Estonian kringel bread

Another beautiful, delicious cinnamon bread made with a mix of spelt and all purpose flour. Saffron, cardamom optional, I hear.

Kozhukkatta and Peecham pidi

Nazrani Palm Sunday specials. Kozhukkattas are rice flour dumplings with a sweet coconut filling . The sweetener can be regular sugar or jaggery. and Peecham podis are made with mildly sweet rice-flour-coconut dough, steamed. 

Sambar

Sambar is one of the staples in our house. There will be some always. It goes well with rice, rotis, dosa and idli and vada etc etc. And it is healthy and spicy delicious and aromatic. It has a lentil base, and all kinds of vegetables, all kinds of spices including turmeric, coriander, asafoetida, and a few others.  One of the basic food item of South Indians. A soup, a stew, a so-called curry.

this one is special because I used a mandolin to prep the vegetables. Till now I did everything by hand, as I realize that I am kind of a perfectionist. Each vegetable piece had to certain shape and size.
But once I used the gadget, things looked different, but somehow easier. Tasted the same, anyway.

final seasoning with mustard seeds, dried chillies, spices

rice and sambar and ground beef

London Iced buns

Yummy treat with tea or coffee

Lamb ragout with farro and spring vegetables

Waiting at the counter at the grocery store,  saw the picture of a stew on the cover of a magazine,. Came home, googled and found it in bon appetit magazine. Unfamiliar flavors, especially that of dandelion greens. But we enjoyed it.
The method and the spices used aren't that different from other stews. The greens is what made the taste different, I think.

prep:

Chicken biryani

Any Indian worth his/her salt would swear by a favorite Biryani. So, in my case, I am rather partial to the Malabar Chicken biryani. Still hanker for the biryani served in my University hostel. The preparations in the yard, the aroma of the spices, of the onions frying in ghee, of mint and coriander leaves, the huge vessel on top of the wood fire, the embers on the huge lid glowing, .... .

There are so many different biryanis particular to each region, each community, each family in India, that this dish is versatile. But I have to write something down here or rather rant. Recntly I read while looking through the biryani recipes given by non- Indians, that Indian cuisine is very forgiving, unlike the Western baking, which is a science. Maybe true. But -- just let us take biryani. Suppose you cook the rice to a mush, or undercook it , or the same with the meat or the vegetables or the fish. Yes, we have seen that in some restaurants and takeouts around here. Mushy veggies, little bony pieces of chicken scattered around in the rice,-- bt that is not the real thing, is it? Indin cooking is a science and an art. It is intuitive, instinctive, and imaginative -- and most of all, full of flavor. Not just of salt, or of tomato, but of a million nuances. But then that is just me talking!

prep:

Valentines, Birthday, and such

One of  the cakes in my cake to do list is the sacher torte. Along with the Swedish Prinsesstarta, the German Donauwellen, the Austrian Sacher torte seems to be world renowned. I had never tasted any of these, until I made them. I had come  across mentions of these online. Actually I first read of the Hotel Sacher in a Betty Neels novel  long time ago! In any case, this Valentines I planned on making the Sacher torte. As it is my birthday time too, it was doubly exciting. Tummy travels! get it? like time travel? hehe .
And there is the Chinese New Year too!  The recipe I followed had the cake in three layers, while the original has two. Next time, I will stick to two.

Here is a  slice of my Sacher torte, served with the traditional unsweetened whipped cream.

As it is Valentines, one has to have strawberries and chocolate.

And something fruity and sweet and with a kick 

Hence, the strawberry jello shots:

and a milder cocktail:

So,  a berry mimosa

but then what is a birthday and a New Year without payasam? Palpayasam it is.