Indian Veg Thali - Brinjal Curry in Tamarind Sauce and Cucumber yogurt salad

Its been a long break again from blogging I know,though I had on my mind so many posts but I couldnt due to lack of time,so today I am back writing,checking on the vegetable cooking on the stove,teaching my son  and doing numerous other things .Ya thats how life is these days by the end of the day I just want to sleep and again the next day the same cycle continues...:-) Earlier i used to get one or two hours for myself when I could just sit and blog but now for a sinhle post i have to it in breaks ,...
Coming back to todays post sharing with you all this simple meal which I prepared few days back
recipe is inspired form the cook book

Recipe Name - Brinjal Curry in Tamarind sauce/kerala style brinjal curry
Ingredient 
small purple brinjal six
onion chopped two
ginger garlic paste one tbsp
mustard seed half tsp
curry leaves six
salt as per taste
oil to cook
half tsp each of coriander powder,cumin powder,turmeric and chili powder
one tbsp tamarind pulp
coconut milk three tbsp
Preparation 
wash and dry the brinjal ,make cross on the bulbous end and sprinkle salt ,keep aside
Procedure
heat oil in non stick wok,once hot lower the flame
add mustard seeds followed by curry leaves
add onion and keep stirring till onion starts changing colour
add ginger,garlic ,powdered masala and salt
after five minutes add the brinjal fry for three minutes
add half cup of water and tamaring pulp
let it simmer for 10 to 15 mins
add coconut milk and let it simmer for 10 minutes
serve warm garnished with coriander leaves.
Paired the curry with plain rice and cucumber yogurt salad
Recipe name - Ccucumber yogurt salad./Vellarikka Pachadi 

Ingredient
yogurt one cup
cucumber grated one (i have used finely chopped cucumber)
salt as per taste
green chili two slit lengthway
peanut crushed one tbsp
oil one tsp
cumin half tsp
coriander leaves chopped one tbsp
Procedure
whisk the curd and add cumin,salt and coriander leaves
add the chopped cucumber
heat oil in a small fry pan and fry the chillies and peanut
cool and add to the seasoned yogurt
keep aside for 30 mins before serving .
Recipe of Phirni /ground rice pudding 

800 ml full cream milk
four tablespoon rice flour
four table spoon sugar
chopped almond and pistachio two tbsp
three green cardamom seed crushed
saffron strand pinch
half tsp rose water optional
Procedure
boil the milk in saucepan
once the milk starts boiling add rice flour and sugar
keep stirring on low flame so that sugar is dissolved
add the chopped nuts and the rose water
keep stirring till the mixture thickens like that of custard
spoon into serving cups and leave to cool
refrigerate for one hour
serve chilled garnished with cardamom seeds and saffron strannds.

Linking this post to 
the weekly story week 4 hosted by Colours Dekor.
thats all guys
take care and happy blogging,..:-)

Chicken Yakhami with Middle eastern bread

With just a month left month for India trip I am on a pantry cleanup spree these days ,so that by the last week of next month my pantry is empty so I have resolved not to buy any pantry staples unless there's no legume or lentil.,you guys do the same when you are travelling ,any tips,suggestion for extending the shelf life of the legumes and lentil please share in the comment section .
Coming back to todays post sharing with you all the recipe of Chicken Yakhmi and bread which I prepared few weeks back.Creamy texture of the chicken was balanced well with the middle eastern bread baked in oven.

Recipe Name - Kashmiri Chicken Curry/Murgh Yakhani
Recipe source cookbook
Ingredient
Chicken drumsticks four
cardamom three
clove six
cinnamom one inch in length crushed
fennel dry roasted and ground in blender one tsp
grated ginger one tsp/ginge rpowder  half tsp
curd half cup
garam masala powder one tsp
salt as per taste
oil to cook
Procedure
heat oil in non stick wok ,once hot lower the flame
add cardamom,clove and cinnamon
after a minute add the chickne drumsticks
keep stirring till 15 minutes till the chicken becomes brown
add salt,fennel powder and grated ginger to the chicken
keep stirring and add hot water and cover and cook
once done add yogurt and garam masala powder
cook further for five minutes
serve warm with rice or bread.

Recipe Name Barbari/Iranian Flat bread
Recipe source cookbook
one cup whole wheat flour
one cup all purpose flour
one tsp salt
yeast two tsp
water to knead the dough
oil for brushing
Preparation
Mix the yeast and salt in half cup of warm water ,
keep aside for 15 minutes ,
after 15 minutes yeast will be frothy and ready to use

Procedure
sift the flour in a mixing bowl
add the proofed yeast and mix everything together
till the dough is smooth and elastic
place the dough in a oiled bowl
cover it with cling wrap
and let it rise for 45 mins till it doubles in size
punch down the dough and divide into six equal pieces
shape each piece into rectangle shape
roll it out and place on the prepared baking sheet
make four slashes on the top cover with cling wrap
let it rise for 20 minutes
preheat the oven to 100 degree centigrade
brush the bread with oil and sprinkle sesame seeds
bake for 10 to 15 minutes till pale golden
serve warm.

