Silent Valley

God still lives here-
God’s own valley,
The abode of God

Like in the ‘ark’
Birds, mammals, reptiles
In pairs they live in peace

Trees and herbs
Flowers and fruits
Sparkling rivers, with the mystic touch of God

Silence is the rule
Close your eyes
You will feel the presence of God

Dare not touch
A flower, leaf or stone
Forbidden valley for man

Step in only-
If pure in heart and soul
Determined not to hurt even the air

Else the eerie silence will bite you
The deadly- dark shadow,
Will haunt you
For ‘Nature the God’ is powerful for ever

mini thomas

Prawn Chutney Powder

Ingredients

Grated coconut -2 cups
Dried prawns -1 ½ cup
Dried red chillies - 3
Pepper corns - 15
Urad dal - 2 tbsp
Curry leaves - ½ cup
Sliced shallots (small onions)- ½ cup
Ginger grated -3 tbsp
Chopped garlic - 2 tbsp
Tamarind - 1 tbsp
Oil - ½ cup
Salt to taste

Preparation

On a low flame, in a wok, pour a tablespoon of
oil for frying each ingredient separately.
Red chilli, pepper corns and urad dal can be fried together.
Each ingredient should be fried crisp.

Grind each ingredient seperately in a chutney grinder.
Mix all items together with sea salt and grind again.
Now, add the tamarind and run the mixer on high speed.
See that there are no lumps.
Store the chutney powder in an air-tight container.

Prawn chutney powder goes well with rice and curd.

It is helpful if we stock a bottle of prawn chutney or
Fish pickle to manage the lazy days.
May be a day after Onam, when you have all the
left over veggies but no fish!!

Generally,two types of dried prawns are available.
One is red, firm and comparatively bigger in size.
The other one is soft, smaller and pale in colour.
For making chutney, softer dried prawns are preferred.

Mutton Chops in Cashew Paste

Ingredients

Mutton chops - ½ kg
Cashew nuts - 1 cup
Chopped onion – 1 cup
Ginger paste - 2 tsp
Garlic paste - 2 tsp
Curd - ½ cup
Turmeric powder -1 tsp
Chilli powder – 2tsp
Coriander powder – 1 tbsp
Cardamom powder -2 tsp
Whole garam masala – 1tsp
(2cardamom,4cloves,2 inch cinnamon)
Coriander leaves – 1 tbsp
Salt
Oil -1 tbsp
Ghee – 1tbsp

To marinate

Curd – ½ cup
Cardamom powder – ½ tsp
Nutmeg powder – ¼ tsp
Fennel powder – 1 tsp
Coriander powder – 1tsp
Chili powder – 1tsp
Turmeric powder – ½ tsp
Salt

Preparation

Wash and dry the ribs.
With a knife push the meat from one end to another.
Pat the meat once with a heavy object.
Marinate the chops and keep it in the fridge for a night.

Next day sauté the cashew nuts brown and grind it to
a fine paste and keep aside.
In a small pressure cooker heat oil and add whole garam masala.
Add chopped onion and salt.Saut till transparent.
Now add chops and ginger, garlic paste and stir.
Mix turmeric, chili and coriander powder in curd and
pour into the chops. Let it simmer till fat separates.
Pour quarter cup of water, close the lid and pressure cook it for 35 minutes.
As the pressure is released open the lid, add in cashew paste and
cardamom powder. Keep on the flame till the gravy is thick
and coated on the chops.

Garnish with chopped coriander leaves,
lemon and onion rings.
Serve with chappati or rice, dal and raita.

Ginger Snaps

Ingredients

Plain flour - 2 ½ cups
Baking powder - 1 1/2 tsp
Salt
Ginger powder – 2 tbsp
Cinnamon powder – 2 tsp
Black pepper powder – ½ tsp
Butter - 11 tbsp
Brown sugar - 2/3 cup
Vanilla essence - ½ tsp
Molasses – ¼ cup
Egg - 1 large
Zest of 1 lemon
Lemon juice - 1 tsp

Preparation

Sieve flour and baking powder together.
Add cinnamon, ginger and black pepper powder.

Beat egg and molasses (jaggery), lemon juice and zest.
Now add cold butter, vanilla essence and powdered brown sugar.
Into this add the flour mixture.
Mix well. Keep on a plastic paper and roll it into a log.
Keep this plastic wrapped log into the fridge until firm.
Slice thin to about quarter an inch, coat it with sugar and bake
for 15 minutes. Take it out and turn each ginger snaps
upside down and let it cool.

