Pineapple Pachadi

Sweet and spicy.....a definite treat to the taste buds! This is one of my favorite vegetarian dish and the one that I look for in every sadhya. Last onam, my husband's cousin made this and I was fortunate enough to taste it. I must say, it was simply awesome!!! And, as usual, I had to get the recipe and try it on my own. Fortunately, it came out well and I finally decided to post it.

Ingredients:

Fresh pineapple - 2 cups(cubed)

Sugar - 4 tbsp

Thick coconut milk - 1/2 cup

Yoghurt - 5 tbsp

Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp

Chilli powder - 1/4 tsp

To grind:

Coconut - 1 cup(grated)

Green chillies - 2

Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp

To Temper :
Coconut oil - 2 tbsp

Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp

Dried red chillli - 2

Curry leaves - 2 sprigs

1. In a vessel(preferably an earthern vessel/chatti), cook the pineapple with the sugar. Remember not to add water as the water from the pineapple will ooze out. Cook till the pineapple is soft and the water has dried up.

2. Add the turmeric and chilli powder.

3. Grind the ingredients mentioned above with little water. Add it to the pineapple mixture. Cook for 1 minute.

4. Next add the coconut milk and stir well. Adjust the salt and also the sweetness of the dish. The sweetness can be increased by adding sugar.

5. Lastly add the curd. Check for the sourness of the dish after adding each spoon. Mix well and turn off the stove.

6. For tempering, heat coconut oil another pan. Add the dried red chilli first. After few seconds, splutter the mustard seeds and add the curry leaves. Pour over the pineapple pachadi and mix well.

7. Enjoy this delicious dish with rice!

Pesaha Appam and Paal

For Pesaha Appam:

Roasted Rice powder - 1 cup

Urad dal - 3 tbsp (soak in water for 1 hour)

Small onion(shallots) - 3

Garlic - half of a clove

Cumin seeds - 1/2 tsp

Coconut - 3/4 cup (grated)

1. Grind the coconut, urad dal, small onions, garlic and cumin seeds using required amount of water.

2. Add in the rice powder and blend it well in a blender. Add water if required. The consistency of the batter should be like idli's batter.

3. Brush some oil in a pan and pour the batter. Make a cross using the palm leaf and place it on top.

4. Steam it for around 15 to 18 minutes.

5. Wait till it completely cools down before transferring it to a serving dish.

For Pesaha Paal:

Coconut milk - 3 cups(medium consistency)

Jaggery - 200 g

Roasted rice powder - 2 tbsp

Cumin seeds - 1/2 tsp (powdered)

Cardamom - 4 (powdered)

Dry ginger powder(chukku) - 1/2 tsp

Salt - a pinch

1. Place jaggery in the coconut milk and set aside for 30 minutes.

2. Once the jaggery has melted, Strain the mixture and place it on medium flame.

3. Make a thick paste with the rice powder and water. Add this to the milk. This is done to thicken the milk a little.

4. Add the powdered spices and salt.

5. Turn off the flame once the milk thickens. Pour it into a serving dish and place a cross made from the palm leaf.

Chocolate Hazelnut Praline cake

Well...here I am 1 year and a baby later! Just the other day while I was surfing for a recipe, I came across this wonderful blog named Ria's collections. I must say her blog inspired me to give my blog a second chance. Also, I have been typing out recipes to my friends and one of them asked me.."Why don't you put it on your blog?". So finally, I thought.....YES.... its time to focus on my blog!!!

Then I kept thinking what to post...should it be the butter chicken recipe that I tried recently and became a hit or my favorite beef chilly or something else??? Then I thought why not put something different from what I usually post... And yes... the answer was quite simple.....CAKE!!!

I am not a person who bakes a lot of cakes. So I tried to search for some interesting recipes and found out this wonderful website. It's videojug.com. It has everything from cooking to fitness to whatever you can think of.

This recipe is taken from their site though I modified it a little to my taste. The sponge cake is exactly the same. I have never tasted such a light and fluffy sponge cake in my life! The recipe is very simple and the result is amazing!

Click here for the sponge cake's recipe:

1. 
   

For the icing:

Milk chocolate - 120 g chopped

Heavy whipping cream - 350 ml

Caster sugar - 2 tbsp

Peeled roasted hazelnuts - 300g

Vanilla essence - 1/2 tbsp

Sugar- 320 g

Milk- 80 ml

Kahlua - 1 tbsp ( I used Mocha)

Instant coffee powder - 1 tsp

Water - 2 tbsp

1. Prepare the caramel by heating the sugar in a pan. Once in reaches golden brown in color, add the hazelnuts and coat it well with the caramel. Remove from heat and spread the mixture on a parchment paper.

Note : The caramel should be just enough to coat the nuts, otherwise you will get to bite on caramel chunks. Almonds are also a good substitute for hazelnuts.

2. Heat the water and dissolve the coffee powder. This enhances the flavor of chocolate and gives a good color.

3. Melt the chocolate in the microwave or by double boiling method.

4. Combine the milk and the liqueur. Brush the both the sides of the two halves of the sponge cake with this mixture.

5. Crush the praline once it cools down. Make sure it cools down completely. You can crush it using a pestle or a rolling pin.

6. Whip the cream until frothy. Now add the caster sugar and whip till it becomes thick and fluffy. Add the melted chocolate and the coffee mixture. Whip again.

7. Frost the cake as usual with the cream in between the cake layers. Also sprinkle some crushed praline in between the cake layers. Finally, decorate the whole cake with the praline and the cake is ready to serve!!!