One Day At A Time

Hey everyone! Hope you are having an amazing day! Few days ago, I had blogged about Ragi Chakli . My kiddo loved the taste, but wanted the Chakli to look golden brown like French Fries. To suit my child's taste, I have started making Gluten Free Multigrain Chakli or Murukku with 5 varieties of flours and potato. Hope you all love it too. Ingredients: Rice Flour - 1/4 cup Ragi/Nachni/Finger Millet Flour - 1/4 cup Besan/Chickpea Flour - 1/4 cup Jwari/Jowar Flour - 1/4 cup Bajri Flour - 1/4 cup Boiled Mashed Potato - 1 big (about 1 cup) White Sesame Seeds/Til - 2 tsp Carom Seeds/Ajwain/Owa - 1 tsp Kashmiri Lal/Red Chili Powder - 1 tsp Ground Black Pepper - 1 tsp Dark Brown Sugar - 1 tsp Turmeric/Haldi Powder - 1/2 tsp Water - 1/4 cup Salt Olive Oil - 1 tbsp Oil for frying How to cook Glutenfree Multigrain Potato Chakli: In a big mixing bowl, add all flours, peeled mashed potato, sesame seeds, carom seeds, chili powder, black pepper, sugar, turmeric and salt. Mix well. Now add water, l...

Friday is here! Hope all is well in your world. I am back with a vegan gluten free snack. My Mom's Nachni Chakli recipe with potato and coconut milk. Fresh coconut milk is quite common in coastal Konkani cuisine. My childhood favorite Diwali snack. Now my 7 year old kiddo likes it. Hope you all love it too! Ingredients: Ragi/Nachni/Finger Millet Flour - 1 cup Boiled Mashed Potato - about 1 cup Besan/Chickpea Flour - 1/4 cup  White Sesame Seeds/Til - 2 tsp Carom Seeds/Ajwain/Owa - 1 tsp Kashmiri Lal/Red Chili Powder - 1 tsp Ground Black Pepper - 1/2 tsp Light Brown Sugar - 1 tsp Coconut Milk - about 1/4 cup Olive Oil - 2 tsp Salt How to cook Nachni Batata Chakli: In a big mixing bowl, add ragi flour, besan, peeled mashed potato, sesame seeds, carom seeds, black pepper powder, chili powder, sugar and salt. Mix well. Now add coconut milk, little at a time and knead to make a soft, non sticky dough. Lastly, add oil and knead again for few seconds. Cover the bowl with plastic food wrap ...

The much awaited Friday is here. What's your weekend plan? Here, its still raining and cold. So, no outdoor activity for us. For our indoor movie special, I am making some snacks.  Along with the good old popcorn, we like to binge on nuts as well. Crunchy spiced peanuts are generally deep fried. Nowadays, I make a low fat version of these Masala Peanuts in a microwave. 10 - 15 minutes is all you need for a healthy tasty homemade snack. Ingredients: Raw Peanuts/ Groundnuts - 2 cups Besan/Chickpea Flour/Gram Flour - 1/4 cup Rice Flour - 1 tsp Cumin/Jeera Powder - 1 tsp Coriander/Dhania Powder - 1 tsp Chat Masala or Aamchur Powder - 1 tsp Red Chili Powder - 3/4 tsp Cooking Spray or Oil Salt How to cook Masala Peanuts in a microwave: In a mixing bowl or a big plate, add peanuts, chickpea flour, coriander powder, cumin powder, chat masala, chili powder and salt to taste.  Mix all the ingredients. Add about 2 tbsp water and mix with your hands to coat the peanuts we...

