Foxtail Millet Savory Pongal / Thinai Pongal ~ Easy Thinai Recipes !

Today's recipes is a healthy, filling and delicious recipe, Thinai Pongal/Millet Pongal a savory version. I have already shared the sweet version of Thinai Pongal. A typical South Indian breakfast, Ven Pongal can be made even more healthy and tasty with Cracked wheat, Millets, Oats, Brown Rice and here am with Thinai / Foxtail Millet instead of rice. Ven Pongal is one of the easiest and our family's favorite breakfast. And most of our weekend's breakfast will be Pongal and Instant Sambar. Now i started skipping rice and using Millets to make Ven Pongal, Sambhar Bhat. Millets are rich in fiber, low in calories, healthy, perfect for diet & diabetic people with delicious taste and my recent favorite grain too. I have tried few more millet recipes and is all coming next.
This Millet Savory Pongal is one wholesome and filling meal with the addition of moong dal & mild spices. Even my kids love this pongal, if you are looking for some healthy and easy recipe then this Millet Pongal is one best choice. Now off to the recipe...

GOBI MANCHURIAN / GOBI MANCHURIAN DRY RECIPE / CAULIFLOWER MANCHURIAN RECIPE

Gobi Manchurian is a very popular and delicious Indo-Chinese Appetizer that is loved by all ages. Gobi Manchurian is a simple and easy to make appetizer in which the deep fried cauliflower florets are tossed in tangy and mild spicy sauce flavored with garlic and spring onions. I am a big fan of Manchurian recipes and Chicken Manchurian is my most favorite. This vegetarian Gobi Manchurian is much easy than the chicken Manchurian. Its been long time since i made this Gobi Manchurian, even the Gobi 65 was made long long back when i blogged here. I monthly once or twice make deep fried snacks like vada or pakora but not this cauliflower recipes. Simply i do not like to deep fry cauliflower or veggies as such so mostly i prefer for masal or Dal vada and pakoras. Plus my diet plan will not let me to make such snacks but for my kids and blog sake make it once in a while. Today also for blog sake prepared this Gobi Manchurian and served it for lunch along with Vegetable Fried Rice.  As usual i did not use artificial colours and ajinimotto in this Indo-Chinese preparation also,again a simple version with basic ingredients with no compromise in taste. My kids loved it a lot and the little one requested to make it again and again :) Now off to the recipe...

Broccoli Potato Fry / Potato Stir Fry With Broccoli / Potato Varuval With Broccoli

Potato and broccoli are my family's most favorite vegetable and we love it any form. I often make dishes with these two veggies atleast a simple stir fry or a oven roasted Broccoli. Today's recipe is also one such simple and easy to make stir fry that i made for lunch on a lazy day. Some days i make an elaborate south indian lunch with sambar, rasam, poriyal, varuval, papad or chapathi, any veg curry, raita for lunch. But some days either simple rasam or curd rice with this potato stir fry.
This time have few florets left in the fridge, so thought of adding it to the potato fry and sure its an awesome and flavorful combo. The fry tasted yumm with rasam and rice. We just loved it..This Broccoli Potato Fry does not involve much spices and mildly flavored with garlic. Very simple and easy to make side dish that pairs well with any Indian Meal.

Fresh Papaya Juice / Papaya Grape Juice - Vegan Papaya Juice

For Vegan Thursday today I am sharing a simple but healthy Papaya Juice Recipe using Papaya, Grape and Strawberry. We take Papaya regularly and for me its a compulsory since Papaya has tons of nutritional benefits - good for Eyes, skin and the high content Anti oxidants helps to reduce cholesterol and also controls premature ageing, the high fiber and low calorie nature helps in weight loss and a natural blood purifier and body cleanser. So without fail at least once in 10days we take papaya. This time the Papaya was bit over ripe, I like the perfectly ripe fruits not the over ripe ones except Mangoes. So again the over ripe Papaya turned into this delicious drink along with some grape, strawberry and with the hint of lemon. Over all a power packed drink with tons of benefits and filling drink that is perfect for breakfast or take it as a snack when you are on diet or if you need a healthy, low calorie & filling snack. As all my fruits were well ripe and sweet i added only 1/2 tsp to balance the sweet & sour.

