Simple Banana Bread

Banana Bread is a simple dish made from mashed bananas. It is a very moist, bread and is quite like a cake.
Here is a simple recipe for basic banana bread

Ingredients

1. Bananas 3
2. Egg 1
3. Sugar 1 cup
4. Maida / All Purpose Flour
5. Oil / Melted Butter 1/4 cup
6. Baking Soda 1 tsp
6. Maida 1.5 cup

7. Salt as needed 8. Chopped nuts or dates optional

Method

Mash the bananas using a fork or give pulse in a blender.

Add egg, oil and mix well.

Sieve in flour and baking soda together into the banana mix.

Add salt and mix well.

Add in choped nuts, choc chips or dates.

Bake in preheated oven at 180C for 25 to 30 min or until ready

Check out the youtube video for banana bread below :-

Easy & Healthy Carrot Cake Recipe - How to make carrot cake

Carrot cake is a delicious cake full of grated carrots, walnuts, cinnamon and choco chips.

Here, I have cooked a healthier version with no maida /all purpose flour. I have used vegetable oil instead of butter.

Ingredients

• wheat flour 2  cups
• brown Sugar(or white sugar) 1/2 tsp 
• baking powder 1.5 tsp
• salt 1/2 tsp
• cinnamon powder

• eggs 4 or 3
• vegetable Oil (or any flavourless oil)1 cup
• walnuts chopped 100g
• carrot grated 1/2 cup
• chocolate chips

Method

Mix all the dry ingredients - Flour,  baking powder, salt and cinnamon together.

Beat eggs well until frothy.

Add sugar little by little and beat till sugar dissolves.

Then slowly add 1 cup of oil and beat it well.

Fold in flour gently.

Then mix in grated carrot, chocolate chips and chopped walnuts.

Bake for 25-30 minutes at 180 degree C or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.

Aaloo Tikki

I have borrowed this recipe from vegrecipesofindia. It was today's tea time snack. And was an instant hit. So I chose to blog it. Sadly, I couldnt capture a picture of it. It was over by then. Over to the recipe.

Ingredients:

1. Potato 3
2. Onion 1 thinly sliced
3. Green chilly 1/2 very thinly sliced
4. coriander leaves 1/2 a handful finely chopped
5. turmeric powder 1/2 tsp
6. Coriander powder 1/2 tsp
7. Curry masala powder 1/2 tsp.
8. Bread crumbs - 2 breads

Method:

Cut potatoes into halves and cook (two whistles in cooker)
When cooled drain off water and peel skin.
Grate potatoes and mix well.
Add onion, gren chilly, leaves, powders and salt.
Mix very well and roll to form balls and press to cutlet shapes.
Roll over bread crumbs.
Add oil on a flat tawa and shallow fry till both sides are crispy.

In the original recipe, an addition of a binder (like arrowroot powder/bread crumbs/corn starch/rice powder is used). However I have not used any binder. The tikki was not very firm like normal cutlets.
But were really tasty though.

Avil Milk Shake

Avil milk shake is a healthy milk shake. This is not the traditional malabar aval shake in which they do roast the aval and do layers. This is a quick and easy shake in which you blend all the ingredients.

A quick nourish for your trouble some eaters.

Ingredients

1. Milk  1 cup

2. Almonds 4 (Peanuts or Cashews)

3. Dates  1 or 2, deseeded.

4. Aval/ Rice flakes  a handful

5. Sugar 1 tsp if needed (increase dates for sweetness)

6. Horlicks 1 tsp (optional)

7. Banana 1 (njalipoovan/robusta)

Method

Blend all ingredients in the blender using 1/2 cup of milk at first.

Add the remaining milk once they are mixed well and blend till silky smooth.

Kinnathhappam

Ingredients:

1. Rice powder -1 1/2 cup
2. Coconut grated  - 3/4 cup
3. Shallots - 3 or 4
4. Cumin  - a pinch
5. Jaggery - 1/2 cup approx (adjust according to your sweetness)

Method:

1. Grind coconut, shallots and cumin to become a fine paste.
2. Mix this well with rice powder. Keep aside.
3. Melt jaggery adding little water and let it thicken.
4. Mix everything well, adding water little by little until you get a batter a little more thicker than the dosha batter. Garnish with cashew and raisins, or coconut flakes.
5. Pour the batter into a plate and steam it well until cooked.

Tomato Chutney

This is one of the quick chutney recipes. Loved by kids as most of them love tomatoes.

Ingredients

1. Tomato 1

2. Onion 1/2 small or few shallots

3. Red chilly powder 1/2 tsp

4. Mustard seeds little

5. Curry leaves few

6. Oil

Method

1. Blend tomato, onion.

2. Add oil in a pan. When hot add some mustard seeds, add curry leaves, add the blended mixture. 

3. Now add some red chilly powder and needed salt.

Kallummakkaya Nirachathu / Arikkadukka / Stuffed Mussels

Ingredients:

1. Mussels, with the shells. - 1/2 Kg
2. Rice flour 1 cup
3. Turmeric powder a pinch
4. Cumin seeds 1/2 tsp
5. Shallots 5-6
6. Coconut 3/4 cup
7. Ginger 1 tsp crushed
8. Garlic pods 1 tsp
9. Green chillies 2 small
10. Onion 1 small
11. Curry leaves few
12. Coriander powder 1 tsp
13. Kashmiri chilly powder 1 tsp
14. Garam Masala powder 1/2 tsp
15. Pepper powder 1/2 tsp

Authentic Thalassery is prepared by using parboiled rice. Rice is soaked and ground coarsely, without adding water, with coconut, cumin and shallots.
Here I am using my Mom's own recipe, which follows.


Method:

1. Clean mussels well and cook by adding salt, turmeric powder and pepper powder.
2. Cut onion into small pieces and saute in coconut oil.
3. When they are translucent, add ginger, garlic, green chillies, one by one. Make the curry leaves very small by tearing to small pieces and add.
4. When they are saute well, add coriander powder, chilli powder and GM powder.
5. Now add the cooked mussels and boil off any water that remains.

 6. Grind coconut, shallots, cumin and little turmeric powder to a paste. A very fine paste is not needed.
 Boil 3/4 cup of water, and add it to the rice flour and kneed well as you do for Idiyappam.
 Now add the coconut paste and kneed well.
7. Make equal sized balls and stuff the cooked mussels equally inside the balls.
8. Now stuff the balls into two of the shells each.
9. Deep fry each shell and serve hot.