Senaikizhangu Pitlai(colocasia)

Ezhukari kozhambu

Ezhukari kozhambu  is made with seven vegetables during Thiruvadhirai day and during pongal in our house.I think these vegetables are best available during that time.Ezhu means seven in Tamil.It is mostly these vegetables that are available in the villages.These include mostly pumpkins(white and red),brinjal,broad beans,cluster beans,sweet potato,colocasia etc.I have used similar vegetables and made this one.

Ingredients

Tur Dal	1cup
Tamarind	1lemon sized ball
Turmeric powder	1/2tsp
Salt	2-3tsp
White pumpkin	150gms
Red pumpkin	150gms
Sweet potato	150gms
Carrots	1
Broad beans	4
Brinjal	2
yam	50gms
Jaggery	1tbs

To Season

Gingelly oil	2tsp
Mustard seeds	2tsp
Asafoetida	1/2tsp
Curry leaves	few

To Roast and grind

Coriander seeds	1tbs
Channa Dal	1tbs
Red chillies	10
Scraped coconut	2tbs

Method
1.Cut all the vegetables into big pieces.Soak tamarind in hot water.
2.Extract juice from the soaked tamarind(3-4times)
3.Pressure cook the Dal in pressure cooker.
4.Roast coriander seeds,Channa Dal and red chillies in gingelly oil and grind into a paste with coconut.
5.Boil the vegetables in tamarind water and turmeric powder and salt.Once the vegetables are cooked add the ground  paste,Dal and jaggery.
6.Season with  asafoetida and mustard seeds and garnish with  and curry leaves in the remaining gingelly oil.

NOTES

• It is served along with Kali on thiruvadhirai day.
• It can be served with dosa too.

Thiruvadhirai kali

Thiruvadirai is celebrated in the month of January on pournami day after vaikunda ekadesi.We make Kali and ehzhukari kozhambu as neivedhayam to Nataraja(god) and serve it on a banana leaf.

Spicy vegetables in dhal

This dish is a peferct combination of Dal and vegetables.I thought it is more healthy to add more veggies to all the dishes so i decided to make the Dal with lot of vegetables with a dash of lime.It tasted quiet good.

Ingredients

• One cup of Moong dal of Yellow dal
• One chopped Onion
• One Tomato chopped
• One chopped Green chilli
• One small piece of Ginger(chopped)
• Two cups of chopped mixed vegetables
• 1/4tsp of Turmeric Powder
• 1/2tsp of Chilli powder
• Salt to Taste
• 1/2tsp of Garam Masala Powder
• Coriander leaves for garnishing
• Lime juice to Taste
• Oil to Temper
• One tsp of Cumin Seeds

Method

1.Pressure cook the dal  with turmeric powder and keep aside.Dice some vegetables like carrot,beans,cauliflower,peas and potatoes.
2.Heat oil in a pan and cumin seeds,onions,chopped green chili,ginger and fry then add the tomatoes and fry for two minutes.
3.Add the rest of the vegetables and salt and cook it closed for few minutes till the vegetables are cooked.
4.Add the other chilli,garam masala  powders fry for two minutes and add the Dal and some water and boil for few minutes.
5.Add lemon juice  and garnish with coriander leaves and serve hot with rotis and rice

Notes

• You can add jaggery if you like the sweetness.

methi malai mattar

Ingredients

methi   2 bunches
green peas boiled 2 cups
corn niblets    1 cup
onion            2
tomato          2
salt                2tsp
chilli powder  1tsp
dhania powder  1/2tsp
jeera powder    1/2tsp
garam masala powder   1tsp.
fresh creme              200ml.

To grind
saunf            1tsp
khas khas     1tsp
cashews       10
garlic            3pods
ginger           small piece.

method

wash and clean methi leaves and soak it in hot water for 10 mins.

make a paste out of the ingredients for grinding.

heat oil in a kadai,add jeera, cut onions and fry till brown then add the tomatoes and fry for few more minutes,then add the ground paste and all the powders,salt and methi leaves cook for few minutes and finally add cream.serve with phulkas and nans.

