Peanut pakora/pakoda

Ok...pakoda ... my favorite and as said in my earlier onion  or pattanam pakoda posts it’s another famous pakoda done by my amma. But my version is bit different meaning I have done this using very little oil in Air fryer. Though we can do it without using oil I felt adding little oil increased the taste and crunchiness.
Ingredients:
Raw peanut-2 cups
Gram flour/ Besan- 3/4 cup
Rice flour- 1/3 cup
Chilli powder- to taste
Salt - to taste
Crushed coriander( optional)-1 tbs
Garlic powder or crushed garlic( optional)-1 tsp
Oil-3 tbs( optional) or baking soda -1/4 tsp for crispy crunchy texture.
Water- little ( I used 3 tbs water and 3 tbs hot oil)
Method:
IF USING OIL TO FRY JUST MIX ALL THE INGREDIENTS AND MAKE PAKODA  AND FRY IN MEDIUM FLAME TILL GOLDEN BROWN.
1) Pre heat air fryer for 5 min.
2) Add salt, chilli powder, coriander,garlic,gram flour and rice flour mix well to peanuts.

3) Add hot oil and sprinkle water and mix well with the peanut mixture.

4) Keep in air fryer in 370degree for 10 min  and turn and keep it in between .

Enjoy  your crispy crunchy peanut pakoda

Palak kofta gravy

One of my favorite gravy for chapathi/roti ,which I learned from chellam  Aunty.Cashew and khas khas  adds richness to the taste of this dish. If you are very health conscious about frying kofta in oil...(I think it’s not bad to indulge once in a while)don’t have to worry you can air fry ( if you have one ) or shallow fry like cutlets.So let’s move to ingredients for this delicious gravy
Ingredients :
Spinach-1 bunch

Paneer-150 grams 

Bread crumbs-50 grams 

Corn flour-2tbs

Onion -100 grams 

Ginger - small 

Garlic-3 or 4 pods

Cashew-20 grams 

Khas khas-1 tbs

Green chilli-2 or 3

Chilli powder-1/2 tsp

Cumin powder-1/2 tsp

Garam Marsala powder-1/2 tsp
Kasuri methi-1/4 tsp

Turmeric-1/4 tsp ( was not in Aunty’s recipe)

Salt to taste

Oil- to fry

Water- as needed

Method:

1)Wash , drain and boil spinach with less than 1/4 cup water for 5 min and allow it to dry.(but I steamed it with out adding water )
2) Grate or crumble   paneer.

3)Grind ginger ,garlic and green chilli to paste and keep separately.
4)Grind cashews ,khas khas to smooth paste adding little milk.

5)Chop onion.
6) Grate or crumble   paneer.
7)Grind spinach  and paneer to smooth thick paste without water .Add chopped onion,cornflour,salt, garam masala powder,cumin powder,chilli powder mix well and make balls.
8) Roll in bread crumbs and deep fry till golden brown.(or shallow fry. I dropped a tsp oil on each ball and kept in air fryer for 20 minutes turning it once in a while in 360 F)
9)Heat a pan add oil fry onion till golden brown.Add kasuri methi,ginger garlic paste and fry till the raw smell of ginger garlic goes then add salt,half tsp of garam masala and half tsp of cumin powder and add 1/4 cup water and cook for couple of minutes then add cashew paste and remaining milk and cook.
10)Add kofta before serving.Garnish with cream and coriander ( optional). Serve with roti and enjoy.

             For video 

Note:

The kofta can also be had as a snack with ketchup .

For video

Kambu murukku/Bajri chakli

I have been trying dishes without rice for quite sometime since some of my friends keep complaining that  Indian,specially South Indians use rice in almost all their snacks and also their regular meals and they are advised to avoid rice  for health reasons....( which I totally disagree and it’s a different topic to write on in my health blog soon.)Anyways ..this is one such recipe, which avoids rice.

It’s been a craze these days for millets and their health benefits all over the web .O e of such wildly know millet is Pearl millet/Bajri/Kambu.Its one among the millets that’s grown in Indian subcontinent since prehistoric times.

