One Day At A Time!

Hi everyone! How's life in your part of the world? I hope all is well. The Hindu holy month of Shravan is here. I fondly remember how my mom used to pan-fry vegetables with semolina. Rava Fry is a common dish in Saraswat and Marathi cooking, and I'd love to share a recipe I made, inspired by her, in my Dallas kitchen. Ingredients: Taro Root/ Arbi /Arvi /Maadi - 4 medium Kashmiri Lal Chili Powder - 1 tsp Turmeric / Haldi - 1/4 tsp Tamarind extract / Chinch - about 1/2 tsp Salt - 1/4 tsp Coarse Rava / Semolina - about 3/4 cup Oil or Cooking Spray How to Pan fry Taro or Arbi with Semolina: Peel the Taro Root and chop into thick slices. Add salt, Tamarind, turmeric and red chili powder. Toss and set it aside for 10 - 15 minutes. Let it sweat and release some water. Mix well to coat the taro slices with all the seasonings. Coat the taro slices with semolina. Heat a cast iron pan. Lower the heat to medium and pour oil or cooking spray. Cook both sides of  the Taro slices covered wit...

Hey everyone! Long time no see! Hope all is well in your world. I am back with a healthier Indian Mithai recipe. It is gluten free and protein rich. Vegans can use Coconut Oil instead of Clarified Butter. I made this for my picky 11 year old. My kiddo eats pretty healthy, but feeding vegan protein rich beans and lentils is a work in progress. Today's sweet treat is made with Chickpea Flour and Jaggery . Jaggery also called as Good in Hindi and Gool in Marathi is a less processed form of sugar. It is darker in color like molasses . Hope you enjoy making this delicacy for your loved ones. Ingredients: Ladu Besan/ Chickpea Flour - 2 cups Ghee/Clarified Butter - 3 - 4 tbsp Jaggery Powder - 1/4 cup + 1 tbsp Saffron/Kesar strands - a pinch Cinnamon/Dalchini Powder - 1/4 tsp Nuts for garnish if you like How to make Homemade Besan Gud ke Ladoo: In a heavy bottom pan, add ghee and besan. Roast it at low or medium flame until you get a roasted aroma. Ladu Besan is a coarse form of chick...

Hey everyone! How is life? My part of the world is cloudy, yet beautiful for a walk. Today's recipe is especially dear to me. Why? My pickiest family member ate it with gusto. My kiddo eats healthy home cooked food, but very specific and only a few items. I get a sense of accomplishment when I can add an item to my child's limited menu. Here it is: Air fried Marathi style Batatachya Kachrya .  Ingredients: Russet Potato - 4 medium Paprika - 1 tsp Cayenne Pepper - 1/4 tsp Turmeric/Haldi - 1/4 tsp Aamchur/Dry Mango powder - 1/4 tsp Salt - about 1/2 tsp Cooking Spray or Oil How to cook crispy Potatoes in an Air Fryer: Soak the potatoes in a big bowl of water for about an hour. I cook the potatoes with skin. Soaking makes scrubbing the potatoes easier. Skip the soaking if you like to peel the skin off potatoes. Wipe the cleaned potatoes with a kitchen towel. Dice the dried potatoes the way you like.  Grease the airfryer tray with cooking spray or oil. Add diced potatoes, 1 tbsp ...

Hey everyone! Hope you all are doing well. My part of the world is blessed with perfect Goldilocks weather. Neither hot nor cold. I love cooking fried food on such cloudy days. Air frying is such a wonderful alternative these days. So, here I am with a Marathi style Bharleli Bhendi  cooked to crisp perfection in an air fryer. This desi Stuffed Okra recipe is ideal for vegans and also for festive Indian cooking with No Onion Garlic . Ingredients: Okra/Bhindi/Bhendi - 20 Roasted Peanut Powder - 3 tbsp White Sesame Seeds/Til - 1 tbsp Dry Desiccated Coconut - 1 tbsp Kashmiri Lal Mirch Powder - 1 tsp Chat Masala - 1/2 tsp Salt - 1/4 tsp Cooking Spray or Oil How to cook Bharwa Bhindi in an airfryer: Pat the washed okra dry with a kitchen towel.  In a food processor, add peanut powder, sesame seeds, coconut, lal mirch powder, chat masala and salt. Pulse it until all the ingredients are mixed well. Taste this mix for salt and other seasonings.  Feel free to add ginger, garlic t...

