Idlis with a simple green chutney

While I have been unable to spend time in visiting all the blogs on my reader list as well as posting recipes, I have diligently been clicking pictures of my dishes in the hope that I will be able to get back to regular blogging sooner than later. This post, being framed in the midst of sudden plans for another vacation to Coorg, features a breakfast menu after a long time.

Idli is our favorite breakfast dish, and we usually prefer it with sambar or tomato chutney, or plain coconut chutney. Many times though, we also enjoy the lovely light green coriander and curd chutney along with idlis.

Idli

To make Idlis as seen in the picture, you will need:
Rice - raw - 2 cups
Urad Dal (Black lentil, de-husked) - 1 cup
Chana Dal - a fistful (optional, Amma does this, to make it more healthier)
Moong Dal - a fistful (optional, same as above)
Salt - to taste

Method:

• Soak the rice and the 3 different dals in 4-5 cups of water for about 5-6 hours
• Grind into a fine paste, and leave the batter to ferment overnight and rise
• Grease the idli pans with oil/ ghee and steam cook for 10-20 minutes depending on the size of the idlis

Note: You may also add about 2 fistfuls of rice flakes (atukul/poha/aval) while grinding the batter, in order to make the idlis more fluffy. My sister-in-law told me about this, and though I do normally add rice flakes, these Idlis (seen in the picture) are made from batter to which rice flakes were not added.

The simple white Idlis go to FIC - WHITE hosted by Kitchen Flavours this month.

Food in colors is a unique event started by Sunshinemom of TongueTicklers.

Coriander and Curd Chutney

To make the coriander and curd chutney seen in the picture, you will need:

Coriander leaves - chopped - 2 cups
Curd - fresh, not sour - 1/2 cup
Ginger - peeled and pounded - 2 tbsp
Green chilly - 1 large
Cumin seeds - 1/2 tsp (optional, I did not add)
Salt - to taste

Method:

• Grind all the ingredients to a fine paste
• Allow to simmer in a pan over low heat, while stirring continuously, for 2-3 minutes

Note: You may temper the chutney with mustard seeds, curry leaves, and asafeotida (hing), in 2 tsps of oil. I did not do this, as I made this in the morning rush, and wanted to save time. Also, more importantly, A hates mustard seeds in her curries:-( and starts picking them out!

Serve with hot idlis

Coriander Chutney Sandwiches

The pictures in this post have been languishing in my drafts section for quite a while now, and I remember thinking of sending them to a herb event, but somehow missed out on a post.

While the first picture (above) shows pav used to make a veg burger of sorts, I mainly made coriander chutney sandwhiches with brown bread and some vegetables thrown in. To make the coriander chutney (as seen in the picture below) for the sandwich, you will need:


Coriander leaves - chopped - 3 cups
Coconut - grated - 1.5 cups
Ginger - chopped - 1/2 cup
Green chillies - 2-3 large
Salt - to taste

Method:

• Grind all the ingredients in a mixer to a coarse paste (Do not add water)

For the sandwiches, you will need:

Bread of your choice (I used wheat bread)
Tomatoes - sliced round - about 2-3 large
Onions - sliced round - about 2 large
Cucumber - sliced round - about 1 large (I did not have at the time, so did not add this)
Lemon juice - 2 tbsp (optional)
Pepper - to season per taste

Method:

• Toast the bread slightly if you wish, especially if you are not going to use a sandwich toaster like me
  

• Spread the coriander chutney (generously) on one side of one slice of toasted bread as seen in the pictures below

• Arrange vegetable slices of your choice and taste

• Sprinkle lemon juice and pepper on the vegetables before making the sandwich with another slice of bread on top

Note: If using a toaster, do the same with the bread and vegetables and keep in the toaster

I had some fresh pav at home, decided to try the method on them as well, and they ended up looking like mini burgers minus the vegetable patty with chutney and vegetable slices.


