Orange and Honey Chicken ...a new year special Colab with Oriya Rasoi and A Dollop of that

As we inch closer to the New year 2016, new resolutions are being made,hearts are filled with new hopes ,plans for reaching out for newer opportunities discussed but here I am stuck with my New Year's Eve dinner menu.

Our house guests left yesterday and it's that time of the year in Goa when people are here for merrymaking and celebrating the festive season and invariably all houses are filled with guests,all resorts ,hotels and shacks are jampacked and Goa is bursting at its seams.

For years have been enjoying the new year in Goa ,partying hard but this time as I was getting my house back in order,pondered whether to be in a crowded ,wild Goa or just spend a quiet New Years eve with my parents and sister and her family in Bangalore.

And my kids shrieked in joy when they heard my plans and thanks to a wonderful better half ...he was ready for a drive down to our destination .And so here I am all packed up and ready to spend a peaceful New Year's Eve with near and dear ones.

Have finally planned to make a succulent,skillet Chicken with savory, tangy, honey orange sauce  for the main course.Nothing beats a hearty home cooked meal with the whole family on the table. This recipe yields a moist, juicy and absolutely delightful chicken steeped in an addictive honey orange sauce  and takes just 20-25 minutes to prepare. Serve the scrumptious chicken with steamed rice and enjoy.
Adapted from rasamalaysia but have tweaked the recipe according to our tastes.

You require

1/2 kg Chicken breasts
1 tbsp Soy sauce
1 tbsp refine oil
3-4 cloves minced garlic
1 tbsp Asian cooking wine,optional
1 orange ,sliced round with the skin
1/2 C coloured peppers,sliced thin
1 tbsp parsley ,chopped
1 tbsp sesame seeds
Salt to taste

For the sauce
1/2 C orange juice
3 1/2 tbsp honey
1-2 tbsp chilli garlic sauce
1 tbsp soy sauce
1/2 tbsp lemon juice
Can adjust the measure of ingredients according to your taste

Method

• Marinate the Chicken breasts with soy sauce and wine and salt which has to be added very little as soy sauce has sodium in it.
• Add all the ingredients under sauce and whisk well.Keep aside.
• In a  heated pan or skillet pan fry the chicken on medium heat till well browned on both sides . keep aside in a platter.
• In the same pan add the oil and fry the minced garlic until slightly browned.
• Add the chicken to the pan followed by the sauce.Turn the heat to low and cook the chicken with the sauce till the sauce reduces a bit.....for nearly 7-8 minutes.
• Add the sliced orange roundels and the coloured pepper,cook for 2 minutes and switch off the flame.
• Garnish with sesame seeds and parsley and serve hot.

A very happy new year 2016 and wishing you all an amazing year ahead !!
And please do have a look at my blogger friends posts before leaving my space.
Sweta's Sticky Chicken Bites here.

Parinaaz's White sauce Chicken Cheese croquettes here.

Christmas Sugar Cookies

  

Baking is much a Christmas tradition as stockings and carols.And  Sugar cookies are a rage in the Christmas season.Nothing beats an iced Sugar cookie made from scratch.... A sinfully sweet Christmas treat .

Our house is filled with the Christmas spirit and the mother and daughter trio brought more cheer by baking these classic old fashioned sugar cookies and decorating them.These pretty cookies are a classic addition to the holiday cookie tray.

By the time we completed decorating them it was past midnight and the kitchen counter was full of sugar,butter,icing,sprinkles ,colours but then we had a whale of a time cutting them out in festive shapes and icing them...the right way to get into the holiday spirit and bonding with each other.

Today evening our house guests arrive for the holidays and my daughters are over the moon planning their days with the elder cousin .Makes me remember my childhood days with our cousins and the gala time we had in the holidays.

This cookie recipe doesn't ask for chilling the cookie dough, but if you still want to chill it you can go ahead.As for decoration a little corn syrup can be added to the sugar mix to give a sheen to the icing but it's optional.

This recipe is adapted from a friend's blog Naive cook cooks.
These pretty sugar cookies go as an entry for Helen of CasaCostello for her baking event Bake of the week.

