Bournvita Semolina Cake and New Domain

Many of you must have known by now that I have a new domain. Since I haven't officially announced this change, I thought I should, in this post.

So here it is - http://www.indianvegetariankitchen.com/

Even if you type my old blog address, you will still be redirected to my new site. I am assuming you are getting updates in your reader and email after the change of address. If you are not getting my recipes, please leave a comment.

I really liked the Chocolate Halwa recipe posted by Jagruti. I tried it right away and it turned out absolutely yummy. I did make some changes to the original recipe. Instead of cocoa, I used bournvita. It gave a nice dark, rich color to the cake.

Ingredients:
Sooji/Semolina/Rava - 1/2 cup
Bournvita/Sweetened Cocoa/Drinking Chocolate - 1/2 cup
Milk - 1 cup
Sugar - 1/4 cup
Ghee/Clarified Butter - 1/4 cup
Broken Nuts - 2 tsp (optional)

Method:
Heat 1 tbsp ghee in a pan. Roast cashews and/or almonds till golden brown. Set aside.
In the same pan, roast semolina on low flame to light golden brown color (8-10 minutes).
Boil milk in another vessel.
When semolina is roasted well, add hot milk and stir continuously for a couple of minutes.
Add sugar, bournvita or cocoa and stir till they dissolve completely.
Add rest of the ghee and nuts and mix well.
Transfer the mixture to a greased plate and let it cool.
Cut into desired shapes or have it as halwa.

Basic Green Renovations for an Energy Efficient Home

With all the buzz about going green, how can home owners determine if their home meets neighborhood standards for environmental responsibility? An energy efficient home consumes less power to perform usual household energy functions, like water heating and climate control. Going green not only helps the environment and makes a great conversation starter with the neighbors, but green homeowners also save money on monthly utility bills. In residential homes, energy efficiency generally refers to how the home insulation methods, heating and cooling system, water heating, and appliances work to effectively reduce household energy consumption.

Increase your home's energy efficiency to be an energy thrifty homeowner and save a buck by investigating the most essential green household solutions:

Heating and Cooling: If your heating or air conditioning system is more than 9 years old, use a high efficiency replacement to reduce energy consumption and lower your power bill. Even if the initial replacement is pricey, investing in environmentally responsible climate control solutions provides long term energy savings . Of course, solar heating systems, which collect energy from the sun with solar panels to power your home, are the most efficient, but if you're still using electric or oil, at least switch to gas fast.

Insulation: To achieve desired energy savings with a high efficiency heating and cooling system, use appropriate home insulation methods. Adequate insulation reduces energy needed to maintain the home temperature. Ensure that heated and cooled air doesn't escape through the attic and basement by properly insulating your home. Update old widows and doors with energy efficient replacements. Energy efficient windows and doors help regulate the home temperature by preventing drafts and air leaks.

Water heating system: Electric water heaters on a timer provide the most energy efficient water heating. For the greatest hot water efficiency with out switching to electric water heating, use an energy recovery system, such as Thermodrain or Power Pipe. Energy recovery systems use hot water collected from showers, dishwashers, and other appliances to heat cold water entering the water heater.

Electrical appliances: Purchase household appliances - especially big energy users, such as refrigerators, freezers, and washers and dryers - with an Energy Star rating.

Beet Rasam ~ SpotLightBlog#2 Recipe

Third recipe which I tried from Foodies Hope is Beet rasam. Rasam with beet sounded interesting. Rasam at my home is tomato with occasional variances of lemon or pepper rasam. So I wanted to try this beets rasam.  The sweetness from the beets compliments the rasam well.  The recipe for rasam powder is from Asha’s close friends’s mother. Do give it a try and I am sure you will never regret it.  I am glad to have found another way to cook beets.

Ingredients

Tur Dal - 1/4 cup

Beetroot - 1 nos

Lime sized tamarind

Salt

Hing



RASAM POWDER:

TO ROAST AND POWDER:

Coriander Seeds - 4 tblspn

Dry Red Chillies - 3 red chillies

Dry Coconut - 2 tblspn

Cumin Seeds - 1 tspn

Pepper Corns - 1/2 tblspn

Mustard Seeds - 1/2 tspn

Fenugreek Seeds - 1/4 tspn

Curry Leaves



Seasonings

Oil - 1 tblspn

Mustard Seeds - 1 tspn

Cumin Seeds - 1 tspn

Onion - 1 no

Curry Leaves

Dry Red Chilli - 1 broken into two


Method

Roast the ingredients for powder and powder it. You may not require the whole amount of powder. Use necessary and store the rest.

Pressure cook dal. Chop beetroot into fine cubes. Cook beetroot with 2 cups of water and salt in it. When itscooked, add dal, tamarind juice. Let it simmer for few minutes till the raw smell of the tamarind goes. Add 3 teaspoon of rasam powder and let it simmer. You can increase the amount rasam powder to suit your taste level. Store the remaining powder in an airtight container. This powder can be used with vegetable stir fry also. Season with the ingredients listed above and pour onto the rasam. The picture doesn't do justice to the dish. I was in a hurry so could manage only this much with the picture.