Rice flour Murukku( akki hittina Chakli)

Tried and tasted by Nivedita

Hi All,

Today, I am here with a snack which is very common, liked by all the age group(only those having full set of strong teeth!!), can be eaten at any time of the day.. Easy to carry, love to share and happy to munch together.

Murukku, Chakli...

Its first time (actually second time in this month) but first time in my life that I dared to try out these mini wonder snacks all alone. And yesss!! I got them perfect in the first attempt(which rarely happens with me).

I do not know why I used to hesitate to prepare these!! may be because whenever my mom tried, either these chaklis came out very soft and got spoiled or I wanted my kids to push me into it..

My younger daughter loves chaklis, and as you know me, I do not like outside food much... I try to try everything at home.. 

Here is the recipe,

Ingredients:

Rice flour - 2 cups

Dalia powder (puthani powder) - 1 cup

Salt to taste

Red chilly powder - 2 tbsp or little more if you want it spicy

Ajwain - 1 tsp

Sesame seeds - 2 tbsp(optional)

Oil - 1 tbsp

Butter - 2 tbsp

warm water - 1/2 cup

more water to prepare the dough

Oil to fry

Murukku maker to press the murukku.

Method:

According to my mother and aunties, The rice should be cleaned, washed, dried and the flour should be done in flour mill. But, do we have all that patience now a days? if we have patience, we do not have time for sure. So I went for the shortcut way(some times shortcut way brings you success!!). I had the rice flour(but again it was done in flour mill, not from the shop).

I kept the rice flour in M/W safe plate for a minute and allowed it to cool before adding other things.

1. Take the all the ingredients from rice flour till sesame seeds in a big plate.
2. Mix well.
3. Add the butter in warm water and keep it for half a minute.
4. Heat the one tbsp oil and add it to the flour. Add the butter and water.
5. Mix well to make hard dough. Add some more water if you need.
6. Keep it ready.
7. Heat the oil in a wide kadai. Till it gets hot,

Keep few plates ready to put the murukku before putting them in to oil to fry, or I used kitchen tissue papers so that I could spread two murukku on a paper. This will make your work easy and fast. OR if you are expert you can directly put the murukku in a kadai and fry directly.
Take a big ball size of ready flour mix, put in the murukku maker. 
Press slowly, turning the upper knob to get the proper shape. Put one by one in a hot oil and fry till slight brown. Fry in batches. Allow to cool and store in a air tight jars. These can be kept for 15 days also(if remains!! )

Sending this to Nithu's ongoing event:

Event Announcement : Know Your Flour - Rice Flour

 which is started by Jagruti

Keep Smiling,

PEA NUT POLI(ಶೇಂಗಾ ಹೋಳಿಗೆ)

Tried and tasted by Nivedita

Hi All,

North Karnataka is famous for Poli or stuffed sweet rolls or ಹೋಳಿಗೆ (Holige). We stuff any possible edible and make it into poli. But the special thing is each festival has its must stuffing.. For Diwali we make with chana or toor daal, for Sankrathi we stuff the poli with semolina and jaggery, for special full moon days like Sheegi hunnive we make this Pea nut poli.

This can be kept for 15 days without getting spoiled. Its very tasty, good while travelling.

Here comes the recipe:

Ingredients:

Pea nut - 250 gm

Jaggery - same qty as of pea nut powder

Cardamom powder - 1/2 tsp

Milk - few drops if the mix becomes too dry

Salt a pinch

Wheat flour or Maida - 1 cup

Salt a pinch

Oil - 1 tbsp

Water to make soft dough

Oil -1 tsp for each poli

Procedure:

Take the wheat flour or Maida. Add salt and oil. Keep on adding water to make a soft dough. Keep it aside for one hour at least.

Roast the peanut well. Remove the skin and the seed(???) in the middle.. Yes, there is a seed like thing at the end. Mom says its not good for stomach.

Grind into almost soft powder(neither coarse nor smooth) 

Measure the pea nut powder and take the same qty of grated or powdered jaggery. 

Mix the jaggery, salt and cardamom powder well. 

Add the peanut powder and mix well. Check the consistency. You should be able to make a ball out of it. If not add few drops of milk and mix it well.

Divide it into equal portion to make small ball(shown below)

Divide the ready dough in to small balls. 

Take one ball, roll into small thick disc. Stuff the pea nut ball carefully.

Press it slowly in the palm. Roll into medium size poli.

Heat the tawa. 

Roast it on both the sides with little oil. 

Repeat with the remaining dough and the balls.

I got 20 poli.

Keep in open for an hour.

Store it in air tight box.

It tastes good with ghee.

