Easy Channa or Chick pea rice

Having Canned or frozen channa / Chick peas on hand is quite useful for those rushed mornings.
When using canned chick peas, you don't even have to cook for long. I usually soak channa overnight and then freeze them, so that I have them ready whenever needed. Any kind of chick peas is fine. While you find of white or kabuli channa for the canned ones, we can always get black and the littler ones at the Indian grocery always (along with the big white ones too).
To make a rice using chick peas doesn't take much time at all. I like to to add a little bit of ginger garlic paste along with tomato and some garam masala to make it flavorful and yummy to eat for the kids. I don't use much chili powder of green chilies but to make an adult version, go ahead and increase the amount of chili powder and add some chopped green chilies to spike up the spice intensity.

Ingredients:

1 cup of cooked rice
1/3 cup frozen of canned chick peas or channa
1/4 piece of onion, chopped
1 tomato, chopped

Salt to taste
1/4 tsp ginger garlic paste
1/4 tsp chili powder
pinch of turmeric
1/4 tsp garam masala
1 tsp oil
chopped coriander leaves for garnish

Method:

Heat oil in a kadai. Add onions and saute till translucent.
Then add the ginger garlic paste and saute for 30 sec before adding the tomatoes.
Add the chick peas and some salt. Cover and cook for about 5 minutes till the chick peas are cooked.
Add the turmeric, chili powder and garam masala and saute for another couple of minutes.
Add in the cooked rice and mix it up well the cooked chick peas.
Garnish with chopped coriander leaves.
Serve warm or pack it in a hot box.
Enjoy!!!

Check out the Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing BM# 13

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Quick and easy Carrot rice

Here is another simple and easy dish which I am sure your kids will enjoy! My kids do and I love to eat it with them. Its pretty quick and very easy to make when you have cooked rice ready. If you are going to make this the kid's lunch box, you can always grate or shred the carrot the night before and keep it ready. Shredding one carrot doesn't take much time and therefore this rice get ready very quickly!

I don't use ginger garlic paste in this preparation but if you want to use it, don't hesitate. I just keep it simple and easy with just a some tempering.
Remember not to cook the carrot too much or over cook it, as it could get mushy. Even if there is a slight crunch in the carrot, it won't be that noticeable and I am sure the kids will enjoy it.

For an adult version of this similar rice, add some chopped green chilies and step up the spice level by adding  some chili powder to it!

Ingredients:

1 cup cooked rice
1 medium sized carrot, grated or shredded
1 small piece of onion, chopped

pinch of mustard seeds
pinch of cumin / jeera seeds
pinch of urad dal
pinch of turmeric powder
1 red chili, broken
few curry leaves
chopped coriander leaves for garnish
salt to taste
1 tsp of oil


Method:

Heat the oil in a kadai and add the urad dal, mustard and jeera.
After they start spluttering, the red chili and curry leaves.
Add the carrot and saute for a minute. Since its shredded or grated, it doesn't take much time to cook.
Add the cooked rice along with salt and turmeric. Mix it up well.
Garnish with chopped coriander leaves if you wish.
Serve it warm or hot.
Enjoy!!!

Check out the Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing BM# 13

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Quick Egg and Green onion Rice

Eggs are very common in my house. I use them almost everyday. There might be a day or two when I may not use them but my fridge is always stocked with eggs. Though we don't eat more than 1 per person per day, I think having one per/day is good for your health.
Egg burji and hard boiled egg dishes are a favorite of my old son and my husband. My younger one prefers them little lesser than the older one. For this reason, for him its mostly burji or mixed up in rice type of dishes, where he won't know its presence in a dish.

Here is a dish where the protein 'egg' is mixed with rice and green onion otherwise known as the greens of the scallions. This dish doesn't have any masalas in it. You are welcome to add some and make it how your prefer it. Rice is sauteed with ginger garlic paste, salt and bit of pepper for taste.
This rice is better when eaten warm or hot, so remember to pack it as a hot pack lunch.

Ingredients:

1 cup of cooked rice
1 egg
few chopped green scallion leaves
1/4 onion, chopped

1 tsp of oil
1/4 tsp ginger garlic paste
salt to taste
pepper to taste


Method:

Heat oil in a kadai and add the egg. Scramble it on medium heat till its cooked.
Add the onions and ginger garlic paste. Saute for a minute.
Add the rice along with some salt and pepper. Toss them all together.
Cover and cook for another couple of minutes before adding the green onions.
Serve hot or warm.
Enjoy!!!


