Sweet Rava Appam

 

I am experimenting with my appe pan these days. Today I felt like having some mildly sweet snack. A friend had given lot of rava, I have to finish this, so used it to make this item. It tasted so much like Kerala's unniappams, which I am crazy for!

Ingredients

1 cup rava

1/2 cup refined flour

2 tblsps liquid jaggery

¾  cup grated coconut

1/2 tsp cardamom powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

A pinchof salt

2 tbsps ghee or oil

Instruction

-          Pour water over rava just in level and leave for 15 minutes when it will soak up all water

-          Take the refined flour, baking soda, salt, and grated coconut in another bowl.

-          I use liquid jaggery, called ‘Kakwi’ in Karnataka. If you don’t have it, take about 2 ½ tbsps of jaggery, pour ¼ cup water and put on medium flame. When the jaggery dissolves, sieve and use it. Pour the jaggery to the refined flour mix.

-          Now add the soaked rava and mix gently, adding water if necessary to make a thick pouring consistency. Finally, mix in the cardamom powder.

-      Heat the appe pan, reduce the flame and pour ½ tsp oil into each well and smear the walls with the spoon.

-      Pour 1 tablespoon of batter into each well. Cover with a lid and cook for 4 minutes.

-      Turn the appams upside down with a spoon. Cover and cook for 2 minutes.        

-      Remove the appams and serve hot with tea/coffee.

Instant Semolina Phad or Appe

A new addition came in my kitchen this year. I got a cast iron phad vessel (appe pan). Phad or paddu as it is called in Karnataka, or paniyaram, or kuzhi paniyaram in Tamilnadu is a South Indian breakfast which is prepared with leftover idli batter or dosa batter. Here I am giving an instant batter version.

Ingredients

1 cup semolina (sooji) for 7 phads

½ cup beaten curds

Salt to taste

2 tbsps finely cut onion

 2 tbsps grated carrot

½ tsp grated ginger

1 tsp finely cut coriander leaves

A pinch of baking soda

¾ to 1 cup water

4 tbsps oil

Instruction

-          Mix in the salt and beaten curd to the semolina slowly.

-          Now add all other ingredients except baking soda. It should be of slightly thick, pouring consistency.

-          Cover and leave for 15 minutes.

-          Now add the baking soda and mix well.

-          Heat the appe pan, reduce the flame and pour ½ tsp oil into each well and smear the walls with the spoon.

-          Pour 1 tablespoon of batter into each well. Cover with a lid and cook for 4 minutes.

-          Open the lid and you’ll see that the upper layer is somewhat cooked and you don’t see raw batter.

-          Turn the appes upside down with a spoon. Cover and cook for 2 minutes.

-          Remove the appes and serve hot with chutney.

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I experimented cooking egg in the appe pan, and I liked the taste.

Masoor dal – Goan preparation

 This is a yummy preparation that tastes so different from the usual dal cooked in a pressure cooker. We had this in a Goan restaurant . My husband liked it very much and managed to get its recipe. So here it goes...

Ingredients

-          1 cup masoor dal

-          4 cups water

-          Salt to taste

-          1 tbsp oil

-          2 tbsps finely cut onion

-          ½ tsp turmeric powder

-          1/3 tsp red chilli powder

-          1 tsp coriander powder

-          ¼ tsp garam masala powder (optional)

Instruction

- Wash, clean the dal and soak for 3 hours. You can cook it without soaking too. 

- Add 4 cups water to the soaked dal, also salt and ½ tsp oil. Keep on high flame, bring to boil and reduce the flame. Simmer for 15 minutes to let the dal get cooked.

- Heat the oil, add cut onion and sauté till transparent. Now put in the turmeric powder, red chilli powder, coriander powder and garam masala powder. Add this to the cooked dal.

- Stir well and let it simmer for 5 minutes. Serve with steamed rice or chapatis.

Sweet Potato Oratti

 

I had some mashed sweet potatoes, was planning to make sweetpotato parathas when I saw the grated coconut. An idea clicked and decided to make oratti instead. It tasted awesome. My husband enjoyed it and said it was similar to puran poli, which is our favourite.

