ABC Halwa

“A” for apple, “B” for banana, “C” for carrot - No, I am not teaching you the English alphabets. In fact, these are the three main ingredients for this “halwa” and hence the name ABC Halwa.

Though I got this recipe some months back from a cookery show on one of the TV channels, I decided to try this out now as a celebration – for your info, “Ladle Brush and Spade” completes four years this September. It was four glorious years of blogging.  I enjoyed every bit of it and I owe it to you all for making it possible and in the process, I made a lot of new friends. I thank each one of you for your continued support and encouragement.

By the way, the halwa turned out very delicious. This is not just my opinion but also that of my family members and neighbour. Besides, it disappeared from the plate within minutes of serving!

Ingredients:

Apple (peeled and cubed)	1/2 cup
Carrot (peeled and grated)	1/2 cup
Banana (peeled)	1 small
Milk	1-2 tbsps
Sugar	1/2 cup
Ghee	1 tbsp
Cashews (chopped)	6-8
Cardamom powder	1 tsp

Method:

1. Grind together cubed apple and grated carrot alongwith a tablespoon of milk.
2. Then add banana and grind again to a smooth paste.
3. Heat a non-stick kadai or pan and pour the ground mixture into it. Add sugar and stir well keeping the flame low.
4. Then add ghee and stir it. Keep on stirring time and again so as to avoid the mixture from sticking at the bottom of the vessel.
5. When the mixture starts leaving the sides of the vessel, add chopped cashews and continue stirring till all the moisture has been evaporated and the whole mixture turns into one solid mass.
6. Finally add the cardamom powder and mix well and remove from flame.
7. Slide the entire mixture onto a greased plate and spread it evenly with the back of a greased spoon/spatula.
8. Allow it to cool and when completely cooled, cut it into squares and store it in an air-tight container.

Ingredients

Apple- peeled and cubed, banana peeled, and  carrot grated

All the fruits with milk ground to a paste

Sugar added to the fruit mixture

The mixture turned into a solid mass after 35-40 mins

The halwa spread on a greased plate and left to cool

Preparation time : 20 mins

Cooking time : 35-40 mins

Makes : 16 pieces

Note:

• The banana variety used here is the small one which is called "Yelakki" in Karnataka and "Elaichi" in Maharashtra.
• In the original recipe, the halwa was served hot with ice-cream and was not cut into pieces.

Morkolombu

Hello friends ! It's almost a month since my last blog post. I have been quite busy this festive season. Celebrated Ganesh Chaturthi as usual in our ancestral home in Katapady, Udupi district. After our return, it really took awhile for me to get back to my normal routine.

I thought I shall cook up something easy and a healthy dish. I had a large piece of ash-gourd in my fridge. I cut it into half and decided to try this recipe “Morkolombu” from my collection. Unfortunately, this vegetable is not everybody's cup of tea. I too was never fond of this vegetable. But I guess as we mature with age, our tastes differ.  By the way, this humble vegetable is loaded with nutrients. And this dish really tasted delicious.
 

Just for info this vegetable is also called as “Winter Melon”. In konkani, it is called “Kuvaalen” and in kannada it is known as “Boodhi-Kumbllakai” and in Hindi, I think it is known as “Lauki”. Please correct me if I am wrong.

Ingredients:

Ash gourd	About 500 gms
Coconut gratings	1 cup
Green chilies (slit)	2 or 3
Buttermilk	1 cup
Turmeric	1/2
Salt	As per taste
Seasoning ingredients:
Oil	2 tsps
Mustard	1 tsp
Curry leaves	1 sprig
Jeera (cumin)	1 tsp
Pepper corns (crushed)	3 or 4

Method:

1. Wash, peel the skin and de-seed the ash-gourd. Then cut it into big chunks and keep aside.
2. Grind coconut gratings with little water to a smooth paste and set aside.
3. Heat a pot/pan with little water and add the cut pieces of ash-gourd, green chilies, turmeric powder and salt. Mix well and allow it to cook.
4. Next add the ground coconut paste into the cooked ash-gourd bits. Bring to boil and simmer for 5 minutes.
5. Finally add the buttermilk, mix well and allow it to simmer for awhile again and then remove from flame.
6. Morkolambu is ready.
7. For seasoning:
   Heat a seasoning pan and in it add oil and mustard seeds and jeera. When the mustard seeds stars spluttering, add curry leaves and finally add the freshly crushed pepper corns. Remove from flame and pour the entire contents onto the prepared Morkolombu.
8. Serve hot.
   
   

Ingredients

Coconut gratings ground into a paste

ash-gourd bits being boiled with green chilies, turmeric and salt

ground coconut paste added to the boiled ash-gourd

Buttermilk added to the mixture

Seasoning under process

Seasoning added to morkolombu

Preparation time : 20 mins

Cooking time : 20 mins

Serves: 4

Note:

• This tastes good with rice. Similar preparation can also be made with bottle gourd.
• The final dish should not be watery.