Chocolate Cake and the Recliner

Recently for my husband's birthday, the kids and I got him this recliner that he had his eye on for a long time. It was one herculean effort to get the recliner up, make space for it in the room, setting it up... But now that it is set up... its a whole new story....

The room duplicates Kurukshetra and the biggest battles now at home resemble mini Mahabharatha yuddhas. Ask me why. Everyone is now is vying for possession of the chair. It is like a land grabber who will not give up for anything on earth. I did not realise how quickly a sweet husband and two lovely children can turn into a bunch of vultures circling their prey. One just has to get up when under him, the other has wriggled in....No one is willing to give an inch. It is a sight to see. To make up for my time on the chair, I end up sitting and rocking myself at 6 in the morning while brushing my teeth. Thats the only time the seat is free for me.... What's a girl to do???? I submit with good grace

Now for the chocolate cake. We made this for his birthday. Turned out well and looked good too.



Heres the recipe...



2 1/4 cup Flour
1 2/3 cup Sugar
2/3 cup Butter softened
2/3 Cocoa
3 eggs
1/2 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/3 cup water
1 teaspoon vanilla essence

Method:

Preheat oven to 190 deg C
Grease and flour a 9"X13" pan.
Cream butter, eggs, sugar and vanilla till light and fluffy.
Sift all the dry ingredients till well mixed.
Alternately add flour mixture and water to the creamed mixture.
Pour into the greased pan and bake for 20 to 25 minutes.



PS: When I say grease and flour it means first appl a little butter or vegetable oil to the baseand sides of the baking pan and then dust a little flour on it till there is a light spinkling of flour coating the base and the sides. This helps in freeing the cake from the pan without any mishaps. Otherwise just use parchment paper to line the base after greasing it.

I use an icing when it is for a celebration. But no butter in the icing. I just make a simple glace icing with sugar and cocoa.

1 cup icing sugar
2 tablespoons cocoa
2 tablespoons hot water

Sift the icing sugar and cocoa. Mix in the hot water one teaspoon at a time till the icing is pourable but not runny.
Pour on top of the cake and spread gently with a knife.Put some grated chocolate or some sprinkles on top and leave to set.

Paneer Bhurji

Very often, we get into a rut and don't know what to make for dinner. I am sure a lot of you out there know what I am talking about. At home that is quite a frequent occurence. Then we go back to our good old favorite, paneer. Paneer in any form is a welcome meal at home. But the thing is all of us look for healthy low oil recipes.

This recipe gives us all those and is a wholesome meal with phulkas. It is light and more importantly, it is quick and very easy to make.

Ingredients:

250 grams Paneer grated

2 onions chopped finely

2 tomatoes diced finely

2 capsicums diced finely

1 teaspoon jeera (cumin seeds)

1 teaspoon oil

1/2 teaspoon chilli powder

salt to taste

1 tablespoon coriander leaves

Method:

Heat oil. When hot add jeera till golden and sizzling.

Add onions and capsicum. Fry till translucent and still crunchy.

Add tomatoes and cook till they start losing their shape before they get mushy.

Add salt and chilli powder.

Finally add grated paneer and garnish with coriander leaves.

Batata Poha and Wives Are Priceless

I read this online today and was most amused by it. I thought I should share it with all of you.

A man came home from work and found his three children
outside, still in their pajamas, playing in the mud, with empty
food boxes and wrappers strewn all around the front yard.
The door of his wife's car was open, as was the front door
to the house and there was no sign of the dog. Proceeding
into the foyer, he found an even bigger mess. A lamp had
been knocked over, and the throw rug was wadded against
one wall. In the front room the TV was loudly blaring a
cartoon channel, and the family room was strewn with toys
and various items of clothing.
In the kitchen, dishes filled the sink, breakfast food was
spilled on the counter, the fridge door was open wide, dog
food was spilled on the floor, a broken glass lay under the
table, and a small pile of sand was spread by the back
door.
He quickly headed up the stairs, stepping over toys and
more piles of clothes, looking for is wife. He was worried
she might be ill, or that something serious had happened.
He was met with a small trickle of water as it made its way
out the bathroom door. As he peered inside he found wet
towels, scummy soap and more toys strewn over the floor.
Miles of toilet paper lay in a heap and toothpaste had been
smeared over the mirror and walls.
As he rushed to the bedroom, he found his wife still curled
up in the bed in her pajamas, reading a novel. She looked
up at him, smiled, and asked how his day went.
He looked at her bewildered and asked, "What happened
here today?"
She again smiled and answered, "You know every day
when you come home from work and you ask me what in
the world did I do today?"
"Yes," was his incredulous reply.
She answered, "Well, today I didn't do it."

Wives are Priceless, aren't they?

:) Funny isn't it?

Source: Humor World

Now for the Batata Poha:

Ingredients

250 grams thick poha ( flattened rice. Use the thicker version of poha as it does not disinegrate so easily on adding water))

2 potatoes diced really really small

2 onions chopped finely

2 green chillis chopped finely

2 tablespoons coriander leaves chopped

1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder

1/2 teaspoon mustard seeds

Salt to taste

1 tablespoon oil

juice of 1 small lime

2 tablespoons grated coconut ( optional)

Method:

Wash the poha under running water in a colander. Leave to soak for about 1/2 an hour.

