Month: May 2020

LEMON ‘N’CHOCOLATE ROCK CAKES

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This is easiest cookie type cake anyone could

make.

I have posted 2 versions of this rock cakes .

Checkout links

https://calinskitchen.com/2018/04/17/rock-cakes/

https://calinskitchen.com/2019/11/05/choconut-rock-cakes/

Moving to the recipe…

INGREDIENTS

100 gm butter

100 gm sugar

1/2 tsp grated lemon rind

1tsp lemon juice

200 gm flour

1 egg

Cashew or Almonds to add to the top

METHOD

Cream butter and sugar and add the rest of the

ingredients .Fold in the flour and mix with a

spatula until well combined.

Scoop out portions into a greased baking tray.

Make rustic shapes like rocks and bake in a

180C oven for 20-25 minute

Drizzle with chocolate .

Chocolate chips can ge added salt a variation

The same recipe can be made with orange .

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LAUKI HALWA

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Summer days it’s best to include vegetables and

fruit which contain water ,like cucumber,bottle

gourd,pumpkin ( preferably the white)gourd ,…

to keep you hydrated.It’s best to include as

salads and drinks .

Today I’m sharing the recipe for bottlegourd or

lauki halwa. I have already shared lauki halwa

with almonds .Checkout link

https://calinskitchen.com/2019/12/15/bottle-gourd-halwa/

This one is like the Bombay halwa , thickened

with cornflour .Soft and easy to pick a piece 😁.

To the simple recipe .

INGREDIENTS

2 cups bottlegourd ( lauki)

3/4 -1 cup sugar

3/4 cup cornflour mixed in a little water

1/2 tsp cardamon powder

A pinch of nutmeg powder

Handful of cashewnuts

A pinch of edible camphor

1/4 cup ghee

A pinch of salt

METHOD

Grind the gourd to a very fine paste .

Heat half of the ghee in a thick bottomed kadai.

Add the ground paste with salt to the heated

ghee, and cook till you see it turning glossy .

Add sugar and cook till sugar dissolves.

Add the cornflour mix,and the rest of the

ingredients .

Take care and keep stirring as the minute you

add the cornflour , it will thicken .

Add the remaining ghee and keep cooking till

the mixture is thick and forms into one lump,

and leaves the sides of the pan.

Transfer to a greased plate.

Smear a little ghee on the top.

Allow to cool and cut into pieces .

Note: No colouring is required

MANGO -TOMATO CHUTNEY

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This is excellent served with any type of rice ,

as a side dish. Finger licking sweet and sour

combination is amazing!

This combination is with mango and tomato .

I used to make a hot and sweet tomato jam to

be served with biriyani. Having that recipe in

mind I tried this with mango,and everybody

loved it.

I will be giving approximate measurements.

The outcome depends on each individual’s

taste,and the mango you chose .

Now to the recipe

INGREDIENTS

2 raw mangoes peeled and chopped

3-4 tomatoes

1 tblsp red chilli powder

Jaggery/ vellam/sugar ( your choice )

4-5 cloves garlic

2 tbsp oil

1 small piece cinnamon ( optional)

Curry leaves

Salt to taste

METHOD

Heat oil add tomatoes,mangoes and garlic with

salt,and cook on a slow flame till soft and

tender.

Add the rest of the ingredients and cook till

mushy.

Another variation

Apple and mango – for this recipe you have to

add 1-2 tbsp of vinegar .

SOFT MILK BREAD WITH ROUX

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This is a lovely bread ,very,very soft . The

texture is super awesome .

I made the roux ( flour cooked with water) the

previous night .

Mixed the flour in the morning,the dough

proved quick,due to the wild summer .

Breakfast was loved by all !

I want to specify that I used ghee not butter .

Trial turned successful!

Flour measurements may vary in each one’s

method of kneading.Next time I will post the

dough photos . Morning hours I want to finish

everything fast,so failed to take photos of the

dough .

Moving on to the recipe

INGREDIENTS

4 cups all purpose flour

2 tsp instant yeast

2 tblsp milk powder

1/2 cup milk

1 tsp salt

2-3 tblsp ghee

1 egg ( optional)

1 cup roux*

METHOD

Mix all together except the ghee and knead well

till the dough doesn’t snap when you pull.

