doubled in size. For 1 cup of soaked sago, I used 1/3 cup of raw sago, washed and then soaked them in 1/2 cup of water for nearly 5 hours.

Combine all the ingredients in a bowl and mix well. Pinch a lemon sized portion out of the prepared vada mixture and shape it into ball. Gently flatten it with fingers. Prepare all the vadas to fry and keep them aside. Meanwhile, heat the oil in a thick bottom vessel and deep-fry the vadas on a medium flame till they are golden brown in color on either sides. Drain on kitchen paper. Serve hot with green chutney or tomato sauce.

Tawa Pulao

2016-01-22T18:32:00.002+05:30

How to make Tawa Pulao | Easy Vegetable Tawa Pulao Recipe

Last month, when everyone was busy counting down days for Christmas and gearing up for year end celebrations, I was out in Pune, spending a fair share of December in a city familiarly unfamiliar to me. Familiar, because any Bangalorean can best draw similarities to this city. Its traffic, roads, breadth of the city, the weather, all so similar. Unfamiliar, because this was my first time here. Its language, people and directions, so unfamiliar. I spent weekdays at my desk, busying myself between colleagues, emails and phone calls, and sightseeing the city on weekends. I will give you a glimpse of Pune through my eyes in my next post, and I promise on that; but for today, I have something more to share. Its a bit of what I had been procrastinating for a while because of my wrung out busy life.

Sometime around the first week of December, in an afternoon by the pool side of JW Marriott, sipping some refreshing rose mocktails and exchanging greetings with a couple of bloggers and press folks, a handful of us came together to be a part of Canola Cook-off event hosted by Chef Jolly Surjan Singh. We flocked around the Chef that noon as he spoke about his love for Canola oil and spun his magic around the table, cooking some versatile Indian dishes at the first Canola cook-off sponsored by Canolainfo.org. Mind you, its not a brand they endorse, but an awareness they are trying to create towards understanding Canola oil and creating its identity in Indian cooking. The rest of the evening was spent in chatters, sipping tea as we savored the Khada Desi Palak, Tandoori Broccoli, and many other delicacies that Chef had created to display the versatility of this little known oil.

This isn't my first time with Canola. The first time I saw it, it read C-A-N-O-L-A, and I had assumed it was a brand name. I stared at it for a long time trying to identify where it came from. Coconut? Olive? Groundnut? Sunflower? What breed did it belong to? It glared back at me, its words 'Canola Oil' in its bold black font and that left me worrying its identity. In a new country, a new home, a new kitchen, it sat on the kitchen counter-top in a gleaming plastic bottle, radiating its thin golden liquid, feigning like a silly hypothetical thing. We did not grow up knowing each other. It was as alien as meat is to a born vegetarian like me. I had never heard of it till I traveled out of my country. Nor had I encountered it on the webspace. That's now a thing of past. I read up on it later and soon we were friends shaking hands with every meal I made till the time I was there.

So what's canola oil and why are we Indians not so aware of it? A little known to most of us, it comes from the seeds of the rapeseed plant that is extracted and processed to remove some unfavorable substances. It's a heart friendly oil with less than half the saturated fat of olive (now, do you believe that?) or soybean oil, that gives you more excuses to fry your samosas, bake muffins or use them in tadkas intrepidly. Grown commonly in the West, mainly Canada and US and widely used there, this oil is slowly walking baby footsteps in Indian markets. Having lived in the US and used it in every meal of the day, I know how popular canola oil is back there. Rediscovering canola through this event was like meeting a long lost friend, someone whom you had known a while ago but had faded out of your memory. They appear unexpectedly and brush the rust off the oblivion. A bottle of canola now sits on our kitchen counter, in a prominent spot where the vegetable oil had once reigned that space. We've fried jamoons, roasted chivda, used them in salads, stir fries and pulaos with the same ease as with our regular cooking oil with no change in flavor and additional boast to health. I'm excited to share with you my recipe for Tawa Pulao, made with this golden goodness; a street side food often found on carts and road side eateries in Mumbai. Its quick, delicious and healthy one pot meal made from steamed rice, vegetables and pav bhaji masala. For me, this serves the best way to use up left over rice from the previous meal.

