A good news with my Chocolate Cupcakes

Friends, I have a wonderful news to share with you. After a long break I have restarted my career in IT from where I stopped three years back. I must say, I was very worried and concerned whether I will be able to back in this corporate world again. I passed many sleepless nights before the joining day. Now after successful one week in my new company I am slowly regaining the old confidence.

I might not be able to frequently make posts as I used to do earlier due to my full time engagement in my job. But definitely I wont disappoint my followers who had been supporting me all these years. I will continue posting as and when I am able to and will also drop by at your blogs regularly. Friends, I will need your best wishes and continued support in this juncture of my life

Chocolate Cupcakes

As all of you know I have tried my hand on only few baking preparations. I  am totally a beginner in this field but when it comes to my kid's favorite food I actually never compromise. I want to fulfill her wish always and so this time when she asked for chocolate muffins I tried making these simple chocolate cupcakes for my kiddo who is a great fan of cupcakes and believe me, what has come out is really surprising for me too. Wow, I can do it too!!

Ingredients:

Butter                                        100 gms

Caster sugar  (powdered sugar) ½ cups

Eggs                                           2

All purpose flour                       1 cup

Baking powder                          1 tsp

Cocoa powder                           2 tsp

Method:

1. Cream together butter and sugar by mixing with a hand mixer in a mixing bowl. Mix in eggs also. Now add all purpose flour, cocoa powder and baking powder and fold it gently into the batter.
   
2. Grease 6 cups in a muffin cups . Spoon batter into muffin cups filling it ¾ of the cup.
   
3. Preheat oven to 180 degrees C.
   
4.  Bake 15 to 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool and decorate it .

Kids delight- Mango custard

In this season when you can see the king of fruits everywhere, "Mango Custard" can be one of scrumptious dessert you can opt for your li'l one. I usually prepare it in the morning and keep it in refrigerator and when my kid comes back from school, she gets delighted finding a big bowl of her favorite custard with a cherry on top.

Ingredients:

Mango                         1
Milk                             2 cups
Vanilla custard powder 2 tbsp
Sugar                          3 tbsp
Powdered sugar           1 tbsp
Fresh cream (optional)  1/2 cup
Dry fruits (optional)

Method:

1. Peel the mango and squeeze out the pulp from it. Take the pulp in a blender and make a puree of it.
2. Take 1/4 cup of cold milk in and cup and add custard powder. Mix it well so as to avoid formation of lumps.
3. Beat fresh cream in a bowl  with powdered sugar to make soft peak. keep it aside.
4. Heat a pan and add remaining milk. When the milks boils add sugar and stir for a couple of minutes. Now add milk mixed with custard powder and stir again for few seconds. Finally add  mango puree and stir for a minute. When the consistency of custard becomes thick . add 2 tbsp of  fresh cream (you can make this preparation without adding fresh cream also).you can now add some dry fruits  like chopped almond, cashew, raisins.

Pour it in a bowl and add some fresh cream on top. Now keep it in refrigerator  so that custard becomes thick. Serve it chilled.

Potol Aloor Malay Curry/ Stripe Gourd Curry with Coconut Milk

Malai curry is a traditional bengali dish  which can be prepared in both veg and non veg versions. The most common ingredient in all versions of this dish is coconut milk. So the basic curry is made with coconut milk in which vegetables or non veg like egg, chicken and being added. Here I made it using veggies like Stripe gourd and potato. It can prepared with other  types of vegetables also.

