Black Puttu Rice Halva

This is my contribution on Mother's Day 2014, for Khuch Khatta Khuch Meetha aur Khuch Theeka

Rice has been a part of the Indian food culture forever. Especially in South India, rice dishes are eaten at breakfast, lunch and dinner.
There are so many different varieties of rice; some specific to the success of a dish. Basmati for biriyani, jeeraga samba for vegetable pulao, parboiled for dosa, ponni rice for idlis, red rice for health, and black rice for desserts.
Besides Indians, black rice is used by Thai, Phillipinos, Chinese and Indonesians.
The Thai and Indonesian variety are different to the Chinese variety. The former two are thin, medium to long grain, a lighter purple with brown and white mixed in; the latter are small grained and plump and all a dark purplish black. The Thai version produces a more glutinous halva, while the Chinese variety gives me perfect results.
I get the best Chinese rice sold under the brand name Forbidden or Lotus Rice in American grocery stores. There are some available in the Chinese stores too but for some reason it is not the best kind. The rice is available through mail order too.

Chinese legend has it that black rice was actually known as Forbidden Rice because it was only eaten by the Emperors. It is very nutritious when eaten in small quantities. While I found recipes for the rice cooked whole, both as a staple and a dessert, I didn't find one for the kind of dessert given below, thus inspiring me to share something different.

My search for an unusual recipe to share took me through several family cookbooks, an Internet search and then satisfied with the need for this recipe I got the ingredients and made it and took the usual photographs to share.
An interesting tale goes with the history of this dish. We called it black puttu rice at home. I guess it got that name as originally people must have made puttu with the flour. (For those of you unfamiliar with puttu it is a dish where rice flour is steamed and then mixed with sugar or jaggery, ghee and grated coconut and served as a breakfast dish in South India).
My mother used to have the black rice ground and with the resulting light purplish powder she would make a wonderful halva. Black puttu rice halva was a top family favorite.
The problem was getting the rice. When we were young and rice was rationed, it was difficult to get black puttu rice anywhere. Sometimes the rice would be available in Madras, brought from China via Singapore, or so the story went! When a relative came from Madras we children would wait eagerly ...not so much for the relative, but to know if his luggage held a few cups of carefully concealed black rice. We discussed this in whispers with our mother who shushed us with 'the look' in her eyes. Our father would not tolerate any wrong doing and would throw both relative and black puttu rice out!
When the relative came out from the guest room with a newspaper wrapped bundle of two cups of black puttu rice, my mother would exclaim in surprise that she never thought it would get through. Inspectors used to board the train in those days and search luggage to make sure no rice was carried out of Madras State. We children couldn't have been happier and our love for the relative would increase on the spot!
The servant would be sent to the mill with strict admonitions that the rice had to be ground after white rice only, nothing else and the servant should not take his eyes off the miller who might quickly conceal a table spoon or two for his personal use!
We would wait impatiently till it was brought back and watch as the purple flour was sieved and spread on a sheet of newspaper to dry.
The next day my mother would sit down on a cane stool to make it, a small kerosene stove on the floor in front of her (she did this with all the dishes that took a long time). Soon there would be a heavenly aroma wafting around the house, driving our salivary glands crazy, flooding our mouths with anticipation of the taste no other sweet preparation had. Finally, finally it would be ready and we would each have a scoop of the halwa in a bowl. One of my brothers would always urge my mother not to scrape out too much from the cooking pot, but to leave him the bottom portion. For those of us who know about that part, it is common knowledge that it is the best. My brother would patiently scrape the vessel clean before he handed it over to the maid and disappeared with his 'loot'.
My father would eat the halva silently. He must have loved it too, because to everybody including the relative's relief, it was the one dish he never asked questions about! I think the first spoonful made my father decide it was too late to do anything but enjoy!
My mother would heat and re-heat the halwa each day and it's taste would improve.
Our Anglo-Indian friends made a cake with the rice at Christmas time called 'Dol-dol'.
Genetics pre-disposes us to love certain tastes more than others...the last time I made this halva I cautiously gave the 5 and 3 year old grandchildren a taste. They don't like most Indian sweets. They nibbled the first bite, looked at me and said, "More!"
I couldn't have been happier...the right genes have been passed on!

