Friday, December 30, 2011

Besan Ladoo and Happy 2012 !

Hope everyone is in the best of their spirits and health. What are the plans to welcome the new year? Midnight party with some dancing ? Preparing a list of new year resolutions? Whatever your plans are,I wish you a year filled with love,happiness,hope,and cheer! May the New Year gives the power and courage to make your dreams come true !

Besan Ladoo


Friday, December 23, 2011

Merry X'mas and a note on Kerala Fruit cake


Wishing you the joy of family, the happiness of friends, and the love of Christmas!


Merry X'mas And Sugar Cookies

I get a lot of doubts and questions about the Kerala Fruit/Plum cake every year and I thought I should note them down here for any future reference.

Tuesday, December 20, 2011

Pfefferneusse


Christmas is just around the corner,yeah ! I love every single thing about the holiday season-the snow, the festive lights,the presents, the scrumptious smells,and most of all,the magic of the season.Hope everyone is geared up for the big,festive day.Here is another magnificent type of cookie,full of christmas spirit and spice.


Pfefferneusse


Saturday, December 17, 2011

Christmas Fruit Cake/Kerala Spiced Plum Cake & Wish you all a very Merry Christmas !

  It’s Christmas and we wish you a very merry one.  Finally, I am done with the marathon cookie baking and packing it off to friends.  Now, it’s my time to just sit looking at all the festive decoration inside and outside the house.  Well, I can't sit around too long because there are a lot of visits to be made to celebrate with friends. 

  Being from Kottayam, Kerala, it was difficult even while I was growing up to ignore Christmas.  Even though I am not of the Christian faith celebrations for Christmas was carried out at my house to match any of my Christian neighbors.  I grew up hanging colorful paper-stars in front of the house on the 1st of December an age old tradition.  Schools had "best Crib Contests," and I would positively participate.  On the 24th evening we blasted those crackers louder than any of our neighbors or so I would like to believe.  It was just a lot of fun and I love this festival for everything it stands for.
 
X'mas Fruit Cake/Spiced

  I know from my nieces and nephews from Kerala they still continue to make Christmas crib.  The last time I called them, they were all excited about the thought of making it.
 
My parent’s house is on a high range and during this time of the year, the mornings are misty.  If you wake up early you can see the clouds touching the earth.  In my mind it symbolizes blessings from heaven.  And here in the U.S. snow flakes take over doing its slow swaying dance to the ground.  Oh! I could just go on about how everything touches me so deeply getting me excited about celebrating.  It’s a perfect time to holiday and I am having fun.  I hope wherever you are you having a good time as well. 

X'mas Fruit Cake/Spiced

  Even today I continue the tradition of celebrating Christmas with light decorations in the house and bake all kinds of goodies.  Therefore, we have another fruit cake recipe for you.  You can find another on this site here.   Today the recipe I am sharing is a spiced version.  The basic procedures are the same except for the addition of spices. However, that changes everything giving a whole new twist to the cake.  This one is delicious too!

Again, wish you all a very Merry Christmas !!

X'mas Fruit Cake/Spiced

Ingredients:

Flour- 1 cup
Butter- 3/4 cup (1 1/2 stick)
Dried Fruits and nuts soaked in Rum/Brandy for several months or several days or several hours - 1 1/2 cup
Rum or Brandy from the marination/fresh- 2 Tbsp
Baking Powder- 3/4 tsp
Eggs- 3 large, separated
Granulated Sugar- Scant 1 cup
Candied Orange peel- 2-3 Tbsp
Powdered Nutmeg- 1/8 tsp
Cinnamon- 1/2 tsp
Powdered Cloves- 1/8 tsp
Powdered Cardamom- 1/8 tsp
Caramel Syrup at room temperature- ~1/3 cup (use 1/2 cup sugar to caramelize and finally add 1/4 cup hot water and mix. See here)
Pure Vanilla Extract- 1 tsp

Method:

Making Candied Orange peel:

1.Dry the orange peel by either letting them sit on your counter top for a few days or near the fireplace/warm oven.Chop them into small pieces.
2.Take sugar in the ratio 1:1 with the orange peel and add a couple of spoons of water and make a syrup by boiling, till it reaches one string consistency.
3.Throw in the dried orange peel into this and mix well to coat the syrup evenly on the pieces.
4.Let it dry completely.

