5 Diwali Sweets & Snacks Recipes

In  my chilly idly post , I got a comment from a fellow blogger asking for the recipes of sweets & onion murukku I prepared for diwali. So I am posting this for her & for my future reference. For Kaju katli , I referred some blogs, got some ideas and then followed Mrs. Mallika Badrinath’s method .

For Wheat flour ladoo,  I took the recipe from Vah chef’s site. Home made Gulab Jamun, Khus Khus Halwa & Onion murukku recipes from my friend Shalini. I tried everything for the first time and I was satisfied with the outcome. Though I made some small mistakes, I learnt the technique of making perfect sugar syrup for different sweets and i got the confidence of making all these sweets perfect in future. Everything comes by practice, especially sweets isn’t it. 

WHEAT FLOUR LADOO 

I prepared this sweet within 15 mins.. Very easy and ideal to prepare for surprise guests..
Ingredients :

• Wheat flour – 1 cup
• Besan flour – 1 tbsp
• Ghee – 1/2 cup (slightly less )
• Sugar – 1/2 - 3/4 cup  ( I used 1/2 cup only.. increase based on your taste buds)
• Cashew nuts – a few
• Cardamom seeds – 3 nos

Method :

• Powder sugar along with cardamom in a mixie
• Melt ghee, add gram flour. Roast until color changes and leaves a nice aroma.
• Add the wheat flour and roast on a low flame till aroma spreads and it becomes a bit lumpy. Add the roasted cashew pieces and mix well.
• Remove from flame, cool it.
• Mix powdered sugar.
• Make ladoos by taking small portions of this mixture in your hands..
• Enjoy !!

Note :
If you are not able to shape the balls, add more melted ghee , mix well and then shape it..

 

KHUS KHUS HALWA 

Please try this  halwa only if you like the smell of khus khus. Some people hate the flavor of poppy seeds. Actually my frnd told me no need to add nutmeg but I added just to enhance the flavor of halwa.

Ingredients:

• Khus Khus / Poppy seeds – 1 cup
• Sugar – 1.25 cups
• Ghee – 1/4 cup
• Milk – Little to grind poppy seeds
• Powdered Nutmeg & cardamom – Little.

Method :

• Soak poppy seeds in hot water for 4 hours.
• Drain the excess water and grind to a smooth paste using little milk.
• Take the paste in a vessel and pressure cook for 1 whistle.
• Add sugar to the  cooked paste and heat it in a heavy bottomed kadai stirring constantly.
• When it sticks to the bottom, add the ghee little by little.
• When complete moisture is absorbed and halwa gets a shine , add the rest of ghee , cardamom& nutmeg powders and remove from fire.

KAJU KATLI 

Ingredients :

• Cashewnuts – 100 gms ( 1/2 cup)
• Sugar – 1/4 cup
• Rose essence - a few drops (optional)
• Water – just to cover the sugar.
• Ghee - a tsp ( to grease)

Method :

• Dry roast the cashews in a hot kadai without changing the color. Switch off the flame and leave the cashews in the kadai for 10 – 15 mins to make it crispy.
• Dry grind it in the mixie to make a fine powder . Run the mixie continuously till it becomes a nice powder.Transfer it to a wide bowl .
• Take the sugar in a bowl and add the water just to cover the sugar.
• Heat till it reaches **one string consistency. Add the essence to it.mix it well.
• Add the cashew powder and mix well until it forms a thick mass like chapathi dough ( should be slightly sticky and test it by making small balls).Takes 4-5 minutes.
• Apply ghee on 2 thick sheets ( butter paper ) and transfer the dough to the sheet. It will harden in few minutes. Cover it with another sheet and roll out like a thin chapathi. (If the dough is too hard , add little milk , knead well and the roll it.)
• Peel off the top sheet and decorate with silver warq.

Enjoy with ur dear ones :)

TIPS:

• One more method suggested by mallika badrinath is, instead of adding the cashew powder in the sugar syrup, add sugar syrup to the powder. ie , after the single string is reached, remove the syrup from fire and add the cashew powder little by little like how ou knead chapathi dough. It may not need all the syrup. Make a soft, smooth, non-sticky dough, roll and make shape. I've tried this method too. It will come out well..

