Chocolate Almond Fudge

Valentine’s Day wishes to all!! On this special occasion I like to prepare something new and special to my hubby and I start goggled and got this cool and easy recipe from here, it really looks delicious and treats for chocoholic. The method is very easy and it came out very well and we both loved the taste and enjoy having it!!
Fudge is a type of Western confectionery which is usually very sweet, and extremely rich. It is made by mixing Condensed milk, butter, and chocolate chips and heating it to the soft stage and then beating the mixture while it cools so that it acquires a smooth, rich and creamy consistency. Let’s do the recipe…

Ingredients:

Semisweet / Dark chocolate chips – 400gms
Condensed milk – 1tin
Butter – 2 tbsp
Vanilla extract – 2 tsp
Almond – 100gm
Pistachios few

Method:

• Toast the almonds and pistachios place them on a baking sheet and bake for about 5 to 8 minutes minutes or until the nuts are fragrant and their skins start to blister. Take care do not burn.
• Let cool and then chop into small pieces.








• First line the pan, bottom and sides with aluminium foil.
• Combine the condensed milk, chocolate chips and butter in a heatproof bowl and place over a saucepan of simmering water (using double boiling method).
• Melt the chocolate mixture, stirring frequently, making sure the mixture doesn't get too hot or the fudge may be grainy.
• Keep stirring until the chocolate dissolves smooth and glossy and remove from heat.
• Now add the vanilla extract and chopped nuts to this fudge and mix gently.
• Spread this fudge into a prepared pan, cover with plastic or aluminum foil sheet and smoothing the top with offset spatula and let stands at room temperature until cool (this can take several hours).
• Then carefully remove the fudge from the pan by lifting the edges of the foil.

Cut the fudge into desire pieces and enjoy!!

Delightful Chocolate Almond Fudge is ready…

Note:

• Keep refrigerated and use it for several days or freeze, well wrapped, for several months.
• Let thaw at room temperature, unwrapped, for a few hours before serving.
• You could substitude any nuts or dry fruits for almonds.

Drumstick Sambar

Most of the veg.lovers may always crave for sambar. It's similar to regular ones but different in taste which is beacuse of key ingredient, grounded paste of coconut and fennel seeds. This also enhances the taste. Very comfort and easy recipe.

Ingredients:

Toor dhal – 1/2 cup
Drumstick – 2no
Shallots – 12 or 15nos (peeled)
Tomato – 1 small
Turmeric powder – 1/4tsp
Sambar powder – 1tsp
Tamarind pulp – 1tbsp
Coriander leaves few

To Grind:

Grated coconut – 2tbsp
Fennel seeds – 1tsp

To temper:

Mustard seeds – ½tsp
Urad dhal – 1tsp
Red chilli – 1
Hing – ¼tsp
Curry leaves few

Method:

• Pressure cook the toor dhal with turmeric powder for 3-4 whistles and keep it aside.
• Grind coconut and fennel seeds into smooth paste.
• Heat oil in a pan add mustard seeds, urad dhal, curry leaves, red chilli and hing after it splutters add shallots fry them till it becomes translucent.
• Then add the drumstick and chopped tomato, salt and fry for few minutes till tomato becomes soft.
• Now add the pressure cooked toor dhal, sambar powder and a cup of water and allow boiling in simmer for 10 minutes.
• Once the drumstick cooks, add the tamarind pulp and bring to boil well.
• Finally add the ground paste and leave for 2 more minutes to get thicken.
• Remove from heat and garnish with coriander leaves.

Serve hot with rice!!

Note:

• This sambar's taste matches to arachuvitta sambar..
• Even tastes good with idli and dosa too.
• By adding grounded paste towards the end, the flavour and aroma of sambar lasts long.

Godhumai Dosai / Wheat Dosa

I make this dosa for every two weeks once. It is one of the bachelor’s recipe too. My hubby said that before marriage he use to prepare this dosa often as it’s very easy to prepare for dinner. It is very comfort and tastes delicious too.

Ingredients:

Wheat flour – 1cup
Rice flour – 1/2 cup
Green chilli – 2no
Curry leaves few
Mustard seeds
Hing – 1/4 tsp
Salt to taste

Method:

• In a bowl mix wheat flour, rice flour, silted green chilli, curry leaves, hing and required salt and mix well with water into thin batter without any lumps and temper with mustard seeds.


