Recipe Index

RECIPE INDEX 

Arabic Flavours                                                                                 

Asabia el Aroos (Bride’s fingers)

Beghrir (Semolina pancakes with honey)

Date Muhalabiyeh

Falafel (Middle Eastern Chickpea croquetes) with Tahini sauce

Harissa paste 

Hummus

Kibbeh or kubbeh

Luqaimat

Mehshi Malfoof (Stuffed Cabbage Rolls)

Moutabbal/ Baba Ghanoush

Slada Hummus (Warm Chickpea Salad with Onions and Paprika) 

Usbu al Zainab


Breakfast Menu                                                                                 

American Super-light Pancakes

Appam (vellayappam)

Beghrir (Semolina Pancakes with honey)

Kiddie Pizza

Neeru Dosa (Paper-thin Rice and Coconut Pancakes)

Ottil pollichathu (Rice Pancake 2)

Plain Dosa

Pola (Palappam)

Rava Idly and Kashmiri Chilli Chammanthi



Cakes (Small cakes/muffins) and Breads                                         


5 Minute Chocolate Mug Cake

Apple Pola/Apple Kums (A Malabar Apple Cake)

Apricot and Almond Cake

Banana Bread

Best ever Brownies

Black Forest Gateaux

Celebration Chocolate Cake

Cherry Crumble Cake with Cinnamon

Chocolate Cupcakes

Chocolate Cupcakes with Strawberry Frosting

Classic Brownies

Cocoa Brownies

Dutch Apple Cake

Espresso Chocolatechip Cupcakes

Kums (Cardamom Flavoured sponge cake)

Lemon Cake

Low fat Banana Bread

Low fat Banana Muffins

Orange Cake

Peach and Blackberry Crumble Cake

Plantain Cake (Kaayippola)

Rosemary and Sundried Tomato Focassia

Savoury Semolina Cake

Strawberry Cream Gateaux

Simple Chocolate Cake

Super Moist Chocolate Cake

Zebra Cake


Chinese Flavours                                                                               


Chilli Fish

Chilli Garlic Fried rice

Chilli Paneer

Chilli Prawns

Chinese Stir-Fried chicken Noodles

Fried Rice


Cookies/Bars/Macarons/Biscottis etc.                                                               


Butter Shortbread Cookies

Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies

Florentines

Lemon Scented Almond and Raisin Biscotti

Oatmeal Cookies

Orange and Raisin Cookies

Orangey Palmiers

Peanut Butter Cookies

Pistachio and Cardamom Cookies

Pistachio and Raisin Biscotti

Plain Macarons with Bitter Chocolate Ganache

Rosewater Macarons with Cardamom Infused White Chocolate Ganache

Sponge Fingers (Savioardi)

Strawberry and Oatmeal Squares


Desserts, Puddings, Payasams etc (Something Sweet )                  

5 Minute Chocolate Mug Cake

Apricot and Almond Cake

Asabia el Aroos

Best Ever Brownies

Biscuit and Creme Pudding with Caramel Topping

Black Forest Gateaux

Boondhi Laddu

Brigadiero Chocolate Fudge Balls

Carrot Halwa/ Gajar Ka Halwa/Gajrela

Celebration Chocolate Cake

Cherry Crumble Cake with Cinnamon

Chocolate Chip Bread Pudding

Chocolate Coated Brazil Nuts

Classic Brownies

Cocoa Brownies

Creme Caramel

Dark Chocolate Mousse

Date and Walnut Bars

Date Muhalabiyeh

Gulab Jamun

Il Diplomatico

Jelly Pudding

Kalakand

Lemon Tart

Luqaimat (Arabic Dumplings)

Mango and Cheese Pudding

Mango Pudding

Musaara Varakiyathu (An ancient Malabar Muslim Payasam based on wheat, coconut and Bengal Gram)

Nutty Pineapple Dessert with Caramel Crunch

Pineapple Cheesecake

Pineapple Souffle

Plain Macarons with Bitter Chocolate Ganache

Queen of Puddings

Rosewater Macarons with Cardamom Infused White Chocolate Ganache

Semiya Payasam (Vermicelli Kheer)

