Bhindi ki Sukhi Sabzi/Stir Fried Okra with Onions/Kanda-Bhinda nu Shaak

The thing about Bhindi/Okra is that either you love it or you hate it, P is on the love side and I'm on the hate side, rather to say 'was on the hate side'. I still remember, we had just been married for about 3-4 months and I had just reached Riyadh for the first time and we had started our new life together. I hated bhindi so much that I didn't even care to know how its prepared, :) I had to call my mother-in-law to ask for the recipe with P liked the most, it wasn't over there, P forced me to eat same quantity of bhindi sabzi as much as he ate, I'd say not the best dinner!!!


P has a very funny food fundamentals, he says "we have to develop liking for a dish in very specific way, start by eating it little by little and then one day will come you shall like the most dreaded food too!!", now I guess I agree with him. I love Bhindi but only if it is prepared in a very specific way and is not soggy and gooey.

This is a very simply but tasty recipe, actually simplicity is the key to this recipe, let the vegetable advocate for itself don't overpower its taste with adding un-necessary spices.

Heat 3 tbs oil in heavy bottom pan

add 1 tsp cumin seeds/jeera and let it crackle

now add 1/4 tsp hing/asafoetida and curry leaves

Add 2 small to medium sized chopped onions and 3 tsp of ginger-garlic-green chili paste.

Saute for 1 min and then add 250 gms chopped okra/bhindi

Add salt to taste and 1/2 tsp turmeric powder.

Mix well and cook on low flame till okra is tender and done. NEVER PUT A LID WHILE COOKING OKRA OR THE DISH WILL TURN INTO A SOGGY GOOEY DISH.

Once the okra a done add 3 tsp of Dhania-jeera powder/coriander seeds-cumin seeds powder and 1/2 tsp red chili powder

Mix well and turn off the heat.

Serve warm with roti, chappati, naan or paratha of your choice. Tastes great with Dal-Chaval too.

Tips: Add 1/4th tsp of tava masala or garam masala for a more aromatic sabzi.

Potato Rosti with grated Beetroot, Onion and Cheese

Potato Rosti is one of the most versatile recipes that you can find. Primarily made with grated potato alone or in combination with other veggies and meats and herbs. This dish originated in Switzerland and many Swiss consider it as a national dish. Usually there are quiet a variation in techniques and size of rosti itself, they can be pan fried or oven baked, I have selected the latter method. I also added an unusual veggie, beetroot, to make it a health friendly dish.

Preheat the oven on 200 degree C
boil 3 medium sized potatoes for 10 mins, remove skin and grate them
boil 1 medium sized beetroot with 1 cup water + 1 tsp sugar, grate it too. Add a little salt and pepper to it.

take 1 large onion, chop it finely or pulsated in food processor along with 1 green chili and handful of fresh cilantro, jalapeno will be the best but any green chili will do. Add salt, pepper, red chili flakes and garlic powder to it

Take 4 tartlet tins and butter them lightly.
First spread a little grated potato, after that lay grated beetroot, top it with minced onion mixture, lay 1 tbs of shredded mozzarella/cheddar cheese and to finish the rosti with another layer of shredded potatoes.

Place it in pre-heated over and bake for 40-50 mins or till the top potato layer turns golden brown.

Tips: As I prefer a lightly brown rosti I have baked it to that extent only, continue baking for few more minutes if you prefer a bit darker brown dish.

Homecooked Pizza Sauce

This weekend I'm planning on preparing veggie pizza with homemade dough and this homemade cooked pizza sauce. This time I'm preparing cooked pizza sauce another way is uncooked pizza sauce in which you just need to add all condiments and little tomato sauce to tomato paste and done, I shall be posting that recipe later
I think there are 3 ways of enjoying pizza,
1. call domino's or pizza hut (which is the easiest) but then you have no idea what goes into your loving lazy pizza or how fresh the ingredients were or how many calories you consume.

