This is just like any other homemade bread but with a difference. I added some spices like cumin seeds and nigella seeds to try out something new. The baking was done in the convection mode of a microwave oven at 180 degrees c for 40 minutes. So enjoy as a tea time snack or for breakfast.
- 1 cup Atta (whole wheat flour)
- 1 1/2 cups maida (plain flour)salt to taste
- 2 tsp. active yeast
- 2 tsp. sugar
- 3/4 cup lukewarm water
- 3 tbsp. oil
- 1 tsp. nigella seeds (kalonji)
- 1 tsp. cumin seeds
- 2 tbsp. oats
- oil to grease the loaf tin
- butter to brush
In a bowl, mix together the yeast, sugar and water. Cover and leave aside for 10-15 minutes. By then it will have swelled up and become frothy. Grease a loaf tin and keep aside.
Sift together atta and maida. Add salt, nigella seeds, cumin seeds and 2 tbsp. oil. Mix well till it resembles bread crumbs. Add the oats and combine.
Now add the yeast mix and required quantity of water. knead into a smooth dough. Add 1 tsp. oil and continue to knead for approx 15 minutes till all the oil is absorbed.
Apply some oil all over and leave it to rest in a greased bowl in a warm place for an hour.
By then the dough will have doubled in size. Knead again for 5-10 minutes by adding some more oil.
Give a log shape to the dough. Brush with some oil on the surface and sprinkle oats over it. Transfer to the loaf tin and leave it to rest in a warm place for another 25-30 minutes.
Preheat the oven for 5 minutes at 180 degrees C. Bake for 40 minutes. After 30 minutes, cover the tin with a foil and continue to bake. (I baked in a microwave oven in the convection mode).
Let it rest for 15 minutes. Take it out of the oven. Check by tapping. It should sound hollow. Apply butter over the surface and allow it to stand for 10 minutes.
Flip it over on the rack and let it cool down considerably. Store in an airtight container. Slice and serve with jam / bread or as desired.
M
ix yeast, sugar & water. Cover & keep aside for 10-15 min.
By then it will turn frothy. So take a large bowl for this purpose.
Mix atta, maida, salt, oil, cumin seeds & nigella seeds.
Add oats to the mix & combine.
Add the yeast & knead....
.......into a dough. Keep aside in a warm place for an hour.
Grease a loaf pan & keep aside.
After an hour, the dough has risen considerably. Knead again & ....
........give it a shape of a log.
Transfer to the greased tin & keep in a warm place for 25-30 minutes.
After 25-30 minutes, the dough has risen.
Bake at 180 degrees C. for 40 minutes.
Keep aside to cool on the rack before slicing them to serve.
This is a simple and an easy to make dessert. It is not only delicious but also visually appealing. It is a good alternative to serving any Indian sweets or ice-cream. The custard and the oats kheer (pudding) can always be prepared much in advance and refrigerated.
Just before serving, all you need to do is to cut the fruits of your choice and layer them as per individual preference and voila you have an exotic looking dessert in front of you.
One can experiment with different varieties of fruits and combinations to turn out a masterpiece in a glass. The toppings can be varied too, in the form of ice cream, strawberries, cherries, chopped nuts, etc.
Custard--
- 3 cups milk
- 2 tbsp. custard powder
- 5 tbsp. sugar
Kheer--
- 2 cups milk
- 2 tbsp. oats
- 2 tbsp. sugar
Other Ingredients -
- 1 mango, chopped
- 1 Grape fruit, chopped
- 2 wafers
- 1 tsp. jam
- pomegranate pearls
Custard - Add the custard powder to 1/2 cup milk and mix well so that there are no lumps. Keep aside.
Bring the remaining milk to a boil. Add sugar and simmer on a low flame till it is dissolved.
Gradually add the custard mix and keep stirring continuously till it thickens. Keep aside to cool.
Oats Kheer - Boil the milk and sugar. Add oats and cook, stirring continuously on low flame till it thickens. Keep aside to cool.
Now to assemble - Take a tall glass. At the bottom add the custard, followed by the grape fruit, mango and then oats.