Strawberry Cream Gateaux

Super Moist Chocolate Cake

Tiramisu

Usbu al Zainab

Zebra Cake

Egg Based curries and Main dishes                                                 

Mutta Roast / Egg Roast (A simple Kerala Style Egg Curry)


Indian Bread Varieties                                                                     

Aloo Paratta (Potato stuffed Indian Flat bread - Unleavened)

Battura (A fried bread made of plain flour, semolina and curd)

Kalathappam (Unsweeteened rice cake)

Marichedutha Appam (Slightly thick rice pancakes with oil)

Meen Pathiri (Steamed rice pancakes filled with fish masala)

Neeru Dosa (Paper thin rice and coconut pancakes)

Neypathal (Deep fried Rice pancakes with fennel, onion and coconut)

Ottil Pollichathu (Simple Rice Pancake)

Plain Dosa

Pola (A steamed rice cake with fermented batter)
                    
Thenga Pathal (Rice pancakes with coconut)


Italian Cuisine                                                                                   


Classic Lasagne

Garlic Basil Bread

Il Diplomatico  

Italian Bean and Pasta Soup

Pasta with Mustard Sauce and Stir-fried Chicken

Pizza

Prawn and Pesto Pats Salad

Rosemary and Sundried Tomato Focassia

Spaghetti and Meatballs

Spinach and Ricotta Cannelloni

Tiramisu


Malabar Dishes                                                                                  


Aana pathal/ Kozhi Pidi (Steamed Rice Dumplings in Rich Coconut and Beef Gravy)

Alisa

Apple Pola/Apple Kums 

Bread Roll

Chatti Pathal/ Chatti Pathiri

Egg Kebabs

Fish Cutlets 

Ghee Rice (Neychor)

Ghee Rice with Vegetables

Godambu Kaachiyathu (A Wheat Based Beverage Tempered with Fried Onions, Cashews and Raisins)
Kaayada (Unnakkayi)

Kadala Parippu Ada (Bengal Gram and Coconut Parcels)

Kalathappam/ kalthappam (Unsweetened)

Kallummakkaaya Nirachathu/Ari Kadukka/Stuffed Mussels

Kozhi Nirachathu

Kums/Mutta pola (Cardamom Flavoured Sponge Cake)

Malabar Chemmeen Biriyani (Malabar Prawn Biriyani)

Malabar Chicken Biriyani

Malabar Chicken Curry

Malabar Fish Curry

Malabar Meen Biriyani

Malabar style Meat masala

Malabar Style Pepper Mutton Curry

Marichedutha Appam (Rice pancakes 1)

Meen Pathiri (Steamed rice pancakes filled with fish masala)

Musaara Varakiyathu (An ancient Malabar Muslim Payasam based on wheat, coconut and Bengal Gram)

Mutta Marichathu (Egg and Plantain Turnover)

Mutton Buhari

Neypathal (Deep fried rice pancakes with onion, coconut and fennel)

Pazham Nirachathu (Stuffed Plantains)

Special Fried Chicken

Spicy Beef Masala

Spring roll

Thalassery Mutton Dum Biryani

Tharikkanji (Thari Kaachiyathu) - Semolina payasam

Thenga Pathal (Rice pancakes with coconut)

Thenga Varutharacha Kozhi Curry


Mutton/Chicken/Beef (Gravies and dry fries)                                


Balti Chicken Pasanda

Beef Ularthiyathu

Butter Chicken

Chicken Chettinad

Chicken Fry Masala

Chicken Mughlai/ Chicken Moghlai

Dal Ghosht (Meat with lentils)

Indian Style Roasted Chicken with Minced-meat Stuffing

Kadhai Gosht/Kadai Gosht (A North Indian Mutton Curry in Tomato Based Sauce)

Kerala Style Baked Chicken

Kozhi Nirachathu(Stuffed Chicken with Gravy)

Malabar Chicken Curry

Malabar Style Pepper Mutton Curry

Mutton Buhari (A Kerala style Mutton Curry)

Mutton Korma/Kuruma (A mild and creamy Mutton Curry)

Mutton Stew

Mutton Ularthiyathu (A Kerala Mutton Dry Curry)

Nadan Kozhi Curry (A simple Kerala Style Chicken Curry with fried potatoes)

Pepper Chicken in Cashew Nut Gravy

Roasted Tandoori Chicken

Rogan Josh (A North Indian Mutton Curry)

