Suja's Inscriptions

Black Eyed Bean-Capsicum Salad

2011-11-20T18:37:00.001-08:00

I am not a big fan of salads but my DH loves salad very much. Our cousin got this salad from his friend’s house few weeks back and we all liked it. Hence prepared this salad last week.

Ingredients
Black Eyed Beans – 1 cup
Bell Peppers – I used Orange and red ( 3 to 4 ) – Long ones.
Onions – 1 big
Lemon - 1
Salt – as per taste
Chilli powder ( Paprika ) – as per taste
Coriander – for garnish
Preparation
Soak the Black eyed beans for 4 to 5 hrs or overnight . Boil the black eyed beans in water with little salt ( do not overcook or keep it in cooker ) and allow it to cool
Chop the onions , bell peppers into small pieces.
Mix the black eyed beans , bell peppers , onions along with salt , chilli powder and lemon juice.
Garnish with Coriander . Serve it immediately or keep it in refrigerator as serve cold.

Sending this Soups and Salads mela by Srivalli

Sweet Potato Bonda

2011-11-13T15:48:00.000-08:00

It was raining in LA last Friday and I wanted to munch something crispy and hot. As soon I returned from work , I told my mom that we will make bonda and I found that we had only 1 or 2 potatoes. Then I thought why not we use sweet potatoes to make bonda. I remembered that some time back , I read the recipe for bonda which used less oil and it was made using pancake puff pan ( it was in Dhivya’s chef in you recipe collections– I browsed and found it later )

I made potato and sweet potato bonda separately with the below ingredients

Ingredients

1 large Sweet potato and 2 medium sized potato

Besan flour –1 1/2 cup

Rice flour – 1/2 cup

Red chilli powder - 2 tbsp.

Asafoetida – a pinch

Salt – based on taste

Preparation

Cut Sweet potatoes and potato , Cook them in water with little salt ( I did not use pressure cooker )

Allow it to cool for sometime and remove the skin. In the meantime , prepare the batter dip with besan flour , rice flour , red chilli powder , Asafoetida , salt and water. Now mash the sweet potatoes and potato in separate bowl. Add salt and make little balls. Dip in to the batter. Heat the kuzhipaniyaram pan , Add oil in all the holes of the pan, drop the balls. once it is cooked, turn it other side and cook it.

Repeat the same procedure for next batch. Serve hot with chutney or sauce ( We enjoyed it with Maggi hot and sweet sauce )

Note : You can add fried onions , green chillies , coriander , ginger paste and mix with sweet potato and potato mixture and then make balls ( I just did not add them and made it plain so that I can give it to my daughter )

Adai

2011-11-13T00:16:00.001-08:00

Adai ( Lentil Crepe ) is a South Indian recipe and its one of the favorite for everyone in my family. My Mom usually make this for evening Tiffin or for early Dinner. The below recipe is from my mom.

Ingredients

1) Idly rice – 2 cups

2) Toor Dhal – 1 cup

3) Chana dhal - 1/3 cup

4) Red Chillies – 10 to 12 medium ones

5) Asafoetida – pinch

6) Curry leaves – 4 to 5 nicely chopped

7) Onions – 1 medum sized

8) Spring onions – 1/2 cup

9) Salt – as per taste

10) Oil

Preparation

Soak Rice and dhal ( chana dhal and toor ) in water for 2 hrs. Grind the Red chillies , Rice, dhal to a coarse batter along with asafoetida and salt. Fermentation is not required for this batter. Fry Onions and Spring onions for few mins with liitle oil and add to the batter just before you make start making adai. Add curry leaves.

Heat the griddle and sprinkle oil. Pour the batter and spread it on Tawa. Make a hole in the center of the adai ( for extra crispy adai ). Add little oil on the sides and center. Close the tawa with a lid for sometime ( this is done for proper cooking and my mom usually does it ) . Once cooked , flip it and cook the other side.

This is usually served with vellam ( powdered jaggery ), Avial. Yesterday we add this with white pumpkin more kuzambhu :-)

Note : For variation , you can add Carrot , Cabbage – thinly sliced to the batter. Onions / spring onions is purely optional. Since Adai is heavier , Make sure it is well cooked on both sides.

