Bellam (Teepi) Garelu Recipe

Ingredients:
1 cup whole urad dal (black gram dal, minappappu)
salt to taste
oil for deep frying
1 cup grated jaggery, add water, cook to prepare a syrup that is sticky on touch
1 1/2 cups water

Method:
Soak whole black gram dal in water for 2 hours.
Strain the water, and grind the dal to a paste sprinkling little water and salt.
Use small portions of dal to grind batch wise as its easier to grind into a soft paste. Beat till fluffy.
Heat water, add the jaggery and let it melt and form a syrup which is sticky to touch.
While the jaggery is forming a syrup, deep fry the vadas.
Take a deep frying vessel, add enough oil and heat till piping hot.
Wet your hands with water, take a lemon-sized ball of batter and flatten it into a vada on a greased sheet or banana leaf.
Make a hole in the centre of the vada so that it cooks evenly all over.
Slowly drop the vada into the hot oil carefully and fry it on both sides on medium heat to a golden brown color.
Deep fry 4-5 vadas per batch depending on the size of the vessel.
Immediately dip these fried vadas into the jaggery syrup. Let them sit in this syrup till the next batch of vadas are deep-fried.
Remove them onto a serving plate and drop the next batch of vadas into the syrup.
Drizzle some left over syrup over vadas before serving and serve hot while the crust is still crisp.

Ugadi Pachadi Recipe

Ingredients:
1 cup of raw fresh mango cleaned, dried, finely chopped along with skin
1 tbsp margosa flowers (neem tree flowers)
1 cup grated jaggery
1 tbsp fresh finely chopped coconut pieces (optional)
3 -4 tbsp tamarind paste
red chilli pwd (according to your choice)
salt to taste

Method:
Mix all the above ingredients to form a sauce like appearence.I f you want a thin and watery chutney add very little water (2-3 tbsps). You can also add small pieces of sugarcane, pieces of ripe banana, putanaala pappu (roasted channa dal) along with the above ingredients.

Note:Each home has its own version of preparing the ugadi pachadi but the main ingredients (reflecting all the six flavors) are as specified above.

Chandra Kaantalu Recipe

Ingredients:
1 cup split yellow moong dal/pesara pappu
1 1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup fresh grated coconut
1/4 cup chopped cashewnuts
1 tsp cardamom powder
pinch of salt (optional)
oil for deep frying

Method:
Soak moong dal for an hour, drain and grind to a fine paste adding a 3-4 tbsps of water. You can even grind it without adding any water.
Heat a heavy bottomed vessel and add the sugar, the ground dal paste, grated coconut, cashewnuts and mix well.
You will find that the sugar melts and the mixture begins to form bubbles while cooking.
Cook this mixture on low heat, stirring continuously till it forms into a thick lump.
Remove from heat and mix cardamom powder and pinch of salt.
Immediately transfer the mixture on to a wet cloth and spread the cooked mixture over it .
Using a flat laddle which has been oiled and gently spread the mixture to form 1/2″ layer and cool.
Cut into desired shape and separate the pieces very carefully lest they break and keep aside.
6Heat oil in a wide heavy bottomed vessel and deep fry the squares till golden brown.
You can deep fry a batch of six to eight depending on the size of the vessel.
6Serve warm or cold. Store in an air tight container as they last for at least 4-5 days.
Chandra Kantalu - Andhra Pindivantalu

Minappa Sunni Undalu

Ingredients:
1 cup black gram lentil(without husk)
1 tbsp raw rice
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup ghee/clarified butter

Method:
Dry roast raw rice in a vessel till brown and remove.Now dry roast black gram on a medium flame till deep golden brown and till you get a nice aroma…which could take atleast 20 minutes.You should keep stirring the dal while dry roasting it lest it burns.Allow it to cool.Blend both the raw rice and black gram to a fine powder.Keep aside.Here’s a picture of the black gram dal both before and after dry roasting it.Blend the sugar to a fine powder.Keep aside.Heat ghee till it melts.Do not over heat.Keep aside. Now mix together black gram powder and powdered sugar in a wide plate.Slowly add hot ghee and keep mixing with hand, till the mix holds together. Shape into round balls of the size of a big lime.The ghee should be just enough to hold the powders together and not drip while making balls.Stored in an air tight container the laddos stay fresh for at least 2 weeks.

