Mane Adige

Paan Parfait or Paan Bahaar

noreply@blogger.com (Ramya's Mane Adige) — Sun, 28 May 2023 18:59:00 +0000

Bottom layer - Crust. (is optional)
Half a pack of crackers - marie or glucose biscuits work.
2 tbsp melted butter
Crush the crackers in a blender to a coarse powder. You could also put the crackers in a ziploc and crush it with the back of a ladle. add melted butter and mix to make a crumbly mixture. If the mixture seems too dry, add a little more melted butter.
White cream layer
200 ml heavy whipping cream
1/2-3/4 tsp powdered elaichi
1/2 tsp safforn ( around 10-15 strands)
2 tbsp powdered sugar
finely chopped dates (around 7-8)

Take whipping cream in a mixing bowl and beat until it becomes stiff - either with a hand held blender or a stand mixer(usually takes about 5-7 mins with short breaks). Once the cream becomes stiff, fold in all other ingredients and mix lightly with a spatula. do not mix it too rigorously - the cream will end up becoming too firm and hard, if you do. Set aside to chill
Pan Mousse layer
10 beetle leaves
2-3 tbsp saunf
1/4 cup powdered sugar
2- 3 tbsp rose water
2 tbsp heavy whipping cream
a drop of green food color (optional)
200 ml heavy whipping cream
finely powder saunf in a blender. to this the rose water, chopped beetle leaves, powdered sugar, 2 tbsp cream and blend to a smooth paste. make sure not to make this paan paste too watery. take the 200 ml whipping cream in a mixing bowl. beat until stiff either with a hand held blender or a stand mixer(usually takes about 5-7 mins with short breaks). fold in the pan pasteand lightly mix.remember to be very gentle while mixing. do nt mix very rigorously. Your paan mousse layer is now ready.

For Assembling
1.Take an individual dessert container. I ordered mine from amazon. they were disposable and came with lids and spoons.
2.Add a spoon of the cracker mix first. press with the back of a spoon to form a firm base.
3.Next is the white whipped cream layer. add about 2 spoons of this as the next layer. I used a piping bag to add this layer. It can be done with a spoon too, but the chances of touching the edges are higher and the layers can get smudged.
4.Next layer is the Gulkhand. The quantity of gulkhand is personal choice. I added about a tsp of it for each cup. you can either increase or decrease based on your preference.
5.After that is the Desiccated Coconut either sweet or unsweetened, doesnt matter. Since the layer below it is quite sweet already, it doesnt matter if this is sweetened or not. but the coconut definitely adds an amazing nutty flavor. I wouldnt skip this ingredient.
6.Then comes the Paan mousse . Again, about 2 spoons of it. I used piping bags but feel free to just spoon it in.
7.Garnish with Tutti Frutti and Mukhwaas Your Paan Parfait is ready!

Tips:
1. The quantity of each of these layers is personal choice. feel free to add more or less of any of these layers as you please. When i make it the next time, I will probably skip the base cracker layer.... some of my guests loved it and some didnt really care for it. so its a hit or a miss.
2. Since gulkhand is very sweet, I kept the sweetness very low on all the other layers. The combined sweetness turned out perfect.
3. Several people are not used to the distinct rose flavor of the gulkhand. So I chose to let my guests know in advance about it so that they can push the gulkhand aside if they do not relish the rose flavor.
4. garnishing with tutti frutti is also customizable. The kids took a handful extra and added it on top. so it'd be a good idea to serve some extra in a bowl for self serve.
5. green food color is definitely optional. I made the mousse layer without the color first. the taste was great but the color wasn't very pleasant. it was a light greenish brown and not very appetising. So I went ahead and added the color. no change in taste whatsoever.
6. These quantities made about 20 individual desserts for me. the saunf and beetle leaf quantity is critical for flavor. roughly, it took about 1 paan leaf for 2 serves and a little less than a quarter spoon of saunf for every individual cup

Avalakki happaLa

noreply@blogger.com (Ramya's Mane Adige) — Tue, 12 May 2020 03:42:00 +0000

Soak 1 cup poha overnight. I use thick poha. Next morning, squeeze all the water out of the poha and transfer to a mixing bowl.set aside. Pulse 1 cup dry thick poha, without any water, to make dry powder. Add this to the damp poha and mix well. Add salt, cumin, hing, ginger/green chili paste and other spices according to taste. Mix and knead really well to make a dough. It should be slightly firmer than chapati dough.make small balls and press into poori like circles us ing the tortilla press. Arrange on parchment paper/ aluminum foil/ plastic sheets and let dry for about 24 hours. Note: 1.in the first step if all the water is not squeezed out of the poha, you might need more dry poha powder to get the desired consistency. 2. Kneading is the most important part. Take time a knead well for best results. You can even use a food processor for kneading if you are making in larger quantities. 3. Observe that we do not use any oil for this recipe.... Adding oil might give a strange smell when you store. 4. This recipe does not ask for drying in too much heat. I just dried my papads indoor by a window. If there is lot of humidity in the air, its better to dry it outside in the sun. If not, indoors is fine too 5. My papads started cupping and changing shape as they dried.... It might be a good idea to flip them over in-between drying so that they can reverse-cup and stay flat as much as possible 😬.... I don't know if that's really a thing, but definitely no harm in trying

Mosaranna/Curd Rice

noreply@blogger.com (Ramya's Mane Adige) — Mon, 10 Jan 2011 14:12:00 +0000

No South Indian meal is complete without some curd rice at the end. In its simplest form, it is just some rice mixed with a little yogurt and served with some pickle. However, let your imagination flow…. Add whatever you think would taste good – fresh fruits, dry fruits, nuts… anything! Here is how I usually make it.

Ingredients:

1 cup White rice – I like mine to be mushy and well cooked

1 cup Yogurt/Curds

¼ cup Red onions, finely chopped

¼ cup Cucumber, finely chopped

½ cup chopped fresh grapes + pomegranate

3-4 strands Cilantro, finely chopped

Salt as per taste

For Tempering:

2 tsp Oil

1 tsp Mustard

3-4 Curry leaves

1 tsp Chana dal

1 tsp Urad dal

2-3 nos Chilies , Dry red or Green ones- chopped into pieces

1 tsp Ghee

1-2 tbsp raisins + cashews

Method:

Mix all the ingredients in a large mixing bowl; Add water to get the desired consistency; adjust ingredients according to taste.
Heat ghee in a pan and roast raisins and cashews for a minute or until they turn lightly golden in color; add to the curd rice mixture and mix well.
Temper with the mustard, chana dal, ural dal, curry leaves and chilies; Serve chilled towards the end of the meal

Prep Time: About 15-20 mins;

Serves: About 2-3 people;

Heerekai Dose/ Dosas with Chinese Okra

noreply@blogger.com (Ramya's Mane Adige) — Fri, 07 Jan 2011 09:08:00 +0000

New Year Wishes to all Mane Adige readers!!! I hope the new year brings along a lot of joy, happiness and prosperity to everyone....