Follow the same procedure again. Top it up with some pomegranate pearls, 1/2 tsp. jam and wafers. Arrange the second glass too in the same manner. Your Custard & Fruits Salad is ready to relish.
Bring the milk to a boil. Add sugar & let it dissolve.
Add custard powder mixed with 1/2 cup milk. Stir till it thickens.
Boil milk & sugar. Add oats & cook on low flame till thick.
To assemble - Take a long glass. First add custard, then grapefruit, mango
& then oats. Follow same procedure again. Top it up with some pomegranate pearls, 1/2 tsp. jam & wafers. Your Custard & Fruits Salad is ready to relish.
Raw Mango Chutney known as "Pachadi" in local language is a traditional Andhra / Telangana delicacy. It is a side dish which is relished with dosa, idli, uttapam, pongal, khichdi, chapati, paratha, etc.
During the season, it can be prepared and stored in airtight containers in the refrigerator for a week to ten days. In such a case the quantity of oil is increased for preserving it in the form of pickle. It can also be had, mixed with hot steamed rice. Tastes simply delicious. So check out the step by step pictorial recipe to prepare it.
- 2 raw mangoes, peeled & grated
- 15-20 dry red chilies
- 2 tbsp. coriander seeds
- 1 tbsp. cumin seeds
- 1/2 tsp. fenugreek seeds
- 1 tsp. mustard seeds
- 3-4 tbsp. oil
- 1 dry red chilli, broken
- 1 sprig curry leaves
- 1 tsp. mustard seeds
- 1 tbsp. chana dal (Bengal gram)
- 2 tsp. urad dal (split black gram)
- pinch of asafoetida
- 1/2 tsp. turmeric powder
Dry roast the red chilies, coriander seeds, cumin seeds, fenugreek seeds, 1 tsp. urad dal and mustard seeds on a low flame for a minute till you get a nice aroma. When cool, grind to a fine powder and keep aside.
In a bowl, mix the grated mango, ground spice mix and salt. Heat oil in a pan and temper with mustard seeds and whole dry red chilli.
After it stops spluttering, add the asafoetida, chana dal, remaining urad dal and curry leaves. Saute till the dal changes colour. Pour this tempering to the prepared mango pachadi and mix well.
Serve this awesome pachadi (chutney) with dosa, idli, uttapam, khichdi, pongal, curd-rice, etc. It can also be had, mixed with hot steamed rice and ghee. Simply tastes delicious.
Dry roast dry red chilies, coriander seeds, cumin seeds, fenugreek seeds &
mustard seeds for a few seconds. Cool & grind into a powder.
Mix it along with grated mango.
Add salt to taste & combine well.
Heat oil & temper with mustard seeds, 1 red chili, asafoetida. urad
dal, chana dal, turmeric powder & curry leaves.
Pour this tempering to the mango pachadi & mix well.
Serve with curd-rice, dosa, pongal, idli, khichdi, upma, etc. It can also be mixed with hot steamed rice & ghee.
This is a very basic pudding made in the microwave in just 5 minutes. All you need are milk, eggs, sugar and some flavour of your choice. And in no time you have delicious dessert to serve to your friends and family.
The essence and the garnishing can be altered according to individual preference. This is a very light dessert, which can also be garnished with chocolate sauce, chopped fresh fruits, chopped dry fruits, jam, etc.
- 2 cups full cream milk
- 3 eggs, beaten
- 3 tbsp. sugar, powdered
- 1 tsp. rose water
- pinch of cardamom powder
- chopped nuts, pomegranate pearls & jam to garnish
In a microwave safe bowl, whisk together all the ingredients till smooth. Micro on high for 5 minutes. Let it rest for 5 minutes.
Take it out of the oven and bring it to room temperature. Refrigerate for an hour. Flip it over and serve, garnished.
These are vegetarian spring rolls that can be served as appetizers or they can be had as light snacks anytime of the day. It is very simple to make and very nutritious and healthy too. Stuffing can be of any veggies available. They can also be made with boiled and shredded chicken for a non-veg. version.
Here in this recipe I used assorted bell peppers along with onion, ginger and garlic. The flavouring agents are chili sauce, sesame oil, pepper, sesame seeds and some coarsely ground peanuts. So check out the step by step pictorial recipe to prepare this exotic dish.
