Soaking fruits for Christmas cake

Posted on December 6, 2021 by HomeCulinaryCrafts

Christmas bells are ringing and the most wonderful time of the year has come. The spirit of Christmas has made me to try out new recipes in cakes. So,I started this month with the fruit soaking for Christmas fruit cakes. Traditional plum cake or christmas fruit cake requires soaking of dried fruits and nuts for weeks or months in advance. If you like rich and moist fruit cake, then this recipe is for you.

This fruit mix is super easy to prepare. The only thing is you have to shop different kinds of dried fruits and nuts and then chop it into very fine pieces. Christmas cakes are very common across the globe but the timeline for fruit soaking are different in different places. Some may soak before one year, 3 months, 1 month, 2 weeks, and even 2 days in advance.

The most commonly used dried fruits are raisins, prunes, cranberries, dried cherries, candied oranges, candied ginger, dried pineapple, dried apricots, etc. You can choose them as per the market availability and your taste. Almonds, Walnuts, and cashewnuts can also be used along with these dried fruits.

Soaking can be done in rum, wine or juices. The commonly used juices for soaking are grape juice, orange juice and apple juice. But, I always do soaking in homemade wines. If you do not have wine at home, you can go for these bottle juices available in shops. The only thing to keep in mind is that you have to refrigerate the dry fruits if they are soaked in juice. If soaked in wine or rum, they can be stored outside in a cool place.

Eventhough it is a very simple and easy process, the whole process which starts from shopping of dry fruits to cutting them and finally soaking them takes me to a Christmas mood and it is simply amazing. Wishing you all a happy and blessed season !

Ingredients:

Black raisins – 250 g
Golden raisins – 250 g
Dates chopped – 300 g
Tutti fruiti red,green and yellow- 250 g, each
Chopped cashewnut- 200 g
Home made grape wine – 2 cups

Method of soaking :

Clean dry fruits as required, remove the stems from raisins if there are any. Also, use seedless raisins. Deseed the dates and chop them into fine pieces
Add all the chopped dry fruits and cashewnuts to a large glass jar or ceramic jar. Do not use any metal containers
Pour the home made wine to the mixture and mix them properly using a spatula
Cover with a lid
Store in a cool dark place of your kitchen
Stir the fruits daily so that they get evenly coated with wine

Then, you can use it as per your cake recipe requirements.

Notes :

If you want a crunchy nut in cake, avoid soaking of nuts. You can add them directly during cake baking.
Some recipe calls for the addition of spices powder (cardamom, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg) also to this fruit jar. But I add this spice powder during baking, based on the recipe requirements.
The quantity of alcohol or juice should be just enough to immerse the dry fruits.

Yam coconut stir fry

Posted on December 4, 2021 by HomeCulinaryCrafts

Yam is a tuber plant which is very common in kerala. Majority of people in kerala have this plant in their backyards. This plant has lot of health benefits. We can use the root as well as stem of this plant for cooking.

This recipe is a mildly spiced stir fry of yam with coconut. The difficulty is only in the cleaning of yam. Those who find it a bit difficult task can go for the frozen yam packets which are readily available in our markets. They are also known as ‘Surans’.

Yam’s are high in fibre and in omega 3 fatty acids. Due to their high glycemic index, they are good for diabetes patients. Yam’s can be prepared in different ways. These can be added in Aviyal, which is one of the main onam side dish for boiled rice. They can be boiled and can be consumed directly. You can also make crispy chips using this yam. Here is a very simple recipe of yam which you can have along with boiled rice.

