Seduce Your Tastebuds...

Kids Lunch Box Series #12 | Quick Peas Pulao and Onion Raita

2017-01-22T00:00:00.000+05:30

This is one of my favorite lunch box click which was taken one hurried morning just a few minutes before the school van came to pick up the kids. I just wanted to post this on instagram so thought a quick click will do.But I liked it so much that I have decided to post this for the series as well.

In The Box

Quick Peas Pulao

Onion Raita

Note:

For the raita, take lukewarm milk in the lunch box container, add salt and mix. Add chopped onion and a little yogurt starter [ the previous day's curd] and sprinkle a little chili powder / chaat masala,a little chopped coriander.Cover and keep in the lunch bag. The curd will set by the time the kid has lunch.

Vegetable Kholapuri Masala Recipe

2017-01-21T15:57:00.000+05:30

This month the Recipe ReDux team chose this as the theme -

Budget Eats

How low can you go? Can you make a meal for less than $3 per serving? Whatever your budget, show us your healthy entree recipe to help keep food spending in check in 2017.

I came up with this simple meal that consists of Roti and a vegetable Kholapuri Masala. Since I could not calculate the individual ingredients cost, I am comparing it with the one we get in restaurants around here.

In my part of the world, this meal would easily come around INR 250-300.But when cooks the same meal at home, it is not only cost effective[the quantity at the restaurant will be sufficient for 2 but this meal served 4!], the meal is more nourishing and hygienically prepared.

The gravy sounds exotic here in the South but it is very easy to prepare at home!
-

Ever since Pradnya shared the Kohlapuri masala, I have been using it in dry curries and gravies. This masala is from the Maharashtrian Cuisine and is a flavorful blend of spices.

I used this spice mix to make the famous kohlapuri masala with vegetables. The kids were first wondering about the mix and later after a few bites with Roti liked it a lot and I have made it a couple of times after this too!

I used:

Mixed vegetables - I used Carrot [1], Beans[10],potato[1], cauliflower[1small].You can also add green peas if available.
Onion-1, large, finely chopped
Garlic-2 pods, chopped
Ginger- 1" piece, chopped
Tomato-1, chopped
Capsicum,1,small ,julienned
Kohlapuri masala - 2 teaspoons [adjust to taste]
Salt to taste
Coriander leaves to garnish
Oil- 1 tablespoon

Take the chopped vegetables in a pressure cooker and cook al dente. Once the pressure releases, strain the vegetables and keep aside. Use up the liquid in soups / store in refrigerator to use in the place of vegetable stock.

Heat oil in a pan and add the onion and saute till translucent.Add ginger and garlic and cook for a few seconds. Then put in the tomato and after a minute add capsicum and stir. Add a cup of water.

Once the mixture comes to a rolling boil, add the kohlapuri masala and salt.mix well. Tip in the vegetables and simmer for 5 minutes till it thickens a bit and comes together. Finally add chopped coriander leaves and remove from heat.

Serve with curry with Roti / Chapathi...

Bon Appetit....

Oats Paniyaram

2017-01-05T23:11:00.000+05:30

Our family is a bit partial when it comes to paniyaram. We can have it for breakfast, as a snack and even for dinner.I have a soft spot for Oats. So combining these two, I made these Oats Paniyarams and served it with coconut chutney and it was washed down with a a cooling Cucumber and Mint flavored buttermilk.We don't prefer heavy dinners in Summer and these type of light dishes looks perfect!

While you are around here, take a look at the other recipes with Oats and indulge on a delicious and nutritious meal.

This post is for Blogging Marathon #7, Week 1 ,Day 1, and the theme I have chosen for this week is Vegetarian Dinners.

I used:

Quick Cooking Oats- 1 cup

Chili powder- 1/2 teaspoon
Salt- to taste
Chopped curry leaves- a few
Buttermilk - as needed
Oil- 1 teaspoon
Mustard- 1 teaspoon
Chana dal- 1 teaspoon
Urad dal- 1 teaspoon
Onion -1, finely chopped

Take the oats in a pan and roast it on low flame till fragrant.Take care not to burn the oats.Cool and powder to a semi coarse powder.

Take the powdered oats in a bowl and add salt, chili powder and curry leaves.Mix and add buttermilk little by little to make a thick batter.

Heat oil in pan and add the mustard, urad dal and channa dal. When teh mustard pops and dal turns brown, add the onion. Saute till the onion turns translucent.Pour this into the batter and give it a mix

Heat a paniyaram pan and smear oil in the moulds and drizzle a little oil[optional]and cover and cook for a few minutes. The sides will turn crisp.Gently remove the paniyarams from the moulds and turn them over using a spoon / skewer. Once both sides turn crisp, remove from the pan and repeat for the remaining batter.Serve with a side of your choice

We had it soaked in sambar, sprinkled with a little sev, and a small bowl of coconut chutney.

Check out the Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing this BM#72

Bon Appetit...

Sprouted Green Gram Dal Dosa

2017-01-04T23:53:00.000+05:30

When we prefer to go for a full fledged dinner, it means the family wants Idli / Dosa. Almost always the fridge houses a box of batter that can be made into either of the two based on when it was ground. But on those rare occasions when I do run out of batter [read-when I forget to soak the rice and urad dal], I turn to instant dosas that need no fermentation. But sometimes, I also make dosas that need no fermentation yet need to grind the batter' kinda dosas

This dosa is 'sort of' instant if you have the sprouts ready. Sprouting is no rocket science and if you have some at hand, then try this nutritious dish.

This post is for Blogging Marathon #7, Week 1 ,Day 1, and the theme I have chosen for this week is Vegetarian Dinners.

Sprouted Green Gram- 1 1/2 cups
Urad Dal- 1/2 cup
Salt to taste

Soak the urad dal for 3-4 hours

Drain the urad dal and grind to a smooth batter adding as little water as possible. Remove onto a big vessel.Grind the sprouts to a smooth batter adding very little water.Mix this with the ground urad dal batter

Add salt and mix well.Keep aside for 15 minutes [optional] and during that time you can prepare a side dish of your choice :)

Make Dosas and serve hot with a a chutney of your choice.

We had this with a simple tomato onion chutney.

Note:

To up the spice quotient,add a few green/ red chilies, ginger while grinding the sprouts.
You can also add finely chopped onions to the batter and prepare the dosas.
I added grated carrot and finely chopped coriander leaves when I made it the second time and the kids liked it.
Store the left over batter in the fridge and try to use within two days. After that the batter gets a slight bitter taste.

Check out the Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing this BM#72

Sending this to Rafeeds who is hosting the 103rd edition of MLLA , an event conceptualized by Susan and hosted by Lisa.

Bon Appetit...

Spinach and Vegetable Soup

2017-01-03T00:14:00.000+05:30

Sometimes when we are in need of a very simple / light dinner and when the usual options look boring, we used to turn to soups. Well that phase began when I did Around The Worl in 30 Days with Soups and Salads as the theme. Lil Angel used to join me in having soups for dinner and this continued for a while.