Hi there! How is everyone doing? Texas weather is really hot these days. Fortunately, mornings are still  pleasant for a walk. After enjoying my walk, I am ready to take care of my first baby. My blog! My 9 year old is not too fond of my blog baby.  Today's recipe is a vegan , protein rich Marathi style Kulithachi Usal . Kulith is not so common in my kitchen. I cooked it after decades. Do give this a try if you like lentils. Ingredients: Kulith/Horse Gram/Hulga - 1/2 cup Boiled Potato - 1 small (optional) Red Onion - 1 big Tomato - 2 medium Garlic - 4 big cloves Green Chili - 1 Black Pepper Powder - 1/4 tsp Turmeric/Haldi - 1/8 tsp Usal Masala - 1 tsp Cumin Seeds/Jeera - 1 tsp Oil - 1 tbsp Salt How to cook Kulith Usal: Soak dry Kulith in plenty of water for about 2 hours. Wash soaked kulith well. Drain all the water and set it aside overnight or longer to sprout. Wash the sprouted Kulith well. Add 1 - 2 cups of water and cook it in a pressure cooker. Save the water used for co...

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 ...

Hello everyone! My first post in 2021. Wish you all a happy and blessed 2021!  Recently, I blogged about an air fryer recipe. Some of my vegetarian friends asked if I could share a vegetarian dish cooked in an air fryer. One of my favorites is Sabudana Wada (Sago Cutlets) . Hope you all enjoy this healthier, low fat recipe. Ingredients: Sago/Sabudana - 1 cup Potatoes - 2 medium Peanuts/Groundnuts - 1/2 cup Green Chilies - 4 Cilantro/Coriander Leaves - few sprigs Cumin/Jeera Seeds - 1 tsp Sugar - 1/2 tsp Salt Cooking Spray or Oil How to make Sabudana Wade: Wash Sago twice and drain the water. Add water just enough to form a thin layer on sago. Keep it covered for 5 - 6 hours or overnight. Overnight works well for me. Boil the potatoes and dry roast the peanuts.  After cooling, grind the peanuts to a coarse powder. Sago must turn almost double in size and soft to touch. If not, sprinkle some more water. Mix sago, boiled potatoes, roasted peanut powder, cumin seeds, chopped ...

In summer, I don't feel like spending too much time cooking. All I need are some no fuss, no cook recipes. Today's dessert is a traditional Marathi Mango yogurt delight, well known as Aamrakhand or Mango Shrikhand. My Mom used to make Aamras Puri , Aamrakhand and many other mango delicacies for us every summer. This year I made it for my little girl.

There are some must-haves in my kitchen. One of them is frozen hash browns. This is probably one of the upsides of staying in US. Cooking the Marathi style Batatyacha Kees with hash browns is a complete breeze. Traditionally, this delicacy is made for Upavas (Hindu religious fast). You can make it for breakfast or brunch. Its my favorite as an evening snack. This combination of potatoes and peanuts is a sure hit with kids as well. Ingredients: Grated Potatoes/Hash Browns - 3 cups Roasted Peanuts - about 1/2 cup Green Chilies - 2 or 3 Cumin/Jeera Seeds - 1/2 tsp Coriander/Cilantro Leaves - few sprigs Curry Leaves/Kadipata - a sprig (optional) Oil or Ghee/Clarified Butter - 2 tbsp Sugar - 1/2 tsp (optional) Salt How to cook Marathi Batatyacha Kees: Add the grated potatoes to a big bowl of water to avoid blackening. I saved some time with store bought frozen Hash Browns. Grind the roasted peanuts to a coarse powder. Slit the green chilies lengthwise and finely chop cilan...

Puranpoli Sweets are always welcome at our place. And Puranpoli is one of our favorites. So far, you have read about Chana Dal Puranpoli and  Narala Ubbati (Coconut Puranpoli) . Let me introduce you to a third kind.. moong dal stuffed sweet flatbread - Moong Dal Ubbati or Puranpoli. Dough: Whole Wheat Flour/Atta - 1 1/2 cups Whole Milk - 3/4 cup Olive Oil - 2 tbsp Turmeric/Haldi - 1/4 tsp Mung Dal Stuffing: Mung Dal - 1 cup Light Brown Sugar - 1 cup Green Cardamom/Elaichi - 2 pods Saffron/Kesar - few strands How to cook Moong Dal Holige: Make Dough: In a mixing bowl, add whole wheat flour, turmeric and oil or ghee/clarified butter. Mix well. Now add milk, little at a time, and knead well to form a soft dough. Cover the bowl with plastic food wrap and let it rest for about 30 minutes. Using all purpose flour/maida will make the puranpolis more soft. Both milk and oil will help in softening the puranpolis. Food Mill for Puranpoli Make Moong Dal Stuffing: Soak moong ...

