Quick banana "rawa halwa"

A nutritious and quickly made sweet that can quell hunger pangs or be a dessert. Perfect for active growing kids who require a lot of energy for all their various activities.

Serves 2 to 4
Preparation and cooking time: 30 minutes

Ingredients

1. "Rawa" or "sooji" or farina or semolina - 1 cup
2. Ripe banana mashed - 1 cup
3. Sugar - 2 or 3 heaped teaspoons or to taste
4. "Ghee" - 1 cup
5. Milk - 2 1/2 cups
6. Cashew nuts/ blanched sliced almonds (sauteed in "ghee")- 1 tablespoon
7. Raisins - 1 tablespoon
8. Green cardamom powder - 1/2 teaspoon

Method

1. Heat a wok. Add the ghee and "rawa". Stir and fry till the "rawa" is fragrant and almost golden brown.
2. Add mashed banana, sugar, cardamom powder and milk.
3. Stir and cook till the milk is absorbed into the "rawa".
4. Add the nuts and raisins. Stir well.
5. Scoop and serve hot or at room temperature.

Tips

The "rawa", nuts and raisins can be roasted in larger quantities and kept for ready use.

Slightly over-ripe bananas may also be used.

Bananas may be omitted if they are not preferred.

As a dessert for older persons, use less "ghee".

Semiya payasam

Semiya payasam

A simple and quick milky dessert.

Serves 4
Preparation and cooking time: 30 minutes

Ingredients

1. Vermicelli or "semiya" - 1 cup
2. Full cream milk - 500ml
3. Sugar - 2 to 3 heaped tablespoons or to taste
4. Butter or "ghee" - 2 tablespoons
5. Green cardamoms (crushed) - 4
6. Cashew nuts (broken)- 1/4 cup
7. Raisins - 1/4 cup

Method

1. Roast the "semiya" in a little "ghee" till it becomes a golden brown.
2. Boil the milk with the roasted semia, sugar and cardamoms.
3. Stir and cook till the semia is done.
4. Heat the remaining "ghee" and fry the cashews and raisins separately.
5. Add these to the payasam. Stir well.
6. Serve hot or cold.

Tips

Half teaspoon of cardamom powder may be used instead of crushed cardamom.

Use good quality semiya like "Bambino". Do not use any very fine variety as this will dissolve and become a thick congealed mass. The strands of vermicelli need to be separate even after cooking.

You can add 1/4 cup of broken bits of white "peda" or any almond or cashew "barfi" to the payasam in step 3, to give it some more interest.

Cashews and/or almonds may be used. Decorate with fresh rose petals if you like.

Some brands like "Bambino" also sell roasted vermicelli, so one can skip step 1.

Banana delight

After a hot, spicy meal, my family likes to have a sweet dish to call it a day. They love ice cream and in summer have more than enough of it, day in and day out. But in winter, I like to serve ice cream with a warm element. Like hot, baked fruit. And what better fruit to bake in a jiffy, than the ubiquitous banana! It's a very easy dessert to put together and my family loves the hot-cold, sweet combination. It is a saviour when there are unexpected guests and there is no pudding in store!

Serves 4
Preparation and cooking time : 10 to 15 minutes
Ingredients

1. Firm and ripe bananas - 4
2. Sugar - 4 teaspoons
3. Butter or ghee - 2 tablespoons
4. Cinnamon powder - 1/4 teaspoon

Method

1. Pre-heat oven to 180 degrees.

2. Peel and halve each banana lengthwise.

3. Smear the banana halves with some butter or ghee.

4. Smear the baking tin with the rest of the butter or ghee.

5. Place the banana halves on the buttered tin with the cut sides facing up.

6. Sprinkle the sugar and the cinnamon powder on the bananas.

7. Bake till the sugar caramelizes and the bananas look cooked. It will take about 10 to 12 minutes. The bananas should have a golden brown colour.

8. Take out and serve the hot baked bananas with a scoop of ice cream immediately.

Tips

Any variety of normal-sized, firm, ripe  banana that is easily available, may be used. Avoid the small varieties for this recipe.

While removing from the baking tin, it does not matter if the fruit breaks.

Cinnamon powder can be substituted with cardamom powder or a tiny tiny  bit of orange or lime zest, if you like the citrus zing.

I like to serve it with plain vanilla ice cream, though any mild flavour that you like would probably do.

Other toppings like toasted nut bits or chocolate syrup may be used, but I prefer it plain or with ice cream.

Keep the dessert plates ready, as this dish is best served quickly.