I paired this Spinach and vegetable soup with a Libyan Herb Bread. The soup by itself is very filling and the I ended up eating more soup than the bread. Lil Dude just just the bread and Lil angel loved to soak up the soup with the bread and eat the veggies separately!

This post is for Blogging Marathon #7, Week 1 ,Day 1, and the theme I have chosen for this week is Vegetarian Dinners.

I used:

Oil- 1 teaspoon
Onion-1, sliced
Garlic-3 pods, sliced
Ginger- a small piece, sliced
Tomato -1 roughly chopped
Mixed vegetables- 2 cups [I used carrots, beans cauliflower]
Tomato puree- 1 cup
Red chili powder- 1 teaspoon [ adjust to taste]
Salt to taste
Boiled peanuts- a handful
Boiled sweet corn- a handful
Boiled dried beans - 1 handful
Spinach-1 small bunch, chopped

Heat oil in a pressure cooker and add onion, garlic and ginger.Saute for a minute.Add the tomato , chopped vegetables, tomato puree.Now put in 1 1/2 cups of water .

Put in the chili powder, salt and bring to boil. Pressure cook for 3 hisses/ 10 minutes.

When the pressure releases, remove the lid and simmer the soup. Ad the peanuts, sweet corn ,beans and spinach. Mix and let it simmer for 5 minutes. Remove from heat and serve.

Enjoy the light meal!!

Note:

Use any vegetable that you have at hand. You can include peas, potato along with the vegetables used here and add mushrooms in the end along with the spinach.
I had a little of boiled peanuts, sweet corn and dried beans and so added them at the end. You can soak them for 4-5 hours and add them along with the vegetables too.
Adjust the quantity of water to suit your taste

Check out the Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing this BM#72

Bon Appetit...

Kids Lunchbox Series #11 | Mini Idli,Sambar,Fruit

2017-01-02T21:58:00.000+05:30

Mini idlis make an excellent choice for the lunch box especially on those days when you have the batter made the previous day[which give really soft idlis] or in a rush to prepare something for the lunchbox.

I pair this with a quick sambar made in the pressure cooker or sometimes my Lil one has it with Idli Milagai Podi!!

In the Lunchbox

Mini Idli

Quick Sambar

Orange segments

Pre-preparation / Notes :

Grind the batter the previous night and keep it aside to ferment.If you are going to use a day old batter,remove it from the fridge the first thing in the morning so that it comes to room temperature before you steam the idlis.
If the batter has thickened add a little water to bring it to the right consistency.
Replace orange with any fruit the kiddo likes.
In case you don't have a mini idli stand, cube the regular idlis for the lunch box. The kids love smaller versions of the real food and will certainly enjoy these quick bites.
I smear a little ghee over each mini idli so that they remain soft and they taste good too.

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Eggless Christmas Fruit Cake #2 [No Soaking / Alcohol Free]

2017-01-01T16:26:00.000+05:30

Happy New Year!!!

The excitement / enthusiasm to bake this cake was stemmed from a group chat!In one of the Whatsapp chat groups, the BMers were discussing about fruit cakes , Gayathri mentioned her recipe and one of the girls made it. It turned out awesome and I had bookmarked her recipe to try later. Finally I made this on Christmas Day.I have used unrefined cane sugar and whole wheat flour,sunflower oil in this recipe. Also I have halved the original recipe to make a small cake.

I had several plans and quite a few fruit cake recipes to try but with the kids exams and holidays that followed tossed the plans out of the window! This one however was the only fruit cake that got done and was savored by the entire family! My mom loved this so much that she said it was way better than the store bought fruit cake and also added that this one had the right amount of spice, fruits and sweetness. It got over the same day I made it and now I am tempted to bake it yet again at least for the sake of clicking better pics.

And,Yes, this post is a tad late! But one can always enjoy cakes at any time right!

So,this recipe requires no alcohol and there is no soaking time!So when there is sudden craving /urge to make a fruit cake, just bake this one!

I used:
Adapted from Gayathri's Cookspot

For Caramel Syrup:

Sugar- 1 1/2 tablespoons
Water- 3/4 tablespoon
Lemon juice- a few drops
Boiling water - 1/8 cup

For Fruit Mixture

Orange juice- 1/8 cup
Mixed nuts and dried fruits- 1 cup

For the Cake:

Whole wheat flour- 1/2 cup+ 3 tablespoons
Oil-1/4 cup
Unrefined cane sugar- 3/4 cup
Apple Puree - 1/4 cup
Baking Powder-1/2 teaspoon
Thick Yogurt / Curd - 4 tablespoons
Allspice Powder-1/8 teaspoon

To make the Caramel Syrup:

Heat sugar, water and lemon juice in a small pan.DO NOT STIR.The sugar will start caramelizing and will turn brown.When the color changes to a slightly dark brown, add the boiling water and swirl.Remove from heat. Now the sugar would have dissolved and there will be no sugar lumps in the caramel.

These are the dry fruits and nuts that I used. Chop them finely and keep aside.

Heat orange juice in a pan and add the dry fruit and nut mixture.Boil for a minute and then simmer for a minute. Stir the mixture occasionally.Once the mixture becomes dry, remove from heat and allow to cool.

Sift the flour with baking powder and allspice powder. Grease and dust a small oval shaped baking tin and keep aside.

In a bowl, take oil and unrefined cane sugar and mix to combine.Add apple sauce, caramel syrup and mix well. Put in curd, dry fruits and nut mixture

To this add the sifted flour mixture and gently combine with a spatula. Transfer the batter into the prepared tin and spread it out evenly. Gently tap the tin on the counter top so that there are no air holes. Decorate with a few cherries and place the tin on a baking tray.

Bake in a pre heated oven at 180 degree C for 40 minutes. After 10 minutes/ when the top get brown, cover with a foil and continue baking till the cake is done.Once the cake is baked, remove from oven and set aside to cool in the pan itself. After the cake is completely cooled, gently remove from pan and slice.

This fruit cake has become one of the most loved bakes of this season!!!

Note:

Use these substitutions - APF for Whole wheat flour , Butter for oil, Sugar for unrefine cane sugar.
Use any dried fruit / nut of your choice.
The shape of the tin too is your choice!
If the cake batter is too water , add a teaspoon or so of flour.
If it is too thick, add warm milk/ water .But don't make the batter very watery.
The baking time will vary. Keep an eye out after 30 minutes.Check by inserting a knife / skewer in the center of the cake. If it comes out clean, the cake is done, else bake again.
Do not be tempted to remove the cake from the tin as soon as it is done. Wait for it to cool down else the cake will fall out in bits and pieces.

Bon Appetit....

Ukranian Autumn Apple Tea | Recipe ReDux

2016-12-22T18:50:00.000+05:30

This month we are playing a little party game at the Recipe ReDux. The theme is :

Grab your nearest cookbook and ReDux the recipe on page 201, 16, 216 – or any combination of the number ‘2016.’

When I saw this theme it sounded so easy! So I took it easy until today afternoon! When I suddenly remembered about the post for this event, I sat in front of my bookshelf and when I started looking for books from which I could cook, I was stumped!

