Pumpkin Pound Cake - For Blog Hop Wednesdays

This week for blog hop I was supposed to cook from Deepali of Confusion Cook. She has a simple but beautiful space. I decided to bake her banana pound cake with some modifications. I had pumpkin at home. So I decided to replace pumpkin instead of banana.




 
Original recipe is here.

Ingredients:

Sifted Cake flour - 1 3/4 cup [ See Note ]

Butter - 1/2 cup

Eggs - 2

Sugar - 1 cup

Pumpkin puree - 1 1/4 cup

Baking powder - 1 tsp

Baking soda - 3/4 tsp

Salt - 1/4 tsp

Vanilla extract - 1 tsp 

Cinnamon powder/ Pumpkin Spice - 1/4 tsp


Preparation:

1. Sieve the dry ingredients thrice and keep it aside.

2. Cream butter and sugar. Add vanilla extract and mix well.

3. Add one egg each at a time and beat well for 1 min.

4. Add 3 tbsp flour at a time and fold in.

5. Add pumpkin puree and stir well.

6. Grease a baking tray and bake at 180 deg C for 40 - 45 min. My oven took 40 min exactly.




7. Cool, Invert and serve.

 






Notes:

1). Cake flour is:

Maida - 1 cup

Corn flour - 2 tbsp

Remove 2 tbsp maida and add cornflour 2 tbsp and sift it. This is cake flour.

2). To make pumpkin puree at home:

Remove seeds and skin of pumpkin. Cut into cubes,

Grind well in a mixie. Pumpkin puree is ready.

You can use this puree for halwa preparation too and no need to grate pumpkin.

Dates Amla juice

My DH will consume dates as well as amla daily. One day amla was little sour and he asked me prepare it as a juice for him. Woowwwww. It came out excellent.Consuming dates and amla is very good for health for iron content.

Ingredients:

Amla - 1

Dates - 2 - seed variety

Brown sugar - 2 tbsp - preferred

Water to grind.

Preparation:

1. In a jar, add amla, dates and brown sugar. Grind it for  10 sec.

2. After it is well grounded, add some water to the jar and grind it again.

3. When it becomes a fine paste, remove and extract juice from the grounded one.

4. Pour it in a glass tumbler and serve. Consume as soon as possible.

Peanuts Chutney - Kongunadu style

Peanut chutney is my favorite and to my DH too. We will prepare this dish often in home.



Ingredients:

Peanuts - 1/2 cup

Small onions - 2 cup

Red chillies - 2

Curry leaves - few

Jeera - 1 tsp

Coriander seeds/ powder - 1 1/2 tbsp

Oil - 1 tbsp

Salt

Soaked Tamarind - 3 pods

Coconut - 1/2 cup [ optional] I don't use it.

Preparation:

1. Heat kadai, add onions and oil.

2. Saute till onions are well cooked.

3. Add red chillies and curry leaves and fry for 1 min.

4. Simmer the flame and add jeera. Saute for 30 sec.

5. Add coriander powder/ seeds and saute in simmer flame for 1 min.

6. Cool, add peanuts and coconut.

7. Grind in adding soaked tamarind and salt.

8. Serve with idly and rice.

Baby Potato Roast

Baby potato roast is a favorite recipe in our home. We used to prepare this often using either baby potatoes or normal big potatoes.




Ingredients:

Baby potatoes - 1/2 kg

Salt

Fry in ghee/oil and grind to a powder coarsely:

Red chillies - 4

Coriander seeds -  2 tbsp

Gram Dhal - 2 tbsp

Hing - 1/2 tsp

Roasted peanuts/ grated Coconut  - 2 tbsp (add at last and switch it off). [optional]

To temper:

Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp

Oil - 4 tbsp

Preparation:

1. Boil potatoes with salt. Cook potatoes such that they should be boiled well, firm and not soft.

2. Peel the skin and prick each potatoes with fork.

3. Heat oil in a kadai and temper.

4. Add potatoes, haldi and required powder and simmer the flame.

5. Saute till potatoes are crisp and brown on the top.

6. Serve with curd rice, Sambhar rice, Rotis..

Phulkas - Fluffy Rotis

Phulkas can be easily prepared at home. I use only wheat flour for this phulkas. And some add milk for dough preparation, but I didn't. You need a phulka ring for this roti preparation. It costs just 25 Rupees.



