Spring Onions Podipappu

Ingredients:

Green gram dal (Pesarapappu) : 1 cup
Spring onions : 2 bunches cut into small pieces
Green Chillies : 5 or 6 cut lengthwise
Garlic : 4 or 5 cloves cut lengthwise
Salt : as required

For Garnishing:
Carrot : 1/2 grated
Raw Coconut powder : 1 tbsp
Coriander : for garnishing

For tempering:
Cumin seeds : 1 tsp
Mustard seeds : 1 tsp
Chana dal : 2 tsp
Urad dal : 1 tsp
Red chillies : 4 or 5 (1" pieces)
Curry leaves : 1 or 2 stems

Preparation:

• Bring 2 cups of water to boil in a vessel.  Add green gram dal to the boiling water.
• When the dal is half cooked, switch off the stove and strain the dal in a colander.
• Heat a tbsp of oil in a thick bottomed pan and saute cumin seeds, mustard seeds, urad dal, chana dal, red chillies, garlic and curry leaves till they begin to sizzle.  
• Add green chillies and spring onions and fry for 3-4 minutes on medium-high till the onions change their color.
• Add the half boiled dal and simmer for 5 minutes.
• After the dal is completely cooked, add salt and garnish with grated carrot, coconut powder and coriander.
• Can be served with chapatis or white rice.

Spicy Pistachio Droplings

This spicy snack is made by greasing shelled pistachios with a batter made with besan and rice flour. This evening snack is a savour during weekends and especially during the rainy days. They can be served as part of a  proper lunch menu or as an evening snack.

Ingredients
Shelled Pistachios : 1 cup
Gram flour (besan) : 1/2 cup
Rice flour : 1/2 cup
Water : 1/2 cup
Salt : as required
Red chilly powder : 1 to 11/2 tsp
Dhania powder : 1/2 tsp
Garam masala powder : 1/2 tsp
Turmeric : a pinch
Oil : for deep frying

Preparation

• To the besan add rice flour, salt and all the spices except pistachios. Mix until well blended.
• Add water and mix till all the ingredients are well blended.
• Finally mix pistachios.
• Heat oil in a pan.  Drop the pistachios mixed batter into the oil like pakoda.
• Deep fry them until well cooked and serve.

Bobbarlu and Corn Vada

Ingredients

Bobbarlu (Alasandalu) : 1 cup

Canned Corn : 1/2 cup

Ginger : 1 inch piece

Green Chillies : 4 or 5

Cumin seeds : 1 tsp

Coriander : half a bunch

Curry Leaves : 4 to 5 stems

Salt : as required

Oil : required for frying

Preparation 

• Soak the Bobbarlu for 3 - 4 hrs. 

• Wash and take a hand full of bobbarlu and keep aside.

• Grind the rest of all bobbarlu, green chillies, ginger, cumin seeds and salt.

• Do not add water. 

• To this add corn and the hand full of bobbarlu which are kept aside along with chopped curry leaves and coriander.

• Take the batter and shape them like vada either by using both hands or by pressing on a plastic sheet. 

• Heat oil in a frying pan and drop the vada and fry it till golden brown and remove it.

Serve them with Tomato Ketchup or you can eat them solely without any combination.

Dates Cake : Eggless

One of my friend  made this cake and it came out amazing.  Courtesy goes to Aayi's Recipes 

Ingredients:

Seedless dates: 18 to 20
Milk : 3/4 cup
Sugar : 3/4 cup
All purpose flour or maida : 1 cup
Oil : 1/2 cup
Baking soda : 1 tsp
Cashews, walnuts(optional) : 1 tbsp

Preparation

• Soak the dates in warm milk or just heat milk and dates for few minutes or microwave them so that dates becomes soft and help in grinding. 
• Add sugar and grind them to a smooth paste along with the milk in which it is soaked in. 
• Add oil and mix. 
• Sieve together flour and baking soda. 
• Add the flour one table spoon at a time and mix slowly. 
• Add the nuts and mix.
• Preheat the oven at 350F. Bake the cake in a greased oven proof dish for 35-40min (or till a knife inserted in the cake comes out clean).
• Cut into pieces and serve.

Kabuli Sanagalu Vada (Chole Vada)

One morning I planned to cook Chapaties for night's dinner and soaked these chole to make a curry for chapatis.  But I didn't find time to make the chapatis in the evening and I decided to freeze these chole for future use.  That day was a Friday and I usually make some snack on Friday as the dinner generally gets delayed during weekends.  So I thought why not give a try to this Chole Vada and they turned out really yummy.

  

Ingredients:

Kabuli Sanagalu (Chole) : 1 cup

Green Chilli : 2

Red Chilli : 2
Ginger - 1" (optional)
Coriander leaves - as desired
Cumin Seeds - 1 tsp
Salt to taste
Curry leaves few
Oil for deep frying

Although I didn't use curry leaves and coriander leaves in the vadas which are pictured, they really taste good only if you use them.

Preparation:

• Clean and soak chole for overnight. 
• Grind Chole with Chillies and Cumin seeds coarsely. You can add ginger while grinding or u can add later by cutting them into very fine pieces. 
• Chop Coriander and curry leaves finely. Mix this with the dal to form a good mixture. Also add salt.
• Heat Oil in a pan. Divide the dal mix into small balls, flatten them into small patties, either using your palm or using a wet plastic cover.
• Once the oil is hot, deep fry until they are well cooked. Normally takes around 5 mins on sim for each one to be ready.

You can serve them with any type of chutney or u can have them with tomato ketchup or can enjoy them solely without any combination.

Tricolor Sandwich

 

Ingredients:

White Bread (Can use any kind of bread) : 3 slices

For green chutney

Pudina (Mint Leaves) : 1 bunch

Coriander : 1 bunch

Green chillies : 4 or 5

Salt : as per taste 

Oil : 1 tsp

For Red Chutney 

Tomatoes : 3

Tomato sauce or Ketchup : 2 or 3 tsps

Pepper powder : as per taste

Salt : as per taste

Oil : 1 tsp

Preparation:

To prepare Green Chutney

• Wash the leaves of pudina and corianders.
• Heat 1 tsp of oil in a saucepan, and add pudina, coriander and green chillies to it.
• Fry until they are nicely cooked.
• Finally add salt and blend into smooth paste after the ingredients get cooled.

To prepare Red Chutney

• Cut tomatoes into big pieces and blend into a smooth paste.
• Heat 1 tsp of oil in a saucepan, add tomato puree and tomato sauce to it.
• Cook till the puree leaves the edges and add salt and pepper power to it.

Serving

Arrange one piece of bread slice on a plate, spread green cutney. Put another bread slice on the top and spread red chutney.  Finally add a third bread slice on the top, cut into desired shapes and serve.