Lemon, Chocolate marble Muffins (eggless)

Lemon flavor in cake, My sister interduce this to me. Before that I did not even imagine one can use lemon in cakes. I tried lemon cake with eggs and glased with chocolate sauce. So that gave me this Idea. According to my theme egg less again I changed it to eggless version. I used yogurt as a wet ingredient in this recipe with baking soda that realy turn out so soft and moist. Now here is my third recipe for BM this week. Hope you all enjoyed my eggless chocolate recipes... 
METHOD:---
Selfrising flour --  2 cups
Baking powder  --- 1 tea sp
Baking soda  ---  2 tea sp
Butter   ----  100gms room temperature (i used amul salted butter)
Sugar  ---  1/2 cup
Yogurt  --- 1 1/4 cup
Lemon juice  ---  2 tab sp
Lemon zest --- from one lemon
Coco powder  ----   2 tab sp

                                                            
INGREDIENTS:---
1. Preheat the oven at 200 degree C for 15 minutes.
2. Grease muffin tins with little oil and place the paper liners.
3. Take flour, baking powder, baking soda in a bowl and mix well to combine every thing.
4. In a other bowl take butter and beat till light.
5. Add sugar to the butter and beat till light and fluffy. Then add yogurt and beat well to mix every thing.
6. Now add lemon juice, lemon zest and give a good stir.
7 Add little by little flour mixture till you finish the flour mixture and beat till incorporated.
8. Take out 1/4 batter in to another bowl, add cocopowder to this 1/4 batter mix well.
9. Add this chocolate batter to lemon cake batter and make swril in the batter with a spoon or with a skewer to give marble texture.
10. Scoop this batter gently in to prepared muffin tins, bake this muffins in preheated oven on 200 degree C for five minutes then reduce the heat to 150 degree C and bake for 35 minutes.
11. Insert a tooth pick and check if it came out clean then your muffins are ready, romove from oven and cool them on a rack.
This is my third recipe with the theme of Eggless chocolate cup cakes and muffins for blogging marathon 23 rd edition at Vallis spice your life lets check blogging marathon page

 

Vanilla- Chocolate Muffins (eggless)

Egg less chocolate cup cakes and muffins is the theme for this week BM. When I saw this theme I just picked it up because I tried a very few recipes in egg less baking. And I used one or two substitues for egg less cakes like flexseeds, banana and now condensed milk. Other then these three, many other ingredients are there to use as an egg replacer.
                                                                             When ever I want to make a egg less cake I just jump in to Madhurams space, Her web page name it self Eggless cooking. You can just fallow her recipe and they are very easy to make also. I like her recipe presentation like perfect mesurments and other substitutions like cake flour and egg replacers. You can just follow the recipe, It never fail for me. This recipe I have tried before and they came out so soft and moist and taste very delicious. And now I gave a small twist to the origenal recipe with chocolate. According to my theme egg less chocolate... Unbelievable they came out so beautiful and soft and taste was too good.. My heartfelt thanks to Madhuram for this wonderful reipe...

                                                                  
INGREDIENTS:--
Self rising flour ----  2 and 1/2 cups
Sugar  ---   3/4 cup
Baking powder  ---- 1 and 1/2 tea sp
Baking soda  ----    1 tea sp
Coco powder ----   3 tab sp
Chocolate chips  ---- 1 cup
Salt  ----  1/4 tea sp
Orange zest  ----   1/2 tab sp
Condensed milk  ---- 1 cup
Orange juice  ----  3/4 cup
Melted butter or oil  ---- 1/2 cup
Vinegar   ----  1 tabsp
Vanilla  extract  ----  1 tab sp
METHOD:----
1. Pre heat the oven at 180 degree c for 15 minutes.
2. Prepare muffins by greasing with littel oil or butter and place the paper liners.
3. Shift flour, sugar, salt baking powder, baking soda, orange zest mix well in a mixing bowl.
4. Take all wet ingredients in a other bowl mix well (no need to beat just mix well to combine every thing.).
5.Now add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and stir with a whisk don't use  electric beater, do this with a hand wisk.
6. Mix well now divide the batter in to two portions and add cocopowder in one portion mix gently to make this portion as chocolate cake batter.
7. Now first scoop 1 teasp white cake batter in muffin tins, then top with chocolate batter.
8. Reduce the heat to 150 degree c and bake this muffins for 30 minutes.
9. Insert a toothpick and check if  it is still not cooked the bake it for 5 more minutes. this depends up on your oven mine took 30 minutes.
10. Remove from the oven and cool them on a rack.
This is my second recipe with the theme of Eggless chocolate cup cakes and muffins for blogging marathon 23 rd edition at Vallis spice your life lets check blogging marathon page .
 