Add ghee and knead again for 5 minutes.

Cover and allow to prove double.

Punch down the air in the dough and divide

into portions .Make into any shapes you prefer

and place in a bread baking tin.

Cover and allow to prove in the tin for the 2nd

time.

Egg wash the tops and bake in a preheated

200C oven for 20-25 minutes.

For the roux ( rough measurements)

2 cups water

1/4 cup all purpose flour

A pinch of salt

Heat water and add the flour and cook till it is

thick . (2-3 minutes). Allow to cool thoroughly

and use.

PANEER MALAI KOFTA KORMA

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This preparation is totally different from any

other kormas and innovated by me .

It was yummy with a pulao I made for lunch.

You can serve it with rotis or parathas.

To the recipe now

INGREDIENTS

For the kofta

200 gm paneer

2 potatoes boiled

2 green chillies chopped

1 tbsp flour ( besan/cornflour/maida)

1 tsp ginger garlic paste.

1 egg ( optional)

salt to taste

METHOD

Grate the paneer and mix in with the rest of the

ingredients . Make koftas and fry in oil till

golden brown .

For the korma

INGREDIENTS

1/2 coconut cut

2 green chillies

1 tsp white khus khus ( poppy seeds)

10 cashews

1 onion chopped

METHOD

Cook all these in 1/2 cup water for few minutes ( the onions should be cooked).

Grind to a paste and set aside.

For the finish

INGREDIENTS

2 tbsp from the fried oil / ghee

Whole spices ( 1 tsp saunf, 3 cardamons,3 cloves , 1 stick cinnamon)

1 small onion chopped

1 small tomato

1 green chilli

Kasuri methi leaves

2 tblsp curd / yoghurt

salt to taste

METHOD

Heat oil,add whole spices ,onions ,green chilli

with salt and sauté for few minutes.

Add tomato,curd, the boiled -ground

paste .After few minutes add 2 cups water and

cook till it reaches a boil .

Simmer for 5 minutes and pour over the koftas

Sprinkle methi leaves .

SEMOLINA CARAMEL CHEESECAKE

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When milk is about to curdle , things like this

are created.

Though curdled milk appears to be spoilage,it

can be transformed into delicious food,sweets

and cake . This curdled milk is nothing but

homemade cream cheese( paneer).Today’s

recipe is my quick bake for tea. A quick mix in

the jar,and a roast of semolina with butter .

Only 2 steps and your there to a lovely soft

cake . I made a caramel syrup for the base .The

syrup is absorbed while baking , but still gives

a lovely colour and taste when turned out.

If you are a person with an aggressive sweet

tooth ,you could add some caramel syrup while

serving !

Worth trying !

INGREDIENTS

Cream cheese made from 1/2 litre milk*

2 eggs

3/4 cup rawa/semolina

25 gm butter

3/4 cup sugar

2 tblsp curd

1/4 cup milk

1/2 tsp vanilla essence

1/4 tsp grated nutmeg

For the base caramel syrup

2 -3 tblsp sugar

1/4 cup water

2-3 drops lime juice

Heat the sugar with 1 tsp water .When it

turns brown add the rest of the water and

heat till sugar is well dissolved . Add lime

juice and remove from fire.

METHOD

First heat the butter in a pan,add the roasted

semolina and mix well. Switch off flame and

add 1 tsp baking powder and mix .

Cover and set aside .

Add cream cheese sugar into a mixer, and run

the mixer for 2 minutes.

Next add the rest of the ingredients and mix for

another 2 minutes. Add this mixture to the

semolina and mix without lumps.

Transfer to a greased baking tray and bake at

170C for 30-35 minutes .

*Homemade cream cheese

1/2 litre milk

1-2 tbsp lime juice / vinegar

Heat the milk. When it is nearing boiling

point,add half of the lime juice .Once you see

the whey separating ,add the rest of the juice

and boil for another 2 minutes,and remove

from fire .

Strain over a muslin cloth or kitchen towel.

Keep a weight over the cloth to drain water

fully .

