Daily Archives: June 24, 2015

Vadai kachubar chat

Preparation Time : 20 minutes if using store brought Vadai’s or else
1 hour

Cooking Time : 10 minute if using store brought Vadai’s or else 20 minutes

Serving : 6-8 members

Description

The need for simple and Un complicated recipes are always in demand and if it is during the holy month of Ramadan….. It the more welcome for sure. Here at hubby dear’s place we ladies (cousins, relatives and neighbors) have night prayers at one house. As the prayer lasts for an hour or more. We take turns to bring some thing to munch with a sulaimani tea after the prayers are over while chatting and catching up on that day’s updates. Usually it’s always a home made deep fried snack. Once my friend meera aboo Thamby had got a bhel like salad which was a great hit. All ladies with great enthusiasm got the recipe as well. We were all blown away with the recipe being so easy yet an innovative way to use up the left over paruppu Vadai’s which is a must on the ifthar table every day in all house holds here. From then on wards, It has been added to my Iftar table and is my comfort bowl of goodness to munch around when ever I feel like eating after I break my fast. This salad can be made by ordinary people who like to perform extra ordinary feasts for their tables (like me) and add it to their routine family meals as well. It’s with such spectacular variety and uniqueness with practical simplified methods that let you achieve smiles on the table at home.

Ingredients

Ingredients	Quantity
Paruppu Vadai's	10 to 12
Carrot	1 medium size grated finely
Cabbage	1/4 cup grated finely
Beetroot	1/4 of a whole medium size beetroot grated finely
Onion	1 grated finely
Tomato	1 chopped finely
Boiled peanuts	2 teaspoons ( optional but gives a nice taste . I didn't use as it was not there in my pantry at home )
Green chilly	1 chopped
Coriander leaves	1 teaspoon chopped
Lime juice	1/2 a lime
Salt	to taste
Sev	1/4 cup to garnish
Chat masala	1/4 teaspoon to sprinkle ( optional )

Method

Mix all the ingredients together except for paruppu Vadai’s, sev and chat masala powder.
Mix well. Taste and adjust seasoning. Place in the refrigerator until needed to be served.
Just before serving, crumble the paruppu Vadai’s and toss over the chilled salad.
Sprinkle chat masala powder and sev . serve immediately.

Notes

I add left over samosa sheets cut into bits and deep fried to crisp also instead of paruppu Vadai’s at times.
You can add crushed pepper paped, kakra as well along with the Vadai’s for another variation.

cake truffles

Preparation Time : 30 minutes + 1 hour setting time in the refrigerator

Cooking Time : 2-4 minutes

Serving : 8 members

Description

Having a big bowl full of carrot cake that I made for my mother- in- laws (my father- in- laws elder brothers wife) birthday. I didn’t want to repeat the same as I do always by making a trifle pudding. Remembered the lovely Apple cake balls that my aunt (mom’s last sister) would bring on her every visit while holidays from a shop called mec rennit (and the black halwa from buhari restaurant.. My am drooling in buckets here as Typing) in chennai. The cake balls are dipped into colored sugar glaze. Wanting to do some thing similar to that . Just mixed up the left over cake, cream cheese frosting that I used for frosting the birthday cake and left over whipped cream that was used to make a mousse. Now a big confusion as I have never ever made a sugar glaze before so decided to just dip it into melted chocolate as it has been in my refrigerator for quite some time. Went ahead and it worked wonders more than I did expect. The cake truffles were moist on the inside and the chocolate covering was melt in the mouth with a soothing effect. I drizzled more chocolate over the set truffles and served them in small cup cake holders. Wolla… All done with me getting to know yet another dish added to my list of easy yet eye pooping recipes to impress and share as gifts well.

Ingredients

Ingredients	Quantity
Cake crumbled	2 cups ( cake of choice - here I have used spiced carrot cake )
Cream cheese	3 ounce
Softened Butter	1 teaspoon at room temperature
Dark Chocolate	1 cup chopped ( I used morde dark compound chocolate )
White chocolate	1 cup chopped ( I used morde white compound chocolate)

Method

Mix together the cake crumbs, cream cheese and butter. Mix well. Taste and add powdered sugar if needed ( it’s optional ). Mix well to get a slightly wet mixture which is easy enough to roll into a ball.
Make big goose burry size even balls out of the cake mix. And place in the refrigerator for 30 minutes. Place the chopped white and dark chocolates in separate microwave safe bowls that are not wet and greasy but clean.
Microwave each bowl separately for a minute. Remove and mix well with a dry spoon after 30 seconds to get a runny flowing consistency chocolate with no lumps. In case the chocolate is still hard with lumps.
Microwave for another 30 seconds and mix well. Drop a cake ball into the liquid chocolate bowl. Toss well gently making sure not to break the cake ball and to coat the chocolate over the ball all around with the help of a spoon.
Do the same to all the balls alternatively in both white and dark chocolate with separate spoons. Remove and place them 1/4 inch apart from one another on a flat tray lined with foil.
Place in the refrigerator to set for 30 minutes or more. Once set, drizzle white chocolate over the dark chocolate truffles and drizzle dark chocolate over white chocolate truffles to add more glamour.
Place in the refrigerator until needed to be served. Place these chocolate truffles over a small cup cake holder. serve and enjoy.