Chocolate And Pineapple Cup Cake (Eggless)

For a food blogger it is very difficult to handle like this situation what I am facing .. My net is not working and still I didn't get my PC back  aahhhhh horrible and my pictures are waiting in my camera... Now main thing is second week of the BM is started and I have to post my first recipe to day,  and I am helpless till evening 8 o clock. At last I managed to activate my  prepaid net connect. And now that is working very slow  ahhhh scratching my head.... I do not know why it's happening for me only from last two months...
                                                                                   Apart from all this silly problems coming to this week s BM I have chosen Eggless Chocolate Cup Cakes-- muffins as my theme. Here in this recipe I used condensed milk as an egg- replacer. I made a basic egg less cake before with condensed milk but without chocolate. This time I made it with chocolate and some chopped pineapple pieces to make the cup cake more interesting.

INGREDIENTS:----
Self rising flour (or maida) -----    250 gms
Condensed milk ----    1 tin (400gms)
Sugar   ------  50 gms Powdered
Baking powder   ---- 1 tea sp
Milk  ----  1 tab sp
Pineapple pieces  ---- 1 cup (finely choped)
Cocopowder  ---  2 tab sp
Cinnamon powder  ---   1 tab sp
Butter  -----    100gms
METHOD:---
1. Shift flour, cocopowder, baking powder, cinnamon powder for two times and set a side.
2. In a mixing bowl  take butter, powder sugar and mix it till  you get the ceamy texture.
3. Add condensed milk to butter and sugar mixture and mix well for three minutes.
4. Now add dry ingredients to the wet mixture little by little till you finish the flour mixture and mix well for seven minutes.
5. Now add choped pineapple pieces, milk and fold the batter gently to combine well.
6. By the time pre- heat the oven in 200 degree C for ten minutes.
7. Grease the muffin try and place the muffin liners.
8. Scoup the chocolate cake mixture in to cup cake moulds till half.
9. Bake this chocolate and pineapple cup cakes for 35 minutes ( this depends on your oven mine took 35 minutes if you did not finish in this time can increase the time for five more minutes).
Remove from the oven and cool them on a wire rack. Now your Egg less chocolate and pineapple cup cakes are ready.....
This is my first recipe with the theme of Eggless chocolate cup cakes and muffins for blogging marathon 23 rd edition at Vallis spice your life lets check blogging marathon page .


 

Gujia

This week  my second recipe under Traditional dishes in BM is Gujia. Gujia is deep fried all purpose flour pastry filled with Kova(condenced and thick milk, check my recipe for making kova here ) and dry fruits like dry coconut and cashew nuts and almonds. There are many variations in making this recipe, in Andhra pradesh we make this with a different filling. We use grated dry coconut with suji (semolina) and nuts and we do not dip them in sugar syrup and we call this as Kajjikayalu . Same like Andhra Pradesh in Karnataka  but stuffing is little different they use powdered fried gram( dhaliya) and jaggery instead of sugar here they call this as Karida kadubu or Karigadubu. And in Maharashtra the name is Karanji, here filling is almost same like Andhra Kajjikaya. In Maharashtra some people make stuffing with fresh grated coconut also.
                                                           Now coming to the recipe Gujia is a traditional dish in North India. Specially they make this sweet for Holi and diwali. Here stuffing is different and process also little different then South Indian recipe. So let's check how they make this delicious traditional sweet.
INGREDIENTS:----
All purpose flour (maida) --   2 cups
Ghee  ---   3 tab sp
salt a pinch
Oil for deep frying
For Filling :---
Kova/khoya/mawa (unsweetend) ---   2 and half cups grated and lightly fried.
Grated dry coconut  ---  4 tea sp
Cashewnuts --- 15 finely choped
Almonds  --- 15 finely choped (blanched and choped)
Cardamom powder   ----  1/2 tea sp
Powder sugar  ---  half cup (if you like more sweet you can increase the sugar to two cups, half cup sugar powder is more then enough because we are going to dip this gujia's in sugar syrup.)
For Sugar Syrup:--
Sugar -- 1 cup
Water  ---  1/4 cup
METHOD:---
1. Shift flour, salt and ghee in to mixing bowl and rub well to bring a bread crumb texture.
2. Add little cold water and knead in to a stiff dough, cover with a moist cloth and set aside.

