Blueberry Muffin

 
I like muffins...they are cute :)  its easy to make, and its yummy.

Though muffins are considered a complete healthy meal elsewhere, in my house its always treated as a snack..Say, I make some sweet or savory muffin in the morning, everyone( read husband) eats a couple of them  and then after a while, here comes the question "what is for breakfast"..... are u kidding me?
but still I make them quite often as some evening snack...

I always love the jumbo blueberry muffin you get in the coffee shops... the juicy baked fruit that oozes out when you split open one, its divine :)
Take it from me, this is one easy on the go breakfast for all you busy bees out there. Make them ahead of time, and they do stay fresh for a day or two.

You'll need:

All purpose flour : 2 cups
Sugar: 1 cup
Butter: 1/2 cup (softened)
Baking Powder: 2 tsps
Egg: 2 nos
Milk: 1/2 cup
Salt: 1/4 tsp
Vanilla Extract: 1 tsp
Blueberries: 1 cup (fresh or frozen)

How to make:

Preheat oven to 375 F. Line or grease a 12 cup muffin pan.
In a bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder and salt until well combined.
In an another bowl, cream softened butter and sugar using a mixer. Add eggs one at a time. Mix in milk and vanilla extract.Add the dry ingredients mixture into this, and beat it just until moistened. Fold in the blueberries. Fill in the prepared muffin cups 2/3 full.
Bake in the preheated oven for 20-25 min or until a tooth pick inserted into the center comes out clean.
Cool on a wire rack before serving.

Notes:
These muffins are good as such without any toppings. If particular about topping, mix 2 tsps of sugar and 1/2 tsp of ground nutmeg and sprinkle it over, after filling up the muffin tins.

Peanut Chikki/ Peanut Brittle (Kadalai Mittai)

I like to call it kadalai mittai...no, kappalandi mittai to be very precise....thats what we call it in our place :)
an all time fav of all desis (Indians)....we always had a bag of this in our snack shelf..
I have not seen my mom make this at home...dont know why, may be because we used to get it in every other grocery store in my hometown, even in the tiny petti kadas (small convenient stores near the houses)

After coming to the US, we always had to depend on the Indian grocery store to get some chikki...but sadly, most of the time we had to compromise with stale or kind of cold, not crisp, not so fresh chikki....
and that made me look for the recipe for chikki in the web....and surprisingly got to know its not that very difficult to make some home....but let me warn you first, you have to try it a couple of times to master the right consistency and the timing factor...i have had my share of flop attempts too :)
but once you get the grip on it,  its a piece of cake.

You can either use roasted unsalted peanuts or get raw peanuts and roast them in the microwave.
I always buy raw peanuts in bulk and roast them in microwave.It hardly takes 4-5 mins...

Here is the recipe

You'll need:

Peanuts: 1 cup (roasted & unsalted or raw peanuts roasted in microwave)
Sugar: 3/4 cup
Ghee: 1/4 tbsp
Baking Soda: a pinch

How to make:

Spread the raw peanuts evenly in a single layer in a microwave safe plate. Microwave it for 2 min on high.
Let stand for a couple of min, take it out of the microwave, give it a stir and put it back in the microwave for another one min.
Repeat the process until the peanuts are roasted. Usually it gets done in 4-5 min. It might still look raw when you take them out of the microwave. When it cools down, it will have the perfect crunch...
Make sure you don't burn them...
Not in a mood to do this, always go for store bought roasted ones :)

Heat a pan and coat it with ghee and add the sugar. Sugar will start melting and change into amber color.
The consistency of the sugar syrup is the key. And also mixing it with the nuts and spreading it fast.
Once the sugar starts changing color, immediately pour a drop of it into a bowl of cold water. If it crystallize, then its the right texture.
As soon as the color starts to change, take it off the stove, add a pinch of baking soda and immediately add the roasted nuts and mix well.
Pour this gooey mixture into a greased pan and flatten it use a rolling pin.
Or use the greased bottom of an another smaller pan, to press down the mixture.
Once cooled, break down into desired sized pieces.
Store in an airtight container.