There are plenty of cook books to choose from but I was in a dilemma.The pages I chose either had a write up or a pic or I did not have the ingredient that was needed for that dish!!Finally I found this tea recipe in one of the books and I remembered seeing a lone apple in the fridge. Thank God for that!!!

So, this is a tea recipe from Ukraine adapted from the book Top 100 tea recipes.A refreshing tea made in autumn when apples are harvested in plenty! And this recipe is found on page number 62 .

This book as the complete nutritional and caffeine analysis of all the recipes in the book and it has methods to host 4 different tea ceremonies.Apart from the tea recipes, there are also 40 dessert recipes to accompany your tea!

Though I am a coffee person, I liked this tea recipe as it was something different from the usual tea we have here. I have not tasted a tea with fruits in it and this one was good.

I have added unrefined cane sugar in this tea instead of honey that was mentioned in the original recipe.Also the recipe mentioned using a whole chopped apple but I used only half of it.

This tea is not served in a cup but in a bowl! The apple pieces are eaten with a spoon and the tea is sipped from the bowl.

I used:
Adapted from - Top 100 Tea Recipes by Mary Ward

Water- 200 ml
Tea dust- 1 teaspoon
Apple-1/2 a small one, peeled and chopped into small pieces
Unrefined cane sugar-1 teaspoon

Bring water to boil and add the tea dust and once it comes to a boil remove from heat. Add the cane sugar and mix.
Place the chopped apples in a bowl. Strain the tea over the apple pieces and serve

Use the spoon to eat the apple pieces and sip the tea from the bowl.

Here is the tea and the book...

Bon Appetit....

Eggless Butterless Peanut Butter Cookies

2016-12-21T17:32:00.000+05:30

There was a phase when these cookies were found in abundance in the blogosphere! Back then I never really felt that I need to make this.But now with a huge jar of peanut butter that sat on the shelf was literally begging me to use it up, I was thinking of ways to finish it up in something other than in peanut butter sandwich.

Lil Angel who usually sits with me when I am browsing the various blogs, came up with the idea to make these cookies. I thought it was a great idea and made these delicious bites.

I used:
Makes around 30 cookies

Whole wheat flour- 1 cup
Powdered sugar- 1/2 cup
Oil-1/4 cup
Milk-1/3 cup
Peanut butter- 1/2 cup
Baking soda-1 teaspoon

Take the flour, sugar, baking soda in a bowl and whisk well to combine.

Add oil , peanut butter and milk and mix to form a dough. If it is too sticky add a little flour. If the dough is too dry and crumbly add a little milk.

Pinch out equal sized balls and place them on a baking tray lined with parchment paper .Place them a little far apart as they spread a little.Flatten them out making crisscross patterns with a fork.

Bake in a pre heated oven at 180 degree C for 10 minutes / till the bottom of the cookie is brown. The cookies will be soft when they come out of the oven. Cool on a wire rack.

Note:

You can use APF / Maida instead of whole wheat flour.
Place the cookies a little far apart as they spread a bit.
Since the cookies are soft as soon as they are baked but turn crisp once cool, don't be tempted to over bake the cookies.
The number of cookies and the time taken to bake it will depend on the size and thickness of the cookies.

I have joined a group of friends in a baking event called Bake-a-thon.We will be posting baked goodies on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays all through December.Do take a look at what we all have baked so far!!

This is part of the Bake-a-thon 2016

An InLinkz Link-up

Kids Lunch Box Series # 10 | Soya Chunks Briyani ,Yogurt,Crisps

2016-12-20T22:36:00.000+05:30

This is a simple one pot dish that is very handy to make on busy days. I pack this with either raita / yogurt.

Meal maker/ Soya Chukns / Soya nuggets is a textured vegetarian protein made from Soya beans. It is very nutritious and one of the good sources of proteins for vegetarians.

Sometimes, I add some vegetables to this briyani to make it more colorful and nutritious.

In the Lunchbox

Soya chunks Briyani

Yogurt

Fryums

Prepreparation:

I cook the soya chunks the previous night and refrigerate it.
If adding vegetables , I chop them and keep them ready the previous night.

Note:

In summer/ warm days, for the curd, take lukewarm milk in the lunch box container and add a little yogurt starter [ the previous day's curd] .It will set by lunch time. During the rainy season / winter, I pack fresh set home made yogurt for the lunch box.

Eggless Butterless Peanutbutter - Jam Thumbprint Cookies

2016-12-19T23:03:00.001+05:30

There is a story behind most of the dishes that are posted here. It may be how the dish came into being or what happened / was happening when the dish was getting done, the reaction and the feedback from the family and so on.

Well, the story behind this cookie is that it was born when I remembered that I had forgotten to soak fruits for baking a fruit cake, which should have been the post for the day!

I was running out of options and a cookie seemed to be the best option for a quick bake. Since I don't stock up on butter I used oil and made this peanut butter cookies. Since the Lil one loves jam, I made a thumb print cookie.

And the pics were clicked in a hurry too.Out of the three pics that were clicked, two of them are featured here!

I used:
Makes around 3 dozen small cookies

Whole wheat flour- 1 cup
Powdered sugar- 1/2 cup
Oil-1/4 cup
Milk-1/3 cup
Peanut butter- 1/2 cup
Baking soda-1 teaspoon

Mix together 2 tablespoons of mixed berry jam with a little hot water.

Take the flour, sugar, baking soda in a bowl and whisk well to combine.

Add oil , peanut butter and milk and mix to form a dough. If it is too sticky add a little flour. If the dough is too dry and crumbly add a little milk.

Pinch out equal sized balls and place them on a baking tray lined with parchment paper. Place them a little far apart as these cookies tend to spread.Press down each ball with a bottle lid so that you get a small depression in the center. Bake in a pre heated oven at 180 degree for 12 minutes/ till the bottom of the cookie is brown.As soon as they are out of the oven, I pressed the cookies again with the same lid so that the indent was deep enough to hold a bit of jam. Cool on a wore rack.

Spoon a little of the jam into the center of each cookie and serve.

Note:

You can use APF / Maida instead of whole wheat flour.
Place the cookies a little far apart as they spread a bit
Use any flavor jam of your choice
When the cookies were stored with the jam, they got a little soft. So it is better to add the jam just before serving.
The number of cookies and the time taken to bake it will depend on the size and thickness of the cookies.

This is part of the Bake-a-thon 2016

An InLinkz Link-up

Quick Rasam in Pressure Cooker

2016-12-19T22:22:00.003+05:30

My mom is sometimes amazed with the techniques I use to prepare food. She is a person who cooks food the way it is to be prepared and one who is cooking since the age of 13! My methods are sometime so different from hers that she often wonders how the final dish will look and taste like!

But after watching me cook many dishes in the pressure cooker, she now says, make that quick potato masal or make that easy kurma! Feels so nice to be appreciated by a pro!!

So, this is one other dish that I mentioned in yesterday's post. I make this on days when we have guests or need a quick meal.

This post is for Blogging Marathon #71, Week 3,Day 2, and the theme I have chosen for this week is 'One pot meals', meaning , making a dish in just one pot!

