Moong Dal Dosa

Moong dal dosa is a savoury crepe made with split yellow lentils. This is a protein packed, low carb dosa, and is an ideal meal which fills you up and satisfies your taste buds. Since this dosa does not use white rice like the traditional version of dosa, it is ideal for weight watchers and people looking to reduce or limit carbs in their diet. 

All of us absolutely love any kind of dosa and this one is not an exception. The husband and I have our dosa plain with chutney and the kids love cheese stuffed dosa. You could use this batter to make small sized fluffier uttapam and have them plain or top them with cheese or vegetables of your choice. I have packed these mini uttapam for the kids lunch box and they are much loved, making them a great and healthy lunch box item too. This dosa does not need fermentation and as such can be prepared at a short notice. This is one of my favourite to go recipes whenever I feel like having a dosa.

Nutrition wise, 1 cup of cooked moong dal has 106 calories and supplies 8 grams of fiber and 9 grams of protein. It is also a good source of potassium and iron ( meets 7% of your daily iron requirements).

Here is the recipe for this amazing moong dal dosa. Hope you enjoy making and eating them. 

Moong Dal Dosa with Tomato Chutney and Pomegranate Juice

Ingredients

• 1 cup yellow moong dal
• 2 green chilies
• 1 tsp ginger paste or 1 inch ginger piece
• Salt to taste

Method

• Soak the yellow moong dal in water for 3-4 hours. 
• Drain the water and transfer dal to the blender.
• Add green chilies, ginger, salt and some water.
• Grind to get a smooth batter.
• Transfer the batter to a bowl. Adjust the water to get the batter of the right consistency. The batter should not be too thick or too thin.
• Heat a griddle pan. Add a few drops of oil and put the batter (about 2 ladles) in the centre and spread it in a circular motion.
• Let the dosa cook for a minute or so, once the sides start to loosen flip the dosa. Cook for some time and flip it over.
• Fold in half and serve hot with chutney and/or sambar.

Microwave Rawa Ladoo (Microwave Semolina Ladoo)

Wishing everyone a very happy, healthy and a successful new year !

I made these microwave rawa ladoos last Diwali but never got around to posting the recipe here. After my successful attempt at making microwave besan ladoo (here), I wanted to try rawa ladoo in the microwave. I googled and found this recipe, but unfortunately I forgot to note down the source and as such am not able to give credit to the original recipe.

This is a very easy recipe, the ladoos were done in no time and we totally loved them. This recipe uses condensed milk but next time around I will try using sugar instead.  If you are looking for a quick and easy recipe for rawa ladoo give this a try and I am sure this will become your favourite recipe . 

Microwave Rawa Ladoo

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup rawa / sooji ( I used fine rawa)
• 3 tbsp fresh grated coconut ( I used the frozen coconut)
• 1/2 cup condensed milk
• 1/4 tsp cardamom powder
• 1.5 tbsp ghee (clarified butter)

Method

• Heat 1.5 tbsp of ghee in the microwave for about 30 seconds till it melts.
• Add rawa to the melted ghee and mix well. 
• Microwave this mixture for a total of  2.5 minutes, while stirring after every minute. 
• After 2.5 minutes, add grated coconut, mix well and microwave for another 30 seconds. 
• Add condensed milk and cardamom powder and mix well. 
• Microwave for 1.5 minutes.
• Now let this mixture cool down a little. After it is cool, take a small portion of this mixture and shape it into a ball by rolling between your palms. Likewise, make ladoos with the remaining mixture and let them rest for some time. 
• That's it ! Delicious rawa ladoos are ready. Store them in an air tight container. 

Brown Rice Dosa

Dosa is a crepe made with lentils and rice. It can be served plain with sambar and chutney or stuffed with a filling traditionally made with potatoes to make masala dosa. These days dosas are stuffed with a variety of fillings like paneer, cheese, stir fried vegetables, eggs and even chicken to make paneer dosa, cheese dosa, egg dosa and so on. 

The traditional way of making dosa involves soaking urad dal (a type of lentil) and white rice for 8-10 hours then grinding this mixture and leaving it for another 8-10 hours for fermentation. The fermented batter is used to make delicious dosa. 

I came across this post on one of my Facebook groups and was keen on trying the recipe out. This blogger had replaced white rice with brown rice and had made a delicious looking dosa. As a part of adopting a healthier life style, we have included brown rice in our regular diet and the idea of using brown rice in place of white rice to make dosa was really appealing. 

