Enveetu Kitchen

Lachko, Day 7, Blogging Marathon#12

2012-01-30T00:04:00.000-08:00

Lachko, is a Simple Mashed Toovar Dal. The only effort we make is to mash the dal. When made right this dal is delicious with Rice and Ghee. Traditionally Lachko should be served with Rice and Osaman (The next recipe @ Enveetu Kitchen)

Ingredients
1 Cup split Pigeon peas(tuvar dal), Soaked
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
Salt to taste
4-5 tbsp puree ghee

Method

Pressure-cook the dal with the turmeric powder in two cups of water till the pressure is released three or four times (thee or four whistles).
Remove the lid when pressure reduces completely. Stir in the salt and one tablespoon of ghee. Bring the dal to a boil, lower heat and simmer for five minutes. Stir briskly.
Serve hot with the remaining ghee drizzled on top.

Check out the Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing BM#12

Moong Dal Pudding- Day 6, Blogging Marathon

2012-01-29T02:43:00.000-08:00

Originally i wanted to do Panacotta with Moong-dal, And Also i want it to be Lesser on the Calorie!!!! So, instead of using Cream i used Full Fat milk to make this and named it Pudding.Tasted good and Light on the Stomach and with all the Fiber of Moong Dal, Term it Healthy too!!!!
Sending this to Kids Delight - Something Sweet, Happening @ Edible Entertainment, an Event by Srivalli

Ingredients

1 Cup Moong Dal

1/2 Cup Sugar

1 Cup Milk

1 Cup Water

1/4 Cup Agar-Agar/China Grass, Soaked 1/2 Cup Water

3-4 pods Cardamom Pods, crushed

few strands of saffron, soaked in 2tbsp Warm-Milk

Roasted Almonds and raisins for Garnishing

Method

Pressure Cook Moong-dal with Milk and Water for 4-5 whistles or until soft.
when the Pressure released, Mash the Dal with the back of a laddle.
Heat agar-Agar with soaked water. In a Simmer flame, keep Stirring and let the agar-agar dissolve completely in water. Strain and Keep Seperately.
Take Moong-dal back to Stove, add sugar, crushed cardamom and Keep Stirring.
Add Saffron Soaked milk and Let it simmer for 15 minutes.
Add the strained agar-agar water to the Dal Kheer and Stir well.
Let it simmer for 5 more minutes. Switch of the stove.
Garnish with Roasted almonds and raisins.Let it cook for 10 minutes.
Fill Small Cups with this mixture and Refrigerate for 2 hours or until set.Serve Chilled

Check out the Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing BM#12

Venpongal - Day 5, Blogging Marathon #12

2012-01-27T01:00:00.000-08:00

Venpongal, Whenever amma makes them for breakfast, we use to hog them and sleep the whole day. Nobody would bother to getup and ask for Lunch!!!! Our Maid would immediately guess that the day's breakfast was Pongal, Coz, the whole house would be dozing and dreaming in their own World's!!!! Childhood days are Wonderful, We never realize that time, we won't get them back and will one day long for them, so bad!!!! i really miss being with my Brother and Sister in our Once-Owned Wallajahpet(near Vellore/Ranipet) Home. Its an Individual House, in 1/2 Ground with Coconut Trees all around, Different Varieties of Chembaruthi(Hibiscus) and rose Flower all around in the garden. My Brother used to Drink Fresh Coconut Water Daily from the trees. My Paati used to go around the flower-trees daily and pluck all the flowers and Make Garland out of it for the Daily Pooja!!!! My Dad will water all the trees daily with an Long Hose-Pipe that can reach every end of the house. We had to Sell that house and settle down in chennai, as we all were working in Chennai. I really felt that i didnt have enough hands to Give that home a Real Big Hug while leaving. Later heard from our neighbours there, that the new owner removed all the flowering plants and the whole house now looks like a barren-land !!!! Time Moves on, We are all well-settled now, Mom and Dad are happy Grand-parents, Then too, blink of an eye moment we sometimes think about those Good old Days!!!

Nothing Stays the Same the Next day. So, Lets Enjoy the Moment!!! Seize the Day and Live Each and Every Moment!!! Let's Not Worry about what can be Changed/Corrected and What Cannot be Changed/Corrected need not be worried at all. Happy Weekend Guys, lets enjoy the weekend with Hot Venpongal!!!!!

Sending this Awesome Breakfast to Gayathri's - Walk through the Memory Lane.

Ingredients
1 cup Raw Rice
1/2 cup Moongdal
1 Green Chilli
1 cup Low-Milk

2 Cups Water
Salt to taste

Tempering
2 tbsp Oil/ghee
1 tsp Pepper Powder
1 tsp cumin Seeds
1 tsp Grated ginger
2-3Springs of Curry leaves

Garnishing
1 tbsp ghee
Few Broken Cashewnuts/Almonds

Method

Pressure Cook Rice and Dal together with Milk and Water and Green Chilli.
Heat oil/ghee in a kadai, add Curry leaves and Cumin Seeds.
When the cumin seeds change color, add Pepper Powder and Grated ginger.Saute in for a second.
Next add the Cooked Rice-Dal Mixture. The Mixture will be dry at this time. add 1/2 cup of water-milk mixture to this and add Salt and mix well.
Let it simmer for 5-10 minutes. Take it off the stove.
Heat a little ghee in a Pan, add broken cashew/almond, roast them a minute and add this to Venpongal. we always prefer sliced almonds to cashewnuts.
Drizzle some ghee on top and Serve Warm with some Chutney or Sambhar.

