CHAYOTE FRIED-RICE

Don't know a recipe with chayote………try this simple chayote fried rice with Indian masala powder. Just chayote, masala powder, cooked rice and the dish is ready. 

INGREDIENTS

1. Chayote                         2
2. Onion                            1
3. Rice                               2 cups
4. Water                             4 cups
5. Oil                                 3 Tsp
6. Salt                                to taste
7. Jeera                              1 tsp
8. Coriander seeds             1 tsp

for the masala powder

1. Coriander seeds            1 Tsp
2. Chana dal                     1 Tsp
3. Cardamom                   1
4. Cloves                          4
5. Cinnamon                    small piece
6. Red chilies                   2
7. Dry coconut                 2 Tsp

PROCEDURE

Cook 2 cups of  rice with 4 cups of water and let cool.

Dry roast the ingredients for the masala powder and grind to a fine powder.
Finely chop the onions and chayote. (Peel the chayote, cut into half and discard the seed inside it).
Heat oil in the pan and add the jeera and coriander seeds.

Now add the finely chopped onions.

Add a bit of salt.

Now add the chopped chayote pieces.

Chayote requires little less salt. So add salt accordingly for the veggie and the rice.

Cover and cook till the pieces are soft. 

Now add the masala powder and the cooked rice.

Toss and serve with any raita.

 

CURRY POWDER 2(SESAME-COCONUT-PEANUTS)

The recipe is more for women who need calcium on daily basis and who hate to drink milk or take supplements. Use this gun powder in  any curry dish or use as is with plain rice and ghee, I am sure you will not face the calcium deficiency.  A non dairy source of calcium - sesame is more popular in Indian recipes.

INGREDIENTS

• Sesame seeds                         1 cup
• Dry coconut powder             1/2 cup
• Peanuts                                 1/2 cup
• Red chilies                             8
• Jeera                                      1/2 tsp
• Salt                                        to taste

PROCEDURE

Dry roast all the above ingredients individually and set aside.

Peanuts take longer to roast and sesame take very little time, so roast all of them individually.

When all cool down make a fine powder.

KRISHNASHTAMI SUBHAKANSHALU

శ్రీకృష్ణాష్టకం 

వసుదేవ సుతం దేవం కంసచాణూర మర్దనమ్ |

దేవకీ పరమానందం కృష్ణం వందే జగద్గురుమ్ ||

అతసీ పుష్ప సంకాశం హార నూపుర శోభితమ్ |

రత్న కంకణ కేయూరం కృష్ణం వందే జగద్గురుమ్ ||

కుటిలాలక సంయుక్తం పూర్ణచంద్ర నిభాననమ్ |

విలసత్ కుండలధరం దేవం కృష్ణం వందే జగద్గురుమ్ ||

మందార గంధ సంయుక్తం చారుహాసం చతుర్భుజమ్ |

బర్హి పింఛావ చూడాంగం కృష్ణం వందే జగద్గురుమ్ ||

ఉత్పుల్ల పద్మపత్రాక్షం నీల జీమూత సన్నిభమ్ |

యాదవానం శిరోరత్నం కృష్ణం వందే జగద్గురుమ్ ||

రుక్మిణీ కేళి సంయుక్తం పీతాంబర సుశోభితమ్ |

అవాప్ తులసీ గంధం కృష్ణం వందే జగద్గురుమ్ ||

గోపికానాం కుచద్వంద కుంకుమాంకిత వక్షసమ్ |

శ్రీనికేతం మహేష్వాసం కృష్ణం వందే జగద్గురుమ్ ||

శ్రీవత్సాంకం మహోరస్కం వనమాలా విరాజితమ్ |

శంఖచక్ర ధరం దేవం కృష్ణం వందే జగద్గురుమ్ ||

కృష్ణాష్టక మిదం పుణ్యం ప్రాతరుత్థాయ య: పఠేత్ |

కోటిజన్మ కృతం పాపం స్మరణేన వినశ్యతి ||

కృష్ణం వందే జగద్గురుమ్ ||

ATUKULU-KOBBARI

Soak the thick beaten rice in water for 1/2 an hour(adjust the time according to the thickness of poha).

Heat a tablespoon of ghee and add some jeera, curry leaves, cashews, green chilies.

Once they are fried, add grated coconut.

Squeeze out water from poha and add it to coconut and tadka mixture.

Add some salt, switch off the flame, cover and leave for 5 minutes.

Offer the prasadam to Little krishna.

ATUKULA CHAKRAPONGALI

Soak 1/2 cup of moong dal in water.

