Stuffed acorn squash

What's appeasing to the eyes fills the belly well. Said someone once. Might have been me. So starts my story in scoring the most beautiful pieces of acorn squash ever. There is no dearth in gourds, grain, rice, corn that show up in market piles, everywhere in seasonally characteristic orange/gold/brick, hues that should be painting this part of the hemisphere, but are directly averse to my immediate world, the one of a thousand prickly trees, where "cactus green" is in vogue 365 days of the year. So, why can't I  love the blatant consumerism calling for cutest/warmest/fuzziest chunky sweater, beauteous store displays indicative of that-time-of-the year, heralding all that's warm, glowy, and cinnamon scented? Though possibly, don't you think the pumpkin latte rant has gone way too far?

Coming back to food, always and forever our recurring theme anyways, the dynamics of visual persuasion directly works in line here, when catching glimpse of deeply pigmented produce and the goodness of harvest it promises. Your inclination to buy becomes an overzealous purchase, to the tune of, well, let's feed the family, and throw in the neighborhood too.

Today, these ridged beauties fulfill their greater destiny, going beyond the 101 reasons why I love acorn squash. I believe the sweet flesh of Acorn sans much gilding is amazing on its own. But when it commits to multi purpose causes, amassing huge flavor and grand texture, you're appreciation for the gorgeous gourd rises several fold.

Transformed into edible meal pots, the squash roasts become far superior to any bread bowl, lending distinct impression to a mealmaking medley that packs its insides. Caramelbrowned onions, bright-crisp vegetables, enriching duo of of meats, wine for sharpness, balance and fluffy quinoa are just part and parcel of what could be the ultimate party in your mouth. With each element leaning and offering its own, a monumental transfiguration happens once the whole show comes together, warranting a fantasticness almost impossible to mess up.

Of course, the best part is that once you wipe through the contents, you're then ready to eat the vessel itself. Satisfying comfort in a bowl, from the bowl and of the bowl.

Really, can you and do you ask for more?

Of course, I'm not forgetting those seeds, scooped out and toasted with just the right pinch of this and that. Topped with this oomph garnish, you are given a total snout to tail experience, mind you, in a way more wholesome sense.

Refashion ingredients to suit your tastes, it's the broadest blueprint,  one of take-and- make- epic standard and an integral part of your Autumnal menu. Why, with all those holidays rolling in, you're bound to make it for company twice over. In which case, I think I need an invite as well.

Late I know, but I am squeezing it out before another week creeps up on me and I'm well into back to back runs of Hallmarks' countdown to Christmas.

Gorgeous gatherings

Ingredients: 

• 4 acorn squash 1-1.5 lbs each
• cooking spray
• salt
• pepper
• 1-2 tsp olive oil
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 tbsp minced garlic
• 1 tsp red pepper flakes
• ¼ lb ground chicken
• ¼ lb ground chorizo
• 3 ribs celery, chopped
• ¼ cup chopped carrots
• ¼ cup sliced mushrooms
• salt
• pepper
• ¼ cup dry white wine
• 1 cup chopped kale
• 2-3 tbsp sliced almonds
• ½ cup cooked quinoa, cooked according to package instructions
• ¼ tsp dried parsley
• ¼ tsp dried oregano
• ¼ cup  shredded cheddar cheese (optional)
• roasted squash seeds (optional

Directions:

• Heat oven to 375°. 
• Cut a thin slice off bottom round of each squash to create a base and have it stand upright. Cut off 1 inch from top part of each squash and scoop out seeds and middle. Don't throw the seeds away.
• Coat with cooking spray. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. 
• Place each squash open flesh side down on a greased foil lined baking sheet.
• Bake until tender, 30-40 minutes, depending on size of squash.
• While squash roasts, prepare filling.
• In a large non stick skillet, heat oil over medium flame.
• Add onion, garlic, red pepper and ground meats. Cook until meats are cooked through and slightly browned.
• Add celery, carrots, mushrooms. Saute for a few minutes until vegetables soften.
• Season with salt and pepper.
• Pour in wine. Scrape through the bottom of pan and deglaze any bits.
• Add kale, almonds and cook for an additional minute until kale wilts. Turn off heat.
• Mix in cooked quinoa, parsley and oregano and stir all ingredients thoroughly.
• Once squash is cooked, remove from oven and flip each one over so they form bowls.
• Divide filling equally between squash.
• Sprinkle with cheese (optional).
• Bake for an additional 20-25 minutes.
• When serving top each squash with roasted seeds.

