Navratri Special... Sabudana Tikki :)

Hi All.. Happy Navratris to everyone. Navratris always bring festivity, new hope and lots of good food with it. Many of us keep fasts on most of the days but the food prepared at the end of the day is what makes me happy the most. We all know the famous tradition of the "kanjakas", "kanya poojan" etc as it is called in different  parts of India, where young girls are invited to every household  and given lots of good food, presents , money and what not hahaha.. I absolutely used to love it. I used to wake up at 6 a.m in the morning (unlike my normal behavior ) and used to be super excited about going to the neighborhood and getting pampered.. :) :)

That took me back to my childhood :) One more thing which I can relate to both Navratris and my childhood is "Sabudana tikki". My mother used to take fasts on most of the days of Navratris and she used to cook these tikkis to keep her full. and guess what?? I, my brother and my father ended up eating all those.. haha poor Mom ;).. I guess that's how Godess Durga is.. symbol of sacrifice.

Moving on.. Here I have the recipe of Sabudana tikki which I made this Navratris and had great fun eating them.

To make these super simple dish, we need

Ingredients:

1. Sabudana soaked overnight to make it fluffy.
   
2. 2-3 boiled mashed potatoes.
3. Chopped green chillies
4. Freshly chopped green coriander
5. Juice of half a lime
6. Roasted peanuts, coarsely ground
7. Salt to taste
   

Method:

1. Combine all the above ingredients and mash it lightly by hand.
   
2. Take a non-stick pan and heat it with some oil.
3. Take a small portion of the mixture and form a ball
   
4. Flatten the ball so that it rests on the pan.
5. When the pan is hot put the flattened ball(tikki) on the pan to grill
   
6. Keep grilling until the tikkis are golden brown in color
   
7. Serve hot with green coriander chutney
   
8. Enjoy :) :)
   

South Wales!

Hello Everybody!!

Given the Travel addict that I am, I never ever miss a chance to escape to a new place to explore. Last Easter holidays were one of them. Been back from a big trip already, we didn't want to spent too much but still wanted to spend good 4 days away from home.
Hence we planned a trip to South of Wales and it was worth it!

Wales is a part of the United Kingdom which constitutes its western part. It is surrounded by water on three and England on the rest. It is recognized by its magnificent coastline which has given birth to some of the amazing beaches, the lush green country side landscapes and the lovely mountains.
You can roughly divide Wales into North and South Wales. Where South Wales has beautiful cities like Cardiff, Newport and Swansea, North Wales constitutes of Snowdonia and Aberystwyth.

As we had only a few days in hand so we only planned to visit the South which was full of adventures and surprises.Hence I would share with you the experience.

How to reach:

If you are in the UK there are many trains running at regular intervals from the mainlands.
If you live in the South UK, you can take your car and drive through the Bristol Channel which is a treat in itself.
You can also fly to the Cardiff Airport or Bristol Airport

Where to stay:

There are too many good hotels in and around South Wales in cities like Cardiff.
We planned our stay in New Port. It gives easy access to places like Cardiff plus there are many attractions at Newport which you would not like to miss.


Places to Visit:

Here comes my favorite section, I personally like to have a walk around the city, use the local transport, sit in the local pubs and cafes to get a feel of the place rather than visiting the major attractions of the place. But don't worry I am going to take you through the places worth visiting in South Wales :)

1. Big Pit National Coal Museum: If you have come anywhere near to Newport, you Have to! Have to! Have to! Yes, have to visit this place. This place is in the outskirts of Newport and in the middle of lush green Wales mountains. It used to be a mining station in the last century or so but now has transformed into a fantastic museum. The tour guides take you inside the earth where mining used to take place and tell you interesting facts and figures about the place and mining itself. The place is beautifully divide into various sections which all connect to one another very well. There is also a cafeteria  serving fresh food for those who feel hungry after the underground trip. Hence I think it is the must go place in South Wales.
   
   
   
2. New Transporter Bridge: For those who are of the adventurous kind, this is an ideal place for you. The New Transporter bridge is built on the river Usk and is about 60m high. You can either take the Gondola ride(moving platform) which moves over from one side to the other or can climb on the top of the bridge and then cross it. We preferred the latter which was more adventurous and fun.
   
   
3. Cardiff City: As important it is to see the country side of Wales, it is equally important to see  the Welsh Capital City. The City is full of people taking tour of the city, eating, shopping and enjoying themselves. The city full of good shops, restaurants, cinemas and takeaways. Stroll around the street, watch a movie have a takeaway or go to a pub. I personally found the city very Posh! with too many fashionable young people, stag parties and an amazing night life. This makes the Cardiff City third best place on my list. 

