Avani Avittam, as I remember, was a day when the men of the family went to the temples, in the morning for performing the Upakarma, in the temples. Upakarma(/upaakarma/) means beginning or “Arambham“, i.e. to begin the study of the Veda (Veda Adhyayanam). For example, Yajur Upakarma means to begin the study of the Yajur Veda. Those belonging to the Yajur Veda observe the Upakarma in the month of Sravana (August-September), on the day of the full moon (paurnami). Why begin study of the Vedas on this particular day? This auspicious day also happens to be the day when Lord Narayana assumed the avatar of Lord Hayagriva. Lord Hayagriva as we all know restored the Vedas to Brahma and also is the God of Knowledge. (Courtesy – Ramanujam.org)
The next question is: why do this every year? In the not too distant a past, Veda Adhyayanam was performed only during the period Avani to Tai (from mid-August to mid-January). Therefore, one is supposed to perform an “utsarjanam” in the month of Tai, i.e., a giving up of the learning of Vedas from Tai to Avani. Just like a Upakarma function there was a Utsarjana function in Tai. The period between January to August was then devoted to learning other branches of our shastras. Thus the cycle of Upakarma and Utsarjana with regard to Vedic studies was established. However, this method took 12 or more years to learn just one veda. Slowly this became impractical and Vedic studies continued throughout the year.
The main purpose of the Upakarma function is to offer prayers and express our gratitude to those rishis who gave us the Vedas — the rishis through whom the Vedic mantras were revealed. These rishis are known as “kaanda rishis”.In the Upakarma Homam as well as in the tarpanam, the offerings are made to the kaanda rishis. In fact this tarpanam is so important that it is included as part of our daily worship.
On the Avani Avittam day(the full moon day bearing the nakshatra “Avittam” in the tamil month of Avani) Brahmins after a holy dip ,change the sacred thread and wear a new holy thread. This ritual is known as Upakarma, which means beginning. The sacred thread is referred as ‘Poonool,’ ‘Yajnopavita’ or ‘Janeyu.’
Today`s lunch menu was a little spread, consisting of:
An award in the world of blogging comes as a sweet surprise to anyone and so did it when I received it from my sweet fellow bloggers – Lata Raja of Flavours and Tastes from Ghana, and EC of SimpleIndianFood. Thanks a ton Lata and EC…you guys really made my day!!! In our everyday lives, we do try to be a little different and creative in our cooking , when its a dish for a festival, or a special dinner for hubby dear or even a small evening snack for our kids!!! But well, the awards from fellow bloggers is a whole different thing to me!!!
The Kreativ Blogger award comes with its own rules!!!
1. You must thank the person who has given you the award.
2. Copy the logo and place it on your blog.
3Link to the person who has nominated you for the award.
4.Name 7 things about yourself that people might find interesting.
5. Nominate 7 other Kreativ Bloggers.
6. Post links to the 7 blogs you nominate.
7. Leave a comment on which of the blogs to let them know they have been nominated.
Here are a few interesting things about myself….Well…as far as I know this is me…
I love anything creative and I yearn to create anything of interest…It could be a simple butterfly from a piece of rag, a new dish from leftovers, little pots of painted terracota, containers from coconut shells etc. I try to find different uses for everyday things!!!
I love watches and I used to be a watch freak buying one every few months whenever I used to feel like it. One one hand, I love the Titan Ragas, the movados, espirit, edge, and even the ones made from fabric….Strange huh?
I love cooking anything and when people I love, enjoy my meal, of what I have cooked for them, I feel so satisfied….I do put in a lot of devotion in my everyday meals with the faith that it tastes much better then ever.
Pictures and photography enthralls me. Angles, lighting, lines of the structure, sharpness, colour depth, detail, everything. I study and drink it in all the details deep.
I collect Ganeshas in all colours, shapes and sizes. When I was in India,I tried offering one lily flower everyday to all my Ganeshas, and found it way too difficult , much to the amusement of my “Pookari”.
Travelling is almost a passion. It could be a small locale very close to home or a place as beautiful as Venice, Egypt, Paris or Greece.
Music is also a passion from when I was a little girl. I crave for good music in any form. I listen to Carnatic Classical, Western Classical, Western Pop, regardless of the language or band.
I nominate the following 7 people for the Kreativ Blogger Award from my end.