According to India today and  NDTV  it’s rich in Protein,Phosphorus,Magnesium,Iron ,essential vitamins  and amino acids  which adds to its nutritional, therapeutic value.( that’s yet another topic to be discussed later in my health blog) now let’s stick to the taste buds alone 😉

Ingredients:

Bhajri/Kambu flour-2cups

Peanut-1/2 cup

Garlic pod -2(optional)

Butter-1tbs

Asafoetida-1/4 tsp

Sesame/kalonj /cumin-1 tsp

Salt and chilli powder - to taste 

Oil - to fry

Water- to make dough

Method:

1)Grind peanut and garlic to smooth thick paste adding little water.

2)In  large bowl add 2 cups of the Bajri/ kambu/Pearl Millet flour.

3)Add  butter,asafoetida, kalonj/ cumin/sesame ,salt,chilli powder and mix well.

4)Add water little by little and make murukku dough .

5)Add the dough in murukku press and make murukku in a hot oil ( but cook it in medium flame )

6)When golden brown remove from oil .

ENJOY CRISPY RICE FREE MURUKKU

                                            CLICK HERE FOR THE VIDEO

PEPPER VADAI(Milagu Vadai)

                                       

Very easy tasty crunchy Vadai made during Hanuman Jayanthi .I used to love to visit Hanuman temple during my school days just to taste this Vadai given as parasad during festive days .

Couple of years back when I visited India one of my dad's patient told me how to make this Vadai and since then I have been making this for Hanuman jayanthi .

INGREDIENTS:

   Urad dhal -1 cup

   Pepper corn -Coarsely powdered according to taste

   Salt - according to taste

   Oil- for frying

METHOD :

1) Soak urad dhal with enough water to cover for about 1 hour (Dhal will absorb all the water )

2) Grind dhal without water little Coarsely  ( if necessary add just few drops of water )

3) Add Coarsely ground pepper and salt mix well.

                    

4)  Make small balls .

                   

5) Apply little oil on plastic sheet and make discs with fingers ( either apply some oil in hand or little water. I felt wetting gingers with water is easier to work)

                

6) With tooth pick make a small hole in the center.

           

              

7) Heat oil in a pan and fry till golden brown in medium heat.

           

8) To make malai inserting thread in the fried Vadai for pooja .

           

           

  Enjoy the crispy tasty pepper Vadai along with lord Hanuman 😋
   

VAZHAITHANDU KOLA(BANANA STEM KOFTA)

One of the favorite vegetable of tamilians is banana stem,which is very rare to get in US.Many of them including Indians don't know about this healthy vegetable ,which has many medicinal value.everyone knows about raw banana and ripe ones, and few about the flower but not the stem.

Some info about the stem I know :it's rich in fiber, potassium and B6.

The rich fiber content helps weigh reduction and constipation,Rich potassium constant helps reducing blood pressure,heart issues and also it's good diuretic,so good to prevent kidney stones.My dad,who is a naturopath used to advice his patients to have the juice of this  for ulcer ,kidney stone ..

Having said a little about the healthy vegetable let's come to a very different dish (usually dishes made with banana stem are usilli,curry,kootu,sambar,pachidi).... It's a appetizer.... Kola (kofta)

INGREDIENTS:
Vazhaithandu(plantain tree stem) or Beetroot-1
Roasted bengal gram-4tbs
Coconut-1/2
Clove-2
Cinnamon-2
Saunf-1tbs
Greenchilli-5 or6
Ginger-1/2"
Garlic-3 or 4
Onion-1
Corriander-chopped
Curryleaves chopped
Salt-to taste
Oil- to fry

METHOD

1)Grind all the ingredients coarsely.
2)Add chopped thandu just before taking the powder out of the mixer and grind just for a second.
2)Add finely chopped onion, curry leaves,corriander leaves, salt to this above mix
3)Make balls and fry them golden brown.
4) Serve with spicy coconut Chutney.

Note:Beetroot can be grated , cooked and used instead of thandu.

COOKED URAD MURUKKU (CHAKKLI)

B

Just a week before deepavali my neighbour told me about this murukku.I was skeptical, yet wanted to give it a try so tried using just 1/2 cup of urad and the out come was amazing...it was soooooo very crisp  and I tried immediately for this deepavali and everyone ,who tasted it were so surprised when I told it had absolutely no butter in it... So why don't you give it a try just like I did,with half cup of urad and plz don't forget to give your valuable comments.