Check out the Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing BM#10

Rajma Rice,Day 4, Blogging Marathon#12

2012-01-26T22:55:00.000-08:00

I will be the last one to post for Day 4!!!!Busy Day, Kuttu @ home, so the laptop was with him, he get used the laptop for his games only during his holidays for an hour or two. We all went out for lunch, Me my Son and my in-laws and my BILs wifte and Son, it was one busy afternoon and from their went for sight-seeing !!!!! The whole day was busy!!!

Rajma Rice, a quick Lunch/Dinner Recipe!!! Rajma can be replaced with other Lentil/Dal/Beans. Enjoy with some roasted papad or raitha,

Ingredients

2 cups Cooked Rice

1 Cup Rajma beans, soaked overnight

1 medium onion, chopped

1 tsp Tomato Paste or 1 medium tomato chopped

3 green chillies

2 cloves of Garlic, chopped
1 tsp grated ginger
1 tsp Kitchen King Masala

1/4 tsp Coriander powder

Salt to taste

Tempering

2 tsp Oil

1/4 tsp mustard seeds

1/4 tsp cumin seeds

hing a Pinch

Few sprigs of curry leaves

Method

Pressure cook Rajma Beans with enough water until soft.
Heat oil in a kadai, add tempering ingredients one bye one.
Add onion,chopped garlic, curry leaves and green chillies and saute till onions are translucent.
Add Tomato paste or chopped tomator and 1/2 cup of water, add all the masala powders and salt.
Let the Tomotoes cook, add cooked rajma beans and mix well.
Let it simmer for 5 minutes. At this stage the mixture should be almost dry. Take it off the Stove, Mix it with rice and garnish with grated ginger.
Serve Warm with Oven-roasted Papad and Simple Whisked yogurt mixed with ginger and black Salt.

Check out the Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing BM#12

Veggie Masoor Dal - Day 3, Blogging Marathon #12

2012-01-25T06:52:00.000-08:00

Quick and Easy Dal to make. A Comfort Food @ my home. Whenever i m very tired to make something interesting for my kiddo, i make him this Mildly spiced Dal with all the Veggies.When Served with Hot Rice and a Dollop of Ghee on top, mmmm!!!! Happy Kiddo, Happy Mummy!!!!

Ingredients

1 Cup Masoor Dal

1 Carrot, Chopped

1 potato, Peeled and cubed

1 Capsicum, Chopped

1 green Chilli, slited lengthwise

1 medium tomato,chopped

Salt to taste

Tempering

1 tbsp Oil/ghee

1/4 tsp mustard seeds

1/4 tsp cumin seeds

1/4 tsp grated ginger

1 garlic grated (optional)

3 Red Chillies, long variety, broken into pieces

hing a pinch

Curry leaves a few

Method

Pressure Cook Dal, Veggies, Green chilli, Tomato with little turmeric, together until soft. Usually i cook for 4-5 whistles in the cooker.
Heat oil/ghee in a kadai, Splutter mustard seeds, cumin seeds, add hing and curry leaves.
Add garlic, ginger and Red chillies, let it sizzle, Add the cooked dal-veggies to this sizzling spices.
Add 1/2 Cup of Water and Salt.Let it simmer for 10 minutes. Check the consistency of Dal, if its too runny, let it sit for another 5 minutes. or else take it off the stove.
Serve Hot with Rice or as an Accompaniment for Idly/Dosa/Chapathi

Note:

You can add some more veggies to this Cauliflower, peas even leafy Vegetables.
The Spice can be adjusted according to your taste.

Check out the Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing BM# 12

Ek thali Dal, -Day 2, Blogging Marathon,#12

2012-01-24T10:34:00.000-08:00

A healthy combination of Dals with Rich taste of Cashew and Coconut. Addition of Spinach and Carrot makes this dal even more nutritious and complete in all taste.This Dal Can be served hot with Steamed Rice and also as an Accompaniment to Roti's too.

Ingredients

1 and 1/2 tbsp Split red lentils/Masoor Dal

1 and 1/2 tbsp Bengal Gram/Gram Dal

1 and 1/2 tbsp Split green gram dal/dhuli Moong dal

2 tbsp Chickpeas/Kabuli Chana, Soaked Overnight

1/2 tsp turmeric powder

1/2 tsp red chilli poder

1 medium tomato, chopped

Salt to taste

1 and 1/2 tbsp oil

1 Cup Chopped Palak leaves

1 Medium-sized Carrot, Shredded

2 tsp ginger-garlic paste

2 tsp grated jaggery

1 and 1/2 tbsp lemon juice

Masala

1 and 1/2 tsp poppy seeds (khus khus), i didnt use it,since i dont get it here in UAE.

8-10 Cashew nuts, chopped

2 dried red chillies, broken into large pieces

1 tsp coriander seeds

2 cloves

1 and /2 tbsp grated fresh coconut

Method

Soak all the three dals together for half an hour.
For the masala, soak the poppy seeds and cashew nuts in one cup of water for 30minutes. Drain and grind to a fine paste with red chillies, coriander seeds, cloves and coconut.
Pressure-Cook the dals and Kabuli Chana with three and half cups of water, turmeric powder, chilli powder, tomato and salt until soft.
Heat oil in a kadai, add spinach and carrot and saute for about five minutes.
Add the cooked dals and kabuli chana, the ginger-garlic paste, jagger and ground masala, stir well and cook for one minute. Add half a cup of water and bring to boil.
lower the heat and simmer for ten minutes. Stir in the lemon juice and serve hot.

Note:

The Dal had a strong smell of cloves, may be next time i might use 1 instead of 2.

The original recipe has used Cabbage, i have replaced it with carrots.

