Different Strokes

Chocolate Cupcakes Filled with Marshmallow

2012-02-04T06:52:00.000-08:00

Hello friends, its been a long time I posted a recipe on Different Strokes. LiteBite kept me busy with acouple of projects and events I was involved in for the last few months. I knowthis does not sound a good reason to stay away from all my lovely readers here.Have done loads of festive cooking, tried many new and authentic recipes whichare all treasured in the drafts.

This Chocolaty Marshmallow filled Cupcakes is onesuch treats I baked for the New year party. I just wanted to give a differentlook to the same old chocolate muffins and filled each one with store boughtmarshmallows. Needless to say these were a hit with all the children and adultsas well.

Ingredients;

2 cups All purpose flour
1 1/2 cups powder sugar
1/2 cup cocoa powder
2 tsp. baking powder
1 cup milk
1/2 cup oil
2 tbsp. cup curd
1 tsp. vanilla extract
12-15 marshmallows

Method; Sift All purpose flour, cocoa powder and baking powdertwice.

Whisk oil, curd, vanilla, milk and powder sugarin a large vessel till they are mixed well.

Pour the wet ingredients into thedry ingredients and fold it lightly.

Preheat oven at 190°C for about 10 minutes.

Grease a muffin tray with oil and pour 2/3 ofbatter into each mold. Insert a marshmallow in the center ofeach mold.

Bake at 190°C for 20-25 minutes till done.

Serve these Chocolaty marshmallow filled cupcakes wit chocolate sauce or just dustthem with powder sugar.

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Eggless Chocolate Banana Cake - Virtual Bridal Shower for Nelly

2011-12-06T23:14:00.001-08:00

A Banana recipe and my virtual party is complete for the girl who loves chocolate, coffee, Nutella and banana more than her boy! After posting a recipe with almost all the favorite ingredients of Nelly, I noticed one of the most favorite s of all Banana was left out. We call ourselves banana sisters and our banana love often comes out on Twitter. Nelly even has a post with all banana recipes here.
The first two ingredients are taken care of in on my other blog with Coffee & Nutella Molten Lava cupcakes.

Check this post here for more about this fun Virtual Bridal shower party from food bloggers.

“And …I said YESSSSS!”

It happened one November midnight, in Twitterverse, we saw this tweet from our dear Nelly @nella22. Without missing a beat, we all knew Nelly had “said YES” to her beloved “M”,as she sweetly calls Brian Murray, her fiancé.

So here we are,Nelly dear, your friends in the food world, wishing you and Brian,all the best. And with our wishes, a simple recipe with an easy formula for a life of bliss, rich with EVERYTHING in it!

BLOGGERS RECIPE FOR NELLY ‘S WEDDED BLISS

Mix together: A lot of Love, Patience, Perseverance, Respect, Courage, Strength, Trust, Kindness, Honesty, Compromise & Great Sex. Stir in : Equal Parts of Love, Support, Faith, Fidelity, Hope, Validation, Friendship, Forgiveness, Communication.

Cook over slow simmer for the rest of your life. Dot daily with a Sense of Humor. Leave out the nagging, sarcasm, skepticism, doubts and stubbornness.

Serving Suggestions: Best prepared daily. Serve with flourish because Married Life is a FEAST. Live it with flavor, spice it with unconditional love, enjoy its richness.

Recipe Notes: Some ingredients won’t always be fresh or available. Or the heat may flare up and the anger spills over. Simmer down and douse the flames with all the LOVE you can throw in.

Enjoy the feast of marriage, love and life!

(Written by : Elizabeth @Mango_Queen)

Eggless Banana Chocolate Cake

Ingredients;

2 cups All purpose flour
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 cup butter
1/4 cup cocoa powder
1 large overripe banana mashed
1/2 cup milk
2 tbsp. yogurt/curd
1 tsp. vanilla essence
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda

Method; Sieve All purpose flour (maida), baking powder, baking soda and cocoa together in a large vessel.
In another vessel add butter (at room temperature) & sugar and beat till it becomes light and fluffy. Add mashed banana, milk, vanilla essence and yogurt into it and mix well.
Grease a round cake tin with little oil and preheat in a oven at 190°C for 10 minutes.
Pour the wet mixture into the dry flour mix and fold it lightly to incorporate all the ingredients.
Pour the batter in the greased baking tin and bake at 190°C for about 35-40 minutes or till done.
Take out from the oven and let it cool completely.
Spread the chocolate frosting with the help of a blunt knife.

Chocolate Frosting;

Ingredients;

1 cup icing sugar
1/2 cup butter
1tbsp. cocoa powder
1 tsp coffee powder (optional)
Little hot water to bind

Method; Beat butter and sugar with an electric beater tll light and fluffy. Add cocoa powder and coffee powder if using and mix well. Add water by drops to make it into a smooth and creamy frosting.

This is my recipe/post for the virtual bridal shower forNelly hosted at Lite Bite.

Love and hugs to all the members for being such wonderful pals, will cherish this association for long!Specialthanks to Heather for the logo, Elizabethfor the intro write up and to Junia for the spreadsheet. Last but not the least to thank are the threesome awesome men of the group- Brian, Alesio and Alan who kept the group in high spirits with witty jokes.

Follow the virtual party Tweets at

#NellysBigDay

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Kulcha - A Delightful Yeasted Indian Flat Bread

2011-11-10T01:20:00.000-08:00

Kulcha is a delightful Indian flat bread, normally fermented with yeast and baked in oven. Baked version is better off than the fried one as it is devoid of oil. Kulchas are very common street food of North India, and is generally served with spicy channa curry in bowls made of dried leaves.
I made the fried version ad served it with Cottage cheese curry - Paneer Jalfrezi.
The Kulchas taste quite different from the Pooris because of the yogurt and yeast in it.

Ingredients;

3 cups all purpose flour
1 tbsp. yogurt/curd
1 tsp. ghee
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. sugar
2 tsp. dry yeast
1 cup warm water
Oil for deep frying

Method; Sprinkle sugar and yeast over the warm water and leave it to rise for about 10 minutes. Sift flour and salt in a large vessel and make a well in the center. Pour the yeast and sugar mix, ghee and yogurt in it. Mix it well to incorporate all the ingredients together.
Cover the vessel with a damp cloth and leave it aside to rise for 2-3 hours.
Knead it again and divide the dough into 10-12 small balls. Apply a little oil over each and leave it for 10 minutes till the oil is hot.

Heat oil in a wok. Take one oiled ball and flatten it using a rolling pin with a little dry flour on the board. Make a round disc of about 1/4 " thickness.Take the round disc in hand and slightly elongate the round before putting it into the hot oil. Let it fry for a minute and turn to other side. These Kulchas will be almost white in color as against the Pooris which become golden brown when fried.
Serve these Kulchas hot with any spicy Indian dal or curry.

Notes;

Bake the Kulchas after rolling them into round disc at 160°C for 10 minutes.
Sprinkle poppy seeds or sesame seeds over the rolled Kulchas before frying them.
Fill the Kulchas with mashed potatoes or cottage cheese for a delicious stuffed version.

Serve these Kulchas with this exotic cottage cheese curry.

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Anarsay - An Easy Indian Traditional Sweet with Poppy seeds

2011-10-29T02:15:00.000-07:00

The peculiar look of this sweet studded with white pearls of poppy seeds makes Anarsay very special festive recipe. And it has been long time since I made this crunchy and scrumptious sweet at home. I wanted to make something different this festival which is easy and fuss free. A long telephonic discussion with mom resulted in zeroing upon Anarsay.
Except for the soaking hour the sweet is really very quick to make and tastes different from other traditional sweets.

Ingredients;
(makes 20 pieces)

1 cup raw rice
1 cup milk
1 cup powder sugar
1 tsp. cardamom powder
Oil for deep frying

Method; Wash and soak rice in milk for about 6-7 hours. You could also soak the rice n water for 2-3 days changing water every now and then. This will make the rice more soft and the Anarsay will be much softer. Drain milk and grind the soaked rice in fine paste, add milk is needed to make the paste.
Take the rice paste in a vessel and add sugar powder and cardamom in it. Mix it well. It should make a solid mass of dough. If you feel it is wet add a tsp. of rice powder in it.
Heat oil in a wok and spread the poppy seeds in a flat plate.
Take marble size ball from the dough and make a ball, flatten it a little and roll it in the poppy seeds. Make all the Anarsay in the same way.

Deep fry these Anarsay in hot oil on medium heat till it turn gulden brown in color.Drain on tissue paper and store all the Anarsay in an air tight container.

Notes;

You can use rice powder to make Anarsay if you don't have enough time to soak the rice.
Add a few saffron strands in the rice mix for a wonderful flavor and color.
A little bit of fresh coconut in the rice paste will make a tasty variation.

Try these low cal chickpea flour Fudge for a healthy sweet.

....

Bridal Shower for Nithya: Chocolate Cup Cakes

2011-10-21T00:22:00.000-07:00

There are very few momentsas cherished, as beautiful as the day you embark the new journey of life.Holding someone's hand, with dreams in heart and sparkle in the eyes. The dayshe started dreaming for, even before she knew its’ meaning. The day she hasvisualized so many times, that by now every detail is clearly itched in hermind. Yes the day a girl becomes a bride, is like no other.

Very soon one of ourfriends, a great blogger and a gifted photographer, is going to live her dream.And since I'm sure you read the header before reading this, you all know who amI talking about...Yes Nithya of 4 thsensecooking is getting married this November.

Thanks to the world ofconnectivity, distances have become a lesser shortcoming. Though nothing canreclaim the joy of celebration in person. Yet in absence of actually being withher during her most joyous period..here we are all, united, to wish her all thebest. So today we are throwing this virtual bridal shower for Nithya to expressour happiness and celebrate with her.

And what could be a betterway to celebrate than with food, the subject, the emotion that binds usall...So we decided to cook it up, literally and that too Nithya's own dishesfrom her own blog - 4 thsensecooking. Hope she likes the recreation of her own favouite dishes andgets a taste of it through the world wide wide.

Cheers...This is for youNithya and for all those visiting this virtual bridal shower!!

I decided to bake something with chocolate as my friend is a self confessed chocoholic and dream about chocolate everyday.

Ingredients;

1.5 cup All purpose flour
1 cup sugar
1 cup yogurt
1/2 cup any vegetable oil
2 tbsp. cocoa powder
1 tsp. vanilla essence
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda

Method; Sift flour, baking powder, baking soda and cocoa powder in a large vessel.
Take another vessel and add oil, yogurt, sugar and vanilla essence in it. Whisk it well till sugar is dissolved.
Preheat the oven at 190°C for 10 minutes.
Mix the liquid ingredients into the dry ingredients and give a light stir so as to just incorporate the whole batter together.

Arrange cup cake liners in a muffin tray or small cup cake molds. Pour the batter in the liners up to 2/3 capacity.
Bake the cup cakes at 190°C for about 17-20 minutes till a skewer inserted comes out clean.
Serve the Chocolate cup cakes with chocolate frosting or dust it with icing sugar.

And here is wishing you good luck for the new chapter of your life, Nithya. May all your wishes turn out to be true and as chocolaty as your dreams are.

Party also being hosted at:

Anamika Arun - Taste Junction

Archana

Krithi - Krithi 's Kitchen

Priya Mitharwal - Mharo Rajasthan Recipes

Priya Mahadeven - Priyas Now Serving

Priya Suresh - Priya easy n tasty recipes

Priya Sreeram - Bon Appetit

Radhika - Tickling Palates

Revathy- Kaarasaaram

Vardhini - Zesty Palette :

Gulab Jamuns with Cottage Cheese - A Delightful Indian Dessert

2011-10-15T04:27:00.000-07:00

Yummy delight!

The festival of lights Diwali, brings back the memories of colorful sweets and bursting noisiest of crackers during our childhood days. Times have changed and now we hardly make any sweets at home.
But there are a few sweets which are a staple during the festive seasons at my home, and Gulab Jamun is one of them. These spongy balls made with reduced milk and dipped in sugar syrup is a delight to eat. You can avoid cottage cheese and make the same recipe with only thickened milk as the main ingredient.

