Friday, March 29, 2013

Chinese Style Oats and Chicken Delight


..and so..its Priya of The Humpty Dumpty Kitchen who suggested  not one but 3 catchy names for this dish. (the previous post)..Thanks a ton, Priya !!!


well...a day when you really have a craving for noodles..but..there's neither a single noodle pack nor any vegetables!! great!...All that was to be seen was a  half used pack of frozen peas and carrots and some  chicken pieces.

So, if not for noodles, then something that is made similar to that!..whatever.
Finally, decided on doing the same process with OATS, instead of noodles. That should be a more healthier option..is it not?

I took:
Frozen vegetables - 1 cup
Ginger, garlic - finely chopped - a tsp each
Chicken  - boiled and cut to thin pieces (retain the stock)
Whole wheat old fashioned rolled oats - (sprinkle some chicken stock from boiling the chicken pieces onto the oats to make it slightly wet)
Soya sauce
Sweet chillie sauce
Oysrer sauce (few tbsps each)
Lemon juice - 1tbsp
Salt and pepper to taste


Saute the ginger, garlic, veggies and chicken in oil till tender.
Add few tbsps of soyasauce and sweet chillie sauce.


Now add in the oats to the wok. Pour little by little of the chicken stalk. Well not being specific of the quantity. Just right enough to properly wet the oats and let it remain covered for a couple of minutes to cook.


Test-taste and adjust the seasonings as to what appeals to out taste-buds the most. Mine was a bit bland at that stage so added in more soya sauce. Pour a dash of lemon juice .Salt and a pepper powder to taste. Mix well..but not too vigourously esle the oats gets too mushy.




A healthy and delicious one pot meal is ready.
now..can you spot one big blunder in the above picture ??

Hailing from Kerala, it is customary that all or infact, most of our dishes start with sputtering mustard seeds in oil. Right after oil..its the mustard seeds that go in first. And here too....well...accidently..it was the mustard seeds that went in first. You definitely dont need that in chinese cooking.

Click "here" to read my previous post on oats, done the indian way..but customized to my please my taste-buds the most. (being very selfish here :)

Sending this "OATS" chinese delight off to the "Flavours of Cuisine- Chinese" hosted by Julie of "Erivum Puliyum."

Wednesday, March 27, 2013

Chicken Oats ? Mixed Oats? what wud you name it?

Think about "chinese" cuisine and the first thing that pops to (my) mind is nothing but "noodles". Right from childhood to-date, i am a noodles freak and this weakness has wholly got inherited to the next generation as well..to our children. They too love to have it any time .... anywhere.

Vegetables + Noodles =  Veg noodles  (yes)
Chicken + Noodles =  Chicken noodles  (right)
Veggies + chicken + meat + seafood +..... = Mixed Noodles (right again! )

so....

replace the "noodles" in the above equations with "oats" and what would that be ?

Do it the indian style without the non's , and you call it "oats upma".

But when done in the chinese style what would that be ?

Veg oats ? Chicken Oats ? Oats Manchurie ? .... honestly, i am not sure.

Dear co-bloggers, let me know what your thoughts are....and the best appealing name shall be selected for my next coming post.

Its all about veg's, chicken, oats and chinese sauces. Do leave ur comments....

cheers,
Sona

Sunday, March 24, 2013

LoR - 03 : Dosa steam cakes

Left Over Series - Part 3

A very handy remake recipe with leftover dosa batter - Dosa steam cakes


You need:
Lefover dosa batter
Wheat flour
Jaggery syrup
Baking soda ( a pinch )
Powdered Cardamom

(no specific measuremente here..am just eye-balling and adding the ingredients just till it forms the right consistency)




Add wheat flour and melted jaggery syrup (sharkara paani) to the batter.

Add more syrup if the mix is too thick , or more flour if its too loose. It should be not too watery, but of the pouring consistency.
  

Add a pinch of baking soda


A tablespoon or so of crushed cardamon


Mix all together, and off to the steamer. Cashews and raisins on top if required. (dont mind the flowery shape of my steamer, ok....its just the side effects of having kids hanging around a bit too much in the kitchen) 


Steam till cooked, and a simple fast breakfast or evening tea time snack is right in front of you.



click "here" to go to LoR - 02

Saturday, March 23, 2013

School Snack Series - 04 & Coleslaw Sandwich Spread

Just like planning the previous night what we need to prepare the next day to pack off for school, it is also very time saving if we prepare ahead any spread or filling that we would want to keep inside the sandwiches or rolls.