You can make this and keep in the fridge

beforehand .

You can make savoury dishes too.

To get best results use full cream milk

PEPPER CHICKEN CURRY

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This is my mom’s chicken curry recipe . Cooked

with coconut milk.

I have posted my mom’s spice powder recipe

before and here’s the link https://calinskitchen.com/2019/09/07/moms-chicken-spice-powder/

This has to be used in this curry.

A word about it’s speciality is …..once my mom

adds this spice powder in meat curries,the

aroma immediately activates your taste buds.

So do try and post in your comments!

Can be served with rice ,any rotis , string

hoppers, hoppers..,

INGREDIENTS

1 kg chicken

2 potatoes

2 onions chopped

3 slit green chillies

1 tomato

1 tblsp ginger garlic paste

1/4 cup vinegar / tamarind extract

1 tbsp pepper powder

1 tsp cummin seeds

1 tsp saunf ( perumjeeragan)

1/2 tsp red chilli powder

1.5 tbsp coriander powder

1 cup thick coconut milk

2 cups second and third extracts of coconut milk

2 tsp spice powder (garam masala powder)

For tempering

2 tbsp coconut oil / sesame oil

1 tsp mustard seeds

1 tsp saunf

1/2 tsp cummin seeds

A small piece cinnamon

3 cardamons

3 cloves

Curry leaves

METHOD

Heat oil , add the ingredients listed for

tempering .

Next add onions , and when it turns brown,add

the tomato , ginger garlic paste , salt and green

chillies.

After 5 minutes add the chicken,the spices ,

potato,vinegar and stir well.Allow to cook for

another five minutes and add the thin coconut

milk.Cover and cook till potatoes are tender .

Now add the thick coconut milk extract,the

spice powder and cook on a low flame for 10

minutes and remove from fire.

This curry can be made thicker like a masala.

Any other meat can be made with the same

recipe.

CHICKEN PALANDY

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This is my version of chicken palandy with a

mix of thick coconut milk.

One pot cooking ( see picture ) . The chicken is

fried while the onions are also being fried . All

this is fried in ghee .You can use butter for

ghee.

Now to the recipe

INGREDIENTS

250 gm chicken

3-4 onions sliced fine

2 green chillies slit

1 small tomato

1 piece cinnamon

1 tsp chilli powder

1 tsp cummin seed powder

1/4 tsp pepper powder

1/2 tsp garam masala powder

1/4 cup coconut milk

1/2 tsp.sugar

2-3 lightly beaten eggs

Few curry leaves

5-6 tbsp.ghee

Salt to taste

To marinade the chicken

1 tsp.chilli powder

1 tsp ginger-garlic paste

1 tbsp.vinegar

1 tsp salt

METHOD

Heat the ghee in a flat bottomed pan,and fry

the chicken for few minutes.

Shove the chicken,to one side and put the

onions and cinnamon and let it brown.

Once the chicken is done ,add the rest of the

ingredients except the eggs and mix well for 5

minutes.

Shove again the chicken mixture,add the eggs

and scramble .Once partly scrambled mix the

chicken well . Add coconut milk with a sprinkle

of sugar and switch of the flame . Mix lightly

and serve .

The same recipe can be used to make kothu

parota

POHA SAMOSA

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These type of samosas originated from Iranian

cuisine.

The poha stuffing needs no cooking,minutes to

make if you have the samosa sheets ready

beforehand .

So let me get into the recipe now

For the dough

INGREDIENTS

1 cup wheat flour

1 cup all purpose flour

1 tsp salt

1 tsp hot oil

Oil for frying the samosas

METHOD

Mix all the ingredients to make a firm

dough,and set aside for 10-15 minutes,or till

you make the filling.

After the resting time,divide the dough into 4-5

portions.

Roll out thinly .Heat the pan and place the

rolled dough till it gets the heat only,not

cooked( only on one side )

Sprinkle a little flour in between when placing

the heated sheet.

Cut strips according to the size you desire.Make

cones . Seal the edges with a little flour mixed

in water. You can prick a clove on the end to

get a nice aroma.