Sugar candy in between

Ingredients;

11/2 cups Khoya or thickened whole milk
1/2 cup Fresh Cottage cheese
1 tsp. semolina
2 tsp. refined flour
A few sugar candy (optional)
3 cup sugar
1/2 cup water
1 tsp. cardamom powder
Oil for deep frying

Deep fried balls

Method; Soak semolina in a tsp. of water for 10 minutes.Take a large vessel and add the thickened milk/mawa/khoya in it. Add soaked semolina & refined flour and knead all the ingredients well till it makes a soft dough.
Take a small marble size ball and roll it into a ball, flatten it and put a sugar candy in it. Cover from all the sides and roll it into a ball again. Make all the balls in the similar way and keep aside.
Heat oil in a thick wok and deep fry the above balls in small batches. Drain them on a tissue paper.
Take another thick bottom vessel and boil sugar, cardamom powder and water in it till the sugar is dissolved. Boil it further and make a one string sugar syrup.
Cool the syrup and add all the fried balls in it. Let it soaked till served.
Notes;

Add saffron in the sugar syrup for a flavorful dessert.
Cashew, pistachios and raisins could be rolled in the balls in place of the sugar candy.
Replace cottage cheese with Tofu for a healthy variation.
Serve the Gulab Jamuns topped with ice cream or any fruit syrup.

Happy Diwali to all of you, may this festival bring loads of happiness & prosperity in your life!

Peas & Cottage Cheese in Spicy Gravy

2011-10-08T08:22:00.000-07:00

A simple Peas and cottage cheese or Mutter paneer as is called in Hindi with wholewheat Indian flat breads is one such delightful meals I crave for during the weekends. There are many ways to make this recipe, you could make it more exotic with cashew nut paste or deep fry the cottage cheese cubes for the crunchy taste. But my favorite is this simple yet scrumptious recipe which is easy to cook and is a delight to savor.

Ingredients;
(serve 2)

1/2 cup cottage cheese cubes
1/2 cup fresh peas
4 tsp. of oil
Salt as desired
A pinch of asafoetida
1/2 tsp. of mustard seeds
1 cup water

Spices

1 tsp. red chilly powder
1 tsp. coriander powder
1/4 tsp, turmeric powder
1/2 tsp cumin seeds powder (optional)
1/2 tsp. garam masala

To grind

2 onions
2 tomatoes
4 garlic pearls
A small piece of ginger

Method; Peel and dice onion into small cubes. Wash and cut tomatoes into small pieces. Grind onion, tomato, garlic and ginger into fine paste.
Take a small bowl and add all the spices in it, mix with a teaspoon of water.
Cut cottage cheese into small cubes.
Heat oil in a wok and crackle mustard seeds. Add the ground paste, asafoetida, salt and the spice mix in the oil and fry it for about 10 minutes on low heat till the oil separates from the mixture.
Add water in the wok and let it boil. Add cottage cheese cubes and fresh peas in the wok. Cover it and let it simmer for 10 minutes on low heat.
Garnish with fresh coriander leaves and serve this delightful Cottage cheese and fresh peas hot with Indian flat breads, plain rice or buns.

Adhirasam - A Traditional Indian Sweet

2011-09-25T10:17:00.000-07:00

Come Diwali and you could smell jaggery, cardamom and coconut everywhere! There are many special sweets from South India which are uncommon in other regions, and Adhirasam is one of them.
This traditional sweet requires a little proficiency in making the exact dough which will hold its shape when fried in oil.

Ingredients;
(makes about 10-12)

1 cup Raw rice
3/4 cup Jaggary
1 tsp. cardamom powder
Oil for deep frying
1/4 cup water

Method;
1. Wash and soak raw rice in water for an hour, drain the rice. Spread the rice on a kitchen towel to let the water absorbed from it.
2. Grind the dried rice in a grinder and make a very fine powder.
3. Add water to the jaggary and heat the mixture in a thick bottom kadai. Remove any impurities from the jaggary syrup.
4. Heat the syrup till you get one string syrup. Take off the flame and add the cardamom powder in it.
5. Add this syrup to the rice flour little by little. Keep mixing the flour and the syrup with a ladle.
6. Heat oil in a wok. Take a small marble size ball from the above dough and make a circle.
7. Flatten the dough a little and drop it in the oil. Do remember to grease your palm with oil before making the Adhirasam.
8. Turn the Adhirasam to other side when it becomes golden in color.

Make all the Adhirasam and store in an air tight container for up to 15 days.
Notes;

My MIL adds a little coconut in the Adhirasam dough.
You can use store bought rice flour also for making the Adirasam.
Replace jaggary with sugar for a different version of Adhirasam.
Dry ginger powder and poppy seeds are also added in the dough for more flavors & taste to this traditional sweet recipe.

Do check in the on-going event on WWC and send in your entries for the same.

Cashew Fudge or Kaju Katli - A Melt-in-Mouth Indian Sweet

2011-08-10T08:50:00.000-07:00

Indian festivals and sweets are synonyms to each other. Festivals in India are not complete without a plateful of colourful sweets. These Cashew Fudge or Kaju Katli as called in Hindi is one of my favorite sweets and is a permanent feature in my house during all festivals.

There are many ways & recipes to make these cashew fudge, you can make it using cashew powder and sugar syrup or soak the nuts and make it. I like the later method and soak the nuts in milk before making the fudge.

Ingredients;

Cashew nuts 250 gms
Powder Sugar 200 gms or a little less
1 tsp. cardamom powder
1/4 cup milk
1 tbsp. clarified butter/ghee

Method; Wash and soak the cashew nuts in milk for about an hour. Drain the milk and grind the soaked cashew in a grinder to a fine powder. Add powder sugar and cardamom powder in the ground cashew nut and mix well.
Heat a heavy bottom wok and add 1 tbsp of ghee. Add the above cahew nut mix and keep stirring for about 10 minutes on medium heat mix till it makes a solid ball.
Take the dough out on a flat surface and cool it a little.
Flatten the dough using a rolling pin into a thin sheet. Use a butter paper to roll the dough if it is sticky.

Cut into diamonds and decorate with silver paper. Stays good for 10-15 days.
Notes;

You can make the fudge with other nuts such as Pistachios and walnuts using the same method.
If the dough is sticky to roll heat it for a little more time.
And if the dough becomes too hard, add a few drops of milk and roll it.
I have used edible silver paper here.
I add a little less sugar than mentioned, as sugar mars the taste of cashew and I prefer less sugar in my sweets.

Want to try Peanut Butter Fudge on Lite Bite;

Rice and Soya Granules in a Crispy Snacks

2011-07-06T01:48:00.000-07:00

Weekend is the most awaited time for my family who look forward to something crisp to munch upon during the evenings. And I like to experiment with various food ingredients to come up with something new and exciting from the normal snack recipes I usually make. This one is yet another scrumptious treat from my kitchen for you.

Ingredients;
(makes 10-12 pieces)

2 cups of cooked rice
1/2 cup of Soya granules
1/2 cup of mashed potato/potato flakes
1 green chilly
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. Garam masala
1/4 tsp. Turmeric powder
1/4 tsp. Red chilly powder
1/2 tsp. Chaat masala/dry mango powder
1 tbsp. fresh coriander leaves (shredded)
Water to soak the soya granules
Oil for deep frying

Method; Soak soya granules in water for about 10 minutes. Drain and squeeze the granules to remove excess water from it.
Boil and mash a small potato or use potato flakes as shown in the picture. Dice the green chilly finely.
Take a large vessel and add the cooked rice into it. Add all the ingredients except oil in the cooked rice. Mix and mash all the ingredients to make a soft dough from it.
Make small balls from the above dough, flatten them a bit and keep them in a plate.

Heat oil in a wok and add these balls in a batch of 2-3 into it. Deep fry till they turn golden brown in color.
Take out from the oil and keep them on a tissue paper. Serve these crispy snack of rice and soya granules with tomato sauce or any chutney of your choice.
Notes;

You can avoid the soya granules and make the snacks with just the potato and rice mix in it.
Coat the balls in fresh bead crumbs before frying for much crispier crust.

Would like to have some quick and healthy Rice recipes on Lite Bite;

Healthy Rice recipes

Join the WWC event on Reva's blog this month and cook with Corn in your kitchen.

http://litebite.in/event-wwc/

Crunchy Lentils - A Spicy Tea Time Snack

2011-06-20T09:18:00.000-07:00

Evening is the time everyone look out for something to munch upon with a hot cup of tea. I often bake muffins, wholewheat cookies and scones in advance and store them for a couple of days. At times we all feel like having something spicy and crispy to go along with the tea. The Crunchy Lentil snack below fits the bill perfectly.

A bit time consuming but believe me the recipe is worth giving a try. You can store the snack for about 15 days without refrigeration and more if you freeze it in zip lock bags.
Ingredients;

A mix of Lentils
Salt as desired
Chilly powder as desired
Chaat masala (optional)
1/2 tsp. Baking soda
Oil for deep frying

Method; The combo of lentils you can try for the recipe is Chickpeas (kabuli channa), dried peas, lentils (massor dal), green gram (moong dal), split chickpeas (channa dal), black eyed beans, soybeans etc.
Wash each lentil with clean water. Soak the bigger lentils (chickpeas, peas, soybeans, black eyed beans) overnight and the smaller variety for about 3-4 hours separately with the baking soda dissolved in water.
Drain the water the next day and spread the soaked lentils on a clean kitchen towel. Tap dry the lentils.
Heat oil in a wok and add a small batch of each lentil at a time. Fry for a few minutes till they change color and take out from hot oil.
Fry all the remaining lentils. Let it cool. Mix in salt, chilly powder and the chaat masala in the fried lentils.
Store and serve the crispy lentil snack with hot cup of tea.
Notes;

Try to soak each lentil in separate container.
Baking soda makes the hard lentils become soft and large, which makes them crunchy when fried.
Fry groundnuts separately without soaking and add to the fried lentil snack.
This Crunchy Lentil snack makes a perfect travel and picnic snack.

Have you sent in your recipe for the event WWC on Heather's blog..

http://litebite.in/event-wwc/

Crispy Green Gram Pooris an Indian Flat Bread Delight

2011-05-23T08:18:00.000-07:00

For the last one month my taste buds are adjusting with the drastic changes in the food habits. From the light and simple foods I am used to, to the lavish spreads mom is cooking daily. The whole month passed trying out some of her authentic curries, pickles, snacks and recipes I almost forgot.
Mom made these Wholewheat Green Gram Pooris or Indian flat bread with wholewheat and green gram which we took with us in our trip to the lakeside the other day. These are so crisp and scrumptious that you don't need any other accompaniments than a hot cup of tea with it.
I like her idea of adding whole green gram in the dough. The grams gave a crunchy look and feel to the flat breads.
Some of the favorite places to hang around in the evenings are these two lakes near my house.

My kids enjoy the morning walk with their cousin in the middle. The fresh air and the pollution free environ we miss a lot in metro life.

One another frequently visited places is this garden with boat rides. I would have lost a few kilos for sure paddling these boats for almost the whole of last month :)

Ingredients;

(makes 10-15 pooris)

* 1 cup wholewheat flour
* 1 tbsp. chickpea flour
* 1 tbsp. semolina (suji)
* 1/2 cup soaked split green gram
* 1 tbsp. fresh coriander leaves
* 1 tsp. salt
* 1 tsp. chilly powder
* 1/2 tsp. garam masala
* 1 tbsp. oil
* Oil for deep frying
* 1 cup water

Method; Take a large bowl and add all the ingredients except water and mix well. Add water and knead the flour and spice into a hard dough.

Heat oil in a wok. Take a flat board and a rolling pin. Take small balls from the dough and make it into a sphere, flatten it and do the same with the rest of the dough.

Sprinkle a little dry flour onto the board and keep a ball of the dough on it. Roll it into a circle using the rolling pin. Make all the pooris and keep them on a large inverted plate.

Deep fry each pooris in hot oil till they turn golden brown in color. Drain the pooris on a tissue paper and serve them with any chutney or tomato sauce.
Check out these Baked Spicy Buns on Lite Bite we took along during one of our visits to the lovely lakes in Udaipur.

A Crisp and Scrumptious Sago Snack

2011-04-09T04:53:00.000-07:00

Snack time is the most awaited time on a weekend. More so when there is a cricket match to follow and the kid and hubby look forward to eating something crisp and scrumptious. These Sago snack was one such treat for them last week.