                                                     
3. Take kova, choped cashewnuts, choped almonds, grated dry coconut, cardamom powder, powdered sugar and mix well to combine every thing, set a side.
4. Start heating oil in deep frying pan on a low flame.
5. Divide the dough in to small balls and press them in to small puris.
6. Place two spoons of filling in the center, aply little water on the edges with your finger and fold the puri in half like a half moon. Make all the puris like this and set a side.
7. Now make sugar syrup with 1 cup sugar and 1/4 cup water. This syrup should be like gulabjamoon syrup.
8. In the mean while deep fry stuffed gujia's in hot oil on a low heat till they turn in to nice golden color.
9. Remove the fried gujia's from oil and drop them in to sugar syrup. Sugar syrup should be hot when you drop fried gujia's in to the syrup. Then only they nicely coat with  the syrup leave them for a while means one second and remove from the sugar syrup, make sure that sugar syrup should coat all sides, place them in a serving plate.
Gujia's become dry with in one hour you can store them in a air tight container for one month.
I like this gujia's warm.
This is my second recipe with the theme of Traditional dishes for blogging marathon 23 rd edition at Vallis spice your life lets check blogging marathon page .


 

Ghathia

Yet another month of Blogging Marathon, It's already 23rd edition. I feel like just now I joined, days are flying very fast. In this 23 months I missed few months of marathon but I enjoyed doing BM each month I have done with different themes. And got some good friends for this we must thankful to our leader Srivalli.
                                                                Coming to my first theme in this edition is Traditional Dishes. Valli has chosen some traditional dishes from Indian cuisine from that  list we have to chose three recipes for this week. In that three recipes my first recipe is Ghatia a traditional Gujarati snack. I wanted to try this recipe from long time and tried few times but I didn't get the texture what we see in the sweet shops. Whenever I try this recipe they turn in to normal muruku and they will be little hard too. We have a Gujarati family in our flats, they are good friends of mine. I ask aunty what is the mistake I am doing in this recipe and she gave me some tips. And they work so very well but only thing is pappad khar, this gives a crisp texture to ghatia. I tried but did not get that here. Insted of pappad khar you can use soda-bi-carbnate but hummmm not satisfied did not get that soft, crisp texture. So if possible better use pappadkhar. Ok here are the ingredients.......
INGREDIENTS:---
Gram flour (besan) -- 3 cups
Hot oil  --- 2 tab sp
Oil for deep frying
Salt to taste
Black pepper  -- 1 tab sp crushed
Carom seeds(ajwain, vamu) -- 1 tab sp
Lemon juice --- 2 tab sp
Soda-bi-carbnate --  1/2 tea sp or
Pappad khar ---  3/4 tea sp if you are using pappad khar then boil 1/2 cup water with salt and pappadkhar till salt and khar dissolve and use this water to make the dough. Add crushed pepper, carom seeds, lemon juice, hot oil and beat well till it turns frothy. Then add flour and make a soft dough.
METHOD:---
1. Now take 1/2 cup water, two tab.sp hot oil, crushed black pepper, carom seeds, soda-bi-carbnate, lemon juice salt to taste in a mixing bowl beat well with a egg beater till the liquid turns in to light wight color and frothy.
2. Now add flour to this mixture and make a soft dough.
3. Now the main step rub this dough with hand till it turns flufy and to give air in to dough this will take 15 minutes.
4. By the time the dough will turn so soft and light. One importent thing is do not rub the dough very hardly do the rubing job very lightly  this is the trick in making ghatia dough.
 5.Heat oil in a deep frying pan
 6.Normaly they use a stand with holes or a laddle with holes to make ghatia. Hold the ghatia stand or laddle on top of the hot oil in the frying pan.
7. Take small portions of the dough with a spoon and place the dough on the ghatia laddle rub gently with the spoon so that ghatias will fall stright in to the hot oil.
8. Otherwise use muruku press with medium round holes and press the ghatias in to hot oil.
9. Deep fry ghatiyas in hot oil, in a medium heat for 2 minutes. If you are using muruku press press the dough like a big circle and fry both sides till you get a nice golden color.
10. Remove from oil, drain oil, cool and broke in to small pieces and store in a air tight container.
Serve with tea or coffee.

