Bansi Rava Kesari

Bansi Rava is also called as Godumai Rava/ Samba Godumai/ Broken Wheat/ Dalia. It is rich in fiber and very nutritious. Kesari is usually made out of Sooji. Kesari/ Kesari bath is usually made of milk and sugar. But this Bansi Rava Kesari is made of jaggery. It is a very delicious and simple recipe. This is how I made it.

Ingredients:

Bansi Rava - 1 cup                                            

Jaggery (powdered) - 1 cup
Cardamom powder - 1 teaspoon
Cashewnuts - For Garnishing
Raisins - For Garnishing
Ghee - 4 Tablespoons
Water - As required



Method:

• In a Pan/ Kadai roast 1 cup of Bansi Rava in 1 table spoon of ghee.
• Then boil the Bansi Rava in about 2 cups of water or as required. Cook till it is completely cooked.
• In a different pan, add the Jaggery and add 1 cup of water and boil the Jaggery. 
• Once the Jaggery is boiled and dissolved completely, remove it from heat and strain out the Jaggery water.
• Mix the strained Jaggery water into the Bansi Rava, add 2 table spoons of Ghee and stir it well.
• Take a Tadka pan and add the Ghee into it. Once the Ghee is melted, add a few Cashewnuts and Raisins. 
• Then add this to the Rava Jaggery mixture and stir it well till the Ghee leaves out on the sides.
• Remove from the pan and serve it hot.Enjoy the Bansi Rava Kesari.

Green Rice

Today I am feeling very happy as I got some time to sit down and write a few recipes for my blog. I stumbled upon this recipe,Green Rice as I was selecting the recipe for today's post. It is an all time favorite at our home because it is an easy one-pot meal and very nutritious. Here is how I made it.

Ingredients

Mint Leaves - 1/2 cup

Cilantro leaves - 1/2 cup

Basil Leaves - 1/4 cup
Green Chilles - 2
Red Onion - 1 (medium sized)
Ginger Garlic Paste - 1 tsp

Shelled Edmame beans - 1 cup

Green peas - 1/4 cup

Cloves - 4

Cinnamon - 1 inch stick

Black Cardamom - 2

Bay leaves - 3

Star Anise - 2

Cumin seeds - 1 tsp

Olive oil - 2 tbsp

Basmati Rice - 2 cups
Salt - To Taste

Method

1. Wash and soak the Basmati Rice for 20 mins and set aside.
2. Wash and grind the mint,cilantro and basil leaves along with green chillies and salt to a coarse consistency.
3. In a non - stick pan add 2 tbsp of olive oil. Once the oil is heated add the cumin seeds, cloves, cinnamon stick, black cardamom, bay leaves and star anise. A nice aroma will be released from the spices. 
4. Add the chopped onions and fry till translucent. Add the ginger-garlic paste and cook until the raw smell goes.
5. Now add the ground green paste and the shelled edmame beans and green peas and cook until the raw smell of the greens is gone.
6. Add the rice and cook covered for 15 to 20 mins until the rice is fully cooked. Fluff it up with a fork to ensure that the rice is cooked.
7. Serve hot as it is or with Raita..
8. Enjoy the green rice..Let me know how it turns out..

Notes

• You can use butter instead of olive oil.
• Green chilles can be more or less depending on the spice level you prefer.
• You can use both edmame beans and green peas or either of the two.

**I did not have good pics of the step wise pics. Will upload them soon the next time I make this rice.**

Homemade Lemonade Made Easy!!

Summer is here and it is getting really hot!! It is very important to keep ourselves hydrated during hot weather days. Water and juices are the common drinks people prefer for hydration. Juices are better because we get the goodness of fruits and veggies and we use the base as water. So we keep ourselves healthy and hydrated.Lemonade is one such drink.

Lemonade is a refreshing drink at any time of the day. It is the favorite drink of my DH. Homemade lemonade has its own unique taste and is heavenly to taste. I usually make a lot of concentrated lemonade and then dilute it whenever needed. You can make a lot of variations to the taste by adding fresh basil or mint leaves or any fresh herb to the lemonade and give it a variety of flavors too.

Ingredients:

Lemon/ Lime - 5-6 (About 1/2 cup of lemon juice)
Sugar - 2 cups
Water - 3 cups

Method:

• We start by making a simple syrup for the lemonade. Add the 3 cups of water in a vessel and add sugar to it. 

• Bring it to a boil until all the sugar dissolves completely in the water. Let the simple syrup cool down completely.

• Meanwhile, squeeze the juice out of the lemons and keep it aside. We should be able to get about 1 cup of lemon juice from 6 lemon.

• Once the simple syrup has cooled completely, add the lemon juice into it.

• Mix it well and bottle it. You can store this in the refrigerator for bout 2-3 weeks. 

• Take quarter cup of concentrated lemonade and dilute it with 2/3rd cup of water. Chop a few mint leaves and add it to the lemonade. Serve chilled and Enjoy!!

Avacado and Spinach Salad

Eating healthy is very important. In the present day scenario, everyone is leading a very busy and a fast life. It has become a burden for many to cook, go to work and manage home well. Salads come in handy in similar situations. Chop a couple of fresh veggies, empty a pack of store bought greens and toss it well with a few other ingredients from the pantry. Trust me, you will end up with a delicious and a wholesome dish that will satisfy your appetite.

Avacadoes are one of my favorite fruit and I live to have it as a milkshake and enjoy eating it with salads. The fruit is very buttery and smooth. The fruit can turn brown on exposure to air due to oxidation. To prevent this just coat with with lime juice and I will stay fresh. It has a lot of health benefits associated with it and considered to be very healthy (though it is high in its fat content).

Here is the recipe to a healthy and a delicious salad.

Ingredients: 
(Serves 2)
Avacado - 1 Ripe
Baby spinach - Cleaned,washed and chopped - 2 cups
Spring onions - 4 stalks
Red onion - Medium sized -1
Ripe tomatoes - medium sized - 2
Salt - To taste
Lime/Lemon juice - from 1large lime/lemon
Chat masala - 1/4th of a tsp
Ground black Pepper - 1/4th of a tsp

Method:

• In a large bowl add the chopped spinach, red onions, tomatoes and spring onions.

• Then add ground black pepper, chat masala, salt and lime juice.

• Toss the salad and serve it with avacadoes.

• Enjoy the salad.

Notes:

• You can use cherry tomatoes if you like.
• You can use spring mix, arugula or watercress instead of spinach or with spinach.
• You can prefer to add or skip chat masala.
• Use raw veggies of your choice to make the salad more interesting.