Below is one such spread that can be made ahead the previous night, but dont forget to store it closed in the refrigerator....and..its healthy too.


Your kids like KFC coleslaw ? Then they are sure to love this too. Rather than having a regular cheese spread, it would be much more healthier with some fresh veggies added to it.

You need:
Cabbage - shredded small - 1/2 cup
Carrot - grated small - 1/4 cup
Low fat mayonnaise - 1 tbsp
Low fat spread cheese - 1 tbsp
Raisins - cut small - 1/2 tbsp
Sugar - to taste (well, it must taste sweet..so adjust accordingly)
A pinch of salt and pepper powder


Mix all the ingredients and thats a quick spread off to the breads. 
Add a few drops of water or milk to the mix to make it loose and spreadable , but optional thou.
Use of the low fat/ full fat version is also entirely upto the users discretion.


Coleslaw Spread in sandwich with a slice of mortadella.




Box 1 - Mortadella - coleslaw sandwich, cake cubes with assorted nuts (pista and cashews)



Box 2 - Appam cut to small pieces, croissant (had spread some zatar mixed in olive oil inside) and strawberries.


Box 3 - Veg samosas (frozen ones ready to fry that we get in the supermarkets), bun sandwich with the same coleslaw and mortadella filling, kiwi on skewers.
And, few additional choco fingers as a bonus which was as promised, as he was a "gooood boy" yesterday. :)

Click " here" to go directly to School Snack Series - 03

Tuesday, March 19, 2013

My very first Award


Wohoo !!! 3 awards in a week.

 Am I not really glad. Chitz of Indulge, Priya of Yummy Foods and Pavithra of Potpourri has passed me over the Leibester Award.



Thanks very much ladies. All three of them are the proud writers of their lovely blog featuring some really catchy recipes and Pavithra...I really enjoy reading your posts. Almost everything under the sun is featured there!

over to the award.....

The name of this award comes from a German word “Liebster” which means 'Favorite'. Hence, this award is the "Favorite Blog Award"
There are certain rules for this award:
Write random facts about yourself.
Answer the 11 questions given by the person nominated you.
Fabricate 11 new questions.
Nominate 11 bloggers who have less than 200 followers and mention them in your post.
Tell the person who nominated you, along with the people whom you have nominated. 
 
 11 random facts about me

1. I have been anticipating to be on a diet and lose weight but end up with  a platter of biriyani and finish it full. Am a biriyani freak, got to admit.

2. The one thing that i keep telling my kids the most is to stop
shouting....keep quiet, but while all are off to school, i dread the silence and wait for them to be back.

3. I love listening to music, listen to others sing..but just cant sing one line perfect to tune.

4. Am an optimist, loves to take thing as it comes.

5. I love to go for walks pushing the pram with one of our little ones in.

6. I enjoy "ART" of any forms - be it in crafts, paintings, food...and its kind of respect that if feel towards the artist.

7. Would have loved to be an architect or interior designer but ended up as a civil engineer.

8.I always tell my husband that my dream job destination is "Bollywood" or dont mind "Hollywood" either..but...dont get me wrong..not as any actor....rather, as a part of the movie set design team..preferably working under Speilberg or James Cameron ( !!! )..well...u can dream, cant you...no limits there!

9. I cherish cooking, and making it creative and just cant keep wondering, how in the world do the other bloggers come up with such lovely setup for the clicks. I am blank zero in doing a proper presentation most of the time.

10. My worst part is the "starting trouble". Needs some real motivation to get going with something new..but once on, i will be really into it.


11. I intent to attent some professional cookery classes next time i go down to kerala for vacation...esp on fondants, gum paste . Love the edible creativeness it brings to life.

Here are the answers to the 11 questions i have been asked. But as with the 3 awards, i cant be answering all 33 questions. So, will very well stick on the the first person who awarded me - Chitz. So, off to your questions Chitz.

1. If you were allowed to change something about yourselves, what would that be?
My hair. Its curly and absolutely disobedient. My husand and our elder son has such lovely straight hair and i keep envying them.

2. Your favorite time pass other than cooking
Browsing the net for recipes and saving them for future trials...(might be a 1 in 50 will be tried)

3. According to you which is most important in a blog - presentation, recipe or pictures? 
Firstly, presentation coz at first place what catches your attention is the presentation. A beautiful picture holds the viewers who then gets interested in the recipe.