P.S: It might take a couple of attempts to get the right consistency of the sugar syrup....so I would suggest always try with a smaller quantity first. But I promise you'll get there :)
Also you can use other nuts like cashews, almonds, pistachio etc along with the peanuts to make it a healthy energy bar :)



 

Parippu Vada (Lentil/Dal Fritters)

It has been raining lately in TX....such a great relief in the midst of scorching summer...i guess I can't stop complaining about the bad weather here at our place...its getting worse day by day..while a major chunk of summer is stilling waiting out there for us...
any ways, no point in complaining...so lets enjoy the blissful rainy days we get as a surprise and enjoy these li'l treats :)

Parippu vada is my all time favorite snack...I would rather say, the to go snack...my dad gets this for me almost every other day if I am home...its like this...parippu vada for me, pazham pori for my li'l sis :)

you get the first glimpse of  yummy snack like this in a polythene cover...

open it, you find the yumm vadas...actually instead of the parchment paper, you have the greasy plantain leaf...

there you go....attack :)

You'll need:


Chana Dal (Split Bengal gram) : 2 cups
Green chillies: 2-3 nos, finely chopped
Onion: 1 no, medium sized, thinly diced
Ginger: 1-2 tsp ( I grate a small piece of ginger into the batter)
Curry leaves: a few sprigs
Asafoetida: a pinch
Salt: as per taste
Oil: Enough for deep frying

How to make:


Soak dal in water for 2-3 hrs. Drain the water completely. Grind the dal in the mixer coarsely.
Do not make it a fine paste. To this add sliced chillies, onion , ginger, asafetida, curry leaves and enough salt.
Make small balls of these mixture and flatten each in your palm to small rounds.
Heat oil in a pan and deep fry 3-4 of them at a time, cooking for 2-3 min on each side on med-high flame or until the vadas turn golden brown and crispy.
Drain on a paper towel and enjoy with  a hot cup of tea

Rava ladoo..sweet semolina balls

its time for something sweet...generally i am not a sweet person....i mean literally and also when it comes to food ;) but recently I have a craving for something sweet once in a while... otherwise also i enjoy a small piece of dessert(be it anything) after my food...but just a small piece..even a candy would do...i guess these days my sweet tooth is popping up every now and then :)
this ladoo is a very simple one...even simpler when I accidently brought home a can of sweetened grated coconut from the Indian store...i usually buy canned coconut milk.this one was sitting next to it in the aisle.

You'll need:


Rava/Semolina: 1 cup
Sugar: 1 cup
Warm Milk: 5-6 tsp
Grated coconut: 1/3 cup
Cashew nuts: 10 nos
Raisins: 10 nos
Cardamom pwdr: a pinch
Ghee: 2 tbsp

Note: If you are using the canned sweetened grated coconut like me, use 1/3 of a can and you can omit the sugar as the coconut is already sweetened.

How to make:


Heat 1 tbsp of ghee in a pan and first roast the cashew nuts and then the raisins.Drain them from oil and set aside.
Add rest of the ghee and roast the rava on low flame till you get a nice aroma.
Mix grated coconut and sugar in a bowl. To this add roasted rava, followed by cashew and raisins.
Mix well and add a pinch of cardamom pwdr. To this mixture, add a few tsps of warm milk, just enough to bind everything together.
Gather small balls of size of a lemon from the mixture, just by rolling it in your palm.
Add a few tsps more of milk if its not firming up good.
Rava ladoo is ready...yumm...

Lemony steamed corn/Masala butter corn

Masala butter corrn....that is what we call it back home in India...remember the butter corn you get in those little stalls outside the shopping malls...where you  pay a fortune for a small paper cup of  steamed corn ..i mean it used to be 25 bucks for a cup long time ago.....i'm sure it would have gone up by now...but still its worth it, when you are all in the mood to laze around in a mall,on a weekend.... mostly window shopping or checking out new trends...ending up buying something silly and cheap :)

gone are those days...oh! my..it used to be so much fun...nothing to worry about....carefree spinsterhood days....these steamed corn always takes me back to those good days in Bangalore...very easy snack...can be used as a side too...or as a salad for the healthy eaters out there.

