Just another Banana Muffin

If there is a downside to buying bananas by the dozen then it has to be the perennial problem of tackling with what on earth are you supposed to be doing with it , after you finish eating all the smart and stout ones.

I was gawking at the last few limp and sad looking bananas thinking I would hate to throw them. Then this bright idea salvaged these dying bananas. If only these fruits could thank me.

 The idea goes like, this week (ok admit that I’m a week late) I had promised my participation to Nicole of Taste and Create and was supposed to cook up something from my assigned partner’s blog– No Reason Needed. This had to be the easiest one that I picked for myself. This very simple and easy recipe gave me the idea to turn the bananas into muffins.

I simply added a few chocolate chips to give this simple muffin some texture while the fresh vanilla tingled our gastronomic desires.

Banana Muffin recipe

1 Cup mashed bananas (I used 2 overripe ones)
6 Tbsp vegetable oil
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 Large egg (well beaten)
1 Fresh vanilla pod (scraped)
1.5 Cups all purpose flour
1 tsp Baking soda
1 tsp Baking powder
1/2 cup Chocolate chips

 Add the vegetable oil to the mashed bananas, then add the sugar and the egg. Beat well. Now add the vanilla scrapings and beat until well mixed. Sift flour and add the baking soda and baking powder over the banana mixture. Lastly add chocolate chips with a few strokes of the spatula - just enough to moisten. Drop into buttered muffin tins and bake at 350 (175 C) degree oven 15-20 minutes.


This muffin could be a child pleaser, her lunch or amuse bouche even. It was a hit with my kid and I think can turn any event with teeny weenies into a happy party!

This muffin also forces me to think of this - Contemplate.

The Forgiving Cupcake

I’m guilty of so many things. Currently ‘lies that I tell my daughter’ has to top the charts. Not that I was born with an obsessive desire to lie all the time and I preach dishonestly to my child, still lying these days has become my second skin. I do it all the time without batting an eyelid.

Don’t you touch this- the meow will come. [The most popular one with us now, after we successfully managed to scare her off the cats –code name meow, forever]

Don’t you dare scream else I'll get get a new baby and return you. [Often repeated in public places when there are quieter nicer babies in sight]

Don’t go to strangers, they will put you in a bag and take you with them. [Again to put her off 'the universe is my family' policy and keeps her safe from devious intentions.]

Sometimes I’m totally at loss while coining a new lie. Like I just can’t have my daughter sit in her car seat for more than a few minutes at a stretch. In India we have relaxed rules, so we don’t really need her in the car seat by law. With time I realized that car seat is the only way I can travel with my sanity intact. Little did I know that its going to be a constant battle . The moment I strap her in , she wails and tells me that the belt is hurting bad. Once we get through that melodramatic mess, she wants the windows rolled down. I know how good a fresh air is to my child , but in a moving car- excuse me? Her hand goes out first, then peeks out the head…too much I say. 

Windows are rolled up instantly and car seat belt back on.
\
Now the wailing starts. That squeaking shrill wails invites a lot of unwanted attention from fellow passengers at red lights. I still have to keep up the act. I tell her “Police eesche jail e niye jaabe (policeman is coming, he will put you in jail)”

It’s ok if the police gets that bad rap. She’ll know when is grows up.

Unfortunately for me, at the next red-light a smiling police waves at us, asking us to show our papers(its  a routine check for them). I secretly fume. I’m embarrassed too, as my lie is discovered. My daughter now thinks that a policeman is mommy’s friend and does not look that bad to put her in jail.

Oh Crap.

Back home, I have to salvage my mommy reputation.

I bake her a ‘Sorry for the lies mommy tells you’ cupcake.

Without the frosting of course.  Frosting is not needed if mommy has made such a good cupcake.

