Lal Qila Mutton Biriyani

It rained again a day before!! Isn't that a good thing? :)

 It's vacation here for a couple of weeks and we mothers were fully engaged with our kids while the UAE weather turned mild and pleasant this week. The climate was heading to summer  and the newspapers predicted much hotter summer days than usual that we were getting sort of mentally prepared for that. That's when it rained here and brought a cooler and pleasant weather for the week.  We went downstairs and for a ride to savour this rare UAE rain. I was fasting and was hard to wait till the sun sets to sip in coffee . Thank God that there were some frozen Kaayadas (unnakkaay/plaintain snack) to pair up with my mug of coffee while looking at the rainsplattered window ;)

First week of vacation is over and we have had lots of fun. The whole generation was here with me , 7 of them(3 boys and 4 girls).. We had lots of fun, playing,baking, roaming and of course, fighting. A gang of kids means a Noisy House. They play and interact, fight at times etc. when they feel bored and have nothing to do. So it's better to keep them engaged with some or the other tasks. I always ask them to help me out while cleaning or baking. They love baking goodies. They even baked some chocolate chip cookies & Cornflakes cookies all by themselves.

Now about the recipe:

It's my sister Hanan's contribution to the blog. She is very good when cooking biriyanis. This is my 9th post on Rice label. Her BBQ Chicken Biriyani is now quite famous here. There are many more biriyanis in my drafts to be posted soon. This one is also as delicious and simple to try out. 

Ingredients:

Courtesy: Shireen Anwar

For marinade:

Mutton 1/2 kg

Tenderizer 1 tsp

Ginger & garlic paste-1 tbps

Yoghurt- 1 cup (reserve 3 tbsp for dum)

Salt- 2 tsp

 Marinate together for atleast 1 hour

Other Ingredients:

Basmati rice. -1/2 kg. [ cook with 2 tsp salt]

Bay leaf -1

Cinnamon -1 inch

Pepper corns- 10

Cloves- 5

Green Cardamom -5

Black jeera -1/2 tsp

Red chilly powder- 2 tsp,

Turmeric -1/2 tsp

Cumin/Jeera - 1 tsp

Water- a little

Tomato- 3. Blended

Brown onion- 1 cup (sliced and fried)

Potato 2

Boiled egg - 3

Method:

Fry onions till brown and crisp. Crush it in grinder when cooled.

Deep fry potatoe cubes in the same oil till brown.

Heat Ghee in a deep dish and add whole garam masalas (mentioned in the list). Saute for a few seconds till its aroma comes out. Add a little hot water( a few tbsps to avoid burning) ,turmeric and red chilli to it. 

Now add mutton and fry in high flame for about 5 minutes. Cook till it is half done.

Blend tomatoes and add to it.

Now add the crushed brown onions. Mix well to coat the mutton pieces nicely. Cook till mutton is completely cooked. Sprinkle garam masala powder to it. Add the fried potato cubes to it.Now the masala is ready. No need to add herbs of any kind.

Dum Process or Layering:

For this, layer the mutton gravy/masala at the bottom, followed by rice. Take some yogurt and add turmeric or yellow color(saffron) to it and sprinkle on top of the rice layer; here and there. Cover and keep in dum for 10-15 minutes. Serve hot! Don't mix biriyanis while serving. It should be served always as you see in the picture. You can serve with boiled eggs. Here, boiled eggs are deep fried which is entirely optional. Take care while frying and avoid frying if the egg is cracked somewhere; otherwise it may explode in oil.

Muttamaala- Egg Garlands -Guest post to Rafeeda@The Big Sweet Tooth

It didn't take a minute for me to decide , when I saw Rafeeda's mail asking me to do a guest post for her. Being a mother of 3, I don't really get a chance to chat with friends or build online relations. I've a very few blogger friends and she is one among them.  an upcoming blogger and a very soft person at heart!! I always missed mails, messages and FB feeds these days that I didn't know she owned a blog until recently. I was surprised to see many posts within such a limited time. Keep going Rafeeda! Her recipes are so easy to follow and simple to try out! Check out her blog here- THE BIG SWEET TOOTH.

