kale papad ka sag

                                                                Kale papad ka sag

                                                          

Papad is the common ingredient of Indian kitchen pantry.Kale papad is a speciality of marwari kitchen.This is made out of husk of moong (green lentils).Because of the husk the papads are of darker shade and hence called kale papad.This is available at most grocery stores.

Ingredients required



Kale papad   4

Oil               4 talespoon

red chilli powder   1 teaspoon

turmeric powder    1 tea spoon

amchur powder      1 teaspoon






salt according to taste

Hing   a pinch

                                                         papad and whole dried kachari

Roast  papad and make pieces of 1 '' In 1/4 cup water add salt,chilli ,turmeric powder and amchur powder.     In a pan add oil and let it heat up.Now add hing and pour the mixture of water and spices.Now add papad pieces and stir.Let these pieces become soft .Papad ka sag will be ready.Serve it with roti aur paratha.


Tips  :  If kachari powder can be used instead of amchur powder it will be more delicious.Kachai is available in grocery store .It is difficult to find kachari out of Marwar .Kachari is a fruit peeled and dried .It is  used  for giving a tart punch to dishes.

dal bati

The most popular dish of marwar is dal bati .It would be appropriate to say that dal bati and marwar has deep association.Wheat and moong are the  main crop and  staple food of marwari diet.and these are the main ingredients of dal bati.With electric oven in every kitchen it is so convenient to make this dish and entertain your family and friends.Traditionally for baking batis firewood was used.After litting the fire wood one had to wait till it becomes smoke free and then in remaining fuel batis were kept and as there is no thermostat one had to keep a constant watch over it .

Ingredients

For Bati
4 cup wheat flour
1/2 cup ghee
A pinch of salt

                                                                     Dal Bati

For dal

1 cup  moong dal green
1 teaspoon red chilli powder
1 teaspoon dhania powder
1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
a pinch of hing powder
finely chopped green coriander,ginger and green chillies .
2 teaspoon ghee
For churma

5   baked batis
1/4 cup sugar powder
2 table spoon ghee
1/4 teaspoon cardamom powder
      nut to garnish(optional)

Making  bati

 In a bowl mix wheat flour ,salt and add 1/4 cup ghee.The ghee added in a flour before kneading is called moyan and it is to make it soft and crisp.Mix well by rubbing between both hands.Knead the flour by pouring water to make a soft dough.The dough should be of paratha consistency it means slightly tighter than roti dough.Divide the dough into 20 equal pieces.now make round balls out of it and keep on a baking tray.Bake it in a pre heated oven  at a temp of 350F   for15 minutes.Now turn the batis to bake from other side for 10 minutes.These should look golden brown now with an aeroma coming out of kitchen .Batis are ready .Heat remainig ghee and dip the baked 15 batis in that ghee and keep remaining 5 batis aside for making churma.

Making churma
When cool grind 5 batis in a mixer or grinder .Now mix sugar powder and ghee.Add cardamom powder and nuts .Churma is ready to serve.

Making dal
Wash moong dal and put in pressure cooker add 4 cups of water .Add chilli ,dhania ,turmeric powder and salt.Add ghee and hing powder.Mix and pressure cook till 3 whistles .Remove from the heat .When pressure is lowered in the cooker open it.Stir with a laddle.Garnish with chopped coriander ginger and green chillies.
Dal is ready to serve .

Tips :-

1 This dish is calorie rich and is not for weight watcher.One can reduce the amount of ghee by adding a pinch of baking soda and cutting the amount of moyan by half.Better to compromise on taste rather than on health.
2 Best time to enjoy dal bati is either during winter or rainy season.

janmashtami prasad

                                         janmashtami

This day is celebrated throughout India as the Birthday of Lord Krishna.
Lots of dishes are prepared and offered to Deity in temples as well as in homes.
This time janmashtami is on 10th of aug .Celebrate it by offering panchamrit and panjiri to Lord Krishna .
1 Panchamrit 
As the name indicates it is prepared with five ingredients.and offered to Lord krishna

1  Milk  1/2 cup
2  yogurt 1/2 cup
3 butter or ghee 2 tablespoon
4 Honey  2 tab spoon
5 sugar 2 tablespoon
  Tulasi leaves  5

Mix all the 5 ingredients and garnish with tulasi leaves.
Panchamrit is ready.

2 Panjiri
This is made of
1 wheat flour 1/2 cup
2 coriander powder 2 tabspoon
3 sugar powder     1/4 cup
4 coconut powder1/4 cup
5 dry fruits roasted(almonds,cashews)  4 tabspoon
6 ghee     4 tab spoon

In a pan pour ghee and heat and add wheat flour .Keep on stirring occasionally.When it turns golden brown
then remove from the heat and add coconut powder and coriander powder as.these get roasted with the heat of pan .  Add dry fruits and when it is cooled then mix sugar powder. Panjiri is ready.