Cold weather has arrived with the beautiful fall colors in my part of the world. Every season demands special delicacies. For this winter, I made Dry Fruits Ladoo with edible gum.  Call it Antina Unde or Kardantu  (in Kannada) or Dinkache Laadu  (in Marathi) or Gond ke Ladoo (in Hindi), this sweet is like a homemade nutrition bar made of a healthy sweetener - jaggery. Ingredients: Jaggery / Gul / Gud (grated) - 1 1/2 cups Desiccated (Dry) Coconut (grated) - 3/4 cup Edible Gum / Antu / Dink / Gond - 1/4 cup Whole Almonds / Badam - 1/4 cup Whole Cashews / Kaju - 1/4 cup Dry Dates / Khajur / Kharik - 1/4 cup Dry Cranberries - 1/4 cup Poppy Seeds / Khuskhus - 1 1/2 tbsp Ghee / Clarified Butter - 5 tbsp Green Cardamom / Elaichi - 4 pods Nutmeg / Jaiphal (grated) - 1/8 tsp How to make Dinkache Ladoo or Kardantu: Crush cardamom seeds in a mortar pestle to a fine powder. Finely chop almonds, cashews, dates and cranberries, using a knife or a food processor...

Bhakri is a gluten free flatbread made of rice flour or jowar flour or finger millet flour or pearl millet flour. These are well known as Bhakri in Maharashtra and Rotti in Karnataka. One good thing about Bhakri is that these are oil free. Nutrition wise, you are eating whole grain complex carbohydrates. For a wholesome meal, pair it with a protein rich beans curry. Or a simple coconut chutney tastes great too. Ingredients: Nachni/Ragi/Finger Millet Flour - 1 cup Rice Flour/Tandlacha Peeth - 1/2 cup Water - 1 1/2 cups Salt How to make Nachni chi Bhakri: In a mixing bowl or a big plate, add nachni flour and rice flour. Add salt to taste and mix well. You can make bhakris with just nachni flour as well.  Add 2 cups of water in a pot and bring it to a boil. Turn off the heat and add this boiling water to the bowl. Using a spoon, mix all the ingredients well. When it turns cold enough to handle, knead the dough well and divide into 5 balls. Sprinkle some rice flour ...

Koshimbir , a vegetable yogurt salad is a regular at our place. Some of you might know this as North Indian Raita, where cucumbers are the main ingredient.  Today, I made this Indian salad with crunchy Romaine Lettuce leaves. This salad with a creamy yogurt dressing is a good option for those who don't like Ranch dressing. Plus, its quite easy to make. Ingredients: Romaine Lettuce (chopped) - 3 cups Red Onions (finely chopped) - 1/3 cup Tomato - 1 medium Yogurt/Curds/Dahi - 1/2 cup Black Pepper Powder - 1/4 tsp Green Chili/Jalapeno Pepper - 1 Salt How to make Romaine Lettuce Koshimbir: Wash Romaine lettuce leaves well and remove all excess water using salad spinner. Discard the thick stems and medium chop the leaves. When it comes to greens, the darker the color, better its nutritive value. That's the reason I prefer slightly darker Romaine lettuce leaves for this salad. You can use Iceberg Lettuce as well. Discard the soft pulp and seeds of the tomato and fi...

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...

Last few days, we have been relishing high calorie festival goodies. Next couple days, we'll be having simple, light meals.  Koshimbir or Raita - an Indian yogurt salad is a light and flavorful side dish made of veggies like tomato, Cucumber , beetroot, carrots and onions. For today, we are having Carrot Curd Salad with Tadka Dal , Rice and Stir Fried Green Beans . Ingredients: Carrots/Gajar (grated) - about 2 cups Yogurt/Curd/Dahi - 1/2 cup Roasted Peanut/Shenga Powder - 2 tbsp Black Pepper Powder - 1/2 tsp Chat Masala - 1/4 tsp Cilantro/Coriander/Kothimbir Leaves - few sprigs Salt How to prepare Gajarachi Koshimbir: Peel and grate the carrots. Finely chop cilantro leaves. You can use finely chopped green chilies/Jalapeno pepper, instead of black pepper. In a mixing bowl, add carrots, yogurt, peanut powder, fresh ground black pepper, chat masala, cilantro and salt to taste. Easy Carrot Salad is ready. Traditionally, chat masala is not added to koshimbir...

