Saturday, May 31, 2008

An Honour! A Snack, A Friend's 'Easy' Recipe & A Break.......

I'm THRILLED!!! Happiness and Sunshine Everywhere!!! So MANY Good ... nay... GREAT things have happened!!
First... Delhibelle has very generously passed on an award to me (making me DROOOOOOL over her dessert recipe.. how I wish I could have a portion of that....) !! Thank U so much Dear!

Secondly... my Ma-in-law sent me some stuff I (badly) wanted and shamelessly asked for!!! Why shamelessly? M was TOTALLY against 'expanding the kitchen to the size of a 5 star hotel kitchen' and it was an additional load for my parents to cart all the way from India from January to mid May... SO!
My first act,within 30 mins of my Parents arrival was to make them snap open their bags and show me 'my loot' which my in-laws sent me and the other stuff Mom- Dad got for me! I had asked for a Medu Wada Maker ( Anjali brand). I had seen this waaaay back in Apna Bazar Co-operative stores in Bombay. I wanted this, only because I am an occasional victim to deep fried wadas and have tried in vain to make round-wadas-with-a-hole-in-them (otherwise they are not medu wadas) and convinced myself that 'this' was the only way I would be successful. So a couple of evenings ago, I finally got around to making medu wadas!
I basically used my wada recipe with the addition of 1/2 cup Yellow Moong Daal soaked with the urid daal to make the batter. And yes, I added the Soy chunks as well! To the batter I also added 1/2 inch grated ginger, 2 finely minced green chilies, 2 crushed peppercorns and 2 finely chopped curry leaves.
Heat oil, not upto the smoking point, in a wok / kadhai. To test how hot the oil is, drop a very small amount of batter in the oil and if the batter rises to the top, you are set. Add the batter to the medu wada maker and press the knob on the top, directly into the kadhai. Deep fry the wadas to a nice golden brown. The first 4 wadas... not so round.. but DEFINITELY Medu wadas!! and VERY crisp!!!
Aaahhhh!! MUCH better!!! The trick was to make the batter thickish (but with a blender that one gets here, that is not possible)
Dunk the wadas in sambar and serve hot with chutney!!
Some Chutneys that go very well with medu wada smabar :
Coconut chutney- Sailu's blog
Nandita's - Coconut Chutney
And my all time fav!!
We now come to making a hearty dinner! Last night , I wanted to make something 'nice' for my parents.. and something not from my blog, I have been re-trying many dishes once again , now that I have more than 1 to cook for! and a while ago my friend Ashwini, who likes to cook, has 2 adorable boys (the younger is a few months old), but is a bit hard pressed for time had e-mailed me her super easy recipe for Daal Makhani. But I got round to trying that just about now! Thank You, Ashwini! this is an easy recipe and yummy too!
For the Daal Makhani:
1 cup Whole Black Urid daal
2-3 tbsp Rajma / Kidney beans
1 small Onion chopped
1 Tomato chopped
1 tsp each Ginger and Garlic paste
1/2 tsp Red Chili powder
1 Green Chili
Salt to Taste
1/2 tsp Garam masala
Butter for tempering
Cream / Butter

Soak the Urid daal and Rajma in water for a minimum of 4 hrs. ( overnight is also fine). Pressure cook these with salt and red chilli powder (depends on your pressure cooker, in my new Pressure cooker it took only 3 whistles and on sim for 4 mins.)
Heat oil / butter in a wok / kadhai. Add onions and saute till brown and tender. Add the ginger-garlic paste. Saute till it does not smell raw. Add the tomatoes and cook until mushy and oil starts leaving the sides.
At this point add the daal and mix well. Add Garam Masala ( I dislike the 'too strong' smell of garam masala so I use it a bit sparingly)stir and give it one good boil. Check for salt, add if required.
Add fresh cream and serve hot with rice or roti. I substituted butter for cream.

I served the Daal Makhani with this absolutely marvellous and fragrant Ghee Rice !!And FINALLY... announcing a small break! I will take a small hiatus from blogging... to WELCOME a new member into my family!


