Carrot Burfi

Carrot Burfi is a newly tried recipe. I saw this recipe in a cook book written by Kaveri B S. The recipe was interesting as she had included coconut. This burfi tastes some-what like carrot halwa but it is cooked longer and is much sweeter. As it is cooked for a long time, the carrot halwa develops a different taste to form burfi. It is chewy and doesn't turn hard on cooling unlike other burfis. I really liked the taste. 

This burfi demands more time (for grating as well as cooking). But hard work always gets paid :-) This is a 'must try' for carrot halwa fans.

Ingredients:

• Carrot- 1 kg
• Sugar - 2 cups 
• Grated coconut, fresh/frozen - 1/3 cup
• Ghee (clarified butter), melted- 4 Tbsp
• Milk - 1 cup
• Cardamom pods- 5-6
• Almonds- For garnishing

Procedure:

Wash the carrots and peel them. Then grate it.

Now take the grated carrots in a cooker along with milk (I also added 1/4 cup of water) and pressure cook it for 2 whistles (you can as well cook it in a cooking pot).

Now transfer the cooked carrot into a cooking pot (preferably non-stick).

Start heating it on a medium flame until the milk evaporates. Then add in the grated coconut and mix well.

Then add sugar and ghee.

Continue heating on a medium flame with constant stirring until the mixture comes together to form a mass (for me it took 55 minutes excluding the cooking time in pressure cooker).

Then transfer it into a greased deep plate (I used a cake pan) and spread it evenly to desired thickness. Smoothen it and garnish with chopped almonds.

Allow it to cool for 30 minutes and then cut it into desired shape and size. Carrot Burfi is ready!!

Store it in an air tight container. It stays good for 3-4 days. Above measurement makes 16 good sized pieces.

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Batate Ambado (Potato Fritters)

Batate Ambado is a very popular Indian fritter. There are so many variations of potato fritters. This is my mother's version. I have been thinking of posting these from a very long time. Some-how I kept advancing it. Finally I decided to make it. It had been a long time since I had this and the first bite into it, took me to the world of memories. These are very commonly made during family functions. I love to have these on a cold winter night :-)

Ingredients:

For the Potato Mixture:

• Potato, medium sized- 3
• Cilantro/Coriander leaves - 5-6 sprigs
• Green Chilli - 1-2
• Oil - 2 tsp
• Mustard seeds- 3/4 tsp
• Curry leaves - Few
• Turmeric powder- 1/4 tsp
• Salt- To taste

For the batter:

• Chickpea flour/Besan-1/2 cup
• Red chilli powder- 1/2 tsp (adjust accordingly)
• Asafoetida- 1/4 tsp
• Salt- To taste

Other:

• Oil - For deep frying

Procedure:

To prepare the Potato mixture:

Clean and cut the potatoes into half. Then cook them until soft. Allow them to cool and then peel them. Once peeled, mash them in a big bowl. Then add salt, finely chopped cilantro and green chillies. Mix well. Finally add the seasoning.

For seasoning - Heat oil and add mustard seeds. Once it starts popping, add the curry leaves and turn off the heat. Finally add in the turmeric powder.

Add this seasoning to the potato mixture. Mix well. 

To prepare batter:

Take all the ingredients mentioned under 'For the Batter' in a bowl and add water in small quantities, to get a lump free batter. The consistency of the batter should be thick and slightly of pouring consistency.

Now while the oil is getting heated, make lemon sized balls of the potato mixture.

Then dip each ball in the batter to get a good coating (let the excess drip off in the bowl containing batter) and then drop it in the hot oil. Repeat the same with the rest of the balls. I fried 3-4 balls in a batch. Fry the potato balls in the oil until they turn golden brown throughout. Once done, remove and drain the excess on a paper towel. Batate Ambado is ready!!

Serve it hot with coconut chutney or tomato ketchup.

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Bhajji Ambado (Amaranth Leaves Fritters)

Bhajji Ambado is a delicious rice based fritter. In Konkani, bhajji means amaranth leaves. I got this recipe from my mother. My mother uses a different leaf called 'Taikilo', which grows abundantly in the monsoon season. I am a big fan of those fritters. Since I don't have access to taikilo (an edible weed), I just used amaranth leaves. Guess what? To my surprise, it tasted  similar to those fritters and I was on top of the world:-) I didn't even think that it would taste that good. Do try making these fritters and enjoy!!

