Fresh Dates Shake

Now it is summer the festive season for Dates in all GCC. Saudi dates are known to be the best dates available in the market. Dates are very tasty as well as rich in Iron. You all might have tried the dates shake which is readily available in market but don't know how many of you have tried a fresh dates shake. In GCC you can find fresh dates in almost all supermarkets.But apart from GCC it might be difficult to get fresh dates rather than the processed ones. But some how if you get fresh dates ,do try this shake. I got some best fresh dates from one of my cousin and the courtesy of the recipe also belongs to them. 

Ingredients

Fresh Dates - 15 No's

Full fat Milk - 1/2 Ltr

Sugar - Optional ( Depends on the quality of dates , I didn't use sugar in my shake since the quality of the dates I got was so!!!!  rich)

Preparation

Just Blend all the ingredients using a hand blender or normal blender. But initially blend the dates with little milk and after that add rest of the milk so that all the dates will be blended properly with out any remains.
You don't even has to filter it.

Simple but a very tasty shake.If you need it to be more rich can add some cashew nuts and even one cardamom. But with out all these also the taste is good.

Nadan Crab Roast

Seafood is the best food if cooked properly. I really love crabs but due to some advice from my mother and mother in law regarding the increase in Cholesterol level by the consumption of Crabs. I rarely tried my hands on Crabs."Healthy foods are never Tasty"  by keeping this note in mind I planned to have my next hands on experiment on Crab may be after 2 years :)

Ingredients

Crab - 1 kg

Shallots - 20 No's

Onion - 5 No's

Ginger - A medium sized one

Garlic Pods - 6 Nos

Green Chilly - 4 No's

Curry Leaves 

Coriander Leaves (Optional)

Turmeric Powder - 1 Tblspn

Chilly Powder - 1 Tbl Spn

Chicken Masala - 1 Tbl Spn

Garam Masala  1 Tspn

Pepper Powder - 1/2 Tblspn

Coconut Oil- 2 Tblspn

Fennel Seeds - 10 no's (Optional)

Tamarind  Juice - Take the size as of a big Gooseberry   

Preparation

Clean Crab well . Take a Pan add Crab , thinly sliced onions ,shallots, green chilly, turmeric powder salt  and  lil water to cook. The best way to know whether crab is cooked is to see it shells if turns red then it means it cooked. At that point add chilly powder , garam masala , chicken masala, some fenugreek seeds and the saute it properly so that all the masalas mix well. Cook for another 5 minutes and add the tamarind juice. Now u can see so much of gravy and that will be more than the water you added to cook. That is because of the water from the shallots and onions as well as the crab , if you need a dry roast u can cook on high flame so that the gravy will get dried up. After 10 minutes add some pepper powder , coconut oil , then curry leaves and coriander leaves . Then cover it and cook for 5 minutes.

NB: Crab always taste good if its spicy. So you can increase or decrease the masala according to your spicy choice.

Crab Nadan Roast is ready. You can serve with Rice , Roti , or Bread.

Chicken Fried Rice

This is also a very much common recipe. I swear if u need the Chinese food to have the restaurant quality one thing you have to add is aginomoto (Chinese salt) and depends on the kadai u used to prepare it and amount of oil tooo.
For my recipe I didn't use aginomoto because new studies say that this is not good for health and in some countries like US it is already banned.I don't have that traditional kadai(pan) too..so I adjusted with my Non Stick Pan.With my limited resources I managed to make my own customized Chicken Fried Rice.


Ingredients

Basmati Rice(Tilda is preferable for UAE people) - 2 1/2 cups

Chicken Breast - 2 Pieces

Onion - 2 Nos

Capsicum - 1/2 portion if its big

Carrot - 1 No

Beans - 10 No's

Spring Onion - 1 Steam

Black Pepper Powder

Soy Sauce - 1 Tbl Spn

Chilli Sauce - 1 1/2 Tspn

Ginger Garlic Paste.

Salt

Refined Oil - 3 Tbl Spn

Preparation

Cook the chicken with pepper powder and salt ( Shred it and keep aside)

Cook Basmati Rice with salt but don't over cook because taste depends on the Rice quality too.( One rice should not stick other rice)

Cut the veggies into small size .

