All festivals celebrated anywhere in the world are for giving us respite from the routine. Just to stop for a while and enjoy the beauty of life. A few months back a friend of mine said that she hated festivals as it meant following some rituals like having a head bath, waking up early in the morning, cleaning the house a few days in advance, elaborate cooking etc, etc. She felt frustrated as she was always forced by her MIL and could never see any joy in festivals! Anything thrust upon us forcefully becomes a burden.
Thankfully I had no such bitter experiences. Though I too follow all the rituals, I do it on my own accord and that makes the huge difference! Festival means holiday for hubby and children! Cooking at a leisurely pace, dressing up kids with lovingly designed clothes, visiting friends , inviting some for lunch or dinner, exchanging pleasantries with all your loved ones atleast over phone, and so many more lovely things to look forward to on a festival day!
Some times I am not able to follow all the rituals associated with a festival. I still enjoy without any feeling of guilt! After all we are humans! My suggestion to one and all is, just let your hair down and relax and enjoy! That’s what festivals are all about! 🙂
I prepared a simple feast for Thiru Karthigai and this is my entry for Traditional feast hosted by Meeta of What’s For Lunch Honey! Thanks Meeta for hosting this wonderful event! 🙂 Though a proper traditional meal has more items in the menu, I cooked only a few. With only three of us, I had to limit the no of items.
Traditional Feast Menu
- Mysore rasam
- Avial
- Urad dal bhonda
- Suyian (Recipe below)
- Arbi curry ( Recipe below)
- Cabbage poriyal
- Gooseberry chutney( Recipe below)
- Tomato pachadi
In older days food was served in plantain leaves as it was available in plenty and also people had to find some use for these leaves, instead of letting them go waste. The tip of the leaf should be to the left hand side of the diner. On festival days a teaspoon of sugar and a banana is served in the left corner of the leaf. Rice is always accompanied by plain dal.
Urad dal bhonda
This is a slight variation to the urad dal vadas. Prepare the batter as you do for vadas. Add a few flakes of coconut, roughly crushed peppercorns and chopped curry leaves. Shape them to small balls and fry in hot oil.
Suyian
Ingredients
- Grated coconut – 1 cup
- Grated jaggery – 1/2 cup
- Cardamom – 1 no
- Maida – 2 tablespoons
- Oil – 100ml
Method
- In a heavy bottomed pan, mix jaggery, coconut and 2 tablespoons water and cook on a medium flame, stirring continously.
- Take off the flame once the jaggery melts and blends with the coconut. Add cardamom powder and allow to cool. This is the poornam.
- Mix maida with some water to a thick paste. Make balls out of the poornam, coat with maida paste and fry in hot oil.
- As the poornam is already cooked only the outer covering needs to be cooked. The balls will be white when hot. As it cools the suyian will turn brown as the outer covering will soak the jaggery syrup from the poornam. This is the main reason for making the outer coating with a soft flour.
Arbi or Taro or Colacasia curry
Ingredients
- Colacasia – 1/2 kg
- Hing – 1/4 teaspoon
- turmeric – 1/2 teaspoon
- Thick tamarind paste – 2 table spoons ( made from lemon sized ball of tamarind)
- Salt – 3/4 teaspoon
- Chilli powder – 1 teaspoon
- Urad dal – 1 teaspoon
- Channa dal – 1 teaspoon
- Mustard seeds – 1/2 teaspoon
- Oil – 2 table spoons.
Method
- Wash the colacasia well and pressure cook. Allow to cool and peel the skin.
- Cut into small pieces. Mix tamarind paste, salt, turmeric powder, chilli powder and hing in a bowl and coat the colacassia with this paste.
- Heat oil in a kadai on a medium flame. Add mustard seeds, when it crackles add urad dal and channa dal.
- Fry till golden. Add the colacasia and stir fry on a low flame to get crispy curry.
Gooseberry chutney
Ingredients
- Gooseberries – 4 nos
- Urad dal – 2 tablespoons
- Mustardseeds – 1 teaspoon
- Red chillies – 2 nos
- Hing – a small piece
- Turmeric powder- 1/2 teaspoon
- Oil – 1 table spoon
- Salt to taste
Method
- Remove the seeds from gooseberries and cut into small pieces.
- Heat oil in a small kadai, fry the mustard, urad dal, hing and redchillies till golden. Add the gooseberries and turmeric and saute for two minutes.
- Allow to cool, add salt and grind to a chutney.
Hi,
That’s a simple feast!! Lovely pic and yummy dishes 🙂 The new look is very nice as well
Thanks Anu! 🙂
Latha mam,
I am agreeing with you for that everything should not be compelled and done …then it will become a burden only ..we should enjoy what we do ,then only there will be a meaning in it…
As i was typing I thought today also i should be the first here to comment…suddenly Anu’s comment came…:-(
Its okay…:-)
I have tagged you for Some 5 Qs…Hope you will do it for me…Thanx in advance!!
Rajeshwari dear, tomorrow I will let you know as soon as I post, so that you can comment first! 😀 I will post the meme tomorrow itself! :)latha.