A couple of pictures more:

I did not toast the pav in butter, but you may do so to make them tastier:-)


We thoroughly enjoyed these sandwiches which we had for an early dinner, but I guess they can be served as snacks for tea or as a party snack too.

Colourful and Healthy Salad

These days I have been trying to eat more fruits and vegetables and reduce the intake of rice and roti (wheat), especially in the evenings. Being a South Indian who is used to typical Idli/ Dosa/ Puttu/ Appam/ Upma breakfast menu and a minimum of 2-3 dishes served with rice for lunch, I decided to stop eating anything heavy for dinner. Also, I have been eating more dry fruits and totally avoid fried food stuffs, including packeted chips/ biscuits and anything sugary.

For the first time in my life (it is never too late!), I actually prepared a salad without just slicing cucumber, carrots, cabbage, and beets, and also used sprouts and a fruit! Below, you can see some of the ingrediets.



Now, let me get to the recipe.


To make the salad seen in the picture above, you will need:

Mung bean sprouts - 1 cup
Cucumber - 1 medium-sized
Carrot - 1 large
Beetroot - 1 medium-sized
Pomegranate - 1 medium-sized
Lemon juice - to taste
Coriander leaves - chopped
Pepper - to taste
Salt - to taste
Extra virgin olive oil - 2 tbsp (optional)



Method:

• Peel and chop all the vegetables into tiny cubes and keep aside
• Cut the pomegranate into two halves and squeeze each half into a small bowl to separate the arils from the internal white pulp membranes
• In a mixing bowl, add the sprouts, then add the chopped cucumber and carrot pieces and toss
• Mix the pomegranate and then add the beetroot pieces
• Add the olive oil, lemon juice, coriander leaves and mix well
• At the time of serving, season to taste with salt and pepper

R loved it and asked to make salads more often, though A just played around with her portion for a while and gave up. Guess it really will take some time for her to eat salads.

Apologies and Acknowledgements

Despite my promises after my previous break from blogging, I have been away from blogging for over a month now. I think I stretched my vacation-like mode a little too far, with the result that, though I skimmed through the blog list and my reader, I rarely visited any blogs or posted on mine.

Reasons are aplenty. But primarily, after getting back from Singapore, I was caught with applying for admissions to schools for A and attending interviews (yes! they interview the parents and the 3 yr old child too :-( ) for a couple of schools, trying to get a real work at home option to work out (it didn't :-( ), getting some kind of support system in place for A in order that I get more time on my hands for my own stuff (work/hobbies, that too didn't work out :-( ), coming to terms with the stark reality of the attacks in Mumbai and the resulting fear, and so on...

Without wanting to risk sounding like our current politicians, let me not apologise profusely this time. Instead, let me acknowledge the long-time-pending-to-be-collected awards passed on to me by some dear blogger friends. First, Thank You so much dear friends:-).



Lakshmi Venkatesh of Kitchen Chronicles passed me the Butterfly Award.

Indranee of Mistress of Spices also passed the Butterfly Award to me.

The rules of the award are:
Put the logo on your blog. Add a link to the person who awarded you. Nominate 10 other blogs. Add links to those blogs on yours, and leave a message for your nominees on their blogs.

I would love to pass this award to

Adam, Anudivya, Cham, Divya,
Mahimaa, Priti, Purva, Sireesha, Sowmya, and Vaishali.

Arundhuti of Gourmet Affair passed the Good Job and Inspiration Awards



She also passed A Perfect Blend of Friendship Award



This award was also passed on by Andhra Flavours of For Spicy Lovers

I would like to pass the three awards to: Sia, Sra, Srivalli, Ramya, and Usha.


P.S. I have so many pictures (yes, I did click pictures!) waiting for a post by now that I need not worry about having to cook just for blogging until New Year at least, with the exception of any special blog events this month. Hope you will visit this space soon for the recipes:-)

Diwali Celebrations and Events

Wishing everyone a very Happy Diwali (belated). Though I am away from home this Diwali, I am lucky to be with my parents and my brother and family, that too in a country that celebrates Deepavali and has a national holiday for the same:-)

This Diwali season has been very eventful for me. Apart from being able to spend 3 full weeks away from home but still feeling at home with parents and family, I got to meet my classmate and friend from school after 12 years, with her family! Also, I was extremely pleased to meet Priti and Nags. On the flip side, this is my first Diwali without R to celebrate together, he is away for work.