Check out the Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing BM#12

Dal Lucknowi - Day 1, Blogging Marathon#12

2012-01-23T07:17:00.000-08:00

Today is the first day of Group 2, Blogging Marathon #12. I have taken the topic 7 Days of Delicious Dals. Last time, when i went to india, i bought Sanjeev Kapoor's "Dal and Kadhi", tried some recipes from that, apart from the normal dal tadka, the book has got delicious varieties of Dal recipes. I will be posting tried recipes from that Cookbook.

Dal Lucknowi, This dal takes a smoother, fuller texture as it contains milk, an ingredient which will come as a surprise to many.

Ingredients

1 Cup Split pigeon peas(toovar dal), Soaked

2 green chillies, chopped

1/2 tsp turmeric powder

salt to taste

2 tbsp oil

1 tsp cumin seeds

4 dried chillies, broken into large bits

4 garlic cloves, chopped

hing a pinch

1 cup of low-fat milk

2 tbsp chopped fresh coriander leaves

Method

Pressure cook dal with green chillies and 2 cups of water.
Remove the lid, when the pressure is completely reduced, add turmeric powder and salt and bring to a boil, lower heat and continue to cook.
Heat oil in a pan, add cumin seeds, red chillies, garlic and hing and saute till fragrant. Pour the sizzling spices into the simmering dal and mix well.
Stir in the milk and one cup of water and continue to simmer for two or three minutes.
Adjust Salt, garnish with coriander leaves and serve hot.

Check out the Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing BM# 12

Potato Masala Curry - Side-dish for Poori, Magic Mingle#1, January 2012

2012-01-13T08:30:00.000-08:00

Magic Mingle, New Event Kick-Started by Kalyani of Sizzling Tastebuds. Every month, we pick-up two ingredients, to be featured as the main taste adding ingredients of a dish. January's Magic Mingle Ingredients are Cinnamon and Chillies. If you guys, think only about Pulav's, please go visit the round-up linky @ Kalyani's, you would be dumbstruck to see different dishes featuring this combo!!!

When Kalyani announced the combo, i too thought of making some Pulav, then decided to try both the ingredients into this Masala Curry. I normally use only green chillies or Sambar powder while making this Potato Curry, never used any other kind of masala. For the first time, i have used cinnamon and it tasted good. Hoping to have Many such Magical Combinations, which push us to try something new every month.

Ingredients

4-5 nos Large Potatoes

1/2 Cup Peas, i have used frozen

2 Medium Onion, chopped

1 Medium Tomato, Chopped

4-5 Green Chillies, Chopped finely

1/4 tsp Cinnamon powder

1/4 tsp mustard seeds

hing a pinch

Turmeric a pinch

2 sprig curry leaves

Salt to taste

Coriander leaves for garnishing

To Grind

1 tsp Coriander seeds

2-3 Red Chillies, Long variety

Method

Dry Grind the Ingredients under "To Grind' to powder.
Peel the Potatoes, Cube them and Cook them until soft. Mash them roughly.
Heat oil in a non-stick pan, splutter mustard seeds, add hing, turmeric, chopped chillies and curry leaves.
Add Onions and saute till translucent. when done, add Tomatoes and the ground powder, cinnamon and 1/2 Cup of water.
When it boils and rawness of the masala escapes, add Mashed Potates, peas salt and mix well.

If the Curry is very dry, add another 1/2 cup of water and Keep the flame low.
Let it Simmer for 10 minutes. Garnish with fresh coriander leaves and Take it off the Stove.
Serve hot with Poori.

Savory Semolina Veggie Cake- Blog Hop Wednesday, Version 2, Week 13

2012-01-11T23:58:00.000-08:00

It is Blog Hop Wednesday, Week-13. From this week, we have few changes, previously we used hop every 2 weeks,from now on, it is been changed to a Monthly Event. If you are interested in joining us, Please visit tickling palates for the rules.

This week i m paired with Neha of From my Heart. Loved her Baked goodies. I tried her Savory Semolina Cake with Veggies. We had it for dinner last week, came out yumm!!!! With all the veggies, it is very filling Breakfast/Dinner.

Ingredients

1 Cup Semolina/Rava/Sooji

1 Cup Thick Yogurt

1/2 Cup Water

3/4 Cup Peas

1 Large Carrot, thinly sliced

1 Onion, Chopped

1 inch piece Ginger, grated

1 tsp Red chili powder

1/4 tsp Turmeric powder

1/2 tsp Baking soda

1/2 tsp Baking powder

Salt to taste

For Seasoning

2 tbsp Oil

2 sprigs Curry leaves

Cumin seeds- 1\2 tsp

1/2 tsp Mustard seeds

Method

Pre heat the oven to 350 degrees.Grease a loaf tin and line it with parchment paper.
In a bowl, mix together semolina, red chili powder, turmeric powder, salt ,veggies and yogurt.Add water to make a batter
In a pan, add oil, add the seasoning ingredients one by one and add it to the batter
Add baking soda and baking powder to the batter and mix well.

Pour the batter in the prepared pan. Bake for 35-40 minutes.
Serve hot with coriander chutney and tomato ketchup

Banoffee Pie - Sweet Punch Challenge, January 2012

2012-01-10T04:47:00.000-08:00

Sweet Punch Challenge, 2012, begins the year with an Easy to make and an excellent tasting Pie, Banoffee!!!! Thanks a lot for Swapna for the step-wise explanation of the recipe.The Best part of making this dish, was making Dulce de Leche!!!! My In-laws are here for 3 months vacation, i made this Last week for a get-together with my Brother-in-law's Family. Me and my Co-sister together made this, She wanted to feel the excitement of Baking, it was lot of fun!!!!!

