Ginger Candy /Inji Murappa/Inji Marappa/Inji Mittai

My mom makes it very often at home and we take a small piece once in 2 days. The taste of ginger combined with the taste of the sugar will impart a special taste to the sweet. We used to have this when we have any digestion problem. Now a days people had forgot this after the advent of Digene syrups:)

Beware...You are not supposed to have too much of this candy too..

 

Make and store this. It is very handy for all your digestion problems...

Millets payasam /Thinai payasam

 

 

"Wishing you all a very happy pongal..."

Celebrate this pongal with millets.This is an authentic dish from Coimbatore region and it tastes very delicious.Try out this yummy and healthy payasam which tastes more delicious than the other rice/dhal payasam...The texture is somewhat similar to rava payasam and tastes little similar(more yummier) than the pasi paruppu(Moong dhal payasam).

 

 

 

 

Vivika....Sweet pathaneer Idlies...Tuty/Nellai Special...

One of my friend who is a native of Thoothukudi invited us for a special occasion at her home..There her grandma was explaining me about the few authentic dishes that they used to prepare during her days...When she was explaining about many dishes she uttered a word Vivika...I was like what Vivika...vaa..??It sounded me  more like a proper noun  than a dish's name..I could not find out the reason behing naming the dish...I guess the one who made it first must be a lady named Vivika ;)

 

I was much excited when I heard the name and was delighted when she voluntarily accepted to make the dish on the same day...She made ready all the items and within few hours she handed the vivika to me...It is nothing but a sweet idly :))(Luckily I had carried my camera with me to take the shots there)

 

I feel very happy to post such an authentic sweet that is very much special to the areas of Thoothukudi and Tirunelveli...

 

Vivika is a sweet had as a breakfast in the regions of Thoothukudi and Tirunelveli.

 

For more scroll down..

 

Porul Vilanga Urundai...Healthy laddu..My grandma's Way

Porul means "Meaning" (in Tamil) Vilanga means "dont know" Urundai means "ball"..When u taste this laddu you cannot make out the ingredients that it is made of and hence the name Porul Vilanga Urundai.Some people call it as Pori vilaka Urundai as this is made of Pori maavu (Rice flour).This is one of the main dish that we make at home during baby showers..When a girl is pregnant her mom makes this at home very often and sent it to her daughter..It is a nutritious pack of all the goodies..and dry ginger powder aids in digestion..Usually they make very large balls and send it to their daughter when she is pregnant.U need to break the balls and then have it in small pieces.But I made small balls to send it as snacks for my kids..

 

I am making it for the first time at home and usually my mom sends it when I visit her.I love this laddu the most..It tastes yummier than the normal groundnut chikkis..

 

This sweet is not available in normal sweet shops and it is worth making at home.Such a traditional sweet..

 

Please try this and let me know how it turned up too.If u have anything to add upon please drop me few in the comments section

 

Maa Vilaku...Rice Flour Lamp..Karthigai Deepam Special

I was held up with lots  of work for the past one week which made me offline from blogging..Tomorrow is Karthigai Deepam which is a special festival celebrated in Tamilnadu by lighting Agal Vilaku (lamps made of clay)..I had already posted last year the real reason behind the celebration of this festival in the post"Why do we celebrate karthigai Deepam" .

 

I had already posted few recipes like

 

Palm leaf Kozhukattai/Panai Olai Kozhukattai

Pori Urundai

 

Wishing all readers a very Happy Karthigai Deepam Wishes...

 

Millets Sweet Pongal

I got addicted to millets and started replacing millets for white rice.Infact these millets taste too good and tastier than the normal polished white rice...I had already posted few recipes made of millets like Kodomillet rice,Millets pongal,Millets Dosa, Kodomillet masala paniyaram etc.

I had already posted the sankaraipongal,the rice version..

For the millets version of the sweet jaggery pongal please click READ MORE below:

Inippu Sev/Cheeni Sev/Sweet Sev...Kovilpatti Special...

 

 

CooknDine wishes a very Happy Diwali to all....

I wanted to post something very special for this Diwali.When I was looking for some options Inippu Sev/Cheeni Sev was the one which striked me all on a sudden..When I browsed through the recipes I found it very easy and thought I should give a try.It came out well and made my Diwali a very Special one....