4.Your ultimate dream
Lose about 15 kilos of fat....the pen-ultimate dream !

5. Three qualities you would love to see in others
Smiling face, positive attitude and loyalty.

6.One prank that you played on someone
God! cant think of any...seriously..think i need to do something about that asap.

7.Your favorite vacation spot
Places of Buddhist architecture - Tibet, China....

8.Cooking according to you is
Passion

9.Who influences you the most? Like you would always listen to what this person says
My father-in-law. A person with soo full of positive energy.

10.Your favorite dessert
It was and still is the simple old fashioned caramel custard.

11.One habit that you cannot change for life
Am a lazy brat. Keep things off for the last moment..would want to change that, but till this moment, haven't.
 
 And the 11 nominees are -

 
And, the 11 questions for each nominees....here you go:

1. Your favourite timepass
2. Which do you prefer - reading a book or browsing the net?
3. What/who inspired you to blogging?
4. Which dream  food you have always wanted to prepare?
5. Your favourite personality
6. What dress makes you feel most comfortable in.
7. Person whom you admire the most
8. Which cuisine do you prefer - traditional or continental
9. Your preferred shopping destination
10. Coffee or tea ??
11. Are you a regular blogger and approx. how many posts do you do in a month.


Anyways..once again...thanks for the award and congrats to the Award Winners as well...

 

Sunday, March 17, 2013

LoR - 02 (Potato stir fry remake versions)

This is the second post in the leftover  remake version series, and definitley apt for the fasting or lent season for Christians before Easter.

Necessity is undoubtfully, the Mother of all/most inventions. Applying this principle in cooking, believe a lot of foods too would have evolved in the same process. Either due to necessity, or even a mistake in the kitchen can eventually turn to be a hit.

As far a remakes are concerned, i personally believe, new dishes evolve out as a result of the finishing process. Need to finish off the last remainings in the plate and thats when you get around mixing a bit of this..and a bit of that....from here, and from there...and there you go ! You have just got something new...a better version of the same base ingredient.



Had just this much remaining of "Potato Stir Fry" (original recipe source here.) that was prepared as a dinner side for chapathis. Also, the stuffed paniyarams by Julie of Erivum Puliyum blog was first in the to-do list, so definitely decided on trying that out with this remaining stir-fry.


Mash the potatoes with a fork.


Into the paniyaram pan, pour in 3/4 th full of the dosa batter in each.
Place a dollop of the mashed potato filling.
Scoop one more spoon of the dosa batter to cover the filling.


Turn over and cook on either sides.

You will see in the above picture that the few paniyarams at the back are really small without the fillings. Well..thats for our boy No.3 (3 yrs old) who is a big no to spicy food, but loves these mini versions calling it baby ball dosa. :)


And, thats the platter- Masala Dosa balls...and....baby balls .



Cross-section.




Well, you just can do around with a bit of fooling (lots infact) while your kids are young. Used the same filling in dosa and convinced our older one that this indeed is a much better version of the masala dosa than what he loves from Sharavana Bhavan ;)



As long as it is thin and paper crisp...he is happy.



Want to go further ??? Well...layered puttu with the potato filling.



Fill the puttu maker half with the puttu-mix , then a layer of the mashed potato mix and top it with the putt mix again. Sprinkle some grated coconut on top and steam. Delicious potato-puttu ready for a sumptuous breakfast.

Click here if you need to read in detail for making the most renowned breakfast item of Keralites - The Puttu.



Hope you liked the various remake versions with just one leftover dish. Have a nice day !!!

Thursday, March 14, 2013

School Snack Series - 03 & my Cut-piece Dosa Breakfast

Hello co-bloggers,


In the previous posts of this series, i had been posting 3 pictures each of the tiffins, which did make a few doubt that i am packing 3 different menu's each day for our 3 boys. My !!! no !!!...definitley cant be doing that. But yes, just do need to  have some slight variations at times. For example..our elder son is towards the plumper side, so if having bananas(aethapayam) for the day...i very well give it to him steamed, and for the younger skinny ones, it will be toasted in ghee with sugar.


But Dosa - yes..each one prefers it differently.
Thin and crisp for No.1 - Paper Dosa
Small round ones for No.2 - Baby Dosa
Mini panyarams for No.3 - Ball Dosa
(will have a post on this soon)


and when Mommy has absolutely no time for all these incarnations ..she very well make one huge dosa and cut it in shapes using cookie cutters - aka Star Dosa, Heart Dosa....and this goes well with all the 3 boys alike.


