Dragon Chicken (Indo- Chinese Cuisine)

Dragon Chicken is a real tasty appetizer for all those who love Indo- Chinese cuisine.I got familiarised with this very chicken recipe in one of the TV shows and the look itself dragged me out to try out this very recipe.A tempting recipe to fall in love with and tastes very good too.I heard another rumour about this recipe too.If any one is familiar with Mango Tree Restaurant in Cochin,Kerala(owned by filmstar Dileep),it is said this recipe is one of the famous cuisines out there.I never had the opportunity to visit that restaurant and will surely wish to visit it sometime.

The recipe is very simple easy and a dry spicy dish .It fits into all occasions and perfect as an appetizer, side dish or main dish with fried rice.The boneless long slender cut chicken pieces are marinated and shallow fried or deep fried and then blended into sauces.I opted the shallow frying to avoid excess oil..

  


Ingredients
for marination
boneless chicken 2lbs
ginger garlic paste 1 tsp
corn flour 2 tsp
egg white 1
pepper powder 1 tsp
salt


for sauce
ginger 1'' shredded
garlic 3 cloves shredded
tomato sauce 1 1/2 tsp
soy sauce 1 1/2 tsp
chilli flakes 2 tsp
cashew nuts 1/2 cup
green onions / celery  1 bunch
oil 5 tsp





Method

• Marinate the chicken for 2 hours using the above ingredients.
• Heat oil in a non stick pan and fry the chicken pieces.
• Place it on a paper towel .
• Saute shredded ginger and garlic in the remaining oil for a minute.
• Add the cashew nuts and fry them till brown.
• Add chilli flakes and the sauces.
• Put the chicken pieces and toss well.
• Cook for 2 minutes.
• Garnish with green onions or celery ans serve hot with fried rice or as snack or an appetizer.




Servings 4 adults

TIPS
- Don't add salt to the gravy as soy sauce and chicken pieces contain salt.Check salt if required.

Baked Broccoli Cutlet ( Burger Patties )

Ever since Vardhini posted her event Lunch box ideas with broccoli ,I wished to try out this veggie.I never used it for curries or side dishes,just added sometimes to salads.Every day there was some one posting an item with broccoli ,so came out this lovely recipe of cutlet..and friends its a very tasty snack or can be used as patties with burgers.I tried the same style of my chicken cutlets,you can view that recipe here.Only thing I just omitted the bread crumbs part and egg white dipping just as to make it much more simpler.The broccoli washed and florets separated was shredded in a blender and then added to the mix.That made it easier to cook and shape it well into cutlets.Every one liked it and my kids liked the most.

Ingredients
broccoli 1lb
potato 2 boiled n mashed
onion 1 small chopped
ginger garlic paste 1 1/2 tsp
green chillies 4 or pepper powder 1 tsp
garam masala 1/2 tsp
turmeric powder 1/2 tsp
lime juice 1/2 tsp (optional)
salt
oil 3 tsp
oil to spray

Method

• Boil the potatoes in a pressure cooker until 3 whistles.Peel the skin and mash it,keep aside.
• Wash and separate the florets,shred it in a blender and keep aside.

• Heat oil in a pan and saute onion till slightly brown.Add the ginger garlic paste and saute.
• Add the broccoli and saute for 5 minutes.Add the spices and toss well.
• Put the mashed potatoes and mix well cook it for a minute.
• Put off the flame.Add the lime juice if required.Shape the cutlets in your palm in desired shapes.
• Pre heat the oven to 350 degrees F and line a tray with aluminium foil and spray oil.
• Place the cutlets and bake for 25 minutes and then flip the other side of cutlets.
• Bake again for 15 minutes.Broccoli cutlet is ready to serve with ketchup or tomato sauce.

Servings 15-17 cutlets

TIPS
- You can deep fry the cutlets after dipping in egg white and rolling in bread crumbs.

Sending this to Healthy lunch Box ideas event hosted by Vardhini

Fruit Halwa ( Apple,Banana ) and Healthy version for kidoos !

