Wanderberry Tales

This Christmas season has been a busy one. Lots of baking , mall hopping to see the Christmas decor, karaoke singing of Christmas carols to watching Christmas movies - we have done it all. With my sister in town to celebrate Christmas with us we have had quite a spike in our December activities.So while I sit down to relax before beginning the Christmas eve preparations, thought of sharing a quick recipe for your Christmas breakfast table. Apple french toast is simply the addition of Green apples to your normal french toast and getting it baked. Scroll below to the recipe!! Meanwhile, Have a holly jolly Christmas this year!! A Joyous Christmas to all! Ingredients Green Apple – 1 big finely sliced Butter – 2 to 3 tbsp White bread – 10 pieces Milk – 400 ml Egg – 2 large Sugar – 2 to 3 tbsp Salt – ¼ tsp Cinnamon  powder – ¼ tsp Method Pre-heat the oven at 180 degree centigrade for 15 minutes Heat butter in a pan. Layer apples in the pan and...

Christmas waves a magic wand over this world,  and behold,  everything is softer and more beautiful.                                                                -Norman Vincent Peale Dump it all together - there you have a dessert on your table! Cranberry sauce, topped with cake mix and butter drizzled on top - that is the name of the dish deconstructed for you! This is my first guest post and I am happy I got to do it with thebigsweettooth  . Rafeeda of The Big Sweet Tooth is one of first bloggers I got introduced to through blogging. Her blog is a repository of recipes - a go to website for all your recipe needs. I am so glad I could add to her repository. Head over to her blog to check out my recipe for Cranberry Cobbler Dump Cake .

Does the word Lovlolikka ring a bell? I am sure atleast a few malayalees have heard of those red cherries that grow abundantly in their backyard and that grand moms fondly fed you in pickles. Lovlolikka is mildly sour, tangy with a tinge of sweetness and may not be as popular for eating as is when compared to the pickles and jams that are dished out from these cherries. I did a hunt for the English name of this cherry and google threw up names like Indian sour cherry and Indian coffee plum. To keep things simple let's call it cherry:) My mom in law has a lot of these cherries peeping into her backyard from the neighbor's garden. The neighbors have graciously offered her all the cherries that grow on the branches hovering in her yard and trust me they are a basketful. So that is how Lovlolikka wine came into being for us. She did not use yeast for fermentation but the wine came just as good with a lovely color. Hardly a month for Christmas and if you start now, I bet y...

There are days when my mind wanders to my home country and my desire to go back there gets stronger. I am sure these thoughts resonate with atleast a few of the expats. Sometimes I busy myself with some work to shut away these thoughts and other days I whine and whine. After some whining, I turn to my laptop to cheer me up. The one show that makes all the worry lines cease to exist is FRIENDS. I just can't have enough of it. I have watched season by season and now go on to youtube to catch some scenes from it. All the characters have become so etched in me that I feel they live around me. Like any other Friends fan, I would love to see that Reunion happening till then I can continue to watch it in a loop.  Cooking does cheer me up but imagine cooking and watching Friends at the same time :P I do it often these days.( I hate it when I have to turn on the blender, the noise is such a distraction:P) From Monica's jam to Ross' Fajita , Rachel's English Truffle to Joey...

Happy Easter !! I did want this post to be done a couple of days early but Easter seems a good enough reason for this cake recipe to go through. I completed two years of blogging this month and if someone told me two years back that this would happen, I would never believe it! Now that I am here, I would just love to say THANK YOU to everyone.  While I try out my mamma's recipes, she tries some of mine too! My Pappa  religiously clicks away pictures of recipes from newspapers and magazines for me and my sister believes that my blog will make it big some day! My cousins - Vinitha and Neenu - one who diligently gives me ideas and other who meticulously reads them and  questions. My mother in law is the first one to share my recipes on facebook and my bro - in- law and co sister who always read my write ups and provide their comments. My love to all my friends, fellow bloggers and friends who are the reason why I am still in this blogging space and enjoy being here...