Lemon pickle (salted lemons)

salted lemons

When we talk about pickle then mango and lemon are everyone's favorite.People living in desert are used to
 preserve vegetables by drying ,salting or caramelising.This way these can be used when required.
Here is the recipe to preserve the lemons.It is very simple and usefull.In old days when there were no refrigerators to store fresh vegetables and fruits then these pickling methods helped.
This recipe we will make lemons salted.

Ingredients required
 20   kagazi lemon(thin skinned )
100 gms salt
A  glass jar with lid
Wash and dry lemons and put into the jar and add salt .Cover and stir the contents up side down few times a day .This should be done for 10 to 15 days .Then the lemon skin will become tender and the color will change.The shelf life af these lemons is more than a year.as the time passes lemons become more juicy and gives an  apetising  aroma .
These salty lemons can be used to make pickles.
Ingredients required
10 salted lemons
25 gms methi seeds
10 gms kalonjee(onion seeds)
2 table spoon salt
2 tablespoons red chilli powder
1 tabspoon turmeric powder
1/4 teaspoon hing powder
 50 gms oil

In a pan pour  4 tabspoon oil and heat it when oil start giving vapous then remove from the heat and pour hing. 
Now put methi then kalongee,Stir once and then add chilli and turmeric powder.Stir and leave it to cool.
Let this mixture cool to room temperature.
Till then wash the lemons to remove extra coating of salt,wipe with  a clean cloth and dry for 30 minutes in sunlight.
With the help of a knife cut these into four pieces and remove the seeds .Now mix lemon pieces with spices mixture and store in air tight container.
On third day heat remaining oil til it starts giving vapours.Remove from the heat.Add hing and let it cool to room temp.Now pour this oil into the jar to cover the pickle fully with a layer of oil.
Pickle will be ready in next two three days when methi seeds will become soft to chew.

Sweat pickle
10 lemons salted
2 tabspoom salt
6 tabspoon sugar
2 teaspoon garam masala
wash and dry lemons and then cut into 4 pieces.Remove seeds .Now mix all ingredients into lemons .Mix well and store in a dry jar .After 4 to 5 days sweat pickle is ready to eat.

Tips:-

1 As the lemons are salted so less salt will be required for preparing pickle.
2 For storing salted lemons the jar should be moisture free.

Sattu for badi teej (kajali teej)

                           

    Badi teej or kajali teej is celebrated  three days after raksha bandhan  This is considered an important festival for women.In some places it is all women's day.Even movie theatres are reserved for ladies on teej.Women observes fast on this day .They eat only after worshipping moon in the eveningTo end fast and performing pooja  in the evening sattu is essential.This time teej is on 4th of august  In most part of  Rajasthan where teej is celebrated sattu is available in shops at different stages .One can buy sattu laddoos or sattu flour roasted and grounded .But for those who stay outside
sattu has to be prepared at home..Let us celebrate it by making sattu.




Here is the recipe for sattu.
Sattu is made of either of the following
1 wheat(whole)
2 Chana dal
3 Rice (whole)
For preparing Sattu flour
Roast either of these  grains  in a kadahi  stirring occasionally.When it turns golden brown then remove from the heat.When cooled then grind in a grinder to a fine powder.For getting good result pass it through a fine sieve.




Alternative
If for any reason grinding is not possible then either besan orwhole wheat flour can be roasted directly without adding ghee till it turns out into golden brown and give an aeroma .then this can be mixed with ghee and sugar powder.although the taste will be different but will be yummy.
For making sattu laddoos
Ingredients  
250 gms desired sattu flour
250 gms sugar powder
125 gms ghee

1 teaspoon cardamom powder
Dry fruits like almonds,cashew,pistachio


  In a vessel mix all the ingredients well.Now make laddus of desired size.



Many readers have requested to post this recipe in hindi.So readers here it is

बड़ी तीज के सत्तू की रेसिपी हिंदी में 

सत्तू बड़ी तीज के लिए
सत्तू बनाने के लिए सतत्तु का अट्टा तैयार करना हे जो की आओकी मन पसंद का ले सकते हैं
जैसे  की गेहूं ,चना,चावल।
अपने मनपसंद अनाज को ( साबुत गेहूं,चने की दाल या ,चावल )एक कड़ाही में दाल कर माध्यम आंच पर भून लीजिये। जब अनाज का रंग हल्का सुनहरा हो जाए और सिकने की  खुशबू आने लगे तब आंच पर से हटा लीजिये।
अब इसे पूरी तरह ठंडा होने दीजिये। फिर इसे पीस कर किसी बारीक छलनी सेछान लीजिये।
आपका सत्तू का आत्ता तैयार हे।
सामग्री

सत्तू   का आटा                                        २५० ग्राम्स
पीसी हुयी चीनी                                         २५० ग्राम्स
घी                                                             १२५ ग्राम्स

मनपसंद   सूखे मेवे
 (बाद                                                           २५ ग्राम्स
इलायची पीसी हुयी                                       एक छोटा चम्मच

