These delicious laddus are a great option to gift when you visit friends and family. It is also ideal for growing kids as a snack in their lunch box or as an after school snack because it is packed with protein and tastes awesome. This recipe is quite versatile and you can play around with the ingredients according to your choice or availability. Stays fresh for 10 to 15 days at room temperature and for a month when refrigerated.

With minimal cooking involved this Protein Laddu will be a great addition to your quick fix snack list!

Ingredients

Roasted bengal gram – 1 1/2 cups

Flax seeds – 1/4 cup

Walnuts – 1/2 cup

Almonds – 1/2 cup

Pistachio – 1/2 cup

Jaggery (powdered) – 1 1/2 cups

Salt – a pinch

Cardamom powder – 1 tsp

Saffron – 1/4 tsp

Ghee – 1/2 cup (Use plant based oil/butter for vegan option)

Yield
25 lime sized laddus

Prep time
10 mins

Cook time
15 mins

Method

1)   On minimum heat, dry roast the flax seeds and the roasted bengal gram until aromatic (approximately 3 to 4 mins). Set aside in a bowl. Let cool.

2)   In the same pan, dry roast walnuts, almonds and pistachios until warm to touch. Transfer this to a plate and let it cool down.

3)   In a mixer grinder grind the flax seeds and the roasted bengal gram until powdered. Then add walnuts, almonds and pistachios and pulse a few times. Transfer this mixture to a wide bowl. Now take the jaggery and pulse this also few times to break any lumps. Transfer this jaggery to the ground mixture.

4)   Add salt, cardamom powder and saffron to the nuts-jaggery mixture. Mix well. Heat ghee in a small tempering pan until just warm and add it to the mixture. Mix roughly with a spoon and pack the mixture tightly in the bowl like how you would do for cheese cake biscuit base. Set aside for 5 mins.

5)   After 5 mins mix everything with greased hand until incorporated well. Take a handful of laddu mixture and press firmly in your palm to make small round balls/laddus. Place it on a plate until the protein laddus cool down completely. Store in an airtight container.

Notes

1. I’ve used good quality jaggery powder in this recipe. You can replace jaggery with brown sugar or country sugar.
2. Pulse the mixer when processing the nuts. Running the mixer continuously will release the natural oil in it. So instead of a nice sandy texture you will end up with a lump that will stick to the sides of the mixer jar.
3. I’ve used cardamom powder and saffron to add a nice flavour to this dish. You can use nutmeg powder in this protein laddu too, as an alternative. 
4. I’ve used walnuts, almonds and pistachios, but you can use any dry nuts. Adding roasted peanuts instead of pistachios is also a great option.
5. To give a totally different flavour to this protein laddu you can add 2 tbsp of unsweetened peanut butter and vanilla essence. This way you can reduce the amount to ghee/oil and avoid cardamom powder totally.
6. Make sure the laddus are at room temperature before storing it in a clean container.
7. For some similar quick bite recipes check out my No Bake Chocolate Biscuit Bars and Walnut Cashew Chikki recipes.

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For a very long time I’ve been wanting to make marble cake. I love how two different flavours hit your taste buds in each bite because of the marble effect. As much as I love the concept of marble cake, I didn’t want to try only the basic flavours. So instead of the usual vanilla-chocolate marble cake I tried mango and blueberry to create the marble effect. When I made this marble cake with two totally different flavours, to be honest I was a bit skeptical about the final taste. To my joy, with a burst of fresh mango flavour in each bite this unique Mango Blueberry Marble Cake turned out super soft and delicious. A vegan version is possible too by just using a plant-based milk. So here’s the recipe for yet another tasty dish with mangoes for this season.

Ingredients

MANGO CAKE BATTER

All purpose flour – 1 cup

Baking powder – 3/4 tsp

Bicarbonate of soda – 1/4 tsp

Salt – a pinch

Milk (any kind!) – 1/8 cup

Saffron – 1/2 tsp

Mango essence – 1/2 tsp

Olive oil – 1/4 cup

Sugar – 1/2 cup

White vinegar – 1/2 tsp

Mango puree – 1/2 cup

BLUEBERRY CAKE BATTER

All purpose flour – 1 cup

Baking powder – 3/4 tsp

Bicarbonate of soda – 1/4 tsp

Salt – a pinch

Milk (any kind!) – 1/8 cup

Cocoa powder – 1 tbsp

Vanilla essence – 1/2 tsp

Olive oil – 1/4 cup

Sugar – 1/2 cup

White vinegar – 1/2 tsp

Blueberry puree – 1/2 cup

Yield
16 slices

Prep time
30 mins

Cook time
50 mins

Method

1)   Sieve flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda and salt separately for each cake batter. Set aside.

2)   Preheat the oven to 180℃ for 10 mins. Grease and line a loaf tin with baking paper.

