Kappalangaum (Omakkaum) Payarum Thoran (Stir Fried Raw Papaya & Red Gram with Coconut)

Part-3 of my Papaya/ Kappalanga/Omakka Series....

Kappalangaum (Omakkaum) Payarum Thoran (Stir Fried Raw Papaya & Red Gram with Coconut)

Ingredients:
Kappalanga/Omakka (RawPapaya) -1/2 medium, chopped fine
Vanpayar (Red Gram)-1/2 cup
Freshly grated coconut- 1/2cup
Chumannulli (Shallots) -8-10nos ( or Onion -1 small)
Dry red chilles-3-4 nos
Garlic - 2clove
Jeerakom (Cumin Seeds)-1/2tsp
Turmeric powder- 1/4tsp
Salt to taste
Mustard seeds - 1/4tsp
Curry Leaves- a spring
Oil - 1tsp

Method:

• Pressure cook vanpayar (red gram) with enough water and salt and keep aside.
• Peel skin and remove seeds inside the papaya.
• Clean it well and finely chop/ grate it. (I used my food processer to chop the papaya). 
• Ground coarsely, coconut, shallots, dry red chilies, garlic, cumin seeds, turmeric powder and salt.(Also uses food processer for this) 
• Heat oil in a frying pan and splutter mustard seeds. 
• Add coarsely ground coconut mixture and curry leaves and sauté for a minute. 
• Add chopped papaya and vanpayar (red gram). Mix well, cover and cook on low flame for 5 minutes. 
• Open lid and stir well until all the water in it evaporates.
• Serve hot

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Murgh Methi Malai / Chicken in Creamy Fenugreek Sauce

Last month on a fine morning I plucked my fresh grown methi leaves/ fenugreek leaves from my kitchen balcony with the thought of making Methi chicken that I previously used to make with dry fenugreek leaves. While waiting for my helper to come I happened to see in my reader that Ria had updated her blog with Methi Malai Chicken and you guessed it.....I changed my plan to make my usual methi chicken to this one and it was a good decision….we loved this curry… she got this recipe from one of our FB friends Bindu… so here is the much talked FB fame MMC (Methi Malai Chicken) :) … Thank you Bindu for this wonderful recipe and thanks Ria for posting this in your blog :)...

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Tomato, Spinach and Cheese Swirl Bread

I got this recipe from The family Circle Cook book which I borrowed from my cousin/friend/neighbor. This book has been with me for almost a year now and I earlier posted a cake and a salad that I tried…. This swirl bread always fascinated me and finally I tried it out and I am really happy with the result…. This tricolor bread is perfect for a party to impress your guests…this is really good to make sandwiches or you can serve this with fish pie, meat loaf, finnish pie, fish molee or simply with hot soup….. I halved the recipe and made 2 small loaves which was more than enough for two meals for my small family…. Try this low fat healthy bread in your kitchen…… you can even replace all purpose flour to wheat flour/ Atta for a healthier version….the method may appear lengthy or difficult… but believe me it is really easy to make :)...

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Whole Wheat Almond Eggless Cookies

This month’s Sweet Punch challenge was to make Whole Wheat Almond Eggless Cookies from Manjula’s Ktchen. These are absolutely easy to make cookies. You can give this recipe to kids who are interested in baking as their first experiment. I am sure they will be happy to make such tasty cookies by their own :) :)… I have already made these cookies twice in a month! I am trying to cut down the butter intake as far as possible, so first time I only added 1/3 cup of butter and the cookies were just fine and second time I reduced it to ¼ cup and increased milk to 2 table spoons more….second time also cookies tasted good but was not as crumbly and melt in mouth type… Do try these easy cookies with the actual amount of butter or by reducing it, the end result will be really delicious cookies to munch :)...

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Rum Baba / Baba Au Rhum

My cousin/friend/neighbor Saira recently told me to try making Rum Baba. It was the first time I was hearing that name. So did a search on the net and found out that: A Rum Baba or Baba au rhum is a yeast-risen cake studded with dried fruit and soaked in hot rum syrup and served with whipped cream or pastry cream. It is most typically made in individual servings (about a 2" tall slightly tapered cylinder). This recipe features the delicate flavor of citrus, imparted by just a hint of orange and lemon zest. Likewise, a small amount of warm vanilla has been added to the soaking syrup to cut down on the rum’s boldness. The result is a baba rum full of complex layers of flavor, while still holding to the traditional French recipe. You can find more about the history and origin about Rum Baba here in Wiki.

Since I didn’t have a rum baba mould, I used my muffin pan to make this. I just followed the recipe from About.com, but only made half the amount. Got 12 rum babas in a small muffin pan. We enjoyed these rum filled babas. Thank you S for introducing this dessert to me J

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Chicken Fatayer

Fatayer is an Arabic Pie stuffed with spinach, cheese, chicken, lamb or za'atar and like Shawarma it is a commonly available street food across the Arab world. Here at a walking distance from our flat there is an Arabic restaurant from where we regularly buy fatayer and shawarma. Chicken and cheese fatayer are our favorite filling. I actually do not know what paste they mix with the boiled and shredded chicken, if it is feta cheese or labneh or white sauce….. I usually use white sauce but mixing the chicken with lebneh is equally good. My little one loves fatayer so I sometimes make these at home. Here’s how...

