Happy Recipes Old

This delicious, silky smooth chicken-sweetcorn soup, served with homemade croutons on the side, is a real winter warmer! Serve this soup as a starter in the cold winter months or serve to someone who is just recovering from a nasty cold.  Kids too will love the soft bite of sweetcorn and the crunchiness of the buttered croutons floating on the soup. I fried the croutons with a little butter on the pan, instead of making them in the oven, which I found much easier and less time-consuming too.  To my delight I found them beautifully buttery and crunchy, just the perfect crusty accompaniment for the soup! You need the following ingredients to make this soup: Chicken breast/pieces without bones 100 g Corn flour 1 tbsp Warm water 2 cups Sweetcorn 1/4 cup Vinegar 1/4 tsp Salt and pepper to taste   Eggs  1 Onion  1 Garlic  3 cloves Spring onion chopped 1 tbsp Soy sauce 1/2 tbsp Olive oil or any cooking oil 1 tbsp Let’s make : Heat oil in a heavy bottom ...

These warm, spicy egg rotis are very popular Sri Lankan street food among urban and village folks alike and it is hard to find anyone who has not tasted these. Now that the trend is to make all these street food at home more hygienically, I have taken the opportunity to post my mum’s authentic recipe here. The street food vendors usually drench the dough with oil and make it more appealing in appearance but to keep it less in calories and healthy, I added the minimum required oil, keeping the taste intact! Remember to serve these straight out of the pan to be eaten piping hot! So, let’s get started; Make the dough for rotis You will need  All-purpose flour  2 cups  Salt  1/2 tsp  Olive oil (Any cooking oil would do)  1 tbsp  Sugar  1/2 tsp Baking powder  1/2 tsp Knead Rub flour, sugar, salt, baking powder and oil together Add lukewarm water little by little and knead for about 5 – 8 mins until the dough doesn’t ...

These dangerously addictive vegetable rotis are the most sorted street food in Sri Lanka! They are spicy, delicious, and wholesome! Whosoever tasted, would naturally want more! However, you can make a healthier version of these at home, keeping the same taste and appearance but with less oil and more fresh vegetables. It is a bit of a cumbersome task to knead the floor to bring to the right texture but when it is being achieved, the rotis are soft and perfect in taste. I have used a generous amount of veggies and very little oil in this recipe to keep it healthy and appetising at the same time. So, let’s make it, 1st Step: Make the dough for Rotis You will need :  All-purpose flour  3 cups  Salt  1 tsp Oil  1 tbsp  Sugar  1 tsp Knead Rub flour, sugar, salt and oil together Add lukewarm water little by little and knead for about 5 – 8 mins until the dough doesn’t stick on to your fingers Divide into equal sized balls giving an extra kn...

This is most certainly not for the faint-hearted! Believe me the chilli base in this dish will shock your tastebuds initially but in a very enticing way! Be cautious, your tastebuds will demand more and you will end up addicted to this fiery chili prawns in no time at all! King prawns, fresh or frozen are best for this dish.  You must rub a little lemon juice after giving them a good clean up to take that fishy smell away. Make this dish on a cold and miserable rainy day to make the atmosphere a bit lively! Ingredients needed; King Prawns – washed, deveined, shell removed 250 g Red, Green, Yellow bell peppers 1 each cubed Brown sugar 2 pinches Soy sauce 2 tbsp Garlic cloves  3 Onion  1 big cubed Ginger garlic paste 1 tbsp Turmeric  1/2 tsp each Salt 1/4 tsp Chilli powder 1/2 tbsp Chinese chilli paste (optional) 1 tbsp heap Oil 1 tbsp Juice of lemon 1 tbsp Let’s Make ; Marinate Rub salt, ginger garlic paste, turmeric powder, red chilli powder, and lemon juice ...

The rich scent of bananas and the super moist texture in this cake is simply intoxicating! Believe me, the satisfaction of eating a slice of this with a hot cup of tea in the afternoon could revive you instantly. I feel it is a perfect combination of all the best things in one place; melt in the mouth texture, the rich taste, and the sweet banana scent! Overripe bananas in your fruit bowl are ideal with their taste and scent for this cake.  So, never bin them again. Bake this and take it to your ailing aunt, a good friend, your mum who is alone in an empty nest, or anyone who is struggling with a bad patch and watch how quickly their faces light up, as soon as they taste this beautiful cake. I added raisins to give the cake a bit more richness but if you prefer chocolate chips, that too goes perfectly well. Do not add too much of either, as the taste of banana should be the highlight of this cake. If you prefer just a plain cake just go ahead! I sometimes bake it plain but th...

These plain vanilla cupcakes are so easy to make and they will stay fresh and moist for days! I have added cornflour into the cake batter to make the cakes extra spongy.  The light, silkiness in cornflour had a magical effect! Important tip : Keep an eye on the oven because the cakes can get over baked and the top would be crispy instead of coming out super soft and spongy. Hence, as soon as you see them changing into a soft golden colour, open the oven door and quickly insert a skewer or press in the middle to check if they are baked properly.  If the cakes are fully baked the skewer should come clean or if you press them in the middle, they should spring back.  Immediately, take the cakes out of the oven and let them cool off. Let’s make them at the teatime today, You will need the following items: Self Raising flour 225 g Corn flour 25 g Caster sugar 250 g Margarine/butter under room temp.  (Stork brand spread is best in UK) 250 g Milk 1/4 cup Eggs 4 Sa...

These beautifully presented cupcakes with cream cheese frosting on top is a real winner when it comes to party cakes.  The well in the middle filled with juicy strawberry sauce and topped with sweet cream cheese blend heavenly to produce the yummiest ever treat for kids and adults alike! By adding cornflour into the cake batter, the cupcakes can be made extra spongy and filling the little well in the middle with strawberry sauce, which in turn gives a uniquely sweet taste. It’s super easy to make, once you gather all the necessary ingredients and equipment together. So, let’s make them: You will need the following items: Self Raising flour 225 g Corn flour 25 g Caster sugar 250 g Margarine/butter under room temp.  (Stork brand spread is best in UK) 250 g Milk 1/4 cup Eggs 4 Salt 3 pinches Baking powder 1 tsp Lemon juice and Vanilla essence 1 tsp each Let’s make them: Set the oven to 160 C . Gas mark 3 Cream the batter Cream butter and sugar to...

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You must not miss witnessing the roadside spectacle of making Kottu in Sri Lanka! The typical metal clashing and banging to the rhythm of deafening fast beat music, making kottu is an interesting roadside scene at night in many towns in Sri Lanka! When the last of daylight dims down, bright white lights dazzle from the food stalls, while a circle of onlookers watching in amusement how their portions of Kottu are made in minutes, followed by a little jig, cling clang of metals, many ingredients being dropped and then disappeared in shreds!  Finally, a heap of steaming kottu on a plate is offered and while you are digging a fork between a combination of soft flakes of roti, glistering pieces of meat, and shreds of veggies,  involuntarily, your legs will dance to the irresistible music aired to the wee hours of the night. We can produce something similar at home even though we don’t have the metal plates or the need for a jig.  The packeted frozen Kottu Porottas, avail...