Tawa Pulao

INGREDIENTS

2 tbsp canola oil
1 tsp cumin seeds
2 tsp ginger-garlic paste
1 onion, finely chopped
1/4 cup fresh peas
2 tomatoes, finely chopped
1/4 cup each of chopped vegetables like carrots, beans, capsicum, broccoli
1/4 tsp turmeric powder
1 tsp chilli powder
2 tsp pav bhaji masala
3 cups cooked rice
Salt to taste
Juice of 1/2 lemon, squeezed
Finely chopped coriander or fried green chilli, for garnish

DIRECTIONS

Heat oil in a heavy bottom pan and fry cumin seeds till they brown. Add ginger-garlic paste and fry for a few seconds. Then add the onion and sauté till its brown. Add the fresh peas, tomatoes and turmeric powder. Cook till the tomatoes are soft. Next, tip in the chopped carrots, beans, broccoli and capsicum and fry till they are nearly cooked. Add the rice and mix well with the vegetables. Add the salt, red chilli powder with pav bhaji masala. Toss well and cook on high flame for a 2 minutes, till all the masalas coat the rice well. Switch off the flame. Squeeze the lemon juice and mix well. Garnish with coriander leaves and serve with yogurt / raita and fried green chilli, if desired.

Clementine Scented Almond Biscotti

2016-01-08T12:51:00.000+05:30

How to make Clementine Scented Almond Biscotti | Easy Orange Almond Biscotti Recipe

The mornings since a week have turned wonderfully chill. Its been cooler than any other month I have known in Bangalore the past year. It’s been a while since we’ve been going to bed tucking the quilt snugly till our necks, windows partly open to let the cold air in, and without the usual sounds of whirling fans putting us to sleep. I scuffle in hunt for my home slippers which I don’t else care for. I love walking barefoot at home. The sounds of bare feet slapping against the floor, thap thap thap. It has a thing to it. Like adding music to the silent mornings. A melodious slap. Have you ever thought so?

The nip in the air has taken over the water too. They seem to be flowing from the refrigerators above and I can barely rinse after brushing, the mint flavor in the toothpaste adding to the effect of its chillness making my mouth go nearly numb. I stepped out this morning to put my sandals on; within minutes though, I rushed back in and led myself into the closet that stores many long forgotten things. Under the hiding of my ill-fitting jeans and handful of old salwar kameez, I pulled off my good ol’ maroon winter scarf (which had its ornate prints faded out in its seclusion, I yet love it), wrapped it around my neck, crossed my hands to chest and walked my way to work. The homeless dogs had gone into hiding, probably looking for warmer shelters under the extended roofing of kirana stores. There they sat warming up against the heap of ugly gunny rugs, rolling over lazily, snugging deeper into them. Above, the leaves wavered, their sway hushed, like the pendulum of a wall clock in a slow motion. The strollers on sidewalks had many like me who tucked their arms firmly across their chest, others burrowing their fingers deep into the slots of their jeans, their shoulders stooped; while women held to their scarfs covering the faces with their eyes stealing glimpse to the world passing by, as they rode pillion on the bikes.

Behind the pads of clouds I see sun poking out. By 8 am or so, the sun is out in its full glory. It’s the kind of weather I love. Cool, bright and sunny; the gentle warmth from sun seeping tenderly into my skin. It promises me that the day will turn good. There are no resolutions this year. Only optimism. An eagerness to see what future holds for us. No matter what, hope is mightier than all. Hope for positivity and accomplishment of many unspoken promises. That brings me to craving a good cup of masala chai and these Clementine Scented Almond Biscottis I baked in the mid of last year while in US when the weather turned this way. When the skies brightened and the cold air made us snug, we dunked biscottis and drank tea. Decembers and January of Bangalore ought to be like this. The season of winters. The season when oranges appear in plenty. The season to warm up. The season to eat almonds. The season to bake. The season for a reason to bake.

