Crispy corn

The temperature outside has been steadily dropping over the last few days. I am one of the few people who still go outside for a walk in the morning, but am not sure I will be able to do that for much longer, given how many layers of clothes I have to wear and how cold it still feels despite all those layers. Warm soups, adrak-wali chai (ginger tea) and crisp, deep fried snacks are what the stomach craves for every day.

Mainland China's crispy corn chilli pepper is something that I love and have ordered  every single time we've eaten there. I love how crisp yet juicy the corn is, and how beautifully it is presented in a fried fritter basket. Here's my version of this to-die for snack/starter.

What you need :
Frozen American sweet corn - 2 cups
Rice flour - 1/2 cup
Onion - 1 small, chopped fine
Spring onion(with greens) - 2, chopped fine
Green chilli - 2, slit into half
Juice of half a lemon
Salt
Oil - 2 tsp
Oil - to deep fry

Defrost the frozen corn. Remove it on to a paper towel, cover with another paper towel on top and gently press to remove moisture.  Transfer the corn to a large mixing bowl and sprinkle the rice flour evenly over it so that each corn kernel has a fine coating of flour over it. Keep this aside for at least half an hour so that any excess moisture is absorbed by the flour.
Heat oil for deep frying. Fry handfuls of corn until crisp. Drain onto a paper towel and set aside.
Heat 2 tsp of oil in a pan. Add the green chillies, onions and spring onions and saute for a few minutes. Add the fried corn to it along with salt and lemon juice. Mix well. Serve hot.
This is my second post for BM#45 under the theme healthy tea time snacks.
Check out the Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing BM#45

Rambling and some soup

It is finally goodbye to hot, humid days in Chennai. The weather has taken a turn for the better. I love the rains despite the water logged roads and the exorbitant rates that the auto drivers charge citing that as an excuse. My daughter and I love the puddles of water that collect outside our apartment. She screeches in joy and jumps wholeheartedly into those puddles while I, being the adult in the relationship, have to be content with just looking on and wishing I could jump up and down without having the other apartment dwellers think that I've gone completely nuts. As it is, I get enough gyan from onlookers about how unhealthy it is to let my little girl play with natural resources. But that's the subject of another lo....ng post and I do enough of that on my other blog.
So, let's talk about a warm, comforting bowl of sweet corn soup that's just perfect for the kind of weather that we Chennaites are enjoying right now.

What you need:
Sweet corn - 2 cups, cooked
Salt
Milk - half a cup(optional)
Water
Garlic - a few cloves

Keep aside some of the corn and then grind all the other ingredients together. Add in the corn that you'd set aside, let everything simmer on low heat for a few minutes and serve hot.

I don't have one decent pic of this soup to share. All that I have are five blurs of white light ranging from bright to not so bright. Does anybody have any tried and tested pointers on shooting reasonably good pictures of liquids???

Oh....and here's some more cool news for Chennaites. There's now a website where you can make restaurant reservations and order food online. For details, check out cityfoods.in

I am extremely late in acknowledging some awards that have been sent my way by fellow bloggers. Am thankful to Madhavi for the Good job award, and Sowmya for the Butterfly Award.