Ingredients:

Urad dhal -1 1/2 cups

Rice flour - 2 1/2  to 3 cups

Salt- to taste

Chilli powder- to taste

Jeera- 1/2 tsp

Sesame seed -1/2 tsp

Asefotida - 1/4 tsp

Oil - to fry

Method:

1)Soak urad for about 1/2 hr and pressure cook with water(about 3cups) for 6-7 whistles.

2)When cool mash it well(or give a quick mix in mixi)

3)Add rice flour , salt, chilli power,jeera,sesame and asefotida and mix will to form murukku dough.( adjust rice flour according to need)

4)Fill the murukku pess and make murukku in hot oil.

Store in a air tight container when cool.

(Never store it when hot)

Enjoy the crispy murukku😃

JAVVARISI (SAGO) MIXTURE

Crunchy and one of the easy snacks .My hubby by mistake bought sago from Indian store, when we already had a big bag at home... So was wondering what to do with so much at home... All I knew was payasam(pudding) and kichidi... When searching for some recipe .... I came across this. Looked so simple, though the recipe had nylon sago I tried with normal one that we had and  it did come out well except that... Few of the pearls were not as crispy as the rest... Guess if I should have used nylon sago as told in the recipe Or may be I did not use proper ladle for frying...  Anyways Will try again when I get nylon sago .. But as of now let me come to the recipe..before which I would like to tell this... My husband liked it so much and one of my friend who had this too liked it so much that she had second serving:)

INGREDIENTS:
Sago-1cup
Oil-enough to deep fry
Salt-as per taste
Chilli powder-to taste
Peanut-handful
Curry leaf-few

METHOD:
1)Heat oil in a pan and fry peanut and curry leaf( be careful as it will splutter)separately and keep it aside.
2)In the same oil using porous ladle ( bhoondhi karandi ,ladle with holes) fry the sago pearls till it puffs up( be careful as it may splutter)
3) Drain the oil of all the fried items and mix it with salt,Chilli powder .

Store in air tight container. But ...if you have kids or people who loves crunchy snacks.... This  1 cup sago will vanish in couple of hours.. Like in our house :)

BIRDS NEST

yet another chellam aunty's recipe, which is my favorite... its favorite because of the crispy outer layer and really cool to see :) especially if you have kids at home they would love it.

So.. all the measurement and procedure is from the class notes.... hope you like it as much we all did.

INGREDIENTS:

Potato -1 kg

Peas-1/4 kg

Vermicilli-100 grams

Onion-4

Green chilli-6-8

Dhaniya Powder/Corriander powder-2 tsp

Chilli powder- 2tsp (according to taste)

Ginger- small

Corriander and mint leaves- 1/2 bunch(i did not use mint this time as it was not available)

TO MAKE A BATTER TO DIP THE BALLS:

Maida- little 

Water-little

METHOD:

1. Pressure cook Potatoes without water.Peel the skin and mash it.
2. Half  cook Peas(i used frozen peas).
3. Fry vermicelli in little oil till golden brown.

1. Chop onion, green chill and ginger finely.
2. Mix maida and water to make a thin batter.

1. Heat oil in a pan and add onion and saute till tender.
2. Add green chilli, ginger and mashed potatoes.
3. Ad salt,corriander powder,chilli powder, chopped mint and corriander leaves and cook till the raw smell of the powders goes.

1. Cool and shape this potato mixture to oval shape balls and scoop out the center and fill with peas and close.

1. Dip this in the maida batter and roll it on the fried vermicelli  well.
2. 

1. Fry this in hot oil.

1. After frying scoop out the center a little so that the stuffed peas are visible.

1. Arrange this on a plate with any salad green and tomaoto sauce.

ENJOY WITH THE KIDS :)

THAYIR MURUKKU(Curds chakli)

When i went to Indian last May some of my relatives presented me cooking books and one of the book had this recipe . was very curious about the taste so tried it finally this week and we liked it. But one small change that i made was water. the book did not have anything about water and also adding hot oil . Since i had less curds i added some water to get the proper dough consistency. and regarding oil my amma used to say adding butter or hot oil Will give nice crispness to murukku.

