Gosale ghire chutney

Ingredients:
peel of 2 ridge gourd ( gosale)
1 cup coconut
4-6 green chillies
1/2 tsp jeera
2 tsp ghee
salt

In a skillet, heat ghee and roast the gourd peel with jeera and green chillies till the peels brown on the edges and wilts. Grind the roasted ingredients with coconut, tamarind, salt and very little water to a coarse paste. This is one of the chutney usually an accompaniment to rice as opposed to breakfast eats.

Churm-undo

 Ingredients:
Atta/Whole wheat flour - 2 cups
Powdered Sugar- 1 1/2 cups
Ghee - 3/4 cups
Cardamom powder - 1/2 tsp

Heat ghee in a pan. Fry the flour on a medium heat till it is aromatic and is slight brown in colour. This may take around 10 min. Mix in sugar and the cardamom powder.Cool for a few mins. Grease palms with ghee and form laddo's packed tightly, placing a raisin in the center.

G's note: Add a couple cashew nuts to the atta while roasting. This gives me  an estimate of when the atta is roasted enough since the atta is brown to begin with.

Rainbows & sunshine cake

This fun and festive piece of edible art is just what I was itching to make. I had the perfect occasion, my best friend's son's( R's 4th b'day) party;  the upcoming event to bake for. Thank heavens for such occasions that keeps my dreams alive!
 The little curly haired pumpkin just wanted his friends for a play date on his birthday. Gotta love this kid! Of all the things he could wish for, the day where every parents can get him what his heart desires,he chose friends. Such a cutie!

 My cake making dreams sort of overlapped over each other; making it difficult to chose one kind. What would make him happy? Most kids only care about the outside. I wanted it pretty both in & out. I was
determined with a rainbow  cake & was all set to make a special cake . A cake that would show sunshine in his eyes & a big smile as it was revealed.  Which kid doesnt like bright colors? If he is anything like my kid, he would love all the crayons to make a small design & considering the simalarities of taste between a 4 yr old & 5 yr old. It was easy to decide.
  My friend loved the cake the moment she saw it.and sure enough, little R was excited too. That's what makes this worthwhile..the real sunshine in his smile. Happy birthday, Rishab! Hope you had a terrific party!



The little crowd loved it just as much as I loved making it. the cake had a serious lean..pretty obvious! I didn't know if the cookies were keeping the cake upright or the cakes were keeping the cookies. Either way, I just wanted it to stay tall till the big moment.
The cake was a big sucess & the kids couldn't keep their hands off the buildings, which was a HUGE compliment in itself!
I mapped out a plan, got the supplies and was all set to bake this with my helpers.
here's a peak of the inside of the ginormous cake.




Ingredients:
2 boxes, Pillsbury ( white cake, with the pudding in the mix) cake mix + all the ingredients required to make the cake according to instructions ( such as oil, eggs, water). Aluminium tin foil cake pans, 6, 9'x 2', Wilton gel colors.


Divide the batter into 6, color using the gel colors , pour into the greased ( fail proof method: use Pam spray to mist lightly all over the inside, sprinkle 1 tbsp all purpose flour, coat by shaking  the pan so the flour adheres to the grease, tap off the excess) tin foil cake pans & bake for 18-22 mins at 325F. Cool for 15 mins in the pan. Remove & cool on the wire racks till completely cooled.


Pipe a thin ring of icing a quarter inches away from the sides to hold all the icing in. Generously frost the layer of the cake.


Frost a thin layer of soft butter cream, also called as crumb coat( holds all the crumbs in the icing)and chill for about an hour. The cake is now ready to be frosted and decorated away!


For the cookies, I used 1 package of Sugar cookies, 1 batch of Wilton's Royal icing ( recipe follows) & Wilton colors.
Cookie dough was rolled out to 1/2" thickness. Cut as desired and bake till the edges begins to brown. Mine took exact 9 mins.

Cool completely on a wire rack & decorate.
(G's note: This cookie was slightly on the soft side as we normally would want for the sugar cookie to be...but, I would like to add a couple tbsp of all purpose flour to this next time if I'd make tall buildings, so it would hold its shape through the party.)

.
Royal icing for the cookies:
4 cups confectioners sugar
3 tbsp meringue powder
6-7 tbs warm water
beat all the ingredients together for 7-8 min.
G's note: Double wash all the materials( mixing bowl, beater blades, piping tips, spatula) that may come in contact with royal icing since teeny tiniest traces of grease will break down this icing and once it does that,it cannot be revived.

