When Life Gives You Lemons

I was frantically shopping at the very very popular and populous Lulu Hypermarket, when I was left speechless by this wonderful sight.

Some of the simple joys of life – lemons

I was just short of drooling when I saw this vibrant yellow fruit. For me, these are lemons, the actual thing - big, yellow, shiny, and aromatic as heaven. Even the seemingly exorbitant price did not deter me from picking up a couple. Now, I don’t even want to cut it open. I haven’t been this excited anytime recently. After all, I hadn't seen these lemons since I last visited Dubai.

Welcome to the Lab

 Proudly presenting the Purple Theory Lab aka Kitchen where all sorts of experiments are boldly performed.
     

So, tiny sparks of ideas and that desire to share good food got me to this project. Mom, S-i-l and I will be conducting cooking demos for our respective dishes. I look forward to the cooking sessions. At the same time there are butterflies in my stomach. Wait a minute, that's coz I haven't had my breakfast yet.

I better get started. I have about 65 recipes to write. Yikes. Moreover, the first set of notices would have reached their destination by now. Now, lets see.

Pen. Check. 

Paper. Check.

Calls. Waiting.

(Trrinng Trrinng )

Oops, gotta go.

Chicken Bread Cups

Here’s one that you can quickly assemble when you have unexpected guests at your doorstep. Better yet, make some for your evening cravings.
  

    
I made these bread cups a little before lunch, so I could serve them as a starter. The kids slowly nibbled through quite a few, while the grownups popped them right in.
   

Chicken Bread Cups

Ingredients:

Bread – 12 slices

Butter - as required

Chicken - 1 cup, boiled and minced

White sauce – ½ cup

Tomato ketchup – to garnish

Method:

1. Slice off the crust of all the slices, and butter both sides.
2. Arrange the buttered slices of bread in the muffin tray to form cup-like shapes.
3. In an oven preheated to 400°F/200°C/Gas 6, bake the bread for 10 minutes or till golden brown.
4. Cool on a wire rack in the muffin tray for about 5 minutes. The bread cups are ready.
5. To make the filling, combine the minced chicken and white sauce. Season as required.
6. Place a spoonful of the filling on each bread cup.
7. Garnish with a swirl of ketchup. Serve warm.

Words of Wisdom

Tip #1: I used stale bread for the bread cups. Silly mistake. Turns out they aren't as pliable as I'd imagined.  I call it the stale bread debacle.So, it would be quicker, easier, and less messier to use fresh bread.

Tip #2: I shredded my chicken into long strands and ended up with the filling coming off the cup with each bite. You need to mince or shred the chicken real small.

Tip #3: For the more calorie conscious, I say skip the butter and lightly dip the slices in beaten egg whites before arranging them in the muffin tray.

   

Now, this is not one of those dishes I found on the Internet. I took it straight out of a Vanitha Paachakam from my mom’s collection, something I resort to during my no-Internet days in Kerala.
    

I made a few with a crumbled liver filling 

PS: Normally, I wouldn't label these bread cups as fusion food, but I had to fuse the broken pieces of bread with beaten egg. Hence the label.

The beauty of these bread cups is that you can add all sorts of toppings. Next time, I'm going to try a fruit-based filling.

Vegetables are a must on a diet. I suggest carrot cake, zucchini bread and pumpkin pie. ~ Jim Davis