Latha's Ladle

Mango Rice

Mango rice is a very simple recipe and the best lunch box recipe even. Fresh mangoes are available during summers and can be prepared during that season. It can be served with coconut chutney.

Ingredients:

Mango (raw, 1 1/4 cups)
Curry Leaves (5)
Peanuts (2 tsp)
Hing (powder, 1/4 tsp)
Ghee (1 tsp)
Methi [Fenugreek] (powder, 1/4 tsp)
Salt (to taste)
Cooked Rice (2 cups)
Mustard Seeds (1 tsp)
Urad Dal [Black Gram] (split, 1 tsp)
Chana Dal [Chick Peas] (split, 1 tsp)
Turmeric Powder (1/2 tsp)
Red Chili Powder (kashmiri, 1 1/2 tsp)
Oil (4 tsp)
Ginger (grated, 1/4 tsp)

Prep time: 10 minutes

Cook time: 30 minutes

Total time: 40 minutes

Category: Lunch \ Dinner

Serves: 2

Method:

Heat oil and ghee in a skillet and add mustard seeds.
Wait for the seeds to splutter.
Add urad dal [black gram, split], chana dal [chick peas], peanuts, chopped green chili, grated ginger and curry leaves.
Add methi [Fenugreek], hing, and turmeric powder.
Sautee for 2-3 minutes or till golden.
Add the grated mango, salt and red chili powder.
Cook till they are soft.
Add the cooked rice and mix well.
Serve with coconut chutney.

Step by step pictures of the recipe:

Add oil, ghee, mustard seeds and wait to splutter. Add urad dal, chana dal, peanuts, green chilies, curry leaves and ginger.

Notes:

Fine grater can be avoided while grating the mango.

Baked Vegetables

#vegan, Baked recipe, Healthy, Keto diet

Baked vegetable is a delicious meal with lots of veggies and cheese. I have added almond milk which can be substituted with whole milk or any other milk. This can be eaten plain or with breads, quinoa and chapatis.

Ingredients:

Almond Milk (2 cups)
Beans (chopped, fine, 1/4 cup)
Beetroot (cubes, 1/4 cup)
Cabbage (chopped, fine, 1/4 cup)
Capsicum (chopped, fine, 1/4 cup)
Carrot (chopped, cubes, 1/4 cup)
Cauliflower (chopped, medium, 1/4 cup)
Cottage Cheese (grated, 1/2 cup)
Coconut (grated, 1 cup)
Cilantro (1 cup)
Cheese (grated, 4 tbs)
Ginger (grated, 2 tsp)
Oil (4 tbs)
Peas (1/4 cup)
Red Chili Powder (2 tsp)
Spinach (chopped, 1 cup)
Spring Onion (chopped, fine, 1/4 cup)
Salt (to taste)

Prep time: 15 minutes

Cook time: 40 minutes

Total time: 55 minutes

Category: Lunch \ Dinner

Serves: 2

Method:

Wash and cut all the veggies mentioned in the ingredients.
In a skillet add oil, spring onions, cabbage, beetroot, beans, capsicum, carrot, ginger, peas , salt and red chili powder.
Cook for 10 minutes or till the vegetables turn soft.
Add water if required while cooking.
When these vegetables are almost done add cottage cheese and spinach.
Grind coconut, cilantro and almond milk to a fine paste.
Add the ground paste to the veggies and mix well.
Transfer the cooked veggies to a greased tray.
Add the grated cheese.
Bake in a preheated oven for 20 minutes at 200 degree Celsius.

Step by Step pictures of the recipe:

Grind coconut, cilantro and almond milk to a fine paste.

Add oil, spring onion, carrot, beetroot, capsicum, beans, peas, cabbage, cauliflower, ginger, salt and red chili powder.

Add water and cook till veggies are soft.

Notes:

If keto diet is not followed then whole milk can be substituted.
Plain flour can be substituted for coconut. In that case grind cilantro and add milk and plain flour to make a paste.

Dahi Vada

Uncategorized

Dahi vadas are deep fried black gram lentil fritters soaked in creamy yogurt. Vadas in general can be eaten with sambar and chutneys too.

Ingredients:

Urad Dal [Black Gram] (whole, 1 cup)
Green Chilies (2)
Red Chilies (2)
Salt (to taste)
Hing [Asafoetida] (powder, 1/2 tsp)
Ginger (small piece)
Cumin Powder (1 tsp)
Red Chili Powder (1 tsp)
Cilantro (chopped, 1 tsp)
Boondi (3 tsp)
Oil (to fry)
Curd (2 cup)

Prep time: 10 minutes

Soak time: 1 hour

Cook time: 45 minutes

Cuisine: Indian

Category: Tiffin \ Dinner \ Breakfast \ Lunch

Yield: 15

Method:

Wash and soak urad dal for an hour.
Strain the water and add red and green chilies, salt, ginger and hing powder.
Grind to a fine paste.
Whisk the batter for 5-10 minutes to make it light and fluffy.
Heat oil in a frying pan.
Dip your fingers in water and take a lemon sized ball of the batter.
Flatten the batter and make a hole in the centre.
Gently lower the vadas into the hot oil.
Flip vadas after a couple of minutes

Step by Step Pictures of the recipe:

Grind soaked urad dal, chilies, ginger and salt to a fine paste.

