Doughnuts

I've always loved these. i remember craving these at many points of time in my life. half way through i feel guilty and after sating my greed i put it away in the refrigerator. you don't have to feel guilty....gobble the entire gooey ring. and i always thought these were really difficult to make but nope. i'm telling you these chums are pretty easily flipped out of the oil.

doughnuts

milk-1/2 cup
instant yeast-1 tsp
sugar-1 tsp
Heat the milk on low flame; dissolve the sugar and yeast. keep aside and let it rise for about an hour.

maida-3 cups
Put the maida in a bowl and make a hole in the centre.

sugar-4 tbsp
butter (softened)-2 tbsp
yolk of egg-2
oil-adequate
Add these to the hole in the maida. pour the yeast-added milk to the flour. knead softly to make a smooth dough in an oiled bowl and keep it to rise for one or two hours without disturbing it. then roll them out into (just by practically pressing them in shape) mini puris with about half an inch thickness. leave it to rise again. with a round cap of a bottle or so scoop out the middle to make it look like donuts. fry them in very hot oil and ease them out of it when it turns golden brown. dip in chocolate sauce and cool and enjoy!

chocolate sauce

Cadbury dairy milk-3 tbsp (or almost two medium sized bars)
cocoa powder-1 tbsp
powdered sugar-1 tbsp
butter-1 tbsp
water-2 tbsp
Combine all these in a thick bottomed bowl. double boil till the sugar melts.

These make 15 donuts.

The loner in the corner you can see in my first pic is a stunner in your bouche. it's practically no work once the maida dough is done. take a ball of it; thrust a square of chocolate into it. close it clean and fry it out. you can imagine what happens then :)

The white ones i have here are an unmessy variation. an option for those who don't like chocolate (is there?) and a decent bite with your evening tea. (Thomas would enjoy both!) For them you just have to flavour some powdered sugar with cinnamon powder and roll the donuts in them.

Plantain Balls

Plantains are a huge culinary asset for Keralites. our sunday breakfast, especially in Christian homes, is mostly steam-baked ripe plantains and poached eggs. we have our austere church-going and we save time by this quick breakfast package which is so nutritious and energy-giving. yeah, plantains are rich in carb and moms regularly insist on the ripe-uncooked-plantain-and-a-glass-of-milk combo. those banana fritters with a dash of cinnamon is our fave tea time snack. plantain balls are a derivative of the steamed plantain. we had three of them left over from our morning breakfast and i decided on this for my little girl to snack on.

This is from my mum-in-law's stack of recipes. she has the entire range of traditional Kerala recipes!

plantain-3
grated coconut-1/2 cup
sugar-2 tbsp
crushed cashewnuts-1-2 tbsp
cardamom powder to flavour
ghee
rice flour-a little
oil to fry

Deseed the steamed fruit and mash it nicely and evenly without any lumps. fry the coconut and sugar lightly in a pan in the ghee to cook the coconut. you can use fresh coconut also but the balls then have shorter shelf life. add this to the mashed plantain along with crushed cashew. flavour with cardamom powder. mix it well and make a reasonable-looking dough. roll into small balls and coat the balls with the flour. fry in oil and eat it hot with a huge mug of chai!



The plantain should not be over-ripe. or else the balls become gooey within. in case it happens toughen the batter with rice flour or maida. the fruit need not be completely steam-baked if you exclusively set out to make the balls. this avoids the probable stickiness of the dough.

Spring Rolls

It's time to soak the fruits for the next Christmas cake and i'm yet to finish my catalogue of Christmas 2009. spring rolls (veg and chicken) were the knock out item in the spicy section on my Christmas menu. they make their presence felt so easily. they tend to be spotted immediately on the spread. i've not tried various recipes (i guess there are different types of them) because i was quite happy with the the recipe i tried and tested. i made around eighty rolls in sets of three (don't ask me why in sets of three and not one). the recipe below gives a max of thirty rolls.


filling



oil-3-4 tbsp (too much oil makes the mix gooey)
shredded carrot and cabbage-250 gm each
capsicum-3-4 nos
onions-4-5 medium sized (too many onions make the mix sticky too)
celery-as per your taste requirements
salt and an ample quantity of pepper powder to give that zing
boiled and shredded chicken-1/2 kg

cut all the veggies into thin strips. you don't have to be too careful abt the chopping. you can actually do it your way but too small is not advisable as the mix turns out to be a mushy ball.

fry the onions till glossy (don't brown) and add the veggies and stir-fry (don't go beyond stir-frying). add chicken and celery and stir-fry and then add salt and pepper and adjust the taste.

it's fine if the mix is a little too salty. the pancakes should be salted too coz as you bite through the rolls you should feel the salt is adequate for both the mix and pancakes. not everyone likes it with the sauce.


pancakes


maida-3 cups
eggs-2 (by standard recipe it is 1 egg for 1 cup maida)
milk-11/2 cups
salt to taste
cornflour-2-3 tbsp
water-1 cup (more if reqd)

mix everything together adding the lightly beaten egg. make a thin batter like you make for dosa.

get some egg whites ready (i've always used the whole egg and it doesn't taste too eggy) and bread crumbs for the final stage. it's easier if you fry one pancake and roll it out and then go to the next one. you have to work in a frenzy but finally that's better.

now make a medium sized and not-too-thick pancake. fry it mildly only on one side on the tawa and leave the other side raw. place a little mix (maybe 2-21/2 tbsp) on the raw side on one edge of the pancake and roll the pancake over it. gather the sides of the pancake as you continue so that the pancake rolls over its sides. roll it out the whole way and the other edge sticks by the heat of the pancake. that's why it is important not to let the pancake cool. take any extraneous side of the pancake that juts out and tuck it in. it's fine if it's not perfectly tucked in coz it's not going to break when fried. (i guess the pic gives you a fairly clear idea.) i repeat it's important to make the pancakes thin otherwise the fat edges can't be manipulated easily. quickly spread the egg white (or the white plus yolk) and dab it in the crumbs. it's ready to be fried and used.

make sure the oil is fantabulously hot and contrary to most frying i don't let the rolls swim in the oil. i don't like re using the oil. so take an adequate amount and to avoid any risk of its cracking put two or three into the hot oil on medium flame and keep pouring the oil over it. i heard that if you're not able to finish off the remaining oil after frying for your other cooking keep the used oil in fridge and use it the next day. i guess the cool temp reduces the carcinogens production.

i've tried the mix the indian way too and i used beef. i put ginger (no garlic). beans is an accepted addition and coriander leaves and some pudina (mint) leaves and no celery. i minced the beef that i had boiled prior in coriander, chilli and pepper powders and salt. it was MAST. you can be creative in making the mix and suit your style.

i like the advantage this tea time snack gives you in its making...that is you can make the mix one day and then roll out pancakes later and three four days or even a week in advance you can freeze them for later use.

and don't think of the oil that goes into the frying. enjoy your tea time snack...for a change :)