Cheesy mushroom puffs – story of an invention!

Have you ever panicked receiving unexpected guests? Unsure of your appearance, those scattered toys in the living room, the unwashed dishes in the kitchen sink, the unfolded cloths in the laundry basket and oh yeah… above all the big question, what to give them!!!

On such an easygoing dull evening I got information that some visitors are coming. I rushed to check in the freezer for some precooked snacks. Alas!!! …Nothing was there! :( I called hubby and asked to buy some snacks and get home early. But the answer was disappointing…he was in a conference and couldn’t come soon and asked me to manage.

Oh dear, what am I to make :( !!!. I checked my fridge once more for luck. I found some deep frozen chicken and beef inside the freezer and also a packet of puff pastry sheets. I pulled the pastry sheet out and doubted about the filling. Chicken won’t thaw in the immediate future. What about some egg puffs? Ummm…my baby wasn’t in a mood to cooperate.

Uhhhh…what else for filling! I looked the lower racks for some inspiration and found a packet of mushrooms. I pulled that out along with a packet of grated cheese still unconvinced of what to do.

I was still pondering over the filling when the doorbell rang and the guests and my hubby arrived simultaneously. I was literally crying in my inside but wore a clownish smile.

I took the pastry sheets spread some tomato sauce and placed some thinly sliced mushroom, onion and some grated cheese and rolled up and baked.
‘Umm…this is really good, one more piece :) …’one of them said. ‘Really!! Are they good!!!…Let me try!’ I exclaimed. Oh dear, surely they were…not kidding!

Hihihi… I invented this recipe (‘necessity is the mother of invention’, right?) but I know I do not own its recipe because somebody else had already invented and made it before me (I googled :)). But in this case I just could manage, and it didn’t cheat me; hence I will keep it.

Ingredients

1. Puff pastry sheets (thawed) – 3 nos
2. Button mushrooms (thinly sliced) – 15 nos
3. Onion (thinly sliced) – 1 big
4. Grated cheddar cheese – ¾ cup
5. Tomato sauce – a few
6. Egg (whisked) – 1 no

Method

1. Mix mushroom, onion and cheese together.
2. Place puff pastry sheets on a flat work surface.
3. Spread 2tsp of tomato sauce over the pastry sheet.
4. Place one third of the filling mixture on one edge.
5. Roll up tightly to enclose the filling and brush the pastry with egg.
6. Cut each roll evenly into 5 pieces.
7. Line an oven rack with greased aluminium foil.
8. Place rolls, seam-side down on the foil.
9. Bake at 250ºc for 20 minutes or until golden brown.

Chemmeen cutlets – Prawn / Shrimp cutlets

Two days back, I called my sister to greet her wedding anniversary. I asked her what special food she made. She gave me a long list – prawns cutlet, mutton stew, palappam…
‘Oh… you made prawn cutlets!’ my mouth just watered. She expressed her concern that I did not put its recipe in blog. I said, ‘Hmm…usually they go into my stomach before a photo shoot…that’s the main reason…’

Any family have their own unique menu for a special occasion. For us a special feast won’t be complete without a cutlet served with tomato sauce and sallas (Kerala onion salad)! With a crisp crusty outside and a spicy soft inside it is a temptation for non-stop munching!

Beef was our usual ingredient for cutlets. Somehow dad disliked beef and stopped eating. Thereafter mom started making prawn cutlets to include him also, and it became a great hit in our family. The easy availability of prawns in our place boosted the trend.

When my sister said she is making prawn cutlets I couldn’t resist my craving. So I told my husband why we don’t celebrate Australia day (Jan 26th) with prawn cutlets! He had no hesitation as if we were both waiting for a reason!

Ingredients

1. Prawns (Chemmeen) – 500gm
2. Onion (finely chopped) – 2 nos
3. Carrot (grated) – 1 no
4. Potato (cooked and mashed) – 1 big
5. Green chillies (finely chopped) – 2 nos
6. Ginger paste – 1 tsp
7. Black pepper powder – 1 tbsp
8. Garam masala – 1 tbsp
9. Salt – As required
10. Egg – 1 no
11. Bread crumbs – As required
12. Oil – for deep frying

Method

1. Remove the shell of prawn and wash well.
   
2. Cook it by adding salt and ¼ cup water.
3. Drain any excess water and mince it.
4. Heat 2 tbsp of oil in a pan and fry onion, green chillies and ginger.
5. Add the prawns, grated carrot, pepper and garam masala and mix well.
6. Saute occasionally and fry till the mixture is dry and flaky.
7. When it cools add mashed potatoes and mix with out lumps
8. Make small lemon shaped balls with the mixture.
9. Take each ball in a palm and press with other to make an oval shape.
10. Dip them first in beaten egg and roll in breadcrumbs.
11. Deep-fry in very hot oil, till they turn dark brown in colour.
12. Serve hot with tomato sauce and salad.

Sponge roll / Jam roll

“Jingle bell, jingle bell, jingle bell rock
Jingle bells swing and jingle bells ring
Snowing and blowing up bushels of fun …”

My little blossom and a bunch of other little blossoms were practicing to tap their feet to the rhythm of this music for our Christmas gathering. And I was planning to make some refreshments for them. Something fancy that should make glitter in their eyes and smile on their face!

