Kitchen Corner-Try It

Ethakka Vilayichathu An evening sweet snack served with tea.It is simple and can be made in a jiffy. Ripe plantains are slightly toasted in ghee and sugar and flavored with cardamon.The plantains should retain shape but at the same time will be soft caramelized slightly sticky. Serve it warm or cold with a dollop of whipped cream. Ingredients Plantain Ripe-3 medium Sugar- 3 tbs Ghee- 1 1/2 tbs Cardamon pods crushed- 4 Raisins and cashew nuts- a few Cut plantains into round slices. Heat ghee in a pan and fry cashew nuts and raisins till golden and keep aside.Add the plantains and fry slightly, saute and turn to the other sides and fry. Add sugar and allow to caramelize for about 3-4 minutes till the caramelized sugar gets well coated. Mix in the cashew nuts and raisins and cardamon powder. Serve with tea. Try this Hope you will all enjoy!

Mango Lassi Mango lassi is a smooth and rich summer drink which is refreshing and tastes heavenly! It is a combination of yogurt and mango pulp with the inviting flavor of cardamon.This is a sweet drink mostly served at the end of a grand meal.You can also make it rich by adding a pinch of saffron or ground pistachios on the top. Ingredients Ripe Mango- 2 Yogurt- 1 cup Sugar- 3 tsp (According to taste) Cardamon powder- a pinch Rose water- 1/2 tsp Crushed ice Chopped mangoes or ground pistachios for garnish In a blender/food processor add peeled and chopped mangoes,sugar,yogurt and 1/2 cup cold water (or milk) and pulse till nice and smooth. Add crushed ice,cardamon powder and rose water and mix. Serve chilled. Try this Hope you will all enjoy!

Orange Chocolate Chip Muffins A good morning breakfast recipe with orange and chocolate combo. This has fresh orange flavor and I used a little marmalade too to give extra citrus flavor. We love citrus flavor and kid loved it even more because of chocolate chips Ingredients All purpose flour- 2 cup Baking powder- 1 1/2 tsp Baking soda- 1/2 tsp Salt- 1/2 tsp egg-2 Butter/oil- 2tbs Sugar- 1/3 cup Orange zest- 1 tsp Orange marmalade- 2 tsp (optional) Orange juice- 1/3 cup Vanilla extract- 1 tsp Sour cream- 1/2 cup Chocolate chips- 1/2 cup Preheat oven to 350 degree F and line baking tin with cup cake liners. Combine all the dry ingredients,flour,baking powder,baking soda, salt and keep aside. Squeeze orange juice and mix it with marmalade and vanilla essence and keep aside. Beat butter,orange zest and egg till it is light and fluffy. Add the sugar and beat for another two minutes. Mix in the dry ingredients,sour cream and orange juice plus marmalade and

Meen Mutta Thoran Today's recipe is fish roe and coconut stir fry. I am quiet sure there are lots of people in Kerala who love this fish delicacy .Roe is the egg mass of the fish . This is an exotic fish recipe and back home meen mutta/roe is usually marinated and fried in coconut oil or made like stir fry with coconut. My mom also makes it like omelet by cutting off the thin membrane and scooping out the egg mass. You can use roe from fish like pom fret,king fish or sardine. Ingredients Fish Roe - 3/4-1 cup Onion- 1 medium Shallots thinly sliced- 1/2 cup Ginger - 1 inch thick Curry leaves- a few springs Green chilly-2 Dry red chilly- 2 Turmeric powder- 1/3 tsp Cumin powder- 1/3 tsp Chilly powder- 1/2 tsp Pepper powder- 1/2 tsp Coconut grated- 1/2 cup Mustard seeds- 1/2 tsp Salt to taste Coconut oil- 2 tbs Heat coconut oil in a pan and add mustard seeds. When they splutter add curry leaves,dry red chillies and finely chopped ginger

