CHICKEN AND MANGO SALAD

 

If you are looking to lose some of that lockdown weight, the best substitute for a meal would be a salad- a big bowl of healthy goodness that is delicious and will keep you from piling on calories. A perfect salad typically ought to include greens, fresh vegetables and fruits, proteins, healthy fats and insoluble fibre but let’s think beyond leafy greens and spruce up the traditional recipes.

Get adventurous with your ingredients. You’ll know you’ve got the perfect salad as long as you have something crunchy, something sweet, something creamy and a little bit of tangy added to that bowl.

If you are a vegetarian, you can substitute the chicken with alternate sources of protein such as cooked beans or tofu.

If the thought of mango with chicken (which by the way pairs up beautifully) perturbs you, you can add red grapes instead or skip fruit altogether.

You can reduce the quantity of mayonnaise and add sour cream or yogurt to it.

The possibilities are endless!

I have more exciting and simple salad recipes coming up. Please do follow me on Facebook and Instagram @lucidlucent and show some love. Thank you.

CHICKEN AND MANGO SALAD

 

Ingredients:

Chicken (boneless) – 200 gms

Oil – 1tbsp

Half a lemon peel

Sweet Chilli Sauce – 3 tbsp

Mango – 1

Red/Yellow Bell pepper – half a large sized one

English cucumber – 1

Onion (small) – ½

Almonds – 10

A slice of bread

Salt, pepper – to taste  

Mayonnaise – ¼ cup

 

Method:

1.     Place the chicken in a pan. To this add salt, half the lemon peel and add water until the chicken is just covered.

2.     Bring the water to a boil, reduce to a simmer, cover and cook until the chicken is fully cooked.

3.     Drain the water and once the chicken has cooled, shred it and add it to a greased pan. Fry the pieces of chicken until they are nicely browned. Add the sweet chilli sauce to this, sauté for a seconds and set aside.

4.     Dice the mango, cucumber and bell pepper. Slice the onion and set aside.

5.     Toast almonds and set aside.

6.   Slather garlic butter on the slice of bread, cut it into small squares and toast these squares until they have browned.

7.   In a bowl, add the veggies and shredded chicken. To this add the mayonnaise and mix well.

8.     Add a little salt and pepper and toss the salad.

9.     Add the garlic croutons and almonds just before serving.

10. Done.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

EGGLESS MANGO SEMOLINA CAKE

 

I wanted to get this mango recipe out while the fruit was still in season.

I already have a recipe for a Mango Cake on my blog. This one is with Semonlina /Rawa/Sooji. I have been seeing recipes/ pictures of Rawa cake all over the internet and wondered what the hype was all about and when I found this recipe (from Love and Flour by Pooja) with mango in it, I thought it was time to finally bake the Rawa Cake.

As always, I scoured the net for different recipes until I settled on this one as this is from a tried and tested blog. While this recipe calls for using Rawa as is, some of the other recipes called for grinding the Rawa into a fine powder. (I didn’t grind the Rawa)

This was the first time I had eaten Rawa cake and I did not like it, it felt like eating mango flavoured upma. I did not like the texture. Would I bake this cake again ? No. I wonder how it might have tasted had I powdered the Rawa.

If you like Rawa cakes, you may try this cake out. It has a mild mango flavour, is moist and crumbly and if it weren’t for the grainy texture, I would have liked it too. Sky, who detests Upma, enjoyed this cake while Skip who loves Upma (he and I have it with sugar) kept feeling mysteriously full , each time I offered the cake.  

For more mango recipes, stay home, stay safe and follow me on Facebook and Instagram (Lucidlucent).

MANGO SEMOLINA CAKE

 

Ingredients:

Semolina (Rawa) – 1 ¼ cup

All-purpose flour (maida) -1/4 cup

Sugar – ¾ cup

Baking powder- 1 tsp

Baking soda – ½ tsp

Butter (melted) – 1/3 cup

Yogurt – ½ cup

Mango pulp – ½ cup

Chopped nuts – 2 tsp (optional)

 

Method:

1.     Grease a loaf pan.

2.     In a bowl, add the semolina, flour, sugar, melted butter, yogurt, mango pulp and mix well. Cover and let it rest for 30 minutes.