You'll need:

Corn: 1 can, washed and drained ( instead you can use a packet of frozen corn or fresh corn too)

Butter: 1 tbsp

Italian seasoning-2 tsp (Or use chat masala powder)

Lemon juice: 1-2 tbsp

Salt: to taste

Pepper: as required

How to make:

Steam the washed corn for about 15 min.

In a bowl mix butter, lemon juice and the seasoning.Toss in the steamed corn and mix well till the corn gets coated with the seasoning mixture. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Butter corn is ready...You can vary the seasoning to your taste. Spice it up by adding a pinch of cayenne pepper...

Cornflake mixture---an easy munch on Indian snack

I love crunchy munchy snacks...especially this mixture....its a must buy for every time I hit the Indian grocery store....back home in Kerala, we get this corn flake mixture in 'Honest' bakery...fresh and yummy...i can easily gobble down a packet in a few mins :)
I still remember those days when my dad used to buy these mixture and roasted peanuts very religiously from 'Honest' (well, he buys it now a days too...), I eat it right from the packet and there goes my sweet mother cribbing about the pimples that used to pop up on my face the very next day....thanks to my oily skin....

see this, even my li'l one loves to pick the corn flakes from it...mommy's girl :)

very easy to put together....

You'll need:


Corn flakes: 3 cups
Roasted nuts: 1 cup (mostly shelled peanuts and cashew nuts)
Golden raisins: 1/4 cup
Chili powder: 1 tsp
Turmeric powder" 1/3 tsp
Salt: to taste
Sugar: 1/2 tsp
Lime juice: 1 tsp
Curry leaves: a few sprigs

Note: You can vary it by adding any kind of nuts or dry fruits of your choice...like almonds, pistachios, dried   cranberreis, dried apricot etc...

How to make:


Heat oil in a pan and toss in the raisin and nuts.Add the curry leaves and stir for a min or two.
Reduce the heat to low, and add the chili powder, turmeric powder, salt and sugar.
Carefully mix in the tsp of lime juice, for it will make the oil splatter.
Now slowly fold in the cornflakes in batches and let it stand on low flame for about 3-4 min, until the cornflakes gets coated well with the spice mixture.
Let it cool and store in an airtight container....and start munching :)

Banana nut muffin...with a crunchy topping

what do you do with those over ripened bananas? I'm always out of options when i think of getting rid of the over ripened bananas...i like my banana just ripe....no more ..no less...even my li'l one enjoys hers the same way...usually we buy only a few at time, so that we don't have to worry about the over ripened ones...
was looking for ideas to use them, and happened to see this muffin recipe...which actually called for these over ripened bananas...bingo...there you go :)

and the crunchy topping.....an added bliss to the muffins...i have had these crunchy toppings in the store bought ones n have always wondered what they are...and here it is...a crowd pleaser...

You'll need:
For the muffin:
All purpose flour: 1 1/2 cups
Baking Soda: 1 1/2 tsps
Salt: 1/4 tsp
Nutmeg powder: 1/8 tsp
Over ripened bananas: 4 nos
Chopped and roasted walnut or pecan: 1 cup
White sugar: 1/2 cup
Egg: 1 large
Vanilla extract: 1/2 tsp
Butter: 1/2 cup (1 stick, softened)
Milk: 1/4 cup

For the topping:
All purpose flour: 2 tbsp
Cinnamon powder: 1/8 tsp
Butter: 1 tbsp
Brown sugar: 1/3 cup

How to make:


Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Line a standard 12 cup muffin tin with paper muffin cups or grease with butter.
In a medium bowl, sift together flour, baking soda, salt and nutmeg powder.
In a small bowl, mash two bananas with a fork, so that they still have a texture.Set it aside.
In another bowl, mash the remaining two bananas along with the sugar using an electric mixer.
Add butter, milk, egg and vanilla extract and beat it together until its completely incorporated, scraping down the sides using a spatula as and when needed.
Add the dry ingredients mixture to this in batches and mix just until its well incorporated.
Fold in the chopped nuts and the reserved mashed bananas to this.
For the topping, in a small bowl, mix the flour, cinnamon powder and sugar. Cut in the butter to this mixture, until it resembles coarse corn meal.
Pour the batter into the prepared muffin cups using an ice cream scoop. Sprinkle the top of muffins with the prepared topping.
Bake in the middle rack of the oven for about 18-20 min ,until the muffins turn golden brown or when the tester inserted into the center of the muffin comes out clean.
Let the muffin tray cool on the wire rack for a few minutes, before you indulge yourself in those delicious yummy muffins...
Serve it hot...the best way to enjoy them, enjoy a few crunchy crumbs on the top first....and then dive into the muffin...yummm

Date-Nut Bread... Welcome 2012!!

A very prosperous new year, 2012 to all of you :)
Winter has set in...that marks the beginning of baking time in our place...may be because I have more time in hand this time of the year, bcoz its cold outside and we tend to stay indoors with our li'l one :)
I don't know, may be another excuse to bake..I love to bake....not that all my attempts has always been a success...but still I love to bake...
hope you'll had wonderful new year's day celebrations....ours was a low key affair this time....watching ball drop slouched on the sofa, wishing everyone a happy new year, afternoon mass and a lunch buffet....

This date nut bread is something I baked for the first time...I had bookmarked it here
http://kateinthekitchen.com/2008/12/22/national-date-nut-bread-day/

A good bread to munch on as an evening snack...
Here is the recipe

You'll need:
All-purpose flour: 1 1/2 cups
chopped dates: 2 1/2 cups
Butter: 1/4 cup
Boiling water: 1 1/2 cups
Brown sugar: 1/2 cup
Egg: 1 no
Baking powder: 1 tsp
Baking soda: 1 tsp
Salt: 1/2 tsp
Chopped almonds: 1 cup

How to make it:
Preheat oven to 350 degree F. Grease a 9 by 5 inch loaf pan.
Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt and set aside.
In a bowl, mix butter and dates. Pour boiling water into this and break up the clumps, if any. Let this cool down for a while.
Mix in the sugar and egg until well blended.
Add the flour mixture into the date mixture, and mix well.
Pour the batter into the greased pan and bake for 50 min or until a wooden pick inserted comes out clean :)

Marble cake.. perfect for holiday season

Hope you'll had a wonderful Christmas :) holiday cheer is still in the air...people visiting their near n dear ones..cooking together, enjoying meals together, shopping together and what not!! enjoy your holidays.....
an easy breezy cake to enjoy with your evening cup of tea when you catch up with your kith n kin....

You'll need:
All purpose flour: 2 cups
Butter: 1/2 cup (1 stick) softened
Sugar: 1 cup
Baking powder: 2 tsp
Salt: 1/2 tsp
Eggs: 2
Milk: 1 cup
Vanilla extract: 1 tsp
Cocoa powder: 2 tbsp

How to make it:


Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9 by 5 pan and set aside.
Swift together all purpose flour, baking powder and salt.
In a bowl, beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
Add eggs one at a time, beating well until everything is well mixed together.
Mix in vanilla essence.
Add the flour mixture in batches, alternating with the milk.
Set aside 1/3 of the batter. Pour the remaining batter into the cake pan.
Mix cocoa powder into the reserved batter, until well blended.
Pour spoonfuls of the cocoa batter over the white batter. Using a knife, swirl the cocoa batter into the white batter to give the marble effect.
Bake for 30 to 35 min, until an inserted wooden pick comes out  clean.
Transfer pan to a rack and let it cool for 10 min.