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Broccoli Mappas / Broccoli in Creamy Coconut Sauce

Mappas is a popular side dish in Kerala. You can make vegetarian or non vegetarian mappas like chicken, beef, mutton, fish, eggs, vendakka (ladies finger), kadachakka (bread fruit)potato, cauliflower or even mixed vegetables. I make broccoli mappas often as this is the only broccoli dish I like. Try this broccoli side dish in creamy coconut milk and serve with chapathi, appam, Idyappam, bread or boiled rice.

Broccoli Mappas / Broccoli in Creamy Coconut Sauce

Ingredients:
Broccoli - 1 small (1/12 cups sliced florets.)

Onion - 1, thinly sliced

Garlic, chopped - ½ tsp
Ginger chopped - 1 tsp
Green chillies - 2, sliced
Homemade Curry Powder/ Erachi podi (meat masala)-2 to 3 tbsp (can substitute with chili powder - 1 tsp, Coriander powder - 2 tsp, Garam masala - 1/2 tsp)
Turmeric powder - 1/4tsp

Tomato - 1 small

Curry Leaves - few

Coriander leaves - 2 tbsp (optional)

Vinegar - 1tsp

Thin coconut milk - 1 1/2 cups

Thick coconut milk - 1/4 cup

Salt to taste

Mustard seeds

Oil-2 tbsp

Method:

• Split broccoli into small florets, wash and keep aside.
• Heat oil in a pan and add mustard seeds and when it splutters add sliced onion, chopped ginger, garlic, green chillies and curry leaves and sauté until golden brown.
• Add curry powder and salt, stir well and add broccoli florets and chopped tomato pieces and sauté for 3 minutes.
• Now add thin coconut milk and boil for 5 minutes or until broccoli is cooked.
• Add the thick coconut milk, vinegar and coriander leaves, simmer for a minute and remove from heat.
• Serve hot with chapathi, palappam, Idiyappam, bread or boiled rice.

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Varutha Meen Podichathu ~ A side dish made out of Leftover Kerala Fried Fish seasoned with coconut and spices

What would you do if you have some left over meen varuthathu (Kerala fish fry)? Some reheat in the MW or fry for a minute again in hot oil or some throw it away; right? I personally don’t like reheated fish fry especially Mathi / Sardine and Ayala / Mackerel fish fries. On my recent conversation with my mom’s sister she told me instead of throwing it away, make a side dish by crushing the deboned fried fish with some coconut, green chillies and shallots and sauté in a little oil. I tried it with the left over mathi/ sardine fry and it was superb!!! It is a great dish with boiled rice and yogurt or with Kanji (rice gruel). Now it is up to you whether you want to make it with the left over fish fry or fry some fish to make this dish :) :) :)

Varutha Meen Podichathu ~ A side dish made out of Leftover Kerala Fried Fish seasoned with coconut and spices :)

So here is how I made this dish:

I had 2 left over mathi/sardine fry, and I removed most of the bones and coarsely crushed the fish with 3 shallots, ½ cup grated coconut, 1 green chilly (adjust according to taste). Heat a teaspoon of oil and splutter mustard seeds and curry leaves and sauté the ground mixture stirring well, add salt if necessary. Enjoy this simple Kerala side dish with boiled rice or Kanji(rice gruel) :) :)

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Chocolate Orange Mascarpone Gateau

By now you all must have understood that I love baking cakes and frosting them for birthdays and other special occasions. It was hubby’s birthday last week and this time I opted to make a Chocolate Orange Gateau adapted from Deeba’s blog with slight changes. I always wanted to try out the chocolate lace pattern she uses in most of her cakes. Making chocolate lace was a breeze, but I need to pipe the melted chocolate a little more thicker as mine was too thin and was breaking while sticking to the cake.  We loved the cake and it tastes better the next day J

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Passion Fruit Brownies

A lot of brownies, chocolates and cakes recipes around the blog sphere these days made me crave for some brownies… well to be honest I am not a big brownie fan, but last week I really wanted to have a chocolate and Passion fruit combo…. but was not in a mood to make our favorite Passion Fruit Truffles, wanted to make something quick and easy and brownie came to my mind… did a search on the net for Passion Fruit Brownies and I found this recipe @ Scandilicious… all the ingredients were with me and I baked these awesome brownies in less than one hour! Did little changes in the recipe… I didn’t add the extra egg yolk and also I only added Passion fruit pulp not its seeds as mentioned in the original recipe… These brownies taste best the next day and it was delicious with vanilla ice cream! So if you love dark chocolate and passion fruit you will surely like these brownies J…

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