Methu Vada

Ingredients:

Urad dhal           1 cup
Green chilly         1
ginger                 a small piece(just a peanut size)
salt                     as required
Oil                      for frying

Method

Soak Urad dhal atleast for 2-4 hours
Drain the water and grind the urad dhal just sprinkling some water till it comes out fluffy with the green chilly and ginger.
Add sufficient salt .. Add few curry leaves and 1 spoon of finely chopped onions.
Heat oil for frying in a pan and when its hot, drop in small balls of the batter with hole at centre and fry both sides till light brown.
Enjoy the vada with coconut chutney

Avocado - Mint recipe

This is a wonderful recipe which really did wonders in my body. The results were very good and it made me to stick with this recipe almost daily.  It all started with my weight loss planning.  I want to have a very healthy, nutritious breakfast after my morning workout. Many options came to my mind, but I was not completely convinced with those.  During the same time, there was an party and in the party, I came to know about this recipe through my friend Shilpy. She is a person, who cares her body very well, with healthy and right nutrients.  The first time, when I came to know the recipe,  I decided it was just for me.... The next week, I started having that. I love the taste of mint and so it was not surprising that I liked the taste just from the first day.  The main thing is that it was with simple ingredients and easy to prepare and store and I can just have that for the whole week and helped a lot during the most busiest time in the morning to have a proper, healthy, fulfilling breakfast. Before actually going into the recipe, its very good to know about the ingredients used in this recipe. So, i would like to mention some few important facts about the ingredients, although you may be aware of those.

The first main ingredient is Avocado. It contains folate, potassium, monounsaturated fatty acids(MUFAs) and are very high in fiber.  "FAT..."  whenever i hear fat, my mind picks up all negative things associated with fat with respect to weight loss.  Later, I came to know that FATS are not bad.  They play a very important role in our body.  Monounsaturated fat is also known as good fat.  The monosaturated fat found in Avocado actually help to lower bad cholesterol and increase the absorption of certain carotenoids.

The next main ingredient is Mint leaves, which is a well-known herb, which has a wonderful aroma, great taste, and healing power. It facilitates overall digestion and has many health benefits.

The other ingredient like Green Olives, Garlic, and Green Chilly too have many health benefits.  Green Olives too contain high level of monosaturated fat. It also contains Proteins, minerals, vitamins,  and antioxidants. Green Chilly helps to improve the overall immune system of our body. A common phrase I often heard about garlic is that they are good for our hearts.

In summary, the main ingredients in this are high fat content and so our food becomes high-calorie meal irrespective of whether they are good fat or bad fat... But, again, a  high-calorie(with good fat)  meal in the mornings are very important and necessary for our body,  so that at the end of the day, our body will not tend us to load ourselves with huge quantities of food.  As you can notice in this recipe, we are just blending all the ingredients and using in our meal directly without any other processing and so, all nutrients come directly to our body.

Finally, I got a combination with all these ingredients and I use it as a spread on my whole wheat or multi-grain bread in the morning, along with boiled egg and tomato with a cup of orange juice/Soy Milk. I have this almost every day and my body feels so fresh, energetic, fulfilling and it makes me to stick with this meal daily. I am enjoying this wonderful recipe.

NOTE:  I knew some people are allergic to avocados, but this in combination with other ingredients may/may not be reacting the same way... but, just make sure when you are having for the first time, you are not feeling light-headed or experiencing any other allergies...

Ingredients:

Avocado            1
Mint leaves         2 bunch
Green Olives       5-8 nos
Green Chilly        1
Garlic                  1/2 of one clove of garlic
Salt                      to taste

Method:

First pick the mint leaves separately and rinse well in the water.
Green Olives should be deseeded before we grind
Halve the Avocado and take out the entire content with a spoon discarding the seed inside.

In a blender, add the avocado, olives, garlic and green chilly and blend well. Then slowly add the mint leaves and try to blend to a smooth paste without adding water.  If you feel you need water, just make sure you add a very small measure of water at a time and try to make a smooth paste.

Now, the nutrient rich avocado-mint mix is ready.  This can be spread over the bread and serves as a good breakfast variety. Sometimes, I used to grind some corriander leaves or curry leaves or sometimes both corriander and curry leaves for a variation.  I love the taste anyway and my breakfast a lot.

Aviyal

Aviyal is one of the most poplular dish in South India.  This is a very simple dish prepared with Indian vegetables mixed with coconut.  The curry leaves and coconut oil gives a very unique taste to this dish.