I am due in a week now and so it's time to take a break, enjoy these last few days with M ( who is biting his nails to bits) and my parents and though at a great distance, my in-laws who are very anxious for me! I've had a grand time these 9 months and once I got over my 'cry-baby' days I loved every minute! Thank God I had no nausea or any aversion to any type of smell or food! Sadly, what did affect me was high sugar levels in my last trimester ( and hence the protein diet posts!) and I was on a severe diet and could only fantasize about food, not eat anything I wanted (fret...fret...fume..)! But all is well and it has helped me and the baby is safe (touchwood) !

Before I go however, I want to express my heartfelt gratitude to Nupur who when I disclosed to about my pregnancy, sent me a parcel of chikki and this awesome candy! I felt pampered when I ate these.. trust me, those first trimester days when hormones play havoc with the system, and no Mommy and Daddy to hold your hand and say 'there, there' and a confused, bewildered and 'lost' husband looking at you with sad eyes , just because the volcano of emotions erupted (yet again)... something like this is a life line and even if it is splashed with a few salty tears, it tastes like heaven!!
And Cynthia .. do I even need to say anything about this warm hearted person? She immediately sent me her recipe for cook up rice (with vegetarian options) which would help me in my protein intake, sadly, I could not try it out.. my Doctor banned rice TOTALLY! But, it is bookmarked and I will try it out the first opportunity I get!!

So see you all soon.... I will not be able to post for a while and may not be able to peep into your blogs.. but I will catch up as and when I can. Have a lovely weekend!!

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42 comments:

Shilpa said...

Once again congratulations sweety. Enjoy the beautiful days. I am so happy. I can't believe you are cooking so much even during these days. Hats off to u.
Wish you a happy delivery.

Anonymous said...

First of all congrulations. I love vada. It looks good.
/The trick was to make the batter thickish (but with a blender that one gets here, that is not possible)/ For this I don't use blender but I use coffee grinder. Coffee grinder works very well. You don't need to add any water.Since we are only 2 people in our family this method really works for me.

Ramya

Hetal said...

Congrats dear...thats a gr8 news!!Medus wadas look delicious..

Srivalli said...

What a wonderful news!..congrats and congrats...you say just a week away..I know how hectic it must be..wow wow..great!...meddu vada looks yummy not to say abt the dal makhani..enjoy your break...do let us know abt the baby with pictures if possible!..

Take good rest now...:)

Rajitha said...

Mansi...congratulations :)..yep! after this week i am sure you will be sleep deprived for a while....and the medhu vada maker is now on my list to buy...i make bondas of the batter..as i am scared to make the hole and plop it in the oil.

Cham said...

I never seen medu vada maker! Perhaps i am from TN and i never though of it. It looks cute, and tasty ur vada sambar! Congrats on ur award.

ServesYouRight said...

Medu wada idea is a genius one :-)
In the meantime - put your feet up and prepare for the little one! Heres wishing you the best of health, love and prosperity!

smita

Unknown said...

Vada looks so crispy.
Congrats and Best wishes for the days ahead. Take care.

Mishmash ! said...

Hey..congrats and best wishes :)
Take good care
Shn

Kalai said...

Wow, Manasi! First off, congrats on the award!! I'm really glad to hear that you had a (mostly) great pregnancy. You must be so excited about the new baby! Take your time to recover and treasure every moment. :)

sra said...

Good wishes to you and the baby!

vimmi said...

Hi,

Congrats on ur pregnancy. Hlding ur bundle of joy in ur arms will be the best feeling in te whole world. Our best wishes are with u.

FH said...

I didn't even know you are pregnant!! Congratulations and good luck. I am sure everything will be fine and you will be a mom soon!:)
Take care , hugs.

sunita said...

Manasi,
That's such great news
...congrats dear...I'm sure you'll have a safe delivery...will look forward to news of the li'l one :-)

bee said...

wish you the best, and a welcome to your bundle of joy in advance.

bee

Anonymous said...

Congratulations to you and your family, Manasi.

Mamatha

Anonymous said...

