Badam Katli in celebration of my second award

My second award. It feels great to get an award by a fellow blogger. Thank you Cham for considering my blog as yummy. The Yummy Blog award is started by Roopa.

"Yummy blog award is the award given to the blog with most yummy recipes/photos”


One of the rules of the award demands writing our most favorite desserts. The top 3 in my list are
Jhangiri

Gulab Jamun

Rasmalai

To choose 4 among the many yummlicious blogs around is difficult. Let it be passed to the other deserving blogs through friends. I pass the Yummy blog award to

The doctor blogger Nandita of SaffronTrail, who makes her dishes both yummy and healthy.

The chocolate queen Arundati of Escapades

The sunshinemom of Tongueticklers, a true super mom who prepares yummy treats for the tummy.

Kalai of Samaithupaarkalam , who has recently received the best presentation award from VOW event.

Here is your logo .


Rules for the ‘Yummy Blog’ award Receiver:

The person who receives the award should display the "Yummy Blog !" logo on their blog and also the meaning of the award which is "Yummy blog award is the award given to the blog with most yummy recipes/photos".·The receiver should also quote their favorite yummy-licious :) dessert(s) that they have ever prepared/eaten. Don’t restrict yourself to any dessert, chocolate bars also welcome.·Also the receiver should pass on the award to four other bloggers whose blog they find "yummy" and let them know about the rules.

Coming to the recipe, I followed the recipe for Kaaju katli. Just replaced badam(Almonds) in place of Kaaju (Cashewnuts). In Microwave, it was easy and ready in less than 5 minutes.


Badam Katli

Badam powder - 1 cup

Milk powder - 1/2 cup

Milk - 1 tbspn

Powdered Sugar - 3/4 cup


Mix all the ingredients in a microwave safe bowl.

MW high for 2 minutes.

Stir and MW for 1 1/2 minutes.

By that time it will turn dry and starts frothing on the surface.
Remove from the MW.

Keep mixing with a ladle for 3 more minutes. It gets dried in the heat trapped in the mixture.

When warm, knead into a smooth dough and spread on a greased surface. Pat it using a rolling pin and mark the pieces using a knife.

Gatte Ka Pulao

The cuisine of Rajasthan is primarily vegetarian and offers a fabulous variety of mouthwatering dishes. The spice content is quite high in comparison to other Indian cuisines, but the food is absolutely scrumptious.
The cooking style followed in Rajasthan is based on the natural climatic conditions of this desert land. There is scarcity of water and fresh green veggies in the state of Rajasthan, which has an adverse impact on its cooking. In the desert belts of Rajasthan, it is preferred to use milk, butter milk and butter in larger quantities to minimize the amount of water while cooking food.
Dried lentils and beans obtained from native plants like sangria are used extensively in the preparation of Rajasthani dishes. Gram flour is the major ingredient in the making of a couple of delicacies such as "pakodi" and "gatte ki sabzi". Powdered lentils are liberally used in the preparation of papad. Rajasthanis are quite fond of chutneys, which are prepared using different spices such as coriander, turmeric, garlic and mint.

(Source: http://www.culturalindia.net/indian-food/rajasthani.html)

I was tempted to try many of the Rajasthani recipes, I found googling. I tried Gatte Ka pulao and the famous Rajasthani Daal-Baati. Here is the recipe for the pulao. The gattes can be used to prepare kadhi and other sabzis. Should try other recipes using gattes.

On first reading the recipe (Source: Tarla Dalal), I thought it is not a very easy one, with too many steps involved. Keeping the RCI event in mind, I decided to go ahead. But once I made, I found it very easy. First prepare the gattes, then the masala to be mixed with. Finally set the pulao with the cooked rice, gattes and the masala. Its so simple.

Gatte Ka Pulao

Besan - 1 cup

Chilli powder - 1 tspn

Fennel seeds (Perinjeerakam) - 1tspn

Ajwain(omam) - 1/2 tspn

Curds - 1 tblspn

Oil - 2 tblspn

salt
Oil for deep frying

Combine all ingredients and knead to make a stiff dough. You may require few
drops of water or no water at all.

Divide into 8 equal portions and shape each portion into 4'' long and 5 mm diameter
cylindrical roll.