I use:

Toor dal- 1/4 cup
Tomato -1 pureed
Tomato-1, chopped
Tamarind extract- 1/4 cup/ as needed
Garlic- a few pods, chopped
Curry leaves - a few
Turmeric powder- 1/8 teaspoon
Rasam powder- 2 teaspoons
Salt- to taste

For tempering:

Ghee- 1/2 teaspoon
Mustard-1/2 teaspoon
Cumin seeds- 1/4 teaspoon
Asafoetida powder- a large pinch
Curry leaves- a few

Coriander leaves to garnish

Heat oil in a pressure cooker and add garlic and curry leaves. Put in the tomato puree, tamarind extract, turmeric powder and rasam powder.

Add salt, toor dal and 1 1/2 cups of water. Pressure cook for 10 minutes. till dal is cooked.Once the pressure releases, remove the lid and whisk the rasam well so that the dal is well mashed. Add chopped tomatoes and bring to boil. Remove from heat.

Transfer onto a serving dish. You can stop with this step and serve but the tempering imparts a special taste to teh dish. So heat a small pan and melt ghee.Add asafoetida, mustard, cumin, curry leaves. When the cumin crackles,pour into rasam and mix.

Quick rasam is ready to serve!

Note:

The time required to cook will depend on the quality and quantity of dal used
I use a 3 litre pressure cooker for such quick meals.
Adjust the water and tamarind extract to suit the consistency of your choice.
You can add the tempering ingredients as soon as you add garlic and proceed with the rest of the process.

Check out the Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing this BM#71

Bon Appetit...

Quick Sambar in Pressure Cooker

2016-12-18T14:18:00.000+05:30

A couple of days back I was clearing out some boxes from the store room. I had forgotten what was inside and was eager to find out what was in it. Usually I write something about the stuffs inside so that it is easy to pull out those stuffs when needed,but this one box had nothing on it!

As I pulled out the sealing tape, my heart started beating faster in anticipation of a treasure! And treasure it was! The cardboard box held within it the so many issues of the comic that I lovingly collected- Tinkle! And there was my first grade English reader book with my childish scribbles and doodles!A couple of story books for kids that I still remember reading on summer afternoons lazying around in the small lawn outside our home and a little book that my Uncle had given me when I went to my grandparents place during summer vacation.That little book was my uncles when he was a kid! But the pages are still intact and the print still good as new!

That box got back so many mixed feeling!I was happy that the books were still in good condition and I even patted my back for maintaining them so well ! I recollected dad buying each comic at that corner store near the market and the magazine store guy still remembered my dad when we visited that place a couple of years ago.

Life was way easy and simple back then. I still wish I was a kid.Sometimes my friends tell me I am like a kid around them! But that is only around my friends.But then life now has so many responsibilities and duties that I now feel it would be so nice to go back to childhood even it if means endless home works, school projects and countless exams.Even with all these, life was simple and easy.

No matter how much we yearn,life can never get simple and easy as we want it to be. But recipes sure can!!

This dish is my go to method when I am in a rush to pack things for the kids lunch box. Lil Angel prefers rice based dishes while Lil dude loves tiffin items. So most of the the days I pack 2 types of lunch boxes.I simplify this process by making a common dish and pairing it with something else that the two would like to eat.

So when I make sambar, I pack rice ,sambar and a veggie for Lil Angel and Mini idli / Coin dosa with sambar for Lil Dude.

My mornings pass away like a whirlwind! To rush things up in the kitchen, I speed up the cooking process by making most of the dishes in the pressure cooker and this sambar is one of them. Unlike the norml way of cooking dal separately and then making the sambar, I add all the ingredients in one go and pressure cook it. Saves a lot of precious time without compromising the taste.

I follow this method to make rasam,vegetable dry curries and even rasam! Will post these methods in teh coming days.

This post is for Blogging Marathon #71, Week 3,Day 2, and the theme I have chosen for this week is 'One pot meals', meaning , making a dish in just one pot!

I use:

Toor dal- 1 cup
Mixed vegetables
Tomato-1. roughly chopped
Onion-1, thinly sliced
Curry leaves-a few
Sambar powder- 2 teaspoons
Coriander powder- 1 teaspoon
Turmeric powder-1/8 teaspoon
Mustard- 1/2 teaspoon
Urad dal-1 teaspoon
Channa dal-1 teaspoon
Fenugreek seeds-1/4 teaspoon
Tamarind extract-1/4 cup[adjust to taste]
Oil- 1 teaspoon

Heat a pressure cooker with oil and add the mustard, fenugreek, urad dal and channa dal.When the mustard pops, add curry leaves and onion.Saute for a minute. Add the tomato.

Add 2 cups of water[or more if you want a thin sambar] . Put in turmeric powder, sambar powder, veggies, dal and bring to boil

Mix well and pressure cook for 10-15 minutes / till the dal is cooked.Once the pressure releases, add salt and tamarind extract. Simmer for a couple of minutes and add coriander powder. Mix and bring to boil.Remove from heat and transfer to a serving dish.

Quick sambar is ready to be served.

This sambar was a part of a meal where all the dishes were made with one pot - in a pressure cooker, expect,of course, the potato wafers!

Note:

Do not add finely chopped vegetables as they tend to get mushy and disintegrate into the sambar when pressure cooked.So add cubed veggies.
Sometimes, I add tamarind extract as soon as I add dal. That works too.
The time required to cook will depend on the quality and quantity of dal used
I follow the same procedure to make moong dal sambar[pasi paruppu sambar]
I use a 3 litre pressure cooker for such quick meals.
Adjust the water to suit the consistency of your choice.

Check out the Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing this BM#71

Bon Appetit...

Soya Chunks Briyani | Meal Maker Briyani | Easy One Pot Meal

2016-12-17T14:17:00.000+05:30

Exactly 8 years back, around this same time, I sat in front of the computer writing a list of names. I asked friends and I too came up with a few names and the list was getting really got long! I was almost due with my first child but I was not choosing a name for the kid! Around here, we select the name only after the baby is born.

If you are wondering about that lengthy name list, I will tell you what it is all about. I was in the process of starting a blog!! There were a couple of friends who were asking me for some easy to prepare dishes and I wanted them documented in some place so that it can be referred when ever needed. A blog seemed a good idea!

So the name list was for the blog and after mixing and matching the names from this list, I settled on Seduce Your Tastebuds!

I wanted to post just one recipe per week and that's how things went for a while. When I received the first comment on the blog for one of the recipes, I was ecstatic! It was like I received some great prize for my work! I could not believe that my blog was read and people had time to write a comment for my post!!

Then slowly I started increasing the number of posts. Mom would warn me not to spend too much time on the computer as it would stress me out which would add to the strain of taking care of an infant!

Once the routine settled, the number of posts grew and so did Lil Angel. When ever I recollect the times that Lil Angel would try to peel me away from writing the blog post, I have a hearty laugh as I feel she was trying to get me away from the thing that took me away from playing with her! I could even sense a feeling of sibling rivalry between the kiddo and the computer!!

Back in those days, I never really focused on setting up an elaborate set up to click pics as there would be Lil Angel standing beside me,eager to grab the bowl that I am clicking or I would be carrying her and clicking with the other hand!! Even now I wish I put up a better set up while clicking the pics but this is all I can manage for now!