Anniversary cake

I challenged myself last week to see just how good of a decorator I could be & excitedly agreed to bake a cake for my sis's anniversary
(her idea, a simple cake for a few goodfriends ..pufft...simple cakes are found at grocery stores, my cake had to be the kind we find in the magazine... something to get a 'WOW' out of her).

The prep work, the baking, the decorating to the debut of my latest cake was a huge success & the best part was that couple absolutely adored the cake. That makes the sleepless nights all the more worthwhile. Although I had the cake secure enough to travel down 3 hrs so it wouldn’t move, the mental image of my cake shimmering like jello all the way to the 'big apple' consumed my thoughts. My 3 hrs were consumed by mentally sketching & erasing the imaginary masterpiece shatter. Lucky for me, all that I imagine doesnt turn out true!

Among the compliments came all the queries on the process of getting this done.I sheepishly had to reveal it wasn't that big a deal & the cake baking was super easy as well as the decorating, especially since i use the 'box mix' cakes to craft my decoration. Because I trust my box mix wholeheartedly, I can confidently offer to make a party perfect display, If I may say so myself! Check it out!

The cake recipe was 4 boxes of white cake mix for a 10', 8' & a 6'cake. I'm a total cheat to use a premade/ measured box, but that’s A-OK. With this type of cake, where there are other details and things to take care of, I think it’s perfectly fine to cheat.

blueberry crumb bar

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                           


 











I'm on a" bake high" lately. This was what consumed my thoughts as I was making  mini cheesecake bite  last eve. My latest sugar fix was the cranberry crumb bar from Dunkin Donuts. As much as I love how moist & crazily delicious dried cranberries were, I am partial towards my favourite berry to bake: blue berries.
A quick check of the pantry to make sure I had all the ingredients on hand, a nod of approval from my kids( with the cake, cheesecake, frosting & stuff, I surely needed the extra sets of hands) a quick trip to attic hunting for my fluted pan later, I was all set to make this for the upcoming party this weekend. What better way than to share, my latest craze as I absolutely don't want to indulge in a tray full of 'hard to resist' goodies alone. Since 'hips definitely don't lie', use your judgement while indulging in more than 2.

Filling:
5 cups blueberries ( fresh, frozen, canned- any)
3/4 cup sugar (brown)
Zest and juice of one lime
2 tsp cornstarch

Crumb:
3 cups all-purpose flour
2 sticks unsalted butter, cold
1 cup sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 egg

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Grease a 9×13 inch pan. Mine was a fluted side pan so I used a pastry brush to grease butter to get every nook of the dents smothered with butter. You can easily grease the regular Pyrex glass dish with a paper towel.

In a medium bowl,mix in all the ingredients listed under 'crumb'. Use a fork or pastry cutter to blend in the butter and egg. Dough will be crumbly which is what we want ( resist the urge to make a smooth powdered crumb). Pat half of dough into the prepared pan. Save the second half for the topping.

Seperately, mix together sugar, cornstarch and lime juice. Gently mix in the blueberries. Spread the blueberry mixture evenly over the crust. Crumble remaining dough over the berry layer. Bake in preheated oven for 40-45 minutes, or until top is slightly brown, whichever comes first.
Cool completely before cutting into squares.
Makes 36 decent sized squares or rectangular 18 bar.

Mini Cheesecake bites

WARnInG:These beauties will cause extreme satisfaction and may complicate weight loss.

Today's a day to celebrate. It is thuuuhh 10th yr anniversary of one a favourite couple of mine, P&S. The couple was gracious enough to let me bake their anniversary cake which I excitedly offered to make. It was a very bold move on their part as I haven't baked a cake in a while now( latest memory of a homemade cake was sometime in march).
This occasion gave me a chance to dream of the beautiful cakes & bite sized pastries that I could make for their party.....along came these beauties.

A very basic cheesecake recipe, simple graham cracker crust mixture, mini muffin liners + cooking spray gave birth to these little 'irresistible' cupcakes cheesecake disguising as a cupcake.
Recipes (fail proof one like this) can be found on Philadelphia cream cheese wrapper or a honey maid graham cracker box & all over the Internet.
 Here's mine:

Filling:
2(16 oz) package cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup sugar
3 tsp lemon juice
1 tsp grated lemon zest
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 eggs
blend well to form a smooth, lump free mixture.