You have made me hungry with your full meals in banana leaf!!
Quite a feast Latha ma. Couldn’t choose just one item to be the best. My hubby was justpassing by (actually getting ready to office) and gave a comment. “Nee etha paartha matum podhadhu. Get up and cook something”. So, I got to go. Looks very very delicious.
Wonderful thali and a great entry Latha. I don’t do any rituals at all but just cook!:D
Going to check your Xmas package to Z and Mysore Rasam too!:)
Beautiful feast on thalai vazhai ilai, lathamma:) I too agree to your point that nothing should be forced. I remember my mother’s plight in those days when my father was an angry man (heee heee he has mellowed down a lot with age and experience)… she meticulously used to plan and prepare everything and still on the day of any festival he would panic her with some unwanted comments. Amma stills says ‘enakku maamiyar, nathanar ellam ungappa thaan’;) (my father has no sisters and since my father was in transferable job my paatti never lived with us). But since few years he helps her a lot and infact gives suggestions to reduce work load:)
More than the food i like the sari.. is it kasuti work on that? where did you buy that?
what a beautiful spread, looks so appetising, wish could taste it right off the screen! lovely attitude towards festivals 🙂
great feast lathama
kamala
Such a wonderful array of delicious dishes!
Thanks for the recipes and the beautiful pictures!
That’s some feast maami. I hardly cook so many dishes though even for festivals unless we have lots of pple over…
Great feast.. awesome presentation on a Banana leaf!! I too hardly cook full fledged meals for festivals unless i have people over….Lovely saree.
You are tagged for “Kitchen Disaster” MeMe by me Latha, do it!;D
You are so very right…festivals are best enjoyed when you let your hair down and relax.
I love how your presentation
U r so right!! anything done with willingness is a pleasure!! forcing someone to follow rituals is almost like controlling theor happiness and way of enjoying!!!
WONDERFUL SPREAD!!!
The feast is enough to make anyone a festival lover! I personally luv to follow our traditional festivities and its routine and I have a hubby who loves it too at the same time taking care to see me going overboard! He is the one who says – comeon we are humans! hahahaha
Good to see the spread Latha 🙂
That looks “simply delicious”, Latha! Hope you had a wonderful Karthigai!
Vazhaiilai virundhukku varanum pola irukku. Romba naal aachu vazhai ilaila saapittu..
looks lovely and feast for the eyes too.
So this is simple in your dictionary?
A wonderful spread Latha, simple yet so appetizing…lovely entry!
Wow!!! Latha ji, Love the banana leaf spread to the core. Thanx fo r all those yum recieps.
Hi latha,
“Thala vazha ila Virundhu” visual treat for us to enjoy the delicious dishes.
My mother makes cheppankilangu curry like yours.
Thanks for sharing.
Dear Lathamma,
I totally agree with the fact that – festivals must be enjoyable not a burden or some custom. – just let your hair down and relax and enjoy!..:))
My eyes were on the purple pattu saree more than the feast..:) .. Its Lovely..
Ur spread is always a feast to eyes amma!
~ Siri
nice post…enjoyed reading …saree colors look gr8. also the green leaf with lots of goodies. will try some of them..
Beautiful spread, Latha 🙂
I am not much of a festival person myself but I do try and cook an elaborate meal for Onam and Vishu at least.
‘Festivals are to relax and enjoy.’How true Latha.But, most of the times the lady of the house has to sacrifice on that front too, with the ‘keeping the traditions alive’ burden hanging heavily.
love love love that spread of delicious items. and i hate festivals. 😀
I was about to ask the same as suganya..is this simple??…I would definitely like to see what is elaborate means to you…that looks so lovely…
We had a similar meal last night… no festival, but still… we had rice, dal, avial, vazhaikkai karumadu and tomato rasam along with some vadams… curds is always part of our meal 🙂 so it was a feast 🙂
wow Latha, that is really traditional! I never got to eat on a banana leaf:( maybe next time I’ll come to your place when I’m in B’lore:)
Appetizing spread! When i read your first para it was like deja vous! I used to luv festivals as a kid becos of the whole atmosphere used to be so nice and of course all the yummy food that mom used to dish out. But i find that as an adult, I don’t seem to enjoy them as much, esp after i got married. But hey, thats becos i am bad at cooking (my own limitation), so i get all worked up to cook up a whole meal and my full focus is on food rather than enjoying the day, praying etc!!! I guess when i become an expert like you one day when cooking becomes second nature, i would surely start enjoying all the festivals!!!
i love that thali…looks so yummy
I loved reading about your approach to festivals. As I am here often on my own, I adopt your approach each day. We do what makes sense for us to do on that day, with a glad heart. That may not always be to the extent that we would like, but it is not always possible. Love reading your blog, and this post is extra special.
Lovely Pic!..Fantastic spread!
An incredible feast and an honor for me that you are bringing it along to the MM!
An incredible feast and an honor for me that you are bringing it along to the MM!
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