Enjoy your piece of cake. This is how i get mine in my fav coffee shop :)

Thattai- a savory snack

I love salty spicy snacks...I can munch on them endlessly...my mom always scolds me for eating chips right off the packet....but that is the fun part..not eating by portion :)

sounds lame?? i know..i still do that....even these days when I go home even before having my morning cup of coffee, I attack the chips canisters which will be definitely there in my mom's kitchen shelves....mostly with jack fruit chips or some other seasonal chips....of course home made :)

coming back to this savory snack, Thattai, I have eaten this many times, but have never made them at home...

thanks to our neighbor who gave  us some this diwali along with some yummy sweets :)

had bookmarked the recipe since then, but only got a chance to make them recently...

effort wise, I would say it is a bit tedious, bcoz each n every single piece has to shaped separately...a little bit more time consuming than the usual snacks, but can definitely be made once in a while..

Here's the recipe:

You'll need:


Rice flour: 2 cups
Urad dal flour: 1/4 cup **
Red chili pwdr: 1 tsp
Salt: 1 tsp
Ghee: 1 tbsp
Water: 1/2 + 1/8 cup (or enough to make the dough)
Chana dal: 3 tbsp (soaked in water for 1 hr)
Sesame seed: 2 tsp
Asafetida: 1/4 tsp

** To make urad dal flour at home, dry roast ural dal till it turns golden brown. Let it cool and grind into a fine powder.

How to make:


Drain the soaked chana dal.
Mix rice flour, urad dal flour, salt, chana dal, sesame seed, chili pwdr and butter. Knead this into a dough by adding water little by little at a time. Cover and set aside for a few min.
After a while, take small balls of dough (half a lemon sized) and press them into small paapad size.
Place the dough on a cling film and press by hand to form small flat circles. Poke these using a fork to prevent from puffing while frying in the oil.

Heat enough oil in a pan for deep frying. When the oil becomes piping hot add the thattai one at a time, frying each side for about 1 1/2 min , until they turn golden brown. Drain and let it cool.
Store in an air tight container.

chunky tomato salsa

Don't you love fresh tomato salsa with your tortilla scoops...scoop full of spicy tangy flavor..yummmm, i love it...get a nice book, slouch on your couch with a bag of chips n a bowl of salsa, oh,my! what more you can ask for :)

We at home love spicy food...So though, most of the time we are contented with the "hot" store bought salsa to go with our chips, when time permits, we do enjoy the home made version of it, which is ever more spicier n fresh...always satisfying our taste palates :)

Very easy to put together, needing no special ingredient other than the regular ones you have in your veggie cripser.

You'll need:


Tomatoes: 3 nos (medium sized, finely diced)
Onion: 1 (medium sized, finely chopped)
Jalapeno chili pepper: 2-3 (ribs and seeds removed, nicely chopped) **
juice of one lime
Cliantro: 1/2 cup( nicely chopped)
Salt: as per required
Ground Cumin : a pinch (optional)

** You can spice it up or down by varying the no of chilies used.

How to make:


In a bowl mix together chopped tomato,onion and pepper.Add the lime juice, salt, chopped cilantro and  ground cumin.
Let sit  for an hour for the flavors to combine before you enjoy it with your chips :)

P.S: My hubby's make it more yummier tip- warm up the tortilla chips sprinkled with some cheese on it for a couple of min in the oven and then devour them with the salsa...hmmmm...i guess we are born to eat ;)

Fried Idli

Ever wondered what to do with the previous day's idli...here is an easy snack you can make out of it.
For those who don't know what idli is, here is something about Idli.
Its one of the common breakfast for us, south Indians. Very yummy n  healthy breakfast.
In our home, everyone loves idli, so we hardly have left overs..I make these fried idlis, if at all we are left with some..