Here then is the recipe for the halva we loved and still do.
My American version includes the usual tips and short cuts.



1 cup black puttu rice flour

2 level tbsps cornstarch (or maida)

1 small can...5.6 ozs coconut milk plus 1 can water. (available in Chinese, Thai & Vietnamese supermarkets)
(At home this would be made with two extracts of milk from a freshly grated coconut).

¾ cup sugar

¾ cup Splenda sugar substitute

OR 1 1/2 cups sugar.

1 tbsp ghee

Almonds to decorate, elaichi powder.

Mix cornstarch with water in a blender or food processor.

Add black puttu rice flour,coconut milk and sugar and mix well.

The consistency should be that of smooth buttermilk (not too thin not too thick). Add a little more water if necessary. The mix should be lump free.

Place in a thick bottomed pan and bring to boil….reduce heat to make sure halva isn’t getting scorched.

This will splutter and if your pan isn't deep enough, put on an oven mitt while stirring to avoid getting burnt!

When it is thick (halva consistency) and begins to leave the bottom of the pan, add ghee.

What is halva consistency?

It is when the black puttu halva falls from the spoon like a mass.

Mix well and transfer to a bowl.

Decorate with blanched, sliced almonds.
Store in refrigerate, re-heat every day and enjoy.

For those who want a shortcut, the shortest one I can think of for this recipe is: Find a Thai restaurant that has 'black rice pudding' or 'sticky rice pudding' on the menu and enjoy it there. Warning: call ahead to make sure your serving is available and reserve it as in our area it is usually 'sold out' by the time we get to the place.
Use the Chinese rice for best results, as whenever I've used the Thai rice, I get a different consistency in the end result.

*********
Thanksgiving 2018

Our son in law's aunt has a 'Chopped' competition Thanksgiving weekend.

The previous year's winners choose the ingredients for the current year.

This year we worked with:  Rice/riceflour, eggs, citrus and fennel/somph.

I used them like this:

2 cups black rice soaked for 3 hours. Blend in Vitamix with water it is soaked in...mixture must not be grainy at all...add 2 level tablespoons cornstarch, 2 eggs, 1-2 cups orange juice. Remove from Vitamix and place on stove in thick bottomed vessel. Add 2-3 cups sugar (accordng to your taste), 1 Tablespoon ghee or butter, orange pulp or mandaring orange segments chopped small and cardamom. Cook on medium stirring continuously. Will thicken quickly. Taste for sweetness. When it is like halwa, pour into mold and cool. Soak pan and it will wash easily. Cooking time was less than 10 mins. This is a family recipe originally made with coconut milk, sugar and ghee. Buy short grain Chinese black rice at Chinese store, not Thai long grain.

A look back as we step forward into 2010

Happy New Year to one and all.

As we step into a week old 2010, we are all wondering what we will write on the blank pages of this year. Words often change the direction of our thoughts and this is what I'm hoping to do here. A look back into our roots might help us all make and hold on to our New Year resolutions with the recipe below.

The holidays got me started on a reflective phase, analyzing my experiences with people of different faiths/religions.
Growing up in post British India, Christianity was part of convent school education and we all celebrated Christmas with more emphasis on the religious aspect. We learned and sang carols, took part in Nativity plays if there weren't enough Christian girls to fill the spots,hoped Santa would visit us.
Now more and more people from every faith in America get caught up in the decorating of a tree and exchanging gifts at this time of year. I was four or five, when I had the first experience I can remember of Christmas at the Bangalore Club, India. Santa arrived in a sleigh and we children ran behind the sleigh, well versed in all the carols taught at school. When he finally stopped and handed out gifts our joy knew no bounds. It was years later I discovered my father had pre-paid for the gifts that came from Santa.
What a welcome we received in every Christian home during the season with 'goodies' and home made wine. (The latter unfortunately sent me into such a fit of giggles on one such visit when I was 16, my mother made me promise never 'to drink' as she put it!)

