Oats n Moong Sprouts Dosa

"'When you wake up in the morning, Pooh,' said Piglet at last, 'what's the first thing you say to yourself?'
'What's for breakfast?' said Pooh. 'What do you say, Piglet?' 
'I say, I wonder what's going to happen exciting today?' said Piglet.
Pooh nodded thoughtfully. 'It's the same thing,' he said."   
                                                        A. A. Milne,'The House at Pooh Corner'

Breakfast is the most important meal of the day, a healthy and nourishing first meal kick-starts our metabolism, giving the much required energy. I have never been able to understand how can anyone not eat in the morning. For me, my breakfast is sacred, even if its only eggs and bread.

Ideally, what I like is to be able to fix my breakfast quickly and then eat it leisurely  I don’t like breakfast recipes that require too much prep time or take too long to cook. It should be a simple wholesome meal that tastes good.  So when I came across this recipe of a dosa batter using the basic rice and dal combination, along with oats and sprouted moong, I thought it was Godsent.

All you have to do in the morning you want to make it, is, to grind together  sprouts, oats, green chilies and ginger and add to the fermented batter. And roll off crispy golden dosa.

It is one of the easiest ways to incorporate two very healthy ingredients, sprouts and oats, in your family's diet. Hubby dear and my little one have never had a clue that I play around with the batter and happily eat these with coconut chutney. 

Moong sprout and Oats Dosa

2 C                Parboiled rice (sela)

¾ C               Urad dal/ split white lentils

1 ¼ C            Whole Green gram sprouts (sabut moong sprouts) (125 gms)

1+1/3 C         Oats

2 tsp             Ginger, chopped

1 tsp             Green chillies, chopped

1 tbsp           Olive oil

Salt              To taste

1. Wash the dal and rice well. Soak for 3-4 hours.

2. Post soaking, grind to a smooth paste using water to get a pouring consistency.

3. Leave the ground dal- rice batter overnight to ferment.

4. Next morning, grind together the sprouts, oats, ginger and green chillies to a fine paste.

5. Add the sprouts-oats paste to the fermented dosa batter.

6. Add enough water to get a flowing consistency.

7. Add salt.

8. On a non stick griddle, pour a ladle full of the batter and spread it with the back of the ladle in circular motion to spread out the batter.

9. Increase the heat and sprinkle the sides of the dosa with a few drops of olive oil and cook till golden brown.

10. Serve hot with sambhar and coconut chutney.

Note:  Its always easier to spread the batter if the griddle is not too hot. To bring down the temperature of the griddle after making a dosa, sprinkle some water on the griddle before you spread the batter for the next one.

Gur Rotis/ Indian flatbread with jaggery

“The act of putting into your mouth what the earth has grown is perhaps your most direct interaction with the earth.” ~ Frances Moore Lappe

Looking back at my growing up years, I have memories associating people & places with food. When I think of my maternal grandmother, the first food that comes to my mind is sweet jaggery rotis or as she would call them ‘rote’. I remember her bent over the kitchen counter, praying under her breath, diligently working on making the best mithi rotis in this whole world. Her explanation for praying while cooking- your thoughts travel to the food and further to the nourishment it provides.  As children you find everything that grown- ups do amusing, but, many years later, I couldn't agree more.

She would knead the dough with jaggery water, add a generous amount of ghee (clarified butter), fennel seeds, sesame seeds and knead the whole thing into a smooth dough. Then came the cutest part, after rolling out the rotis n sprinkling the tops with poppy seeds, she would take off her ring, wash it well, dry it and then make these circular marks on the rotis. As a child I always thought this was her way of ‘branding’ what she made. But realized much later that it was done to make sure that they cook through. 

While the rotis are being cooked , your entire house is smelling of gur. Its heavenly ! Cooking  jaggery gives such an intoxicatingly sweet aroma, that I am sure if you stick your tongue out and stand for long enough you will be able to taste the sweetness as well.

My son is mad about these rotis and loves to snack on them and I am a happy mom.  Wholewheat flour, gur, ghee, a lot of different seeds…. It makes a great replacement for packaged biscuits, cookies & other stuff that has a shelf life so long, that I shudder to even think of all the preservatives they are laced with.

