Happy Ganesh Chathurthi

These modakas are for Ganesha ........and my sister Devina ...who loves both Ganesha and Modakas.

I remember Devina teaching my daughter a song on Ganesha....I have been humming it with my daughter since morning....believe me its pretty catchy....and it goes like this....

Come Oh bulky stomach Ganapathi,

You are son of Shiva Parvati

Riding a Rat-o , Belting a serpent- o,

You have the face of an elephant-o

We offer you modaka payasa,

You are the steno of veda vyasa

Please guide us Oh Vigna Vinasha,

You are the god of examination pass-a

Spiked Pina Colada Cake - Happy B'day Anna

My brother is a man of very few words........So I have just one word for him......

'RESPECT'

Recipe Source: Humming bird bakery  Cake days

Ingredients
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For sponge

• 100ml White rum
• 4 slices Pineapple
• 40g unsalted Butter, softened
• 1 1/2 tsp Baking powder
• 120g All purpose flour
• 1/4 tsp Salt
• 1 Egg
• 120 ml Coconut Milk
• 1 tsp Vanilla essence

For Frosting

• 80g unsalted Butter , softened
• 250g Icing sugar
• 4tsp White rum
• 4 tsp Coconut Milk
• 4 slices Pineapple for decoration
• 4 tbsp Caramelized coconut for decoration

Method

1. Grease a 6 inch pan,line with parchment paper and set aside.
2. Pour rum into a small saucepan,add 30g sugar,place the saucepan on medium flame and bring to boil, let the liquid reduce to half .Cut the pineapple into bits and soak it in the reduced rum for 30 minutes.
3. Preheat oven at 170 degree C.
4. In a large bowl combine butter,140g sugar, flour,baking powder and salt.Using an electric beater beat on low speed till the mixture looks like crumbs.
5. In a small jar combine the wet ingredients - egg, coconut milk and vanilla essence, whisk with a fork and mix well.
6. Pour the the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients,beat at low speed and increase the speed once all the ingredients are well combined.
7. Remove the pineapple from the rum (squeeze out the excess liquid), sprinkle the pineapple bits on the greased pan.Pour the batter on the pineapple bits and bake for 25 to 30 minutes or till the cake is done.
8. Remove from the oven and let the cake cool down for 10 minutes before removing it from the pan and transferring on to a wire rack.Let the cake cool down completely.
9. Prepare frosting :- Beat butter and icing sugar till they resemble sand like consistency,in a small glass combine rum and coconut milk, pour this into the butter and icing sugar mixture and beat till light and fluffy.
10. Assemble the cake :-Place the cake on a serving dish , soak with the reduced rum and frost the cake.Decorate with pineapple bits and caramelized coconut. 

Kempu Appala Chutney - Red Pappad Chutney

This dish falls into our comfort food category.............Kempu appala chutney with piping hot ganji......egg omelette and pickle.. ....perfect combination for rainy day.

Ingredients
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• 6 to 7 Red pappad
• 1 1/2 cup freshly grated Coconut
• 5 dry Red chillies ,roasted (3 byadigi 2 guntur)
• 2 tsp Coriander seeds, roasted
• 1/2 tsp Cumin seeds, roasted
• 1/2 Onion , chopped
• marble size Tamarind
• salt to taste
• Oil to deep fry pappads

Method

1. In a mixer or blender jar combine red chillies, coriander seeds , cumin seeds, salt and tamarind, grind into a fine powder. Toss in the fresh coconut and grind for 2 seconds only.Transfer into a bowl and sprinkle chopped onion to top.
2. Fry the red pappad in hot oil and place on kitchen towel to remove excess oil.
3. Just before serving crush the red pappad and mix with the coconut masala and serve with ganji

Diwali Special - Karanji

After I got married and moved to Bahrain ,I was heart broken...that was the first time I was away from my family...I missed home like crazy...did not have any friends or neighbors....I was surprised that I did not lose my mind in the first 2 years. In course of time I did make friends...mingled with my neighbors.....but there was still something missing. Then one fine day an Indian restaurant-' Navaratna 'opened very close to our house.....this was when I got to meet the Navaratna family.....Ratna Aunty , Acchu, Amit and Ganesh Uncle....there are no words to describe what this family meant to me....if I love Bahrain...its because of this family. Ratna Aunty was like a mother...best friend...filled with wisdom...