एक पतीले में सारी सामग्री को मिला कर दोनों हथेलियों से दबा कर अपनी पसंद के आकार के लड्डू बना
लीजिये
यदि आपके पास पीसने की सुविधा नहीं हे तो गेहूं का आटा या बेसन लेक उसे कड़ाही में सेक लीजिये और फिर घी मिला चीनी मिला कर लड्डू बना सकते हे। यद्यपि स्वाद भिन्न होगे फिर भी स्वादिष्ट ही बनेंगे।
राजस्थान में तो तीज के दिनों में सत्तू भिन्न अवस्था में दुकानों में उपलब्ध रहते हे। जैसे सिका हुऔर पिसा हुआ सत्तू का आटा ,बने हुए लड्डू, सिका हुआ अनाज। लेकिन यहाँ से बाहर रहने वालों को कठिनाई होती हे।
अतः घर में बना कर सत्तू का आनंद लीजिये।

Garam masala

Spices gives flavour and taste to our dishes.Our pantry is stuffed with lots of spices.Of these some are used  as it is available in nature.Few of these we mix various spices in a particular proportion  and grind and to get a new flavour.Garam masala is one of those .As it is hot in taste so known as garam masala.It is being used in so many dishes. like curry dal pulao etc


                                       


Ingredients required

                                                                  

Cummin seed                 (jeera)                  6 tab spoon
Black pepper                (kali mirch)           2 tablespoon
cinnamon                      (  Dalchini )           8 sticks of 3"
cloves                           (Lawang)              2 tablespoon                
Mace                           (jawitri)                 8 pieces
Cardamom(big brown) (Badi elaichi)         10 to 12 pieces
bay leaves                    (Tejpatta)             10 to 12 pieces
         Dry all these spices in sunlight for half an hour and then grind in grinder to a fine powder.Store in an air     tight glass container.It has long shelf life but it is advisable to prepare it in small batches for its strong aroma .

kheer chawal ki (Rice pudding)

                                                                               

 Whenever some guests arrive in the house without prior notice or we have desire to eat some sweet dish then either halwa or kheer which can be made in a short notice as all the ingredients are easily available in our pantry.So let us make chawal ki kheer (rice pudding) today.

Ingredients  
  1 litre milk 
 25 gms rice
4 tab spoon sugar


1/2teaspoon cardamom powder
a pinch of saffron (soaked in water or milk)
8 almonds chopped
8 pistachio  chopped

  In a thick bottomed pan pour milk and put it on the burner.When milk starts boiling then add rice .Stir occasionally.Lower the flame to avoid milk from spilling out of the vessel.after 10 or 15 minutes rice will be cooked.Then add sugar and stir .Switch off the flame after adding the sugar.Add cardamom and saffron.
Now garnish with pistachio and almonds.
Kheer is ready to serve.If you want to eat cold then let it get chilled by keeping in refrigerator for 1 hour and then serve.

Slow cooking (the journey of stove)

My daughter is very excited about her slow cooker these days - she won't stop talking about it.  She works and lives in the U.S.  She says that it will allow her to leave the house with a pot of beans and rice stewing in her kitchen without her having to worry about fires or the food getting burned. 
tle research.  Here is the cooker she purchased.  A Hamilton Beach 6 liter device which at 46 dollars is not a bad deal at all.

when I look at this style of cooking and the one which I grew with I believe that it was a long journey of stoves with different design and different fuels.It has been a long journey.
With civilization man learned to cook food .And since then different type of stoves were invented.
As far as my memory goes back in 1950 I have seen people using saw dust as fuel in a specially designed stove .This used to take long time to be filled with saw dust by pressing it evenly througouht the column.




                                                       

                                                        Hamilton Beach slow cooker

Then there were stoves we call it chulha in India using wood as fuel.These required a technique of how the small logs of wood are placed in order to have proper supply of air   otherwise the whole place will fill with smoke.To help these wood logs to burn without smoke a pipe of about 10" to 12"  either of wood or of iron was used to blow air by mouth.This was useful for a smoke free flame.This pipe was an essential equipment for kitchen For cooking inside the house there were chimneys for the escape of smoke.One can find these in villages .
Coke was also used as fuel .For hard coke and soft coke the stove used are of different design.
Soft coke will make the stove ready in 10 minutes and is smoke free.But the hard coke will take atleast 25 minutes to be ready for cooking.as the fuel releases smoke initially .It is ready to use only after it is smoke free.
As these   wood and coke stoves and chulhas were taking too much time to give heat these were replaced by kerosene stoves.
Two types of kerosene stoves came in existance.One with a pump fitted in it to raise the fuel .This used to make lot of noise .To avoid the noise a silencerwas the option with it.
Another one was fitted with number of wicks in a circle and were getting the supply of kerosene
from the small tank at the bottom of stove through capillary action..
With the entry of solar energy solar cooker came in use.Where sun is available most of the time it was free of cost.But  cooking was a time consuming process.One has to keep a check on it .
Simultaneously the electric stoves were also in use.These are available with four stoves +an electric baking oven.This is popularly called as cooking range.
Then came the very convenient and still the most popular LPG stoves.The fuel is the liquified petroleum gas.
It is supplied in cylinders .In metropolitan cities it is being supplied through pipelines.
Then these microwaves arrived but mostly to reheat the food already cooked.Of course few dishes can be cooked in microwave oven
To reduce the cooking time pressure cookers are a great relief.
And this slow cooker seems to be the perfect combination of  stove and pressure cooker.In early
seventies
combination of my first pressure cooker along with LPG stove thrilled me .Cooking could have been so easy and quicker I could never imagine.
But this slow cooker has also amazed me.
Afetr using this I have become  fan of it.Without worrying about getting burnt or previous soaking of beans these can be cooked .And the best part is it does not need any monitoring.It is a boon for working woman.
Give commands and forget it.When you are back from your work the food is ready.
Thanks to advanced technology.
I am still keeping my fingers crossed for the next better option.


