Mixed Vegetables Stuffed Paratha

For the health conscious you!:)

 Ingredients (Serves 2 to 3 people)

Potato: 1/4 Cup
Carrot : 1/4 Cup
Green Peas: 1/4 Cup
Cauli Flower: 1/4 Cup

Curry Leaves
Corriander Leaves
Salt
Turmeric Powder:1/4 Tea Spoon
Red Chilli Powder: 1/2 Tea Spoon
Garam Masala Powder: 1/4 Tea Spoon

Black Pepper Powder: 1/4 Tea Spoon
Atta (Wheat Flour) : 3 Cups
Water

Cooking Time: 20 to 25 minutes
Method
Add required salt and water to the atta and make a smooth dough.
Cook potato, carrots, green peas and cauliflower adding salt.

Heat turmeric powder, red chilli powder, garam masala powder and black pepper powder in low flame and mix well
Mash all the vegetables

Add heated masala powder, curry leaves, and coriander and mix well
Take small portions of dough and make small rotis
Keep little mixed vegetable mixture in these rotis and fold it from all sides and make it a ball

Again roll this and make the roti
Cook it on a tawa

If required, brush a little butter or ghee on top
Serve hot


Note
Can be served plain as a snack or as a meal with dal/curd/pickle

Soya Chunks Cutlet

Simple - Tasty - Nutritious. Let us make soya chunks cutlets :)

 Ingredients (Makes 8 to 9 pieces)
Soya Chunks (Meal Maker): 250gms
Cooked Rice: 1 Cup
Potato: 1
Carrots: 2 - 3
Green Peas: 1/2 Cup
Green Chillies: 4 - 5
Onion: 1

Ginger Crushed: 1 Table Spoon
Curry Leaves
Corriander
Salt
Red Chilli Powder: 1 Tea Spoon
Black Pepper Powder: 1 Tea Spoon

Crushed soya chunks

Turmeric Powder: 1/4 Tea Spoon
Meat Masala: 1/2 Tea Spoon
Oil: For Frying
Water
Corn flour: 2 Table Spoon or Egg :1
Bread Crumps

Mashed rice

Cooking Time: 30 minutes
Method
Wash the soya chunks well
Boil 2 cups of water
To this add soya chunks and keep it aside for 10 - 15 minutes

Remove soya chunks from water and squeeze off all the water from it
Cook the soya chunks in water adding little salt and a pinch of turmeric powder
Cook potato, carrot and green peas and mash it with a spoon
Mash the rice also, if required use a mixer
Once the soya chunks gets cooled put it to a mixer and crush it, no need to make a fine paste
Pour oil to a pan add chopped green chillies, crushed ginger and chopped onion

Once the onion gets cooked add turmeric powder, red chilli powder, black pepper powder, meat masala and required salt and saute well
To this add crushed soya chunks and mashed potatos, carrots, green peas and rice
To this add curry leaves and corriander leaves
Mix every thing very well
Mix the corn flour in water, do not make it too thin or thick (If using egg beat the egg well)
Once the mixture gets cooled take some of the mixture and roll it to the required shape
Dip in corn flour paste and roll in bread crumps and fry in oil.

Palada Payasam (Rice Ada Kheer)

A 'Sadya' is not complete without this for a malayalee..

Ingredients (Serves 7 to 8 people)
Rice Ada: 300 gms (You can get this from any supermarket)
Milk : 2 Litres
Sugar: 2 Cup (Can increase or decrease as per the sweetness required)
Water: 3 Cups
Saltless butter: 1 Teaspoon
Salt: 1 Pinch

Cooking Time: 45 minutes
Method
Boil 2 cups of water
To this, add rice ada and keep it aside for 10 minutes
Drain the water and wash the ada well in plain water
Mix 1 cup of water and 1/2 litre of milk and to this add the cleaned ada and cook well
Boil rest of the milk
Once the ada is cooked well, add it to the boiling milk and keep on stirring
Once it achieves a thick consistency, reduce the flame and add sugar slowly
Let the paayasam boil well again for about 10 minutes or until the desired consistency is achieved
Switch off the flame and add a teaspoon of saltless butter and a pinch of salt and stirr well.
Serve hot or cold

Note
Add cashew and raisins if you like
It is good to add a pinch of salt as it helps to balance the sweetness of the paayasam.

Coconut Burfi

Very easy to make popular Indian sweet. Lets go Burfeeeeeeeeeeeee :)

Ingredients (Makes 10 to 12 pieces)
Grated Coconut: 2 Cup
Sugar: 1 Cup
Cardomom Powder: 1/4 Tea Spoon
Ghee: 1/4 Tea Spoon
Water: 1/2 Cup
Food Colour: 1 Pinch

Cooking Time: 25 to 30 minutes
Method
Heat grated coconut in a pan, so that the moisture will become less.
Keep water for boiling.
Once it starts boiling add sugar
Allow the sugar syrup to boil till it becomes thick consistency.
To this add the coconut and cardomom powder and food colour
Keep on stirring till the sugar syrup is completely absorbed in coconut and sticks
Greese the setting tray with ghee
Pour the mixture to this tray
Once cooled cut into the desired shapes

Note: If you want white burfi, avoid food colour.

