Mangalorean Style Cauliflower Kempu Bezule

 Recently I had this crispy cauliflower appetizer at a local Indian restaurant. It was like Gobi 65 but tasted a little different. I searched for the name and it origin and found out it is called Cauliflower (Gobi) Kempu Bezule. It is a popular dish from Mangalore. I made this appetizer for a Christmas party we're going to tonight. Cauliflower florets are battered and fried, and sautéed and tossed  in a spicy yogurt sauce.

Ingredients: 

1 head of cauliflower, washed in hot water and broken into florets

For the Batter:

4-5 Tablespoons corn flour

3 Tablespoons rice flour

2 Tablespoons all purpose flour

3 teaspoons Kashmiri red chili powder

1/2 teaspoon turmeric

1/2 teaspoon garam masala

1/2 teaspoon powdered black pepper

1-2 teaspoons salt (adjust to taste)

1/2 teaspoon ginger garlic paste

2 sprigs curry leaves (for garnish)

vegetable oil or peanut oil to fry

For the Sauce:

2 teaspoons oil

3 green chili, finely chopped or slit

4 cloves of garlic, finely chopped

1/2 cup plain yogurt

Method:

1. Clean and break cauliflower into florets. Set aside.

2. In a large bowl, take corn flour, rice flour, all purpose flour, and salt. 

                                                     

3. Add red chili powder, turmeric, garam masala, and black pepper. Add ginger garlic paste. Add water and mix well into a thick batter, without any lumps.

                                                       

4. Add cauliflower florets and mix to coat. Set aside for 15 minutes to marinate.

                                

5. Heat oil in a pan on high flame. When the oil is hot, drop coated cauliflower florets one by one. Do not over crowd the pan. Leave the cauliflower untouched for 2 minutes. Remove the florets and drain on a paper towel when cooked. You will know they are cooked when the bubbles have subsided.

                                 

                                 

6. Repeat this process for the remaining cauliflower florets.

7. In the same oil, fry the curry leaves and drain them on a paper towel. Set aside.

                                                      

For the Sauce:

1. Take 2 teaspoons of oil used to fry the cauliflower in a pan. Add chopped green chili, and diced garlic. Sauté till fragrant, 1 minute.

                                                     

2.  Add yogurt and sauté for a minute. The yogurt will curdle. 

                                   

3. At this point add the fried cauliflower florets and toss to coat. Toss fried curry leaves.

                                     

 Remove from stove and serve Gobi bezule hot.

                                                 

Cranberry Walnut Loaf

 This cranberry bread is delicious and colorful. Fresh cranberries, walnuts, fresh orange juice, and zest add flavor to this quick and easy bread. I made this bread under an hour for the holiday breakfast at work.

Ingredients:

2 cups all purpose flour

3/4 cup granulated sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

3/4 teaspoon salt

1 cup chopped fresh cranberries

1/2 cup chopped walnuts

3/4 cup orange juice

1 large egg

2 Tablespoons vegetable oil

1 Tablespoon orange zest

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 9x5- inch loaf pan.

2. Combine flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl. Add cranberries and walnuts. Stir well until well coated.

                                      

3. Mix together orange juice, egg, oil, and zest in a medium bowl until combined.

                                                               

4. Pour liquid mixture over flour mixture. Stir until just blended. Spoon batter into the prepared pan.

                                         

5. Bake in the preheated oven until a toothpick inserted into the center of the loaf comes out clean, about 50 min. Let the loaf cool in the pan for 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.

                                         

Palada Pradhaman

 Palada Pradhaman is a traditional dessert from Kerala. It is rice pudding made with milk, ada, sugar, and caramel. Ada is a thin pasta made by spreading a thin layer of rice batter on a plantain leaf and steam cooked. The pasta is then cut into strips and then into small bits of pasta. This is then dried and stored. You can find ada in the Indian market. Ada pradhaman can be made in two different ways; milk and sugar or jaggery and coconut milk. Ada pradhaman is offered as prasadham (sacred food) in the temples in Kerala.

I made ada pradhaman with milk and sugar today for our anniversary. Adding caramel gave a unique taste and pink color to the pradhaman.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup ada

4 1/4 cups (1 liter) whole milk 

1/2 cup sugar

2 Tablespoons sugar for making caramel sauce

1/4 cup water

Method:

1. Rinse dry ada under water. Boil 2 cups of water in a saucepan. Remove from stove. Add rinsed ada and set aside for 15 minutes.

                                         

2. Strain the ada and rinse under cold water. Set aside. It should be al dente.

3. Take milk in a heavy bottomed pan or uruli. Cook milk on l to bring to a boil. Stir and simmer for 5 minutes.

                                         

4. Stir in 1/2 cup sugar. Boil on low medium flame to reduce to half, about 45 minutes.

                                        

5. Now add the ada and stir. Simmer until it thickens, about 20 minutes. 

                                       

6. Meanwhile, to make caramel, place 2 Tablespoons sugar in a saucepan on low medium heat. Stir continuously when the sugar starts to melt and change color (amber).

                                       

7. Gently add 1/4 cups water while stirring constantly, to make the caramel syrup. Remove from stove.

                                       

8. Stir caramel syrup to the boiling pradhaman, and simmer for 2 minutes. Turn the stove off. The pradhaman will be a beautiful pink color.

                                       

9. Serve palada pradhaman hot or cold.

                                                 

Notes:

1. You can make the pradhaman without caramel as well. For this method follow the steps 1-5. Remove while pradhaman from stove while it is semi-runny consistency. Then add 1/2 teaspoon powdered cardamom.

2. You can add cashew nuts roasted in ghee to the pradhaman.

3. Make sure you rinse the ada in cold water so it does not get over cooked and stick to each other.

Pradhaman or pal payasam (kheer) doesn't require cashew nuts (my husband likes cashew and raisins in all payasams.

Badam (Almond) Halwa

Badam (almond) halwa is a popular Indian sweet. The traditional way to make this sweet is to soak almonds, skin them, grind to paste and cook on low heat for a long time. You can also use almond flour to make the halwa. All you need for this sweet is almond flour, sugar, ghee, saffron soaked in milk.

Ingredients:

1 cup almond meal

3/4 cup sugar

3 Tablespoons ghee

1/4 cup warm milk

1 pinch saffron 

Method:

1. Soak saffron in 1/4 cup of warm milk. Set aside.

                                                             

2. Heat 2 Tablespoons ghee in a heavy bottom pan. Add almond flour and roast on medium low heat for 2 minutes.   

                                                              

3. Add the saffron milk and sugar to the pan. Stir in 1/2 cup water. Cook on low flame. Cook until the mixture leaves the sides of the pan, into a ball, adding 2 Tablespoons ghee in-between. Cook for about  8-10 minutes. 

                                       

To check for doneness of the halwa, take a little between your fingers and roll into a soft ball. It should no stick to your fingers. Remove from the pan and transfer to a bowl. Serve warm or at room temperature.