* Treat your tongue *

Refreshing Pear-Berry Smoothie...Aha.....(and my 1st day at work)

noreply@blogger.com (Sayali) — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 03:00:00 +0000

Today was my first day at work and it was the day of orientation.From tomorrow I will be starting my work and will be part of a team. It feels good to be back in the industry. I am not sure how often will I get to write a post, but I want to be consistent and continue my blogging and I will be posting at least once a week. The day of orientation was full of information about the company. What, who, where, how and everything one would like to know about the company. It was exciting, all day long presentations, videos etc etc....

Last Saturday I got a pack of Pears from Costco and you know how many of them come in a pack. :O..... Well many times the calculation of the fruits needed in a week is right but there is always a week when it goes wrong :(...And yes this was the week. Since the pears were getting little juicy I thought I should try a smoothie of it. You know...yogurt and fruits...Well then I remembered that I had some frozen berries and I thought it would be great to add some flavor and color to the pear smoothie. So I added some berries to this. No sugar is needed as both the fruits add enough sweetness. Isn't that great....:)

Well this I would say is the simplest version of the smoothie but its first of a kind for me :).

Ingredients:

To make a glass of smoothie

Take 1 whole pear and cut into cubes.
Take 4-5 berries, frozen
Take 1 tbsp of Curd

Method:

Blend in all the ingredients in a blender and enjoy :). Add ice cubes if you like. Also you can add the small pieces of pear in the smoothie.

Looks Refreshing.....Isn't it ??? :)

Coriander / Cilantro Paratha (Kothmir Ni Rotli)

noreply@blogger.com (Sayali) — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 20:53:00 +0000

Its been 2 and half years to my marriage. Besides family I still miss and remember so many other things from my family and my home. There is this endless list that goes on and on when I become nostalgic and kinda emotional ...you know. But these emotions do not bring tears but bring smile on my face. After marriage you walk with a huge responsibility in your new home and before marriage it was rather a very care free wandering. It's the way the tradition is and life is and every woman sails in the same boat and with age things have to change :)..... (but why sometimes I ask my self)......Wellllll there is no answer to this.... :)

The point is I wanted to mention few of my favorite things which I remember a lot (you can call me materialistic , but yeah I have attachment to them :D ) ...

1) The big terrace which always gave a peaceful sight of the sunset

2) The most comfy Sofa ever in the living room. And the king like treatment received in front of the TV sets, lying on those sofas and mom bringing some garama garam stuff to eat. (That's really wonderful) :)

3) Our bedroom which was shared by me, my sister and my brother. The unusual thing about this room was its color (total green) and its makeover actually (from an attic to a room and a way to it).

4) A biiiig place for Rangoli.. Every diwali I missed it, drawing rangolis with my elder sister. It used to be a total tiring but full of fun experience, I swear.

5) And lastly "Mummy ke haath ka khana" :( . I miss that a lot. I have tried to copy many of her recipes here. But still I could not have that taste in some of the dishes. There are some favorite dishes which are always on the menu list whenever we visit her. DahiVada, Tomato Omelet, "chakolya" , Dudhi Kofta, Daal Bati, Simple Daal and Rotli, "Matki", Pepper rice and many more...

The Coriander Paratha recipe also belongs to the same list. Absolute simple, healthy and really yummy. I am sure everyone will like this, unless he/she doesn't like Coriander at all. If you have dough ready at you home this will be done in no time. The roti tastes great with simle "kadhi". I will be posting the recipe for this. But you can find it online.

The only steps to make the stuffing are to chop the corriander and add few ingredients to it.

Ingredients:

For Stuffing:

Fresh Corriander - Chopped
Roasted Peanuts - Crushed
Gram Flour (Besan)
Salt - per taste
Red Chili Powder - per taste

I am not giving the quantity here as its way easy to make this. Wear you thinking hats and try it out. The stuffing is also shown in the pictures which can give you a brief idea.

For Dough:

To make 5-6 parathas use 1 Cup of wheat flour

Salt - per taste
Oil 1 tsp
Water

To spread on top of roti:

Ghee (Clarified butter)
Fresh Lime Juice

Method:

1. In a bowl take the wheat flour, add salt and oil to it. With the help of water knead the dough as usual. Set aside for atleast 15 minutes.

2. Prepare stuffing my mixing all ingredients listed in another bowl.

3. Take a ball of dough and roll it to make abut3 inch diameter of roti. Place the stuffing in the middle and get the edges together and close it to make a ball again.

4. Roll this into a roti of about 6 inches diameter. Take wheat flour to prevent sticking of the roti to the surface.

5. Cook the roti on a griddle, from both sides.

6.Then place it on a direct flame or heat.

7. Cook a little till a few tiny black spots appear. Now the roti is done and place it in a plate.

8. Make a few pinches with the fingers to the roti. Spread Ghee and some lime juice over it.

Steps 5 and 6 are shown in here. The Stuffing is shown on the right side

Tips:

This roti can be most enjoyed with a kadhi.

Alepak Poha - Ginger flavored Beaten Rice Snack

noreply@blogger.com (Sayali) — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 18:08:00 +0000

After you get married there is a lot of change in the food that is being made in the in-laws family. In fact you get surprised to see some of the food items which you used to have for breakfasts are eaten as main courses and some of the main courses are cooked for breakfasts. That's really funny :) and it takes time to get used to it. I am sure the girls who are married must have come across some food items which you do not like at all but still you had to prepare those. There are definitely some on my list and Alepak Poha ( Ginger flavored beaten rice ) is one from that list. It is because I am huge fan of the regular "kanda poha" and this version will never ever beat it.
But again your taste buds get used to such dishes and after a while you start liking them...Isn't it?
Yes even I started liking this version of Poha and its not that bad. It has lots of ginger in it which makes it good for digestion.

Ginger is known to be taken when there are problems related to the digestive system such as indigestion, gas pains, diarrhea and stomach cramping. People in US also drink Gingerale when there is similar problem.

Ingredients:

Serves 2-3

Beaten Rice - 3 Cups
Grated Ginger - 3 tbsp
Jaggery (gud) - 2 tbsp, grated
Grated fresh coconut - 2 tbsp
Crushed Roasted Peanuts - 2 tbsp
Green Chili paste - 2 tsp
Fresh lime juice - per taste
Curry Leaves - few
Mustard seeds, Cumin seeds and oil for seasoning
Hing or Asafoetida - pinch
Salt - per taste

Method:

1. Wash poha / beaten rice in drainer/siever, drain the excess water c completely, leave it for 10 minutes. Use minimal water as possible.