Beat the batter to make it fluffy and light.

Gently lower the vadas into the hot oil.

Fry until they are cooked on both the sides.

Sprinkle with red chili, and cumin powder and garnish with cilantro and boondi.

Notes:

Strain the water completely before grinding the urad dal.
While grinding sprinkle little water (use a teaspoon) and ensure the batter should be fluffy.
Wet your finger tips and the plastic sheet while making the shape.

Lemon Pickle

#vegan, South Indian pickles

Lemon pickle differs from each state or even regions in India. This is the traditional south-indian style recipe with minimum ingredients. This can be eaten with rice, bread, upma and chapatis.

Ingredients:

Lemon (750 gm)
Salt (7 tsp)
Mustard Seeds (2 tsp)
Oil (Sesame, 1/2 cup)
Turmeric Powder (1 tsp)
Red Chili Powder (1/4 cup)
Methi [Fenugreek] Seeds (1 tsp)
Hing (cake, 3-4 pieces or powder 1 tsp)

Prep time: 10 minutes

Cook time: 5 minutes

Total time: 15 minutes

Yield: 1kg

Cuisine: Indian

Method:

Wash, dry and cut lemons into small pieces.
Add salt and mix well.
Rest for two to three days and mix every 24 hours.
Add red chili and turmeric powder.
In a shallow skillet add methi seeds and hing cakes.
Dry roast till hing doubles and crisps up and methi seeds till red
Grind to a fine powder and add along with the red chili powder and turmeric.
In the same skillet add oil and mustard seeds.
Wait for the seeds to splutter.
Wait until the oil cools down.
Add to the lemon mixture and mix well.
Store in a clean, dry jar .
Refrigerate once the pickle is done.

Step by step pictures of the recipe:

Add the spluttered mustard seeeds and mix well.

Notes:

Instead of malta lemons lime or small Indian lemons can also be used.
If the lemons are not juicy, extract juice from 4-5 lemons and add to the mixture before adding salt.
After refrigerating the pickle take out the jar onve a week and mix well to avoid getting spoilt.
It remains good for 6 months to one year.

Beet-Sago Delight

Dessert, Festival Dishes, North Indian Sweets, South Indian Sweets, Sweets

Beet gives the beautiful color and sago turns into round pearls with saffron nuts and cardamom is a real delight. I used nylon sago which looks like a raw rice but the other store bought sago which looks white in color can also be used.

Ingredients:

Beet (cubes, 1/2 cup)
Milk (whole, 2 cups)
Saffron (few strands)
Sago (1/3 cup)
Sugar (1/2 cup
Almond (pieces, 3 tsp)
Cardamom Powder (1/4 tsp)

Prep time: 5 minutes

Cook time: 40 minutes

Total time: 45 minutes

Category: Dessert

Cuisine: Indian

Serves: 3

Method:

Soak saffron in warm milk.
In a pressure cooker add sago and water. Use a separator or a plate to cook beet.
Pressure cook for 4-5 whistles.
Grind the cooked beets to a fine paste.
In a thick skillet add milk and bring it to boil.
Add the ground paste and cook for 10 minutes.
Add sugar and once it dissolves add the cooked sago.
Garnish with cardamom powder, soaked saffron.
Refrigerate for 2 hours.
Add nuts before serving.

Step by step pictures of the recipe:

Use a plate or a separator to cook beet.

Garnish with cardamom powder and saffron refrigerate before adding nuts.

Notes:

Care should be taken while cooking sago. It can be cooked by adding sago in boiling water for 10 minutes or until translucent on a low flame and transfer it to a cold water container and strain it or pressure cook it.Only nylon sago can be pressure cooked.

Yam And Sweet Potato Curry

#vegan, North Indian Gravy, South Indian Curry

Yam and sweet potato curry is a very delicious, simple and easy to make recipe. I used tomatoes as a base for the gravy but legumes can also be substituted for tomatoes.