Ingredients:

Potol (stripe gourd) 300 gms Potato (diced)       300 gms Coconut milk           2 cups Onion (grated) 1 Ginger  (grated) 1 tbsp Turmeric powder   1 tsp Cumin powder   1 tsp Coriander powder 1 tsp Green chili paste 2 tbsp Methi (fenugreek seeds) 1 tsp Garam masala 1 tsp Salt (as per taste) Sugar   1 tsp Oil

Method:

1. Peel stripe gourd and potato and cut into medium sized pieces . Heat oil in a pan and add those pieces and fry for a couple of minute. Add turmeric powder and salt and again fry for 5 to 6 minutes on medium flame. Keep it aside.
2. Heat oil in a large pan and add methi seeds. when it splutters add grated ginger, onion and fry for a couple of minute and add green chili paste, turmeric powder, coriander powder, Cumin powder, and salt.
3. Fry the masala for sometime and when it separate oil  add coconut milk. Stir for a couple of minute and add fried stripe gourd and potato pieces and saute for 5 to 6 minutes.
4. When the potato and the gourd pieces becomes tender, and the gravy become semi thick, add garam masala and sugar and cover it for  few minutes.

Garnish with chopped coriander and serve hot with steamed rice. Enjoy this flavor of Bengal with your family and friends.

Awards time again!!

Friends, Today I am very happy  as I have been showered with a bunch of wonderful awards from my dear friend Babli. She is an amazing cook, a very talented blogger and a great photographer. She is having an amazing blog  with drool-worthy photos of varieties of recipes. Thanks a ton dear for your generosity. Really it feels great to get recognised and motivated by you.

I would love to pass those awards to all these well deserved blog. Happy blogging!!
Ambreen
Mary
Jay
Priya
Arundhuti
Cook from Doha
Melange
Food and taste
Julie
Sensible Vegetarian
Ria
Aarthi
Radhika
Deepthy

Sooji upma/Nonta Suji

Semolina or sooji upma is a  common breakfast item that I usually make during weekend when we get bored of eating roti sabji and bread omlete . This is a very easy preparation and I made it a healthy one too by adding vegetables like carrot and capsicum.

Ingredients:

Sooji/Semolina	2 cup
Carrot (chopped finely)	1/2 cup
Capsicum (chippes finely)	1/2 cup
Ginger (grated)	1 tbsp
Green chillis (chopped)	2pc
Mustard seeds	1 tsp
Cumin seeds	1tsp
Bay leaves	2
Roasted peanut	2 tbsp
Turmeric powder	1 tsp
Salt as per taste
Sugar	1 tsp
Ghee
Chopped coriander for garnishing

Method:

1. In a pan, add little ghee and roast sooji  in medium flame for about 5 minutes. Keep it aside.
   
2. In a pan heat 1 tbp of ghee and add mustard seeds, cumin seeds and bay leaves. When mustard splutters, add grated ginger and green chili. Fry for a few seconds and add chopped vegetables (carrot and capsicum) and fry for 5 minutes.
3. Add turmeric powder, red chili powder and roasted peanut, salt and sugar and stir well.
   
4. Now add roasted sooji and mix it well. Pur 4 cups of water (double the amount of sooji added)to that. Stir continuously in low flame for 5 minutes.
   
5. Remove it  add some ghee adn garnish with chopped coriander.

      Serve hot as a wonderful breakfast item.

Cheesy Macaroni

Cheesy macaroni is one of those special items which  make a nice smile on my kids face when she opens her lunch box in school. Even my hubby also loves this very much. Recipe is as usual of my type " Easy and fast cooking". It doesn't need much of ingredients also. This indeed is a very tempting dish and a complete breakfast by itself.

Ingredients:
Macaroni (Elbow)              1 cup
Butter                               1 tbsp
All purpose flour                2 tbsp
Milk                                 1 cup
Processed cheese (grated) 1/2 cup
Pepper powder                1 tsp
Salt (As per taste)

Method:

1. Boil macaroni in 2 cups of water adding 1/2 tsp of salt. Cook it until macaroni becomes soft. Drain water and keep it aside.
2. To make the white sauce, heat a pan and add butter. Now add flour and  saute lightly in low flame so that it doesn't change the color. Now add milk slowly and stirring it continuously so as to avoid forming lumps.
3. Add grated cheese and keep stiring. Adjust the consistency of the white sauce by adding more milk. Add salt and pepper powder and stir again.
4. Heat butter in a pan and add boiled macaroni and toss it properly. Now add this macaroni in the white sauce mixture and mix throughly.

