Sooji Halwa: The Sweet Pudding of Semolina

Sooji halwa is all time favorite sweet in Northern parts of India. In south India it is called as rava pongal or  kesari rava when color is mixed. Halwa gets its name from its procedure of cooking which takes long time of stirring the semolina in butter. Stirring is called halawa in hindi and thus came the name halwa. This recipe takes about 30 minutes to cook. However if the quantity is more it may take one hour or sometimes 2 hours (if you are cooking for a huge program). I am showing pineapple flavor halwa here. In place of pineapple you can have mango flavor halwa or vanilla flavor halwa as well.

Ingredients for halwa are:

• Sooji or Semolina - 1 and ½ cups
• Unsalted Butter – 1 cup
• Sugar – 2 cups
• Cardamom power – ¼ tsp
• Pineapple chunks – ½ can
• Raisins – ½ cup
• Water 4 cups

1. Take heavy bottomed pan and melt unsalted butter first over a low flame. When the butter is melted and warm enough add semolina and mix it properly.
2. Keep sitting the till butter oozes out and semolina is covered totally with butter. Now make the heat medium and keep sitting.
3. Stirring the halwa is essential part of cooking halwa. It takes time for semolina to change from white to wheat color. Stirring properly gives uniform color to the semolina. Stir about 15 minutes. More the quantity, the more time you need to stir.
4. When semolina is nearing to wheatish add raisins and cardamom powder. Raisins should change color when stirred in the hot butter of semolina.
5. Now add pine apple chunks and sugar. Mix properly and stir it for 5 minutes.
6. Now add water. Best is to add hot water. So you can heat water simultaneously in another pot and add.
7. Mix properly and let it cook for few minutes. Let the sooji absorb all the water. Halwa is done. Offer to lord and enjoy!

Serves: 4 to 6

Tips

Alternately, you can add mango chunks or mango puree in place of pineapples.  You can also add few drops of vanilla essence when the sooji becomes wheatish.

If you like to make Kesari rava sweet, then use less butter and add color kesar before adding water to the stirred rava. The rava may or may not be so wheatish in case of kesar rava sweet. 

Beetroot Halwa - Colorful Dessert for the Evening

I am always anxious to use beetroot in the most efficient way. I use it for salads, make curry or eat it boiled sprinkled with salt. Recently, I came to know from my friend Premalata that it can be made into halwa just like carrot halwa! That looks like a good idea. Here is the way I made this simple yet special beetroot halwa.

Ingredients:

• Beetroots - 3 medium
• Sugar - 1 cup
• Milk - 1 cup
• Dry Fruits like almonds, cashews, pistachios
• Cardomom powder - 1/2 teaspoon
• Ghee - 1 tablespoon

Procedure:

Grate the beetroot coarsely. It comes up to one-and-half cup of grated beetroots. 

Take a cooker and add about half cup of water. Put in the grated beetroot and allow two or three whistle. 

Remove the cooker lid and allow the water to evaporate by putting on medium flame for 10 minutes. Add sugar and heat for another 5 minutes

Take a pan and add some ghee. Add dry fruits and fry till they get brown. Add it to the soften beetroot mixture.

Add milk and mix well. Cook for some time. Serve hot. 

Serves: 2 to 3

Chana Dhal with Zucchini

I was thinking of making some special soup for the day. Generally I make lentil soup of Toor dhal or Mung dhal or the mixed dhal. Today I thought I should make something with Chana dhal. I quickly found one: Chana dhal with Zucchini. Here it goes...

Ingredients: 

• Chana Dhal - 1 cup
• Zucchini - 1 sliced half inches
• Salt - 1 tsp
• Turmeric Powder - 1/4 tsp
• Water - 2 cups
• Cumin Seeds - 1/2 tsp
• Mustard Seeds - 1/2 tsp
• Asafoetida powder - pinch
• Green chilli paste - 1/2 tsp
• Ginger paste - 1 tsp
• Curry leaves - 5 to 6
• Tomato - 1 medium sized
• Oil - tablespoon

Procedure:

1. Wash and soak Chana Dhal for one hour 
2. Soften the chana dhal in the cooker. Wash dhal and add salt turmeric powder. Add the cut Zucchini pieces in it and put on stove. Allow only 2 whistles and stop the stove. 
3. Now take a pan for sauteing. Put oil in the pan and add cumin seeds, mustard seeds and pinch of asafoetida powder. Allow it to splutter for sometime.
4. Then add ginger paste, curry leaves and tomatoes. Let it get cooked for sometime. Add chili paste and mix properly. 
5. Open the cooker lid and mix it properly. Add the sauteing in the pan to the cooker. Mix well and heat till it comes to boil. Add cilantro to garnish.
6. It goes well with Chapati when thick and when you add sufficient water, it can be like any lentil soup that can be taken with rice. 
7. Offer to Lord and enjoy!!

