Soft and delicious naan... using yeast

Who loves naan?????  Well..... I guess almost all of us do. And if I say homemade naan is very simple to make and much tastier too then who would not love to try it. Our family loves to eat naan and we all have different liking when it comes to brushing the toppings. A rich gravy with soft and buttery naan makes an awesome and royal dinner. If planning a special evening dinner then why not make naan to make everybody happy. This recipe yields very soft naans which no one will be able to resist

My kids wanted to help me out when I wanted to roll out the naans so dont mind the odd shaped ones.... that was a lot for those little hands to make. They are just made with love so no complaints. And yes what a proud moment they felt when I took pictures of the ones that they rolled out. Love my kiddos for all that they are 

Coming back to the recipe, hands on time is almost the same as making chapathis or rotis but the dough-resting time is a little longer than usual. This is what makes it specially soft and tasty. Plan it a little in advance and enjoy a great dinner

  

Mullangi keera poriyal..... Radish leaves poriyal

Mullangi keerai or radish leaves are highly nutritious greens that are rich in vitamins and minerals. It is said to have high fiber content and less fat resulting in a healthy digestive system. As much as radish is important so are its leaves.... so never discard them. I include it in our diet as a poriyal or stir-fry for lunch as a side to rice but always had it out of compulsion and not because it was tasty

Last time during a visit to a close friends(Uma) place, we were served a heavy vegetarian lunch. Loved all the dishes and the hospitality too. Me and my hubby who are no big fans of these greens indulged in this particular radish leaves poriyal that was served. We did not mind taking a second serving. Tender leaves with a hint of garlic and spiciness from red chillies made it taste way different from the way I make it. I wanted my kids try this as they always garlicky flavour in their dishes but did not force them to have it there as I know the million kinds of faces that I would have to see if they are served greens

Called her up to check out the recipe when I had a bunch of fresh radish leaves cut from our garden. The recipe was very simple and also very different from the bland way I made it usually. The hint of garlic was the best. The kids tried it and I was surprised that day seeing them eating the poriyal without any kind of hesitation. Well that was it... it just meant that the recipe had nailed it. From then on we have been enjoying radish leaves poriyal only in this way

  

Kaima Idly.... a spicy touch to our favourite idli

Hot and spongy idlis with piping hot sambar is definitely the best breakfast combination but what about leftover idlis. Well there are no takers in our house. Even if its just a couple of them nobody bothers wants to eat them the second time. So this time I wanted to try it out in a different way..... say I just thought I should spice it up a little. Me and the kids decided that a little masaledaar idli would be perfect for an evening snack and so I checked out some recipes in the internet. Luckily stumbled upon this recipe and tried it

The dish turned out so perfect that the kids loved it to the core. We made some extra idlis the next day to just make this special kaima idli again.  The kids have fallen in love with this new twist and am sure we are going to enjoy this

  

Red rice puttu.... a very healthy breakfast option

Red rice puttu is so soft and tender to touch and eat that you can never say no to it. We consider it a very good and healthy option for breakfast. The aroma of warm puttu mixed with coconut is just the perfect dish when you want to have a breakfast that is healthy, filling, oil-free and the best part .... very tasty. Making it is also not very time consuming except that you would have to plan it a day in advance..... but believe me ... hands on time is very less. I got introduced to this recipe from my mil. The first time she made it for me and my hubby.... I knew that I would sure make it again. She makes cooking a breeze... and she taught me this dish too

Red rice is loaded with antioxidants, fibre, iron, vitamins and a lot more. Google it up to check for all the nutritional values that is filled with. Its good to include red rice it in your diet once in a while and I am sure this puttu should be in your try list to enjoy the taste in a simple way

There are a couple of ways this dish is made. I follow my mil's recipe and since it is perfect I never bothered to try other recipes

  

Fruit cake or plum cake if using plums :)

 

Wish you all a very happy and a prosperous new year !!!!!! Have a fabulous year ahead :)

We started our new year with a sweet note. Made this fabulous fruit cake and it was yummmmm..... Fruit cake is one perfect moist cake to satisfy your sweet tooth craving any time. Me, my hubby and my mil love this so much and I have been longing to hook on to some recipe that would be foolproof. One of my very good friends in the neighbourhood - Jhansi, shared some fruit cake with us last Christmas. The first bite of the cake and I knew that it was the perfect kind of fruit cake I was looking for. We loved every bite of the cake and thanked my  friend for the wonderful treat to our tastebuds. Awesome cake I should say

When I am telling you so much about the cake then you know what I would have done after appreciating my friend for her kindness.... yes.... I asked her for the recipe and that is how I got to try this. It took more than a year to try this recipe .... it somehow got postponed for some reason or the other. Mainly because my kids are not at all a fan of nuts and fruits in cake. They like the plain old vanilla sponge cake with cashews and nothing else. So it took me so long to finally try the recipe and I am really happy that it turned out perfect. My friend tried it and gave me a 100/100

Caramel and dried fruits are the main ingredients for this cake. The beautiful colour that the cake gets is because of the caramel that we add to the batter. Wellllll... to be honest I did not know that at all. I never would have guessed that :) Good that I tried out the recipe and I know this recipe is sure a keeper
  

Dragon rolls... the cheesy ones

Dragon rolls.... now these are not the dragon rolls that are like the large spring rolls stuffed with a lot of veggies. We have a restaurant nearby that serves this dish named dragon roll which in nothing but cheese and onions stuffed inside a simple flour wrapper. The stuff is so simple yet my kids and me are so much in love with it. They love it so much that they tend order it most of the times. Now .... last time when we were at the restaurant and were enjoying this starter I felt it was too simple to replicate at home... and so why not try