Crust:
1 cup graham cracker crumbs
2 tablespoon sugar brown
3 Tbs unsalted butter, melted
Mix together

Line mini muffin pan with liners & spray with cooking spray lightly. Spoon in about a teaspoon of crust mixture & pat it to form a base. bake 3-5 mins. Remove from oven, spoon in 2/3 full of cream cheese filling mixture ( about 1 tablespoon full). bake for about 20-25 minutes at 350. Cool & serve chilled.

To fancy these beauties & add variety, drop in (before baking) crushed oreo, toffee its, choc chips, peanut butter chips, shredded coconut+ pineapple, m&m's, Reese's pieces, jams etc... possibilities are endless.
My kids opted for choc chips & a few plain ones which will be beautifully adorned with a dollop of whipped cream, blackberries & mint.

G's note:
The crust can also be made of nilla wafers, oreo's & digestive biscuits.
Can be frozen for a week without losing any flavor as long as its stored in an airtight container & foil wrapped on the outside( if it lasts).

Dudholi

Among countless number of delicacies pigged out on, DUDHOLI & its taste still lingered. I found another dudholi fan (no bakras [scapegoats] in my home) and so, I got a push to make this( in my defense, I'm only making this to share). I am satisfied of the outcome, hope the other person will be too after tasting this. The verdict will follow in a couple days.
Ingredients:
1 cup Ragi
1 cup coconut
3/4 cup jaggery
cardamom powder
4 tbsp ghee

Grind ragi and coconut together and extract the milk and strain i n a fine sieve to remove the ragi skin & coconut residue( usually done 3 times at least)
Heat ghee in a thick bottom kadai, add jaggery heat till the jaggery melts.
Add 3 cups of water and ragi coconut milk mixture to the jaggery. Keep stirring the mixture on medium heat till it cooks, becomes thick and leaves the sides of the pan.When done, set aside.

Grease a rimmed plate with ghee, pour the hot mixture into the plate,smear it with the spatula and cool,chill in the refrigerator for a couple hours. Cut, serve chilled.

Hiatus & a sweet comeback

My little blogging hiatus has been getting to me lately. I have no reason to explain my disappearance but let me do it any way for a moment so as to give my friend bloggers a peak at what I experienced this summer. Here goes!

The usual worries with the onset of spring about the upcoming 10 weeks of summer vacation, entertaining or at least arranging activities for the kids was more like a research. Just a few of the things in my list of responsibilities were organizing tons of play dates + watching few extra kids as a favour, stocking up the freezer with all kinds of frozen goodies, keeping the popcorn & DVDs stocked up for sleep-overs, the drop off to camps, pick ups, finding THE reliable back up, striking off the list of promised activities such as ride to the local ice cream shop, the Zoo, the playground, the pool...oy ve! all as the norms of a parent in the U S. It's fun & all but sometimes, I'd rather mop my house twice and refold my laundry.

As any parent would want/ wish, I for one sure wishes my kids to remember their vacation as a great one & us as their parents who are COOL(er) than the Jones's.
As it turned out, I could have my wish granted. I consider myself one lucky mom this summer. Everything went well as planned.... a trip to India which would cover all of the above.

My dreams of being in India for the whole season & spending endless days with the extra set(s) of hands in the kitchen, hands & foot service, the spontaneous drop im of the relatives, worry free child care was actually going to happen. All of the luxuries to be pampered, to be free was happily accomplished. I can go on & on but enough already! The point has been made.

So my sweet dish after the break is Dudholi which you can find here.

Khara biscuits

One of a savoury cookies that is a big thing in bakeries all over Karnataka, (has got my taste buds yearning for one) is what I was dying to make & share with my friends. I finally got myself to put my thoughts in action and I'm glad that's striked off from my 'to bake' list. It was a super hit among my fellow desi's and It felt good getting appreciation for somethimg as simple as this. This one is a keeper.

Ingredients
1 cups Maida
1/2 cup butter
1 tsp salt
1 tsp sugar
1tsp baking powder
1 tsp yogurt
1/2 tsp turmeric
1/4 tsp jeera
2 green chillies, finely chopped
2 curry leaves,chopped

Method:
Sieve dry ingredients together(sugar, maida, salt and baking powder).
Add the softened butter, yogurt, chillies, curry leaves. Knead this to make a dough that binds together. Mixture of dough pressed together in a fist should hold the shape and not fall off to bits. Knead well, keep aside covered in a damp cloth for 30 mins.