Dosai and Idli milagai podi

Dosai or Idli milagai podi is an aromoatic,spicy powder had with idlis and dosas in South Indian homes.How many ever accompaniments you have for idli or dosa this powder is a must.

It is usually mixed with a generous amount of gingelly oil and applied on idlis. It is a perfect travel food.I am sure all of us(south Indians)would have enjoyed this while we were travelling.

Tomato rasam

Ingredients

Tamarind	Small lemon sized ball
Rasam powder	2tsp
Tomato	2
Salt	2tsp
Turmeric powder	1/4tsp
Asafoetida	1/6tsp
Ghee	1tsp
Mustard seeds	1tsp
Curry leaves	few
Coriander leaves	1tbs
Dal water	1cup
Pepper and cumin powder	1/2tsp

Method

1. Extract tamarind water 3 times from the soaked tamarind.
2. Boil it with turmeric,rasam powder and cut tomatoes.
3. After the raw smell of the tamarind goes add  salt Dal water,boil for one minute and season it with mustard seeds and asafoetida in ghee and garnish with coriander and curry leaves.
4. Add half a spoon of peeper and cumin powder at the end.it improves the taste.
5. Serve with rice and papad.

kovakkai curry

Ingredients

• Kovakkai           1/2kg
• Potato                1
• Chilli powder      1tsp
• Salt                    11/2tsp
• Turmeric            1/2tsp

Seasoning

• Mustard seeds                 1tsp
• Broken urad dhal             1tsp
• Asafoetida                       A pinch
• Oil                                   2tsb

Method

1.Cut kovakkai and potato in to lengthy pieces.
2.Heat a kadai add oil and mustard seeds when it crackels add urad dhal when it becomes slightly brown add the kovakkai and turmeic powder, close and cook for few minutes.
3.Add the cut potatoes,salt,chilli powder and cook for 5 more minutes keeping it closed.
4.Once the vegetables are done fry for few minutes and finally add asafoetida.
5.The vegetable  is an accompaniment for sambhar rice.

Avarekkai poricha kozhambu/Broad Beans Kozhambu

Avarekkai or Broad beans is a climber which could be grown in a small place like our backyard.I remember in my aunts house they used to grow it the back yard and pluck it fresh for the cooking.Though it is not a favourite vegetable in my house I make it as a south Indian gravy called Poricha Kozhambu.

I boil the vegetable in tamarind water with salt and then combine some cooked dhal and spiced powder.It can be had with hot steaming rice and raw banana curry.

adai

You will Need

• Boiled rice    1 cup
• Tur dhal       1/2  cup
• Channa dhal  1/4 cup
• Urad dhal       1/4 cup
• yellow dhal     1/4 cup
• Red chillies       8
• Curry leaves     handful
• Cocnut scrapings  2 tbs
• Asafoetida           1/2tsp
• Salt

How you Make it

Wash and soak all the dhal varieties with rice, chillies and curry leaves for 3 hours and grind into a coarse paste with salt,coconut and asafoetida.
If required add finely cut onions or drumstick leaves or finely cut vegetables like carrot and
cabbage.(optional)
Add water if necessary to bring it to consistency where you have to pour it on the hot tawa and cook it both sides with little coconut oil.make a hole in the centre and pour some oil so  that it gets cooked at the centre too.serve hot with avial,sambar,jaggery or butter.

