Kitchen Corner-Try It

   Easy Pineapple Cream Cheese Danish Cream cheese danish is one of my favorite pastries. Imagine biting into layers upon layers of wonderfully flaky buttery goodness, with a sweet fruit filling. Do you like flaky layered pastry? What is your favorite filling? This Pineapple Danish is to die for, super delicious with tropical flavor. You can use fresh pineapple, caramelized pineapple, cooked pineapple, or pineapple jam. Pineapple is my personal favorite, but you can use apricot, raspberries, strawberries, or whatever your heart desires. This delectable fruit treat is the perfect tea-time snack/dessert. If you love to entertain, this is a snack that never fails to impress. Danish pastry dough usually consists of flour, yeast, eggs, and butter. They are made with a butter lamination similar to puff pastry and croissants. Like croissants, Danish pastry dough is rolled out thinly and then folded with a layer of butter. It results in forming multiple layers that are buttery and fla...

Bacon Cheese Balls Today's recipe is a quick and easy appetizer or snack. You can make this ahead of time and it freezes like a charm. It is a great time saver if you are planning a get-together. Are you are looking for delightful crispy snacks for entertaining or a game-day snack? Then why not try this yummy bacon cheese balls. This is one of the most requested ones at home and my kid loves this so much. I make it sometimes for his school lunch and it is always a hit. It is so addictive! Trust me it will be gone before you realize. I tried this for the first time at a friend's dinner party and loved the flavor profile of this snack. I have been making this for so many years now and experimenting with different flavors. If you wish to make variations, continue reading. I have listed down below different ways to make this recipe extra special. Experiment a little and find a flavor combo that makes your taste buds happy! Bacon cheese balls are deep-fried, bite-sized fi...

Sabudana/Sago Pearls Vada Vadas are crispy fried snacks perfect for munching at tea time with hot tea. Combine it with any kind of spicy or sweet chutney/sauce, vada is a delightful savory snack. In South India vadas are also served for breakfast. I often make parippu vada and uzhunnu vada, both made identically by grinding lentils and deep-fried into crispy golden fitters. This is the first time I am making Sabudana/sago/tapioca pearls/chowari vadas and found that they are relatively easy to make.Sabudana Vada/tikkis is a Maharashtrian snack usually made and served during festivals and vrats or fasting. The best part of this recipe is that it is a vegan gluten-free snack. This recipe also calls for roasted peanuts. It adds an extra crunch. I got this recipe idea from Vah chef youtube channel. I instantly fell in love this these vadas, especially its spicy and crispy crust. Back home we only used sabudana/sago to make puddings or payasam. So for me, sago was only for desse...

Crispy Thai Fried Bananas- Street Food Inspired Banana Fritters Thai fried bananas/ Kluay Khaek is a must-try yummy Thai street food. Fritters are delightfully sweet to satisfy your sweet cravings, crispy and crunchy on the outside with the creamy soft inside. Batter-fried fruit is by no means uncommon. There are so many variations out there, and fried bananas with a scoop of vanilla ice cream or drizzled with chocolate syrup is a delicious treat. Thai bananas taste best on their own, the crispness is what makes them the best-tasting fried banana fitters out there. It is the batter that makes these fried bananas so delicious. The batter is not cakey, but light and crispy. Rice flour makes it light and crisp, and coconut milk adds flavor. Sesame seeds and freshly grated coconut add a delightful crunch. These fitters are not overly sweet but have enough sweetness to indulge with hot piping tea. Bananas are naturally sweet, and the small variety I have used here is sweet and flavor...

Sri Lankan Prawn Vada/Isso Wade Deep-fried lentil fitters are addictive snacks. It has a taste all to its own- crunchy, delicious, and mildly spicy. It is a perfect accompaniment with piping hot tea. The Sri Lankan Prawn Vada/Isso Wade is very similar to the parippu vada served in tea stalls in South India. Adding shrimp takes this snack to a new level. Sri Lanka has an extensive collection of  Short Eats  or snacks that are eaten anytime at bakeries, restaurants, and tea stalls.   The book  Sri Lankan Cooking: 64 Recipes from the Chefs and Kitchens of Sri Lanka by Douglas Bullis, Wendy Hutton  was my first introduction to Sri Lankan cooking. It has several unique recipes, and this vada was one among them. There are some similarities with South Indian food. The close physical proximity between Sri Lanka and Southern India explains similarities in culinary practices. But the island nation has its unique touch.  Isso Wade is a distant cousin of par...

 Rice murukku/ Chakali   Happy Diwali to all my friends and readers!  Are you looking for a savory snack for Diwali? Then why not try this irresistible salty, and savory snack. It is known as murukku in South India and Chakali in Northern India and is always for Diwali at home. Murukku is the perfect tea time, and at my house, murukku is everyone's favorite. My mom often makes big batches of murukku, and it can be stored at room temperature for over a month. So whenever, you are craving a snack in the evening, along with tea, try this recipe. It is simple to make. Murukku is a deep-fried crunchy and delicious snack. They are made, with rice flour and urad dal. I am also sharing a second recipe made with maida or all-purpose flour. The word murukku means twisted, and the dough is twisted in spirals or coils using a mold or sometimes by hand. The one made with the hand is called kai murukku and needs the practice to form the perfect shape. The mold makes it easier to shape....