The festive season is incomplete without my favorite dinner - Slow roasted chicken with vegetables. It's been two years since we moved to Dubai and I have lost count of the number of times of I have made roast chicken. This was one thing that Shibin wanted to have ever since the decision to move to Dubai was made since his Mom made it for him when they were in Al-Ain! My first attempt at baking a chicken was a total disaster. I marinated the chicken a day in advance and I froze it! I did not thaw it before moving it into the oven. It sat in the oven for 2 hours and never cooked. We had to chop the half cooked chicken and fry it on a pan. Also, I had to throw off the vegetables since it tasted disgusting with the marinade I made. I am talking of our Christmas dinner two years back and we had our dinner finally at 12 am!! Ever since that episode, I have strived hard to perfect this - Tried different marinades and I stick to my favorite - seasoning of pepper, salt and lime ju...

While I wish Christmas season would last longer, I still enjoyed the one month that preceded Christmas. That is when we decided to begin our Christmas celebration. The tree was up a month ago with little tweaks and twists whenever we were mood for a change. CBN radio played all along and I lost count of the Christmas movies we watched. Each movie spoke of Christmas spirit, family, love and hope. Put together, it is the celebration of life putting aside all our worries.  Baking also found way into our life and mall hopping to see the Santa Claus and Christmas decor were not far behind.  It's Christmas eve and I hope all of you are all ready for the big day! The climate is chilly in most parts of the world and if you are in mood for a drink (non alcoholic :P) - here is a recipe you can count on. It makes me think of all the days we went to Cafe Coffee day for a sip at Hot Cocoa and it took me years to realise I could make one at home with easily available ingredients. ...

Majority of my Christmas days were spent in Kerala. The routine was fixed for years as far as I can remember. Vacation for us began on the 23rd of December every year on wrapping up the annual day celebrations. Then catch the Malabar express from Mangalore (Soumya -my sister and I loved the train journey) to reach Mavelikara the 24th morning. Christmas day began with a breakfast of appam and chicken stew! A plateful of plum cake adorned the table every meal. Have you tried cake and stew combo? Do I sound crazy? My dad says so - you should probably try to believe it. A slice of cake and a spoonful of stew on it. That is the way I end my Christmas breakfast. Lunch would generally be Biriyani or rice with a lot of non veg items - chicken, beef , seafood, mutton,  name it and you have it. Dinner was more or less on the same lines. Christmas is not exactly Christmas without the lip smacking food!! I have chosen one such recipe that could form a part of your Christmas menu thi...

I am not a fan of Dubai summers and eagerly wait for the winter to arrive. Every time it does I swear to make the best use of it. From evening strolls in the park to sitting out in the balcony and enjoying the breeze, I love it all. I am on high spirits this season - so my kitchen often has new dishes. If you are looking for something warm to make your winter nights cozy, look no further. Here is a tried and tested recipe which you will grow to love. Its absolutely not complicated and all you need are three ingredients. While your chicken roasts and your cake bakes, you could have your drink made as well. So here you are - Spiced Apple juice! I got this recipe from Shibin and he got it from his brother, Shinoj. Ingredients Apple Juice - 4 glasses ( You could pick up a can from the supermarket) Cinnamon sticks - 1 whole stick Cloves - 6 Method Pour the apple juice into a saucepan along with cinnamon sticks and cloves. Simmer this for 10 to 15 minutes...

The long weekend has heralded a hopefully long winter in Dubai. The winds are chilly and my hands are invariably reaching out to the woolens. The sky is clear and occasional clouds pass by as I look up and pray that at least one would sprinkle showers as they go by. I have not been that lucky yet! It is that time of the year when we reach out to those soothing hot drinks and soups. Yet the crazy part in each of us would want to grab hold of an ice cream or something chilled. ( although the angel in your head would speak of possibilities of falling sick - the devil in you doesn't care) The call for making a cheesecake has been there since the last mango season. The season passed by and no cheesecake was made. While discussing the menu for Christmas, Shibin was quick to suggest a cheesecake and since mango is not in season now, I was left pondering on the flavor. I was quickly taken back to one of the episodes of Dhe Chef - a Malayalam channel cooking reality show where one of ...