Making Caramel Syrup

Sunitha has explained it well in this post.Take enough care while doing this.And let it cool completely before you add into the cake mixture.

Making the Cake:(Copied as such form our earlier post!)

Beating Egg White:
1. It may be a good practice to beat the egg white stiff before you start on the main cake batter. Please make sure you use a dry bowl and a dry blade when you beat the egg white. Any trace of water, grease or egg yolk in the white will not give the desired fluffy frothy egg white. Beating the egg white stiff is very important to give a light and fluffy texture to the cake. Make sure all the egg white has been beaten stiff before you clean the blade and wipe it dry before you start mixing the batter.

Mixing the Batter:
1. Sift the flour,spices and baking powder twice and keep aside (sifting allows the baking powder to be mixed well with the flour)
2. Beat the butter well first before adding the sugar. Gradually add the sugar beating well after each addition. Remember also to gradually increase the speed of your blender from low to medium after all the sugar has been blended in. Taking time and beating the butter and sugar goes a long way to aerate the butter and to give a moist, fluffy texture to your cake
3. Add in the egg yolk and beat well
4. Add the vanilla essence beat well
5. Follow up with cool caramelized sugar
6. Spoon in the flour a little at a time and fold in to mix.
7.Toss the fruit and nut mixture with a tablespoon of flour and fold in the 3/4 of this and the candied orange peel alternating with the flour.
8.Now gently fold in the egg whites until not even a single white streak is left.
9. If you find watery egg white which did not froth do not use it or only use after beating it fluffy
10. Pour the batter in a 9 inch pan and add the remaining fruit and nut mixture left.Even out the surface with a spatula and bake in a preheated oven at 350 D F for 40-45 minutes
11. When a toothpick pricked comes out clear the cake is done.
12.Cool it on a wire rack.Brush with some rum/brandy and keep it covered well with a parchment paper, at least for a couple of days before you cut and serve them.

Notes:

1.Use the butter and eggs which are kept long enough outside the refrigerator and have reached room temperature.
2.Beating egg whites separately makes a huge difference in this cake.
3.Adding some fruit and nut mixture at the end on the top ensures that there is some mixture on the top too.

We wish you all a Great Holiday Season !!!

X'mas Fruit Cake/Spiced

Last but not the least we have a good news to share with you all. Our Boondi Ladoo recipe has been selected as one of the 30 Best Recipes of 2010 ,a wonderful event hosted by Chacko's kitchen. Congratulations to all other winners and we are so glad that we made it to the top 30 :-)

Contributor: Namitha
Recipe Adapted From: Sunu and Sunitha, my dear friends :-)

Friday, December 9, 2011

Crescent Cookies

It is cold in Colorado. Last week we had a few snow showers and the mercury levels remain low ever since. So I decided to do what I love to do in this weather-baking.December is always a bake-a-thon time for me and this year is no exception.

Crescent Cookies


Mango Fool

I really missed the happenings in the blogosphere ,the last few days. My laptop crashed and the kids didn't let me use their desktop much. Only then I realized ,how much I love my own computer ! Anyways glad to be back in business.

Mango Fool


Wednesday, November 30, 2011

Chutney Powder for Dosa/Idli

How was Thanksgiving break and the Black Friday shopping ? All set for welcoming the biggest festival of the season? We had a wonderful week with sumptuous food and good friends.The weather seems to be nice, well maybe only till today.It is going to snow tomorrow,better it be, since this is almost December and it is Colorado !

Red Chillies_Chutney Powder


This post has been in the my draft for a long long time. I didn't post it since I didn't like the pictures I took that day except the pictures of the chillies. Even now I'm not satisfied with the pictures.Dull colors are always a challenge, would love to hear your experiences.

Chutney Powder


This is a must in my house and I don't know why it took me so long to blog about it ! My kids like this too and they prefer this over the coconut chutney I make.If you haven't tried this yet,I tell you, it's so easy and simple.There are hundreds of versions available on the net, this is how we make it in our home, back in Kerala.I am so happy to share with you, one more recipe, handed over by my mom-in-law.Hope you will try out this version and enjoy it !