Ingredients

Condensed Milk-1 can (400gm)

Bananas-2nos, large

Whipped Cream-2 cups

Marie biscuit-200gms, approx. 48-50 biscuits

Cold Butter-100gms

Grated chocolate or Cocoa powder to decorate

Chocolate chips, to decorate

Chocolate sauce to drizzle on top (optional, i didnt use it)

Method

To make Dulce the Leche, put the can of condensed milk, unopened, in a large pan, cover with water, bring to boiling point, Cover and boil for 2 hours, topping up with boiling water as needed. Ensure that the can remains covered in water, as otherwise there is a risk of the can bursting open. Remove and leave to cool completely. You can make this ahead of time or even boil several tins at one go and store the unopened cans in the fridge for several months. I used Idli Cooker to make this.
Take all the biscuits into a Ziploc Pouch and Powder them using Rolling Pin. Take the Powdered biscuits in a large bowl and Cut the cold butter and to it and slowly incorporate it well. Line a pie dish with this mixture and Bake @ 170C for 12 minutes. This makes Crust Crisp.
If you don't prefer a Crisp Crust, just keep the Lined-Pie dish in the fridge for sometime and start doing the next step.
Open the cooled can of condensed milk, which will have turned to toffee. Spread this over the layer of biscuit.

Peel and thinly slice the bananas, and arrange in a layer over the toffee.
Whip the cream until thick and stiff and spread over the bananas.
Finally, decorate with Choco Chips, grated chocolate, dust the cocoa powder on top using a sieve. Drizzle with chocolate sauce (optional).
Refrigerate for 1-2 hours and Dig in!!!!

Raw Mango Rice - Day 7, Blogging Marathon and Blog Hop Wednesday

2011-12-29T11:18:00.000-08:00

Its the Last week of Blog Hop Wednesday Edition1, I really didnt want to miss doing this post. This Week for BHW i m paired with Archana of MadScientist Kitchen. Since i was doing Lunch Box Recipes for BM#11, i decided to Cook a Rice Recipe from her blog.

Ingredients

2 Cups Raw Rice

2 Medium-sized Raw Mango

3-4 Red Chillies

Curry leaves a few

2 tbsp Oil

1/4 tsp mustard seeds

hing a pinch

1/2 tsp chana dal

Roasted Cashews for Garnishing

Fresh Coriander leaves for garnishing

Method

Wash and Shred the Mangoes. I actually peeled the skin of the raw mango and shredded it.
Spread the rice on a plate and fluff it with a fork.
Heat Oil in a Non-stick pan, Splutter mustard seeds, add hing, curry leaves.
Add Red Chillies and Chana Dal, when it browns, take it off the stove and pour the tadka over rice.
Add Shredded mango, salt. Mix well.
Garnish with roasted cashews and coriander leaves. Serve Warm with any dry curry of your choice.

Check out the Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing BM#10

Minty Carrot and Peas Rice - Day 6, Blogging Marathon #11

2011-12-28T08:05:00.000-08:00

This Rice is an inspiration from Suma's Cilantro-Carrot Rice. Instead of, Cilantro, i have used Coriander. The Rice was very flavorful and Spicy. We didn't feel like having any side-dish with the rice, Plain Yogurt was suffice.

Ingredients

3 Cups Cooked Rice

2 Medium Carrots, Peeled and Grated

1/2 Cup Frozen Peas

1 medium onion, chopped

Salt to taste

To Grind

2 Fistful of Fresh Mint Leaves

3 Green Chillies

2 cloves of Garlic

1 inch Ginger

1 tbsp Freshly grated coconut

Method

Grind the ingredients under "To Grind" in a Mixer to a fine paste with 1/4 Cup Water.
Heat a Non-Stick Pan, splutter cumin seeds/jeera, add onions and saute till translucent.
Add Carrots and saute for 2-3 minutes.
Add the ground paste and Peas and mix well. Let it cook until all the liquid is absorbed. Add salt and mix well.
Take it off the flame. Add the Cooked Rice and Mix well. Serve Warm.

Check out the Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing BM#10

Quick Vegetable Rice - Day 5, Blogging Marathon#11

2011-12-27T09:57:00.000-08:00

An Easy to make Vegetable Rice. I make this Rice often when i m left out with very little choice of veggies and need a quick comfort food. This Rice goes very well with any Spicy Curry or a Simple Raita.

Ingredients
2 Cups Cooked Rice
1 Large Potato
1 Medium Capsicum
1 Medium Carrot
1 Medium Onion, finely chopped
3 green chillies, Slit Lengthwise
2 Cloves of garlic
1 tsp Ginger Julienne
1/2 tsp Kitchen King Masala
Salt to taste
A Dash of Pepper
Fresh Coriander leaves for garnishing

Method

Peel the Potato and Carrot and thinly slice all the Veggies.
Heat Oil Pan, Splutter Cumin Seeds, Add onion, garlic and Green Chillies and Saute till onions turn Color.
Add all the Veggies and Masala Powder, Sprinkle Little Water. Cover and Cook for 10-15 minutes or until done. Stir Occasionally.
Take it off the stove, add cooked rice and mix well. Stir in the pepper and garnish with coriander leaves and ginger julienne. Serve warm with your favorite curry.

Note: Try adding Veggies of your choice and increase or decrease the spice accordingly.

Check out the Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing BM#10

Kathrikai Saadham/Brinjal Rice - Day 4, Blogging Marathon #11

2011-12-26T09:57:00.000-08:00

I always wanted to try Vaangibaath, the flavorful Brinjal Rice. I was going through some recipes for it, but all needed some extra masala's which i didnt have handy. So, i tried out something on my own, to make this Recipe. Thank Goodness it came out well. Crispy Brinjals with the ground masala tasted awesome!!!!!