As such, Thattai is a savory snack made on the festive occasion of Krishna Janmashtami. But, I made this along with many other goodies for our friends who are visiting us this weekend. Our weekend is going to be great with lots of fun stuff ... travel, chitchat and good food. Hope you guys have a good weekend too! Ingredients: Rice Flour - 1 cup Urad Dal / Split Black Gram Flour - 1/4 cup Desiccated (Dry) Coconut - 2 tbsp Ghee / Clarified Butter - 2 tbsp Chana Dal / Split Chickpeas / Split Bengal Gram - 3 tsp White Sesame Seeds / Til - 2 tsp Red Chili Powder - 1/4 tsp Asafetida / Hing - 1/4 tsp Sugar - 1/4 tsp Salt Oil for frying How to make Thattai: Soak chana dal in about 1 cup water for about 2 hours. Wash the soaked dal well. In a mixing bowl, add rice flour, urad dal flour, soaked chana dal, sesame seeds, chili powder, asafetida, sugar, salt and ghee. Mix well. Add water, little at a time and knead to make a slightly firm dough. Heat oil for...

Snack time at my place! Its been a while, I made any fried goodies. Thanks to last night's leftovers, I had plenty of time to make this savory Ribbon Murukku. We love such crunchy munchies with our evening cup of tea. Ingredients: Rice Flour - 1 cup Besan / Gram Flour - 1/2 cup Oil - 1 1/2 tbsp Red Chili Powder - 1 tsp White Sesame Seeds/Til - 1 tsp Asafetida/Hing - 1/2 tsp Sugar - 1/2 tsp Salt Oil for frying How to make Ribbon Pakoda: In a mixing bowl, add rice flour, gram flour, hot oil, chili powder, asafetida, sesame seeds, sugar and salt. Mix well. Now add water, little at a time and knead to make a stiff, non sticky dough. I added about 3/4 cup water. Divide the dough into 3 balls. Heat oil for deep frying. Heat the inner part of chakali / murukku maker with oil. Place the ribbon plate and add one dough ball. Close it with the lid. When the oil turns medium hot, hold the chakali maker above the frying pan. Carefully turn the handle so that the ribbon shaped mu...

Everyone likes to binge on fried goodies once in a while. My favorite ... potato chips.... What if you could make your fried snack slightly nutritious! One way to do it is to try making variety of snacks at home. You might have read about the less oily, Microwave Potato Chips . Let me introduce another homemade savory snack made of Ragi or Nachni or Finger Millet flour. Chakli or Murukku is deep fried, but with the health benefits of gluten free finger millet. Ingredients: Ragi/Nachni/Finger Millet Flour - 1 cup Rice Flour - 1/4 cup Urad Dal/Split Black Gram Flour - 1/4 cup Ghee/Clarified Butter - 1 tbsp. Oil - 1 tbsp. White Sesame Seeds/Til - 1 tsp Carom Seeds/Ajwain/Owa - 1 tsp Red Chili Powder - 1 tsp Sugar - 1 tsp Turmeric/Haldi - 1/4 tsp Salt Oil for frying How to make Nachni Chakli / Ragi Murukku: In a mixing bowl, add ragi flour, rice flour, urad dal flour, sesame seeds, carom seeds, chili powder, turmeric, salt and sugar. Mix well. Add oil and ghee and m...

In my part of the world, its still snowing. It doesn't feel like spring at all. Hopefully that will change soon. Until we see that sunny bright weather, we are relishing on hearty winter food.... hot soups, grilled sandwiches and all kinds of comfort food. And for teatime snacks, we love crunchy savory goodies, something like Chakli. Today, I am sharing a gluten free  snack, called as Jwari Chakali  in Marathi. Ingredients: Jowar/Sorghum/Jwari/Jola Flour - 1 cup Rice Flour - 1/2 cup Ghee/Clarified Butter - 1 tbsp Corn Starch - 2 tsp White Sesame Seeds/Til - 1 tsp Carom Seeds/Ajwain/Owa - 1 tsp Red Chili Powder - 1 tsp Turmeric/Haldi - 1/8 tsp Sugar - 1 tsp Salt Oil for frying How to make Jwari Chakli / Jowar Murukku: In a mixing bowl, add jowar flour, rice flour, corn starch, sesame seeds, carom seeds, chili powder, turmeric, sugar and salt to taste. Mix all the ingredients well. Add ghee and mix again. Now add water, little at a time and knead to...

