Spring-Onion-Roti with Saffron-Bottle Gourd

Monday mornings are never so welcomed by us. So I tried to give a no-oil-veggi touch to our Monday morning with my special cup of coffee. After having that heavy breakfast we felt, the Monday morning was not so bad.

The Roti 

Ingredients:

Maida - 200 gms

Wheat flour - 200gm

Spring Onion leaves - 1 cup, very finely chopped

Saffron (optional) - 3-4 strands, soaked in 2tbs warm milk

Salt - to taste

Method:

1. Mix Maida & Wheat flour, you will need a little amount of Wheat flour to roll the roti. Sieve the flour mixture well with salt and place in a flat dish.

2. Add chopped leaves of Spring onions. Add the saffron soaked milk and make the dough. If needed, add cold water to get a smooth dough.

3. Knead the dough once and divide into golf ball size balls. Dip one ball into the Wheat flour to coat and roll it out into a thin disc. Keep dipping the roti into the dry flour to prevent it from sticking to the rolling surface.

4. Shake or rub off excess flour from the roti and place it onto the hot tawa. Cook on a hot tava (griddle), until both sides are ready.

5. Repeat with the remaining dough.

Dudh Lau

Ingredients:

Bottle Gourd - 1 medium, soft

Turmeric powder - 1/4tsp

Chilly - 1

Musterd seeds - 1/2tsp

Ginger paste - 1tsp

Milk - 4tbsp

Maida - 1tbsp

Salt to taste

Sugar - 1tsp (if you like sweet taste, otherwise you can avoid this)

Oil - 1tbsp

Saffron - 3-4 strands, soaked in 2tbs warm milk

1. Peel and chop the Bottle Gourd in small thin pieces.

2. Cook about 4 cups of cubed Bottle Gourd\Lauki\Lau with water and a little salt till half-done.

3. Heat oil in a kadai, add musterd seeds & chilly. When the spices pop, add the half-cooked gourd (discarding water) and saute for a few minutes. Add turmeric powder, salt and sugar.

4. Mix remaining 2tbs Milk with All Purpose Flour/Maida to make a smooth paste.

5. When the water has almost dried up, add ginger paste, saffron-milk mixture, maida paste.

6. Keep cooking till there is almost no gravy except the liquid clinging to the it. Turn off the heat. Server.

Note:

1. Before serving you may add 1-2tbs ghee.

2. In this same way you can prepare Rigid Gourd. Just skip step 2, because the rigid gourd is very tender.

Linking to:HFFHK - Combo meals for kids @ Nithu's Kitchen & Nivedhanam

Luchi & Split Peas with Spinach-Tomato

The weekends are always pleasant, not because of so much free time for cooking but also for experimenting without worrying about the taste. As you have so  much time you can always prepare something else, if your experiment goes wrong :p

I did some experiment with Luchi\Poori. And we had the successful outcome with this Daal with a toouch of spinach. What to say, it was a lovely beginning of the Sunday morning.

Here is the recipe which is very simple. Hope you enjoy it!

The Luchi

Ingredients:

Maida - 400 gms.

Spinach - 1 cup, very finely chopped, boiled & mashed, don't make paste

Tomato - 1 cup, very finely chopped, boiled & mashed, don't make paste

Sugar

Salt - to taste

Oil to fry.

Method:

1. Sieve the maida well with salt, sugar and place in a flat dish.

2. Make a bay in the center and put a little of oil for leavening.

3. Add smashed spinach & tomato. Add cold water and make a stiff dough.

4. Make roundels of 15 gms and form dough.

5. Roll out on an oily surface into thin discs. 

6. Briskly fry in smoking oil till puffed up and turn over. 

7. Serve hot.

Motor Daal\Yellow Split Peas

Ingredients:

1 tbsp – Oil/ghee

1 cup – Yellow split peas (matar)

1 No – Onion

1/4 tsp – Cumin seeds

1/4 tsp – Turmeric

1/4 tsp – Ginger grated

1/4 tsp – Green chillies chopped

1 tsp – Coriander powder

1 cup – Spinach chopped

Salt to taste

Method: 

1. Clean and wash the dal properly. Soak it overnight in water.

2. Add 2-2.5 cups of water in it and steam in a pressure cooker for 7-10 mins on a high flame. Then turn too a low fame and cook till done (another 5-7 mins).

