Snowy Bananas finally succeed!

"Snowy Bananas" a.k.a Puttu is a favorite in our house. The kids won't eat banana but will eat it in the puttu with sugar. And Richie... need I say we don't use any oil in this breakfast and it all vanishes. Awesome!

Initially I used to buy rice flour, roast it and make puttu in a vegetable steamer. It was a no-brainer and was a routine weekend breakfast. Then I discovered the joys of readymade puttu flour and "chemba puttu" and the discovery of the puttu kuzhal (courtesy: Richie's mom)! :) Woohoo!

Now, 2 yrs later, none of the stores closeby stock Nirapara Chemba Puttu Podi anymore. We have another brand Periyar. Oh! What the heck? They all should be the same, screw brand loyalty and all that! Bought a packet and a large one at that. Imagine, my horror when I make the puttu (as per Nirapara instructions, mind you!) and it comes out a huge lump that you can hardly break to pieces. And the taste! Yuck! Like sand... The kids didn't touch it. It was horrible.

Maybe I needed to take a closer look at the instructions on the back. Here's what I see:

Maybe I need to use the mixie. So, the next time, I used the mixie and that was worse than before. The whole batch went straight to trash. What a waste!

Been wondering ever since how in the world I was going to finish this large packet of puttu podi. Then this morning, enlightenment... got down to the grass root level. Roasted the podi, used warm water to make the wet mix and Voila! Awesome Puttu! So soft and yummy!

How hard could it be to have it down on the instructions that the flour needs to be roasted??? Atleast "For Dummies" like me! Argh!

Medhu vada

Been wanting to make medhu vadas for a long time and was finally able to make them today. My mom used to just drop a ladle of batter into the oil and we gobbled them up none the wiser! I've always followed her method without even bothering to try them out with the hole in the middle. Well, today was the day and the shapes  came out beautifully! On my first try too! Woohoo!!!

I used:
Urad Dal - 1/2 cup
Onions - 1/2
Green Chilly - 1
Whole peppercorns - 1 tsp
Finely chopped ginger - 1 tsp
Chopped curry leaves - 15
Salt - to taste

Method:
1. Soak Urad Dal in sufficient water for 2-3 hours. 
2. Drain water completely and then refrigerate for an hour. (I did this because a repair man showed up and used up a good hour of my time, so the soaked dal went into the fridge!)
3. Grind to a fine paste with no water. To check, dip your fingers in water and then touch the batter. It should not stick to your fingers.
4. Mix the remaining ingredients to the batter.

5. Heat oil in a pan.
6. You can wet your fingers in water. Scoop out the batter with your wet fingers and using your thumb flatten and make a hole in the center. 
7. Drop the vadas in the hot oil.

8. Fry till golden brown. Ensure the heat is not too high because the inside will still be undercooked.
9. Place on kitchen tissues to drain excess oil. Hot, crisp, delicious vada is ready to eat!

 
We enjoyed this as snack with coconut chutney and sambar and also with dinner. :)

Surprise!

Two people couldn't be any more different -
One is a morning person, the other is a night owl.
One loves food, the other eats to live.

One is shy, the other is out going.
One is a follower, the other is a leader.

And so on...

But, share One common love for Chocolate!

So, here's my surprise to celebrate these 2 little people:

Cappuchino - My favorite cuppa

Say Coffee and you've got my attention. Say Cappuchino and you'll see me walking around with that dazed look in my eyes. That's how much I love cappuchino - strong coffee, with a hint of milk and sweetness and all that foam - Oh! I'm in heaven. See this picture -

 

Look at all that creamy foam? This is my very own cappuchino made at home - no fancy coffee machines needed, no decoction, filtering, nothing. Coffee, sugar, milk and a bit of elbow grease makes the most amazing cappuchino! Right here! In your house!

Here's how to make some:
Full Fat Milk - 1 cup, warmed (on the stove or microwave)
Instant Coffee Powder - 1 tsp
Sugar - 1.5 tsp (use 1 tsp, if you don't like too much sugar)
Water - 1 tsp (make sure the water is not warm or hot, it should be room temperature)

Method:
1. Throw in the coffee powder, sugar and the water in a cup.

2. Using a spoon, mix, mix, mix, mix till mixture goes from dark brown to light brown with light airy bubbles and loads of froth. It takes about 3-4 minutes of continuous mixing. (It looks a bit dark in this picture, probably because it's gloomy today.) The lighter it is, the better the end result.

3. Once the coffee paste is ready, gently pour in the warm milk. And that's it! Take a look:

Light, creamy, frothy cappuchino is ready and awaiting your pleasure. Even my kids love this and will drink a whole cup of it. Really, you got to try it to experience it! Ahh....