Nevertheless- This Mommy is guilty

The Forgiving Chocolate Cupcake (this recipe has been adapted from Laurasweetspot)
Ingredients

1¾ cups all-purpose flour

2 cups sugar

¾ cups unsweetened cocoa powder

1¾ teaspoons baking soda

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup stirred buttermilk

½ cup vegetable oil

2 extra-large eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup freshly brewed hot coffee

How I did It.

Preheat the oven to 180°C. I used the silicone cupcakes, so no lining needed.

Sift all the dry ingredients together . 

In another bowl, all the wet goes in. Mix well. once done, slowly add the wet ingredients to the dry. With mixer still on low, add the coffee and stir just to combine. 

Fill cup cake tins  ⅔ way full and bake 200 odd minutes or until a fork comes out clean.

Cool in the pans for 5 minutes, then turn them out and cool completely.

What are your thoughts on this good –bad  mommy?

Or would you like to taste the cupcake and judge :)?

Dimer Devil (Bengali style Deviled Eggs recipe)

Dimer Devil (Bengali Deviled Eggs recipe)

Last week had a training session at work. Out of the very many things learnt and forgotten with equal ease the one which is worthy of mention here is the lesson on ‘and’ & ‘but’.

The example shared struck a similar chord with my daily conversations and miffs with dear husband (DH)…you’ll know once you hear this.

Me: Both of us are ready and getting late for our show , BUT little one?
DH-No response (which meant I have to be the one getting her dressed)

Me:Is the dress looking ok?
DH: Looking great on you , BUT isn't it too tight?

The 'But't in ruined my day.

So the moral of the story --- to keep our butt out of trouble we must replace “but” and start using “and.”

Well I'll be glad if I and DH can settle the AND’s into more of a routine!

Till then setting up the stove is my task and I get to make the Dimer devil. I can t tell why the ‘devil’ I chose this today over anything else though…

Dimer Devil

Ingredients of Dimer Devil (Bengali style Deviled Eggs recipe)

Ingredients

4 boiled eggs
2 raw eggs  (used for egg wash)
1 tsp Lime juice
1 tbs breadcrumbs
Mustard oil for frying

Mince meat filling

250 gms minced meat
50 gm Bengal gram dal (cholar dal)
50 gms green peas
2-3 flakes garlic minced
1/2 tbs ginger julliened
3-4 green chillies
1/4 cup chopped coriander leaves
1tsp chilli powder
Salt to taste
1/2tsp Bengali garam masala
1/4tsp nutmeg powder

Mashed potato topping (optional)

3-4 boiled potatoes
1 tsp cumin powder

1tsp chilli powder

Salt to taste
1/2tsp Bengali garam masala
1/4tsp nutmeg powder

Directions

Cut theboiled eggs to half.

Mix the mince with all the ingredients for masala. Pressure cook with 3/4cup of water for 10 minutes. Evaporate the excess water over a high heat.

I usually try to mix it all by hand, this leaves a bite when I'm eating, you can grind the cooked mince to a smooth paste if you'd like. Cover each boiled egg with one portion of the mince.

I double coated with a potato mash.You can skip the step if you like. Make roundels.

Once done, heat oil in a pan, coat the deviled eggs with with egg wash.Dip in breadcrumbs and deep fry the eggs over medium heat till golden brown. Cut the devils in halves and serve with chutney. I served it with the onion chutney , recipe courtesy Tamils Kitchen

Further Reading 

(Well I did come across these links earlier while looking up for my devilled eggs, but here they are courtesy research effort of a fellow blogger BengaliCuisine)

Vaidyanathan Pushpagiri on Eggs in Calcutta, Deviled Eggs and everything in between
Check out the website Deviled Eggs Recipes for some great variations in Dimer Devil recipes

Banana Squares - Noddying on a Saturday morning ..

Banana Squares - Noddying on  a Saturday morning ..

