Top Ten Recipes of 2011

It's time to bid good-bye to 2011 and welcome a grand new year, 2012....!! Wishing all my friends and readers a fun filled New Year....!!

Just a quick recap of the Top Ten Recipes of 2011, you voted for:

1.      Snow White Cake

2.    Chocolate Brownie

3.     Tender Coconut Smoothie

4.      Pineapple Pudding

5.     Marble Cake

6.     Thenga Chuttaracha Chammanthi (Roasted Coconut Chutney)

7.      Ottada

8.      Pavakka Achar

9.       Shortbread with a Citrus twist

10.    Chembin Thalu (Taro stem) Thoran

Old Fashioned Fruit Cake

Wishing all my friends a lovely Christmas...!!

Ingredients:
[The below ingredients are sufficient to create two 8"  cakes.]

To soak:

• Jam 2 Tbsp
• Dry fruits 650 g
• Orange juice ½ cup
• Granulated sugar 6 Tbsp
• Vanilla extract 1 Tbsp
• Rum / Brandy 5 Tbsp
• Lemon juice 1 Tbsp
• Powder of 1" stick cinnamon
• Grated nutmeg 1
• Powder of 12 cloves 

Mix everything together in a clean jar or container. If you plan to keep this mixture for more than a day, keep it refrigerated.

For the caramel:

• Granulated sugar 1½ cup
• Hot water ¾ cup

Put granulated sugar into a heavy bottomed pan and heat it in medium to high flame untill it reaches black in colour. At this point, switch off the flame and slowly pour the hot water little by little into the caramalised sugar. Keep it aside.

For the cake:

• Pwd sugar 300 g
• Unsalted butter 250 g
• Eggs 5 separated
• Granulated sugar 6 Tbsp
• All purpose flour 200g
• Baking pdr 1½ Tsp
• Cashew nuts 100 g
• Milk ¾ cup
• Rava 50 g

Grease and line the bottom of the two 8" inch cake pans with butter paper and keep it aside.

Beat the egg whites and 6 tbsp granulated sugar till it turns glossy and stiff. Cream the butter and powdered sugar till it becomes fluffy. Then add the egg yolks one by one and beat well after each addition. Put the soaked dry fruits and mix it. Then add the dry ingredients (flour, baking powder and rava) into it and mix well. Pour the milk and caramel syrup into this. Finally, fold in the beaten egg whites. Transfer this onto the greased cake pans.

Pre-heat the oven into 180° C. Bake it for 1 hr 45 mins. Baking time varies from oven to oven.

[Recipe courtesy: Ria's Collection]

Marble Cake

Ingredients:

• All purpose flour 1¼ cup
• Vanilla essence 2 Tsp
• Milk ½ cup + 2 Tsp
• Cocoa pdr 2 Tbsp
• Baking pdr 2 Tsp
• Butter 1/3 cup
• Salt ½ Tsp
• Sugar 1 cup
• Egg 2

Pre heat the oven at 180° C for 10 min. Sieve together flour, salt and baking powder twice and keep it aside. Beat sugar and butter till it becomes creamy.  Add egg one by one and beat well. Slowly add the flour into the egg and mix it. Pour milk and vanilla essence into this.  Mix cocoa pdr in a little milk and add into the ¼ portion of batter. Pour half of the vanilla mix into the greased pan. Over it pour spoonfuls of chocolate mix. Again, pour the vanilla mix over it. Then swirl it using a knife or fork. Bake it for 35 to 40 mins.

Red Goan Chicken

Ingredients:

• Veg oil 4 Tbsp
• Sliced onion 1 big
• Goan red spice paste  4 Tbsp
• Chicken 1½ lb
• Tomato 4 big
• Salt

Recipe for Goan red spice paste:

• Cloves 3
• Peppercorns 6
• Cumin seeds 1 Tsp
• Coriander seeds 1½ Tsp
• Fresh red chilly (de-seeded) 2
• White wine vinegar 1/3 cup
• Cinnamon 1½ inch piece
• Ground turmeric ¾ Tsp
• Tamarind paste 1 Tsp
• Ginger ½ in slice
• Garlic pods 9
• Sugar ¾ Tsp
• Salt ¾ Tsp

Grind all the ingredients into a fine paste and keep it aside. Heat oil in a kadai and saute the onion until it turns brown. Add the grounded spice paste into it and roast it well till it is void of the raw smell. Then add the chopped tomatoes and salt. Cover it and cook well. When the tomato becomes soft, remove the lid and cook it for another 5 to 6 mins or until it becomes dark in color. Then put the chicken pieces and saute it for a few mins. Pour 1 cup of water into it and boil it. Cover it and cook it in low flame for 20 to 25 mins. Uncover and saute the chicken in high flame until it turns thick and dark in color.

