Kadai Vegetables

This recipe is adapted from Mallika badrinath's recipe..Iam  a great fan of her recipes.I have a lmost all of her cookbooks.Actually this recipe calls for paneer and babycorn..Since i didnt have babycorn,I omitted it and I substituted shallow fried extra-firm tofu instead of fried paneer.Good news is that it contains no garlic.So my dh liked it a lot!!

Ingredients:

A cup of diced and boiled mixed vegetables (carrot,beans,cauliflower,peas and potato)

Capsicum - 1

Tomatoes - 1

Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp

Green chillies - 4

Shallow fried Tofu - 1/2 block

Garam Masala - 1 tsp

Cumin seeds - 1/2 tsp

Coriander powder - 1 tsp

Oil - 4tbsp

Salt to taste

Coriander leaves for garnishing

Fry the following in 2tsp of oil and grind it into a smooth paste:

Onion - 1

Tomatoes - 1

Cashew nuts - 5

Method:

Heat oil in  a pan.Add the cumin seeds.when they splutter add, the tomatoes, capsicum,green chillies  and saute for 2 minutes.

Add the boiled vegetables,turmeric powder and coriander powder.

Then add the paste,garam masala,tofu and required amount of salt.

Add 1/2 cup of water and simmer for about 2 minutes.

Garnish with coriander leaves.

Serve with roti,naan  or pulao.

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Rava/Sooji Khichadi/Semolina Khichadi

Rava/Sooji Kichadi is my favorite for dinner or even breakfast..I remember the first time I tried making this when I was about 14 or 15..It came out as a lumpy mass :) though it tasted good.

I definitely do believe that getting the right texture of Rava Upma/Khichadi is indeed an art!!Perfection comes only out of Practice.

Printable Recipe

Ingredients:

Sooji/Rava - 1 cup

Ghee - 1 Tbsp

Oil - 4tbsp

Mustard seeds - 1 tsp

Split Urad dal  - 1 tsp

Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp

A cup of mixed vegetables like carrot,beans,peas,potato finely chopped

Onion - 1 big

Tomato - 1

A sprig of curry leaves

Coriander leaves for garnishing

Water - 2  1/2 cups

To be ground into  a paste:

Garlic cloves - 2

Ginger - 1 inch piece

Fennel seeds - 1/2 tsp

Cloves - 2

Cinnamon - 2 inch piece

Green chillies - 3

Method:

Heat the ghee in a kadai.Roast the sooji until it becomes slightly brown in color.Keep aside.

Heat oil in a pan.Add the mustard seeds.When they splutter add the urad dal.when the dal becomes brown add the finely chopped onion and the curry leaves.When they become translucent,add the ground paste and fry till the raw smell goes off.Add all the veggies one by one and then the tomato.When the vegetables are almost cooked,add the roasted sooji,turmeric powder and required amount of salt.

Meanwhile in another pan heat 2 1/2 cups of water and switch it off when it starts boiling.Keep the boiling water ready.

Pour the boiling water into the sooji and vegetable mixture and stir briskly so that no lumps are formed.Simmer and cover with  a lid.Switch off the stove when the sooji is cooked and garnish with coriander leaves.

Drizzle a little bit of ghee on the top.

Serve hot.

This is my entry to shama's FIRST COOKED FOOD EVENT --AUG'09

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Scrumptious Blog Award

Iam so happy to receive the Scrumptious Blog Award from Shri of Tasty touch ..Thanks a lot Shri!!

The award is given to blogs which :

Inspire you

Encourage you
May give Fabulous information
A great read
Has Scrumptious recipes
Any other reasons you can think of that make them Scrumptious!

The rules are:
Put the logo on your blog or post.

Nominate at least 7 blogs

Let them know that they have received this Scrumptious award by commenting on their blog. Share the love and link to this post and to the person you received your award from.

I would like to nominate this award to my following blogger friends:

Pavithra of Dishes from my kitchen

Viki of Viki's Kitchen

Preethi of Preethi's online cookbook

Varunavi of My kitchen's aroma

Pooja of Pooja's kitchen

Sara of Sara's corner

Chithra of Ratatouille

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Vegetable Kolhapuri

Vegetable Kolhapuri is a dish from Kolhapur,Maharashtra.

