No Croutons Required - The Winner for January

The challenge for January was to make a Thai inspired soup or salad. It was a tight race but the winner this month is Mangocheeks with this creamy and luscious Thai Butternut Squash Soup with Tofu Croutons. Congratulations Mangocheeks! This soup is certainly an inspired creation.

Jacqueline will be hosting the February edition of No Croutons Required. The theme for February is the copy cat round. The challenge is to recreate a vegetarian soup or salad from a restaurant that has left a lasting impression. See Tinned Tomatoes for more details.

SCHEZWAN NOODLES

I tried this one after watching a cookery show.I prepared this for my hubby’s lunch box.It was very tasty.

Ingredients :

• VEGETABLES (CARROT , CAPSICUM , POTATO AND BEANS) – Cut  into thin strips of 1 inch length.
• Plain white noodles – 1/2 packet or 1 cup ( if its a big one)( adjust the amount of noodles based on the quantity of veggies)
• Big onion -  1 no (chop into thin strips of 1 inch length)
• Ajinomotto – 1/2 tsp
• Soya sauce – 1 tsp
• Tomato sauce – 1 tsp
• Salt – as needed.

For Schezwan sauce :

• Red chillies – 4 nos
• Garlic – 4 flakes
• Ginger – 1 inch piece (Replace ginger & garlic with G&G paste of 1 tsp)
• Tomato sauce – 1tsp
• Chilli sauce – 1 tsp
• Vinegar – 2 tsp ( Add according to ur taste buds )

Spring onions /coriander leaves – to garnish
Method :

• Refer here for “ Basic noodles preparation “.Keep the prepared noodles aside.
• For sauce , grind all the items given under “ sauce ingredients “ to make a smooth paste by adding vinegar.Set apart.
• In a wide mouthed kadai , add the onions and fry for a minute.Then add the veggies.Fry till they become soft.
• Cover cook for sometime.Add 2-3  tsp of schezwan sauce and fry till its raw smell goes off.
• Then add the plain noodles , tomato sauce , soya sauce , Ajinomotto & required salt .
• Toss it well.Garnish & serve hot !!

Green Lentil Soup with Coconut Milk

Sometimes there is nothing better on a cold winter day than a warming bowl of simple lentil soup. This version is extremely easy to prepare, but very nourishing when served with buttered basmati rice and perhaps some homemade biscuits. I have adapted this recipe from a charming cookbook entitled Once Upon a Tart that I will be revisiting often. Not only are there lots of good ideas for sweet and savory tarts, but also lots of soups, creative sandwiches, salads, condiments, quick breads and cookies. The writing is fresh and witty and most of the recipes include helpful cooking hints and information about the ingredients used. The book is written by Frank Mentesana and Jerome Audureau, who own and operate a bake shop in New York City.

Green Lentil Soup with Coconut Milk

Recipe by Lisa Turner Adapted from Once Upon a Tart... Soups, Salads, Muffins, and More Cuisine: Indian Published on January 28, 2010 A simple, warming and nourishing green lentil soup simmered with coconut milk and seasoned with Indian spices Print this recipe Ingredients: 2 to 3 tablespoons unsalted butter 2 medium onions, finely chopped 1 large garlic clove, minced 3 tablespoons fresh thyme or 1 1/2 teaspoons dried 1/2 teaspoon cayenne 2 teaspoons turmeric pinch of ground coriander 4 to 5 cups vegetable stock 1 1/2 cups green or brown lentils, rinsed 2 to 3 tablespoons unsalted butter 1/2 teaspoon ground cardamon 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg fresh ground black pepper to taste 14 oz (400 mL) can coconut milk Instructions: Melt the first quantity of butter in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the onions and garlic and sauté for 5 to 10 minutes or until softened. Reduce the heat slightly and add the thyme, turmeric, coriander and cayenne. Continue to stir for another 2 or 3 minutes. Pour in the vegetable stock and the rinsed lentils and simmer for 20 to 30 minutes or until the lentils are tender. Heat the second quantity of butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. Toss in the cardamon, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg and pepper, and stir for a few minutes or until the spices are fragrant. Add to the soup, stir, then add the coconut milk. Stir until well combined, and let simmer for another 15 minutes. Serve hot. Makes 6 servings

More lentil recipes from Lisa's Vegetarian Kitchen:
French Lentil Salad with Sweet Corn and Tomato
Red Lentil and Carrot Soup
Potato Leek Soup With Watercress, Green Lentils and Fresh Goat Cheese

On the top of the reading stack: Tales of Love & Loss by Knut Hamsun

Audio Accompaniment: Dreamtime Return by Steve Roach

ADHIRASAM RECIPE WITH VIDEO| DIWALI SWEETS RECIPES

Hello friends ,
Wish u all a very happy & prosperous new year.Hope u all had a great new year day celebration .To start this fabulous new year and to celebrate my blog anniversary,i thought of posting this sweet recipe. I thank one and all for visiting my blog & for leaving your valuable comments & awards. Hope u all will be around and boost me .
Now coming to this sweet recipe , my MIL is an expert in making Adhirasam.In my apartment , all my neighbours used to call her for guidance.I learnt this recipe from her and posting for u all.My MIL always uses home made rice flour for making this sweet.Do refer the”Notes”section for tips and tricks! I have also attached a video to help beginners and for my future reference.Hope u find it useful.To reduce the video time,i had cut short the syrup consistency part as i had already posted a separate video for the same.Do click this link for adhirasam syrup video.