Sending this to Reshmi's event which is started by  Kiran.

Announcing Cooking with Whole Foods - Peanut

I really enjoyed writing this post after long time. I feel I am back home.. 

Keep Smiling,

Crispy Chapati sticks

Tried and tasted by Nivedita

Hi All,

Two more recipes from leftover food. And again it is prepared with left over Chapatis.. My kids love it.

The best way to use the leftover chapatis and methi parathas.

For Crispy Sweet sticks:

I learnt it after I got married, in my in law's house its very common which is served with morning tea. They call it Khakar. 

Ingredients:

Left over Chapatis - 8 to 10

Sugar powder - 1/8 cup or more

Cardamom powder  a pinch

Oil to fry the chapatis

Method:

Cut the chapatis into desired shape. I prefer long strips.

Keep one big plate ready.

Mix the powdered sugar and cardamom powder.

Heat the oil in a kadai.

Fry the cut chapatis in batches till brown.

Transfer it into the plate and sprinkle the powdered sugar immediately.

allow it to cool and store in a airtight jar.

Now, 

the same way you can make with left over Methi Parathas.

Cut the parathas into desired shape.

Fry in hot oil till golden.

Allow to cool and store in a air tight jar. 

Perfect with evening Tea.

Sending it to veena 's event

Guest Hosting An Event"-Cooking With Left Overs-Kitchen Chronicles

Keep Smiling,

Chapati Poha(Reposting)

Tried and tasted by Nivedita

Hi All,

One of my favorite breakfast... Chapati Poha

Reposting for the event...

Recipe here,

Left over chapatis (Indian wheat flat breads) - 8 to 10

(Click Soft Chapatis my way for the recipe to make chapati)

Oil - 1 tbsp

Onion - 1 medium, finely chopped

Green Chilly - 1 finely chopped

Curry leaves - few

Mustard seeds - 1 tsp

Cumin seeds - 1 tsp

Urad dal (Skinned Black  gram) - 1 tbsp

Salt to taste

Turmeric powder - pinch

Sugar - 1 tsp

Tomato - 1 medium (optional)

OR

Lime juice - 1 tbsp(I used this)

Fresh coriander to garnish

Cut the chapatis in to four pieces. Grind into batches to turn those into coarse powder, not powder. We need the chapati like Poha. Keep it aside.

Heat oil in a pan. 

Add mustard seeds. When splutter, add Urad dal

when they start changing the color, add jeera or cumin seeds, curry leaves. Fry till the urad dal changes its color to gold.

Add onion, green chilly. Fry it till the onion becomes almost brown and well cooked. Add the tomato in between (If you are adding it)

Now add salt and  turmeric powder. Add lemon juice. Mix well. 

Put the coarsed chapati. Add sugar and mix well to combine the ingredients together.

Cook for 2 minutes. Garnish with fresh coriander.

Sending it to veena 's event

Guest Hosting An Event"-Cooking With Left Overs-Kitchen Chronicles

Keep Smiling,

Double Decker Parathas

Tried and tasted by Nivedita

Hi All,

I am here after long time. This time it is for our blogger friend veena of veg junction. She is on with her first event and is very much enthusiastic about this. All the best to her.

Today's recipe is from my favorite breakfast.. Parathas... I love parathas. And when I got the recipe in Tarla Dalalji's website, I could not wait to try it.. Even though its a very common dish, the way she made is kid's friendly and my younger daughter loved it very much. 

I just took a basic recipe from her and modified according to my taste.

I followed the recipe from here. She says its good for diabetes. 

She has used the ready cooked chapatis but I prepared fresh(half baked, check the recipe below).

Thats the only difference.

Its little time consuming but tastes great with fresh chapatis

Recipe is copied and pasted from Tarlaji's post with some editing.

Ingredients:

For the carrot stuffing

Grated Carrot - 1/2 cup

Cumin seeds - 1 tsp

Finely chopped green chillies - 1/2 tsp

Lemon juice - 1 tsp

Oil - 1/2 tsp

Salt to taste.

For The Green Peas Stuffing

Green peas - 1 1/2 cup

(Boiled and mashed)

Cumin seeds - 1 tsp

Finely chopped green chillies - 1/2 tsp

Lemon juice - 1 tsp

Oil - 1/2 tsp

Salt to taste.

Other ingredients:

Oil  or butter(not for diabetic people)  for cooking

Chapati ata to make chapatis.

Method 

For the carrot stuffing

1. Heat the oil in a non-stick pan and fry the cumin seeds until they crackle.
2. Add the carrots, green chillies, lemon juice and salt and mix well.
3. Cover and cook for 2 minutes. Keep aside.