You require( makes nearly 2 dozen cookies)
1 1/4 C all purpose flour
1/2 C soft Unsalted butter
3/4 C powdered Sugar
1/2 an egg,whisked
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1-2 tbsp milk

For the Icing
1C icing Sugar
2 Tbsp milk
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
Food colouring

Method

• Whisk the flour, baking soda and baking powder together,keep aside.
• In a mixing bowl cream the butter and sugar till fluffy with a hand mixer.
• Add the vanilla and egg,beat .
• Add the dry ingredients gradually and mix.
• Add the milk and form into a soft dough,it should be soft and not wet.
• Knead the dough on a floured surface and if it's wet adjust it with a little flour added to it and if it's dry add a little milk.
• Form into a ball and cover with a cling film and chill it for an hour if chilling the dough, otherwise roll it out straightaway.
• After removing from the fridge wait for a few minutes for the dough to soften so that it's easy to roll it out.
• Roll the dough on a floured surface and with holiday theme cookie cutters cut them out and lay them on a cookie tray with parchment paper.
• Bake them in a preheated oven at 180 deg C for 8-10 mins.If you want them crisp you can bake it a little longer .I like them chewy in the middle and crisp at the sides .
• For the icing ,mix the icing Sugar with the milk and vanilla and make sure the mixture is not flowy,adjust the milk and icing sugar as needed.
• Divide the mix according to the colours you want and transfer them to piping bags,can use zip locks as piping bags.
• While cutting holes in the piping bags make sure the hole isn't too big or it will be difficult to make outlines.
• Decorate the cookies with piping the outlines first and then filling them and spread with a butter knife.
• Decorate with sprinkles and let them set overnight before storing.

Enjoy the soft,chewy,delicious cookies and a merry Christmas !

Gingerbread Mini bundts with a White chocolate ganache drizzle...for the holiday season

Its that time of the year again when the world falls in love,every song you hear seems to say Merry Christmas .....the Christmas waltz playing in my wifi radio ,Christmas cheer everywhere,the aroma of Christmas baking ,a cup of coffee and my laptop...and this is the best moment of this year.

The smell of holiday bread,cookies,cakes ,pies and other goodies is in air.And the blogosphere too overflowing with gingerbread cookies,Yule logs,fruit cakes and cute Santa hats.And baking is so therapeutic and addictive..how can you not contract the baking fever when Christmas is in air.

And how can you not bake gingerbread in Christmas...the old fashioned gingerbread is everyone s holiday favourite.When you bake a gingerbread recipe the smell wafting around the house is wonderful.This time I have made mini gingerbread bundts with a white chocolate ganache drizzle on top.Have been smitten with my mini bundts pan since the time I have got it home.

Gingerbread foods vary from a moist loaf cake to a ginger biscuit ,the ingredients comprise mainly of ginger, spices, honey or molasses.Molasses is used in baked goods to give colour,moistness and flavour.I have used a bundts pan but can be baked in a loaf or square dish too.

This recipe is adapted from Joy of baking.
I am sending these beauties to Helen of Casa Costello for her event Bake of the Week.

You Require (for 9-10 mini bundts)
2 C all purpose Flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 tsp ground ginger
1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground Cloves
Zest of 1 Lemon
1/2 C brown Sugar
1/4 C fine white sugar
2 large Eggs at room temperature
1/2 C butter or3/4 C refine oil
1/2 C molasses,unsulphured
1 C milk
1 tbsp finely chopped fresh ginger or1/4 C chopped crystallized ginger

For the Ganache
1C cream
2 C chopped white chocolate

Method

• Preheat the oven to 180 deg C and grease the dish .
• In a bowl whisk the flour,spices,baking powder, baking soda,lemon zest and chopped ginger.
• With a hand mixer cream the butter and sugar till fluffy,add the eggs one at a time beating well after each addition .
• Add the molasses and beat  to combine.
• Now add the dry ingredients and milk alternately beginning and ending with the dry ingredients.beat till incorporated,finally with a spatula mix the batter with cut and fold method,scraping from the bottom and sides.
• Pour the batter in the pan or the dish and bake for 18-20 mins for the mini bundts and for 30-35 mins for the loaf or square dish or till a toothpick inserted comes out clean.
• Take out from the oven and cool on a wire rack.
• For the ganache  heat the cream in a saucepan ,don't boil.Add it to the chopped chocolate in a bowl,wait for 30 seconds and whisk to melt and combine.
• After it cools to room temperature,pour in a piping bag and drizzle on the bundt cakes.

A Merry Christmas to you all !!