Besan Kheer ( Chickpea flour kheer )

One of the easiest kheer that my grandma taught me was this. Easy to make and very comforting too. Sometimes I feel that I am having "Mysorepak" in a liquid form. Ready in a jiffy is this Besan Kheer ( Kadalaimaavu paayasam).




Ingredients :

1 litre milk
4 tbsp. besan / kadalaimaavu
4 tbsp. ghee
1 cup sugar ( adjust according to taste )
1 tsp. cardamom
1 tbsp. charoli / saraparuppu / chiroti
a few strands of saffron


Method :

1. Heat ghee in a pan on low and fry the charoli till they are slightly crisp. ( You can substitute with cashewnuts also ). Remove from ghee and keep aside.
2. In the same ghee, add the besan flour and fry till the besan gives out a sweet aroma and it is fried in the ghee. Meanwhile keep milk to warm in another pan.
3. Add the sugar to the besan and keep stirring till the sugar melts and is infused with the besan.
4. Add the warm milk little by little and keep stirring while pouring all the milk and allow a boil.
5. Garnish with chiroti, cardamom and saffron and serve warm.

Variation of flavour : Instead of cardamom and saffron, try adding a tsp. of vanilla essence.

A Royal Treat for the Taste Buds

A friend of mine had to attend a potluck party and she wanted to make something rich and elegant. As she is a south Indian and don't know much about North Indian cuisine, I suggested her to make "Malai Koftas". I have a collection of recipes from Tarla Dalal and we decided to make Malai Koftas in Makhni gravy with some variations here and there. It sure was a royal treat to the taste buds and she was very proud to have tried it for the first time with such a rich flavour.







For the malai koftas :


1/2 cup paneer, grated ( we made paneer out of scratch out of 1 litre milk )
2 potatoes, boiled and grated
1 tablespoon milk powder
1 teaspoon chilli powder
a pinch turmeric (haldi) powder
1 carrot, grated
1/2 capsicum, finely chopped
1 teaspoon ginger, grated
1 tablespoon chopped coriander


For the tomato paste :


1 onion, sliced
a small piece ginger, chopped
3 cloves garlic
2 large tomatoes, chopped
4 to 5 cashewnuts
¼ teaspoon turmeric (haldi) powder
1 teaspoon chilli powder



Other ingredients :

oil for deep frying
½ teaspoon cumin seeds
1 teaspoon garam masala
4 to 5 tablespoons cream
½ teaspoon kasuri methi
1 tsp. sugar
2 tbsp. butter
salt to taste
Coriander leaves to garnish


Method :


For the malai koftas :

1. Combine all the ingredients and mix well.
2. Roll them into rounds and deep fry them over a medium flame till they are golden brown and keep aside.



For the gravy :

1. Combine the onion, ginger, garlic, tomatoes, cashewnuts, turmeric powder and chilli powder with ½ cup of water in a pan and simmer for 15 to 20 minutes till the vegetables are soft. Cool completely.
2. Blend this mixture to get a smooth purée.
3. Heat butter and add the cumin seeds. When the seeds crackle, add the tomato paste, garam masala, kasuri methi, sugar and salt and bring to a boil.
4. Add the cream and mix well.
5. Just before serving, add the koftas to the gravy and serve hot, garnished with the coriander and butter.

Another comfort food for dessert

I once attended a Rajasthani function at my friend's place and along with all other rajasthani courses I had dessert. It looked like rice with chocolate. I asked my friend was it "chocolate rice" and all my other friends had a laugh. Then she told me that it was "Lapsi" a dessert that rajashtani's must have at their functions. At that time I did not know what lapsi was. It tasted like chocolate flavoured pongal but the rice did have a hard bite to it unlike the pongal. I still fell in love with it and after knowing the health benefits of lapsi I started making it often during festivals as offerings to God.
This entry of mine goes to JFI- Whole Grains hosted by Suganya of "Tasty Palettes".






