Avial

                                             Avial

Avial is a combo of veggies in coconut gravy.Its a tradiotional dish of kerela.Usually on Pongal day my mom makes Avial,Variety of Chips made out of potatoes,sweet potatoes,Raw plantains and Sweet Pongal to finish up the meal.When I started cooking I didnot try Avial for a very long time because I have always heard my mom say that,if the veggies are over cooked the taste of Avial is lost.I should say it took me few attempts  not to over cook the veggies and their crunchiness is maintained.If you have variety of veggies ,I would say its the easiest to cook anytime.My Pic here doesn't show all the veggies here like carrots,sweet potatoes.I was skeptical posting it,but will change the pic when I get the right one.

Avial

Ingredients

String Beans 1/4 lb

Carrots 2

Sweet Potatoe 1/2

Potatoe  1

Chayotte squash 1

Yellow Pumkin  Few Pieces Diced

Yellow Pumkin   Few Pieces Diced

Peas   A handfull

Raw Mangoe  Few Pieces(optional)

Feel free to add any of your favorite veggies
To Grind to a Paste

Shredded Coconut  1/2 cup

Cumin Seeds/Jeera   2Tsp

Green Chilies   5 (to your taste)

Salt to your taste

Coconut Oil  2 Tsp

Curry Leaves 1spring

Mustard Seeds 1 tsp

Asfoetida/Hing  A Dash

Turmeric 1/2 tsp

Yougurt 1/2 cup


Method
1.Cut the veggies to long pieces about an inch .

2.In a sautee pan take 1/2 cup water , add all the veggies and turmeric to it .Sprinkle with salt.Close the pan with a lid.Keep checking in between ,so that the veggies are not burnt. The veggies will cook by itself .The veggies should not loose its crunchiness .Its fine if its just the state of half boiled.

3.While the veggies are cooking grind together the coconut,green chilies and cumin seeds.

4.Add the ground paste to the veggies .Switch off the stove when the veggies and paste start blending together.

5.Season it in 1 Tsp of  Coconut oil with Mustard seeds,curry leaves and Asfoetida/hing.

6.When the avial is ready to serve mix the yoghurt along with it and serve.It goes very well with Venpongal,Adai and with the combination of rice and appalam.

Chakara Pongal/Sweet Pongal

                                 Chakara Pongal/Sweet Pongal

As the name goes for this dish, it’s a sweet relish. Sweet pongal is a traditional dish and is a combo of rice, moong dal and jaggery/gund/vellam along with milk, ghee and a mixture of aromatic spices. In southern part of India, in villages it is believed that when the milk boils, to its brim is a good sign for a new year to begin with prosperity. My mom used to make this sweet pongal in a vengala panai otherwise called a brass vessel .The vessel would be decorated with haldi, kumkum and Sugar cane pieces, turmeric pods tied to it on the pongal day. When the milk boils my brother and me would shout on our highest voices "Pongalo Pongal" with joy. I did not carry my vengala panai here, given during my wedding, Mine was a pressure cooker pongal.My daughter had fun screaming "Pongalo Pongal" .Here you go with the recipe.

Chakara  Pongal/Sweet Pongal

Ingredients

Rice 1Cup

Moong Dal ¼ Cup

Jaggery/Gund 1 Cup

Milk 2 Cups

Water 1 Cup

Ghee ½ Cup

Cardamom Pod -3 Powdered

Clove -3 Powdered

Nutmeg/Jathikai -1/2 Spoon Powdered

Saffron a pinch

To Garnish Roast the following in 1 Tsp Ghee

Cashews -2 Tsp

 Raisins - 2 Tsp

Almonds -2 Tsp

Method

1. Wash the rice, moong dal and mix it along with the milk, water and saffron in a pressure cooker and leave it for 4 whistles

2. In a pan mix the jaggrey with little water and boil it until it starts frothing and begin to form a thick consistency.

3.Smash nicely with a ladle the cooked rice and dal and add the jaggery consistency ,ghee ,powdered cardamom, clove and nutmeg to that , keep stirring it on a low flame until the pongal reaches a semi solid consistency and switch it off.

4. Garnish it with Cashew, raisins and Almonds.Voila that’s about it Enjoy!!!!

Whole Wheat Ragi Ginger Pancakes

                             Whole Wheat  Ragi  Ginger Pancakes

I always look for creativity when it comes to packing my daughter's lunch box.I would make bunny rabbit dosas,bear pancakes ,flower idly.One of my creation is today's recipe.I made bunny rabbit pancakes .My daughter loves taking pancakes for lunch.Actually I prefer pancakes over dosas ,since dosas gets dried easily and about lunch time its stone dry.MMM... I know what you guys are thinking "why wont they Microwave the food in school".Nope they dont do it if its home food,that's the answer becoz the daycare provides food and fees is included with food either u opt it or not.Being vegetarians options are cheese sandwich,veggie soup,pasta.This repeats every other day.My DD is very picky and I am 100% sure she is not going to eat the sandwich or soup the alternate day .The following pancake is something I mix randomly whatever flour I hit into, in my pantry during the morning buzz.