Over ripe bananas hanging on the stand are a question mark in each ones home and we really think hard to waste one banana.That doesn't matter to kids and the kids are very tricky pangs too :-).They like a fruit every week and its difficult to convince them,even though we mothers try our best to feed them the vitamins and minerals.Earlier I had tried the Steamed banana cake and Banana fritters ,but kids demand each time a new recipe.I did have these over riped bananas at home and so this recipe was bookmarked from my aunt's recipe book.I added apples too in this recipe as my kids are now reluctant to eat apples as such :-).Her recipe was made using sweet plantains alone.I replaced it with bananas and apples.Here,is a sweet recipe to please kids and I think its a good healthy option for adults too who like halwas.

Let me first of all thank each one of you for your encouraging comments on my 100th post.So thought to celebrate another sweet day with fruits :-)






Ingredients

banana 3 sliced
apple 2 sliced
sugar 1 cup
water 1 cup
cardamom powder 2 tsp
raisins 1/3 cup
cashewnut 1/3 cup
ghee 1/2 cup






Method

• Place a non- stick pan and pour the water and sugar ,make a syrup.Heat the mix till boil and add the apple slices.
• Cook the apple for 10- 15 minutes till half cooked and add bananas slices.
• Heat ghee in another pan and fry the raisins and cashew nuts.
• Cook the fruit mix till its mashed well.
• Add the remaining ghee to the mix and cardamom powder and keep stirring till it turns brown.
• When the halwa starts to leave from the sides of the pan,then transfer into a ghee smeared plate or bowl
• Garnish with raisins and cashewnuts.

  


 
Servings 1 bowl of halwa

Sending this to Priya mitharwal's and Aipi's ongoing event Bookmarked event every Tuesday

Black Forest Cake ~ 100 th Post

Two months of blogging and so fast days passed by...I can't imagine myself reaching the 100th post.I never thought I would reach my first mile stone so quick with an average of 5 posts per week.Almost 3900 visitors to the blog and 64 blogger friends.That shows my passion to cooking,isn't it ??The blog has really helped me out a lot to try out variety dishes posted by my blogger friends and I would like to thank each one of them for their constant support and priceless sweet comments throughout my posts.I hope to have your support in coming posts too.

Also, I have changed the outlook of the whole blog as I have not done it since long..thought to give a new refined look and added some pages too..Hope you all liked it..

I couln't have reached this mile stone without my family's support too,so I thought to celebrate this event by preparing their favourite Black forest cake and mine too..:-)



Black Forest Cake(American english) is also known as German Gateau(British English).The cake consists of several layers of chocolate cake ,whipped cream ,maraschino cherries and chocolate shavings.The Black Forest cake had its name from the speciality liquor of that region Schwarzwalder Kirsch wasser (a clear liquor distilled from tart cherries.Traditionally ,Kirschwasser is added to the cake.Now adays rum,brandy or whisky is added to the cake.In the United States,The cake is mostly prepared without alcohol.This is a short insight to the beautifully layered cake.

Coming back to my recipe,I made the cake from scratch and I have not added any kirschwasser or any sort of alcohol.Instead I just baked the cake with baking powder to soften the texture as a matter of challenge to avoid alcohol.The cake came out really well and this was my first attempt in preparing a Black Forest Cake.The cake tasted equally good and was worthwhile the effort.Only drawback I fet was the strong smell of bottled cherries.I surprised everyone at home,all were amazed to see this yummy cake. The recipe is a simple one, only thing is it requires a pre planning and we got to be careful cutting the layers and layering it.The cake can also be prepared using the devil's food cake mix much simpler to bake rather than from scratch.(I read in one of the sites).



