Black and White Wednesday - Chocolates

This picture is my entry to Susan's Black & White Wednesday - Culinary photos.

Wordless Wednesday - Baylee's Best Chocolates

Pudina Chicken / Biryani Chicken

Organic Chicken - 3 lbs (I used 8 small organic chicken drumsticks)
Plain Greek Yogurt - 1 full cup
Salt
Turmeric - 1/4 tsp
Red Chili Powder - 1/4 tsp
Coriander Powder - 1 tsp
Garlic - 4 cloves grated
Ginger - 1 inch grated
Cilantro - a handful chopped
Fresh Mint Leaves - a cup, chopped
Green Chili - 4, slit
Lemon Juice - 1 tbsp.
Biryani Masala - 2 tsp (optional, I didn't use any)


Oil - 2 tbsp.
Shah Jeera - 1/2 tsp


Marinade the chicken with yogurt and the remaining ingredients for at least an hour or preferably overnight. Slit the chicken in the fleshy areas so that the marinade can get in the meat.


Heat a large pan. Add the olive oil and shah jeera. Then dunk the chicken along with all the marinade. Toss well and cover and cook on medium low heat for around 20 to 30 minutes till the chicken is soft and cooked and oil separates from the spicy gravy.


Serve hot.

Spicy Butternut Squash with Peanuts

Butternut Squash - 1 small, peel and cut into small cubes
Raw Peanuts - 1/2 cup
Virgin Coconut Oil - 1 tbsp
Panch Phoron / Five Spice Mix - 1 tsp (a mix of fennel, mustard, cumin, nigella, fenugreek seeds)
Dry Red Chili - 2
Hing / Asafoetida - 1/4 tsp
Salt
Ginger - 1/2 inch, grated
Turmeric - a pinch
Dessicated Coconut - 2 tsp
Roasted Cumin Powder - 2 tsp
Cayenne Pepper - 1/4 tsp
Cilantro / Parsley - a handful, chopped

Heat oil in a cast iron skillet. Add the five spice mix, hing and dry red chili and saute for a few seconds.

Now add the cubed butternut squash, peanuts, grated ginger, coconut, turmeric and salt. Mix well with the spices. Cover and cook on low heat for a few minutes.

Remove the cover, sprinkle a little water and add the roasted cumin powder and cayenne pepper. Cover and cook for a few minutes more till the squash is soft and cooked.

Sprinkle chopped cilantro on top and serve.

Roasted Cauliflower with Warm Spices

Organic Cauliflower - 1 medium size
Olive Oil - 1 tbsp
Salt
Turmeric - 1/4 tsp
Cayenne Pepper - 1/4 tsp
Roasted Cumin Powder - 1 tsp
Lemon Juice - 1 tsp

Preheat oven to 400F.

Wash the cauliflower and dry completely. Cut it into small 1.5" florets. Try to keep the florets of the same size so that they cook evenly.

Sprinkle salt, turmeric, cayenne and cumin powder on the florets. Drizzle olive oil on top. Toss the florets well so that each of them get coated with the olive oil and spices.

Line a baking tray with aluminium foil. Place the florets in a single layer. Roast for 30 to 45 minutes till the cauliflower florets are cooked and slightly caramelised.

Remove from the oven, drizzle lemon juice on top and serve.

Roasted Sweet Potatoes with Peanut Stew

Sweet Potatoes - 2 big ( Here I used locally grown white sweet potatoes)
Olive Oil - 1 tsp
Water - 1 cup

For Peanut Stew :
Unsalted Peanut Butter - 3 tbsp
Ginger - 1 inch, minced
Garlic - 5 fat cloves, minced
Water - 3 cups
Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
Cumin seeds - 1/2 tsp
Hing / Asafoetida - 2 pinches
Curry leaves - 1
Green chilies - 3, finely chopped
Turmeric - a pinch
Salt
Preheat oven to 400F. Cut each sweet potato into 2 pieces from the middle, lengthwise. Apply olive oil all over. Place on a foil wrapped baking sheet. Add a cup of water to the baking sheet. Roast in the oven for around 45 minutes or till they are soft and fully cooked.

Heat oil in a cast iron pan. Add mustard seeds. Once they start popping, add cumin seeds, asafoetida, green chilies and curry leaves. Saute for a few seconds.

Then add the ginger and garlic paste and cook for a couple of minutes. Add the peanut butter, salt and turmeric and mix well with the spices till it becomes a paste.

Add about 3 cups of water and bring it to boil. Cook for about 5 minutes till the desired consistency is reached. The gravy should not be too thick, the consistency should be like soup. Serve hot with roasted sweet potatoes.

Silent Sunday - Pop's Ice Cream and Soda bar