Now to the filling

INGREDIENTS

1 cup poha

1 cup finely chopped onions ( I used half spring onions)

1 tsp cummin powder

1 tsp amchur powder or lime juice

1 tsp chilli powder

2-3 chopped green chillies

Coriander leaves

Salt to taste

METHOD

Mix all the ingredients together well .Sprinkle 1

tsp water , mix and use as stuffing.

The method of frying for the extra crunch-

First fry the stuffed samosas till light brown

( or half fried ) remove .After you have fried all

like this,start frying again to a golden brown

colour.

RUM’N’RAISIN CHOCOLATE BREAD PUDDING

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This is an easy pudding with a rich taste.With

treacle at the base,and the blend of rum has an

exquisite taste.As rum and treacle are used ,

essence is not required.

This can be steamed or baked in a bath.( in a

tray of water).

Note : Do not make with semolina bread .

To the recipe now

INGREDIENTS

2 cups milk

3 eggs

1/2 cup sugar

1/4 cup brandy / rum

A handful of raisins

4-5 slices buttered bread ( on one side)

2 tsp cocoa powder

A pinch of grated nutmeg

Treacle to line the pudding dish

METHOD

First soak the raisins in the liquor for some

time. You can soak overnight too .

Beat eggs lightly and add to the milk with cocoa

powder.

Pour this mixture over the bread and allow to

soak for some time . You can break the bread

into pieces, and add too.Add the rest of the

ingredients and mix.

Now take the bowl you are going to steam the

pudding.

Pour 3-4 tbsp of treacle,and swirl around.

Pour the prepared bread mixture, over the

treacle and steam covered till done .

LADIES FINGER IN CURD

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In fact I don’t know to title some dishes

according to authenticity, it’s just what comes

to my mind,I write so please do excuse .

Ladies finger,bhindi,vendakka,okra is one

vegetable you should compulsorily include

during summers.This one has the creamy,spicy

curd taste.Good to serve with rice and curry .

Peanuts or channa dal can be added or even

cooked plain.

To the recipe now

INGREDIENTS

250 gm ladies finger washed and cut

1 tomato

1 onion chopped

2-3 cloves garlic

2 green chillies +2tbsp coconut coarsely ground

1/2 cup slightly beaten curd

1/2 tsp chilli powder

1/4 tsp turmeric powder

1 tbsp coconut oil

1/2 tsp sugar

For tempering

1/2 tsp mustard seeds

2 tsp channa dal

Curry leaves

Pinch of asafoetida

METHOD

Heat oil, and add the ingredients for tempering.

Add onions,garlic,tomatoes with salt and

turmeric and sauté for few minutes.

Next add the cut vegetable with the chilli

powder , cover and cook for 5 minutes.

Add the ground paste , sugar and curd and

cook for further 5 minutes .

Remove from fire .

EGGLESS BUTTERSCOTCH PUDDING

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This is an awesome dessert which can be made

in minutes.Simple ingredients but exquisite

taste.

Using brown sugar adds more taste and colour

to the pudding .

So do try this dessert and send in your

comments and suggestions !

INGREDIENTS

2 tbsp.butter

3/4 -1 cup brown sugar

2.5 cups milk

3 tbsp cornflour mixed in 1/2 cup milk

METHOD

Add the butter and sugar in a thick saucepan,

and heat till the sugar dissolves on medium

flame. Do not stir much .

When it is is bubbling and reaches a nice deep

brown colour , add the milk ( the sugar will

crystallise .Do not get confused it will dissolve

in the milk while heating).At this stage add the

cornflour mixture, and cook till thick.

Pour into moulds and refrigerate for minimum

1 hour .

Can be served with praline .

Check my previous post on another version of butterscotch pudding

https://calinskitchen.com/2016/11/20/butterscotch-pudding/

BOILED TAPIOCA (KAPPA)

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This is very simple recipe .Keralites and

Srilankans have this as a meal .

Keralites have it with coconut . Srilankans have

it with ‘Pol sambol ‘or ‘Katta sambol‘.

Trust me ,if only you have, had tasted this

sambol with boiled tapioca,it will be a frequent

meal in your homes .