   

   pic source google

   
   
4. Cardiff Castle:  Beautiful piece of architecture located in the Center of the City. The building is magnificent and tells the story of the centuries it has been through. Make sure you check the opening and closing time before you go. :P

   

   pic source google

5. Cardiff Bay: This lies on the other side of the city center. It is a water body surrounded by land. There are many water fun activities to do. Plus there are amazing restaurants, shopping complexes and much more. Also you can visit the Millennium Center if you get time to :P

   

   pic source google

6. Millennium Stadium: Well if you are a Rugby fan, this is the place you want to be, for others, you may have a look around because its not far from the City Center.
7. Rhosilli bay(Swansea): After spending few days in the Cardiff city, you would like to head toward the beautiful beaches Wales has to offer. The first one which we went to was the Rhosilli Beach. It is a magnificent beach. Clean , quiet, wide and surrounded by mountains. And guess what this place experiences the exquisite phenomenon of high and low tides hence when the tides are low, the beach actually widens and is amazing to watch. Hence you should definitely go there.
   
8. Walking upto the worm: This part is more interesting than the Rhosilli beach. The worm is like an a piece of land the center part of which is under water hence you cannot reach its end, but when the tides are low, the rest of the center part becomes visible and could be walked upto. Which is soo adventurous.. but make sure to return before the high tides kick in or you;ll be stuck at an island  :P
   
9. Three Cliff bay(Swansea): This is yet another beautiful place with mountains on one side and sea on the other. Beautiful , scenic and picturesque. A treat to watch.
10. Gardens:  Apart from the magnificent beaches, castles and cathedrals, South wales also has to offer you many beautiful parks where you can have a nice walk, rent a bicycle and tour or just sit and enjoy nature. Some of these parks are Bute park in Cardiff or Clyne gardens in Swansea.

What to Eat

Eating habits in Wales are not too different from that of England, as I could see. I found the same kind of restaurants and the food but there a few things which were different and should be tasted.

1. Welsh cakes and scones
2. Lamb and beef Stew
3. Pies
4. Welsh cheese

pic source google

All in all it was amazing few days spent in the neighborhood. I hope you guys too have fun and please do share you experiences with me :) Cyaaa 

Sweet and Sour Prawn Curry!

Hello Friends!!

I hope you are all well and enjoying cooking.
Do you call yourself a foodie? If yes? tell me one quality which you think is a quality of a foodie and only a fellow foodie can understand it?

Well for me the first and foremost quality is having the urge to have something good and different everyday. It's been more than two years since we are married, but my husband and I have never repeated a dish for two consecutive dinners. That for me is one of the quality. haha :)

Okay.. lets talk cooking now.
The recipe I bring to you today finds its origin in the south of India. I think its Mangalorian but I am not sure.

Its a simple prawn recipe in a tangy curry. The prawns in the recipe can be replaced with other seafood as soft boneless fish and also squids.

The ingredients of the recipe are as follows

Ingredients:

1	Peeled uncooked Prawns	12 to 15
2	Onions	1 Big
3	Tamarind	1/4 cup
4	Jaggery	1/8 cup
5	Fish stock	1 cube
6	Fish masala(optional)	1 tsp
7	Turmeric	1 tsp
8	Garam masala powder	1 tsp
9	Coriander powder	1 tsp
10	Curry leaves	10
11	Mustard seeds	1 tsp
12	Fenugreek seeds	1 tsp
13	Salt	to taste
14	Water	3/2 cups
15	Oil	2 tbsp

Method:

1. Heat oil in a pan and add mustard seeds to it.
   
2. After they have popped, add fenugreek seeds.
   
3. Add onions, curry leaves, salt and saute.
   
4. When onions are light brown add  turmeric, fish masala, coriander powder and garam masala and stir until the masala is cooked.
   
5. Add prawns and cook until pink.
   
6. Boil some water and add tamarind and jaggery to it until both melt.
7. Sieve the water and add to the pan.
8. Crush and add the fish stock.
9. Add more water if needed.
10. Let everything come to a boil.

• Remember do not cook for too long otherwise the prawns will get hard and chewy.
• Enjoy this tangy curry with rice :)

Movie review.. Theory of Everything!

Theory of everything is a nicely executed script of the life of the renowned scientist Stephen Hawking.

The movie is pictured in the late 60's and revolves around the challenges, hardships, love and life of the scientist.

The actor Eddie Redmayne has done a wonderful job in portraying himself as Stephen.
To an extent that you even forget how Stephen Hawking looks like and start believing that he is the real Stephen Hawking. No wonder he won the Golden Globe award for the role.