GULAB JAMUN 

Ingredients 

• Sugarless khova– 3/4 cup
• Maida – 1/3 cup
• Milk powder – 2 tbsp
• Cooking soda - A big pinch
• Water - As needed

For syrup

• Sugar – 1 cup ( 250 gms)
• Rose essence – a few drops Or cardamom powder - 4 pods (crushed)
• Kesar color – a pinch (optional)
• 
  

Method :

• Mix all the ingredients given above and bring it to a soft , pliable dough. Add the required water.Keep it aside for 15 minutes..Do not knead the dough much..
• Make small balls without cracks and deep fry them in a low flame till it becomes soft.(plz dont fry till crispy and the ball should be evenly cooked) . Keep it aside.
• In  a broad vessel make take the sugar and add equal amount of water. Allow it to dissolve completely by constant stirring in a low flame. Make sure the sugar syrup does not start to boil before it dissolves completely.
• Once it is dissolved , raise the flame and allow it to boil for  5- 7  mins. Add the kesar color when it boils. Add a few drops of lime juice to retain the consistency.
• Finally add the rose essence and switch off the flame.Add the jamuns when the syrup is hot.
• Leave it for an hour and serve !!

SAVOURIES 

ONION MURUKKU 

Ingredients :

• Par boiled rice / Idly rice –1 cup
• Roasted Gram flour / pottukadalai maavu – 1/2 cup
• Besan flour – 1/2 cup
• Shallots / sambhar onions – 1/2 cup
• Red chilly – 6 nos
• Salt & water – As needed.
• Oil – to deep fry & 1 tbsp

Method :

• Soak the rice in water for 2 hrs.
• Drain the water and grind it along with shallots and red chilli, salt  to make a smooth batter. Add little water to grind.
• The batter should be thick & smooth.
• Then add the flours to it and mix well. Knead to make a chapathi dough.
• Put this in the murukku press with star mould in it.
• Press it in hot oil to make murukkus.

Note :

• If you feel the batter is watery, put the batter in a cotton cloth and wrap it and keep it for sometime to absorb the excess water and to bring it to dough consistency.

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Chilli Idli Fry Recipe - Easy Dinner Recipes - Leftover Idli Recipes

Chilli idli/idli  fry/idli 65 – U can call this recipe by any name.U all would have tried  chilli parotta , chilli Paneer , Gobi etc.This one is a very tasty,kids friendly dish that can be prepared easily.U can make this as evening snack after they come back from school.I took this recipe from a website. Yesterday i tried this for dinner along with idli and kadappa.I used only 5 idlies for this. Its a great recipe to use the leftover idlis.

*Fork can't prick these idlies as it comes out super crispy.This is just for picture:)

Chilli idli fry recipe

 Chilli idli fry using leftover idlis.Easy dinner recipe.Kids would love it..

Cuisine: Indian

Category: Dinner recipes

Serves: Serves 2

Prep time: 10 Minutes

Cook time: 20 Minutes

Total time: 30 Minutes

INGREDIENTS

To deep fry Idli - 5 nos To saute Big onion – 1 no (chopped finely) Capsicum – 1/2 no (-do-) Green chilli – 1 no (Chopped finely ) Garlic flakes – 10nos (finely chopped ) Red chilli powder – 1 tsp (increase as per ur taste buds) (use Kashmiri chilly powder for nice color) Garam masala powder - 1/2 tsp Tomato ketchup - 1 – 2 tbsp Curry leaves – a sprig Coriander leaves – to garnish Oil – To deep fry the idlies. Water – Just to sprinkle

METHOD

Refrigerate the leftover idlis in a box overnight or 2 hours.(Do not freeze).Cube cut them into big pieces.Deep fry the idli cubes till golden brown in medium flame for long time.Idlis would remain crispy till u serve.(Refer notes for more)Set aside. Heat a kadai with a tbsp of oil . Saute the onions ,green chilli pieces , garlic flakes and capsicum. Saute well till capsicum gets cooked. Then add the ketchup , red chilli powder, garam masala powder and mix well. Add little water to bring it to saucy consistency. Finally add the deep fried idly pieces and toss it well.Add spring onions or coriander leaves. Garnish it and switch off the flame. Serve hot with onion raita !! NOTE To get super crispy idli pieces,deep fry in medium high flame for more time.It stays crispy for long time.Refrigerating the idli helps to cut it without crumbs.Do not freeze it at any cost. If u are calorie conscious,u can shallow fry them in a pan adding little oil OR saute them in dosa pan by drizzling oil around it.The  below picture is chilli idli made using shallow fried idlis.But when u shallow fry,it may become slightly soggy while u eat.

