Red Rice Pongal

Day 1 of Navratri and it's time to bring out the creativity in Bhog. Red rice gets its hue from a compound called Anthocyanin. In its unhulled or semi-hulled forms, this rice is an excellent source of antioxidants, minerals and fibre. It has a low Glycemic index too.
For Pratham day, we made a Red Rice Pongal (It can be made risotto style too)
PS: Don't be stingy with ghee! :)

RED RICE PONGAL

Ingredients:
Red Rice - 1 cup
Milk - 1 cup
Water - 3 cups
Jaggery - 1.5 cups
Cashews, raisins - a few
Cardamom powder - 1/4 tsp
Ghee - 1/4 cup

Method:
1. Wash and pressure cook rice along with milk and water upto 6-7 whistles, so it's well done to a very soft consistency. Keep aside.

2. In a saucepan, add jaggery along with 2 tbsps water and stir on low heat till it dissolves. Filter the impurities first. Now transfer back to saucepan and stir on low till you you get a sticky consistency (no strings needed)

3. Mash the cooked rice and add the jaggery syrup to it. Stir on low -medium heat till it all comes together well.

4. Heat ghee in another wok, roast the dry nuts and keep aside.

5. Pour the heated ghee over the Pongal. Add cardamom powder and give a quick stir. Leave it covered for a while to allow flavours to soak in.

6. Serve hot garnished with ghee-roasted nuts.

Intriguing Read - Heartquake

An IAS officer, a cardiologist and a police officer...corrupt politicians and a medical epidemic to boot. Sounds like right out of a Rohit Shetty movie doesn't it?
Heartquake is the new baby from the pen of author K.Vijaykarthikeyan after Once Upon An IAS Exam.

Story Summary: IAS Officer Vikram Kumar, or VK is an honest IAS officer, who seeks to expose the corrupt politician RPR, i.e, Rudra Pratap Rana. In a typical movie style twist, officer Kumar is transferred to Laxmipur as sub divisional magistrate, right in Rana's backyard.

Vikram Kumar commences his duty and RPR commences his vengeance. However life has other plans for Vikram, as a sudden epidemic grips the town. What initially seems like normal heart attack cases suddenly escalates into a series of mysterious deaths.
How Vikram with the help of cardiologist and a police officer and by risking his life, seeks to find a solution to this mystery forms the premise of the rest of the book.

The Indian diaspora, especially the movie buffs, are no strangers to a plot like this. Where the protagonist walks into the enemy territory with his head held high and looking to right the wrongs.

Doctor turned career bureaucrat himself, Dr. K. VijayKarthikeyan uses writing as a way to express himself. In his words, writing for him is way to vent and rejuvenate himself.
He also says that what he sees around him inspires him to write. "We are the world we choose to create".

When it comes to crime thrillers, it is important to create a strong imagery in the reader's mind and leave the rest to the reader's imagination. The author chooses a compact set of characters and I found all of them mostly relevant to the plot. Description of some scenes were a tad violent in parts, but not to the extent of leaving me disturbed.

What I especially like is that the author, just like in his previous book, Once Upon an IAS Exam, keeps the characters relatable. It is nice to see desi authors come into their own, especially as there is enough happening around us everyday to make for books on almost every field of life. Will definitely look forward to Vijayakarthikeyan next book.

Pongal /Khichdi

(SALT) PONGAL (South Indian Style Khichdi)

Ingredients:
Rice - 1 cup
Split green gram - 1/2 cup
Black peppercorns - 1 tsp
Cumin seeds - 1 tsp
Cashews - a few
Ginger - 1 inch piece, chopped
Salt to taste
Clarified butter (Ghee) - 2 tbsps
Curry leaves - a few

Method:
1. Heat a pan and dry roast the green gram for just a minute. Transfer to a clean dish. Wash along with rice and pressure cook with 4 cups water upto 4-5 whistles, reduce and cook for 5 mins more. Remove from flame.
2. Add salt and mash while still hot.
3. Coarsely grind the peppercorns and cumin seeds. They need to be just broken down, not powdered.
3. Heat ghee in a pan, add cashews and roast till golden brown. Remove and keep aside.
4. Add the curry leaves, ginger to the same ghee and saute for 1/2 a minute. Turn off flame and add broken peppercorns and cumin seeds. Give it a quick stir and add to the Pongal.
Serve hot.

