Jaggery Maa Ladoo - Healthy Roasted gramflour balls

 Diwali is round the corner , and slowly we will now start planning our festive snacks to be prepared which is a yearly ritual in most homes all over India . I love this Festival of Lights and all the happiness it brings along . 

Diwali is the most celebrated festival and there is a lot of positivity, good vibes, joy and cheer everywhere.  People go about shopping for new clothes , fairy lights , rangoli powders , different types of Mud lamps which are designed and painted beautifully by the local potters and artisans .The homes are all decked up with lights, flowers , beautiful drawn rangolis and a joyous occasion for friends and family to meet and greet one another..Sweets and savories are exchanged and in totality people love to celebrate Diwali .

This month in our Shhh Secret Cooking Challenge Poonam of Annapurna decided to celebrate with Diwali theme so that we have a collection of some amazing delectable snacks and sweets to plan our Diwali Snack list . If you are a fan of karanji or ghujjiya like me then head to Poonam's blog for winter special Matar Karanji .

What is Diwali without sweets ? I wanted to present some healthy sweet without using too much of sugar and luckily Narmadha of Nams Corner with whom I am paired this month was kind enough to give me 2 versatile ingredients pista and cardamom which are used in any sweet when I told her I plan on making some sweet .Narmadha has prepared a crunchy and crispy Besan murukku with the secret ingredients  besan/gramflour and butter I gave her . 

As I mentioned  , I was on the lookout for a healthy and nutritious sweet , a casual talk with Kalyani on some general topics suddenly took a turn and ended up in discussing how her grandmother would dish out Maa Ladoo , a delicious sweet using jaggery .  Next what , I immediately decided to try that with slight variations and the recipe for the theme was ready. 

Maa ladoo is generally made using Sugar and I have shared the recipe on my blog.  Click the image below for recipe .

Maa ladoo is a most favorite sweet in our home and it just vanishes soon after it is made . I prepare this unfailingly on Diwali and many a times just like that to satisfy our sudden sweet cravings.

This time along with the main ingredient; Roasted gram /pottukadalai , I added some badams and pista and used organic jaggery in place of sugar .Need I say ? It was as usual a super hit and there was a request for another batch .  

Jaggery Maa ladoo can be prepared in just 15 mins and there is no extensive labor involved in the making or pre preparation .The most happy part.. No Cooking at all. 

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Preparation Time - 15 mins
Cooking Time - Nil
Makes - 10 to 12 ladoos 
Complexity - easy 

Ingredients 
1 cup roasted gram /pottu kadalai/hurigadle 
1/4 cup badams + pista (almonds + Pistachio)
1 cup powdered jaggery 
3/4 cup melted ghee /clarified butter 
3 to 4 green cardamom pods 

Method 

• Lightly dry roast the roasted gram , pista and badam in a dry pan until they feel warm . This will help in increasing the shelf life . (**this step is optional )
• Add these roasted ingredients and cardamoms to a blender and grind into a fine powder . Sieve these to a wide bowl to remove any grits if at all .
• Add jaggery powder to this gramflour and mix it well with a spoon.
• Pour in melted ghee on to this mixture and mix it well till the mixture feels moist and crumbly . The ghee has to be warm . When you pour the ghee the flour will slightly sizzle , this is the perfect temperature for ghee .
• Grease your palms, take a handful of this mixture and shape into balls . You can add some more warm ghee if you feel the mixture is dry and not holding shape .  Store it in a dry container. 
• Jaggery powder can also be added or reduced depending on the sweetness.  This time I used only 3/4th cup of jaggery as this batch of organic jaggery that I  used was very sweet and tasty. 
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Do not miss to head to the recipe of spicy , crunchy Madrasi Mixture / South Indian mixture on my blog . This is the most sought after savory made for Diwali . Now a days it is easily available in the shops , but when made at home , it is healthy as well as hygienic.  

Kondakadalai Sundal | Chickpeas Stir fry - Saraswathi Pooja special V

 9th day of Navaratri is celebrated as Saraswathi Pooja / Ayudha Pooja and the last day is celebrated as Dassera or Vijayadasami

The auspicious 9th day is also called as Mahanavami since it falls on the Navami thithi of Shukla Paksha ( 9th day of  New moon day to full moon day) .

