Pineapple Pradhaman

Pineapple Payasam

                                                                        

Here comes Onam, with lots of colors and flavors. Onam is a major annual event for Malayalis in and outside Kerala. It is the biggest and the most important festival of the state of Kerala (India). It is a harvest festival. People of all communities celebrate Onam with joy and enthusiasm. It is celebrated for 10 days. Onam is celebrated mainly to welcome King Mahabali during his annual visit. Mahabali was a good ruler who loved his people. He was very generous at the same time egoistic.  The gods envied him because of his growing popularity and tried to pull down his regime. The gods were successful to do so as lord Vishu helped them. Due to the good deeds done by king Mahabali the god granted him with a boon that he could visit his people as they loved him. This annual visit is celebrated as Onam. People try to impress their king in all possible ways. Celebrations are elaborated over 10 days, the 10 days sequentially known as Atham, Chithira, Chothi, Vishakam,Anizham, Thriketa, Moolam,Pooradam,Uthradom and Thiruvonam, Thiruvonam being the main attraction. The celebrations are indeed a treat to our eyes. It is celebrated with major festivities like floral arrangement (pookalam), boat race (Vallam kali), tiger dance (puli kali), tug of war, kaikotti kali (dance). Apart from these attractions, you get to wear new cloths (ona koodi) and sadya (a nine course vegetarian meal served on banana leaf). The onam sadya is indispensable part of Thiruvonam. The young and old sit together and enjoy the feast. Feast includes rice, chips, small banana, pickle, thoran (vegetable stir fry), pulissery (yogurt gravy), sambar (lentil gravy) and ends with payasam (a sweet dish made of milk/ coconut milk / sugar/ jaggery). Bellepperss brings you a very special payasam. Pineapple payasam … pineapple payasam is trending these days. Celebrate this onam with bellpepperss and try all “kerala sadya recipes”.Let’s get ready to welcome our own Mahabali with this lip smacking pineapple payasam and other flavorsome recipes. Okay then let’s get started.

Carrot Thoran

 Carrot Thoran / Carrot Coconut Fry

                                                                  

Carrot thoran? You guys may be wondering, why to post such an easy recipe 😕. Right …. Here I have made it a little easier. Even bachelors can try a hand at this 👍. Thoran is also a predominant dish in sadya / feast.  Thoran can be made with a variety of vegetables like carrot , beans, cabbage, spinach etc … I have posted broccoli thoran ealier. Unlike my broccoli thoran, carrot thoran is way too easy 😉.  Coconut is a must for thoran; here instead of using fresh grated coconut I have used desiccated coconut powder 😃. Have you ever tried thoran with desiccated coconut? When you are out of fresh coconut you can try this for sure 😉.  Please do try this recipe and tell me how it is … Okay then let’s get started.

Chicken Thoran

Chicken Thoran / Chicken Coconut fry
                                                                   

Back again with another chicken recipe 🍗, who doesn’t love chicken 😍 … popular posts in my blog are all non- vegetarian recipes.  This time it’s a thoran (stir fry with coconut). It is super simple, super easy and above all super scrumptious 👌. Broccoli thoran that I posted long ago was liked by all, same way you will love this thoran too 😍. I love to eat thoran but as the main ingredient is coconut I don’t like to make it here. Coconuts are costly here in US 😞.  But once in a while you can go for it. Chicken thoran is similar to our usual veggie thoran. Boneless chicken 🍗 would be preferred over the usual ones. Boneless chicken tastes better 😋.  It will be a prodigious task with chicken with bones 😓. You will have to separate the flesh from the bones and then use it. It will be a good combo along with moru curry (yogurt gravy) or rasam (tamarind gravy) 👌👌. Give it a try and share your feedback .Okay then let’s get started.

Black Forest Cake

BLACK FOREST CAKE

                                                                     

Back with a Bang with Black Forest ……  sorry for not updating my blog for the past one month 😞. My little one was having summer vacation and she was with me 24x7.  I was fully occupied playing, coloring, dancing and what not 😕….. Now it’s back to school time and can’t believe my little princess has reached kindergarten 😐. Time just flies …. I am missing her a lot 😢  but the thing is she has to go and that can’t be stopped 😑. How are you guys doing?  I received many messages like why there is no blog update?  Thank you dear friends for all those constant support and encouragement 👍. It was really overwhelming 😊. Again I would like to thank my dear friend Annie for her continuous support 😍. Really blessed to have such friends around 😊. This post is also dedicated to her. She celebrated her anniversary last Monday as she is a chocoholic, surprised her with a black forest cake 🍰.    Hope she liked the surprise as well as the cake 😉. Moving on to the recipe, this is an eggless cake. Have posted white forest cake, both recipes are same expect here you use a chocolate sponge cake. Black forest cake is a very famous German dessert. The cake consists of several layers of chocolate sponge cake sandwiched with whipped cream and cherries. Again whipped cream, cherries and chocolate shavings are used for the decoration 🍫. Traditionally kirschwasser a clear spirit made from sour cherries is added to the cake. But I usually prefer an alcohol free cake and hence I haven’t used it here. The dessert is not named after black forest mountain range in Germany but from the specialty liquor of that region known as Schwarzwalder Kirsch distilled from tart cherries 🍒. This ingredient gives the dessert its flavor... As mentioned this is an eggless cake you can follow the same recipe to bake an eggless sponge cake. Just avoid the icing and filling. This cake is loved by all as it is perfect for any occasion 👌 ..
Okay then let’s get started.