Store in an air-tight cookie jar.
Plain milk and cookies is a good combination.
Spicy ginger snaps and half a cup of hot plain milk
is a combination even I would like to vote for.

Meat Pickles

Ingredients

Boneless meat - ½ kg
Onion - 1
Ginger - 60 gm
Small garlic pods - 20
Curry leaves
Turmeric powder - 1tsp
Dry red chilli - 4
kashmere chilli powder - 2 tbsp
pepper corns -20
cloves - 4
green cardamom - 4
fennel seeds (perum jeerakam) - ½ tsp
a petal of star anise (takkolam)
nutmeg - ½ inch
cinnamon - ½ inch
vegetable oil - 2 cup
Natural vineger -1 cup
salt
sugar - ½ tsp

Preparation

Wash the meat twice and cut into two inch pieces.
Cook the meat with salt and ½ tbsp of chilli powder.
When cooked, see that no water is remaining.

In a non-stick pan, pour a table spoon of oil and
sauté the meat dry and keep it aside.

Grind all the spices from pepper corns to cinnamon
into fine powder.

Peel and thinly slice the onion.

Make a paste of ginger and garlic.

On medium flame, in a wok, pour oil and deep fry
the onion crispy, dark brown.
Take out the crispy onion and to the same hot oil
add curry leaves, de-seeded dry red chillies.
Scoop these out and add ginger garlic paste.
Stir continuously till light brown .
Turn the fire low and add turmeric powder,
Chilli powder, all the spice powder and sauté for a minute.
Now add the fried onion, curry leaves, dry red chilli and the meat.
Mix well as you pour vinegar ,sugar and salt.

When cooled, store in an air–tight jar.
Start using after three days.

Intake of pickles should be in moderation ,
as too much salt is added to the pickles.
But one thing we must admit, sending home made
pickles to our loved ones like all other goodies, is
a remedy for home sickness.

Chocolate Truffles

Ingredients

Dark chocolate -250 gm
White chocolate -120 gm
Cream -4 tbsp
Powdered sugar -5 tbsp
Butter -2 tbsp

Preparation

Keep a saucepan on medium flame, pour
two glasses of water and bring to boil.
On top of the saucepan keep a larger bowl with
broken pieces of dark chocolate and white chocolate.
Reserve about 20 gm of white chocolate for decorating
the truffles on the top.
Simultaneously in another vessel heat half a glass of cream.
As the chocolate melts pour 3 to 4 tbsp of hot cream.
Pour cream only as much needed.

Take the bowl from the flame and keep on stiring.
Add powdered sugar, vanilla essence or any flavour.
Keep on stirring.
As the chocolate cools , it gets a shining texture.
Now add butter and stir.

In small greased ice trays or small moulds pour this
smooth and shining chocolate and refrigerate for 24 hrs.

Next day double boil the reserved white chocolate as before
and pipe it on the truffles and refrigerate again .

Wrap each individually in transparent covers and gift it to
your dear ones.

Dal (Lentil Curry)

Ingredients

Chana dal - 1 ½ cup
(split chick peas)
Masoor dal - ½ cup
(orange coloured lentils)
Water - 5 cups
Oil -1 tsp
Ghee -1tbsp
Mustard -1tsp
Jeera -1tsp
Urad dal -1tsp
(split black gram)
Garlic - 15 pods
Green chillies –3
Coriander leaves -2 stem
Curry leaves - a bunch
Tomatoes - 2 small
Turmeric powder – 2 tsp
Chilli powder -1 tsp
Salt - to taste
Jaggery - 1 tsp
Lemon - ½

preparation

In a bowl, soak chana dal and masoor dal together
for half an hour;
drain out the water and wash twice.

Pressure cook dal by adding five cups of water
and a tsp of turmeric powder .
After three whistles, turn off the flame.

Cut garlic, green chillies, coriander leaves
and tomatoes into small pieces.

In a wok,on low flame pour oil and ghee .
Add mustard, jeera and urad dal.
As it splutters and change colour, add garlic.
As it turns brown, add green chillies,
Coriander leaves and curry leaves.
Keep stirring.
Now add tomatoes, salt and jaggery.
Saute till it is soft.
Put a teaspoon each of
turmeric and chilli powder.
Pour the cooked dal and lemon juice into the wok;
add salt to taste.
Let it simmer for five more minutes.

Serve hot with rice or chappati....

Lentils or dal is very much part of daily diet of an Indian.
For vegetarians, lentils are an excellent source of protein,
a kind of substitute to meat products.
Even for non-vegetarians who suddenly start dieting
and stop taking meat, including dal in their daily diet
helps to keep them fit and healthy.