I'm Back!!

My husband has returned home and we are trying to get back into the swing of things with work and such.

Yes, he spent almost three months in the (truly) wonderful Palo Alto VA Hospital being treated for abscesses. They finally surgically removed the 39 year old bullet that was causing the problems about three weeks ago...and viola! Here we are back among the living! It wasn't all that easy: I almost lost him to sepsis twice in the process, and he still has lingering effects and some stitches that will come out next week.

Going to the VA every day was like living in a parallel universe. We made dear friends with a lot of people there:

There was dear Pat, whose husband Robert was dying of cancer on 4A (the hospice) - She brought in her dogs to see Robert every weekend. Robert passed away last week, may he rest in peace; Mervin, who has lived more than a year beyond his death prediction in the hospice...He has abdominal cancer and is often in great pain, but always ready to help anyone who needs it; Alexander, who has had a toe amputated due to diabetes and was in to treat a sore on the bottom of his foot. Alexander went home the same day we did, and emails often. Then there were Joe and his wife: Joe was admitted looking as though he was nine months pregnant with a bowel obstruction. He had surgery to open things up and went home after recuperating, but still came back to see us now and then...and many others.

After all that communing with life and death, I am taking my time and easing back into the world of the healthy and living.

Glad to be back,

Peggy

American Rye Bread 美式稞麦面包

This is an American Rye Bread. I am not sure why it named "American" but according to the recipe book, this is kind of American bread. I have been trying a wholemeal bread week ago but it was really a disaster. That is a very good wholemeal bread recipe which contains half of the whole wheat flour. Well, I shall not give up and will definitely try it again.

This Rye bread did not contains many of the rye flour and it is quite easy to made by using the straight dough method. I put all the ingredients in the mixing bowl and leave it to knead with the dough hook for 30 minutes. It is still a little bit of stickiness but I just let it proof for 40 minutes. I did not roll the dough very nicely and was very careless did not grease well inside the loaf tin that is why the side of this bread look quite ugly. What a good lesson! I let it proof at the room temperature for another 1 hour before bake in the oven.

One thing that I like this bread is, the dough has no yeasty flavor because the smell of the rye is quite strong although it only contains little amount of rye flour. Furthermore, it is easy to made. This bread is very tender and soft, I have to cut it very carefully so that the crumbs stay beautifully before serving on a plate. I like to spread with my homemade peanut butter and blackcurrant jam as I found the flavor is just so match.

Original recipe from an old book that my mum gave to me:

Bread flour 270g

Rye flour 30g

Yeast 5g

Sugar 20g

Salt 6g Egg 30g

Water 180g

Unsalted butter 15g

Methods:

1. Put all the ingredients in a mixing bowl except butter. Kneading until well combine and all the mixture come together.

2. Add butter continue kneading (I let the mixer knead for 30 minutes).

3. Bring the dough for proofing about 30 minutes (I proof it for 40 minutes).

4. Round the dough and cover with slightly wet towel and rest for 10 minutes.

5. Roll out into long shape then roll it up tighty as a swiss-roll style.

6. Place the dough in well greased bread tin and let the dough proof for the second time for about

30 minutes (I proof it for 45 minutes) cover with slightly damp towel.

7. Bake it in the preheated oven at 200'C for about 30 - 40 minutes.

Ela adai - Rice wrappers with banana,jaggery & coconut stuffing

Ela adai is a delicacy that can bring many nostalgic memories. This is another sweet, which in my home, is usually prepared in the summer months when jackfruit is available in plenty. The filling for the elai adai is prepared using ripe jackfruit bulbs.

In Kerala, elai adai is served in many small tea shops/hotels through out the year. When jackfruit is out of season, aval (beaten rice)/banana takes the place of the main ingredient. This is the first time I am trying with banana filling.

To prepare the filling

I used the Nenthrapazham variety which is a speciality of Kerala. I haven't tried with any other variety of banana.

Ripe bananas - 2 Powdered

Jaggery - 1 1/2 cup

Grated coconut - 1 cup

Cardamon - 1 tspn

Ghee - 1 tblspn

Slice the banana into bite sized cubes. Heat a kadai. Add a teaspoon of ghee. Transfer the banana cubes. Cook till they turn soft.

Add jaggery powder and keep mixing. When the mixture starts to thicken, stir in the coconut. Cook till the mixture comes together and no trace of liquid found.

Finally add cardamom powder and remove from fire.

You can prepare the filling before hand and refrigerate.

For the outer covering

Roasted rice flour - 1 1/2 cup

Hot water - 1 cup

salt to taste

Add salt to rice flour and mix well. Make a well in the center and slowly add hot water. Mix with a spatula. Add enough water to get a soft dough.

Wash and wipe dry the banana leaf. Run it over the flame and you can notice the color change. This makes the leaf more manageable.

Grease a leaf with oil. Take a lemon size of the rice dough. Pat into a circle of 3 inch diameter. Take a spoonful of the filling and place it on one half of the circle.

Fold the leaf such a way that the other half covers the filled one. Repeat with rest of the dough.
I used my MW Idli maker for steaming them. I could steam 3 at a time.

Steam for 7 minutes. Adjust the timing according to your MW and size of the adais you make.

Yummy elai adai is ready.

I am going to make this often since the process is simple and easy when compared to the so called traditional ones, though I will rate them the highest.

I am sending this across to Srivalli for her MEC-Steamed Dishes event.