3.     15 minutes into the resting time, pre-heat the oven at 180C.

4.     After 30 minutes (Step 2), add baking powder and baking soda to the above mixture and whisk well. If the batter feels too thick, you may add 1 or 2 tbsps of milk.

5.     Pour the batter into the greased dish. Add chopped nuts on top.

6.     Bake for 35-40 mins or until done.

7.     Done.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

VANILLA CAKE WITH MANGO GLAZE

Our last mango recipe was the Mango Cake which I felt was not bursting enough with the mango flavour. Hence I decided to bake a simple vanilla cake and make a mango glaze to pour over the cake.

This is the simplest Vanilla Cake ever! The cake is from Nigella Lawson’s Pineapple Upside Down recipe.  You just have to dump all ingredients into a blender, give it a good whiz until the ingredients are fully combined to form a smooth batter and voila, it’s ready to go into the oven. I bake this cake often and use the same recipe for cupcakes as it comes out super-duper soft.

The mango glaze is sweet and wee bit tangy (I didn’t add too much sugar to the glaze) and goes perfectly well with the vanilla cake. It’s simple to make, sets really well on the cake and makes the cake look prettier. You may add chopped mangoes (or other fruits), whipped cream or chocolate (sauce) on it.

VANILLA CAKE WITH MANGO GLAZE

Ingredients:

For the cake:

Castor sugar – 100 gms (I used powdered sugar)

Baking powder – 1 tsp

Baking soda – 0.25 tsp

water – 3 tbsp

Butter (at room temperature) – 100 gms

Flour – 100 gms

Eggs - 2

Vanilla Essence – 1 tsp

For the glaze:

Mango puree – 1 cup

Sugar – 2 tsp (use more, if the mango is tart)

Cornflour  - 3 tsp   

Method:

1.  For the glaze : Heat the mango puree, sugar and corn flour in a pan until the liquid begins to thicken and changes colour. Set aside to cool.

2.      For the cake: Preheat over to 200C. Grease and flour a 6 inch cake tin.

3.   Add all the ingredients into the mixie and run the motor until the batter is smooth. Then, add water to thin it a little.

4.      Pour the batter into the prepared cake tin and bake it at 180C for 20-25 mins.

5.   Remove the cake from the tin and once it cools, pour the glaze on it and spread with evenly.

6.      Done.

MANGO CAKE

I opened the refrigerator door to find a plate full of mangoes. As has become my habit, I took a mango out, held it close to my nose and sniffed it. I love the scent of mangoes. I wondered if I should make the mango kulfi again, though I must admit, I’m getting a bit tired of it now after having made it three times already.  I want to make a mango cheesecake but I do not have cream cheese or gelatine. Want to make a no-bake oreo cheesecake? 

Yeah, they were all yellow!

I scrolled through recipes on the internet and decided to make a mango cake. It looked so lovely and yuellow! I was also curious to see how the cake would turn out as the butter is rubbed into the flour instead of being whisked with the wet ingredients.

 Recently, I was craving for a brownie and decided to bake the ooey-gooey fudgy brownie. I must have been distracted while baking, for I added the ingredients in the wrong order and didn’t realise it until I noticed the batter looked funny. Baking disasters always upset me, however Skip is generally around to infuse optimism.  “It has chocolate in it, how wrong can it go, I’ll eat it”, said he. The brownie didn’t come out as expected but I was pleasantly surprised at the way it turned out. I had created the brookie (brownie + cookie). It was crisp and crinkly on the top and chewy on the inside. All’s well that ends well.

The mango cake looks so pretty! It’s yellow too! The cake is moist and soft. Sky and Skip loved it. Here is why I didn’t like it much. I had a big smile on my face as I brought the slice of cake near my mouth, I was expecting an explosion of the mango flavour in my mouth and all I got was an aftertaste of something that tasted like the raw mango candy. I don’t like it when my ‘happy smile’ disappears in an instant.

