Pongalo Pongal!

We were ‘Hanging Out’ with our friends  +Shanmugam Sundaram  and +Gomatha A  the other day on Google + and could see Shannu eating a plate of delicious Pongal (a traditional South Indian rice and lentil dish made on the festival of Thai Pongal). This inspired me to make the next recipe post about Pongal.

What you need:

Ponni Raw rice                  - 1 cup Pasi paruppu                     -1/3 cup


For the seasoning

Cumin Seeds                      – 1 ½ tsp
Ginger   Cubed                  – 6-10 cubes depending on size
Whole black pepper        – 3 tsp
Oil                                          - 2 tbsp
Curry leaves                       – 1 sprig

Green Chilli (Split)           - 4

Garnish

Ghee                                      - 1 tbsp

Split Cashew Nuts            – 6 or 7

What you have to do

1.       In a warm wok, lightly heat the rice and moong dal.

2.       When it is warm (do not wait for it to brown, you just need it heated through) place it in a cooker with salt to taste and green chillies.

3.       Water measurement: I used 5 cups of water, but I recommend 5 ½ cups because mine came out a bit too dry

4.       Cook it till it is slightly mushy. If rice is still grainy when you open the cooker, just mash it slightly with the back of a spoon

5.       Temper whole black pepper, cumin seeds, ginger and curry leaves, mix them with the rice

6.       Heat Ghee in a separate vessel, fry the cashews until they are golden brown and garnish rice

It goes well with Sambar and Coconut Chutney  

Psst!

You can omit the green chilies if you do not like your food to be spicy. My husband needs his food eye wateringly hot!

If you love your ghee, then omit the oil and use Ghee for tempering as well.

Nutella Cupcakes

Today is my nephew’s birthday. He is all the way across the ocean in India. We decided to make some cupcakes and celebrate his birthday from far off J

When he visited us in Dubai, he went gaga over Nutella! That inspired me to bake Nutella Cupcakes and maybe try and honour his hero Ben 10.

To a person who is new to decorating cakes and with a creative handicap, this proved to be the greatest challenge of all. Not baking, but getting it to say Ben 10 – somehow…

Thanks to +Jose Pratheesh they did not come out looking like I microwaved a Martian on my cupcakes J Now I’m waiting for the little guy’s verdict after he looks at the photos (Sad that he cannot taste it though)

What I used:

2 Tablespoons Unsalted butter

1/2 cup Nutella spread

2 Eggs

1cup Self raising flour

1/2 teaspoon Vanilla bean paste

¼ teaspoon almond essence (if using hazelnuts)

1/8 cup sugar (Use half brown and half white for extra chewiness but I didn’t care much for it)

What I did:

1.       Line cupcake tray with paper or liners and set aside.

2.       Pre-heat oven to 180C or 350 F. Beat the butter until creamy.

3.       Add Vanilla and Almond essences and mix well.

4.       Whisk in the sugar until well combined.

5.       Throw in the eggs and whisk away!.

6.       Work up a sweat and mix the nutella in - remember the calories coming at you!

7.       Now, just fold the flour and nuts in. DO NOT over mix at this stage

8.       Spoon the batter into the muffin cups and bake till tooth pick comes out wet but with gooey crumbs (15 mins in my oven, but start checking after 12 mins)

9.       Cool completely on a wire rack

10.   Spread a sinfully delicious Nutella Ganache (Recipe coming up next) and enjoy!

It is best paired with Coffee sans sugar and thoughts of hitting the treadmill for an extra 30mins this week!

P.S: I left my cupcakes in too long because I was on the phone, so some of them came out with a slightly tough crust. But with the ganache and the chewy soft inside, I hardly noticed the crust J

Mushroom Boat Salad

A ridiculously simple salad that is delicious, healthy and fun to eat. I made this Salad for our Wedding Anniversary Dinner and it was wonderful. It gently toys with your senses: hot, cold, tangy, crispy and soft at the same time. Picking up and interacting with food can be construed as messy by some and well… sensual for others. Without much ado, here is the recipe for super simple Mushroom Boat Salad.