You'll need:

Idli: 5-6 nos (each cut into 4 pieces)
Chili powder: 1tsp
Turmeriic powder: 1/4 tsp
Salt: a pinch
Oil: enough for shallow frying
Curry leaves: 2 sprigs

How to make: 
Mix chili pwdr, turmeric pwdr and salt with 2 tsps of water to make a thick paste. Marinate idli pieces with the spice paste and set aside for 15-20 min.
Heat enoguh oil for deep fry in a deep nonstick pan, and fry the idli pieces for 4-5 min or till its golden brown and crispy. In the left over oil, fry the curry leaves for the garnish.
Serve it hot with spicy ketchup or mint chutney...a quick evening snack :)

Pazham pori /Ethakka appam (Banana fritters)

When ever I make pazham pori, my li'l sis comes to my mind. b'cos its her favorite.

My achachan(dad) used to get us mid morning snacks when we are home (he still gets us those when go home for vacations)

He gets each of us our own favs.mine is dal vada, my li'l sis's is pazham pori.

Very yummy sweet snack,not much difficult to put together.

I have always felt that it tastes the best if we make it with fully ripened bananas.(when the peel turns almost black)

I get bananas these days for my li'l one, her fav breakfast mashed with cereal.

She loved this version of banana too.She claps when she likes things(being a 10 month old, i guess that is her only way of letting me know she wants more)

At the very first bite, she jumped and clapped...oh,yeah! she likes pazham pori

I hope, you too will like them :)

You'll need:


Banana: 2 nos (fully ripened)
All purpose flour: 2-3 tbsp
Sugar: 1tbsp
Salt: a pinch
Oil: as required for deep fry

How to make: 

Peel the bananas and cut them half.Slice each half lengthwise into 3-4 pieces.

Mix all purpose flour and enough water to make the batter. Add sugar and salt.

The consistency should be right enoguh to coat bananas when you dip them in the batter.

Heat oil in a pan. When the oil is bubbling hot, dip the banana pieces in the batter and deep fry them for 2-3 min on each side, until they turn golden brown. Drain them on a paper towel n enjoy it hot off the stove :)

Welcome back with a smoothie

I know, it's been a while.I mean quite a while ;)

My mom always complains about my dad, someone has to keep pushing him from his back( at times its literally true) to get things done.And I can always relate myself to that, after all I a also a Capricorn like my dad...but, hey after all we have keep up our traits :)

Okay, so coming back to my lethargy, initially i blamed it on the so called "postpartum depression". I'm sure i wouldn't have even heard about such a thing if at all I had my li'l one back home in India.
My grandmother, who has 11 kids, 27 grand kids would definitely mock at me if I tell her about it.

My innocent li'l one(whom i blame these for anything n everything going wrong in my life these days) is almost one now.Don't you think its time for me to look for another lame excuse for my laid back attitude? I'm sure, it won't be hard for to find one ;)

We had a wonderful 2 months vacation back home in India. Still struggling to get things going here, especially with cooking, after enjoying 2 months of no cooking and only eating yummy days!

And of course TX invited us back with the scorching summer, which is really bad this time. Especially when you get back from Kerala,God own country where it rains and only rains during this time of the year.Oh, my! what a pleasant weather it was. Me and my li'l used to sit in our verandah, enjoy the heavy pour and the lush greens that dance in the rain.....Oh what a joy, Oh what a sight...... (this is from one of my baby's favorite cartoons)
I have to admit we see more baby TV than adult TV these days...i'm sure moms with a preschooler  in home would agree to that...these days, I hum rhymes, read Parents,Baby Talk, American baby and shop in the baby section....and I see all new mommies around me doing the same...so i guess, that is how its supposed to be (a good parent)

We get a lot of fresh fruits this time of the year, and got a couple of boxes of strawberries a few days ago, most of which we ate as such. By day 2-3, when they started looking not so fresh, i made this smoothie.
Here is the recipe:

You'll Need:

Strawberries: 8-10 nos (hulled and quartered)
Yogurt:  1/2 cup
Milk:      1/2 cup
Sugar:     1-2 tbsp
Ice cubes: as per required

Blend all the above together. Add more sugar as per your taste.

Enjoy your lip lickin' smoothie :)

P.S: yes,the book in the background is my li'l one's book of colors...see, this what I was saying earlier ;)