Graham Crackers Recipe | Whole Wheat Crackers For Kids

      Graham Crackers a healthy cookie originally created with graham flour by Sylvester graham. Graham flour is a combination of finely ground unbleached wheat flour and coarsely ground endosperm,wheat bran . It is considered as a health food as a part of graham diet.Graham diet is a special diet following vegetarianism and not to use alcohol .There is abundant of  fresh vegetables,fruits and also has milk and milk by-products. 

Wheat Idiyappam Recipe | Gothumai Idiyappam | Diabetics Recipe

       Wheat idiyappam- a simple and easy to digest breakfast or dinner. Idiyappam is a rice noodle famous in Tamilnadu and Kerala made using murukku press and is a very favorite of my dad. Mom makes it very rare because it's a difficult task to make idiyappam with the wooden press.She instead makes ragi semiya for dinner.

Baked Jeera Biscuits | Healthy Snack Ideas | Wheat Cookies

     Jeera Biscuits a tasty melt in mouth cookies made with whole wheat flour.Nothing can beat the taste of home made baked goodies,cumin biscuits is one among them.I don't make fried items for snack very often either i make sundal or some baked items.I even make sweets very rare.If its an occasion or festival i can make exception.By doing this way we can inspire the younger generations to be more healthy,accept me?    

Palak Puri | Spinach Poori | Breakfast Ideas

       Puri is a deep fried flat bread made with whole wheat flour.One of the major breakfast in north and south India and a favorite food of most people.

Oatmeal Bread | Wheat Oats Bread

          Oatmeal bread-one more bake made without any bread machine.Off late i am baking at least once a week.This has become my hobby, i tried wheat bread with slight variation adding oats flour to it.Most people add bread flour instead of all purpose flour that too in high quantity.It's not the point in making a healthy bread at home (at least to me).So i used less all purpose flour.It came out really good ,equally good compared to store bought bread.

EggLess Cake|Whole Wheat Cake

     Its Christmas time and everybody is cooking Christmas cake, i cooked this simple Whole wheat cake instead.This is a egg less and less sugar cake.If you are a sugar lover then you can add a glaze of sugar and vanilla over the top to give a perfect sugary look.I referred priyas blog to make this Egg less whole wheat cake.
      I don't do much cakes. If i make one I want to give some healthy twist.So i haven't added any sugar glaze to this whole wheat cake.If you are beginner to baking, then you can refer my post basic for beginners.This post gives a perfect start for anyone new in baking cookies and cakes.
 My cakes will be strange like Cheerios avocado cake.But some times i make it simple like Banana oats muffin,
     If you want a simple Christmas cake without no further preparation then you can see my Christmas cake recipe.If you are a fruit lover then there is a Strawberry cake made using fresh strawberry puree.
  All the cakes i do have less sugar keeping in mind sugar will increase the calories intake and not at all good taken regularly.But once in a while to celebrate a fantastic birthday or to enjoy a party you can always add little more sugar ,glaze or frosting to your cakes
    This cake stay good for 2-3 days if stored properly.

Healthy Cake/Avacado Cake

     I wanted to bake healthy cakes for my kid .I know avacado is healthy and i already included them in one of my cake recipe .So i just can't buy cakes from outside.
      For this month Shhh ..Secret challenge sonali pathak gave me avocado and blueberry as the secret ingredient.I was little skeptical about the ingredients first ,then i decided to make a cake with them.The cake was just awesome .
       I added milk and water to this cake .So better place the cake in refrigerator and microwave for 20-30 seconds before serving,if you eating it other day . Its healthy to the core .It was gooey because of the addition of ragi flour .It was soft to the core because of the addition of avocado  .
    My little one loved it a lot .Even my husband was surprised it is made of ragi and avocado .You can add more oil instead of milk to extend its shelf life.

Some other cake recipes

1. Strawberry cake 
2. Cheerios Cupcake
3. Christmas cake

Preparation time:20 min
Cooking time :1 hour -1 1/2 hours
Yields :10 -12 cupcakes

Kothumai Mavu Kolukattai/Easy snack breakfast/Wheatflour Streamed Dumplings

                 This is vinayagar special kolukattai for the coming vinayagar chaturthi festival .Vinayagar likes "aval,pori-kadalai ,arisi kolukattai and appam" literally means "Poha,puffed rice with peanuts,rice streamed dumplings,Sweet deep fried Dumplings".  So try to make at least one for prasadam to please vinayagarand get his blessings.

             This is the easiest of all the kolukattai's ,i mean no stuffing ,no boiling of dumplings mix them and stream them.This kolukattai you can make it as prasad,snack or may be for your dinner or breakfast .

