Tharatipal, my brother’s favorite.When someone utters this name, yes you want to have it! But the procedure is time consuming , you just go and purchase it. Here you have two simple methods of doing it. The ingredients are the same but the procedure is different. Enjoy making, eating and serving it.

Ingredients

Milkmaid — 1 tin,400 gms

Milk — 3 tablespoons

Curd —- 2 tablespoons

Ghee — 1 tablespoon.

Microwave Tharatipal / Palgova.

Mix all the ingredients together in a large microwave safe bowl. Microwave for 1 1/2 minutes, stir well and microwave again for 1 minute. Stir again and microwave again for 1 1/2 minute. Continue the step till the side start getting dry. mix well and enjoy Tharatipal / Palgova. I took about 7 minutes.

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101 , is a auspicious number for most of us .Today I am publishing my 101st recipe in my blog, to me it’s something I never imagined when I started it 2 years back.I think I have a long way to go.  My passion for cooking and the blessed opportunity I got been a part of the Sai organization when I was in Dubai,are the reasons that made me publish recipes on FB . The push from my children made me start a blog. I started by preparing and publishing traditional recipes, later it created an interest in me to invent and create new dishes. I take immense pride in publishing this recipe…my 101st recipe.For many it may be a small thing. Initially my children would help me with the introductory para, since I was not good at writing, which I feel is fine since everyone are not 100℅ perfect. But slowly I have started writing it myself but still ask them to read it to see if its ok before publishing. I choose to publish it today since I thought it’s the best way of celebrating the day I was born many years back. With everyone locked inside their home because of the virus situation, it’s the gift I gifted to myself. I think it’s never too late to start something, do it,do it for yourself. Don’t expect anything in return, just continue and push yourself to satisfy yourself in whatever you want to do. Just a message from an unknown person asking you for a recipe is a big reward. So ladies go ahead and follow your passion whatever it is, wherever you are,whatever  is your age is!

Ingredients
Matta rice/ raw rice—1 cup
Jaggery—– 3 cups
Ghee—– 1cup
Cardamom pwd —-  1/2 teaspoon
Jackfruit pieces— 2 tablespoons(optional)
Few cashews and raisins.

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A famous dish of Hyderabad, which has a spicy gravy , served with Hyderbadi briyani.

Ingredients

Baigan / Brinjal —- 8-9

Onion ——1

Ginger -garlic paste —- 1 teaspoon

Tamarind —- small lemon size

Peanut —–1 tablespoon

Sesame —- 1 tablespoon

Coriander sseds — 1 tablespoon

Cumin seeds —- 1/2 tablespoon

Kuskus —- 1/4 tablespoon (optional)

Dry coconut —- 1/2 cup

Dry red chili —- 6-7

Salt —– 1 1/4 teaspoon

Oil —— 3-4 tablespoon

Few curry leaves.

Method

Wash and dry the baingan. Cut the stem and slit them in four keeping the base intact. Soak the tamarind in water. Dry roast all the dry ingredients, and grind them. Heat 1 1/2 teaspoon oil and lightly fry the baingan till they look soft. Remove and keep aside. Heat the remaining oil and saute the ginger-garlic paste,then saute the cut onion with curry leaves till the onion tuns pink. Now add the baingan,saute for a minute and then add the grounded paste, cook for 2 minutes and then add the tamarind juice and salt, lower the heat ,cover and cook till baingan are very soft and cooked thoroughly.

Here’s one more recipe with pavakkai the not so preferred vegetable in most of the households. This time its puli pachadi. Do try it, it’s packed with many healthy benefits of pavakkai and ellu.

Ingredients

Bitter gourd / pavakkai 1

Tamarind lemon size

Urad dal 1 teaspoon

Red chili 2

Sesame seed / ellu 1 teaspoon

Mustard seeds 1/2 teaspoon

Jaggery 1 tablespoon

Turmeric 1/2 teaspoon

Salt 1 teaspoon

Sesame oil 2 teaspoon

Few curry leaves.

Method

Wash and cut the pavakkai into small pieces.Soak tamarind in water for sometime and remove its juice. Heat one spoon of oil in a pan and saute the pavakkai for two minutes. Now add the turmeric pwd , salt and jaggery, lower the flame and allow it to cook.Dry roast the sesame seeds, keep aside. Heat 1/2 spoon oil, fry the urad dal, red chili till the dal changes colour, cool it and powder it along with sesame seeds. Once the pavakkai is cooked,add the grounded powder to it ,mix well and cook for 2-3 minutes, put of the heat. Heat the remaining oil, add the mustard seeds ,when they crack add the curry leaves, pour this over the pachadi. Pavakkai ellu pachadi ready.

Navarathri sambar is a favorite in Chellam’s household. Be it Vishu, Navarathri, Diwali, Onam,or a Friday during Aadi masam,it’s mandatory that Navarathri sambar be prepared. The sambar or Pulinkari (that’s the original name) was and is been prepared during Navarathri in Puthucode, a small village in Kerala. Puthucode is my maternal grandmother’s native. Goddesses Annapoorneswari is the presiding deity of Puthucode. White pumpkin,red pumkin and yam are the veggies used in the pulinkari. It is told that, the whole vegetable is dropped on the ground, and the broken pieces were just cooked as big pieces and not cut into small pieces. Prepare the Pulinkari which tastes different from sambar and relish it with hot rice and olan as prepared during Navarathri in Puthucode.

