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Saturday, March 31, 2012
Wenchkin's Mail Art 366 - Day 104
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Friday, March 30, 2012
Wenchkin's Mail Art 366 - Day 103
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Thursday, March 29, 2012
Wenchkin's Mail Art 366 - Day 102
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Wednesday, March 28, 2012
Wenchkin's Mail Art 366 - Day 101
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Tuesday, March 27, 2012
Wenchkin's Mail Art 366 - Day 100
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Monday, March 26, 2012
Wenchkin's Mail Art 366 - Day 99
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Sunday, March 25, 2012
Recipe: Vegetarian Indian Paneer Butter Masala
Union Riveter Krissi is switching from studio-mode to kitchen-mode today for a recipe!
Long time, no see, fellow riveters!!! Once again, my pal and neighbor Bindavi comes through with a tasty and authentic vegetarian recipe - this time it's on her blog and it's called Paneer Butter Masala.
BUT WAIT!!!! Before you run off to attempt the recipe yourself, let me fill you in on a few of 'Krissi's white-girl tips for cooking Indian food.'
First, let me answer the "what the heck is paneer?" question:
Paneer is basically Indian cottage cheese - however, instead of being a globs of curds in milky whey, the moisture is squeezed out and the curds are formed into a block. Paneer has a similar texture to very firm tofu, but has a bit more flavor and has a melted consistency when fried properly. You can find it in most markets near the tofu, in your local Indian grocery and even at Costco! Paneer can be served in various curries and is even found in some rice and salad recipes. It is low fat, high protein and did I mention, while it's a "cheese," it is made without rennet. There are also quite a few easy recipes on the internet for making your own paneer. When I try it, I'll be sure to let you all know!
Next - some ingredient clarification. British-English from India is NOT the same as American English in many situations. For example, in America, when we see "chili powder" in a recipe, we reach for this:
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Ingredients: Chili Pepper, Cumin, Oregano, Salt, Garlic |
But in an Indian recipe/grocery, it means this:
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Ingredients: Red Chili Peppers |
Bindavi and I had a good laugh at that. I did have some Cayenne Powder in my pantry that was unopened, so I grabbed that!
More on spices: do yourself a favor and if your cumin/coriander, etc. have been open for a while, toss them and replace them. Seriously. If you have any questions, find your local Indian Grocery and ask questions. I've always found local small shopkeepers to be infinitely helpful. While my containers of spice were new, we ended up doubling most of the spices to achieve the right taste.
Bindavi grinds her cashews in a coffee/spice grinder to a very find powder, but I used my small Cuisinart and it came out with a corn meal consistency. My gravy came out less creamy, but had a nice ground beef texture. It takes a little practice.
When you deep fry the paneer, it's messy unless you have a well seasoned cast iron pan or a non-stick pot. Otherwise, just go with it. Make sure the oil is HOT before you fry your paneer so it will soak up as little oil as possible.
Final tip: when cooking down the tomatoes, look for the oil and tomato to 'separate' a little.
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you can see the oil 'separating' in the center of the pan when you see this, the tomatoes are finished cooking down |
Paneer is fast becoming one of my meal staples. It's low fat, high in protein, low in carbohydrates and tastes YUMTASTIC! Expect a link to a spinach paneer recipe from Bindavi in the near future!
Well?? What are you waiting for??? Go try that recipe now!
Bindavi's blog, KurtiTown.blogspot.com features authentic Indian recipes, cultural tidbits and fashion. Visit her shop on ArtFire to see her collection of Indian style tunics called kurtis. These tunics are rich in embroidery, brocade work and embellishments designed on high quality fabric. Kurtis can be paired with your favourite jeans, pants or leggings and by interchanging the kurti with different pants, you can create a completely new look every time you wear one of our creations.
Krissi Sandvik is a mixed-media artist, DIY group Corporate Rejects member and the owner of Krissi's Art Studio, home of Skelekitty and Friends. She was recently named "best tutorialer on the web" by her friend Rachelle Rose. She loves Indian food. And Mexican food. And Thai food. And....
Wenchkin's Mail Art 366 - Day 98
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Saturday, March 24, 2012
Wenchkin's Mail Art 366 - Day 97
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Friday, March 23, 2012
Wenchkin's Mail Art 366 - Day 96
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Thursday, March 22, 2012
Wenchkin's Mail Art 366 - Day 95
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Cherry & Custard Turnovers.
