Happy's Cook

Tuesday, December 31, 2024

Chocolate Covered Strawberries in Cup | London Viral Chocolate Strawberry Recipe

As we say farewell to 2024 and embrace the arrival of 2025, I just wanted to take a moment to wish you all a Happy New Year! 🥂✨

This past year, I didn’t manage to write any blog posts—until this very moment! But, as tradition goes, I couldn’t let the year end without sharing at least one recipe. I've been posting every year since 2013, and I wasn’t about to break that streak in 2024! Even though life got busy, I’m excited to share this quick, simple recipe with you all just in time to ring in the new year.

Looking ahead, I’m hopeful that 2025 will bring more time and inspiration for delicious posts, new recipes, and all things food! 🍽️

Wishing you all a fantastic 2025 filled with love, laughter, and plenty of sweet moments! ✨ Now, let’s dig into these indulgent Chocolate-Covered Strawberries in Cups and celebrate the start of a brand new year! 🍓🍫

Cheers to a bright and delicious 2025! 🥳🎉

Lamington Reindeer Recipe | Christmas Party Snack

This is the season to savor and celebrate! Before we dive into today's recipe, I want to extend my warmest wishes to you. May your Christmas be filled with laughter, your holidays be brimming with joy, and your tables adorned with culinary delights! Advanced Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays, dear readers!

Let's move on to today's festive delight – Lamington Reindeer! Now, to be frank, it's not so much a recipe as it is a creative assembly of readily available treats. The Lamington Reindeer is a delightful twist on the classic lamington, infusing a touch of holiday whimsy into these delectable delights. So, get ready for a playful and stress-free way to add a dash of festive charm to your celebrations. Let the assembling fun begin!

If you can't find lamingtons in your area, why not make them yourself? Simply cut sponge cakes into cubes, coat them in melted chocolate, and generously roll them in desiccated coconut.

Brinjal Peanut Masala Recipe

Hello, dear readers! It's been more than a year, and I'm finally back on the blog after an unintended break. Life has a way of throwing unexpected challenges, and for me, this past year has been a rollercoaster of emotions, loss, and rediscovery. Balancing my full-time job and family responsibilities kept me incredibly busy, with blogging taking a back seat. In the midst of this whirlwind, I felt really sad when my dad, who was always strong and wise, passed away. It left a big emptiness in my life, and the normal things I used to do every day felt really hard. It was like facing a huge mountain I didn't think I could climb. Grief can change how we see things and what matters most to us. The joy I've always found in food blogging has been a source of comfort in the past, and I'm hopeful that it will continue to provide solace during this challenging time.

As the saying goes, time heals wounds, and with each passing day, I will find strength in the memories of my father and the lessons he imparted—especially those about the importance of savoring life's simple pleasures. So, here I am, dusting off my apron and rekindling the flames on my stove, ready to embrace the therapeutic art of cooking and blogging once again.

Join me on this journey back to relaxation, where I will try to share simple, comforting recipes. Let's find peace in the midst of life's chaos, one delicious dish at a time.

Chocolate Banana Cake Recipe

Hello everyone!! It's been a while since I posted anything in the blog. Today I am sharing the delicious chocolate banana cake that combines the sweet flavor of ripe bananas with chocolate. Making something with ripe bananas on weekends is my weekly routine since nobody at home likes to eat ripe bananas. Usually, I make unniyappam or whole wheat banana muffins or banana bread, but after trying this recipe, I am making this frequently as we all love this chocolate banana flavor.

Kerala Egg Roast Recipe | Egg Roast | Chef Pillai Kerala Egg Roast Recipe

I spent my free time scrolling food pages in Instagram and some of the Kerala based food pages are so addictive. One such page is Chef Pillai and I love all his dishes. His dishes remind me of food at my maternal grand mothers house and I always drool over his egg roast which he pairs with Kerala parotta or Idiyappam. Recently, I am making it quiet often at home and hence thought of sharing it here.

Zucchini Corn Fritters Recipe | Vegetable Fritters

Wishing you all a very happy new year 2022. May the new year brings much happiness, peace and prosperity, and the world will be a safe place again. Today I am sharing a simple fritter recipe which I got from a local supermarket magazine. The original recipe uses halloumi along with corn and zucchini. I didn't have it in hand and I substituted it with grated cheese. It tasted so delicious and I love the addition of spring onion. It can be whipped super quickly for an evening snack.

Walnut Chutney Recipe | Walnut Coconut Chutney

Idli and dosa are staple food in any south Indian house. Also, it would be amazing if we can make different side dish each time. I learned about this Walnut Chutney from Malathy's Instagram feed about two years back. From then this is one of the common chutney I make at home. To be honest, walnut is one my least favorite nuts for eating it as raw. So, I always try to include it in my baking or cooking as this is the easiest way to consume this nutritious nut. I have already compiled 15+ different chutney recipes for easy reference and if you make any of this chutney, please send a message in my Instagram page.

