Palada Pradhaman and Ethakka Pradhaman (Banana Pradhaman) for the Onam Sadya

I make it a point to cook the onam sadya I mean the whole thing alright... which are 1.Rice....2...Cherupayyar Parippu... 3...Sambhar 4... Kalan 5...Olan 6.... Errisery 7.... Pachhadi 8.... Kichhadi 9....Inji -Puliyyum 10....Palalada Payasam 11,,,, Ethakka Payasam 12.... Avial 13... Pappad 14...Uppe 15.......Upperi 16....Sharakkara Perittiyathu 17....Pickle 18.....Neiyye 19..... Pazham  and for the 20.....we had naadan beef olathu (kerala style beef ) yup a non vegetarian Onam for a change! So let's get on with the recipes for the Payasams.


Palada Pradhaman
Ingredients:
Instant Ada - 250 gms
Butter - 1 1/2 dsp
Milk - 8 cup
Condensed Milk - 1 tin
Sugar - 1 cup (you could decide to add more or less depending on the sweetness level)
Rice Flour - 1 dsp
Cashewnuts - 1/4 cup, sliced and fried in ghee
Cardamom Powder - 1/2 tsp

Pressure cook the ada in about 6-8 cups of water till soft and done. Drain the ada and pour cold water over it and keep aside. Into a large pot, melt the butter and add the cooked ada. Stir on a low flame gently taking care the ada does not break. Add in all the milk leaving behind a cup to be mixed with the rice flour, condensed milk and sugar. Stir the remaining milk and rice flour together and add to the pot. Stir the mixture continuously and allow the mixture to simmer and thicken. Take off the stove and add in the fried cashews and the cardamom powder.

Ethakka Pradhaman

Ingredients:
Boiled and mashed Banana without seeds - 2 cups (The Kerala Banana)
Molasses - 400gms
Coconut Milk - 4 cups
Sago - 2 dsp
Cardamom Powder - 1 tsp
Fried Cashewnuts - 1/4 cup

Mix in the molasses with a little water and bring to a boil until it turns into thick syrup, strain several times before use because of the impurities.
Next into a large heavy based pot, mix in the mashed bananas and the molasses together till well combined and mixed well. Add in the thin coconut milk little by little stirring constantly. Add the sago to the mixture. As the mixture starts to thicken, add in the thick coconut milk and lower the flame, stir until the payasam is warmed through. Add in the cardamom powder and take off the heat. Tip in the fried cashews and serve warm with pappad and pickle!

Oatmeal, Cranberry, Raisin and White Chocolate Cookies

Food Panda ~ Ordering in Your Food Online

I remember the days when I was a kid, my dad had this specific plastic folder with all the menu cards stashed of every possible restaurant that had on their front page written ' Home Delivery Available'. Im talking about the days when the internet still did not exist. And those days home delivered food was a joy to look forward too!!! But now we stand at an age, where we are a click away to anything and everything. And now with the complexities of our day to day schedules, take away dinners are regular amongst most city-dwellers. To make that task a lot more easier, go onto www.foodpanda.in and then order in for  your gourmet meal for the day!

Step 1 : On to your browser type in www.foodpanda.in

Step 2 : Enter Your City and then Enter Your Location

Step 3: Order Your Food 

Step 4: Pay Cash Online or Cash on Delivery

And it automatically lists down your options of  restaurants that will deliver within the radius of your locality. Since I didn't have much of an option for Banaswadi Area I typed in Kammanahalli instead and it listed down more. And I  then selected Pars Restaurant and clicked onto the Menu for options. Once that was done, it was all about selecting the dishes and on the right hand side a window with the confirmed orders as well as the amount is shown and then you proceed to the Check Out Box. Then all that is required is to input your address of delivery  for home delivery and or opt for picking it up from the restaurant at a specific time with the options of paying it online or even Cash on Delivery. 

It couldn't get any simpler, the entire ordeal hardly took me 7 minutes to do and what do you know, I get a call from the Restaurant as well as from Food Panda within minutes of my order. The food arrived piping hot and it just made one of our mundane evenings a delight. Not to mention the food we ordered were also flavorful and rightfully spiced. I did note that both the restaurant and Food Panda confirm on your order but they also ensure the said time limits are also promised which is most rewarding. I did use Food Panda on a different occasion from a different location to ensure the service I was provided with the first time is delivered the second time. And it worked for me twice! Well what do you know, a click away its all about logging in, and knowing what your palate is craving for the day too.