Honey – Wheat Almond Bread

2011-11-09T23:00:00.001-08:00

I prepared bread for the second time on Sunday. First time I made using All-purpose flour and this time I used wheat flour.
Not sure where I got the recipe for the bread previously. I used the same bread recipe as base and just played around with the ingredients. Instead of banana, I added honey to increase the sweetness. Here is the recipe below…

Ingredients
Whole Wheat flour – 4 Cups
Baking Powder – 4 tsp
Brown Sugar – 1 cup
Honey – 4 tsp
Orange Juice – 1/3 cup
Milk – 1 cup
Water – 1 cup
Almonds – I used silvered almonds cut into tiny pieces
Vegetable oil – 1/3 cup and little more to grease the loaf pan.

Preparation

Preheat the Oven to 350° F. Mix Wheat flour, Baking powder, Brown Sugar in a bowl.
Add Vegetable Oil, Milk, Orange Juice, Honey and water in another bowl and whisk well. Add this to the dry mixture and mix well. Add almonds and mix it once. Grease the loaf pan and pour the mix evenly and bake for 45 mins to 1 hr until the knife inserted comes out clean.
Allow it to cool and serve it

Sending this to Winter Carnival hosted by Radhika of Tickling palates..

Also sending to Padma's event ( Back to basics - Bread event and Bake Fest event happening at Vardhini's kitchen

I sent this recipe to Mid week Fiesta -hosted by Amy from foodssrilanka

Linked this to Breakfast Event # 17 hosted by Krithi

Whole Wheat Veg–Cheese Pizza

2011-10-30T23:10:00.001-07:00

I was inspired to make Pizza after viewing Nithya’s Pizza recipe the other day in her blog ( 4thsensecooking ). I did not want to use all purpose flour , so made it using whole wheat flour. I prepared this on Sunday for dinner . My DH ,Cousin, mom and my daughter – everyone liked it.

Ingredients

For the base

Whole wheat flour – 1 cup

Yeast – 1/2 oz

Sugar – 3/4 oz

Salt – 1/4 oz

butter – 3/4 oz ( Best - use Olive oil )

warm water

For Pizza Sauce

Ripe Tomatoes – 3

Onions – 1/2

Garlic – 3 to 4 pods

Olive Oil – 2 tbsp

Italian seasoning – 1/2 tsp

Basil – 1/2 tsp

Oregano – 1/2 tsp

Parsley – 1/2 tsp

Salt – 1/2 tsp

Red chilly flakes – 3/4 tsp

Salt – as per taste ( I just added 1/4 tsp as we will have salt in cheese )

Toppings

Vegetables ( I used Onions . Green bell pepper , Orange and red bell pepper )

Mozzarella Cheese – shredded ( 1 1/2 cup )

Preparation

Mix Yeast , Sugar with warm water until it is dissolved. Slowly add this to the flour along with little salt and butter . Make a dough by adding enough water. Knead the dough atleast for about 15- 20 mins and leave the dough covered for about 45 mins - 1 hr until it has doubled the size. Meanwhile start preparing the Pizza sauce ( you can get it readymade , but I made it at home )

Sauce : Cut the onions and Garlic pods into very small pieces. Cut the tomatoes and grind it in the mixer. Heat up the pan and add Olive oil. Add Onions and fry it till it becomes translucent ( need not fry it well ) . Then add garlic and fry for sometime. Now add the Tomato puree and mix it. Once it starts to boil, lower the flame. Add Basil , Parsley , Italian seasoning, Salt , oregano , Chilli flakes and mix well until it becomes thicker.

Base : Preheat the oven to 350 ° F. Once the dough doubles , knead it and and roll it out on the floored work surface and transfer to Pizza dish or baking pan ( I just used the foil ) . Use a fork and make some perforation. Add the pizza sauce, then the vegetables toppings and add the cheese. Bake it for 15- 20 mins

Your Pizza is now ready to be served…

Maaladu

2011-10-30T22:28:00.001-07:00

I have never heard of Maaladu until my marriage. This is one of the seer pakshanam that needs to be kept for Kalyanam or any function in my in laws side. For this year Diwali – My mom made this healthy and delicious sweet. It is very easier to prepare.

