All posts by Anita

Breakfast, Fasting Snacks, Kids Special Menus, Snacks, Sweet Dish

Diwali Special Besan Laddu

Besan Laddoo for the Diwali festival for my near and dear ones

Besan Laddu(Laadu) is a typical Maharashtrian sweet delicacy which brings water in the mouth the moment we hear its name. But along the year’s originality of the dish is lost in commercial viability. Earlier days Deepawali means preparing sweet dishes, buying new clothes and gifts. Decorating the house, drawing rangolis and it was truly a major festival in Hindu calendar. But nowadays everything is ready made and readily available. In such readymade world, local delicacies get lost. To revive the dish I am sharing the recipe of Besan Laddu I learned over the years from my mother and added little twist but retained its originality.

Here I am sharing my secret of making laddoo; crispy and soft

Ingredients :

2cups of Besan (Gram flour)
1 1/2 cup of Powdered sugar
1 cup of Ghee (Clarified butter)
1 tsp Elaichi (Cardamom) powder
1/2 tsp Jaayphal (Nutmeg) powder
Sliced Pista (Pistachio) for garnishing
1 tbsp milk

Method :

In a large bowl mix the besan and the milk and knead the mixture with your bare hands so well till you get dry crumbs of the mixture. Keep it aside for 15 min. till that time heat the ghee in a pan and add the mixture we prepared and roast the mixture on a very low flame for about 20 to 25 min until it changes the colour and the texture by spreading a nice aroma. Gram Flour should be roasted on a low flame until the ghee releases from the flour. If gram flour not roasted well then it will stick to the teeth.

Now cool the mixture and add Elaichi powder, Jaayphal powder, and powdered sugar and mix well.
Putting few ghee drops to your palm start making small or medium-sized laddoo.Store it in an air-tight container.

Important note from the chef:
• Any roasting process should be done on low flame.
• Ghee and sugar according to diet and taste.
• Nutmeg powder should be used in sweet recipes as it helps in digestion and gives nice aroma to the food.

Happy Deepawali once again

Desserts, Kids Special Menus, Sweet Dish

Choco Almond Burfi

During the festival, we prepare sweet dishes as an offering to the God and Goddess. This time especially on the occasion of Dussehra I am preparing a sweet dish as an offering (Naivedhya) which is quick and simple,i.e. Choco Almond burfi

Ingredients :
1 cup soaked Almond (Badam) ( 18 to 20 approx )
1 tbsp fresh cream
2 tbsp Cocoa powder
1 tsp Cardamom (Elaichi) powder
Few drops of chocolate essence
Powdered sugar 3/4 cup
2 tbsp clarified butter(Ghee)
Method:
Soak the Almond (Badam) for 1/2 an hour. After completely soaking peel the skin and grind it into a smooth paste by adding the fresh cream.
Now heat a pan and add ghee. Once ghee melts, roast the paste till it stops sticking to the pan. Now add Cocoa powder and powdered sugar, stir for another 5 to 7 min. Add Cardamom powder and chocolate essence and stir well. Finally, pour the mixture into a greased plate and give it the desired shape and garnish it with syrups, dry fruits or dusting powdered sugar over it.

Continue reading →

Breakfast, Fasting Snacks, Snacks

Sabudana Khichdi

Sabudana Khichadi is a favorite dish in many households. This is my version of it.
I always feel that the process for any recipe should be simple and easy , only then ; the younger generation will also take interest. You need proper planning and once you have everything handy, half of your work is done.
Sabudana/ Sago needs atleast 5 to 6 hours of soaking in water to give you the right taste.
The rest is easy.

Ingredients:
1 ½ cup Sabudana soaked for atleast 5-6 hours
1/2 cup coarsely grounded peanuts (I used readymade masala peanut which we get in the market)
2 to 3 green chillies,
1 tbsp grated coconut,
coriander leaves chopped finely,
Salt to taste
1 Tbsp lemon juice
Sugar to taste
1 tsp mustard seeds
1 tsp jeera
1 tsp asafoetida

Preparation
Mix well sugar, salt, lemon juice, grated coconut, ground peanuts.

Now in a kadai, heat oil, add mustard seeds, jeera seeds, green chillies and stir for 10 seconds. Add sabudana, stir properly. Now keep a lid and cook for another 5 to 7 minutes and garnish with coriander.

Tip: Once sabudana is soaked well you can add all the ingredients, mix well and keep it in the fridger. This will help you make it quickly when you want. (Shelf life not more than a day).

Breakfast, Kids Special Menus, Snacks

Cabbage Vada

1 Comment

For the Vada:  Cabbage Vada_1

1 cup cabbage shredded
1 cup red cabbage shredded
1 cup carrot shredded
1 /2 cup capsicum shredded
1 cup besan
1/4 tsp turmeric powder
1/2 tsp red chilli powder
1/2 tsp dhania powder
1 or 2 green chilli finely chopped
salt to taste,

For the dip:
1 cup whisked dahi
1.small cucumber finely chopped
1 tomato chopped
chat masala

Method:
In a large bowl mix all ingredients for the vada to form a proper dough. Heat oil a pan and make pakodas. Deep fry till golden fry.

For the dip: In a grinder, grind the cucumber, tomato, curd and add salt, chat masala and mix well. Serve Hot.

Presentation is really important if you want your children to devour the dish. So, that gets an extra point 🙂

Main Course

Healthy Lunch Thali for Students

6 Comments

It will soon be exam time.. Children have started studying, especially 10th and 12th Students undergo a stressful time.

As a mother, even I am concerned about my son who will be giving his 12th exam this year. Though children don’t feel hungry because of the constant exam pressure, as a mother, I feel that they should eat healthy and energising food, take some rest and also indulge in a little play time to relax.

Here is a quick tasty and healthy Thali for the children. I have baked the ladyfinger crisp and used Masoor dal to prepare rasam.

Here are the recipes:

A. Masoor dal rasam
1 cup masoor dal
1/2 cup moong dal
1 Cup Tomato purée
1/2 tsp Turmeric powder
1 tsp Chilli powder
1 tbsp Rasam powder
Coriander leaves
Salt to taste
Jaggery
Curry leaves

Seasoning:
Mustard seeds
Jeera seeds
Asafoetida

Method:
Pressure cook the dal with turmeric powder, chilli powder, salt, asafoetida, jeera seeds. Churn in a hand blender and keep aside.

Heat oil in a pan, season the rai, jeera, asafoetida, Curry leaves, coriander leaves. Pour dal mixture and add rasam powder, tomato purée, jaggery, salt (if required) cook for 4 to 10 minutes. Then add lemon juice and garnish with coriander leaves.

B. Baked Crisp Bhindi

Method:
1/4 kg Lady finger
2 tbsp Sattu ka atta (roasted gram flour )
Salt to taste
1 tsp Chilli powder
1 tsp Turmeric Powder
1 tsp Dry mango powder
1 Lemon juice

Marinate all together for 10 to 15 mins without adding water.
Now spread the mixture in baking tray and bake the bhindi in a preheated oven at 160 degree for 20 mins.

Salad should be a vital component of the meal.