Healthy Kabuli chana

My kid loves chhole.She eats only the chana & I eat the liquid curry  !

Ingredients : 1/2 cup kabuli chana soaked overnight ,2 onions,1-2 tomataoes,1 carrot ( optional ),1/2' grated ginger ,1-2 green chillies, a few sprig curry leaves,1 tsp garam masala powder,1/2 tsp haldi,1/2 tsp hing,2 tsp oil,salt to taste.

Method : Pressure cook the soaked  kabuli chana in cooker for 2 whistles.I throw the water in which it has been soaked & take fresh water which is enough to drown the chana.I add salt to the chana when I pressure cook.Pressure cook for 2-3 whistles.

Then lower the flame & let it cook on low for 10 minutes.Put off the gas.

Now roughly chop the onions,tomatoes,curry leaves ,green chillies &  carrots.Blend them all in a mixer - I mince the onions,curry leaves ,mirchi,ginger & carrot at one go .Later I add the chopped tomatoes to the onion -ginger carrot paste & run the mixer again to get a mixed veggie paste.

Take oil in a kadhai & put on the gas.Now add the garam  masala to it.Mix so that the oil & garma masala get blended.Now add the mixed veggie paste from the blender.Add haldi & hing.Let the mixed veggie paste start boiling .Add the cooked chana to it & bring to a boil again .Alternatively ,after chana has been added ,the contents can be transferred to another vessel which fits in cooker & pressure cooked for 2-3 whistles.

Serve chhole garnished with fresh dhania .Also a little lemon juice can be added before serving to make it tangier ! I add some whole masur sometimes,which has been soaked overnight along with chana in pressure cooker as the masur will add to the body of the curry.

Chhole is ideal for rotis as also rice !

I am sending this to Linking toCWS  hosted by Foodomania) & to Priya's page .

Chappati laddoos

I have tried making chappti laddoos earlier & had failed miserably.This time I googled for the recipe.I learnt from creative saga 

I made some changes & my recipe is as below....

Ingredients : 2.5 chappatis,approx 1/4 cup jaggery or even little less than 1/4 cup,1 tsp ghee.

Method : I crumbled the chappatis to powder in the mixer.Mix the crumbled chappati powder with grated or powdered jaggery.Take a kadhai & heat the ghee.Add the chappati -gur mix to the kadhai & with a ladle roast the chappati gur mixture on the ghee.After five minutes,put off the gas.

After another 5 minutes,take a small amount of the mixture on to your palms & shape it into a ball.Repeat with the remaining of the chappati-gur-ghee mixture.I got nearly 6 laddoos.

Huggi & palde

Huggi is Kannada for moong dal khichdi & palde is Kannada for kadhi.I love this simple combination though I love  Gujarati kadhi.

Ingredients for Khichdi : 1 cup rice & moong ( half split ) - one can use yellow moong dal as well.I use 1.4 moong with 3/4 cup rice.Preferences for the variation of moong dal to rice varies from 1 /4 cup moong to 3/4 cup rice to 1/2 cup moong to 1/2 cup rice.

1-2 clove -slightly crushed with pestle,4-5 peppercorns-slightly crushed,1 tsp cumin seeds,1/2 ' ginger -grated,1/2 tsp haldi,1/4 tsp hing,1tbsp oil or ghee,2.5 cups water.salt to taste.

Method : I cook khichdi in pressure pan .Take oil or ghee in pressure pan & warm it by putting on the gas.Add jeera followed by cloves & peppercorns.When they have turned aromatic ,add haldi & hing.Now add washed rice & moong dal & shallow fry so that all ingredients are mixed up.Add grated ginger & mix with the moong dal -rice mixture.Add water to the mixture .Mix all nicely.Add salt & mix again.Now close the pressure pan lid ( which is the pressure cooker lid ) & pressure cook on high for 2 whistles.Lower the flame & cook on slow for 5-6 minutes.Put off the gas.After the pressure pan has cooled,take off the whistle.After 5 more minutes,open the lid & serve khichdi garma garam !

My khichdi is generally on the drier side.More water can be added if a wet & loose khichdi is needed.Some prefer to cook in open pan.

Ingredients for Gujarati Kadhi: 2 cups beaten curds or chaas,1 tbsp besan ,1/2 tsp mustard seeds,1-2 sticks cinnamon,1 clove-roughly crushed,1tsp dhana jeera powder,1/2 inch ginger grated, 1 green chilli split in the middle,1/4 tsp methi seeds,1 tbsp ghee,1/4 tsp hing,salt to taste.

