Dragon fruit pudding

With dragon fruits in season and because my mother and I like the fruit, we both decided to make a dessert using the fruit. So, here’s the recipe for the dragon fruit pudding that my mother made.

I had attempted to make a vegan red velvet cake using dragon fruit pulp as both an egg substitute as well as a source of natural red colouring but the cocoa powder in the batter simply overruled the rich red colour of the fruit. I will try the recipe once more with some adjustments and see if it works out.

My next post on the blog will be in October as I will be travelling and will not have access to my recipe base.

Dragon fruit pudding

Time taken: 5 mins

Serves 2

Ingredients:

Dragon fruit – ½ cup, chopped
Corn starch – 2 tbsp
Water – ½ cup
Sugar – 1 tbsp + 1 tsp
Rose essence – few drops
Lime juice – 1 tsp

Method:

Put the chopped dragon fruit and water in a sauce pan. Mash it coarsely with a spoon.
Add a few drops of rose essence to the pan and mix well.
Add the corn starch to the pan and stir.
Cook on low heat for about 3 minutes, stirring continuously. The mixture will start to thicken.
Remove from heat. Transfer the pudding to a bowl and let it cool.
Mix 1 tsp lime juice and 1 tsp sugar and drizzle on top.
The pudding can be served warm or chilled.

Recipe source: Raji Thillainathan.

‘Ayurvedic’ salad

Today, I will share what my mother calls her ‘Ayurvedic’ salad because of the vegetables she uses in it. This salad is particularly good for regulating your sugar and cholesterol levels. I like it because it is colourful and crunchy and combines a vegetable I don’t like so much – radish – in a more appetising way.

‘Ayurvedic’ salad

Time taken: 5 – 10 mins

Serves 2

Ingredients:

Radish – 3 tbsp, grated
Bitter gourd – 2 tbsp, grated
Tomato – 2 tbsp, finely chopped
Onion – 3 tbsp, finely chopped
Carrot – 2 tbsp, grated
Coriander – a few leaves, for garnish
Salt and pepper, to taste
Lime juice, to taste

Method:

Place the salad ingredients – grated radish, bitter gourd, carrot and the chopped onion and tomato – in a bowl.
Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Toss to combine.
Garnish with coriander and drizzle some lime juice over the salad.

Recipe source: Raji Thillainathan.

Date chutney

The second recipe I would like to share today is my mother’s recipe for her version of date chutney. She is particularly fond of the unique flavour arising from the chilli infused date sauce.

Date chutney

Time taken: 10 mins

Serves 3 – 4

Ingredients:

Dates – 2 tbsp, finely chopped
Jaggery – 1 tsp
Brown sugar – 1 tsp
Water – 4 tbsp
Crushed chillies – ½ tsp
Cumin powder – ¼ tsp
Mixed 3C (cinnamon, cardamom, clove) powder – ¼ tsp
Sesame seeds – 1 tbsp
Salt – pinch

Method:

Heat the jaggery, brown sugar and water in a sauce pan, on low heat, stirring continuously for about 2 to 3 mins.
Stir in ½ tsp crushed chillies and ¼ tsp cumin powder and cook for a minute.
Add the mixed 3C powder to the pan and let the sauce simmer for a minute.
When the sauce starts to boil and bubble, add the sesame seeds. Mix well.
Add the chopped dates and continue to let the sauce simmer on low heat for a few minutes till the sauce thickens and the liquid starts drying up.
Season with a pinch of salt before removing from heat.
The chutney can be kept for several days in an airtight container.

Recipe source: Raji Thillainathan.

Hoppers

Hopper (Appam/Appa) is a dish made in every corner of Sri Lanka. From street vendors to homes, it is one of the most popular dinner meals served around the country. In our house, my mother finds it the most frustrating dish to make as she has her good hopper days when she is proud of her creations and her bad hopper days when she faults her temperamental “hopper” pan. Today, I will share my mother’s recipe for her hopper batter.

Appam/ Appa

Cooking time: 30 mins + preparation time: 6 hours

Makes 12

Ingredients:

Raw rice – 1 cup
Bread – 2”x1” piece
King Coconut or plain Coconut water – ¼ cup
Wheat flour – 1 tbsp
Freshly scraped coconut – 1 tbsp
Water – 1 cup
Salt – ¼ tsp
Sugar – 1 tsp
Baking powder – 1 tsp

Method:

Soak the rice in water for 3 hours. Simultaneously, soak the bread piece in the coconut water for about 3 hours.
Grind both the soaked rice and bread together.
Add a tbsp of wheat flour and a little water to the ground rice and bread to make a thick, yet smooth batter.
Cover and let the batter rest and ferment for about 3 hours.
Blend the freshly scraped coconut in a cup of water and extract a cup of coconut milk.
Mix the coconut milk in the batter. Add a ¼ tsp salt, a tsp sugar and a tsp baking powder to the batter.
Stir in the contents and the batter is ready for the hopper pan.
Place the hopper pan on the stove on low heat.
Pour a spoonful of the batter on to the pan and rotate the pan so that the batter covers the entire pan. Cover the pan with the pan lid. Let the hopper cook for about 2 mins before removing from pan.
Serve hot with seeni sambol or lunu miris or basically any sambal. Any other curries, vegetarian or non-vegetarian, are optional.