Okay, so today's recipe is a little unconventional and yet very traditional! This, out of the box dosa recipe is a Mangalorean speciality dish.....Like I've always said, give us Mangaloreans any vegetable and we'll make a dosa out of it! :) Though this dish is called dosa, it is more of shallow fried pakoras. Decide for yourself what you want to call them, after having gone through the recipe!

Ingredients:

Batter ingredients same as Uppu Huli Dosa

1 Chinese okra, heerekai

2-3 tsp Oil

Method:

Make batter as explained in the method for Uppu Huli Dosa; Only difference being that, the batter should be a little thicker (like that of regular besan batter for pakoras) and not as watery as Uppu Huli Dosa. Keep aside.
Roughly peel the chinese okra to remove the sharp and prickly skin; Chop them into circular rings.
Heat a pan and smear a few drops of oil on it; Dip the chinese okra rings in the dosa batter and arrange them on the tava adjacent to each other, in the shape of a dosa.
Pour a few drops of oil on it and cook covered on both sides on low-medium heat.
Remove from stove and relish hot with a blob of ghee/butter.

Note:

While arranging the chinese okra on the pan, make sure that the pieces touch each other, so that they stick as they get cooked.
After arranging the Chinese okra pieces on the pan, you could pour some batter to fill the gaps in between the pieces; This way, it would look more like traditional dosas :)

Prep Time: About 15-20 mins(excluding soaking time);

Makes: About 3-4 medium sized dosas;

Drakshi Saasive/Fresh Grapes in Coconut & Mustard Sauce

noreply@blogger.com (Ramya's Mane Adige) — Tue, 28 Dec 2010 09:59:00 +0000

So, I got this pack of fresh green grapes from the store over the weekend. I was actually picking up some grapes after over a year.... While Aadi was an infant, his ped had asked us to keep him away from grapes for a little while so he wouldn't catch any cold and cough. And now that he's a year old, I thought it would be a good idea to introduce them to him. But to my disappointment, the grapes were so sour that they weren't good for even juices :(

My mother in law is great with innovative recipes and using up left overs. So I picked up the phone and called her up to see if she could suggest something with the sour grapes that I had in hand. She suggested I make Saasive- an instant Mangalorean dish that needs no cooking on the stove top and takes very few ingredients. With just red chilies and mustard as spices, it was amazing how flavorful the dish had turned out! Definitely worth a try and its just right for when you need a change from the usual .

Ingredients:

1 cup Fresh grapes (I used the green ones, you could use the black variety as well)

1/2 cup Grated coconut, fresh/frozen

3-4 Dry red chilies, low-medium spiced

1/4 tsp Tamarind paste (optional)

1/2 tsp Jaggery (optional)

1.5 tsp Mustard

2 tsp Oil

1 strand Curry leaves

A pinch of Hing

Salt as per taste

Method:

Wash and slit each grape in the center and keep aside.
Grind coconut, red chilies , tamarind, jaggery and salt to a smooth paste with some water; Towards the end, add half a tsp of mustard and pulse a couple of times.
Add the ground masala paste to the grapes and mix well; Add water to get the desired consistency; Adjust ingredients according to taste.
Temper with mustard, hing and curry leaves; Serve immediately with hot steamed rice and relish!

Tip:

While grinding mustard with the other masalas, keep in mind that adding too much mustard will make your dish bitter; So add just a little of it towards the end.
If your grapes are really sour, you might wanna do away with tamarind altogether, like I did with mine this time; Or if your grapes are sweet, you might wanna let go of jaggery!

Variation: Instead of grapes, you could also use cucumbers,pineapple or mangoes.

Prep Time: About 10-15 mins;

Serves: About 2-3 people;

Rasam Powder/ Saarina Pudi/Menasina Pudi

noreply@blogger.com (Ramya's Mane Adige) — Fri, 03 Dec 2010 09:35:00 +0000

Rasam powder, THE KING of all masalas, is the most essential ingredient in any South Indian pantry. This basic South Indian masala is used in several other dishes like Avarekai Sambhar (grind 2-3 tsp of rasam powder with coconut and use as an alternate masala), Avalakki upkari, Tomato Gojju, Puliyogare Gojju (Recipe coming soon!), Punarpuli Rasam, Tomato Puree Rasam, Bolu Huli, Bitter Gourd Sabzi, Gojjavalakki and several other dishes. So, if you have the rasam powder in stock, you could get your meal ready in just a few minutes!

Ingredients:

1 cup Jeera

1 cup methi seeds/fenugreek

1 cup Black pepper

1 cup Mustard

8 cups Coriander seeds

6-8 cups Dry red chilies, adjust quantity according to taste

3 cup Curry leaves

Method:

Dry roast each of the ingredients separately until you smell the fresh aroma of the spice and the color changes lightly;Keep aside and let cool.
Powder the roasted spices in a blender; DO NOT add any water while powdering.
Store in airtight containers; To make rasam, follow Tomato Puree Rasam.

Tip:

While measuring red chilies, chop them into tiny pieces; This way, its a lot easier to stuff into cups and measure them.
While powdering, you might want to powder coriander seeds and dry red chilies separately 'cause, coriander seeds and red chilies take longer to grind.
Rasam powder has a shelf life of about 6 months, so feel free to make enough and store in air tight containers.
You might want to store this masala in the refrigerator to retain its freshness and aroma.

Prep Time: About 30-40 mins;

Makes: Enough to fill a 500ml bottle;

Food Blogger's Meet @ OKO, The LaLit Ashok, Bangalore

noreply@blogger.com (Ramya's Mane Adige) — Sun, 28 Nov 2010 14:35:00 +0000

On the occasion of the second anniversary of The LaLit Ashok, a food blogger's meet had been organized at OKO - The rooftop Pan Asian restaurant @The LaLit Ashok, Bangalore. As most of us would be, I was initially a bit nervous about meeting a bunch of friends whom I was seeing for the first time. As it turned out, I was anxious for nothing! We all got along so well and it felt like we've known each other for a long while :) We talked about almost everything - Food, movies, television, our addiction to blogging and lots more. Here is a picture of all of us

From L-R Suma of Cakes and More!!!, Shubhada of Shubhada's123 Blog, Madhuri of Cook-curry Nook, Yours truly!! and Geetha of The Fragrant Kitchen

With most of us bloggers being vegetarians, I was quite curious as to how the chef would bring us some variety in the menu. We were served a sumptuous vegetarian four course meal with a choice of 3 starters, a soup, a salad, 2 choices for the mains and the dessert. The Chef did an excellent job with the starters. I picked Char Grilled Okra in Teriyaki Sauce and Tofu in Vietnamese Spices.And I remember sampling some Sushi as well... The marinated tofu was flavorful and had just the right amount of spices. But the grilled okra in the slightly sweet and tangy teriyaki sauce was my personal favorite!