2. Heat oil in a pan, add Mustard seeds, hing, curry leaves, green chili paste and grated ginger. Mix well for 30 seconds.

3.Add poha and mix well. Now add Jaggery and mix again. Cover for 2-3 minutes.

4. Add salt, peanuts crush, coconut and lime juice. Mix everything. Cover again for 4-5 minutes.

5. Adjust the jaggery, salt.

6. Serve.

Masala Bhindi (Okra / lady finger)

noreply@blogger.com (Sayali) — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 21:32:00 +0000

I just love bhindi in any form. 'Regular, Bharva, Masala, Tava, Dahi, fried'. This is the first bhindi recipe on my blog. I will eventually add all other recipes. This recipe is one of the favorites at home. The best thing about bhindi is it gets cooked in microwave within minutes. We also get rid of that stickiness if we cook it in microwave.

Ingredients:

Serves 3-4

Bhindi/Okra - 250-300 gms
Onion - 1/2 Cup , cut into slits
Punjabi Garam Masala / Kitchen King Masala or regular Garam Masala : 2-3 tsp
Cumin Coriander Powder : 1-2 tsp
Salt and Red Chili powder to taste
Pinch of sugar
Oil
Mustard Seeds, Cumin seeds for seasoning

For Puree:
Tomato - 1 Medium size
Ginger - 1/2" piece
Cloves - 2-3 Garlic
Onion - 1/4 cup

Method:

1. Wash and dry the bhindis and take off the head of all bhindis. Also cut the bhindi into 1" pieces. Place it in a bowl and put about 3 tsp oil on them. Make sure oil spreads all over the bhindi. Now microwave it for about 6-8 minutes or till it gets cooked.

2. Heat oil in a pan and add mustard seeds, cumin seeds. When they sizzle add slitted onion. Saute onion till it gets transparent.

3. Meanwhile grind all the ingredients listed under puree and make a paste. Add as little water as possible.

4. Now add this puree, all the masala powders, salt and mix well. Let the puree cook for 4-5 minutes.

5. Now check if the bhindi is cooked and if done add this to the puree. Mix well, cover and let this cook for another 10 minutes.

Tips:

Try this out with Punjabi Garam Masala or Kitchen King. These masalas are ready made masalas and you can find them in any Indian Store.

Sabudana Vada (Tapioca pearls fried tikkis)

noreply@blogger.com (Sayali) — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 17:53:00 +0000

This year we, I mean the Seattle, had a record snow. Schools were closed, roads were slippery, going anywhere was just risky. But snow in Seattle is like a rainbow in a rain. It lasts only for a while but makes the green world look entirely different and beautiful.

The point is there was no chance we can go for grocery and the question was what to do. No green veggies at home and got bored potatoes. Daals and pulses do not appeal the taste buds in cold winters.
When I ran out of all the options, there was this Sabudana Vada which I know how to make and does not need any special ingredient.

Ingredients:

Serves 2 or makes 12 - 15 Vadas

Tapioca pearls (Sabudana) - 1 Cup
Peanuts - roasted and crushed - Handful
Green Chili paste - per taste
Potato - 1 Small, Boiled and Smashed - (optional)
Lime juice - per taste
Salt - per taste
Sugar - per taste
Coriander - 2 tbsp, chopped
Cumin seeds - 2 tsp
Oil - for frying
Milk - 1-2 tbsp
Coriander + Cumin seeds powder - 2 - 3 tsp

Method:

1. Soak sabudana in only enough water for 3-4 hours. There should not be any excess amount of water.

2. Now add crushed peanuts, salt, sugar, coriander + cumin seeds powder to the sabudana and mix.

3. Heat 3 tbsp oil in a large shallow skillet and then add cumin seeds to it. Once they sizzle add green chili paste and mix immediately.

4. Quickly add the sabudana mixture to this and mix for 2-3 minutes. Add 1 tbsp of milk, lime juice as per taste and mix again. Lid it and let it cook for 5-6 minutes on lower to medium flame.

5. Open the lid and mix the sabudana again. Adjust salt, sugar, and lime juice. Its hard to adjust the green chili now and hence you should be careful when you add it in the first place.

6. Add coriander and this makes the Sabudana Khichdi.

7. To make sabudana vadas we will add the boiled and smashed potatoes to this mixture. This will keep the vadas intact and help in binding.

8. Take a little mixture in hand and make tikkis of it.

9. Heat oil in a pan and then fry the tikkis. Serve with tomato ketchup, or a simple dahi (yogurt) raita.

10. To make this raita, add generous amount of sugar and little salt to plain yogurt. Mix it well to get dropping consistency. Add a seasoning of oil , mustard seeds and cumin seeds to it. Mix and serve with sabudana vadas.

Tips:

Another simple way to make vadas is to skip the khichdi step. Add green chili paste and lime

This year's Snowman :) :)

Vegetable Hakka Noodles (Sauted Spaghetti) with Schezwan Sauce

noreply@blogger.com (Sayali) — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 21:43:00 +0000

This Christmas we had a potluck at our home. The special thing for this potluck was the Chinese theme :). Everyone made some kind of Chinese noodle, rice or Manchurian. The Hakka Noodles made by one of our friend was really amazing. Here is the same version oh Hakka Noodles made using not the Chinese noodles but the Spaghetti which is a Italian pasta variety. You can buy this in any American grocery store. This is a really quick snack or even a full meal.

Ingredients:

Serves 4-5

Spaghetti Pasta - 1 pack or 16 oz
Carrots - 1 Cup, Julienned
Capsicum - 1 Cup, Julienned
Cabbage - 1 Cup, Julienned
Spring Onion - 1 Bunch
Soya Sauce - 1 tbsp
Schezwan Sauce - 1 tbsp (optional)
Red Chili Sauce - per taste
Vinegar - 4 tsp
Salt - per taste
Oil - 4-5 tbsp

Method:

1. Bring 4-6 quarts of water to a boil. Add salt to taste, if desired.

2. Add the spaghetti to the boiling water. Cook for about 6 minutes of till the noodles cook.

3. Once the spaghetti cooks, drain out the excess water and rinse it again with the cold water. This prevents sticking of the noodles to each other.