Soak 1 cup of poha in 2 cups of milk.

After an hour, boil the moong dal till it is soft. Add the soaked poha along with milk to the cooked dal.

Once the milk is all absorbed add 1 cup of grated jaggery or sugar.

Add 1/4 cup of ghee. 

Mix well till the chakrapogali leaves the edges of pan. 

Garnish with fried nuts and offer the prasad to Lord Krishna.

SOFT MYSOREPAK

HAPPY KRISHNASHTAMI

One of the finest, melt in mouth sweet I have ever made. All through my childhood I was not a big fan of  Mysorepak. The hard porous sweet made with part of ghee and part of oil, baking soda did not please me even once. But once I discovered the taste of this sweet made in the Sri Krishna sweet shop I was completely flattered and decided to learn the procedure of making it. I have tried half a dozen times before I could become an expert in making it. Loads of ghee, little patience and love makes the recipe into a mouth melting delicacy. Give it a sure try.

INGREDIENTS

• Besan                                       1 cups
• Sugar                                       1 cups
• Water                                       1 cups
• Ghee                                        3/4 cup
• Oil                                           2 Tsp(Optional, can use ghee fully)

PROCEDURE

Grease a baking sheet or plate with ghee and set aside

Dry roast the besan on medium flame for 10 to 12 minutes and set aside to cool.
Once cooled sieve it so that there are no lumps.

Now heat a large non stick pan and add the sugar and water. Make a thin sugar syrup with one thread consistency.

Slowly add the besan to the syrup. Keep the flame low and keep mixing. 

Add whole of the besan. 

Whole ghee makes the mysore pak a little hard after a day or two.

Adding a little of oil at the end makes it remain soft.

Add ghee a table spoon at a time and keep stirring. keep the flame low. Unlike the traditional porous mysore pak where you want the mixture bubbling, here you don't want the bubbly frothy mixture. So keep the flame low, keep mixing and complete adding the ghee.

Also you don't want the ghee to be hot, as used in the traditional mysore pak preparation. Use the room temperature ghee.

Keep on mixing and add the oil too.

A stage a reached where the mixture leaves the sides of the pan and changes the color slightly. Pour the gooey mixture into the greased pan. Make sure the mixture doesn't become frothy. If the mixture becomes frothy you will end up with the traditional porous hard mysore pak.

After it cools down a little bit (15 minutes or so) cut to desired shape. Serve after an hour when it is completely cooled.

VEGGIE-PALAK FRIED-RICE

A simple and healthy fried rice recipe packed with lots of veggie goodness and lots and lots of palak. One of the best ways to make your fussy toddler eat more spinach and veggies.

INGREDIENTS

1. Palak/Spinach                        3 cups(fully packed)
2. Carrots                                   1/4 cup(chopped)
3. Beans                                    1/4 cup(chopped)
4. Potatoes                                 1/4 cup(chopped)
5. Onion                                    1/4 cup(chopped)
6. Garlic                                     2 Tsp(chopped)
7.  Rice                                      2 Cups
8. Water                                     4 Cups
9. Ghee                                      1 tsp
10. Oil                                         2 Tsp
11. Cashews                                10
12. Jeera                                      1 Tsp
13. Cinnamon                             1/2 inch piece
14. Cardamom                            2
15. Cloves                                  4
16. Pepper powder                     1Tsp
17. Salt                                       to taste                      

PROCEDURE

Cook 2cups of rice with 4 cups of water and a teaspoon of ghee and let it cool completely.

Mean while blanch the spinach and let it cool off.( i.e Add the spinach to boiling water and keep it for a minute and  remove it and this is called blanching)

Finely chop the blanched spinach. You can also grind the spinach to a fine paste to give your dish a bright green color. My son doesn't like the green color so I prefer chopped spinach.

Chop the veggies as small as possible so that they cook in no time.

You can also microwave or blanch the veggies(carrots, beans, potatoes) to reduce the cooking time.

Heat oil in a large thick bottom pan.

Add the cardamom, cinnamon, cloves, jeera, cashews.

Fry on a very slow flame till the cashews turn golden brown.

Add the onions and garlic and fry till they are brown.

Now add the veggies.

Add enough salt. Cover and cook till the veggies become soft.

Add the palak(chopped/paste).

Fry for a few more minutes till the mixture is dry.

Add the cooked rice and toss well.

Finally add the pepper powder and mix.

Serve hot with any raita or curry.

KHICHDI

A simple dal and rice mixture, easily digestible, simple to make and little ingredients make this a comfort food to all age groups. This healthy recipe can be treated as a next version to kattepongali. Adding simple masalas make it spicy and extra tasty.

