FRUIT CAKE

Ingredients:

1. Maida – 150gm
2. Baking powder – 1 tsp
3. Eggs – 3
4. Sugar – 125gm + 25gm
5. Butter – 150gm
6. Dry fruits (black currant, cashew nut, tutti frutti etc) – altogether 100gm
7. Rum/wine – 100 ml
8. Cinnamon powder - 1/4 tsp 
9. Nut-meg powder - 1/4 tsp

Method:

1. Soak fry fruits in Rum/wine. (You have to soak it for at least 24 hours or up to 2 weeks)
2. Sieve Maida and baking powder together 2 to 3 times well.
3. Prepare caramel (dark brown color) out of 25gm of sugar.
4. Pre heat oven (150 degree centigrade).
5. Spread butter paper on all sides of a cake tin and grease it with butter.
6. Powder remaining sugar and transfer it to a big bowl.
7. Add butter to it and mix very well with a hand blender.
8. When it becomes fluffy add eggs one by one and beat very well using blender.
9. Add the dark brown caramel, cinnamon and nut-meg powder to it and again mix well.
10. Now to this add Maida little by little and mix with a wooden spoon. (do not use mixer)
11. Mix well in same direction and then add the fry fruits along with the Rum to it.
12. Transfer the cake mixture into the greased cake tin,
13. Bake in oven for about 1 hour 30 minutes in 150 degree centigrade.
14. Take the cake out and pierce a fork in the center of the cake and if it comes out clean then it’s a good sign indicating cake is cooked well.

Note:

• After putting Maida do not use hand blender.
• After the cake batter is ready immediately keep it for baking.
• Always stir the batter in same direction.
• Always preheat the oven for 10mins
• Do not open the oven door many times while baking.
• After baking allow the cake to fully cool down in room temperature.

GREEN GRAM PALYA

Ingredients:

1. Green gram – 1 cup (around 150 gm)
2. Water – 2.5 cups
3. Grated coconut – ½ cup to ¾ cup
4. Onion – 1 big
5. Garlic – 5 to 6 cloves
6. Green chili – 1 (optional)
7. Turmeric powder – ½ tsp
8. Dry chili flakes - 2 tsp (or chili powder – 2tsp)
9. Curry leaves – 3 to 4 sprigs
10. Oil – 2 to 3 tsp
11. Salt – for taste

Method:

1. Transfer green gram, water, sliced green chili, turmeric powder and sufficient salt to a cooker, close the lid and cook in medium flame. (Approx 4 to 5 whistles)
2. Ensure that green gram is cooked well. (It should not be smashed)
3. Keep a china dish (deep flat pan) on flame and add oil into it.
4. When oil gets heated up add finely chopped onions, finely chopped garlic and curry leaves and saute until it turns golden brown.
5. Now add chili flakes, and little salt and mix.
6. Immediately add cooked green gram and grated coconut and mix well.

Fish Coconut Masala (Meen Peera)

Meen Peera is yet another traditional Keralite dish.This is usually made with small fish like Anchovies or smelt .But we can also prepare it with small Sardine or sole fish etc. This dish goes very well with steamed rice. All especially south Indians will love this dish.

Ingredients:

1. Fish – ½ kg (smelt, small Sardine, Anchovies, sole fish or any fish which is small in size can be used)
2. Grated coconut – ½ of a small coconut
3. Green chili – 6
4. Ginger – 1 inch piece
5. shallots – 6 (or 1 small onion)
6. Garlic – 4 cloves
7. Cumin seeds – ½ tsp
8. Chili powder – ¼ tsp
9. Mustard – 1 tsp
10. fish tamarind – 1 piece (or normal tamarind – 1 small gooseberry size)
11. Coconut oil – little
12. Salt – for taste

Method:

1. Cut ginger and onion into long slices. Soak fish tamarind or the normal tamarind in a small cup of water.
2. Crush grated coconut, garlic, cumin seeds and green chili together. (Put all these ingredients into a mixer and give two or three swirls)
3. Take a pan and add sliced onion, ginger, turmeric powder, salt, chili powder, tamarind with water, fish and another cup of water. Mix well and in medium flame cook for 8 mins. Add some more water if the added water is evaporated.
4. Then add the crushed coconut masala into it. Cook until the all the water is evaporated and the fish gets cooked completely.
5. Now in another pan heat some coconut oil and splutter mustard seeds and curry leaves.
6. Add this seasoning over the dish and serve with rice. 

CHICKEN BROWN KURUMA

Ingredients:

1. Chicken – 1 kg (cut into medium size pieces)
2. Onion – 2 medium + 1 small
3. Ginger – 1 inch piece
4. Garlic – 10 cloves
5. Green chili – 2
6. Tomato – 2 medium
7. Coconut – 1/2 medium size coconut (Grated)
8. Red dry chili – 10
9. Coriander seeds – 4 table spoon
10. Garam masala powder – 1tsp
11. Turmeric powder – ½ tsp
12. Curry leaves – few
13. Coriander leaves – ½ bunch
14. Oil – 2 to 3 tblsp
15. Salt – for taste

Method:

1. Slice 2 medium size onion, green chili and tomato. Crush ginger and garlic together. Chop coriander leaves. Keep these things aside.
2. Take a pan and add ½ tsp oil into it. When oil gets heated add dry red chili and coriander seeds to it. Sauté until it’s roasted well. Transfer it to a plate.
3. In the same pan add another 1 tsp of oil and roast grated coconut until brown. Off the flame and add 1tsp garam masala powder to it and mix well. 
4. Allow these 2 roasted ingredients to cool then grind it together into fine paste adding sufficient water.
5. Now in a pan add 2 tblsp oil and sauté onion, ginger garlic, green chili and tomato one by one.
6. Add turmeric powder, salt and chicken pieces to it and mix well.
7. Now add the above coconut chili coriander paste into it. Add coriander leaves and sufficient water. Close the lid and cook well.
8. Now take another small pan and add little oil into it. Add 1 small onion chopped and curry leaves. Sauté well and add this seasoning over the curry and serve.

