simple cooking : lemon rice

 “I have just three things to teach: simplicity, patience, compassion. These three are your greatest treasures.” — Lao Tzu

I read this somewhere and just loved it ...this is so true ... these  are the golden mantras of happy living !

And how surprisingly this applies to cooking as well !!!

• Keep it simple !
• Be patient (This is the biggest mantra of cooking I learnt from my Mom ...whenever I got upset on my cooking disasters mom always used to tell me not to be sad and that cooking is all about patience.!!!)
• And compassion...if you are not compassionate about it you won't enjoy it !!!

Well am I sounding like a preacher ???

Well talking about simplicity lemme share with you a simple yet flavourful dish LEMON RICE !!!

 Lemon rice is one of my favourite varieties of rice ....I love its refreshing taste and vibrant colour and its so easy and quick to prepare with just a handful of ingredients !

There are different versions...different ways ...here's MY WAY !!!!

Ingredients

1 cup rice(cooked)
1/4 cup Lemon juice 
1/4 tsp turmeric
1/2 tsp chana daal
1 tsp curry leaves
Half onion chopped
1/2 tsp mustard seeds
2  tsp peanuts
1/4 tsp red chilli powder
Salt to taste

Method 

In a bowl combine lemon juice and salt.Take rice in another bowl and the lemon juice mixture,mix it well so that the rice is coated with this mixture well and then keep it aside.
Now take oil in a pan and add curry leaves, mustard seeds and chana daal..Add onion and cook till its light brown.Add rice and mix well.Add salt, turmeric and red chilli and give it a toss.
Garnish with peanuts and enjoy this healthy rice ready in minutes !!!

unplanned deliciousness : cheese and onion rolls

THE BEST THINGS IN LIFE ARE ALWAYS UNPLANNED !!!

Most of us would agree with this as in our daily lives some of the most unplanned events or trips turn out to be the best and the most memorable ones !!!!!!!

Similar is the case in kitchen, specially when you are dealing with leftovers...imagination runs wild and you end up cooking something really out of the world !!!

So this is what happened here !

I had some leftover cheddar after the pasta dish which I made for hubby's bday...And then I had been longing to bake a bread too....So tried these utterly yummy cheese and onion rolls.

These rolls will fill your home with a wonderful aroma of fresh bread that you will be dying to grab a piece straight out of the oven... ..!!

Very simple and very tasty !!!But yes full of cheese !!!But the whole experience of baking and eating is so gratifying that you can definitely workout a little extra for these ;) ;) !!!!

Ingredients

1.5 cups  Plain flour
1/3 cup Warm water + 1 tbsp
3/4 tbsp yeast 
1 tsp Salt
1 tbsp Sugar
2 tbsp Olive oil
1/2 cup  grated cheddar cheese
1 small onion chopped
1tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp oregano
2 tbsp Milk for brushing

Method

Mix yeast in 1 tbsp  warm water and let it sit for five minutes until it froths.Take flour and mix salt, sugar,yeast mixture and warm water to form a smooth and sticky dough.Add oil and knead well for 4-5 minutes till it turns into a smooth  dough.Rest it for 2 hours.

Fry  the onions till light golden and keep aside.Now take the dough and knock down the air.Roll it into a thick round shape and then place the fried onions...top it with cheese and sprinkle garlic powder.Now roll it like wrap and slice into eight small rolls.Arrange them in a baking pan and wrap it with a cling film.Allow to proof it for 1 hour.

After 1 hour sprinkle oregano and brush it with milk and bake in a preheated oven for 40 minutes at 180 C.

 Enjoy the comforting aroma of freshly baked bread !!!

Sending this to Lets cook bread by Tickling palates .

mango chocolate cake for hubby's bday !!

Just after we were back from Swiss holiday up next was hubby's bday and I have been wracking my brains thinking what cake to bake for him......

Had to be something special with hubby's favourite flavours too...so after much deliberation I decided to try a combination of mango and chocolate ..and yes it was a hit  !!!

For the chocolate base I decided to keep it safe with my tried and tested recipe of chocolate cake  and a mango mousse to top it with...and to make it  more beautiful I made a heart shaped mango mirror using my cookie cutter.

 Ingredients 

For chocolate cake

My ultimate chocolate cake recipe

For mango mousse
1 cup Mango puree
1 cup Whipping cream
2 sheets Gelatin
3tbsp Sugar(or depending on your taste )
3 tbsp water for dissolving gelatin 

For mango mirror
1/4 cup Mango puree
1 sheet gelatin
1 tbsp sugar
 1 tbsp  Water
1 tbsp water for dissolving gelatin 

Method

Allow the cake to cool completely and then slice it into two.

Whip the cream to stiff peaks along with sugar and then fold the puree in. Soak the gelatin sheets in cold water for five minutes.Squeeze and strain it and then mix and  melt it on a low flame in lukewarm water. Do not boil.You just need to dissolve  the gelatin  in the water completely.Allow it to cool a bit  and then  fold it into the mango mixture.Using a knife apply some mousse on a cake slice and place the second slice on it.Now gently cover the entire cake with the mousse and leave it in fridge for 7-8 hours .

After 8 hours the mousse will be set and then you can decorate it as you want.I used dairymilk chocolate fingers for the sides  and then made a heart shaped  mango mirror .

For mango mirror 

Take Mango puree and mix it with water.Add gelatin  treating it the same way you did earlier for mango mousse.I placed a  greased cutter in the center of the cake and poured this mixture on it(Make the sure the mixture has cooled down).Allow it to sit for one hour and then carefully take out the cookie cutter.

The cake is ready to surprise your loved ones !!!!

Enjoy !!!