Chicken Fried with Onion

Yummy Chicken Fry!! 

Ingredients (Serves 2 to 3 people)

Chicken: 250gms (cut into medium size pieces)
Red chilli Powder: 2 - 3 Tea Spoon
Turmeric powder:1/4 Tea Spoon
Salt : To taste
Vinegar: 1 Tea Spoon
Ginger Crushed: 1 Table Spoon
Garlic Crushed: 1 Table Spoon

Onion: 1
Curry Leaves
Oil: 2 - 3 Table Spoon

Preparation Time: 1 hour
Cooking Time: 25 minutes

Method
Marinate the chicken with red-chilli powder, turmeric powder, crushed ginger and garlic, vinegar and salt
Keep it aside for 45 minutes to an hour
Put the chiken to a pan, close the lid and cook it in low flame.
No need to add water.
Open the lid and stir inbetween

Once all the water content get dried, add oil
Stir well and close the lid and cook for about 5 minutes
Add onion and curry leaves and close the lid again for 10 more minutes, so that the flavour of onion and curry leaves gets inside the chicken.
After that open the lid and stirr slowly.
The chicken will be very tender and can easily break. So stirr very carefully
Once the onion and chicken blends in well and onion color changes to brown, switch off the flame
Serve hot.

Kesari / Sooji ka halwa

From north India to south India, this dish is a favorite dessert.

Ingredients (Makes 12 to 14 pieces)

Semolina / Rava / Sooji (Thin): 1 Cup
Sugar: 1 Cup
Ghee: 4 - 5 Table Spoon
Milk: 3 Cup

Water: 1 Cup
Cashew nuts: For Garnish
Raisins: For Garnish
Cardomom Powder: 1 Pinch
Lemon Yellow Food color: 1 Pinch(Optional)

Cooking time 20 to 25 minutes
Method
Pour ghee to a pan, fry cashew nuts and raisins and keep aside
To the same pan add semolina and fry for about 8 - 10 minutes, no need to make it brown
Boil milk and water and add it to the semolina
Mix the food color in little water or milk
Add sugar and food color and cardomom powder
Stirr well and make sure that there is no lumps
Keep on strring till the whole liquid gets evaporated and semolina gets thick and starts to leave sticking to sides of the pan
Greese the setting tray with little ghee
Pour the mixture to the setting tray and layer it well
Once it becomes little cool, cut using a knife and place the cashew nuts and raisins on top

Tomato Prawns (Shrimps)

A quick and easy starter..lets have some sea food.

Ingredients (Serves 3 to 4 people)

Prawns/ Shrimps: 350 gms
Turmeric powder: 1/4 Tea Spoon
Red Chilli Powder: 1 Tea Spoon
Kashmiri Chilli Powder: 2 Table Spoon
Onion: 1
Tomato: 2

Green Chiili: 4 - 5
Crushed Ginger: 1 Table Spoon
Crushed Garlic: 1 Table Spoon
Tomato Ketchup: 1 Table Spoon
Curry Leaves
Corriander Leaves
Salt
Oil: 2 Table Spoon

Preparation time: 20 minutes
Cooking Time: 20 minutes

Method
Marinate prawns with red chilli powder, a pinch of turmeric powder and salt
Keep for about 10 - 15 minutes
Pour oil to a pan and fry the prawns, no need to make it crispy, just fry for 6 - 8 minutes
Remove the prawns
To the same pan add crushed ginger and garlic and saute for some time
Then add onion and green chillies
Saute till the onion gets cooked and then add sliced tomato

Stirr till the tomato cooks well
To this add kashmiri chilli powder, turmeric, salt and tomato ketchup one by one and saute well
Once everything mixes properly, add the fried prawns
Mix and then close the lid of the pan and cook in low flame.
Open the lid and stirr inbetween.
After 10 minutes add corriander leaves and curry leaves and mix well.
Serve Hot

Netholi Peera Pattichathu (Anchovies in crushed coconut)

Netholi / Nethili / Nethal / Kozhuva / Chooda / Podi meen / Anchovies..  They are all the same. Cook 'em :)

Ingredients (Serves 3 to 4 people)

Netholi Fish: 250gms
Coconut Grated: 1/2 Cup
Green Chillies: 5 - 6
Ginger: 1 Small Piece
Shallots: 4 - 5
Garlic: 2
Curry Leaves
Kudampuli : 2 Pieces
Salt
Turmeric Powder: 1/4 Tea Spoon
Coconut oil: 2 Table spoon

Cooking Time: 15 to 20 minutes

Method
Crush Coconut, Green Chilli, Ginger, Shallots and Garlic.
Do not grind to a fine paste, just crush
To a pan add 1 table spoon of coconut oil and saute the coconut mixture for 3 minutes
To this, add turmeric, salt, tamarind and curry leaves and saute for some time.

