Panagam

This is Lord NarasimhaDev's favourite, The Panagam at our place has a little twist. We add chia seeds to it.

Ingredients

Jaggery - 11/2 cups
Water - 3 cups
Dry ginger - 1 tsp
Cardamom - 3 pods
Pepper - 4 
Salt - a very small pinch
Lemon - 1
Chia seeds - 3 tsps

Method

Soak the chia seeds in one cup of water overnight or atleast 2 to 3 hours before making panagam.

In a another vessel soak the jaggery in the remaining two cups of water. 
To the jaggery water mix add the dry ginger, salt and juice of lemon.
Break the pepper and cardamom coarsely with a hand grinder and add it to the jaggery mix.
Mix everything well and make sure all jaggery is melted. Strain the panagam.
Add the soaked chia seeds to the panagam. Serve chilled.

Crispy Cheese corn Balls

Crispy cheese corn balls make a great appetizer, be it special occasions or just an ordinary day. It would also make a perfect evening snack for kids. Wow! Who would'nt love to have a bite of this hot, stringy cooey cheese corn balls? I have put together this recipe after watching a couple of videos on youtube.

Ingredients:
Boiled corn- 1 cup
shredded Mozzarella cheese- 1/2 cup
boiled potato- 1 (medium size)
corn flour- 1 tbsp
bell pepper(capsicum)- 1/4 cup , chopped
chilli flakes- 1 tsp (optional)
dried oregano- 1/2 tsp
maida(all purpose flour)- 2 tbsp
bread crumbs- 1 cup
corriander leaves(cilantro)- 1 tbsp, finely chopped
salt to taste
oil for frying

Method:

• Mash the boiled potato. Add bell pepper, corn, chilli flakes, dried oregano, corn flour, cilantro leaves and salt. 

• Add salt only for the above mentioned ingredients. 

• Then add cheese and combine them well.

• Grease your hand with a little bit of oil and roll them into small balls.

• Heat oil in a deep frying pan.

• Combine water with all purpose flour to a pouring batter consistency.

• Dip the balls in the batter so that is gets coated on all sides and then roll them on the bread crumbs.

• Roll them between your palms to make sure that the breadcrumbs is well coated on all sides.

• Fry them until golden brown and collect them on a plate with paper towel to drain the excess oil.

• Serve them out with tomato ketchup.

Notes:
* Avoid chilly flakes if you are making it for kids.
* If you want to make it more spicy try adding finely chopped green chillies or Jalapeno
*If you want to make it more cheesy be generous in adding cheese.
* Fry the balls on a medium flame to get the desired golden brown color.
* Chopped parsley is a part of this recipe which I have omitted it as my family is not a big fan of        parsley leaves.

Potato Tamarind Salad

This is a very simple salad. Got this receipe from a magazine that I browsed through sometime ago. It can be made for Ekadesi also.

Ingredients :

Tamarind Pulp - 11/2 tbsp
Brown Sugar - 75 gm
Cumin - 1 tbsp (ground)
Ginger - Thumbsize Piece, chopped
Baby potatoes- 1 kg
Yoghurt - 3 tbsp
Corriander Leaves - 4 tbsp chopped

Method :

To make the dressing, put the tamarind pulp in a small pan,pour 75 ml boiling water and add the sugar, cumin and ginger. Add salt according to taste.
Simmer, without a lid, until the dressing thickens and becomes syrupy, about 10 - 15 minutes. It should have a pleasant tang. Add extra sugar if needed.
While the tamarind is cooking, bring a large pan of salted water to boil and add the potatoes. Return to boil and cook for 15 minutes until tender.
Drain, then cool slightly before halving them.
Transfer to a big mixing bowl and spoon over the dressing, gently stirring to make sure the potatoes are well coated.
Drizzle over the beaten yoghurt and corriander. Serve warm or at room temparature.

Curried Butternut squash Basil soup

On a cold evening, our bellies were craving for some hot soup. I quickly scanned my kitchen resources and came up with an idea to make 'butternut squash soup'. Butternut squash, always remained an 'untouchable' in my refrigerator- the least preferred vegetable in my family. Hence, I picked few other veggies to make the soup palatable. I chose fresh basil leaves and curry powder to flavor the soup. I avoided oil/ butter for health reasons. I thoroughly enjoyed brainstorming this soup recipe and felt more content seeing my family relish the soup.