Chutney Powder


Chutney Powder

Ingredients:

Dried Red chillies- 8-10
Black Pepper corns- ~20
Urad Dal/Black Gram- 1 cup

Method:

1.Heat a pan on medium flame/heat.Dry roast the red chilies and the black pepper.This is the only hard part especially if you are sensitive to spicy things.The heated red chilies may make you sneeze, so if you have a mask in handy ,use that.
2.Take the chilies and pepper out and roast the urad dal.Keep the heat on medium and stir continuously.Do not burn the dal.Turn off the heat when the dal chnages to a slight brown color and you start getting the roasted dal smell.
3.Let this cool down a bit.
4.Throw everything in the blender/dry grinder when the dal is still warm enough to hold in your hand.Grind it till you get a slightly coarse powder.
5.Serve a Tbsp or two with some oil (coconut,vegetable, canola or olive0 of your preference as a side for Idli/Dosa.
6.You can store this in an airtight container for several weeks.

Notes:

1.You can change the number of chilies and pepper corn according to your spice level. The measurements I gave will give you a medium spicy chutney powder.
2.Coconut oil is the best with this powder, but it is a personal preference.

Tuesday, November 22, 2011

Pumpkin Puree and Happy Thanksgiving !

Hope everyone is doing great and getting into the holiday mood.The shops are already full of X'mas decors and holiday goodies. Those who are in US will be planning and preparing for Thanksgiving,which will be on this Thursday.I would love to hear about your menu plans. Are you planning an Indian spread or a traditional feast or a mixture of both ?

Pumpkin Puree


Thursday, November 10, 2011

Whipped Cream Cake

Hope those in US had a great long weekend.We had a warm week end and all the snow got melted away.So glad that we are getting some warm days before the freezing winter.

Whipped Cream Cake


Tuesday, November 8, 2011

Whole Wheat Apple Muffins

Hello ! I am not going to tell you a sorry this time, since I am not going to be irregular here,any more:-) Did I tell you that my little one is a preschooler now ? Time sure flies and in no time he will be in school ! How I wish I could freeze time ! No, I am not complaining,every age is great as a kid. Lil M loves preschool and he is learning a lot new things too. Mamma is happy that she gets some me time and to see that he is getting some new friends. In the beginning when the I asked him whether he has some friends, he told me yes, but when I asked for names,he answered they don't have names,they are all "friends".

Whole Wheat Apple Muffins

Thursday, September 22, 2011

Rasmalai and 2 years of blogging



HELLO everybody! It's been a long time, isn't it? I know that for sure, because words don't flow anymore, and my fingers feel like lead as I type these words. Gosh! It's been long. Just in case you were wondering what kept us away, Sunitha made her big move to Canada, yoohoo! I am happy for her, and I got real busy with the kids. You know how summer holidays can be, right?! Swimming and day trips, hikes, shopping, just feeding them kids and all the other things that come with the territory. But behind all the chaos of our lives Collaborative Curry quietly turned 2 ! Are we proud! It's been a great journey so far in the blogging world and we love all our readers for staying tuned to this site. I read all the lovely messages you left me, and felt quite touched that you remembered and thought about us while we were away. Love you guys!

Rasmalai

Thursday, August 4, 2011

Pineapple Crunch Cake With Lemon Glaze

Hope everything is going great with you. Summer is really a busy time for all of us, isn’t it? It surely is for me! I was super busy juggling too many things, and decided to forget about blogging for a few days.

Pineapple Crunch Cake


While I was away from blogging and talking to you guys a few good things happened on the personal side. I finally got hold of some long due documents including my driver's license, and did our first camping of the season. Some of you might already know that I also won the giveaway Vijitha was hosting. Beginning last Sunday, I have been on a roll with only great things happening to me, and the upbeat mood continues.

Pineapple Crunch Cake


Meanwhile lil M turned 3, but that doesn't stop him from being more naughty and silly. During a play his sister poked into his eyes accidentally, and he exclaimed rubbing his eyes "Oh, I got to buy some new eyes !" I wish things were as simple as he thinks :-)

Pineapple Crunch Cake


Coming to the topic of the day, the Pineapple crunch cake, the story goes like this: During our last trip to the local grocery store, we tasted a Pineapple crunch cake and we loved it! You will know if you are a blogger that once we taste something interesting we feel this urge to replicate it in our own kitchen. I am no different! I decided that I should make this myself, and started searching for recipes. I could't find anything that satisfied me, so I ended up twisting a recipe to add more flavor. Result : A better tasting cake with less sugar than we tasted from the shop. This is a huge hit with my folks, and we will be making it again soon!



