Korti / Gurellu Chutney

Korti chutney/ gurellu chutney is commonly made in only north Karnataka and some parts of Maharashtra, This is made from Niger seeds and the shelf life is more and hence can be stored for any number of days like the shenga hindi (dry groundnut chutney). My mom usually makes this for me which helps me as an alternative whenever I am bored of preparing side dish for Chapati. Niger seeds are supposed to be very good in protein content.

Aloo Gobi Paratha

Anything that has aloo I just love it! Aloo/potato is vigorously used in most of the parathas as it serves as binding agent and improves the taste. This paratha is a combination of potato and cauliflower. Once you are mastered in rolling parathas you can try any stuffing into the parathas for a varying taste and healthy meal.

Karela stir-fry

This is the easiest and quick recipe of bitter-gourd. Karela/Bitter gourd is the most nutritious vegetable but we do not prefer to have it because of its bitterness. This style of sabzi I learnt from my mom and she got to know about this recipe when she was on a trip to North India.We usually make a gravy of Karela by adding tamarind and jaggery, this is the dried/ fried version of karela and tastes awesome and needs very less number of ingredients. The bitterness of karela is  balanced by adding cashew nuts, almond and peanuts.

Jhunka Chapati Roll

This is one of my most favorite roll.. I can have it unlimited. :) Jhunka is a must dish in every house of North Karnataka/Maharashtra which is prepared from gram flour. This is also considered to be a travel food due to its long shelf life when its prepared without using onions. Idea of using Jhunka as a stuffing in a roll I got from one of my friend's mom. When I was in hostel pursuing my degree her mom used to get it every time and it used to be literally dipped in ghee and tasted unimaginable. I still cannot forget the taste of it. I am very "kanjus" in applying ghee :) There is another version of Jhunka which my mom generally prepares while we are traveling by just heating the flour more and making it dry.

Palak Gobi Recipe

Palak Gobi - is a side dish prepared using spinach/palak and gobi/cauliflower which can make a nutritious combination. This recipe I tried on my own following the procedure like the one usually done for palak paneer. Made a grvay of palak and added boiled gobi to it, also added bit of peas which enhanced the color of the sabzi. The taste also came out well. Hope you like the recipe.

Oats Upma

I had got a packet of oats from the stores long time back when had decided to start my dieting, but unfortunately never used it :) so thought of preparing something out of oats for my lil one and hence prepared this recipe. Instead of directly adding the veggies and frying them I had to boil and then use so that my son doesn't find any trouble in getting this digested :) The procedure I have used here is very simple and the upma tasted delicious as well. This can be a very healthy food for your kid.

Sabudana Khichdi

Since today it’s “Maha Shivaratri” we will start our day with a simple, most common or we can say a compulsory dish for fasting which is generally prepared in Maharashtra. This is made out of sago which makes you full throughout the day. This dish is very common at my home as we prepare at least once in a week since my mom does fasting on every Sunday. 'Varyach Bhaat' which is made from Vari tandul (samo rice) is also a dish which is prepared during the fasting.

Mooli Paratha / Radish Paratha

Radish is the most healthiest vegetable but many of us don't like it because of its bitterness. Radish is used in many ways in Indian cuisine like in the form of side dish, in paratha, in salads etc.. It becomes more tastier when used in parathas. It has got lots of nutritional benefits, I remember my grand-mom used to have it since she was suffering from diabetes. I first prepare the mooli sabzi and use it as stuffing for the paratha.