~ To save on time, roast seeds as you bake the stuffed squash. Just line a large baking tray with foil and spray with cooking spray. Pinch away any flesh or strings from the extracted seeds, wash and dry on towel. Arrange on prepared tray and toss with oil, salt and few sprinkles of cayenne or black pepper. Place under the sheet of squash, in lower two-thirds of oven and roast till brown, about 15 minutes.

Nov 2014~Chili roasted cauliflower
Nov 2013~ Peanut butter oreo blondies
Nov 2012~ Stuffed chicken

******

 "And a harvest of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace."

James 3:18

Baby Yoda cupcakes

It's slightly colder in the Southwest desert. Not quite the bonechill which ushers in pretty long coats, fuzzy loungewear or even the down parka I wanted last year. Nope, but sufficient enough my wardrobe gets a special section labelled sweater weather, in hopes that most items in it are adequately utilized. 

Indeed, cooler is better. It means my cakes don't have to live in the fridge. I can have one, two or even three out on the counter for more than five minutes without their structures becoming terribly malformed. And for someone who bakes as a side gig, I am fastidiously OCD about things staying in place as intended, not sliding/shifting because they can't adhere. If I put it there, it needs to stay- pretty much a universal truth.

Likewise, let me, once again, extol on the virtues of homemade marshmallow fondant. When you're equipped with an arsenal, in my case, a new batch every two weeks, there's abundance for practice, play and put away.

This type of cake icing is elastic yet sturdy. It gives molded cakes a finish that is very forgive-able. Marshmallows and sugar combine to an exceptional pliability,  which means polished covered treats and smooth trinkets adorning the same, example being the cutest Yoda ears ever. It surpasses a lot of typic fondant hurdles and is amply delicious. 

I don't think there has ever been a time the recipe has failed me.  It certainly makes the confectioner's repertoire a more consistent, less anxiety driven one. Your ends to a sculpted cake are totally attainable and the resulting "oohs and aahs" on delivery never get old.

So when you roll out nearly 101 circles to top dozens of cupcakes, you come to realize that a reliable mmf recipe is not to be taken lightly.

In the case here, the same fondant in three colors, rolled and cut with plain edge cutters created an adorable topper: the edible ascent of the ultimate internet baby.

Frankly, your Grogu moment can occur with any flavor or type of confection you choose. Tell me he wouldn't look just as adorable tucked on pumpkin spice cuppies with thick cream cheese swirls? 

I know you see it.

Take a look, enjoy some Fall and may the Force be with y'all.

Marshmallow fondant recipe right here.

I used geometric cutters to make my toppers uniform: a circle cutter for the white base, the same cutter halved for the blanket, a small oval for the face and squares that I stretched to create the cutest Yoda ears.

Trying to clean the slate and clear my drive- recipes/ pictures/ cakes- before attempting to share anything new. So it might be fewer words, more images. Hopefully I'll be able to balance it out with fair dottings of season appropriate gems too. 2021's coming to a close too soon. Don't you think?

2020: Owl cake pops

2019: Cherupayar payasam

2018: Multigrain pizza crust

2017: Yoghurt rice

2016: Cashew chicken curry

2015: Stuffed acorn squash

2014: Chili roasted cauliflower

2013: Alfajores

2012: Beef fry

******

"You are my hiding place;  you will protect me from trouble and surround me with songs of deliverance."-Psalm 32:7

Pumpkin spice cupcakes

Here's what happens when you love a holiday so much, the chief item of consumption becomes an ideal cupcake topper.

And...

 if you're in the season of pumpkin spice, you may not want to let this one go.

So...

these cupcakes are a must mention- generously moist, balanced perfectly against a not too decadent cream cheese buttercream.  

Btw, those are fondant turkey faces up there. It's a cinch using my marshmallow version right here.

Got to tend to the real turkey today- twenty pounder for a table full of folks who'll gather under the roof shortly.