Ingredients

1 cup wheat flour ( for 3 orattis)

¾ cup boiled, skinned, mashed sweet potatoes

½ cup grated coconut

A pinch of salt

½ tsp cumin seeds

½ tsp white sesame seeds

2 tbsp ghee

Water to make the dough

Instruction

-          Take all the ingredients ( add only ½ tbsp ghee, remaining is for applying on the oratti) except water, mix well. Keep adding water slowly and knead into smooth dough

-          Heat a thava on medium heat, apply ghee. Remove the thava from the flame, take one third of the dough, spread lightly between the palms, put on thava and spread into a round with wet fingers. Put the thava back on the medium flame.

-          When the lower side is cooked, pour some ghee over the top surface, flip it upside down and let the other side also cook.

-          Remove and serve with butter or tomato sauce.

Sweet Potato Halwa

This is a very delicious sweet that is easy to prepare.

                                             Sweet potato halwa served with kala chana chat

Ingredients

1 ½ cups boiled, skinned and mashed sweet potato

½ cup jaggery

¾ cup water

2 tbsps ghee

1 tbsp raisins

¼ tsp cardamom powder

Instruction

-          Pour the ghee in a thick bottomed vessel, add the mashed sweet potato. Keep on low flame and keep stirring in between.

-          Meanwhile put the jaggery and water in a pan and keep on low fire. By the time this melts, the sweet potato will become light brown and give out nice aroma.

-          Pour the melted jaggery through a sieve into the roasted sweet potato and add raisins and cardamom powder.

-          Stir for two minutes and remove from fire. Serve hot or cold. 

Parippu Pradhaman ( Split green gram payasam)

This is a much awaited item for our ‘Onassadya (Onam feast).

Ingredients

1 cup (100gms) Split green gram (mung) with skin, roasted till it turns light brown ad gives out nice aroma

50 gms Sago, soaked in 1 ½ cups water for 10 minutes

300 gms Jaggery

2 ½ cups grated coconut, add water and extract 2 cups coconut milk

½ tsp cardamom powder

1/3 tsp dried ginger powder (optional)

1 tbsp kismis(raisins)

To season

1 tbsp ghee

1 tbsp broken cashews

A few curry leaves

1 tbsp coconut pieces (optional)

Instruction

-          Wash and clean the roasted green gram and soak in 2 ½ cups of water for 15 minutes. Pressure cook it for 8 minutes. Let it cool and then open.

-          Keep the jaggery with ½ cup water on medium flame.

When it dissolves totally, sieve it to remove any impurities and add it the cooked green gram.Let it simmer on low flame for about 8 minutes. Stir in between to avoid it sticking to the bottom of thevessel.

-          Meanwhile, cook the soaked sago on low flame, stirring in between for about 6 minutes when the pearls will turn partly transparent. Keep covered for ten minutes. 

Add this to the green gram jaggery mix along with kismis  and stir in.

-          After five minutes, add the coconut milk, cardamom powder, dried ginger powder and stir. 

Remove from flame after two minutes

-           Heat the ghee and add the curry leaves, cut coconut pieces and broken cashew nuts. 

When the cashews turn light brown, add the whole thing to the payasam. It is ready to be served.

Sago(sabudana) thalipeet

 

This is a delicious alternative for the popular fasting dish, sabudana khichdi.

Ingredients

1 cup sago soaked overnight with equal quantity of water- for four thalipeets

3 potatoes, cooked, peeled and mashed

1 tbsp roasted, powdered peanuts

Salt to taste

1/3 tsp turmeric powder

¼ tsp red chilli powder

1 green chilli cut fine

1 tbsp finely cut coriander leaves.

2 tbsps oil or ghee to roast on thave

Instruction

-          Knead all the ingredients together into soft dough.

-          Heat thava on medium flame, oil it and spread one fourth of the dough on the thava into a circle. 

      Cover and let it cook for three minutes.

-          Now remove the lid, pour some oil on the thalipeet, flip it over and let cook for two minutes without covering with the lid.

-          Serve hot with curds, tomato ketchup or pickle.