What's to notice about Food Panda is the ease with which the platform is created, and its rather comforting to know that consumers can get their favorite meals rather instantaneously without hassles. Foodpanda, is in cooperation with over 300 restaurants in and around Bangalore and with a wide range of great and unique culinary choices. So there is no way one could get disappointed. The next time your short of choices and set to order in from your home or even office so that you could pick up your grub on the way you know the where and how to get your favourite meal done...

For more information do log on http://www.foodpanda.in or http://www.foodpanda.in/restaurants

Garlic Rolls ~ The Eggless Way!!!

Vanilla Cake for Mum's Birthday!!!!

Beef Chopsuey

A classic chinese - american dish that we love as it is and goes great with some egg noodles!

Servings: 2

Ingredients

250 Grams  - Top Round Steak, Thinly Sliced

1⁄4 Teaspoon  - Black Pepper Powder

1⁄4 Teaspoon -  Salt

2 - Small Onions, Cut Into Wedges

1 - Celery Stick, Sliced

6 - Mushrooms, Mushrooms

1 - Tablespoon Soy Sauce

1 - Teaspoon Molasses

1 - Cup Beef Stock

3⁄4 Cup - French Beans, Cut Into 1 Inch Pieces

1 Tablespoon - Cornflour

1⁄4 - Cup Water

1. Marinate the sliced beef with salt and pepper for about 30 minutes. Heat oil in a non stick frying pan and fry the beef on high heat. Remove with slotted spoon onto a plate and keep aside.

2. In the same pan, saute the onion, slice celery and mushrooms for a minute, without losing the crispness. Add the soy sauce, molasses and stock and bring to a rapid boil until the stock has reduced to half. Finally add in the french beans and cook till al-dente.

3. Mix the cornflour and water and add to the pan, stirring constantly until thickened. Return the beef to the pan and stir well.

Pecan Treacle Tart

Tip: If you're not a fan of pecans, you could substitute it with wlanus

Chicken Shaslik

Tarragon Chicken ~ One of Nigella Lawson's Best

Do any of those recipes you know, sort of reach out to you? I was watching my share of Nigella Express on television in the afternoon, and she wooed with me with this simplistic recipe. The sort of recipe that involves hardly an effort and yet so elegant to charm your friends for an informal dinner.

Ingredients:

Chicken Breast- 4

Shallots - 12  (roughly chopped)

White Wine - 700ml\

Olive oil

Butter

Salt - to taste

Pepper - a generous pinch

Flour

Fresh Tarragon - chopped or torn

Creme Fraiche - 6 tbs

Cream - 2 tbs

Lime Juiced - 1 lime

Preheat oven to 180 C Season the flour.Coat the chicken pieces in the flour.Heat the olive oil in a heavy cast iron casserole, brown the chicken until golden brown. Remove chicken to a plate. Add shallots to the pan, add a knob of butter.Turn the heat down low and soften shallots. Return chicken to pan. Slosh in the wine and reduce slightly. Add tarragon and creme fraiche. Cook in the oven for 45 mins.Remove and taste for seasoning. Add lemon juice and a dash of cream. Return to oven for a further 15 minutes.Garnish with some finely chopped tarragon, serve with basmati rice.

Coq Au Vin

It was one of those days when the rains were heavy, the skies were obviously dark and grey and the air had the chill associated with the rains. And while enjoying my evening mug of good coffee, my door bell rings and I receive a bottle of Four Season's Red Wine - Merlot. I knew I had to review this bottle of wine as per the email exchanges in the last two weeks. It couldn't have come on a better day, because I had stocked my pantry and fridge with some stuff that I knew would come in handy and boy! it did!
Merlot is Ruby Red in colour with a hint of garnet, vinified with delicious ripe black fruits and plums. The wine has a medium body with a soft tanin and a pleasant lasting finish.So the plan was to come up with a charming rustic french classic the Coq Au Vin. I had been dying to make it and not that I'm some confident cook with the wines but I decided to experiment with the bottle that I got. Coq Au Vin is a kind of slow cooked stew that is cooked with chicken in red wine with braised small onions, mushrooms and lardons of bacon. All this combined makes it a satisfying meal for a company with some freshly baked loaf bread and boiled potatoes as a side dish.