[Recipe courtesy: Anjum's New Indian, Anjum Anand]

Jam Cookies

Ingredients:

• Egg 1
• Butter  100 gm
• Vanilla essence 1 Tsp
• Powdered sugar ½ cup
• Granulated sugar 2 to 3 Tbsp
• Maida 1½  cup
• Jam as required

Beat the powdered sugar and butter together. Add the egg into it and mix well. Pour the vanilla essence into the mixture. Slowly add maida into it and knead it into a soft dough. Refrigerate it in the lower rack for 15 mins. Make lemon size balls of it and coat it in granulated sugar. Place them in a baking tray and bake it for 6 mins at 180° C. Take the cookies out and press the top of the cookie with your thumb. Again bake it for 8 to 10 mins. Allow it to cool and fill the top of the cookie with jam. 

[Recipe courtesy: Magic Oven, Lakshmi Nair]

One Bowl Vanilla Cake

Ingredients:

• Softened butter 100 gm
• Sugar 1¼ cup
• Egg 1
• All purpose flour 1¾ cup
• Vanilla custard pdr ½ cup
• Salt 1 Tsp
• Baking pdr 3½ Tsp
• Milk 1¼ cup
• Vanilla essence 1 Tsp

Beat sugar and butter till it becomes creamy and fluffy. Then add the egg and combine well. Add  rest of the ingredients one by one and whisk it into a smooth batter. Pour it into the cake pan and bake it for 45 mins at 180° C (it took 55 mins for me). Remove it from the pan and cool it.

[Recipe Courtesy: My Diverse Kitchen]

Simple Chicken Biriyani

Ingredients:

• Rice 2 cups
• Ghee 4 Tbsp
• Chicken 700 gm 
• Boiling water 3½ cup
• Lemon juice 1 Tsp
• Crushed garlic 2 Tbsp
• Crushed ginger 2 Tbsp
• Crushed green chilly 10 
• Sliced onion 4
• Turmeric pdr ½ Tsp
• Kashmiri chilly pdr 1 Tsp
• Tomato sauce 1 Tbsp
• Curd 1½ Tbsp
• Coriander leaves 1 handful
• Mint leaves 1 handful
• Garam masala 1 Tsp
• Fried onion 1 small
• Cashew nuts 15
• Kismis 15
• Salt

Wash and soak the rice for 15 mins and drain it. Heat ghee in a biriyani pot and add crushed ginger, garlic and green chilly. Brown it for a few mins and add the sliced onion. Saute it till it becomes transluscent. Reduce the heat and add turmeric pdr, chilly pdr, salt, tomato sauce, garam masala and curd into onion and saute it well. Then add ¾th of the chopped coriander leaves and mint into the above mixture along with sliced chicken and cook. Simultaneously, boil 3½ cup of water in another pan. When the chicken is half cooked, put the drained rice into this and mix it slowly. Pour the boiling water and lemon juice into rice. Cover and cook it in low flame. Remove it from fire and garnish it with kismis, cashews and fried onion.

[Recipe courtesy: Magic Oven, Lakshmi Nair]

Kozhi Varuthathu

Ingredients:

For Marinating :

• Chicken 1/4 kg
• Kashmiri chilly pdr 1 Tbsp
• Garam masala 1/4 Tsp
• Turmeric pdr 1/4 Tsp
• Pepper pdr 1 Tsp
• Rice flour 2 Tsp
• Vinegar 1 Tbsp
• Water
• Salt

Combine all the powders into a thick paste using vinegar and little water. Marinate the chicken with this and keep it aside for 1 to 2 hrs. Heat oil in a kadai and fry it well. (Heat oil well and reduce the flame after putting the chicken. Cover it and fry well).

For frying:

• Sliced onion 1 big
• Crushed garlic 10 pods
• Sliced green chilly 2 to 3
• Curry leaves one handful

Combine all the ingredients and fry it in the same oil we used for frying the chicken. Transfer it onto a tissue. Then mix it with the fried chicken and serve it hot with rice or roti.

