Bajra Idli

Ingredients :

• Bajra - 2 cups [ heaped ] [ kambu ]
• Boiled rice - 1 cup
• Red gram dal - 1 cup [ tuar ]
• Rock salt - as required
• Oil - 3 tbl.sps.
• Cooking soda - 3 / 4 tsp

Method :

Soak bajra and rice together for 5 hours in enough water.  Soak dal separately for 1 hour. Grind dal to smooth frothy paste and bajra-rice mixture to coarse rawa consistency. Mix both together with salt. Allow to ferment for 15 to 20 hours. Next day pour hot oil which is  seasoned with mustard seeds to the batter along with soda. Then mix well and steam idlis as usual. Serve hot with molokai podi and onion chutney.

Mysore Vadai

Ingredients :

• Bengal gram dal - 1 / 2 cup
• Thur dal - 1 / 2 cup
• Moong dal - 1 / 2 cup
• Broken black gram dal - 1 / 2 cup
• Cashewnuts - 1 / 4 cup [ broken ]
• Chopped coriander leaves - little
• Chopped curry leaves - little
• Green chilli, ginger paste - 1 table spoon
• Salt - as required
• Oil - enough for frying
• Finely chopped onion - 1 / 4 cup [ optional ]

Method :

Mix all the dalls together and soak in enough water for 3 to 4 hours. Then drain the water and grind to a  coarse thick paste. Add salt and other ingredients to that and mix well. Then take a plastic sheet of paper and put even sized balls of this and flatten it. Deep fry this in boiling oil. Turn over until golden brown in colour and fully cooked. Remove from the oil and serve hot with coconut chutney.

Tips : Avoid excess moisture in the batter for crispness.

Palak Dumplings

Ingredients :

• Moong dahl - 1 cup
• Chopped palak - 3 / 4 cup
• Chopped onions - 1 / 4 cup
• Finely chopped green chillie - 1 tsp
• Baking powder - a pinch
• Salt - as required
• Oil - enough for frying

Method :

Clean the moong dal and soak it in enough water for 3 hours. Then drain the full water and grind it to a smooth dough [like vada batter]. Then mix the chopped palak, onion, green chillie, salt and baking powder to the batter and make small balls and fry them in hot oil till it becomes golden colour. Serve hot with tomato ketchup.

Cheese Bonda

Ingredients:

• Madia - 1 cup
• Grated cheese - 1 / 2 cup
• Cashewnuts - 1 table spoon [ broken ]
• Chopped coriander leaves - little
• Chopped curry leaves - little
• Salt - as required
• Green chillie - 1 [finely chopped ]
• Water - as required
• Oil - required  for deep frying

Method :

Mix madia, cheese, and other ingredients with required water without lumps and prepare dough. Mean time keep oil in a deep bottom kadai. When the oil becomes hot immediately make small small balls from the dough  and deep fey till it change to golden brown. Serve with tomato ketchup or green chutney.

Maida [ Dimond ] Biscuits

Ingredients:

• All purpose flour / Maida - 1 cup 
• Red chilli - 3
• Ginger - 1 inch piece
• Garlic - 3 cloves 
• Ajwain / omam seeds - 1/4 tsp
• Asafoetida - 2 pinch 
• Water - 1/2 cup [Increase or Decrease]
• Salt - As per taste
• Oil - for frying 

Method:

 

1. Grind the ginger, garlic and red chilli to a smooth paste by adding little amount if water.

2. Take 1 cup of all purpose flour/maida and add the ground paste, ajwain, salt, asafoetida and mix well by adding water little by little and form a smooth dough. Keep it aside for 20 to 30 min.

3. Make small equal sized balls with the dough. Take one ball and flatten it using chappathi roller as we do it for roti or chappathi's. Make it into 2mm to 3mm thin if possible.

4. Now using a cookie cutter cut the rolled dough into diamond shapes and remove slowly from the chappathi maker and collect in a bowl or plate.

5. Now in a kadai heat oil and first out a pinch of dough to it don't harbor immediately raises up. Now fry the cut pieces into oil in small batches. When they turn light brown on both the sides remove from oil and filter the excess oil in kitchen tissue.

6. Now store the cute diamond cuts in a air tight container.

Yummy n crispy Diamond cuts or Diamond biscuits are ready. 