Good luck with the delivery and please let us know when the baby arrives :)
It was a pleasure sharing some sweets with you....I hope you can get back to a normal diet soon and enjoy sweets in moderation again.

Rachel said...

Good luck with your delivery..take care....

Arundathi said...

congratulations! and all the very best! enjoy every single one of those sleepless nights ahead for, believe me, you'll look back on them with nostalgia! :)

thanks for the easy dal makhani recipe - always knew there had to be an easier way to make this!

Shubha Ravikoti said...

Take care and good luck dear...Hope u give us the good news pretty soon.....:)
Congratulations once again...!

Finla said...

Congragulations.
Have fun welcoming the new cute family member.
Happy motherhood

Purnima said...

Mansi..loved the entire post..well firstly congrats on being in the family way, secondly ALL THE BEST..may GOD bless u with a healthy bonnie baby!! The wadas look good..my all time fave in udipi..alws go for dunked-in-sambhar ones! hv great time!

delhibelle said...

great news manasi..congratulations !!

all the best for a safe and easy delivery.. waiting to hear about the little angel:)

Sig said...

Congrats Manasi, that is great news!!! Just one more week huh? Wish you all the best, glad your parents are there to help you out...

Red Chillies said...

Congratulations Mansi and wishing you good luck with the baby! Hope you have a wonderful time with your little one.
Medu vada look delicious!

Sangeeth said...

good luck .....and congrats....hope to c the pics of u r kid soon....take care

TheCooker said...

Congrats!
Just a week away....wow. Wish you a smooth delivery.
Take care.

EC said...

Hearty congratulations...tempting dishes...Have a safe delivery

zobars said...

Hope you have a quick and easy delivery and congratulations to you and your husband and your parents too.

Viji said...

Wishing you good luck Manasi. Take care. Wishing you a smooth delivery. The vada maker is lovely and the vadas too. Viji

Meera said...

Congratulations! With best wishes, Meera

Manju said...

congrats once again! and take care...n those medu vada's look delicious!

Anonymous said...

Congrats Mansi.have a safe delivery


Medu vada looks really yummy,i am going to buy medu vada maker.Dal makhani looks yummy too..Never tried making it from scratch..Will try this one..


Will miss ur blogs..

U take care

amna said...

medu wada maker? thats so cute :D the shape is different from handmade ones, of course :)

Raaga said...

congrats... and we're waiting for the news :-)

Friendly Stranger said...

Congratulation!
Nice recipes and even the pics look delicious!
Happy blogging!

vandana rajesh said...

congrats on ur award..the vadas look gr8, didn't know that something like a medu vada maker exists. All the best...have fun...we r all waiting for the good news. Take care.

Vibhavari said...

boy!!! am i drooling seeing the medu vada.... god... am feeling helpless.. not having ingredients to make meduvada right now...
Hope i survive my craving...

Congrats.. wishing you a very easy and safe delivery and my best wishes for lil bundle of happiness...Take care!!!

:)

Linda said...

OMG, Manasi! What a wonderful surprise and thrill!! Wishing you all the very best and hope to see you back when you are able. Congratulations!! :)

Kumi Pandya said...

Your vadas look great! I recently bought a medu vada maker - for some reason it isn't working for me (I tried several times with different thickness of the batter).
Can you post a video recording? This would help me tremendously.
Thanks.

Kumi Pandya said...

Hi Mansi,
The vadas look great - yummy...
How is your baby doing? Must be keeping you busy. I need to ask you for a big favor. I recently bought a medu vada maker - tried using it several times but it doesn't work. Is it possible for you to post a video recording of the vada making process? This would be of tremedous help..Thanks

Manasi said...

Hi Kumi, The wada maker is pretty easy to use, keep the batter fairly thick and to tell u the truth, it took me a bit of time to get the right shape, it is tricky when u are handling it over hot oil. Try this: pour in the batter ( do not fill too much, just half way) then press the knob and release the batter quickly. dont worry, it just takes a bit of getting used to. I may not be able to get a video recording what with the baby and my in laws visiting , i am quite tied up. try the tip i mentioned and check you-tube for videos.

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