I know such nostalgic posts are better reserved for the blog's anniversary post, but today when I was going through some of the oldest posts in the blog, I walked down the memory lane, reliving those wonderful times!

But well, this is the 2016th post in the blog and maybe this is a good time to get nostalgic!!!

Anyway, now back to business...

We are now in the third week of Blogging Marathon #71, Day 1, and the theme I have chosen for this week is 'One pot meals'

This briyani came into being when Lil Angel came home from school one day and praised the lunch her friend had shared with her. She asked me to make the same lunch telling me that since I blog and try out new recipes, my version would be better than her friends lunch!!

When the kiddo had such a confidence in me, it is only fair to try to make something that meets her expectations. So I got a pack of small meal maker / soya chunks and prepared it for her lunch box. Amidst the rush of getting the kids ready for school,I even clicked pics so that I could use it for the blog if the dish turned out good enough.

So I packed it off in her lunch box and then around noon, clicked the final pic for the blog as well.I waited for her verdict with so much of anticipation like I was waiting for some examination result!

Now since this post is on the blog, you would have guessed how this dish had turned out. She was so happy with the lunch and even shared it with her friend who introduced this dish to her .Lil Angel even complimented me saying that her friend liked my version better than her mothers!!

Since everyone at home liked this, I have been making this quite often especially when we have guests over for lunch. It is an easy one pot meal which needs very little supervision and no elaborate steps involved.

Sometime I add chopped vegetables to make the meal more filling and nutritious. I interchange the masalas to give it a twist. But what ever way it is cooked, it is always a hit at the table.

And before we go on to the recipe, I have a confession to make.After a really long, long time, I am writing a post this lengthy!!!

I used

Basmati Rice- 1 cup
[Small size] soya chunks / meal maker- 1 cup
Milk - 1/8 cup
Onion-1,sliced
Tomato - 1, ripe, chopped
Bay leaf- 1
Cinnamon-1" piece
Cloves-3
Mint leaves- a few
Turmeric powder- a large pinch
Chili powder- 1 teaspoon [adjust to taste]
Salt to taste
Coriander leaves to garnish
Ghee- 1 teaspoon

Heat a pan with plenty of water and add the milk to it. Put in the soya chinks and when it comes to a boil, switch off the flame and cover the pan. Let it sit for 5 minutes. Drain the water and rinse the soya chinks in plenty of cold water.

Squeeze out the water and transfer to a vessel and set aside.

Wash and soak rice for 15 minutes. Drain and keep aside.

Heat ghee in a pressure cooker and add the whole spices.Saute for a few seconds and add onions and saute till the onion is soft. Put in the tomatoes.

Add mint leaves, turmeric powder, red chili powder and salt.

Cook till the tomatoes are mushy. Add the soya chunks and mix well. Add 2 cups of water [or the quantity of water that you use to cook your regular brand of basmati rice] and bring to boil.

Put in the drained rice and mix. Cover and pressure cook for 4 whistles/ 10-15 minutes/ till the rice is cooked. It should not turn mushy though. Once the pressure releases, open the pressure cooker and give it a gently mix. Add coriander leaves and mix a little before sercing.

Serve with some crisps and raita..

Note:

You can add sambar powder / pav bhaji masala instead of red chili powder.
Chopped veggies like carrot, beans, peas, cauliflower and potato can also be added.
The larger variety of soya chunks can also be used.
Sunflower oil can be used instead of ghee.
Regular rice can be used instead of Basmati rice.

Check out the Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing this BM#71

Bon Appetit...

Eggless Fruit and Nut Cookies | Easy Christmas Bakes

2016-12-16T16:32:00.000+05:30

Yes, there is a similar recipe in this blog! The fruit cookies recipe that I posted a couple of years back was my go to recipe if I needed to bake and take for friends. Then when I made this Eggless Basic Cookie Dough , I wanted to make something colorful and then this cookie was born. I have added some nuts here and these jeweled beauties were the star of the day!

I have made 5 different cookies with the Eggless Basic Cookie Dough and all the varieties were appreciated and relished by the family. This one is from the final lot of the dough.

I used:

1/5 portion of the Eggless Basic Cookie Dough weighing approx. 150 grams
Tutti frutti - 1/8 cup
Nuts- a few I used almonds and cashews

Take the dried fruits and nuts and chop them finely. Add it to the dough.

Mix in the fruits and shape into a log. Cling wrap it and freeze for half an hour.

Remove the cling wrap and using a serrated knife and cut into slices. Arrange the slices on a baking tray lined with parchment paper.Bake in a pre heated oven at 180 degree C for 12 minutes / till the bottom of the cookies turn light brown. Remove from oven and let it cool on a wire rack.

Bejeweled beauties are ready to be served....

Note:

Use any dried fruit / nut of your choice
The baking time will also vary with the size of the cookies and the thickness.
The cookies will be soft as soon as they come out of the oven and will turn crisp after they cool.Else bake again for a few more minutes.

This is part of the Bake-a-thon 2016

An InLinkz Link-up

Eggless Colorful Christmas Cookies | Easy Holiday Bakes

2016-12-14T18:22:00.000+05:30

The Basic Egg-less Cookie Dough Recipe is proving to be a blessing! I made a huge batch of this dough and divided it into 5 portions and have been using it as a base to bake 5 varieties of cookies.This is the forth recipe from that batch of dough.

Now with this batch if cookie dough I find it very easy to bake cookies. The dough has been in the fridge for almost a week now and it is good as new.Also I discovered that the cookies don't get too tough in texture when knead again. In most of the dough recipes, it is advised that the dough should not be over worked as it will affect the texture of the cookie. But in this case, I have added color where I had to knead well so that the color has to be blended uniformly ,yet, the cookies tasted great and it had a good texture as well.I am so satisfied with the basic dough recipe and it is a keeper for sure!

Anyway,I wanted to make a cookie that looked very 'Christmas-y' and so made these colorful cookies. I was in a hurry to bake these so did not pay much attention while shaping them.So you will find the cookie don't have smooth edges. After coming out of the oven, the cookies looked kinda rustic and the beautiful colors made me forget about the shape!!

I used:

Basic Egg-less Cookie Dough Recipe - 1/5th of the dough weighing approx 260 grams
Green and Red Gel food colors- as needed
Sugar for coating

Divide the dough into three equal parts . Add green and red food colors to two of the portions and mix to blend the colors into the dough. Divide the three colors into equal sized balls. Drop the balls into a bowl with sugar and roll around to coat.
Place the balls on a baking tray lined with parchment paper and press them down to form small discs. Using a fork press down to get the pattern.

Repeat for the remaining dough . Bake in a pre heated oven at 180 degree C for 12 minutes/ or till the bottom of the cookie turns light brown. Once done remove from oven and transfer to a wire rack to cool.

Colorful Christmas Cookies are ready to be served.

Note:

The baking time will vary with the size of the cookies and the thickness.
The cookies will be soft as soon as they come out of the oven and will turn crisp after they cool.Else bake again for a few more minutes.
You can also add any essence of your choice.