The Thai Style coconut milk soup, Tom Kha Phak, was creamy, though not very thick, and had a fresh mild flavor of Thai spices. The Yasai Salad with mayo dressing was good, but nothing exceptional that was worth mentioning. We were served Wok Tossed Noodles with Vegetables and Fried Rice for the main course, which were good. For desserts, we were served Sweet Azuki Bean Jelly and Five Spice Chocolate Pudding. The bean jelly failed to impress all that much....I thought it was sticky and a little too plain for me to carry back its taste. But the chocolate pudding was rich and delicious.

Pan Asian cuisine includes all the cuisines of Asia, and taste testing the fusion of all these flavors was a wonderful and interesting experience! Missed taking pictures of the dishes 'coz I forgot to take my camera along... my bad :(

If I had to rate various parameters at the OKO on a scale of 1 to 5, 5 being the highest, it would be:

Ambience- 4.5

Menu- 3.5 (Would have appreciated some more vegetarian options for the main course)

Taste- 4

Service - 4

Excellent ambience, good food and great company made it a memorable evening on the 20th of Nov 2010. Thanks to The LaLit Group for having us over. And thanks Tinky, of Perfect Relations, for bringing us all together! Oh, and did I mention the view?!? View of Bangalore City from the OKO is breathtaking!! Here are some pictures of the OKO. Would definitely visit again for the food, view and also the ambience!

Moode/Mude ("Kedige" Flavored Idlis)

noreply@blogger.com (Ramya's Mane Adige) — Thu, 21 Oct 2010 09:58:00 +0000

This ones a very traditional Mangalorean recipe! Idli batter is filled into moulds made of a certain variety of leaf, known as Kedige in Kannada (English: Screw Pine. Read more here). These leafy moulds add a distinct flavor and aroma to the idlis that makes them really unique and delicious! Moode is made on special occasions like festivals and weddings. These kedige leaf moulds, more popularly known as "moode ele" are available in most vegetable markets during festive season. For those of you that have never seen moode ele, here's how the moulds look

Here is how to make it...

Ingredients:

1 cup urad dal (Soaked in water for about 4-6 hours)

2 cups idli rava / White rice (Soak white rice in water for 4-6 hours)

Salt as per taste

Method:

Grind the soaked urad dal to a smooth dal until it froths up and increases in quantity.
Wash the idli rava and drain out all the water; Add rava to the urad batter and grind further until it blends well with the batter (About 3-5 minutes). If you are using soaked white rice, drain out all the water and add to urad batter; Grind until it blends well and forms a smooth paste.
Transfer into a large mixing bowl and let ferment overnight or for 8-10 hours; Add salt and mix well.
Pour into moode ele (kedige moulds) and steam cook for about 20-25 minutes; Moode is done when no grains stick to the fork when pierced.
Remove from stove and serve hot with coconut chutney, sambhar, gashi or any other side dish of your choice.

Note:

If you are grinding urad dal using the blender, it generally takes about 10-15 minutes for the batter to froth up; Make sure you stop every 5-7 mins and mix with a spatula. In case of a grinder, it takes about 25-30 minutes.
While storing the batter for fermenting, make sure the bowl is large enough to accommodate the rise in batter quantity.
While pouring the batter into moode ele, fill it only up to three fourths.... Moode will rise further while it cooks.
I use a pressure cooker (without weight) to steam idlis and moode. You could also use idli cookers that are available in the market. In either case, add enough water at the bottom to withstand 20 minutes of steaming.
It is important to ensure that moode ele stays upright while it cooks. You wouldn't want the moode to fall off and let the water from the bottom of the cooker get in. So, I place each moode separately inside long steel tumblers.
To remove the moode from the mould, slowly pull out the tiny sticks that hold the mould together; The mould will fall apart automatically.

Avalakki Oggarane/ Avalakki Uppittu (Seasoned Poha)

noreply@blogger.com (Ramya's Mane Adige) — Tue, 12 Oct 2010 07:12:00 +0000

Here is one of the simplest and quickest breakfast dish that I have come across. This one gets done in less than 15minutes! It tastes great with a hot cuppa and hence makes for a wonderful tea time snack.

Ingredients:

1 cup Thick Poha/Flat Rice

1/2 cup finely chopped Onions

1 tbsp vegetable oil

1 tsp Mustard seeds

1 tsp Cumin seeds

1/2 tsp Turmeric/Haldi (optional)

1 strand Curry leaves

1 tbsp Chana+Urad Dal mixture

1 tsp Peanuts/Cashews (optional)

1 Green Chili, chopped finely

1/2 tsp Sugar

1 tsp Lime juice

1tbsp grated coconut, fresh/frozen

1 tbsp finely chopped Cilantro (optional)

Salt as per taste

Method:

Heat oil in a heavy bottomed pan; Temper with mustard seeds, green chili, curry leaves, dal mixture and peanuts.
Add finely chopped onions and fry until they turn lightly brown in color; Saute regularly.
Meanwhile, wash and soak thick poha in water for about 3-4 minutes; Drain out all the water and keep aside.
Once the onions are done, add poha, salt, sugar, grated coconut and mix well; Cook for about a minute or two.
Switch off the stove; Add lemon juice and mix well.
Garnish with chopped cilantro and serve hot.

Prep Time: About 15-20 mins;

Serves: 1-2 people;

Tip:

Vary the soaking time for poha depending on how soft you want it. Longer you soak, the softer it becomes.
Use cooked rice instead of poha, and it becomes "Chitranna", a mixed rice variety that makes for a sumptuous one pot meal!!

Chigali/ Powdered Til Sweetened with Jaggery

noreply@blogger.com (Ramya's Mane Adige) — Tue, 28 Sep 2010 09:12:00 +0000

Hope all is well with you folks! Things have gotten so busy at my end these days, that blogging has really taken a back seat.... And every time I open my laptop, I end up losing a couple of keys from my keyboard, to my son. So, getting to blog and blog hop is almost impossible these days. Those of you that have a naughty toddler would completely understand what I'm saying :) I spend very little time in the kitchen these days and make dishes that get done in a jiffy with very little prior preparation. Here's one such traditional dish that takes very little time and very few ingredients. But this is a bit of an acquired taste and you may not like it the very first time. Chigali is usually made for festivals and pujas like Krishna Janmashtami and Suhasini Puja.

