Instant Khaman Dhokla

Hearing the word 'Dhokla' itself takes me back to the memories of my childhood in Gujarat.Yes,Dhokla is one of the most popular dishes of Gujarat.Its like 'idli' of TamilNadu,only the ingredients differ.But the method of prepartion is almost same.

The hot,spongy Dhoklas sold in the small street shops of Gujarat tastes the best.These lovely yellow ,soft, spongy blocks with Coriander-Mint chutney compliments to a perfect evening tiffin.Traditionally,Dhokla is made by soaking the lentils for few hours and grinding them to a smooth batter and allowing it to ferment,which is steamed in appropriate moulds.But today,we are going to see how it can be made instantly.

For the Dhokla:

2 cups of Besan (Bengal gram flour)

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1 green chilly

1 cup Buttermilk/curd

1/2 cup water

1 tablespoon oil

1 sachet of Eno's Fruit salt(Available in all Medical stores)

salt to taste

For Tempering:

2 sprigs of Coriander

1 sprig of Curry leaves

1 Green chilly

1 tsp Mustard seeds

1/4 cup grated coconut

1 tablespoon of Sugar dissolved in 1/2 of water

Mix together gram flour,salt,curd/buttermilk ,water,oil and chopped green chilly.Make sure that there are no lumps.

Dissolve the Eno's fruit salt in the lemon juice and pour it in the batter.Gently mix them and pour the batter in a greased mould.

Steam the batter for 10 mins or until a tooth pick inserted in the middle comes out clean.Idli steaming pot can be used to steam the dhoklas.Pierce 10 holes with a fork or toothpick.Pour the sugar solution.

Allow it to cool for 5 mins.Transfer it on a plate and cut them to squares.

Heat a tsp oil and fry the mustard seeds,chilly and curry leaves.Throw them over the Dhoklas.Garnish with coriander leaves and grated coconut and serve with coriander-mint chutney.

French Toast

Many of my friends are busy working professionals.Whenever they talk about my blog,they usually ask me to post a recipe that is easy and quick.So Im going to post some easy and quick recipes for this week.These recipes doesn't demand unheard ingredients.One can make these anytime they want as most of the things needed for the recipe would be available in ur kitchen pantry.Today's recipe is a very common and popular breakfast dish.This dish can be made in less than 5 mins.Its a combo of omelette and bread,popularly called as 'French Toast'.French toast can be made as 'sweet' or 'savoury' .

Its also known as 'Bombay Toast' ,'Eggy bread' etc.Name it whatever,it tastes soo good.

French Toast (Sweet)

Break 2 eggs in a mixing bowl.

Add 2 tablespoons of sugar and 1/2 cup milk(do not use hot milk).Whisk...Whisk..Whisk..

Place a non-stick pan on medium heat.Dip a slice of bread in the egg mixture and place it on the pan.Drizzle few drops of oil.Cook until you get required color on either side.

Have it with a blob of butter or squirt some honey over each slice and eat!

French Toast(savoury)

Chop one small onion,one tomato and 1 green chilly.If coriander leaves are available,one can add that too.

Beat two eggs with 2 tablespoons of milk.Add required salt,pinch of garam masala.Add chopped onion,tomato and chilly.



Dip the bread in the mixture and toast on a skillet in medium heat.Use oil or butter for toasting.



I sprinkled a bit of cayenne pepper to spike it up!

Mysore Rasam

Its been quite a long time that I created a post here.Many things kept me engaged..Exams,Dad's visit,travelling etc.

It was raining all day for the past 3 days.And our whole house was surrounded by water . And we couldn't get any groceries.There was no power supply and I was going insane without knowing what to do.My sister was sick and I was in the verge of catching cold.The continuous slashing rain,numbing chillness and boredom all together made the day grey.So to keep ourselves warm and peppy we made 'Mysore Rasam'. The steaming rice and the hot rasam was like medicine.I felt rejuvenated and cozy after sipping the rasam.

This may not be the authentic recipe for Mysore rasam.What we made was our own version,which is simple,quick and too good.

You will need:
4 Big Tomatoes
1/4 cup boiled Toor Dal
6 cloves of Garlic
1 tbsp pepper
1 tbsp Cumin seeds
1 teaspoon red chilli powder
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1 small gooseberry sized tamarind
1/2 teaspoon mustard seeds
1 sprig curry leaves
A pinch of hing
Salt as per taste

Begin by soaking the tamarind in 1/2 liter water.

Dry roast cumin seeds and pepper.Ground them coasrsely.Add toamotes and garlic in the same jar and puree them.Add sugar,salt and chilli powder mix well and keep aside.

In a vessel,heat 1 tbsp oil and add the mustard seeds,hing and curry leaves.Let the seeds splutter.Add the tomatoe paste.And fry until the raw smell goes away.

Extract the tamarind juice and pour over the tomatoe paste.Add the cooked Dal too.Stir and check for salt .At this point,one can add whatever more is required.

Bring to boil and turn off the heat.

We had it mixed with rice accompained by 'Potato Podimass' and 'Masala Pappad'.

Raisin Rocks & Raisin Bars!

Raisin and oatmeal bars form an excellent part of a healthy diet.These bars are not only healthy but delicious too.Snacking on such healthy bars can prevent us from consuming unhealthy stuffs.
There are so many variations to make these Bars.I have tried two different versions.The first one was my own trial while the latter one was from 'ThePioneerWoman'.Surprisingly ,the first one was so good(for my first try!) and it was crunchy and had the right amount of sweetness.And it was rustic and appeared like rocks so I named it 'Raisin Rocks'.
The Raisin Bars are also pretty good.I tweaked her orginal recipe a bit.I used strawberry preserve and minimised the amount of butter.They were chewy and the tartness of the strawberry added an extra kick!



For the Raisin rocks,

I combined in a large bowl,
1/2 cup of Raisins
3/4 cup flour
1 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup wheat flakes(crushed)
1/4 cup Oats
1/2 cup of butter
1/2 teaspoon of baking powder
1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon powder
A pinch of salt



After adding the butter to the dry mixture it will become like a dough.Add a tbspoon of water if necessary.Spread them evenly in a baking sheet and bake in a preheated oven of 250 C for 20 mins.





Cut them into square shapes and cool them on a wire rack completely before storing in jar.






For the Raisin bars,



Combine in a large bowl,
1 cup flour
1/2 cup Raisins
1 cup packed brown sugar
1 cup oats
1/2 cup butter
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon powder




Spread half of the mixture in a baking dish.Press them with a spatula and make them even.





Now spread 1/2 cup of strawberry preserve over the mixture.





Spread the remaining miture over the strawberry preserve and press them gently.

Bake in a preheated oven of 250 C for 30 mins.



Square them.Cool on a wire rack and store.



Enjoy!