Below is the recipe

1. Potukadalai – 1 cup

2. Sugar – 1 cup

3. Ghee – 1/2 to 3/4 cup

4. Cardamom – 1 tsp ( Optional )

5. Cashews – few (Optional)

Preparation

1) Grind the Potukadalai and Sugar separately in a mixer for fine consistency . In a pan, heat the ghee ( 1/4 cup ) . Mix Potukadalai powder and sugar. Add the warm ghee in to the mixture ( Ghee should be warm enough such that, you should get a shhhh sound when you pour into the mixture ) . Mix it well and make small balls.

You can keep this potukadalai / sugar powder handy and when ever you want to make the maaladu’s you can just warm the ghee and quickly make the balls.

Sending this to Serve it –Festival Series hosted by Denny and Krithi.
Also sending to Kushi's event - MyDiwali My way

Anu's event - Festival of lights

Mullu Murukku

2011-10-26T00:02:00.001-07:00

Happy Diwali to all my friends. Let this Diwali bring you happiness , joy and laughter forever..
Below is a short Diwali wishes poem from my DH. ( I converted to Tamil . I know it is good to read this in our own language )

அனைவர்க்கும் இனிய தீபாவளி வாழ்த்துக்கள்
கரகோஷம் நிறைந்த நன்நாள்
புத்தாடை அணிந்து இனிப்பு காரங்களுடன்

பட்டாசு முழக்கத்தின் சத்தத்தில்

தொலைக்காட்சி தொகுப்பலை கண்டு ரசித்து

மகிழ்ச்சியுடன் கொண்டாடுவோம் திருநாளை
நல்லதெல்லாம் பெருக அமைதி நிலை பெற
வையகம் என்னும் வாசுதேவ குடும்பத்தை வளம் பெற செய்வோம்

My mom is here with us to celebrate Diwali and we decided to make Mullu murukku / Ribbon pakora ,Maaladu and Almond Burfi. For my daughter , I told my mom to make some omapodi. Our Cousin who is staying with us mentioned that he is missing his grand mom’s ukkarai very much.. In my side , we don’t prepare ukkarai and my in laws side , they make it.. so my mom decided to make ukkarai .. since it was first time , it did not come that very well. although the taste was very good . I am hoping that I will have some time to post all these recipes.
Actually I lost my Murukku press while we shifted our apartment and we searched the entire house last month and couldn’t find it. So I asked my aunt ( my athai ) to get it from Chennai and give to our friend’s parents . Since it was a new one , we had trouble pressing it initally..
Anyways here is the recipe for Murukku
Ingredients
Pottukadalai ( Dhaliya ) – 1 cup
Rice flour – 1 cup
Moong dhal powder – 1 cup
Butter – 1 tsp
Sesame seeds – 2 tsp ( white ) – optional
Salt – as per taste
Asafoetida – a pinch.
Chilli powder – optional ( I did not use it )
Oil for frying
Preparation
Dry roast Moong dhal until you get a nice aroma. Cool it and powder it smoothly ( you may have to sieve and grind it ) . Grind pottukadalai also to a smooth flour. Mix Rice flour , Moong dhal powder and pottukadalai along with salt , sesame seeds , butter by adding water to a soft dough. Heat the oil in Kadai.
Take a handful of dough and put it in murukku press. Make round shape by pressing it in the oil ( you can also press it in the ladle and then transfer to oil ) Turn the murukku and Fry it until it is crispy, Remove the excess oil by draining in paper. Store it in airtight container.

Sending this to Serve it –Festival Series hosted by Denny and Krithi.

Also sending to Kushi's event - MyDiwali My way

Anu's event - Festival of lights

Radhika’ event – Sweets and Savories

Mysore Rasam

2011-10-22T17:55:00.001-07:00

Rasam is traditional south Indian soup usually taken with rice. I prepared this for lunch today along with Raw Banana / Vaazhaikkai fry.

Ingredients

1. Tamarind – lemon size ball

2. Tomato – 1 big

3. Turmeric – 1/ 4 tsp.

4. Asafoetida – 1/2 tsp..

5. Salt – as per taste

6. Masoor dhal – 1/2 cup cooked.

7. Coriander leaves – little.

For grinding

1. Masoor dhal – 2 tsp.

2. Chana Dhal – 1 tsp.

3. Grated Coconut – 5 tsp

4. Jeera – 1/2 tsp

5. Whole pepper – 1 tsp

6. Coriander seeds – 1 tsp

7. Red chillies – 4

For Seasoning

1. Ghee – 2 tsp.

2. Mustard seeds – 1/2 tsp.

3. Jeera – 1/2 tsp.

Preparation

Pressure cook Masoor dhal along with little turmeric for 3 whistles.