Avial

• 200gms of white pumpkin       
• 200gms of yam(senaikizhangu)              
• One carrot                      
• Six beans                      
• One cup of Curds
• Few strings of Curry leaves
• Cocnut oil
• Salt

to grind
coconut  1/2 scaped
green chillies
soaked cashews(optional)

method

cut all the vegetables into thin  and slightlylenghty pieces.

boil them with salt.

grind coconut,green chillies and a little curd and add it to the boiled vegetables.add some more curd and salt and heat it and swithc off the stove.you should not boil after you add the curd.

garnish with curry leaves and just add a little cocnut oil to add a flavor.

small onion sambar(vengaya sambar)

You will require

• One cup of Tur dhal    
• Gooseberry size ball of Tamarind
• One cup of peeled small Onions
• 2 to 3tsp of Salt
• Gingelly oil for Seasoning and Roasting
• One tsp of Jaggery
• 1/4tsp of Turmeric powder
• few Curry Leaves
• One tbs of Coriander Leaves

Roast and Grind

• One Tbs of Channa dal   
• One Tbs of Coriander seeds   
• Eight nos of Red chillies            
• Two Tbs of Scraped coconut 

season with

• One Tbs of Gingelly oil
• One tsp of mustard seeds

How to make it

1. Wash and pressure cook the tur dhal with turmeric powder.
2. Soak tamarind in hot water for an hour and extract the pulp.
3. Fry the ingredients for masala in gingelly oil,cool and grind into a paste.
4. Heat a thick bottomed vessel add gingelly oil and add mustard seeds to it when it crackles add the onions and fry until it is slightly brown and add the tamarind water to it allow it to boil for few minutes and add the ground paste and the boiled dhal and jaggery.if it is thick add a little water and bring it to desired consistency.
5. Garnish with curry leaves and coriander leaves.
6. If you are making large quantity you can add radish,capsicum,carrot and tomato along with onions

arisi upma(rice upma)

Ingredients

• One cup of  Raw rice broken  
• One tbs of Peanuts            1tbs
• Few spoons of Coconut scrapings 
• Few Curry leaves
• Half a tsp of Asafoetida  
• One tsp of Mustard seeds  
• Two tsp of Channa Dal        
• Few tsp of  Coconut oil       
• Four Red chillies       
• Powdered jaggery half a spoon(optional)

Method

1. Heat a thick bottomed pan and add coconut oil and mustard seeds to it allow it to crackle.
2. Add Channa Dal,red chillies,peanuts,curry leaves and asafoetida Let the Dal become brown.
3. Add 3 cups of water to the mixture in the pan and allow the water to boil.
4. when it starts boiling add,coconut scrapings,salt and little jaggery.
5. Then add the broken raw rice slowly without any lumps.
6. Cook on slow fire by keeping it closed until  the rice is soft and done.
7. Serve hot with coconut chutney and puli kothsu.

vegetable biriyani

ingredients

• One cup Basmati rice   
• One Big onion        
• One Small tomato   
• One Carrot              
• Few florets of Cauliflower      
• Beans       4 nos
• Peas   handful
• One small size Potato S
• Salt to Taste
• Ghee as required

To Grind

• Two green chillies   
• Small piece of ginger 
• Two pods of Garlic  
• One tsp of scraped coconut 
• One tsp of Mint leaves
• One tsp of Fennel seeds
• One tsp of khus khus   
• One cardamom   
• Two cloves         
• Small piece of Cinnamon 

To Temper

• Two Cloves 
• Two cardamom 
• One samll stick of cinamon
• One small bay leaf  

Method

1. Soak basmati rice for half an hour and cook it in rice cooker  with 1:1 3/4 water proportion and allow it to cool in a plate.
2. Cut all the vegetables slightly lengthy and slightly cook beans,carrot,peas,potato and cauliflower in hot water.
3. Roast the ingredients for grinding in ghee,cool and grind it into a fine paste.
4. Heat a thick Pan add some oil when it is hot add cloves,cardamom,cinnmon,bay leaf and then the onions when it is transculent add tomatoes and fry for few minutes then add the ground paste,salt and fry for few more minutes.
5. Add the semi boiled vegetables,salt,chilli powder little garam masala powder and cook it closed for few more minutes and switch  off the stove.allow the mixture also to cool and add add the rice little by little to the vegetables and mix it,add some ghee to the rice and garnish with corriander leaves.Add some salt while mixing.