Chocolate Brownie

Ingredients:

• Butter 50g
• Dark chocolate 75g
• Cocoa pdr 10g
• Maida 40g
• Sugar 150 g
• Egg 2
• Wanuts 25g
• Cashew nuts 50g
• Vanilla essence 5 ml

Preheat the oven to 180 deg C. Melt butter and chocolate together and keep it aside. Combine maida and cocoa pdr. Mix it with crushed cashew and walnuts. Beat sugar and egg till it becomes fluffy and pour the melted chocolate-butter mixture into this. Slowly add the flour and vanilla essence and mix well. Transfer this batter into a greased pan and bake it for 30 mins at 180 deg C.

[Recipe courtesy: Vanitha]

Snow White Cake

Ingredients:

• All purpose flour 250 gm
• Vanilla essence 2 Tsp
• Pwd sugar 250 gm
• Baking pdr 2 Tsp
• Milk 1/2 cup
• Butter 250 gm
• Egg white of 4 eggs

Preheat the oven to 160 deg C. Mix flour and baking pdr and sieve it twice. Combine butter and powdered sugar till it becomes creamy. Then add the egg whites into this and beat well. Alternately, add flour and milk (beginning and ending with flour) into egg white and mix it using a wooden spoon. Finally mix the vanilla essence, pour the batter into a greased pan and bake it for 40 mins at 160 deg C. (It took 53 mins for me.) Transfer it to a wire rack and cool it.

[Recipe courtesy: Vanitha magazine]

Matha Ila (Pumpkin leaf) Thoran

Ingredients:

• Pumpkin leaves 10
• Kanthari mulaku 5
• Turmeric pdr 1/4 Tsp
• Mustard seeds
• Coconut 1 cup
• Curry leaves
• Shallots 3
• Water
• Oil

Clean the leaves and slice it thinly. Crush coconut, shallots, chilly and turmeric pdr. Heat oil in a kadai and splutter mustard seeds. Then add sliced shallots and curry leaves. Saute it and add the crushed coconut and required amount of salt. Finally place the sliced leaves into it and combine well. Sprinkle little water over the leaves and cook it.

Crunchy Chicken Bites

Ingredients:

For marination:

• Boneless chicken 1/4 kg
• Ginger paste 1/2 Tsp
• Garlic paste 1/2 Tsp
• Pepper pdr 1 Tsp
• Lime juice 2 Tsp
• Salt

Clean and cut chicken into medium pieces. Marinate it with ginger- garlic paste, pepper pdr, lime juice and salt for 1/2 to 1 hr. Then, microwave it in high power for 2 to 4 mins. Keep it aside and cool it.

For frying:

• Crushed cornflakes 2 cup
• All purpose flour 1 cup
• Pepper pdr 1 Tsp
• Egg 1
• Salt
• Oil

Crush the cornflakes and keep it aside. Mix salt, all purpose flour and pepper pdr well. First roll the cooked chicken pieces in flour mixture, then dip it in beaten egg and roll it in crushed cornflakes. Heat oil in a kadai and fry it. Since it was cooked before, we do not need to fry it for a longer period. Serve it with tomato ketchup or garlic sauce.

Pavakka Achar

Ingredients:

• Bittergourd 3
• Green chilly 8 to 10
• Sliced garlic 10 pods
• Sliced ginger 1 1/2 Tbsp
• Turmeic powder a pinch
• Curry leaves one handful
• Fenugeek seeds 1/2 Tsp
• Mustard seeds 1 Tsp
• Gingely / veg oil 
• Vinegar 1/2 cup
• Water 1/2 cup
• Salt

Clean and cut bittergourd into lengthwise pieces. Mix it with little salt and vinegar and keep it aside for 1 hr or more. Squeeze it and keep it aside (the above procedure helps to decrease the bitterness). Heat oil in a kadai and add mustard seeds and fenugreek seeds. When it splutters, add curry leaves, sliced ginger, garlic and green chilly. Saute it for few mins and add a pinch of turmeric pdr and salt. Pour water and vinegar into this and boil it well. Reduce the flame and place the bittergourd, mix it and remove it from fire. 

(You can increase or decrease the amount of chilly and vinegar accoding to your taste).

Puttum Payarum Pinne Pappadavum

Ingredients:

For Soft Puttu:

• Roasted rice flour 1 cup
• Cooked rice 1 cup
• Grated coconut 3/4 to 1 cup
• Salt

For preparing soft puttu, put equal amount of cooked rice (I use Kerala kuthari), roasted rice flour and salt in a mixie and grind it just once or twice. Don't grind it continuously or too much. Transfer it to a bowl and add half of the coconut and mix well. Check the salt.

