Eggplant cups stuffed with veg and nuts

Tried and tasted by Nivedita

Hi All,

Few days back I got a call from LG company to ask whether I am interested to participate in the cooking competition. First I said No as I was little busy with mom's work. But, thanks to LG guy, who came home and explained the contest and the procedure, my mom forced me and told me it will be a good experience. I registered my name without any recipe in my mind. I thought of trying a cake. But I did not get more time spend on the recipe and the garnishing. 

I don't know why this recipe came in my mind!! May be because, it was easy, simple, quick and easily available ingredients. I had read it in one of old magazine at my friend's place. But never tried it before. It is a Turkish dish called "Imam Bayildi" May be I chose this one because, it is 100% cooked in a microwave which was the rule of the contest. In the original recipe, its a traditional cooking method. But I changed it into M/W cooking.

My friend Vaishaly is also a very good cook, very creative and very enthusiastic person. We both did shopping and tried it together(her and mine). I will post her recipe also in coming days.

Now coming to my recipe :

Ingredients:

Long and big Brinjals – 2

Onion- 1 chopped finely

Carrot - 1 cubed

Green Capsicum – 1 small, cubed

Fresh corn – 2 tbsp

Oil – 4 tbsp

Garlic – 2 cloves, chopped finely or crushed

Salt to taste

Sugar – ½ tsp

Oregano – a pinch

Lime juice – 1 tbsp

Fresh coriander – 2 tbsp, cleaned and chopped finely

Nuts – ¼ cup, cut into small pieces (Almonds, Cashew nuts,
Raisins)

Pepper powder – a pinch

Tomato – 1 big, cubed

Method:

·        Keep the brinjals in salted water for half an hour.

·        Cook the brinjals in a large uncovered microwave safe bowl on HIGH for 5 minutes, turning from time to time. Then immediately keep the brinjals in cold water to cool.

·        Now split the brinjals into half lengthwise, scoop out the flesh, leaving a little inside the shell and chop the pulp.

·        Heat half the oil in a micro wave safe bowl on HIGH for 1 minute. Put Garlic and keep on HIGH for a minute.

·        Add the onions and carrot and keep on HIGH for another minute. Now add cubed capsicum and sweet corn. Mix properly and cook for another half minute.

·        Now add chopped Brinjal. Cover and cook on HIGH for 3 minutes. Keep on stirring in between.

·        Open and season it with salt pepper and oregano. Mix well and add sugar. Cook for 2 more minutes.

·        Take it from the microwave and transfer into a bowl. Add 1 tsp oil, lime juice, half of fresh coriander and half of nuts.

·        Sprinkle evenly the salt and pepper powder inside the shells.

·        Stuff the mixture into the Brinjal shells and chill in the fridge.

·        Before serving, garnish with remaining fresh coriander and nuts.

Just make sure that the brinjal is baked properly.

And

If you choose the small brinjals, you can serve it one whole cup as a starter.

This is how I tried the garnishing at home, but was not happy with it. So changed it.

The competition was a very good experience for me as it was the first cooking competition. All the contestants were very creative.

Hoping to participate and be more creative in the future.

Sending this to Srivalli's 365 days of Microwave Cooking! event 

Keep Smiling,

Mangalore cucumber Sambhar

Tried and tasted by Nivedita

Hi All,

Do not invite me for food, if you have this sambhar in your menu. I swear you will repent! I am going to finish all the sambhar with hot rice and ghee. I just love it. I love the way, it is prepared by Udupi people. I am not giving you the Udupi recipe. It is my version, which I make with home made sambhar pudi or masala.

I use any vegetable which is available at home. But I like it more when I use this Sambhar Kai  or Mangalore cucumber. 

Without much introduction I am coming to the recipe,

Ingredients used 

Mangalore cucumber - 1/2 of one big cucumber, washed and cut into medium sized cubes.

Add little water to cover the cubes and boil for 5 minutes.

Toor dal - 1 cup, cleaned, washed and boiled

To make into fine paste,

Tomato - 1 big, chopped finely

tamarind paste - 1 tsp

Click down for

Sambhar powder - 2 tbsp

Salt to taste

Jaggery - 2 tbsp

Red chilly powder - 1 tsp

Transfer everything in a mixi or blender and churn it into a fine paste with little water.

For tempering

Oil - 1 tbsp

Mustard seeds - 1 tsp

Cumin seeds - 1 tsp

Curry leaves - few

Turmeric powder a pinch

Fresh coriander to garnish

Heat oil in kadai. Add mustard seeds and cumin seeds. Add curry leaves and ground paste. Fry for 3 to 5 minutes.Add turmeric powder. Add boiled cubes. Mix it properly. Add boiled dal and two cups water. Cook for few minutes. Adjust the seasoning and add some more water if you feel the dal is thick. Cook for at least 10 minutes. Garnish with fresh coriander. 

