Sooji Vada

Ingredients:
Sooji(Roasted Rava) 1 cup(or)Small Semolina
Rice flour 1 cup
Maida/All Purpose flour 1/4 cup
Onion 1 large size
Green chilli 2
Salt for taste
Fresh Coriander Leaves
Oil for deep fry
Method:
1)Mix rava, maida, rice flour with ghee or hot oil, chillies, salt and curry leaves.

2)Cut onions into thin and long pieces.

3)Now mix everything with little water to a soft dough like chappathi dough.

4)Make medium size balls.

5)Spread it on polythene paper like puri by hand.

6)Fry both sides in oil till they turn golden brown.

:- Serve the hot crispy vade with coconut chutney.
Serving size:15 medium size vada's

Badam Kheer

Ingredients:
Almonds(Ba dam) - 1 cup
Milk 4 - 5 cups
Sugar - 1 cup
(same amount as almond paste)
Saffron - 1/2 tsp
Method:

1. Soak saffron in little cold milk and keep it aside.
2. Soak almonds in hot water for 1 hr.
3. Peel the almonds` skin and grind them into a fine paste with 1 cup of milk instead of water.

4. Measure the amount of almond paste and keep the same amount of sugar aside.
5. The almond paste for 5 - 10 mins, while stirring it constantly, till the flavour comes out. Add sugar and keep stirring.
6. Add the remaining milk and boil for 10 - 15 mins.
7. Add the soaked saffron.Serving size:3 to 4 people
   

Carrot Payasam

Ingredients:
Carrots - 3
Whole milk - 2 1/2 cups
Half & half milk powder - 1 tsp(optional)
Cashew nuts ,Raisins - As reqd
Ghee - 3 tsp
Sugar 1 cup according to your taste
cardamom powder 1/4 tsp
Method:

• Peel the carrots, cut them and pressure cook until they are soft enough to be blended.

• Make a paste of the cooked carrots in a blender or a mixie.

• The paste should be smooth and do not use any water to blend them.Like this:-
  

• In a large vessel, boil the milk.

• Once its boiled, reduce the flame and add the carrot paste, half & half and sugar.

• After 15 mins, the contents will reduce.

• Add the cardamom powder.

• Switch off the flame.

• Garnish with cashew nuts & raisins fried in ghee.

• Serve hot or cold.

Tastes better when it is served Cold

Varalakshmi Vratam Special

Today is Varalakshmi Vratham. a popular festival of married ladies in the Southern States of India – Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, AndhraPradesh and also Maharashtra. Lakshmi, the wife of Lord Vishnu and the goddess of power, wealth and prosperity is worshipped today.
Also, traditionally prayers are offered to the Goddess first as because of her kind heart, she will intercede with Lord Vishnu for granting any boon.
U can see more about this pooja here.
U can see the pooja vidhanam here.
Here some roses for Goddess lakshmi
Today I offer 7 different types of food for goddess Lakshmi.

Nivedhyam/Prasadam
Capsicum Coconut Rice
Carrot payasamSooji Vada
Badam Kheer
Enjoy the pictures

Veg Kheema

It is a pure vegetarian dish, because it looks like kheema curry.That's why I put the named for it's Veg Kheema Not only this dish you can be used in non-veg kheema also by using same ingredients. I love adding these granules/chunks in any dish.For Kids It is high in Protein Dish.

Ingredients:

Soya granules 1 cup
Tomatoes 2 to 3 medium size
Onion 1 medium size
Ginger & Garlic paste 1tsp each
Turmeric powder 1tsp
Chilli powder 2 tsp
Salt to taste
Daniya or Coriander powder 1 tsp
Ga ram Masala 1/2 tsp (optional)
Fresh Coriander 1/2 cup
Lime juice 1/2 tsp (optional if not adding gar am Masala)
Oil for cooking.
Cloves 2
Cinnamon 1
These two are optional
Method:

• Wash and soak granules in warm water for 1/2 hr

• Meanwhile, cut tomatoes into thin slices or make puree and keep aside

• Cut onions into thin slices

• Take a wide pan, heat oil and add Cinnamon,cloves add onions and fry till light brown in color

• Add ginger-garlic paste and fry for 1 min
• Now add tomatoes and mix well. Again allow to cook for 3 minutes or until tomatoes are cooked completely.
  

• Add turmeric powder and fry for few seconds, add so ya granules by squeezing all water from it into the pan and mix well.

• Fry for 2 minutes. Add all other mas alas including salt and mix well (if needed very little water ) and allow to cook with closed lid on medium heat for 5-7 minutes.

• Finally add coriander and lime juice and mix well and Sim for 2 minutes.

• Remove from heat and serve with hot chapatis or plain rice.

Muli/Radish/Mullangi Paratha

Ingredients:
To Dough:
Radish 1 Grated(1 cup)
Wheat Flour 2 1/2 cup
Salt 1/2 tsp
Oil 1 tbsp
Water for needed to make dough/if necessary
To Pa rota:
Oil
Method:

• Mix all the above ingredients in a bowl and knead them together into a soft dough by adding water if necessary. Keep aside for 30 minutes.

• Make balls off the dough.

• Cook on a tawa, until golden brown on both sides.
  

