Red Pumpkin Pal kootu..

Ingredients:

Red pumpkin - 500 gm

Coconut - 1/2 cup

Red chillies - 1

Curry leaves

Milk- 50 ml

Jeera - 2 ts

Bengal gram dhal - 25gm

Broken Moong dhal - 25 gm

turmeric powder - 1ts

Mustard seeds - 2ts

urad dhal - 2ts

Oil - 2ts

Salt

Method :

Peel the skin of the pumpkin and chopped it into thin pieces.Pressure cook the pumpkin with moong dhal and bengal gram dhal , turmeric powder by adding little water to it. Grind the coconut, jeera, red chillies and 1ts of raw rice. (Rice is to thicken the gravy).

Mix the mixture with the cooked pumpkin.Add salt and 1 ts sugar.Cook it for a minute.Now add milk and keep it in the flame for some seconds.Season the mustard seeds and urad dhal in the oil.Pour it on the kootu.Add curry leaves.Serve with rice/ chappathi.

RAJMA (10 minutes)

Ingredients:

2 cups Rajma ( Red kidney beans)

1 Pinch Turmeric powder

1 Onion chopped

5 Garlic cloves, chopped

1 inch Ginger, chopped

3 Green chillies, chopped

3 Tomatoes, chopped

1/2 tsp Corainder powder

1 tsp Red chilli powder

1/2 tsp Garam masala

2 tbsp Oil

Corainder leaves

Method:

Soak rajma overnight. Wash and pressure cook the rajma.

Keep aside. Heat oil in a pan, add ginger, garlic and chillies.

Fry until they turn brown. Add onions and tomatoes. Cook

until masala separates from oil. Add salt, turmeric powder

and mix well. Add the boiled rajma, red chilli powder,

corainder powder, garam masala and stir. Simmer the flame

and cook until a thick gravy is formed. Remove from fire.

Garnish rajma with corainder leaves and serve hot with chapatis

or rice.

BAIGAN BHARTA (8 minutes)

Ingredients: 1 medium Baigan (eggplant) 1/2 cup Cooked green peas 1 Finely chopped onion 1 Finely chopped tomato 1 Finely chopped green chilli 1/2 tsp Red chilli powder 1/2 tsp Garam Masala Powder 1/4 tsp Turmeric Powder 3 tbsp oil Salt to taste Chopped green coriander leaves for garnishing Method: Brush baigan (eggplant) with oil and roast it on a gas burner over medium heat. Frequently turn the eggplant upside down, until fully roasted. Once done, hold it under cold running water or in a bowl full of water. Cool it and peel off the blackened skin. Mash the flesh. Heat oil in a pan / kadhai . Add green chilli and onion and fry over medium heat until light golden brown.Add red chilli powder, turmeric powder, garam masala and salt and stir. Add tomatoes and cook until tender. Add green peas and mashed baigan (eggplant). Stir well. Fry the baigan bhartha for 5-7 minutes over medium heat. Garnish the baigan bharta with green coriander leaves and serve hot. Note : You can even make this bharta without onion and tomato. With the flesh of the eggplant, add tamarind pulp(1 cup).Heat oil in the pan, add some mustard seeds and red chillies, curry leaves turmeric powder, salt and jaggry(1/2 ts).Pour the the mixture and boil it for 2 minutes in the gas stove.It goes well with south indian receipe Pongal and Rice uppuma.

MICROWAVE PANEER MATAR

Ingredients: 100g paneer - grated 1 cup shelled peas 2 tbsp. oil 1 medium size onion 1-2 green chillies 1/2" piece ginger 6 tbsp tomato puree 1/4- red chilli powder 1/2 tsp. cumin powder 1/2 tsp. garam masala powder Cashewnuts 4- optional Salt to taste Method: Grind together onion, green chillies, ginger and fry this masala for 4 to 5 minutes in a non-stick pan. Add tomato puree, garam masala, cumin powder, peas and sprinkle 1 tbsp. water. Now transfer this to a micro dish and micro high for 3 minutes. Add salt, grated paneer 5 tbsp. water and cashew nuts and mix gently. Cover the dish and again micro wave for 2 minutes and stand for another 2 minutes. Serve, garnished with fresh coriander and green chili.