Off to the boxes....

 Star Dosas, Omlet and mini-nuggets.



self explanatory ..is it not ??



Cucumber, Samosas, cake (cut to heart shape) and bread sandwich with slice cheese icing. Name sounds interesting ?? well..its way too simple to make too. Click "Bread and Cheese Cuts" to see how its done.


Idli's with peanut butter spread and choco flakes flowers.

(this image is from my archives...ie, clicked years back, when we had just 1 son and so had more than sufficient time to make his boxes ever more interesting)




Bread rolls and Apples ..and ..for a peep inside the rolls...


a wee bit of low fat mayo, a slice of tomato, lettuce, and a chicken finger cut half - lengthwise. The same filling can go inside samon buns as well .


oh well....too much of art work, and your breakfast ends up like this ! -                               
                                         CUTPIECE DOSA !!!

have a gud day every one..and am off to enjoy my above platter !

click here to go to School Snack Series - 02.

sending this off to the "Lets Cook for Kids" Event @ Simply Food


and
Bon Vivant  by Sumee




Monday, March 11, 2013

LoR- 01 (Biriyani leftovers for a quick dinner roll)

(LoR - Leftover Remake. Another series that i have just start, apart from the SSS - School Snack Series)

Had prepared chicken biriyani for lunch and the only leftovers were a couple of pieces of chicken and the raita. (cucumber, onion and tomato in yougurt).

After all the cooking for the lunch, definitely was not in a mood to be doing the whole process again for dinner.All that was in stack were the chapathis, but that with what ?? Was feeling too lazy to prepare anything. So, finally went in for this leftover remake.





The raita goes in first as the spread.


 Shredded the chicken to bits. In it goes.
Added in few cooked black eyes beans as well. More healthier.


 Wrap round the edges and roll.

A simple, quick and healthy roll is ready in no time. As i said, was definitley in no great mood for any elaborate cooking, which means no mindframe for detailed photography either. The image clicked just like that right before serving.

Saturday, March 9, 2013

School Snack Series - 02 & Early morning rush hour (minutes)

Morning 6:30 - 7 :00 am rush.


The typical Indian dedicated house wife beings her chores early, quite early in the mornings. Even before the rest of the family is awake. Wake herself up, give a silent prayer, get fresh..and off to kitchen. And by the time the husband and kids slowly rise, she would have finished , or will be almost done with her morning chores - the breakfast, tiffins for the kids....uniforms ready right in front , just need to be worn. Well....all soo prim proper and on time.


....oh well...its gud to write so, gud to know, someone else doing so....


zooming in to Kuwait, Mahboula....Building XXXX, flat no.12 - (dont want to be too precise on a public space :) )


Things are not quite soo well in the mornings. Its a rush.
"Sona ! get up"
"Sonaaa ! get up"....that wud be "him". His self timer is always ringing right from 5:30 am ! (gud for him, not soo gud for me, that is)


Of the 5 member family - 2 of the lot are early risers . The remaining 3 - well..does need some push-pull efforts to get going. Well...I belong to the .... latter.


The toughest part of a day, for me, is just to get started.


The self-booting process -
6:00 am - ooh! 5 more minutes.
6:05 am - well....right enough.
6:10 am - alright, just in time.
6:15 am - God ! need to get moving fast
a minute beyond - You are f***ing late, dumbo !


..and then, you are on your toes. 6:45, Mr. Husband needs to leave. 7:00 am, the kids are off.
I need to make breakfast for the day and...have 4 or at times, 5 tiffin boxes to pack ! (1 each for the boys = 3, lunch for the husband and if he is late for breakfast (because i got up late), the breakfast needs to be packed as well)


Anyways, am grateful, that "he" does a great help in the daily morning rush. Wake the school goers up, brush, and change dresses. Well, this bit is just partial, the dress change part. Making them wear the school shirt and pant is his job. Closing the pant zib, put on the ties, socks, shoes ...left to me . humm...

To the snack packs -


  Mini dosa (aka baby dosa) sprinkled with sugar on top, banana cuts fried in ghee, a cake roll and grapes.

  

    Egg dosa cut to pieces, arabic sweets and apple.


