Arusuvai Friendship Chain: Badam halwa and My Fridge

Bharathy, of the funny comments in purely colloquial tamizh fame, sent along a box of stuff I love to munch on most as a part of the Arusuvai Friendship Chain – dry fruits. 🙂

Arusuvai is a chain where one passes on a surprise ingredient to friends who need to cook something with the ingredient and continue the chain by passing on “surprise ingredients” to more friends. Read the whole story here.

I love dry fruits – I can declare my undying love for them at any place, any time. Each day has to either start or end with a small helping of nuts or I feel like there’s a screw missing. So you can my reaction when I opened the package Bharathy sent along to see this.

I took the liberty of assuming that only Almonds and Raisins were the “surprise ingredients” (The rest were eaten straight out of the box) and prepared Badam Halwa.

My Mama and Manni had gifted me a set of two beautiful Corelware bowls which I inaugurated with two of my favourite desserts – Badam Halwa and Fudgy Brownie.

Badam Halwa

Fudgy Brownie Cake

Badam Halwa
Ingredients

• Badam/ Almonds – 1 cup
• Cashew – 1 cup
• Sugar – 1 cup *
• Cardamom – 4 nos
• Ghee – 1 tablespoon
• Dry grapes – 1 tablespoon

Method

1. Soak the Badam/ Almonds and Cashew in hot water. Peel the skin of Badam. After 1/2 an hour grind to a fine paste.
2. Take the ground paste in a MW safe bowl, add sugar, cardamom powder and 2 teaspoon ghee.
3. Mix well and MW high for 6 to 8 minute, stirring twice in between.
4. Fry the dry grapes in 1 teaspoon ghee and decorate the halwa.

*You can increase the quantity of sugar as per your taste.

I am passing on surprise ingredients to Nags at For the cook in me and Raaga at The Singing Chef.

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Asha has tagged me to display my fridge. A few points before we an look at the much awaited exhibit:

1. I din’t clean it before the snap. Period. This is how it looks on a regular day.
2. I don’t think its “very clean” or organized – its an average regular fridge that I am very happy with.
3. I thank god that there’s only a “Show me your fridge” meme, and not a “Show me your wardrobe” or “Show me the table near your wardrobe” meme. I might need to pay a to and fro ticket for a certain somebody from Bangalore if I ever needed to display my wardrobe.
4. I never ever thought I’d combine two posts in one like this :O . I blame this squarely on the Asha effect.

My Freezer with Coconuts that are yet to be grated. In a bout of laziness I just put them in boxes. Chill tray with Milk.

Main Racks – Top – Leftovers, Middle – Milk, Pickles, Preserves and hidden blocks of Chocolate, Bottom – The indispensable store of Curds, Roti Dough, Badam Halwa. Usually Dosa Batter or other wet batters also occupy this shelf.

Vegetable Rack. Tomatoes and Coriander are always stored separately. Supply of Avakkai from Bangalore

Side Racks – Syrups, Pickles, Ghee, Honey, Flavourings, Yeast (hopefully still alive), Cheese, Ginger, Green Chilly

And now I tag:

Siri of Siri’s Corner

Bharathy of Spicy Chilly

Srivalli of Cooking for all seasons

…to display their fridge

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Maa Inji urugai ( Mango Ginger pickle)

Maa Inji or Mango ginger may not be a familiar spice for many. It is easily available in southindia and tastes milder than ginger. This simple pickle tastes great with curd rice. This is my entry for Sunita’s think spice think ginger event! 🙂

Ingredients

• Maa inji – 1/4 kg
• Green chillies – 4 nos
• Lemon – 2 nos
• Turmeric powder – 1/4 teaspoon
• Salt – 1 teaspoon
• Vinegar – 1 cup (optional)
• Fresh green pepper – 100 gms (optional)

Method

1. Wash peel and cut the maa inji into thin rounds. Wash and dry the green peppercorns.
2. Cut the green chillies into pieces. Take out the lemon juice. ( you can also slice to thin pieces and add)
3. Mix all ingredients well in a bowl. Store in a airtight container in the fridge. Use after a day.

Vinegar is required only if you want to make large quantities and preserve for many months. I have not added pepper as it was not available in the market.

The season for maa inji and green milagu( pepper) is from september to january.

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Thalara Karamedu (Vegetables in Toor dal based Gravy)

Thalara Karamedu (kariamudu) is an iyengar recipe. Lady finger (Vendaikkai), Brinjal (Kathirikkai) and Raw plantain (Vazhaikkai) are the three vegetables that are used to make this gravy. This combination of vegetables is very important to this recipe. I’m sending this to Linda’s JFI- Toordal , Suganya’s Vegan Ventures and Easycrafts Powerless event! Since Sra has ruled out Lentil based Gravys I cannot send it to hers (though this was the initial plan).

I finally convinced Lakshmi (my boss) to send one recipe for three events. 😀

I prepared this while in Chennai as a side dish for Phulkas. This curry tastes great with rice also. Lakshmi and Satish loved the colour and flavour of the curry very much.

