a few steps closer to a kitchen

Work is in full swing. We are officially on someone else's schedule now that we've ordered the countertops and I have a feeling they're going to want to place them on top of actual, built and installed cabinets as opposed to the ones we currently have:

This is what cabinets from Ikea look like when you bring them home. It's probably not surprising that we have to put them together ourselves, considering the fact that even if you buy a swedish meatball at Ikea it'll come with assembly instructions. Unless you have a large vehicle, you'll want someone to help (thanks, Matt).

As far as work that's going on:

Framing - we're finally (completely) finished and covering all that hard work with drywall is proving to be rewarding.

Electrical - there are now 10 lights, 5 switches and 8 outlets in the room.  About the lights - remember the previous post about recessed lighting? We ended up adding more, small recessed lights that follow the path of the countertops. They have a brushed stainless steel finish to match the appliances and their installation was about the same as the previous ones.

We wanted to have some pendants hanging over the 'pass through' area, but the way the soffit had to be built prevented this. There are a few small pendants hanging the opposite corner which you can see here (along with some of our beautiful sheetrock):

Sheetrock - we're still in the initial parts of this phase. Along with what you can see in the above pictures, here is a bit more showing the process:

We had to cover some of the opening to the stairwell. The exposed brick is still visible from the kitchen and living room. We wanted to keep it open, but there was no where else to put a refrigerator (not to mention the 92" cabinet that will be in the space also). The outlet up by the ceiling will be in a small open area above the cabinetry - we figured it would be a good idea just in case we wanted to add lights up there... it may also be used to supply power to yet another strand of Christmas lights in Craig's dreams of creating a wonderland in our home.

There is still much to do before the countertop folks come out for measurements, including plumbing, gas lines, a few electrical changes, finishing the sheetrock, fixing some weak spots in the floor, oh sweet Jesus - we should probably get to work.

Mor Koozhu (porridge) and Fun with 'ZH’

MOR KOOZHU (PORRIDGE) and FUN WITH 'ZH’

This is yet another dish which has to be spelt with a 'ZH' syllable. Many words of Tamizh (Tamil), when written in English are forced to use the syllable 'ZH', for want of a closer match to the pronunciation. Kozhambu, Kozhal Puttu, Vazhapazham… the list goes on. My fourteen year old grandson has a flair for languages. He wondered how readers could correctly pronounce the names of the dishes which had a 'ZH' in the spelling. He has made the notes given below for convenience and correct pronunciation!

The 'Z' or 'ZH' in the word is called as a PALATAL AND RETROFLEX consonant. To pronounce 'ZH' , the sound 'AA' is made after rolling the tongue backward (retroflex) and by pushing the tongue against the upper palate (palatal).

We had great fun when we tried to say ‘ZH’ without rolling the tongue backwards which resulted in just an ‘AA’ sound, rather than ‘ZH’! I am happy to write this note as it has been ‘tested and tried’ by us to everybody’s amusement and intrigue at home!

Now coming to MOR KOOZHU (say 'u' using a palatal retroflex!!), it is one of the very easy and quick recipes using rice flour as the main ingredient. My great grandmother who lived up to her 96th year enjoyed the dish, and it was often for tiffin at home. The gingili (sesame) oil used in the recipe is non-carcinogenic. It has a very good nutritional value, enhances HDL (good cholesterol) as well as has the property of reducing the LDL (bad cholesterol).
Gingili oil has a very important place in AYURVEDA (the Indian medical science). Gingili seeds and the oil extracted from it have been in use since 2000 years. Fresh gingili oil has the colour of honey and has a very pleasant aroma. The name ‘NALLA ENNAI’ in Tamil means ‘Good Oil’. Hence gingili oil can be used without any hesitation or reservation.

'MOR MILAGAI' used in the recipe are readily available green chillies, that are soaked in spiced curd, and then sun dried. These sun dried chillies are usually fried until crisp and used as a side dish. Indian Stores should stock this.

INGREDIENTS:
Rice flour – 2 cups
Sour curds – 1 1/2 cups
Salt – 1 ½ tsp
Gingili oil – ¼ cup.Mustard seeds – ¼ tsp
Black gram dal – 1 tsp
Bengal gram dal – 1 tsp
Asafoetida – 1 pinch
Curry leaves -10
Red chillies – 4
Mor Milagai - 2
Freshly grated coconut – ½ tea cup

METHOD:
1. Mix salt, curd and rice flour, adding water to make a batter which is little more watery than the normal dosa batter consistency.
2. Heat oil in a kadai and add mustard seeds and asafoetida.
3. When the mustard splutters add the dals and roast till golden in colour.
4. Break and add the red chillies and the mor milagai.
5. When the chillies become crisp add the curry leaves.
6. Now add the curd and rice flour batter and keep stirring.
7. Continue stirring to avoid lumps till it becomes a thick ball and leaves the sides of the kadai.
8. Spread the Mor Koozhu on a deep plate, and sprinkle the freshly grated coconut on it.
9. Cut into Cubes or any other desired shape and savour with fried mor milagais.

This post goes to Srivalli's Rice Mela at Cooking 4 All Seasons blog.

Tapioca/Kappa cutlet

Tapioca is one of the staple food of Kerala, next to rice. Every part of Kerala refers to Tapioca in a different name. Kappa, Kolli, Poola, Marachini are some of the names to my knowledge. May be there are more which I am not aware of. Last year, during this time, my Dad was here with us for a month. He visited my grandma during his stay and happened eat some fresh Kappa there. On his return, he got the stem of the plant for me, so that we too can enjoy tasty kappa at home. This is the bounty I got from a single plant this year. Thanks Appa. There were five plants. I have kept one for him, who will be reaching here, next week.

As like any Keralite, kappa is a hot favorite at my home too. We enjoy kappa boiled with salt and turmeric. The ideal dip is the classic ulli chammanthi. I can have that for lunch and dinner too. This variety was very fast to cooking. It got cooked in less than 10 minutes on stove top. Usually, I pressure cook. I made some tapioca chips, prepared the usual upperi as side for rice. Made this cutlet to be served with tea on a weekend.

Tapioca chopped into cubes - 2 cup

onion - 1

green chilly - 4 nos

ginger - a small wedge

curry leaves

turmeric

salt

oil for frying

Maida - 2 tblspn

bread crumbs - 1 cup

Cook tapioca with turmeric and salt. The cooked water is usually discarded since some toxic from the root is released on cooking. Heat oil in a kadai. Add the chopped chillies,ginger and curry leaves. Add chopped onion to it and saute till pink. Crumble the cooked tapioca and mix with the seasonings. Check the salt and let it cook for few minutes. Cool and mix together. Take lemon sized mixture and shape into patties.

Take 2 tablespoon of maida and add water to make a thin batter. Add a pinch of salt. Dip the patties in the batter and roll it over the bread crumbs.Heat a tawa. Drizzle few drops of oil. Place the cutlets on tawa and drizzle few drops of oil on the cutlets. When the bottom is browned, carefully flip it and cook the other side. Serve with your favorite chutney or sauce. I was in a hurry, so could not roast them longer for even browning.

Vidhaas has passed me the Perfect friendship and Hard working blogger award. Thank you Vidhaas and I appreciate your thoughfulness.

These cutlets are off to Local Eats Event hosted at Joelen's Culinary Adventures.