Adhirasam recipe

How to adhirasam sweet recipe with step by step pictures

Cuisine: Indian

Category: Sweet

Serves: 10 nos

Prep time: 20 Minutes

Cook time: 20 Minutes

Total time: 40 Minutes

INGREDIENTS

Raw rice - 1 cup or Homemade rice flour – 1.5 cups Grated jaggery - 3/4 cup Water - 1/3 cup Cardamom powder - 1/4 tsp Black/white sesame seeds - 1/2 tsp Cooking oil - to deep fry

METHOD

For homemade rice flour,wash and soak the raw rice for 2 hours.Spread in a paper and let it dry for 10 minutes.Grind the rice little coarsely(It should look fine in texture but when u touch it,it should be slightly coarse.By making this way,adhirasam will get a good texture as in shops) in batches.Sieve and set aside.Rice flour is ready. For syrup,Powder the jaggery and add little water just to cover it(Beginners add 1:2 ratio of water and jaggery). Keep it on the flame and melt it.Drain the impurities using a metal strainer. Keep the syrup on the medium flame.Let it boil for sometime. Take little water in a plate and pour a drop of syrup.The syrup should not dissolve.U’ll be able to gather the syrup and make a soft sliding ball out of the syrup. This is called rollover(uruttu padham in tamil )consistency.Add the cardamom powder.Switch off the flame . Take the rice flour in a wide mouthed bowl.Add sesame seeds(if using).Make a dent in the center and set aside.Pour the syrup into the rice flour.Add little by little and mix the flour to make a smooth dough,soft,pliable and goey.It will harden as time proceeds.Some syrup may remain unused.All the syrup may not be necessary.. Transfer the dough to an air tight container after it cools down.The next day or third day take the dough and make small lemon sized balls.Take a thick polythene sheet /Banana leaf and grease with oil/ghee.Pat it with ur fingers to make a small poori. thickness should be like poori. In the mean time heat oil in a kadai to deep fry.As soon as u put the adhirasam in hot oil it will bulge and immediately u should flip it over.Let the other side cook for 1 or 2 seconds till the bubbles cease and then take it out by draining the excess oil.Keep the flame in medium high /Medium for even cooking.I always deep fry one at a time.After taking out from the oil keep the adhirasam in between two round shaped ladles and press it well on all the sides. The excess oil gets drained out.Keep in a tissue Stack the adhirasams and store in an air tight container.

How to make adhirasam sweet

TO KNOW THE ADHIRASAM SYRUP CONSISTENCY IN DETAIL , WATCH THIS VIDEO

Adhirasam syrup consistency

Note

Always use processed rice flour to make adhirasam. /store bought flour makes the adhirasam hard & chewy. The processed flour should be slightly wet. Should not be dry. To make processed rice flour,soak raw rice in water for 2 hrs. Drain the water & spread the rice in a paper or cloth for 5 minutes.Now grind the rice to make a slightly coarse powder. Sieve & repeat the same process & use this rice flour to make adhirasam. Based on the texture of rice flour,it absorbs jaggery syrup.The more fine,the less it takes. To get the texture of adhirasam as u get in shops,make the rice flour slightly coarse.ie It should look like a fine powder but when u touch it will be very slightly coarse. The consistency of syrup is very important.It should be a loose,soft ball.It wont dissolve in water at the same time it should not be tight as a hard ball.U will able to gather the syrup and when u take the syrup in ur fingers,it will slide.The total time to reach the consistency will be within 5-7 minutes in high flame. The color of adhirasam depends upon the color of jaggery u use. Some jaggery may be light yellow in color. So its better if u buy Paagu vellam which would be in golden yellow to get a nice color . The quantity of syrup may vary based on the quality of rice flour.So add carefully.If u add excess syrup,adhirasam will dissolve in oil.If u add less syrup,it may turn hard n chewy. Adhirasam dough can be preserved for 10 days.No need to even refrigerate if u make it perfect. If u feel u’ve added excess syrup to the dough and if its sticky,u can add  little Maida or wheat flour to bring non sticky consistency. Suppose if the dough is very hard u can add little milk and if necessary add little jaggery syrup to make a soft pliable dough . If u wish to serve it hot, keep the adhirasam in a idli plate and steam for few seconds to make it soft and hot.Please do not fry again  . Last but not the least , don’t deep fry the adhirasams for longer time because it may become a murukku

          Once again I thank all my blogger friends & readers for taking my blog all this way.I need all your encouragement and support for all my future endeavours .I thank u all with this virtual treat of adhirasam

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