Sunnundalu (Urad dal laddoo)~ Baby shower

Recipe:
(makes about 17 med laddoos)
• Urad dal – 2 సుప్స్

• Sugar – 1 ¼ cup• Ghee – ¾ th కప్

• Cardamom-2 (optional)

Roast the urad dal in a low heat till golden brown. Stir continuously, it takes about 20 minutes. (My hand did hurt because of the continuous stirring, but was worth it). Let cool of completely.
Mean while, melt the ghee and let this cool also.
Now take the roasted urad dal and grind it to a smooth powder using a mixer or a food processor. (First I used the mixer, some how it wasn’t doing the job. So, I switched to the food processor). Make sure it’s nice and smooth. It’s very important that the mixture is smooth and super fine. Keep it a side.
Now add the sugar and grind it to a fine powder. Now return the urad dal mixture to the food processor and grind again. This helps the sugar and the urad dal mixture to incorporate well. At this point you can also add some crushed cardamom.
Remove this mixture to a skillet; little by little add the melted ghee till you get a consistency where you can mold them in the form of laddoo.

Chana dal /Chanaga bedala Payasam

Recipe:
Chana dal (pachi chanaga pappu) - 1 cup

Sago (sabudan, sabiyamu) - 1/4th కప్

Jaggery- ౧కుప్

Milk- 3 ½ కప్

sWater- 3 కప్

sCardamom -2 (crushed)

To Grind:

Whole Cashews – 7Grated fresh coconut – 2 to 3 tbsps (I used frozen coconut, I just put it in the microwave for 30 seconds for it to become soft)

For tempering:

Ghee- 2 tspsFew cashews and raisins.
Cook chana dal with one cup of water in the pressure cooker. Make sure the dal still holds its shape, so its very important not to over cook it.
In a small vessel put the sabudan with one cup of water and cook in low heat for about seven minutes or until the sabudan is cooked through. Keep it on side.
In a mixer grind the cashew and coconut with half cup of milk.
In a small pan add the ghee and fry the cashew and raisins till golden brown.
Now take a vessel, add one cup of water with the jaggery and boil till the jaggery melts. Then add the cooked sabudan, mix and add the cashew-coconut paste with 3 cups of milk. Cook all these in medium heat for about ten minutes.
At this point add the cooked chana dal (with the water) and boil the whole thing in low heat for another ten minutes. At the end add the cardamom powder and fried cashew and raisins.
Let it sit for few minutes, offer as naivedyam to the god and enjoy this payasam with your loved once.
Please note that the payasam gets thicker after it’s cooked for couple of hours.

Bobbatlu (Puran poli, Obbatu)

Makes about 18 med sized bobbatlu.
For Purnam (Toor dal filling):
• Toor dal (Kandi pappu)/chana dal (pacchi chanaga pappu)- 1 1/2 cups• Jaggery- 1 1/2 సుప్స్

• Fresh grated coconut- 1/2 cup (I used frozen coconut, just thawed it in the microwave)

• Cardamom- 3
Cook the Toor dal, till its soft but still holding its shape. (See the picture above). It’s important not to over cook the dal. Drain all the water (make sure there is absolutely no water in the dal) and let the dal cool down for few minutes.
Now transfer the dal to a food processor with the grated jaggery, coconut and cardamom powder. Pulse or grind the whole mixture till smooth. Taste it, if you feel you need more sweet add little more jaggery to it. The purnam mixture is ready.
In case the purnam becomes too soft, that you cannot make round balls out of it- transfer the purnam to a pan and cook on stove in very low medium heat for about 5 to 10 minutes. Remove and let it sit for few minutes, the purnam tends to get dry and firm. Whenever my purnam becomes soft, I transfer my mixture to a microwaveable bowl and cook in the microwave for about 5 minutes with out lid. This makes the purnam dry and easy to roll as round balls

Maida Dough:
• All purpose flour (Maida)- ౨కుప్స్

• Oil- 4 త్స్ప్స్

• 2 pinches of salt
Mix all the above ingredients with some water. The consistency of the dough should be little bit softer than chapathi dough. When you pull the dough, it should stretch easily. Cover the dough and leave it for an hour or two.
Make round balls of the purnam and keep a side.

Now take the maida dough which has been resting for atleast an hour.
How much of dough needed for the purnam?I take dough which is about 1/3rd the size of my purnam ball. The whole idea is that the dough should be less than the purnam.