3)   Heat the milk (for both the batters) in two different mugs. Add saffron in one mug and mix well. Add cocoa powder in another mug and mix well. Set aside both the mugs.

4)   In a mixing bowl take mango essence, olive oil, sugar, vinegar and mango puree. Beat until the sugar dissolves and well combined. Set aside.

5)   In another mixing bowl take vanilla essence, olive oil, sugar, vinegar and blueberry puree. Beat until sugar dissolves and well combined. Set aside.

6)   Now take one set of dry ingredients and add the mango puree mixture and the milk saffron mixture to it. Mix everything gently using cut and fold method. Your mango cake batter is ready now. Set aside. 

7)   Take the second set of dry ingredients and add the blueberry puree mixture and the milk cocoa powder mixture to it. Mix everything gently usind cut and fold method. Your blueberry cake batter is ready. Set aside.

8)   Now take the prepared loaf tin, add 1/4 of the mango cake batter. Next add 1/4 of the blueberry cake batter on top of the mango cake batter. Keep alternating both the cake batters one on top of the other until all the batter is used up. Now to create the marble effect, with the back of a spoon make zigzag pattern on top of the batter. Both the batters will blend mildly with each other to create the marble look.  

9)   Gently tap the tin twice to remove any trapped air bubbles. Place the loaf tin in the middle rack of your preheated oven and bake at 180℃ for 45 to 50 mins. Switch off the heat after 50 mins and let the tin sit in the oven for a further 5 mins.

10)   Remove the tin from the oven, and place it on your counter top for 10 mins. After 10 mins upturn the tin on a wire rack and gently tap the back of the tin. Your Mango Blueberry Marble Cake will easily slide off the tin onto the wire rack. Allow it to cool completely.

11)   After the cake comes to room temperature, slice it up with a sharp knife. Serve with a scoop of ice cream or drizzle some warm mango preserve on top of the cake slice and enjoy.

Notes

1. To create a more intense flavour and colour I’ve added saffron and cocoa powder to both the cake batters. You can skip these two if you want. In that case add plain room temperature milk along with the wet ingredients and continue with the other steps.
2. You can bake this Mango Blueberry Marble Cake in any baking tray instead of a loaf tin.
3. You can add a pinch of cardamom powder to the mango batter to enhance the flavour more.
4. If you don’t have olive oil, you can use any neutral oil instead.
5. When alternating both the batters into the baking tray, be gentle and don’t try to even out the batters then and there. Let the batters settle one on top of the other in a natural pattern.
6. Also while making the zigzag pattern don’t go deep, cutting across the layers. Just make a pattern on top of the batter gently.
7. This  Mango Blueberry Marble Cake stays fresh for a couple of days at room temperature. By any chance if you have a few leftover slices then refrigerate and use within 4 or 5 days of baking.
8. Finally, if you are a fan of mango like me, then do try out my other mango based dessert – Mango Crater Bun.

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Ingredients

Brown Sugar – 4 tbsp

Unsalted butter – 1 tbsp

Salt – a pinch

Sweetened condensed milk – 200 g

Unsweetened cocoa powder – 3 tbsp

Chocolate chips/broken chocolate pieces – 1/2 cup

Walnuts (crushed coarsely) – 1/2 cup

Cashews (broken coarsely) – 1/2 cup

Marie/Lotus biscuits – 400 g

Yield
~16 square bars

Prep time
15 mins

Cook time
15 mins

Time to set
2 hrs

Method

1)   Crush the nuts and biscuits coarsely.

2)   Heat brown sugar (keep the heat low) in a thick bottomed pan. Keep stirring constantly to avoid charring. Let it melt and caramalise (check out my walnut cashew chikki recipe for tips to caramelise sugar).

3)   Once the sugar caramelises, add butter, salt and mix. Then add the condensed milk, cocoa powder and chocolate chips/pieces to this caramelised sugar and mix thoroughly.

4)   Grease and line a 20 cm square tray with baking/parchment paper and set aside.

5)   To the condensed milk-cocoa powder mixture add the crushed nuts and biscuits. Mix once so that the dry ingredients are properly coated with the wet ingredients and lump together.

6)   Remove the mixture from heat and transfer it to the greased/lined tray. Use a flat spatula to gently press down the mixture and even it out properly. Refrigerate this for a minimum of 2 hours. 

7)   Before serving, unmould the ‘no bake chocolate biscuit bars’ and cut it into squares. Serve chilled with a scoop of icecream.

Notes

1. You can use any nuts and any kind of chocolate from white to dark to suit your taste.
2. Be careful when adding butter to the caramelised sugar. It will splutter!

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I’ve added some roasted sesame seeds and crushed peanuts to this broccoli stir fry to add some crunch and enhance the protein value. So here’s the recipe for a perfectly low cal dish, loaded with nutrients and incredibly tasty too!