Ingredients;
(makes 20 balls)

One cup Sago/sabudana
1/2 cup potato
1 small onion
2 tsp. red chilly powder
1 green chilly
1/4 tsp. turmeric powder
Salt as desired
1/2 tsp. roasted cumin powder
2 tbsp. Fresh coriander leaves
Oil for deep frying

Method: Boil potatoes in very little water till they are tender. Soak sago or sabudana in one cup of water for about 20 minutes. Take out the sago and put them in a large vessel. Peel and mash potatoes. Add all the ingredients in the sago vessel except the oil. Mash and mix all the ingredients well to form a dough.
Heat oil in a wok and make small balls from the above dough. Deep fry the sago ball in small batches till they turn goelden brown in color. drain them on a tissue paper.

Serve the Sago snacks with coriander, mint or tomato chutney.

Notes;

I have added various ingredients to the soaked sago to make different Snack. Cooked rice, soaked beaten rice (poha), sweet potato, yam and so on. And each tasted equally scrumptious!
Makes a delicious starter for your party.

Join the on-going WWC started on Lite Bite and hosted at Denise' blog about Quinoa for Dinner.

Spicy Brown Rice Pooris

2011-02-24T23:57:00.000-08:00

These Brown rice spicy pooris make a good lunch box meal when packed with a chutney or spread. Healthy and easy to make they can be taken for picnic or as a great travel food too. I often make these crisp pooris at dinner time and serve them with spicy curd potato or channa masala.

Ingredients;

(makes 10 puris)

1/2cup brown rice flour
1/2 cup wholewheat flour
1 tsp of chilly powder
1/2 tsp of cumin powder
3 tsp of shredded coriander leaves
1/4 tsp. of salt
4-5 tsp of curd
water to knead the dough
2 tsp. of oil
1/4 tsp. of Turmeric powder
Oil for deep frying

Method: Take both the flours in a big vessel and add all the ingredients into it. Make a hard dough for pooris. Heat oil in a kadai.

Take small marble sized balls from the dough and roll it into small circles. Make all the pooris like this to save time when frying them.

Fry all the pooris in small batches in the hot oil till they turn brown and crisp.

Serve these Brown rice spicy pooris with any chutney or tomato sauce. Try this Brown Rice Paella from Lite Bite;

This post goes to the event WWC -Brown Rice for Dinner on Siris' blog hosted on Lite Bite.

Jim Corbett National Park - A Perfect Date with Nature!

2011-02-02T23:50:00.000-08:00

Coming down the hill from Didihat to Ramnagar was easy this time, thanks to the timely advice from my friend and proper precautions against mountain sickness. The nearest staying option we could find was KMVN guest house in Ramnagar, which was well maintained and had good room service with all the basic amenities.

We were among the few privileged lucky travelers to Jim Corbett National Park or CNP who got the most coveted Jungle rest house Dhikala. After confirming the booking in Ramnagar and a night stay at KMVN guest house we hired an open Gypsy with a driver for 2 nights and 3 days. You need to show your bargaining prowess here to fix a good rate. And Rs. 2000/ for a day was not bad according to other co travelers.

It took about 25 minutes to reach to the main entrance of CNP gate. After completing the formalities we were provided with a few jute bags to carry during our safari. We rented out 2 binoculars from shop next to the main gate.

Dhikala rest house: Journey towards Dhikala itself is like a small safari with loads of herbivores grazing all over the place. The lush green thick forest, canopy of conifers and fragrant wild flowers transformed us to a different plane.

Dhikala is well protected with electric fences and is the only jungle guest house abuzz with human activities. It has accommodation in the form of cottages, huts and dormitories. Cottages being the premium and most comfortable of all.

After checking in at the reception counter we were taken to our cottage on the first floor just above the reception.
The rooms are quite spacious and with electricity! The most precious commodity in CNP.

This is the only spot where you are allowed to step down from your vehicle and watch the river and the crocodiles in the natural surroundings.

Kids were amazed to see huge crocs speedily crossing the river, and found it surprising that they can swim and move too :) Most will be sleeping like logs all day long in the crocodile park we have visited in our city.

Morning safari: After a good night sleep a knock at 5 am woke us up. A regular wake up call by the staff of Dhkala with a pot of tea. Life is bliss...hot cuppa without going to the kitchen! By 6.20am we were ready with water bottles, camera and binoculars for our morning safari. The gate opens at 6.30 am for 2 hours in the morning.

If you are a nature lover than CNP is the place for you. Our most exciting and a little scary moment was a close encounter with the Tuskers.

The first incidence occurred when all of a sudden our driver slowed down the jeep and asked us not to stand. We could not make out the reason as there were no animals in the vicinity, but were soon breathless when a large group of elephants rolled down the mountain and stopped in front of us. We were dumb struck and sweating in the chilly morning!

The elephants just starred at us and went down the hill near the water hole.

The water hole where all the animals come down for water.

A wild Chase: When I started panning about our CNP trip 3 months in advance many friends laughed away the idea of going to a jungle and watching animals when we can do the same at the Zoo also. For them spending a good fortune and looking out for just deer, rabbits and a few rodents was a waste of time and money.

But after our 3 wonderful jungle safaris, given a choice I would love to visit a sanctuary again any day to any other tourist place.

Evening safari started at 5 pm and was quite pleasant, till we came to a point where we saw a couple of safari vehicles standing. It was next to a large grassland area. And we could see a herd of elephants with 4-5 big tuskers.

Our driver also stopped the jeep and asked us to take pictures, after a couple of shots we saw the herd go berserk and started chasing the first jeep in front of us.

During such incidences of wild chase the experienced drivers come handy. Normally they will reverse the vehicle and drive fast in the opposite direction. But in our case there were 2 other vehicles standing behind us already and he couldn’t do that.

The driver in front of us shouted and asked our driver to accelerate and follow him. He did the same and we crossed the wild animals with just a few feet away. The picture shows the Tuskers chasing us.

The other travelers were caught and started honking their vehicle till the elephants got scared and turned back.

We stopped our vehicle a little further and watched the animals in action again.

Another thrilling moment of our evening Safari!

A Peaceful afternoon at the Machan: Morning Safari closes at 9.30 am in the morning and we had lots of time in hand. Our driver suggested we spent the time at the machan. And it surely was a good decision. We could watch various activities of animals for longer time. It was a stark difference between the noisy city life and a quite surrounding of the wild. Barring a few monkeys who were hopping inside the machan for the crispies and cookies that kids were eating.

You need to book for the elephant safari the previous night. I forgot to take my charger for the Uttaranchal trip and had to make do with the mobile photos.

An altogether different experience sitting at the back of this majestic animals and rambling in the wild.

I am there again soon to luxuriate in the simple yet sublime pleasures of nature & wild.

Check out these sites for more help on Corbett Bookings and other details;

KMVN

Getting to CNP

CNP

The other articles about the Uttaranchal trips can be seen here;
Uttaranchal II - A Road less Traveled

Uttaranchal I - A Road less Traveled

Seven Cup Cakes - An Indian Delicacy

2011-02-02T23:46:00.000-08:00

As the name suggests this Indian sweet 7 Cup Cakes is done with exactly 7 cups of ingredients. This is a long due post and the very first post in 2011. My co-sister S made the sweet during Diwali festival. Though she was not quite happy with the results as she thought the mix got overcooked and did not taste exactly like what she wanted. But I thoroughly enjoyed the slight caramelized version of this delicacy and would love to do it this way if I am making it again :)

Ingredients

Chickpea flour or besan - 1 cup
coconut (could use dessicated) - 1cup
milk - 1 cup
ghee - 1 cup
sugar - 3 cups (can reduce it to 21/2 need be)

Method: Heat a thick bottom kadai and dry fry the chickpea flour or besan till the raw smell disappear. Take the flour out in a plate and keep it aside. Heat the ghee in the same kadai and add the flour, fry it for a few minutes and add milk into it.

Keep stirring the mix till it becomes thick and starts separating from the sides of the kadai. Add the sugar & coconut and keep stirring.
Spread a little ghee on a flat plate and pour the mixture over it. Make marks of any shape you desire using a knife and let it cool. Cut into piece and store 7 cup cakes in an air tight container.
Note:
The mixture was too thin and was cooked for couple of extra minutes which gave the slight golden brown color to this sweet.

Light Vanilla Cake and New Year Wishes!

2010-12-31T01:54:00.000-08:00

December is the time for all cakes & bakes. All the food blogs are abuzz with loads & loads of scrumptious baked goodies. This egg less light Vanilla Cake is a treat from Different strokes to all the friends and bloggers.

Ingredients;

250 gms Refined flour
180 gms Condensed milk
50 gms melted Butter
100 ml Milk
100 ml Soda water
1 tsp. Baking powder
1/2 tsp. Baking Soda
1 tsp. of Vanilla extract

For icing;

1 cup of powder sugar
1 tbsp of water
2 tsp. of butter
1/2 tsp. of Vanilla extract

Method; Sift the flour, baking powder and baking soda together for at least 2 times in a large vessel. Add butter, vanilla, condensed milk and plain milk in another vessel and give a good stir.
Mix the liquid ingredients into the dry flour mix little by little. Mix it with light hand.
Preheat the oven at 180°C for 10 minutes. Grease a round cake tin with a little butter.
Add the soda water in the last, and bake the cake at 180°C for 35-40 minutes or till done. Check the cake by inserting a knife into it, if it comes clean the cake is done.
The cake is very light and moist due to soda water in it.

Make icing by mixing the powder sugar with hot water and rest of the ingredients. Beat it till it looks creamy and shining. Decorate the light Vanilla Cake with the icing and serve.

Check out the event on Lite Bite;

Event-WWC

Lentil and Rice flour Snack

2010-12-21T03:49:00.000-08:00

These crisp and spicy circles make a very interesting tea time snack. The crunchy whole pepper in every bite gives a fiery taste. Very common in South India, these are called Tattai in Tamil. Easy to make these snacks stay good for many days.

Ingredients;

1 cup of Rice flour
1/4 cup of De husked Black gram flour (urad dal)
1 tbsp de husked Green gram (Moong dal)
3 tsp. of whole black pepper
2 tsp. of Sesame seeds
1/2 tsp. asafoetida
A few sprigs of Curry leaves
salt as desired
Water to knead dough
Oil for deep frying

Method: Wash and soak the green gram for 10 minutes. Take a large vessel and add both the flours into it. Mix in salt, black pepper, curry leaves, sesame seeds (til) and asafoetida (hing) with it. Make a well and add 2 tbsp. of oil into it, and rub the whole mix together.
Add about 3-4 tsps. of water and start kneading the dough. The dough should be little hard in texture.
Take a plastic sheet and grease it lightly with oil. Take a marble sized dough and keep it on the plastic sheet. Dip your fingers in water and press the ball lightly to make a small circle. The circle will not have even edges as the dough is hard and brittle. Make all the circles using the remaining dough.
Heat oil in a wok and deep fry these circles one by one. Drain it on a tissue paper and store them in an air tight container.

You may like the Healthy Snacks on Lite Bite.

A Crispy Lentil Snack - Murukku

2010-12-06T23:50:00.000-08:00

A crisp and scrumptious lentil snack - Murukku is a very common savory dish during festivals and special occasions in south India. Murukkus are traditionally made with hands and needs a lot of patience to constantly twist and turn the dough for that spiral look.

Ingredients;

2 cups of rice
1/4 cup of de-husked black gram
1/4 tsp of asafoetida or Hing
1 tsp cumin seeds/Jeera
1 tsp.of Salt
1/4 cup of unsalted butter
Vegetable oil for deep frying

Method:

For making rice powder: Clean and pick the rice and dry roast it slightly for a few minutes in a wok. Wash and soak the rice for about 1 hour. Drain the rice and spread it on a clean kitchen towel, and let it dry. Grind the rice into fine powder and keep it aside.
Similarly dry roast the De husked black gram (dhuli urad dal) for a few minutes till changes to light brown in color. Cool the gram and grind it into a fine powder.
If the powder is not very fine, sieve both the powders together using a muslin cloth.
Take a big vessel and add both the powders in it, mix in the salt, cumin seeds, asafoetida and the butter into it. Rub the whole mix thoroughly, and make it into a semi solid dough using very little water.

How to shape the Murukkus: Spread a news paper for keeping and shaping the Murukkus. Take a small ball of dough and make a round ball from it. Roll the ball into an elongated tube. Using thumb and index finger twist this tube slowly with, make spiral shapes and make a full circle with this spiral. Make all the Murukkus the same way.
Heat oil in a wok, take the Murukkus with a flat spatula from the news paper and fry these Murukkus in small batches till light golden brown and crisp from outside.

Keep the Murukkus on tissue paper for letting the excess oil to drain out. Store in an air tight container.

These crispy snacks -Murukkus stays good for almost a month if kept in an air tight container. Makes a good after school snack for the kids.

Healthy Snacks on Lite Bite

A Crispy & Easy Tea Time Snack - Veggie Fritters

2010-11-30T21:37:00.000-08:00

Tea time snacks are the most awaited time during rainy days and on weekends. These Veggie Fitters aka Pakoras fit into the bill perfectly. Easy to make, crispy and delicious snack which can be transformed into many new varieties with different vegetables and flours in it.
This veggie fritter is the most common way to make these scrumptious snack. And using the same batter you can make fritters with any vegetable of your choice.

Ingredients;
(makes 30 35 fritters)

1 cup of chickpea flour/besan
3 tsp. of rice flour
1/4 cup of yogurt/curd
Vegetables of your choice
1 tsp. of chilly powder
1/4 tsp. of Turmeric powder
1/4 tsp. of Garam Masala
1/2 tsp. of Cumin powder/Jeera
A pinch of asafoetida
Salt as desired
Water to make the batter
Oil for deep frying

Method: For making these fritters vegetables such as capsicum, potato, brinjal, okra, onion, peas, corn, cauliflower, ridge guard, bitter guard etc are very good option.
Wash and cut the vegetables in very thin slices.

For making the batter, take a big hollow vessel and add chickpea flour and rice flour in it. Add all the dry spices and powders into it and mix thoroughly.
Pour the yogurt and add water little by little to make a thick batter.

Heat oil in a skillet and dip a piece of vegetable in it and leave it into the hot oil. Deep fry the fritters for about 1-2 minutes till it is crispy and golden from outside.
If you are using corn or fresh peas, mix them in the batter with sliced oninon and then deep fry them using a small spoonful of this batter in the oil.

Note;

Do not remove the skin from vegetables which are fresh and have thin skin.
Rice flour in the batter gives crisp texture to these Veggie fritters.
Serve the fritters with green chutney or tomato sauce.

Healthy Snack on Lite Bite.

Egg less Orange Muffin Recipe

2010-11-21T21:41:00.000-08:00

Muffins are great breakfast to start your weekends on a sweet note. These egg less Orange Muffins are soft and light, and can be packed in the snack box for your kids. I think I am now done with oranges, with 3 baking recipes with oranges in a row :)

Ingredients;

1 cup refined flour
2 tbsp. of sugar
1 tsp. Baking powder
A pinch of salt
1/2 cup of orange juice
1 tbsp of yogurt or 1 egg
3 tsp. of oil

Method: Sift the flour and baking powder together and add salt to it. Mix sugar, oil, yogurt and the orange juice in another vessel and beat it till the sugar is dissolved.
Preheat oven at 180°C for 10 minutes and grease muffin molds with oil.
Mix the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and fold it into a batter. Do not over mix the batter.
Pour the batter in the muffin molds and bake it for 15-20 minutes at 180°C.
Take out from the oven and let it cool for 10 minutes before taking the muffins from the molds.

Serve the muffins with fresh cream or sprinkle powder sugar over the orange muffins. Since these egg less orange muffins are made with refined flour or maida, these are very light and fluffy.
These muffins stays good for about a week. I normally avoid using refined flour for baking. But since Different Strokes is for indulging in food, with no diet rules to follow, these orange muffins have got their place here.

Look out for Healthy Baking and Healthy Recipes in Lite Bite.

Some of the Baking recipes with oranges

orange-honey-eggless-cake

eggless-orange-bread/

Crispy and fluffy Savory - Khaja

2010-11-16T07:18:00.000-08:00

Khaja is a crispy and very light snack popular in the North India. Care should be taken when you buy these snacks from the bakery or super market. As most of the times these are made with Trasfats, a kind of vegetable fat which is very dangerous to health but gives a light and flaky texture and more shelf life to such goodies.

Ingredients;

1 cup of refined flour
5-6 tsp of butter or ghee
1 tsp.Caroms seeds or Ajwain
Salt as desired
Oil for deep frying
Water to knead the flour
2-3 teaspoons of Rice flour

Method: Take the refined flour or maida in a big vessel and add salt, caroms seeds seeds and 3 teaspoons of butter into it. Rub the whole mix lightly with your fingers. The mixture should resemble dried bread crumbs..
Add water in small quantity and knead the flour into a pliable dough.
Take a big size dough and make a circle using a rolling pin. Spread 1/2 tsp. of butter on to the circle and sprinkle 1 tsp. of rice flour on it. Fold it again into a ball and repeat the same process twice with same quntity of butter and rice flour in between. Repeat the same process with the rest of the dough.
After the third rolling fold the dough in a rectangle and refrigerate for 1 hour. Take out the rolled out dough and cut it into small roundels using a sharp knife.
Heat oil in a wok and deep fry all the roundels in it till they are golden brown in color.

Note;

The process of applying butter and the rice flour will give flaky texture to this snack.
The shelf life of this crispy snack is very long and can be stored for about a month in an air tight container.

Savory Recipes

Some Healthy Snacks on Lite Bite

Nutty Chandrakalas - a delicacy worth indulging

2010-10-30T01:46:00.000-07:00

The sweet looks and taste as beautiful as its name - Chandrakala which might have got its name due to the crescent shape similar to moon (chandra). The shape and the stuffing may vary from one region to other region, but the sweet is surely a delicacy worth indulging in. Moreover these sweets can be prepared ahead of time and kept, saves loads of time during the hustle & bustle of festive seasons.
Normally Chandrakala has the stuffing of mawa or the condensed and thickened milk, I prefer the filling of nuts and honey.

Ingredients;
(makes 25-30 pieces)

2 cups of refined flour or maida
2 tsp. of semolina or suji
1/4 cup of oil
A pinch of salt
A pinch of saffron or orange color
Milk to knead the dough
Oil for deep frying

For stuffing:

Assorted nuts
1 tbsp. Honey
A pinch of Saffron

For the sugar syrup:

1 Kg sugar
1 lt of water

Method: Take a big vessel and add the refined flour and salt in it. Make a well in the center and add the 1/4 cup of oil in it. Mix it lightly till the flour resembles bread crumbs.
Add water and make a pliable dough of soft consistency.
Make small balls and roll them into thin circles, or make a big ball from the dough and then make a big circle and cut it into small circles of 4 cm.

Filling:
Cashew, Almonds, Pistachios, figs, raisins and blueberries goes well as a healthy and exotic filling. Make a coarse powder of the assorted nuts. Heat a skillet and add honey to it, add saffron and the assorted nuts powder to it. Cook the above mix for a few minutes and take off the flames. Cool the mixture.

Sugar syrup: Be the water and add sugar into it. Make a 2 string consistency sugar syrup.

Assembling the Chandrakala:
The below two methods are more common in making Chandrakalas;
1. Full moon shape: Take a small circles made with the dough and spread a spoonful of the above mix over it, cover this with another small circle.Pinch the sides of both the circles by twisting and turning the dough.
2. Crescent shapes: Take one circle and fill the stuffing, twist and turn the edges to close the circle. I made the crescent shaped Chandrakalas.

Heat oil in a wok and deep fry these Chandrakalas in it till they turn dark brown in color. Dip these cooked Chandrakalas in the sugar syrup and take them out. Decorate these scrumptious Chandrakalas with silver foil and store them in an airtight container.

These Nutty Chandrakalas are a delicacies worth trying out this festive season. Try mawa or cottage cheese stuffing mixed with the nuts and get another delicious version of these sweet indulgence. Festive wishes to you all. Take care.

Try these healthy wholewheat delights from Lite Bite;

Wholewheat Delights

A Sweet Indulgence - Imarti

2010-10-19T22:22:00.000-07:00

The next few days are going to be sweet indulgence with festivals around the corner. The women folks are all geared up to plan for the variates they are going to prepare this Diwali. Sweets, sweets and more sweets!
Normally I avoid making sweets on festivals, but my hubby insists that I make a few sweets so that the kids get to know of our traditions and customs.
My mom always makes this traditional sweet Imarti on festivals, it looks similar to Jalebis but taste different and requires a little extra effort.

Imarti is made with de-husked Black gram (Dhuli urad dal). The ground batter should be soft and light in consistency.

Ingredients;

2 cups of Dehusked Black Gram (Dhuli urad dal)
2 cup of Sugar
1 cup of water
1/2 tsp. of Cardamom powder
A pinch of Saffron
Oil or Ghee for deep frying
Piping bag

Method: Wash and soak the de husked black gram for 3 hours. Drain the water and grind in into very fine paste, using very little water.
Take the batter in a big vessel and beat it vigorously usnig hand or a ladle to incorporate air and make the batter fluffy.
Soak the saffron in a teaspoon of milk.

Add the soaked saffron and cardamom powder in the batter and mix it thoroughly.
Fill a piping bag with this batter. I was lazy to take out my piping bag and used a Zip lock instead. Fill the batter in the Zip lock and make a very small cut at the end.
Heat oil in a flat skillet.
Pres the bag full of batter lightly over the hot oil and make small circles in it. Let it fry till the Imartis turn golden brown in color.
Make a sugar syrup of one thread consistency and keep it aside.
Dip the fried Imartis in the sugar syrup for 5-10 minutes and take them out.

Note:
The batter I made was too frothy and the Imartis were becoming plump and soft, it was hard to get the perfect shape. I added 2-3 tsp. of Chick pea flour (Besan) to the batter and I got crispy (the first picture) Imartis.

This sweet goes to the event - Traditioanl Festive Recipes on Tasty Bites;

Some other sweet you may like on Lite Bite;

Sambhar Vada - A Regional Delicacy

2010-10-08T08:35:00.000-07:00

Sambhar Vada is an authentic regional dish of South India. The humble dish has become very common and has made its presence in every part of the world. A recipe which makes a full meal in itself, and can be devoured at any time of the day.

The secret of soft and fluffy vada lies in the right consistency of the batter, which should be light and full of air. Heavy grinders with rotatory stones are perfect for making the batter for vada. The batter in the picture above is airy and making peaks.

Ingredients;

1 cup of De husked Black gram
1 tsp of salt
A few Peppercorns
Water as required
Oil for deep frying

Method: Wash and soak the black gram (Dhuli Urad dal) for 2-3 hours. Drain the water and grind it into fine paste. Add salt and peppercorns (kalimirch).
Heat oil in a wok. Take a small plastic sheet and make it wet, put a small lump of the above batter on it and spread it a little. Make a hole in the centre and drop it gently into the hot oil using a flat ladle to remove it from the sheet.
Fry the vada till it turns golden brown in color. Make all the vadas and keep them on a tissue paper to absorb the excess oil. Makes about 30 Vadas.

sambhar vada

The vadas will be very crisp from outside and soft from inside. Arrange the prepared vadas on a serving plate and pour the Sambhar over them.

Check Legumes Made Easy - Sambhar for the recipes of Sambhar.

Kids' Delight - Spicy and crispy Breakfast

2010-10-05T03:20:00.000-07:00

Planning for a great breakfast which is accepted by the kids also is a daring job for all moms. These crispy and delicious looking small Indian bread or Pooris is one such treat my kids wait for any time of the day. I often make them on weekends and sometimes pack them in my kids lunchbox as well.

Ingredients:
(makes about 20 small servings)

1/2 cup wholewheat flour
1/4 cup chickpea flour or Besan
2-3 tsp. of semolina or Suji
1/4 cup of shredded Spinach or Palak
Salt as desired
1/2 tsp. of Chilly powder
1/2 tsp. of Cumin powder
1/4 tsp. Garam masala (optional)
4-5 tsp. of thick Curds
Water to knead the flour
Oil for deep frying

Method: Take both the flours in a big vessel and add all the ingredients except the water and oil in it. Mix it thoroughly. Add water little by little and keep binding the dough slowly.
The dough should not be too soft, else the Pooris will not come out crispy.
Take a small ball (marble size) from the above mixed dough and dust it with dry flour. Put it on a hard board and roll it out in small circles. Keep them small in size. It may not roll in a perfect circle as the dough is of hard consistency.
Make all the circles in a similar way and keep them aside.
Heat oil in a wok and deep fry these small circles one by one till they turn golden in color and are cooked.

These spicy &crispy Indian Bread makes a scrumptious Breakfast. Pack them in your kids' lunchbox with cheese spread or tomato sauce.

A Spicy Treat of Garlic Pickle

2010-09-28T00:06:00.000-07:00

Pickles are an integral part of Indian meals. Whether it is the humble curd rice from the South India or just plain rice with dal in the North India, Pickles take a pride to be an important accompaniment. Though garlic is not a favorite for many due to ethical or personal reasons, I love this nutrient rich food for its healing properties.

Spices

Ingredients;

1 cup of Garlic pearls
3 tbsp. of red chilli powder
1 tbsp of Cumin seeds
2 tbsp. of corinader seeds
1 tbsp. of Fenugreek seeds
1 tsp. Mustard seeds
1-2 tsp. of salt
1/2 tsp. of Turmeric powder
1/2 tsp. of Asafoetida powder
2 tbsp. Lemon juice/1tbsp. of Tamarind paste
1/2 cup of vegetable oil

Method: Peel the garlic pods and keep them aside. Heat a wok and dry roast the corinder powder, cumin seeds and fenugreek seeds (Methidana) for a few minutes.
Grind the dry roasted seeds into fine powder in a mixie.
If you are using tamarind then make a thick paste of it using very little water.
Heat oil in a wok and splutter the mustard seeds in it. Add the Garlic pearls in it and add all the powdered spices in it.
Add rest of the ingredients except the lemon juice and cook for about 2-3 minutes.

Remove from the fire and store the Garlic pickle in a clean glass bottle.
Note;

Tamarind paste and lemon gives different taste and flavors, so try using both while making this Garlic pickle.
Stays good for long, provided the amount of oil is adequate to seal it from getting infected with microbes and fungus.
Make sure the oil covers the pickle and floats over the surface making a thin layer of self preservative.
Goes well with any kind of snack or Indian Breads, not to forget the humble combination of curd rice with this tangy Garlic pickle.

Cheese Fingers

2010-09-20T01:44:00.000-07:00

Cheese fingers are a favorite for my kids and is a must for all the parties we host for our friends. A very handy and scrumptious snack, which can also be baked to reduce the fats in it.

snacks

Ingredients;
(makes 20 cheese fingers)

4 cubes of cheese
6 slices of brown bread
1/4 cup of Fresh or frozen peas and carrot
1 tsp of Black pepper powder
salt as desired
Beard crumbs
Oil for deep frying

snacks

Method: Any hard cheese variety is good for this recipe. I used Amul cheese cubes. Grate the cheese cubes and keep aside.
Remove the sides of the bread and crumble it with hands.
Peel and dice the carrots in very fine cubes. If you are using frozen peas and carrots just add it to the crumbled bread.
Take a big vessel and mix the grated cheese, crumbled bread, veggies and rest of the ingredients. Mix it thoroughly.

snacks

Take a little of the above mix and give a shape of elongated finger. Make all the cheese fingers and keep aside.

Heat oil in a wok and deep fry all the cheese fingers till they turn crisp and golden brown in color.

snacks

Serve these crispy Cheese Fingers with tomato sauce or Corinader Chutney.

Note;

The cheese fingers can be stored in refrigerator without frying for quite some time.
Take out the frozen fingers, thaw them and deep fry as and when needed.
A great picnic and party Snack option.
Cheese in it makes it a high calorie food for the growing children.

Cheese Finger goes to the Snacks category on Tasty Bites;

Tasty Bites Events

Tasty Bites

A Simple Dessert of Semolina to Celebrate

2010-09-08T21:03:00.000-07:00

This Simple dessert of Semolina to celebrate is for Tasty Bites, an interactive platform for readers and bloggers alike. As is a tradition in India, every good news accompanies a sweet, here is the easy and quick dessert for the same.

Ingredients;

1 cup of Semolina or Suji rawa
2 cups of hot water
1/2 cup of Jaggery
1/2 cup of hot Milk
7-8 tsps. of Ghee
A few Almonds
1/2 tsp. of Cardamom powder
3 tsps. grated Coconut (optional)

Method: Heat a heavy bottom wok and dry fry the semolina in it till it changes color to that of light brown. Remove the semolina from the wok and keep it separate. Heat 5-6 tsp. of ghee and add this semolina in it and pour 2 cups of hot water in it.
Keep stirring the mixture to avoid any lumps in it. Coarsely grate the jaggery and add it to the mixture. Stir it thoroughly for 5-6 minutes.

Remove from fire and add milk in it. Heat 1-2 tsps. of remaining ghee in another small skillet and fry the almonds in it for a few minutes.Pour the fried almonds over the prepared Kheer as garnish.

This Simple Dessert of Semolina can be given to small kids and even infants as a weaning food, make sure you do not add coconut for the infants.

http://tastybites.litebite.in

Try this Healthy dessert from Lite Bite.

A Tangy Tomato Spread

2010-09-02T01:55:00.000-07:00

Spreads and Dips saves a lot of time and resources in our daily cooking. A bottle of fresh coriander chutney or fresh cheese dip would come very handy when we are at loggerheads with time.
This fresh and Tangy Tomato Spread has a permanent place in my refrigerator. I use it as a spread for my breads, chapattis or as a chutney with Idlies and Dosas an Indian breakfast delicacy.

Ingredients;

1 kg of Tomatoes
3-4 tsp. of red chilly powder
1 tsp. of Fenugreek powder (Methi)
Salt as desired
A pinch of asafoetida (hing)
1 cup of oil
1 tsp of mustard seeds

Method: Select overripe but firm tomatoes which are juicy and deep red in color. Wash and chop them in small pieces. Discard seeds if you can.
Heat oil in a thick bottom wok or kadai and crackle mustard seeds in it. Add the diced and De-seeded tomatoes in it along with the juice.
Add rest of the ingredients and cook till all the juice is absorbed and the spread is thick in consistency and oil separates and floats on the spread. It will take about 20-30 minutes on medium heat to attain this consistency.
This spread stays good for about 15 days or more if refrigerated. Since the oil in it acts as a preservative to this Tangy Tomato Spread.

Note;

A good travel food.
Goes well with chapattis, and many Indian dishes.
A good option for a sandwich in a jiffy.

More on such exotic recipes soon, stay connected, take care.

For Healthy recipes visit www.litebite.in

Easy Vanilla Muffins

2010-08-22T06:23:00.000-07:00

Muffins are a good snack option for kids in school. I normally use wholewheat flour or other whole grains to make Muffins. But my kids often love the bakery muffins which use refined flour and comes out to be fluffy and light in texture. This recipe use refined flour and makes the same.

Ingredients;

11/2 cups of refined flour
3/4 cup of powdered sugar
1/3 cup of unsalted butter
1 tbsp of curd
1/2 cup milk
2 tsp. of Vanilla essence
2 tsp. Baking powder
A pinch of salt
Preserved cherries

Method: Preheat the oven at 180°C for 10 minutes. Sift refined flour (maida), salt and baking powder twice. Take a big vessel and add powder sugar and butter in it, beat it for 10 minutes till the mix is light and fluffy.
Add Vanilla essence, curd and milk in the butter and sugar mixture. Stir and mix all the ingredients gently.
Pour the liquid ingredients in the dry flour mix. Fold the batter lightly, do not over mix.

Grease small muffin moulds and pour about 1/3 of the batter in each cup. Top the batter with diced cherries. Bake it at 180°C for 15-20 minutes.
Take out the moulds and let it cool. Remove the Vanilla muffins from the mould and serve hot with a cup of milk.

Note;

Refined flour and butter gives a light texture to the muffins.
Curd in the recipe is a good equivalent for eggs.
Refined flour is not a healthy option, but it does give very light and fluffy muffins.
Brush the top of muffins with milk and bake it again for 1 minute to get a glaze on it.

For healthy Baking goodies try Baking Bites. Take care.

Snack Time - Potato Patties

2010-08-15T04:32:00.000-07:00

Tea -time can be made more scrumptious with crispy and tasty Potato patties. Quick and easy to prepare, these delicacies are a delight for any weekend party or to relish at any normal day.
There are numerous variate to make these patties with different fillings and ways of cooking, this one require deep frying and taste absolutely delicious.

Ingredients;
(makes 10 in numbers)

3 medium size potatoes
1 small carrot
1 small onion diced
5-6 Rusks (Dried Bread slices)
1 tsp. red chilly powder
1 green chilly diced
1/2 tsp Turmeric powder
1/2 tsp Chaat masala (optional)
1/2 tsp Garam masala (optional)
1/2 tsp Coriander powder
1/2 tsp Cumin seed powder
Salt as desired
1 tsp Mustard seeds
3 tsp shredded coriander leaves
Oil for deep frying

Method: Boil the potatoes & carrot in a pressure cooker with very little water for 1 whistle. Cool, peel and mash the potatoes & carrot.

Powder the Rusks in a grinder and spread the powder on a plate. Mix all the ingredients except the oil in the potato mix and combine it thoroughly.
Take a small size of this mixture and make a firm ball and flatten it slightly with the palm.
Roll the patty in the dried rusk powder and coat it evenly on all sides with the powder. Repeat the same process and make all the patties.

Heat oil in a skillet and deep fry the patties in it till it becomes dark brown in color.

Serve hot with tomato sauce or fresh coriander chutney. Rusk powder gives a crispy coating when fried and also imparts a bit of sweet taste to these Tea time snack - Potato patties.

These fried goodies are a pure indulgence in food and must not be made a regular feature. Look out for healthy options in Recipe Bites.

Healthy Soya Potato Treat

Take care.

A Quick and Crispy Bread Snack

2010-08-09T01:13:00.000-07:00

This quick and crispy bread snack is a favorite for my kids and they demand the same on every weekend. Easy to make with very few ingredients to assemble I oblige them with this tasty and crispy snack often. These cute little triangles also add up as a good tea-time snack, a picnic add on and as a great travel food.

Ingredients;
(makes 8 in numbers)

2 slices of bread
1/2 cup of Curd
3-4 tsp of chickpea flour or Besan
1 small onion
1 tsp red chilly powder
salt as desired
1 tsp Chaat masala (optional)
1 tbsp of coriander leaves
oil for shallow frying

Method:
Cut the bread into four triangles by making an incision across the bread. You get 8 such pices from 2 bread slices.
Peel and slice the onion and shred the coriander leaves finely.

Mix the chickpea flour in the curd and add all the dry powder in it. Mix it thoroughly.

Heat a girdle or flat tawa and dip one triangle in the batter and put it on the hot girdle. Take a little of sliced onion and coriander leaves and put it on the bread slice. Press it a little.

Sprinkle about 1 tsp of oil around the bread and let it cook for 1 minute, turn to the other side and do the same.
Fry all the bread triangles in the same manner and serve them hot with fresh coriander leaves chutney or tomato sauce.

Note;

Deep fry the same bread triangles for a a scrumptious and much crispy treat.
Pack it in kids lunchbox for a change.
A tasty breakfast option when you need something different from porridge or bread & butter.
Stays good for 2 days if refrigerated. Reheat it in the microwave before use.

This recipe goes to the Kid's Delight event on Srivalli's Blog.

Try Recipe Bites for healthy recipes. Stay connected, take care.

A Light and Fluffy Pancake for Kids

2010-08-04T02:09:00.000-07:00

Pancakes are one of the favorite weekend breakfast menus for my kids.I try to include different ingredients and make variation every time I make them. If it is wholewheat with oats in the batter on one Sunday, then fruit puree and wheat flour pancakes go to the dinning table the next Sunday.
Pancakes made using only wholewheat flour comes out to be a bit dense, while refined flour or maida gives the light and fluffy pancakes.
This one has cottage cheese added in the batter.

Ingredients;
(makes 20-25 small pancakes)
1 cup of refined flour
1/2 cup of milk
1/4 cup of curd or yogurt
1/4 cup of sugar
3 tsp of fresh cottage cheese (optional)
A pinch of salt
A pinch of cinnamon powder
3 tsp of Oil or Ghee
1/4 tsp Baking powder

Method:

Take a vessel and put the refined flour, salt, baking powder, cinnamon powder, sugar and cottage cheese in it.
Mix all the ingredients in the vessel thoroughly.
Pour milk, curd and the ghee in the above dry mix. Dissolve the baking poder in a tsp of milk and add it in the prepared batter.
Heat a non stick tawa or girdle and pour a laddle of pancake batter on to it.
Sprinkle a little oil or ghee all around the pancake and fry it till it bubbles at the corner.
Turn to the other side and do the same.

