Pappu churu

"Pappu charu" the cousin of Sambar .
Pappu charu is very light and easliy digestable . It taste much better in cold winter nights and is very comforting  .


Recipe :

Pappu charu follows almost the same recipe of Sambar except that pappu charu  dosent have 'Sambar powder' in it . One less ingredient makes soo much difference in taste and aroma .

Serve Pappu charu with rice , ghee and with some vadiyalu or papad , chips ......

Pappu charu with rice and vadiyalu

Valentine's day cake (pound cake with chocolate cream cheese frosting)

Happy Valentine's Day wishes to all you there

Ingredients:

for pound cake:

Maida / AP flour - 2cups
Butter - 1/2cup(1 stick)
Sugar - 2cups(divided)
Eggs - 4
Butter milk - 1cup
Vanilla - 1tsp
Baking soda - 1/4tsp

For chocolate cream cheese icing:

Chocolate chips - 1 cup(divided)
Cream cheese - 1Block
Butter - 6tbs(divided)
Sugar - 1cup
Vanilla - 1tsp
Milk - about 1/2 cup

for cake -

• Pre heat oven to 350 .
• Grease and dust  two  8 / 9 inch round cake pans .
• Cream 4 tbs butter and 11/2cups of sugar . When is it is fluffy add eggs to the butter mixture and wisk it until it turns it is all mixed or light yellow colour . Add Vanilla , butter milk and mix it well .

• In a saperate bowl , add flour , baking soda and mix well.
• Now add flour mixture to the butter mixtur . Add little by little so that no lumps are formed . wisk until the flour is well incorperated into the butter mixture .(if the batter is too thick , add little milk ) Now the batter is ready .

• Equally distribute the batter into 2 pan and bake it for 35 - 40 minutes or until cake is bakked .

• Once they are done , take out of the oven and cool completely .

Now for the frosting -

• Bring cream cheese and and butter to room temperature .
• Ground sugar to fine powder .
• Wisk cream cheese and butter until they are completely incorperated .

• Add  powdered sugar and mix it well .

• In  microwave safe bowl , add 1/2 cup of chocolate chips and 2tbs milk , 1tbs of butter and microwave it for 30 secs . Now wisk it until all the chocolate and milk is mixed will . Add it to the butter and cheese mixture.

• Add vanilla to it and mix again .

• If the frosting is too thick add milk to it by wisking(add 1tbs of milk at a time) .
• let the frosting stay in room temepreature until cakes are cooled .

for assembling cake and frosting -

• Boil 1/2 cup of sugar with 1 cup of water .

• Take the cooled cakes , poke some holes on both sides .

• Now brush generously  the boiled water and sugar mixture on both sides .

• To the cake base , apply little bit of frosting (so that cake dosent slide when you move) .

• Now take 1 layer and put it upside down and 1/3 of the frosting and spread it through out .

• Now place another layer on it as it is  (not upside down) and add another 1/3 of frosting and spread it .
• Now frost the sides with remaining 1/3 of frosting .

• Take another 1/2 cup of chocolate chips , 1tbs butter , 1/4 cup of  milk and microwave it for 30 secs and wisk it well . Keep it in fritz and let it cool completely .Pour this cooles chocolate mixture on top of the frosted cake . Make sure all the cake is covered with this cocolate mixture.

• keep it in fritz so that chocolate is cooled .
• Now cake is ready .

for extra decoration -

• for further decoration , I took some of the cream cheese frosting before adding chocolate and added orange color to it and put little hearts .

• For chocolate heat design , i took some of the melted chocolate and put the little chocolate hearts  color .
• For cake base , i cut some cardboard piece and lined it with foil .

Goduma dosa / Savoury wheat crepes

Ingredients:

Whole wheat flour - 1cup
Onion - 1small
Green chilly - 1
Salt - 3/4tsp
Oil - few tsps

• Finely chop onion and green chilly .
• In a bowl  add wheat flour , salt , copped oinions and green chillies and mix it well .

• Now add water to it (about 2 cups) . The consistency should be slightly thiner that pancake batter about pouring consistency .

• Now heat griddle on medium high heat .
• Once the griddle is how , add 1tsp of oil to it and let it heat .

• Now take a laddle full of battle and pour it on to the hot griddle and spread it little bit .

• Check if it is done on bottom - the edges should turn brown or just lift  little bit and check for the brown color on bottom side .

• Turn it to the other side and let it cook for a minute or so .
• Serve it hot with allam pachadi / coconut pachadi .      

Goduma dosa with sugar and allam pachadi(I luv goduma dosa with sugar)

NOTE : for measuring I used rice cup .

This will make 4 dosas.

Rava kesari

Ingredients :

Rava - 1cup
Sugar - 11/2cup
Elachi powder - 1/2tsp
Ghee - 2tbs(even more if u like)
Cashews - 2tbs(as u like)
Water - 3cups

• Take a skillet on medium flame and add rava to it and dry roast it for 10 minutes or until rava leaves its raw smell .

