Kanchipuram Idli

Ingredients

Raw rice - ½ cup
Boiled rice - ½ cup
Udad dhal - 1 cup
Pepper - 1 tsp
Jeera - 1 tsp
Hing powder - 1 tsp
Dry ginger powder - 1 tsp
Curry leaves - few
Oil - 2 tbsp
Ghee - 2 tbsp
Fruit salt 2 level tsp for  3 cups batter
Salt to taste
Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
cashew nuts 2 tbsp

METHOD:
Soak rices & dhal together for 4 hrs.
Grind coarse & keep for 8-10 hrs
Coarsely powder pepper & Jeera & add. Add hing & dry ginger powders.
Heat oil & ghee, temper mustard seeds, chopped curry leaves & add nuts, fry till golden. add to batter.
Adjust the dough to idli dough consistency, if need be add some water.
Keep the steamer ready, boiling & grease the idli plates.
Add fruit salt, at the rate of 2 level tsp for 3 cups dough.
Whisk the dough very well, immediately transfer to greased vessels & start steaming, as you do idlis.

This will take 15-20 minutes to cook completely. 
Insert a skewer, if it comes out clean, the idlis are done.
Remove from steamer, cool. Transfer to a plate & cut like cake pieces.
Serve with coconut chutney or any green chutney.The idli will be soft on its own,
but the addition of fruit salt gives it a very spongy & porous texture.
This preserves well for 2 days.

Banana Halwa, without any fat !

Ingredients

green bananas 3 big smashed
milk 4 cups or roughly 750 ml
sugar 1 cup
maida/ all purpose flour 1 cup

Method
PS_ Note, as I did this in microwave, but this can be done over gas too, then you've to keep on stirring continuously till the mixture forms a lump, comes off the sides. If doing in microwave, make sure that you've a big, deep micro safe glass dish to do it, as after adding sugar, it tends to boil over, so be careful.

I smashed the bananas well, added the flour, mixed well, added part of the milk, mixed well, micro high for 2 minutes, as the mixture thickens, added more milk, mixed well, cooked for 3 minutes, mixed well again, added rest of the milk, cooked for another 3 minutes. Then added sugar, cooked for 2 minutes. each time, I stirred well & continued till it was not sticky when touched with wet hands, as this is a test to know that it is well cooked. Once it became a mass, I let it remain in the microwave for some time, then rolled them into small portions, as I didn't use any butter/ ghee, you couldn't cut, which would have been possible otherwise.




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Chocolate-covered cracker biscuits !

Ingredients

Monaco crackers (around 45 )

1 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup butter

1/3 cup creamy peanut butter

1-1/2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips or melt 

drinking chocolate with little butter in microwave for a 

minute & pour it over the pan. Or, if you've dark 

cooking chocolate, grate or break it, melt in oven & 

pour over the pan once out of the oven.

Method

Preheat oven to 200 deg. C or 425 F. Line a  pan with 

foil and spray lightly with non-stick spray.  Line with the 

crushed crackers.  Melt together the butter, peanut 

butter and brown sugar over medium heat until the 

sugar has just dissolved; you can do in microwave too,  

pour immediately over the crackers and spread to 

evenly distribute.  Place in the oven at 425 for about 5 

minutes until it just starts to bubble.  Remove from the 

heat immediately and sprinkle with chocolate chips. 

Let the chips or melted chocolate like I've mentioned 

above. Let it sit for about 1 minute, then spread evenly 

with an  spatula or knife. Place in the freezer for about 

20 minutes, then break into pieces or cut neatly as 

desired.  

Roasted Butternut Squash

Butternut squash is a rich source of carotene.

Ingredients:

1 large butternut squash

2 tbsp olive oil

1 clove of garlic

1/2 tablespoon dried parsley

Pepper pdr to taste

salt to taste

Method

Preheat oven to 200 deg. C.

Peel the squash and cut it into 1 inch cubes. It’s important the cubes are fairly small, so they will cook thoroughly in the process.

Mince the garlic clove.

Place the oil, parsley, garlic and pepper in a large bowl and mix well. You can add other seasonings too  like chilli pdr./ cumin pdr., garam masala pdr. or chaat pdr. and your own flavouring ideas. Add the squash to the bowl and stir until all the pieces are fully coated. Transfer the squash to a shallow oven-safe pan. Place in oven for about 45 minutes.

Avocado salad

Ingredients

3-4 large avocados

3 tbsp fresh cilantro, chopped

1/2 tsp garlic powder

1/4 tsp onion powder

pepper pdr. to taste

1 tbsp salsa

1 tbsp sour cream

fresh lime juice to taste

tomatoes 2 chopped ( optional)

onion 1 finely chopped ( optional)

capsicum 1 chopped fine ( optional)

Method

remove the pulp from avocados, mash well, add rest of the ingredients, except salsa, mix well. Serve with bread, chips and salsa.

Coleslaw

Coleslaw is the perfect summertime side dish. Made primarily from shredded cabbage with buttermilk or mayonnaise dressing, it is simply delicious.

Coleslaw is so versatile you can make hundreds of varieties by simply adding fresh fruits, vegetables and spices. 