 

Kovilpatti is famous for various types of Mittai especially the kadalai Mittai.In that lane falls the very special inippu Mittai too..Whenever HH returns from Madurai he used to get this inippu mittai from Srinivasa Mittai Kadai,KeelEral.I love the soft and sweet nature of this Sev..

 

Apart from the sweets ,I love Kovilpatti for the peacocks..If u happen to travel from Tuticorin to Kovilpatti in the early morning u can witness atleast 50 peacocks on the way..U will just fall in love with those beautiful natural dancers..

 

So say No to crackers and save the Earth from Pollution...

 

 

 

 

Carrot Burfi

Carrot is my kid's favourite veggie...My 2 little bunnies at home love to munch them in all forms..When Jeyashri posted the carrot burfi in her blog I was tempted to make this burfi at home.Made it and was a super hit with my friends too...

 

Arcot Makkan Peda....Delicacy of Arcot Nawabs

Arcot is not only famous for history and Biryani..It is famous for Makkan Pedas too.Arcot is a small town which is near my hometown and  I just love eating these Makkan Peda whenever I visit my native place.Though they look similiar to that of the Gulab jamuns they taste much tastier and yummier than that..

Arcot Chettiyar Sweet stall is famous for the Makkan Pedas.They are the oldest of the town and it is about 188 years old :) which is run by an fifth generation owner..who is around 70 years!!The one who had  started this shop(Govindasamy Chettiar) was a family friend of Nawabs..He happened to taste these Jamuns with a dry fruit filling at Nawabs house  and being blown away by the sumptuousness of the Bedas he  started to introduce it in his shop.This was how Makkan peda was introduced in Arcot ....

Even E.V.R.Periyar was a great fan of this sweet..I remember my grandfather telling me that Periyar's followers buy this delicacy for Periyar when they visit him..and Periyar never fails to have this sweet when he visit North Arcot!!

If u happen to visit Arcot( few kms from Vellore)then don't forget to taste the Makkan pedas from Chettiyar Shop..If not just follow my recipe carefully,make it and relish the diwali with this traditional sweet...:))

For the ones who are not aware of what Makkan Peda is...

Makkan Peda is a sweet that is made with unsweetened Koya n Maida..stuffed with a variety of dry fruits ,made into a ball and then slightly flattened deep fried and then soaked in sugar syrup.The juicy texture and the nut content make the taste exotic...

KamarKat....A sweet with Jaggery n Coconut

Last week on a casual talk my elder daughter was asking me about the snacks which I took during the school days.I was explaining her about the snacks which we had ..like Kadalai Burfi/Chikki,Kamarkat,ElanthamPazham,Then Mittai,KodikaPuli,Javvu Mittai,Panchi Mittai,Sonpapdi etc..

 

She was more excited by the name kamarkat and kept asking more details about the sweet.I vaguely remembered how it tasted too...As I couldnot give more details on it she called up her grandma and was asking the details...Only then I knew that my mom knew to make kamarkat :).Immediately I grabbed the mobile from her and got the recipe ..

 

Made it,relished it and gave my kids  a feel of this evertime favourite kamarkattu..

 

For the ones who are not aware of this sweet..It resembles much to a hard chocolate which is made of jaggery and coconut.It is a jaw breaker..Don't even take a chance to bite the sweet.Just put it into ur mouth and enjoy it getting dissolved slowly..

 

For the recipe click READ MORE below:

 

Sweet Somas/Sweet Somasi

All blogs had started posting sweets for Diwali and many of my readers keep asking to post some Diwali dishes.I had already posted some diwali special sweets like Boondi ladoo,Mysore pa, Murukku, Achu Murukku, Rava Ladoo,Kaju Lotus,7 Cups Burfi, 7 minutes Thiratti paal,Coconut Burfi, 3 minutes Doodh Beda.I will posting few more in the forthcoming days before Diwali..So stay tuned..

In this context I am starting off my Diwali Post with a Sweet Somas/Somasi.They also call it as Karchikka/Karanji/Kajjikayalu..It is customary in our family to make these during Diwali and also for baby Showers.Last month there was a baby shower in our family and my aunt made these yummy somas for her daughter.I got the recipe from her and thought I could post the same for Diwali.

