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Wednesday, November 28, 2012

CHOCOLATE BURFI & A CELEBRATION


I AM REALLY EXCITED THAT MY BLOG HAS CROSSED 10 LAKH HITS.  I WOULD LIKE TO THANK ALL MY FRIENDS, READERS AND VISITORS FOR YOUR CONTINUOUS SUPPORT. THIS IS A REAL SUCCESS FOR MY TRADITIONAL BLOG AND IT HELPS ME TO BE MORE DEDICATED IN COOKING, CLICKING AND PRESENTING AS WELL.  I AM CELEBRATING THIS HAPPY MOMENT WITH A CHOCOLATE BURFI. THANKS AGAIN :)

NOW THE RECIPE:
This is a quick, simple yet tasty and chocolateee burfi loved by all.

INGREDIENTS:

Milkmaid - 1 tin
Broken cashews - 100 gm.
Cocoa powder - a little less than half a cup
Butter - 50 gms.
Sugar - 3/4 cup



METHOD:

Break cashews into small pieces. The cashews in each bite gives an excellent taste to the chocolateee burfi. So be generous in cashews.

Heat a heavy-bottomed pan, pour in the milkmaid, butter, sugar, cocoa powder and cashews. Mix well.

Ensure medium heat and stir continuously till the mixture leaves the sides.

Transfer to a greased plate and when warm, cut into desired shapes.

Tuesday, November 6, 2012

KARASEV / KARASEVU (IYENGAR STYLE) / DEEPAVALI SNACK


This is a traditional savoury served in Iyengar marriages with puliyodharai. A crispy snack as well, which can be tried and tasted for deepavali.

INGREDIENTS:

Rice flour - 1 cup
Besan flour - 1 cup
Pepper - 1 tsp.

Ghee - 2 tablespoons
Salt - as per taste
Oil - for deep frying


Gadget: Karasev ladle (This gadget gives the correct thickness for the snack). 


METHOD:


Crush the pepper coarsely.

Sieve the flour.

Mix all the ingredients. Knead to a soft dough using water little by little. Make small balls from the dough and keep it ready.

Heat oil. Hold the karasev ladle above the oil. Take a ball of dough, place it on the ladle and press it through the ladle with your hand. The bits of sev will fall on the oil. Fry them in medium flame till golden brown. Remove it from oil,drain in a kitchen towel. Repat the procedure with the remaining balls. When cool, store in an airtight container.

Serve as a snack with coffee/ tea. It goes well with puliyodharai also.

NOTE: Ensure medium heat of oil. When a small bit of the mixture is dropped, tit should rise up with bubbles. This is the correct smoking point of the oil. The dough should not be very stiff or very soft. It should be semi-stiff and pliable.

Thenkuzhal achu can also be used instead of the  karasev ladle.

Monday, November 5, 2012

LADDU / BOONDHI LADDU / DEEPAVALI SWEETS


Sugar absorbed boondhi laddu / ladoos for deepavali.

INGREDIENTS:

Gram flour - 2 cup
Sugar - 4 cups
Ghee - 1 1/2 cups OR Oil  - 1 1/2 cup
Milk - 1 ladle
Cashew nuts - 10
Cardamom  - 4 (crushed)
Edible camphor - a pinch
Kesari powder - 1/8tsp.
Clove - 4 (optional)

Nut meg - 1/4 (crushed coarsely)
Small sugar candies(Diamond kalkandu) - 1 teaspoon
Raisin – 20 nos.
Boondhi ladle - 1 





METHOD:

Heat a kadai, add sugar and a little water, mix with a ladle. When the sugar melts completely, add a ladle of milk to remove scum. Remove the impurities off the syrup. Make a sugar syrup of one string consistency. (See here for the consistencies of sugar syrup). Now the syrup is ready. Remove from heat. Add nutmeg, clove, cardamom, diamond kalkandu and edible camphor. Add the kesari powder, mix well. Add yellow food colour if you want the laddu to be in yellow colour.

Fry cashews and raisins in ghee till golden brown. Keep aside.

Sieve gram flour, add water and make a semi-thick batter. Mix well without any lumps.

Heat ghee/ oil. Hold the boondhi ladle above the oil. Pour a ladle of the batter on the boondhi ladle ( a flat ladle with holes) and tap gently. When doing like this, the mixture drops into the oil as small balls which we call as boondhi. Fry them in medium flame till soft and cooked. It should not be crisp. Remove it from oil,drain in  a kitchen towel and immediately drop these boondhis into the sugar syrup. Repeat the procedure with the remaining batter.

Mix the previous batch of boondhis well before dropping the next batch of boondhis. Add the fried cashews and raisins. When still warm, take a little of the mixture and make balls of desired size.

Sugar absorbed boondhi ladoos are ready for deepavali.

IMPORTANT NOTES:

1. Any sweet tastes awesome in ghee. However,  health conscious people can use oil. Ensure medium heat of ghee / oil. When a drop of batter is dropped, the batter should rise up with bubbles. This is the correct smoking point of the oil. The batter should not be  very dilute or very thick. It should be semi-thick.

2. The boondhis should be soft but cooked. It should not be crispy.

3. The sugar syrup should be warm.

4. The boondhis absorb the sugar only when hot, so drop them hot into the syrup.

5. Sugar candy (kalkandu), cloves, and edible camphor are optional.

6. For perfect balls, the sugar syrup and the boondhis should be mixed well and equal. Adjust the mixture accordingly, so that the sugar syrup is not in surplus.

Thursday, November 1, 2012

VANGI BHATH (KARNATAKA STYLE)


INGREDIENTS:

Cooked rice - 3 cups

Tamarind - half the size of a lemon
Brinjal - 1/4 kg.
Vangi bhath powder - 2 tablespoons
Jaggery - marble size
Grated coconut - 1 tablespoon
Mustard seeds - 1/4 tsp.

Urad dal - 1/2 tsp.
Chenna dal - 1/2 tsp.
Groundnuts - 2 tsp.

Cashews - 6
Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp.
Hing - a pinch
Dry red chillies - 2 

Curry leaves – few
Salt - as per taste
Oil - 1 tablespoon
Gingelly oil - 1 tsp.

METHOD:

Extract pulp from the tamarind. Chop brinjals to lengthy pieces.

In a kadai, heat oil, add mustard seeds. When they splutter add urad dal, chenna dal, dry chillies, groundnuts, curry leaves, turmeric powder and hing. When golden brown, 
add brinjal and saute for a while till cooked. Pour the tamarind extract and allow it to cook till the raw smell diffuses. Add the vangi bhath powder, salt, little jaggery and grated coconut and mix well. Cook in low flame for few minutes. The spicy mixture is ready now. 


Vangi bhath preparation:
Spread cooked rice in a wide plate, add the spicy mixture, little gingelly oil and salt (if required) . Gently turn it around or mix it with your hand without breaking the grains. Garnish with ghee fried cashews and serve.

Alternate vegetables that can be used for the bhath:

1. Brinjal  + green peas
2. Brinjal + capsicum + green peas
3. Beans
4. Chikdi beans (gori kai)
5. Beans + cabbage
6. Cabbage + green peas
7. Capsicum