Whitish meals

Guruji's posts made me change my whole food eating habits. Long ago, all of a sudden he said, don't eat tomatoes, and i was breaking my head why did he say that. Now it makes sense. So this is for my guruji, without red coloured ingredients, only whitish food. Suraika is also ruled out. Will cut that out in subsequent versions.

Paneer in cashew, til, coconut pepper-cumin gravy, flavoured with black salt, cloves, cardamom, nutmeg with ajwain poori

Vaazhai poo for mor kootu

Salem's malai nellika

velrika

Top: L-R Vaazhai poo more kootu, Vaazhai thandu more kootu, nellika thayir pacchadi, kosambari

Bottom:L-R Curd, rice, poosanika kootu, Jawarisi/Saabudaana pal payasam

Vaazhai poo and Vaazhai thandu more kootu

• Remove stigma, finely chop plantain flowers, transfer to buttermilk, so that it doesn't darken
• Boil in slow flowers in slow flame with salt as per need
• Once soft and cooked, add coconut paste
• Do tadka with mustard seeds, curry leaves

Nellika thayir pacchadi

• Boil nellika, once soft mash it (mixie or wooden matthu kattai)
• Add curd, coconut paste
• Add fried mustard seeds and curry leaves

Cucumbar kosambari

They serve this way in Raghavendra swamy mutt, Karnataka homes. In Thanjavur side, it is typically cucumber curd salad. Finally decided to make kosambari instead of curd salad.

• Finely chop cucumber
• Add soaked yellow moong dal and scraped coconut
• Add fried mustard seeds and curry leaves, add salt before serving

Poosanikai Kootu

• Boil finely chopped poosanikai in little water till soft and tender
• Add coconut cumin seed paste
• Add fried mustard seeds and curry leaves

Jawarisi pal payasam

• Soak sabudana/jawarisi and boil till soft in milk
• Add jaggery, ellaichi to boiled sabudaana and cashew, almonds, raisins fried in ghee

Today mom did all the cooking and hence watery payasam. Wanted to make coconut pepper chutney, butter jeera rice, coconut rice, white pulao, khas-khas payasam, left it, since mom was cooking. 

Weekend in village

frangipani

cockscomb

Tecoma stans/Yellow bells/ Yellow trumphet/ sonnapatti

Chevvarali/kaner/kaaraveer/Nerium oleander

 

Sheer labour behind the food on plate

 

Panyaram on sunday with pepper coconut chutney

Same panyaram on saturday with pepper coconut chutney

Two days flew by, same panyaram yet mind craved for more. Maag cauvery snana, village surroundings. Sheer bliss!!!

சுண்டைக்காய் | बृहती | Turkey Berry | Solanum torvum

Sundaika flowers in backyard right next to water tank

This always available whenever i visit akka

Sundaika is one of the satvik vegetables says my guruji. Have always been used to eating sundaika from cousin's place which are never bitter. These non bitter ones grow intertwined with lots of kovai leaves and siru kurinjaan leaves. Akka's sundaika leaf edges are relatively less sharper compared to bitter ones.

Medicinal benefits:

• medplants explains its use world over with its many regional names.
• traditionalindianmedicine talks about its use for strengthening bones.
• Good for getting rid of stomach gas, stomach ulcers

Sundaika flowers in closeup, as if yellow palms are folded in prayer

Found this early morning on the way from cauvery river, leaves are unlike backyard sundaika

Roadside sundaika

Roadside sundaika in the morning

Backyard sundaika growing intertwined with so many other plants

These ones are not bitter, leaf edges are markedly different

Poosanikai which had climbed up gooseberry tree

BIL climbed up on ladder to get three

Poosanika which had climbed gooseberry tree

In villages, prices of green leaves is quarter that of towns. So bought green leaves from seller who came near home. Poosanika was from backyard.

Arisi pal payasam, keerai sambhar, poosanikai kootu, sundaika poriyal, puliotharai, curd

Sundaika Poriyal:

• Splutter 1/4 tbsp mustards and curry leaves in oil/ghee
• Add fresh green sundaika, add salt pepper as per taste and stir
• Leave covered in slowest flame, it would be soft and cooked in 5 minutes

Poosanikai Kootu:

• Boil poosanika pieces in adequate water and keep aside once soft and cooked
• Splutter mustards, 4-5 pepper and curry leaves in ghee
• Add boiled poosanika, cumin coconut paste, stir for a minute and take it off the flame

Keerai kootu:

• Wash and cut green leaves
• Boil cut leaves with soaked moong dal, a little turmeric, pepper salt in little quantity of water. 
• Once cooked, take it off the flame and mash it well
• Splutter mustards, curry leaves, cumin seeds,  in ghee
• Add mashed green leaves dal paste

Akka made sundaika poriyal, amla poriyal, poosanika poriyal

Sundaika dal with agathi keerai chapathi with paal kollukattai