                                                          Sago thalipeet served with curds

Versatile gravy

 

Recently we had lunch in a friend’s hotel and my husband loved the gravy that was provided with the meals. He asked for the recipe and graciously the owner gave it to us. Any vegetable can be added to this gravy. I had some raw papaya at hand and decided to add it.

Ingredients

1 cup raw papaya skinned and cut into small cubes.

1 ½ cups water

1 small onion sliced

1 tomato cut small

1 tbsp oil

¼ tsp mustard seeds

Salt to taste

To grind:

1 cup grated coconut

6 pepper corns

2 large byadige chilli

½ tbsp coriander seeds

Instruction

-          Boil the cut papaya in water with salt till it is cooked and tender, takes about 10 minutes

-          Grind the coconut with pepper, red chilli and coriander seeds. Add this to the cooked papaya and mix. Add more water if needed.

-          Heat the oil, add mustard seeds. When they splutter, add the cut onion, reduce the flame. When they become translucent, add cut tomato. Keep on low flame, stirring in between till they become mushy.

-          Add this to the papaya with gravy, adust the salt, and simmer for five minutes.

Jackfruit seed hummus

It is easy to prepare Jackfruit seed hummus, a great accompaniment with rice, chapati or bread rolls. We have experienced that hummus is easier to digest as compared with other jackfruit seed preparations.

Ingredients:

2 cups jackfruit seeds, with outer covering removed

4 cloves of peeled garlic

1/3 tsp cumin seeds

Salt to taste

1/4 sesame oil

1/2 cup vegetable broth OR water

Juice of one lemon (or more according to your taste)

For garnishing

1/3 tsp red chilli powder

1 tbsp finely cut coriander leaves

Instruction:

-         -     Pressure cook the jackfruit seeds with 2 ½ cups water and salt for 15 to 20 minutes till soft. Cool, open, drain, and discard the water.

-          -      Let the seeds cool down, add all other ingredients and grind in the food processor until smooth.

-          Pour into a plate, drizzle some oil on the top, garnish with red chilli powder and cut coriander leaves. 

Jackfruit seed hummus served with toasted 'pav', 

sautéed baby corn and fresh fruits 

Jackfruit Cake (Panache Dhonas)

I am always on the lookout for ripe jackfruit preparations and this year I came across jackfruit cake or Panache dhonas, which is a traditional dish of Goa. I got the recipe from the net  and baked it. It was so delicious, my husband went gaga over it!

 

Ingredients:

2 cups deseeded jackfruit bulbs made into pulp

1 cup semolina

1 cup grated coconut

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup jaggery

½ tsp dried ginger powder

½  tsp cardamon powder

10 chopped cashewnuts

10 raisins

1 ½ tbsps melted ghee

Procedure:

 

-           Roast the semolina till it is light brown or it gives out a nice aroma. Keep aside and let it cool for about 20 minutes.

-          Remove the jackfruit seeds and grind the bulbs.

-           Mix all the other ingredients and put them into an oiled flat baking dish.

-          Bake for 30 minutes at 180 degrees. If a tooth pick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean, it is done.

-        Let it cool bit, then invert onto a plate. Heat the ghee and pour over it. Cut into pieces and serve. 

Pathrode -2

 

This is a type of pathrode that my family likes, though I like the other one. This is easier and faster to prepare, so it is fine with me J

Ingredients

2 colocasia leaves

1 cup besan

Salt to taste

¼ tsp ajwain

¾ tsp dried mango powder

¼ tsp turmeric powder

¼ tsp red chilli powder

2 tsp oil

Water to make into a thick paste

Oil to shallow fry

Instruction

-  Gently remove the thick veins on the outer surface of the colocasia leaves with a sharp knife.

-  Wash the leaves, lightly shake off the excess water and keep aside for the remaining water to evaporate.

-  Mix all the ingredients with the besan, slowly adding water to make a thick paste.

-  Keep one leaf upside down, spread besan paste onto the whole of outer surface. Now keep the second leaf over this, and spread the remaining besan mix over the leaf.

-  Now gently roll them together, keep inside a container and steam for 20 minutes. Take out and allow to cool slightly.

- Slice the roll into pieces of about 1 ½ cm thickness

-  Heat oil on a thava, roast the both sides of the slices on medium heat and serve.