Pineapple Crunch Cake



Ingredients:

All Purpose Flour- 2 cups
Baking Soda- 2 tsp
Chopped Walnuts(Optional)- 1 cup
Eggs- 2 large
Granulated Sugar- 1 1/2 cup
Light Brown Sugar- 1/4 cup, packed
Pure Vanilla Extract- 2 tsp
Lemon Juice- 1 Tbsp
Lemon Zest- a pinch/more
Pineapple Crushed with juice- 1 big can(20oz)

For the Lemon Glaze:

Confectioner's sugar- 1/2 cup
Lemon juice- 2 Tbsp/ little more


Method:

1.Preheat the oven at 350 degree F.Grease a 9 by 13 inch pan.
2.Whisk together the flour, baking soda and nuts.
3.In a mixing bowl beat together the eggs and sugars.
4.Add the vanilla and lemon juice and zest. Mix well.
5.Open the crushed pineapple can and pour in everything including the juice and mix again.
6.Mix in the flour mixture until everything is mixed.
7.Pour into the prepared pan and bake for 35- 40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.(It took me 37 minutes)
8.Cool on a wire rack.
9.Prepare the glaze by mixing everything together and pour over the cool cake.
10.Let the glaze set. Cut into squares and serve.

Notes:

1. You don't have to make the glaze if you want the cake to be less sweet.
2.You could also dust the cake with some powdered sugar if you are not making a glaze.
3.This is just perfectly sweet for us.If you want your cake to be really sweet, use more sugar.
4.As you can see from the ingredient list, this is a butter-less cake. But it is not dry, though a little dense


Recipe Adapted from : here

Tuesday, July 26, 2011

Berrybarb Jam/Preserve- With Blueberries, Strawberries and Rhubarb

This summer has been beastly hot! But it hasn't stopped us from having some outdoor fun. Only problem is you get dead tired by the end of the day and that does not apply to the kids! Even after a full day of activities they don't go to bed even at 9.30. It's always a wonder, how much energy they have!

Berry-Rhubarb Jam


I had mentioned earlier that one of my summer activities will be to make jams. After tasting a Blueberry-Rhubarb jam at the farmers maket I was hooked. I knew I will have to incorporate rhubard when I made jam at home. And for the recipe today, I have a combination of blueberries and strawberries with rhubarb and it turned out so well that I need to make it again soon.

Blueberries


Now if you don't believe me ask Sunitha, she tasted this when she visited us.

Berry-Rhubarb Jam


This jam has my favorite berries and Rhubarb gives it a nice and tangy twist.

Berries


Ingredients:

Blueberries- 1 cup
Strawberries,hulled- 2 cup
Rhubarb-1 inch pieces- 1 cup
Lemon juice- 2 tsp
Lemon zest- a pinch
Water/Apple juice- 1/3 cup
Sugar- 1 1/4 cup

Method:

1.In a large thick bottom pot, mix the berries, rhubarb and apple juice/water.
2.Cook covered on medium heat until the everything is cooked and rhubarb becomes soft and tender. Stir frequently.This takes about 12-15 minutes.
3.Add the sugar and lemon juice.Mix everything and continue cooking uncovered, stirring continuously. Skim off and discard any foam that comes on the top.
4.Continue this until the jam thickens and passes the freezer test(see notes) or when it starts to run together when you pour it with a spoon.
5.Turn off the heat and transfer into a clean jar.
6.Cool completely in the refrigerator.This keeps well for 3-4 weeks in a refrigerator.


Notes:

1.Freezer test : keep a small plate in the freezer when you start making the jam. Place a drop of the jam when you think that it done. Put back in the freezer for 30 seconds. If the jam is set well it is done.If you think it is still liquidy , continue cooking for another 5 minutes and repeat the test.
2. The amount of sugar can be changed according to your liking.
3.If you want to preserve this for longer time, use a canning method.
4.As you have already noticed, this doesn't have any added pectin. The apple juice and Strawberries have lots of natural pectin in them.
5. If you are making jam for the first time,be careful.Use a big pot and a long spoon for stirring. It splutters a lot, don't get any burns.