Here comes the recipe:

Ingredients:

Wheat Flour - 1 cup

Salt

Oil - for brushing

Phulka Ring:



Preparation:

1. Knead flour along with salt sprinkling little water to a soft dough. Leave it for 1/2 hour.

2. Make small balls ( Make balls so that it fits phulka ring).

3. Spread a thin sheet.




4. Heat tava and place the phulkas on the hot tava.

5. Cook till bubbles arise from both sides of the phulkas.



6. Transfer immediately to the phulka ring which is placed on the stove top.

7. Keep in High flame when you transfer the phulkas.

8. When pluff up, turn on the other side and wait for 5 sec and remove.



9. If needed, Can brush it with oil.

10. Serve with Paneer Butter Masala, Mutter Paneer.

Banana Cake - A perfect Moist cake

I have tried banana cake before, but this has less butter. As bananas were overripe at home and this made me to bake this banana cake. I have bookmarked this recipe sometime long before. But something has lagged me. This time I really don't want to miss it and tried this cake. Woo ow, moist and delicious.

Recipe Source: Cooking and Me

I add some more sugar to the recipe.




Ingredients:

Maida - 3/4 cup

Melted Butter - 1/4 cup

Sugar - 1 cup

Egg - 1

Mashed banana - 3/4 cup

Buttermilk - 2 tbsp

Baking powder - 1 1/2 tsp

Baking soda - 1/2 tsp

Salt - 1/4 tsp

Vanilla extract - 1 tsp

Preparation:

1. Sieve dry ingredients and keep aside.

2. Stir in mashed banana and melted butter well. Use wooden spatula to stir the batter to yield best results.

3. Stir in sugar, buttermilk, egg and vanilla one by one.

4. Stir in sifted flour to the wet ingredients.

5. Transfer to a greased baking pan and bake at 180 deg C for 30 min.



6. Cool for 5 min. and invert.

Sending this to Vardhini's Bake fest:

Coconut Chutney

Ingredients:


Pottukadalai/ Fried gram - 1/2 cup

Green chillies - 2

Curry leaves - few

Ginger - 1"

Coriander leaves - few

Salt

To temper:

Oil - 1/2 tbsp


Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp

Urad dhal - 1 tsp

Gram dhal - 1/2 tsp

Curry leaves

Method:

1. In  a grinder, add the above all ingredients to a fine paste.

2. Transfer it into a bowl.

3. Heat oil in a kadai and temper with the given ingredients.

4. Serve with idli, dosas.


Variations:

1. Can add roasted peanuts instead of fried gram.

Potato Fry - My style

This potato fry is my style of recipe. I always prepare this recipe for curd rice, sambhar rice and mostly for chappathi or rotis.


My version of the recipe:

Ingredients:

Potato - 4 - big

Oil - 4 tbsp

Mustard seeds - 1 tsp

Sambhar powder - 1 tbsp

Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp

Salt

Method:

1. Wash potatoes and chop it fine.

2. Heat oil in a kadai, add mustard seeds and wait till it splutters.

3. Add potatoes and simmer the flame.

4. Add salt, turmeric powder and sambhar powder.

5. Cook in low flame till potatoes are well cooked and roasted well.

6. Serve with curd rice, Sambhar rice...

Vaangi Bhath / Brinjal Rice

I have tried some recipes of vangibhath, but they all didn't reach my taste. I got this recipe while surfing some blog. But i haven't noted the blog address. Please apologize me for that "Y" person.

Here comes the recipe:

Ingredients:

Brinjal - 100 gms

Basmati/ Ordinary rice - 1 cup

Onion - 1 medium - chop fine

Red chilli - 3

Curry leaves - few

Tamarind juice - 1 tbsp

Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp

Vangibhath powder - 2 tbsp

Salt

To temper:

Oil - 1 tbsp

Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp

Gram dhal - 1/2 tsp

Urad dhal - 1 tsp

Vangibhath powder:

Dry roast and grind to a fine powder:

Red chillies - 2

Coriander seeds - 1 tsp

Khus Khus - 1/4 tsp

Urad dhal - 1 tsp

Gram dhal - 1 tsp

Grated coconut - 1/2 tsp (optional) or you can add it directly add it to the rice.

Cinnamon - 1"

Cloves - 2

Sesame seeds - 1/4 tsp

Hing - 1/4 tsp

Method:

1. Cook the rice and allow it cool.

2. Heat oil in a kadai and temper with the given ingredients.

3. Add chopped onions, red chillies and curry leaves and cook till tender.

4. Slice brinjal lengthwise and add it.

5. Add turmeric powder, tamarind juice, grated coconut and salt.

6. Cook brinjals till done.

7. Add vangibhath powder and cooked rice to the kadai and add it well blended.

8. Serve with raitha/ papad.

Coconut semolina cake – A Traditional Goan Cake

This week my blog hop friend is Archana of Mad scientists Kitchen. She has a wonderful collection of recipes. From her recipes I choose Coconut Semolina Cake for blog hop. This recipe was unique and I didn’t came across such a combination of rava and coconut in a cake. This tempted me to try this recipe.

The cake was moist and looks mashy as rava is added. I took two slices of this cake which made my tummy full. Has coconut crunchiness in it.

 

Original recipe is here.

I made few alterations to the recipe.

