channa vadai

Ingredients

Channa dhal - 1cup

Rice - 2tsp

Red chilli (dry) - 2nos

Hing - little

Curry leaves - little

Corriander leaves - little

Salt - as needed

Cabbage or onion - 1/2 cup

Oil - for deep frying

Method

1. Soak channa dhal and rice together for 8hours.

2. Grind it with chilli, hing and salt. Transfer it into a big bowl. To it add cut onions or cabbage, curry and corriander leaves.

3. In a kadai add enough oil for deep frying and once hot, take a small batter of the above said, shape it into small balls and flaten with hand and drop in oil. Turn both sides and remove when it is golden in color. Serve hot with chutney or sause.

Coral and green rice

It is nothing but our tomato rice with a little modification.

Ingredients
Basumati rice - 1cup
Green pepper - 1no
Onion - 1no
Pepper - 2tsp
Cloves - 3nos
Cinnamon - a small stick
Oil - 6-7tsp
Tomato - 2nos
salt - as required

Method
1. Wash rice and soak in water for 10min.
2. Make a puree with tomato by adding little water.
3. Heat a kadai, add oil and once hot add cloves, cinnamon and ground pepper. Then add onion and green pepper cut into small pieces. Fry for a while.
4. Drain the rice and add it to the above mixture and mix thoroughly till the rice is dry. Remove from heat and transfer into electric rice cooker. Add salt and then the tomato puree. Once ready garnish with cashew and corriander leaves and serve hot. 1 cup rice - 2cup tomato puree.

Coconut Rice

Coconut is bad for health, especially for people with cholesterol, bp and diabeties. But occationally we can make it for the taste.

Coconut rice wtih pudina togayal and babycorn,cauliflower fritters.

Ingredients
Basumati Rice - 1 cup
Grean peas - 1/2cup
Onion -2 nos
Green chilli - 2nos
Cardamom - 1 nos
Cloves - 2-3nos
Cinnamon - a small piece
Sombhu - 1/2tsp
Khus Khus (optional) - 1/4tsp
Coconut milk - 1 cup
oil - 4tsp
Cashew - 5nos
Corriander leaves - little


Method
1. Wash and soak rice for 15min.
2. Grind cardamom, cloves, sombhu, cinnamon, green chilli and little onions.
3. In a heated kadai add oil and then onion and saute for 2-3min and add the above mixture, saute thoroughly.
4. Then add the rice without water. Saute. Add green peas. Saute and remove after 3min.
5. Put the rice mixture into electronic rice cooker and add salt. Then add 1 cup of coconut milk and 1 cup of water. Mix and close it. Garnish with cashew and corriander leaves and serve hot.

coconut-cashew cake

Ingredients

Cashew - 1 cup

Besan flour - 1 cup

Coconut - 1 cup

Milk - 1/4 cup

Sugar - 2 1/4 cup

Ghee - 4tsp

Cardamon - 2nos

Method

1. Grind cashew into a nice paste with little milk.

2. Dry roast besan flour till the raw smell disappears.

3. Put coconut and cardamom in a blender and grind just for a minute.

4. Add everything in a kadai and mix thoroughly. Grease a plate and keep ready. Once the mixture turns into a ball pour into the plate and cute it into diamonds.

Chocolate Banana Kulfi

We went out on our wedding day for dinner and when we were ordering food, my daughter saw kulfi in the menu card and asked me what it was and how it would taste. So i ordered it and she liked it very much and wanted me to make it. After few days, i searched the internet and i came out with this recipe. It turned out to be delicious too!!!

Ingredients
Condensed milk (low fat) - 1tin
Thick cream - 1 (tub or bottle)
Evaporated milk - 3/4tin
Badam, cashew - 1onos
Saffron - few strands
Milk - 2tsp
Banana - 1/2
Choclate sauce - little

Method
1. Soak saffron in milk and set it aside. Otherwise you can grind saffron with a tsp of sugar.
2. In a big mixing bowl, add condensed milk, cream and evaporated milk. Mix thoroughly. Add chopped badam and cashew. Then add saffron milk. Mix well.
3. Take few plastic tumblers or cups as you desire and fill them with the above mixture.

4. Then cover the mouth of the tumbler with silver foil tightly and store it in the freezer for 10hours.

5. While serving take a plate and pour choclate sauce and dice the banana and keep them on the sides and microwave for 10-15sec. Then remove the kulfi from freezer and using a knife spade through the sides of the tumbler and turn it upside down. Then cut it into rounds and keep them in the center of the plate and decorate it with choclate sauce. The delicious kulfi is ready to eat.

Gooseberry Pickle

My daughter and myself love gooseberri. I used to just steam it and soak it in turmeric salted water and we used to eat it with curd rice. But my husband didnt like it. So i wanted to make it in pickle style.

Ingredient

Gooseberry - 12nos

Mustard - 3tsp

Fenugreek - 1tsp

Ginger - small piece

Green chilli large - 1no

Curry leaves - little

Turmeric powder - 1 tsp

Red chilli powder - 1tsp

Vinegar - 1tsp

Oil (olive & gingely) - 1/4cup

Hing - little

Method

1. Wash and pressure cook the gooseberri for just 5mins without whistle. Do not boil with lots of water. Allow it to cool and remove the seeds.

