Back to blogging!...Banana Walnut Muffin (Egg less)

Almost a year break from blogging...Time flies really fast indeed....A rollercoaster ride like pregnancy & childbirth is the reason for the hiatus from my blogging.....'Aal Iz Well' now...I'm now blessed with the most precious gift ever- my cute little 9 month old baby boy. Cooking has been a big challenge these days given the very little time I have in hand right now. Nevertheless, the alarm in the tummy clock never fails to buzz, so I have been managing to cook against all odds.
So I realized that if I put in a little extra effort to take pictures of what I cook & post the recipes, may be I can keep my blog going. So I start out with something which is not my usual forte in cooking i.e.baking. I had some bananas which were really ripe and so decided to bake eggless Banana Walnut Muffin.I was inspired by Saffron huts wonderful recipe for this and made a small change to the kind of flour used.The highlights to this muffin is I have used 50% whole wheat flour and 50% AP flour. Well, no one could tell the difference 'coz it tasted really delicious.. Try it out and u would know.....

Ingredients:
All Purpose(AP) flour- 3/4 cup
Whole wheat flour(I used Pillsbury atta)- 3/4 cup
Butter- 1/3 cup(unsalted)
Sugar-3/4 cup
bananas- 4 ripe
baking soda- 1 tsp
baking powder- 1tsp
salt-1/2 tsp
chopped walnuts/raisins
Method:
Preheat oven to 375 F.
Mash the bananas really well.mix it with sugar and melted butter.
In the meantime use a flour sifter to mix all the dry ingredients together.Add this to the mashed banana and mix everything together really well. Fill the muffin pan with paper cups & pour this batter to 3/4th of each muffin slot. Add some chopped walnuts/raisins on top of each of this & bake for about 20 mins or when a fork comes out clean.Let it cool a bit and then serve. I made 12 regular size muffins with this proportion.
Enjoy the yumm yumm muffin!

Sprouts Pulav

Sprouts is one of the richest source of protein and I got the idea of making Pulav with it from my sis Reva who is a big fan of sprouts.This is also a kid friendly dish and a clever way to introduce sprouts into their diet.You can use store bought sprouts or home made ones.....I used home made sprouts. Here is the quick method to make sprouts at home followed by the recipe for Sprouts Pulav..Enjoy!
To make Sprouts:
Wash nicely & then soak Whole Green Moong dhal in water on day 1. The next day i.e day 2, drain all the water and leave the moong closed in a container for the entire day. You will see that the moong has begun to sprout nicely on day 3. You can refrigerate this sprouted moong and use it upto a week easily. It can be added to Salads, soups, Kurma or rice.
Sprouts Pulav:
Ingredients:
Basmati Rice- 1 Cup
Onion- 1 thinly sliced
Green chilly- 3 slit
Sprouts- 2 cups
Red bell pepper- chopped- 2 tbsp (optional)
Coconut milk- 1 cup
Garam masala powder- 1 tsp
Salt to taste
To make into paste:
Ginger- 1 inch piece
Garlic- 2 pods
Cinnamon- 1 small stick
clove- 1

To Temper:
Bay leaf- 2
Cloves-2
Cinnamon- 1 stick
cardamom- 2

Method:
Wash and Soak the basmati rice for 10 mins. Drain the excess water and keep it aside.
Heat oil + 1 tsp of ghee and add the tempering items.When the nice aroma of masala rises, add the slit green chilly and sliced onions and saute them nicely. Now add the masala paste and saute well until the raw smell goes away. Then add the sprouts and saute nicely until it mixes well with the masala. Now add the chopped red bell pepper(this is optional, I added it to make it colorful). Then add the washed basmati rice to this masala and mix well. Sprinkle a tsp of garam masala powder, salt to taste and transfer this to a rice cooker. Add a cup of coconut milk + a cup of water(I used rice to water ratio as 1:2, use appropriate ratio based on kind of rice used). Cook for 20 mins or until rice is cooked well. Garnish with roasted cashews and serve with raita & chips.
Yumm yumm Sprouts Pulav is ready!