Ingredients:
Chicken - 1 large cut into 6-8 pieces, with the skin
Olive Oil - 2 tbsps
Butter - 2 tbsps
Bacon - 1 packet (250 gms) chopped
Brandy - 1/2 cup
Merlot - 750ml (or any dry red wine)
Fresh Herbs pf celery, parsley, bay ;eaf and thyme - ½ cup, chopped
Garlic - 4 cloves, crushed
Mushrooms - 1 packet (250 gms), cleaned, whole
Shallots - 12 whole, skinned
Flour  - 2 tbsps
Salt and pepper to season

Melt the oil and butter and fry the bacon and the onions. Add the chicken pieces. Brown on all sides. Coat with the flour. Set the brandy alight over a flame and pour over the chicken.
Add all the other ingredients to the pan, except the mushrooms. The wine should cover the chicken. Cover with a lid and cook for approximately 45 minutes to 1 hour. Remove the chicken pieces when done. Add the mushrooms and boil until the sauce thickens. Pour over the chicken pieces and serve with boiled potatoes or crusty bread.

Tip: You could go easy on the wine by replacing some of the wine with chicken stock

Banana Chocolate and Pistachio Loaf Cake

Peanut Butter and White Chocolate Chip Cookies

Watermelon Popsicles

So I was in Kuwait last October and in my usual visit to IKEA, while my eyes scout for stuff I don't have, there in a big metal bin lie these gorgeous blue and green, yellow and pink Popsicle molds. I mean without even a flicker of doubt on whether I need them? will I use them?! didn't even arise, they went straight for billing... lest I changed my mind you know later maybe......
So during the summer hols me and my lil one put them to use by making some watermelon popsicles. Ooh!!! I tell you there is no limit to the joy in licking on a popsicle and giving them all the attention - you know childish fun!!







Ingredients:
[Yields 12 popsicles[
Watermelon - 2 cups, de-seeded and diced
Sugar - only if required about 2-3tbs
Lemon Juice - 2tbs

Blitz everything into a blender and pour into the molds. Freeze them overnight and they are ready.

Jam Cupcakes with Chocolate Frosting

Pepper and Garlic Pork Stir Fry

Karimeen Moily ~ Pearl Spot in Spicy Coconut Milk

White Chocolate and Pistachio Buns

Tintin and Snomy Cake for the 6th Birthday

It was my son's 6th birthday and I seriously wanted to do his cake this year-phew... finally. I haven't mastered the icing technique but yes I know which icing tip for the what, why, when, and the know-hows. Even if I'm not all that good with my hands I still wanted to do it. After a night full of events, like power - cuts while baking, I stamped my no.18 wilton star icing nozzle, I still managed to complete and accomplish this cake somehow in time for the party. I'm happy with my outcome though I admit I could have done a slightly more neater job. But hey I managed to somehow do the icing with some stashed away star tip.

I baked two chocolate cakes stacked them up with a layer of buttercream in between. And for the Tintin I resorted to buttercream icing rather than fondant coz these kids peel the thing off and eat only the cake - and seriously I'd feel sad for the efforts that goes into all the kneading and the tinting and making to bring the cake to life.

Ever since the Tintin Movie release, my son has been hooked onto it, watches an episode of Tintin on the discovery kids and makes me read the comics as his bedtime story. And when he saw the cake he just went "Wow Mama - I love this". I mean that makes up for all the emotions I went through. I'm happy with my imperfect cake for this year, I hope to get better with each one each year!!!

California Pizza Kitchen Small Cravings Festival

Thai Chicken Satay

California Pizza Kitchen introduces their Short Eats, Small Cravings festival which kick started on the 5th of March and is on till the end of the March. And since then some of the short eats remains on the menu. CPK is a chain widely known for its innovative  and non traditional pizza, they also serve various kinds of pasta, salads and desserts. The last month the fest was all about showcasing a set of 8 appetizers which are not on their menu. The idea is to bring their discerning patrons a taste of the best the professionals at CPK have innovated.

Bocconcini & Cherry Tomato Bruschetta

The Pan Asian Style Chicken Cakes, are crunchy little morsels and goes well with your drinks. The Crispy Mac and Cheese is a good twist to the kids menu. The regular Mac and Cheese which is then made into small b little balls, coated with panko bread crumbs and then deep fried. Anything deep fried is a definite hit for anyone in general, and this appetizer just made us go for a second.

Chicken Taquitos

Crispy Mac & Cheese

The short eats festival had the following dishes to try Bocconcini & Cherry Tomato Bruschetta a good bite into a soft boncoccini against the tardiness of the tomatoes with a crunch. Black Bean Quesadillas, which  is a simple. Thai Chicken Satay, an appetizer, where I found the peanut dip too good to resist with the perfectly grilled chicken. The Serrano Cheese Toast, which were pretty ordinary cheesy toasts with a bite of the chili and onion and nothing really to rave about.

