Butter Egg Masala

Out of ideas for breakfast/ dinner?! Try this luscious and delicious butter egg masala and Thank me later! It’s so easy to prepare, it’s like my go to curry when I am out of ideas and other ingredients 😁

The steps are pretty much like a rich and India’s own Butter Chicken Masala (psst, my butter chicken parcels are always a hit! Try it out, and let me know how it goes!)

What I like about this recipe is that all those veggies are just roughly chopped, as they are anyways going to be made into a paste, so not precision chopping required. It’s all so quick and easy! Once the gravy is done, and in the your cream and crack in your eggs ( or add in your hard boiled eggs, that are slightly slit on the sides and fried in some turmeric, chilli powder and salt, if that’s how you like it, I like mine just cracked into the butter masala) and voila! Your Butter Egg Masala is ready! It’s that easy! 😍😋

Pair it hot with some chappati so, poori, bhatura etc and enjoy!!

Ingredients: (makes for two)

1 medium Onion, roughly chopped
1 medium tomato, roughly chopped
1 garlic clove
1 really tiny piece of ginger (you don’t want it to overpower)
1 + 1 tbsp Butter
1 green Chilli
8-10 Cashews
8-10 Raisins
Ketchup (optional, as required)
1 tsp Kashmiri Chilli powder
Dried Fenugreek leaves, a pinch
A drizzle of fresh cream (any sugarless cream will do)
2-3 Eggs
Coriander leaves, for garnish

Instructions:

In a pan, add in your blob of butter and sauté your chopped onions and once translucent add in your chopped tomatoes, ginger garlic, green chilli, cashews and raisins and close the lid.
Add in a tbsp of water and allow them to get mushy on low flame.
Once mushy, allow to cool a bit, once touchable, add the sautéed veggies to a blender and blend to a smooth fine paste.
Next in the same pan, add in a blob of butter and add in a teaspoon of Kashmiri chilli powder for that extra color and mix well.
Next, add in the paste to the pan and pour some water or milk to adjust the consistency and add salt and ketchup as required.
And add in a pinch of dried fenugreek leaves and allow to come to a slight boil.
Finally pour in the cream and crack in the eggs and cook covered until desired consistency of egg and garnish with chopped coriander leaves.
Enjoy hot with chappati, poori, bhatura etc!

Do try this recipe and don't forget to share your experience/feedback with me here in the comments or feel free to send me a mail. Also, do tag me at #taystedit if you try out my recipes on Facebook, Instagram etc so that I can see when you make it. ♡♡♡♡

Healthy Energy Bars

Lately I have been trying to eat clean, early and on time. Alhamdulilah, so far so good! I have cut sugar from my diet, and I cover it up with little bites of fruits, but suddenly out of no where, I have been craving chocolate dream cake and I just cake take my head off it! And that’s when I came up with these healthy energy bars..mind you, eating more than one bar a day May result in weight gain! So have it sparingly if you want to lose weight but craving for chocolate. Once in a while, giving up with a little keeps you sane, keep in mind not be harsh on yourself.

These can be called Energy bars/ protein bars, instead of adding protein powder, I have replaced it with powdered flax and chia seeds. And make sure the texture is a bit more jammy than mine by adding a little bit more dates, though I have used dark chocolate and a bit of semi sweet chocolate chips, you may completely avoid it (I ran out dark chocolate)

I have also added a tsp of coconut oil when melting the chocolate making it even more delicious, glossy and helps to harden the chocolate. Sooo Yumm!! I have been guilty of giving my little girl with grocery bought snacks in her tiffin, finally I have prepped a batch and it’s ready for the week, Alhamdulilah! (Hope it lasts that long lol) 😄

Ingredients:

1 1/2 Cups Rolled Oats
1 cup Dates (pitted) preferably the wet types like khalas, sukkari etc
3 + 3 tbsp Chia seeds and Flax seeds (powdered)
1/3 cups Almond
1/3 cups Cashew
1/3 cups Pumpkin seeds
2 tbsp Peanut Butter
1 tbsp Honey, optional
1/2 tsp Vanilla extract
A pinch of salt
50 gms Dark Chocolate
50 gms Semi sweet Chocolate Chips, optional
1 tsp Coconut Oil
Freeze dried Strawberries, for garnish (optional)

Instructions:

