Coconut Cake

Ingredients
All purpose flour-11/4 cups
Sugar-3/4 cup
Baking powder-1/2teaspoon
Baking Soda-1/2teaspoon
Butter-4 tablespoons
Egg(medium size)- 2
Milk-1/4cup
Milk powder-1/4cup (Optional)
Sweetened Coconut Flakes-1cup
Chopped nuts-1/4cup
Almond essence-few drops

Method
Preheat the oven to 300F. Spread the coconut flakes in a baking dish and toast it for 10-12 minutes(till it becomes golden in color). Toast the nuts for 6-7 minutes. let them cool. Crush the nuts coarsely and keep aside.

Sift the flour with baking powder and baking soda.

Cream the butter with sugar. Add the milk and milk powder,beat it for 2 minutes. Add the almond extract, and eggs. Beat well. Add the flour and mix gently with the whisk.
Meanwhile preheat the oven to 350F.

Now add the toasted coconut and nuts, mix everything together and pour the batter into a greased baking pan.


Bake it for 45-50 minutes or a tooth pick inserted in the cake comes out clean.

Crunchy nutty coconutty cake is ready to enjoy! Serve it with a cup of tea! :)


Linking this post to Bake Fest event by Vardhini's Zesty Palette


& Christmas Delicacy event happening at Julie's "Erivum Puliyum"

Dum Biriyani

Biriyani is my hubby's favorite food..in the sense, he can have the same for more than one time! He doesn't touch any other stuff for the next meal, even if I serve after making some changes. Somehow he will find it and the lunch box will come back as it was in the morning! Biriyani is the excpetion, Usually I make it for dinner and the next day lunch.

Its been a real long time I prepared biriyani in this method. Yesterday when I pinged him regarding the dinner suggestions, his choice was this Dum Biriyani. Without second thought, i started off to the kitchen! :)

Ingredients
Onion-1
Toamto-2
Cashew-7
Bay leaf-1
Few Mint leaves & Cilantro
Clove-1
Cinnamon stick-1"piece
Olive Oil-3 tablespoons
Food color-fewdrops

Basmati rice-11/2cups
Ghee-1teaspoon
Bay leaf-1
Cumin seeds-1/2teaspoon
Few Mint leaves & Cilantro
Cinnamon stick-1"piece
Salt


To Marinate
Big chunks of Veggies -1cup ( I used a carrot,few beans, 3 florets of broccoli & Cauliflower, half of a small potato and a hand full of frozen peas)
Ginger-garlic paste -1tablespoon
Green chilly-1
Curd-1/2cup
Chilli powder-1teaspoon
Coriander powder-1teaspoon
Biriyani Masala-11/2tablespoon
Bay leaves-1
Elaichi-1
Cinnamon stick-1"piece
Cloves-2
Fennel Seeds-1teaspoon
Cumin seeds-1teaspoon
Mint leaves & Cilantro
Salt
Olive oil-1tablespoon

Method
Combine all the ingredients given under "to marinate" and let it sit for at least 30 minutes.

Wash and soak the rice for 30 minutes.

Cut the onions, one tomato and green chilly.

Heat oil in a pan, add the whole garam masalas followed by cashews. Once they turn golden add in the onion-g.chilly,and tomato. Cook till the tomatoes become mushy.

Add the marinated veggies,cover n cook for 3-4 minutes and keep aside.

Heat 4 cups of water in wide pan. Bring it to a rolling boil, add the cumin seeds,whole garam masalas, salt and mint-cilantro leaves. Drain the water from the soaked rice and cook for 6 to 7 minutes. Drain the rice and add a teaspoon of ghee to it and mix well.

Pre heat the oven to 400F. Grease a baking dish and spread a layer of rice.Sprinkle some biriyani masala on top. Now add the half cooked veggies and spread it evenly.

Sprinkle mint-cilantro leaves, sliced tomato, then layer the remaining rice. Mix the food color with a spoon of milk and sprinkle it on top. Cover the pan tightly with the foil and bake it for 45-50 minutes.

Take the rice from the oven ,mix it gently and enjoy with raitha.

Dum biriyani with raitha!