Sweet Corn Soup

I'm happy to be back to blogging after my couple of months break....Sweet corn soup is one of the easiest and healthiest soups to make....Corn is a complex carbohydrate loaded with vitamins, minerals, folic acid and high in fiber content.....you can use either canned corn or frozen corn for this recipe...ok, here goes the simple recipe for Sweet corn soup.
Ingredients:
Frozen or canned sweet corn- 1 cup
Finely Chopped green beans, carrot & corn kernels- 3 tbsp
Green(Spring) onion- 2 or 3
salt to taste
Black pepper powder to taste
Oil- 1 tsp

Method:
Finely chop the bulb of green onion and keep the green leaves aside for garnishing. Saute the chopped bulb of onion in a tsp of oil and then add the finely chopped green beans, carrot and a tbsp of corn. Sprinkle some salt and saute this slightly. In the meantime, blend a cup of corn in a mixer and add it to the sauted veggies. (I blend a cup of corn to get the thick stock, this way I avoid adding corn flour to the soup ) Add some water, salt and black pepper powder to taste. Let this boil for 4-5 mins. Garnish with the chopped leaves of the green onions and serve with some garlic bread.

Small break !!

I will be on vacation to India to attend my dearest sis's wedding, so will be taking a short break from blogging....Check out my blog again in May for more recipes.take care till then.....!

Stop Plagiarism!

I was soo shocked to know that some of the pictures from food blogs have been copied and claimed as theirs...one such stolen picture was Mahimaa's. As a fellow blogger, I would like to express my support to Mahimaa and all other bloggers affected by this and also would like to strongly condemn this kind of plagiarism...it takes a lot of time and effort to think of a recipe, cook it, take pictures, and then post it......it is such a shame to take credit for someone else's hard work and time!

Karadayan Nonbu Adai

Karadyan Nombu is observed in the last few hours of the tamil month of maasi before the birth of the month panguni. On this day married women observe fast and pray to Goddess for the long life & prosperity of their husband and young girls pray to be blessed with a good husband. It is believed that it is on this day that Savithri saved her husband Satyavan from Yama. The offering for Goddess on this day is called Nombu adai and there are two kinds of it - one is spicy Upu (meaning salt) adai and the other one is sweet adai made with jaggery called Velam(means jaggery) adai. These two adais are placed on a banana leaf with butter, fruits, beetel leaf and the sacred thread called 'nombu saradu'. After offering this to the Goddess by saying
"Urugatha Venayam oru Adayum naan Tharuven, Oru kaalum en kanavar enai piriyathu irukanum" which means I'm offering you unmelted butter and nombu adai, please bless me with a long married life with my dear husband and we should never part,after saying this the woman would tie the nombu saradu(sacred thread) around her neck.
Moving to the US has not changed my belief and liking for these rituals even a bit..infact I see all the more reason to do it here without fail, to remember our wonderful culture and try to continue the family tradition.
Luckily I got some fresh banana leaves from Food 4 less and I used canned black eye peas which saves some time in soaking and cooking the beans.....So here goes the recipe for Nombu Adai. BTW I usually call my mom to check with her for the recipe until I came across the very clear recipe by Menutoday. I followed her recipe step by step. I'm going to make a note of it here for my future reference.
Nombu Adai (salt)
Ingredients:
Rice flour- 1 cup
water- 1.5 cups
Boiled black eye peas-4-5 tbsp
coconut pieces or shredded- 2 tbsp
salt to taste
For tempering:
Oil- 2 tsp
curry leaves- few
Green chilly- 2or 3
red cilly-2
Hing
mustard seeds- 1/2 tsp
Urad dhal- 1 tsp
Ginger finely chopped-1 tsp
Method:
Temper the above items in oil and then add the water. when the water boils, add the coconut pieces, salt and black eye peas. Add the rice flour when the water boils nicely and mix without lumps. cover and cook for 2-3 mins. then transfer it to a bowl and let it cool.(cover it with a wet cloth to retain the moisture). After this cools down, knead it nicely and(if need be sprinkle water) and make small ball of it, flatten it, make a hole in the centre and steam it until it gets a nice shiny finish.
Serve with butter.
Nombu Adai(sweet)
Rice flour- 1 cup
Water- 1.75 cups
Jaggery- 1 cup
cardamom powder- a pinch
Boiled Black eye peas- 4-5 tbsp
coconut pieces or shredded- 2 tbsp
ghee-1 tbsp
Method:
Dry roast the rice flour to a slight brown colour
Mix the jaggery and water and let this boil well. Now add the coconut and black eye peas. Then add the roasted rice flour and mix without forming any lumps. cover and cook for 2-3 mins. Then turn off the stove, add the cardamom powder, ghee and mix well. Cover with a wet cloth and keep it. Once cooled, knead it well, take a small ball of it, flatten it, make a hole in the centre
and steam it until it looks shiny.
Serve with butter.

