Santa came Home

On 22 nd evening I heard a flap on my window.
To my surprise,I saw a parrot sitting on our window sill.
A green parrot with a red feathers on his wings.
Looked a older bird with a serious look.
I slowly opened the window, it flew and sat on the chair.
For a second I was stunned! Then I went to the kitchen
to get him some nuts, tomato and cooked rice.
It flew to the kitchen and ate everything and drank water.
I felt he was hungry and tired after a long flight.
It might have been a pet released by somebody.
I showed him a basket on which he perched.
I kept him in the balcony and he was happy,
watched the squirrels, and bulbuls visiting.

We named him Santa!
He liked the guvava
and pistachios I gave him.
On 24 th morning he had his heavy break fast,
enjoyed a bath, ate something from the mud in the pots,
and suddenly flew away.

I and my husband really enjoyed his company.
Even our daughters were excited when they heard
of Santa.They rang up every now and then to enquire
about him.

I am happy Santa flew to his freedom;
I Pray to God for his safety.
He was a real Christmas gift to us.

Meat Kebabs

Ingredients

Ground meat - ¼ kg
Spring onion - 3
Coriander leaves - 1 tbsp
Green chilli - 2
Pepper powder - 1 tsp
Nutmeg powder - 1/4 tsp
Cinnamon powder - ½ tsp
Cardamom powder - ½ tsp
Chilli powder - ½ tsp
Dry ginger powder - ½ tsp
Salt
Bread crumbs of - 2
Egg - 1
Oil to fry

Preparation

Wash meat thrice and dry well with a
Kitchen towel .Ground it into a fine paste.
Finely cut coriander leaves, green chillies and spring onions.
Mix all ingredients and pour beaten egg only as much needed.
Store in the fridge for a day.
Next day make small balls and deep fry it on
Medium flame.
Serve with tangy mint chutney.

Sweet Papaya Preserve

Ingredients

Sweet papaya mashed - 3 cups
Jaggery - 1 ½ cup
Cardamom - ½ tsp

Preparation

Remove the skin and mash papaya.
Use very ripe papaya to make a preserve.
In heavy bottomed vessel combine
mashed papaya and jaggery.
Keep it on medium flame and
Sauté till the water from the papaya
is fully evaporated.
Now it starts to stick to the sides of the vessel.
Add cardamom powder and mix well.
Turn off the flame.
This radiant natural red colour preserve is
a healthy preparation.

Adding sugar instead of jaggery will
give a different deep orange colour.
Papaya preserve should be refrigerated
for a longer shelf life.

Fresh sweet papaya is very nutritious
as all fruits are. But it is not so popular
among children.
Habit of eating all types of fruits should
be developed among children.

Focaccia Bread

Focaccia is an Italian flat salted bread.
It can be made sweet also, stuffed
with fruits, nuts and sugar.
Fresh home made bread tastes better than
the ones you buy from market.
Variety makes it more exciting!!

Ingredients

Flour (maida) - 3 cups
Sea salt -1 tsp
Sugar - 1tsp
Dry yeast - 1 tsp
Warm water - ¾ cup
Grated garlic -1 tbsp
Rosemary - 2 tbsp
(dried or fresh)
crushed black pepper - 1tsp
grated parmesan cheese - 2 tbsp
olive oil - 2 tbsp

Egg wash

egg - 1
milk - 2 tbsp

Preparation

In a bowl mix yeast, sugar and warm water.
Keep in a warm place to rise.

Take a large bowl, mix flour, yeast, oil, salt,
pepper, rosemary and knead well.
Brush the dough with Olive oil,
cover the bowl and keep in a warm place to rise
for about six hours, till the dough doubles.

Punch the dough down and give a desired shape;
keep it the baking tray.
Traditionally focaccia is a
flat bread.
I made focaccia into a loaf and into a bowl shaped,
to stuff it.

Brush the focaccia with olive oil and again
keep aside to rise for about one hour.
Brush it with egg wash and sprinkle with coarse sea salt,
crushed pepper, rosemary, grated garlic
and grated parmeesan cheese.

For stuffing – sauté cubed tomatoe ,onions,
minced meat and flavour with lots of olive oil ,
coarse salt, rosemary and pepper.

Bake for 20 to 30 minutes according to the size of focaccia.

Focaccia is more like a flat crust pizza.
Coarse salt, rosemary and crushed pepper makes the difference!

Parippu Payasam(Onam Special)

Ingredients

Chana dal -2 cups
Jaggery - 1½ cup
Grated coconut - 4 cups
Sugar - 1 tbsp
Ghee - 5 tbsp
Coconut pieces – 3 tbsp
Cashew nuts - 2 tbsp
Sultanas -2 tbsp
Rice flour - 1 tbsp
Crushed cardamom - 1 tbsp

Preparation

Wash and drain chana dal.
Pressure cook chana dal till it is soft.
Mash chana dal.
Some pieces of dal can be left as it is,
so that it can give a bite in the payasam.

On low flame, in a 'uruli'or any heavy-bottom vessel,
pour ghee and fry coconut pieces and
dry fruits into golden brown.
Keep aside these to garnish later.

In the same ghee, sauté rice flour.
See that it does not turn brown.
In this, add mashed chana dal and sauté for a while.
Now add jaggery dissolved in one cup water.
Let it simmer for a while.

Extract first and second milk from the grated coconut .
Reserve the first thick coconut milk.

