Gluten free – Page 13

Banana Halwa:

November 3, 2018

Banana or Plantain Halwa was an integral part of my childhood. Usually this Halwa is made by using Kerala big banana which is called as” Nendra variety” but in our home, we used to have lots of overripe bananas from our family farm. To finish off all those overripe small bananas (Kadali variety of Mangalore), amma used to make Halwa or Banana Preserve/ Berati all the time. It was a very regular sweet at our house hold. Today I will share this recipe to all our readers-

Ingredients:

Over ripe banana – 22

Sugar – 1 bowl

Ghee – ½ to ¾ cup

Cashew nuts – 2 tbl sp.

Method:

-Put all the peeled bananas to mixer grinder and make a smooth paste. Measure this by using any bowl of your choice.

-If this paste is 3 cups in quantity take one cup of sugar in that same measurement cup. So, your ratio of banana paste and sugar will be 3:1.

-Fry cashew bits in a teaspoon of ghee and keep aside. Grease one plate with ghee and keep it ready.

-Take one thick bottomed kadai, put this paste and keep gas flame in a very low flame and cook for a while.

-When it changes its colour to milky white and then to a pale colour and when you smell the banana flavour in the air, add sugar and mix this in at a regular interval.

-Add ghee 2 table spoons at a time in-between while stirring. If you feel that the banana paste needs a little more ghee, add up to ¾ cup, some varieties of bananas need very less ghee and some need more.

-Now we will see, how we decide the quantity of ghee. While stirring if you feel that the mixture is a little dry and the bottom part becomes a little brown, keep adding it.

-If the ghee starts oozing at the sides, it is an indication to stop the addition of ghee.

-Now we will see how you know the doneness. It is very simple, keep on stirring until mixture leaves the sides of the kadai and ghee oozes out from the mixture.

-You can add cashew pieces at this stage or spread those pieces in a greased plate like me. After you are done with this, it is almost ready to shift to the plate.

-Before shifting I prefer to check, by taking one small peanut sized portion of the mixture and rolling it in-between your thumb and forefinger to make a small ball like structure. If it holds a ball like structure and does not stick to your finger, it is ready.

-Now remove from the flame, shift to a greased plate and pat this mixture evenly by using a flat, greased (apply some ghee) back of the spoon.

-Keep this aside for two or three hours to cool. Then cut this into the desired shape and store it in an airtight container.

-You can store this Halwa for a really long time (up to a month or two).

Homemade Corn flakes Mixture / Corn flakes Chiwda:

November 1, 2018

Corn flakes is nothing but maize flakes, which is flattened maize. Indian savouries are an integral part of any festivities. When Diwali festival is around the corner each one would think about what to make. When it is an easy and super fast savoury you need, nothing like it than this recipe. It is very handy, when you have time constraints but still want to make homemade stuff and enjoy.

Maize flakes or Corn flakes or flattened maize is available in almost all departmental stores.

Ingredients:

Maize / Corn flakes – 500 Grams

Oil – to deep fry

Tamarind powder or Amchur powder – 2 tsp.

Salt – to taste

Sugar powder – to sprinkle.

Seasoning:

Oil – 4 tbl sp

Peanuts – 4 tbl sp

Mustard- 2 tbl sp

Cumin- 1 tbl sp

Hing – 1 tsp

Curry leaves – 7 -8 springs

White sesame seeds – 2 tbl sp

Turmeric powder – 2 tsp

Green chillies – 3 -4 Chopped

Dry Coconut bits – 3 tbl sp

Coriander leaves – 3 tbl sp

Method:

-Deep fry maize flakes by putting little by little at hot oil and drain the excess oil and keep it ready.

– When it is ready, keep everything ready for seasoning.

– Chop green chillies, curry leaves, coriander leaves.

– Slice coconut and make bite size pieces.

-Make sugar powder and keep aside.

-Now take one big kadai, put oil. When it is hot add peanuts.

-When it is half done, add mustard. After it splutters go on adding Cumin, hing, curry leaves and green chillies one by one.

-When curry leaves become crisp add coconut bits and fry a little.

-Lastly add chopped coriander leaves and fry nicely until coconut bits becomes brown.

-Now add all the powders- turmeric, salt, tamarind and sugar.

-Switch off the gas, add deep fried corn flakes and mix thoroughly until it holds all the masalas.

– Don’t put lot of pressure while mixing, if you do so, crunchy flakes will break and will not hold the shape.

-After mixing, cool and store this in an airtight container. This stays good for one month or more.

Enjoy homemade crunchy munch with evening tea.

