Best Of 2008

Pesarapappu Vadalu ( Moongdal Vada) Pesarattu with Allam pacchadhi

Senaga pappu vadalu

Shahi Tukda

Vadappa ( thin and crispy rice flour roti )

Guthi Vankaya Vepudu ( eggplant fry)

Egg Biryani

Chicken keema

Barvan Bhindi ( Stuffed okra)

Malabar Chicken Curry ( kerala style)

Jeera Aloo

Egg Paratha

Potato fry ( simple and melt in mouth)

INGREDINTS

3 potatoes (russet potatoes work well for this recipe)

1 onion ( chopped)

2 to 3 garlic cloves ( chopped)

3 tbs oil

1 tsp cumin seeds and musturd seeds

1/2 tsp turmuric powder

1 tsp chilli powder

1 tsp coriander powder

cilantro

salt

METHOD

.

Boil potatoes until fork tender with a pinch of salt , peel and squeeze with your hands ,so that half mashed and half chunkey

.

Heat oil in apan ,add cumin seeds , musturd seeds and chopped onions , sautee until onions are soft , then add garlic and cilantro , fry for 1 more min

.

Now add sqeezes potatoes ,Mix well and fry on low flame for 5min

.

Sprinkle salt , turmuric , redchilli powder and coriander powder ( mix gently so that potatoes are not mashed completely)

.

Fry on low flame until golden on one side ( make sure not to burn potatoes)

.

DONE

.

Serve hot , with chapathi , puri ,paratha

Cut Mirch

INGREDIENTS

10 mirchi bajjis ( chopped in to bite size pieces)
1 cup chopped onions
juice of 1 lemon
cilantro
oil for deep fry

To make masala powder ( pappula podi)

1/2 cup roasted chana dal ( pappulu)
1tsp red chilli powder

1 tsp cumin seeds
2 garlic cloves
salt

Grind all the masala ingredients in to a fine powder and keep aside


METHOD
.
Heat oil in a wide pan for deep frying , fry chopped mirchi bajjis on medium flame until golden and crisp , drain on paper towel
.
Add chopped onions , masala powder ( pappula podi) , lemon juice and cilantro
.
Mix well and serve hot

Vegetable Biryani

INGREDIENTS

2 cups of mixed veggis ( potatoes , carrots , greenpeas, beans, califlower )
2 cups basmathi rice

1 onion ( sliced)
1/2 cup tomato puree ( use canned puree to get the good colour to biryani)
2 tsp ginger and garlic paste
6 to 7 green chillis ( slit)
cilantro ( handfull)
mint (optional)

4 cloves
4 cardamom
2 inch cinnamon stick

1 tsp cumin powder
1 tsp coriander powder
1 tsp chilli powder
1 tsp garam masala powder

6 tbs oil
2 tbs ghee

1/4 cup cashews (grind to a smooth paste )
pinch of safforn ( soaked in 1/4 cup warm milk)

1 tsp Garam masala for sprinkling in layers

METHOD
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Wash and Soak rice for 20 min , Cook 2 cups of rice with 3-1/2 cups of water and 1 tsp of salt
.
Chop all the veggies in to big pieces
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Heat oil in a pan , add cloves , cardamom , cinnamon then add sliced onions , sprinkle salt
and cook on low flame until onions are brown
.
Now add green chillis and cilantro fry for a min , and add tomato puree , cumin powder , coriander powder , red chilli powder mix everything and cook on low flame for 5 min
.
Then Add chopped veggies , cover and cook on low flame for 10 min or until veggies are soft
.
Now add cashew paste and garam masala powder mix everything and cook for another 5 min , and turn off the stove
.
Take a baking dish , add a layer of veggi mixture ,top it with rice , ghee and garam masala , again add remaining veggi mixture ,top it with remaining rice , ghee ,garam masala and saffron milk
.
Cover with tight lid or foil ,bake on a preheated 350 oven for 30 min
.
Done , serve hot

Cheesy Tortellini

INGREDIENTS

1 pound tortellini ( store bought)

FOR SAUCE

1/2 stick butter
2 tbs all purpose flour
1/4 cup parmesan cheese
1/4 cup mozzarella cheese
1-1/2 cup milk
pinch of black pepper powder and salt


1/4 cup mix of both cheeses for topping ( mozzarella + parmesan)

METHOD

.

Cook tortellini according to package directions , and keep aside

.

Boil milk in a sauce pan and keep aside

.

Melt butter on low heat , add flour , mix well and cook until raw smell of flour gone may be a min or 2

( make sure not to brown the flour )

.

Wisk hot milk in to flour and butter mixture with out any lumps

.

Now add both the cheeses and melt on low flame until sauce is thick ( u can add more milk if the sauce is too thick)

.

Add a pinch of pepper powder and salt , mix well

.