Ingredients

White sesame seeds – 1 tbsp

Peanuts – 2 tbsp

Broccoli – 1 medium sized

Cooking sesame oil – 2 tbsp

Green chillies/bird’s eye chilly (finely chopped) – 2 tsp

Ginger (finely chopped) – 3 tsp

Garlic (finely chopped) – 3 tsp

Onion (finely chopped) – 3 tbsp

Soy sauce – 1 tbsp

Rice vinegar – 1 tbsp

Tomato paste – 1 tbsp

Water – 1/2 cup

Corn flour – 1 tsp

Crushed pepper powder – 1 tsp

Crushed red chilly flakes – 1 tsp (optional)

Salt – 1/4?? tsp (or to taste)

Brown sugar – 1 tbsp

Green capsicum (finely chopped) – 3 tbsp

Spring onion (finely chopped) – 3 tbsp

Yield
Serves 3

Prep time
20 mins

Cook time
15 mins

Method

1)   Heat a frying pan and dry roast sesame seeds (on low heat) until they start to pop and turn golden. Set aside.

2)   In the same pan, dry roast peanuts (on low heat again) until crunchy and aromatic. Transfer to a plate and allow to cool. After they cool down, crush them coarsely and set aside.

3)   Trim broccoli into florets, blanch and set aside.

4)   In the same pan, heat oil, add green chillies, ginger and garlic. Saute for a minute. Add the chopped onions and fry on high heat until they turn translucent.  

5)   Add soy sauce, vinegar and tomato paste. Mix and reduce heat. In 1/2 cup water, take cornflour, crushed pepper, crushed red chilly flakes and mix. Add this cornflour mixture to the frying pan. Mix and let it cook for 2 mins in low heat. Add salt and brown sugar and mix. The cornflour mixture will thicken and come to a glossy, saucey consistency.

6)   Finally add green capsicum, spring onion and blanched broccoli. Mix and toss once so the sauce coats the broccoli florets fully. Switch off the heat. Add the roasted sesame seeds and crushed peanuts to the Broccoli Stir Fry and mix completely. Serve hot.  

Notes

1. Roast sesame seeds and peanuts in low heat. Patience is the key here. Take time to roast evenly so that the ingredients don’t burn and get charred.
2. See Cauliflower Bites recipe for broccoli blanching tips.

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To pack lots of strawberry flavour to the cake, I’ve included fresh strawberries in three different stages – small bite sized pieces, strawberry puree and strawberry sauce to top up. With a subtle taste of chocolate in every bite, this Eggless Strawberry Cake is filled with lots of fresh strawberries and loads of love! If you like this recipe, check out my strawberry filled vanilla cookies topped with melted strawberry jam!

Ingredients

Fresh strawberries – 10

Milk chocolate chips – 100 g

Brown sugar – 5 tsp

Strawberry essence – 1 tsp

All purpose flour – 140 g

Baking powder – 1 tsp

Bicarbonate of soda – 1/2 tsp

Salt – a pinch

Cocoa powder – 1 1/2 tbsp

Unsalted butter (melted) – 60 ml

Sweetened Condensed milk – 200 g

Fresh milk – 100 ml

STRAWBERRY SAUCE

Fresh strawberries – 10

Brown sugar – 5 tbsp

Lime juice – 1/2 tsp

Yield
8 pieces

Prep time
30 mins

Cook time
40 mins

Method

1)   Roughly chop 5 strawberries, add brown sugar and blend (in a mixer or using a hand blender) to a pulpy consistency. Add the essence, mix and set aside.

2)   Finely chop 5 strawberries and set aside to add to the batter later.

3)   Take all the strawberries for the sauce, chop them roughly and puree in a blender until there are no lumps. Strain this through a sieve to get rid of all the seeds and residue. Add the sugar to this smooth strawberry puree. Heat a heavy bottomed pan and add this sugar-strawberry mixture and start cooking. 

4)   Cook the sauce for nearly 8 to 10 mins on medium heat, stirring constantly. After around 10 mins the sauce will thicken slightly and look glossy. Add lime juice, mix once and switch off the heat. Remove the pan from the stove top and allow it to cool completely. (See note 2 for storage instructions of this sauce).

5)   Sieve flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda, salt and cocoa powder twice. Reserve 1 tbsp of this dry ingredient mixture. Take the finely chopped strawberries and milk chocolate chips in a bowl. Add this reserved dry mixture and mix well so that the strawberries and chocolate chips get coated with flour. Set the main dry mixture and the flour coated strawberries and chocolate chips aside (separately).

6)   Preheat oven at 180° for 10 mins.

7)   In a deep bowl take the melted butter and condensed milk. Blend both with a hand blender until smooth and creamy. Add the strawberry pulp you made in step 1 and blend again until combined well.