• Let the batter sit for half an hour.
• Heat tawa and take one ladle full of batter and spread starting from end and finish with middle in a circular motion as you prepare for rava dosa. Drizzle some oil and cook on both sides.

Serve hot with Chutney or Sambar.

Note:

• For crispy dosa the consistency of the batter should be watery as we prepare for rava dosa.
• Reduce the quantity of rice flour into 1/4 cup for soft dosa.

Pongal Recipes

Wish you all a very Happy Pongal.

Hope you all had a great Pongal celebration.

Pongal is a four-days-long harvest festival celebrated in Tamil Nadu. Pongal and one of the most important popular Hindu festivals of the year. This four-day festival of thanksgiving to nature takes its name from the Tamil word meaning "to boil" and is held in the month of Thai (January-February) during the season when rice and other cereals, sugar-cane, and turmeric are harvested. The first day is celebrated as Bhogi festival in honour of Lord Indra, on the second day of Pongal, the puja or act of ceremonial worship is performed when rice is boiled in milk outdoors in an earthenware pot and is then symbolically offered to the sun-god along with other oblations.The third day is known as Mattu Pongal, the day of Pongal for cows and the Fourth day are known as Knau or Kannum Pongal day. To know more click here.

In our family we celebrates this pongal festival in very grand manner, many of my relatives will gather at our place and  the place will be filled with happiness. My grand mom use to cook this paal pongal , charakkara pongal and pongal pulusu in clay pots which is a traditional way and being in singapore i wouldn't be able to cook tradtionally, however i use the same recipe to make this pongal.

Chakkara Pongal

Ingredients:

Raw Rice – 1cup
Grated Jaggery – 1cup
Milk – 6cup
Water – 1cup
Cardamom powder a pinch
Cashews few
Raisins few
Ghee – 3 tbsp


Method:

• Wash and soak rice for 30 minutes.
• Heat ghee in a pan and fry the cashews and raisins and keep aside.
• In a heavy bottom vessel add milk and water and allow to over flowing few drops.
• Now add the soaked rice and stir occasionally to avoid sticking at the bottom of the vessel.
• Cook the rice till it gets cooked and mushy.
• After the rice get cooked well add the grated jaggery, cardamom powder and mix well till the jaggery get dissolved and thicken.
• Finally garnish with fried cashews and raisins.

Simply delightful Chakkara pongal is ready to serve!!


Paal Pongal

Ingredients:

Raw rice – 1cup
Milk – 6 cup
Water – 1cup
Salt - 1/4 tsp
Ghee – 1tbsp

Method:

• Heat ghee in a pan and fry the cashews and raisins and keep aside.
• In a heavy bottom vessel add milk and water and allow to over flowing few drops.
• Now add the soaked rice and stir occasionally to avoid sticking at the bottom of the vessel.
• Cook the rice till it gets cooked and mushy.
• Once the rice gets cooked well, add salt and mix to combine well.
• Finally add ghee and serve hot.

Enjoy the creamy Paal pongal with Pongal Pulusu!!

Pongal Pulusu/ Kuzhambu

It is one of the best side dish especially for paal pongal, with various vegetables and lentils which is equally tastes good with all its tangy, sweetness and spicy.One of the best part in this sambar is prepared without adding any toor dhal and the tastes excellent and no comprise at all.

Ingredients:

Vegetables chopped – 1cup (I used Pumpkin, sweet potato, broad beans)
Lentils – 1/2 cup (raw peanuts, channa and field beans)
Tomato – 1small
Green chillies – 2
Tamarind pulp –21tbsp
Jaggery – 1tbsp
Sambar powder – 2tsp
Turmeric powder – 1/4tsp
Hing - 1/4tsp
Salt to taste
Rice flour – 2tbsp
Curry leaves
Coriander leaves


Method:

• Wash and soak the lentils for minimum 4 hours and pressure cook for 3 whistles.
• Now open the lid and add the chopped vegetables, tomato, silted green chillies, sambar powder, salt, turmeric powder and water just to immerse and leave for another 2 whistles.
• To this cooked veg and lentil add tamarind pulp, jaggery and rice flour mixing with ¼ cup of water without any lumps to thicken the sambar.
• Allow it to boil for few minutes. Finally season with mustard seeds, curry leaves and garnish with coriander leaves.

Serve with Paal Pongal.

