Chocolate cup cake

Makes 12 cupcakes.

100 gms powdered sugar
65 gms cooking chocolate, broken into small pieces
175 ml milk
150 gms flour
2 tsp Baking powder
65 gms butter
2 tbsp chocolate chips
1 small egg
1 tsp vanilla essence
a pinch of salt

Heat oven to 180C.
Sieve the flour , baking powder and salt.
Mix 50 gms of sugar and cooking chocolate in a bowl.
Boil the milk and pour on top of the chocolate sugar mix. Beat well.
Beat the rest of the sugar and butter until creamy.
Add the vanilla and egg. Beat for some more time.
Mix the chocolate milk mixture with the butter sugar egg mixture.
Add the chocolate chips and slowly fold in the flour.
Divide the mixture among 12 cupcake moulds.
Bake for 20 minutes.
Cool and glaze with melted chocolate and sprinkles.

Kosu Malli from Chettinad

When we were travelling in Tamil Nadu, we stayed over night at the UNESCO heritage village of Chettinad and here they served us a watery tangy spicy dish. And on enquiry, I was surprised to know that one of the key ingredients in the dish was Brinjal / Aubergine.This recipe was what the chef / cook told the bearer and was passed on to me. It took me nearly 3 attempts to get it right.

The only thing that adds spice to this curry is the Green chilly. I found 4 chillies suit us, adjust according to your family taste buds.

This dish is VERY good with idiyappam.

Ingredients:
Potato - 4 medium
Brinjal -  3 small or 1/2 of an large aubergine / bharta baingan
Onion -  1 small, chopped fine
Green Chilly  - 4 or more , chopped fine
Ginger - 1 inch, minced
Oil - 2 tbsp
Mustard - 1 tsp
Urad dal - 1 tsp
Curry Leaf - 7
Salt to taste
Turmeric powder - 1 tsp
Coriander leaf (malli)- 4 tbsp
Lemon juice - 3 tbsp or more

Method:
Pressure cook the potato and brinjal. Peel skin. Mash well and add enough water (about 3 cups) to make it a loose liquid.
Heat oil. Splutter the mustard , urad dal , red chilli and curry leaves.
Add the ginger, green chillies and onion.
Reduce flame and cook for 2 minutes.
Add salt , turmeric powder and then add the brinjal - potato liquid.
Boil for 2 minutes, turn off flame.

Just before serving, boil the curry again and turn off the flame.
Now add the coriander leaf and lemon juice.
Taste and add more salt or lemon juice.

My lettuce salad

• Iceberg Lettuce - 1, washed and torn by hand into bite size pieces.
• Tomato - 1 large , deseeded and cut into small cubes
• Yellow and Green Capsicum - 1/2 each , deseeded and cut into small pieces.

       Mix and chill.

• Bread - 4 slices

       Cut each bread into 12 pieces and toast in oven at 200C for 10 minutes
 (or) Toast until crisp on hot tava.

• To be mixed together for Dressing:

Small onion - 4 , minced fine

Garlic - 1 clove - minced fine

Lemon juice - 3 tbsp

Olive oil - 6 tbsp

salt

Sugar - 1/2 tsp

pepper - 1/2 tsp

English mustard - 3/4 tsp

Before serving add the toasted bread and dressing to vegetables.
Taste and adjust seasoning.

Pink Soup

Onion - 1 medium , chopped
Garlic - 2 cloves , crushed
Celery - 1 stalk , diced
Potato - 1 medium
Carrot - 1 medium
Pumpkin - 3 cups
Beetroot - 1 large
salt
Pepper - 1 tsp
Rosemary - 1 healthy pinch
Thyme - 1 healthy pinch
Oil - 2 tbsp (olive oil preferably)
Milk - 1 cup
Water -2 cups

Cut all the vegetables into big chunks.
Heat oil in a heavy bottomed pan or pressure cooker.
Saute the onion , garlic and celery on a low flame for 5 minutes.
Next add in all the other vegetables.
Saute these for 5 minutes on medium flame.
Add the rest of the ingredients and cook covered.
(Pressure cooker = 4 whistles + 10 minutes on low flame.
Heavy bottomed vessel with lid needs atleast 1 hour on slow simmer.)
All the vegetables must be well cooked.
Cool and puree or use an immersion beater.
Add more water to loosen and adjust seasoning.
Heat the puree again before serving.
Serve topped with croutons and more olive oil.

