Moong sprouts cutlet (Mulappicha Cherupayar Cutlet)

 What about some veg. recipes this whole week?? This is one super-delicious healthy veg. snack which I'm sure you guys will go on trying  even after this Ramadan.

Sprouts are so rich in protein that it is adviced to have those frequently. You can make Thoran, Curries, Salads and many more with Moong sprouts . It's easy to make at home or you can easily get those from supermarkets. If making at home, just soak whole moong (cherupayar) in water for 5-6 hrs and then tie them up in a damp cloth for overnight. The cloth will turn to brown color; but don't worry your sprouts will be safe.

Moong-sprouts cutlets are dipped in Besan (gramflour) paste , coated with breadcrumbs & then shallow fried in oil.

Ingredients:


1/4 cup oil
2 cups onion slices
Ginger 1 tbsp
Garlic 3 pods
1 1/2cups moong-sprouts
1 cup Boiled & mashed potatoes
3 Green chillies
Curry leaves a few
Garam masala 1/2 tsp
Oil for frying
Bread crumbs-to coat
For dipping:

Besan/Gramflour/Kadalappodi 1 cup
Water 1 cup
asafoetida/Kaayam a pinch
Red chilli powder 1/2 tsp
Salt

Method:

1.  Cook sprouts alongwith salt, ginger and turmeric powder till done. You can use pressure cooker also. Mix in enough water and then pressure cook. Take care that they are not overcooked. cEither dry up water in high flame or if the water is too much, then drain them nicely.

2. Heat oil in a pan, saute onions till translucent, add garlic paste& green chilles and saute for a minute more.

3. Now add cooked sprouts and mix well. Season with salt , garam masala and curry leaves.

4. Mix in the boiled and mashed potatoes to it. Turn off the flame.

5. Once it is cooled, make cutlets with it.

6. Mix all the dipping ingredients together. You can use a blender for easy mixing.

7. Dip the cutlets in it, then coat with breadcrumbs. Dip these coated cutlets again in the dip and coat with bread crumbs once more. The second dip is for turning the cutlet more crispier outside.

8. Now fry them in oil and enjoy your snack with ketchup or any sauce of your choice.

Cherry Smoothie

 Ingredients:

Cherry 1 tray (abt  230g)
Cold Milk 2 cups
Sugar 2 tbsp
Yoghurt 2 tbsp ( optional)

Method:

Remove the stems of the cherry, wash it nicely ,blend everything together in a blender and then strain off the seeds. Don't blend too much so that the seeds too get grinded.

Prawns- Macaroni Pola

Actually I  walk with a camera these days even when I was there in mom's house  and ma sisters make fun of me saying 'run,,, hasna is coming with camera..'' as they don't want to pose for me. This one is also made by my sister Hanan when I took this and ran away  to click while the guests were waiting!@# and so couldn't concentrate on pictures well..

A spicy non-oily; but high cholestrol snack !! :) Egg and prawns make it highly rich and spicy too... This is latest addition to our Malabar region.. really donno the original recipe owner,, but can see these days in many houses' iftar table.Its so easy and yummy!! try this and I'm sure that you all will love it...


Ingredients:


Boiled macaroni 1 1/2 cup
Prawns 3/4 cup
Red chilli powder

Onion3
Ginger- garlic paste 2 tsp

Green chilli 2 or more

Eggs 5
Coriander leaves
Pepper
Salt
Method:

1. Fry prawns marinated in red chilli powder, salt and pepper.

2. In the same oil, add chopped onions, ginger -garlic paste and saute till it turns translucent.

3. Now add prawns cut into 2-3 pieces.

4. Add coriander leaves and it is done.

5. Now beat the eggs with salt and pepper. Mix boiled macaroni in this.

6. Take a non-stick pan, coat with oil or ghee and pour half the egg-macaroni mixture into the pan.

7. Now layer the prawns masala on top of that. Then, again the egg-macaroni mixture.

8.Cover with lid and simmer in low flame for a minimum of 15 minutes or till it is done. You can bake this also.

Coconut & Dates n Bread Fritters

This is one special snack from my mom's kitchen that brings back my childhood memories. I could never stop eating this. I'm so great fan of coconut and dates filling that anything stuffed with this fills ma mouth with water; just like pazham nirachathu (plaintain stuffed with this filling), muttappola (sponge cake with the same stuffing) etc...