Ingredients:

• Amaranth leaves, finely chopped - 1 cup, packed 
• Rice - 1 cup
• Grated Coconut, fresh/frozen - 1 Tbsp
• Dry Red chilli - 6-7
• Tamarind- A small piece
• Salt- To taste
• Oil - For deep frying

Procedure:

Wash and soak rice in water, for 2 hours.

While it is soaking, wash the amaranth leaves and pat dry using a towel. Then give it a rough chop.

Once the rice gets well soaked, drain the water completely. Now grind together the soaked rice, red chilli, grated coconut, tamarind and salt to get a coarse sticky paste (don't add water while grinding).

The final mixture somewhat looks like this (not too fine or not too coarse).

I hope its clear from the picture. The crushed rice grains should not be too coarse or turned to a paste. Making this paste is a very important step. Once the rice mixture is ready, start heating the oil. Check for salt in the rice mixture.

If the oil is hot enough then, its time to add the chopped leaves (this has to be done absolutely at the end because they give out moisture when mixed with rice mixture. If the moisture content in the final mixture is more, then the fritters will absorb more oil. Hence this is another important step) to the rice mixture. The final mixture just before frying looks like this.

Now make small balls of the mixture and just flatten them slightly like this-

Fry them (don't over crowd while frying and the flame should be medium-high) in hot oil until they turn crispy and dark brown on both sides. 

Once it is done, drain them on a paper towel to remove excess oil. Bhajji Ambado is ready!!

Serve it hot with rice and dalitoy. Above measurement makes 12- 14 fritters.

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Tofu Paratha (Tofu Flat bread)

Tofu Paratha is a healthy Indian flatbread. Few months back, I came across this recipe on Show me the Curry. I was very excited to try it out, as I love to include tofu in our diet. I really liked the way the tofu was included (hidden) in that recipe. I have made slight variations to the original recipe, to suit our taste.

Tofu is a good source of protein for vegetarians. We get freshly made tofu at our local Chinese stores. So I always buy whenever we go there and add them in Thai dishes or many other recipes. I am not a great fan of tofu but love them in these parathas. The parathas  really turn out soft. Tofu does not have its own flavor and hence you can't really taste them in this recipe.

Ingredients:

• Silken Tofu - 1 block
• Wheat flour - 1 1/2 cups and extra for dusting
• Cilantro/Coriander leaves - leaves of 5-6 sprigs
• Red chilli powder - To taste
• Asafoetida - a big pinch
• Roasted cumin powder- 1/2 tsp
• Salt- To taste
• Oil - 1 tsp and extra for frying

Procedure:

Crumble the tofu in a big bowl.

Then add red chilli powder, roasted cumin powder, chopped cilantro, asafoetida, oil and salt.

Then add the flour and mix well. Knead it until you get a non - sticky, soft dough.

Coat the surface of the dough with few drops of oil and then keep it covered for 15-20 minutes. Then divide the dough into small round balls (I made 10 of them).

Then dip each ball in flour and roll them into a circle of uniform thickness.

When you are done with the rolling, place it on a pre heating skillet. Once it turns golden brown, flip it to cook the other side. Smear little oil on both side, while cooking. Once both sides get cooked, transfer it to a plate and continue with the rest of them.

Tofu Parathas are ready!!

Serve it hot with any curry of your choice. Above measurement makes 10 parathas.

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Phova Idli (Flattened Rice Idli)

Phova Idli is a recently learnt recipe. Few days back, my Facebook friend Archana had posted this recipe and I was totally impressed. I wanted to try it right away but somehow I was not able to do it. Then I told my mother to try and she was very happy with the results. Now I really wanted it to try and trust me the idlis turned out very spongy. The flattened rice really makes some magic to the idlis :-) Try this version and I am sure you will always stick to this recipe.

Ingredients:

• Rice - 1 1/2 cup
• Urad dal/Split Black Lentil (without skin) - 1/2 cup
• Phovu (Poha)/Flattened Rice (thick or thin variety) - 1/2 cup
• Salt- To taste
• Oil - For greasing the mould

Procedure:

Wash and soak the Urad dal (split black lentil) for 2-3 hours. 

Wash and soak rice for 2-3 hours separately.
Soak flattened rice in few tablespoons of water just before grinding.

