Ganesh Chaturdhi...

It's almost been a week we all have celebrated Ganesh Chaturdhi and festival is coming to an end with Ganesh Nimarjana too.We celebrated Ganesh Chaturdhi in a big way with couple of guests and lots of recipes too.

Behalf of Ganesha's birthday it was a very auspicious day for me as it was my Grand Mother's birthday too...

Like every year I have made a Idol of Ganesh using Clay.It came out verywell than the last year one. I thought of Putting some clothes to him this year so got a satin ribbon from Dollar Store and made a dress with it...

Here comes my Ganesha Pics...

It took me two days to make Ganesha.Usually I will be on fasting when I'm making Ganesha.

He was all set for the pooja.

Used Chop sticks for making the palavilli and covered it with some decorative garlands got from Dollar tree.

After the Pooja...

I made Boorelu, Undraalu, Pulihora as Prasad for Lord Ganesha.

This Ganesha Idol was made last year..2008

  

Churma Laddu

This is my first time of making this Churma Laddu.They came out very well.

Ingredients

1 cup wheat flour
1/4 cup grated dry coconut
2 Tbs sesame seeds
1/2 cup jaggery, grated
3 Tbs ghee
Butter
poppy seeds
Ghee for deep frying

1. Make a stiff dough of the whole wheat flour using 1/2 cup of water.
2. Divide the dough into equal portions.

3. Now make a nice chapati and cut them in to Biscuits.
5. Heat a pan with Butter and fry Biscuits till they fry well. Remove them from the Oil. Keep them aside.
6. Grind the Biscuits to a nice powder.
7. Add 1 Tbs Butter to the pan and fry coconut and Sesame seeds for few minutes.
8. Add Jaggrey to the Powder mixture and Grind it well. Mix Coconut powder and Seasme to it.
9. Heat a pan With 1 tbs of butter and add the mixture to the pan and mix them well till it becomes thick.

10. Now take little butter to you hand and mixture to form laddu.

11. Sprinkle Poppy seeds on the Laddu.

Wheat Idli's

Source : Own

Ingredients

1 Cup of Cracked Wheat

1 Cup Curd

1/2 of Grated Carrot

1/2 cup grated Coconut

1/2 cup of finely chopped Onion

2 Green Chili's

1 Tbs Grated Ginger

Salt for Taste

Seasoning

2 Tbs Butter

1 Tbs Mustard

1 Tbs Jeera

1 Tbs Chana Dal

3 Tbs of finely chopped Kaaju (Cashews)

Little Finely chopped curry leaves

1. Mix Craked wheat with Curd and soak it overnight.

2. Add Carrot, Coconut, Onions , Chilis , Ginger and Salt to it. Keep it aside.

3. Heat pan with Butter and add Chana Dal, Kaaju, Jeera, Mustard,Curry leaves to it.

4. Fry them and add the seasoning to the Wheat Mixture.

5. Put the mixture in Idli Plates to steam them.

6. Place them in a Pressure cooker and once it's done serve it hot with nice chutney.

  

Tomato Drumstick Rice

Source : Own

Ingredients

2 Cups of Rice (Basmati)

3 Tomatos

1 Cup chopped Onion

10 Pieces of Drumsticks

1 Tbs Ginger Garlic Paste

6 Javantri ( Mase)

1 Bay Leaf

2 Cardmon

Small piece of Cinnamon

1 Tbs of Garam Masala Powder

Cilantro for garnishing

Salt for taste

Oil

Seasoning

11/2 Tbs Mustard

11/2 Jeera

3 Red Chili

Oil

1. Heat a pan with 1 Tbs of oil add masala ingrediants Bay leaf , Cardmon, Javantri and Cinommon and lightly fried them.

2. Pressure Cook rice along with the Masala Ingrdiants and keep it aside.

3.Now heat a pan with 1 Tbs oil add the seasoing to the pan and fry them till the mustard splutters.

4. Add Ginger Garlic paste to the pan and fry few minutes. Now add Onion to the pan and fry them till they turnlight brown.