Add the tamarind in a small bowl along with water and microwave for 1 minute.Allow it to cool and extract the tamarind juice. In a vessel , Add the tomatoes along with tamarind juice , turmeric , Asafoetida , Salt and boil it for sometime. In a kadai , Dry roast all the grinding ingredients except grated coconut first and keep it separately. Roast the grated coconut separately. Grind the roasted ingredients by adding water to coarse paste.

Add the paste to the tamarind / tomato mixture and boil it. Add masoor dhal along with some more water and keep stirring until bubbles comes up.

Add Coriander leaves. In a kadai , Add 2 tsp ghee , Add mustard seeds and Jeera and once it splutters add it the Rasam.

Mouth watering Mysore rasam is now ready to be served with rice.

Raw Banana / Vaazhaikkai Fry

2011-10-22T13:25:00.001-07:00

This Vazhaikkai fry is a traditional recipe and it goes very well with Sāmbhar / rasam and curd rice. For Today’s lunch , I decided to make this along with Mysore Rasam.

Ingredients

Raw Banana / Vaazhaikkai – 5

Salt – as per taste

Turmeric – 1/2 tsp.

Asafoetida – 3/4 tsp.

Chilli powder – 1 tbsp.

Oil – 3 to 4 tbsp. ( I used Olive oil )

Mustard – for seasoning

Preparation

1) Remove the skin of banana using a peeler and cut the vaazhaikkai into small cubes and put in water. Heat oil in a pan and add mustard seeds. Once it splutters , Add the chopped vaazhaikkai. Add Turmeric powder , Asafoetida , Salt and chilli powder . Mix it and add oil and keep frying till the banana is cooked well and it becomes little crispy.

Serve it with Rice and Sambhar / Rasam or Curd…

Chola fali - For Indian Cooking Challenge

2011-10-15T00:03:00.000-07:00

This month Srivalli came up with a Gujarati Snack for Indian Cooking challenge – Chola fali. I have tasted few Gujarati snacks before, but have not heard of this. There were two different version of the recipe to choose from and I chose Lataji’s version. I was able to get Mathia flour from Indian stores . Below is the recipe.

Ingredients

Besan flour – 1 cup
Mathia Flour – 1 cup
Salt – as per taste ( I added 1/4 tsp )
Baking soda – a pinch
Ghee - 1 tbsp.
Water - To make the dough
Oil - as required ( to pound the dough and for rolling )
Black Salt – 1 tbsp.. ( for sprinkling )
Chilli powder 1 tbsp.. ( for sprinkling )

Preparation

In a bowl , Sieve the Besan flour and Mathia Flour and add the cooking soda . In a pan , add the Salt , warm it for few mins and add it to the flour mix.

Add Ghee , mix the flour along with little water to form a stiff dough. Rest the dough for few mins. Before starting to roll , knead the flour again adding few drops of oil now and then. Repeat it until you feel the dough feels elastic and light. Keep the dough covered while making the rolls to avoid drying.

Take small balls , Grease the surface with liitle oil and roll as thin as possible. Cut out thin strips.

Deep fry the strips few at a time in oil. Fry them until it is crispy and transfer to container.

Add the black salt and chilli powder and sprinkle it while warm . ( I added only little chilli powder and salt so that I can give few to my daughter as well.)

Notes : Dough needs to be stiff. Roll it very thin such that it is transparent. Otherwise the falis becomes soggy. Roasting the salt ensures that falis don’t become oily.

Oats Banana Raisin Muffin

2011-10-08T11:51:00.001-07:00

I got the muffin pan few months back but never had a chance to make it . I made these muffins for breakfast on Saturday. It was a very simple , healthier and yummy breakfast and we all enjoyed it. I think I will start making this very often with different ingredients and make it more healthier…
Ingredients

Oats – 1 1/2 cup
Wheat flour – 1/2 cup
Brown Sugar – 1/2 cup
Baking powder – 2 tsp
Ripe Bananas – 2
Milk – 1 cup ( whole organic milk )
Oil – 3/4 cup ( I felt 1/2 cup would be sufficient )
Water – 3/4 cup
Raisins – handful

Preparation
Preheat the oven to 300°F . Mix Oats , Wheat flour , Brown Sugar , Baking powder in one bowl. Add Milk , Oil , water and whisk it well in another bowl and add the mashed bananas. Now pour this into the dry mixture and mix it well. Add the raisins. Grease the muffin pan and pour the mixture into each muffin tin ( 3/4 th) and bake it for 25 – 30 mins. Remove the pan and serve it warm.