Would I bake the cake again ? Probably yes, it would make an excellent base, it’s soft and spongy and could taste better with buttercream on it. Skip and Sky thought it was perfect.

MANGO CAKE

Ingredients:

All purpose flour (maida) – 100 gms + 1 tbsp

Castor sugar – 100 gms

Baking powder – 1 tsp

Salt – a pinch

Butter – 42 gms (3 tbsps)

Egg – 1

Mango puree – 60 ml (one medium sized mango)

Milk – 2.5 tbsp

Vanilla essence – 1 tsp

Method:

1.      Preheat oven to 180C and grease a 6 inch tin.

2.     In a bowl, whisk together the wet ingredients –egg, mango puree, milk and vanilla essence until smooth.

3.   In a separate bowl, sieve together the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. To this, rub in the butter until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs.

4.  Add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients and whisk it well until the batter turns smooth and forms ribbons while falling.

5.    Bake it for 35-40 mins.

6.    Done

Recipe notes:

•      I do not have castor sugar, so I used powdered sugar.
•     This is a small cake, do not bake it in larger tin.
•      To get the breadcrumbs texture, the butter ought not to be too soft. I used my hands to rub it into the flour mixture.

MANGO MILKSHAKE

I recall having mango milkshake in beer mugs as a child. Those were the tallest glasses we had at home, Mamma would fill the glasses till the brim and sprinkle a few chopped cashews on top. We'd all end up with a mango moustache. 

One can rarely go wrong with a dish that has mango in it (unless you're making some fancy shmancy 17-ingredient baked item). The taste of the mango is such that it overpowers all other ingredients. 

The milkshake I've made is with ice cream. You can adjust the quantities or limit the ingredients based on your taste preference or availability of ingredients. Ice-cream makes the milkshake thicker and adds an extra creaminess and sweetness to it. I've earlier made milkshake with just plain milk and it tastes almost as good as the one with ice-cream. If you find the milkshake too thick, you may dilute it with a little water or ice cubes. 

The nuts and dollop of icecream on top are optional but the milkshake tastes so much better with it and looks prettier too. 

Ideal for these hot and humid, summery evenings, this mango milkshake will cool you down and bring a smile on your face. If you have pineapples at home you may want to try some pinacolada.

MANGO MILKSHAKE (serves 5) 

INGREDIENTS:

Ripe mangoes - 4

Milk - ½ cup 

Vanilla Ice cream - 1 ½ cup

Cashews nuts - 4 tbsp (chopped and toasted) 

METHOD: 

1. Scoop the mango flesh and blend it in the mixie. 

2. Add milk to the mango puree and blend well. (Add a little water if required). 

3. Add the ice cream and blend one final time. 

4. Pour into the serving glass, top it with a scoop of ice-cream and sprinkle the toasted nuts on top. 

5. Done. 

Recipe Notes : 

• Use only sweet, ripe mangoes.
• If you aren't using ice cream, increase the quantity of milk. 
• You may use mango ice-cream too.

3 INGREDIENT MANGO KULFI

Mandatory mango recipe post for this year!!! 

I soak mangoes in water for 24 hours and then keep them in the fridge. Apparently, this draws the heat out from the fruit. We eat the mango at night and follow it up with a glass of milk. Skip has milk with Milo and I have Golden Milk or as more commonly known, Spiced Latte ( Fine! It's Haldi wala Doodh).

I spend at least half an hour a day going through recipe videos. I love looking at good food and attempting to recreate it, such joy it brings into my life! (Almost as much as my other creation). 

I love Kulfi but I'm quite fussy about the way it should taste. It can't be too grainy or have ice crystals in it. It shouldn't be too sweet else I end up with a headache. So when I say this mango kulfi was DELICIOUS, you may just go ahead and make it.

Everyone at home loved it. I poured it into the kulfi/ice cream moulds and the excess liquid went into bowls. The mango kulfi is thick and creamy and oh soooo good and mangoeey.