To this, add the fish
Do not add water.
Just mix everything well and close the lid of the pan and cook well in low flame.
Switch off the flame and add the rest of the coconut oil.

Bread Jamun

Sweet tooth? Want a Jamun real fast? Try this:)

Ingredients (Makes 14 to 15 pieces)
Bread: 8 Slices
Milk: 1/4 Cup
Ghee: 1/4 Tea Spoon
Sugar: 1/2 Cup
Water: 1/2 Cup
Vanilla Essence: 2 - 3 Drops
Oil/Ghee: For Frying

Preparation time: 25 minutes
Cooking Time: 15 minutes

Method
Cut the sides of the bread. Take the white part only.
Crush it with your hands and add milk little by little and make the bread to a dough.
Add 1/4 tea spoon of ghee to the dough and knead it well

Keep the dough aside for 15 to 20 minutes.

Make small - medium sized balls out of the dough
Heat the oil/ghee in a pan. Once it is hot, reduce the flame.
Fry this in oil/ghee in low flame till it becomes brown in color

Sugar syrup
To a pan add sugar and water and boil well.
To this add Vanilla Essence

Once the syrup gets cooled add the fried bread jamuns to it.
Keep for soaking

Note:
Once the jamuns get soaked if you wish you can stain off the excess sugar syrup or can serve the jamuns with the syrup
From 8 slices of bread you can make about 15 medium sized jamuns
It is advised to pre-heat the oil in a high flame and fry the jamuns only in low flame.This will ensure that jamun is nicely cooked and not burned.

Chakka Pradhaman (Jack fruit Paayasam)

The traditional method for preparing this dish is using Chakka varatti (A preserved form of jackfruit.) But we are here to make it the easy way. Aren't we? ;)

Ingredients (Serves  3 to 4 people)

Ripe Jackfruit: 2 Cup (Cleaned and seed taken out)
Jaggery: 3 - 4 Medium sized pieces
Coconut Pieces: 1/4 Cup
Thin coconut milk: 1 ½Cup
Thick coconut milk: 1/2 Cup
Ghee: 4 - 5 table spoon
Cardomom powder: 1/2 Tea Spoon

Cooking Time: 25 to 30 minutes

Method
Melt jaggery in little water
Cut the jack fruit into small pieces and cook it well
Fry the coconut pieces in ghee till it becomes brown
To the ghee add the cooked jack fruit and stirr it
Keep on stirring till the jackfruit becomes a pulp
To this add the thin coconut milk and jaggery liquid
Let it boil till it becomes thick consistency
Add thick coconut milk and let it just heat, do not boil
Switch off the flame and add fried coconut pieces and cardomom powder

Note
If you wish you can add fried cashew nuts and raisins too.

Bread Upma

Have it as a tasty breakfast or an evening snack...

Ingredients (Serves 2 people)

Bread: 10 -12 Slices
Onion: 1
Green Chiilies: 3 - 4
Turmeric Powder: 1 pinch
Salt
Oil: 2 - 3 Table Spoon
Curry Leaves
Mustard Seeds: 1/4 Tea Spoon
Urud Dal: 1/2 Tea Spoon

Cooking time 5 to 6 minutes
Method

Crush the bread slices with your hands
To a pan add oil, once heated add urud dal and mustard seeds
Once this finishes popping add chopped onion, green chillies and curry leaves and saute well
Add required salt and when onion and green chillies get cooked add a pinch of turmeric powder
To this add the crused bread slices and saute well
Once all the ingredients mixes well reduce the flame and close the lid of the pan for 2 minutes
Serve hot

Caramel Bread Pudding with Custard

Easy, tasty bread pudding...

Ingredients (Serves 4 to 5 people)

Bread: 6 - 8 slices
Milk: 1/2 Liter
Sugar: 5 Table Spoon
Egg: 1
Custard Powder : 1 Tea Spoon
Vanilla Essence: 1/4 Tea Spoon

Cooking Time: 30 minutes

Method

Whip the egg well
To this add 350ml of milk and 3 Table spoons sugar and blend well.
Cut the sides of the bread. Take the white part,chop it and add it to the milk mixture and stirr well so that the bread will become soft and dissolve well in the milk
Add vanilla essence
Heat this mixture in low flame just till it starts to boil. Then switch off the flame.
To make caramel add 1 Table Spoon of sugar to a pan and heat it till it becomes brown.
Pour this to a setting bowl.
Pour the bread milk mixture to this bowl
Steam this for around 10 to 15 minutes

Custard
Take 1 Table spoon of milk and dissolve the custard powder in it
Boil the rest of the milk with 1 Table spoon of sugar
Add the custard powder mixed milk
Boil it till it becomes a thick consistency

Keep the pudding and custard in fridge
Serve Cold
Before serving put the pudding upside down to a tray so that the caramel side will come up.

Note:
If you want to make the pudding more sweet you can increase the amount of sugar
You can also add cashew nuts, raisins as well as any dry fruits also.
You can also do the same without caramel.