Special Fried Chicken

Spicy Beef Masala

Spicy Dahi Murg (Spicy chicken in yoghurt sauce)

Spicy Grilled Chicken

Thenga Varutharacha Kozhi Curry (Chicken in Sautéed Coconut Gravy)

North Indian Cuisine                                                                        

Battura/ Batura

Carrot Halwa/ Gajar Ka Halwa/ Gajrela

Handvo (Savoury Semolina Bread)

Kabuli Channa Masala (A popular Indian Curry with Chickpeas)

Kadhai Gosht/Kadai Gosht (A North Indian Mutton Curry in Tomato Based Sauce)

Paneer Butter Masala (Paneer Makhani)

Rajma Masala

Rogan Josh (A North Indian Mutton Curry)


Pasta, Rice, Noodles and Others                                                      

Aromatic Rice Pulao

Chicken Cobbler

Chilli Garlic Fried Rice

Chinese stir fried chicken noodles

Classic Lasagne

Coconut rice – South Indian style

Fried Rice

Ghee Rice (Neychor)

Ghee Rice with Vegetables

Kofta Pulao (Aromatic Rice with Meatballs)

Lime Rice (Elumichham Pazham Saadham)

Malabar Chemmeen Biriyani (Malabar Prawn Biriyani)

Malabar Chicken Biriyani

Malabar Meen Biriyani

Pasta with Mustard Sauce and Stir-fried Chicken

Pizza (Serves 3)

Quiche Lorraine

Simple Vegetable Pulao/Pilaf

Spaghetti and Meatballs

Spinach and Ricotta Cannelloni

Thalassery Mutton Dum Biryani


Pickles, Jams and Preserves                                                             

Aubergine (Brinjal/ Eggplant) Pickle

Pineapple Jam


Ramadan Special Varieties (Iftar and Main Course Dishes)        

Apple pola/Apple Kums

Aana pathal/ Kozhi Pidi (Steamed Rice Dumplings in Rich Coconut and Beef Gravy)

Asabia el Aroos (Brides Fingers)

Bread Roll

Chatti Pathal / Chatti Pathiri

Chicken Donuts

Date Muhalabiyeh/ Muhalabiya

Date and Coconut Fritters

Falafel

Fish Cutlets

Godambu Kaachiyathu (A Wheat Based Beverage Tempered with Fried Onions, Cashews and Raisins)

Arabic Dumplings (Luqaimat)

Kaayada (Unnakkayi)

Kadala Parippu Ada (Bengal Gram and Coconut Parcels)

Kallummakkaaya Nirachathu/Ari Kadukka /Stuffed Mussels

Kibbeh Akras / Kubbeh

Malabar style Meat masala

Meen Pathiri (Steamed rice pancakes filled with fish masala)

Mutta Marichathu (Egg and Plantain Turnover)

Mutta Porichathu (Egg Fritters)

Musaara Varakiyathu (An ancient Malabar Muslim Payasam based on wheat, coconut and Bengal Gram)

Pazham Nirachathu (Stuffed Plantains)

Spring roll

Tharikkanji (Thari Kaachiyathu) - Semolina payasam


Salads, Dips and Sauces                                                                    


Avocado and Tomato Salsa

Beetroot and Couscous Salad

Chunky Garlic Sauce

Coconut Chammanthi/Biriyani Chammanthi (Thenga Chammanthi)

Harissa paste

Hummus

Kashmiri Chilli Chammanthi

Mayonnaise

Moutabbal/Baba Ghanoush (Egg plant dip with Tahini paste)

Pacha Manga Chammanthi( Raw Mango with Coconut)

Prawn and Pesto Salad

Pudina ki Chutney (Mint Chutney)

Salad with Caeser Dressing

Slada Hummus (Warm Chickpea Salad with Onions and Paprika)

Tahini Sauce

Seafood (Gravies,snacks and Dry Fries)                                                      

Chemmeen Chammanthi

Chemmeen Muringavaal Curry (King Prawns and Drumsticks in Thick Coconut Gravy)

Chemmeen Varattiyathu (King Prawns in spicy masala)

