Cracked Wheat & Rice Khichdi/Spiced Lentils cooked with rice and cracked wheat

Cracked wheat/Broken wheat is one other healthier food that can be incorporated into the diet in place of processed grains. My husband loves the texture and taste of it, but I am not that big of a fan. I can eat it, but, I'd like it better if it was invisible :) This is one attempt.. And a pretty good one. My little one kept asking for more and more.. And thats always a BIG BONUS.. ! It turned out soo invisible and so tasty.. that have decided that from now on, there is no point in making a just white rice khichdi anymore. That I will always use some cracked wheat in my khichdi.. Try it.. ! I am sure you'll like it too.


Ingredients:
1 Cup Cracked Wheat
1 Cup Moong Dal
1 Cup Rice( I used long grain rice which tends to be a bit sticky and is perfect for khichdi)
6 cups water

1 tsp Turmeric
4-5 Green chillies (slit length-wise)
1 tsp Mustard seeds
1 tsp Cumin seeds
2 sprigs of Curry leaves
1 Tbsp Urad Dal (deskinned)
1 Tbsp Ghee (You may go a little lighter on this if you'd like..)
1 Tbsp Black pepper seeds
1/2 cup Cashews (Optional)

Process:
Dry roast the cracked wheat. Wash the dal and rice and dump into rice cooker. Add the cracked wheat too. Measure and add water. In a small pan, prepare the tempering.
Add ghee, when melted and warm add the urad dal and cashews if using, then add green chilies, black pepper seeds, add curry leaves and turmeric and then mustard seeds and cumin seeds. Stir lightly until the seeds start spluttering. Add the mixture to the rice cooker. Add salt as required, stir the rice, wheat, dal and tempering mixture and turn on the rice cooker. When done, serve hot with some kind of pacchi pulusu/rasam/sambhar/ pickle.

It was really yummy and no one could tell there was cracked wheat in it until I mentioned.. ! Its a wholesome weekday meal with fiber, protein and taste :) Enjoy !

Variations :
Regular Khichdi recipe in this post.

Adding vegetables also is a good option, I frequently do it. (Potato, peas,cauliflower, peppers, egg plant are good ones for this)

This recipe goes to the JFI-Wheat event being hosted by Roma this month.
Also to PJ's Tasty Bites for Toddlers event

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Best Wishes and Ugadi Special Menu

Wishing you all a very happy ugadi. (Ugadi Subhakankshalu !) May the new year shower you and your family with health, happiness and prosperity..

Ugadi (or Yuga(Age) - Aadi(Beginning) means beginning of an age/era) is a spring festival, and representation of a new beginning, of a new year.. just like the trees have new leaves and new flowers. Its the first day of the New year as per the Lunisolar calendar followed by some regions in India for festival and astrological calculations. It is celebrated as the new year day by Telugu people and Kannada people all over the world. Marathi people celebrate the same day as Gudi Padwa.

Like all festivals, muggus/rangoli in the front yard of the home is the first thing women do. New clothes, good food.. and then we spend the day listening to the Panchangam. The Panchangam is the forecast (based on planetary positions as per Telugu astrology) of what the new year holds for specific raasi (zodiac) people, in various areas (relationships, health, finance etc.,), also for countries and states etc., On TV there are special Ugadi programs which we enjoyed also as kids.. !Its one of the most celebrated festivals for all Telugu people in the world. Many families have some traditional things they make as a part of the menu.. And here is what we do..

Ugadi Pacchadi:
Ugadi Pacchadi is a must have on the day of Ugadi. Just like everything in nature is new, all things that go into the pacchadi.. are "new" for the season.. The idea behind the Ugadi pacchadi is to combine "Shadruchulu" or the 6 Tastes. Sweet or Theepi, Bitter or Chedu, Sour or Pulupu, Salty or Uppu, Spicy or Ghaatu/Kaaram, Ogaru..(Astringent??) . The tastes are like the various emotions and feelings we go through in life.. Good, bad, happiness, sadness, unpleasantness etc., Each ingredient of this pacchadi, adds one or more of these tastes..This is how my mum used to make it and I continue that as well.