Ingredients:

Butternut squash, cubed- 2 cups
Carrot, sliced - 1/3 cup
Tomato - 1
Asparagus, chopped- 1/4 cup
Red bell pepper, chopped- 1/4 cup
Celery, finely chopped- 2 tablespoon
Basil leaves- 6
Vegetable broth/ water - 2 cups
Curry powder- 1/4 teaspoon
Salt and Black Pepper to taste

Method:

Combine all the chopped veggies in a steamer. Add basil leaves when the veggies are half cooked. Cook them until tender. Do not overcook them!

Remove from heat and cool them.

Blend the steamed veggies with 2 cups of vegetable broth or warm water, salt, black pepper and curry powder.

If you prefer it piping hot then pour it into a pot and heat them to desired temperature.

Variations:
Roast the veggies in oil or butter instead of steaming them.
Garnish with whipped cream/ sour cream

Chilli Paneer / Spicy Cottage cheese

Chilli paneer is an Indo-chinese dish. This is also one of the popular appetizer in the  Indian restaurants. Although branded as an appetizer this makes a great combo with vegetable fried rice and vegetable pulav . The recipe is simple and I leant to make this from my aunt Mrs.Parvathy. Now lets take a look at the ingredients needed for making chilli panner.
Ingredients:
Paneer- 250 g

corn starch- 3 tbsp

all purpose flour- 2 tbsp

water- 5 tbsp

chilli powder- 1/4 tsp

oil for deep fry

Sauce

capsicum (bell pepper)-  1 cup chopped (green, red, yellow)
cabbage (chopped)- 1 cup
ginger- 1 tsp + 1tbsp
tomato sauce- 4 tsp
soy sauce 2 tsp + 1 tsp
chilli sauce- 1 tsp
water 1/4 cup
ajnamoto- 1 pinch
oil- 1 tbsp
salt to taste
asafoetida(hing) - a pinch


Method:

• In a bowl mix the corn starch, all purpose flour, chilli powder, pinch of salt, 1 tsp grated ginger and 5 tbsp of  water.
•  Cut the paneer in cubes of 1" size and marinate in the batter for 20 minutes. 
• In a deep pan heat some oil about one inch deep. Fry the panner until golden brown and drian them on a paper towel. The remaining batter can be used in making the sauce. 
• In a wok heat 1 tbsp of oil. Add 1 tbsp of grated ginger, chopped cabbage, bell pepper(capsicum) and a pinch of hing. 
• saute them until they become tender and add a tomato sauce, soy sauce, chilli sauce, a pinch of ajnamoto, the remaining batter, water, salt and cook for 2 minutes. 
• Now add the fried paneer and mix well and cook in low flame for 5 minutes.
• Turn down the heat and serve hot.

Aloo Bonda / Potato Dumplings

 It was raining down from the skies; neither wasn’t pouring cats and dogs, it was a pleasant cold weather in the evening. So, thought of making some deep fried snacks. Today, I am coming with one of the famous dish Aloo bonda. Aloo Bonda's are balls of mashed lightly spiced potatoes dipped in chickpea flour and deep fried till golden brown. On a rainy evening this will taste heaven. Oh, it brings back many cherish memories. I remembered the rainy days in India; we used to buy it from the road side tea shops. Myself, my brother & sister used to have a tug of war to get more portion..

I wish there was someone to make this for me so I could enjoy them really hot…so hot that you’d have to huff and puff on them before you eat them and still manage to scald your tongue!

Ingredients
Potatoes - 4 ( boiled potatoes)
Green chilies – 1 or 2 finely chopped
Ginger – ½ tsp (grated)
Curry leaves – 1 string
Salt to taste
Asafetida -1/4 tsp
Turmeric powder -1/2 tsp
Coriander powder – 1/2 tsp
Cilantro Leaves – 2 tbs finely chopped
oil -2 tsp
Mustard seeds – 1 tsp
Urad dal – 1 tsp

Other
Oil – as required, for deep-frying the bondas

For batter
Besan/Gram flour-1/4 cup
Rice Flour – 3 tbs
Salt to taste
Chili Powder -1/2tsp
Turmeric powder -1/4tsp
Asafetida -1/4 tsp
Baking soda – 2 pinch
Water – ½ cup

Method

In a bowl mix gram flour, Rice flour, turmeric, chili powder,asafetida,salt,Baking soda and water to make a thick batter..

