Healthy Food for Healthy Kids-Combo Meal

Participating in events are fun, because you get to see so many different varieties of food with the same theme and that means more recipes to try in one place!!! I participate in many events and look forward for their round ups so that I get to see what all my friend bloggers have done with the theme.. When Nithu asked me to Guest host the “Healthy foods for Healthy Kids” event, I was so happy to grab this chance that I did not want to miss it.. Thanks to Nithu for giving me the chance to Guest host her Event. I am a strong believer that Home cooked meals are more healthier than the restaurant served meals. Not that I am against eating outside, (I do love to go to restaurants) but that should be kept to minimum for a healthier next generation.. Easier said than done is try out many new recipes, but with these events and their roundups, it makes easier to get many different recipes. Even picky eaters may try to eat new varieties of food and that is what the event and its roundup will help us all. Now this event is about Combo meals, any dish is complete with its accompaniments and side dishes, so how about we get to dishes with a complete plate in there, like a dosai and chutney, breadsticks and marinara, chapathi and paneer masala, chole and batura, fried rice and manchurian… Ah I can think of so many options!!! So here comes the rules for this event.

Rules :
1. Post any vegetarian (no eggs allowed) healthy Combo recipe suitable for kids between 4 to 15 years of age between 10th Sep and 10th Oct, 2012. (We need combo meal recipe and picture. For eg, if you plan to post Fried rice and Gobi manchurian, post the recipe for both and a picture of both the dishes together)
2. Give link to this announcement and Nithu's event announcement. Logo is mandatory  as it helps spread word.
3. Don't worry if you have your recipes in your archives. Just update the post with logo and  link to this announcement and Nithu's event announcement
4. Send your entries to nivedhanams@gmail.com with the subject line as ‘Healthy Food for Healthy Kids-Combo Meal' with the below details.
Name :
Blog Name :
Recipe Name :
Recipe URL :
Picture of your recipe :
4. Non-bloggers are welcome to send recipes. Send recipe in full with the picture and the same subject line as above.
5. Person who sends highest number of entries will be declared as the Winner of the Month. A winner badge will be awarded by Nithu which you can proudly post in your blog:-)
6. I'll acknowledge your entries within 3 days else leave a comment in this announcement.

 Linky tool will open at 12am on Sep 10th.

Dil Pasand / Dil kush

Dil Pasand (liked by heart) is a delicious bakery bun. The outer layer is beautiful flaky and soft and the stuffing is a sweet made with coconut and tutti frutti. It is heaven in the form of this pastry. This is very popular in bakeries and is also called as Coconut Bun. I got this recipe from here and this is a sure crowd pleaser. I have used single color tutti frutti, but if you use multi colored ones, it will be even more pretty!!!

Ingredients
Grated Coconut - 2 cups
Sugar - 3/4 cup
Cardamom Powder - 1/4 tea spoon
Tutti Frutti - 1/2 cup
Nuts - 1/4 cup
Layered Paratha (Frozen) - 6 parathas
Melted Butter - 1 table spoon
Water - 1 tea spoon

Method
Thaw the parathas on counter as per package guidance
Heat coconut in a pan for 3 to 4 minutes on medium heat. The coconut should become dry but no color change should happen
Add the nuts and sauté for 30 seconds.
Add the sugar and cook for another 3 to 4 minutes until the sugar is well dissolved. Do not cook for too long as the sugar will harden
Remove from heat and add the cardamom powder and tutti frutti and allow it to cool
out of 6 parathas, take 3 parathas and cut them 1 inch smaller than the other 3.
Take one of the bigger parathas and spread the coconut tutti frutti mixture leaving about 1 inch from all sides
Now keep the smaller parathas on top of the coconut mixture and seal from all sides. Take help of water to seal it
Arrange the coconut buns on the baking try lined with parchment paper which is greased
Preheat the oven to 180 degrees C
Brush the butter on top of the buns and bake them for 30 minutes
Switch off the oven and allow the buns to be inside the oven for another 15 to 20 minutes
Remove from the oven to a cooling rack to cool
Serve slightly warm or on room temperature
Yummy delicious Dil Pasand is ready!!!

Sending this to my own event – Anniversary event, Taste of the Tropics – Coconut, Chef Mireille’s page, Vardhini's Bake Fest hosted by Archana this month, Fair Foods Event, Pari's Show me your Dessert., Jagruti's I'm well stuffed,  Celebrate - Indian Sweets

  

Chocolate Oats Bar

For third day of the Blogging marathon - Kid's delight, I am including a Chocolate Oats Bar which is a quick and easy snack which also make a great nutritional food on the go. This is done in microwave and can be done in less than 30 minutes, but needs time to set. I got this recipe from here and this is a sure keeper and a big hit with both kids and adults..

Tofu Chocolate Pudding

For this blogging marathon, when I chose Kid's delight chocolate, I immediately thought of this pudding which is simple, healthier than a lot of puddings and looks tempting... Some people like tofu and some people just dislike it so much. This is one such recipe where tofu is not felt. All you remember, feel, taste and indulge in this great pudding is CHOCOLATE!!! It is such a simple recipe to make and is sure a crowd pleaser.. Do not tell the secret ingredient…. TOFU… I got this recipe from here and we loved it.. Make sure to use silken tofu for this.  Also the time kept in the fridge before serving is very critical. More time is in there, more tastier it is. Tofu does not have much taste by itself and longer it is allowed to absorb the chocolate flavor, the more chocolatier this will be!! 3 ingredients and few steps and you have a dish which looks so tempting!!!

