Coconut Brittle... Chikki - with dessicated coconut...

I gobbled up doughnuts that a friend had bought for us from a local store.. though not from MOD, i still ended up devouring the whole lot without saving them for T (which NeVeR happens!)..
Once i was done, i HAD to make something that T liked to brush away the guilt - what else but chikki? Made them with something that T had actually asked for - dessicated coconut. I now have a stack that i can munch on & go hmmmmmnnn.... trying hard not to finish them too! ;) :D
You need:
dessicated coconut 1 cup, tightly packed - i used store-bought ones
sugar 3/4 cup - you don't really need brown sugar - normal works just fine
clarified butter(ghee) 1 tsp + extra for greasing the plates

How to:
In a wok, heat the sugar with about 2tbsp water till all the crystals dissolve. In a few seconds, it will take on a brownish hue & start to caramelize. Stir, making sure that it does not burn. Add in the coconut & stir well. To this, stir in 1tsp of ghee.
Mix well & transfer onto a well greased plate, marking lines halfway through - as in chocolate bars. Now let them cool - the brittle hardens during cooling. Pop them out of the plate once cooled & break along the indent. Store in air tight containers.
Pointers:
>> I toasted the coconut till it browned a bit and gave off a nutty aroma.
>> Found it easier to work with granulated sugar rather than powdered sugar while making these.
>> Ensure that you don't skip greasing the plates.
>> Caramelize a wee bit more for a different taste & darker shade.
EnJoY!! :)

Thai rice noodles in a soupy mushroom sauce... :)

Another experiment that we LoVeD!! :)

Chicken MisCuzi!! ;)

Yeah - a totally made up name & dish! Herez how the dish was named...
R came over for dinner - a really sweet person who sings, plays the guitar, paints & is sooo much fun to have around! T & R have this sudden bursts of 'Yo' n 'MisCuzi' when they greet each other. Was serving up some starters when R asked me what i'd just served - i didn't really know 'coz i'd just put in a few things together. So now, they had to name the dish - what else but Chicken Miscuzi? ;) :D
Herez what i put in...
Served a dollop of cheesy-chicken topped on spiced crackers. I used cheese & chilli crackers, which by itself had some intense seasoning - 'coz of which i didn't really need to spice up the chicken.
For the chicken topping...
Boil the chicken in water with a big pinch of salt for about 20min. Drain the water, let it cool & separate the bones. In a blender, pulse the chicken(just 2 or 3 whirls will do) with a tablespoon of cheese spread to hold it together. You could use any flavored cheese spread - i used plain. Now transfer this into a piping bag and refrigerate.
To serve:
On each cracker, pipe out a dollop of the chilled prepared topping & serve. A light & easy starter.. :)

Pointers:
>> Just so you have an idea of the amount of chicken required - for about 50gm of crackers(check your pack) you need just one chicken drumstick.
>> Feel free to add more spices(crushed pepper/ chilly flakes etc) to the chicken if you are using some bland crackers.
>> Sonali suggested this topping as a sandwich filler & it tastes YuMmmmm!!! :)

Scotch eggs... with a noodle-y twist...

A Scotch egg consists of a hard-boiled egg wrapped in sausage meat, coated in breadcrumbs and deep-fried. Read more here!
Been wanting try out Scotch eggs since some time - though i wasn't really keen on handling meat in the morning. Was going through some recipes at the Nestle site yesterday and found one using maggi. Maggi & eggs are T's all time favorites.. so, if i can make something more with them, why not? ;)
The potatoes, instant noodles & eggs can be cooked simultaneously while you get to finish other chores & all you have to do is - put them together in the end & fry them. Gets done in no time & is a fun breakfast / picnic option.