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 Preparation time:10 min
Cooking time:20min
Yields:8 sweet and 10 salt kolukattai

Wheatflour and Jaggery Halwa/Gud Aur Atta ke Halwa

Sweets are famous all over North India they are made of sugar where as in Southern India sweets are mostly made with jaggery in the form of payasam/kheer. In North India the staple food is wheat flour whereas in south India the staple food is rice and rice flour. Accordingly you can find variety of foods made with rice/rice flour in Southern India whereas Northern India has many wheat flour recipes. I have never tried this wheat flour halwa before .

This is a rich and flavourful halwa it resembles the taste of ukkara made in chettinad. I made measurements  using subzi cups used in thali plates.The amount you get is more than enough for 2 servings /2 persons.If you are dieting and still want to enjoy this halwa reduce the ghee quantity to 1/2 mentioned here .

This halwa i made for a challenge from  shh cooking secretly member shailaja .She gave two secret ingredients wheat flour and jaggery then while searching the web i found divinetaste blog and found this wonderful recipe .

Cooking Time:10-12 min

Serves:2

PaniPuri/GolGappeWithWheatflour

            We bloggers need some challenge to make ourselves motivated .I joined  north vs south challenge team on dec 2013.From January i am participating in this challenge and it was so much fun.There are two groups .You guessed it right north team and south team .I belong to south team and have to face the challenge by north team .Every month one challenge will be given and we south team has to finish the challenge with in the same month and post in our blogs .This month north team(prachi) challenged us with golgappa which is everybody favourite .
         This is my very favourite but prachi challenged with more panis for puris and healthy puris with wholewheat flour .As i was in holiday mood i prepared it earlier this month and more over all the ingredients used are easily available in your pantry .So start making it .Its not tough ,after you prepare puri(which takes an hour or so) making pani takes no less than 10 minutes.
       I prepared only 2 types of pani (tamarind and green ) and was not able to take stepwise pictures of the pani making process .When i do it next time sure will update the pictures .

If you are looking for some snack and chat Check
Cheerios Bhel
Oma podi(plain sev)
Chapathi Noodles

Preparation time: 40 min (30 min rest time)
Cooking time:30-40 min
Yields:Around 100 puris(1 cup each chutney)

WholeWheatBread/SoftestWheatBread

            Bread has become the easy and healthy breakfast /Snack .When you are not in the mood to cook some elaborate meal bread comes in handy.Making bread at home i have never imagined it .One fine day i wanted to  try bread recipe that too from WholeWheat flour ,I don't know A or Z in bread baking .I found abundant of recipes but none of them is my choice (either they use egg or they has the long process or i may not have the ingredient they mentioned ),i tried a few of them and it turned out to be a super flop .I saw this recipe at veg recipes and i am happy that i found the right recipe for me .I did little variations in resting time,yeast amount and oven temperature after a few tries .NOW got the perfect whole wheat bread .
           Don't think your bread will be as soft as you get in bakery /shops.For that you need to add little wheatgerm or all purpose flour.Also sometimes it may fall apart.
            Its such a pleasure to make our own breads , somehow needs a little patience and  determination.You can see a very long note at the end ,that tell the stories of my failure .Now to Baking ...

Interested in some baked goodies check

Oats cookie(whole wheat flour)
Strawberry cake(With fresh strawberry)
Avocado cupcake(whole wheat flour)
Oats banana muffins(whole wheat flour)
Granola bars(no bake)

Preparation time:10 minutes apart from (2 hours +1 hour resting)
cooking time :45-55 minutes
yields :1 loaf (10-12 pieces)
Recipe source:vegrecipesofindia(Altered)

Ingredients:

• 3 cups wheat flour
• 1 1/2 tsp active yeast
• 1 tbsp sugar
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 tbsp butter/ghee
• 2 tbsp sour curd/yogurt
• 1 3/4 cups water

Method:

• Combine wheat flour , yeast together .

• Add salt ,sugar and butter as well

• Add Curd/Yogurt and knead it.

• Add (cold) water little by little and combine well  together  .
• mix them well for 3-5 minutes to get the gluten.
• The dough should be sticky and little elastic.

•  Keep it covered and allow it to rise for 2 hours 

               (Before first rise|After the first rise pic 2)

• After 2 hours  slightly punch the dough and fold it in to a roll and seal the edges .

(After punching|Make a fold)

• Keep it in the loaf pan/bread pan and keep it covered for another hour or 2(depends upon the temperature of your place)

(Keep in loaf/bread pan|After second rise)

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees for 10 min.
• Keep the double raised dough and bake it for 40 minutes .
• After its done tap the bottom to see if its done .
• Cool it down (on a wire rack) and slice them and store in a airtight container until further use .