Chilli Fish

Chilli Garlic Prawns

Chilli Prawns

Coconut Prawns with Spices

Fish Mollee

Kallummakkaaya Nirachathu/Ari Kadukka /Stuffed Mussels

King prawns and Okra in coconut gravy

Malabar Fish Curry

Masala Koonthal (Spicy squid Masala/Calamari Masala)

Prawn and Pesto Salad

Sraavu Varuthathu (Crushed Shark in spicy coconut masala)

Tuna Chikkiyathu /Spicy Tuna Thoran (Stir-fried Tuna With Spices)


Side dishes (Dishes served along with Main course)                      

Beans Mezhukkupuratti (Kerala Style Beans Stir fry)

Beef Ularthiyathu

Beetroot Thoran(Stir fried Beetroot )

Chemmeen Chammanthi

Chicken Fry Masala

Chilli Fish

Chilli Garlic Prawns

Chilli Paneer

Chilli Prawns

Coconut Prawns with Spices

Crispy Fried Cauliflower

Fried yams (Chena Porichathu)

Indian Style Roasted Chicken with Minced-meat Stuffing

Kakkiri Pacchadi (Cucumber in tempered coconut and yogurt sauce)

Long Beans Thoran (Stir-fried Long Beans)

Masala Koonthal (Spicy squid Masala/Calamari Masala)

Pacha Manga Chammanthi( Raw Mango with Coconut)

Pumpkin Curry (kumbalanga curry)

Special Fried Chicken

Spicy Grilled Chicken

Sraavu Varuthathu (Crushed Shark in spicy coconut masala)

Stir-Fried Potatoes (Urulakkizhangu Thoran)

Tuna Chikkiyathu /Spicy Tuna Thoran (Stir-fried Tuna With Spices)

Vendakka Pacchadi

Snacks (Sweet and Savoury)                                                             

Apple Pola/Apple Kums

Ari Murukku (A crunchy snack made of rice, lentils and spices)

Banana Bread

Bread Roll

Chatti Pathal / Chatti Pathiri

Chicken Donuts

Chocolate Glazed Doughnuts

Date and Coconut Fritters

Dumplings (Luqaimat)

Egg Kebab

Falafel

Fish Cutlets

Garlic and Basil Bread

Handvo (Savory Semolina Cake)

Kaayada (Unnakkayi)

Kadalapparippu Ada (Bengal Gram and Coconut Parcels)

Kallummakkaaya Nirachathu/Ari Kadukka /Stuffed Mussels

Kerala Puffs

Kibbeh or kubbeh

Kiddie Pizza
 
Kums (Cardamom Flavored Sponge Cake)

Low-fat Banana Bread

Mutta Marichathu (Egg and Plantain turnover)

Mutta Porichathu (Egg Fritters)

Orangey Palmiers

Pazham Nirachathu (Stuffed Plantains)

Pistachio and Raisin Biscotti

Rava Idly

Spring Roll

Sukhiyan (Moong Beans Fritters)

Usbu al Zainab (Zainab's fingers)


Soups and Starters                                                                            


Chilli Fish

Chilli Paneer

Chilli Prawns

Creamy Broccoli and Mushroom Soup

Italian Bean and Pasta Soup

Meat Kibbeh Akras/ Kubbeh

Potato and Cauliflower Soup with Cheese

Spicy Grilled Chicken

Swiss Oatmeal Soup with Chicken and Vegetables

Vegetable Curries (Gravies and dry curries)                                 

Beans Mezhukkupuratti (Kerala Style stir fried Beans)

Beetroot Thoran(Stir fried Beetroot )

Crispy Fried Cauliflower

Fried yams (Chena Porichathu)

Green Peas Curry in Coconut Milk

Kabuli channa masala

Kakkiri Pacchadi (Cucumber in tempered coconut and yogurt sauce)

Kumbalanga Moru curry (Ashgourd curd curry)

Long Beans Thoran (Stir-fried Long Beans)

Muringavaal Thengapaal Curry (Drumsticks in Coconut Milk)

Pacha Manga Chammanthi( Raw Mango with Coconut)

Paneer Makani/Paneer butter Masala

Pumpkin Curry (kumbalanga curry)

Rajma Masala (Kidney Bean Curry)

Spinach Dal/Palak Dal

Stir-Fried Potatoes (Urulakkizhangu Thoran)

