Rava (Sooji) Kheer

It’s another yummy healthy kheer which is very good option as there are minimal ingredients just rava, milk and sugar plus some dry fruits, ghee.This makes a wonderful dessert and this takes very less time, just make in advance and you can also keep in fridge to serve chilled, or before serving just warm up also add some milk since this kheer gets thicken quickly.Don't roast semolina/rava until it gets brown, but roast only until aroma starts to come.

Its simple understanding, cooking time of sooji is very less as they are fine particles and therefore it even absorbs sugar quickly without any delay. It was truly a wonderful experience for me to feel the joy of sharing. The taste of this sooji kheer was absolutely delicious. The smell of the cashews roasted in ghee and the chironji added toward the end gives a nice aroma making it different from other kheer.

Prep time	Cooking time	Serves
5 mins	15 mins	4 persons

Cuisine: Indian

Recipe Category:Kheer varieties

Ingredients Ghee -1 tbsp. Cashews -10 halved Raisins -1 tbsp. Sooji – 3 tbsp. Milk – ½ litre Sugar -1/2 cup. Chironji -1 tbsp. Cardamom powder -1/4 tsp

Method

1. Heat ghee in a pan and roast cashews in it on a low flame for almost a

minute.

2. Add sooji to this and roast sooji also on a low flame for one or two minutes.

3. Now add milk and stir it one or two times. You can also add some kesar/saffron soaked in 2-3 tbsp. of warm milk to kheer to have rich and nice looking dessert, or reduce sugar and add 1-2 tbsp. of condensed milk to have creamy kheer or payasam

4. Add sugar to the sooji milk mixture and again stir just one or two times. Add elaichi powder, give a mix and finally put the chironji seeds over it.

5. Pour little ghee over the mix. (optional)  

 Notes

You can make this kheer even without cashews or cardamom powder.

Dry roast chironji seeds, cool it little, take it in a plate, gather and crush lightly with your hands so that the skin comes out.

Cabbage Rice

This is one other dish that I had made earlier, cabbage rice. It is a very flavorful and tasty one pot meal. Here is one that we enjoyed a lot. I was bored of simple stir fry, dal using cabbage. Vegetables like cabbage and cauliflower have earned a bad reputation because of the smell it emits while it is cooking, but unusually I have always liked both! My grandmother used to add either cumin or ginger while cooking these vegetables to reduce the pungency to some extent. So if you are one among the cabbage haters, then you have got to try this rice recipe and I bet you'll develop a soft corner for the poor vegetable. 

Prep  time	Cook time	Serves
15 mins	10 mins	3 persons

Recipe type: Lunch Box recipes

Cuisine:  Indian cuisine

Ingredients Cabbage – 2 1/2 cups Cooked rice -1 cup Onions -1 no Green chili -1 no Garlic chopped -3 cloves Curry leaves Turmeric powder -1/2 tsp Salt -1/2 tsp Coriander leaves –few sprigs Seasoning Oil -1 bsp Mustard seeds -1/2 tsp Jeera seeds -1/2 tsp Channa dal -1tsp Urad dal -1tsp Curry leaves –few sprigs Hing -pinch

Method
1. Cook rice such that each grain is separate. Keep it aside till it is cooled. Heat Ghee/oil and add mustard seeds. When they start popping, add all the other ingredients followed by the onions.

2. Add the shredded cabbage, turmeric powder and salt. Sprinkle some water and close the lid. The cabbage will cook in about 5-7 minutes. Add some more water if the curry starts sticking to the pan.Add salt, 1/4 cup water (only if required, most cabbages leave lots of water while cooking, so be careful). 

3. Cover and cook till cabbage is done. Now add the rice little by little to the cooked cabbage curry and mix it with the back of a spatula (my grandmother's tip, so that the rice will not break or become mushy). I have a big wooden fork, so I use that when I make mixed rice like this. Switch off the heat. Add cooked rice and mix well.

Serving suggestions
Yogurt pachadi
Sweet potato fry
Spicy Chips

Notes

·         The ratio of rice to water will be 1:2 and ¼, but the same one whistle will be perfect.

·         Add cashews fried in little ghee to make it richer.

Green Beans Thoran -Kerala Cuisine

Thoran or is a typical Kerala recipe which is made of vegetables and coconut. It is a beautiful comforting dish with coconut, garlic and green chilly. Thoran is a coconut based vegetable Keralite dish and can be also made with carrots, cabbage, green tomatoes or spinach. . It is a common accompaniment for rice which is very nourishing and tasty. 

 

Beans are steam cooked and mixed with grated coconut with very little spices. This popular and common dish, Kerala Beans stir fry is perfect with some steamed rice and phulka (flat bread). Amazingly light, and loaded with nutrition, this dish is rich in iron and antioxidants.

Prep  time	Cooking time	Serves
15 mins	10 mins	3 persons

Recipe type: Poriyal  varieties

Cuisine:  Kerala cuisine

Ingredients Chopped beans -2 cups Onions -1 no Garlic chopped -3 cloves Chopped coconut -1/4 cup Cumin seeds -1/2 tsp Turmeric powder -1/2 tsp Red chili powder -1/4 tsp Seasonings Coconut Oil – 2 -3 tbsp. Mustard seeds -1/2 tsp Curry leaves –few sprigs Red chilles -2-3 no’s

Method

1. Chop the green beans into small pieces and keep it aside.Grind the coconut along with jeera and green chilly into a coarse mixture (pulse it for about 5 seconds.Cook the beans in the microwave for the required time and keep aside.

2. Heat coconut oil in a pan and splutter mustard seeds, curry leaves add the red chilly and fry it.Add the chopped onion, garlic and a little salt ; sauté it until soft.Add the green beans and sauté it for a minute. Stir it in a frequent interval to avoid sticking in the pan. If it is too dry sprinkle some water.

3. Once the green beans is done (don’t overcook the it) add the coconut mixture in the center and close it about 1 minute. 

Then add salt and mix everything very well.Enjoy the thoran with your family.

Serving suggestions

Plain rice

Drumstick sambar

Bhindi fry

Mushroom curry

Notes

Never add water while making any thoran. The vegetables contain water which is more than enough for cooking.

More Coconut and coconut oil will give the dish more taste. I have used a little less coconut considering my family.

Curry leaves can be added at last for the aroma of the thoran.