Homemade Chocolates

Easy and simple recipe...

Ingredients

Sugar: 1/2 Cup
Milk Powder: 1/2 Cup
Water: 1/2 Cup
Coco Powder: 2 Table Spoon
Butter: 2 Table Spoon
Vanilla Essence: 1/4 Tea Spoon

Cooking Time: 10 Minutes
Method

To a bowl add milk powder and coco powder and combine well

Keep your chocolate mould handy

To a pan add sugar and water and boil it until it reaches one string consistency

Reduce the flame to the lowest possible and add coco powder and milk powder.

Stir continuously and let it heat for a minute and then switch off the flame
Add butter and vanilla essence and combine well

Let it cool a bit and then pour it to a mixer or food processor and beat it well
Do not let the chocolate cool completely.  It should be hot while beating, else it will harden and you will not get a good texture.

Pour it to chocolate moulds immediately and let it cool down well

Keep it in fridge for some time and then remove from moulds and use

Note:
If you wish to you can add any chopped nuts of your choice.
You need to be very quick.  After adding milk powder and coco powder do not heat for more than a minute.
Be careful while beating it in a mixer as the chocolate is hot and you might get hurt.

How to check one thread consistency of sugar syrup
When the sugar syrup is boiling dip a wooden spatula in the syrup and then remove it
Wait for a few seconds and then touch the sugar syrup on the spatula with your forefinger and then slowly touch the forefinger with your thumb and then pull apart gently

If you see a single thread is formed without breaking then the sugar syrup has achieved the correct texture

Chicken Sausage Biriyani

Simple and easy biriyani..

Ingredients
For Rice
Basmati/Biriyani Rice : 2 Cups
Cloves : 5 nos
Cardomom: 3
Cinnamon :  2 nos
Bay Leaf: 2
Garam masala : 1/4 Tea spoon
Turmeric Powder: 1/4 Tea Spoon
Ghee : 3 Table spoon
Oil : 3 Table spoon
Salt : To taste

Boiling Water: 4 Cups

Lemon Juice : 1 Table Spoon

For Sausage Masala

Sausage : 10 ( 1 packet)
Onion  : 3
Crushed Ginger : 1 Table Spoon
Crushed Garlic : 1 Table Spoon
Crushed Green Chilly : 4 - 5
Chopped Coriander Leaves : 2 Table Spoon
Chopped Mint Leaves : 2 Table Spoon
Curry Leaves : 2 Sprig
Tomato : 1 Big
Oil: 3 Table Spoon
Garam Masala Powder: 1/2 Tea Spoon
Fennel Powder: 1/2 Tea Spoon
Turmeric powder : 1/2 Tea Spoon
Chilly powder : 1/2 Table spoon
Salt
For Garnish
Onion: 1
Cashew : as necessary
Raisins : as necessary

Cooking Time: 40 minutes
Method

Wash the rice and strain it and keep aside.
Making Masala
Keep all the ingredients ready

Boil some water and let the sausage boil for a few minutes and the drain off the water.  Once it cools down chop it to small bite size pieces

To a pan pour oil and add chopped onion and saute until the onion becomes soft

Then add crushed ginger, garlic and green chilly and saute till the raw smell goes

Add garam masala powder, fennel powder, chilly powder and turmeric powder

Now add chopped tomatoes and salt and cook well

Saute well and add chopped sausage, coriander, mint and curry leaves.  Reserve some of it for garnishing

Combine well and cover and cook for 2 to 3 minutes and then switch off the flame

Making Rice

To a pan add 3 table spoons of ghee and 3 table spoons of oil.
Fry the onion until light brown for garnishing
Fry cashew nuts and raisins and keep aside

Now add cloves, cardamom, bay leaf and cinnamon

Add rice and fry the rice for a good 8 to 10 minutes

Add boiling water to the rice.  Once it starts boiling well reduce the flame
Add  turmeric powder, garam masala powder, salt to taste and lemon juice

Stir well, close the lid and cook

Take half of the cooked rice and keep aside
To the rest of the rice add the sausage masala, fried onion, cashew nuts, raisins and little coriander and mint leaves

Add the rest of the rice and layer it well

Cover and cook in low flame for a few minutes

Serve hot with raita, pickle and pappad

Pal Vazhakka / Malabar Kaai Curry / Sago Payasam with Ripe Plantain

Kozhikode Special .... Especially made during Ramadan time....

Ingredients

Sago/Saboodana: 1/2 Cup

Milk: 4 Cups

Sugar: 1/2 Cup

Ripe Banana / Nendrapazham/Ethakka: 1 Big

Ghee: 1 Table Spoon

Cardmom Powder: 1/2 Tea Spoon

Cashew nuts & Raisins: Few

Water: 1 Cup

Cooking Time: 30 Minutes

Method

Soak Sago in water for some time

Chop the banana to small pieces

To a pan pour ghee and fry cashew nuts, raisins and chopped banana.  Saute well and  keep aside.

