Hai there !

A place where information that I know is shared, in the simplest and purest form so that it is easily conveyable to my viewers ,is what my blog is all about.

I hope my blog would be of help to the readers out there, to get what they want….

Thanks for stopping by…

Jeny

Rice Dumplings or Kozhikotta

This is one among the most common snacks that we find among Keralites. A very traditional snack, that is very tasty and easy to make. Being a Sunday, tea time is time when everyone would want something nice to munch. Since I was a  bit lazy to experiment on something new, I thought about this snack and made it instantly. My hubby and kids, just had them to their full. It is one among their favorites.

Serves – 4-5

Ingredients

For the base :

Rice flour – 3 cups ( I had the rice flour of brown rice and so my dumplings has the darker shade. You could use the normal white rice flour too).

Salt – 1 tsp

Boiling Water – 1  cup

For the Filling:

Grated Coconut – 2 cups

Jaggery Syrup – 1 cup

Cardamom powder – 2-3 tsp

Sliced Cashews – 2 tbsp

Raisins – 1 tbsp

 

Method

. Boil water and keep aside. In a bowl, mix the rice flour, salt and the boiling water and knead to make a dough.

. In another bowl, mix the filling ingredients together and keep aside. ( Refer notes for jaggery syrup)

. When the dough is bearable hot, roll medium sized balls.

. Using your thumb and index finger, make a depression in this ball.

. Fill with about 1 tsp of the filling mix and then close the ball from all sides and gently roll to a perfect ball. Repeat for all.

. In a steamer, steam these dumplings for about 5-7 mins or till cooked.

. Serve warm. A perfect tea-time snack or you could even serve when you have unexpected guests.

Notes – To make the jaggery syrup: Melt the jaggery pieces with little amount of water on medium heat, till it gets to a slight sticky consistency. You could store this syrup in the refrigerator for further use.

 

Mambazha Pulissery / Ripe Mangoes in Yogurt and Coconut Gravy

 

It`s raining mangoes everywhere in Kerala. This is the perfect season for mangoes and so many varieties of dishes both spicy as well as desserts could be prepared. I have been longing to make a spicy dish with mangoes, and this was the perfect time to give a try finally.

What actually inspired me was, my mom made this same dish just a week back and I happened to visit here on that day. It was so tasty that I had my lunch heavily. From then on I was in look out to make this and when I got the right mangoes , which were given to my Father by his friend, I nailed it. I`m so happy that, this is the first time I made it and it did turn to be great at the first attempt. I`m sure almost all Keralites would just fall for this dish, as it is almost prepared in every house during the mango season.

A perfect side dish with hot rice  when you really want to treat yourself with some traditional choices.

Serves – 4-5

Ingredients

Ripe Mangoes   –   2-3 Nos ( Please note that all mangoes are not suitable. Ask at the store for the small and ripe ones to make this.)

Grated Coconut – 1 1/2 cup

Garlic cloves- 3-4 nos

Cumin Seeds – 1/2 tsp

Turmeric powder  - 1/2 tsp

Green Chilies- 4-5 nos

Mustard Seeds – 1/2 tsp

Curry Leaves – a few

Yogurt – 3-4 tbsp

Red Chilly Powder – 1/4 tsp

Water – 1/4 cup

Oil – 2 tbsp

Salt to taste

 

Method

.  Peel the mangoes and slice them randomly. In a vessel, put these mango pieces, a pinch of turmeric, salt and water and allow it to cook till soft and tender.

. In the mean time, for the paste. Grind the coconut, cumin seeds, green chilies garlic cloves and turmeric powder to a fine and smooth paste.

. Once the mangoes are soft and mushy, just give a gentle press with the back side of a spoon to get it well mashed and then add the coconut paste and salt.

. Give a good mix and just wait for the entire mixture to get slight bubbles. Switch off the flame and allow to cool.

. When in the warm state, add the curd and mix well.

. In a hot pan, pour the oil. When hot, crack the mustard seeds. Then add the curry leaves and red chilly powder and mix till the red color turns slight brown.  Garnish the mango curry with this final mix of curry leaves and mustard seeds.

