Amritsari Kulcha

      Indian breads is truly an exhaustive list. The amount of variations is almost limitless, from the grains(s) / flour(s) used, to thickness, cooking techniques, stuffed or without, and even the number and styles of layering....

Amritsari Kulcha remained a yet-untried venture for me, plus our Foodie bloghop theme being Indian breads, this weekend called for punching the dough and striking it off my to-try list... 
And...keeping up with my resolve to use the "white flour" as less as possible, I used more of Whole Wheat Flour, inspired by this blog 

AMRITSARI KULCHA (WHEAT FLOUR)

Ingredients : (Makes 12 Kulchas about 5 inches in diameter)

For the dough :

Whole Wheat Flour-1.5 cups
Refined Flour - 1/2 cup (More for elasticity, else you can use 2 cups wheat flour alone)
Salt to taste
Baking Powder-1 tsp
Baking Soda-1/2 tsp
Oil-3 tbsps
Curd -1/4 cup
Warm Milk-1/4 cup 
Water - as required

Filling:
Boiled Potatoes- 2 medium 
Salt to taste
Green Chili (chopped) - 1 to 2
Onion (chopped) - 1
Red Chili powder-1 tsp
Cumin(Jeera) Powder-1 tsp
Chaat Masala-1/4 tsp
Fresh Coriander (chopped)

Method :

1. To assemble the dough, sieve together the flours, salt, baking powder and soda, or mix well with hands. Make a well in the centre and add the oil, curds, warm milk mixing them into the flours as you add them. Knead into a soft dough using enough water, cover and keep aside for 30 minutes.

2. Meanwhile, let's prepare the filling. Peel and mash the boiled potatoes, add salt, chopped green chilies, chopped onion, red chili powder, jeera powder, chaat masala and chopped coriander. Mix well using your hands and keep aside.

3. Divide the dough into 12 equal portions and make same number of portions for the filling as well.

4. Flatten one dough ball and place the filling in the centre, seal well. Place a plastic sheet on the counter, keep the round on the sheet and fold the plastic sheet over it. Now flatten the round into a 1cm thick disc using your fingers or a rolling pin. It's ok if the stuffing comes out a bit.

5. Heat a tawa on medium heat and put the kulcha on to it. Let cook a bit on both sides, then flip and drizzle oil over and around it to cook further till golden brown spots appear. Remove. Repeat with the rest of the dough.

Serve hot with desired accompaniment.

Spicy Orange-Berry Marmalade

                Of all the jams I have had in my lifetime, my favourite is the Orange Marmalade. I have been wanting to try it out for a long time now, and seeing oranges in all shapes, sizes and prices everywhere, I finally decided to go for it... .
As a variation, I added some blueberries in. Unfortunately I didnt have a good stock of fresh ginger, else would have added that in too....

ORANGE-BLUEBERRY/STRAWBERRY MARMALADE

Ingredients : (yields about 800 gms)

Oranges (un-peeled) - 3 medium
Blueberries/Strawberries - 1/2 cup
Water - 1.5 cups
Sugar - 1 cup
Ginger - 2 inches piece (optional)
Cinnamon powder - 1 tsp (optional)
Clove powder - 1 tsp (optional)
Juice of 1 lemon

Method :

1. Peel the oranges, de-seed, remove the white membrane, fibre and chop into small pieces. Gently scrape off the fibre from the peel and chop into small slivers. Keep aside. 
Some prefer chopping the fruits as is without peeling or removing the pith. Pith adds extra bitterness, so absolutely OK to follow that method too. I like it this way :)
If using frozen blueberries, thaw the required amount of berries and re-store the remaining in the fridge. Chop the Strawberries if using them.

2. Place 2 small steel plates in the fridge. This will  be used to check the jam consistency later. 2 plates because if you need to check 2-3 times, then the same plate returned to the fridge might not be cold enough for the next check. Best to alternate to get a good result.

3. Add water to a thick bottomed wok or kadhai alongwith the chopped oranges, peel and berries. Bring to a boil on medium heat. This should take about 30 minutes. Check by squishing an orange peel to see if it's tender. If need be, use a masher to gently mash the fruits. Do this on low heat and take care not to scald oneself.

4. Now add the sugar and let boil again on medium heat, stirring occasionally till the mixture starts to thicken. 

5. Grind (with about 1-2 tsp water) or finely grate ginger. You can either use the extract or the grated ginger as is. 

6. Take out a plate from the fridge and put a drop of the mixture on it, leave for a minute. If it's too runny, continue to cook. If it starts to solidify after a minute and you can roll it up like jelly, then we are good and the heat can be turned off. 
It may still look runny, but due to the presence of sugar, the jam will thicken further when it starts cooling down. 
Note: If you continue boiling because it's runny, you risk caramelising the sugar.

7. Add grated/ground ginger or ginger extract along with the cinnamon powder and clove powder and stir well. Simmer for few minutes more. Do not boil too much after adding the spices as it will lose the flavour.

8. After removing from the fire, add the lemon juice and stir well. Lemon juice not only helps the jam set better, it's a great natural anti-bacterial preservative as well.