This is my first recipe with the theme of Traditional dishes for blogging marathon 23 rd edition at Vallis spice your life lets check blogging marathon page . 

Aloo Kurma (Potato Kurma)

Here is one more easier and quick to make pressure cooker recipe which makes your lazy Sunday morning breakfast with in few minutes.This recipe is from my friend shoba in Bangalore.Every Sunday morning we can get a very nice aroma from her kitchen, She used to make this with puri s for Sunday morning breakfast. This kurma is a best combination for puri, fulka, chapati and pulav or any other rice. Even i like this kurma with lemon rice so let's check the recipe....
INGREDIENTS:---

Potato  -- 2big cut in to cubes

Oil-1tebsp
Cumin seeds --- 1/2 tea sp
FOR PASTE:-
 Cinamon --- 1 inch piece
 Cloves ----  4
Cardomoms -- 4
Ginger  --- 1 inch piece
Garlic ---  5 cloves
Grated coconut-1tebsp
Coriander powder -- 1 tea sp
Poppy seeds-1tesp
Sonf--1tesp
1 onion -cut in to cubes
1 tomato-cut in to cubes
grind all above ingredients in to a smooth paste with useing a little water and keep a side
Chilli powder --- 1 tea sp

Turmeric powder ---  1/4 tea sp

Salt to taste
METHOD:--

1. Heat oil in a pressure cooker and add 1tesp cumin seeds then add ground paste and fry till nice aroma comes out and oil separate from masala.
2. Now add potato pieces salt to taste ,turmeric powder,chilli powder and add 11/2 cup water mix well and cover with lid and give 2-3 whistles

3. Remove from heat let it cool and open the cooker lid and mix well don't mash the potato mix well and serve hot with puri or ghee rice
This is my third recipe with the theme of Pressure cooker recipes for blogging marathon 22 nd edition at Vallis spice your life lets check blogging marathon page .

Godhumaravva Halwa

Halwas or rava kesari are one of the favorite sweet in Indian cuisine. Normaly we make with maida or wheat flour or some times with rava. We use lot's of ghee in making halwa. In that list of halwas this one is a healthy version with less ghee. Insted of samolina or maida I used wheat rava(you can use broken wheat also for this) and also a easy way to make a dessert with in few minutes.

INGREDIENTS:----

Wheat rava (bansi rava, samba rava)  --- 1 cup

Sugar   ----   1 cup

Water  ---- 1 cup

Milk ---- 1 cup

Ghee  ---  3 tea sp

Cashew nuts --- 15

Raisins  ---  15

 

1. Heat 1 tea sp ghee in a Preassure cooker, fry cashew nuts till golden remove and set a side. 

 

 2. Now fry raisins in the same ghee till golden remove and set a side.

 

 

 

 

3. Now add samba rava to the same ghee and fry till nice aroma comes out and rava coats well with ghee. 

 

 That should look like in the above picture.

 

4. Now add 1 cup sugar, keep the heat very low. 

 

5. Now immediately pour milk and water give a good stir. 

 

 6. Close with cooker lid place the whistle and cook for two whistles in a low heat.

 

7. After two whistles switch off the heat and let it cool for some time. When you open the lid it look like this in the above picture. 

 

8. Now again bring back to heat, keep the flame in medium, add remaining two spoons ghee. 

 

9. Add 1/2 tea sp cardamom powder. 

 

                                                             10 fried cashew and raisins, Mix well to combine every thing and cook for two minutes and remove from heat.
Serve warm...
This is my second recipe with the theme of Pressure cooker recipes for blogging marathon 22 nd edition at Vallis spice your life lets check blogging marathon page .

COCONUT RICE

Powercut now a days  it's a big Problem but in cities it's better then small towns. It is eight o clock to ten in the morning in my place. Some times when power comes back there will be a high voltage. This causes spoil the electronic goods I do not know why this happens but this is very danger.I started switch off the each switch when power goes. Switch on ten minutes after power comes any way
                             
                            Coming to this week s BM my theme for this week is Pressure cooker recipes. Pressure cooker is an utensil which we use every day in our cooking. It's very help full in fast cooking.Todays my recipe is coconut rice Yes coconut rice in pressure cooker. I got this recipe from my friend. When I first had this rice I think she first cook the rice and then added the grated coconut and spices. But when I got the recipe I was surprised she cooked everything in the pressure cooker. I usually cook coconut rice with coconut milk but in this recipe she used grated coconut that gives a crunchy texture to the rice. No need to add mint or coriander leaves in this recipe because they dominate  the coconut flavor. I liked this coconut rice and adopted it in to my menu hope you all are also like this. Here I go with the recipe.