Lemon Rice

One of the simplest Rice varieties out there is the Lemon Rice. It's very simple to mix up and you can add variations of your own too!
Here's my mom's version..

LEMON RICE

Ingredients :
Rice - 1/2 cup
Sesame oil - 1/2 tsp
Mustard seeds - 1/4 tsp
Bengal gram(chana dal) - 1/4 tsp
Asafetida (Hing) pwd - 1/8 tsp
Turmeric pwd - 1/4 tsp
Green chilies - 2 medium
Curry leaves - a few
Lemon - 1 medium
Chopped capsicum, carrots, boiled peas (optional) - 1/2 cup
.
Method :
1. Pressure cook rice with equal measure of water, basically Pulao consistency. Once pressure subsides, transfer to a plate and let cool to room temperature. Gently fluff it using a fork.

2. Heat oil in a pan, add mustard seeds & let splutter.

3. Add chana dal, chopped or slit green chilies, curry leaves and fry for a minute. If using vegetables, add them in at this point and cook till 3/4th done.
NOTE: Add salt to taste if adding veggies else add them later directly to the rice.

4. Add hing pwd, turmeric pwd, give a quick stir and remove from flame.

5. Add the tempering mix to the rice along with salt and gently mix till all the rice is well-coated.

6. Once well-mixed, squeeze half  lemon and check taste. Squeeze the other half if you want it more tangy.
Serve slightly warm.

Thandu Keerai and Koottu

A lot of us cook Foxtail Amaranth/Thandu Keerai in many ways.
Here's an interesting tidbit about the greens from my mom. She grew up in a village near Madurai and I love hearing her interesting food stories!

So near her village, these greens would typically be sown right after harvesting Turmeric for Sankranti/Pongal. This is or was, a practice unique to the Melmangalam Taluk.
The greens would be ready for harvest 6 months later. Hence they would be called Manjal thottam Keerai or Aaru maasam (6 months) Thandu Keerai. Cool right?

By the way, I'm in love with this Storage Basket + Colander from Amazon. A blessing when washing greens especially.
Click the image or Check it out here..

Without much ado, here are the 2 dishes made with the greens
1. Thandu (Stem) Poricha Koottu
2. Puliyitta Keerai (leaves cooked with tamarind)What's left will be combined with leftover Tomato Rasam, given a quick simmer and finished off with dosas that night. :)

THANDU KEERAI KOOTTU

Ingredients:
Amaranth Stems (chopped) - 1 cup
Split Green Gram (moong dal) - 1/4 cup
Rasam powder - 1 tsp (If rasam pwd isn't available use the spice paste)
Salt to taste

For Spice Paste (if Rasam pwd not available):
Grated Coconut - 2 tbsps
Dry red chili - 1 medium
Cumin seeds (Jeera) - 1 tsp

Tempering:
Sesame oil - 1/2 tsp
Mustard seeds - 1/4 tsp
Split Black gram (Urad dal) - 1/4 tsp

Method:
1. Cook the chopped stems and moong dal separately.
2. Transfer both to a sauce pot and add salt to taste.
3. Add Rasam powder or ground spice paste, mix and simmer-cook on low for about 7-8 mins. Remove from flame.
4. Heat oil in a tempering ladle, add mustard seeds and let splutter. Add urad dal, roast till light golden and add to the Koottu.
Serve hot.

PULIYITTA KEERAI

Ingredients:
Amaranth leaves - 2 cups (washed, drained & roughly chopped)
Split Pigeon Peas (Toor dal) - 1/4 cup, pressure cooked till soft
Tamarind - half a lemon's size, juice extracted upto 1 cup
Green chili - 1-2, medium
Salt to taste
Vattralkuzhambu Powder or Sambhar powder - 2 tsps
Fresh coriander, chopped - a handful

Tempering:
Sesame oil - 1/2 tsp
Mustard seeds - 1/4 tsp
Hing - 1/2 tsp

Method:
1. Blanch the greens in very little water. Let cool, then coarsely grind.
2. Add the ground leaves to a sauce pot along with slit green chili, tamarind water and salt to taste and let simmer on low flame till raw smell leaves the mix.
3. Lightly mash the cooked lentils and add to the greens mix. Add the Vattralkuzhambu or Sambaar powder, chopped coriander leaves and simmer on low flame for about 5-7 mins. Remove from flame.
4. For tempering, heat oil, add mustard seeds and let splutter. Switch off flame, add hing, mix well in the oil. Add to the keerai and serve hot.