What a grand heritage we had growing up in India, a country that has accepted all religions over the years, and celebrated religious tolerance and respect for all people, as an inherent part of life. Instant acceptance of people made our lives richer. We weren't burdened with the hump of ignorance. People were judged on their action and behavior towards us and society, not on their religion. In today's world, to ensure peace,we need to hold on to this.

Besides Christmas, we took part in all other festivals.
ID meant dishes of Biriyani from our Muslim friends, Diwali meant my mother sending trays of goodies to all the neighbors, Guru Nanak's birthday was celebrated with a visit to the Gurudwara and plenty of the best halwa in the world.
While gastronomically we children rejoiced in these festivals, our mother taught us about the history of each religion. She always had something positive to say about every faith:
"Look at the Muslims," she would say in awe, "Just look at them. 5 times a day they think of God. Let us think of God often too."
"I love the kirtans the Sikhs sing," she would tell us. "How much devotion in those songs...I can listen to them for hours." The same went for Bhajans and Hindu devotional songs which she played on our gramophone at home, religiously re-winding the handle every few minutes.
"Look at the Christians," she would say in admiration. "What discpline they follow, going to church every Sunday."
All this, while every Hindu festival was celebrated at home with great ceremony. Her understanding and acceptance of all faiths did not detract from her being a Hindu in any way. Diwali had us taking trays of sweets,snacks, dosa and chicken curry to every neighbor early in the morning.
During her lifetime my mother read and discussed every religious book she could get, always searching for a connection with God in every Holy Book. Buddhism, Jainism, Zoroastrianism...she explored and discussed every faith with us kids.
The first prayer she taught me, sprang from her own convent education. It was,'Our Father Who Art in Heaven',followed by 'Now I lay me down to sleep'!
Any other Hindu girl learn that, not at school, but from her mother at the age of 3?

My father made sure that we learned respect for every religion and how to behave when we accompanied him to different places of worship. As commanding officer, at one station, he said he couldn't lead his men if he didn't share their personal lives with them, so we went with him once a month to the Gurudwara, our heads covered with hankies knotted at the corners, sitting quietly through the kirtans. Church was part of our lives in school, as was learning verses from the Bible and singing hymns every morning.
We never heard criticism of any religion. Bad customs, yes, misguided beliefs yes, but never of the basic good tenets of every faith.
More than anything I thank my parents for giving us children the incomparable legacy of tolerance and understanding and acceptance of the good in every religion.

So now I tell everyone who asks what religion we are, that we practice Hinduism but we are Universalists by belief.
"What are Universalists?" I'm asked.
"Universalists are people who believe that religion follow different paths that leads to one God, no matter what name He is called by: Heavenly Father, Wahe Guru, Allah, The Supreme Brahma. All these roads, were laid out different for people of different languages, customs, areas, by sending them different leaders. They all end at one destination, one God, though our paths are different."
Even now those who grew up in India, know this in their hearts and say it out loud.
I watched an Indian show recently and the young participants respected and acknowledged every faith and every festival as it came up, through the year. I felt proud of my Indian roots. No one felt the need to say theirs was the only way to reach God and non-believers would go to Hell. Religion isn't a team sport...it is a personal part of each life...the only way it is another's business is if misguided beliefs result in actions/speech that interfere with our rights.
Don't alienate the people of one faith by basing your opinion of all on what one radical, extremist group is doing, whether it is burning temples, mosques, churches,or fighting wars. Treat people as individuals who have the same feelings you do.

So, this is my first recipe for total well being in 2010: Equal parts of contentment, health, happiness, not wanting from others what you cannot give them in return, freedom from envy, and most important of all... enlightenment which translates into: tolerance and respect for all people/religions as long as their practices don't interfere with anyone's inalienable rights to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.

Keep a constant supply of these ingredients on hand and use daily.