- 4-5 cabbage leaves
- 1 cup assorted bell peppers, sliced
- 1 tbsp. oil
- 1 onion, sliced
- 2-3 garlic cloves, chopped
- 1" ginger, chopped
- 1-2 green chilies, chopped
- salt to taste
- 1/2 tsp. pepper powder
- 1 tbsp. red chili sauce
- 1 tbsp. sesame oil
- 1 tbsp. sesame seeds
- 2 tbsp. roasted peanuts, coarsely ground
- 2 tbsp. coriander leaves, chopped
- sliced onion, sliced bell peppers & coriander leaves to garnish (opt)
Blanch the cabbage leaves in boiling hot water for a minute or boil them for 5 minutes if the leaves are thick. Drain them after they turn translucent. Refresh them in cold water and keep aside.
Heat oil in a pan and sauté the onion, ginger, garlic and green chilies till the onions turn translucent. Add the bell peppers and sauté for a minute.
Now add all the rest of the ingredients, except cabbage leaves and coriander leaves. Sauté for a minute and keep aside to cool down.
Take each cabbage leaf and place 2 tbsp. of the stuffing on it, followed by 1 tsp. of the coriander leaves.
Gently roll the cabbage leaf and place them on a serving plate. Make similar rolls out of the remaining cabbage leaves. Serve along with tomato sauce as perfect appetizers
Blanch cabbage leaves in boiling water till translucent.
Drain & refresh in cold water. Keep aside.
Heat oil & sauté onion, ginger, garlic & green chilies.
Add sliced bell peppers & sauté for a minute.
Add salt, pepper powder, sesame seeds, sesame oil, chili sauce & peanuts.
Mix well & sauté for a minute. Keep aside.
Take a cabbage leaf & place some stuffing & coriander leaves on one side.
Gently roll them & place on a serving dish.
Serve, garnished with sliced onion, sliced bell peppers & coriander leaves.
This is a traditional Bengali delicacy of roasted Moong Dal which is commonly prepared in almost every Bengali household. It is sometimes combined with any veggie for a wholesome and nutritious meal.
Here in this recipe I combined it with radish leaves and few pieces of radish too. I tempered it with whole garam masala and finished it off with some ghee. This gives this dal a very good flavor. It is best relished with steamed rice. The quantity of water needs to be adjusted if having with chapattis. So check out the step by step pictorial recipe to prepare it.
- 1/2 cup moong dal (split green gram), soaked for 30 minutes
- 3-4 bunches mooli saag (radish leaves), chopped finely
- 1 cup radish, chopped
- 2 tbsp. mustard oil
- 2 green cardamoms
- 1" cinnamon stick
- 4 cloves
- 1/2 tsp. kalonji (nigella seeds)
- 1 small onion, chopped
- 1 tsp. ginger, chopped
- 2-3 fresh chilies, slit
- salt to taste
- 1/2 tsp. turmeric powder
- 1 tsp. roasted cumin powder
- 1 tsp. ghee
Boil the dal and the chopped radish in 1 cup water for 4-5 whistles. When cool, add salt and turmeric powder and keep aside.
Heat oil in a pan and temper with cardamoms, cinnamon, cloves and kalonji. Sauté for a few seconds.
Add the onion, slit chilies and ginger and sauté till light brown. Add the chopped greens and continue to fry on low flame till dry.
Now add the boiled dal and cumin powder. Add 1/2 cup water if required. Simmer for a minute and when done, add ghee and mix well. Serve hot with steamed rice or chapattis.
Chop leaves & radish. Keep aside.
Boil dal with chopped radish in 1 cup water.
Add salt & turmeric powder to the boiled dal & keep aside.
Heat oil & temper with kalonji, cardamoms, cinnamon & cloves.
Add onion, ginger & slit chilies. Sauté till light brown.
Add chopped greens & fry till dry.
Add boiled dal & cumin powder. Simmer for a minute. Add ghee & mix well.
Serve, garnished with coriander leaves, lemon wedges & fresh chilies.