Happy Thanksgiving friends🦃

For the cupcakes~

Ingredients:

(recipe adapted from IheartNaptime)

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 tbsp cinnamon 
• ½ tsp powdered cloves
• ¼ tsp nutmeg
• ¼ tsp powdered ginger
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 1 cup pumpkin puree
• ½ cup light brown sugar
• ½ cup granulated sugar
• ½ cup canola oil
• 2 eggs

Directions:

• Preheat an oven to 350 °F.  Line muffin wells with paper liners.
• Sift together the flour, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, ginger, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Set aside.
• In the bowl of a mixer, beat pumpkin puree, brown sugar, sugar, canola oil and eggs until blended.  Combine flour into this and mix until just incorporated.
• Spoon into muffin tins approximately 2/3 way up.
• Bake for 15-20 minutes or until tops become golden and a toothpick inserted comes out clean.
• Cool in the pans for 5 minutes before removing to cool completely on a wire rack.
• Frost with cream cheese frosting. 

Recipe for cream cheese frosting here with modifications, 8 ounce cream cheese, 1/2 cup butter, 3-1/2 cups powdered sugar. 

Thanksgiving:

owl cake pops

Thanksgiving cake pops

pumpkin spice layer cake

sweet potato casserole

acorn squash

Coming here and updating this space is a blessing I don't take lightly and for which I'm absolutely grateful for. Thank you for reading.

******

"Teach us to number our days,
    that we may gain a heart of wisdom." Psalm 90:12

Paneer in wonton cups

If you'd have told me at the inception of these ramblings that one of my singular top goals in recipe updating would be to doll up India's national cheese, I'd have ROFL'd my bottom off.

Particularly when most of our weeknight meals that qualify as par -desi, in routine, are meat-centric. Thus, harping on the salient features of paneer in the midst of a sizzling hot beef fry would be next to impossible.

On the other hand, some of the best things I've ever experimented with come from searing milk solids.

Step in indeterminate browsing, which educates on the 14,400 ways on how to use wonton wrappers, the moment your world becomes a wee bit brighter and high tea needs a larger time slot.

I make samosas using egg roll rappers. It saves myself and the Older Child's set of hands ten extra steps to reproduce an impressive appetizer. 

Although, today we're not worrying about origami-ing sheets of dough. Instead, I'll expand on the how the burden to achieve an appealingly easier build of the same is almost nil.

The filling itself is a mild fusion and intermingling of elements, certain to make the composition in totality sing to your soul. It's an ultimate win and could be the best fix for a lot of contingent toss-ups in your world today.

Craving Chinese? Easy solution!

Calling out for samosa? A deconstructed form, right here!

Entertainment menu not quite on the mark? Get ready to wow the crowd!

Paneer can be a notoriously favorable ingredient in similar settings. Soft cheese, nonmeltable, and enhanced by its surroundings takes exceptional favor to firm crispy edged frames. It anchors the few seasonings/textures/ flavors in an umami-esque, desi-ed up snack/light meal/hors d’ oeuvre .

For all intents and purposes, baked wontons may supersede the "enjoy in moderation" disclaimer. Thin and baked, wrappers seem almost nonexistent, gluten-wise. 

That I've made the recipe exactly three times after these pictures were taken should be proof we do get a little lost in our repetitive (snacking) obsessions.

Responses to this in my household, ranged from "ooh, so good!" to "might've been better if the wrappers were fried". Though, my mental checklist agrees all things fried are a gift from God, I dare not speak it.  Specifically when I see the round of 24 paneer cups disappears in almost a sitting, mostly consumed by the above mentioned child who voiced the alternative. 

Overall, I believe it's a huge win when your yoga pants don't look like sausage casings over your legs. Aaaah, dividends which far outweigh the scales (yes, pun ;-)).

Consider the fortuity of a stack of prebaked shells, with just your tastebuds commanding their destiny. They are wonderful with anything you pocket into it. Wildly enhanced rotisserie chicken. Some white fleshed fish in a decadent slight of white sauce. 

You don't need all the sauces. You may need one or two of the peppers, but, most certain, chop up the onion and garlic. 

Notwithstanding, this could be farmer cheese's next highest calling.

For those who like to have a vast diaspora of short eats, tack it onto the menu.  

It might make a few rounds in the upcoming holiday table.