Ingredients

for cake

all purpose flour 1/2 cup

cocoa 1/2 cup

sugar 1 cup

eggs 4

butter 100g

vanilla 1tsp

baking powder 1/2 tsp (if you are not using alcohol)

for sugar syrup

water 1 cup

sugar 1/2 cup

kirschwasser/rum / brandy /whisky 3 tsp ( I have not used this)

for frosting n layering

whipping cream 1 1/2 cup

cherries bottled  15 cherries

chocolate bars 2 (for curls)



Method

1. Preparing the cake -

• Sift the flour, cocoa and baking powder ,mix together,keep aside.
• Powder the sugar and keep aside.
• Beat the eggs until fluffy.Add the sugar and blend well .
• Add the butter and blend again.
• Add the flour slowly into the mix and fold over.
• Add the vanilla extract and mix well.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and line a baking tray with parchment paper and pour the mix.(I used an oval tin to bake)
• Bake the cake for 25-30 minutes.
• Leave it on the wire rack till it cools down completely.
• Leave the cake in the refrigerator for 2 hours.(easier to cut layers)

     2. For layering and filling -

• Cut the cake into 3 or 4 layers as per your convenience.(make sure to cut it as thin as posssible as it has to soak the syrup) and place on a parchment paper.

• Prepare a sugar syrup using water and sugar as listed. Cool the syrup and pour the syrup using a spoon on the different layers.
• Leave it for 1 hour,keep adding the syrup until you finish the syrup.
• In the mean time, whip the cream with a spoon or whisker till it reaches the stiff peak.(cream should not fall down once we hold the whisk upside down)
• Layer the top most part of the cake as the base on a flat plate or cake stand.
• Then layer the whipped cream and spread the cherries by cutting them.
• Again alternate next layer of cake(be careful not to break the layer as its soft and soaked) and repeat the same procedure till you reach the top most layer.

• Spread a layer of whipping cream on top and to the sides.



• Using a scraper (or a new razor can also be used),chocolate bar can be shaved to curls and spread on the top most layer and sides.
• Make a flower using the whipped cream (in an icing bag) and place the cherries on top to garnish.
• Refrigerate the cake for 4 hours and serve chilled.

NOTES
* Wash the bottled cherries thoroughly under running water to avoid the strong smell.
* Leave the cake refrigerated and if you are getting delayed in spreading the whipped cream before layering,its better to refrigerate than keeping outside.

Asparagus-Carrot Pickle

Asparagus is a similar veggie to the banana stem.I have become a fan of this wonderful veggie after I cooked the Asparagus egg thoran,click here to see that recipe.Then, came the thoughts of a pickle with asparagus and carrots.Both equally nutritious and healthy even though pickle is not a healthy food as it contains more of salt esp for hypertensives.But once in a while,you would like to taste a pickle and this is a simple recipe too..

Ingredients
asparagus 4-5 sprigs
carrot 2
mustard
curry leaves
garlic 4 pods
fenugreek powder1/2 tsp
asafoetida 1/2 tsp
chilly powder 1 tsp
turmeric powder 1/2 tsp
salt
oil 4 tsp
lime juice 2tsp / vinegar 2tsp (you can use lime juice if not preserving for long)




Method

• Wash,peel carrots and cut into thin stripes.
• Wash and cut asparagus into thin stripes.
• Mix it with a pinch of turmeric powder and salt.
• Heat oil in a skillet,splutter mustard and curry leaves.
• Add the garlic pods,saute for half a minute.
• Add the veggie mix and add chilly powder saute.
• Cover and cook for 2minutes.
• Add the fenugreek powder and asafoetida.
• Put off the flame and add the lime juice or vinegar.
• Asparagus Carrot pickle is ready to serve.

Servings~ 1bowl of pickle

Sweet Potato Rolls | Healthy Breakfast

Sweet potato are low in fat ,low in cholesterol.They are rich source of beta corotene ,rich in vitamin A.
Usually I boil the sweet potatoes with little salt and then peel the skin and serve it with chilli chutney.But,yesterday I prepared these rolls using wheat flour and this recipe rocked for breakfast.The sweet potatoes were boiled and then skin peeled and mashed.(just like boiling potatoes).This is a simple breakfast recipe with much less time required.

Ingredients
for rolls
wheat flour 1 cup
egg 1
baking soda  a pinch
salt

The filling

for filling
sweet potatoes 2 boiled n mashed
raisins 1/3 cup
cashews 1/3 cup
sugar (as per taste,I didn't add sugar)



Method

• Make a batter with wheat flour ,egg and baking soda,salt as for dosas.
• Boil/Steam the sweet potatoes until cooked well.Mash it using a potato masher.Make the filling with cooked mashed sweet potatoes,raisins,cashews.Mix well.
• Heat a non stick pan and spread one spoon of batter thin as possible like dosas.
• Flip on the other side,place the filling in the centre.
• Roll it over and serve hot.