Ingredients:
Jaggery (broken into small pieces and soaked over night, OR if you are preparing same day, grate it finely)
Raw Green Mangoes (skin peeled, and diced into 1 inch pieces)
Tamarind (Soak and get the juice)
Coconut (Fresh one, diced into 1 inch pieces)
Neem Flowers (if not available, substitute either with grated bitter gourd or powdered fenugreek seeds)
Oma (Ajwain/carrom seeds)
Salt as per taste
Chilli powder as per taste
Water
Process:
Traditionally, the night before Ugadi, a "new" clay pot is used to soak some "new" jaggery overnight. The next day, all the other ingredients are added to it, to prepare this interesting, delicious concoction of various tastes. If you havent done all that, just grating the jaggery and mixing it with water should be good.

Back in India, freshly bloomed flowers from the Neem tree are used for the bitter flavoring, but due to unavailabilty of those here in the US, I substitute it with equally bitter, grated bitter gourd. You can also use powdered fenugreek seeds powder(menthi podi/methi powder). Add little as per taste to the jaggery water.

Then, the raw green mangoes are fresh for the season, add the diced mangoes to the mixture. Also, new tamarind juice that is available for some sour/tangy taste. Add the tamarind juice to the jaggery juice, add to it some coconut pieces, add some salt and some chilli powder and some ground oma powder.. and adjust, the sour, sweet, bitter and the water to your liking and so that you are able to get all the tastes in this mixture.

The way I make it, the sweet taste is dominant with that taste.. wishing for more happiness in life in the new year. There are many variations in different regions of Andhra Pradesh.. We make it like a drinkable juice consistency as in the pictures.


Bakshalu/Bobbatlu:
My mom's Bakshalu are famous among our family friends.. and everyone looked forward to Ugadi when she made a whole bunch of these delicious traditional sweet flat breads and sent them to near and dear.. :) I continue the tradition, though not as perfect as my mum's mine turn out decently well.. too :p One of my friends here from Bangalore also makes these they call them "Obbattu".



Bakshalu/Bobbatlu/Obbattu
Poornalu/Poornam Boorelu

Pulihora:
Some kind of special rice is always on the menu for every festival. Mom always made pulihora.. Its the best, most loved I like to prepare the Mango pulihora for Ugadi, due to the availability of yummy sour tasting mangoes :)

Mango Rice (Mamidikaya Pulihora)
Lime/Lemon Rice (Nimmakaya Pulihora)

Vada:
Some kind of snack is always a must too. And since this is everyone's favorite, I make this almost for every festival.

Masala Vada
Moong Dal Vada
Onion Vada

Check out the Festival Section for more ideas for the special festival menu :

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Try Try and Keep Trying...

[Mommy World]

This ties to my previous article about how Variety is key...

I read somewhere that, a parent should try atleast like 12-15 times, before giving up on a food that the kid wont eat.. ! And once the child is old enough to recognize and know they dont like it, they are never ever going to want to have it again.. So, may be getting them to like everything at a very young age is important.. ?! Just some thoughts..


As I mentioned before, R didnt like spinach..at first..when I gave it to him the first time, second time, but third time was a charm.. and then he started liking it.. The thing that is different about the third time, is the way it was presented to him. It was the spinach pepper chicken curry .. that made him like all the spinach. So, may be trying to present in many different ways is also important whenever we try. If they dont prefer it once, try again in a different way after a couple of weeks, keep trying and never give up.. really :) Especially things like fruits and vegetables... that provide some special vitamins and minerals that are scarce in other foods..

Also, I notice, if I am eating it, he is more interested in eating it than when I am not. Luckily in my house, my husband and I like to try and eat all different kinds of foods, so we try to give R also everything that we are trying to eat..especially if they are healthy. So, We as parents being like a role model in good eating habits is also important.. in addition to other things. My son is motivating me to eat better than I used to before he came into my life. Thats good for all of us.