Heat oil in a kadai. When medium hot, add the mustard seeds till they crackle.

Add the onions and chopped green chillis and saute till translucent. Add the turmeric powder and immediately add the potatoes. Keep frying till potatoes are cooked. If required sprinkle a little water every now and then to hasten the cooking process and to reduce the sticking.

Add salt at this point. Then add the soaked poha. Mix around for a few minutes and add the lime juice.

Garnish with coriander leaves and grated coconut and serve hot.

Kosambari and Random Acts of Kindness

Once long ago I watched a talk show which spoke about random acts of kindness. It really touched a chord within me. We go through life sometimes in such a hurry that we miss a lot of things along the way. We miss a lot of opportunities to help others. Little realising that we need people as much as they need us. One act of kindness performed will come back manyfold even if it is in the form of just smiles. No one need know that we are doing it. It can be our little secret. It is one thing that benefits both the giver and the receiver.

Helping someone disabled cross the street... feeding someone who just needs the next meal... just a smile at people in the lift..volunteer at the school...have a conversation with the elderly at an old age home..just say something nice to everyone you meet today...call a long lost friend.. tell your parents how much they mean to you...there are ways and means. Everything we do need not be linked to money. Each of us has within ourselves the time, patience or talents to give others.

I guess teaching this one value to the kids will help them a lot in the long run. It makes the world a better place to live.

I read on one of these blogs about the blogger helping out in a community kitchen and making things from whatever is available. I am sorry I forgot which one. What a commendable job.. That is exactly what I am talking about. Volunteering your time and effort. Thats all it takes.

Now for the food part... Kosumbri is a salad made typically in Karnataka. It is a salad made up predominantly of lentils along with some raw vegetables and a tadka of mustard seeds.. Garnished with coconut and coriander leaves, it makes a wonderful accompaniment to a meal.

Ingredients

one carrot peeled and grated

one cucumber peeled, seeds removed and grated

3 tablespoons split moong dal soaked for 2 hours

1 green chili chopped finely

1/2 a lime juiced

2 tablespoon grated coconut

1 teaspoon coriander leaves chopped finely

salt to taste

Method

Mix the grated carrot, cucumber, soaked moong dal, grated coconut and green chili.

Add the lime juice and salt when ready to serve ( otherwise the salt will make the cucumber water pour out and will dilute the taste)

Garnish with coriander leaves and serve with a meal.

Moghlai Egg Curry

India is a vast country and its cuisine is as diverse as it can get. The same dal is cooked in a hundred different ways as are the rice and rotis. Each degree change in the latitude and longitude results in a slight tweaking of the same recipe until it assumes a completely new avatar in its new home. I guess that's the way the foods habits change from place to place.
I have tried to introduce my children to as many cuisines as possible. As the world gets to be a smaller place in our own time, foods habits also tend to change. In my opinion, they should be able to manage where ever they are. Also, more importantly, enjoy what they eat.
Though a South Indian, I am not overly fond of its cuisine. I guess sambar and pulusus were always on the menu at home and naans and paneer was more rare. Also, I just simply enjoy the taste of all foods north of the Vindhyas. Something about the flavors and the 'ruchi' of its foods and cuisine. Give me gujarati/ punjabi food anyday. I am sure I can eat it 24/7.



Though we are predominantly vegetarian, the only 'non veg' dish in our house is eggs. Though as one of my fellow bloggers said, it does not grow on plants and there fore is clearly non vegetarian, I just feel it adds an extra dose of proteins to our diet.


This recipe was initially sourced off the internet, but then adapted and changed till it got its present form. It goes very well with both rotis and dosas which is a staple at home. It is not steeped in oil as its title may suggest (moghlai being synonymous with oily).

Ingredients

Masala 1:

2 onion

4 cloves garlic

1" piece ginger

3 green chillis


Masala 2
1 tablespoon khus khus (poppy) seeds
1 tablespoon cashewnuts
1 tablespoon water



1 teaspoon jeera (cumin seeds)

2 onions sliced
4 tomatoes


1 teaspoon chilli powder
1/2 teaspoon haldi or turmeric powder
1 teaspoon jeera (cumin) powder
1 teaspoon dhania powder
salt to taste


6 eggs hard boiled
1 tablespoon coriander leaves


Method:

Grind masala 1 with a little water to a fine paste.

Separately, grind Masala 2 till very fine. ( It is better to dry grind the poppy seeds till fine and then add the cashewnuts and the water)



Heat oil till medium hot.
Add jeera and fry till it sizzles golden brown. Add sliced onions and fry for a few minutes till translucent. Add masala paste 1 and fry till oil separates and it turns golden brown.
Add dry powders that is jeera, salt, chilli and dhania and turmeric powders. Fry for about a minute and add chopped tomatoes.
Fry again till the oil separates and it turns mushy.
Add masala paste 2 at this point stir for a bit and then put in 2 cups of hot water.
Keep stirring till gravy forms and it thickens.
Make cuts on the eggs without cutting through.
Put the eggs into the hot gravy when ready to serve and garnish with coriander leaves.
Serve hot with naans, chapatis or crisp dosas.