From An Alaskan Getaway

This was the cause of my long absence from here..We were vacationing in Alaska , to celebrate our 3 years of togetherness . It was a much needed vacation for both of us , N was really busy with his job and I  was busy with some writing projects for sometime. We badly wanted sometime off to relax , enjoy and be close to the nature . Though this was a destination chosen by N just out of whim , it proved to the bestest we have been to.

We inhaled a lot of Alaska in the red-yellow-green hills , snow covered mountains , crisp blue seas , umpteen number of glaciers , the grizzly bears , the wolfs , the reindeers and white whales , pretty strange towns etc..It was an experience of a lifetime !!!!!! We hiked till we dropped , and saw a lot of animals in their natural habitat..Don't you think its amazing ?

A trip to any new place is not complete without a visit to the local market right. There was one right next to where we stayed in downtown Anchorage , and it was so lively with fresh fruits , vegetables , baked goodies , music , dance and Alaskan art exhibits. Don't miss some of the wonderful restaurants and brewery if you happen to be in the town and its a seafood heaven. I even tasted buffalo burgers and reindeer sausages ..Yumm!

We got back just in time for Irene , and thank God it wasn't as bad as it was expected to be. Hope you guys enjoy the pictures. 

Good day !!!♡♡♡

✎Sarah

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Kappa Puzhungiyathu + Mulaku Chammanthy ( Boiled Yucca + Green chili dip)

I saw this new mallu movie " Salt and Pepper" @ AMC here , and all i have to say about it sums up to    " a deliciously yummy experience". A beautifully taken , perfectly cast and brilliantly witty movie , in which the story starts with a take out call for dosa. Oh trust me , this movie makes you wanna eat a lot of yummy things :)

As a matter of fact , ever since we saw S and P , we were talking about all this yummy mallu combo dishes like - Puttu + Kadala , Appam + Erachi stew ,Porotta + Beef fry ,  Dosa + Sambar , Choru + meen curry ,Kanji + payar, kappa + mulaku ......Thats when N said" Wait , wait , you make most of these dishes often and what about kappa and velichenna ozhicha  mulaku chammanthi? Its been ages since you made it and I miss it ".

Mulaku chammanthy

If the love of my life ; especially a food bloggers life ; says he miss something can I sit idle? I got into action , made the recipe of the day , and he pigged out to his hearts content. Thats the story about this recipe

Chenda Kappa +Mulaku chammanthy

Recipe for Kappa Puzhungiyathu / Chenda muriyan kappa / Boiled Yucca

Serves - 4

Total Cooking time - 30 minutes

Peel off the brown and pink skin from 2 large Yucca and cut into big pieces. As you peel and dice , put those into a bowl of water and when everything is done , clean and wash thoroughly , until the water runs clear. 

Bring to boil a pot of water and add a generous  pinch of salt and cook Yucca pieces for 15-20 minutres or until it is tender. Drain in a colander and set aside.

Recipe for Kanthari or Pacha  Mulaku chammanthy / Green chili dip

Serves - 4-6

Preparation time - 5 minutes ( no cooking involved)

(this is a rough estimate , use as per your likings)

Green chiles - 10-12 or Bird's eye chiles - 15

Kunjulli / Shallots / Pearl onion or chopped onion - 1/2 cup

Curry leaves 

Salt to taste

Coconut oil - 3 table spoon plus( i used extra virgin olive oil , since thats what i had then)

Combine chiles , shallots and curry leaves in a mortar and pestle or food processor and crush it. If using food processor or mixie , use 3-4 pulse. Transfer to a small bowl and add salt and coconut oil and combine well . ( my mom sometimes add a lil vinegar too in the end)

Kappa Puzhungiyathu +Mulaku chammanthy

See other recipes mentioned in this post

Puttu + Curry
Appam + Kozhi stew 
Choru + Meen curry
Kanji + Payar

✎Sarah

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Vazhakka + Cherupayar Curry

How many of you count calories before and after you eat something? Being a foodie I hate to admit it  but , yes I do. Its not that i don't eat anything , high in calories , but I regret with a guilty cloud that I did. Any one there who does the same thing?

I know , I am getting off lately than usual , and its just because I am pretty busy with stuffs in the personal front. Though I am trying my best to get me back on track , Mr Time doesn't seem to agree with me. More over now a days, I am not cooking any blog worthy mallu dishes too. After all ,this blog is my pastime favorite right! 

In Pic:- vazhakka cherupayar curry

Have you heard of Vazhakka Uppu curry ? It used to be a kanji favorite back home , while growing up and some how lost its charm on the way , until last week when amma said she planned to make it , but ended up making this erissery/curry instead. When she said "Erisseryum , Unakkameen chammanthiyum , acharum ayirunnu innu curry; velliyazcha ayirunnondu erachi illayirunnu " (We had Rice with this curry,Dry fish chutney and pickle for lunch , and since it was Friday , no meat ") ; Catholics abstain from meat on Friday and I try my best to follow it at least till the evening....Ooh I couldn't just resist the urge to make exactly the same as soon as possible.