Peanut Spice Blend - Simple and Tasty

Peanuts are used for varieties of chutneys. I generally use peanuts in any vegetable chutney I make such as tomato chutney, capsicum chutney, brinjal chutney and also in coconut chutney. Today, I made a special blend of peanut powder which is also called chutney but specifically it is spice blend of peanut powder. 

Ingredients:

Peanuts - 1 cup
Ghee or salted butter - 2 table spoon

Cumin seeds - 3/4 teaspoon
Salt - 1/2 teaspoon
Chilli powder - 3/4 teaspoon

Procedure:

Roast peanuts in a frying pan under the low flame. It takes about 5 to 10 minutes for the peanuts to get roasted properly....It is the time when the warm, pleasant aroma of peanuts is around the stove. Take out the pan and keep in a separate place. Allow it to cool down to the room temperature

There is no need to remove the skin of the peanut, but some do take it off. Either way it tastes great. 

When they are cool enough take a grinder and grind in small installments. Do not grind very fine. Let it be little coarse otherwise the oil in the mixture comes out and makes it a paste. 

Now put a pan under low flame and heat some ghee or butter in it. Add cumin seeds, when crackles add chilli powder in the ghee. 

Add the powdered peanut and salt in it. Mix it properly and take out in a plate. When cold store in an air tight container. This blend can be stored for about a week. 

Aloo Paratha – Stuffed Indian Flatbread

Parathas are Indian flatbread with spicy stuff inside. The stuff can be made with many different fillings such as spinach curry (Palak paratha), radish curry (Muli paratha) etc. The most popular filling however are aloo or potatoes. Aloo parathas are perfect for breakfast or brunch. In northern parts of India they take them for dinner as well.

Ingredients: 

Dough:

·         2 cups whole-wheat flour

·         1 cup water (Use more as needed)

·         Pinch of salt

·         Oil –2 tsp

Potato Filling

·         2 medium potatoes (boiled and mashed) makes about one and half cup of boiled, mashed potatoes

·         ½ teaspoon turmeric powder

·         ½ teaspoon salt

·         ½ teaspoon cumin seeds

·         2 chopped green chili or ½ spoon red chilli powder

·         2 tablespoons chopped cilantro (green coriander)

·         ½ teaspoon garam masala, powder of cloves, cinnamon and black pepper and  (optional)

·         ½ teaspoon amchoor powder, dry mango powder (optional)

Also needed

·         1/4 cup whole-wheat flour for rolling

·         Ghee or Clarified butter to cook

Procedure:

Method:

Dough

1.  Mix flour, oil, salt and water together to make soft dough (if the dough is hard, add a little more water).
2. Knead the dough for a few minutes on a lightly greased surface to make smooth and pliable dough.
3. Set the dough aside and cover it with a damp cloth. Let the dough rest for at least ten minutes.

Filling

1. Boil 2 medium potatoes with 2 cups of water. After the water comes to a boil, reduce the heat to medium. Let the potatoes cook until they are tender.
2. After the potatoes are cold enough to handle, peel the skin off and mash the potatoes.
3. Mix chilly, cilantro, cumin seeds and salt and amchur powder and garam masala to the mashed potatoes.
4. Make uniform balls and divide in equal parts.

Making paratha

1.  Divide the dough and potato mixture into 6 equal parts. The potato balls should be almost the same size of the dough balls.
2. Take the dough and spread with roller about 3 inch diameter. Now spread the dough with hands so that the circular ends of the dough are thin and middle part is little thick.
3. Place the potato balls in the center. Seal by pulling the edges of the rolled dough together to make a ball. This way the thickness of the dough is uniform. Proceed to make all the balls.
4. Let them settle for 3 to 4 minutes before rolling them.
5. Heat the skillet (non-stick one) on medium high. Note: An iron skillet works best. To check if the skillet is hot enough, sprinkle a couple of drops of water on it. If the water sizzles right away, the skillet is ready.
6. Roll the balls first in dry whole-wheat flour.
7. Lightly press the ball on the sealed side and keep it on the topside when rolling. Slowly Roll the ball light handed in to 6-inch circles. Whenever the dough sticks to the rolling pin or rolling surface, lightly sprinkle dry whole-wheat flour on both sides of the semi-rolled paratha.
8. Place the paratha over the skillet. After a few seconds you will see the paratha change color and puff in different place.
9. Then flip the paratha over. You should see some golden-brown spots on the topside. After a few seconds, spread 1 teaspoon of butter or oil on the paratha. Again, flip the paratha and lightly press the puffed areas with a spatula
10. Flip again and press with the spatula making sure the paratha is golden-brown on both sides. Remove the paratha and proceed to the next paratha.

