Showing posts with label Click Event. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Click Event. Show all posts

Tuesday, 26 May 2009

Apricot and Nut Cookies for Click


It is time for this months and you can see loads of Cookie post popping up every were in the blogsphere.

Want to join up, in one of the famous monthly event in the blogsphere then click here
I must admit I don't make cookies that often, unless if I have my daughers friends comming to our place and she has been having so much school work and going for her violin lessons and concerts etc....... that she hardly have had time to ask her friends to our place.

One of her best friend who come every Tuesday after school for a hour of chit chat has not been here for few weeks, as Shyama had to go for her violin lessons, to play with the piano teacher in the music academy as she also have exams for that.
Her friend has been missing her visit here so much she asked Shyama if she can come on Thursday.
I coudn't wait till thursday for baking cookies then i would miss the deadline. As if I know If i make something It will few days for me o load the pictures to the computer.

So last sunday I made these cookies and while I finished icing them, my daughter came to the kitchen and and asked if she can decorate them. ( I wasnot planning to decorate them)

So the decoration are done by her. I left her to the decorating them and when i came back and saw the designs I told hubby i think love is in the Air after seeing her heart shaped cookies :-)

The original recipe you can get from here
This is my variation with thethings i had home.


Cookies.
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon pure almond essence
1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
1 large egg
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup dried apricots, coarsely chopped
1/4 cup almonds chopped
2 tablespoons walnuts chopped

Icing:
1 3/4 cups confectioners' sugar
5 to 7 tablespoons almond flavored liqueur (recommended: Amaretto)

Directions
For the Cookies: In a large bowl, beat the butter, sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, and salt with an electric mixer until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Beat in the egg. Stir in the flour until just blended. Mix in the apricots, almonds, and pine nuts.

Transfer the dough to a sheet of plastic wrap and shape into a log, about 12-inches long and 1 1/2-inches in diameter. Wrap the dough in the plastic and refrigerate for 2 hours.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line 2 heavy baking sheets with parchment paper.

Cut the dough log crosswise into 1/4 to 1/2 inch-thick slices. Transfer the cookies to the prepared baking sheets, spacing evenly apart. Bake until the cookies are golden around the edges, about 15 minutes. Transfer the cookies to a wire rack to cool completely before icing.
For the Icing: Place the confectioners' sugar in a medium mixing bowl. Gradually whisk in the almond flavored liqueur, until the mixture is of drizzling consistency.

Place the wire rack over a baking sheet. Using a spoon or fork, drizzle the cookies with the icing, allowing any excess icing to drip onto the baking sheet. Allow the icing to set before serving, about 30 minutes.

Tuesday, 28 April 2009

Missing recipe for Click Spring/Autumn

Today the whole morning and afternoon ( when I had the time ) I have been looking to the pile of magazines which I have; to find out from which magazine I had made this delicious strawberry dessert and it was just a waste of time , as I coudn't find them.
My hubby saw me sitting in the middle of a whole pile of magazine on the floor and was asking for what I am looking so I told him why and he was like OH!!!!!!!!!!! you will never find them , you will find after a year.

Which is true I loose things at home...............If I want to keep something safe I keep them and then it is kept it so safe that i myself woudn't remember where it is :-)

Few years back when we were back from our India trip, I had bought hubby dear few good shirts and I kept them that I coudn't find them for 2 years............... and on one occasion I cleaned up my christmas decoration and the next year I coudn't remember were i had kept them ( this was last year) it is not like we have such a huge place, just that i forget were i kept them and while looking for them i miss them even when it is in front of them.
This year when I clened up my Christmas decoration, i wrote donw in the calendar 2009 december page where it is kept :-) a idea my daughter suggested.

My daughter think it is old age catching up with me alas I have to fully agree with her.

So when I find the magazine i will sure post the recipe ( I warn you all, it might take a year )

Anyway I didn't want to miss so this is my delicous entry for their wonderful monthly event. Details here

What i remember about the recipe, there is kind of soft french cheese, cookies , strawberries and syrup and berryjam etc and there is no cooking .............






