Kodubale / Kodbale

Hey there! Hope everyone's having a dhamakedaar diwali out there!! Things have been going good at my end... But I miss being back in India among friends and family. As a kid, it was my responsibility to light up the whole house with diyas. I would then burst crackers with dad till late in the night! By then, mom would make us a fine dinner with all our favorite dishes. Kodubale was always a part of our dinner as it was both mine and my dad's favorite!

So this time, I decided to make kodubale for deepavali. My kodubale turned out really good and everyone seemed to have liked it!! But mom's are still the best!!! :)

This will go in as my entry for JFS:Diwali event hosted by Vee of Past,Present and Me

Ingredients:

1 cup Rice flour

1/2 cup Grated coconut, fresh/frozen

1/4 cup Hurigadale/Putaani/Chana Dhalia, powdered

1-2 tsp Jeera

2 tsp Chilli powder,medium spiced

2 tsp Oil

1/4 tsp Mustard seeds

A pinch of hing

Salt as per taste

Oil for deep frying

Method:

1. Grind coconut in a blender without adding water to make it a fine powder.
2. Mix all the ingredients together in a mixing bowl; Heat 2 tsp oil and add to the mixture.
3. Add very little water and make a dough out of the mixture; Knead well.
4. Pull out small balls from the dough and roll them into strands of desired size with your hands. Moist your hands and join one end to the other to form a circle.
5. Heat oil in a kadai/wok. Drop the kodubales into the oil and fry on low-medium heat. They are down when they turn golden-brown in color. It usually takes about 8-10 mins.
6. Remove from oil and drain on paper towels. Store in air-tight containers after they cool down. Enjoi!

Hurali Saaru / Horse Gram Curry

Hurali saaru has been one of my favourite dishes since I was a kid. Hurali saaru has a tinge of onion flavour in it, which makes it different from the rest of the rasams/sambhars!!!

I haven't got enough time to go shopping for veggies this week and my pantry has nothing but a couple of onions and potatoes. Thats when I got reminded of hurali saaru!! I got the recipe from my mom and made it yesterday. It turned out a little spicy, but the overall taste was very good!!! Hope you like it too!

Ingredients:

1 cup Hurali/ Horse gram, soaked overnight

2-3 tsp Coriander seeds

1/2-1 tsp Jeera

1/2 tsp Black pepper

2-3 Dry red chillies, low spiced

A pinch of hing

3-4 tbsp Grated coconut, Fresh or frozen

1 Onion,small to medium sized

1 tsp Jaggery/sugar

1/4 tsp Tamarind paste

1 tsp Mustard seeds

1-2 tsp Ghee/Clarified butter

1-2 strands Curry leaves

Salt as per taste

Method:

1. Dry roast coriander seeds, jeera, black pepper, red chillies and hing until you smell the fresh masala.
2. Powder them in a blender without adding any water. To this, add the grated coconut, onion and grind it to a smooth paste using water if required; Keep aside
3. Pressure cook the saoked 'hurali' with some water. Hurali/horse gram takes a little longer to cook.... So, you might have to cook it for a couple of whistles more than usual.
4. Add the masala from step 2, to the cooked hurali and boil well. Add water to get the required consistency.
5. Add tamarind paste, jaggery and salt;Boil further. Adjust the taste according to your wish.
6. Temper with mustard seeds and curry leaves; Serve hot with rice and enjoi!!!

Here's wishing all you fellow bloggers and readers and very Happy and Prosperous Deepavali!!!!May you be bestowed with all the happiness and health, this festive season..... The "Soft toy" junta at my home join me in wishing you all a very happy festival!!!! :)

Mysore / Mysoor Pak

Hey people!!! Hope you all are doing good..... I'm finally back from my 4 month long vacation!!!! I had a wonderful time back in India and I am back feeling very refreshed. We've moved to Chicago this time and I've been busy setting up our new house, cleaning, getting the telephone/inet connection, getting back in touch with friends and so on..... Blogging was one thing I really missed in the past few months. Will blog regularly from now on, I promise!! :)

I have for you another Karnataka speciality recipe..... Mysore Pak ((pronounced as "Mysoor Paak") .... My mother makes lovely Mysore Pak and so I asked her to make them for me this time. So, this recipe is actually her's :). Its a fast and easy recipe, but a little tricky. Taking the mixture out from fire is what you need to be careful about. If you get this right, your Mysore Pak is sure to come out soft. Here's the recipe....

Ingredients:

1 cup Kadle Hittu/Besan

2 cups Sugar

2 cups Ghee/Clarified butter

1 tsp Elaichi, powdered

Method:

1. Dry roast the besan a little (until it is warm) and keep aside.
2. Grease a plate with ghee/butter and keep aside.
3. Add about 1 cup of water to the sugar and boil well until all the sugar dissolves.
4. Add half a cup ghee to the sugar syrup and boil further for another 2-3 mins.
5. To this, add the roasted besan and saute well until all the lumps disappear.
6. Add another half cup of gheeand elaichi; Saute further for another 2-3 mins. Repeat until all the ghee is added. It is done when you see honey comb like froth on the surface of the dumpling. Note: Make sure you cook on low flame and saute continuously.
7. Remove the besan from stove and spread on the greased plate; Let it cool down.
8. Cut into desired pieces and store for as long as 2-3 weeks!