Tilwale Aloo Gobi

Potato - 3 medium, cubed
Cauliflower - 10 small florets , broken into smaller pieces
Ginger - 1 inch, julienned
Green chilli - 2, slit
Curry leaf - 15
Onion - 1 medium, minced
Mustard - 1 tsp
Jeera - 1 tsp
salt
Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
Chilli powder - 1/2 tsp
Coriander leaf - 5 tbsp
(opt) Coconut - 2 tbsp
Sesame seeds - 3 tbsp
Lemon juice - 2tbsp (adjust to taste)
Oil - 2 tbsp

Boil the potato cubes in salted water and when half cooked add the cauliflower.
Toast the sesame seeds till it turns golden and starts to pop. Keep aside to cool..
Heat oil , splutter mustard and jeera.
Add the onion, ginger, chilli and curry leaf.
Saute for 2 minutes on medium flame.
Add the turmeric powder and chilli powder.
Add the vegetables and fry till all water has evaporated.
Adjust salt.
Add the coconut and coriander leaf.
Continue cooking on a low flame for 1 more minute.

If you plan to serve later. Stop now.

Before serving heat the dish well and turn off flame before proceeding.

Add the lemon juice.
Mix well and adjust the taste.
Garnish with the til seeds.

Tapioca Thoran - 3

Tapioca with Coriander is not an oft seen combination. But this recipe uses coriander leaf with tapioca and gives it a beautiful flavor. A very different recipe.

This recipe was given to me by my cousin - Leena Balasubramaniam

Ingredients:
Tapioca - 1 large, cut into bite size chunks
Coconut oil - 3tbsp
Mustard - 1 tsp
Curry leaf - 4
Red chillies - 2 , broken
Salt
Turmeric powder - 1 tsp

To be ground coarsely:
Coconut - 1 1/2 cups
Small onion - 5
Red chillies - 3
Coriander leaf - 4 stalks
Opt: Garlic - 2 pods

Method:
Boil / pressure cook the tapioca in ample water with little salt and turmeric powder until it becomes soft and biteable.
Drain the water and keep aside.
Heat oil and add the mustard, red chillies and curry leaves.
Into this tip the ground coconut mixture and saute until good smell comes (2 min on medium flame).
Add the salt and turmeric powder. Mix well.
Add the tapioca and stir to coat with mixture.
Cover and cook for 5 minutes.
Open lid and cook a further 5 minutes.
Serve hot.

Tapioca thoran - 2

This recipe is how we usually make tapioca thoran at home. The same way we would make beans, cabbage or beetroot. It is a very easy recipe and highlights Tapioca as the star.
Serve with sambar or rasam.
I have used coconut oil in this recipe as we Keralites use this oil the most.
If you prefer to not use coconut oil, use vegetable oil, but surely not any other oil.

Ingredients:
Tapioca -1 large , cut into bite size chunks and cooked
Small onion / shallots - 10 , chopped fine
Coconut oil - 5 tbsp
Mustard - 1 tsp
Urad dal - 1 tsp
Curry leaf - 10
Coconut -1 cup
Green chilli - 3 , chopped

Method:
Grind the coconut and green chillies together without any water and keep aside.
Heat the coconut oil and splutter mustard.
Add the urad dal and fry till golden.
Add the onion (if using) and curry leaves. Fry on low flame till transparent.
Add the salt and turrmeric powder.
Now add the tapioca and mix well.
Add the ground coconut , green chilli mixture. Mix well.
You can continue cooking till the edges of the tapioca turn crisp.
Serve hot.

Tapioca Kodungallur Style

Tapioca is cooked in different styles in Kerala. This recipe was given to me by my cousin sister - Raji Ramalingam. And when she gave it to me in 1997, she called it 'kodungallore style'. Kodungallore is a small village in Kerala in Thrissur district and that is where her house is. This is the way her mother made tapioca when she had to serve her hungry kids coming home from school.
Very healthy. High in Carbohydrates and very easy to make.

Ingredients:
Tapioca - 1 large, skinned and cut into large chunks
Coconut - 2 cups , finely grated
Green chillies - 7, slit
Coconut oil - 3 tbsp
curry leaf - 10
Salt
Turmeric powder - 1/2tsp

Method:
Peel the tapioca and cut into bite size chunks.
Cook tapioca with the salt , turmeric powder and green chillies.
Once well cooked , turn off flame and add the freshly grated coconut and mix everything well; so that the chillies and tapioca are mashed properly (but not too much).
Top with coconut oil and curry leaf.
Mix well. Serve hot.

Pictorial:

peel and wash the tapioca

cut into bite size chunks

pressure cook with salt, turmeric powder and green chillies

Add coconut to pressure cooked tapioca and mix well.

Tapioca / kappa puzhukku

Kanji, kappa puzhukku, manga chammandi, payar thoran and poppadom

My all time favorite. Give me my kanji (rice gruel), kappa puzhukku and chammandy at any time and  I am a happy girl!

This is not just my favorite, but the all time favorite of many many malayalees!
It is even served in Guruvayur temple.

Notice how the jackfruit leaf has been folded to become a spoon. Here Kanji has been served with Mudira / Horse gram puzhukku.
For the recipe of mudira puzhukku, just substitute the tapioca with horse gram in the kappa puzhukku recipe below.