2. prepare pizza at home using store bought pizza dough/pizza base along with store bought pizza sauce, you just have to assemble your pizza with your favorite pizza topping and cheese. Now come no one can be fooled here... this is as good as ordering a pizza from any pizzeria, the only satisfaction you have here is that you know how much cheese you've put on top, which I guess shall be much less than the pizzeria one and how much veggies you add to your pizza. Ok so you win 40% battle over ready made pizza but still you don't know what goes in you store bought pizza sauce.... things with complicated name to confuse customers and trick them into eating unhealthy food. Guys I don't have any personal grudge towards those companies but a fact is a fact... cannot be changed. But I should also thank them for making life easier for many who grab the pre-cooked sauce during their crunch time. Going to our last point

3. prepare pizza from scratch, prepare the dough and sauce, select your favorite toppings and cheese. Bake and enjoy. This way, no doubt you shall be eating junk food but at least you shall be sure of what's landing in your body. Who said junk food can't be healthy?!! prepare dough using whole wheat flour instead of white flour, use fresh herbs and fresh tomatoes for sauce, add tons of veggies as toppings and limited quantity of cheese, this way even unhealthy thing as pizza can be made into a satiating healthy junk food.
So coming back to my weekend plan ... I'm preparing this pizza sauce in advance and shall freeze it, this way it becomes handy on weekend ... all I have to do is thaw it and use.

Take 3 medium to large ripe tomatoes... make sure they are bright red, blanch them, remove skin and pulse it few times in a food processor to get a chunky puree.
1 small onion and 2 green chillies pulsated in food processor or mixie / chopped very finely
Heat 1 tbs of EVOO in a heavy bottom pan (don't bring it to smoking point or else all benefits of Olive oil are killed) add 4 big garlic pods grated, chopped onion and chili. Let it work for a few minutes may be 1-2 minutes and then add in chunky tomato puree.
Add 3 tbs tomato paste and 1/3 cup water. Bring it to a boil and simmer it on very low heat for 3-5 minutes.
Now add in 1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp chili flakes ( I also added 1/2 tsp red chili powder, as I prefer hotter version of pizza sauce)
1/2 tsp crushed black peppercorns
1 tsp sugar
2 tbs tomato sauce

Mix well and let it simmer for another 2 minutes and done.
Store it in an airtight jar and use as required. Can be refrigerated upto 3-5 days depending on weather conditions or can be stored in freezer for upto 30-45 days.

Tips:
This Sauce tastes better after refrigeration, that is because the condiments get time to release their flavor as the time passes.
Can also add in parsley, thyme and other herbs, I haven't added it as I was aiming for a specific taste.

Dal Makhani (Kali Dal)

Ever thought of a dish which you used to love as a kid / otherwise came across and as time passes you move places, see things, learn, watch and grow intellectually, that kid within you keeps searching for that taste that is registered in your mind, may it be "Maa ke haath ka so n so dish" or "Mirch Masala (name of the restaurant) ki Masala chaas" or some road side eatery dish. This happened to me when P and I had gone to Mauritius, it was the day before our departure from Mumbai to Mauritius and we were staying at Intercontinental, The Lalit, Mumbai, it was during our lovely lunch we had ordered Kali dal along with rice, paneer curry dish, garlic naan etc. I shall never forget the aroma and buttery texture of that dal which I felt at the very first spoonful of it, ever since then I have tried to hunt down the recipe for that perfect dal. So my quest landed me at this recipe which I found at one of the best blogs,  www.vegeyum.wordpress.com. The author has similar experience with dal and had got the recipe from one of the chefs at Oberoi Bangalore. So I decided to give it a try and check the results.
Going through the recipe I learnt it calls in for almost 100 gms of butter + 50 gms of ghee and 30 ml of cream, which I didn't have courage to pour in as you know its not good health wise, So I modified and adapted the recipe as per my needs. Though I have added more than usual amounts of butter and cream otherwise this recipe can't be called Dal "Makhani", which literally means buttery.
Well this recipe is a keeper, I should say its almost there in sense of my quest for that perfect kali dal. I shall be sticking to it for a long long time.

Soak over night/min 6 hours
1/2 cup whole urad dal / black lentils
1/4 cup Rajma / red kidney beans
1/4 cup Channa dal / Bengal gram dal

Pressure cook soaked grains along with
1 inch ginger peeled and grated
2–3 big garlic cloves
2-3 green chillies
salt to taste
Make sure that there isn't excessive water in dal, if so drain and reserve (just in case you need it). Roughly mash the cooked dal with ladle, but be careful not to be over zealous.

For tempering heat
2 tbs ghee in a seperate vessel and add
1/2 tsp methi seeds / fenugreek seeds and
1 tsp cumin seeds / jeera once they start to sputter add
3–4 big garlic cloves crushed and chopped along with
1/4 tsp asafoetida cook for 30 seconds and add
2 tbs tomato paste (diluted with 2-4 tbs of water) or 1/2 cup thick tomato puree (I added tomato paste as it gives that distinct red colour to dal, also add more if you prefer a tangy dal. P doesn't like much tangy taste in dal and veggies so I have adjusted the taste accordingly.)