Chilli idli recipe with shallow fried idli pieces

Bye for now

Technorati Tags: Chilli idli recipe,Chilli idli fry,Chilli idli,Chilli idli southindian recipe,idli fry,idli 65,Easy dinner recipes,Leftover recipes,Leftover idli recipes

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Keerai Kuzhambu / Spinach Gravy Recipe

Hope u all celebrated diwali very well I too had a nice time at my in-laws house..Coming to the dish ,
This is my mom’s signature dish.I love this kuzhambu a lot..Whenever i visit my mother’s place , she prepare this especially for me.With beetroot poriyal  and papad / Appalam , it tastes divine.

Ingredients :

• Amaranthus tricolor/ Arai keerai – 1 bunch (1 kattu)
• Toor dal – 1/4 cup
• Tamarind – Medium gooseberry size
• Hing / asafetida –  2 pinches
• Turmeric powder – a pinch
• Salt & water – As needed.

To grind:

• Coconut – 1 finger size
• Small onions – 2 nos
• Jeera / cumin seeds – 1/4 tsp

To temper:

• Mustard seeds – 1/4 tsp
• Urad dal – 1/2 tsp
• Small onions – 5-10 nos (chopped finely)
• Red chilly – 3 nos

Method :

• Clean & wash the leaves and chop it finely.
• Cook the leaves with the required water and Set aside.
• Pressure cook toor dal for 2 – 3 whistles until it becomes mushy.
• Soak the tamarind in warm water for 15 mins and extract the juice from it.Grind all the items given under “To grind “ to make a smooth paste. Keep aside.
• Then heat a kadai and add the mustard seeds , red chilly , urad dal and small onions.
• Add the tamarind extract , cooked spinach , hing , salt and required water.
• Allow it to boil till the onion gets cooked.
• Finally add the cooked toor dal  and the ground coconut paste.
• Boil again for 5 mins and switch it off ..
• Serve hot with rice and ghee !!

Papad and any poriyal/curry serves as the best accompaniment for this kuzhambu. My mom usually makes beetroot or carrot poriyal..

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Wish You All A Very Happy & Prosperous Diwali !!

I am going to my in-laws house tomorrow to crack diwali .. I prepared many sweets to take there..Tried for first time  and everything came out well. ... I referred some of the blogs and cookbook for kaju katli & wheat flour ladoo. Home made Gulab jamun, khus khus halwa and onion murukku recipes from my friend Shalini..Thanks everyone.. .. Here is the picture  ..

Catch u all with the recipes after diwali..Have a very happy,safe & prosperous diwali

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Banana Flower / Vazhaipoo Usili Recipe

I tried this usili with vazhaipoo for the first time. It came out very well.I got this recipe from my MIL. I am posting this for my future reference and to share with u all !!

Ingredients 

For usili 

• Toor dal – A fistful
• Chana dal – A fistful
• Red chilly – 2-3 nos
• Hing /Asafetida – 1/4 tsp
• Banana flower – 1/2 no
• Salt & water – As needed

To temper 

• Mustard seeds – 1/2 tsp
• Urad dal – 1/2 tsp
• Curry leaves – a few
• Shallots – a few (finely chopped )
• Oil – 1 tbsp

Method :

• Soak the dals for 1 hour and grind it course with red chilly,hing and salt.Add water only if necessary.Set aside..
• Take the flowers in between the red layers . Apply oil on your hands , remove the stamen (kalan in tamil ) from the  flowers and chop it finely .Soak in buttermilk/ water. (The black colored one is stamen..Hope u all know it )
• Mix the ground dal mixture and the chopped flowers . Check for salt .Steam it in idly pot by spreading the mixture in idli plate or cooker.( I did in idly pot , it took nearly 15 mins)
• Remove and let it cool.Crumble the mixture and set aside.
• Then heat a kadai with oil and do the tempering part.Add onions and saute well.
• Finally add the cooked usili to it and mix well.  check for salt and add if necessary.
• If u want u can add grated coconut .( I dont add  )
• Serve with sambhar / curd rice..We usually mix this in plain rice adding sesame oil..!!

 Catch u all in my next post.. Bye. 

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Hotel Style White Chutney & Red Chutney Recipe

I make these hotel style white chutney and red chutney for my guest usually. A very tasty & easy chutney to attract them.I got this recipe from a cook book.Please go through the variations i've given at the end of white chutney before you start doing .

RED CHUTNEY

Ingredients :

• Ripe tomato – 1 no (big )
• Big onion – 1 no (should be slightly lesser than tomato in size )
• Red chilly – 3-4 nos (  adjust according to ur taste)
• Coconut pieces – 2 tbsp or 1/8 cup of grated coconut.
• Asafetida / Hing – 1/4 tsp
• Oil – To saute

To season :

• Mustard seeds – 1/4 tsp
• Urad dal- 1/4 tsp
• Curry leaves – a sprig
• Red chilly – 1 no (whole one ) (i dint use this time)

Method :

• Heat a tbsp of oil and fry dry red chillies along with chopped onion until translucent.
• Now add chopped tomatoes and cook until it becomes soft and mushy.
• When done, let cool completely and grind along with asafetida, coconut and salt.
• Add water only if its necessary or to run the mixie.
• Heat a tsp of oil and temper using mustard, urad dal, red chili and curry leaves.
• Serve a spoon drizzled with Gingely / sesame oil with idly or dosa !!

WHITE CHUTNEY

Ingredients
( 1 cup - 250ml)

• Grated Coconut –  1/2 cup
• Dhalia / Fried gram dal /Pottu kadalai – 1 tsp
• Green chilly – 4-6 nos (small)
• Garlic cloves – 2 nos (optional)
• Small onion/ shallots  – 1 no (optional)
• Salt & water – As needed.

To temper:

• Cooking oil - 1 tsp
• Dry red chilly – 1 no
• Mustard seeds – 1/4 tsp
• Urad dal – 1/4 tsp
• Curry leaves – few

Method

• Grind fresh grated coconut along with dalia, green chillies, garlic , small onion and salt.Add little water for thick chutney (For thin chutney add more water while grinding). In some hotels. they make it plain just by grinding coconut, green chilli, fried gram dal and salt. It comes out super white in color. You can try this way too. 
• Heat oil, splutter mustard, split urad dal , red chilly and curry leaves..
• Add this to the chutney and mix.
• Serve fresh with idli/ dosa !!

VARIATIONS:

1. This chutney can be done by simply grinding coconut , green chillies & a piece of ginger to a smooth paste and temper at the end.
2. In this method garlic and small onion is very important. U can also add little coriander or mint leaves in this recipe to make hotel green chutney.
3. To get a nice green color , just wash & saute the leaves in little oil before grinding and add..Soon i'll post another version of green chutney..
4. I've tried all the methods and everything tastes the best..
   
   Some DO’s & Don’ts  :
   DO’s:
   1. Always use fresh grated coconut, little brown coating of shell skin is ok to use. More coconut less pottukadalai/Fried gram  is also a must for white chutneys.
   2. Less water for Khatti (thick )chutney, add only if its necessary to run your mixie.
   3. Indian mixer mate or small jars are a must. American Oster mixer comes with a small jar attachment which also works well.
   4. Use small green chillies and always use less green chilies for white color chutney and increase the spiciness by tempering with more red chilies. This answers the question "Why my chutney looks green"?
   Don’ts:
   1. Ready made flakes or desiccated flakes or frozen grated coconut will work but don't expect taste and color. Thaw it before use else chutney will have oily look.Also you should use warm water for grinding.
   2. No microwaving for reheating, just thaw to bring back to room temperature. Reheating makes it release more oil and which results in stinky coconut smell.
   3. Blender will not work for thick chutney and adding more water will make it thin but consistency will be still coarse.

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Vazhaithandu Thogayal - Plantain Stem Thuvaiyal Recipe

We usually make poriyal & pachadi with vazhaithandu..This vazhaithandu thogayal / Banana stem thogayal may be new to some of u.. It tastes yum when mixed with plain rice  adding sesame oil and easy to prepare too. It tastes more like thengai thogayal. We likes this a lot. U can also do this for a change. Try & let me know how you liked this vazhaithandu chutney for rice.

Ingredients :

• Raw Banana stem / plantain stem / Vazhaithandu – 1 no (medium size)
• Red chilly – 3 to 4 nos
• Tamarind – Small gooseberry size
• Urad dal – 1 tbsp
• Hing – 2-3 generous pinches
• Salt & water – as required.
• Oil – 1-2 tbsp

Method:

• Remove the fibre (thread like portion ) from the banana stem and chop it finely.
• Soak the chopped pieces into buttermilk or water and set aside.
• Heat a pan with a tbsp of oil and roast the urad dal , redchillies and hing.Keep aside.
• Heat the kadai with a tbsp of oil and add the chopped stem after draining the water / buttermilk ..
• Saute well till its completely cooked.Its quantity will be reduced to half.It may take 10mins. Adding salt at this stage helps in quick cooking.
• Let it cool.Finally grind the cooked stem with roasted ingredients & tamarind , water to a smooth paste.
• Mix with plain rice topped with sesame oil / ghee !!  serve with papad as an accompaniment !!

Bye for now friends :)

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Vada Curry Recipe - Set Dosa Vada curry - Hotel Vadakari Recipe

In Chennai hotels, Vada curry / Vadacurry is one of the most famous side dish served for idli and set dosa. It is also popular in Chettinad regions. Generally people says vadakari is made out of left over masala vada / Paruppu vadai. Though I have not tasted original vada curry in Chennai, I have tasted in Salem Saravana bhavan hotel. But Sendhil had tasted the actual Madras vadacurry in Saidapet, when he was doing his Engineering in Guindy College. So he had promised me to take there during our next visit to Chennai. But I couldn’t resist trying it in my kitchen even before tasting the original Saidapetta vadacurry. After going through some of the hotel style vada curry recipes in magazines and websites, I prepared it finally. We just loved the vada cooked in tomato masala. Making vadacurry is not so difficult as I thought. I prepared this for dinner as a side dish for idli, dosa. So I dint deep fry the vadas instead I steamed it along with idli. So its your choice of making it. As far as I know, vada curry should be thick in texture. But we always want the side dishes a bit watery & juicy .So I added little more water. Please reduce the amount of water and make it thick based on ur liking. Lets see how to make South Indian Vada curry recipe.

 

Vada curry recipe

Vada curry recipe - Side dish for set dosa - A very popular dish from Chennai !

Cuisine: South Indian

Category: Side dish for idli, dosa

Serves: Serves 3

Prep time: 2 Hours

Cook time: 15 Minutes

Total time: 2H15 Minutes

INGREDIENTS

1 cup - 250 ml For masala vada Chana dal/ Kadalai paruppu – 1/2 cup Fennel seeds - 1/4 tsp Red chilli – 2 nos (adjust) Salt – as needed Coriander leaves – a few (finely chopped) For Gravy Tomato - 2 – 3 nos (finely chopped ) Big onion – 1 –2 no (Finely chopped) Chilli powder –   1 to 1.5 tsp (Adjust) Coriander powder – 1 tsp Garam masala powder – 1/2 tsp Salt & water – As needed. To temper Oil - 1 tbsp Cinnamon – 1 inch size Cloves – 2 nos Bayleaf - 1 no (optional) Fennel seeds – 1/4 tsp Garlic flakes - 5 nos (finely chopped) Or G&G paste - 1/2 tsp Green chilli – 1 no (finely chopped) Curry leaves - a few Mint & Coriander leaves – To garnish

METHOD

Wash and Soak the dal for  minimum 2 hours and grind it along with red chillies, fennel seeds & salt to a coarse paste.Then add the finely chopped coriander leaves, mix well.  Pinch small sized pieces of uneven shape out of the ground vada batter and steam it for 15-20 mins by keeping in idli plates OR Deep fry the vadas. Set aside. Alternatively, you can add the leftover masala vada pieces.  Heat a kadai with a tbsp of oil, add the ingredients given under “To temper “ in the same order.Saute for a minute. Then add the onions & saute till transparent. Add the finely chopped tomatoes and saute well till it turns mushy. Add the chilly ,coriander & garam masala powders and mix well..Add water and cover cook it for 5 mins. Crumble the steamed / deep fried vadas and mix it with the gravy and allow it to boil for sometime till gravy thickens. Add water if necessary. Remove and Garnish with coriander leaves. Serve hot with idli/ dosa topped with sesame oil.Enjoy !

Enjoy this yummy vadacurry recipe with hot idli and dosa !

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