Kadhi with Pakora - Perfect Recipe for a Winter Evening..

My mother used to make Kadhi for any special occasion or festivals. Kadhi is a compulsory recipe for Makar Sankaranthi which goes very well with mixed vegetable curry. The whipped yogurt with chickpea flour and good amount of spices added is called kadhi is Hindi (and most of the North Indian languages). There are umpteen ways of making kadhi. Here is a simple Gujarati style kadhi with pakora. 

Pakora is something that I like to take with kadhi always (my mother always made pakora with kadhi). I feel kadhi is incomplete with pakora. It can be any pakora but cabbage pakora goes best with kadhi. So lets start making it.

Kadhi:

Ingredients: 

• Yogurt - 2cups
• Chickpea flour (Besan) - 1/2 cup
• Ginger - 1 inch
• Green chillies - 3
• Coriander leaves chopped - 2 tablespoon
• Oil - 2 teaspoon
• Turmeric powder - 1/4 teaspoon
• Cinnamon - 1 inch

For Seasoning: 1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds, 1/4 teaspoon mustard seeds, curry leaves, one pinch Asafoetida powder

Procedure for Kadhi:

1. Beat the curd and make it smooth. Add chickpea flour and beat it properly so that there are no lumps
2. Now add salt and turmeric powder and keep to boil over the low flame
3. In a mixer add green chillies, ginger, cinnamon and make a paste. Then add coriander leaves while adding sufficient water to it. Again grind it to fine paste.
4. Add this whatever there in the grinder to the beaten curd  and mix it well.
5. Take a small pan and get ready for sauteing. Add oil, mustard seeds, cumin seeds and curry leaves. When the oil is hot enough add to the kadhi. 

Cabbage Pakora:

Ingredients: 

• Cabbage finely chopped - 1 cup
• Chickpea flour - 1 cup
• Corn flour - 1/2 cup
• Garam masala - 1/2 teaspoon
• Coriander powder - 1/2 teaspoon
• Green chilli paste - 1 teaspoon or red chilli powder - 3/4 teaspoon
• Turmeric powder - 1/2 teaspoon
• Salt - 3/4 teaspoon
• Water - 3/4 cup
• Oil to deep fry

Procedure: 

1. Take a bowl and mix chickpea flour and corn flour. Add turmeric powder, chilli, garam masala, coriander powder, salt and make a fine paste by adding water
2. Now add cabbage and mix well so that it has good consistency.
3. Heat oil and add this mixture to the oil by a spoon. Take out pakoras when they look brownish red.
4. Put a few pakoras in the kadhi. They taste wonderful when they are wet with kadhi!!!

Tomato Rasam - Stimulating Thin Tomato Juice!

Generally ‘Rasam’ means the juice with flavor. In South India ‘Rasam’ means seasoned sour thin juice of tamarind. Tomato Rasam is made in the same way but with adding tomato juice with tamarind.  Lets make this simple yet zesty recipe for the pleasure of Krishna.

Ingredients:

• Tomatoes – 4 if big or 6 medium
• Tamarind – Ball of a big lemon size
• Green chilly paste of about 8 to 10 chillies
• Turmeric powder – ½ tsp
• Salt – 1 ½ tsp
• Curry powder or Rasam powder – 1 tsp
• Cilantro – 5 twigs (grated finely)
• Oil, Mustard Seeds, Cumin Seeds, Asfedita powder (hing) and Curry leaves for sautéing

Procedure:

• Soak tamarind for 15 minutes before you begin to make the rasam
• Cut the tomatoes in big size in a heavy bottom pot and add about 2 cups of water. Let it boil for 10 minutes. Let it cool for some time.
• Take out pulp from tamarind and keep it ready to add.
• Now take a big sieve and try to filter out tomato juice in a bowl. Add more water to remove the juice properly.
• Now add tamarind juice and put on stove on the same pot and let it cook for some time.
• Add chilli paste, chopped cilantro, rasam powder, salt.
• Take a small pan to prepare sautéing. Add the above mentioned items and prepare the vok. Add this to the boiling rasam. Rasam is ready to serve. Serve hot with rice. You can drink it while the juice is warm.