INGREDIENTS:--

Rice:---  1 and half cups
Grated coconut ---  1 cup
Green chillies   ---  4 slite
Onion   ---  1 big sliced
Cashew nuts  --- 15
Raisins ---  20
Ghee (clarified butter) --- 1 tab sp
Cinamon --- 1 inch pieces 3
Cloves   ---- 4
Cardamom  --- 4
Ginger garlic paste  --- 1 tea sp
METHOD:----
1. Wash and soak rice in three cups of water for 10 minutes.

                                                                    

                                                                       
2.Heat ghee in a pressure cooker add cinamon, cardamom, cloves let them popup then add cashewnuts after few seconds add raisins fry for 2 seconds.

                                                                
3.Now add sliced onions,fry till they turn in to light pink, add green chillies fry for a while.

                                                                    

                                                                      

                                                                   
4. Add ginger garlic paste give a good stir.
5. In the mean while strain water from rice in to another bowl. Do not through this water  we are going to use this water to cook rice so reserve this water in a bowl.

                                                          
6. Add grated coconut, rice to onion and spice mixture which is frying in the cooker give a good stir, add salt mix well.

                                                                  
7.Pour three cups of water mix well to combine every thing

                                                              
8. Cover the pressure cooker with lid and place the whistle, cook for 2 whistles switch off the heat and let it sit for five minutes then open.

                                                                              
9. Immediately shift this coconut rice in to a wide bowl and spread it other wise rice will stick together, become like a lump so takecare.
Serve this coconut rice with Aloo Kurma or any other kurma.
This is my first recipe with the theme of Pressure cooker recipes for blogging marathon 22 nd edition at Vallis spice your life lets check blogging marathon page .

Sweetcorn, cheese pakoda

This recipe I have inspired by mokkajonna garelu (corn vada) recipe which is made by Indian corn (butta). But when you make vada or pakoda with Indian corn they do not give the taste like sweet corn and they turn hard after five minutes. Before I used to make this pakoras with Indian corn then we do not get sweet corn in India. But now a days we get sweet corn everywhere in India. This sweet corn pakodas taste delicious and crisp out side, soft in side. Adding cheese will give a creamy taste and texture to the pakodas. Let's check how I made Sweet corn cheese pakoda.
INGREDIENTS:-----
Sweet corn --- 250 gms
Cheese  ---   1/2 cup grated
Red chilli powder  ---  1 tea sp
Green chillies  ---  2 finely choped
Fresh coriander leaves  --- 4 tab sp
Besan  --- 50 gms (bengal gram flour, chick pea flour, senagapindi, kadala mavu)
Salt  --- 1/2 tea sp
METHOD:---
1. Crush sweet corn in a blender, just run the blender for one second do not make sweet corn in to a paste.
2. Add all other ingredients to crushed sweet corn mix well.
3. Heat oil in adeep frying pan.
4. Drop this sweet corn mixture in to hot oil like pakodas with hand.
5. Fry till golden, remove from oil and serve hot.
Serve this crisp pakodas with green chutney or tomato ketchep.