Veneration of all the tools , machinery , vehicles ,books and musical instruments is done on Saraswati Pooja .

Goddess Saraswati is the Hindu God of Knowledge and Intelligence. School and college going children are told to keep their  books,stationery,  geometry/tool boxes and pray to the Lord seeking Knowledge and intellectual grace. 

The day after Mahanavami is Dassera - an auspicious day to commence any new venture , business , studies etc  .Traditionally ,during the olden days new academic year would start on the eve of Dassera.This practice is called Vidyarambham . VIDYA meaning Knowledge and Aarambham meaning Start .

In South India even to this day ,fresh admissions to dance schools , music schools  or any new art form commence on Dassera .We offer our salutations to the teacher/ Guru by offering them Thamboolam (Betel leaf , betel nuts, fruits and flowers) along with Guru Dakshina (token fees) and then start learning the new art form .

Having spoken so much about Pooja , it is obvious that we will prepare and offer Bhog / Prasad . Just like all the other special days , even Mahanavami has a special prasad which is offered .  We South Indians offer Chickpeas Sundal along with some Payasam or Akkara Vadisal as offering.  Chickpeas/ Garbanzo beans/ Safed Chole is known as Kondakadalai in Tamil. 

I am sharing with you all my family favorite recipe of this lipsmacking Sundal . 

By now , most of you may know what is Sundal. For those reading for the first time, SUNDAL is a special South Indian stir fry made by cooking soaked  legumes and garnished with a lot of fresh coconut. 

Soaking Time - 6 to 8 hrs
Preparation Time - 10 mins
Cooking Time - 30 mins
Complexity - simple 
Serves - 3 to 4 

Ingredients

150 gms white chickpeas /safed channa/ kondakadalai
5-6 tablespoons fresh grated coconut
2 dry chillies
Few curry leaves
Small piece ginger (skip for Jain)
1/2 tsp corriander seeds 
1 tsp mustard seeds
Pinch of asafoetida (skip for GF)
Salt as needed

Method

• Wash and soak the chickpeas overnight or for 8-10 hrs .
• Discard the soaked water , rinse it once and pressure cook with a little salt until it is soft and well cooked .( 5 whistles on medium flame ) 
• If you find it uncooked you can pressure cook for another 2 or 3 whistles. 
• Strain the water and keep the chickpeas aside.  The strained water can be used in dhall, sambar or even vegetable stock.
• In a small blender, take the coconut, ginger,red chillies, curry leaves, cumin , corriander seeds and give it a quick whip . No need to add water . 
• In a kadai, heat the oil and splutter the mustard seeds along with asafoetida. 
• Add in the coconut masala and give it a quick stir and add a little salt. 
• Mix the boiled chick peas with the coconut mixture , sprinkle a little water and keep covered for 2-3 mins .
• This step ensures that the flavor of coconut masala mixes well with the chickpeas. 
• Turn off the stove and garnish with corriander leaves if you like. 
• Offer to the lord as prasad and then distribute among family and friends. 

The other sundal varieties on my blog

• Karamani Sundal (Lobia) 
• Channa dhall sundal
• Verkadalai Sundal (Peanut Sundal)
• Pachapayar Sundal (whole green gram)

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Paruppu Vadai | Aam Vade | Lentil Fritters - Vegan,GF & Satvik

 Paruppu Vadai or Aama Vadai  is a traditional dish made as an offering for any pooja or auspicious occasions. It is known as Aam Vade in Kannada , Sennaga pappu Garelu in Telugu, Parippu Vada in Malayalam.

We prepare this vada using 3 types of dals/pulses ; channa dhall , udad dhall & thoor dhall . The addition of udad dhall gives the required softness to the vada and doesn't make it dry while the thoor dhall adds some crunch and channa dhall is the main ingredient which gives the flavor and taste . 

Also known as Muparuppu Vadai because we use 3 varieties of lentils .Moonu in Tamizh is 3  & when combined as a word it is used as "Mu" short for 3 .