Ingredients
2 Cups cooked Rice
5-6 Brinjals
1 medium onion
1 medium tomatoes
2-3 tbsp Oil
Curry leaves a few
Salt to taste

Roast n Grind
2 tbsp Chana Dal/Gram Dal
1 tbsp Coriander Seeds
1 tbsp Fresh grated Coconut
5-6 Red Chillies

Method

Dry Roast the ingredients under Roast n Grind and Grind into Powder.
Remove the stem of the brinjals and slice them lengthwise.
Heat oil in a Non-stick Pan, Splutter mustard seeds, add hing and Curry leaves.
Add Brinjals and Saute well. Let them cook for 10 minutes.

When the Brinjals are half-cooked, add the grounded masala powder and salt to it.Mix well.
Cover and Cook in a Simmer flame until done.
Add the Cooked Rice and mix well.

Check out the Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing BM#11

Punjabi Rajma - Day 3, Blogging Marathon

2011-12-25T20:39:00.000-08:00

I have started following my New year Resolution of Cooking from Loads of Cookbooks i have. This Punjabi Rajma is from Sanjeev Kapoor's Dal and Kadhi. I have made this Delicious Side-dish 3 or 4 times now, it tastes amazing!!! Serve it Hot with Roti's or With Steaming Hot Rice, you will definitely Relish it!!!

Ingredients
11/2 ups Rajma/Kidney Beans
2 bay leaves
2 medium onions, chopped
2 tbsp tomato puree or 2 medium tomatoes, chopped
1 inch ginger
4-5 Garlic cloves
2 tsp Red Chilli Powder
1 tbsp Coriander Powder
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
1 tsp Cumin Powder
1 tsp Garam masala
Salt to taste
Coriander leaves for garnishing

Method

Pressure Cook Rajma with little salt and required amount of water until soft.
Heat oil in a pan, add bay leaves and onions and saute till golden. Add Ginger and garlic and saute for another minute
Add Tomato Puree, Chilli Powder, Coriander Powder, Turmeric Powder, Cumin Powder,1/2 Cup Water and Mix well. Cook till oil separates.

Add Rajma along with the Cooking liquid and mix. Cook in a slow flame for 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add Salt and garam masala and Cook for another 5 minutes.
Garnish With Coriander leaves and Serve Hot with Roti's or Steamed rice.

Check out the Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing BM#10

Tomato Rice/Thakkali Saadam - Day 2, Blogging Marathon #11

2011-12-24T05:07:00.000-08:00

Quick and Easy to make Tomato Rice, The Richness of Coconut Milk adds an excellent flavor to the Rice.

Ingredients
2 Cups Cooked Rice
3 Big Tomatoes, finely Chopped
2 Medium-Sized Onions, finely chopped
1/2 tsp Chilli Powder (increase or decrease to suit your taste)
1/4 tsp Coriander Powder
2 cloves of garlic, chopped
1/2 Cup thin Coconut Milk (I used Store-Bought Powder)
Curry Leaves a few
Coriander leaves for Garnish
Salt to taste

Method

Heat oil in a pan, Splutter mustard seeds, add curry leaves, onion and garlic and saute till onion turn translucent.
Add Tomatoes and Saute. Add the Red Chilli Powder and Coriander Powder and 1/2 Cup Water and mix well. Add Salt.
When the mixture turns little mushy, add Coconut Milk and reduce the flame. Let it simmer for 10 minutes.

By this time, the mixture must have turned saucy. Take it off the flame. (If it is still runny, let it sit for 5 more minutes).
Mix the Cooked rice and garnish with fresh Coriander leaves and Serve with your favorite curry.

Check out the Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing BM#11

Spicy Nut Rice - Blogging Marathon #11

2011-12-23T01:57:00.000-08:00

Blogging Marathon Week 11, For this edition of BM i have chosen Lunch Box Dishes. Spicy Nut Rice, an healthy combination of nuts and spices to give an flavorful n tasty Lunch Box Recipe.

Ingredients
1 Cup Cooked rice
1 tbsp Coriander Seeds
1/2 tsbp Peanuts
1/2 tbsp Gram Dal/Chana Dal
1 tbsp Flaxseed meal
4 nos Walnuts
4 Red Chillies
a small gooseberry sized tamarind
Salt to taste

For Seasoning
1 tbsp Gingely oil
1/4 tsp mustard seeds
1/2 tsp urad dal
hing a pinch
curry leaves a few

Method

Spread the Rice in a plate, fluff it with a spoon and add a tsp of Gingely oil and toss.
Dry Roast Coriander seeds, Peanuts, Gram dal, Red Chillies and walnuts separately.
Take all the ingredients in a mixer along with flaxseed meal, tamarind, salt and grind it to a powder.
Heat oil in a pan, add tempering ingredients one by one, pour it over the rice and toss it well.
Add the required amount of ground powder to the rice and mix well.
Serve Warm with Dry-Curry of your Choice.

Check out the Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing BM#10

Curd Rice, Chettinad Urulai Fry/Chettinad Potato Roast and Oats Halwa - PJ's Virtual Baby Shower Part 2

2011-12-21T10:30:00.000-08:00

This is the Extension of the Previous Post, Since i made 6 Dishes from her blog, i wanted to do it as two post.