Pre-heat the oven to 350 F. Line the cookie sheet with parchment paper.
Take half of the dough and roll like a chapathi until it is 1/4" thick.

Using an empty can as a cookie cutter, cut into circles. Place it on the cookie sheet about a inch apart.Prick the top of the cookies with the fork so that the cookies does not puff up during baking. brush the top with oil. Repeat to use up all the dough.

Bake for 20 minutes or until the edges browns to a golden color.

Aloo Mirch masala

This is one of my easy breezy side dish that is perfect for impromptu get togethers.
All the ingredients are readily available in an Indian pantry, to put together and make into a delicious side. Aloo can easily sustituted for paneer and made into Paneer mirch masala which has been added as a new favourite in my list. Enough already! Here goes.

Ingredients for ground masala:
1 small onion
1 tomato
red chillies 2-3
Garlic cloves 4-5
Ginger 1/2″ piece
Coriander seeds 1 tsp
jeera seeds 1/2 tsp
Turmeric powder 1 tsp
Chili powder 1 teaspoon
Garam masala powder 1/2 tsp
Cashews 10-15, soak in water for 15 mins

Onion 2, finely sliced
Potatoes 1, boiled, cubed
Capsicum 2, cubed
coriander leaves, finely chopped

Dry roast coriander seeds, jeera seeds and red chillies separately .Grind along with onion, ginger, tomato, garlic cloves and cashews to a paste.

Heat kadai with 3 tbsp oil. Fry sliced onions till translucent.
Add turmeric powder, chili powder, garam masala powder and capsicum peices. Saute for a few mins. Add ground masala paste and fry till the oil floats. To this add boiled potatoes, salt and chopped coriander leaves. Saute on simmered heat for about 5 more mins.
Best served with chapathis.

Karanji kai

Ingredients:

For the dough:
1 cup Fine Rava, not what we generally call as 'bombay rava'
3 tbsp maida
1-2 tbsp Ghee/Butter
make a dough using just enough water, knead and set aside.

Filling:
1/2 cup Desiccated coconut/ Copra
1/4 cup khus khus/ poppy seeds
1 tsp white sesame seeds
1/2 cup Confectioner's sugar
1/4 tsp Powdered Elaichi
cashew nuts, raisins
Oil for frying

Method:
Dry roast coconut, khus khus, cashew nuts and til seeds together. Add sugar, raisins and elaichi powder.

Make small pooris from the dough, spoon in a tsp of the filling on one half of the circle and fold along the center. Wet the ends of poori with some water or milk ad fold over the other half, seal and twist the ends.

Heat oil to medium heat. Drop the karanji into oil and fry until they turn golden brown in color.
Can be stored for a week, if it lasts.

karkala cake

This bowl of goodness is neither a pudding or a cake but is called as both all over Mangalore and Karkala. What's in a name, anyway?
I've been dreaming of relishing this ever since my last visit to India. Incidentally this has been the new 'sweet' dish as an addition to the wedding's breakfast eats taking the place of good old Ksheera/sheera. Karkala cake a new dish?  OK, maybe not new to those living in India, but it is to me who missed out on a whole decade of weddings and other religious occasions back home.

The recipe was found in an almost neglected and as a scrap piece of shabbily written recipe with more scribbles  covering the rest of the paper around it. As excited as I was to find the hidden treasure, I was  also skeptical of the mood I was in while I took down the recipe. Now I was really hoping  I  had paid attention,  as the writing didn't look as neat as it would on my good mood days. Yikes! You know what I mean! ;)

Either way, I was on a quest to make it till I get this right! 
Glad I did, because it turned out heavenly....yeah yeah, bit heavy for just a mush of Yumm'ness but, my friends along with me are  the one's that relished this and gave a positive review so you just have to take my word for it!    Trust me!
    
 So here goes the real part you've been waiting for...
recipe courtesy - Raj maam ( a wedding cook who makes amchi food finger licking good) 


Ingredients:
2 cups ground whole wheat flour
1 1/2 cup sugar
2.5 cups water(warm)
1 cup ghee (yes, u read it right!)
1/4 cup chopped cashew
1/4 cup golden raisins
1/2 tsp cardamom powder

Roast wheat flour in ghee till light brownish on a slow to medium flame stirring constantly. The unmistakable aroma of roasted wheat flour is hard to miss. (I usually add 1 whole cashew in the beginning and when the cashew turns brown I know the roasting is done)

Now add all cashew and raisins. Roast for another 2 minutes. At this stage cashew browns real quick.Add the sugar while stirring constantly.