Acchu......my sister.....my friend......gossip partner....

Amit .....my eating partner :))....

Ganesh Uncle...father.......hardworking....organised..

Not to forget ...Nowphal Bhai......my brother .

I had the best days of my life with this Family.

I can never forget the day I left Bahrain....it is still so fresh on my mind.....In the airport...when I turned back to say goodbye .....I saw Ratna Aunty, Acchu and Amit ..........my heart had never felt so heavy.

I have learnt a lot of things from Ratna aunty...this Karanji was one. Every Diwali Ratna Aunty and Acchu used to make close to 100 Karanjis....I was lucky to be part of 2 such Karanji making Diwalis in Bahrain. I did show off my Karanji making skills when I came back to Bangalore...my family was blown off.

Ingredients
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For outer crust

• 1 cup Flour (maida)
• 4 tbsp Semolina (fine)
• 2 tbsp oil
• pinch salt
• 1/3 cup lukewarm water

For Stuffing

• 1 cup fine Semolina
• 1/2 cup dry coconut (desiccated)
• 1/2 cup Powdered Sugar (adjust to taste)
• 1 tbsp Black Sesame seeds
• 4 tbsp Cashew nuts (finely chopped)
• 2 tbsp Raisins
• 2 tbsp ghee
• Few drops of Vanilla

Oil for deep frying the Karanji

Method

1. Prepare the dough for outer crust: In a bowl mix flour, semolina,salt ad oil. Add little water at a time and make a smooth and soft dough.Cover and keep aside.
2. Prepare the filling: Place a pan on medium flame, add ghee, when ghee is hot add cashew nuts and raisins and fry for few seconds,now add sesame seeds and semolina and roast for 2 minutes. Add desiccated coconut and vanilla and roast. Do not let the mixture brown, you will know its ready when you touch the mixture and its feels very hot. take off the flame and add powdered sugar. check the sweetness.
3. Make a thick paste with 4 tbsp flour and water, this is used to glue the karanji together.
4. Now make small balls of dough. Roll each ball ,dusting with little flour to thin almost transparent chappatis. Take 1 tbsp of filling and place in middle of the rolled out chappati. Apply maida paste around the edges and fold to half (press the karanji to removed trapped air).Press the edges and using a pizza cutter,cut off the excess dough in the edge to form a proper semi circle.Keep this covered with paper or dry cloth.
5. Repeat the same procedure for the rest of the dough and filling.
6. Heat oil on medium high flame,check if the oil is ready by dropping a small piece of dough into the oil, if it sizzles a little then floats up,you can start frying the karanjis till they turn light golden brown.
7. Place on absorbent paper. let it cool completely before storing in air tight container.

Diwali Special- Manni / Rice Pudding

Okay let the fireworks begin....Diwali celebration starts ........Now 

Manni is a famous sweet dish for us Mangaloreans...something that used to be made on a weekly basis in most of the households...any guests home ...invited or not...Manni  was all ready to be served ....I remember every summer vacation we used to spend it in Karkala and any house I went to...we were served Manni and without fail....by default...there had to be boiled egg(roasted in salt and chilli powder)......and it was the same in our house too.