Peanut Rice / Verkadalai Sadham - Easy Lunch Box Recipes!

I mostly prefer quick fix meal or some simple rice recipes for lunch. This peanut rice is one such quick simple meal that needs only few ingredients and and also an easy way to finish off some left over rice. This Peanut rice doesn't need any great side dish. Just a chips/Papad/Fryums is enough. Like other variety rices, this Peanut rice comes in rescue on some or lazy weekdays lunch. Since I love peanuts in any form, I used to add peanuts in most of my variety rices, upma and in all possible dishes. There are tons of variety rice recipes and different methods of Peanut rice, this is my convenient method with fresh coconut touch. Very flavorful and delicious rice, some fryums or papads with a bowl of peanut rice is enough for a happy & satisfying meal.

Broccoli Pasta / Simple Broccoli Pasta

For Vegan Thursday, an event by Priya of Priya's Versatile recipes, am sharing a kids friendly Pasta recipe with Indian touch and our family favorite veg Broccoli. My kids love Pasta that too little one's most favorite, he love to eat the cooked pasta as such before sauteing. But never cooked cheesy or creamy or sauce based pasta for him, always a simple stir fry method. Very rarely make pasta with tomato basil sauce. And today's pasta is a simple pasta with Indian touch. Not much vegetables, spices just onions and broccoli. This is their recent favorite pasta. Here you go.,

Tofu Tawa Masala / Easy Tofu Sabzi - Easy Tofu Recipes

I always look forward to try Tofu Recipes and this Tofu Tawa Masala is one of my recent try after Chatakedar Tofu. I simply tweaked the Paneer Tawa Masala recipe and made this Tofu Tawa Masala. Paneer Tawa Masala is a popular Punjabi sabzi, that is easy to make spicy curry with creamy texture. I recreated the famous North Indian Masala with Tofu and also prepared it as a complete Vegan dish. Instead of cream here, I used ground Cashew nut paste which resulted in rich and creamy taste and texture. And also compared to paneer dish this is low fat and protein rich. My family love Tofu and I started using it regularly in our diet and very rarely buy Paneer only for kids. Now off to the recipe...

Peas Paratha / Peas Stuffed Paratha

Peas is the one of the veg that my kids do not eat. They even like Bitter gourd but did not know the reason why they dislike Peas. I love peas and Mr.V also do not complain with peas recipes but the kids they will not even taste it. They do not eat peas in any dish, even in their favorite Mutter Paneer Masala. I have experimented in so many dishes but, they constantly say big NO to peas. The I stopped compelling them to eat peas and sometimes they like to eat Peas in mashed form. So I rarely make Paneer Peas Paratha for them and the Sprouted Peas Paratha is my favorite.

Lachha Paratha / Whole Wheat Lachha Paratha / Mulit Layered Paratha - Its Easy & Vegan too!!

Lachha Paratha is a Mulit layered Indian Flat bread/Paratha of Punjabi Cuisine that is traditionally prepared in Tandoor(a cylindrical clay or metal oven) and using ghee. But it can also be prepared using oil in tawa/griddle like chapathi or plain paratha. I love south Indian Paratto, a similar multi layered flat bread that is made with Maida/All purpose Flour. And recently learned the trick of making perfect Parotta and am planning to make a post of it soon here.
Now coming to the Lachha Paratha, mostly this lachha paratha is made using ghee and is not advisable for regular diet meal but i wanted to make it less calorie and also a complete Vegan Recipe, so i used whole wheat flour and oil to make this paratha. Even oil gives nice flaky and flavorful paratha. Hope the step by step pictures helps anyone to make this Paratha very easy and now lets move on to the recipe...

