Oats-Dates Pancake

This is a very healthy breakfast or even a snack for kids after school. It is sweet and filling. It is full of energy. Saw this on a TV channel and tried. It came out really well and my family loved it. 

You need

• Oats - 1 cup
• Ripe dates - 15 nos.
• Sugar - 2 tsp (optional)
• Egg white - of 2 eggs
• Salt - a pinch
• Milk - as required
• Ghee/oil - as required

Method

• Remove the seeds and grind the dates. Keep aside
• Grind oats and make it powdery
• In a deep bowl mix together ground oats, dates, sugar, salt and milk to get a thick batter
• Fold in beaten egg whites.
• Heat a tawa. Add little ghee and pour a laddle of batter on tawa
• Put on low flame and cover with a lid
• When one side is cooked turn to other side. Cook well
• Serve warm

Cauliflower Fritters/Pakoras

Cauliflowers are mostly kid's favourite. I love making fritters of it and my family enjoys it as a snack. This time I added a little hand-broken coriander leaves which really upgraded the taste. Try these crunchy fritters with tea. Have a happy weekend

You need

1. Cauliflower - 1 small
2. Ginger - 1 small piece (chopped)
3. Chilli powder - 3 tsp 
4. Asafoetida - 1 pinch
5. Coriander leaves - 1/2 bunch (handbroken)
6. Salt to taste
7. Wheat flour - 1 cup
8. Water - as required
9. Oil for frying

Method

• Clean and wash cauliflower well and separate the florets (dry it well on a tissue). 
• In a bowl mix together ingredients 2 to 7 adding enough water to get a thick batter.
• Heat oil in a thick bottomed vessel
• When the oil becomes hot dip each floret in batter and deep fry in oil.  (or you can mix all florets in batter and scoop it into hot oil)
• Serve warm with your favourite sauce and tea

Prawns Masala Dosa

 This was today's breakfast. It was a finger-licking one and will tickle your taste buds really well. 

You need

• Dosa batter - as required
• Prawns - a handful after cleaning
• Onion - 4 (chopped)
• Tomato - 2 (chopped)
• Ginger - a small piece (chopped)
• Chilli powder - 2 tsp
• Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
• Garam masala - 1 tsp
• Oil for sauteeing
• Salt to taste 

Method

• Clean prawns and mince them. Keep aside
• Heat oil in a nonstick vessel
• Add chopped ginger followed by chopped onion.
• Saute until it turns pink.
• Add chilli powder, turmeric powder and garam masala. 
• Saute until raw smell leaves. 
• Add chopped tomatoes and minced prawns. 
• Add salt to taste.
• Saute, cover and cook for 2 minutes.
• Later open the lid and stir fry until all water dries off. 
• Keep aside the prawns masala

• Heat tawa
• Pour a laddle of batter and spread it into a thin dosa
• When one side  is cooked put 2-3 spoons of prawns masala on half part of dosa and cover with other half. (I put the masala in center and folded both sides). 
• Flip the folded dosa and cook for 5-10 seconds. 
• Remove from tawa.
• Serve warm. 

Eggless Chocolate Banana Walnut Muffins

My SIL is thin and she is busy working on her diet to get a little bit weight. Me on the other side is trying to put down. In both cases things are not working. So in her diet she included banana walnut muffins and was praising it so much. As she carried on I felt like having these muffins and ended up making choco-banana-walnut muffins. I made it in a healthy way to avoid that guilt feeling which I usually get after having all the goodies. My little family enjoyed it. Also dedicating this post to her. 