Carrot Halwa

This is a relatively healthier sweet than the others filled with ghee. I just used 2 tbsp of ghee, organic carrots, some milk, sugar and it took me only about 20 mins to make it. So here is the simple recipe for Carrot Halwa.
Ingredients:
Carrot- grated- 2 cups
Milk- 2 cups
Sugar- 1/2 cup
Cardamom powder- 1 tsp
Nuts- cashews/raisins- 2 tbsp
ghee- 2 tbsp
Method:
Heat ghee in a wide skillet or pan and roast the nuts slightly. Keep the nuts aside. In the same ghee, add the grated carrot. Saute it in medium flame till the carrots changes color and get cooked. In the meantime, take 2 cups of milk and boil it nicely. add this milk to the carrot and continue to cook the carrots in the milk. It will take 6-7 mins for all the milk to get absorbed and the carrot becomes thick. At this stage add the sugar. The sugar will ooze out more water now.. so continue to cook until the halwa gets thick and leaves the sides of the pan. Add the cardamom powder,mix well & add the nuts and serve.

Vegetable Fried Rice

This is the Indo-Chinese version of vegetable fried rice which is pretty simple to make. This tastes well with some indo-chinese side dish like manchurian or even just ketchup.So here goes the recipe...
Ingredients:
Basmati rice- 1 cup
Vegetables- Green onions, Carrot, beans, cabbage,
green pepper, cauliflower- 2 cups- finely chopped
Ginger garlic paste- 1 tsp
Green chilly-2 slit lengthwise
Salt & pepper to taste
Soy sauce - 1 tbsp
Method:
Cook the basmati rice such that the grains are separate and cool it in a plate. In a wok, heat some oil and when hot add ginger garlic paste, saute for a min, then add the green chilly and chopped bulb of green onion(spring onion). Now add all the chopped veggies except for the green pepper & cabbage. Sprinkle some salt and cook the vegetables lightly....they should be crisp and not mushy.Finally add the soy sauce, pepper, cabbage and green pepper & saute for another min. Now add the rice, salt to taste,mix well & cook for another min. Finally add the leaves of chopped green onions and serve hot.

Pongal & Vadai- Go hand in hand!

This is one combo which is a big favorite for a lot of people in South India, especially in Tamilnadu. Most of us make just the vadai or pongal but the combo of these two, served with some sambar & chutney will give you a feeling as though you are eating in one of the restaurants in India. And once in a while when nostalgic of home, it definitely would be nice to make these things as weekend brunch and enjoy them.
I have always wanted to know how to make pongal that is close to temple style pongal. And the best pongal I have had so far is my sis Karthika's pongal. So, I got the recipe from her and made pongal which tasted very much like temple pongal. So here goes the recipe for Pongal & Vadai.
Pongal:
Ingredients:
1.Rice- 1 cup
2.Moong dhal- 3/4 cup
3.Water- 5 cups (for rice ratio is 1:3.5, for dhal 1:2)
4.Turmeric powder- 1 tsp
5.Asafoetida- a pinch
6.cumin seeds- 1 tsp
7.Black Pepper-1 tsp
8.Ginger- small piece- chopped
9. pepper powder- 1/2 tsp
10. Salt to taste
For tempering:
Ghee- 2 tbsp
Cashewsnuts- 10
Curry leaves- few
Black pepper- 1tsp
Cumin seeds- 1 tsp
Method:
Wash rice and moong dhal nicely. Pressure cook ingredients 1 thro 10 for 4-5 whistels. When pressure is released, open the pressure cooker and mash the pongal slightly with the back of a ladle. (Note: If the pongal is too thick, add some (boiled) hot water to adjust the consistency. especially when the pongal cools down, it can get thick). Temper the ingredients listed above in ghee and add to the pongal and mix well.
Vadai:
Ingredients:
Urad dhal(whole)- 1 cup
Green chilly-4
Salt to taste
Onion- chopped - 1 (optional)
curry leaves - few
Asafoetida- a pinch
oil for deep frying
Method:
Soak the dhal for about an hour and then grind it with green chilly, very little water & salt. (Sprinkle water as needed, if more water is added you wont be able to get the vadai shape). If u have a grinder, use that instead of mixie but mixie can be used too. And remember to add the salt at the end while grinding the batter for vadai. In the meantime heat some oil in a deep frying pan. To the batter, add curry leaves, hing and onion(optional) & mix it well. When oil is hot, take some batter and place it on a banana leaf or ziploc plastic sheet, flatten it with slightly wet hands, make a hole in the centre and take it from the sheet & slowly drop it in the oil. cook on both sides in medium flame until crisp & light brown. drain in a paper towel and serve hot.

