Sunday, May 18, 2014
Pizza Mushrooms
36 large mushrooms
45 minutes - 15 minutes prep time
36 large button mushrooms
200 grams (1/2 pound) cheddar or mozzarella cheese
1 cup tomato sauce
1 teaspoon oregano
100 grams (1/4 pound) pepperoni
Clean the mushrooms, and remove the stems. Reserve the stems for some other use. Set the mushrooms on a baking tray, gills up. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
Grate the cheese and mix it with the tomato and oregano. Chop up the pepperoni and mix it in as well. Spoon this mixture into the mushroom caps. Bake for 30 minutes. Serve hot.
They will exude a lot of juice as they bake, so make sure the baking tray has edges to prevent it from running off the edge.
Last year at this time I made Jerusalem Artichoke, Celeriac & Turnip Salad with Ginger-Orange Dressing.
Saturday, May 17, 2014
AALU PARANTHA
- Boiled & peeled potatoes-4-5
- Red chilli powder-1/4 teaspoon
- Salt to taste
- Garam masala powder-1/4 teaspoon
- Coriander leaves chopped-1 teaspoon
- Ajwain-1/4 teaspoon
- Green chilli chopped-1
- Oil-2-3 tablespoons
- Desi ghee or butter enough to apply on top
- Dough enough to make paranthas
- Mash the boiled potatoes & add salt, red chilli powder, garam masala powder, ajwain, chopped coriander leaves & chopped green chilli & mix well.
- Make a thick round with the dough & fill 1 tablespoon potato filling & make a ball.
- With the help of dry flour, roll the ball into a parantha just like you roll a chapati.
- Heat a tawa & drop 1 teaspoon oil on it.
- Place the rolled parantha on it.
- After a few seconds, turn it upside down.
- After a few more seconds, turn it upside down again.
- Apply a little oil on the top.
- Turn it upside down.
- Make it well cooked from both the sides.
- Apply a little desi ghee or butter on the top.
- Aalu parantha is ready to serve.
Meal Maker Kuzhambu Meal Maker Gravy
Meal Maker is made out of Soya beans which is a source of high protein and fibrous food. Meal maker can very well substitute chicken or mutton during the months in which Hindu’s refrain from taking non-veg .It is used for preparing delicious foods resembling Non vegetarian diets. Soya bean has 50% vegetable protein and is a good fiber food enabling easy digestion and bowl movement. It is a soft fibrous vegetable matter resembling soft meat in texture. When soaked and boiled for a couple of minutes it assumes a good volume. In chettinad, meal maker kuzhambu is made out of the traditional chettinad masala and will taste like chicken kuzhambu. 
Ingredients
Meal maker-100gms
Small onion-20
Garlic-15
Tomato-1
Ginger-small piece (crushed)
Coriander powder-1.5 table spoon
Chili powder-1 table spoon
Turmeric powder-1/2 teaspoon
Lime juice-2 teaspoons
For seasoning
Cardomom-2
Cinnamon-2 small pieces
Clove-2
Birinji leaf-small piece
Star anise-a small piece
Curry leaf- little
Fennel seed-1 teaspoon
To grind
Coconut grated-3 to 4 table spoons
Fennel seeds-1 teaspoon
Small jeera-1 teaspoon
Cashews-10 ( or pottukadalai 1 table spoon)
Method
Boil 4 cups of water and soak the meal maker balls in hot water for 10 minutes. Drain the water. Wash in cold water. Squeeze out the extra water and cut to 4 pieces. I always like to pressure cook the pieces as it will cook soft. If you also like it keep the small cooker or pressure pan in the stove. In one table spoon of oil season the gravy with the items given in “to season’. Sauté the chopped onion, garlic and tomato pieces for 3 minutes. In low fire add the coriander, chili and turmeric powder also and sauté for a minute. If the fire is high these powders will get burnt. So be careful. Add the meal maker pieces also and mix well .Add 3 cups of water and the salt required. Close the cooker and cook for 6 to 7 minutes in medium fire. Meantime grind the items given in to grind to a smooth paste. Open the cooker, after the pressure goes and add the grinded masala. The gravy will turn thick once the curry boils. If you find it too thick add a cup of water. Check for the salt and hotness. Usually it will be short of salt as the meal maker balls would have taken most of the salt. If anything is missing it can be corrected now. If it is too watery even after boiling for 7 minutes, add a teaspoon of coriander powder. Switch off the stove when you get the desired consistency and add the lemon juice
Friday, May 16, 2014
Karinas Crustless Quiche with Roasted Vegetables
Karinas Crustless Quiche with Roasted Vegetables Recipe
Ingredients:
Light olive oil, as needed
2 cups roasted veggies: broccoli, cauliflower, sweet potatoes, onions
1 cup shredded Swiss, Jarlsberg or sharp cheddar cheese
4 large organic free-range eggs
2/3 cup light cream
A dash of nutmeg
1-2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley, if desired
1-2 tablespoons shredded Parmesan for the top
Pre-heat the oven to 375ºF. Lightly oil or butter a nine-inch glass pie plate
.Serves 4 to 6.