Ingredients

• Lady finger – 6 nos
• Brinjal – 1 medium sized
• Plantain – 1/2
• Toordal – 1/2 cup
• Tamarind – lemon sized
• Redchillies – 2 nos
• Mustard seeds – 1/2 teaspoon
• Turmeric powder – 1/2 tea spoon
• Hing – 1/4 teaspoon
• Oil – 2 teaspoons
• Curry leaves – 1 twig
• Salt to taste

Method

1. Wash and cut the vegetables to 1 inch slices.
2. Soak tamarind in warm water and take out 3 cups of thin water.
3. Wash and pressure cook the toor dal with 2 cups of water.
4. Heat oil in a heavy bottomed pan, add mustard seeds. When it crackles add redchilli pieces.
5. When redchillies are brown, add curry leaves and the vegetables.
6. Add turmeric and hing powder. Stir for a few minutes.
7. Add the tamarind water, cover and cook on a medium flame till the vegetables are soft.
8. Mash the toordal and add to the cooked vegetables. Add salt and simmer for 3 minutes.
9. Serve hot with rotis or rice.

I served it with puffed phulkas made by Lakshmi! 🙂

Update: Those of who who missed the weekend post with a cute pic of our babies, head here.

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The Definition of Cute

Outing on a Newspaper while Anna cleans the Pots – Budgerigar Babies @ our home in Bangalore

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I became powerless making these Stuffed Gobi Parathas

The whole month of november I wanted to cook from other blogs! But then I get tempted to participate in the various events. Hosts of our events are so funny! Srivalli says I want something cooked in MW! Easycraft says don’t touch any electrical device! Sra wants grindless gravies and Suganya says no to milk and butter! Bee says when you cook it should look beautiful! Nothing less than a traditional feast would do for Meeta and Zlamuksha wants the food to be gift wrapped! Ginger is a must for Sunita! Sangeetha wants khana from a Bihari Ghar!

Have I gone mad! Not at all! Just listing the few events I like to participate so that I need not visit Asha’s blog and get scared seeing her spookytacular halloween post! 😀

For Easycrafts powerless event I decided to cook something for breakfast so that I need not use the electrical bulb! 🙂 Thanks for hosting the event easycrafts! 🙂

Stuffed Gobi Parathas

Ingredients

• Wheat flour – 2 cups
• Salt to taste
• Ghee 1 teaspoon

For the filling

• Cauli flower – 1 medium sized
• Onion – 1 medium sized
• Coriander leaves – 2 twigs
• Greenchillies – 3 nos
• Turmeric powder – 1/4 teaspoon
• Salt to taste
• Ghee 3 teaspoons
• Oil – 2 teaspoons

Method

1. Mix the wheat flour with salt, ghee and required amount of water to make a stiff dough*.
2. Wash and cut the cauliflower into 1 inch flowerets. finely chop the onions, greenchillies and coriander.
3. Heat oil in a kadai, add the onions, coriander leaves and green chillies. Saute for a minute and add the cauliflower.
4. Add salt and turmeric powder and mix well. Sprinkle some water and cover and cook on a medium flame.
5. Once the cauliflower is soft, open a cook till the curry becomes dry.Allow to cool for 10 minutes**.
6. Make 2 inch balls out of the dough and roll using a little flour. Roll the outer edges thin leaving the center slightly thick to make a 8 inch circle.
7. Place some curry in the center close and press the edges to seal as shown in picture. Smear some flour and roll lightly to form a circle.
8. Cook both sides on a tawa over a medium flame till brown spots appear. apply 1/2 teaspoon ghee for each paratha.
9. Serve with curds and pickle.

*The flour should be stiff as the curry will be moist.

**The cauli flower should be well cooked. Rolling will be easier if the curry is cool.

I will be away at chennai with my daughter and son in law till 17th. I will come back and check all your posts. Have a great weekend and please, please leave your lovely comments! 🙂

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Paruppu Urundai Kuzhambu (Toor dal dumplings in sambhar)

I was so excited when Linda announced Toor dal as the ingredient for JFI this month! 🙂 We use this dal almost everyday and I have already posted so many recipes using toor dal!

But then for the event I definitely wanted to post something exclusive, a recipe that a lot of people have been looking for. So I decided on this recipe as my entry for JFI Toordal hosted by Linda of Out of the Garden. Thanks for hosting the event Linda! 🙂 My MW version of this recipe is published in Tupperware Cook book! 🙂

Ingredients

For the dumplings

• Toor dal – 1 cup
• Red chillies – 3 nos
• Coriander leaves – 4 twigs
• Salt – to taste

For the sambhar(gravy)

• Tamarind – lemon sized ball
• Sambhar powder – 2 teaspoons
• Hing – 1/4 teaspoon
• Turmeric powder – 1/4 teaspoon
• Salt to taste

Method

1. Wash and soak the toordal for 1 hour. Drain well and grind to a thick paste with salt and red chillies.
2. Wash and chop the coriander and mix with the toordal paste.
3. Soak tamarind in hot water for some time and take out the pulp to make 3 cups of tamarind juice. You can also use tamarind pulp stored in freezer.
4. Take the tamarind juice in a thick bottomed pan. Add hing, sambhar powder, turmeric powder and salt to tamarind juice and boil on a medium flame.
5. Make 2 inch balls out of the toordal paste and add 1 ball at a time to the boiling tamarind water (sambhar).
6. Once the ball rises up add one more ball. Remove the balls as they rise up and keep in another container.
7. After cooking all the balls this way, add all the balls to the sambhar again and cook for 5 minutes on a low flame.
8. Your sambhar is ready to be served with rice or rotis.

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