8)   Now slowly add the dry ingredient mixture to this wet mixture in two batches, mixing each time using cut and fold method. Add milk and mix gently until everything is combined and the cake batter is evenly smooth.

9)   Now add the flour coated strawberry and chocolate chips to the cake batter. Mix light handedly using cut and fold method to incorporate all the ingredients properly. 

10)   Transfer the batter to a greased/lined 20 cm x 20 cm baking tray. Gently tap the tray a few times to remove any air bubbles. Place the tray in the middle rack of your oven and bake at 180°C for 35 to 40 mins (mine took 40 mins).

11)   Pull out the tray from the oven and allow it to cool for 10 mins. Then carefully transfer the Strawberry Cake to a wire rack and allow it to cool completely. Once cooled, cut into desired shapes with a sharp knife. Coat the top of the cake slices with strawberry sauce and garnish with some fresh strawberry slices, chocolate stars/chips. Your delicious eggless strawberry cake is ready to serve.

12)   Serve the cake slices at room temperature to enjoy its soft and fluffy texture. Refrigerate the leftover slices and warm them up before serving.

Notes

1. I’ve used fresh strawberries to make this strawberry cake. To me, fresh berries pack maximum flavour and so I prefer to use them while in season. If you are making this cake when strawberries are not in season, then go for the frozen ones as an alternative.
2. Strawberry sauce can be made in larger quantities, stored in airtight bottles and refrigerated. The same method can be followed to make other types of berry sauces too when the fruits are in season. The lime juice we add at the end acts as preservative and helps the sauce stay fresh for nearly 4 to 5 months when refrigerated. Can be used as a topping in many other desserts or as jam substitute for your sandwiches and toasts too. 

Beginners’ tips

1. While mixing the dry and wet ingredients, always use cut and fold method and mix gently. The air that is incorporated while sieving the dry ingredients and the air incorporated in the wet ingredients while blending them together, helps to make the cake nice, soft and airy. Also, mix the batter in one single direction. Mixing back and forth will make your cake dense and hard as it removes more air.
2. It’s always a great idea to use flour to coat your chocolate chips and nuts before adding it to the batter because it prevents them from sinking to the bottom of the baking tray.
3. Allow the strawberry cake to cool down completely before slicing it up with a sharp knife. The chocolate chips we have added might come in the way while slicing the cake and make it crumble unevenly if you try to cut the slices before it cools down completely. So letting the cake cool completely and using a sharp knife helps to get even slices.

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These cookies are eggless and made with a combination of whole wheat flour and coconut flour. And what’s more? They’re pumpkin spiced and have fresh pumpkin! The pumpkin gives the cookies a rich smooth texture that makes them melt in your mouth.

Bake these gorgeous Spiced Pumpkin Cookies for your family and friends this fall season and you will keep finding new reasons to bake these cookies again and again!

Ingredients

Grated Pumpkin – 1 cup (tightly packed)

Grated ginger – 1 tbsp

Brown sugar – 3/4 cup

Vanilla essence – 1/2 tsp

Melted unsalted butter – 1/2 cup

Whole black pepper – 8 to 10 (crushed)

Nutmeg powder – 1/4 tsp

Cinnamon powder – 1/4 tsp

Cardamom powder – a pinch

Bicarbonate of soda – 1/4 tsp

Baking powder – 1/4 tsp

White chocolate chips – 1/2 cup + a few for topping

Whole wheat flour – 1 1/2 cups

Coconut flour – 2 tbsp

Salt – a pinch

Yield
20-24 medium sized cookies

Prep time
20 mins
30-40 mins to refrigerate dough

Cook time
12-13 mins for each batch,
depending on oven capacity

Method

1)   Line a flat baking tray with parchment paper.

2)   In a mixing bowl take grated ginger and pumpkin, brown sugar, melted butter and vanilla essence. Mix until well combined and the sugar melts completely.

3)   Sieve together wheat flour, coconut flour, bicarbonate of soda, baking powder, salt, nutmeg powder, cinnamon powder and cardamom powder. Twice. Add the crushed pepper to this flour mixture and mix.

4)   Fold in the wheat flour mixture to the pumpkin mixture and mix light handedly. Do not beat at this stage or the cookies will become hard. Add the chocolate chips and incorporate all the ingredients fully.

5)   Cover the cookie dough bowl with a cling wrap and refrigerate for 30-40 mins. 

6)   After this, preheat the oven to 180°C for 10 mins. In the meantime, shape the pumpkin cookies according to your wish. Make lemon sized balls from the dough, place it on the parchment paper, and flatten slightly with the back of a spoon. Leave at least one cookie space between each cookie. Bake at 175°C for 12-13 mins or until the edges of the cookies look set and done.

9)   Remove the tray from oven and set aside. Just press a few chocolate chips on the cookies while they are still warm. After 10 minutes, gently place the cookies on a wire rack for them to cool down completely. 