4. Heat oil in a wok or in a shallow pan. Saute carrots, capsicums and cabbage in order. Keep them a little crunchy and do not overcook.

5. Add soya sauce, red chili sauce. Mix schezwan sauce with the vinegar and add this to the veggies. Add salt. Mix well.

6. Now add the noodles and quickly mix everything.

7. Adjust the sauces and salt and sprinkle the chopped green onion . Use 2 forks if you don't have proper tools. Mix and serve.

Tips:

Schezwan sauce is optional. It is not present in authentic Hakka Noodles.
Use any other noodles instead of Spaghetti.

My First Homemade Pizza

noreply@blogger.com (Sayali) — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 20:14:00 +0000

Making pizza at home is a fun process. Though a little lengthy than what we are used to (order it online ;) ) its totally worth it. All the extra cheese, extra toppings and sauce are free of cost. !!! :)

Well I referred the VahReVah chefs recipe for the pizza base. This one is enough and works out well.

Pizzas made in pizza shops are prepared in very high heat and using pizza stone. Well we can heat up the home oven to its max but 350 - 400 worked for me. And that said you can always buy pizza stone if you are going to prepare it frequently. Otherwise a round large round baking sheet is good.

Ingredients:

Serves 4-6

For Pizza base:

All Purpose Flour - 7 Cup
Active Yeast - 7 gms (Small packet, you can get this in any retail grocery store)
Salt as per taste
Water - 250 ml
Olive oil - 5 tsp
Sugar - 1/2 tsp
Salt - 1 tsp

For Tomato Sauce:

Tomato - 3 Cups, Puree
Onion - 1/2 Cup, Very finely Chopped
Tomato Ketchup - 1/2 Cup
Garlic - 2 Cloves, Minced
Red Chili powder or chili flakes - per taste
Oregano Italian Spice - per taste
Dry Italian Parsley - per taste
Salt - per taste
2 tbsp Oil

For Toppings:

I am strictly vegetarian and hence I have not listed any non-vegetarian toppings which are limitless.

Capsicum slits
Onion Slits
Sliced Tomatoes
Oregano
Parsley
Mozzarella Cheese - Grated
Salt as per taste
(can add other toppings like canned jalapeno and olives)

Method:

For Pizza Dough :

1. Take warm water. Sprinkle in yeast, sugar,salt. Cover it and let it stand for 10 minutes. This process actually activates yeast. make sure water is not hot otherwise yeast may die.
2. Mix in yeast mixture into remaining flour, add Olive oil and knead it for 3-4 minutes till soft dough.

3. Place the dough in the shallow vessel and cover it with a thin wet cloth. Let it rest for 1-2 hours.

4. If you check it now you can see the dough has risen and its time to knead it again. Make it rest for another 1 or 2 hours.

For Pizza Sauce:
Heat oil in a skillet add minced garlic to it. When the garlic turns a little brown, add finely chopper onions to it. Saute for 3 minutes. Now add tomato puree and let it cook another for 2 minutes. Add tomato ketchup, red chili powder (or chili flakes), oregano, parsley, salt and little sugar to it.

(Onion and tomato ketchup give a thicker consistency to the sauce. Make sure the sauce is thick so that when you spread it over the base it wont make it soggy).

For Toppings:
When using onion and capsicum I prefer to cut them in long slits and saute then in oil a little before using them. If you decide do saute onions and capsicum, make sure to remove excess water from the sauteed veggies before using them. We can use raw veggies as well.

Other toppings are tomatoes, jalapeno, olives and many more which you know :) .

For Pizza:

I usually make two pizzas of large size from this amount of dough. Knead the risen dough again and take half the dough on a flour greased surface (or kitchen top). Roll it a little and then with hands spread it into a large size pizza base. Make use of the flour if your hands stick to the dough in this process.

Make some tiny holes all over the base with the help of fork. Add pizza sauce evenly over the base or as required, add the toppings, and generously add the grated cheese. Sprinkle fresh or dried parsley and oregano as per taste.

Bake in a hot (350C) oven. Check in between . The pizza base rises while baking. The pizza is ready when the cheese has melted and it turns brown. remove the pizza from the oven and with the help of pizza cutter, cut the pizza into desired number of pieces.

Tips:

In my first attempt I got a lot of ideas about how the pizza preparation process should go. So do not worry if the pizza does not come out as expected. It takes one or two tries and you will get to it. :).

The borders of the base taste very plain. To add some taste to it apply the garlic paste. (Garlic + Butter + little salt)
Have you tried the artisan pizza from Dominoes which is made of Spinach and feta cheese. I love this pizza and this combination is due in my to do list.
The pizza base dough can remain in t refrigerators for few days.

Hawaii !!! - Truly a Heaven on Earth

noreply@blogger.com (Sayali) — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 18:45:00 +0000

Maui (Hawaii) what a place to be :)............ Pacific is at its best here...Beautiful beaches, fresh air, lush green trees, and those giant humpback whales :) ....Memorable !!!

My blogger Friends, recently I had been to Maui island in Hawaii and it was one of the most amazing trips of mine. I needed to relax after completion of my Master (which is really very hectic :)) and me and my hubby always wanted to visit Hawaii. This was the perfect time.

Maui is one of the 8 islands of Hawaii. People who want to relax in peace and want to play in grounds of Nature, this is the perfect island.

Things which are must dos in Maui are:

1. Snorkeling (at Molokini Crater) - Snorkeling was really amazing experience.Initially I was a little afraid as I am not a good swimmer.But with all the gears it becomes a lot easier What a world it is down there, once you insert your face inside you get disconnected with the outside world.... :) . Corals and fishes which I always watched in television , I was experiencing them !!!!!

2. Sunrise from Halaekela - You drive to the top of Halaekela mountain (10000 ft). Clouds are under you feet and you see the Sun rising above the clouds. :) Color formations are simply magical. The color changes on the surface of the Halaekela mountain are incredible. Be prepared for the cold here as we were not :(.

3. Road to Hana - I enjoy rainforests and wild trees. Road to Hana is around 35 miles long and has got some 600 curves (It is not straight at all). Hats off to US government for constructing such roads. On this road you will come across different villages, view of pacific ocean, water falls, locally made banana bread and coconut icecream stalls. You are covered with greenery all over.