Call it Chakali or Murukku or Chakkuli as we say in Konkani, this savory crunchy munchy snack is every one's favorite. One can make Chakali in many ways - with urad dal, roasted dalia (phutane), potato, maida (all purpose flour), rice flour. Of all the versions, I like the combination of rice and potato. Potato makes every snack flavorful. Ingredients: Rice Flour - 1 1/2 cups Boiled Potato (grated) - 1 cup Unsalted Butter or Oil - 3 tsp White Sesame Seeds/Til - 1 tsp Carom Seeds/Ajwain/Owa - 1 tsp Red Chilli Powder - 1 tsp Sugar - 1 tsp Salt Oil for frying How to make Rice Murukku / Chakali: In a mixing bowl, add the grated/mashed boiled potato. Add melted butter, sesame seeds, carom seeds, chilli powder, salt and sugar. Mix all the ingredients well. Lastly, add rice flour and mix well. Now add water, little at a time and knead to make a soft, smooth dough. I added about 1/2 cup water.  Divide the dough into 4 balls. Heat oil for ...

When I say Popcorn, which word instantly comes to your mind?  I am sure its movies. Nothing makes the movies more fun than the crunchy salty popcorn, be it a theatre or at home. My family loves both kinds... the regular salty, buttery and this salty sweet caramel popcorn. If you love binging on this popular Christmas treat, you must give it a try. Though time consuming, its worth the effort. Ingredients: Popcorn - about 10 cups Light Brown Sugar - 1/2 cup (tightly packed) Unsalted Butter - 4 tbsp Water - 1/4 cup Vanilla Extract - 2 ts Salt - 1/8 tsp Cooking Spray or Butter for greasing How to make Crunchy Caramel Popcorn at home: I cooked 1/2 cup popcorn kernels in 4 tbsp olive oil in a very big vessel with the lid on. You can use microwave popcorn as well. Add popcorn to a very big mixing bowl and keep 2 big spoons ready for mixing. Preheat the oven at 300 degrees F and grease a big baking tray with cooking spray. Heat butter, water and sugar in a ...

Which is your most favorite snack? Chips, Nachos, Roasted Nuts or Fresh Fruits. We like to snack on nuts.. sometimes roasted, sometimes deep fried Masala Peanuts . Nowadays, I find microwave cooking as a good alternative to deep frying. You might have read about Microwave Potato Chips - less oily, yet crunchy. Spicy crunchy Cashews cooked in a microwave is also something we love to binge on. Ingredients: Raw Cashews/Kaju - 2 cups Chickpea Flour/Gram Flour/Besan - 4 tbsp Corn Starch - 1 tsp Coriander/Dhania Powder - 1 tsp Cumin/Jeera Powder - 1 tsp Chat Masala - 1 tsp Cayenne Pepper/Red Chilli Powder - 1/2 tsp Cooking Spray or Oil Salt How to cook Masala Kaju in a microwave: In a mixing bowl or a big plate, add cashews, chickpea flour, coriander powder, cumin powder, chat masala, cayenne pepper and salt to taste. Mix all the ingredients. Add about 2 tbsp water and mix with your hands to coat the cashews well. Cashews will appear slightly moist. Lastly, add corn star...