For the green peas stuffing

1. Heat the oil in a non-stick pan and fry the cumin seeds until they crackle.
2. Add the green chillies, coriander and salt and cook for 1 minute.
3. Add the green peas and cook for another minute. Keep aside.

How to proceed

to make one double decker paratha

roll out three medium size chapatis.

Heat tawa and bake two only one side and one fully(this one is for the center part)

1. Spread 1 tablespoon of the carrot stuffing on one side cooked chapati, make sure to keep the uncooked  side outside.and cover with cooked  chapatti. Then spread 1 tablespoon of the green peas stuffing, place another uncooked chapatti(again uncooked side on the upper side) on the top and press firmly to seal the edges.

1. Cook the double decker parathas on a tava (griddle) on both sides, using a little oil.
2. Repeat with the remaining atta and the stuffing to make more parathas.
3. Serve hot with pickle or sauce or curds.

This is the mini size paratha which my younger daughter loved to have.

Sending these double decker parathas to Veena's event :-) which is started by Kalyani.

And
Priya's
Announcing Cooking With Seeds - Peas

And
Kid's Delight-Colourful Palate  guest hosted by Veena,event by Srivalli..

And
Vatsala's  LGSS-Stuffed Paratha



Keep Smiling,

Sweet Potato and Bengal gram Payasa

Tried and tasted by Nivedita

Hi All,

Sweets!!!!!!!Sweets!!!!!I love sweets :-)

I always think and try to remove at least one sweet from my favorite list. But no way!! I love everything. I always get scared that what happens to me if I get diabetes!! There is 100% chance as it is hereditary, but that is not stopping me from eating sweets :-)

Here is one more sweet which I love to eat (I should  find new word for this!!!!) The twist in this is adding sweet potato.

We call it Genasina huggi(Genasu=Sweet potato) in Kannada.

Ingredients:

Sweet Potato - 2 big

Chana dal - 1/2 cup

Jaggery - 1/4 cup

Ghee - 1 tbsp

Cardamom powder - 1/2 tsp

Salt a pinch

Poppy seeds - 1 tsp, roasted(optional)

Water to boil the chana and potato

Method:

Wash the sweet potato. Boil sweet potatoes and chana till soft. I kept both in different vessels in the cooker and gave 2 whistles. allow it to cool.

Grate the jaggery and keep it aside.

Mash the sweet potatoes and chana. Add the grated jaggery, ghee and salt.

Keep it to boil on low flame till the jaggery gets mixed.

Once its mixed, add the cardamom powder and cook for one more minute.

Add roasted poppy seeds, cook for a minute and remove from the fire.

Serve hot..

Sending it to 

 MY event which is guest hosted by 

Raks of RAKS KITCHEN

Keep Smiling,

Jalebi for ICC August

Tried and tasted by Nivedita

Hi All,

Yess!! I am back into ICC after 2 months.  I missed the previous 2 months. I was really stuck with many other things. When I saw this month's Indian Cooking Challenge, I was not much happy thinking that making Jalebi at home is not an easy task.

But again as it is a challenge I have to accept and do it. Again the time was my enemy. But I overcame it and here are clicks of my Jalebi.

And for some percent I was right, I could not get the perfect jalebi shape and my sugar syrup was thick.

Thinking that I will make the syrup again, I started on the second batch. But..... again I had to rush for some important work which took my whole day. When I came back my dough was sour and watery. So I had to throw the whole thing into the dustbin.

Luckily I took the clicks of first batch I prepared.

I used half the quantity from Srivalli's given quantity.

 The ingredients easy to get and the method is super easy. I loved the making of Jalebis but was not happy with myself, as I could not get the proper shape. But the taste was really good. My jalebis remained crispy even the next day :-)

 Ingredients:

To make the batter:

All purpose flour  - 100 gm or 7/8 cup

 Yoghurt - 1 cup Lime juice - 1 tsp Cornstarch - 30 gm or 1/8 cup Hot oil - 1 tbsp a large pinch of saffron color, It was not useful, I thought of adding some food color to it.

To make syrup

Sugar - 1 cup Water - ½ cup

Oil for deep frying

For the batter,

Take all the ingredients under "to make batter". Mix all together to make it thick batter. Keep it to ferment for overnight.

Before making jalebis

take the sugar and water to make the syrup till one boil.

Keep it warm.

Heat oil in a kadai. THE OIL SHOULD BE REAL HOT.

Use the zip bags( I used milk packet). Snip off one corner(very thin hole) Fill it with the batter.

Pipe the batter into hot oil and fry till golden. Drop these into syrup for a minute or two.