10/7/2018

  I wrote   this article few years back keeping my fingers crossed as to what next?
here it is .Last week at my sons house this new invention excited us as well relieved the lady of the house (my daughter in law) by the tedious job of making rotis daily.
this is the Rotimatic. 

                                                                Rotimatic

the machine which makes roti from scratch .All one has to do is fill three cotainers with flour,water and oil.Give command about your requirements like no of rotis,thickness of rotis and the level of roasting of your preferance.After initial warming time of six minutes it delivers one roti per minute.Is not it great?

Sedona The City of Red Rrocks

Red Rocks of different shapes

                                                     This colorful universe is the creation of God.As we travel from one place to another the geography changes and with that colors also changes.The change is so gradual that it does not strike to our mind so much.But if we notice a sudden change that makes us  think  as to what must have  happened ?
I experienced it when I visited Sedona  a small city over one hundred and twenty miles north of  Phoenix Arizona.



While driving on highway 179 all of a sudden I could see red rocks standindg side by side of offwhite rocks,the color of the sand changes too.By the time one reaches to the intersection of 179 and 89A it is all red.


The reason I could guess was that  God must have lost his colorbox while painting and took another box with red in plenty.The scientific reason for this change is that red rocks are rich in iron .This  must have been because of some geological changes.

This is a popular tourist spot particularly during summer as the temp is always cooler by 25F than in Phoenix..
One can see rocks surrounding are up to 2000ft height.These rocks are of different shapes  These rocks give an orange red glow at    sunrise and sunset . As the city itself is at a certain height so there is no down town it is called as the main town or Uptown.

      This place has been a popular spot for hollywood movie makers because of it's unique natural beauty.
This is the venue for film festivals too.A one week international film festival screens all kinds of films.

Down town(uptown Sedona)

                                                The name Sedona was given after the name of a lady Sedona Schenbly who was the wife of then first postmaster posted in this city

Sedona Schenbly

The city is ready to welcome tourist by providing all sorts of facilities viz good restaurants ,shopping centers,art village etc.In an art village named "Tylaquepaque" one can see shops selling all kinds of art from sculpture,and glass work,painting and jewellery.This building is very beautiful with corridors with arches  and vine covered walls .Meaning of word Tlaquepaque is best of everything Nahuati Native Indian Language and it really has best of evrythingThis place is the significance  of what Sedona is.It was named after the colourfull  Mexican city.                                                                    

                                                                     Tlaquepaque
In the city at the souvenier shop clothes are available dyed from red sand as the sand is so rich in colour..
At the shop one can watch a video of dyeing of fabric using sand .
An efficient tour service to takes you up to a height of 2000 ft through rocks on a gravel   winding road  is an exciting experience.This tour is in an open jeep tour with an expert driver cum guide .During this trip you get to know the flora and fauna of the place.

Pink Jeep Tour

                                                                 

chai masala

Tea and coffee have become essential recipe for rejuvenation.We take tea to start our day in the morning.We also drink it to break the monotony of day .
Tea is offered whenever some visitors drop in .Taste of tea varies from person to personSome prefers it with fresh ginger or fresh gounded cardamom.But when we are in hurry then we look for chai masala to add flavour .Readymade chai masala are available in the stores.We can  l make chai



masala.at home that will be more aromatic being fresh




Ingredients required
cardamom green          50 gms
black pepper               20 gms
dry ginger                     50 gms
cinnamon                      20 gm s(optional)
   
        
Grind these in a grinder to make a fine powder.Store in airtight container
Proportion can be varied according to personal choice.

methi matar malai (simple)

Supply of fresh methi(fenugreek) leaves during winter forces one to cook something different. Today I have made this winter combination that is methi amd mattar(peas).I am sharing this recipe in this blog.It is an easy and quick recipe and everybody loves it .There are so many versions for this recipe.This is the simple and less calorie version.I will post the calorie rich also.
Ingredients required
1 cup finely chopped fresh methi leaves.
1 cup fresh green peas (shelled)
1/2 cup yogurt
1/4 cup cream (fresh malai can be used instead)
 paste of 8  cashew soaked and grounded in mortar pastel




 1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger
1/2 teaspoon of turmeric and red chilli powder each
1 teaspoon of dhania powder
  salt to taste
a pinch of hing
finely chopped green cilantro
2 tabspoon oil or ghee

Micowave the peas for 2 minutes if you are using fresh lot frozen ones do not need microwave.



