Howdy, folks? Hope your days are filled with happiness and joy!
I am having a good time in my part of the world where we have few more days of brilliant sunshine and pleasing fall weather. [dt_quote type="pullquote" layout="right" font_size="big" animation="none" size="2"]Autumn is a second spring when every leaf is a flower - Albert Camus[/dt_quote]Then it is all going to be powdery snow. Last year, I was not happy about winter, but now I have decided to embrace the cold and the snow and all the things associated with it.
Today's post is a recipe for applesauce raisin chutney which is a no-cook spoof of the famous Indian Date & Tamarind Chutney. I had served this on my Sonshine's birthday a few months back and was over-joyed to see my friends relishing it and saying "Oh my goodness! This is so delicious". Yep, those are the exact words that keep me going.
The other day, my husband and I were talking about the blog and how much he is missing the humor in my write-ups leading to the recipe. Yeah, my initial posts were mostly related to my goof ups and my early experiences with the dish I was raving about that day.
The ideas for write-up can come to me any time of the day. They mostly come unannounced and sound perfect in my head. Later, when I sit to write those down, there are days when I can recollect those exact words that were running through my mind. And then there are days when, for the life of me, I cannot recall what I thought about the recipe. That is when I get tongue tied and become clueless as to what to write.
For example, there is a hilarious story associated with the apple raisin chutney, which is about my experience with the date & tamarind chutney (the flavor profile for my applesauce chutney is based on the date & tamarind chutney. So the story line was perfect and my goof up, the perfect entertainment). [dt_quote type="pullquote" layout="right" font_size="big" animation="none" size="2"]I don't eat applesauce, but I do eat applause. I don't use a spoon—I eat applause with my hands - Jarod Kintz[/dt_quote]Anyways, the story line came to me while waiting at Sonshine's school's parking lot. The words flowing through my mind were flawless (at least according to me), rib-ticklingly hilarious, and I was happy that I could find the humor aspect back.
Today, I sat down at my computer and started writing (or at least trying to write) exactly what I had envisioned at the parking lot. Looks like today is the day when the words decided to call it quits. They decided not to grace me with their presence. Nothing I wrote sounded hilarious, oh, forget hilarious, nothing was even remotely funny. I gave it several tries and then decided to scratch the idea of a hilarious post. Instead, I am telling you all about why this post is not hilarious. Sigh!
The idea for the chutney was suggested by my dear friend, Sandhya, some time back. I let it percolate in my head for some time before actually trying it out. Then, I tried it out a few times and adjusted the spices to suit our taste. That is when I decided to go public with it and served it at Sonshine's birthday party. Very thrilled to say that the dhokla and chutney - both were super hit. This applesauce raisin chutney tastes almost like the date & tamarind chutney and can be served with anything that you serve the latter - samosas, pani puri, dhokla etc.
Prior to making this chutney with applesauce, I had considered applesauce to be baby/toddler/kid food, something which a more sophisticated adult palette would not approve of. If you were like me and had the same idea about applesauce, give this a try and let me know if it changed your perception about applesauce.
Looking forward to hearing from you...
Ciao.
Applesauce Raisin Chutney
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoon Raisins; soaked for 10-15 minutes
- 4 oz Applesauce
- 1 teaspoon Tamarind Paste
- 2-3 teaspoon Brown Sugar
- ½ teaspoon Cayenne Pepper/Paprika/Indian Red Chilly Powder
- ½ teaspoon crushed Fennel Seeds Powder
- ½ teaspoon Ground Cumin/Cumin Powder/Jeera Powder
- 1 teaspoon Chaat Masala
Instructions
Preparation
- Soak the raisins in water for about 10-15 minutes or till soft.
Assemble
- Add all the ingredients along with soaked and drained raisins in a blender/mixer grinder and blend well.
- Adjust the seasonings to suit your taste.
- Serve.
Vidya Srinivasan says
Perfect blend of Indian spice for apple sauce rsindin chutney.looks inviting
Framed Recipes says
Thank you Vidya. I am so glad that you liked it.
Deepti says
Innovation at its best!! Looks like it could replace the tangy chutney well that we use for chats...way to go..
Framed Recipes says
Thank you Deepti. And you are right, it tastes exactly like the date & tamarind chutney served with chaats. And can be made in a fraction of time and effort.