Ashoka Halwa /Moong Dal Halwa

 I was watching a travel show in a Malayalam channel. The hostess takes the viewers through a culinary journey. In one episode, the recipe was Ashoka halwa and the cooking episode is shot at a normal house and cooked by the lady of that house. That aunty mentioned it was famous in Thiruvaiyar/Tanjore area. And its also called as Thiruvaiyar Halwa similar to the halwa of Tirunelveli. Ashoka halwa is made using moong dal and its lot simpler to make. Watching the episode, I was tempted to make it immediately and made a mental note of the ingredients and measurements. I have made it long time back and the recipe was missing in my book. The aunty who made it was mostly eyeballing the measurements. Considering her age, she must be quite experienced in making it and she doesn't need cups and spoons as we swear by. The hostess tried to get across the measurements partially in weight and cups.

This is how I went about doing it.

Moon dal - 1/2 cup

Sugar - 1 1/2 cups

Maida - 1/4 cup

Wheat flour -1/4 cup

Ghee- 1/2 cup

Caradamom powder - 1 tspn

Red food color - a pinch

Cashew nuts - 10 nos


Method

Dry roast the moong dal till light brown. I usually roast the dal before storing them. Wash and pressure cook in 1 1/2 cups of water for 2 whistles. Mash the cooked dal well. There will not be excess water in the cooked dal.

Heat a kadai with a tablespoon of ghee. Roast cashewnuts to golden brown. Drain them and roast both maida and wheat flour separately for few minutes. Keep them aside. In the same kadai, mix cooked and mashed dal and sugar. Heat the mixture. When it starts bubbling, slowly stir in both the flours and a pinch of red color. Add ghee at intervals. When the whole mixture comes together and starts leaving the sides, remove from fire. Add roasted cashewnuts and cardamom and give a good stir. 

 

This halwa is not very sweet and with comparitively less amount of ghee used, its not dripping with ghee kind.

 

 

 

 

This Tanjore special is joining the WYF: Speciality food  hosted by EC

 

 

Small Home Improvements Can Produce Big Energy Savings

Green initiatives for new home construction or renovations are great for the environment, but aren’t always financially feasible for many Americans. Thankfully, there are tons of inexpensive solutions to help reduce your energy dependence, increase your home’s energy efficiency, and save yourself some money along the way. Here are some extremely quick and easy things that you can do RIGHT NOW to start saving energy and money.

• Start from the Outside In: Inspect your home for drafts or air leaks around windows and doors. While replacing or adding insulation is always a good idea, a more cost effective quick fix is to weather-strip or caulk around windows and doors. Weather-stripping costs around $10 for almost two dozen feet.

• Dial Down, Dial Up: Turning down your thermostat just a few degrees in the winter not only uses less energy, but can also save 1-3% on your utility bill. If your home has air conditioning, the reverse is true for summer months. That’s a potential annual savings of nearly 10%!

• Snuggle Up: There are people who actually prefer to sleep in cold rooms, but for the rest of us it’s worth it to invest in some heavy blankets or a down comforter (you can find a decent queen size one for around $100) and lower the temperature in your home at night.

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• Be a Fan of Fans: Ceiling, box or desktop fans, used instead of central air or a room AC, can provide relief from the heat without breaking the bank. You can get a good fan for about $5 at most hardware or discount stores.

• Go Acoustic and Unplug: Few people realize that even when not turned on or in use, many devices continue to draw power as long as they’re connected to an electrical outlet. Unplug anything that’s not being used—toaster, coffee maker, cell phone chargers—and use power strips or a surge protector for things like computers and home theater equipment.

• Give Old Bulbs the Boot: Switching to energy efficient compact florescent bulbs—you know, those weird looking spiral things—can help you save money and reduce energy consumption. The average florescent bulb lasts longer than a traditional, doesn’t get as hot, and burns exactly the same as a standard bulb. A single compact bulb can save about $35 over its lifetime; changing every bulb in your house could save you thousands. Plus, they just look a lot cooler.

• Get Out of Hot Water: Running your water heater can eat up more than 20% of your total utility bill, but for every 10 degrees you turn down the heat you can save 3-5%. 130 degrees is optimal for cost and energy efficiency—hot enough to clean and kill bacteria, but cool enough to prevent scalding.

More Energy Efficiency Information from Horizon Services:

• Seasonal Energy Saving Tips
• Frugal Fridge Maintenance Can Save You Energy...and Cold Hard Cash
• Cutting Edge Solutions for Energy Efficiency

Professional Kitchen Design for DIY Homeowners

I was just cruising the Web and stopped by Susan Serra's blog, The Kitchen Designer to see what she was up to...

The post I link to is about the questions our clients don't ask that can get everyone into trouble when it comes to executing our designs (Where the rubber meets the road). Like every post on Susan's site, the concept was well presented and discussed, with a number of comments.

One reader, Victoria, asks in Comments: "Are there kitchen designers that can work with DIY homeowners?"

I'm going to answer Victoria here. Hopefully she will find my post.

During past "good times" many kitchen design pros might have brushed off a DIY project if they worked for a full-service (installing) kitchen design showroom. However, nowadays I think even the fanciest showrooms would be happy to get the work.

There has never been any reason to assume that a non-installing kitchen design showroom's designers would treat DIYers any differently than any other client.

Everybody else would be happy for the work too. These are difficult times for the kitchen and bath industry; and every job, no matter how small, gets our complete and undivided attention.;-P

Peggy