Bengal gram laddo/ Thuvaiyal maavu

Roasted Bengal gram along with nuts and raisins tossed in ghee makes a very nice snack for a never ending sweet craving. Its been a great surprise to me that I never tried my hands on these ladoos before. It is so easy and overwhelmingly good and most of all healthy.
        Bengal gram ladoo is one of those sweets which I have grown up with. One or the other  aunts would never forget making these ladoos while visiting us. And this is a never fail recipe. 


Ingredients :

1. Raw rice  -  1 cup(1 cup= 210 ml)
2. Bengal gram /Pottu kadalai- 1 cup
3. Sugar - 1/2 or 3/4 cup
4. Cashew, Almond & Raisin -  1/2 cup
5.  Ghee - For frying
6. Milk -  1/2 cup

Method :

1. Soak raw rice for 20-30 mins.
2. Drain the rice completely and then dry  by spreading on a paper towel.
3.  Now grind it in a mixer/blender and sieve it.
4. Grind bengal gram into a fine powder.
5. Make sugar into a fine powder too by grinding in a blender.
6. Take 2 tbsp of ghee in a pan and fry nuts and raisins and keep it separately.
7. In the same pan, with a little more ghee, roast bengal gram powder and raw rice powder separately.
8. Mix roasted bengal gram powder, rawrice powder and sugar along with nuts.
9. Add 2 tbsp of warm milk to the mixture and make into small balls.

Note :

• Keep the ladoos in an airtight container and it stays good for a  week in refrigerator. 
• You can  add grated coconut as well .

Chana biryani

A beautiful biryani recipe where the flavour and aroma of chana enriches the taste of rice . Just like mushroom and chicken, the chana also has an inherent power to make the biryani awesome. It is an easy alternative to the age old regular biryanis especially when there are no veggies sitting in the fridge. This biryani will taste heavenly if made more spicy .
Ingredients :

1. White chana - 1/2 cup (1 cup= 210 mL)
2. Big Onion - 1 (thinly sliced lengthwise)
3. Tomato - 1
4. Mint leaves - 1/2 cup
5. Coriander leaves - few sprigs
6. Green chilli - 2 to 3
7. Ginger garlic paste - 1 tbsp
8. Biryani masala powder - 1 tsp
9. Turmeric powder - 2 tsp
10. Red chilli powder - 1 tsp
11. Cinnamon - 1 or 2
12. Cloves - 2
13. Elachi - 2
14. Bay leaves - 1

Method :

1. Soak basmathi rice in water for atleast 20 minutes.Take a pan .Pour oil into it.
2. Add cinnamon,cloves and bay leaves.
3. Then  add onion and green chilli. Saute for few minutes until it is brown.

4. Add ginger garlic paste . When the raw smell of ginger garlic paste goes off, add tomato.
5. Then add mint and coriander leaves. Saute for a while.

6. Now add turmeric, red chilli and biryani masala powders.

7. Saute for few minutes and then add rice and saute for 2 minutes.

8. Then add Water (water and rice should be 2:1 ratio) .

9.When the water boils, close the lid and then  pressure cook for 2 whistles.

10 . Squeeze little lemon before serving. Serve hot.

Banana bread

A real banana cake should have the following qualities as it should be moist, soft , ofcourse full of banana flavour and should have nuts to enrich the taste. Both banana and carrot cakes are similar in many ways such as colour,taste and texture except for the flavours. Both would be awesome with whipped cream. I normally run away from all sorts of chocolate cakes and brownies and I have never ever touched them too. But the only brown cakes that satisfy my taste buds are these guardian angels "banana and carrot cakes"..Love u dears.. :)
         Had been partially working on banana cakes for more than 2 years . Tried half a dozen of recipes but everytime something was  mixing. One turned out dry and the other turned out without colour. Finally found this recipe from inspired taste and hats off to them as this turned out awesome and it satisfied all the qualities I specified earlier. I strongly recommend you to add brown sugar because it is the secret ingredient in this recipe. Ofcourse you can add regular sugar but forget about the color . And the bananas should be very ripe too.   I got the appreciation that "this is the best cake I ever made".  This is really a treat in brown dress. Enjoy!!!