In most Tamil Brahmin homes,unfailingly paruppu vadai is made during 

• Bhogi  - a day before Makar Sankranti 
• Avani Avittam  - special day for the men to change their sacred thread (janui/yagnopaveetham) 
• Saraswathi Pooja / Ayudha Pooja - 9th day of Navratri 

Apart from these occasions, you can also prepare the paruppu vadas as a tea time snack or as an appetiser for parties and get togethers. 

Offering to the God as prasad /bhog means onion and garlic are omitted making it different from the Masala Vada or Dal Vada that uses onion , garlic and whole spices like saunf/fennel, jeera , pudina /mint etc . Some people do not use ginger also while preparing for Prasad depending on the tradition followed in their homes .My recipe uses ginger as we don't have the practice of skipping ginger for prasad. Please do use ginger and asafoetida a little liberally in this recipe to avoid bloating or flatulence as lentils take a while to digest . 

If you have been following me on Facebook, you would have noticed, I am doing a prasad series for Navratri where in I post one traditional recipe every day,which is offered to Devi Ma as bhog during the 9 days . If you aren't following do follow me on Facebook to stay updated with my latest posts .

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This being the joyous and festive week of Navartri - a festival that truly celebrates the Women and Women Empowerment we at FMBH decided to glorify  week 269 (#navaratriNavras) by  sharing special Navaratri Recipes which are prepared in our homes as part of the festive ritual . 

The theme was suggested by Mayuri ji of Mayuri's Jikoni and by now all my readers would know what a talented cook she is .  If you are looking for a sugar free sweet indulgence for Diwali ,then her delicious Emirati Sweet Batheeth is the perfect find.

Navratri is celebrated across India in various ways like

• Bomma Kolu / Golu/ Bombe Habba  of Tamil Nadu & Karnataka 
• Durga Pooja of Kolkatta 
• Dandiya Raas & Garba of Gujarat 
• Mysore Dassara Festival is a spectacular event year on year conducted by the royal family of Mysore Maharaja.

Ladies eagerly wait for this Navratri Season as these 9 days are solely dedicated to us.Pandal hopping for Durga Pooja, Golu hopping and Garba Ramwanu in Gujarat are all ways by which ladies socialize with their friends and flaunt their beautiful sarees , jewelleries and talent and spend some time for themselves.  

Not only in India , now Navratri is celebrated world over by our Indian Diaspora communities and it feels great to know that we haven't given up our culture and traditions. 

In my mom's home we had the tradition of keeping Golu and I would look forward to it with great enthusiasm.  We had  a vast collection of dolls and it used to be fun planning the theme and set up well in advance and go about making arrangements for it . A small glimpse for you all from yester years . Pardon the poor pic quality, these are clicked during times when I was a novice in photography.  

I can go on and on about Golu for it makes me go down the memory lane and recollect the fond memories of the enthralling 9 days with a constant flow of guests and friends who would come over visiting us for the golu . There would be so much positivity in the air and divine vibrations of Maa Shakti can be felt in totality.

What is Golu / Bomma Kolu ?

• GOLU is a display of Dolls arranged on steps like structure which are odd in number like 1 , 3, 5 , 7 , 9 steps etc .
• Traditionally beautifully colored clay dolls of various Gods and Goddess & Mythological story related dolls would be on the display and these dolls are handed down from generations.  Carefully packed and stored for use year on year. 
•  Slowly, with social awareness and creativity,  dolls with social themes also got added to the collection and people who display golu started presenting various themes to bring related to current affairs and social responsibilities. 
• Some must have dolls on display which are common in all homes who keep Golu are

◇ 3 devis - Durga, Lakshmi , Saraswati

◇  Dasavatharam - 10 avatars of Lord Vishnu 

◇ Ashtalakshmi - 8 forms of Devi Lakshmi,

◇ Idols of Ganesha , Ram Lakshman Sita , Krishna ,Hanuman , Karthikeya etc 

Having spoken so much about how we celebrate Navratri at home, needless to say Prasad or Bhog is an important aspect and has to be offered daily morning and evening for the 9 days. 

