Pick-me-up..yes its Tiramisu

I have no idea what tempted me to make Tiramisu. I didn't see anything on Food network, i didn't have it recently in a restaurant and no one even vaguely mentioned it. I have always had bad luck with desserts. Even cakes don't come out well and i depend on ready mixes like Betty Crocker for the same. I, somehow, decided to make Tiramisu one fine day and so went online and did loads of research for some two days. Read blogs, took tips from websites and even watched YouTube videos on how to make it. Outcome, being utterly confused and frustrated at the end of it all. I ultimately decided on a Gordon Ramsay/ James Martin (two renowned chefs in Britain) recipe, but ended up making a whole new one on my own. It turned out beautiful and I'm proud of it.

Most of the ingredients were available in supermarkets or Italian deli's. Anyways, this is my version of the recipe:

Mascarpone Cheese- 250gms

Eggs- 2, yolk and white separated

Ladyfinger/Sponge fingers- about 20

Sugar- 3 tbs (heaps)

Vanilla extract- 1 tsp

Brandy/ Kahlua/Marsala wine- 2 cap fulls

Espresso coffee- 1 cup, really strong

Cocoa pwd- to dust

Make really strong Espresso coffee and set aside to cool.

Beat the egg whites till they form peaks, gradually adding about 1 tbs sugar. This is very important as the egg white should not be flowy.

Beat the egg yolk with the remaining sugar till smooth and add this to the mascarpone cheese with the vanilla extract and beat until smooth. Fold in the egg white into this mixture bit by bit, and smoothening it out, but not mixing/ whisking vigorously. Keep aside.

Pour the brandy into the espresso coffee and give a stir. Dip the sponge fingers one by one in the coffee, but do not soak it, and place in a ceramic dish. Over this, spread the mascarpone mix evenly. Set another layer of the sponge fingers,and then cream. Repeat until you run out of both, but with the cream mix on top.

Dust some cocoa pwd and chill uncovered for a minimum of 5 hrs. The more it chills, the better cos the flavours get more infused into the sponge.

You can actually be a bit creative and do the sponge, cream mix in ramekins or in martini glasses, and decorate with cocoa pwd or maybe even powdered sugar.

Notes: Sponge fingers can be replaced with sponge cake. Recipe here

Espresso coffee can be replaced with instant coffee

Brandy is also optional, if you need an alcohol-free Tiramisu

Whipped cream can add that extra zing to it, but i didn't have any, so omitted that step

Easy Peacy Dal Fry

When Ro works from home, my whole routine goes for a toss. He's quite a pain in the ass. Since we have an open kitchen, the noises are not that suttle either. I am not allowed to use the pressure cooker, blender or even open the tap if he's on a conference call, leave alone watch tv which i fight against, and so am allowed to watch on the lowest possible volume. Also, I would need to make lunch if he is around and not laze around all day on my comfy couch facebooking, orkutting and chatting.

Last Tuesday was one of those days and the usual rice, curd, some veggie and cutlets were on the list (all left over and cutlets are always a saving grace. Have a set frozen and saved for a rainy day). But i ran out of curd and so was stuck as to what to make, that too something quick, so Ro wouldn't start his tantrums...yes he gets nasty when he's hungry. I had the instant MTR Rasam mix which was the easiest, but we had just finished it a few days back and i didn't want to repeat it. With no other option, i wearily decided on Dal Fry, thinking it was such a tedious task. Well...this easy recipe my mom passed on, proved me wrong. It was ready in no time.

Dal- 1 cup (toor dal or moong dal or maybe even a mix)

Water- 2 cups

Tomato- 1, chopped up

Onion- 1 small, thinly sliced

Ginger garlic paste- 1/2 tbs

Chilli pwd- 1 tsp (or less,according to your taste)

Turmeric pwd- 1/4 tsp

Garam masala- 1/4 tsp

Cumin seeds- 1/2 tsp

Coriander pwd- 1/4 tsp or even less

Asafoetida- a pinch

Mustard seeds- 1/4 tsp

Oil- 2 tbs

Salt- to taste

Coriander leaves- to garnish (optional)

Wash dal and cook with water in a pressure cooker for about 2 whistles. Wait till the steam subsides and open lid. Keep aside.

In a heavy bottomed pan, heat oil and fry the cumin seeds, make sure you don't burn it. Add the chopped onions, salt, Ggp and fry till the onion becomes a light brown colour. To this add the chilli pwd, turmeric pwd, garam masala and the tomatoes and cook till the oil separates. Add the cooked dal to this, stir well, check for salt and spice and add as required. Bring to a simmer. Remove from fire and keep aside.