       Garnish adding other herbs or you can  serve it  without garnishing also.

Prawn Pakora/Prawn Fritters

Prawn pakora is an excellent  snacks starter for prawn lovers. This snacks I usually made for my kid who love to eat prawn in any form even though she is very fussy eater. This is a very simple recipe and doesn't need any prior preparation and marination. So here is my instant pan fried Prawn pakora recipe for you:

Ingredients:

 Jumbo sized prawns  10 Pc
Gram flour (Besan)    1 cup
Egg (beaten)             1
Ginger garlic paste    1 tbsp
Turmeric powder       1 tsp
Red chili powder        1 tsp
Soy sauce                  1 tbsp
Orange fod color        (optional)
Salt                           As per taste
Sugar                       1/2 tsp
Oil for frying

Method:

1. Shell and divine the prawn and wash it properly.
2. In a bowl, add gram flour, ginger garlic paste, turmeric powder, red chili powder, salt and sugar.
   
3. Now add beaten egg  and then water and make a semi thick batter. Now deep the prawn pieces and keep it for half an hour.If you don't have time to keep it then you can deep it and fry it.
   
4. Heat oil in a pan . Take the prawn pieces coated well with the batter and drop into the oil one after another. Deep fry them in low flame first and then in medium flame for 5 to 6 minutes until it become golden brown in color. Take it out in a tissue paper to soak the excess oil from it.

Serve hot with Tomato sauce and enjoy this great snack starter with your family and friends.

Muskmelon Banana Smoothie

Like almost every kids, my daughter also hate musk melon. So thinking of the nutritious value of this fruit I prepared this smoothie combining Musk melon and Banana specially for kids. It is really very delectable dessert for kids. It is can be made very  quickly and easily without giving much effort and can be served any time throughout the day.

Ingredients:

Musk melon  pieces   1 cup

Banana pieces           1 cup

Yogurt                      1 cup

Milk                          1/2 cup
Sugar                        2 tbsp

Method:

1.  Peel off and  cut Musk melon and Banana  into small piece. Keep them into an air tight box and keep in refrigerator until use. 
2. Put the fruit pieces into an blender and add yogurt and sugar. Blend them for a minute to make a smooth puree. Check the sugar if needed add more. 
3. Pour the mixture in a serving glass and garnish with some musk melon pieces on the top.

Your thick creamy muskmelon banana smoothie is now ready to serve. 

This recipe is on its way to the event "Healing food-Banana" in Krithis blog.

This recipe is also participating the the 'Kids delight event' and Srivalli's blog.

Mutton Rogan Josh

'Mutton Rogan Josh' is a very popular North Indian  delicacy. It is basically originated in Kashmir and the original recipe derives its name from Kashmiri red chilli's and literally means 'Red Lamb'. There are lot of variations  made in this recipe depending on the region where it is prepared. Here I have made a small variation by adding cream in the preparation which is usually  found in various Punjabi dhaba and restaurants. Its gives a creamy color  and consistency to the dish which makes it more delicious.

Ingredients:

Mutton	1 kilo
Onion finely chopped	3
Curd	1 cup
Ginger paste	2 tbsp
Garlic paste	2 tbsp
kashmiri red chilly powder	1 tsp
Cumin seeds	1 tsp
Garam masala powder	1 tsp
Coriender powder	2 tbsp
Turmeric powder	1/2 tsp
Cumin powder	1tsp
Black pepper corns	1tsp
Cloves	6 to 8
Bay leaves	2
Green cardamom	6  to 8
Cinnamon	5 stickds
white cream	2 tbsp
Salt	As per taste
Chopped coriender leaves
Mustard oil

Method:

1.    Wash mutton properly and cut into medium size pieces. Now in a bowl mix mutton with curd and little salt, and keep aside for at least 2 hours.

