Tamilnadu Easter special menu

Preparing  homemade dessert or spicy snack would make any festival more happier. That too sticking to our traditional food is everyone's wish.
Here are some Easter specials that are popular in Tamilnadu. I thought it would be nice to note down a few suggestions on festive menu for my readers. So gathering a few of my best recipes here.
Here is my visual treat to you all :)

Idli

Idli with goat leg paya kulambu.

Idli , sambar, chutney - A festival breakfast.

Aappam

White aappam (my easy method using rice flour) - Easter special.

Rava kesari

Rava kesari...breakfast dessert

Chicken 65

Chicken 65....make all preparations on the previous night and just do the frying part on special days.

Easy chicken biriyani (in cooker)

Chicken biriyani with onion raitha and egg

Paruppu payasam:

Paal payasam (semiya , javvarisi) kheer:

Easy and delicious dessert.

Simple lime juice;

Plain sweet lime juice for mid-morning or afternoon.

Ulunthu vadai:

urid dal vadai for evening snack.

Masal vadai:

paruppu vadai.

Murukku:

Make some murukku ahead of the festival day to give a nice snack with evening coffee.

Adhirasam

Athirasam :  Indian rice doughnut

Though it may take three days to get the dough ready, this snack is one of the easiest to prepare. This athirasam is my mother in law's recipe and I am glad that I learned it from her.
Munthiri kothu:

Sweet snack:  munthiri kothu .

Sukiyan / susiyam:

Traditional sweet in Tirunelveli.

Notes:
Getting prepared for the festivals needs a little planning ahead. So remember to make a list of the items we are going to prepare and things to do on that day.
Make a grocery list and buy accordingly.
If planning for easy desserts like kheer, then make ahead and keep refrigerated.
Vada batter can be made 2 - 3 days ahead and kept in fridge.
If preparing snacks like susiyam, then make the sweet balls one day ahead and keep in fridge. we can fry it on festival morning.
Keep the cooking for the day easy, by earlier preparation and enjoy the day:)
If you are a beginner to cooking, then just focus on one specialty like breakfast or snack or lunch and make it grand to see your loved ones happy. Try a few and enjoy!
Get up early and enjoy the day thoroughly with your loved ones....that is more important:)

Wishing all a very happy Easter,
Love,
Viki Xavier

Coconut milk icecream

Wishing all a very happy Tamil New year,

Coconut milk ice cream

Ingredients:
coconut milk - 1 1/2 cup
(I used thick coconut milk from carton)
shredded coconut - 1/2 cup
Whipped Topping 8 oz (225 gm) - 2 pack
butter - 1 tsp
sugar - 1 cup (or to taste)
Almond / cashew - 10
cardamom seeds - 1.5 tsp
saffron - 3 strands
Raisin - 1/2 cup
Tooti frooti (dry fruits) - 1/2 cup

Preparation:

Slightly dry roast the almond or cashew and make a powder along with cardamom seeds and sugar.
In 1 tsp butter fry the shredded coconut till it turns mild red and fragrant.
The whipped topping should be kept in the refrigerator (not freezer ...see instructions on container) till we start using.
In a mixing bowl add the powdered almond mixture, shredded coconut, raisin, dry fruits and coconut milk . Mix well.
Now add the whipped topping and mix gently (too much mixing will make the ice cream hard).
Immediately transfer them to a freezer-safe lidded container.
Cover and freeze for 3-4 hours.
Coconut milk ice cream is ready!

Serving suggestion:
Makes a dessert.
Makes 15 servings.

Jackfruit seed fry

Jackfruits in USA is a rare sight except for the Asian stores in some states. My Sakuntala athai (aunt) is my guru in peeling this fruit during her visits on summer vacations. She used to teach me every culinary art she knew , while playing with us too and our summer holidays would be filled with family gatherings and happiness.
Nowadays , I simply walk past my favorite fruit, analyzing (??) its quality and price (while comparing it with an almost inexpensive fruit in India) and also for the time / effort it takes to get the fruits. But this time hubby dear compelled me to buy at least a small piece as he too loves it very much:) Some years ago, as newly married, he used to buy these BIG jack fruits on weekends from koyambedu.  Sometimes he would drive there while coming home, just to pick up this fruit. Our street kids would wow on seeing him with this fruit:) After Saturday lunch he would make me sit and peel the whole fruit, while he was watching his favorite movies and munching these yummies with our little friends:)  The next day our houses would have a lot of jackfruit seeds and we would cook them the whole week:) The next time if I see this fruit, I will not think anything else, except the happiness and sweetness it gives:)  Happy memories are treasures...right !