Recipe adapted from : Here

Wednesday, July 20, 2011

Apple Rabdi/Rabri- Evaporated milk based Apple dessert

A big HELLO to everyone ! It has been a long time since we updated a post here. So much has been going on in our personal lives that the blog sort of took second seat. Although, one of the highlights during this time was that  Sunitha and I visited after 13 long years.  Those of you, who are our friends in Facebook might already know about that reunion. I was so busy with the preparations and planning. Sunitha is in the middle of a move and that is why off the blogging scene for a while. Sorry about that !

Apple Rabdi/Rabri


Today's post has been in my drafts for a while now.  Hopefully,  I will be back in the swing of things as far as blogging goes soon.  I am waiting for my children to finish summer vacation, general visiting, travelling and holidaying the family is involved in right now.  Coming back to the recipe, the whole inspiration behind making this dessert was Kulsum from Journey Kitchen.  She did a guest post on it.  I have combined her recipe and the traditional one but I must thank her for tempting me with her beautiful pictures.

Apple Rabdi

The preparation is very much similar to that of Basundi, if you haven't noticed.The main difference here is the presence of Apples.So if you love Basundi, just like me, you must try this !

Apple Rabdi/Rabri


Ingredients:

Milk- 4 cups/1 liter
Condensed milk-2 Tbsp
Sugar- 1/4 cup
Apples,peeled and grated- 3
Cardamom powdered- 1 tsp
Saffron- a pinch soaked in a Tbsp warm milk
Pistachios, blanched and slivered- 2-3 Tbsp

Method:

1.Boil milk in a thick bottom pan and cook until it is reduced to about half the quantity.
2.Add sugar and condensed milk and stir continuously for 4-5 minutes.
3.Add the grated apple and cook for about 4 minutes.
4.Add the cardamom and saffron. Mix well and switch off the heat.
5.Throw in the pistachios.Serve warm or cold.

Notes:

1.You could use condensed milk as a sweetener instead of sugar, just like Kulsum says.
2.It is better to use a sweet variety of apple for this preparation.
3.You could replace pistachios with almonds if you like.

Tuesday, July 5, 2011

Cream Cheese Pecan Cookies

Hello ! Hope everyone in the US had a great July 4th week end. We had fun ,watching fireworks with friends. The fireworks reminded me of the Temple festivals in Kerala, though it was not even close to any of that. But I have no complaints, at least they are doing this much in a highly fire prone area.

Cream Cheese Pecan Cookies


It is getting really warm here and already the mountains had some fires. Last year Boulder had a couple of really bad wild fires. I hope this year will be much better. Because of the scorching heat, we cannot go out as much as we want to.So kids are home most of the afternoon and I need to engage them with something or the other and make a lot of snacks.Here is a recipe for kids,if you are a mom like me and for adults,if you do not care about the number of calories.


Cream Cheese Pecan Cookies


This is so easy to whip up, maybe a fun project for your elder kids.

Cream Cheese Pecan Cookies



Ingredients:

Butter softened- 1/3 cup
Cream Cheese- 3 ounces
Sugar- 1/2 cup
Flour- 1 cup+ 2 Tbsp
Pure Vanilla Extract- 1 tsp
Finely chopped Pecans- 1/2 cup

Method:

1.Preheat the oven at 350 degree F. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.
2.Mix the butter and cheese together.
3.Add the sugar and mix until it is creamy.
4.Mix the vanilla and add the flour. Beat until everything is combined and comes together.
5.Fold in the pecans.
6.Make 1 inch balls out of the dough, press between your palms and keep on the baking sheet.
7.Bake for 10-12 minutes.
8.Cool in the sheet for 5-6 minutes and transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
9.Store in an air tight container for a week.

Notes:

1.The sugar in this recipe is to my liking. You could add more sugar if you wish.
2.?When you take them out of the oven they are very soft. But they get firm on cooling.


Adapted from : Here

Thursday, June 30, 2011

Forelle Pear Cake

How is your Summer coming along? What are your plans for the long week end and July 4th ? July is a special month for my family too. The youngest one the family is born in this month. I can't believe that he is going to be 3 in a few days ! Time sure flies. We already miss his early years ! He sure is a handful ,but sometimes I wish I could freeze the time ,just to enjoy all his cuteness forever.