Now take an aluminium foil, (I used a plastic banana leaf) put some oil/ghee on it. Take the maida dough spread it little bit, then put the purnam ball and close it as shown in the picture.Now at this point you can roll it like a chapathi using a rolling pin or you can just use your hand (Dip some oil in your hands while rolling the bobbatu) and spread it slowly.
What I have done is, instead of using my hands or a rolling pin; I put one more banana leaf on top of the purnam and slowly pressed it down till it formed like a chapathi. I think this is definitely a much easier way of rolling.

Now on pan, put some oil/ghee and cook the bobbatlu on a very low heat.
Right before serving apply some more Ghee to it and enjoy the bobbatlu with your loved once.

Mixed nuts & dates laddu

Ingredients:
• Chopped dry dates- ౧కుప్

• lightly Toasted almonds- 1/4th కప్

• lightly Toasted cashew- 1/4th కప్

• lightly Toasted Dry coconut- 3 tbsps•

lightly Toasted poppy seeds(gasalu)- 2 త్బ్స్ప్స్

• Golden raisins- 1/4th కప్

• Cardamom- ౬

• Grated jaggery- 2 to 3 tbsps(adjust according to your taste)

Procedure:
First grind the poppy seeds in a mixer. Transfer it to a large mixing bowl.Now grind cashews, almonds, coconut,cardamom and jaggery to a fine powder. Remove this mixture and grind the dates to fine powder. Now transfer the rest of the ingredients that were ground and grind it again.
Heat few teaspoons of ghee, add raisins and fry till golden brown. Mix this to the above ingredients and try making a laddoo. If needed add more ghee to this mixture till you can mold it in the form of laddoo.

payasam

Recipe:
Moong dal - 1cup
Jaggery- 1 1/4th cup
Milk- 3 cups
water- 3 cups
Cardamom pods- 3
Few cashews and a tbsp of ghee

To grind:
toasted poppy seeds (gasaalu)- 3tsps
grated fresh coconut- 4tsps
and handful of cashews

grind the above ingredients with half a cup of milk to a smooth paste.

Procedure:
Cook moong dal in two cups of water. Make sure to not over cook it. The dal should still hold its shape. Keep it on a side.
Now in a different vessel add a cup of water and jaggery. Cook it till the jaggery is completely melted. Then add the ground mixture with 3 cups of milk. On a medium heat cook for ten minutes.
Now add the cooked moong dal and stir till everything is well combined. Now simmer this whole mixture for another ten minutes in a low heat.
Turn of the heat.Lastly add the cardamom powder and also fry some cashew in ghee and add it to the payasam.

Rava laddoo

Recipe:
Rava (semolina)- 1

cupCoconut -1/2 (grated)

Sugar - 1/2 to 3/4th cup (adjust acc to your taste)

Ghee- 1/4th కప్or as దెసిరెద్

milk- few తెఅస్పూన్స్

Cardamom- 3 (Powdered)Few cashews and raisins
Procedure:
Using a mixer make fine powder of the sugar.
In a pan put some ghee and fry the rava till light brown and nice aroma comes. Keep it on the side.
In the same pan add few more teaspoons of ghee and fry the freshly grated coconut till it turns pale brown.
Remove the coconut, add a tea spoon of ghee and fry the cashews and raisins till golden brown.
Now mix the rava, coconut, powdered sugar, cardamom powder, ghee, bit of warm milk, cashews and raisins. Try forming a laddoo with your palms. If the mixture is dry, add some more milk. That will work.

Rava Kesari with condensed milk

Ingredients:(Makes about 10 pieces)
1/2 cup semolina (rava)1 1/2 cups water3/4th cup sweet condensed milk (or adjust acc to ur taste)2 tsp ghee2 cardamoms pods finely powderedLittle bit of saffron andA handful of cashews and raisins
In a skillet put half teaspoon of ghee and fry the raisins and cashews till light golden color. Remove and keep it a side.
In the same pan put half teaspoon of ghee and lightly toast the rava in a low heat and keep it a side.
Now take 1 1/2 cups of water and saffron (slightly rub the saffron in your palm, it helps it melt in the water easily) and let them come to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and slowly add the toasted rava and stir continuously for five minutes.
When it starts to thicken, add the condensed milk stirring continuously and making sure the rava doesn’t stick the pan.
Cook for another five minutes. Then finally add one teaspoon of ghee, cashews, raisins and the cardamom powder.
Coat a tray with some ghee and pour the rava kesari in the tray. With the help of little bit of ghee spread the kesari and let it sit for few minutes.
This helps the rava kesari to thicken. Then cut into pieces, offer to the chinni Krishna as neivedyam and serve your loved once.