Apart from traditional simple diyas, we also got some brightly painted Diyas from the Little India market.

The previous eve, we applied henna on our hands with the Mehndi cone we had bought. The picture below shows the Mehndi butterfly tattoo on my daughter's hand. I made a similar tatto for my niece who is a year older than my daughter.

And an impromptu design with a diya on her palm.

The children also enjoyed lighting sparklers, without which Diwali celebrations would have been dull.

Of course, no festival celebration is complete without a Pooja and offering to the Gods and Goddesses. We made Murukku and Unni Appam for the festival, which are usually made during Vishu. Below, I share the recipes for the two snacks.

Murukku - A Savoury Snack

To make the Murukku seen in the picture, you will need:

Rice flour - 3 cups
Urad Dal flour - 1/2 cup
Cumin Seeds - 1 tsp
Sesame seeds - 1 tsp
Asafeotida/ Hing - 1/2 tsp
Ghee/Butter - 1/4 cup
Salt - to taste
Oil - for deep frying (we used Canola oil)


Method:

• In a mixing bowl, knead all ingredients into a thick dough adding only enough water
• With a murukku press or mould, start pressing out the dough into circular forms of medium size on to cut papers or a plate
• Slide them into the oil for deep frying and fry until both sides turn light golden brown

Note: Murukku can be stored in air-tight containers. Children love to this, but if you prefer a spicier hot version, just add red chilly powder while kneading the dough.


Serve with tea/ coffee

Unni Appam - A Sweet Snack

Traditionally, this snack is deep fried in ghee, and is also known as Neyyappam. However, we did not use ghee or butter while preparing it.



To make the unni appams seen in the picture, you will need:

Rice - 2 cups
Cumin seeds - 1 tsp
Black Sesame seeds - 2 tsp
Cardamom powder - 2 tsp
Jaggery - 1 cup
Coconut - chopped into small pieces - 1/2 cup
Oil - for deep frying (we used Canola oil)

Method:

• Soak the rice for 2-3 hours, drain and grind it to a thick batter
• Melt and strain the jaggery, and mix it along with cumin seeds, sesame seeds and chopped coconut pieces in the rice batter
• Ensure that the batter consistency is not too thick, and it can be poured into the appam griddle
• Heat oil in the appam griddle, and start pouring the batter into it using a ladle
• Usually, the appams turn automatically within the mould after one side is done. If this does not happen, just turn the sides after one side is done, and take the appams out after both sides turn dark brown
• Dry them on kitchen napkins

Note: You can also add mashed bananas to the batter and make Banana Appams.

Serve with tea/ coffee

Now, to the events.

After Rakhi, Krishna and Ganesh Chaturthi, Onam and Navaratri celebrations, Priti of Indian Khana is hosting Festive Food event again with Diwali Celebrations. This entire post and the two recipes go to this amazing event.

The Unni Appams, a sweet snack, goes to

Vaishali's Sweet Vegan, as it has "no butter, milk, cream, ghee or other dairy products, no eggs, and no honey" .

Another great event this month is Easy Craft's WYF: Party Food.


I am sending both the snacks, as a party calls for savoury and sweet dishes, and the murukku and unni appam are ideal for family get-togethers, children's parties, freinds' parties, etc.


Finally, these two different-shades-of-brown goodies go to a lovely colourful event hosted by Sunshinemom at Tongue Ticklers, Food In Colours; the FIC-Brown event for October.


PS: I am not able to visit all your blogs as I am on a kind-of-vacation-like mode, which means though I could blog this post, the next post will most likely be after a week or two when I return home and settle down. I promise to catch up on all your posts and the comments in the previous posts