Note:

• To see whether the bread is done :

1. You can insert a thermometer and see the inside temperature is around 200 degrees .
2. You can take out the bread and flip it and tap the bottom ,while tapping if you get a dup sound (means the inside is hollow)its ready to take out of the oven.
3. You can see the bread pull outwards and the upper part of the bread is not soft .
4. The bread should be little browned as well while baking.

Other notes:

• Knead the bread very well until it forms gluten to avoid any failures .

• Temperature of baking and texture of the bread will vary depending upon the oven temperature and flour quality used.
• You can add oil instead of butter( i haven't tried it yet,but sure it wont affect the texture of the bread)
• You can use vinegar instead of curd/yogurt.
• If you are in colder country and trying this recipe, to make the bread soft and the yeast do its work put it in oven with lid and lights on (don't turn on the oven only the lights) so the dough will rise quickly with the temperature of the lights .
• Keep the Proofed dough also in heated oven  if you are baking bread in a coldest day .
• Allow the bread to cool at least for an hour before you cut it, because the bread gets cooked when it cools down (like our pressure cooker we don't take off the foods before the pressure reduces).
• If you don't have a wire rack you can cool the bread by keeping it in vessels crossed(by doing this way the bottom will not become soft).
• If you are living in a warm country you can keep the dough rest for little less time mentioned here .
• You can store the bread in freezer for 2-3 weeks (in an airtight container) .Slice them before hand and store .Reheat it in tava or microwave for 15 -20 seconds
• If you are storing in fridge it may last up to a week.Reheat in tava with or without butter .

Linking it to Bakefest started by vardhini hosted by rafee
linking this to kids delight event of srivalli hosted by priya
Linking it to Harinis bloganniversary event giveaway.

BajraRoti/KambuRoti/HealthyDinnerIdeas

   Pearl millet is bajras english name .Its also called kambu (in tamil),Bajra(in hindi),sajje (in kannada) ,kambam (in malayalam),Sajjalu (in telugu).One good news is- india is the largest producer of this crop ,so we can be happy that we are eating our home grown food .    

       I got 2 packets of bajra flour without knowing what to make with it ,but i know one thing its a whole grain .One fine day i just got this recipe from uma aunty (whom i met in facebook.during the early days she is the one encouraging me in my facebook fanpage very often) and made it ,it was a bit  bitter when i had my first mouth and my huss too felt the same .I made this roti more than 4 times now and we love it a lot ,my little girl too loves her bajra roti much .
        It is essential to add some grains to your diet on a daily basis (according to my opinion).These are the reasons that i say we need to add more grains to our diet.

1. Food now a days are more processed 
2. They get adulterated (like adding stones to your wheat ,adding pesticides to the crops to yield more etc) .

 Do you think that bajra,millet,couscous are the grains .Wheat is also a grain ,which i guess everybody got in their house ?So eat something healthy not a processed food ,will you ?
     

If you are looking for some side dish for this roti check

Malai kofta
Palak dal
Paneer butter Masala
Rajma gravy
Poori bhaji(potato masala for poori)
Channa in peanut curry
Mushroom gravy
Chicken Gravy

Yields :8 small rotis
Preparation time:5 min+(half an hour rest time)
Cooking time:10-15 min

Chapathi noodles/Kids Snack Ideas/Leftover recipes

This is my very favourite item using the leftovers.I saw a TV show long time back and tried this recipe 2-3 times .My husband is not a fan of this dish,so i do it when he is not around .Very easy to put together when you have some left over chapathis in hand .Your kids will be pleased after you make them this noodles. Over all its a healthy colorful snack which vanishes in no time .
You can add  available veggies carrot,corn ,bell pepper ,cabbage ,peas ,broccoli  etc .You can add some tomato ketchup also if your kids like them .

Interested in some easy, healthy breakfast/snack  recipes like

Chili Vegetable kothu parotta
Brushchetta with Rusk
Ragi -oats dosa
Broken wheat upma
Paal kolukattai 
Grilled potato patty(in tava)

Preparation time:10 min
cooking time:10 min
serves:2

Kathi rolls/Paneer Kathi Rolls/North Vs south Challenge

For this month on north vs south challenge minne challenged south team members with her kathi rolls .When i saw that challenge  i was tempted to try it .First of all its savoury then its a  paneer kathi rolls .So i was waiting to try it.I made it for a special occasion on my hus birthday.
 This looks a bit of work but you can finish everything in an hour and half including the chapathis, not tough for a first timer like me making kathi rolls .Getting together all the ingredients is a bit of task .So gather the ingredients together then you can finish in no time .Thanks minni for the wonderful challenge and we enjoyed it a lot .