Morkeerai

There are many ways of cooking greens, especially in the Indian cuisine. Two methods that are my favourite from Mom's kitchen are - Masicha Keerai or Mashed Greens and MorKeerai, literally greens cooked in Buttermilk.
Featured here - MorKeerai, literally greens in buttermilk.
A simple, yummy and healthy recipe that can be prepared using almost any variety of greens, Spinach or variants of Amaranth.

There are many ways of making this, here's a simple method from my mom's repertoire..

MORKEERAI

Ingredients:
Greens of choice (Spinach, Arai keerai, Mulai keerai) - 1 medium bunch
Whisked yogurt - 1 cup
Green chili - 1 -2 medium
Salt to taste
Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp

Tempering:
Sesame oil - 1/4 tsp
Mustard seeds - 1/4 tsp
Black gram - 1/4 tsp
Dry red chili - 1 medium

Method:
1. Blanch a medium bunch of greens with salt and turmeric pwd. Cool and mash or coarsely grind.
2. Slit 1-2 green chilies and add to the mashed greens. Cook on low flame.
3. Add 1/4 tsp rice flour to whisked yogurt and add to the mix. Let simmer but take care not to let it boil.
4. Check for salt and remove from flame.
5. Temper by heating 1/4 tsp sesame oil, add mustard seeds, black gram and 1 small dry red chili.
Serve as is. Best part, it can be served at room temperature and as a raita too.

Sooji Halwa (using Jaggery)

As we look to move away more and more from refined foods, it's high time to go back to roots and use what our ancestors did. White sugar for one is not used in my home anymore. We prefer jaggery in its whole or powdered form, or honey and cane sugar.
This Halwa comes out absolutely superb using jaggery and a must, must try..

SOOJI HALWA USING JAGGERY

Ingredients:
Ghee (Clarified butter) -¼ cup
Sooji / Semolina – ½ cup
Jaggery (roughly powdered) – 1 cup
Elaichi powder – a pinch
Salt – a pinch (optional)
Water – 2 cups
Cashews and raisins, roasted in ghee

Method:
1. Heat water in a saucepan and bring to a boil.
2. Heat ghee in a non-stick wok. Add sooji and roast till you get a nice aroma.
3. Add the boiled water and stir quickly to avoid lumps.
4. Stir well till sooji absorbs all the water and is well cooked.
5. Add the jaggery and stir on low flame till jaggery dissolves and mixes well.
6. Add the roasted dry nuts and cardamom powder. Stir again for 3-4 minutes and remove from flame.
Serve hot.

Mango Kadhi

Come summer and we start experimenting with mangoes in every way we can. From Aamras to pickles, to raitas, to desserts, innumerable possibilities.

Using Mangoes in savoury dishes is an interesting pairing. Slightly sweet, tangy, this Mango Kadhi is a recipe my mom learnt from her mom. Here it is for you all to try :)

MANGO KADHI

Ingredients:

3 cups beaten yogurt (slightly sour)

1 ripe Mango (not too ripe, fibreless variety works best)

1 1/2 Green chilies

1/2 inch Ginger

2 tbsps Grated Coconut

1/2 tsp Cumin seeds

Salt to taste

Seasoning:

1 tsp Sesame Oil

1/4 tsp Mustard seeds

1/2 medium Red Chili

1/4 tsp Fenugreek seeds

Curry leaves, a few

Method:

1. Grind coconut, green chilies and cumin seeds to a fine paste using a little water.

2. Quarter the mango and cook in very little water, only till the skin is tender. Take care not to overcook.

3. Whisk together the yogurt, salt, ground paste.

4. Add the semi-cooked mango quarters and let simmer on low flame, stirring continuously but not vigorously.

5. After about 5-7 minutes, check for salt and remove from flame.

6. For tempering, heat oil, add mustard seeds and let splutter.

7. Add the red chili, curry leaves and finally the fenugreek seeds. Let brown slightly and add to the kadhi.

Serve hot with rice, rotis, Indian String hoppers, dosas or Adais. The list is endless :)