Oranges, chicken nuggets and bun -sandwich pressed in a "sponge-bob" sandwich maker. Had some mixed veggie filling inside. They dont get to see whats inside as its sealed. ;)

Click here to go to School Snack Series - part 01

Friday, March 29, 2013

Chinese Style Oats and Chicken Delight


..and so..its Priya of The Humpty Dumpty Kitchen who suggested  not one but 3 catchy names for this dish. (the previous post)..Thanks a ton, Priya !!!


well...a day when you really have a craving for noodles..but..there's neither a single noodle pack nor any vegetables!! great!...All that was to be seen was a  half used pack of frozen peas and carrots and some  chicken pieces.

So, if not for noodles, then something that is made similar to that!..whatever.
Finally, decided on doing the same process with OATS, instead of noodles. That should be a more healthier option..is it not?

I took:
Frozen vegetables - 1 cup
Ginger, garlic - finely chopped - a tsp each
Chicken  - boiled and cut to thin pieces (retain the stock)
Whole wheat old fashioned rolled oats - (sprinkle some chicken stock from boiling the chicken pieces onto the oats to make it slightly wet)
Soya sauce
Sweet chillie sauce
Oysrer sauce (few tbsps each)
Lemon juice - 1tbsp
Salt and pepper to taste


Saute the ginger, garlic, veggies and chicken in oil till tender.
Add few tbsps of soyasauce and sweet chillie sauce.


Now add in the oats to the wok. Pour little by little of the chicken stalk. Well not being specific of the quantity. Just right enough to properly wet the oats and let it remain covered for a couple of minutes to cook.


Test-taste and adjust the seasonings as to what appeals to out taste-buds the most. Mine was a bit bland at that stage so added in more soya sauce. Pour a dash of lemon juice .Salt and a pepper powder to taste. Mix well..but not too vigourously esle the oats gets too mushy.




A healthy and delicious one pot meal is ready.
now..can you spot one big blunder in the above picture ??

Hailing from Kerala, it is customary that all or infact, most of our dishes start with sputtering mustard seeds in oil. Right after oil..its the mustard seeds that go in first. And here too....well...accidently..it was the mustard seeds that went in first. You definitely dont need that in chinese cooking.

Click "here" to read my previous post on oats, done the indian way..but customized to my please my taste-buds the most. (being very selfish here :)

Sending this "OATS" chinese delight off to the "Flavours of Cuisine- Chinese" hosted by Julie of "Erivum Puliyum."

Wednesday, March 27, 2013

Chicken Oats ? Mixed Oats? what wud you name it?

Think about "chinese" cuisine and the first thing that pops to (my) mind is nothing but "noodles". Right from childhood to-date, i am a noodles freak and this weakness has wholly got inherited to the next generation as well..to our children. They too love to have it any time .... anywhere.

Vegetables + Noodles =  Veg noodles  (yes)
Chicken + Noodles =  Chicken noodles  (right)
Veggies + chicken + meat + seafood +..... = Mixed Noodles (right again! )

so....

replace the "noodles" in the above equations with "oats" and what would that be ?

Do it the indian style without the non's , and you call it "oats upma".

But when done in the chinese style what would that be ?

Veg oats ? Chicken Oats ? Oats Manchurie ? .... honestly, i am not sure.

Dear co-bloggers, let me know what your thoughts are....and the best appealing name shall be selected for my next coming post.

Its all about veg's, chicken, oats and chinese sauces. Do leave ur comments....

cheers,
Sona

Sunday, March 24, 2013

LoR - 03 : Dosa steam cakes

Left Over Series - Part 3

A very handy remake recipe with leftover dosa batter - Dosa steam cakes


You need:
Lefover dosa batter
Wheat flour
Jaggery syrup
Baking soda ( a pinch )
Powdered Cardamom

(no specific measuremente here..am just eye-balling and adding the ingredients just till it forms the right consistency)




Add wheat flour and melted jaggery syrup (sharkara paani) to the batter.

Add more syrup if the mix is too thick , or more flour if its too loose. It should be not too watery, but of the pouring consistency.
  

Add a pinch of baking soda


A tablespoon or so of crushed cardamon


Mix all together, and off to the steamer. Cashews and raisins on top if required. (dont mind the flowery shape of my steamer, ok....its just the side effects of having kids hanging around a bit too much in the kitchen) 


Steam till cooked, and a simple fast breakfast or evening tea time snack is right in front of you.



click "here" to go to LoR - 02

Saturday, March 23, 2013

School Snack Series - 04 & Coleslaw Sandwich Spread

Just like planning the previous night what we need to prepare the next day to pack off for school, it is also very time saving if we prepare ahead any spread or filling that we would want to keep inside the sandwiches or rolls.