I was able to make 12 muffins. My daughter , DH and mom loved this tasty and healthy muffin.

sending this to ABC Series : B for banana event hosted by Ramya

Mor kali

2011-10-08T10:41:00.001-07:00

This is one of my favorites. My mom and paati make this for evening tiffin during school / college days. It is very easy and simple evening snack.
Ingredients
Rice flour batter – 1 1/2 cup ( or use ready made Rice flour )
Buttermilk – 1 cup
salt – as per taste
Oil – 5 to 6 tsp
Seasoning
Asafoetida – 3/4 tsp
Mustard – 1 tsp
urad dhal – 1 tsp
Mor milagai ( or red chillies ) – 4 to 5
Preparation
1. Mix Rice flour batter or rice flour with buttermilk and salt. The mixture should be very thin, you can also add water to make the mixture thin.
2. Add oil and fry the mor milagai till it becomes black and keep aside.
3. Add oil in kadai , Add mustard seeds , urad dhal , Asafoetida , curry leaves. then add red chillies or fried mor milagai.
4. Add the mixture in kadai now and keep stirring. Add oil again and keep stirring for 10- 15 mins.
5. Soak your hand in cold water and touch the mixture. if it does not stick to your hand , then it means the right consistency.
6. Grease the plate with little oil and pour the mixture and flatten it. Allow it to cool
7. Cut into desired shape and serve it.

Notes
I used Idly rice batter for this recipe . When making idly batter , soak additional rice for making this recipe , Grind it and take 1 1/2 cup of batter and save it in refrigerator or use ready made rice flour.
I felt this recipe tasted very good using rice batter when compared to regular rice flour we get in US.

Irupuli Kuzhambhu

2011-09-23T14:04:00.001-07:00

I have never heard of Irupuli until my mother in law made this when she was here. It is mix of Thengai aracha kuzhambu and more kuzhambhu. I wanted to try this recipe on my own and made it last week.
Below is the recipe

Ingredients
Drumstick ( Frozen ) – 10 ( put in water for few mins and cut into half )
Yam – Frozen – 8 to 10 pieces ( I cut this into small pieces )
Tamarind – 1 small lemon size
Buttermilk – 1 cup
Salt – based on taste
Grinding
Grated coconut – 3/4 cup
Fenugreek – 1/4 tsp
Red chillies – 5
Rice – 1 tsp ( soak it in water )
Seasoning
Oil , Mustard seeds and Curry leaves
Preparation
1. Soak the tamarind in water and microwave it for few seconds and extract the juice.
2. In a pan , add little oil , Add fenugreek and red chillies . Fry it until becomes roasted / red.
3. Remove it from heat and allow it to cool for sometime
4. In a mixer , add coconut , rice, fenugreek, red chillies and grind it to paste.
5. Add the cut vegetables in the pan and little water cook it for sometime.
6. Once the vegetables are half cooked , add tamarind extract , salt and allow it to boil.
7. Add the ground paste, mix it well and leave it for sometime.
8.Finally add the buttermilk and when it starts boiling , remove from heat.
9. Heat oil in pan and add mustard seeds. When the mustard seeds begins to splutter add little curry leaves . Add it to the kuzhambu .
Irupuli kuzhambu is now ready to serve with hot steamed rice.

Ammini Kozukattai

2011-09-21T20:11:00.000-07:00

This was made for Vinayaka Chathurthi , but I just got time to post it.

Ingredients

Rice Flour - 1 Cup
Water - 1 to 1 1/2 cup
Salt
Chilli powder - Optional based on the spice
Gingely oil - 1 tsp
Urad dhal ( whole ) - 1/2 cup
Red chillies - 4
Asafoetida
Curry leaves
Mustard

Preparation

Boil water with little salt
Add Gingely oil
Add rice flour and keep mixing until you reach a right consistency ( like a batter for chapathi )
Remove from heat and keep it aside to cool
Mix Chilli powder ( optional ) and make small balls
Steam the balls in the idly cooker for 5 to 7 mins.