Initially take a pan and cook beans carrot and onion with salt , but don't over cook that crispness and freshness of veggies should be there.

Take another pan add oil then add ginger garlic paste to it. Then add all the cooked veggies saute well after 5 minutes add the spring onion and capsicum to it. Saute for 5 minutes then add soy sauce and green chilly sauce.Saute well and the add the cooked rice into it.Then add the shredded chicken and finally add the pepper powder 1( Tea soon). Cover and cook for 5 minutes. So Chicken Fried rice is done.Add salt according to ur taste as already salt is there for rice veggies n soy sauce.

Serve with Tomato Sauce if u want it to be more rich you can make Chilly Chicken too which is the best combination :)

Chicken Lollipops

This is a recipe which all people love irrespective of age groups. I ate the tastiest chicken lollipops from Arab Uduppi Restaurant Abu dhabi. So i planned to make a try on this. Its very simple n tasty too..I am sure you will try this n will love this.Only toughest part is to make the chicken wings to lollipop shape. You can depend ur husband or brother to do it , as I depend my husband to make it :)I was surprised to see my husband also took interest in viewing the video on YouTube to learn how to make lollipops and helped me to make those which made my job very much easy

Ingredients

Chicken Wings – 8 No’s
Corn Flour - 1/2 cup if needed u can add some all purpose flour

Ginger Garlic Paste – 2 Tbl spn

Green Chilies – 6 to 8

Soy Sauce – 1 Tblspn

Vinegar -1/2 Tspn

Chilly Sauce/ Red Chilly Sauce – 1 ½ Tspn

Tomato Sauce – 1 Tblspn

Egg -1

Red Color – Optional

Salt

Oil – Refined
Chilli Powder -If you need it to be more spicy)very much optional

Preparation

Mix all the all ingredients and marinate on the chicken wings which are made to lollipops.

(One important tip if your are not that expert in making the mixture in a way that it will be thick and stick to chicken ,the easiest way of any marination is to put all ingredients in to the [chicken or what ever you want to marinate]  and then add water in this particular recipe water is not needed because egg itself make the mixture loose if you want the mixture to be some more loose better add an egg rather than water)

Keep it for half n hour. After that fry it in low flame

You will get N number of videos on YouTube to understand how to make the chicken wings to lollipops.

My husband helped me to make the lollipops.

I served it with Thai Chilly Sauce.

Chocolate Cake

I just don't want to bluff on my blog by copy pasting the recipes. I want to share the same recipe and the same way I did it.

For this chocolate cake ,I cannot say I was completely involved in the proportion of the basic ingredients.

This cake is made of a ready made cake mixture but I made needful alteration in choosing the ingredients to be added rather than  that was specified on the pack of cake mix.

This is almost like a baker's challenge. Since one of my cousin tried to make this in the same way it was specified on the pack n unfortunately he was not able to accomplish the task.

But with simple alterations I made in the ingredients my cake came out almost well n soft even though it doesn't look very professional.

Ingredients

Dark Chocolate cake Mix - 400 gm

Butter - 90 gm

Water - 200 Ml

Eggs - 2 Nos

Cashew- For simple toppings

Preparation

Mix all the above ingredients in a blender .

Take a baking pan place one oil paper greased with butter in to it. Pour the mixture into it.

Preheat oven in 180 degree Celsius temp for min.

Then place the baking pan in to it and initially put the baking temperature for  40 minutes.By 25 minutes you stop the baking for a minute and spread the cashews on top and restart.

For some cakes that time will be enough. but when I did ,may be because of the change in the cake mix I use it took almost 1 hr for me to complete it.

You can check whether the cake is completly baked with the help of a tooth pick. When toothpick is inserted at the center part
of the cake and no mixture is stick on the tooth pick it means cake is baked properly don't over bake too.

Itz very very simple since the ingredients are readily available at home except the cake mixture.

Nadan Chemmen ( Prawn )Roast.

It is a very very common recipe. But still if some one or the other may be benefited by my post :)

Ingredients

Prawns - 1/2 kg

Onion - 2 Big

Ginger Garlic paste - 1 Tspn

Chilli Powder - 2 Tbl Spn

Corriander - 1 Tbl Spn

Turmeric - 1 Tspn

Garam Masala  - 1 Tbl Spoon

Pepper Powder - 1 1/2 T spoon

Oil

Salt

Curry Leaves.