Add this tempering mixture to the cooked dal, mix well. Add 1 tsp red chilli powder (I used kashmiri lal mirch), 3-5 tbs butter and 3-5 tbs cream. Bring dal to a boil and let it simmer gently for 20 minutes / till dal acquires a buttery texture.
Serve warm with jeera rice or plain steamed rice or enjoy it with roti, paratha or naan of your choice.

Tips: Add 1/2 tsp garam masala for that nice aroma. Also, best way to serve this dal in its full splendor is to serve it with a dollop of butter. :)

Chocolate Chip Cookies

America's best culinary contribution to the world comes in form of small round cookie having mini blast of chocolate in form of chocolate chips, yes I'm talking about chocolate chip cookies. P is crazy about Ben's cookies especially when served warm and soft and chewy. This will be the first time I shall be baking any cookies and as if being overly confident in my baking skills, I've already promised someone that I shall bake some Chocolate chip and Double chocolate chip cookies for them, which now makes me nervous.
I've adapted this recipe from a perfectly tried and tested site www.joyofbaking.com (minor changes to original recipe) and I should say this recipe truely rocks. Also I have halved the recipe from the site as I wanted to make a smaller batch at a time. The site has recipe for 4 dozen cookies while I made almost 2 dozen at one go. Cookies came out perfect and I shall let the pictures advocate themselves.

Sift together and keep aside.
1 cup + 1 tbs plain white flour/maida
3/4th tsp vanilla essence or vanilla extract (I used powdered form so added to flour mix, if you are using extract or essence add it along with egg to butter mix)
1/4th tsp salt
1/4th tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda

In a large bowl whisk 1/2 cup unsalted butter untill light and creamy. Add 3/4th cup sugar (can also use brown sugar and white sugar in 1:1 ratio to make 3/4th cup together), keep whisking it for about 3-5 minutes or untill the mix feels fluffy. Add in 1 whole egg at this stage and whisk for few more minutes. Use a hand held mixie for this whole process if in hurry. I prefer to beat this mix with wire whisk only and the process takes no more than 10 mins.

Before proceeding further, preheat oven to 375 degrees F(190 degrees C) with rack in center of oven. Line two baking sheets with aluminum foil/parchment paper, I prefer aluminum foil.

Now add in the sifted flour mix to the butter mix and using your hand mix in to form a soft fluffy dough. It take not much of an effort to do this, folding flour in butter mixture using fingers will suffice. now add in 3/4th cup Hershey's semi sweet chocolate chips.

Divide the dough in 25 chunks and roughly form a semi flat balls and place them on the baking sheets 1 inch apart. Bake for 12-18 minutes or till cookie edges turn golden brown. Keep a contstant eye on cookies after 12 minutes as these delicate goodies can burn very easily and cooking time varies for every oven. Mine took 16 minutes.

Dunk it in milk or just carry a few to enjoy during your drive to office, nothing beats this small treat in itself.

A real "Happy" Birthday!!

Yesterday ie on 7th started with all normal nitty-gritty, P off to office and me busy with cooking and cleaning etc. Since P has started his new job, starting of this month, he is very punctual with his return home timings, but today he said he had to conclude some pending work at his old work place, which is quite normal, so he said instead of 5pm he shall be a bit late. Time went and it was 9pm with no sightings of my husband, a quick phone call revealed he is chatting with his old pals, again very very normal for him and his pals. He came home around 9:15 pm and started pestering in his usual way, what was for dinner and what was there for sweet etc, then came the question "what would u like for your birthday gift", as usual I had nothing in mind.... but he kept pushing the questions on and on.... this too is very normal... then at 9:30pm riyadh time which is 12 am Indian time my sister called to wish me, then came my mom-dad n bhai.... i was very happy that dot 12 they called me, infact i was handling two calls at a time one from Surat (my sis) and another one from Vadodara (my parents and bro).... during that time too P kept asking what i wanted as a birthday gift.... in quite a funny way.
After duely finishing the phone chats, i turned to find P at the window peeping out and on his toes, determining whether our hijacked parking spot was now vacant or not, much to his relief it was vacant. Again he started off with that pestering question but this time i had the answer, i said i wanted a nice oven to satiate my starvation for baking. And he duely promised me my oven :). Actually i was looking for one since last few months but was'nt able to make my mind on any one specific brand yet.
After a few minutes i saw him heading down to move the car to our authorized parking spot. As he returned and i opened the door, he was standing there with a huge box of Black n Decker 35 litres oven :) and a huge smile on his face. (Now at this time i dont know what were the exact expressions on my face but i was grinning ear to ear i suppose.... along with some child like jumping actions.... I know real Hoot!!!)

