First and foremost a big sorry to all my readers out there for not updating my blog this month. I know it’s a very long time since I updated last time. As you all know summer holidays have begun for kids and that made me enter into a new field of taking Craft classes. Yes, you read that right!! As I have mentioned already that I’m a crafter and I thought to spread it amongst the younger generations. As a first step towards that I started taking “Silk Thread Jewelry” making class for Kids, and it was a huge success. I was very pleased to see the outcome and kids hard work paid off… I would like to share what the kids have made under my guidance to all my lovely readers. All your appreciations and feedback would motivate them to learn more and motivate me to teach more 😊

Here is a collage of what the kids have made in only 7 days. This is called “Silk Thread Jewelry” which is widely popular type Jewelry in India.

Alright!! Let’s get into the North Indian Thali Platter. What’s happier than giving a Nalabagam (hearty meal) to the love of your life. Yes, It’s the birthday dinner platter which I made with loads and loads for love for my dear husband. All these dishes were planned in a really short time and with limited groceries available at home 😉 He enjoyed every bite of the meal and I was really happy to see his tummy getting filled with yummy food. My daughter used to say “Yum yum yummy in my tum tum tummy” after watching the Daniel Tiger Neighborhood series, and that’s the reason behind naming my blog as “YUM-TUM BHOJANA” – Which indirectly means “Yummy – Tummy Food”. Bhojana in Tamil means Food.

Okay. Let’s see what’s on the menu,

1. Masala Papad
2. Cilantro Chutney/Dip
3. Aloo Kulcha – Whole Wheat
4. Chole Masala
5. Punjabi Dal Tadka
6. Jeera Rice
7. Masala Chaas/ Neer Mor – Spiced Buttermilk
8. Mango Trifle – For Dessert

I started planning the Menu in the afternoon. Made my daughter take her afternoon nap and I started preparing food right away. I finished off everything by the time my husband entered home. It took me almost two hours to complete the entire platter.

Here is how I planned the menu,

1. Pressure cooked two different dals along with chopped onion and tomatoes together in my Instant pot and kept it aside.
2. Pressure cooked White Channa/Garbanzo Beans in Instant pot and kept aside.
3. Boiled potatoes in Microwave and mashed it after peeling the skin.
4. Cooked Jeera Rice in Instant Pot.
5. Prepared the Dough for Aloo Kulcha and kept it aside for 15 minutes.
6. Chopped ginger, green chillies, garlic, onion, tomatoes and cilantro in required quantities and kept aside.

Now moving on to preparations,

1. Added Tadka to the pressure cooked and mashed dal. Once it’s ready transferred to a serving bowl.
2. Cleaned the same tadka pan and prepared chole masala. Sautéed onion, tomato and added the cooked beans along with the reserved water. Transferred it to a serving bowl and kept it aside.
3. Blended some buttermilk/yogurt with salt and hing/asafetida. Added chopped cilantro, chillies and ginger. Stirred and kept it in refrigerator.
4. Blended some cilantro, ginger, green chillies for making dip/chutney to go with masala papad.
5. Transferred Jeera Rice to a serving bowl and kept it aside.
6. Prepared Aloo Kulcha using the prepared dough and boiled potatoes. Kept it in a hot pack and set it aside.
7. Lastly, before serving dinner I toasted masala papad in microwave.

If you would like to see many more lunch or dinner menu platters like this with various cuisine, please do comment below and I’ll try to share the menu plan. Do try this menu platter to treat yourself or your loved one and let me know how you like it in the comments below. I would be happy to see your comment and that motivates me to try more and post more.

Thanks for reading it patiently 😊