Moong Dal Dosa

This was not a hit with my family, but it is tasty and very healthy to boot. So, all you health conscious foodies, this one is for you.

Ingredients:

Moong Dal - 1 cup
Idli Rice - 1 cup
Urad Dal - 1/4 cup
Green Chillies - 2
Ginger - 1 tsp

Salt - as per taste

Method:
1. Soak the moong dal, rice and dal for 6 hours or overnight.
2.  In the morning, grind the moong dal first, then add the rice, dal, chillies and ginger.
3. Grind to a smooth paste adding water. It should be like dosa batter.
4. Add salt and your batter is ready.

Dosas can be made immediately and there is no fermenting time. It tasted like a regular dosa except for the green look, which is what put my kids off I think. May be I will give it another try! Wish me luck!

Egg Onion Masala

My kids love egg in any form - boiled, scrambled, sunny side up... Their favorite - boiled egg mixed with a onion-tomato gravy. Was feeling a bit adventurous the other day and decided to make a different gravy to go with the eggs. The inspiration was from a friend of mine who suggested Mutton Masala in an egg gravy. I added saunf and that gave another twist to the taste. Take a look first:

 Look good? Yep? Thank you. It tasted good as well. It's a super simple recipe, so read on and see for yourselves.

Ingredients:

Egg - 6, Hard Boiled, shelled and halved
Onion - 1 chopped lengthwise, fine
Saunf - 1 tsp
Jeera - 1/2 tsp
Ginger garlic paste - 1 tsp
Curry Leaves - 1 whole sprig
Mutton Masala - 1 tsp
Red Chilly Powder - 1 tsp
Coriander Powder - 1/2 tsp
Turmeric - 1/4 tsp
Salt - to taste.
Oil - 1 tsp

Coriander Leaves - to garnish

Method:
1. Heat oil in a pan. Add saunf, jeera.
2. Once the jeera splutters, add ginger garlic paste. Saute for a bit.
3. Then add the onions and the curry leaves. Saute well until the onions are pink and translucent.
4. Add salt and then throw in all the powders.
5. Saute well, until the raw smell of the powders disappear.
6. Place the eggs cut side down, so they brown a bit and firm up.
7. Mix together. Be careful not to over-mix or the yolks will fall out.
8. Serve hot, garnished with coriander leaves.

Chilly Beef and Mushroom Fry – Chinese Style

My first real Chinese success! I wish I could have marinated the beef for a bit longer, so it would have cooked through. It was a bit rare for our taste, but overall amazing!

Ingredients:

Beef – ¼ kg, cut into thin slices or strips
Light Soy Sauce – 2 Tbsp
Corn starch – 2 Tbsp
Pepper Powder – 1 tsp
Vinegar – 2 Tbsp
Salt – as per taste

Onion – 1, cut into chunks

Capsicum – 1, cut into chunks
Garlic – 1 head, chopped fine
Ginger – Equal quantity to garlic, chopped fine

Green Chillies – 4

Red Chillies - 2
Oyster Mushrooms – 1 cup

Soy Sauce – a dash

Salt – as per taste

Pepper powder – 1 tsp

Red chilly powder – 1 tsp, optional (I added because I wanted more spiciness)

Scallions / Spring Onions – 1 cup, chopped

Oil – 2 Tbsp + 2 Tbsp

Method: 
1.       Mix beef, soy sauce, corn starch, salt, black pepper powder, and vinegar together in a bowl until all the ingredients coat the beef well. 
2.       Refrigerate the marinade for 15 minutes. 
3.       Heat wok / pan over high heat. 
4.       Add 2 Tbsp oil. Then throw in garlic, ginger and the chillies. 
5.       Once the oil is infused with the flavor of the ginger, garlic and chillies, throw in the onions and capsicum. Saute for a few minutes until the capsicum is well cooked. 
6.       Then add the mushrooms, soy sauce, salt, pepper powder, chilly powder and stir-fry until the mushrooms are soft. It should now be an almost gravy. You could add a part of the scallions now as well. 
7.       Remove the vegetables from the wok/pan and set aside. 
8.       Add the remaining oil and throw in the meat. Saute/Toss the meat until it sears and is nearly cooked through. 
9.       Add the vegetables back to the pan and toss all the ingredients together until the flavors meld and the meat and the veggies are cooked. 
10.   Taste and adjust for salt or pepper as needed. 
11. Garnish with scallions and serve hot.

Note:  
Soy Sauce is salty, so be careful with the salt. You could add more later.
You could try this recipe with chicken or pork as well.
If your meat has not cooked thoroughly, place the completed dish in a covered microwave safe dish and microwave for about 5 mins until the meat is cooked through.