Below is one such spread that can be made ahead the previous night, but dont forget to store it closed in the refrigerator....and..its healthy too.


Your kids like KFC coleslaw ? Then they are sure to love this too. Rather than having a regular cheese spread, it would be much more healthier with some fresh veggies added to it.

You need:
Cabbage - shredded small - 1/2 cup
Carrot - grated small - 1/4 cup
Low fat mayonnaise - 1 tbsp
Low fat spread cheese - 1 tbsp
Raisins - cut small - 1/2 tbsp
Sugar - to taste (well, it must taste sweet..so adjust accordingly)
A pinch of salt and pepper powder


Mix all the ingredients and thats a quick spread off to the breads. 
Add a few drops of water or milk to the mix to make it loose and spreadable , but optional thou.
Use of the low fat/ full fat version is also entirely upto the users discretion.


Coleslaw Spread in sandwich with a slice of mortadella.




Box 1 - Mortadella - coleslaw sandwich, cake cubes with assorted nuts (pista and cashews)



Box 2 - Appam cut to small pieces, croissant (had spread some zatar mixed in olive oil inside) and strawberries.


Box 3 - Veg samosas (frozen ones ready to fry that we get in the supermarkets), bun sandwich with the same coleslaw and mortadella filling, kiwi on skewers.
And, few additional choco fingers as a bonus which was as promised, as he was a "gooood boy" yesterday. :)

Click " here" to go directly to School Snack Series - 03

Tuesday, March 19, 2013

My very first Award


Wohoo !!! 3 awards in a week.

 Am I not really glad. Chitz of Indulge, Priya of Yummy Foods and Pavithra of Potpourri has passed me over the Leibester Award.



Thanks very much ladies. All three of them are the proud writers of their lovely blog featuring some really catchy recipes and Pavithra...I really enjoy reading your posts. Almost everything under the sun is featured there!

over to the award.....

The name of this award comes from a German word “Liebster” which means 'Favorite'. Hence, this award is the "Favorite Blog Award"
There are certain rules for this award:
Write random facts about yourself.
Answer the 11 questions given by the person nominated you.
Fabricate 11 new questions.
Nominate 11 bloggers who have less than 200 followers and mention them in your post.
Tell the person who nominated you, along with the people whom you have nominated. 
 
 11 random facts about me

1. I have been anticipating to be on a diet and lose weight but end up with  a platter of biriyani and finish it full. Am a biriyani freak, got to admit.

2. The one thing that i keep telling my kids the most is to stop
shouting....keep quiet, but while all are off to school, i dread the silence and wait for them to be back.

3. I love listening to music, listen to others sing..but just cant sing one line perfect to tune.

4. Am an optimist, loves to take thing as it comes.

5. I love to go for walks pushing the pram with one of our little ones in.

6. I enjoy "ART" of any forms - be it in crafts, paintings, food...and its kind of respect that if feel towards the artist.

7. Would have loved to be an architect or interior designer but ended up as a civil engineer.

8.I always tell my husband that my dream job destination is "Bollywood" or dont mind "Hollywood" either..but...dont get me wrong..not as any actor....rather, as a part of the movie set design team..preferably working under Speilberg or James Cameron ( !!! )..well...u can dream, cant you...no limits there!

9. I cherish cooking, and making it creative and just cant keep wondering, how in the world do the other bloggers come up with such lovely setup for the clicks. I am blank zero in doing a proper presentation most of the time.

10. My worst part is the "starting trouble". Needs some real motivation to get going with something new..but once on, i will be really into it.


11. I intent to attent some professional cookery classes next time i go down to kerala for vacation...esp on fondants, gum paste . Love the edible creativeness it brings to life.

Here are the answers to the 11 questions i have been asked. But as with the 3 awards, i cant be answering all 33 questions. So, will very well stick on the the first person who awarded me - Chitz. So, off to your questions Chitz.

1. If you were allowed to change something about yourselves, what would that be?
My hair. Its curly and absolutely disobedient. My husand and our elder son has such lovely straight hair and i keep envying them.

2. Your favorite time pass other than cooking
Browsing the net for recipes and saving them for future trials...(might be a 1 in 50 will be tried)

3. According to you which is most important in a blog - presentation, recipe or pictures? 
Firstly, presentation coz at first place what catches your attention is the presentation. A beautiful picture holds the viewers who then gets interested in the recipe.

