Antinunde/Karadantu / Laddu with Edible Gum

        

Hey folks! Hope alls well with you all... The update from my end is that, Naveen and I were blessed with a baby boy on the 13th of Oct 2009! Things have been hectic at my end ever since... Each day has been a different learning experience. Despite all the sleepless nights and Aadi's seemingly never ending crying sessions, motherhood has been a wonderful experience. It is such a pleasure to watch them grow, I tell ya! :)

Thanks to Amma and Ajji's 'Baananthana( in simple words, postpartum care and attention given to the new mom), I am learning quite a few unique dishes out here. One such dish is "Antinunde".  Edible gum, that is used in making this laddu is high in medicinal value. A lot of dry fruits also go into these laddus making them rich and nutritious. "One Antinunde a day strengthens your spine", my Ajji says. This laddu is more commonly known as Karadantu( or Karidantu) in the northern parts of Karnataka. If I am not wrong, this laddu is also known by the name "Ding Laddu" in Mangalore-Udupi regions of Karnataka.

Ingredients:

1 cup Edible gum, finely chopped

1 cup Almonds/Badami, finely chopped

1 cup Dry Dates/Uttutte, finely chopped

1 cup Raisins

1 cup Desiccated Coconut/Copra/Kobbari grated

1.5 cups Jaggery

1-1.5 tbsp Khus khus/ Gasagase (optional)

2 tbsp Ghee/Clarified butter for roasting

Ghee for deep frying

Method:

1. Heat ghee in a heavy bottomed pan for deep frying.
2. Drop the chopped edible gum pieces into hot ghee and fry until they puff up; Remove from pan and drain on paper towels.
3. Dry roast khus khus and keep aside;
4. Heat 2 tbsp ghee in a pan and roast the chopped almonds until they turn lightly golden brown; Keep aside.
5. Dry roast the desiccated coconut and keep aside;
6. Mix all the dry fruits, desiccated coconut, fried edible gum and khus khus in a large mixing bowl and keep aside.
7. Heat jaggery in a heavy bottomed pan and add just enough water to cover the jaggery; Boil until jaggery dissolves and forms a syrup with thread like consistency. Note: To test if the syrup is ready, pour a drop into a bowl of cool water. If the solution forms a tiny lump and does not dissolve in water, the syrup is ready.
8. Pour the syrup into the above mixture little by little and mix well.
9. Grease you palm with a drop of ghee; Take some of the mixture in your palm and make laddus of desired size; Repeat for remaining mixture as well.
10. Let cool and store in air tight containers.

Prep Time: About 50-60 mins;

Makes: About 25-30 laddus;

Annada Kesari Bhaat / Sweet Saffron Rice

         

Hey folks! All well at your end, I hope.... Things have been good at my end,apart from the cough and cold that everyone in our house is falling prey to. The weather out here in Bengaluru has been pretty gloomy and rainy. Probably that's the reason why everyone around seems to be falling sick so often.

My Ajji- Taata are here with us since a couple of weeks and I am getting to learn a whole lot of traditional dishes from  my Ajji! One such dish that I learned from her was "Annada Kesari Bhaat". This dish happens to be one of my favorites, and I love it even more after having learned how easy it is to make :) Have a surprise guest at home? You could put this together in just 10-15 mins!

Ingredients:

3/4 cup Cooked white rice ( I like mine to be mushy and well cooked)

1 cup Sugar (Adjust quantity according to taste)

1/4 cup Ghee/Clarified butter

8-10 Saffron strands

1-2 tsp Warm Milk

1 tbsp Raisin-Cashew mixture

1-2 drops Food color (optional)

 

Method:

1. Soak saffron strands in warm milk and keep aside.
2. Heat a pan on medium flame and add 1/4 cup of water to it.
3. Add all the sugar and stir until it dissolves completely and forms a thread like consistency; Note:Add just enough water to dissolve all the sugar.
4. Add half the quantity of ghee to the pan and stir until it dissolves.
5. Add the cooked and mashed rice, food color and remaining ghee; Pour the milk with saffron strands over it and mix thoroughly.
6. Roast the cashews and raisins in 1 tsp of ghee and add to the Kesari Bhaat; Serve hot and relish!

Nimbekai Uppinakai/Lemon Pickle

         

 

Hey folks, I'm back! I have been off blogging for over a month now, haven't I ??!?! Time flies here in India... really!! :) August has been a busy month for Naveen and me. We landed in Bengalooru on the 24th of July... The first few days went by in deciding on my doctor and hospital, getting the Internet connection up and running, getting a SIM card for each of us and other such immediate necessities. I have decided to go ahead with Columbia Asia, Hebbal for my delivery.... Any suggestions/experiences/opinions regarding Columbia Asia, Hebbal are more than welcome! :)

After the major task of choosing my doctor and hospital, I was at my in-laws place for a couple of weeks at Mangalooru. Rainy season that it is in India right now, it was pouring cats and dogs in the coastal city of Mangalooru (or Mangalore, as it was known till recently).... Not that it helped in cooling down the weather in any way!!! Despite the heavy rains and the high temperatures, I managed to have a wonderful time out there... hogged on all the traditional south canara dishes, stalled the famous "Pabbas" ice cream parlor almost daily, met up with all our good friends! My in-laws had also arranged for a traditional  and elaborate "Seemantha" ceremony for me. Got done with all that and returned to Amma's place in Bangalore last week. And now that even Naveen is back to work in Mangalore, I seem to have a lot of free time in hand. I am also enjoying all the pampering while it lasts :)

Both, my Ajji (Mom's mom)  and amma, make amazing pickles. This traditional recipe for lemon pickle is theirs too. Glad that I was with amma when she was making it last time.... I got a chance to take a few pictures and learn the procedure. Though very easy to make, I must warn you before hand that this one is a very time consuming procedure and it takes a lot of patience . But once you get to taste this pickle, you will never like any of the store bought ones.  So, all you folks who love home made pickles and have the patience to wait, should definitely try this one!!

 

Ingredients:

10-12 Fresh lemons, medium sized

15-20 Dry Red Chilies, low to medium spiced

2 tsp Methi seeds

1 tsp Hing

Salt as per taste and requirement

Method:

1. Wash and chop each lemon into 8 pieces and keep aside.
2. In the jar that you will be using to store the pickle, drop 8-10 pieces of chopped lemon; Sprinkle a generous amount of salt all over; Continue the process for the remaining pieces as well; Close the lid of the jar tightly and keep aside for 4-5 days. Note: Make sure you pick a jar/bottle with a lid that closes tightly.
3. Open the lid of the jar and mix thoroughly with a steel spoon; You will see that the lemons would have given out enough water because of the salt.
4. Close the lid of the jar tightly and keep aside for another 20 days; Remember to mix thoroughly, once in every two days.
5. Dry roast red chilies, methi seeds and hing until you smell the fresh aroma of the masalas. Powder the roasted masalas in a blender without adding any water.
6. Add the powdered masalas to the salted lemons and mix thoroughly; Keep aside for 2 days.
7. Relish with dosas, rotis, parathas, idli, curd rice or just some hot steamed plain rice!

Prep Time: About 30-40 mins, excluding storage time;

Makes: Enough to fill a 500ml bottle;