Sweet Pongal

SWEET PONGAL

Ingredients:
Rice - 1 cup
Split Green gram - 1/4 cup
Milk - 1 cup
Jaggery or sugar - 1 1/2 cup (Jaggery best)
Cashews and raisins - a few
Cardamom pwd - 1/4 tsp
Clarified butter( Ghee) - 2 tbsps

Method:
1. Heat a pan and dry roast the green gram for just a minute. Transfer to a clean dish.
2. Wash rice and pressure cook along with the roasted green gram, milk and 3 cups water. Let cook upto 4-5 whistles. Reduce flame and let be for 5 mins more. Turn off flame. Basically we need it mashy.
3. Once pressure subsides, mash the mixture while still hot.
4. Add jaggery/sugar to a large wok and 1.5 tbsps water and let dissolve on low flame. Let simmer till you get a sticky consistency. When you test the syrup between fingers it should be sticky like melted toffee, but no string.
5. Now add the mashed rice mix little by little and stir well with the jaggery/sugar syrup.
6. Heat ghee in another pan, roast the cashews and raisins till golden brown. Add to the pongal mix along with cardamom powder. Stir on low till it starts to thicken.
Remove from flame and serve hot. An extra dollop of ghee when serving is absolutely recommended 

Carrot Bhaat

A very simple, healthy and wholesome dessert that you can whip up quickly.

CARROT BHAAT

Ingredients:
1 cup grated carrots
1/2 cup well-cooked rice
3 cups full fat milk
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 tsp cardamom pwd
1 tbsp clarified butter(Indian ghee) for roasting dry nuts
Sliced dry nuts of choice
Method:
1. Cook carrots in 3 cups milk till they are cooked and milk reduces to half the volume.

2. Mash the cooked rice and add to the milk mixture.
Stir well leaving no lumps.

3. Add sugar, stir again. Let simmer till the mixture thickens

4. Add cardamom pwd, dry nuts(roasted in ghee). Remove from flame and serve hot.

Kathirikkai Rasa Vangi

Now this is quite an interesting dish..
The main dish is done Sambhaar style (baby eggplants dropped in whole with just a quarterway slit), left to settle for a bit and then the thin surface liquid is removed and used as Rasam. 
Basically a 2 in 1 dish! Amazing isnt it?!

KATHIRIKKAI RASAM VANGI

Ingredients:
Eggplants (preferably baby ones) - 5 to 6
Toor dal - 3/4 cup
Tamarind - small lemon size (juice extracted)
Curry leaves
Salt to taste
Sesame oil - 1/4 tsp

Spice powder:
Dry red chilies - 6
Coriander seeds - 2 tsps
Bengal gram (chana dal) 1 1/2 tsps
Grated coconut- 1/2 cup
Sesame oil - 1/2 tsp

Tempering:
Sesame oil - 2 tsps
Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp
Dry red chili - 1 small
Hing pwd - 1/4 tsp
Coriander leaves for garnish

Method:
1. Heat 1/ 2 tsp oil in a small pan and roast the spices listed under spice mix till golden brown. Take care not to let them darken.
Let cool, then dry grind to a coarse powder and keep aside.

2. Wash and remove stem from the eggplants. If using the baby ones, simple make a cross quarter way through. If using the normal size ones, cut them into quarters.

3. Pressure cook toor dal with little turmeric powder till done.

4. Heat 1/4 tsp sesame oil in a saucepan and give the eggplants a quick toss.

5. Add the tamarind extract, salt and let simmer on medium till the raw aroma of tamarind leaves and eggplants are half-cooked.

6. Reduce flame, add the cooked dal and simmer for 5 mins more.

7. Now add the ground spice powder as per taste and check for salt. Add torn curry leaves as well.
Let simmer for just 2 -3 mins more.

8. Remove from flame and add chopped coriander leaves.

9. For the tempering, heat 2 tsps sesame oil in a pan, add mustard seeds, red chilli and hing. Pour over the sambhar.

10. Stir and let settle for a bit till the thinner 'rasam' is left on top and dal settles at the bottom.
Gently transfer the rasam to another vessel and voila, 2 dishes from one!
Serve hot.