This is my entry for Asvadha's Made for Each Other event.

Mango Kootan(Kuzhambu)

Maam pazham(Mango) kootan is my hubby's all time favorite and a Kerala dish which I learned from my MIL. It is very simple to make and tastes kind of close to morkozhambu only that this is a bit more sweet. It is not common to find good ripe mangoes here in the US, so I just try to get the best I can and then add a pinch of jaggery for the sweetness. So, here goes the recipe.
Ingredients:
Mango- 1 big ripe
Coconut- 1 cup
fenugreek seeds- 1 tsp
red chilly- 2or 3
Salt to taste
Turmeric powder- 1 tsp
jaggery- a small piece
Buttermilk- 1.5 cups (little more if needed)
For Tempering:
coconut oil- 1 tsp
Mustard seeds- 1 tbsp
curry leaves- few
Fenugreek- 1/2 tsp(optional)
Method:
Cut the mango into big chunks and boil with some water, jaggery, turmeric & salt until the pieces are cooked. In the meantime, saute fenugreek seeds(1tsp) with red chilly in a tsp of oil and then grind this with a cup of coconut. Add this coconut paste to the cooked mango chunks and cook for another 3-4 mins. Then finally add 1.5 cups buttermilk( you could add a little more if needed) and then within a min switch off the flame.Then temper mustard seeds, curry leaves in coconut oil and add to the Kootan. Serve hot with rice and papad.

Sombu(Fennel seeds) chutney

This is a unique chutney that I learned from my friend Kavi from MI. Though the base is the usual onion & tomato, it gets its name bcos of the flavor of fennel seeds. This is very simple to make and tastes excellent with Dosa or idly. As you all probably know, Fennel aids in digestion and has a lot of medicinal value.
Ingredients:
Fennel seeds- 2 tbsp
Onion- 1 big
Tomato-2
Urad dhal- 1 tbsp
Mustard seeds- 1 tsp
Red chilly -3 or 4
Salt
Asafoetida- a pinch
curry leaves- few (optional)
coconut- 1 tbsp
oil
Method:
Heat oil in a skillet and temper with Fennel seeds, Urad dhal, mustard seeds, red chilly and curry leaves. when the mustard crackles, add the chopped onion and saute nicely and then add the tomato and saute until it turns mushy.Sprinkle salt to taste, a pinch of asafoetida and a tbsp of coconut powder at the end.let this cool nicely and then grind it in a mixer. Serve with Dosa or Idly.

Cereal Mixture

I was inspired by Mahimaa's Chivda , made some modifications to it and ended up with this Cereal Mixture. This is a very healthy snack which can be prepared at home in no time. I just used the cereals I had at home...you can modify it per ur taste...Also this can be stored easily upto 2-3 weeks in an air tight container..soo here goes the recipe.
Ingredients:
Cereal- 4 cups (based on how much u want to make at one time)
I used a mixture of honey bunches of oats, cheerios & rice krispies.
Nuts- cashews, peanuts, raisins, almonds, etc (per ur choice)
Curry leaves- 2 strings
Asafoetida- 2 tbsp
Mustard seeds-1 tsp
chilly powder & salt to taste
oil- 1 tbsp

Method:
Heat oil in a wok, and temper with mustard seeds. Then add the curry leaves, asafoetida, salt, chilly powder & the nuts and roast the nuts slightly. Now add the cereals and mix it thoroughly until it gets coated with the spices. Adjust the salt, Chilly powder & asafoetida per ur taste.( I added more asafoetida in mine to get the south indian mixture taste)....let it cool down and then store it in an airtight container. A quick healthy snack is ready....enjoy!