 Ingredients :

For the stuffing:

Coconut 1 3/4 cups
Sugar 75 ml/ 5 tbsp
Ghee 2 tbsp
Cashew 4-5 (chopped)
Cardamom powder a pinch
Dates 1/4 cup (pitted and chopped)

Method:

1. Heat Ghee in a pan. Fry cashews in it to a bit till it turns light brown.

2. Add coconut and sugar to this. Now stir this continously till the colour of the coconut changes slightly and the water evaporates completely..Check the taste in between and add more sugar if you need. Don't make it too dry. Do the whole process in slow fire. Add cardamom powder to it.

3.Switch off the flame & then add the dates. Mix well.

Ingredients:

Bread
Coconut & Date Filling
Bread crumbs
Oil


Method:

1. Trim the edges of the bread. Use normal white bread. Don't use milk bread or anything else as you may find difficulty  while rolling. I used to buy bread from my nearby grocery which is not that soft.

2. Take some water in a bowl. Dip bread in that water ;one at a time; slightly and then place it on your palm and press with the other palm so that the water in that bread drops.

3. The bread should still be moisturised a bit so that you'll find it easy to roll.

4. Now fill 1 or 2 teaspoonful of of the stuffing on that bread when it is still in your palm. The amount of filling depends on the size of bread you use

5. Now start rolling with the same palm; the way you do it for ladoos or unnakkai...

Check the pictures

6. Shape it nicely and take care that the filling is covered properly. Roll this onto bread crumbs and deep fry till it turns brown and crisp outside.

** You can use spicy filling inside too like samosa filling, chicken or Meat masala.

Chatti Pathal/ Pathiri (with Pancakes )

A sweet Malabar dish layered with pancakes or rolled out chappathis !! We have got a delicious sweet scrambled egg filling  with fried cashews and raisins, flavoured with cardamom which is used here in this recipe. This is the first time I've ever tried this one & so it does not luk that perfect; but trust me; it was that delicious that I couldn't stop myself from posting it. My sister Hanan is an expert in this dish. She did try both the chappathi and pancake version & we all luvd the latter one as it is soft and thus easy to bite.

Ingredients 

(Recipe courtesy : Sumin Firosh, Pachakam.com)

If you are using Chappathis:

AllPurpose flour(Maida) - 100 gm (for making 6 layers)
Oil - 1 tbsp
Water - As reqd
Salt - As reqd



Or If you are using Pancakes:

White Flour 2 cups
Salt to taste
Water
Egg 1


For Filling:-
Eggs - 5 nos
Sugar - 8-10 tbsp
Ghee - 1 tbsp
Grated coconut - 5 tbsp
Raisins - 25 gms
Cashew nuts chopped - 25 gm
Poppy seeds(Khashakhasha) - 3 tbsp
Cardamom powder - 1/2 tsp

For coating:-

Eggs - 4-5 nos
Sugar - 5-6 tbsp
Cardamom - A pinch

Method:


1) Knead into a dough like that of chappathis/rotis with the flour, water, oil and salt  (medium thickness).

2)Using a roller pin, roll it out into paper-thin chapathies of uniform size(~8 inches diameter) on a dusted flour board. You can vary the size of the chappathi depending on the size of the pathiri chatti or the vessel in which you are baking it.


3)Heat a griddle and cook the chappathis lightly on a tawa as you do for samosa pastries.

If using Pancakes:

1.Mix well the pancake ingredients until no lumps formed. The batter should be not too thick nor too thin.

2.Line some ghee on a frying pan (which is of the same size of the baking dish you use) or if using non-stick pan, you can make your pancakes in that same pan.

3.Pour some batter in the pan, take it in your hands and spread it by rotating the pan allover. Or you can do it just like dosas in a tawa.

4. No need to turn them upside down. When it is done (in slow fire), take it and repeat the process until you get your desired layers.

The filling:

1.Beat 3 eggs with sugar, 1 tbsp ghee and cardamom.

2.Heat a wok.

3.Add 1 tbsp ghee and saute cashewnuts, raisins, poppy seeds and grated coconut until they change the colour slightly.

4.Add the beaten egg and scramble the whole mixture. Keep it aside.

Egg Batter:

Beat the remaining eggs, sugar and cardamom and keep aside.

Baking Process:

1.Take a non-stick baking tray or a non-stick pan, spread 1 tsp oil or ghee all around(spray the nonstick oil).

2.Keep one chappathi/pancake as the first layer.