You need

• Wheat flour - 1 cup
• Sugar - 2/3 cup
• Oil - 1/2 cup
• Curd - 3 tsp
• Baking soda - 1/2 tsp
• Cocoa powder - 3 tsp
• Milk - 3 tsp
• Banana - 1
• Curd
• Walnuts - a handful

Method

• In a mixer beat together banana and milk. Keep aside
• Sieve together cocoa powder and whole wheat flour. Keep aside
• In a bowl beat together oil and powdered sugar.
• Into this add the banana puree and mix well
• Mix together curd and baking soda.
• Add this to the banana mix and fold in well. 
• To the above add the flour mix and fold in slowly.
• Put in the chopped walnuts. Mix well.
• Layer your muffin tin with muffin cases and scoop the batter into it till 3/4 of each cup
• Preheat the oven and bake at 150 degrees for 15-20 minutes. (use your oven accordingly)

Omelette Roll

This was for breakfast today. We were in no mood to have the usual kerala dishes. This was simple, quick and very filling too. If you're ready to have 2 eggs and a bit of chicken once a while this does help to bring a change.

  
You need

For omelette

1. Eggs - 2
2. Pepper powder - 1/2 tsp (or according to you)
3. Salt as required
4. Milk - 2 tsp
5. Oil as required

For filling

• Chicken breast - 1 (cut into stripes)
• Garlic - 1 clove (chopped)
• Onion - 1 small
• Chilli powder - 1 tsp
• Oregano - 1/2 tsp (optional)
• Tomato sauce - 2 tsp
• Oil for sauteeing
• Salt to taste

Method

• Beat together all ingredients from 1 to 4 
• Heat oil in a non stick pan and pour the above
• Spread the eggs as much as possible
• Cover with a lid and cook on low flame for 2-3 minutes. 
• Remove it to a plate (No need to cook both sides)
• To make the filling keep a nonstick pan on flame
• Add oil
• When it hot add chopped garlic. 
• Add chopped onion
• When it turns pink add chilli powder and oregano
• Saute and add chicken breast strips. 
• Add tomato sauce and salt to taste
• Saute until chicken is cooked.
• When done allow it cool a bit. 
• Put the filling on the egg omlet, roll and serve. 

Ela Appam

When amma used to make this during childhood days I used to say "Oh I don't like this". But now in this desert land I'm yearning to get the odour of steamed appams, rice packed in banana leaves. That is when I realize that these things holds us lot closer to nature and relations. Here in the filling I used ripe banana too. My husband likes it. It is more sweet this way and filling too. Have it as a snack or for breakfast.

You need

• Raw rice flour - 1 cup
• Boiling water - 3/4 cup + (1/4 cup) 
• Ripe banana - 1 
• Grated coconut - 1/2 cup
• Sugar - 2 tsp
• Oil - 1/2 tsp
• Banana leaves
• Salt to taste

Method

• Boil water with salt and oil
• By this time chop banana and mix together with grated coconut and sugar. This is your filling
• Put the rice flour in a deep bowl.
• Pour 3/4 cup of boiling water into this. Mix the flour and water well using a wooden spoon. 
• If you need more water add little by little until you get a tough dough
• Divide the dough into small lemon size balls
• Clean the banana leaves and cut it into small squares
• Place each ball in a banana leaf and press dough to the leaf until you get a thin circle

• Put a scoop of the filling onto one half of the circle
• Fold the leaf to form a semicircle (the other half of the circle falls over the filling. You'll get a semicircle)
• Repeat the process for the other balls
• Put the banana leaves with appam in a steamer and steam for 15 minutes

Red Chori/Van Payar stir fry

I had soaked the red chori for making banana flower thoran but ended up making this stir fry. My son liked to eat it as such. I never thought he would love it as he is a picky eater. These beans are quite big enough for a toddler to hold. So he enjoyed picking it and smashing it in his mouth. So the happiest part is I found one more that tickles his buds. :)

I got a tip: if you forget to soak the beans (any like green gram, red chori, black gram etc. ), boil water and put the grams in boiled water in a casserole. Keep it tightly covered for an hour. It'll be ready for cooking within that time. I tried this here and it worked really well. 