First, pour in the thin second extract.
As the 'payasam'thickens, pour the first thick coconut milk.
Sprinkle crushed cardamom powder.
Keep stirring for five minutes and then turn off the flame.
Garnish the payasam with golden brown nuts.

Serve hot or cold.
'Thiruonam' is the day when you really get drunk with Payasam.

In the first stage, you drink payasam plain.

Second stage, to your payasam bowl,add banana cut into pieces.
Banana will give a different twist
to the intense sweetness of the payasam.

Third stage, crush two crispy kerala papadam
into the payasam with banana pieces.

Finally, lick a piece of red hot and sour lemon pickle before
each sip of payasam.
That is how you get drunk with payasam.

HAPPY ONAM.

Kuruku Kalan

Ingredients

Raw banana - 3
Shallots -- 20
Half coconut grated
Green chilli - 3
Mustard seeds -1 tsp
Fenugreek - ½ tsp
Jeera - ½ tsp
Turmeric powder - 1 tsp
Salt to taste
Sugar - 1 tsp
Curd - 2 cups
Coconut oil - 2 tbsp
Dry red chilli - 3
Curry leaves
Pepper corns(optional) – 8

Preparation

Remove the skin of the raw banana, shallots and cut into thin slices.
On a low flame in a vessel put the cut banana, shallots, turmeric, salt
and water. Cook till it is soft.
Mean while in a pan dry roast mustard, jeera, fenugreek. Add this to
Coconut, green chilli, curry leaves and grind into a fine paste.
Add this paste to the cooked banana and simmer till you get
a thick consistency.
Beat curd and pour into the curry.
Keep on stirring slowly.
Add sugar and salt for taste.
Season the kalan with mustard,pepper,red chilli,
curry leaves in coconut oil.

As it cools the kalan gets thicker and tastier.

Happy Birthday...Miniskitchen turns 3 !

Ever Green

Green plants, pebbles in the water-
a feel of nature in our terrace.

Chicken Curry

Ingredients

Chicken - ½ kg
Shallots - ½ kg
Tomato - 2 big
Ginger - 2 inch
Garlic - 6
Coriander powder - 2 tbsp
Chilli powder - 2 tbsp
Fennel - 1 tsp
Pepper - 1 tsp
Cloves - 2
Cinnamon - ½ tsp

Preparation

Wash and dry medium sized chicken pieces.
Marinate the chicken with salt and vinegar for one hour.
Peel the shallots.
Cook shallots and tomatoes in a vessel with
quarter glass of water.
Drain out shallots and tomatoes.
Retain the stock to use later.
Remove the skin of the tomates.
Blend shallots and tomatoes well.
Peel ginger , garlic and make affine paste.

In a wok on medium flame pour oil and
fry chicken pieces light brown and keep aside.
Retain the water from the marinated chicken
to use it later .
In the same oil sauté ginger, garlic paste for a while
and then add shallot tomato paste.
As it gets dry add coriander , chilly ,pepper
fennel, cinnamon and clove powder.
Stir till dry.
Now add the stock from shallot, tomato and chicken.
Put the fried chicken pieces and add salt as you need
and cover it with a lid.
On low flame let the chicken cook well and the gravy thicken.
In a frying pan, fry coriander leaves and red chilly retaining
their colour.

Garnish the chicken curry with fried coriander leaves
And chilly and serve hot with roti or bread.

Phirni

Ingredients

Milk - 1 glass
Rice flour - 1 tbsp
Sugar - 1 tbsp
green Cardamom - 1
Badam - 10
Pista - 15
saffron (optional)

Preparation

In a pan pour thick milk and mix rice flour.
Keep on slow fire and stir continously.
As it cooks and start to thicken,
add sugar and crushed badam and pista.
Stir till it turns thick and creamy.
Add crushed cardamom and garnish with
crushed green pistas.
Rerigerate it for 2 hours

Serve this soft mildly flavoured sweet
after a heavy biriyani.

A very easy north indian dessert .

Yellow Roses

This yellow rose is a true survivor.
After each flowering she comes out with
lots of shoots ,each with buds.
I give her a handful of compost she presents
me with a handful of yellow roses.

Pink Hydrangea

First bloom in our pink hydrangea.

Fish Masala

Fish - 4 pieces

For chilli paste
Red cashmere chilli - 4
(piriyan mulaku)
grated coconut - 1 cup
ginger - 2 inch
pepper corns - 10
cloves - 4
petals from a star anise – 2
onion - ½
Natural vinegar – 3 tbsp
sea salt - to taste

For sautéing
Garlic - 6
Green chilli -2
Onion - 1
Tomatoes – 2
Ginger - 2 inch
Coriander leaves – 2 tbsp

Cut and clean the fish with salt and cold water.
Make a fine wet paste of chilli,coconut and all
Other above ingredients.

Chop finely onion, ginger, garlic, chilli,
tomatoes and coriander leaves .

In an earthen pot add oil and sauté garlic to golden brown.
Now add green chilli, onion and ginger sauté for two minutes
Then add the chilli paste sauté for five minutes on slow flame.
Pour half a glass of water, fish pieces, tomato pieces and coriander leaves.
Taste, add salt and vinegar only if needed.

This fish masala is great with roti or white rice.
Always skin the fish while cleaning.
Espesially pomfret and seer fish.
Instead of fish you can add prawns and make prawn masala.