Aug 26, 2009

Coconut chutney

Things required:
Green coriander (washed, chopped): 1/2 cup
Fresh coconut: 2" square piece (approx)
garlic: 3-4 flakes
ginger: 1/2 " piece
tamarind paste: 1-2 tspn 0r 1/2 inch ball of tamarind can be grinded with chutney
black salt: 1/3 tpn
roasted chana dal: 2 tspn
salt to taste
Grind all the ingredients together in a mixer. Serve chutney with dosas, cheelas. If coconut is cold/ removed from fridge, add a little luke warm water.

Aug 25, 2009

Pudding

This is a simple and easy pudding that tastes yummy. Its my daughters favourite.



Things required

Vanilla custard: 2 tbspn ( I prefer Weikfield)

Milk: 1/2 ltr.

Sugar: 3 tb spn

Fruits: chopped finely (apple, grapes(slit half), pomgranate, banana): 1 cup

Strawberry sauce

Fruit cake slices: 250 grams

Preparation

Custard preparation: Heat milk, take out 1/2 cup milk when luke warm. Mix custard powder in this milk. Boil rest of the milk with sugar. Add the custard milk slowly in this boiling milk while stirring continously. Cook for 1 min on slow flame, stirring contnously till it becomes smooth. Let it cool. Add fruits and mix well.

Setting the pudding: take a slightly deep bowl. Place a layer of cake at the botton. Pour a layer of custard over this.
Place another layer of cake and pour remaining custard. Garnish it with strawberry sauce, you can make a chequered pattern.
Keep it in refreigerator for 2 hours. Serve in pudding bowls, take care to take the scoop from the bottom so that all the four layers come.
Can also serve 2-3 cubes of strawberry jelly set in ice trays with pudding. Kids just love this combination.

Icecream soda


This is an instant and easy serving. Can be used in place of sweet after meals.
Thing required:
Vanila icecream: 1/2 ltr pack
Mirinda: 500 ml (any other orange drink)
Preparation
Take long glasses, put two scoops of ice cream and add Mirinda over it. Put a straw and spoon and serve.

Aug 23, 2009

Sewai Upma

Things required:
Sewai (Vermicilli): 1 cup
Mixed vegetables finely Chopped (Carrot, French beans, cauliflower, peas, cabbage, capsicum): 1 cup
Onion (chopped): 1 medium sized
Ginger: ¼ “ piece grated
Green chilly: (1) chopped
Green coriander chopped for garnishing.
Tomato puree: 1 tbspn
Garam masala: ½ tspn
Oil: 1 tb spn
Rai (mustard): ½ tspn
Water: 2 cups (boiling hot)
Chat masala (optional)
Preparation:
Roast Sewai will till dark golden brown. Roasted sewai available in market can also be used.
Heat oil in a thick bottom pan, add rai till it splutters, add ginger, green chilly, onion and sauté till golden brown. Add all vegetables except capsicum and cabbage. Cook covered for 3 min. Add capsicum and cabbage. Add tomato puree and sauté for a minute. Add 2 cups of boiling water, salt and sewai . Mix well, cook covered for 4-5 minutes stirring in between. If the water doesn’t dry cook open for some time. Add garam masala, transfer in a serving dish and garnish with chopped coriander. You can sprinkle chat masala over it before serving.
Precaution: take care to stirr and mix upma gently so that you dont break the sewai strands.

Capsicum Cheela

Things required: (Makes 6-7 cheelas)
Besan (gram flour): 3 cups
Capsicum grated: 1 cup (or very finely chopped in chopper)
green chilly: 1 finely chopped
Ginger: 1" piece grated
Green coriander: 1 small bunch finely chopped
ajwain: 1/2 tspn
coriander powder: 1 tspn
pepper: 1/4 tspn
salt to taste
Preparation
Add capsicum to besan. Add luke warm water in this mixture to make it a smooth batter of pouring consistency (not too thick/ thin; enough to make cheela). Add other ingredients. Keep for 10 minutes.
Make cheelas on non-stick tawa using little oil. Serve hot with green chutney and curd chutney (recipe given in chutneys).