Ingredients:

Yam – 500 g
Grated Coconut- 1 cup
Garlic – 2 cloves
Shallots – 8
Dry red chillies – 2
Green chillies – 2
Turmeric powder- 1/4 teaspoon
Mustard – 1/2 teaspoon
Curry leaves – 1 sprig
Salt – to taste
Water – as required
Coconut oil – 2 tablespoon

Method of preparation :

Clean and peel off the yam skin and cut it into small cubes

Yam cut into small cubes, soaked in water

Pressure cook the yam by adding sufficient water for 2 whistles
Wait for the pressure to release naturally
Grind coconut, 3 shallots, garlic and green chillies along with turmeric powder
Keep the grinded mixture aside
Heat oil in a kadai and sputter mustard seeds
Add dry red chillies, remaining shallots and curry leaves
Now add the grinded coconut mix to the kadai
Saute for 2 to 3 minutes and then add the cooked yam to it
Close the lid and cook again for 2 minutes in low flame
Serve hot with boiled rice.

Pineapple bread pudding

Posted on December 2, 2021 by HomeCulinaryCrafts

Pineapple bread pudding is a dessert which is mainly made of bread slices, pineapple jam and milk. In this pudding, bread slices are simply soaked in the milk with other ingredients and is then steamed or baked.

This is a very simple recipe of pudding. We no need to add any gelatin or agar agar to this pudding. Here, we are steaming the pudding using a steamer. You can also bake the same.

Be careful while preparing caramel for this pudding. You have to stir the sugar continuously in low flame. Or else, the sugar may get burnt and the caramel will become bitter in taste.

I had used homemade pineapple jam in this recipe. I will be uploading the recipe of pineapple jam in my site soon. So, if you do not have homemade jam, you can go for readymade jam which is available in our markets.

The speciality of this pudding is, you can serve it either hot or the remaining can be refrigerated and serve cold. You can store the pudding for 3 to 4 days in refrigerator.

Ingredients :

Bread – 8 slices
Milk – 500 ml
Egg – 2
Sugar – 1 cup
Pineapple jam – 1/2 cup
Butter – 2 teaspoon
Vanilla essence – 1 teaspoon

For caramel :

Sugar – 4 tablespoon
Water – 2 tablespoon

Method of preparation:

Mix milk, sugar, 1/4 cup of pineapple jam, vanilla essence and make a custard

Add butter and the beaten eggs also

Stir till the sugar dissolves completely in milk
Soak the bread slices in the milk mixture
Mix well till the bread becomes soft
Take a pan and add 4 tablespoon sugar
In low flame stir the sugar along with 2 tablespoon of water
Switch off the flame when the sugar becomes golden brown in colour

Transfer the caramel to a vessel and spread evenly on the base of the vessel
Then add the milk mixture to the vessel
Spread the remaining 1/4 cup of pineapple jam randomly on the top of the milk mixture
Cover the vessel with an aluminum foil, and make small holes on the foil
Keep the vessel in a steamer for 25 minutes or bake the pudding in oven
If the pudding gets detached from the edge of vessel, it means that the pudding is cooked
Further, allow the pudding to cool
Transfer the pudding to a refrigerator for 2 hours
After 2 hours, invert the pudding to a plate
Cut it into pieces and serve.

Shredded Beef

Posted on November 30, 2021 by HomeCulinaryCrafts

Each pieces of meat are different. The thickness, water content, fat density, the position of bones, all affects cooking time. Fatty cut of beef takes longer time to cook. In this recipe of beef thoran, we should take only the meat portion. Beef is a red meat. A properly cooked red meat is dark and firm to touch. So, cook till the meat is firm.

Here, beef pieces are shredded using mixer. Masala is prepared and is mixed with shredded coconut along with fennel seeds. This recipe can be used serve for 10 persons.

Make sure to keep the flame in medium level, so that the prepared masala, coconut and beef gets sync with each other and provides a delicious taste to our taste buds. If you want to try out a variety and easy recipe using beef, here is a simple recipe for you.