Ingredients:

• 2 tbsp oil
• 1 red onion, diced fine
• 2 tsp minced garlic.
• 1/2 cup diced red bell peper
• 1/2 cup diced yellow bell pepper, 
• 1/2 cup diced orange bell pepper
• 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1/2 tsp turmeric
• 1 tbsp black pepper
• 1/2 pound paneer, cut into half inch cubes
• 2 tbsp soy sauce
• 1 tbsp schezuan sauce
• salt
• non stick cooking spray
• 12 wonton wrappers

Directions:

• Heat oil in pan .
• Add onions and garlic and saute until cooked.
• Stir in bell peppers, cayenne, turmeric and black pepper until peppers. Saute about two minutes.
• Add paneer and stir until browned and done, about 8 minutes.
• Take off heat, stir in sauces and add salt as needed. Set aside to cool.
• In the meantime, preheat oven to 375°.
• Spray muffin pans with cooking spray.
• Press each wrapper into a cupcake well.
• Bake until crispy and browned at the bottom, about 8 minutes.  Allow to cool in pan.
• Stuff with paneer filling.
• Serve warm.

November~

2019: Mung dal payasam

2017: Thanksgiving cake pops

2016: Sweet potato casserole

2015: Stuffed acorn squash

2014: Chili roasted cauliflower

2013: Peanut butter Oreo blondies

2012: North Kerala stuffed chicken 

******

“Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.” Matthew 11:28-30 (MSG)

                                                               

    

Yoghurt rice(curd rice)

Before I proceed with today's dialogue, I need you to know that it began, complete with pictures, a month and a half ago. Those of you who have followed my recipe writing for the past 5 years know that I possess neither the multitasking skills nor the high diligence of a disciplined food blogger. So this is not much surprise to you...the same song, my anthem on repeat. 

It is a subject that has been on my mind waiting to get expelled onto screen, in, like, forever. That it has not reached blogger gates until today, is quite the anomaly because it's the dependable 30 minute rice that's, several days of the week, on my table, in my refrigerator, and packed for kid lunches. My keenness in getting it here, no matter how slow spanning it was, should be applauded. Don't you think?

Honestly, I wanted you to eat curd rice in October. Of course, it's November and I know the delay can be as much dismaying to myself as it is to you (I'm right, right?). Though, on the bright side, this is the best example of comfort food and I'm delivering it at the start of a season where we often desire comfort in our food, as well as everywhere else, more than any other time of the year. 

Yoghurt/curd rice, colloquially known, as thayir sadam ( tha-year saah-th-um) originally comes from a part of India that can claim bragging rights for paperiest dosa, the real indigenous lungi dance and a magnificent number of brilliant, technically skilled minds.

Creamy, white and seasoned just enough, it's the onepot meal, which is an entity all to itself, perhaps the stuff legends would beckon for if its versatility hadn't been played down so much. It may often be frowned upon and considered an afterthought of leftover dinner food and curdled milk, and perhaps, not so chic-ish as a thicked-on biriyani. Still, t.sadam can be made with as much love, devotion and foresight to take it from commonplace to regal in a matter of minutes.

Rice that gets all glo'd up before its transcendence is always a prescription for success. Yoghurt crescendos the performance, and despite its volume, turns the end into an incredibly light yet immensely satisfying meal. Where else can you find the dual feast advantage of gratifying tastebuds and cooling your tummy at the same time?

Some say yoghurt rice can find its Western world equivalent (starch+dairy) in macaroni and cheese, but I think the comparison might actually be a disservice (as much as I love the latter), in that the former's sharp tang and addictively savory nature can actually allow you to eat several servings in a single sitting without developing a sudden gluten/ dairy intolerance combined with an upset stomach (then again, this could just be me).

Experiment people. Thayir sadam is wonderful on it's own. But when strategically placed next to a sidecar curry, sadam turns astounding. Try it with beef. Try it with pork. Try it chicken. Try it with lentils and totally vegan. 

There it is. The gold at the end of the stupendous eats rainbow. And your ticket to scheduling into your routine menu a not-so routine thing at all. 

Wasn't it worth the wait?

 That it keeps well is one key feature of curd rice, even in inferno like temps I sit in. Packed at 5 am in a steel tiffin, it reaches perfect eatability criteria by noon.

 With fish curry, for which I need to give you a recipe. Soon.

