Happy Sankranthi- Ariselu

Sankranthi Subhakankshalu

Sankranthi Special: Ariselu

Ariselu is a popular Andhra sweet for Sankranthi(a harvest festival celebrated mainly in South India) prepared with newly harvested rice and jaggery. Ariselu is also one of the many things i miss during Sankranthi, but now not anymore. Even though i didn't get new and fresh ingredients i managed to get the flavour. I said i made ariselu to couple of friends and they all said 'Hey aren't they tough'??Actually i also questioned myself several times before. But really i didn't find any difficulty and also took very less time compared with other sweets. The one thing we have to be careful with is the jaggery syrup cosistency.
Also another doubt is that we need some special instrument to squeeze the oil after the ariselu is deep fried , and believe me just two flat laddles will do the work.
so why late??

Ingredients

2 cups rice
approx 3 cups water
2 cups jaggery
1/2 cup sesame seeds
1/2 cup shredded coconut
oil for deep frying
also keep rice flour handy.

Preparation

Soak the rice in water overnight or for 7-8 hrs. Drain the rice and dry the rice on a cotton cloth for about 1/2 hr-1 hr, so that the cloth will absorb any remaining water. Grind the rice into a fine powder by swifting the flour. Prepare jaggery syrup. The syrup should be thick and if you place a drop of syrup in water it should not dissolve immediately and you should see thread forming. Then slowly add flour, coconut and 1/4 cup sesame seeds. Keep stirring to avoid lumps. The texture should come somewhat like a chapati dough. If you think the mixture is semi-solid, add some rice flour. Now Cool the mixture for sometime. Make small balls from the mixture. Apply oil to your hand and to the surface( i prefer plastic wrap or parchment cooking paper). Place sesame seeds on the surface and flatten the balls. Fry them in oil over medium heat. After the discs turn golden color remove the discs and press hardly between two laddles to squeeze extra oil(ariselu normally absorb oil when fried).
Store the cool fried ariselu in a container and can enjoy for long time if not finished.

This time i prepared ariselu in hurry so can't able to click more photos. Check kodali's version for more photos and for some more info.

Corn and Coconut

This month's jihva ingredient hosted by ashwini made me think so much as i want to try something new for myself and in that process i got late( as usual).

In India, Coconut is given so much importance in everyday life. It is someting considered as 'Holy' and is offered to God. One of the reasons is that the water in the coconut is untouched and so it is pure. But in US it is hard to find good and tender coconut. Also another thing concerned about coconut is its nutritional values. Keeping those stories beside i very much enjoy the taste of coconut in any form..in curries,chutney,burfi or eating raw.

I came across this curry at a friend's party and i liked the combination of corn and coconut. The sweetness of corn and crunchiness of coconut gives a unique taste. Also it is simple to prepare.




Ingredients:

Corn kernels(cooked)
Shredded Coconut
Light Fried Okra(optional)
One small onion chopped
Curry leaves and tadka/sesaoning ingredients
Chillies
Salt and chilli powder


Preparation:

Take oil in a pan and do the tadka/seasoning. Saute the onions and chillies. Add corn,fried okra,coconut and saute for sometime until the water is evaporated. Add salt and chilli powder. Serve hot with rotis. Also we can enjoy as a salad or as a evening snack by adding lime juice.

Happy New Year

To all Friends and visitors....


Wishing you and your family a New Year filled with new hope, new joy and new beginnings.

Happy holidays

Thanks sra and many other friends for inquiring about my absence these days. My son's school,birthday party ,LasVegas trip and many more reasons for not paying attention to this favourite hobby of mine. Anyway iam back to rejuvenate my blogging.

And I start with fun filled cookies perfect for this holiday season. Actually I prepared this cookies for halloween celebrations but somehow i got lazy and didn't posted at that time.
This recipe is adapted from a book called 'Mrs Field's 101 cookies". I am really inspired by this woman who takes time to cook and formulate new varieties apart from taking care of her big family. It is indeed a very tough task. Kudos to you Mrs.Fields.
Her cookies are simple to make yet very rich in flavour and Jam filled cookies is one such example.

Jam Filled Cookies.

Ingredients:
3/4 cup softened butter
1/2 cup sugar
2 egg yolks
1 tsp vanilla essence
1 and 1/2 cup all purpose flour
Any jam (i used strawberry jam)

Preparation:

In a bowl mix butter and sugar. Then add egg yolks and vanilla. Beat with electric mixer until the mixture becomes light and fluffy. Add the flour and mix thoroughly.
Wrap the dough tightly in a plastic bag and refigerate for 1 hr. Using a rolling pin flatten the dough to 1/4 inch thickness.

Cut circles with a cookie cutter and place 1/2 of them on a baking sheet. Now drop approx 1/2 tsp of jam in the center of each cookie disk. Top with another cookie disk. Seal the edges of two cookies with a fork.