"By the fire I sit and dream
And in the flames I see
Pictures of the lovely things
That never come to me ... "
                                  Enid Blyton                  
        
Is it too early to read out a copy of Little Noddy to my little one?  Will she take to it like her mom?

l  grew up reading these pricless beauties.Initially they used to be read out to me by my mom . Later perhaps at the age of 4-5, I started reading them myself. Of course Noddy is not the only one, my choices ranged from batul the great, nonte phonte , champak, nandan and Noddy. Maybe after a year or two I took to Tintin and then there were years of Nancy Drew, Famous Five and Secret Seven (for some reason - never took to Hardy Boys!!) . My Childhood book collection was so dependent on my baba's visits to Kolkata book fair and also the annual extravaganza of the Lucknow Mahotsavv.  I guess, I would have had been deprived of the Noddy world had it not been for these International book fairs.

Noddy of course deserves a special mention out of this entire lot. It took me to an unfamiliar territory. Some sight and smells which I was not aware of and too little and unexposed to imagine. The only thing I could imagine longingly was the food Noddy and his friends would eat, e.g.


"Tubby is a little sad but he asks Noddy to make up a song about him whilst he eats his fourth slice of ginger-cake and Noddy is more than happy to oblige before the bear trots off home. "

Noddy learns what a bath is when he sees one in the grand house that belongs to Mr. Tubby and his wife and then it's eating time and there's a cosy little picture of them all having tea and cake.

Simple litle eats all sounded exotic to me at that time ...reading it made me crave and hanker after mom, and then she would yield and bake me a cake. 

The Noddy world is still unknown to my little one, but bake a cake- I will. And try to add some Noddy fun. 

Recipe adapted from Nags cookbook 

Basic banana bread (blender recipe) 

Blender Banana Bread is so simple it's really a sin not to try if you have little ones at home, some bananas and an over.

1 1/2 cups maida/all-purpose flour

1 packed brown cup sugar

1/2 tsp cinnamon powder

1 tsp. baking soda

1/2 cup vegetable oil

2 ripe bananas

2 eggs  ( To make these banana squares egg free all you need to do is just add 150 ml of milk for every egg; it works just the same and you can't even taste the difference.)

Other vegan alternatives are 

1 egg = 1 heaped tablespoon soya powder or 1/4 cup tofu. 
1 egg = 2 heaped tbsp potato starch or arrowroot powder. 

Preheat oven to 170 C. In a large bowl, stir together flour, sugar and baking soda.

Put oil, bananas and eggs and sugar into another bowl (or the blender!) and mix/blend to a smooth gooey paste..

Pour the banana mixture into the flour mix and stir until combined.Do not blend it hard as you will miss out on air pockets.

Pour into a greased loaf pan and bake for about 40 mins or till a stick comes out clean. 

For the Banana Squares

This is a dense bread. After the bread cools. Cut it into squares. fry the pieces in canola oil and dust with powdered sugar. This adds a party spirit to plan ol banana bread. try it!

________________________________________________________________________

This is all wet stuff getting into the blender!

 I love the way the packed brown sugar looks...they add an entire new dimension to a regular banana bread.

 Sprinkle Cinnamon on top of dry ingredients. The fragrance just fills the house.

 You are supposed to sprinkle the dry flour mixture into the wet one., but this one is easy. Just whip it all up.

 This is how the bread looks after 40 minutes - heating up in the oven.

Cut em up , drizzle some choclate syrup.get chai, enjoy!

Cut into squares and fry. Remember to sprinke sugar on top. 

Serve it for a little kids party - you'll be an overnight star. I promise. 

This entry is being sent to Healthy Kids-Combo Meal, Nithu's Kitchen ,Fun and Food Cafe and Cooksjoyhttp://cooksjoy.com/blog/bake-fest-hosting-schedule

Lucknawi - Mutton Shami Kabab

Lucknawi - Mutton Shami Kabab

Bored by the banal city life we left for Agra- almost on a whim. Packed duffel bags , booked a room and we were well on our way to explore the rather known richness of the Mughal empire.....beautifully reposed in the banks of river Yamuna, Agra is one of the oldest cities in the country. Although I have seen the TAJ MAHAL many times before, it always leaves me awestruck. Traipisng through the hot stone terrace and uncovered mausoleums, which leave my soles almost hot and parched, I could feel tribulations of the bygone era, life was after all hard. I think. However the Mughal kitchen is what brings my sensory nerves alive and ticking ...the vastness of the Mughal kitchen, the poetic verses on evocative aromas and intoxicating platters of fine food. This is all what I'm yearning to talk about today ...