Next, get the filling ready. Heat oil in a wok. Add mustard seeds, when it pop add urad dal, asafetida, curry leaves, green chilies, ginger, turmeric & coriander powder. Stir well. Mash the pressure cooked potatoes and add them to the wok. Add salt, if you want, add coriander leaves also. When cool make the mixture into small balls.

Heat oil in the kada/wok, dip the balls one by one into the batter and deep fry them…Drain on paper towel..So the tasty potato bonda is ready to serve..Serve hot with chutneys or sauce ….

Home-made simple Potato chips

Potato Chips is a universal snack and its loved by people of all age group. This dish can be served as a appetizer, side dish or a snack. According to the traditional story the original potato chips was created in Saratoga Springs, New York, 1853. In the 20th century, potato chips spread beyond chef-cooked restaurant fare and began to be mass produced for home consumption. Potato chips are a predominant part of the snack food market in English-speaking countries and numerous other Western nations.
Now coming to my story, potato chips are my favourite and I was longing for a long time to make them at home. Yesterday was ekadhasi and in our tradition we fast from grains and beans on this particular day. So when I was thinking of making a nice snack without grains and beans, it suddenly stuck me why shouldn't I try to make some potato chips.I thought wow!!..thats a good idea. Although I had watched my mom making potato chips at home during my childhood day, I vaguely remembered the steps. So I googled and found how to make potato chips at home at videojug and was excited to experiment it. My experiments were fruitful.

Ingredients
Russet Potatoes- 2
Oil- 500 ml
salt for seasoning

Method:
Wash and peel the potatoes. Make thin even slices of the potatoes using a mandoline. If you don't have a mandoline, you could us a vegetable peeler or a sharp knife to make thin slices. Pat them dry using a paper towel or line the slices in a cotton cloth and allow them to dry for 10 minutes. Heat the oil in deep pan. Drop the thin slices one by one and fry them on a low-medium heat. Use a slotted spoon to turn the potatoes slices frequently to make sure that the slices are cooked evenly. Once the potato starts turning brown and becomes crip, remove them from the oil using the slotted spoon and transfer it in to a plate with paper towel on it. Leave it for five to ten minutes and then season it with salt.

Soya Balls

This is my aunt’s recipe and can be made very quickly. We love this at home and make it at least once a week. Hot soya balls with tomato ketchup is a treat during the winter season. One weekend we so tired at home that after an early breakfast on Saturday, we dozed off to wake up only at 4 pm. We were so hungry and thought we will have curd rice, but decided we need something crunchy with that, and you won’t believe soya balls was ready in 20 minutes. Just try it and you will love them.

Ingredients :

Soya Chunks - 1/2 pack

Green chilies - 2

Ginger - 1 finger size

Fried gram dhal(Chutney Kadalai) - 2 tbsp

Fennel seeds(Sombu) - 2 tsp

Jeera - 2 tsp

Corriander powder - 1 tbsp

Corriander Leaves – a small bunch

Curry Leaves - 2 strands

Cloves - 2

Cinnamon - 1 piece

Salt - according to taste

Method :

Add the soya chunks to a vessel and add water and a pinch of salt and bring to boil. Allow the soya chunks to cook for 5 to 7 minutes. After that drain the water and wash the soya chunks with cold water twice. Next squeeze the water out of the soya chunks completely. Do this by taking 3 or 4 at a time and press with your hands so that all the water is out. Add the remaining ingredients to a mixer and mash it to a coarse paste without adding water. Once all the items are coarsely ground, add the soya chunks and grind it to a smooth paste. Again please make sure you don’t add water. Next remove the paste from the mixer and make balls and deep fry them. Serve the soya balls with no onion no Garlic Tomato Ketchup. For people who are health conscious, instead of making balls we can make cutlet shaped patties and shallow fry in a tawa.