LAPSI

Ingredients :

1 cup cracked wheat
1 cup jaggery
3 cups milk
1 cup water
2 tbsp. ghee
some raisins and cashews for garnishing
1/2 tsp. cardamom powder
few saffron strands

Method :

1. Heat 1 tbsp. of ghee and fry the cashews till pink and remove. In the same ghee fry the raisins till they puff up and remove aside.
2. Heat remaining ghee, add the cracked wheat and fry in a medium flame until the wheat changes its colour to white and then light pink
3. Add warm water and warm milk to the cracked wheat and cook covered until the wheat is fully cooked. ( you can also pressure cook till 2 whistles ).
4. Add the jaggery and keep stirring till the jaggery dissolves and gets infused with the wheat.
5. Sprinkle cardamom powder and garnish with cashews, raisins and saffron.

A Weekend Ritual

Every Saturday was a ritual of oil bath, comfort food and a long nap in the noons and you would be rejuvenated from head to toe and refreshed for the whole week ahead. Indians have so many varities in comfort foods and one of them in South India is the "thuvayal" or in other words "chutney" or "pachadis". Thuvayal is a fried chuney as some of the ingredients are fried in little oil and then blended. Unlike chutneys, the shelf life of thuvayals can range from 2 days upto a week depending upon the moisture it contains.

Every weekend I try to make one of these and nothing else can comfort you than a thuvayal with hot steaming rice and ghee. This weekend lunch consists of "Kothamalli thuvayal", "Chow-chow moar kottu" and "Carrot rasam", all satisfying and light.





KOTHAMALLI THUVAYAL ( Cilantro fried chutney )

2 bunches of Cilantro washed thoroughly
2 tsp. urad dal
7-8 red chillies
1 small piece of asafoetida or 1 tsp. asafoetida powder
1 small gooseberry size tamrind
1 tsp. mustard
1/2 tsp. urad dal for seasoning.

Method :

1. Heat a tsp. of oil ( preferably gingelly oil ), fry the asafoetida piece first and remove. ( if you are using asafoetida powder, dont fry it now ).
2. In the same oil, fry urad dal and red chillies till the dal turns pink in colour, remove and keep aside to cool.
3. Grind the urad dal, chillies, asafoetida piece, salt, tamrind and cilantro into a smooth paste sprinkling some water.
4. Heat a tbsp. of oil, allow mustard seeds to pop, then add urad dal, ( powdered asafoetida ) and then the cilantro paste and saute well till the oil separates from the paste or the paste has become thick. Serve with hot steaming rice.






MOAR KOOTU

Any vegetable like choyote squash, winter melon, snake gourd, brinjal, cabbage can be used to make this kootu. I have used choyote squash in this recipe. This is a microwave version of the kootu.

Ingredients :

2 choyote squash
1 tbsp. chana dal
1/4 cup curd / yogurt
1/2 tsp. mustard seeds
1/2 tsp. urad dal
1/2 tsp. asafoetida
few curry leaves
1 tsp. oil
Salt to taste.

To be ground to a paste :-

1/4 cup coconut
3-4 green chillies
1 tsp. jeera
1 tsp. rice flour


Method :

1. Wash and peel the choyote squash and cut into small cubes. In a microwave safe bowl, put the choyote squash along with chana dal , add salt and a cup of water and microwave covered on high for about 8 - 10 mins. or till the squash is cooked.
2. Grind into a smooth paste sprinkling some water the given ingredients. Add to the cooked choyote squash and mix and microwave for another 1 - 2 mins.
3. Add the yoghurt and mix well.
4. In another pan heat about a tsp. of oil, splutter mustard seeds, urad dal till pink , asafoetida and curry leaves and pour over the kootu and mix well.







CARROT RASAM

Ingredients :

2 carrots
1 cup of thick tamrind extract
1 tsp. rasam powder
1 tomato
salt to taste
1/2 tsp. asafoetida
1/2 tsp. turmeric
Cilantro for garnish
1 tsp. ghee
1/2 tsp. mustard seeds

Method :

1. Pressure cook carrot or microwave until mushy and puree in a blender or mixie.
2. Take tamrind extract, salt, tomato, rasam powder, turmeric and asafoetida and bring to a boil till the raw smell of the tamrind is lost.
3. Add carrot puree, and 1 1/2 cups of water and bring to a boil.
4. Heat ghee in another pan, splutter mustard seeds and add to the rasam and garnish with cilantro.

