Vanilla Cake With Apricot Filling

          Vanilla cake with a fruit filling, nothing much exciting about the cake, except that this is the first cake that I have decorated. I had joined a cake decoration class, and in the second class, we had to make our own icing, and decorate a cake. I was able to do only a little bit in the class, came home and completed it and was pretty much satisfied at my first attempt and what better place to share it than on my blog and with all my friends here. And also I can always come back to look and laugh at my first try. I am not a big fan of icing nor anyone in the family, especially knowing the amount of sugar and shortening that goes into it, but at the same time feel that, a decorated cake is always more appealing to the eyes..

Need To Have

• All Purpose Flour Or Maida - 1 + 1/4 cup
• Sugar - 1 cup
• Egg - 1
• Baking Powder - 1 teaspoon
• Baking Soda - 1 teaspoon
• Milk - 1/2 cup
• Oil - 1/4 cup
• Butter - 1/4 cup
• Vanilla Extract - 1 teaspoon
• Salt - a pinch
• Apricot Preserves - 1/2 cup

Method
          Sift the flour, baking powder and baking soda, and beat the egg and add the sugar, oil, butter, milk, salt and the vanilla extract, mix everything well. To this, add the sifted ingredients little by little and blend everything together. Pour this in a greased pan ( I used a 8" circle pan ), bake at 350F for 25 to 30 mins. Remove, cool the cake at least for 2 or 3 hrs before doing the icing. Slice the cake across, place the top portion on the decorating board, sliced side up, pipe the icing around to form a dam, then spread the fruit filling. Now, place the bottom portion on the top, with the sliced side facing down, press it down slightly, then do the decoration. I made the basic confectioner's sugar, shortening  and vanilla icing.

Sending it to Tickling Palates for the I Love Baking event,
                to Food Corner for the Midweek Fiesta event,
                to Shama's Easy2cook Recipes for Sara's Cooking With Love - Granddad Series event and
                to Vegetarian Food And Me for I'm The Star event

Note
If the cake has a dome shape, just slice that portion, mix it with the fruit filling and spread it.
I tried a vegan cake, it flopped, I did a second cake and had to prepare the icing for the class, was tired, so I just stuck to the basic cake recipe.



 

reade more... Résuméabuiyad

Poondu Kuzhambu ( Garlic Gravy )

         Poondu (garlic) kuzhambu is a very traditional dish in South Indian cooking. To make it perfectly, you need to have the right amount of sourness, spice level and salt or as known in my language 'uppu, puli, kaaram'.  My daughter loves the garlic in this gravy, she would ask me, whether I could add a 100 of them to the dish. It goes very well with plain white rice and a dal and vegetable curry (kootu) and pappads, a nice spicy gravy for those cold winter or rainy days..

Need To Have 

• Garlic - 2 big whole bulbs peeled
• Small Onions Or Shallots - 6 or 7 chopped
• Green Chillies - 2 slit
• Tomato - 1 big chopped
• Tamarind - 1 lemon sized
• Turmeric Powder - 1/4 teaspoon
• Curry Leaves - 15
• Mustard Seeds - 1/2 teaspoon
• Fenugreek Seeds - 1/4 teaspoon

Roast And Powder

• Black Pepper - 1 teaspoon
• Dried Red Chilli - 1
• Black Mustard Seeds - 1/4 teaspoon
• Fenugreek Seeds - 1/4 teaspoon
• Coriander Seeds - 1 teaspoon

Method
          Roast and powder the ingredients given and extract juice from the tamarind (adding hot water to it) and keep. Heat oil ( I used sesame oil), add the mustard and fenugreek seeds, once the spluttering stops, add the chopped shallots, garlic, green chillies and curry leaves, saute till the garlic turns slightly golden. Next, add the tomato, saute till mushy, then add the ground powder, turmeric powder, salt and the tamarind extract, boil it uncovered till the raw smell of tamarind goes away and the gravy becomes thick. Garnish with curry leaves and serve warm with rice, it goes well with idlis and dosas too.

Sending it to Sumee's Culinary Bites for the Bon Vivant event,
                to Vegetarian Food And Me for I'm The Star event,
                to Sara's Corner for the Women's Day Celebration event,
                to Shama's Easy2cook Recipes for Sara's Cooking With Love - Granddad Series event,
                to Foodelicious for the Only South Indian event,
                to Food Corner for the Midweek Fiesta event and
                to Srav's Cooking Concepts for the Vegan Diet - Only Plant Based event.

