Beetroot Halwa

A variety dessert prepared by using Beetroot.

INGREDIENTS:

• Grated Beetroot -2 cups
• Milk - 2 cup
• Sugar - ½ cup to 3/4 cup  (or as needed)
• Ghee - 3 tbsp
• Cardamom powder - ¼ tsp 
• Almond slices - few
• Pista slices - few

PREPARATION METHOD:

• Heat ghee in a Pan.
• Add the grated beetroot and saute on medium heat for 5 minutes.
• Add milk and cook till the milk gets completely absorbed.
• Add the sugar and stir well.
• Add the cardamom powder and cook in low heat till the ghee oozes out.
• Remove from fire and let it cool.
• Garnish with almond slices and pista slices and cut it in a desired shape.

Carrot Broccoli Mezhukkupuratti / Carrot Broccoli stir fry

INGREDIENTS:

• Sliced Carrot (length wise) - 1 nos
• Sliced Broccoli - 1 cup
• Sliced Onion - 1 nos
• Turmeric powder - ¼ tsp
• Crushed Chilly - ½ tsp
• Mustard seeds - 1  tsp
• Red chilly - 2 nos
• Curry leaves - A few
• Salt to taste
• Oil - 1 tbsp

PREPARATION METHOD:

• Put carrot, broccoli and onion into a pan.
• Add turmeric powder, salt and little water into it and mix well.
• Cover the pan with a lid and cook.
• Heat oil in a pan.
• Add mustrard seeds, curry leaves and red chillies into it, allow to Splutter.
• Add cooked vegetable, crushed chilly and mix well.
• Fry utill it becomes golden colour.

Recommended Combination: Serve hot with Rice / Chappathi

Pineapple Payasam

A Sweet and tangy dessert. Its a variety payasam which has a distinct sweet and tangy taste.

INGREDIENTS:

• Finely chopped pineapple - 2cup
• Sugar- 1 cup
• Jaggery - 1 cup
• Thin coconut milk - 3 cup
• Thick Coconut Milk - 1 ½ cup
• Dried Ginger powder - ¼ tsp
• Cardamom powder - ¼ tsp
• Ghee  - 3 tbsp
• Cashew nuts- 10 nos
• Raisins - 1 tbsp
• Sesame - 1 tsp
• Cumin seed - 1 tsp

PREPARATION METHOD:

• Add little water in jaggery, let it dissolve and filter it.
• Heat a heavy bottomed pan, add ghee into it.
• Add chopped pineapple into it and saute well till it becomes soft. 
• Add sugar and  filtered jaggery into the cooked pineapple and mix well.
• Stir continuously and allow to cook.
• When the pineapple absorbs the jaggery, add thin coconut milk.
• Stir well and let it boil.
• When it begins to boil, add thick coconut milk, mix well and boil for a minute.
• Turn off  the stove and add cardamom powder and ginger powder.
• Heat 1 tsp of ghee in a pan.
• Fry cashew nut, raisin, cumin seed, sesame.
• Add this seasoning into the payasam and mix well.

Onam Traditional Breakfast

Traditional Onam breakfast in  my husbands place (Thrissur).

• Pazham puzhungiyathu (steamed banana)
• Pappadam
• Ada - Ila Ada
• Kaya Upperi (banana chips) - Ethakka Upperi
• Sharkkara Upperi

Pineapple Pachadi

It is  a tasty sweet and tangy Pachadi.

INGREDIENTS:

• Pineapple (finely chopped) - 1 cup
• Grated coconut - ½ cup
• Green Chillies (roundly cut) - 4 nos
• Cumin seeds - ¼ tsp
• Curd - 2 cup
• Turmeric powder - ¼ tsp
• Mustard seeds - 1 ½ tsp
• Red chilly - 2 nos
• Sliced Shallot - 1 tsp
• Fenugreek Powder- a pinch
• Curry leaves - 1 stem
• Salt to taste
• Coconut Oil -1 tsp 

PREPARATION METHOD:

• Grind the coconut and cumin seeds to a fine paste.
• Crush  ½ tsp mustard seed.
• Cook chopped pineapple and green chilly in water along with salt and turmeric powder.
• When the water almost dries up, add coconut paste and crushed mustard seed into it.
• When it starts boiling, turn off the stove and allow to cool.
• Add curd to it and stir well.
• Heat oil in a Pan.
• Add mustrard seeds and red chillies into it, allow to splutter.
• Add sliced shallot and fry it.
• Pour the seasoning over the pachadi and add curry leaves .
• Sprinkle fenugreek powder and mix well.

Recommended Combination: Serve with Rice.

Roasted Almond

Very easy to make snack.

INGREDIENTS:

• Almonds- 1 cup
• Salt to taste

PREPARATION METHOD:

• Soak almonds in water for 30 minutes.
• Drain it.
• Add salt to the almonds and mix well.
• keep it aside for another 30 minutes.
• Heat a pan and roast the almonds till we hear a cracking sound from it.
• Remove it from fire and let it cool.

Spicy Boondi

This is the 300th post in my blog. I would like to express my sincere thanks to everyone for the support you have extended over the past few years. Thanks again.

Spicy Boondi is a teatime snack.