All the other actors have also done their part well.

The only thing which I found negative about the movie was, the story was not that gripping.
It was less about the struggle and achievements and more about the love life, which lost my interest for a while.

But that doesn't mean that you should skip the movie at all
From me it is a must watch.

Hope you'll enjoy it. :)

Winter Warmer.. Til Laddoos

Hey! Everyone

I know its cold and you all must be couching in your sofas and beds doing nothing :)
Well thats what winters are for so don't feel guilty about it.

There's one more thing I like winters for and that is fooood.. You can have so much food, good food, warm food.

So here I bring to you one more recipe which would keep you warm in winters.
Til Laddoos in which Til means Sesame and Laddoos are small sweet balls.
And guess what?? I have got pictures of very step to help you even more.

To make these super simple laddoos you need

Ingredients:

1	White Sesame (Til)	2 cups
2	Jaggery	1 cup
3	Water	1/2 cup
4	Ghee	1 tablespoon
5	Cardamom Powder	2 pinches

 Method:

1. Dry roast the Sesame in a pan and keep it aside.

2. Boil water and add add jaggery to it, continue mixing until jaggery melts.

3. Add the roasted sesame, ghee and cardamom and stir.

4. Continue stirring until there is no more water left and the ghee has left sides.

5. Remove on a greased paper and allow to cool.

6. After half an hour take a little portion of the mixture in your hands and roll it into a ball.

7. Enjoy!!

You can store these in a dry box for at least 10 days.
Have them each day with hot milk. It'll keep you warm and boost your immunity as well.
I hope you'll enjoy these Til Laddoos as much as my husband and I do.

Until next time.. Cyaaa

Crispy coconut fried prawns with sweet chilli chutney

A Big hi to all the food lovers..

I know I was away for a few weeks cooking and eating in the festive season, but I am back here again.
The recipe I am bringing to you today is in-fact a very simple and easy to make snack recipe.
After making this I realized that I had been needlessly wasting money on having the same dish in restaurants.

The recipe is Crispy fried prawns but I have added one twist to it from my side to make it crispy coconut fried prawns.
Also I will tell you how to make super simple sweet chili chutney, thanks to my husband who made it for me.

If you are a seafood lover or you love prawn, you will love this. My husband and I love prawns and hence we love this recipe too.  We have already had it thrice after I first made it which was less than a week ago :P

Here's all you need to make the recipe.

Ingredients:

1	King Prawns	10
2	Plain Flour	2 tablespoons
3	Cornflour	1 tablespoon
4	Baking Powder	1 teaspoon
5	Water/Soda	2 tablespoons
6	Egg	1
7	Salt	1 teaspoon
8	Crushed Pepper	1/2 teaspoon
9	Red chilli Flakes	1/2 teaspoon
10	Green chilli paste	1/2 teaspoon
11	Garlic powder	A pinch
12	Oil	to deepfry
13	Bread crumbs	3 tablespoon
14	Sesame seeds	1 tablespoon
15	Desiccated coconut	1 tablespoon

For Sweet Chilli Chutney:

1	Red Chilli paste	5
2	Honey	1 tablespoon
3	Water/Wine	1 teaspoon

Method:

1. Heat the oil in a deep pan.
2. Combine flour, cornflour, baking powder, water or soda, egg , salt , crushed black pepper, red chilli flakes, green chilli paste , garlic powder and make it into a smooth paste.
3. Mix bread crumbs, sesame seeds and desiccated coconut is a separate bowl.
4. When the oil is hot, soak the prawn in the flour mixture by one hand and in the bread crumb mixture by the other and drop it in the pan.
5. Remove it when they are golden brown in color.

To make sweet chilli chutney just combine all the above mentioned ingredients in a bowl :)

Serve the prawns hot with the chiili chutney and enjoy.

Tip:

If you do not have red chili paste, just soak some dried red chili's in water and  grind them to make a paste.

Movie review.. Gone Girl

Gone Girl defines the story of a man and a woman in a strained marriage and leaves the viewers spellbound as how ugly can it get.
It is based on the novel 'Gone Girl' by Gillian Flynn

The story is a thriller which would not let you keep your eyes off the screen even for a second.
The main actors Ben Affleck(Nick) and Rosamund Pike(Amy) have done a commendable job in playing their parts. The story takes interesting turns in the middle of the film and even the supporting actors such as Carrie Coon (Nick's sister) and Kim Dickens (Detective) have done utter justice to their roles.

After watching the movie I am so tempted to read the book so as to discover some more elements which the movie might not have covered.

Hence I would say that this movie is a must watch for everyone specially couples :P
I loved it and I hope you would too.

Happy Watching:)