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Friday, August 24, 2007

A Subzi, A Snack & A Dessert

For the past few days, my busy life has kept me away from the computer and I am unaware of the happenings in Blogosphere.
I wanted to participate in some of the events hosted by fellow bloggers and I see most of them end by this 25 th. Hence I thought of doing a 3 in 1 kind of post - posting for three events in a single post. So, here we go in an alphabetical order.

CONDENSED MILK HALWA


Condensed milk halwa is a hit with my guests and always brings compliments, when served. The halwa has an exquisite grainy appearance with melt in your mouth kind of texture. It tastes similar to the pala khova, sold by Andhra sweet sellers. Every time I serve this, people think it is khova and I might have toiled for hours in the kitchen stirring the milk to prepare it.

This rich halwa surprisingly needs a few ingredients and can be prepared in short time, in 12 minutes, to be exact. The best part is it is prepared in a microwave. So, you can be ready with a delightful dessert under 15 minutes.


Add 14 oz / 400 gm sweetened Condensed Milk , 3 Tbsp Yogurt and 1 Tbsp Ghee to a microwavable bowl and put it in the MW. Cook for twelve minutes on high. Take the bowl outside and stir the contents once, every three minutes. The mixture would have reached the halwa consistency around 12 minutes. If it has not, cook more for a minute or two.
I usually use condensed milk and yogurt, both fat free.

This one goes to 'Microwave easy cooking event' hosted by Srivalli of 'Cooking 4 for all seasons'.

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JEERA ALOO

Potato is one vegetable that is prepared in numerous styles and with lot of variations because of it's wide usage. Here is a simple and yet delicious potato subzi flavored with cumin seeds. Toasted cumin seeds and cilantro add a wonderful aroma to the dish and this goes well with both rice and rotis.


Ingredients needed:
Big sized potatoes - 3
Cumin seeds, Grated ginger, Chili powder & Coriander powder - 1 tsp each
Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
Salt to taste
Chopped cilantro to garnish - 2 Tbsp
Oil - 2 Tbsp
Lemon / Lime juice - 1 Tbsp or more

Method:
Peel the potatoes and chop them into small cubes. If you prefer, chop the potatoes with skin.
Cook them with enough water in a sauce pan till fork tender. Don't over cook the potatoes. Drain all the water used to cook.
Heat oil in a pan and add ginger. When it starts to brown add cumin seeds and turmeric powder. When cumin start to turn brown, add potatoes, chili powder, coriander powder and salt. Adjust the seasonings if required. Mix well so that the potatoes are coated well with the spices. Add a Tbsp or two of water, if required. Saute for a minute or so and add the chopped coriander and toss well. Turn off the stove. Drizzle with lemon juice and serve.

This one goes to
'Think Spice - Cumin' event hosted by Sunita of Sunita's World.

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PLANTAIN CHIPS

Among the few things I prepare with plantains, this snack is our favorite. It is a great alternative to potato chips. Chips prepared from a plantain would serve two as a snack and takes around 15 minutes to prepare them.


The process is really simple.
  • Take half a tsp each of chili powder & salt and few pinches of asafoetida in a small bowl. Mix them well and keep them aside. You can increase the quantities of salt and chili powders to suit your taste.
  • Chop the ends, peel the plantain and slice it into very thin circles. (Use mandoline / slicer for an easy job).
  • On medium flame, heat enough oil (around 2 cups) in a deep, small pan. Drop plantain slices in the hot oil with out over crowding. If plantain slices are sticking to one another, separate them before dropping into oil. Fry the plantain slices in batches and sprinkle them with the above spice mixture immediately. I usually fry them till they turn a shade yellow. Once they are done, drain on paper towels.

This one goes to 'Favorite Snack' event, hosted by SnackOrama's Hima.



Post a Comment

31 comments:

Richa said...

3 in 1 sounds good, i did 2 in 1 :)
halwa looks yum & so quick to make.
i too did jeera alu, but with baby alu.

Tee said...

halwa looks heavenly !
jeera alu --great entry for the event!
Homemade plantain chips are the best snack one can have :)

Nupur said...

The halwa looks rich and gooey, and really easy to make! Reminds me of a dessert from a favorite store in Kolhapur: they called it "Mawa Cake".
The chips are glorious. Have never tried making chips at home...yours looks absolutely crisp and fresh.

Namratha said...

Wow Suma the halwa looks so mouth watering! It reminded me of my one of my favourite sweets Milk Cake, I'm hoping with crossed fingers yours is the same because I'm dying to have some Milk Cake! :)

Unknown said...

Hi Suma,
That close up shot of Halwa making me crazy for some sweets....potato curry looks yummy......