Every other weekend I try and bake something delicious to keep in the tin for my boyfriend to snack on during the week (or for the first couple of days at the very least). One of the fastest and easiest things to whip up is a bunch of fruit and custard turnovers.
This first image here of a perfectly turned out turnover is not mine, it's from a google image search. This is to illustrate what a delicious and perfect turnover looks like, because due to an oven failure during baking, mine did not turn out looking quite so wonderful. However they still tasted AMAZING... and afterall, it's what is inside that counts.
I chose blueberry filling for mine, you can buy tinned blueberries or fresh blueberries, it really doesn't matter, although beware most canned fruit will have added sugar and will have lost it's
tartness in the process.
I used some fresh blueberries that I had saved in my freezer. To prepare frozen or fresh blueberries (or almost any other fruit) for baking in pastry, you'll need to heat it them up until they become mushy.
I don't add sugar in this case because blueberries aren't very sharp, and there is already sugar in the custard which will balance out the tartness in the chosen fruit anyway. If you were making the turnovers without custard, then you may want to add some sugar to taste.
As for the custard, it really doesn't matter what kind you use. Traditionally made, instant, canned, or from a carton it doesn't make any difference.
You will need to roll out a sheet of puff pastry, just don't roll it out too thin or your fruit will burst out. About 4mm (1/6 of an inch) should just about do it.
Then cut your pastry in to squares of about 6 or 7 inches.
As the blueberries simmered, their liquid reduces slightly making them less likely to leak out of the pastry. If you find there is too much liquid, just sieve it out.
Place one heaped teaspoon of custard, and one heaped teaspoon of blueberries on to one side of one of the squares of pastry.
Then fold the piece of pastry over diagonally, corner to corner.
Use some water on your finger to close any edges you want to seal (water on pastry acts like glue) and also repair any tears that might have happened using pastry scraps and water.
You will want to make sure the edges of your pastry are as well sealed as they possibly can be, otherwise you will ened up with a river of blueberries and custard
Pressing the edges with a fork is a traditionaly way of edging a pastry, but it really doesn't matter how you do it as long as it's gota good seal.
Don't forget to prick the middle of the pastry to allow steam to escape during baking.
Once you have your turnovers all laid out on a tray, put them in a pre-heated oven at 180°C (360°F) for about 20-30 minutes.
They are ready when they have puffed up and are golden brown. Like the image at the top of this page, and less like this one to the left.
The turnovers to the left didn't get their full amount of time in the oven, and so didn't puff up to their full potential!
An excellent way to hide failed pastry, is by covering it in icing sugar!
Good luck, and enjoy!
This post was written by M.R. Riveter Ranon LaZombie. Owner and creator of Rocky the Zombie designs
Wednesday, March 21, 2012
Wenchkin's Mail Art 366 - Day 94
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Tuesday, March 20, 2012
Wenchkin's Mail Art 366 - Day 93
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Monday, March 19, 2012
Wenchkin's Mail Art 366 - Day 92
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Sunday, March 18, 2012
Wenchkin's Mail Art 366 - Day 91
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Saturday, March 17, 2012
Wenchkin's Mail Art 366 - Day 90 - St Patrick's Day
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Friday, March 16, 2012
Wenchkin's Mail Art 366 - Day 89
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Thursday, March 15, 2012
Wenchkin's Mail Art 366 - Day 88
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Wednesday, March 14, 2012
Wenchkin's Mail Art 366 - Day 87
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Tuesday, March 13, 2012
Wenchkin's Mail Art 366 - Day 86
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Monday, March 12, 2012
Wenchkin's Mail Art 366 - Day 85
Getting mail is AWESOME , and it it is mail art, then it is 10 times more amazing! This would also be a really fun project for kids!
If you would like to check out the whole project I currently have it housed on google plus here
Sunday, March 11, 2012
Wenchkin's Mail Art 366 - Day 84
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Saturday, March 10, 2012
Wenchkin's Mail Art 366 - Day 83
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Friday, March 9, 2012
Wenchkin's Mail Art 366 - Day 82
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Thursday, March 8, 2012
Wenchkin's Mail Art 366 - Day 81
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Wednesday, March 7, 2012
Wenchkin's Mail Art 366 - Day 80
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