Chicken Puttu/ Steam-cake

I have seen this concept being used in many recipes, by a lots of people. But this particular one is the result of my experiments.

Difficulty level: Medium
Preparation time: 20 min
Cooking time: 10-11 min/ puttu
Makes: 7-8 long puttu

Ingredients:


Puttu podi/ puttu mix: 1 cup, moistened according to package instructions
Shredded coconut: 1 cup
Salt, warm water: as needed

For the chicken layer:

Chicken: 325 gms, cut into 1/4" pieces
Onion: 1/2 of a medium, cut into 1/4" pieces
Meat masala: 4 tsp
Chilli powder: 1/2 tsp
Turmeric powder: a pinch
Curry leaves: leaves of a sprig
Oil: 1 1/2 tbsp
Cumin: 1 tsp
Salt, water: as needed

Heat the oil in a skillet and saute the onion. Once it turns light brown, add the spices and curry leaves and saute well until the raw taste of the spices have gone. Add the chicken and mix well, adding enough salt. Add about 1 cup water, cover and cook until completely done (about 10 min). Remove the lid and allow excess water to evaporate. But make sure you have some gravy left to be used a curry with the puttu later. Separate some chicken (drained of the gravy) from the curry and keep aside (It shouldn't be too dry just not drenched in gravy).

Now, to make the puttu, add about 1 tbsp shredded coconut to the long puttu-maker. Add about a handful of the puttu mix, then 2 tbsp of the chicken (from the chicken kept aside), then 1 tbsp of the coconut, continuing the same pattern until you get to the top(a word of caution:.Don't fill the puttu maker to the top. Sometimes, the puttu has a tendency to rise and you may end up having to clean, more than normal). Steam them for 9-10 and serve them hot, with the chicken curry you made.

Chocolate Chip Cookies

My kids love the store bought chocolate chip cookies. So, instead of allowing them to eat all the preservatives contained in them, I decided to make them at home. This easy recipe is from The Hershey's Kitchens.

Difficulty level: Easy
Preparation time: 15 min
Cooking/ baking time: 8-10 min/ batch
Makes: about 60 cookies

Ingredients:


Butter: 1 cup, softened
Sugar: 3/4 cup
Light brown sugar: 3/4 cup
Vanilla extract: 1 tsp
Eggs: 2
Baking soda: 1 tsp
All-purpose flour/ maida: 2 1/4 cups
Salt: 1/2 tsp
Milk chocolate chips: 2 cups
Chopped nuts: 1 cup, optional

Heat oven to 375 degree F.

Beat the butter, sugars and vanilla in a large bowl, with a whisk until creamy. Add eggs and beat well. Sift together baking soda, flour and salt. Gradually add to the butter mixture and beating well until well blended. Stir in chips and nuts, if needed. Use a cookie drop to drop  the cookies about 2 inches apart. If you don't have that fancy gadget, just use the teaspoon as the measure.

Bake 8 to 10 min, or until lightly browned. Cool slightly; remove from cookie sheet to a cooling rack. Cool completely.

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Instant Ripe Mango Pickle

My grandmother used to make this dish all the time, when mangoes were in season. As a child, I would start eating this as soon as she prepared them, and my poor grandfather would be left with only a little bit by the time he sat down for lunch. However hard I try, I just cannot get the taste just right. It never comes close to my grandmother's preparation. That's the case when grandmothers and mothers cook for you,right?

You may be need to adjust the amount of spices depending on the size and sweetness of the mango.

Difficulty level: Easy
Preparation time: 5 min
Makes: 1-2 servings

Ingredients:


Ripe mango: 1
Turmeric powder: a pinch
Chilli powder: 3/4 tsp
Coconut oil: 1 tsp
Salt to taste

Cut the mango to 1/4" pieces. Add the rest of the ingredients and mix well, using your fingers ( preferrably). The mango pieces may start to fall apart, and that is exactly what you want. But don't press or squish the mangoes. Dig in.

Goes well with rice. You can also have it as such, on its own, like me!!!

Bruschetta

For the first few months after arriving in the US, I was on a quest to find vegetarian dishes that suited my taste in the different types of popular restaurants here. After all, how long can one survive on Indian restaurants as the only option to eat out!!! Italian was an early favorite and bruschetta was one of the reasons why. It is a simple but tasty dish and while it is considered an appetizer there is no reason why you can't treat it as a meal.