Mix yogurt and dry spices .
In a pan heat ghee and add hing and add methileaves and then add yogurt mixed with  stirr well.Add peas stir and.Let it cook for2  minutes and add cashew and ginger paste stir.Now add 1/4 cup of water and let it cook for 2 more minutes.switch of the flame and add fresh cream or malai and garnish with chopped cilantro.
It is ready to serve with hot roti or paratha.

kadhi pakode wali

                                                            Kadhi pakode wali
Kadhi  is considered a very simple food .Mostly it is served with khichadi or rice.Simple kadhi can be cooked within 15 minutes.The ingredients required for this dish are easily available in our pantry all the time.This simple dish can be made special with addition of some bhujiya or pakoda..Let us make today kadhi pakode wali



Ingredients required

For kadhi
1/2 cup  besan
3/4 cup  sour yogurt 
1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder
salt to taste.
1 teaspoon each of cummin,mustard  and fenugreek seeds(for seasoning)
   hing
2 tabspoon     ghee or oil
For pakoda 
1/2 cup besan
salt to taste
chilli powder
For seasoning
hing
cummin seeds
mustard and fenugreek seeds 1 teaspoon each
oil to fry pakoda
For garnishing
Chopped coriander leaves.ginger and green chillies chopped .
curry leaves
Make pakoda 
In a bowl mix besan+salt+chilli powder+cummin ,hing Add water and mix well to make a paste of pouring consistency.Put a small deep pan on burner and pour oil and fry pakoda with this paste.
Keep aside

Making kadhi

Mix yogurt and besan and salt+turmeric powder.mix well and add 2and half cup water.Remove all the lumps if there.In a pan heat 2 tabspoon ghee and add hing.Now add cummin,mustard and fenugreek seeds.when these starts spluttering then pour the mixture of besan and yogurt.Stir well and keep on stiring to avoid any lump formation.after few minutes the mixture will look homogenious and will start boiling at this stage stirring can be stopped.Let  it cook for next 5 minutes and the kadhi is ready.
Garnish and serve with rice or khichadi .

badiyan with alu methi

                                                           Badiyan alu methi ki sabzi

Papad and badiyan are the integral part of pantry in every household in Marwar During winter season when fresh crop of moong arrives badiyan are prepared in lots and are stored till next crop. Badiyan are prepared by making the paste of soaked moong dal .with spices and then  either with the help of a jara or with hands are dropped on a sheet in sun .When dried then can be stored.badiyan sabzi can be made with different combinations like badiyan with reddish ,spinach,mogari that is reddish beans,methi or potato.In many regions of northern India badiyan are made but from different dal and spices and of different size .But the theme is same as to store dal.
in a different form and taste.
Today I will make a sabzi of badiyan with potato and methi.

                                                           Badiyan  made of moong dal

Ingredients  required

1/2 cup badiyan
2 potatoes medium sized peeled and diced in 1/2 " cubes
2 tomatoes chopped
1/2 cup fresh methi leaves washed and chopped
4 table spoon oil or ghee 
1 tab spoon of coriander powder
1 tab spoon of red chilli powder
1 teaspoon of turmeric powder
salt to taste, a pinch of hing
chopped fresh coriander,ginger,green chillies.

Break badiyan by crushing .Put whole badiyan in a plastic bag and roll a rolling pin or grinding stone over it.In a thick bottom or nonstick pan put ghee and put badiyan start stirring within 2 minutes badiyan will get roasted and there will be a good aroma.Add potatoes along with all spices and stir .add 2 cups of water and cover .Let it simmer for 5 minutes. Check if badiyan and potatoes are tender then add tomatoes and methi leaves.Let it cook for another 5 minutes .Remove from the burner .Add ginger and chilliesGarnish with chopped coriander and serve with roti or rice or paratha.

Tips :-      1    If fresh methi leaves are not available then kasoori methi can be used.Kasoori methi isavailable                                                                              
                      in Indian store.
                2    Indian stores are selling ready made badiyan .
               3   Easily breakable badiyan are better as it is easy to cook also and tastes better.

Yellow Moong Dal

Dal is the essential part of vegetarian Indian meal..All types of lentils when cooked with spices with some gravy in it the dish is termed as dal.we have lots of varieties of lentils whch are cooked in Indian kitchens depending upon the regionIt depends mainly upon the crop of that region.In north part of country urad chana and moong are in anundance.Where as in southern part it is the tuvar dal which is cooked mainly as sambhar or rasam.

In marwar moong and chana is grown in abundance.So in most of the houses moong is cooked daily in various forms Moong dal is of two types one is with green skin on it and the other is without skin which is yellow in colour and is called as mogar.
Moong dal is very simple to cook and easy to digest also.This dal tastes great even without seasoning.

