Sweet Nothings

I love dessert. It is really as simple as that. I read the dessert menu before I order main course, so that if there is something worthwhile then I can save some space. If it is vague and uninspiring like 'choice of ice cream- vanilla, strawberry, chocolate, with chocolate sauce' or a random cake, then I don't bother. Might as well save the calories for a better day. Chocolate ( dark chocolate with a bit of orange rind preferably) is my best beloved, but fruity flavours and healthier options have slowly grown on me over the past few years. I have started to look beyond chocolate cake with chocolate ice cream and chocolate sauce with chocolate chips. The world is indeed changing.

I'm not a big fan of ice cream ( except very specific ones) but I do like frozen yoghurt and gelato. In continuation of my previous post, here is a ridiculously easy ( and yummy) recipe for Mango yoghurt. It tastes like fresh fruit ice cream, is much healthier and is easy enough to be made by a five year old.

Just Mango ( mango pudding/ frozen yoghurt)

Ingredients:

2 large mangoes ( I use Safeda/ Baiganpalli- the large ones commonly used for mango shake, but any variety will work as long as it's not stringy)

300 gms of unsweetened yoghurt ( I like Nestle rich and creamy- the one that comes in a dark blue box)

2-3 spoons of sugar ( Sugar Free Natura seems like a good substitute since it doesn't use asparteme)

A hand blender

Method

Peel the magoes, remove the seed and chop into small pieces

Empty out the yoghurt in a bowl


Mix it with a fork or a hand blender to get a smooth consistency, add the sugar and 3/4th of the mangoes while you blend it. DO NOT use a mixer-grinder- the water comes out and it becomes a cross between buttermilk and lassi if you do.


Keep the smooth mix in the freezer ( choose how cold you want it)


Serve it in pretty glass bowls garnished with fresh chopped mango


Enjoy!


PS- My mother makes a similar pudding using fresh cream, which tastes super. So if you want a more sinful version, substitute the yoghurt with cream.


Try it out with some other fruit as well- like mulberries and strawberries.

Mango Crumble and Apple Cinnamon Cake coming up next!

Mangoes, memories and delicious summer afternoons 1

It's summer, and summer means a mango a day. At least for my husband. He feels rather insecure about summer suddenly getting over and not having eaten enough mangoes! My grandmother used to take the first mango of the season, mash it and mix it with thickened milk and broken batashas. The first mango of the season was always celebrated. Often when she didn't want to have a fussy dinner, she would cut a mango and tear bits of gas-toast bread and put it all in a big bowl of cold milk. She used to slurp and eat it (very unlike her usual neat, dignified ways) while watching the evening news. She used to say that she eats it because she was old and her teeth weren't strong enough. But I suspect it's simply because it gave her another reason to eat a mango. Messily. As it is meant to be eaten. Then of course there is raw mango chutney, pickle, dal, aam panna, mango pudding, thai salad...I'll stop before I get into a never ending exercise.

So before the season gets over, here are some recipes for delicious summer afternoons.

Mango chutney

( I call it chutney but it is technically Aam jhol- a light sweet and sour gravy, made with raw mango. The traditional way of eating is to chill it and eat it at the end of the meal, but I like it with my Bengali Masoor Dal and rice)

Ingredients

2 small raw mangoes- they should be tight skinned and raw. If it's ripening and sweet then it doesn't taste as good.

Paanch Phodon- this is a standard mix of five sabut (whole) masalas. Panch- five, phodon- tadka.equal parts black mustard seed, fenugreek seed, fennel seed, nigella, and cumin. Radhuni, hard to find outside of Bengal, is the traditional panch phoron spice used instead of or in addition to the mustard.

To my pleasant surprise, this mix is easily available in Total Mall and Meat Mart in Bangalore. In Delhi it is most widely available in CR Park.Since it's dry and raw, it stays for months- like jeera or methi.

Suggestion: Don't get overwhelmed by paanch phoron- jeera, sarson, kalaunji, saunf and methi- if all are available then great. Otherwise only kalaunji also works.

2 whole dry red chillies

Mustard Oil

2 cups of water

Salt and Sugar to taste

Haldi

Cut and peel the raw mangoes. Rub some salt and haldi on it and let it be for around 10 minutes.

Take a kadhai (or a deep wok), heat it. Add a tablespoon of mustard oil. Once the oil is hot, add half a teaspoon full of paanch phoron, and dry red chillies. Once it starts sputtering add the mangoes and lower the heat. Be careful not to burn the mangoes put in the mangoes. Add one and a half cups of water, 3-4 teaspoons of sugar and salt and let it simmer for a while.

You can decide how thick or thin you want it to be. Simmer for longer if you want it thicker. Taste it and add salt/ sugar accordingly. Cool it and put it in the fridge for an hour before you serve it/eat it.

Healthy mango pudding, Raw Mango Salad and Aam Panna recipes coming up!

Slurp!

A Touch of Spice

I've just come back from Spice Village, Thekkady. It's a lovely non-hotel like hotel located in the highlands of Kerala. The drive up feels like a much smaller version of any touristy town I've been to. The shops sell clothes and handicrafts that could be found in Goa, Colombo or Shimla.

So what makes it unique? The smell of spices. It is almost as if there are subtle aroma-therapy candles burning in every corner of this little town. Wafts of cardamom hit you as soon as you enter the town, and even more when you walk into Spice Village. I bought my share of white pepper, cinnamon, vanilla and star anise from here. The star anise is so beautiful that I feel like hanging it in a locket. I am a huge fan of Mallu food and where there is appam and stew, I don't care for anything else. The hotel offers cookery classes in the evening in a semi open space. Unfortunately, my workshop hours didn't permit me to attend it. For a hotel, the food was an interesting blend of the fancy fish, mutton, beetroot dosa, ragi idiyappam, fresh pineapple jam etc. and the very mundane khichdi and dal chawal (which was a life saver in the middle of a 12 day program).

I've come back with the smell of allspice leaves and bird calls lingering in my memory. As a Kerala special- here is a simple recipe that I came across online, tried and loved. It is subtle, full of flavour and light. Makes a perfect meal with plain rice.

Ingredients:
3 cloves garlic
3 green chillies
2 inch ginger
1 small onion- sliced fine
3 tablespoon oil ( I used soya oil. Any vegetable oil or ghee should do)
5-6 curry leaves
2 small tomatoes
1/4 tea spoon haldi
salt to taste
500 grams fish ( I used boneless Sole fish, cut into cubes)
200 grams coconut milk ( I use the Maggi coconut powder)
150 ml boiling water

- Put the green chillies, garlic and ginger in the mixer/grinder, mix till smooth
- heat oil and fry onion and curry leaves on medium heat
- Stir in the chilli, ginger garlic paste and haldi- fry for 2 min
- Add half the coconut milk and water ( there are instructions on the packet of coconut powder, mix as per your preference)
- Simmer for 2 min
- Add fish and simmer for 5-6 min
- Add the rest of the coconut milk and chopped tomato

Enjoy with steaming hot rice!