Update: Asha suggested making it fun looking also helps.. I totally forgot talking about that here. Thanks for mentioning it Asha. That is also key to get them interested.. When R was younger and I was teaching him shapes, I used to cut his wraps into triangles sometimes, and folded them as rectangles sometimes, and he used to get all excited about a triangle wrap and rectangle wrap.. !

Last halloween I got a Superman costume for R, just coz I couldnt find anything else in his size that day.. He was not quite 3 then, but when he wore that, I told him Superman was a superhero that rescues people from bad monsters, he felt proud of being Superman.. ! He got interested in all superheroes from that point on, mostly just Spiderman, Batman and Superman. And during that period of time, he had also watched the animated movie "Hanuman" that my mom had sent from India. I told him Hanuman was also a Superhero.. that rescued people and animals.. And all this superhero rescuing thing really got into his mind. He always talks about how he will be a superhero and rescue everyone from the monsters etc., etc., Its really cute.. ! OK..But if you are wondering why I was talking about the Superhero episode here, it really helped me in getting him to try and eat way more things, without any special gimmicks. I told him, to be strong like the superheroes he needs a lot of energy and for that he needs to eat everything.. And whatever mum gives him. I repeated that for a few weeks whenever he is eating and he seems to get it... :)

Thank you Superheroes.. !!

For some reason now, R is not that fond of water melon.. He eats almost all other fruits.. and water melon is so juicy and delicious, I wonder why he doesnt like it.. !! I tried about 3-4 times so far.. with not much luck.. Gave him as diced pieces, as a juice, mixed up in a smoothie, but.. nope he didnt want it.. My new plan is to try it again this summer .. after he stays out in the sun for about 30 minutes..and craving for some liquids..I will present him with a delicious cool watermelon slice. May be that will make him eat it.. lets see... I'll keep you posted.. on my progress.. !

Some ideas mentioned here :
Spinach Pepper Chicken

Yummy Healthy Wraps

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Variety is Key...

[Mommy World]
For Age Groups 6 Months - 4 Years

I read somewhere, and notice it every day.. that this is the age where most of the food habits are formed for life.. So its very important that we as moms inculcate healthy, good eating habits. My whole reason why I started this food blog.. was to motivate myself to try different things, and create little cooking challenges for myself..so that I not only make a different variety of things for my child that are healthy and tasty..but also for me and my husband for a better health for all of us.. And ofcourse since I do in general keep trying different things, I thought this way of creative expression, would be fun while making it valuable to myself and everyone who is interested in things I make :)


I feel growing up in South India, I was so used to eating rice, its extremely difficult for me to not eat it now.. Eating until the stomach is full.. is another common practice in many homes.. ! So, there comes in the problem with portion control.. Now, when you combine, white rice and no portion control, your carb intake becomes a total disaster.. with taking in too much not-so-useful carbs..

Variety is key.

The more variety there is, the better R tends to eat. It is more effort for me, but its so worth-while when he asks for more and eats whatever I give him. So, I try on most days (well I'd like to do something everyday but it is just too hard, with my schedule).. I try to give him different things. If its rice and curry on monday, its noodles on tuesday.. and chapathi on wednesday.. may be thursday I'll give him rice again with different vegetable curries.. and something else on friday.. He tends to eat whatever I give him when I maintain this variety.. It helps not only in making him eat better, but also incorporate different things in his diet.

Incorporate, whole grains in the diet as much as possible. It provides the much needed carbohydrates, but also provides the fiber that aids in easier digestion of foods.. in addition to all the other benefits.. Try cracked wheat, brown rice, whole wheat, oats instead of the regular white rice.. I am only trying to do this recently..with some decent success..

It important to make them try all different types of food from different food groups so that they get a balanced diet too. R didnt like spinach.. when I gave it to him the first time, second time, third time.. and then he started liking it.. If they dont prefer it once, try again in a different for after a couple of weeks, keep trying and never give up.. really :) Especially things like fruits and vegetables... that provide some special vitamins and minerals that are scarce in other foods..

