Podi chammanthi (Coconut chutney to go with appams)

I am a true blue crab sun sign...if I find someone pursuading me too hard (be it for anything) I retreat into my proverbial shell all suspicious :-) what's that to do with cooking? Nothing. Just in a 'verbal diarrhoea' mood coupled with two stray instances of insistent people! I have a bad back thanks to many reasons. Now with Abhi around a bad back is a big hinderance to happy 'mommying'. Hit upon chiropractice as a possible solution albeit a very expensive one. Towards the end of my schedule the therapist started suggesting that my husband who happened to have sprained his back undergo a session and he declined.Then one day I could not go for a prefixed session because abhi (my baby) had to have her vaccination shot. The chiropractor told us that vaccinations were bad and that they affected the nervous system, if we were insistent on giving abhi her shot then we should bring her for a spine adjustment chiro session!! That decided the end of 'my' chiropratic sessions!
Another minor incident is with facebook. I'm newbie at facebook and am fine when people suggest I follow their websites or blogs. I check it out and if I like it I accept. Some are blogs of people who I already follow through a list on my blog, so when they ask me to do the same on FB I am glad to do so. But there was one very persistent person who added me as friend (I'd never before seen that particular site), then suggested I follow the blog. I accepted both suggestions. Then soon after, I was asked to become a 'fan' of the same blog. I declined. Thereafter, I keep getting repeat suggestions that I become a fan of the said blog even after declining it each time! Grrrrrrrrrrrr...

Podi chammanthi is my mom's favourite side dish option with appams (vellayappam) when she is running short of time. It does taste fantabulous with hot appams (I dont like it with idlis and dosas).



Fresh grated coconut - 1 cup
Shallots (small onions) - 2 Nos
Ginger - 1/4" piece
Dry red chillies - 4 Nos (more or less as per your spice tolerance)
Salt to taste

For tempering

Curry leaves - 2 sprigs
Mustard seeds - 1 teaspoon
Coconut/canola oil - 1 teaspoon

Grind all ingredients together in a mixie/food processor adding just a teaspoon or two of water till coarse. Heat oil in a skilet and crackle mustard and fry curry leaves. Toss in the coarse mixture, saute for a minute or two to take away the raw taste of shallots.There, that was quick, was it not?