Ammini Kozhukattai / Mani Kozhukattai

I have noticed that Veena bakes a lot and was planning to pick one from that category before I checked her recipe index. However after going through her blog monthly archives, I came across a  treasure trove of traditional recipes and I settled on kozhukattais.  I had never tasted them before and to be honest, even was a little skeptical about how the steamed rice flour balls would taste. However I have come across these kozhukattais plenty of times during browsing and even the blogging marathon and have seen cooks raving about the grease free snack. And so I was tempted to try. I first tried ulundu kozhukattai - the steamed rice flour dumplings with spicy urad dal stuffing. The leftover outer layer and filling went to make these ammini kozhukattai, the mini savory rice flour dumplings. I had made it real spicy and we enjoyed them for our evening snack.

Ingredients:
1 cup rice flour
1 cup water or as needed
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp oil 

Ingredients for tempering:
2 tsp oil
1 tsp urad dal / skinned black gram
1 tsp mustard seeds
A sprig of curry leaves
2 - 3 green chilles, finely chopped
1/4 cup ulundu paste / urad dal stuffing (optional. In absence of this use fresh, shredded coconut)
A pinch of asafoetida powder
Salt to taste

Method:
* Add water, oil and salt to a sauce pan. Bring the water to a boil and turn off the stove.
* Take the rice flour in a mixing bowl. Slowly add the water to the flour , mixing with a wooden spatula /spoon all the while.
* Leave it aside for 5 minutes or until it is easy to handle. Knead it into a smooth dough with greased hands.

 

* Pinch out a small portion and roll into a ball. Grease your hands if needed since the dough may be sticky. Repeat the procedure until all the dough is used to make the balls.

* Steam it in a steamer / pressure cooker without the whistle on for about 10 minutes or until done. (I did it for more time than the mentioned 10 minutes since the balls tasted raw.)

* Heat oil and add urad dal and mustard seeds. When mustard seeds start to pop, add chillies, asafoetida and curry leaves. Fry for a few seconds and then add urad dal stuffing / coconut, kozhukattai and salt. Stir and saute for a couple of minutes and turn off the stove. Serve warm.

The urad dal stuffing I have added above is optional. In absence of it go with fresh, shredded coconut or idli milagai podi. I followed the steaming method here instead of the frying version as I do for my patoli / paruppu usli.

Ingredients for urad dal stuffing:
1/2 cup urad dal
2 green chillies
a sprig of curry leaves
Salt to taste
2 tsp oil
1 tsp mustard seeds
Few pinches of asafoetida
1/2 cup grated fresh coconut

Method:
* Soak urad dal at least for an hour in water. Drain the water after soaking period and wash the urad dal once and completely drain.
* Grind urad dal, green chillies, salt and curry leaves together coarsely without adding water. I used a food processor for this.
* Steam this for about 10 - 12 minutes or until a knife inserted comes out clean. Remove and let cool.
* Pulse it in a food processor / blender until the steamed mixture is coarsely crumbled.
* Heat a non stick saute pan and add mustard seeds and asafoetida. Add the coarsely ground dal powder and coconut. Stir and saute for about five minutes. Your ulundu stuffing is ready and use as needed.

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Spicy Mango Oatmeal

Being a south Indian, I am used to spicy breakfast items. At most, I can go with a nutella sandwich or a cup of oat flakes cereal only to pop something spicy to clean up my palate later to remove the sweetness. However when I saw this mango oatmeal at Mireille's place last night, I postponed cooking the other bookmarked recipes from her space to try the oatmeal today.
If you are not familiar with her blog, just hop onto her space to see how enthusiastic she is about exploring the world cuisine. She has become one among the close knit group of this blogging marathon and I really appreciate her interest and zeal in Indian cooking. She really puts a lot of efforts to come up with interesting recipes, some unknown to even our Indian group. :) 

Ingredients: (1 serving)
1/4 cup oats (I added old fashioned oats)
1/2 cup + 1/4 cup milk
1 inch piece of cinnamon
1 star anise
1/4 - 1/2 cup sweetened mango pulp
Sugar to taste

Method:
* Bring 1/2 cup of milk to boil and add the spices.
* Add the oatmeal and cook for five minutes or until done.
* Stir in the mango puree. Taste it and add sugar only if needed.
* Remove the cinnamon and star anise and serve garnishing with nutmeg powder if preferred.