Note
The red chillies I have were very spicy, use more or less, depending on the spice level.
The sesame oil is the one available at Indian stores, not the one from Chinese stores, this is for my non Indian readers.

reade more... Résuméabuiyad

Parsley Pilaf

          You might be wondering, another dish with parsley, well, I got a big bunch of curly leaf parsley, have used it in three dishes and still have some left in the fridge, unlike coriander this remains fresh for a long time. This time I made a pilaf with it, a very simple one, I didn't grind any masalas, it gets all its flavor from the parsley, to make it a little more wholesome, I added some sauteed tofu, turned out really good..

Need To Have

• Basmati Rice - 2 cups
• Chopped Parsley - 1 + 1/2 cup
• Toasted Tofu - 1 cup
• Onion - 1 big chopped
• Garlic - 4 cloves chopped
• Red Capsicum - 1 big chopped
• Chilli Flakes - 2 teaspoons
• Cumin Seeds - 1 teaspoon

Method
          Soak the basmati rice for 30 mins. Heat oil, add cumin seeds, once it stops spluttering add the onions and garlic, saute till the onions turn transparent. Next, add the chopped capsicum, saute for a couple of mins, add the 1 cup parsley, chilli flakes, saute for a minute or two. Add the rice, mix everything well, add water, cover and cook till done, at the end add the 1/2 cup parsley, cover and switch off. Once the rice cools down a bit, add the toasted tofu, mix and serve warm with some curry and raitha.

Sending this to Vegetarian Food And Me for I'm The Star event,
                   to Sumee's Culinary Bites for the Bon Vivant event,
                   to Shama's Easy2cook Recipes for Sara's Cooking With Love - Granddad Series event,
                   to Spicy Treats for the Show Me The Hits - Fiber Rich Foods event,
                   to Zesty South Indian Kitchen for the Hearth And Soul Blog Hop event,
                   to Food Corner for the Midweek Fiesta event,
                   to Srav's Cooking Concepts for Vegan Diets - Only Plant Based event and
                   to Sara's Corner for the Women's Day Celebration event.
Note
Use extra firm tofu.
Cook rice with twice the amount + cup of water, once it starts to boil, reduce the heat, cook till almost all the water is absorbed, then switch off and don't disturb it for atleast 1/2 an hour. This way, I get perfectly cooked but not mushy pilaf, can do it in rice cooker too.







 

reade more... Résuméabuiyad

Baingan Bharta (Mashed Eggplant)

           When I get these big eggplants or brinjals, I mostly do this or a raitha with it. The dish gets its flavor from roasting the eggplant directly on stove top or by grilling it. I made it a little more nutritious by adding some green chana (chickpeas) to it and also a little richer by adding some cashew paste. Once you are done with roasting the eggplant and removing the charred skin, the next steps are very pretty simple, it tastes great with that smoked flavor..

Need To Have

• Eggplant - 1 huge one
• Cooked Green Chana - 1 cup
• Onion - 1 big chopped
• Garlic - 4 cloves grated
• Ginger - 1 tablespoon grated
• Tomato Puree - 1/2 cup
• Chilli Powder - 1 teaspoon
• Coriander Powder - 1 teaspoon
• Turmeric Powder - 1/2 teaspoon
• Roasted Cumin Powder - 1/2 teaspoon
• Garam Masala - 1/2 teaspoon
• Cashews - 1 tablespoon
• Cumin Seeds - 1 teaspoon
• Coriander Leaves - to garnish

Method
          Roast the eggplant directly on stove top, turning it from side to side, or cut it into half, apply some oil and bake it in the oven. Once the outer skin becomes charred and the eggplant feels soft, remove and let it cool. Now comes the messy part, remove the charred skin and mash the eggplant either with the hand or in a blender, but do not make it into a paste. Make a paste with the cashews. Heat oil, add the cumin seeds, once the spluttering stops, add the onion, garlic and ginger, saute till the raw smell disappears, add the tomato puree (not a paste), followed by salt, turmeric, chilli and coriander powders, saute for about 5 mins. Then, add the cashew paste, saute for few more mins and add the eggplant, green chana, cook for couple of mins more, then add the cumin and garam masala powders, mix everything together. Garnish with coriander leaves and serve with rotis, this goes well with akki rotis too.