10)   Store your pumpkin cookies in an airtight container for up to 2 days at room temperature. Beyond that, refrigerate and use for up to a week. Heat up the cookies a bit before serving, (if refrigerated).  

Notes

1. In this recipe I have used whole wheat flour. But you can use any other flour according to your preference. The texture of the cookies will vary a bit but all of them taste perfect. 
2. Here I’ve used light brown sugar. Again, according to your choice you can use either white, brown, soft brown or dark brown sugar. I always prefer brown sugar to white because it has a richer flavour.
3. My daughter likes a lot of chocolate chips in her cookie, so I’ve added white chocolate chips in this recipe. Alternatively, you can use semi sweet/milk chocolate chips or any nuts of your choice.

Beginners’ tips

1. Pumpkin is a very watery vegetable and it is difficult to manage the excess moisture while making the dough. Whenever you use coconut flour in any baking recipe, it absorbs a lot of the extra moisture and helps to balance out the stickiness. So it’s quite useful in this recipe. It also adds a subtle aroma of coconut to your pumpkin cookies. If you don’t have coconut flour, blot the grated pumpkin with a paper towel before you start the process.
2. Refrigeration of the cookie dough is very important. It stops the dough sticking to your hand when shaping the cookies.
3. Allow the pumpkin cookies to cool down completely before storing/serving. They are still delicate and crumbly when warm, so be careful when handling them.

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The process of making appam is quite simple, but requires some preliminary preparation a day or two before. Although you can make it the same day, appams come out super soft and fluffy if the batter is left to soak (similar to the fermenting process) for one or two days. Appams can be either deep fried or made in a special “Appam Maker” (a special pan used to make sweet and savoury appams – resembles an egg poacher). Here I’ve given the recipe for the deep fried version.

I learnt to make soft appams from my mom a few years ago and I’m happy to share her recipe with some handy tips as well.

Ingredients

Raw Rice (uncooked) – 1 cup

Urad dhal – 1 tbsp

Fenugreek seeds – 1 tsp

Fresh Coconut (grated) – 5 tbsp

Fresh Coconut (chopped) – 3 tbsp (optional, see note 4 for alternatives)

Jaggery (coarsely powdered) – 1 cup

Salt – a pinch

Cardamom powder – 1/2 tsp

Ripe Banana (mashed) – 1/4 cup

Whole wheat flour – 2 tbsp

Ghee – 1 tbsp (optional)

Oil – for deep frying

Yield
~25 to 30 pieces

Prep time
3.5 hrs
+ 2 days resting time

Cook time
40 to 45 mins

Method

1)   Take rice, urad dhal and fenugreek seeds together in a bowl, wash and rinse thoroughly. Discard the water. Add fresh water and soak for about 3 hours.

2)   After 3 hours, drain the water. Grind the soaked rice, urad dhal, fenugreek seeds and the grated fresh coconut together in a mixer to a smooth batter. Do not add too much water, use only the minimum quantity required for the mixer to run. The consistency of the batter should be like thick porridge. Transfer this to a bowl and set aside.

3)   Take the jaggery in a small pan, add 1/4 cup of water to this and heat it. Stir continously until the jaggery melts fully. Strain this jaggery water through a fine strainer to filter the impurities, if any.

4)   Now take the jaggery water in a pan, add salt and start boiling it in medium heat, stirring occasionally. The jaggery water goes through different stages of syrup consistency until it caramalises. For appam, we boil the jaggery syrup to ‘soft ball’ consistency. Switch off the heat when you get there.

How to check syrup consistency:

Reduce the heat completely when you check the syrup consistency. Drop a bit of the boiling syrup into a small bowl of room temperature water. The syrup should not dissolve and you should be able to scoop it out, roll it between your fingers and get a soft gooey ball. This is the right consistency for the syrup. 

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5)   Add cardamom powder and ghee to the jaggery syrup and mix well. Now slowly add this syrup to your batter. Add wheat flour and mix well till there are no lumps.  You can use a hand blender if you have one.

6)   Set aside the batter until it comes to room temperature. Cover and refrigerate the batter for up to 36 to 48 hrs. 

7)   After this resting time, remove the batter from the refrigerator and let it come to room temperature (about half an hour or so). Add mashed ripe banana and coconut pieces to the batter and mix thoroughly. Check the consistency of the batter. If the batter is too thick and doesn’t flow smoothly then add a little water to bring it to a nice dropping consistency (check ‘Thavala Vadai’ recipe for dropping consistency video).

8)   Heat the oil for deep frying until medium hot. When it is medium hot, reduce the heat completely.

9)   With a small round ladle, take the appam batter, bring the ladle as close as possible to the surface of the oil and slowly drop the batter into the oil. Gently splash oil with a slotted spoon on top of the appam continuously. The batter will sit at the bottom of the oil for a few seconds then slowly start to come up and float (should take about 20s). When it reaches the surface of the oil, gently flip the appam.