Instant Jalebi

Jalebiiiiiiii!! I never thought that even I could prepare it. Since its a Valentines day I decided to prepare a sweet item, as I am scared of baking and never tried so had to choose something which can be prepared in instantly, Jalebi was the option that came to my mind. I saw few videos on internet most of them were to soak the batter overnight and I had not done that, finally came with the site which explained the instant jalebi steps and followed the procedure accordingly. I had to make the Jalebi's twice because I was not satisfied with the Jalebi shapes that I made for the first time and the problem was due to the piping paper hole that I had made for the polythene bag. I had to send my husband again to market to get the piping paper. But unluckily he dint find it, so instead he got a sauce bottle which was too bigger in size. I had no option than cutting the polythene bag again. I took a polythene bag which was not folded at the sides, basically a square shaped bag, had cut a small hole at one corner. Added the batter and then made jalebi's, they came very well in fact one of the jalebi came out in a heart shape size ;) may be it was due to the practice as well :)

Puliyogare

Puliyogare - the moment I hear this word my mouth starts watering :D I just love the "Bangalore style" Puliyogare. Heard there is a hotel in Basavangudi which is famous for serving the authentic Puliyogare in Bangalore, never got a chance to visit, but somehow I must have to plan. Puliyogare is also known as tamarind rice. I tried to make this recipe putting my best but could not exactly meet upto the mark that should really be called "Puliyogare". The taste came out well but the color I was not convinced with, might be was due to the color of the tamarind that I used. Anyhow I am sharing the recipe that I tried which I got to know from a cook show, hope you guys like it and try. I prepared the puliyogare gojju first using tamarind and mixed the gojju to the cooked rice.

Palak Pakoda

Crispy Palak/spinach Pakodas in this chilly weather is a wonderful combination. I always had a thought of preparing the palak pakodas but again the mission of shedding weight always kept me away from this..
But this day I could not resist as I had palak in my kitchen and luckily had got some free time, so came up with these crispy pakodas. This is not time consuming at all, just needs maximum of half an hour. Addition of rice flour made the pakodas crispy.

Vangyacha Bharit

Baingan/vangi/brinjal Bharit is the most famous side dish of Maharashtra which requires very less time for the preparation. The Brinjal which are bigger in size are most preferred for preparing Bharit, Brinjal is roasted on a stove top and hence we get a nice smoky smell to it, this goes very well with bhakri (Jowar roti). I remember my brother used to prepare this when i had shifted to Bangalore :) it’s so easy that even bachelors can prepare ;). I usually get packets of dried bajra rotis from my native as they can be used for long time. So whenever I am lazy we have the rotis with this simple dish and the combination is awesome.

Palak Thepla

I usually do not prefer to prepare the usual palak paratha which is done by adding the palak directly into dough without frying it as my husband does not like it. Palak tastes good when it is fried. So came up with this version of paratha or you can say thepla for which I used the method almost similar as that we use for Thalipeeth, it came out very soft and tasted delicious. Even my son liked it a lot. I added little gram flour and curd while kneading the dough and used butter for toasting. Curd helped in softening the parathas.

Bread Upma

This is the most simplest recipe that can be prepared out of left over excess bread that you have in your kitchen, it does not require much ingredients. It has got all the tastes sweet, tangy and spicy. Adding lemon juice gives it a tangy taste makes it more delicious.

Semiya Kheer

This is a Indian dessert made out of vermicelli. My main focus on this blog is to include recipes for babies/kids as much possible and generally include the one that I usually give for my lil one. Since I dint get time to try any new things, today I thought of preparing kheer for Vihaan rather than giving him rice. Kheer with dry fruits! and to my surprise he had it on his own :) In the usual semiya kheer I did grounded the roasted ground nuts and added.

Capsicum Fried Rice

Since the time I have started writing here I haven't posted any Rice recipe except the Dal Khichdi, so thought why shouldn't I start with one of my favorite fried rice which I learnt from my Vahinee (Sister in Law). She is a good cook I need to learn many more recipes from her like Kaju Katli, Titkhat poori, tandoori roti, dum aloo and the list goes on ... This rice she had prepared when I was at my native on ML :), and I collected all the details from her. This can also be prepared with the left over rice you have in your kitchen, but the rice should not be too sticky. We get both the tastes spiciness of pepper and capsicum and sweet taste of dry grapes.