Bread Vada Bread vada can be made with left over bread, it is an instant vada. It is a yummy tea time snack and can be made in a jiffy.This recipe is inspired from Mrs. Vahchef YouTube Channel. It is soft and spongy in the inside and crispy outside. It is mildly spiced and flavored with pearl onions,ginger and curry leaves. Try this, you will surely love it. Ingredients Bread slices- 8 Rava/Sooji- 3 tbs Rice flour- 2 tbs Chilly powder- 1/2 tsp (optional) Asafoetida/Hing- a pinch Yogurt -1/2 cup Pearl Onions- 4-5 Ginger finely chopped- 1 inch thick Curry leaves finely chopped- 1 spring Green chilly  finely chopped- 3 salt to taste Oil- 2 cup to fry   In a food processor pulse the bread till it becomes a course mixture. Transfer this into a bowl and add the rice flour,rava, salt, chilly powder and hing(asafoetida) and mix well. Into this add the yogurt and mix. Adjust consistency by adding little water. Do not add too much water,just enough to moist t...

Raspberry Cream Cheese Danish Cream cheese danish is one of my favorite pastry. It is quick and easy to make if you have store brought puff pastry sheets. Cream cheese with fresh fruit makes a delicious filling. But you can also make sauce or use jam filling.The flaky buttery puffs with creamy fruit filling is super delicious. Try this, you will surely love it. Ingredients Puff pastry sheet- 2 Cream cheese - 8 0z. Powdered sugar- 3/4 cup Fresh raspberries- 3/4 cup (or any fruit jam) Flour- 1 tbs Vanilla essence- 1 tsp Chopped nuts- 1 tbs Egg white-1 Using a hand mixer whip cream cheese till soft and creamy. Add confectionery sugar and whip till well blended. Finally add vanilla essence and flour and whisk till it is creamy.Add raspberry and fold in. Refrigerate till ready to use. Thaw puff pastry sheet according to package instructions. Pre heat oven to 375 degree F. Spread the puff pastry on an ungreased baking sheet. Spread the filling towards the center ...

Ethapazham Aval Nachathu Beaten rice/aval is often served as a quick and healthy tea time snack in Kerala.Aval nanachathu is a mixture of aval, coconut, sugar and bananas. This is almost a similar version with caramelized plantains and jaggery. Ingredients Poha or aval - 1 1/2 cup (I used the brown one) Jaggery- powdered-1/2 cup Roasted cashew nuts- a few Roasted Sesame seeds- 3 tbs Shredded coconut- 1 cup Raisins- 10-12 (optional) Cardamon powder- 1/2 tsp Ghee-1+1 tsp Plantain ripe-2 medium Sugar- 2 tbs Cut plantains into small cubes. Toast sesame seeds till golden and set aside.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. Take aval in a large bowl and add coconut,ghee, powdered jaggery and cardamom powder. Mix well with your hands till the ...

Sesame Brittle/Ellu Mittai Ellu Mittai/ sesame brittle is old fashioned sugar and nuts candy. Earlier I posed sesame ladoo recipe with jaggery. This brittle is made with sugar. It is easy to make at home and make crunchy,delightful and tasty snack. Crispy nuts with the rich caramel flavor is something that is irresistible and kids will surely love it. Here I have used sesame seeds,but you can use peanuts, cashew nuts or any nuts of your choice. Ingredients Sesame seeds- 1 1/2 cup Sugar- 1 1/2 cup Water- 3 tbs Oil- 2 tbs Ghee- 1 tsp Baking soda- 1/4 tsp salt- a  pinch Cardamon powder-  1/2 tsp   Dry roast sesame seeds till it starts popping up and there is a nice aroma. Allow this to cool down. Grease a baking pan with ghee and set aside. In a heavy bottom pan add sugar, water, oil and a pinch of salt. Put this on the stove on low medium flame and heat it. The sugar will start melting and slowly caramelize. There is no need to stir in the first st...

Vada Pav is a very popular street food in India. Road side food joints of Bombay is the best place to get this yummy and filling snack. This is a home made version of the vada pav. Vada pav is basically batata vada served with spicy chutney and bread/pav.I wanted to try this for quite some time and had book marked Tarala Dalal's vada pav  recipe . I found pav bread in our Indian grocery and so decided to give it a try. If you are looking for fresh home made pav bread recipe, check here. Ingredients  Pav- bread- 6 For the Vada filling Cooked and mashed potatoes- 2 large Ginger garlic paste- 1 tsp Green chilly paste-3/4 tsp Curry leaves -a few Hing- 1/8 tsp Turmeric powder-1/3 tsp mustard seeds- 1/3 tsp Chopped coriander leaves salt to taste For the batter Chick peas flour- 1 cup Rice flour- 1 tsp Baking soda- a pinch salt to taste Turmeric powder- a pinch Hing- a pinch Hot oil- 1 tsp Oil for frying- 2 cup  Chilly garlic chutney Coconut- 3/4 ...

Neyyappam Neyyappam is a traditional sweet/snack of Kerala. It is deep fried fitters made with rice and jaggery and with the enticing flavor of ghee and cardamom.You can use karupatti/palm jaggery or regular jaggery. Batter is mixed into a smooth thick paste and fermented overnight. But you can add baking soda if you want to make it the same day itself.  The proportion of rice and jaggery/karupatti is 3:2 ratio,adjust according to the sweetness you prefer.This ever popular delicacy is soft in the inside and crispy in the out side. Ingredients Raw rice- 2  cup Karupatti- 1 1/3 cup (adjust according to taste) Cardamon crushed- 5-6 pods Chopped coconut slices- 3 tbs Dry ginger/chukku - a pinch Cumin powder- a pinch Black sesame seeds- 1/2 tsp Baking soda- a pinch Salt- a pinch Ghee- 2 tbs Oil for frying Wash and soak rice for 4-5 hour. Drain and spread the rice on kitchen towel and allow to air dry till it is almost dry. Make a fine powder of the ri...