Homemade Pumpkin Puree/Preserve:

October 29, 2018

Pumpkin is usually considered as fall / Winter vegetable even though it grows all year round without any issues. Pumpkin vine needs least attention compared to growing other vegetables. It is low in calories, high in anti-oxidants, Vitamins, minerals as well as high on natural source of Beta carotene.

I normally make use of pumpkin in many forms and one such form is Pumpkin Puree. When home grown, organic pumpkin is available, it is an awesome way to store the goodness and use it as needed in your cooking from making pastas to baking.

Usually puree can be made by using two methods. Either on stove top or by baking. I normally prefer stove top method. In this method, I don’t even remove the outer skin. In this way, we can retain the added goodness.

How I make is –

Ingredients;

Pumpkin – 1 kg

Water – 1 cup

Method:

-Wash pumpkin, remove inner core and seed part.

-Chop pumpkins into bite size pieces.

-Take one tawa, spread all the pieces and sprinkle water and cook those pieces until done.

-When pumpkin pieces are well cooked, water also evaporates.

-Cool and grind this into puree.

-Store this in a freezer by putting it in an air tight container and use whenever it is needed.

Pumpkin/Cheenikayi Kalasu:

October 25, 2018

Pumpkin Kalasu is a traditional recipe of our community. It is a semi solid, sweetish coconut based curry, which goes very well with hot rice or Chapati.

Usually we use tender, greenish sweet pumpkin for this curry, paired with white Kabuli chana.

Ingredients:

Green sweet pumpkin – ½

White chana – 1 cup

Coconut – 1 bowl

Cumin – 1 tsp

Red chilli – 1 to 2

Salt

Jaggery

Red chilli powder – ½ tsp

Seasoning:

Coconut oil – 1 tsp

Mustard – 1 tsp

Red chilli – 1

Curry leaves – 1 string

Method:

Soak white chana for 7 to 8 hours or overnight.
Cut pumpkin into half; remove inner soft pith and seed. Chop this into small pieces with skin intact.
Wash soaked chana, put fresh water and cook in a pressure cooker for 3 whistles.

When pressure relieves, open the lid and add chopped pumpkin, salt, red chilli powder and jaggery. If needed add little more water and cook until pumpkin is done.
Now grind coconut, cumin and red chilli into fine paste by adding required amount of water.
Add this masala to cooked veggie. Adjust the consistency by adding water. Consistency should be semi solid. Boil this and add seasoning.
For seasoning heat coconut oil, mustard, red chilli and curry leaves.
Enjoy this curry with hot rice or Chapati.

Thambittu Unde / Brown Rice Laddu:

October 18, 2018

Brown rice laddu is also known as “Thambittu unde” in our coastal region of Karnataka. It is an age-old recipe of my aunt’s family. This tasty laddu is very dear to my heart, which I used to relish whenever I visited my maternal uncles place.

Brown rice, also known as boiled rice/matta rice/Kerala rice is very healthy and packed with many nutrients, at the same time it is gluten free and you can have it without any hesitation. It requires very minimum ingredients but tastes heavenly.

Now we will see the procedure –

Ingredients:

Brown rice /matta rice – 500 grams.

Fresh Coconut – 1 (grated)

Jaggery – 500 grams (used organic, hence the colour is dark)

Ghee – 50 -100 ml

Cardamom powder – 1 tsp.

Cashew bits – ½ to 1 cup

Method:

-Wash rice once or twice, drain completely and Spread this on a clean cloth and let it air dry. It takes one to two hours. After one to two hours, check the moisture.

-If it is completely dry while handling, it is ready to use.

-Heat one thick bottomed wok/vessel, add dried rice little by little and roast, it will pop a little and texture will become brittle and little puffy.

-Do this procedure in 3 to 4 batches and cool.

-When it cools down, make powder either in a mixer jar or nearby flour mill. Sieve this powder and keep aside.

-Now dry roast grated coconut until it emits fragrance. Keep aside. (you can use mixer jar and pulse once or twice to get uniform tiny gratings. This would help in uniform roasting)

-Boil jaggery by putting one cup of water. When it melts sieve this solution to remove any impurities.

-Take this liquid and boil further till it reaches one thread consistency. At this stage you will hear “Tup” “Tup” bubbling sound too (this is the clue which I have received from the elders)

-When it reaches one thread consistency, mix in roasted coconut gratings, ghee, roasted cashew bits, rice powder and cardamom powder.

-Mix nicely. At this stage mixture will be too wet to handle. So, keep aside for half to one hour, till mixture becomes little dry and ready to handle.

-When you feel it is ready, take a small amount in a hand and make laddu and keep aside.