This is part of the Bake-a-thon 2016

An InLinkz Link-up

Eggless Peppermint Flavored Sugar Cookies | Easy Christmas Bakes

2016-12-12T15:05:00.000+05:30

When I made the Eggless Basic Cookie Dough, I had in mind a whole bunch of cookies to try with it and one among them was sugar cookies. I had planned a simple cookie and when I got ready to bake, I changed my mind and add peppermint essence to give it a different flavor. And when my eyes fell on the box of sugar hearts, I knew I could make the cookies more colorful by using the colorful sugar hearts!

Aren't they pretty to look at!!!

I used:

1/5 portion of the Eggless Basic Cookie Dough weighing approx. 160 grams
Peppermint essence- a few drops
Sugar hearts - a few, crushed [ not powdered]

Add a few drops of the essence to the dough and mix in gently.

Take a portion of the dough and roll it into a thin disc. Using small cookie cutters punch out the dough. Place the colorful sugar crystals got from crushing the sugar heats in a wide plate and place the cut out shapes on teh sugar. Press gently so that the sugar sticks to the dough.

Place them on a baking tray lined with parchment paper. Bake in a pre heated oven at 180 degrees for 8 minutes or till the bottom of the cookies turn light brown.Carefully remove from the tray and let it cool.

Crispy sugary cookies are ready!!!

Note:

The number of cookies for this quantity of dough will depend on the size of the cookie cutter and also the thickness of the rolled dough.
I made a huge batch as I used very small cookie cutters.
The baking time will also vary with the size of the cookies and the thickness.
The cookies will be soft as soon as they come out of the oven and will turn crisp after they cool.Else bake again for a few more minutes.
Roll out the dough into even thickness else the baking time will differ and thinner ones will burn.
You can use regular granulated white sugar instead of the colored sugar.

This is my third post for Blogging Marathon #71, Week 1, Day 3, themed 'Kid’s Delight – Birthday Snacks'.This is also the theme that Archana has chosen for the Kids delight event that she is hosting this month.

Check out the Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing this BM#71

I have joined a group of friends in a baking event called Bake-a-thon.We will be posting baked goodies on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays all through December.Do take a look at what we all have baked!!

This is part of the Bake-a-thon 2016

An InLinkz Link-up

Eggless Whole Wheat Pillow Cakes | Baking Without Oven

2016-12-11T15:16:00.000+05:30

Many moons ago, I saw an eggless pillow cake photo in one of the Instagram accounts and I really loved the way it looked! The word 'pillow' suggested that it would really soft and fluffy and the fact that it did not need an oven proved to be the highlight.

So one fine evening I decided to make these pillow cake as an after school snack. Imagine my joy when the cake came out so well and even more thrilled when I watched the kids enjoy these triangle shaped cakes!

Happy with the initial success, I have been making these quite often for the kids. I use whole wheat flour and unrefined cane sugar instead of All purpose flour / maida and sugar.

The cake is super soft and easy to make too.And did I tell you these get done in your sandwich maker!!

I used:
Adapted from - Tickling Palates

Whole wheat flour -1 cup
Unrefined cane sugar- 1/2 cup
Milk- 1/2 cup
Hot water- 1/4 cup[if needed]
Baking powder- 1 teaspoon
Baking soda- 1/2 teaspoon
Oil- 1/2 cup
Tutti frutti - a handful
Vanilla essence- 1 teaspoon

Take the milk in a bowl and add oil,cane sugar.Whisk till the cane sugar dissolves.

To this mixture,add the flour, baking powder, baking soda and mix to combine.

If the mixture is very thick, add hot water little by little to get a batter of flowing consistency. Add vanilla essence and Tutti frutti.

Mix well. Heat up the sandwich maker and pour the batter onto it and let it cook till a skewer inserted in the center comes out clean. The time will vary with the brand and consistency of the batter.

Once done, switch off the sandwich maker and let it open it . Let is sit as such for a couple of minutes. Gently remove the cakes from the sandwich maker. It will be very soft, so don't be tempted to remove it as soon as it is done, as it will crumble easily.

Enjoy the soft and fluffy pillow cake!

This is my second post for Blogging Marathon #71, Week 1, Day 2, themed 'Kid’s Delight – Birthday Snacks'.This is also the theme that Archana has chosen for the Kids delight event that she is hosting this month.

Check out the Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing this BM#71

Bon Appetit...

Roasted Makhana Recipe | Puffed Lotus Seeds Snack Recipe

2016-12-10T23:36:00.000+05:30

We all love to snack and especially when reading a book, I love to munch on something and get immersed into the magical world.

On one such day, I made this easy snack which I have been eyeing for a long time.It is lightly spiced and when paired with buttermilk it was so good to eat. The best part was that the kids too loved this one! It came as a surprise for me as I thought Lil Dude would not even taste it,but he loved the crunchy bites and enjoyed his snack!

I have a post here which details all about this ingredient and also there are some recipes with Phool Mahkana / puffed lotus seeds that are easy to make and good to eat as well.

I used:

Puffed lotus seeds / Phool makhana -2 cups

Red chili powder- 1/2 teaspoon

Chaat masala- 1/2 teaspoon

Turmeric powder- a large pinch

Salt to taste

Ghee - 1 tablespoon

Heat oil in a pan and add the phool makana and all the spices.Keep stirring so that the spices coat the lotus seeds. When it is roasted, which will take 8- 10 minutes on medium heat, it will be crunchy to bite. Remove from heat and cool .

Serve as a snack / Store in an airtight container once cooled.

Note:

Use oil for a vegan version
Pepper powder can be used instead of red chili powder and amchur / raw mango powder can be used instead of chaat masala.

This is my first post for Blogging Marathon #71, Week 1, Day 1, themed 'Kid’s Delight – Birthday Snacks'.This is also the theme that Archana has chosen for the Kids delight event that she is hosting this month.

Check out the Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing this BM#71

Bon Appetit...

Eggless Stained Glass Cookies | Easy Christmas Bakes

2016-12-09T23:05:00.000+05:30

Finally,I made them!!! Yes, finally I made these stained glass cookies! It may not look like a huge achievement but it is for me! After years and years of wanting to make this , the desire was fulfilled today! There is no specific reason as to why I did not bake this till now but there is a specific reason why it got done.

A group of bloggers are doing the Bake-a-thon , posting baked goodies on Monday, Wednesday and Friday all through December and I thought this would be the best time to make it. Also Lil Angel has been bugging me to make this for a long, long time.

Stained glass cookies have a sort of transparent stained glass look that comes from teh elted candy filling in the center.These can also be used as edible decoration on the Christmas tree but I just let the kids indulge on them.Lil Angel was so happy to see the cookies with 'stained glass' and Lil Dude was sort of worried how one could eat the 'glass' in the center of the cookies!

So here is the stained class cookies or the Stained glass window cookie recipe that I loved making and the ones the kids enjoyed.

I used:
Makes- 12 large cookies

Basic Eggless Cookie Dough - 1/5th portion weighing approx 150 grams
Hard candy / lollipop- 4 colors

Take the individual candy in a zip lock bag and crush the candy with a hammer / rolling pin and keep aside.