Linking this post to
The Weekly Story week 3 hosted by Colours Dekor.
thats all friends,take care and happy blogging.

Kesari Basam Doodh for Basant Panchami

Today is Basant Panchami ,day dedicated for Goddess Saraswati
who is Goddess of Knowledge,Music ,Art and Culture

I had  plans of cooking elaborate meal but couldn't
so to celebrate the day and  to feel festive and good
 prepared this Kesar Badam Doodh .

how I did
Ingredient needed 
milk two cup
sugar as per taste
badam keasri milk masala one tbsp
Procedure
boil milk in the sauce pan
once it starts boiling add the masala
add sugar as per taste and let it simmer for five to 10 minutes.
 serve warm or chilled .

Thats all friends,wish you all Happy Festival and Happy Weekend
Take Care and Happy Blogging.

Off Facebooking and Still Breathing :-)

I know today is Valentines Day
day to celebrate love and friendship

so today I mailed my friends to say
that I am alive and breathing
they thought that something wrong with me
as I am not facebooking 
My sis got a mail from my college friend
and I  scolding
for not leaving a message on Facebook 
that I gonna disable it

So now we are living in time
when off Facebook means
 we are  not breathing.

so I chose today
to mail my friends and say
that I am breathing and
just off Facebooking,..:-)
so that I can Blog
and do Pinteresting .

For the Eggless Coconut Cupcake with Lemon and Almond shortbread Cookies
this post is inspired from blogosphere, I had seen conversation cookies,so thought of doing the same with the leftover plain shortbread cookies ,wrote with wilton edible markers and placed them on the cupcakes,//
recipe of eggless coconut cake blogged here
recipe of lemon and almond shortbread cookies blogged here
,sharing with you all my favorite quote

Linking this post to
Sweet Luv event hosted by Cooks Joy.
Lets Cook/Bake for Valnetine hosted by Simply sensational food.
Spotlight event theme this month being Valentines Treat hosted by Cuisine Delight event started by
Recipe Junction.
Bake Fest 16 hosted by My Cook Book event started by Cooks Joy.
Thats all friends,wish you all happy Valentines day
take care and happy blogging,.

Cookies Therapy - Lemon & Almond Shortbread Cookies with Raspberry Preserve

Last weekend was long weekend for us due to Chinese New Year celebration ,long weekend for me means no time for me time and that's how it went ,today I thought of taking some break from cooking and baking which has been going on since past few days and sharing with you all these delicious cookies which I baked yesterday inspired from a book which I got from library

Recipe name - Lemon and Almond Shortbread Cookies
Recipe source cookbook
Ingredient
Unsalted butter half cup
Sugar half cup
Egg one
Vanilla extract half tsp
Finely grated zest of one lemon
All purpose flour one cup +one fourth cup
Almond finely grounded half cup
milk one tbsp to brush
two tbsp raspberry preserve

Preparation 
line the baking sheet with parchment paper and keep aside
preheat the oven to 100 degree centigrade

Procedure 
Beat the butter and sugar in a bowl till pale and creamy
add egg ,vanilla essence and lemon zest and beat again
add the flour and the ground almond
shape the dough into two flattened disc
wrap in cling film and chill till firm
roll out one piece of the dough on the floured surface
stamp out desired shape with help of cookie cutter
continue doing the same process till all the dough is used
transfer the heart shaped cookies on the prepared baking sheet
brush with the milk ( i forgot this step)
place one fourth tsp of raspberry preserve in the middle of the cookies
place the remaining cut out shape on the top
press around the edges to seal
sprinkle with sugar and almonds
bake for 10 mins till light brown
let the cookeis cool on the baking sheet ,till they harden a little
transfer to rack and let it cool.

I baked some plain one too without the filling of the raspberry preserve they were delicious too

Next time maybe i gonna try these cookies with orange zest ,i guess they gonna be equally delicious too ,

Linking this post to 
The Weekly Story Week 2 hosted by Colours Dekor.
Spotlight event theme this month being Valentine's Treat hosted by Cuisine Delight  event started by
Recipe Junction .
Lets Cook / Bake for Valentines hosted by Simply Sensational Food.
Sweet Luv event hosted by Cooks Joy.
Bake Fest 16 hosted by My Cook Book   event started by Cooks Joy.

Baking these cookies was like cooking therapy for me ,try them u gonna love them too,...:-)

That's all guys,wish you all happy week ahead....:-)

and thus I prepared Nakli Anda

me - "I gonna preparae Nakli Aanda."
hubby -" u wont be able to."
me - "u know about it?"
hubby -"ya it would be difficult for you."
me-" whats difficult in it.?"
hubby-" leave it ,you cant do it."
Next day while chatting with my mother on skype
me- " is the recipe of Nakli Aanda very difficult?"
mother -" no who said so?"
me -" hubby ,he told i wont be able to prepare it."
mother -" no you can do it"
me with a sigh - "okay tell me the recipe,...."
mother -" prepare ,...
thus I followed the recipe as told by my mother and prepared Nakli Aanda just the way it was prepared at my Nani's home whenever we visited her.