In a small pan, heat oil, splutter mustard seeds, coriander pwd and asafoetida and pour over the dal. Mix well and just before serving, garnish with chopped coriander leaves.

Notes: If the dal is a bit too thick, you can add some more water and loosen it. You can also have this with roti.

The tadka part is completely optional.

Chicken Quesadillas- la magia de México

If you ask me what my favourite cuisine is...id have to admit its Mexican. The ribs, enchiladas, fajitas, buffalo wings and of course Quesadillas which i can have at any given time. London has a lot of fancy restaurants, i admit, but i just haven't found one single decent Mexican joint other than Chiquito which is nowhere nearby. The American chain Chili's shut down their UK restaurants when recession hit and so now I have to make these at home to quench my craving. I still remember the Southwestern Egg Rolls from Chili's, which for some strange reason wasn't on the menu in any of the UK Chili's, but were a favourite among a lot of my cousins and friends back in US.

I was doing an impromptu grocery stop at Tesco and saw a Mexican dip platter with Sour Cream, Salsa and Guacamole. That aggravated my craving and so decided to make Quesadillas that night for dinner. The original Quesadilla recipe doesn't involve any of the dips, but i just couldn't resist it. Pair it with a chilled glass of margarita and you have the perfect BBQ dish.

Flour tortillas- 4, or if you are using chapathi's, about 6

Boneless chicken breasts- 250 to 300 gms, cut into bite size pieces

Onions- 1, sliced lengthwise

Any brand Fajita/Enchilada spice mix- 3 tsp (can be substituted with a mix of chilli pwd, pepper pwd, paprika, cumin pwd and salt)

Ginger garlic paste- 1 tsp (optional)

Cheddar or any grated cheese- 1 cup or more if you are not so concerned about your waist line

Pickled Jalapenos- 2 or 3 per Quesadilla as they are quite spicy (optional)

Oil- 1 tbs

Salt- to taste (if required)

Marinate the chicken pieces with the fajita spice mix and Ggp. Keep aside.

In a frying pan, heat the oil and sautee onions till they become glazed. To this add the chicken pieces and fry it well. Chicken should be lightly brown. You can add more salt and spice if its not enough, at this stage. Transfer to a dish and keep ready.

Set the oven to the grill mode and preheat to about 170C. Line an oven proof pan with baking paper and keep it ready. Place the tortillas/chapathis on a plate and generously spread the sour cream, salsa and guacamole. Layer the chicken pieces on top, sprinkle some cheese and jalapenos, cover with another tortilla/chapathi and press a bit to make it like a sandwich. Repeat with the second set, place them on the pan and into the oven for about 5 minutes or maybe even less depending on the oven. Its just to melt the cheese and heat the tortillas/chapathis. Serve with rest of the dips.

Notes: This is a perfect dish if you have left over chicken breasts and even chapathis. You can replace the chicken with sausages, bacon etc.

If you do not get the ready-made dips, then mayo or thick yogurt is good enough, or you can chuck that altogether and go on a healthy regime.

Eggs in a spicy coconut gravy

Like i mentioned before, i am addicted to coconut milk...how easy it cooks and the taste is out of this world. I am on this coconut milk spree and wanted to try out varieties of dishes using the same. Ultimately, decided on egg for the time being. Stumbled upon this blog and followed the recipe to the dot except the following:

• Instead of the Eastern Egg Masala, i used meat masala
• Replaced garlic pods with 1tsp garlic paste
• I added one tomato cut into chunks along with the water and vinegar
• I let the eggs simmer in the coconut milk for quite some time, so that the flavours get infused and it gets coated with the gravy.

Outcome was heavenly and was a great accompaniment to puttu and chapathi the next day.

Roasted Peaches

I made Roasted Peaches for dessert- a very easy, healthy and absolutely tasty dish and can also be served for breakfast.

Peaches- 2, halved and de-stoned (You can see how to pit a peach here)

Brown sugar- 2 tsp

Butter- 1 tsp

Honey- 1 tsp

Vanilla essence- a drop (optional)

Mix all these together and brush generously on the peach halves. Place them on a baking tray and grill on high for about 15 minutes, turning occasionally. Remove, place on serving dish and pour the rest of the mix or just honey over the grilled peaches. If you want you can serve this with fresh cream or vanilla ice cream. It tasted just as good without either of those.

Line-caught Tuna Steaks, our style

We got some fresh line-caught tuna steaks from the market and they just looked gorgeous. Was in two minds about doing a Conti preperation or a South Indian one, and finally decided on a more mallu version. I am no good at preparing fish dishes and even worse at eating them, so Ro helped me out with this one.