4. Golf Courses - I don't know anything about Golf but I always love to watch the golf courses. Hawaii is world renowned for its golf courses. We got an opportunity to view some of the luxurious once. Kapalua is one of them. Imagine the view of ocean n one side, and the lush green mountains on the other. Its party for players while they are playing :)

5. Beaches, beaches, beaches- Plenty of beaches. You can just park anywhere in West Maui. The entire road is along the coastline. There are some beautiful beaches in South Maui as well like Big beach and Wailea. There are some black sand beaches. It was fun everywhere. :)

Here are some of the beautiful sights of Maui.

Sunrise At Halaekela

All Types of Tides and Waves

Breathtaking Views

The curviest and scenic Road To Hana

One of the beaches I loved - This one is called as Big Beach

Looks beautiful , right?

This one is the Kapalua Golf course. There are plenty of others.

Cheers !!!!

Back with loooottttts of excitement and Magic Squares :)

noreply@blogger.com (Sayali) — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 20:16:00 +0000

Hellooooooooooooooooo Everyone... How are you all doing ? Its been a long long time for me since my last post. I was busy with my Masters and a good news is that I have finished everything and I am a graduate now :B. Another great achievement is I got a job in one of the biggest software companies and I am extremely happy to share this with you all.... :)

Well I am sure you all had a great 2011 year and I wish all of you a fantastic year ahead.
May the year of 2012 bring variety of food to you life, spice up your days and sweeten your moments.

Since this is my first post after the long gap I though I should start it with some sweet.
While I was at Kansas State University for one of my semester I got to know new people and yes new recipes. One of my friends their shared me the recipe of Magic Squares which truly are magical :). I tried these couple of days back and guess what everyone liked it a lot. I enjoy making such sweets which take little time and are different than the traditional once.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cup melted Butter
2 Cup graham crackers crumps
14 oz Sweet Condensed Milk
Semisweet mini chocolate chips as per requirement
Butterscotch chips as per requirement
Shredded dry coconut as per requirement
Coarsely crushed Nuts (I used almonds) as per requirement

Method:

1) Preheat oven to 350°F.

2) Make crumps of graham crackers and melt the butter in microwave.

3) In a rectangular baking pan, mix graham wafer crumbs and melted butter. Press evenly and firmly over the bottom.

4) Pour some part of condensed milk evenly over the base.

5) Sprinkle the chocolate chips, butterscotch chips, coconut, and almonds evenly in layers on top of the base layer. Pour the remaining condensed milk on evenly on top.

6) Bake for about 15-20 minutes but keep an eye.

7) When the coconut turns brown take the pan out. Make the cuts with a knife but do not take out the pieces of it.

8) Cover it with a cloth or paper and let it cool entirely. Then cut into squares and store them in a container or you can even refrigerate.

Tips:

You can press the foil paper on the baking pan and then put the base layer so that the magic squares do not stick to the pan.

This recipe enters the
Choclate Mela event
Kid’s Delights : for this month’s theme ‘Something Sweet’

Semi-dry version of Methi Mutter Malai

noreply@blogger.com (Sayali) — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 19:39:00 +0000

This is a different version of methi mutter malai which does not have gravy and is semi-dry. I learnt it from showmethecurry site. The peculiar thing about this version is the use of red dry chillies. The taste definitely differs than the traditional sweet methi mutter malai.

Ingredients:

Serves 4

2 Cups Frozen Sweet Peas
1 bunch fresh Fenugreek Leaves (or Dried Leaves aka Kasuri Methi)
Cream or Milk as per taste or enough to reach the consistency
1 tbsp Oil
1/2 tsp Cumin Seeds
2-3 Whole Dry Red Chilies
1 tbsp minced Ginger
1/3 Cup chopped Onion
1/2 Cup chopped Tomato
1/4 tsp Turmeric Powder
1 tsp Coriander Powder
1 tsp Garam Masala
Red Chili Powder as per taste
Salt as per taste

Method:

1. Wash Fenugreek Leaves well, chop finely and boil it for a while. Add 1 tsp salt to it while boiling.
Boil it for 5 minutes. This helps in removing the bitter smell from the leaves.

2. Heat oil in a medium skillet.

3. Add cumin seeds and allow them to sizzle. Immediately add dry red chillies and turmeric powder.

4. Stir and add copped onion to it. Saute till the onion turn transparent. Add ginger and mix.
While the onions are cooking microwave the frozen peas for 5 minutes.

5. Add chopped tomatoes, mix and cook for 5 minutes.

6. Now add green peas, coriander powder, garam masala, red chili powder and salt. Mix well, cover and cook for 5 minutes. Stir in between.

7. Drain the Fenugreek Leaves and add it to the peas.

8. Cover and cook until peas and Fenugreek Leaves are cooked (3-6 minutes). Adjust masalas and salt.

9. Add in cream or milk, mix well and bring to a boil. Cook until the milk is evaporated.

Tips:

If you are using kasuri methi, make sure to break it down by rubbing in between hands and then keeping it to boil.

Til Vadi - Sesame Seeds Squares

noreply@blogger.com (Sayali) — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 19:59:00 +0000

Makar Sankranti is a festival which is celebrated in many different ways in all parts of India. In Maharashtra (the state from where I come) it is celebrated by exchanging the sweets made out of Sesame seeds. "Take sweet, be sweet and talk sweet" is what people greet each other while exchanging these sweets. In Marathi it is called as "Tilgul ghya god bola".

At my home we make a "Tilvadi" which is made out of Sesame seeds and Jaggery. This year I tried my hands on this vadi which is really easy to make. The vadis can come out perfect given that you follow all the steps correctly.

Happy Makar Sankranti to all and enjoy this recipe.

Ingredients:

2 Cup Sesame Seeds (Til)
1/4 Cup coarsely crushed roasted Peanuts
1 1/2 Cup of Jaggery (Gud)
2 tbsp Clarified Butter (Ghee)
Grated Dry Unsweetened Coconut as per requirement

Method:

1. Heat a skillet and roast the Sesame seeds till they turn crisp, little brown and you get a nice aroma. Let them cool and then grind them coarsely (do not make it fine). Meanwhile prepare a shallow plate (thali) or a kitchen top surface by greasing it with some clarified butter. We will use this to spread the vadi mixture.