. Serve hot with rice.

 

Banana-Nutella 3 minute icecream

This was an instant make and I`m so happy that it did turn out good at the first try. I had lots of bananas at home that was getting ripened and did not want to throw them. So I was thinking of something innovative. First I thought I would make a shake from it and give my kids. Then I changed my mind. gave my kids and they were so excited in having home made ice-creams in an instant !!!! So simple and very yummy. A sure winner to all banana lovers….

Serves – 3-4

Ingredients

Ripe Bananas  -   8-10 ( I had the small ones, if large ones, then about 3-4 will do)

Nutella  - 3 tbsp

Milk – 2 tbsp

Sugar – Optional  ( I did not use them)

 

Method

. Blend the bananas in a blender. Ad  milk if you need them to get mixed well. Blend it well till you get a thick consistency.

. Transfer it to a bowl, mix in the Nutella and Sugar (if desired)

. Garnish with choco chips or nuts and either serve immediately or you could chill and serve.

As simple as that….

Cucumber Pachadi / Cucumber in Coconut Paste and yogurt

Pachadi is a very common side dish of the South Indians. One could make Pachadi from different varieties of vegetables. Well this one was totally new to me and I got this from my Mom. She is a great cook and always explores new varieties in cooking, even though she is not much well now. When I visited her the other day, there was this dish prepared and I just loved it. I took the recipe from her and made it as soon as I could.

This is a very simple dish to be prepared and tastes really great. Should give a try sometime.

Serves – 3-4

Ingredients

Cucumber Thinly diced – 1 cup

Thick curd or yogurt – 3 tbsp

Grated Coconut – 1 cup

Green chilies – 3-4 nos

Onion – ½ of a large one

Mustard Seeds – 2 tbsp

Cumin Seeds – ½ tsp

Curry Leaves – a few

Salt

Oil

 

Method

. Dice the cucumber and keep it aside.

. In a blender, make a thick grinded paste of coconut, cumin seeds, 1 tbsp mustard seeds and the green chilies.

. In a hot pan, add some oil. When the oil becomes hot, crack some mustard seed. To this add the cucumber and salt and cover with a lid.

. When the cucumber gets softened, add in the grinded coconut mix and mix well. When done take off from flame.

. Add curd, once the mixture is cooled

. Garnish with curry leaves and serve.

Pathiri / Rice flour pancake

Pathiri is a Malabari dish and very common among the Muslim families. They are well expertised in making Pathiris and would definitely take just half the time of what beginners like me would take. However,I have been trying this for some time and finally I got it right.  It tastes best with spicy side dishes like chicken, mutton or duck.

I usually make this only when I have ample time and when no one is in a hurry to get their breakfast. So usually on holidays is what I prefer to do as it does consume a bit of my time and is of course messy( atleast for me !!! Lol). So this Sunday, I got some time to make and I finally got it served with my spicy chicken on time and my family just loved it. You should definitely try, as even though it takes your time, it is definitely worth it.

Serves 4-5

Ingredients

Roasted Rice flour  - 2 cups ( I use the store bought flour)

Water – 2 cups

Oil – 2 tsp

Salt – to taste

Method

. Boil the water in a heavy bottom pan with oil and salt added . Add little by little the rice flour to this and allow to stand for a minute.

. Add slowly the roasted rice powder  and  stir continuously over low heat. make sure that it does not get burnt. Cover and keep this for a few second on low flame and then switch off the flame.

. Mix well with a metal spoon as the dough is hot. Once it reached a warm level, knead well to make it dough. DO NOT add any more water or powder to it and knead well till you get a soft dough.

. Roll small balls from this dough. Flatten them with your palm and then using the rolling pin and the board, roll them flat.Make is as thin as possible.Dust the board and pin occasionally with the same rice flour to avoid the dough getting sticky.

. For beginners, you may not get a perfect round, dont worry, I used the lid of a steel utensil like a cutter and got the rounds.Maybe you too could do the same…lol…

. On a hot skillet or tava, on medium flame and keep rotating and cook on both sides for few seconds. Do not make it turn brown.