Ingredients:

1 cup Ellu/Til, black preferably, but white would also work.

3/4 cup Powdered Jaggery

1/2 tsp Powdered Elaichi (optional)

Method:

In a heavy bottomed pan, dry roast til until it turns lightly brown and you smell its fresh aroma.
In a blender, coarsely powder the roasted til ; DO NOT add any water while powdering.
Empty the til into a mixing bowl; Add powdered jaggery, elaichi and mix well.
Take a spoon full and mould into laddus with your palm; Repeat for remaining mixture as well.
Store in an airtight container and relish with tea/coffee or as is.

Prep Time: About 15-20 mins;

Makes: About 6-8 laddus;

Mysore Masale/ Mysore Masala Dosa

noreply@blogger.com (Ramya's Mane Adige) — Sun, 27 Jun 2010 10:19:00 +0000

Well, this one needs no introduction! Mysore masale, as most of you would know, is one of the most famous dishes of Karnataka. This dish is so liked by people all over India, that each place has its own variations and versions. "Red Chutney" is the one thing that makes Mysore Masale different from ordinary masala dosas. Red chutney adds a beautiful flavor and spice and makes this dosa indeed delicious. I believe that my mom makes the best Mysore Masale in town ;), and what's more, she is a Mysorean herself!!! :) Here's the recipe....

Ingredients:

For Dosa Batter

Follow Paper Plain Dosa recipe for batter ingredients and procedure

Masale (palya)

2 medium sized Potatoes - Pressure cooked, peeled and mashed coarsely.

3 medium sized Onions - Chopped into thin strips

1/2 to 3/4 tsp Haldi/Turmeric powder

1 tsp Lime juice (optional)

1/2 tsp Sugar (optional)

1" Ginger, finely chopped (optional)

3-4 strands Cilantro, finely chopped

3-4 Green chilies, medium spiced - coarsely chopped

5-6 Curry leaves

1 tbsp Oil

1 tsp Mustard seeds

2 tsp Chana/Urad dal mixture

Salt as per taste

Red Chutney

2 tsp Chana Dal

2 tsp Urad dal

5-6 Dry Red Chilies, low spiced

1/2 cup Grated coconut, fresh/frozen

Method:

Masale:

Heat oil in a heavy bottomed pan; Temper with mustard seeds, curry leaves, dal mixture, haldi, ginger and green chilies.
Add sliced onions and fry until done;Note:Adding half a tsp sugar gets the onions roasted faster.
Add mashed potatoes, salt and mix well; Remove from stove.
Add lime juice, cilantro and mix well; Keep aside.

Red Chutney:

Dry roast chana dal, urad dal and red chilies until you smell the fresh aroma of spices.
Grind with coconut and some water to a smooth paste; Keep aside.

Mysore masale:

Make dosa as explained here - Paper Plain Dosa .
When the dosa is almost done, smear a spoonful of red chutney on the inside of the dosa.
Spread a ladle full of masale on one side of the dosa; Fold the dosa so that the masala and chutney are on the inside.
Remove from stove and serve immediately with some Coconut chutney and/or sambhar

Makes: Enough masale and chutney for 3-5 dosas;

Prep Time: About 30-40 mins;

Ottu Shavige/ Semige/ Home made Rice Noodles

noreply@blogger.com (Ramya's Mane Adige) — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 09:13:00 +0000

So, its been over a month since my last post on Mane Adige. My little boy was sick for a couple of weeks last month and I've been busy with his ped checkups and tests. Haven't really been able to collect too many recipes this month, but here's a traditional one from my drafts. This delicious recipe is easier told than actually made! But Shavige is definitely worth all the effort you put in. Shavige is made in many different methods. Here's the easiest and the one that my mother in law follows.

Ingredients:

3 cups Boiled Rice (uncooked)

1 cup White Rice (uncooked)

Salt as per taste (optional)

Method:

Soak boiled rice and white rice in enough water for about 4-5 hours.
Grind the soaked rice to a smooth paste; Use as little water as possible.
Pour the ground paste into a heavy bottomed pan and cook on medium flame.
Saute regularly and cook until all the water evaporates and the mixture forms a single dumpling.
Separate into smaller tangerine sized dumplings and steam cook for about 15 minutes; I use a pressure cooker (without weight) to serve the purpose. The dumplings are cooked when a knife pierced into it comes out clean without any crumbs sticking onto it. Note: Make sure the dumplings are cooked well. Shavige would stick to each other and come out as a lump, if it isn't well cooked.
Press into thin noodles using the chakli or Shavige press.
Cool and relish with sambhar, pickle, Gasagase Payasa or any other side dish of your choice.
OR make the Chitranna masala and mix to make shavige chitranna.

Note: Use the "bille" (the circular, detachable bottom portion of the press containing perforations, through which the dough oozes out) with multiple tiny perforations for making shavige.

Jhunka

noreply@blogger.com (Ramya's Mane Adige) — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 06:04:00 +0000

A North Karnataka recipe for you guys this time!! My aunt lives in Haveri. The cook at her home had earlier worked at a north Karnataka speciality restaurant, I suppose. So, my aunt's family gets to savour some of the traditional north Karnataka dishes, and I get to collect recipes from her cook and try them out in my kitchen :)

When I got hold of this recipe from her, I wasn't too impressed initially..... "Kadle hittu palya na?? thooo...." I thought! But I was so wrong. It tasted so different and refreshing! It was very different from the usual South Indian style palya's, but I relished it thoroughly! If you are the kind that prefers dry sabjis, this one is definitely worth a try. Here is how to make it....

Ingredients:

1 cup Besan/Kadle Hittu/Chickpea flour

1 Onion, medium sized

1-2 tbsp Water

1 tsp Chili powder

1/2 tsp Haldi/Turmeric powder

1/2 tsp Jeera powder

1/2 tsp Sugar (optional)

1 tsp Lime juice

1 tbsp Cooking Oil

1/2 tsp Mustard seeds

1 strand Curry leaves

2-3 strands Cilantro, finely chopped

1 tbsp Grated Coconut (optional)

Salt as per taste

Method:

Peel and finely chop the onion; Keep aside.
Heat oil in a pan; Temper with mustard seeds and curry leaves.
Add the chopped onions and fry until they turn lightly brown; saute regularly.
Add haldi, chili powder, Jeera powder, salt, sugar and mix well; Cook for a minute.
Add besan to it and roast until you smell the fresh aroma of roasted besan (about 1 min).
Add water little by little until the mixture forms a single dumpling ; Saute continuously to make sure no lumps are formed;Cook covered for about a minute or two - saute regularly.
Remove from stove; Add grated coconut, chopped cilantro, lime juice and mix well.
Serve hot with rotis/chapatis and relish!