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10)   Fry the appams until golden on both sides and remove from oil. Drain on a kitchen towel to remove excess oil. Serve warm.

Notes

1. Urad dhal, fenugreek seeds, fresh coconut and mashed ripe banana give softness to the appam. So I suggest not to skip any of these ingredients.
2. The ratio of jaggery to rice is perfect for me. Little less or more jaggery will also work fine for this recipe.
3. Ghee and cardamom powder give a very authentic Indian flavour to this traditional sweet. Nutmeg powder can also be used instead of cardamom powder.
4. You can use chopped nuts instead of chopped coconuts if you prefer.
5. It is not necessary to fry the appams one by one always. You can fry them one by one until half done on both sides, remove from oil and leave it in a colander. When you have 3 or 4 of this half done appams, gently drop them back into the oil and fry them (as a batch), until fully done and golden. This way you save some time.
6. Appam stays fresh for a couple of days at room temperature. Beyond that, refrigerate and heat it up a bit before serving.

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I learnt this recipe from my aunt, and sincerely thank her for sharing such an awesome recipe. I’ve included some small tips and tricks to make the perfect thavala vadais. 

Ingredients

Raw (uncooked) rice – 1 cup

Toor dhal – 1 cup

Chana dhal – 1 cup

Urad dhal – 1 cup

Yellow Moong dhal – 1/2 cup

Salt – 1 tsp (or to taste)

Dry red chillies – 5 (or to taste)

Green chillies – 2 (or to taste)

Asafoetida (hing) – 1 tsp

Ginger (finely chopped) – 2 tbsp

Curry leaves (finely chopped) – 2 tbsp

Fresh coconut (chopped into small pieces) – 1 cup

Cashews (chopped roughly) – 1/2 cup (optional)

Ghee – 1 tbsp (optional)

Oil – enough for deep frying

Yield
~50 pieces

Prep time
1 1/2 hrs – soaking
45 mins – grinding

Cook time
40 to 45 mins

Method

1)   Take rice, toor dhal and chana dhal together in a bowl, wash and rinse thoroughly. Discard the water. Add fresh water and soak for about 1 1/2 hours.

2)   In another bowl wash and soak the urad dhal, also for 1 1/2 hours.

3)   In yet another bowl wash and soak the moong dhal, also for 1 1/2 hours.

4)   While all your dhals and rice are soaking, prep all the other ingredients that need to be chopped.

5)   After the soaking time, drain water from moong dhal. Squeeze out the moong dhal fully and put it in a large bowl. Add ginger, curry leaves, chopped coconut, ghee and cashews to it.

6)   Grind the rice, toor dhal and chana dhal coarsely (add minimum water to run the mixer/grinder) with salt, dry red chillies, green chillies and asafoetida. Add this to the bowl in which you have kept moong dhal.

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7)   Now grind the urad dhal into very smooth and fluffy batter. Add very cold water, little by little to grind it. If possible, use ice-cold water. After it is ground into a smooth batter, whip it up nicely with a hand blender for nearly 3-4 mins. This helps incorporate a lot of air into the batter and makes it light and airy. The lighter your urad dhal batter, the crunchier and lighter your vadais will be! Test how light your batter is by dropping a bit into a bowl of water. Ideally, it should float on the surface.

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8)   Add the ground urad dhal batter to all the other ingredients in the large bowl. Mix thoroughly. Your thavala vadai batter should be of dropping consistency. If the batter is too thick, add some water to loosen it up. If the batter is too wet, then it’s hard to fix. You could add some rice flour to thicken it but it will alter the texture of your vadais.

10)   Dip a small rounded ladle in water and use the wet ladle to scoop up the batter. Drop the batter slowly and carefully into the oil. Continue the same process of wetting the ladle and taking the batter and dropping it into the hot oil one by one very cautiously (the oil will be hot, so take the ladle as close to the oil as possible to avoid splashing). Don’t overcrowd the oil by dropping too many thavala vadais in at the same time. There should be enough space for the vadais to swell a little while frying. Stir the vadais once a minute to enable even frying on all sides. 

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Notes

1. Keep the oil in medium heat constantly. If oil is too hot then the vadais quickly turn dark without getting cooked properly. If the oil is not hot enough then the vadais will not get the desired ball shape and fall flat, absorb a lot of oil and become soggy.
2. Chopped coconut and cashews add a nice sweet crunch to the vadai. Feel free to add a little more too. If you don’t have chopped coconut pieces, you can add fresh grated coconut. While it may not alter the taste, you will miss out on a layer of texture.
3. If you want to make this for a party, then you can do little bit of preliminary frying and finish it off just before your guests arrive. Fry the vadais until half done. Remove from the oil and let it drain in the colander. Just before your guests arrive, reheat the oil and complete frying the vadais until golden and crunchy. Double frying makes the vadais crunchier and keeps them that way for longer.
4. Adding a small amount of ghee to any vadai batter makes the vadais crispier.

