Moong dal Payasam

First of all I apologize for such a delayed post!! I had been shifting too India and got quite occupied. Also had tough time in backing up files, coping with new system etc. As the saying says "Change is never Easy" right :) !!? However I am happy when I realized my first post from India is a sweet. I wish all readers happy deepavali and let your life be filled with lot of good and sweet changes like this post!!

PS: The post format might vary slightly soon I will be back with my usual template :). 

Ingredients: 

• Moong dal - 3 Tbsp
• Jaggery- 1/2 cup heaped
• Milk- 1.5 cups
• Thick coconut milk- 1/4 cup
• Ghee- 2 Tsp
• Nuts and raisins - few
• Cardomom powder- A generous pinch

Method: 

1. Add ghee to the pressure pan and once it get hot roast the nuts and raisins till golden brown. Keep it aside. In same pan add moong dal and roast it in medium flame for few minutes.
   
   
   
2. Once the dal gets roasted nicely, add 1 cup milk + 1/2 cup water and pressure cook the moong dal for 4-5 whistles. 
   
3. Mash the cooked dal well and add jaggery and mix in medium flame. Once the jaggerry gets dissolved completely switch off flame. Add remaining milk, coconut milk and cardomom powder. 
   
4. Garnish with raisins and serve. This measure serves 3 People.

Notes:

• You can skip coconut milk in case of un avalilability but it is recommended to get the rich taste.
• If you find the kheer too thick dilute it by adding water or milk.
• I used UHT milk. If you use ordinary milk add boiled milk.
• Switch off after mixing jaggery to avoid curdling.
• You can boil jaggery in little water and filter it in case of impurities.

Tastes great both when hot and chilled :)!!!

Moong dal ladoo

This is the very first dish I tried making by myself. Start of my cooking journey during schooldays :D. My mom used to make it so often and I am big fan of this ladoo. So I got tempted and tried by myself failed few times later made it with help of my mom. In our home this is an integral part of Krishna Jeyanthi sweets. However after marriage I could not make it so often since my hubby is not a big fan of the moong dal taste :( . Recently got a chance to make it for a friends get to gather so I clicked the pics and here comes the recipe :) .

Moong dal ladoo

Cuisine: Indian Category: Sweets/dessert Difficulty level: Easy Prep Time: -- Cook time: 30 mins Servings: 15

Ingredients Moong dal 1 cup Sugar 3/4 cup Ghee 1/3 cup Cardomom 3-4 Cashew 5 Raisin 5

Method            1.     Roast the moong dal in medium flame for few minutes till its colour change slightly and nice aroma comes. Cool down and grind it to smooth powder.      2.     Add cardamom to sugar and grind it to a smooth powder.       3.     Mix both the powder well.       4.     Melt the ghee and roast the cashew and raisins. Add this to the ground powder as shown.      5.     Slowly add the ghee and mix well. Make small balls out of this mixture.   6.     Store in airtight container and enjoy!!                                         Notes

·         You can sieve the floor if you want the ladoo to be smooth. I prefer it bit coarse I skip sieving.      ·         Add the ghee gradually to avoid excess ghee.      ·         While preparing in bulk you can grind the floor in mills.      ·         Stays good upto 10 days.

Tasty ladoos ready to be served :)

Rice Kheer

I learnt this recipe from my friend mala. The original recipe she shared used milk and sugar. Since I am super lazy and a big fan of anything made with milkmaid I altered the recipe this way. Whenever we make a north indian lunch menu I love to make this kheer for dessert. Do try this simple yet very rich kheer and share your feedback :).

Rice Kheer

Cuisine: Indian Category: Sweet/Dessert Difficulty level: Easy Prep Time: 30 minutes Cook time: 20 mins Servings: 3-4

Ingredients Basmati Rice 4 Tsp Milk 1/2 Cup Milk maid 1/2 Cup Saffron Few strands Cardamom Powder A generous pinch Ghee 1 Tsp Cashews 4 Raisins 4 Preparation      1.     Soak the basmati rice in hot water for 30 mins. In the mean time heat 1 Tsp ghee and roast the cashews and raisins in medium flame for few minutes. Once they turn golden switch off the flame.

Method             1.     Roast the soaked basmati rice for few minutes and add 1/2 cup water. Cook till the rice become soft. Add more water if needed.     2.     Once the rice gets cooked add the milk along with condensed milk and mix well.     3.     Boil for few minutes till the desired consistency is reached. Add the cardamom powder and saffron stands.      4.     Finally garnish with roasted nuts and serve.

Notes       ·         You can use raw rice too but basmati rice gives nice texture and flavour.      ·         The kheer tastes good even without adding any flavouring agents (cardomom, saffron) or raisins. So you can skip these ingredients in case it's not available.       ·         You can use pistachio, chironji seeds also for garnishing.      ·         If you don't have condensed milk add 1 cup milk and 1/3 cup sugar. Milkmaid makes the process easier and gives very rich taste.       ·         Adjust sweetness according to your taste. We love the kheer to be on sweeter side.

Tastes best when served cold!!! :) 

Maa ladoo : Roasted gram ladoo

Maa ladoo is a very simple yet drooling sweet which we make mostly for special occasions like krishna jeyanthi, deepavali etc. It can be made easily for sudden guests as it needs very less ingredients. Even begineers can make this sweet . I wanted to start new year post with some sweet recipe. Since my hubby likes this sweet and its very easy I choose to go with this yummy sweet :). Let this year be as sweet as this ladoo to all of you !! 

Maa ladoo

Cuisine: Indian Category: Sweets/desserts Difficulty level: Easy Prep Time: 5 mins Cook time: 20 mins Servings: 15

Ingredients Roasted gram dhal (or) Potu kadalai 1 cup heaped Sugar 3/4 cup Ghee 4 Tbsp + 1 Tbsp (1/4 - 1/3 cup) Cardamom 4 Cashews 5 Badam (optional) 5 Raisins(optional) 8

Preparation             1.     Chop the nuts. You can break them into small pieces too. Method      1.     Sauté the potu kadalai in medium flame for few minutes till it gets warm. Cool down the dhal. In meantime grind sugar with cardamom smoothly.        2.     Sieve the powdered sugar if needed. Grind the dal to smooth powder and sieve it.         3.     Mix both the powders well. In pan heat 1 tbsp ghee and roast the nuts till golden brown. Add it to the dhal+ sugar mix.     4.     In the hot pan add 3 Tbsp ghee so that the ghee will melt utilizing the heat in the pan. Add this to the maa ladoo powder and mix well to get a crumbly dough. Now shape them to small balls.     5.     If you feel the ladoo is bit dry as shown add 1 tbsp melted ghee and shape the balls to get the glowing round ladoos! This is purely according to personal preferrance. Just a pic to show difference :).

Notes   ·     Sieving the floor is purely optional. Grind the potukadalai/sugar for a minute give some rest and again grind for a minute to get really smooth powder.       ·         For bulk preparations you can grind them in mills. Even if the floor is bit coarse that never affects the taste.      ·         I prefer adding ghee gradually. If you fry nuts in 1/4 cup ghee and add the mix will become too hot to handle. Also we may end up in adding more ghee.       ·         If you dont like much sweetness reduce 1 tbsp sugar.         ·         Sauting the dal is again optional. It helps to remove moisture but take care not to change the colour of the dal.

Stays good upto 10 days if stored in air tight container :).