Rainbow Pakodas

Things required: (serves 4)

Sandwich bread: 12 pieces

green chutney

tomato sauce

butter

ajwain: 1/2 tspn

besan 3 cups

oil to fry

salt to taste

red chilly powder: 1/2 tspn (optional)

coriander powder: 1 tspn (optional)

green chilly, ginger paste: 1 tspn

Preparation

Add water to besan to make a smooth paste so as to dip bread pakodas. Add chilly ginger paste, ajwain, coriander powder, red chilly powder, salt to taste. Beat the batter well.

Take three bread pieces. Put butter one side of two pieces. On other side put a layer of green chutney on one piece and a layer of tomato sauce on another . Keep the bread with chutney at the bottom (chutney side facing up), place the other bread with sauce over it, keeping the sauce face up. Place the third bread piece over this.

Heat Oil, add one tb spn of hot oil in besan batter and mix well (this makes pakodas crispy). Dip the three breads in besan batter and fry in oil. Make all the pakodas in the same way. Sprinkle chat masala powder on these pakodas and cut them diagonally to get four rainbow pakodas from each piece. Serve with the coloured side up, with sauce and chutney.

Bhindi Masala with peanuts

Things required
Bhindi (lady finger): 250 grams (cut longitudinally in four parts, one inch long pieces )
green chilly : 1 (chopped)
ginger: 1/2'' piece grated
groundnet: 1/4 cup (roasted, peeled and coarsely crushed)
saunf powder: 1tspn
rai (mustard): 1/2 tspn
coriander powder: 1 tspn
turmeric powder: 1/4 tspn
mango powder (amchoor): 1/2 tspn
oil: 1 1/2 tbspn
garam masala: 1/2 tspn
green coriander chopped to garnish
salt to taste
Preparation
Heat oil in kadai, add rai till it splutters , add green chilly, ginger, coriander powder, saunf powder, turmeric, groundnut and bhindi in same order. Mix well, add amchoor powder and cook covered for 6-8 minutes till it is done, stirring in between. Add salt, cook further for 2 min. add garam masala, mix and transfer in serving dish. Garnish it with coriander and serve hot.

Wheat flour Halwa

Things required:
Wheat flour: 1 cup
Pure ghee: 1 cup
sugar: 1 cup
warm water : 2 cups
cardamom: 2 pieces (peeled and powdered)
dry coconut grated (for garnishing)
cahewnut: 5-6, broken half
almonds: 4 pieces (cut into small pieces)
Raisins: 10-15
Preparation
Melt ghee in a kadhai, add flour and then roast flour in ghee on slow flame till it turns brown. Roasting should be done on slow flame with continous stirring. Increase the flame high, add water and then sugar and stirr continously so that no lumps are formed. Reduce the flame and cook covered for 2-3 minutes. Add cardamom powder, raisins mix well. Transfer in serving dish and garnish with coconut, cashew nuts and almonds and serve.

Aug 22, 2009

green chutney

Green chutney:
Things required
Coriander: 100 grams (cleaned, washed and chopped)
Ginger: 1/2" (peeled )
Green chilly: 1
tomato : 1/2 small (optional)
onion: 1/2 (optional)
black salt 1/4 tspn.
cumin seeds (zeera): 1/4 tspn
salt to taste
lemon juice: 1 tb spn
Preparation: Add all the ingredients and grind in a mixer to make chutney and add lemon juice.

Aug 20, 2009

Tricolour khaman





Green chutney: Things required
Coriander: 100 grams (cleaned, washed and chopped)
Ginger: 1/2" (peeled )
Green chilly: 1
tomato : 1/2 small (optional)
onion: 1/2 (optional)
black salt 1/4 tspn.
cumin seeds (zeera): 1/4 tspn
salt to taste
lemon juice: 1 tb spn
Preparation: Add all the ingredients and grind in a mixer to make chutney and add lemon juice.