When I was confused and asked her before deciding on the post, she mailed me saying it would be nice if it's anything from Malabar side. The only and much awaited post with me was muttamaala and pinjaanthappam . The most famous Malabar delicacy. Garlands made out of egg yolk and an egg-white pudding,served together. The name itself brings curiosity among outsiders. Hats off to Kannur ladies who invented this dish sometime in the history. I always wondered watching the garlands as a kid , but never ever tried to make one on my own. Thanks to my blog baby, that I'm learning and have learnt many a things , which I had never thought I would ever do. But, believe me girls, making muttamaala is not a rocket science, it is as easy as any other dish. There are small tips to take care of, and thats it. I shall try to explain it as simple as possible.

Egg yolk is cooked in sugar syrup into garlands while egg whites are steamed into pudding. 

 Check for the detailed recipe here


Linking this recipe to my own event Mummy Ka Magic & Don't forget to take part for the giveaway!

Show your best creation event hosted by Recipe Junction

Mother's Day Event- Mummy ka Magic & a GIVEAWAY !

Happy Mother's Day!!

Mothers Day ,as you all know is celebrated on varioius days in many parts of the world. The celebration is already over in UK and a few other places, whereas it's celebrated in UAE and several parts of middle east on March 21; ie; today.

There is nothing like mother's cooking and I'm sure that there will be no one who does not like their Mom's food. Nowadays we all stay far away from our parents that we all miss her food. Our mother's meals are our first taste experiences and we always compare this with the rest of the world. There might be different types of mothers- some scolding moms or kissing moms.. But one thing which I found common about moms is that they show their love through cooking. I think there is no any mother who doesn't want to see a smile on her kid's face. They play with different ingredients inside her workshop(kitchen) and that magic works. The food tastes great and we feel blessed to have them.

Mothers day is usually celebrated to honour mothers and maternal love. So thought of hosting an event to show our moms, how much we love/miss her food, through our blogposts, to recreate or duplicate our mom's recipes - may be her signature dish or any dish which we did adore as a child or we still like her to cook it for us. Also agift will be given to one selected follower of mine. (rules follows).

Rules for the event are:

1.You have to recreate your Mom's dish ie; to cook a dish which is your favourite when cooked by your Mom.

2.Mother can be your mother, in-law or grandmother.

3.Both veg. and non-veg. dishes are allowed.

4. Link back to this event page and usage of logo is highly appreciated.

5.Archived entries are welcome if it is updated with this link and if complied with the rules mentioned above.

6.Any number of entries are acceptable.

7.The event closes by 20th of April.

8.If you have any problem with the linky tool, send me a message at hasjab@gmail.com.

9.Non-bloggers can also send recipes to my gmail. I shall post it on behalf of you.




Giveaway Rules: 
This is what I'm planning to give. If the winner don't want this prize , I can give them a gift voucher too...

Prestige Bakeware set of 4-The set includes a large roasting pan, small roasting, oven tray and 12 cup muffin tin.

1.Follow my blog. (click the JOIN THIS SITE button at the right side of my blog and enter your email id)

2.Like this cover picture of my FB page to enter into the lucky draw.

The winner will be selected randomly. Anyone can participate in this draw, on condition that the prizes will be sent to UAE address only. The winner, if not in UAE, can give their friends' address.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Nutty Crunch Surprise

This delicious dessert is associated with my childhood memories. It was an Eid day ,when my Mom made this for the first time. It was so delicious that the guests were blown away by the flavor. The texture was awesome too. She don't remember the source of the recipe now,whether a magazine or a tv show, but we never forget to bake this once a while for our kids.

Ingredients
        Note: * Nuts can be either almonds, pistachios, walnuts,hazlenuts or anything, but not roasted or salted. I used a combination of almonds and pistachios -both 1/4 cups each.

Eggs 4
Milk 3 cups
Nuts crushed to bread crumbs consistency...1/2 cup*
Condensed Milk 1 tin
Sugar 5 tbsp or more (according to your taste)
Bread crumbs 1/2 cup

Method

1.Boil milk , condensed milk & sugar. Turn off the flame.

2.Beat eggs nicely in a separate bowl with a spring spatula or fork(no need of electric beater).