It`s that time of the year when your throat is tempted to reach out and grab bottles and bottles of cold water, lemonade, fruit punches or simply any icy milk shakes. One of the most commonly available fruit at this time of the year is the Watermelon. As the name itself suggests, Watermelon is packed with some of the most important anti-oxidants in nature. It`s also a very good source of Vitamin C as well as Vitamin A.Watermelon has an extremely high water content, approximately 92%, giving its flesh a crumbly and subtly crunchy texture and making it a favorite thirst-quenching fruit.
How to Select a Good Fruit:
The best way to choose a flavorful melon is to look at the color and quality of the flesh, which should be a deep color and absent from white streaks. If it features seeds, they should be deep in color.
Many times , however, we do not have this liberty when purchasing watermelon since it is more common to buy a whole, uncut fruit. When choosing a whole watermelon, look for one that is heavy for its size with a rind that is relatively smooth and that is neither overly shiny nor overly dull. In addition, one side of the melon should have an area that is distinct in color from the rest of the rind, displaying a yellowish or creamy tone. This is the underbelly, the place that was resting on the ground during ripening, and if the fruit does not have this marking, it may have been harvested prematurely, which will negatively affect its taste, texture and juiciness. For the most antioxidants, choose fully ripened watermelon and eat it as soon as possible. (Courtesy – Whole Foods).
INGREDIENTS:
Watermelon chunks roughly chopped.
1/2 spoon of Roohafza.
1 spoon of Edible Rose Water.
A few shavings of grated ginger.
A few sprigs of mint leaves.
1 spoon of Honey.
PREPARATION:
Pop all the chunks of watermelon in to the mixer.
Add honey, roohafza, edible rose water, ginger gratings and give it a quick whip.
Pour in to a chilled glass just before serving.
Serve with mint.
Hints:
Great, Easy and healthy drink for kids in the evenings after school.
Chilling the glasses keeps the drink in it also cooler for a longer time for your guests.
Some people do not prefer the aroma and taste of rose. Substitute with ginger and lemon and mint.
Ammini Kozhukattais – I have no clue about the origin of that name and how we came about calling that delicacy that. I know that whenever we set out to make Uppu Kozhukattais and Vella Kozhukattais, we would normally have the outer dough leftover and so amma would always make these mini delicacies!!! In my heart, I am guessing she would purposely have more of the outer dough so we could make this !!! We have this scooped up in a little container, and eat them just like that. Many times I also love to have it as a side for curd rice along with pickle. The preparation is hardly more than 2-3 steps so here goes.
The outer dough of Kozhukattais have negligible salt. So take the dough and add sufficient powder salt and mix it in by kneading well. If you feel the dough is a little dry, add a few drops of coconut oil to your hands.
Make a smooth ball.
Greasing your hands, shape it in to smaller balls, say, the size of naphthalene balls and keep covered in a bowl.
Balls rolled ready for steaming.
Complete the dough by making small balls and arrange on greased idli plates.
Steam them in the pressure cooker without weight for 10 minutes on high. As they have already been cooked once, it will cook in steam pretty fast.
Once the cooker is switched off, wait for a few minutes and collect all the balls on the serving bowl.
In a seasoning kadai, add 2 spoons of oil. When hot, add broken urad dhal, mustard, green chillies, hing and curry leaves.
Drop over the kozhukattais and mix well.
Delicious Mini/Ammini Kozhakattais are ready to be served.
Serving Suggestions & Hints:
It`s a great dish to make along with your kids, as they love to roll the dough in to small balls.
Since it does not need a filling, there is no hard and fast rule on the shape.
Easy to make with rice flour and hence a very healthy fast preparation.
Cooked twice so its healthy for the toddlers as well as for older people.
These kozhukattais are best eaten plain all by themselves.
Another option is to soak it in steaming hot rasam and serve them as Rasam Balls or with Molagapodi and Gingely Oil.
YUM anyway!!!
Sending cups of steaming hot Kozhakattais to Shruthi`s Steamed Treats Event at her blogsite.
My little Silver Ganesha with a cocktail umbrella.