I didnt add black salt and sugar to salad even then it tasted awesome .I used homemade paneer which i made previous day and stored in refrigerator .For how to make the dough for kathi rolls check the posting here

Total time:1 and half hour
Serves:3

Pulkhas/Parathas/Indian Flat bread

Pulkhas

Pulkas are indian flatbread varieties made with whole wheat flour ,which gets puffed in direct gas or a holed pan placed on gas.These flatbread are the staple food of north india where every state got little variations to the basic recipe in name of roti,parathas,phulkas etc.While we south indians do once in a while  .While whole wheat flour has got many nutrients like protiens (do you believe it got protiens ? i read about it recently).

.How to make pulkas ?how to make parathas ?I know many of you might know how to make one while some of you may not know this.This post is about how i make them .
When i studied college i know only about chapathis my mom makes,While searching for job i got to know it from my aunt .My aunt is expert in north indian cooking .She cooks wonderful phulkas,pavbhaji and methi parathas .I gave tips to many others after i learnt from her ,That is another story .To make phulkas is very easy and involves very little trick and will be good while serving hot with dry curries or dals.

Preparation time:5 min
Cooking time:15-20 min
Yields:10-11 pulkhas

Cheerios avacado cake/Eggless butterless cupcake/Cocoa cheerios cupcake

Valentines day wishes to all readers. I hope all of you enjoyed valentines with your sweet hearts.This year is not like any other years valentines day because I have learnt to bake. I decided to do bake a cake.So I did this cake to my dearies and they loved it ..
Original recipe is not up to the mark and I made several changes that suited me like avocados,whole wheat flour,sugar .

For other simple bake recipes like christmas cake,banana oats muffin.

Preparation time:10 min
Baking time:30 min
Yields:9 cakes

Methi paratha/Vendhayakeerai roti/Fenugreek leaves paratha

Methi in all forms are very good.Because its bitter ,its good for diabetic people .Like other greens its iron rich also.Cleaning of the leaves may be difficult but its worth doing it for your healthy body ,right ?...Leaves should not be cut otherwise you are going to taste its bitterness in the dish you prepare .So whatever you prepare put the leaves full .So that you get the goodness without its bitterness .

I buy methi every week and do methi sambhar,methi dal ,other than that I do this paratha whenever i need a change from dal,sambhar .

If you are looking for a different paratha stuffing check this green channa paratha.

Preparation time:10 min+ 2 hour rest time
Cooking time:20 min
Yields:10

Banana oats muffin/Breakfast muffin/Healthy muffins

I wanted to use up the bananas which were laying in pantry for a long time. My daughter eats morning breakfast at home and goes to school (Even though most kindergarten schools provide breakfast ), so wanted to make her a healthy breakfast alternative apart from cereals (she loves cereals). Oats is a healthy whole grain and it has many benefits lowering cholesterol being one of them.

Muffins when made correctly are an healthy alternative to our staples idly, dosa. No butter not much oil and is  low in calories compared to cakes. No heavy beating of eggs, cream, butter and sugar. Mix the ingredients ,fill the cups ,bake it .Your muffins will be ready .Very easy and they are very very filling too .You can store this for 3-4 days it an airtight container. Kids love eating them whenever they wish .

Preparation time:10-15 min
Cooking time:16-20 min
Yields:8 muffins
Recipe source:health magazine

Wheat Dosa(Step By Step Pics)

         Wheat Dosa :This a quick and easy Breakfast recipe. Whenever you run out of dosa batter or when you are not in the mood to do anything fancy like Poori, Adai dosa or Pesarattu ,you can try this Wheat Dosa. All you need  is wheat flour... you can make this in a jiffy( i added onion,chilies and coriander for added flavour).
      These Wheat  dosa's come in handy when you have had a real long day and but you don't want to wait for any take out orders.I love these Wheat dosas very much ,they go very well with mint-corinader chutney

Preparation time:5 min
Cooking time:30 min
Yields:10-12 dosas

Whole-wheat pizza from scratch

I always love to make everything at home that too from scratch .Its a little tough sometimes but its fun and when i eat them  i will be more than happy.My little girl loves to eat pizza who doesnt love pizza ?So  i wanted to do pizza at home .My concern is  it has to be healthy too .So i searched for whole wheat recipes and i landed here .

This pizza is very soo good as we make it home and we can give kids as much as they like.This wheat pizza uses your pantry ingredients except instant yeast .So enjoy making pizza home and dont forget to write me.

Check my other dinners specials like Pasta with whitesauce,Pineapple salsa,Totillas from scratch

Preparation time:5 min
Rest time:45-50 min
Cooking time:30 min
Yields:2 medium pizza.