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‘Pidi’ in Tamil basically refers to the quantity you can hold in one fist. In this recipe, the broken wheat along with the lentils is cooked 75% in a pan and then divided into smaller portions (one fistful per portion). Then it is shaped into oblong shaped balls and steam cooked. This is a very simple dish to make, tastes very nice on its own and needs no accompaniment. Still, you can go ahead and pair this traditional snack with a chutney, or sambar or pickle and enjoy.  

Ingredients

Broken wheat/Wheat rava – 1 cup

Chana dhal – 1/4 cup

Toor dhal – 1/4 cup

Fresh grated coconut – 1 cup

Curry leaves (finely chopped) – a few leaves

Coriander leaves (finely chopped) – 2 tbsp

Dry red chillies – 2 (or to taste)

Green chillies – 2 (or to taste)

Coconut oil – 2 tbsp

Mustard seeds – 1 tsp

Urad dhal – 1 tbsp

Asafoetida – 1 tsp

Salt – 1 tsp

Water – 4 cups

Yield
30-35 fist sized kozhukattais

Prep time
2 1/2 hours

Cook time
40 mins

Method

1)   Wash the dhals and soak together for 2 hours.

2)   After 2 hours, drain the water from the dhals, add red and green chillies and grind coarsely in a mixer/grinder. Add grated coconut to this and 1 cup water and mix. Set aside.

3)   In a wide pan/kadai heat coconut oil. Once it is heated a bit, add mustard seeds, let it splutter. Then add urad dhal and fry until it becomes golden. Now add asafoetida, finely chopped curry leaves and coriander leaves. Fry for 30 secs.

4)   Then add 3 cups of water (if using rice or millet, see note 7) and salt. Let it start boiling. Now reduce the heat completely, add the ground dhal mixture to this boiling water and mix continuously. After 2 mins, add the broken wheat. Mix and keep stirring until it starts to thicken and becomes one mass. It should take nearly 10 mins on low heat. The dhal and broken wheat will be 75% cooked by the time it thickens and comes together.

5)   Now remove the pan from heat and transfer the cooked mixture to a plate. Allow it to come to room temperature.

6)   When the broken wheat pidi kozhukattai mixture is cooled completely, grease your palm with little bit of coconut oil, take small fist sized portions and mould into oblong shaped balls.

7)   Arrange the broken wheat pidi kozhukattais in a steamer and steam for 6 to 7 mins in medium heat. After 7 mins, remove from heat and allow it to cool a bit. Serve warm with chutney of your choice/any kuzhambu/sambar/pickle/jaggery. It tastes great without any accompaniment too!

Notes

1. If you are planning to make this dish for breakfast, then you can make it until point 6 in the method and refrigerate the previous day itself. Whenever you decide to serve this broken wheat pidi kozhukattai, take it out from the refrigerator and directly steam and serve. Just steam couple of mins more when making like this.  
2. I’ve used fresh green and dry red chillies in this recipe. You can make with either one of the chillies also.
3. The dhals should be ground coarsely so it doesn’t clump together when boiling. Also, keep stirring the dhal mixture continuously after it is added to the boiling water to avoid lumps. Keep the heat in minimum always.
4. Adding fresh coconut is important and has three advantages – gives softness to the kozhukattais, adds mild sweetness and increases nutrition.
5. I like the taste and aroma of coconut oil in this dish. You can choose any cooking oil according to your preference.
6. I prefer to shape the broken wheat pidi kozhukattais into oblong shaped balls instead of round ones. This shape helps the kozhukattais cook evenly while steaming, cooks faster than round ones and lastly, you can arrange more number of kozhukattais in the steamer.
7. I’ve made this with broken wheat. Instead of broken wheat, the same pidi kozhukkattai can be made with broken rice or any millet variety (the same proportion will work fine). For people who look for gluten free dishes, using rice or millets in this recipe is a great option. If you are using rice or millet, reduce the water to cook them from 3 cups to 2 cups.

Beginners tips

1. If you don’t have a steamer, you can use your pressure cooker to steam the kozhukattais. If you don’t have a pressure cooker then you can use a normal pan with lid to steam this dish. Just take a slightly wide, flat bottomed pan. Add water about two knuckles deep. Keep a smaller bowl with water or a steaming ring in the water. Now arrange the kozhukattais in a normal plate or a slotted plate and keep it on top of the bowl or the steaming ring. Cover the pan with a tight lid. Heat the pan until medium hot. The steam which builds up inside the closed pan will help cook the kozhukattais perfectly. This should take around 6 to 7 mins.