Badhusha Recipe | Balushahi | Badusha | Diwali Special 2021

Happy Diwali to all my readers in advance!! The most interesting part of being a food blogger is to celebrate each and every festival, as food is an important part of any celebration, whether it is religious or not. I was planning to post at least one new recipe for this Diwali and I am here today with this amazing recipe. I tried making it last weekend and it turned out so delicious. However, I was not satisfied with the final look and also wanted to tweak the recipe a little bit before sharing it here. This weekend I attempted it again, the outcome was as per my expectation and I am here with the recipe. If you are interested for other Diwali recipes, please visit this page where I have compiled together 80+ Diwali sweets and savory snacks.

Orange Poppy Seed Cake Recipe

Hello everyone!! I am back to my little happy space after a 6 month break. For me, personally there was a lot going on over the last few months and blogging took a back seat. I am back to full time job after 5 year career break. Between the pandemic, a new job, working from home, home schooling and some family circumstances, it just took its toll on me both mentally and emotionally. Most of the days I found myself tired and any sort of productivity outside of work hours and regular chores went out of the window. However, over the last few weekends I wanted to get back to blogging. I am not here for any sorts of revenue, I do this because it makes me happy. I might not be active like before, however I will try to do some posts over the weekend.

Last weekend I got fresh oranges from a farm and wanted to make use of it in some recipe. I tried this cake and the pictures didn't turn out as per my expectation since I overbaked the cake and the top was browned a bit more. Today, the oranges were still fresh and I made it again. It is one of the best tea cakes that I made recently and the flavor was so good. Do try this recipe and share me the feedback.

Ela Ada Recipe | Elai Adai | Elayappam | Elai Adai with sweet filling | Steamed rice cakes with jaggery & coconut filling

Ela Ada is one of the traditional Kerala delicacy and it is normally made using roasted rice flour, coconut and jaggery. However, variety of stuffing can be used while making this elai adai. I have already shared Chakka(Jackfruit) Ela Ada. This is one of my most favourite naalu mani palaharam and it tastes delicious with a cup of chai.

Mango Salsa Recipe | Mango & Mint Salsa | Mango Salsa with corn chips

Mango salsa is versatile and makes a perfect appetizer, side dish or condiment for get-togethers. We just pick a pack of corn chips from the supermarket and carry this homemade mango salsa for a picnic in the park. If the mango is not in season, I make it with any available fruits and we all love it. This recipe is quick and easy to make, and always so fresh and delicious. We are almost at the end of mango season here in Australia, so thought of sharing this recipe before the season ends. Do check out my other mango recipes in the below links:

Lotus Biscoff Pudding Recipe | Lotus Biscoff Biscuit & Cream Pudding | Biscoff Pudding | Biscuit Pudding

Biscoff is one of my favourite biscuits and I always grab a pack whenever I see it in Coles and Woolworths. Also, I always have a jar of biscoff spread in my pantry to have with bread. During the lockdown in 2020, most of the supermarket's baking section was almost empty. People were going crazy to find a pack of yeast, flour, baking powder etc. Along with that one of the fast moving product was this lotus biscoff and I couldn't find a single pack for more than 3 to 4 months. I was wondering about the reason for the non availability and later figured out through an article in Daily Mail Australia, that a Sydney based blogger Walla had created a viral recipe using this and people were emptying the shelfs to try it. I too wanted to give it a try since then.

Finally, I could grab a few packs towards the end of last year and I tried it. It was so delicious and we started having it whenever we crave for ice creams. I was planning to post it during Christmas but I was not satisfied with the pictures I took. On valentines day this year, I made it again and clicked it. This is a very easy recipe and we do not need to follow the exact measurements. Just layering the biscuit, cream and spread will give you a fabulous dessert.

If you could not find Lotus Biscoff in your part of the world, you can make this with any available biscuit spread and biscuits. The lotus biscoff gives you caramelised taste and any biscuit with similar flavour will work best for this recipe. You could make chocolate flavoured pudding with any chocolate biscuit and Nutella spread.

Ragi Malt Recipe | Ragi Sweet Porridge | Ragi Kanji

Ragi is very nutritious, it is rich in iron and calcium. When I was in Chennai, I always have homemade ragi flour in stock. I used to give ragi porridge sweetened with karupatti for Happy until she was 3 years old. However, after we move to Sydney I stopped making it since I couldn't source the ragi flour. Recently, I bought a pack of ragi flour from an Indian store and we are having this ragi malt as our breakfast once in a while. It can be made in a jiffy and it is a very filling breakfast when we prepare it with milk and almond powder.

