Paneer stick!

An interesting appetizer from a friend of mine, thx Shubha/Raji. I did with home paneer, but turned little hard.
Recipe:
* Make paneer or store bought paneer...cut into cubes
* Cut green bell peppers into cubes.
* For marinating, mix few spoons thick curd with turmeric, chilli powder, salt,
   some north indian masala powders plus ground ginger garlic paste.
* Mix the above well and marinate paneer and bell peppers overnight in fridge.
* Then saute them in a pan with few spoons oil till the raw smell goes off.
* After it cools down, in a tooth pick stack as per the picture with grapes. Yummy it was!!!!

Vada Pav

One of Raja's fav snacks from his Pune life!
Atlast got to try it last month and here you go for the recipe.
Recipe:
* Make the potato balls by using boiled potatoes and toppings of your choice.
* I sauted onions, added some g.chillies, salt and few powders like garam masala.
* Deep fry them using bajji batter
* Pav bajji breads from Indian store and 2 chutneys home made...same as bhel chutneys.
* Toast the breads with ghee and stack as in the picture and serve hot!!!!

Quinoa Laddoo

Yet another Quinoa one...very quick and easy recipe...
Recipe:
* Dry grind one cup Quinoa to a coarse powder
* Add 3 spoons ghee to a non-stick tava and add the powder and roast well till golden brown
* Please roast in slow flame so the raw smell goes off
* Melt half cup jaggery with 2 spoons water and add it to the above.
* Boil quarter cup milk and add it to the dough. Mix well and make laddoos with little ghee!

Hara Bhara Kebab with Mango Chutney

Recently saw this recipe in a TV show and found it interesting....broccoli was my addition.
Recipe:
* For the chutney, raw grind...mango, 2g.chillies, little garlic, ginger, jeera powder,
   salt, sugar, black salt.
* Blanch 2handful spinach and remove all excess water well.
* Steam broccoli and remove excess water.
* Blend spinach, broccoli, little ginger and 2 g.chillies.
* Mash 3 boiled potatoes with the blended greens, add cut cashews
* Make cutlets and roast well in tava with oil.
* Serve the cutlets with green chutney and raw onion rings!

Ghee Murrukku (Chakli)

On request by my friends, wanted to post this snack recipe, the most hit snack item I have ever made!
Recipe:
* 4 cups rice flour, 1 cup roasted gram flour (make at home from roasted gram),
   4 spoons ghee, half cup cummin(jeera) and salt
* Mix all of the above and make a dough with water
* Use the presser and make irregular shapes in hot oil and deep fry.
* Cook well on both sides and take it out and leave it on a paper towel.
* After it cools down, store it in tight container.

Squash Quinoa

 

Fall season is approaching, so soup time!!! A friend of mine sent this recipe with some millet, I substituted with Quinoa...turned out very good...

Recipe:

* Add 2 spoons of ghee, 2 garlic pieces, fine chopped, saute few mins.

* Add big chunks of carrots, squash, tomatoes to the above with water and pressure cook.

* Pressure cook just one handful of quinoa

* Grind half of the cooked veggies, and boil all of the above together for few mins.

* Add pepper and salt...serve hot...yummy yum it was!!!

Sundaikkai Chutney (Green Chutney)

Yet another experiment from farmer's market release..sundaikkai! Loved it!
Recipe:
* Similar to cilantro chutney, you could try this adding greens!
* Add oil to tava, then add mustard, urad and 4 red chillies, saute, save in a bowl.
* Roast one handful channa dhaal and save it.
* Add oil to tava, add cut sundaikka one cup, saute in slow flame, closed lid for 5 mins
* Then add curry leaves, gogura leaves, cilantro, saute 2mins, then add coconut.
* Add 5 g.chillies and turn it off.
* When cooled down, grind all except mustard, urad. Mix well and serve with dosas!
FYI, can be used as a spread too!!!

Gongura rice

Happen to buy gongura from the farmers market and it turned out to be a big bunch, so decided to try this recipe. Turned out yumyum!
Recipe:
* 1 cup cooked rice, cool down. Crushed roasted peanuts or whole roasted peanuts one handful.
* Add oil to tava, add little mustard and methi seeds. Add 4 red chillies.
* Save the above in a bowl and add Gongura to the tava and saute few mins(turns color)
* Add sauted methi, mustard, red chilli and gongura to blender and grind into paste.
* Add oil to tava, add mustard, jeera, urad, channa dhaal and 3 red chillies, saute
* Then add the paste, 4 slit green chillies,curry leaves, asafoetida, turmeric, salt.
* Saute for 2 mins and then add to the cooked rice and add peanuts.
* Let it rest well!!! and Serve with pappad.

Pineapple Kesari

 If U have a really ripe and sweet Pineapple, you may want to try this. Since it was summer time, I had one and all of a sudden this thought struck me and was surfing around for recipe. And found it to be very similar to the way we make Kesari. It was a super hit recipe!
Recipe:
* Roast 1 cup rava (Sooji) in mid flame for 5 to 10mins, without turning color much. (Dry Roast)
* Grind finely - 1 cup fresh chopped pineapple and 3/4th cup sugar(add more if U need sweet)
* Add 2 cups water to a tava, when it boils, add little saffron and then after few mins add Rava
* Stir well, it cooks so quick. Add the blended pineapple/sugar and mix well to avoid lumps.
* Then add ghee little by little and also few chopped pineapple pieces.
* Cook for few more mins and turn off, serve hot or room temp.
FYI, you can substitute pineapple with sweet mangoes too.