Enchiladas Supremo

I had a guest recently, whom I asked: "What's your favorite dish to make?"
"Enchiladas," was the prompt answer, followed by, "Want me to make them for you?"
That set us off on an adventure. Except for cheese quesadillas and burritos, I haven't tried much Mexican cooking and I was looking forward to doing something new.
She wrote down her list of ingredients and described the recipe...I suggested shortcuts. We both went shopping separately and cooked together. It took a while but everyone was pleased by the outcome!
Enchiladas have never been a favorite dish of mine but now I know why. I've never had them the way they should be made...and the best way to make them is to learn from someone whose native dish it is!
This isn't an easy recipe but worth the effort.
Wherever possible I've added tips and shortcuts.


Just Fried Tortillas

The finished product



Mayra's Chicken Enchiladas

(We made 24 with this recipe.)

Sauce (We made this the evening before.)

3 medium sized tomatoes
8 medium sized tomatillos
10 large CHILE CALIFORNIA (huge,dried red chillies)
1 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp cumin powder.
1/2 large onion
Salt, pepper, chilli powder to taste.

(For green enchiladas use only tomatillos and green jalapeno chillies)

Remove 1/2 inch of the part of the tomatillos where the stalk is attached, with a sharp knife.
Slit and de-seed dried chillies. (Keep them if you want them spicier).

Fill a 4 qt stockpot with 2 qts water.
Add washed tomatoes, tomatillos, chillies and cook till tender (about 20 mins) and the color of the tomatoes changes.
Remove from water, blend with 1/2 large onion, salt, oregano, cumin, pepper and chilli powder (optional). We separated the sauce at this stage and I added chilli powder liberally in our half.

Sauce should be consistency of tomato sauce in a can.

Ingredients for filling

8-12 ozs of Mozarella cheese (either buy grated cheese or grate in food processor.

Shredded chicken

(Cook one chicken with 3 cloves of garlic, 1/2 onion and salt. Shred when cool into one inch pieces.
or
Shortcut: Buy one roasted chicken. Shred.

Enchiladas

(Buy the packet of 6" fresh corn tortillas from your local supermarket. We are lucky to have one that makes them fresh daily).

or

any pre-packaged 6" corn tortillas.

On a griddle/tawa/non stick pan, lightly cook each tortilla on both sides...must not get brown.
Heat one inch oil in frying pan.
Dip each tortilla in sauce, using tongs and then put into hot oil.
Fry both sides...30 seconds on each side.
TIP: Sauce and oil splash a lot so cover sides of fry pan and rest of stove with foil before frying.
I had to use 2 slotted spoons to remove each tortilla as they get very soft in the oil.
Drain in a colander.
If this method is too hard for you and it certainly is a challenge, read Method 2.
Fry all the tortillas first, unless you have someone helping you in which case you can do the following in tandem: one fry, one assemble.
On each tortilla, spread one large tablespoon each of chicken and cheese (adjust ratio to taste).
Roll up enchilada...place end side down in dish.
Optional: add chopped onion and tomato to chicken and cheese.
When all are done, sprinkle cheese on top.

Just before eating, heat in microwave till cheese melts on top.

CHEESE ENCHILADAS: Place cheese, chopped tomato, cilantro and onion inside.

Method 2: Low fat tortillas.
(Made this a couple of days ago and neither HD or I found a difference in taste. It is a much easier way as there is less clean up. I also double up on the sauce and froze a batch.)

Fry only the tortilla on both sides using half a tsp. of oil on each side,then dip in sauce, continue as above.
Mayra, the authority on enchiladas, insists it tastes better the traditional way (tortilla dipped in sauce then fried...so we did it her way) It did taste great!!!

Fill and roll as above. I add a cup of sauce over the enchiladas at this point and sprinkle with cheese.
Can be covered and frozen at this stage for a later date
or
Microwave/heat in 350 degree oven before eating and serve piping hot.

The votes were unanimous...this dish was great!!!
The secret, according to Mayra, is in the sauce.

The following dish is one use for left over sauce:

Chile with Chicken and Potatoes

Peel, cube and boil potatoes.
Shredded chicken
If using any other meat, fry in 3 Tbsps oil till well cooked.
Place in a dish.
Cover with above sauce.
Optional: add chopped onion and tomato.
Serve hot with tortillas.

