Summer retreat

This low calorie delicious salad is preferred most in summer. It fills the stomach. It is useful for less intake of further food and so useful for weight reduction.

Ingredients:

• Cucumber : 200gms
• Onion : 50gms
• Tomato : 200gms
• Lemon juice : 1 tbsp
• Honey : 1 tbsp
• Salt : to taste
  
  
  

Procedure:

• Slice cucumber, onion and tomato finely.
• Arrange on a plate.
• Add honey and lemon juice.
• Sprinkle salt to taste.
• Garnish with coriander leaves or pudina leaves.
• Serve for four.

Chilli Paratha (Milakai Parotta, Mirchi paratha)

Ordinary Paratha is also called parota, parotha or purotta in many places.
Chilli Paratha is much delicious and can be served as breakfast, brunch, lunch or even as dinner.

Ingredients:

Parathas: 5 to 8
Edible oil: for frying
Onion: 1
Tomatoes: 2
Capsicum / Shimla mirchi / kudai milakai : 1
Cumin Seeds: 1 tsp
Curry leaves: 5
Green Chilies: 3
Red Chili Powder: 1 tbsp
Turmeric powder: 1/4 tsp
Ginger - garlic paste: 1 tbsp
Garam masala: 1 tsp
Lemon juice: 1 tsp
Salt: as required

Procedure:

• Cut capsicum crosswise into pieces, green chilies lengthwise and finely chop tomatoes and onion.
• Heat edible oil in a pan.
• Add cumin seeds.
• When they splutter, add onion.
• When onion turns into golden brown add green chilies and ginger - garlic paste.
• Sauté for about three minutes.
• Add Tomatoes, curry leaves and salt.
• Continue cooking in medium flame for about five minutes.
• Add garam masala, red chili powder and turmeric powder.
• After about three minutes, add capsicum, stir and fry a little.
• Cut or tear parathas into pieces and mix them with the fried mixture.
• Cook till the masalas and parathas are mixed together.
• Remove from heat.
• Squeeze lime juice on top of it and garnish with onions and coriander leaves.
• Serve hot with yogurt / curd / raitha or vegetable curry.

Badam Halwa: A delicious sweet / dessert

• Soak 1 cup of almonds in a bowl of boiling water.
• Remove and discard skin.
• Grind to make a fine paste.
• Boil 2 1/2 cups sugar with 1 cup of water to get syrup.
• Add the paste of almond to the boiling syrup and stir well.
• Dissolve 1 pinch of saffron in a little water and add to the syrup.
• Add 1 cup of ghee and stir.
• Wait for the contents to become like paste and add one more cup of ghee gradually.
• Maintain medium flame. Remove from flame when we get a batter like result.
• This tasty Badam Halwa, can be served hot or cold.

Coconut Burfi: A tasty dessert (Tengai Burfi)

• Take 1 tbsp of ghee in a saucepan.
• Heat it under low flame.
• Add 2 cups each of grated coconut and sugar.
• Stir constantly to get the contents thick.
• Grease a plate with ghee.
• Transfer the preparation to the plate and level it.
• Wait for cooling a little.
• Cut into required shapes like square, rectangle, diamond, etc.
• Decorate each piece with almond or cashew nut.

Kolukattai / Kozhukkattai, a special sweet for Ganesh Chaturti (Vinayakar Chaturthi / Pillaiyar Chaturthi)

• Roast lightly 2 cups of rice flour in a skillet.
• Allow it to cool by spreading on a tray.
• Add 1 cup of jaggery which is shredded, ¼ cup of finely sliced coconut and 1 tsp of salt.
• Mix together with required quantity of water so as to be well-kneaded and firm.
• Make lemon sized balls.
• By gripping each ball within palm, knuckle shaped kolukkattais can be made easily.
• Arrange the kolukattais in idli cooker so that they don't contact each other.
• Steam cook until light brown in color.
• This is similar to modhakam or modhak.
• Serve hot or cold.

Green gram Payasam (Paasipparuppu Payasam / Split Moong dal Payasam) : A dessert

• Take 1 cup of water in a pressure cooker.
• Add ½ cup of slightly fried split green gram.
• Boil under low flame.
• While boiling, add ½ cup each of grated jaggery and grated coconut.
• Fry qty 6 each cashew nuts and raisins in 2 table spoons of ghee.
• Add this also to the boiling content along with some cardamom powder and 1 cup of milk.
• Boil further for 5 minutes.
  
  
  Glossary
  
  English --------------------- Tamil -------------- Hindi
  Green gram (split) - Paasipparuppu / Payattham paruppu - Mung dal
  Jaggery ------------------ Vellam -------- Gud
  Coconut ----------------- Tengai --------- Nariyal
  Cashew nut -------------- Mundhiri paruppu ------ Kaju
• Raisin ------------------ Ular Drakshai ----- Kismis
  Cardamom ------------------- Elakkai --------- Elaichi
  Milk -------------------- Pal / Paal --------- Dhoodh
  Ghee -------------------- Nei ------------ Desi Ghee

Pal Kozhukkattai / Paal Kolukkattai / Sweet Milk- Rice flour Ball Dessert

• Mix 1 cup of rice flour and required warm water so as to make thick dough.
• From this, make small balls of uniform size.
• Boil 1 cup of milk with 1 cup of water, ½ cup of shredded jaggery (Traditional unrefined sugar called vellam in Tamil), 1/4 cup of grated coconut and a little cardamom powder.
• Add the balls and cook for about 8 minutes under low flame.
• Serve hot or cold.