Chocolate banana muffins

   Chocolate is our all-time-favourite  food.  Whether, that's an cake, or candy or ice-cream they are relished with glee.  So, this time when I found some unattended bananas lying on the table, I decided to make chocolate banana muffins.  Though, I am going to add banana, I drizzled them with syrup and chocolate vermicelli for an extra chocolate crunch :)

These muffins were soo delecious and surpassed my expectations.  Chocolate and bananas complemented each other very well.  That said, these muffins are going to be an regular menu at our home.  The muffins were very moist and every bite had its own history of melting moments :)  

They required lesser time to prepare, but I suggest you to use fully ripe bananas in this recipe, otherwise you will not be getting this moist texture.  I took them for my neighbourhood potluck party and everybody enjoyed them.  Especially I got an greater credit from kids :)  

Orange flavoured Brioche

   Brioche is an enriched bread with high amount of butter and eggs.  This pastry, of French origin, is served for Breakfast.  The butter and egg content, imparts them very tender and crumbly texture and they  can be served with jam, chocolate spread as well.

These Brioche were, as promised very tender and softer than commercial bread, we had them with chocolate ganache and an few sugar stars on top.  They were amazing and had an strong orange flavour.  I would like to make them again and again :)

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This orange flavoured Brioche was suggested by Swathi Iyer from the pastry chef Dominique Ansel.  All thanks to them for such an rich, unique Brioche

Verkadalai chutney - Peanut chutney

   Back at Chennai, my mother used to prepare fabulous chutney, depending on the available ingredients.  Everytime, it was different - ranging from onion chutney, mint chutney, peerkankai chutney, dal chutney, verkadalai chutney etc.  Yes, I am still drooling here thinking of her exotic chutneys :D

     For us, it would be always coconut chutney, but for an change, I tried my mother's recipe for verkadalai chutney.  I must say, it resembled an spicy desi version of ' Peanut butter'.  Chutney was soo smooth, soo buttery to have with every bite of dosa.

The next day, I called mom and thanked her for such an unique and tasty chutney.  Bored of regular chutney, please do give them an chance...  :D

Tiffin sambhar / Moong dal sambhar

We plan a lot for our life, isn't it?  Physical work-out, an brisk morning walk, gardening, trying out new interiors or exotic classes like Yoga, embriodery... my list goes on :)  But, time constraint hardly cuts down our options to one out of ten.  Though we plan an lot to do, plenty of our time goes into kitchen, thus sparing none.  Yes, this dish is dedicated to such constraints.... an sambhar, which is more delecious (than traditional) and more easy to make within little time is all I can start with... :P

This sambhar, is my hubby's favourite.  Using moong dal (instead of tuvar dal), tunes up the taste and also reduces the time of cooking.  This sambhar does not need pre-soaking of tamarind, since we are using country tomatos to achieve the same.  They can be aptly prepared for breakfast and served piping hot with idly/dosa.  Well, my husband grew an lot fond of it, that he wants them to replace the normal sambhar made for lunch.  Does that doubt? Well, try for yourself and be surprised with an overwhelming response.

Sambhar

    Hi all.... back from my short vacation.  And since my daughter leaves to her summer camp, my routine life is almost back... Filling up my refrigerator with freshly brought veggies and fruits, cleaning up my partially-messed home, ... list goes on.  Going on vacation sounds much easier, but when it comes to post-vacation work, I always save an huge 'sigh' :/   Yesterday, day went quite interesting watching over election results.  Victory was predicted, as usual, but winning by 1:6 ratio (Congress: BJP) was quite an 'whooping result'.  Similarly goes with Tamilnadu where ADMK gained 37 out of 39 available seats.  Fabulous, isn't it?  Let us see if this decision solves our stagnating economy and deals with the price rise as well....

   Yes and coming back to our post, born and brought up at Chennai, I could'nt miss this special SAMBHAR prepared by my mom.  Infact, this is my favourite and same with my husband too.  Sambhar is south-indian dal preparation, mostly tuvar dal (yellow pigeon peas), with sambhar powder (an aromatic powder made out of chana dal, dried red chillies, curry leaves, whole cumin seeds, fenugreek seeds, coriander seeds, asafoetida, few peppercorn etc), tamarind, assorted set of vegetables (like brinjal, drumstick, snakegourd, pumpkin etc), finished with an sweet touch of jaggery.