In a pan, slightly roast rolled oats, almond, cashew, pumpkin seeds.
Next in a food processor, add your pitted dates the roasted oats and nuts, and the rest of the ingredients and pulse well until desired consistency.
Next, in a tray, line it with a parchment paper and add in the oats mix and flatten using a spatula and allow to freeze for half an hour.
Whilst at that, prepare the chocolate ganache, by mixing the chocolates and coconut oil by double boiling and pour over the mix and add in the freeze dried strawberries (optional) and place in the freezer for about 5-10 minutes.
Enjoy once the chocolate ganache harden and slice them into bars and wrap them up separately using the butter papers and store in the freezer for months! The energy bars stays fresh in room temperature upto 3-4 days. Enjoy!

Malabar Moodi Pathal/ Pathiri
(Rice pancakes)

These soft, pan-poured rice pancakes is one of the most staple breakfast and dinner rice pancakes in Thalassery, and other parts of northern Kerala. Can also call it a distant cousin of dosa 😅 w/o the fermentation.

Moodi pathal, unlike the commonly known pathiri which is a flatbread made of rice flour is rice soaked for half an hour and ground into a paste along with shredded coconut and cooked rice, made into a thin batter and a ladleful of the batter is pour into a pan and swirled to get a round pancake which is immediately covered with a lid, allowing the pancake to cook from both sides simultaneously. Hence the name Moodi Pathal, “Moodi” means covered/ lid and pathal means pancake/ flatbread.

The addition of shredded coconut, though not necessary, but adds in a lot of flavor profile to the rice flatbread. Usually enjoyed with coconut milk and sugar, spicy malabar fish curry aka mulagittadh/Fish Varattiyadh (you can find the recipe by tapping the link), or any curry of your choice.

Ingredients: (Makes for 2)

1 cup White rice (Basmati and the likes of it also can be used)
2 tbsp leftover cooked rice (ponni, kuruva, matta rices)
1/4 cup Shredded Coconut
Salt
1 and 1/2 cups approx Water (can be a little less or more)
1 tbsp Coconut oil
Ghee for smearing on the pathal

Instructions:

Rinse and soak the rice for half an hour at least or upto 2 hours and in a mixer grinder, add in the soaked rice, leftover cooked rice, shredded coconut, salt and half cup water.
Transfer the batter to a bowl and add water to the required consistency (quite loose but not too watery either)
Heat a well seasoned cast iron pan on high, and smear with coconut oil, once water sprinkled jumps, you may pour in a deep ladle full of batter into the pan and swirl it to get a nice round rice pancake. Cover it immediately and allow to cook on medium heat for around 2 minutes and transfer the pathal into hotpot or plate, smear ghee and cover it with a lid.
Enjoy with coconut milk and sugar or with spicy malabar fish curry (mulagittadh) or your choice of curry.

Tips:

Make sure you do not add too much of cooked rice, which can turn out to be a messy situation.
Make sure the pan is on medium high flame, preferably a well seasoned cast iron pan, may feel like a crispy dosa, but once smeared with ghee and covered in and kept for couple of minutes in a hotpot or a plate, you will see how nice and soft it becomes.
Make sure the batter is quite loose, not very watery either.
The first couple of them might turn out with cracks, if the pan isn’t well heated and at the right temperature and make sure you cover the pathal immediately after pouring and swirling.
Make sure to grind the rice with very little water, or else you will end up with a batter than isn’t ground properly.

Healthy Oats Khichdi

My go to recipe when I want to cook up something quick and dump in all the veggies in my fridge! And this one tastes so comforting that you won’t even feel you are eating healthy, but if course be easy on the portion you take too.

Usually Khichdi is made with veggies or is more of a vegetarian dish (that’s what I know) but since my family loves chicken and instead of using store bought chicken cubes, adding the boneless chicken not only oomphs up the flavor but also gives you extra protein.