Preheat oven to 350

.

Place cooked tortellini in a baking tray , pour cheese sauce over pasta , sprinkle

remaining cheeses and bake for 20 min or until golden on top

.

Done

Gongura Pacchadi

INGREDIENTS

2 cups gongura leaves
1 small lemon size tamarind
1/2 onion chopped
salt

1 tbs oil
4 dry red chillis
1 tbs coriander seeds
1 tbs cumin seeds
1/2 tsp methi seeds

3tbs oil
1 tbs chanadal
1 tbs urad dal
1 tsp cumin seeds and musturd seeds
2 sprigs curry leaves
1 dry red chiili
3 cloves of garlic ( crushed )

METHOD

.

Soak tamarind in 1/2 cup of water for 15 min , extract pulp and cook on low flame for 5 min ,keep aside

.

Heat 1 tbs oil in a pan , add coriander seeds , cumin seeds ,methi seeds and dry red chillis fry on a low flame until golden ,remove in to a plate and keep aside ,

.

Again heat 1 more tsp of oil in a same pan ,add gongura leaves and fry on medium flame for 5min

.

Add all the above ingredients in to a food processer and grind to a smooth paste (tamarind paste , fried gongura leaves ,roasted coriander , cumin and methi seeds ,red chillis and salt )

.

Now for tadka , heat 3 tbs of oil , add cumin seeds , musturd seeds , chanadal ,urad dal , dry red chilli , garlic cloves and curry leaves , roast everything on low flame then add ground gongura paste in to tadka and cook on medium flame for 5 min , remove in to bowl ,add chopped onions and mix well

.

Done , serve with rice and ghee

Pesarapappu Vadalu ( Moongdal Vada)

Ingredients

1 cup whole moong dal
1/2 cup rice flour
Pinch of baking soda

1 cup chopped onions
1 tbs cumin seeds
2 sprigs curry leaves

4 to 5 red chillis
2 inch ginger root
salt

Oil for deep fry

Method

.

Soak whole moong dal overnight ( or) 7 to 8 hours

.

Once moong dal is soft , drain water completely add ginger , red chillis and salt

.

Grind to a coarse paste ( use can use little water to run blender)

.

Now add chopped onions , cumin seeds , curry leaves , rice flour and baking soda, mix well and keep aside
.

Now heat oil in a wide pan ( medium heat ), shape vadas on parchament paper (or) foil ,

.

Dip your fingers in very little water before shaping vadas , so that dough does'nt stick

.

Drop shaped vadas in to oil , fry on low flame until golden

.

DONE, SERVE HOT

Guthi Vankaya Vepudu ( eggplant fry)

INGREDIENTS

8 small indian eggplants
4 tbs oil
1 onion sliced
1 tsp cumin seeds and musturd seeds
cilantro
ghee for serving


Masala powder

1 tbs coriander seeds
1 tbs cumin seeds
1/2 tsp methi seeds
5 to 6 curry leaves
4 dry red chillis
2 tbs oil
salt

Heat 1 tbs oil in a pan add all the masala ingredients , roast on low flame until golden , cool and grind to a fine powder along with salt
.
Add 1 tbs oil to masala powder ,mix well and keep aside

METHOD

.

Clean eggplants with water , pat dry and place them in a pan in 1 layer , drizzle

2 tbs of oil , cover with lid and cook on low flame for 15 min until soft ( turning in the middle with out burning)
.

Once eggplants are cooked completely , remove from pan and let them cool

.

Take cooled eggplants ,slit inthe middle and stuff 1 tsp of masala powder , stuff the remaining masala in to all the eggplants
.

Heat 2 tbs of oil in a pan add cumin seeds and musturd seeds ,add sliced onions

sprinkle a pinch of salt on onions , place stuffed eggpants and roast on low flame for another 15 min

.

Sprinkle with cilantro

.

Serve this with ghee and hot white rice ( ghee is compulsary)

Sour Cream Scones (savory)

Ingredients

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp black pepper powder
2 tablespoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
5 tablespoons butter, cubed
1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup heavy cream (or) egg wash for color

METHOD
.
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

.
In a food processor, pulse flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and black pepper together

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Add the cubed butter until a coarse meal forms

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Pulse in the sour cream

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Turn the sticky dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until the dough comes together into a ball

.

Gently pat the dough down into a 3/4 inch thick square shape , With a large knife cut the dough square into 4 smaller, equal squares. Then cut each smaller square diagonally, with an X, making 4 smaller triangles

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Transfer the 16 triangles in to parchment lined baking sheet

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Brush the tops of each scone with heavy cream (or) egg wash

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Bake in preheated oven for 12 to 14 minutes until the bottoms of the scones are light brown

.
Remove from oven, cool slightly on the sheet pan and then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.