Golu pics from Mumbai

Our Aunt, Lalitha  at Mumbai, has sent in her golu pics along with snaps of  few prasadoms for my blog. She is a great cook  herself. She to enjoys cooking variety of recipes. Aunty is involved in a Bhajan group and is the active co-ordinator. If only she had some more time for herself, I am sure she would have started a food blog. She is very much interested in my blog and keeps telling that she will click and send few recipes for mine. Her busy schedule doesn't make it happen. And even Uncle and their son have promised me some recipes for my blog.  So enjoy the pictures for now.

Paal Payasam and Vadai for Saraswathy Poojai

Day ~9 Saraswathy Pooja

We keep the books on 8th day night for pooja. Though pooja for the books are done on 9th day morning. It is customary to make paal payasam and Vadai for nivedhyam. As kids, we used to look forward to this day, since this was the only day, when we are asked not to study. When our books are kept for pooja, we never used to read even newspaper or any thing on that regard.

Paal Payasam

Instead of doing the traditional way of making, I have opted the easier route, which results in equally good payasam. So why slog extra time in the kitchen. Let me tell you, this method works good for small quanitities. Let me give the recipe first

Ingredients

Broken raw matta/brown rice - 1/4 cup

Milk - 1 litre

Sugar -1 1/4 cup (Can reduce to 1 cup if you want don't want it to be too sweet)

Butter - A teaspoon (optional)

Wash the rice and add all the ingredients in a cooker. Make sure the ingredients come only to 1/4 of the cooker capacity. Later, on cooking, the milk will rise and it will start coming out of the steam vent. This is the reason I said the method suits only to small quanitities. I used my 5 litres cooker. Still during the last few minutes, milk came out through the vent on the top. After first whistle, set the flame to the lowest level. Let it cook for 20 minutes. Switch off the gas and leave it for another 30 minutes. Open the cooker to find creamy, pinkish pal payasam. Add a dab of butter if desired. I don't usually add cardamom powder since I like to retain the creamy milk flavor.

Isn't it easy to cook this way? And doesn't it look like the famous Ambalapuzha Palpayasam. As I have mentioned in my earlier post, husband doesn't eat this payasam. So its the only occassion that I make this payasam.

Vadai

I have posted the recipe earlier.

Navarathri Day 7 & 8 - Rice coconut Payasam, Cherupayar Sundal & Moong Dal Payasam and Kabuli Channa Sundal

Day 7

Rice Coconut Payasam



Ingredients
Rice - 3 tblspn

Coconut - 1/2 portion

Milk - 1 cup

Cardamom powder - 1 tspn

Ghee - 2 tspn

Cashewnuts - 10 nos

Wash and soak rice in enough water for half an hour. Grate the coconut. Grind the soaked rice and grated coconut together into a coarse paste. Take two cups of water in a wide vessel. Mix in the ground coarse paste to the water. Boil over low fire, enabling rice to get cooked well. Keep stirring to avoid lumps. Rice turns lumpy quickly on cooking. When rice is cooked well, add sugar. Stir well. When sugar is fully dissolved, add the milk. Bring to a boil and let it simmer for few minutes. Stir in the cardamom powder and roasted cashewnuts and remove from fire.

I followed the recipe from Meenakshi Ammal's. The recipe said 3/4 cups of rice. I used the said amount and the payasam turn into a pudding consistency. Then I adjusted by adding milk. So in the recipe I gave above, I have reduced the amount of rice.

Cherupayar/Whole moong Sundal - Sweet.

The procedure is same as the vella payar (black eyed beans) sundal. With whole moong, no soaking is required. I just dry roast and pressure cook. It cooks mushy and is perfect for the sundal.

Day 8

Moong Dal Payasam

Moong dal - 3/4 cup

Jaggery - 1 cup

Milk - 2 cups

Roasted cashewnuts - 10 nos

Elaichi powder - 1/2 tspn

Dry roast moong dal over low fire for few minutes. Pressure cook dal and it should be cooked well. Melt jaggery in 1/2 cup of water in a thick bottomed vessel. When the syrup starts bubbling, stir in the cooked and mashed dal. Let it simmer for few minutes so that the dal soaks in the jaggery flavor. Stir in boiled milk and boil for few minutes. Don't let it simmer since it might curdle. Usually, with jaggery, coconut milk is used. Add elaichi powder and garnish with roasted cashewnuts.

Kabuli Channa Sundal

The procedure is same as the kadala sundal given earlier

And with another one post, I will finish the Navarathri series.  I wanted to post these as and when it was made. But could not. After Navarathri, the days went in a flash and by the time I finish with these, its time for Diwali treats.