Sweet Jaggery Rotis

300 gms           Wholewheat flour
220 gms           Jaggery
50-65 gms        Ghee or clarified butter
1.5 tsp             Sesame seeds
1 tsp                Flax seeds
1 tsp                Fennel seeds
1 tsp                Poppy seeds
1/3 C               Water
1- 2 Tbsp          Ghee, to cook the rotis


1. In a pan add water and grated jaggery. Mix well till it has dissolved completely. Strain and let it cool.

2. In another bowl or dish add the flour, the jaggery water and all other ingredients.

3. Knead the dough, using extra water, if required.

4. Grease your rolling pin and the surface. Roll out thick rotis. If the rotis are rolled out thinly they get very dry and tend to harden up after being cooked.

5. Before putting them on the griddle prick them with a fork or a knife. It helps to cook them through.

6. Cook them on medium heat a griddle. Apply ghee on both sides of the roti,and cook on medium high flame, till they are cooked through.

NOTE: While cooking, handle them with care or they might break. Though they firm up once cooled.

Once cooled store the in an airtight container.

Chocolate & Beetroot cake

“Food is symbolic of love when words are inadequate.”~ Alan D. Wolfel

Come February and the world around you suddenly starts turning red. You pick up the newspaper, open any magazine or even when you turn on the radio, during feb everything - everywhere seems to be talking only of ‘Undying love’. Hey, n did I mention the hearts, that suddenly seem to take over your life, from the wrapping paper, to the chocolates, to the lovely heart shaped cookies and cakes, I could really go on endlessly. 

Till a few years back I used to be really excited about it myself, but now ,for me, Valentine’s is about being grateful for all the ‘love’ in my life. Grateful for being a part of a loving family. Grateful for being surrounded by people who truly care. Thankful for all the warmth in my life which has made me, a more considerate, loving and more importantly a more forgiving and accepting person.

So, when I asked my little one, if he wanted me to do something special for him for Valentine’s, his reply was hilarious. He wanted me to bake a chocolate cake and make some besan ladoos for him. But really, what a combination! 

I thought a simple chocolate cake would be no fun and no harm adding a little red to it…… seriously, I couldn't be left out of the V day frenzy. 

So, here’s wishing everyone a year full of love, hope and lots of laughter……..Happy Valentines Day.

Chocolate Beetroot Cake

3                                     Eggs

300 gms                           Sugar

240 ml                             Vegetable oil

300 gms                           Cooked beetroot

85 gms                             Dark chocolate, melted on a double boiler or microwaved

200 gms                            All purpose Flour

30 gms                              Cocoa powder

1 1/2 tsp                           Baking soda

1/4 tsp                              Salt

1 tsp                                 Vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 175° c


1. Wash, peel and chop the beet root. Pressure cook or cover and boil in a pan, with enough water to cover it, till it’s cooked. (I pressure cooked it for 4-5 whistles)

Once cooked, take out the beetroot; make sure not to include any of the residual liquid. Weigh the required quantity and puree in a blender.Reserve the juice of the beet.

2. In a mixing bowl put in the sugar, oil and the eggs and whisk together.


3. Add in the melted dark chocolate.


4. Add in the pureed beetroot. Mix gently.


5. Sift together flour, Baking soda, coco powder and salt. Add to the egg mixture.


6. Gently mix using a wooden spoon or a rubber spatula.

7. Pour in a lined tin and bake for around 30-35 mins or till a skewer inserted in comes out clean.

8. Cool the cake on a wire rack completely.

The residual beetroot juice was too pretty a color to waste. So I took the juice, which was roughly around 1/3 C, added a few tablespoons full of icing sugar to it, whisked it really well and poured it over the cooled cake. 

Leave the cake undisturbed for a while to let it absorb the syrup, before you cut and serve it. Soaking of the cake with the beetroot juice adds to the already beautiful color and texture of the cake, making it extra moist.

Fish Curry in Mustard Sauce

Cooking is like love. It should be entered into with abandon or not at all. -Harriet van Horne

The only non vegetarian food I am really confident about cooking is chicken. Whereas for other non veg fare, I have just started. So, when we were invited by this wonderfully hospitable Oriya family for lunch, I was super excited. I didn't know much about Oriya cuisine except that its big on fresh water fish n mustard and they cook a lot of meats with vegetables.


And I wasn't disappointed with the lavish spread which was called a ‘humble lunch’. There were chicken kebabs, this amazing mutton curry cooked with potatoes, cauliflower and potato sabji, an outstanding n I really mean an outstanding fish curry in mustard sauce , all this coupled with some mouth watering rasam to wash it all down. It was such a sumptuous meal that I really had a tough time deciding what all to eat. But having said that, the undisputed queen of the lunch was the fish curry.  Trust me, if I had my way I would have put a tiara on the serving dish!

