comfort food : five jewelled daal

When you talk about Indian food the first thing which comes to our mind is DAAL-RICE !!Its a staple in every indian household and there is something very homely and loving  about this meal.

I still remember our hostel days when the first thing I used to eat reaching home was daal rice...coz there is no comparison to home cooked daal rice.

Talking about pulses/daal there is a whole variety from chana ,moong,masur,arhar....But we usually eat arhar which is my hubby's fav.

Here I am sharing with you a five jewelled daal which is basically a mix of five pulses tempered with spices....so for all those days when you get bored of the usual daal you can try this one.

Hubby loved it and so this goes on our list of fav too !!

Ingredients 

50 gm urad daal

50 gm chana daal

50 gm masoor(red lentils)

50 gm arhar/toor daal

100 gm green moong(chilka moong)

1 tsp turmeric

Salt to taste 

For tempering

3 tbsp ghee

A pinch of asafoetida

1 tsp cumin seeds

1 large onion sliced

3 cloves of garlic

A piece of ginger

2-3 green chillies

1 tsp chopped coriander

For garnish

1tsp of butter/ghee

A pinch of red chilli powder

 

Method

Wash and soak the lentils in warm water for an hour.Cook the lentils with turmeric and salt until done.

In a pan heat  ghee and add asafoetida and cumin seeds.Once they begin to splutter add onions and fry till golden.Add garlic,ginger and green chillies and fry till the mixture turns golden brown.Toss the mixture in the daal and give it a good mix.Serve it in a bowl drizzled with chilli butter.

Enjoy your comforting daal with a new twist !!!

madeira cake :simplicity at its best !!!

Well I won't give any excuses for my prolonged absence from blogging...!!!

The only thing I can say is that YES I'M BACK !!!

Hope you all had a great Diwali and are gearing up for the festivities of Christmas and New Year !!!

Sometimes its the simple things in life which get lost in the search for new and unique...

It was a surprise when I realised  that I had not tried this simple madeira cake .It was lost in my experiments of chocolate,banana and other speciality cakes. 

This cake is going to be on my fav list now for days to come ...and as I am writing this I just cant stop myself from taking another bite of this delectable cake !!

I am just loving it !!

 

Here's how you can bake this cake :

 

Ingredients

175 gm Butter

175 gm Sugar

3 Eggs

1/2 grated lemon zest

1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

200 gm Self raising flour

50 gm ground almonds

Method

Preheat oven to 170 C.Beat butter and sugar until light and creamy.Then beat in eggs one at a time.Add lemon zest and vanilla extract.Beat in flour and ground almonds.Tip the batter into a cake tin and bake it for 50 minutes.

Enjoy this classic English cake anytime, anyday !!

hubby's favourite "pancakes"

Well.... I have been away from blogging for quite a longtime ...was busy shifting home which was such a gigantic task in itself....from packing to unpacking ...the sadness of leaving your first home to the excitement of moving on to a new place....drains you completely !!!!

Well this has been lying in my drafts for quite some time... so before I begin experiments in my new kitchen lemme share with you this super simple and super delicious recipe of pancakes !!!

Hubby loves pancakes.......during our courtship period we went to Mocha once and had  pancakes there....then I came to know how much he loves pancakes...at that time I had no clue how to make infact I used to think its something very difficult and out of the world ....and then fate brought me to London exposing us to all kinds of pancakes and waffles !!!

Picture taken in 2011 at Mocha ,G.K Delhi

I am a fan of Nigella shows and love all her dessert recipes...her recipes are simply no fuss and yield great results.I tried her  pancake mix which is a great way to make instant pancakes.But here's one small modification I made in making the batter which is the magic ingredient called BUTTERMILK.I used buttermilk which yields such velvety melt in mouth pancakes !!!

Ingredients

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

For batter

For every 1 cup of pancake mix

1 egg
1/4 tsp vanila extract
1 cup buttermilk 


For blueberry syrup

1/2 cup blueberries
2 tbsp sugar
1 tsp honey
1 tbsp water

Method


Mix all the dry ingredients and store it an airtight container .Whenever you feel like having pancakes just take one cup of mix add 1 beaten egg,vanilla extract and buttermilk.If its too thick then add some milk.

Heat a  pan,add butter and spoon drops of 1 1/2 to 2 tablespoons of batter onto the pan and when bubbles appear on the surface of the pancake flip it over to make them golden brown on both sides. A minute or so a side should do it.

For the syrup combine all ingredients and let it simmer till it thickens.Serve with pancakes.Leftovers can also be used as jam on bread!!!!

Enjoy these velvety pancakes!!!!!!!

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 !!!

 

i 'm back with hot and spicy tofu fry

Well I have been missing in action for quite some time ....it was my  holiday to Switzerland which was keeping me busy !!!A dream vacation to the most beautiful place..truly heaven on earth!!!Everything and everyplace there was picture perfect that we just could not stop clicking pics...so much so that our camera has close to 1000 pictures ....!!!

Here is a one for my blog friends !!!

Coming back to food ...as you know that I have been experimenting with tofu for sometime ...here is another version of  tofu which can be served as an appetizer as well as a side dish .

This dish tastes very similar to Hakka chilli paneer. I lately had this in an Indian restaurant here in London called Roti Chai .If you are looking for authentic Indian street food you must go there..Will be sharing the reviews very soon !!!

But for now here' s the recipe for hot and spicy tofu fry !!!It does takes tofu to a new level and I bet you'll start relishing tofu from now on....as it is not the same bland tofu anymore !!!

Ingredients

150 gm Tofu (cubed)
1/4 cup cubed bell pepper
1 large onion (cubed)
1 small carrot (chopped)
2 spring onions (chopped)
2 tsp ginger garlic and green chilli  paste 
1 tbsp soya sauce
1 tsp tomato paste  ketchup

1/3 tsp sugar

1 tbsp cornflour + 3tbsp water 
Salt to taste
Black pepper 
Oil 

Marinade:
3 tbsp flour
2 tbsp corn flour / corn starch
1 tsp freshly ground pepper
1 tsp minced garlic
A pinch of salt
Water 

Method 

 Make a thick paste with the ingredients for marinade. Marinate  the tofu  pieces for about 10 minutes. 

Add  oil in a pan and shallow fry the tofu pieces, turning them over when the cooked sides are brown.

In the same pan, add chopped onions, green chillies, carrot and capsicum. Cook until the onions turn transparent for 2-3 mins.  Next, turn the flame to high and add soya sauce, green chilli  ginger garlic paste, sugar and tomato sauce. Stir-fry  until well blended and turn the flame to medium-low.  Add the fried tofu cubes and the cornflour-water paste. Taste and adjust salt. Stir and cook for another 3-4 mins until the sauce comes around and thickens due to the cornflour. 

Serve hot with noodles or rice  and say yes to healthy TOFU !!!!