You need

• Red chori (van payar) - 1 cups
• Onion - 2
• Dry red chilli - 4
• Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
• Garlic - 3 cloves
• Oil for sauteeing

Method

• Soak red chori (tip above)
• Put it in a pressure cooker along with garlic and salt. 
• Cook for 2 whistles or until done in a pressure cooker. (My was very well soaked so took only 2 whistles to cook it)
• In a thick bottomed vessel heat oil
• Add mustard seeds
• When they splutter add sliced onions and broken red chillies. 
• Saute until they turn lightly pink. Add salt to taste (Remember you've cooked red chaouri with salt)
• Add the cooked chaori and saute until for 5-10 minutes on low flame. 

Pasta Fritters/Pakoras

Enjoy these spicy pakoras on a rainy day. I had to imagine a rainy day and have it here in bahrain. But still it made my day. 

You need

1. Any pasta - 1 cup
2. Chilli powder - 2 tsp
3. Besan - 1 cup (+ 1/2 cup if required)
4. Ginger - 1 small piece (chopped)
5. Asafoetida - 1 pinch
6. Salt to taste
7. Water as required
8. Oil for deep frying

  

Method

• Cook the pasta and allow it to cool. (Put the pasta in boiling water along with salt and little oil. Allow it to cook until done. Drain the water and pour cold water into it. Add a tsp of oil and mix well so the pasta pieces don't stick together. Keep aside)
• In a bowl mix together ingredients 2 to 7 (remember you've cooked pasta with salt)
• Mix the pasta into the above batter. If required add more besan. 
• Heat oil in a vessel and put scoops of batter mixed pasta.
• Deep fry and serve

Creamy Chicken Curry

This is one creamy chicken curry without coconut milk or cream. I've used cashew nuts for making the gravy thick and creamy. It adds to the taste too. It was a great side for appam and also for ghee rice. 

You need

1. Cinnamon - 1 small stick
2. Cardamom - 3
3. Bay leaves - 1/2 of 1
4. Cloves - 4
5. Chicken - 500 gms (cut into medium size pieces)
6. Onion - 4 medium
7. Ginger - 1 small piece (2 tsp when chopped)
8. Garlic - 2 cloves
9. Green chilli - 4
10. Coriander powder - 3 tsp
11. Pepper powder - 1 tsp
12. Tomato - 2
13. Cashew nuts - 15 nos.
14. Oil for sauteeing
15. Boiled water (as required)
16. Salt to taste

Method

• Soak cashew nut in water for 30 minutes
• Heat a thick bottomed vessel
• Add little oil. When it becomes hot add sliced onion, chopped ginger, garlic and green chilli
• Saute until it turns pink and transparent.
• Remove from heat and allow to cool
• Once cool take half of this mix, and grind to get a fine paste adding enough water.
• Again keep the vessel on flame, add little oil and ingredients from 1 to 4
• Add the chicken pieces. 
• Saute until all juice that oozes out from chicken dries up.
• Add coriander powder and pepper powder. Saute for 10-15 seconds
• Add onion paste and remaining half of sauteed onion. If the gravy seems thick add boiled water.
• Add chopped tomato. Add salt to taste
• Cover and cook for 20-25 minutes on low flame.
• During this time grind soaked cashew nuts into a fine paste adding enough water.
• After 20 minutes open the lid, add this cashew paste, mix well. Simmer for 2 minutes and switch off
• Serve with appam or rice

Uzhunnu vada/Medu vada

These are the uzhunnu vadas without a hole. :) I don't think anyone can imagine a uzhunnu vada without the hole. But believe me I tried really really hard to get a hole in the middle of the vada, but it adamant that it won't form. There was no problem with batter. It was thick. The only reason is my hands are not so artistic enough to make holes. So finally I scooped batter and deep fried in oil. The taste was the same but the shape was different. Serve these crunchy uzhunnu vadas with coconut chutney. Enjoy your teatime.

Vada
Ingredients

1. Urid dal - 1 cup
2. Green chilli - 2
3. Shallots - 4 to 5
4. Ginger - 1 small piece
5. Salt to taste

Method

• Soak the urid dal in water for 2 hours
• After soaking put all ingredients in small jar of mixer and grind it to a smooth paste. (There is no need to add water. If you require little water to grind, then add a tbsp rice flour to batter to soak it up).
• Heat oil in a vessel
• When oil becomes very hot, put a scoop of the vada batter into oil and deep fry till golden brown.

