The Bewitching Spiral Apple Bread

Baking bread is always a delightful experience , I still recollect my first attempt when I would faithfully watch the yeast proof,lift the towel on the dough bowl to see if it is ready to punch down and the joyfull aroma of bread fill the kitchen while baking.My heart would pound with excitement when I pull the bread out from the oven.I relive these lovely moments whenever I bake any type of bread be it a simple loaf, or stuffed bun or a braided bread.

When I saw this bread on treatandtrick I bookmarked it immediately and tried as soon as I got a chance.I am so glad it turned out so good.This spiral apple bread is crusty on the outside and flaky on the inside with a divinely soft flavor of apple.

Ingredients

• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 3/4 cup warm milk
• 2 tbsp melted butter
• 2 tbsp sugar
• 1.5 tsp instant yeast
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 apples cored and sliced

Topping

• 1/4 cups melted butter
• 1/4 cup sugar or to taste

Make: 2 bread spirals

Procedure

Step 1: Making the Dough

In a big bowl add yeast,sugar,salt n warm milk let it sit for 10 min. It will become foamy. Then add butter mix nicely. Then add flour slowly 1/2 cup at a time n stir with spatula. Then take it out of the bowl n on a lightly floured surface knead it for 5 min n then make it into a ball. Grease it with oil then put it in a bowl n cover with a damp cloth n let it sit for 1 hr.

After a hour or till the dough become double.Take it out n punch it in the center to take all the air out and knead for 5 min.Now divide the dough into two parts.

Step 2: Shaping and Assembly

Take one part and flatten it with a roller into rectangle shape as thin as a chappati and cut vertically into 9 strips. Take a 8inch round baking pan and grease it with butter.

Starting at the center of pan take one strip of dough and coil it initially in one round then add apple slices and bind with the strip.Continue to place apple slice and coil it further. Once the first strip is over join with the next strip and simultanously add apple slices within it.Continue till all strips are over.

Repeat the same for the second part of the dough.

Step 3:Baking and Glazing

Let it sit for 30 minutes.In the meantime preheat the oven to 190 degree Celsius.Bake for 30 minutes or till it becomes golde brown. Remove from oven brush with melted butter and sprinkle with sugar powder.

Cut into wedges and enjoy.

Submitting this recipe to a wonderful event hosted by Fun and Food Cafe and Cooks Joy

Ridge Gourd Chutney / Beerakaya Pachadi

A simple delicious chutney is a great way to start a meal in andhra.It is a common practise to have this chutney as a accompaniment with rice. However this goes well with rotis too. Here is the recipe.

Ingredients

• 250 gms ridge gourd
• 1 1/2 tbsp urad dal
• 4 red chillies
• 1 tsp jeera/cummin seds
• 1/2 tsp mustard seeds
• pinch of fenugreek seeds
• pinch sugar
• little tamarind
• 2 tsp oil
• salt to taste

For tempering

• 1/4 tsp mustard seeds
• 1 red chilli
• pinch of hing/asafoetida
• 1 spring curry leaves

Procedure

Wash the ridge gourd and chop it into medium size chucks.Keep aside.

Heat 1 tsp oil in a pan, add urad dal, cummin , mustard and fenugreek seeds. Once cummin seeds starts to splutter add red chillies and saute if for a min. Transfer it then to a plate.Once it cools grind to a fine powder.

In the same pan add 1 tsp of oil and the choped ridge gourd and fry for 1-2 minutes or until it becomes translucent. Do not overcook it. Switch off the flame.

Once it cools add the ridge gourd to the above grinded powder with tamarind,salt,sugar and grind to a fine paste.

Transfer it to a serving bowl.

Prepare the tempering with 1 tsp oil in a pan.Add mustard seeds,hing. Once it splutter add the red chillies and curry leaves and saute it for 1/2 min and immediately pour it over the chutney.

Mix and serve it with rice or chappati.