Vegetable Kadai/Vegetable Karahi

Vegetable Korma

Vegetable Stew

Vegetables in Coconut Gravy

Vendakka Pacchadi (Okra in yougurt sauce)

MALABAR RECIPES

Aana pathal/ Kozhi Pidi (Steamed Rice Dumplings in Rich Coconut and Beef Gravy)

Alisa

Bread Roll

Chatti Pathal/ Chatti Pathiri

Ghee Rice (Neychor)

Ghee Rice with Vegetables

Kaayada (Unnakkayi)

Kadala Parippu Ada (Bengal Gram and Coconut Parcels)

Kalathappam/ kalthappam (Unsweetened)

Kozhi Nirachathu

Malabar Chemmeen Biriyani (Malabar Prawn Biriyani)

Malabar Chicken Biriyani

Malabar Fish Curry in Coconut Gravy (Thenga Aracha Meen Curry)

Malabar Meen Biriyani

Malabar style Meat masala

Malabar Style Pepper Mutton Curry

Marichedutha Appam (Rice pancakes 1)

Meen Pathiri (Steamed rice pancakes filled with fish masala)

Mutta Marichathu (Egg and Plantain Turnover)

Mutton Buhari

Neypathal (Deep fried rice pancakes with onion, coconut and fennel)

Pazham Nirachathu (Stuffed Plantains)

Special Fried Chicken

Spring roll

Thalassery Mutton Dum Biryani

Tharikkanji (Thari Kaachiyathu) - Semolina payasam

Thenga Pathal (Rice pancakes with coconut)

Thenga Varutharacha Kozhi Curry

Plantains

Plantains……heard that they are the cousins of banana…..I partly agree with that cause they look almost the same. But when they come to taste and cooking methods, they are entirely different. Plantains are quite larger in size and the skin is even more yellow than the banana. And the flesh is yellow too. You can see few sliced plantains on top of the plantain cake. It doesn’t have the lovely aroma of our banana but has its own distinct smell. I thought of blogging about plantains because I feel that it is not common in Britain and I just want the readers of this blog to familiarize the readers with this amazing fruit. Many of them call plantain as banana but it is NOT.

Back in India (my home town) and in UAE (grew-up here) plantains are always readily available everywhere and my mom used to make some or the other snack out of it for evening tea or even morning breakfast. Here in my locality, plantains are only found in Asian stores and Greek/Turkish stores and the mega stores don’t sell them at all. What initiated me to blog about plantains is the Turkish grocer near our home. Whenever I go to the Turkish shops they always had very ripe plantains where the skin goes black and they always throw them out thinking that they are spoiled. A couple of times when I went there to get plantains, to my surprise, they asked me, “what do you do with these things?”. I told them they can be used to prepare lot of things. Then he asked me “Do they taste good?” I find those questions very funny and always bring a smile on my face when I think of it. Apart from that, what really triggered me to blog about plantains was the cooking competition program called Celebrity MasterChef program on the UKTVFOOD Channel. This is a program where the competitors pass through several test rounds to win the Celebrity Master Chef title. One of the rounds was to identify different kinds of foods provided to them. And there was this plantain. Among the four contestants in that round, two of them couldn’t answer that it was plantain. They told it was banana which really shocked me. Plantains are not bananas.

I think plantain is a very versatile fruit. It can be prepared into many delicacies and savouries at different stages throughout their life from raw till they are very ripe. Plantains are always available in our home and we always had something made from plantains. When plantains are raw and the skin is green, it can be used to prepare the famous ‘plantain chips’ which is seasoned with little turmeric and salt and fried in oil. They are really famous for their crunchiness and a different flavour. Plantain chips from Calicut were the ones we always bought on the way to UAE. That was the all time favourite. It can be used in curries and stir fries. In its raw form, it is also sun-dried and then powdered to make the best weaning food for babies without any additives. When it turns medium ripe, or to say when it just starts ripening, skin turns yellow but still the greens are visible near the stalks, then it is time to prepare another famous dish, Another all time favourite-‘kaayada’ or ‘Unnakkaya’. When it gets really ripe, u can also sauté them in clarified butter or ghee and sprinkle with sugar for that extra sweetness, or steam cook them with skin on etc. When it really ripens and the skin goes to almost black, bake them or make halwas. You can find the recipe for few plantains in my blog itself.