Happy Blogger Award!!

It is a first award for the year 2012.This award has been shared by sangeetha of spicy treats, Roshini of Arusuvai Kurippu and Faseela of Good food ends with Good talk, they has got a neat space with lots of interesting and yummy dishes and very informative too. Please visit their blogs and have fun. I would like to thank them for sharing this happy blogger award and it really encourage me lot and do more.

I would like to pass this award to some of my fellow bloggers:

Chitra of Ratatouille
Suja of Kitchen Corner
Hari chandha of Indian cuisine
Uma of My Kitchen Experiments
Kalpana sareesh of Life with spices
Radha of Liberal dose of Masala
Kaveri of Palakkad chamayal
Sravani of Srav's Culinary Concepts
Jeyashrisuresh of Jeyashriskitchen
Krithi of krithiskitchen

Please accept this award and share it with your blogger buddies. Thank You !!

Vazhakkai Fry

vazhakkai was always a favorite vegetable for me. In my earlier post I have posted vazhakkai podimas. This fry is similar hit at my home and we all enjoy having this fry with sambar rice and dhal, it tasted yummy.

Ingredients:

Vazhakkai / Raw Banana – 1
Chilli powder – 1tsp
Coriander powder – ½tsp
Gram masala powder – 1/4tsp
Turmeric powder - a pinch
Curry leaves few
Mustard seeds few
Salt to taste
Oil


To Grind:

Fennel seed – 1tsp
Grated coconut – 1tbsp


Method:

• Grind coconut and fennel seeds into coarse paste.
• Wash and peel the raw banana and slice them vertically ¼” thick slices.
• Put the chopped slices into water by adding little salt and leave for 10 min and drain the water completely.
• In a bowl add raw banana then wet paste, turmeric powder, chilli powder, coriander powder and salt except gram masala powder and mix gently to combine well and marinate for 15 to 30 minutes.
• In pan heat oil add mustard seeds once splutters add curry leaves sauté them well and add the marinated raw banana slices fry well until it becomes soft and done.
• Cover with a lid and cook in low flame without adding water. Add few drops of oil now and then, and stir constantly to avoid stick on the bottom of the pan.


• Once it gets cooked and roasted sprinkle gram masala powder and fry for couple of minutes.

Switch off and serve hot with Rice.

Note:

• Even you can deep fry the marinated raw banana slices too.
• Take care while adding salt to raw banana slices.

Tutti- Frutti Cake

Wish you all my friends and readers a very happy and prosperous new year!!
I start this New Year 2012 by posting my first baking recipe. Yes it’s something special and close to my heart. My long time baking dream comes true on this year, my hubby surprised me by presenting oven for this new year and I am was very happy and excited to share this recipe with you all. I took this recipe from here
, ofcourse with little bit measurement changes. It’s very easy and beginners recipe too. Long time back I goggled and noted this cake recipe, it comes out so perfect and soft without any flaw on my first attempt itself. I am dedicating this Tutti- frutti cake to my dear hubby. He really enjoyed and just loved it. I will try post many baking recipes in near future....

Ingredients:
Maida – 1 and 1/2cup
Granulated sugar – 1 cup
Tutti – Frutti – 1/2cup
Butter – 2 tbsp
Milk – 1/2 cup
Egg – 2
Baking Powder – 1 and 1/2tsp
Baking soda – 1/2 tsp
Vanilla essence – 2 tsp
Chopped Nuts – 2tsp (for garnishing)

Method:

• Sieve flour, baking powder and baking soda together for thrice and keep aside.
• Sprinkle some flour over the tutti fruit and coat well and set aside.



• In a bowl mix butter and sugar together and beat well till fluffy. Now add 1 egg at a time and beat well and add next egg and again beat well. Then add vanilla essence and milk and mix well.
• Add Maida mixture and mix gently to combine all.
• Finally add tutti – frutti and mix well gently.



• Pour the batter to the baking tray and make even on all sides and sprinkle some chopped nuts on top.
• Preheat the oven to 180 degree c and bake for 35 to 40 min or until the tooth pick comes out clean.



• Allow to cool down and enjoy...

Soft and Yummy cake is ready!!

Note:

• Timing may vary from each one, so check after 40 min and then set time again.
• You could substitute normal sugar with granulated sugar.
• You can also add chopped nuts with tutti -frutti.