SHORTBREAD COOKIES RECIPE | EASY COOKIE RECIPES

I have tried baking shortbread cookies when I started experimenting baking. But it didn’t turn out good. It did, but due to my confusion I over baked the cookies and spoiled it. Then after that I had no heart to try as it has lots of butter. Now I got confidence to try again and tried last week as Aj wanted something for snack and he wanted me to bake some cookies. Mainly he wanted to enter kitchen helping me, so since its holidays for him I thought let me involve him to keep him engaged. So I referred Martha Stewarts recipe and tried this time. It came out good and even Vj loved it. So why not bake these cookies and pack your kids snack box with homemade butter cookies?

Shortbread cookies recipe

Recipe Cuisine: Continental  |  Recipe Category: Snack
Prep Time: 1 hr 30mins    |  Cook time: 15 mins    |  Makes: 30 

Ingredients

All purpose flour/ Maida	1 cup
Powdered sugar	1/4 cup
Unsalted butter	1/2 cup
Salt	1/4 tsp
Vanilla essence	1/2 tsp

 

Method

1. Bring butter to room temperature to soften it. Do not melt. beat with a whisk until fluffy (3 minutes). I used my hand blender with whisk attachment but you can use you hands. Make sure you beat well. Add powdered sugar, vanilla and again beat fluffy.

2. Mix flour and salt well and add it to the beaten butter sugar mixture. Make dough. If your dough is too sticky and doesn’t hold a shape, add 1 or 2 more tblps of flour until you are able to form a soft non-sticky dough. Mine turned gooey, so I had to add few more tblsp of flour. Nothing went wrong, so you can do that if needed.

3. Flatten to disc and wrap with a cling wrap. Keep refrigerated for atleast an hour.

4. Line baking tray with baking sheets. Roll out the dough using rolling pin for 1/4 inch thickness. (You can use a butter paper over the dough to avoid sticking to the rolling pin, just in case).

5. Using your favorite shape of cookie cutter, cut out the cookies. Take out the other parts of the dough leaving the cut cookie in its place without disturbing its shape. Re-roll the scraps again and cut out cookies. Use a spatula to take out the cookies.

6. Arrange carefully in the baking tray. Refrigerate it for 30 minutes before baking. Preheat oven for 160 deg C (or 325 F). Bake for 15- 18 minutes until the sides of the cookies just start to change colour. Cool over wire rack completely before baking.

Notes

• Refrigerating the dough is very important, give enough time.
• After cutting out the shapes in the rolled out dough, take out the side row by row for easily taking out the cookies.
• If while re rolling, its difficult for your to handle, refrigerate the dough again. To avoid this, act quickly. Do not knead much with your hands as it will melt the butter and soften the dough.
• After the sides start changing its colour, the centre part may still be soft, which you need not worry, it will get firm after it gets cooled down completely.
• Dot over bake as it will affect the taste.
• My cookie cutter is too tiny so I got more than mentioned.

Tastes and smells divinely, I love especially after 2-3 days

Technorati Tags: shortbread cookies recipe,step by step,easy shortbread cookies,eggless baking recipes

Idli, Dosa, Kadappa, Chutney, Podi - Breakfast menu 8

I have told enough about my kadappa story in my Kumbakonam Kadappa recipe. Though I like it very much these days, I make very rarely as Aj is not liking the combination. But Vj told its his favorite this time. So I should make it often. I planned to bring my kadappa recipe to limelight so made this weekend special breakfast. I had to make chutney for Aj, I made onion tomato chutney as that is his favorite among the chutneys. I love kadappa with idli sure, but with dosa the best. I tried making dosa with a flat bottomed small bowl as they do in restaurants. What’s the big deal? Yeah I always love to watch the making of dosa at restaurants. Of course through youtube I enjoy watching it. I tried using dabara few times but it keeps sticking and end up in dosa with torn spots. I think it comes better with practise. Also our dosa pan is small that our hands are not free while spreading as they do. We do it slow and by that time the batter gets cooked and get stuck to the bowl. Still I tried today and I should say it came out good. I like this mainly because of the even browning. When we use ladle we get concentric circles that gets browned and gives a different look. I love that looks, no problem, but I wanted even browned dosa too as we get in restaurants. So tried this and found better browning, I am sure I will improve if I make often. Lets move on to the planning and making part.

