Mix them all!

Hope all is well with you guys.. I'm finally back! Its been almost an year without food post on my blog.. I even considered giving up Food Blogging, but here I am giving this another shot :-)

One thing that my husband never forgets to get from India is the South Indian "Mixture". I wanted to try that at home, but didn't have the right gadgets with me. I still tried, and the result was fabulous! This is a tedious recipe, but do it with patience and you will get an amazing result. If you're like me (a bit impatient), you will learn it with time.

A mixture generally consists of Boondi, Karapusa, Peanuts, Cashews, Poha (Beaten Rice) all Deep Fried



Recipe:

For Karapusa

Besan - 1/2 cup
Rice Flour - 1/4 cup
Red Chilli Powder - 1 tsp (Reduce if not a spice freak)
Salt to Taste
Ghee - 1-2 tbsp
Cumin Seeds - 1 tsp

For Boondi

Besan - 1/2 cup
Rice Flour - 1/4 cup
Red Chilli Powder - 1 tsp (Reduce if not a spice freak)
Salt to Taste

Beaten Rice - 1/2 cup
Peanuts - 1/3 cup
Cashews - 1/4 cup
Curry leaves - 10 to 12
Red Chillies - 4 to 5
Red Chilli Powder & Salt to taste
Oil for deep frying

Procedure

* Mix all the ingredients for karapusa with water and make it into a smooth dough (similar to a chapathi dough, but softer). Put the dough into the Muruku mould and press in circular motions into medium hot oil. Drain onto a paper towel once it turns golden brown.

* I didn't have a Boondi Ladle with me, so I used an old grater that had small circular holes in it. It worked out perfect! Mix the ingredients under the boondi section into a batter of Dosa Consistency (start with a bit thicker). Deep fry in oil. Remove when it turns golden brown and drain on a paper towel.

* Deep fry cashews, peanuts, red chillies (broken in halves) separately and finally the beaten rice (poha). Careful with the Poha, they fry in seconds.

* Break the karapusa into 1/2 inch pieces and mix all the above along with Red Chilli Powder and Salt (if you need more spice). You could also add Dry Coconut pieces. Mix well and store in an airtight container. Serves well as an evening snack or to help you with boredom!



P.S: I'm still trying to find a good spot at my new home with good lighting for good photography. Until then please bear with these photos.

4 months later...

I have no clue why I'm writing this post, but I wanted to keep everyone who has the courtesy to check my blog updated. Its been a really really long time since I posted anything.

First I was busy with preparations to host my parents who were visiting the US. There were festivals, get-togethers, whole lot of traveling and all I needed was a break to breathe-in some fresh air! But lots of things happened!

Well. There's Good News and Bad News.

Good News - Ahem, Ahem! I'm a Married Lady now! I wanted to announce to the world, dance my way to the Mandap and get married screaming loud & clear.. but fatigue/laziness ruled over and I got no time to Update the Blog! Sorry :D

All the time before wedding was spent on online shopping and I landed just 4 days before the wedding! I got married in late Nov and these 2 months have been really really wonderful! Not only do I & my husband share half our first names, we also share the same budday! Now, how cool is that, huh?!

For the Bad News - We both stay in different cities, and like most of the career-oriented newly weds, we meet only during the weekends :( Pre-wedding I was under the assumption that life cannot any busier than this, but I was proved wrong.. shuttling between two extremely cold cities in this nasty winter is not easy! So, I am rarely finding time to cook on weekdays, and on weekends we are mostly eating out..

I might get back to blogging once I find some job in the other cold town, but I would like to park my Blog for a while until I get back..

P.S - I tried making Idlies last weekend, and they failed so miserably :-D .. I might use that as a weapon over my husband.. Buhahahaha!

I'm back - I guess?!

Its been over a month since I've posted anything on my blog and before bloggers feel I've gone extinct I decided to post about my "in-active existence". The last few weeks have been very memorable and extremely tiring at the same time. I'm the kind of person who recuperates during weekends, and as my parents were here ... weekends were the only time we could go on site-seeing. Although we managed to cover quite a few places on the East Coast, as always I'm never content with the duration of the vacation.

There were a lot of things I thought I would do, but couldn't. I planned to work from 7 AM to 3 PM so that I could spend more time with my parents in the evening, but ended up reaching home at 6.30 PM and then taking them out for a 3 hr shopping. I also planned to visit all the numerous blogs and check out new recipes while I'm at work, but my work got so hectic - I didn't have time to check my emails too!

My parents have left and I've started to miss them already :-( I haven't got back to cooking, as tiredness is still ruling me and I can only find enough stamina to cook rice and nothing more.. I've been living over pickles & Yogurt from the last week and probably will get to cooking soon.

I've received a bunch of awards from few bloggers and I really didn't have the time to post with the all the mess happening around me. Thanks Shri, Sanghi and Lavi - for passing me these awards and all the bloggers for dropping in their comments even when I wasn't around :-)

From Lavi -- YUM-YUM blog award, Yummy Blog Award, Thank You for Friendship award, Perfect Blend of Friendship, and Giant Bear Hug award.






From Shri -- A Fabulous Blog and Scrumptious Blog Award



From Sanghi - Gold Friends Award


Thanks gals! This really means a lot to me :-) These awards need to be passed, but as I am posting these 5 weeks after I've got them - I assume everyone has been blessed with these awards. In case you haven't - I'd be blessed if you can pick it up from my blog :-)

Although I am back to blogging, I am not currently in form (like the Indian Cricket Team). I'd be visiting your den to catch up on lots of things I've missed, and prep myself up for posting something related to food!

Revisiting side-dishes..

Nothing new, just re-posting some of the old dishes that are on their way to Viki's "Side Dish for Chapati Event"

Vegetable Sagu with Puri

Chole

Stuffed Capsicum

Shahi Paneer

Methi Aloo

Low Cal Malai Kofta

Kadai Paneer

Capsicum Masala

Baingan Bharta

Potato Curry

I will see if I can post a few more entries before the deadline.. but for now these babies are In.. Long weekend is almost here for the guys in US (and also in AP with the unfortunate demise of the CM). I am making the weekend even longer by bunking work tomorrow and holidaying with family at NYC & DC! Woohoo! :-D ... Have a great weekend you guys!