Chocolate Walnut Brownie

I've got two favorites brownie recipes that I've baked for years. This chocolate brownie I would like to introduce here was made by 100% cocoa powder whereas another brownie recipe will made by 70% dark chocolate which I'll introduce another time. Both are delicious! The secret of making brownie is, never over cook it. You don't want a skewer insert and come out clean and that makes perfect brownie. I found pecan and walnut gave better texture for the brownie or you could add dried cherry to give a bit of sweet and sourly or topped with almond flakes etc.

I afraid this brownie would be slightly bitter for children as the cocoa really strong as I've added some coffee in it but you could just ignore the coffee if you made for children. As for adult, the coffee added really gave the brownie a wonderful aroma. You will like it!

Recipe:

115g unsalted butter, softened, plus extra for greasing

120g caster sugar

2 eggs

40g plain chocolate (minimum 70% cocoa solids)

55g pecans or walnut

1 tsp vanilla extract

2 tsp instant coffee granules

2 tbsp warm water

1 tsp baking powder

55g plain flour

55g cocoa powder

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180C. Prepare the cake tin. Grease an 18cm/7in square cake tin and line with non-stick baking parchment.
2. In a clean bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until pale and fluffy. Beat in the eggs, one at a time.
3. Chop the chocolate and put to one side. Chop the pecans, if using. Gently fold the nuts and chocolate into the butter and egg mixture. Add the vanilla extract.
4. Dissolve the coffee granules in two tablespoons of warm water and add to the mixture. Mix together well.
5. Add the baking powder, then sift in the flour and cocoa powder. Mix well; the mixture will be quite wet.
6. Spoon the brownie batter into the prepared tin and level out the top with a spatula.
7. Bake in the oven for 30 minutes. Don't over bake, you may have a skewer insert into the cake and come out not clean.
8. Allow to cool in the tin for ten minutes, then place on a wire rack to cool.

Announcing Microwave Easy Cooking Event

Microwave Easy Cooking (MEC) event stops at Kailas Kitchen for the month of February. Thanks to Srivalli for giving me the opportunity and this is the first event I am hosting. With the MEC event, I have utilized my microwave oven much beyond re-heating and few basic cooking which I used to do. I am sure many of you will agree with this. And here is the theme for the month of February- MEC : Puddings.

(Thanks Srivalli for the logo)

Here are the participation details :

1. Cook kheer/payasam/pudding for the event. The entire cooking has to be done in the microwave. You can use food processor for grinding and the like. But no stove top cooking to be done. Please post only vegetarian recipes for the event.

2. Entries posted from 1 - 28th Feb,2009 is acceptable.

3. Send me your entries to kailaskitchen@gmail.com with the following details

Subject - MEC:Puddings
Name
Blog name
Recipe name
Recipe URL
A photo of the final dish

4. Please use the event logo and its not compulsory. Your entry post should contain the link to the event announcement and Srivalli's MEC Announcement.

5. Multiple entries are welcome. If any of your previous posts qualify for this theme, you can send them too, provided it is re posted with the link to the event announcement.

6. Non-bloggers are invited to participate in the event. You can mail me your recipe and a photograph of the dish to the mail id mentioned above.

Looking forward to delicious entries. I shall post the round up in the first week of March.

Snake Gourd in the Milk of Knowledge

Podalangai Pal Koottu & the Milk of Knowledge!
Snake Gourd in a Milky Gravy

My uncle and aunt visited us after a very long time, and the recap of all the events in our families were exchanged with great enthusiasm and gusto. We sat around the huge dining table for a grand dinner spread, chatting and passing the dishes to one another. Uncle then told us that his son-in-law attended a Vipassana Meditation session. The Vipassana Meditation technique is taught over a 10-day period, where attendees follow a very stringent code of discipline, including not speaking, avoiding any kind of entertainment and so on. Attendees could only eat the simple vegetarian food provided. Podalangai or Snake Gourd, he said, was served very often, as it was believed to expand ones Gnana or Knowledge. As we listened in solemn attention, my brother suddenly took the moment to a lighter vein with a “Pass me some of that Gnana Koottu”. Laughter broke out at the spontaneous new name given to the Podalangai Koottu (Snake Gourd Gravy) that was prepared by my sister-in-law. The name turned out to be all the more apt, as the koottu happened to be a rather unusual ‘Pal Koottu’ or Milk based Koottu, and Uncle remembered the following story.

The sthala poorana (literally means history of the place) at SIRGAZHI in Tanjore district, states that Goddess Parvathi breast fed an infant who lay crying at the temple pond with ‘Gnana Pal’ or the 'milk of knowledge'! Eventually the child became none other than the child saint Thiru Gnana Sambhandar.

image source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thirugnana_Sambanthar

Well Gnanam or Agnanam (opposite of Gnanam), like any other native vegetable, snake gourd too possesses great medicinal properties!

Snake gourd can be used to prepare a variety of dishes. Among them, a dish with a black colour base, and one with a white colour base, on the same table may kindle ones curiosity. Follow the recipe here to prepare a pepper and tamarind gravy, and add sautéed snake gourd, to make Podalangai Milagu Kuzhambu.

Here is the recipe for the white Gnana Koottu or Podalangai Pal Koottu.

INGREDIENTS:
Snake gourd – 1 large (2 cups when chopped)
Whole black pepper -. ½ tsp
Cumin seeds – ¼ tsp
Salt – ½ tsp
Milk – 1 tea cup
Rice flour – 1 tsp
Cooking oil – 1 tsp
Curry leaves – a few

METHOD:
1.Chop off the ends of the snake gourd and slit it lengthwise. Scrape off and discard the fibre and seeds from the centre. Chop the snake gourd into pieces.
2. Heat oil and add coarsely crushed pepper and cumin.
3. When the pepper is fried, add curry leaves and the snake gourd.
4. Stir in only a pinch of salt, cover with a lid and cook on low fire. This ensures that the lovely green colour of snake gourd is retained.
5. The vegetable must be cooked but still a bit crunchy.
6. Mix the rice flour into the milk, and add to the snake gourd .
7. Let it boil for a minute, and then blend in the remaining salt.

Remove from fire and the Gnana Pal Koottu is ready.