Prep Time: About 15-20 minutes;

Serves: 2 people;

Ellu Bella

noreply@blogger.com (Ramya's Mane Adige) — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 14:07:00 +0000

Sankranti wishes to all Mane Adige readers!! Sankranti, as you all know, is the festival of harvest.In Bangalore-Mysore regions of Karnataka, this festival is celebrated by exchanging "Ellu-Bella" with family and friends. Young girls get dressed and go house hopping for Ellu-Bella, sugar cane and other goodies. For more information on the festival, check out Wiki . Will head straight to the recipe now...

Ingredients:

1 cup Copra/Kobri/Dry coconut, with its skin peeled and chopped into very fine and uniform pieces

1 cup Hurigadale/Chana Dhalia/ Putaani

1 cup Peanuts, dry roasted and skin peeled off

1 Cup Finely and uniformly chopped Jaggery

Quarter to half cup Sesame seeds/Til/Ellu (White Til)

Method:

Dry roast the sesame seeds until they turn golden brown in color; Keep aside.
Halve the roasted peanuts and keep aside; Note: Make sure not to burn the peanuts while roasting them; Ellu bella looks good when the peanuts are lightly golden in color. Peeling off the skin is a lot easier after roasting the peanuts.
Mix all the ingredients together; Store in air tight containers and relish.

Antinunde/Karadantu / Laddu with Edible Gum

noreply@blogger.com (Ramya's Mane Adige) — Fri, 27 Nov 2009 17:02:00 +0000

Hey folks! Hope alls well with you all... The update from my end is that, Naveen and I were blessed with a baby boy on the 13th of Oct 2009! Things have been hectic at my end ever since... Each day has been a different learning experience. Despite all the sleepless nights and Aadi's seemingly never ending crying sessions, motherhood has been a wonderful experience. It is such a pleasure to watch them grow, I tell ya! :)

Thanks to Amma and Ajji's 'Baananthana( in simple words, postpartum care and attention given to the new mom), I am learning quite a few unique dishes out here. One such dish is "Antinunde". Edible gum, that is used in making this laddu is high in medicinal value. A lot of dry fruits also go into these laddus making them rich and nutritious. "One Antinunde a day strengthens your spine", my Ajji says. This laddu is more commonly known as Karadantu( or Karidantu) in the northern parts of Karnataka. If I am not wrong, this laddu is also known by the name "Ding Laddu" in Mangalore-Udupi regions of Karnataka.

Ingredients:

1 cup Edible gum, finely chopped

1 cup Almonds/Badami, finely chopped

1 cup Dry Dates/Uttutte, finely chopped

1 cup Raisins

1 cup Desiccated Coconut/Copra/Kobbari grated

1.5 cups Jaggery

1-1.5 tbsp Khus khus/ Gasagase (optional)

2 tbsp Ghee/Clarified butter for roasting

Ghee for deep frying

Method:

Heat ghee in a heavy bottomed pan for deep frying.
Drop the chopped edible gum pieces into hot ghee and fry until they puff up; Remove from pan and drain on paper towels.
Dry roast khus khus and keep aside;
Heat 2 tbsp ghee in a pan and roast the chopped almonds until they turn lightly golden brown; Keep aside.
Dry roast the desiccated coconut and keep aside;
Mix all the dry fruits, desiccated coconut, fried edible gum and khus khus in a large mixing bowl and keep aside.
Heat jaggery in a heavy bottomed pan and add just enough water to cover the jaggery; Boil until jaggery dissolves and forms a syrup with thread like consistency. Note: To test if the syrup is ready, pour a drop into a bowl of cool water. If the solution forms a tiny lump and does not dissolve in water, the syrup is ready.
Pour the syrup into the above mixture little by little and mix well.
Grease you palm with a drop of ghee; Take some of the mixture in your palm and make laddus of desired size; Repeat for remaining mixture as well.
Let cool and store in air tight containers.

Prep Time: About 50-60 mins;

Makes: About 25-30 laddus;

Annada Kesari Bhaat / Sweet Saffron Rice

noreply@blogger.com (Ramya's Mane Adige) — Mon, 07 Sep 2009 10:15:00 +0000

Hey folks! All well at your end, I hope.... Things have been good at my end,apart from the cough and cold that everyone in our house is falling prey to. The weather out here in Bengaluru has been pretty gloomy and rainy. Probably that's the reason why everyone around seems to be falling sick so often.

My Ajji- Taata are here with us since a couple of weeks and I am getting to learn a whole lot of traditional dishes from my Ajji! One such dish that I learned from her was "Annada Kesari Bhaat". This dish happens to be one of my favorites, and I love it even more after having learned how easy it is to make :) Have a surprise guest at home? You could put this together in just 10-15 mins!

Ingredients:

3/4 cup Cooked white rice ( I like mine to be mushy and well cooked)

1 cup Sugar (Adjust quantity according to taste)

1/4 cup Ghee/Clarified butter

8-10 Saffron strands

1-2 tsp Warm Milk

1 tbsp Raisin-Cashew mixture

1-2 drops Food color (optional)

Method:

Soak saffron strands in warm milk and keep aside.
Heat a pan on medium flame and add 1/4 cup of water to it.
Add all the sugar and stir until it dissolves completely and forms a thread like consistency; Note:Add just enough water to dissolve all the sugar.
Add half the quantity of ghee to the pan and stir until it dissolves.
Add the cooked and mashed rice, food color and remaining ghee; Pour the milk with saffron strands over it and mix thoroughly.
Roast the cashews and raisins in 1 tsp of ghee and add to the Kesari Bhaat; Serve hot and relish!