-When all the mixture gets over and you have finished the process, store these laddu’s in an airtight container. This laddu stays good for long even in room temperature.

Vegetable Pulav (Bangalore Style):

October 6, 2018

Vegetable Pulav is very versatile and made in many ways. Each house or family has their own favourite recipes. But this one is found in any small darshini or small eateries in Bangalore. It is a native Bangalore style Pulav which is green in colour due to the usage of Pudina and coriander leaves. It is fried with onion and other masalas and ground to paste. Selection of the vegetable is also unique. With other vegetables, Knol khol, double beans as an added attraction, when compared to normal Pulav. Added to all this, we find deep fried bread croutons.

Ingredients:

Basmati rice – 3 cups (small steel tumbler)

Beans – 10

Carrot – 1

Knol khol – 2

Green peas – ¾ cup

Double beans – ¾ cup

Lemon – 1

Bread slices – 3

For Masala: (please refer the picture)

Oil – 2 table spoons

Cinnamon – 4 to 5 small pieces

Clove – 4

Cardamom – 2

Black pepper – 10 to 15

Cumin – 1 table spoon

Onion – 2 (medium)

Green chillies – 5 to 8

Ginger – 2-inch piece

Garlic – 12 to 14

Mint / Pudina leaves – 1 fist full

Coriander leaves – 1 fist full

Fresh Coconut – 1 small cup

Seasoning:

Oil – 8 to 10 table spoons

Cumin – 1 tea spoon

Bay leaves – 3 half pieces

Marathi moggu – 2

Star anise – 2

Method:

-Wash rice a couple of times, soak and keep aside.

-Wash pudina, coriander leaves, Chop veggies, onions etc. If you are adding double beans and green Peas keep it ready.

-Now prepare ground masala: Take everything under masala and keep it ready by washing or chopping.

-Take one wok, heat oil, drop all the dry spices from cinnamon to cumin.

-Fry onions, garlic, ginger, green chillies when onion becomes transparent add pudina and coriander.

-Fry until it wilts. Add coconut and fry for 2 minutes and switch off the gas.

-Cool, grind into paste by adding very minimum water. Keep aside.

-Now we would move towards the main preparation. It is the time to drain the soaking rice.

-Take one pressure cooker, pour oil for the seasoning, drop all the dry spices from cumin to star anise, fry for 2 minutes.

-Now put all the veggies, green peas, double beans and fry nicely until raw smell vanishes and all the pieces coats with the oil.

-Next comes the turn of adding ground green masala and salt. Fry nicely and lastly add drained rice and fry for couple of minutes.

-Add water (I normally add 1: 2 for Basmati rice or Sona masuri rice) If you are using small grain (Jeera rice) Use 1: 1 ½ ratio for water. Here 1 is rice and 2 or 1 ½ is water.

-Use rice measured cup for water measurement.

-Check for salt and squeeze lemon and close the lid. Cook for 1 whistle and keep it in a simmer for 2 to 3 minutes.

-During this time, we can prepare bread croutons. Usually bread pieces will be deep fried, drained and added.

But, I normally avoid deep frying and make it like this.

-Take one tawa, drop couple of spoons of ghee or oil, when it is hot, drop the bread pieces and fry for 2 to 4 minutes, until all the bread pieces coats partially and half roasted.

-Now switch off the gas, spread those bread pieces in a baking dish, bake for 20 minutes or until it is crisp in a pre-heated oven or convection microwave at 170-degree C.

-When Pressure relieves, open the cooker lid and mix in bread croutons and mix well. Close the lid and leave for some time to soak all these bread pieces to absorb the aroma.

-Then serve with Onion raita at the side.

Ganike hannu Gojju, side dish for Pongal / Black nightshade fruit curry:

September 26, 2018

Have you ever tasted this wonder fruit? If no, you should pluck next time when you see in your vicinity and should enjoy it and feed all the goodness to your body. When we were young, it was our pass time, while walking towards school. We would pluck all these edible different berries though we never knew the goodness that we were getting form these.

Traditionally, in our region, these berries are not at all used in cooking. As I know, it is used only in Tamilnadu in a dry form, after soaking it in buttermilk and sun drying. Normally these dried berries are made into sweet and tangy curry called Vathal Kuzhambu and I tried the fresh berries to include in my regular Pongal Gojju, as a side dish.

As I said in the earlier post, black night shade has many names and these berries are also known as Ganike Hannu, Kakke Hannu, Chavi Hannu in Karnataka. Manathakkali, Sukkuti in Tamil. Nakoi in Hindi.

