Yellow Pumpkin spicy gravy / Kuzhambu

Take ¼ kg yellow pumpkin (parangi), peel the skin. Chop into 1 inch pieces. Take 1 big onion, remove skin and root; chop into long fine pieces. In a kadai, pour a 5ml of coconut/refined oil, drop a spoon of mustard seed; add a spoon powder of fenugreek, pepper, jeeragam and chilly powder. Drop a green chilly that is vertically split with curry leaves. Add salt as required. After sauting, pour chopped onion and fry for 2 minutes, now add chopped pumpkin pieces in to kadai, fry for 5 minutes until cooked. Take gooseberry size of tamarind and soak in 250 ml of water. (You can also use the tamarind paste that is readily available). Pour the filtered tamarind juice in the kadai now, add a pinch of asafoetida. Allow it to boil, now pour a teaspoon of corn flour paste into it for thickening. Now add a pinch of jaggery for taste. After it has thickened, finally add a spoon of roasted sesame powder for aroma and transfer to serving bowl.

Rava Laddu / Suji Sweet balls

Take 400 gms suji (Rava), 50 gms chenna dal (odacha kadalai), dry roast them in kadai. Take 300 gms of sugar. Pour the two ingredients in mixie and grind coarse for few seconds. Pour the mixture in a bowl and let it cool. In the mean time, take 100 gms of vanaspathi or ghee, melt it, fry cashewnuts, resins and pour it into the bowl. Add a spoon of cardamom powder and roasted clove. Now mix the rava/sugar,melted ghee well with fingers and hand press into firm balls. Store in air tight container. Shelf life is more. If the ghee level is not enough, you will not be able to make balls. Even if it is done it loosens and breaks. Some conservative people reduce ghee level and instead sprinkle milk, grated copra and make into balls. Though taste is good, shelf life is less. You have to eat within a day else fungus layer forms.