Friday, 27 March 2009

Double Apple budnt cake and Click

I never like to miss a click, but this time I had no idea what to send them. I have seen so much beautiful click lately and now the dedline is there I thought I will send my cake picture which is on a wooden plank.
If you want to join up you can find the details here

Now to the recipe.
I bought this wonderful Baking book calle Baking from my home to yours Doriee Greenspan if you don't have this book I will recomd to buy the book as all the recipe in the book is so good and they she has explained it so good that even someone who just started to baking would love this book. There is so many wonderful delicious recipe in this book that i have been reading day and night :-)

Ingridients:
2 cup all purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp cinamon
1/2 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp salt
1 1/4 stick butter
1 1/2 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1 cup store bought apple butter ( we don't get here so i made mine) using this recipe from simple recipe
2 medium apples, peeled cored and grated
1 cup pecan or walnuts chopped
1/2 cup raisins

For the icing
1/3 cup confectinoers sugar
2 tbsp of orange or leamon juice.
I used double the portion of iving as i like a thick layer of icing.


My Click Wood

Center a rack in the oven and prehat the oven to 350° F.
Butter a 9 to 10 inch budnt pan and dust the inside with flour.

Whisk together the flour, the baking powder, soda, spices and salt.
In a large bowl beat the egg and sugar in medium speed, scarping the bowl as needed for 3 minutes or untill the mixture is smoothe creamy and pale. Add the eggs one at a time beating for 1 minute after each addition. You'll have a light fluffy batter. Reduce the mixer speed and beat in the apple butter, don't worry if it cirdles the batter. Still on low add the grated apples and mix to completley blend. Add the dry indridients, mixing only untill they disapear into the batter.
Using a spatula, fold in the nuts and the raisins.

Turn the batter into the budnt pan and smooth the top of the batter with the sptaula.
Bake for 50 to 60 minutes or untill a think knife is inserted deep into the center of the cake comes out clean.
Tranfer the pan to a rackand cool for 5 minutes before unmoulding the cake and cooling the cake to room temperatire..
If possible , once the cake is cool wrap well in a plastic and let it stand overnight at toom temperatue to ripen the flavours.
If you are not doing the icing you can dust the cake with sugar before serving.

To make the icing.
Put the sugar in a bowl and stir in the orange.leamon juice.
Keep adding the juice a little at time untill you have an icing that falls easily from the tip or a spoon.
Drizzle the icing over the top of the cake, letting it slide over the curves of the cake. Let the cake stands intill the icing dries.
Sloce and serve with a cup of coffee or tea :-) and enjoy.


Friday, 20 February 2009

Cardamom Ice cream

I am sure by now you all have heard about BloggerAid
The group is publishig a book and it seems the recipes in the book is from fooddie bloggers around the world. And the proceeds will go towards fighting hunger.
Must admitt Ivy and Val are the brains behind this huge priject.
You have till 31 st to send in you recipes? Check for the details here how you can submitt a recipe etc.... and if you have not yet joined BloggerAid do go and join up. It is for a wonderful cause. If you want to join up here are the details.

The creamy delicious Cardamom Ice cream is my contribution to the book.
It is a very refreshing ice cream especially if you had a wonderful Indian dinner.
I know you all are not surprised that i send a dessert as it is no secret I love sweets.
Can't write the recipe, you all have to wait till the book is out. I am really looking forwad to the book, can you imagine a cook book with inernational recipes.

The cheese pic I am sending for this months Click which is cheese.

I didn't had time to make somethin with cheese and didn't want to miss the event, so i opend up my Boursain cheese and just took a picture :-)


My entry for Click.



My daughter is having her carnival holidays from today, so I am aslo taking a break.
See you all in March .

Monday, 19 January 2009

Butter chicken


I have been catching up with all the food posts as much as i can today.
Shyama's computer is still in the place were it is given for fixing and I am using hubbies pc. Everytime he is not using I have been grabbing them :-).

