Achu's Recipes

I was thinking about a different baking idea to welcome home my hubby dear, who was broad for 3months.... After some research I decided to do this  one and I, myself named it as  Layer Cake / Cold Cake. I got inspired from the ideas of making chocolate cake and black forest cake. Hope you all will enjoy this  Layer Cake / Cold Cake. Ingredients For Cake Eggs - 3 nos: Sugar -  170 gms Self Raising Flour -  80 gms   Coco Powder -  30 gms   Vanilla Essence -  1tsp   Melted Butter -  6tbsp   For Layering Egg White - 3nos: Fresh Cream - 100 ml Sugar - 3 tbsp Powdered Sugar - 5 tbsp Vanilla Essence - 1/2 tsp Melted Mixed Fruit Jam - 4 tbsp Chocolate Vermicelli - as required Preparation Method Grease and dust a cake tray and keep aside. Sieve the flour and coco together. Beat the eggs and sugar very well until thick and double in quantity  (beat for 4-5 min.) Add the flour, melted butter, essence. Mix with a metal spoon. Pour the mixture into the prepared

Aviyal is a typical Kerala dish and is made with variety of vegetables. Ingredients Carrot - 2 nos Long Beans - 5 nos Raw plantain - 1 nos Drumstick cuts - 10 nos Cucumber (sliced) - 1/2 cup Yam (sliced) -1/2 cup Turmeric Powder - 1/2 tsp Green Chili - 2 nos: Chilli Powder - 1 tsp Small Onion/Shallot - 5 nos:  Cumin Seed - 1/4 tsp Grated Coconut - 1 1/2 cup Thick Curd -2 tbsp Salt - to taste Coconut Oil -2 tbsp Curry leaves -2 stem  Preparation Method Slice all the vegetables in finger size length . Put the sliced vegetables in a pan along with salt, turmeric powder and 1/2 cup water . Close the lid and cook the vegetables. Crush together coconut, cumin seeds, small onions and green chilies. Once the vegetables are 90% cooked add the crushed coconut mix and chilli powder, mix well and cook for few minutes. Turn off the stove, add curd and mix well. Add coconut oil and curry leaves and keep the lid close for 5mins: Mix well and serve hot with rice. Notes:

Inji Curry is an integral side dish in Kerala sadhya. This is made out of ginger. Ginger is good for digestion and that is the main reason this is included in sadhya. Ingredients Ginger - 50 gms: (1 medium piece) Grated Coconut - 2 cups (of 1/2 coconut) Red Chili Powder -  2 tsp Fenugreek Powder - a pinch Tamarind - gooseberry size Grated Jagerry  - 3 tsp Coconut Oil - 3 tsp Mustard Seed - 1/2 tsp Green Chili - 1 no: (chopped) Curry Leaves - 2 stems (chopped) Salt - as required Preparation Method Clean the ginger and cut into thin slices. Heat 2tsp of oil in pan, add sliced ginger. Fry the ginger till it become crispy. (make sure that ginger is not getting burned) Remove fried ginger from oil and keep aside. To that pan add grated coconut and fry the coconut till the color turns to light brown (fry the coconut in low flame stirring continuously). Add chili powder, mix well and remove from flame. Allow coconut to cool down. Add 1/4 cup of hot water to tamarind,

Ingredients Chicken – 500 gms Salt – 1/2 tsp Curd – 1 tbsp Turmeric Powder – 1/ 2 tsp Pepper Powder - 1 tsp Basmati Rice – 2 cups Onion -3 (finely sliced ) Tomato – 2 (finely chopped ) Ginger – 1 (medium piece) Garlic cloves – 10 nos: Chilli Powder – 1/2 tsp Green Chilli – 1no: Coriander Leaves (chopped) - 2tsp Mint Leaves (chopped ) – 2tsp Cardamom – 4nos: Cloves - 4nos: Cinnamon – 4 (1"  piece) Star anise – 2nos: Cashew Nuts – 10nos: Raisins – 10nos: Ghee – 4 tsp Preparation Method Marinate chicken with salt, pepper powder, turmeric powder and curd for half an hour . Soak basmati rice for half an hour in water . Drain out water and spread it on kitchen towel for drying. Make a smooth paste of ginger , garlic , green chilli and chilli powder. Finally add chopped coriander leaves and mint leaves. Just crush it and keep aside. In pressure cooker bring ghee to heat, splutter cardamon, clove, star anise and  cinnamon . Add onion, tomato and saute well.

