Dates and Walnut Cake

Dates are a powerhouse of nutrients. And if u dont how to add them to your daily, here is a simple and sweet version..

I am sending this to Microwave Potluck party September edition hosted by Srivalli @ cooking4all seasons.

Ingredients:

18 Fresh dates seedless
¾ cup Milk
¾ cup Sugar
1 cup Maida
½ cup Refined oil
1 tsp Baking soda
1 Tbsp Cashews
50 g Walnuts
1 Tbsp Blanched almonds

Method:

Soak dates in warm milk for 6-7 hours.

Add sugar and grind to fine paste with the milk. Add oil to this and mix well.

Seive maida and baking soda together in a seperate bowl. Add flour mixture to the dates syrup and mix well.

Add nuts and keep blanched almonds for decorating the base of the tin or the top of the cake. Pour mixture to a greased tin. Bake in microwave for 8-10 mts on high power.

Let it cool. Serve straight away or drizzled with chocolate syrup on top.

Microwave Daliya Idli

Idlis are wholesome as a breakfast item, but for dieters, here is a healthier version...

This goes to the Microwave Potluck party September edition hosted by Srivalli @ cooking4all seasons.

Ingredients:

1½ cup Dalia (broken wheat)
1½ cup Suji/rawa
¼ cup Chana dal
¼ cup Urad dal
2 cup Curd
1 tsp Baking powder
Salt to taste
1 cup Mixed veggies
1 Green chili (optional)
1 bunch Dhaniya (chopped)

Method:

Boil veggies till half done and keep aside. Dry roast daliya and suji till golden brown in colour. Dry roast the dals seperately, add water and cook till soft.

Mash dals, add to suji, daliya mixture, add veggies, salt, chili, salt, chopped dhaniya, curd and warm water to form a batter.

Make idlis and steam in microwave plates for 10 mts on high power. Serve hot with chutney of your choice.

Podalangai Curry

Also called Snake Gourd, the narrow, soft-skinned fruit can reach 150 cm long. Its soft, bland, somewhat mucilaginous flesh is similar to that of the luffa and the calabash. It is most popular in the cuisine of South Asia and Southeast Asia. The shoots, tendrils, and leaves are also eaten as greens.

Ingredients:

2 Podalangai
¼ cup Moong dal soaked
½ cup Coconut grated
1 tsp Oil
½ tsp Haldi
1 tsp Urad dal
1 Red chilli
Salt to taste
1 tsp Mustard seeds

Method:

Wash and cut the podalangai into small pieces.

Soak the moong dal for 10-15 mts. Take oil in a pan, add mustard seeds and let it splutter. Add urad dal, red chilli and saute till brown. Add podalangai, moong dal, haldi, salt and little water. Cook till done with cover. After done, remove from fire, add coconut and serve hot..

Apple Rabdi

Rabdi is a dish made from milk which is boiled and reduced till half or less in a thick bottom pan with continuous stirring. Almost similar to our paal gova but not removed from fire before reaching that stage. And its served in various forms and with various accompaniments.
Rabdi made with yellow pumpkin, with rose essence, mango rabdi, and is also served just like that, or as a side dish with Malpuas, Jalebis, Jelly, Fruits etc etc.....
The list is exhaustive... Try this one, simple to make and tasty to eat...

Ingredients:

3 Apples medium sized
1 litre Full cream milk
4 Tbsp Sugar
¼ tsp Elaichi powder
8 Almonds (blanched)
10 Pista
Few Saffron strands

Method:

Take a thick bottomed pan, add milk and boil, reduce flame and keep stirring till it reduces to half. Add sugar, 2 grated apples and mix. Cook for 4-5 mts. Add elaichi powder. Cool till it reaches room temperature.Serve in bowls garnished with slivered almonds, pista and apple slices.

Notes:

Health Conscious people can use toned milk instead of full cream milk and sugar free instead of sugar. You can peel the apples and grate them, but i kept them while grating to keep the fibre content intact.

Cottage Cheese Club Sandwich

I love eating sandwiches for breakfast. My family calls me a westerner in this regard as they somehow are yet to develop a taste for it as breakfast dishes. This recipe, which is inspired from tastypalettes,spicy chilly, impressed me, partly because it calls for so many vegetables and partly because it is so darn simple. But since tofu is not easily available in my market, i have substituted it with Cottage cheese. health conscious people can take cottage cheese made from skimmed milk or low fat milk. I have also made changes here and there whenever i ran out of the ingredients hoping that it would still make for its taste. And yessss it did......

Take a look.....