4.Your ultimate dream
Lose about 15 kilos of fat....the pen-ultimate dream !

5. Three qualities you would love to see in others
Smiling face, positive attitude and loyalty.

6.One prank that you played on someone
God! cant think of any...seriously..think i need to do something about that asap.

7.Your favorite vacation spot
Places of Buddhist architecture - Tibet, China....

8.Cooking according to you is
Passion

9.Who influences you the most? Like you would always listen to what this person says
My father-in-law. A person with soo full of positive energy.

10.Your favorite dessert
It was and still is the simple old fashioned caramel custard.

11.One habit that you cannot change for life
Am a lazy brat. Keep things off for the last moment..would want to change that, but till this moment, haven't.
 
 And the 11 nominees are -

 
And, the 11 questions for each nominees....here you go:

1. Your favourite timepass
2. Which do you prefer - reading a book or browsing the net?
3. What/who inspired you to blogging?
4. Which dream  food you have always wanted to prepare?
5. Your favourite personality
6. What dress makes you feel most comfortable in.
7. Person whom you admire the most
8. Which cuisine do you prefer - traditional or continental
9. Your preferred shopping destination
10. Coffee or tea ??
11. Are you a regular blogger and approx. how many posts do you do in a month.


Anyways..once again...thanks for the award and congrats to the Award Winners as well...

 

Sunday, March 17, 2013

LoR - 02 (Potato stir fry remake versions)

This is the second post in the leftover  remake version series, and definitley apt for the fasting or lent season for Christians before Easter.

Necessity is undoubtfully, the Mother of all/most inventions. Applying this principle in cooking, believe a lot of foods too would have evolved in the same process. Either due to necessity, or even a mistake in the kitchen can eventually turn to be a hit.

As far a remakes are concerned, i personally believe, new dishes evolve out as a result of the finishing process. Need to finish off the last remainings in the plate and thats when you get around mixing a bit of this..and a bit of that....from here, and from there...and there you go ! You have just got something new...a better version of the same base ingredient.



Had just this much remaining of "Potato Stir Fry" (original recipe source here.) that was prepared as a dinner side for chapathis. Also, the stuffed paniyarams by Julie of Erivum Puliyum blog was first in the to-do list, so definitely decided on trying that out with this remaining stir-fry.


Mash the potatoes with a fork.


Into the paniyaram pan, pour in 3/4 th full of the dosa batter in each.
Place a dollop of the mashed potato filling.
Scoop one more spoon of the dosa batter to cover the filling.


Turn over and cook on either sides.

You will see in the above picture that the few paniyarams at the back are really small without the fillings. Well..thats for our boy No.3 (3 yrs old) who is a big no to spicy food, but loves these mini versions calling it baby ball dosa. :)


And, thats the platter- Masala Dosa balls...and....baby balls .



Cross-section.




Well, you just can do around with a bit of fooling (lots infact) while your kids are young. Used the same filling in dosa and convinced our older one that this indeed is a much better version of the masala dosa than what he loves from Sharavana Bhavan ;)



As long as it is thin and paper crisp...he is happy.



Want to go further ??? Well...layered puttu with the potato filling.



Fill the puttu maker half with the puttu-mix , then a layer of the mashed potato mix and top it with the putt mix again. Sprinkle some grated coconut on top and steam. Delicious potato-puttu ready for a sumptuous breakfast.

Click here if you need to read in detail for making the most renowned breakfast item of Keralites - The Puttu.



Hope you liked the various remake versions with just one leftover dish. Have a nice day !!!

Thursday, March 14, 2013

School Snack Series - 03 & my Cut-piece Dosa Breakfast

Hello co-bloggers,


In the previous posts of this series, i had been posting 3 pictures each of the tiffins, which did make a few doubt that i am packing 3 different menu's each day for our 3 boys. My !!! no !!!...definitley cant be doing that. But yes, just do need to  have some slight variations at times. For example..our elder son is towards the plumper side, so if having bananas(aethapayam) for the day...i very well give it to him steamed, and for the younger skinny ones, it will be toasted in ghee with sugar.


But Dosa - yes..each one prefers it differently.
Thin and crisp for No.1 - Paper Dosa
Small round ones for No.2 - Baby Dosa
Mini panyarams for No.3 - Ball Dosa
(will have a post on this soon)


and when Mommy has absolutely no time for all these incarnations ..she very well make one huge dosa and cut it in shapes using cookie cutters - aka Star Dosa, Heart Dosa....and this goes well with all the 3 boys alike.