5. Add Tomatos and Drumsticks and close the pan with a lid.

6. Once the veggies are cooked add the Garam Masala Powder and salt to them.

7. Cook the whole mixture for few minute and add to the cooked rice.

8. Mix well the veggie Mixture with rice and garnish it with nicley chopped Cilantro.

* Serve with Raita

  

Thokudu Laddu | Bandaru Laddu | Besan Laddu

Bandaru Laddu or Thokudu Laddu was orginated from a place in Andhra Pradesh "Machilipatnam". Machilipatnam is also called "Bandar". I would be very happy to mention that it was my birth place too. This ladoo is a little different from the besan ladoo, still the ingredients are same. 

Source: Mom

Ingredients

1 Cup besan (Makes around 10 laddu's)

1 Cup sugar

2 Tsp elachi powder

Butter

Cashew for dressing

Oil for deep frying

1. Make besan to a fine paste.

2. Take a Wide pan and heat enough oil to fry the besan balls.

3. I used my grating plate to prepare balls.

4. Fry them till they turn Yellow.

7. Grind it to a nice powder along with sugar and Elachi.

8. Heat a pan with low heat and add the besan mixture to it.

9. Slowly the sugar will become thick to form a laddu.Switch off heat. 

10. Now take little melted butter and make the mixture to nice laddu.

Note: 
The mixture might be very hot so handle with care. 

  

Upma Pesarattu (Upma with Green Gram Dosa)

Pesarattu is a famous breakfast in Andhra. Adding Upma to dosa will give a nice taste to your buds.

Ingrediants

For Dosa

1 Cup Pesalu ( Green Gram)

2 Cups Rice

5 Tbs Jeera ( Cumin)

4 Green Chili

Small Piece of Ginger

Salt for taste

Upma

1Cup Sooji
2Cups water

1Cup onion chopped

1/2Cup green beans

2Green chili

1Tbs Mustard

1Tbs Jeera

2Tbs oil

Few curry leaves

Salt for taste

1. Heat a pan with oil add Mustard and jeera to it.Once the Mustard starts spluttering add the onion to it.

2. Fry them for few seconds add Greenbeans and Salt too it. Close the pan with a lid for few seconds.

3. Now add 2 cups of water to the pan and add the sooji slowly by stirrig the water continously.

4. Close it with a lid and let it cook in a low heat till it's cooked.

Garnish upma with Curry leaves.

Chutney

1/2 Cup Fried Chick Peas ( Putnala Pappu or Veyinchina Senaga Pappu)

1/2 Cup Coconut

2Green Chili

1 Tbs Mustard

1 Tbs Jeera

2 Tbs Oil

Salt for taste

1. Grind Chick Peas, Coconut and Chili's to nice paste. Add salt for taste.

2. Heat a Pan with oil and add Mustard, Jeera and Red Chili's. Once the Mustard splutters add the whole seasoning to the chutney.

Source : Mom

For Dosa

1. Soak Pesalu ( Green Gram) & Rice overnight.

2. Grind Pesalu (Green Gram), Rice, Jeera, Green Chili, and Ginger to a smooth paste like dosa batter. ( I prefer using the batter the next day so that it ferments well)

3. Heat a Pan with oil spread all sides. Take batter and spread it in round shape like a circle on the pan.

4. Brush little oil to the ends of dosa.Now reverse the dosa to the other side and let it be like that for few seconds.

5. You can stuff dosa with Upma or can Sprinkle chopped onion, Green chili to it and fold it to middle as shown in the snap.

* Serve it with Upma and chutney..

Ulava Charu | Horse Gram Rasam | Hurali Saaru | Kollu Rasam

Ulava charu is a Andhra delicacy. This dish is much known & enjoyed in Guntur & Krishna districts of Andhra Pradesh. The actual preparation of this dish, which is made in villages, is very tedious & time consuming. But you can just pressure cook them make this rich & tasty rasam filled with flavors.
I added rasam powder to this rasam as a twist to it. This dish turned to be spicy & appetizing.