Paneer Tikka Masala Paneer tikka masala is a popular restaurant dish with grilled paneer simmered in a rich tomato gravy.It is a vegetarian version of chicken tikka masala and is easy to put together. It is a perfect accompaniment with rotis and naan. Recipe adapted from Sanjeev Kapoor Ingredients To marinate Paneer - 400 grams Red bell pepper- 1 Green Bell pepper 1 Ginger garlic paste- 1 tsp Turmeric powder- 1/3 tsp Kashmiri Chilly powder- 1/2 tsp Garam masala- 1/2 tsp Cumin powder- a pinch Oil - one tsp Yogurt- 1/2 cup (hung curd) For the gravy Onion - 2 medium Tomatoes- 3 medium Ginger garlic paste-1 tsp Turmeric powder- 1/3 Chilly powder- 3/4 tsp Coriander powder- 1 tsp Garam masala- 1 tsp Cumin powder- 1/2 tsp Kasoori methi- a pinch Bay leaf- 2 Cinnamon stick- 1 Cloves-2 Cardamon 2 Sugar- 1 tsp Cream- 1/2 cup Cut paneer,bell pepper into one inch cubes. Marinate with the rest of the ingredients listed under marinade and keep aside

Avocado Mango Salsa Refreshing mango and avocado salsa with a little it of tangy from lemon and heat of chillies. You can serve this fruity salsa as an appetizer with chips or as part of the main meal. Serve over some baked fish or meat to make a colorful and filling meal. Ingredients Mangoes cubes- 1 large Avocado cubed-2 medium Plum tomato diced- 1/2 Onion- 1/2 finely chopped Green chilly chopped/Jalapeno- 2 Pepper- a pinch Lemon- 2 tsp juice Finely chopped cilantro- 1 tsp salt to taste In a bowl add all the above ingredients,toss and mix and let it marinate in the refrigerator 30 minutes before serving. Serve with chips or with sea food,meat or tacos. Try this Hope you will all enjoy!

Dilkhush- Baking partners challenge#8(Tangzhong Method) Baking partners challenge#8 is learning a new method of bread making. I always wished to learn bread baking at home and I thoroughly enjoyed this months challenge. There were two method of bread making, for this months challenge-one is Asian method Tangzhong and other is Scandinavian method of Scald flour. I tried the Asian Tangzhong method which was relatively easy to put together. More important reason was that I wished to learn the technique of making dilkush or tengai bun which is very soft bread with sweet coconut filling. This was the most popular sweet snack available at a local bakery back home in India and my favorite as a child. I have earlier posted a different version of  dilpasand recipe with pastry dough.It is a quicker version.This post brought back some nostalgic childhood memories. Thanks Swathi for suggesting this recipe White bread/ Dilkhush with Tangzhong method (Adapted from Christine's Reci

Mutton Rogan Josh Mutton Rogan Josh is a dish that I always wished to try, at least the restaurant version. The traditional Kashmiri rogan josh is a very unique and different preparation,the most remarkable is the rich red color for the gravy, which is attained by adding a natural coloring agent called Ratan jog. This dish is so popular  in Northern India and is said to have been influenced by the Mugalai and Persian Cuisine. I searched around a more traditional recipe and it was all confusing. Some are against adding onions and yogurt . Here I tried a more restaurant version with gravy (traditional version is a semi dry curry) and loved the blend of flavors. It is a spicy braised lamb/mutton dish with exotic spices and a rich smooth gravy. It goes well with basmathi rice or roti. Recipe source: Sanjeev Kapoor Kazhana. Ingredients Mutton/Lamb- 1 kg Onions thinly sliced- 4 medium Mustard oil- 3tsp Cinnamon- 2 stick Fennel seeds- 1/3 tsp Cloves- 5-6 Black cardomon