Sending this to Vegetarian Food And Me for I'm The Star event,
                   to Sumee's Culinary Bites for the Bon Vivant event,
                   to Shama's Easy2cook Recipes for Sara's Cooking With Love - Granddad Series event,
                   to Spicy Treats for the Show Me The Hits - Fiber Rich Foods event,
                   to Zesty Palette for Vidhya's Love Lock Series - Legumes event,
                   to Zesty South Indian Kitchen for the Hearth And Soul Blog Hop event,
                   to Food Corner for the Midweek Fiesta event,
                   to Srav's Cooking Concepts for Vegan Diets - Only Plant Based event and
                   to Sara's Corner for the Women's Day Celebration event.

Note
You can also cook the eggplant in the microwave oven, putting some slits and wrapping in a wet tissue, but it will not have the smoked flavor.
Can also use Italian eggplants for this and also fresh green chana.

reade more... Résuméabuiyad

Cauliflower And Potato Curry

          Cauliflower and potato curry or most commonly known as aloo gobi,  is a very popular and common dish, found in most of the restaurant menu cards. It can be made in a number of different ways from a simple fry to a nice rich gravy or a kurma, just by changing the spices added, you can end up in many varieties. Well, today's recipe uses the popular Bengali seasoning, 'panch phoran' and adapted from one of Madhur Jaffrey's recipes, I love her cookbooks, it's not just about the recipes but also the stories that go with them..
Need To Have

• Cauliflower - 1 small
• Potatoes - 1 + 1/2 cup
• Chilli Flakes - 1/2 teaspoon
• Coriander Powder - 1 teaspoon
• Turmeric Powder - 1/2 teaspoon
• Black Pepper Powder - 1/4 teaspoon
• Garam Masala - 1/2 teaspoon
• Panch Phoran - 1 + 1/4 teaspoon
• Chopped Coriander Leaves - 1/4 cup

Method
         Break the cauliflower into small florets and the potatoes should be cubed. Heat oil, add the panch phoran, once the spluttering stops, add the potatoes and saute for 5 mins. Add the cauliflower, saute for a couple of more mins, add the chilli flakes, salt, turmeric and coriander powders. Mix everything well, cover and cook till just done, finally mix in the garam masala and pepper powder.Garnish with the coriander leaves and serve it warm with rotis.

Sending this to Vegetarian Food And Me for I'm The Star event,
                   to Sumee's Culinary Bites for the Bon Vivant event,
                   to Shama's Easy2cook Recipes for Sara's Cooking With Love - Granddad Series event,
                   to Zesty South Indian Kitchen for the Hearth And Soul Blog Hop event,
                   to Srav's Cooking Concepts for Vegan Diets - Only Plant Based event and
                   to Sara's Corner for the Women's Day Celebration event.

Note
Panch Phoran: an equal mixture of mustard seeds, cumin seeds, fennel seeds, fenugreek seeds and kalonji or onion seeds.
Do not overcook the vegetables, they should not become mushy, it spoils the whole dish.
Cauliflower to Potatoes ratio - 2:1.





 

reade more... Résuméabuiyad

Potato And Parsley Paratha

          Most often, I make only plain rotis, parathas are reserved for those relaxed weekend lunches, as they take a little more time to roll out. But if you mix in the filling to the dough instead of stuffing it in the parathas, it saves some time. Adding some boiled potatoes to the roti dough makes it more softer and I had a big bunch of parsley and really didn't know how to use it all up, so just added some to the parathas instead of the regular coriander. The parathas came out really soft and tasted great..

Need To Have

• Whole Wheat Flour - 2 + 1/2 cups
• Mashed Potatoes - 1/2 cup
• Chopped Parsley - 1 cup
• Chilli Powder - 1 teaspoon
• Turmeric Powder - 1/4 teaspoon
• Asafoetida - 1/4 teaspoon

Method
          Mix all the ingredients with salt and water and make a soft dough, apply some oil and keep. Roll out into slightly thick discs or rotis. Put them on a hot pan, cook for few seconds, flip over, apply some oil, flip over,  apply oil on the second side, cook till brown spots appear on the bottom, flip one more time and cook on the second side. Remove it and serve it warm with any side dish or with just some pickle and curd.