Add in whatever veggies you have in your fridge, potatoes, peas, bell peppers, etc cauliflower is also a great add on! I love cauliflower in Khichdi. This is such an amazing way to get your kids veggies..I tell you..they will ask for more!! 😁

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cup Whole Oats
1/2 cup Moong dal
1-2 tbsp Ghee
Hing/ Asafoetida, a pinch
1 tbsp Olive oil or any neutral oil
1 Onion, chopped finely
1 tbsp ginger garlic paste
1 cup Button Mushrooms, sliced
1 Carrot, small, chopped
1 cup Broccoli, chopped roughly
1/4 cup Frozen Corn
150 gms Boneless Chicken, sliced into small thin strips
1 tsp Jeera/ Cumin
1 Sprig Curry leaves
4-5 cups Water
Salt, as required
1 tsp White pepper
1/4 tsp Turmeric powder
1/2 tsp Red Chilli powder
1-2 Green Chillies, optional
Coriander leaves, finely chopped for garnish
Lemon slice, for garnish

Instructions:

In a pressure cooker wash the moong dal and add it into the pressure cooker and add in the oats and add salt as required. Pour in around 3 cups of water and allow to cook on medium high for 2 whistles.
In a large heavy bottom pan, pour the ghee and splutter the cumin, and a pinch of hing and add in the curry leaves.
Next add in the ginger garlic paste and add in the chopped onion and sauté well.
Next add in the chicken slices and add salt and pepper as required and cook well for around 4-5 minutes.
Next, pour a little olive oil and add in the veggies and cook well and finally add in your spices and the cooked mushy oats and moong dal.
Add in some more water for the desired consistency and salt as required, pepper and finally add in a squeeze of lemon and ghee (if required).

Southern Buttermilk Biscuits
AKA Popeyes Biscuits

So it’s the blogiversary month of www.taystit.com and I can’t believe it’s been 6 wholesome years (though I was active and inactive during the phase) Alhamdulilah! What a beautiful journey!! I really had no clue when I started my blogging journey, but here we are! A successfully running blog thanks to you lovely readers 🥹❤️ Forver grateful for every little lesson learnt, every new dish discovered, every hack shared here and to you guys who try my recipes and have “Taysted it” and a special shout-out to everyone of you who takes the time to send me your tried pictures 🥰

These southern buttermilk biscuits was my first post on my blog! What better way to celebrate the blogiversary by revamping my first post with better pictures and video of the same. 😃

Being a big fan of the biscuits of POPEYES , a fast food restaurant chain, since childhood I and my siblings used to devour their buttermilk biscuits which were crunchy on the outside yet soft and pillowy on the inside which was filled with so much aroma that we used to actually buy it, sit and smell the biscuits for a good 2 minutes. Yeah I know it sounds crazy, but after you bake some of these I'm sure you would get what I am trying to convey. Since childhood, I used to wonder if we could bake these little softballs at home. Which indeed I did and oh boy did I get the expected results? Whoa, I was astonished and very happy that it came out so good. Better than what I expected it to be. Alhamdulillah.

chain, since childhood I and my siblings used to devour their buttermilk biscuits which were crunchy on the outside yet soft and pillowy on the inside which was filled with so much aroma that we used to actually buy it, sit and smell the biscuits for a good 2 minutes. Yeah I know it sounds crazy, but after you bake some of these I'm sure you would get what I am trying to convey. Since childhood, I used to wonder if we could bake these little softballs at home. Which indeed I did and oh boy did I get the expected results? Whoa, I was astonished and very happy that it came out so good. Better than what I expected it to be. Alhamdulillah.

And so, I am proceeding to share a small piece of my childhood, which I hope and believe my dear readers would try and recreate; the famous SOUTHERN BUTTERMILK BISCUITS.Go on, TAYST IT!

Ingredients:

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon salt
2 tsp Honey
50 grams of Butter
1 cup buttermilk

Instructions:

Combine flour, baking powder, soda, and salt; stir well. Cut in the frozen butter with a pastry blender/ a food processor until mixture resembles coarse meal.
Gradually add buttermilk, and honey stirring until dry ingredients are moistened. Do not over mix as overmixing can cause the dough to bake to a bread like texture.
Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface, and knead 10 to 12 times. Roll dough to 1/2-inch thickness; cut with a 2-inch biscuit cutter. Or make small balls out of it (I actually prefer the ball shape), because it resembled the real Popeye's biscuits.
Place biscuits on a baking sheet lined with a baking paper. Brush some buttermilk on the top of the biscuits for that extra crunchiness, and they are ready to bake. Bake at 400°f for 10 - 12 minutes or until lightly browned. Serve warm.

Note:

*If you do not have buttermilk on hand, you may take 1 cup of milk and 1 tbsp of white vinegar and give a little mix and allow it to stay for 5 minutes; your homemade buttermilk is ready to use.