Ingredients:

• oil
• 1 tsp mustard seeds
• 1 small onion, chopped fine
• 1 tsp ginger, minced
• 1-2 jalapeno peppers, diced
• 1-2  dry red chiles, broken in half
• 1 tsp masoor dal/orange lentils
• 1 sprig curry leaves
• 2 ½ c cooked white rice(I use basmati)
• salt
• 2 cups plain lowfat yoghurt
• ½ cup milk

Directions:

• Heat oil in a pan. Add mustard leaves, and onions, 
• Saute onions until light brown and wilted.
• Stir in ginger, jalapeno, red chiles. Stir to cook through.
• Add masoor dal and allow to crisp up for about half a minute.
• Add curry leaves.
• Turn off heat.
• Stir in rice and salt.  Combine well.
• Whip yoghurt and milk together until you get a smooth consistency.
• Stir yoghurt/milk mixture into seasoned rice thoroughly.

Notes:

• You can mash the rice and yoghurt with a large spoon or ladle to give it a softer, creamier texture. 

The rice  I make most weeks, a regular feature, with eager leftover potential. The kind that changes a monotonous lunchpacking life.

Past Novembers~

2016- Cashew chicken curry

2015- Stuffed acorn squash

2014- Chili roasted cauliflower

2013- Peanut butter oreo blondies

2012- Fall cupcakes

******
"And I will be to her a wall of fire all around, declares the Lord, and I will be the glory in her midst.” Zechariah 2:5

Cherupayar parippu payasam/ Split mung bean payasam(kheer)

This feature is assigned to those who consider the sweet tooth a vital part of their body, keeping it happy and bringing into congnizance all the lovely things that need to be eaten in a lifetime. Of course, it could purely be my own survivalist thinking, but I like to believe, that in the general realm of assumptions I speak for many of us. Am I right?

Payasam. What is it? After this one conversation, we haven't had another centering it. Surely, a coconut milk based pudding deserves more recognition than that. It certainly makes an entry into every inherited celebration our household knows, some stemming from what my imagination concocts.

With remarkably intense flavors, taken from all over the Indian food spectrum, payasam is the crown and glory of dining tables across the subcontinent's beloved Southern belt, tables teeming with no less than ten dishes and five assorted sweetmeats.

The mung bean or moong dal, a parcel of the legume family is boss ingredient in today's show. It is, in all fairness and to the credit of the post, native to India. However, of late, the moong has gained international notoriety. Punched with a plethora of minerals, these lentils are high in protein with generous amounts of disease preventing antioxidants. It would be safe to say the half cup in our recipe transcends to bowlfuls of life saving love.

Shaved jaggery and spices, imminent to South Indian dessert-ing, are part of the formula in getting our payasam sweet and tasty, so that the likelihood of second and third servings are terrifically inevitable.

Not to mention, working the variable of ingredients/methods through the Instant Pot will greatly decrease the gap from it being made over and again. Thanks to hyper cooker, the succession in steps of payasam slimmed in time, task, to sooner getting at a final taste. 

Before I conclude, below are some key points which might help in your own c.p. parippu payasam making journey. I press you to take note.

✻ There is an unsaid mung bean to lush payasam correlation. A greater amount of cooked mung, with the said amount of liquid, even a cup more, will yield a thicker, almost muckier the body, while less gives a soupy bean texture. Both are undesired. Keep to the measures given.

✻ The amount of jaggery adds to depth and sweetness. Tone it up or down, by the amount you shave in, according to your preference. You can portion in different sweeteners, like I did with the coconut sugar, to give it a bit of intrigue. But the hero of the parade will always be the jaggery.

✻ The trio of spice mentioned may be omitted. In place, you could lose out on the very essence of an old world Kerala sweet course. Hence not a commendable idea.

Take a cue and try what could be tops on your dessert list.

I'll even go as far as to dare you to swap it for one of the upcoming holiday's stipulated pies.
Then give me thanks later.

In using jaggery, you can err on the side of more, without screaming sugar coma. The sweetness of jaggery is one most people prefer in Indian sweetmeats such as these. To jazz it up, I  added coconut sugar, deepening the coconut flavor, which I very much enjoy.

