Gooseberry Pickle

Ingredients:

• Gooseberry 1/2 k
• Ginger 1 big piece
• Garlic 10 to 15 pods
• Chilly pdr 2 to 3 Tbsp
• Turmeric pdr 1/2 Tsp
• Vinegar 2 to 4 Tbsp
• Fenugreek seeds
• Mustard seeds
• Curry leaves
• Hing (asafoetida) 3/4 Tsp
• Oil (Gingely)
• Salt

Cook gooseberry in water and little salt. Allow it to cool. Keep the water aside and remove the seeds from the berry and slice it into small pieces. Heat oil in a kadai and add mustard seeds and fenugreek seeds. When it splutters, add curry leaves, sliced ginger and garlic. Saute till it turns light brown. Reduce the heat and add chilly pdr, turmeric pdr, hing and salt. Roast it well and pour rqd amount of water (water which was used to cook the gooseberry) and vinegar into it and boil well. Add the cooked gooseberry into it and mix well. Remove it from fire and cool it. Store it in an air tight container.

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Mathanga Vanpayar Erisseri

Ingredients:

• Mathanga (pumpkin) 1/4 kg
• Vanpayar (red gram) 1 cup
• Coconut 1 cup
• Shallots 4 to 5
• Chilly 4 to 5
• Cumin seeds 1/2 Tsp
• Turmeric pdr 1/4 Tsp
• Mustard seeds
• Curry leaves
• Dry chilly

Cook pumpkin and vanpayar seperately with little salt. Mash it with a wooden spoon and keep it aside. Grind together coconut, shallots, chilly, cumin seeds and turmeric pdr. Pour it into the cooked vegetable and combine well. Heat it well and season it with mustard seeds, sliced shallots, curry leaves, dry chilly and grated coconut.

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Manga Chammanthi (Mango Chutney)

Ingredients:

• Raw mango 1 small
• Coconut 1/2 grated
• Green chilly 3 to 4
• Ginger small piece
• Shallots 2 to 3
• Salt

First grind the sliced mango, then add the coconut, chilly, shallots, salt and ginger. Grind it well.

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Chicken Biriyani... Wish you all a wonderful New Year....!!

Ingredients:

For Rice:

• Rice 1 kg
• Water 7 1/2 to 8
• Lime juice of 1 lime
• Cinnamon 1 big piece
• Cardamom 1 to 2
• Cloves 2 to 3
• Ghee as rqd
• Salt

Wash the rice and drain it for 10 to 15 mins. Add 1 tbsp ghee, lime juice, crushed whole spices and salt into water and boil well. At the same time saute the rice in little ghee. When it starts to crack, pour the boiling water into the rice. Cover it and cook well. When it becomes void of moisture content, remove the rice and keep it aside.

For Garnishing:

• Cashew nuts 1/2 cup
• Raisins 1/2 cup
• Fried onion as rqd
• Rose water 1 to 2 Tbsp
• Corriander leaves as rqd
• Mint leaves as rqd

Fry thinly sliced onions in ghee till it turns golden brown. Fry cashews and raisins in the same ghee and keep it aside.

For Marinating Chicken:

• Chicken 1 kg
• Curd 1/2 cup
• Corriander 1/4 bunch
• Mint leaves 1/4 bunch
• Crushed ginger 1 big piece
• Crushed garlic 1 pod
• Green chilly 4 to 5
• Turmeric pdr 1/2 Tsp
• Crushed pepper 1/2 Tsp
• Chilly pdr 1/2 Tsp

Marinate the chicken pieces with finelly chopped mint and coriander leaves. Add the crushed ginger, garlic and sliced chilly along with turmeric pdr, chilly pdr and crushed pepper. Finally add the curd and mix well. Keep it aside for 2 hrs.