Whole Wheat Banana Eggless Cake

Baked something after a really long time and was super happy with the soft cake that came out. Plus, I used Jaggery in this instead of sugar. Totally amazing and a must try..

WHEAT BANANA JAGGERY CAKE

Ingredients:
3/4th cup + 1 tsp Whole wheat flour
1/3 cup Cocoa powder
1/2 tsp Baking powder
1/4 tsp Baking Soda
A pinch of salt
2 ripe Bananas
A pinch Clove powder (Or ginger powder)
A pinch Cinnamon powder
1/4 cup Light cooking oil
1/3 cup Jaggery (run it in the mixer once to remove lumps)
2 tbsps yogurt
Assorted dry fruits and nuts

Method:
1. Preheat oven to 180 deg C. Microwave the bananas with the skin for about 3 mins on high. The skin will brown and the pulp will soften. De-skin and mash the bananas well.

2. Sieve together the wheat flour, baking powder, baking soda, spices and a pinch of salt. As we are using whole wheat flour, sieve at least twice or thrice to loosen up the flour.

3. In another bowl, whisk together oil and jaggery till well blended. Add the mashed bananas and whisk again. Now add 1 tbsp yogurt and mix.

4. Gradually add the dry flour mix in batches, cut and fold gently, repeat till all the flour is added in. Gently mix till no loose flour is visible and leave no lumps. If the batter is thick add the the remaining 1 tbsp yogurt as well.

5. Quickly toss 3/4th of the dry fruits and nuts in the 1 tsp loose flour till well-coated. Add to the batter and mix in. Coating the nuts in flour will prevent them from sinking in the batter.

6. Transfer to a greased loaf/cake tin. Sprinkle remaining dry nuts (non-flour coated) on top.

7. Bake at 180 deg C for about 30 mins. I used the microwave, and mine doesnt have 180 deg C. So I baked at 170 C for 6 mins. (Or till toothpick comes out clean)

8. Remove and let cool for about 5-7 minutes. Transfer to the serving dish. Serve warm or cold.

Karunai Kizhangu Masiyal

We call this Karunai Kizhangu (tuber) or Pidi Karunai. Karunai Kizhangu Masiyal (or literally, Yam Mash) is the most common and one of our favourite recipes that we prepare with this tuber. It takes very basic spices.

KARUNAI KIZHANGU MASIYAL (YAM MASH)

Ingredients :
Mini Yam/Karunai Kizhangu - 4 to 5
Green chili - 1, slit
Ginger - 1 inch piece, chopped
Tamarind - half lemon size, juice extracted
Lemon - 1 medium
Salt to taste

For tempering:
Sesame Oil - 1 tsp
Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp
Split Urad dal - 1/2 tsp
Hing pwd - 1/ 4 tsp
Curry leaves, a few

Method:
1. Peel, wash and leave the yam (halved) in some rice water to remove the itchiness.
2. Wash again, cut into thick slices and pressure cook upto 3 whistles. Remove and mash while still hot.
3. Transfer to a thick bottom saucepan along with the tamarind juice.
4. Add the slit green chili, ginger and salt and let simmer on low for 4-5 minutes. Keep stirring occasionally.
5. Remove from flame. Prepare tempering by heating oil, adding the rai, urad dal, hing and curry leaves. Pour over the Masiyal/mash and serve hot with rice.

Gajar Strawberry halwa

Here we go...Gajar-Strawberry Halwa :) Perfect for a winter evening and pressure-cooked.

GAJAR STRAWBERRY HALWA

Ingredients:
2 cups grated carrots (Dark Red ones better)
1 cup chopped strawberries
1 cup Full fat milk (yes,full fat, trust me on this one )
1/2 cup sugar
2 tbsps Ghee (clarified butter)
1/4 tsp cardamom powder
A few dry nuts roasted in ghee

Method:
1. Add carrot, milk, sugar and ghee to a 2-3 litre pressure cooker.
2. Cook upto 1 whistle, remove from flame and let the pressure subside naturally.
3. Place back on medium flame , add strawberries and keep stirring till it starts to thicken.
4. Once it becomes sticky, add the roasted nuts, give it a stir, remove off flame and let cool a bit.
Serve hot and try pairing with vanilla ice cream.