Breakfast with Idli, dosa, Kadappa, Chutney, Podi

Recipe Cuisine: Indian   |  Recipe Category: Breakfast
Prep Time: 12 hr     |  Cook time: 45 mins    |  Serves: 4

1. Have to plan the  before day and grind idli dosa batter. I soak by 3 in summer days and grind after 6, keep overnight for fermentation. Next day use as required.
2. After coffee works, pressure cook potato and moong dal for kadappa. If you want to make it quick, then you can start cutting works side by side. But I like to relax a bit after coffee work.
3. Once potato and dal are done, keep potatoes for cooling and proceed to the cutting works. Onion for chutney and kadappa, tomato for chutney and kadappa.
4. Grate coconut as needed for chutney and kadappa, as usual, I had grated coconut forzen so used that. Keep all other ingredients ready like green chillies, coriander leaves, curry leaves, red chilli, channa dal etc.
5. First roast for chutney, then temper for it in a bowl, next temper and fry onions with tomato if using for kadappa. Transfer to another vessel and boil for kadappa.
6. Fry onion and tomato for chutney and cool it down. Grind chutney, keep aside.
7. Grind for kadappa and finish preparing kadappa, while it boils you can make idlies too.
8. Lastly when you are ready for breakfast, make hot dosas if needed and serve.

Breakfast with Idli, dosa, kadappa, onion tomato chutney, idli podi – ready! Here is a snap with only idlis.


Check out the recipes

1. Video to make crispy roast dosa
2. How to make idli & dosa
3. Onion tomato chutney recipe
4. Kadappa recipe
5. Idli podi recipe

Check out this interesting saravana bhavan style onion tomato gravy and the chutney recipes too.
Happy Cooking !!

Technorati Tags: south indian breakfast ideas,kadappa side dish,idli side dish,dosa side dish ideas,side dish for idli dosa,weekend special breakfast

MASALA MOR RECIPE (MASALA NEER MOR)

  
I have been thinking to try this for more than 2 weeks now since my friend Sangeeta told the recipe. I thought it would be a chaas recipe until the day before I tried. But she said it is pukka mor recipe and even suggested to present with ‘Sombu’ here in the pictures. I was first sceptical to try this as it had both ginger and garlic in this recipe. So I double confirmed her if it will be stinky. But she told you wont even know that there is both ginger and garlic in this and as she said, when I made and had, it was so so delicious and awesome. Its very simple, perfect for this summer and you can make use of the last too sour curd you have if any. Otherwise you can make it with fresh curd too. I am sure this will be fresh for you, different from neer mor and masala chaas. Impress everyone with this masala mor this summer!!

Masala mor recipe

Recipe Cuisine: Indian  |  Recipe Category: Drink
Prep Time: 10 mins    |  Cook time: 0 mins    |  Serves: 4

Ingredients

Curd/ Plain yogurt	1/2 cup
Mint leaves	8
Coriander leaves	2 sprigs
Garlic	1 flake
Ginger	Small piece same as garlic size
Green chilli	1
Water & Salt	As needed

Method

1. Clean the ingredients needed and grind it with curd and little water, salt using a blender.
2. Filter it and add more water to make it thin consistency and adjust salt as needed.

Notes

• Do not add more leaves or ginger garlic as it will over power.
• You can add 1/4 tsp of jeera or ajwain/ oman to this while grinding. Not more than 1/4 tsp but.
• The consistency is purely your choice, so add water and salt accordingly.

Keep refrigerated and serve chilled when ever needed. And Beat the Heat this summer.

Technorati Tags: masala mor recipe,masala neer mor recipe,summer drinks,south indian butter milk,buttermilk,spiced buttermilk recipe

Beetroot pulao recipe (Beetroot pulav) | Beetroot recipes

 
This beetroot pulao is suggested by a reader (Aby Senthil) when I posted Channa pulao. She mailed immediately saying we can try beetroot pulao same way as my channa pulao. And sent the recipe too. So one day I tried and turned out great. Aj loved it. Me too loved it. Once when we went to our mama’s house my mami had made biryani with beetroot. Usually we don’t add beets in Biryani, so it was quite different, attractive and tasty too. But never tried on my own. This is the first time I made and will make it often for ourselves. Do try it for a change, your kid would love it for its colour.