Fenugreek Rasam/Venthiya Rasam

Rasam is very good for digestion. Greek Hay or fenugreek is a herb which is easily availble in the stores. It is prevalent as a spice to enhance the taste of various culinary dishes. The tanginess of the tomatoes dominated the bitterness of these fenugreek seeds and we love having this healthy, delicious tangy rasam with some simple potato fries, this rasam is quite healthy for diabetic. It can also be served as a soup during cold weather.


Ingredients
Tomato – 2 nos
Mustard seeds – 1tsp
Asafoetida – a
Turmeric – ¼ tsp
Tamarind – a small ball size ( soak in warm water for 15 mins)
Coriander leaves – 1 tbsp
Salt to taste
Curry leaves
Water – 1 ½ cup
Masala
Oil
Fenugreek seeds – ½ tsp
Red Chillies – 2
Pepper corns – 10 nos
Coconut – 2 ½ tbs ( shredded)

Method
In a hot oil pan , fry the masala ingredients till golden brown color and then blend them by adding little water. In a wok add oil when it becomes hot add mustard seeds. When they splutter add asafoetida, chopped tomatoes and turmeric powder fry them well on medium fire until the tomatoes are well mashed. Now, add the tamarind extract, the blended masala,chopped cliantro,curry leaves, with enough salt and water. Turn off the fire after 10 mins.

Note : You can add ghee at the end for nice aroma.

Khandvi / Chickpea flour rolls

Khandvi is a delicacy from the Gujarati cuisine which is made of Chickpea flour (Gram flour).This can be served as a snack or a light fast food or as an appetizer. I learnt to make Khandvi from Srimurti Devi Dasi, who cooks amazing preparations for Their Lordships Sri Sri Rukmini Dwarakdish, at Los Angeles ISKCON temple.


Ingredients
Khandvi
Gram flour/ Chickpea  flour- 1 cup
yogurt- 1 cup
water- 1 cup
Turmeric- 1/4 tsp
hing/ asafoetida- a pinch
green chilli- 1
ginger- 1 inch
salt to taste


Seasoning
Mustard- 1 tsp
Sesame seeds- 1 tsp
Hing- 1/2 tsp
curry leaves- 1 string
shredded coconut- 3 tbsp
oil- 2-3 tsp


cilantro for garnishing

Preparation:
Shift the chickpea flour and mix it with yogurt, water, salt, turmeric powder, hing. Grind the green chilli and ginger to make a paste and add it to the chickpea flour yogurt mixture. Mix them well and make sure that no lumps are left. Pour the mixture in a heavy bottomed vessel and cook it on a medium flame stirring continuously to make sure that the paste doesn't burn at the bottom. Continue to cook until it becomes a thick paste and starts leaving the side of the vessel. Turn off the heat and with a spatula spread the paste immediately on a clean  flat surface evenly. Leave it for 5-6 minutes. Cut them vertically and roll them to desired size. To prepare the seasoning for khandvi, heat the oil in a pan and add mustard seeds, sesame seeds. When the mustard seeds splutters add shedded coconut, curryleaves hing and turn of the heat and pour over the khandvis. Garnish with cilantro(coriander leaves). Serve them with Tamarind dates chutney and green chutney.


I'm dedicating this recipe to my mom for Mother's day. This is one of her favourite dish which she herself has never made at home and I learnt to make it. "Amma you have done so much to me for which I'm indebted". I dedicate this Khandvi dish to you as a token of love.


Sending this recipe to Mother's day event hosted by Panchpakwan

Broccoli soup

Broccoli is high in vitamins as well as dietary fiber.This recipe is thick and favorable. Its simple and delicious and quick to make. My husband loves spinach,broccoli and all the green veggies. Today, I decided to surprise him with this soup. This soup, I first tasted in Govinda's restaurant Los Angeles.

Ingredients
Broccoli - 1 cup ( cut into small florets)
Butter - 2tbs
Water-1 1/2 cups
Asafoetida- 2 pinch
All purpose flour- 1/4 cup
Warm Milk - 1 cup
Parmesan cheese- 1 tbs
Pepper - 1/4 tsp ( freshly grounded taste better)
Salt to taste
Cilantro/Parsley - 1tbs ( optional)

Method

In a hot pan add the water and broccoli, bring it to boil over moderate heat. Now, reduce to simmer and cook until the broccoli is just tender.

