Vendhaya Keerai Kulambu / Methi leaves & Dhal Sour Curry

I love to add greens to any dish possible. It gives a new dimension of taste and increases the health quotient of the dish. Methi leaves are hard to come by here in US except during Spring/Summer. I never fail to pick a bunch of fresh greens when I find them. This time I was happy to find this fresh methi leaves during my grocery shopping. Was planning something different this time, but I

Trifle Pudding

It is Summer Vacation for my Kiddo, Poor fellow is getting so damn bored sitting @ home. Since we are not going to India this time, he is even more bored with the thought of not going to vacation, He Keeps saying "All my Friends have gone for vacation, why am i still in sharjah?" Poor Mommy and Daddy are tired of explaining him the reason why? Two of my friends too had a baby this time, he compares me with them saying "Amma you Lost the race, that aunty won the race by giving Shrisha(name of their daughter) first"? Now come on tell me, how to handle this guy? 

Apart from this, another big thing is to keep him happy with Food. It is so damn hot here, even @  9 in the night, we get a super hot breeze of Air. Keeping kids hydrated is one big task.I try to give him some fresh fruits to keep the body cool. Now to make a kid eat Fruits, hope you all understand the work involved!!!!!! This recipe of Trifle Pudding, i came across @ Food Food channel program Budget Kitchen. Loved the Simplicity of the recipe and all the healthy ingredients involved. A Definite Kid Please recipe. Try it, you will definitely Love it and make it often!!!

Ingredients

200gms Whipping Cream

2 tbsp of Brown Sugar

2 slices of Vanilla Sponge Cake/Chocolate Sponge Cake, Cut into cubes

1 tsp Vanilla Essence (optional)

For Custard

1 tbsp Custard powder  + 1 tbsp Water

1/2 Cup Water

Fruit Basket

1 Apple, Cored, Chopped

1 Mango, Chopped

1 Medium-sized Peach, Deseeded, Chopped

1/2 Cup Pomegranate Pearls 

Maraschino Cherries, for Garnish

Method

To Make Custard

• Mix Custard Powder with water and make a mixture without any lumps.
• Boil 1/2 Cup of Water in a pan, when it starts to boil, reduce the flame, Add the custard mix to it and keep stirring with a whisk. Let it cook for 5 minutes, keep stirring, as it reaches the gooey consistency with a wonderful glaze on top. By this time, the custard would have thickened well to a jelly form. take it off the flame.
• Making Custard with water, this might sound different for some, but this definitely gives a wonderful glaze to the custard. This too i learnt from another TV Program.

To Make the Trifle Pudding

• In a Deep Bowl, Add whipping Cream and sugar and using a Blender,  blend for 5-8 minutes. The cream will start forming stiff peaks. 
• To this Whipped Cream, add chopped fruits, Prepared Custard, Pomegranate pearls, Sponge Cake and Mix well. 
• If adding Vanilla Essence, add now and Mix well.
• Fill in Small Ice-cream Bowls and garnish with some maraschino cherries and pomegranate pearls and Serve.

The Pudding is not very sweet, i didn't want to spoil the natural sweetness of the fruits by adding Sugar. The Pudding can be cling-wrapped and stored for 2 days, if it stays that long!!!! I made a Big Bowl of 4-5 servings, shared some with my neighbor and the rest my kiddo and hubby devoured the same day!!!!! Tummy Happy and Mommy too Happy Happy!!!!!

Sending this to Kids Delight - Evening Snacks, happening @ Cooks Joy, Event by Srivalli

Cardamom Kitchen iPad App

Susan Pachikara (COPYRIGHT 2011)

My parents left India in the early 60s to begin their lifelong adventures in North America. Children of Kerala’s midlands, they grew up with lush paddy fields, towering coconut trees, and the flavor of hundreds of varieties of bananas – some subtle, some strong. They watched the monsoon rains coax pepper vines out of the ground and give birth to prickly skinned chakka (jackfruit) and fleshy manga (mangoes) the color of the sun.

 

Susan Pachikara (COPYRIGHT 2011)

Like other immigrants, my parents left much of their lives behind when they left India. To quell their longing for home and close the 8,000 mile divide, they recreated the flavors of Kerala in their tiny Midwest kitchen. My mom loaded the cupboards with turmeric and cumin and coriander that she shipped in from a retailer in New York. She cracked open hairy coconuts to shred their chewy flesh and squeeze out their thick milk. My father stocked the counter with bananas and any other tropical fruit he could find. 

Preparing Spinach in Spiced Yogurt 

By the time I came around, the ingredients my parents knew as children were easier to find.  I grew up with the heady smell of sautéed ginger and the floral flavor of cardamom like my cousins in India. Even though we were in the Bible belt, we had parboiled rice and moru kachiyathu (turmeric-flavored yogurt) nearly every night.  

Preparing Kerala Fried Shrimp

As a child, I swore I would never fix a Malayalee meal when I lived on my own. But by the time I left home, the flavors of Kerala had sunken into my bones. To recreate the flavors of my mom's kitchen, I began to write down family recipes step-by-step, line-by-line. Grandma Anne’s Stir-fried Cabbage with Coconut. Grandma Susan’s Pan-fried Plantains. My mom’s Mild Fish Curry. 

The Cardamom Kitchen iPad App includes 25 of my favorite family recipes featuring the flavors of Kerala - a place National Geographic Travel Magazine called “Paradise Found." Full-flavored and fool-proof, the recipes call for simple cooking techniques (boiling, stir-frying or sauteing) and can be easily mastered. The App also includes over 130 step-by-step photos to lead users through every dish, start to finish. So if you'd like embark on a culinary tour of Kerala for less than the cost of a tall Mocha Coconut Frappuccino, come along with me.