Ingredients

4 cups cabbage, grated
1 carrot ,grated
3-4 green spring onions thinly sliced
2 tbsp. vinegar
2 tbsp. sugar
1-2 tbsp. buttermilk
3 tbsp. Mayonnaise
1/2 tsp. yellow mustard
Salt and pepper to taste

Method-

Mix cabbage, carrot and half the quantity of green onion cut, save rest for garnishing.

In a separate small bowl, combine sugar, mayonnaise and 1 tbsp. buttermilk. Mix well.

Add the vinegar, mustard, salt and pepper. Again, mix well.

Pour over cabbage mix and toss to coat evenly. Garnish with remaining spring onion.

Banana Peel As Instant Shoe Polish ?

How to do it: If your favourite pair of shoes have become stained and dirty, grab your 

Favorited breakfast must-have from the kitchen—a banana! Rub the inside of the peel 

on your shoes, allow to dry, and buff away any scuffs.

Mustard Stain - water, vinegar ans dish soap !

If that delicious condiment happens to drip somewhere it shouldn't, relax. Simply combine 

half a teaspoon of dish soap with a half cup of water and a capful of white vinegar. Treat the 

stain with the mixture, rinse and launder.

Shortening To Get a Lipstick Stain Out !

Dab the stain with a small amount of vegetable shortening and then wash the garment with 

baking soda. Cold cream and even some hair sprays work to get lipstick stains out, too!

Talcum Powder To Remove Grease from Leather !

 A little talcum powder can help remove grease from expensive leather upholstery, shoes or 

accessories. First, blot the area with a clean, dry rag. Then, sprinkle just enough talcum 

powder to completely cover the grease stain. Rub the talcum powder into the stain with a 

clean scrub brush (a toothbrush works too) using circular motions. Let the powder sit for at 

least three hours, and then wipe it away with a clean, dry rag.

Tooth Paste To Spruce Up Your Running Shoes !

Toothpaste works wonders to whiten running shoes. Just apply a bit to any scuff-marks and 

rub with a damp cloth. Rinse the area gently and wipe clean. Your favourite joggers will be as 

good as new in no time!

To Get Red Wine Out of a Carpet- try Club Soda?

Spilled glass of red wine on your carpet,  don’t panic. The carbonation in club soda works 

wonders as a stain lifter, and doesn't require much manual labour on your part. If the stain is 

fresh, absorb extra moisture by first blotting the area with a clean, dry cloth. Next, apply a 

small amount of club soda to the stain and allow it to fizz for 15 to 25 minutes. Gently blot the 

area with a damp sponge and absorb excess liquid with a clean, dry cloth.

Blood Stains- salt?

If you’re chasing little ones around all day, you might be prepared with snacks and band-aids, 

but you’ve probably found yourself wondering how to get stubborn blood stains out of clothes in 

a pinch. Easy! Just immerse the item in cold (very important) water and sprinkle it heavily with 

salt. Finally, scrub with bar soap and rinse.

Coffee Stain- try egg yolk !

Mix an egg yolk with lukewarm water and rub into the stain. Let set for a minute or two and rinse 

with water. Watch that tough stain disappear!

Apple-raisin bread/ bun !

Ingredients
1 apple, peeled, cored, cut into very fine pieces
 some raisins,
all spice ( nutmeg, cinnamon, clove pdr.)  1 tsp (or if you've all spice pdr. all the better)
dry yeast roughly 3/4 tsp
pinch of salt,
6 heaped tsp of sugar, 
1 heaped tbsp of butter
1 1/2 cups + self-raising flour
milk around 1/4 cup


Method

mix all dry ingredients, except apple & raisins.
warm milk & butter, add to dry ingredients mix well.
once you're able to knead it, this can be done with hand itself, add apple & raisins, if it is too sticky, add some more flour, to that you'ld be able to roll it easily.

If you're lazy like me, instead of making small buns by rolling them into nice rounds, by flattening the top slightly, well n good, just spread the dough into a nicely greased tray if you don't have bread baking pan, cover with a cling film, leave it aside in a warm place to rise double its size.

Pre-heat an oven at 180 deg. C, then bake the bread/ bun if you've shaped it for about 10-1 5 minutes, till the top is nice brown, when pierced in the middle , the knife should come out clean. If you like, you can glaze it by mixing butter 1 tsp  with 1 tsp of sugar while still hot to give it a shining look, or if calorie conscious like me ( bah) , then forget it, just cut & devour them while still warm.

While  baking make sure that your neighbours aren't around, as it has strong aroma, so that you may not get enough to eat for the yourself n your family ! My daughter-in-law loved it, almost finished half the tray ! while still warm with her cup of tea !

Rhubarb pickle

This is a very simple pickle, while normally people associate rhubarb with sweets, this is my daughter-in-law's idea. It tastes good, goes well with curd rice, bread, roti !

Ingredients

rhubarb  about 14-16" long, cut into small pieces
salt to taste
chilli pdr to taste
turmeric pdr 1/4 tsp
mustard seeds 1/2 tsp
hing little
oil 2 tsp

Method

heat oil, add mustard seeds, once it crackles, add hing, turmeric pdr, chilli pdr in oil, add the rhubarb pieces, salt, keep stirring till it is cooked.

This should be stored in fridge, if it is left over !