Note:
* The 1/2 cup milk gave the exact consistency (like halwa) as Mireille's but I later added 1/4 cup more. 
* Cardamom powder can be a nice substitution for the spices in the recipe.
* The original recipe uses oat milk but I used the regular milk. Almond or soy milk may be substituted.
* If using mango fruit, puree it using milk if needed. I added puree since I had to finish some leftover puree.
* I planned it more as a dessert than the breakfast and so ate the yummy stuff chilled.

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Spicy Oats Khichdi

For the final week of this month's blogging marathon, I need to cook from three blogs that are a part of this marathon. Valli chose our partners and my first post is from PJ's blog. She has a good collection of vegetarian recipes and I cooked a couple more from her blog other than this khichdi. I have been following her enough during these marathons to know that Padma is gungho over oats as I am about ragi/quinoa. :) I have been seeing these spicy oats posts everywhere and decided to try her masala oats porridge for my breakfast today. The plain old, boring oats get a spicy south Indian touch here. I skipped the onions and went with old fashioned oats and had a healthy, filling breakfast under 10 minutes. Using frozen vegetables / quick cooking oats hasten the cooking process.

Ingredients for 1 serving:
For tadka: 1 tsp oil, 1/2 tsp minced ginger, 1 tsp mustard seeds, 1 tsp cumin seeds, 1 tsp urad dal / skinned black gram, few curry leaves
1 tsp sambhar powder
Salt to taste
1 cup water

4 - 6 Tbsp chopped mixed vegetables (I used carrot, beans and peas)
1/2 cup oats

Method:
* Heat oil and add the tadka ingredients. When the mustard seeds start to splutter, add water, salt and sambhar powder. If you want a thicker version like the one pictured above, then go with 3/4 cup of water. I added a cup of water.
* Add vegetables to the water and cook. Or meanwhile, cook the vegetables in a microwave for about 4 -5 minutes. If using frozen vegetables, there is no need to cook them. They can be just added along with the oats.
* Add oats and cook according to the instructions on low flame until done. Old fashioned oats take about 5 minutes to cook. 
* Serve warm.

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Mango Lassi

Lassi is a traditional yogurt based drink, preferred during the summer months since yogurt acts as a coolant. Lassis originated from the Punjab region though they are now equally popular everywhere in India. There are both savory and sweetened versions. And the modern versions use fruits too, the mango being the most popular one.

And for me especially who grew up eating mangoes along with yogurt rice, mango - yogurt combination is irresistible. Be it the mango shrikhand or this lassi / smoothie, anything is more than welcome at my home. I couldn't complete this week's marathon without our favorite drink lassi, especially when I was using the mango pulp. I find mango lassi appealing to both eyes and palate. Sweetened mango pulp blended with yogurt and milk yields a rich, flavorful and yummy drink. A perfect one for these scorching days. If using fresh fruit, remember to use ripened, sweet and less fibrous variety.

Ingredients for each serving:

1/2 cup kesar mango pulp (or slightly more quantity if using fresh mango pieces.)

1/2 cup yogurt 

1/4 cup milk

Sugar to taste (I added 1 oz sweetener.)

A few strands of saffron soaked in 1 Tbsp of warm milk

Almonds / Pistachios to garnish 

Method:

Blend mango pulp, milk, yogurt and sugar. Garnish with saffron and nuts. Serve chilled if preferred or add ice cubes while blending the ingredients. I personally don't prefer adding ice cubes since they dilute the beverages. I instead had put the mango pulp in the freezer for about an hour and added chilled milk to blend. You can even add cardamom powder if preferred.