INGREDIENTS:

• Besan Flour/ Kadalamavu - 1 cup
• Turmeric powder- 2  pinch
• Asafoetida powder - 2 pinch
• Chilly Powder - ¼ tsp
• Salt to taste
• Curry leaves - few leaves
• Oil for frying

PREPARATION METHOD:

• Add turmeric powder, asafoetida powder, chilly Powder and salt to the besan flour and mix well.
• Add water to the flour mix to make the batter smooth (slightly thicker than dosa batter).
• For making Boondi we need a perforated spoon (laddle with small holes)
• Heat oil in a pan .
• Hold the laddle above the hot oil (1 - 1½ inch above) and pour 2-3 spoon batter to the ladddle and rub with another spoon.
• Fry Boondi till it is crispy and collect it in a bowl.
• Repeat the same process with the remaining batter.
• Heat little oil in a pan.
• Add curry leaves and fry it.
• Mix the fried curry leaves with boondi and serve.

Maavunda / Rice Ladoo

Maavunda / Rice Ladoo is a  snack popular in the central parts of kerala. Its very easy to prepare and can be stored for several days  without any taste change.

INGREDIENTS:

• Raw Rice flour(fine powder)- 2 cups
• Jaggery(grated) - 1 cup
• Grated Coconut(Finely grated) - 1 cup
• Dry Ginger powder / chukku podi - 2 pinch
• Cardamon powder / Elakka podi - 2 pinch
• Salt water

PREPARATION METHOD:

• Sprinkle little salt water in the rice flour and mix well.
• Add grated coconut in to the flour and mix well.
• Heat a heavy bottomed pan and roast the rice flour and grated coconut  in medium heat till it is crisp and  golden colour . 
• Remove from fire and let it cool.
• Add little water in jaggery and let it dissolve.
• Bring this syrup to boil in a vessel, stirring constantly till one-thread consistency is reached.
• Add cardamom powder, dry ginger powder and the roasted rice powder into it and mix well.
• Remove from fire and make small balls out of the mixture.(it will be hard to make balls if the mixture is cold)
• Apply little rice powder on your hand so that it doesn't stick. 
• Sprinkle some rice powder over the ball to prevent it from sticking together.

Kerala Mixture

Its a very popular teatime snack in kerala. As the name implies it is a combination of seva, boondhi , fried peanut and spices.

INGREDIENTS:
For Seva:

• Besan Flour/ Kadalamavu - 1 cup
• Turmeric powder- a pinch
• Asafoetida powder- 2 pinch
• Chilly Powder - ¼ tsp 
• Salt to taste

For Boondhi:

• Besan Flour/ Kadalamavu - 1 cup
• Turmeric powder- 2  pinch
• Asafoetida powder - 2 pinch
• Chilly Powder- ¼ tsp
• Salt to taste

• Split dalia / Pottukadala- 4 Tbsp
• Peanuts - 4 Tbsp
• Curry leaves- few leaves
• Asafoetida powder - 2 pinch
• Chilly Powder- according to your taste
• Salt to taste 
• Oil for frying

PREPARATION METHOD:

• Add turmeric powder, asafoetida powder, Chilly Powder and salt to the Besan flour and mix well.
• Add little water to make a soft dough.
• Heat oil in a pan.
• Put the dough in a string hoper / idiyappam maker and press it into the oil. 
• Fry both sides in medium heat.
• When it is crispy, remove from oil and drain it. 
• Repeat the same process with the remaining dough.
• Crush the fried seva with hand to make it smaller pieces and keep aside. 
• Add turmeric powder, asafoetida powder, chilly Powder and salt to the besan flour and mix well.
• Add water to the  flour mix to make the batter smooth (slightly thicker than dosa batter).
• For making Boondhi we need a perforated spoon (laddle with small holes)
• Heat oil in a pan . 
• Hold the laddle above the hot oil (1 - 1½ inch above) and pour 2 -3 spoon batter to the ladddle and rub with another spoon.
• Fry Boondhi till it is crispy and collect it in a bowl.
• Repeat the same process with the remaining batter.
• Keep the fried boondhi aside.
• Heat little oil in a pan.
• Add the peanuts, curry leaves and split dalia and fry it.
• Remove from oil.
• Add the fried peanut, split dalia, curry leaves, salt, chilly powder, asefetodia powder to the sev and boondhi and mix well.
• Now it is ready to serve.

Jalebi

Jalebi is a sweet and crisp snack prepared using uraad daal and sugar syrup. It is liked by everyone irrespective of their ages.

INGREDIENTS:

• Urad Daal - 1 cup
• Sugar -  2  cup
• Water - 3/4 cup
• Food color (red and yellow) -  4 -5  drops
• Oil for frying

PREPARATION METHOD:

• Soak Urad daal for 30 minutes.
• Grind Daal very well with little water to make a thick batter.
• Dissolve Sugar in water.
• Boil this syrup in a vessel, stirring constantly.
• When the syrup is sticky (test by touching with thumb and index finger), turn off the stove and keep the syrup aside.
• Add the food color when the syrup is warm.
• Heat oil in a pan.
• Take a Ziplock bag make a hole in it.
• Put the batter in the bag and squeeze it into the hot oil in the shape of Jalebi.
• Fry both sides till light golden colour. 
• Put it into the warm syrup and soak it for a minute.
• Take out from the syrup and serve.