Bhakri is a well known flatbread of Maharashtra, made either of Jowar (Jwari) flour or Rice flour. I like using a combination of both, which makes the bread soft and nutritious. Plus, this bread is oil free. In Karnataka, this rice flatbread is called as Akki Roti and jowar/sorghum flatbread as Jolada Roti .

Lately, I have been cooking lots of protein rich beans and dals. Two dal based new recipes were on my mind - Rajasthani Dal Baati and Gujarati Dal Dhokli . My experiment of baking Baati with less oil was a complete failure. But this Dal Dhokli, also known as Chakolya or Varan Phal in Marathi was a hit. Chakolya is a desi version of whole wheat pasta in a lentil/dal sauce. For the sauce or Amti, instead of the regular Toor Dal, I used Panchmel Dal . Ingredients: Whole Wheat Flour - 1 cup Cayenne Pepper/Red Chili Powder - 1/2 tsp Turmeric/Haldi - 1/4 tsp Salt Toor Dal/Split Pigeon Peas - 2 tbsp Mung Dal/Split Green Gram - 2 tbsp Masoor Dal/Split Red Lentils - 2 tbsp Chana Dal/Split Bengal Gram - 2 tbsp Urad Dal/Split Black Gram - 2 tbsp Tomato - 1 medium Tamarind/Imli/Chinch - 1 tsp Ginger - 1 inch piece Green Chilies - 3 Coriander/Cilantro Leaves - few sprigs Curry Leaves/Kadipata - a sprig Dry Fenugreek Leaves/Kasuri Methi - 1 tsp Cumin/Jeera See...

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...

Indian meals are generally served as a single course meal, which is popularly known as Thaali . A traditional Thaali includes rice, roti/flatbread, fried appetizers, curry, achar/pickles, raita, mithai/sweets and many more delicacies. For our weekday meals, I don't find time to cook such an elaborate menu. But I definitely make time for this Koshimbir . Ingredients: Mini Cucumbers/Kakdi - 4 Yogurt/Curds/Dahi - about 1 cup Roasted Peanuts/Groundnuts/Shenga - 2 tbsp Phutane/Dalia/Roasted Chana Dal - 2 tbsp Green Chili - 1 Coriander/Cilantro Leaves/Kothimbir - few sprigs Sugar - 1/4 tsp Salt How to prepare Kakdi Koshimbir: Grind roasted peanuts, phutane and green chili to a slightly coarse powder. Finely chop coriander leaves. Wash and grate the cucumbers. You can finely chop the cucumbers as well. No need to peel the skin. In a mixing bowl, add yogurt, salt and sugar. Mix well. Now add peanut powder, phutane powder and grated cucumbers. Mix all the ingre...

Usal is a protein rich Marathi curry made of bean sprouts.  Misal , a popular street food of Mumbai is a similar recipe made of variety of beans. Today's Usal recipe is of mixed 15 beans - chickpeas, red kidney beans, black beans, split peas and so on. These are available as dry 15 Beans or 16 Beans Soup. Ingredients: Mixed 15 Beans - 1 cup Onion - 1 medium Potato - 1 medium (optional) Ginger Garlic Paste - 2 tsp Chat Masala - 1/2 tsp Cumin/Jeera Powder - 1/2 tsp Coriander/Dhania Powder - 1/2 tsp Garam Masala - 1/4 tsp Black Pepper Powder - 1/4 tsp Cayenne Pepper/Red Chilli Powder - 1/2 tsp Coriander/Cilantro Leaves - few sprigs Salt Oil How to cook Usal using 15 Beans: Soak the mixed beans 4 - 5 hours. Soaking will help the beans cook well. Wash the soaked beans well. Finely chop onions and cilantro. Dice the peeled potato into medium slices. Heat about 1 tbsp oil in a pan. Add onions and sauté until onions soften. Add ginger garlic paste and sauté for anoth...