Avocado Chutney

Avocado,otherwise known as butter fruit/butter pear is a tropical fruit which has a rich nutty flavor with high fat content,mostly health promoting monosaturated fat.Studies shows that Avocados are a good source of potassium ,fiber and vitamins.It is also good for heart health and fighting against cancers.
Because of its high nutritional value,i’ve started including this fruit also in our  diet.So far i’ve tried avocado chappathi,milkshake,chutney and guacamole,and i’m still on the look out for more avocado recipes.I’ve also heard that a ripe avocado tastes good with some sugar sprinkled on it,haven’t tried it though.

How to use Avocado  :-

Avocado is usually eaten when its ripe.The skin of the avocado will turn from green to dark purple as it ripes.If you are buying raw ones,keep it in the room temperature for 2-3 days or until it turns dark,be careful not to over ripe it.To prepare the avocado,make a cut half lengthwise and gently twist the two halves.Now use a spoon/knife to remove the seed and then scoop the flesh from it.It’ll come out easily just like butter.

And now the recipe for chutney…

Ingredients :-

For Grinding :-

Avocado scooped – 1/2 of a big one
Grated coconut – 1 cup
Shallots – 2
Green chillies – 2-3(as per your taste)
Ginger – 1/2 inch size
Salt – to taste
Lime juice – 1/2 tsp(Optional)

Grind all the above ingredients together into a smooth paste adding necessary water.

For popping:-

Mustard seeds – 1/2 tsp
Shallots chopped – 1
Red chillies – 1
Curry leaves – a few
Oil – as needed

Method:-

Heat oil in a pan and pop mustard seeds.Throw in shallots,following by red chillies and curry leaves.Fry until shallots turn brown.Add the ground ingredients,mix together and heat for a few minutes.Do not boil.Serve with dosa/idly.

Note :-This chutney is not good for storing as avocados turn black as it stands.To prevent this darkening of avocados for sometime,drizzle it with lime/lemon juice.

Blueberry Muffins

Now some freshly baked muffins from Elise’ Simply recipes.This recipe is very simple and definitely a keeper.

Ingredients:-

Blue berries – 1 and 1/2 cups
All purpose flour – 3 cups + 1 tbsp(only if using frozen blueberries)
Baking powder – 1 tbsp
Baking Soda -1/2 tsp
Unsalted butter softened – 10 tbsp
Sugar -1 cup
Eggs – 2 large
Plain Yogurt – 1 and 1/2 cup
Lemon peel grated – 1 tsp
Salt – 1/2 tsp

Method:-

Preheat oven to 375°F.Take a bowl, beat butter and sugar together until fluffy.Now add one egg,beat it and add the other.Beat it again until they are well incorporated.Now beat in grated lemon peel.

Whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.Add 1/2 of the dry ingredients to the beaten egg-sugar mixture,and beat it until just incorporated.Now beat in one third of yogurt ,beat in half of the remaining dry ingredients,beat in second third of yogurt,beat in remaining dry ingredients and then the remaining yogurt.Do not over beat, beat it until they are just incorporated.Fold in the blue berries.If you are using frozen berries, defrost them first, drain the excess liquid, and then dust them in 1 tbsp of flour.

Coat a standard muffin pan with vegetable oil sprays or butter and distribute the muffin dough equally among all cups.Bake until muffins are golden brown,about 25 to 30 minutes or until a tooth pick inserted at the centre comes out clean.Allow it to cool for 5 minutes,remove from the pan and serve hot.

Uppumanga curry(Salted Mangoes in Coconut Gravy)

See what i’ve got from a Mallu grocery store in Chicago.It is for the first time i saw this in a grocery store in U.S,and so took it immediately.

They were not like the regular ‘melt-in-mouth’ kind of Uppumaanga which my amma makes at home,instead they were hard with thicker skin but well enough to satisfy my cravings.I didn’t know many dishes with Uppumanga,and so always went for our good old Uppumaanga chutney,which serves as a good accompaniment for rice/Kanji.

