TUTTI FRUITTI CAKE

CAKE... All are very fond of cakes especially kids.. My husband loves cakes very much. He asked me to prepare cake with tutti fruitti. So i prepared this for him and he loved it. I prepared this with eggs. U can prepare this in eggless version also.. I will update soon.. Very simple to prepare. I love this cake having with tea. So lets know how to prepare this cake...
  

Preparation time : 10 mins
Cooking time : 30 mins
Serves 2-3

INGREDIENTS

• 2 cups all purpose flour / maida
• 1 and 1/4 cup sugar/castor sugar
• 1/2 cup butter
• 1/2 cup tutti fruitty(i used red and green)
• 3 eggs
• 1/2 cup milk
• 2 tsps baking powder
• 2 tsps vanilla essence

PREPARATION

• Preheat oven at 180 degree centigrade.
• Grease the loaf pan with butter and maida.Keep aside.
• Set the butter to room temperature.

METHOD OF COOKING 

• Take a bowl, add maida and baking powder. Mix well. Add the tutti fruitti pieces and mix well. Keep it aside.
• Take a mixing bowl add the sugar and butter. Mix well. Mixture will resemble bread crumbs.
• Now add the eggs. Mix well. Sugar must melt in the mixture.
• Add milk and vanilla essence. Mix well.
• Now add the maida and tutti fruitti mix slowly. Mix well. There must not be lumps in the mixture.
• Now add this batter to the loaf pan. Tap the loaf pan, there should not be air bubbles.
• Bake this at 180 degree centigrade for 25-30 mins. Insert a knife or toothprick. If they come out clean cake is done.
• Remove the cake from the oven and let it cool.
• Now demould the cake into serving plate.
• Cut into slices and serve with tea. 

 

PLAIN PULAO

 Pulao... Sab ka fav... Many varieties are there in pulao and prepared in different styles in different areas. Already i posted before in my blog pulao prepared with paneer and vegetables. Today i am sharing with you plain pulao. Very simple and quick to prepare. No vegetables and spices are added in this. Any gravy curry is perfect combination for this dish.

PLAIN PULAO WITH ONION RAITA

Preparation time : 15 min
Cooking time : 30 mins
Serves 3

CLOSE VIEW

 

 

INGREDIENTS

• 1 and 1/2 glass basmati rice( cleaned and soaked)
• 2 onions, diced into thin long slices
• 1 cup pudina / mint leaves
• 2 green chillies, cut into slits
• 2 tbsp ginger-garlic paste
• Salt as per taste
• 2 biryani leaves/biryani aaku
• 4 cloves / lavangalu
• 2 inch cinnamon pieces / dalchina chekka
• 4 green cardamom / elachi / elakayya
• 3-4 tbsp oil
• 2 and 1/2 glass water.

PREPARATION 

• Clean and soak the basmati rice. 
• Seperate the mint leaves from the stem, clean and keep it aside.
• Dice the onions and green chillies into thin long slices and slits.
• Grind 2 inch ginger piece and 10 garlic pods into fine paste.

METHOD OF COOKING

• Take a wide cooking vessel and add oil.
• Once the oil is heat add the masala items.. cloves, cinnamon, elachi and biryani leaf. Let them fry.
• Add onions, pudina leaves, green chillies. Let them fry until onions turn golden brown.
• Add ginger-garlic paste. Let it fry until raw smell of the paste dissappears.
• Add water (2 and 1/2 glass), salt. Mix well and let it boil on high flame.
• Once it boils reduce the flame to low and add the soaked rice. Mix.
• Now increase the flame to high and let the rice boil.
• Once the rice starts boiling reduce the flame to low and keep the lid.( check in between and do not over mix the rice as it turns sticky).
• Wait until the water gets completely absorbed by the rice,if the rice is still grainy, dont get panic.. u can add little quantity of water(approx 1/4 glass water)
• Off the stove and leave it for 5 mins.
• Garnish with coriander leaves and serve hot with onion raita and any gravy curry as per your choice.    

DRUMSTICK TOMATO CURRY

DRUMSTICK and TOMATO.. Both are my favorite vegetables. Drumsticks are very rich in dietary fiber, vitamins and minerals and tomatoes are very rich in antioxidants. Combination of these both vegetables gives a super tasty flavor to the dish and the aroma makes you mouth watering. Very simple to prepare with a few ingredients.

