Carrot-Beetroot Salad

Ingredients

• Carrot - 1/2 cup
• Beetroot - 1.2 cup
• Cabbage - 1/4 cup
• Lettuce - 1/4 cup
• Mayonaisse - 1 to 2 tsp
• Pepper - as per taste
• Salt - as needed (optional)

Method

• Mix all the ingredients and serve.

Note: Mayonaisse can be replaced by yogurt/curd.

This goes to Only Salad by Prathiba and Pari

Eggplant(Brinjal) Masala Bhajji

Ingredients

• Eggplant/Brinjal - 4 (small sized)
• Besan flour - 1 cup
• Rice flour - 2 tsp
• Bicarbonate of soda - 2 pinch
• Red Chilli powder - 1/2 - 3/4th tsp
• Garam Masala powder - 1/4 tsp
• Ginger Garlic paste - 1/2 tsp
• Green chilli - 1 (chopped finely)
• Coriander leaves - few
• Curry leaves - few
• Lime Juice - 1 tsp
• Oil - for frying
• Salt - as per taste
• Water - 1 to 1/2 cup

Method

• Cut the Eggplant into thin slices and mix with lime juice and keep aside for 5 min.
• Mix all the ingredients except oil in a idli batter consistency.
• In a Kadai, pour the oil and heat on medium flame.
• Pour one drop of the batter to the oil and check whether it starts frying.
• One put the Eggplant pieces one by one and fry it.
• Crispy Eggplant Masala Bhajji is ready to eat.

Sending this to the following events

My event - Dish Name Starts with E
Healing foods Event - Eggplant by Spoonful of love and Siri
Deep fried Snacks by Radhika
Kid's Delight - Street Food by Srivalli

Egg & Capsicum gravy

Ingredients

• Egg - 4
• Capsicum - 1
• Onion - 1
• Tomato - 2
• Green Chilli - 1
• Ginger Garlic Paste - 1 tsp
• Chilli powder - 1 tsp
• Coriander powder - 1/2 tsp
• Garam Masala - 1/2 tsp
• Turmeric powder - 2 pinch
• Cloves - few
• Fennel Seeds - 1/8th tsp
• Cinnamom stick - 1 (1" inch) (crushed nicely)
• Star Anise - 1
• Oil - 3 tsp

  

Method

• Boil the eggs adding little salt to water so that, the shell does not break.
• Meanwhile, grind the onion and tomato and green chilli and make a paste.
• In a kadai, add oil, cloves, fennel seeds, cinnamom stick, star anise and fry for 1 min.
• Add the ginger garlic paste and saute till the raw smell goes off.
• Now add the grinded paste and saute well.

• Add in all the powders and the capsicum pieces, and cook till the oil comes out of the gravy.
• Check whether the capsicum got cooked ( must be crunchy - not too soft).
• Now remove the shell from eggs and put light slits on the eggs and put in to the gravy and mix well. (No need to break the eggs)
• Switch off the gas and let the eggs soak in gravy for atleast 10 mins.
• Serve this gravy with any main dish, like rice, or roti etc.

 

  

This goes to my event - Dish Name Starts with E

 

Eggless Oats Chocochip Cookies

Ingredients

• All Purpose flour - 2 cups
• Oats - 1 cup
• Chocochips - 1/2 cup
• Salted Butter - 1.5 cup
• Sugar -  2 cups
• Baking powder - 1 tsp
• Baking soda / Bicarbonate of soda - 1/2 tsp
• Milk - 2 tsp

Method

• In a vessel, mix the butter and sugar well untill the butter becomes fluffy.
• Now add in the other ingredients together and mix well.
• Make them in small balls and then press slightly in your palms.
• Meanwhile preheat the oven to 180 C.
• Arrage the cookies in the baking tray leaving 1 to 2 inch gap inbetween the cookies.
• Bake for 20 mins or untill the cookies becomes brown in colour.
• When the cookies are ready, remove from oven and allow to cool for 5 min.
• Crispy, Healthy and Tasty cookies are ready and store in a air tight container for future use.

This goes to the following events

• My event Dish Name Starts with E
• Priya's CWF: Oats

Prawn Tikka / Eral Tikka

Ingredients

• Prawns / Eral - 1/2 kg
• Turmeric powder - 1/5th tsp
• Shan Tikka Masala - 2 tsp
• Lemon Juice/ Vinegar - 2 tsp
• Ginger Garlic paste - 1 tsp
• Butter - 1 tsp
• Salt - to wash the prawns

Method

• Wash the prawns well in salt.
• In  pan, add the prawns, and start frying adding the turmeric powder.
• The prawns starts to curl. (Do not add any water).
• When all the prawns gets curly shape, switch off and allow to cool.
• Now add the Tikka masala, lemon juice, Ginger Garlic paste and butter and mix well, such that, all prawns are well coated with masala.

• Refridgerate for 1 to 2 hrs.
• Now preheat the oven to 200 C and arrange the prawns as shown in picture and allow to cook for 15 to 20 min.