Let us now have a detailed look at the recipe of Paruppu Vada . We prepare and offer this on Saraswati Pooja/ Ayudha Pooja which is celebrated on 9th day of Navratri along with Akkara Vadisal - a rich & creamy jaggery + rice pudding.  (Click the highlighted portion for recipe or  the image below ) . 

Some of them follow a strict schedule of offering a sweet , mixed rice (chitranna)  in the morning and sundal in the evening daily.This prasad is then shared with the guests and family who visit us for haldi kumkum.  

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Soaking Time - 2 hrs
Preparation Time - 15 mins
Frying Time - 20 mins
Makes - 10 to 12 vadas 
Complexity - medium

Ingredients 

1 cup channa dhall /bengal gram /kadalai paruppu (150gms) 
2 tbsp udad dhall /ulutham paruppu/ black gram 
4 tbsp thoor dhall /split pigeon peas /thuvaram paruppu
4 to 5 dry red chillies
Fresh curry leaves 
Small piece of ginger
Salt as needed 
Asafoetida (skip for GF )

Oil for deep frying 

Method 

• Wash and soak all the three dhalls under running water and soak in clean water for 2 hrs along with the dry red chillies .
• After 2 hrs , drain the water from the soaked lentils and transfer it to a blender and grind it to a semi fine paste with curry leaves ,ginger and salt .
• Before grinding reserve a handful of soaked lentils aside to add to the ground batter later on.
• To the ground vada batter , now add some asafoetida and the reserved lentils and mix it well .
• Keep this batter in the refrigerator for 20 to 25 mins , this step helps in getting a good shape of the vadas and also consumes less oil while frying .
• Heat the oil in a deep wok/ kadai . Drop a small blob of batter into the hot oil, it must sizzle up immediately, then the oil is heated up perfectly. 
• Now wet your palms lightly with water , take a scoop of ground batter and pat it like a pattice on your palm and carefully slide it into the hot oil .Don't pat it too thin. 
• Drop 3 to 4 such patty/ vadas at a time and let it fry on medium flame until the sizzling of oil stops and they appear crisp and golden brown. 
• Carefully drain it on an absorbent paper or a colander .
• Crispy paruppu vadas are ready .

Most Important Tips to keep in mind.

• Donot soak the dals for more than 2 hrs , it will soak up a lot of oil later on. 
• Incase , you are unable to grind the soaked dhall for some reason , strain the soaked water completely and store the soaked lentils in the fridge  . You can grind it later . Don't store for more than 24hrs , the dals will give out a foul smell .
• If you are using the soaked  dals after refrigeration, wash them once thoroughly under running water and then take it up for grinding.
• Adding salt while grinding is very important because the water from the salt helps in grinding without adding excess water .
• If you feel the dals need a little water for grinding , then just sprinkle some water don't pour it .

Carrot Pumpkin Soup - Gluten Free & Vegan

 A warm soup on a chill winter's night is what we all crave for . This carrot pumpkin soup is  inspired by the Fall season where Pumpkins are available in plenty and used in a wide range of sweet as well as savory recipes in the USA and Canada. 

During my brief stay in the US , I was amazed to see how the sweet pumpkin is used in cooking various recipes and best part would be the beautifully decorated Pumpkins on Halloween suppsoedly to give the Spooky effect 💀 but I always admired the artist who carves it with patience. 

 I was also cleared of the misconception that it is only we Indians who use a lot of Pumpkins in our day to day cooking. If you have observed, Indian cooking makes use of even the seeds , the inner flesh , the skin in our recipes without letting anything go waste . 

Musical instruments like the Veena, Tanpura , Sitar are  made using dried pumpkin shells .

This soup came in just around the time when one of the food groups that I am a part off announced a throw back Thursday event on Instagram with pumpkin 🎃  as the main theme . I am happy to link it to #instapumpkinplus on Instagram hosted by Foodies + group

Well , coming to today's recipe, my part of the country has been experiencing a dull and gloomy weather for almost a fortnight due to a severe depression around the coastal regions . Needless to say we indulged into fried snacks a lot in the last 3 -  4 days and I dint want to give into the craving . Hence , I decided on making this warm soup along with our supper . 

