Paruppu urundai kulambu

THis is the first time I am making this and I honestly think I had a mini foodgasm (the big ones are reserved for Italian icecreams exclusively ) I made a few mistakes and I am glad I made them because I can learn from them ,and make the perfect fool proof urundai kulambu the next time .This recipe is adapted from http://www.sharmispassions.com/2010/12/paruppu-urundai-kuzhambu-step-by-step.html . I have added some new ingredients and tweaked everything here and there according to basic ayuvedic food science principles that my mom taught me (my grandma taught her ) .
Before we get down to the details , go right away and soak 1/2 cup Toor dal and 1/4 cup Channa dal for two hours .

There are three steps and a finale'

step one :make the tamarind coconut paste
for this soak a small lemon sized piece of tamarind in some warm water (1/4 cup )and keep aside
dry roast a medium sized tomato and 5-6 shallots ,once they are reasonably cooked ,grind this to a pulp with 1/2cup coconut and a teaspoon of Fennel and Aniseed seeds each .
Now combine the tamarind extract water to this pulp and keep aside . step one is done .

step two : Add 2 tbsps of coconut to the washed ,soaked and drained Dals , also add 3 red chillies and teaspoon of fennel seeds . Now grind this to a coarse paste without adding any water . Now make small lemon sized balls out of this and keep aside .

Step three : In a kadai , add 2 tbsp of vegetable oil and add mustard seeds , a tsp of urad dal , a few curry leaves , 10 shallots ,5 clovesof garlic ,two red chillies and some salt . Once the splattering and spluttering is over , add 3 tsps of coriander powder and 1 1/2 tsps of chilly powder , and add 3 cups of water , once the water comes to a boil add the balls from step 2 and boil for a good 20 minutes .

and now the finale'

Add the step one mixture to the above and bring to a gentle boil , add salt , a pinch of hing and 3 generous teaspoons of Sambar powder .

And we are done .
serve with hot steaming rice .

Soft Biscotti with raisins

           I happen to be  devoted to biscotti . Its practical and delicious . I don't like the strong flavor of eggs in any dessert and also biting into a regular biscotti always damages my hard palate . Some like it soft ,tender and moist . (If you know what I mean   ).So after some testing and tweaking ,this is the recipe I most like and going to stick with .Also I have doubled the amounts of ingredients ,so if you want to make a lesser batch just halve the amount of each ingredient below .I adapted this from http://allrecipes.fr/recette/13431/biscotti-aux-raisins-et-aux-noix.aspx

Makes :20-22 biscottis
Prep time : 7 mins
Cooking time : 40 mins

Ingredients :

All purpose flour :440 gm
Vanilla extract : 2 tsp
Butter : unsalted .soft ,at room temperature : 240gm
Eggs :2
Applesauce :unsweetened ,4 oz (if you dont want to add this just add 2 more eggs )
Baking powder : 2 tsp
Salt :2 pinches
Raisins : 150gm


Method :

Prepare the wet ingredients : Mix the melted butter and sugar well in bowl .Add the vanilla extract and apple sauce and beat well .Use a hand mixer if you like .

Prepare the dry ingredients : Mix the flour and baking powder and salt well .

Now pour the wet ingredients into the dry and fold gently .

Preheat oven to 355 F or 180 C .

Now spray a cookie sheet with some pan spray and divide the batter into four oblong pieces and place parallel to each other on the sheet and bake for 20 mins .Remove and cool for about 10 mins .

Next slice them gently into 3-4 cm pieces (or any size you like ) and place each slice sideways on the sheet and bake for another 10 mins in the same temperature .
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Remove and cool completely and enjoy
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Nigella Lawson inspired Slut Sphagetti

                              Its only appropriate that the first post on this blog be dedicated THE Nigella Lawson . My mentor of sorts . I love her food philosophy although it took me a while to understand her to a certain extent .You can find her here http://www.nigella.com/ . I dont idolise anyone but I do make healthy connections with other people's ideas which I draw into my pysche to help hone my own . I am more deliberate and patient in the kitchen which is in stark contrast to Nigella's hands-on approach in my opinion ,that being said the underbelly of the whole process is the same .We share a mutual love for food and also believe in evolution of one's recipes while sticking to some fundamental rules . More on that in a later post .

Slut Spaghetti
Serves :2
Prep time 15 mins
Cooking time 35 mins

Ingredients :

Spaghetti : Cooked 600 gm
Anchovies :6-7 fillets
Garlic :one pod .crushed
Tomatoes from a can :220 gm (with the juices )
Salt :to taste
Pepper :to taste
Olive oil :1tsp
Parsely :a fistfull , finely chopped
Jalapenos or any other pepper of your choice ( I used a small piece of deseeded  Serrano ) 1/2 tsp
Worcestershire sauce  ( a bit unsual for an Italian dish but in the spirit of anchovies ,why not !)1 tsp

Method :

Boil the spaghetti  until Al dente .Follow the instruction on the packet for cooking time .
In a pan ,heat the Olive oil add in the Anchovies and Garlic ,cook for about 3 mins .Then add in the Tomatoes and Peppers .with some salt to taste (Remember there is salt in the Anchovies ) . Heat for about 3-4 mins till the sauce thickens . Add in the Parsley and tip the whole thing into the spaghetti and give it a good mix in a bowl with a a pinch or two of pepper .

Garnish with cheese .Serve hot ( to  be shared with a gentleman caller perhaps  ).