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My association with this kerala style nendram chips dates back to my school days. Those days watching movie in a theatre was very rare and even when we went for a movie occasionally, my dad never allowed us to buy snacks or chips or anything from the small eatery just outside the theatre hall, due to hygiene reasons. Instead he used to buy these tasty nendram chips and a few other snacks from a shop near our house and bring it to the theatre. Watching a movie in the theatre was one thrilling experience (because of the rarity) and enjoying this nendram chips was another thing we all looked forward to. 

I’m happy to share this yummy Kerala Nendram Chips recipe, in fond memory of my childhood theatre experience.

Ingredients

Unripe Nendram Banana – 4

Coconut oil for frying – as required

Salt – 1 1/2 tsp (or to taste)

Turmeric powder – 1/2 tsp (optional)

Water – 60 to 70 ml

Yield
Serves 4

Special requirements
A good vegetable slicer

Prep time
15 mins

Cook time
30 mins

Method

1)   Wash and trim the ends of the nendram banana. Make slits on the raised edges, along the entire length of the banana. After the slit is made, the skin can be peeled off easily by hand. If you are not comfortable with this process, then peel off the skin either with a vegetable peeler or using a knife.

2)   In a small bowl take the water, add the entire amount of salt and turmeric powder (if you are using) and mix well until the salt dissolves completely. Set aside.

3)   In a heavy bottomed pan or kadai heat the coconut oil until medium hot. When the oil is heated, very carefully hold the vegetable slicer/chips cutter on top of the pan (a couple of inches above the pan) and start slicing the nendram banana directly into the oil. (See note 5 for tips) The slices should be approximately 1 mm thick – too thin and the chips will be brittle, too thick and the chips will be soggy.

4)   Fry the nendram chips until it is almost done and the bubbling is reduced reasonably (about 2 mins or less). Now add 2 tsp of salt-turmeric solution into the oil. Be careful, the oil will start to sputter when you add this solution into hot oil. If you are new to this technique, as soon as you add the salt-turmeric solution, cover the pan with a slotted plate or hold a lid slightly above the pan until the splattering stops.

5)   By the time the sputtering stops, the nendram chips will be crispy ready to take out.

6)   Remove the nendram chips from oil, drain it in a colander. Continue the same process of frying for all the remaining bananas. Let the chips cool down and come to room temperature. Store it in airtight container and enjoy it any time of the day – like I do     

Notes

1. To test if the oil is hot enough, gently drop just 1 slice of the banana into the oil. If it rises from the bottom of the pan to the surface in just about 4 to 5 seconds, then it means the oil is ready to fry.
2. I generally peel the skin of the nendram banana with my hand. One disadvantage in this method is, the fingers will stain and become black (unripe banana has the tendency to stain). It will take a couple of days for the stain to go from your hand. To avoid this, you can apply coconut/sesame oil in your hand while doing this. Just be extra careful while slicing the banana, your hands might be slippery due to the oil.
3. Adding turmeric is completely optional. It gives a bright yellow colour to the chips. Taste will not be affected if you don’t add turmeric. Also, the salt should dissolve completely in water. You can make the salt-turmeric solution couple of hours before, this way the salt will dissolve completely.
4. Slicing the nendram banana directly into the hot oil is the best way to avoid the slices sticking together in the oil. If the slices stick together in the oil, then it will not be fried properly and will not be crisp. Also, do not add too many slices in the oil and make it over crowded. This way too the slices will stick together in the oil and will not get fried properly.
5. Add the salt-turmeric solution only when the bubbling reduces a bit (meaning the chips are almost done). It will have the double frying effect. This way the salt and turmeric gets evenly distributed in the chips and there is no need to add salt after frying.
6. For each batch of chips you fry, you will add the salt-turmeric solution. If you’re making several batches, taste the chips after every batch to make sure that they’re not getting saltier. If you feel like the chips are getting salty, reduce the salt-turmeric solution for the next batch.
7. Kerala nendram chips tastes best when fried in coconut oil. But, you can also use any oil which is suited for deep frying (though I highly recommend to use coconut oil for the authentic taste of nendram chips).

Beginners’ tips

1. Always keep a bottle of water in the fridge when you decide to do deep frying. In case of  accidental splashing of hot oil or any kind of burn injury, immediately wash the affected part with cold water as a first aid measure.
2. Coconut oil is highly suited for deep frying (because of its high smoke point) and can safely be reused a couple more times for shallow frying or tempering. The oil we use to make this chips can be stored and reused for any south Indian dry vegetable curry and coconut based gravies. It adds great flavour to your coconut based dishes.
3. Keep the oil in medium heat constantly. If oil is too hot then the nendram chips will quickly turn dark without becoming crisp fully. If the oil is not hot enough then the chips absorb a lot of oil and become soggy.

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