Diwali sweets & snacks

Aval upma / aval upma recipe / How to make poha upma /poha upma / flattend rice upma / Indian breakfast recipe

It's very easy to prepare this delicious breakfast / dinner recipe.
It's ideal for lunch box.

Ingredients

2 cups poha  / beaten rice ( I used red poha)
1/4 cup finely chopped onion
1/4cup finely chopped tomato
1/2 cup boiled mixed vegetables (carrots, cauliflower,Green peace, sweet corn)
1/2 tsp ginger
1/4 tsp red chillie powder or 1 green chillie
2 tbsp fried peanuts
1/4 tsp turmeric powder
2 tsp oil
1/4 tsp mustard
Few curry & coriander leaves ( I don't use both here)
2 tbsp lemon juice
Salt to taste.

Method

Wash poha for 2 to 3 times, soak for 3 minutes,
strain it and set aside.
Heat oil in a pan, add peanuts and shallow fry them and
transfer to a plate.
In the remaining oil add mustard, when it starts spluttring,
add ginger, onion saute untile it becomes translucent.
Add tomatoes, turmeric powder and salt cook for 2 minutes.
Add poha mix gently cook for a minute.
Add boiled vegetables and mix well, cook for 2 minutes.
Switch off the flame, add lemon juice and mix well.
Garnish with shallow fried peanuts.

Note

You can sprinkle sev before serving this.
You can add boiled potatoes also.

Instant Rasam

Ingredients

1/4 kg tomatoes
Tamarind lemon size
1 green chillie
Garlic few
Few curry leaves
Few coriander leaves
1/8 tsp asafoetida
1/4 tsp turmeric powder
2 tsp rasam powder
Salt

Method

In a cooker add above all with 1/2 cup of water.
Cook for 3 whistles and switch off the flame.
After 15 minutes open the cooker and blend them.
Strain and cool it, store it in an air tight container.
You can take a tbsp of this concentrate add with 2 cups of boiling water or cooked dal water.
(Adjust water and salt as required)
Season this with mustard, jeera, red chille.
You can store this up to a month in freezer.

Palak pulao / spinach pulao / how to make palak pulao / palak pulao recip / palak rice /spinach rice

Ingredients

2 cups basmati rice
1cup coconut milk
1 bunch palak / spinach leaves
1/2 bunch pudina / mint leaves
1/4 bunch coriander leaves
1/4 cup sliced onions
2 green chillies
2 tbsp minced ginger
2 tbsp minced garlic
2 tbsp ghee
1 tbsp oil
1/4 tsp sounf / fennel
1 cardamom
1 bay leaf

2 tsp lemon juice (optional)

1/4 tsp garam masala powder
Few cashewnuts
A pinch turmeric powder
Salt to taste

Preparation

Soak rice for 30 minutes and drain the water.
For palak puree
In a blender add palak, mint, coriander leaves and green chillie add some water make a puree and set aside. (2 cups all together)
Fry cashewnuts and onions in 1 tbsp of ghee and set aside.

Method

Heat oil and ghee in a cooker  add sounf, garlic, ginger, bay leaf, cardamom and saute.
Add palak puree, lemon juice, turmeric powder, garam masala powder and allow to boil.
Add coconut milk salt mix well and bring to boil.
Close the cooker and cook for 2 whistles in medium flame
and switch off the flame.
Open the cooker after 10 to 15 minutes.
Add fried onions and cashewnuts mix gently.
Serve hot this palak pulao with any raitha /chips /potato fry

Tips

1. For 1 cup rice 2 cups of water.

2. If you are soaking the rice, then  use only 11/2 cups of water.

3. Increase or decrease green chillie according to your taste.

Bottle gourd kheer /doodhi kheer / lauki kheer / how to make doodhi kheer / lauki kheer recipe / sorakai payasam / sorakai payasam recipe

Ingredients

1 cup grated bottle gourd (extract juice)
1/2 liter milk
4 tbsp sugar
2 tsp ghee
Few roasted cashewnuts & raisins
1/4 tsp cardamom powder
A pinch green colour (optional)


Method
In pan heat ghee, bottle gourd
and saute for a minute.
Add boiled milk and cook on medium flame
until bottle gourd cooked well, stir in between.
Now add sugar mix well and cook for 2 minutes.
Add green colour, cardamom powder mix well.
Finally add roasted cashewnuts & raisins.
Ready to serve bottle gourd kheer.
You can serve this hot or cold.
Note
you can add more or less sugar according to your taste.