MANGO KULFI (makes 9) 

Ingredients : 

Milk- 1 litre 

Sugar - 4-5 tbsp (I used 4)

Milk Powder - 2 tbsp (optional) 

Mango pulp - 2 cups 

Almond / pista slivers - for garnish 

METHOD : 

1. Add sugar to the milk, stir and then boil it in a heavy bottomed pan on medium heat. Reduce heat after the first boil and add the powdered milk (optional). 
2. Cook the milk on medium heat , stirring at regular intervals until it reduces to half the original amount. 
3. At this point, a thick layer of cream would have formed on the milk , the milk changes colour and thickens (do not remove the cream).
4. Let the milk cool for a bit and then place it in the fridge for 20 mins. 
5. In the mixie, grind the mango pulp, add the cool, thickened milk into it and give it a quick short whiz until well blended. 
6. Pour into moulds and freeze for upto 6 hours or overnight. 
7. Garnish it with chopped nuts. 
8. Done. 

Recipe Notes : 

• I have used milk with 3% fat (Nandini blue packet), milk with higher fat content would turn out creamier when cooked on heat. 
• You can adjust the sweetness of the kulfi to suit your taste, but 4 spoons was ideal. Do keep in mind to adjust the sugar quantity depending on the sweetness of mangoes. 

MANGO ICE CREAM

We had three weeks of court vacation.  On the last working day I had made big plans of cooking every alternate day and flooding the blog with recipes.

The only recipe I made during those three weeks was the mango ice cream and that was prepared on the last day of the holidays and the only thing that is flooded is the ‘saved videos’ column on my Facebook page. I am addicted to these recipe videos, they all look so simple that they promptly make it to my saved items.

Hershey has the habit of sharing delectable food pictures on WhatsApp post dinner time. She shared the picture of the mango ice cream she had made at home and I set out to buy mangoes the next day. The recipe is from the blog - Cucina Mia.  

I have a collection of homemade ice cream recipes that range from the basic to the complex. The basic being, the one ingredient recipe. Freeze bananas and then blend them in the mixie and voila you have banana ice cream ready. You can experiment with this recipe and add choco chips, caramel, peanut butter, chocolate etc. I had made the frozen banana ice cream and promptly struck it off my list. The ice cream is too banananana for my liking.

This recipe is a 3 ingredient recipe – fruit pulp, heavy cream and condensed milk

I did not find heavy cream in any of the stores near our place so I used Amul Fresh Cream. Yes!!! you can substitute heavy cream with fresh cream. I needed whipping cream for my father’s birthday cake and that is when I came across the method to substitute heavy cream for fresh cream.

Place the carton of fresh cream, an empty utensil and the beater blades in the freezer for half an hour. Empty the cream into the cold utensil and beat for 15 minutes and you’ll have whipped cream (with peaks).

MANGO ICE CREAM  (SERVES 8-10)

Ingredients:

Mango pulp – ½ cup

Heavy cream – 250 gm (1 cup)

Condensed milk -   200 gm (1/2 cup)

Chopped almonds – 2 tbsp (optional)

Chopped mango – 2 tbsp  (optional)

Method:

1.      Whip the cream and set aside.

2.      In a separate utensil, whip the mango pulp and condensed milk until mixed well. I did add a spoonful more of the condensed milk.

3.      Add the cream to the mango mixture and mix until fully combined.

4.      Pour half the mixture into the ice cream tin. Top it with chunks of mango. Empty the remaining mixture onto the mango chunks. Drizzle any leftover mango pulp and swirl it with a chopstick. Top it with almonds.

5.      Freeze it for 3 hours.

6.      Done.

School reopens tomorrow and Skip has been hooting since morning, in an  attempt to cheer himself and failing miserably knowing that his TV time and phone time shall be cut down drastically starting 7 pm tonight.

We took Skip out on his first trip abroad only to be told there that he loves going to Coorg more.

Krabi, Thailand