The Metal Serving....Click it

Here is the Spicy, Tasty, Nihari Curry served in a Metal Casarole of which, I will post the recipe later. For now the metal goes to Bee and Jai's Click event.

French Toast with Hash Browns and Grape Fruit - WBB#20

Its been so hectic these days with work and Good Friday,Easter just gone, that I hardly find time for blogging. Beginning last Sept, when I started regular blogging - till now, I usually publish at least a post a week...but last week I couldn't keep up with that commitment. And didn't want to feel bad about it, cause blogging is only an extra talent/hobby/entertainment that we want to share with others which should relax us...rather than putting an extra burden on us.. At times I feel maintaining a blog is demanding and it takes off time that should go to the family.

Oh!!! there is so much work to be done on my space... To upload the new layout, onto my own domain and make it more like a website rather than a weblog so global viewers will read only the recipe that they are looking for and really cut the story short...and keep comments section open only for queries. Wish I can take off some time to achieve this.

Nevertheless, I continue and managed to post this French Toast which is so common here in North America, for Easter Sunday Sunrise Service Breakfast. Also thought this would be right to send to Mansi of Fun and Food who is hosting Weekend Breakfast Blogging which was originally created by Nandita of Saffron trail

When it comes to breakfast for most of us its just a Coffee with a Muffin or a bagel or a quick bowl of cereal in this part of the world.I really miss those days back home when my Mom and Grandmothers used to make a variety and spread a platter before us and we would still make fuss to eat or be picky eaters. Now when we don't receive those treats we know the value of them.

Coming to the recipe of this post, I am used to two kinds of it... one from back home - my mom's version and the other - the western version. In my mom's version we used to add sweetness in the mix we make to dip the bread, but the Western version does not add the sweet before cooking but after serving garnished with corn or maple syrup for the sweetness.

Here I give the recipe for my mom's version which she used to call as 'Bombay Toast'...guess this was famous in India by this name.

I still remember the good childhood days when my mom used to make this as a breakfast for us...we three use to bubble with joy. It was really a treat for me and my two younger brothers.

I always used to help her in making the mix and grinding the cardamom with a little sugar to make a powder in the traditional mortar grinder.

Now I think I almost narrated half of the recipe here.

Ingredients:
8 -10 Slices choice of bread.
2 Eggs
2 cups milk (1% - 3%)
1/2 cup Sugar
5 Cardamom pods ground into powder
A pinch of salt
2 tbsp Oil for toasting the bread.

Steps:
1. In a deep bowl, beat eggs for a minute, add sugar, salt, milk and cardamom powder and beat again till the eggs completely look dissolved in the milk.
2. Soak the bread pieces one at a time in this prepared milk and egg mixture for 10 - 15 sec
3. Meanwhile coat a heated tawa/pan with oil. Add the bread slices to the pan and fry them on both sides even. This may take 3-4 minutes.
4. Repeat from step 2 till all the bread slices are done

We served this with fresh fruit and home baked hash browns to compliment the sweet of French toast..Also to qualify for Mansi' WBB#20 the breakfast should consist of more than one time.

So this platter which makes a balanced breakfast goes to Mansi for WBB.

"E" for Eggplant - Vow Brinjal

Sending this Brinjal Masala to Pooja of My Creative Ideas who is hosting the Vegetable of the week

Read Recipe here

Raisin Walnut Coconut Cake

Ingredients
To Beat
400 gms butter(softened)
2 cups white sugar
5-6 eggs
To Combine
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp ground allspice
1 pinch salt
To Add
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tbsp almond extract
1 tbsp lime juice
Add some color to get a marble effect if desired.

Dried Fruit and Nut
1/2 cup raisins
1/2 cup Walnuts
1/2 cup Sweetened Crated Coconut

Procedure:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour your desired cake pans.

Measure all ingredients and keep them ready, Take
butter out of fridge before an hour to soften it.

Beat butter, sugar in a large bowl until they turn creamy Add in eggs. Beat on low speed of electric mixer until blended, then on high speed for 5 minutes until light and fluffy.