Some recipe ideas ...

Easy Yummy Granola Flax Treats

Nutritious Whole Wheat Blend Rotini with Vegetables

Yummy n Easy Spicy Oats Soup

and many more.. browse the Kid-Friendly recipes, Nutritious recipes .. for more ideas..

I would love to hear from all of you.. Do share your thoughts..and your stories..

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Being a Mom...

All moms face many situations that create some parenting dilemma..in their lives. And living away from your own parents in a different country, you dont have some suggestions, traditions, practices that were followed by your mom when you were a kid. Temporarily you may have some help from them when they are with you when the baby is too young. But, as the baby grows older, you have to deal with everything.. and are pretty much on your own..

I do call and ask my mum, about different things.. but not all those suggestions/methods always work for my situation.. Its good to know them anyway just coz most of them were tried and tested over time. And again coming back to being the foreign country thing, there are cultural differences, and practical issues that are just different and have to be dealt with differently, and your mom's solution for what she did with you in India may not be relevant for you and your child .. I felt sometimes in anxiety, that someone told me how to deal with the situation. (I'll talk more specifics later.. :)) I did see some friends going through the same situations, and the issues they faced. But again, every parenting style is different and every kid is different, so that may not work out for you.. Again coming back to the thing of you are by yourself..

Eventually..though, I do settle down, and try to breakdown the problem and tackle it in my own little steps and ways.. And when something works out, the pleasure is immense..I feel glad, I am able to make decisions with insight of how I want to deal with something as a mom and that is driven by the personality of my child .. A solution that works for us.. And that gives me more confidence about my "mommy skills" and its all a very warm fuzzy feeling.. :) You probably know what I mean...

OK..So, there are a million,zillion websites and blogs about parenting.. and I do know that, and I am not trying to be different or anything.. but will probably be just one of them.. :) But, I think there may be some fun and benefit in sharing my own little experience with others.. About what worked for me.. and my child... ! And learn about what worked for you .. May be my next child wont be like my older one, and I have to try some other ways... ! And tips from other bloggers will surely be handy :)

You may know some facts about me.. but just to reiterate things, relevant to this section and the topics I will talk about here -

I am a full time working mom..living in the USA .. and who "wants to try balancing the family and still have a rewarding and challenging professional life without compromising a lot in either aspects " (I believe some compromise in either areas is inevitable but, a lot is unacceptable :)) Our little family is my dear husband..(DH), my darling little son (R) and me. My roots are from India. But, I have been here ever since I got married. My son was born in 2005...and my life has been way more exciting, happy and worth-while ever since..

I will start posting on topics related to parenting and children.. And am excited about prospects of learning a lot more things.. from all your experiences..

The first topic I'll start with is the favorite of all moms alike..

Feeding the little ones..
Variety is Key

Try Try and Keep Trying..

..More to come.. Please use the "Mommy World.." menu on the top menu to get to this section in future..

I look forward to hearing from all of you. .so please share your thoughts and feel free to share your stories and experiences.. with me..

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Crispy Nutty Treats

This has been long due in my drafts .. I have been really busy this month and though I am religiously clicking pictures of things I am making, I have not been able to gather enough time to write about them. Hopefully, the crazy hectic phase is over for now.. !! Here is a quick treat for the little ones of all ages ;) thats not only yummy but also, nutrition-rich with the oats, nuts and flax in it.


Ingredients:
2 Cups Puffed Rice (You can use any puffed cereal too)
2 Cups Mixed nuts (Dry roasted - I used Almonds, cashews, walnuts, sunflower seeds, peanuts)
1/2 Cup Flax seed meal
1/2 Cup Rolled Oats
1/2 Cup Golden Raisins
1/4 cup butter
3.5 cups fat free mini marshmallows

Process:
In a large saucepan, melt the butter over low heat. Add the marshmallows and stir continuously until melted and the mixture is smooth(about 4-5 minutes) Stir in all the other ingredients thoroughly mixed. The mixture gets all sticky and starts to form like a lump. Pour it into a greased shallow pan. And press it with a metal spatula or hand. After about 5-10 minutes cut it into squares. Let it cool completely. Yummy.. tasty.. crispy nutty treats are ready to eat.. I expected my son to eat most of them, but my husband didnt leave us that option ! :) Enjoy !