Although I have to admit that I cut short on the slow cooking techniques many a times, this is not the royal rasoi(kitchen). And talking of the royal kitchen, if you start thinking that I work chef quality gas ranges with a shining chimney atop to hush the smells away.ha! in my dreams.For now my kitchen is full of love and belly full of desires.No-No-dont get me wrong. Unlike most -designer gear is not for me, I dream of a kitchen with shiny breakfast table, dainty pretty plates and sprightly red cabinets.

But for now , I make peace with the utilitarian.

So lets get working in my standard utilitarian kitchen - where the only thing which is in abundance is zeal to make good food and the undying spirit to eat...

Mutton Shami Kabab

Yields 10-12 kababs

Ingredients for kababs:

Lamb (finely minced) – 500 gms

Bengal gram (chana dal) – 200 cup

Onion – one, diced small

Ginger – 1 inch piece, chopped fine

Garlic –7-8, chopped fine

Fresh coriander leaves – a scant handful torn from a bunch, chopped fine

Lemon juice – of 1/2 a lemon

Egg, beaten – 1

Ghee (clarified butter) to shallow fry

Vegetable oil – 1 tbsp

Salt to taste

Spices for kababs:

Cumin powder – 1/2 teaspoon

Green cardamoms – 2

Cinnamon – 1/5 stick or 1/4 tsp powdered

Cloves – 2-3

Red chilli powder – to taste

Bengali Garam masala – 1 teaspoon

peppercorns black – powdered 1 tsp

Coriander powder – 1/2 teaspoon

Steps : 

1) Wash the chana dal and soak it for a few hours 

2) In a pan ,  roast all dry spices and grind. 

3) Heat 1 tbsp of oil and add the Chana dal and minced meat with grind spices.Add about a cup of warm water, salt to taste. Cook  till all the water in no more.Add the rest of the spices.

4) Grind all to a fine paste . 

5) In a bowl, beat the egg with a pinch of salt.

6)To make the kababs, take a palm-sized portion of ground meat in your hand. Roll into a ball then slightly flatten it. Repeat the procedure

- Heat the oil in a pan. Press to flatten the  kababs, then dip each into the egg mixture and place into the ghee to shallow fry. 

For plating up you will need a few lemon slices and onion juliens. they work the best together:

 Once the kababs are done, you can easily turn them into a favorite Luchbox recipe by placing it inside a Roti and rolling it all in . Here's how :

Enjoy!!

Peanut Butter Cookies

Peanut Butter Cookies

Its Tuesday ---- after  a hectic Monday,  with work going upto 1:30 AM in the night , working lunch and a sweaty gym session in the morning. It's time to do it all over again on a Tuesday. Heck-this schedule continues for the next remaining four day and I'm tired thinking about it all already. Let Peanut butter be my Nirvana point.Its more of getting something you like -- adding more of what you love. Bake them all till they are all in a mushy togetherness - find that perfect pairing - hot choclate- horlicks- tea - oh! whatever. This is a combination that one can never go wrong with ...find a cozy corner. Sit back and enjoy....

Can we have more love (we are talking the edible variety - you Dirty Dirty mind ;) for the rest of the remaining days of the week too !! 

Here is the recipe thats been adapted from the The-girl-who-ate-everything

Ingredients:

1 cup + 2 TBS peanut butter
1/2 cup butter, softened (I used Amul)

1/4 cup white sugar (you can substitute with splenda for the calorie conscious )

3/4 cup packed brown sugar

1 egg

2 TBS milk

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour

3/4 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

Instructions:

My adaptation was to skip the Peanut butter chips and the chocolate chips. I could not find these easily in India.