SOYA CUTLET

Here comes yet another vegetarian dish made out of soya. 

It takes time to prepare Cutlet, but its worth the effort once you savour it and experience the taste :)

Non veggies can use chicken or any other kind of meat instead of soya. The process is same. Cook chicken or meat well and start from step 7 of the below recipe.

Ingredients:

1. Soya chunks – 100 gm
2. Potato – 3 medium
3. Onion – 1 big
4. Green chili – 2 to 3
5. Ginger – 1 inch piece
6. Ginger Garlic paste – 2 tsp
7. Curry leaves or coriander leaves – little
8. Red Chili powder – 3 tsp + 1 tsp
9. Turmeric powder – ½ tsp
10. Garam masala powder – 1 to 1.5 tsp
11. Oil – for frying
12. Salt – for taste

Method:

1. Soak soya chunks in hot water for 5 mins. (Water should not be boiling hot)
2. Wash it with normal water and properly squeeze the water out.
3. Now shred the soya chunks well with hand. (Do not use mixer)
4. Put 3 tsp chili powder, 2 tsp ginger garlic paste and sufficient salt to it and mix well.
5. Pour little water into a cooker and add 3 potatoes to it and allow the potatoes to get cooked. It may require almost 3 whistle.
6. Now peel the skin of the cooked potatoes and smash it with a fork and keep aside.
7. Pour little oil into a nonstick pan and roast the marinated soya chunks.
8. Transfer it to a plate and in the same pan add little oil and sauté finely chopped onion, ginger, green chili and curry leaves.
9. Add chili powder, turmeric powder, garam masala powder, little salt and mix well.
10. Now add the roasted soya chunks and smashed potatoes and mix well.
11. Off the flame and allow it to cool.
12. Then mix it well with hand and make big lemon size balls out of it and press little in the middle and shape the sides. (Check the picture for the shape)
13. Now take a flat plate and break 1 egg to it and beat well. (Vegetarians can use 2 table spoon corn- flour or maida mixed with 1/2 glass water)
14. Take another flat plate and spread Rusk crumbs or Bread crumbs to it.
15. Now dip both sides of the cutlet in egg or maida mixture and roll it with the rusk or bread crumz. Do this with all the cutlets and arrange in a plate
16. Take a flat pan and pour some oil into it. When its hot add the cutlets to it and shallow fry both the sides in medium flame.
17. Serve hot with tomato sauce. 

Tips on preparing Bread/Rusk crumbs:

1. Just store the odds and ends of bread in a plastic bag in the freezer until ready to make your homemade bread crumbs. Bring it to the room temperature and whirl in a mixer until desired coarseness.
2. If you are using rusk then directly powder it. (Do not use roasted rusk for this)
3. Ensure the bread or rusk crumbs doesn’t turn into a very fine powder because it will get burnt as soon as you put it into hot oil.

BANANA PODI

 Ingredients:

1. Banana – ½ kg
2. Maida – 1 cup
3. Rice flour – 1 cup
4. Turmeric powder – ¼ tsp
5. Salt – for taste
6. Oil – for frying

Preparation:

1. Cut banana into half by length.
2. Slice it into 2 or 3 pieces depending on the thickness of the banana.
3. Prepare batter by mixing maida, rice flour, salt and turmeric powder.
4. Batter should be thick enough to coat the banana slices.
5. Heat sufficient amount of oil in pan. (Ensure its very hot)
6. Dip the banana in the batter and deep fry in oil.

SPECIAL EGG OMLET

The omelette is commonly thought to have originated in the Ancient Near East. This dish is thought to have travelled to Western Europe via the Middle East and North Africa.
According to the founding legend of the annual giant Easter omelette of Bessières, Haute-Garonne, when Napoleon Bonaparte and his army were traveling through southern France, they decided to rest for the night near the town of Bessières. Napoleon feasted on an omelette prepared by a local innkeeper that was such a culinary delight that he ordered the townspeople to gather all the eggs in the village and to prepare a huge omelette for his army the next day.


On March 19, 1994, the largest omelette (128.5 m²; 1,383 ft²) in the world at the time was made with 160,000 eggs in Yokohama, Japan, but it was subsequently overtaken by an omelette made by the Lung Association in Brockville Memorial Centre, Ontario, Canada on May 11, 2002 — it weighed 2.95 tonnes (2,950 kg).

Ingredients:

1. Egg – 4 or 5 nos
2. Onion – 1 big
3. Tomato – 1 big
4. Green Chili – 1
5. Ginger – 1/2 inch piece
6. Curry Leaves – 2 trig
7. Chili Powder – 1 tsp
8. Turmeric Powder – ½ tsp
9. Red chili flakes – ½ tsp (optional)
10. Garam masala powder – ¼ tsp
11. Oil – 2 tblsp
12. Salt – for taste

Preparation:

1. Finely chop onion, ginger, tomato, green chili and curry leaves.
2. Take a nonstick pan and add little oil into it. Add all the above chopped ingredients and sauté well until the raw taste goes.
3. Add chili powder, garam masala powder, turmeric powder and little salt to it.
4. Sauté for some time and off the flame.
5. Now break the eggs and transfer it to a bowl. Add sufficient salt and beat well.
6. Now add the above prepared masala to it and mix well.
7. Now prepare omelets out of it and serve hot.