Tips:
Jackfruit is a composite fruit. Fruit develops from ovary of multiple flowers, e.g. Pineapple, Jack fruit.
Jack fruit seeds are easy to get in Chennai. They sell it in heaps.
In USA, we can get it in freezer aisles in Indian grocery stores.
How to peel / cut jackfruit?
If we can get a fresh (whole) jackfruit, then peel as follows:
  * Spread a lot of news papers underneath and place the jack fruit in the floor.
  *Take a 1/4 cup  of sesame oil (any oil) and generously apply it on our hands and knife.
  *Cut it into half. Remove the hard central stem , that runs from top to bottom.
  *again and again apply oil in our hands, as the gum in jack fruit can't be washed easily if oil is not applied while peeling.
  *Loosen the yellow fruits inside by running the knife all around the edge without cutting the fruit.
 *Take out in small portions and remove all the fibers around individual fruits and place them in a clean bowl. Slit open and remove the seeds.
 * It is a good idea to remove and salvage the seeds, before handing them over for eating. Because many people throw away the seeds without knowing what to do with them:) These seeds can be used as snacks by boiling , dry roasting or stir frying.
 *Jack fruits, once peeled can be eaten fresh. They can be packed in airtight containers and stored in fridge for a week.
 *Jack fruit can be made into jam, kesari, payasam etc. Also it is soaked in honey and eaten as a delicacy.

Jack fruit, the yummiest of all fruits in the world:)...my world:)

After peeling off the edible fruits, take out and save the seeds, before serving.

Peel the outer layer and chop the seeds coarsely

Fried jack fruit seeds

Ingredients:
Jack fruit seeds - 25
salt - taste
coconut oil - 1 or 2 tbsp
turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp
fennel (sombu ) - 1 tsp
curry leaf - 1 sprig
black pepper powder - 1 tsp
red chilly powder - 1/4 tsp
cumin powder - 1/4 tsp
water - 2 tbsp

Method:
Peel the outer white layer of jackfruit seed. Chop into big pieces.
Heat oil in a wok. Add fennel and as it gets red , put the curry leaves.
Then add the chopped seeds, turmeric powder, pepper, cumin, chilly powder.
Stir well for 1 minute. Cook covered with a handful (2 tbsp) water.
After 10 minutes , it would get soft. Then add salt.
The take off lid and fry till it turns little crispy.
Jackfruit seed fry is ready!

Serving suggestion:
Serve as side dish with paruppu kuzhambu / sambar and rice or with curd rice.

Carrot usili

Finding more and more ways to cook carrot is one of my interests, as we get good quality carrot in all seasons at a very cheaper price here. But including it in our meals needs creativity:) Sometimes I make juice or desserts like carrot halwa or cake. Spicy foods like kuruma, stir fries, fried rice, salad, vegetable briyani , raitha, uthappam dosai, paniyaram can also be done. So whenever I go for a grocery shopping I buy a pack of carrots always. Instead of regular baby-carrots, occasionally I sliver these regular carrots for hubby's snack box too:)
Here is one traditional dal based Indian dish, Usili with carrot. Usili is one of the brilliant Indian recipes to make us get protein rich dals easily. I make usili often with many vegetables, as it is our favorite. Hope you all like this carrot usili too !

Ingredients:
Carrot - 3
sesame oil - 1 tbsp
mustard - 1 tsp
green chilly - 1
curry leaf - 1 sprig
shredded coconut - 1 tbsp

To grind:
Thoor dhal (red gram) - 1/2 cup
dry red chilly - 2
cumin - 1 tsp
sea salt - 1 tsp
turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
hing - 1/8 tsp

Method:
Soak dal for 1 hour and grind in a mixie without water along with the other items to a fine paste.
Scoop the dal into idly plates and steam cook for 10 minutes.
Let it get cool completely.
Put it in the mixie again and pulse gently for a few times, so that the cooked dal looks loose.
(We can mash by hands too, but this mixie method will give good looking usili).
In the mean time wash and peel the carrot. cut them into small cubes.
Heat oil in a wok and let mustard splutter.
Then add the curry leaves, split green chilly, chopped carrot and stir fry it.
Cook covered along with very little salt for 5 minutes.
Then add the prepared dal mixture and stir fry it in high flame for few minutes.
Add shredded coconut and switch off.
Carrot usili is ready!