Nimbekai Uppinakai/Lemon Pickle

noreply@blogger.com (Ramya's Mane Adige) — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 11:33:00 +0000

Hey folks, I'm back! I have been off blogging for over a month now, haven't I ??!?! Time flies here in India... really!! :) August has been a busy month for Naveen and me. We landed in Bengalooru on the 24th of July... The first few days went by in deciding on my doctor and hospital, getting the Internet connection up and running, getting a SIM card for each of us and other such immediate necessities. I have decided to go ahead with Columbia Asia, Hebbal for my delivery.... Any suggestions/experiences/opinions regarding Columbia Asia, Hebbal are more than welcome! :)

After the major task of choosing my doctor and hospital, I was at my in-laws place for a couple of weeks at Mangalooru. Rainy season that it is in India right now, it was pouring cats and dogs in the coastal city of Mangalooru (or Mangalore, as it was known till recently).... Not that it helped in cooling down the weather in any way!!! Despite the heavy rains and the high temperatures, I managed to have a wonderful time out there... hogged on all the traditional south canara dishes, stalled the famous "Pabbas" ice cream parlor almost daily, met up with all our good friends! My in-laws had also arranged for a traditional and elaborate "Seemantha" ceremony for me. Got done with all that and returned to Amma's place in Bangalore last week. And now that even Naveen is back to work in Mangalore, I seem to have a lot of free time in hand. I am also enjoying all the pampering while it lasts :)

Both, my Ajji (Mom's mom) and amma, make amazing pickles. This traditional recipe for lemon pickle is theirs too. Glad that I was with amma when she was making it last time.... I got a chance to take a few pictures and learn the procedure. Though very easy to make, I must warn you before hand that this one is a very time consuming procedure and it takes a lot of patience . But once you get to taste this pickle, you will never like any of the store bought ones. So, all you folks who love home made pickles and have the patience to wait, should definitely try this one!!

Ingredients:

10-12 Fresh lemons, medium sized

15-20 Dry Red Chilies, low to medium spiced

2 tsp Methi seeds

1 tsp Hing

Salt as per taste and requirement

Method:

Wash and chop each lemon into 8 pieces and keep aside.
In the jar that you will be using to store the pickle, drop 8-10 pieces of chopped lemon; Sprinkle a generous amount of salt all over; Continue the process for the remaining pieces as well; Close the lid of the jar tightly and keep aside for 4-5 days. Note: Make sure you pick a jar/bottle with a lid that closes tightly.
Open the lid of the jar and mix thoroughly with a steel spoon; You will see that the lemons would have given out enough water because of the salt.
Close the lid of the jar tightly and keep aside for another 20 days; Remember to mix thoroughly, once in every two days.
Dry roast red chilies, methi seeds and hing until you smell the fresh aroma of the masalas. Powder the roasted masalas in a blender without adding any water.
Add the powdered masalas to the salted lemons and mix thoroughly; Keep aside for 2 days.
Relish with dosas, rotis, parathas, idli, curd rice or just some hot steamed plain rice!

Prep Time: About 30-40 mins, excluding storage time;

Makes: Enough to fill a 500ml bottle;

Baalekai Chips/ Banana Chips

noreply@blogger.com (Ramya's Mane Adige) — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 21:27:00 +0000

With just about a week left for our move, mom and I are busy emptying our pantry and making sure we don't end up wasting too many groceries. In the process, we ended up making Mangalore special -Banana Chips last week.... Here goes the recipe

Am sending this across to "RCI-Udupi & Mangalorean Cuisine" event hosted by Sia of Monsoon Spice. Thanx to Lakshmi for having come up with the RCI event concept, and thanks to Sia for hosting this month's event!!

Ingredients:

1 Raw Banana (preferably the long and thick ones, called "nendra baale" in Kannada)

2-3 tsp Salt

1/4 cup Water

Oil for deep frying (Coconut oil, preferably)

Method:

Wash and peel the raw banana; Peel deep enough, such that only the white pulp remains.
Slice the banana into very thin circular slices. You could use a slicer for this purpose.
Heat oil in a heavy bottomed pan; Meanwhile, dissolve salt in some water and keep aside.
Drop a handful of banana slices into the hot oil carefully.
Pour a tsp or two of salt water into the oil; The oil will sizzle a little, so make sure you maintain a distance.
Saute regularly so that the slices do not stick to each other and they are cooked all over.
The chips are done when they turn golden yellow in color; Remove from oil and drain on paper towels; Let cool completely and store in airtight containers.
Repeat the whole process for the remaining banana slices.

Note:

While adding salt water to subsequent batches, keep in mind that the oil would already have some amount of salt in it. So, you might want to add lesser quantity of salt water every time.
You could even add a pinch of turmeric and hing to the salt concentrate, for good color and taste.
Using coconut oil gives it the authentic mangalorean taste, but feel free to go ahead and use any vegetable oil of your choice.

Prep Time: About 30-40 mins;

Serves: Makes enough for 2-3 people;

Gasagase Payasa / Poppy Seeds Payasam

noreply@blogger.com (Ramya's Mane Adige) — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 20:16:00 +0000

Hey everybody! Hope y'all had a safe and fun filled long weekend. We spent ours at New York!! Amma Appa were awestruck by all the tall and beautiful buildings, the busy crowds on the streets, abound dining and shopping options..... They loved it all :)

And btw, have I told you guys that we are moving back to India in a couple of weeks?? In case I haven't mentioned it yet.... Naveen and I are moving back to India for good!!!! :) By the end of this month, we'd be in India among family and friends.....Oh, I am so very excited!!!! But before that, we have a whole lot of packing and winding up to do here.The next two weeks are gonna be really busy!!! In the next couple of months, I may not be able to blog as regularly as I would want to... But I'm sure you folks will understand! :)

Anyway, coming to today's recipe... Gasagase Payasa is very traditional and authentic to Karnataka. As most of you would know, poppy seeds are the source of opium. So, don't be surprised if you find yourself dozing off after having a hot cup of Gasagase Payasa :D. There are different ways of making Gasagase Payasa..... some people soak the rice and poppy seeds, while some others roast and powder it. Here's how we make it in our family....

Ingredients:

4 tsp Poppy seeds

1 tsp White Rice, uncooked

1 cup Grated Coconut, fresh/frozen

1/4 cup Desiccated coconut/Copra/Kobbari

3-4 tbsp Jaggery

1/4 cup Milk

1/2 tsp Elaichi, powdered

4-5 strands of Saffron (optional)

8-10 Cashews/Almonds (optional)

Method:

Dry roast poppy seeds and rice until they turn crisp and lightly change color.
Finely powder the roasted poppy seeds and rice in a blender without adding any water.
Add grated coconut, desiccated coconut, some water and grind to a smooth paste.
Add half a cup of water and strain the paste through a finely perforated strainer; Retain the liquid - this will make the payasam later.
Transfer the coarse residue into a blender; Add some more water and grind again to a smooth paste.
Repeat steps 4 and 5 about 3-4 times.
Add jaggery to the strained liquid and boil on low-medium heat until all the jaggery dissolves; Remove from stove.
Dissolve saffron strands in 1/4 cup of warn milk and set aside for 5-10 mins.
Add powdered elaichi,warm milk with saffron and mix well; Serve hot and relish.