Jam roll came to my mind spontaneously. May be it is because it was one of the things that excited me when I was a kid. One of my dream foods!If mom went for shopping in Ernakulam without us (my sister and me), it was our right that she should bring us some puffs or jam roll when she came back!

A piece of jam roll and a cup of mango juice … okay kids let’s back to dance again!

Ingredients

1. All purpose flour – 1 cup
2. Powdered sugar – 1 cup
3. Eggs – 4 nos
4. Baking powder – 1 tsp
5. Vanilla essence – 2 tsp
6. Melted butter – 10 gm
7. Jam/ nutella – 5 tbsp

Method

1. Preheat oven at 180ºc.
2. Sift flour and baking powder and keep aside.
3. Beat egg and sugar till very light and fluffy.
4. Add flour, melted butter and essence and combine well with out lumps.
5. Line a large rectangle-baking tray with greased baking paper. (I used a 37 x 26.5 x 5 cm tray)
6. Bake for 30 minutes at 160ºc.

Rolling a sponge roll

1. Dust a tea towel with sugar and turn the cake into the towel immediately after baking.
2. Remove the top sheet of baking paper from the cake.
3. Starting with the long side closet to you and using the towel as a guide roll up the cake tightly.
4. Place, seam side down to cool.
5. Carefully unfold and spread with the filling.
6. Roll again tightly and slice into pieces.

Unniyappam

Unniyappam is a tasty teatime snack of Kerala. Something very spongy, with an unexpected bite of coconut kernels.

Back home in Kerala, when the bananas in our backyard ripe, it’s really hard to finish them completely without wasting any. So my mom used to prepare banana jam, unniyappam or even sundry some of them.

So this was a special snack my mom used to make when I was studying. Now I don’t have a banana plantain in my back yard. But still make it, whenever I crave for them.

Ingredients

1. Raw rice – 2 cup
2. All purpose flour /Maida – ½ cup
3. Jaggery (grated) – 1 cup
4. Banana (very ripe) – 1 big
5. Black sesame seeds – ½ tbsp
6. Coconut squares – ½ cup
7. Cardamom (powdered) – 10 nos
8. Baking powder - ¼ tsp
   
9. Ghee – 2 tbsp
10. Oil for frying

Method

1. Sock the rice for 2 hours, drain and powder them with lots of granules like semolina.
2. Melt the jaggery with ¼ water on medium heat and allow cooling.
3. Fry coconut squares in ghee till they are golden brown.
4. Mash the banana well and combine with all the other ingredients except oil, without any lumps.
5. Leave the mixture in a warm place for 3 to 4 hours.
6. Heat oil in the unniyappam pan and fill the holes with the mixture.
7. Fry them on medium heat and flip when one side is golden brown.
8. When both side are golden brown remove them with a metal skewer.
9. Drain into a tissue paper.

Aval nanachathu - Sweet rice flakes

Ingredients

1. Aval/rice flakes– 2cup
2. Freshly grated coconut – 1 cup
3. Grated jaggery– ¾ cup
4. Milk – 2 tbsp
5. Banana (cut into small pieces)– 1 no

Method

1. Combine all the ingredients together except banana.
2. Gently squeeze them with hands till rice flakes are wet and soft.
3. Add the banana pieces and mix well.
4. Enjoy with a cup of tea!

Sugiyan -Sweet Mung Bean Fritters

Ingredients

1. Mung Bean -1 cup
2. Water – 2 cup
3. Grated jagary – 1 ½ cup
4. Cardamom (powdered)- 5 nos
5. Plain flour (maida) – 1 cup
6. Water – ¾cup
7. Salt - a pinch
8. Oil- for frying

Method

1. Make a thick batter by mixing plain flour and a pin of salt in ¾ cup water and keep aside.
2. Pressure cook mung bean by adding 2½-cup water.
3. Add grated jaggary and mix well.
4. Stir continuously in medium flame to melt jaggary.
5. When the mixture is in a thick consistency remove from fire.
6. Add cardamom powder and mix well.
7. When it cools make lemon size balls and dip in the batter.
8. Deep fry till the coating is golden brown.

Pachor - Rice cooked in jaggery syrup

Ingredients

1. Raw rice – 1 cup
2. Grated coconut – 1 cup
3. Grated jaggery – 1 cup
4. Water – 3 cups
5. Cardamom (roasted and powdered) – 5 pods
6. Ghee /butter – 2 tbsp

Method

1. Soak raw rice for 1 hr, drain and keep aside.
2. Melt jaggery in water.
3. In a pot heat the jaggery syrup.
4. When it begins to boil add rice, grated coconut and ghee.
5. Cover the pot with a lid.
6. Stir occasionally and cook in low heat for half an hour.
7. Remove from fire when rice is done.
8. Add powdered cardamom and mix well.
9. Transfer into a greased tray and cut into desired shapes.

Kappalandi Mittai - Peanut Toffee

Ingredients

1. Peanuts (roasted & skinless) – 1 cup
2. Sugar – ½ cup
3. Butter – 1 tbsp

Method

1. Heat sugar in a thick bottom pan on medium heat.
2. Stir continuously to get a molten syrup in golden brown.
3. Then add butter and peanuts and mix well.
4. Transfer into a greased tray.
5. Spread as thinly as possible.
6. Before it cools cut into desired shapes.
7. Keep in an airtight container.