Boil plenty of water and drop the strands and cook for 12 minutes.

Drain and keep aside.

Cut in small pieces of 1'' length and deep fry them.

Preparing the Pulao

Rice - 1 cup

Onion - 1 (sliced)

Cardamon - 1

Cloves - 2

Cumin -1/2 tspn

Mustard -1/2 tspn

Hing - 1/4 tspn

Chilli powder -1 tspn

Turmeric - 1/2 tspn

Garam masala - 1/2 tspn

Oil -1 tblspn

To make paste

Garlic - 4 cloves

Green chilly - 2

Ginger - 2'' piece

onion - 1 (small)
Make a paste of the above ingredients and keep it aside

Method

Cook rice separately. Spread it on a plate and leave it to cool.

Deep fry the sliced onions.

Heat oil in a pan. Add cardamom,cloves, cumin, mustard and hing.
Add prepared paste and saute for 5 minutes.

Add cooked rice, deep fried onions, gattes, chilli powder, turmeric, garam masala and
salt.
Serve with onion raita or plain yogurt.

I am sending this across to Padmaja of Spicy Andhra, who is the guest host for RCI.

Eggless Microwave Chocolate Cake

After dosas, I think it is the turn of MW chocolate cakes in blogosphere. When Srivally announced Cake as this month's theme for MEC, no confusion over which recipe to post, since I have only one fool proof MW cake recipe. This cake recipe was in the booklet that came with the oven. So here is my tried and tested version of the chocolate cake.

Ingredients

All purpose flour - 1 cup

Sugar -3/4 cup

Curd - 1/2 cup

Butter- 1/2 cup

Baking powder - 1 tsp

Cooking soda - 1/2 tsp

Milk - 5 tbsp

Cocoa powder - 2tbsp

Sieve flour,coco powder, baking powder and cooking soda in a bowl.Whisk butter and sugar until fluffy and creamy.

Add curd to it and blend them together .

Stir in the dry ingredients to the wet mixture slowly.

Add milk and gradually stir the mixture.

Pour the batter to a greased MW safe dish

MW at 100% power for 6 minutes.

Cool for 10 minutes.

The cake batter consistency should be thin that when a spoon of batter dropped from height should fall like a ribbon. you can add more milk to get that consistency.

Serve with tea or coffee

So another chocolate cake at Srivally's MEC: Cake event.

MilagaiPodi

Milagaipodi or molagapodi as it is colloquially used, is an inevitable part of any South Indian kitchen. Each family has their own way of preparing this. Whatever be the ingredients used, ultimately when it is mixed with ghee/oil and used as side for idli/dosa, it makes a deadly combo. Even though, many number of chutneys or sambhar goes well with dosa and idly, molagapodi is one thing that anyone will crave for. It has an unique place among the sides used. The recipe is what I learnt from my mom and to my surprise I found my MIL also follows the same. Its just the choice of ingredients that vary.

Ingredients

Chana dal (Kadalaparippu) - 1 cup

Urad dal(split,deskinned) - 1 cup

Hing (Kaayam) - 1 tspn

Red chilly - 15 nos

Sesame seeds - 2 tblspn

Parboiled rice - 1/2 cup

salt to taste

Method

Wash and drain the rice and dry it on a kitchen towel.

Roast dals,red chillies separately in a teaspoon of oil.

Separately dry roast rice and sesame seeds.

If you are using hing bar, drop the piece in hot oil. Let it fry for a minute. Unlike hing powder, the bar gives stronger flavor.

Powder in a mixer grinder. Usually it is not powdered fine. Coarse texture of the powder is tasty. Mine is not very coarse, thought not too fine, to suit my FIL.

Take a teaspoon of the podi. Make a well in the center and pour sesame oil and mix well. Have you tried using the left over oil after deep frying. (We call it chuttennai). Molagapodi and chuttennai is a deadly combination.

Microwaved Scones & Mango Jam

Ever since I saw microwaved scones at Aparna's blog, I wanted to try it. But somehow, it did not happen. When EC announced the theme for WBB#21, I knew what I was going to make.