Serrano Cheese Toast

 The Chicken Taquitos are plateful of crispy rolls with a filling of chicken served with a dip of a good salsa. All these appetizers come at a price of INR149. And after all the samplers we had on the table, one cannot end a meal without going for a slice of pizza. We had the

Black Bean Quesadilla

The desserts at CPK are worth not only a mention but worth a dig, because you'd be licking your spoon with an indulgence that would leave you in nothing short of a "sugar high". The CPK signature Red Velvet Cake and Tiramisu are their fastest moving and I wouldn't disagree on that. The Red Velvet Cake are layers of red cake with a creamy vanilla cream cheese frosting.

The Tiramisu beckons to all Coffee and Chocolate lovers. The tag line of this dessert is "pick me up" is an indulgence of Italian Mascarpone, with lady fingers soaked in Kahlua and espresso, topped with a Coffee sabayon and grated chocolate. This is my personal favorite due to my chocolate and coffee inclination above all flavors.

Two new entrants to the dessert menu is the White Chocolate Praline Mousse, bound to be a hit. The praline base is enriched with  pistachio and then covered in a decadent chocolate ganche. CPK goes tropical with the other new dessert which is the Coconut Banana Cake another goodness of the coconut and banana creme with a side curlicue of whipped cream.

Now if you were to not go on a gastronomic high then for sure I'd be lying! Try CPK for their new entrants on the menu and enjoy some excitingly new flavors this year! I'm sure to hear great reviews for CPK, let me know your experiences too!!!! Cheers.

California Pizza Kitchen 
284, 100 Feet Road, Indiranagar

Tel: 080 64048888, 080 64058888

Valet Parking Available

Barleyz ~ A Restaurant Review

Barleyz is known as the Beer Garden. It was crowded with the HIPPEST crowd on a Saturday night, just like it should be. And no wonder it's one of the 'places to be'.  Barleyz is situated in Koramangala opposite the Sony World Signal and spread over 30,000 sq ft across two floora. The place is stylish in its own way with a starry sky above you just to set you to a relaxing evening.There are, however, wooden benches, islands of greenery, examples of handsome garden furniture, soft lights and grills for a barbecue to add to the overall fun night.

 I was surprised by the kind of crowd that came by, you have the ones that have come to a place for the perfect family outing with the kids. They get to enjoy a nice kids play area that will keep them occupied for sure. The bar menu is rather limited for now as the microbrewery license is yet to come, and when it does what is expected to be a hit is the fruit beer that will be infused with local flavors such as coriander, jaggery, coconut, apple cider, along with the English and Belgian Style Ale. But you could still be spoilt with the
available choices. We that is me and my husband tried the Bar Man Special Mocktail which was a refreshing kiwi aerated drink.
The food emphasis is largely what people order with their drinks. Their BBQ non vegetarian and vegetarian starters or finger foods like the Lamb Seekh, Paprika Chicken, Harissa Fish, Garlic Prawns, Murg Dhaniya Tikka, Stuffed Tandoori Mushrooms, Paneer Saunfiani Tikka are all subtly flavored.

The Malai Brocolli, Chatpate Aloo,Thai Crispy Vegetables were also relatively simple yet flavorful  By the time the starters were done we were sort of done in our tummies. Yet the Chef insisted we try the Coca-Spanish Pizza with Chorizo, tomatoes, prawns, manchego cheese baked and topped with pepper aioli. It was indeed a delight and a piquant mix of flavors and textures to the palate.

Of course there are other options when it comes to the mains such as the Chicken Biriyani, Dal Makhani, Tandoori Breads, Punjabi Lamb Curry which all seem rather pedestrian as compared to their starters and in all fairness could give this a miss. From the small bowl section of the menu, we tried the Spaghetti with the Mascarpone cheese and Bacon rashers - an absolute hit and definitely a lasting memory for me. And for dessert not that we had too many choices and we tried the chocolate mousse, now one couldn't go wrong with that. And with that Chocola-tey goodness in our mouths that brought us to the end of a fabulous weekend night out...

Barleyz
Barleyz Junction, Above KFC and Pantaloon, Sony World Crossing, Koramangala

Tel: 080 6716 9610, 6756 999

Opening Hours: 6:30pm onwards

Valet Parking Available