Ganesh Chathurthi Special

Ganesh pooja is one of the main festivals in South India and as well as the other parts. For me Ganesh chathuthi is the start of other festivals following it i.e. Navrathri, Diwali, Pongal/Sankranthi and on goes the list.
All are aware of the modak that is made for prasadam to please Lord Ganesha and his all time favourite. In Tamil Nadu, people prepare 3 to 5 varieties of kozhukattais ( type of modaks ) in different shapes. In my house ( my mother's place as well as my in-law's ) the whole day is spent in making kozhukattais and specially where there are many people in the house, the consumption of these kozhukattais have no limit. Hence the rice dough is prepared in large quantity and after using the dough for the kozhukattais, there is still some left. The left over dough is made into "Ammani kozhukattai" ( so called for small balls of the dough ) and steamed and made into a savoury dish.

Ingredients :

Left over rice dough after making modak / or

1 cup rice flour
1 cup water
salt a pinch
1 tsp. ghee or gingelly oil

Other ingredients :

Grated coconut 1/2 cup
Chilli powder 1 tsp. or as required
Asafoetida 1/2 tsp.
Mustard seeds 1 tsp.
Curry leaves a few.

Method for making the rice dough :

1. Boil 1 cup of water with salt and oil/ghee. Add the rice flour to the boiling water and mix well with a spatula. Remove from fire. If u feel that the water is not enough, add little hot water and mix again. Keep tightly covered for a few minutes and then knead well when warm like a chapathi dough.
( remember to grease ur palms with oil or ghee before kneading the dough )

For making kozhukattais :

1. Mix in grated coconut, chilli powder, asafoetida and a little more salt to the dough and knead well till all are mixed properly with the dough.
2. Roll small balls about a little smaller than a marble size out of the dough and steam them for a few mins. ( approximately 8 - 10 mins.)
3. Heat oil in a pan, add mustard and allow to splutter, then add curry leaves and the steamed balls and mix well. Your ammani kozhukattais are ready to eat after it cools a bit.

Aval Payasam

One of the easiest payasams or dessert is this Aval payasam. Aval or poha is nothing but dehusked rice beaten to flakes. Whenever any guest arrive suddenly for lunch or dinner, I usually make this payasam in a jiffy and it is healthier too. Payasams are one of the desserts that the south indians make for a festival or for a feast.



Ingredients :

1/2 cup Aval ( Poha or beaten rice flakes )
4 cups milk
1 cup sugar
2 tbsp. ghee
2 tsp. cardamom powder
chopped cashewnuts as required
few strands of saffron
1 cup boiling water


Method :

1. Heat ghee in a pan on a medium low flame and fry the cashews till pink. Remove and keep aside. In the same ghee add the poha and fry till they puff up.
2. Add the boiling water to the poha and cook till the poha becomes soft and mushy.
3. Add milk and sugar and bring to a boil till the sugar is fully dissolved.
4. Remove from the stove, add cashew nuts, cardamom powder and saffron and serve warm.

Capsicum Masala rice

Ingredients :


Capsicums - 2 chopped finely
Carrots - 2 chopped finely
Green chillies - 2 slitted into two
Curry leaves - a few
Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp.
1 tsp. mustard seeds
1 tsp. urad dal
1/2 tsp. asafoetida ( Hing )
Salt to taste
Oil as required
2 cups cooked rice

To be roasted and powdered :

2 tbs. sesame seeds - roasted to pink colour without oil
1 tbsp. coriander seeds
4 red chillies ( increase or decrease as per individual taste )
Roast the coriander seeds and red chillies in little oil till pink and powder along with sesame seeds.

Method :

1. Heat about a tablespoon of oil in a pan, add mustard seeds, after it pops add urad dal, asafoetida, turmeric powder, green chillies, curry leaves, capsicum and carrot. Add salt and saute till the capsicum and the carrots have cooked.

2. Switch off the stove, add the rice and the prepared powder to the capsicum and mix well till the powder and the capsicum-carrot have been mixed with the rice well. Add a little lemon juice for the extra tang and serve with raita and chips.