9. Now leave to cool at room temperature, if you've made a large quantity, give it a good 24 hours. You will notice the marmalade thickening with time. Store in a clean bottle, best refrigerated for longer shelf life.

Ginger-Orange flavoured Chunky Mango Jam

           There couldn't possibly be such a thing as "too much of mangoes", I mean, who can resist picking them up every time we see them in a super market or a cart laden with these golden beauties!! Especially when each week brings out a new variety and you promise to treat yourself to all or as many of them !!
                    
                               And that's when the trouble starts!! An overdose of mangoes... much to be eaten, but only so much that we can have of the fruit!! So this week I set out with an agenda of putting all those ripening mangoes around me to good use and coming up with innovative recipes. So after the Mango Cupcakes last week, here's the next one up......
[Note : One can use Mango pulp or chunks, depending on how smooth one would like their jam. The mangoes I worked with were over-ripe so I could just spoon them out into a bowl! ]

GINGER-ORANGE FLAVOURED MANGO JAM 

Ingredients :
 
Ripe Mango pulp or chunks - 2 cups (Variety of mango is totally up to you, any chunky variety with less-fibre can be used. I used 'Banganapalli')
Sugar - 3/4 to 1 cup (I used half cup each of brown and white sugar)
Lemon juice - 1 tbsp 
Orange juice - 1 tbsp
Ginger (Finely grated) - 2 tsps
Cinnamon powder - 1/4 tsp
Orange zest - 1/2 tsp (optional)

Method :

1. Add the mango pulp/chunks, sugar, lemon and orange juice, along with grated ginger, to a thick bottomed/non-stick pan. If you aren't too happy about finding ginger pieces in your jam, you can use its extract instead.

2. Let simmer on medium heat, stir occasionally, till the moisture in the pulp reduces and the mixture starts thickening. This should normally take a good 15-20 minutes.

3. Once you see the pulp reducing, lower the heat. Add the cinnamon powder and orange zest and keep stirring on and off for another 5-7 minutes.

4. Remove from the fire and let cool. Please remember that the sugar in the mixture will cause the jam to continue thickening even after it stops cooking. So do not leave it on the flame for a longer time.

5. Once cooled to room temperature, store in a clean airtight bottle and use as desired.

Crunchy Breakfast Sandwich

When a day begins on a healthy note, it keeps you charged for the whole day. And what better way to commence than with a healthy, crunchy and tasty breakfast !!

SPROUTS SANDWICH

Ingredients :

Whole green gram sprouts - 1 cup
Boiled and grated potato - 1/2 cup
Grated carrot - 1/2 cup
Finely chopped spinach - 1/4 cup
Chopped coriander - 1/4 cup
Chili powder - 1 tsp
Salt to taste
Cumin seeds(Jeera) - 1 tsp
Garam Masala powder - 1/2 tsp
Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp
Bread slices
Olive (or refined) Oil - 1- 2 tsps

Method :

1. Heat oil in a pan and add cumin seeds. Let crackle.

2. Now add the grated carrot and sprouts, salt to taste, turmeric powder and let cook for about 4-5 minutes. We do not want to over-cook but leave the carrots and sprouts a bit crunchy. One can add chopped capsicum at this stage as well, or even fine-chopped and blanched broccoli; in fact more vegetables the better!!!

3. Now add the chopped spinach and cook for 3-4 minutes more. Add garam masala, chili powder and mix well. Remove from heat after about 2-3 minutes and cool.

4. Toast the bread slices. Place the stuffing in between 2 slices. It is optional to add cheese spread or slices as well.
Cut and serve the sandwich as desired.

Pudina Naan

Naan is an Indian flat-bread belonging to the category of leavened, baked preparations. In India, it is typically prepared in a clay oven or tandoor, but can also be made using inverted kadhai, cookers and simply by baking in an oven.
Here's a no-soda, no-yeast recipe for Naan. I tried it plain and with mint and coriander leaves. You can try your own variations too.
                                                                   PUDINA NAAN

Ingredients :

Refined flour (Maida) - 2 cups
Curd - 8 tbsps
Salt - 1/2 tsp
Milk - 3/4th cup
Baking powder - 2 tsps
Melted Butter - 2 tbsps
Chopped Mint leaves - 1/2 cup
Pinch of sugar
Butter for cooking

Method : 

1. Sift together the refined flour, baking powder, salt and sugar in a bowl.

2. Add the 2 tbsps butter and mix with hands so that it gets well incorporated with the flour.

3. Make a well in the centre and gradually add the curd, mixing it with the flour simultaneously. Add the milk and mint leaves now and knead into a soft dough. Use water if required. Apply a little ghee (Clarified butter) and gently knead again. Cover with a wet muslin cloth and leave aside for 3 to 4 hours

4. Punch the dough with light hands. Divide into equal portions. Roll it out maintaining the thickness of a pizza, or flatten with greased hands. Apply butter on the naan.

5. Place the naan in a greased baking tray and bake @ 250deg C for 15-20 mins. Alternately, wet the top of the naan generously, instead of applying butter, and stick the wet side firmly on the base of a wide bottomed kadhai or pressure cooker. Place it inverted over the gas flame for about 5-7 mins and check if done.
Serve hot with desired accompaniment.