Chakka Varatti, Jackfruit Preserve ( Halwa )

          Ever since I saw Ela Ada on blogs and cookery shows, I had wanted to try it out home, especially the Ela Ada using Chakka Varatti/Jackfruit Preserve. I thought I'll do it during the last jackfruit season but it so happens, that jackfruit season coincides with school summer holidays and I am usually not at home and I keep missing it. This year also I thought that I'll not be able to do it, but just towards the end of the season I finally got to do it. Today's post is Chakka Varatti, a fruit preserve made with jackfruits and jaggery and I also made the Ela Ada using this preserve and will be posting it soon. I had mixed thoughts while making it, whether we would like it, especially the flavor because, as such jackfruit has a strong scent and I thought that it would intensify when cooked. But it turned out the other way, it smelled and tasted so good, that my daughter who doesn't like jackfruit at all, liked the Chakka Varatti very much. You can eat Chakka Varatti just as such, the texture is like Halwa and it tastes like one too or you can use it in making other dishes like Ela Ada and Payasams. The dish belongs to Kerala where jackfruits grow in abundance and they make a variety of dishes using both the ripe and unripe jackfruits and for Chakka Varatti, we use the ripe ones. Cutting a big jackfruit, and removing the fruit arils/bulbs from it is a huge task by itself and needs a separate post and I don't want to go into the details of it today and I usually ask the fruit vendor to do it. The process takes a little time but the taste at the end is worth all the effort, do try it when you next buy jackfruit..

Homemade Marinara Sauce, How To Make Red Pasta Sauce

          Today's dish is going to be the simple and delicious Marinara Sauce or Red Pasta Sauce. Though they are readily available in the market, nothing can beat the freshness and the flavor in the homemade version. Some good quality tomatoes and Italian herbs is all that you need to make it, and the sauce is very versatile too, in the sense you can use it with pasta, on a pizza, make a sandwich along with some cheese slices and it tastes absolutely delicious..

Strawberry Compote ( Coulis, Spread, Jam )

          Back from a small vacation, thought I should schedule some posts, but somehow didn't work out, in fact I had planned to do this post on last Friday, I had edited and uploaded the pictures too, but didn't find time to do the post. Strawberry Compote/Coulis/Spread or jam, I had made this when strawberries were still in season. I had wanted to do this after I saw it in Anusha's Tomato Blues, so when I got chocolate and strawberries as the two ingredients for the 'Shhhh Cooking Secretly' challenge, I decided to make this and use it as a filling for the cakes. This is a very easy recipe, needs just 3 ingredients and can be done in under 30 minutes, a delicious spread that can be used as a topping or filling for cakes, can be served with pancakes or toast or even to make milk shakes..

Prune Lekvar ( Jam )

          As mentioned in my last post, I had made Hungarian Lekvar for making the Hungarian Kipfels. Lekvar is a jam, usually made with dried apricots or prunes and I had used it as a filling for the kipfels. I made the jam with dried prunes and the taste was excellent. After using some for the kipfels, I used the remaining to serve with plain bread. If you like prunes, then go ahead and make this easy jam and enjoy..

Microwave Apple Jam

          Homemade jams are always more special than the store bought ones and I had always wanted to make some, but kept putting it off since my family is not the 'jam' kind, they like savory sandwiches better. But this time I had so much apples at home, I had bought some and then a visiting friend had got some more, and I knew I had to do something with it. This apple jam, it's from a cook book that came with my microwave oven. It's such an easy method, I followed the original recipe, except for the amount of sugar and I added some ginger which gave a nice flavor and taste to the jam. My daughter who's not a big fan of jelly sandwiches, loved this jam and I was so happy, that my maiden attempt at jam making was a success..