He wasnt done yet, under the pretext of forgetting something he went back downstairs while i was busy hurriedly opening my real surprise gift. He came in with another huge box of something and various bags of SACO (one of the home improvement store chain out here), then like a Santa in plain clothes, he started handing me over one item at a time from those magic bags. First out came Neoflam slicer-dicer-chopper-shredder (including ice shaver for my ice golas) ;

second came oven safe 6 tart dishes ; then came out microwave n oven safe marinex Broiche dish and Quiche fluted dish ; at the end came out some nice pizza cutter and cake n pie server/cutter.
Bonus a Black n Decker hand mixie. I felt like a kid in a candy store.... :)

Well to conclude, i am really happy to know that P actually knows what i really want, since few months i always kept my eye on nice ovens while we went shopping and P duely noticed it, as a perfect hubby would :). Thanks huni for making my day a "REAL HAPPY BIRTHDAY". (I bet I will be smiling for days all along).
More to come yet as excitement has'nt ended yet....  as i have just been informed that we shall be heading to a very classy Mall called GRANADA, along with few of our friends, tommorow at 10 am. Wow!!! don't want this day to pass any more quicker!!!
Now, got to catch some sleep as tommorow is a huge day :)).

Nylon Khaman-Microwave Recipe

Healthy snack prepared in a jiffy, sounds like a keeper, yeap I'm talking about gujju dish called khaman. Gujarti food is well known for its sweet and sour taste and unique preparations, Khaman falls in that category.Tasty because it  has sweetness from sugar, tangy taste from citric acid crystals and hot flavor from green chili and ginger. Healthy because it is steam cooked (here microwaved) without excessive oil or frying.
And on top of it, it is prepared from besan which is a very good source of protein. Hence we can say this is a guilt free snack.
Khaman falls into the category of dhokla, along with khatta dhokla, rasia dhokla and more famous these days are tri-colored cheese dhoklas. Usually dhokla are made by fermenting the chickpeas batter but the nylon khaman calls in for chickpea / bengal gram flour and is the easier version compared to other dhokla recipes.
The word "Nylon" perfectly adheres to this khaman because it is very smooth to palate plus airy and tender in texture.
 I had great time cooking this recipe which took less than 12-15 mins from start to finish. :)

Ingredients:

For Khaman:
1 cup Besan (Bengal gram flour)
2 tbs rava/sooji/semolina
pinch of turmeric powder/haldi powder
3 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp citric acid crystals/nimbu ke phool
1 tsp ginger-green chili paste
1 1/2 tsp Eno/fruit salt
salt to taste
1 cup water

For Garnish:
handful of chopped coriander leaves
1 tsp of red chili powder/lal mirch powder

For Tempering:
2 tbs oil
1 tbs sesame seeds/ til
1/2 tsp mustard seeds/rai
2 green chillies slit and halved
pinch of asafoetida/hing
3 tbs water

Method:
Grease two microwave safe containers of approx 5 to 6 inch diametre and keep aside.
In a big bowl combine all ingredients for khaman except eno, mix well and break any lumps that might have formed in the batter.
Now add eno to the batter and pour 2 tbs of water on it in such a way that eno sizzzles up into a foamy bubbly mix. Now mix the batter well so that eno is fully incorporated in batter.
Pour this batter into two greased containers and wrap it with cling film (if you dont have a cling film then cover the container with microwave safe plate)
Place one container in microwave and Microwave on 100% power for 2 minutes. Let it stand for 90 seconds and then remove. Repeat this process for second container.
Remove the wrap and let khaman cool down a bit.
Prepare them for tempering by cutting them into square pieces and sprinkling red chilli powder and coriander leaves on them. Keep aside.

For tempering :
Heat oil in a small pan, add rai to it and once it starts to crackle add til, hing and green chillies. Turn of the heat and add 3 tbs of water to it. Pour this tempering mix to prepared khaman.
Serve with chutney of your choice or ketchup, I prefer with green chutney.

