Happy Diwali

Here comes the festival of lights bringing along with it lots of prosperity, health, wealth and happiness. Wishing you and your family a very very happy Diwali. This festival of lights is celebrated by lighting Diyas and symbolizes the victory of Light over Darkness.

Asato Ma Sadgamaya

Tamaso Ma Jyotirgamaya

                                                    Mrityor Ma Amritam Gamaya                                                     

Om Shantih Shantih Shantihi!!

Lead me from the Unreal to the Real.

Lead me from Darkness to Light.

Lead me from Death to Immortality.

May all your lives be filled with happiness for all the years to come. Have a fun-filled Diwali with lots of light and enjoying bursting of crackers. Be sure to stay very safe.

Instant Thirattipal / Condensed Milk Halwa

I had made the instant Khoya / Mawa the other day and had put it off in the refrigerator. I was so longing to have some instant sweet yesterday. So I made this Thirattipal with the Khoya / Mawa that I made. This recipe is a quick one. It turned out so delicious, just the way I wanted it to be. I like the Thirattipal to be crumbled up rather than a cake or a smooth paste consistency. It requires the minimum basic ingredients and I am sure every household will have these at any given time of the day. Here is the recipe for this yummy dessert treat.

Ingredients:

Khoya / Mawa - 2 cups
Whole Milk - 2 1/2 cups
Sugar - 1 1/2 cups
Ghee - 1 tablespoon

Method:

• Take a pan, preferably non-stick or a heavy bottomed pan. Add the Ghee and Khoya.
• Mix it well till the Ghee gets well blended into the Khoya.
• Add the milk and sugar and mix well.
• Keep stirring on medium to low flame for about 15 - 20 minutes.
• When all the milk and sugar has dissolved and has been absorbed by the Khoya, Ghee will start to leave on the sides.
• Turn off the flame and allow it to cool.
• Instant Thirattipal is ready to be served.
• Thirattipal tastes best when served warm. Enjoy. Happy eating.

Notes:

1. Make sure that the Thirattipal has a little flow in its consistency because as it cools down it will turn a little hard. If you allow it to get very hard when it is hot, it will be difficult to crumple it when it gets cold.
2. Keep stirring the mixture when you are preparing this dish as it may burn if you do not do so.
3. You can do variations with using the Ghee and milk while making this dish. The main thing you have to remember is the bit of flowy consistency when you remove from the flame.
4. Adjust the Sugar according to your taste. You may add more or less sugar - the way you prefer.

Horse Gram Sambar / Kollu Kozhambu

Horse Gram is called Kollu in Tamil and Hurali Kaalu in Kannada. It is very good source of protein and very rich in its iron content. This gram is considered as a part of weight loss diet. It is also used to improve water retention in the body. This gram is used to make Usali/ Usal/ Sundal. This gram can be sprouted and used in salads.This gram is also used as a feed for horses in many parts of India.Here is the recipe for this yummy Horse Gram Sambar.

Ingredients:

Horse gram - 1/2 cup 

Tamarind paste - 1 teaspoon

Turmeric powder - 1 teaspoon

Red chili powder - 2 teaspoons

Coriander powder - 1 table spoon

Cumin powder - 2 teaspoons

Red Onions - Finely chopped - 1 small onion               

Mustard seeds - 1 teaspoon

Oil - 1 tablespoon

Curry leaves - 1 sprig

For Masala to be ground:

Shallots - 4-5

Coconut - Grated - 1/4 cup

Garlic cloves - 3-4

Dry Red chillies - 2

Coriander leaves - 1/4 cup

Method:

• Soak the horse-gram overnight in sufficient water and set it aside.
• Next day, pressure cook the horse gram.
• Grind all the ingredients required for the Masala and keep it aside.
• Take a pan and add the oil, add the mustard seeds and allow the mustard seeds to pop up.
• Add the finely chopped red onions and curry leaves and fry till the onions get golden brown. 
• Then, add the ground masala.Fry till raw smell from the Masala goes away.
• Now add the tamarind paste, turmeric powder, Red Chilli powder, coriander powder, cumin powder, salt and add 2 cups of water.
• Once the water comes to a boil, add the horse gram and cover and cook for 15-20 minutes.
• Garnish with coriander leaves. Serve hot with Ragi Mudde. This can also be served hot with rice.
• This Sambar tastes even better when eaten the next day.

Ragi Mudde / Finger millet Cake

Ragi is also called as Finger Millet. It is very rich in protein. It has a high level of carbohydrate too. It is considered to be a very good meal for people who work in the agricultural fields and people having very high physical activity in their work. Ragi can also be used to make Rotis, Pancakes, Pudding and Porridge. They are also used to make nutritive drinks along with milk and buttermilk.

Ragi Mudde is a very popular dish in South India in the state of Karnataka. Flour from finger millet is cooked and steamed in water and is rolled into balls. A spicy and flavorful Gravy/ Curry/ Sambar is used to dip these balls and eat them. It is not eaten normally like chewing the other food. Small balls of the size of shallots are made out of the big balls and dipped in the Curry/Sambar and is swallowed. Eating them by chewing will mess up the teeth and the flour will stick to all the teeth which will take loads of time to clean up later.

The Recipe for the Mudde is as follows.

Ingredients:
(Makes about 6 medium sized cakes)

Finger millet flour/ Ragi Flour - 1 1/2 cups
Water - 2 cups
Clarified Butter/Ghee - 1 tablespoon
Salt - To taste

Method:

• In a pan/ Kadai, add the water and the Ghee. Allow the water to warm up a little.
• Once the water is warm, add about a tablespoon of Ragi flour to the water. Let the flour dissolve completely and let the water boil well.
• Add the salt and allow the water to come to a full boil.
• Once the water has boiled, add the remaining Ragi flour and mix it well with a thick wooden spatula.
• Traditionally, Ragi flour is mixed with a thick wooden stick as shown below. The stick that is used here is enough to make Ragi Mudde for a small family. The thicker the stick is the better it is for mixing.(I got the stick from the local Home Depot store).

• Make sure that there are no lumps in the mixture.
• Once the flour is mixed completely, sprinkle a little water and cover the Kadai and steam the mixture for about 7-10 minutes and allow it to cook well.
• Turn off the heat. Take a bowl filled with cold water. Wet your hands. Take a small portion of the flour in your hands and roll it in the shape of a ball as shown below.You can vary the size as per your requirement.

• Serve hot with Sambar / curry of your choice.

• The Sambar I used here is what I made out of Horse-gram  also called as Kollu in Tamil and Hurali Kaalu in Kannada. Here is the Recipe.