3.Add eggs in the milk SLOWLY. You should keep on stirring the milk  while pouring the egg in it. Otherwise the eggs will get scrambled.

4.Mix Nut crumbs in it. I crumbed almonds and pistachios using my grinder.

5.Now, mix in the breadcrumbs.

6.You can either steam it or bake it .
---When steaming, pour this into a deep dish and steam it just as you do while steaming creme caramel.

---If baking, pour these into ramekins or any baking dish and then keep these in another pan filled half-way with boiling water. Preheat your oven and bake at 150C.

8.Bake or steam for about 20-25 minutes or until your toothpick comes out clean when inserted. Do not overbake,otherwise it may turn hard and won't taste good at all. Make sure that no bubbles are appearing at the edges. 

You can serve it as it is or top it with chocolate swiss rolls. Serve chilled.




Linking this to my own event Mummy ka Magic

Cook Lika A Celebrity Chef

Show your best creation event hosted by Recipe Junction

Dates,Banana and Kiwi Smoothie

A delicious and filling smoothie. You wouldn't need anything else to accompany with this for your breakfast.

Dates , as you know, are concentrated source of essential nutrients, vitamins and minerals.They are termed as a crown of sweets and ideal food which easily balances and digests food. It gives extra energy to a tired human body within half an hour after taking it.Muslims break their fast by eating dates and water according to their traditions. Breaking fast with eating dates helps us to avoid overeating of the food after the fast. When the body absorbs the nutritional value of the dates, the feeling of hunger gets pacified. Dates are considered to be the best diet for confinement of the women. American Cancer Society recommends intake of 20-35 grams of dietary fibre in a day, supplied through dates. It is said that taking one date in a day will help you to maintain your healthy eyes for your lifetime. They are quiet effective in guarding the night blindness problems.Read More....

 Ingredients:

Dates 4
Bananas 1
Kiwi 2
Yogurt 150-200ml
Milk 1/2 cup (or enough to adjust the consistency)
Sugar 2 tbsp or to taste
Mixed Nuts (Almond or pistachio flakes,etc.)

Method:

Blend together all the ingredients except nuts.

Pour the mixture into glasses and serve with nuts garnished on top.

You can roast the nuts in oven at 200C for a few minutes. (1 or 2 mts)

Linking this to

 Prachi's Beverages Event

 Healthy me & Healthy Us

Kids Delight

Easter Dishes Event originally hosted by Jagruti's cooking odyssey

Easy to prepare in 15 mts

Caramelised Orange Pulao

Pulao is an easy and comforting one-pot meal . It's the only way to make my kids eat vegetable if served with their favourtie mint raita and pappad. The addition of orange flavour in this recipe, brought a cute smile on their faces and believe me, nothing was left for me. Those gilafi kebabs at the back paired well with this rice.
Got this recipe from a booklet of Lurpak Ghee.

Nutrients in oranges are plentiful and diverse. The fruit is low in calories, contains no saturated fats or cholesterol, but is rich in dietary fiber, pectin, which is very effective in persons with excess body weight. It is a good source of Vitamin C, Vitamin A and B-Complex Vitamins.
Coriander leaves are also used in an enormous quantity rather than just garnish. It is an excellent source of minerals like potassium, calcium, manganese, iron, and magnesium.

Ingredients:

Basmati Rice 1 1/2 cups
Pure Ghee/oil 3 tbsp
Onion, 1 medium
Bay leaves 2
Cloves 2
Cinnamon stick 1 1/2 inch
Red Whole chillies 4-6
Coriander leaves, chopped 1 cup
Mint leaves, coarsely chopped 1/2 cup
Water 3 cups

Caramelised Orange:

Butter 2 tbsp
Sugar 2 heaped tbsp
Oranges 2
Cinnamon powder 1/2 tsp

Method:

Heat Ghee in a heavy bottomed pan. Add onion and saute for 2-3 minutes.

Add bay leaves, cloves, cinnamon and red chillies. Saute for 1 min. Add coriander leaves and mint leaves. Stir-cook for 1 min. Add rice,water and salt. Stir well.