Chocolate Fudge

Ingredients :

Cocoa Powder -1/4 cup
Sugar - 1/4 cup
Condensed milk (Sweetened) - 400g
Butter - 4-5 table spoons

Method:

Heat all the ingredients together in a pan. Keep stirring until desired consisitency is obtained. Mould into any shape desired. Enjoy ! :)

BADAM KHEER

ingredients

• Badam  200gms
• Milk       1litre
• Saffron   few strands
• Sugar     2 cups
• Cardamom powder(optional)

method
soak badam in water overnight or in hot water for 4 hours. soak the saffron in hot milk.peel the badam grind to a smooth paste.boil milk and add it to the paste and boil it further for few minutes.add sugar and the saffron simmer it for few  more minutes.finally add the cardamom powder.

Suggestions

• You can add edible camphor little bit.
• You can have it either cold or hot.Both ways tastes good.

Aloo paratha

ingredients

for the stuffing

• Potato                                            5
• Onion                                             2
• Green chilli                                     2
• Salt
• Chilli powder                                 1tsp
• Corriander powder                        1tsp
• Jeera powder                                1tsp
• Chat masala powder                      1tsp
• Corriander leaves                           2tbs

for the roti

• Wheat flour
• Salt
• Water to knead

method


Mix wheat flour,salt and water to make a soft dough softer than  for the usual phulkas.
Pressure cook the potatoes,peel and mash.cut one onion,green chilli and coriander leaves into fine pieces
Saute these with little bit of oil and add it to the mashed potato.
Add salt,chilli powder,jeera powder,coriander powder and the chat masala and make it in to lemon sized balls and kee it aside.
Take a portion of the wheat flour roll a little and keep the potato stuffing at the centre,close it again and roll it out again.put it on the tawa and toast it both sides with ghee or oil.serve it with raita,sweet pickle or any subzi.

Vegetables In Palak Gravy

                                                                   This is a different gravy i learnt from my husband's athai.She is an excellent cook.Instead of the usual tomato onion gravy i thought this was very different and more healthy.Let us see how i made this.

You will Need

• 2 Bunches of Delhi Palak
• Two to three Onions
• Two to three Tomatoes
• One cup of Mixed vegetables
• Few corn Kennels
• Few Paneer blocks
• Salt to Taste
• One tsp of Ginger garlic paste
• One tsp of Chilli powder
• One tsp of Garam masala powder.
• Few tsp of Oil
• Cumin seeds to temper.

How To

1. Wash,chop and boil the palak leaves with little salt and Puree it after cooling.
2. Chop onions,tomatoes and dice rest of the vegetables of your choice.
3. Heat oil in a pan saute cumin seeds and onions and  till brown.
4. Add tomatoes,ginger garlic paste and other vegetables and salt and allow it to cook.
5. Add chilli powder,garam masala powder,salt and corn kennels and paneer blocks.
6. Allow it to boil for two minutes and serve with phulkas.

Tips

• You can use vegetables like carrots,cauliflower,potato etc.
• There is no need to add too much butter or oil in this dish.

mor kozhambu

You will Need

• Two cups of curds
• Two tbs of scraped coconut                                
• Two green chillies
• One tbs dhania seeds                        
• One tbs channa dal                            
• One tbs cumin or jeera                                    
• One tbs raw rice                                
• one of the vegetables (white pumkin,chow chow,lady's finger,carrot)

How to

• Soak channa dal,dhania,jeera and rice in water for an hour.
• cut the vergetable into big blocks and boil it in water with salt
• if is lady's finger shallow fry it in oil and keep aside.
• grind the soaked ingrdients with coconut and green chiilies.
•  whip  the curds and add it to the boiling vegetable and allow it to heat for a minute.it should not boil.you can add some salt if necessary and temper it with mustard seeds.
• garnish with coriander leaves.

puli pongal

Ingredients

• Broken raw rice 300gms
• Gingelly oil         3tbs
• Tamrind  lemon sized
• Redchillies 10
• Peanuts handful
• Turmeric powder
• Salt
• Jaggery

seasoning

• Mustard seed
• Msafoetida
• Curry leaves
• Channa dal

Method






1.Soak tamrind in hotwater and extract pulp(little watery)and keep aside.