Servings 10 sweet potato rolls

TIPS
-You may also use dosa batter to make the roll instead of wheat flour.
-The filling can also be filled for kozhukattai or adai too.
-If you wish a eggless recipe,its better to make chapatis and place the filling and roll it over.



 Sending this to Any One Can cook series 22,event hosted by Umm Mymoonah (Taste of pearl city)



At the end, I would like to thank Priya Sreeram of Bon Appetit for passing me the token of appreciation for participating in the event  Fast food Not Fat food

Cantaloupe-Carrot Milkshake & a Melon Turtle

Cantaloupe-carrot shake is a  well blend shake of carotene,rich in all yellow vegetables and fruits.Carotene is mainly good for eyes.Also fruits have high content of fibre in them,so I usually don't strain the mix as the fibre content will be lost.The fruits also constitute a low calorie food and best for dieters.The vast health benefits of cantaloupe make it one of the finest fruits that help to prevent cancer.This is a very tasty one and a very refreshing one for summer.

Ingredients

cantaloupe 1 cup

carrot 2 sliced thin

milk 1 cup

sugar 3 tsp

Method

• Blend the fruits together in a mixer and add milk to it and sugar.
• Pour into glasses and serve it chilled.

Servings 2 glasses

Kerala Style Chicken Stew | Nadan Chicken Ishtu | Chicken Vellakari

Chicken is a rich source of animal protein and among non vegeatrians,its an important meat eaten mostly by all.Chicken recipes are endless and all are tasty versions.Chicken stew is one such recipe which Christians devour mainly with appams. Chicken stew or ishtu is a thick curry in coconut sauce and the main spicing agent is pepper powder and green chillies. Potatoes are added into it and it usually has a creamy colour. Its also known as 'chicken vellakarri' by its appearance.The curry goes perfect with appams however I have tried the combination successfully with puttu and chapathis too. Each keralite family has a different version of their ishtu/stew and this is how my mom makes it. I have followed her recipe word to word and love that. You can add other vegetables like beans and carrot cubed along with potato for a slightly different version. Do give this a try !!!

Preparation time ~ 10 minutes

Cooking time ~ 20 minutes

Author ~ Julie

Serves ~ 4

Ingredients
chicken boneless/with bones 400g
potato 1 peeled n cubed
green chillies 4-5
ginger garlic paste 1 tsp
onion 1 small chopped
turmeric powder 1/2tsp(optional)
pepper powder 1 tbsp
coriander powder 1 1/2tsp
garam masala 1 tsp
fennel seeds 1/2 tsp(optional)
thin coconut milk 1 cup
thick coconut milk 1/2 cup
oil 4 tsp
salt

Method

• Wash,clean and rinse the chicken,drain the chicken in a colander,keep aside.
• Heat oil in a pan and  splutter fennel seeds(optional).
• Saute onion till light brown,add the ginger garlic paste, saute.
• Add the green chillies,curry leaves and saute about a minute till raw smell disappears. Add the pepper powder,coriander powder,turmeric powder,garam masala and salt.
• Add the cubed potatoes and chicken (you may use other vegetables like beans and carrot too here).
• Add the thin coconut milk.Cover and cook covered for 10-15minutes till chicken is tender and potatoes are cooked. Mash the potatoes 2 or 3 pieces to add thickness to the gravy.
• When the gravy starts to thicken then add the thick coconut milk on low flame ,heat for 1 minute.(Don't boil after adding the thick coconut milk)
• Chicken stew is ready to serve with appams or even chapatis.

NOTES
* You can add fennel powder instead of fennel seeds.You can omit adding turmeric powder if you wish a creamy white color.
* I usually use canned coconut milk.For making thin coconut milk,I add 1/4 cup of canned coconut milk and fill the rest of the cup with water to make 1 cup.
* You can even add plain milk instead of coconut milk,tastes good.
* You may use other vegetables like beans and carrot along with cubed potatoes.