Forelle Pears


The other day he was doing something really naughty and his father raised his voice to let him know how mad is he. He turned around and told his father "Acha,turn down the volume". We always ask him to turn down the volume of the TV ,which he never watches, but always keeps switched on for his favorite cartoon as a back ground !

Forelle Pear Cake


Stories apart, coming to today's recipe.You will agree with me on the fact that these Forelle Pears are an absolute beauty to look at.Also they are very sweet.These are best served as it is, since they are too good as they are. But I had some really ripe Forelle Pears with me and we couldn't finish all of it. So I searched the net for recipes that uses this kind of pears and came across this buttery cake recipe. I went through the reviews and everyone seems to agree on the taste. I tried it and am happy that I did.

Forelle Pears

The lemon zest and my favorite spice cardamom gives a great flavor to this cake.I loved it when I had a warm slice and the cake was best on the same day I baked.


Forelle Pear Cake


Ingredients:

Forelle pears/Any small size pears- 5
Orange Juice- 1 Tbsp
Lemon juice- 1 tsp
Granulated Sugar- 2 Tbsp
Pure Vanilla Extract- 1/2 tsp

All Purpose Flour- 1 1/4 Cup
Baking Powder- 1 tsp
Cardamom- 1/2 tsp
Salt- a pinch
Unsalted Butter- 6 Tbsp
Sugar- Little less than 1 cup
Eggs- 2
Zest of 2 lemons
Pure Vanilla Extract- 1 tsp

Method:

1.Slice the pears lengthwise into thin pieces.This is optional. You could core and slice lengthwise too.
2.Toss these slices with the juices,sugar and vanilla extract.Preheat the oven at 350 degree F and line a 9 inch Spring foam pan with parchment paper.
3.Whisk together the flour,baking powder,salt and cardamom powder.
4.In a mixing bowl beat together the butter and sugar until it is creamy.
5.Add eggs one at a time and mix well.
6.Add the zest and vanilla extract and mix again.
7.Add the dry mixture into the wet one in 2 additions, mixing each time to combine everything. Do not over mix.
8.Spread about half the batter evenly onto the bottom of the prepared pan.
9.Spread the 3/4th of the pear slices on top.
10.Spread the remaining batter on top. It might not be enough to cover completely, but once the cake starts baking up, it spreads out well.
11.Place the remaining slices on the top in a layer.You could arrange it in a pattern, which I didn't,but it looks ok :-)
12.Bake for about 50-60 minutes or until the top starts to brown and the skewer inserted comes out clean.
13.Cool in the pan for 10 minutes and then cool completely on a wire rack.
14.Serve warm or cold.

Notes:

1.The original recipe uses cognac instead of orange juice for tossing the pears. I didn't do it since I have kids at home.
2. Also the recipe calls for Turbinado sugar for sprinkling on top. This will give a nice caramelization. Unfortunately I didn't have any at home so I did not use any.
3.The cake is best on the same day. Keep any leftovers in the fridge.
4.You could serve this with some Vanilla ice cream.
5.You could use Apples or Peaches instead of Pears in this recipe.

Recipe Adapted from :Here

Tuesday, June 28, 2011

Summer Salad

Today there is no real recipe to share. It is just about how I make radish salad and lemonade. It is a refreshing lunch option. Easy to put together and good on your love handles it is great to take a break from heavy food.

Radish

The other day on facebook, there was a discussion on “bloggers putting on weight.” I am in the category of people who do. It is probably because of so much cooking. And to top it, when something does not turn out well you still end up eating it and making the dish again. Assuming these repeated dishes are calorie rich you end up consume way more than your body can take.

Radish Salad and watermelon in Lemonade

When things are out of hand I resort to salad for some time. But then creamier dressings are more fun so I don’t know how far it really helps. Finally, when I have abused my stomach enough I resort to a lighter salad and what follows is how I put it together

Fresh Salad and sparkling drink

Salad:
1. Scrub clean a bunch of radishes. Trim the roots and leaves off. Slice the radish into thin rounds and place in a bowl and immediately squeeze half a lime over it. Add salt to taste. Serve it over a medley of spring greens. I prefer to buy the mixed greens to plain lettuce. It packs more flavor into the salad.
2. Radish has a bite to it. It was not my favorite flavor but with lemon it is pretty good and it reminds of red onions. It is not the same but I am saying it has this bite but overall it is a pretty looking salad and I quite like it now.


