You make my day, Muffin!

You can imagine my pleasant surprise when I logged on to see this award waiting for me at Uma's blog! Thank you so much for feeling that I am worthy of receiving this award, Uma. You definitely make my day with your sweet comments on my blog, dear. Now comes the difficult task of deciding on who to pass it on to!

After much soul searching, I've finally decided to pass the award on to:

Pravs of Simply Spicy
Cham of Spice Club
Revathi of En Ulagam
Dhivya of Dhivya's Cuisine (best of luck with the pregnancy!)
Lavi of Home Cook's Recipes
Indosungod of Daily Musings
Sra of When My Soup Came Alive

Congratulations to you ladies and thanks to you and every one else who takes the time to read on comment on my recipes. It means so much to hear your feedback!

So, you want to celebrate?? I think something sweet would be appropriate. AFAM is coming up, you say? I've got just the thing... Raspberry Almond Muffins!

These muffins came about pretty much on a whim. I've never been the biggest fan of raspberries simply because the seeds annoy me. But, I was in the grocery store and saw these gorgeous, ruby red berries that seemed to call to me and couldn't resist buying them. Once I came home, I pondered what to do with them. I finally decided on muffins.


I used a combo of AP flour and oats in this muffin. It's actually fairly healthy considering the addition of 2 cups of raspberries and the minimal sugar used. I used 1/2 cup of brown sugar which resulted in very mildly sweet muffins. This was totally fine with me, but I can see people with a moderate sweet tooth needing more along the lines of 3/4 to 1 cup (very sweet bakery type taste) of brown sugar. My husband has a pronounced sweet tooth and these were not sweet enough for him, so just keep that in mind. Hey, it just meant more for me! :)

Enough dilly-dally, right? Off to the recipe!

Ingredients:

All purpose flour - 1 1/3 cup
Oats - 1 cup
Brown sugar, packed - 1/2 cup for very mild sweetness (increase to 3/4 cup or so for sweeter)
Baking powder - 1 tbsp
Nutmeg - 3/4 tsp
Lemon zest - 2 tsp
Almond extract - 1/2 tsp
Salt - 1/2 tsp
Egg, beaten - 1
Milk - 1 cup
Vegetable oil - 1/4 cup
Raspberries - 2 cups (2 4.4 oz packs), coated with 2 tbsp of AP flour

Optional:

Slivered almonds - 2 tbsp
Granulated sugar - 1-2 tbsp

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 425 F. Line muffin tin with paper liners or grease them.

2. In a large bowl, stir together the flour, oats, sugar, salt, baking powder, lemon zest, and nutmeg. In another bowl, whisk the egg, milk, extract and oil together. Pour into the dry ingredients. Fold the mixture together gently so as not to overwork the batter. Then, fold in the berries coated with flour. Note: Coating with flour prevents the berries from sinking to the bottom of the muffins. Gently folding the berries in will prevent them from breaking up. This batter might seem a bit runny, but everything turns out fine once they're baked!

3. Divide batter evenly between muffin cups. Sprinkle some almond slivers on top and granulated sugar, if desired.

4. Bake at 425 for 20-25 minutes, until a toothpick or cake tester comes out clean. Cool in pan for 5 minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack to finish cooling. Serve warm with or without butter!

These delicious beauties are off to Ammalu's Kitchen for AFAM. AFAM was originated by Maheshwari of Beyond the Usual.

Chow Chow Chutney and a Meme

This chutney came to life when I was rummaging through my fridge one day and found a chayote (chow chow). I was thinking of what to do with it when the idea of chutney popped into my head. It was the first time that I'd made chutney using this vegetable and it was fabulous!!

I made it similarly to the ridgegourd peel chutney I'd previously posted. I fried the chow chow, added coriander seeds to give it a special flavor, and a good amount of urad dal for body. The slight sweetness of the chow chow balanced by the tart tamarind, the spicy chillies, and the earthy coriander was truly a winning combination! All in all, I will definitely be making this one again and again!!

Ingredients:

Chayote/Chow Chow - 1 medium, coarsely chopped
Red chillies - 15-20, or to taste
Coriander seeds - 1 tbsp
Urad dal - 2 tbsp
Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp
Grated coconut - 3 tbsp
Curry leaves - 5-6 (optional)
Tamarind - key lime size
Salt to taste

For seasoning:

Oil
Mustard seeds - 1/4 tsp
Curry leaves - 6-8

Method:

1. Heat oil. Add the mustard seeds, urad dal, red chillies and curry leaves. Fry until the dal turns golden brown and the red chillies have darkened. Remove to a mixer jar.

2. In the same pan, add a little more oil, if required, and fry the chayote along with coconut until the vegetable is cooked. The coconut shouldn't develop color during this step, so don't put the heat under the pan too high. Or, just add the coconut to the mixer jar (without frying).

3. Once the chayote has cooked, turn the heat off and allow to cool. Add to the contents in the mixer jar along with salt and tamarind and grind to a slightly coarse paste.