Serving suggestions:
Serve with kara kulambu + rice or rasam + rice.

Other recipes to cook carrot :
Vegetable uthappam (dosai)
sambar rice
sambar
fresh masala sambar
vegetable briyani
cabbage carrot poriyal
Tri color stir fry
carrot cake
carrot orange juice
Carrot pumpkin cake
carrot halwa 
carrot kuli paniyaram

Shrimp Kebab

Kebabs are always fun food. While chicken kebabs are quite popular, I like different varieties  like fruit kebab, fish kebab also. Here is one kebab for the shrimp lovers.

Shrimp with broccoli and onion Kabab

Ingredients:
Shrimp - 12
onion - 1
broccoli or capsicum or tomato or pineapple - few pieces
lemon- 1/4
skewers - 4
olive oil or butter - few tsp

Masala for marination:
Lemon juice from  1/2 fruit
salt - to taste
red chilly powder - 1 tsp
garam masala - 1 tsp
turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp
corn starch - 1 tbsp (optional)

Method:
Soak the skewers in water for 1 hour minimum.
Mix the masalas  in a small bowl.
Clean the shrimp and retain the tail. Marinate the shrimp pieces in the masala for 10 minutes.
Take them out.
In the same time roughly chop the broccoli / capsicum / pineapple / tomato along with onion and mix with left over masala mixture.
Preheat the oven to 350 deg C.
Thread the shrimp and vegetables as per wish.
Arrange  the skewers in baking sheet and drizzle little olive oil or butter over it.
Bake for 10 minutes one side and 3 minutes after flipping to other side.
Take out and squeeze some lemon juice over the kebab.
Shrimp vegetable kabob is ready!

Serving suggestion:
Serve as appetizer or main course.

Brinjal roast

Brinjal roast is another favorite for us. I made this last year using our fresh homegrown eggplant. Try and enjoy this easy side dish.

Ingredients:
Eggplant - 1
turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
red chilly powder - 1 tsp
curry masala powder - 1 tsp
salt - to taste
oil - 1 tbsp per batch

Method:
Slice the eggplant into 1/2 inch thick circles or semi circles.
Keep it in a large mixing bowl.
In a  small bowl mix all ingredients except oil.
Add the masala mixture to the brinjal slices and shake to coat thoroughly.
Keep marinated for 10 minutes.
In a frying pan , heat 1 tbsp oil, then fry a small batch of brinjal slices both sides (almost 1 minute per side).
Take out, repeat and fry all the slices.
Pan roasted brinjal fry is ready!

Serving suggestion:
Serve as side dish with sambar rice or curd rice.

Note:
Deep frying these brinjal slices will taste incredible good, but pan roasting is easier.

Senai kilangu paruppu koottu (Suran dal)

Senai kizhangu paruppu koottu / Elephant yam subzi.
I learned this dal curry with senai kilangu through one of the nice lady I met. Packiam amma used to cook lunch and dinner in our house for quite a long time then.  My parents' kitchen is very large and I used to keep a cute little place for my study table there till I finished college. So whenever I want a relaxation or change of mood from my studies on weekends, I would help and learn in kitchen too :) That's how this dal curry entered my recipe collection from one of the sweetest cook Packiam amma.
Before that we used to make a fried senai kilangu  only, but I like this recipe also very much.

Frozen suran

Senai kilangu paruppu koottu / Suran dal curry

A simple lunch: Puli kulambu, suran dal curry, curd, pappad, rice.