Chiku Ice cream

Ingredients :

• Chikus [ sapota ] - 300gm [ 4 big ]
• Full cream milk - 5 cups
• Conflour - 1 table spoon
• Fresh cream - 1 1 / 2 cups [ chilled ]
• Powdered sugar - 4 to 5 table spoon
• Gelatine - 1 tsp
• Water - 1 / 4 cup
• Sugar - 3 / 4 cup
• Vanilla essence - 2 tsp

Method :

Keep 1 / 2 cup milk aside. Boil rest of the milk in medium flame for 30 minutes. Then remove from the fire. Dissolve cornflour in 1 / 2 cup of milk. Then add cornflour paste into the boiled milk, add sugar. Cook for 5 minutes on high flame, stirring continuously, till it coats  the spoon and becomes a very thin custard. Meantime soak gelatine in water for a minute. Heat on low flame to dissolve it.Then mix gelatine solution to the custard, stirring continuously. Then freeze it for 4 to 5 hours, turning the fridge to its coldest. Meantime peel chikus and mash them roughly with a fork to a rough puree. When the custard is frozen after 5 hours, proceed further. Beat chilled cream with powdered sugar till light and fluffy. Keep in the fridge. Cut the frozen custard into small cubes and beat till light and fluffy. Mix the custard, cream and chiku puree and vanilla essence and blend in blender or mixer for 5 minutes. Freeze it till it gets ready.

Homemade Kesar badam Ice- cream

Ingredients :

• Milk - 1 / 2 lit [ 3 cups ]
• Vanilla ice- cream - 2 large scoops
• Yellow colour - few drops [ optional ]
• Sugar - as required
• Almonds [ badam ] - 10 to 15
• Kesar [ saffron ] - few
• 
  

Method :

Soak kesar in little warm milk for 10 minutes. Rub thesoaked kesar with a spoon. Then boiled the remaining milk with sugar and dissolved kesar. Keep on the low flame for 5 minutes. Make it cool and chill.Meantime soak badam in hot water, remove the skin and powder coarsely. Then blend chilled milk with powdered badams and yellow colour in a blender for few seconds till frothy. Add ice- cream and whip for another 2 second and serve.Garnish with grated badams and pistha.

Maida & Milk powder Burfi

Ingredients :

• Maida - 1 cup
• Milk powder - 1 / 2 cup
• Cooking soda - a pinch
• Sugar - 1 1 / 2 cup
• Vanaspathi - 4 tbl. sps [ heaped ]
• Bournvita or boost - 1 tbl. sps [ heaped ]
• Fresh ghee - 1 1 / 2 tbl. sps.

Method :

Sieve milk powder to remove lumps. Then roast maida in 1 tbl sp vanaspathi  till good smell comes. Then heat sugar and water together in heavy vessel till it forms a soft ball consistency. [ it should form a ball when a drop of syrup is put in water but disperse when taken out. ]
That time remove from the gas, immediately mix bournivita, milk powder, ghee, vanaspathi Then add fried maida, a pinch soda, at the end. Stir quickly. Pouron a greased tray. Garnished with sliced pistha. Cut into pieces when it is still warm.

Bhavnagiri Gathiya: Gujarathi Snack

Ingredients:

• Besan / Chickpea Flour - 2 cups 
• Oil for the dough - 1/2 cup  
• Carom Seeds / Ajwain - 1 tsp 
• Crushed Black Pepper - 1 tsp  
• Baking Soda - 1/4 tsp 
• Salt - to taste 
• Oil - for deep frying   

Method:

• Combine the flour, salt, baking soda, carom seeds and pepper in a mixing bowl.
• Add 1/2 cup of oil to the flour and mix very well.
• Add 1/2 cup of water to it and gently mix.
• The dough should be sticky.
• Knead the dough for a couple of minutes and set aside.
• Heat oil in a pan for deep frying.
• Take the murukku / sev maker and fit in the big holes disc. Grease the sev make with little oil.
• Take a small portion of the dough and place it in the murukku press.
• Now slowly press the murukku press over the hot oil.
• Deep fry them on a low - medium flame until golden color, turn over to fry on both sides evenly.
• Drain them on paper towels and let them cool completely.
• Break them into pieces and store in an airtight container.

Your Gathiya is ready to eat.

Quick Milk Chocolate

Ingredients :

• Milk powder - 2 tbl sps [ heaped ]
• Coco powder - 1 tbl sp
• Drinking chocolate - 5 tbl sps
• Icing sugar - 4 tbl sps
• Lemon/ orange juice - few drops
• Liquid glucose - 1 / 2 tsp
• [ you will get at essence shops ]
• Nuts and raisins - little [ mix to the dough before shaping ]

Method :

Slive all the dry ingredients together  2 or 3 times to remove lumps. Then add lemon, or orange juice, liquid glucose, and very little water to mix it into a firm dough. The dough should not be very hard. [ it should not crack while making balls Mix the nuts and raisins to that. After kneading it put in a plastic cover to avoid drying. Shape in to squares.

