BHEL POORI WITHOUT CHUTNEY | PARTY SNACK IDEAS

     I have  been thinking to post a chat item for a long time  but somehow i couldn’t make both the chutneys at the same time. One day when i was having a a casual talk with my friend she was talking about this sukha bhel which she made in a jiffy and enjoyed the snack while watching her favorite movie. I loved this idea and made this according to my own taste and i served this on the top of plain crackers and kids loved this snack.This can be served as a starter on the top of any plain biscuits.

Before going to the ingredients, let me tell one thing. There is no hard and fast rules to follow the same proportion. Just go as per your taste.

   INGREDIENTS:

BOILED PEANUTS	1/4 CUP
PUFFED RICE(PORI)	1 CUP
OIL	1 TSP
ONION	1 NO
TOMATO	1 NO
RAW MANGO (CHOPPED)	1 TBLSP
CAPSICUM( CHOPPED)	1 TBLSP
RED CHILLI POWDER	TO TASTE
SALT	TO TASTE
CHAT MASALA	2 PINCHES
LEMON JUICE	1/2 TSP
CORIANDER LEAVES	FEW
NYLON SEV	2-3 TBLSP

METHOD:

• Soak the peanuts for half an hour and pressure cook for 2 whistles by adding salt..
• Drain the excess water and allow this to cool completely.

• De seed the tomato and chop the onions and tomatoes finely.

• Roast the puffed rice(pori) in a tsp of oil along with a pinch of turmeric till they turn crispy and golden brown. Be careful not to burn this.

• In a wide bowl, just before serving mix everything along with red chili powder and chat masala. 

• Check for salt.
• Add coriander leaves and squeeze in the lemon juice.
• Mix nicely.
• Eat this crunchy. Always mix everything just before serving else this will be soggy.

NOTE:

1. Boiled and cubed potatoes can be added to this.
2. I did not have nylon sev , so i added the store bought Aloo bhujia .
3. Pomegranate can also be added.
4. I served on this on plain crackers but even 50 50 biscuits can also be used or any salt biscuits can be used for serving.
5. As chat masala contains salt just check for salt before adding salt.
6. Roasted peanuts can be added instead of boiled peanuts.

EGGLESS MANGO CAKE RECIPE | VEGAN MANGO CAKE

     Few weeks back when i went to my grocery shopping the i picked the alphonsa mango pulp tin thinking that i will make the Mango ice cream again to surprise Varsha, my daughter. Since i made strawberry ice cream she told she wanted some cake from the mango pulp and when i  was searching  for a eggless mango cake in google  i came across this recipe in holy cow's space and this has been tried by many bloggers. Here is the recipe for soft and moist eggless mango cake.

INGREDIENTS:

ALL PURPOSE FLOUR	1 AND 1/2 CUP
BAKING POWDER	2 TSP
SALT	1/2 TSP
CARDAMON POWDER	1 TSP
MANGO PUREE	1 AND 1/2 CUP
OIL	1/3 CUP
SUGAR	2/3 CUP( APPROX. 11 TBLSP)
VANILLA ESSENCE	1 TSP

METHOD:

• Sift the flour ,salt and baking powder along with cardamom powder.

• Mix the oil, sugar, mango puree till the sugar dissolves.

• Gently mix with the flour.

• Transfer this to a a baking tin and bake in a 180 degrees preheated oven for 30 to 35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
• Cool it in a wire rack.

• We had warm cake with vanilla ice cream.

Note:

1. If using fresh mango peel the skin and chop the flesh of the mango into fine pieces and puree it in a blender.
2. Do not over mix the batter.
3. The cake turned out slightly dense .
4. You can make it into cute cup cakes also instead of making into a cake.

BROCCOLI STIR FRY RECIPE

    Broccoli stir fry recipe is a simple and easy recipe which can be made in a jiffy and be packed in lunch box for kids. Even this can be had with rotis.

BROCCOLI	1 NO
CAPSICUM	1 NO
ONION	1 NO
GARLIC	3 PODS
PEPPER POWDER	1 TSP
SALT	AS NEEDED
OLIVE OIL	1 – 2 TSP
PEANUTS	1 TBLSP(OPTIONAL)

• Cut the broccoli into florets.
• Chop the onions and garlic finely.
• Cut the capsicum the into cubes.
• Microwave the broccoli florets for 7-10 minutes.
• In a pan, add oil and finely chopped garlic and after 30 seconds, add the chopped onions.

• When it turns pink add the cubed capsicums.
• When it is crunchy add the microwaved broccoli florets.
• Add the salt and pepper and saute for 2 mins.

• If you are adding peanuts just dry roast it and remove the skin and coarsely grind it and add to the stir fry.
• Switch off the flame. Always serve hot .

Note:

• You can add a tblsp of roasted sesame seeds at the last.
• You can add a tblsp of scrapped coconut at the last.
• If you don’t have a microwave just parboil the broccoli florets.

CHAKKA PRADAMAN RECIPE | JACKFRUIT PAYASAM

   When i saw jackfruits in the wet market yesterday i picked up 2 packets of jackfruits keeping in mind making chakka pradaman today for Tamil New year today. But i don’t have any idea about the recipe and while i was having a casual talk with Raks  she also gave a idea and i vaguely remembered the way my mom makes jackfruit payasam. Finally today when i made this it turned out extremely nice and i am now waiting for everyone to come back from school and office to taste this jackfruit kheer.

JACK FRUIT	10- 15 PIECES
JAGGERY	1/2 CUP
COCONUT MILK(THICK)	1/2 CUP
CASHEW NUTS	5-7 NO
GHEE	1 TBLSP

METHOD:

• Wash the jackfruit pieces and deseed them.
• Cut them into pieces roughly.