INGREDIENTS:
Rice flour- 2 cups
Urad dhal flour -1 tbs
Curds- 1cup
Water- about 1/2 cup
Salt - to taste
Chilli powder- to taste
Sesame seed- 1/4 tsp
Asefotida- little
Oil- to fry
METHOD:

1. Mix rice ,urad flour along with all the ingredients .Add 2 tsp of hot oil and mix well to make nice murukku dough .
2. Heat oil .
3. Fill Murukku press with the the dough and press it into the oil(or press it on a plastic sheet  and drop it in the oil)
4. Fry till golden brown and store in airtight container.

NOTE: I am not sure if the prepared dough can be kept for a long time since we use curds. so I would recommend to use it immediately  to make murukku.

METHI MUTHIYA( FENUGREEK STEAMED BALLS)

Adapted from youtube with few changes
It looked some thing similar to moong dhal Kozhukattai that my amma makes for ganesh pooja. So wanted to try this once. My first attempt was without Lemon juice and chilli powder. As we felt Bit of sourness and Chilli will make the taste better I tried this again and liked it ,felt it was different and healthy too to have it as tea time snacks. Haven't tasted this anywhere,so don't know  its exact taste other than what i made. So plz try out and let me know your opinion. Thanks :)
INGREDIENTS:(plz adjust to your taste)
Wheat flour-3/4 cup
Gram flour-1/4 cup
Wheat bran- 1tsp(optional)
Methi or palak finely chopped -3/4 cup
Green chilli-1 Finely chopped
Chilli powder- 1/2 tsp
Jeera powder-1/2 tsp
Grated Ginger- 1/2 tsp
Salt- to taste
Sugar- approximately 1/4 tsp or less
Lemon/lime juice-approximately 1/2 tsp
Water- very little if necessary.

SEASONING:(Adjust to your taste)
Mustard-1/4 tsp
Urad dhal-1/4 tsp
Curry leaf - few
Lemon/lime juice-1/4 tsp
Asefotida-1/4 tsp
Oil-1/2 tsp
Turmeric powder- Pinch

METHOD:

1. Wash and chop greens.
2. Mix  all the ingredients  well.Sprinkle Water if needed(Since the greens let out water we may not be needing it)
3. Make dough like chapathi.  and make balls (oblong shape).
4. Steam these balls for about 10- 12 minutes.
5. After These balls are slightly cool cut to small bit size pieces and keep aside.
6. Heat  oil in  a pan and add mustard, when it splutters add urad dhal,When it turns golden brown add asefotida, curry leaf and turmeric powder, add  the cut muthiyas , toss well .
7. Add lemon /lime juice and switch off the flame. again mix all the ingredients well and serve as a tea time snacks

PORI URUNDAI(Puffed rice balls)

INGREDIENTS: (approximate measurement)
Rice balls-2 cup
Jaggery 2 cups
Peanut and Roasted bengal gram-1/4 cup
Coconut Chopped and roasted-2 tbs(optional)
Water- 1/4 cup
METHOD:

1)Heat jaggery and water in a heavy bottomed vessel .When jaggery dissolves remove from flame and strain. Return back the syrup to flame and boil till the syrup becomes thick.

2)Add Peanut and chopped coconut to puffed rice and add the syrup to this.
3) Apply little ghee on the palm and start making balls while its warm.