This goes to the Sunday Snacks - Grab n Go event that I am currently hosting.

Also to Lakshmi's SWC-Meals On Wheels event.
Also to PJ's Tasty Bites for Toddlers event

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Classic Marble Cake

Have a little story to share about this -

This is the first cake recipe I ever learnt.. (not the marble thing.. but the batter recipe) when I was in 7th/8th grade..(12/13 yrs old) And I decided oneday I was going to bake a cake.. :) I went to my next door neighbour aunty's house, borrowed her electric oven. She used to bake cakes often and send them over to us. And they were always so spongy and tasty.. Aunty said - "Tell me what you want to eat, I'll make it and give you..It hardly takes any time ". But I told her, I was more interested in making it than eating it.. and got the recipe from her.. and came home with her counter top oven and followed her instructions exactly as she told me and baked the cake.

I burnt my hand while trying to get the cake out of the oven..and I dont rememeber how long or what temperature setting it was on that round countertop electric oven. And with my burn accident, my mum said no more electric oven use for me. But it was so yummy, and so exciting that I baked it myself, I had to make an another one soon.

And then I saw this marble one in the local bakery one day and thought that will be my second experiment.. :) My mum couldnt stop me then.. cant stop me now.. I am very careful now while taking the cakes out of the oven..though, so she doesnt mind :) I have modified the recipe over the years, to my liking.. that I am sharing here with you today.. Made this recently for a friend's birthday..



Ingredients:
1.5 cups All purpose flour
1.25 cups sugar (powdered) (The original recipe calls for 1.5 cups..but turns out a little sweeter. So, I use a little less)
3/4 cup butter
3/4 cup oil
5 Eggs
1 tsp Vanilla
2 Tbsp 100% Cocoa
Process:
Separate the egg whites and yolks and beat them separately until frothy. Melt the butter. To a mixing bowl, add the flour, powdered sugar, add the butter and half the oil. Mix. Then while adding some egg mixture (starting with the whites first) at a time. Mix the batter, then add some more, and continue the process until all of the egg white is incorporated, then repeat the same with the egg yolk mixture. Mix the batter well so that it is mooth. Add Vanilla and mix again. Now for the marble effect, take a second bowl and transfer some of the cake batter into it. Mix the cocoa powder to this separated batter.

Grease your pan with remaining oil really well or your cake might end up like mine. (my new bundt pan needed more grease than I put on it). Preheat the oven to 350F.
Now, to create the marble effect, first put some plain batter in the bottom of the greased pan, then add some chocolate batter, randomly at different places.. like a blob here and a blob there.. Then add the plain batter again.. and again add the chocolate layer unevenly.. You can do whatever you like.. coz its marble and no 2 marbles are alike :) Bake 35-50 mins.. until the toothpick inserted, comes out clean. Remove from oven. Let it cool down and invert the pan to get the cake out.

The cake was gone pretty soon.. ! Enjoy !

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Spinach Pepper Chicken

'***Reposting for event submission ***'

Ingredients:
------------
2 lb Boneless Chicken (cut into 1 inch cubes)

2 cups Spinach (Chopped)
2 tsp Ground Black pepper(adjust as per your spice preference)
1 large onion chopped (optional)
Marinade:
------------
2 Tbsp Ginger + Garlic paste
2 tsp Coriander powder
1 Tbsp lime juice
Chilli powder as needed(I skipped it coz I love the flavor of black pepper and wanted it to spice up my curry :))
Salt

Process:
--------
Use the ingredients listed for marinade and marinate the chicken. Refrigerate for about 30 mins or so. In a shallow wide pan, add oil and heat it. If using onions, add them in and let them cook until they turn golden brown. Then proceed on to adding the chicken to the pan. Add in the black pepper powder and stir. Let it cook while stirring lightly every few minutes.