• Slightly roast them in a tsp of ghee for 2 minutes in a medium flame.

• Pressure cook them for 2 whistles by adding a cup of water.
• When done, allow it to cool and grind it into a smooth paste.

• I got one and 1/4 cups of puree.
• Melt the jaggery in 1/2 cup of water and filter the impurities.
• Boil the jaggery water for 3 minutes in low flame.

• Add the jackfruit puree to this and boil for 2 minutes.

• Now add the coconut milk and just give a boil for 2 minutes in a low flame.
• I used the store bought coconut milk.

• Do not boil for a long time after adding the coconut milk. Else it will curdle.
• Roast the cashews in ghee and add to the payasam.
• This taste great when it is served warm and chilled.

• Check out other Payasam Recipes

Note:

• Coconut milk can be replaced with normal milk, but i recommend the addition of coconut milk.
• If the consistency is too thick just add 1/2 cup of water after the addition of coconut milk.
• I never add cardamom powder as i feel this will suppress the flavor of jackfruit.
• Adjust the level of jaggery according to the sweetness of the jackfruit.

HOME MADE STRAWBERRY ICE CREAM RECIPE – NO EGG – NO ICECREAM MAKER.

   We all are a big fan of ice cream at home except my little one. When i attempted my first ice cream at home with MANGO it was a super hit. Few weeks later I attempted the same recipe with replacing strawberry with mango . This was again a super hit. After an year i tried ice cream at home and this time i gave a slight twist by adding evaporated milk. It was so creamy and no one can believe that it is home made.

I hurried up while taking pictures as the temperature was hot outside the ice cream started melting!!

INGREDIENTS:

STRAWBERRY PUREE  (FROM 35-40 strawberries)	2 cups
CREAM	3/4 CUP
CONDENSED MILK	3/4 CUP
EVAPORATED MILK	1/4 CUP
SUGAR	3-4 TBLSP

 

• Wash and hull the strawberries and make it into a puree with the help of a blender.
• Reserve 3-4 strawberries to add in the last .

• In a wide bowl, add the puree and add the condensed milk, cream, evaporated milk and sugar.
• If you don’t get evaporated milk just replace with condensed milk.
• Just adjust the sugar accordingly in that case.
• Mix gently with a hand blender till everything incorporates well.

• In a freezer safe bowl, pour in this mixture and freeze for an hour.

• After an hour, take it out and nicely blend in a mixer and freeze it again for an hour.
• Repeat this procedure for 2 more times.
• After doing this for 3 times, before freezing this, chop the reserved strawberries into tiny bits and mix well.
• Deep freeze for 6-7 hours.

• Strawberry ice cream is ready to serve.

Notes:

• I used the nestle cream. Any type of cream can be used.
• Sugar can be increased or decreased according to the sourness of the strawberry.
• Do not skip the step of blending the mixture every one hour. This step will make smooth and soft ice cream .
• As i mentioned already, if evaporated milk is not available, just replace with condensed milk. Just in that case, adjust the addition of sugar.

Check out my Mango Ice cream too.

ROOMALI ROTI | RUMALI ROTI RECIPE

   Making roomali roti at home was my long time plan and somehow i  kept on postponing it and suddenly one day i decided to make it and tried at home and it turned out pretty well. But still i felt it has be little soft and attempted on the next day, and it was much better than the first attempt. My hubby who loves roomali roti enjoyed this.

MYSORE RASAM RECIPE | ARACHUVITTA RASAM |RASAM RECIPES

   
Mysore rasam- A flavourful rasam made with a unique blend of tomatoes and whole spices  comprising of peppercorns and grated coconut. Mysore Rasam or Arachuvitta rasam, is a flavourful rasam made by grinding the whole spices (as the name Arachivitta meaning after grinding in Tamil, implies). It is very popular in the Karnataka cuisine. It gets its aroma because of the freshly made masala that goes into it. It pairs well with hot rice and can also be had as an appetizer/soup. I got this recipe from my sister and we all thoroughly enjoyed it. Do check out my other interesting rasam
variations like kalyana rasam, pineapple rasam or my mor rasam recipe for a unique flavour.

PENNE ARRABIATA RECIPE – PASTA RECIPES

  If you are looking for a easy weeknight dinner or even a simple lunch on lazy days , then this penne arrabiata is a perfect recipe. Whenever we go to pasta mania here in Singapore, as we are vegetarians we have very less options and since we don’t prefer any cheesy or creamy pasta we always end up ordering this penne arrabiata.  The best thing is my kids like this very much and so i have wanted to attempt this at home and it turned out well.

INGREDIENTS

PENNE PASTA	1 CUP
TOMATO	3 NO
ONION	1 NO
GARLIC	2 PODS
CHILLI FLAKES	1 TSP
OREGANO POWDER	1/2 TSP
PEPPER POWDER	1/2 TSP
SALT	TO TASTE
SUGAR	1/4 TSP
OLIVE OIL	1 TBLSP
GRATED CHEESE	1-2 TSP( FOR GARNISHING)

METHOD:

• Cook the pasta in 4 cups of water in a wide pan by adding salt and a tsp of oil.
• When it becomes soft drain the water and run the pasta through cold water. Toss this with a tsp of oil and keep aside.( this is to avoid sticking of the pastas with each other)

• Finely chop the onions, garlic and tomatoes.

• In a pan add oil and the garlic and after few seconds add the onions.
• When it turns pink add the tomatoes and and cook in a medium flame.

• Add chilli flakes, oregana , salt, sugar and pepper powder.
• Cook in a low flames till the tomatoes turn mushy  and it becomes a thick sauce.

• Add the cooked pasta to this and mix well.

• Serve hot with grated cheese on the top.

 

• Check out my other Pasta Recipes here.