Prep Time: About 40-45 mins;

Serves: About 3-4 people;

Menthya Gojju/ Fenugreek seeds cooked in Tamarind & Jaggery sauce

noreply@blogger.com (Ramya's Mane Adige) — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 18:00:00 +0000

What is the best part of pregnancy, you ask me?? Well, its definitely the pampering and all the fuss around me, by everyone in the family :) Nothing I say is ever put off! I now indulge gracefully in all my cravings, without the least bit of guilt :D. Ramya wants to go to DQ's for a Sundae, late in the night, and so the entire family goes along without any objections!!! Mom picks and chooses all my favorites dishes and makes them for me.... Some of them, I had almost forgotten they existed. I'm loving this phase of pregnancy!! :) I have also been feeling the baby moves and kicks for over a month now. It feels wonderful! I had confused them for hunger pangs, initially, but learned to differentiate in a few days. The first trimester was terrible with all the morning sickness, and I am already dreading the huge belly that I'm gonna be carrying in the thirst trimester.... The second trimester is the golden phase, as everyone says, and I'm enjoying it while it lasts! :)

Here is a simple and quick recipe that takes very few and common ingredients that are usually present in any South Indian pantry. People who relish bitter gourd (Karela) will definitely love this one. This is a bit of an acquired taste and you might have to try it a couple of time before you actually like it...

Ingredients:

2 tsp Fenugreek/Methi/Menthya seeds

2 tsp Chana Dhalia/Hurigadale/Putaani

1 tsp Tamarind paste

1 tbsp Jaggery

1.5 tsp Rasam powder

1 tbsp Grated coconut fresh/frozen (optional)

2 tsp Oil

3/4 tsp Mustard seeds

3-4 Curry leaves

A generous pinch of Hing

A pinch of Turmeric

Salt as per taste

Method:

Dry roast the fenugreek seeds until them turn lightly red in color; Make sure not to burn them.
Add half a cup of water and pressure cook until done; It takes about 2-3 whistles in my cooker.
Heat oil in a heavy bottomed pan; Temper with mustard seeds, curry leaves, hing and turmeric.
Add the cooked fenugreek seeds, rasam powder, jaggery, tamarind paste, salt and boil well for about 4-5 mins; Add a little water if required.
Meanwhile, coarsely powder the chana dhalia using a blender; Add chana dhalia and grated coconut to the boiling gojju and mix well; Add water to get the desired consistency; Adjust ingredients according to taste and boil further for a minute or two;
Remove from stove and serve hot with hot steamed rice/ dosas/rotis and relish.

Prep Time: About 30-40 mins;

Serves: About 2-3 people;

Theingolu/ Theingolalu\TeingoL (Deep fried,rice and urad flour snack)

noreply@blogger.com (Ramya's Mane Adige) — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 18:39:00 +0000

A deep fried snack for you guys today! Theingolalu is a deep fried snack that's very similar to chakli. While chakli is more widely known and is relished by everyone all over India, this one is more authentic and known only in the Mysore - Bangalore regions of Karnataka. The process involved in making Theingolalu is tedious and time consuming, but the end product is delicious! And you know how moms are.... they wouldn't mind going through all the pains, as long as their little one relishes it. Yes, my mom made this for me and brought it along while coming here to visit us! :) I would never have gone through the trouble of making it myself :P Here is how she made it...

Ingredients:

1 cup Urad Dal/ Urad flour

3 cups Uncooked White rice

1 tbsp Butter

1/2 tsp Hing

1 tsp Jeera/Cumin seeds

Salt as per taste

Oil for deep frying

Method:

Wash and drain the rice and Urad dal separately; Spread on paper towels and let dry for about 2 hours.
Dry roast the rice until it turns mildly warm- Make sure not to over roast.
Powder the rice and Urad dal separately in a blender; DO NOT add any water while powdering. Note: If you are using Urad flour, you could skip step 1; Follow step 3 for rice only and continue with the next step.
Mix both flours, melted butter, salt, cumin seeds and knead into a dough- Add water as required; The dough should be of the same consistency as of the poori dough, or slightly thicker than the chapati dough.
Stuff the dough into the traditional chakli press/maker; Press into circles of desired shape.
Heat oil in a heavy bottomed pan; Drop them one by one and fry on medium flame until they turn lightly golden in color.
Drain on paper towels and let cool; Store in air tight containers. Relish with tea/coffee or just as is.

Tip:

If you have enough time in hand, make the rice and urad powders and set them aside for a couple of days before you proceed with making Theingolalu. The color and texture turns out better this way.
If you have access to to any flour mill, it would be a good idea to get the urad dal and rice powdered at the mill instead of using the blender.... You would have a finer and smoother powder this way.
The Urad-Rice mixture can be made well in advance and stored/frozen for almost a year; So when you have guests over, all you need to do is knead it into a dough and then deep fry; Theingolalu would be ready in just a few minutes!
Theingolalu can be stored in air tight containers for up to 3-4 weeks!
Traditionally, the "bille" (the circular, detachable bottom portion of the chakli press containing perforations, through which the dough oozes out) used for theingolalu contains three medium sized circular perforations, while the "bille" for chakli contains only one star shaped perforation. Every Chakli press comes with multiple "bille"s of various types and perforations, So you could choose whichever suits you best.

Makes: About 25-30 Theingolalu;

Prep Time: About 60-90 mins, excluding soaking time;

Aviyal

noreply@blogger.com (Ramya's Mane Adige) — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 18:09:00 +0000

Aviyal, as most of you would know, is a Kerala speciality dish. Dakshina Kannada (Mangalore-Udupi) cuisine is highly influenced by Kerala cuisine because of its proximity to Kerala. Aviyal is one such adaptation. While Aviyal is made thick and "sabzi/palya" kinds in Kerala, it is more of a gravy in Karnataka. With a whole lot of veggies, this dish is healthy, nutritious and quite easy to make! Serve with some hot steamed rice and it makes a wonderful comfort food.

Ingredients:

2 cups Mixed veggies, chopped into 1" pieces (green beans, carrots, tindora, potatoes etc)

1/2 cup Grated coconut, fresh/frozen

1 cup Yogurt/Sour curd

2-3 Green Chilies, low to medium spiced

1 tsp Jeera

1-2 tsp Oil

1 tsp Mustard seeds

4-5 Curry leaves

A pinch of Hing

Salt as per taste

Method:

Boil the veggies with some salt and water until tender and cooked; Drain the cooked veggies and retain the excess water.
Grind coconut, jeera and green chilies to a smooth paste with some water.
Add the masala paste to the cooked veggies and boil for a minute; Add salt and mix well.
Switch off the stove and add yogurt; Add some of the retained water from the cooked veggies to get the desired consistency; Mix well and adjust ingredients according to taste.
Temper with mustard seeds, curry leaves and hing; Serve with hot steamed rice and relish.