 

Usually the fillings that we add inside varies according to ones taste.But I love the rava n sugar filling.I had also tried the roasted gram powder combination but I feel the crispy rava n sugar with a crispy outer layer gives a rich taste to the simple sweet..

 

It remains crisp for a week only.So make it accordingly..

 

Enjoy making this..

 

For the recipe please click READ MORE below:

 

Paal Kozhukattai-Chettinad Delicacy...The traditional way...

This is the post which I wanted to post it for long time.This dessert is my favourite one.Usually I don't take much of sweets and this dish is one exception.My mom makes it so good that u cannot stay without having it.This is one of the authentic dish that is prepared for any occasions.Though the process of making them is time consuming the taste it imparts cannot be described in few words..

 

So please try it and pass on the recipe to our future generations too.Let them be aware of some of the authentic dishes that our grandmas made for us!!

 

Thought ganesh Chaturthi is an apt occasion for me to post the Paal Kozhukattai recipe..Many of my readers had been asking for a long time to post the recipe..

 

Make this Ganesh Chaturthi more special by making this traditional Paal kozhukattai too...

 

Please press READ MORE below to get into the recipe..

 

Happy RakshaBandhan.....7 Cups Burfi

 

Happy RakshaBandhan

 

I wanted to post something special for this special festival and want it to be done in less time too.Suddenly I remembered a burfi which my mom used to make whenever we pester her for sweets...

 

As the name says ..It is 3 Cups of sugar and 1 cup of four items mixed and made to a burfi...So totally 7 cups and hence the name 7 cups..

It is very easy to make and doesn't need much of expertise..

For the recipe please press READ MORE below..

Mango Kesari

It had been an year since I started my blog...............started this blog to kill my time but had ultimately became my addiction!!Thank u readers for your overwhelming support and encouragement you give me which keeps my blog alive!!

 

This post is dedicated to all my blog readers..Relish this virtual treat..

 

Mangoes are always my weakness!!I keep waiting for the mango season to arrive.We keep visiting Hosur during the summers and when we return we purchase fresh varieties of mangoes from the farms on the way to Salem/Krishnagiri..

Nothing can beat the taste of Salem mangoes!!

 

I had made a list of mango recipes that need to be done during the mango season,but somehow i finished eating the mangoes.Luckily one of my sister Uma gave us few tins of fresh mango pulps from Krishnagiri.I was much delighted and thought should try the mango kesari.

 

The sweet came out too good with a light tinch of mango..Can feel the taste even after I had the taste..

 

So reserved this dish to post for the first anniversary of my cooking blog!!

 

With no much waiting click READ MORE to get into the recipe..

 

Dedicate this post to Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose! Vemicelli(Semiya) Payasam

Today(23 rd January) is Subhash chandra Bose's Birthday.He is the only freedom fighter whose birthday I remember till now!!(Of course since Oct 2 is a holiday I remember Gandhi's Bday!!!but not for his deeds!!)I adore him so much that at my young ages I wanna become Netaji..I was crazy about him and I started collecting all his pictures and stories that appeared in magazines and daily newspaper.For my daughter S's first fancy dress competition I dressed up as netaji..I don't have any one specific reason to point out my worship towards Netaji...Been born to a strict follower of Netaji (I meant my lovable dad here)I had been brought up by hearing all stories related to Netaji from my grandfathers and dad.I am also happy(and of course proud!!) to mention that my great grandfather(Mom's side) left to singapore to join his army..and he was one of the proud soldier at Netaji's army..

Unlike other prominent leaders of Indian freedom struggle,Netaji strongly believed that an armed rebellion was necessary to wrest independence from the British.His famous words"Jai Hind" and "Give my blood,I will give you freedom"are still echoing!!