In a large mixing bowl, cream together the peanut butter, butter. Once combined beat in the white sugar, and brown sugar until well blended. Beat in the egg, milk, and vanilla. In a large bowl mix  all the dry ingredients. Gently add to creamed mixture and mix until almost combined. Chill cookie dough for at least half an hour.

Roll tablespoonful’s of dough into balls. Place dough balls on parchment lined baking sheets. Carefully press each ball with fork tines to create a criss-cross pattern. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes in the preheated oven, or until edges are lightly browned. Please be careful as they burn easily. Keep checking. Turn off oven when they are browned.

Bengali Dal Cutlets (Potato and Lentil Cutlets)

Bengali Dal Cutlets (Potato and Lentil Cutlets)

Today is a good day. Warm, Sunny Sunday - just the kind of day which allows you to sleep till late without an alarm clock.Enjoy a quiet Darjeeling  tea with crispy marie biscuits, read the big fat Sunday newspaper. Read the gossip columns too and that too, end to end. Its pure Luxury. If you don't - quite understand what am I saying here - Then go ask any mom of a toddler or two. She'll tell ya :)

Happy beginnings show a happy day. Right. Well sometimes the answer can be a disheartening NO . 

I just happened the step on that bathroom scale which seemed to move up north, much more than I would like.That's when the  awesomeness of the day just stopped for me.Period.  Specially after being to the gym whole of last week. No excuses. I rewarded myself with an indulging Birthday night dinner yesterday and all the goodness of the gym sweat went flying out of the window.And here I am , moping in despair..Now that you are thinking that I'll go - enter kitchen and dish something soupy for myself. You cant be far from wrong. For food is the perfect balm for a plunging will-power and expanding waist line.Still for the sake of gymming the entire last week , lets make something healthy and filing...Do you have some leftover dal (lentils) cooked from last night - if yes- lets begin :)

Aalo aar Daler  Cutlet 

Key Ingredients 
11/2 cup thick lentils/dal (any red/yellow or green lentil would do)
4 boiled potatoes
1tsp garam masala 
1 chopped frod onion
5-6 cloves garlic 
1 tsp ginger garlic paste
1/2 tsp red chilly flakes (as per taste)
1 tbsp chopped Dhaniya(Cilantro)
1 egg
1/2 cup bread crumbs
2 tbsp sesame seeds (optional)
Oil to fry

PREPARATION:
Cook the lentils until they are tender and drain out the excess water from them and mash them well. If you are using the leftover then all you have to do is to cook it 0n heat till the water dries out. Hands work best for mashing/else a blender can also be used . Chop and dice the onion and garlic finely. Heat a pan with some oil and add the diced onions and garlic. Sauté them for a few minutes until they are tender. Now add the sautéed onions to the mashed lentils. Mix. Add mashed boiled potatoes.Mix.Now add ginger-garlic paste, cilantro, salt, garam masala, chili powder  and mix everything well. Make small round cutlets out them and keep aside. Take the egg in a small bowl and whip. Keep aside. Take the bread crumbs in a bowl keep aside. Heat a flat bottomed pan with ¼ cup of oil. Create a work station arranging the plate with the cutlets first, the bowl with the egg batter next, and the bread crumbs plate next to that. lastly a plate if sesame seeds.When the pan is hot enough, take a cutlet and dip it in the egg batter. cover with bread crumbs. dip in egg again. Now coat with the sesame seeds. There should be some space between the cutlets while cooking to move them around. Let then cook for a few minutes till the top is golden brown and crisp. Flip all the cutlets and let them cook for few more  minutes. Repeat the same with the remaining cutlets and serve the hot cutlets hot with chutney or sauce.

The weighing scale dilemma. let's park it for another day.