For making the puranam

1) Soak Urad dhal for 1/2 hour
2) Grind it along with red chillies , salt , Asafoetida , curry leaves ( don't add too much water while grinding )
3) Make balls and Steam it in idly cooker for 10 mins

Seasoning

Now in the kadai , add oil , Add mustard and once it splutters
Add the steamed puranam and keep mixing
Finally add the small balls , Mix it and remove from heat

Sending this to Serve it - Steamed event hosted by Denny / Krithi

Indian Cooking Challenge August 2011 - Jalebi

2011-09-15T18:51:00.001-07:00

I prepared 'Jalebi' for Indian Cooking Challenge. This event is organized by Srivalli every month and am excited to join the event starting this month. For the month of August , Srivalli came up with the 'Jalebi' recipe.
Here is the recipe below
For Batter
1. All purpose Flour / Maida - 100 gm
2. Corn Starch - 30gm ( You need to add little more to make the batter thick )
3. Yoghurt - 1 Cup
4. Lime Juice - 1 tsp
5. Oil - 1 tbsp ( heat the oil before pouring it to the batter )
6. Saffron - a large pinch
In a bowl , Take all the above ingredients , whisk together such that there are no lumps and make a thick batter. Allow it to ferment overnight.

For Syrup
1.Sugar - 1 cup
2.Water - 1/2 cup
Add Sugar and water in a vessel and heat it till the sugar dissolves. Keep stirring continuously until you reach a syrup consistency. Keep it warm.

For Jalebi
1. Oil for deep frying
2. Zip log cover or Sauce bottle ( plastic one )
Pour the batter into zip log cover with one end cut ( Make sure the hole is thin ). Pipe and press the batter into hot oil . fry the jalebi till golden brown and crisp. Drop the Jalebis into warm sugar syrup and take it out immediately
Note : I did not get the exact shape of Jalebi as my batter was little thin and I need more practice . Also sugar syrup got crystallized ( to avoid this , you can add little lime juice )
So make sure to make the batter thick . Keep the sugar syrup warm and remove the Jalebis from sugar syrup and do not allow it for a long time.

Javarisi Dosai

2011-09-09T19:57:00.001-07:00

Ingredients

Javarisi - 1 Cup
Rice - 4 cups
Salt – as required
Buttermilk ( optional ) – for soaking javarisi
Green chilies – 2 or 3 ( optional ) – you can add it while grinding.

For Seasoning

Mustard
Kariveppilai ( Curry leaves )
Oil

Preparation

1. Soak Javarisi and Rice in water for 2 hours separately or soak javarisi in buttermilk.
2. Grind them in Blender ( or you can use grinder )
3. Keep the batter aside for at least 6 hrs after mixing it with salt( if you need to make dosas in the evening , make sure the batter is ready in the morning )
4. Before making the dosas , season the batter with mustard and curry leaves.

This dosa is tastier with Onion – tomato chutney , but we had it with Coconut chutney yesterday.

I am sending this to Lets Cook event hosted by Radhika of Tickling Palates.

Banana walnut cranberry bread

2011-08-18T22:06:00.000-07:00

Ingredients

All purpose flour - 4 cups
Banana - 2
Sugar - 1 cup

Baking powder - 4 tsp

Salt - 1 tsp

Walnut - 1/2 cup ( nicely chopped )

Cranberries - 1 cup

Butter - 1/4 cup ( Melted )

Vegetable oil - for greasing the loaf pan
Milk - 1 cup ( low fat milk )
Orange Juice - 3/4 cup

Preparation

1) Mix Flour , Sugar , Baking Powder and Salt , Set aside

2) Add butter , Mashed bananas , Milk and Orange juice and mix it well along with flour mixture

3) Add walnut and cranberries

4) Pour the mixture into the greased loaf pan.