Normally I am bloghopping much more, but as the computer is not there it , I must admit I did more other things.
I had heaps and heaps of ironing to do, which I did today so that is a plus piont of the busted computer.
When hubby don't use Shyama wan't to use them for doing her schoolwork etc..... and now I send her to play her violin in her room so I can have the pc :-)

Now to the cooking, I made Asha's Butter chicken .I made them for our saturday dinner.
It was just yummy delicious. As it is weekend i did papadoms also. Ofcourse while hubby and daughter was drooling , i just told them don't touch the food, I have to take a picture.
The butter chicken was so yummy there was nothing left at all, and I was surprised how easy they were to make.
Asha had written in her place make the dish a day ahead so it taste better. .

3 boneless,skinless Chicken Breasts,cubed to bite sized piece (Marinate these chicken piece for 1 hour with 1 tsp tandoori powder, 1 tsp corriander powder, little corriander leaves, few chillies with few tbsp ofyoughurt. ( if you like you can add a little red food colouring to the marination, this it toatally your choice)

2 big Onions sliced,
2" ginger,
2 Garlic both chopped,
1  tbsp Coriander seeds pd,
1/2 tsp Chilli pd,
1 tsp Paprika,
1/2 cup Tomato sauce,
1 tsp Garam Masala,
1/2 tsp Turmeric,
1/2 tsp cardamom pd,
Pinch of Nutmeg and
a tsp of Fennel seeds pd,
2 tbsp Cashews or Almonds,
1 tsp Tandoori masala if you have it
,1/2 cup Fat-Free half and half or 2% milk,4 ( I use normal cream)
 tbsp Butter and
Cilantro minced
.Lemon slices to serve
Grill the chicken pieces in the oven whick will take 15 to 20 minutes in the mean time make the sauce.

Heat 1 tbsp oil,fry onion slices until soft and reddish on the edges.Add ginger and garlic and saute for a minute.Put them all into a blender.Now toast the coriander seeds,2 cardamoms peeled and seeded,cashews or Almonds, until you get an aroma.Add to the blender along with chilli pd,paprika,turmeric and Tandoori masala,tomato sauce,blend to a smooth paste.Take it out in to a bowl.Heat 1/2 tbsp oil and 2 tbsp of Butter in a pan.


Add ground paste and fry until it leaves some oil on top.It will be quick since they are already fried.Add 1 cup water,boil and turn down the heat to low,add half and half or milk while stirring constantly until well mixed and simmering.Add cooked chicken,Garam Masala, Nutmeg ,Tandoori pd and Fennel pd.When you see oil specks on top,add last of butter and turn off the heat,and let the butter melt.Mix well,
(Again this is personal choice, you ant the sauce to be more red like the take away add a bit of red foof coloring)


To Serve:


Garnish with minced cilantro and dot with cream just before serving.Serve with Basmati rice,Pita or Parathas or Naans with a salad and crisps.

I served them with a simple peas pulao.

You can get the recipe from here , with the same sauce she has made a vegetarin kofta, which also look so yummy.
I am sending this to click event

Thursday, 12 June 2008

Potato,Zucchini Soup & Click For Bri

I am sure like me most of you didn't know about Briana till Juaglabandi announced their special click event this month.Now I don't think there is anyone in the blogsphere who don't know Bri.

All of us are touched by her story of her brave fight for breast cancer

Yellow is the happiest colour in the spectrum. It signifies hope and enlightenment. Through the work of the LiveStrong Foundation, it has also come to signify the fight against cancer.
So that is why this months click is Yellow....

If you want to join in the special Edition of click , you will find it here
Read more about Bri & her fight in my previous post or here.
Want to make a Donation click here till now they have raised 66% of their target.


