Friday, April 29, 2011

KAJU FLOWERS



This is the second takeaway for A. Actually this is kaju katli gone wrong. While i took so much pride in my last blog that i am great at sweets, this one brought me down to earth.

I planned to make this early before A's friends came to say good bye, but a sloth i am this took much more time than i had anticipated. They arrived and that was it. I discussed with so much enthusiasm about Nigella's cooking exploitations that i completely forgot about the project that was cooking. Atlast when i remembered it, it was too late. The wok was so happy to have the dish that it would'nt let go of it. But i was too proud to admit my mistake.

I silently covered it for a while and once completely cooled, i added a tablespoon of hot water to make it into a pilable dough. Then with the mooncake moulds that A had got from singapore, i punched them into it and my sweet babies were ready in a jiffy.

A later told me that her colleagues were raving about my cooking skills, only i know the truth, i am not a good cook but am intelligent cook.

BADAM HALWA



Aptly named the "king of Halwas", this is once in a year delicacy; reserved for special occasions. A had come to India and i made so many things for her during her return. This is the first one i made. I must confess that i lack talent in making anything that is savoury. I dont know why, i have'nt tried to make anything savoury (snacks/titbits)in my life.

One of my new year resolution is to try with success some amount of savoury.My sweets always turn out to be good; so may be i was satisfied with it and not adventurous enough to sail into unknown territory. ok coming back to the halwa. This is like old wine, it tastes better as it ages. I made it on friday, the real taste surged only after sunday. i couldnt have just a spoonful.

Actually i have a ploy to cut down my cravings for anything sweet. I fill a very small cup with the sweet dish and savour it all through the day.So, two in one. i had the sweet and no more guilty of calories.

Sunday, April 3, 2011

MEDU VADAI



Oh how i love this...There is no alternative to this dish at any point of time. A vadai is a vadai is a vadai by anu other name. (oops..sorry that is my liking for this snack). This is so versatile that it can be manifested into so many different tasting snacks withoout much ado.


SAMBAR VADAI - Dip them in hot sambar and lo and behold.....mouth watering evening tiffin


THAYIR VADAI - Soak in thick curd and garnish with corainder and roasted cumin and kara boondi. lip smacking.....


RASA VADAI - A perfect evening snack that leaves a hangover till the next day..peppery rasam and soft vadai...


KEERAI VADAI - Add greens to the dough before frying and gourge on the heavely crispy healthy munchies..


The list could just go on with VEGETABLE VADAI or i have heard some people stuffing with meat or chicken mince (didnt try that yet), but i could have it just like that.

BADUSHA




Translated as "The King", this sweet delicacy has been a must in all traditional south indian weddings until the Gulab Jamun mania took over. Grandmothers, Aunts and other members of the family prepared this in a jiffy and each had their own style. one added orange color to the dough that gave a bright look to it. Some added lemon yellow for a subtle look.  I like this plain without any added colors.

This is a very mildly sweet tasting dish that can be stirred up to satisfy sweet cravings. I have an immensely big sweet tooth, so i keep the sweet pangs at bay by making this sweet. (Less in calories when compared to its other indian cousins). The inside will take a day or two to soften, so dont be alarmed if it stays hard when you taste it immediately.


Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...