INGREDIENTS

• Rice                                  2 cups
• Moong dal                        1 cup
• Water                                8 cups
• Veggies                            1 cup(chopped potato, carrot, beans, peas)
• Tomatoes                          1 pureed
• Ghee                                 2 Tsp
• Jeera                                   1tsp
•  Pepper corns                     1 Tsp
• Cashews                            15
• Salt                                   to taste
• Green chilies                     2 chopped
• Curry leaves                      12

PROCEDURE

1. Heat ghee and add the jeera, cashews, pepper corns, chilies, curry leaves. 
2. Add the moong dal. Fry for a couple of minutes.
3. Add the chopped veggies and fry for 1 more minute. 
4. Add enough salt.
5. Boil the water and add rice and water.
6. Now you can cook on stove top or in a pressure cooker or electric rice cooker.
7. Serve with curd.

WHEAT FLOUR HALWA

I have already posted recipe for wheat flour halwa, but the recipe which I am presenting today is way more simple and low calorie with less ghee and sugar. More over this is a North Indian style of making the halwa and it requires less ghee than the traditional wheat halwa. It is time taking, but a little patience can turn your  recipe into tasty delight. Give it a try.

INGREDIENTS

• Wheat flour                    1 cup
• Jaggery                          1 cup(grated)
• Water                             3+1/2cups
• Ghee                              4 Tsp
• Cardamom powder        1 tsp
• Fried nuts                       2 Tsp

PROCEDURE
To 1 cup jaggery add 2+1/2 cups water and make a syrup and bring the syrup to a boil.
Heat ghee in a large non stick pan and add the wheat flour.

Keep the flame very low and fry the flour for 15 minutes till a nice aroma fills your kitchen.

Now slowly add the boiling jaggery little by little and make a thick halwa.

Cover and cook for another 10 minutes.

Finally add the cardamom powder, fried nuts.

Seve hot.

CHANA FRIED RICE

Packed with full of proteins, this is a one pot meal on a busy day. All you need is soaked and boiled chana and cooked rice. Very easy to make, yet very tasty. Give it a sure try.

INGREDIENTS

• Cooked rice                           3 cups
• Soaked chana                        1 cup
• Oil                                          3 Tsp
• Whole garam masala             10 cloves, 4 cardamom, 10 pepper corns. bay leaf, cinnamon.
• Salt                                        to taste
• Turmeric powder                   1/4 tsp
• Garam masala powder           1 tsp
• Chopped onion                      1/2 cup

PROCEDURE

Soak the chana overnight and cook the with a little bit of salt.

Heat oil in a wide pan and add the whole garam masala.

When they are fried add the very finely chopped onion. 

Fry for a minute and then add the chana, turmeric, salt.

Cover and cook for 5 more minutes.

Add the cooked rice, gram masala powder.

Fry for 2 minutes. 

Serve hot with raita.

EGGLESS CHOCOLATE NUT CAKE

Its eggless, but the same taste. Nuts and chocolate enhances the taste even more. I am presenting this recipe after I tried it a couple of times. No way you can go wrong if you follow my recipe as is.

INGREDIENTS

DRY INGREDIENTS

• Maida(All purpose flour)                  100grams
• Powdered sugar                                100grams
• Baking powder                                 1/4 tsp
• Baking soda                                      1/8 tsp
• Cocoa powder                                   1 Tsp
• Cashews                                            10
• Almonds                                            10
• Rasins                                                10
• Any Chocolate bar                             3 Tsp grated

WET INGREDIENTS

• Butter                                                 50grams
• Any aerated drink                              3 Tsp( coke, pepsi, soda water)
• Milk                                                   3Tsp
• Vegetable oil                                     3Tsp                                                                                                 

PROCEDURE
Grease the baking tray and dust it with flour.
Sieve the maida, baking powder, baking soda and cocoa powder, set aside.
Roast the nuts in a table spoon of butter and then roll them in some flour and set aside.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees fahrenheit.
In a large bowl add the sugar powder, butter, grated chocolate.
Mix well till a soft mixture is formed.
Now add the milk, oil.
The mixture curdles, but keep on mixing.
Now add the Flour mixture little by little and mix well. Add the nuts.
When every thing incorporates well add the aerated drink.
The cake batter should be something like the dosa batter. Don't mix too much after adding the aerated drink. Cake will not fluff if mixed heavily.
Quickly transfer the batter into the baking tin.
Bake for 40 to 45 minutes.
Check the cake with a knife or toothpick.
Serve with coffee or tea.