Easy rasam / quick rasam / simple rasam / how to make easy rasam / how to make simple rasam

This is very simple, quick and very easy Rasam

Ingredients

1 chopped tomato
Small marble size tamarind
Few garlic, curry & coriander leaves
1/2 tsp rasam powder
1/4 tsp turmeric powder
Salt to taste
For seasoning
1/2 tsp ghee
1/4 tsp each mustard, jeera
A pinch asafoetida
1 red chillie
Few curry leaves

Method

In bowl add add tomatoes, tamarind, rasam powder, turmeric powder, salt, curry & coriander leaves.
Add 1 cup water boil for 5 minutes.
Now add one more cup water bring to boil.
Add seasoning with ghee, mustard, jeera, asafoetida,
Red chillie and curry leaves. 

Palak soup / how to make palak soup / palak soup recipe

It's very simple and easy  version of palak soup.

Ingredients

1 cup blanched palak
3 tbsp of chopped onion
4 tbsp boiled milk
1 tbsp chopped garlic
1 small green chillie
1 tbsp butter
1 tbsp fresh cream (optional)
Salt to taste

Method

Heat pan, add butter, onion, green chillie and garlic saute for a minute.
In a blender add the above, blanched palak, milk,
some water and blend it and strain.
Heat pan, add the above palak puree and salt cook for 3 to 4 minutes.
Finally add fresh cream mix well and serve hot.

Barley vegetable soup / mixed vegetable soup with barley / barley vegetable soup recipe / how to make barley vegetable soup

Ingredients

1 cup Mixed vegetables (onion,cauliflower,cabbage,carrot,baby corn & beans)
3 tbsp boiled barley (soaked over night)
1 cup rice washed water
1 tsp each  chopped ginger & garlic
freshly crushed pepper
1 tsp corn flour (optional)
Salt to taste

Method

Boil vegetables,ginger and garlic in rice washed water
with salt.
Add boiled barley along with its water.
Add corn flour mixed with little water.
Allow to boil, cook for 3 to 4 minutes.
Add freshly crushed pepper to this and serve hot.
Very simple and healthy barley vegetable soup is ready.

Moong Dal Shorba / moong dal shorba recipe / how to make dal shorba / lentils soup / how to make dal shorba

Ingredients

1/2 cup moong dal
2 tbsp chopped onions
2 tbsp chopped tomatoes
2 tsp butter
1 tsp chopped ginger
1 tsp chopped garlic
1 green chillie
1 bay leaf
A pinch turmeric powder
1 tsp chopped coriander leaves
1/8 tsp pepper powder
Salt to taste

Method

Pressure cook moong dal and set aside.
Heat a tsp of butter in a pan, add garlic, ginger, bay leaf,
onions,tomatoes, green chillie, turmeric power and salt
saute for a minute.
Add 2 cups of water and bring to boil.
Now add cooked moong dal to this and mix well.
Allow to cook for 5 minutes adjust water according to the soup consistency and switch off the flame.
Blend the above soup and strain it.
Garnish with butter,coriander leaves and pepper powder.
Serve hot this soup with toasted bread.

Another way of doing this soup

Heat butter in a cooker, add ginger, garlic, green chillie,
bay leaf,onion, tomato, turmeric powder and salt saute for a minute.
Add moong dal give it a stir and add 2 cups of water
and bring it to boil, cover and cook it for 3 whistles.
Then blend the dal mix and strain it.
Add remaining butter, coriander leaves and pepper powder.
Ready to serve moong dal shorba.

Ladies finger stir fry / ladies finger fry /okra fry /vendakkai poriyal /bendakaya vepudu / tawa bhindi fry / okra fry /Indian okra recipe / bhindi pan fry / ladies finger fry recipe

Ingredients

1/4 kg chopped ladies finger
2 tbsp fried onions
2 tbsp oil
1/4 tsp red chillie powder
1/4 tsp mustard
1/4 tsp urad dal
1/8tsp turmeric powder
Salt to taste

Method

Heat oil in a pan, add mustard when it starts sputtering, add urad dal and saute.
Add ladies finger, turmeric powder mix well and cook for 5 minutes in medium flame, saute in between.
Now add red chillie powder and salt cook for 4 to 5 minutes.
Finally add fried onions mix well cook for 2 more minutes.
Ready to serve ladies finger fry.

Avakaya / Andhra avakaya pachadi / avakaya pacha di / mango pickle / how to make avaka pickle / avakaya recipe

This is my version of doing avaka / avakaya pickle
It's  very simple and easy to make this recipe.
Just mixing all raw ingredients together.
Everything should be Sun driend well before mixing.

Ingredients   
               
5 cups cut mangoes  (pickle mango)     
1 cup mustard  powder
3/4cup red chillie powder                   
3/4 cup salt   
1 tsp turmeric powder             
1/4 cup garlic (optional)                     
2 tbsp fenugreek       
2 cups gingerly oil

Method 
                   
Mix mangoes, turmeric powder and salt well, cover and
set aside for a  day.
Next day  again mix well this, add red chillie powder, mustard powder, fenugreek, garlic and 1 cup oil mix well, cover and keep aside for 1 days.
Next day add 1 more cup oil mix well.
Just every day mix well with dry wooden ladle.
Like this do every day for 10 to 15 days.
After 2 weeks pickle is ready to serve.