The trick in preparing an perfect sambhar lies in perfect balance of spice-sour and an sweet taste.  As an first-try, I have messed up by adding more sourness (more amount of imly/tamarind) into my sambhar.  So, I strongly recommend you to add only half of prescribed tamarind during cooking, other half you can wait till you complete the cooking, check the sambhar and add accordingly.  Also, kindly note that this 'sour' factor depends on tomatos you are adding.  Since, I have added hybrid tomatos, I have included tamarind.  In case, I am going with country tomatos ,(which has an higher sour content) I would prefer not to add tamarind as the former itself gives out required 'sour' effect.

BREAKFAST

MAIN COURSE

•  Soya dosa
•  Onion uthappam
•   Idiyappam
•   Kollu dosa
•   Rawa dosa
•   Bhomma dosa
•   Crunchy choclate roll/dosa
•   Gobi masala dosa
•   Neer dosa
•   Besarattu dosa
•   Inippu paniyaram
•   Pudhina idly
•   Rava idly
•   Bhakri
•   Rawa pongal
•   Peppercorn flavoured oats
•   Hyderabadi vegetable sandwich

SIDE-DISH  (CHUTNEY / CURRY)

•   Onion chutney
•   Bombay chutney
•   Tomato chutney
•   Tomato chutney – Dip/spread/lick
•   Kovaikkai chutney
•   Tangy mint chutney
•   Peerkankai chutney
•   Nihari
•   Kothukkari kuruma
•   Vaangi kothsu
•   Kadalai curry
•   Vadakari
•   Dal aur lehsun ki chutney

POWDER

•   Flax seeds powder

Tomato chutney - DIP/SPREAD/LICK :)

What can I say about this chutney- with an multi purpose tag?   Isn't it an wonder to have some appetizer common to all three courses :D Yes, an apt start with any breakfast of day (idly/dosa/upma/semiya), to delecious tomato rice (Mix some paste with cooked rice to obtain the same) , also to spread over sandwiches, stuffed parathas, this chutney, is an boon for all.... And, like an cherry on top, this DIP/SPREAD/LICK tagged chutney is storable as well.......

I had this wonderful tomato chutney, sometime back at Chennai.  My aunt served them with gingelly oil drizzled at top.  I, tried to skip them with an delusional diet :D  (LOL, this is what happens, we feast on KFC, but still try to follow diet, at home-made dishes :D)   But, my aunty patiently reminded me that gingelly oil drizzled over top, not only enhances the flavour and taste, but also cools down stomach and makes them free from any gastric problems.  She also reminded me, that due to this reason, girls are forced to take gingelly oil ,on an empty stomach during their puberty.

I, then, convinced took to the chutney and found them delecious as well. Smooth,  buttery, little tanginess compensated with hot spices is what my taste-bud felt.  According to aunt, her basic formula for this tomato chutney, is

Oil + Urad dal + 1/2 parts of Onions + 1 part of tomato + Dried red chillies + 1/4 parts of Coconut

Noting down, above formula, please remember that other than tomato and red chilies (which varies according to quantity of tomato), others are flavour enhancers.  So, roughly you can experiment with any ratios, or according to your stock availability :D  :D  :D

Preparation time: 20 minutes
Cooking time: 25 minutes
Serves:  Might serve 20, I divided the prepared chutney in two containers and refrigerated them, this went on for two weeks :)

Ingredients required

• 2 tbspn of gingelly oil
• 1 tbspn of whole urad dal
• 1/2 cup of finely chopped onions
• 1/2 kg of tomatos, finely chopped
• 10-12 dried,long red chillies
• 1/4 cup of coconut, finely sliced
• Salt, to taste
• 1/2 cup of gingelly oil (For storing purpose)

Method

Heat gingelly oil in an heavy-bottomed kadaai, add urad dal.  Let them brown over an simmer flame.
Add onions, saute till onions turn pink (Don't brown)

Now, add our tomatos along with whole red chillies.  You can also add half tsp of salt, if you prefer.  Saute tomatos and simmer the flame, let the tomatos get mushy and reduce their quantity. 