There are so many dishes Mom used to make when we were kids....so many we disliked.....I used to hate Sajige (Upma)...."Mom , whats for breakfast?" .....she would say "Sajige" and my reply would be "You mean concrete".....hated brinjal...dry fish chutney....pelakai da ghatti.....so many more.....and Manni always topped the list. I just used to hate the fact that it wobbles.....hated all these dishes through school....college...graduation and one fine day get married ...go to a different house...in some other country ...far far away.....then after 1 or 2 years get back home...then these same dishes are ....like... I AM IN HEAVEN.......I think this is when I realized ....my dad might be a hero to me.....but my Mom ....she is SUPERWOMAN (Please don't tell my mom I said that)

When I think of Manni the first name that comes to my mind is ...Vatsala Aunty (my ex neighbor and relative).....all I remember is that ...she always had manni in her fridge...always (ok maybe I am exaggerating ...maybe the right word is OFTEN)....I thought this must be very simple...I mean Vatsala aunty makes it all the time.....until I tried it out ..under the guidance of my Mom....The ingredients are pretty simple...its just the muscle power needed to cook this dish....almost 1 hour of constant stirring...we kept taking turns...its was a good workout...made up for 2 weeks of skipping gym....and my Gym Sir calls me Lazy....little did he know......

Ingredients
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• 2 cups rice (washed and soaked for 3 hours)
• 1 coconut (to remove milk)
• 1 cup Jaggery (adjust to taste)
• 2 tsp Cardamom Powder
• water
• One pinch salt
• Ghee to grease the pan

Method

1. Remove Coconut milk. Try to get about 4 cups of  coconut milk(thick and thin).Keep this aside.
2. Grease a 10 inch plate with ghee and keep aside.
3. Grind rice to a fine paste using water, mix the ground rice and coconut milk,add jaggery. The batter must be almost water like consistency (like neer dosa batter).You can add more water if the batter is thick.
4.  Place this vessel on medium low flame.Its important to stir the batter non stop at least in the beginning. This will avoid forming of lumps (which is a complete no no for Manni)
5. The batter will thicken eventually, but you have to keep stirring for almost 45 minutes to 1 hour, or the pudding won't set. There are ways to know if the pudding is done: - Wet your hands and touch the pudding, if it does not stick to your hands then the pudding is done. One more tip is to drop  1 tsp of batter into little water in a plate, if the pudding holds shape then its done, if it disintegrates you will have to stir longer.
6. Somewhere around 30 minutes of stirring ,add cardamom powder.
7. Once the pudding is done pour it on to the greased plate and spread it evenly.Pour 2 tbsp ghee on top of the pudding and spread it around.
8. Let the pudding cool in room temperature, refrigerate till the pudding sets.
9. Cut to diamond shape, you can sprinkle some roasted cashew nuts on top which is optionally.

Note: Instead of removing coconut milk you can also grind coconut with rice and add lot of water.

Kadubu Shaped Modak (Indian Momos)- Blog Skip Wednesday

I know I was supposed to post this last Wednesday  but due to few reasons I could not....I apologize.

So  I am naming this Blog Skip Wednesday.

I know I know.... this not the actual  modak shape....but believe me I tried ...I saw this video on 'how to make modak'.....and I thought 'wow that is super simple' and tried it out and failed miserably. I was all set to give up and my mom (moms are superwomen, they get ideas in a split second)  told that I could use a kadubu mold....different shape....but same taste. 

Last week I was paired with Nirmala from Nirmala's kitchen , and I chose to make Modak from her blog. Thank you for the recipe Nirmala.

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 Ingredients For filling

• 1 cup fresh coconut 
• 1/2 cup jaggery(grated or powdered)
• 1 tsp cardamom powder

Method for filling

• Place a pan on medium heat, add in coconut and jaggery and cook till the jaggery melts and the mixture is little dry. Add  cardamom powder and mix well. Keep this aside and prepare the outer cover for the modak.