Serve with hot rice, pickle and paapad.

Sending it to Priya of Enveetu Kitchen who is hosting the event which is started by Jagruti.

   Announcing Complete My Thali - Daal/Kadhi/Sambar/R...

 

Keep Smiling,

Green chilly crispy poha

Tried and tasted by Nivedita

Hi All,

I drafted this post 15 days back itself, but was not getting enough time to complete and publish it. But when Sanjeev Kapoor announced the competition on FB  on monsoon snacks, I remembered this one and I am publishing it now. I sent 3 entries to his competition but not this one. And I too started the post with "its monsoon here" !!! It was just by chance!! Here it continues ...

Its monsoon here. We feel like eating something crispy, fried snack with evening tea. This green chilly crispy poha is the best for a rainy evening with a cuppa tea  or a mug or hottt coffee.

My co sister always liked this one from me. So its for her now.

In my house, this is always prepared and kept in the kitchen. There are 3 recipes. One is with Red chillly powder, garlic as main ingredient. Second is with Red chilly, hing as main thing. The third one is this with green chilly and hing.

Thin poha - 250gm

Oil - 1/4 cup or less

Mustard seeds - 1 tsp

Cumin seeds - 1 tsp

Peanut - 1/4cup

Dalia - 1/4 cup

Curry leaves - 15 to 20

Green chilly - 3 to 4, slit and cut in to two

Hing - a pinch

Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp

Sesame seeds - 1 tbsp

Salt to taste

Sugar - 1 tbsp

Add oil in a kadai. Wait till the oil is hot, add mustard seeds. When splutter add cumin seds, peanut and curry leaves. Fry for sometime till peanut changes its color to golden color. Be careful as it may burn of if you delay or move away from kadai.

Now add green chilly and hing. Fry for half a minute. Add dalia and sesame seeds. Fry for half a minute. Off the heat. Keep on stirring. Now add Salt, turmeric powder. Let it cool.

Add the cleaned poha and sugar. Mix it properly. 

Take little quantity and transfer it into microwave safe bowl. (If you take more quantity, all the poha will not become crispy) Keep it on HIGH or 100% and run it for 30 seconds to one minute. Allow it to cool for 10 minutes.  Repeat with remaining poha. You will get crispy poha to eat.

Keep Smiling,

Sprouted Sorghum and onion masala

Tried and tasted by Nivedita 

Hi All,

One more recipe from North Karnataka. A very healthy, nutritious and tasty food and tastes different. My mother used to make this when we were in school. But I do not know when we stopped eating this or when mom stopped making this.

Last week when I brought  Jowar or Sorghum to make flour (in flour mill). I remembered this recipe and thought of trying with very little quantity. I was not sure, whether I will like it now or not.

But, the taste was so good that I have decided to sprout the sorghum again and try it in salads or curry.

Here is the recipe for Sprouted Sorghum and onion Masala :

To sprout :
Sorghum - 1 cup

Wash the Sorghum and soak it in 3 cups of water for 24 hours.

Drain the water, wash it 2 times with fresh water. 

Tie in a muslin or cotton cloth for 12 hours. Open and check whether its sprouted or not, If not, tie it and keep it for another 8 to 10 hours.

Sprouting time depends on the weather. In cold weather, it takes more time than in hot weather. 

Ingredients :

Boiled Sprouted Sorghum - 1 cup

(Add 2 cups of water to the sprout and keep in a cooker to give 2 whistles. Let it cool and drain the water in a bowl to use it later.)

Onion - 1 big, cleaned, chopped into cubes

Oil - 2 tsp

Mustard seeds - 1 tsp

Curry leaves - 10 to 12, cleaned and chopped finely

Salt to taste

Red chilly powder - 1 tsp

or green chilly - 1 finely chopped

Turmeric powder - a pinch

Lime juice - 1 tbsp

Fresh coriander - 1 tbsp, finely chopped

Heat oil in a kadai. Add mustard seeds. When splutter add curry leaves and onion. Fry till onion changes its color. (Now add green chilly if you are using it). Or add red chilly powder, turmeric powder and salt. Mix it properly. Add the boiled water about 1/8 cup. Cook for a minute. Add the boiled sorghum. Cover and cook it for 2 minutes. Remove the lid add lime juice and fresh coriander. Mix it and remove from the Fire. 

You can use fresh coriander also.

Serve it with chapati or rice or even puri!!

I would love to thank Nithu of  Nithu's Kitchen, who made me to feel happy and proud of myself by taking my interview and posting in her blog.

