Sweet Aval

Yet another aval recipe...Simple recipe,requires no gas,easy to make and a perfect evening snack ;)

Ingredients:

1.Aval(beaten rice-thick)......1 cup

2.Grated jaggery.............1/2 cup

3.Grated coconut............1/2 cup

Procedure:

1.Wash the aval nicely,until all the impurities leaves.Soak tis with 1/4 cup of water for 1/2 hr.(I used red aval here)...

2.After soaking it will turn to be soft and chewy.Now add in grated coconut and jaggery.Mix well until all the ingredients bind nicely.Allow tis to set for 10 more minutes and serve.

Aval Vellam Thengai Payasam

Another Aval recipe - AVAL THENGAI PAYASAM.

Ingredients:

1.Aval.......1/2 cup

2.Grated coconut......1/4 cup

3.Jaggery/vellam........ 1/4 cup +1 tbsp

4.Cardamon powder....1 tsp

5.Ghee.....1 tbsp

6.Dry grapes and cashews few for garnishing.

7.Milk...1/2 cup

Procedure:

1.Grind aval and coconut with water to a coarse paste.

2.Mix milk and 11/2 cup of water to the paste and bring it to boil.Keep stirring until the aval cooks completely.

3.Once the aval is done add jaggery,cardamon powder and ghee fried grapes n cashews.

4.Cook for 5 more minutes and switch off the flame.

5.Serve it hot or cold.

Jaggery is rich in iron.Coconut has good fat in it,heals ulcer problem.Beaten rice has good source of fibre.Overall its a very healthy and tasty recipe :)

Sarkarai Pongal

Sarakari Pongal is usually prepared during pongal festival.As pongal tops the prasadha list,i always do it during pooja times,say it like Varamaha Lakshmi Pooja,Mangala gowri vratha,new year(telugu/kannada&tamil new years).I have a mind set that Sarkari pongal and dhal vada(neivathyam) completes any pooja very much than anything else!!This year i prepared it for varama lakshmi pooja and i followed my mom's way i mean the quick/easy way :) Come lets do it now....

Ingredients:

1.Rice(Pacharisi)............1 cup

2.Moon dhal .............1/4 cup

3.Grated coconut......3  tbsps

4.Cardamom powder.....1 tsp

5.Nutmeg powder......1 tsp

6.Cloves....4

7.Jaggery......1 1/2 cup

8.Milk.........2 cups

9.Fried cashews and Grapes

10.Ghee....5 tbsps

Procedure:

1.Fry cashews and grapes with tsp of ghee.keep it aside.Later fry cloves and powder them.

2.Cook rice and dhal together with 3 1/4  cups of water in a pressure cooker.

3.In the mean time,soak jaggery (powdered) in water and filter it(with a tea filter).Heat the jaggery water in a thick bottomed kadai till the raw smell leaves and keep it aside.

4.Take a big vessel with thick bottom,add the cooked rice & dhal and mash it(dont make it a paste).Now add milk and heat it,after 5 mins add the jaggery syrup and keep on stirring.

5.Add a tsp of ghee whenever required.When it is done(after 10 mins) add cardamom powder,nutmeg powder,clove powder and fried nuts n grapes.Mix well until they binds well with the pongal.

6.A nice aroma of jaggery and spices with rice will rise so soon,where u should switch off the flame at the right time to avoid blackening at the bottom.

7.Serve hot with atsp of ghee on top.

Paal Ada Pradhaman

Posting this as "avani avittam " special recipe!!!I made this with ready made paal ada(double horse brand)..the procedure is similar to semiya payasam,hence very easy to prepare :)Lets go straight to the ingredients...

Ingredients:

Makes 2 bowls of payasam

1.Paal Ada..........4 tbsps

2.Coconut milk.......1 cup

3.Milk.......1/2 cup

4.Water......1 cup

5.Sugar.........3/4 cup

6.Ghee.....2 tsps

7.Cardamom powder.........1 tsp

8.Cashew nuts.........15 gms

9.Dry grapes.........10 gms

Procedure:

1.Fry cashew & grapes with a tsp of ghee till golden.Keep it aside.

2.In the same kadai fry paal ada with a tsp of ghee,till it changes color slightly.

3.Take a thick bottomed vessel,boil a cup of water,add fried paal ada and let it boil till soft.

4.Then add milk,coconut milk and sugar and bring it to a boil.

5.Add cardamom powder and fried cashew & grapes and switch off the flame.

6.Serve hot / cold.

Vella Seedai

A Krishna Jayanthi special !!

Ingredients :

1.Rice(sona masoori)........1 cup

2.Jaggery...........3/4 cup

3.Fried Urad dhal four......2 tbsp or channa dhal powder(potukadalai podi).....1/4 cup

4.Dried coconut pieces.... 2 tbsp

5.Cardamom powder............1/2 tsp

6.Black sesame seeds..........1 tbsp

7.Butter.....2 tbsp

Procedure:

1.Soak rice in water for about 2 hours.Drain and dry it in shadow (or under fan) for 1 hour.

2.Grind the wet rice to 3/4 th consistency(without water).

3.Fry this powder dryly in kadai for 3 to 5 minutes.

4.In a pan heat jaggery with 1/4 cup of water,allow tis to boil for few minutes,when it starts to thicken,add in all the ingredients,and stir constantly until it turns out to be a soft ball(this stage is usually reached in 3 or 5 minutes).

5.Now,let this cool down,and later make small balls out of the mixture,deep fry them in oil.Always do this in low or medium low flame.Take them out of oil,once they turn golden brown.

This vella seedai is mostly prepared as prasadha during janmashtami and sometimes during semantham function.Try tis out once!!

Maavilakku

Aadi maasam(aashada maasam) is here,so everyone is getting busy with poojas and vrathas.Posting here the most simple method of Maavilakku,which is one of the official deepa(prasadha) made during gowri poojas.The traditional one takes more time and patience,so i got this easy method from my mother and mother-in-law.Hope this will help all busy moms out there :)

Ingredients:

1.Rice Flour(which is readily available in shops)........... 1 cup

2.Powdered Jaggery...........1/2 cup

3.Melted Ghee.............5 spoons

4.Milk.....2 to 5 spoons

Procedure:

1.Bring in all the ingredients except milk.Give a nice mix with hand.

2.Add milk and mix well again.Take a hand full of flour mixture,make a round shape.Put a hole in the middle then adjust the sides to make it look like a 'diya' (aghal vilakku) or simply a 'cup' :)

3.Ur maavilakku is ready.Use only ghee to lit the deepa.

This can be made within 15 minutes,if all the ingredients are ready.Lets celebrate our gowri pooja and varama lakshmi pooja with this authentic prasadha and may God bless all with good health n wealth !!!