Kolkata Street Food With Ghugni And Egg Roll

Now coming to the third recipe for this week BM under the theme of West Bengal dishes. I choose street food for my last post for this week. I am new to Bengali cuisine I never tasted it.I wanted to give a try. So I tried some recipes from my fellow bloggers, I wanted to make them in the same way how they make so I did not change any thing in the recipes. When I was searching for Bengali recipes I saw many of them pricing the street foods like Vegetable chops, Kolkata egg rolls and Ghugni. These three recipes sound very new to me I book marked three of them. First I wanted to try vegetable chop recipe from Deepas blog. But I could not do that, for that we need beetroot. I do not have it with me, and I could not go out because of my fever and rain. So I leave that Idea and decided to make Kolkata egg roll and Ghugni. Kolkata Eggroll and Ghugni are the most popular street food in Kolkata. So let's check how they make them. My special thank to Sandeepa, Chandrani and deepa for these delicious recipes.
Recipe source from Bong mom's cookbook
Egg  --- 1
Milk  ---  1 tab sp
Salt  --  a pinch
Sliced onion  --- 1/2 cup
Finely choped green chilies  ---1
Lemon juice  --- 1 tab sp
Slice cucumber  ---  1/2 cup
Tomato ketchup  --- 1 tab sp
Oil   ---- 1 tea sp
Paratha --  1  This mesurments make 1 role you can increse the ingredients according to your requirement. You can use store brought parathas also. If you want to make them then use maida or you can make parathas with half maida and half wheat flour 
METHOD:----
1. Heat a griddle (dosa pan) fry the paratha both sides, remove and set a side.
2. Beat egg, milk, salt in a bowl.
3. sprinkle little oil on the same pan and pour egg mixture and spread like a circle.
4. Once egg is little cooked on the edges, put the paratha on the top of the egg. 
5. When the edges of the egg starts browning, slowely flip the paratha and cook the other side for Two seconds and remove from the pan.

6. Place this egg paratha in a plate place sliced onions, choped green chillies, in the middle of the egg paratha add tomato ketchup on the top of onion slices.
7. Roll this stuffer egg paratha like kati roll and serve.
Serve this Kolkata egg roll with a cup of tea.
Now the next recipe is Ghugni Let's see the ingredients
INGREDIENTS:--
Dry white peas -- 1/2 cup
Dry green peas --- 1/2 cup
Potato  --   2 medium
Onion   ----  1 medium finely choped
Ginger garlic paste  --  2 tea sp
Tomato   --- 1 medium finely choped
Green chilli  --- 1 slit
Turmeric powder --- 1/4 tea sp
Kashmiri red chilli powder  -- 2 tea sps
Cumin seeds --- 1 tea sp
Dry red chilli   -- 1
Bay leaves -- 2
Cloves --- 2
Cardamom  --- 2
Cinamon --- 1 inch stick
Sugar  ---   1 tea sp
Salt  --- 3/4 tea sp
Tamarid juice  -- 2 tab sp
Fresh coriander leaves choped  1 tab sp for garnishing

METHOD:---
1. Soak dry peas overnight in enough water.
2. Boil soaked peas with little salt till soft or cook in a pressure cooker for 4 whistles. Remove from heat and set aside.
3. Dry roast cumin seeds and dry red chilli  till cumin seeds turn in to brown and grind in to afine powder and set a side.
4. Cut the potato in to small cubes and fry in the hot oil till they turn in to golden, remove and set a side.
5. In the same oil add cinamon, cardamom, cloves, bay leaves and fry till golden and add choped onion. Fry onion till golden brown.
6. Add ginger garlic paste, choped tomato, and cook till tomato turn in to smashy.
7. Now add turmeric powder, kashmiri red chilli powder, sugar, salt add  two tab sps of water mix well and cook till oil seperates from the sides.
8. Now add cooked peas, fried potatoes give a good stir add one cup water and cook for five minutes or till the gravy turns thick.
Swithch off the heat and sprinkle cumin and red chilli powder
Garnish with choped onion, a tea sp of tamaring juice and fresh coriandr leaves serve hot with luchi or bread
Recipe source Chadrani's cuisine delights
This is my third recipe in the theme of West Bengal Dishes in BM 22nd edition let's check the BM page for other recipes.






 

Cholar Dal -- Chana Dal

This is my second recipe for BM under the theme of West Bengali Dishes. I always take inspiration for some people around me in that list first person is my mother. I never saw my mother tired, She has done everything to us, I never saw her wasting time till today. And the second lady is Srivalli, every time I think about Valli I get energy, Really believe me Valli. I know her as a fellow blogger from 4 years and personally from one year. Such a sweet lady and a very good friend of mine. Now coming to the next friend of mine I met her few months back only, but I know her almost from one year. Till to day I did not understand how this lady can manage time for everything. Yes I am talking about Deepa from hamaree rasoi, She is from Bengal. I book marked  some recipes from her blog. When I saw the theme in BM I got an opportunity to try them. So in that list here is my recipe from Deepa's hamaree rasoi Cholar Dal. 
             
