Fattoush-The Middle Eastern Bread Salad

Fattoush is one of the known traditional salads in the middle eastern cuisine. The main ingredient of this salad is "Sumac" which gives fattoush its sour taste. Another special ingredient of this salad is crispy toasted flat bread which soaks up the dressing beautifully. It's a simple recipe, packed with freshness and flavor. The sharp flavor of the sumac, the crunchiness of the chunky cuts of tomato, cucumber and the thin baked pieces of bread to soak up the dressing, make it the favourite salad of middle east.

Ingredients

• Lettuce : 1 cup shredded
• Lebanese cucumber : 2 cut into half circles
• Tomatoes : 2 diced
• Flat parsley leaves  : 1 cup chopped
• Sumac : 1 tsp
• Pita bread (flat arabic bread ) : 1/2 cup, cut into 1 inch squares
• Black olives : 10

                                  

For dressing 

• Extra virgin olive oil : 3 tbsp
• Lemon juice : 1 tsp
• White vinegar : 1 tsp
• Black pepper : 1/4 tsp crushed
• Garlic : 1 clove crushed
• Sumac : 1 tbsp
• Salt to taste

Method

Prepare dressing by mixing all dressing ingredients together in a jar. Shake well and keep in fridge while preparing the salad.
Place the bread pieces in an oven tray and drizzle thoroughly with some extra virgin olive oil and place in a preheated oven for about 5-10 minutes till golden and crunchy, or you can deep fry the bread instead.
Mix all salad ingredients ( except pita bread and sumac ) together.
Mix with half of the toasted bread pieces. Add dressing and mix well.
Top the salad with rest of the bread and sprinkle some sumac and serve.

Sweet & Sour Ginger Pickle / Puliyinchi Recipe

Puliyinchi or Injipuli is a traditional Kerala pickle. It is one of the favorite dishes of almost all keralites.

                    

Ingredients
Ginger : 1/2 cup /200 gms ( finely chopped )
Tamarind pulp : 2 small lemon sized
Green chilly : 4 ( finely chopped)
Turmeric powder : 1/4 tsp
Red chilly powder : 1/2 tsp
Mustard seeds ; 1/2 tsp
Dry red chilly : 3    
Curry leaves : 2 sprig
Coconut oil : 2 tbsp
Water : 1 1/2 cup
Jaggery : 50 gms
Salt to taste

                     

Method

1. Soak the tamarind in 1 cup of hot water for 10-15 minutes then squeeze the tamarind to extract juice and filter the tamarind juice.
2. Heat coconut oil in a earthen pot ( manchatti ), add  mustard seeds, when it splutter add dry red chillies and curry leaves.
3. Add finely chopped ginger into it and saute until the raw smell leaves, then add chopped green chillies and saute for some time.
4. Simmer and add turmeric powder and chilly powder, saute for some time.
5. Pour tamarind juice, bring to boil, reduce the flame to low and cook for 10 minutes.
6. Add jaggery, reduce the flame allow the mixture to boil until the mixture is thick, pulpy and reduced by half.
7. Allow to cool and transfer into a sterilized jar or bottle and leave to settle for an hour and Enjoy !

Notes:

• We can use this for a week or two by keeping it in a refrigerator.
• Adjust sweetness and spice according to your taste.

Luscious cream dessert with orange topping

At every party there seems to be a star at the dessert table, this luscious cream dessert will be it. This lovely looking dessert brought me so many compliments when I served it to my guests.

Ingredients

Orange juice : 1/2 cup

Paneer : 100 gms

Fresh cream : 1 cup

Condensed milk : 1 1/2 cup

Unflavored gelatin : 3 tbsp

Coco powder : 2 tbsp

Milk : 1/2 cup

Cream cheese : 1/2 cup

Sugar : 1/2 cup

Peanut butter : 1/2 cup

Whipping cream : 1/2 cup

Method

Soak gelatin in 1/2 cup of cold water, melt gelatin by place it on boiling water ( double boiler ) stir until completely dissolve.

Mix 1 tbsp gelatin with orange juice, mix well and pour into a dish. Here I used a silicone mold. Refrigerate until set but not firm (should stick to finger when touched and should mound ).

Keep remaining gelatin above warm water.

Mix milk, coco powder and 2 tbsp of condensed milk in a pan and cook to become a thick consistency. Keep it aside.

Blend remaining condensed milk, paneer and fresh cream in a blender. Gradually add reserved gelatin into it and mix well. Pour over gelatin layer in pudding mold, refrigerate again. After some time take it out and pour coco mixture into it. Refrigerate again.
Beat cream cheese with sugar until creamy, add peanut butter and beat again. gently fold whipping cream into it. pour this mixture into the mold, level with a spatula. Sprinkle some crushed chocolate cookies for an extra crunchy taste.

Refrigerate 4 hours or until firm. Unmold.

Easy chicken fry

This quick and easy chicken fry recipe is perfect for bachelors or any one looking for fast yet satisfying dish. No need of marination, so very less time consuming and no compromise on taste. We are using only little oil for frying this, if there is excess oil you can remove that before adding the tomato puree. You can garnish with slitted green chillies and curry leaves.

Ingredients

Chicken pieces : 1/2 kg

Oil : 2 tbsp

Ginger garlic paste : 1tsp

Kashmiri chilli powder : 1 tsp

Tomato : 1 big

Salt to taste

Method

Use an iron vessel (Cheena chatti) or a cast iron pot to make this dish. If you don't have one you can use non stick pan, but making in an iron vessel gives this dish an awesome taste.

Heat oil ( preferably coconut oil ) and add ginger garlic paste into it. When it's raw smell goes add chilli powder ( simmer the flame while adding chilli powder otherwise it will burns easily ).

Saute and add chicken pieces and fry. Keep the flame low and stir in between.

Fry for 10 minutes. Make tomato puree and add to the chicken. Mix well, when oil separates from the chicken off the flame and serve hot.