Uppumaanga chutney prepared with mangoes having harder skin

This dish was prepared by my amma,which she learned recently from her sister.Salted mangoes when combined with green chillies and coconut paste results in a classic flavourful deliccacy which goes well with rice and curd.Now we are hooked to this dish,which tastes very different from the regular curries.

Ingredients :-

Salted mangoes chopped – 2 medium sized
(If you’re using soft mangoes that cannot be chopped, then use 4 or 5 whole mangoes)
Green chillies slit – 2
Shallots(Kunjulli) sliced – 5
Water – 3/4 cup
Mustard seeds – 1 tsp
Dried red Chillies(Unakka mulaku) – 3
Curry leaves – 1 sprig
Salt – add only if needed (Uppumaanga will give away the salt and the curry can become salty with time)
Oil – as needed

For Grinding :
Grated coconut – 1 cup
Cumin seeds – 1 tsp
Garlic pods – 2
Green chillies – 2

Grind together all the above ingredients to a smooth paste and keep it aside.

Method:-

Mix together mangoes,green chillies and shallots along with the water and cook them till soft.Add the ground paste to it,add salt(only if needed),mix well and simmer for 4-5 minutes,do not boil it.Remove it from heat.

Heat oil in another pan and allow mustard seeds to splutter.Add in red chillies and curry leaves and fry for a while.Pour the seasoning to the curry,mix and serve with rice.

Check out various Uppumaanga dishes at Supriya’s Spice Corner

Papaya Pulissery

Pulissery is a simple yogurt based dish which we prepare regularly.Just like Pachadi,Pulissery can also be made using different vegetables and fruits.I am always confused about the terms ‘Kaalan’ and ‘Pulissery”.(Actually I dont see much difference between them.Can anybody help me on this one?All your comments are welcome.)Here’s the recipe for Papaya pulissery-south kerala style ,from Vanitha-Onam edition.The original recipe was for pineapple pulissey,but I’ve replaced pineapple with semi ripe papaya.

Papaya Pulissery

Ingredients:-

Diced Papayas

Semi Ripe papaya diced – 1/4 kg(around 2 cups)
Green chillies – 5-6
Turmeric powder – 1/4 tsp
Red Chilly powder – 1/2 tsp
Grated coconut – 1 cup
Jeera seeds – 1 tsp
Curry leaves – 2 sprig
Sour curd (beaten)- 3 cups
Sugar – 1/2 tsp
Salt – to taste

For Seasoning:-
Coconut oil – 2 tbsp
Mustard seeds – 1 tsp
Jeera seeds – a pinch
Curry leaves – a sprig

Method:-

Cook papaya pieces adding salt,turmeric powder and red chilly powder till it becomes soft.Grind grated coconut and green chillies into a smooth silky paste and keep it aside.Pound the jeera seeds and add it along with the curry leaves into the ground coconut paste and mix well.Add this paste into the cooked papaya,add in beaten curd , mix well and heat it for few minutes.Do not let it boil.Switch off the stove,once it is heated .

Heat coconut oil in another pan,and allow mustard seeds and jeera seeds to splutter.Now add the curry leaves and fry it for a while.Pour the seasoning over the curry and serve with rice.

See different Pulissery recipes from fellow bloggers:-

Plantain Pulissery

Mampazha Pulissery

Pineapple Pulissery

Naaranga Pulissery

Papaya Drink

Papaya,which is considered to be one of the healthiest and nutritious fruit is often ignored by many people.Personally,I too hate this fruit,but on the other hand my kid loves it.This Papaya drink is his new favorite,the recipe is adapted from an old edition of  Vanitha magazine.It goes like..

Ingredients:-

Ripe papaya pulp – 1 cup
Honey – 3 tbsp
Lemon juice – 1 tbsp
Cold Milk – 1 small glass

Method:-

Blend all the ingredients together,and transfer it into a  glass.Top it with some whipped cream and serve immediately.
Recipe Source : Ammu Mathew(Vanitha)