                                    According to Deepa this is a made for each other combination with loochi or puri for Sunday's breakfast. Yes I agree to that, normally we do not have dal with puri we make potato curry or tomato curry or any kurmas. But when I read in deepas blog that this is a best combination with puri I have a small doubt in my mind whether it will work out or not. When I tasted it with loochi unbelievable!! that is really a made for each other combination. Not only with lootchis or puris this is a perfect combination with plain steamed rice also. We enjoyed this delicious dal from Bengali cuisine and A big thanks to Deepa for this wonderful recipe.
INGREDIENTS:---
Chana dal --- 200 gms
Green chillies  --- 2,(1 choped and one slit)
Cinnaman --- 1 inch stick
Bay leaves --- 2
Cloves  ---  3
Dry red chilli --- 1
Cardamom --- 3
Grated coconut --- 2 tab sp
Coconut cut in to small pieces  -- 2 tab sp
Turmeric powder  --- 1/2 tea sp
Ginger  ---  1 tea sp grated
Black pepper  --  few corns
Cumin seeds  --- 1 tea sp
Red chilli powder  --- 1 tea sp
Asafoetidia  ---  a pinch
Ghee  ---  1 tab sp
Sugar  ---  1 tea sp
Salt  --- 3/4 tea sp
Fresh coriander leaves for garnishing.
METHOD:---
1. Wash and soak chana dal for 2 hours.
2. Pressure cook dal with Turmeric, 1 bay leaf, and cardamom for one whistles ( make sure that dal did not cook too mashey).
3. Heat Ghee in a pan fry coconut pieces till golden remove and set aside.
4. Now add Cumin seeds, black pepper corns, slit green chilli, choped green chili, cloves, cinamon, dry red chilli, bay leaf and let them crackle.
5. Then add asafoetida, grated ginger, fry for a second add red chilli powder mix well and pour this seasoning on the top of cooked dal.
6. Add salt, sugar, grated coconut and fried coconut pieces check the consistency if the dal is too thick add 1/2 cup water. Check and adjust salt mix well and cook for two minutes or bring to a full boil in a high flame.
7. Remove from heat garnish with choped coriander leaves and serve hot with Loochi or puri or plain steamed rice.
This is my second recipe in the theme of West Bengal Dishes in BM 22nd edition let's check the BM page for other recipes

Mochar Ghonto - Bengali Style Banana Flower Curry

After a short break I am again back to my favorite work. From last week I wanted to start blogging but could not, do not know why. Then decided to take photos first, That plan also failed. Suffering with  flu from last 10 days, without doing any work, gone mad. Any way feeling much better now.

This time going to start my recipes with BM recipes. This month my BM theme for the first week is Dishes from West Bengal. Bengali cuisine has its wide range of vegetarian recipes with the flavor of mustard oil and panch phoran seasoning. And also with a little sweet taste. In those aromatic vegetarian recipes Mochar Ghonto is one aromatic and delicious curry made with banana flower. Mochar means Banana flower and Ghonto is a dry curry made with finely chopped vegetables like cabbage, potatoes, banana flower, coconut and some dals or lentils like chick peas. This will be a side dish for plain steamed rice, but I liked it with chapati and puri also. Mochar Ghonto is one of the favorite among vegetarians on the other side Muri ghonto which is made with fish head is very popular in non-vegetarian recipes. Now we are not going to do any thing with Muri Ghonto, lets check how to make Mochar Ghonto.

INGREDIENTS:---

Mochar(Banana flower) --- 1 medium
Potato  ----   1 big, peal and cut in to small cubes
Black chana  --- 1/4 cup soaked for over night and boiled
Ginger paste  --- 1 tea sp (you can use grated ginger also)
Green chilli paste  -- 1 tea sp or 2 chillies slit
Fresh Grated coconut  ---- 1/2 cup
Garam masala powder  --- 1 tea sp
Turmeric powder  --- 1/2 tea sp
Salt    ---- 1/2 tea sp
Sugar   --- 1 tea sp
Red chilli powder  --- 1/4 tea sp
Coriander powder  --- 1/4 tea sp
Cumin powder   ---- 1/4 tea sp
Bay leaves --- 2
Cumin seeds  ---- 1/4 tea sp
Oil   --- 2 tab sp
Ghee  -- 2 tab sp
METHOD:---
1. Remove the red leaves and take out the yellow floret, discard the stem and small petal in side.
2. Chop the yellow flower and soak in turmeric water for 1 hour.
3. Strain the turmeric water, add 1 cup water and little salt to choped banana flower and cook till done. This will take 10 minutes time to cook.
4. Switch off the heat and strain the water and sqeeze all the water and set a side.
5. Now heat oil (if you like to use mustard oil, first heat oil till smoking stage switch off the heat let it cool and then again heat then add tempering this helps to reduce the raw smell from the mustard oil.)
6. Heat oil add cumin seeds, bayleaves fry for a while then add potato cubes sprinkle a pinch salt stir for 2 minutes.
7. Sprinkle 1/4 cup water cover and cook in a medium heat till potatoes are done.
8. Now add cooked banana flower, boiled chana, red chilli powder, cumin powder, coriander powder, turmeric powder, ginger paste, green chillies, sugar give a good stir adjust salt, add 1/2 cup water cover and cook in a medium heat till the moisture dried up, keep string in between.
9. Add grated coconut stir and cook for 2 more minutes.
10. In the end sprinkle garam masala on top close with lid, switch off the heat leave it like that for five minutes then open and mix well to combine every thing, pour 2 tab sps of ghee on top.
Serve hot with steamed rice or chapathi.
Lets check the Blogging Marathon page for other recipes