Whole Wheat Ragi Ginger Pancakes

Ingredients

Whole Wheat Flour 1Cup

Ragi Flour 1/4Cup

Sugar 2Tsp

Salt 1/4Tsp

Flax Seeds 1 Tsp(optional)

Milk/Water 1 cup

1Tsp baking Powder

Grated Ginger 1 Tsp

Olive Oil 1 Tsp

Method

1.Mix together all the dry ingredients ,ginger with 1Cup of milk/Water.Add the milk/water little by little
until you reach Idly batter consistency.The batter should not be very loose or watery.

2.Heat a Griddle slather the griddle with few drops of olive oil,sprinkle little water on the heated griddle ,it should sizzle and reached the right temperature to make the pancakes.

3.Take a ladle of the pancake batter spread it on the griddle,let it cook ,flip it on the other side to cook.

4.Enjoy it with honey/maple syrup drizzled on top of the pancakes.We like it with honey.Yum Yum.

Notes:
1.You can substitute whole wheat flour with whole wheat pastry flour .

2.Ragi flour is available readily in Indian stores.I usually get it from India prepared by my mom .
My ragi flour will have additional ingredients like almonds,corn kernels,chick peas .We call it kanji mavu ,used
to make a healthy drink.

3.To Prepare Ragi Flour at home.Wash the ragi very throughly as its supposed to contain dirt and grime
  A.Soak 1 cup of ragi in water for one full day.Drain the water and tie it in a cotton cloth and leave it for 2 days.
  B.Once the Ragi starts sprouting ,fry it for  5minutes on medium heat and switch off the heat
  c.After its been cooled ,grind it in a blender and sift it.It can stay in airtight container stored in the refriegerator   for about a year


Sending this to Madhuram's  JFI – Ragi/Finger Millet  Event.

JFI-Ragi/Finger Millet Event

Onion Pakoda

                                        Onion Pakoda

Again a weekend treat.Its been snowing since morning ,we wanted to indulge in some hot and crunchy snack.Contemplating between Bajji and Pakoda we voted for Onion Pakodas.Onion Pakodas are one of my dad's favorite.He is no fussy or picky eater,generally he is open to all veggies and legumes.He has selective favorites which he would never compromise on the taste or quality.He likes Onion Pakodas crispy.I have tried all variations.Everytime it would turn just average.This time I remember reading somewhere when you increase the quantity of rice flour ,the more crunchier it is.It really turned out Crispy ,Crunchy just before the last batch was finished I managed to take a picture.

Still Snowing

Onion Pakoda

Ingredients

Onion  2 Medium Sized

Besan  1/4 Cup

Rice Flour Little less than 1/4 cup

Green Chilies   4 Chooped

Garlic  1 Minced

Turmeric 1/4 tsp

Saunf/Sombu  1/2 Tsp

Salt To Taste

Cilantro 2 Tsp Chopped

Oil to Fry

Water 3-4 Tsp

Method

1.Slice the onion to 1/2 inch strips.

2.In a mixing bowl add the sliced onions,salt,turmeric,chopped green chilies,minced garlic,saunf,cilantro and mix well.

3.Now add the besan , rice flour and sprinkle water little by little .The dough is ready now.Water is added just to hold the ingredients together.If too much water is added it will form as one big  lump and the Pakodas will turn out like  vadas.

4.Heat the oil to an optimum temperature and  take a smallportion of the dough and drop in to the oil little by little in a showering motion.The Pakodas should not stick to each other.Deep fry until brown and enjoy it with your Tea/Coffee.

I am sending this to WYF:Tea Time Snack event hosted by EC Cooking Blog

http://simpleindianfood.blogspot.com/2009/11/wyftea-time-snack.html

 

Warm Ginger Lemonade for a Snowy Weekend.

                                        Warm Ginger Lemonade

Its Margazhi month ,people claim  very cold and dewy month in India.My mom used to wear a monkey cap and put rangoli outside the house.We girls would go around claiming each of our mom's kolam looked pretty.After I came to the US and witnessed the snow myself I thought it was an exaggeration wearing a monkey cap in India.Literally my fingers would freeze If I do not wear a pair of gloves This is the month we would be indulged in Hot Pongal,Kothsu and Chutney every day for break fast.But for me preparing pongal on a hectic weekday morning is difficult.This weekend I decided to Make Pongal and Kothsu and Offered it to Andal.We had it for BF and felt it little heavy.I decided to make a warm ginger lemonade  to make digestion easier.This drink is a regular in our house during winter season.Its sweet and sour very comforting for cold and sore throat.In my next or following posts I would go in detail about the Margazhi  Month and Thirupavai.Try this lemonade its a keeper .
This is how my part of the world looks for the weekend.Its snowing and feels like 14 degree Fahrenheit.