For Curry:

• Onion 6 to 7 med
• Tomato 3 to 5 med
• Green chilly 2 to 3
• Mint leaves 1/4 bunch
• Coriander leaves 1/4 bunch
• Ginger garlic paste 2 to 3 Tsp
• Turmeric pdr 1/2 Tsp
• Chilly pdr 1/2 Tsp
• Coriander pdr 1 Tsp
• Garam masala 2 Tsp
• Crushed pepper 1 Tsp
• Cashew paste 30 g
• Oil or ghee

Grind together coriander and mint leaves into a paste and keep it aside. Heat oil or ghee in a pan and add ginger garlic paste and sliced onion. Stir it till it turns light brown. Then add the turmeric pdr, chilly pdr, coriander pdr, crushed pepper corns and garam masala. Cook it well. Pour the above prepared coriander mint paste into the masala and stir it well. Now add the tomatoes and green chilly. Add the marinated chicken and mix well. When the chicken is half done, add the cashew paste. Add rqd amount of salt into it and cook well.

For Layering:

Add fried onion, coriander leaves and mint leaves on the top of chicken. Then add the rice and spread it with a spoon. Sprinkle little rose water and add the fried nuts, raisins and onion. Repeat the same process. Arrange the top most layer with rice and garnish it with fried nuts, raisins, onion and rose water. Cover it well and cook it or bake it for 5 to 10 mins.

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Melting Moments Cookie... Happy X'mas to all....!!

Ingredients:

• All purpose flour (maida) 1 1/2 cup
• Powdered sugar 1/4 cup
• Unsalted butter 1 cup
• Cornflour 1/2 cup
• Vanilla essence 1 Tsp
• Salt 1/4 Tsp

In a bowl mix together all purpose flour, corn flour and salt. Keep it aside. In another bowl, cream the butter and sugar until it's light and fluffy. Add the vanilla extract and the flour mixture into the butter and combine well. Cover and refrigerate the dough for minimum 1 hour. Preheat the oven to 350 deg F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and keep it aside. When the dough is firm, form it into 1 inch balls and place it on the tray. Bake it for 12 to 15 min or until the edges starts to turn brown. Remove it from oven and cool it. When it cools completely, sprinkle powdered sugar on the top of the cookies.

[Recipe Courtesy: JoyOfBaking.com]

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Vazhakka Thoran

Ingredients:

• Raw banana (vazhakka) 3
• Shallots 5 to 10
• Green chilly 3 to 5
• Garlic 5 to 10 pods
• Coconut 1 to 1/4 cup
• Turmeric pdr 1/2 Tsp
• Pepper pdr 1 Tsp
• Mustard seeds
• Curry leaves
• Water
• Salt
• Oil

Peel the skin of the banana and cut it into medium sized cubes. Cook it with salt and little turmeric pdr. Drain the water and keep it aside. Heat oil in a pan and add mustard seeds. When it splutters, add the crushed shallots, garlic, green chilly, curry leaves, little salt and turmeric pdr. Saute till it turns light brown colour. Reduce the heat and add the grated coconut and pepper pdr. Stir it for a few minutes and add the cooked raw banana. Saute it till it becomes dry.

[Recipe Courtesy: From a cookery show.]

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Cabbage Potato Curry

Ingredients:

Potato 1
Chopped cabbage 1/2
Chopped onion 1 big
Crushed ginger 1 Tbsp
Crushed garlic 5 to 6
Chopped chilly 2 to 4
Thick coconut milk 1/2 cup
Meat masala 3 Tsp
Vinegar 1/2 Tsp
Mustard seeds
Curry leaves
Cumin seeds
Water
Salt
Oil

Heat oil in a pan and add mustard seeds. When it splutters, add cumin seeds, curry leaves, crushed garlic, ginger and chilly. Saute it for few mins and add chopped onion and salt. Stir till it turns brown. Then add meat masala and combine it well in low flame. Add potato pieces and cook it for some time. Then put chopped cabbage and mix well. Pour rqd amount of water and vinegar into this. Cook it in med flame. Finally pour the thick coconut milk and heat it for few min. Remove it from fire.

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