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Kesar Exotica

 

During the summer months, a serving of mixed fruits with vanilla ice cream, custard or mango sauce sounds so soothing and appealing to our palates. I found a similar recipe on the kesar mango pulp can I had and tried it as I was sure that we would like it. We were immediately sold though my presentation doesn't do much justice to this yummy dessert. I would have ended up with a better picture showing all the ingredients if I had put the mango pulp for a while in the freezer. I didn't and so all the ice cream  ended up looking melted. However I assure you that this delectable dessert is an appealing one. A quick one to put together and needs no cooking. My kind of dessert when there is company. :)

Ingredients: (2 servings)
1 cup kesar mango pulp
1/2 cup chopped mixed fruits (I used orange, nectarines, bananas and apples.)
4 scoops vanilla ice cream
Wafer cookies (optional)

Method:
* Scoop out vanilla ice cream into a tall glass.
* Pour mango pulp over it.
* Top with mixed fruits and also some whipped cream if desired.
* Decorate with crumbled wafer cookies. Serve chilled.

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Mango - Sago Kheer / Mango - Tapioca Pearl Pudding

 

Blame my luck, I couldn't get hold of mangoes either raw or a good variety of ripened ones when I chose to post mango based recipes  this week for BM#28. The kesar mango pulp can I had in my pantry came for my rescue for my Day 1 post. If I cannot get hold of some mangoes even during this week's grocery trip, the other two recipes are also going to end up being made with the pulp. :)
I usually prefer the commercially sold sweetened puree of the kesar mango variety when making aamrakhand or the cake because of the beautiful, vibrant hue it imparts to the dishes. For today's recipe, I chose to go with a kheer that is simple, quick and yummy. I had previously tried this mango version kheer with both vermicelli and rice. And so thought of trying with sago today as the previous versions were liked at home. Using readymade pulp of course reduces the mess and this kheer is done in no time. It is done faster than the vermicelli kheer.

Ingredients: (2 servings)
2 Tbsp sago / sabudaana (I used fine variety)
3/4 cup milk
1/2 cup kesar mango pulp
Sugar / sweetener only if needed
1/2 tsp cardamom powder

  
Method:
* Wash sago and cook in a pressure cooker for 1 whistle adding a cup of water. If using not fine variety, sago can be cooked up to three whistles. Or the sago can be cooked in a nonstick sauce pan on stove top until sago is cooked. The sago would look transparent when properly cooked.
* Pour the cooked sago into a fine meshed sieve or a tea strainer and wash with plenty of water to get rid of the starch.
* Boil milk in another sauce pan and add the cooked sago. Add cardamom and cook for a couple of minutes more. Turn off the stove and let the mixture come to room temperature.
* Just stir in the sweetened mango pulp to the sago milk mixture and serve chilled if preferred.

Notes:
1. If fresh mango is being used instead of the readymade sweetened pulp, just pass the mango flesh through a blender and stir in at the end. Taste the mango and check if sugar is needed. While boiling the milk - sago mixture, add sugar if needed. Let cool and stir in the mango puree.
2. Garnish of ghee toasted raisins and cashews can be added if preferred. Or garnish with mango cubes.

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Sanna ~ Mangalorean Idlis

Blogging comes across as a rewarding experience whenever I get a chance to try out a new recipe - a recipe that turns out great and  satisfies our palates beyond our expectations. A recipe that I have pretty slim chances of trying out personally, if not for blogging. My interest is piqued more when the recipe is an authentic, traditional one and the blogger appears to have a local knowledge about the recipe in a true sense unlike the cookbook authors. That's what happened when this month's Indian Cooking Challenge "Sanna" was announced. We got introduced to a new recipe which I am going to cherish forever.
The recipe came from Shireen's blog Ruchik Randhap , sannas being a speciality from Mangalore / Goan regions. Practically my whole life in India was spent in Karnataka but still I had never heard of "sanna". The reason being the differences between Bangalore and Mangalore / Konkani cuisines are as wide as chalk and cheese. Now I have heard about it, I am  wondering how to pronounce the name. :)

 