Meanwhile in a separate pan, heat the oil.. add in the chopped spinach, add salt and let it cook.. let all the water evaporate. When the chicken is almost done, add in the cooked spinach and cook them both together until all the water (if any) evaporates. When the oil begins to separate, stir to mix it all well with the curry and turn off the heat.

Serve hot with Chapathi/Rice. Enjoy ! My 2 yr old loves it..and I love it coz its easy and I can often get him to eat a generous serving of spinach :)



Update: This recipe has been featured on KeyIngredient.com
This recipe goes to the Theme for the Month of September - Chicken hosted by Srilekha @ Me and My Kitchen

This goes to Divya's Think Spice ... Think Pepper event. This event series was initiated by Sunita..Follow this link for more information about the event on her blog.

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Baby Corn Black-Eyed Peas Gravy/Alasandala Masala

Here is a quick.. yummy dish with Black eyed peas. Its tasty, nutritious and a good addition to a potluck dinner..


Ingredients:
1 can Baby Corn
1 1/2 Cups Black Eyed peas (frozen/dried ones)
2 tomatoes (medium , chopped finely)
1 onion (medium, chopped finely)
3 cloves
Garam Masala as per taste
salt as per taste
chilli powder as per taste
Process:
If using uncooked dry/fresh ones, cook the Black eyed peas in a pressure cooker.
In a wide pan, add some oil, add cloves, chopped onion, saute for a few minutes. Add chopped tomato, baby corn, saute, add salt, chilli powder, cover and cook for 10 minutes. Add the cooked black eyed peas, adjust salt, chilli powder , add garam masala as per taste.. Let it simmer for about 7-10 minutes. Turn off the heat. Garnish with fresh chopped cilantro.

Pretty yummy..Serve with Naan/Chapathi/ Puri or Rice. Enjoy !!

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Healthy Whole Wheat Flat Bread with Spinach/Palak Paratha

Leafy vegetables are one of the best sources for iron and other vital nutrients that the body needs.. I try to incorporate them in our diet in many different ways. Here is one really yummy way to serve up the spinach. You may substitute spinach with other leafy vegetables too. I use a different variation for Methi/Fenugreek.. that I'll post soon.. Meanwhile.. keep serving the greens.. with this delicious spinach bread..


Ingredients:
3 Cups Whole Wheat Flour
3 Cups Spinach (chopped - Fresh/Frozen-thawed)
2 Tbsp oil/Ghee
1 Tbsp Carom seeds (Ajwain)
salt as per taste
Chilli powder as per taste (optional)
Process:
In a large mixing bowl, mix all the ingredients together use water if needed. Since I used the frozen spinach the water from the thawed spinach was sufficient. The consistency should be such that the dough can be stetched with a rolling pin without being sticky or too hard. It should be soft. Cover the bowl with lid and let it sit atleast for 30 minutes.

Then make large lemon size balls, use dry flour while expanding the dough ball into a round about 6-8 inch diameter, 1/4 inch thick disks. Heat up a heavy bottomed wide pan, smear it with some oil or ghee and put the paratha/bread when its hot. Let it cook.. turn sides to not burn ..smear some oil/ghee on each side if needed..and turn with a flat spatula style spoon and when done, put it in a large down and cover with a lid. Finish them all up.

Serve hot with any vegetable chutney or plain yogurt. Its yummy just by itself too. For my little one, I smear some extra ghee on top.. and he loves it.. !!Another great way to get that all important spinach into the tummy.. :)

Enjoy !!