King prawns and Okra in coconut gravy

After all the sweet posts that I have been doing recently, its high time that I spice up my blog with little bit of hot posts like curries or anything that doesn’t have Sugar in it. Let me begin with the prawn and okra curry. Well, about the curry, it always reminds me of my dad. It is one of my dad’s favourite dishes that he constantly talks about whenever my mom prepares it at home. He used to tell us how his mother prepared this dish by picking up the fresh okra from her kitchen garden and fresh, live prawns from the fish monger. Nothing would taste so good as using very fresh and organic vegetables and cooking them straight from the garden. It all happens in golden olden days. But now, where the life is going faster than it should be, supermarket bought stuff are the only choice. My dad is a great prawn lover and is my husband. So my mom kept on making so many dishes with prawn for my dad and so I’m following her footsteps now making prawn dishes for my Husband. This particular curry very well goes with pathiri, plain boiled rice, poori, chappaathi, neypathiri, ottil pollichathu etc. I hope I will post the recipes of all these one by one slowly.

Ingredients

King prawns 200 gm (shelled)
Medium sized Okra – 15 no.s
Onion – 2 cups thinly sliced (2 large ones)
Tomato – 3 small / 2 medium size, chopped
Green chilly – 2 nos (slit lengthwise)
Kashmiri Chilli Powder – 2 tspful
Coriander Powder -2 tspful
Turmeric powder – ½ tsp
Coconut Milk- 1 ½ cup ()
Fennel seeds -1 tsp
Salt – as reqd.
Water – ½ cup appx.
Mustard seeds – 1 tsp
Curry leaves – 2 twigs
Coconut oil – 4-5 tbs

Preparation:
1. Keep a medium sized sauce pan in medium flame and add 1-2 tbs of oil.
2. Add onions, tomatoes, green chilli and salt and close the lid and cook for about 5 minutes or until tomatoes go soft. The flame should not be too high and the water from the onion should not dry up as well. Don’t make the flame too low as well.
3. At this point, add chilli powder, coriander powder, prawns and stir well. Keep simmering in medium flame until prawns are almost cooked. If the gravy seems too dry, add half cup of water and close the lid.
4. Meanwhile grind the fennel seeds along with turmeric in coconut milk. Keep them aside.
N.B: I used freshly grated coconut about ½ cup and ground it with sufficient water to get 1 ½ cup pf thick coconut milk.
5. When the prawns are ¾ cooked, add Okra and simmer well until the okra is cooked and is tender. Take care not to overcook it. Keep checking from time to time.
When okra is cooked well, add the coconut milk and heat just until it starts bubbling. Don’t keep boiling because it will curdle.
6. Switch off the flame.

For tempering

Heat another pan and add couple of tablespoon of oil. When the pan is smoking hot, add mustard seeds and cover with a lid. When they finish spluttering add curry leaves and let them splutter for a few seconds. Add this tampered oil to the curry made earlier. Serve hot with rice.

Tiramisu without Alcohol

Tiramisu, pronounced as 'ti-ra-mee-su' the very famous classic Italian dessert is made of savioardi/lady's fingers/ sponge fingers dabbed in espresso or strong coffee and alcohol mixture traditionally and mascarpone cream mixture and then sprinkled with cocoa on top. However I have made certain variations from the traditional one avoiding alcohol and using chocolate cake along with sponge fingers. I made it for the Iftar party last weekend and I got a big thumbs-up for this dessert.

Before talking about Iftar party and Iftar, I will give a brief description about Ramadan and what Iftar is. Ramadan is the 9th Month in the Arabic Calendar where all Muslims are obliged to refrain from food and drinks from dawn till dusk and this is called fasting. At dawn we have a light meal called Seher (Pre-dawn meal) and don’t eat or drink the whole day. At dusk we break our fast with dates or water initially and carry on with some snacks. This breaking of fast at dusk is called Iftar. After dusk we are allowed to eat anything until the dawn.

I find Iftar back home quite festive where you have friends and relatives coming over and having food and prayers together. We also prepare different kinds of snacks and meals and share them with others in the neighbourhood to show our love and compassion.