Recipe Courtesy www.myrecipes.com (I made little changes in the measurements and some directions, it did come out great!)

Feel free to comment below all your thoughts and questions. If you try out this recipe, please do tag me at #taystit, so that I can find all your lovely creations. Lots more great recipes coming up. Stay tuned!

Do try this recipe and don't forget to share your experience/feedback with me here in the comments or feel free to send me a mail. Also, do tag me at #taystedit if you try out my recipes on Facebook, Instagram etc so that I can see when you make it. ♡♡♡♡

Healthy Hazelnut Chocolate Spread/

Homemade Nutella

It’s back to school and chocolate spread is inevitable in school lunch boxes. But we all know there is no goodness in the store bought Nutella that we spread on the bread and give to our kids on a daily basis. Instead try this homemade hazelnut chocolate spread! Also since Nutella is on the boycott list, don’t fret, just make this Easy and healthy spread!

I have used 70% dark chocolate, but if you prefer the real deal the 90% dark chocolate, you may do so! Using milk chocolate, semi sweet etc can make it even more delicious, just that there is a lot of add on Sugar! So what I did is, add brown sugar to my choice. Not too much, just a couple of tablespoons (so we know we are in control of what we have!)

Ever since I made this easy homemade Nutella, my girl always asks for more and I give it to her guilt free (along with other recommended food groups of course!) Flax seeds are loaded with nutrients and omega -3 fatty acids which are vital for the body.

You just add all the ingredients to a mixer grinder and grind it to a smooth paste.

Ingredients:

200 gms Hazelnut (dry roast in oven at 160 deg C for 8-10 minutes or in pan on low flame for 10-15 minutes or until fragrant) *
1 tbsp Flax seeds
150 gms Chocolate of your choice (preferably dark chocolate)
2-3 tbsp Brown Sugar (optional)
2-3 tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 tsp Vanilla Extract

Instructions:

Roast the hazelnuts and grind all the ingredients in a mixer grinder.
Store in refrigerator and enjoy upto a month! (That is if it lasts that long 😆)

Notes:

If you are using hazelnuts with skin on, post dry roasting, you may transfer the hazelnuts to a dry and cleans kitchen towel and grab the towel and rub off the skin.

Stays fresh on the counter top in cold climate for 2-3 days, but best to store in the refrigerator and stays fresh upto 1 month ( good luck for it to last that long) 😆

I used the chocolate as it is, you may melt and add it to the grinder too.

Ps: You may add cocoa powder if you like, and also use dates instead of brown sugar

Easy Vegetable Coconut Milk Curry

If there is a nostalgic Vegetable curry that I love, which my mama makes; is this curry! It goes so well with Chappati.. you can simply drink it like a soup, it’s that delicious and comforting! You can also have it with any of your choice of rotis, but I find it tastes best with chappati.

Once the Chappatis suck up all that gravy, it just tastes too good. For me, any other curry just wouldn’t go along with chappati, it always has to be this easy vegetable coconut milk curry 👌🏼 and a choice of side, like chicken fry, prawns fry etc

The highlight of this curry is that, unlike stew or any other curries, the flavor isn’t from garam masala or any spices, it’s just the natural flavors of the vegetables and of course the coconut milk! Sometimes, the curry tends to get watery, so I like to store cashew cubes (by soaking cashews for 5 minutes in hot water and grinding it to a paste with a dash of milk or water and pouring it into molds and storing in the freezer) and throw a couple of them to the curry to bring out the flavor and thicken the curry.

Ingredients:

8-10 pcs Ladies Finger* , chopped into two inch pieces
1 small Potato, chopped into cubes
1/2 of a Carrot, chopped into one inch pieces
1/2 Onion, thinly sliced
1/2 Tomato, chopped
3 Green Chillies, slit
2 Sprigs of Curry leaves
Salt
Coconut Milk, preferably freshly squeezed **
Cashew paste/ cubes *** (optional)
2+2 tbsp Coconut Oil

Instructions:

In a pan, pour the coconut oil and fry the ladies finger and season with salt and sauté for 3-4 minutes on high.
In another pot, pour the coconut oil and add in the sliced onion and sauté, once translucent, add in the green Chillies and curry leaves and sauté.
Next, add in your chopped tomatoes and close lid and allow the tomatoes to cook well, once mashy, add in the carrots and potatoes and add in salt and pour in 1/4 cup of water and close the lid and allow the veggies to cook well.
Finally add in the coconut milk, and once it starts to bubble from the sides, add in your cashew cubes (optional, for thickening and added flavor).
Enjoy hot with freshly made Chappati and your choice of sides.