3.Dip the second chappathi/pancake in the egg mixture, coat well and place it on top.

4.Arrange the scrambled egg mixture (just 2-3 tbsp).

5.Keep another chappathi/pancake, dipped in the egg batter on top.

6.Make a new layer. Keep adding the egg-coating at each step and finally pour the remaining egg mixture over the sides and on the top.If there is no egg batter left, beat one more to pour on top.

7.Garnish with cashew nuts and raisins.

8.Bake in an oven for nearly 15 mins or till the whole pathiri turns golden. If you are using a non-stick pan, you can simmer this on fire as I did. Check after 15 mts and take care that its not burnt at the bottom. If it is done, heat another frying pan, line some ghee and then turn this chattipathal on that so that the top portion is also browned.

 As per Shinu Firsosh, "Traditionally the baking is done in a sealed container with the coconut husk embers on top....Though a little bit of a process the delicacy is definitely worth the trouble.. especially for all those with a sweet tooth!!"
 

Turkish Baklava (Traditional Arabic Dessert)

Enough with Malabar?? nah!! just thought of taking a break in between..

I think most of you all know about Baklava- the traditional Arabic Dessert. Its made of filo pastry and chopped/crushed nuts and sweetened with sugar syrup or honey.  Its an easy one!! The only thing you should know is to 'working with filo pastry'. If you have frozen filo pastry, then its good. Baklava varies from region to region in taste; but the process is just the same. The only difference is in the combination of nuts you use. You can use any nuts of your choice; Walnuts, pecans, almonds, pistachios etc.

Bookmarked this recipe during Daring Bakers' challenge from many blogs.

 

Ingredients:

Phyllo/Filo pastry 1 packet (frozen)

Pistachios 85 gm

Walnuts 60 gms

Almonds 60 gms ( u can use any combination of nuts or just pistachios alone)

Cinnamon powder

Sugar 75gms

Butter 100 gms

For the syrup

Sugar 140ml

Honey 150 ml

Water 150 ml

Orange rind (optional)

Method:

1.Prepare syrup using the syrup ingredients . Boil them for about 10 minutes and then strain the orange peel. Let it cool.

2. Thaw the filo pastry and cut the pastry to fit in your pan.

3..Crush the nuts,cinnamon powder and sugar together until it is finely crushed. You can use food-processor or cut finely with a knife. Some like it finely powdered while others wish to have crunchy bites of nuts.  You can use any combination of nuts. Next time, I would prefer a combination of almonds and pistachios.

4. Melt the butter. Brush the  pan lightly with butter. Now place phyllo pastry and then brush with butter again. Do this atleast 7 times.

5. Now layer half of the nuts mixture on top of that. (The nuts layer should not be too thick as we are layering them twice here. I can't give you the exact measurement as it depends on your baking dish.) Mine was a bit thick and I need to reduce the measure next time if using the same dish.

6. Continue layering phyllo and butter 4 times. Then nuts mixture again .

7. Layer the pastries 4 times again and its done now. Pour the remaining butter on top. (max of 1/4 cup).

8.Preheat oven to 170 degrees. Cut the baklava in desired shapes carefully so that the layers are not disturbed. Bake them until it is golden browned on top.

9. Now when it is hot, pour the cooled syrup on top of it so that it covers the top layer nicely. Leave it to soak for overnight.

Meat Box (pancakes filled with Meat stuffing )

I really dont know the name of this snack. Have seen this in my hubby's place in Trikaripur; they call it  Irachi Appam or something and I saw its name as 'Karippetty' in my cousin's picture.. Not sure!!This was my first snack this Ramadan and was hesitating to post because of its name. Actually , this is an easy and yummy snack. The pancake is filled with any masalas(stuffing) of your choice and then dipped in egg batter and shallow fried in ghee. Its that easy.

Ingredients:

For the Pancake:

White Flour 1 cup
Corn Flour 1/2 cup (optional)
Egg 1
Salt to taste

For Meat Masala/Stuffing , Click here .. You can use any stuffing..

For the batter to be dipped in:

Egg
Salt to taste
Pepper to taste
Curry leaves

Method:

Prepare the pancake batter and egg batter using their respective ingredients.

Pour some pancake batter in a small & hot frying pan , rotate the pan with your hands so that the batter spreads evenly. Cook in slow fire. No need to turn the pancake or cook the other side.

If you don't have a small pan, spread a small pancake in a big pan just like we do for Dosas.