Let us cook yellow moong dal today.

Ingredients required

1 cup yellow moong dal
   salt to taste
1/2 teaspoon haldi or turmeric powder
1 teaspoon  coriander powder
1 teaspoon red chilli powder
a pinch of hing
1 teaspoon      finely chopped green dhania leaves 
1 teaspoon      finely chopped green chillies and ginger
1 tablespoon    ghee 
mint fresh or dried leaves
In a pressure cooker pour 2 cups of water and add washed moong dal and salt   .Add all the spices and hing and pour 1 tab spoon of ghee.Stir well ..Put it on the ges and cook it till 2 whistles and then switch off the gas.Open the cooker after the pressure is lowered.Now pour 1 more cup of water stir with a big laddle and pour remainig tab spoon of ghee.Put on the flame till it starts boiling again for 2 minutes.Garnish with dhania ginger ,mint and chillies.Dal is ready to serve.Serve with rice ,roti or paratha.

Alu Gobhi ki sabzi

                                                                     

Vegetarian daily meal consisits of dal and sabzi accompanied by rice and roti.The variation in this menu can be done by cooking different sabzi and dal or curry.Sabzi is the cooked  fresh vegetable and the variety depends upon the availability.Thanks to the agricultural research most of the vegetables are available throughout the year  Gone are the days when we used to wait for the seasons to get our favorite sabzi in the mandi or it can be put  this way that seasons were marked by the arrival of new crops .Ofcourse the quality and quantity  defers .So the arrival of fresh seasonal crop of  Gobhi or cauliflower or fulower (term used by all vegetable vendors in Mumbai for cauliflower) marks the starting of autmn that is middle of sept.As the winter approaches  the quality improves and so is the taste and aroma of this vegetable.It can be cooked in many ways eg, sabzi.pulao(recipe for this is in this blog as Dubaki bhat or pulao or tehari),paratha, mix sabzi,pakode and so on.The list is endless.today I will cook it as  simple and quick  recipe. .Let us cook Alu Gobhi ki sabzi for lunch.

                                                                    Ingredients

Ingredients required
Gobhi florets                                       1 cup
Potato peeled and diced                     1 cup
Diced tomato                                      1/2 cup
Salt                                                     1 teaspoon
Red chilli powder                                1 teaspoon
turmeric powder                                  1 teaspoon
coriander powder                                11/2 teaspoon
hing
oil                                                        3 tablespoon
chopped coriander                               2 tabspoon
ginger chopped                                      1 tabspoon
green chillies chopped                           1 tabspoon

In a thick bottomed or preferably non stick pan pour oil and let it heat .after 2 minutes add hing and cauliflower florets and potatoes.Stir and add salt.Lower the flame and cover.After 8 minutes remove the lid and  you can see that gobhi and alu have become tender.Now add turmeric,red chillies and coriander powder and stir .Now add tomatoes and stir gently.Now add 4 tabspoon of  water.Cover and cook for 5 minutes more .Then add ginger and green chillies and stir.Garnish with green coriander and serve with roti or paratha.

besan Laddu

                                                               Delicious Besan Laddus

Laddu is the most common name given to sweets which are spherical in shapesLaddus are of many varieties and the nomenclature is associated with the ingredients other than sugar and ghee.Like besan laddu ,sonth laddu ,atta laddu and bundi laddu and the list goes on and on.
Let us see the recipe for besan laddu.It is very simple.
Ingredients required
3 cup                 Besan
1 3/4 cup         sugar(powdered)
1 cup                 ghee
2 teaspoon         cardamomm powder
1/4 cups             nuts roasted and chopped (almonds,cashews,walnuts)



4 tablespoon       milk
   few strands of saffron

                                                                   Roasting is done 
In a thick bottomed or a nonstick pan add ghee and besan and start roasting on a medium flame.
Keep on stirring continuously.this process of roasting is very very tricky initially .Meanwhile soak saffron in milk
The amount of ghee added appears to be less initially and one finds it difficult to handle and always feels that why not add few spoons more of it.But never do that mistake .More ghee will make it difficult to give shape to laddus   .Because after ten minutes of roasting the mixture loosens its consistency and becomes easy to handle.When the mixture turns to golden brown it will give a good aroma.Now remove the pan from the flame sprinkle the saffron soaked milk over it and stir.This will give the besan a granular texture.Now add the nuts and sugar  and cardamom powder. .Mix well and weight for 15 minutes to let it cool.Now handling in between your palms give shape to laddus of your desired size.

Masoor Dal khichadi

                                                               

Khichadi is always considered a simple food and is recomended for sick or for kids.This is often used as an introductory dish for kids towards solid food.This dish is very simple in taste .Lentils and rice mixed and cooked with salt till it becomes soft enough to chew.