Combine and swift together flour, allspice, baking powder and salt in a separate bowl, and fold these dry ingredients alternately with liquid ingredients to be added to the batter mixture. Keep mixing while adding.

Add half of the raisins,walnuts and coconut. Do not to over-mix.

Pour into Prepared greased pan/pans.

Bake in preheated oven for 40 to 50 minutes

Once the cake rises and gets the shape then remove from the oven and add the remaining raisins,walnuts and coconut on the top, cover it with foil,
shiny side up, and bake for the remaining time or until a knife inserted into the center comes out clean.
Let cool in pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack and cool completely.

Aloo Tamatar - Ode to Potato AND Potato Feast

Like Sig, I must say its been raining Potatoes in our food blogosphere. Well, all due respects to this ever versatile root vegetable. It has feed billions of us in every part of the world. Its gr8 to celebrate 2008 as the International Year of Potato. And I can fill pages with the memories of this root. Honestly I'm a potato freak. You give it to me in any form(except the North American Mashed Potato, I don't like the flavour of the spices that go into it) I would happily eat it. I also observed that they don't go well with dhall curries, especailly with the texture part. In my home back home, we never added these in sambar etc, but I know many South Indian states make this combo.
So ode to Potato!!!! Yes, yes with all those carbs, starch and the weight that comes with it, I would love to work out to shred those extra pounds rather than give up on these pretty potatoes. OK now they are not so bad, they are a pretty good source of Potassium.
Read more on Potatoes here.

Growing up Potatoes were one, that I would eat without hesitating. The day they was on the menu I would be at peace. I Wish to post most of my potato recipes in my space in coming future.

For now, one easy and common dish that my grand mother use to make and I adapted is Potatoes cooked with Tomatoes or Aloo Tamatar(Hindi), Bangaladunpa tamata(Telugu), and Takali Urulaikizhlangu(Tamil).

This preparation goes well with Poori, Dosa, Chapathi/Roti, Veg Pu lav,Fried Rice or even with just toasted whole wheat bread slices.

Ingredients:
Potatoes - big - 5 - 6
Tomatoes - 3-4 or Tomato Puree/Crushed Tomato - 1 cup or Tomato Paste 3-4 Tbsp
Oil - 1 tbsp
Mustard - 1/4 tsp
Onion - 1 small (Increase to 2 if you want more gravy)
Green Chillies - 3 slit
Curry leaves - 1 rem
Chilly powder - 1 tsp
Cumin powder - 1 tsp
Coriander powder - 1 tsp
Salt - to taste
Coriander leaves - a small bunch

Procedure:
Remove Potato skin and cut into medium size cubes.
Add oil in a heated Kadai/Skillet, allow mustard to splutter and then add cut onions, green chillies, curry leaves and saute till onions turn slightly brown.
Add Potato pieces, all CCC powders, salt, and mix well to give an even coat of all ingredients.
Sprinkle some water and cover with lid to cook the potato in steam for about 15- 20 minutes.
Keep mixing periodically and add more water if required.
Once the potato is almost cooked add the tomato puree, mix well.
Cook for another 10 minutes or till potatoes absorb the tomato flavour into them.
Add finely chopped coriander leaves just before removing from heat.

This goes to Ode to Potato, an event by Sra, and Potato Feast by hosted by DK of Culinary Bazaar

Cake B4U Bake - Click Flour

Celebrating 'Family day'(New Holiday declared in Ontario from 2008) on Feb 18th, I baked this cake. This is actually Raisin Walnut Coconut Cake. As the Click theme for this month is "Flour", clicked this picture after adding some color to the flour batter and before I could add the my garnish and bake it.

So this is my entry, for Bee and Jai's Click event.

Just wanted to share that I do not send my entries to this click event to win any badge. Cause I'm not clicking my pictures from a winner's preparation. May be that time will come soon. As of now if I have some thing ready I just participate, to support and to encourage others. Cause if we don't send our entries how will the winners become special.

Wait and Watch for this Raisin Walnut Coconut Cake Recipe......

Lemon Rice - JFI Lime

Sending 'L' for Lime, Lemon Rice for This Month's JFI - Lemon, hosted by Coffee, created by Indira of Mahanandi



Check for recipe Here