• Remove from oven and serve hot as side dish or as snack.

This goes to my event Dish Name Starts with E

Egg Podimass / Muttai Podimass

Ingredients

• Eggs - 4
• Onion - 1 big (chopped nicely)
• Green chillies - 2 (chopped finely)
• Salt - as per taste
• Turmeric powder - a pinch
• Oil - 1 tsp
• Curry leaves - few
• Coriander leaves - few

Method

• In a pan, add the oil, onion, green chillies, curry leaves and saute well till the onion becomes soft.
• Break one egg and add and mix well for 2 to 3 min.
• Then add the another egg. Likewise do the other eggs also.
• Now add the salt and turmeric powder and mix.
• Garnish with coriander leaves and serve hot as side dish.

This goes to my event Dish Name Starts with E

Pasta Payasam / Pasta Kheer

Hi my all friends. Today is Pongal and I wish you all a very happy and prosperous pongal.

Though the day is busy, found little time to post one of my favorite recipe - Pasta Payasam. You can do it with any kind of pasta, but with shell pasta, i feel it tastes heavenly. Here comes the recipe....

Ingredients

• Shell Pasta / Macroni - 2 cups
• Water - 2 cups
• Sweetened Condensed Milk - 1 can
• Salt - 1 to 2 pinch
• Ghee - 2 tsp
• Cardamom powder - 1/4 tsp
• Cashews - few
• Raisins - few
• Saffron Strands - few

Method

• Boil the water and put the pasta, salt, ghee and bring to boil.
• The pasta should be half to 3/4th cooked.
• Now add the condensed milk and stir continously.
• Add the cardamom powder and saffron.
• When the pasta is fully cooked, switch off.
• Separately, fry the cashews and raisins in ghee and put in pasta payasam and mix well.
• Garnish with some more saffrons.
• Pasta Payasam is ready to be served as hot or cold.

Along with this, i am sending the below entries

Chakkarai Pongal

Ven Pongal

Javvarisi Semiya Pongal

Paasi Paruppu Paayasam / Moong dhall kheer

 to Pongal Feast Event at Kurinji Kathambam

Also sending my Pasta Kheer to Presto Pasta Nights by Girlichef

Eggless Chocolate Chip Cookies

Ingredients

• All Purpose Flour - 2 cups
• Cocoa Powder - 4 tsp
• Sugar - 1 to 1.5 cups
• Unsalted Butter - 1 cup
• Milk - 2 tsp
• Salt - a pinch
• Baking soda/Bicarbonate of soda - 1/4 - 1.2  tsp
• Baking powder - 1 tsp
• Chocolate chips - 1/2 cup

Method

• Mix the butter and sugar in a vessel nicely untill they become fluffy. (the butter must be at room temperature)

• Now to this, add the other ingredients and mix nicely.
• Make them in small round balls and press little bit.
• Meanwhile preheat the oven to 180 deg C.

• Now keep the cookies in tray and bake for 20 to 25 min or just insert a stick in mid of a cookie and take it out and check that nothing sticks to it.
• Serve the hot cookies or save in a air tight container.

Sending this to the following events
My Event - Dish Name Starts with E
Kids Delight - Chocolate Feast by Srivalli

With this i want to share the award sent by Jaleela of SamaiyalAttakaasam and an award for participating in Veggie/Fruit  a month - Banana, conducted by Aipi of US masala. There is no need for any introduction to both these ladies, as you know them very well and their wonderful recipes. Thank you ladies for the award. I am honoured.

Then i am tagged by Priya Vaasu of En Veetu Kitchen and Kurinji of Kurinji Kadhambam

What is you take on organic food, is it a big deal for you?
Yes, i go for organic food whenever i find time.

Do you find time your breakfast, lunch 7 dinner or eat when you are hungry?
Never find time to take breakfast now a days. Only lunch and dinner ok.

What inspired you to write a food blog?
After marriage i was very new to cooking and i always call my mother and ask for the ingredients and recipes and used to write what she says in a note book or paper. But it made me bore to try the same dishes everytime. So i started searching the net for any recipes and came across the blogs and also i want to save all my collections together. Like this i started the blog. Though i started a blog by 2007 itself, i could able to continue it. But again started a new one with a new look by 2010 and it is Learning to cook.

You try a new recipe and it does not turn out good. What will you do?
I will not leave it until it turns out good to my satisfaction.

Name 3 ingredients you consciously avoid or eliminate even when the recipe calls for it?
I try to avoid egg in any cookies or cake since my mom wont eat egg and try to reduce the masala items (cant say particularly).

Name 3 things you have to use in most recipes?
Onion, Tomato, Ginger - Garlic paste.

How important is eating meals together as a family to you?
Its very import, but we find time only while having dinner.

You do not like a particular dish at your favorite restaurant, what will you do?
I will call the Manager or Server and let them know, it is not good.