Ingredients:
Suran / elephant yam / senai kizhangu - 200 gm
oil - 2 tsp
mustard - 1  tsp
channa dal - 1 tbsp
curry leaf - 1 sprig
onion (chopped) - 2 tbsp
Tuvaram paruppu (Toor dal) - 1/2 cup
turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
hing - 1/8 tsp
salt - to taste

To grind:
Coconut - 3 tbsp
cumin - 1/2 tsp
green chilly - 4

Method: 
1.Wash the dal. Add turmeric powder, hing, 2 cups water. Cook it in pressure cooker till one whistle , reduce heat and cook in medium heat for 10 minutes. Keep aside.
2. In a wok heat 2 tsp oil, add mustard seeds, channa dal and let the mustard crack. Then add chopped onion, curry leaves. Saute till onion turns soft. Cut the yam into small cubes (1 inch size) and add to wok. Pour 1/2 cup water and cook covered.
3. Grind coconut, green chilly, cumin to a coarse paste. After the yam gets cooked (10 minutes), add the masala paste, salt, cooked dal and being to a boil. If desired garnish with finely chopped cilantro and switch off.
Senai kizhangu paruppu koottu is ready!

Serving suggestion:
Serve as side dish with rice.

Other ways to cook senai kizhangu:
Senai kilangu stir fry
Erissery
Pongal puli curry

Fish fry with green masala

What will you do, when one of your vegetarian friends is in need of a fish recipe temporarily, that doesn't smell too much? I prepared this new recipe when my friend was in need to include fish diet for the first time for her husband. I showed her to process the fish and the benefits of having it as curry than deep frying. But I knew , eating fried fish is easier for the beginners. My ordinary fried fish would have more fish smell, so she wanted one with more spices and I found this recipe myself:)  On that day we made it with butterfish . Then the next weekend I made it with pompano fish for us. (Butterfish can be made as whole fish fry, by slitting few lines and stuffing it with this masala). We tried tandoori method too, but frying tasted better. Now I am glad that this has became my hubby's favorite too.

Fish marinating in green masala

Ingredients:
Pompano fish or pomfret  (vaaval meen) - 1/2 kg (1 lb)
corn starch or rice flour - 1 tbsp

To grind:
salt - 2 tsp
green chillies - 4
turmeric powder- 1/2 tsp
Coriander powder - 2 tsp
cilantro - 2 handful
ginger - 1 inch
garlic - 4 cloves
black pepper - 1 tsp
cumin - 1 tsp

others:
lemon - 1 (juice)

Oil (to deep fry) - 200 ml (1 cup)
(I used corn oil here).

Method:
Wash the fish and remove all the fins and scales by a knife.
Then slice it into thin slices (as shown in photo).

Apply little turmeric powder over the fish and keep aside.

Grind the items given without adding water. If needed add few tsp of lemon juice.
Then mix this with corn flour or corn starch.

Mix the ground masala with the powders and salt given above.

Gently rub the masala over the fish slices(dab some masala inside the fish too)and marinate for 30 minutes.

Heat oil in a broad based wok .Fry the fish both sides crispy.

Fish fry is ready! Sprinkle some lemon juice all over the fried fish to jazz up the taste.

Serving suggestions:
Serve as side dish with any rice. The suitable combinations are sambar rice , rasam rice or meen kulambu rice.

Pav bhaji

Pav bhaji can be related to buttery mashed potatoes with an Indian touch. It is one of the popular dishes in North India and will come under 'chaat food' or 'street food' category. It will be typically served with a toasted bun called pav bun (looking like small burger buns).
The base for this curry is always potatoes and in some occasions raw plantain. Also it is noted for its rich butter / ghee flavor. It is one of my most favorites and my neighbor aunty would bring us this yummy gravy often. I used to make this with a readymade powder masala. But here is a recipe for this famous pav bhaji from scratch.

Pav bhajji with little ghee on top.

Pav bhaji is ready !

Tempering for bhajji

Boiled potato and vegetables.

Ingredients:
Boiled potato - 3 or 4
cauliflower - 1 cup
carrot - 1
green peas - 1/2 cup
capsicum - 1/2
onion - 1/2
tomato - 1
ginger - 2 inch
garlic - 3 cloves
green chillies - 3
cilantro - handful
milk - 1 cup (optional)

To powder :
Fennel - 1 tbsp

others:
ghee / butter - 3 tbsp
oil - 3 tbsp
cinnamon - small piece
bay leaf - 1
curry masala powder - 1 tbsp
red chilli powder - 1 tsp
turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
cumin powder - 1/2 tsp
salt - to taste
ghee - few tsp while serving.
lime juice - 2 tbsp

Method:
Pressure cook the potatoes for 3 whistles or in 5 minutes in simmer after 1 whistle.
Put them in cold water and peel immediately. Mash finely using hands or a masher / spatula.
Mean while chop the cauliflower, capsicum, carrot finely and put them in a large wok with 1 cup water or milk. Put green peas also and cook till tender. To this add the mashed potatoes, turmeric powder, salt, garam/ curry masala powder, cumin powder and bring to a boil. Mash with spatula again coarsely, so that all vegetables get mixed very well.
 