I also grabbed a pack of the whole ragi for making homemade ragi flour and I will be sharing the process soon. Please have a look at the other ragi recipes from the blog in the below links:

Pressure Cooker Prawn Biryani Recipe | Prawn Biryani | Shrimp Biryani

I make pressure cooker biryani very often and in my opinion, it is one of the easy to make one pot dish. Though I have already shared layered prawn biryani, and prawn fried rice, I always wanted to share this easy one pot biryani recipe here. In this recipe, I have used coconut milk since it goes very well with the prawn and it makes the biryani rich. However, you can always replace it with water if you don't prefer coconut milk.

Idli using Idli Rava Recipe | Soft Idli using Idli Rava in Mixie | South Indian Soft Idli

All my new year's resolutions were usually forgotten in a day or two. However, to keep up one of my resolutions, I have worked really hard this month and managed to share 8 new recipes here. Idli is a very common breakfast in our home and I have already shared my Idli Dosa batter here. Making Idli using Idli Rava was very new to me and I came to know about this from my colleague Rama when I was with TCS. She is from Andra Pradesh and at her home, they always do it this way. I asked her the recipe and tried it for the first time when I was in Chennai. Since then I have wanted to share the recipe here and it is happening now.

Coffee Walnut Cake Recipe | Coffee Cake with whipped cream frosting | Coffee Whipped Cream Cake

I was planning to share some new cake recipes during Christmas 2020. However, I was completely occupied with the Christmas traditional snack preparations and school holidays. Finally, I am sharing one of my recent favourite cakes that received lots of appreciation from my friends who are neighbours. I made this as a 2 layer cake for Jany's birthday last year and we all loved it. However, I was not satisfied with the images that I clicked on that day. Recently I made it again, mainly for the blog post and I am satisfied with the end result. I have shared the step by step video of this recipe without the icing in my Instagram handle and saved it under the highlight "Coffee Cake". Do check it out if you are interested. Also, for more interesting cake recipes, please visit my Christmas Special page.

Banana Ghee Roast Recipe | Caramelised Banana Ghee Roast | Ghee Roasted Banana

Nenthrapazham or ethan pazham is one of the healthiest banana for growing children. I have heard from elders in my family that it helps children with healthy weight gain. If you could find this banana in the place where you live, please give this simple recipe a try and you will thank me later. This banana ghee roast can be made in a jiffy and it can be served to kids as an after-school snack along with a glass of vella chaya(milk 😜).

Channa Masala Recipe | Chickpea masala without coconut | Chole Masala

Chickpeas are one of my most favourite ingredients and I always try to include it in some form every week in our menu. When I make puttu, I pair it with kerala style kadala curry. For appam or idiyappam, I make varutharacha kadala curry or kadala kuruma with coconut. I grow up eating these coconut-based chickpea curries and I love it a lot. However, all these curries are bit elaborate and time-consuming.

Today I am sharing a north Indian style channa masala which I am making often these days for poori and chapati. This is my go-to recipe when I am in a rush or whenever I am very lazy to cook. The combinations we can try with this channa masala are endless, it goes very well with Jeera rice/pulao, roti/poori and sometimes we eat it with appam/dosa too. Let us learn to make this simple channa masala today. Also, please check out my Channa Masala Sundal and Channa Biryani recipe too.

Bread Pizza Recipe | Kid's Birthday Party Snacks

We have passed the school holidays halfway mark and I am literally busy all day long. Hoping to get back to my routine once the school reopens. Recently, Happy has shown much interest in the snacks and bakes I try at home. She had this bread pizza at her friend's birthday party and since then she has asked me to make it for her. Last week when I made the white sandwich bread, I thought of giving it a try and used the minimal toppings that was available at home. It came out so good and we all liked it. I have used store bought pizza sauce for this recipe. However, I have shared the instant pizza sauce recipe that can be made at home in the notes section. I will try to post the authentic pizza sauce sometime soon.

Banana Puttu Recipe | Kerala Ethakka Puttu | Nendrapazham Puttu

If you follow me on Instagram, you will surely know about my love for puttu. It is one of my most favourite breakfasts and to make it more interesting for others at home, I try different combinations. Recently, I found ethan pazham(Kerala Banana) in an Indian shop and I was very much excited since I saw it for the first time in Sydney. I grabbed some and my blogging mind started thinking for the recipes to try. I made this banana puttu, pazham pori and ghee roasted banana. The banana puttu turned out so delicious and we loved it very much. Let us move on to the recipe and do check out the other puttu variations that I had shared earlier in the below links: