Cooking with Love - Host lineup!

Hi Friends,


Cooking with Love is a series of Event. A tribute to all our family and relatives. Each relation plays an important part in everyone's life.

Do drop me an email if you wish to host the event at simplysara07(at)gmail(dot)com.

Themes	Month	Hosts
Grandmom	Jan-Feb	Saraswathi  Iyer
Granddad	March	Shama
Mom	April	Nithu Bala
Dad	May	Nayna
Aunty	June	Akheela
Uncle	July	Saraswathi
Themes	Month	Hosts
2013
Spouse	Jan	Hema
Kids	July
Sister	August
Brother	September
Cousins	October
Friends	November
Lovers	December

Feel free to mail me your suggestions.

Thanks & Regards,
Saraswathi

Sajjige/Rava Kesari Type 2

Sajjige this is a sweet prepared for Sathyanarayan Pooja or Pournima Pooja or any ocassion. This was prepared by my Mother in law for Aadi Perukku. It was very tasty. I have prepared another version of Kesari Bath and Pineapple Kesari taught by my  Dad.

Ingredients
Chiroti Rava/Upma Rava - 1 cup
Water -  2.5 cups
Sugar - 1.5 cups (If you like less sweet can reduce accordingly)
Ghee - 1/2 cup
Banana - 1/2 no(chopped)
Cashews/Raisins - 2 tspns
Elachi powder/Cardamom - a pinch

Preparation Method
Boil water and keep aside.
Heat a kadai, add 1/2 tspn ghee and fry cashews and raisins till brown. Transfer it to a plate.
In the same kadai, add 1/2 tspn ghee and roast rava till you get good aroma and slightly brown.
Now add warm water and mix it. You can use whisk for easy mixing and to avoid lumps.
The mixture should not be very thick it should be thin. Reduce flame and wait till rava is completely cooked.
Add little ghee and mix. Now add sugar and mix well. Add chopped banana, a pinch of elachi powder and mix well.
It should not be thick. So it will be soft later. Add left over ghee.
Off the fire and add the fried cashwes and raisins.

Offer to God and then enjoy.

Sajjige is ready for Prasadam.

Notes : - You can skip banana and prepare.

- You can also lessen ghee and add oil or vanaspati. - Can be consumed within 2-3 days, need not be refridgerated.

Create n Carve Roundup!!!

Dear Friends,

I am herewith posting the roundup of Create n Carve Fruit n Vegetable Event. I would like to thank Nayna for giving an opportunity to guest host her event. Thank you friends for sending your entries.

Entries by Nayna

Cantaloupe Melon Carving

Marigold Flower 

Carnation Table Decoration

Carnation Flowers

Entries by Elena

Romantic Fruit Display with Candles

Cute Fruit Sculpture

Spring Flowers by Shobha

Crabby Sandwich by Vatsala

Hope you enjoy the roundup. Until next post, have a nice day.

Cheers,

Saraswathi

Eggless Vanilla Chocochip Cake!!!

I prepared this for my son and Father in law birthday. Both of them like cakes a lot and it falls on the same date.

Vanilla Chocochip Cake was soft and yummy.

Recipe
Wet Ingredients
Condensed milk -1/2 tin(Can use low fat too)
Butter - 3/4 cup
Vanilla Essence - 1 tspns
Milk - 1/2 cup
Warm Water -  as required.

Dry Ingredients
APF/Maida - 2 cups
Baking Soda - 1/2 tspn

Baking Powder - 1tspn

Preparation Method
Preheat oven to 200 C.
Melt butter in microwave for 10sec. In a wide bowl, add butter and mix all the wet ingredients by using a whisk or hand mixer slowly.

Seive all dry ingredients and mix it slowly to get a batter.
Add 1 to 2 tspns of choco chips
Grease or spread butter paper to 7 or 8 inch round baking dish. Pour the batter. Bake it for 45mins. Check with a fork or skewer when it comes out clean or bake it for 5 to 10 mins more.
Can also brush warm milk and allow it to cool.

You can do icing with Nutella spread. I did later for my son with Nutella.
Enjoy the Eggless Vanilla Chocochip Cake with coffee/Tea.
Preparation Method

This recipe is going to Only Baked Event by Harini and Pari.

Tofu Masala!!!

Tofu is a cheese from Soya Milk. I tasted tofu for the first time and liked it. This is also good for people having cholestrol who cannot eat Paneer. This has no cholestrol.

Serves 2 persons
Ingredients
Silken Tofu - 100gms (at room temperature)
Onion - 1no
Tomato - 2nos
Ginger Garlic paste - 1/2 tspn
Garam Masala - 1/2 tspn
Red chilli Powder - 1/2 tspn(As per your taste)
Turmeric powder - a pinch
Milk - 1/2 cup(Slim)
Kasoori Methi - a pinch
Olive Oil - 1/2 tspn
Salt
Sugar - a pinch(Optional)

Preparation Method
Chop onion and tomato into small pieces. Save around 1 tablespoon of each for later use.
Grind Onion, tomato, ginger garlic, turmeric powder, red chilli powder in a blender or mixer into fine paste with little water.
Heat a Kadai/wok, add oil, add onion, tomato and saute till its soft. 
Add the grounded mixture and allow it to boil.
Add garam masala, kasoori methi and mix well.
Add milk and allow it to boil. When its going to be thick.
Cut tofu into small pieces and add it. Just boil once and off the stove.

Serve it with hot chapathis or rotis.

Notes - You can use coriander leaves if you dont have kasoori methi.

Dates Milkshake!!!

This is a simple milkshake prepared for my son, who sometimes doesnot eat food properly. This is combi of iron and calcium. This can be had by anyone with haemoglobin

Ingredients
Dates - 3 nos(Deseeded)
Milk - 1 cup (boiled and cooled)
Sugar/Honey - 1/2 tspn.


Preparation Method


Soak dates in 1/4 cup of warm milk for about 1/2 n hour. Then grind it in blender or mixie with sugar and milk. Transfer it to a tumbler/glass.

Serve it warm or chill.

Notes -  You can increase the no of dates according to the size of tumbler.

Carrot Thogayal/Chutney!!!

We usually make thogayal for Kootu rice as sidedish. Yesterday, I tried using carrot skin and carrots. It was very tasty and gave good colour. No one could make out until I told it was Carrot Thogayal:-) Last time I prepared Carrot Payasam and it was yummy.

Ingredients
Carrot skin/peel of 1 carrot.
Carrot - 1/2 cup(chopped)
Urad dal - 1/2 cup
Channa Dal -  1 tspn
Dry Red Chilli - 2 nos
Tamarind -a small piece
Fresh Grated Coconut - 2 tspns
Oil - 1/2 tspn
Salt


Preparation Method
Heat a Kadai, add 1/2 tspn oil, add dals and red chilli. Saute till dals are brown. Transfer it to plate.
In the same kadai, add few drops of oil, add carrot skin and carrot and saute for few mins. Transfer it to a plate and allow it to cool.
Grind these with tamarind, coconut and salt to a coarse paste by adding very little water.

This is a sidedish for any Kootu rice or a good combination for Steamed rice with gingely oil.

This recipe alongwith Carrot Payasam is going to Veggie/Fruit a month Carrot by Revathi and Priya. and CC Roti Pachadi/Chutney event by Sravani.

Aval Oats Dosai!!!

This is an easy and quick dosai, was thinking what to do with aval/poha/rice flakes. Took it to make Aval Upma and ended up with dosai. My family like it too.

Ingredients
Aval/Poha/Rice flakes - 3 cups (thin or thick)
Oats - 1 cup(I used quaker quick cook oats)
Green chilli - 1 no(As per your taste)
Rice flour - 2 table spoons

Seasoning/Talipu
Oil - 1 tspn
Mustard - 1/4 tspn
Hing - 2 pinches
Jeera/Cumin - 1/2 tspn
Coriander/cilantro leaves chopped - 2 tspns
Salt

Preparation Method
Wash and rinse aval, leave it for few minutes.
Add oats, green chilli, water and grind to fine paste in a mixie or blender.
Now season the batter with the above ingredients.
Add rice flour and mix well without lumps. Add water if required.
Heat a tawa/skillet and pour the batter slowly. Do not spread, it will spread by itself. It will take sometime to cook. Wait and slowly turn around.
Put oil and steam both sides.

Soft and Crispy Aval Oats Dosai is ready. Serve hot with Coconut chutney or Molagai Podi.

Notes - If you have time you can mix and leave the batter for 1 to 2 hrs and then make dosas.

This recipe is going to Show me ur Dosa event by Divya.

Potato Paneer Peas Pulav!!!

Potato Paneer Peas Pulav is different and tasty variety rice. I tried this when I saw on TV, but its not exactly the same. I have made few changes. This is a rich rice with butter, oil and paneer. Good for kids.

Ingredients
Basmati Rice - 3 cups thats 1.5 alakku (Can use normal rice too)
Paneer cubes - 1 cup cubes(click here for homemade paneer recipe)
Green Peas - 1 cup(Fresh or Frozen)
Potato - 1no
Spices -Bay leaf/- 1no Cinnamon/Cloves/Cardamom - 2 nos each
Butter - 1 tspn
Oil - 3 tspns
Onion - 2 nos
Tomato - 1no
Curry leaves - few
Turmeric powder - 1/2 tspn
Red chilli powder - 1/2 tspn(As per your taste)
Green chilli - 1 no
Ginger Garlic - 1 tspn chopped or you can grind with coconut.
Cashews - few
Salt
Coriander/Cilantro - 2 tspns for garnish Optional

For Grinding
Grated coconut - 1 cup
Cardamom/Elachi - 2 nos
Pepper - 8nos

Preparation Method
Heat a kadai, add butter and saute paneer slightly brown and keep aside.
Heat pressure cooker, add ghee, oil, cashews and spices. saute for 2 mins.
Now add onions and little salt, ginger, garlic, green chilli saute till brown. Then add tomato and saute.
Add the coconut paste and mix. Keep in low flame.
Add chopped potato and peas. Add little water and let it boil.
In a kadai, add little butter or ghee saute the basmati rice till you get good aroma.
Mix the rice with the rest of the ingredients in pressure cooker.
Add water about 5cups or if you want it soft 1 cup more.
Add turmeric powder, red chilli powder, salt and mix well. Check for salt. Add sauteed paneer.
Close the lid and pressure cook for 3 whistles.
Off the stove and mix well.


Potato Paneer Peas Pulav is ready to serve.


You can serve with any Raitha or Paneer gravy.

This recipe is going for Healthy Lunchbox Ideas by Kalyani hosted by Jayashree.

Other recipes for the event.Mutter Paneer, Simple Paneer Peas Pulav, Paneer Bhurji and Palak Paneer