Now take the pancake out in a plate, fill the stuffing and then fold from four sides just like a box.

Now dip this in egg batter and shallow fry both the sides in ghee.

Chocolate Mousse

Happy Independence Day!!!!

 Chocolate mousse .. wallah!! I'm sure that this word can make our mouth water at any time of the day whether its a fasting day or a sleepless midnight. I've posted this very recipe but with a cake- base named Triple-Chocolate Mousse Cake by Martha Stewart long ago . There I did make two types of mousses with bittersweet chocolate & milk chocolate. Now this is done with just Milk chocolate as per ma sissy's request but served with Special Kellogs (Red Berry Crunch) and chocolate shavings as layers. This was just awesome and so easy too... Red Berry Crunch gave it the sourness of the berries and crunchiness of the cereal... I just loved it... & ma daughter too didn't complained about plain mousse...

Ingredients

• 1 2/3 cups or 400 ml heavy cream
• 4 large egg yolks, room temperature
• 1/4 cup or 60 ml sugar
• 1/4 cup or 60 ml light corn syrup (u can omit that too)
• 7 ounces or 200 gms approx. bittersweet chocolate, melted
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• Salt

Method:

1.Put heavy cream*** into the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment; beat on medium-high speed until soft peaks form, about 3 1/2 minutes. Transfer to a bowl; refrigerate 1 hour

2.   Put 4 egg yolks into the clean bowl of the mixer fitted with the clean whisk attachment; beat on high speed until pale and frothy, 4 to 5 minutes. 

3.Meanwhile, bring 1/4 cup sugar, 2 tablespoons corn syrup, and 2 tablespoons water to a rolling boil in a small, heavy saucepan over high heat. Cook until clear, large bubbles form, about 1 minute. 

4.Reduce mixer speed to medium-low. Carefully pour hot syrup down side of bowl. Raise speed to medium-high. Mix until slightly thickened, about 5 minutes (If you want, you can double boil egg yolks and then go on beating) Pouring hot syrup itself cooks the eggs a bit, so don't worry about raw eggs... . 

 

5.Stir in bittersweet chocolate, 1 teaspoon vanilla, and a pinch of salt with a rubber spatula.

6..Add one-third of bittersweet-chocolate mixture to whipped cream; whisk to combine. Add remaining bittersweet-chocolate mixture, whisking until completely combined. Press through a large-mesh sieve into a large bowl; discard any solids. 

 

*** I didn't had heavy cream at that time, so used normal fresh cream and added dreamwhip powder and then whipped it... It was thick... :)

Chicken Muzhuman (Whole Chicken in spicy gravy)

Whole chicken in a spicy gravy!! yumm... this is a simple yet lip smacking dish all the way from Malabar. This is famous as ma Mom's special back home.. I did post one other Whole Chicken gravy before named Chicken Musuman . Musuman and Muzhuman both refers to whole chicken; but the recipe is entirely different. Here, the gravy is a little bit dry compared to the other and spicy too.

Ingredients:

Chicken( whole)
Turmeric powder 1/2 tsp
Lime juice of 1 lemon
Onion 2 cups
Tomatoes 1 1/2 cup
Ginger garlic paste 2 tsp
Green Chilli 2
Red chilli powder 2 tbsp ( mix it with water & make paste)
Coriander leaves 1/2 cup


Method:

Wash and clean chicken nicely both inside and outside. Give slits here and there ; especially to the breast portion.

Marinate chicken with turmeric powder, lime juice & salt . Keep it for a minimum of 1/2 an hr.

In another pan ,saute onions till it turns translucent and then add salt, ginger- garlic paste , green chillies & tomatoes. Saute for about 2 minutes.

Add red chilli paste and saute till the masala leaves the sides of the pan.

Now place the chicken in the masala. Coat the chicken well with the masala; both interior and exterior. Now close the lid in low fire till the chicken is cooked well.

Check the masala whether it sticks to the bottom. Use water if needed. Give a stir in between while taking care that the chicken is not broken. 

Turn the chicken upside down when it is half done. 

Switch off the flame when all the water evaporates and chicken is well cooked. Garnish with coriander leaves and serve hot with rotis ,pathiris or even rice.



Sending this to Joy from Fasting to Feasting

Fruits Chaat

Fruits are a must in ramadan. It helps you to retain the moisture in our body during the whole day during fasting when it is required the most. Research prove that if you eat four to five slices of fruits daily in your diet than you will remain fit and active in future. Not only that, but if you eat fruit just before meal it will help you to eat less quantity of food that help you to take less calories. So what we do is that try to intake lots of fruits during Iftar which help us to reduce snack intake.