Check out my  interview  in her blog and enjoy her unique recipes too.
Sending this to 

Priya's Announcing Let's Sprout - A New Event

Keep Smiling,

Ginna (First Milk Halwa)

Tried and tasted by Nivedita

Hi All,

Are you thinking that what is this First milk? This is the first milk taken from cow just after the delivery and normally it is known as Colostrum. While browsing for more information, I got this link, where it says, this colostrum helps the human immune system tackleviruses, including HIV and H1N1.

During my childhood, milkman used to supply the milk. There were no packet milk. Milkmen used to bring the milk in big aluminium cans or in bottles.  And when ever there was any cow to deliver, we used to wait for this first milk.  Mom used to prepare this Ginna from that milk. 

But when I came to know that how much important it is for a calf to have the colostrum, I (at least) stopped having ginna.  I felt bad for the calf! 

Even for human babies, mother's first milk is very important to develop the immune system.

But, it is not advisable for a pregnant woman as this is considered as heat food or which produces heat in the body.

Last week, my mother's friend bought this ginna for us! And I could not wait taking pictures. I think I tasted it after 25 years!

Here is the  recipe from my mom,

Colostrum - 1 litre

Powdered or grated Jaggery - 250 gm  or according to your taste

Cardamom powder - 1 tsp

 The milk should be used as soon as possible otherwise you will not get the halwa texture, it will become water like payasam.

Add the milk and jaggery in a cooker vessel.  Mix it till the jaggery is dissolved.  Add cardamom powder.
Check for the sweetness. If less add more.
Keep it in a cooker and give 2 whistles. Allow it to cool.

Remove the vessel. Cut the cooked halwa into desired shapes. 

If the milk is one day old,  repeat the same thing but cook it outside in a vessel by stirring it often.  You will get watery ginna, but that also tastes good. We used to have it with puri or chapati.

Sending this to my event : 

"EVENT ANNOUNCEMENT - CELEBRATE SWEETS~HALWA!!!!"

Keep Smiling,

Green gram flour rotti (Rotti Sandige)

Tried and tasted by Nivedita

Hi All,

One more traditional food from North Karnataka. It is usually prepared  in villages on No moon day with some sweet. It is taken to the fields also on Sheege Hunnive and Kar Hunnive.

The preparation is same as Thaali peeth.  It is served as a side dish in small pieces.

Ingredients :

Green moong flour - 1 cup

(You will get ready flour packet in any Indian stores,here in India or villages, we take the whole green moong to the flour mill to make it into flour)

Cumin seeds - 1 tsp, crushed

Green chilly - 2 to 3 crushed

Curry leaves - 10-12, chopped finely

Salt to taste

Water to make dough

Oil to fry these.

To make

Aluminium foil - 1 square sheet (12" x 12")

(in olden days, the small white clean cloth was used for the purpose)

water to apply on the foil

Take the flour in a big plate with the edges. Make the small well in the middle. Add all the ingredients except water and oil. 

Go on adding water slowly and mix it properly to get nice dough(Not very hard or very soft) The dough should be little softer than chapati atta.

Divide the dough into equal balls of small orange size.

Take one ball. Keep it on the foil. 

Start pressing it from the middle to make it into thick rotti or a bigger size puri.

Heat tawa and apply oil. 

Hold the foil carefully and put it with the rotti down side on tawa. Slowly remove the foil after few seconds.

Let it cook for a minute. 

Now spread 1/2 tsp oil and turn the rotti. Fry both the sides till it is cooked. Keep on pressing everywhere for rotti to cook evenly.

Repeat with other balls.

Remove it and keep it open for 10 minutes. If you cover the rottis immediately they will leave the water and the rotti gets spoiled.

Have it with Jowar rotti and other vegetable preparations.

Keep Smiling,

Few recipes with green leaves stem

Tried and tasted by Nivedita 

Hi All,

Most of the times, we discard the vegetable peel, fruit feel and this green leafy vegetables. Most of us, use only the leaves from Spinach, Amarnath leaves and many few green leaves(I do not know English names for those like Rajgiri, Harive, dantina soppu). We do not like the tender stem of leafy vegetables. But it tastes very good and has more nutrition.

When I was in school, this was the toughest task for me, to clean these green leaves. But it was my work! I used to take so much time to clean it. Some times, mom used to get irritated and she used to clean it. That time, I used to collect these stems and play with those, making necklace or used to build spider web with the stems. 

When I was in college, I tried making  sabji using these stems. The taste was good. From then, its become regular in my house to use these stems for sabji, sambhar or salad. 