For chutney
Ingredients

1. Grated coconut - 1/2 cup
2. Green chilli - 2 (chopped)
3. Ginger - a small piece (chopped)
4. Shallots - 2 (chopped)
5. Water for grinding
6. Salt to taste

Method

• Grind together all ingredients in a mixie to get a smooth paste.
• Serve with hot vadas

Banana Nut Bread

If I've to explain this I'll have to say eggless, butterless, sugarless, yummy banana bread with all natural lovely flavours. I used the Apple sauce coated nuts in this (the recipe of which I posted yesterday) and banana which is full of sugar. It is nice bread eventhough there aren't many regular bread ingredients in it. I didn't puree the banana. Instead I chopped it into small bits and added along with nuts. The bread got its sweetness from banana and jaggery on the coated nuts.

You need

• Wheat flour - 1 and 1/2 cups
• Yeast - 1 tsp
• Sugar - 1 tsp
• Salt as required
• Milk - 1/2 cup or little more if required to make dough
• Banana - 1
• Nuts of your choice - 1/2 cup (I used Apple sauce coated nuts)

 Method

• Mix together yeast and sugar in a glass and add little lukewarm milk. Stir and keep aside.
• Allow it to stand for 15 minutes and allow it to ferment
• In a bowl mix together wheat flour and salt.
• Add the fermented yeast into this and mix well
• Add remaining milk little by little to get a sticky dough. 

• Keep the dough on a clean surface. Cover it with bowl and leave it undisturbed for 10 minutes.
• By this time chop banana and nuts into small pieces
• After 10 minutes knead the lightly raised dough again on the surface and roll it lengthwise with your hand. 
• Put the banana and chopped nuts over it.
• Bring the dough together. Knead it a few times. It will be difficult with lots of banana pieces and nuts. 
• Keep it in an oiled baking dish and leave for 1 hr. Cover it completely with a plastic cover. 
• Preheat the oven to 250 degree centigrade. 
• After 1 hr when the dough has increased in size, give it a milk wash, move it to the oven and put the temperature at 200 degrees centigrade and bake for 15-20 minutes.

Sending this to Radhika's tickling palates event Let's cook bread

Apple sauce coated nuts

These apple sauce coated nuts are sweet and crunchy. The little ones who don't like to try walnuts will love this due to its subtle sweetness and cinnamon flavour. Here I sprinkled the nuts here and there in the dish and baked it. If you need bars you can layer it on a baking dish and bake it. Leave it cool very well and then break to small pieces. 

You need

• Almonds - 1/2 cup
• Walnuts - 1/2 cup
• Cashew nuts - 1/2 cup
• Apple - 1 big
• Cinnamon - 1/2 tsp
• Jaggery (thick paste) - 2 tbsp

Method

• Chop all the nuts into small pieces
• Puree the apple.
• Keep a sauce pan on low flame. Add jaggery and pureed apple.
• Allow it to simmer for 2 minutes or until it becomes saucy.
• Add cinnamon powder. Mix well.
• Switch off the flame and put the nuts into the sauce and mix well
• Line a baking dish with baking parchment paper and sprinkle these sauce coated nuts.
• Bake in a preheated oven at 200 degrees for 10 minutes. 

Bread Ball Snack

Try these yummy bread snack with hot tea. I promise, you won't stop munching. :-)

You need

• Bread slices - 4
• Egg - 1
• Ginger - 1 tiny piece chopped (1/2 tsp)
• Onion - 1 small chopped
• Green chilli - 1 chopped
• Coriander leaves - 1 tbsp (chopped)
• Salt to taste

Method

• Crumble bread well and mix with rest of the ingredients. Better to use your hand to mix them well
• Make small balls of this mix and fry in oil.
• Serve with your favourite chutney or sauce