Ingredients:

• 1 tbsp ghee
• 1 tbsp vegetable oil
• ¼ cup coconut slices
• ¼ cup cashews (I use roasted, salted)
• ½ cup split yellow gram dal/split mung beans
• 2 cups water
• ½ cup shaved jaggery
• 2 tsp coconut sugar
• 1 pod cardamom, crushed
• ½ tsp cumin powder
• ½ tsp ginger powder
• 1 can unsweetened coconut milk

Directions:

• Select saute feature on Instant Pot and set to high. Pour ghee and oil into the pot.
• Add coconut slices and cashews and lightly brown, about 1 minute each. Using a slotted spoon, skim them from the oil an set aside.
• Place mung beans into the same oil and saute until slightly roasted, not more than a minute.
• Add 1 1½ cups water.  Turn off saute function.
• Secure the lid, close the pressure valve and cook at high(manual) pressure for 10 minutes.
• Allow for natural release.
• Open the lid, mash the mung bean in the pot. 
• Select the saute feature to high, for 10 minutes.
• Add the cardamom, cumin and ginger powders. Stir in jaggery, coconut sugar and stir until sugars are dissolved.
• Pour in the coconut milk and the remaining ½ cup water( pour the water into the empty can to clean out milk contents and return it to the mixture)
• Cook for an additional 3-4 minutes, allowing payasam to boil and slightly thicken.
• Top with the fried cashews and coconut slices.
• Serve hot or refrigerate to serve cold.

Notes:

This gets considerably thicker as it cools. Add either coconut milk or regular milk to loosen it up for a more pour-able consistency.

Don't worry and inhale coconut🥥 Since the State of Kerala owns it when it comes to coconut production, a mere hint of the fruit would qualify for an unworthy payasam. So, it's studded to the core,  with aplenty milk, and generous slices of flesh too. 

November~

2017: Curd(yoghurt) rice

2016: Cashew chicken curry

2015: Stuffed acorn squash

2014: Chili roasted cauliflower
2013: Dulce de leche cookies

******

"Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord." 1 Corinthians 15:58

Cashew chicken curry

I bet we can all agree on how rushed-quick the past 10 months of 2016 flashed through, much like the incredible hero scenes from Barry Allen's secret  life.  Right? Right. And if you can't, let's not take this to word. Just nod along and pretend you do.

We  are at second to last holiday of the year, one which reminds us to live in thanks, is opener to THE most extensive meal our plates have seen in 364 days and official  kickoff to the yuletide season. Not to mention the joyride of weeklong leftovers that everyone looks forward to all year long. This, in less than four days, and here I am between bouts of panic and absolute procrastination swims. What do I do? Probably as I type this, keeping my mind at ease in the knowledge of saving precious refrigerator space for the few days working up to The Great Feast. 

And so we go on to more pressing things in life.

The time you visit the neighborhood Indian restaurant and order a meal, possibly(?) better than some things you've ever made, and you begin to question your existence. I know. I try shamelessly to plug my stellar cooking mastery here, (thank you for putting up with the ego parade) and it is hard to admit great food might exist outside the confines of my kitchen. Ahh, did I just say THAT?! You know, we don't need to repeat everything I say. Please.

Things happen when people who live under your roof, whom you feed, clothe, care for and rightfully demand loyalty from, claim that a menu produced the most excellent thing they have ever tasted. It gets personal. And offensive. You forget the 14 pound turkey you were supposed to buy yesterday and get to work on restoring your reputation.

Not that comparable results haven't passed through this kitchen, with some chronicled into plating here. But it is hard to be outmatched by an item on an order list of 20 things that people make at least 50 times a day. 

To recreate/remaster/reclassify a masterful carte du jour, and similar renditions that I've probably eaten my way through countless times than recalled, became my mission, right after my midday nap/yoga/run or whatever initiative my mind had been preset to.

I've gone into the variables of what can make a masala medley magnificent (sounds nice, right?). As is it's without doubt, totally one's own jurisdiction to whether onions, garlic, ginger merely coalesce, mildly mingle or strongly stampede, decisions to turn your own Indian cuisine borderline meh or an arrant outrageous.

Chicken is good. Curry is good. Chicken curry is very very good. And innumerable kinds and types should be, always are needed, welcomed, and greatly applauded.

Cashew chicken curry as I would like to call it, possesses an old world grand. Almost like a throwback to how glorious Central Asian cuisine could actually be. It bears a stamp from medieval India, of those regal Mughals and their spiced loaded, crazy aromatic gastronomics . Other recipes that c. chicken curry can be pen named under: Chicken Korma, Rezala, or Mughlai chicken. I really am no pundit in ranking curry, though I believe I am the best you would probably come to know(😀).  I do, however, know that this can ideally be that meal fit for kings.