Remove and serve hot. 

Keep Smiling,

ABSOLUTELY NO KNEAD BASIC WHITE BREAD(FOOD REMAKE)

Tried and tasted by Nivedita

Hi All,

HOW ARE YOU? I KNOW I AM NOT ABLE TO POST HERE REGULARLY. HOPEFULLY I WILL BE BACK TO MY REGULAR BLOGGING SOON. 

THERE ARE SOME TIMES WHERE YOU DON'T GET THE THINGS YOU WANT. AND ITS VERY COMMON WITH ME.. LIVING IN A SMALL CITY, I ALWAYS FACE THIS PROBLEM OF NOT GETTING FEW COMMON INGREDIENTS ALSO.

I WAS SEARCHING FOR INSTANT DRY YEAST FROM PAST 15 DAYS. I WAS NOT GETTING TIME TO GO TO THE CITY TO SEARCH FOR IT. AS THE LAST DATE OF EVENT IS COMING NEAR, I HAD TO RUSH TO THE MARKET(15 KM AWAY) TO GET THE DRY YEAST.

AND I WAS NOT AT ALL SURE ABOUT BAKING THE BREAD. I ALWAYS THOUGHT ITS ONLY THE  BAKER'S JOB.

SO WITH LOT OF HESITATION, I STARTED THE PROCESS. THINKING THAT THE END PRODUCT WILL BE NOT COME OUT GOOD, I DID NOT BOTHER TO TAKE THE PHOTOS...

BUTTTTTTTT.........

MY FIRST EVER BAKED WHITE BREAD WAS JUST PERFECT, EXACTLY OR MORE TASTIER THAN THE BAKERY PRODUCT(VERY PROUD TO SAY). IT WAS SOFT, SPONGY, WITH PERFECT TASTE OF LITTLE SWEET BREAD........ YUMMMMM. I COULD NOT STOP SEEING AT IT BEFORE I CLICKED THE PHOTOS. AND I COULD NOT WAIT TO HAVE A BITE WITH BUTTER ON IT AT NIGHT 10 o'CLOCK.

I CAN'T STOP WRITING ABOUT IT... 

COMING TO THE RECIPE,

MY HUNT STARTED ON THE RECIPES IN BLOGGING WORLD. I ENDED UP WITH 3 RECIPES AND I CHOSE ONE FROM THEM,  Its from Vaishali's Zestyflavors.

CLICK Gorgeous White Bread! for the original recipe.

I have followed the exact procedure only skipping the use of electric mixer. 

Absolutely, I did not knead it....

AND TO BAKE I FOLLOWED THE METHOD FROM Suma Rowjee's  Batter White Bread - One Easy Loaf!

READ IT IN HER OWN WORDS:

Once the dough doubles, gently deflate and transfer it to the greased loaf pan. You can oil your hands to pat the dough into shape. Cover with a greased aluminum foil and let rise again till double in volume. Its important to grease the foil or it will stick to the top of the risen dough. When you feel away the foil...aaagh!!! some part of the dough will come along with it. It happened to me..the torn loaf broke my heart :-) so I am telling you to learn from my mistake...

Ingredients:

All purpose flour - 3cups(sieved and measured, this is from Suma's recipe)

Warm Water - 1 Cup 
Sugar - 1/3 Cup 
Active Dry Yeast - 2.5 Tsp 
Salt - 1/4 Tsp 
Oil - 2 Tbsp 
Warm Milk - 2 Tbsp 

Method: 1. In a bowl, mix yeast and sugar in 1 Cup of Warm Water. Allow it to proof atleast 10 minutes. It will become frothy.2. Now add Oil, Warm Milk and Salt. Mix well. Keep it for few minutes.3. Take the flour in a big wide vessel. Add the yeast mix and start kneading it. Knead till you get soft dough.4. Place dough in a well oiled bowl. Cover with a damp cloth. Allow to rise until it is doubled, about 1 hour. I kept it for one hour.5. Take the dough and Punch it down. Knead for a few minutes and shape into loaf and place into well oiled 9x5 inch loaf pan. 6.Allow to rise for 45 more minutes, or until dough has risen 1 inch above.7.Bake at 175degree C for 35 minutes. 8. Once the bread is done, take it out from the pan. Brush some butter on the top (It gives a nice glaze) and let it cool on wire rack completely. 

I have copied the exact recipe from Vaishali.

I can't wait for my kids to get up in the morning and have this bread for the breakfast :-)))))

Sending this to Shama's event 

CELEBRATE SWEETS - SWEET BREADS/BUNS/CROISSANTS EVENT

which is started by ME

Keep Smiling,