Curd Rice

Ingredients

1 Cup Cooked Rice

1/2 Cup Curd/Whisked Yogurt

1 Green Chilli, chopped

Curry leaves a few

1 tbsp Fresh Pomegranate Seeds, for garnishing

1/2 tsp oil

1/4 tsp mustard seeds

hing a pinch

Salt to taste

Method

Take Rice in a bowl, Add yogurt and mix well. The Rice should be little mushy for a good taste, So try to mash the rice a bit with the back of a laddle.
Heat oil, Splutter mustard seeds, add green chilli, curry leaves and hing and pour it over the curd rice.
Add salt and Garnish with pomegranate seeds and Serve.

Note:Add a mix of milk and yogurt to avoid the sour taste of curd rice, if taking it for long journey.

Chettinad Urulai Fry/Chettinad Potato Fry

Ingredients

2 Large Potatoes

1 Onion,chopped

1 tsp Mustard seeds

Curry leaves a few

Salt to taste

2 tbsp Oil

To Grind

Urad dhal-1 teaspoon

Peppercorns-1 teaspoon

Red chillies-2

Method

Peel,cube and boil potatoes till 80% done.Drain Completely.
Dry roast the ingredients under 'To Grind' and grind them to fine powder.
Heat oil in a pan, splutter mustard, add curry leaves and onions, saute till translucent.
Put in the potato cubes and stir gently. Add salt and the masala powder and mix well so the masala's coat well.
Keep the flame simmer and Cook until crisp.
Remove from heat and serve as a side dish with rice dishes

Oats Halwa

Ingredients

1 Cup Oats

1 Cup Water

1/2 Cup Sugar

Cinnamon a large pinch

2 tbsp Ghee

Ingredients

Powder the Oats in a Mixer.
In a Non-stick pan, Add Water and stir in the oats powder and mix well without any lumps.
Let the mixture cook in a very slow flame.
When the mixture starts thickening, add sugar, cinnamon and mix well. Keep stirring.
When the mixture has absorbed all the water, add ghee and stir well.
When it starts leaving the sides of the pan, take it off the stove and garnish with roasted nuts and Serve Warm.

Palak Parathas with Chana in Onion Tomato Gravy and Gujrati Kadi - Virtual Baby Shower for PJ

2011-12-20T01:54:00.000-08:00

That's a long title!!!! Thats is fine, coz this is an Extra Special Post as we are hosting a Virtual Baby Shower for our Blogger Buddy PJ of Seduce your taste buds. When we decided to a Virtual Baby Shower, we first thought of cooking something that would interest her now or some interesting Kid's Recipes. After some discussion we all agreed to Cook something from her blog and post. Now, this became even more tough choice, she has an amazing collection of recipes and to decide on one was very tough job!! So, i ended up Cooking 6 dishes from her blog and decided to do this as two post instead one. Hope this little gesture of us, brings a broad smile on her face and makes her Happy!!!!! Here is a Big Shout from all of us PJ, Have a Safe Delivery and God Bless!!!!!!

Check out the other bloggers doing this Virtual Baby Shower with me Aarthi

Cool Lassi(e),Gayathri Kumar,Kalyani,Kaveri,Mireille Roc,Pavani,Pradnya,Priya Suresh,Suma,Vardhini,Veena,Vaishali

Palak Parathas
Ingredients
1 bunch of palak
3 cups of Wheat Flour
1/2 Cup Yoghurt
1/2 tsp Cumin
Salt to taste
1 tbsp of oil

Method

Blanch the Palak and MAke a Puree of it with yoghurt and Cumin Seeds.
Take the Wheat Flour ina Wide Vessel, add the palak-yoghurt puree to it, add salt and make Soft chapathi dough.
Divide the dough into equal-sized balls. Roll them out as discs and Cook them on a Hot Tava on both the sides.
Serve Hot with any Side-dish of your choice.

Chana in Onion-Tomato Gravy
Ingredients
2 Cups of Chana/Chickpeas
2 Medium Onions, chopped
2 tbsp of Tomato Puree
1 tsp Red Chilli Powder
1/2 tsp coriander powder
1/4 tsp Garam masala
1 inch ginger
2 cloves of garlic
1 green chilli
Salt to taste

Method

Soak Chana Dal overnight and Pressure cook it next day with enough water and salt.
Heat oil in a Pan, Add Onions and saute till translucent. Take it off the stove and let it cool.
Grind the onions, along with ginger, garlic and green chilli to a fine paste.
Heat some more oil in the same pan, Add cumin seeds,let it crackle, add the ground paste to it and saute till gives out a good aroma and oil separates.
Add tomato puree and 1 cup of water. Add all the masala's and mix well.
When the rawness of the masala's escape, add pressure-cooked chickpeas and mix well. Adjust salt.
Let it sit for 10 minutes, in a simmer flame. Garnish with coriander leaves and Serve hot with Roti's.

Gujrati Kadi
Ingredients
1 Cup Yogurt/Curd
1 tbsp Besan/gram flour
1 Green Chilli
one small piece of jaggery or spoonful of sugar
Curry leaves a few
Turmeric powder- a pinch
Salt to taste

For tempering:
1/2 tbsp Oil
1/2 tsp Mustard
1/2 tsp Cumin seeds
2 Red chillies
Asafoetida/hing, a pinch
Coriander leaves to garnish

Method

Beat together curd,besan with 2 cups water.Add turmeric powder, green chilli, sugar and salt.Mix well.
Heat a pan with this mixture and bring it a boil, simmer flame and let the liquid thicken.
Meanwhile, heat a small pan with oil and put in the ingredients for tempering.
When it splutters,pour this over the simmering kadhi and let it simmer for another couple of minutes
Remove from heat and serve garnished with coriander leaves.