Watermelon pieces in lemonade

Lemonade:
1. Squeeze a lime into a jar, grate ¼ inch of ginger in, add a dash of salt, sugar to taste and mix well. Strain to remove shreds of ginger or lime and pour over ice. Make small cubes of watermelon and top the drink. Slice an lemon rind and place on glass.
2. The color is pretty and a great drink. This entire meal is quite good for your stomach. Go easy on the sugar to make it even better. With one like you should be able to make 2 glasses of lemonade. If anybody needs more lemon flavor you can always squeeze the rind used as garnish.

Friday, June 24, 2011

Carrot Kheer/Payasam- Carrot dessert in milk spiced up with Cardamom

Some flavors blend so well you cannot tell them apart when together. Yet, together they are a flavor to reckon with. In the same way, if I served you the golden sunshine in the bowl below, and asked to describe its taste, you will be torn unable to decide if it is carrot halwa or semiya payasam.

Carrot Kheer/Payasam

The answer is right here on this page so please read on. You will agree with me on this when you go through the recipe. In the same breath I have to admit that it is better or equally good as carrot halwa or a payasam

Carrot Kheer/Payasam

I made this a month back and decided to post it only when I had some fresh carrot pictures to post alongside. Obviously, that never happened. The farmer's market doesn't have a good variety of veggies yet, and the carrots that I've planted this season are not ready for harvesting. Then again, when I remembered the bunnies that frequent my vegetable patch, I doubt they will leave any carrots for me to photograph. Everything considered, I decided today was the day to share this pleasantly surprising sweet delicacy with you. At a later time, provided the regular visitors in our yard, the Bunnies, leave some carrots for me to enjoy I shall share some pictures with you.

Cardamom/Elachi

Speaking of carrots, did you know that most of the baby carrots we get in the US is processed, and "not so baby" carrots? I didn't know this until Sunitha mentioned it once. But there are some varieties that is "baby carrots, " albeit too expensive. The stats shows how consumption of carrots have grown exponentially post marketing baby carrots. And surely consumption shall soar once everyone knows how to make kheer or carrot halwa :-) You will agree 100 % after you have tasted some kheer yourself!

Carrot Kheer/Payasam


Ingredients:

Ghee- 2 Tbsp
Carrot grated- 2 cups
Milk- 2+1 cup
Sugar- 1/2 cup
Cardamom powder- 1 tsp
Almond slivers- 2 Tbsp


Method:

1.Heat 2 Tsp ghee in a deep and thick bottom pan.Throw in the grated carrots and fry till it is cooked through.
2. Pour in 2 cups of milk and allow to boil.
3.Lower the heat and let the carrot get cooked well.Stir in between. It takes almost 10-12 minutes.
4.By this time almost all the water content will be dried, do not add more milk at this point.
5.Add sugar and start stirring continuously, on low heat.Continue this till all the water gets evaporated and the mixture gets thickened.While stirring if you are able to see the path of the spoon/spatula without the mixture running over there immediately, it is done. This takes ~10- 12 minutes on medium low heat.
6.Slowly add the remaining milk into it. The point is that the boiling shouldn't get stopped while you pour the cold milk.This can be done on high heat and stirring continuously, while you add around 1/3 cup of milk at a time.
7.Once you added the milk, it should be boiled well.Pour more milk to get the desired consistency.Add the cardamom powder. Switch off the heat.
8.Garnish with slivered almonds. Serve warm or cold.

Notes:

1. You could reduce the sugar and add some condensed milk instead.
2.Also you could add some evaporated milk along with the normal milk after you boil with the sugar.

Wednesday, June 22, 2011

Water Melon Agua Fresca

I got this huge watermelon home the other day. We cut it open, gushed over how bright and red it looked, took the first bite and gushed again, but this time about how sweet it is. Then reality about most of it may go waste hit us. It would be a shame to waste such goodness, I knew! I looked online for recipes with watermelon. Wow! From a couple of ideas in my head to what variety I was received with. Drunk watermelon (infusing watermelon with liquor) to salsa , the works!

