Dabbakaya Pachadi or Citron Chutney

Ingredients:

• Dabbakaya/Citron- 1 (I used half for preparing the chutney)
• Water- 1/2 cup
• Salt- 1 1/2 tsp
• Jaggery- 3 tbsp or more
• Turmeric powder- 1/4 tsp
• Dry red chilies- 12-15 broken into pieces
• Mustard seeds- 1 1/2 tbsp
• Fenugreek seeds- 1 1/4 tbsp (methi)
• Oil- 1 tbsp

For Tempering:

• Oil- 1 tbsp
• Mustard seeds- 1 tsp
• Cumin seeds- 1/2 tsp (Jeera)
• Asafoetida- 1/4 tsp (Hing)

Method:

Please watch the below video for the procedure. I will update the written version in a few days.
Thank you. :)

Tomato Dal - mixed style

Ingredients:

• Moong dal- 1 1/2 cup (Pesara pappu) (Split green gram without skin)
• Water- 2 cups
• Tomatoes- 6-8 medium sized, cut into small pieces
• Onion- 1 small, chopped
• Green chilies- 4-6 slit vertically
• Curry Leaves- 6-8
• Coriander leaves- a small handful, roughly chopped
• Salt- 1 tsp or more
• Turmeric powder- 1/4 tsp
• Lemon juice- 1/2 tsp or less

For Tempering:

• Oil- 2-3 tbsp
• Mustard seeds- 1 tsp
• Cumin seeds- 1/2 tsp
• Dry red chilies- 2 broken into pieces
• Asafoetida- 1/4 tsp

Method:

1. Wash and soak the moong dal in 1cup of water for 10 minutes.
2. Cook till it gets soft and mushy. The dal cooks easily and it will take about 15 minutes in a pan. 
3. Or you can cook it in a small cooker for 3 whistles.
4. To this cooked dal add chopped tomatoes, salt, turmeric powder and mix.
5. Prepare tempering simultaneously, by heating oil in a small pan.
6. To that oil add mustard seeds, cumin seeds, dry red chilies and asafoetida.
7. As the mustard splatters add the green chilies, curry leaves and onion. 
8. Saute for 2 minutes till the onion is translucent.
9. Now add this tempering to the dal and mix.
10. Grate ginger and garlic directly into the dal. Make sure the heat is in simmer all times and use a heavy bottom pan or dish. 
11. Add water to wash off the grater and let it cook for 12 - 15 minutes til you get the desired consistency. 
12. Add the lemon juice before turning of the heat and mix well. Top with coriander leaves and serve with rice, roti, puri or jowar roti. 

Notes:

1. You can add crushed ginger garlic for this instead of grating. But use fresh paste for maximum flavor.
2. Onion can be added directly to the dal and cooked. 

 

Mint Leaves Chutney

Ingredients:

• Mint leaves- 1 cup
• Green chilies- 2-4 broken
• Tamarind- 1-2 small pieces, washed
• Salt- to taste
• Oil- 1 1/2 tbsp

For Tempering:

• Oil- 2 tbsp
• Chana dal- 1 1/2 tbsp (Senaga pappu)
• Urad dal- 1 tbsp
• Mustard seeds- 1 tsp
• Cumin seeds- 1/2 tsp (Jeera)
• Dry red chilies- 3-4 broken 
• Asafoetida- 1/4 tsp

Method:

1. Remove the mint leaves from the stem and add to a dish of water.
2. Wash the leaves and change the water to remove any dirt or sand.
3. Heat oil in a pan and add the leaves by squeezing out the water and green chilies. 
4. Mix and cook for 5-7 minutes till the leaves change color and start to come together.
5. Meanwhile in a smaller pan heat oil and add chana dal, urad dal, mustard seeds, cumin seeds, dry red chilies and asafoetida.
6. Once the mustard splatters turn off the heat.
7. Let both the mixes cool down and first grind 70% of the tempering.
8. To that add tamarind, cooked leaves and salt.
9. Grind again by adding 2-3 tsp of water if required.
10. Finally add the remaining tempering and transfer to serving bowl.
11. Serve with rice, idli, dosa or roti.
12. Or you can prepare two separate tempering, one for grinding and other to add at the last. In that case, omit adding chana dal in the final tempering.

