Recipe world

ಕನ್ನಡ ಆವೃತ್ತಿ

We have a big Indian grocery store nearby. I love buying few veggies from there which are rarely available in other shops. This time, I bought drumstick leaves from there and enjoyed preparing different dishes. Drumstick leaves has lot of health benefits. Its a good source of Vitamin A, Vitamin C, Calcium and anti oxidants. It helps in the well functioning of heart, eyes and nerves system.

Drumstick leaves add a nice taste to the dishes. I love to prepare delicious Sambar, Stir fry, Dal, Tambli, etc, using these leaves. Let me share Drumstick Leaves - Tomato Sambar recipe today. Its quite easy to prepare, and tastes awesome with rice.

Time required: 30 minutes

Servings: 3 - 4

Difficulty level: Medium

Ingredients:

Toor dal - 1 cup (1 cup = 50 grams)
Moong dal - 2 tbsp
Drumstick leaves - 1 cup
Tomato - 1
Salt to taste
Sugar / jaggery (optional) - 1/4 tsp
Tamarind - 1 1/2 tsp or to taste
Onion (optional) - 1 small
Water - 5 cups approx

Masala for grinding:

Dry red chillies - 3 (adjust according to spiciness required)
Fenugreek seeds - 3/4 tsp
Coriander seeds - 2 tsp
Cumin seeds - 3/4 tsp
Mustard seeds - 3/4 tsp
Asafoetida / Hing - Big pinch
Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp
Oil - 1 1/2 tsp
Fresh grated / desiccated coconut - 3 tbsp

Method:

Chop tomato into medium size pieces.
Wash toor dal and moong dal together in clean water. Cook them till soft by adding few drops of oil, pinch of turmeric and 4 cups of water or as required. I have pressure cooked them till 3 whistles.
Roast all the ingredients except coconut in oil. Add grated coconut and tamarind with roasted spices and grind them into a smooth paste. Add water as required.
Add drumstick leaves and chopped tomato to the cooked dal. Add 1 cup of water, salt and sugar / jaggery for taste. Boil it for 5 minutes.
Add the ground masala paste and allow it to boil for 8 - 10 minutes. After boiling for 6 - 7 minutes, add the chopped onions. Boil it for 3 - 4 more minutes and turn off the flame.
Serve this delicious Sambar along with hot rice and Papad.

ಕನ್ನಡ ಆವೃತ್ತಿ

If there are kids at home, demand for snacks will obviously be more. This holds good for our house as well and not only the kiddo, we are also snacks lovers! More than deep fried items, we like the baked goodies.
This biscuit recipe caught my eyes sometime back while reading a local magazine. I just gave it a try and the biscuits tasted delicious! Original name of this biscuit is 'ANZAC Biscuit'. As I read in Wiki, the name of these biscuits is associated with Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZAC). During the time of 1st World War, wives of the soldiers were preparing biscuits using flour, rolled oats, desiccated coconut, sugar, etc. They were sending those biscuits to the soldiers which had a good shelf life. There are several ways to prepare these ANZAC biscuits. This recipe was published in a local magazine during the time of ANZAC Day. Original recipe called for Golden Syrup. I have replaced it Honey and it worked out well!
Recipe courtesy: Coles Magazine

Preparation time: 15 - 20 minutes
Baking time: 15 minutes
Yield: 25 - 30 biscuits
Difficulty level: Medium

Ingredients:

All purpose flour / Maida - 1 cup (1 cup = 150 gm)
Rolled oats - 1 cup
Desiccated coconut - 1 cup
Butter - 125 gm
Brown sugar - 55 gm
Caster sugar - 110 gm
Honey / Golden syrup - 2 tbsp
Bi Carbonate soda - 1/2 tsp
Hot water - 1 1/2 tbsp

Method:

Preheat the oven to 180°C.
Transfer the rolled oats into mixie jar and make it a course powder.
Combine all purpose flour, rolled oats, desiccated coconut, brown sugar and caster sugar in a mixing bowl and mix it well.
Heat the honey and butter together and allow the butter to melt on low flame. Stir it occasionally. Once the butter is completely melted, turn off the flame and keep it aside for cooling down.
Mix 1/2 tsp of Bi Carbonate soda with 1 1/2 tbsp hot water. Add it to the melted butter and honey.
Fold in the flour mixture into melted butter and mix it nicely.
Take tablespoons of mixture and roll them into balls. Pat the dough balls and arrange them on a lined baking tray.
Bake the biscuits for 15 minutes and allow to cool.

ಕನ್ನಡ ಆವೃತ್ತಿ

Beetroot is one of the nutritious vegetables which tastes awesome with its natural sweetness. This root vegetable is good for preparing delicious stir fry, sambar, salads and sweets. Beetroot Palya / Stir Fry and Sambar are my family favorites. My little one also loves to have it because of its nice red color!