Achinga Payar Kaya Mezhukkupuratti Mezhukkupuratti is quick and easy vegetable stir fry. In Kerala homes, stir-fries are made almost every day with seasonal vegetables. The term itself means stir-fried or coated with oil. If you want the authentic taste of mezhukkupuratti use coconut oil. It imparts a nice aroma to this dish. Stir-fries can be made with one or more vegetables and is a tasty and healthy side dish with rice. Achinga payar or yard long beans and plantain are both common vegetables in every household in Kerala. Both these vegetables are healthy and low calorie.Yard long beans are rich in iron, vitamins folate, and magnesium. Plantains are a staple food in Kerala cuisine and are rich in vitamins and a good source of dietary fiber. I make this combo often and it tastes delicious. Achinda payar tastes best when it is young and slender. Fresh yard long beans will be tender and crisp and can be broken with your hands. This mezhukkupuratti is my favorite Sadhya recipe

Chocolate Mocha Cake  Mocha cake as the name suggests is a dense moist coffee flavored chocolate cake. I adore coffee flavor and the combined flavor will not disappoint you. The frosting is butter cream flavored with cocoa and coffee.This is a delicious cake. I made it a one layer cake,but you can make into a two layer cake as well. Try this,you will surely love it. Recipe adapted from Ellie Krieger,original recipe here  Ingredients Cake flour- 2 cup Cocoa- 1/2 cup Sugar- 3/4 cup Egg-3 Butter-1 stick Baking powder- 1 1/2 tsp Baking soda- 1/2 tsp Salt- 1/4 tsp Espresso coffee powder-2 tbs Vanilla essence-  1 1/2 tsp Low fat yogurt- 1 cup Frosting Powdered Sugar-  3 cup Melted chocolate- 2 ounce espresso coffee- 2 tbs Butter-1/2 cup Vanilla essence- 1 tsp Preheat oven to 350 degree F and grease and prepare cake tin. Mix espresso in 5 Tbs of  hot water and keep aside. Melt butter and allow to slightly cool. Whisk together, flour, cocoa,baking so

Fried Cookies with Ginger Pineapple Glaze Today's recipe is deep fried cookies. There are different types of deep fried cookies, pastry doughs and sandwich cookies.The inspiration for this one is Fried Chinese ginger cookies.I love them because they have a sweet crispy outside and you can try different flavors.This cookie has the enticing ginger and pineapple flavor. The cookie dough is fried and then glazed with a ginger- pineapple sugar syrup. You can also use honey instead of sugar for the syrup.Fry and served warm with the glaze and it is a delicious treat. Ingredients All purpose flour- 2 cup Egg-2 Baking powder- 1/2 tsp Ginger powder- 1/2 tsp Fresh ginger juice- 1 tsp cinnamon powder- a pinch Salt- a pinch Sugar- 2 tbs For the glaze Sugar- 1 cup water- 1/2 cup Ginger juice- 1tsp Pineapple chopped or crushed- 1/2 cup Cinnamon powder- 1/3 tsp Oil for frying  Mix flour, ginger powder, cinnamon powder salt, sugar and baking powder. Make a well

Madhura Pachadi/ Kerala Sadhya Style Mixed Fruit Pachadi Madhura pachadi or sweet pachadi is a traditional Sadhya dish. This exotic pachadi is pleasing to the palate with its perfect balance of sweetness, sourness, and spiciness. Mathura pachadi is a unique dish.  It is very appetizing, with the fruity flavors of pineapple, mango, and ripe plantain and the nutty taste of coconut.  It is thick and creamy curry and is a popular Sadhya recipe in central Kerala. Sadhya, which is a grand vegetarian feast made on all festive occasions. Each curry served in a Sadhya varies in taste, texture, and level of spiciness. Pachadi is a mild soothing curry that has a cooling effect. But you can make this curry anytime you like. And if you are like me and love indulging in spicy food, but always want something soothing and sweet to complement your spicy meal, you should give this pachadi a try. This delicious exotic pachadi is full of flavor and is a great side dish for steamed rice and chapat