Blackberry Muffin

Blackberry Muffin

                                                                             

When you have fresh farm picked berries…. What else you want….😊😊Yup we went blackberry picking few days back.  It was fun, going out with friends is always fun 😃. We had gone for apple🍎 and strawberry picking 🍓 before, but this was our first black berry picking experience . 

Chicken Biriyani

Chicken Biriyani

                  

Happy birthday Bellpepperss 🎈🎉🎊!!!! Yes my bellpepperss is 1 year now… Exactly on this day July 10 2016 I hit the publish button on my blog post. Can’t believe it’s a year since I stepped into the world of blogging 😃. It almost seems like yesterday that I was sitting and drafting my very first post Orange Cake.So far the journey was wonderful and amazing 😄. I absolutely wasn’t sure whether anyone would be interested in this, but was pretty sure that there are many like me who is really interested in cooking 😉. When I shared my first post I received so many comments and messages that were truly inspiring and encouraging 👍. Am thankful to all  for your encouragement and support. First and foremost I would like to thank my hubby 😍 who was always encouraging me to write one since I started cooking some real nice recipes, but I was not sure whether I will be able to continue or not ,so was delaying it every now and then 😉. Then my dear friend Annie Joseph John too encouraged me to do the same 😍. When I discussed this with my sisters they too encouraged me to the core 😘. Then without looking back I started one, thus Bellpepperss became a reality 😊.  From "baking"to"beverages", from "biriyanis" to "breakfast" , from "snacks" to "sweets (dessert )" I started posting everything that was tired and tasted in my own kitchen 👌👍. Once again I would like to thank every one of you out there for your continuous support and feedback 👍. Just amazing I couldn’t have hoped for more 😃. With every post I write I do hope to bring you something new and different, though it is not possible always 😀.  I would like to thank my blog bellpepperss too with each passing day I see myself getting evolved as a better photographer and a better chef 😊.

Veggie Burger

Veggie Burger

                                                                                     

                                                         

Inspired from Burger King’s vegetable burger, I too tried that 😊. We just love and crave to eat it whenever we stay away from home 😍. The recipe is pretty  simple and easy. A healthy and scrumptious snack 😋. 

Unnakaya

Unnakaya / Stuffed Banana Roll

                                                                                        

Here is the recipe for unnakaya (stuffed banana roll) 😃.  A spindle shaped snack where the main ingredient is banana 🍌 or plantain (Nenthrapazham).  The plantains are steamed, mashed and filled with coconut dry fruits mixture. Then it is fried in coconut oil. This snack is a favorite among many and is perfect for any parties 👌. This is the main snack of Malabar region (Kerala /India). The recipe varies from region to region. The variations are mainly made in the stuffing. Coconut, dry fruits, sugar and cardamom powder are the main ingredients used as stuffing. Sometimes scrambled eggs are added to the stuffing. Sometimes coconuts are completely avoided.  Plantains are used as dough. Unnakaya is loved by all 😋😋. It is a perfect snack box item. It is too easy to prepare but care should be taken while selecting the plantains 😊. Over ripened plantains should be completely avoided. Plantain should be neither under ripe nor over ripe. Another important thing to be considered is while steaming the plantain it shouldn’t be over steamed 😉. If you over steam it the dough will be sticky and you will not be able to roll the banana to shapes. Steaming should be done properly . Keeping these points in mind will help you make tasty and crispy – soft unnakaya 👍👍 . Crispy from outside, soft from inside.  Okay then let’s get started...

Mango Pineapple Smoothie

Mango Pineapple Smoothie

                                                                  

Wanna try a smoothie that tastes like a tropical vacation….. Then here it is Mango Pineapple smoothie 🍍. A perfect thirst quencher to try during summer. It can also be served as a breakfast smoothie or as an evening snack 😉.  A lip smacking drink that can be prepared in minutes with just three ingredients 😋.   A healthy and tasty drink is ready with just few ingredients: pineapple, mango and honey.  Blend them until smooth and creamy, your smoothie is ready. Add your own twist you can add strawberries, apples, bananas etc…. Okay then let’s get started.

Garlic pickle

Garlic Pickle/ Velluthulli Achar/ Lahsun ka Achar
                                                               

Pickles are an extremely well liked complement in all Indian delicacies 😊. You can’t imagine a thali (Indian style meal served in a big plate) without pickles. Though the taste differs from region to region. It is totally different from pickled cucumbers and olives that are available here in US. Lots of spices and oil are added to get an extra flavor. Back home in India we prepare pickles with almost all available items like mangos, gooseberry, lemon, tomatoes , ginger, garlic,  mixed vegetables, sea foods, meat etc…🍋🐟🍅 the list goes on. Usually it depends upon the seasonal items that are available. In summer we prepare mango pickles to enjoy those till the next mango season. Same is with gooseberry, lemon etc …. The method of preparation also varies sometimes ;they are sun dried 🌞 sometimes ,they are fried and sometimes they are pickled in salt solution and then spices are added directly. My mom is a specialist in making mango pickle 👌. Miss her and her mango pickle 😢. Here I have tried making garlic pickle 😋.  I have tried pickling mangoes, prawns, mixed vegetables and even strawberries !!!  Among all garlic and mangoes are my favorite 😋. Don’t be alarmed by the amount of chili powder used, Indian pickles are indeed very potent and flavorful 😊😊. The extra spices, salt oil help them to preserve for longer periods. Try making this quick and easy garlic pickle 👍. Okay then let’s get started.