Khaman: Things Required
Yellow khaman ready mix : 250 grams
Idly ready mix: 150 grams
Garnishing (Tadka)
Cooking oil: 2 tbspn
Rai black (sarson) (preferably big size granules): 1 1/2 tspn
til: 1 tspn
green chilly: 3 (big Pieces)
Curry leaves: 10-15
Sugar: 1 tspn
Vinegar (optional): 2 tspn
Green coconut (grated): 2 tbspn
Green coriander chopped
Preparation:
Khaman cooker can be used. Alternatively, khaman can be steamed in an edged plate (thali) over kadai. It can also be made in idly cooker, where we get tricoloured cakes.
Heat water in kadhai, or khaman cooker. Meanwhile add little luke warm water to ready made idly mix (in proportions specified by the manufacturer on idly pack). Put it in a greased plate(thali)/ cooker's dish. When the water starts boiling in kadhai/ cooker, place the thali over it and cover it with a bigger plate. Cook for 2 mins. While the idly layer is being cooked, add luke warm water in prescribed proportions to ready made khaman mix. When the idly layer is a bit hard on top, put a layer of chutney over it and add khaman paste over it. Cook covered for 6-8 mins. To check if khaman is properly cooked, you can insert a greased knife at the centre of khaman. If knife comes out without any paste on it, this indicates khaman is cooked. Let the khaman remain covered for 2 mins then uncover and cut the khaman cake in squares or rhomboids.
Tadka:
Heat oil. Add rai till it splutters, add green chilly, curry leaves, til in same order. Remove from fire and add vinegar, 2 tb spn water, sugar. Spread this tadka over khaman. Transfer khaman pieces in serving dish, garnish it with coriander and grated coconut and serve with green chutney.
(If using idly cooker, remove the cakes in serving dish and garnish each cake with tadka).

Green chilly serving with Khaman:
Things required:
Green chilly: 50 gms (slit longitudinally)
sugar: 1 tsp
vinegar: 2 tsp
clove (laung); 2-3
water: 1/2 cup
Add all the ingredients and pressure cook for one whistle. Serve with khaman .

Coconut Chole

A good breakfast and tiffin preparation

Things required:

Kabuli chane: 2 cups dry, (soak them overnight).

Fresh coconut: 3/4 cup grinded, 1/4 cup grated (optional)

Green chilly: 1 (chopped)

Ginger : 1 tspn grated

Curry leaves: 8-10 leaves (optional)

Fresh lemon juice: 2tspn

Hing (asofoetida): 2 pinch dissolved in 1 tsp water

Rai (black sarson): 1/2 tspn

Garam Masala: 1/3 tspn

Black pepper powder: 1/4 tspn

Oil: 1 tb spn

Salt: to taste

Preparation

Pressure cook chole with five cups of water and salt, take two whistles and then cook it on slow flame for 10 minutes. Take out chole after some time and drain excess water. Chole should be cooked properly, could be pressed easily with hand.

For frying, heat oil in non-stick kadai ( since I use less oil, prefer to use non-stick vessel). Add rai till it splutters, add green chilly, ginger, curry leaves cook for 1/2 minute, add hing dissolved in water, add chole and grinded coconut. Add a little salt to make up for coconut. Cover and cook on low flame for 6-8 mins. stirring in between. Add pepper powder, lemon juice and garam masala. Mix well and cook covered for another 2 minutes.

Transfer in a serving dish and garnish it with coriander, grated coconut.

Rice Sewai


Rice Sewai: A light morning breakfast

Things required: Serves 3

Rice Sewai: 2 Cups (I prefer using MTR rice sewai)
Fresh coconut: 1/2 cup (grated)
Groundnut: 1 tbspn (optional)
Green chilly: 1 (chopped)
Onion: 1 medium size (chopped)
curry leaves: 8-10 leaves
gram dal: 1 tspn (washed)
lemon juice: 1 1/2 tspn
Fresh coriander: chopped to garnish
salt to taste
Garam masala: 1/2 tspn
haldi: 1/4 tspn
Oil: 1 tbspn
rai: 1/2 tspn
Preparation:
Boil one litre water and add sewai in boiling water. Strain, wash it with cold water once it is done. Heat oil in a thick bottomed pan (non stick- kadhai), add rai till it splutters, add green chilly, curry leaves, gramdal, groundnuts and stir for one minute till groundnuts are fried. Add Onion , haldi and cook for 3-4 minutes till it is golden brown. Add sewai, coconut, salt and cook it covered on low flame for 5-7 minutes, stirring in between. Add lemon juice, garam masala and stir, cook covered for 2 minutes. Transfer in a serving dish and garnish it with coriander. Serve hot with jeeravan or dry chutney.
Tips for fast cooking: I believe in parallel processing. First take water and keep it on flame to boil, meanwhile chop onions, green chilly. By this time the water boils and you can add sewai. Now you can focus on frying onion and by the time your onion is cooked , sewai is ready on other burner. By doing it parallely you can cook the recipe in 12- 15 minutes.

