Moist Walnut Cupcakes

How to bake Moist Walnut Cupcakes

                 I crave chocolate. My better half doesn't; so I wanted to bake something else for him on his special day. I chose to bake these delicious treats from Cupcakes by Susanna Tee. I thought it would make us less guilty, if it had at least one healthy ingredient in it (walnuts). The ground walnuts in this cupcake give it a nutty flavor, while the lemon zest & juice adds a zing to it. To make it appetizing to my kids, I chose to add chopped chocolate on top of some of the cupcakes. You can even skip the frosting all together & eat these like muffins, as they are sweet enough all by themselves. Sharing these nutty cupcakes with my fellow bloggers at CCChallenge.

Ingredients for about 8 to 10 cupcakes:

3/4 cup walnuts
4 Tbsp softened butter
½ cup fine sugar
½ cup self-rising white flour (make your own - see notes below)

2 Tbsp lemon zest
2 eggs

walnut halves, to decorate

For the frosting:
4 Tbsp butter, softened
1/2 cup powdered/confectioners' sugar
2 Tbsp lemon zest (optional)
1 tsp lemon juice

Karuppu Ulundhu Sundal

How to make Karuppu Ulundhu Sundal / Whole Black Lentil Snack

         When Navarathri comes around, the first things that cross my mind are Golu, Paatu, Pattu, Sundal & a goody bag of auspicious stuff, along with a one rupee coin :o)  Every house we visit will serve a bowl of warm Sundal. Although delicious, the kids could only eat so many bowls of Sundal. So we would take home the remaining Prasadham to share with our families.

                Navarathri brings along its own share of sweet memories from childhood. It is probably the only time of the year when kids are invited with respect/importance; by grown ups, who normally wouldn't have anything to say to you; except "Where's your Amma"? or "Where's your Patti"? I would come home from school; eager to dress up in pattu pavaadai's & wear some real jewelry (finally!!) and go to almost every house on our street to see their seven or nine step arrangements of beautiful dolls & idols; that are strategically organized in to groups & categories.  Kids, mostly girls would be asked to sing songs in praise of the gods & goddesses. The funny part is, when a girl is singing, there would be so much activity going on around her; It almost feels like no one is paying attention to her song. So much for the respect, I thought we were getting...LOL!!

                 This was probably my first Sundal recipe that was written down in my recipe diary, when I only knew, how to eat :)

Vaazhaipoo Thirattu / Plantain Flower Curry

How to make Vaazhaipoo Thirattu

            Here is a mildly spiced, home style south-indian curry made with fresh plantain flowers and pearl onions, spiced with black sesame seeds & pepper corns that give this curry the dark earthy color & flavors. If you like, you can add about 1/4 cup of coconut milk towards the end & finish off, for a creamier version. 

             If the plantain flower is a new ingredient in your kitchen, please make sure, you check my notes on how to clean it; before you begin. 

'Spreads' Cookie Bars

How to bake quick & easy Cookie bars 

             Although, I like to challenge myself in the kitchen with a tad bit of time consuming, intricate and difficult recipes; there are times when I prefer to keep things quick & simple - so I can do a few more dishes, rather than slave over one item in the given amount of time. Recipes like this one from Ms. Ree Drummond -The Pioneer Woman, which was jotted down in my recipe diary; is just what I needed when company was coming over for a few days. That way, this batch of cookie bars will keep everyone will have something to snack on, anytime of the day; which gives me time to focus on other preparations :o) You can easily double or triple this recipe for a bigger event/crowd. Just dump, spread & bake the dough - it can't get easier than that. 

           These cookie bars are barely sweetened by the brown sugar, but the semi-sweet molten chocolate on the top takes the sweetness up a notch to balance it along with your favorite toppings. Even if you are making a small batch, you can have multiple toppings to suit your needs, like I did. My older one, wanted m&m's. My younger one is a 'sprinkles' fan & I fell in love with slices on snickers on top. These cookie bars, are quite soft, but the toppings you use; adds depth to its texture and can make the top layer - crunchy / nutty / chewy / sticky, as you like it.