Carrot Pumpkin soup is mildly spiced and even kids can have it. Absolutely very easy to put together and gets done in about 20 mins . You may add some fresh cream if you like or skip it if you want to keep it the vegan way .

This warm pumpkin carrot soup is a perfect appetiser for any kind of parties.  You may serve them with some croutons , bread sticks or  roasted bread cubes for the added crunch .

Listing some more delicious and healthy soups by my blogger friends which have intrigued me to venture into making soups more often than before .I insist you all must also try them and enjoy with your family . 

Archana's  golden colored Pumpkin soup is what I would like to try soon . She has added some potato which will give a nice volume to the soup.

Mayuri ji shared a vitamin rich Roasted  Pumpkin soup topped with some spicy salsa which balances the sweetness of the pumpkin and makes the soup flavorful and mildly spiced . 

Narmadha has a kid friendly Creamy Carrot soup to feed your little ones who make a fuss to eat their share of veggies . Cheat feed them with some French fries or chips and I am sure they will polish the bowl clean while Kalyani's rich Carrot Almond Soup  is an absolute treat on a winter night and a crowd puller if served at parties.

How can we forget the Rustic Tomato Soup and Rasam - the Desi Soup of India when we are talking of soups? 

Priya Iyer shares her classic Italian Tomato Soup with us while Swaty shares a lipsmacking Carrot Rasam .

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Preparation Time - 10 mins
Cooking Time - 20 mins
Serves  - 2 to 3
Complexity  - Simple

Ingredients 

100 gms pumpkin

2 carrots peeled 

1 medium tomato 

1 green chilly 

Small piece of ginger

Handful of fresh corriander

pepper powder as needed

Salt as needed 

3 cups water (1 cup = 150 ml )

1 tsp fresh cream (skip for vegan) 

Method 

• Wash and peel the skin from the pumpkin and carrots. 
• Roughly chop the ginger, carrots ,pumpkin and tomatoes, slit the green chilly . 
• Add all these in a pressure cooker, 1 glass water along with roughly chopped corriander and pressure cook for 3 whistles and let the pressure cool down.
• Blend it finely in a blender and pass it through a sieve .
• Add some water depending on how thick you want your soup along with salt and bring it to a boil .
• Serve warm with topped with some cream and freshly ground pepper .

Notes 

• You can use vegetable broth instead of water .
• A little butter can also be used while serving. 
• You can add some roughly chopped onions and 1 or 2 cloves of garlic along with other vegetables. 

Thengai Saadham | Coconut Rice - South Indian style (Vegan )

Needless to say , South Indian cuisine is incomplete without the use of coconut. Taking our love for coconut to another level  today we shall see how to make this delicious and mildly spiced Coconut rice .

Coconut rice has a very important place in the South Indian Menu especially in Tamil homes during Festivals where Chitrannam / Kalandha Saadham (Varieties of flavored rice) are offered as Prasad for the Divine Rituals . It is made without fail for

1. Kannu Festival - the day after Makar Sankranti 
2. Aadi Perukku  - a day dedicated to thank River Kaveri for blessing us with good water supply year long. Generally falls on Aug 2 or Aug 3 every year .
3. Navratri - a 9 day Festival dedicated to the Goddesses Durga , Lakshmi and Saraswati who symbolise Valor , Prosperity and Intelligence.

  

There is a ritual of offering Flavored rice/ Chitrannam on each day during the 9 day Navratri festival ; both sweet and savory versions are offered as Prasadam.  Thengai Saadham is generally offered on day 6 as Prasad / Neivedhiyam. 

I shall compile the detailed list of prasadam menu day wise and publish as a separate Navratri Special post in a day or two which will help you plan the prasadams well in advance . 

I love coconut rice  right from my childhood days . It is naturally sweet because of the fresh coconut gratings used and the spice level is very low with just a little  pepper powder and whole red chillies used for the spice quotient.