South Indian Mixture / Madras Mixture / Diwali Mixture

Mixture is nothing but a mix of deep fried snacks like Kara Boondi, Omapodi , Kara Sev  along with fried Peanuts, cashews & Poha. This is the simple South Indian Mixture, to this You can also add Maida Biscuits , fried Chana Dal and for a sweet touch raisins, sugar or sweet boondi also added. Today am sharing the simple & Basic South Indian Style Mixture / Madras Mixture. This is popularly made during Diwali time. We too make this mixture in a tall bucket to share it with our relatives, friends and neighbors on Diwali day. Mixture is one of my favorite childhood snack. More than a snack I love this mixture as a side dish. I can even have Thanni sadham(cooked rice with water n salt) with some mixture. I love the sweet biscuits/Maida biscuits in the mixture. So I reserved 1/4 cup Maida Biscuits to add in the mixture :)

KaraSev / KaraSev Recipe / Spicy Sev Recipe

Its been ages i had this spicy and yummy karasev. Though this is not my favorite snack i love to have this as a side with rice and rasam. But The karasev which is available here are not good, crispy and i do not like it. So i decided to try it by myself and that's the only way to taste a very good kara sev :)
Here's another Diwali snack from Spicy Treats, my version of karasev-crispy, spicy and mild soft karasev. This is one quick version and you can make instantly. Traditionally this Kara sev made using karasev ladle but i used murukku press for making this kara sev with the wide holes achu /plate. This time I tried it Vegan without using butter and it turned out perfectly.

Batata Poha / Aloo Poha / Potato Rice Flakes

Poha one of my favorite breakfast and I sometimes prefer Poha Upma for my evening snack too. One quick and easy to make recipe with great taste. Have tried few varities of Poha upma like Spinach Poha, Tomato Poha, Mango Poha, Broccoli Lemon Poha and this Batata Poha is in my to do list for long time. And recently got to try it and it turned out awesome, Poha are best when it served hot. For this Batata Poha I used Ginger-Green chilli-Cilantro paste & love this combo a lot and have already used in many of my recipes and with this Potato Poha also it paired well and on the whole  a spicy, flavorful and yummy Poha. If you like Poha & Potato then you must try this combo for a more satisfying and comfort meal.

Vegetable Rava Biryani / Rava Biryani - Easy & Quick One Pot Meal!

Today's Recipe is one easy & quick one pot meal with more satisfying taste & flavor - Vegetable Rava Biryani. Rava Upma is one such recipe which is not liked by most of the people, particularly men. Mr.V also hate Rava upma and never allow to me to cook it for him, i make it only for me and my kids. Upma is one of my fav breakfast/dinner menu. During my school days i even ask my mom to pack upma for my lunch box with sugar. I just love upma with sugar and plain yogurt.

Papdi Chaat / Papdi & Papdi Chaat Recipe

Today's recipe for Vegan Thursday, Papdi & Papdi Chaat Recipe. This is a simple & refreshing snack and one of my favorite chaat item. I have already posted a similar Papdi chaat with Papdis and freshly grated carrots and beets. This time i tried papdi at home and the result was not bad and not perfect. The papdis were super crispy but the papdi come out with lots of bubbles, so it does not look good otherwise the papdis tasted so good. V and kids did not bother about it and happily enjoyed the snack. Its me who always bother for perfect result and everything and sometimes worry for it and waste most of my precious time by simply sitting and starring at my pics whether to post it or not?  After spending almost an hour and a half, finally decided to share it here. Now off to the recipe...

Vegan Vanilla Cake / Vegan Vanilla Cake with Tutty Frutti

Today's recipe is a complete Vegan Vanilla Cake. This cake has no egg, no butter, no milk, no dairy, just few simple and basic ingredients needed to make this simple yet delicious snack cake. Super moist and soft cake, the cake might looks mushy but its well cooked and tasted so good with crunchy tutty frutti bites.