When they got almost reduced and tomato residue sticks on to kadaai, add coconut and switch off the gas.  No need to cook coconut, as they will get cooked by the warmth shared by hot tomato residue.  Let this cool thoroughly.  Blend, without adding water, and serve, drizzled with (raw) gingelly oil over top.

Note

If you are planning to make an large batch to store, please know that after blending, these chutney can be divided into four or five small-sized containers.  And before closing the lid of each container, do remember to drizzle 1-2 tbspn of gingelly oil over the top.  This not only enhances the flavour and keeps you fit, but also helps in saving the chutney from any spoilage.  The reason, I asked to store in small containers, is that everytime, before consumption, the chutney, needs to be brought back to room temperature.  This way, if you are storing entire stock in one large container, you need to bring this out an hour earlier everyday, leading to increased chances of spoilage.  So, it is best to store them in four to five small containers.

Linking this to Srivalli's CCC Challenge

Peppercorn flavoured vegetable oats - Potluck party, cyber style January 28th 2014

 How many of us,  look  for an instant breakfast oats,  at your favourite  stores??  Yes, I can see many hands raising!!  All  thanks to an casual check-up, my dietician advised to consume  oats atleast once an week, in order to enrich my good cholestrol... Now, for an girl like me, who thought that oats were only for saints.. this was an serious layback... :P

 Gradually, my attitude changed... With an NOT-SO-SWEET TOOTH,  I  opted for masala oats once an week, untill I came across Shama Nagarajan's oats porridge.  She was my partner for poluck party, cyber style and I followed her post.  With just oats and your own vegetable/spice blend, I could actually foresee an tasty and healthy breakfast here,for, this ensures zero preservatives or zero dehydated vegetables. This peppercorn flavoured vegetable oats is an fresh breakfast blend, which amplifies your morning stamina, to kick-start your day!!   :)  :)

Rava idly

  'At Hyderabad, you can never find rice idly, rava idly is the only option', this was one of my relative's opinion, about two years back.  And yes, he was right, starting from authentic Chutneys restaurant  to street-smart shops, all you can find is the magic of this rava idly.  But, the beauty of them, is that they are soft textured, that melts instantly in mouth.  Serve them with sambhar and chutney...... YOU ARE IN HEAVEN!!!  :)  :)  To all those fancy dishes, BEWARE, THE LORD IS HERE  :D  :D   :D

  About an month ago, I  experimented with initial quantities of urad dal and idly rava and to my surprise, they surpassed my test :)  So, I went on with same quantities, and this time blogging them with pictures.  YAY TO ME!   Just be aware to prepare them in large numbers - they are sure to vanish before your eyes!  For beginners, kindly note the tips shared at end of my post.

Dates and raisin muffins

   For this CCC Challenge, I took my help from Morphy Richards Recipe Guide, that dates back to twenty years :)  Thanks to my dear mom, who saved it for me :)  From this book, I choosed Dates and Raisin muffins.  There has been an usual dilemma between cupcakes and muffins, isn't it?  So, let me resolve this before getting back to my post :)

         

Flax seeds powder

    One evening, I was watching JAYA TV programme, termed suvaiyo suvai.  The host was cooking 'Aazhi vethai podi' otherwise called Flax seeds powder.  I was completely delighted to find this, since I had bought flax seeds few weeks before :)   Flax seeds, derived from fibre crop is well known for its healthy benefits.  Not only is it source of fibre, vitamins, omega 3-fatty acids and micronutrients, they have also been proved scientifically to lower risk of heart attack, diabetes and cancer.

You can also view this wiki link which explains its consuming tricks.  Flax seeds powder made here, is an delecious fusion, I must say :D,  dry roasting  our desi ingredients and flax seeds separately, they were made to cool and thoroughly powdered.  This can be substituted with our regular idly/dosa podi.  The cook host has also requested not to mix them with oil and consume them as it is with dosa/idly.  The reason she explains is that though one mouth would feel the 'dryness', saliva will be secreated and balance the rest of the meal.  