2. Heat the same skillet again, add the clarified butter (ghee). Once the butter melts add the jaggery (Gud) to it. When Jaggery melts and when the bubbles start to pop up, remove the skillet from above the burner and add the sesame seeds and crushed peanuts to the jaggery syrup.

3. Mix everything fast.

4. Spread the mixture evenly onto the plate and garnish it by sprinkling the dry shredded coconut. To spread everything evenly use your hands or a bowl with flat surface to apply pressure on the hot mixture.

5. Now make the vadis by cutting the mixture into diamond shapes. Let it cool before you take out the vadis.

Tips:

The color of the vadi depends on the Jaggery used. Prefer the darker jaggery. Also the Jaggery should be not too sticky and not dry at all.
Make sure the Jaggery syrup is not too liquidish before you add mixture. It should be thick enough to glue up everything in one whole piece.
Jaggery and Clarified butter, both can be found in any indian store.

Taking Off For A While

noreply@blogger.com (Sayali) — Fri, 22 Apr 2011 19:19:00 +0000

Hello dear bloggers...

I will be bit idle for sometime and will not be able to post recipes. Actually I got admitted into Kansas State University for Masters. This is my second semester and I am staying away from home. Things are different as a student but I am enjoying being in school again :). Here is the snap of one of the buildings from my beautiful campus.

I will be back soon and join you all...Till then happy blogging. :)

SwagBucks - Fun way to earn :)

noreply@blogger.com (Sayali) — Sat, 15 Jan 2011 01:16:00 +0000

About Swagbucks:

Some may have heard about Internet earning and some may not have. Well there are hundreds of sites where u can earn, get coupons, gifts, money etc. Swagbucks is a similar kind of thing. I registered some months back and in a couple of weeks I had a 5$ Amazon gift card from swagbucks. Till now, I have managed to make 100$ :) of Amazon gift cards. There is just a little you have to do. Search, play, fill some surveys, give votes, enter some swag codes etc and all this at your own pace.

I want to share this with you because I know many of you are homemakers. We bloggers are most of the time online and Swagbucks hardly takes 5-10 minutes of yours in a day. Of course this depends on how much you swag.

Register yourself and find out all the details. Click below to register:

You also get swagbucks by entering swag codes. You can find swag codes at some sites. Here is the one I get them from http://www.sc-s.com/

Some Tips:

You get 1 SB just by polling in 'Daily Polls' everyday
You get 1 SB just by clicking on the trusted Surveys
The NOSO offer : just skip all the offers in a way and complete this to get 2 SBs.
There are many small present in "Special Offers" tab under Earn.
For searching use the keywords which appear on the main page. E.g: 2 products are displayed daily on its home page, try using the words from these product's name and description, or sometimes the main words from the Swagbucks' blog's recent blog post also work. They also have twitter updates which give some hints/swag codes. Once you get something by search, stop and then try later after some hours
You can make Swagbucks as your default search engine, so everytime you search somthing from your search bar the browser will by default use swagbucks search engine.
You can make it your homepage with some search key .
Don't ever do exhaustive searching, it never works that way.

Check this link for more details:
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Instant Uttappa (Semolina Crepes topped with veggies)

noreply@blogger.com (Sayali) — Fri, 07 Jan 2011 18:29:00 +0000

Uttappas are always very fulfilling. These instant Uttappas taste good and we can have as many toppings as we like. Make them look attractive for children by spreading tomato ketchup and Sev.

Ingredients:

2 Cups of Coarse Semolina (Rava)

3/4 Cup of Rice Flour

3/4 Cup of All Purpose Flour

3/4 Cup of Yogurt (Dahi)

Salt as per taste
Oil

For Topping:

Finely Chopped Onion, Capsicum, Carrot, Cabbage (whatever is liked and available in fridge :))
Garam Masala
Tomato Ketchup
Fine Sev

Method:

1. Mix all the ingredients expect the veggies. Mix 1-2 Cups of warm water. Make a thick batter the way we make it for regular uttappas.

2. Allow it to soak for 15-20 minutes.

3. Heat a nonstick pan, put some oil on its surface. Now pour some batter and spread it with the help of ladle. Put the veggies on top of it, sprinkle some Garam Masala. Put some oil along the edges. Let this side cook for a while and once done flip it over and let the other side cook.

4. Serve with tomato Ketchup or spread it over the Uttappa, Put some Sev and you will get Uttappa Pizza :).

Tips:

The rice flour makes these Uttappas a little crisp.

Birthday Cake and 'Crisp n Heavenly' Shahi Tukda

noreply@blogger.com (Sayali) — Tue, 04 Jan 2011 21:18:00 +0000

Happy new year to all the foodies and friends. I hope you all had great time on 31st evening and 1st January with everyone preparing there delicacies to start the year on a sweet note. 1st Jan is always special at my home as its my hubby's Birthday and a start of the year.

This 31st we went to see the fireworks at Space Needle. It was just heavenly. The space needle looked like a spaceship with all the smoke of the fireworks in its background. If any of you visits Seattle, do visit this attraction, you sure will love it.

This time on his birthday I decided to try icing for the cake. I was searching for various egg less recipes for icing. I got many recipes of whipping cream but in the grocery store which are near to our homeI could not find a whipping cream which is heavy in fat. They say the fat content of the cream should be 35% to 40% for the icing to become creamy and thick. So I found another recipe which uses Condensed milk. This icing is easy to make but quickly hardens as it cools. So you need to be very fast in spreading and decorating your cake. Taste wise it was really good. I spent almost 5-6 hours playing with this icing. There were many new things and I learnt a great deal about them. The end product was good and all the hard work was successful..:)

Other special and the simplest sweet dish I made for this special occasion was "Shahi Tukda". Many must be aware of this dish. Its a dessert made out of bread. Some call it shahi pudding. There are various variation of this. Everyone should sure try out this dish as its going to be liked by everyone. It looks very appealing (really Shahi) and tastes very refreshing. Good one to impress guests and family.

Icing Ingredients:

Find the recipe of egg less chocolate cake here.