Bakarwadi are crispy, savory spring rolls from the state of Maharashtra. Growing up in Mumbai, this used to be one of our evening snacks. Sometimes store bought, sometimes homemade. Though time consuming, my Aai used to make these rolls for us. Once again, here I am sharing one of my Mom's recipes from my US kitchen. You can try this crunchy munchy snack for Diwali as well. Ingredients: All Purpose Flour/Maida - 1 cup Chickpea Flour/Gram Flour/Besan - 1/4 cup Turmeric/Haldi - 1/4 tsp Cayenne Pepper/Red Chili Powder - 1/2 tsp Cumin/Jeera Powder - 1/2 tsp Oil - 2 tbsp Cilantro/Coriander Leaves/Kothimbir - about 3/4 cup Shev - 2 tsp Desiccated (Dry) Coconut/Sukka Khobra - 2 tsp Sesame Seeds/Til - 1 tsp Poppy Seeds/Khuskhus - 1 tsp Fennel Seeds/Badishep/Saunf - 1 tsp Ginger/Ala/Adrak - 1 tsp Green Chilies - 1 tsp Chat Masala - 1/2 tsp Sugar - 1/2 tsp Garam Masala - 1/4 tsp Salt Oil for deep frying How to prepare Bakarwadi: Prepa...

An all time favorite snack - Potato Chips, but cooked in a microwave.  Less oily and not deep fried. Ingredients: Potato (Russet) - 1 big Salt Oil How to cook Crisp Potato Chips in a Microwave: In a big bowl, add about 1/2 tsp salt and mix well. Wash the potato well. No need to peel the skin. Thinly slice the potato using a knife or a mandolin slicer.  Add the slices to the salty water.  Set it aside for 15 - 20 minutes. Drain the water and rinse the slices in water 2 - 3 times, so that the water turns clear. Place the slices on a clean kitchen towel and pat them dry. Grease a microwave safe plate with cooking spray or oil. Arrange the slices on the plate. Grease the slices with cooking spray or brush each slice with oil. Sprinkle little salt and microwave for 2 minutes. Along with salt, you can sprinkle any other seasoning of your choice. Flip the slices and microwave for another 2 minutes or until potato slices turn slightly brown and crisp. Some slices ...

Once a week, I prepare either a sweet or a deep fried snack. Today's deep fried snack is savory North Indian Mathri which is quite similar to Shankarpali .  These fenugreek and carom seeds flavored Mathris turn more flaky with all purpose flour/maida. But I prefer healthy and fiber rich whole wheat flour. Ingredients: Whole Wheat Flour/Atta - 1 cup Semolina/Rava/Sooji - 2 tbsp Kasuri Methi/Dry Fenugreek Leaves - 2 tbsp Carom Seeds/Ajwain/Owa - 1/2 tsp Black Pepper Powder - 1/4 tsp Sugar - 1/4 tsp Baking Soda - 1/8 tsp Oil - 3 tbsp Salt How to prepare Whole Wheat Methi Ajwain Mathri: In a mixing bowl, add whole wheat flour, semolina, carom seeds, fresh ground black pepper, salt, sugar and baking soda. Crush kasuri methi leaves between palms and add it to the bowl. Mix all the ingredients well. You can use all purpose flour/maida as well. Add oil and mix well. The dough will turn crumbly. Oil will make the mathris flaky. Now add water, little at a time to ...

Chickpea flour battered fried peanuts/groundnuts with a hint of Indian spices.

Crisp savoury snack made of rice cereal.  Less oily, crunchy and tasty. Ingredients: Rice Cereal - 5 cups Peanuts/Groundnuts/Shenga - 1/2 cup Dry (Desiccated) Coconut Slices - 1/4 cup Dalia/Roasted Gram Dal/Roasted Chickpeas - 1/4 cup Curry Leaves/Kadipata/Karbeo - a sprig Cayenne Pepper/Red Chili Powder - 1/2 tsp Mustard Seeds - 1/2 tsp Asafetida/Hing - 1/4 tsp Turmeric/Haldi - 1/4 tsp Powdered Sugar - 1/2 tsp Salt Oil How to prepare Savory Rice Cereal Chivda:   Wash curry leaves and pat them dry. Heat about 2 tbsp oil in a big pan. Add peanuts and fry them till they slightly darken and turn crunchy. Save them for later. Similarly, fry coconut slices and dalia as well. You can also add fried sesame (til) seeds, cashews or any other nuts if you like. In the same pan, add 1 tbsp oil. Add mustard seeds and curry leaves.  When mustard seeds pop, add turmeric, asafetida and cayenne pepper. Sauté for a minute or so and turn off the heat. A...