2.     Heat oil in a pan and add bay leaves and whole spices like cumin seeds, cinnamon stick, cardamom, peppercorn and clove. When they starts crackle add chopped onion and fry until it turns golden yellow. Now add ginger garlic paste and fry for a couple of minutes.

3.  Add turmeric powder, red chili powder, cumin powder, coriander powder and little water. Fry the masala until oils gets separated from it. Now add marinated mutton and fry with masala for   to 5 minutes in high flame. Now reduce the flame and add 2 cups of water,  garam masala  powder, and little salt as we have already added while marinating the mutton. Now cover it with a lid and let it cook  until  the mutton becomes tender and the consistency of gravy becomes medium thick.

4.     When the mutton pieces are well cooked  add cream and stir and cook again for about 3 minutes.

            Garnish with chopped coriander and serve hot with Rice, Roti, Naan or Parathas.

            Enjoy this restaurant style Mutton Rogan josh at home.

French Toast with Onions

When I plan making something special but easy to cook for breakfast during weekends, this is one of the best items I can think off. 'French Toast' is basically triangle bread slices dipped into few spices and egg mixture, then fried until crisp and golden. Since this is a common breakfast item  I made a small variation by adding chopped onion and green chilli in that. Hope you will also enjoy having that.

Ingredients:

Bread slices	4
Egg	3
Pepper powder	½ tsp
Cinnamon powder	A pinch
sugar	1 tsp
Salt	1 tsp
Onion (chopped)	1
Green chili (chopped)	2
Oil for frying

 Method:

1. Cut bread slices diagonally to get  triangular pieces.
2. Beat 3 eggs in a bowl thoroughly. Add salt, sugar, pepper powder and cinnamon powder. Mix it well.
3. Add chopped onion and green chili. Mix it again.
4.  Heat oil in a pan. Dip bread pieces in the egg batter so that each slice bet coated well with batter with onion pieces and slowly drop in the oil and deep fry for a couple of minute until it becomes crispy and turns golden yellow in color on both sides. Take it out on a tissue paper in order to remove the excess oil from it.

          Serve hot with tomato sauce and your crispy and yummy bread toast is ready to eat.

           

Sheera / Kesari bath - My 100th Post

Yes friends, you read it right, this is my 100th post! It's took me almost 3 years long journey to reach this number, which I think is too long. But inspite of a big break for a whole year of 2010  finally I achieved this milestone. Last year after I almost quit blogging, lot of remarkable changes happened in this blogging world. After resuming my blog I found myself far behind in this race and then I had to put lot of extra efforts to catch up with all. Moreover its all your continuous support my dear friends that inspired me with your wonderful and motivational comments. I truly appreciate my friends cooperation that made me stand here. Now 100 posts later, I still take lots of fun and enthusiasm in cooking for my blog, capturing those moments and writing posts expressing my thought in front of you. I even got lot of friends through my blog; who are very close to me  now. I will keep on blogging and experiments on my kitchen will continue to be posted. I want to celebrate this moment with a very sweet post with "kesari bath", which I named as "Kuchh meetha ho jaye".

Kesari bath is a very popular dessert that is included in all types of South Indian meal you order in almost all the restaurants in Bangalore. It is popular in northern India also as Sheera and Sooji halwa but that actually is the simpler form using little ghee and wihout using kesar or any other color. When I had it for the first time here I was simply amazed by finding that simple sooji halwa can be made delectable by adding ghee and saffron. The recipe is known to most of  us and so my post is for those who always take pain to go to restaurant to specially have this dessert . They can prepare it easily and enjoy having it at home.

Ingredients:

Semolina (Rawa/sooji)   200 gms Milk 1 cup Ghee 3 tbsp Bayleaves 2 Cardamom powder 1 tsp Raisins 10 gms Cashewnuts 10 gms Sugar 1 cup Saffron 2 pinch soaked in 3 tbsp. of warm milk (Or you can use orange food color)

Method:

1. Take a large nonstick pan and add ghee.Add bay leaves and then add sooji/Rawa and fry them 6 to 8 minutes till it turns yellowish white and we get a nice aroma of roasted sooji.
   