Ingredients:

whole wheat flour - 2 cups

butter(cold) - 3/4 cup

sugar- 1/4 cup

raisins - 3/4 cup

milk - 5 tblspn

baking powder - 4 tspn

a pinch of salt (not needed if using salted butter)

Method

Mix wheat flour,baking powder and salt together. Rub the butter into this mixture till it resembles bread crumbs.

Care to be taken that the butter doesn't melt when rub it into the floor.To use cold butter is very important.

Add sugar and raisins. Aparna has used brown sugar.

Stir in the milk and make a soft dough.
Slightly flour your kitchen counter and place the dough on it. Shape it into a square of 1 inch thickness. Cut into 9 squares.

Place on a tissue paper in the microwave turntable and cook at 100% power for 3 minutes. Do the toothpick test to ensure it is cooked inside. If not cooked, keep for another 1 minute.

Leave it in the MW for 3 more minutes.

Serve warm with your favorite jam or fresh cream for a filling breakfast.

Here is my recipe for mango jam which can be done in few minutes.

Mango Jam in Microwave

Mango pulp - 1 cup

Sugar - 1 cup

Take equal quantities of fruit pulp and sugar. Its better not to increase the sugar, since it will mask the flavor of the fruit.

To take mango pulp, peel and cut the mangoes into bite sized cubes. Pulse in the mixer grinder or use a blender to get fine pulp.
Take a MW safe bowl, add the pulp and sugar.Cook for 5 minutes at 100% power. Stir once in between. It will have a nice glazing texture.
Adjust the timings according to your oven type and quantity used. Store in an airtight bottle. Enjoy with your warm scones.

I am sending this to EasyCrafts who is hosting WBB for this month, which is the brain child of Nanditha of Saffrontrail

Ghee Rice for MBP

When Pavani of Cook's Hideout, who is the guest host for MBP April edition, announced One Pot Wonders, I knew where to look for ideas. With Meeta's MM- One dish dinners roundup at hand, didn't have to do much of patrolling. It was then I found Seena's post on Ghee Rice-Thalassery style. It was almost the same method I follow , except that it uses whole spices. I liked it for its instant kind.
Here is the recipe for quick ghee rice

Basmati rice - 2 cups
Ghee - 3 tblspn
Onion - 1
Fennel seeds -1/4 tspn
Cardamom - 2 nos
Cloves -2
Cinnamon - 1" piece
Water - 3 cups
Cashew and raisins for garnish

Soak rice for half an hour. Strain and keep it aside.
Boil 3 cups of water with required salt.
Heat ghee in a kadai. Roast cashew and raisins. Drain them and keep it aside for garnish.
Add spices, chopped onion to the same kadai.

Saute till onions are translucent.

Add rice and roast till it slightly changes it color.

Add the hot salt water, cook till water is absorbed completely.

Cover and cook with occassional stirring.

Leave it covered for half an hour after it is fully done.

Serve with any spicy curry or simple onion raitha.

Vethakozhambu - Palakkad Iyer recipe

Vathakozhambu is a famous dish of Tamilnadu and it is cooked by Iyers of Kerala too. But when it comes to Kerala, it is cooked in a slightly different way from what is followed in TN. Here is the version cooked at most of Palakkad Iyer homes.

Ingredients

Tuvar dal - 1/2 cup

Tamarind - lemon sized

Red chilly powder - 1 tspn

Hing - 1/4 tspn

Turmeric - 1/4 tspn

Method

Wash and pressure cook tuvar dal with water. Add little turmeric and 1/2 tspn of oil. Adding oil helps cook dal mushy.
Soak tamarind in a cup of warm water for 10 minutes.

Extract the tamartind juice. Add 1/4 tspn turmeric,1 tspn of red chilly powder, 1/4 tpn of hing and salt.

Let it simmer till the gravy thickens.

Mash the cooked dal and add half cup of water.

Stir in the cooked dal and water to the thickening gravy.

Bring to a boil.

Seasoning

In a pan, add a tablespoon of gingely oil, add mustard seeds. When mustard seeds splutter, add chundakka vathal. When chundakkai is fried, pour the seasonings over the cooked gravy and garnish with curry leaves.