AFTER THANKSGIVING

After Thanksgiving families who celebrate with a turkey meal, are usually overwhelmed with a lot of leftovers. When my nest was full, and the kids were home they loved turkey leftovers the next day. HD and I did not. I used to remove all the meat from the bird right after the meal and freeze it, according to general instructions (leaving enough out for the kids to feast on).

Don't throw your leftovers away. They really make good dishes that will surprise your family and friends. I came up with dishes two, three and four for the leftovers;over the years. The stew was made the day after Thanksgiving, this year, by our son-in-law.

TURKEY STEW: Onions, carrots, celery, cubed left over turkey, potatoes,sliced zucchini, salt and pepper. After the vegetables cooked, egg noodles were added and simmered in the soup. Talk about a one pot meal! HD is vegetarian, so some soup was set aside for him before the turkey was added.
HD and I laced our soup with hot sauce... it was delicious. The rest had it as is. Sorry we didn't stop to take pictures!

TURKEY FRIED RICE: This was a family favorite when the kids were young.
Follow any fried rice recipe. I used leftover rice, stir fried scallions, grated ginger, garlic, 1 large tablespoon hoisin sauce and soy sauce to taste, stir fried left over turkey,snow peas.
Just before serving I would add Chinese bean sprouts and a couple of scrambled eggs.
I've even made this with half noodles, half rice and it always got rave reviews.
I used to do this over 15 years ago so no pictures here either!

TURKEY KEEMA/MINCE: Ever put your leftover turkey into the Cuisinart and minced it?
It tastes so great in cutlets, Shepherd's Pie, keema kababs.
There's something about that roast turkey that lends an additional flavor to any dish one would normally use mince in.

AND A NEW BRAINWAVE: STUFFING UPMA!

Stuffing upma you say? Never heard of such a thing! Well, just read on patiently.

If you buy the box of cornbread stuffing with herbs and spices for the stuffing, like we do, here's a new idea for you...
We've been making our stuffing outside the turkey for the sake of the vegetarians in our family; following package directions.
This year I froze the leftover stuffing and then took it out tonight. After thawing the stuffing in the microwave, I heated some olive oil, added sliced green onions, cubed tomato, green chillies, karipata (curry leaves), and fresh coriander to it. After sauteing it lightly, I added the stuffing and mixed everything gently.
It made great bread upma!
Now I'm planning on getting a couple of extra boxes of stuffing and keeping it on hand, just for this quick new dish.

Good luck with those leftovers! Frozen immediately, they are great for another meal.

THANKSGIVING

HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO ONE AND ALL

Thanksgiving is a wonderful holiday, isn't it.
Besides the feasting, the gathering of family and friends, the shopping frenzy, think of the meaning of this holiday.
A day to give thanks for all we have.
If you want to be really thankful think of those less fortunate than us.

The things that have made me truly thankful in my life are:

1. Faith in God.
2. Friends and positive family relationships.
3. The acceptance and avoidance of people and things I cannot change.
4. Contentment
5. Freedom from envy.
6. Freedom to make choices and live in a democracy.
7. The ability to find joy in Nature.
8. The ability to stick to and follow basic, good principles of life.

Make your own list today and think about it.

MY HIGH TEA IS DONE!

The greenhouse window made a good background to set the stage with my collection of cups and saucers n(the guest admired them while drinking tea out of disposable cups), and my collection of biscuit tins, tea tins and boxes from all over the world (most of which are now empty). It was a great chance to display stuff just lying in the cupboard.

Thanks to all of you who helped me with the recipes and ideas it was a great success.
Special thanks to Joan, Prabha, lan of Cheenachatti (http://cheenachatti.blogspot.com/), Mallu Girl of Malabar Spices (http://malluspice.blogspot.com/) and Cynthia Nelson of Tastes Like Home (http://www.tasteslikehome.org/).
The only bad part was I was so busy I didn't get to take too many pictures of the food to share! Can you believe that?