Serve the hot pancakes with fresh fruit syrup or any ready made syrup. Cocolate and strawberry syrup goes well with these pancakes.

Note;

Fry the pancakes with extra ghee (clarified butter) when making it for kids.
The pancake batter can be made and refrigerate for 3-4 days.
Makes an interesting snack or lunch box option for kids.
For more healthy option mix half the quantity of wholewheat flour with refined flour and make the pancakes.

Check Recipe bites for healthy options in cooking.

A Crispy Tea Time Snack - Samosa

2010-07-31T13:03:00.000-07:00

A crispy tea time snack - Samosa, is a commonly available Indian delicacy in most of the tea shops and restaurants. Samosa serves as a great starter for any kind of party and small gatherings. A Birthday party is incomplete without these delicacies.

Ingredients for the covering;
(makes about 20 small size Samosas)

1 cup of refined flour (maida)
A pinch of salt
Water to knead the dough

Method: Knead the flour using water and 1 tsp of oil in a soft and pliable dough.

Lentil Stuffing;

1/2 cup of lentils and de husked black gram
2 tsp oil
salt as desired
1/2 tsp garam masala
1/4 tsp mustard seeds
1/4 tsp of turmeric powder

Method: Soak the lentils (masoor dal) and de usked black gram (urad dhuli) for 3-4 hours. Drain the water and grind coarsely in a mixie.
Heat oil in a wok and crackle mustard seeds in it. Add all the ingredients and fry for 2 minutes. Take off hte flames and let it cool.

Potato Stuffing;

2 potatoes boiled and mashed
1 onion
1 carrot grated
1/2 tsp garam masala
1/4 tsp turmeric powder
salt as desired
2 tsp of oil
1/3 tsp of mustard seeds
A pinch of asafoetida

Method: Peel and dice the onion finely. Boil and nash the potato. Heat oil in a wok and crackle the mustard seeds. Add the onion and fry for a minute. Mix in rest of the ingredients and fry for 2 minutes. Take off the flames and let it cool.

Assembling the Samosa

Samosa: Take a marble size ball of the dough and dust it with dry flour. Roll it into a thin circle using a rollng pin. Cut the circle in half and make a cone out of it.
Fill the desired filling into the cone and close it as shown above. Make all the samosa likewise.

Heat oil in a wok and deep fry the Samosas in small batches till they are golden brown in color and looks crisp from outside.

Serve the hot Samosas with tomato sauce or freshly made green coriander chutney.

Note:

Roll the outer cover into a very thin sheet, else the Samosa will not come out crispy.
Other good options for filling are onion and cottage cheese.
Makes a good party snack.
A great travel and picnic food.
Small size Samosas look attractive and are easy to fry and make.
Stay good for 3-4 days if kept in an air tight container.

Check Recipe bites for healthy options in food. Stay connected, take care.

Thanks Giving With a Sweet Note

2010-07-31T11:25:00.000-07:00

This post is dedicated to all those beautiful people who believed and connected with me & my work. This simple and delicious sweet is my dedication to all of them.
This Vermicelli Kheer is a famous & instant sweet prepared down South of India by many at all occasions.Be it a birthday, a function or any festival, the first thing that my mother-in-law prepares is this sweet concoction.

Ingredients;
(makes 4 servings)

100 grams of Vermicelli or Semiyan
1/2 ltr.of whole milk
2 cups of water
1 cup of sugar
Handful of dried fruits
2 tsp of Ghee (Clarified butter)

Method: Dry roast the vermicelli till it turns golden in color. Heat a heavy bottom vessel and boil 2 cups of water in it. Add the fried vermicelli in the boiling water and let it cook for 10 minutes. Pour the whole milk and keep boiling the mixture for another 10 minutes. Take it off from the flames and keep aside.
Heat a wok and add 2 tsp of ghee in it. Add the coarsely crushed dried fruits such as Almonds, cashew and raisins in it. Fry for a minute and put off the gas.
Pour this fried dried fruits in the cooked vermicelli as a garnish and serve hot.

Now is the time to show my respect and give credits to all who deserve it.

My Web Linkers & friends: These are the beautiful people who believed in me and linked to me when I was just learning to walk.
Indira, Dk, Sunita, Claudia, Divya, Sushma, Satya, Shaheen, Sra, Juliana, Supriya and others. Feel humble and honored at the same time.
There are many other silent followers who connected with me much before I took the pen to start writing! My regards and love to all of them.

Linking Worlds Apart: Thanks to all those lovely people on the social media such as Face book, Twitter and Indiblogger who made the line between friends and acquaintance diminish.

Thanks again for all your support, comments and for liking Lite Bite.

Cottage Cheese Stuffed Indian Bread

2010-07-26T23:50:00.000-07:00

Kulcha an Indian bread delicacy, is very famous in road side eateries and sophisticated restaurants as well. It is quite tedious to prepare at home and for the same reason I avoid making it at home. If not for the guests, whose only demand was a typical Rajasthani spread with some unusual stuff, this recipe would not have seen the light of the day!.
Kulcha was the first thing that came to me, other than the normal chapattis, pooris and stuffed parathas. And the recipe goes like this;

Ingredients;
For the Kulcha (makes 10-11)

4 cups of Maida (refined flour)
2 tsp of dry yeast
1/2 tsp of caraway seeds (ajwain)
1 tbsp Curds
salt as desired
water as required
Oil to shallow fry

Method: Dissolve the dry yeast in half a cup of warm water and keep it aside. Mix caraway seed, salt and a little oil in the flour and rub it to mix it evenly. Add 1 tbsp of curds and again mix it thoroughly.
Pour the yeast mix in the flour and lightly rub the whole flour mixture with finger tips. Use warm water to make a soft dough. Cover the dough with a moist muslin cloth and keep it aside for 3-54 hours to let it rise.
Heat a girdle, take a small size dough and make a round ball using dry flour. Roll into a thick round circle and fill the stuffing inside.

For the Filling:

1 onion
1/2 cup of fresh cottage cheese (paneer)
1 tsp of chilly powder
1 tsp of Garam masala
1/4 tsp of Turmeric powder
salt as desired
1 tsp of fresh mint leaves
1 tbsp of sesame seeds
1/2 tsp mustard seeds
1/2 tsp cumin seeds
1 tbsp oil

Method: Peel and grate the onion. Heat oil in a wok andcrackle mustard and cumin seeds in it. add the grated onion and the crumled cottage cheese and all the dry powder, stir it for a while. Cook for 2 minutes and take off the flames.
Mix in half the shredded mint leaves in the cottage cheese mixture.

Cottage cheese Indian Bread: Add 1 tbsp of htis mixture in the flattened dough and close it tightly. Dust it with flour and roll it gently into a circular shape chapatti.Sprinkle the sesame seeds and srest of the shredded mint on the chapatti.
Heat a flat girdle and fry this stuffed bread sprinkling a generous amount of oil on both the side.

Note :

Cook the stuffed bread on the inverted tawa (girdle) directly on the flame for the tandoor effect.
This bread is a perfect meal in itself, just enjoy it with fresh coriander chutney or palin butter.
Goes well with any Indian curry made with vegetables or pulses.
Serve hot with raita made with fresh curds or yogurt.

Healthy recipes to try.

Uttaranchal II - A Road Less Travelled

2010-07-26T04:52:00.000-07:00

A hot cup of tea, misty morning and a picturesque Himalayas in front, mornings could never be better than this.A good night sleep did cast its magic on us. It is lovely to see morning hours with a different view.

“Blessed are those who are close to nature” The serene and unpolluted environment fills the people of mountain with exuberance and a life time gift of sparkle & innocence on their faces.Their expectations and needs are very limited which in turn makes them content & cheerful.

Living on the edges: Most of the houses are constructed by cutting the mountains. When my friend told to us that their backyard opens in the mountain, my son couldn’t believe till he saw the rocks and muddy piles by himself.
It is amazing to see people climbing up and down the mountain several times in a day, as if they are climbing stairs in an apartment. Children walking up the hill with the school bags, cow boys taking their cattle for grazing and pahari women climbing with huge baskets on their back for collecting fodder.

Didihat: Situated at 1.725 mt. above sea levels in Pithoragargh district of Uttaranchal is a small village hardly seen on the map of India. It is situated on the pilgrimage route to Kailash Mansarovar, and is very close to Nepal border. The culture and language of the people here resembles to people of Nepal.

It is best advised to explore this pristine beauty on your own, a cab or a personal vehicle is helpful. My friend made the plan for our trip of 3 days in the place, and her husband sportingly accepted to take us in his car to all these places.
First day of our trip was planned for Munshiyari, a place famous for trekking and as a starting point to the Kailash Mansarovar. We avoided trekking to the glaciers with small kids and opted to see the natural beauties on the land instead.

Munshiyari: It is a hub of activity for people opting for trekking and exploring glaciers such as Pindari glaciers. From Munshiyari the mountain ranges of Himalayas are much clearly visible, especially Panchachuli the five famous mountain rangers of Himalayas. The place has abundance of natural beauties to enjoy.

A friend indeed: As per plan we slept early, as we decided to start our trip to nearby places at around 6 am. To our surprise a big travel bag with home cooked lunch and other eatable was ready. Which my friend and her husband prepared in the wee hours of morning! They did not want us to eat outside when traveling with kids.
This heart felt welcome extended to us was indeed moment to be cherished for life.

Time for a break: We found a good place to sit and enjoy our home cooked food with nature. The place was an under construction botanical garden and gave an ample opportunity for the kids to explore nature, looking out for butterflies and wild flowers. The food was excellent with a pahari touch to it and the hot cup of coffee refreshed all of us.

Betuli Dhar: All ready and set to go, we started our trip at 6 am in the morning. A panoramic view of sun captured our eyes, as the sky was sprinkled with orange, yellow and red hues. Sunrise is difficult to see on mountain due to misty mornings and jungle fire. Birds flying away in search of food, farmers getting ready for a hard days work and the gentle and cold breeze. Life is bliss!

Betuli dhar is a waterfall and is one of the major attractions in Uttaranchal. To reach the waterfall there are 200-300 steps to climb and a rough terrain to cross. We climbed the steps but could not get the courage to cross the rocky terrain with the kids. It was a beautiful experience, similar to trekking at a small level.

A quick trip to another Country: Kali river was accompanying us throughout our trip; it becomes more vibrant as we reach near the Jhulaghat, the bridge that connects Uttaranchal to Nepal.
The bridge is a marvelous architect structure. It was a bit scary to walk on the bridge, which has no support in the middle and shakes vigorously when one walks on it.
My son wanted to cross the bridge and touch Nepal. With the permission of the Indian security guards we crossed the bridge and stepped into Nepal a foreign terrain without any penny spent. Had a talk with Nepalese people and took a few snaps.

The trip took the whole day and we were exhausted. Reached home and had a typical pahari meal of rice, rajma and a salad of Timur seeds powder.

Shirakote Temple: The next day was reserved for visiting this exquisite temple, which is built on mountain. It is dedicated to lord Shiva. Many community festivals are held here at regular intervals. Visiting the temple is a great experience in itself. Though the way to temple is quite steep and rough with over 500 steps to climb, a walk along the nature never let us feel the tiredness.

After reaching the temple and the summit of the mountain, we were transformed altogether to a different world. Gusty cold winds and the leaves dancing making a beautiful music. It was as if the world has stopped for those moments, with no noise pollution and strains of the city life.

The temple has an array of huge bells in copper, which when hit with force, makes a loud sound audible even on the plains in the city. From the temple one can see a panoramic view of whole Didihat. We did prayers and stayed there for a while.

Stopped in a remote guesthouse for a cup of coffee and refreshments. I collected moss for my indoor plants, which was in abundance there.

Exploring the local areas: The last day was reserved for visiting Didihat. The markets in Didihat are bustling with activities and goods that have made their way from Nepal. Purchased a few nick knacks from the local market.

My friend gifted me a natural flower drink, which I found out has anti oxidant properties and is very beneficial for overall health.

It is made with a flower similar to Hibiscus and is called Barose flower in local language.Since the natural drink is not patented by any company, we had to make do with the empty wine bottles, which were used to fill the concentrate.