So I craved these biscottis and baked them again. The original recipe calls for clementine oranges. It said mandarins or other fruit zest will work too. I tried these again replacing clementines for Indian oranges and they were zesty and flavorsome. Although these photographs come from the time I baked them with clementines, let your imagination drift away to try other flavors. During that vacation, I spent many evenings flipping pages of cookbooks I had borrowed from the nearby State library. The flipping, the photographs, the intros and side notes for the recipe had often inspired me to get on my toes and rush to bake. This recipe comes from one among them. I wish though I had noted down where it came from. I promise, the moment I figure out, I shall credit it duly. For now, I hope this biscotti brightens up your day irrespective of the weather in your country.

CLEMENTINE-SCENTED ALMOND BISCOTTI

INGREDIENTS

1/2 cup / 70g caster sugar
1 large egg
Grated zest of 1 clementine / mandarin / Indian orange
2 cups / 150 g plain flour
½ tsp baking powder
50g raw, whole almonds, skin on

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 180C. Line a baking tray with baking paper.

Place the eggs, sugar and zest in a large bowl, and beat it in a food processor or with an electric beaters until its pale and creamy. Fold in the flour, baking powder and almonds. It should be quite a wet and sticky dough at this point. Scrape the dough onto a floured surface and knead gently to bring it together. Shape the dough into a long log.

Place the dough log on the baking tray and bake for around 20 minutes. The dough should be fully cooked through before removing the logs from the oven. Allow to cool on a baking rack for 30 minutes.

Using a sharp serrated knife, slice into 0.5 cm thin slices. Place the slices on the baking tray and bake on each side, till the edges begin to brown. It took approximately 10 minutes on each side. Remove from the oven and allow to cool on a baking rack. They will continue to crisp up as they cool down. Once completely cool, enjoy them dunk in milk, tea or coffee of your choice. Else, store these biscuits in an air tight container.

NOTES

- You can replace the clementines for mandarins too. Clementines and mandarins belong to family of oranges. Indian oranges will be a great substitution.
- You can try replacing oranges to lemon zest for a lemony flavor.
- You can replace the almonds for nuts of your choice. I haven't tried dry fruits yet, but I am sure they would be wonderful too.

Pecan, Cranberry and Coconut Granola

2015-12-31T23:42:00.000+05:30

How to make Pecan, Cranberry and Coconut Granola | Easy Granola Recipe

Another year has arrived and in less than an hour 2015 will be gone. All gone, like vapors transpiring into thin air till there’s none you can see. I see and feel those last few minutes transpire as I sit down to put this post together. The calendar ticked away without notice. Days rolled into nights, snapped to weeks, cascaded till they sprinted into all 12 months. And finally, in a few hours from now we will gallop into the finishing line, calling it a year. A year that will be gone forever. For me, this was faster than anything I have known. Faster than the blink of an eye. Faster than the speed of lightening. Faster than the fastest I know.

My jaws dropped at the crack of this dawn in a sudden realization that something worthy is going away forever. A year made up of 365 well-meaning days. Either you’ve made the best of it or wasted it. There are days that made you laugh hard or the ones that had your faces dug into pillows and weep into nights. If you are like me, you would assume you've hung in neither ends of extremes. The year came and passed by with good measure of mighty highs and lows, in a sweet sour concoction, like biting into a digestive candy that gives you a balanced taste in bits of everything - sweet, salt, spicy and tangy. Though I am unable to concur what it has been sort of, it sure has been a mixed bag of emotions. It makes you think. It worries you. It brings you hope, dreams and aspirations plenty that paves way into welcoming the new year with wide arms. While 2015 has been generous and giving, etching many memorable moments that evoke nostalgia, I’m also thankful for it giving the greater positivity & strength to face the welcoming of the new year.