Add the warm water and cardamom. Stir till the whole mixture comes into a ball & leaves the sides of the pan without sticking(which is pretty quick).Done!
See, it was easy after all.
Serve warm.

This dish went to Uma's Poovathingal's house for the Haldi-kukkum prasadam on occasion of Laxmi pooja.
G's note: there is no way you could mess up this dessert. I can take pride in vouching for this fail proof recipe. I'm not going to take credit to the recipe but I assure you that this is a life saver for last minute get-together. I certainly hope that my friends will relish and indulge in this heavenly dessert, guilt free with me.

The most favourite part of making this (apart from taste testing, of course!) was the cleanup of the kadai..absolutely clean, like it was never used... now there is absolutely no excuse or reason to not make this, is there?!
In closing, this wasn't as hard as I thought it would be!

key lime pie

Ingredients:
Crust:
5 TBS butter, melted
1-1/2 cup graham cracker crumbs

Filling:
1can (14-ounce) sweetened condensed milk
1/2 cup Key lime juice
2 tsp grated lime zest
2 egg yolks

Meringue:
2 eggs, separated, use only whites of 2 eggs
1/4 tsp cream of tartar
1/4 cup sugar

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

For the crust, combine ingredients and pat down into a 9-inch pie pan. Bake for 5 to 10 minutes.

In a medium bowl, combine the condensed milk, lime juice, and 1 teaspoon zest; blend in the egg yolks. Pour the filling into the crust.

For the meringue, beat the egg whites with the cream of tartar until soft peaks form. Gradually beat in the sugar and remaining teaspoon zest until the mixture is stiff. Spread the meringue over the filling; spread it to touch the edge of the crust all around. Bake for 12 to 15 minutes, or until the meringue is golden brown.

Cilantro hummus

I went hummus crazy a few yrs ago when I tried Mediterranean sandwich at Panera for the first time. Panera needs no introduction for bread loves all over the east coast. The sandwich had nothing fancy to it but whatever simple staple they use, it is pretty awesome in itself.
Coming back to hummus, I ordered this separately at Panera's just to speculate & get to the bottom of " what really makes this so great!". A few tries to perfect this led to an amazing sense of pride of actually bringing the taste close to the original. Check it out to believe it!
Pic coming soon...

Ingredients:
1 (15 oz) can chickpeas drained ( to cut down on sodium)
2 jalapeno, finely minced
2 pinches, red pepper flakes
juice of one lime
1/2 bunch cilantro chopped
2 tbs tahini ( sesame oil)
1 tbs extra virgin olive oil
1/2 small garlic clove
salt

Method:
Process the chickpeas, cilantro and garlic until well blended and smooth. Add the rest of the ingredients and mix well. Transfer into a serving bowl, make a well and drizzle lightly with olive oil. Serve with pita chips or a spread to subs and sandwiches.

G's note: this can be stored up to 3 days in the refrigerator.

Jeev kadgi podi

Deep fried to crisp.
Masala- rice flour, chilli powder, hing, salt, water.

Maggie...top 5 fav's

Guacamole

 Guacamole is a versatile & simple cool dish that is a quick to put together crowd pleaser. Finally, something that is good to the palette is actually good for you. Avocado ( read as good fat) for heart, onion for blood purification, tomatoes for a healthy glow. All goodness in one!

This side is no-brainer. I like to keep my dish simple & fresh using  avocado's that are firm but gives in whe are pressed gently, just ripe tomatoes, fragrant tender cilantro & crisp jalapenos. This creamy, smooth goodness makes you want to skip the chips & go straight to the dip!















Ingredients:
2 large avocados
freshly squeezed lime juice, 1 lime
1/2  red onion, finely minced
1 small ripe tomato, diced
1 jalapeno, seeded & chopped
10 stems cilantro, finely chopped
salt

Directions:
Seriously, you need directions?!
Chop  avocados into cubes and mash them very slightly with a fork. Combine all the ingredients in a serving bowl and serve along with salsa and tortillas of your choice.

