Sooji upma/Nonta Suji

Semolina or sooji upma is a  common breakfast item that I usually make during weekend when we get bored of eating roti sabji and bread omlete . This is a very easy preparation and I made it a healthy one too by adding vegetables like carrot and capsicum.

Ingredients:

Sooji/Semolina	2 cup
Carrot (chopped finely)	1/2 cup
Capsicum (chippes finely)	1/2 cup
Ginger (grated)	1 tbsp
Green chillis (chopped)	2pc
Mustard seeds	1 tsp
Cumin seeds	1tsp
Bay leaves	2
Roasted peanut	2 tbsp
Turmeric powder	1 tsp
Salt as per taste
Sugar	1 tsp
Ghee
Chopped coriander for garnishing

Method:

1. In a pan, add little ghee and roast sooji  in medium flame for about 5 minutes. Keep it aside.
   
2. In a pan heat 1 tbp of ghee and add mustard seeds, cumin seeds and bay leaves. When mustard splutters, add grated ginger and green chili. Fry for a few seconds and add chopped vegetables (carrot and capsicum) and fry for 5 minutes.
3. Add turmeric powder, red chili powder and roasted peanut, salt and sugar and stir well.
   
4. Now add roasted sooji and mix it well. Pur 4 cups of water (double the amount of sooji added)to that. Stir continuously in low flame for 5 minutes.
   
5. Remove it  add some ghee adn garnish with chopped coriander.

      Serve hot as a wonderful breakfast item.

Sheera / Kesari bath - My 100th Post

Yes friends, you read it right, this is my 100th post! It's took me almost 3 years long journey to reach this number, which I think is too long. But inspite of a big break for a whole year of 2010  finally I achieved this milestone. Last year after I almost quit blogging, lot of remarkable changes happened in this blogging world. After resuming my blog I found myself far behind in this race and then I had to put lot of extra efforts to catch up with all. Moreover its all your continuous support my dear friends that inspired me with your wonderful and motivational comments. I truly appreciate my friends cooperation that made me stand here. Now 100 posts later, I still take lots of fun and enthusiasm in cooking for my blog, capturing those moments and writing posts expressing my thought in front of you. I even got lot of friends through my blog; who are very close to me  now. I will keep on blogging and experiments on my kitchen will continue to be posted. I want to celebrate this moment with a very sweet post with "kesari bath", which I named as "Kuchh meetha ho jaye".

Kesari bath is a very popular dessert that is included in all types of South Indian meal you order in almost all the restaurants in Bangalore. It is popular in northern India also as Sheera and Sooji halwa but that actually is the simpler form using little ghee and wihout using kesar or any other color. When I had it for the first time here I was simply amazed by finding that simple sooji halwa can be made delectable by adding ghee and saffron. The recipe is known to most of  us and so my post is for those who always take pain to go to restaurant to specially have this dessert . They can prepare it easily and enjoy having it at home.

Ingredients:

Semolina (Rawa/sooji)   200 gms Milk 1 cup Ghee 3 tbsp Bayleaves 2 Cardamom powder 1 tsp Raisins 10 gms Cashewnuts 10 gms Sugar 1 cup Saffron 2 pinch soaked in 3 tbsp. of warm milk (Or you can use orange food color)

Method:

1. Take a large nonstick pan and add ghee.Add bay leaves and then add sooji/Rawa and fry them 6 to 8 minutes till it turns yellowish white and we get a nice aroma of roasted sooji.
   
   
2. Add 1 cup of warm milk and 1 and 1/2 cup of boiling water. Now add sugar. Stir continously in reduced flame for about 5 minutes so that sooji absorbe water and If required add some more water so as to get a smooth consistency. add sfron milk or food color. Stir well.
   
   
3. Switch off the  flame a and add Cardamom powder  and dry fruits (cashew and raisins). Stirr well.

Now add 1tbsp of ghee and  cover it with a lid.

Your Kesari bath is now ready to serve. Enjoy!!