Ingredients:

Indian cucumber(medium)      1

Snake gourd                                     4 - 5 inch piece

Brinjal (medium)                           1

Drumstick                                          1

Raw Banana                                       half

Raw mango                                        half

Carrot                                                  1 inch piece

Green chillies                                   2

Coconut                                             1/4 cup

Turmeric powder                          1 tblsp

Cumin seeds                                    1/4 tsp

Coconut oil                                      2 tsp

curry leaves                                   1 - 2 stem

Preparation:


Wash all the vegetables and cut them into long strips as shown in the picture.

Blend the green chillies without water and keep aside.
Blend the coconut with 1/4 tsp cumin seeds or cumin powder without water and keep aside.

Method:


Heat a pan on medium and add all the vegetables with one cup of water and sufficient salt for the vegetables.  When it comes to boil, add the turmeric powder and blended green chilli to it and allow to boil. 
When all the water is absorbed, add another half cup of water and allow to boil again.
We need to cook the vegetables only till it becomes tender. So, if you need more water to cook the vegetables, add little by little from this stage.
In between, you can check for salt in the dish and add if required as per your taste.  Make sure the vegetables are not overcooked..


Once the vegetables are cooked, add the coconut-cumin mixture and curry leaves and allow to cook for  5-8 minutes with careful sauting.


Once the vegetables and coconut mixture combines well, switch off the flame.


Add two teaspoons of coconut oil with one sprig of curry leaves at the end, which gives a wonderful south Indian flavor to the dish.




Note:


You can always add other vegetables of your choice or take out any vegetable I have used according to your taste and preference.  The quantity of each type of vegetable depends on your choice and it does not effect the dish.


If  raw mango is not available, follow the procedure without raw mango and at the final step, once the dish is cool, you can add 2 tblsp of curd or 1/2 lemon juice for taste.


Coconut oil is very healthy and it gives a unique taste to the dish and try not to miss it. 

Healthy skin and hair

Need your skin glow with shiny hair and healthy nails?  You would be surprised to know how easy it is to achieve our goal with a little effort.  Here comes a simple plan..


Fruits and Vegetables are bursting with vitamins and minerals that our skin, hair, and nails rely on to look fabulous.  5 serving of veggies and 3 servings of fruits a day will help us towards our goal.  One serving equals half a cup or 125 ml.  We need to eat 8 x half a cup of colorful veggies and fruits.  The main colorful veggies and fruits include Orange, Red, Blue/purple, and Green foods.  Now, its easy for us to track the main veggies and fruits.  Here follows the most important color foods to include in our diet, which takes us towards our goal  of healthy hair, skin and nails. 


ORANGE FOODS:  Carrots and Oranges, which contains beta carotene to fight wrinkles causing free radicals and it is loaded with vitamin C to strengthen collagen fibres in skin and hair.


RED FOODS:  Tomatoes and Cherries. These are a good souce of lycopene, which protects agains sun and harmful UV rays.


GREEN FOODS:  Broccoli and Kale, again is rich in multiple vitamins


BLUE/PURPLE FOODS:  Blueberries and Eggplant contain flavonoids that make skin glow and hair shine.


Other than these,   Proteins are powerhouse for our skin, hair and nails because our body relies on to replace old or dying cells.  Many women skip the suggested two servings of meat, which can be achieved by two boiled eggs or a piece of meat or fish.


Though, 8 servings of colorful veggies and fruits is our goal, we can always start with four servings or 8 servings with two or three serving of our same favorite veggie or fruit and just watch the difference your body will experience, which will help you to stick with the required goal. 


  

South Indian Dhal

Ingredients:


Toor Dhal           1/2 cup
Garlic                  1/4 a pod
Asafotedia          1/4 tsp
Turmeric             1/2 tsp
Salt                     to taste




For seasoning:


Mustard seeds        1/2 tsp
Dry red chilly          2
Curry leaves           1 stem


Method:


1.  Wash and cook the dhal in one cup of water with garlic in a pan, till it is cooked fully.  Add more water, if all the water has been asbsorbed or we can cook in the pressure cooker for up to 6 - 7 whistles.
2.  Smash the cooked dhal immediately with a spoon into a smooth paste without any lumps.
3.  Add sufficient water to make it a kozhambu/curry according to our consistency. Always make it little water, as dhal tend to thicken once it cools down.
4.  Add turmeric powder, asafotedia powder, and sufficient salt. 
5. Heat the above dhal mix and bring it to a full boil for two to three minutes.
6. Remove from heat.
7.  Heat another pan and add oil. Once the oil is hot, add mustard seeds and wait till it splutters. Then, add curry leaves and dry red chilly and fry for a minute.
8.  Add this to the boiled dhal.


Serve this with hot rice with ghee on top.