Podalangai Pakoda/Purple Bell Pepper Pakoda

Not a new recipe but new veggie for pakoda!!! Very simple and easy to make. One of my favorite snack.
Recipe:
* As always for pakodas, I use 3:1 => Besan:Rice flour
* Chop snake gourd (podalangai) removing the seeds and add few spoons of flour in the above ratio
* Add chilli powder and salt, sprinkle water and mix well. Deep fry and serve hot!!!
Yummy and crispy it was.

Purple Bell Pepper Pakoda:
* Fine chop 2 g.chillies, few curry leaves, 2 small onions and 2 purple bell peppers(Capsicums)
* Add few spoons of the mixed flour, little chilli powder and salt. Sprinkle water and make pakodas!

Black Rice Pudding (Kavini Arisi Payasam!)

Had crazy days, so couldnt catch up with my blog. Made this few weeks and posting atlast today!
Quick one with black rice, generally the whole rice takes a long time to cook.
Only key here is to keep stirring and adding lots and lots of milk. So start with less rice to try.
Recipe:

* Soak (black rice) kavuni arisi < half cup & 6 or 7 cashews overnight

* Grind arisi, cashew & 1/4th cup coconut together

* In a thick pan, heat 5 cups milk with 3/4th sugar

* Cool down the milk

* Add the ground paste to the milk and mix well

* cook all together for 10-15 mins.( medium heat)

Suppose to be a very good for health..the rice!

 

Quinoa Kichadi/Pongal

Recipe from my cousin...U may want to try this with split green moong. Since I dint have it, I opted for yellow moong. You could make it similar to the way U make pongal.
Recipe:
* 1 cup quinoa, half cup moong dhaal
* Add oil to pressure cooker, then add 2 slit green chillies, grated ginger
* Add quinoa, dhaal and add turmeric, 1 spoon salt
* Add 4.5 cups water, pressure cook the same way U do rice
* Then add ghee to a tava, few cashews and curry leaves
* Once the cooker is ready to open, add the above and half spoon pepper jeera powder.
FYI..Veggies I would skip if you would like to taste it like Pongal.
Serve hot with coconut chutney/saambaar!

Popovers

 

Was so excited to try this one for the fact that it has very less ingredients and all at home.  Very simple and quick baking...very soft and fluffy. Took this one from the Living magazine.

Recipe:

* 1.5 cups maida (all purpose flour), half teaspoon salt, 5 tablespoons sugar

* Room temperature = > 1.5 cups milk (I used whole milk raw milk)

* Room temperature => 2 eggs (sink it in warm water if it is too cold)

* Mix egg and milk in a bowl and whisk well for a minute.

* Add the dry ingredients and whisk for another minute

* Preheat oven in 450 degrees and place the empty muffin or popover pan, let it heat

* Take the pan out after 5mins - very careful!!!, add some oil coat and pour into each cups till half.

* Bake in 450 for 10mins and then lower to 350 degrees and bake for 8mins.

* Yummy yum popovers are ready...serve with any sides U like...or U can eat as such too.

FYI, mine is a mini pan, so adjust your baking time according to your pan size.

 

Manogalam (murrukku coated with jaggery!)

 

Happy and excited to share my 200th blogspot with one of the traditional snack items. More pictures...Manogalam

Recipe:

* 2cups yellow moong dhaal, half cup urad, half cup raw rice

* Dry roast all of the above in slow flame and let it cool, grind, sieve

* Generally I try to make the powder a day or 2 before, so it saves time on the day of making.

* Make a dough out of the above and use karasev sil in presser and deep fry.

* Half cup sliced coconut, roast in ghee.

* Two cups jaggery with quarter cup water, melt and cook for 5mins till it forms a gel kind

* Add little elachi, and dry roast roasted gram handful and add to the snack.

* Mix the coconut and jaggery water to the snack. Initially it will be wet

* Mix well every few mins when it is cooling down.

* Once dry, it will be split...store it in a tight container and enjoy as U need!!!!

Kalkandu Vadai

Surprised myself that I am attempting this one this late in life...lot of my friends and family have been doing it for ages!!! Simple recipe, but need to be careful not watering the batter and cooking it in slow flame.
Recipe:
* Soak whole urad for 2hrs and filter it well (strain water as much as U can)
* For 1 cup urad, you can do 1 cup or 3/4th cup sugar or kalkandu
* Grind the kalkandu into powder and then start grinding the urad.
* After few minutes, add the powder to the urad and grind well. DO NOT ADD WATER!!!!
* Once it is fine paste, take it out. Batter will be little sticky.
* Make vadas and deep fry. Cook in slow flame.
* Let it cool down and then serve.
Pros: U can make it well ahead of time, it stays soft for a long time
Cons: Very Oily and also splatters a lot as U make the vadas, so make it before cleaning the stove!!!

Nachos & Quesadillas

Most of us here in the US will enjoy this..for the fact that U feel fresh after the meal. This is similar to the burrito bowl that I posted few months back. More pictures...Nachos & Quesadillas
Recipe:
* Black beans soaked, pressure cooked with salt, little garlic and taco seasoning
* I mashed half of them and saved the rest in a bowl
* Shredded cheddar cheese, guacamole (avocado mashed with lemon, salt and little onion, g.chillies)
* Fajita - sauted onions & color peppers (capsicum) with black pepper, salt
* Store bought - medium salsa, sour cream and optional => cheese sauce/queso
* Chopped black olives, green onions, lettuce
* Home made salsa - little onion, tomato, cilantro, lemon juice, salt
Nachos: Spread some tortilla chips and layer all of the above. Optional, if using shredded cheese, layer cheese on chips and melt in microwave for few seconds and then add the other toppings.
Quesadillas: On a flour tortilla, spread the mashed beans and top it with lot of shredded cheese, toast it in a tava. Then rest of the toppings can be served as sides.