Off to the boxes....

 Star Dosas, Omlet and mini-nuggets.



self explanatory ..is it not ??



Cucumber, Samosas, cake (cut to heart shape) and bread sandwich with slice cheese icing. Name sounds interesting ?? well..its way too simple to make too. Click "Bread and Cheese Cuts" to see how its done.


Idli's with peanut butter spread and choco flakes flowers.

(this image is from my archives...ie, clicked years back, when we had just 1 son and so had more than sufficient time to make his boxes ever more interesting)




Bread rolls and Apples ..and ..for a peep inside the rolls...


a wee bit of low fat mayo, a slice of tomato, lettuce, and a chicken finger cut half - lengthwise. The same filling can go inside samon buns as well .


oh well....too much of art work, and your breakfast ends up like this ! -                               
                                         CUTPIECE DOSA !!!

have a gud day every one..and am off to enjoy my above platter !

click here to go to School Snack Series - 02.

sending this off to the "Lets Cook for Kids" Event @ Simply Food


and
Bon Vivant  by Sumee




Monday, March 11, 2013

LoR- 01 (Biriyani leftovers for a quick dinner roll)

(LoR - Leftover Remake. Another series that i have just start, apart from the SSS - School Snack Series)

Had prepared chicken biriyani for lunch and the only leftovers were a couple of pieces of chicken and the raita. (cucumber, onion and tomato in yougurt).

After all the cooking for the lunch, definitely was not in a mood to be doing the whole process again for dinner.All that was in stack were the chapathis, but that with what ?? Was feeling too lazy to prepare anything. So, finally went in for this leftover remake.





The raita goes in first as the spread.


 Shredded the chicken to bits. In it goes.
Added in few cooked black eyes beans as well. More healthier.


 Wrap round the edges and roll.

A simple, quick and healthy roll is ready in no time. As i said, was definitley in no great mood for any elaborate cooking, which means no mindframe for detailed photography either. The image clicked just like that right before serving.

Saturday, March 9, 2013

School Snack Series - 02 & Early morning rush hour (minutes)

Morning 6:30 - 7 :00 am rush.


The typical Indian dedicated house wife beings her chores early, quite early in the mornings. Even before the rest of the family is awake. Wake herself up, give a silent prayer, get fresh..and off to kitchen. And by the time the husband and kids slowly rise, she would have finished , or will be almost done with her morning chores - the breakfast, tiffins for the kids....uniforms ready right in front , just need to be worn. Well....all soo prim proper and on time.


....oh well...its gud to write so, gud to know, someone else doing so....


zooming in to Kuwait, Mahboula....Building XXXX, flat no.12 - (dont want to be too precise on a public space :) )


Things are not quite soo well in the mornings. Its a rush.
"Sona ! get up"
"Sonaaa ! get up"....that wud be "him". His self timer is always ringing right from 5:30 am ! (gud for him, not soo gud for me, that is)


Of the 5 member family - 2 of the lot are early risers . The remaining 3 - well..does need some push-pull efforts to get going. Well...I belong to the .... latter.


The toughest part of a day, for me, is just to get started.


The self-booting process -
6:00 am - ooh! 5 more minutes.
6:05 am - well....right enough.
6:10 am - alright, just in time.
6:15 am - God ! need to get moving fast
a minute beyond - You are f***ing late, dumbo !


..and then, you are on your toes. 6:45, Mr. Husband needs to leave. 7:00 am, the kids are off.
I need to make breakfast for the day and...have 4 or at times, 5 tiffin boxes to pack ! (1 each for the boys = 3, lunch for the husband and if he is late for breakfast (because i got up late), the breakfast needs to be packed as well)


Anyways, am grateful, that "he" does a great help in the daily morning rush. Wake the school goers up, brush, and change dresses. Well, this bit is just partial, the dress change part. Making them wear the school shirt and pant is his job. Closing the pant zib, put on the ties, socks, shoes ...left to me . humm...

To the snack packs -


  Mini dosa (aka baby dosa) sprinkled with sugar on top, banana cuts fried in ghee, a cake roll and grapes.

  

    Egg dosa cut to pieces, arabic sweets and apple.


Oranges, chicken nuggets and bun -sandwich pressed in a "sponge-bob" sandwich maker. Had some mixed veggie filling inside. They dont get to see whats inside as its sealed. ;)

Click here to go to School Snack Series - part 01