Grilled Asparagus

Ingredients:
1 pound asparagus
1 tbs olive oil
1 tsp garlic salt
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 400°F.
Remove the tough lower stalks of Asparagus.
( To do so, hold the top end and bottom end of asparagus and bend. The Asparagus should snap easily with a crisp cut. Save the top, discard the bottom)

Place the asparagus in baking sheet, pour olive oil, sprinkle with garlic salt and toss to coat.

Roast for 15minutes, remove from oven, sprinkle the Parmesan cheese over the top and broil for 5 mins on low.

kesari baath

Ingredients:
1 Cup rava
3/4 Cup sugar
3 tbsp ghee
1/4 tsp Cardamom powder
1 tsp Everest milk masala powder
cashew nuts and Raisins
2 Pinches saffron

2-1/2 Cups water

Method:
In a large heavy bottomed heat ghee and rava, roast over low heat for about 7 to 8 minutes until you see a change in color and the rava has a roasted aroma.

Add cashew nuts, raisins, milk masala powder, elaichi, sugar and saffron. Roast for few more minutes.

Bring water to a boil. Take rava away from flame and add all the water, stir, cover and let cook on simmer for about 10 mins. At this point all the water must have been evaporated and the ghee would have seperated from the kesari baath. Garnish with more roasted nuts. Serve hot.

Puffs

PUFFs , the savoury snack loved by all hag gone through major changes since potatoes are my least favourite vegetable. If potatoes could talk, they would complain of severe neglect & would bear 'identity crisis' at my kitchen. Paneer takes the place making this snack to my liking as well as my family's taste.
 As I'm known to always alter the dishes  my variation can easily substituted with potatoes,  shredded cooked chicken or boiled egg halves More substitutions are cooked black beans with salsa flavours, tandoori chicken ( total yum) & shrimp with  roasted onions & tomatoes. Told you that  I tweak!

Puffs folded in two different way...I like the first pic, the best...looks much fancier. The second one shows the  familiarity; the fond memories of  eating it at the Mangalore bakery.
























Ingredients:
Puff pastry sheets ( pepperige farm)
Paneer 400 gm, ( 1 a slab)
onions 2, finely chopped
green chillies 6-8 finely chopped
tomatoes 1, finely chopped
cilantro, few stems
red chilli powder 1/2 tsp
turmeric 1/4 tsp
garam masala 1/2 tsp
kitchen king masala 1/2 tsp
salt
oil

Method:
Filling; Heat oil in a pan, add onions and saute till soft and translucent. Add green chillies and spice powders. Roast for a few minutes before adding paneer crumbles, tomatoes and salt. Cook for about 5 minutes and add cilantro.

Pastry sheets; Have puff pastry sheets come to room temp ( about 40 mins as per package instructions). The box contains 2 sheets. Cut the sheet in 3 and cut it in half again. This yields 12 puffs out of one box.

Baking; Place a sheet, spoon filling in the centre and fold the puffs halfway or have fout corners meet each other in the centre for a fancier looking puffs.Water may be used to glue the edges together. In my case, I didnt need to since the pastry sheets were pliable at room temperature and glued itself pretty well. Place the puff pastries in parchment lined baking tray and coat the puffs with beaten egg whites with a pastry brush. Bake at 400F for 15-18 mins. Serve hot.

Cream cheese frosting

The sweetish tangy icing goes perfect as a frosting for the spice infused carrot cake.

Ingredients:
12 oz.( 1 1/2 sticks) full-fat cream cheese, chilled
12 Tbsp ( 1 1/2 sticks) butter, unsalted, room temp
1 Tbsp. vanilla extract
6 cups confectioners sugar

Method:
In the large bowl of your mixer, using the paddle attachment on medium speed, beat the cream cheese, butter, and vanilla until very soft and light for about 5 minutes. Decrease the speed to low and gradually add in the confectioners' sugar, a cup at a time, beating after each addition and finally increase the speed to medium for 5 minutes longer.
The icing is now ready to be spread since it is at room temp. If adding pecans, hold the iced cake by base in one hand and use the other to touch pecan bits to the icing. The cake needs to be chilled before serving.

1 cup pecans, coarsely chopped, lightly toasted
To toast them, put them in a 350 oven on a rimmed baking sheet for 10 to 12 minutes. let them cool on the pan.