3. Heat oil in a pan and add cumin seeds. When they crackle, add ginger, chillies and onion and cook till deep pink. Add chopped spinach.

4. Add the masalas, salt and stir for a minute. Lower the flame

5. Add the dal and bring to a boil. Serve hot with Luchi.

Linking to:HFFHK - Combo meals for kids @ Nithu's Kitchen & Nivedhanam

Cucumber Chatpata

This is a very simple appetizer. You can add your touch of variations. We enjoyed our weekend evening snacks with hot coffee.

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Ingredients:

Cucumber - 1, large
onion - 1, medium, finely chopped
tomato - 1, small, finely chopped
chilly - 1, finely chopped
salt to taste
black pepper to taste
oil 1tsp
bhujia/some mixture - as much you desire/required.

Method:

1. Cut the cucumber into half lengthwise, scoop out the seeds so that a depression is formed for the filling.
2. Mix the chopped onions, tomatoes, chilly, salt, black pepper, oil.
3. Stuff 1/2 tbsp of the mixture in the cucumber. Topped with 1tsp of mixture/bhujia.
4. Serve with hot coffee or any drink you want.

Linking: Monsoon Of India and JCO.

Mushroom Chhole with Pulao

This time I was totally into Mushrooms. A full meal with mushrooms. I am just loving it! Hope you love it too. Do not forget send me your feedback :)

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Mushroom Chhole

Ingredient:

Chick peas - 250gm

Onion - 4 (medium / 2 for paste, 2 for slicing)

1 cup - Mushroom, soked in warm water & quartered

Garlic paste - 2 tbs

Ginger paste - 1tbs

Turmeric Powder - 1tbs

Cumin powder - 1tbs

Coriander powder - 1tbs

Chilly Powder - 2tbs

Green Chilly - 2

Tomato - 1 large

Potato - 1 large

Salt to taste

Sugar - 1tbs

Method:

1. Soak the chickpeas overnight, so that they become soft easily. Even after soaking also you have to put them in pressure cooker for 4-5 whistles.Add little bit salt while in cooker.After that drain that water.

2. Now heat a pan with mustard oil. Add garlic paste and then add the onions paste & slices.

3. Add chopped green chilies and fry the onions till they become soft.

4. Now add potato pieces, mushrooms & tomatoes and stir for  2 min in medium flame.

5. Now add the cooked peas in the pan. Increase the flame a bit and fry this whole mixture properly.

6. After 5 min of frying, add turmeric powder,cumin powder,coriander powder, chilly powder and ginger paste in it. Again stir properly so that masala can mix properly.

7. After frying all the peas and masalas, now add water. Add sugar & salt.

8. Now cook for 5-7 min in high flame.

9. Finally add garam masala just before finishing.Stire it properly.You can garnish it with chopped onions and chopped coriander. Even you can also add chopped green chili.

Mushroom & buddha palm squash pulao

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups - Rice (preferable Basmati)

Salt To Taste

1 Pinch - Turmeric powder

1 tb spoon - garam masala

2 - bay leaves

3 - cardamom

1 - Cinnamon

6 - kismis

1 cup - Mushroom, small, soked in warm water & halved

1 - buddha palm squash, small, chopped

Rice:Water - 1: 1 1/2

Method:

1. Soak rice for half an hour. Soaked kismis in water.

2. Heat 1 Tbsp of ghee is a cooker, fry bay leaves. Add  cinnamon & cardamom.

3. Add the garam masala and fry. Add the chopped mushrooms & squash and mix well.

4. Cook until the masala separates from oil and vegetables gets tender. Add turmeric powder.

5. Add rice, salt, 3 cups of water and stir well. Add kismis. Cover and cook on high flame & wait for the cooker to whistle once. Turn off the heat & let it set for 10-15 mins.