For preparing puttu, put a layer of grated coconut into the puttu kutti (puttu maker) followed by rice flour and then again a layer of grated coconut. Steam it for 5 to 8 minutes until the steam passes from the top of the puttu kutti. Serve it hot with cherupayar mezhukkupuratty (moong dal) and pappadam. 

[Recipe Courtesy of soft Puttu: My Aunt]

Sending this to Kerala Kitchen, hosting by Khusi of A Girl's Diary.

Vendakka (Bhindi) Soup

Ingredients:

• Vendakka (bhindi)10
• Water 4 to 5 cups
• Pepper pdr 1 Tbsp
• Butter or ghee 2 Tsp
• Turmeric pdr a pinch
• Shallots 5
• Salt

Clean and cut the bhindi into medium pieces and cook it well adding little water, just enough to keep the bhindi submerged. Allow it to cool and seive the extract. Add double quantity of water or more into the extract untill it reaches a watery consistency and keep it aside. Heat ghee or butter in a kadai and saute sliced shallots till it turns light brown. Then add turmeric pdr and pepper pdr into this and mix well. Pour the extract
(along with water) into this and boil it well. Finally add required amount of salt and combine well. Remove it from fire. Serve it hot.

[ Recipe Courtesy: My Grandmother ]

Sending this to Kerala Kitchen, hosting by Khusi of A Girl's Diary.

Kaju Katli

Ingredients:

• Cashews 1 cup
• Sugar 1/2 cup
• Water 1/4 cup
• Milk 1 T bsp
• Ghee                      

Powder the cashews well using grinder. (Do not use the cashews direct from the fridge. Thaw it first.) Next, boil sugar and water and stir it continously. When it reaches a one-thread consistency, add the powdered cashew into it and mix well. Reduce the flame. When it  boils and the cashew paste gets thick remove it from fire. You can check the consistency by rolling a pinch of cashew paste between your fingers. If it's the right consistency, it will roll into an non sticky ball. Stir it for a few more mins and transfer it to a flat surface or to the counter top and knead till it becomes soft and smooth. If the dough appears dry, sprinkle little milk into it and continue kneading. Grease a dish or plate with little ghee and roll it about 1/2 inch thickness and cut it diagonally.

[ Recipe courtesy: Rakskitchen ]

Traditional Chicken Roast

Ingredients:

• Chicken 1/2 kg
• Onion 4 big
• Tomato 2 big
• Shallots 10
• Garlic 15 pods
• Ginger 1 big piece
• Pepper pdr 1/4 Tsp
• Turmeric Pdr 1/2 Tsp
• Chilly pdr (spicy) 2 Tsp
• Kashmiri chilly pdr 3 Tsp
• Garam masala 1/2 to 1 Tsp
• Cashew paste 1 Tbsp
• Mustard seeds
• Curry leaves
• Salt
• Oil

Clean and cut the chicken into medium pieces. Marinate it with pepper pdr, salt and little turmeric pdr for 1 to 2 hrs. Then shallow fry it and keep it aside. Grind together shallots, garlic and ginger. Add both the chilly pdrs and turmeric pdr into this and make a fine paste. Heat oil in a kadai and splutter mustard seeds and curry leaves. Brown the above prepared paste till dark and the oil gets separated. Put sliced onion and saute until it becomes soft. Then add the chopped tomatoes and cook it (do not add water). Add the shallow fried chicken and garam masala and cook well. Finally add the cashew paste till it is warm. Remove it from fire. Serve it with palappam or hot rice.

Sending this to Kerala Kitchen, hosting by Khusi of A Girl's Diary.

Gulab Jamun

Ingredients:

• Milk powder 1 cup
• All purpose flour 1/4 cup
• Vegetable oil 2 Tbsp
• Baking soda 1/4 Tsp
• Cardamom pdr   1 Tsp
• Milk as rqd
• Sugar 11/2 cup
• Water 1 cup

For the sugar syrup, boil water with sugar and cardamom pdr till the sugar completely dissolves. Keep it aside. Sieve the all purpose flour and baking soda. Add milk powder into this and combine well. Make it into a smooth dough using oil and required amount of milk. Make small balls from it. Fry it in oil and soak it in sugar syrup. Heat it in low flame for few minutes and remove it from fire.