Here is the recipe of Beetroot Palya / Poriyal. This tastes very good with rice, chapathi, roti and poori. Give it a try and let me know your feedback :)

Preparation time: 40 - 45 minutes

Servings: 5

Difficulty level: Medium

Ingredients:

Beetroot - 1 1/2 bulb
Dry red chilli - 1
Urid dal - 1 tsp
Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
Asafoetida / hing - big pinch
Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp
Green chilli - 1 (adjust according to taste)
Curry leaves - 4 to 5 leaves
Cooking oil - 3 tbsp
Grated coconut - 1/2 cup
Onion - half
Salt - for taste
Amchur powder - for taste
Sugar - 1 tsp or according to taste
Water - 1 1/4 cup or little more (as needed for cooking)

Method:

Wash the beetroot cleanly and peel off the skin. Chop them finely.
Heat oil in a heavy bottom pan. Add broken red chilli pieces, urid dal, asafoetida and then mustard seeds. Once the mustard seeds start crackling, add turmeric powder, slit green chillies and curry leaves.
Saute it for a while and add finely chopped beetroot and mix it well.
Add 1 1/4th cup of water for cooking the mixture. Close the lid and cook it for 18 - 20 minutes. Stir the mixture occasionally. Add more water if needed.
When the mixture is almost cooked and water is evaporated, add salt, amchur powder and sugar and adjust the taste. Also add the chopped onion and grated coconut and mix well.
Cook it for 8 - 10 minutes more and turn off the flame.
Serve this Palya along with rice, chapathi or poori.

Tips:

Beetroot bulbs are bit hard. If you find it difficult to chop them finely, just cut them into 2 or 3 pieces and pressure cook till 2 whistles. Then, chop them finely and follow the above recipe. Only change you need to consider is no need to add water after doing the seasoning since the veggie will already be cooked.

ಕನ್ನಡ ಆವೃತ್ತಿ

Here comes a simple and quick Ladoo recipe which can be prepared to serve the guests, or to munch on just like that! Its good for kids as well since all the ingredients used here are good for health. My kiddo loves to have it anytime and she renamed it as 'Tun Tun Laadu'! No need to worry about the calories, we are going to add less ghee for this Ladoo :)

Wheat Flour Laddu is one of my favorite sweets from childhood. There is one more method to prepare Wheat Flour Ladoos where we need to make the sugar syrup. Anyways, I love to prepare Ladoos with powdered sugar which is simple and quite easy!

Try these yummy ladoos and enjoy with your family..

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Yield: 12 ladoos of medium size

Difficulty level: Medium

Ingredients:

Wheat flour - 1 cup (1 cup = 200gm)

Ghee / clarified butter - 1/2 cup

Powdered sugar - 3/4 cup

Cashews - 4

Raisins - 15 to 20

Cardamom - 2

Cloves - 1

Method:

Melt the ghee in a heavy bottom pan.

Add the wheat flour and broken cashews. Toast it on medium or low flame till you get a nice aroma.

Turn off the flame and allow the mixture to cool down.

In the meanwhile, make a fine powder of cardamom and cloves and keep it ready. You can powder them along with sugar to make it easy.

Once the roasted mixture is cool, add powdered sugar, cardamom - cloves powder and raisins.

Mix it nicely and make sure that everything is combined well.

Take small portions of mixture in your hands and make lemon size balls.

Store them in an airtight container and use as required.

Tips:

If the ladoo mixture looks too dry and you are not able to make the ladoos, add 1 - 2 tsp of heated ghee and mix well.

ಕನ್ನಡ ಆವೃತ್ತಿ

Fruit Biscuits from Karachi Bakery situated at Hyderabad are one of our family favorites. These biscuits are unique in taste and flavor. They just melt in your mouth and are truly addictive. Since these goodies are not available for us here in Australia, we always had missed them.

Ever since I started my baking journey, I was trying to replicate the taste of these fruit biscuits. After some experiments and guess works, finally I got it perfect!
Here is my version of Fruit Biscuits or Tutti Frutti Biscuits. Try these delicious biscuits and enjoy with your family :)

Preparation time: 15 - 20 minutes
Refrigeration time: 30 minutes or more
Baking time: 20 - 25 minutes
Yield: 40 - 45 pieces (depending on the size)

Ingredients:

All purpose flour / Maida - 5 cups (1 cup = 70 gm approx)
Unsalted butter - 185 gm (at room temperature)
Sugar - 1 cup (110 gm)
Milk powder - 1/2 cup (25 gm)
Custard powder - 1/4 cup (13 gm)
Vanilla essence - 1 tsp
Rose water - 3 tsp
Tutti frutti - 100 gm

Method:

Take the sugar and make a fine powder in a mixie. Alternatively, you can use the caster sugar available in stores.
Beat the butter in a mixing bowl till creamy. I have used the electric beater to ease this process.
Add the powdered sugar in 2 - 3 batches to the butter. Continue beating till the mixture is fluffy and creamy.
Now, add the vanilla essence and rose water and mix gently.
Pour in the custard powder and milk powder and mix it nicely.
Add the all purpose flour in small batches and keep mixing till you get a soft, non - sticky dough. If needed, you can add little more extra flour than mentioned above, absolutely no probs!
Finally, add the tutti frutti and mix it nicely.
Divide the dough into two equal parts. Take each part of dough, and make it into the shape of a log or as you like.
Wrap it in a butter paper and keep refrigerated for 30 minutes or more.
Pre heat the oven to 175°C. Line the baking tray with butter paper.
Take out the dough from the refrigerator. Cut them into slices of 1 cm width.
Arrange them on the lined baking tray. Leave some space in between for the biscuits to expand.
Bake them for 20 minutes or till done.
Enjoy the delicious biscuits with a cup of tea or just like that!

Tips:

You can keep the dough refrigerated even for more than 30 minutes. For me, it took 5 minutes more to bake when I kept the dough in the refrigerator for 1 1/2 hours.

ಕನ್ನಡ ಆವೃತ್ತಿ

Banana is one of those healthy fruits which is commonly available everywhere. This nutritious fruit can be eaten as it is and also can be used in preparing ice-creams, cakes and delicious desserts. It works as egg re-placer for some cakes and hence, is good for egg-less baking.
When I find over ripened bananas in my pantry, either I will prepare Banana Rotti or go for baking something. Over ripened bananas are perfect for preparing cakes and muffins. I had posted Banana Cupcake / Muffins recipe some time back. Here is the recipe of perfect Banana Bread..hope you like it!

Preparation time: 10 - 15 minutes
Baking time: 45 minutes
Yield - 1 loaf (serves 5)
Difficulty level: Medium

Ingredients:
Over ripened banana - 1 (equal to 2 cups of puree)
All purpose flour - 2 1/2 cup (175 gm)
Salt - pinch
Sugar - 1 1/2 cup
Curd - 1/2 cup
Melted butter - 1/2 cup
Baking powder - 2 tsp
Baking soda - 1 tsp
Vanilla essence - 1 tsp

Method:
Pre-heat the oven to 175°C.
Cut the peeled banana into medium size cubes. Combine sugar and banana pieces in a blender or mixie and prepare the puree.
Melt the butter in a bowl and allow to cool.
Sieve together all purpose flour, salt and baking soda and keep aside.
Take the banana puree in a mixing bowl. Add melted butter, baking powder and vanilla essence. Mix it gently.
Fold in the flour mixture little by little and mix it well without lumps.
Transfer the batter onto the greased loaf pan and spread it evenly.
Bake it for around 45 minutes or till done. Keep an eye on the loaf after baking for 35 minutes.
Take the loaf out of the pan before it cools down completely. Put the loaf on a cooling rack to allow proper air circulation.
Cut down into slices once it is completely cool and enjoy it with a cup of hot coffee or tea!

Tips:
If you want to avoid using butter, just replace it with cooking oil.

ಕನ್ನಡ ಆವೃತ್ತಿ

Hibiscus is one of the most common garden plants which is easy to grow and lasts for years. We can find varieties of hibiscus plants everywhere. This plant has got lot of uses. People use hibiscus flowers for offering to God. Hibiscus leaves are good for hair growth and remedy for all hair problems. We can prepare Juice and Tea using hibiscus flowers, which is good for health.

We had a Hibiscus plant in our backyard. It was full of flowers all the time except during peak winter. We used to pick the flowers daily for offering to God. Kiddo also wanted some flowers for playing and she never missed her share :) Even after picking so many flowers, we could see many flowers still on the plant.

These days, I have learned a new recipe using hibiscus flowers. Hibiscus Juice is damn easy to prepare and tastes really yum! I just love that sparkling red color of this juice. Ingredients for this juice are also simple..one can give it a try anytime!

Preparation Time: 15 minutes

Servings: 2

Difficulty level: Easy

Ingredients:

Red hibiscus flowers - 3
Ginger - 2 inch (sliced)
Sugar - 4 tbsp or according to taste
Water - 1 1/2 cup (1 cup = 400 ml)
Lime - half piece

Method:

Heat water in a vessel. Add the ginger slices and hibiscus petals and boil it for 8 - 10 minutes.
Filter the boiled water using a tea strainer.
Add sugar and lime juice according to taste. You can see the color of juice changes to sparkling red now.
Make it cool before serving. Also, you can refrigerate it or add ice cubes if desired.