Shimla Mirchi sabzi

Ingredients:

1. Shimla Mirchis (Green Bell Peppers/Capsicum) - 4
2. Besan (chickpea flour) - 1 cup
3. Onions - 1 medium
4. Red chilli powder - 1/2 spoon
5. Jeera (cumin seed) - 1 tea spoon
6. Salt - to taste
7. Oil
8. Garam masala - a pinch

Method:

1. Cut onions and green bell peppers into small pieces and put it together in a bowl.
2. Add salt, besan, chili powder and little oil to the bowl and mix well. Add very  little garam masala and mix again.
3. Heat oil in a pan. Once the oil heats up add the cumin seed.
4. When the cumin seeds starts to splutter, add the shimla mirchis and mix well.
5. Cook on medium flame.
6. Keep adding oil and stir the vegetable whenever they start to stick to the bottom of the pan.
7. Remove from the flame when the mirchis become soft.
8. Serve hot with chapattis.

Carrot Payasam (Kheer) - Dessert

Ingredients:
1. Carrots - about 10-12
2. Sweet condensed milk (Milkmaid) - 1 can
3. Unsweet condensed milk - 2 cans
4. Cashew nuts - about 15 pieces

Method:
1. Peal the skin of the carrots and grate them.
2. Steam the carrots with little water for 10 mins.
3. Allow the steamed carrots to cool and beat it in a mixer (without the water) to make a semi solid paste.
4. Put the carrot paste in a pan, and add the unsweet condensed milk to this paste and heat it in medium flame.
5. Also add the sweet condensed milk (about 3/4th of the can) and keep stirring the mixture.
6. When the mixture starts to boil, remove the pan from the flame.
7. In another pan, add 2 spoons of ghee. When it heats up add cashews and fry it till it becomes brown and add it to the mixture.
8. Serve the payasam hot.

This is the first time I had carrot payasam in my life and it came out really well. Thanks to my friend SriVidya for giving me the recipe and helping me to try it out!

Baadam Milk -Dessert

Here is what you need:

1. Milk
2. Badams (Almonds)
3. Sugar
4. Elachi (Cardamom)
5. Saffron(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saffron)

Method:
For 4 people:
1. Soak about 30 baadams in hot water for 3 hours.Cover the vessel while you let the badams soak.
2. After 3 hours, peel the skin from the baadams.
3. Grind it with about 3-4 elachis and a little water.
4. You should grind it till you get a semi-solid smooth paste.
5. For every cup of the paste, add about 1.5-2 cups sugar depending on your tolerance to sweet. (You can always add sugar later if you think you need more sweet to your baadam milk)
6. Add hot milk to this and stir till the paste becomes liquid and all the ingredients are mixed together.
7. Take about a cup of hot milk, and add little saffron to it.
8. When you see the milk starting to turn yellow, pour this into the baadam milk and stir well.
9.Allow it to cool for sometime and then refrigerate it.
10. Drink the badam milk cold.

Note: When you remove the baadam milk from the refrigerator, it will be a little solid. Add milk to it before drinking!

Masala Vadai - Snack

Ingredients:

1. 1 cup of toor dal, urad dal and chana dal (equal proportions)
2. Curry leaves
3. Corriander leaves
4. Onion - 1
5. Oil to fry
6. Ziploc bag - 1
7. Salt -  to taste
8. Garam masala -  a pinch
9. Red chilies - 4-5

Method:

1. Soak all the dals in water for 1- 1.5 hrs.
2. Drain the water, add the red chilies ,3/4th tea spoon of salt and grind it till you get a coarse paste. (Do not add water while grinding)
3. Cut onions into small pieces and add this to the dal paste along with cut curry leaves and coriander and a pinch of the garam masala.
4. Heat oil in a pan.
5. To the ziploc bag, add little oil. Make small,flat balls of the dal mixture on the ziploc.
6. Fry in oil till it turns golden brown.
7. Serve hot with tomato ketchup.

Cabbage Kootu

I did not know kootu is really easy to make till my Mom gave me this recipe.

Ingredients:
Cabbage - 1 small
Moong dal - 1/2 cup
Sambar powder
Red chillies - 4-5
Coconut - 1/4th cup
Cumin seeds - 1 tsp
Salt
Oil
Mustard
Urad dal

Method:
1. Cut the cabbage into small pieces
2. Pressure cook the cabbage and moong dal with appropriate amount of water. Cook for 3 whistles.
3. Grind the coconut, cumin seeds and the red chilles with little water to make it into a paste.
4. After the cabbage is done, add a little water, and heat the mixture on medium flame.
5. Add 2 spoons of sambar powder and salt.
6. Add the paste to this mixture and allow it to boil till a proper consistency is obtained.
7. In a small pan, heat 2 tea spoons of oil and add mustard.
8. When they splutter, add little urad dal.
9. Add this to the cabbage kootu.

Serve hot with rice!
(Note: The amount of chillies can be changed according to the amount of spice you want)