Ginger Tea

Happy New Year everyone! I am posting my first recipe for this year that is simple yet addictive and refreshing - Ginger tea.  Most of you love it. Don't you? Tea can be prepared using different aromatic ingredients like cardamom, cloves, ginger, cinnamon.

Serves 2

Ingredients:

Tea leaves - 3 tsp

Water - 1 cup

Milk - 1 cup

Sugar - 3 to 4 tsp

Grated ginger - 1/2 tsp 

and/or

Crushed Cardamom - 3

Method:

In a pan, add 1 cup of water, grated ginger and/or cardamom and bring it to a boil. 

Add tea leaves and let it boil for 1-1.5 minutes. Filter and set aside.

Boil milk in another pan and add the tea decoction and sugar. 

Stir and serve hot with biscuits or snacks.

I have tried a few tea brands. Some of my favorites are - Wagh Bakri, Three roses, Society, Taj Mahal.

Peni (Crispy Noodles Soaked in Badam Milk)

Satisfy your sweet cravings with this delicious Peni in 5 minutes! This is usually served in weddings.
Peni is available readymade in stores which makes this dish super easy to prepare.

Serves 1

Ingredients:
Haldirams Peni/Pheni/Feni - 1
1/2 cup Badam Milk
Saffron and pistachios to garnish

Method:
For badam milk, mix 1/2 cup milk, 2 tsp MTR Badam milk powder, 1-2 tsp sweetened condensed milk, saffron and heat for 5 minutes.
Take one piece of peni in a bowl, pour the warm badam milk and garnish with pistachios or sliced almonds.
Your dessert is ready in 5 minutes!

Tomato Adai

Ingredients:
Idly Rice + Raw Rice - 3/4 cup
Thur Dhal + Channa Dhal - 3/4 cup
Coconut - 1/2 cup
Red Chillies - 1
Green Chilli - 1
Salt
Tomato - 2
Hing - 1/4 tsp
Jeera - 1.5 tsp
Coriander leaves and curry leaves to garnish

Method:
Soak the dhals and rice together for 2 hours.
Rinse. Add chopped tomatoes, red chilli, green chilli, salt, hing and coconut.
Grind in a mixer or grinder adding water little by little to a coarse batter.
The mixture should be thick like idly/dosa batter.
Add jeera, coriander leaves and curry leaves and mix.
Heat a griddle. When hot, pour a ladle full of batter and spread in a circular motion.
Drizzle a drop of coconut oil and few drops of cooking oil around the corners.
When one side turns golden brown, flip and cook the other side. It takes at least 2 minutes to cook on each side.
Serve hot with idly podi or avial.

Note: For regular adai, skip the tomatoes.