This recipe is Tarla Dalal's.

Ingredients:

Mixed boiled vegetables (carrots, cauliflower, French beans, green peas) - 2 cups

Onions, finely chopped - 1 cup

Tomatoes, finely chopped - ½ cup

Garam masala - 1 ½ teaspoons

Cumin seeds - 1 teaspoon

Oil - 2 tablespoons

salt to taste

Chopped coriander leaves for garnishing


To be ground into a paste:

Desiccated coconut - ¼ cup

Dry red chillies - 3(adjust according to your spicelevel)

Garlic - 2

Ginger - 1 inch piece

Khus-khus (poppy seeds) - 1 tablespoon

Sesame seeds (til) - 1 tablespoon

Coriander seeds - 1 teaspoon

 
Method:

Heat the oil, add the cumin seeds.When they splutter add onions and cook till the onions turn golden brown in colour.

Add the ground paste and tomatoes and cook till the oil separates.

Add the vegetables, salt, garam masala and ¾ cup water and bring it to a boil.

Serve hot garnished with coriander.

It is  a good accompaniment for rice,chapathi or puri.

Printable Recipe

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Fabulous Blog award and Tag Alphabetically

Iam so happy to receive Fabulous blog award from Rekha of Indian Recipes..

Thank U so much Rekha..So sweet of you..I feel honoured.

Ive been Tagged by Preethi of Preethi's online cookbook

The Rules:
1. Link the person who tagged you.
2. Post the rules on your blog.
3. Share the ABCs of you.
4. Tag 4 people at the end of your post by linking to their blogs.
5. Let the 4 tagged people know that they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their website.
6. Do not tag the same person repeatedly but try to tag different people, so that there is a big network of bloggers doing this tag

The Tag:

1. A – Available/Single? none

2. B – Best friend? Many

3. C – Cake or Pie? Cake

4. D – Drink of choice? Water and Buttermilk

5. E – Essential item you use every day? Laptop, Phone,TV

6. F – Favorite color?Pink,Blue,Black

7. G – Gummy Bears Or Worms?Gummybears

8. H – Hometown? Trichy

9. I – Indulgence? Fastfood and Anything chocolatey

10. J – January or February?Makes no difference to me.

11. K – Kids & their names?1.SaiRishabh and a little jelly bean on the way :)Name not yet decided.

12. L – Life is incomplete without? TrueLove

13. M – Marriage date? May6th 2002

14. N – Number of siblings?1 elder sister

15. O – Oranges or Apples?Apples

16. P – Phobias/Fears?Rollercoaster Ride and all scary rides

17. Q – Quote for today? It's never too late -- never too late to start over, never too late to be happy

18. R – Reason to smile? A hug and a kiss from my kiddo

19. S – Season?Spring.

20. T – Tag 4 People?Scroll down to the bottom of this post

21. U – Unknown fact about me? I don't know how to drive a car

22. V – Vegetable you don't like? Spinach

23. W – Worst habit? Take control of the remote and change channels ;)

24. X – X-rays you've had?When I was suspected to have Sinusitis a few years back

25. Y – Your favorite food? Vegetable Pulao

26. Z – Zodiac sign? Gemini

I tag

1)Rekha

2)Shri

3)Varunavi

4)Hema

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Muthusaram/Mullu Murukku

I made this snack for Janmashtami/Krishna Jayanthi.

Ingredients:

Rice flour - 2 cups

Besan /Chickpea Flour - 1/2 cup

Urad dal Flour - 1/2 cup

Chilli Powder - 1 1/2 tsp

White/Black Sesame seeds - 2 tsp

Asafoetida - 1/2 tsp

Butter - 2 Tbsp

Salt to taste

Oil for deep frying - about 3 cups

Water for making the dough

Method:

Mix all the flours together.Add the chilli powder,salt,asafoetida,sesame seeds and required amount of salt.

Melt the butter and add to the flour.Add water little by little till it becomes a smooth dough.

Place the star shaped disc in the murukku press.Fill the dough upto three-quarters of the press.

Heat the oil in a deep pan.

When the oil is hot enough,hold the press over the oil and squeeze the handles of the press in a circular motion.