Serve with hot rice with a teaspoon of homemade ghee and roasted papad. Its simply divine. Mezhukkuparatti ( Stir fried vegetable like raw banana and yam) is also an excellent side for vethakozhambu. Another popular side for this is paruppu thogayal.

Paruppu Thogayal

Ingredients

Tuvar dal - 1/2 cup

Grated coconut - less than 1/2 cup

Red chilly - 1

salt as required.

Since Vathakuzhambu is spicy, this thogayal uses only one red chilly for flavor only.

Dry roast tuvar dal till it turn light brown. Roast the red chilly too.

Grind all the ingredients to a coarse paste using less water.

Yummy parippu thogyal is ready.

(I forgot to take the photo of thogayal. Shall update next time when I prepare it)

Chundakkai Vathal

Chundakkai Vathal

Chundakka Vathal (Turkey Berry)

Chundakkai is very bitter in taste. The fresh ones can be used to make tamarind based gravies. Usually, chundakkai is preferred to make vathals, so that it can be stored for later use. It is mainly used for the preparation of vathalkuzhambu or can be deep fried and used as sides too.

Chundakkai - 2 cups

Buttermilk - 1 cup

Urad dal - 2 tblspn

Red Chilly - 3 nos

Salt to taste

Soak urad dal and red chilly for an hour.Grind it to a smooth paste.

Wash and slightly crush the berries. Crushing helps to remove the bitterness when later soaked in buttermilk mixture.

Add buttermilk, ground paste and salt to the crushed chundakkai. Mix well.

Leave it for a day.

Drain the chundakkais and dry it under sun. After each day of drying, continue to soak
them in the leftover buttermilk mixture till it is completely absorbed.

Dry the chundakkais for a day after no liquid mixture is left in the vessel.

Store in airtight containers. It will stay good for more than a year.

Shall post the recipe for vathakuzhambu soon.

Kariveppila Podi (Curryleaves powder)

Kariveppila or Curry Leaves is mostly used as a garnish. It indeed enhances the flavor of the dish. But most of the times, it is not consumed and is always kept aside while the dish is served. This podi is a good way to consume curry leaves, which has fair amount of Vitamin A and good source of Calcium. Curry leaves has many medicinal properties too. You can read more about it here.

Ingredients

Urad dal- 4 tblspn

Chana dal - 4 tblspn

Red chilly - 12- 15 (adjust the nos to suit your palette)

Tamarind - lemon size

Hing - 1 tspn

Salt to taste
Curry leaves - 2 cups

Gingely oil - 2 tblspn for roasting

Wash and dry the curry leaves.
Dry roast urad dal and chana dal separately till they turn light brown

Add a teaspoon of oil and roast the red chillies.

Transfer the roasted chillies to a plate and roast the curry leaves in a tablespoon of
oil.

When cool, powder all together with required salt.

Store in an airtight bottle. It will stay fresh for more than 2 weeks without refrigeration.

Serve kariveppila podi mixed with hot rice and ghee. It can be served as a dip for idli and dosa.

Happy Vishu

Wishing you all a very happy and prosperous VISHU

Coconut Burfi

Coconut/Thengai Burfi is one of the signature dish of Amma. She makes it often at home. Many variations can be done to this burfi. But amma always follows the traditional method. I sometimes add few tablespoons of roasted besan flour or some milk. This is the traditional recipe with a slight change in flavor. Usually, cardamom powder is added. My MIL adds cloves instead.Since it is always cardamom for sweets, I find adding cloves gives a very different flavor, which is nice for a change.

Fresh Grated coconut - 1 cup

Sugar - 1 1/2 cups

Ghee - 4 tblspn

Cloves - 6 nos

Water - 1 cup

Preparation

When you grate the coconut, grate only the white part. Don't grate the bottom brown part. This is to ensure the white color for burfi. Pulse the grated coconut for few seconds in mixie to get a fine texture. This is optional
Heat a kadai with water and sugar.

When sugar is fully melted, add a teaspoon of milk. Impurities, if any will float. Remove and boil the syrup to one string consistency. To test for consitency, if you drop a teaspoon of syrup , it should fall like a thread.

Stir in the grated coconut. Add a teaspoon of ghee. Keep stirring.

It will start thickening and it will froth from all sides.

Add crushed cloves.