Preparation

Cook Prawns by adding turmeric , pepper powder salt and water.

Once half cooked add some chilli powder corriander powder and garam masala.

Cook till the prawns are properly cooked.

Take a pan add oil it can be either coconut oil or any refined oil.

If you need nadan taste add cococnut oil.

Add ginger garlic paste then onions saute well once its half done add the masalas again accordingly initially the powders were added when prawn were cooked so add carefully according to u choice of spicy.

Then add curry leave. Saute it and cook it on low flame until it turn to dark brown color.

Serve with Rice 

Layered Puttu with Soya Chunk Masala

Layered Puttu(Steam Cake) with Soya Chunk Masala

Step 1

Ingredients for Steam Cake (Puttu)

Rice Flour – 2 Cups

Salt

Water

Step 2

Ingredients for Soya Chunk Masala

Soya Chunks Uncooked – 1 Cup

Onions – 2 Medium Sized

Tomato -1 Medium Sized
Ginger Garlic Paste - 2 Tspn

Chilli Powder – 2 Tbl Spoon (Increase / Decrease according to ur Taste Buds)

Coriander Powder – 1 Tbl Spoon

Garam Masala – 2 Tbl Spoon

Fennel Seeds – 1 Tsp

Salt

Refined Oil

Curry Leaves

Preparation

First Mix Rice flour with boiled water and salt – Too much of water not required

Soya Masala

First Cook the soya chunks in a pressure cooker to 3 or 4 whistles.

Drain it and add some curry leaves and mash it with a hand blender.

Take a pan add oil and put ginger garlic paste and some fenugreek seeds and add onions and sauté till transparent

Add tomatoes then add all the above powders. Half done add the mashed soya.

Saute till it become dry and medium brown colour

Step 3

Now take the Shell of Coconut which is properly cleaned and make a hole at the bottem to place it in pressure cooker.

Initially put some soya masala in coconut shell then some rice flour mixture which is done per step1 then add masala . (In Total make multilayer’s with soya masala and rice flour.

Place the mixture filled coconut on a pressure cooker and steam it.

Recipe is done. Its healthy n tasty too…I guarantee the people who don’t like soya will also love this... :)

Strawberry Smoothie

Strawberry Smoothie 

Ingredients

Fresh Strawberry – 6 Nos

Strawberry Ice cream – 4 scoops

Milk (Full Fat)– 2 ½ Cup

Sugar – 4 Tbspn

Strawberry Syrup – (Optional) For Garnishing

Preparation.

Initially Blend the strawberry by adding little milk so that it will become thick paste.

(If you put all the above mixture and blend there are chances that strawberry won’t be blended properly)

After blending strawberry add the above ingredients and again blend it.

Garnish According to your Aesthetic sense :)

Fish Molly

Fish Molly

Ingredients 

Fish – Perl Spot/King Fish – ½ kg

Grated Coconut – 1 No

Onion – 2 Big

Turmeric Powder – 1 ½ Tsp

Coriander Powder – 1 Tsp

Chili Powder -2 Tsp

Green Chilies - 4 No’s

Coconut Oil – 2 Tbsp

Curry Leaves – 15 No’s

Salt as per taste

Preparation.

Initially you have to make the coconut milk of 1 full grated coconut.

Add the above ingredients in to it excluding Fish and Coconut Oil.

Place the vessel on flame. Once the mix start boiling Put the fish Into it and keep it

on medium flame.

Once the fish is properly cooked you can add the coconut Oil and turn off .

If you need it more spicy increase the no of green chillies rather than chilli powder 

Note : If are planning the same for dinner please make it at least 5 hours before so that the taste will be much better.

You can have this with Chappathi/Appam/Bread/Rice.

Rava (Semolina ) Pudding

Rava (Semolina ) Pudding

For Caramelising

Sugar - 2 1/2 Table spoon

Water - 2 Table Spoon

First Step

Take a Pan in which you are going go set the pudding (Preferably some steel pan)

Put the sugar into it and add the water.

Stir it well until it becomes brown. Control the flame otherwise chances that it will get burnt.

Once done keep it aside to cool.( After some time it will get firm)


Second Ingredients for pudding.

