Puli Avil and An appeal to vote for my recipe

I am so happy that my entry - Cowpeas leaves stir fry for Sangeeth's Eat Health Protien Rich contest, is shortlisted among the top 15. The final winner is decided by polls. Please do vote for my recipe, its first among the list. Go here to vote.
Thank You.



Now coming to the recipe I intended to post. Its a simple recipe, which can be prepared in a jiffy. Its quite filling too. Its commonly referred to as puli avil in my home, due to its tangy taste and to differentiate the jaggery version which is called Vella avil. For the tangy taste, either lemon juice or tamarind extract can be used. Both the versions of avil usually features in the bommakolu bakshanam menu during navarathri.

You will need

Avil/Poha/Beaten rice (thick variety) - 2 cups

Turmeric - a pinch

Salt

Grated coconut - 2 tblspn

Lemon - 1


Seasoning

Oil- 2 tspn

Mustard seeds - 1 tspn

Chana dal - 1 tblspn

Red chilly - 2

Green chilly - 4

Ginger - a small wedge

few curry leaves

Choose avil of thick variety, preferably rose matta avil. If it is thin, there are chances that it will crumble easily when soaked. Wash avil in water and soak in 2 cups of water for 10 minutes. Squeeze the avil to drain out the water completely. Keep it aside.

Heat 2 teaspoons of oil in a kadai. Add mustard seeds. When it splutters, add chana dal, red chilly broken into two, chopped green chillies & ginger and curry leaves. When chana dal turns slightly brown, add turmeric and salt. Tip off the drained avil and mix well. Cook for 3 minutes, till the flavors are well absorbed by the avil. Stir in the grated coconut and remove from fire. Add lemon juice when it is warm. Serve with a cup of coffee/tea.

This makes an ideal evening tiffin after school/office.

If tamarind is used in place of lemon, 1 tablespoon of thick extract can be used and added after seasoning. When the raw smell of tamarind goes, add the avil and follow the same steps as above.

I am sending this to EC who is the AFAM host for this month.

Puli avil has a lovely yellow color and this is off to EC again, for her WYF: Colour in Food event.

Green Remodeling Checklist

In my web-roaming today I came across Kitchen & Bath Design News' new green blog Kitchen & Bath Sustainable. There I found this handy checklist to help consumers decide how much commitment they want to make to sustainability in their planned kitchen remodel.

1. Are you willing to increase your upfront investment to include green aspects to your project, recognizing that this investment will offer long-term benefits in terms of energy efficiency, improved air quality, etc.?

__Yes
__No

2. If so, what is the highest percentage you are willing to build into our agreed-upon budget for environmentally sound materials and practices?

a. 1-5%
b. 5-10%
c. 10%+

Which of the following are most important to you for your project? (1 = most important; 10 = least important)

__Recycling components of the former kitchen or bath
__Using recycled/repurposed materials from the former kitchen or bath
__Using recycled/repurposed materials obtained elsewhere
__Using locally produced materials whenever/wherever possible
__Specifying low-VOC or no-VOC emitting products
__Using products that are certified green
__Using natural heat/light whenever/wherever possible
__Using products that promote water conservation
__Selecting energy efficient appliances
__Promoting overall energy-efficiency

I would add these:

__Choosing strategies which cost no more but increase energy efficiency and sustainability
__Choosing strategies which cost more but increase energy efficiency and sustainability


Such a checklist provides the designer and contractor executing the project with some concrete direction on how to specify and estimate costs and what areas are of prime concern to their clients.

Everybody is all for green remodeling and sustainability, especially when current and/or future costs can be reduced in the process.

ie. In our city it costs more to rent a dumpster than to call recyclers to come in and haul your recyclable building materials away. The only way to find this out is to do the research and get the costs yourself.

On the other hand, when costs increase as a result of sustainability choices, sometimes consumers balk at the idea of opening their wallets.

Peggy

Home Depot Recycling CFLs

I am not, nor have I ever been, a big fan of Home Depot.
However, I have to hand it to them on this one.
They are recycling compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFLs), free of charge, at all stores.
Just take your unbroken CFLs to the Returns Desk and Home Depot will safely recycle them.

Peggy