Variety is the spice of life

But it sure does clutter up the cupboards...

I found:
9 types of tea
6 types of coffee
2 empty containers
and some miscellaneous stuff

Some recommendations

I havent taken many pics lately, and the ones I have taken are not yet uploaded...

but I did want to share with you a couple fantastic recipes I tried from the WWW.

This snakegourd recipe was fabulous. Unfortunately, I realized I didnt have any potatoes(can you believe it?) so it went unstuffed, but we loved it anyway. Had with long beans poriyal and rice.

This one for nadan chicken roast(kerala) was also really good and spicy(use lots of green chili).

Mango-JFI

When Indira announced this month's event based on mangoes, I was excited.

One of my favs came to mind.... sweet mango chutney! But I figured someone else may have done it, and probably done it better. I had made this mango crisp earlier in the month, and it was fabulous, but I wanted to try something new.

Just this week I bought ceramic ramekins and I was eager to try them out on something. So, that's it! Mango Creme Brulee!!

No, I've never made creme brulee before, but how hard could it be? Armed with my overconfidence that I dont really 'need' to follow a recipe, I concocted this one- a conglomerate of several I saw online.... But not before struggling with the question of whether to puree the mango or make small bits and pour the custard over them. I went with the puree.

1c heavy cream
1c whole milk
4egg yolks
1/3 c (a little more) sugar
1 ripe mango
vanilla extract
cardamom
pinch of salt
pinch of chili powder(yes, I'm that daring)

*Oh, how I was tempted to infuse ginger into the boiled milk! I resisted this urge because I know if I screw up this creme brulee on my first try I may never make it again, so didnt want to risk it.*

Oven preheated to 300

1. Take 4 eggs from fridge and bring to room temperature.
2. Peel and chop the mango.
3. Fight over who gets to suck the pit.
4. Puree the mango in mixie or food processor till smooth.
5. If you want to be a purist, you can also take the pains to strain the pulp. I did this because I thought it will make the finished product smoother. I spared no effort for you, my blog friends!
6.Separate the egg white and yolk(Use the whites for something, I dont know, maybe an omelette) Again, if you are nit-picky, you can remove the little white strands attached to the yolks. Yes, I did.

Achaari Aloo

I've been planning to try out achaari murgh for a while now, but didnt have chicken at home, so I made it with potatoes.