Ingredients:

Yam (cubes, 1/2 cup)
Brinjal (cubes, 1/2 cup)
Carrots (cubes, 1/2 cup)
Tomato (Puree, 1 1/2 cups)
Green Chili (chopped, fine, 1)
Sweet Potato (cubes, 1/2 cup)
Coriander Powder (2 tsp)
Turmeric Powder (1/2 tsp)
Red Chili Powder (Kashmiri, 1 1/2 tsp)
Oil (4 tsp)
Ghee (1 tsp)
Salt (to taste)

Prep time: 15 minutes

Cook time: 40 minutes

Total time: 55 minutes

Category: Lunch \ Dinner

Cuisine: Indian

Serves: 3

Method:

Add oil and jeera to a pressure cooker.
Add chopped green chilies, coriander, turmeric and red chili powders.
Cook for 5 minutes.
Add tomato puree, salt and chopped cilantro and cook for 10-12 minutes.
Cook till the oil separated from the gravy and Stir occasionally to prevent from burning.
Add cubed yam, carrots, sweet potatoes and brinjal.
Add half a cup of water and pressure cook for 4-5 whistles.
Garnish with ghee and chopped cilantro.

Step by Step Pictures of the recipe:

Add oil, jeera, and chopped green chilies.

Notes:

Finely Chopped tomatoes can be substituted for puree.
All the spice powders should be sauteed constantly. Burnt spices will spoil the taste.
Cinnamon sticks, cardamom pods can be added along with jeera.

Mango Cookies

Baked recipe, Dessert, Healthy

Whole wheat flour mango cookies are easy to make recipe with no eggs. This recipe has whole wheat flour, natural sugar and carom seeds so it’s pretty healthy too. Mangoes add flavor to the cookies.

Ingredients:

Wheat Flour (1/2 cup)
Mango Puree (1/4 cup)
Baking Soda (1/2 tsp)
Milk (2 tbs)
Salt (a pinch)
Ghee (1/8 cup)
Pistachio (pieces, 2 tsp)
Baking Powder (1/2 tsp)
Ajwain [Carom Seeds] (1 tsp)
Natural Brown Sugar (1/8 cup)

Prep time: 15 minutes

Bake time: 18-20 minutes

Total time: 35 minutes

Category: Snack

Yield: 13

Method:

Step 1:

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees C.

Step 2:

In a large bowl add whole wheat flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and carom seeds.
Mix all the dry ingredients.
In another bowl add mango puree, ghee and sugar and with the help of a hand mixer or hand beater and beat until the mixture is increased in volume and the color is paler.
Combine the puree-ghee mixture and dry ingredients well to form a dough. Add milk if the dough is stiff.
Roll out the dough to 1/4 inch thick.
Cut the dough into desired shapes using a biscuit cutter.
Roll out the spare dough again and repeat the process with the rest of the dough.
Transfer the biscuits on to a baking sheet lined tray.
Garnish the biscuits with nuts.
Bake for 18-20 minutes at 180 degree celsius.
Leave on the baking sheet for a couple of minutes.
Cool on a wire rack to cool completely.

Step by Step pictures of the recipe:

Add mango puree, ghee and natural sugar in a bowl.

Beat the wet ingredients using a hand beater.

Combine both wet and dry ingredients to form a dough.

Bake for 18-20 minutes at 180 degree celsius.

Notes:

Ingredients should be at room temperature.
Spoon or Manual or electric hand mixer can be used for beating.
More sugar can be added if preferred. The cookies I baked had less sweet because we prefer less sweet.
The dough can be kept in between two parchment papers and rolled out.

Kavuni [Black] Rice Sweet

Dessert, South Indian, South Indian Festives, South Indian Rice, South Indian Sweets, Sweets

This sweet originates from Chettinad region in Tamilnadu. Black rice is a good source of iron and other nutrients. I used jaggery instead of sugar. This rice turns purple after it’s cooked.

Ingredients:

Kavuni [Black] Rice (1/2 cup)
Cardamom Powder (1/4 tsp)
Coconut (grated, 1/2 cup)
Cashews (halved, 10)
Jaggery (3/4 cup)
Ghee (4 tsp)

Prep time: 5 minutes

Cook time: 30 minutes

Total time: 35 minutes

Soak time: 12 hours

Category: Lunch \ Dinner \ Snack

Cuisine: South Indian

Serves: 3

Method:

In a bowl wash and add water to kavuni rice and soak for 12 hours.
Transfer the soaked rice to a pressure cooker and add water if required.
Pressure cook for 15 whistles.
Add ghee to a deep skillet and add cashews.
Sautee for 5-6 minutes or until golden and set aside.
In the same skillet add grated coconut and dry roast for few minutes and set aside.
Add jaggery and water and cook till jaggery dissolves.
Add the cooked black rice and mash well.
Add the roasted cashews, coconut, and cardamom powder.
Add the remaining ghee too.

Step by step pictures of the recipe:

If the rice is not soft pressure cook again for 4-5 whistles.