NOTE: Temperature if very important and so is the consistency of the syrup

ACHCHU MURUKKU

This is very famous Traditional snack in rural areas of Tamilnadu and Kerala.Its made using special mould and very easily available items very simple  mildly sweet yet tasty snacks.But bit tricky to make till we get a hang of it..this has been my favorite since i tasted it first in my amma's relatives Santha aunty's house. 90's. when i asked her the recipe she told me they use Egg .So we could did not  try. but my amma often used to say 'If u wish for something whole hearted u will have it someday'.After sooooo many years i saw a video on Youtube someone demonstrating egg less in some Malaylam channel. Though i could understand malayalam to some extent since audio was not clear I couldn't get the exact measurements.But Finally found it here.But again there was this problem i had no coconut milk as mentioned in this blog.But i very badly wanted to try.My first try was a failure :( the batter got stuck to mould :( so again followed the step correcting this ,that is,if the mould is new ,we have to keep in Dosa batter for  a day and then wash and apply oil well and keep for 1 or 2 days and then use it.....so this did the magic :)And here is the recipe with some changes.that's I used milk instead of coconut milk and used 1 pinch of soda bi carb (this was because murukku that i made with just milk was not that crunchy.so added 1 pinch of soda bi carb.It was crunchy, but have to try again using coconut milk to find the difference.As far as my memory goes i think the one that i had ,that was done using egg was different.But this was yummy too and crunchy, anyways....
Umm forgot to mention You will be needing special mould to make this, which looks like this

INGREDIENTS:
Rice flour-1 cup
Milk-1cup
Powdered sugar-1/2 cup( as we dont like much sweet i used little less may be a spoon less.)
Maida/All purpose flour-1/4 cup
Salt -1 pinch
Soda bi carb-1pinch
Oil- to  deep fry
METHOD:
1)Mix all the ingredients  well  like dosa batter

2)Heat oil in a pan and immerse the mould in hot oil for couple of seconds

3)Now dip it immediately in the batter(1/2 the mould) and keep it immediately in hot oil till half done.
4)Now using a fork or blunt knife release the half cooked batter to oil and cook till golden brown. and remove.

NOTE:
Please keep the fire in  medium after dipping the batter in oil.And It will become crisp after few seconds after taking out from the oil.
Hope u like this recipe. Would love to clear your doubts if any.

THENKUZHAL

I had never understood why this was called'Then (meamimg honey)Kuzhal(flute)'But anyway coming to the recipe the ingredients and amount was told by my amma so this is how i do. but heard there are other versions too.
INGREDIENTS:
Rawsrice flour-4cups
Urad flour-1cups
Asefotida-pinch
Salt-to taste
Til(sesame)-1tsp
Butter-100 grams
Water - little to make dough(please use it little by little to get dough consistency.)
Oil- to deep fry
METHOD:
1)Soak rice and dry it and powder and seive.
2)Dry fry Urad dhal and powder and seive.
3)Mix powdered rice and urad flour along with salt, asefotida , Sesame  and butter well.
4)Add enough water to make a dough.
5)Fill murukku maker with thenkuzhal achu(round holes) and squeeze in hot oil in murukku shape
(or you can do this in a plastic sheet and then transfer it from that to oil.)
6) Reduce the flame to medium and fry till golden brown. 

LEMON AMMINI KOZHUKATTAI

The name Ammini... sounds sort of weird for me... Have never asked a word about this name to my amma. but while talking to my DH the other day that i was going to do this for navaratri  he laughed.. so asked his what was funny about the name he said its ammukini Kozhukattai(since its small in size we keep gulping this its called by this name )wonder if this is true??!! or what the real meaning for the name was....
This also very simple snacks or tiffin , which is some what similar to kaara/uppu kozhukattai and kozhukattai 
INGREDIENTS:
Rice flour-1 cup
Water- about 1 1/4 cup
Salt to taste
Turmeric- 1/4 tsp
For seasoning:
Mustard-1/2 tsp
Urad shal-1 tsp
Green chiil or red chilli( finely chopped)3-4 according to taste.
 Asefotida- pinch
Oil -1 tbs
Lemon juice- 1 or 2 tbs
METHOD:
1)Boil water in a vessel add salt and oil.
2)Add  rice flour slowely to this or you can do other way round meaning pour water to rice flour and mix well without lumps( keep the flame in low) to nice dough consistency.
3) Remove from  flame and keep it closed to let it cool for some time.
4)Once its warm enough to knead . knead this dough once.
5) Make small  balls and  Steam them. and keep aside.
6)Heat oil in a pan and season it with mustard, urad, Asefotida, curry leaf,chilli and little bit of  Turmeric powder.Add the steamed Rice balls.
7) Mix well for few seconds and Add lemon juice and switch of the flame.Mix well . and serve.

