Ragi-Rava Idly

Healthy and tasty - that's the combination we all want! The popular South Indian breakfast dish "Idly" is so versatile that the traditional rice recipe can be replaced with much healthier grains and/or millets.

Ragi (Finger Millet) and Rava (Semolina) make a great pairing for healthy Idlies that taste amazing. Here it is, my version of RAGI-RAVA IDLY:

Ingredients: 1/2 cup Ragi flour, 1/2 fine Rava, 1 tsp eno/fruit salt, 1 tsp salt, 1/4 cup natural yogurt/curds, water. For spice tempering, 1 tsp mustard seeds, 1 tsp cumin seeds, few chopped curry leaves, bit of oil. 

Make:

1. In a bowl mix together Ragi, Rava and salt. Add in the yogurt and water as needed to make a smooth Idly batter. 

2. In a pan, saute the mustard seeds, cumin seeds and curry leaves in a little oil. Now add this to the batter. Add in eno/fruit salt and rest for 5 minutes.

3. Pour the batter into greased Idly moulds and steam for about 15 minutes. Rest for 5 minutes before removing from moulds and serve hot with chutney. 

Besan Laddoo

Some traditional sweets are so good that there's no point in trying variations of it. Besan Laddoo (chickpea flour laddoo) is one of those!

Whether it's festivities or just any occasion to enjoy these yummy treats, Besan Laddoo is always a good idea.

Here it is, my version of BESAN LADDOO:

Ingredients: 1 cup Besan flour, 1/2 cup powdered sugar or icing sugar, 1/4 fresh ghee melted, 1 tsp cardamon powder, chopped nuts for topping if desired.

Make:

1. In a heavy bottom pan, roast the besan flour with ghee, continuously stirring to avoid any burning. After about 10 minutes the mixture will start to turn from crumbly to a smooth paste.

2. Continue to stir in low flame for about 15 more minutes, the mixture will release ghee and turn more like a dough. There will also be a roasted aroma and will look golden brown. Turn off heat and stir a few minutes to help cool it.

3. Leave the mixture to cool to room temperature, should take about 15 minutes. At this stage, add the powdered sugar and cardamon powder and mix the dough well. It will be a smooth dough that can be rolled easily into balls. 

4. Roll into round laddoos and gently press on chopped nuts. Let it cool completely then reshape if needed. Serve ideally the next day as it will harden up and taste delicious. 

Enjoy these melt-in-mouth Besan Laddoos!

Grilled Pineapple

A quick and delicious snack that's also healthy? FRUITS come to mind! But why boring plain fruits when there's a super easy way to turn it into exotic snacking in minutes. 

GRILLED or BBQ Pineapple!

Ingredients: Pineapple slices, chilli powder as desired, a bit of oil, (salt if desired)

Make: In a wide pan, spray a little oil and place thick slices of Pineapple. Sprinkle chilli powder on both sides and pan-grill until golden brown and mildly caramelised. Enjoy the juicy flavours of sweet and spicy!

Makki Roti - Maize Flour Roti

Some foods are so well known that hearing the name reminds you of it's origins. "Makki ki Roti" is definitely one of those, along with it's famed partner "Sarson ka Saag" - Punjabi delicacies that are loved and known for the region.

Makki is Maize flour, so naturally a very healthy ingredient being gluten free and made from corn. It's the yellow corn flour (Maize) not the white corn  flour which is sold as Corn starch. 

Here it is, my version of Makki Ki Roti:

Ingredients: 2 cups Maize flour, 1 tsp salt, 1 tsp Ajwain seeds (optional), 1 tbsp oil, hot water as needed.

Make:

1. In a bowl mix the flour, salt and ajwain seeds. Add hot water little by little and crumble with fingers. 

2. Use a little oil and more hot water as needed to mix into a soft dough. It will not feel like a wheat flour dough and can be rubbed between fingers into a crumble. Cover and rest it for 15 minutes.

3. Using baking paper, take a palm sized amount of dough and press with hands or roll between two sheets of baking paper. Keep at medium thin otherwise it is hard to cook it.

4. Place the rolled dough on a greased hot nonstick pan, use a few of oil on each side to cook until firm and golden brown. 

Serve hot with Sarson Ka Saag and other yummy sides!