For Icing/Frosting:

14 oz tin of Condensed Milk

4 tbsp unsweetened Cocoa powder

1 tbsp Butter
1/2 tsp Vanilla essence (optional)
White and Brown chocolate cubes to make curls

Icing Method:

1) Heat sauce pan on medium heat and add butter, condensed milk and sieve cocoa powder in it.

2) Continue to cook for 7 to 8 minutes stirring continuously.

3) Once it becomes thick (spreadable consistency) add vanilla essence, mix well. Frosting is ready. Quickly spread it over the cake using a spatula. If you want to decorate with the design do it real quick. If the icing hardens heat it a little again.

4) To make chocolate curls, melt the chocolate in a pan. On a flat platform spread this chocolate and cool it a little in a freeze. After a while using a cheese slicer draw a straight line down the cooled chocolate platform and get curls. If they are breaking it means the chocolate needs to be heated a little so that it molds into the curls. My curls where not perfect but with practice I will sure get them more curly :).

Shahi Tukda Ingredients:

Serves 8

4 Bread loaves
About 750 ml Milk
3-4 tbsp Custard powder
3/4 Cup Sugar (adjust as per sweet taste)
1 tsp powdered Cardamom (Elaichi)
Shvings of Pistachios and Almonds ( Badaam, Pista )

Shahi Tukda Method:

1. Make equal halves of all the bread loaves. Now to make them crisp there are two options.
Either you can deep fry them in oil or make toasts in the oven. I made toasts and they taste exactly same as the fried one. So oil conscious people should go for toasts :).

2. Heat milk in a sauce pan and add custard powder and sugar to it. (Make the custard the way we make it for fruit custard / fruit salad). Keep stirring till the milk thickens a little. Care needs to be taken as there are chances that the milk sticks to the bottom of the pan. Hence continual stirring is important. Once done adjust the sweetness and cool it in a fridge. When in fridge you should stir it every short time intervals for some time.

3. To make almond and pistachio shavings, soak them into water for a while. Take the almonds and turn them so the widest point faces parallel to the cutting implement (knife). Cut the almonds into wafer thin slices and repeat same with pistachios.

3. Keep one piece of toast in a serving dish or a bowl is preferred. Add custard milk on top of it so that the piece of toast gets covered. Now top this with almond and pistachio shavings. Sprinkle this with Cardamom (Elaichi) powder.
Shahi Tukda is ready....:)

I am sure everyone at home will like this. For people who do not like sweets but need to be specially treated this is the perfect dessert.

Tips:

Condensed milk is sweet in taste so there is no need to add sugar in icing.

You may add some water to frosting to make it easy to work on. You may also deep spatula in cold water, this will help to spread frosting easily.

The Icing Method may not be the perfect one but it was sure a nice learning experience.

Bengan Masala (Bringal / Eggplants in a spicy gravy)

noreply@blogger.com (Sayali) — Fri, 31 Dec 2010 18:25:00 +0000

Bengan is a different vegetable I feel. What I like most about it is its color.... :)) Well Bengan is also cooked in lot of different ways. Bengan bharta, Bharvan bengan , Masala Bengan , Sukhi bengan ki sabzi and so many more. Bengan is also cooked in many different gravies. I got this recipe from my paternal aunt. Thanks to her :)

Ingredients:

Serves 2

2-3 Bengans (Bringal/Eggplant)

1 1/2 tbsp dry Coconut grated

2 Cups finely chopped Onion divided
1 tbsp Sesame seeds (til)
1 tbsp Poppy seeds (khus khus)
Slits of 2 Garlic Cloves
2 tbsp roasted Peanut crush
Red Chili powder as per taste
Salt as per taste
2-3 tsp Garam Masala

1 tsp Turmeric powder

2-3 tbsp Oil

Mustard and Cumin seeds for seasoning

1-2 tsp Sugar

Method:

1. Wash the Eggplants. Take off the stems and cut into 4-6 vertical slits each.

2. Heat just a 1 tbsp oil in a pan. Add 1 Cup onion and saute for 4-5 minutes. Now add sesame seeds, poppy seeds, garlic slits and coconut and saute again. We want to get the roasted flavor of these ingredients. Mean while you can microwave the eggplant slits and half cook them.

3. Now grind all these in a grinder. Add just enough water and make a paste.

4. In a same pan heat the remaining oil, add mustard seeds and cumin seeds and when they sizzle add remaining onion to it. Saute again till it turns translucent.

5. Now add the paste from the step 2 and the masalas. Saute till the oil separates out from them. Stir occasionally.

6. Add about 2 Cups of water, salt,sugar, peanut crush and eggplant slits. Cook till everything blends and the eggplant cooks well

Tips:

If dry coconut is not available you can also use the fresh grated coconut.
I have a masala called as Kanda Lasun masala which I use instead of regular Garam Masala. This Kanda Lasun masala is unique to Maharashtra so I guess many would not be aware of it.
Try having curd in your meal along with this sabzi. Curd goes very well with this sabzi.

Sending to Dish out-Brinjal & Garlic guest hosted by Sangee,event by Vardhini..

Cucumber and Tomato Open Sandwich

noreply@blogger.com (Sayali) — Tue, 28 Dec 2010 18:14:00 +0000

This is one of the favorite snacks at home. Its very easy, tastes so good and most important is very satiating. I never knew about the concept of open sandwiches until this recipe was introduced to me after marriage. Open sandwiches as the name suggests are open with some toppings on top of the bread. There are hundreds of varieties of them but this one is the first and the only one I have ever tried or eaten. Try to make this one on a sunny day as the taste and the combined flavors of all the ingredients are really refreshing.

Ingredients:

1 bread loaf(white or brown)

Green Chutney

1 bowl peeled diced Cucumber

1 bowl diced Tomato

Tamarind Chutney

Sev

Method:

1. Take a bread slice and spread green chutney on it.

2. Top it with diced cucumber and tomato.

3. Spread tamarind water on the slice as required.

4. Sprinkle sev.

Tips:

Both the chutneys when made ahead of time, the open sandwich is just a 4 step snack.

Simple Mix Vegetable

noreply@blogger.com (Sayali) — Thu, 23 Dec 2010 22:48:00 +0000

Capsicum always does well with onion and also with cabbage. The combination of these 3 also tastes great. This is a simple sabzi good to go into lunch boxes. Very little preparation is required and there is lot scope for variations.