Serve with Any Curry
Serving Size: 4 to 5 people

Capsicum Coconut Rice

Ingredients:
Fresh coconut, grated - 1/2 cup.I used frozen coconut
Rice – 1 cup
Capsicum, chopped – 3/4 cup
Shallot – 1
Green chillies – according to taste
Urad dal – 1 tsp
Ginger garlic paste - 1tsp
A pinch of Turmeric
Salt according to taste
For tempering
mustard seeds
jeera /cumin seeds
oil
curry leaves
Process:
1.Cook rice in 2 cups of water, keep aside.
2.Heat oil and add mustard, cumin, turmeric, curry leaves and urad dal. Once mustard splutters, add chopped shallot and ginger garlic paste. Finally add green chillies and capsicum.
3.Cook until capsicum is well done.
4.Add Coconut, salt and rice. Mix well.
5.Garnish with cilantro/Coriander leaves

Serving size:2to 3 people

Carrot Yogurt Raita

Ingredients:
Carrots grated – 1 cup
Whole (can use 2% too) plain yogurt – 1 cup
Water – 1/2 cup
Mustard seeds – 1 tsp
Curry leaves – 3
Dry red chillies – 3
Asafoetida – 1/2 tsp
Urad dal/black gram – 1 tsp
oil – 1 tsp
Procedure:

• Using a food processor fine shred 3-4 medium sized carrots to make 1 cup.

• Whisk the curd(yogurt), add water to it. Now add the shredded carrots. Keep aside
• Heat oil in a pan and add mustard seeds, urad dal, curry leaves, dry red chillies (split into quarters) and asafoetida.
• Add the tempering to the carrot and yogurt mixture.
• Mix salt according to taste and serve with chapati or rice.

Chicken Varuval/Coconut fry

The recipe is very simple, it takes about 15 - 20 mins marinating and then slow cooking of about 20 - 30 mins.
Ingredients:

Chicken - 400 g/1 lb

For sauté:

Onion - 1 medium
Tomato - 1 medium
Clove - 2
Fennel seeds - 1/2 tsp
Cardamom
Grated Coconut - 1 tsp

For garnish

Green chillies - 1
Ginger, grated - 1"
Coriander leaves

For Dry masala powder
Red chillies - 5
Whole Coriander seeds / Dhania - 1 tbsp
Whole Peppercorns - 1/2 tbsp
Cumin Seeds - 1/2 tsp cumin
To prepare:

• Dry roast the spices under dry powder. Grind to a smooth powder once its cooled.

• Then apply this spice powder with salt to the chicken. Marinate for 15 to 20 mins.

• Heat a pan with oil, add clove, fennel seeds and cardamom. Then add chopped onions, fry till its brown. Then add the chopped tomatoes, cook for 2 mins.

• Stir in the marinated chicken. Cook on high for 2 mins. Simmer and cover it with lid, cook till the water evaporates.
• When the water is almost evaporated, add the grated coconut and again cook with covered lid, till the chicken becomes dry. This takes about 20 mins for the chicken to become tender.See how colorfull
  

• When you are removing from the stove, add silted chillies, juliennes ginger and finely chopped coriander leaves.
• Serving Size: 5 - 6 people

5 Star Dosa

Ingredients:
Urad Dal 1/2
Cup Rice 1/2 Cup
MoongDal1/2 Cup
Poha 1/2 Cup
Toor Dal 1/2 Cup
Channa Dal 1/2 Cup
Onions 1 Chopped
Carrot 2 Grated
Green Chilli 3 Chopped
Jeera 2 tsp
Salt For Taste
Ghee/Oil As RequiredProcess:

• Soak all dals and rice with water at least 6 hours
• Grind to paste.
• Mix together, add salt with water to make dosa batter.
• Leave in room temperature overnight.

• Heat pan or griddle with little ghee or oil.
• Spread the mix on pan in circular motion to make thin Dosa.
• Sprinkle the onions,carrot,green chilli,jeera cook for 3 min

• Serve hot with peanut chutney/cocont/mint as your taste
• Serving size :6-7 DOSA'S

Lilva Kachori

For Stuffing:

Boiled Lilva/Peas 2 cups

Green Chilies 3

Coriander Leaves

Ginger/Garlic Paste 1 tbsp

Turmeric 1/4 tsp

Salt

Sugar 1 tsp

Coriander Powder (optional) 1 tsp

Lime Juice 1 tbsp

jeera 1 tsp

1 cup Maida

Little bit Salt

½ Tbsp Suji (soaked in warm water)

1 Tbsp Ghee/Oil

Water for Dough

Process:

• Into a food processor add Lilva, add green chilies, add coriander leaves and blend to a coarse paste.

• Into a pan heat little bit oil and add zeera, add ginger/garlic paste, add Hing, add turmeric and mix it, add the mixture and mix it well.

• Make the mixture dry and cook little further until the chilies are cooked as well. Add pinch of sugar, add Coriander Powder, squeeze some lime juice and keep aside. MAKE SURE THE MIXTURE IS DRY

• In another dish, add Maida, and some salt and make nice crumbles add soaked Suji, and make crumbles, add little water and kneed it to a SOFT dough, let it rest for few minutes.

• Take little bit dough and spread out on a flat surface, add spoonful of Masala, hold the edges together and join them with your hand, pull it out with your index finger and thumb, remove the extra dough and roll the ball slightly between your hands. Do the same with the rest of the dough.

• Fry them of a little less then medium heat, for about 4 minutes, until the kachori get nice light color.

Serve hot with tomato sauce/mint/ginger chutney
Serving size: 7 -8 medium size kachories

Pepper Vada

Ingredients:
Urad Dal 2 cups
Green chilli 2 chopped
Onion 1 chopped
Ginger 1 inch
Jeera 2 tsp
Salt For Taste
Pepper 1/4 cup
Curry Leaves
Oil For Deep Fry
Process:

• Soak the urad dal with water at least 4 to 5 hours
• Grind the urad dal into a thick paste.
• Add the onions , green chilli,salt,jeera,curry leaves,ginger ,crushed pepper,salt with urad paste
• Mix well properly
  

• Make a small flat round and finger hole in the middle,deep fry it in hot oil.
• Serve hot with coconut /mint/tomato chutney.