Check out the Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing BM# 13

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Easy Paneer and Peas rice - BM # 13

HI Guys...I am back again with Blogging Marathon # 13....the only reason why my blog gets some blogs posted by me! The only way I get up and do something for the blog, otherwise my busy life just takes over and I don't find enough time to blog hop or even write up posts!

I always promise myself to write and be regular but that doesn't seem to happen very often! Something or the other has to happen...this time around its the crashing of the laptop! I thought I won't be able to participate this time around, but thankfully my hubby fixed a working station..a combo of a old laptop and an old computer screen, which seems to be working when it has a mood to work!! I just hope it will cooperate with me and not stop for the next 7 days!

So for this Marathon, I decided to go with the Easy Lunch Box Recipes for kids made of rice. We should really Thank Srivalli for having so much patience and thought in bringing all this together with amazing themes every month.

Coming to the theme, my kids don't take rice to school, at least my older one does not and will not take rice to school...how much ever I plead with him. My younger one will, as long as it is something which he likes. I surely wish whatever they take, may the lunch box come back home empty...that will not happen either.

But make the same dish at home, they will complete it without asking any questions. So there is a gain and hope that someday that will happen in school too! So my recipes for this theme are all home tested and are eaten at home for lunch or rarely for dinner.

I prefer making easy lunches either for me or for them and not a routine dal and veggie curry which they have for dinner. This way it gives a variety and allows them to think they are having something different. 

As this is not going to have any other extra protein source, I rather mix it up with rice.

To make any of my instant rice versions, all you need to have in hand are onions, sometimes tomatoes, any protein source, ginger garlic paste, garam masala or any other podis or powders and some veggies if you wish.

Here is the recipe for an easy Paneer and Peas Rice. Here I mix up Paneer with some peas into some freshly prepared rice. Leftover rice also can be used. Adding some ginger garlic paste and garam masala makes the rice flavorful and yummy enough to eat!

Ingredients:

1 cup cooked rice

1/4 cup Paneer pieces cut into small pieces

1/4 cup frozen peas

1/2 piece of onion, cut into small pieces

1/2 tsp ginger garlic paste

pinch of turmeric

Chili powder (optional - I do not use it for kids)

1/2 tsp Garam Masala (more or less)

1 tsp oil

salt to taste

Chopped coriander leaves for garnish

Method:

Heat oil in a kadai and add in the paneer pieces.

When the paneer starts to brown, add the onion and frozen peas, along with some salt.

Once the peas are thawed, add the ginger garlic paste and saute for a minute or two.

Add the rice, turmeric, garam masala and some more salt. Mix to combine well. 

Garnish with chopped cilantro leaves.

Enjoy!!!

If packing for school, make sure you pack it in a hot box, so that it will stay warm till lunch time.

To make an adult version - add more veggies and some chili powder.

Check out the Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing BM# 13

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Dhaniyalu Pappulu podi / Coriander and Lentil Powder

When ever my Mom or my MIL is here they used to make all the podis, garam masalas and pachadis for me. But these days I try to make them myself and learned that they are not very difficult to make.
This is a recipe I got from my MIL. Its called Dhaniyalu podi...My kids call it brown powder :)

Its a simple podi which is like a life saviour to me. My kids like to eat it with anything like idli, dosa or rice. If I give them this chapathi too...they will gladly eat it!
Since it has all the good ingredients like a masala, I even use it in flavoring rice. My younger one will eat it without making a fuss.
Whenever there is nothing much in the house...stir fry some veggies or even an egg to rice and flavor it with this powder and here you have an easy breezy dish ready in a jiffy!

Ingredients:

1/4 cup Chanaga pappu / Channa Dal
1/4 cup Minapa pappu / Urad dal
1/4 cup Dhaniyalu / Coriander seeds
20 dry red chilies (more or less)
2 sprigs of curry leaves

1 tbsp Jeera / Cumin seeds
6-7 cloves of garlic
1 golf ball sized tamarind / Chintapandu
Salt to taste

Method:

Dry roast Channa Dal, urad dal til they are slightly brown in color.
Add the coriander and roast them too for a minute or two.
Add the red chilies and curry leaves, roast them all together for another couple of minutes.
Let this cool before adding the cumin seeds.
Grind this along with garlic, tamarind and salt.
This can be stored for a few months in an air tight container.
Serve with idli, dosa, or upma too or with hot rice and ghee.
Enjoy!!!