I was sure about the ingredients because it was pretty simple to make out. Tried making it at home with homemade wrappers and they turned out awesome. The kids gave me full marks for their favourite and they finished it off in no time. They were so excited when they were served something that they love so much. There were showers of praise from those sweet little hearts and I could see they were really true

If you are a cheese lover like us then I am sure you too will fall for it. Try it and enjoy 
  

Vegatable Mini Omelette.... perfect for kids :)

Including veggies in every meal is definitely a task. A task that all moms have to face when planning for a meal or even a snack... say a healthy one. This simple snack or side dish is definitely gonna be on your menu if you think that veggies need to be tricked in to your kids tummy without giving them a chance to pick them out

My kids love omelette loaded with onions and I thought this might be helpful in getting in some other veggies too into their little tummies. I tried adding some carrots and cabbage into the omelettte and guess what they did feel it a little different but dont worry.... they loved it to the core. They loved it so much that it has become an " often made menu" in our home

Its definitely a change from the regular omelettes that I serve as a side during our lunch times. Spice it up as per your wish and enjoy

  

Pizza dough

Every time we make bread and buns or pizza the basic dough that we make is almost the same. I find it too repetitive to describe the entire dough process for every recipe. So I thought I will make one detailed explanatory post on making pizza dough. This can be referred every time a similar dough is prepared. You can always use the ingredients quantity from the original post and then refer the process of making the dough in this post here

If you master making this dough then you will never think of buying bread or buns or pizza from outside. Yes I am sure you will fall in love with your breads once you start baking them. The aroma that fills your kitchen, the eagerness to check on the final product, the waiting, the testing, the tasting...... every bit of making your own bread is fun. You will love the experience and feel good about what you have learnt

Well coming to the recipe ... this is a generalised version of pizza dough. This can altered as per the ingredients quantity specified in the required recipe

  

Eggless Pav bun... soft and feathery ....

Pav Bhaji is a great hit in almost everyones house and in our home they are no less. We love pav bhaji to the core and the kids are a very big fan too. After making breads at home I thought I should try making pav at home too since the method is almost the same. I gave it a try once and it was an instant success. From that time on we have never had store-bought pav buns

My kids are also very concerned about buying breads from outside, they are so used to homemade now that they insist in making some pav rather than indulging in store-bought ones. If kids are so particular then how can I not make it. Now we make these regularly and the whole family enjoys it to the core

The recipe is almost the same as bread except with a few variations here and there. I make pav two ways - which purely depends on my mood. I sometimes follow tangzhong method and sometimes regular. Both ways am happy with the results but sometimes I feel pavs made using tangzhong method are softer 

Grilled Cheese Sandwich.... kids love it

The simplest snack that a kid gets to enjoy is this grilled cheese sandwich. Oh... how much they lover them. It is so simple to make that I dont mind making it for them once in a while. Its ok to have a little junk food once in a while and this one is worth it ;)

My kids love this so much that they can keep eating it anytime its served. They were introduced to this sandwich a few years back when we used to go to visit my parents in mangalore. We used to go to this ice-cream store called Pabbas and cant resist myself mentioning how good the ice-cream used to be. For the sides we used to buy these cheese sandwiches for the kids. They would order it every time we visited that place

Just couple of bread slices and a slice of cheese and a pinch of pepper is all that is needed to make these sandwiches and make the kids of the house really really happy

Ghee and nuts cookies

Ghee and nuts are both my favourites and I love them the most in my cookies. These simply delicious ghee and nuts cookies are gonna win your heart from the very moment your taste palate gets to enjoy these super yummy and nutty goodies. Simple to taste with no fancy things added is what has made this a preferred cookie in our house. Love the aroma that fills the kitchen when I bake these. Mmmmm... I can smell it even now when I am just thinking of it :) I dont remember where I picked this recipe from ... could be the internet or some tv show. Just had it jotted down in a piece of paper tucked in my diary. I have halved the recipe always to make just 10 cookies... enough for tea-time for our family

Its all about the aroma of ghee, the nuttiness of dry fruits that makes these cookies special. I dont compromise on the ghee as I feel that is the best part of it. If you are not a big fan of ghee or if you are not a fan at all then this might not be the right cookie for you. But still you can replace the ghee with butter and make the cookies. The cookies will sure turn out delish but they wont be ghee cookies anymore ;)

Just put all the ingredients into a bowl. Mix it till just incorporated and no more. Refrigerate for a little time then roll them out and bake. Thats it and your cookies should be ready to eat in not time 
  

Kaju katli... rich and delicious

Kaju Katli is a rich sweet made with cashews/kaju as the main ingredient. It is a very common sweet found in almost all sweet shops. My younger kid is a big ....I should say BBBBIIIIIIIGGGGGGGG fan of kaju katli. He just can never have one. If I let him have as per his wish he can empty a whole box of this sweet in not time. Everybody in the family knows about his love for this sweet. So whenever grandparents visit him, they make sure they get it for him... though I make sure they buy minimal

I had to learn making this sweet for his sake. It was undoubtedly simple to make and the best part is that it takes very little time. They taste absolutely divine. There are a couple of ways I make it. Sharing one method now.... will post the next one later. Try this delectable dessert and enjoy it with your loved ones

  

Kaara Boondi.... a quick snack to munch on

I intended to post some sweets and  savoury recipes during diwali but well just got tied up with lots of work. So I thought I should post it atleast now to keep it for later use. This one is a simple and delicious savoury snack that is an addiction the moment you try it. It requires minimal ingredients to make this yummy snack. Its a favourite for kids and adults alike and so a double hit. In my house kaara boondi and boondi raita are loved by all. My elder kid is a big fan of this snack so its often made. I too never mind making it whenever he asks for as it takes very little time from start to end

Crunchy, spicy and yummy to munch on makes it a great snack. It can be had as is or can be used to make raita. Both ways they taste awesome