Milk - 2 Cup

Semolina (Rava) - 2 1/2 Table Spoon

Sugar - 8 Table Spoon ( Can increase or decrease according to ur choice)

Ghee - 1 1/2 Table Spoon

Eggs - 2

Grated Coconut - 2 Table Spoon

Vanilla Essence - 2 Table Spoon


Preparation method. ( 1st Step )

Take another pan then add milk , rava(semolina) , ghee , sugar then place it on flame.

Stir well and cook it until rava(semolina) is properly cooked and it the mixture becomes thick.

After that keep it aside till the mixture comes to room temperature


Preparation method. ( 2nd Step )

Mix eggs , grated coconut and vanilla essence ( With help of a blender blend it)

Preparation method. ( 3rd Step )


Mix the First and second mixtures properly and pour it in to the caramelised vessel and close it with a lid /steel plate


Preparation ( ( 4th Step )

Take a cooker or Idly Vessel.


Take water in the vessel and put some metal like plates or small stands in it place the vessel which contains the mixture on top of the stand. (Water should not reach more than half of the vessel containing the mixture ) Make sure while boiling the water wont get inside the mixture.


If you are doing in a pressure cooker no need to put the weight.
If you are doing idly vessel u can cover it.

Cook the above mixture again for 45 minutes.

In pressure cooker once the pressure start coming u can adjust the flame to medium.

In idly vessel u can put it on hight flame also and on n off adjust flame if needed .

Once done Take a plate where you are going to arrange the pudding after removing the lid of the vessel containing the pudding keep the garnishing plate on the top of the vessel containing pudding and keep it upside down.


Then the caramelised part will be on top. Garnish it according to ur sense (
Can use cherry nuts kiss-miss(dried grapes) or even fresh fruits.


I used Milky bar white chocolate due to the non availability of the above garnishing products :)

Njoy the pudding once its cool or even u can refrigerate it

Kappa n Meen Curry

Kappa n Meen Curry

Boil the tapioca in Cooker for 3 whistles with turmeric and salt.(Depends on Quality of Tapioca)

Once done drain water.

2 Table spoon oil
1 Onion Big
Mustard
Dry Chilly
Curry Leaf
Salt

Saute the above ingredients in Oil and garnish the cooked tapioca

Alappuzha Special Fish Curry 

Fish - 1/2 kg

Cocunut Oil - 3 table spoon

(Dried Chilly /Corriander/ Fenugreek and Pepper) dried and pwdered (Spcl kind of Homemade Fish Curry Mix) - 3 table spoon 

Mustard

Fenu Greek

Shallots - 8 to 10 No's

Ginger garlic paste - 1 1/2 table spoon

Gambooge (Kudam Puli) - 3 medium pieces

Curry Leaf


splutter mustard and fenugreek seed in oil

add ginger garlic paste to it

once its slightly brown add shallots and little salt

Once the shallots are slightly brown add the Fish masala mix which is made to a paste by adding sufficient water.

Can add lil fenugreek powder as per your taste ( Not compulsary since its in already in Fish Masala Mix)
Saute it till the oil is visible on top

Add necessary water for the gravy 

Add Gambooge 

Once the Gravy start to boil add the fish peases and the necessary salt.

U can add lil more oil may be a tea spoon and curry leaves before 2 min u remove it from the flame.

Egg Noodles

Egg Noodles
Ingredients
Egg 3 Nos
Plain noodles / Egg Noodles 1 & 1/2 cup
Onion - 1 (Medium Sized)
Finely cut cabbage 3/4 cup
Carrot 1
Capsicum 1/2
Beans 1/2 cup
Spring onion 3 sprigs
Pepper 1/2 tsp
Soy Sauce 1 & 1/2 tsp (Tomato Sauce Optional) 
Salt As needed
Garlic Pods 5 Nos (Chinese Garlic)

Oil 2 tbl spn

Preparation

Cook noodles in 3-4 cups of water and cook noodles for 3-4 minutes. Make sure its not over cooked. Drain water and wash it to remove the excess starch and add 1 tsp oil and mix well to avoid sticking.
Cut veggies into fine thin strips and the spring onions (White Portion).
Take a Pan /Kadai add oil then
Add the sliced garlic into it.
Add the thin sliced Onion and when it turns transparent add all the thin sliced veggies in to it. (No need to over cook. Let the crispness of veggies remain)
Then add Pepper powder soy sauce sauté well still its spread over the veggies.
Add the Cooked Noodles and required salt since soy sauce contains salt please check the salt before u add.
Mix it well .