Notes:

Wild rice and black rice are not exactly the same. We can substitute with wild rice if it’s not available.
Add more water before pressure cook the rice if required.
Cook the rice on low flame and ensure that there is enough water to pressure cook for 15 whistles.
Mash the rice before add to jaggery water.
Dissolve the jaggery and no need to make thick syrup.
The rice should be properly cooked before adding to the jaggery water.

Avial

South Indian, South Indian Curry

Avial is a simple mixed vegetable cooked in a coconut gravy with curd and seasoned with coconut oil and curry leaves. My grandma used to add some chopped tomatoes and beetroot to get the pink color which was loved by all in our family. But, here I have given the authentic recipe without beetroot.

INGREDIENTS:

Pumpkin (white, long cut, 2 cups)
Coconut (grated, 1 1/2 cups)
Carrot (long cut, 1 cup)
Beans (long cut, 1 cup)
Coconut Oil (1 tbs)
Green Chilies (3)
Drumstick (1/2 cup)
Curd (1/2 cup)
Banana (raw, long cut, 1/2 cup)
Brinjal (long cut, 1/2 cup)
Potato (long cut, 1 cup)
Jeera [Cumin] (seeds, 1 1/2 tsp)
Salt (to taste)
Curry Leaves (few)

Prep time: 20 minutes

Cook time: 50 minutes

Total time: 1 hr and 10 minutes

Category: Lunch \ Dinner

Cuisine: South Indian

Serves: 4

Method:

Add water to a skillet and add Pumpkin, potato, carrot, yam, brinjal, banana, beans, drumstick, and salt.
Cover with a lid and cook on a low flame.
Cook for 10-15 minutes or till the vegetables are cooked.
Grind grated coconut, green chilies and jeera to a coarse consistency.
If water is required add few teaspoons of water to adjust the consistency.
Make some space in the center of the pan and add coconut oil and in the same oil add curry leaves.
Switch off the flame and after 10 minutes add curd.

Step by step pictures of the recipe:

Cook the vegetables in a skillet and add some water.

Cover with a lid and cook for 10-15 minutes.

Grind coconut, jeera and green chilies to a coarse consistency.

Add the mixture to the cooked vegetables.

Make space at the center and add coconut oil and curry leaves.

Notes:

While cooking vegetables neither it should be over cooked nor under cooked.
Whisk the curd before adding to the cooked vegetables.
Fresh curd is preferred always.

Falafel

#vegan, Healthy

Falafel is a popular Middle Eastern food made with chickpeas, spices and herbs. My children fondly relish falafels with pita bread. The taste of falafel differs from country to country but the basic ingredients are chick peas, parsley and cumin powder that are same everywhere. Falafel can be baked or fried but authentic falafel is fried.

Ingredients:

Chick Peas (1/2 cup)
Cilantro (1/2 cup)
Parsley (1/2 cup)
Onion (chopped, 1/2 cup)
Cumin powder (1/2 tsp)
Pepper Powder (1/2 tsp)
Red Chili Powder (kashmiri, 1 1/2 tsp)
Sesame Seeds (2 tsp)
Salt (to taste)
Oil (to fry)
Baking Soda (1/2 tsp)
Bread Crumbs (2 tsp)

Prep time: 15 minutes

Cook time: 25 minutes

Total time: 40 minutes

Category: Breakfast \ Lunch \ Dinner

Cuisine: Middle Eastern

Yield: 12

Method:

Wash and soak chickpeas for 8-10 hours.
Strain the water and set aside.

To Grind:

In a food processor add parsley, cilantro and onion and grind to a coarse consistency.
Add soaked chiskpeas, red chili, pepper, cumin powder, salt and baking soda and use the pulse setting to grind to a coarse consistency.
When it is done add bread crumbs and sesame seeds and run on pulse setting for 5-7 seconds.
Transfer the mixture to a bowl and mix well.
Cover the mixture with a cling film or a plate and refrigerate for 30 minutes to an hour.
Form the mixture either into balls or use any small bowl and fill in 2 teaspoons of mixture.
Flip upside down on a plate. Place the uncooked falafels on a plate before deep frying.
Heat oil in a pan and gently lower the discs or balls.
Allow them to cook for 2-3 minutes and then flip to cook on the other side.
Fry till they turn crisp or brown.

Step by step pictures of the recipe:

Grind parsley, cilantro and onions to a coarse consistency.

Grind soaked chickpeas, chili, pepper, cumin powder, salt and baking soda to a coarse consistency.

Notes:

Use a strainer to filter the chickpeas from water. Before grinding there should not be any water.
For grinding either food processor or a mixer can be used. The batter should be coarse.
The mixture should hold together nicely and not fall apart.
Sesame is optional.
Ice cream scoop can be used to make balls.
Falafel mold is available in the market and that can be used too.