Ingredients
Semi Sweet Chocolate Chips - 3/4 cup
Water - 1 table spoon
Silken Tofu - 12 oz. packet
Method
Remove tofu from its packet and allow it to drain all the excess moisture
Combine water and chocolate chips on top of a double boiler and allow the chocolate to melt 80%. Do not wait until all the chocolate is melted, you may scotch the chocolate. Once it is 80% done, remove from heat and keep stirring it and the heat will melt the remaining 20%. Set aside
Puree the tofu until smooth and add the melted chocolate to the pureed tofu
Blend it again until well combined
Refrigerate for at least 2 hours. Longer the better.
Scoop / pipe them into the serving bowls and serve with dusted chocolate, nuts, cherries or as is. We loved it as is...


Sending this to Vaishali's Kid's Delight - Chocolate, Srivalli Page, Preeti's Cooking with Soya, Pari's page , Spotlight: Healthy Snacks, Indrani's page, Jagruti's JCO Events Super Foods, Pari's Show me your Dessert, Spice n Sugar Tales - Cooking made easy with Chocolates, Dish name starts with T


Check out my other blogger friends who are participating in BM#20

Drinking Chocolate

Ever thought you could make cocoa mixes at home? How about trying it if that is super super easy to do.. This is a homemade drinking chocolate that can be drunk hot or cold depending on choice. Sieving is not required if there are no lumps, but is preferred. This one is a quick recipe too and can be made in big batches and stored in an air tight container for at least around 6 months. I got this recipe from here and reduced it by one fourth. This is much healthier than the store bought ones in which GOD knows how much preservatives and extra stuff are added!!!!

Karuvepillai Kuzhambu

When Nupur of UK Rasoi asked me for a post for the "Be my Guest" event, I wanted a very authentic recipe and I chose this one. Karuvepillai, (Curry leaves in English) is a great Indian herb. More predominantly used in South Indian cooking, its flavor, color, taste and aroma are phenomenal. Curry Leaves is very good for health and there are lot of medicinal properties to it – see end of post for health benefits. This is a very authentic recipe. This can be stored in an airtight container for at least a week, may be more. Serve it with hot rice with sesame oil. This is also a great dish to have on hand for lunch boxes. Prepare rice on the day and mix it with the kuzhambu and you have a quick and healthy lunchbox ready. You might feel that this has a lot of oil, but this has about 10 – 15 servings easily. So each serving will get less than a table spoon oil.

Ingredients
Curry leaves - 3 cups (leaves only)
Ulutham Parupu / Urad Dal - 2 table spoons
Kadalai Parupu / Channa Dal - 2 table spoons
Tuvaram Parupu / Toor Dal - 1 table spoon
Black Pepper (whole) - 1 1/2 table spoons
Red Chili - 3 + 1
Coriander Seeds - 3 table spoons
Mustard Seeds - 1/2 tea spoon
Fenugreek Seeds - 1/4 tea spoon
Oil (preferably Sesame Oil / Gingelly Oil) - 1 table spoon + 6 table spoons
Salt - 1 tea spoon
Asafetida - 1/4 tea spoon
Turmeric Powder - 1/2 tea spoon
Tamarind - Golf ball size
Water - 1 cup
Method
Soak tamarind in warm water for about 10 minutes. Take the pulp and set aside
Heat a pan and add a table spoon of oil and roast the dals (channa dal, urad dal, toor dal), coriander seeds and red chili under the dals become lightly golden
Now add the black pepper and roast until golden brown
Remove from heat and allow it to cool
In the same pan, sauté the curry leaves until it looses most of its moisture, but not crisp. This took about 4 minutes on medium flame - continuously stir to avoid burning
Allow the curry leaves to cool
Once cooled grind dal mixture and the curry leaves to a paste and set aside
Heat 6 table spoons of oil in a pan and add mustard seeds. Once the mustard seeds crackle, add fenugreek seeds, red chili and after 10 seconds, add the tamarind pulp
Add turmeric powder, asafetida, salt and cook until the raw flavor of tamarind goes away - about 5 minutes
Add the grinded paste and stir continuously to avoid lumps
Now the mixture would become very thick and oil will start to float on top
Remove from heat and serve

Points to note (about Curry Leaves) – from Timesofindia article (http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2012-08-01/diet/30184194_1_curry-leaf-health-benefits-hair-tonic)
Curry leaf has many medicinal properties. It stimulates digestive enzymes and helps break down food more easily. Have a glass of buttermilk mixed with a little hing (asafetida) with a few curry leaves thrown after meal for good digestion.
A good remedy for nausea and indigestion. Extract juice of curry leaves, squeeze a lime and add a pinch of sugar. Chew a few leaves every day to lose weight
Curry leaves are also known to improve eyesight, so make sure you do not throw away the leaves while eating. It is also believed to prevent cataract. Curry leaves are also good for hair growth and color. If you don't like its raw taste, you can buy the curry leaf powder widely available in the market and have it with dosa or hot rice. You can also make it at home. This will prevent pre mature greying of hair. Alternatively, you can also add a few curry leaves to your hair oil and boil it for a few minutes. Applying this hair tonic will keep your hair healthy. These are just few of the many benefits that the curry leaves possesses. Include this in your daily diet for better health

Sending this Tickling Palate's Legumes and Lentils , South Indian Cooking Series #1 Happy to be part of Nupur's Be my guest event, CWS - Channa Dal, CWS - Urad Dal, Priya's page,