Recipe name Nakli Anda/Rice flour dumpling stuffed with spiced gramflour
Recipe source Nani
Preparation time 30 mins 
Cooking time 30 MINS
yield eight anda/fried dumplings
Ingredient
Rice flour one cup
gramflour half cup
salt as per taste
oil to cook
half tsp each of coriander,cumin,turmeric and red chili powder
garam masala powder half tsp optional .
Preparation no 1 
Dissolve rice flour in one cup of water ,so that there's no lump
add more water if needed ,half tsp of oil and pinch of salt
heat non stick wok and pour the rice flour mixture
keep stirring till the water is absorbed and smooth dough is formed
remove from the flame and keep aside.

Preparation no. 2
dissolve gram flour in two tbsp of water ,half tsp of oil and salt as per taste
add the powdered masala mentioned above and mix to form a smooth paste
add more water if needed .
heat non stick wok and pour the gramflour mixture
keep stirring till the water is absorbed and smooth mix is formed
remove from flame and keep aside.

Procedure
Grease pam and take lemon size dough from the rice flour dough
flatten it and keep aside,
make a marble shaped ball of the gramflour mixture
place it on the flattened rice flour dough
seal the edges and give it oval shape
do the same for the rest of the dough
heat oil in kadhai ,one hot lower the flame
fry the rice flour dumplings /aanda
till brown and crispy
serve warm with chutney.

Linking this post to
The Weekly Story week 1 hosted by Colours Dekor.
Thats all guys ,wish you all happy week ahead
take care and happy blogging.

Thali with Maa Chole Ki Dal and Crispy Karela Sabzi

Most of the time when I don't know what to cook with a particular ingredient I  ask my mother ,my friends or search on my favorite food blogs,so when I was clueless about split urad dal apart from preparing khichdi , I asked my friend as I knew she would be knowing some recipe
Me-  I called you up to ask recipe for split urad dal
she - prepare dal
me -plain right
she - no you can mix chana dal equal ratio
me -and then i can temper it the usual way
she- ya however you wish,we like it with onion tomato ,...
and thus my menu for the night was decided as I had asked her whats the name of the urad and chana dal ,
she told me its called Maa Chole Ki Dal ,so that's how I got introduced to this yummylicous dal last week prepared in my own kitchen ,recipe shared by my friend.

Recipe name - Maa Chole Ki Dal 
Recipe source - my friend
Preparation time 30 mins 
Cooking time 30 mins
Ingredient for dal 
Split urad dal with skin half cup
Chana dal hal cup
turmeric half tsp
salt as per taste
Ingredient for tempering/chaunk/tadka 
ghee one tbsp
salt as per taste
asafoetida pinch
cumin seeds one tsp
dried red chili two crushed
bay leaves crushed two
half tsp each of turmeric powder,coriander powder and red chili powder
one tsp garam masala powder
onion one chopped
ginger garlic paste one tbsp
tomato one chopped
Preparation 
soak the dal and keep aside for 10 mins
after 10 mins cook the dal in pressure cooker
Procedure 
In a non stick pan heat ghee ,once hot lower the flame
add cumin seeds ,asafoetida,dried red chili and bay leaves
followed by onion and ginger garlic paste
keep stirring till onion s start chaning colour
add the powdered masala ,salt followed by tomato
cook for 10 to mins till oil is seen along the sides
add cooked dal and garam masala powder and let it simmer
after 15 mins serve hot with chapati or rice .

Paired the creamy dal with plain rice,chapati,kachumber and karela sabzi.
the tangy and crispy karela sabzi is perfect combination with creamy dal ,chawal ,chapati with some salads on the side .
For the Karela Sabzi/fried bitter gourd 

recipe inspired from cookbook
Ingredient
bitter gourd chopped six
onion chopped two
salt as per taste
turmeric powder one tsp
dessicated coconut two tbsp
garlic crushed two
red chili powder half tsp
amchur powder half tsp
Preparation
rub salt and turmeric powder to the bitter gourd ,keep aside
after 10 mins squeeze the bitter gourd and drain the excess liquid
soak in a bowl of fresh water for 10 mins
after  mins wash and drain the chopped bitter gourds
keep aside on a plate
In a mixing bowl mix rice flour,crushed garlic,red chili powder and dessicated coconut.
Procedure
heat one tbsp oil in non stick pan
fry the bitter gourds till light brown on both sides
drain and keep aside
In the same pan fry chopped onions till brown and caramelised
after five minutes add the fried bitter gourds
followed by the rice flour mixture
cover and cook for 15 to 20 mins
sprinkle amchur powder before serving,
serve warm.

This simple and delicious thali is perfect for guests or for weekend meal,and ya this one is perfect comfort food for me ,maybe will try the same combination with some raita and chutney as side dish,..:-)

Linking this post to
Dish it out event hosted by Nivedhanam 
thats all guys wish you all happy weekend
take care and happy blogging,