Kothukkari kuruma/minced meat kuruma

   Minced meat/kothukkari curry goes great with idiyappam/dosa/rice.  Here I have added precooked minced meat along with masala, this is an tempting dish for NV-lovers.

 

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Cooking time: 20 minutes

Serves 2

Ingredients required:

To temper

•  1 tbspn of oil
• 1 Bayleaf, crushed
• 1 star anise
• 1-inch cinnamon piece
• 1 Black cardamom
• 1 clove
• 1 Marathi mogga
• 1 tsp sombu/fennel seeds

Idiyappam - Step by step tutorial from store bought riceflour

   Idiyappam, is commonly found dish in South (Tamilnadu, Kerala, coastal parts of Karnataka) India.  The rice flour paste (or wheat flour/ragi flour) is pressed to noodles, steam-cooked and had.  While sweet ones, are done by dusting  with sugar and coconut flakes, savoury-lovers are free to have them with a dip of any spicy curry.  You can opt for Kadalai curry, Meen kolambu, Chettinadu kozhi kolambu.  Also am having minced meat curry on my draft and will post them soon :D

This dish is highly made by preparing rice flour at home, that is why I presume the name goes, Idi-'appam (Idi meaning 'to crush' in tamil.  'appam' meaning pancake) Here selected rice is soaked, drained and is dried.  They are then crushed to yield very fine rice flour and the process continues.  What happens here is that, I have made them with store-bought riceflour.  Store bought ones may not be suitable if used directly.  The trick is to roast them till they get an fine texture.  Later they are sieved to yield uniform sized and textured rice flour.  Thanks all goes to my, Keralite neighbor who shared this with me :D  Thank you aunty :)

Pataqueta - Baking partner challenge November 2013

  When Swathi announced making of traditional Spanish bread named 'Pataqueta', I was thrilled.  According to Marisa, pataqueta is bread that inhabitants of Valencia's Orchard used to eat when they went to work.  This crescent moon shaped bread, is known since seventeeth century.  It was baked in Moorish oven, later on wood stoves.

 What differs Pataqueta from other bread is they are steam baked.  Yes, that nourishes them with even soft texture with firm crust outside.  I, really enjoyed baking them, along with them, I made pretzel rolls too.  Thanks to Swathi and Marisa.

Kalaan rasam - Mushrooms curried in south-Indian rasam style

There are rarely a very few vegetables that become central to all  food.  On this very few, Mushroom tops all.  Be it an pizza topping, fried rice or our style gravy, this divine fruiting body (of an fungus) dominates all!  So, why not go an bit innovative and try on rasam style.  Rasam is an south-Indian soup, usually eaten at the end of lunch.  With an hybrid combo of tomato-tamarind this rasam is believed to aid in digestion.

 

My husband, who is an mushroom-aholic guy totally loved it :)  I have also mentioned below how to serve them on an three-meal course below.  Kindly leave an feedback about how you feel, and do try when had an chance.

 

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Cooking time: 30 minutes

Serves : 2  

 

Ingredients required

For temper

• 1 tsp rai/mustard seeds
• 2-3 broken red chilly
• Pinch of hing/asafetida

 

Pumpkin flavoured bread - Baking partners challenge

   When Swathi Iyer announced Baking partner's challenge as ' Baking with Pumpkins', I was thrilled because I hadn't used pumpkins in my Baking session.  And to double it up, three awesone recipes for bread was suggested.  I followed  Yeast version of pumpkin bread from Kingarthur, result was amazing!  My entire home was filled with fresh aroma of yeast-raised bread and we all luved it on ur breakfast time.  Thanks to Swathi Iyer and Tamy for suggesting the same.

Out of the oven, I felt very proud as I sliced my loaf with an hungry daughter by my side :)  She was the first one to taste this aromatic bread with an dollop of jam, she just loved it!!   I realized that these were super moist, yet heavy on our stomach compared to store-brought one.  So, let us move to recipe!

Kollu dosai/ Horsegram flavoured dosa

    This is my second post with respect to kollu/Horsegram.  The very idea was given by my aunty when I asked her how to incorporate horsegram in our regular cooking.  The basic principle is replacing half the quantity of rice used with horsegram, for example if you are using four cups of rice, two cups of rice can be replaced by horsegram.  Similarly, kollu idly can also be prepared.

