Tried & tasted ;)

I am always in constant search for new recipes. In this process I have reached several blogs, bookmarked several dishes and recreated a few in my lab successfully. I plan to note down the recipes here just in case the site becomes inaccessible to me. (A lot of sites that I used to visit before are not easily accessible these days) I prefer to try recipes from blogs as the picture gives us a clear idea about  how the final product will look likeand also over every recipe is tried and tested. The comments too gives a fair idea. Last week I made 2 dishes from  different blogs a snack and another a dessert. Both came out really good. 

Idli and Vada make a great pair. When I had made idli's last week hubby dear asked for Vada's. Now Vada was something we always had in hotels. I did not have the confidence to make them inspite of seeing them in so many blogs. I avoid deep fried food too. But when I saw neat vada's at Asha's blog I could not resist. The same day I made them and it came out perfect and crispy. I could not shape them as the mixie that I have here could not grind it into smooth paste without water. I added few more ingredients to make it more tasty. Please click here for the original recipe and drool worthy pics.

Here is what's needed:

1 cup Urad Dal

1 tbsp Rice (I used Basmati)

2 pinches of Baking soda

1 tbsp finely chopped Coconut

5-6 Curry leaves roughly chopped

small piece of Ginger finely chopped

1 Green chilli sliced into rings

Salt to taste

Oil to deep fry

Procedure:

1) Wash and soak urad dal with rice. Keep it refridgerated. I soaked them for 6 hrs as I did not have much time. 

2) Grind it to a smooth paste. Avoid using water. I added more water hence could not shape them.

3) Add salt and soda. Add in the chopped chilli, curry leaves, ginger & coconut. Mix well.

4) Heat oil and pour a spoon full of batter into oil and fry on medium flame until crisp and golden.

Serve them dunked in Rasam or with Chutney of your choice. 

Next time I plan to add some finely chopped onions too to the batter. Thank you Asha for an easy and wonderful recipe. 

When I first saw this cake at Deeba's blog I was hooked on to it. I had bookmarked to try but having wanted to try Zebra cake first this was forgotten, The next time I saw it again in Divya's blog and finally decided to bake it. It came out really good. I did not make many changes to the recipe other than the amount of sugar and skipping out Coffee extract. I added 1/2 cup of sugar more than the recipe called for as the sugar that we get here is not at very sweet. In spite of the change in amount of sugar it tasted just right. Not too sweet. Thank you Deeba for a such a keeper recipe. Please click here for the original recipe.

I am noting the recipe here with the changes that I made.

Here is what's needed:

Flour - 1 1/2 cups

Wholewheat flour -1/2 cup

Cocoa - 2/3 cup

Instant Coffee - 2 tbsp

Baking Soda - 1 tsp

Baking powder - 1 tsp

Pinch of salt

Butter - 1/2 cup; at room temperature (I used a little more than 1/4th cup)

Sugar - 1 1/2 cup (Original recipe called for 1 cup)

Eggs - 2

Yogurt - 1 1/2 cups

Vanilla Extract - 1 tsp

Coffee Extract - 1 tsp (I skipped this)

Procedure:

1) I did not have a bundt tin so used a greased disposable foil tin. Preheat the oven to 180C.

2) Sift the flours + baking powder + baking soda + cocoa. Keep aside.I sifted it twice.

3) Beat the butter & sugar. Add eggs & beat again. Add the vanilla extract, Instant coffee & beat.

4) Add the flour mix & yogurt alternatively and keep mixing it until well incorporated. Don't over mix.

5)Turn into prepared pan, level out & bake until skewer insterted comes out clean. For me it took 55 mins. I covered it loosely with aluminuim foil as the top was browning very soon. 

The only problem that I faced while baking was that after 7 mins of baking The batter started oozing out from sides. The top of the cake slided a bit downwards as if it was sinking. Was it that I had filled too much in my tin? Any suggestions are welcome. 

I am feeling much confident now in terms of baking. Thanks to all of you who took time to comment and give valuable suggestions when I last made Zebra cake. It actually helped me and I avoided doing the common mistakes like opening the oven door within 10 minutes of baking cake etc. There is still so much to learn.

DoodhPaak ~ Traditional Rice Kheer

Making sweets was never my cup of tea. I have cooked a lot of dishes but desserts were something I feared to make until recently that is. Whenever we had some Pooja at home it was usually Fruits or dry fruits that I offered! This Diwali I had teamed up with my friend Smitha here and we did cook up a lot of dishes together. They were a big hit with our families. Since then I decided to give a try and learn all the traditional dishes :) 

I am usually biased towards Coconut milk + Jaggery based sweets than Sugar based milk sweets. But I do have exception! Doodhpak being one of them. This is one of amma's signature dishes. It is simple to make and the end result is awesome. I prefer eating this cold rather than hot!