Heat oil+butter in a wok and add cinnamon, bay leaf. Then add minced onion and stir fry for  a few seconds. Then add chopped tomato. Saute till oil separates. Finely chop ginger and garlic. Pour this to the boiling vegetables mixture.

Dry roast the fennel and powder it. Add this powder to the boiling mixture. If needed add some more water , so that the curry comes to a thick gravy consistency.

Switch off and mix lime juice, cilantro.

Pav bhaji is ready !

Serving suggestion:
It is traditional to add little ghee on top of the pav bhaji while it is served hot.
Serve with toasted pav buns or any roti.
Raw sliced onion and lemon are kept along with this bhaji.
Tastes good with dosa too.

Note:
My version is a simple pav bhaji recipe  'without pav spice masala mix'. We can find this pav masala easily in any  Indian grocery store (in the masala powder aisle).
If using pav bhaji readymade masala , then  don't add fennel / Sauf powder, cumin powder, curry masala powder. Pav masala has everything together.

Spicy masala dosai

In South India, we make Masala dosai by stuffing the dosa with yellow poori masala. But the masala stuffing varies from city to city. My neighbor aunty (from Gujarat), gave me a spicy masala dosa on a  morning and I totally loved her version. Here is  her version. Enjoy this with sambar and chutney for a  delicious dinner

Potato masala:
Boiled potato - 3
red onion - 1/2
ginger garlic paste - 1 tsp
turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp
red chilli powder - 1 tsp
cilantro - few leaves.
salt - to taste
garam masala / curry masala powder - 3/4 tsp
lemon juice - 1 tsp
oil - 1 tbsp
fennel - 1 tsp
Tomato ketchup - 1 tsp per dosai (optional)

Peel the boiled potatoes and mash almost finely.
Heat oil  in a wok, add fennel (sombu). As it gets red, add finely chopped onion. After the onion gets soft, add ginger garlic paste and saute till raw smell goes. Add the turmeric powder, chili powder, curry masala powder and mix for 10 seconds. Then add the mashed potatoes, salt, cilantro and cook covered with handful of water for 5 minutes.
After switching off sprinkle lemon juice and keep aside.

Dosa:
Dosa batter - 2 cup
sesame oil - as per need
ghee - optional

Method:
Heat a dosa tawa. Sprinkle few drops of sesame oil. Soak a clean cloth with water and wipe it off, so that the tawa is completely coated with oil.
Pour a 1/2 cup batter (for a large dosa tawa or lesser for a small tawa).  Spread it in circle to get a medium thick dosa. Drizzle some ghee on top of it. Flip as it gets mild red on one side.
After it gets cooked both sides, take the dosa and keep it on a plate as if the red side remains at bottom. Spread the tomato ketchup over the dosai. Take a scoop of potato masala and spread over it and fold. Masala dosai is ready!

Serving suggestion:
Serve with sambar and coconut chutney as dinner or any main course meal.

Note for beginners:
It would be laborious to make all these potato masala, dosa batter, sambar , chutney on a single day. I am sure , no Indian would do like that. So I generally make dosa batter ahead and keep refrigerated always.  Potato masal I have mentioned here can be prepared a day before for lunch pack along with chapati or rice. Like wise  sambar can also be saved from lunch. So if we plan ahead it would be easier for us to make this masal dosa for our loving family.

Coconut milk vegetable biriyani

Making biriyani with coconut milk is more popular in Tamilnadu and Kerala, where we get lot of coconuts easily. Even today, we can see many coconut trees surrounding houses in my hometown. In my dad's house we used to pick the coconuts by hiring a person regularly and would store them in  a small den like place near kitchen. Isn't it cool to have some coconut trees of our own, enjoying the fresh air along with tender coconuts and coconut for cooking:) So making use of coconuts is more in my tradition than ghee. Here is one biriyani I make with coconut milk.