5) Bake at 350° for 1 hour ( Insert a knife and check whether it comes out clean after 45 mins thereafter every 5 mins )

Sending this to CELEBRATE SWEETS ' with 'SWEET BREADS/BUNS/CROISSANTS ' event

Also sending this to ABC Series - B for Banana event hosted by Ramya for the month for Oct 2011

Apple Rasberry Crumble

2011-08-06T09:56:00.000-07:00

Ingredients

1) Apple -1 medium sized ( Washed ,Cut,Chopped into tiny pieces )

2) Rasberries - 15 nos ( I got fresh rasberries and freezed it )

3) Sugar ( white ) - 2 or 3 tsp

For Crumble

4) Oats - 1/2 cup

5) Maida - 1/2 cup ( but I added less , 1/4 cup would be sufficient )

6) Walnuts or almonds chopped ( used peanuts instead ,)

7) Brown sugar - 1/4 cup

8) Cinnamon - 1/4 teaspoon.

9) 1/2 stick butter

1 tablespoon butter for baking dish.

Baking dish - Well buttered

Vanilla Icecream ( I got fat free )

Preparation

1) Preheat the oven to 350-400 F

2) Mix Apples , Rasberries and Sugar in a bowl and transfer to baking dish

3) Add Oats , Maida, Brown Sugar and cinnamon in a bowl and mix well. Add butter and use your fingers to mix it thoroughly such that there is no lumps.

4) Sprinkle this evenly on the apple-rasberry mixture

5) Bake it for 35-40 mins till the crumble turn golden brown and the bubble comes.

6) Serve it with Vanilla Icecream.

I got this recipe from Cinnamon,Spice and Warm apple pie book by Ryland Peters and altered few ingredients. ( http://www.rylandpeters.com/ )

Cantaloupe / Musk melon Cocktail

2011-08-01T14:06:00.000-07:00

Ingredients

1 medium sized musk melon

2 or 3 tsp Sugar

Orange,Pineapple , Banana juice ( I got this from Costco ) - 1 1/2 cup

Water - 1 1/2 cup

Cinnamon powder - little

Preparation

Put all the ingredients in a blender and blend it to fine consistency.

Refrigerate it

Before serving , sprinkle some cinnamon powder on top.

Note : Instead of Sugar , you can also substitute with Honey

Cheppankizhangu/ Taro Root Fry

2011-07-22T14:05:00.000-07:00

This is one of my favorite and my mom makes this every sunday during my school / college days. I have it with paruppu / sambhar /rasam / curd rice :)

I made it last saturday ( 16th July ). Below is the recipe

Ingredients
Cheppankizhangu /taro root - 10 to 12 medium
Rice Flour - 3 tbsp
Kadalai Maavu / Besan Flour -1 tbsp
Chilli powder - 2 tsp ( If you need spicy - you can add 1/2 tsp more )
Turmeric powder - 2 pinch
Asafoetida / perungaayam powder - 1 pinch
Salt to taste
Oil for frying

Seasoning ( Optional )
Mustard and Urad dhal.

Preparation
1) Wash and pressure cook taro for 2 whistles.
2) Cool it and remove/ peel the skin.
3) Cut into small pieces that are of the same size more or less.
4. Add rice flour, besan, chilli powder, salt, hing and turmeric and toss it.
5. Set aside for few mins
6. Heat up the kadai with oil.( for seasoning ) - you can add more oil later after adding the taro pieces.
7. Add mustard seeds . Once splutters, add urad dhal.
8. Now add flour-coated taro pieces.
9. Add oil and keep frying until it is golden brown.

You can have this with Sambar ( arachuvitta sambar is a good combination ) rice.

Tomato Coconut Chutney

2011-07-19T23:34:00.000-07:00

I made this chutney last Friday night ( 15th July )for our dinner. My mom decided to make Dosa and we were thinking of what chutney to make. There was no onions at home and i didn't want the usual coconut chutney. So i decided to make this tomato-coconut chutney.

Ingredients

Potukadalai / Dalia Split- 1/2 cup
Tomato - 2
Green Chillies - 5 or 6 ( depends on how spicy you need )
Coconut - 1/4 cup
Salt as required
Asafoetida - very little

Seasoning
Mustard
Oil - 1 tsp

Preparation.

1) Grind the ingredients in a mixer with little water to a paste .

2) Heat a little oil in a kadai and add mustard. Once it starts spluttering , remove it and add it to the Chutney.

3) Serve with Dosa or Idli

Tomato - Coconut Chutney

Sending this to Srav - Roti Pachadi / Chutney Event