8. Transfer to a serving dish. Serve hot Mushroom-Chole.

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Veg Sfiha :)

Yesterday evening me & my friends were not in mood to go out for having snacks. In my kitchen, I had some leftover dough. I just came up with this one, with a doubt whether my friends were gonna like that. But,  they loved it. It is very very easy to make & tasty+healthy as well.

Hope you are going to like it & please please send me some feedback.
If you like my recipes, then please join my blog by clicking here.

Ingredients:

Maida - 200gm

oil - 1tbs

Tomato - 2 large, finely chopped

Onion - 4 medium, finely chopped

salt to taste

sugar to taste

Chilly - 1-2, chopped

Carrot - 2 medium, grated

Cucumber - 1 small, chopped finely 

Coriander leaves, finely choped to garnish

Preparation:

1. Sieve the maida well with salt, sugar and place in a flat dish. Make a bay in the center and put a little of oil for leavening. Add warm water and make a stiff dough.

2. Mix well tomatoes, onion, carrot, chilly and cucumber. Add 1tsp oil (I used musterd oil, because I love its taste) & salt.

3. Divide dough into walnut size balls. Roll between hand palms to smooth.

4. Roll out balls with a rolling pin to form 8 cm diameter circles.

5. Bring the edges up and press to make your desired shape.

6. Arrange pastries in a tray brushed with butter\oil. Bake in a moderate heat oven (180° C) for 30 minutes or till dough is golden.

7. Put one tbls of mixture on dough circle seeing that a cube is in each spoon. Garnish with chopped coriander leaves.

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Linking: Monsoon Of India and JCO.

Egg-Stuffed Papaya baked

This was my another different approach with papaya. The first time when I came up with the idea of making this recipe, I had no idea of its taste. But the 1st time attempt with cucumber, made me understand it's healthy part. You can try this or with any other vegetable or fruit you love. It is easy & simple, yet very tasty & healthy.

Here is the recipe.

Linking to JCO: I M Well Stuffed!

Kochur Dom\Dum Arbi

Since my last post, I was busy with shifting to my new place & arranging it. So could not find time to prepare something which I can share with you, except for this recipe & one more (which I shall try to post soon, as the house arrangement is still going on). I wanted to have Aloor Dom, but here I hardly can find the small potatoes. So modifying the Dom Aloo recipe with these small colocasia tubes. Hope to get some feedback :)

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Picture Courtesy: http://findmeacure.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/07/colocasia-root.jpg

Ingredients:

500gms Kochu (colocasia) 

water 

oil for deep-frying 

1 cup ghee (optional)

2 medium Onions, finely chopped 

1 medium tomato, roughly chopped

1tsp garam masala powder

4 bay leaves 

12 cloves of garlic, finely chopped 

2 tbsp ginger 

1 tbsp coriander powder 

1 tsp cumin powder

1 tsp chilli powder

1 tsp turmeric powder 

Salt to taste

1tsp Sugar

Method:

1. Scrape the kochu (colocasia), prick all over with a fork. In a cooker take these colocasia with enough water & place on oven; wait till 2-3 whistles of the cooker. Turn off heat & keep aside for 10mins.

2. Heat oil in kadai. Add the bay leaves & add chopped garlic, toss for 30sec. Add chopped onions. Saute for 2mins. Add the boiled colocasia. Saute for 3mins. 

3. Add ginger paste & toss. Add tomatoes & toss. Add all the masala powders (except the garam masala), salt, sugar & saute for 4-5mins on medium flame. 

4. Add enough water, depending upon the tenderness of the boiled colocasia & amount to gravy you want. Cover the kadai & cook on low flame (if the colocasia tubes are not tender enough).

5. After7-8mins, unver the kadai & cook on high flame until you get the desired amount of gravy.

6. Add garam masala powder & saute for 10-12sec on low heat. Turn off the heat.

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