Evening was spent in a walk down the valley to my friend’s farmhouse. Exploring the wild fruits and flowers on the way was quite an experience for my kids, who were amazed and confused as to how anyone could stay without television and computers!

With a heavy heart we bid good-bye to my friend and left the place with the warm generosity extended to us etched in our memories forever. The trip made us realize that traveling is more than just seeing a few places and visiting monuments. It is all about exploring nature and being one with it.

Hope you enjoyed reading this and come back for another exciting and adventurous trip to Corbett National Park.

A few points to remember while traveling to mountain;

First and foremost is to take precaution if you have mou8ntain sickness. Else you will spoil the whole trip nauseating and vomiting, as we did during our first trip to mountain. Take an anti vomiting medication prescribed by your doctor.
Take winter clothing such as sweater, mufflers, socks and shawl for combating the persistent cold in the mountain.
Carry some ready to eat food if you are traveling with kids, granola bars, dried fruits and biscuits are a few good options.
Do not eat heavy food before traveling to the mountains to avoid nausea and vomiting sensation.

Amazing & most spectacular places of visit in Uttaranchal

Pithoragarh
Almora
Nainital
Champawat
Ranikhet
Kausani

Things to do in Uttaranchal

Kailash Mansarovar Yatra
River rafting in Kali
Trekking to Adi Kailash
Angling
Trek to Pindari glaciers

How to reach there

Air: There is only one airport in Kumoan and that is in Pantnagar.
Rail: Kathgodam is the major rail head of Kumaon, and is well connected with all major cities of India.

Check out this official site of KMVN for more information regarding Uttaranchal.

Related article
Uttaranchal I

Lentil Crispy Snack

2010-07-20T02:36:00.000-07:00

Lentil Crispy Snack is a delicious any-time snack. This snack is normally made with one kind of dal or pulse, but I try to include little bit of each pulse to make this snack.
Lentil Crispy Snacks are very crisp from outside and soft inside. It makes a scrumptious starter for any party, and is a good comfort food on a rainy day.

Ingredients;
(makes 20-25 pieces)
3 tbsp of whole green gram (moong dal)
1 tbsp of de husked black gram ( dhuli urad dal)
1 tbsp of lentils (masoor dal)
1-2 green chillies
1 tbsp coriander leaves
salt as desired
A pinch of asafoetida powder
1 small onion (optional)
1 tsp of whole black peppercorn (Kali mirch)
Oil for deep frying

Method: Wash all the pulses and soak them in water for 20 minutes. Wash and shred the coriander leaves & green chillies. Peel the onion and slice it very fine.
Grind the soaked pulses in a mixie coarsely using very little water.
Take out in a vessel and add salt, sliced green chillies, shredded coriander leaves, asafoetida powder, whole peppercorns, and the diced onion. Mix it thoroughly and keep aside for 10 minutes.

Heat oil in a wok till it is very hot. Take a spoon and scoop out a small dollop of the pulses mix, pour it gently in the hot oil. Put 4-5 of such crispies in a batch and fry. Let it cook, turn the crispies to other side and let it fry till it becomes golden brown in color. Take off the hot oil, and put them on a tissue paper.

Serve hot with tomato sauce or fresh coriander leaves spread.

Try Soy Potato Snack for a healthy option.

Who Moved The Idlies Now?

2010-07-12T23:04:00.000-07:00

The title sounds funny! Hmm…somewhat, why should I move the Idlies but?

Nothing serious, its Just to give vent to my food cravings and to save my words, yes this space is for recipes, which have no connection to health and diet, just hog on and Spppp..lurge.

I often make extra idlies and move them to my refrigerator, to make a tasty snack the next day. The crispy & delicious snack which my kids love to devour, and I too love to indulge in, in the name of my kids :)

Ingredients;

3 cups. Boiled rice (a variety of rice)
1 cup of urad dal (black gram)
1 tsp. Fenugreek seeds
A pinch of salt
1/2 cup water
Oil for deep frying

Method:Wash and soak the rice, dal and fenugreek seeds for 2 hours. Grind all the ingredients together to a fine paste. Add salt and keep the batter aside for 8-10 hours and let it ferment. The batter can be stored in refrigerator for 4-5 days.

Take a steamer or small cup size moulds and grease them with a little oil. Pour the batter in each mould and steam it for 6-7 minutes. The batter can be cooked in a flat plate with curved sides and then cut into desired shapes.

Heat oil in a wok and fry the pieces in small batches till they are golden brown in color. Drain it on a tissue paper. Serve hot with tomato sauce or fresh coriander leaves spread.

Note:

Mix brown rice and white rice in the ratio of 1:2 for a different taste..
These snacks make a good party starters.
Pack them in kids lunchbox with tomato sauce for a change.
Bulgar steamed cakes can be fried the same way.
Sprinkle chaat masala over it enjoy a crunchy tea time snack.

Coriander Leaves Spread

Warning: The snack is loaded with oil and is not advisable if you are looking out for some healthy options in food.

Try healthy food in Recipe bites.

Tangy Coconut Spreads

2010-07-06T00:55:00.000-07:00

One of the most discussed natural foods among health buffs and the laboratories worldwide for its dubious role in the food chart is Coconut.
Where tender coconut is the healthiest natural drink available to us, ripe coconut goes under the sharp blades of modern research. The saturated fats present in the coconut are the point of content.
I normally do not use much of coconut in my cooking, as it is not a very popular food ingredient used in our Rajasthani cuisine. But I often make coconut chutneys and add numerous variations to add variety to the recipe.

This Tangy Coconut Spread is the most basic and simple spread with very few ingredients to go in it.
Ginger and garlic in this recipe is the outcome of my Bangalore visit., where I got to learn some Mangalorean cuisine from my friend. I liked the taste of ginger in the coconut chutney which my friend prepared, it gave an extra zing to the otherwise bland chutney.
Ingredients;

1/2 cup grated coconut
1 green chilly
1" inch ginger piece
1 tbsp roasted Channa Dal (Bengal gram)
A pinch of asafoetida
A small marble size tamarind
salt as desired
1 tbsp water

For seasoning:

1 tsp oil
1 tsp mustard seeds
1 tsp De husked black gram
1 clove of garlic (optional)

Method: Grate coconut and keep it aside. Assemble all the ingredients, chilly, ginger, roasted Channa Dal, tamarind and grind it in a mixer. Use very little water initially to make the grinding fine.Add water and make the consistency as desired.
Take a small seasoning vessel and heat oil in it. Add mustard and let it crackle, add De-husked black gram Dal (urad) and 1 clove of garlic (optional) in it and let it become brown in color. Take off the flames and add asafoetida in it. Pour this seasoning over the coconut spread.

Mint and Coriander Coconut Spread

Ingredients

1/2 cup grated coconut
1 green chilly
1 tbsp fresh coriander leaves
1 tbsp. mint leaves
A pinch of asafoetida
salt as desired
1 tbsp water

For seasoning:

1 tsp oil
1 tsp mustard seeds
1 tsp De husked black gram

Method: This spread is quite healthy with all the benefits of greens in it. Pluck the coriander and mint leaves and wash it with clear water. Assemble all ingredients and grind them into a smooth paste.
Season this spread by heating oil and crackling mustard and De husked black gram in it. Pour over the spread.

.
Tangy coconut spread with ginger, garlic, mint and coriander twist is ready to serve with snacks of your choice.

Try fresh coriander spread if you want to avoid coconut in your diet. Stay connected, take care.

A Tasty Sweet Treat - Puran Poli

2010-07-02T01:12:00.000-07:00

People with sweet tooth do not wait for any occasion to indulge in sweets. Puran Poli is one such sweet which I often make in excess and store in refrigerator to sink my teeth in whenever I crave for sweets.
Again there are many ways to make these Indian delicacies, some use sugar as a filling while others make jaggary Puran polis. If coconut is the main stuffing down South of India, Channa Dal or Bengal gram dal are boiled to make tasty Puran polis in Northen parts. To each his taste.

Ingredients;
(makes 10-12 Puran polis)

For the outer covering
1 and a half cups of Maida
2 tsp of Oil
A pinch of Turmeric powder
1/4 cup of water

For the Filling
1 cup Bengal gram or Channa dal
1/2 cup grated coconut
1 cup jaggary
A few Cashewnuts
A pinch of salt
1 tsp of Cardamom powder
Ghee or Clarified butter as desired

Method:
For the outer covering:
Take a big vessel and mix maida, turmeric powder, salt and 2 teaspoons of oil. Knead it into a smooth dough and keep it aside for an hour.

For the Filling:
Wash the bengalgram and boil it with very little water. Drain the water. Heat a skillet and add the boiled dal, cardamom powder and the grated coconut in it, fry till the mixture is dry.
Grind the above mixture coarsely in a grinder. Dry fry this mix again to remove any traces of water in it.
Cool the mixture of bengalgram filling.
Take a big marble size dough and flatten it using a rolling pin. Fill about 3 teaspoons of the above fillig in it. Fold all the sides of the dough and make a round ball of it.
Roll the filled dough using dry maida & rolling pin and make a thin chapatti.
Heat a non stick pan and cook this chapatti using ghee on both the sides till it is golden brown in color.

Serve hot with an extra dollop of ghee.
Slurrrp...!!

Try this Wholewheat Halwa for a healthy treat.

A Crispy Tea-Time Snack

2010-06-28T04:42:00.000-07:00

A Crispy Tea Time Snack

This Crispy Tea-Time Snack is a delicacy which does not call for any occasion.. Seen in most of the tea shops all around the South of India, it needs no introduction. Masala 'Vadai' or simply called 'dal vade' has many fans reaching out for it overlooking the place and the way it's been prepared in many small shabby shops. All that they want is just to grab one and crrrunch...!! Its heavenly, believe me.
Try this recipe for a simple vade made with Channa dal (Chickpeas).

Ingredints;

1 cup of Channa Dal (Bengalgram or chickpeas)
1 onion
3 red chillies
A few sprigs of curry leaves
Oil for deep frying
A oinch of asafoetida (hing)
Salt as desired
water as required

Method: Wash and soak the dal and red chillies in water for two hours. Drain the dal and grind it coarsely with red chillies, curry leaves and salt. Peel and slice the onion finely, and add it to the ground mixture with salt and asafoetida. Pour very little quantity of water (just 2-3 tsp will suffice). The mixture should be coarse and semi dry.
Take a little of the above mixture and shape it into a round ball with both hands. Make if firm by applying a little pressure and flatten it a bit to give the shape of vadai.
Heat oil in a kadai. let it come to smoking point and then drop the vadai in hot oil. Fry the vadai till it is golden brown on both sides. Shape all vadais and fry the same in the oil, take out and keep on a tissue paper to remove the excess oil.
Note: If the mixture becomes too liquid, add besan or chickpea flour. If the mix is too thick add little water to adjust the consistency.

Serve hot with coriander chutney or tomato sauce. Enjoy these melt-in-mouth crispy tea time snack at any time of the day.

Do drop in here, if you are looking for some healthy option.

Uttaranchal - A Road Less travelled

2010-06-24T03:09:00.000-07:00

A vacation always mean searching and booking for well-known tourist places and asking the opinions of friends and acquaintances who visited those places.
For most of the tourist spots are well connected with logistics and have a good network of boarding facilities, it is less painstaking going to such places.
But a trip to Uttaranchal last year changed my perception of traveling altogether.

After which I find that most of the popular tourist spots are overcrowded, polluted and most important commercialized by the locals.

My Itinerary for the trip: Corbett National Park was zeroed in after a quick search on Google. I found it a perfect place for vacation, wherein the whole family can relax and enjoy.
The planning started quite early, as it requires 3 months of advance booking for the jungle resorts inside the CNP (Corbett National Park) There are many staying options available outside the CNP, but you loose on the adventures of being in the real jungle with the wild.

The U-Turn: The actual plan was for a 3 days stay in CNP, proceed to Nainital and then visit a few near by places.
When a phone call from my childhood friend from Uttaranchal made me change it little. She invited me to her place in Uttaranchal called ‘Didihat’!

“Where on Earth is this Didihat located?” my exhausted hubby murmured digging deep in the map of India. He was a bit apprehensive traveling to an unknown place with small kids.
“You just book the tickets and come till Haldwani, and the I will take care of the rest” the call from my friend gave us some respite.