Street foods in Srilanka sell this in conical leaf

packets .Really inviting !

This recipe is for people who do not know how

to boil this yam.

A good result depends on the quality of the

yam.

You have to create rustic cuts on the yam , and

peel . The peel will come off easily.

To the recipe

INGREDIENTS

Tapioca/ cassava / kappa / Maravalli / manioc

1 tsp peppercorns

1/4 tsp turmeric

Salt to taste

METHOD

Add the peeled yam with water enough to

immerse the yam.

Pressure cook for 2-3 whistles.

Allow the steam to release on its own,and

strain the water.

Take a little water from the strained liquid ,add

salt , peppercorns , turmeric and the boiled

yam and cook for 2-3 minutes and remove

from fire.

Add coconut and serve with pol sambol or katta

sambol.

https://calinskitchen.com/2019/11/26/pol-sambol-coconut-sambol/

MORINGA RICE FLOUR ROTI

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This is another version of the rice flour roti

recipe I have posted before,with moringa

leaves.

This roti can be made using red rice flour too.

Moringa emerging the star of herbs , has to be

included in your diet frequently.As I have a

moringa tree at my hands reach,I pluck

whenever it attracts me with its gleaming coin

like leaves. Nature’s gift to us .

So ..now to the recipe.

INGREDIENTS

500 gm rice flour

Moringa leaves

2-3 chilli flakes

1 cup grated coconut

1 egg ( optional)

1 tblsp ghee / butter ( optional)

Boiling hot water

Salt to taste

METHOD

Take half of the moringa leaves and pulse it in

a grinder for 1 second and set aside.

Take flour in a bowl, add salt and boiling water

gradually and mix with a spatula till it forms

together . Allow to cool for few minutes and

then add all the ingredients and mix to a soft

dough.

Divide portions and press on oiled sheets or on

the pan itself .No need to add oil . Just smear

the pan with a cloth dipped in oil. If it’s a non

stick pan , you can opt out the smearing.

Cook on both sides . Serve with curries of your

choice !

CARROT ‘N’ OMELETTE RICE

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This is a very mild,simple omelette rice akin to

a fried rice .

Chives or some greens may be added if you like

To the recipe now

INGREDIENTS

250 gm cooked rice

3-4 carrots grated ( not fine)

Omelettes made with 4-5 eggs*

2-4 green chillies chopped

1/2- 1 tsp pepper powder or chilli flakes

1 tsp cummin seeds

2-3 tblsp ghee or butter

Salt to taste

METHOD

Heat butter / ghee in a wok.

Add cummin seeds and when they splutter,add

carrot and the rest of the ingredients and mix

for a few minutes till the rice is well corporated

Remove from fire and serve with curries of

your choice.

Giving a menu idea :I served this rice with paneer butter masala and smashed cucumber salad.

*For the omelette

4-5 eggs lightly beaten

1 big onion chopped fine

2-3 green chillies chopped fine

1/2 tsp pepper powder

Finely chopped curry leaves

Salt to taste.

A little oil or butter

Mix all the ingredients and pour into one

omelette. Cook both sides .Cut strips and mix

into the rice.

COOKED RICE CHAKLI

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This is an awesome recipe,with cooked rice and

roasted gram dal.

I just tried a small quantity, with my changes

and within minutes the whole bunch of crunch

disappeared.

So do try this easy murukku prepared by left

over rice and enjoy!

INGREDIENTS

1 cup cooked rice

1/2 cup roasted gram dal

6 dry red chillies /1 tblsp chilli flakes

1/2 tsp cummin powder (I always have roasted

cummin +curry leaves powder separately)

salt to taste.

A few sesame seeds

A pinch of asafoetida

METHOD

First powder the roasted gram dal fine and set

aside ( sieve for fine press).

Next grind the cooked rice to a fine paste, with

chillies.

Mix the rest of the ingredients and knead to a

soft dough. Add little water if needed.

Insert portions of the dough into a murukku

press and make swirls into the oil directly or on

the back of a slotted spoon ,and drop into the

oil.

Fry till the bubbles in the oil slows down and

the chakli is golden brown.

Do try and send in your feedback.