గవ్వలు: Gavvalu- Sweet fried flour nuggets

INGREDIENTS:

Plain flour......................1cup.

Sugar................................1 t sp.

Jaggery.............................1/2 cup.

Semolina...........................1 tbl sp.

Oil.......................................deep frying.

METHOD:

1.Take myda(plain flour). Seive for no lumps. Add 1 t sp of sugar, and semolina. Mix nicely with hand ans with water make a fine dough.It should not be very tight or too soft. Make sure it is good. keep aside.

2.Take a fork or if available use the small board which is meant for the purpose of making gavvalu. Taking a marble size of dough press it on your three fingers with your thumb finger.

Take the fork in your left hand, on its back side press this and role it. It takes a shape of 'Gavva',Shell shape is formed. with few groves on its back side and a hole sort of a thing in the front. Prepare all in the same way. Keep them on a dry cloth.

3.Take jaggery, put little water, keep it on stove. After it melts slowly stir it. when it comes to boil, keep checking it. The syrup must not be over cooked. To get a correct consistency follow the test.

The syrup testing is, take a little in the ladle, drop into a bowl of some water. If the syrup is not spreading in the water,and you can take with fingers try to make a ball, it should be firm. It is called (ball consistency) 'unda paakam'.Keep the flame on low.Maintain the syrup consistency.

4.Keep oil in a pan , heat it. when it is medium hot, slowly drop these prepared(shells) gavvalu few at a time in to the oil. Remove them before they become dark in colour.Drop them in to the syrup. Stir it nicely, so that the syrup will go into the groves too. And take from the syrup, spread them in a plate to dry.

5.As and when you are frying, put them in the syrup, and take out, if the syrup start getting thicker, add little water and warm again to keep the consistency in same way, till all finished. 

6.These are good nick knacks for children to eat as much. They are not harmful like Candys. 

చక్కర పొంగలి: Chakkara Pongali- Sweet Pongal/pudding

Sankranthi special

INGREDIENTS:

Rice---------1 cup
Jaggary/brown sugar/bellam--1 1/4 cup or(as per taste)
Pesarapappu/green gram dal---1/4 cup
Senagapappu/bengalgram dal-----1/2 tbs(optional)
Milk--------4 cups
Cardamom/elaachi-----1/2 tsp (powdered)
Cashews/jeedipappu-----few
Ghee/neyyi-------1tbs

METHOD:

1.Lightly roast dals.
2.Mix it with rice and add milk and pressure cook.
3.Take thick bottem vessel melt jaggary and add cooked rice.
4.Mix it well and cook for 5 minutes.
5.In a different pan heat ghee, add cashews fry them till
light golden brown.
5.Add cardamom powder and cashews to the pongal.

This is my way of making pongal. If you don't like
adding bengalgram dal. Make with out that.

అల్లం చింతపండు ఊరగాయ- Allam chintapandu uragaya- Ginger Tamarind Chutney/Pickle

INGREDIENTS:

1.Tamarind....................2 cups.

2.Ginger..........................1 cup.

3.Jaggery..........................2 cups.

4.Red Chilly cut................2 cups

5.Oil...................................1 cups.

6.Mustard seeds...............2 tbl.sp.

7.Red Chilly........................4 to 5 for seasoning.

8.Fenugreek seeds..............2 to 3 t sp.

9.Garlic...............................15 to 20 cloves.

10.Asefoetida.........................2 t sp.

11.Salt....................................3/4 cup. (or per taste.)

12.Water.................................1/2 cup

METHOD:

1.Take out the veins of Tamarind and clean well.

2.Remove the skin of ginger, cut in to small pieces.

3.Shred the jaggery.

4.if chilly are very long cut them in to two.

5.Now, roast the ginger pieces to take out water content from this. keep aside.

6.Boil water well for few minutes. Soak tamarind in it. 

7.Dry roast red chilly for few minutes.

8.Now take all these four items and grind them to a paste.

9.The garlic is separated into cloves and remove the skin. If desired cut into small other wise can use it as it is.

10.Roast fenugreek/methi until the fragrance comes. Make powder of it.

10.Keep a pan on heat, put oil. Cut 5 chilly into two, put in the oil. Add mustard seeds. When they flutter, add garlic. put off fire add asafoetida / hing.

11.Cool the seasoning, then add to the ginger tamarind paste. Also add fenugreek powder. then mix well.

