Vella Poori

Vellapooris are deep fried, spicy rice puris savoured in some parts of tamilnadu. These fully puffed puris are thin, crisp and stiff on one side and thick, soft and chewy on the otherside. Usually accompanied by coconut chutney they also go well with tangy rasam.

Ingredients:

1. Idli rice - 2 cup

2. Tur dal - 1/2 cup

3. Dry chilies - 2 or 3

4. Coriander seeds - 1 tbsp

5. Asafoetida - 1/4 tsp

6. Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp

7. Garlic - 6 cloves crushed

8. Salt to taste

Method:

Step 1: Wash and soak rice and dal together for 2 hours.

Step 2: Drain the water and grind rice & dal along with coriander seeds and dry chilies with minimum water to get a  thick and coarse dough like mass. 

Step 3: Mix the turmeric powder, asafoetida, salt, crushed garlic and mix well. Cover the dough in a muslin cloth and leave it for 20 minutes. During this time the excess moisture is absorbed both by cloth and the coarsely ground rice.

Step 4: Heat oil in a deep kadai; take a 50gm -60gm portion of the tight dough place in on a piece of muslin cloth and pat into round shape of 2mm -3mm thickness.

Step 5: Place it on your hand with the cloth on the upper side and peel it gently; now slide the vellapoori gently into the hot oil.

Step 6: With slotted spoon (jalli karandi) slightly push the puri into the oil while they keep popping up, this helps to get the puris puff well and full.

Step 7. Flip on other side and get the vellapoori cooked well on lower side and crisp and golden yellow on upper side. 

Step 8: Once the bubbles subside, drain and  place them on kitchen tissue to absorb excess oil. Repeat for the entire dough.

Step 9: Serve hot with coconut chutney.

TIPS:

* The dough consistency is little tricky, here we are making a dough by wet grinding not batter. So far, I never got to make up a watery dough, so I do not have tips in stock. All my mom says is keep in fridge, let the excess moisture get absorbed by rice and use dry wraps of muslin to absorb. More moisture in dough will complicate making shapes and even dropping in oil will be difficult, in addition to drinking a lot of oil (tamil slang for absorbing more oil ;))

Jeera Aloo

At home, we are not great fans of having dry subji with roti; but I've always wondered how north Indians crave for jeera aloo. I just wanted to tried it myself... I liked it, Kundan didn't like to combine it with roti but otherwise liked it. So you got to try and see if you would go for it. Actually it goes well with dal rice also.

Ingredients:

1. Potatoes - 5
2. Oil - 1-2 tbsp
3. Cumin seeds - 1 tsp
4.  Kasoori Methi - 1 tbsp
5. Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp
6. Salt to taste
7. Chili powder - 1 tsp
8. Coriander powder - 2 tsp
9. Asafoetida - 1 pinch

Method:

Step 1: Boil the potatoes with until done but firm. Peel and cut them into cubes.

Step 2: Heat oil in a non stick pan and crackle cumin seeds; sprinkle asafoetida and add the potato cubes and toss gently so that the cubes don't mash or break.
Step 3: Add turmeric powder, coriander powder, chili powder, crushed kasoori methi, little salt and toss again gently to coat the potatoes with all ingredients evenly. Cover and cook for 3 minutes.

Step 4: Open the lid, toss again and cook without lid for a couple of minutes again.

Carrot Cake

This is a very daring step in terms of baking, that I took when I baked a carrot cake using jaggery and that tooo with whole wheat flour and that toooo with just 2 spoons of butter :)

It did not turn out so well and not in any way comparable to a fluffy, light, floury cake. But I think it serves the purpose of some dessert for a sweet toothed person like my husband. It was a however a sweet, hard and dark cake minus the glamour of spongy cakes.

Ingredients:

1.Wheat flour - 2 cups
2. Grated carrot - 2 cups
3. Jaggery - 1 1/2 cups
4. Water - 1 1/2 cups
5. Cinnamon powder - 1 tsp
6. Baking powder - 2 tsp
7. Raisins - 2 tbsp
8. Salt - 1/2 pinch
9. Sugar for sprinkling on top (optional)

Method:

Step 1: Dissolve jaggery in water, filter it and then boil them with the grated carrot until the carrot is soft. Turn off heat and let it cool down.

Step 2: Add cinnamon powder raisins, salt and mix well.

Step 3: Preheat the oven or cooker without washer. Grease a cake tin with butter and dust with some flour.

Step 4: Fold in the dry ingredients and mix thoroughly.
Step 5: Pour the cake batter into the cake tin and place it inside the oven/ cooker.

Step 6: Depending on the thickness and your mode of baking it takes time. I experience that it takes more time than the usual cake as wheat flour and jaggery makes it time consuming.
Step 7: Once the cake's aroma fills the house, you can start checking periodically by inserting toothpick or a knife for readiness.

Step 8: Once does turn off heat, take out the cake tin and let it cool down before taking it out and cutting.

Step 9: Dust powdered sugar or just sprinkle crystal sugar on top before serving.