   
2. Add 1 cup of warm milk and 1 and 1/2 cup of boiling water. Now add sugar. Stir continously in reduced flame for about 5 minutes so that sooji absorbe water and If required add some more water so as to get a smooth consistency. add sfron milk or food color. Stir well.
   
   
3. Switch off the  flame a and add Cardamom powder  and dry fruits (cashew and raisins). Stirr well.

Now add 1tbsp of ghee and  cover it with a lid.

Your Kesari bath is now ready to serve. Enjoy!!

Honey Prawn

This is the first time I am trying out some Chinese preparation with prawn. My hubby is a big fan of prawn as well as Chinese food.We Had this dish when we visited Mainland China last time and since then I was thinking to make an attempt to prepare this unusual combination in my own style and believe me it came out so delectable that it got vanished within few minutes. It can be served as a starter in any get together or parties where it will definitely steal the show. It is also an awesome side dish with any Chinese main course.

Ingredients:

King Prawns	300 gms
Garlic paste	2 tbsp
Garlic(chopped) Soy sauce	6 to 8 1 tbsp
Tomato sauce	1 tbsp
Cornflour	3 tbsp
Egg Salt	1(beaten) As per taste
Red chili paste	1 tsp
Honey	2 tbsp
Pepper powder Sesame seeds (optional)	1 tsp 1 tsp

Method

1.Peel the prawn and devein them. Wash properly and drain out excess water..
2. Take bowl and add prawns, soy sauce, tomato sauce, chili paste, garlic paste, cornflour and salt (Check the salt before adding more salt as soy sauce contain salt in it). Add a beaten egg and mix well and let it marinate for an hour.

3. Heat oil in a pan and drop marinated prawn dipped in cornflour batter in the oil and deep fry in low flame for 4 to 5 minutes until become golden brown. Take it out in a tissue paper and keep aside.

4. Heat little oil in a pan and add chopped garlic. Fry for few seconds and add honey and immediately add fried prawns and pepper powder. Now toss it properly so that prawn pieces get evenly coated with honey.Mind that the preparation will be dry. Turn off the flame and spread sesame seeds which is optional.

Serve hot  as starter or as side dish with noodles and fried rice. Enjoy making  and having this.

Fish Pakora/Fish fritters

Today, I am going to share a very tasty snacks preparation called “Fish Pakora” or “Fish Fritters” which is just perfect as starter for parties and is equally good for  every day snack. This recipe is specially for those fish lovers who got bored with typical fish recipes. I made this fritters using Rohu fish, but any fish will go for that. It is  very easy to prepare and takes less than 15 minutes with marinated fish pieces and requires limited ingredients. Hope you will enjoy having this snack during tea time.

Ingredients:

Fish pieces	300 gms
Ginger garlic paste	1 tbsp
Tomato sauce	1 tbsp
Soy sauce	1 tbsp
Turmeric powder	1 tsp
Red chili powder	1 tsp
Cornflour	½ cup
Gram flour	½ cup
Egg	1
Garam masala powder	1 tsp
Salt	As per taste
Oil for frying

Method:

1. Wash the fish properly and cut into small pieces. Take out the long fish bones from it.
2. Take the fish pieces in a bowl and add ginger garlic paste, turmeric powder,red chili powder, tomato sauce, soy sauce, garam masala and salt and then mix it well and keep for marinate in refrigerator for about 2 hours.
3. To the marinated chicken add cornclour and gram flour (Besan) and a beaten egg and mix it well to get a smooth batter  with dipped fish pieces.
4. Heat oil in a pan and drop fish pieces dipped in batter one after another and deep fry those pieces first in low flame for  about 5 minutes and then in medium flame for a couple of minutes until the fish inside cooked well and it becomes crispy brown from outside.
5. Take out the fried pakora in a serving dish and serve hot with mint chutney or tomato ketchup.