Khichadi is eaten throughout India in different ways and on different occasions.People of kutch eat khichadi kadi and rotala (bajara roti) as their daily dinner.Tha next meal after heavy lunch or dinner is always khichadi in northern part of India.
Generally it is prepared with moong dal and rice.In Bengal it is made during puja .
As it is very bland in taste it requires lot of other assortment to eat it like yogurt or pickle and papad..
There is a saying

"Khichadi ke chaar yaar
dahi, papad, ghee, achaar

                                                                     Masoor Dal



Today I will make khichadi with masoor dal and rice + tomatoes Believe me this can be eaten without any other accomplishments..Everybody in my home loves it .masoor dal is a orange color dal and it it takes very littlle time to cook.If dal and rice are soaked in water for 20 minutesprior to cooking then one whistle of pressure cooker is sufficient to cook it.

                                                         Ingredients for khichadi


Ingredients required:-

Rice 1/2 cup
Masoor dal  1 cup
1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder
1/2 teaspoon  red chilli powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cummin seeds
1/2 teaspoon mustard seeds
A pinch of hing
2 table spoon oil or ghee
A piece of fresh ginger  Chopped)
1 green chilli (finely chopped)
2 table spoon fresh coriander finely chopped


Wash dal and rice separately and let these soak in water for 20 minutes.wash and chop tomatoes Now  add Turmeric,chilli and salt,chopped ginget over tomatoes.
In a pressure cooker pour oil and let it heat for 2 to 3 minutes.Now add hing,cummin seeds and mustard seeds.When mustard seeds start spluttering then add tomatoes and stir.Now add rice and dal.Stir well.Add 4 cups of water and stir.Cover the lid and put the weight on it .Switch of the burner after one whistle.open cooker after 15  minutes.Stir and garnish with  chopped  coriander .

Khichadi is ready to serve.Better serve it either with a spoonfull of ghee or with a dollop butter. Weight watcher can eat it as it is without ghee or butter.

Tips :-


         1     Fresh vegetables like green peas ,cauliflower or potatoes can added  to it while cooking.

Bhindi ki sabzi

                                                                     Delicious bhindi 

Bhindi or Okara is an  Asian vegetable mostly available during summer    It is called lady finger in English..Because of the mild flavour it is the favorite sabzi for kids and grown ups.It contains dietary fibres and antioxidants and vitamin A.the pods are green in color and about 2" to 4"in lengths

                                                                      Bhindi
It can be cooked at short notice as it very tender  takes little time to cook.
For making bhindi ki sabzi ingredients required are

250 gms bhindi
 3    tabspoon oil

 1.      2  teaspoon dhania powder
  2      2  teaspoon chilli powder
  3       1  teaspoon turmeric powder
  4         1      teaspoon amchur powder( dried mango powder)

A pinch of hing powder

1 teaspoon salt

Wash bhindi and wipe with a kitchen towel to soak water .Any moisture left will turn bhindi into a sticky mass.remove the cap of bhindi and then cut it into 1/4 " pieces horizontally.
In a thick bottom or non stick pan heat oil and after 2 inutes  add hing.
Add bhindi and gently stir.After 2 minutes add all the spices from 1 to 4 and stir .Do not cover let it cook openly . 5 minutes after adding spices add salt and stir  .Bhindi is ready to serve .Serve it with roti , paratha or puri.

Tips

1 By cooking it open  is to allow water vapor to escape and bhindi will not turn into a sticky mass.

2 Adding salt in the last is also for same reason.Salt makes the vegetables to release water content.

lauki with chana dal

Lauki or bottle gourd is a vegetable which is very soothing to our alementary canal.It easy to digest.It has lot of water content in it .And this is available throughout the year.Therefore lauki with chana dal is a good combination.We can get vitamins from lauki and protiens from chana dal.

Ingredients required

1.   One lauki


2. 1/2 cup  chana dal


3.  2 medium size tomatoes


4 .2 tab spoon oil


5.1 teaspoon  cummin seeds


6.1 teaspoon mustard seeds


7.2 teaspoon salt                           |      


8.1/4 teaspoon chilli powder|


9.1/2 teaspoon  turmeric powder||


10. 1 teaspoon coriander powder|
11. 1" piece of ginger finely chopped


12.1 green chilli finely chopped


13. 2 tablspoon green coriander leaves finely chopped


14. a pinch of hing powder




Wash chana dal and with 1 cup of water let it  pressure cook for 2 whistles.Peel the bottle gourd and chop into pieces of 1 or 1/2 ".Chop tomatoes into 1" pieces.
Remove dal from the cooker when pressure is decreased.Now wash the cooker and put it on the burner.Pour oil add cummin and mustard seed and when these starts spluttering then add hing and pour tomatoes with chilli turmeric,coriander powder.Add chopped ginger and green chillies.       Stir well and add salt.


Now add lauki and boiled chana dal in it.Add 1/4 cup of water and let it cook till 1 whistleOpen the cooker and garnish it with  green chopped  coriander .


Serve it with roti/rice/paratha.

