Malpua - banana malpua, the Indian deep fried pancake dessert

This is yet another dish which I have been wanting to prepare for a long time and have not been confident enough even to read a recipe thinking that I can’t achieve the finesse the malpua demands. Finally I tried this recipe from Vatsala’s blog ‘Show & Tell’ when I got the opportunity to participate in BlogHop Wednesdays. I was infact searching for a recipe which includes ingredients which is readily available in my pantry. The Malpua thus happened and I was happy with the outcome. Frying the first one or two taught me how to go about the temperature of the oil and also learnt that you should have patience while frying the malpua.

The actual recipe includes maida which I have replaced with pure wheat flour  - just for health reasons. On the first bite itself you will realize that you are treating yourself to a royal sweet. 

the recipe

Wheat Flour – 1 cup 

Rava / Sooji – ½ cup 

Milk – 2 - 2 ½  (add milk till you get a pouring consistency)

Sugar – 1 tsp ( I have a very sweet tooth so I added 2 tsp…..add sugar according to your taste)

Banana – 1 small

Fennel Seeds – 2 generous pinch 

Veg oil to deep fry 

ingredients for the sugar syrup

Sugar – ½ cup

Water – ½ cup 

Cardamom – 2 , powdered or whole

Slivered nuts - for garnishing

  

method to prepare sugar syrup

Add sugar and half cup water in a sauce pan. Let the sugar syrup boil for a while. Take few drop of the syrup in a spoon and take a drop between your pointing finger and thumb and check whether it forms a string. Add the cardamom or cardamom powder and turn off heat.

  

method to prepare malpua batter

Mash the banana, ( I deseeded the banana and then mashed them). Place the sooji / rava in a bowl and add the milk. Keep it aside for some time. Stir in the mashed banana, wheat flour, sugar and fennel seeds and stir well. Gradually add the milk until you get a pouring consistency. 

frying the Malpua 

Frying Malpua is slightly tricky especially if you are preparing it for the first time. Pour the batter when the oil is in medium to hot temperature. Let the batter take a round shape by itself.

  

Heat oil in a flat pan and pour a ladle full of the prepared Malpua batter. It will take some time for the sides to become light brown. Now flip the malpua gently. Let the other side also brown. Drain it from oil using a slotted spoon. Place it on a tissue paper to get rid off excess oil. Place it in the sugar syrup for 5 minutes turning sides and then place it in another bowl. Garnish with silvered nuts and serve hot.

6 Lunch Box Recipes - - -Peshawari Naan, Stuffed Paratha, Potato & Spinach Sandwich, Kashmiri Paneer, Chilly Fried Rice, Soya Chunk Pulao

 

Peshawari Naan

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Stuffed Paratha 

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Potato & Spinach Sandwich

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Kashmiri Paneer

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Chilly Fried Rice with Peanuts & Veggies

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Soya Chunk Pulao

Click here & here for more yummy lunch box ideas

Kerala Porotta / Parotta ( with wheat flour) + Chilly Tomato

It would be very hard to find a Malayalee who does not like Porotta / Parotta. The problem however is that Porotta is made out of Maida. The reviews that are going around even in television shows are about the hazards of consuming maida. I am trying to avoid it in day to day cooking. 

This is a parotta recipe using home made pure wheat flour. We dint miss anything in terms of taste. We had the parotta with Chilly Tomato and Chicken Curry. Though the best combination is chicken, it tasted good actually with the chilly tomato. Now if you have a question why two curries....it is because i prepared this on a weekday morning and kids are not allowed to take non-vegetarian food to school.

 the recipe

Wheat Flour – 3 cups

Egg  - 1

Warm Milk – 1 cup

Sugar – 1 tbsp

Salt – ¾ tsp

Oil – 1 tsp

ingredients to roll the parotta / porotta

Oil

Rice flour / wheat flour

the method

In a bowl, place the egg, salt and sugar and lightly beat them. Stir in the wheat flour and roughly crumble the ingredients. Knead the flour into dough by gradually adding the warm milk. When the milk is completely used and the dough is still sticking onto your fingertips add 1 tsp oil by sprinkling it into the bowl. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and fingers and smoothen the dough. Divide it into 8 large lemon sized balls and leave it in the refrigerator for 20 - 30 minutes.

Take out the dough, sprinkle few drops of oil on a surface and roll the ball into a thin sheet. Pour few drops of oil and sprinkle wheat flour or coarse rice flour (used to make puttu). Fold the sheets as if folding a fan. Gently twist the folded sheets to form spiral shape. Fold it into a round shape. Gently roll it into a parotta. Heat a gridle / tawa place the parotta and sprinkle few drops of oil. Cook for a minute or two. Turn and cook. Serve hot with a dish of your choice.

the recipe goes to Hearth and Soul Blog hop 73: 11/8/11 and to the Kerala Kitchen at Fajis Hot Pot

    

Chilly Tomato

Cabbage Koottu (C'bge in dal and coconut gravy)

Cabbage koottu is a simple and tasty side dish for rice. Besides the cabbage, dal and coconut are the main ingredients. The only difference in the cabbage koottu when compared to other koottu recipe is the addition of asafoetida. In other koottu recipes, like the snake gourd variant there is no asafoetida though any one is free to experiment according to their taste.