Beetroot pulao recipe

Recipe Cuisine: Indian  |  Recipe Category: Lunch
Prep Time: 30 mins    |  Cook time: 25 mins    |  Serves: 3

Ingredients

Basmati rice - 1 cup heaped

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Beetroot, chopped - 1 cup

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Green peas - 1/2 cup

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Onion - 1

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Ginger garlic paste - 1 tsp

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Red chilli powder - 1 tsp

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Coriander seeds powder - 1 tsp

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Turmeric - 1/8 tsp

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Coconut milk, thin - 1 cup

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Coriander leaves, chopped - 2 tblsp

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Salt - As needed

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To temper

Oil / Ghee - 2 tsp

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Cinnamon - 1 piece

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Cardamom - 1

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Clove - 1

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Saunf (fennel seeds) - 1/2 tsp

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Method

1. Soak basmati rice for atleast 1/2 hour. Heat a small pressure cooker with oil/ ghee, temper with the items given under ‘To temper’ table in order. Add thinly sliced onions and fry till transparent.
2. Add ginger garlic paste and fry for a minute in medium flame. Add beetroot and green peas. Add little salt and continue frying for 2 mins in medium flame.
3. Add turmeric, chilli powder and dhaniya powder and give it a fry. Add thin coconut milk and a cup of water. Bring to boil, add required salt and soaked basmati rice. Mix well. 
4. Cook for 14 minutes in lowest possible flame with lid and pressure valve. Or upto 2 whittles in medium flame. Garnish with coriander leaves.

Notes

• You can garnish with fried cashews too.
• You can skip green peas.
• I didn’t had ginger garlic paste, so I pressed ginger and garlic in garlic press.

Serve hot with any raita, onion raita best or boondi raita and chips.

Technorati Tags: beetroot pulao recipe,beetroot biryani,beetroot recipes

ELAI VADAM | ELAI VADAM RECIPE | SUMMER SPECIALS

      
Elai vadam is one I tasted few times as amma makes, but the time when I realized its taste and worthiness is after my delivery. My mom made it and toast directly over fire and give me along the pathiya saapadu. It will be so light and crisp inspite it is toasted dry over fire. My mom and MIL both makes this but in their own ways. I am posting my MIL’s way as I learnt from her. My mom makes this elai vadam by dipping the back of poovarasam ilai (I think, if I am not wrong). She dries for very short time and then drop the leaves in batches in boiling water. Then peel it off and dry. This gives very very very thin, light crispy vadams that melt in your mouth as you bite. My MIL’s version is different but equally gives a crisp vadams, but slightly thicker.

I am a big fan of the appalam they sell in the exhibitions, but very rarely get a chance to go and eat as I am here . I remember I ate some 4 years back at Chennai exhibition lastly. So this vadam tastes very close to that and that’s why I am loving this so much. This vadam is so versatile. No sun to dry vadam that you plan to make at home?  No worries, you can dry this in shade. Takes less time to dry too. You are not comfortable to fry in oil?  No worries, you can microwave this too. Cool right? Actually there are elai vadam stands commercially available in stores. But I made use of my idli pot to steam these. If you want, you can buy it, it should be available in saravana stores or rathna stores I guess. Otherwise you can follow this method. I thank my mami (MIL) when ever I fry this and eat this. It looks like a lot of work, but its not, you will enjoy doing this I am sure, so make it atleast with one cup rice if not 2 cups.

Elai Vadam Recipe

Recipe Cuisine: Indian  |  Recipe Category: Snacks/ Sides
Prep Time: 3 hrs  + Drying time  |  Cook time: 1 Hr  + frying time   |  Makes: 30

Ingredients

Raw rice - 2 cups

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Jeera - 2 tsp

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Salt - As needed

Method

1. Soak rice for atleast 3 hours. Grind with salt to a very very fine paste/ batter. I ground using my mixie. Grinding smooth is important for crisp texture. Add less water while grinding, then if needed  you can add more water to adjust consistency. It should be slightly runny than our usual dosa batter.Mix jeera.