Sending this recipe to Reva's "Royal Feast -Biriyani" event.

Mixture

Ingredients for Omapodi/Sev
Besan/kadalai maavu -1cup
Rice flour-1/2cup
Butter(@room temp.)-1teaspoon
Hing-1/8th teaspoon
Water
Salt
Oil

Method
Combine all the ingredients except oil,sprinkle little water and make the dough as we do it for rotis.

Put the dough in the murukku press with the omapodi plate.

Heat(on medium heat) oil in a pan, press the dough directly on hot oil. This sev will get cooked very fast, take it out and drain the excess oil, keep it aside.

Ingredients for Kara Boondhi
Besan/Kadalai mavu-3/4cup
Water-1/2cup
Yellow food color-few drops
Oil

Method
Mix all the items except oil into a smooth batter. Batter should be in pouring consistency.

Heat oil(on medium heat) in a pan, pour the batter over a boondhi karandi /jalli karandi into the oil directly.

Like the sev, boondhi will also gets cooked so fast. Once the sizzling sound of the oil stops, take the boondhi's out, drain the excess oil and keep it aside.

Ingredients to deep fry
Peanuts -2 fist fulls
Dhaliya/Pottu kadalai -1 fist full
Curry leaves -2 springs
Cashew-10
Poha/Rice flakes -1 fist fulls
Minced garlic(optional) -4 cloves


Method
Fry the items one by one and keep aside.

Finally here comes the Ingredients for mixture! :)

Boondhi
Sev(Crush it coarsely)
The deep fried items mentioned above
Chilli powder -1 teaspoon
Salt
Hing -1/4teaspoon

Method
Combine all the items in a wide pan and mix it well.

Spicy crunchy mixture is ready!