Ingredients:

Mushrooms                 – 1 Cup Finely Sliced

Onions                       – 1 Large Finely sliced (according to your preference or level of laziness)

Red / Yellow Peppers    – 1 Diced (If using both, use ½ of each)

Garlic                        – 2 or 3 Crushed (optional)

Baby Radishes            – 5 sliced in circles

Butter / Olive Oil         – 1Tablespoon

Vinegar                     – 1 Teaspoon

Lettuce (Romaine)     

Directions:

1.      Break open the lettuce and choose the ribs that look firm but tender and have room to hold the salad.

2.      Put them in the refrigerator or in a bowl of ice to firm them up and help them hold their shape

Mushroom Boat Salad

3.      Slice the radishes into fine circles, toss them in a few drops of vinegar and some salt and put them in the fridge

4.      Heat oil / butter in a pan

5.      Add onion and sauté till translucent. I skipped the onions because I was just too lazy to peel and chop one.

6.      Throw in the mushrooms and sauté until done*

7.      When you are a minute or so from finishing the mushrooms, add the peppers and continue to cook over medium heat

8.      Add salt and pepper to taste

9.      I do not use other herbs because they might overwhelm the beautiful flavors of the veggies but a few crushed garlic (added to the onions) / herbs never hurt anybody

10.  Put a few slices of cold tangy radish in the lettuce boat, spoon some of the warm veggies into the lettuce and serve immediately.

11.  Remember, you have to assemble and serve quickly. A little multi-tasking may be required!

Tastes heavenly when paired with hot Jalapeno Tomato Dip

*In order to get the best out of your mushrooms, make sure you use a pan / skillet with a large surface area. Heat the oil / butter and throw in the mushrooms with a little bit of salt. You should hear a gentle sizzle from the moment the mushrooms hit the pan. Spread them out evenly so most of them are in contact with the surface of the pan. You should see the mushrooms loose water in about a minute or two. Continue cooking for 5-8 minutes over medium heat. Mushrooms usually turn dark with golden spots. Find a texture you like by stealing a taste from the pan every minute or so after the most of the water has evaporated.

Christmas Fruitcake

Christmas Of 2012 was memorable. This was the first Christmas we hosted after our wedding and it was so much fun!

One of the highlights turned out to be the Christmas Fruitcake that +Jose Pratheesh and I baked. Fruitcake is an often underrated and misunderstood dessert. As a kid I used to dread biting into a dry brown sponge littered with cheap nuts that took a lot of liquid to wash down. Well, after numerous recipes and research, here is my take on the Christmas Classic that was a hit with the family...

You will Need:

1 Cup Dried Fruits (Mix whatever your find Cranberries, Cherries, Mangoes, Apricots, Currants, Raisins etc)

¼ Cup Chopped Pecans

¼ Cup Chopped Walnuts

¼ Cup Dark Rum (Divided)

1 Cup Unsalted Butter

½ Cup Packed Brown Sugar

2 Large Eggs

½ Cup Molasses

4 Tablespoons Milk

1 Cup Flour (All Purpose – ‘Maida’ in India)

¼ Teaspoon Baking Soda

½ Teaspoon Salt

½ Teaspoon Fine Ground Cinnamon

1 Cheesecloth

Baking Paper / Parchment Paper

A good song to hum

Here's What you do:

1. Chop the dried fruit to currant sized pieces and soak the in dark rum for at least 24hrs.
2. Preheat the oven to 325 – 340 F (165 –170 C)
3. Whisk together the dry ingredients (Flour, Baking Soda, Salt, Cinnamon) in a bowl
4. Beat the butter and Sugar together in a separate big bowl until creamy
5. Beat in the eggs one at a time just until incorporated
6. Slowly mix the dry ingredients to the wet ones in two batches while adding a ¼ Cup of molasses and 2 tablespoons of milk after each addition.
7. Fold in the nuts and drained fruits
8. Grease a baking pan with butter and pour batter into it. Bake for 45-50 minutes depending on your oven. Check your cake for doneness after 40 minutes and increase time accordingly
9. Soak a Cheesecloth in dark rum and wring out the excess. Place it on a parchment paper / baking sheet and put the cooled cake on it.
10. Brush the sides and top of the cake with dark rum and wrap up the cake in the cloth. Wrap the baking sheet over the cloth.
11. Store in an airtight container in a cool dark place.
12.  Realize that the song you have been humming all along is stuck in your head for the next two days!
13. Age the cake for at least a week or two before serving

Did you Know?

This cake can be stored for many years. I have friends who swear that a fruitcake is not fit to be eaten until it is about 4 yrs old. You only have to replenish the cloth with alcohol once a month. This cake has a much shorter life if refrigerated or frozen

A fruit cake baked in 1878 is kept as an heirloom by a family (Morgan L. Ford) in Michigan.In 2003 it was sampled by Jay Leno on The Tonight Show (Source: Wikipedia)