To a heavy bottomed pan pour milk and let it boil

Once it boils reduce the flame and add soaked sago and stir well and cook until done

Add sugar and the fried banana cashew nuts mix and cook for some more time

Sprinkle the cardamom powder and switch off the flame.  Serve warm or cold

Note: 

You can follow the same procedure and make this dish using coconut milk

Some people add shallots fried in ghee at the end.  You can try that too.  

Kannur Appam / Vella Kareppam / Vella Unnippam

Wishing you all a very very Happy Vishu and Happy Easter!!!!

Ingredients

Pachari / Raw Rice: 1 cup
Cooked Boiled Rice: 3 Heaped Table Spoon
Maida: 3 Table Spoon
Sugar: 3/4 to 1 Cup
Cardamom: 3 - 4
Baking Soda: 1 Pinch
Salt: 1 Pinch
Small Banana: 1 (Optional)
Oil : For frying

Requirement: Appe Pan / Paniyaram Pan / Unni appa kara
Preparation Time: 4 +  8 Hours
Cooking Time: 30 minutes
Method

Wash and soak the pachari in enough water for 3 to 4 hours
Get all your ingredients ready

Drain out water from the soaked rice.  Remove the skin of the cardamom and use the seeds inside
Grind soaked raw rice, cooked rice, maida, sugar, baking soda, salt, small banana  and cardamom pods with enough water

You can grind soaked rice, cooked rice and banana and then add rest of the ingredients and combine well
The batter should be a smooth flowing consistency.  Not too thick or thin.

Now let the batter ferment for about 6 to 8 hours
Heat oil in an appe pan

Once the oil is heated well reduce the flame to medium and pour 3/4th full of batter in each holes

While getting cooked flip side using a spoon and cook the other side as well

Remove and drain on to a paper towel
Repeat the same process with the rest of the batter
The appam should not change color to brown.  It should be a white appam with light brown edge

Coconut Cookies

These cookies are so tasty that you just cant stop munching on....

Ingredients

All Purpose flour/Maida: 3/4 Cup
Dessicated Coconut: 1 Cup
Powdered Sugar: 3/4 Cup
Unsalted Butter: 3/4 Cup
Vanilla Essence 1Tea Spoon
Salt: 1 Pinch
Almonds/Cashews/Raisins : For Garnish

Cooking Time: 10 Minutes 
Method

Preheat the oven to 150 C
To a bowl add butter and powdered sugar

Beat butter and sugar until smooth

To this add all purpose flour, dessicated coconut, vanilla essence and salt

Use your hands and knead it to a smooth dough
Roll out small gooseberry sized balls out of the dough and roll it well

Arrange the cookies on a baking tray and place an almond or cahsew or raisin on each cookie ball and bake for about 8 to 10 minutes at 150 C

Remove from oven and let it cool well

Serve with tea or coffee.

Note:
While keeping the cookies for baking leave some space in between as cookies will expand while baking

Baking time my vary depending on the oven so adjust it accordingly

Marble Cake (Chocolate & Vanilla Flavor - Zebra Pattern)

A good tea time snack.....

Ingredients

All Purpose Flour: 2 Cups
Baking Powder: 1 Tea Spoon
Coco Powder: 2 Table Spoon
Salt: 1 Pinch
Powdered Sugar: 1 and 1/4 Cup
Sunflower Oil: 1 Cup
Egg: 3
Warm milk: 1 Cup
Vanilla Essence: 1 Tea spoon

Baking Time: 40 Minutes
Method

Preheat the oven at 160 C

Prepare the cake tin by spreading a little butter all around the tin and then add little flour and spread it to all sides uniformly.  Knock off the excess flour

Or you can line the tin with a butter paper/parchment paper

Mix all purpose flour and baking powder.  Sieve it and keep aside

To a bowl add eggs, sunflower oil, powdered sugar, salt, milk and vanilla essence. Here i used a food processor

Beat until light and fluffy

Add this to the sieved all purpose flour mix

Fold in well and make a smooth ribbon consistency batter

Now divide this batter to 2 parts equally

Mix coco powder in 2 table spoon milk and add it to one bowl and combine well

Now you have 2 types of cake batter.  Vanilla and chocolate

To a prepared cake tin pour a ladle full of vanilla cake batter

Do not tilt or spread the batter
Now pour a ladle full of chocolate batter on to the vanilla batter

Keep repeating vanilla and chocolate batters alternatively until the whole batter is finished

Now hold a tooth pick or skewer in the center of the cake batter

Draw a line towards the sides of the pan

Draw lines to all sides.  Or if you wish to do a different pattern do accordingly

Place in the center rack of the oven and bake for 35 to 40 minutes at 160 C

Insert a wooden skewer in the middle and check. If it comes out clean then the cake is ready

Remove from oven and let it cool

Once the cake is cooled well remove from cake tin

Cut and serve with a cup of tea or coffee

Note:

Baking time may vary depending on the oven, so adjust it accordingly