It has been long since I played the game of Secret Santa - I am sure most of you are familiar with this game. It is not the gifts you wrap or unwrap that gives the happiness. It is more about the suspense, the secret letters and the guessing games as to who could be your Santa. I was introduced to this game when I was in hostel where every year we religiously play  - we did have our semester exam during this time of the year but that never dampened our spirits. Nothing could possibly be a hindrance to this game when you have a whole hostel - 100 odd girls playing this game. We had a letter box where we could drop in letters addressed to our secret friend. The thrill of finding a letter addressed to you or small gifts that would mysteriously appear on your bed or a messenger getting it for you. Aah!  Shopping for the gifts weren't easy either. It was always last minute purchases and all the 100 girls end up at the same store every time. We had to dodge our secret frie...

It is winter, it is Christmas and baking just happens this season! Listening to the carols, there I went baking again.   My mind began wandering to 'Long time ago in Bethlehem', In the 'Silent Night' I envisioned 'Hark the herald, angels sing'. The bright stars guiding ' We three Kings of Orient are' Led them to the place where ' Mary's boy child Jesus Christ ' lay.   ' O Come All Ye Faithful' and spread the word. 'Go tell it on the mountain' and spread 'Joy to the world' . It is a 'Merry Merry Merry Christmas' And 'Santa Claus is coming to town ' 'Dashing through the snow' here he is With 'Rudolf the red nose reindeer' by his side and 'Frosty the snowman' to welcome him I 'Decked my halls with boughs of Holly' , and keep dreaming about a 'White Christmas'. Looks like an overdose of carols!! Oh Never mind, like Shibin sa...

It is never too early Christmas! The best is always saved for the end of the year - there cannot be anything better to end a wonderful year! I pray this season passes by slow so that I get to savor every moment of it. So while it lasts - let's get into some cooking , carols, decorating and lots of fun filled moments with family and friends. I did happen to mention last Christmas that our love for Christmas was one thing that brought Shibin and me close. We are leaving no stone un-turned this year as well. We have put up our tree, our Christmas wreath is in making, cbn radio that plays Christmas songs throughout the year is live on my system while I write this, Christmas movies are up and running in the evenings and I am preparing my December menu! If you are a person who enjoys this season as much as we do then hurry up - put your tree!! Listen to cbnradio - (http://www1.cbn.com/radio/christmas) if you love the carols and checkout the Hallmark Christmas movie coll...

Cooking is delightful when you have people around who love your food and even more so when you have people you love cooking with you. How much more exciting can this new series on cooking with family and friends (that was on my mind for long) kick off when it is your mother you are cooking with:) On my parents first visit to Dubai last week- my Dad happened to make a comment - 'where did you learn to cook from? I do not remember you cooking much at home.' So very true! I never cooked much at home but I did spend considerable amount of time in the kitchen chit chatting with mom when she cooked, probably that rubbed on me somehow. My mom started cooking for her family during her high school days itself as grandmother being a teacher would be transferred around schools in Kerala and wasn't home often. She loved trying out recipes from magazines and newspapers ( google wasn't an option back then!! Life gets easier as time passes by) and the recipes of Mrs. K M Mathew ...

For about a year, back in 2012, I stayed at house in Bangalore where we were forbidden to cook anything non vegetarian because of religious sentiments. It was fine to order out - those were our instructions handed out to us.   And it was one Sunday night, when one of our roomies was back from her grandmother's place that all hell broke loose. She brought back with her a casserole of crab roast. Crab is not something that we find commonly at restaurants and if they do have it on the menu - the messy eating does not make it a favorite to be ordered. So you know exactly the scene!! A bunch of sea food lovers being long deprived of crab pounced at the sight. Crunch, munch, chomp! That was the scene for the next half an hour. The scenario hasn't changed much now either - so we have photographs here directly from the Kadai because we needed to dig in soon. And for my solace, of course to show you the consistency the masala coating before you turn off the flame. Here is ...

