WISHING YOU ALL HAPPY PONGAL 2017 ! GINGER CHUTNEY/PACHADI

" WISHING YOU ALL HAPPY PONGAL "

Chakkara Pongal/ Sweet Pongal, Rich creamy Paal(milk) Pongal with hint of salt is accompanied with Pongal Pulusu/ Kuzhumbu made with country vegetables is always regular and traditional menu on Pongal day.  This time I also made Ginger chutney/pachadi which is a spicy one and a great accompaniment for paal Pongal.  Since both the Pongal are rich and creamy, including more ginger aids in digestion as well.  The pairing recipe for paal pongal which I am sharing today is my husband's maternal grandmother way of making it on Pongal day.  She is such a wonderful person and a great cook as well.  You can also have this chutney for south Indian Delicacies like Idli, Dosa, ven Pongal etc.

Recipes for

Paal pongal

Pongal Pulusu/ Kuzhambu

Chakkar pongal 

Pongal Pulusu/Kuzhambu

GINGER CHUTNEY

Ingredients :

Coconut - 1/2 cup

Ginger - 1 1/2 inch piece

Roasted Gram dhal - 1 1/2 tbsp

Red chillies - 4 to 5

Tamarind pulp - 3/4 tbsp

Turmeric - 1/8 tsp

Salt as needed

For Tadka

Mustard - 1/4 tsp

Oil - 1/4 tsp

Curry leaves - few

Method :

1. Grind all the above ingredients to smooth paste with little water.

2. Heat the oil, add mustard seeds and curry leaves and add to chutney.

3. Enjoy with Pongal or any other South Indian Delicacies.

Note :

This chutney is little bit on spicier side, you can also reduce the chillies according to your spice level.

Some more pictures from today.....

Sweet/Chakkara Pongal 

Read more...

GRITS WITH MIXED BERRY COMPOTE !

This is my first post for the year 2017.  I did not make any New Year resolutions, except eating healthy which has been my key goal every year.  As usual I try to keep fit by doing walking and exercising very regularly, also keep my blog busy with more posts and enjoy every moment as it comes.  My blog posts going forward are going to be based on the recipe requests which I get from my followers/friends based on my food pictures posted on my FB page, Instagram and other social media groups.  I will be prioritizing my posts based on the recipe requests.

If you are my follower of my social media page, please browse my albums and let me know which recipe you want to see in the blog and also share your New Year Resolution in the comment section or in my FB page.  I would love to see those.

We had our first snow for the season on Friday, it is good to have snow once in a while.  I was expecting snow for Christmas but Santa gave us a warm Christmas.  It is a beautiful thing to see the flurries falling and the fresh snow getting filled everywhere, I really enjoy this.  After all the snow on Friday and Saturday was a real cold day which we enjoyed with hot cocoa.

All Saturdays for us are very busy; taking my little one to classes, shopping for the week etc., so our Saturday breakfasts are simple yet healthy ones.  This week I made grits with berry compote and rye egg toast with Avocadoes..  In-fact I did not plan to take the picture for the blog, as usual I was taking the picture in my phone.  It was a sudden thought to take my camera out in spite of my busy schedule.  We love Grits both savory and sweet, will share the savory grits when I make it next time.  Since I had lots of berries, made Grits with Berry compote.  It tastes very good with whole lot of berry goodness... The compote is so easy to make and you can alter the sweetness and spices the way you like.  Since I wanted to make healthy I did not use lots of sugar, so adding sugar depends on how sweet you want to have.  

GRITS WITH MIXED BERRY COMPOTE 

Serves 3 to 4 

Ingredients :

Instant Grits - 1 cup
Milk - 1 cup (You can also use Almond milk, Soy milk for vegan option etc)
Water - 3 cup 
Salt - 1 pinch
Butter - 1 tbsp

Ingredients for Berry compote: 

Mixed berries - 1 1/2 cup (I used Blackberry, Raspberry, Blueberry)
Brown sugar - 1 1/2 tbsp 
Lemon juice - 1/2 tbsp
Vanilla extract - 1 tsp

For Topping :

Topping is all optional, choose whichever you like.

I used Pepitas (pumpkin seeds), Chia seeds, Hemp, cocoa nibs
You can always drizzle Maple syrup if you think sweetness in Berry compote is less for you. This again gives unique touch to the Grits bowl.

Method for Berry Compote :

1. Macerate the berries with sugar and keep it aside for 15 to 20 minutes.
2. Then cook the berries till they become little mushy and switch off the heat adding little lemon juice and Vanilla extract. You can serve the compote with oats, grits etc.


Method :

1. Bring the milk and water to boil, stir in the grits and salt.
2. Reduce the heat to low, cook for 15 to 20 minutes stirring occasionally.  Remove from heat and serve immediately.
3. I served with berry compote and toppings listed above. 

Enjoy Healthy Breakfast !

My phone shots on Snowy day ! 

Snowy Backyard ! 

Read more...