Recipe source: Raji Thillainathan.

Peanut Chocolate Cake

I generally like my mother’s chocolate cakes a lot. Recently, she tried out a nutty vegan version of her chocolate cake which came out really delicious. Here is my mother’s recipe for the yummy cake.

Peanut Chocolate Cake

Time taken: 50 mins

Serves 8 to 10

Ingredients:

Vegetable oil margarine – ¾ cup + 1 tbsp (for frosting)
Sugar – 1 cup
Banana – ½ , as an egg substitute
Wheat flour – 1 ½ cup
Soya milk – 1 cup
Peanut – ½ cup, coarsely ground + 2 tbsp (for frosting)
Vanilla – 2 tsp
Cocoa powder – 2 tbsp + 1 tsp (for frosting)
Baking powder – 1 tsp
Baking soda – ½ tsp
Icing sugar – 2 tbsp, for frosting

Method:

Sift the dry ingredients – the wheat flour together with the cocoa powder, baking powder and baking soda – and keep aside.
Mash the banana in a bowl. Add the margarine and sugar to the bowl and whisk them together.
Gradually add the soya milk and continue whisking.
Stir in the coarsely ground peanuts and vanilla essence.
Slowly fold in the dry ingredients.
Pour the cake batter into a greased tray and bake at 190⁰C/374⁰F for 40 mins.
Whisk 1 tbsp margarine together with 1 tsp cocoa powder, 2 tbsp icing sugar and 2 tsp ground nuts to make the frosting.
Spread evenly on surface of the peanut chocolate cake, after the cake has sufficiently cooled.

Recipe source: Raji Thillainathan.

Bitter gourd fry

The other recipe for today is also a bitter gourd recipe of my mother’s.

Bitter gourd fry

Time taken: 20 mins

Serves 1 or 2

Ingredients:

Bitter gourd – ½ cup, chopped
Carrot – ¼ cup, chopped
Onion – ¼, chopped
Green chilli – ½, chopped
Capsicum or Malu miris – ½, chopped
Tomato – ½, sliced
Fennel seeds – ½ tsp
Crushed chillies – ½ tsp
Curry leaves – 1 sprig
Low fat oil – 1 ½ tbsp
Sugar – ½ tsp
Salt, to taste

Method:

Add some salt to the bowl of chopped bitter gourd and carrot pieces and keep aside for about 5 mins.
Heat ½ tbsp oil in a pan and fry the fennel seeds.
Add the curry leaves as the seeds start to splutter and immediately add the chopped onions, green chilli and capsicum or malu miris.
Fry the onions and chillies for about 2 mins.
Add 1 tbsp of oil and the salted bitter gourd and carrot pieces.
Cook for about 10 mins, on low heat, stirring continuously.
Add the sliced tomatoes and cook for a few minutes.
Add ½ tsp of crushed chillies. Mix well and cook for a minute or two.
Just before removing from heat, add ½ tsp sugar and mix well.
Serve hot with rice.

Recipe source: Raji Thillainathan.

Pavatkai Kulambu

Today’s recipe is my mother’s delicious ‘pavatkai’ (bitter gourd) recipe. My grandmother used to first soak the chopped bitter gourd in fresh coconut water before cooking it to remove its bitterness. My mother prefers retaining a certain amount of the bitterness so she doesn’t use coconut water. Pavatkai Kulambu Time taken: 30 – 40 mins Serves 4 Ingredients:

Bitter gourd/ pavatkai – 1 cup, chopped
Tamarind extract – 1 cup, thin consistency
Onion – ½ chopped
Curry leaves – 1 sprig
Coconut milk or non-fat milk – ¼ cup
Curry powder – 1 tsp
Sugar – 1 tsp
Salt, to taste

Method:

Cook the chopped bitter gourd in water, in a pan, for about 5 to 10 mins on medium heat.
Add the tamarind extract, curry powder, curry leaves, chopped onion and salt to taste to the pan.
Let the ingredients combine and simmer on low heat for about 15 to 20 mins. If the bitter gourd is not tender enough as the liquid starts drying up, add ½ cup of water.
Add ¼ cup of coconut milk or non-fat milk and a tsp of sugar. Mix well and let the curry simmer for another 5 to 10 mins on low heat.
Remove from heat and serve with rice.

Recipe source: Raji Thillainathan.

Gulab Jamun

My favourite accompanying dessert for a puri and kadalai curry meal is gulab jamun. While I think this sweet originated from Punjab, it is very popular around Asia. Having a sweet tooth, I simply love this dessert though we hardly make it in our house anymore. Today, I will share my mother’s version of gulab jamun.