Methi Matar Masala

I came across the delicious recipe for Methi Matar Malai at Mahimaa's blog. I made few changes to it by adding tomatoes, using cinnamon stick, cloves for tempering and I didn't have half & half so just added 2% milk instead. Since I didn't add any cream, I just wanted to drop the 'malai' part from the name and just called it Methi Matar Masala. Thanks a lot Mahimaa for the wonderful recipe.
It tasted sooo good with chapathis and definitely is a great way to eat Methi.
Ingredients:
Methi- 1 bunch (1 cup)
Frozen green peas- 1 cup
Grated ginger & garlic- 2 tbsp
Turmeric powder- 1/2 tsp
Chilli powder- 1 tsp
Garam masala powder- 1 tbsp
Coriander powder- 1 tbsp
Green chilly- 1
Onion- chopped-1
Tomato- 1
Salt to taste
yogurt- 1 tbsp
2% milk -1/2 cup
Kasoori methi (Dried Fenugreek) leaves- 1 tsp
For tempering:
Cumin seeds- 1 tbsp
Cinnamon stick - 1
Cloves- 2
Oil
Method:
Heat oil in a pan and add the tempering items. When the cumin seeds begin to crackle add the chopped onions, green chilly & ginger garlic paste and saute till onion turns light golden brown. Now add the methi leaves and saute well. Then add the frozen green peas, salt,turmeric powder, chilli powder, coriander powder & garam masala powder. Saute for 1-2 mins and then add the 1tbsp of yogurt. Add some water and cook for a min. Now add the 1/2 cup 2% milk and slow cook for 5 more mins. You will get a creamy gravy at this stage. In the end add some crushed Kasoori methi and serve hot with chapathis.

Vegetable Soup

This is one of the easiest soups to make and can be prepared with any vegetables that u have readily available at home. I just made a quick sandwich by using left over cauliflower & peas sabji that I had made for dinner the previous night to serve with the soup. This soup has garlic, onion, veggies & legumes which makes it a wholesome meal. I used MTR rasam powder to make the soup in Indian style but this can be substituted with some Italian seasoning too. And I used 1/2 can of diced tomatoes and water for the broth and this can be substituted with any other broth too.So here goes the recipe for simple vegetable soup.
Ingredients:
Onion- 1
Garlic- 2 chopped finely
Tomato-2 chopped or 1/2 can of diced tomatoes
Vegetables- 2 cups-carrots, beans, celery, zucchini, spinach, spring onion, cabbage(any of these)
Kidney Beans or Chick peas or any kind of Bean- 1/2 cup
Oil-1 tsp (just enough to saute onion & garlic)
MTR rasam powder- 1 tbsp
salt & pepper - to taste
Water- as required
Method:
Take a pressure cooker or stock pot. Add just a teaspoon of oil and saute onion & garlic for a quick min. Sprinkle some water if needed. Add all the veggies, kidney beans and saute for another min .Now add the can of diced tomatoes & required water. Add the MTR rasam powder, salt & pepper and slow cook for 15 mins in the stock pot or for 3 whistles in the pressure cooker.
Serve hot with a sandwich or a slice of garlic bread. Although I made this soup in a jiffy it tasted heavenly in the cold weather and really different with the MTR rasam powder as seasoning.