• Mean while in another pot boil 3 cups of water .
• Once the rava is roasted , add boiling boil water to rava by stirring it well so that no lumps are formed .(Becareful rava and water are too hot)

• Let it cook by strring until rava is almost done .

• Now add the sugar to it . (now the mixture becomes watery again) and let it cook until it thickens .

• Mean while fry cashews in ghee until gloden brown color .

• Add the Elachi powder , fried cashews along with ghee to the cooked rava and mix it well .

• serve it hot or cold .

Chintapandu pulihora / Tamarind rice

Ingredients :

Rice - 2cups
Tamarind - 1big lemon size ball
Ginger - 1"piece
Green chillies - 3
turmeric - 1/2tsp
Salt -2tsp

For tempring :

Mustard seeds - 1tsp
Split black gram - 1tsp
Jeera - 1/2tsp
Chenna dal - 1tbs
Peanuts - 2tbs
Oil - 2tsp

• Wash and soak rice for 15 minutes .
• Add water to the rice(1:2 the ratio of rice to water )  cook it until rice is completly done and let it cool .
• Add some water to the tamarind and microwave it for 1 minute and let is cool little bit and extract the juice from it .
• Now do the tempering - Heat skillet on medium flame and add oil to it . When oil is hot , add the whole red chillies , mustard seeds , split black gram , jeera and let them fry little bit . Now add chenna dal , fry it for few seconds and add peanuts and let all fry .

• Now add the split green chillies , greated ginger and let it fry for 1 minute .

• Now add turmeric powder and fry for few seconds .

• Now add the extracted tamarind juice, salt  and let ie cook for 10 minutes or until it leaves it ram smell . check for the final seasoning and take it off from the heat .
• Add the tempered mixture to the cooked and cooled rice and mix it well .

Sreve it hot .

This can be served for lunch /dinner or taste even better for next day morning  breakfast .

(Iam bit hurry so did'nt take much photos)

25th post and Maha Sivaratri

Guess what this is my 25th post and today is Maha Sivaratri .

  For naivedyam i did chintapandu pulihora / tamarind rice and rava kesari

Bisi bele bath

Ingredients:

Rice - 2cups
Kandipappu /Tur dal - 2/3cup
Carrot - 3 small( 1 big)
Mullangi / parsnip - 1small
Sorakaya /bottle gourd  - small piece
Dry peas - 1/4cup
Tomato - 1 big
Oinion - 1 big
Green chillies - 3
Tamarind - 1 lemon size ball
Oil - 1tbs

Spices:

Sambar powder -2tsp
Red chilly powder - 11/2tsp
Curry powder - 1/2tsp
Turmeric powder - 1/4tsp
Salt - 11/2tsp

For tempering:

Mustard seeds - 1tsp
Split black gram - 1tsp
Jeera -1/2tsp
Whole red chilles - 2
Ghee/oil - 1tbs

• Soak dry peas for atleast 3 hrs and cook them until soft .

• Put tamarind in microwave safe bowl and microwave it for 1 minute and let it cool .

• Wash rice and dal , soak for 15 minutes .

• Wash and cut all veggies(carrots , bottle gourd , parsnip, tomato , onion ) in to small pieces and split the green chilles.

• In a pressure cooker , add 1tbs of oil and let it heat on medium flame . When oil is hot  , add split green chilles and saute it for few seconds . Now add chopped onions and saute it until the start changing color to light brown .

• Now add all the remaing veggies and saute it for 1 minute .

• Now add water to pot until veggies are covered (about 3 cups) . Cover the pot and bring it to a boil .

• Now add the soaked rice , dal and add water  (1:4 ratio for rice to water )  i.e  total amount of water used in cooking)

• Now add all the spices to it and mix it well .

• Close the pressure cooker with lid and let  it cook for 3 wistles . Let it cool and until all the pressure is gone .
• Open the lid and mix it well .

• Extract juice from tamaring and add the juice to the cooked rice dal mixture .

• If rice is too thick , add some water ( about 1 cup) , mix it well and check for the final seasoning .Rice should be mushy and creamy consistency.
• Now do the tempering - Heat skillet on medium flame and add ghee to it . When ghee is hot , add the tempering ingredients and let them fry .

• Now add the tempered mixture to the cooked rice and mix it well.

• Serve steaming hot bisi bele bath with ghee and papad .

NOTE:
      - Can use any other veggies like egg plant , cauliflower , beans , beet root ....
      - Can use fresh / frozen peas ( i dont like the sweet bite of fresh / frozen peas )
      - The ratio of rice to dal is 2:1 but that is too heavy for me , so i added less dal .
      - Can always adjust spices according to your taste .