RICE SUNDAL

It must be surprising for many of us to hear about rice sundal !!It was for me when my mother in law first showed me this. i have never heard of this before that or tasted this...but now its one of my favorites.
For me its a hybrid of Venpongal and Upma.
 Well the reason for doing this for this navaratri was Monday- Navagraha Thingal/moon is associated with rice  so as i normally do sundal according to days/ navagraha
Sunday-Sun(sooriyan)-Wheat
Monday- Moon(chandiran)-Rice
Tuesday-Mars(sevvai)-Tuvar dhal
Wednesday -Mercury(Bhudan)-Green gram dhal
Thursday-Jupiter(Guru)-Channa
Friday-Venus(Sukkaran)-Mochai(Kidney or field bean)
Saturday-Saturn(sani) Till
Other grahas being Rahu and Kethu -Urad and Horse gram respectively and they are treated similar to saturn and mars respectively.
Now coming to my post
 It was the turn for Rice on last monday. So i made 2 dishes for Moon god...being a lover of moon..yeah love to look at full moon... it has always fascinated me... not just me many...any ways. Here is this simple and tasty different recipe which my mother in law told was Tanjore special.
INGREDIENTS:
Rice -3/4 cup
Moong dhal-1/4 cup
Oil for seasoning
Urad dhal- for seasoning
Green or red chilli for seasoning , to taste
 salt to taste
Asefotida -pinch
Turmeric -pinch(optional)
Curry leaf- few
Water- about 2 cups

Ummmm that's it... lets start cook ..
METHOD:
1) Heat a pan and dry fry rice and dhal till nice aroma comes.(do not make it brown)and keep aside.
2)Heat a oil in a pan and season with mustard,urad chilli, asefotida,curry leaf.
3)Add water and salt.(turmeric if preferred) and bring it to boil.
4)Now add the rice and dhal and reduce the flame to medium and cover and cook.
Serve with coconut chutney.

VEGETABLE VADAI

Our family friend Muthu anna presented me ,the famous Meenakshi amma cook book when i went to India this summer.I have heard a lot about her book through my amma and athai.So was very exicted on seeing this gift. but unfortunately due to excess weight i was not able to bring the books with me. so my dad sent it through another family friend very very sweet Mani anna last week and so here is the first recipe from her book that i tried for saraswathi pooja.... very sentimental :) This is very simple just a small variation of normal urad /medhu vadai.Only difference was We have to add equal or little more amount of finely chopped and grated vegetables .
 So here is what i did:
INGREDIENTS:
Urad dhal- 1 1/2 cup
Rice flour-1 tbs
Salt -to taste
Green chilli -to taste
Ginger- small piece
Asefotida-pinch
 Finely chopped Onion, cabbage,beans,cauliflower,grated carrot - together 2 cups
METHOD:
1)Soak urad dhal for 4-5 hrs in water.
2)Grind this along with chopped chilli and ginger to a smooth paste. for more details read  my earlier medhu vadai post or watch my video.
3)Add the vegetables and salt mix well.(we can prepare this and keep inside the fridge if we wish .)
4)Heat oil in a pan . Make vadai and deep fry till golden brown.
Serve.  hot

KARUNAI KIZHANGU(SURAN) CHIPS

One of my favorite vegetable.. Karunai kizhangu/Suran..that too chips I LOVE IT.My amma used to make this often.But unfortunately In US its very hard to get fresh suran.Even if we did its very costly :(
So last month during my chennai visit i had this almost daily for nearly 10 out of 20 days :D in one or other form..Suran sambar, suran fry,suran curry, suran masiyal,suran chips, suran kurma..hahaha... but unfortunately could not take photo of every thing :(
But here is a snap of my favorite chips with the recipe
INGREDIENTS:
Karunai kizhangu/Suran
Salt- to taste
Chilli powder- to taste
Oil-to fry
METHOD:
1)Peel the skin and clean the root.
2)Heat oil in a pan.
3)Using a chips grater slice the root into oil directly .
4)Reduce the heat to medium and fry till crisp.(turn them occasionally to fry uniformly)
5)Remove from oil when crisp.
6)Mix chilli powder and salt  well to this drained chips ( mix chips with the powder to mix evenly  combine everything in a ziplock bag and add the powders and give a quick shake)
KEEP IT IN AIR TIGHT CONTAINER and NSOY

