Stuffed Okra with Coconut and Spices / Bharwan Bendi

 
Hi everyone! Here I am, back again after a long hiatus!
Had some mishappenings on side, which made it difficult to post. Tho I was missing it very much, I had no choice, but to lay dormant for a while.

First, after my computer crashed and was fixed, it crashed yet again, this time taking all my new pictures along with it. I was very much disappointed and frustrated. I didn't want that to happen again, so I didn't copy anymore pictures onto this computer. I didn't want to loose them again! At least my old pictures are still intact and are not effected! I am hoping to get a new computer within the next couple of weeks, so that I can again start taking new pictures again.

Second, my little one had a fall and hurt behind his head. Due to which we ended up spending 5 days in the ICU. He had to have a head surgery to remove the clots which formed due to his fall. One of the biggest nightmares of my life. He really did give us a scare! Thanks to God's grace, he is doing much better now and back to his normal naughty self! Healing time is long, almost 6-10 months, so we just are careful now that he doesn't fall again. But what can we say to 4 yr olds and who can keep them from running around?

Then I had a writer's block or should I say a blogger's block??!!
I wanted to write but just couldn't bring myself to do it! I don't know if it was the crash of the laptop or my kiddo's fall, but I just didn't feel like doing it!
But I couldn't stay away for long, I had to come back! And I am glad I did!
Thinking about food and clicking pictures always makes me happy and hopefully this will lead to a better way!

I am still using my old laptop, but hopefully move on to a newer desktop soon! Then I will start taking to new food clicks, but for now I am posting a recipe from my drafts. I hope you guys will enjoy it!

Bharwan Bendi

Ingredients:

15-20 Bendi / Bendakaya / Okra, Washed and slitted in the middle

1 cup grated coconut (fresh or dried can be used, I used dried)
1 tsp coriander powder
1 tsp jeera powder
1 tsp garam masala
1 tsp amchoor powder
1/2 tsp ginger garlic paste
1 tsp chilli powder
pinch of turmeric
salt to taste

Oil for shallow fry

(You can also add thinly chopped onions if you wish, But I like to omit it)

Method:

Wash and dry the okra with a paper towel. Make a slit from the top to the bottom of the bendi, to make a pocket. You can cut the top off or leave it intact, either way is fine, just don't slit it all the way down.

Mix all the other ingredients in a bowl. Taste to see if the salt and spice is right, if not adjust accordingly.

Stuff this mixture into slits of the bendakaya. Stuff all the bendi in the same way.

Heat a tbsp of oil in a shallow frying pan. Shallow fry the okra, a few at a time to avoid crowding the pan. If you crowd the pan, they will not become crisp and they may become soft.

Sprinkle salt on them, just very little, cause we already added salt the stuffing.

Fry till they are brown, flip them over and fry for another couple of minutes.

Remove onto a plate and sprinkle chopped coriander leaves on the top.

Serve as a side dish with rice or roti. I just love to eat them just like that too. Great for snacking I should say!:)

Enjoy!!!

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HAPPY UGADI

Nandana nama samvatsara subhakankshalu

Wishing everyone a very Happy and Prosperous UGADI! A very Happy New Year to all celebrating!
Happy UGADI and Happy Gudi Padwa!!

I know I have again disappeared... I am having problems with my computer yet again... Hopefully they will be resolved soon... Till then enjoy the UGADI Pachadi! :)

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Spicy Corn Fritters / Corn Pakoras or Pakodas

 Its going to be raining here for the next few days...Rain = winter in CA = kinda cold and chilly too... not pleasant at all...well better than winters in East coast, but East coast is having spring like weather right now!...Grass is always greener on the other side isn't it!

Whats better than to have spicy and crunchy pakodas during the rains...brings back memories of the childhoods days, wen we used to get the yummy pakoras or spicy mirchi bajjis whenever it rains. The days when we were in college, we used get settled by the canteen and have hot hot bajjis and enjoy! Oh I wish those days can come back again!

Well who says we cannot enjoy the yummy pakodis even now...I am always up for some of these yummy fritters anytime. This was sitting in my drafts for quite sometime now. I thought this was a perfect time to post this as I hear the rain drumming on the windows. All I need now is some soft music, bollywood style and I am all set.

Well I wish I had that kind of time to sit now. I will have to make do with the radio in the car as I drive my younger kid to his swimming class!
But you guys enjoy these yummy ones and make sure to parcel me some! :)

Ingredients:

1 cup Sweet corn kernels / Frozen or fresh (I used frozen)
1/2 cup besan / Chick pea flour / Chenagapindi
1/4 cup rice flour
1 small onion, chopped

1 tbsp ginger garlic paste




pinch of baking soda
1 tsp chili powder or masala karam

2 tbsp chopped coriander leaves
little water as needed

Oil for deep fry

Method:

Thaw the frozen corn in some water and drain the water.
Take half of the corn and grind it into a coarse paste.
Mix the ungrounded corn and the ground corn with rest of the ingredients along with some water. It should not be runny, but should be thick enough to make small balls.
Heat oil in a kadai for deep frying.
Drop small balls of the mixture into the heated oil.
Fry them till they are golden brown. Remove on a paper napkin to drain off excess oil.
Serve hot with some spicy ketchup.
Enjoy!!!

Sending this off to Indian Food Palooza, hosted by, Prerna of Indian Simmer, Kathy of The Colors of Indian Cooking and Barbara of Creative Culinary.

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Vegetarian Tostada with Papaya Orange Pico de gallo

 Wishing all the women in my life, and all the people I have come across in this blogging journey a very happy "International Women's Day".
And also to my Mom who has been my inspiration who has been supportive in all ways through this Journey.
My MIL, who has given me some good and interesting recipes and is supportive too.
And my Sister, who has been a person who I can lean on to when I need any kind of help and also been supportively useful in all ways! :) Don't we all like to take advantage of little sisters! :)

Today is also Holi - a colorful festival, celebration in India. It falls on the full moon day towards the end of winter season. It celebrates the start of farming season for good harvests and good fertile lands. There is also a religious aspect to it, which is the end of cold and darkness and bringing in the purity in the form of light and brightness.

Holi is the start of spring season which brings in different colors, this shown by playing with colors, colorful water among young and old.
Brings back memories of when we were in India, and used to watch kids play with colors. Yes watch, I never played much Holi, but did enjoy watching kids. But loved to eat all the different sweets made on that day.

So technically, I should be making sweets, but I thought why not combine Women's day and Holi and make something which is colorful and healthy for both occasions.
Isn't celebrating being a woman, mean eat healthy and as a celebration for good harvest and fertile land, also mean lots and lots of vegetables and fruit! :)

 
So for this occasion, I came up with a Vegetarian Tostada with Papaya Orange Pica de Gallo. A very easy dish which tastes just as wonderful. Lots of fruit and veggies on the top making it healthy and guilt free.
So as the story goes, I brought all the ingredients for making this and also brought canned black beans...only didn't see that I picked up the wrong can. It turned out to be refried black beans.

My first idea was to spread fresh salsa on the corn tortillas and then pile it with the pico de gallo, which was going to contain the whole black beans.
But since it was refried, I made it this way - spread the refried on the bottom and piled it with the pico de gallo.
the fun part of this dish is that you can modify it the way you like it. Add as many ingredients as you wish and make it as yummy as you like!! :))

This can be eaten as a appetizer or as a side item on a lunch menu. The crispy corn tortillas and the toppings should be kept separate, so that it allows each person to put what toppings they like.

Ingredients:

Papaya Orange Pico De Gallo:

1/4 piece of Papaya, chopped small
half of an orange, fiber taken out and chopped
1 tomato, chopped
1/4 cup corn, frozen or cooked fresh
1/2 onion, chopped
1-2 green chili or 1 jalapeno, thinly chopped
few cilantro or coriander leaves
1/2 to 1 Tbsp of Lemon juice
Salt and pepper to taste

Method:

Mix all the ingredients together. Adjust salt, pepper and lemon juice according to taste.

Ingredients for making the Tostada:

6 corn tortillas, 6 inch
(2 corn tortillas per tostada)
1 avocado, chopped
1/2 cup refried black beans
(you can also use whole cooked / canned black beans instead)
Shredded cabbage
1/4 cup mix of Mexican cheese
(you can use fresh variety of Mexican cheese instead)



Method for assembling the tostada:

Pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees.
Spray the corn tortillas, on both side of each one, with olive oil.
It take about 10-15 minutes for the tortillas to crisp up, when placed two, one on top of each other. So you have 3 sets. You can also crisp them, placing them individually too.

Remove avocado from its skin. Add some lemon juice, salt and pepper. Keep aside.

You can heat the refried black beans to warm, if you want...or if you like it cold you can use it just like that.

After the tortilla crisp up, spread the refried beans on top of it.
Place some shredded cabbage on it.
On top of that, add the Pico de gallo and avocado.
Sprinkle some cheese on the top.

Serve immediately or the tortillas will start to get wet from the pico de gallo and soften it.
Enjoy!!!


Variations:

Whole beans instead of refried beans.
Lettuce instead of cabbage.
Spread salsa instead of refried beans.
Use chicken to make it more interesting!

There can be more variations, just be creative :).

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Homemade Rasam powder

Rasam is a tangy and sour soup which is mainly South Indian. though South Indian, there are many types and versions of how its made.

I love having hot hot fresh rasam in a glass before my meal. It just feels very refreshing and comforting.
Rasam is usually eaten with rice, by mixing it with rice. Since it is thin, it can also be consumed as soup, when you are sick or not! :)

Rasam as it itself doesn't have much nutritional value, but its heartwarming and comfort food at it best.
All the value to rasam comes from what goes into the rasam powder and all the extras that can be added to it.

There are many many versions of making homemade rasam powder. This recipe here is the type we make at home. Very simple and easy to make.
Freshly made rasam powder tastes so much better than the store bought ones. But surely the store bought ones are a good substitute, but still not as good.

Again rasam powder is made differently in different parts of India, mainly South India as it is more popular with the South Indians.


Extra black pepper powder or added ginger makes it good for coughs and colds.
Extra jeera or cumin seeds and pepper powder is good for digestion.
Adding carom seeds or vamu also makes it good for colds and digestion.


Rasam makes a good pairing with masala curries, so that it makes it easy for digesting all the masala that it eaten.
That's why I make it usually when I make it with any masala curries or mainly with any non-veg dishes.



Ingredients:

1/4 cup Toor dal, khandi pappu, heaped
1/4 cup coriander seeds, dhaniya
1 tbsp jeera, cumin seeds
1 tsp Black Peppercorns, Miriyalu
1 tsp Methi seeds, menthulu

Method:

Grind all the ingredients together into a powder, It doesn't have to be totally fine, it can be coarse too.
Extra ingredients like garlic, dry red chilies or dry curry leaves can also be added.
You don't need to roast this. Just directly powder it.
Use it in flavoring your favorite rasams.
Enjoy!!!

Check out my previous posts where I used Rasam Powder-

Lemon Tomato Rasam
Vamu Rasam

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Flavorful and Easy Green lentils and rice

There was a time when I didn't know the difference between green lentils and whole masoor dal or red lentils. Since they both looked the same I thought they both are one and the same. Since I didn't use either of the lentils that much, I didn't know the difference in their cooking times either. Now I know the they both are different, other than the looks which is the whole red lentils are kind of smaller than the green lentils and where as the green lentils cook much faster than red lentils, which cook for a way longer time or have to be pressure cooked.

There is a Greek rice dish which is made of these green lentils known as 'Majadra'" which is cooked with lots of caramelized onions and garlic. A very flavorful 'Pilaf' as they call it!
This is a twist on that dish....the twist being making it Indianized with addition of Garam masala and ginger garlic paste. I left out adding green chillies and making it more spicier, but for the adult version, I think you should add few chopped green chillies and add more chilli powder. When I make this for my kids, I can't stop eating it, because I love having whole lentils in rice. It surely gives a whole new texture to the rice.

To make this rice, you will have to be little bit of prepared, as you to boil the lentils for about 10 minutes before making the dish. The lentils should be only cooked so much that they don't loose their wholeness or split open or become mushy. When you check if they are cooked, there should still be a slight bite to it. They will cook completely when you cook them again as a dish.
It makes for a yummy one pot meal, as well as a nutritious lunch box dish for kids or adults.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup green lentils, washed and boiled for 10 min
1 cup cooked rice
1/4 piece onion, cut lengthwise
1/4 piece of tomato, chopped
coriander leaves for garnish

Pinch of shah jeera or kala jeera
pinch of jeera, cumin seeds
1/4 ginger garlic paste
1/4 tsp chilli powder
pinch of turmeric
1/4 tsp garam masala
salt to taste
1 tsp oil

Method:

Wash and boil the lentils, till they are tender but not split open or mushy. Takes about 10 minutes. Drain and keep aside.
Heat oil in a kadai and add the shahi jeera and jeera. Let them splutter.
Now add the drained lentils.
Add the some salt and add the ginger garlic paste. Saute for a minute.
Add the chopped tomato, along with turmeric, chilli powder and garam masala. Cover and cook for 2 minutes, till the tomatoes are soft.
Add the chopped onions and saute for about a minute.
Add the cooked rice and some more salt. Mix well. Cover and cook for another couple of minutes.
Garnish with coriander leaves.
Serve hot or warm.
Enjoy!!!

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

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Instant Egg rice (with Dhaniyalu podi or coriander lentil powder)

If I ask my little one what should I make for lunch, he will reply Peas rice....little does he know that egg also goes into it and its more like an Egg rice instead of a Peas rice.
He doesn't mind eating it everyday, only I do get bored of making it everyday! I guess he just likes the taste of what goes into it!
He will say I don't like onions..don't feed me onions, but then he sees that rice and say..thats fine, just feed me the onions, I like the onions in peas rice.
Well here is his version of 'peas rice' and my version of 'Instant Egg rice' :) Both being same!
All you need to have is the Dhaniyalu podi (which we use as idli or dosa podi too) on hand and if you have some leftover rice, its very quick to make.
Comes in handy when you are pressed for time and want something to do done very quick! For adult version, add some chopped green chilies and spike the chili powder! :)


Ingredients:

1 cup cooked rice
1 egg
1/4 cup peas (frozen or fresh)
small piece of onion, chopped

1/4 tsp ginger garlic paste
pinch of turmeric
pinch of chilli powder
1-2 tsp dhaniyalu podi / coriander lentil powder
1 tsp of oil
salt to oil
chopped coriander leaves for garnish

Method:

Heat the oil in a kadai.
Add the egg and scramble it well.
Add the onions and saute for a minute.
Add the ginger garlic paste and saute it well.
Add the peas and some salt and cook for couple of minutes till they are cooked.
Now add the rice along with all the powders (turmeric, chilli powder, and the dhaniyalu podi). Mix everything up well. Add salt to taste.
GArnish with chopped coriander leaves.
Serve hot.
Enjoy!!!

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

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