4. Season with mustard seeds and curry leaves. Add the seasoning, stir and serve with any tiffin item. Enjoy!




Sorry, sorry! I was tagged to do a meme by Dhivya of Dhivya's Cuisine, Divya Vikram of Dil Se, and Namratha of Finger Licking Food. Lazy me had not gotten around to doing it until now! Ok, here goes:

1) LAST MOVIE U SAW IN A THEATRE?
English - Iron Man (awesome!)
Tamil - Santosh Subramaniam (nice family film)

2) WHAT BOOK ARE U READING??
Do cookbooks count? Sad to say, I'm not reading a real book at the moment!

3) FAVOURITE BOARD GAME?
Life, Monopoly, Checkers

4) FAVOURITE MAGAZINE?
I love reading the covers of cheesy gossip mags while at the check-out counter of the grocery store. Sad, but true.

5) FAVOURITE SMELLS?
Roses, jasmine flowers (I miss them so!), garlic-ginger sauteeing, biryani, anything cooking in mom's kitchen!

6) FAVOURITE SOUNDS?
Gentle waterfalls, tamil folk music (dappanguthu rules!), tabla, mrindangam, sound of salangai when dancing (the heavy Indian ankle straps loaded with bells) bharatha natyam

7) WORST FEELING IN THE WORLD?
Loneliness

8) WHAT IS THE FIRST THING YOU THINK OF WHEN U WAKE?
Do I have to get up already??

9) FAVOURITE FASTFOOD PLACE?
I'm really not into the usual fast food stuff. It's true. I guess I had my fill of all of that stuff a long time ago! If you put a gun to my head, I'd have to say my local pizza place.

10) FUTURE CHILDS NAME?
Maybe Shanthi for a girl. Still haven't given it lots of thought!

11) FINISH THIS STATEMENT—’IF I HAD A LOT OF MONEY I’D’
work on charitable causes to try and make this world a better place, starting with worldwide vaccination against common diseases.

12) DO U DRIVE FAST?
Faster than my husband... Does that count?

13) DO U SLEEP WITH A STUFFED ANIMAL?
Yes. My husband is my teddy bear. Got a problem with that? *laugh*

14) STORMS–COOL OR SCARY?
Scary..

15) WHAT WAS YOUR FIRST CAR?
Nissan Sentra

16) FAVOURITE DRINK?
Cosmopolitan, mango lassi, rose falooda

17) FINISH THIS STATEMENT-IF I HAD THE TIME I WOULD…
I do have time, but if I had the stamina, I'd love to read more and do volunteerism.

18) DO YOU EAT THE STEMS ON BROCCOLI?
Yes, why not?

19) IF YOU COULD DYE YOUR HAIR ANY OTHER COLOUR, WHAT WOULD BE YOUR CHOICE?
No thanks! I don't want my hair any color other than my own natural black! :)

20) NAME ALL THE DIFFERENT CITIES/TOWNS U HAVE LIVED IN?
NJ, Long Island, back to NJ

21) FAVOURITE SPORTS TO WATCH?
Figure skating, gymnastics. What? I'm girly! Ok, I am willing to watch basketball or baseball occasionally!

22) ONE NICE THING ABOUT THE PERSON WHO SENT THIS TO YOU?
Dhivya - expecting a baby and is a sweetheart.
Divya Vikram - nice homey recipes that are delicious.
Namratha - makes such beautiful cakes and doesn't share. Kidding!!

23) WHATS UNDER YOUR BED?
Probably some dust

24) WOULD U LIKE TO BE BORN AS YOURSELF AGAIN??
Yes if I were born to the same set of parents!

25) MORNING PERSON OR NIGHT OWL?
Night owl all the way. My husband's a morning person. I don't get it!

26) OVER EASY OR SUNNY SIDE UP?
Sunny side up!

27) FAVOURITE PLACE TO RELAX?
The beach... Any state, any country. :)

28) FAVOURITE PIE?
Cherry, apple, peach

29) FAVOURITE ICE CREAM FLAVOUR? chocolate, strawberry, mango

30) OF ALL THE PEOPLE U HAVE TAGGED, WHO IS THE MOST LIKELY TO RESPOND FIRST? No idea and no pressure!

I know that lots of you have already done this meme, so if you feel like taking it up, please feel free!

Thakkali Sadham (Tomato Rice)

Aaah... Thakkali sadham... Just thinking of it brings a huge smile to my face! Amma used to make it a lot when we were younger as it was one of her and my brother's favorite things to eat. The thing is, I never used to be very fond of it as a child. Now, I simply adore it! Funny how tastes change with age, huh?

This version that I'm showing you here is a very simple one and pretty much sticks to Amma's original recipe. I called my mom the other day because I suddenly realized that I had a bunch of tomatoes and wanted to make her special (to me) thakkali sadham. She gave me the recipe over the phone and I made it that very night. Can I tell you the amazing things I felt while cooking it?

Gosh! The fragrances that were emanating from the pot took me right back to my childhood! I almost had tears in my eyes from being so happy! And the taste... Oh, the taste... That first bite and I knew I had done it. Amma's thakkali sadham was recreated in my own kitchen and now I'm sharing the simple, but special recipe with you!