There are three recipes you can make with these(which I know),

1. With onions and garlic

Recipe for the same :

cleaned, and chopped stem - 1 cup

Onion - 1 medium, chopped

Garlic - 1 small bulb or 6 to 8 cloves, crushed

Green chilly - 1 crushed

Salt to taste

Haldi a pinch

Oil - 1 tbsp

Heat oil in a kadai. Add chopped garlic and saute till brown. Add onion and fry till it changes it color. Add green chilly and cleaned stem. Saute for some time. Add salt, haldi and 1 tbsp water. Cook for few minutes.

Garlic and stem sabji is ready.

2. Just add these stems while making dal or sambhar. It taste good.

3. Clean, chop and steam these stems and use it to make salad with curds, onion and tomato with seasoning of salt and pepper.

4. Now coming to the recipe with the photo:

Here is the recipe with dal,

Cleaned and chopped stem - 1 cup

Chana dal - 1 tbsp

Oil - 1 tbsp

Mustard seeds - 1 tsp

Curry leaves - few

Green chilly and cumin seeds paste - 1 tsp

Salt to taste

Haldi - a pinch

Lemon juice - 1 tsp

Fresh coconut - 2 tbsp grated

Hing a pinch

Soak the chana for one hour in warm water.

Heat oil in a kadai.

Add mustard seeds. When splutter, add curry leaves and hing. 

Add soaked chana and fry for a minute.

Add chopped stem, green chilly paste and 1 tbsp water. Cook for a minute.

Add salt and haldi. Cook with 1/4 cup water till the chana is cooked.

Add Lemon juice and fresh coconut. Adjust the seasoning.

Serve hot with chapati or rice and sambhar.

Sending this to the event hosted by

Nithu at Nithu's Kitchen on 

Best out of Waste

Keep Smiling,

Cashew Nut Rice

Tried and tasted by Nivedita

Hi All,

A very easy and simple but perfect rice for any spicy gravy or curry. This goes very well with Spicy Chicken or Mutton curry.

I prepared this it with Butter Chicken gravy.

Ingredients :

Long grain rice or normal rice - 1 cup

Cashew nuts - 12 to 15, cut into two

Ghee - 1 tsp +1 tbsp

Oil - 1 tsp

Clove - 2

Bay leaf -1

Cinnamon stick - 1/2" piece

Cardamom - 2

White pepper - 4 to 6

Salt to taste

Ginger garlic paste - 1/4 tsp

Water to cook the rice

Clean and wash the rice. Drain and keep it aside for 15 minutes.

Heat 1 tsp ghee and oil in a cooker. 

Add all whole garam masala ( just crush it to avoid the pop out)

Add rice and ginger garlic paste. Fry for some time. Add salt. Add water till the rice is covered. 

Close the lid and give one whistle. Keep it to cool.

Till it is cooled,

Heat a tbsp of ghee in a small pan, add broken cashew nuts and fry till golden color. Add this to the ready rice.

Mix it nicely and serve with your choice of curry.

Sending this to Sara's Corner 's ongoing event Think Spice - Think Garam Masala  which was started by Sunitha of Sunitha's World.

Keep Smiling,

They all met in a kitty party!!! to unite into one!!

Tried and tasted by Nivedita

Hi All,

Aromatic food makes you feel hungry even after you have finished your food few minutes back!! Each food has its own flavor and taste depending on the spices we use.

South India is famous for its unique spice powder or masala powder or Sambhar powder to be specific. The preparation differs after every 40Km.

I am always hungry to have hot rice with any delicious sambhar!! Here is the sambhar recipe I learnt from one of my friend:

Do these bowl of spices won't look like women at a kitty party!! showing their new jeweleries or saree or accessories???

Giving the quantities for making  powder. You can keep it for a month or a week more. The aroma will go as the days pass. The quantity depends on the size of the cup you take. Its better to make in a little quantity and check the taste.

Ingredients :

Cumin Seeds - 2 cups

Dry coriander seeds - 1 1/2 cups

Curry leaves - 3 cups, if you add more also it tastes good.

Methi or Fenugreek seeds - 1/4 cup

Pepper corns - 1/4 cup

Urad dal or black gram(skinned) - 1/4 cup

Chana Dal or Bengal gram -1/4 cup

Raw rice - 1/4 cup

Dry Red chilly - 20 to 25

Dry coconut - 1 cup

Asafoetida (stoned) or hing - 1 pinch

or Asafoetida powder - 1 tsp

Sesame seeds - 1/2 cup(Optional)

Dry roast each ingredient and keep to cool.

Mix all and make into a fine powder. Store in an airtight jar.

You can use it for Sambhar, Bisibele bath, Cabbage rice or sambhar rice.

Keep Smiling,