Ingredients

White pumpkin–1 cup, cut into big cubes
Red pumpkin—  1 cup cut into big cubes
Yam   —-        1/2 cup, cut into big cubes
Tuvar dal  —            3/4 cup
Tamarind  —-           a big lemon size
Coconut    —-           3/4 cup
Raw rice    —           2 tablespoons
Methi seeds  —     1/2 teaspoon
Dry red chili —          1
Green Chili    —        4
Jaggery    —-             1 tablespoon
Turmeric pwd  —      1/2 teaspoon
Salt         —-                1 1/2 teaspoon
Sesame oil    —-        1 teaspoon
Few curry leaves.

Today it’s compulsory to stay at home and sure everyone wants something special and I was in no mood to do anything special. My daughter looks at me and says, “amma, I would love to have some grilled sandwich.” My son adds on, “amma can i have something exclusive!” And finally when i looked at my husband,he said his famed line, “anything is fine! “; indirectly meaning ,yes something different is always welcome. Hearing everyone, my grandson asked what are you preparing ammama, I will help you. The fact was that I was in no mood for spending hours in the kitchen and making something elaborate. So I opened the fridge and found all these ingredients and that’s how this chatpatha cheesy sandwich got invented.

Bread slice—– white / Brown / whole wheat /Multigrain….

Potato subji / corn subji / Mixed vegetable subji/ chole.

Butter / Olive oil

Cheese

Tortilla chips / Potato chips

Apply butter or oil on the bread slices. Heat a pan, lower the heat. Place the buttered side on the pan, spread the subji ( i used leftover chole to which i added boiled potato) on the bread, cover the subji with a bread slice, now spread some shredded cheese on the bread and arrange the chips and again cover it with one more slice of bread, butter it. Turn the sandwich and toss the bread, enjoy this chatpatha-cheesy sandwich.

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A dessert that’s easy to make, not much of cooking. Involve your children and have some fun. Sit together and enjoy cold dry fruit pudding.

Ingredients

Jelly — 1 pack , any flavour

Vanilla sponge cake

Dates, Almond, Walnut, Pistachio — 1 1/2 cup

Custard powder —1 pack.

Method

Prepare the custard and jelly as per instruction in the packet. Chop the dryfruits into small bits. Mix the chopped dryfruits to the jelly and allow it to set. Once the jelly is set, layer the crumpled cake over it and pour the custard. Refrigerate for one hour and enjoy cool Dryfruit Pudding.

A refreshing drink as the summer approaches us!

Ingredients

Watermelon, cucumber,mint leaves, ginger and lemon juice.

Method

Add all the ingredients into a blender and blend until fully combined. Strain the juice through a sieve and remove the pulp. Enjoy refreshing juice.

The main ingredient of this sambar is a fruit. This sweet and sour version of our humble sambar is sure to tickle the taste buds of those who love to experiment

Ingredients

Nendram pazham— 1

Tuvar dal —1 cup

Tamarind —lemon size

Turmeric pwd —1/2 teaspoon

Sambar pwd— 1 1/2 teaspoon

Asafoetida —1/4 teaspoon

Salt —1 teaspoon

Sesame oil —- 1 tsp

Mustard seeds —1/2 teaspoon

Few curry leaves.

Method

Pressure cook the tuvar dal. Soak the tamarind in water for 15 minutes and extract the juice. Cut the pazham into thick slice. Boil the pazham in tamarind juice ,adding turmeric pwd, sambar pwd,asafetida and salt in medium heat for about 5 minutes. Be careful not to overcook the pazham.Now add the cooked and mashed dal, give a stir. If necessary add extra water to get a proper consistency and allow to simmer for about 3-4 minutes. Heat oil in a kadai,add mustard seeds,when they splutter,add the curry leaves,add this to sambar. Nendram pazham sambar ready.

This is no forward or tips on how to take care of yourself and family against Corona virus. I think we all have had enough posts and forwards on it and hope some of the advice are being followed. All around the world the situation is the same and everyone are worried and anxious when everything is going to be normal again. Since leave has been declared for children, the question is how to occupy them? I got reminiscent about the past and how my children spend their childhood during the vacation. This is the best time to spend time together. Involve your children in household work like cleaning, drying the clothes, vegetables cutting. As my cousin mentioned, this automatically would reduce work for your domestic help, and they would get some time to spend with their children, since it’s holiday for them also. When my children had their vacation, it was mandatory to rearrange there wardrobe, bookshelf. One day it used to be that the furniture and decor’s would be rearranged automaticall! Even parents working from home can definitely take a break and go back to their childhood. Let your children experience it, this is best way of learning that can never be forgotten. Maybe things will be messy, or maybe one of your decor breaks, but these are the best memories one will always have. You will have silly arguments when playing board games, it’s fine! Every one is passionate about something, try to teach your child a little what you know and have forgotten. Painting, repairing something, cooking, singing, dancing. Dance alone with them, it’s fun and a good exercise, sing with your children, make funny songs, my children used to do it. Be assured that, this golden opportunity may never come back. So take a break, relax and enjoy with your family.