I made this biriyani for a potluck function to celebrate one of our friend's (Emelda) birthday and another friend's (Priya) wedding anniversary. As it was a Friday, many of us were vegetarians on that day and we decided to make veg as well as non veg biriyanis.  While the birthday girl was making a super soft surprise coffee cake for Priya (and Dindigul chicken biriyani ), I surprised Emelda with a carrot cake on her birthday:) Our friend Brinda had made a very delicious cutlet and raitha, while another friend bringing drinks, icecream and chips. A big thanks to our friend Elizabeth for organizing and conducting these parties together in her pretty house. Also she had made chicken curry and pasiparuppu payasam along with arranging everything together and hosted the party. While the men were roaming around, talking and enjoying themselves, we ladies played with kids, talked a lot and not to mention we all enjoyed the foods very much.  Totally we had a wonderful party!

Coconut milk vegetable biriyani with chicken curry, raitha and boiled egg.

After dhum process

Biriyani in dhum:Dum biriyani sandwiched between  Hot dosa tawa (bottom) and hot water (top vessel).

Biriyani before dhum.

Vegetables for biriyani along with pure coconut milk.

(Carrot cake:) Birthday cake I made for my friend.

Vegetables:
Cauli flower - 1/4 flower (chopped 1 cup) , green beans - 20 , carrot -1 , green peas - 1/2 cup , cooked double beans - 1 cup, potato -1 , green capsicum - 1/2 , soya chunks or bread crumbs - optional (see note below).

Ingredients:
Basmathi rice / Jeeraga samba raw rice - 5 cups
medium thick coconut milk - 1.5 cup
Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
Red onion - 2 (medium size)
green chillis - 5 (uncut).
Lemon - 1
Tomato - 4
curry masala powder - 1 tsp
red chilli powder - 1 1/2 tsp

To temper:
Fennel - 1 tsp
bay leaves - 2
star aniseed - 1,
cinnamom stick - 2 inch
cardamom - 2
cloves - 4
ghee - 2 tbsp
Any cooking oil - 1/2 cup
cashew nuts -10
raisins- 10.
salt - to taste

Masala - 1
cilantro- 10 stems
mint leaf -1 handful.

Masala 2:
Ginger - 2 inch
Garlic - 1 (whole) peeled

Preparation:
wash and clean the vegetables. peel the skin of carrot and cut into long thin slices.
Cut the green beans in to long pieces.
Pluck 5 -6 florets from the cauliflower.
Defreeze the green peas.

Wash the rice and soak it for 10 minutes.

Grind all the pastes separately.

Chop onion and keep aside.

Method:
Heat oil + ghee in a biriyani vessel.
Add fennel ,star aniseed , cinnamon stick,cardamom ,cloves, bay leaf , cashew, raisin.
Then goes the chopped onion . Add 1 tbsp sugar at this point to make the briyani more flavorful and it cooks onion soon too.
Fry it till golden brown and add the ginger garlic paste and stir well till the raw smell goes.
Now add the finely chopped tomato and cook till the oil oozes out of it.  Add the cilantro paste and cook well till raw smell goes. Add all the powders given.
Now put the vegetables, green chillies and add salt. Cook for just 2 minutes. The vegetables should be tender but crisp. Pour coconut milk. Switch off.

In the mean time, in a separate vessel bring lot of water (10 cups) to boil. Add lemon juice, salt and rice. Cook for 3 to 4 minutes in rolling boil. Drain water while the rice is 75 % cooked. Now add this rice to the vegetables. (keep that hot water safe for making the dhum process...see image). In this stage add cooked double beans or butter beans.

Start heating the biriyani vessel again. Mix well now and check for salt in this stage.

Close with a tight lid and place this vessel over a hot dosa tawa (girdle / flat pan) . In a separate vessel pour the hot water which we got while cooking rice and place it above the biriyani vessel. This is a homely dhum process. Reduce the flame to minimum. After 30 - 40 minutes the biryani will be ready!

Serving suggestions:
Garnish with chopped cilantro , mint leaves and ghee fried bread crumbs.
Serve vegetable biryani hot with onion raitha .