Even today the death of Subashji is a big puzzle.But I have a different story on it..I heard from my grandpa that he was put into prison in India by some of the prominent Indian leaders who were on the other side of the freedom struggle!!to take in the credit of acquiring to themself.But in reality British got scared of Indian Army and ran away!!So I personally feel that the freedom that we enjoy now is the one obtained by the great leader Subash Chandra Bose... 
An update:Happened to watch a discussion at Thanithi news channel about netaji's death..for more click the link below

http://www.techsatish.net/2013/01/new-news-on-subhash-chandra-bose-tnl.html?m=1

This post of Semiya Payasam is dedicated to my beloved leader Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose..

For the recipe please press READ MORE below..

My 100th Post...Sakkarai Pongal...Iniya Pongal Nal Vazthukkal

 

அனைவருக்கும் எனது இனிய

 

பொங்கல்

 

 நல்வாழ்த்துக்கள் 

 

 



 

 

 

Wishing all the readers a very happy Pongal..This is the only festival at our parents home which they celebrate every year very grandly..The scenario is very different at my inlaws house!!I would love to recall my days where we celebrated pongal with such a huge happiness.This festival had been always very close to my heart and I really miss such a celebrations after my dad's demise..

 

I love to brief about how we celebrated pongal when we were young..The celebration mood just breezes out a week before pongal.When we were school goers we used to get excited about the new clothes and also about a week holiday for schools!!

 

Festive recipe-Kaju Lotus

I had been there at coimbatore for more than 7 years and those times are very memorable to cherish...Love the place,people and also the serene climate..(I knew now it had completely changed!!!)...Still the sweets at Sri Krishna Sweets are the one whose taste havenot changed at all!!!They are the best at preparing the mysorepas...Just love the melting taste...

 

I use to wonder how they could make such a beautiful tasteful sweets.Out of that the various shapes of katlis were the hightlight..The kaju katlis in various very attractive shapes like lotus,apple,mango etc are just awesome to watch.I never thought I could make the one at home..

 

I tried this for the first time and it turned out so well...It is very easy to make and any beginner could make it if one has that patience and interest to do it..

 

Lets celebrate this diwali with this colourful sweet...(Please Say No to crackers!!!)

 

For the recipe please press READ MORE Below....

 

Hot and sweet Mango Pachadi

My mother makes this pachadi in a different way.I had tasted many types of mango pachadi but I like the one my mom makes.It combines all the 3 important tastes such as sweet,Sour and karam...We make this pachadi only during any important occasions.This pachadi tastes good only with a particular type of mango named kili Mooku mango.The sour taste of the mango used should be less,for the dish to come out well.

 

One of my schoolmate had asked me for the recipe long time...I didn't come across this type of mango at Tuticorin.Luckily last week during ayudha pooja I saw this mango in the market and decided to make pachadi.Hope this was the recipe my friend was looking for..Please let me know vetri.This post is for you!!

 

For the recipe please press READ MORE below....

 

Coconut Burfi/Thengaai Burfi

All the windings had been unwinded from my fractured foot and now walking with my leg...For the ones who had not been following my earlier post...I had a bad fall a month back and had recovered completely now...This post is dedicated to all my friends who had been there with me for the past one month.My Humble and heartfelt thanks to all...

 

All Bad things happen for some good at the end..It is damn true!!!

To celebrate this "Back to action" mood I prepared  the coconut burfi..May be I watched the hindi movie Burfi and hence kindled to make Burfis!!!

 

During my college days this had been a regular sweet which I use to bring it from my home to my hostel mates..It is very easy to make and a delicious one..

 

Here comes the easy recipe for the sweet

Pls press "Read More" below for the recipe..

 

Sweet Pooran Kozhukattai/Festive recipe

 

 

 

 

 

CooknDine wishes its readers a very happy Ganesh chaturthi.Chathurthi is not complete without eating kozhukkattai....I had been updating with the various types of modaks for the past few days.Still there are many...will keep udating as and when I make...

 

The features of ganesh symbolises many things

Large Ears-Listen More

Big Head-Think Big

Small mouth-Talk less

Small eyes-concentrate

large stomach-digest all good and bad in life

 

So let us all take life positively and proceed...

This kozhukattai is the one which my grandma,mom all used to make.The concept of moulds came only during the last 5 years..This is for the one who don't possess moulds..Of course moulds make us work easy and the output perfection is mximum...

 

Please press READ MORE for the recipe