. Serve hot with spicy chicken or mutton curry.

 

Tips on how to overcome Shyness

Have you ever felt uneasy in a gathering or felt the urge to leave the restroom when someone enters?  Have you felt to run away from that speech or a toast for a best friend of yours? Well, it is not only you who experience that feeling, but there are many out there who does feel the same way. This kind of feeling to run away from being public or getting nervous of being in the limelight could be for the reason of being Shy.

One cannot get out of the shy feeling within a day or in an overnight. It takes its own time and with constant effort and practice only, one could get through it. Being shy is not specifically classified for introverts, even extroverts at times do face such a situation. A little bit of exercise in this regard and development of self confidence is the key to crack the shell. Once the shell is cracked, then everything would be history and you could very well get rid of this kin of thought or feel.

On a research conducted by Dr.Bernardo.J.Carducci, shyness is basically based on three components.

1. Self Consciousness in excess.
2. Excessive Negative self evaluation.
3. Excessive negative preoccupation.

Once these factors are overcome, then the job is half done in getting red of shyness from you. To help you to get of shyness, given below are few remedies that could be implemented on a day to day basis to overcome the feel and thought of being shy and thus ruining your enjoyable moments in life.

Tip1- Figure out what makes you shy

The first and most important step to get out of the cocoon is to identify what actually makes you shy. Once this is done, then the work is almost done. Mostly it would be getting shy to appear in a crowd, doing something new, exploring something different etc. In all these situations, try saying to yourself the mantra “I” like “I can do this” , I have something to offer”, “ I look great” etc. This would increase your level of self confidence.

Tip 2  – Build your self confidence

All of us are gifted with certain talents that they could offer to the world. Think about what you could o rather than what other think of you or how they would see you in that angle. As being gifted, every person has their own flaws and disappointments. Therefore rather than worrying on what others check on , you check for yourself and be content in what you do. As most of the time, most of the people do not have the time to check on others and when you spend your time thinking, you waste your life and confidence in yourself.

Tip 3 – Stop Comparison

Understand the fact that all the five fingers of your palm are not alike. Similarly, no two individuals are alike. You should never compare yourself with anyone around you. YOU are YOU and never try to be somebody else. The actual YOU does have great wonders, but you do not realize it when you compare yourself with others, as you try to see only the positive side of them and the negatives are not seen. This makes you feel that you are dwelled with negatives. You have your own positives that the other person may be envying. Therefore, never compare yourself with anyone around you.

Tip 4 – Find your strengths

Each one of us do have something special in us. Try finding out that “something” in you and focus on it. When you start doing it, you would love what you are doing and great results would be observed. This would gradually increase your self confidence and realization of yourself and where you could stand apart from others. This understanding boosts you up and thus would enable you to slowly get the nutshell cracked.

Tip 5 – Be comfortable

Initially be around with people whom you feel comfortable and who try to bring out the confidence in you and get the YOU out of YOU. This would help in the long run as this would help you to slowly place yourself in larger gatherings and help you to loose fear in public.

Tip 6  – Focus on other people

When you start to realize what is actually happening around you, you get to understand that you need not worry on any aspect. Get to understand people around you. Become interested in learning then rather than focusing on your awkwardness in social situations. This would help you to understand how they too get over their fear.

Tip 7 – Visualize

Visualization has a great impact and in-fact helps you in a long way. Always visualize yourself as a confident and enthusiastic person with lost of positive energies in you. Visualizing this often would eventually make you one of that kind. Similarly when you have to come up into something that you are shy of, visualize the situation a couple of times and this would help you to overcome the situation easily and organize yourself as per your liking for the situation.

Tip 8 – Affirmation

Your inner conscious has great powers and your mind could be manipulated by your inner conscious. What you say is what you are. The more often you say you are shy and scared, you become one. On the other hand, the more often you say you are smart, confident and energetic, you become that. Therefore always feed your inner conscious with positive energy thoughts and you could feel the difference for yourself.