Maavinakai Kette Uppinakai (Instant Raw Mango pickle)

noreply@blogger.com (Ramya's Mane Adige) — Wed, 20 May 2009 17:06:00 +0000

Pickles are something that everyone loves!!!! As a child, I would have pickles with almost everything - idlis, dosas, plain rice & ghee, rotis or even bread!! :D And we always had a jar of home made pickles at home. In fact, I hadn't tasted store bought pickles until I shifted to the hostel during my Engineering days!! Amma makes different varieties of pickles and the one I have for you today is the simplest of all. Its fast, easy to make, takes very few ingredients and you need not have to wait for too long before you can start relishing it.... And it is also one of my favorites!!! :) Here's how Amma makes it....

Ingredients:

3 Raw Mangoes, medium sized

3tsp Mustard seeds

30 Dry Red Chilies, low to medium spiced

1tsp Powdered Hing

1 tsp Haldi/Turmeric

Salt as per taste

Method:

Wash and cut mangoes into 1 inch cubes; In a glass jar, spread some of the cubes and sprinkle some salt over it; Add few more cubes and make another layer; Sprinkle some more salt ; Repeat the process for the remaining mango cubes and keep aside.
Powder the mustard seeds and red chilies to a fine mixture; Add hing, turmeric and mix well. Note:DO NOT add any water while powdering the spices in the blender/mixie.
Add the powdered spices to the mango-salt mixture and mix well with the help of a long spoon; Close the lid of the jar tightly. Relish with idlis, dosas,akki rottis, curd rice.

Tips:

Choose mangoes carefully; The mangoes should be sour and hard.
The pickle may seem a little dry on the first day, but DO NOT add any water; the mangoes will give out enough water in a day or two;
Though this pickle can be eaten with any south indian dish, curd rice & pickle is the most famous combination.
Though this pickle is sort of instant and can be used right away, it tastes great after a couple of days when the mangoes would have absorbed the masalas.
This pickle cannot be stored for too long; Its average shelf life is about 1-1.5 months. As days go by, the mangoes would start becoming soft and start dissolving in the gravy.

Prep Time: About 30-40 mins;

Makes: Roughly enough pickle to fill a 450-500 ml bottle;

Badanekayi HinDi (Baingan Bharta, the South Indian style)

noreply@blogger.com (Ramya's Mane Adige) — Fri, 15 May 2009 17:09:00 +0000

Hey people...I'm back!!! I had disappeared again for a coupla weeks, hadn't I??!?! Well, I didn't want to, but I got so busy with mom n dad that I could barely make time for anything else!!! Amma-appa landed early last week... They had a safe journey. They didn't have too much of jetlag either, thankfully :). Been busy showing them around Chicago, these days. Have also been relishing amma made food.... All the home made sweets and savories, varieties of pickles, daily morning breakfast.... yummm!!!! I'm loving it all. Amma's adige is the best in the world!!! :) I am trying my best to take pictures of most of the dishes that amma is making. Will post them one by one!

The recipe I have for you today is from the Sirsi-Sagar parts of Karnataka. This authentic recipe is very easy to make and is a perfect accompaniment with some hot steamed rice. Thanx to my friend Sangeeta for having shared this simple yet delicious recipe! :)

Ingredients:

1 Large purple eggplant

1 tbsp Grated coconut, fresh/frozen

1 Small Red Onion, finely chopped

1 tsp Amchur powder OR 1 tsp Lime juice

1 tsp Chopped Cilantro, for garnishing

2 tsp Oil

1/2 tsp Mustard seeds

2 Green chilies, slit vertically

1 tsp Chana+Urad Dal mixture

A generous pinch of hing

Salt as per taste

Method:

Pre-heat the conventional over to 350 deg F.
Smear the eggplant with a few drops of oil; Make a few cuts on the skin of the eggplant with a knife.
Place the eggplant in an over safe container and bake for about 30-45 mins or until done; Tip: The eggplant is done when the skin shrinks and forms wrinkles all over. You could even poke a toothpick at the center and see if it is cooked completely.
Remove the eggplant from the oven and let cool for a while; Peel off a thin layer of the skin with your hands and discard.... If the eggplant is cooked well it should come off very easily.
Mash the flesh of the eggplant with the back of a spoon and discard the stalk.
Add chopped onions, amchur powder, grated coconut, salt and mix well.
Temper with mustard seeds, green chilies, dal mixture and hing.
Serve hot with rice/rotis and enjoy!

Prep Time: About 60-90 mins;

Serves: About 2-3 people;

Eggless & Crunchy Chocolate Chip Cookies

noreply@blogger.com (Ramya's Mane Adige) — Thu, 30 Apr 2009 19:19:00 +0000

Ever since I bought this book last year, I have been doing a lot of baking at home.... Thanx to the book, I'm not scared to bake anymore!! :) This crunchy cookie recipe is also adapted from the same book. A lot of Mane Adige readers have been mailing and asking me to post more eggless recipes. So, here goes!!

Meanwhile, I have less than a week left before my parents arrive... I am soooo excited!!!! And also a little scared... I hope the swine flu issue does not create any problems during their travel... I also have a lot of minor preparations to make, for their arrival. And these terrible rains and cold weather is not helping in any way :((.... Will keep you guys posted! Hope y'all like the cookies....

Ingredients:

1/2 cup Butter at room temperature

3/4 cup Sugar OR 1/2 cup brown sugar+ 1/4 cup sugar

1.5 cups All Purpose Flour/ Maida

1 tsp Baking soda

2 tsp Vanilla extract

3 tbsp Cooking oil

1/2 cup Chopped nuts (optional)

1 cup Semisweet Chocolate Pieces

1/2 cup Shredded coconut (optional)

Method:

Pre-heat oven to 350 deg F.
In a large bowl, cream the butter and sugar until fluffy - approx. 2 minutes. If you are using electric mixer, set the speed to medium.
Slowly add the flour, baking soda, vanilla, oil and mix until completely combined. Note: For a flatter cookie, or if the batter is too dry, add a couple of spoons of water.
Add the chocolate chips, nuts, coconut and mix gently with a wooden spoon. Adjust the quantity of chocolate chips according to your wish.
Drop by rounded teaspoonfuls on ungreased cookie sheets, spaced 2 inches apart; Bake for 8-10 mins or until the cookies are completely done.
Remove from oven and let cool completely. Serve with milk or as is and relish!

Prep Time: About 35-45 mins;

Makes: About 20-25 cookies;