Home made cheesy baked barittos with salsa and green peas guacamole

Preparation Time : 40 minutes

Cooking Time : 1 hour
Serving : 8 members

Description

Going through some old pictures of my family holiday in Dubai, came across a few images of a Mexican feast we had there at a restaurant. There was a tsunami happening in my mouth with so much saliva… Went into the kitchen to see what can be made for dinner. Had a few left over chapathis, immediately the barittos from the images on my holiday just popped up in my mind. Started prepping and it was like a never ending story. One after the other had to do so much for this one pot dish and I was like for these left over chapathis do I have to do so much ??? Another problem came up with me having no avocados in my pantry to make guacamole which is the only source that lends a creamy texture to the dish. Came up with an idea to use mashed green peas to replicate an avocado guacamole. Worked perfect… With a pat on my back from myself…. Baked the dish and it was an instant hit at home except for the complaint of the berittos being too big. This dish did wind a course of aroma, taste, flavor and colour. There is no secret method or any special touch that makes this Mexican dish a gourmet’s nirvana experience through the plate but it’s what ordinary folk prepare for themselves. Keeping in mind the metaphor of adventures with which this one pot dish has introduced me to…. To being another Bon appetite.

Ingredients for salsa

Ingredients	Quantity
Onion	I chopped
Tomato	1 chopped
Green chillies	1 chopped
Coriander leaves	1 teaspoon chopped
Salt	to taste
Lime juice	1 teaspoon

Method for salsa

Mix all the ingredients together and place it. The refrigerator until needed to be used.

Ingredients for Green peas guacamole

Ingredients	Quantity
Boiled green peas	1 cup ground to a smooth paste
Hung sour curd	1/4 cup
Mayonnaise	2 tablespoons
Salt	to taste

Method for green peas guacamole

Mix all the above ingredients together to a smooth paste. Taste and adjust seasoning and set aside.

Ingredients for the barittos filling

Ingredients	Quantity
Cooked shredded chicken	2 cups
Onions	4 chopped
Green chillies	4 chopped
Garlic	5 cloves chopped
Red, green and yellow bell peppers	I each
Cooked red kidney beans ( rajma )	1 cup
Paprika + salt + peppe	to taste
Red chili flakes	1 teaspoon
Cooked Rice	1/4 cup
Oil	2 tablespoons

Method for barittos filling

Cut the bell peppers into 1/2. Clean the seeds and grill over flame for a minute to char the skin on each side.
Do the same to all the bell peppers. Keep covered in a vessel for 30 minutes. Peel of the skin and chop the peppers.
Heat oil, add chopped onions, green chillies and garlic together. Sauté to translucent.
Add 3/4 of the chopped bell peppers and mix well.
Add all the other ingredients one after the other and toss well. Taste and adjust seasoning .
Remove from heat and cool completely.

Other ingredients

ingredients	Quantity
Cheddar cheese	1/4 cup
Mozzarella cheese	1/4 cup
Butter	to grease
Tortillas	8 ( I used large sized wheat chapathis instead )

How to proceed

Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius. Take a wide baking platter. Grease it with butter on the bottom and all around.
Take a tortilla, spread one tablespoon of green peas guacamole all over on one side. Fill the center with a generous hand full of stuffing.
Fold the sides first. Then from top tightly roll to get a tight, fat roll. Place in the greased baking platter.
Like wise roll all the tortillas with green peas guacamole and filling. Pack these rolls tightly in the baking platter.
Sprinkle the reserved three color bell peppers over. Top with salsa evenly. Pour remaining green peas guacamole and spread all over evenly.
Sprinkle with grated cheddar cheese and mozzarella cheese. Bake for 15-20 minutes until you see bubbles all around the edges. Then grill to get a golden top. Serve hot .

Hibiscus tulsi sharbet

Preparation Time : 10 minutes

Cooking Time : 20 minutes + setting aside for two hours

Serving : 7-8 glasses

Description

In the recent have been seeing a lot of dishes being made with the hibiscus flower. First a master class by chef sanjeev kapoor in master chef India and followed by many fellow foodie bloggers posting recipes. Having lots of these flowers at my in- laws place, came up with an idea of making a sharbet using the hibiscus flower which will be of good use during the month of Ramadan. Went with what ever my inner instincts told me.made the sharbat and it was aromatic, thick, slippery, sticky and syrupy having all that takes to look like a store brought sharbet syrup. The addition of tulsi leaves did help to take the sharbat to another level. The natural light hue from the hibiscus flower was so inviting but when diluted with water the colour did look a bit faded. So I was forced to add a few drops of pink food colour. I was surprised as there is so much we can do with our every day local produce where even with in a 100 km radius of a city subtle variations can occur. A sure eye opening experience that has widened my culinary journey for sure.

Ingredients

Ingredients	Quantity
Tulsi leaves	1/2 cup
Hibiscus flowers	10 -15 remove the middle stock of the flower
Water	10 cups
Sugar	6 cups
Cardamom powder	1 teaspoon
Dry ginger ( chukku in Tamil )	1/4 inch piece powdered
Salt	a pinch
pink food colour	a few drops (optional)

Method

Boil tulsi leaves, cleaned and washed hibiscus flowers and 5 cups of water together until reduced to half and the fragrance of the flower and tulsi has been infused into the water.
Remove and mix in cardamom powder and dry ginger powder. Mix well and cool completely.
Boil sugar and remaining water together until sugar dissolves and gets to a slightly thick syrup. Cool completely.
Remove scum from cooled sugar syrup. Mix sugar syrup with drained hibiscus- tulsi water and mix well with a pinch of salt.
Strain after two hours . Store in the refrigerator and use when needed. Keeps well for a month when refrigerated.

To serve

Mix 1/2 teaspoon lime juice with sharbat syrup to taste, ice cubes and one glass of chilled water. Mix well. Garnish with chopped tulsi leaves and serve.