Godhumai Dosa/Instant Wheat Crepe and Kothamalli Thogayal/Coriander Chutney - Blog Hop Wednesday

2011-12-14T06:06:00.000-08:00

This Week for Blog Hop Wednesday i m paired with Hyma of Hyma's Flavours. I decided to make her Wheat Dosa and a Coriander Thogayal recipe. Both turned out to be a perfect Combo. The Wheat Dosa, i m making for the first time, it was a Super-hit. Both the Recipes are Easy and Quick to make.

Godhumai Dosai/Instant Wheat Crepe
Ingredients
3 Cups Wheat flour

1 Cup Rice Flour

1 Cup Whisked Curd, preferably sour

3-4 nos Green Chillie, finely chopped

1 tsp Cumin Seeds

2 Medium Onions, finely chopped

1 Medium Carrot, Shredded

Salt to taste

Water, as needed

Method

In a Wide Bowl, Mix both the flours, add Curd and Water and Bring it to Dosa Batter Consistency/Pouring Consistency.
Add Chopped green chillies, onions and shredded carrot to the batter and mix well. Adjust the Salt.
Heat a Non-Stick Tawa/Pan, Pour a laddle of batter in circular motion. Don't spread the batter using the back of the laddle!!!!!
Keep it to a medium circle, smear the edges with little oil. Wait for a minute, Flip and Cook both sides.
Serve Hot with your favorite Chutney

Kothamalli Thogayal/Coriander Chutney
Ingredients
1 Bunch of Coriander leaves
2 tbsp Urad dal
3-4 Red Chillies
Tamarind, a small gooseberry size
Salt to taste
hing a pinch

Method

Cut the roots of the Coriader leaves bunch, keep the stalks, Rinse thoroughly and Chop Roughly.
Heat a Pan and Roast urad dal, chillies and tamarind with little oil. Switch off the pan, add Coriander leaves and let it be in the pan.
When the roasted ingredient are cool enough, Grind them along with salt and coriander leaves.
Do not add much water while grinding.Let the chutney be little coarse.
Transfer it to a bowl, heat a tsp of gingely oil, splutter mustard seeds, add hing and pour over the chutney.

Schezwan Idly - Trendy Makeover for Leftover Idlies

2011-12-12T06:27:00.000-08:00

A Tasty Make-over for Leftover Idlies. Try this and you will definitely keep some idlies specially for making this!!!!

Ingredients
4-5 Idlies
2 Green chillies, finely chopped or 1/2 tsp Pepper
2 medium Capsicums, thinly sliced
1 medium Onion, thinly sliced
2 tbsp Schezwan Sauce
2 tbsp Spring Onions for Garnishing

Method

Cut the idlies into Cubes. Pan Fry the idlies with a tsp of oil. Do this in a Low Flame. The Idly pieces should roast well. Turn the sides and Fry.
Heat oil in a pan, Add onions, chillies Saute until translucent
Add Capsicums and Saute.
Follow it with Schezwan Sauce and half cup of Water.
When the liquid almost dries up, add the fried idly to it and give a good stir.
If you are using pepper, add it now, give a quick stir.
Take it off the stove, garnish with spring onions and Serve Hot.

Sending this to Snack Mela, Happening @ Cooking 4 all Seasons, Event by Srivalli.

Vegan Banana Bread - Sweet Punch Challenge

2011-12-08T01:59:00.000-08:00

Its December already, time really flies. Its Sweet Punch time, this month we can bake something of our choice. I chose to bake Vegan Banana Bread from Versatile Vegetarian Kitchen. Bakes with banana are always moist and it has that chewy nature. But this Bread, trust me, was fluffy!!! We loved the texture and the taste!! thanks to Champa for a wonderful recipe

Ingredients:

1 Cup Whole Wheat Flour

1/4 Cup All Purpose flour

1/3 Cup of Canola Oil

1/2 Cup Brown Sugar

1 tsp Cinnamon

1/8 tsp of Nutmeg

1 tsp Baking Soda

1 tsp Baking Powder

1/2 tsp Salt

3 large Banana's mashed about 1 and 1/2 cups puree

2 tbsp Flax meal mixed with 6 tbsp of warm water

Method

Preheat the oven to 350 F (175 C). Line a Loaf pan with Parchment paper.
sift together Whole wheat flour, all purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
In a bowl, combine banana puree, sugar, oil, Cinnamon and nutmeg and flaxseed meal water.
Combine Dry ingredients into Wet ingredients. Mix to Combine.

Pour the batter in to the prepared tin and Bake for 45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes clean.
Once done, Take it out of the oven, cool on the wire rack. Slice and enjoy.

Sending this to Bake Fest Event Happening @ Spicy Treats, an event by Vardhini of Zesty Palette, Lets Cook #10 - Baked Goodies Happening @ Tickling Palates, Serve It - Baked Sweet, Happening @ Krithi's Kitchen and Dennys

Wishing all my friends a Very Happy Kaarthigai Deepam.

Pathiri and Sukhiyan, Kerala Special For Blog Hop Wednesday

2011-11-30T11:36:00.000-08:00

This Week for Blog Hop Wednesday, i m paired with Vidhya of Sugar N Spice. She has a Good collection of Kerala Special Recipes. I tried her Pathiri and Sukhiyan, came out very well. Bookmarked her Erisseri too, but due to time constraint, i couldn't make it.