Having said that , this Chitrannam is not relished at my home as all of them are spice lovers, but I made a very little quantity for the sake of blogging and also to satisfy my long time craving of Thengaai Saadham. 

  ⬇️ Pin it up for future reference  ⬇️ 

Preparation Time - 15 mins

Cooking Time - 30 mins

Complexity - Simple 

Serves  - 2 to 3

Ingredients 

1 cup regular rice (150gms)  **no basmati rice

3/4th  cup fresh grated coconut (100 gms approx)

10 to 12 cashews roughly broken

2 tbsp fresh edible coconut oil

1tsp mustard seeds 

1 tsp channa dhall /bengal gram

1 tsp udad dhall / black gram 

2 tsp pepper powder 

3 to 4 dry red chillies

Few fresh curry leaves 

Salt as needed 

Pinch of asafoetida 

Method 

• Pressure cook the rice in advance and spread it on a plate to cool down . We don't need mushy and sticky rice .It has to be grainy and fluffy ,so adjust water accordingly while cooking. 
• In a thick bottomed wok / kadai heat the coconut oil and fry the cashews first , followed by the mustard, channa dhall & udad dhall followed by curry leaves and dry red chillies . Donot burn any of the tempering ingredients.  
• Add the grated coconut in the end and fry it on low flame till you get a nice aroma . Turn off the stove ..the coconut will get crisp in the heat naturally. 

• Add the pepper powder , salt as needed and mix well with the fried coconut.  You will now see that the coconut gratings have absorbed the coconut oil nicely and will appear like a soggy mixture. This is the perfect consistency. 
• Slowly add the cooled rice and gently mix it taking care to not break the rice.  You can adjust the salt or pepper powder at this stage . 
• Donot mix harshly else it will become mushy and appear like a mass.
• Let the rice sit for 15 to 20 mins before serving so that the rice absorbs the flavor of the coconut mixture. 

Tips to keep in mind

• As we are making this for prasad, rice has to be freshly cooked.  So, ensure that you have enough time for the rice to cool down before you can mix it with the coconut tempering. 
• Do not add too much pepper powder , we will end up with pepper flavored  rice .
• Groundnuts can be used in place of cashews.
• Regular cooking oil can be used instead of coconut oil .
• Always thaw the coconut to room temperature if using frozen coconut.  
• Dessicated coconut is a BIG NO . It will ruin the taste of the rice. 

Chutney Cheese Sandwich- Mumbai street food spl

 Mumbai is known for its delicious sandwich varieties which are a part of the street food fanfare  .Every single sandwich seller has his own trademark special sandwich and he becomes quite popular in his area because of the same .

In addition to that there are some sandwich varieties which are popular across the city and are people's favorite.  One such people favorite is Chutney Cheese Sandwich.  These can be served either toasted or plain . We at home prefer the plain non toasted ones as the taste of cheese feels delicious when it isn't melted. 

Chutney cheese sandwich is very easy to assemble and absolutely a child's  play . They can be served as finger foods at kid's birthday parties or even at kitty parties or get togethers. These can be prepared in advance and stored in air tight containers until serving . 

We can either use cheese slices or grated cheese to be stuffed between the chutney smeared bread. I prefer using cheese slices as it holds up the shape well and helps while cutting the bread without making it messy.  Bread can either be brown , white or Multigrain depending on your choice.  There is no hard and fast rule.

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Preparation Time - 10 mins
Assembling Time - 10 mins
Cooking Time - Nil 
Complexity - Simple
Makes 4 sandwiches 

Ingredients

8 slices of bread 
4 cheese slices 
6 -7 tbsp green chutney 
Salted butter at room temperature 

Method 

• Apply generous spread of butter on the bread. 
• Take 1 tsp of green chutney and spread it on the slice of buttered bread and place a cheese slice over it. 
• Take another slice of buttered bread, spread 1 tsp chutney over it and place it on top of the cheese.
• Cut them into triangles and place them on a serving tray .
• Serve with some delicious welcome drink .

Vegetable Cheese Grilled Sandwich and Vegetable toast sandwich are two other most popular and sought after sandwiches in Bombay . 

Click on the images below for detailed recipe