Apple & Raisin Cake

Wishing you all a Very Happy Women's Day. To my loving Mom and Mother-in-Law, this is for celebrating you, as you are, just the way you are, loving, caring and indispensible to me. And to all my girl friends and fellow bloggers , wishing you all are very happy women's day.

I've adopted this recipe from Shilpa's blog here thanks shilpa for posting this easy to bake and tempting recipe. I've baked this cake in my pressure cooker, yeap you're reading it right, in my pressure cooker just to make a contribution to Nupurs MBP # 1 Cookers, Blog Bites. 
This cake came out to be super moist and rich in texture, raisins gave a nice surprise at every bite, apple flavor was subtle and blended nicely with vanilla flavor. 

Ingredients:

1 cup all purpose flour/maida.
1 apple (i used 1 big gala apple)
1/2 cup raisins
3/4th cup sugar
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp vanilla extract/essence
2 medium eggs
1/3 cup + 2 tbs milk
1/3 cup oil (i used sunflower oil) + little more for greasing
1/4th teaspoon salt

 Method:
Grease and dust one baking pan, in my case cooker ka dabba, grease with oil and dust it with maida. Keep it aside.
Place pressure cooker on a very low heat along with its lid closed but Remember to remove its whistle/weight (we shall bake cake without the whistle ). This is done to make an oven environment. Place a small ring or some small stand in the cooker, this is to place our dabba on it.

Remove the skin of apple and chop it into big chunks and place them in a blender along with milk. Blend it well.
Add oil and pulse it couple of times to make sure oil is mixed well.
In a deep bowl, break in the eggs and beat them till light and bubbly. Mix this with apple,milk and oil liquid. Just mix it dont beat it.
Now sift baking powder, salt and all purpose flour and mix in sugar nicely. Make a well in middle and drop in raisins.
Add the milk, apple and egg mix to the flour mix and gently fold it, make sure you dont over stir or beat it well or else it shall result in sweet bread instead of perfect cake, I make sure not to stir more than 10-14 stir rounds.
Pour this into the dusted dabba.
Place it in the cooker and bake it for 40-50 mins.
To check whether the cake is done, insert a toothpick and draw it out, if it comes out clean turn off the heat and remove the dabba. Let it stand for 10 mins and then remove the cake frm the container by inverting it on a plate.
Allow the cake to cool. Store in an airtight container.
This cake can be stored for upto 3 days without refrigeration and upto 15 days in refrigerator.

Tips:
Dust powdered sugar on the cake after the cakes cools down completely.
Decorate this cake with nice vanilla icing and cherries for a nice party dessert.

Urad Dal Hara Masala/ White lentils cooked with ginger, garlic and green chillies

How can we vegetarians, fill in our protein needs?!! Anyone's guess, turn to lentils. Urad dal cooked with all green spices, by green spicies I mean real fresh grown ones... which include green onion, green garlic (dont sweat if you dont have green garlic, add in normal garlic pods as I did), green chillies and ginger and the result is tempting garlicy aromatic dal.
We gujju's love this dal with bajri rotla/ bajre ki roti. Besides this I love this dal as a sippy side dish and goes great along with any sukhi sabzi  and roti.
Here goes the recipe.

Ingredients:
1/2 cup urad dal/white lentils, pressure cooked and lightly mashed
3 green chillies slit in half
1 inch piece of ginger chopped
5 pods of garlic chopped
2 green onions, including the greens, chopped
salt to taste
1/2 tsp mustard seeds/rai
1/2 tsp cumin seeds/jeera
2 tbs oil for tempering
pinch of asafoetida
handful of chopped fresh coriander, for garnish.

Method:
Heat oil in heavy bottom pan and add oil, once it starts to smoke add in mustard and cumin, let them crackle
add in asafoetida. Now add all chopped greens and saute for 1 minute.
Add in lightly mashed urad dal and salt to taste.
Add in 1 1/2 to 2 cups of water and bring it to boil.
Garnish it with chopped coriander and serve hot.

Tips:

This dal goes well with jeera rice and as well as any kind of parathas.

Fansi nu Shaak/ French beans and Garlic Stir Fry

Back to routine food after a wonderful weekend and all eatouts, so I decided to prepare french beans, urad dal and chappati along with our favorite achaar for dinner tonight.