When it starts crystallizing on the edges, transfer to a greased plate.

Flatten it evenly using a greased cup (katori/dawarah) which has a flat base.

When cool, mark and cut into pieces.

I am sending this to Think Spice -Think Cloves event hosted by Gretchen for April, originally started by Sunita

Vella Dosai

During my school days, most of my summer holidays are spent in my mom's native. Me and sister will be packed off to be with our grandparents for 2 months. Amma might join during the last week of the stay or so. So it was only two of us with thaatha and paati. How I miss those two months stay. Those were the days without TV. So it was always play and play alone. The whole day we used to spent in the backyard which is full of mango trees. We used to eat mangoes - raw, beginning to ripe, ripe ones etc. We had two kids of our neighbor to join us. So it was all fun. We cut the mangoes, mix chilly powder, salt and coconut oil. Paati used to scold if we eat more of this and she will make us eat curd rice again in the noon. Those days we used to have brunch.

Evening, when we come for tea, she will have some delicious tiffins made ready for us. This was one of them. This is a very traditional recipe. Its almost an instant kind. Whenever my paati makes this, she prepares adai also to complement the sweetness of the dosai. Even I prepared adai the same day. Shall post that later.

Ingredients
Wheat flour - 2 cups
jaggary - almost 1 cup. (Adjust this according to your taste)
water - 2 cups

Melt the jaggery in 1 cup of water. Remove scum if any.
Add the melted jaggery slowly to the flour and mix without forming lumps.
Adjust the consistency by adding water. Make dosa the usual way. Cook both sides.
This time I used karipatti vellam (palm jaggery) .

You can use ghee instead of oil or smear little ghee while serving if u make using oil. It will taste yummy with the flavor of ghee.

Eating Vella dosai with a dollop of homemade butter is truly out of this world.

I think it is only dosa posts for the last few days in my blog as it is the case in the blogosphere. Another entry to Srivalli's dosa mela

Koozhu Kaachina Dosai

This is a very traditional recipe which is almost forgotten in the present days. I remember my dad's mom making these. Thatha love this. In those days of stone grinding, this was an easy evening tiffin. Since raw rice is the main ingredient which doesn't need much of soaking time. Without much prior planning, this dosa can be made. Grinding raw rice is easier too. Whenever we talk about those days, invariably, topic of food also comes in. We used to recollect the traditional recipes prepared then. And I used to ask my amma to make this dosa. I love the tangy taste imparted by the tamarind extract.

Here is the recipe

For the batter

Raw rice - 2 cups

salt

For koozhu

Tamarind - marble sized

Ground batter - 1 tblspn

Preparation

Wash and soak raw rice for 3 hrs.

Grind to a fine paste using little water. If you add more water, it will be difficult to grind to a smooth paste.

Preparing the koozhu

Take a tablespoon of the ground paste and mix with the tamarind extract. Add water to make it to 1 cup. It is fine If it is little more also.
Boil the mix on stove top with constant stirring. It has a tendency to form lumps and stick to the bottom.

As it starts boiling, It will begin to thicken. Stop when it reaches a semi solid stage.

This is called koozhu (it will resemble the baby food - koozhu).

The color of the koozhu depends on the tamarind color. I used the fresh tamarind of the season. So it has not turned dark.

Prepare the batter

When cool, mix the koozhu to the ground batter.

Batter consistency should be thinner than the usual dosa batter.

When you pour the batter on to tawa, pour in a circular pattern and later spread lightly with the laddle.

Add oil on sides.

When cooked flip over and cook the other side too.

It is slightly sticky because of the tamarind added. You will be able to flip over without much difficulty.

I feel the koozhu is added to soften the dosa since only raw rice is used.

Needless to say, this is going to the dosa mela hosted by Srivalli.

Kollu Dosa & Sprouted Green Gram Amti

A healthy dosa using kollu. Kollu helps in weight reduction, reduces blood pressure and it is an excellent source of iron.

Ingredients
Kollu/Muthira/Horsegram - 1 cup
Parboiled rice (puzhungalarisi) - 4 cups
Methi seeds(vendhayam/uluva) - 2 tspn
Salt as required

Method

Wash and soak kollu,rice and methi seeds together for 6 hours.
Grind all the ingredients together to a fine paste. Ferment overnight or 8 hours. Batter consistency is of normal dosa batter.
Make little thick dosas. Add little oil on sides.