In another sauce pan melt the butter in moderate heat. Sprinkle asafoetida and add the flour. Cook it stirring continuously until it darkens slightly. Now add the warm milk and stir it with a whisk until it thickens. Add cheese, pepper and salt. Pour the broccoli and water in the sauce.

Sprinkle in the chopped parsley or cilantro and serve hot.

Lemongrass Coriander(cilantro) soup

Lemongrass is a stalky plant with lemony scent that grows in tropical climate in south-east Asia.  Lemongrass is an important ingredient in many Thai dishes. Lemongrass is commonly used in tea, soup and curries. I had first time heard about lemongrass coriander soup from my mom who tasted this soup in a restaurant in India. I found it to be interesting and thought of giving it a try.  I have adapted this Lemon coriander soup from Tarla Dalal cookbook and made some modifications.

lemongrass

Ingredients:
Lemongrass- 1 stalk
carrot- 1
cabbage- 1/4 cup
green peas- a fist full
green beans- 4
ginger- 2 inch
soy sauce - 1/2 tsp
maggi seasoning- 2 drops (optional)
ajnamoto- a pinch (optional)
black pepper- to taste
salt  to taste
butter- 1 tsp
lemon juice- 1 tsp
cilanto (coriander leaves)- 2-3 tbsp
water- 4 cups

Preparation:

Grate the carrot and ginger. Chop the green beans and cabbage finely. Remove the outer covering of the lemongrass and chop the bulb. Heat the butter in a pan. Toss in all the vegetables and saute them for 2-3 minutes. Add soy sauce, maggi seasoning, ajnamoto. Add 4 cups of water and allow it to boil. Add salt and pepper. Boil for 2 minutes. Turn off  the heat and add lemon juice and garnish with coriander leaves.

Health facts: Lemongrass has medicinal properties and is used extensively in Ayurvedic medicine. It helps in relieving cough and nasal congestion. In 2006 a research team from Ben Gurion university from Israel found that lemongrass has anti-cancer properties.

Cabbage Pakoda

Pakoda is usually served as a evening snack during winter along with a cup of herbal tea. The usual pakodas are cashew pakoda and cauliflower pakoda. Today am gonna share the recipe for cabbage pakoda.

Ingredients:

Cabbage -2 1/2 cup ( 2 inches length )

Besan flour - 3tbsp

Rice flour - 1 1/2 tbsp

Corn flour - 1 1/2 tbsp

Pakora Masala - 1/2tsp

Chilli powder- 1/4 tsp

Turmeric - 1/4 tsp

Asafoetida - 2 pinch

Orange food color - 1/4 tsp

Salt as per taste

Oil for deep frying

Method

In a vessel add all the flours, pakora masala, chilli powder, turmeric, food color, asafoetida, salt then add the chopped cabbage. Mix well and sprinkle few drops of water. The flour should just stick to the cabbage. Heat oil in a wok.Take the mixture in the hand and sprinkle them on to the hot oil. Deep fry the pakodas. Crispy pakodas are ready to serve.

Note : Sprinkle very little water at one portion of the mixture and then mix completely.

Samosa

The samosa family is large and varied and spread across five continents. The limitless possibilities that the samosa offers — the opportunities to play with tastes and textures; size and seasonings, fragrances and fillings — has inspired cooks down the age. 

Samosa is considered as one of the popular snack not only in India but throughout the entire Indian sub-continent. It makes a great appetizer. Traditionally samosas are triangular or conical in shape. It consists of a shell,  made of all purpose flour, and a spicy filling usually made of potatoes and green peas and deep fried. There are wide varieties of filling for the samosas. In Bengal the samosas are filled with sweetened reduced milk. But whatever the fillings are- samosas are treasured snack and goes well with a cup of hot herbal tea.

My mom is an expert in making samosas. I learnt it from her. I made my samsoas with the routine potato filling.

Ingredients
Maida/ all purpose flour- 1 cup
Semolina/ sooji rava- 2 tbsp
oil- 2 tsp
salt to taste
warm water to knead the dough

Filling
Potatoes- 4
Green peas- 1 cup
green chillis- 4
Coriander powder- 2 1/2 tsp
Garam masala- 2 tsp
Amchur powder/ Dry mango powder-  1 1/2 tsp
 Jeera/ Cumin seeds- 1 tsp
Oil- 2 tbsp
Cilantro (coriander leaves)- 2 tbsp

Oil to deep fry the samosas

Preparation

Mix the all purpose flour, water salt and oil and kneed it into a dough and allow it to stand for 15 minutes. 