Diwali Legiyam

So for us, Diwali is on Narak Chaturdashi (tomorrow) , typically on Choti Diwali. This is practised in Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Maharashtra and Goa, as far as I know.
We get up before Sunrise, have an oil bath (specially prepared oil - pic coming up) and the first thing given to everyone is the Diwali medicine. It preps the stomach for the festive food ahead.

Here is the Diwali Legiyam/Marunthu (medicine) pic and recipe..

DIWALI MARUNTHU/LEGIYAM

Ingredients:
(Makes legiyam about a small coconut size)
Black peppercorns - 2 tsps
Cumin seeds(jeera) - 2.5 tsps
Coriander seeds (dhaniya) - 2.5 tsps
Carrom seeds (Ajwain) - 1.5 tbsps
Kanda Thippili (pippali - dried root of long pepper plant) - 10 x 1inch sticks
Rice Thippili (dried long pepper) - 5 to 6
Dry ginger powder (saunth) - 1 tbsp
Green Cardamom (elaichi) - 2
Clarified butter (Ghee) - 4 tbsps
Jaggery - 2 cups (roughly powdered)

(Long peppers are available on Amazon. Search for Pippali Mool or long pepper root and Pippali or long pepper)
Method:
1. Dry grind ajwain to a fine powder. Add other dry spices and grind them too.
2. Transfer to a bowl, add water just upto the level of the powder and let soak for 10-15 minutes.
3. Re-grind this soaked mix with the same water to a fine paste.
4. Heat a thick-bottomed pan and add the ground paste to it. Stir on low flame till it starts to thicken.
5. Add jaggery at this point and stir till it ia dissolved.
6. Now start adding ghee a little at a time till the mixture leaves the sidea of the pan and comes together like halwa.
Switch off flame and let cool. Store in a clean, air-tight container.

Jain Palak Paneer

Palak Paneer is a world-favourite recipe. Who can resist the sight, aroma and flavour of this delicious curry dish with soft and succulent paneer chunks floating in a spinach gravy?
Though the recipe typically uses onion and garlic. But for those who want to enjoy this during vrat season, this recipe can help.

NO ONION-GARLIC PALAK PANEER

Ingredients:
Spinach/Palak - 2 small bunches
Tomatoes, medium - 4, blanched
Green chilies, medium - 3 to 4
Salt to taste
Oil - 2 tbsps
Jeera - 1 tsp
Haldi - 1/2 tsp
Red chili powder - 1/2 tsp
Coriander powder - 1 tsp
Garam masala - 1/2 tsp

Method:
1. Add chopped and washed spinach to a pressure cooker along with green chilies and salt and cook for just 1 whistle. Remove, cool and grind to a paste. I like to keep the paste little chunky rather than too fine.
2. Heat oil in a pan and add jeera. Let crackle.
3. Add blanched and chopped tomatoes (or pureee) along with haldi and let cook a bit.
4. Now add chili powder (careful here as we have already used green chilies) and dhaniya powder. Cook till tomatoes/puree is cooked.
5. Finally add garam masala and let simmer for few minutes more.
6. Now add the spinach puree and mix well. Check for salt. Do not cook for too long after adding spinach.
Remove and serve hot with chapati or rice.

Puyliyogare mix

Puli kaaychal meaning tamarind cooked to a paste is a popular condiment made in most South Indian households. Puliyogare rice is a very popular preparation especially in Lord Vishnu temples. Here's the recipe for the paste as how my mom makes it.