Note:
*Instead of dhum process , we can pressure cook it also. Bring to 1 whistle, reduce flame and keep in low for 5 minutes. Switch off then.
*Double beans or butter beans or rajma can be bought in a can or in dry form. Dry double beans should be soaked for 3-4 hours and pressure cooked for 1 whistle. switch off and check if it is cooked. If not continue cooking in stove top, as it gets mushy easily after 1 whistle.
*Bread crumbs: slice one or two fresh bread slices into 1.5 inch cubes. Fry all in small batches in 1 tsp ghee in a shallow tawa. This can be replaced by soya chunks or paneers pieces. Adding some star ingredients like this will make the vegetable briyani more special.
*Don't use thick bottom vessels for making briyani, as it will retain heat differently and will make briyani mushy. I had done this before and found out now:) Regular broad vessels are only suitable for dhum briyani.

Typical biriyani aluminum vessel degchi (photo courtesy: here)...its not mine:) want one  like this...perhaps a little smaller is enough...ha ha:)

*Approx....Number of adults : 11 and kids 5. I had made this dish with 5 cups of rice (so is my friend for chicken briyani), so that we all could share some for the next day, so we ladies could be relaxed the next day.
But calculate  the ingredients as per your need.  Noting this measurement for my future reference.

Podi mini idli

If you like cute miniature foods , then this post is definitely for you:) Podi idly is a non traditional form of idly (rice cake) , created by Indian mothers to make the kids love their food. We cannot see these kind of motherly foods in restaurants, as it definitely needs some special love for the family eating it. I have made small mini idlies and prepared this simple breakfast. But my mom used to make this using regular big idli and pack this for lunch. At that time, getting a mini idly stand was not that easy for people in my town, as all the stores we got were small and would have the traditional vessels only:) After buying all types of traditional kitchenware, we women would look out for more choices and the market is full of newer equipments now:)
The specialty of this idli is, it never gets dry because of the idli powder, sesame oil mixture. So it is a better choice than regular idli for picnics and lunch boxes too.
Also check out my sambar mini idly too.
I made it for breakfast for us on a weekday, and love the way hubby dear exclaimed and enjoyed it:) So prepare this and make your sweetheart happy:)

Mini idli coated with idli-podi

For mini idly:

Idly batter - 1 cup
ghee - 2 tbsp
mini idly stand
idly cooker or a pot to steam the idly.
Idli podi - 2 tbsp
sesame oil - as per need ( 3 tbsp)

Method:

Grease the idly plates with very little ghee.
Pour the batter in the idly holes using small spoon.
Heat the pressure cooker (idly cooker if any) with 2 cups of water and place the idly stand carefully inside.
steam the idlies for 7 to 10 minutes without keeping the pressure valve.
Then let the idly loose the heat for 5 minutes and scoop out the idlies carefully using a spoon.

Mix the idly podi with sesame oil in a  bowl.
Place the required number of mini idli in the mixing bowl and  gently stir to coat all the idlies.
If needed add more sesame oil over the idlies.
(If using regular idlies, then coat each idly individually by dipping on the prepared podi and pack for lunch in an airtight container).

Serving suggestion:

Serve as breakfast or make a lunch pack.

Oats granola

Here is a sweet snack I made for us during a weekend. I saw this recipe in foodnetwork by Alton Brown. Click to see the original version. In my recipe I have infused my own method to bake to avoid charring. Enjoy!

Oats granola.

After baking.

Spread on cookie sheet.

Mix oats , nuts with sugar.

Ingredients:
Old fashioned oats - 3 1/2 cups
dry coconut flakes - 1/2 cup
slivered almond - 1 cup
cashew - 1/2 cup
peepled pumpkin seed -  1/2 cup
dark brown sugar - 1/2 cup
maple syrup - 1/2 cup
olive oil - 1/4 cup
salt - 3/4 tsp
raisin - 1 cup

Method:
In a large mixing bowl put oats, nuts,dry fruits, coconut, sugar.
In another bowl mix maple syrup, salt, oil.
Pour the liquids to dry ingredients and mix well.
Spread this in two baking sheets.
Preheat oven to 250 deg F.
Bake for 20 minutes, stirring after 10 minutes.
Take out and let dry for 30 minutes.
Then bake again for 20 minutes, stirring after 10 minutes.
Switch off and let it get crispy in that heat for next 10 minutes.
Oats granola is ready!

Note:
We can continuously bake for 1 hour, as suggested by the original recipe too. But I do like this for a more safer method to prevent sugar from charring.