Handavo

Human nature always strive for something new in every field.Either food ,clothing or entertainment. In every sphere of life novelty is required to keep your life interesting..Dishes cooked for lunch are not as exciting in the dinner Of course with the increase in the percentage of working women this luxary is not affordable in many households..As our country has vast culture and food to offer for so one  never runs out of new dishes to try.I was looking for some healthy baking dish and here is one handavo the gujarati dish.This  is a nutritious   dish as it contains lentils and vegetables .It does no require any deep frying so less oil is used..

Today we will bake handavo in our oven which is a baked savoury of rice ,lentils and vegetables

Ingredients required

    1   Rice  1 1/4 cup
    2   Tuvar Dal    1/4 cup
    3   chana dal 1/4cup
    4   moong dal 2 tab spoon
  . 5 urad dal    4 tab spoon

Mix all the ingredients and soak in water for 5 hours.
Now grind to a paste.

                                                       Fermented dough +other ingredients
The alternative for this is readymade handava flour available in stores.
For ingredients 1 to 5  you can use handavo flour .

      Handavo flour            2 cups
     Yogurt                         1 cup
     Grated jaggery             2 tablespoon
    Grated bottle gourd      1/2 cup
    Grated  carrot             1/2 cup
     salt to taste
     turmeric                           1/2 teaspoon
     red chilli powder                   1/4 teaspoon
     Lemon juice                     2 teaspoon
     Baking soda                    1/4 teaspoon
     Oil for seasoning           3 tabspoon
     Ingredients for sesoning

     Mustard seeds                 2 teaspoons
     Ajwain                             1 teaspoon
     Cloves                            6
     sesame seeds                  1 teaspoon
    black pepper                    1 teaspoon
    curry leaves
    hing


In a bowl mix yogurt and rice dal paste /  handavo flour+ water+ jaggery
Mix well and keep aside for fermentation for 14 hours.

Now grate the crrots and white gourd(Lauki) and mix in this fermented paste.Add salt, lemon juice,chilli  powder and turmeric powder in it and mix well with a laddle.Pre heat the oven at 350 .

In a teaspoon oil mix the baking soda well and add it to the paste and stir gently.
Keep a  greased baking pan ready  .Pour the mixture in pan.Heat oil in a pan for seasoning and add mustard seeds,ajwain,cloves,hing.Pour this seasoning evenly over the mixture.

                                                 
                                                                Ready to bake

Now bake it for 40 minutes.
Let it be in the oven for next 15 minutes.Take it out and keep on a plate.Cut into desired shape and serve with any sauce or can be eaten as it is..

                                                             Baked Handavo


Tips    seasoning has to be done twice
1 Add seasoning in the paste before pouring the mixture into baking dish.

2  Either over the baking dish at the time of putting into oven or  when handwa is out of oven then pour seasoning over it before cutting into desired pieces.





           

whole wheat bread

After cooking so many dishes  all the time on my stove I have decided to take a break from cooking So no more cooking .But something has to be done .Let us do some baking.

Today I will bake  bread in my oven.Breadwala comes daily at my doorstop and we get fresh supply every morning.  He has all varieties of bread different sizes and tastes but one.That is the home baked one  Everybody in the family loves this variety so let us bake one. I am sure baking at home has lot more fun and the outcome  is delicious.It vanishes quickly .

                                                              Home baked bread loaf

                                                                Ingredients required

                                                         

                                                               For one loaf of bread
                                                       
 3 cups                     Whole wheat flour which we use for making roti and puri

 1 3/4 cup                water

1/4 cup                    milk

2 table spoon           sugar

2 tablespoon           honey

2 tablespoon           olive oil or any  cooking oil (I used olive oil)

1 teaspoon              salt

2 teaspoon              Active yeast

1 pan for baking      Approax 9" by 4"

                              An electric oven


In a bowl pour water and add sugar ,honey,oil,milk.Mix well.Now microwave this for 1 minute.
Now add 2 teaspoon of active yeast.Stir well with a spoon.Let it stay for 20 minutes.
The liquid will start looking frothy with small bubbles in it.

                                                         Frothy liquid ready for kneading the flour

Add salt to the flour and mix well.Now knead the flour and cover it with  a wet cloth.

                                                            Kneaded dough to rest for 35 minutes            

wait for 35 minutes.The  dough will become double in size in 35 minute as seen in the picture.

                                                         Dough rose to double of it's size


Till then grease the pan with oil spray and then gently spreading the dry flour on it so the dough does not stick .
      Now knead the dough again for 5 minutes  by punching it as it is very sticky at this stage and transfer it to the baking pan.Let the dough rest again for 30 minutes till it will rise in the pan.

                                                           Dough doubled  in pan

 Pre heat the oven at 350  and bake it for 35 minutes Switch off the oven.

But let this bread be in the oven for next 5 minutes.Now take it out and let it be in the pan for next 10 minutes(the baking process still goes on with the heat of oven and the pan.Take it out on a wire rack and let it cool for another 20 minutes.Now it is ready to be cut in slices.Do not cut slices before letting it cool .Hot bread if cut then it might turn into crumbs.