Kandagadda fry

Kandagadda (Elephant Yam or Suran) fry is easy to make and a great after-school snack for kids. For souls surrounded by summer heat, this vegetable seems to be a great tool to cool down the hypertension. Didn't know its health benefits until I started writing this blog ;-). Click on the following link to see more health benefits: Elephant Yam - health benefits.

You'll find this vegetable in any Indian store...usually in refrigeration section.....

Ingredients:   

• Kandagadda 
• Salt
• Chilli powder
• Turmeric powder
• Dhaniya powder
• Oil

Preparation:    

Peel the outer layer with a sharp knife and cut it into thick slices.

Tip: If you are too lazy, wash it thoroughly, cut it into big pieces, boil them and then peel the skin and cut into slices.

Boil the slices until cooked.

Drain the water and take the boiled pieces into a plate/bowl.

Color the pieces with red chilli powder, turmeric powder, dhaniya powder and salt.

Heat a flat pan and spread oil. Shallow fry the pieces (in medium heat) until they turn golden brown.

Yummy Yam slices are ready to eat.... and it doesn't take much time to empty the plate...healthy and tasty....

Tip: If the slices are overcooked, mash them into paste, add powders and shallow fry them like cutlets :-)

Cauliflower stem chutney

Cauliflower stem...the fiber part of cauliflower that never goes into dustbin when my mother-in-law is home. Before marriage, I never saw anyone eating cauliflower stems...always used to think that the best place for it is the dustbin. Over a period of time, I got into the habit of saving the stems and using them in mixed vegetable curries like my M-I-L.

For me, it doesn't taste that great...but still, take it as a fiber intake. Always used to think of making a better recipe out of it. Thanks to "Maa Oori Vanta(Maa TV)" for giving me a tip of preparing chutney out of cauliflower stems. Tried it and trust me, now it's one of my favorite chutney for Dosa.

Here are the ingredients followed by preparation:

Ingredients:   

• Cauliflower stems 
• 1 cup peanuts
• 1 medium sized onion
• 3 small sized tomatoes
• 3 green chillies
• Coriander leaves
• Curry leaves
• Salt
• 1 tbsp oil 
• 1/4 tsp mustard seeds
• 1 tsp jeera
• 1 tsp urad daal
• Heeng

Preparation:    

Take out the stems from Cauliflower florets, wash and cut them into small pieces. 

Roast the peanuts in a kadai or pan.

Make powder out of roasted peanuts and keep it aside. In the mean time, heat oil in a kadai/pan, add cut onions, tomatoes and green chillies. Stir fry for sometime and then add Cauliflower stem pieces. Fry for some more time and let it cool to make a paste. 

In a mixie, add the above ingredients, water, salt and coriander leaves and grind it into paste. Then add peanut powder and make it into smooth paste. In a kadai, heat oil and add heeng powder, mustard seeds, jeera, urad daal and curry leaves.

Then add the paste and stir fry for 2 to 3 minutes. 

Chutney is ready to serve with Dosa...our today's early morning breakfast :-).

And here is a slight variation of Dosa...added a layer of chutney on Dosa to fill kid's breakfast box...no hassle at school.... easy to grab and eat.

Baby corn Bajji

My father who enjoys cooking, is very fond of snacks and bajji is one of his favorite. And whenever I ask my younger daughter, what she wants for snacks...her immediate response will be "thatha(grandfather) bajji" :-).

Few months back, I tried baby corn bajji, and now it's on her favorite list too. Try it when you have time...

Ingredients:   

• 8-10 baby corns 
• 6 tbsp besan flour
• 2 tbsp maize(makki) flour
• 1 tbsp rice flour
• 1 tsp sesame seeds
• 1 tsp garlic paste
• 1 tsp fresh ginger (grated)
• Salt
• 1/2 tsp turmeric powder
• 1/2 tsp chilli powder
• Oil for deep frying
• 1/4 tsp baking powder

Preparation:    

Wash and cut baby corns lengthwise, sprinkle salt and little bit turmeric powder and apply evenly on all the baby corn pieces.

Prepare thick batter by mixing besan flour, makki flour, rice flour, salt, chilli powder, sesame seeds, little bit turmeric powder, baking soda, grated ginger and garlic paste with water.

Heat oil in a Kadai/pan. Dip baby corn pieces in batter and deep fry till they turn into golden brown in color.

Crunchy bajjis with half boiled baby corns taste good even without chutney or sauce :-).

Jawar vada

Jawar roti (jonna rotte) is one of my favorite....and what to say when it's served with Karela fry (Kakarakaya vepudu). Unlike regular Jawar roti, my father used to prepare this deep fried version, tastes totally different from regular one. Now I'm preparing it for my kids, very easy to make, doesn't take much time and a perfect time saver if you have school going kids.

Ingredients:   

• 3 cups Jawar flour 
• 1 medium sized onion
• 3 green chillies
• Coriander leaves
• Oil
• Salt

Preparation:    

Finely chop onions, green chillies, coriander leaves and add them to Jawar flour.

Add salt and make dough by adding water.

