Carrot Milk Shake

 Carrots are served either raw in salads or it is served cooked in many forms like simple stir-fry to juices shakes,cakes, halwas etc.They have plenty of health benefits,specially they are good for improving eye sight.

    Here's  a recipe for a tasty Carrot milk shake:

  Ingredients
1.Carrots            220gms
2.Milk                 1/2 L
3.Sugar               5-6 tbsp (as per taste)
4.Vanilla Ice cream       as needed

5.Fried cashew nuts       ("   "   )

 Preparing Method
-Peel the skin of the Carrot and roughly cut into pieces.
-Now steam or boil these till soft and allow it to cool.
-Meanwhile freeze the milk for sometime.
-Coarsely grind the fried nuts and keep aside.
-Now in a blender add the cooked Carrot pieces,milk and sugar.Blend till smooth.
-Pour this into the serving glass.

-Serve each glass of this Carrot shake with a scoop of ice-cream topped with the fried nuts.

*Fry the nuts in a frying pan with 1/4 tsp ghee.
*You can pressure cook the carrots also.To check whether the carrots are done you can penetrate a fork.The fork should easily penetrate through the  carrots.
*If you are boiling the carrots,strain the water and then use.

 
  



  

Harees/Aleesa

Harees is a traditional Middle Eastern recipe.This is prepared during the month  of Ramadan in most of the Arab houses & distributed to nearby houses.This is also a very famous dish in parts of North Kerala at the muslim weddings & parties.

Avocado Creamy Milk Shake

 Ingredients
1.Avocado/Butter fruit    1 small or 1/2 of 1 big
2.Milk                   500 ml
3.Sugar                5-6 tbsp (as per taste)
4.Pista ice-cream   1 tsp

  Method
-Cut the Avocado into half, remove the seed and scoop the pulp.
-Freeze the milk for sometime.
-Now add all the ingredients (1 to 4 ) into a blender and blend till smooth and creamy.
-Pour into glasses and serve chilled.

  Sending this to Know Your Diary-Milk by Shama's Easy 2 cook Recipes & Jagrutis

  Healthy Shakes& Priya's page

Sweet Potato-Coconut Balls

Sweet Potatoes are rich in Vit.A,C,Manganese and many more vitamins and minerals.They are also one of the fibre-rich vegetables.
  Here's a simple,healthy and sweet recipe,Sweet Potato-Coconut Balls.

Ingredients
1.Sweet Potato         300 gms
2.Grated coconut     6 tbsp
3.Sugar                   3 tbsp 

Method
-Wash the sweet potatoes and cook them by boiling or pressure cook them till soft.Drain the excess water and when cooled peel off the skin and mash them well.
-Now add the grated coconut and sugar to the mashed potatoes and mix well.
-Make small balls out of this.Refrigerate for some time and serve.

*Be careful not to overcook the potatoes.
*You can have this with Lime-Mint Tea.

                                  

Sweet Bread Fry/French Toast

 Here's a simple & easy evening snack specially for kids.This is a regular snack in most houses of Malabar.If there are sudden guests then there is always a snack with bread that is either this one or the spicy version of this along with something made with plantains like this one or this.These are the basic ones but when planning to make it elaborate then the dishes are endless :)
Now to make this easy snack you need :
Ingredients
Bread(medium size)        7-8 slices
Eggs                               2
Milk                                1/2 cup
Sugar                             3-4 tbsp
Vanilla essence               1/4 tsp
Ghee                              to grease the pan

Method
-Cut each bread slice into triangular shape.
-In a bowl add the eggs and sugar.Beat till the sugar dissolves.Now add the essence and milk.Mix well.
-Heat a frying pan,add a little ghee & spread it evenly on the bottom.
-Now dip each bread slice into the egg-milk mix,soak both sides and the edges and fry till both sides are done.

*Don't make the bread slices too soggy in the egg- mixture that you are unable to place them on the pan & while cooking too it becomes difficult to flip.

  

Lime-Mint Tea

You can have this tea after having a heavy meal like a biriyani or even when you want to fresh up with a cup of tea.

Ingredients
Water               2 cups 
Tea powder       1/2 tsp
Lime                 1/2 of one
Mint leaves       5-6
Sugar               3 tsp (according to taste)

 Method
-Boil water in a saucepan.
-When the water starts boiling add tea powder and the mint leaves.Let it boil for 1 or 2 minutes.
-Off the flame,squeeze in the lime juice and strain into the tea pot.
-Add sugar and serve hot into cups.

*You can use tea-bags instead of tea powder.
*Change the amount of sugar and lime as per your taste.

Cabbage-Carrot Stir fry/Thoran

Ingredients
Cabbage            2 cups (shredded)
Carrot                1 medium (chopped)
Onion                1 small (chopped)
Green chilly       2-3 slit
Grated coconut   1/4 cup
Turmeric powder  1/4 tsp
Salt                      to taste
Mustard seed       1 tsp
Oil                       1 tbsp

Method
-Heat oil in a pan and splutter mustard seeds
-Now add the cabbage,carrot,onion,green chilli,salt and turmeric powder.Stir and mix well.(can add 2 tbsp water if needed)
-Cover it with a lid and cook.
-When it is cooked add the grated coconut and mix well.
-Off the flame and serve with plain rice.

Macaroni Payasam

 Hi friends...May the year 2013 bring love,peace,prosperity, good health and all good things in every ones life...
   Took a short break from blogging because we had gone to India (November end) and came back only a few days back.Thought to post from there too but.. being with family specially with my sisters and other relatives after a long, I was too busy...
    Coming to the recipe ,let me welcome the year 2013 with something sweet,a payasam.The main ingredient of this payasam is macaroni.

 Ingredients
1.Macaroni               200 gms (small size)
   Water                    3 cups
   Sugar                    1 1/2 tbsp 
2.Jaggery                 350 gms 
   Water                     1/2 cup
3. Ghee                 1 tbsp
4.Coconut milk        (use 1 big coconut to extract milk
                                three times)
  1st thick milk     1 cup
  2nd thin milk     2 cups
  3rd extraction    1 1/2 cup
5.Cardamom        4
   Sugar                1/2 tsp
(Powder this together and keep aside)

6.Ghee               2 tsp
   Cashew nuts     8-10 pieces
   Raisins              few(optional)

 Method of cooking
-Heat a vessel with 3 cups of water.When the water boils add macaroni and boil for 2 minutes,add 1 1/2 tbsp sugar.Cover it with a lid and off the flame.Keep this covered for 10 minutes.After 10 minutes strain the water and keep the macaroni aside.
-Add 1/2 cup water to jaggery,heat and melt it on medium flame.Stir well till the jaggery melts completely,strain this and keep aside.
-Heat ghee in a non-stick pan and add the macaroni along with the third coconut milk.Stir for sometime and add the jaggery syrup.
-Cook this for some time till everything mixes well. Now add the 2nd coconut milk and cook till this gets a little thick consistency stirring in between.
-Now add the cardamom powder and the 1st thick coconut milk, stir and off the flame.
-Heat ghee in a pan and fry the nuts and raisins.Add this to the payasam. 
-Serve after sometime.