Prep Time - 8hrs for soaking + 15min | Cooking Time - 30mins | Serves - 4people

Ingredients

1/2Cup ulavalu {horse gram}
3Cups water

1Cup sliced onion

2Tomatoes chopped

2Green chili's slit in to half
1Tsp rasam powder
1/4Tsp turmeric
1/2Tsp red chili powder {adjust as needed}

1Tbs tamarind pulp 

1Tsp sugar {adjust as needed}
Few curry leaves

Salt to taste

Seasoning

1Tsp mustard

1Tsp jeera {cumin}
2Red chili cut in half

2Garlic cloves chopped

1Tbs butter/oil 

Directions 

- Soak lentils overnight. 
- Pressure cook them with water for 2whistles. Switch off heat & allow to cool. 
- Filter water from lentils & discard cooked lentils. 
- Heat a pan & add lentils water to it. 
- Add onions , tomatoes, green chili's & curry leaves to it. 
- Close it with a lid & cook it on low heat. 
- After 10mins of cooking add rasam powder, turmeric, red chili powder, tamarind pulp, sugar & salt. 
- Adjust flavors if needed.
- Cook on low heat for another 5mins & switch off heat. 
- Heat pan with butter. To that add mustard, jeera, red chili's & garlic. 
- Once the mustard starts jumping switch off heat & add it to rasam.
Note
- Adjust the spice level as needed.
- You can totally omit red chili powder if the green chili's are spice enough. 
- You can omit rasam powder from the recipe.
- I like adding sugar to balance the flavors. Using it won't make rasam sweet. 

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Thotakura Pulusu | Amaranth Leaves Pulusu

Source: Grand Mother

Ingredients

2 Cups of Thotakura ( Amaranth Leaves)

1/2 cup of Chana Dal

1 Cup Chopped Onion

2 Green Chili

Salt for taste

1 Tbs Sugar

3 Tbs Tamarind

Pulusu Powder

Methi Seeds

Corriander Seeds

2 Red Chili

Seasoning

1 Tbs Mustard

1 Tbs Jeera

1 Red Chili

Pinch of Hing (Asafoetida)

2 Tbs Oil

How to Make It ???

1. Dry Roast Methi, Corriander and red chili. Grind them to powder and keep them aside.

2. Heat pan with Oil and add onions and fry them till they turn Brown.Fry the leaves for 2 minutes and keep them aside.

3. Pressure cook chana dal and Green chili or you can Microwave them for 10 Mins.

4 Now add Onions, Leaves, cooked Chana dal , Green Chili and 2 cups of water to a vessel.

5. Boil them along with Grinded Powder, Tamarind, Salt and Sugar.Let it cook till it becomes a thick gravy ( You can even add Besan Mixture to make it thick).

7. Heat pan and add all the seasonings to it and fry them well. Add it to the Pulusu and Thotakura Pulusu is ready.

* Serve with Rice and Idli's. Tastes really good.

  

Mysore Sambar

Source : Mom

Ingredients

1/2 cup Toor Dal (Kandi Pappu)

1 cup of sliced Onion

1 cup of Sliced Tomato

1 cup of roundly diced Mooli (Radish)

4 Pieces of DrumSticks

3 Tbs of Tamarind paste

Pinch of Turmeric Powder

Salt for taste

1 Tbs Sugar

For Sambar Powder

1/2 Tbs Chana Dal

1/2 Tbs Urad Dal

1 Tbs Dhaniya (Coriander seeds)

1/2 Tbs Jeera (Cumin Seeds)

count of 5 Methi Seeds (Fenugreek)

1 Tbs Miriyalu ( Black Pepper Seeds)

3 Red Chili's

4 Tbs Fresh coconut Powder

Seasoning

1/2 Tbs Mustard

1/2 Tbs Jeera (Cumin Seeds)

2 Red chili's

Hing (Asafoetida)

Curry Leaves

4 Tbs oil

1.Pressure cook Toor dal, Drumsticks and keep them aside.

2. Heat a pan. Add all the Sambar powder spices except Coconut to the pan and fry them till they turn brown.

3. Now grind the Fried spices and Coconut Powder together in to a paste.Keep it aside.

4. Heat a pan with 2 Tbs oil and add the Onions, Tomatoes and Mooli to it.Fry them till they are cooked well.

5. Add the cooked veggies ,Turmeric,Tamarind,Salt and Sugar to the Toordal Mixture.

6 Boil it in a low flame for few minutes and add the grinded spice mixture to it.

7. Let it boil for 10 to 15 mins or till a nice aroma comes from the sambar.

8. Now heat a pan with oil and add Mustard,Jeera, Red Chili's, and Hing. Add Curry leaves to the pan when Mustard starts spluttering.Add the seasoning to the Sambar and Mysore Sambar is ready.

* Serve with Rice. Tastes Delicious.