Method : Mix the besan with little amount of beaten curds & make into a smooth paste with no lumps Now add remainder of the beaten curds & nicely mix.Add grated ginger,hing,split green chilli & salt to the curds.Mix thoroughly.Add dhana jeera powder & mix again.Keep aside.

Take ghee  in a kadhai & warm it.Add methi seeds.When they splutter add mustard seeds,cinnamon sticks & the clove.Add hing .Pour the curd mix on to the spice mix in the kadhai .Keep mixing the contents with a ladle every now & then.Keep warming the mix till one boil.Put off the gas.Tangy kadhi is ready -pour it on khichdi or keep tasting with a spoon as you gently savour the khichdi.

Namkeen Shavinge

I love seviyan as breakfast -the salty ones.In the market ,there are wheat seviyan available as also rice ones.Generally,on the vermicilli packet,instructions would be given regarding proportion of water to be used for the quantity of vermicilli.It is usually 1cup vermicilli to 2 cups water.

I have used wheat vermicilli in this dish - roasted ones.Even plain ones ( unroasted ones ) are available.If unroasted ones are being used,it is preferable to roast them in kadhai till they change colour & become little brown in colour.These roasted ones can be used for this recipe.

Ingredients : 3/4 cup roasted vermicill,1-5 cups water,1 tbsp boiled peanuts ( optional ),1 small onion ,1/2 capsicum,1 small carrot,1 green chilli,1 sprig  of curry leaves,1/4" piece ginger,1/2 tsp mustard seeds,1/4 tsp urad dal,1 tbsp oil,1/4 tsp  haldi,1/4 tsp hing,salt to taste,1/4 piece of lemon.

Method : Cut all veggies finely - onions,capsicum & carrot.I cut the green chilli in the middle longitudinally so that I can avoid eating it. I prefer to peel & then grate the carrot.I grate the ginger.Chop the curry leaves as well so that one can eat them even if the curry leaves are not crunchy.

Heat oil in a kadhai.Add mustard seeds.After they splutter add urad dal.Let the urad dal turn golden brown.Now add onions,green chilli & ginger..Once onions turn translucent,add capsicum & carrots & shallow fry all veggies.Add haldi & hing.Mix with all veggies.Now add the vermicilli & the bolied peanuts.Mix so that vermicilli & veggies are nicely combined.Add salt to taste.Mix again so that salt is distributed .Now add water & mix thoroughly.Cook by covering with lid for 5-10 minutes on high flame.Open the lid & see if all water has escaped.If it has,vermicilli is cooked.If little water is still there ,cook for 1-2 minutes more.Check & now vermicilli will be cooked.Put off the gas.Let the lid cover the kadhai.After five minutes,squeeze a piece of lemon on the seviyan.Mix the lemon juice nicely with the prepared dish & serve.

Pundi palya chutni

I love pundi playa chutni.Pundi palya is Kannada  for Gonghura or Ambadi leaves.It is said that Ambadi & Alu leaves are the freshest in monsoons & must be consumed in monsoons.Whenever this chutni or dal with gonghura leaves is made ,I eat till my tummy is ready to burst.I can eat chappatis & rice with this chutni or dal.I can eat it just like that .In other words, I tend to overeat whenever this pundi palya is cooked either as chutni or in dal form.I love it so much.

Gongura or sorrel leaves are rich in iron & folic acid which helps in absorption of iron by the human body. So for anemics, Gongura leave are a good source of iron. And consuming this in any form like chutni or gongura dal will help in improving iron deficiency.

Ingredients : 1 bunch of Ambadi leaves ( it is available as a bunch -tied by a jute string ) ,1/2 tsp mustard seeds,1 tbsp oil,1/4 -1/2 tsp fenugreek seeds, 5-6 green chillies, 1-2 tsp red chilli powder ( optional ),1/2 tsp hing,1/2 tsp haldi,1/3-1/2 cup jaggery shavings  or jggery bits, salt to taste.

Method : Remove the leaves from the stems & clean them in water as any leafy vegetable.The leaves can be chopped roughly or the leaves can be used as such after washing .I used whole leaves.I did not cut them.

Take oil in a kadhai & heat it.Add mustard seeds followed by methi seeds.When they splutter ,add chopped green chillies,hing & haldi.Mix all .Now add the leaves .Mix the leaves with green chillies,haldi hing mixture.Cover the kadhai with a lid & let it cook.After 5-6 minutes,remove the lid & the leaves will have contracted into a grennish brown mass.If some leaves are still green ,mix again & cover with lid.Remove lid & if the whole mass is greenish brown ,add jaggery or gur & mix again.Cover with lid & cook.After five minutes,remove lid.Check with spoon  for any chunks of gur remaining in the veggie mass.If all gur has melted,add slat & mix again.Allow to cook for another 2-3 minutes till it becomes little dry.Remove from gas.