Black Nightshade (solanum nigrum) is sometimes confused with Deadly Nightshade (Atropa belladonna) of which berries grow individually and in this, we see a bunch formation of berries.

It has a whole lot of health benefits. It is a major source of anti-oxidants and moreover anything else, it is pesticide-free and free of cost 😀

For me, it is a gift of mother nature. I have not potted the plant and it is growing wildly in my garden and feeding me with greens and berries. This time, I have added these berries in my usual side dish, which I prepare for Pongal and liked as well.

Now we will move towards the details –

Ingredients:

Ganike Hannu – 1 cup (I have used black as well as green unripe one)

Tamarind – One gooseberry size

Jaggery

Salt

Sambar powder – 1 to 2 teaspoons

Rice flour – 1 to 1 ½ teaspoon

Sesame Oil / any cooking oil– 1 tablespoon

Fenugreek seeds – ½ teaspoon

Hing – ¼ teaspoon

Mustard – 1 teaspoon

Cumin – ½ teaspoon

Dried Red chilli – 1

Curry leaves – 1 spring

Method:

-Soak tamarind in a cup of water.

-Wash berries and keep them ready.

-Keep the vessel for seasoning, heat oil, first fry fenugreek seeds.

-Splutter mustard, cumin, hing, chilli and curry leaves and drop berries and fry until it wilts.

-Add tamarind water, salt, jaggery (jaggery should be a little more)

-Boil until berries are cooked and soft. Time to add Sambar powder.

-Mix rice flour in ¼ cup of water, mix and pour it into the curry.

-Boil this nicely, until the top of the curry looks glossy. In the meantime, adjust and add salt, jaggery or sambar powder if needed.

-Serve this Gojju with Pongal as a side dish or you can have it with white rice as well.

-It is sweet, sour and Hot in taste and pairs very well with Pongal.

Ganike Soppu Kootu:

September 23, 2018

Monsoon Is the time, when my garden is filled with greens and I make use of all the goodness that mother nature is offering to us. Ganike soppu is a widely known herb by many regional names like Ganike or Kakke soppu in Kannada, Manathakkali keerai in Tamil. Botanical name is Solanum Nigrum which is originated in South Africa and commonly known as Black nightshade.

It is a medicinal herb and very good for stomach ailments, is what I have heard from my elders. Usually green leaves are used to make Tambli and it is believed that, it is a remedy for menstrual cramps as well as stomach related discomforts.

This time I got a bumper harvest from wildly grown plants and tried to make kootu but without adding coconut. It is a sort of dhal cum sambar. We liked it and thought of sharing it with my readers as well.

Kootu recipe, what I have followed is from Jayanthi Senguttuvan aunty and posted on our Foodie group by Senguttuvan uncle. Made some changes according to our requirement and enjoyed it thoroughly with hot rice as well as dosas.

Ingredients:

Toor dal and Moong dal – ½ + ½ cup each

Turmeric – ½ tea spoon

Hing – ¼ tea spoon

Sambar powder – 1 to 2 tea spoons

Salt

Seasoning:

Oil – 1 table spoon

Mustard – 1 tea spoon

Urad dal – 1 tea spoon

Gram dal – 1 tea spoon

Curry leaves – 1 string

Onion -1 medium

Ganike soppu/ greens – As required

Method:

-Take one cooker, wash dals, put required amount of water, turmeric, hing and cook.

-Wash greens. Chop greens as well as onion.

-Prepare seasoning, heat oil, splutter mustard, fry urad dal, chana dal and add curry leaves, chopped onions and fry for a while.

-Add chopped greens and fry until it wilts.

-Add sambar powder, salt and adjust the consistency by adding water.

– Add cooked, mashed dal, check for the salt and masala, adjust it.

-Boil nicely and serve with rice, roti or Dosa or as you wish to have.

Raw Plantain / Raw Banana Pepper Curry

September 20, 2018

This is an age old recipe, which we used to enjoy during our childhood. Usually my paternal aunt used to make this curry by using the small variety of banana. Banana I have used is home grown, small variety which we call as Kadali / Yelakki banana. Non-ripe, green one.

This curry is prepared using little bit of Toor dal and good amount of pepper for heat. Plantain pepper curry is tangy, spicy and little bit sweet all at the same time. This curry goes along with plain rice with a dollop of ghee or Coconut oil.

Ingredients:

Plantain/Raw banana – 7-8 (if it is small variety) 1 or 2 (if it is big variety)

Toor dal – ¾ cup

Salt – to taste

Jaggery – 1 to 2 tsp.

Red chilli powder – 1 tsp.

Turmeric powder – ½ tsp.

Tamarind – 1 small lemon size.