Rava Kesari

It's been a while since I posted on my blog.....in the meantime I received comments from a lot of people...Thanks to everybody for stopping by my blog and posting ur valuable comments....Rava Kesari is one of the easiest sweets that we make in South India. I had prepared this for my hubby's B'day on Jan 15th but got a chance only now to sit down and make a note of the recipe. This can be prepared in just 10-15 mins.
Ingredients:
Rava/Sooji- 1 cup
Water- 3 cups
Sugar- 1.5 cups
Cardamom powder-1 tsp
Ghee- 2 tbsp
Kesari color powder or orange food color- a pinch
For Garnishing:
Cashews/Raisins
Ghee- 1 tbsp
Method:
Roast the rava in a tbsp of ghee until nice aroma comes.In the meantime boil the required qty of water and pour it to the roasted rava. Add the food color, cover & cook the rava. Now add the sugar and mix well without forming any lumps. Cook for few more mins until the Kesari thickens and doesn't stick to the pan. Add 1 more tbsp of ghee and add cardamom powder. Garnish the Kesari with some cashews and raisins slightly roasted in a tbsp of ghee.

Thiruvathirai Kali

Thiruvathirai or Arudhura Dharisanam fell on Saturday, Jan 10 this year....it is the Thiruvathirai star day in the auspicious tamil month of Maarghazhi when the saivites from Tamilnadu worship Lord Shiva by observing fast and offering Thiruvathirai kali and ezhu (7) thaan (vegetable) Kozhambu(also called thalagam) as neividiyam. It is believed to be the Birthday of Lord Shiva and Lord Nataraja comes in a grand procession blessing all his devotees on this day in Chidambaram, the city of the dancing diety. As I was really sick since last week, I couldn't make the kozhambu this time but was happy that I could make atleast the Kali for nevidiyam. My mom always observed all these occasions without fail and still does till today.....to continue the beautiful tradition I always try my best to follow these too, yet another way to remember our beautiful roots ....So here goes the recipe for Thiruvathirai Kali.
Ingredients:
Raw rice- 1 cup
Moong dhal- 2 tsp
water- 3 cups
Jaggery- 1 cup
cardamom- 1 tsp
ghee- 1tbsp
cashews & raisins- 1tbsp
Method:
Wash the rice & moong dhal and dry it on a paper towel. After drying this, now roast this in a dry pan(no oil) until the rice turns slight red. cool and powder this to rava (sooji) consistency in a mixer. In a pan, dissolve the jaggery in water and let it boil, at the this stage add the powdered rice and mix well without forming lumps.cover and cook for few mins. then open the lid and cook until it thickens. Turn off the flame & add cardamom powder and mix well. Garnish with cashews & raisins roasted in a tbsp of ghee.

Basundhi

Happy Happy New Year to you all!
It's been a really long time since I prepared any sweet at home and with the birth of the new year, I wanted to start with something sweet......so here goes my recipe for Basundhi.......This was indeed a time consuming process but at the end was worth all the effort bcos my hubby dear loved it thoroughly and even said it tasted absolutely like Adyar Ananda Bhavan's basundhi:)


Ingredients:
Milk-1 litre
Sugar- 1cup
cardamom powder-1 tsp
Saffron(optional)- I didn't have any saffron so I skipped it
Pistachios- chopped- 1 tbsp (for garnishing)

Bring milk to a rolling boil in a wide non stick pan. Then turn down the heat to medium flame and slowly cook the milk by constantly stirring it. The milk has to reduce to half of the original quantity. This can take about 45mins- 1 hr. Do not cook in high flame as milk will stick to the pan and get brown. At this stage add the sugar and keep cooking in slow/medium flame until the milk gets really thick. Now add the cardamom powder and mix well and turn off the heat. Garnish with chopped pistachios. Refrigerate and serve chill.

Aloo methi

I had bought a bunch of Methi leaves from the indian grocery store and was wondering what I could make different with it & when I saw some potatoes sitting in my vegetable basket, in a minute I decided to make Aloo methi....Methi has a lot of medicinal value as a lot of you know....it is especially great for diabetic people.
Ingredients:
Methi- 1 bunch
Potatoes- 2
Onion- 1
Tomato- 1
Ginger/garlic grated- 1 tbsp
Green chilly- 1
Turmeric powder- 1 tsp
Red chilly powder- 1 tbsp
Dhania jeera powder- 1 tbsp
Hing- a pinch
Salt
Cumin seeds- 1 tbsp