I made them using soft boiled eggs only coz T likes them runny. Harder to work with since you need to be really realllllyyy careful. Will stick to hard-boiled eggs from now on! ;) You need:
For 2 hard boiled eggs -
1 small pack instant noodles cooked - i used Maggi
1 big potato - boiled
salt & chilly powder for seasoning
Breadcrumbs - 2 tbsp for mixing & extra for coating
Oil for deep frying

How to:
Once your potatoes, eggs & instant noodles are ready...
Mash the potatoes, season them (i used only salt & chilly powder) and add the noodles. Add 2tbsp bread crumbs & mix well. This will now come together to form a dough. Shell the eggs, grease your palm with a little oil and divide the dough into two portions. Wrap it around the egg so as to get an even coating (refer pointers below for easy steps).
Now roll the coated eggs in bread crumbs & deep fry them. Gently spoon out the Scotch eggs when they turn golden brown & crispy. Drain on a paper towel, cut into halves(length-wise) & serve with ketchup.
If you still plan on going with soft boiled eggs, you could serve some toast to dip into the runny yolks. :)

Pointers:
>> Figured that the easiest way to wrap the egg evenly is to pat out a thick rectangular sheet length about 3/4th the size of your palm, breadth about an inch more than the height of the egg. Start by rolling the wrap around the egg from one end - covering the egg when you reach the other end. Pinch the top & bottom & pat slightly to ensure an even coat.
>> Oil you hands when you work with the dough - makes it a lot easier!
>> Add onions,left-over veggies, additional seasoning - anything that catches your fancy.
>> Guessing that leftover cooked rice (plain/flavored) could replace the noodles. Will try it out & post the results.

This onez for the BP gang that i luuuv & miss soooooo much!!! :)

Of some of the most amaazing people i know... herez to a gang that made the US seem like a DrEaM!! :D Picked up the cartoon from here! :)

A yummy treat from banana fritter batter! :)

I had quite a bit of batter to finish up when i was making Banana fritters. Since i'd already fried up enough, all i wanted to do was dispose all the remaining batter! I couldn't really throw it away, right? So then.. the easiest way to finish them up? Pancakes of course! ;)

Herez some fun stuff to do with the batter used for Banana fritters How to:
Pour a ladle of the batter on a lightly greased hot griddle or frying pan. Don't bother spreading it out - just stand back & let gravity take it's course :). Lower the flame & cook covered for a few minutes till the top looks done(the bottom would have a golden brown shade). Now flip it over & cook for about a minute or two.

Transfer to a serving dish, scoop out a generous serving of vanilla ice-cream, a drizzle of maple syrup, top with fresh fruits - maybe bananas? I used some fresh strawberries that were in season. :)

Pointers:
You could make these pancakes & store them in the refrigerator (need not be frozen). Heat it up in the microwave for a minute before you plate up.

An experiment with Chicken gone right! :)

We usually marinate all the meat or fish over the weekend & freeze them in single serve packs & then, we are set for the week. Ideally that would mean 3 fillets of fish or 2 chicken drumsticks and so on in each pack.
Saves us a lot of marinate-&-wait time during hectic week days & the trouble of defrosting the whole lot just to chip out a few pieces.
Marinade used:
curd , a pinch of turmeric, salt & chilly powder

We were already done with dinner & since T was home a little early yesterday we experimented with some stuff in the kitchen. Yaaayy! :)
We already had a few chicken drumsticks marinated over the weekend & sitting in the freezer. Herez what we ended up with.. You need:
marinated chicken - i used 2 drumsticks
**To be ground into a paste:**
corriander(cilantro) leaves - a finely chopped handful
mint leaves - half the quantity of corriander leaves
green chilly 1 large - (lesser if you don't prefer the heat)
juice of half a lemon/lime
1 tbsp Olive oil
salt to taste

How to:
Heat about 3-4 tbsp of oil in a pan & sear the chicken on both sides enough to get a caramelized crust. Coat the chicken completely with the ground paste mentioned above & wrap firmly using cling film. Secure with string to ensure that the wrap doesn't open up.
Boil water in a saucepan & drop the wrapped chicken into the same, letting it cook covered for about 15 to 20minutes. Spoon out the cooked wraps onto a plate, remove the film & serve garnished with lemon wedges & cilantro.
T did have something to lament about - "we should have made some more!!" ;)

Pointers:
>> Using curd in the marinade makes poultry succulent.
>> You could skip the resting time for the marinated chicken (minimum 30min) if you are short of time.