 

Ulunthu Kali - Urad dal Halwa

Ulunthu Kali yes this is the recipe for ICC for this month. This is a very traditional recipe from Chettinad region. Ulunthu means Urad dal , Kali means any cereals cooked in water like a thick poridge. This kali is made specially when the girls attain puberty, grand mothers make this to feed the girls for 15 days to give good health and strength to bones. Ulundu is rich in calcium, protein and jaggery is rich iron and gingely oil gives good strength to spinal cord.
                Few days back when I was talking to Valli about ICC recipes. She told me about this but she did not get the proper recipe and she told me that she likes it very much and wanted to share with all of us in ICC. That time I did not say any thing to Valli but I remember my friend Vijayalakshmi(Vijji) she is from Karaikudi. She gave me one recipe and she told me gingely oil is must in this recipe. When I tried with gingely oil I did not like the flavor but that is the original way to make this sweet and it's good for health too. Then again i spoke to valli and she told me, When she tasted this, it taste like Halwa with lot's of ghee in it. Then I spoke to my Aunt and she gave the second recipe and she told me ading sesame oil is a traditional way of making this recipe. But you can change this traditional recipe to halwa by using ghee in the place of sesame oil. In the origenal recipe they use palm sugar to give a sweet taste. This also can change with normal jaggery or sugar. You can add grated coconut and fried cashewnuts to make this dish more delicious. Thanks to Valli for chosing this healthy and delicious recipe for ICC. Because I don't know about this wonderfull recipe before that, thank you somuch valli.
And my special thanks to my friend Vijji and Priya Aunty.
Raw rice  -- 1/2 cup wash and dry in the sade rice should be totally dry
Urad dhal  --- 1/2 cup dry roast lightly how we do for murukus
Grated jaggery  --- 2 cups
Water  -- 2 cups
Gingeli oil  --- 2 tab sp
Ghee  ---- 2 tab sp
Mix rice and dhal make powder in the mill
Take jaggery and water in a pan heat  till the jaggery dissolve compleetly.
Strain the jaggery add gingely oil again keep it on the heat  and bring to a full boil.
Pour the flour in the center of the jaggery water like a heap, reduce the heat completely, insert a laddle in to the pan  close with alid and cook for 7 to 10 minutes.
switch off the heat and mix quickly with out forming lumps.
Let it cool for few seconds add ghee mix well and make small balls.
This is the traditional way of making this Ulunthu Kali

Ulundu --- 1 cup

Raw rice --- 1/2 cup
Gingley oil -- 25 ml( or ghee 25 ml.)
Jaggery --- 1 cup
Cardamom --- 3 powderd
Grated fresh coconut --- 1/4 cup optional
Cashew nuts ---- 10 fried in the ghee optional
Water --- 3 cups

Dry roast rice and dal lightly and grind in to a thin rava consistency ( like puttu powder consistency) and set a side.

Take jaggery sprinkle little water and dissolve remove from heat strain and set aside.

Now heat 3 cups water in a heavy bottom pan bring to full boil add dal and rice powder add half oil mix well and cook till it become thick paste like halwa

Now  add carbamom powder mix well and remove fom heat and add remaining oil, grated coconut if using mix well garnish with fried cashew nuts and serve.

You can use palm sugar or normal sugar also but that change the taste.