2. Take 3-4 banana leaf and cut into squares so that it can fit your vessel you are going to steam. I used my idli pot, placed a idli plate(lower plate) and kept the idiyappam mesh steamer. Clean the banana leaf, grease very slightly with oil and pour as we do dosa. This should be thin as much as possible. If thick, adjust water consistency. Steam for a minute, while you do in other banana leaves. Takes just a minute. The colour will change as shown in the picture. Using tong we use to fry papad, take the leaf and peel it, while you steam the next. Repeat the process until you finish all the batter.

3. As you peel, you can arrange in a clean white cloth for drying. Do not let it fold while you peel as it will stick. Dry in sun or shade or in fan wind. The next day it will be fully dried. But dry for 3 days for safer side. If you have sun, dry in sun.

4. Store in container immediately after drying – don’t keep overnight outside. Once dried completely, fry in enough oil and drain in paper towel.

Notes

• Do not grease with more oil as you cant make round shapes. Do with less oil.
• No need to grease every time, just 3-4 times once.
• You can use vadhaam tree leaf which is also large enough to steam these vadam.
• If you grind the batter coarse, then it will come out hard crisp.
• If you make vadams thick, then it will not dry easily, you may need sun for drying.
• In case you add more water and make the batter too runny, keep aside for an hour, drain the water that comes over the top and then try making.
• If you don’t have idli pot as I have (using cloth) you can use a big kadai with lid too for steaming.
• If not dried properly then you can try preheating oven for 190 deg. C and spread the vadams inside and leave it as such for 1/2 hour or an hour. Then store it.
• You can microwave in high for a minute too instead of deep frying in oil.
• Do not make too big, I made big, but I have to break it before frying. Otherwise it gets fried and enlarges big. So its up to you if you can stand and make, make small or make big and break before frying.

Goes well with any rice varieties, I had mine with tamarind rice. Also as such with spicy podi sprinkled over

Technorati Tags: elai vadam,elai vadam recipe,how to make elai vadam,elai vadam without stand,vadam at home without sun,no sun vadam

Stuffed idiyappam - Breakfast menu 7

Stuffed idiyappam is one of the idea I learnt from my MIL. I have posted my stuffed idiyappam recipe a long while back. But today I thought I will stuff with a difference and did a sweet stuffed idiyappam and a potato stuffed idiyappam. It turned out to be very delicious. I just gulped those just like we do pani puri . It was great as such, but if you want you can make sweet coconut milk for the sweet stuffed idiyappam and or a coconut based chutney for the spicy idiyappam. You can also make any coconut based kurma. Please scroll down to the bottom of the post for the side dish ideas and links. Make this for your family and make your weekend special .

Stuffed idiyappam Breakfast

Recipe Cuisine: Indian   |  Recipe Category: Breakfast
Prep Time: 15 mins     |  Cook time: 30 mins    |  Serves: 3

1. Pressure cook 2 potatoes, mean while chop veggies and onion – one for potato one for vegetable stuffing.
2. Once potatoes are done, finish preparing the stuffings-  refer my samosa post for the stuffing recipe. I used similar one or you can prepare your own.
3. Grate coconut and mix with sugar,elachi, keep it ready as for the sweet stuffing. Let coconut be more and sweet just enough for it. If sugar is more then it may become watery while steaming.
4. Once the stuffing are ready, prepare the dough. You can make one variety by one and keep it arranged in a plate or hot pack and serve your family once done.
5. Do not keep your stuffing by pressing it over the base idiyappam, just keep gently as such. Also after finishing making idiyappams, do not keep one over other as it will affect the soft texture.
6. I used 3/4 cup of idiyappam flour for serving my family of 3. It gave 15 small sized stuffed idiyappams.

Easy yet a special breakfast for your family is ready! Here are the sweet coconut+ sugar stuffed idiyappam, potato masala stuffed idiyappam, mixed vegetable stuffed idiyappam.

Check out the recipes

1. Stuffed idiyappam recipe

Side dish ideas

1. Peanut chutney recipe
2. Coconut chutney recipe
3. Tomato kurma recipe
4. Mix vegetable kurma recipe

Check out the other idiyappam variety posts in my blog

1. Moong dal idiyappam
2. Tamarind idiyappam
3. Pepper jeera idiyappam
4. Tomato sevai

Have a great weekend!!

Technorati Tags: stuffed idiyappam,idiyappam variety recipes,idiyappam varieties,south indian breakfast ideas