Note

Don't reduce oil or salt they act as natural preservatives.
If you maintain properly you can store it for a year without refrigerator.
Mix it once in a while in between.
Store this pickle in glass container or porcelain jar
with  tightly wrapped white cloth.

Drumstick leaves rice / murungai keerai rice /drumstick leaves rice recipe / how to make drumstick leaves rice

2 cups cooked rice
2 cups drumstick leaves
1/4 cup chopped onion
1 tsp chopped garlic
1/2 tsp red chillie powder
1/8 tsp turmeric powder
2 tsp oil
Salt to taste

For dry powder
2 tbsp flax seeds
1 tbsp peanuts
1 tbsp urad dal
Dry roast and blend to a coarse powder

Method
Heat oil in a pan, add garlic, onion saute for 2 minutes.
Add drumstick leaves, red chillie powder and turmeric powder and cook for 5 to 6 minutes.
Add roasted powder and salt mix well, cook for 4 minutes in low flame and switch off the flame.
Now add cooked rice to the above mix gently.
Ready to serve drumstick leaves rice.

Health Benefits of drumstick leaves / Murunga

Improves bone health. Moringa leaves are rich source of calcium and phosphorus. Bothof these elements are needed for good bone strength.

Moringa leaves have an anti -inflammatory properties, which helps in combat arthritis, osteoporosis and keeps our bone and teeth strong.

Moringa leaves are rich  in vitamins and minerals.

Rich in Vitamin A, B, B1,B6 C and beta - carotene.

Rich in Iron and riboflavin.

They are rich in amino acids. 18 types os amino acids are found in them and each of them makes an important contribution towards our wellbeing.

These leave s are used to increase lactation in nursing mothers.Consuming moringa leaves are very good for the health of mother and baby.

Murungai keerai adai / drumstick leaves adai / murungai keerai adai recipe / how to make drumstick leaves adai / drumstick leaves recipe

Very simple, easy and healthy recipe

Ingredients

1 cup idly rice / boiled rice (soaked in water for 4 hours)
1/2 cup drumstick leaves
2 tbsp coconut (optional)
Salt to taste
Oil as requried

Method

Grind the rice into a coarse batter by adding little water.
Add salt, coconut and drumstick leaves and mix well.
Adjust water as required now adai batter is ready to use.
Heat tawa, pour a ladle full of batter and spread it like dosa.
Pour oil around the edges,cook well then flip it to
other side cook well.
Ready to serve drumstick leaves adai.

Red spinach kootu / Amarnath leaves kootu / sigappu mulai keerai kootu

Ingredients

3 cups Red spinach finely chopped
1/4  cup cooked moong dal
A pinch turmeric powder
Salt to taste

For grinding

1/4 cup fresh coconut
1 dry red chillie
1 tsp jeera / cumin
Make a fine paste with above all and set aside.

Method

In a pan add little water, spinach, turmeric powder.
and salt cook for 4 minutes.
Add the above coconut paste mix well cook for 2 minutes.
Now add cooked dhal, adjust the consistency as requried.
Cook for another 2 minutes.
Ready to serve Red spinach kootu.

Season with mustard, urad dal  and curry leaves.
( No seasoning added here in this pick)

Health Benefits of Red Amaranth Leaves

Rich in vitamins & minarals.

Rich in vitamin A, C.

Good source of calcium, potassium, zinc and iron.

Rich in dietary fiber.

Drumstick leaves soup / drumstick leaves soup recipe /Murungai keerai soup

Ingredients

1 cup drumstick leaves
1/4 cup chopped onions
1/4 cup chopped tomatoes
Few garlic
1 green chillie (or )1/4 tsp pepper powder
2 cups water / vegetable stock / cooked dhal water
1 tsp sattu powder (mutigrain flour) (optional)
1 tsp butter / oil
Salt to taste

Method

Heat butter in a pan add garlic and saute.
Add onion saute for a minute.
Add tomato, green chillie and salt saute for a minute.
Now add drumstick leaves, water, sattu flour and mix well.
Cook for 5 minutes and switch off the flame.
Drumstick leaves soup is ready to serve.

Onion pickle / onion pickle recipe / how to make onion pickle / onion thokku / pickle / shallots pickle / vengaya oorukai

Ingredients

1 cup finely chopped small onion / shallots
 1/4 cup tamarind water  - thick pulp ( soaked in hot water and extract juice from tamarind)
1/4 cup red chillie powder
1/4 cup gingelly oil
1 tbsp jaggery powder(optional)
1/4 tsp turmeric powder
Salt to taste.