The best way to increase fruit intake is to include one fruit salad in our Iftar dishes; whether in custard, in honey dressing, Fruit Chaat or just add any juices to the fruits. I bet you can't stop munching them..

Fruit Chaats are common in Pakistan and north-India; though gaining its own relevance in south-india too.

Ingredients:


Any Fruit of your choice:


I used:

Apple
Pears
Watermelon
Pomegranate/Anar
Banana
Dried Figs
Oranges
Grapes
Plums
Almonds/any other nuts


To Season:



Chaat Masala/ Shan Fruit Chaat -to taste ( I used 2 tsp for this bowl of fruits)
Lime Juice 1 tbsp
Pomegranate Juice 1/4 cup (optional) **
Salt to taste

Method:

Mix everything together except Dried Figs. Check the taste or smell and then adjust the taste. Garnish with figs . Figs are added at last as it may get soaked in juices or other fruits and lose its texture.Some add sugar to it too... You can do your own variations..

**You can add any fresh juices to it like watermelon juice, orange juice, pomegranate or so on..

Irachi Pathal/Pathiri

May this be the first Iftar snack from my side. This is a spicy yet delicious snack again from  Malabar which is fried twice; deep fried at the first and then dipped in egg and shallow fried again. Yes of course, rich in cholestrol and so heavy that you don't need any other dish to accompany it during Iftar.

Ingredients:

White Flour/Maida
Salt to taste
Water
Meat Filling/Masala
Egg

Method:

1. Knead Flour,salt and water to a dough like that of rotis.
2. Divide the dough into big balls/pedas
3. Now roll them into very big and thin roti. Take a cookie cutter or any bottle top to cut them into small circles.
4. Take them out, fill in the stuffing and then close with another circled roti.
5. Now seal them at the edges. Here you can either seal them like we do for other 'adas' (snacks) or seal them using zig zag cutters or bottle tops.

6. Now fry them in oil till it turns brown. Take them out into a tissue paper and drain excess oil.

7. This is where you have to decide on the batter to be dipped in. Traditionally we use egg with sugar and cardamom powder in which this snack is dipped and then fried in ghee; but there is an option . You can add salt,pepper powder and curry leaves to egg and then dip this fried snack in that nicely and then shallow fry in ghee. But I suggest to try sugar mixture with a little egg and then fry one snack atleast and taste it... Its lovely.. don't hesitate using sugar for a spicy snack...

8. You can see one snack at the right side which is not dipped in egg or fried for the second time

Sending this to Joy from Fasting to Feasting-1V

Basic Meat Filling/Masala (Malabar style)

Was really busy these days with my parents and sisters in Abu Dhabi that I couldn't post anything special this Ramadan. Let me start with he basic meat filling which is used almost in all malabar snacks. We stock this in the freezer usually for 1 or 2 months so that we can make any snacks  when guests arrive in a short notice. If you are storing in a freezer bag, you can beat with a roller pin so that you get it separated or if storing in a container, just use a fork or knife to separate it. You can use this for toasted sandwiches too..


 Ingredients:

Beef/Mutton 500 gm
Ghee 1 tbsp
Oil 2 tbsp
Onion 4cups
Garlic 5 cloves
Ginger 1" piece
Green Chilli 6-10
Turmeric powder 1/2 + 1/2 tsp
Pepper powder 1 tsp
Garam Masala 1 tsp
Curry leaves few

Method:

1. Cut the onions lengthwise into 2 or 3 equal parts and then slice them.


2. Cook the meat till done in a pressure cooker alongwith salt,pepper and 1/2 a tsp of turmeric powder. Let it cool.

3. Shred the meat using a food processor or a grinder or even using hands.  Just pulse them if you are using a grinder. If you grind it more, the meat will return to kheema consistency or a meat paste which we do not want.


4. Now heat ghee and oil in a pan. Add the sliced onions to it and saute it for a while till it turns translucent. Add ginger-garlic & green chilli paste to it. It'll take about 10 mts or so in medium -high flame. Adjust the flame so that  there is no moisture left in the pan.

5. Now add salt and turmeric powder to it. Mix in the shredded meat to it.


6. Season with the remaining spices like pepper and garam masala. Pop in the Curry Leaves.