Orange French Yogurt Cupcakes

Baking is an exotic art, or so I'd like to think. It's magical how some gooey-doughey stuff placed in the oven turns into spongy, springy cakes! Besides it's addictive. An addiction that's hard to get rid of. So for three days in a row I baked. Then I ran out of eggs and was lazy to get more or look up egg substitutes....thankfully! Instead I found the box of ricotta I had picked on my last grocery trip and made some baked rasmalais. Well, if there's an oven eating up valuable kitchen space, it must be used right? Somebody stop me!!

It's birthday time!

Birthdays are so exciting and full of promise... ask my little princess and she will nod in agreement. It does not matter whose birthday it is, sing the birthday song and she will clap her hands, smile cheerfully and even dance around.

Let it snow, let it snow...!

Happy New Year to all! We brought in the new year watching "3 Idiots" and a fun movie it was! Much as I'd have liked to watch the London Eye light up when the clock struck twelve, it wasn't a great idea to expose a baby to freezing weather! So we went to the theatre, with fingers crossed that the little one would behave well and also braced ourselves for the eventuality that she may scream the place down and we'd have to leave the movie mid-way! But the sweet little lady was at her best behaviour and slept five minutes before the movie began, all through to the next morning!

Reasons to celebrate!

A beautiful angel has come our way

With a sweet smile to brighten our day

A gift so precious, she's a treasure

Filling our hearts with joy and pleasure!

As you see, I turned mum sometime ago and that explains why I have been missing from this space. Thankyou to those who asked after me, left me birthday wishes, onam greetings and for the baby. :) Life has been hectic with the baby and a relocation to new shores, and the blog took a backseat. But today is special, Currybazaar turns three! It has been a wonderful journey meeting fellow foodies, knowing about cuisines from around the world and learning new recipes, presentation techniques, tips and tricks. I will post as and when time permits, meanwhile enjoy some treats from Currybazaar!

Happy Vishu!

May this Vishu bring joy, good health and peace to your home!

Idli Podi - Kerala Style

Idli podi or gun-powder as it is popularly called is a fiery, dry chutney powder that is served with idlis. The bland taste of idli is fantastically complemented with this hot, spicy chutney which is a blend of dal, rice, red chillies and spices. Idli podi is usually made in large quantities and bottled to retain the flavours. It stores well at room temperature for months, though the fieriness may go down a bit on prolonged storage. This idli podi can be served with idlis, dosas, uttappams etc. The recipe given below is my grandmother's which we quite love and is different from other idli podi recipes where rice and curry leaves are not used. This podi is served by mixing coconut oil into it to highlight the flavours whereas other recipes use sesame/gingelly oil or ghee. This powder will turn brown when roasted while the other podi are usually red in colour.

You need:

1/2 glass rice (both raw rice and boiled rice work well)
1/4 glass urad dal
1/4 glass channa dal
1 tsp jeera/cumin seeds
a large pinch of hing
6 or more red chillies (the hot variety)
10-12 peppercorns
1 tsp til/sesame seeds
a handful of curry leaves

Roast the peppercorns, red chillies and curry leaves in 2 spoons of oil till they change colour. Add the remaining ingredients and fry till they turn golden brown. Cool thoroughly and powder finely. Store in dry, airtight bottles.

While serving, mix a few spoons of chutney with coconut oil to enjoy the true flavour of Kerala.