12.This is a pickle, which can stay for long. Tasty with rice, roti, dosa, idli.

PS: Mostly this pickle is done measuring by weight.

Who ever can do this way, should take equal weight of tamarind, chilly, jaggery. and 1/2 of that one item is ginger.

Variation:
Try out another ginger chutney recipe very similar to this one. 

బొరుగుల లడ్డు/ Borugula Laddu/ Puffed Rice Sweet Crispies

Ingredients:

Murmura/borugulu/ puffed rice- 1 cup
Powdered Jaggery - 1 cup (adjust as per sweet levels)
Water to melt jaggery - 1 tbsp

Method:
In a thick-bottomed vessel, add water and jaggery.
Cook on medium-high heat.
Jaggery melts and begins to concentrate.
To test the consistency of Jaggery syrup, take cold water in a plate and add few drops of jaggery syrup. If the syrup can be rolled to a round it is done and the syrup is ready.
Add Murmuralu while stirring continuously. Turn off the heat and remove the vessel from fire.
Let it cool for few minutes and then start making laddus.
I learnt this from my Mom-in-law

నువ్వు చిమ్మిలి: Nuvvu chimmili/Nuvvundalu- Sesame & Jaggery sweet balls

INGREDIENTS:

1.White Till / sesame seeds..........1cup.

2.Jaggery.....................................1/2 cup.

3.Ghee..........................................2 t sp.

METHOD:

1.This is a very simple item. very good for health. It is given to girls when they reach puberty, which is usually celebrated with a lot of fanfare.This regulates the flow of the blood at that time. It is done by pounding together Till and jaggery, in a grinding stone. Since we do not have the stones any more, it has to be done carefully, in mixi 

2.Clean the seeds. and dry heat them (till / sesame) in a pan. Make as coarse powder in the mixer. Just one round of it. Do not over do.

3.Shred jaggery in to small scrapings.

4.Now mix these two together nicely, with the help of ghee (to grease the palm) make balls.

5.This is the original chimmili laddu. It has medicinal value. If desired, can add cashew nut pieces for more taste. Its optional.

6.Approximately makes 8 to 10 in lemon size balls.

వేరుసెనగ ఉండలు: Verusenaga Vundalu- Peanut & Jaggery Sweet

INGREDIENTS:

1 Cup Peanuts/verusenagapappu
1 Cup Jaggery (grated)
Water to melt the Jaggery.


METHOD:

1. Dry roast peanuts and let it cool.
2. Now remove skin by rubbing the peanuts with your palm.
3. Separate skin from nuts and keep aside.
4. Heat jaggery in a pan, adding little water.
5. When the syrup becomes a thick string, add peanuts and mix well.
6. Remove from fire and make desired size balls.


Caution : You have to make balls after applying ghee on your hands however your hands will become red because of the hot nuts & jaggery.

Variations : Grease the plate and spread the nuts on it and allow it to cool. Now with a knife, cut it into desired shapes.

చలిమిడి: Chalimidi- Traditional Rice Sweet

ANDHRA SPECIAL SWEET

INGREDIENTS:

Rice ---1 cup
Jaggery----1 cup( grated)
Coconut pieces ---- 1/2 cup (cut in small cubes)
Ghee-------1 tbs
Elachi/cardamom powder -----1 tsp


METHOD :

1. Soak the rice in water for one hour.
2. Drain the water and spread them on a cloth and dry.
3. Do not dry too much.
4.Grind finely and sieve to get very nice flour.
5.Cut the coconut in to small pieces and fry them in little
ghee until turns light brown.
6.Add little water to jaggery and make very thick syrup.
7.Test for syrup take a little syrup and drop in water.
If you can make fa ball out of that from water, that is right paakam.
8.Turn off the heat and add rice flour little by little.
9.while mixing thoroughly to avoid lumps.
10.then add coconut pieces , elachi powder and ghee and mix well.
11.Cover with lid.
12.When it is cool, make balls and store in a dry container.

variations: If you want you can make with sugar instead of Jaggary.

This traditional sweet dish is mandatory in the following occasions:

While seeing off the bride after wedding.
Offered to the pregnant woman at baby shower.
Offered to the young mother while leaving for her husband's home.

బొబ్బట్లు: Bobbatlu- Flatbread with sweet bengal gram stuffing

INGREDIENTS:

Channa dal............1 cup
Jaggery...............1 cup(powdered)
Cardamom(ilachi).......1/2 tsp.(powder)
Plain flour(maida)....1 cup
Semolina(bombai ravva/sujji)..2 tsp.
Oil.....................1/2 cup.
Rice flour..............for rolling
water...................as per requirement.