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My Surprise Gift Flavours Of Chettinad by Mrs Seetha Muthiah
Yesterday when my husband returned from our native village after attending the Anna dhanam arranged on my dad’s birthday, he brought me the surprise gift from my dad. I want to share the joy of the gift with my readers. I always love books and especially cookery books these days, as I am happily practicing this art and sharing my experiences with the blogging community. Let me come to my gift. It was a wonderfully compiled book on chettinad cookery by a very famous and well known Chettiar lady Mrs. Seetha Muthiah (AMM’s daughter-in-law, the proprietors of EID Parry ,TI cycles etc)).I have always heard about her from my mom a relative of hers. I have also met her once and spoke to her for a little time. The book was a real surprise for me, as it contained all the chettinad items one can ever think of wonderfully compiled and photographed.
The book is a true evidence of the involvement of the chettiar ladies in cooking irrespective of which class of society they belong to. From my childhood days I have always noticed my grand moms and old ladies at home taking much care of the menu, handling the groceries etc.I remember my mom’s grandmother’s store room. She would be certainly eighty years old at that time. Everyday she will open that room in the morning and will give the grocery required for that day’s cooking to the cook according to the menu given everyday. She will not give the key to anybody else. I and my brother will be always eager about that room and will be waiting for her to open the room. When she opens we will rush inside and will start investigating the things there. She will drive us out giving something for us to eat from that room like Mangai vathal or Achu kalkandu. Since my mother lost her mom when she was a kid we used to go to her grand mothers house only for holidays. The day before we return home, she will go and sit in front of that room and ask my mom to bring the containers one by one and start packing for us all the items in small cloth bags. She will then again start collecting things for her grand daughter.
I remembered my mother’s grand mom today, as I was asking my dad about Mrs.Seetha Muthiah and how she is related to us. My dad told me that AMM’s mother and my mother’s grand mom are sisters.
I got the book around 11pm, and I was going through it for the next 2 hours or so. My husband was going on asking me to go to bed telling that here afterwards the book will be with me only. But I was very eager to go through all the pages as it contained many items which I have not even heard of. My mom was mentioning about the book for the past one month i.e. from the day she got a copy of the book as compliment from the author. She told me that I can go through the book when I go there for the summer holidays. So I was eagerly waiting to see the book. It was a real surprise for me when my dad got a copy of the book and sent it to me. Mrs. Seetha Muthiah has gathered the recipes from various sources and has tried them and compiled the recipes in a wonderful manner. I think that she would have planned the book since a long time and have collected the recipes from the famous chettinad cooks engaged during chettinad weddings and functions. Great effort from her which has to be much appreciated. The printing of the book also is excellent in quality. All book lovers would love to touch it. The photographs of the items are mouth watering. I noted that the cost of the book is Rs.500. But I was very happy to see a line in the first page of the book’ The proceeds from this book will go to charity.’ I think that there is no need for me to mention the role of chettiars in charity, so this was no surprise for me. She is continuing her family tradition.
I will be having an encyclopedia of chettinad cookery makes me more happy now. If any of you get a chance to see this book, please go through it. I will certainly try some new items which I have not heard of before and share my experience with you. There are recipes of nearly 280items given in the book.
“Flavours Of Chettinad” compiled by Mrs.Seetha Muthiah
Thursday, May 15, 2014
VOTE for Jens Were Jackalope
http://www.fieldandstream.com/contest_entry/1001453853?page=98&pnid=1001457205
Here is what my pumpkin looks like.
Thanks for your support!
Easy Gluten Free Pumpkin Pie Recipe
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| Easy, delicious gluten-free pumpkin pie. |
First- no tofu (yes, Babycakes, my pumpkin pie is soy-free so you won't have to put up with your cousin's tofu jokes on Thanksgiving).
Second- it's also rice-free. No gritty rice flour (which, come to think of it, I am hardly using any more). No cornstarch (for those of you avoiding corn). In a sweet little nutshell, it's very food allergy friendly.
Even your Aunt Sadie who is allergic to Wyoming might be able to eat this. Unless she's allergic to pumpkin.
Which is why I disconnected my cable TV. One hundred dollars a month to get heartburn? I don't think so.
Read more + get the recipe >>