Tip 9 – Accept Rejection

Failures and success are part of life. You must learn to accept the fact that failures do happen and the most important thins is , do not take it personally. It happens in everyone’s life. Learn lessons from these rejections and failures. The lesson that you learn at each failure is indeed a blessing in disguise as that equip you to be a better and stronger person and gives you a better understanding. Do not lose heart, move ahead and when you keep trying, it will definitely pay off. After all, life is like a mountain, for every downfall, there is an upcoming. So never feel disheartened and believe in yourself.

Tip 10 – Practice to be in uncomfortable situations

          Running away from any uncomfortable situation is not a way out. There will be no end if you start running, instead face the situation and try getting out yourself. The more you force yourself in uncomfortable situations, the better you get out of your shyness and fear and this helps you gradually to enjoy the situation at a later stage.

Tip 11 – Focus on the moment

          Focus on what you are doing rather than thinking what you are doing. For example, if you are talking to someone, focus on the words that you pick to talk, the tone used, the abbreviations as all these matters, rather than focusing on your looks and how that might affect the talk. When you try doing that, you could neither concentrate on your looks nor the conversation, which gets irritating to the listener. Instead do one thing at a time and that makes you feel relaxed and the other person feel important.

Tip 12 – Loosen up at times

Never try to be uptight on everything that you do. Loosen up at times, otherwise you may feel that you are not doing something that is right and this may cause uneasiness in you. People like to be in fun and energetic company rather than those worried about their looks and presentations. Try becoming interesting and enjoy life that is in front of you.

Tip  13 – Chase your dreams

Follow your dreams, even if they seem to be impossible. When you accomplish your dream, you feel very confident. This not only increases your confidence level, but also would help you in having a subject to talk about, when you are in a gathering and looking out to start a conversation.

Tip 14 – Record your success

On this journey, gradually you will start to overcome the condition named shyness or low esteem and you could see the difference in yourself .You start to view yourself differently and would recognize that you have become more comfortable and confident in situations that you feared before. Make a journal of your success. This would not only help boost your confidence, but you could understand the difference in you for yourself. Appreciate yourself. You start to feel anew YOU in you.

Conclusion

The journey to get over the fear and shyness in you is not an easy task. With great effort, courage and strength, you could achieve all that you have dreamt of and seen in others. You could stand taller, happier and more confidently that ever before, once you have broken the shell. Experience the new YOU………….

 

Easy Coffee Pudding

I have two great reasons in making this pudding and presenting it to my parents. Today is Mothers Day and tomorrow is my Dad`s birthday. So we, as a whole family is celebrating both together this evening. So I thought I would surprise them with something special that both of them like and yes, coffee is something they both love.

Coffee feels great and the smell is so tempting. While thinking on what I could get them with coffee, I got this pudding run across my mind and I just got to the store to get the essentials and made it in a jiffy.

So here it goes for my Special, Lovable Parents, who has guided me and been with me all through my life….. I love you both…..

Serves  - 8-10

Ingredients

Instant Coffee Powder ( I used Bru Instant Light) – 7- 8 tsp

Condensed Milk – 1 tin

Fresh Cream – 2 cups

Gelatin – 4 tbsp

Boiling Water – 3 cups

Cold Water – 1 cup

Sugar – optional

Dark Chocolate Shavings

Cherries – Optional

Method

. Soak the gelatin in cold water and keep aside for 10 minutes.

. Boil the water and make coffee with it. ( You could add sugar if you want as Condensed milk is already sweet. (I used just 2 tsp for taste)

.Add the soaked gelatin in a small quantity of the hot coffee mixture and mix well. Then add the entire coffee mixture.Keep aside.

.Add the condensed milk in it.Mix well until combined.

.Whip the fresh cream in the cold stage until soft peaks and then fold in the warm coffee mixture in small quantities into this cream mixture.

.Pour the mixture in a pudding bowl and refrigerate for 3-4 hours until it sets.

. Spread a thin layer of chocolate shavings as topping and decorate with cherries if desired.

. Serve chilled.