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Martinelli's Vanilla Ice cream float for Valentine's Day

Hi Everyone! How is everyone doing? I hope you missed me :) just kidding!!

Hopefully my computer problems are solved for the time being and I will be able to blog more often! Well what can you say 'Technology'...its likes you or it doesn't!

But for sure I am loving my iPhone technology...as it has helped me in not missing a day of my photo blog :) I could use it very easily to post pictures right from my phone!
As I wanted to edit pictures for this blog, I couldn't use it as such! But that's fine, something better than nothing right! :)

With Valentine's day here already, I am sure you guys must be looking up recipes to make this day as special as it can be! Bakes and cakes, pinks and red, Chocolates and more chocolates, and every other thing which that special one is bound to fall in love with. Why only that special one, it can also be done to make yourself feel better, a pat in the back, a treat for yourself. :) Don't you think!?

If you are going out for dinner, then you are going to have a relaxing day, but if you are going to be preparing a special meal at home, like me, then be ready for a tiring whole lot of work! :) Well yes....its surely a whole lot of work, the tension of coming up with a meal plan and executing it...which may go well with the family or they might just smile or they might not even give a word of appreciation! Well even if that's the case, I will be preparing a home made meal for this Valentine's day and I chose items which I know all my family will enjoy and love!


So as a treat at the end of the day, I have decided to go for a ice cream float. My kids love this it surely is very delicious!

Floats are usually made of root beer and vanilla ice cream but who said we can't try out new flavors which are much more enjoyable than root beer. 

So I have decided to make it with what I have at home at that being "Martinelli's Sparkling apple cider" with vanilla ice cream...yum! :) Easy to put together and very much enjoyable as a dessert drink for that quiet candle light dinner or a enjoyable family time with the kids included!

** You can use any kind of sparkling soda or as a matter of fact any soda will be just fine...Choose your flavor! :) Orange soda, grape soda, ginger ale, sprite or coca cola or Pepsi even.

Ingredients:

8 oz of Martinelli's Apple cider (I had apple cider with berry flavor)
1 big scoop of Vanilla ice cream
Apple slices for garnish

Method:

In a glass, drop a scoop of ice cream and fill it up with the apple cider.
Garnish with Apple slices.

Enjoy!!!

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Chocolate chip Cookie cake

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For the final day of the Marathon, I took a simple chocolate chip cookie recipe and turned it into a cake, that's why the name 'Chocolate chip cookie cake' :)

I used a 8in pie tray to bake this 'cake'. You can use either use a pie tray or a cake pan, but make sure it isn't too big or it will become a cookie instead of a cake. You can surely bake big cookie, but its going to be a chewy cookie so its going to be a soft one.
I just made it little thicker, so it turned into a cake.
I cut it into triangles, to get a smaller serving size (I cut into even smaller triangles than the ones in the picture :))

I lined the tray with parchment paper, but you surely can grease it and dust it with flour, to get a perfect round shape.
Its an easy recipe and I am sure the kids loved it because its something different, in a different shape anyway, but has the same cookie taste!

Ingredients:

Dry:

1 cup all purpose flour
1/4 cup white whole wheat flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda

Wet:

1/2 cup butter (room temperature)
1/4 cup white sugar
1/3 cup packed light brown sugar

1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 egg

1/4 cup milk chocolate chips


Method:

Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Line the tray with parchment paper or grease and flour it.

Swift the dry ingredients together and keep aside.

Take the room temperature and whip it with the brown sugar and white sugar, until its white.

Add in the vanilla extract and egg. Mix until well combined.

Slowly add the dry ingredients into the wet mixture and mix until combined.

Gently fold in the Chocolate chips into the batter at the end.

Pour the batter into the baking tray and bake @ 350 degrees F for 15-20 minutes, until it browns on the top and the center comes out clean when inserted.

Cool on a rack.

Cut into pieces and serve when cool.

Enjoy!!!

Check out the Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing BM# 12

Sending this to Srivalli's 'Chocolate Mela'

also to Srav's for her 'Chocolate fest'

and Kavi for Kid's Delight -Something Sweet'

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