Gulab Jamun

Time taken: 30 mins

Makes 12 or 15 gulab jamun

Ingredients:

Milk powder – 6 tbsp
Wheat flour – 2 tbsp
Baking powder – ¾ tsp
Oil, for deep-frying
Water – ¾ cup
Sugar – ¼ cup
Kesari powder – pinch
Rose essence – few drops

Method:

Mix the milk powder, wheat flour, baking powder and stir in a little water to knead the dough.
Make small balls from the dough and place them on a plate. Let them rest for about 5 mins.
Heat some oil in a pan on low heat.
Once the oil is ready for deep-frying, drop a few of the balls at a time and deep-fry them. Ensure that they turn golden brown on all sides by turning them around.
Remove from pan and place them on a plate with grease absorbing paper.
In a sauce pan, boil ¾ cup of water with ¼ cup of sugar, a pinch of kesari powder and a few drops of rose essence.
Once the syrup comes together, remove sauce pan from stove and transfer syrup to a bowl.
Transfer the gulab jamun from the plate to the syrup bowl.
Cover the bowl and let the gulab jamun absorb the syrup for some time.
Serve warm

Recipe source: Raji Thillainathan.

Puri and Kadalai Curry

Today’s recipes are my childhood favourites and I guess, they still continue to be one of my favourites. Originating from North India, the dishes have become very much part of the cuisine of the sub-continent. In this post, I will focus on the main meal and in my next, the accompanying dessert.

(a) Puri

Time taken: 40 – 45 mins

Makes 6

Ingredients

Wheat flour – 1 cup
Salt – ½ tsp
Low fat oil – 2 tbsp + for deep-frying
Water, as required

Method

Add ½ tsp salt and 2 tbsp oil to the wheat flour. Slowly stir in a little water and knead the flour mix into a ball of dough.
Divide the dough into 6 smaller balls. Let it rest for about 15 to 20 mins.
Heat some oil in a pan on low to medium heat.
Roll out one of the small balls of dough.
Keep a little container with water by your side and brush one side of the rolled out dough with water.
Drop the rolled out dough into the hot oil, with the water side down. This helps the puri to puff up more. Yes, there will be a lot of crackling noise as water and oil react at first.
Once the puri has risen to the surface, flip it to the other side so that the other side can be cooked and can also become puffy. It takes about 2 mins approximately to brown each side.
Remove the puri from the pan and place on a dish covered with a grease absorbing paper.
Serve with kadalai curry.

(b) Kadalai (chickpea) curry

Time taken: 40 mins + overnight soaking

Serves: 3

Ingredients:

Kadalai/ Chickpea – ½ cup
Onion – ½ , chopped
Mixed 3C (Cinnamon, cardamom and cloves) powder – 1 tsp
Fennel seeds – ½ tsp
Fenugreek seeds – ½ tsp
Curry leaves – 1 sprig
Rampe/ pandan leaf – small piece
Coconut milk or non-fat milk – 1 cup
Curry powder – 1 tbsp, or as required
Low fat oil, as required

Method:

Soak the kadalai in water for a minimum of 3 hours and better, if soaked overnight.
Rinse the soaked kadalai and boil it for 15 minutes in some fresh water.
Drain and keep aside the kadalai.
In a pan, heat a little oil and fry the chopped onion, fenugreek, mixed 3C powder, curry leaves and rampe for two minutes.
Add the boiled kadalai to the pan and mix well.
Stir in the coconut milk or non-fat milk and 1 tbsp curry powder. Let the kadalai curry simmer on low heat for 10 to 15 mins.
If the curry dries up, add a little more milk and let it simmer a little more. The curry should have a rich consistency and not be watery when you remove from the heat.
Serve hot with the puri.

Recipe source: Raji Thillainathan.

Kesari

When I asked my mother to teach me a simple and quick to prepare Sri Lankan dish for an informal international pot-luck with friends a year ago, she taught me to make Kesari. I took a few photos of the outcome of that lesson. So, today, I thought I would share the recipe for the first Sri Lankan (and Indian) recipe that I officially learnt along with the photos from that day.

Kesari is delicious both as a dessert and a special snack and takes very little time to prepare.

Kesari

Cooking time: 10 – 15 mins

Makes 10 pieces

Ingredients:

Semolina – ½ cup, lightly roasted
Water – 1 cup
Sugar – ¼ cup
Kesari powder – pinch
Rose essence – drop or Vanilla essence – 1 tsp and pinch of crushed cardamom
Vegetable margarine – 1 ½ tbsp

Method:

In a saucepan, boil a cup of water and the sugar.
When the water starts boiling, add the kesari powder and either the vanilla essence and pinch of crushed cardamom or drop of rose essence.
Stir continuously, while adding the semolina.
When the mixture starts to thicken, add the margarine while continuing to stir.
Remove the pan from the stove and transfer the kesari to a plate.
Level the kesari on the plate and allow it to cool for at least 10 mins before slicing and serving.

Recipe source: Raji Thillainathan.