Simmering

Ingridients:
500 gm Potatoes cut in small pieces
600 gm Zuchini cut in small pieces with the peels
1 onion chopped
200 ml cream
3 tbsp olive oil
2 tsp curry powder
1250 ml vegetable broth
Salt and peper to taste

For garnishing the soup.
2 tbsp pine nuts toasted.
One onion fried.

Heat the oil in a heavy pan and add the potatoes and onions. Fry them in a soft fire for 5 minutes.
Add the zucchini and half of the curry pwder, vegetable stock, peper and salt.
Bring it to boil and then cook in a slow fire for 15 minutes or till the vegetables are cooked.

Mix the soup with a mixer ( used hand mixer) add the rest of the curry powderand cream.Serve hot garnished with the pine nuts and the fried onions.

Sunday, 1 June 2008

Click For Sweet Briana.


This is an appeal on behalf of a group of food bloggers who are friends of Briana Brownlow @ Figs With Bri.

Bri was diagnosed with breast cancer two and half years ago. A mastectomy, chemotherapy and two years of relatively good health later, the cancer is back. It has metastasized to other parts of her body. At the age of 15, Bri lost her 41-year old mother to the disease. Now, she’s waging her own war against breast cancer. More about it here.

She is going through intensive chemo and other treatments and needs to focus single-mindedly on healing and finding what treatment works best for her.
Her health insurance, unfortunately, does not cover holistic alternatives which she would like to try. Bri and her husband Marc have enough on their plates right now in addition to worrying about her medical bills.

The team organising the JUNE edition of CLICK at Jugalbandi has organised a fundraiser to help Bri and her family meet her out-of-pocket medical costs for ONE YEAR.

CLICK is a monthly theme-based photography contest hosted by Jugalbandi. This month’s theme is: YELLOW for Bri

Yellow is the colour of hope. Through the work of the LiveStrong Foundation, it has also come to signify the fight against cancer.

The entries can be viewed HERE. The deadline for entries is June 30, 2008. The fundraiser will extend until July 15, 2008.

The target amount is 12,000 U.S. dollars. We appeal to our fellow bloggers and readers to help us achieve this. Bri deserves a chance to explore all options, even if her insurance company thinks otherwise.

There’s a raffle with exciting prizes on offer. After viewing the list, you may make your donation HERE or at the Chip-In button on any participating site.

Your donation can be made securely through credit card or Pay Pal and goes directly to Bri’s account.
This month’s photo contest also has some prizes. Details HERE.

You can support this campaign by donating to the fundraiser, by participating in CLICK: the photo event, and by publicising this campaign.

Monday, 26 May 2008

Beans and Legumes


This is my entry

I ddin't think I will be able to send something to this months click event , the reason beeing the whole month of break I had.
While i was on the break I have been thinking what to send, so yesterday while my daughter was doing her school work I though why not take few wine glasses and fill them with different beans and legumes and take pictures.

Any thing better than doing the ironing. I hate to do ironing. For the last week it has been piling up as there is not end to the pile.............. I know i know can't put it off. I will have to start doing today (maybe)
So this is what i sending to this months which is hosted by Jai & Bee of Jugalbandi

Thursday, 17 April 2008

Au Garlic for Au Naturel


My entry to click

Every month I lookfroward to the announcment of the event from the famous Duo at Jugalbandi. And i know what I do next from my part.

I will be going and checking out their image gallery every other day or two, just to see what others are sending them for the event.

When i see some of those pictures, other bloggers have send, Ithink, well how can one take a picture better than these fellow bloggers.

But then I tell to myself it is not winning which matters ( ofcourse it matters) the main thing is to join up such a wonderful event.

So while I was shopping yesterday I saw this fresh garlic which is available here at the moment and thought why not send it for Au Naturel.

Monday, 17 March 2008

Achappam Mould for Click

My Entry for Click
From the time The famous duo announced their theme for this months click
I have been thinking about what to send for them.