Ingredients:

Brown Bread- 4 slices

Cottage cheese (paneer) 50 gms

1/2 capsicum chopped finely. (take any colour you want, i have taken green which was readily available).

1/2 carrot grated or finely chopped

Little cabbage grated

Mixed sprouts 1/4 cup (boiled) (Take care to boil in less water and keep the water for kitchen use rather than discarding. It can be added to gravies or rasam)

Salt to taste

Pepper powder 1/2 - 3/4tsp

Mixed herbs ( readymade powder available) 1/2 tsp

Lemon Juice 1/2 tsp (optional)

Butter or Nutralite (got widely in India) (it is cholestrol free butter so healthier)

Method:

Take the boiled sprouts in a bowl, add grated cabbage, chopped carrots, capsicum, crumble paneer and add. Add salt, pepper powder, mixed herbs, lemon juice and mix well.

Toast bread slices on tawa with little butter on it. Keep the stuffing in between 2 slices, cut in between to form 2 triangles. Serve fresh else the bread will get soggy.

Serve with a glass of your favourite juice (i have served with fresh homemade pomegranate juice) and a bowl of cut fruits to complete your power breakfast.

Idli Sambhar

South indian breakfast mainly consists of Idli, Dosai, pongal and vadais...

Don't we drool over it even if we have it every second day.

Steaming hot idlis served with piping hot sambhar is a must have.....

Ingredients:

IDLI

4 cups idli rice (ponni) available widely in tamil stores.

1.5 cups Urad dal

2 tsp Methis seeds (for the lovely aroma and flavour)

2 tsp soaked aval (for softer idlis)

1.5 cup Raw rice (for brown dosas)

I follow this ratio and this is taken from Ms.Mullai's website (http://www.spiceindiaonline.com/)

Soak all the ingredients for 5-6 hours and grind. Add 4 tsp Kallu uppu for the batter. It gives better taste. Keep for fermentation.

Make idlis with the fermented batter.

For Sambhar:

Arachu Vitta Sambar
Oil – 1 tsp

Mustard seeds – ½ tsp

Curry leaves - few

Quartered shallots or sliced red onions – ½ cup
Toor dal – ½ cup

Moong dal – 1 tbsp

Turmeric powder – 1+1 tsp

Tamarind paste – 2 tbsp

Salt
Cilantro – 2 tbsp, chopped
Spice mixture
Oil – 1 tsp

Coriander seeds – 2 tbsp

Chana dal – 1 ½ tbsp

Dried red chillies – 8

Raw rice – 1 tsp

Fenugreek seeds – ¼ tsp

Grated coconut – 2 tbsp
Red onions – 2 tbsp, chopped

Tomato – ¼ cup,chopped
Heat oil and roast coriander seeds through coconut and grind with onion and tomato to a smooth paste. Alternately, you can grind 2 tbsp of sambar powder (homemade or store-bought) with onion and tomato.
Method
Pressure cook toor dal and moong dal until soft, with 1 tsp of turmeric powder.
In a sauce pan, heat oil, splutter mustard seeds and lightly sauté shallots or red onions with curry leaves. The onions should turn just soft, but still crunchy. Remove and set aside.
In the same pot, boil tamarind paste, salt and the remaining 1 tsp of turmeric powder with 2 cups of water. When tamarind doesn’t smell raw anymore, add the cooked dal, ground spice paste and a cup of water. Simmer for 5 minutes. Remove from heat, add sautéed onions and garnish with cilantro.

Taken from http://www.tastypalettes.com/

Serve hot

Mixed Dal

Dal as we all know are a major source of proteins.
Usually we make any one variety of dal in our homes but how about making a mixed version so as to gain maximum benefit out of it??

Ingredients:

100 g Toovar dal
100 g Chana dal
100 g Black dhall whole
100 g Masoor dal (split)
100 g Moong dal
100 g Green dal whole
1 Tomato (big) chopped
1 Green chilli slit
2 tsp Oil

Salt to taste
½ tsp Haldi powder
½ tsp Garam masala
1 tsp Jeera (cumin)
2 stks Coriander chopped
1 stks Curry leaves
¾ tsp Red chilli powder (or to taste)

Method:

Soak all dals together overnight.

In the morning, pressure cook for 2 whistles and keep aside. Take a pan, add oil, jeera seeds. When they crackle, add curry leaves, tomato, green chilli and saute. Add salt, haldi, red chilli powder, garam masala and saute. When oil leaves the sides, add cooked dal along with little water and boil till thick consistency. Garnish with chopped coriander and serve.

Serve hot with rotis or white rice and aloo fry.