Thursday, October 9, 2008

Navrathri Special!!

Wishing you all a very Happy Navrathri!!
Navrathri/Dussehra,a festival which absolutely needs no introduction.I've read many bloggers getting nostalgic about the festival,my experience is also similar.One thing I clearly remember is flaunting Navrathri as "our own festival" among friends.Living in Kerala,we were always given second glances when we said we don't celebrate Onam/Vishu.Then what do you celebrate?was the usual query.Navrathri and Deepavali,I used to say without hestitating.Even now,when someone talks about this,I get so excited!!;-)

Haldi-kumkum,is a custom which we followed religiously and I have continued the tradition.We keep a collection of dolls-golu/kolu,make sundal and sweet and invite people over(and wait for them to invite us;-).We usually keep a basket with betel leaf, supari, haldi, kumkum, coconut, banana,bangles,sacred thread and a one rupee coin.People have made innovations and now some of them keep holy books,blouse piece etc.I remember,I was amma's companion during these trips and I absolutely loved getting so many bangles.One thing I disliked was,yes,being asked to sing.One song,a small song,one line..hmmm.There was one place where all of us loved to go,because that aunty would give us pretty looking notebooks and pencils with erasers.How much we used to love that and almost fought for the better looking lot.Amma felt so embarassed when we did such silly things and we still laugh about it.I could see a similar enthusiasm when I gifted small kids the same..!!!

I badly wanted to do something like Sangeeth,posting daily about the day's sundal and sweet.No,it isn't due to the lack of time.My computer is acting funny these days and I am not able to edit the photos in Picasa(without which the photos look..hmmm) and I don't feel like taking pictures at all..but I did manage to click some and here they are.

The small golu that I kept,thanks to a dear friend who got it for me from Mylapore(Thank you GK) .
A closer view of the Ashtalakshmi idols.

All set for the days Aarti(and to devour the goodies!)Chavli/Alsande/Karamani Sundal and Beetroot Rava Kesari.

Another look..and the recipe.

Beetroot Rava Kesari

Ingredients

Beetroot grated – 1 cup
Rava – 1 cup
Sugar – 1 cup
Water – 1 ½ cups
Maggi coconut milk powder* - 1 packet-25 gms
Cardamom powder – 1 tsp
Ghee – 4-5 tbsp

Method

In a kadai,add 2-3 tbsp ghee and fry the rava till it starts smelling nice and becomes a golden brown colour.
Add the grated beetroot and mix well.
Add the water and simmer till the rava-beet cooks and the water dries up.
Add the sugar,coconut milk powder and cardamom powder and mix well.
Keep stirring till it forms a big lump.
Add the remaining ghee.
Grease a plate and pour the kesari ito it.
Cool and cut into desired shapes.

*Maggi coconut milk powder adds a wonderful aroma to the kesari without being too dominant.You could skip that one,it tastes great even without it.



A close-up look for the red beauty!!
Channa Upkari and Banana Halwa.
Banana Halwa

Cut ripe banana(nendrapazham)into small pieces and deep fry them in oil till golden brown.Sprinkle sugar,cardamom powder and ghee over it and serve hot!!

Goodies for the ladies!

A closer look!!
Once again,wishing all of you a very Happy Navrathri!!

This one goes to Srivalli for her event JFI-Festival treats!!

14 comments :

  1. golu looks awesome..ashtalakshmi is beautiful..
    and the beetroot kesari looks yummy too!! am sure must have been something new and innovative for your friends..

    ReplyDelete
  2. Happy Dassera to u and ur family..beetroot rava kesari looks yummy.. quite a different one.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Beetroot barfi looks too good...have never tried making dessert with beets although have heard abt it a lot...you had quite a celebration..the decoration looks fab.

    ReplyDelete
  4. one thing i luv abt golu is the thambulam they give to ladies...lovely yaar! so where is mine?will u b sending it to me? :) ur ashtalakshmi dolls are so cute...luved them..ur pics are also giving a closer look to golu which is nice!happy navratri divya!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Happy Navrathri to you and family.
    Love the colour of the kesari.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Beetroot rava kesari? That's a first! :-)

    ReplyDelete
  7. A Very Happy Dusshera to you and Your Family Divya :).

    ReplyDelete
  8. nicer golu pics..And loely color fro the beetroot..

    ReplyDelete
  9. Beet halvo new to me! So is this custom, Divu! Vonti bhorchey not new..thks for bringing forth in this post this awesome Devi Special!

    ReplyDelete
  10. Did u changed ur prof pict and name too? That is why i didn't recognize u.
    What a lovely celebration, The beet kesari is really eyecatching!

    ReplyDelete
  11. hey thanks for visiting my blog..
    wowww.. i love your golu and those beetroot rava kesari.. never even heard of it.. nice one!

    ReplyDelete
  12. Sowmya..thank you.My friends loved the kesari and were surprised to see a bright red one instead of the usual orange/yellow colour!!

    Anjali..thank you!!

    Priyanka..thank you.This is the first time I am trying something with beet too,try this recipe for your first trial..;-)

    Sangeeth..thank you.I loved your navrathri series..!!

    Hc..thanks!!

    Sra..yup a great recipe and a great looker too;-)!!

    Bhawana..thanks a lot for your wishes!!

    Divs..thank you!!

    Purnima'di..thank you!!

    Cham..yup,I changed the template,profile pic and added my surname..;-)!!

    Mahima..thank you!!

    ReplyDelete
  13. I too noticed the changes in the template first! Looks cool:) Ashtalakshmi idols look good, and so does the beet kesari - new to me!

    ReplyDelete
  14. Thats so lovely...you have excelled yourself!..thanks for sending the entry!

    ReplyDelete

A blog is not complete without the readers feedback.Please let me know how you liked my post.Thank you so much for visiting my blog.

Love,
Divya.

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...
 
Pin It button on image hover