Last week I made Guava Tarts. Unfortunately I made them too early. The family tasted them, decided we all loved them and polished them off, accusing me of depriving them this far in their lives of such a delicious treat. I had to point out I had just discovered the recipe this year. I made them with really ripe guavas. The green one is just for effect in the picture. I did not ice them as I wanted to avoid the extra sugar.


Here's the link to the recipe, from Cynthia Nelson's wonderful website. The link comes with a warning from me: Hide them, if you want to serve them to guests.
http://www.tasteslikehome.org/search?q=guava+tarts

Tips for the tarts: I had very small guavas which were a nuisance to peel, de-seed and chop.
It took a couple of hours to get 4 cup fulls. Next time I'll wait for larger guavas before attempting this recipe. It was super delicious.

The next item I made, and you are all going to laugh at this, was murku/chakli.
I hid the box and guess what: when I put out all the other food I forgot to put this out!
I remembered it when only 3 couples were left here, and gave them a packet each.
So much for hiding things.

Murku

4 cups rice flour
1 cup gram flour (besan).
Besan is gram flour made by grinding channa dal (a variety of lentil).
1 small stick butter melted.
1 Tbsp brown til/sesame seed or cumin/jeera.
or
1 inch piece ginger ground.
Salt to taste.
Cracked pepper optional.
Oil for frying.

Mix flours, butter, sesame seed/ginger, salt with warm water to the consistency of cookie dough...NOT like chappatti dough or your murkus will be HARD.
Push through murku mold and deep fry to a golden brown in hot oil.

TIP: When I make it I use a large skillet and make the murku as big as the pan.
After it is fried and cooled, I break it into one to two inch pieces and serve.
This makes the frying process easier than shaping umpteen perfect little murkus, and helps us oldies with leg pain!


This is what the final menu was:

Sangria with red and white wine.
There are so many recipes for this on the Internet that I picked a few and then once I got the idea of how it is made, I picked the fruit I liked the best, chose to use sparkling cider as the base and made it with that.
I used a Cabernet Sauvignon for red and a dry white wine.
In the red I added sliced strawberries, orange, lemon and lime slices, with some of the juice too.
In the white I added frozen peaches and sliced kiwi with orange, lime and lemon slices and juice.
Both marinated in the refrigerator overnight.
HONEST TIP: It wasn't very easy to make at the last minute for every guest as ice had to be placed in each glass, then sparkling cider poured in, then topped off with sangria.
Luckily I had help serving but making it was crunch time.

The rest of the menu went like this: (recipes and pictures that i have are coming...having a problem uploading them today.)

Sweets:

Jam Tarts
Lemon drop biscuits
Pistachio cake
Almond thins (from Trader Joe's)
Fruit salad.
Rice kheer
A tray of sliced pineapple.
Brownies.
(The last two items were brought by friends).

Jam Tarts: Recipe given by someone very dear to us. Thanks Joan.
I didn't make the pie crust from scratch...just bought two pie sheets, which gave me such a hard time to unroll, I don't know why. They cracked , broke and stuck together....which according to Murphy's law always happen if you're in a hurry.
I re-rolled the sheets, cut with a circle mold, placed the circles in muffin pans, put a spoon of jam or marmalade in each, and baked for 15 minuted keeping a watch on them.
They came out scrumptious but not as good as Joan makes.
TIP: Do not make last minute unless you have nothing else to do. They store great when cooled in an airtight container, and taste just as great the next day!



Lemon drop biscuits.

These are buttery and melt in your mouth.
TIP: These are definitely another make again recipe but be careful about the 'room temperature butter'...my dough got a little too soft and my cookies came out as discs not balls. When you visit this site for the recipe read the other comments and watch out for that butter getting too soft! Also they are VERY buttery and melt in your mouth.
Wonder if they are called Lemon DROP cookies because you drop them into your mouth again and again!
Here's the site for the recipe:
http://whatscookingamerica.net/Cookie/HighTeaCookies.htm




Pistachio Cake



Our daughter brought that and I'll have to get the recipe from here.
It's an old favorite of ours and was a big hit.
She made one big one in a castle mold and the others were five small bundt cakes like the one above.

Fruit Salad



A new variation of the old recipe contributed by my friend, Prabha.