So let this year come on us. I wish it brings large measures of health, happiness, and prosperity for all. I pray it brings peace on earth. Peace in minds, at heart, in relations, with neighbors, friends, nations and across the globe. Irrespective of what race we belong to, let love be unbiased by color, united by humanity and progressive by nature. I wish your moments are filled with joy, laughter, trust, immense love and happiness. Happy New Year to each one of you for a fantastic 2016 and wishing you have greater prosperity & fortunes to the extent that it increases in great leaps and bounds for this new leap year!!

As I bid adieu to the year gone by and welcome the new year, I share with you a recipe for this Pecan, Cranberry and Coconut Granola that is just the perfect way start the first day of the year with. With the festivities and the week long celebrations gone by, lets make new beginnings with a fulfilling breakfast to treat our families to. Here's a recipe promising ease and health together with home made joy at breakfast table for your family.

Pecan, Cranberry and Coconut Granola

INGREDIENTS

2 cups instant oats (old fashioned oats preferred)
1/2 cup shredded dry coconut
1/4 cup dried cranberries
1/4 cup broken pecans
1/2 cup maple syrup (or honey)
1/2 cup coconut oil

DIRECTIONS

In a clean bowl, combine oats along with dry coconut, cranberries and pecan nuts. Drizzle the vegetable oil and maple syrup and toss well.

Bake in a pre-heated oven for 30 minutes at 180 deg C till the oats begin to turn golden brown, tossing them once in every 10 minutes to ensure even cooking.

Remove and allow to cool completely before storing them in a clean dry container. Serve with warm or cold milk.

Besan wali Simla Mirch

2015-12-16T00:50:00.000+05:30

How to make Besan wali Simla Mirch | Simla Mirch ki Subzi | Capsicum Recipe

When the weather plunged low, it brought along bouts of cold, incessant sneezing and coughs that plagued our home. We fell sick in a row, taking turns to seize the bed and blanket. The bedside table saw our favorite magazines being replaced with a spread of ayurvedic tonics, amrutanjan and all kinds of inhalers for the most desired relief. What good were those magazines when our eyes threatened to water in a stream and our nose constantly bled phlegm? It seemed like a trending viral infection as each of us made our way in and out of the bed, and nearly all of whom I knew were suffering the way I did. I nearly survived each day of that heavy headiness with glasses of warm water, hot kashaayas and dozens of handkerchiefs by my side. Days have finally passed by, recuperating and feeling much better, apparently much slower than we had liked. Coughing and sneezing are showing signs of receding, though the chest is still heavy with congestion. I hate fighting the dreaded infection, but alas!

On my way to recovery, with spurs of intermittent coughs and an inhaler constantly plugged into my nostrils, I am back to blogging with this recipe for Besan wali Simla Mirch that has been my favorite for long. I have been looking forward to share this with you for a while, however each time we make it, it's wiped clean till the last bit. It was hard to save this portion for this post! That gives you an idea of how much we love it. It's a simple dish where green bell peppers are paired with roasted gram flour and other spices bringing out amazing flavors. On days when I am time pressed to make a simple dal to pair along, this recipe comes a savior as it takes care of both the vegetable and dal in a single dish. We usually serve this as a side dish for chapatis / phulkas along with salads. I hope you enjoy it as much as we do.

Besan wali Simla Mirch

INGREDIENTS

1/2 cup gram flour / besan
3 medium sized capsicums, diced
1 inch Ginger, grated
1 tbsp. Oil
1 tsp. Mustard seeds
1 tsp. Red chili powder
1 tbsp. Coriander powder
1 tsp. Turmeric powder
3-4 tsp. Water
A generous pinch of asafoetida (hing)
1 tsp. sugar
Salt to taste

DIRECTIONS

In a wide mouthed pan, dry roast the gram flour (besan) it till it changes color slightly. The flour should smell fragrant as it is being roasted. Remove from the pan and set aside to cool.