Every year Vinayaka Chathurthi is celebrated all over the world as the day on which Lord Ganesha, the son of Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvathi bestows his presence on this earth. Vinayaka Chathurthi in my home essentially marks the beginning of good times and of course all other festivals. In Madras, the entire shopping streets are filled with colourful umbrellas and lovely colourful statues of Ganeshas in all sizes and colours. Many people also prefer to buy the plain Ganeshas made of clay and decorate it with flower garlands. Amma and me used to go to PondyBazzar and she would let us choose the idol and the accompanying umbrella to go with it. One time I had a foldable umbrella that I had got during the chathurthi celebrations and refused to part with it for months!!! We would also get as assortment of fruits like wood apple, jamun fruit, apples etc and the signature pooja element which was a lovely green banana leaf, filled with “Arugampullu” and pink flowers. Laden with all this, we would come home excited to set up the mandal for the Lord.
Amma would have already cleaned and decorated the spot with lovely “maakolams“. Maakolam is different from the regular kolams that we use everyday outside out homes. Its simply rice soaked and ground to a fine paste and used to decorate the floors during weddings and festive seasons. The Kolam would be dry and Madurai amma would first place a wooden platform and cover it with silk. She would then gingerly place the Lord on the platform, decorate his neck with little garlands made of flowers and then place a dhoti around him. We would then finally position the colorful umbrella and the stage would be resplendent with his form. The naivedhyam would be Vella Kozhakattais, Uppu Kozhakattais and of course Ammini Kozhakattais. The fruits would be offered to him and Madurai amma would then start the pooja.
In the evenings, we would some times watch the procession of the Ganesha moving towards the beach. Many times, we would visit the nearby temples and get his blessings. Last year I made my own umbrella for the Lord, using sticks and colorful yarn. I also decorated my little silver Ganesha, in my pooja room with a cocktail umbrella!!!
There are essentially two ways of making the dough…One is by soaking the rice and grinding it, which is pretty elaborate but very tasty, and the other is using rice flour. I shall explain both the procedures below.
KOZHAKATTAI DOUGH BY SOAKING RICE:
1 cup of raw rice.
A pinch of salt.
Coconut oil.
Water as required.
PREPARATION:
Soak the raw rice for 2-3 hours and grind in the mixer or grinder to a smooth batter. It does not matter how much water you use as it gets cooked in it finally.
Pour the batter in to a kadai. Make sure that there are no clots and add 1/2 -3/4 spoon of salt and a spoon of coconut oil.
Switch on the stove setting it on medium low and keep stirring to avoid clots.
After a few minutes, you will find that the water content is rapidly used up to cook the rice batter, and it slowly thickens.
After a few more minutes, it will thicken and be cooked. The signs for that is you will find that when you stir, it comes together as a ball.
Also the whiteness of the raw rice will give way to a very slightly off white cooked rice ball.
Immediately transfer to a bowl and add a spoon of coconut oil.
With your hands, knead the ball inside the bowl by smoothing it and bring it together. This step is very integral as this is what binds the dough and takes away the stickiness.
This is a VERY IMPORTANT step and many people fail at this point not doing this. Please use gloves if needed and keep kneading the dough until you feel its a pliable dough that can be shaped easily with no dryness and no cracks.
At this point, the dough should be able to seamlessly shape in to a ball.
Set aside in the bowl and cover with a lid.
Kozhakattai Outer Dough.
KOZHAKATTAI DOUGH USING RICE FLOUR:
1 cup Rice Flour.
2 cups of water.
A pinch of salt.
2 -3 Tsp Coconut Oil.
Gloves if required to knead slightly hot/warm dough.
Bowl to knead the dough.
Ktchen Towel/ Damp Paper Towel.
PREPARATION:
Please measure all ingredients ahead and keep everything required close at hand.
In a kadai, pour the water, add coconut oil and salt and allow to boil.
On spotting the first boil, immediately, simmer the stove and add the measured 1 cup of rice flour in to the water.
Use a whisk and remove all the clots quickly. This step is very helpful to act quickly so you have no clots.
With a spatula, rapidly stir in the mixture as if will thicken using the water to cook the rice.
As before, keep stirring until you see that the water is all gone and the entire batter scoops up in your ladle as a single mass.
Stir for a few more minutes until you are satisfied and the batter does not stick. This would happen ONLY if the water is not used up so do not fret.
Transfer to a bowl, add 1-2 Tsp of coconut oil and knead well to form a homogeneous ball.
This is a VERY IMPORTANT step and many people fail at this point not doing this. Please use gloves if needed and keep kneading the dough until you feel its a pliable dough that can be shaped easily with no dryness and no cracks. Add 1-2 Tsp oil if you require.
Keep this dough covered with a damp kitchen towel and cover the bowl with a lid. This is required to keep the dough moist and not dry out.