Cook for sometime.Then turn over the murukku and fry for sometime.

When they become golden brown in color,remove from oil and drain on paper towels.

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Reposts for EC's Breakfast event

Following are my entries for EC's Breakfast Event

1)Set Dosa and Sagu

2)Tomato Dosa with kadapah

3)Idli with vadakari

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Mushroom Pepper Fry

Mushroom Pepper Fry is a very simple dry curry..No grinding..No hassles..It can be prepared within no time.

Ingredients:

Button Mushroom - 1 packet (quartered)

Onions - 2 medium(finely chopped)

Green chillies - 4

Cumin seeds - 1 tsp

Ginger garlic paste - 1 tsp

Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp

Coriander Powder - 1 tsp

Garam Masala - 1/2 tsp

Coarsely ground Black pepper corns - 3 Tbsp(if u like it more spicy increase the amount of pepper)

A sprig of curry leaves

Salt to taste

Oil - 3Tbsp

Method:

Heat oil in a skillet.When the oil is hot,add the cumin seeds.When they splutter,add the finely chopped onions.

When they become translucent,add the ginger garlic paste.Saute till the raw smell goes off.

Then add green chillies,turmeric powder,coriander powder and garam masala.

Now add the curry leaves and mushrooms.Saute till the mushrooms become little bit soft.

Add the required amount of salt and coarsely ground pepper powder.

Close with a lid and cook covered for about 5minutes.

Open and garnish with coriander leaves.

Serve with chapathi or poori.

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Idli Milagai podi/GunPowder

There are umpteen versions of idli podi/milagai podi.This version is my mom's.
When Iam lazy to the core,I would skip making chutney :) and this is my saviour.

Ingredients:

Split black gram dal/Urad dal - 1/2 cup(I used the one with skin on.This gives a nice aroma to the powder)

Channa dal - 1/4 cup

Sesame seeds(White or black) - 1/3 cup

Dry red chillies - 15(increase or decrease the number according to your spice level)

Asafoetida - 1/2 tsp

Salt to taste

Sesame oil/Gingelly oil - 2tbsp

Method:

In a heavy bottomed pan dry roast the sesame seeds.Add 2 tbsp of oil and roast the urad dal and channa dal until they slightly brown.
Then slightly roast the dry red chillies.
Add the asafoetida and required amount of salt.



Grind into a coarse powder.
Optionally a little bit of tamarind and jaggery can be added while grinding.
Mix with little bit of gingelly oil and serve with idli or dosas.

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Mushroom Do Pyaaza

Do Pyaaza literally  translates to double amount of onions added in the masala than the usual amount  in the cooking process with little bit of spices and  mushrooms in a tangy tomato sauce.

Ingredients:

Button Mushrooms - 1 packet(quartered)

Onions - 3 finely chopped

Tomatoes - 2 finely chopped

Garlic - 2

Ginger - 1 inch piece

Green chillies - 3

Cumin seeds - 1 tsp

Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp

Coriander powder - 1 tsp

Garam Masala - 1tsp

Salt to taste

Oil - 4tbsp

Method:

Grind together half of the onions,ginger and garlic into a fine paste.

In a pan heat the oil.When hot enough,add the cumin seeds.When they become slightly brown,add the reamaining chopped onions.When they become translucent,add the paste and fry till the raw smell goes.

Then add the tomatoes and green chillies.When the tomatoes are slightly mushy,add the spice powder one by one and fry for sometime.

Then add the quartered mushrooms and saute till they slightly wilt.Add the required maount of salt and 1/2 cup of water.Close with a lid and simmer for 5 minutes and allow the mushrooms to get cooked well and blend with the masala.

After 5 minutes switch off the stove and garnish with coriander leaves.

Serve with roti,naan or poori.

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Awards and a Tag : Happy Today :)

A special thank You  to my blogger friend Padma of Padma's recipes for passing on 3 lovely awards and for tagging me..Thank you so much! It's so sweet of you.



First Award is the kreative blogger award

Find the Meme and rules of the award here

And two other  awards which are

Love blog award

One lovely blog award

These two awards have a tag attached..So here I go..