Sughiyan/Modhakam is a tea time snacks in Kerala. Ingredients Cherupayar (Green Gram) - 1 cup Grated Jaggery - 1/2 cup Grated Coconut - 1/2 cup Rice Flour - 1/2 cup Cardamom powder - a pinch Turmeric Powder - a pinch Salt - a pinch Oil - as required for frying Preparation Method Make a thick batter by adding little water to rice flour, turmeric powder and salt and keep aside.  Soak cherupayar in water for 2-3hrs. Cook cherupayar in a cooker till it is soft and water is completely dries up . Add 1/4 cup of water to jaggery and boil it till jaggery dissolves completely. Filter the jaggery syrup and b ring this syrup to boil. When it starts boil add cardamom powder, grated coconut and cooked green gram and mix well. Saute well till the mixture is dry. Remove from heat and allow it to cool. Make lemon size balls out of the mixture. Heat oil in a pan. Dip each balls into the batter and put into the hot oil. Deep fry till golden colour. Remove from oil, drain i

Ingredients Red Chili - 8-10 nos: Small Onion (Shallots) - 20-25 nos: Ginger - 1 small piece Tamarind - Amla (gooseberry) size Curry Leaves - 2-3 stems Salt - as required Coconut Oil - 2 tsp Water - 2 tsp Preparation Method Crush together red chili, small onion, ginger, tamarind and curry leaves using traditional stone crusher or in the chutney jar of mixer. Add salt, water, coconut oil and mix well. The spicy 'Mulaku Chutney' tastes good with boiled  tapioca .

Ingredients Chicken (cut into medium pieces) - 500 gm: Onion - 2 nos: (chopped) Tomato - 1 nos: (chopped) Ginger-Garlic Paste - 1tsp Turmeric Powder - 1/2 tsp Chicken Masala - 2 tbsp Oil - 3 tbsp Salt - as required Curry Leaves - as required Preparation Method Wash clean chicken pieces and remove excess water by keeping in a strainer. In a kadai bring oil to heat, add chopped onion, tomato and ginger-garlic paste, saute till onion become slightly brown in color. Bring down the flame to low, add curry leaves, turmeric powder, chicken masala, salt and saute for 2mins: Add half cup of water and bring to boil in high flame. Add chicken pieces, mix well. When it starts to boil, reduce the flame, close the lid and cook for another 20mins: The Easy Chicken Curry is ready to serve with chapathi / appam / rice.

Ingredients Pumpkin - 250 gms: Grated Coconut - 1 cup Cumin Seeds - 1/2 tsp Green Chili - 2 nos: Garlic Petals - 5-6 nos: Turmeric Powder - 1/2 tsp Coconut Oil- 3 tbsp Rice - 1 tbsp Urud Daal - 1 tbsp Grated Coconut - 1 tbsp Curry Leaves - as required Salt - as required Preparation Method Clean the pumpkin, wash and cut into small pieces. Grind together coconut, turmeric powder, green chili, garlic and keep aside. Cook pumpkin by adding turmeric powder till the pumpkin become soft. Mash the pumpkin, add grounded coconut and salt, mix well and cook for 4-5mins: in low flame and transfer it to a serving bowl. In pan bring oil to heat, splutter mustard seeds, add rice, urud daal, coconut, red chili, curry leaves and fry till coconut chnages to slight brown. Remove from flame and add to the top of cooked pumpkin and close the lid. Mix well and serve thick, delicious Mathanga Erissery with rice.