I do have the habit of omitting certain words or sentences when I read up on something. Be it book, article or a recipe, which is probably why I finish reading quite fast. Pick up a book and if it really interests me - I could finish it in under a day but then, there is a catch to it - in my hurry to reach the fag bottom of the book - I miss names of certain characters, places and trust me at times even events that unfold. As the book progresses, if a reference is made to the part I unknowingly omitted (God forbid that happen), I am at total loss.  Now, my husband knows why I finish reading books in half the time he takes! I wouldn't say this is a great habit of mine because as the saying goes Half knowledge is dangerous . I have got into my own trouble with this. That set aside, when it comes to reading recipes I have had my good days and bad days. Good ones are when despite not following the recipe word by word - I end up with a recipe I created and the taste delights and...

Come the Fridays (Oh yeah that's right, weekends are Fridays and Saturdays in UAE) and the desire to try out something new in the kitchen erupts. We desperately needed a snack to pump us out of our laziness into action! I had a chicken breast in my fridge and mozzarella cheese too. Well, Friday magazine also published a recipe of Beef and Mushroom rolls which came as my inspiration. So it was decided, I am gonna make a roll and I am gonna bake it as well. I made the Filo pastry for the rolls as well, I must say it came out pretty good - definitely worth a try. Ingredients For the Filo pastry All Purpose Flour - 2 cups Warm Water - 3/4 cup Salt - 1/2 tsp Olive oil - 3 tbsp Corn Flour - for dusting For the filling Chicken - 200 gms Onion - 1 big finely chopped Garlic - 1 tbsp finely chopped Parsley - a handful chopped Pepper powder - coarsely ground Tomato sauce - 1 tbsp Mozzarella cheese - 200 gms Salt to taste Oil - 2 tbsp Method To make the...

And it is a year already! This blog was born with little or no idea how long it would sustain but here we are - Our first milestone! And we intend to attain many more. It has been a tremendous learning experience all along. We confess that we are not the experts, we experiment, trial and errors along the way and happy successes too. We have presented our successes to you and learnt from our failures to better the food we present to you in every way. My gratitude to all my family, friends and everyone of you for the encouragement through your constant likes and comments! Cheers to one year of happiness through food blogging! Lemon Cake with Honey Lemon Drizzle - that is our latest fad. Here is the recipe for you - Ingredients For the cake -  All Purpose Flour - 2 cups Sugar - 1 cup Vegetable Oil - 1 cup Egg - 3 no.s Vanilla essence - 1 tsp Baking powder - 1 tsp Lemon zest - 2 lemons Lemon juice - 2 lemons salt - 1/4 tsp For the drizzle -  Ho...

I have been wanting to bake cookies for quite sometime. The last two attempts of mine was futile and I decided to give it a go once again. This time around I was lucky. I managed to get the heat and the texture somewhere close to what me and those who ate my cookie would call it RIGHT! Peanut Butter and banana are my favorite combination any day and any time. I had ripe bananas with me and I made my own peanut butter - so then that was decided. It is going to be a banana peanut butter cookie. Here is my recipe for those who would like to try out the same. Ingredients All Purpose Flour - 1 and half cup Banana - 4-5 small ones or one big Creamy Peanut butter - 1/4 cup Butter - 1/8 cup Sugar - 1/2 cup Baking soda - 1/4 tsp Egg - 1 Vanilla essence - 1 tsp salt - 1 pinch Method Preheat the oven for 15 minutes. In a bowl, mash the bananas. The riper the bananas, the easier it is to mash. Add in the peanut butter and butter along with the sugar. Stir it in well...

Vattayappam is a popular Kerala delicacy, which traditionally was made in households with left-over appam batter. However now, most of the bakeries in Kerala sell packaged Vattayappam. This can never beat the freshly prepared homemade ones.   Vattayappams are steamed soft rice cakes with a perfect blend of coconut and fermented by yeast to make it fluffy. This is definitely on my Easter Menu.You guy's better rethink yours:) Vattayapam usually has cashew nuts and raisins for richness along with a tinge of cardamom. My recipe has a whole lot of dates which gives it the sweetness and of course you may do away with the sugar that you add.  I picked this recipe from my mother-in-law :) Ingredients Dosa Rice/White Rice -1 cup Dates - 40 to 50 - you may reduce or increase as per your choice. Coconut - 3/4 cup grated Cardamom powder -1/4 tsp Boiled rice - 1/4 cup Cashew nuts and raisins -a handful Salt to taste Yeast -1tbsp Water -1 cup Method Soak t...