On the first day of the following month, after sighting another new moon we celebrate Eid-ul-Fitr where everyone takes a bath, put on new clothes and go to mosques early in the morning to perform communal prayer. After that, we have friends and relatives coming over and having feast. It’s a great celebration.

Talking about Tiramisu, I made certain changes from the traditonal recipe this time. Instead of using savioardi I experimented with a layer of chocolate cake in the bottom layer and sprinkled the coffee all over the chocolate cake rather than dipping it in coffee. I just used chocolate cake because I had made chocolate cake the very previous day and had quite lot of it. However it was super delicious, I should say. Below here is the original recipe that I have that uses only saviordi and not cake. but in the picture you can see the bottom layer is cake.


Ingredients:

4 eggs separated
500 gms mascarpone cheese
2 cups heavy cream/double cream
30 sponge fingers/savioardi/lady's fingers
8 tbs + 2 tbs sugar
2 cups strong coffee
2 tsp vanilla essence
2 tbs cocoa powder

Preparation:
1. Prepare 2 cups of coffee by adding boiling water to 2 tbs of coffee+2 tbs of sugar. Keep it aside.
2. Separate egg whites and yolks.
3. In a glass bowl, take egg yolks and add in sugar beat well with the egg beater until you get creamy and pale yellow mixture (zabaglione pronounced as sabayon).
4. Place another vessel on the stove and add hot but not boiling water and set it on low-medium flame. Place the glass bowl with egg yolk and sugar mixture (zabaglione) over the simmering water and whisk well for around ten minutes until the mixture gets thick. Add vanilla essence to this and keep it aside to cool.
N.B: It is important to note that the bowl containing zabaglione should not come in contact with the water underneath since this will curdle the egg and get a grainy mixture. Also it is important not to use a metal bowl for preparing zabaglione since the vessel gets heated up quickly and again the egg will get curdled.
5. Whip the Cream until peaks form and keep it aside. Don’t whip it for too long because it will start forming into butter. You can use wire whisk or egg beater for this.
6. Mix the mascarpone cheese in this whipped cream and mix well until no lumps appear. Add the cooled zabaglione to this and mix well.
7. Whip the egg whites until peaks form and fold into the cheese and cream mixture to keep it light and airy. Dont over mix it..
8. Now take a large clear glass dish, just dip the sponge fingers in the coffee and layer them side by side until you cover the bottom of the dish with the sponge fingers dipped in coffee. Don’t keep the sponge fingers in coffee for long time since they tend to absorb liquid too quickly. Just dab both sides in coffee and that should be more than enough.
9.Pour half of the cheese cream mixture over this lady’s fingers and again layer another layer of savoiardi dipped in coffee over this cream mixture and tip over the rest of cream mixture.

10. Cover and Refrigerate for minimum of 2 hours.

11.Just before serving,dust with cocoa by passing it through sieve or if you want to make it more rich, add some chocolate shavings....hmmmm..yummy!

Chemmeen chamanthi (Dried shrimps with grated coconut)

Chemmeen chammanthi is my favorite side dish ever. It is made of sun dried shrimps sauted and then ground to a smooth or coarse paste. The flavour of dried shrimps is very much different from the fresh ones and it yields an entirely different flavour as well. I love to have this as a side dish for my plain rice. It is very easy to make, tastes delicious but not for people who doesnt like dried seafood.

Ingredients:
½ cup - Dry shrimps( Unakka chemmeen)
2 cups freshly grated coconut/frozen grated coconut
4 Shallots / half of a small onion
1 tbs Kashmiri chilly powder ) OR
Regular red chilli powder – As required.
2 tbs Coconut oil
2 goose berry size Dried tamarind

Preparation:
1. Wash shrimps and leave it in a strainer to strain all the water away
2. Grate Coconut and peel the shallots.
3. Heat oil in pan and add the shrimps and stir fry for few minutes (4-5) in medium flame.
4. Add chilli powder and stir for another minute. Turn the flame off.
5. Grind this stir fried shrimps along with coconut, tamarind and shallots in a food processor to get a coarse mixture or grinder if you want even a smoother mixture.
6. Serve with steamed plain rice.
7. Stores well in an airtight container in refrigerator for more than a week. If storing in refrigerator, keep in room temperature for an hour or two to let the coconut thaw. Else it may be a bit dry. Optionally, you can also microwave just to thaw the coconut.