Rasam

Rasam is a thin broth that can be drunk as soup or eaten with rice. It is rather spicy and makes a nice hot drink with a warm sensation from the spices.

Ingredients:
1 big tomato (chop into small cubes)
1 onion chopped
4 cloves garlic, crushed
4 green chillies, chopped
1 lemon-sized ball of tamarind
1 tsp mustard seeds
10 curry leaves
½ tsp Turmeric powder
1 tsp Rasam powder
½ tbsps oil
Salt to taste

Method:
Extract the pulp of tamarind by soaking it in a cup of hot water.
Heat the oil in a pan and splutter the mustard seeds.Add the curry leaves,onions,green chilies,garlic and fry it for a minute.Now add the tomatoes, tamrind water,rasam pwd,salt to taste and simmer for 15 minutes.
Serve hot with rice.

Channa Pulao (Chickpea Rice)

Ingredients:
1cup basmati rice
1 cup kabuli channa
3 onions
3 cloves
1 bay leaf
1/2 bunch coriander leaves
salt to taste
ghee to fry
For Masala:
1 onion
3 cloves garlic
1 bunch coriander leaves
Method:
Soak channa overnight in water.Chop onions finely.
Clean and wash rice and soak in water for a few minutes.
Heat ghee in a pan add cloves,bay leaf,onions and saute. Add rice and fry for a few minutes till you get a nice flavour.
Place rice in a cooker container with 1 1/2 cups of water and salt to taste.
Place channa in another container with 2 cups of water.Place both the container in cooker.pressure cook for 10 minutes.
Grind ingredients for masala to a smooth paste.
Heat a little ghee. Add the ground masala and salt and fry till the raw flavour is lost.Add cooked rice and channa.
Mix gently & garnish with mint leaves and serve hot.

Athama’s Special-Gunta ponganallu

Before Marraige in my house nobody prepared this dish nor I have eaten it before. After I got engaged with viki my mother in law prepared this dish for breakfast….i should say it was most delicious Guntaponganallu I ever had and seeing those small cute little guntaponganallu made me more happy.I asked my mom in law to give me this recipe…she gave me the recipe and the Ponganallu pan with small small rounds….

Ingredients:
2 cups of Dosa Batter
1 onion – finely chopped
3 green chillies – 3/4 finely chopped
1 tsp of jeera (optional)
1 small bunch of corriander leaves finely chopped
salt to taste
oil
Fine souji

Method:
Mix chopped onions, green chillies,corriander leaves and salt to the dosa batter.
Place the ponganallu pan on the stove on medium heat, when it’s hot, add about half tsp of oil and batter to each hole and drizzle some souji on top of the batter for crispy.
After few minutes , slowly turn the Gunta ponganallu to the other side with the help of a spoon.
Use the back side of a steel spoon, with which you can easily turn them.
Add few drops of oil again after turning them and let them cook on slow heat.
Remove them and Serve them with peanut chutney

Beans fry

I like to eat like small pieces of beans…and it really goes with pulkas…try it..

Ingredients:
2 cup stringed and cut into small pieces French Beans
1 chopped Onion
3 chopped Green Chillies
1/2 tsp Mustard seeds(optional)
1 tblsp Refined Oil
5 tblsp grated Coconut
As required Salt
1 sprig Curry Leaves

Method:
Heat the oil in a pan over a gentle flame.
Add the mustard seeds.
When they crackle, add the chopped onions, green chillies and the curry leaves.
Fry for 3 minutes.
Add the sliced beans, salt and just sufficient water to cook the beans.
Cook till the beans are soft and the water has evaporated.
Add the grated coconut.
Serve the dish with hot pulkas.

Chocolate Cake with Vanilla Ice Cream