Warm Ginger Lemonade

Ingredients

Ginger:1 Inch Piece (Smashed)

Lemon:1/2 Lemon juice squeezed

Cane Sugar:1 Tsp (Can Substitute Honey with 1 Tsp)

Water 1 Cup

Salt A Pinch

Method

1.Bring along the smashed ginger and water to a rolling boil and switch off the stove

2.Add the juice of Lemon,Sugar/Honey ,Salt and stir nicely.

3.Enjoy the Warm Ginger Lemonade.We  eat the ginger , we like the tangy taste incorporated in it.

String Beans sans Coconut

                                      String Beans sans Coconut

One of our favorite veggie is String Beans. We can eat any form of this vegetable  and love to add this in almost everything boiled beans in our salad,  mixed vegetable curry, Paruppu Usili, Beans sauteed with the flavor of coconut added at the end, beans kootu.Usually in any south Indian kitchen it would accompany as a side dish for sambar or rasam.My mom mostly makes beans Saute with coconut added at the end. The day I decided to make beans, I did not have coconut in stock. I decided to add a handful of moong dal during the boiling process, the curry turned out excellent without missing the taste of coconut. The moong dal added crunchiness and color. We enjoyed it with rRce and Sambar.

Ingredients

String Beans 1Lb

Moong Dal about a Handful

Salt to taste

Oil 1Tsp

Seasoning

Mustard Seeds 1 Tsp

Red Chilies 3

Channa Dal 1 Tsp

Moond Dal 1 Tsp

Asafetida/Hing a Dash

Cumin Seeds 1 Tsp (Optional)

Curry Leaves to Garnish


Method:

1. Cut the string beans in to small cube sized pieces

2. In a kadai heat the oil and when ready, add the seasonings mustard seeds, channa dal, urad dal, redchilies, cumin seeds, hing.

3. Add the cut string beans and moong dal.Add 2 cups of water, salt and close it with a lid. Check once in a while, so that water level is maintained and the vegetable is not burnt.

4. The cooked string beans will be soft and all the water would have evaporated during the boiling process . You can also check for readiness by smashing a tiny piece in between your fingers and you will be able to feel the softness. The moong dal will take same time as the beans to boil.

Pudina Thogayal/Mint Chutney

                                          Pudina Thogayal/Mint Chutney

When I am not in the mood for elaborate cooking, I just carve out a simple meal with one thogayal/chutney, sathumathu (rasam) and some Vathal/Papdams.On one such day I made this pudina thogayal.Everyone has their own version of this chutney. It can be prepared with /without coconut. The days I have Coconut cored and sliced in my freezer will thaw and add a few pieces while blending.Both versions taste great. The one version today I am going to present is without the coconut.

Pudina Thogayal/Mint Chutney


Preparation Time: 5 Mins
Cooking Time : 5Mins
Ingredients

Pudina/Mint 1 Bunch

Mustard Seeds 1/2 Tsp

Urad Dal 1 Tsp

Channa dal 1 Tsp

Red chilies 1

Black pepper 1/2 Tsp

Asfoetida A pinch

Oil 1/2 Tsp

Salt to Taste

Tamarind - 1/2 small lemon size/to taste

Method

1. Dry Roast all the ingredients except Pudina/mint, Tamarind and set it aside.

2. In a Kadai heat the oil; add the pudina/mint and sauté for about a minute, when it starts to shrink transfer it to the blender.Pudina/Mint should not loose its color, if the greenness is lost, your chutney will look black in color.

3. First blend the Pudina, tamarind to get a smooth paste.

4. Add the dry roasted ingredients along with the pudina paste and give it a whir.The dry roasted ingredients should be coarse; it will give crunchiness to the chutney. Goes well with Rice, Ghee and as sides for Idli/Dosa.


PS: It was just before the chutney hit the dinner table ,it struck me to take a pic for the blog I was looking for  some creativity .These days my toddler is into learning colors, shapes etc.She looked at the round carrot slices from the salad bowl and said "Look Mommy Flower" ,made me to carve out a little unsymmetrical flower of a carrot slice , a mint stalk as a stem ,a coconut shred for the pollen and ready for the pic.The Pic doesn't look great though, as I lacked enough light.