Modak

Modak is sweet coconut dumpling prepared during the ganesh chaturthi festival.This is the most favourite dish of lord ganesh so this is prepared as naivaidya during ganesh chaturthi festival.


I am posting the fried version of the modak.
Ingredients:
Coating:
1 cup maida 
oil 


Stuffing
1cup grated coconut 
1 cup jaggery
1 spn cardamom powder


Procedure:
Mix maida ,water and oil into stiff dough .Keep it aside for 30 mins.
Heat grated coconut,jaggery in a pan,until the jaggery melts and forms a mixture with the coconut .Take it out from heat and then add cardamom powder.Take small balls of the dough and roll it into small puris .Then add the stuffing in it and give it a modak shape and then deep fry in oil.

Vada Pav

Ingredients:
1. Vada Stuffing:
1 Cup of boiled and mashed potatoes
Cumin seeds-1 spn
Greenchilles -2
Cilantro -2 sprigs
Tumeric powder
Salt

Procedure
Add cuminseeds,a pinch of tumeric powder ,finely chopped greenchillies ,cilantro and salt to the boiled potatoes and make it into golf size balls .

2. Vada Coating Mixture: 
1 cup of chickpeas flour
2 tbspn  rice flour
2 tbspn chillypowder
Pinch of asafoteida(hing)
Salt .

Procedure:
Mix all the above the ingredients with water into a smooth paste without any lumps.(chickpea batter generally tends to have lumps when added water to it.To avoid this mix all the dry ingredients first into smooth powder and then add water and mix it into a smooth paste).
   
3.Vada Preparation:
Heat oil in a pan .Make golf size balls from the above mixture .Dip into the coating mixture and deep fry in the hot oil .Then serve it sandwiched between two breads.

Cabbage Kosumbari (Cabbage Salad)

Ingredients
1 Cup Chopped Cabbage
1Cup Chopped Onions
3 tbspn Roasted Peanut Powder
2 tbspn Cumin seeds
2-3 Finely Chopped greenchillies
Salt

Procedure
- Mix chopped cabbage, onions, salt and finely chopped green chillies together.
- Add a little Ghee (1-2 tblspoon) in a pan and add some cumin seeds to it.
- Once the cumin seeds start spluttering add it to the above mixture.
- Finally add roasted peanut powder and mix everything together.

Aloo Palak (Potato Spinach Gravy)

Ingredients
1-2 Cardamom
1-2 Cloves
1 Cinnamon
1-2 Green Chillies
1-2 Garlic Grated
1/2 tbspn Ginger Paste
1 cup Chopped Onions
1 Tomato chopped
1tbspn Chilly powder
1 tbspn Cumin powder
1tbspn  Tumeric Powder
1 boiled potato
1tbspn Cream
Salt

Procedure
- Boil the Spinach for sometime and then allow it to cool
- Blend this with garlic in a blender (Adding garlic when blending spinach in the blender enhances the taste My innovation :-))
- Heat pan and add some oil to it.
- When the oil is properly heated, add cumin seeds, cardamom, cloves and cinnamon.When the mixture starts spluttering add onion, garlic, ginger and fry it for sometime.
- Then add tomatoes and fry until they turn mushy
-  Then add all the above powders and fry for sometime.
- Finally add the spinach puree and potatoes (pre-boiled) and bring it to a boil. Add salt to taste. Serve hot with rotis......

Pound Cake

My mom used to bake cakes for our birthdays during our childhood.From then i was very interested in baking cakes ,So finally i decided to bake this cake on a very chilly CHRISTMAS DAY .

Ingredients
2&1/2 cups of sugar
2 cup butter
2&1/2 Maida (All purpose flour)
2spn Vanilla Essence
1 spn Baking Powder
8 Eggs

Procedure
Preheat the oven at 350 F for 10 mins
Sieve the Maida and keep aside
Mix Sugar and butter into fine paste and then add one egg at a time and mix it.Add Vanilla Essence and mix.
Then 1 spoon Maida at a time and mix continously until no lumps are seen .
Grease the baking tray and pour the dough into it and bake it for around 45 minutes .

Bhindi Do Pyasa

Ingredients
Oil
Ladysfinger Chopped-1cup
Chopped Onion -1cup
Mustard seeds-1tspn
Cumin seeds-1tspn
Chillypowder-1tspn
Tamarind Paste
Curry leaves
Coriander Leaves

Procedure:
Heat Oil in a pan , add mustard ,cumin seeds,curryleaves when they start spulterring add onions and fry for sometime until they turn brownish.Add tamarind paste and fry for sometime ,then add chillypowder and fry for sometime .lastly add chopped ladysfinger and cook on lowflame until it is done .Garnish with coriander.Serve Hot with Rice and Dal

Okra sidedish(Bhende Doddak)

This is a speciality of my grandma who prepares very tasty doddak.This same dish can be prepared by adding fish (mackeral),mushrooms.

Ingredients

1 cup chopped ladysfinger

1 cup grated coconut

5-6 Redchillies

Tamarind extract

4-5 Teppal(Sichuan pepper)(optional)

2-3 Tumeric leaves(optional)

Salt

Procedure

Grind grated coconut,redchillies and tamarind into a fine paste.Add salt and the ground masala and crushed sichuan pepper (Teppal)to the ladysfinger.In a heavybottomed pan ,add little oil then add the masala in it.

Spread the Tumeric leaves over it and keep on low flame.This dish can be made without adding teppal and tumeric leaves.Serve hot with dal and rice