Bring the rice to boil on high heat. When rice starts boiling, reduce the heat and cook covered until rice grains are cooked.

In a small non stick pan, melt 1 tbsp of butter. Add pine nuts or cashew nuts and stir-fry until golden in colour. Remove from heat and set aside.

Remove the skin of the oranges and cut oranges into thick round slices. Remove the seeds. Heat 2 tbsp of butter. Add sugar. As the sugar caramelizes add the sliced oranges. Coat oranges with the caramelized sugar, and sprinkle cinnamon powder over them. Remove pan from heat.

Gently mix caramelized oranges into the cooked rice. Garnish with the butttery pinenuts or cashew nuts, coriander and mint leaves.

Serve hot.

Linking this to:

Healthy me & Healthy Us

Kids Delight

Noora's Cornflakes and Honey Drops(video demonstration)

Noora, my daughter, is 10 now. Kids grow up too fast. It seems like yesterday I was holding her as my first born baby and now, she is in her apron. Masha Allah! She has always liked to assist me in baking whereas she hates the day to day cooking chores. Whenever I call her for a help there, she always stood away from it. Now, it was just a day or 2 back, that I've thought of doing some videos with her. These days, as you all could see, I got addicted to You Tube. lol. I didn't had any patience and went on with shooting in the midst of her final exams. I wanted to give her a break from studies also; thought of shooting this just as a trial. Took my small cam and just started. Then thought of learning the editing part and that really took a lot of time. After all those chores, I didn't want my effort to go waste and decided to post it here. :)

This is an easy, yet crunchy and delicious recipe. Even kids can do it. It's quite addictive too.. I bet, you can't stop with just one or two. This recipe was passed on to me by Hanan's sister-in-law, Haseena Shoukath.

Check this link for Noora's video demonstration:

Ingredients:
Makes 8-10

Butter 2 tbsp
Honey 2 tbsp
Sugar 1 tbsp
Cornflakes 1 1/2 cups
Almond flakes or any other nuts, chocolate chips,raisins etc..

Method:

Melt butter,honey and sugar together in a pan, until the sugar dissolves completely. You can either microwave upto 40 seconds.

Preheat your oven at 170 C.

Mix in all other ingredients nicely that these are well coated with the honey mixture.

Spoon these into the muffin cases/paper cups.

Bake upto 12 minutes or until its color changes a bit and the syrup dries up. The cooking time completely depends upon the quantity of cornflakes you spooned into those cases.

It may turn hard if you overbake it.

Let it cool for 10-15 minutes to turn it to crispy.


Linking this to Bake Fest Event hosted by Homemaker's Diary Originally hosted byCooks Joy

Cauliflower Delight

Saute to perfection is one important cooking technique. Once you get it right, you may achieve that perfection in your art. Just knowing the recipe by heart or copying the written recipe may not give you the desired tastes and result if you don't know how to saute to the perfection. It happend with me many a times and I used to blame recipes. Chilly chicken never came out nicely after trying umpteen efforts and I took a break from that... but now, I knew it. Same with chicken chukka, Stirfried vegetables, etc etc. Turning the onion pink, to brown, to crispy brown etc. all are different phases of onion sauteing, which I always ignored. But, trust me guys, these impart different flavours and never take it so lightly. My kids wanted that perfect taste we get in restaurants.

This is one such recipe... It's easy and less spicy, but a delicious side dish to accompany your rotis or fried rice.

Ingredients:
Courtesy: Friday Magazine

Onions 2 medium sized, chopped
Cauliflower florets 3 cups
Capsicum 1, cut into strips
Green chillies 3
Garlic 2 cloves,chopped
Ginger 1/4'' ,finely chopped
Pepper powder 1/2 tsp
Turmeric powder 1/4 tsp
Salt, to taste
Plain Flour 4 tbsp
Oil 2 tbsp + for deep frying

Method:

Mix flour, turmeric powder and salt with water to make a thin batter.

Dip Cauliflower in the batter and deep-fry till golden brown.

Heat oil in a saucepan and saute ginger, garlic, green chillies and onion till soft. Add capsicum and saute for a minute. Add cauliflower and mix in gently for a minute. Sprinkle pepper powder and serve.