Ingredients:

Grated coconut – 2 cups

Rava – 1 cup

Sugar – 1 cup

Butter – ¾ cup

Maida – 2 tbsp

Egg – 3

Baking powder – 1 tsp

Vanilla essence – 1 tsp

Cardamom powder – ¼ tsp

Salt – a pinch

Preparation:

1. Grind coconut along with tender coconut water and cardamom powder and keep it aside.

2. Separate egg whites and egg yolks and beat them separately.

3. Add all the dry ingredients and mix well.

4. In a bowl, Cream butter and sugar.

5. Add egg yolks, grounded coconuts and mix well.

6. Add egg yolks followed by egg whites.

7. Add vanilla essence.

8. Add flour, baking powder, salt, maida and Rava.

9. Leave it for 6 – 7 hrs.

10. Grease the pan and pour this in oven.

11. Bake in oven @ 180 deg C for 45 min. My oven took 50 min.

 

12. Cool and then cut into slices.

 

 

 Linking this cake to vardhini's Bake Fest.

Paruppu Vada / Lentil Fritters

Paruppu vada/ Lentil fritters is commonly prepared vada in kongunadu region. Here vada paruppu will be seen in stores and this is used for vada preparation. You can else use gram dhal.

Here comes the recipe:

Ingredients:

Vada paruppu vada/ Gram dhal - 1 cup

Onion - 1 medium - chop very fine

Curry leaves - few - chop very fine

Coriander leaves - few - chop very fine

Oil


Grind to a fine paste:

Ginger - 2"

Cinnamon - 1"

Cloves - 2

Jeera - 1 tsp

Red chillies - 4

Salt

Method:

1. Wash, drain and soak vada paruppu/ gram dhal for 1 - 2 hrs.

2. Drain water fully and grind coarsely without adding any water.

3. Add the above paste to the grounded paste.

4. As well as add onions, curry leaves and coriander leaves. Check for salt and karam. If karam required, can add red chilli powder.

5. Make small balls and keep it aside.

6. Heat oil in a kadai. When hot, place the ball on the center of the hand and press it slightly with the other hand and drop it in oil.

7. Turn upside down in oil after it is cooked on one side and remove when golden brown.

Pesarattu - Reposting

"Reposting Pesarattu for Priya's Cooking with Moong beans .

Here is my Pesarattu recipe. 

Sending it to Priya of Easy N Tasty recipes for Cooking with Moong beans event.

Santhagai/ Idiyappam

Santhagai is a famous recipe in kongunadu areas. It will be cooked often when a guest arrives at home. It can be tasted as sweet and as well as karam. In kongu nadu region, people will use a special aid for this santhagai. It will be used only for santhagai preparation. See how it looks like:

Here comes the recipe:

Ingredients:

Idly rice - 2 cups


Method:

1. Wash, drain and soak rice in water for about 1 - 2 hrs.

2. Drain water and grind rice in a mier grinder pouring little water into a nice thick and not too loose batter.

3. Steam them in idli plates. Check whether idli's are cooked by inserting a skewer into the idli's and check if it comes out clean.

4. Meanwhile, brush with oil to the "santhagai maram" and keep it ready by placing a bowl under it.

5. Add steam cooked Idli's to the container in the centre and gently roll it. You will get a soft spongy sandhagai coming down the press. See picture.

Rolling by my DH:

Santhagai coming down after it was rolled on the top:

6. Likewise, Press all the steam cooked idli's and make it as sandhagai. Collect it all in one bowl.


For the sweet version:

Santhagai - required amount

Sugar - as per taste

Ripe Banana - 1

Mi all these and have it.

For the karam version:

Sandhagai - required amount

Onion - 2 - chop fine

Green Chillies - 2

Curry leaves - few

Tomatoes - 3 - chop fine

Oil - 2 tbsp

Salt

Lemon juice - 1/2 of lime

Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp

To temper:

Mustard Seeds - 1/2 tsp

Urad dhal - 1 tsp

Gram dhal - 1/2 tsp


Preparation:

1. Heat oil in a kadai and temper with the given ingredients.

2. Add onions, green chillies and curry leaves and cook till onion turns pinkish.

3. Add tomatoes and cook till mashy.

4. Add salt and mix well.

5. Add sandhagai and simmer the flame.

6. Mix well till it well blends.

7. Add lemon juice and mix well till well blended.

8. Serve hot.

Variations for the karam version:

1. Can add lemon juice and can prepare lemon sevai.

2. Can add tamarind juice and can prepare tamarind sevai.

Variations for the sweet version:

1. Can extract coconut milk from 1 cup coconut. Get first, second and third milk. Mix required sugar and a pinch of cardamom powder and boil in a high flame. Stir it continuously  till it get foams in the top. If you let it to boil, it will curdles. So be aware.