Beef Chili

I can never have enough of a bowl of chilli. They are absolutely flavorful and resemble so much with the Indian taste that the first time I had it, I must admit, I fell for it. It's not a big deal to make it at home. Dropping in the ingredients into that pot gets done pretty fast. The wait time to get it cooked, while it slowly simmers, is what I get tired off. Because you keep on smelling the good stuff but you can't have it even though it is on your stove, in your house, in your vicinity but is still not done. But I must say, the wait is worth. Once served there is silence all over because everyone is just focusing on their bowl of chilli. When I say everyone, it includes lil J too. Yeah, my lil guy likes it too.

Have you ever been to Texas Roadhouse? I would have never thought of going into it, if I was not married to this Steak lover :). I remember, going into this restaurant once, when lil J was about 6 months. He screamed his lungs out, that we had to pack up our dinner and leave before we even settled down. The moment we got from there, he got calm too. May be because the restaurant is a bit dark , with loud music and the cowboy dance that everyone claps and cheer for, which might have made him restless. Thereafter we took him back to the same restaurant after he had turned two, and the way he was relishing his bowl of chilli as if he wanted to say "Why haven't you brought me here before? That is delicious" :) . Keeping aside all that story from my past, here is the recipe for the chilli we made at home and got over real fast. So you may wanna double up that recipe, if you guys are also a chilli fan like us.

Vegetable Cutlet

I sometimes wonder where the time went by when I see/hear Jordan. He is growing up fast and I wish I could just stop time from flying away. I hardly have any time for myself after having taken him to the park or library or other activities and the household chores. So I had been missing from the blogging world for a while now, untill last week and I loved the break. I hope to update it frequently everytime I return from a break, but I fail. Lazy me, I say. Anyways, this time I hope to update frequently.

Myself and Big J used to speak in english, when we wanted to talk something that we didn't want Lil J to hear. Now the stage has come that Lil J has started to pick up on english(overhearing our conversation and grasping it). So if you come visit us, you will see both of us spelling the words out so that Jordan can't get it. I don't see those days far when he will pick the spellings as well.

Chicken Cutlet/ Chicken Croquettes

I have a little Chicken fan here. He loves it in any form...soups, appetizers, main dishes, curry etc. Since we had started cutting down on fried stuff, cutlets have made a rare appearance on our menu. But this lil guy's fantasy for having cutlets having seen it in TV, made me make some cutlets with his own favorite thing, chicken.

I have no clue how these disappeared in minutes time. They were super crisp on the outside and flavourful inside. They made a perfect snack time for us. You could also serve it as sides with meals or may be stuff it in burgers too.

Simple and refreshing Salad

When my cousins visited us, I made Kerala special lunch for them. Having seen the dishes that could stuff someone up with huge calories, they asked surprisingly if that was what we usually have everyday. Well, we may not have that many number of dishes on a single day, but it is what we usually have on our menu.

Now that they were on diet and having inspired by their routine and how it has been helping them cut down unwanted/extra pounds, we thought we could also go by that rule - eat healthy, stay healthy. We too switched to salads instead of fried snacks for tea.

Idichakka Cutlet / Tender Jackfruit Cutlet / Tender Jackfruit Croquettes

Have you ever tried Idichakka cutlet? Oh yeah, you heard me right. Idichakka cutlet.... One small family and one idichakka bought, can turn into multiple dishes. Yes, its made out of the same idichakka I made Idichakka thoran out of :). After all, having it in the same form becomes boring, so I tried it and amazingly turned out to be a hit.

Jacob was not in for the cutlet plan. He thought it would just another weird idea/recipe that he would have to become a guinea pig for. But when he had it, he was like, "Really.....Idichakka cutlet... it's so amazing". Anyways, I am glad that it turned out so good and was a success.

Lettuce wraps

Lettuce wraps are a must to order when we are at P F Chang's. We love it. Every bite is so refreshing with the crunchy lettuce and made yummy with the filling in it. 

I just wanted to recreate something similar at home. Couple of times that we made earlier were not that great. Finally this version seemed to be getting much more closer to the ones that we usually have.

Pig in a blanket ~ Super Bowl Special

The first year I was here in US, I hardly knew the game and my husband made a big deal about the Super Bowl. We may not be regular at watching the whole season but the finals would be never missed. We stayed home and I made snacks to munch(the only excitement part for me) while we watched the game. I learnt a bit about it and then having watched it, it turned out to be exciting.

The next year, I too joined the excitement club along with Jacob. I was excited to cook as well as watch the game. So thats how we made Meat Balls , last year. This is the third year in a row that the excitement continues and I somehow think if it has become a tradition for us. Nah.... Because, this time it was me who got excited and reminded Jacob of the so called 'tradition' that we were starting to develop. So I am wondering if next year either of us would remember. Or may be Jacob would have cleverly decided to not remind me, else he would be dragged into the kitchen to help me :P.