Note: 
1.Do not peel the ridge gourd as it gives a unique flavor and it is full of fibre.
2.Do not overcook the ridge gourd as it will loose its flavor.

Posting this recipe to  a wonderful event Simply Sides hosted by Sumee Culinary

Flavorful Amaranth Vegetable Curry

Are you looking for a new side dish that is healthy but also quick to prepare ? 

I learned this dish from one of my best friend mom who visits chennai occasionally.The secret of this recipe is the unique blend of spices simmered with amaranth leaves and veggies.This dish is a flavorful accompaniment for rice and even rotis. So here is the recipe

Ingredients

• 1 cup tightly packed chopped leaves
• 2 small sliced brinjals
• 5 diced ladyfingers
• 1 small lemon sized tamarind pulp
• 1 tbsp oil

To temper

• 1/2 tsp jeera/cummin seeds
• 1/2 tsp mustard seeds
• 2 long red chillies
• 1 spring curry leaves
• a pinch of methi/fenugreek seeds

To paste

• 2 tsp soaked rice
• 1 tsp sesame seeds
• 1/2 tsp mustard seeds
• 3 red chillies
• a pinch of hing

Soak rice for 20 minutes and make a fine paste with the other ingredients and keep aside.

Heat oil in a pan and add cummin,mustard and fenugreek seeds, once mustard seeds splutter add red chilli and curry leave and stir nicely. Now all the veggies (brinjal, ladiesfinger and the greens), tamarind pulp,salt and turmeric and mix nicely,add 1/2cup water and cover it and let it cook till veggies become soft.

Once the veggies are cooked add the above prepared paste and let it cook for 5 minutes, check the consistency if it is too thick add little water and let it cook.Once it is done serve hot with rice.

Low Fat Eggless Banana Bread

This is my first cake recipe without eggs and believe me you won’t miss the eggs! With it unique blend of ingredients you can still make a eggless cake that can rock a party.The original recipe was adopted from Jayshris Kitchen who inspired me to try this recipe. I changed it a bit to suit my taste-buds. It came out very well soft, moist with a tender flavor of bananas. Here is the recipe ...

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup wholewheat flour
• 1/2 cup all purpose flour
• 3/4 cup brown sugar
• 2 ripe bananas
• 1/4 cup milk
• 2 tbsp yogurt
• 1/4 cup oil
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon powder
• 1 tsp vanilla essence
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tbsp tutty fruity
• 1/8 tsp salt

Procedure
Preheat the oven to 180 degree Celsius.Grease the loaf pan and keep aside. Sieve the dry ingredients,wheat flour, all purpose flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and cinnamon powder together 3 times.

Beat milk and sugar together till sugar dissolves.Add oil,yogurt,mashed banana, vanilla extract and mix nicely.Combine with the above dry ingredients and mix nicely until all lumps dissappear. Pour the batter in a 9x5x3 inch loaf pan upto 3/4 level.Sprinkle some tutty fruity over it. Bake for 50 minutes and test with a toothpick in the very center of the loaf to come out clean.Let it cool on a cooling rack, slice and enjoy.

Note:
1.You can replace brown sugar with normal sugar but it will be more sweeter.
2.Adding cinnamon powder is optional however it gives a good flavor.

Creamy Aloo Palak Gravy

Potato and spinach simmered in milk with some traditional indian spices which make this gravy have a heavenly flavor .If you have some guests at home and want to make something easy,delightful and healthy this would be the ideal choice. It is the perfect accompaniment for roti and rice. So here is the recipe

Ingredients

• 1 cup diced potato
• 1/4 cup chopped onion
• 1 bunch palak/spinach
• 1/2 tsp urad dal /
• 1/4 tsp cummin seeds
• 1 cup milk
• 1-2 green chillies
• 1 tbsp oil
• 1/2 tsp besan / chickpea flour
• salt to taste

Procedure

Mix the besan with the milk and keep aside .