Ingredients For outer covering

• 1 1/2 cups raw rice powder (I used pathri powder)
• 2 cups water
• 1 tbsp ghee
• pinch salt

Method

1. Heat 2 cups water in a non stick vessel, add ghee and salt. When water comes to boil add the rice powder. Keep stirring to avoid lumps.Take off the flame.
2. Cover and keep aside for few minutes
3. Knead the rice dough while its warm, apply oil to your hands and the vessel you are kneading in. The dough should be smooth, soft and shiny.

To make Modaks

1. Make a rice ball, oil a chappati stand and place the rice ball on it, roll out the rice ball into a circle and place it on the kadubu mold, place 1 tbsp of filling and close the kadubu mold and press. Remove excess rice dough from the sides and open the mold and remove the kadubu and place on a greased plate. Continue with the rest.
2. Steam the modaks for 15 to 20 minutes.
3. Serve with ghee

Note : Roll the rice dough thick ,or while steaming the modaks might crack, mine did:)

Sending to Radhika's tickling palates

Causing the chilmadde (sweet rice cones)

There's always been a connection with rice cakes and South India. My connection comes with the fact that I am a South Indian. This sweetmeat was being prepared at ours since I was a little girl but it is something you appreciate with time. Your palate has to accustom itself to the joy of a steamed rice cake filled with goodness.

Let me introduce for the first time the "Chilmadde",  a rice cake made in leaves of Jackfruit and our guest author Varija-akke, my dear grandmother. A recipe that has trailed down for generations has been appreciated and shown the thumbs up by my two year old, for me to have the nerve to bring it to you.

With news of a new member coming into the family comes great joy, celebrations and revelation of a whole load of recipes. It has brought out the chef in my grandmother as she prepares for the customs involving food. I'm drooling with joy as I watch her begin with what looks like a batch of leaves. One is transported to the old fruit groves and green fields that were so much a part of every Bunt (a community of people belonging to the South Karnataka district) child's summer vacation if not the whole reality of their lives. This recipe has brought with it not only the sunshine that is evidence the life of the leaf it's made with but also smiles and conversations about games played with pebbles and swims in the pond somewhere near the mango tree.

 Picture courtesy: Saujanya Shetty

                                 

Ingredients
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• 30 jackfruit leaves
• 2 cups brown rice (washed and soaked for 5 hrs)
• salt to taste
• 2 cups coconut
• 1 1/2 cup jaggery
• 2 tsp cardamom powder

Method

1.  Prepare the cones as shown in the video.

2. For outer cover, grind the soaked rice and salt using little water to make moist and thick dough.
Keep this aside.
3. Prepare the sweet filling:
Place a pan on medium flame,add jaggery, when it melts add the coconut and cardamom powder and mix well,cook till you get a thick but moist filling.
4. Fill cones as shown in the video.Place 2 tbsp of rice dough into the cone and spread it around the cone, make a hole and fill the cones with coconut and jaggery filling. Cover with 1/2 tbsp of rice dough.
5. Place the cones in a steamer and steam for 45 minutes.
6. Serve with homemade ghee.

My granny Varija-akke with Chilmadde :)

bhindi with coconut

ingredients

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• 1/2 kg bhindi (lady finger)
• 5 cloves of garlic
• 1/2 inch ginger
• 2 green chillies
• 2 tsp red chilli powder
• 1/2 tsp coriander powder
• 1/4 tsp cumin powder
• pinch hing
• 1/2 cup coconut
• 3 tbsp oil
• salt to taste
• coriander leaves for garnish

method

1. Crush ginger,garlic and green chilli to a coarse paste.
2. Add red chilli powder,coriander powder and cumin powder to the coconut and mix well,or grind for few seconds.Keep this aside.
3. Clean ,pat dry and chop bhindi and keep aside.
4. Place a pan on medium high flame,add oil,when oil is hot add ginger.garlic and green chilli paste and fry for a minute,add hing,now add the chopped bhindi and stir till the stickiness disappears.
5. Add salt.When bhindi is almost cooked add the coconut masala .Stir for a minute and cover and cook till the bhindi is done.
6. garnish with coriander leaves.