Tips:

1. This chutney stays good for 3 days when stored in refrigerator.
2. For those who like you can add a small piece of jaggery for mild sweetness.

Eggless Fruit Cake in Microwave

Let me tell you that is an alcoholic cake, mild of course. Its got about 2 tsp of rum in it and the dry fruits were soaked in rum for around a week. It is egg less and is prepared in the Microwave. This being my first attempt in trying a rum cake (any alcoholic cake) I was wary and added less quantity. You can either increase the liquid portion or remove it completely according to your choice.

In case you want a non-alcoholic version, just soak the chopped nuts in orange juice or apple  juice overnight. Or you can boil the chopped nuts in the juice along with some sugar for five to ten minutes and use it.

Despite adding caramel water, the cake does not get the dark shade of the usual Christmas cakes. It is more lighter in shade and you can add maybe a few drops of red and orange food color to get a darker color. I haven't added any. The cake is a little dense, but not as much as the oven ones.

I googled a bunch of recipes, mixed up a few and got this recipe. Also the cake tastes better a day after baking, so you might want to bake it in advance. I observed that any microwave made cake tastes better the next day.


Ingredients:

• Maida/All Purpose Flour- 1 cup
• Baking Soda- 1/2 tsp
• Baking Powder- 1/4 tsp
• Oil- 1/6 cup
• Water- 1/2 cup
• Spice Powder- 1/4 tsp in total (I added some cinnamon powder and grated a little nutmeg)
• Sugar- 1/3 cup+ 2 tbsp if required (I used demerara sugar)
• Vinegar- 3-4 tbsp

Soaked nuts- 2 tbsp

• I used dried kiwi, dried raspberries, black raisins, yellow raisins, cherries, tutti-frutti, almonds, walnuts, cashews, pistachios, melon seeds. 
• You can add dried pineapple, dried orange as well. 
• Chop all into rough pieces and add into a glass jar. (Do not use any other, especially not metal.)
• Pour the rum slowly and mix with wooden spoon or stick. (I used the appe pan stick) 
• Add two cloves, half of star anise and two half inch pieces of cinnamon sticks.)
• The liquid should cover the nuts. Place a clean cloth on the opening and close with lid. Stir once every day with wooden spoon for a week. Then stir alternate days. Keep in cool and dry place away from sunlight.
• If using normal juice, follow same procedure but store in refrigerator. Soaking for a week in orange or apple juice should be enough. 
• I am not giving measurements because I soaked stuff that can be used for about small cakes since I wanted to experiment with different versions. (egg and eggless)

Method:

For Caramel:

1. Now this is a pretty tricky thing in case you haven't prepared it before. It took me three fails to get the art of making a decent caramel. The trick here is to add very little water and not to stir. I admit it is tough to control the itch of stirring the bubbling sugar syrup, but it messes up the process (at least in my case).
2. 
   
3. If you haven't tried caramel making before stick to normal white sugar because it gets difficult to tell when the caramel is ready as the demerara sugar melts. There is very little time for us to save the caramel from burning as it thickens. Be careful and do not burn your fingers.
4. 
   
5. Now coming to the procedure, take a thick bottom pan and add sugar in the center. Add two tbsp of water and keep the heat on simmer. Let it melt, boil and bubble. DO not stir until the color turns to pale yellow.
6. From here the caramel burns fast so stir and turn off the heat. The color will still change to honey-brown.
7. To this add around 1/4 cup of water and stir from a distance.
8. The caramel will harden, turn on the heat and let it melt. It will take about 2 minutes. Turn off the heat if the pan has no crystals. Let it cool.
9. When the caramel water is still warm, add oil and mix well. Then add vinegar and stir. Keep it aside. 