Thakkali sadham putting on airs!

Ingredients:

Cooked rice - 1 cup
Tomatoes - 2 vine-ripe or 3 medium plum tomatoes, chopped
Green bell pepper - 1/2 medium, chopped
Onion - 1 medium, chopped
Garlic - 2 cloves, finely chopped
Peas - 1/4 cup cooked or defrosted frozen peas
Green chillies - 4, or to taste
Chilli powder - 2 tsp, or to taste
Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
Salt to taste
Oil
Lime juice - 2 tsp, or to taste

For seasoning:

Oil
Mustard seeds - 1/4 tsp
Urad dal - 1/2 tsp
Curry leaves - 6-8, torn

Method:

1. Heat oil in a pan. Add mustard seeds, urad dal and curry leaves. When they splutter, add the cut onions and green chillies. Fry until the onions soften a bit.

2. Now, add the bell peppers and fry until crisp-tender.

3. At this point, add the chopped garlic, peas, tomatoes, salt, and masala powders. Fry until the raw smell disappears and the tomatoes have softened. This is the time to add the cooked rice and stir well. Check for seasoning. Turn off the heat and add lime juice. Mix once more and serve hot with raita, chips, appalam, or all by itself! Simple, right?

A bite for you!

Sevai Upma

This dish is a really simple, somewhat different version of upma. What I had wanted to do was make semiya upma (i.e., using vermicelli). However, I had no semiya in the house and saw this packet of instant sevai (instant idiyaapam) that Amma had bought when we went to the Indian store once. I figured, why not use this and turn it into upma?

Well, it turned out to be a brilliant idea, if I may say so myself. Wait a minute, it's my blog so I can claim to be brilliant, right? Hee hee. Sorry, I digress...

Anyway, I added some veggies to it to turn it into a quick and light meal. Feel free to make alterations as you like! You can easily do the same thing with semiya and have awesome results, too.



Ingredients:

Instant sevai - 3 cups raw, place in hot water and soften per package directions
Onion - 2 medium, sliced
Tomato - 1, chopped
Carrot - 2 medium, chopped
Green bell peppers - 2 medium, chopped finely
Green chillies - 8-10, or to taste, slit
Ginger - 2 inch piece, finely chopped
Cashews - 10-15, broken in half, fried in oil or ghee and kept aside

For seasoning:

Oil
Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp
Urad dal - 1 tsp
Curry leaves - 1 sprig

Method:

1. Soften sevai per package directions. Mine said to pour boiled water over it and leave it for 10 minutes, then drain.

2. Heat oil in a pan and season with mustard seeds, urad dal, and curry leaves. Then, add the sliced onions, green chillies, and ginger. Saute until softened. At this point, add all of the veggies along with salt. Fry until the veggies are as tender as you like. Now, put the softened sevai into the veggie mixture and mix well. Check for seasoning and turn off the heat. Garnish with fried cashews and serve hot. Enjoy with chutney, pickle, sugar, or nothing at all! Stands on its own really well, too. :)

A closer look:

Now, that's finger lickin' good!

Mexican Pizza

This is a very simple recipe for those lazy evenings when you don't feel like making anything elaborate for dinner or don't have time. Plus, it just tastes awesome!

I used store bought whole wheat tortillas and topped them with quick sauteed onions, garlic, red bell peppers, olives and salsa. Let's not forget the cheese. It was habanero jack cheese! Overall, the pizzas were filling, yet light. Adding a little bit of homemade guacamole put them over the top. California pizza kitchen ain't got nothing on these babies!!

Ingredients:

Red onion - 1 medium, sliced
Red bell pepper - 1 medium, cut in half and sliced into strips
Garlic - 2 cloves, chopped
Chipotle in adobo - 2, chopped finely
Cumin powder - 1 tsp
Black olives without pits - 15-20, coarsely chopped
Salsa (I used store bought) - about 4 tbsp (enough to just coat each tortilla)
Whole wheat or flour tortillas - 4
Guacamole - optional
Pepper jack or habanero jack cheese - about 1/2 -1 cup, depending on your preference
Salt to taste
Oil

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 400 F.

2. Drizzle a little bit of oil in a skillet. When hot, add the onions, bell peppers and garlic. Saute until the veggies are just barely crisp-tender. Add the chipotle, cumin powder, and salt and toss for another few seconds. Remove from the heat.

3. Spray a sheet pan with cooking spray or lightly coat it with oil. Place the tortillas on the pan and bake for 2 minutes (makes a crispier crust). Then, coat the tortillas with salsa, cheese, sauteed veggies, and olives. Bake again for about 7-10 minutes until the cheese is melted and bubbly.

4. Serve hot garnished with guacamole and scallions, if desired. Enjoy!

Hot and Spicy!

We loved these so much that I'm sending them to sweet Dhivi for her AWED event with the theme of Mexican food!


Craving more Mexican??
Take a look at my Veggie Enchiladas and Veggie Quesadillas.