Now coming to what sannas are, they can be loosely translated as cousins of fluffy, soft idlis - another speciality of the south Indian region. Rice - urad dal mixture is ground and fermented like idlis albeit the sanna recipe uses yeast / toddy / arrack to ferment. And needs less time to get fermented when compared to idlis, given that it is warm outside or the batter is fermented in a warm place. And one more pronounced difference is that the sannas are steamed in ramekins called gindul and steamed in a special steamer called tondor. In absence of those, one can use any stainless steel / aluminium small cups and a steamer / pressure cooker. Idli stand should work too but I am guessing the shapes of idlis / sanna vary slightly. Preparing sanna is a breeze if you know how to make idlis. Even if you haven't, the detailed pictorial description below should give you a decent idea. It is not really hard as it sounds.

It was mentioned that the batter left overnight to ferment turns sour. Owing to the weather I have in my neighborhood, I can never get the batter ready for breakfast at 6 am in the morning. What I did was soaked the ingredients overnight, ground the batter around 7 am in my wet grinder and had the batter ready by 11 am so that I could have my sannas for lunch. The extras I refrigerated and again steamed them for few minutes next day morning for breakfast. They taste fresh and good as a new batch. Preparing them in advance for next day's breakfast sounds sensible.

Ingredients: (yield a dozen)
3/4 cup parboiled rice (I used idli rice.)
1/4 cup raw rice (I used extra long grain rice.)
2 Tbsp / a fistful skinned black gram (urad dal)
1/2 tsp active dry yeast
1/2 tsp sugar (for yeast solution )
2 - 3 Tbsp tepid water(for yeast solution)
Salt to taste
1 tsp sugar

Note: I have noticed that parboiled rice and idli rice are not one and the same though par boiled rice is called idli rice. Parboiled rice is slender, and beige / creamish colored while the idli rice pictured below is short and white. Correct me if I am wrong and those two rices are the boiled and unboiled versions of the same rice.

I was skeptical initially about the yeast and was worried about the smell it may impart to the dish. However after trying out the recipe which indeed yields true kind of fluffy, light, soft sannas, the light yeast odor was negligible. I was mostly worried about my husband's response as he is a great fan of idlis. To my surprise, he was the one who enjoyed them most saying that they were really good. We had them with chutney and sambhar.

Preparing the batter:
* Soak rices and urad dal separately for a minimum of three hours. 
Throw away the water used to soak and wash them once with fresh batch of water. 

(I soaked the ingredients together overnight. I usually soak all the ingredients together while preparing idli / dosa batters. It doesn't make a difference whether you soak/grind them separately or individually as long as the final battter is ground fine.)

* Grind dal and rice finely, adding water only as much as needed. The batter should be like a thick dosa batter and not runny. You can grind the dal and rices individually but I ground them together. Collect the batter into a container big enough to hold it when it ferments and more than doubles.

* Combine sugar and yeast to a bowl and add tepid water to it.  Allow it to stand for about 10 minutes. By the time, the yeast ferments and the solution turns frothy. Stir once to make sure that the yeast is dissolved.
* Stir and add the yeast mixture to the batter. Then add salt and sugar and mix well.

* Cover the batter and allow it to ferment undisturbed for a couple of hours in a warm place. ( I hardly had around 15 deg C temperature outside when I prepared the batter. I left the batter in my convection oven only leaving the light on. Please note that I did not turn on my oven. It took about 4 hours for the batter to ferment but what I gathered is that it takes only a couple of hours to ferment in warm climates.)
Just notice how the batter more than doubled after fermentation and so remember to use a big container.

Now the important tip. Don't try to stir the batter once it is fermented. If you try to do it, the sannas may turn out flat. This is how the fermented batter looks - light and fluffy.

* Pour enough water into a steamer or pressure cooker. Grease the ramekins  / small cups and spoon the batter, just filling them up to half. (I found just placing the cups on my idli plates easier for steaming.)

* Place them in a steamer and steam them on low for 15 - 20 minutes. Turn off the stove and remove them after about ten minutes.  
* Gently run a sharp spoon around the edges and unmold the sannas.