The combo of cherupayar and vazhakka was that appealing to me and I made this the very next day and it was mind blowing-ly awesome.♡♡♡

I made the unakkameen podichathu with green chiles and added a bit coconut , contrary to the recipe here in this post and I always have 2 jars of Kadumanga -mango pickle for my pickle crazy husband ; so cooking the same meal was such an easy job :)

 In Pic:- vazhakka cherupayar curry,Unakkameen chammanthy , kadumanga achar , thayiru mulaku

Recipe for Vazhakka + Cherupayar Erissery / Curry ( Moong Beans + Plantain +coconut)

Ingredients:-
Serves - 4-6 people
Total cooking time - 1 hour

Bowl 1

Cherupayar / Green gram - 1/4 to 1/2 cup

Salt to taste
Water as needed
Bowl 2

Vazhakka / Green Plantain - 3 nos

Green chiles slit - 3-4

Crushed chili flakes - 1 tea spoon

Turmeric powder - a pinch

Salt to taste

Water - 1 cup

Bowl 3 To grind

Grated coconut - 1/4 cup

Cumin seeds/ jeerakam - a large pinch

Shallots - 2-3

Garlic - 2 cloves

Curry leaves - 3-4
Water - as needed

Oil
Curry leaves

Directions:-
Soak green gram for 2 hours . Cook it with enough water and salt and set aside.
Combine all the ingredients in Bowl 2 in a cooking pan and cook covered until the plantain pieces are well cooked.
Grind all the ingredients in Bowl 3 to a coarse paste.
Add cooked green gram to the cooked plantain and bring to boil.
Stir in the coconut paste and simmer for 4-5 minutes , until everything is blended together, stirring occasionally.
Drizzle a table spoon of oil over the curry and some curry leaves . remove from heat, let it stand covered for some more time . Serve warm.Goes well with kanji too

In Pic:- vazhakka cherupayar curry,Unakkameen chammanthy , kadumanga achar , thayiru mulaku

See other recipes mentioned in this post

• Unakkameen podichathu
• Kerala mango pickle

✎Sarah 

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Homemade Garam Masala - Kerala Style

Have you noticed , how food or the creation of it is becoming a dear ritual of sorts to recreate the taste and smell of our grandma's and mom's kitchen? 

At least for me , everytime i make something mallu , i am trying to go back in time and capture all those aromas and stir up some memories , that I can hold close to my heart..Yes food is a kin of  time machine for me, a mallu gal living in US.

Garam Masala ( lightly roasted method)

Garam Masala (plain)

Its a plain truth that spices and seasonings are what gives Indian food its uniqueness . Among the umpteen number of spice blends  Indian has , from one state to another; one language to another ,most culture within India has this hot blend of Spices " Garam Masala " though the recipe and the mix is different with the addition or exclusion of 2-3 spices. In fact every household has their own unique garam masala recipe. That's what which makes my mom's chicken curry different from yours , yours from your neighbors and so on..

Mine is from my mom , which she got from my kuttanadan grandma , which she might have got from her mother.....A flavorful , beautiful mixture of 3 'C's , an S and an N..I tried many combinations and concluded hers the best...I have seen garam masala recipes from kerala with coriander , fennel and other spices like Black pepper ..but we dont add it . just as my grandma says , for some curries its so wrong to have fennel in it , so better  don't mix it with garam masala and for black pepper , it tastes the best when freshly ground and sprinkled when the curry is almost done.

Two Recipes for Homemade Kerala style  Garam masala Powder

Total cooking time :- 10 minutes

Yields :- 1 small jar

Ingredients:-

Cardamom - 40 nos( green)

Cloves - 35 nos

Cinnamon Stick - 2 or 3

Star anise - 1 

Nutmeg - 1/2 of a whole one ,or you can use one full, if you like.

Optional items

Fennel seeds - 1/4 cup

Black pepper - 2 table spoon

Mace - 2 or 3

Directions:-

Method 1

Arrange all the spices in a baking sheet and sun dry an hour . Grind it to a fine powder in the small jar of your mixie or coffee grinder. Or you can just grind it without keeping in the sun.( just crush the cinnamon in a mortar and pestle before grinding)

Method 2

Heat a small skillet and add all the spices , and fry for 2- minutes . let it come to room temperature and then grind it to a powder. I normally prefer a bit coarse powder . This works best for all nadan meat fry .

For a mild flavor you can follow the method with just cinnamon , cardamom and cloves . This recipe gives you a small jar (as shown in the picture) of garam masala. Its more flavorful when made fresh , since its a tiresome task to do this in the process of making a curry , i stock this small jar always.

Good day

Sarah

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