Take lemon sized batter, dip your hand in a bowl of water and then make vada shapes with your four fingers. Gently wet the cloth before making each vada, this will help to detach the vada from cloth easily.

Lift the cloth with left hand and carefully transfer the vada with your right hand into hot oil. Deep fry until the vada turns into golden brown color.

Serve them hot or cold. Try with Daal...tastes really yummmy....

 

Mushroom Rasam

Being a South Indian, Tomato Rasam becomes part of our meals most of the time. Rather than preparing regular watery rasam, adding mushroom gives it a different flavor and kids love it (provided they like mushroom). If my kids don't find mushroom in Rasam, they don't consider it as Rasam at all :-).

Give it a try if your kids like mushroom....

Ingredients:   

• 7 medium sized tomatoes 
• 10-15 Button mushrooms
• 10 small Garlic cloves
• Curry leaves
• 2-3 dry chillies
• 1 tsp cumin seeds(jeera) 
• 1/2 tsp mustard seeds
• 1 tsp urad daal
• 1/2 tsp turmeric powder
• 1/2 tsp chilli powder(or as per your taste)
• 1 tsp dhaniya powder
• 2 tbsp oil
• Lemon sized tamarind

• Salt
• 3 tbsp Rasam powder
• 1 tsp Jaggery powder
• Coriander leaves
• Hing(Asafoetida)

Preparation:   

Wash the vegetables and leaves.

 

Shallow cut tomatoes on four sides and add them to boiling water.

In the meantime, cut mushroom, soak tamarind and crush garlic cloves.

Boil the tomatoes until the skin begins to peel. Let them cool down or put them in cold water. Peel the skin off with your hands, make tomato puree in a blender and keep it aside.

Heat oil in a container or deep pan. Add hing and then mustard, jeera and urad daal. Add curry leaves, crushed garlic and dry chillies. Fry them until garlic turns light brown. Add turmeric powder, chilli powder, salt, dhaniya powder, rasam powder and stir for few seconds. Add mushroom and stir for another one minute.

Add tomato puree, tamarind juice and more water if required. Add jaggery powder and let it come to boil. Make sure not to boil too much to preserve mushroom's crispness.

Garnish with Coriander leaves and serve it hot with rice. If you have bad cold, drink it as soup.

If this is kid's version of Rasam, then God's version of Rasam for festivals doesn't need garlic or mushroom. If you are boiling chana daal for preparing sweet dish like puran poli/obbattu, save the chana-boiled water and add it to rasam. This gives totally a different flavor......enjoy!!

Custard apple (Seethaphal)

Seethaphal is back to season. These soft and tender fruits are yummy like custard...packed with so many health benefits. But we simply can't give the whole fruit to kids. They love it when the fruit is ready to eat with no hassle of peeling.

The only problem is  finding a right way to peel the fruit....well, peeling doesn't work here. Instead scoop it from inside...sounds funny...but that's the best way to move it fast to kid's mouth. Here are some pictures to try the trick...

Split the fruit into two halves...

Hold one half of the fruit in one hand and scoop out the flesh with a spoon...

That't it. I couldn't find a better way to peel it ;-).

Pity pomengranates in the basket made my daughter take pictures of them too :-). And here you go....
With a knife, cut off about half inch of the top and do the same on the other side....

Make 5 to 6 shallow cuts from top to the base...

Now break open the fruit along the shallow cuts...

Skim off the pith and serve the seeds to kids. And here is a link to its health benefits.

For people doing fruit fasting and fruit feasting on this special day, wish you a very HAPPY JANMASHTAMI!!

Vegetable corn soup with Tofu

With soaring summer settling down and rain on the raise, vegetable corn soup with Tofu is my kids favorite to spice up their Jihva. With so many health benefits of Tofu, feels good when my kids ask for second round. Here is the recipe good enough for four people.

Ingredients:   

• 1 large button mushroom
• 4 beans
• 2 tbsp corn kernels
• 2 inch medium sized carrot
• 1/4 medium sized capsicum
• 2 spring onions
• 4 garlic cloves
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• Pinch of ajinomoto (optional)
• 1 inch ginger
• 2 tbsp corn flour
• 1 cup Tofu (cut into small cubes)
• Salt

Preparation:   

Cut all the vegetables into small pieces. Crush the garlic and keep ginger ready to grate at the end to feel its freshness.

In a kadai or frying pan, heat olive oil and then add crushed garlic. Saute for one minute on medium heat.

Add all the vegetables and saute for 5 minutes. Don't over fry, so as not to spoil their beauty and crunchiness.

Add pinch of ajinomoto just to enhance the flavor. Don't overuse ajinomoto/MSG, it's bad for health and can lead to Chinese Restaurent Syndrome. Add salt and then add corn flour mixed in water. Boil on medium heat for 5 to 10 minutes.

Add Tofu cubes and then grate ginger directly into the soup. Boil on medium heat for another 2 to 3 minutes.

Vegetable corn soup with Tofu is ready to serve....of course I already served my kids :-).

You can add green chillies, bay leaves, pepper powder or oregano leaves as per your taste. But for kids, ginger and garlic are good enough to keep the spice under control.