Pathiri is a Pancake made out of Rice Flour. A Very Popular Dish in Kerala. Crushed Rice is made into dough and baked on pans. After preparations they are soaked in Coconut Milk to enhance their flavour (info source : Wiki)

Pathiri

Ingredients :(i used small Katori)

1 cup Rice Flour

2 Cups Water

a pinch of chilli powder

Salt to taste

Method

Dry Roast the Rice powder. It should feel warm when touched.
Heat water in a pan, Add chilli powder and salt.
When the water starts boiling, Keep the flame low and add the roasted rice flour.Give it a quick stir and switch off the flame and keep the pan closed.
When it is warm enough to touch, knead it well to make a soft dough.
Divide the dough into equal balls.
Place a ball on a flat surface and Patt them to make small discs/pathiri, Repeat the same for the rest of the dough.
Heat a Non-stick Tawa, cook each pathiri on both sides and Serve Hot with your Favourite Curry.

Sukhiyan

This is another Popular Tea Time Snack in Kerala. Moong Dal Cooked in Jaggery, coated with maida batter and Deep fried. I have replaced a part of maida with Wheat flour. The taste was awesome.

Ingredients (i used small Katori)

1 Cup Moong Dal

1 Cup Powdered Jaggery (Loosely filled)

2 Pods of Cardamom, Crushed

3 tbsp Maida

3 tbsp Wheat flour

2 tbsp Ghee/Clarified Butter

turmeric a pinch

Salt to taste

little water to make a thick batter

Oil for frying

Method

Pressure Cook Moong Dal with just enough water to soak the Dal for 3-4 whistles,
Once the Dal is done, Melt jaggery in a non-stick pan, strain and remove impurities.
Take the strained jaggery to flame again, when it becomes a little thick, add the cooked moong dal and mix well.
When the mixture starts thickening, add ghee little by little.
When the mixture comes together and leaves the sides, put off the flame.
Cool the Mixture. Divide into equal balls. I got about a dozen.
Mix maida and Wheat flour, add little water and make a thick batter, Consistency must be in-between Idly and Dosa Batter.
Heat Oil in pan, Dip Each moongdal-jaggery ball into the batter and Deep fry them in Oil.
Keep the flame low, this ensures even cooking.

Both the recipes came out very well. Pathiri was a real hit, as i was making it for the first time, Hubby dear enjoyed it a lot.

Eggless Chocolate Cake, using Chocolate Cake Mix - Day 6, BM #10

2011-11-29T10:34:00.000-08:00

The Last day of Blogging Marathon, It was great fun blogging these 7 days. The Previous week, i had a Big Shopping gig for the Marathon. I was just hunting The Ready Meal section of 3 Supermarkets and got most of my Products from Al Adil Trading.

Though these products do come handy at the need of hurry, they also a contain lot of preservatives to improve their shelf life. So, let's use them only when we dont have any other options of healthy eating. :)

Today i m posting Chocolate Cake Recipe using Instant Cake Mix.

Ingredients

1 Pack Readymade Chocolate Cake Mix (Many brands are available, i have used pilsbury)

1/4 Cup Vegetable oil

1 Cup and 3 tsp Water

3 tbsp Flaxseed meal with 9 tbsp of warm Water. or 3 eggs

Method

Preheat Oven to 180C. Grease the Cake pan, I Have used 2 Souffle Dish and 2 Ramekins.
Mix Flaxseed meal with warm water and keep ready.
Mix Water and Oil and Flaxseed-Water mixture and Mix well.
Add the Cake Mix little by little and Mix well without any lumps.

Fill the Batter in the prepared dish and Bake for 30-40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.

The Cake was good. I felt the Sugar was way too high. For those who want to bake from a Eggless Cake Mix, You can try Tarla Dalal Brand Eggless Cake mixes.

Bake Time differs from Oven to Oven. So, Bake according to your time settings.

Check out the Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing BM#10

Instant Schezwan Bhel and Schezwan Maggi Noodles - Day 6, BM #10

2011-11-28T09:40:00.000-08:00

Day 6 of Blogging Marathon, i m posting Chat items using Instant or ReadyMix. First one is Schezwan Bhel and Schezwan Maggi Noodles. Yes, Maggi Noodles with a Twist!!!!

Schezwan Bhel

Ingredients

1 Ching's Schezwan Bhel Pack

Handful of Sev

2-4 Bhel Poori's, Crushed

Method

The Pack Comes in a Tall Plastic Tumbler with lid. It has 2 Pouches, a tissue and a Spoon
Empty the Bhel, sev and crushed bhel poori's into the Plastic Tumbler.Cut open the Sauce Sachet and Pour it on the Bhel.

Close the Lid and Shake, Shake, Shake.
Delicious Schezwan Bhel ready, Eat immediately or else it will turn soggy.

Schezwan Maggi Noodles

Ingredients

1 Maggi Noodles Pack

1/2 Capsicum, thinly sliced

1 small onion, chopped

1 spoon schezwan sauce

1/2 spoon tomato sauce

a pinch of Chilli Powder

a blob of butter

handful of spring onions for garnishing

Method

Cook Maggi Noodles with its masala in 1.5 tea cups of Water, as usual.
In a Pan, add little oil, add onion and saute.
Next Add capsicum and saute. Add Schezwan sauce and 1/2 Cup of water.
Add Tomato sauce and a pinch of Red Chilli Powder.
Let them all cook in a medium flame.

When it is almost dry, add the cooked maggi to it and mix well.
Add butter and switch of the stove.
Transfer it to a bowl, garnish with spring onions and serve hot.

I always love maggi, love to cook them with lots of veggies. Our Friend Mr.A gave me this recipe long back, wanted to try this today, so called him again and confirmed the recipe. It tasted so Good.

Schezwan Bhel was also good. I felt the sauce was too much for a single serving,so added a handful of Sev and Bhel Poori's to it. Good Snack to take along while travelling.

Check out the Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing BM#10