What is your current obsession?
Blogging and Baking

* What are you wearing today?
Still in my PJ's

* What’s for dinner?
Adai

* What’s the last thing you bought?
Few Maternity clothes

* What are you listening to right now?
Ilayaraja Hits

* What do you think about the person who tagged you?
She's an enthusiastic blogger with a green thumb :)

* If you could have a house totally paid for, fully furnished anywhere in the world, where would you like it to be?
Chennai

* What are your must-have pieces for summer?
Sunglasses
Sun hat
Cotton pants
Cotton salwars
* If you could go anywhere in the world for the next hour, where would you go?
Hawaii

* Which language do you want to learn?
Malayalam and Spanish

* What’s your favourite quote?
Live life to the fullest!!

* Who do you want to meet right now?
My Parents

* What is your favourite colour?
Baby Pink,Lavender and sky blue

* What is your favourite piece of clothing in your own closet?
My party wear salwars and sarees

* What is your dream job?
Freelance writer or editor

* What’s your favourite magazine?
Women's era,Readers Digest,Vikatan

* If you had $100 now, what would you spend it on?
Maybe buy some essential baby items..

* What do you consider a fashion faux pas? (faux pas mean error in ettiquette.. )
Wearing Too Small a Size irrespective of one's original size

* Who are your style icons?
None

* Describe your personal style.?
Simple

*"What do you try to cook when you have cooking blues (When you feel real lazy to cook some thing)"?
Maggi Noodles

* What are your favourite movies?
Lotsa movies..To name a few
Mouna Ragam
Mozhi
Taare Zameen Par
Life is beautiful

* What are three cosmetic/makeup/perfume products that you can't live without?
Don't use cosmetics at all.
I never go out without my deodarant

* What inspires you?
My mom inspires me
* Give us three styling tips that always work for you:
Dress up according to your body style and not just because a piece of clothing is in trend
Dress up according to the age group and occasion

* What do you do when you “have nothing to wear” (even though your closet’s packed)?
Go on a shopping spree.
* Coffee or tea?
Cofee

* What do you do when you are feeling low or terribly depressed?
Cook up a new dish,or watch a hilarious movie
* What is the meaning of your name?
Attractive

* Favorite Dessert/Sweet?
Rasgulla,Bombay Halwa
* Favorite Season ?
Spring
*Who inspired you to start blog?
My mom and DH

Adding another Question
What is your most funniest cooking disaster?

As the rule goes Iam tagging the following 10 other lovely blogs.
 
Divya of Easy cooking
 
Pinky of  ESHO-BOSHO-AAHARE
 
Deesha at Vegetable platter
 
EC at Simple Indian food
 
Vrindha at Sankeerthanam
 
Sanghi at Sanghi's food delights
 
Shri at Tasty touch
 
Ann at Happy and healthy cooking
 
Viki at Viki's kitchen
 
Saraswathy at Sara's corner
 
Respond and rework – answer the questions on your own blog, replace one question that you dislike with a question of your own invention, and add one more question of your own. Then tag eight or ten other people.

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Vanilla and Chocolate Chip Muffin

I always love to bake muffins.They are soo simple to make and can be done in a jiff..These vanilla chocolate chip muffins are definitely not for those who are health freaks :))

I took this recipe from Joyofbaking.They came out well.The yield is 12 but I got 15.

Ingredients:

Allpurpose flour - 2 cups

Sugar - 2/3 cup

Salt - 1/2 tsp

Baking Powder - 1Tbsp

Melted butter - 1/2 cup

Milk - 1 cup

Eggs slightly beaten - 2

Vanilla essence - 2 tsp

Semisweet chocolate chips - 1 cup

Method:

Preheat oven to 375 deg F and grease muffin tins with nonstick spray or line with muffin liners.

In a large bowl, stir together flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. In another bowl, stir together milk, eggs, butter, and vanilla until blended. Make a well in center of dry ingredients; add milk mixture and stir just to combine. Stir in chocolate chips .

Spoon batter into muffin cups; bake 18-20 minutes, or until a knife inserted in center of one muffin comes out clean. Remove muffin tin to wire rack; cool 5 minutes and remove from tins to finish cooling.



Serve warm.

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