For Cake:

1. Sift maida/APF, baking powder and baking soda. Add the soaked nuts(not liquid) to it and mix well.
2. Add the liquid to the cooled caramel water + oil solution and mix. 
3. Now add the wet ingredients to dry and fold gently. The batter has to be thick otherwise the nuts will sink to the bottom when baking. 
4. Do not over mix. 
5. Grease a microwave safe bowl/dish and dust it lightly with flour. Tap off the excess flour and pour the batter into it. Tap once to set the top and place in microwave. 
6. Set the power to 80% and timer to 3 mins. 
7. Mine was real thick batter and it took exactly 3 mins to bake it.
8. Check with a toothpick by inserting it into the cake. If it comes out clean, the cake is done. 
9. Otherwise, put it back in for another 30 seconds. 
10. Once done, let it sit in the hot oven for a minute. 
11. Take it out, let it cool completely before inverting it onto a plate. 
12. I did not add any icing, but it is your choice. 
13. Let it cool completely in case you want to ice it. 
14. Here comes the toughest part. Cut into pieces and store in an airtight container and taste the next day.
15. The flavors will settle and intensify in 24 hours giving a cake a nice nutty taste. 
16. It will stay god for up to 3 days in a cool and dry place.

Eggplant Raita - Vankaya Perugu Pachadi

Ingredients:

• Eggplant- 2 medium
• Yogurt- 3/4 to 1 cup
• Onion- 1 small (if required)
• Salt- 3/4 tsp
• Turmeric powder- 1/8 tsp

For Tempering:

• Oil- 1 tsp
• Urad dal- 1/2 tsp
• Mustard seeds- 1/2 tsp
• Cumin seeds- 1/4 tsp
• Dry red chili- 2 pieces
• Asafoetida- 1/8 tsp
• Green Chilies- 2 , finely chopped
• Ginger- 1/2 inch, finely chopped
• Coriander leaves- a small handful, finely chopped

Method:

1. Wash, dry and roast the eggplant on stove, just as we do for bharta.
2. Apply some oil to the eggplants, so the skin comes out easier after roasting.
3. Keep turning the eggplants, so as to cook on all sides.
4. When it is charred completely, just press lightly with finger tips, if it feels soft on the inside it is completely cooked. 
5. Let it cool and remove the burnt skin. 
6. Place the cooked pieces on a plate and give it a rough chop. 
7. Meanwhile beat the yogurt to a smooth paste. 
8. Heat oil in a small pan and add urad dal, mustard seeds, cumin seeds, dry red chilies and asafoetida.
9. As the mustard splatters, add green chilies, chopped ginger, turmeric powder. 
10. Turn of the heat and let it cool. 
11. Mix the chopped eggplant to the yogurt, add slat and mix well. Now add the tempering and mix again. Finely add chopped coriander leaves and serve with rice or roti. 

Notes:

1. Add finely chopped onion to the tempering and saute for a minute if you want to add onion. 
2. We do not add garlic to this raita as it does not balance the taste. 
3. Store in the refrigerator if you want to keep the leftover for night, but do not keep for the next day. 
4. For best taste serve half an hour after preparation.
5. So you can roast the eggplant, peel the charred skin, chop and keep it ready. Just add to yogurt and finish with tempering half an hour before lunch of dinner. 

Apple Banana Smothie

Ingredients:

• Apple- 1
• Banana- 1
• Honey- 1-2 tbsp
• Milk- 1/4 cup or more
• Vanilla ice cream- for topping (optional)

Method:

1. Wash the peel the apple. Roughly chop along with banana.
2. Add to blender along with 1 tbsp of honey some milk and blend.
3. Add remaining milk and blend again. 
4. Add another 1/2 tbsp of honey if required and blend again.
5. Pour into serving glass.
6. Top with vanilla ice cream or serve plain.
7. You van just drizzle some honey instead of adding for the second time.

Notes:

1. Can use caramel sauce as well. 
2. Chocolate sauce or syrup will also taste good. 
3. If using cocoa powder, add sugar.