Ingredients:
250 gms Fansi/French beans chopped into 1/2 inch length or whatever cut you like
150 gms / 1 large onion chopped length wise
3 tsp garlic paste
2 green chillies chopped roughly
1 inch piece of ginger grated
1/2 tsp cumin seeds/jeera
1/2 tsp mustard seeds/rai
1 tsp punjabi masala/ all spice mix
1/2 tsp turmeric powder/haldi
1/2 tsp red chili powder/lal mirch powder
salt to taste
pinch of asafoetida
2 tbs oil for tempering

Method:
Heat oil in heavy bottom pan/kadhai and add mustard and cumin, once they come to crackle add asafoetida and ginger, garlic and green chillies. Saute for 30 seconds and add in chopped onion, saute for one min and add in chopped fansi along with turmeric and salt.
Cover the pan and cook till veggies are nice, tender and almost cooked, at this point add red chili powder and all spice.
Mix well and turn off the heat.
Serve warm along with chappaties or rotis or enjoy it along with dal and rice.

Palak Masala Khichdi/ Spicy Spinach Khichdi

Imagine the wholesomeness of this dish as it has all the proteins via lentils/dal, all vitamins, minerals and fiber from spinach and carrots and all the wonderful subtle aroma borrowed from lovely indian spices...yeap thats whats for dinner tonight, lovely Palak masala khichdi and jeera chaas along with papad and aachaar.
P, loves anything with lots of veggies and is a die hard fan of rice, so I thought of making nice biryani for him but then I said lets add some protein in form of dal and make khichdi instead of biryani. It was just few days back when I was surfing for some nice palak recipes I read this recipe at foodatarian.com, find the recipe
here

Secondly after nupur announced MBP #1 Cookers
here
I had to get busy and jump in to be a good sport.

This one pot dish is easy to prepare and light to digestive system.
So here's the recipe for this tantalizing palak masala khichdi... enjoy.


Ingredients:
1 cup Basmati rice
1/2 cup Mung dal
1 bunch palak/spinach chopped and washed thoroughly
1 medium onion roughly chopped
2 green onion roughly chopped
1 small carrot peeled and chopped roughly
1 medium tomato or 1 tbs tomato paste
2 green chillies slit and cut in half
1 inch piece of ginger grated
3 pods of garlic grated
1 tsp turmeric/haldi powder
1 tsp red chili powder (i used kashmiri lal mirch powder)
1 1/2 tsp garam masala/ all spice powder
salt to taste
Handful of chopped coriander leaves for garnishing

For tempering
1 tsp oil
1 tbs ghee/clarified butter
1 tsp jeera/cumin seeds
1/2 tsp rai/mustard seeds
1 pinch asafoetida/hing
2 dry red chillies


Method:

On a medium flame heat pressure cooker, add oil, ghee and once they start to smoke add all other tempering ingredients.
Add in all veggies and ginger-chili-garlic, except palak. Add all other masalas and sautee for 30 seconds and then add in palak. Let the palak shrink in sized and then add in rice and dal
Add 3 1/2 cups of water.
Closed the pressure cooker with its lid and cook on medium flame for 3 whistles and then on low flame for 5 mins.
Let the steam subside before opening the pressure cooker.
Garnish it with chopped coriander leaves and serve hot with plain curd or gujarati kadi or punjabi kadi or masala chaas... anything made of curd goes fine with this khichdi.


Tips:
If you prefer more tangy flavor, grind curd along with handful of coriander leaves and add this to khichdi just before serving.

Mysore Sada Dosa & Mysore Cheese Chutney Dosa

We all have to agree that south indian food not only is mouth water and satiating but also has a unique style and taste to it. There are numerous version of dosa, idly and vadas and puttus. Today I'm planning to prepare Mysore sada dosa for dinner as my fridge is running empty on veggies except some cucumber, carrots and few other things which can nicely make a lovely pot of sambar, which is a must have for any dosa may it be sada dosa, paper sada dosa, masala dosa, mysore sada dosa, rava dosa or neer dosa or plain ghee dosa.
Mysore sada dosa comes from a beautiful city of Mysore and this dosa is just like any sada dosa but with a kick of mysore chutney inside. After preparing the dosa, mysore chutney either in powder form or paste form will be dusted or spread inside the dosa. This mysore chutney recipe has many variations to it too.
Preparing dosa require a bit of planning, rice and urad dal needs to to soaked for 5-6 hours and then ground to smooth paste and kept in warm place for a couple of hours. Hence if you are planning to make dosa for lunch make sure to soak those ingredients at night and grind to paste first thing in morning, but if you are planning to make dosa for dinner soaking rice and lentils early morning and grinding them around 3 in afternoon is perfect for lovely dinner.