Tuna Steaks or any fish fillet, for that matter- 2 large (approx. 100 gms each)

To marinate

Ginger garlic paste- 2 tsp

Kashmiri chilli pwd- 3 tsp

Turmeric pwd- 1/4 tsp

Pepper pwd- 1 tsp

Garam masala- 1 tsp

Lime juice- 2 tsp

Curry leaves- a sprig (optional)

Salt- to taste

Oil- 2 tbs

Onion - 1/2 an onion cut into rings.

Mix all the ingredients in the 'to marinate' section and make a paste. Spread this mix generously onto the tuna steaks and keep refrigerated for atleast an hour.

In a frying pan, heat the oil and fry the onions and curry leaves till they become brown and fragrant. Remove and keep aside. In the same pan fry the fish till it becomes brown on either sides. Put the onion rings back into the pan and give a final mix. Serve hot with rice.

Note: Ro's spice tolerance level is really low and so this one lacks a bit in spice. You can jazz it up with some chilli pwd.

If you fry it in coconut oil, it would be an authentic mallu (Kerala) fish fry.

I would also like to submit this recipe for the SPOTLIGH: FISH event hosted by Indrani of Appyayan whose blog i stumbled upon and was impressed by it. This is the first time i am taking part in a blog event, and so im pretty excited about it.

Garlic Infused Rice Gruel a.k.a. Kanji

As mentioned before, i googled how to make Kanji and came across a different recipe from one blog. I am now not able to navigate to that page because i conveniently forgot to bookmark it. Anyways, thanks to that blog, i made the most delectable kanji ever..at least according to me and Ro of course. This was the usual one, with a slight twist which made it taste even better.

Rice- 1 cup, washed and cleaned (you can use the red rice which is best, but i prefer the white/basmati rice)

Water- 5 cups or more

Garlic- 2 pods, crushed

Salt- to taste

Heat water in a pressure cooker and once it starts boiling, add the rice, salt and the crushed garlic pods. Close the cooker and place the weight on. After about 5 whistles, remove from fire and wait for the steam to release on its own and then open the cooker. If its too thick, pour some more water and return back to the fire for a few more minutes.

Note: Garlic pods are optional, but they give that extra flavour...not strong, but obvious in its own way.

Mooru curry (Yoghurt curry with spices) and Bhindi fry (Okra fry)

I had this craving for some kanji (rice gruel), mooru curry (curd based) and spicy pickle yesterday and so decided to give it a go. I googled how to make kanji and since Ro wanted a veggie, i decided to make some spicy bhindi fry instead of the pickle. It was heavenly and i wished it was a bit cold outside or rain or something so it would create the perfect mood for some hot kanji. Unfortunately yesterday was the hottest with a high of 30C and is supposed to be that way till end of this week. Nevertheless, we enjoyed the meal to the fullest along with a glass of Peach Cider which was out of this world.

Mooru Curry

Curd- 1 cup

Small onions/ Shallots- 2, thinly sliced

Green chillies- 2, thinly sliced

Red chillies- 2

Turmeric pwd- a pinch to 1/4 tsp

Mustard seeds- 1/2 tsp

Asafoetida- a pinch

Curry leaves- a sprig

Oil- 1 tbs

Salt- to taste

Beat the curd with a fork or egg beater and make it somewhat loose consistency. If the curd is still too thick, add a bit of water. Keep aside.

In a sauce pan, heat the oil and once hot splutter mustard seeds. Add the shallots, green chillies, red chillies and curry leaves and sautee for 2 to 3 minutes. Then add the turmeric pwd, asafoetida and salt and mix well. To this, add the curd and keep stirring continuously. The curd becomes slightly thick and you can see the steam rising from the spoon. Don't wait for it to boil. Remove from fire and stir for a few more minutes. Serve hot.

Notes: Another technique is to not add the curd to the mix and keep stirring, but wait till the tadka has cooled and then pour it on top of the curd and mix well. If its for immediate use, then warm it on fire top for 2 to 3 minutes, stirring continuously. Otherwise, store in refrigerate for up to 3 days. This is my moms easy peacy version which i mostly follow, but this time i went a bit overboard and followed a more elaborate version by maria.

I sometimes don't use onions if I'm too lazy :)

Bhindi/ Okra fry

Okra- a cup, cut into coin size pieces

Shallots- 2 big, thinly sliced

Pepper pwd- 1 tsp

Chilli pwd- 1/2 tsp

Oil- 1 1/2 tbs

Salt- to taste

Heat oil in a frying pan and sautee the shallots till they become brown. Add the okra slices and sautee them till the sliminess disappears. Make sure it is covered with oil. Add the powders and salt and mix well. If you want it crisp, add a little more oil.