Heat oil in a pan, add cummin seeds, urad dal, green chilli and fry. Add the onions and fry till translucent then add the potato and salt fry till it become tender.

Now add chopped palak stir, then add the milk mixture and mix nicely. And let it cook till palak is done.Serve immediately with roti or rice.

Note: Adding besan to milk will avoid the milk to curdle.

A Besan Sooji Barfi for a Celebration

The celebration of my 200th post seems to coincide with a popular Ranbir Kapoor movie "Barfi"!! This besan sooji barfi will definitely take you to a new high. It is also one of my favorite sweets my mom used to make for me from childhood.

This barfi has a unique chrunchy texture and melts in your mouth effortlessly.I am dedicating the celebration of my 200th post to my mom. Here is the recipe she taught me ...

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup besan/chickpea flour
• 1 cup sooji/semolina
• 1/2 cup grated coconut(fresh or frozen)
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup ghee/clarified butter
• pinch of cooking soda
• 2 crushed cardomon

Procedure

Add a tsp ghee to a plate and spread on the plate completely and keep aside.
Fry coconut,besan,sooji each seperately with a tbsp of ghee and then mix all together and keep aside.

To prepare the syrup take a heavy deep bottom pan dissolve the sugar in 1/2 cup water and boil till it has a one thread consistency.

Now add the fried flour mixture prepared earlier to the syrup and begin to stir it well.
Then add ghee slowly spoon by spoon and continue stiring,when adding the last spoon of ghee add the cooking soda and crushed cardomaon and continue stiring.

Once the mixture starts to seperate from the pan bottom stop the process immediately .Spread it in the ghee coated plate equally, immediately cut to desired shape, and let it cool.

Once it cools you can remove it piece by piece and store it.

Note:

• It is very crucial the mixture should not overcook, once it begins to seperate from pan immediately remove from flame otherwise it will crumble to tiny lumps.
•  Adding soda makes it melt faster when you have a bite.
•  To spread the mixture in the plate equally while pouring,tap the plate it continously for mixture to settle equally.
•  It is important to cut the shapes after you pour it into the plate immediately as it wouldnt be possible once it cools.  

Vada Pav The Little Wonder

Vada pav the king of mumbai street food.Pav was introduced to india by the portugese and the combination of vada with pav a invention of maharashtra.The fusion of cultures in your little palm that can be relished with a hot cup of tea.There are many other street foods like pav bhaji, masal pav but vada pav beats them all by its sheer size and prize that can fill you up in a wink.

You can buy the bread/pav in any departmental store or make the pav at home. I preferred to bake it myself.

The total process involves

1. Preparing the vada
2. Preparing the green chutney
3. Preparing the dry garlic chutney
4. Assembling the vada pav

For vada

• 6 medium size boiled potatos
• 1 tsp chopped garlic
• 1 tbsp garlic chilli paste(4 chillies ,4 garlic flakes)
• 1 tbsp chopped cilantro
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• 1/2 tbsp oil
• a pinch of turmeric
• salt to taste

For Batter

• 2 cups gram flour
• 1/4 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp chilli powder
• salt to taste

Procedure
Boil the potatos ,remove skin ,mash them and keep aside.Heat oil in a pan ,add chilli garlic paste and fry for a min then add turmeric and mix it ,add the potato,salt and mix nicely .Now switch off the gas add lemon juice,garlic mix properly and keep aside to cool.

Mix all the ingredients of batter with water into a semi-thick paste and keep aside.

After the potato mixture cools, Divide the potato mixture into equal sized portions, the size of a lemon and flatten it 1 inch thick.Heat oil in a deep fry pan.

Dip the balls in the batter and fry it till golden brown.