Difficulty level: Easy
Preparation time: 15 min
Cooking time: 5 min
Makes: 5-6 servings

Ingredients:


French baguette/ french bread: 400 gms (about a loaf)
Tomatoes: 4 medium
Olive oil: 1 tsp + for brushing
Grated cheese: 3 tbsp+ more to add on top, if needed
Dry basil: 1/2 tsp
Italian seasoning: 3/4 tsp
Salt, pepper: to taste

Cut the tomatoes into really tiny pieces and add 1 tsp olive oil, the grated cheese (I used a mix of Parmesan , Romano and Asiago), the dry herbs, salt and pepper. Mix well until the cheese and oil are uniformly distributed.

Cut the bread into 1/2" thick slices and lay on a baking tray. Apply some olive oil on the entire surface facing up, using a pastry brush. This helps to get a nice brown colour and a crispiness on the outside. "Broil" this in the oven until light golden brown (about 2-3 min, depending on the oven). Remember to keep a very close eye on this as it can get burnt very easily.

To assemble, take a slice of the bread and put some tomato topping on top. Sprinkle some more grated cheese, if needed. Serve immediately, or it will start getting soggy.

Eggless Vanilla Cake

I have been thinking of making a Vanilla cake for a while now. While I was looking through my recipes, I found this one from Tarla Dalal. Interestingly, the cake is made with no eggs and it is made in a microwave.

It came out really nice and soft. My kids loved it too.

The cooking time could vary as each microwave is different. Mine cooked in 6 1/2 min. Also, if you do not have sour curd, add 1 tsp lime juice to your yogurt to make it sour.

Difficulty level: Medium
Preparation time: 10 min
Cooking time: 7-8 min
Makes: 6-9 portions

Ingredients:

All purpose flour: 1 cup
Baking powder: 1 tsp
Sour yogurt/ curds: 4 tbsp
Baking soda/ soda bi-carb: 1/2 tsp
Melted butter: 1/2 cup (microwave butter on high for 1 min)
Powdered sugar: 3/4 cup
Vanilla essence: 1 tsp


Sieve the baking powder and flour and keep aside. Mix together baking soda and the curd and keep aside. Combine butter, sugar and 1/2 cup water in another bowl and whisk well. Add the curd, vanilla essence and flour and mix well, to make a smooth batter. Batter is ready when it is of a pouring consistency. If the batter is too thin, add 2 tbsp flour and mix well. Pour the batter into a greased shallow 7" diameter (minimum) glass (or any other microwaveable) dish. Microwave on high for 4 min. Cook for more time if needed, in 30 sec increments. The toothpick inserted at the center should come out clean. Remove from microwave, cool slightly and unmould. 

Kesar Kulfi

If you haven't figured out by now, my husband has a sweet tooth. One of his favorite desserts is Kulfi. Apparently, growing up, his mom used to make sure that there was either Kulfi or Gulab Jamun or both in the fridge at all times.

Kulfi is one of the easiest desserts to make, yet everyone would think you spent hours making it. It looks like ice-cream, and so the kids would love it too. I use some Kulfi moulds ( the ones that used to come free with Milkmaid) and some Ice cream pop molds to freeze the kulfies in.

If you don't get evaporated milk in your stores or don't have it handy, just use the regular milk and reduce it to three-fourth the original quantity. Just note, the creamier the milk that you use the softer the kulfi. The more water there is, the more icy it becomes.

Difficulty level: Easy
Preparation time: 10 min + 2-3 hrs to set
Makes: 8- 10 servings

Ingredients;


Evaporated milk(or milk): 650 ml
Sugar: 3/4 cup
Saffron: 4-5 strands

Heat the milk and sugar, until the sugar has completely dissolved. Add the saffron and mix well. Allow to cool slightly and pour into moulds. Freeze until set.

You can try variations every time you make it.

Mango Kulfi: Add 3 cups mango pulp and mango essence, if needed.

Pista  Kulfi: Add a few drops each of green colour and pista essence. You could also add finely crushed pista to the mix. The nuts usually settle to the bottom but it makes for an interesting contrast in texture. Note to mix the milk before pouring into each mold, else all the nuts will be distributed unevenly across the different kulfies of the batch.

I do not have a picture, as I have not made this recently.

Mango Milkshake

There would be very few of us who do not like a nice cool Mango mik shake. The Mango milk shake and its cousin the Mango Lassi, have become staple dishes at a typical Indian restaurant. It is actually very easy to make and there is no reason why you can't enjoy this at home.

Difficulty level: Easy
Preparation time: 10 min
Makes: 3-4 servings

Ingredients:


Mango pulp: 1 1/2 cups
Milk: 2 cups
Vanilla ice cream: 1 cup
Ice cubes: optional

Mix everything well and pour into glasses. Serve garnished with mango slices or mint leaves.