Chicken Biryani

The long overdue recipe for G's Biryani recipe is finally here! Biryani lover's rejoice...this dish has been showered with lot of praises, pat on the back and a many many smiles from DH. All thanks to SG for a great masala base....Banne Nawab Hydrabadi chicken biryani

Ingredients for marinade:
Chicken 5 lbs, cut, cleaned, bone intact
yogurt- 1 cup
Biryani masala- Banne Nawab
chilli powder- 1 tsp
ginger paste- 1 tsp
garlic paste- 1tsp
lemon juice- 3 tbsp of juice of one lemon
salt

for layering
Rice, 4 cups, halfway cooked with whole garam masala, ghee and salt
Fried onions, 3 large onions, thinly sliced( I try to make a freshly batch but store brought will do if u r not as picky as me)
boiled eggs, about 8 ( cook in boiled water for exactly 5 mins), peel
cilantro and mint, chopped roughly
saffron- 2 tbsp soaked in 1/2 a cup of warm milk


Part 1, Mix up all spices and chicken, cover, refrigerate and let marination do the work overnight. If pressed for time, 4 hrs is minimum required time for good biryani, but I don't want it just good, I am after the best!

Part2, heat oil in a kadai, fry 3 large onions and set the onion aside to drain on a few paper towel. Remove excess oil from kadai, leaving abt 3 tbsp to roast the chicken. Brown the chiken, a few at a time without overcrowding the pan. The purpose here is to brown the surface to get a caramalised taste, at this point I am not worried about chicken not being cooked. Remove all the roasted chicken and set aside.To the kadai, add about cup of water to deglaze, stir constantly and gently add all the browned chiken. Cover, simmer and cook till done. Open and reduce any leftover liquid from the chicken on high heat.

Part 3, In a a heavy bottomed vessel, boil 6 cups of water, add whole garam masala ( 4 bay leaves,2 cloves, 4 cardamom pods, a couple pieces of cinnamon sticks,star anise, few peppercorns), 4 cups of rice, 4 tbsp ghee and salt. Cover and take off the heat to slow cook. In about 30 minutes all the water will have absorbed and the rice cooked halfway....just the way we want it.
Now, spread the rice on a large platter to cool off a little to prevent cooking further. Spoon the saffron milk at one tsp at a time, in about 6 places to color as well as flavor the rice. Do not mix further. A fork can be used to lightly rake the rice to get different shades of yellow from saffron.

Part 4, In a oven proof casserole/dish, layer in half the rice on the bottom, sprinkle 1/3 of cilantro and mint leaves, layer chicken, fried onion, boiled egg nestled between chicken and some more of cilantro mint leaves. Layer second half of rice, fried onions and cilantro mint leaves to completely cover the chicken. Cover the casserole with aluminium foil and bake.

Part 5 , Heat oven to 250F and place the biryani in the oven for about an hour. This final baking gives the 'DUM' effect, cooks the eggs and rice and the gets the chicken to flavor the dish to perfection.


*G's Note*: I let the chicken biryani sit in the oven for longer until it is time to serve since I do not recommend reheating the dish for obvious reasons while entertaining friends.

Podi/ bhajo's

Paagil podi (pic 1) cauliflower bhajo (pic 2)









Leave it to 'Amchi's' to take something healthy and deep fry and relish it like it's the best thing in the world....but hey, I'm not complaining....I am equally guilty of having a nostalgic fondness towards podi's and bhajo's with dalithoy. Yum!

Bhajo's batter is made using besan,rice flour, chilli powder, hing and salt.Usually made out of cauliflower, potato,onion.

Podi's that uses the masala mentioned below are made of kadi ( raw jackfruit), Pagil( kantola), Goint( parwal), karathe(bitter gourd, Mashingasang (drumsticks).

For the podi guli:
Rice- 1 Cups, soaked in water for 2-3 hrs
Red chillies – 20
Hing – 1/4 tsp
salt
Grind all these ingredients into a coarse thick paste with minimal water and apply this to the the choice of your vegetable. Deep fry the goodies and enjoy with dalithoy and rice.