For hari/green chutney

• 1 cup cilantro
• 1/2 cup mint leaves
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• 1/2 tsp cumin seeds
• 2 green chillies
• 2 garlic pods
• salt to taste

Make a fine past of above ingredient,check the consistency add water if needed. Hari chutney is ready to use

For Dry garlic chutney

• 1/2 cup grated dry coconut
• 4-5 dry red chillies
• 1/2 tsp cumin seeds
• 4-5 garlic pods
• salt to taste

Make a fine powder of all the above ingredients.

Assembly of Vada Pav
Ingredients

• 6 pav
• 6 tsp green chutney
• 6 tsp of dry chutney powder
• 6 potato vada
• 3 tbsp chopped onions

Procedure
Cut the pav horizontally to one edge, open and toast it on the inner side.

Sprinkle dry garlic chutney,place the vada on top of it, spread a little green chutney,sprinkle some onion slices and close.

Press lightly and serve.

Creamy Crunchy Muskmelon Smoothie

The muskmelon or cantaloupe,is the perfect fruit for people who want to lose weight because it isn't high in calories or sugar, and can work as a great snack for those in-between-mealtimes when hunger tugs you towards unhealthy food items.

Cantaloupe is one of the most common fruits often taken for granted. It is rich in Vitamin A which is required for healthy skin and fibre that prevents constipation and also commonly known to reduce body heat. However there are many additional health benefits which may not have been fully understood

Anti-coagulant:A unique compound in cantaloupe helps decrease the viscosity of the blood, hence preventing the abnormal formation of blood clots in the cardiovascular system.

Arteriosclerosis:Regularly consuming vitamin C retards the development of hardening of the arteries.

Cancer prevention:The high vitamin C content acts as a good anti-oxidant that protects cells from damages by free radicals.Regularly drinking juices high in anti-oxidants keep cancer at bay, especially against intestinal cancer and melanoma.

Cataracts:The natural vitamin A from beta-carotene in this juice lowers the risk of cataract and generally helps improve your vision too.

Cholesterol:Drinking juices high in anti-oxidant has been proven to fight the oxidative stress that is the main culprit in oxidizing the LDLs in the blood.

High blood pressure:Potassium in this rockmelon helps excrete sodium, thus bringing down high blood pressure especially in those with salt-sensitive hypertension.

Immune system:The strong content of vitamin C stimulates white cells to fight infection, naturally building a good immune system.

Insomnia:A special compound in cantaloupe relieves the nerves and calm anxieties.A help for insomniacs.

Menstruation problems:For women, drink this wonder juice around the time of menstruation and it will help reduce heavy flow and clots.

Muscle Cramps:A deficiency in potassium can cause muscular cramps and greater susceptibility to injury.Drink cantaloupe juice to prevent these.

Pregnancy:The high content of folate (folic acid) prevents neural tube defects in infants.

Quit Smoking:The natural nutrients and minerals found in this juice provides a synergistic combination that helps the body recover from nicotine withdrawal of one who is trying to quit smoking.Smoking also quickly depletes the vitamin A in a smoker, but cantaloupe juice can help replace it with its beta-carotene.

Stress:When going through a stressful period, keep this musky melon on the side and drink its juice regularly.The potassium content helps to rebalance and normalize the heartbeat. This in turn sends oxygen to the brain and regulates the body's water balance.

Water retention:Especially in pregnant women.Muskmelon juice helps your body excrete excess sodium, thus reducing water retention.

Source:http://www.juicing-for-health.com/cantaloupe-nutrition.html

This smoothie serves 4 glasses

Ingredients

• 2 cups diced musk melon
• 1/2 cup milk
• 2 tbsp honey
• 1 cup ice cubes

For toppings

• 4 finely chopped almonds
• 4 finely chopped pistachios
• 1 tbsp chopped red cherries

Procedure

Remove the skin of musk melon completely and cut into half and scrap the seed out and dice it into medium size cubes.

In a blender make a smoothie with all the above ingredients. Pour it in a serving glass and garnish with the nuts and serve immediately.

