Eggless Mango Cake

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Ingredients
All purpose flour/wheat flour: 1.25 cups
Thick Mango pulp: 1 cup (I used 2 small mangoes)
Condensed Milk: 14 oz can
Butter:1/2 cup
Cardamom: 5 or 6 pods
Baking powder: 1 tsp
Baking soda: 1 tsp

Procedure:
Step1:
Mix all the dry ingredients (flour, baking powder and baking soda)

Step2:
Melt butter in microwave for 15 seconds and add condensed milk to it.
Whisk it until both are mixed together

Step3:
Peel the mangoes and blend it in a mixer/blender along with cardamom seeds.Add 1 cup of pulp to the butter, condensed milk mixture and mix well

Step4:
Gently mix both the wet and dry ingredients. Do not over mix

Step5:
Pour the batter in a 9" cake pan and bake in a preheated oven of 350F for around 30 minutes

Notes:

• If the mango is not sweet enough add 2 tablespoon of sugar while grinding
• I have not tried this with store bought mango pulp. It will be slightly thinner than the homemade pulp.
• Nuts like almonds and cashews can also be added
• I have tried this with wheat flour as well. Though the texture may not be equivalent, it tastes good. You can use 3/4 cup of wheat flour and 1/2 cup of All purpose flour.
• Instead of cardamom powder vanilla extract can also be used but personally I feel this goes well with cardamom flavor

AVAL PAYASAM

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This is one of the simple and easy payasam that can be prepared in no time.This can be prepared as a Neivedhyam for Krishna jayanthi and Navarathri too when we are pressed for time

Ingredients
Aval/Poha/Rice Flakes: 1/2 cup
Milk:1 cup
Powdered Jaggery: 1/2 cup
Cashew: 6
Raisin: 4 (optional)
Cardamom: 2 pods
Ghee: 2 tsp

Procedure:
Step1:
Add 2 tsp of ghee in a pan and fry the cashews and raisin and keep it aside

Step3:
In the same pan fry the rice flakes until it becomes light fluffy. If you use thick variety this will take little long. 

Step4:
Add milk and simmer for around 5 minutes.Switch off the stove and allow to cool for a while.
Meanwhile boil 1/4 of water and just melt the jaggery 

Step5:
Now add the jaggery syrup and powdered cardomom and mix well

Step6:
Add the fried cashew and raisin

Notes:
The major problem with using jaggery is, the payasam will curdle if jaggery is added when it is still hot
Once the aval is cooked in milk, switch off the flame and allow it to cool for atleast 5 minutes.Similarly jaggery syrup should also not be piping hot.Both can be warm but not hot
When jaggery and milk are mixed when both are hot,the payasam will definetly curdle
If you are in a hurry, use sugar instead of jaggery. If adding sugar no need to wait until the payasam is cooled.This will also taste equally good

VELLA SEEDAI

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Vella seedai is another mandatory preparation for Gokulashtami and this is more liked by kids.Unlike uppu seedai there is no risk of bursting but there is one common problem with Vella seedai. Sometimes the seedai will break or disintegrate in the oil as soon as it is dropped in oil.This happens when more jaggery is added or if the dough is loose. If less jaggery is added, the seedai will turn out to be very hard.

Ingredients

Rice flour: 1.5 cups

Urad dhal flour:  1 tsp*

White sesame seeds:1/2 tsp

Jaggery: 1 cup

Grated coconut: 2 tablespoon

Cardomom powder: 1/4 tsp

Oil: to fry

*Urad dhal flour:

1. Dry roast the urad dhal until a nice aroma comes out.It should slightly change the color but should not become deep reddish brown
2. Allow it to cool and powder in mixie
3. Sift the flour and store in air tight container.

Prepare the flour with 1/2 cup of roasted urad dhal and this can be used for all the other Krishna Jayanthi Bakshanams too

Procedure:

Step1:

Dry roast the rice flour for a couple of minutes. Make sure that the flour should not change color.

Step2:
Mix jaggery with 1/4 cup of water and allow it boil

Once all the jaggery has melted switch off the stove. No need to check for any consistency

Step3:

Allow to cool and filter out the impurities

Step4:

Mix all the dry ingredients together (Rice flour, urad dal flour, sesame seeds, cardomom powder)

Step5:

If using frozen coconut thaw it and slightly fry it before adding

Step6:

Now add the jaggery syrup and knead to a pliable dough by adding necessary water.

Step7:

Make small balls(Should be slightly bigger than the uppu seedai).Let this rest for 30 minutes to 1 hour.

Step8:

Pre heat the oil and deep fry until golden brown.Use medium heat.

Notes:

• Use Rice flour and urad dhal after sifting well to avoid bursting
• Make sure that the sesame seeds is free of stones/impurities
• Allow the dough to rest for sometime
• Sometime the seedais dissolve in oil or become crumbly once dropped in oil.This means that the dough is loose.It should be stiff. Add more rice flour and knead again.
• First make only 2 or 3 balls and make sure that the seedai comes out perfect without bursting.Then proceed with making the other balls
• Use medium heat to fry.This will make sure that the inner part is also cooked.Also do not use very little oil for frying.It will be difficult to control the temperature
• The seedai should turn out dark brown in color.Do not worry if the seedai has lot of cracks.That means it is perfectly done
• Do not cook in oil for long.Once the oil sound (shhh sound) ceases, it should be taken off. The seedais will turn very hard if it is cooked for more time in the oil
• My grandma used to use black sesame seeds.However I used the white variety

Step by step pictures