Coffee said...

That halwa sounds like an absolute quick fix... especially when u r running for time!

Bharathy said...

Waaaw waaw waw!!Thatz for the 3 separately..!!Love all the 3!!
What utensil is right for the milk sweet to micro?won't milk boil over??..and doesnt yogurt impart a sour flavour?

Love the aalo and the plantain chips..I am posting banana chips next!!

BTW,I passed you 2 awards last week?I want you to receive them in your next post,Suma!!:)

Suma Gandlur said...

Richa,
I was thinking about 4 in 1.
Your baby aloo with cumin looks so yum. I want to pop one into my mouth.

Tee,
Thanks. Plantain chips are lot better than potatoes.

Nupur,
thanks

Namratha,
If you know the recipe for milk halwa, please post it.

Suma Gandlur said...

Madhu,
Thanks.

Coffee,
That's really quick and thats why I always keep atleast a can of condensed milk whenever I crave for sweet.

Bharathy,
You can use any microwave safe bowl. If the bowl is smaller, the milk tends to reach that boiling over stage and you have to stop often and keep stirring. So, I use a big bowl and it usually doesn't boil over. Yogurt doesn't impart sour flavor to the dish.
Once again,Thanks for the awards.
This was already a long post, so was thinking to post about them in my next post.:)

Srivalli said...

Suma...thanks for the lovely entry...all of them look so good...

Srivalli
www.cooking4allseasons.blogspot.com

Suganya said...

I am all for those crispy chips.. Looking lovely...

Saju said...

3 for the price of one, thank you. Wow love the halva, I feel like running downstairs to make some now!

ushaprashanth said...

Hi suma!
Great entries for all the three events!!! halwa looks delicious!!good work!

sunita said...

Hi Suma,can you pass some of that halwa please...btw, thanks for th e lovely entry...

Finla said...

Allo jeera looke great,
I just prepared banana chips ad it is Onam this monday, i will post it when i have time

Viji said...

Suma all entries are great. The halwa is inviting. Viji

Latha Narasimhan said...

All entries to Mw are milk sweets! OMG let me change my entry! I love those vazhaikai chips.

FH said...

Suma, all of them had me drooling,specially HalKhova.I made it on the stove top with cream,it took me one whole hr to make it!!! MW rocks girl.Aloo and chips look great too.
Take your time and blog when you have time,don't stress out.I know it's busy time when school starts.Hugs and thanks for the recipes.Excellent:)

Sharmi said...

delicious, simple, easy and yummy!! hit 3 mangoes in one post!!

Roopa said...

great all in one post Suma! loved the condense milk halwa the most easiest i found ! thanks dear i will try it soon:)

Sreelu said...

ah ha love all the entries aloo jeera my favorite, I would love to try condensed milk halwa.banana chips look so good and yummy

Manju said...

i tried the condensed milk halwa..but it got burnt..any idea y?? :( :(

Suma Gandlur said...

Sorry to hear that superchef. It had never happened to me.
My guess would be it got burnt either because
1.It required lesser time on your MW.
2.Or probably, it was not stirred adequately. Usually what happens is the bottom portion goes on cooking and thickening while the upper portion remains in liquid / semi liquid stage. Stirring the contents therefore becomes an important step.
Also, If you are using a glass dish for the preparation, you have to take out the dish out and stir once in every three minutes. If you are using a plastic container,probably you have to stir more times.
Hopefully this info helps and you have an enjoyable halwa next time. :)

Smita said...

I love Aloo recipes....looks yummy...

yshu said...

hi suma,

this is vaishu frm chennai.. many ppl hv told me abt making halwa with condensed milk so browsed thru net and got ur yummy easy recipe.. can u tell me whether i can use curd instead of yogurt..

thanks

Suma Gandlur said...

Vaishnavi,
Since yogurt is called curds(dahi) in India, You can use it. :)

My Space My Thoughts! said...

i was just browsing and stumbled upon your Microwave Halwa.. and decided to give it a try immediately.. its only been 30 mins since i saw your posting n i cant stop eating this!!! its so good i guess my tastebuds refuse to give up!! One of my fav now.. Thanks for the recipe!! :)

VG said...

Chips looking yummy and easy to make .... will definitely try it. Thanks for sharing

Sweta (My Indian Dietitian) said...

Hi Suma,
Just wanted to let you know that I made the condensed milk sweet for Diwali and it turned out just great!!
Thanks for sharing this awesome recipe-I have put a link to this post on my blog.

Namitha said...

First time in your space..lovely collection..I am bookmarking your condensed milk halwa.Will try it for sure :-)

Anonymous said...

Thank you for information!