DRUMSTICK TOMATO CURRY(close view)

Preparation time : 15 mins
Cooking time : 45 mins
Serves 2-3
 
INGREDIENTS

• 2 drumsticks, diced into 2 inch pieces
• 6-7 tomatoes, diced into medium cubes
• 2 onions, cut into small pieces
• 1 tbsp ginger-garlic paste
• 2 green chillies, cut into slits,
• 1 sprig curry leaves
• Salt as per taste
• 1 tsp garammasala powder
• 1/4 tsp turmeric powder
• 3 tbsp oil 

PREPARATION 

• Dice the vegetables into pieces and keep it aside.
• Grind 1 inch ginger piece and 6-7 garlic cloves into fine paste. Keep it aside.

METHOD OF COOKING 

• Take a cooking vessel and add 3 tbsp oil.
• Once the oil is heat add onions, green chillies and curry leaves. Let them fry until onions turn golden brown.
• Add ginger-garlic paste and fry until the raw smell of the paste goes away.
• Add turmeric powder, garam masala powder and fry. A nice aroma will come.
• Add tomatoes, drumsticks and salt. Mix well and cook until tomatoes turns soft, juicy and mushy.
• Add suffiecient quantity of water (approx 3/4 glass water) and mix. Let it cook on medium flame until gravy gets thickened.
• Serve hot with steam rice with ghee or any flavored rice as per your choice. 

DHABA STYLE DAL FRY

DAL is one of the regular and popular dish prepared in every home. Different varieties of dals are prepared in different places in different ways. Basically Dal is very rich in proteins and vitamins. Today i am sharing with you DAL FRY prepared as like in restaurants. This is the best combination for jeera rice as i said before. Very tasty dish which is simple to prepare and easy to cook. Tadka gives special aroma and taste to the dish.

Preparation time : 15-20 mins
Cooking time : 30 mins
Serves 2-3

INGREDIENTS

• 1/2 glass tur dal/kandipappu/pigeon peas (dry roasted and soaked)
• 1 glass water
• Pinch of turmeric powder 
• FOR THE TADKA
• 3 tbsp oil
• 1 tsp urad dal /minapappu /split black gram
• 1 tsp rai / mustard seeds / aavaalu
• 1 tsp jeera/cumin seeds / jeelakarra
• 3 red chillies, broken into 1 inch pieces
• 1/4 tsp hing/asafoetida
• 1 sprig curry leaves
• 1 onion, diced into small pieces
• 2 tomatoes, diced into small pieces
• 2 green chillies, cut into splits
• 1 tbsp ginger-garlic paste
• Salt as per taste
• 1/4 tsp turmeric powder 
• 1 tbsp ghee

PREPARATION

• Take a frying pan and add the tur dal. Dry roast on medium flame until a nice aroma comes. Once the dal gets fried take it in a bowl and add water. Let it soak for 10-15 mins.
• After 15 mins take pressure cooker and add soaked dal and 1 glass water. Pressure cook the dal for 3 whistles (dal should turn soft and mushy)
• In the meanwhile cut the onions, tomatoes, green chillies.
• Grind 1 inch ginger piece and 6-7 garlic cloves into paste. 

METHOD OF COOKING 

• Take a cooking pan and add oil. Once the oil is heat add the ingredients one by one listed above.
• Add the urad dal, mustard seeds, jeera, red chillies, green chillies, curry leaves and hing. Let them fry.
• Add onions, ginger-garlic paste, tomatoes. Mix well and let them fry until the raw smell of onions and ginger-garlic paste goes away and the tomatoes becomes soft, juicy and mushy.
• Add salt, turmeric powder. Mix well. Leave it for 2 mins.
• Add the cooked dal. Mix well and let it cook for 3 mins.
• Add sufficient quantity of water( if u want thick gravy add little quantity or if u want thin gravy add more). Mix well and let it cook for 5-10 mins until the dal gets thickens.
• Lastly add 1 tbsp ghee and mix. Leave it for 1-2 mins and off the stove.
• Serve hot with jeera rice, chapathi or roti.

TIPS

• U can avoid ginger-garlic paste if u dont like the flavour.  