Here is what's needed:

1/2 Cup Basmathi rice

2 cups Milk

1.5 cup Water

1 cup Sugar

A fistful of Sabudana

8-10 chopped Cashews

8-10 Almonds peeled and chopped(Soaked in water prev night)

1/2 tsp Cardamom powder

a generous pinch of Saffron

10 dry grapes soaked in water for atleast an hour

Procedure:

1) Wash rice well. In a pot, Add water and 1/2 cup of milk. Bring it to a good boil and add washed rice + cashews + almonds. While the rice is cooking, bring rest of the milk to a good boil and keep aside.

2) When the rice is half done. Add washed sabudana. If the water is not suffecient add more water. Cook till done (sabudana turns transaprent when completely cooked). Keep stirring in between to avoid it form sticking to the bottom.

3) Add sugar and mix well. Let it come to a rolling boil. Keep stirring at regular intervals.

4) Add boiled milk and dry gapes. After a boil, crush saffron lightly between your fingers and add it. One more boil and switch if off. Add cardamom powder mix well.

Serve warm or cold.

P.S: If you feel that it is too dry just add some milk and give it one boil. You can even add 1-2  cloves. It gives a nice aroma to the sweet.

I am sending this over to Lubna of Yummy Food, Who is hosting the FIC White Event, An event started by Harini of Tongueticklers and hosted at Yummy food this month. Thank you Lubna and Harini for this wonderful event.

Besan Laddu

Laddoo's were not something that I was not comfortable in making. When I made this laddoo last week and it came out fine I was happy and confident. RC had commented that she liked Churmundo next to  Besan laddoo and that she had tried making it in Microwave. I had tasted Besan laddoo once that too it was fron Bikano and it had lots of nuts,cashews etc but home made never. So hopped on to RC's blog to check on her recipe for laddoo. She had referred to Tee's recipe for making laddoo's. Until yesterday I used my Microwave only to reheat food or boil milk or to keep dosa batter to ferment. This was an easier option compared to making the laddoo on stove top.. I made this laddoo as nivedyam for yesterday's Chathurthi Pooja at home and it came out tasty. Thanks Tee for the wonderful recipe and RC for pointing me towards it.

P.S: I could not roll it into ball so added less than a tbsp of milk and it worked wonders :)

Riot of colours!! Fruit Bowl

Colours!! They look so interesting. Including colours(I dont mean artificial colours!!) in our daily diet is beneficial for our body. A search on Google led me to this site http://ezinearticles.com/?Eating-Fruits-and-Vegetables-Daily-For-Weight-Loss&id=1258083 .

I wanted to Highlight this point so am qouting the same here " The FDA has recommended that people have at least 5-9 servings of fresh fruits and vegetables everyday. In order to get the maximum benefit, you should eat different varieties of fruits and vegetables. Eating the same foods day after day is not so exciting. So if you eat try out different fruits and vegetables everyday it can be so much fun and also you can get all the different nutrients present in each.Pick different colors and varieties as each color fruit or vegetable has different types of nutrients, so choosing a variety of different colors can ensure that you get all the vitamins and minerals present in them." With this in mind we decided to include one fruit everyday in our diet and on weekends we have decided to have one meal with only fruits. This was one such weekend lunch. Should I say we loved it... I am including it here as I stumbled upon few benefits (courtesy Google) which I wanted to share.

The fruit bowl was a combination of 

Pineapple (Pineapple is Loaded with Vitamins and minerals.The obvious benefits of pineapple are all the vitamins and minerals the fruit is loaded with. Its nutrients include calcium, potassium, fiber, and vitamin C. In addition it is low in fat and cholesterol)

Apple (Apples are a rich source of dietary fibre. Apples are rich sources of phytochemicals (compounds found in plants, fruits, and vegetables that can act as anti-oxidants). Apples and apple juices are the best source for mineral boron which helps to promote bone growth. In addition, the high fibre content helps in slow release of sugars into the body, thereby helps to maintain a steady blood sugar level.eating apples helps to reduce blood cholesterol, improve bowel function, reduce risk of stroke, prostate cancer, Type II diabetes and asthma. This is due to the fibre and phytonutrients present in the apples)

Banana (Bananas are not only a good source of B vitamins they also contain vitamin C, A and high levels of potassium. It also helps to reduce water retention, protects from Ulcers and strokes)

Mango (Mangoes are full packed with vitamins, minerals and anti-oxidants and contain like all fruits very few proteins, fats and calories)

Grapes (Grapes are a good source of vitamins A and C. It is also a source of vitamin B6 and Minerals like potassium, calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, iron, and selenium, as well as trace amounts of copper, manganese, and zinc) and

Plums (rich in anti oxidants) thrown in together.  We topped these fruits with a squeeze of lemon for the Extra zing and drizzled some honey for the added Flavour. This can be had as a lunch or as a Healthy Dessert. Enjoy a bowlful with a promise to good health.. Stay happy and stay healthy!!

I am sending this Healthy bowl of fruits over to Divya who is hosting Diet Foods Event.

Thank you Divya for Organizing such an interesting Event.