Cashew nut Chikki

Ingredients:

• Broken cashew nuts - 2 cups
• Sugar - 1 cup
• Ghee - 2 tbl sp
• Cooking soda - a pinch

Method :

Break cashewnuts into big pieces. Dry roast little at a time in a hot pan (in reduced flame) without changing colour. Heat sugar and ghee together in a heavy pan. Reduce the flame and stir till sugar is melted completely. Then remove from the gas and quickly mix nuts and cooking soda. Apply ghee to rolling stick and on top of a thick plastic sheet. Pour the mixture on top of the sheet and quickly roll it with rolling stick. Finely cut into pieces, when it is still warm.

Mixed nut Chikki

Ingredients :

• Mixed,dry roasted nuts - 1 cup
• [musk melon seeds, almonds, pistha, cashews, etc.]
• Sugar - 1 cup
• Ghee - 2 tbl sps
• Cooking soda - a pinch 

Method :

Dry roast melon seeds, almonds, cashewnuts each separately till it becomes little crisp. [ cut almonds, cashewnuts to small pieces. ] Heat sugar and ghee together in a heavy pan. Reduce the flame and stir till sugar is melted completely. Then remove from the gas and quickly mix nuts and cooking soda. Apply ghee to rolling stick and on top of a thick plastic sheet. Pour the mixture on top of the sheet and quickly roll it with rolling stick. Finely cut into pieces, when it is still warm.

Chocolate Fudge

Ingredients :

• Milk - 1 litre
• Sugar - 2 1 / 2 cups
• Coca powder - 2 table spoon
• White butter - 1 cup [ heaped ]

 Method :

Boil milk for 10 minutes. Then add sugar, coco and fresh butter and cook in medium flame. When the mixture becomes thick keep stirring constantly till it leaves the sides of the vessel. Then pour it on a greased tray and cut after it becomes cool. Enjoy your chocolate fudge.

Vegetable Oats Kichidi

Ingredients :

• Oats - 1 cup
• Roasted rawa - 1 / 2 cup
• Roasted vermicelli - 1 cup
• Water - 3 1 / 2 cups
• Sliced green chillies - 2 to 3
• Sliced onions - 1 / 2 cup
• Chopped tomatoes - 1 / 2 cup
• Finely cut carrot - 1 / 4 cup
• Grated cabbage - 1 / 2 cup
• Fresh peas - 1 / 4 cup
• Turmeric powder - 1 / 2 tsp
• Salt - as required
• Oil - for frying
• Lemon - 1 or 2
• Chopped coriander leaves - little

For seasoning :

• Mustard seeds - 1 / 2 tsp
• Urad dhal - 1 tsp
• Bengal gram dhal - 2 tsps.
• Curry leaves - little

Method :

Dry roast oats separately in medium flame till golden red in colour. Then heat oil in a kadai, add seasonings and then sliced onions, chillies. Saute for few minutes, add vegetables one by one and fry well. Add tomatoes and mix well, till moisture evaporates and pour measured water. Add salt, turmeric to that water. When it starts boiling add rawa, oats and vermicelli. Mix gently without forming lumps. Reduce flame, close with lid and cook for 10 minutes. Stir in between and cook till all the moisture is absorbed and kichidi gets a shine. Last sprinkle lemon juice, coriander leaves and mix well. Serve hot with coconut chuntey. 

Oats Mango Phirni

Ingredients :

• Rolled oats - 2tbl. sps.
• Finely cut ripe mango - 1 cup
• Basmathi rice - 1 cup
• Cashewnuts - 10
• Milk - 6 cups
• Sugar - 1 / 2 cup
• Saffron - few
• [ soaked in hot milk ]

Method :

Soak rice, oats and cashewnuts in 1 / 2 cup of milk. Then grind to a paste and mix with remaining milk. Cook in medium flame srirring constantly till it gets a shine. Add mango pieces, sugar, saffron and allow to cook for few more minutes. Allow to cook for few more minutes. Allow to chill in refrigerator. Serve in small mud cups.

Drumstick Kadi [Sindhi type]

This recipe I learned from my sister-in-laws mother-in-law [Jaya patti]. Recently I was in Chennai [last week] it was very tasty. So I thought I will share with u all.

Ingredients :

• Basan - 1 cup
• Red tomato - 4 [Grind into a smooth paste]
• Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
• Dhaniya-jeera powder - 1 tsp
• Red chillie powder - 1 1/2 tsp
• Salt - As per taste
• Water - As required
• Drumstick - 2 [Cut into 1/2 inch pieces]

Method:

Boil the drumstick separately, adding little salt & turmeric powder (make 1 whistle in cooker) & keep aside. Take one deep kadai, fry the basan till it changes into red colour & nice aroma comes. When the basan becomes cool as per room temeperature, add the required water, dhaniya-jeera powder, red chillie powder, salt, little sugar & stir continously till the raw smell goes [10-15 minutes]. Then add the tomoto purie  & allow to boil for 10 minutes more. In the meantime, add the boiled drumstick to that. When the kadi gets ready, garnish with chopped coriander leaves. Serve hot with steamed rice, pongal or roti.