Now you are ready with the outer dough to start making Sweet and Salty Kozhukattais.
Coffee – The name itself conjures up the word “comfort” and all thats nice …Love for coffee has been something that runs in my family. When I was in school, my mom had barred me from having coffee as the staple drink in the morning. When I was into higher secondary, I started on having coffee in the mornings. Maduraiamma would scoop out coffee from the sole coffee canister and press it in to the coffee filter. Thereafter pour piping cups of water and drain out the precocious decoction and collect it in an air tight container vessel which would lock the flavour of the decoction until the next morning. Her coffee was something awesome, the kind that wakes u up and prepares you for the day ahead…. Thick decoction poured in to milk boiled on the stove to perfection with just the right amount of sugar in it. I have never felt the need to add more sugar or to alter the prepared taste of her coffee.
My husband is also a coffee lover and had been wanting to have cold coffee as he was on liquid diet because of teeth extraction. I used to love cold coffee from Geetha Cafe, in T.Nagar. They have a way of making it so deliciously coffeeish with the right amount of ice cream and milk and sugar. They serve in their tall glasses with a lot of cream on top!!!
INGREDIENTS:
3 scoops of Trader Joe`s Coffee Ice Cream (Vanilla Ice Cream should do too).
1/8 cup of Coffee Decoction from percolator.
1 spoon of Sugar.
1/2 cup of milk.
Low fat Cream for topping. (Optional).
1/3 spoon of Arabica Instant Coffee Powder for topping.(Optional).
PREPARATION:
In a blender add the 3 scoops of Ice Cream, Decoction, sugar and half of the milk.
Give it a quick pulse and also make sure that the contents of the blender do not splash out.
This is the reason we are not adding all the milk upfront.
When the contents are well whisked, add the remaining milk and give it a quick pulse.
Pour in to a serving glass and top with whipped cream and sprinkle coffee powder.
Serve CHILLED.
HINT:
If you are using the plain Vanilla Ice Cream then you would need to increase the Coffee Decoction to be added or in turn, add a spoon of Instant Coffee Powder, to the blender, for that coffee flavour.
Garlic Rasam was not something that we would make at home a lot…In fact Maduraiamma would never ever have garlic. Over the years Amma used to make her version of this Rasam and my sister D would love it. I make two versions of this Rasam – One with Toor Dhal and the other without. Although not even adding Toor Dhal would rob the Rasam essentially of the protien, on those lazy days when you want to finish cooking as soon as possible and curl up to have it watching a nice movie or read an absorbing book….I make the quick version of it!!!
INGREDIENTS:
2 cups of Tamarind Water Extract.
1 tomato
5 Garlic Pods
Salt
Turmeric
1 Spoon Rasam Powder.
Seasoning:
Mustard Seeds, Jeera, Hing, Curry Leaves, 3 Red Chillies, and 1 spoon of Ghee.
PREPARATION:
In a mixer jar, add a tomato, 2 pods of garlic and some tamarind water and give it a quick pulse. Pour this in to the vessel with the tamarind water and place on the stove on medium low.
Add salt, turmeric, rasam powder,hing and curry leaves to the tamarind water.
In a small frying pan add a spoon of ghee and when its hot, add jeera, mustard, 3 mashed garlic pods, 3 red chillies, and curry leaves and add this to the tamarind water.
Allow this to boil for 20 minutes or until the raw smell is gone.
Switch off and garnish with chopped corriander and curry leaves.
Enjoy Hot Garlic Rasam with Alu Fry or Carrot Subji.
Jackfruit has been a fruit that I have always loved since my childhood. Whenever Amma used to take us shopping in T.Nagar, and I would get the aroma of ripe jackfruits, neatly arranged on plantian leaves, covered with wire mesh, I would beseech her to buy it for me. Amma used to tell me stories of her childhood, when Maduraiamma would get an entire jackfruit for Vishu. It used to be an elaborate procedure to oil your palms and patiently take out the ripe fleshy parts encased so delicately between rows and rows of fibers. But the labor would be well worth the wait just to take a bite of the succulent fruits.
Jackfruit is definitely high in sugar and carbs but eating it once a while is definitely not a problem. It`s said to be rich in potassium and lowering blood pressure levels. It`s also believed to cure ulcers and rich in anti-oxidants. The seeds of the jackfruit is also edible and used in many preparations . I had been craving for this fruit for a long long time and when I saw this fruit stocked in Patel`s in Chicago, I had to have it. I enjoyed its sweetness and aroma everyday over the last week. almost felt I was in Madras !!!!
