OLD FASHIONED KERALA DOUGHNUTS

Honestly, I don't know how many of you can relate to these doughnuts.These doughnuts played a huge role in my childhood days. Thankachi aunty, my Mamma's sister-in law would make these and send it across to us whenever Mamma visited her. Later, Amma got the recipe from Thankachi aunty and would make it for me once in a while. I don't remember Amma making it much after Ritchie was born. I was 8 1/2 years old when my brother was born,so I pretty much remember everything that happened then. It was my first hands-on experience with babies. Gosh, I do have a lot to tell you all!

So, till Ritchie was born, Mamma's grandkids were all girls. Anju chechy, Tinu, Neethu and I. We would spend our vacations together in Mamma's terrace,grinding up her bougainvillea flowers and then diluting it with water,pretending it to be wine! Mamma was totally against anyone plucking flowers from her plants. That's because her Headmistress,a foreign lady, in her school Balikamadom (Tiruvalla) was very strict about it . She (The Headmistress) would pull out two strands of hair from the head of anyone who dared pluck the flowers from her garden. Then when her birthday came, she would let everyone pluck the flowers to their heart's content. That was the story Mamma would tell us,even though she never pulled out her granddaughter's hair. So finally,when Ritchie was born,she got her first Grandson!Anyway, that has nothing to do with these doughnuts, well almost.

So when Anju chechy got married and was living in Bangalore, we visited her once and Neethu made these and brought it for her sister. Everyone made fun of her saying it's the Home Science effect,because of the subject she took for her undergrad! I was so thrilled to see my favourite thing and still remember eating them early in the morning as soon as we got to Anju chechy's apartment. I don't know if Neethu remembers it but I do!

So, if you are thinking these are the typical melt-in your mouth doughnuts,you are wrong. These are more of the 'Vettu Cake' kind, soft yet a bit like a cookie. I must say that these are super addictive. I wanted to take the pictures of the doughnut holes but I popped them one by one into my mouth while frying the rest. And do you know why I made these today? It was raining here! It was so dark outside and it was thundering and raining at the same time. Even if there is no dinner at home, we always have some kind of a thing to snack on and usually,it is deep fried if it rained like how it did today!

OLD FASHIONED KERALA DOUGHNUTS
Makes 26-28 pieces

Ingredients:
3 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup powdered sugar
3 tablespoons ghee
3 eggs, separated
Oil for deep frying

Method:
In a bowl, mix together ghee and powdered sugar. Add the egg yolks and mix well. Add the flour,baking powder, salt,lightly beaten egg whites to it and mix to for a soft dough. Set it aside covered with a cloth for 10 mins.
Roll the dough out into 1/4 inch thickness on a floured surface and cut them out like doughnuts. Deep fry in hot oil over medium heat* until golden brown.Drain on paper towels and store in an airtight container. They have an amazing shelf life!

*Don't heat up the oil too much, the doughnuts will brown very fast since there's sugar in the dough.

Well, now this is not Thankachi aunty's recipe.I didn't want to wake Amma up in the middle of the night asking for the recipe. Instead, I checked my favourite source for recipes of these kind, Swapna chechy's blog because I was 100% sure she would have it and she did! Her recipes are foolproof and delicious!
 

HAPPIEST FOURTH BIRTHDAY, IAN!

That little boy of ours is FOUR now! Where did the time go? I think I ask that question to myself a lot these days. He has grown so much in the last one year. He also helps me a lot with things at home. His specialty is clearing up the mess and folding his own laundry! From the time he could walk, I made sure that he cleaned up after his own mess,every single day.He has been happily doing his share of things around the house without being asked to these days. The best thing is, he tells me that he is very good at cleaning up stuff!

He has recently started folding his clothes and puts them away in a nice little pile. His Malayalam is pretty awesome for his age and we are strict about speaking in Malayalam at home. His favourite cartoons still remain the same so I decided to surprise him with a Pocoyo on top of his birthday cake.I made that for my last term in school and saved it for his birthday. His favourite cake is still my Chocolate Cake.

When I asked him sometime back in February what cake he wanted for his birthday, he immediately told me that he wanted a red racing car. So, for the birthday, I made him a Butter Cake with Malted Chocolate Buttercream Frosting and for the birthday party next day, a Red Racing Car Cake ( courtesy Pinterest) with his favourite Chocolate Cupcakes. He was really excited about those and had a great time with friends both at his Montessori and at home.

Birthday Party Menu ( Dinner)

Pork Ularthiyathu

Cherry Cheese Pineapple

Maharaja

Curried Chicken Dip with Tortilla Chips

Chicken Biriyani

Fish Moilee

Homemade White Bread

Raita

He couldn't wait for me to finish taking pictures of him as he wanted us to light the candles and sing for him! Look at that face, isn't that worth more than a million bucks? Be still my heart.
 