Believe me, the process seems a bit longer but its actually simple. Since we are deep frying everything, the work will be over so fast! :)

~~~

Some of the visitors to my blog(s) will be thinking why am I seeing same recipes in Mahi's blog(s)?! :) Yeah, I do have another blog which is in my mother tongue. Some how I managed to post different things here and there.

I realized lately that not all of my (tamil) visitors here know my tamil blog. More over my other friends (here) are also from various parts of India, who can't read tamil. Hence,started posting the some of the recipes both in english & tamil. So friends, who are all visiting "Mahi's Space", do adjust these repeated recipes! Thank you! :)

Sweet Potato Fry(Baked)

Ingredients
Sweet potato-2
Chilli powder-1/2teaspoon
Olive Oil-1tablespoon
Salt

Method
Peel the skin and cut the sweet potatoes into thick lengthwise pieces.
Combine the sweet potato-chilli powder-salt in a bowl and toss it well.

Preheat the oven to 400F.

Arrange the seasoned sweet potatos on a greased baking tray and bake it for 20 minutes, flipping them over after 10 minutes.
Guilt free hot n yummy sweet potato fries are ready to munch!

You can keep them in an airtight box for 1-2 days. They survive great in room temperature. It taste great when its just out from the oven though! :)

*****

Linking this post to Bake Fest event by Vardhini's Zesty Palette

& to Serve it -Savory Baked event by Krithi's Kitchen and Denny's "Oh,taste n see.."

Layered Parotta

This layered paratha / parotta is a very famous food back home, and we never make this at home. You can get all varieties of parottas in every nooks and corners of Coimbatore. Being far away from home sometimes gives opportunities to recreate the food we love! :)

My hubby loves this parotta very much. Being lazy (always) and diet concerned (seldom), I will make this once in a blue moon! ;) Here is the egg free version,you can add egg, its purely optional. The process looks like longer, but if you do it in between the routine works, you won't feel it and its worth trying it.


Ingredients
All purpose flour-2cups
Milk-1/2cup
Warm water-1/2cup
Baking powder-1teaspoon
Sugar-2teaspoons
Salt
Oil- as required! ;)


Method
Add baking powder,sugar and salt with (Boiled & Cold) milk,mix well.

Take the flour in a bowl, add the milk and mix it slowly. Then add water little by little and knead the flour.

Add 2 tablespoons of oil, after the flour becomes non-sticky and knead it well for 10-15minutes.

Apply a generous coat of oil on the dough, cover it with a damp cloth, and keep it aside for at least an hour,preferably 2 hours.

Make uniform sized balls, by kneading and rolling the dough into each ball, apply oil and keep it covered for at least 30 minutes,preferably an hour.

Now oil the surface on which you are going to roll the parottas, and roll a portion into very very thin disk. (If the dough is in a perfect condition, you can roll it so thin].

Sprinkle little oil on the rolled parotta and fold it as shown in the picture. Roll it carefully into circles, apply oil and keep it covered. Continue the process and complete the dough.

Arrange the rolled circles in an airtight pan, keep aside for at least 30 minutes, preferably an hour.


Heat a griddle on medium heat, take a rolled parotta, gently roll it into circular disc, put in on the griddle, Sprinkle oil..let it cook on one side, flip it over, sprinkle little oil and press it gently with the ladle.

Take it out from the griddle, keep it on the table top,beat it between your palms. This will help to remove the brown spots and get the nice layers.

Flaky and soft parottas are ready to enjoy with your choice of Kurma!

Big Batch Veg. Pastry Wheels

We had a potluck party on the consequent week end of Diwali. It so happened in the last minute that I had to move to the appetizer section from main course as there was a shortage for veg. appetizers! :)

This is what I prepared for the party, its yummy and everyone at the party enjoyed it even though they missed the chance of tasting the south Indian Idli-Sambar-Chutney combo! ;)

Ingredients
Pepperidge farm Pastry sheets - 2 packs [4 sheets]
Milk- 3tablespoons
For the filling
Mozerella cheese -1/2cup
Potatos-3
Frozen mixed vegetables pack-1 [250grams]
Chilli powder- 3teaspoons
Corainder powder-2teaspoons
Cumin powder-1 teaspoon
Garam masala -1teaspoon
Salt
Coriander leaves to garnish
For the tempering
Oil-1Tablespoon
Cumin seeds-2 teaspoons

Method
Chop the potatoes into small pieces. In a pressure cooker, take the veggies with chilli-coriander-cumin powders,salt and 1/2cup of water. Pressure cook for 2 whistles.

Once the pressure has gone completely, open the cooker and mash the veggies nicely. [as we have added little water, the masala will be thick]

Heat oil in a wide pan,make the tempering with cumin seeds and add the mashed veggies and cook for a few minutes. [in case,the water is more, cook it for few more minutes to make it dry.]

Finally add the garam masala and cilantro,nix well and switch off the stove.

Thaw the pastry sheet for 45minutes. Roll it slightly by dusting some flour. Spread the masala on the pastry sheet, leaving an inch gap on the edges. Sprinkle the cheese evenly.

