Pumpkin moong dal

I was thinking hard about cooking adal...did not want to cook tur dal as I had it yesterday.So just picked up some chilke waali moong dal & added red pumpkin,some spices & made this dal ! It is too easy !

Ingredients : 100 gm red pumpkin peeled,diced & washed,1/4 cup chilke waali moong dal,2 tsp oil,1/2 tsp jeera,2-3 pepper corns,1 green chilli,1/8 tsp methi dana,1/4 tsp haldi,1/4 tsp hing,salt to taste.

Method : Wash the dal.Add diced pumpkin ,green chilli ,haldi & hing.Pressure cook for two whistles.Keep aside to cool the cooker.

Take oil in kadhai.Add methi dana & warm the kadhai on gas.When methi dana starts spluttering add peppercorns ( grind them coarsely with pestle ) followed by jeera. Put off gas.

Remove dal from pressure cooker .Pour the dal over the tadka in the kadhai.Mix with a spoon.Put on the gas & let the dal come to a boil.Put off the gas.Serve hot with roti or rice.

Carrot pumpkin cake

I wanted to try a recipe which used carrots as well as red pumpkin & came across this @ http://veganthyme.blogspot.in/2009/10/vegan-carrot-pumpkin-cake-with-orange.html

I made mine using yoghurt & hence mine is vegetarian.

Ingredients :

Dry :1 cup atta ( I used Pillsburry multigrain ) ,1/8 tsp cinnamon,1/2 tsp baking soda,1/2 tsp baking powder, salt to taste.

Wet :1/2 cup grated carrot,1/2 cup grated pumpkin, 1tbsp flaxseed meal

,1/4 cup yoghurt ( dahi ) ,1/2 cup brown sugar, 1/8 tsp grated ginger,1tbsp oil.

Mix all dry ingredients.Keep aside.

Soak 1 tbsp flaxseed meal in 3 tbsp water for 15 minutes.After 15 minutes,mix all wet ingredients.

Make a well in the dry mix & pour the wet mix into it whisking it nicely so that no lumps remain.If the dough is too thick  & lumps remain ,pl add water or even curds.

Take a microwaveable vessel & line it with butter paper.Pour the cake dough onto the butter paper in the vessel.Bake for 8-10 minutes in microwave.Let it cool.Remove from microwave after 5 minutes.Prick a toothpik or knife.If it comes out clean ,cake is done.If not bake for 1-2 more minutes.Again check .

Let the cake cool outside for 10 minutes.Turn the cake vessel upside down on to a plate.After 4-5 minutes the cake will drop down on plate.Sometimes it may drop down earlier.

Remove the butter paper lining the cake.Cut the cake into desired pieces & serve.

This cake was dense as flax seed meal has been used as egg replacer. Next time,I want to use yoghurt as egg replacer & see the results.