2.In a kadai, dry roast mustard and fenugreek. Blend them into powder.

3. Heat the kadai, add oil and then mustard, hing and then ginger, green chilli and curry leaves. Saute for a minute or two. Then add the boiled gooseberri. Then add red chilli powder and turmeric powder along with salt. Mix thoroughly. Just before removing from fire add vinegar.

Panner Balls

One sunday evening, just didnt know what to do for a evening snack. Then flash came the idea of this recipe which i just read through a book at a library.

Ingredients

Maida - 1cup

Panner - 10-12nos.

Salt - as needed

Black pepper crushed - 1tsp

Hot milk - 1/2cup

Corriander leaves - little

Baking powder - 1tsp

Oil - for frying

Method

1. In a basin take maida, add pepper, salt, corriander leaves, baking powder and mix well. Pour hot milk little by little and mix well.

2. Heat a kadai with enough oil for deep frying the batter prepared above. Just take small portion of the thick batter and drop in oil. Turn sides and remove once they are golden brown. Serve with chutney or tomato sauce.

Almond French Toast

As i was browsing i came across A.W.E.D. France hosted by Culinary Baazar and i wanted to participate in it. Unfortunately i saw it only yday and i didnt have much time since my daughter's exams are going on. I quickly browsed some french dishes and surprising i came to know that french toast can be made without eggs. I felt very happy and wanted to try it out immediately. That's how i came out of this recipe.

Ingredients

Bread - 2-3 slices

Milk - less than 1/4cup

Flour - 2tsp

Badam,cashew - 6-7nos.

Sugar - 2-3tsp

Cinnamon powder - a pinch

Margarine - little

Method

1. Blend badam, cashew, flour, sugar, cinnamon powder with little milk. Take it in a open mouthed vessel, add the rest of the milk, mix and make it into a paste just enough to coat the bread.

2. Cut the sides of the bread, cut into any shapes that you like and dip it in the above batter and drop it in a non-stick shallow pan and apply little margarine to it. Turn sides and remove when golden brown. A good tiffin for kids snack box.

This is my submission to A.W.E.D France hosted by OK's Culinary Bazaar.

Bottleguard Kofta

Ingredients

Bottleguard - 1 (small)

Rice flour - 1/4cup

Besan flour - little more than 1/4 cup

Green chilli - 1 (optional)

Corriander powder - 1tsp

Cumin powder - 1tsp

Garam masala powder - 1tsp

Red chilli powder - 3/4tsp

Dry mango powder - 1/2tsp

Turmeric powder - 1tsp

Onion - 3nos

Tomato - 2nos

Tamarind paste - very little

Hing - little

Evaporated Milk - 1/4 cup

Garlic - 1 (optional)

Ginger - small piece

Salt - as needed

Oil - 4tsp and also for deep frying.

Method

1. Wash and peel bottleguard. Then grate it. Once grated immediately it must be made into koftas, otherwise water will ooze out of the vegetable and it will be very difficult to make koftas. Add 1/2tsp of all the powders and green chilli if you want it spicy. Add salt, besan and rice flour and mix thoroughly.

2. In a heated kadai, add enough oil and take a small portion of the above and drop it in oil.

3.Once done and golden brown in color, remove from fire and drain the excess oil by placing them in tissue paper.

4. Wash, peel and cut onions and tomatoes.

5. In a heated kadai, add 3-4tsp oil and fry the onions and tomatoes till the raw smell vanishes. Allow it to cool for some time.

6. In a blender add the above and make it into a paste adding little water, ginger and tamarind. If you want you can add garlic.

7. In a heated kadai, add 2tsp oil or butter, then mustard seeds and cumin seeds. Once they splutter, add the grinded tomato paste and salt. Then add 1/2tsp of all the powders. Mix well and saute well. Then add evaporated milk or cream. Mix well and allow it to boil for 10min. Then add the salt and the koftas and allow it to boil for 2-3min. Serve hot with rice or chapathi.

Tomato-Ginger Chutney

Ingredients
Tomato - 2nos
Onion - 1no
Ginger - a large piece
Tamarind paste - 1/4tsp
Dry Red chilli - 2nos.
Salt - as needed
Oil - 4tsp
Mustard - 1tsp
Cumin seeds - 1/4tsp
Curry leaves - little
Hing - little

Method
1. Grind tomato, onion, dry red chilli, ginger, tamarind and salt. Add very little water if needed.
2. In a heated kadai, add oil then mustard, hing and curry leaves. Then add the above tomato paste. Mix well and boil till there is no water. Serve with iddli or dosai.