5 min choc cake

Ingredients:
4 tbsp all purpose flour
3 tbsp choc chips (any kind)
1 tsp vanilla
4 tbsp sugar
2 tbsp cocoa powder
i pinch salt
1 egg
5 tbsp milk
3 tbsp oil

Mix all the ingredients together in a coffee mug. Microwaave on high for 3 mins. Cool for a minute. Sare and enjoy!

berry ice cream

Ingredients:
1 cup sugar
3 cups fresh or frozen blueberries
1 cup strawberries
lime juice out of 1 lime
1/4 tsp. vanilla extract
2 cups heavy cream

Method:
In a medium sauce pan over low heat cook berries, sugar, lime zest & juice of 1 lime stirring occasionally, until berries begin to burst. Remove from heat and add strawberries,  mash a few berries leaving a few intact.



Cool the sweetened berries to room temperature add heavy cream * extract then churn in the ice cream maker till it thickens (about 25 mins).


Pour into a plastic tub (with airtight lid), line with wax paper & secure with lid. Freeze 2 hrs for a softee treat or 4+ hrs for tight scooped ice cream.

Madgane

Ingredients
1 cup bengal gram /chana dal
15 cashews
1 cup grated jaggery
1 cup coconut
2 tbsp rice, soaked in water
1/2 tsp cardamom powder

Pressure cook dal and cashew nut, just cooked till soft.
Grind coconut with rice to a smooth paste and use a sieve to strain and get milk.
In a heavy bottomed pot, add cooked dal, jaggery, cardamom powder and coconut milk. Bring to a boil over moderate heat. Serve hot.

Amrakhand

Ingredients:
2 Cup of yogurt
1 Cup Mango pulp
1/2 Cup Sugar
2 tbsp Everest milk masala (* see below)
a big pinch of saffron strands
1/2 Cup Pistachios, coarsely chopped
10 almonds, crushed
1/2 tsp elaichi powder

Method:
Place the yogurt in a colader thas has been double lined with cheese cloth. Refrigerate covered, overnight. Place a plate under the colander to catch the drips .
Add the sugar, mango pulp, elaichi powder, Everest milk masala, saffron, pista and almond to the thick yogurt. Garnish with saffron, pista and almond. Serve chilled with poori.

* Everest brand sells a kesar milk (powder) that has dried nuts ( coarsely crushed)in them that is added to warm milk for the saffron flavoured doodh. It can be used for flavouring kheer as well.

Happy Ugadi!

Clockwise:- starting from happla kismuri ( 6 O'clock), vodi, taushe sasam, dalithoy, chane ghashi made with the same masala as tori ghashi, nelkadle upkari, madgane, amrakhand with rice.

Happla kismuri

Ingredients:
Red Chillies Pappad/ Happol - 5
Onions,finely chopped - 1
Green Chillies - 3 finely chopped
Grated coconut - 1/2 cup
Coconut oil - 2 tsp
Cilantro, few stems, chopped
Salt

Method:
Roast the Pappad on high flame, apply oil. Crush green chillies in grated coconut add this to chopped onions, cilantro and salt. Hand crush the pappad and mix it with coconut onion mixture. Serve immediately.

Chane upkari ani phov

This is one of the breakfast eats which is done at most Konkani get-together's yet is not liked very much if done at home. It is considered very thoughtless of the host if at all it is served to any guest...no idea why! With last minute guest visiting all the time, sometimes it is inevitable to fix this breakfast up. I love this all the more now that I'm away from my home and it is a rare breakfast eats for us over here. A very simple non complicated breakfast.


















CHANE UPKARI
Ingredients:
brown skinned chana – 1cup
Mustard seeds – 1/4 tsp
Curry leaves – 1 sprig
Red chillies 3, cut in half
Grated coconut – 2 tbsp
Oil – 1 tbsp

Method:
Soak chana for 4-6hrs.
Pressure cook the chana till soft and tender.
Heat oil in a kadai, for seasoning and splutter mustard seeds,red chillies and curry leaves. Now add the cooked chana and salt. Bring it to a good boil. Garnish with coconut. Serve with Phov.

PHOV
Ingredients:
Thin poha 2 cups
coconut 1 cup
jaggrey 1/4 cup, grated
Jeera 1/4 tsp
coriander seeds 1/4 tsp
red chillies 4-8
mustard seeds 1/4 tsp
oil 1tsp

heat oil and roast red chillies, jeera and coriander seeds.
Crush the roasted spice with jaggrey, salt and coconut with a mortar and pestle. Add this coconut-spice mixture till the masala incorporates with poha. Make a seasoning with oil, mustard seeds,red chillies and curry leaves and add this to mixed poha.
This poha in a konkaniites home is served with one or more of the following:-banana, upma, chana upkari, chivda.