Vermicelli Pasta (Semiya Upma)

Preparation time :10 min.
Cooking time: 30 min
Yield: for 4 persons
Ingredients:
2 cups Bambino Vermicelli
peanuts 1 tbsp.
2 red chillies
3 green chillies
1/2 tsp. zeera
1/2 tsp. mustard seeds
1/4 tsp turmeric
salt to taste
urad dal 1/2 tsp.
water to cook the vermicelli pasta:4 cups
oil 1 tbsb.
cilantro 5 sprigs chopped
curry leaves 5
cheese 1/2 cup for garnish
Method:
in a sauce pan bring water to a boil
put  another pan on the stove when it is heated add the oil ,add the peanuts ,zeera,mustard seeds,urad dal and fry them till they are lightly roasted
to this add the green and red chillies and fry them a little
add the turmeric and fry it
now add the vermicelli and roast it till it becomes slightly brown
now add sufficient water to the vermicelli and cook it till it is tender
it may take 7 to 8 min
switch off the stove and garnish with chopped cilantro and curry leaves
take it in a plate  and sprinkle with shredded mozerrella cheeese

Laddo (Ball shaped sweet)

 Preparation Time :30 min.
Cooking time:30 min
yield: about 20 laddos
Ingredients:
besan 2 cups
baking powder 1/4 tsp.
water to prepare the besan batter
salt a pinch
sugar 11/2 cups
1/2 cup water to make sugar syrup
ghee 1 tsp.
cashews 10 fried in ghee
almonds 10 chopped
oil for deep frying
elaichi powdered 1/2 tsp.
green color for last batch of batter  5 drops
Method:
take besan in a mixing bowl add to it baking powder,salt and then  add water little by little to make a paste of pouring consistency
heat oil in a frying pan and take a strainer with 1 cm holes and put on top of the heated oil
scoop the batter with a ladle and pass it through a strainer

the batter will drop into the oil in the form of balls
fry the balls till they are light golden yellow and take them out of the oil

repeat this process for all the batter
after you are done with frying all the balls
take sugar and water in a saucepan and bring it to a boil
boil the syrup till you get half thread conistency(when you take the syrup in between your thumb and index finger the syrup should form a  thread and break when you take the fingers apart)
put the balls in the syrup and take the mixture away from the stove
add the ghee,fried cashews,chopped almonds and elaichi powder and mix it well
let the mixture cool down a little
take water in a little bowl
first wet your hands and take the laddo mixture in both hand and press it in shape of a laddo
repeat for all the laddo mixture
let the laddos dry on a plate for some time
store them away to be enjoyed with family and friends

 

Matri (Salted Crackers)

 Preparation Time: 10 min
Cooking Time: 45 min
Yield: about 50 matris
Ingredients:
All purpose flour 2 cups
water to knead the flour
salt according to taste
red pepper powder 1/4 tsp.
butter 1/2 tbsp. at room temp.
baking powder 1/2 tsp.
oregano seeds 1 tsp.
zeera 1 tsp.
oil for deep frying
Method:
Take all purpose flour in a mixing bowl
add all other ingredients to the flour ,add water  little by little and knead the flour
cover the dough and rest it for 1/2 hr.
the kneaded dough should be tight like the dough we make for puris
divide the dough into 50 parts
make each part into a round even circle
roll the dough into a 2 inch puri
prick the puri with a fork several times
repeat this process for all the puris
heat oil in a wok and fry 10 matris at a time on med. heat
fry them until they turn golden on both sides
drain them on a paper towel
enjoy them hot with chai-tea!!!

Vada (Urad dal vada,Matpe Bean skinless fritters)

Vada/currypot`123.blogspot.com

Preparation TIme:30 min.
Cooking Time: 30 min.
Yield: Makes 15 vadas
Ingredients:                                                                                         
Urad Dal(gota) 1 cup
bombay rava 1 tbsp.
green chillies 2
black pepper powder 1/4 tsp.
asofoedita a pinch
onion 1( med.) cut into small pieces
cilantro 10 sprigs chopped
curry leaves 10 chopped
salt to taste
oil for frying
Method:
soak urad dal in water for 6 hours
drain out all the water in a strainer
add the green chillies,black pepper,salt,asofoedita to the urad dal
grind the dal in the mixer
add little water to make it to a fine paste
add the chopped onion and chopped cilantro,curry leaves to the urad dal paste

now take small amount of the vada mixture on the ziplock cover and shape it into a vada
heat oil in a kadai

drop the vada in the hot oil

put 5 or 6 vadas in the oil
fry the vadas on both sides till golden yellow

remove from oil and drain on paper towel
repeat for all the batter
enjoy with sambhar and chutney

Boondhi Mixture(Spicy masala balls)

Bhoondhi Mixture/currypot123.blogspot.com

Preparation Time :20 min.
Cooking Time:30 min
Yield :Makes about 4 cups
 Ingredients:
besan 2 cups
rice flour 1 tbsp.                                                                                                      

chilli powder 1 tsp.
zeera powder 1/2 tsp.
baking powder 1/4 tsp.
salt according to taste
chaat masala 1/2 tsp.
turmeric 1/4 tsp.
strainner with 1/2 inch holes
peanuts 1 cup
garlic 5 cloves
curry leaves 10
oil for deep frying
Method:
take besan and rice flour in a mixing bowl
add baking powder ,chilli powder,salt,turmeric powder ,zeera powder into the flour
add water to the flour mixture to make  a batter of flowing consistency
heat oil in a kadai  and put the strainer on top of the hot

scoop out the batter with a ladle and pass it through the strainer
move the ladle in the strainer in circular motion to ease the flow of the batter

 the batter will drop in the form of balls
cook the boondi  till crisp

take the cooked boondi out  of the oil and drain it

wipe the strainer
repeat the process for all the batter
fry the peanuts till they crackle
fry the  garlic cloves till they are brown
fry the curry leaves till they are crisp
mix them all up and the boondi mixture is ready and sprinkle the chaat masala
enjoy!!!!