 

 

JEERA RICE / CUMIN RICE

JEERA RICE / CUMIN RICE... Most popular Indian rice dish prepared with jeera or cumin seeds and basmati rice. This is my favorite dish which is very simple to prepare with a very few ingredients. I love this dish to eat with Dal fry(recipe updating soon...) which is a perfect combination for this.

JEERA RICE WITH DAL FRY

Preparation time : 15-20 mins
Cooking time : 20-25 mins
Serves 3

INGREDIENTS

• 1-2 tbsp jeera seeds / cumin seeds
• 1 sprig curry leaves
• 1 and 1/2 glass basmati rice ( soaked)
• 1 tbsp ginger-garlic paste (optional)
• Salt as per taste
• 2 and 1/2 glass water
• 3-4 tbsp oil  

PREPARATION

• Clean and soak the basmati rice for 15-20 mins.
• In the meanwhile grind 1 inch ginger and 6-7 garlic cloves into fine paste.

METHOD OF COOKING  

• Take a wide cooking pan and add oil.
• Once the oil is heat add jeera seeds, curry leaves and ginger garlic paste. Let them fry for 2-3 mins.
• Add water and salt. Let it boil on high flame.
• Once it boils add the soaked basmati rice and mix. Let it boil.
• Once the boiling starts, reduce the rice to slow flame and keep the lid on the cooking pan.
• Let it cook on slow flame. Check the rice in between.
• When the water gets completely absorbed off the stove and leave it for 5 mins.
• Serve hot with Dal fry or any of your gravy curry as per your choice. 

TIPS 

• Do not mix the rice in between when it is cooking on low flame. Mixing the rice in between makes it sticky.  

ANDHRA STYLE INSTANT TOMATO PICKLE

Tomatoes are one of the regular and friendly vegetable used in almost every recipe. This is very rich in vitamins, minerals and antioxidants.This is my favorite vegetable and i prepare many varieties using this tomato. Today i am sharing with you a pickle recipe which is prepared instantly. This is a very famous pickle in Andhra pradesh. Addition of tadka gives a tasty flavor and aroma to the dish.

Preparation & cooking time : 3 hours
Yields a 500gms bottle pickle

INGREDIENTS

• 1 Kg tomatoes 
• 1 big lemon size tamarind 
• 1/2 glass pickle chilli /mirchi powder( i used three mangoes mirchi powder, u can use normal chilli powder also) 
• 1/2 glass salt 
• 2-21/2 tbsp menthulu / fenugreek seeds powder ( dry roasted and grinded into powder) 
• 150 gms groundnut oil ( approx one and half tea glass) 
• 1 whole garlic pod (optional) 
• FOR TADKA /POPU /TEMPERING 
• 50 gms groundnut oil ( approx 1/2 tea glass oil) 
• 10-12 red chillies, broken into 1 inch pieces  
• 1 tbsp mustard seeds/aavalu 
• 1 tbsp fenugreek seeds / menthulu 
• 1/2 tbsp hing/asafoetida 

PREPARATION

• Wash and clean the tomatoes. Dice into medium pieces.
• Take a frying pan and add fenugreek seeds / menthulu. Dry roast them on medium flame. A nice aroma will come once they fry. Take care they should not get burnt. Once they cool down grind into fine powder.
• Peel the garlic pods. Crush them and keep aside.

 METHOD OF COOKING 

• Take a wide cooking pan and add oil. 
• Once the oil is heat add the diced tomato pieces. Mix well.
• Add tamarind, 1 tbsp salt. Mix well. Juice will come out after adding salt.
• Cook on medium flame until the juice gets absorbed completely and oil will be separated once it is done.  This may take approx 11/2 to 2 hours.
• Let it cool.
• Once it cools add the crushed garlic pods,chillipowder, salt and methi powder. Mix well.
• Take a cooking vessel and add oil.
• Once the oil is heat add the ingredients FOR THE TADKA listed above and let it fry.
• Add this tadka to the pickle mixture. Mix well.
• Transfer into a clean glass or plastic jar.
• Serve with hot rice with ghee. Best side dish for idly and dosa too..

TIPS  

• U can increase or decrease chilli powder and salt as per your flavor.
• U can avoid garlic pods if u don't like it. Its optional.