Ingredients :

1.All-purpose flour         = 1 1/2 cups (195 grams) 
2.Baking soda         = 1 teaspoon 
3.Kosher salt = 1/2 teaspoon 
4.Ground cinnamon         = 3/4 teaspoon 
5.Medium bananas         = 3
6.Unsalted butter = 8 tablespoons 
7. Light brown sugar         = 3/4 cup (150 grams) 
8.Eggs         = 2 large 
9.Vanilla extract         = 1 teaspoon 
10.Walnuts / pecans/almond   = 1/2 cup (50 grams) (toasted and chopped) 

Method:

1. Pre heat the oven at 375F / 180C for 10 minutes.
2. Take all the dry ingredients (all purpose flour,baking soda,salt,cinnamon powder) in a separate bowl.
3. Whisk softened butter and brown sugar separately in a bowl.
4. Add in the eggs and beat for 3 minutes. Then add the vanilla extract.
5. Now add the dry ingredient mixture into this butter+sugar+egg bowl in three folds.
6. Now whisk it for 3 more minutes.
7. Mash tha bananas separately in a bowl and add it to the whisked mixture.
8.No need to whisk now. Just mix them with a spatula. Then add nuts as well.
9. Now pour this into the loaf pan and bake for 60-75 minutes.
10. Once the cake is baked, your house would be filled with a nice aroma and that is the exact time to take out the cake.
11. Leave it to cool for 10 mins. If a knife inserted at the centre comes out clean, that indicates the cake is perfectly ready to eat.
12. Enjoy with an evening tea !!

Japanese buttery cake

Sponge cakes are always so special as it requires very less time for making and they are  really really spongy without even the use of the baking powder . This recipe had been in my try-out  list for a long time. I got this recipe from the blog "japanesecooking101.com" and I simply loved it. While making this recipe please be watchful while double boiling egg and sugar mixture since the egg might get cooked if u leave it for more than a minute. And if that part is done with care, you are sure to enjoy a very very spongy wonderful cake. And while adding the flour ,it is not needed to beat the whole mixture. Just fold it so that the ingredients get to know each other. I got inspired by this recipe and am looking forward try more japanese recipes. Hope you love it too.

Ingredients :

1.Butter - 3 Tbsp
2. Milk - 1 Tbsp
3.Cake flour/All purpose flour- 3/4 cup
(1 cup = 210 ml)
4. Eggs - 3
5. Sugar - 3/4 cup
6. Vanilla extract - 1 tsp

Method :

1.Preheat the oven to 350 F (180 C) at least 20 minutes . 
2.Line a 7" cake pan with parchment paper (bottom and side).
3. Put butter and milk in a small bowl and microwave until the butter melts.
4. In another bowl, sift the cake flour 2 times. Set aside.
5. In a large bowl , add eggs and sugar. Over a double boiler (placing the bowl over a pot with simmering water on low heat), whisk the egg mixture until it becomes lukewarm (until the sugar dissolves). Then set the bowl on the stand mixer, and whip the egg mixture until very thick and white in color . Add vanilla essence and mix.
6.Add sifted cake flour in 3 parts. Fold in the first one-third of the flour by hand with a spatula (not with the mixer). After the flour is incorporated, add the next part of flour and again fold in with the spatula. Repeat. Next, add the mixture of melted butter and milk and fold in with the spatula.
7.Put the batter in the prepared pan. Bake for 20-25 minutes.
8.Take the cake out of the oven and leave for 15 minutes. Then enjoy.

Pav bhaji

Pav bhaji is a wonderful Indian street food . I love this as  it combines all possible veggies in it.The very first time when i tried pav bhaji it was a big flop.  But then I learned the basic secret behind the recipe. Here it goes like the amount of onion and tomato together must be equal to the veggie combo all together. And one should be generous in adding masala powder and very important butter. 


Ingredients :

1. Carrot - 2
2.Beans - 1/2 cup
3.Peas - 1/2 cup
4.Potato - 2-3 nos
5.Capsicum - 1
6.Cauliflower - 1/2 cup of florets
7.Onion - 1 big
8.Tomato - 1 big
9.Ginger garlic paste - 2 Tbsp
10.Chilli powder - 2 tsp
11.Pav bhaji powder - 2 Tbsp
12.Butter - As required

Method :

1. Pressure cook all the veggies 1 to 6 of ingredients  with little water.

2. Take a pan and add 2- 3 tbsp of butter. Add ginger garlic paste. Fry until the raw smell goes off.Then add finely chopped onion.

3. When the onion turns translucent, add finely chopped tomato. If you are using capsicum then it needs to be fried along with tomatoes .(not to be boiled along with all other veggies) .

4. Add 2 Tbsp of pav bhaji masala powder along with 1 tsp of chilli powder. 

5. Mash the cooked veggies with a potato masher.

6. Then add the mashed veggies to the pan.

7. Add 1/4 th cup of water.

8. Leave it until the water completely dries. 

9. Meanwhile toast buns/bread with butter.

10. Serve pav bhaji with toasted buns and finely chopped onion and a slice of lemon.