I should have baked this cake in loaf or small cake pans but i baked it in my 12 cup bundt cake pan ,so it come out like a bite sized cake pieces :) Otherwise cake was super hit, morning i baked this cake and now only one small piece left out. My kids and H liked it a lot and they enjoyed this simple Vegan Vanilla cake.

Tofu Palak / Spinach Tofu / Crispy Tofu In Spinach Gravy ~ Healthy Vegan Curry

Palak Paneer is one of the popular North Indian Curry and our favorite recipe too. But i wanted to make a very simple and quick version of palak paneer with Tofu. No cream, no great preparation, just simple sauteing and cooking with spinach puree. A complete Vegan & Healthy recipe. I did only one extra step, just toasted the tofu cubes in tawa and added it to the spinach gravy. The crispy Tofu tasted good with the spinach gravy. So healthy accompaniment for rotis/Naan/Pulao. Now off to the recipe...

Oats Pesarattu / Oats Pesarattu With Tofu Filling

Today's recipe is Andhra Special Pesarattu / Mung Bean Dosa, a traditional Andhra Breakfast recipe which is more nutritious and healthy. I added few more healthy stuffs like oats, brown rice & Tofu to make it even more healthy, protein & fiber rich breakfast with low carb and calories. I was looking for a protein rich and less carb recipes since my Fitness Consultant suggested to fill my meal platter with more protein,

Broccoli Rasam / Broccoli Paruppu Rasam / Broccoli Lentils Soup

South Indian Meals does not complete without a Rasam. Rasam is nothing but a light, tangy & flavorful soup made using tomato, lentils, crushed whole pepper, jeera/Cumin seeds & Garlic. it can be had as such to treat sore throat, cold & cough and generally its taken along with plain rice. But some people love Rasam with Idli, Dosa, Upma, Vadai.

As i have already mentioned in my Broccoli Spinach Kootu that i love cooking Broccoli Indian Way. After trying broccoli in sambar, Kootu i wanted to try a Rasam with it, so recently tried Broccoli Rasam n to my surprise the taste & Flavor turned out so good. I was so excited n happy with my creation, one more addition to my Broccoli Recipes.

Broccoli Peas Pulao using Coconut Milk / Broccoli Peas Coconut Milk Pulao

Like Potato we love Broccoli and often make recipes with it. My kids like to munch Stir fried broccoli , baked broccoli, Roasted Broccoli or simply blanched n salted one as such. This is all because of my repetitive cooking recipes with Broccoli for the blog. So a big thanks to this blogging world. Now my friends named my family as " Broccoli Family" :)

Have tried/experimented more recipes with Broccoli & here's One more addition to my Broccoli Recipes, Broccoli Peas Pulao using Coconut Milk. This is very simple pulao with bursting flavors n taste. The combo of whole Garam Masala, coconut milk & Broccoli turned out so good and a very aromatic pulao I ever made. I also added a handful of methi leaves which is one more reason for the unique flavor n taste. If you are looking for some exotic recipe with simple preparations n ingredients this is one best recipe. Even people who do not like to eat broccoli will definitely love eating it this way. Now off to the recipe...

Beans Poriyal / Green Beans Stir Fry (using Coconut)

This is one healthy & simple Poriyal/Stir fry that can be done in a jiffy if you have chopped beans in hand or else the chopping part takes little time :) South Indian Lunch menu doesn't complete without this main side dish - Poriyal. At home everyone like Poriyal so daily or the other day i make Poriyal or stir fry for lunch. Simple rasam and a poriyal makes our meal more comfort n filling. Recently noticed that i haven't posted this simple beans poriyal in my space but i have already shared the Beans Thoran recipe, kerala style beans stir fry with coconut-green chilli paste. So for this week's Vegan Thurdsay am sharing this simple beans stir fry without any ground paste/masala. I like to add more shredded coconut in my Poriyal but due to calorie conscious now-a-days add very less or substitute with some cooked moong dal or tuvar dal. So adding coconut more or less or skip completely is purely optional but addition of coconut gives more taste n flavor.