Shireen mentioned that the sannas are usually a part of festivities and they can be served along with sambhar / chutney just like idlis or with any vegetarian / non vegetarian curries or even with sweetened coconut milk. They can be dunked in evening coffee / tea or left overs can be used as a snack by deep frying them. Or sweeter or savory versions of sanna can be made too.

 

Phew, I didn't foresee this turning out to be such a long post. :)

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Cucumber Raita (Version 2)

Raitas are side dishes usually prepared to accompany spicy dishes since yogurt acts as a coolant. There are of course spicy raitas too like this one for example, that can form a quick meal when served with rotis / rice. I some times keep it pretty basic to eat it as a snack and go with (naturally) sweet, fresh yogurt as this cucumber raita. I added some crushed fennel and cumin seeds for the flavor and trust me, this is simple yet yummy. This can be served along with rotis as well.

Ingredients: (2 servings)
1.5 cup yogurt
1/4 cup grated cucumber
1 tsp roughly crushed fennel seeds / saunf (save some to garnish)
Cumin powder to taste
Salt to taste
Minced cilantro to garnish

Method:
Whisk the yogurt lightly with a fork. Add salt, cumin powder and fennel seeds. Mix well. Gently stir in the grated cucumber. Garnish with cilantro and crushed fennel seeds before serving. 

I decided on this dish as soon as I saw the announcement of this minth's Magic Mingle. It goes to MM#17 - Yogurt & Fennel Seeds.

 
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Fresh Fruit - Pudding Milkshake

Happy Mother's day to all the wonderful mothers out there!

Milkshake was the last thing I had in mind when I was planning for kid friendly dishes this week, though they are a great way to include fruits and dairy in one's diet. I was very much pleased by the bright sunshine outside today after several gloomy days in a row and woke up with a feeling that it was my lucky day. Only to feel that I woke up on my wrong side of the bed when I ended up with two baking disasters, a couple of hours later. A fruity roll ups recipe from a magazine literally was a disaster. The other turned out kind of OK and I even got decent pictures but however I decided to give it another try before I post it. And so, here is a healthy, delicious and flavorful milkshake that can be whipped up in no time.

Ingredients: (3 servings)
2 cups milk
1 cup strawberries
1 small banana
3.4 oz vanilla flavored pudding (or vanilla flavored instant pudding or pie filling)
Sugar to taste

Method:
Add everything to a blender and blend until smooth.

This goes to "Kids' Delight" event, hosted this month by Pavani with the theme "5 Ingredient Fix".
Check out here to know what other participating marathoners are cooking. 

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Carrot Soup

This carrot soup is a kind of toned down, basic version since I am posting kid friendly dishes this week. The carrots lend an appealing color and sweetness to the soup besides making it an healthy option for kids. It is quite easy to prepare this and is suitable for both tiny tummies and adults alike. Go with garlic and spices / herbs for an adult version if preferred. This thick soup can be served either chilled or warm and hence suitable for all weathers.  
This goes to "Kids' Delight" event, hosted this month by Pavani with the theme "5 Ingredient Fix".

Ingredients:
1 Tbsp butter / oil 
1 small, finely minced onion
3 carrots, peeled and cubed 
1 tsp honey (optional)
Salt & pepper to taste
Seasoned bread croutons to garnish 

Method:
* Heat butter / oil and add onion. Fry until they turn translucent.
* Next add carrots and saute for a couple of minutes. Add about 1.5 cup of water (or adjust accordingly) and cook on medium flame until they turn softer.
*  Puree the carrot mixture in a blender. Stir in honey if using. If planning to serve chilled, refrigerate it.
* Season with salt and pepper. Garnish with bread croutons and serve.

Check out here to know what other participating marathoners are cooking. 

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Chocolate - Nut Covered Bananas

 

"Kids' Delight" is hosted by Pavani this month with the theme "5 Ingredient Fix". Obviously, one has to send her recipes suitable for kids, prepared using five or less ingredients. If interested, check her post for more details. Also second week of BM#28 starts from today and I have picked the above mentioned theme. 