Method:


1.Cook Channa dal just enough to be soft. never over cook.drain extra water.
2.Make paste of Channa dal With powdered jaggery, in a mixer.It should be able to make a ball. while making it should not stick to palm and fingers.
3.Add cardamom powder.
4.Take the flour in bowl,add ravva, put oil mix with fingers.it should be like crumbs.keep adding oil little by little to blend into the dough. the dough should be very very soft.
5.Keep the dough covered for more than an hour.
6.When it nicely stretching, that means it is ready to roll them.
7.Make channa dal paste as laddus.It is called Poornam.
8.Take the dough, make same no.as of laddus.With the help of oil, take one maida ball spread it on your palm and put one of the laddu cover it fully.
9.Now take a board cover it with a white muslin cloth tightly.
10.Dust with rice flour roll on the cloth keep laddu stuffed ball.now roll into thin roti.when ever needed you must dust with flour, so that it should not stick to the cloth.It should able to come out easily.The variation in this is to use two polythene sheets. Take one sheet put oil on top keep the ball and put oil on top again and cover with another sheet and roll it by turning sheet.
11.Heat a pan,on slow fire cook these roties one after another, applying little oil on both sides.they should not burn.
12.Now the bobbatlu are ready.
13.you can eat them with ghee. or else put in hot milk and you relish it either way.
14.They are very tasty.

1.Instead of Channa poornam you can use Green gram dal and jaggery poornam.
2.Second variation is to use grated coconut and jaggery poornam.

సున్నుండలు/ Sunnundalu/ Black gram sweet balls

Ingredients

Urad dal – 2 cups
Jaggery – 1 1/2 cup (Grated)
Ghee – 1/2 cup
Cardamom -2 (optional)

Preparation
Roast the urad dal in a low heat till golden brown. Stir continuously, it takes about 15 to 20 minutes. Let it cool.
Now, take the roasted urad dal and grind it to a smooth powder using a mixer or a food processor. Add the grated jaggery and grind it again. If you want to add cardamom powder, you can add it now.
Melt the ghee and keep it aside.
Take the ground mixture in a bowl, add ghee until you get a consistency where you can mould them in the form of laddoo.


Variations : We can use Sugar instead of jaggery. It tastes good either ways, but I like it with jaggery.

This is a very simple sweet and doesn't take much time to prepare.

కొబ్బరి లౌజు/లడ్డు: Kobbari lousu/laddu- Coconut Sweet

Preparation time : 20 mins
Makes 6-8 laddus

Ingredients:

2 Cups Fresh grated Coconut
1.5 cups Jaggery(adjust as per sweet levels)
3 Elachi/cardamom (Optional)

Method:

1 In a thick bottomed pan add grated coconut, jaggery and little water(about 1tsp. of water)
2 Keep on medium flame and keep stirring, until the whole jaggery converts into liquid.
4 Then it comes together to a single mass consistency(should be very sticky)it takes approx.15-20min to get that sticky consistency. Now add elachi powder.
5 Let it cool for a while , then make round balls(laddus) and serve.


This is one simple and delicious sweet.

పూర్ణం బూరెలు: Poornam boorelu

Preparation time: 45 mins(excluding the soaking time)

(Makes around 16 to 18 poornalu)


Ingredients

1/2 cup urad dal
1 cup rice
1 cup Chana dal
1 cup jaggery (grated or powdered)
oil for deep frying
2-3 elaichi
pinch of salt

Method

For batter:
Soak urad dal and rice for about 3 hours
Grind them to make a smooth paste, thinner than idly batter.
Add pinch of salt and keep it aside.

For poornam:
Soak chana dal for 30 mins.
Pressure cook chana dal with water (1: 2) for 3 whistles. Remove any excess water.
Mix the cooked chana dal and grated jaggery to make a thick paste. Add elaichi powder to this.
Let the Dal mixture cool to room temperature. Make medium sized balls
Heat oil in a pan, dip each sweet ball in the urad-rice flour mix and fry till golden brown.
Serve them hot.


Tip: If poornam mix becomes little thinner then microwave it for 1 or 2 mins to tighten it.

Note : This sweet is usually prepared on festivals and special occasions(poojalu, vrathalu).