Needless to say, I tried out the recipe and the verdict - FANTASTIC ! The dosas came out great and all of us absolutely loved them. From now on, I will probably use brown rice every time I make dosa. 

From a nutrition point of view, this dosa gives you protein from the lentils and complex carbs and loads of dietary fiber from the brown rice. To sum it up...taste bhi aur health bhi ! Here is the recipe for this super healthy and delicious brown rice dosa.

Brown Rice Dosa served with Sambar and Coconut Chutney

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup urad dal
• 1 cup basmati brown rice
• 1 tbsp channa dal
• 1 tbsp moong dal
• 1/2 tsp methi seeds
• Salt to taste
• Oil for making dosa

Method

• Mix the urad dal, channa dal, moong dal, brown rice and methi seeds and soak them in water for about 8-10 hours.
• Drain the water and grind the dals and the brown rice in a grinder. Add water as required for grinding.
• Take the ground mixture in a bowl, add salt and cover the bowl with a lid and keep it in a warm place overnight or for 8-10 hours for fermentation. I kept the bowl in a warm oven.
• Add more salt and water to the fermented batter, as required.
• Heat a skillet and drizzle some oil on it. Once the skillet is hot, take a ladle full of batter and drop it on the centre of the skillet. Move the ladle in circular motion to spread the batter and make a round shape. 
• Let the dosa cook for a couple of minutes and when the edges loosen up flip over and cook for a few seconds. 
• Flip again, fold in half and serve hot with sambar and chutney.

Notes

• Any variety of brown rice can be used. 
• Maintain the ratio of 1:2 of urad dal to brown rice to increase the quantity of batter.

Upma

Upma is basically a savoury semolina porridge and is a popular breakfast dish in South India. It is quick and easy to make and gets ready in under 30 minutes. Upma can be made in different ways but I usually follow my mom's recipe which is by far my favourite upma recipe. A steaming hot bowl of upma with piping hot cup of tea makes a perfect breakfast. I usually end up making upma for a light lunch or dinner rather than for breakfast. The kids and I totally love upma though I can't say the same about  my better half. He is not a big upma fan, but eats it without a fuss and over the years has transitioned from hating upma to liking it. Here is the recipe for this quick and healthy dish.

Upma

Ingredients 

• 1 cup fine semolina 
• 1 tsp mustard seeds
• 1/2 tsp asafoetida (hing)
• 1 tbsp urad dal
• 5-6 green chillies
• 8-10 curry leaves
• 1 onion 
• 1 tomato
• 2 tbsp yogurt
• 1 tbsp cilantro 
• 2.5 cups water
• Salt to taste
• 1 tsp ghee for roasting semolina
• 1 tsp ghee for tempering

Method

• Soak the urad dal in water and keep it aside.
• Finely chop the onions and tomatoes. Chop the green chillies into slightly bigger pieces and keep everything aside.
• Heat 1 tsp ghee in a wok. Once heated, add the semolina and keep stirring it regularly till it changes colour and is roasted. Once roasted, the aroma of the semolina will fill up your kitchen.
• Transfer the semolina to a plate and keep it aside.
• Keep 2.5 cups of water for boiling.
• Beat the yogurt to a smooth paste and keep aside.
• Drain the water from the soaked urad dal.
• In the same wok, heat 1 tsp ghee for the tempering.
• Add mustard seeds, hing, green chillies, curry leaves and the urad dal and sauté for some time.
• Add onions and a little salt and fry till the onions are translucent.
• Add tomatoes and fry for some time till the tomatoes soften. 
• Add the beaten yogurt and mix well. 
• Add the hot water (2.5 cups) and let the entire mixture come to a rolling boil. 
• Add salt and mix well. 
• Once the mixture starts bubbling, lower the stove setting to low and add the roasted semolina, a little at a time and mix well.  
• Continue adding the semolina, a little at a time and mixing well.
• Once you have added the entire semolina, cover the wok with a lid a cook on a low stove setting for 5 minutes.
• Garnish with chopped cilantro and serve hot.

Notes

• Cashews can be roasted in ghee and added to the upma.
• Grated coconut can be added as a garnish along with cilantro.
• Serve with a slice of lemon or squeeze some lemon juice on the upma  before serving.
• Yogurt is completely optional, but adding it enhances the flavour.