Heat oil in a pan. Add mustard seeds and fry till the seeds crackle. Add hing and chopped ginger and fry for a minute. Then add the diced capsicum along with turmeric powder and saute it for few minutes till it's cooked, yet has a nice crunch. Add chilli powder, coriander powder, salt and sugar to taste and saute further on a low flame.

Add the roasted gram flour, sprinkling a couple of teaspoons of water into it. Cook on low flame for 10 mins. Transfer to a serving dish and garnish with coriander leaves. Serve hot with rotis or as sides with steaming hot rice.

Kaju Katli | Kaju Burfi | Cashew Fudge

2015-11-16T19:35:00.005+05:30

How to make Kaju Katli | Cashew Burfi | Cashew Fudge Recipe

Sometime in October last year, just ahead of Diwali, we bumped into my husband's close family friend at a mall one evening. After a brief chat, Mr. S and his wife headed to shop in the mall, while his mom and young daughter hung around us, continuing the talk. My mother and I spent nearly an hour chatting with aunty while the kids were engrossed playing in the ball pit. We spoke at length about the upcoming Diwali preparations, the new dress that aunty had sewn on occasion of Diwali for her grand-daughter, the small disparities in our cultures and the celebrations (they being Tamilans), sharing our favorite family recipes that made the festive celebrations more special.

One of the recipes that aunty shared with us that evening was the recipe for this Kaju Katli, a popular cashew based sweet that's a popular family favorite in many homes, especially in the North, where gifting boxes of sweets is customary to their traditions. Although we are past Diwali now, I don't think this requires any occasion for celebration. You can make them at home, at your convenience anytime and feel pleased with this indulgence. If you have a weakness for Kaju Katlis, then I am afraid you may not be able to resist eating just one.

Making these burfis at home may sound intimidating, but it isn't. This was the first time I attempted making them at home and they came out delicious. I started off nervously even as I measured the amounts suggested by aunty, but she had assured that the recipe would work even for the most novice, immature cook, and that assurance itself wanted me to try this recipe in the first place. The end result ofcourse was smooth, melt-in-mouth goodness of cashew fudges.

There are many ways to prepare this dessert. A common one being where the cashew nuts are soaked in water overnight and ground the next day, then cooked in single-strand sugar syrup till it comes together to form a dough. As an alternate, easier method, you can grind the cashews to a fine powder and mix with sugar syrup, cooking it on a low flame to form a soft dough. The dough is then spread and flattened on a plate and cut into thin diamonds. Commercially sold katlis have a layer to silver wark on them, however, for a home version you can skip them totally. This version of kaju katli is an easier where you do not have to worry about sugar syrup or its accurate consistency. Hence, time saving and easier which gives you the burfis of same quality as bought at a store.

Kaju Katli | Cashew Fudge

INGREDIENTS

2 cups cashewnuts, heaped
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup water
1 tbsp. ghee (approx. 3 tsp.)

DIRECTIONS

Grind the cashews to a fine powder in a mixie. I used the chutney jar as the whiz option on my mixie helps me control how fine I want the cashews to be powdered. Ensure that the cashews are not powdered to an extent that they begin to leave oils.

Heat the sugar and water in a thick bottomed pan and stir well till all of the sugar is dissolved in the water. Just as it comes to a rolling boil, add the cashew powder and stir well on a low flame.

The cashew mixture will soon come together and begin to thicken. Once it thickens enough to form a mass / sticky dough / lump, add a teaspoon of ghee. Remove the whole of the mixture from the pan.

Transfer the prepared mixture on to an upturned greased plate or a butter paper. I used a marble chakla. Allow it cool a little. When its cool enough to be handled, knead it gently to form a smooth dough. If the dough is too stiff and find it hard to knead, add another teaspoon of ghee. This is optional though.

Using a greased rolling pin, roll the dough gently and evenly till its about 4-5 mm thick in height. Allow to cool. When cooled completely, use a sharp knife to cut the cashew fudge into diamond shapes. Gently transfer the kaju katli to serving plate or store in an air tight container.