A Very Merry X'mas .... :)

It had been a while since i baked, and then I saw Martha Stewarts jelly roll recipe n I had to make it. so, heres my Christmas sweet surprise... like it? You can get the recipe here ..... It was sweet n also a bit tart. The genoise(sponge cake) was a pretty good one. We enjoyed every bit of it. It takes patience though to make it and wait for it to chill.... but its sooo worth the wait.

Fall, n Falling.....

Just look at those leaves just about to fall,
and grace the ground with colorful bits; of a kind life....

It was fun to see the colorful display of reds, yellows, oranges.... and I miss them now that they have gone. It becomes so dreary in winter that the festivals are '''really'' a God send. Nothing like Christmas to up the mood, nothing like a piece of fruitcake and a warm cup of hot choclate... mmmmm.....
I took a looong break from blogging, somehow days just went by.

And at night when the eyes beg you to sleep, but the dishes in the sink are crying,
a wishing wand, a spell, a potion I wish in the closet; lying...

And so now, when I finally got the time, I have lost words it seems, 'cause there is nothing spectacular i made that i want to share, no sweet heavens, no savory surprises... other than the filling glorious food of the everyday life.
But still i felt, O! what the heck, i'll put some use of thought.

Onam PonOnam... :)

That was the Ona-sadhya we had... how does it look ? I do wish we cud have something of a great big feast everyday but, hmmmm....

I love festivals, whichever , whatever.... I used to wait for every reason I cud celebrate. Most of my '''good eats memories'' r mostly thanks to festivals n celebrations... 'cause life is just so busy and mundane otherwise, isn't it?
We do say that we should live every moment to the fullest and make memories and cherish every second of our existence, but, how many of us really do that?
It fun once in a while to have a reason, a festival, a birthday, an aniversary, a something something that makes us pause and take look at what we have, feel happy that we have families to share our life with, feel proud that we have reached some place in our life, even bring back memories of a much innocent childhood.... yaaaa....

Even though i am writing this post, i am still lost in the music and colors that filled my afternoon today. We had gone to a function celebrating Onam today. It was really good.... I just loved the atmosphere, the kids running around, the food, the mood.... I really appreciate the people who put the function together. I loved the kids who performed. It was such a sweet experience.... i remembered the times with my family and those when i was still a student. Somehow it feels so '''a loooong time ago'' (psst... i am not that old), i was never an audience, forever on stage. The organising, the effort, the competition n so on.... and through it all the experiences, the bloopers, the fights, the taste of victory and bitterness of loss and not to forget the amazing companionship of friends. (Ohhh! i miss them ). It seems from another era ... so far, that, its hard to keep a hold on memories... And to top it all, we grow up so soon.

I do cherish the new memories that I make. It was my sons first onam. There is a slang in malayalam that says "njan ninnae kaattilum onam kooduthal unditund" and that says it all. (It means that i have had more onam feasts than u). It just says that somebody is much the wiser and that the person is elder to the other. My son had a good time today... all the colors and attention... and i realised hes almost six months. Time flies.....

For Click!!

This is one of my absolute favorite combinations... Choclate and Orange . And This pic is on its way to Click!! :)

I love the event (All about it here). Its simply amazing the imagination and photography skills displayed each month. I am no where near the talents, but I decided to participate 'cause its loads of fun. Thanks Bee and Jai for hosting this wonderful event.
Now about the pic : Its Chocolate (Lindt intense orange which i loooove ) and California Oranges.

Camera : Sony DSC-W1

Resolution : 550*413

Puutu - Kadala mmmm.....

I looove puttu n Kadala. The only thing is that i like the kabuli channa instead of the traditional black channa.... This was my weekend breakfast. Iused to make puttu, but it never came out right. It was either too dry or too chunky n wet. And then I got the consistency right. It should be like wet sand which holds shape when u press it into ur fist but falls apart when you poke it. It is easy once you get the hang of it. Heres how i made it:

For Puttu :
My guestimate is about 1 cup of flour for one kutti and half the amount of water. Add also a salt to your taste. U should mix in the water little by little so as to not form a dough. Get the puutu kodam(the steamer used to make puttu) ready, fill the kutti with layers of the flour and grated coconut, begining with coconut , close the lid and let it steam for about 10-15 min.

For kadala curry:
1 cup kadala (u cud soak it for some time, but i didnt have the time) (Kabuli channa)
3 green chilli
1 big onion
1 huge tomato (or 2 medium ones)
a 2' piece of ginger
4-5 cloves of garlic
2 tsp red chilli pwdr
4 tsp corriander pwdr
1 tsp garam masala
1/2 tsp tumeric
a sprig of curry leaves
1/2 tsp mustard seeds
1 dry red chilli

Pressure cook the Kadala with some water, salt and green chilli (about 3 or more whistle or less if u have soaked it). In another pan prepare the seasoning with mustard, curry leaves, and red chilli. Add the ginger and garlic. Roast till the raw smell goes (do not burn). Add the onion and fry till golden brown. Add the rest of the masalas and roast. Add tomatoes and cook till the oil shows on top or it looks glossy. Add this to the kadala and cook for another 5 min. Your nose will know when its done :)

Happy Independence Day!!
.... and this was my dinner .... its a simple one, rice, cabbage n carrot thoran (poriyal) and a coconut chutney... with homemade pickle
mmmmm... simple is delicious. :) I also had a salad of lettuce and that gave the dinner a tri-color effect. Pretty, isn't it ? It was wiped off the plate in 5 minutes....
Here is the recipe for the poriyal :
1/2 a savoy cabbage (I kind of like the texture) - chopped
2 carrots (medium size) - chopped (i was lazy so i cut in juliene)
1/2 an onion - chopped
1/4 cup grated coconut
1 1/2 inch ginger - chopped
3 garlic cloves - chopped
3 green chillies - cut length wise
1/4 tsp tumeric
1/4 tsp red chilli pwdr

Seasoning :
2 Tbsp oil
1/4 tsp mustard seeds
1 dry red chilli
salt

and then..... take a fairly large bowl, mix all the ingredients except the seasoning and give them a good crush just to mix in the flavours (believe me this works ). Heat up the oil in a pan and splutter the mustard. Put the mix into it and distiribute the seasoning. Cover with a lid and cook for 10-15 min. Stir n check in between. Its done! Now thats what i call easy.

My name is ''Kunjootan'' :-)

Hi to everyone, its been a loooong 2 months, and here i am again with an excuse, a sorry and a change of name. Puzzled ?!! Dont be, just days ago i chanced upon a fantastic blog http://addictedsweettooth.net/ full of mouthwatering sweets n baked delights... but i saw that the blogger coincidentally had the same name 'sweet tooth' and so I decided to change mine . Also, i am sorry if i have caused any confusion with the names... i never knew. And so i christen myself again... Its ''Kunjootan'' meaning 'Little boy' in Malayalam. Hope the name sticks this time ;). Love.