Bhindi-Mocha Masala

Ingredients

Bhindi (lady's finger) - 15nos

Mochakottai - 1/4cup

Onion - 3nos

Tomato - 2nos

Ginger - small piece

Turmeric powder - 1/2tsp

Red chilli powder - 3/4tsp

Masala powder - 1/2tsp

Cumin powder - 1/2tsp

Corriander powder - 1/4tsp

Dry mango powder - 1/4tsp

Tamarind paste - 1/4tsp

Mustard - 1tsp

Cumin seeds - 1/2tsp

Oil - 10-12tsp

Salt - as needed

Method

1. Soak mochakottai overnight or for 8hours or so. Pressure cook it and set aside.

2. Cut onions, tomatoes, ginger lengthwise. Wash and cut bhindi 2cm length.

3. In a heated kadai, add enough oil, and then mustard and cumin seeds. Then onion and ginger. Add a pinch of salt and sugar. Fry nicely for 3-4min. Then add bhindi, and all the powders and salt. Once the bhindi is done three-fourths, add tomatoes, cooked mochakottai and tamarind paste or juice. Stir well till done. Since bhindi is cooked in oil it wont be sticky at the end after adding tamarind. Use non stick kadai as it would help to use less oil for cooking this receipe.

Serve hot with rice or chapathi.

This is my submission to Srivalli of Cooking for all seasons, who is hosting the event My Legume Love Affair - Seventh Helping.

Aval Dosai Rolls

This would be an ideal recipe for tiffin box. Kids would enjoy it.

Ingredients

Aval - 3/4 cups

Parboiled rice - 2cups

Urad dhal - 1/2 cup

Salt - as needed

Method

1. Soak rice and urad dhal together for 2-3hours. Soak aval seperately for 1hr. Wash rice, dhal and aval thoroughly before soaking.

2. Grind the rice first and after 15min or so add aval and salt and grind into a nice batter. Allow it to ferment for 12hours.

3. Heat the dosai pan and add a laddle full of batter and make round shapped dosai. Can add very little oil and cook on both sides. It wont be very crispy.

4. Remove from fire and apply tomato-ginger chutney on it and roll it. Serve hot or pack in tiffin boxes. You can even cut the rolls for children to eat it easily.

Fruit & Yoghurt Dessert

Ingredients
Banana - 2nos (large)
Pears - 3 nos
Black grapes - 15nos
Yoghurt -
Honey - 3tsp
Raisins - 1/4 cup
Cashews - 1/4 cup (chop to small pieces)
Sugar - 3tsp

Method
1. Beat yoghurt in a bowl. Cut grapes into half and add to yoghurt. Cut one pear into small pieces and add to yoghurt. Add 2-3tsp of sugar and mix well.
2. Blend banana and pear seperately and mix it well with honey in a bowl.

3. Take a serving bowl and add some yoghurt mixture then on top add fruit mixture and then decorate it with cashew and raisin. Can serve either at room temperature or chill.
You can use any fruits of your choice, but dont use citrus fruits for grinding. It will not go well with yoghurt.

Paal Kozhakattai

This is one of the oldest recipe. My mom used to do it. I tried it out and my children liked it.

Ingredients

Rice flour - 1/4cup

Water - 1/4cup

Milk - 1/2 litre

Cardamom - 2nos

Saffron - little

Badam & pista - little

Sugar - 1/4 cup

Oil - 2tsp

Method

1. Soak saffron in milk and keep aside.

2. In a bowl add the rice flour and to it add a spoon of sugar, water and mix without lumps.

3. In a heated kadai add 2tsp of oil and pour the rice water. Mix thoroughly till it becomes a mass, avoid lumping at any stage. Allow it to cool.

4. Apply little oil in the hands, mix the rice dough nicely and shape them into small small balls. Then steam them for 5-8min. Allow them to cool.

5. Meanwhile in a heavy bottom vessel, boil milk for 10-15min, add powdered cardamom and saffron milk. Then add the rice balls and allow it to boil. The balls will start to float. Then add the sugar and allow to boil for 1-2min. Must use a flat laddle to turn the balls in the milk, otherwise the rice balls will break and disintegrate in milk. It can be served hot or cold. Serve them in cups decorated with badam, pista bits.

Before adding sugar, a portion can be taken out in bowls and Equal or other artificial sweetners can be added and given to diabetes patients. Traditionally it is made with jaggery and a bit of coconut milk. But due to health reasons i didnt use coconut milk.

This is my submission for Rice/Wheat sweets & Diabetic friendly sweets - Hosted by Mythreye of Paajaka Recipes.

Carrot Raitha

Ingredients

Carrot (grated) - 1cup

Radish (grated) - 1/4cup

Groundnut - 4tsp

White sesame - 1tsp

Mustard - 1tsp

Dry red chilli - 1no.

Oil - 1tsp

Salt - to taste

Curd - 1cup

Method

1. Dry roast the sesame and keep aside and do the same for groundnuts. Allow it to cool and remove the skin. In a blender coarsly blend the sesame and groundnuts.

2. Beat the curds thoroughly in a serving bowl. To it add the grated radish and carrots.

3. In a small kadai, add oil and then mustard, once it splits add dry red chilli and pour it into the curd mixutre.
4. Finally add salt and mix well. When about to serve add the ground powder on top.

This is my submission to Let's paint it Orange hosted by Aparna of My Diverse Kitchen.

Bereavement

My father Mr. S. Narayanan passed away on Jan 5th, 2009. I had been to India and came back only last week, as a result of which i couldnt update the blog. I would post some interesting receipe's as soon as i can. thanks.