HOMEMADE HOT FUDGE SAUCE

It's been really really hot outside today. So naturally,it's a day when I feel like eating something really cold, like an ice cream. These days, Ian gives me a list of things he would like to eat once he back from his Montessori. Chocolate ice cream, Fish Fry & Homemade Pizza tops the list. That reminds me, I need to thaw the fish for our Fish Fry, Yogurt & Rice dinner tonight!

I made some Hot Fudge Sauce yesterday to pour over our ice cream and Ian has fallen for it completely. This has been my go to homemade chocolate sauce recipe for years now. It's a fool proof recipe and can be made in no time at all and lasts for a good time in the fridge. When Kemp's asked me if we would like to try some ice cream from their 40 different flavours, I jumped in at that opportunity.  I mean, it is so hot outside now and who wouldn't like to enjoy some ice cream drizzled with homemade chocolate sauce? That too, when it's a brand that I've enjoyed over the years!

I decided to try the Caramel Cow Track and Caramel Fudge Cow Tracks because I am all about caramel right now and I was really sure Ian would enjoy the Caramel Fudge Cow Tracks and I wasn't wrong! He calls it the chocolate ice cream and when I drizzled the Hot Fudge Sauce over it, it made the whole thing extra decadent!

This recipe is from Kamran,a good source for awesome recipes! I just cannot wait to use up this sauce and create homemade sundae's for my little family! Summer is the best season even if it's scorching hot outside right now.

HOMEMADE HOT FUDGE SAUCE
Makes about 1 cup

Ingredients:
100 grams good quality dark chocolate,chopped small
2 tablespoons cocoa powder
1/3 cup golden syrup /light corn syrup
1/3 cup heavy whipping cream
1/3 cup powdered sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
pinch of salt

Method: Melt the chocolate and cocoa powder together over a double boiler or using a microwave oven. Stir well. Add the golden syrup followed by heavy cream and powdered sugar. Add the vanilla and salt and mix well. Bottle it up and use as needed!

TURKEY SHEEK KEBABS with YOGURT CILANTRO CHUTNEY

Finally,I am free! I am done with school and my internship which can only mean ONE thing... that I've been catching up on my sleep ever since! It was really crazy here for the last one year and it intensified ever since I started my internship. There was zero personal time, no family time,no nothing. It was all about getting out of the house in time,even if that meant waking up at 3.30 am even on weekends! We are slowly getting our life back together now and it will come into a full circle once Jobin gets back home from India. As of now, it's just Ian and myself enjoying the big,much needed break.

Everytime I've made Sheek Kebabs before, I've used chicken. This time, I wanted to try it with Turkey. Turkey meat is a lean and inexpensive protein.The dark meat is juicy and succulent. If you are planning to grind the meat yourself,buy the dark meat. If not, just use whatever your grocery store has to offer. One thing that I really liked about using Turkey meat is that it really absorbs all the flavour that we add to it. When I first tried it at Jobin's friend's house,I wasn't really sure if I would like it or not and this was 6 years ago. I was proved so wrong because I honestly couldn't taste anything  'weird' like I thought,instead it was a nice,tasty and juicy affair.

This Kebab is a cinch to make,like most other Kebab recipes. I found this recipe online and changed it a bit to suit to our taste.I have linked to the original recipe and noted the changes in the recipe below.I felt there was a lot of heat in the original and since it's just me and Ian, I decided to keep it mild and simple for the boy.

TURKEY SHEEK KEBABS with YOGURT CILANTRO CHUTNEY
Makes 12

Ingredients:
For the Kebabs:
1 lb ground turkey meat
1/3 cup minced red onions
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1 tablespoon storebought Sheek Kebab Masala
1 1/2 teaspoons grated garlic
1 1/2 teaspoons grated ginger
1 teaspoon red chili powder / cayenne
1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
Juice of half a lime
1 egg,beaten lightly
Breadcrumbs from 2 white bread slices

For the chutney:
1/2 cup thick plain yogurt
1 serrano chili
a handful of cilantro leaves
Salt

Method:
Kebabs: Mix all the ingredients together and marinate it for 4-5 hours in the fridge. Form them into long cylinders over wooden skewers (previously soaked in water) with wet hands. Grill over medium high heat turning occasionally till it is completely cooked, 7-8 minutes.

Chutney: Blitz everything together in a blender and serve it along with Kebabs.

I am so in love with these Kebabs. They are very moist and succulent with a hint of heat from the cayenne and tons of flavour from the other ingredients. This is the grilling season and I do it both indoors and outdoor depending on my mood and how hot it is outside. This works well for both and all you need to do is just be patient and wait for it to cook at the bottom before you turn them over. Ground meat is delicate,so be gentle!

You can visit the Serve Turkey page for more information about Turkey!