Mushroom Theeyal | Mushroom in Roasted Coconut flavors

Theeyals /roasted coconut (dark brown gravy) curry is common in the southern parts of India, mostly Kerala.The usual trend is with dry roasting the coconut and then grinding to a fine powder. The spices can be added to the coconut and roasted to rind to a smooth paste too. It's a very tasty curry with just hot steamed rice.No other additional side dish is required. I always love to have my mom's version however, I cannot reach up to her mark, but a good one.This recipe is bookmarked from my mom's recipes.

Earlier I had successfully tried the Bitter gourd theeyal, the recipe is here.The steps remain the same and the only difference is the change of main ingredient.Moreover, this is a better version for those who don't love bitter gourds.

                                       

Preparation time ~ 10 minutes

Cooking time ~ 20 minutes

Author ~ Julie

Serves ~  3 adults

Ingredients

button mushroom 10-12 sliced(200g)

shallots 10-15 sliced

garlic 3 cloves

coconut grated 1/2 cup

hot chilly powder 1/2tsp  

kashmiri chily powder 2 tsp

coriander powder 1 tbsp

turmeric powder 1/2tsp

tamarind 1 amla size (soaked in water)

jaggery powder, 1 tsp (optional)

curry leaves

salt

water 1 cup

                                             

Watch on YouTube-

Method

• Wash and slice the mushrooms and keep aside.
• Dry roast the coconut in a pan till golden brown.

roasted coconut

• Mix all the spices into the roasted coconut and fry on a low flame, till a nice aroma comes.

roasted spices and coconut

• Put off the flame and cool it.Grind this mixture without adding water to fine powder.
• Heat oil in  a pan and sauté shallots with garlic sliced for a minute or till translucent along with curry leaves.
• Add the mushrooms  to the pan in the remaining oil.
• Fry them for 3 minutes till the water starts to escape from mushrooms.
• Now add the powdered mixture, salt  and water. If only adding powdered coconut, then, add spices on low flame.
• Cook  covered for 7 minutes and finally add the tamarind extract and jaggery powder if using.
• Again, cook for 2 minutes and is ready to serve once the gravy is thickened or oil starts floating over the surface.
  
• Heat oil in another pan and add oil. Splutter mustard seeds, curry leaves and dry red chillies. Pour this over the curry.

NOTES

* Adding jaggery powder is optional, but definitely adds a balane to the flavours in the theeyal. Try and taste the difference.

Sending this recipe to Priya Mitharwal of Mharo Rajasthan's recipes, the ongoing event bookmarked recipes every tuesday

Pineapple Mousse

Desserts in any form like ice creams,jellies,payasam /kheer or any sweet is a delight..Yesterday, I happened to innovate a new recipe.One of my friend had recently put up the photo of mango mousse in facebook.But unfortunately,I didn't have the mango gelatin pack.I had the pineapple gelatin,and fresh pineapples too.That was the inspiration behind this recipe.And a day to celebrate the auspicious day in everyone's life that's Father's day!

Thought of trying the pineapple mousse, and friends that came out very well set .The pudding takes almost 4hours to set.A very tasty dessert ,of course..

Ingredients
Fresh pineapple 2 cups
pineapple gelatin pack 1 (I used the jello pack)
heavy whipped cream 1 1/2cup
strawberries 6-7 ( washed,hulled n sliced)
sugar 1 cup
water 1 cup

Method

• Blend the fresh pineapples into a smooth paste.
• Place a pan on low flame,pour the fresh pineapple blend and a little water.
• Add the pineapple gelatin and keep stirring till its mixed well. Switch off flame once the mix starts to thicken.Leave to cool.
• In the meantime,whisk the heavy cream along with sugar with the help of a spoon or blender until it forms its peak.(i.e It should remain on the spoon when you hold it upside down)
• Add this whipped cream into the mix once cooled and fold it over slowly without deflating the whipped cream much.
• Arrange the sliced strawberries at the bottom and pour the mix over it.
• Refrigerate for 4 hours to set the pudding.
• Serve it chilled as cut slices and top it with light whipping cream.

Servings 4 cups

That was the delight of Father's day..All enjoyed the dessert,try it out to enjoy this...