Variations
A combination of jaggery and sugar can be used. Take 3/4 cup jaggery and 1/4 cup powdered sugar.

Note:
Mixture of black gram powder and sugar can be stored in an air tight container for 1-2 months. When ever required mix ghee and make balls.

BOBATTLU

Ingredients:
1 cup chana dal(split bengal gram lentil) soaked in water for 2 hours and drained
1 cup jaggery or sugar(you can adjust the sugar or jaggery according to your choice)
1 1/4 cups maida (refined flour)
enough water to prepare dough
3-4 tbsps oil
1/2 tsp cardamom powder
1 tbsp clarified butter/ghee
pinch of salt
Mix refined flour,pinch of salt,2 tbsps oil and enough water to make a very soft and sticky dough.Knead well.
Grease your hands with oil to knead the dough and take a small portion of dough and flatten it into a disc of the size of your palm. Place a ball of “sweet lentil ball” in the centre and draw the edges of the dough from all sides to cover the ’sweet lentil ball’ completely.
Take a sheet of transparent plastic wrap or a plaintain leaf and gently flatten each ball carefully with your fingers to form a 6″ to 8″ diamater flat circular bobattu/poli (grease your hands while flattening).Fry it on low flame on a hot griddle or tawa.Roast both sides till brown spots appear.
Smear with ghee on both sides when done.Serve warm with clarified butter/ghee.

Note:You can store the ‘bobattulu’ for a few days in an air tight container or in the refrigerator

BOORELU RECIPES

Ingredients:
1/2 cup cup black gram dal/urad dal/minappappu
1 cup rice
1 cup bengal gram/channa dal/sengapappu
1 cup sugar or 1 cup grated jaggery (adjust according to your choice)
1/4 cup fresh grated coconut (optional)
3/4 tsp cardamom powder
salt to taste
oil for deep frying

Method:
Drain water from the black gram dal and rice and grind to fine paste adding very little water.
It should be like a thick dosa batter. Add a pinch of salt and mix well. Leave aside covered.
Cook bengal gram with just enough water to cover the dal. The dal should be just cooked and hold shape.
Drain any left over water from the dal after its cooked. Add jaggery or sugar to the dal
and use a masher to mash them together till it blends well.
Take a heavy-bottomed vessel and add the ground dal paste and cook till it appears like a thick paste,
stirring continuously as the dal tends to stick to the vessel. Turn off heat and cool.
Add grated coconut, cardamom powder and mix well. Shape small bite sized balls like shown in the picture above.
Heat enough oil in a wide heavy bottomed vessel for deep frying the balls.
Dip each ball in the batter and let it coat evenly and place in the oil and deep fry till golden brown and crunchy.
You can deep fry a batch of four to five balls depending on the size of the vessel.
Serve warm. Store in an air tight container as they last for at least two days.
Borellu

JANTHIKALU RECIPES

Ingredients:
2 cups rice flour
1 cup chick pea flour/besan/senaga pindi
1 1/2 tbsp sesame seeds
1 tbsp ajwain/vaamu
1 tsp red chilli pwd
salt to taste
2 tbsps hot ghee
oil for deep frying

Method:
Put together rice flour, gram flour, salt, hot ghee, chilli pwd, ajwain and sesame seeds,
and combine them well. Slowly add water little by little to make a soft dough,
just soft enough that it is pressed through easily with the janthikalu press.
Test the dough for salt and chilli pwd before deep-frying.
Heat a wide heavy bottomed vessel with enough oil for deep frying.
Take the janthikalu gottam aka murukku press and use the disc with small holes.
Fill half of the press with the dough and once the oil is hot, reduce to medium flame and using circular motion,
press the jantikalu gottam to make concentric layers of the janthikalu dough. As you press the dough into the hot oil,
you will find the oil froth up in bubbles which will eventually subside as the janthikalu turn to a golden shade.
Remember the frying has to be done on medium flame to achieve that golden color and crispness.
When the janthikalu turn a golden color, turn over to the other side and let it also cook to a golden brown.
Use a slotted ladle to remove onto an absorbent paper and cool. Repeat the same process till the rest of the dough is done.
Cool completely before storing in an air tight metallic container.

Note:
There are many variations to prepare jantikalu. You can replace the hot ghee with a tbsp of butter OR a mashed potato. Each gives a nice flavor to the jantikalu.
Another variation is to replace besan with roasted chickpea (dalia) powder OR roasted urad dal powder.