One spoon of that gorgeous golden yellow curry and it was ‘love at first bite’.  All throughout the lunch, while everyone was talking, I’m quite embarrassed to admit,all I was doing was fantasizing recreating it in my own kitchen.  I know its not very polite to ask for a recipe the moment the dishes are cleared away, especially since I had met them for the first time, but I did just that. Aunty M was such a sweet natured lady and such a gracious host that she gave me the recipe that very moment . 

It was recreated in my kitchen two days hence, with impressive results.Though Iam not too sure if the quantities are what she told me, at times I can be really forgetful. But then, everyone loved it, even my picky little eater liked it ,so I guess it must be right.  For those adventurous enough to try out a new recipe, here we go….

Fish Curry – Oriya style

400 gms                          Fish - Rohu ( Its a fresh water fish)

2 tsp                              Mustard oil

1 tbsp + 1 tsp                  Mustard seeds

7-8                                 Cloves of garlic, chopped

1                                    Medium sized tomato, chopped

1                                    Medium sized onion, sliced

10-12                              Curry leaves

5-6                                 Dry red chillies

1 tsp                               Turmeric powder/ Haldi

1-2                                 Green chillies

½ tsp                              Tamrind extract (I ground a small piece of tamrind with the mustard paste)               

Salt, to taste

Coriander leaves to garnish

1. Wash the fish.  Apply salt and haldi and keep aside for 10-15 mins.

2. Using 1 tsp oil, shallow fry the fish in a non stick pan, till golden brown on both sides.

3. Grind together 1 tbsp mustard seeds, green chillies , half the tomato and garlic to a fine paste. ( I added a small piece of tamrind to be ground with this paste)

4. In another pan add the remaining 1 tsp oil, put in 1 tsp mustard seeds, curry leaves, sliced onions, turmeric powder, red chilly powder and saute till the onions are pink and translucent.

5. Add in the remaining tomato and cook till its pulpy. 

6. Add the mustard paste and cook for 5-10 mins.

7. Add in water, around 3/4 c.

8. Finally drop in the fish pieces and let it boil and come together for 5-10 mins more.

9. Garnish with coriander leaves.

Serve hot with boiled rice.

Goan Prawn Curry

"Nothing would be more tiresome than eating and drinking if God had not made them a pleasure as well as a necessity". -Voltaire

Everyone has at least one favorite dish, though most of us have multiple favorites. On days when the sun isn't shining bright enough, a favorite dish can bring in the much required cheer. For me what makes the clouds part and the sun peep out on a gloomy n not so perfect day, is a bowl of steaming hot Prawn curry.

This recipe was given to me by a dear friend, Ammu. It tastes absolutely divine, is surprisingly easy to fix and uses minimum ingredients. In fact,  it’s so perfect that for the longest time I was just happy with her making it for us. It’s been a family favorite for the longest time now and I had never risked making it because it was always just a phone call away. Don’t we all need friends like that in our life? But, last  December, she went visiting her folks in Goa for Christmas and then her vacation continued well after the new years. Me n hubby were missing the curry so much, that, finally, I decided to try making it myself. I took the recipe from her for the ‘nth’ time and tried it. And surprise surprise……it turned out really good.

It’s a regular fare at the house now and each time the results are spectacular.  The best part….. not a drop of oil ! With the richness of  coconut and fresh coriander leaves…….it’s a must must must try recipe.  The drumstick in the recipe can also be replaced with radish  or turnips or raw mango pieces.

Goan style Prawns curry with drumstick

250 gms                                 Prawns              

½  a coconut                          Fresh Coconut - grated                                              

½ tsp                                    Turmeric powder                                                       

1 tsp                                     Red chilly powder

2 tsp                                     Dhaniya/ Dry Coriander powder              

1                                          Chopped red onion (medium sized)                       

1                                          Tomato, chopped (medium sized)

½ c                                      Water to grind

4-5 pieces                             Dried kokum

1-2                                       Green chillies, slit

1                                          Drumstick, peeled and cut into equal sized pieces

Salt, to taste

Coriander leaves to garnish

1. Wash and devein the prawns.  Apply little salt on them and keep aside.

2. Grind together the coconut, ½ an onion, coriander powder, turmeric powder and red chilly powder to a very fine paste using ½ a cup water.   

3. In a pan add the prawns, the ground masala paste, the remaining half of the onion, the tomato , slit green chillies and dried kokum.

4. Adjust the salt and water. (I added around a cup of water to the curry paste).

5. Let the curry come to a boil and then lower the flame.

6. Cook till the prawns  & drumsticks are done.

7. Garnish with chopped coriander leaves.

Serve hot with boiled rice.