PULI KAAYCHAL / PULIYOGARE MIX

Ingredients:

Tamarind - Big lemon size(we need about 4 cups of tamarind extract)

For Spice pwd:

Coriander (Dhaniya) seeds - 3 tsps

Fenugreek (Methi) seeds - 1 tsp

Dry red chilies - 3 to 4

Sesame (Til) seeds - 1 tsp

Whole black pepper - 1 tsp

Peanuts - 1/4 cup (roasted)

Curry leaves, a few

Sesame oil - 1/4 cup

Mustard seeds - 1 tsp

Bengal gram (Chana dal) - 2 tsps

Dry red chilies - 3 to 4

Hing pwd - 1 tsp

Haldi - 2 tsps

Salt to taste

Method:

1. Let's prepare the spice powder first. Heat a pan and dry roast sesame till you get its aroma. Transfer to a plate.
2. In the same pan, dry roast fenugreek seeds but take care not to let it brown. Transfer to the plate along with sesame seeds.
3. In the same pan dry roast dhaniya seeds, red chilies and black pepper till aroma comes. remove and let cool along with the sesame and methi seeds. Dry grind to a powder.
4. Heat oil and add mustard seeds, let splutter. Add red chilies and chana dal. Roast a bit.
5. Add in the imli extract along with hing, haldi, curry leaves, peanuts and salt to taste.
6. Simmer the mix on low flame till it leaves the sides of the pan and starts to thicken. Turn off flame and let it cook in the residual flame.
7. Finally add the spice powder as required and mix well. 2-3 tsps should be a good measure for medium spiciness.
Store in a clean dry vessel and use.
This is the Puliyogare rice made with the paste.

Steamed Spinach Rolls

Looking for a NO-OIL, NO-FRY healthy, cheesy snack? Try this..

STEAMED SPINACH ROLLS

Ingredients:
Large-sized Spinach leaves - 10-12
Potatoes, medium - 2-3 (Boiled & mashed)
Paneer, crumbled - 1 cup
Capsicum or any vegetable(s) of choice - 1 cup
Salt to taste
Red Chili powder - 2 tsps
Garam masala powder - 1 tsp
Processed/Mozzarella cheese, shredded - 1 cup

Method:
1. Carefully wash the spinach leaves, taking care not to tear them. Spread out and let dry a bit.
2. Meanwhile prepare the stuffing by mixing together all other ingredients. You can add some cheese to the stuffing as well. I preferred to add them as a topping alone.

3. Arrange the spinach leaves as in the picture on a steamer plate and steam for just 30 secs - one minute. We just want the leaves to be tender and manageable.

 4. Place a spoonful of the filling at the top and gently roll the leaf around it. Arrange on the baking tray.

5. Sprinkle cheese on top. Bake at 170-180 Deg C for 5-7 minutes or till cheese melts and turns golden brown.

Serve hot.

Berry Vanilla Gateau | Academy of Pastry Arts

Contd from .. Here's the recipe for the dessert that was demo-ed by Chef Kimberly at the Academy of Pastry Arts. (Recipe credit : the Academy)

BERRY VANILLA GATEAUX

CHOCOLATE ALMOND SPONGE

Ingredients Quantity (gr) - (recipe for 2 nos 6” cake)
Almond Paste/Marzipan 150
Whole Egg 62.5
Egg Yolk 37.5
Egg White 137.5
Sugar 50
Cake Flour 40
Callebaut Cocoa Powder 20
Dark Chocolate Callebaut Madagascar 67% 75

Method
1. Mix almond paste with paddle. Add in egg and egg yolk slowly until smooth paste.
2. Change to whisk attachment and whip mixture above until fluffy.
3. Make a medium peak meringue with egg white and sugar.
4. Fold in meringue into 2nd
5. Fold in sifted cocoa powder and flour and then continue with melted chocolate.
6. Bake in 6” ring for approximately 25 minutes at 165-degree Celsius.

VANILLA MOUSSE

Ingredients Quantity (gr) - ( recipe for 1.5 nos 6” cake)

Milk 150

Whipping Cream 120
Vanilla Pod ½ stick
Egg Yolk 120
Sugar 90
Gelatine 8
Italian Meringue 120
Cold Water 40
Whipping Cream 135

Method
1. Dissolve gelatine with cold water.
2. Bring cream, milk and vanilla pod to boil.
3. Mix egg yolk and sugar and gradually add into hot mixture.
4. Continue to bain-marie until 83-degree Celsius with a spatula. Add in gelatine; wait until slightly cool down, strain and fold in Italian Meringue.
Lastly, fold in whipped cream.