This is one of my favorites and i get nostalgia about my childhood days in Valparai when i prepare this...if you ask me the reason, i really dont know...:-) sometimes it is 'just like that'

ingredients

cabbage - 500 gms
dal (toor or chana or moong) - 4 tbsp

coconut - 5 tbsp
cumin - 1/2 tsp
small onion - 4
green chilly - 2 or 3

turmeric - 1/3 tsp
asafoetida - 1/2 to 3/4 tsp

for the tempering


oil - 1 1/2 tsp

mustard seeds - 1/4 tsp
curry leaves - 1 or 2  sprigs
whole red chilly - 2 or 3 (broken)

salt to taste

the method

Par boil the dal in a pan. Add the shredded cabbage, turmeric and salt and give a quick stir. Meanwhile grind the cumin, small onion, green chillies and coconut to a coarse paste using about 2 or 3 tbsp water. Add the coconut paste into the cabbage and stir. When almost done add the asafoetida and stir. Take care while adding the asafoetida because the pungency differs based on the brand. Add 1/2 tsp and taste the koottu and add the balance 1/4 spoon as'da only if need be. Turn off heat when the cabbage is done. Check salt.

Heat oil in another pan and add the mustard followed by curry leaves and broken red chillies. Pour the tempering over the cabbage, stir and cover it. Serve the cabbage koottu with rice and sambar or rasam or whatever you prefer.

Ladies Finger / Okra / Bhindi Masala

ingredients to sauté the ladies finger

Ladies Finger / Okra / Bhindi – 500 gms

oil – 2 tbsp

salt – ¾ tsp

ingredients for the masala

Oil – 1 tbsp

Onion – 2 medium, julienned

Green chilly – 1 or 2
Ginger - 1/3 inch piece
Garlic - 5 cloves

Turmeric – ¼ tsp

Chilly powder – ¼ tsp

Coriander powder – ¼ tsp

Pepper powder – ½ tsp

Garam Masala – ½ tsp

Vinegar – ½ tsp or lemon juice – 1 tsp

Salt to taste

the method

Clean and cut the ladies finger as seen in the picture. In low flame, heat 2 tbsp oil in a pan and add the chopped ladies finger and salt. Stir occasionally till the moisture has evaporated from the ladies finger. Reserve.

In medium flame, heat 1 tbsp oil in another pan and sauté the onion, ginger, garlic and green chilies till the onion turns translucent. Add the turmeric, chilly, pepper, coriander and garam masala powder and stir for few seconds. Add the vinegar and stir. Add the sautéed ladies finger and mix well for about 5 minutes. Serve with rice. This is very delicious and aromatic.

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cheers

roshan

Sunday Special - Fourth edition

Recipes send for the fourth edition of Sunday Special

Rava Kesari / Sooji Ka Halwa

the recipe


Rava / Semolina - 1 cup
Water – 2 cup + 2 tbsp
Turmeric – 2 pinch (I used this instead of food color)
Sugar – 1 ½ cup
Cardmom – 4 (powder it with some sugar)
Cashewnuts, Almonds and raisins – as required (fried in ghee)
Ghee – 2 – 3 tbsp

the method

Heat 2 tbsp ghee in a pan and lightly sauté the semolina and turn off heat. Heat water in another pan with turmeric. When it come to boil, turn to low heat and add the rava slowly into the water and stir in circular motion briskly. The heat is turned to low to avoid formation of lumps. Keep stirring till the semolina is almost cooked. Add the sugar 1 or 2 tbsp at a time and keep stirring. Add the cardamom powder and fried nuts. Add one more tablespoon ghee on top and mix well.

Pour the kesari into a greased tray or plate. Cut it into diamond shapes and serve it hot or cold. I used some saffron strands just to give an appeal for the photograph.

the recipe goes to sinful delights by Vardhini

Sunday Special - Third Edition

This is the third edition of Sunday Special. If you are interested in participating in this event please go through the details in the event page.



A big thanks to the participants….

...continue reading by clicking the title

Coconut Cake with Custard Apple & Cream

 

I have been wanting to prepare a Coconut Cake for a long time. I was in doubt whether I should use fresh coconut or desiccated ones. Finally I decided to prepare homemade desiccated coconut and the cake thus happened. The idea of custard apple and cream is from Chef Vicky Ratnani. I saw it in a program called ‘Do it Sweet’ aired on NDTV Good Times.

ingredients for the Coconut Cake

Flour (maida) – 3 cups

Eggs – 3 large or 4

Caster Sugar – 2 ¼ cup

Veg oil – 1 ¼ cup

Vanilla Extract – 1 tsp

Baking powder – 1 tsp

Dessicated coconut – 6 tbsp (Check ‘Basics’ page for method)

ingredients for the Custard Apple Cream

Custard Apple – 3 (just ripe fruit)

Sugar – 3 tbsp

Whipping Cream Powder – ¾ cup

Chilled water – 40 ml

If you are using fresh cream you might require 300-400ml medium fat cream

 

Method to prepare the cake

Preheat Over at 180 C.