-  It can be served as a snack along with tomato sauce, or as an accompaniment of rice or chapati.

Dahi vada, Kerala style

 

Ingredients

For vada:

1 cup udad dal soaked for 6 hours – for 6 vadas

½ tsp cut green chilli

¼ tsp cut ginger

Salt to taste

1 tbsp small coconut pieces

¼ tsp crushed pepper

A small pinch of baking soda

Oil for deep frying the vadas

Prepare curds

2 cups thick curds

2 cups water

1 tbsp finely cut onion

¼ tsp finely cut ginger

¼  tsp cut green chilli

A few curry leaves

A pinch of salt

1 ½ tsp sugar

To temper

1 tbsp oil

1/2 tsp mustard seeds

Instruction

-          Drain the soaked dal and grind it to a slightly rough consistency. Mix all the other ingredients and deep fry the vadas in oil on medium heat.

-          Drain the golden colored vada from the oil, drop it into water, leave for a few seconds, and squeeze gently between the palms and keep aside.

-          If you want to make left over, cold vadas into dahi vada,  pour hot water over the vadas till they are immersed in the water, leave for a few seconds, gently squeeze between the palms.

-          Beat the curds to a smooth consistency, add water and beat again. Add all other ingredients, mix well.

-          Pour some of the prepared curd onto a serving bowl, arrange the vadas on it and pour the remaining curds over them.

-          Heat the oil, add the mustard seeds, when they splutter, pour over the dahi vadas and serve.

Karkidaka Kanji

 In Kerala parboiled rice is the staple food. It is also known as matta rice, Rose matta rice, Kerala red rice, Red parboiled rice and Palakkadan matta rice, as locally it is sourced from the Palakkad region of Kerala. It takes longer time to cook as compared to polished white rice. What I usually do is, soak rice in water overnight, pressure cook with four times water for 5 to 6 minutes, cool and drain.

Karkidaka Kanji is made during the Malayalam month of Karkidakam when it rains heavily, which can cause ill health. It has been part of the traditional monsoon food regimen in Kerala for long as it gives our system the immunity boost it needs at the time. It also helps in detoxification, aids digestion, reduces cholesterol, and improves bowel movement.

Ingredients

1 cup or 100 gms of Red rice (for two people)

1 tsp Fenugreek seeds

4 cups water

½ tsp Dried ginger powder

½ tsp Crushed pepper

½ tsp cumin seeds

½ tsp Turmeric powder

3 flakes of Garlic peeled and chopped

Salt to taste

Coconut milk – 1/2 cup

Instruction

-          Wash the rice, fenugreek seeds  and soak  them together overnight or at least for 3-4 hours

-          Pressure cook all the ingredients together, except coconut milk for 8 minues.

-          Cool, open the pressure cooker, add the coconut milk and simmer for two minutes.

-          Serve with boiled and seasoned green gram or coconut chammanthi (chutney).

Banana stem, Mung Dal Kootu Curry

Ingredients

1 ½ cups banana stem cut to small pieces  CLICK HERE for the video how to remove fibre from the stem

¾ cup skinned, split green gram (mung dal), soak for ten minutes

2 cups water

1/3 tsp turmeric powder

Salt to taste

To grind

¾ cup grated coconut

3 flakes of garlic

1/3 tsp cumin seeds

1 green chilli

To season

1 tbsp oil

¼ tsp mustard seeds

1 red chilli broken to pieces

A few curry leaves

Instruction

-          Keep the cut banana stem with half cup water, salt and turmeric powder on medium fire to cook. Check in between if more water needs to be added. In about ten minutes, it will be cooked.

-          Meanwhile, keep the soaked mung dal with salt and 1 ½ cups of water on medium flame. When it boils, reduce the flame and let it cook for ten minutes.

-          Grind the grated coconut with all spices, add this to the cooked banana stem kept on low fire. Also mix in the cooked dal.

-          Let it simmer for five minutes and season it.

-          Serve with steamed rice or chapatis. 

Banana stem, mung dal kootu curry served with jowar rotis, cucumber slices, and mango pulp.