Cover and cook. Turn over and cook for a minute.


The best thing about this dosa is you can make this using less oil. Very tasty too.
Serve with molagapodi or any chutney of your choice. I served with sprouted green grams amti.


Kollu dosa is joining the dosa mela hosted by Srivalli.



Sprouted Green Grams Amti

Source: Mrs. Mallika Bhadrinath

Ingredients

Sprouted green gram - 1 1/2 cups
Oil - 2 tblspn
Tamarind extract - 1 tblspn
salt
chopped coriander leaves - 1 tblspn
mustard seed - 1/2 tspn
curry leaves few
Since I didn't have enough sprouts, I added one chow chow also to the recipe to increase the quantity.


For grinding
Grated coconut - 1/2 cup (Dry roast coconut till brown on stove top or MW for 2 mts)
Onions - 2 (Chop and fry in onion till brown)
Red chilly powder - 1 tspn
Roast the following spices in little oil
cinnamon - 1 inch pice
cumin seeds - 2 tspn
cloves -3


Grind all the above ingredients to a smooth paste.


Steam cook the sprouts in a cooker for 8 minutes. (No need to keep the weight)
Heat little oil in a kadai, add mustard seeds, curry leaves and ground paste.
Stir for few minutes, add tamarind extract, salt and cooked gram.
Pour just enough water and cook till it becomes thick.
Garnish with coriander leaves.

Molagushyam & Parikkai thayir pachadi

Molagushyam is a simple and easy to make gravy to serve with rice. With pepper as the main spice and protien rich moong dal, makes it more healthy. My paati (Mom's mother) prepares this delicious molagushyam without adding dal. It is also referred as Kari molgaushyam, perhaps due to the color of the kootan due to the addition of pepper. (Kari indicates black color). It tastes wonderful with salted whole lemon. Whole lemon is pierced with a skewer and pickled in salt. Nothing else. After pickling for more than 6 months, the lemons will be gooey and melted salt mixed with lime juice will be dripping like honey. How I miss that. I don't bother to pickle lemons this way, since I am the only person who likes that. When I ever I visit my paati, I never miss to taste the salted lime. For my molagushyam, I prepared bitter gourd thayir pachadi as side.

Molagushyam
Vegetables are cut into cubes.
elephant foot yam (chenai) - 1 cup
raw banana - 1 cup
ash gourd (elavan/vellai poozhinikkai) - 1/2 cup (optional)
moong dal - 1/2 cup
turmeric - 1/2 tspn
pepper powder - 1 tspn (Adjust to your taste)
salt
Coconut oil
curry leaves

Wash the vegetables and transfer to a bowl to cook in pressure cooker.
Add 2 cups of water. Adjust the water according to how much you would like the vegetables to be cooked. It taste good if the veggies turn mushy also.
Add turmeric,salt, pepper powder.
Pressure cook for 3 whistles and cook for another 5 minutes on low flame.
Open the cooker after 15 minutes.
Lightly mash the cooked gravy by the ladle. Add water to adjust the consistency. If you are adding water, then boil on stove stop .
Garnish with a teaspoon of coconut oil and few curry leaves.

Parikkai thayir pachadi (Bittergourd Raitha)
Bitter gourd - 1 nos
Coconut - 2 tblspn
Green chilly - 2mustard powder - 1/2 tspn
Curd - 1 cup
salt
Seasoning
oil
mustard seeds

Method
Select BG which are less bitter. We get fluorescent green colored ones which are less bitter.
Slice the bitter gourd in to rings. Remove the seeds.
Shallow fry them till it turns brown.
What I do is MW for 3 minutes wihtout covering.
Take a pan, add a tablespoon of oil. Add some sugar and the half cooked BG. This way it gets fried easily.

Grind together coocnut, green chilly and mustard powder to a smooth paste adding little water.
Add the grinded paste to curd and whip. Do the seasoning using mustard seeds.
Just before serving, add the fried BGs to the pachadi, to have them crisp.

The pachadi is going to Pooja's VOW-Bittergourd event.