Tightly roll the pastry sheet from one end, brush little water on the other end and seal the edges. cover the rolls in a clear wrap paper. Continue the process for all the sheets and keep them in the freezer for an hour.

Preheat the oven to 400F. Take the pastry rolls from the freezer, cut into desired size slices, Brush it with milk. [you can do egg wash too.] Arrange them in a lined baking tray, bake for 25 to 30minutes.

Start checking the wheels after 25minutes, take them out once they turn golden in color. let it cool for couple of minutes and take them from the baking tray. Yummy pastry wheels ready to go! :)

Serve warm with ketch-up or hot n sweet sauce. As the party was in our friend's place, I heated the wheels for 10 minutes at 200F before serving. Here is a glance of the nice party we had....
Linking this post to Bake Fest event by Vardhini's Zesty Palette

& to Serve it -Savory Baked event by Krithi's Kitchen and Denny's "Oh,taste n see.."

Motichoor Laddoo

Ingredients
Besan/Kadalai maavu -1 cup
Elaichi-2
Water -1/2 cup to 3/4cup
Rice flour -1tablespoon
Baking soda -1 pinch
Sugar- 1cup
Water- 1cup
Yellow & Red food colors- few drops
Oil
To garnish
Ghee-1tablespoon
Cahsew-10
Raisins-10
Cloves-3
Sugar cany-1tablespoon

Method
Add sugar and water in a pan, heat till the sugar gets dissolved and you get sticking consistency. Powder the elaichi and mix it with the syrup and keep it ready.

Fry the cashews-raisins and cloves in ghee and keep aside.

Combine the flours,baking soda with water and make a batter without any lumps.
Add the food colors and mix well.

Heat oil on medium heat, pour the batter over the boondhi laddle and the tiny boondhi's will start falling. [Tap the laddle gently if needed].

Take out the boondhi once the oil stops sizzling. Continue the process and finish off the batter.

Crush a hand full of boondhi's in a mixie.

Take boondhi's in a bowl,add the crushed boondhi, fried items,rock candy and 2 laddles of hot sugar syrup and keep it for 5 minutes.

Stir it once and add the remaining hot sugar syrup, and keep aside for 1/2 an hour. Take little soaked boondhi and make the laddos.[you can apply little ghee on the palm.]
Try to mash the boondhis gently while making the laddos.

Don't worry if you are not able to make the correct shapes initially, the shape can adjusted after an hour.

Arrange the laddos in a wide plate, cover the plate loosely and keep in an airy place for couple of hours.

Yummy motichoor laddo's are ready to relish! keep it an airtight container @ room temperature for 3-4days or refrigerate it up to one week.

7 links game

Ambreen of Simply Sweet'n Savory has linked me in this game, and here I am with the 7links! :)

1.most beautiful post - Sweet turn overs

2.Most popular post- Mealmaker fry

3.The post I am most proud of - Coconut biscuit, Malai koftha

4.Most useful post - Vermicelli upma,Brinjal chutney

5.Surprise success post- Paruppu vadai-baked & Spring onion dhal

6.Most controversial post -none

7.Post which deserves attention,but did not get as much - Green beans casserole

I am linking the following fellow bloggers for this game..am not sure you have done it already girls..if so,pls by-pass this post! :) :)

• Laya of Laya's touch of tamil recipes
• Amina of Amina's Creations
• Nalini of Nalini's Kitchen
• Kalpana of Life with Spices
• Vatsala of Show and Tell
• Sangee Vijay of Spicy Treasts
• Christy of My kitchen flavors- Bon Appetit

Pumpkin Stirfry/ Arasanikkay Poriyal

Back home we call Yello pumpkin / Parangikay as Arasanikkay (அரசாணிக்காய்). During the month of Markazhi (Mid-December to Mid-January) we go to Ganesh temple early in the morning, do puja, come back, put kolam's in our front yard, and keep the Pillaiyaar on the kolam and do puja.

The flowers of this yellow pumpkin are so common to keep on the pillaiyar's. At the end of Markazhi comes the Pongal,the harvest festival. This veggie cooked with field beans seeds is a must to be offered to the God "Sankaranthi" on the night before pongal day. In marriages, this veggie is a must for sambar. It has a nice sweetness that will enhance the flavor and taste of the sambar.

Enough of flashbacks, now coming back to the present, even though I get lot of pumpkins here in this season, to me they don't have the same taste of the veggie I loved. DH doesn't like any veggie which is in a color of orange,and has a sweet taste! Still i buy them once in a blue moon. :) ;)

Ingredients
Yellow pumpkin-200grams
Onion(small)-1
Green chillies-2
Coconut powder-2teaspoons
Mustard seeds-1/2teaspoon
Channa dhal-1teaspoon
Urad dhal-1teaspoon
Few curry leaves
Oil
Salt

Method
Peel and cube the pumpkin.
Chop the onions and green chillies.
Heat oil in a kadai, make the tempering with mustard seeds followed by channa dhal and urad dhal. Fry till the dhals become golden in color.
Add the chopped onion-g.chilly and curry leaves. Sauté till the onions become transparent.
Now add the pumpkin pieces, enough salt. Sprinkle little water,cover and cook for 5 minutes.
Open the pan, add the grated coconut, mix it well and put off the flame after a minute.
Easy and yummy pumpkin poriyal is ready. It tastes great with plain rice,sambar & rasam.

Sending this recipe and a click of a cute pumpkin & ghost to....

Halloween Fiesta 2011,happening at Vardhini's Zesty palate.