Drain cans of fruit cocktail, pineapple pieces and mandarin oranges reserving juice.
I added lychees too as I had a can.
Cut apples and bananas...place in juice and then strain and add to other fruit.
Add half a packet of vanilla instant pudding mix and stir. Check for sweetness and then add more if needed. Chill and serve.

Variation 2: My neighbor has just been to a party where she saw a combination of condensed milk and whipped light creanm cheese added, which she liked.

TIP: I ran out of space in the refrigerator before the party and as I could not accomodate a large bowl of fruit salad, I just placed all the cans in the refrigerator till it was time to open and serve. The cans could go into nooks and crannies in the refrigerator.

Rice Kheer

I cooked a cup of rice in the rice cooker and then transferred it to the crockpot and added milk and let it simmer for hours. Halfway through I added, blanched, sliced almonds and raisins (1/2 a cup each), 1/2 a tsp of saffron, 1 level tsp of elaichi/cardamom powder, 1 tsp of vanilla essence, one tiny speck of edible green camphor. I should have added 1/2 a tsp of nutmeg too.
Ten minutes to the end I added 1 1/2 cups of Splenda.
Taste and add more or substitue sugar...our friends watch their sugar so this was a good dessert with all the other sweets. Also there were no kids or expectant mothers coming so I could use Splenda.
It was creamy and thick and I put it in the freezer for an hour for a quick chill.
Had it been a cold day, I would have served it hot from the crockpot.

Pazham Pori: Fried Ripe Plantains

3 plantains repose on my counter eying me reproachfully.
I had no time to make this favorite at the end but I promised the plantains they would be relished by me!
Here's the site for this delicious recipe: http://cheenachatti.blogspot.com/search/label/banana.

TIP: Avoid too many last minute dishes.

Snacks/savories:

Chicken pie
Baked Salmon
Egg salad
Bean dip with a variety of crackers.
Coconuty corn
Chole samosas
Red ghatia (which is a kind of thick spicy sev... this was store bought.)
Khandvi (brought by a friend and yummy).
Cucumber sandwiches.

You'll have to do a Google search for 'ghatia', and 'khandvi' to get recipes and pictures of what these dishes are like, if you are not familiar with them. They are both made with gram/lentil flour and are popular snacks in India.

It was quite a spread at the end and we were happy that we could serve it up!
Finally a friend made Indian tea with ginger as that's what everyone wanted.

Chicken Puffs

Got two rotisserie chicken and took the meat off and shredded it into little pieces.
Fried 3 really large onion and added chilli powder, and garam masala to it.
Mixed chicken with the onion. and put it into baking pans.
Took puff pastry squares (from our local Lebanese store...they are like Pepperidge farm sheets but are square), and laid them on top.
Baked it in a 375 oven till pastry was golden brown and then cut into two inch squares.

TIP: Don't bake in a too hot oven or chicken will become too crisp.
Next time I'm going to try to bake just the puff pastry squares alone and then place on the chicken and cut.
I didn't wrap the chicken in the squares or place a layer underneath to avoid too many carbs which are a big no-no for diabetics.

Egg Salad

Boil 10 eggs...peel...mash with hand.
Add salt and pepper to taste with one cup mayonnaise and one tablespoon of dill chopped really fine.
This was really yummy.
I meant to serve this with focaccia bread but forgot to take it out of the oven and after the party discovered the focaccia was toast!

I need to take a course of Gingko biloba tablets...it is supposed to help improve memory.

7 Layer Bean Dip
Another recipe from my friend, Prabha.

First layer...vegetarian refried beans...I heated this and added one pkt of Fajita mix to it,
some chilli powder and some salsa as our Indian friends need something spicy.
Second layer...on top of the hot bean I put a mix of Monterey and Cheddar cheese so that part of it would be melted into the beans.
Third layer...Guacamole dip from the local Mexican supermarket which was HOT with onions, tomato and what had to have been jalapeno peppers.
Fourth layer...sour cream.
Fifth...green onions...just a thin layer.
Sixth...olives...I don't like them so I left his layer out.
Seven...tomatoes finely chopped with another dollop of sour cream in the middle for decorative purposes.
I tried to take this picture transversely so the layers would be visible.
I served this with a variety of crackers, small toast and multi colored tortilla chips.