For masala: Toor dal – ½ tsp, Fenugreek seeds-¼ tsp, coriander- 1tsp, Cumin – ½ tsp, black pepper – 2 tsp, garlic – 5 -6 cloves, coconut- 2 tsp.

Seasoning: Coconut oil – 2tsp, mustard -1 tsp, Cumin – ½ tsp, red chillies -1 to 2, curry leaves –little.

Method:

-Cook toor dal in sufficient water and keep aside.

– Peel banana and chop it into a tiny bit, immerse in water to avoid discoloration.

– Now take one vessel and prepare tamarind water (by putting tamarind in 2 cups of water). Keep it for boiling.

-To this, add salt, red chilli powder, jaggery, and turmeric powder. When it starts boiling, add banana bits by draining the water in which it was immersed.

-Now prepare masala by roasting toor dal, fenugreek, coriander, Cumin, pepper and garlic with little oil (preferably coconut oil) .

-When dal becomes light brown, remove from the flame and grind this into a smooth paste with coconut.

– When banana is done, add cooked dal, ground paste, required amount of water (adjust according to your requirement), check for salt and sweetness.

-Boil this mixture and add seasoning by using all seasoning ingredients.

-Serve with hot rice with dollop of ghee or coconut oil.

Steamed Modaka / Steamed Rice dumpling with Coconut Jaggery filling:

September 12, 2018

Ganesha Festival aka Vinayaka Chaturthi is the time, when we indulge in so many varieties of traditional delicacies- Genasale, patholi, Chakkuli or Chakli– to name a few. Two varieties of Modaka (steamed and deep fried) Panchakajjaya, Halittu (nothing but rice noodles), Guliyappa are the main things which we normally find in our region.

Ganesha has one more name as a “Modaka Priya” means, he loves to eat Modaka. Steamed medakas are also known as Ukkarisida Modaka / Ukdiche modak in India.

Which is ground rice batter, which is cooked until it reaches a ball form and kneaded and stuffed with a coconut jaggery filling and steam cooked.

Some people or in some region, people do use rice flour, instead of soaked and ground batter.

Now a days, people make various kinds of modak from, khoya, chocolate, dry fruits etc. But traditionally it is done in this way.

Procedure goes like this –

Ingredients:

Dosa rice /white rice – 2 cups

Grated coconut – 1 cup

Grated Jaggery – ½ cup (to taste).

Ghee/ Clarified butter – 4 tsp.

Salt to taste

Modaka mould – (optional)

Method:

-Wash rice and soak it for 2 to 3 hours.

-Grind soaked rice into smooth paste by adding water and salt.

-Now keep thick bottomed kadai, pour the ground batter and add some water to make thin consistency.

– Now add 2 tsp of ghee and start heating this mixture by continuous stirring. When it becomes little thick and forms a mass, switch off the gas and keep it aside to cool.

-When it is ready to handle, knead it further and form a smooth dough.

-Cover the dough with wet cloth, to retain moisture.

In the meantime, make sweet coconut-jaggery mixture. In a thick bottomed vessel add jaggery and ½ cup of water and heat. If you find some impurities in jaggery syrup, sieve this liquid and heat further and add fresh grated coconut and cook until it is sticky and forms mass. Add remaining ghee to this and mix. Now stuffing is ready.

Method to make Modaka by using mould-

-Grease the mould by using ghee.

-Take a lemon sized dough at a time, knead a little and use.

-Close the mould, apply the dough all around the mould, fill a tea spoon of coconut jaggery mixture by leaving very little place at the neck of the mould.

-Now take a tea spoon of dough and seal it. Now Stuffed Modaka is ready.

-Proceed until all the dough is over and arrange all these medakas in an idli steamer.

-Steam cook for 15 to 20 minutes.

If you are using Rice flour or Modaka flour:

Ingredients:

Rice flour – 2 cups

Water – 2 cups

Salt

Ghee – 1 tea spoon

Method:

-Boil water by adding salt, ghee in a thick bottomed pan.

-When water starts to boil, add rice flour and keep in a simmer for 5 minutes.

– Switch off the gas. After some time, knead the dough and follow the same procedure as above.

-While kneading, if needed , sprinkle some hot water and proceed.

-Proceed until all the dough is over and arrange all these medakas in an idli steamer.

-Steam cook for 15 to 20 minutes.

Note:

-If you don’t have Modaka mould, take a lemon sized dough, make a 4” disc by using your thumb and fore finger of both hands.

-Keep this in your left palm, in a cup shape, put filling (smaller in size) and cover it. Arrange all these medakas in an idli steamer.

-Steam cook for 15 to 20 minutes.