Few times I passed their Image Gallery and came back depressed seeing all the beautiful pictures from the other participants. If you ladies go and have a look there you will know what I mean.
But then I do think main thing is to join up the event.
And still there is more than 2 weeks to go so you can imagine how many more entries they are going to get.This is the mould to make achappam a traditional Kerela snack made with rice flour,coconut mil eggs etc.If you want to see how the achappam looks just visit Aparna's My Diverse Kitchen.

My mom used to make them for special occasions.
I have never made them, this mould I got gifted from one of our friends who went for their annual visit to Kerela.
I still have to use them......So in the meanwhile I thought I will make use of it atleast like this by taking a picture and sending for this months

Monday, 28 January 2008

Sticky Pecan Caramel Rolls

It is some two weeks back I saw this Delicious looking No-Knead Sticky Pecan Caramel Rolls in Steamy Kitchen. I drooled a lot there in the picture .Thre was also a Competition and If you were lucky you could win the bread book. But with mt luck , I didn't win :-(((

The dough you could make and keep in the fridge for some 4 days and that was the beautie of it. Just make the dough keep in the fridge and make them when ever yo feel like it.
Isn't that great.

Anyway the rolls were so delicious looking, and it seems really easy to make them. And when i made them I was really surprised how easy one could make such a delicious rolls.

We had them for afternoon coffee and the left overs we ate for next day breakfast , i just warmed it in th MW for few seconds in the morning.
The same day my daughter came back from her school ans you can guess what she asked me again the rolls but I had to tell her they were all finished. So you all can imagine how delicious they were.
If you like to make them go and check out the recipe here . Of course Jadens Pictures are much more nicer than mine.
The rolls were so good I ordered the book. So it seems I will get the book in the begning of February and I am really looking forward to it.
I am sending this to Jai & Bee's Click event. February theme is Flour



Ingrigients, Dough , filling, rolling etc..

Ready to bake


Done.

Thursday, 10 January 2008

Mushroom Dome for Click



If you want to have a WOW effect when you are giving a party I would suggest make this. You will enjoy seeing the expression on your guests when you bring this to the table.
I made this for the Christmas eve party. My husband brought this soup to the table from the kitchen ( Ladies I do have to admitt for the christmas eve party i my hubby was giving a good helping hand)
All the guest went WOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

When we took out the soup from the oven it was looking so good that before my hubby brought it to the table he made my daughter announce it ( i know i know crazy but fun) So my daughter was standing near the door and Saying Ladies and Gentle Men the Soup is Here :-)))))

And then when they saw the wow started :-)
I didn't know about the click event for january. Later i came to know it is Liquid this month so I am sending this to Bee and Jai from Jugalbandi After sending this to them I will be thinking hmmmm what will they choose for next month :-)


Ingridients



Simmering


Almost Done





Ready to go in the oven

Ingridients. For 8 person
Mushroom 1kg ( you can use different kind of mushrooms. I used a variety )
Juice of half a lime
2 small onions cut finley
Butter 20 gm
White Wine 250 ml
Vegetable broth
1 litreTruffel 1 Optional
Salt and peper to taste
Cream 400 ml
1 egg lightly beaten
Puff pastry 2 roll

Method:
Clean the mushrooms and cut them fine.
Heat a pan with the butter , add the onions fry them lightly then add the mushroom and the lime juice. Fry for a while. Add the Wine, brothe, salt and pepper. Let it simmer for 20 minutes.

Now mix the soup with a mixer. Put it back into the pan and add the cream.
Let the soup get cold.
The soup have to be cold other wise the puff pastry will get soggy.

Divide the soup into the individual soup bowls . Add the sliced truffels if you are using them.

Roll out the puff pastry and cut 8 disks with a diameter slightly larger than the soup dishes.

With a bit water wet the sides of the soup bowls so the pastry can stick to it. Close the soup dish with these disks by applying light pressure on the edges so the pastry sticks. If you have pastry left you can make some decorations to add on top.
Brush with the egg .

Pre heat the oven to 200°C .Bake the soups for 15 to 20 minutes until the pastry rises and browns.
When finished, remove from the oven and serve immediately