Gulabjamun (with egg)

Whenever I buy a pack of gulabjamun mix I would always wonder how much effort our mothers would have put to make these from scratch. Those olden recipes involve making a palkova without sugar, which itself demands lot of time and then mixing it with Ap flour, etc . While talking about this to my neighbor aunty, she told me that it can be made easily with milk powder and it is not necessary to buy a ready-pack . She also told me that it is a popular way there in NorthIndia and Pakistan. I was totally impressed by her recipe, but didn't note down on that day (now I have noted down her veggie version too). That day I wanted to make one immediately and searched the net and got a recipe of Gulabjamun with egg. This recipe is adopted from Morewish cuisine.  Egg in gulabjamun may sound unique but it tasted extremely good.  My hearty thanks to this author, I am going to use this inexpensive way hereafter instead of buying a pack. Hope you all enjoy this !

Have  a look inside and see how spongy and soft:)

Ingredients:
Milk powder - 1 cup
Egg - 1
Ghee - 1 tbsp
Maida (AP flour) - 1 tbsp
sooji (ravai) - 1 tbsp
baking soda - 1/4 tsp
baking powder - 1/4 tsp
Oil for frying- 1 cup + 1 tbsp ghee
For syrup:
Sugar - 1 cup
water - 1 cup
Rose essence - 1 drop
cardamom powder - 1/8 tsp
alomond slivers - to decorate

Method:
Make the syrup by mixing sugar with water and bring to a boil. Reduce flame and boil for 2 more minutes. Switch off and keep it warm. add cardamom powder and rose essence.
Mix all the dry ingredients first. Then mix ghee and stir well. Beat the egg with a  fork and add to the mixing bowl. Knead to a smooth dough. Don't knead too much. Make a smooth dough.
Divide it into 15 - 16 pieces and roll each piece into small balls or elongated balls. By toughing some oil or ghee smooth the gulab jamuns, so that there is no crack.

Heat oil  + ghee in a frying pan. Keep the flame in minimum and fry the jamuns in small batches, till they get golden red color.
Take them out and soak in prepared syrup.
Let it soak for an hour or overnight before serving.
Decorate with almond slivers.
Gulab jamun is ready!

Serving suggestion:
Makes 16 gulabjamuns.
Serve warm or cold as dessert.

Note:
This is the best way to make gulabjamuns that gets cooked inside and outside uniformly.
As soon as it is soaked (within few minutes) it may taste a little salty. But after an hour or more this gulabjamuns will be perfectly sweet and soft.

Quinoa upma

Quinoa is another good grain I started cooking in recent years. Generally quinoa can be made into a salad. It blends with many Indian recipes easily and here is my Uppuma (upma or kichidi) with Quinoa. Quinoa comes in a rainbow of colors, I picked up this red quinoa as it looked more pretty in that aisle:) Other than that all tastes almost the same. But red quinoa has more crunchy texture. We can use any variety for this upma recipe.

Quinoa upma with vegetables

Ingredients: (for 2 adults)
Quinoa - 1/2 cup
water - 1 1/2 cup
Tempering:
olive oil - 1 1/2  tbsp
channa dal - 1 tbsp
mustard seed - 1/2 tsp
onion - 2 tbsp 
green chilly - 2
ginger - small piece (1/2 inch)
curry leaf - few
cilantro - few
salt - to taste
carrot - 1
green peas - handful
  
Method: 
Wash the quinoa thrice in running water with gentle rubbing with our palm (as per directions). This is done to remove bitterness.

Heat 2 tbsp oil in a wok.
Add mustard seed. let it splutter. Then add the channa dhal. Wait till it gets red. Then add chopped onion, curry leaf, cilantro, ginger, green chilly. As the onion starts to get soft, add chopped carrot, peas and stir for a minute.
Pour water + Salt and let it come to a boil.
Then reduce flame and add quinoa.
Cover tightly with a lid. Reduce flame to minimum.
Cook for 15 minutes or little more to get the quinoa completely cooked.  Then stir well.
Switch off. Quinoa upma is ready!

Serving suggestions:
Serve as dinner along with pickle or sugar.

Happy Valentine's day ,

Gulabjamun from milk power and egg. Pre Valentine's day Gift Feb 10

Valentine's day treat: Kesari with icecream

Wishing all a very happy St. Valentine's day !
Love,
Viki Xavier