Sending this to Spicy Treats for the Show Me The Hits - Fiber Rich Foods event,
                   to Vegetarian Food And Me for I'm The Star event,
                   to Shama's Easy2cook Recipes for Sara's Cooking With Love - Granddad Series event,
                   to Srav's Cooking Concepts for Vegan Diets - Only Plant Based event,
                   to Food Corner for the Midweek Fiesta event,
                   to Chef Al Dente for the Gimme Green event,
                   to Zesty South Indian Kitchen for the Hearth And Soul Blog Hop event,
                   to Tickling Palates for the Let's Cook Greens event and
                   to Sara's Corner for the Women's Day Celebration event.
               

Note 
If you are planning to make the parathas a little later, prepare a slightly stiff dough, it tends to become very soft and sticky and will be difficult to roll out.

reade more... Résuméabuiyad

Piletina punjena rizom

Nista neobicno,samo jos jedna od ideja kako napraviti jelo malo drugacije ali da se ne udaljim od klasicnog nacina pripreme,jer ne znam kako ce biti prihvatljivo od strane ukucana.

Imala sam vremena pa sam napravila dvije vrste jela od iste vrste mesa..piletina ovako ili onako,no uvijek prode s najboljom ocjenom.




PILETINA PUNJENA RIZOM
2 zlice ulja
1/2 glavice lika
1 salica (od 250ml) kuhane rize
2 zlice sjeckanog paradajza
(suhog iz ulja)
2 zlice listova bosiljak
50gr feta sira
4 pileca filea/bijelo meso
4 lista "filo pastry"
(kore za pitu)
Na ulju dinstati luk,zatim ga dodati u zdjelu gdje smo stavili kuhanu rizu,isjeckani suhi paradajz iz ulja i bosiljak.

Izmrviti feta sir,dodati zacine i sve izmijesati da se mirisi prozmu.Staviti na stranu dok pripremite meso.

Svaki file rasjeci kao za sniclu i lagano potuci baticem za meso(stavite najlon vrecicu preko da ne prsce meso okolo),staviti nadjev na jednu stranu i zamotati meso kao rolat.




Dva lista filo pastry /kore za pitu,premazati sa malo ulja i na njih poloziti meso koje smo savili ,pa fino preklopiti strane listova tijesta ,te staviti u posudu u kojoj ce se peci tako da donja strana ,tamo gdje se listovi preklapaju bude na dnu.



Premazati malo uljem i staviti peci u predhodno zagrijanu rernu na 180C oko 25 minuta.




PILETINA U KREMASTOM UMAKU

4 pileca filea
4 snite sunkarice salame
1 zlicica tarragona/zmijina trava
2 zlice bosiljka
50gr oraha
1/2 glavice luka
2 zlice ricotta sira/kravlji sir
sol,biber
200ml kokosjeg/povrtnog temeljca
200ml vrhnja za kuhanje
1 zlicica gustina
saffron -ako imate
2 zlice maslinovog ulja

Pilece meso rastanjiti na oblik sniocle,posoliti i pobiberiti.

Luk usitniti i proprziti na ulju,zatim...sloziti po snitu sunkarice na svaki rastanjeni komad mesa,preko staviti nadjev koji napravimo od sira,bosiljka,oraha i luka.

Savijemo ,zatvorimo sniclu cackalicom ili drvrnim raznjicem.

Na zagrijanom ulju (u istoj tavi gdje se przio luk0 popecemo pilece rolnice s jedne i s druge strane.

Dodamo tekucinu/poileci ili povrtni temeljac i vrhnje i pyustimo da lagano kuha oko 15 -est minuta.

Razmutimo gustin sa malo temeljcaa ili vode i sipamo u tavu gdje je meso...pustimo da se umak zgusne.



* ako zelite gusci umak,dodajte vise gustina.

Meso sloziti na tanjur i preliti umakom koji uobicajeno,procijedite da bude lijep svilenkast..ja to nisam uradila jer moji vole da imaju i one komadice mesa u umaku koji se raspadnu prilikom kuhanja.

reade more... Résuméabuiyad