Note: 

1.Grinding the ice cubes with the musk melon makes it a perfect chilled smoothie.

2. Adding nuts is optional however it gives a wonderful nutty texture to the smoothie

Flavorful Carrot Rice

If you are looking for a colorful and tasty rice at short notice this carrot rice would make a meal wholesome.I prepared this for my hubby recently and his friends were raving for the recipe.

The trick to make this carrot rice more flavorful is to use shah jeera also known as caraway seed which used in biryaani and some other mughlai dishes for taste and fragrance.So here is the recipe

Ingredients

• 1 cup uncooked basmati rice
• 1 cup grated carrot(aprox 4 medium size carrots)
• 1/3 cup chopped onions
• 3-4 green chillies
• 1/2 inch cinnamon stick
• 2 cloves
• 4 whole black papper
• 1/2 tsp shah jeera
• 1 tbsp + 1 tsp oil
• 1 tbsp ghee(clarified butter)
• salt to taste

Procedure :
Soak rice with enough water for 30 min then drain water completly,add 1.5 cup water and 1 tsp oil to the rice for non stickiness .Pressure cook it for 3 whistles and 3 min ,switch off the flame .Once pressure release open the lid ,spread the rice on large plate.

Heat ghee and oil in a pan,then add all the spices and once it starts to splutter add onion and green chilli,once onion starts to become translucent add the grated carrot and salt ,mix nicely and cook till carrot become soft.

Once carrot done add the cooked rice to it and mix nicely till rice blends nicely with carrot and spices,let it sit on the gas with low flame for 5 more min ,stir occassionally ,now your carrot rice is ready .Serve hot .

Note:

1.Transferring  the rice to large plate prevents over cooking and makes it more non sticky   

2.You can adjust the spice according to your taste .

3.You can add veggies like peas ,corn to make it more colorful n crunchy.

Jiffy Curly Tomato Pasta

It is very common to find this pasta discs nowdays and cooking pasta with cooker was new to me, and it was one of my little surprises when I cooked it.The basic recipe was shared on the pack but I added my own dimension.

The pasta is quick to prepare and feels more filling as it is easy to pick with your spoon and a lot of pasta sauce gets embeded within its curls to make every bite more delightful. It is made with durum wheat making it a healthy alternative to a regular snack or meal.

Ingredients

• 1.5 cup pasta discs
• 1/2 cup sliced onions
• 1 cup chopped tomatos
• 1/2 cup diced baby corn
• 1/2 cup chopped spinach
• 1/4 cup green peas
• 1 tbsp garlic ginger paste
• 1/2 tsp chilli powder
• 1/4 tsp garam masala
• 1 tsp corn flour (optional)
• 2 tbsp oil
• 1 cube grated cheese
• a pinch of turmeric
• salt to taste

Procedure
Mix corn flour with two tbsp water and keep aside. Heat oil in a pressure pan ,add onions and fry till its translucent,add garlic ginger paste,turmeric powder and fry for a min ,now add all veggies and fry for 2 minutes then add tomatoes and fry till tomatoes become soft,add chilli powder, salt, garam masala and fry till oil saturates,now add water ,for every cup pasta add 1.5 cup water.

Once water starts to boil add pasta curls mix and cover the pressure cooker with lid without the weight.After 1-2 minutes when the steam starts coming reduce flame to sim and simmer for 7-8 minutes.Switch off the gas.

Open the lid  and check if pasta is cooked else cook for another 1 minute. Add the corn flour mixture mix nicely and let it boil,add grated cheese and garnish with coriander leaves. serve hot.

Note: 
1. The cooking time of pasta may vary depending on the heat of your cooking range.

2. Feel free to add more veggies like mushroom, sweet corn , capsicum if you want to make it more colorful.

3. Without adding any veggies with just onion and tomatoes it tastes awesome.

4. Adding cornflour helps to thicken the sauce, you can replace it with tomato soup powder which will add more flavor and taste to pasta.