Take a portion of the dough and roll it out. It should not be too thick / too thin.

Using a stained glass cookie cutter or a large and small cookie cutter, cut out the dough and arrange them on a baking tray lined with parchment paper.

Fill up the centers with the crushed candy. Bake in a pre heated oven at 150 degrees for 12 minutes or until the candy bubbles and the cookies just start to brown.Remove from oven and let it cook in the pan for 10 minutes. Carefully remove the cookies from the sheets and cool on a wire rack.

Stained glass cookies are ready!

Here is the customary pics of the 'stained glass'...

Notes:

I used Jolly Rancher lollipop.
In one of the cookies, I used a pink sugar heart. It stuck to the cookies after when it came out of the oven and it looked really cute!
For the first batch I baked at 280 degrees and the candy in the center tasted bitter and the color was dark .i.e, all the cookies had the same burnt dark color! So for the second batch I reduced the temperature to 150 degree C and baked it for 12 minutes and the cookies came out perfect!!
Don't attempt to remove the cookies as soon as they are out of the oven.Let it cool so that they don't stick to the parchment paper.
The baking time will vary on the size and thickness of the cookies.

This is part of the Bake-a-thon 2016

An InLinkz Link-up

Eggless Butterscotch Cookies | Easy Christmas Bakes

2016-12-07T22:55:00.002+05:30

This is the first batch of cookies that I made with the Basic cookie dough . The kids have been asking me to make this ever since I got the essence and the butterscotch chips. But somehow never got around to bake these.

The butterscotch chips that we get here are very different from the ones that come from abroad. Here they bubble up and melt and does not give a beautiful picture when baked. Nevertheless, they were voted as the best cookie by the kids so I am happy that it defects were not noted!

I used:
Makes- 12 cookies

Basic cookie dough - 1/5 portion weighing around 155grams
Butterscotch essence- 1/8 teaspoon
Butterscotch chips-1/8 cup

Take the dough in a bowl and add the butterscotch chips and essence. Mix gently .Do not over work the dough

Divide into 12 equal sized balls. Flatten the balls and place them on a lined baking tray. Teh cookies don't spread much so can be placed a bit near each other.

Bake in a pre heated oven at 180 degree C for 10 minutes or till the edges turn light brown. Remove from oven and cool on a wire rack.

Enjoy these delicious cookies with a cup of milk/ tea / coffee!

Note:

The quantity of essence will depend on the quality and brand. Check and add more only if needed.
The baking time will vary on the size and thickness of the cookies.
The cookies will be soft to touch as soon as they come out of the oven and will turn crisp after they cool. So be sure not to over bake the cookies

This is part of the Bake-a-thon 2016

An InLinkz Link-up

Eggless Basic Cookie Dough Recipe

2016-12-07T22:42:00.001+05:30

For the past couple of weeks, I have this urge to bake cookies , not only for the Bake-a-thon that we are doing but also for the kids as they have been asking for different types of cookies that are not available in the stores!

But considering that each time I have to make the dough and then refrigerate it and then bake, I get lazy or at that exact same time something comes up!

So I wanted a basic cookie dough recipe which can be made and refrigerated so that I can make 4-5 varieties of cookies in one go!

My search landed me in Aparn'a blog and I have adopted that recipe and that is the one that I will be using fro now on. Yes, I have 5 cookies planned with this dough and I will be posting them one after the other..

The best part is that this dough need not be refrigerated before baking. So once the dough is ready, we can start off with baking our favorite cookie!!

I used:
Adapted from: My Diverse Kitchen

Whole wheat flour - 2 cups
All Purpose flour - 1 cup
Sugar -1 cup, measured and powdered
Baking Powder- 1 1/2 teaspoons
Butter- 200 grams
Salt-1/4 teaspoon
Milk-4 tablespoons + a little extra

Take the whole wheat flour, all purpose flour, salt, baking powder in a bowl and whisk well. You can also sift this mixture.Keep aside.

In a large bowl, cra together butter and sugar till light and fluffy.

Add milk and mix.Now add the flour mixture in batches and form a dough. Add a little milk if needed. Do not over work the dough.

The dough is now ready....

Note:

I divided the dough into 5 portions. 4 portions weighed 150-160 grams and one portion 260 grams.
I have cling wrapped the portions and refrigerated 4 of them to bake later.
I have not used essence here since I will be baking some other flavors as well.
If the dough is over worked, the cookies will not taste good.
Add milk little by little for kneading while making the dough.

These are the cookies that I baked with this basic cookie dough

Bon Appetit...

Festive Chocolate Stars | Easy Christmas Baking

2016-12-05T20:28:00.000+05:30

I am sure that you would remember that I had used only one portion of the dough when I made the Gingerbread man cookies. This is what I made with the remaining portion. The kids wanted some chocolate cookies and since the dough was ready, I made these cute cookies.

As mentioned in a post before, I always have some chocolate frosting in the fridge, so I used it to give the chocolate touch and the kids were enthralled by the beauty of the cookies. I was so pleased that the kids admired my handiwork!!

I used half of the recipe below:

Makes 60 small stars

Whole wheat flour - 1 1/4 cups
Demerera sugar- 1/4 cup, tightly packed
Honey-1/4 cup
Unsalted butter, at room temperatures- 50 grams
Baking Soda- 1/2 teaspoon
Baking powder- 1/2 teaspoon
Salt- 1/4 teaspoon
Warm milk-as needed [ see note below]

Spice mix:

Cinnamon powder- 1/2 teaspoon
Black pepper powder- 1/4 teaspoon
Dry ginger powder- 3/4 teaspoon
Clove powder- 1/4 teaspoon
Grated nutmeg - 1/4 teaspoon

Cardamom powder- a large pinch

For the Royal Icing

Finely powdered sugar - 1/4 cup
Corn flour -3/4 teaspoon
Lemon juice - 1/2 teaspoon
Milk- 1-2 teaspoon / as needed
Red and green food colors - as needed

Chocolate frosting - as needed

Powder the sugar along with the spice powder and keep aside. In a bowl take the whole wheat flour and add the baking soda, baking powder, salt and mix well.

Cream butter with the sugar till nice and fluffy. Add honey and beat for a minute

Now add the flour mixture into the butter mixture and form a smooth non sticky dough.I added a little warm milk to as the mixture was a bit dry. Maybe it was because I used whole wheat flour. So, when you make the dough see if it is ok or dry and then add milk if needed. Form a ball of the dough and cling wrap it and let it sit in the fridge for at least an hour

After an hour [two days later, as in my case!], take out a small portion of the dough and roll it out uniformly. If it is rolled too thick, the cookies will be chewy. If it is too thin, it will bake too fast and burn.Using a star shaped cookie cutter, punch out shapes.

Transfer them onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.Arrange the stars leaving a little space in between. Bake in a pre heated oven at 180 degree C for 10 minutes[see note below]. Once the bottom of the cookie is brown, remove from oven and place on a cooling rack and allow to cool completely. Repeat for the remaining dough.

For the royal icing, take the sugar, corn flour in a bowl and whisk well.