Method:
Pluck just the leaves of methi and leave the thicker stem behind. Wash the methi leaves about 3 times nicely and then chop them & keep it aside. Heat oil in a skillet, temper with cumin seeds and then add finely chopped onion, ginger/garlic, green chilly & saute them nicely......then add chopped tomatoes & saute until soft...now add the potatoes(skin peeled & diced to cubes)...sprinkle some water, cover & cook for 3-4 mins until potato is slightly cooked(don't overcook the potatoes). Now add the chopped methi leaves, Turmeric powder,Red chilly powder,
Dhania jeera powder, Hing- a pinch & Salt to taste.Mix nicely and sprinkle water if needed and cover & cook for another 4-5 mins until it gets cooked. Again, potato should be cooked well at this stage but not overcooked or mashed.
Serve Aloo methi with roti or rice.
Note:
To avoid the bitter taste of methi, I found a great tip from showmethecurry.com after chopping the leaves, sprinkle some salt, ,mix it well and keep it aside for 10 mins. Then before adding the methi squeeze out all the water from it and just add the leaves. This will take away all the bitterness from the methi.

Nei Appam

Happy Karthigai Deepam to you all!
Karthigai deepam is celebrated all over Tamilnadu on the full moon day of Krithika star in the Tamil month of Krithigai....Today is the day when Lord Shiva appeared in the form of a huge jyothi taking a mountain form at Tiruvanamalai...it is also the day when Goddess Parvathi united the six forms of Lord Muruga into one with six faces and hence is very auspicious for Lord Muruga.
The traditional neivediyam for this includes pori urundai, appam, paal payasam, etc.....For this karthigai Deepam, I decided to make Nei appam which I learnt from my MIL recently .....so here goes the recipe
Ingredients:
Raw rice - 1 cup soaked in water for about an hour and a half
Jaggery-3/4 cup
Banana- 1
cardamom powder-1 tsp
Baking soda- 1 tsp
coconut- 1 tsp
Ghee & oil for deep frying
Method:
Grind the soaked rice with very very little water to a thick batter.Then add the jaggery, banana & coconut and grind it to a smooth thick batter.
then mix in the cardamom powder, a tsp of ghee & baking soda. Since we are adding baking soda we need not wait for this batter to ferment. fill the holes in the paniyaram pan with oil + a drop of ghee in each.Now take a ladle full of batter and pour into the paniyaram pan.
Flip to the other side and cook till both sides are brown.

Yummy soft Nei appams are ready....


Note: I have used only 1-2 drops of ghee while deep frying and the rest is canola oil for health reasons...I can't bring myself to deep fry it all in ghee entirely..but it tasted equally good.

This is my submission for the EFM-Sweet event conducted by Srilekha.

Palak Dhal

I had some fresh organic spinach(Palak) in my fridge which was calling out to me.....I wanted to make some side dish using spinach which would go well with chapathi.....so I came up with my own simple recipe for Palak dhal using moong dhal and pearl onions (just for a change against the usual onions) and it turned out excellent......one thing I need to share here with the readers, my mom always used to make spinach for lunch and never for dinner...not sure why, but I have also heard from a lot of other people too that it is best to eat spinach during daytime or in other words avoid it at dinner time......
Ingredients:
Spinach- 1 bunch
Moong dhal- 1/2 cup
Pearl onions- 4 or 5 (cut each into half)
Tomato- 1 small
Ginger/Garlic (grated)- 1 tbsp
turmeric powder- 1 tsp
Chilly powder- 1 tsp
garam masala powder- 1 tsp
hing- a pinch
salt to taste
For tempering:
Cumin seeds- 1 tsp
Fenugreek seeds- 1 tsp
Red chilly- 1
Mustard seeds- 1 tsp
Hing- a pinch
Oil- 1 tbsp
ghee- 1/2 tsp

Method:
Pressure cook the moong dhal along with a pinch of turmeric & hing and keep it aside.
Temper the above mentioned items in hot oil (I also added very little (abt 1/2 tsp) ghee to give a nice flavor)....when the mustard seeds splutter, add the pearl onions & grated ginger garlic and saute till the onion turns golden brown....then add the tomatoes & saute till tomato becomes pulpy...now add the chopped spinach & saute till the spinach shrinks. Now add the mashed cooked moong dhal, turmeric powder, red chilly powder, salt, hing & garam masala powder. add some water so that it doesn't get too thick.Cook for 2-3 mins and serve hot with roti or rice.