Now grind the strained split black lentil along  with flattened rice to get a smooth paste. Add water while grinding, just enough to aid the grinding process. Once finely ground, transfer it to a bowl. 

Now transfer the strained rice in the same blender and grind it to get medium coarse consistency (don't make a paste. This will bring a change in the texture of the idli). Transfer this to the same bowl containing urad dal paste. Give a good mix using hand. If the batter is too thick, add little amount of water. The final consistency of the batter should be medium thick (thicker than the dosa batter). Keep the batter in a warm place and allow it to ferment for 8-10 hours (the batter should be doubled after fermentation to get spongy idlis. If not they will turn hard. If it has not doubled then keep it for few more hours).

Now add salt and mix well. The batter should be thick but of dropping consistency. Add water if required.

Now grease the idli mould using oil and add the batter in each mould.

Steam them in a steamer or pressure cooker (without whistle) for 15-16 minutes. 

Allow it to cool for five minutes and then unmould the idlis using back of the spoon.

Phova Idli is ready!!

Serve it hot with Sambhar or any chutney of your choice. Above measurement makes 24 medium sized idlis.

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Sabudana Ladoo (Tapioca Pearl Ladoo)

Sabudana Ladoo is a recently learnt sweet dish. I was totally taken by surprise when I saw this recipe in a food group posted by Rajni Kamath. I have tried  making pudding, idli, dosa but never knew that we can make ladoo using sago pearls. Hence noted down the recipe and tried it. It turned out very good. The recipe requires few ingredients and the procedure is also very simple. Binding the ladoos may be little tricky but not difficult. Try making this sometime soon and enjoy!!

Ingredients:

• Sabudana/ Tapioca Pearls- 1 cup
• Sugar- 1/2 cup
• Cardamom pods- 3
• Melted Ghee (clarified butter)- 5-6 Tbsp

Procedure:

Dry roast the sabudana on low heat for 15 minutes. Allow it to cool.

Then take the dry roasted sabudana in a blender and grind it to get a fine powder. Then transfer it to a bowl. Now in the same blender add sugar and cardamom seeds. Grind it to get a fine powder.

Now mix the sugar and sabudana powder. Then slowly add in the ghee to the mixture and incorporate well. Now take fistful of the mixture and bind it well using your fingers, so as to make it round shaped (If you have hard time binding it then, add more ghee).

Continue making more ladoos until the mixture gets used up. Saudana Ladoo is ready!!

Serve it immediately or store in an air tight container for future use. Above measurement makes 12 good sized ladoos.

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Chanedali Panchkadaayi (Kadlebele Panchakajjaya)

Chanedali Panchkadaayi is a very popular jaggery based 'Naivedya' in our community. Naivedya means something that is offered to god. Every year, my mother makes it for Krishna Janmashtami and Ganesh Chaturthi. 
This recipe requires only five ingredients. Hence it is called Panchakajjaya. 

Ingredients:

• Chanadal /Split chickpeas - 1/3 cup 
• Jaggery- 3/4- 1 cup
• Grated Coconut, fresh/frozen - 1 cup
• Black sesame seeds- 2 tsp (optional)
• Cardamom pods- 4

Notes: I have used little more than 1 cup of jaggery. Resulting Panchakajjaya was little more on the 'too much sweeter' side. Hence if you like it moderately sweet then add little less than 1 cup of it. We like it more sweeter.
Some people also add a small amount of popped rice powder (laaye pitto).
The measurement to make a large batch of Panchakajjaya is - 250g of Chanadal, 250g of jaggery and one medium sized coconut.

Procedure:

Dry roast the sesame seeds until it starts to splutter. Then transfer it to a small bowl. 
In the same pan, dry roast the chanadal until, a nice aroma is got.

Now take the roasted chanadal and cardamom in a blender and powder it (not too coarse or not too fine).

Now take a pan and add jaggery and 1/4 cup (or little less) of water. Start heating it on a medium flame until all the jaggery dissolves.

Then add the grated coconut and mix well. 

Let the mixture cook for 2-3 minutes. Then switch off the flame. Cool the mixture completely. Finally add the prepared chanadal powder and toasted sesame seeds.

Mix well. 

Chanedali Panchkadaayi is ready!!

Serve it as an offering to god.

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