Here is my first entry that involves three ingredients and very minimal work that yields a very impressive snack. I found this recipe sometime ago during one of my browsing sprees and right now am not able to figure out where. I had an idea and so went along. Anyway it was hard to mess up since there is nothing to mess up really. :) I have used semi sweet chocolate and salted peanuts here and so it doesn't taste that sweet at all. If you prefer the outer layer to be sweeter or preparing only for kids or planning to pass it on as a dessert, sweet baking chocolate can be used. Also salted cashew nuts can be another variation. I had refrigerated the pieces and we had them the next day. The bananas inside were fresh and they were good.

Ingredients: (6 pieces)
2 Bananas
4 oz semi sweet baking chocolate (or sweet baking chocolate if you prefer sweet pieces.)
4 - 6 Tbsp salted peanuts 
6 small sized ice cream sticks

Method:

* Crush the nuts you are using coarsely and keep aside.

* Melt the chocolate using a microwave / double boiler method.

* Peel the bananas and cut the edges. Cut each banana into three pieces.

* Insert the sticks through the center of each banana piece all the way through.

* Holding the stick, roll each banana piece in the melted chocolate so that they are well coated with chocolate and sprinkle with nuts.

* Refrigerate them until the chocolate coating hardens.

* Eat immediately or can be refrigerated for a couple of days.

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Maakhiyah Waara Borinda / Honey - Sesame Seeds Ball

 

When I was looking around for Sindhi sweet dishes, I came across these sesame seeds laddus in Alka's blog. After reading her narration of the Sindhi harvest festival called laal loi, I was surprised to notice the similarities between their version and the ones down here in south. In Andhra, we have a same ritual of fire called as the bhogi mantalu during sankranthi and we celebrate the festival during same time. Indian harvest festivals may vary regionally in the way how and when they are celebrated but like the cultures around the world, it's a way to show how thankful they are for the bounty of harvest. It's a way to show their gratitude to the unknown powers. 

Sesame seeds has a special connection with harvest celebrations across India. Sindhis prepare borinda - the sesame seeds laddus prepared with sugar syrup / jaggery or honey, as a religious offering during the occasion. What interested me is that this version uses honey. At home whenever we prepare sesame laddus, we just powder the sesame seeds, jaggery and dried coconut together to make balls. I am also familiar with the store bought jaggery / sugar syrup versions but have never come across the version using honey. And so gave it a shot today. I concluded that the jaggery version is the best of all, with a softer texture. This honeyed version is more like sugar ones, good but a little bit on the harder side.

Ingredients: (Makes 8 balls)
1 cup white sesame seeds
1 cup honey (I used about 3/4 cup)
1/4 tsp salt (I did not add any.)
Optional ingredients: Pistachios / tutti frutti


Method:
* Heat honey in a pan for a minute or so. The consistency will turn thinner. Turn off the stove and keep it aside.
* Gently toast sesame seeds on low flame until they start to crackle. Take care not to burn them. 
* If using pistachios, gently toast them as well.
* Add the sesame seeds and salt to the honey and stir to combine.
* Start cooking until honey changes a couple of shades darker and all the honey is absorbed by the seeds. Add pistachios / tutti frutti if using. Let it cool for a minute or so. If you try to handle it later, it would turn hard and stick to the pan. In that case, just heat it again. It will become softer.
* Dip your hand in a bowl of cold water and pull out a lime sized portion and shape into a ball. Repeat the procedure, dipping your hands in the cold water intermittently to avoid scalding your hands. Make sure that you can handle the mixture with out burning your hand.
Or pour the whole mixture into a greased plate and spread. Score with a knife to make squares when it slightly hardens. Allow to cool and cut them into squares.

Note:
I switched off the stove when all the ingredients came together into a mass but still when I tried to shape into laddus, I saw honey oozing out. Also after a few seconds, I saw the round ball slightly deflating. As they cooled down, they became hard as expected. Probably the quantity of the honey can be further reduced for these reasons, I think. 

Check out here to know what other participating marathoners are cooking. 

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