Celery Pappu

A healthy way to eat regular daal and tastes so delicious too!!

Ingredients:

• 1 cup Pigeon Peas (Kandi Pappu, Toor daal)
• 1 cup diced Celery
• 1 Tomato, chopped
• Few Cilantro leaves
• A pinch of Turmeric
• 3 or 4 Green chilies, chopped
• Salt

For Seasoning/Tempering:

• 1 tsp oil
• ½ tsp Mustard Seeds
• ¼ tsp Cumin Seeds
• A pinch of Asafetida (Inguva, Hing)

Preparation:

Pressure cook daal until it is cooked. Keep aside.

Heat oil in a pan or bowl and add all the other ingredients under For Seasoning/Tempering in order.

Then add all the chopped vegetables (celery, tomato and green chilies) and mix well. Add turmeric and mix well.

Pour some water, cover and allow the vegetables to cook well.

When the veggies appear to be cooked, add cooked daal and mix well. Add salt as needed.

Keep the pan on low flame for 2 minutes, sprinkle chopped cilantro on top and turn off the flame.

Transfer the pappu to a serving bowl and enjoy with rice or chapathis.

Continue Reading....

Mango – Ginger pickle

Adding ginger to raw mango gives it a distinct flavor and taste. This pickle is one of the famous pickles that are made with raw mango.

Ingredients:

• 1 Green Mango
• A small piece of ginger
• Handful of cilantro
• 5 or 6 Green chilies
• A pinch of Turmeric
• 2 tbsp oil
• Salt

For Seasoning/Tempering:

• 1 tsp Oil
• 1 tsp Mustard Seeds
• 1 tsp Cumin Seeds
• A pinch of Asafetida
• Few Curry Leaves

Method:

Wash the mango well and pat dry with a paper towel to remove wetness. Then peel and chop into cubes. Keep aside.

Peel and chop ginger into small pieces.

Heat oil in a pan and fry ginger and green chilies for about 5 minutes. Add turmeric and mix well. Transfer to a plate and allow them to cool down.

Then add these fried ginger + green chilies to a blender. Also add mango pieces + cilantro + salt and grind the entire mixture into a smooth paste. No need to add water, but if the chutney isn’t grinding well, then add very little water otherwise the chutney shall become too watery. I added little too much water and the chutney became little thin, though it tasted super delicious. So be careful while adding water.

Now prepare the seasoning by heating oil in a pan and adding all the ingredients under “For Seasoning/Tempering” in the same order. Pour this on top of the chutney and mix well.

Enjoy the delicious flavorful chutney with steaming hot rice. Yummy!!

Continue Reading....

Soy Milkshake and Pops

I never used soy milk in my cooking or tasted it before. I used it for the first time to make milkshake and ice pops and everyone in my family liked the taste. A perfect treat for this hot summer!!

Ingredients: (Perfect for 4 cups milkshake and 4 Ice Pops)

• 4 cups Soy Milk
• 6 Strawberries, stems removed
• 2 ripe Bananas, skin peeled off
• ½ cup Sugar (I used Brown Sugar but regular sugar is fine)

Preparation:

Milkshake:

Just add all the ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth. Pour into individual glasses, garnish with slivered almonds (optional) and enjoy.

Ice Pops:

Pour the remaining milkshake into four ice pop molds and freeze until set (approx. 4 to 6 hours).

To unmold these pops, just place the mold in warm water for 2 seconds or place under running water from the tap. They come out easily after 2 seconds.

Enjoy these yummy, healthy popsicles on a hot summer day!! 

Continue Reading....