Bake in a oven of 325 F for 15 min or until the edges begin to brown. Very easy..isn't it? and the end result is very satisfying cookies perfect for holidays esp kids like them a lot. Happy cooking.

Jam filled cookies

Top 5 foods i like in my life

Thanks sra for tagging me for this meme(actual name is Top 5 things to eat before you die). Iam excited to sort out top 5 things but makes me difficult to think about life. It is not easy to pick only 5 from numerous favourites, anyhow i tried and here they are

1. Payasam made by my Mother: No calorie counting and no diet. Made with fresh and fat milk, with exact amounts of rice and sweetner(jaggery) my mother prepares this on birthdays and festivals. Eventhough i prepare this at home the taste is of no match. I even have emotional bonding to this sweet that my mother prepared this on my final coming out from my paternal home and i bursted into tears while eating. I laugh sometimes thinking about that but still payasam remains my top favourite.

2. Mango: Even now i crave for this fruit. Summers are sweet for me with this fruit. Not only ripe mangoes i like eating raw mangoes topped with salt and chilli powder shared with my sister and brother. There are even days that i ate only mangoes for breakfast and lunch.

3. Fish Curry: Fish cooked in tamarind sauce eating with hot rice on rainy day..ah what a joy.

4. Fruit of Palmyra Palm: The palmyra palm trees are most important trees in India and is widely grown in our grandmothers region in EastGodavari District. Just like coconut, this fruit also has thick juice in it usually in three compartments in the fruit and we have to slurp with the help of fingers. It is fun to eat and enjoy.

5. Poori/Batura: It is my favourite restaurant breakfast esp in India. I don't know how they puff so perfectly, seeing them from distance itself makes me hungry.

and so on...

Dasara Celebrations- Kajjikayalu and Boorelu

Being in Vijayawada famous for Durga temple, the Festive season for me starts from Dasara to Deepavali(diwali). Vijayawada city will become more colorful with bright lights and with devotees coming from various parts of the country.
When i am at college i used to go daily passing by the hill, seeing the Goddess in the temple below and the Krishna river. In a way Dasara brings all those memories back.
Holding all those memories i also did a little participation in celebrating the festival here by preparing Poornam boorelu and Kajjikayalu. Also this year Dasara is special for me as it was anish's first day of school.

I prepared kajjikayalu for first time seeing the post by sailaja. May be i added more ghee than specified in the dough, i didn't get that crispy texture. But i liked it and surely will prepare again.

Another sweet my husband likes a lot is Poornam Boorelu.

Regarding boorelu i always had this misconception that it is difficult to prepare and only experienced people can do, but actually it is easy.

Ingredients:
1 cup urad dal soaked for 5 hrs
1 and 1/2 cups rice flour
1 cup chana dal soaked
Jaggery
1/4 cup shredded fresh coconut
1 tsp salt
1 tsp cardamom powder

Preparation:
Pressure cook chanadal with 1/4 cup water. Add enough jaggery, coconut and cardamom powder to the cooked chanal dal and mix. Make small balls with this mixture and keep aside. Grind urad dal into fine paste and add rice flour, salt to it. The batter should be like pancake batter but little bit thick. Dip each chanadal ball into the batter and with spoon carefully dip the ball coated with urad dal batter into the hot oil and fry until the ball becomes golden color. Can stay fresh for a week if not finished.

Cabbage curry with peas

I don't like cabbage but sometimes i left with no option but to cook and eat with a grim face. I ate this version of cabbage and peas in my friend's house and i like it. Now the way i look at cabbage has changed.

Cabbage with baby peas

Ingredients:
1/2 of medium cabbage, chopped
1 cup frozen baby peas or boiled peas.
3,4 green chillies slit lenghtwise.
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
Salt and redchilli powder
For seasoning/tadka:
1 tsp mustard seeds,cumin seeds,chana dal,urad dal and 2 red chillies


Preparation:
In a botton sauce pan..add 2 tsp of oil and chopped cabbage, place the lid on and cook on medium heat until the cabbage becomes trasparent and tender. In another pan,add oil and fry all the seasoning ingredients. Add green chillies, peas and cabbage. Add salt and red chilli powder. Cook for sometime. Cabbage peas curry is done. Goes well with rice and rotis.

A little about me - meme

Thanks Madhu for tagging me. It is really exciting to dig myself, also a good opportunity to explore other bloggers.

I am Thinking about: How to write this meme...
I said: Hey Anish(My son)Play with toys, let me see the computer
I Want to : be recognised.
I wish: my dreams come true.
I regret: that iam thinking too much.
I hear: my neighbour's A/C sound.
I am: complex human being .
I dance : when no one is around.
I sing: to good tune.
I cry: when i hurt deeply
I am not: good at organising and memorize things unlike my husband.
I am with my hands: household work, cooking, eating and typing on keyboard.
I write: random designs on my son's doodle pad.
I confuse: dondakaya(tindora, Ivy gourd) to bendakaya(Okra) and many more.
I need : Real Magic wand.
I Tag : vineela,menutoday