If chunks of gur are still there,cook till all jaggery has melted & then add salt.

I tasted the chutni thus made & found that it was very sour.I added 1-2 tsp red chilli powder & mixed again .Then the taste was somewhat less sour.

The amount of red chilli powder or green chillies ,gur & salt depends on how sour the ghungaroo leaves are.Many times ,one may have to add more chillies or jaggery or salt or all three to make the chutni less sour or lessen the tanginess !

This dish is very rich in iron as it has jaggery as well. Jaggery is a rich source of iron as well.So this chutni has twin benefits of sorrel leaves & jaggery , both rich sources of iron .So this chutni has twin advantages of iron!

This is my #livogenironchef entry for the Iron Chef contest on IndiBlogger.

Mango lapsi sheera

My neighbour makes lapsi sheera with gur.Even my mom makes lapsi sweet - kheer consistency with sugar & jaggery mixture in equal parts.I checked out some recipes on net about mixing mango & lapsi & jaggery.I failed to get any such recipe.So I made up my own.I tried this earlier with different amounts of the ingredients & mango taste was unnoticeable.Hence ,in this second attempt ,I changed the quantities & was quite satisfied with the dish.

Ingredients : 1/2 cup thin lapsi rava,2.5-3 cups water, 1tbsp malai ( optional ),1 tbsp ghee,1/3 to 1/2 cup jaggery,1/3 cup mango puree ( I used Langda variety of Mango ),1 clove & 2 cardamoms ( peeled ),grated or thinly sliced 5-6 almonds for garnish.

Method : Roast lapsi rava on  a low flame in a kadhai  for 5 minutes.Add ghee & roast again.On another gas burner, keep water for boiling.Add malai, if using, into this water, so that it will get broken up ( I hate malai -so try to use it in dishes where I cannot make out taste of malai).

Now add jaggery & boling water to the lapsi rava & mix nicely .Cook it with a lid covering the kadhai..Keep removing the lid & mixing the contens in the kadhai every 2-3 minutes.Add powdered spice mixture ( 1 clove & 2 cardamom )to the kadhai .As the sheera thickens add ,the mango puree & mix.Cook it covered with lid.After 2-3 minutes,if it is done -mango puree has been absorbed,put off the gas.

Garnish with sliced almonds & serve.

The sweetness was just right.I was able to make out that mango had been added.If more sweetness is needed,one can use more jaggery or more of mango puree.

Pav bhaji cutlets

Yesterday , I made pav bhaji as my kid loves it.This is a good method to make fussy kids like my daughter consume all veggies which go into making pav bhaji.The pav bhaji turned out to be quite spicy.My kid ate sparingly.She added loads of Amul butter to the bhaji & consumed it.Still, a lot of bhaji was left.

I am going to eat it today as well.I had some pav buns-2 & some bread slice sides & corners in the refrigerator.I crumbled the bread slice corners & the 2 pav buns in the mixer & got it all powdered.Mixed this with left over pav bhaji & added some haldi etc & made cutlets.I ate them for nashta & gave them to my maids as well.They liked it.

Ingredients : 1 boiled potato,3-4 tbsp leftover pav bhaji,a few bread slice sides & corners -approximately half a cup,2 pav buns,1/4 tsp haldi,1/4 tsp hing,1 tbsp oil,1/2 tsp grated ginger,1/2 tsp flax seed powder ( optional ) ,salt to taste.

Method : Crumble the bread slice sides &  corners & pav buns in mixer -grinder to get fine moist powder.Mash the boiled potato after peeling it .Add the mashed potato. Add the left over pav bhaji - I added 3 tbsps.Add haldi ,hing & salt.If you want to make it more healthy ,add 1/2 tsp falx seed powder as it is good fat.Add grated ginger & mix nicely.Keep aside.

Grease palms with a little oil & take a little of the pav bhaji -bun mixture kept aside & shape into flat circle.Similarly make more falt circles from the mixture.

Take a tawa & spread some oil on it.Put on the gas.Gently drop the flat patties on the tawa.After some time ( 2-3 minutes) ,turn the patties  upside down.They may have browned on the side they faced the tawa.After another 2-3 minutes,take them off the tawa.Serve with green chutni or tomato ketchup.

I ate my cutlets without any accompaniment as I felt ,they had all tastes in them.I got 9 cutlets-one was quite big.So approximately 10 small cutlets can be made with the amount of ingredients listed by me.Snap is taken after my binging of the cutlets-hence only 6 can be seen.

I did not add any red chilly powder or green chillies to my cutlet mix as my pav bhaji was quite spicy.If you love spicy food ,you may add as per your wish.