Sieve the flour and baking powder three times.

In a mixing bowl, beat the eggs one by one: Place one egg in the bowl and place the electric mixer on the yolk and start fluffing up the yolk and white until they are combined well. Continue with the other eggs. Once all the eggs are added continue for one more minute.

Add the caster sugar little by little in speed 1 or 2. When all the sugar is added switch to high speed and continue beating for about 5 minutes till the mix has doubled in volume. Add the vanilla extract and oil and mix together for a minute.

While adding the flour, use a spatula to mix the batter. Add the flour little by little until fully used up. Add the dessicated coconut and mix well. Pour into the prepared pan and bake at 180C for 40 minutes (Keep checking after 35 minutes because oven temperatures vary). Let it cool in the pan for ten minutes.

Take the cake out of the pan and let it cool for a day (Keep it wrapped in an aluminium foil in a refrigerator).

Method to prepare custard apple cream

Deseed the Custard Apple. Grind it coarsely along with 3 tbsp sugar.

Place the whipping cream powder in a bowl and gradually add the cold water and whip it into cream. Add 2 tbsp cream into the custard apple and blend for a second. Transfer the custard apple mix into the whipped cream and gently fold in.

Assembling the cake

Cut the cake into two horizontally. Place a layer of the custard apple cream on one layer of the cake. Place the other half of the cake over it. Place the whipped cream in the middle of the cake and spread it to the sides evenly. Decorate the cake with custard apple seeds (not to be eaten – take care while serving the cake to kids).

Enjoy!!

Beef & Potato Roast (Kerala Style)

Roast in the Kerala perspective means a preparation with thick gravy. Hence we have the varieties like chicken roast, egg roast, beef roast, duck roast and mutton roast. Well it is really hard to find a vegetable roast and i dunno if there are any...Anyway the roast gravy is usually made of lots of onion and tomato. Since beef is an inevitable part in a Christian home in Kerala there are many beef recipes indeed. Beef in coconut milk, Beef curry with coconut chunks, Beef chops, Beef Ularthiyathu and the list goes on. The standard beef curry which my mother prepares is a beef and potato curry with coconut milk. When I got married, the beef preparation and generally all the meat preparation was totally different at my in-laws. There was no coconut milk in any meat preparation other than for the stew. 

This is is a recipe which is my husband's favorite and needless to say this is the way my mother in law prepares beef on Sundays. 

Usually fresh garam masala is prepared for the beef curry. The recipe for garam masala is as follows:

to prepare the garam masala

cloves - 6

cinnamon - 1 inch piece

cardamom - 6 medium

fennel seeds - 1 heaped tsp or 1 1/2 tsp

poppy seeds - 1/2 tsp

pepper corns  -  1 1/2 tsp

Blade of mace - 1/2 (optional)

nutmeg - 1/2 cm piece (optional)

Lightly heat the above (other than the poppy seeds) and grind it to a fine powder.

ingredients to boil the beef

beef - 1 kg

potato, (peeled and immersed in water for 15 mins) - 3 medium

small onions, crushed - 10
green chillies, crushed - 4 or less (adjust to taste)
ginger, crushed - 3/4 inch piece
garlic, crushed - 12
tomatoes cubed - 2 medium
curry leaves - 3 sprigs

chilly powder - 2 tsp
turmeric - 1/2 tsp
coconut oil - 1tbsp
garam masala - use half of the garam masala from the above mentioned quantity.
salt - to taste

method to boil beef

Heat a pressure cooker in medium flame and add the coconut oil. Immediately add the crushed onion, green chilly, ginger, garlic and curry leaves. Stir for one minute. Add the chilly powder, turmeric powder, garam masala and salt. Stir for few seconds. Add the washed and cubed meat. Stir well. Add the tomatoes and whole potatoes. Stir and put the lid on and cook till done (8 whistle for the usual pressure cooker).Open the lid and cut the potatoes into four or eight. Keep it aside.

This recipe requires double tempering.

ingredients for the tempering

coconut oil - 2-3 tbsp
garlic - 6 cloves, finely chopped
ginger - 1/2 inch piece, finely chopped
onion, sliced - 3 medium sized
curry leaves - 1 sprig
garam masala - the other half of the 1/2 of the above quantity
turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
chilly powder - 1 - 1 1/2 tsp
salt to taste
pepper powder - 1/2 tsp (optional)

Heat a clay pot or a wide pan and add the coconut oil. Add the garlic till golden brown. In medium heat, add the onion and salt and saute till golden brown. Add the ginger and curry leaf and stir for few seconds. Add the turmeric, chilly powder and garam masala. Saute till the raw aroma is gone. Add the cooked meat and potatoes. Stir well and simmer for 10 - 15 minutes. Serve hot with rice, appam, peshawari naan, meat puttu or even a stuffed paratha or kashmiri paratha. Enjoy!

Click here for other beef recipe in this blog