Ingredients:

1 Cup Onion Julienned
1 Cup Capsicum Julienned
1 Cup Cabbage Julienned
Red Chili powder as per taste
2 tsp Cumin-Coriander powder
1 tsp Turmeric powder
1-2 tsp Punjabi Garam Masala (if not available then regular Garam masala)
Salt as per taste
1 1/2 tbsp Tomato ketchup
Generous pinch of Sugar
Oil, Cumin seeds for seasoning

Method:

1. Heat oil in a pan and add cumin seeds to it.

2. When they sizzle add onions. Saute them till they turn transparent. Now add capsicum. Saute for a while.

3. Add all the powders, tomato ketchup, sugar, and mix well. When the capsicum is about to cook add cabbage. Now mix everything well and adjust the masalas. Lid for 5 minutes or till all veggies cook.

Tips:

This is a simple and quick mix vegetable recipe. You can add your own masalas , different veggies like broccoli, carrot, peas etc. If you have more time and want to something special try out vegetable jaipuri which has a little different steps than this one.

Its the Award Time

noreply@blogger.com (Sayali) — Fri, 17 Dec 2010 19:36:00 +0000

I was crazy busy with my course work and could not post about the awards. Thanks to all these 3 ladies for remembering my blog and giving me these beautiful awards.

Awards

The first award which is One Lovely Blog Award is from PaakShalee . Thanks. She started to blog in July 2010 and so preety new to this world. But if you visit her blog you will conclude that she is not new to the cooking world. She has got some fantastic recipes. The best thing I like about her collection is that she has got the recipes which we can make in our day to day life. Do visit her blog.

The next one which is Sunshine award is from Soumya. She is newer and very active blogger. She has got some lovely desserts on her blog. Do check them.

Last is from Rupali of RecipeGrabBag. She like to cook the quick recipes. (jhatpat khana :) ) which we all are always in search of. The recipes will definately help us to save our time. Visti and find them out.
Thanks Rupali for 'U r the best blogger' award.

Passing Time

I would like to pass on this award to following:

Sunshine Award

PaakShalee

Mina Joshi - Authentic Vegetarian Recipes

Nitha - Amaeture Perceptions

Kalva - Curry In Kadhai

Pari - Foodelicious

Akheela - TorviewToronto

Usha Rao - My Spicy Kitchen

One Lovely blog

Pavithra - Binge On Veg !!!

Jagruti - Joy Of Cooking

Jayashri - Jayashris Kitchen

Suja - Kitchen Corner

PanchPakwan

Neha - From My Kitchen To Yours

Supriya - Queen Of My Kitchen

Honey Bee

U are the best blogger

Rachana Kothari - Veggie Fare

Simply.Food

Yummy Team - Yummy O Yummy

Thanks to all and let the awards flow in :) :)...........

Tirangi Vada - The TriColour Bread Pakodas - make a perfect snack

noreply@blogger.com (Sayali) — Thu, 16 Dec 2010 19:47:00 +0000

The name itself tells us what this snack would look like. Yeah it has three colors which look like India's national flag and therefore the name goes as Tirangi Vada. This is a perfect snack on a rainy day with a garama garam chai and when junta is very hungry :).

Ingredients:

Bread loaves

Tomato Ketchup

For Besan Paste:

Gram flour as per need (Besan aata)

Pinch Turmeric powder

Red Chili powder as per taste

Salt as per taste
1 tsp Asafoetida
Oil for frying

For Green Chutney:

Bunch of Coriander

Mint Leaves (pudine ke patte)
Cumin seeds

Green Chilis as required

Salt as per taste

Pinch of sugar

Method:

1. In a grinder take all the ingredients listed under Chutney , add little water and grind it to make a Chutney. Adjust pudina, water, salt , chili as per liking and taste. Make this a little pungent in taste.

2. Take a bread slice and spread green chutney over eat. Place another slice on top of it and spread tomato Ketchup on it. now cover this with a third slice.

3. Cut this sandwich into small pieces as you want.

4. Mix Gram flour, salt , red chili powder, turmeric powder and water to make a paste. (Saw way as one makes for Onion pakoras)

5. Heat oil in a skillet (kadai). Take a piece of above bread sandwich , dip it in the besan paste so that there is a thick layer of besan paste on it and deep fry in oil. Fry till it gets a slight brown color.

Serve hot :)

Healing Events - Broccoli

noreply@blogger.com (Sayali) — Tue, 14 Dec 2010 17:56:00 +0000

Recipes for Healing Food Events - Brocolli

Thank You to all who sent the recipes....Enjoy Broccoli :)..

Visit the lovely blogs of all the following ladies.....

Neha

Blog: From My Kitchen To Your

Recipe: Quick Broccoli And Carrot Stir Fry

Priya

Blog: Priyas Easy n Tasty Recipes

Recipe: Garlicky Broccoli Elbow Pasta

Supriya

Blog: Queen Of My Kitchen

Recipe: Broccoli Soup

Rupali

Blog: RecipeGrabBag

Recipe: Penne With Broccoli

HoneyBee

Blog: Honey Bee

Recipe: Roasted Broccoli

Akheela

Blog: To View Toronto

Recipe: Broccoli Stir Fry

Usha Rao

Blog: My Spicy Kitchen

Recipe: Broccoli And Egg Whites Stir Fry

Jayasri

Blog: Samayalarai-CookingIsDivine

Recipe: Herbed Mascarpone And Veggie Tart

Healing Foods Event - Broccoli :)

noreply@blogger.com (Sayali) — Tue, 30 Nov 2010 18:31:00 +0000

Posting this event again and waiting for your entries...

'Healing Foods Event' aims at focusing one food item, every month by highlighting their health benefits and challenging you to come up with recipes in their most 'healthy form'. It was started by Siri and this month I am guest hosting the event with the theme Broccoli.

The reason I chose Brocoli is I myself want to know different recipes of it. I hardly know any recipe from brocoli :). So this event is going to help me by adding to my food knowledge.

Broccoli (from the Italian plural of broccolo, referring to "the flowering top of a cabbage") is a plant of the Kale family Brassicaceae (formerly Cruciferae). It is classified in the Italica cultivar group of the species Brassica oleracea. Broccoli has large flower heads, usually green in color, arranged in a tree-like fashion on branches sprouting from a thick, edible stalk. The mass of flower heads is surrounded by leaves. Many varieties of broccoli are perennial. Broccoli most closely resembles cauliflower, which is a different cultivar group of the same species.