Any small road-side hotel would have this sign hung outside their door during lunch time.
It reads "Kanji Thayyar"...Kanji is ready.

Thus , I can safely say Kanji is Kerala's comfort food!

Here I give you the recipe of the perfect accompaniment with Kanji - Tapioca / Kappa puzhukku.

Ingredients:

Tapioca pic courtesy : soni somarajan

Tapioca - 1 large (600gms)
Green chillies - 5 or more
Coconut - 2 cups
Jeera - 1 tsp
Coconut oil - 2 tbsp
Curry leaf - 7
Salt to taste
Turmeric powder - 1 tsp

Method:

Remove the skin of the tapioca and wash well. Cut into big chunks.

Cook with ample water. Alternately pressure cook for 2 or 3 whistles.

Once the tapioca is cooked but holds shape, drain away the water.

Cut / break the tapioca into smaller chunks. Add 1 1/2 cups of water, salt, turmeric powder and 2 slit green chillies.

Cook until the tapioca looks slightly mashed.

Grind the coconut , green chillies and jeera into a fine paste.

Add the ground paste to the cooked tapioca.

Boil for 1 minute. 

Serve hot topped with fresh coconut oil and curry leaf.

(Note: Add the coconut oil to hot puzhukku just before serving. Do not boil after adding the oil.)

Have it with kanji / rice gruel.

and Mango chammandi. Raw mango ground withe coconut, salt, red / green chilly.

Mulakooshyam

This is a very traditional recipe which my Grandmother used to make for her children on rainy nights.
It smells heavenly and when had with hot 'kanji' ......YUM!
If not Kanji (rice gruel), try with Jeera rasam or Killu milaku rasam.

Other tuber can be used in place of those mentioned here like potatoes, elephant yam/ kachal, koorka etc. I have used some normally used vegetables, like brinjal, drumstick, but they can be omitted.
Bottle gourd / elavan, sort of binds the curry together. Try to NOT omit that
Do not use Lady's finger or beetroot.

Ingredients:

Bottle gourd / elavan - 4 cups

Different tubers like
Yam / chena - 1 cup
Colacasia / chembu - 4 pieces
Tapioca/ kappa - 2 cups

Other vegetables like
Brinjal - 2 small
Drumstick - 1, cut into batons
Snake gourd - 1 cup
String beans - 5 , cut into 2 inch batons

Spices:
Salt
Turmeric powder - 1/2tsp
Red chillies - 5 whole, broken into pieces
(or)
Pepper powder - 2 tbsp

Green Mango - 1
(or)
Preserved mango (in brine) - 2

Coconut oil - 2 or 3 tbsp
Curry Leaf - 10

Remove the skin from all the tubers and vegetables. Cut them into big chunks.
Boil 4 cups of water with salt, turmeric powder and either the broken red chillies or pepper powder.
Pressure cooker reduces time and effort.
First goes in the yam and tapioca.
After 2 whistles (or when 3/4th cooked) add the other vegetables except mango.
When the vegetables are nearly cooked (2 whistles in the cooker) then add in the mangoes.
Cook until the mango goes soft. (1 whistle in the cooker)
If using the preserved mango just boil for 3 minutes. No need to pressure cook.
Turn off flame and if you wish, you can break some of the vegetables with a ladle. But it might not be necessary.

When it is still hot, add the curry leaf and coconut oil.
Do not boil.
Stir well and serve hot.

Rasam powder

Red chillies - 10 to 15 no:s (depending on spice level)
Coriander seed - 3/4 cup
Lentils (pref: Urad dal) - 1/3 cup
Peppercorns - 4 tbsp
Cumin seeds / jeera - 4 tbsp
Fenugreek seed - 1 tsp

Dry roast the ingredients induvidually without oil and powder them together. Sieve and store in air tight container.

Avial

Avial is a traditional dish and for all Keralites no feast is complete without this!

Assorted Vegetables cut into 3cm  * 1 cm segments about 7 cups.

Bottle gourd - 1 cup
Drumstick - 1, cut into batons
Snake gourd - 1/2 cup
Brinjal - 1/2 cup
Yam - 1/2 cup
Colacasia - 2 no:s
Unripe Banana / raw plantain - 1/2 cup
Carrot - 1 medium
Beans - 5 no:s
String beans - 3 no:s

Salt
Turmeric powder - 1 tsp
Chilli powder - 1 tbsp

Tamarind - 1 large lemon sized ball soaked in water and about 3 cups of pulp removed.
(or)
Sour Mango - 1, cut into thin batons with skin

To be ground into a fine paste:
Coconut grated - 2 cups
Green chilli - 4
Jeera - 1 tbsp

Garnish:
Curry leaf - 10
Coconut oil - 3 tbsp

Boil the yam and colacasia in 1 cup of water.
When they are half cooked add the other vegetables, tamarind pulp, salt , turmeric powder and chilli powder.
Cover and simmer till all the vegetables are well cooked and almost all the liquid has evaporated.
Now add the ground paste and mix well.
Cook for 1 minute, while stirring continuously.
Turn of flame and add the coconut oil and curry leaf.
Mix well.
Cover and keep aside until serving time.