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Low Calorie Savory Corn Muffins

Being more of a salt person.. than a sweet person, I have always wanted to try some non-sweet savory muffins.. Yesterday, while I was getting ready to make the usual corn muffins.. I suddenly thought, what best than trying the non-sweet muffins with corn meal. Love the outcome.. !! I will be making these low fat, low sugar, snacks very often from now on.


Ingredients:
1 Box Corn Bread/Muffin Mix ( I used Miracle Maize Country style)
1 tomato (finely chopped)
1 onion (finely chopped)
2 Chillies (finely chopped) adjust as per taste
1 tsp Black mustard seeds
1/2 Tbsp oil
some salt (adjust per taste)
Process:
Preheat oven to 400F (or as suggested on box). Mix the ingredients and prepare batter as per instructions on the box(mine suggested using 6 Tbsp of oil for the entire box which seemed a little much to me.. so I used only 4 Tbsp, the muffins were not oozing with oil.. and that was a good thing.. :)). Keep the batter aside.

Heat up a small pan, add the oil. When its hot, add mustard seeds, chopped chillies, onions and tomato.. Saute for about 5 minutes. Add salt to it. Stir and then add this mixture into the corn muffin batter. Mix it up well, fill up the muffin tins and bake as per instructions on the box. (Usually about 15 - 20 minutes at 400F). These tasted a little like Dhokla.. and my son enjoyed them immensely. And I didnt feel bad about giving him the 4th...5th...6th one.. Enjoy..!! Made 48 mini muffins.

Serve as a teatime snack, a quick grab n go breakfast/snack or as an appetizer at a party with ketchup or any vegetable chutney. Yummy.. savoury corn muffins will vanish in no time.. :)


This goes to the Sunday Snacks - Grab n Go event that I am currently hosting.

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Eggplant and Cherry chutney

DH happenned to pick up a few extra eggplants than usual.. I thought, I'll make a chutney with the extra ones.. Traditionally, I use tamarind juice for a little bit of tangy flavor.. but this time after the success of the Cranberry as a replacement, I decided to try Cherries (the tart ones that are red and sour). They are very high in anti-oxidants and this is definitely an easy way to incorporate them into the diet.. I thought.. The outcome is a delicious chutney. My husband couldnt tell the difference from a traditional one with tamarind and this one.. !! I think I will always use cherries or cranberries from now on.. Just because they are so so healthy.. and its hard to eat them raw by selves.. :)


Ingredients:

3 Eggplants (Brinjals - I used the thin long ones from Indian grocery. If you use the large ones from a regular american grocery store, 1 should be good)
1/2 - 1 Cup Cherries (red tart cherries,de-seeded - fresh/frozen) - adjust as per amount of sourness you like in your chutney
1/2 Cup Bottlegourd peel(from 1 bottle gourd, washed, chopped) (THIS IS OPTIONAL but I like to not throw away my vegetable peels but instead use them in chutneys)
1 medium onion (chopped)
1 Tbsp Peanuts(dry roasted)
2-3 Garlic cloves (de-skinned)
2 tsp Sesame Seeds(dry roasted)
2 tsp Cumin seeds
1 tsp Coriander seeds
2 tsp oil
2-3 green chillies (adjust as per needs)
salt as per taste

For Tempering -
1 tsp oil
7-8 Curry leaves (I was out of these,so you wont see them in the pics)
1 tsp Urad dal
1/2 tsp Mustard seeds
1/2 tsp Cumin seeds
4-5 Red chillies(dried, whole)

Process:
To a heated pan, add 2 tsp oil, add the coriander seeds, green chillies, cumin seeds, garlic cloves and saute for a few seconds. Add the onions and the bottle gourd peel if using. Saute for a minute or two. Add the sliced eggplant and saute everything well for about 5 minutes and turn off the heat.

Transfer the mixture into a food processor/grinder. Add the roasted peanuts and the roasted sesame seeds. Wash the cherries and add them too. Grind everything into a paste. Add salt and grid again.

When done, prepare the tempering with the ingredients listed above and add to the chutney. Garnish with chopped cilantro. Enjoy with Idli/Dosa or even with Rice.

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