The difference between regular dosa batter and kollu dosa is that kollu dosa batter gets fermented quickly than former one. So preparing them on small batches are advisable.

Ingredients required

• 1 cup raw rice
• 1 cup idly rice
• 2 cup kollu/horsegram 
• Handful of chana dal
• 1/2 cup of urad dal
• 2 tsp of methi seeds/venthayam
• Salt, as required

Soak the abovesaid ingredients in water for about three to four hours.  Grind them into fine paste and leave to ferment for six hours, till bubbles are seen on top and little rising of batter is observed. 

Mix in salt, and pour an ladle over pre-heated tawa, drizzling in oil over the sides.  Serve hot with side-dish of your choice. 

Bhomma dosa/ Tiny dosa roundels - (FUN FOOD -1)

    It was  during one of our vacations that my aunty made  these great mini dosas  for varsha.  She was soo delighted to find a new variation, in entirely kiddy style and ate more than she could have.  From that day onwards till now, she always says, ' ma, i want bomma dosa plz'

 The only requirement for the dosa here, is that batter is expected to be slightly thicker consistency so that desirable shape is met.  I often make them with idly batter.  Making this is very simple too, with more practise and patience you can try out various shapes, and at the sametime try many toppings, most of which may be healthy too.  So let us take an quick glance.....

If you could closely follow collage in zigzag form, the idly batter is spooned over very little, circular form over hot tawa.  Afterwhich,  some colourful vegetable topping is spooned (I used grated carrots and spring onions green part).  Some  pressing  with back of spoon is also done so that the topping is strongly bonded.  Later they are covered by a lid and cooked till the dosas are done. 

•  You can change the filling, replacing any vegetable like mushroom/paneer/dry fruits/fresh fruits/nuts etc.  
• You can also sandwich one dosa into another with a bit of grated cheese on middle to satisfy cheesy demand of your kids.
• This savoury version can be served with tomato sauce/green chutney/mayo

And the second sweet version is the real 'fun part' of this dosa. I tried an teddy bear shape on tawa and garnished them with gems cookies.  

• This way you can also try different shapes like clouds, sun, pokeman etc, depending upon ur kid's preference
• Some yummy goodies like tutti-fruitty, jujube, orange candy can also be used for decoration, more colourful they look more appetizing look for kids
• Best served with chocolate sauce/Nutella
• You can also prepare Malpua on tawa, drizzling more oil than it would take for mini dosa, follow garnish and soak in hot sugar syrup n serve.

They can also be packed on lunch-box.  I am sure that ur kids would luv to have this 'n' number of dosa platters.  I, also hope that this can be an tricky treat for lazy week-end.  And also  for kids bored with regular dosas.  Do try and I also welcome any suggestions to the same.  

Vadakari (SouthIndian curry made with steamed dal dumplings)

    Vadakari is my all-time-favourite.  My mother used to prepare this dish atleast once a month and we used to rejoice it with idly, dosa and  pongal too!  I made it for first time and served it with mini-dosa (to come sooner) and my kid enjoyed it.  Here, Chana dal, which was first soaked, is later blended with selective spices, steamed and mixed with regular onion-tomato gravy base.  The spices usually added are red chilly and dhanya powder, here I added  chana masala which blended  soo well and gave an much richer aroma.  Do try guys and let me know.

Ingredients required

For dumplings

• 1/2 cup chana dal
• 1/2 tsp dry ginger powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp jeera powder
• 1/2 tsp haldi/turmeric powder
• 4 tsp coriander leaves, finely chopped
• Pinch of hing/asoeftida

Rawa pongal

Ingredients required

To temper

• 5-6 tsp of ghee
• 2 tsp finely chopped ginger pieces
• 1/2 tsp perungayam
• 1 tsp whole peppercorn
• 1 tsp whole cumin seeds
• Few curry leaves
• Few cashewnuts, broken

others

• 1/4 cup moong dal, boiled
• 1 cup sooji rawa (roasted in kadaai till light brown colour)
• Salt, per taste