Heat oil in a pan add onions and saute well.
Add turmeric powder, red chillie powder and salt, saute for a minute.
Add tamarind water, jaggery mix and cook well until it
reaches a thokku consistency.
Cool it completely, then store it.
We can use this pickle up to a month, if you store it in fridge.
Goes well with hot rice / idly /dosa.

Chiroti / chiroti recipe / How to make chiroti / padhir peni / chiroti sweet

Ingredients

1 cup maida ( all purpose flour)
2 tbsp rava (semolina)
1 tbsp ghee
A pinch salt ( optional)
1/4 cup Sugar powder
1/4 tsp cardamom powder
Oil for deep frying

Preparation for dough

In a bowl add maida, rava, salt and ghee mix them well.
Knead it into soft and stiff dough (like chapathi dough) by adding water little by little and set aside for 15 to 20 minutes.

Preparation for maida paste

I tbsp ghee / butter
1 tbsp maida /rice flour
Mix them both well and make fine paste and set aside.

Sugar powder

Mix powdered sugar and cardamom powder set aside.
Or you make sugar syrup also to dip the Chiroti.

Method

Make small equal balls from the dough.
Roll it like chapathi, make it 4 to 5 chathies like this.
Now apply maida and ghee paste over the each chapathi and spreed evenly.
Place one above the one.
Roll it tightly and cut in to small parts.
Allow to rest this for 10 minutes in the fridge.
Roll each part into a small circle like puri.
Heat oil in pan , fry them until they are crisp.
Sprinkle sugar and cardamom powder over it.
Ready to serve chiroti / padhir peni.

Gongura pappau / sorrel leaves dal / khatta bhaji dal /pulicha keerai paruppu / gongura dal

This is very simple, easy and tasty Andhra recipe.

Ingredients

2 cups chopped gongura leaves
1/4 cup toor dal
2 green chillies
1 red chillie
Few crushed garlic
1/4 tsp mustard
1/4 tsp urad dal
1/8 tsp turmeric powder
1 tsp oil
Salt to taste

Method

Pressure cook toor dal with turmeric powder.
In pan add gongura leaves, turmeric powder, green chillies, salt and very little water.
Cook for 3 minutes and mash well.
Add cooked toor dal to this, mix well.
Cook for 3 more minutes and switch off the flame.

Heat oil in a pan, add mustard when it stars spluttering add urad dal, red chillie and garlic saute well.
Pour this on the cooked gongura dal.
Delicious gongura pappu is ready to serve.
Serve this hot rice and ghee.

Note

These leaves are tangy by nature and cooks very fast.( 2 minutes )
You can add red chillie powder,onions and pea nuts also to this.
Another way you can cook together gongura and dal with other ingredients in a cooker for 3 whistles.
Add seasoning to this.

Cauliflower potato peas curry / cauliflower potato peas dry sabzi /aloo gobi matar /aloo gobi matar recipe / how to make aloo gobi mater

This is no onion and tomato sabzi.
Very simple and quick recipe.
Goes well with hot rice / roti / naan /Phulkas.

Ingredients

1 cup boiled potatoes (peeled and cut in to big pieces)
1/2 cup boiled cauliflower ( cut in to large florets)
1/4 cup boiled peas (or frozen peas)
1/4 tsp of each red chillie powder, masala powder, cumin powder
2 tsp oil / butter
1 tsp chopped ginger & garlic
1tsp ginger & garlic paste
1/8 tsp turmeric powder
Few chopped coriander leaves
1/4 tsp kasuri methi
Salt to taste

Method

Heat oil in a pan, add ginger and garlic saute.
Add cauliflower, potato, peas, ginger garlic paste.
Add red chillie powder, masala powder, turmeric powder, cumin power, coriander leaves and salt mix well.
Cook for 7 to 8 minutes in low flame and stir in between.
Finally add kasuri methi and serve hot.

Samba gothumai payasam /Gothambu payasam / Broken wheat payasam /broken wheat kheer / how to make gothambu payasam / gothumai pradhaman / gothumai prashaman recipe

Ingredients

1 cup Sambha godhumai (broken wneat/dalia)
2 cups powdered jaggery
1 cup coconut milk
1/8 tsp ginger powder / cardamom powder

Method

Pressure cook broken wheat with 3 cups of water for
3 to 4 whistles.

Heat pan, add 1/4 cup of water and jaggery powder.
Bring to boil then strain it and cook for 3 minutes.
Add cooked broken wheat to this and cook for 5 minutes.
Now add coconut milk mix well and cook in low flame,
when it starts boiling, switch off the flame.
Serve this payasam hot / chilled.

Tips

If you want more  / less sweet you adjust jaggery accordingly.
Don't boil much after adding coconut milk.
We can add some roasted cashews /coconut pieces also.