All Aboard: Arrived at Delhi as per plan, and boarded Ranikhet Express to go to Haldwani. Ranikhet Express starts in night from Delhi and goes till Kathgodam, the last point where Uttaranchal is connected by rail. Buses and jeeps are the only form of available logistics to travel to these mountain areas.

Reached Haldwani in the early morning and waited with bated breadth for our jeep driver, arranged by my friend. A small Pahari man greeted us with a smile and asked us to take seat in the jeep.

Natures Bounty: Picture perfect scenes, lush green mountains and cool breeze made us forget the tiredness of the journey.

Was it a bad decision? The situation changed the equation when our jeep started to go higher in the mountain. Steep roads, hairpin bends and the low pressure of air made all of us dizzy and nauseate.
Suddenly the whole trip was looking as a bad decision, and I was blaming myself for accepting the request of my friend.
Anyway our misery found an end and we saw my friend on the doorsteps of her house greeting with a big smile.

Heaven on the Highlands: My friend, who was a bit upset by the happenings, woke us up the next day with a hot cup of tea. Night sleep made us fresh again, felt very cold (in May) and asked her for a sweater.
It was foggy and the Sky was covered with a thick smoke.

Jungle fire and fog is a normal phenomenon in mountains, which often mar the visibility in these hilly areas. Most of the pictures came out blurred because of the same.

My eyes opened wide when I came out in the balcony. I was sitting and sipping tea with the majestic Himalayas in front of me!

We could not have asked for more from this vacation. "There is lot in store" informed my friend, who asked us to take a day's rest before starting to unravel the beauties of mountain.

Hope you join the adventures of traveling and discovering those picture perfect villages of Uttaranchal, in the road less travelled.

A Delicious Indian Kulfi

2010-06-23T03:40:00.000-07:00

Indian Kulfi a delicious dessert, is very popular sweet from the olden days. Many fancy ice-cream parlours have sprung up with irresistible menu and varieties galore in every nook and corner of my city. But nothing to beat the traditional Kulfi which is rich, creamy and most important made from all natural products.
When the supply of milk in my refrigerator surpass the demand, the end results are always Kulfi with different flavors.
This one is the simplest and easiest one I often make, with very few ingredients to go in the recipe.

Ingredients;

1 liter milk (whole milk is best)
11/2 cups of sugar
A few almonds or Pistachios

Method: Take a heavy bottom kadai and boil the milk in it at medium flame. Let the milk boil till it is reduced to about 1/4th of its original quantity. Keep removing the cream that forms on the surface and collect it at the sides of the kadai.
At this stage you can add 1 tsp of cornflour to thicken the milk faster, or else let it boil further. Take off the flame once it is dark yellow in colour and is reduced to about 11/2 cups.
Cool it a bit and add the sugar and the coarsely powdered nuts.
Fill the Kulfi moulds if you have one, or just pour the liquid in a plastic vessel, cover it and keep it in the freezer till it is set.

Easy and delicious summer dessert Indian Kulfi is ready for a bite!
Try it and do write about your experience of making it and how did you like it?

Visit here if you are looking for some healthy options.

A Crispy Potato Snack

2010-06-21T02:31:00.000-07:00

This crispy potato snack is a regular feature in my home on Sunday evenings and on rainy days as well. In fact potato tikias as is called in Hindi is a filling and delicious snack any time of the year. I sometimes pack this in my kids lunchbox with tomato sauce, and they just love to eat it in school. At times I have to pack 20 or more tikias on my kids demand for the whole class to share...

Ingredients;
(makes 4 tikias)

2 medium size potatoes
1 onion
4 bread slices
1 tbsp coriander leaves
1/2 tsp. turmeric
1 tsp chilly powder
1/4 tsp amchoor powder
salt as desired
oil to deep fry

Method: Boil the potatoes, peel it and mash it with hands. Peel and slice the onion finely. Take a bowl and add mashed potato, sliced onion and mix in rest of the ingredients (except oil).
Take a bread and dip in water for a second and squeeze it with both the hands. Now fill a little of the above potato mixture and close the bread tightly. Take care that potato mix does not spill out, else tikia will break while frying in the oil.
Heat oil in a wok and deep fry the tikia till it is golden brown on both the sides. Take out and make other tikia the same way. Keep the cooked tikias on a tissue paper to absorb the excess oil.

Serve hot with fresh coriander chutney or tomato sauce.

Shall post other variations of this crisp potato snack soon.
Try this and let me know how did you like it?

Any Time Treat Carrot Halwa

2010-06-10T01:12:00.000-07:00

Carrot halwa, is normally made during winter season in North of India. I suppose it helps give boost to the calorie requirement and provide extra energy to the people of colder regions when the temperature dips below normal. But for me carrot halwa is any time treat. And I don't wait for any reasons to devour carrot halwa. Moreover it sounds good to start my postings on a sweet note.

One easy and quick way to make this recipe is to use condensed milk instead of the regular milk. But I prefer the traditional method of making carrot halwa, which gives the dish an extra richness ...

Ingredients;

200gms-grated carrots
1-liter whole milk
200 gms sugar
1 tsp. cardamom powder
20 gms raisins (Kishmish)
1 tbsp. Almond slivers (Badam)

Method: Scrape and grate the carrots. Take a heavy bottom kadai, pour the milk in it and boil at medium heat. Add the grated carrots after the milk comes to full boil.
Keep stirring the mixture in between to avoid it sticking to the bottom of the kadai. Remove from heat when the mixture is thick and no milk traces are left in it, might take 1 hour on medium heat.

Add sugar, cardamom powder and the dried fruits in it. Serve hot or store the Carrot halwa in refrigerator. Stays good for one week.

Enjoy the yummy any time treat carrot halwa without any reason! .

You deserve it!

Do drop here, if you need lite and healthy recipes.

Welcome Drink

2010-05-28T09:26:00.000-07:00

Hello and welcome to Different Strokes! What better way than to start my postings with a refreshing welcome drink. This minty-lemony drink was a huge hit in one of the parties we arranged for my husbands’ colleagues. Most of whom who were used to colas got little hesitant to try out the green color welcome drink. But after the first sip no one could just stop with one, and the huge piles of empty cups in my backyard were telling the success story.

Minty lemony drink is a permanent feature in my refrigerator during the hot summer months. My kids love to take this in a small bottle along with their lunch bag to school.
The recipe below is for making a concentrate of the drink and store in the refrigerator. Mix with water and top it with crushed ice to and enjoy this refreshing drink the whole year.
Set the scene for smiles and get the party rolling, with minty-lemony drink ...

Ingredients;

2 cups of fresh mint leaves
6 large lemons
1 Kg of sugar
1 liter of water
1/2 tsp of freshly grated ginger
A pinch of green color (food grade)

Method: Pick the mint leaves and wash it in running water. Clean and grate the ginger. Heat water in a vessel and add sugar to it. Let the sugar dissolve; filter the sugar syrup with a thin muslin cloth. Boil it further on medium heat till the syrup becomes a bit thick, about 20 minutes. Take off heat and cool the syrup. Now add the mint leaves, grated ginger and juice of lemons. Leave it aside for 4-5 hours to let the mint flavor seep into the syrup. Add green color if required.
Store the concentrate in a clean glass bottle. To make the drink, pour about 1 tbsp. of the concentrate and add water to suit your taste.
Top it with crushed ice and serve the refreshing Minty-lemony drink.

Easy Vegetable Manchurian

2010-03-01T22:39:00.000-08:00

A regular weekend treat for my kids, vegetable manchurian is healthy and filling at the same time. Though a bit time consuming and laborious, but for sure is worth an effort. The vegetable balls can also be steamed and added to the gravy to avoid excess oil, the real taste is in the fried version. As the site is for those recipes for which taste scores higher than the nutrients, I will go with the second option ...

Ingredients;

1 cup grated carrots
1 cup grated cabbage and french beans
1 tbsp spring onion (optional)
1 onion sliced
1/2 cup cornflour/maida
3 pearls of garlic
4 tsp soya sauce
2 tsp vinegar
2 green chillies diced
2 tsp cornflour
salt as desired
oil for deep frying

Method: Take a big bowl and mix all the vegetables, salt and add cornflour or maida in it. Bind the ingredients together without adding water. Make small lemon size balls and keep aside.

Heat oil in a wok and fry the prepared vegetable balls a few at a time till they become golden brown in colour. Take out the balls and keep on a tissue paper to let the excess oil drain.

Take another wok and add 3 tsps. of oil, add diced garlic and onion in it and fry till onion become translucent in colour. Mix 4 tsp of soya sauce, 2 tsp of vinegar and 2 tsp of cornflour in a glass of water. Pour this water in the wok with garlic and onion. Let it simmer till the gravy become thick, take off from fire and let it cool. Add the fried manchurian balls just before serving, else the balls will soak all the gravy.

A tasty weekend treat of easy vegetable manchurian is ready to serve.

When Silence is Golden

2010-02-25T23:29:00.000-08:00

Speech is one of the greatest gifts to human beings which set them apart and make them superior to other living things on Earth. Every parent would wait eagerly to listen to the first few golden words uttered by their kids. No wonder many don’t hesitate to switch to “Can you please keep quiet for a second” very soon.

Teach them young: I sit with my 6 years old daughter everyday to listen to all the happenings of the day after the school hours. But for my 10 years old son “School was OK” summaries the school affair...

I encourage my daughter to express her feelings in words, which is an important tool to develop vocabulary and communication skills for kids her age. At the same time I also respect my son’s privacy, non verbal communication and his freedom to remain silent.

Excessive talking: As we grow old we need few words to express ourselves to the people who are close to us, who very soon start interpreting the language of silence over the years.
Excessive talking can make one burn out a lot of energy, breeding anger, stress and a hyperactive mind. Practicing silence can help rest the overworked vocal cords, besides developing good listening skills.
Silence can help avoid many unnecessary squabbles, arguments and save you from creating bitterness in any relationship.
To say nothing, is more difficult in situations such as anger, heated arguments and also in love, where the first reaction is always an outburst of words.

Silence is golden: We are so accustomed to talking that often a silence observed by a person will make others uncomfortable. Sometimes silence can be taken too far, the person will be labeled aloof and even get discarded from the friend and social circle. But the benefits attached to it should not deter anyone from observing silence for any part of the day.

Communication is not always talking; there are many things which can be better explained by gestures than words. A loving pat on the back of kids can say more than ‘You did a good job, and I love you for that’. A tender touch and a doting look from your loved one speaks a thousand words.

And if you still need to say or express your affection in words to your loved ones, I am afraid you have a long way to go!..

When not to remain silent:

In a classroom discussion
Board meetings
When you are denied of your rights
When hunger strikes
Locked inside bathroom/elevator

When to remain silent:

A sore throat
Caught after telling a lie
In the library/Hospitals
Certain religious proceedings
When wife wants to go to hometown

Coming home: One of the greatest benefits of silence is coming home to ourselves, in our own world, where we can talk and listen to our feelings.
In fact observing silence whenever possible, can help you taking out time to re-discover yourself, develop your creativity and organize your thinking pattern.
'To create a ripple, what we need is not a ‘big impact’ but instead ‘Still Water’ quips Deepak chopra.

Silence is golden and can pay rich dividends to you and the people around. The fact that we have two ears and one mouth says it all.

Why not share some of those moments with us, ‘when you remain silent and when you don’t’ ?

All Set To Go !!

2010-02-23T03:44:00.000-08:00

All of whom who have traveled, would be unanimous that nothing can be more enduring and satisfactory than being one with the nature. The chirping of birds, songs of river and the rustic aroma of hill side villages are a sure shot remedy for relaxation from the hectic and stressful ways of modern life.

Why Travel Trails: Travel Trails is to capture and freeze those nostalgic travel experiences into words which are etched in mind but might fade away with time. Writing a blog on these can be a perfect way to store them forever and to re-live those moments when physical condition might be a hindrance to traveling. Moreover this blog can be a useful tool for future travelers to know about a particular place and to get first hand travel information.>>> more

Most parts of my travel are pre-planned while the rest just happen, which incidentally make the whole experience more adventurous and exciting.

Just as my last year’ trip, which was planned till Corbett National Park in Uttaranchal, but ended till the Nepal border! Discovering many beautiful villages, breathtaking landscapes and cheerful & innocent people on the way.

“The journey not the arrival matters.” – T. S. Eliot

I invite you also to write and share your travel experiences with us. You can send a small write up with a few pictures of the destination. Come share the joy of travelling and being one with the nature in Travel Trails.