Aug 19, 2009

Healthy Appe

This is a quick healthy snack that my daughter loves for tiffin.
Healthy Appe for breakfast, tiffin.
Things required:
Coarse Soozi (rawa) : 2 cups
Curd: 3/4 cup
Eno: 1/2 tspn
finely chopped vegetables mixed (caulifower, carrot, capsicum, cabbage) : 1 cup (I prefer to use a chopper for fine chopping)
ginger: 1/2 " finely chopped or grated
green chilly: 1 (finely chopped)(optional)
onion: 1/2 cup
pepper powder: 1/2 tspn
salt: to taste

Procedure: Roast rawa in thick pan (kadhai) little bit. Take care not to roast it on high flame, or for long. Add curd, vegetables, green chilly, ginger, onion while rawa is hot. Mix all the ingredients well and add warm water to make a paste. Keep it for five minutes. Meanwhile coat a layer of oil on each cup of appe patram (an iron vessel with cups, non-stick appe patrams are also available in market). Heat the patram.
In the batter, rawa may absorb water, so a little more water may be needed. Add water till you get a thick pouring consistency.Add eno to the batter. Put little oil (1-2 drops) on each cup of patram increase the flame, when oil is little hot add little sarson (rai), wait till it splutters. Reduce the flame and put paste in each cup. Cover the patram and let it cook for 3 minutes or till it is cooked crispy brown at the bottom. Open the cover and turn the cakes upside down. Cover and cook for further 1 minute .
Remove the cakes from patram and serve hot with chutney.
Tip: While using iron patram, it is advised to (anneal the vessel) i.e. heat the patra and let it cool. Then layer the cups with oil and use. This ensures that the cakes donot stick to the bottom of the patra.
Alteration: A variation of the dish can be made by using dosa batter in place of rawa and eno. 25% rawa can be added to dosa batter to make the cakes more fluffy.

Curd Chutney

Curd Chutney to serve with snacks
Things required:
Curd: 2 Cups
Ginger: 1/2 " finely chopped
Green chilly: 1 finely chopped
Salt (to taste)
Beat Curd and add green chilly, ginger and salt and serve with any snacks. The curd chutney tastes very good specially with pakodas.

Golden Corn Pakodas

This is a fast recipe for evening snacks and can also be served as dinner starter.
Corn Pakodas (serves 4-5)
Things required:
Frozen/ freash corn: 500 gms
Gramflour (Besan): 2 heaped tbspn
ginger :1" piece (grated)
onion: 1 cup chopped
green chilli: 1 (finely chopped)
dry coriander: 1 1/2 tspn coarsely grounded (use coriander powder if not available)
saunf : 1 tspn coarsely grounded
green coriander leaves: 1/4 cup chopped
asofaetida (heeng): one pinch
salt to taste
1/2 tsp sugar (optional)
Procedure:
Grind sweet corn/ fresh American corn with pinch of asofaetida in mixer. Add water just enough to grind it. You can also use fresh corn (grated). Add besan and mix well. Mix all the ingredients. Add 1 tb spoon hot oil in the batter to make pakodas crispy. Make small balls of 1" size and fry in oil till golden brown and crispy. Serve hot with sauce, green chutney and curd.
Tips for frying pakodas: Heat the oil just enough that a small ball of paste surfaces up after putting in oil. Put pakodas to fry in high flame, reduce the flame for 2 minutes after adding all the balls, again increase the flame and fry continously stirring to make the pakodas crispy.