Sugar Frosted Flowers

These delicate decorations are simply fresh flowers preserved using egg whites and sugar.Once dried,they will last for several weeks.If you don’t want to use it immediately, store them betweens tissue paper sheets in a box and keep in a warm dry place.

Choose small fresh flowers for this,i prefer using edible flowers.If you ask a florist ,they’ll help you in selecting edible flowers.This can be done with small fruits,herbs or fruit leaves.

What do you need :-

Fresh flowers/fruits
Lightly beaten egg whites
Caster sugar
Small paint brush

Method:-

Dry the flowers and leaves with kitchen tissues,and leave a small stem intact if possible.Place some caster sugar in a plate.Using a fine paint brush,paint both sides of the flower petals and leaves and stems with lightly beaten egg white.
Spoon the sugar over the flower petals to coat them evenly on both sides.

Carefully shake the flower to remove any excess sugar and gently arrange the coated petals on a wire rack covered with kitchen paper.Store in a warm dry place until dry.

Icy Valentine’s day

A major snow-storm hit our region today,heavy snow accompanied by freezing rains made the condition worse.Ice coated tress were falling down,thus causing power failures everywhere,planes were delayed and schools were closed.

Here’s the closeup of a small tree in front of our apartment…

Ice ..Ice..baby..!!

More photos here

Unakka Irachi Olathiyathu(Dried beef/Beef Jerky Fry)

I’ve had enough of this dish,during my childhood days.I vaguely remember how my grandmother used to dry beef,fish etc at home,when she was healthy and young.Thin slices of beef marinated with salt and turmeric powder, are first dried well under the sun and then hung over the ‘aduppu‘(traditional stove in old Indian Kitchens,which is lit using firewood),where it is again dried in the heat and smoke.The whole process is time consuming and takes almost 3-4 weeks,but the end product was always worth the effort.This dried beef when fried, tasted divine when served with Kanji and Payaru Olathiyathu(Moong Dal Fry).

I’ve been craving for this dish for long,and so decided to give a try with Beef Jerky ,which is available in all local grocery stores.And believe me,it tasted almost similar to our good old Unakka Irachi Olathiyathu.

 So here i’m sharing with you my grandmother’s speciality dish …

Ingredients :-

Dried Beef/Beef Jerky(Unakka Irachi) – 3 slices
Shallots (Kunjulli) sliced half – 5
Dried Red Chillies – 5-6
Curry leaves – a sprig
Coconut Oil – as needed

Method:-

Cut the dried beef into small pieces.Heat little oil in a pan and shallow fry the beef slices until it is brown and crisp.Remove from heat and allow it to cool.To the same pan,add shallots,red chillies and curry leaves and fry for 2-3 minutes in low heat.Remove and keep aside.

Now pound all the ingredients together using a mortar-pestle.But here i’ve used my grinder for this purpose.This can be served with rice/Kanji.

The pounded beef prepared as above, can be again fried ,by adding meat masala,pepper powder etc.But i normally don’t prefer this.For me,it tastes better without these extra frying and masalas.

Pasta in Spinach-Garlic Sauce

Here’s a spinach flavoured pasta recipe ,its’s my son’s new favorite.

Ingredients:-

Pasta cooked according to package directions – 2 cups

For The Sauce :-

Spinach – half of a bunch
Garlic chopped -1 tsp
All purpose flour – 1/2 cup
Whole Milk – 1 cup
Cheddar Cheese – 2 tsp
Dried Parsley – 1 tsp
Pepper powder – to taste
Salt – to taste
Olive Oil – as needed

Method:-

Cook spinach in water,drain and puree it.Heat olive oil in a pan and saute garlic for few seconds.Now add all purpose flour and roast it for a while.Stir in milk and pepper powder and heat until the sauce gets thick.Now add spinach puree ,salt and parsley and simmer for few more minutes stirring occasionally.Finally add the cheese and mix well.Switch off the stove.The sauce is now ready.

Pour the sauce over cooked pasta.Mix well,sprinkle more cheese and serve hot.

Check out these too :

Elbow Macaroni in Eggplant-Spinach Sauce

Pasta with Lentils

Veggie Pasta

Greek Pasta

Pasta with chicken & roasted Garlic

Pumpkin sauce Penne

Basil Pesto Pasta

Pasta in chilli,Bell pepper and peanut sauce

Pasta in tomato Cumin Sauce

Penne Upma

Pasta with Garlic Greens,Artichokes and Olives 

Chicken Thoran

Yet another recipe from my mother in law,i must say this is a real deliccacy which enhances the flavours of Kerala.Chicken pieces cooked in spices are sauteed in coconut oil along with grated coconut and piquant curry leaves, give out subtle aromas that you cannot resist.This spicy dish tastes best when served with rice and Pulissery.

And now the recipe…

Ingredients:-

Bonned Chicken cut into small pieces – 1/2 kg
Onion sliced finely- 1 big
Ginger grated – 1 and 1/2 tsp
Garlic chopped -1 and 1/2 tsp
Green chillies chopped – 4 or 5
Turmeric powder – 1 tsp
Coriander powder – 2 tsp
Garam masala/Chicken Masala powder – 1 tsp
Red Chilly Powder – 1 tsp (Use more or less according to your taste)
Grated coconut – 3/4 cup
Curry Leaves -2 sprig
Mustard seeds – 1 tsp
Coconut Oil – as needed
Salt – to taste

Method:-

Mix together onion,ginger,garlic,green chillies,turmeric powder,coriander powder,garam masala powder and salt along with the chicken pieces and cook in a medium heat, stirring in between until chicken turns soft and all the water evaporates.Grind together coconut and red chilly powder into a coarse paste adding very little water.Keep it aside.

Heat oil in a pan,allow mustard seeds to splutter and then add curry leaves and fry for few seconds.Now add in cooked chicken and saute for 2-3 minutes.Stir in ground coconut mixture and fry well for 10-15 mins in low heat stirring occasionally.