Boil the potatoes and peel the skin and cut them in to small pieces.

Heat a pan and add 2 tbsp of oil. Add cumin seeds. When it breaks add the green chillies, corriander powder, amchur powder, garam masala and fry them for a minute and then add the green peas and saute it. When the green peas becomes tender add the potatoes and salt and saute it for 2 minutes. Remove it from the heat and garnish with cilantro leaves. Now the filling is ready. Allow it to cool for sometime. 

Heat the oil in a frying pan on a medium flame. Knead the dough nicely for 2 minutes and divide them into 8 equal balls. Roll each ball using a rolling ping of about 6 inch diameter and cut it into two equal halves. You would get 2 semicircles. Spread few drops of water on to the sides of the semicircle and fold it into a cone shape. Now stuff the cone with required amount of filling and close the cone by pressing the ends. Repeat the same steps for the remaining dough. Check the heat of oil by dropping a tiny bit of the dough in the oil. When the dropped bit comes up on to the  surface of the oil slowly then consider that as the correct heat for frying the samosas. Now fry the samosas slowly on a medium flame until golden brown. Serve with tomato sauce or dates- tamarind chutney or coriander chutney.

Note: Samosas should be fried on a low medium flam. When it is fried on a high flame the inner layer of the patties doesn't cook well.

Gobi 65/ Fried Cauliflower/Cauliflower Pakoda

Fried Cauliflower is a dry recipe. I often prefer to take it as a evening snack or as a side dish for roti. Here comes my husband's favorite.. the lip smacking Cauliflower dry !!!!:-). Its easy to make and does not take much time to do if you have all the ingredients.

Ingredients

Cauliflower - 1 clean and cut into small florets
Corn flour - 4 tbs

Rice flour - 6 tbs

Turmeric - 1/4 tsp

Ginger Paste - 1 tsp

Chilli Powder - 1 tsp

Pepper Powder - 2 pinch

Asafoetida - a pinch ( Optional)

Lime Juice - 2 drops

Orange food coloring - 1/4 tsp

Salt - Acc to taste

Oil - for frying 

Method:

In a vessel of water put the cauliflower florets and add some salt and boil it for 15 minutes. Drain the water completely by using sieve. Shift the boiled cauliflower into a bowl and add the corn flour, rice flour, ginger paste, chilli powder, turmeric powder, pepper powder, asafoetida, salt (as per taste) orange food coloring ,lime juice,toss well in the bowl. If need sprinkle very little water in the bowl. Refrigerate it for some time (may be half an hour). Heat oil in a deep frying pan and take the marinated florets from the fridge and deep fry in the heat oil in medium to high fame till golden color.

Note: Asafoetida gives nice aroma. Pepper and lemon juice can be sprinkled on the cauliflower dry while serving. In the heat oil pan add the florets one by one because if you add so much it may stick together.

Chapati Chilli Fry

Chapati is a Indian flat-bread made of wheat. It the popular food in North India. Chapati chilli fry is an experimental recipe. This was my first experimental recipe and it turned out to be delicious. This recipe is very easy to make when you have already made chapathis. 

Ingredients:
Chapati - 5
 Tomatoes- 2
Capsicum (bell pepper)- 1/2 cup (finely chopped)
Cabbage- 1/4 cup (finely chopped)
Chilli powder- 1 tsp or to taste
Maggi seasoning- 2 drops (optional)
Garam masala - 1 tsp
Hing- a pinch
Oil- 2-3 tbsp
salt to taste
cilanto (corriander) leaves for garnishing

Preparation:
Chop the chapati finely.

Heat the oil in a pan. Add cabbage and fry it with hing until it turns golden brown. Then add capsicum and chopped tomatoes and fry them. When the tomatoes become soft, add the chopped chapati, salt, chilli powder, maggi seasoning and garam masala and fry them for few minutes

Turn off the heat and garnish with cilantro leaves.


Note: I have used red capsicum. But you can use green or any other coloured cabpsicum to make your dish colourful.