BERRY JELLY

Ingredients Quantity (gr) (recipe for 1.5 nos 6” cake)
Ravifruit Blackberry Puree 200
Ravifruit Raspberry Puree 100
Ravifruit Strawberry Puree 130
Sugar 15
Gelatine 8
Cold Water 40

Method
1. Dissolve gelatine with cold water.
2. Warm all purees with sugar until sugar is just enough to dissolve.
3. Melt gelatine and mix with puree mixture.
4. Pour into mould and freeze it.

RED (BERRY) GLAZE

Ingredients (Quantity (gms))
Water 75
Sugar 150
Glucose 150
Condense milk 100
Gelatine 12
Milk Chocolate Callebaut 823NV 33.6% - 150
Red colorant +/-

Method:
1. Bring the sugar, water and glucose to boil.
2. Add in the bloomed gelatine and condensed milk.
3. Pour the mixture over the milk chocolate and add in colouring to emulsify.

Finishing - Glaze with raspberry glaze and garnish with chocolate décor.  Also add chopped raisin with gold dust.

Learning the ropes

     For the love of cooking..and baking.. For many a home chef, baking that perfect cake is a dream come true. Some come out well, some fall flat and literally so. And when the latter happens, we either take that as a challenge and keep trying till we get it right or give up and move on. But for the enthusiasts, passionate wannabe bakers, a guiding, helping hand is a must. And that's where the Academy of Pastry Arts comes in.

        I was fortunate to be part of a demo by Chef Kimberly Rozario who patiently took us through a brilliantly executed baking session. The dessert in mention was - Berry Vanilla Gateau.
Sounds simple? But hold your breath, this one had several elements and components to it that needed perfection, technique, patience and of course, the right ingredients.

        But first, a bit about the academy. Academy of Pastry Arts was established in 2010 with their flagship centre in Malaysia. They have grown on to presence in Philippines, Mumbai, Gurugram and Bangalore and soon to be opened centres in Dubai and Indonesia. I visited the Bengaluru centre and was absolutely impressed by the vast space, huge learning labs, state of the art equipment, superb chefs and high-end ingredients.

      Now about the demo..Baking is a science as much as it's an art. One step, ingredient, technique, timing goes wrong and your end result will be anything but perfect. So it becomes inevitable to get the basics right before you set out on your baking journey.

Chef Kimberly explained so many nuances as she went through the different stages of the dessert preparation. For example:

◘ Using the right ingredients, be it the chocolate, cocoa powder, cream, fruit extracts, and so on is extremely important if you want that perfect dessert. No compromises there.

◘ Temperature and Timing are very important. And they are proportional to the baking moulds being used, so no one temperature setting and time works for all. Smaller molds like the typical round cake mold would need a lower temperature so the baking process spreads evenly over the selected time. A larger tray with a thinner layer of batter, on the other hand can work with a higher temperature.

◘ When whisking a glaze, you need to avoid air bubbles so keep the whisk head below the surface but don't let it touch the bottom. When done, if you still spot bubbles on the surface, use a cling wrap to smooth them out.

◘ It's good to invest in sustainable and good quality equipment. One such is the Probe or thermometer which is indispensable when working with delicate desserts.

            And here's the twist, contrary to the name, the academy doesn't just offer baking courses, but culinary as well. And there are both Full time and Part time courses.

       
           So end note, getting the basics right, be it for cooking or baking is crucial. And you need the right place to learn them. Head to the Academy of Pastry Arts to earn your Toque!!
Here's the dessert and for those interested in trying it out, the recipe is at: http://www.akshayamrecipes.com/2018/09/berry-vanilla-gateau-academy-of-pastry.html

Academy details : http://academyofpastryartsindia.com

Bangalore Center
9, 1ST BLOCK SARJAPUR MAIN ROAD,
JAKKASANDRA,
KORAMANGALA,
BANGALORE
+91-8095719222
+91-8095442277
+91-8025505222
info@academyofpastryartsindia.com

Gurgaon Center
Plot No. 64,
Udyog Vihar Phase IV,
National Highway 8,
Gurgaon Haryana,
+91-7838381229
+91-9599108530
+91-1242399006
info@academyofpastryartsindia.com

Mumbai Center
A Wing, Ground & First Floor,
Litolier Chambers,
Adjacent to Marol Metro Station Andheri East,
Mumbai
+91-8095718222
info@academyofpastryartsindia.com