Nellikka Chammanthi

Ingredients:

• Nellikka (Gooseberry / Lololika) 10
• Kanthari mulaku (Bird's eye chilly) 5 to 8
• Shallots 5
• Salt as rqd
• Oil 1 Tbsp

Roast or grill the berry over the charcoal (chuttedukkuka) or on the stove top till the skin turns dark in colour. Allow it to cool and cut it into small pieces. Grind all the ingredients together except oil. Transfer it to a bowl and pour rqd amount of oil and mix well.

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

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Mutton Biriyani

Ingredients:
For rice:

• Rice 2 cup
• Water 3 1/2 cup
• Lime juice 1 Tbsp
• Cinnamon 2 piece
• Cardamom 3
• Cloves 3
• Ghee 
• Salt

Soak the rice and drain it for 10 to 15 mins. Add lime juice, crushed whole spices and salt into water and boil well. At the same time, saute the rice in a 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 Marinating Mutton:

• Curd 1/2 cup
• Chilly pdr 1 Tsp
• Crushed pepper 1/2 Tsp
• Turmeric pdr 1/4 Tsp
• Biriyani masala 1/2 Tsp
• Salt

Cut mutton into medium size pieces. Marinate it with turmeric pdr, chilly pdr, biriyani masala and crushed pepper. Finally add the curd and little salt and mix well. Keep it aside for 1 hr. Then pressure cook it and keep it aside.

For Gravy:

• Mutton 1 kg
• Tomato 3
• Onion 3
• Green chilly 5
• Garlic 5 to 10 pods
• Ginger 1 big pice
• Biriyani masala 1 to 2 Tsp
• Turmeric pdr 1/2 Tsp
• Coriander pdr 1/2 Tsp
• Chilly pdr 1 Tsp
• Coriander leaves
• Mint leaves
• Salt
• Ghee

Heat ghee in a kadai and add crushed ginger, garlic and green chilly. Saute it for a few mins and add thinly sliced onion. When it turns light brown, add rqd amount of salt, turmeric pdr, chilly pdr and coriander pdr. Combine it well and put the chopped tomato and brown it well. Then place the cooked mutton  into the masala  and cook it for few mins.  Finally add biriyani masala, chopped coriander and mint leaves. Remove it from fire and keep it aside for few mins.

For Garnishing:

• Cashew nuts 1/2 cup
• Raisins 1/2 cup
• Fried onion as rqd
• 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 layering:

Add little ghee into a heavy bottom vessel and put a layer of mutton. Then arrange a layer of rice and spread it well using a big spoon. Next add chopped coriander leaves, mint leaves and fried onion. Repeat the same process and arrange the final layer with rice. Garnish it wth little ghee, corriander leaves and mint leaves, fried cashews, kismis and onion. Cover it well and cook it in low flame for 10 to 15 mins.

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

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Chembin Thalu (Taro stem) Thoran

Ingredients:

• Taro stem 2
• Coconut 1 cup
• Mustard seeds
• Turmeric pdr 1/4 Tsp
• Curry leaves
• Chilly 2 to 4
• Shallots 3
• Salt
• Oil

Peel off the skin of the taro stem and chop it well. Mix it with salt and keep it aside for 15 mins. Then squeeze it well. Grind together coconut, green chilly, shallots and turmeric pdr. Heat oil and splutter mustard seeds. Then add curry leaves and coconut mix into this. Saute it for few mins and put chopped stem into this. Combine it slowly and cook it.

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Shortbread with a Citrus twist

Ingredients:

• Maida 1 1/4 cup
• Cold butter 1/4 cup
• Lemon peel 1 Tbsp
• Sugar 4 Tbsp

Preheat oven to 325 deg F. In a bowl, stir together flour, sugar and the lemon peels. Mix the cold butter with the flour and form a ball and knead until smooth. Shape the dough into 1 inch balls and place them on an ungreased cookie sheet. Flatten balls until they are 1/4 inch thick. Bake for 15 to 18 mins or just until bottoms start to become brown and centers are set. Transfer to a wire rack and let it cool.

[Recipe courtesy: Better Homes and Gardens The Ultimate Cookie Book]

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Chettinadu Chicken

Ingredients:

• Chicken 8 to 10 piece
• Saunf (fennel seeds) 1 Tsp
• Turmeric pdr
• Shallots 1/4 kg
• Dry chilly 10 to 15
• Coriander leaves
• Curry leaves
• Tomato 2
• Water
• Oil 
• Salt

Marinate chicken with turmeric pdr and salt. Heat oil in a kadai and saute saunf, splitted dry chilly and curry leaves. Then add sliced shallots into this and roast it well. When it turns brown, put chopped tomatoes and cook well. Finally add chicken, salt and little water. Remove it from fire and add chopped coriander.

[Recipe Courtesy: Vanitha]

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Nutmeg Jam

Ingredients:

• Nutmeg (outer fleshy part) 1 kg
• Nutmeg pdr 1/4 Tsp (optional)
• Sugar 3/4 kg

Clean and cut the outer fleshy part of nutmeg into small pieces. Then pressure cook it using little water. After cooling down, grind it well  and transfer it to a thick bottom vessel or non-stick kadai. Cook it in high flame  for few mins and add sugar into it and reduce the flame. Stir it continously without burning it. When it thickens and reaches the consistency of a jam, add the nutmeg pdr and mix well. Allow it to cool completely and refrigerate it.

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Rasam

Ingredients:

• Toor dal 1/4 cup
• Tamarind lemon sized
• Tomato 3
• Chilly pdr 1/4 Tsp
• Pepper pdr 1/2 Tsp
• Hing a pinch
• Cumin pdr a pinch
• Rasam pdr 1/2 Tsp 
• Curry leaves
• Jaggery a pinch
• Turmeric pdr 1/4 Tsp
• Coriander leaves 
• Mustard seeds 
• Curry leaves
• Dry chilly 3
• Water
• Oil

Soak the dal for 1/2 hr and cook it with salt and required amount of water. Add the tamarind extract into this. Then add tomato, chilly pdr, pepper pdr, hing, cumin, rasam pdr, curry leaves, jaggery, and turmeric into the cooked dal and boil it well. Season it with mustard seeds, curry leaves and dry chilly. Finally add chopped coriander leaves.

[Recipe Courtesy: Vanitha]

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