------------------------------------------------

In our house, we love avial not just as an accompaniment, but as a main dish. So I make avial with more gravy.

Cut vegetables.

First I boiled the colacasia and yam.

Then add the other vegetables, water, salt, turmeric powder and chilli powder.

If you are adding the mangoes instead of the tamarind, allow the vegetables to get 3/4th done.

If you are using Tamarind pulp, allow the vegetables to get 1/2 cooked. Add the tamarind and continue cooking till vegetables are mashable.

Grind together the Coconut, green chilli and jeera.

Add the ground coconut to the cooked vegetables.

Just before serving - reheat and garnish with curry leaf and coconut oil.

Enjoy with rice or dosa.

Sambar for idly / dosa

Tur dal - pressure cooked till soft - 1 cup
Onion -  cut into slightly thick slices - 1 cup
Tomato - 1 - diced
Green chilli - 2 - slit
Tamarind - 1 small ball about the size of 1/2 a lemon
                -  soaked in water and 2 cups of pulp    removed
Jaggery / palm sugar- 1 tbsp
Sambar powder - 1 1/2 tbsp
salt
Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
Oil (preferably coconut) - 2tbsp
mustard - 1 tsp
curry leaf - 6
red chilli - 2 broken
coriander leaf - 2 tbsp

Optional :
Ladies finger - 2 - cut into 1 inch batons
drumstick - 2 inch batons - 5 no:s
red pumpkin - 6 cubes

Heat oil and splutter the mustard, red chillies and curry leaf.
Into this add the sliced onions and green chillies and cook till onion turns transparent.
Add the tomatoes and cook till it turns soft.
If you are adding ladies finger or drumstick, add now and saute for a minute.
Add the tamarind pulp, salt and turmeric powder.
Pumpkin can be added now.
If not using the optional ingredients, simmer on a medium high flame . Otherwise cook covered on a low flame till the veggies (drumstick, ladies finger, pumpkin) get cooked.
Add the sambar powder and cook for another 2 minutes on a low flame.
Add the jaggery and the tur dal.
Boil for another 2 minutes.
Serve hot topped with coriander leaf.

Wheat / gothambu dosa

When you do not have dosa batter, but want to eat dosa!
It stays soft for hours...

Basic Ratio
Wheat flour : Rice flour : Maida (all purpose flour)
Ratio is 3:1:1
Meaning : If you use 3 cups of wheat flour, then you use 1 cup each of rice flour and maida.

My base measure was an extra extra large spoon which will be equal to 3 heaped tablespoon. And the following is the quantities I used :

Garnish :
Oil - 2 tbsp
Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
Urad dal - 1 tsp
Green Chilly - 2 tbsp
Ginger - 1 tsp
Curry leaf - 6
Coriander leaf - 2 tbsp
Asafoetida - 1/2 tsp

Extra ingredients
Salt to taste
Gingelly / sesame oil to cook

Method:
Mix the 3 flours together with water to make a thin batter with no lumps.
(I had to use 5 glasses)
Heat oil and splutter the mustard seeds and add the urad dal. Heat until the dal turns red.
Turn off the flame and add the asafoetida powder and rest of the ingredients.
Cool to room temoerature.
Add to the batter.
Add salt, mix well and taste.

Heat the dosa tawa and pour the batter along the sides. Make a sort of net. Add sesame oil along the sides and in between. Cook till golden brown.
Turn over carefully and cook till done.

Make more 'godhambu' dosas and relish with onion chutney or dosa podi.

Masala Tea / Chai

There is nothing as tasty as Masala Tea on a rainy day. Serve it with vada / bonda or banana chips or kadachakka chips and to quote The Carpenters - 'rainy days and mondays' will never get you down.

To make 2 cups
Ingredients:
Water - 1 cup
Milk - 1 cup
Sugar - 2 tbsp
Ginger - 1 inch slice
Cardamom - 2 pods
Mint leaves - 6 (optional)
Tea dust - 1 tbsp (Preferably 'strong' variety , do not use tea leaf)

Method:
Pound the ginger and cardamom together.

Boil the water and milk together with sugar, ginger, cardamom and torn mint leaves (if using).

Add the tea and reduce flame. Simmer for 3 -5 minutes until you nearly reach the desired color. It will darken further while resting.

Cover and keep aside for further 2 minutes.

Strain into another vessel.

Serve hot with your favorite snack.