Festivals are all about good food, right? I love both savory snacks and sweets like Rava Ladoo made during Diwali. This year, one of the crunchy snacks I made was Kadboli . Some call this gluten free ring shaped snack as Kodbale .

Shev or Sev is one of the festive foods made during Diwali.  This year I prepared Palak Sev adding Palak puree and it turned out good. Ingredients: Palak/Spinach Leaves - about 2 cups Chickpea Flour/Gram Flour/Besan - about 2 cups Carom Seeds/Ajwain/Owa - 1 1/2 tsp Red Chilli Powder/Cayenne Pepper - 1 tsp Chat Masala or Aamchur Powder - 1/2 tsp Turmeric/Haldi - 1/4 tsp Sugar - about 1/2 tsp Salt Oil Method: 1. Puree/Blend the washed spinach leaves in a blender/mixer.  Add little water if required.  Crush the carom seeds in a mortar pestle to a fine powder.  2. In a mixing bowl, add spinach puree, carom seeds powder, cayenne pepper, turmeric, chat masala, sugar and salt.  Mix well.  Now add chickpea flour little by little to form a soft dough.  The dough must not be too sticky.  Add about 2 tsp oil and knead well for 2 - 3 minutes.  Cover the dough and let it rest for about 30 minutes. 3. You can add 1/8 tsp baki...

Corn Chivda is made from Corn Poha/Flattened Corn.  Corn Poha is easily available in any Indian grocery store.  Before making Chivda Corn/Makai/Makka Poha is deep fried.  Alternatively, Corn Chivda made from Corn Flakes Cereal is comparatively less oily, with fewer calories and equally crunchy and tasty. Ingredients: Corn Flakes Cereal - 5 cups Raw Peanuts/Groundnuts - 3/4 cup Dalia/Roasted Gram Dal/Roasted Chickpeas - 1/4 cup Cashews - 10 (optional) Dry Coconut Slices - 1 tbsp Curry Leaves - few sprigs Green Chillies - 5 Mustard Seeds - 1/2 tsp Turmeric/Haldi - 1/4 tsp Asafoetida/Hing - 1/4 tsp Powdered Sugar - 1/2 tsp Oil - 2 tbsp Salt Method: 1. Wash green chillies, curry leaves and pat them dry. 2. Heat about 2 - 3 tbsp oil in a pan and fry the peanuts till they turn slightly brown.  Keep them aside.  Fry cashews, dalia and dry coconut as well. 3. Heat the same pan, in the leftover oil, add mustard se...

Savoury crackers called as Shankarpali/Shankarpalya in Marathi and Konkani.  Also known as Tukdi in Konkani. My Dear Mom's easy recipe for Diwali Faraal or Diwali Khaan.

A crisp savoury deep fried snack made of gram flour/chickpea flour.  Shev/Sev is known as Karo in Konkani.  Also made as festival food during Diwali.  Ingredients: Besan/Gram Flour/Chickpea Flour - 3 cups Ajwain/Owa/Carom seeds - 2 tsp Turmeric/Haldi - 1/2 tsp Cayenne pepper/Red chilli powder - 1 tbsp (optional) Salt Oil Method: 1. Coarsely grind Carom seeds. 2. In a mixing bowl add gram flour, ground carom seeds, turmeric, cayenne pepper and salt.  Add about 1/2 cup water and knead all the ingredients to a soft dough.  Add few drops of oil and knead the dough well.  Keep the dough (covered) aside for about an hour. 3. Grease the chakali/shev mould with oil.  Stuff the mould with gram flour dough. 4. Heat oil for deep frying in a kadhai/wok.  Hold the shev mould above the kadhai and press (or turn depending on the mould) and deep fry the shev.  Be careful while turning the...