Watermelon Agua Fresca with ginger

Another instance which made me realize how I was hooked to the net: Last night we had a power outage, and it was only reset this noon. This morning without internet I realized how a fish might feel out of water. I have to agree without the internet connection I am clueless as to occupy myself for the most part. I read some of ‘water for elephants’ it’s a good book and kept me engaged but as soon as the power came on I set about getting the internet ready and had to google a thousand things. I was behaving like a wife meeting her husband back from the war.

Water Melon

Okay exaggerations aside, don’t we all love the net? You will love this watermelon agua fresco as much too. It’s a popular Mexican drink and inspired by recipe from bon apetit I added some ginger too. Delicious!

Watermelon Agua fresca

Ingredients:
Watermelon – 1/8th
Sugar/Honey – to taste
Ginger – ¼ tspn grated
Lime 1/2

Method:
Blend the water melon, 1/4 cup water, ginger and lime and sieve. Serve it over ice and garnish with lime and mint.

  Agua fresca in Spanish means fresh water. This drink was popularized in Mexico.  The drink should be light and hence strained to give that watery feel when you drink it yet infused with the flavor of watermelon. 

  For  me, just the addition of lime and ginger gave this drink a great feel and I would drink it even if it is not strained and enjoy it too.  

Watermelon agua fresca with ginger

Monday, June 20, 2011

Berry-Banana-Oats Breakfast Smoothie & 301 posts !

This is our 301st post, and I can’t believe it myself! Neither Sunitha or I realized we had covered 300 posts with the last one. We feel a great sense of achievement, and are thankful to all our readers for your love and support through the last one and a half years. One exciting day after the other is making me quite delighted as I write this post. I mean exciting Father’s day yesterday.


Berries

How was it for you? I spoke to my Dad, who was clueless about Father’s day, but I spoke to him and enjoyed our visit. It was definitely more exciting for my daughter. She has been planning the day for weeks and wanted to do something special for her dad. It all worked out well through the course of the day. We went hiking in the foot hills of Rocky Mountain which is a great pass time of this family. On the walk, my daughter got to do something different for her dad from the usual self painted Father’s day card she has been giving him for years. She carefully picked up wild flowers through her walk and gave it to her Dad. She was very pleased and so was he. These moments of simple pride and happiness are so priceless.

Berry-Banana-Oats Breakfast Smoothie

Not so much fun for my lil imp because he got excited and grabbed the bouquet from his Dad spoiling the bouquet and upsetting his sister. But on our walk back, the whole family picked flowers and brought home a fantastic wildflower bouquet. It’s sitting pretty on the windowsill. I wish I could take a close up picture to show you but it's a dreary day and hardly any light.

IMG_1621

Coming to the recipe of the day - everyone hereabouts must be enjoying the berry bounty of summer. We are no exception. The farmer's market is brimming with greens not so much berries, but I got some from Costco. I think it is fitting to have some berry shake or preserve in summer. I stock a lot of fruits/berries in this season and right now if you open my refrigerator you will see Blueberries and Strawberries aplenty. The days are getting hotter and when you wake up to a warm sultry morning you cannot resist a cool breakfast smoothie. Anyways, some people here don’t like a lot of berries so a refreshing smoothie is always good. It gets the berries from spoiling and at least some respite from the heat.

Berries


I have plans of baking these berries and making preserves too. In fact, I already made a small batch of Strawberry jam. This year as I experriment with various flavors and combinations I hope you will be tuned into this space.

After my long winded post, here is a simple yet rich breakfast smoothie. The measurements are only a guideline, add or subtract as you go along but make delicious smoothies. Some things to keep in mind are the ingredients - obviously, it not only affects the flavor but also the color. When you need a softer, brighter color step up on strawberries. It always renders an exciting color :-)

Berry-Banana-Oats Breakfast Smoothie


Ingredients:

Blueberries- 1 cup
Strawberries- 10-12
Banana- 1 really ripe Banana
Cooked Oats- 1/2 cup
Honey- To taste
Milk/Yogurt/Soy milk- 1 cup
Ice cubes- a few

Method:

1.Cook the oats in water/milk and cool.
2.Mix everything well using a blender and serve immediately.


Notes:

1.If you want it super thick, leave the ice cubes and blend.
2.You could use any nut milk(for eg: almond milk) instead of milk, which will be great,since that makes this smoothie protein rich.
3,.This serves 2.