It is quite indisputably a feast. For the eyes. For the belly. And though it may sound cliche, for the very depths of your soul.

There is comfort in the velvet cream of cashews and spices pasted. Quick heat renders meat pieces a true envied char. The steeping in topnotch ingredients, somewhere, somehow brings us to beauteous curry making reality A distinctive, air-scenting finish becomes the thick, luxe end-all we so clearly associate as the accompaniment to rice/ naan dishes in formal or less formal settings. It is magnificence that should be lauded in the courts of any layman's dining room.

Don't let the expansive ingredient list scare you. It might be shocking to see how a mere (no smirking) 27 ingredients come together, in perfect harmony, while still pulling off what's arrogantly impressive. Which definitely works in any favor, as your home cook status gives way to chef magnifique, and those many revisits hereafter will make you master of a cultish curry cuisine.

An assembly of The Superior, ready to coalesce on to the perfect destination.

Ingredients:

• 1 ½ pounds skinned, bone-in chicken, cut into 1- 1/2 inch pieces
• 2-4 tbsp red chili powder or cayenne pepper
• 2 tsp black pepper
• ½ tsp turmeric
• juice of 1 lemon
• salt
• ½ inch piece peeled ginger, roughly chopped
• 6 whole cloves garlic
• 4-5 sprigs cilantro
• 1 sprig mint
• 1 tsp cumin
• 2 tbsp coriander powder
• ¼ cup cashews soaked in ½ cup water
• 1/4 cup tbsp cooking oil(I use canola)
• 1 whole star anise
• pinch fennel seeds
• 1 small stick cinnamon
• 2 cardamom pods
• 1 large red onion finely chopped
• water(upto 1- 1/2 cups)
• salt
• ¼ cup plain nonfat yoghurt
• ½ tsp garam masala
• 1 tsp sugar
• ¼ cup half and half
• chopped cilantro(2-3 sprigs) for garnish

Directions:

• Marinade chicken with red chili powder, black pepper, turmeric, lemon juice and salt. Keep aside for 15- 30 minutes to half an hour.
• Meanwhile, process the ginger, garlic, cilantro,  mint, cumin, coriander, cashews with water in a food processor or mini prep until a smooth paste forms.
• Heat oil in dutch oven/large deep set skillet. Add chicken and deep brown on all sides of pieces for about 7-10 minutes. Pieces do not have to cook through.
• Take out chicken from oil and set aside.
• Crush star anise, fennel seeds, cinnamon, cloves and cardamom in mortar and pestle. Add to the oil used for chicken, in the pan.
• Stir in onions on medium heat. Cook until soft.
• Pour in the ground paste. Add a small amount of water into the blender vessel to shake clean any leftover paste. Pour this into pan.
• Saute ingredients until moisture evaporates,  mixture is fragrant and color changes to a pale green/brown, about 5-7 minutes. 
• Add chicken. 
• Add remaining water.
• Add salt to taste.
• Bring ingredients to boil on high heat. Reduce heat to medium-low and allow to cook for an additional 25 minutes.
• Stir in yoghurt until blended with curry.
• Add garam masala, sugar. Stir.
• Pour in half and half.  Mix once and turn off heat.
• Sprinkle with cilantro.
• Serve warm with green rice, white rice, naan, maybe even K parotta Anything that spins your orbit.

Notes:

If you desire to inhale higher levels of heat, upto inferno, by all means marinade with more red chili powder(cayenne).

Past Novembers~

2015: Stuffed acorn squash

2014: Chili roasted cauliflower

2013: PB Oreo blondies

2012: North Kerala stuffed chicken

 The star that perks the overall scene.

A few decades ago( it surprises me how long I've lived) I'd visit a restaurant that served a similar, if not better cashew creamed curry. My friend took me there to perk me up after a particularly hard day. Yes, people, it had already begun, where food was solution to all my world problems. For a year or so, it became a routine for us. So also, memories that would last a lifetime. A friend that would too. Love you Ranikutty❤️

We love moon watching. And the super one that came up November 13,14 had me taking over 1000 pictures. Because people. I really have nothing to do. I played with different shutter speeds, apertures. I don't know if any of this constitutes as good photography, but it made for some very enjoyable bonding time with my tribe.
******
John 1:3

Yes. All pictures taken by me. Tisa Jacob. Do not borrow without asking. Not nice. Thanks:-)

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