Broccoli's noteworthy nutrients include vitamin C, vitamin A (mostly as beta-carotene), folic acid, calcium, and fiber. While the calcium content of one serving doesn't equal that of a glass of milk, broccoli is an important calcium source for those who don't consume dairy products. Calcium does more than build strong bones. Research shows that this mineral may play a role in the control of high blood pressure, and it may work to prevent colon cancer.

Beta-carotene and vitamin C are important antioxidants that have been linked to a reduced risk of numerous conditions, including cataracts, heart disease, and several cancers.

Come let's go green this November and make some special dishes (simple or complex , rice or daals, sandwiches or noodles) ....which must contain Broccoli.
If your dish contain Broccoli as main ingredient it would great :).

Guidelines for the event: (I will accept entries till 7 Dec 10 - Hurry :))

1. Create any dish using Broccoli and post the same in your blog. You could use any variety of spinach. Non-Bloggers can send their recipes with the details mentioned below to the same email address.

2. Please link this announcement in your posts. Also link to Siri's blog.Usage of the logo is optional.

3. Multiple entries are more than welcome - more the merrier!

4. Send your details - Name, Recipe URL and Photo (any size, optional) to spicemantra(at)live(dot)com before Nov 30th 2010, midnight.

5. You can send previously blogged entries, provided they are re-posted!

Happy Cooking!

Healing Foods Event - Broccoli :)

noreply@blogger.com (Sayali) — Tue, 16 Nov 2010 02:02:00 +0000

'Healing Foods Event' aims at focusing one food item, every month by highlighting their health benefits and challenging you to come up with recipes in their most 'healthy form'. It was started by Siri and this month I am guest hosting the event with the theme Broccoli.

The reason I chose Brocoli is I myself want to know different recipes of it. I hardly know any recipe from brocoli :). So this event is going to help me by adding to my food knowledge.

Guidelines for the event:

1. Create any dish using Broccoli and post the same in your blog. You could use any variety of spinach. Non-Bloggers can send their recipes with the details mentioned below to the same email address.

2. Please link this announcement in your posts. Also link to Siri's blog.Usage of the logo is optional.

3. Multiple entries are more than welcome - more the merrier!

4. Send your details - Name, Recipe URL and Photo (any size, optional) to spicemantra(at)live(dot)com before Nov 30th 2010, midnight.

5. You can send previously blogged entries, provided they are re-posted!

Happy Cooking!

Happy Diwali and a recipe for "Chakali"

noreply@blogger.com (Sayali) — Wed, 03 Nov 2010 22:40:00 +0000

Its time of Diwali. Lights, special mithais, Pujas make a wonderful environment at home. Everybody just enjoys the 5 days of this auspicious festival and hopes for a bright future. I just love all the aspect of Diwali. Drawing rangolis, lighting diyas in evening, crackers, "Dhanteras" , "Laxmi Pujan" , "Abhyang Snan", "Bhai beej" getting "ashirwads" from elders. This one festival of lights is always so much awaited. Last but not the least the mithais and special namkins which we make for Diwali. Before getting married I just used to eat everything. I never new the techniques, the ingredients and tricks of making them. This year I got this chance to try my hands on "Chakali" . This one has various different recipes. Some make if of wheat flour, some make it of mixed flours and some make it of maida (white flour). Below is the recipe for the white flour.

Ingredients:

Makes about 40 Chakalis.

3 Cups of white flour
Red Chili Powder as per taste
Salt as per taste
Little sugar
1 tbsp Sesame seeds
2 tsp turmeric powder (Haldi)
Just 1 tsp of oil

Method:

1. Place the white flour in a clean cloth and pack this cloth and tie knots.

2. Place this in a steamer for about 20 minutes. 10 minutes each side down.

3. Let it cool. Then with the help of grater grate this flour and then mix all the ingredients.

4. Make a dough (this should not be sticky like the regular one). This is the important step and your dough should be of proper texture. It should be easy to divide this dough into parts.

5. Then make the rolls out of this dough and put them in a chakali maker. (Get idea of what this machine is here)

6. Now you can make chakalis.

7. Heat oil in a frying pan and then fry these chakalis.

Tips:

Making a perfect Chakali will take lot of trials and errors. But sooner or later you will get it.
Try making this out of different flours.

Happy Diwali To All My blogger friends and foodies. :)

Matki sprouts (Moth or Turkish gram Beans )

noreply@blogger.com (Sayali) — Wed, 13 Oct 2010 16:55:00 +0000

Sprouted beans are every body's favorite. Here in US we don't get ready made sprouted moth beans (matki). We make sprouts at home. It takes about 2-3 days. For this you need to soak beans overnight and the 2nd day transfer this to sprout maker. (If you don't have sprout maker tie this soaked beans in a wet cloth). Check after 1-2 days and you will find the sprouts.
Matki chi usal, misal, bhel are popular maharastrian dishes. At home we make all of these and also a little watery sabzi of matki.

Ingredients: Serves: 4

1 1/2 cup sprouted matki
1 tbsp grated fresh coconut
1/2 cup tomatoes cut into pieces
1/2 cup potato cubes
1/2 cup fresh peas
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 tsp turmeric powder
1 tsp Garam Masala
Red chili powder, Dhaniyajeera powder, Salt as per taste
Oil, mustard seeds, asafoetida (hing), cumin seeds for seasoning
4-5 Curry leaves
Few drops of lemon juice (optional)
Coriander for garnishing (optional)

Method:

1. Heat oil in a skillet and add ingredients for seasoning.

2. Immediately add curry leaves and chopped onion. Saute for 2-3 minutes.

3. Then add tomato and potato pieces and saute till onion turns little brown. Now add peas and coconut and saute again.

4. Add all the powders and mix well till oil separates from the mixture.

5. Now add matki sprouts and saute well so that all the masala gets evenly applied to matki.Also add few lemon drops.

5. Now add water to cook matki and salt as per taste. Let matki cook for 10 - 12 minutes. Add more water if required. This curry is semi liquid in consistency.

Garnish with chopped coriander leaves.

Tips:

Tastes good even with plain rice. Also if you are a yogurt fan add it to the rice, add matki curry and enjoy the taste.