Ingredients:

Beef (cut into small cubes) – 500 g
Grated coconut – 1.5 cups
Chopped onion – 2
Ginger – 1 inch piece
Garlic pods – 6
Fennel seeds – 1/2 teaspoon
Green chillies – 2
Dry red chillies – 2
Turmeric powder- 1/4 teaspoon + 1/4 teaspoon
Kashmiri chilli powder – 2 teaspoon
Pepper powder – 1 teaspoon
Salt – to taste
Curry leaves- 1 sprig
Coconut oil – 2 tablespoon

Method of preparation :

Cook the beef in a pressure cooker by adding 1/2 teaspoon of salt and 1/4 teaspoon of turmeric powder
Heat oil in a kadai and add onions and dry red chillies
Add 1/2 teaspoon of salt and saute till the onions become translucent
Now add chopped ginger and garlic
Further add turmeric powder, kashmiri chilli powder and pepper powder
Saute them till the raw smell goes off
Grind the grated coconut along with fennel seeds and then add it to kadai
Crush the beef using mixer grinder and further mix it with the prepared masala
Adjust the salt and pepper
You can serve it with boiled rice, Chappathi, etc.

Drumstick Spinach Jackfruit seed with shredded coconut

Posted on November 28, 2021 by HomeCulinaryCrafts

Today we will prepare a dish using grated coconut consisting of spinach, jackfruit seed and drumstick. This is a very tasty dish as the vegetables added here gets sync with each other and provides a delicious taste for us.

Spinach is rich in Vitamin E and magnesium, which supports our immune system. Leafy vegetables are good for your skin, hair, and bone health. So, spinach can be termed as a superfood.

The time consuming task in this recipe is only the cutting and cooking of Jackfruit seeds. But the final result is worth the time spent in your kitchen. Here is the recipe which describes the step by step method of preparation. Have a try if you have all the mentioned ingredients at home. You can have this with boiled rice.

First let’s see the ingredients for this preparation.

Ingredients:

Drumstick- 1
Spinach- 1 bunch
Jackfruit seed – 10
Shallots – 10
Grated Coconut- 3/4 cup
Dry red chillies- 3
Green chillies – 2
Mustard seeds- 1/2 teaspoon
Turmeric powder- 1/2 teaspoon
Salt – to taste
Coconut oil- 2 tablespoon

Method of preparation:

1. Cooking of Jackfruit seeds

Peel off the Jackfruit seed skin and cut it vertically into 6 pieces
Wash and clean them and pressure cook it by adding a pinch of salt and 1/4 teaspoon turmeric powder for one whistle
Wait for the pressure to release by itself
Keep it aside

2. Cooking of Drumstick

Peel and cut the drumstick into pieces
Cook the drumstick separately by adding 1/4 cup of water in a vessel
Close the lid and make sure to cook in medium flame
Once cooked, switch off the flame.

3. Preparation :

Heat oil in a kadai and sputter mustard seeds
Add dry red chillies and chopped shallots
Then add salt, green chillies and 1/4 teaspoon turmeric powder
Add grated coconut, mix well till the raw smell goes off
Then add finely chopped spinach to it
Close with a lid for 2 to 3 minutes, and stir occassionally
Open and stir the spinach till the water goes
Further add cooked Jackfruit seed and drumstick
Mix everything properly and cook for 2 minutes in low flame
Adjust the salt if needed
Prepared dish is ready to serve.

Sardine pickle

Posted on November 25, 2021 by HomeCulinaryCrafts

Sardine pickles are one of the most delicious pickle in fish pickles. Sardines are rich in omega 3. They contain a great source of calcium and vitamin D.

This pickle is not so spicy. I had used kashmiri chilli powder, which is less spicy and provides a good colour to the gravy. Also, adding of vinegar enhances the flavour of our pickle.

The major part of the recipe is the marinating and frying of sardines. Remaining steps are very easy. Once prepared, it will be better to store in 2 or 3 bottles. Use the same pickle bottle till the pickle is finished, because the continuous use of spoon inside pickle is not so good. Or else you can refrigerate the pickle.

I can guarantee you that this is a delicious recipe of pickle and trust me, if you are going with this recipe, the final product will blow your family. That is how this pickle is. You will skip all the other curries if you have this pickle on your table. Do try this and let me know your valuable feedback!

First let’s see the ingredients for this preparation.

Ingredients:

1. For Marinating Sardines