Notes:

*Make sure you get the tender ones, you can check this by breaking off the tip of the ladies finger, if it easily breaks apart, these are tender ladies finger
** If using fresh coconut milk, do not over boil, if may curdle, once the curry starts bubbling from the sides, the curry is done, you may switch off the flame.
Also if using Coconut Milk powder, mix 7-8 tbsp to 1 cup of milk
*** Soak cashews for 5 minutes in hot water and grinding it to a paste with a dash of milk or water and pouring it into molds and storing in the freezer

100% Whole Wheat Bread

After the overwhelming response on my white loaf bread recipe, I have been requested to share the recipe of whole wheat bread. Unlike the store bought whole wheat bread, these whole wheat bread slices do not contain any preservativesoor additives. And the best part? It is how easy it is to bake a batch of whole wheat/meal bread.

Now you may wonder, won'tt the bread go stale? No! When I bake one loaf (while another gets baked in the oven, which will be for immediate use and will be used up in 3-4 days) and once that cools down, I cut it into slices and put it into a ziplock bag and store them in the freezer. When you need a fresh loaf of whole wheat bread, just allow to thaw overnight on the countertop or for a couple of hours before consuming and if it’s for toast, you don’t even need to thaw, you may use it right away!

In my Whole wheat bread, I use whole meal (unlike whole wheat flour, Whole Meal is the entire kernel of the wheat grain that is slightly ground) , that makes it even more delightful with the little specks of the grains on the bread and makes the bread even more wholesome.

Also do not expect the results of whole wheat bread to be the same as white loaf bread. The process of kneading the flour and water mixed dough helps to form gluten, which is very essential for a soft and risen bread.

Do not be tempted to add too much flour is it gets sticky, (maybe a couple of tablespoons of flour can be added depending on the humidity of the location you are at), just keep kneading for a good 10 minutes (can be done on a stand mixer on a medium-low setting), after which when you wet your fingers and try to stretch the dough, it should result in a stretchy, elastic and translucent dough, this method is called the window pane test, if it stretches without tearing, that means the gluten in the dough has been activated well.

Why choose store bought whole wheat bread when you can make healthy and 100% whole wheat bread at home easily and the aroma that fills the air is enough motivation to bake another loaf 😃😍

Ingredients:

1 cup Lukewarm Water
2 tbsp Honey
1 tsp Salt
1 1/2 tsp Instant Yeast
3 tbsp Olive oil/ Butter, softened
2 cups of Whole Wheat Flour (Atta)
1/2 cup Whole Meal / 1/2 cup White flour*

Instructions:

Into a bowl, add in your lukewarm water, honey, salt and instant yeast**and Olive oil, mix everything.
Next add in your whole wheat flour and Whole meal, by gently mixing with your hands to form a soft dough. Now knead the dough using your hands or a stand mixer for around 10 minutes ( this will help develop gluten for a soft and fluffy bread). You can do this test by dipping your fingers in water and gently pull and stretch the dough and check if the gluten has developed well, if it has, you can see the dough would not tear and the dough becomes translucent to the stretch test.
Grease a clean bowl and allow the dough to sit in the bowl covered for 60-90 minutes or until it has doubled in size.
Now slowly pound the dough to release all the accumulated gas and flatten with your hands into a rectangle and check if the width of the flattened dough fits your bread pan or else flatten accordingly.
Next, roll the dough into a log and place it into a greased loaf pan and cover with a greased loaf pan lid or a greased cling film, allow to proof for another 45 minutes.
Preheat your oven at 180 deg C and bake your bread for 30-35 minutes.
Allow to cool completely, for at least one hour and slice the whole wheat bread loaf into slices and store them in a ziplock bag or a bread container wrapped in kitchen cloth.
The bread stays fresher in the ziplock bag for 3-4 days.

Notes:

*Adding white flour can result in a bread with better structure and texture. But if you opt for a healthy version, you can use whole meal or simply atta (whole wheat flour) would do.

**If you are using active dried yeast, you will have to activate it by mixing the yeast, water and honey/ sugar and cover it and set aside for around 10-15 minutes