One of the most misunderstood vegetables over the years has been the Cabbage. It almost sends kids scurrying away from the dinig tables, as many children do not particularly find the smell of cooked cabbage palatable or even bearable.Cabbage is a sturdy, strong and abundant vegetable. Hardy and easy to grow, it is almost universally available in all countries and cultures. Cabbage belongs to the all important family of cruciferous vegetables. The members of this family of vegetables are so named for their cross shaped (crucifer) flower petals. Rich in nutrition and fiber, cabbage is an absolutely phenomenal source of Vitamin C. Even more impressive is that cabbage is famous for a specialized, naturally occurring, nitrogenous compound known as indoles. Current research indicates that indoles can lower the risk of various forms of cancer.
I always cook cabbage in south indian preparations like Cabbage Molagootal, Cabbage Kootu and easy Cabbage poriyal. But employing this in a subzi as a side for rotis was something that Ive always liked. This one is very tasty and delicious and completly negates the unacceptable aroma of cabbage cooking. Try it and your family would be hooked. In fact, they wouldn`t even guess that cabbage is the main ingredient.
INGREDIENTS:
1/2 a cabbage sliced long and thin.
1 Potatoe sliced long.
2 carrots sliced long.
1 big tomato chopped in to small pieces.
A handful of peas
1 onion sliced in to thin crescents.
1 – 1 1/2 spoons of Corriander Powder.
Pinch of Garam Masala Powder.
Salt to taste.
Seasoning:
Oil
Jeera
1 tsp Ginger Garlic Paste (I make this fresh).
PREPARATION:
You can pre-cook the potatoes, carrots and cabbage in the microwave for 3 minutes so it saves time on the stove. Keep aside.
In a kadai, add 2-3 spoons of oil and for seasoning, the jeera, ginger garlic paste and allow a couple of minutes for the seasonings to saute in the oil.
Now add the onions and allow to saute till they are cooked.
Add Potatoes , Peas, carrots and cabbage to the kadai and mix in well.
Sprinkle enough salt, turmeric,garam masala and the corriander powder and incorporate the flavours together.
After 5-6 minutes, make a small hole in the middle of the kadai and add the finely chopped tomato.
I guess this is done as the tomatoes do not make the subzi mushy but use the heat of the vegetables around it to slowly cook and add flavour.
Cover the kadai and cook on a medium low flame until the vegetables are done about 80%.
Cooking the vegetables completely makes the dish mushy but we need them be seperate and a little crunchy.
Garnish with chopped corriander and serve Hot with Parathas or rotis.
The best thing about summers when I was a little girl was the fact that I had unlimited supply of books to read, time to play, helping amma in the kitchen, shopping walks now and then, cutting veggies, and most importantly, mmy favourite cousins would visit us for 2 whole months!!! Reading in my opinion is the best way to spend lazy summer vacation afternoons….Summers also remind me of juicy Banganapalli Mangoes, fragrant in their aroma from miles away and of course the water fruits like watermelons and the tender cucumbers. The footpaths would be lined with mounds of green watermelons stacked one on top of the other. We would buy a big one, get it home, and make little crescents for all of us to eat. At the end of it, we would be so messy with the watermelon juice and seeds, that amma would send us right in to wash up and have a bath!!!
This summer, my daughter S was also excited to see watermelons and honeydew and cantaloupes. She loves to help me in the kitchen so I got this little Melon Scooper from Walmart which is a really creative way of scooping out little rounds of fruit. We both do that and pop them in to a large glass bowl, covered with cling film , ready to be served chilled.
We scoop out entire fruits which are firm like apples and bananas and refrigerate them so you have little cups of mixed fruit ready for your little ones when they come home from school or from a tiring evening at the park.
Kids love the variety of the shape and the infusion of colour which makes this a healthy and interesting snack.
Add a scoop of ice cream for a lovely after dinner dessert!!
Add custard to have a whole new taste. Pop a few in your morning cup of cereal for your fruit serving for the day.
Use as a topping over oats.
Pack a boxfull for an easy travel snack.
The simplicity of the shape renders them easy for kids/toddlers to scoop and eat!!!
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Anubhavati -Tastes from my kitchen 