2.Heat a thick bottomed Pan add gingelly oil when it is hot add mustard seeds when it crackles add channa dal,peanuts,curry leaves and asafoetida when the dal and peanuts are brown add the tamrind water and allow it boil adding salt and turmeric powder.(tamrind water should be 3 portions to the raw rice bokens)when it is boiling slowly add the rawrice brokens

3. keep stirring without any lumps.cover it and cook for 10 mins till the rice is cooked.add a little jaggery and keep it closed for few minutes.

4.Then apply gingelly oil in a baking tray and spraed the cooked mixture on it.allow it to cool and cut it into square pieces.

My favourite recipe event

Rawa pongal

You will Need

• Rawa(sooji)         1cup
• Pepper                1/2tsp
• Jeera                   1tsp
• Salt
• Ginger                  small piece
• Green chillie          1
• Cashews               few broken in to pieces
• Ghee                    1tbs
• Curry leaves          few

method

1. Roast(dry) the  rawa and keep aside.
2. Heat oil in  Pan  and add cut greenchillies,ginger,crushed pepper and jeera
3. Pour 1:2 portions(rawa:water) of water into the pan and allow it to boil.
4. Add salt then add the rawa slowly so that there are no lumps formed.
5. Allow it to cook till rawa becomes soft and then finally add cahews fried in ghee and curry leaves and serve with coconut chutney.

Suggestions

• Serve hot with a little extra ghee on top it adds to the taste.

Badam Burfi(cake)

This is an all time favourite sweet in my house.I make it once a month since my daughters do not eat any nuts especially badam.It is quiet simple to make.You just have to get the right consistency to pour in to the plate to make in to burfi's.

You will Need

• Badam
• Sugar
• Saffron
• Milk
• Ghee

method

1. Soak badam overnight.peel and grind into a fine paste adding milk and soaked saffron.
2. Add 2 portions of sugar to that and heat it in a thick bottomed kadai.keep stirring.
3. Keep adding  ghee on and off
4. When it becomes thick pour into a ghee greased tray and cut into pieces when it cools a little.

Pineapple Rasam

Pineapple rasam is one of our favourite rasam.I have not heard anyone making it at home often or regularly as often as they make paruppu rasam or tomato rasam.I remeber tasting it in some weddings.Right from then i fell in love with it.My mom used to make it when we have some special guests and everyone used to drink it in cups and enjoy!
Later when i started cooking i learnt  to make on my own and started to make it and slowly my daughters also got a taste for it and now it has become our favourite.The sweetness and the tangy flavour of pineapple is what is special about it.
You can either cut it into blocks and add it or if you really like the pineapple flavour like we do you can make a puree of pineapple in the blender and add it to the rasam.It need not boil and cook.

Ingredients

• Tamrind                                    lemon sized ball
• Tomato                                    1-2
• Pineapple pieces                      few
• Tur dhal                                   1/2cup
• Turmeric powder                     1/2tsp
• Salt
• Coriander leaves                     1tbs
• Curry leaves                            1tbs

Rasam powder

• Dhania seeds                          1tsp
• Pepper                                  1/2tsp
• Turdhal                                   1tsp
• Jeera                                      1tsp
• Red chillies                              2

Seasoning

• Mustard                               1tsp
• Ghee                                     1tbs

How To

1. Pressure cook the  tur dhal with water and turmeric powder.
2. Soak tamarind in hot water and extract pulp three times.
3. Dry roast the ingredients for rasam powder,  powder it and keep aside.
4. Boil the tamrind water add cut tomatoes,salt and turmeric powder.
5. Once it boils add rasam powder,tur dhal water, and cut pineapple pieces.
6.  Temper it with ghee and mustard seeds.
7. Garnish with curry leaves and coriander leaves.
8. Serve with hot rice and ghee on top of the rice.