Add lemon juice and mix. Then add milk drop by drop to get a slightly thick yet flowing paste. Divide into three parts and add red and green food color to two of them.

Pack them into small cones which have a very small opening / nozzle. Pipe outlines with colors of your choice.Once it dries, spread a little of the frosting and decorate with colored sprinkles, sugar balls etc.

Note:

I used a little warm milk to knead the cookie dough as it was a bit dry.The quantity of milk will depend on the type / quality of flour used.
The number of cookies for this quantity of dough will depend on the size of the cookie cutter and also the thickness of the rolled dough.
The baking time will also vary with the size of the cookies and the thickness.
The cookies will be soft as soon as they come out of the oven and will turn crisp after they cool.Else bake again for a few more minutes.
Use finely powdered sugar for the Royal icing else you won't be able to pipe out the decorations.
Start decorating the cookies after they have cooled completely
Start with a very small tip while piping.This also depends on how small / large your cookie is.
You can make the dough the previous day ,bake it a day or two later and finish the icing a couple of days later!That's exactly what I did!
After a few days in the box, the un-iced cookies turned a little soft.I baked them again for 3 minutes and they turned crisp.
I used only half of this dough. I cling wrapped the remaining dough and refrigerated it for a week and baked another variety of cookies with that dough.The dough was good!
You can use any shape of cookie cutter.
Adding a couple of tablespoons of cocoa powder to the flour will make it more chocolatey!

This is part of the Bake-a-thon 2016

An InLinkz Link-up

Radish Kootu | Mullangi Kootu Recipe | Side Dish for Rice

2016-12-04T17:05:00.000+05:30

A couple of month's ago I was enthusiastically churning out full fledged meals at home!The cooking fervor would sometimes lead me to make at least half a dozen dishes for lunch!! Certainly, they were enjoyed by all at home. That led me to cook more and thus this cycle continued for a while.

As always, when anything reaches a crescendo, we know what happens!! Yes, my cooking mojo started declining and now I don't cook that many dishes in a single meal as I did a couple of months back.

On the brighter side, I have a huge pile of recipes that are ready to be posted!! Here comes one from the drafts[as always!!!] from a meal that everyone enjoyed without even recognizing the vegetable that went into the Kootu!!

I had bookmarked this recipe from Chitra Amma's Kitchen and decided to try it one fine day. I was sure that if I mentioned that I made radish kootu, folks at home would make a face and will hesitate to even taste it. Radish is liked only in sambar and parathas and anything else with it is given a step motherly look!

So the day I made this dish,I silently served it without commenting on the recipe or the ingredient. Lil Angel asked for a second helping and then a third and I knew this dish would be back on the table soon!

No one found out that it was radish and after the meal I couldn't wait to tell them what the dish was!Of course no one believed it and I had a difficult time convincing them!!

This dish goes to Blogging Marathon #71, Week 1, Day 1, themed 'Make a meal'.

I used:
Adapted From :Chitra Amma's Kitchen

White Radish- 2
Tomato-1
Moond dal- 1/4 cup
Raw peanuts- 1/8 cup
Tamarind- a small lemon sized ball
Ginger- 1" piece
Curry leaves- a few
Coriander leaves- a few
Turmeric powder- a pinch
Salt to taste

For the spice paste:

Coriander seeds- 1 tablespoon
Channa dal-1 tablespoon
Urad dal-1 tablespoom
Red chilies- 2
GRated coconut- 1/4 cup
Oil-1 teaspoon

For the tempering

Mustard seeds- 1 teaspoon
Channa dal -1 teaspoon
Oil-1 teaspoon

Soak the raw peanuts till you prep the other ingredients. Soak the tamarind in warm water and extract the juice and keep aside.Soak moong dal. Chop the radish, tomato, ginger.

First let us make the spice mix.Heat oil in a pan and add the coriander seeds, channa dal, urad dal and red chilies.One the dal mixture turns brown ,switch off the flame and add the coconut. Mix well and set aside to cool.Grind in a mixie to a smooth paste adding a little water.

In a vessel take moong dal and peanut[discarding the soaked water], radish, ginger,turmeric powder.Add about a cup of water and pressure cook till radish is soft but not mushy. I cooked for 3 hisses.

Transfer the cooked mixture onto a pan and add the tomato, tamarind extract,ground spice paste, salt and mix well.

Add more water if needed. Cover and simmer for 5 minutes.Remove lid and switch off the heat once it comes to a rolling boil.

Heat a small pan with oil and add mustard, channa dal and curry leaves.Once the mustard pops and dal turns brown, pour over the kootu and mix.

Serve garnished with coriander leaves, as a side with steamed rice.

Check out the Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing this BM#71

Bon Appetit...

Tomato Kurma | Thakkaali Kurma | Easy Sidedish Recipe

2016-12-03T15:34:00.001+05:30

My folks get bored when served with the same set of side dishes to go with the breakfast / dinner. So I keep looking up for varieties that will suit our taste and that are also quick and easy to prepare. I came upon this recipe in Rak's Kitchen and was so impressed by how easy it was to prepare.

Everyone at home,including the kids loved this version of gravy and I have been making this regularly since then.

To make the cooking process even more quick, I am now making it in the pressure cooker itself. I have given both the versions here and you can adopt any method that suits you.

I make variations on the seasoning by leaving out the cinnamon and cloves and adding mustard and jeera / using red chili powder instead of sambar powder and all the time it turns out great. But the only thing to remember is not to overdo the fennel.

I used:
Adapted from : Rak's Kitchen

Tomato-2,large, chopped
Onion-2, sliced
Sambar powder- 1 teaspoon
Turmeric powder- a large pinch
Curry leaves- a few
Cinnamon stick-1" stick
Cloves- 2
Salt to taste
Oil-1 tablespoon

To grind to a fine paste adding a little water

Fried gram dal / Pottukkadalai - 2 teaspoons
Grated coconut - 1/4 cup
Green chilies- 2 [adjust to suit your taste]

Coriander leaves - to garnish

Heat oil in a pan and add the cinnamon and cloves. After a few seconds, add the onion and curry leaves. Saute onions till soft..

Add the tomato.Cook for minute and add sambar powder and give it a stir.

Add a cup of water , turmeric powder ,salt and bring to boil. Cover and cook till the tomato turns mushy. Stir a couple of times in between.

Mash the gravy and simmer for a minute. Now add the ground paste mix well. Add more water if needed to adjust the consistency of the gravy.Once it comes to a rolling boil, remove from heat and serve garnished with coriander leaves.

Now, here is how you can make this gravy in a pressure cooker....

As mentioned earlier, I often change the seasoning /tadka ingredients and below is one of those times.

Heat oil in a pressure cooker and add the seasonings[mustard, cumin, channa dal, curry leaves],saute for a minute.Add onion, the ground paste

Mix and put in sambar powder, salt and tomato.

Stir and add water.When it comes to a boil, cover and pressure cook for 5-10 minutes. [The timing will depend on the quantity of the gravy]

So here is the tasty tomato kurma that was served with Chola Adai

Check out the Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing this BM#71

Bon Appetit...