For Dosa we require to soak 2 cups of rice and 1/2 cup of urad dal(white lentils) seperately. Drop in few seeds, roughtly 10-12 seeds of methi(fenugreek seeds) in both rice and lentils.
Soak them for 5-6 hours or overnight.

Now using a blender, grind the drained rice with just enough water to a smooth paste. Add only about 1/3 cup water.
Now grind drained urad dal to a smooth paste add around 1/2 cup water.
Mix both paste nicely and add salt and a pinch of asafoetida.
Keep this container in warm place so that the batter can start the fermenting process.
In case of dosa batter does not need for than 2 hours of fermenting in summer season and not more than 3 1/2 hours fermenting in winter or humid conditions.
This batter can be stored in refrigerator for upto 4-5 days and used as required.

Make thin dosas, using the back of the ladle to spread the dosa out on the skillet. These thin dosas only need to be cooked on one side. When the top of the dosa is dry to touch, sprinkle some of the chutney powder or spread some liquid chutney (as i did). Ready to be served with sambar and any chutney or your choice.


For Mysore chutney blend 3/4th cup of fresh coconut along with 15-20 garlic pods, 1 tbs of sesame seeds/til, 1-2 tbs or kashmiri lal mirch powder (adjust according to your taste) and salt to taste. As i surfed the net to find the perfect mysore chutney recipe i found that roasted channa dal and urad dal are added to this chutney after grinding them to fine powder.... sounds good too. This time i didnt add those powder instead opted for plain garlic chutney option.


Make sure that the chutney is bit watery or a bit on liquidish side.... which ensures nice spreading on dosa.



Along with garlic chutney, spread a bit of coriander mint chutney too, then grate a little cheddar cheese and fold the dosa, voila!! you have mysore chutney cheese dosa.

Tips:
Add any leftover veggies to this dosa and sprinkle some cheese, now roll this crepe into a wrap and tuck in one open side, now you have for yourself a nice veggie mysore wrap.

Hummus

As everyone knows hummus is a middle eastern dip that is served as an appetizer with pita bread, well know is khuboos out here. This easy to make dip has suble flavors to it.

Take 1 cup boiled chickpeas (remove the outer skin of as many chickpeas as possible, this will make hummus gastrically friendly), toss them in blender or food processor, add 1 small garlic clove, salt to taste, 1 tsp lemon juice and 1 tsp of tahina, tahina is sesame/til paste or alternatively make ur own tahina paste-lightly roast sesame seeds and blend them into a fine paste.
Ground this mix into a smooth paste and store in airtight bottle or jar.
Serve it with a sprinkle of paprika and a table spoon of olive oil.

Enjoy.

Channa Masala (Chickpea curry)

I had to make something special today, today being my mom & dad's 32nd wedding anniversary :). Happy Anniversary mum and pappa. So today mine dinner menu goes like this- Channa masala with trikon/traingular paratha, hummus and litchi juice.

Channa masala is a very special dish for me as it attaches some very fine memories with my family especially my mom and dad. This was the first dish that my mom taught me when i was just 13 and that day I was soooo eager for my dad to come home and taste it. I remember, even though I had managed to burn this curry, my dad ate it with appreciation in his eyes. This is the only dish which really makes me feel at home.
P too loves this dish as it is a spicy curry and he is a foodie who loves everything that is hot and spicy. :)

Ingredients:

3 cups boiled chole channa/chickpeas
2 medium sized onions chopped finely
3 large tomatoes/4 medium tomatoes chopped finely / 3 tbs tomato paste, diluted in 1/2 cup water / 2 1/2 cups medium thick tomato juice (i used tomato paste as it give this gravy nice colour)
2 green chillies chopped finely
1 tbs grated ginger
2 tsp grated garlic
2 tbs oil
2 tbs dhania-jeera powder/coriander-cumin powder
1 tsp turmeric
1 tsp red chilli powder (i used kashmiri lal mirch powder)
1 tsp garam masala/all spice
1 1/2 tsp chole channa masala
salt to taste
1 cup water
hand ful of chopped coriander leaves/cilantro for garnish.

combine and grind to powder:
2 tbs til/sesame seeds
1 tbs saunf/fennel seeds


Method:

Heat oil in a large skillet. Add onion, garlic, ginger and pepper and sauté over medium heat until browned, about 5 minutes.
Turn heat down to medium-low and add the coriander-cumin, red chilli, turmeric, channa masala and garam masala. Cook onion mixture with spiced for a minute or two, then add the tomatoes and any accumulated juices, scraping up any bits that have stuck to the pan. Add the ground powder of sesame and fennel seeds
Cook for about 7 mins or till the raw tomato taste has gone.
Add the water and chickpeas. Simmer uncovered for 10 minutes, then stir in salt and lemon juice if you prefer tangy curry.
Garnish it with chopped coriander leaves and serve hot.


Tips:
Add lemon juice or amchur powder to make this curry more tangy if you prefer.
Fennel seeds adds that zing to this gravy adjust the aroma according to your preference. I prefer minimal to mild aroma of fennel hence have adjusted in accordance in this dish.
Serve it with paratha or jeera rice. Goes well with plain steamed rice too.

Dal Dhokli / Pasta in Lentil soup Indian Style

Consider this as a totally authentic pasta dish not coming from Italy but from heart of India, Gujarat. Fresh pasta simmered in tasty, spicy and aromatic lentil soup, slice of heaven served on plate. The wholesomeness of whole wheat flour and protein rich lentils make this dish extra special.
Gujaraties are well-known for their love of food and the range of dishes which are unique in itself and this dish comes as a proof of it.
Some people describe dal dhokli as a pasta-like dish as I do, but the practice of dropping everyday bread dough into a simmering pot, puts it in the dumpling category too. So its upto you to pick your choice.
This is a one pot dish and a favorite in Gujarat as a Holiday evening dish.
Happy Cooking.

Ingredients :

For Gujarati Dal:
1/2 cup toor dal/arhaar dal/split pigeon peas, pressure cooked/boiled and crushed/churned
1/2 tsp mustard seeds (rai)
1/2 tsp cumin seeds (jeera)
1 tsp fenugreek seeds (methi)
10-12 curry leaves
2 small round red chillies (boriya)/dry red chillies
1/4 tsp asafoetida (hing)
1 tbs oil
2 tbs peanuts
8 pieces cocum, soaked/2 tbs lemon juice (I used lemon juice)
3 to 4 tbs jaggery (gur)/ sugar
1 tsp turmeric powder (haldi)
4 green chillies, slit
1 tsp chili powder
1 tsp grated ginger
salt to taste
Handful of freshly chopped coriander leaves/cilantro for garnishing

For Dhokli:
1 1/2 cup whole wheat flour (gehun ka atta)
1 tsp turmeric powder (haldi)
1 tsp chili powder
1 tsp asafoetida (hing)
2 tbs oil
1 tsp carom seeds (ajwain)
salt to taste

Method :

Preparing Dhokli-
Mix the atta, ajwain, chili powder, salt, turmeric powder oil, asafoetida, oil and add enough water to it to make a stiff dough. Divide the dough into 8 equal sized portions and roll out the dough, cut it into square or diamond shaped pieces, separate the individual pieces and keep aside on a large tray to dry out.




Preparing Dal-Dhokli-
In a large and deep pan, heat the oil, and add the mustard seeds. When they start to pop, add peanuts, cumin seeds, curry leaves, fenugreek seeds, asafoetida, red chillies and finally add the cooked dal.
Add the slit green chillies, grated ginger, turmeric powder, red chili powder, jaggery and lemon juice and plenty of water (around 4 cups).
Add Salt to taste.
Bring it to a boil.

Add the dhokli pieces to the dal and cook it for a few minutes on medium heat until the dal starts to thicken and the dhoklis have softened and cooked. I usually add dhoklis and pressure cook them for 1 whistle.
Garnish it with chopped coriander leaves.

Tips :
Serve hot with a dollop of ghee, thats the traditional way of enjoying dal dholki.
Dal dhokli can be prepared using left over gujarati dal, just add 2-2 1/2 cups of water to left over dal and bring it to a boil, adjust the spices if necessary, add in dhoklis and pressure cook for 1 whistle or till dhoklis are cooked.
Prepare double recipe of dhokli and freeze half of it in Ziploc bags for future use. Time saving hmmm!!! so that next time I only need to make some dal and drop in the dhoklis.
In case you have leftover dal dhokli, reheat it with a little water to thin it out.