Make scrambled egg (Not compulsory to add onions).

Add to the above cooked Noodles and add the Green portion of spring onions just before u remove from flame.

Serve it with Tomato Sauce.

Mutter Paneer

 



Mutter Paneer


Ingredients
1/ glass green peas (Soak in water)
200 gms paneer
1 onion
1 tomato
4-6 pepper corns
3 green chilly ( reduce according to u taste)
3 cardamoms
3 – 4 cloves
1 tsp cumin seed / cumin powder ( add according to ur taste)
20 – 25 number cashews ( soak it)
6 numbers kissmiss
Chilly powder – 1tsp
Coriander Powder – 1 tbs
Turmeric – 1 Tsp
Coriander Leaf –Few
SlatOil

Preparation


Sauté onion peppercorns cardamom cumin seeds / powder cloves, green chilies(small size)
When it becomes slight brown grind it.
Grind the cashes and kissmiss too and mix both 1ST AND 2nd mixtures
Take a pan add oil the sauté a tomato put the onion and cashew mixture in to it. Add chilly powder coriander powder n turmeric powder (sauté well still its completely mixed.
Add cooked green peas to above mixture
(Tip for Green peas not to be over cooked ( 1 Whistle in cooker) then allow it cook still the complete pressure goes off.)
After adding green peas add the fired paneer cubes in to above mixture.
(Tip for frying paneer ( Fry paneer in low flame) once fried you can put them in normal water and the keep in a dried vessel so that paneer will remain soft.)
Now the curry is almost done..add salt according to ur taste.
Add coriander leaf according to ur choice.
Finally this is a secret tip add lil sugar( 1 tea spoon )
Garnish with coriander n cashew grinded mixture.

My Little Toddler Turns 1 :)

It has been a long time I have posted something on my blog. Don't know whatz the reason for that may be I was lil lazy, lost interest , was a bit busy,lack of an interesting topic what ever.It has been almost 7 months I have wrote a blog. I think this is the right time , no the best time restart my blogging.
 I am sorry to say after being a mother the first n foremost topic which comes to my mind will be always my Li'l toddler Daksh.

I don't know how time flew , It has been 12 great months that my daksh'u is born. Today he'z turning 1.He'z gonna lit his first candle on his B'day cake. As a mother I am  really proud :)

All through this 12 months journey , I njoyed thoroughly . But its not that an easy journey. Every one will always  have a love for kids. Even I  had the same. I never understood the hardship behind bringing up a child.Now I thoroughly understand what a mother is what  motherhood is. But I cannot ever say I am a perfect mother. Due to my  work n busy schedules on days Daksh'u is missing some many things .But he'z such a sweet heart that he never has any complaints, until n until he is sick. Some time when I leave him n get back to office he innocently smiles at me even though he might be knowing his amma is gonna leave him :) I should thank my better half Dakshu's Dad for his immense support in bringing up Dakshu's . In all his busy schedules tiresome journey he always find time for his  sweet lil one. I may get irritated to Dakshu's acts but he never ever do that to daksh'u. I really love  u dear with out u this journey will never be so smooth for me.

What ever may be the hardships at the end of the day when Daksh'u smiles at me ..... That makes my whole day :)

These were my emotional part towards Daksh'u but there is naughty part tooo. As all kids Dakshu is also "Very Very Very Naughty". I can't imagine what all does he do. Throw my moblie, Bang on my Laptop, Transfer his washed clothes from his cloth box to his laundry bag, bites me , cries for unnecessary stuffs , adamant at time....will make whole house a mess if he'z given a chance :)

Apart from all these fact I love my Daksh'u...He'z my apple of an eye :) Love u Daksh'u

Amma n Acha Loves u lot....N We both wish you a very very Happy First B'day.......

Daksh story continuessssssss..............................

The Day When He Born August 3rd 2011

                   Now -    August 2nd 2012


Love you Daksh'u N God Bless u my lil Pumpkin :)