POTATO OMPODI

This is a very tasty and crunchy snack.I had almost forgotten this for many years after my amma's death until my neighbour gave me ompodi made using sepan kizhangu(Taro root)... the taste reminded me of something that i knew.... and finally remembered that my mom used to make something with potato ....but did not remember her recipe:( Anyway i tried using potato with the usual ompodi ingredients and it was a big hit. 
INGREDIENTS: 
Pottukadalai(roasted bengal gram)powder-1 cup 
Rice flour-1/4 cup 
Potato-1 big cooked and well mashed 
Salt- to taste 
Chilli powder- to taste 
Omam-1/4 tsp 
Water- as needed 
Oil- to fry 
METHOD:
 1)Mix rice flour and roasted bengal gram flour.
 2)Soak and grind omam to paste and add to the flour.
 3)Add salt and chilli powder. 
4)Add well mashed potato to this.Mix well to make a smooth dough.(Add little water if needed) 
5)Heat oil in pan.
6)Use murukku maker with ompodi attachment and make Yummy potato omapadi

BANANA PANIYARAM

When i was in Chennai i used to love this snack from kerala chips... it is so delicious.I had tried these couple of times in Chennai before marriage and after coming to US but not after i started blogging.and after a longgggg gap i tried it again... thanks to my friend and FB brother (Anu and Kanna) for suggesting sweet paniyaram when i was confused about the sweet when my cousin  came.
But this time i used whole wheat flour instead of maida (all purpose flour) and brown sugar instead of white sugar.Texture does differ because of whole wheat and so does the taste. But it was Tasty(anything made with banana will.... right ?)
Here is what i did:
INGREDIENTS:
Whole wheat flour- 1 cup
Sugar-1/2 cup and about 1 tbs(according to taste)
Cardamom powder-1/2 tsp
Cashew-finely chopped 2tbs
Coconut gratings-2 tbs(or finely chopped coconut)
Soda bi carb-1/2 tsp
Salt- a pinch
Water or milk- to mix
Banana-1 ripe(well mashed)

METHOD:
1)Mix wheat flour,sugar,cardamom powder,cashew,coconut,salt and soda bi carb well.
2)Now mix well mashed banana.
3)Add water or milk to this above mixture slowly without forming lumps make a batter (sort of thick idly batter)
4)Heat the  greased Paniyaram pan with about 1 tsp ghee or oil(Shallow hole pan ... like muffin pan).pour the batter in each hole and cook till golden brown .Then turn carefully using a spoon or a special stick for paniyaram and cook till the other side turns golden brown.
5) Serve hot hot tasty paniyaram.

URAD LADDU

This is the one that was telling about in my previous post(jowar laddu)that gave me idea for jowar laddu.. and  surprisingly today my neighbour told that she saw jowar laddu in some Telugu tv !!!ah ahhh with in a day someone stole my idea !! haha...kidding. i strongly feel its wrong to claim a recipe as their own...yes of course i do have copyright banner in my blogs but that for the work that i have done not the idea...many people can have similar views ideas one cant claim this can they???...anyways...thats my personal opinion and many may not agree...
ok now lets come to the yummy laddu...umm forgot my neighbour used jaggery as i did not have that i used brown sugar...but i honestly feel jaggery tastes better than brown sugar.

INGREDIENTS:
Urad dhal- 1 cup
Brown sugar-3/4 cup(according to taste)
Cardamom powder-1/4 tsp
Chopped nuts-3-4 tbs
Ghee-4-6 tbs(approximately to make balls)

METHOD:
1)Dry fry urad dhal to nice golden brown colour(till nice aroma comes)
2)Powder the dhal when cool along with brown sugar.to fine powder.
3) Mix cardamom powder and chopped nuts to this.
4)Heat ghee lightly and add to the powder little by little to make balls(laddus) and...
 ....njoy the tasty healthy snack... according to my neighbour they give this when girls mature and after pregnancy.I too have heard amma talk about urad and jaggery mixture  given as kali(sort of pudding when girls mature as that would strengthen their body.