Coconuty Corn

Here's Cynthia Nelson's site for this delicious recipe.
http://www.tasteslikehome.org/

Chole Samosas

Recipe given in this blog under 'Puffs'.

HIGH TEA PREP

PREPARING FOR THE DESI HIGH TEA

Thanks to my friends and neighbor for the recipes and tips for make ahead dishes.
More on that when I make them and have pics to show everyone.

This week has been intense prep week...I can't tell you how much stuff we have lying around that needs putting away and how much needs taking out before company comes!
The grandchildren (5&3) have their art gallery in place, to be admired by the guests. The two little ones also listen seriously to my tales of party etiquette and are trying to pick up their cups with their 'pinkies in the air', and giggling a lot. Grand kids are so much fun.
Our daughter, who will be away that weekend, has offered one of her best make ahead dishes (recipe later) and has also lent all her best crystal. She's worrying she won't be around to help me on that day and her busy schedule and my needs make it hard for us to find a free weekend together. Besides, it's good for me to see how much I can manage to do myself.

HD who HATES to put a nail in any wall, deplores the idea that after ten years I want to move some of my pictures around. In some place, our walls need special screws and I distinctly remember him asking all that time ago, "Is this place permanent?" before he put in the screws. I said yes at the time. What other choice did i have?
Now there's lots of rebellion from the bitter half on discovering it is not so.
The only reason I ask him to help is he hangs pictures perfectly. I eyeball the wall space and go bang, bang bang...then discover it's not straight...then go bang bang bang a little to the left. Oops that;s no good, so try again. In the end I have to hang the picture to cover the five other holes I've made in the wall...so now you know why I ask HD and endure the disapproval! He doesn't like parties and this one is making him nervous as usual.
Can anyone tell me why someone who just has to show up and smile and talk to people would get stressed about a party? I'm inviting friends whom I like not throwing a gala official dinner for diplomats where everything has to be 'just so'.

I'm using a set of Corelle plates I got for my grandson's Namakarna (christening). They will lend a touch of elegance as they are white with tiny red and pink roses in three places.
I'll have to use paper for glasses and cups as we are having over thirty guests.
I've planned the table covers and centerpieces trying to come up with the High Tea ambiance. I'm planning to have a good 'desi' (Indian) High Tea which will fill up my guests.
Good food and plenty of it is always the main thing at an Indian gathering.
I am getting stuff from outside too, but the fun for me is making items that we haven't had for a long while... thus breaking up the monotony of all the meals we attend at restaurants that have the same, repetitive menu.
I do have an alternative menu in case I don't feel well or come down with something, as happens often with diabetics...but perish that thought. I'm visualizing a healthy, happy me, able to do all I want to.

Researching dishes, getting ideas from my foodie friends, and a day to day discussion with my neighbor as we walk, is all helping me come up with a party. By the way, my neighbor is from the Phillipines and yous hould see the spreads they have at their party. She has a large family here and everyone brings their BEST dish to the party and there's so much food there's no place to set the dishes down. She cannot imagine the way I work solo, which is what I like to do when I entertain.

Back to the fun I'm having...some people call it work...have to taste the dish I just made and add or drop it from my list.

Do your prep at least two weeks before the party: clean dishes, wash crystal, polish brassware (if like other Indians you have a lot), move pictures, clean cobwebs. cover everything you've washed with a clean cloth so it doesn't get dusty. I do one thing a day to ensure I'm not wearing myself out.
Sit like your guest would and look around critically and you'll be surprised at the things that catch your eye that need doing.
Final cleaning will be done the day before the party by a cleaner, (floors, bathroom, dusting, kitchen), but all this attention to detail, helps ensure success finally. It's confidence building too, to know you have all this under control.

All about the dishes after the party mid-November. Lan, thanks for all the continuous help and support..it's like having another daughter. Prabha, you're my ace in the hole....thanks for all your help too.