Atte Ke Namak Pare

Perfect season for crisps and what better than homemade fried food isn't it :)

Try this recipe for Whole Wheat flour salted biscuits or Namak Pare as they are called.

ATTE KE NAMAK PARE

Atta Namak Pare

INGREDIENTS:
Atta - 1 cup
Sooji - 1 tbsp
Hot oil - 3 tbsps
Salt to taste
Ajwain - 1/4 tsp
Black pepper powder - 1/4 tsp
Water as required
Oil for frying

METHOD:
1. Mix together the dry ingredients.
2. Add hot oil and mix again for a crumbly mixture but that holds shape to an extent.
3. Add enough water to make a stiff dough.
4. Heat oil for frying on medium flame.
5. Divide dough into equal portions.
6. Roll out into thin rotis nd cut out strips of desired shapes.
7. Drop them into the oil and fry till golden brown.
Drain excess oil and store in an air-tight container.

Atte ka Halwa

Simple and easy to make dessert recipe using minimal ingredients...

ATTE KA HALWA (Wheat flour halwa)

Ingredients:

Whole wheat flour - 1 cup

Sugar - 1 cup

Ghee - 1/2 cup

Water - 2 cups

Roasted cashews (in ghee) - a few

Roasted raisins(optional) - a few

Method:

1. Heat ghee in a thick-bottomed pan. 

2. Simultaneously mix together sugar and water in a thick saucepan and bring to a boil on medium heat. Allow sugar to dissolve. We do not need any string consistency here. Once it comes to a boil, lower flame a little and let simmer.

3. Meanwhile, to the ghee, add the wheat flour and roast well. Keep stirring till the flour lets out a roasted aroma and starts to turn golden brown. 

4. Continue stirring till ghee starts to separate and it becomes a pasty mix.

5. Once the sugar syrup starts to bubble, carefully and gradually add it to the roasted flour, stirring alongside to ensure no lumps. 

6. Keep stirring till all the water is absorbed by the flour and it comes together and starts leaving the sides of the pan.

Remove and serve hot (or warm) garnished with roasted cashews or other dry fruits of choice.

Eggless Whole Wheat Cupcakes

One really doesnt need a reason to indulge in cupcakes. And trust me, they are soo easy to make. Once you get the basic measure right, there are endless possibilities of flavours and ingredients.
Here's a simple and healthy one that's eggless and uses almost no butter!

EGGLESS WHOLE WHEAT CUPCAKES

Ingredients :
Whole Wheat flour - 1 cup (Or refined + Wheat flour, 1/2 cup each)
Baking soda - 1 tsp
Whisked curds - 1 cup
Butter - 1 tbsp
Ripe bananas, mashed - 2 medium or 1 large
Demerara sugar, powdered - 1.5 cups (or normal sugar 1 cup)
Clove or cinnamon powder - 1/4 tsp
Almond powder/Ready to mix Badam drink powder - 2 tsps (optional)

Method :
1. Add the mashed bananas and 1/2 cup curd to a bowl and mix well. Add the sugar and butter and mix well again.
2. Sieve together flour, baking soda, spice powder into a clean bowl.
3. Fold the flour into the banana mixture, a little at a time. If batter is too thick add the remaining curds little by little till you get a dropping consistency, resembling Idli batter.
4. Spoon the batter into cupcake moulds. Bake in a pre-heated microwave (I place an oven-proof glass bowl filled with water and let run on high for 2 mins) at 180 deg C for 7-8 mins. If the toothpick test fails, bake for few minutes more.
Remove and let cool on a wire rack before de-moulding.

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.

Healthy Ghee Mix

                 Many of us prefer preparing ghee at home, whether it's from the homemade butter or the ready-made uncooked butter. Once the butter's melted to the desired point and we have the ghee we need, there is a brownish residue left-over in the pan. 
Now most of us might be doing this already, this is something I learnt from my mother. 
[Note : This works best with the golden brown butter residue, if it is too dark then the mix will taste bitter]

HEALTHY GHEE MIX

Ingredients : (makes 1 cup) 

Brown residue of melted butter - 1/2 cup 
Wheat flour - 1 cup 
Powdered Sugar - 1/2 cup 
Cardamom (Elaichi) powder - a pinch


Method : 

1. Sprinkle the wheat flour over the butter residue and mix well so there are no lumps and you get a nice powdery consistency.

2. Now add the sugar and cardamom powder and give it a final mix. 
Note : Granular sugar can be used too, but it will be easier to mix in the powdered form.

Now whenever hunger pangs attack, munch through a few spoonfuls of this healthy mix!!!

Multi-grain Samosas

No time is a good time for Samosas!! No..really, I mean it! Because ANYTIME is a good time for Samosas after all :)

The idea of using refined flour was weighing heavy and rendering guilt (especially after a heavy lunch), but the craving was still there...Way out? Give it a healthy twist by using every other grain flour and just a wee bit of Maida, add in a dash of sprouts and voila! Guilt-free indulgence....well, almost!!

#WorldSamosaDay

MULTI-GRAIN SAMOSAS

Ingredients : (Makes around 12 medium pieces)

Whole Wheat flour - 1 cup
Bajra Flour - 1/4 cup
Soya Flour - 1/4 cup
Oatmeal (or coarsely powdered cooking oats) - 1/4 cup
Refined Flour - 1/4 cup (mainly for extra elasticity)
Salt to taste
Black Pepper powder - 1 tsp
Olive oil - 2 tbsps
Clarified butter / Ghee - 1 tbsp

Filling : 
Boiled and lightly mashed potatoes - 1 1/2 cups
Boiled Green peas - 1/4 cup
Green gram (Moong) sprouts - 1/4 cup
Chopped coriander 
Salt to taste
Chili powder - 2 tsps
Dhaniya powder - 1 tsp
Garam Masala - 1 1/2 tsps
Coriander seeds - 1 1/2 tsps

Misc :
Oil for frying

Method : 

1. For the samosa dough, add in the dry ingredients to a bowl and toss well. Add oil and ghee and rub the dry mixture with your fingers. Now add water little by little and knead into a soft dough. Cover with a wet muslin cloth and keep aside while we prepare our filling.

2. In another bowl, add the boiled and crushed (not mashed) potatoes, boiled peas, sprouts, salt to taste, chili powder, dhaniya powder, chopped coriander leaves and garam masala. Mix well.

3. In a small pan, add the whole coriander seeds and lightly roast (without oil) for about 2 mins. Remove and transfer to a clean counter or Chapati disc and crush using a rolling pin till reduced to flakes. Do not powder too fine. Add to the bowl with the rest of the filling and mix again. Check for salt and divide into 12 equal portions.

4. Divide the dough into 6 equal rounds. Roll into a thin round and using a knife, cut into half. Take one semi-circle and fold to form a cone. Wet the edges lightly if needed so they stick well. Now make a fold/pleat directly opposite to the cone joint. (This 'spine' is very important in shaping the samosa!!)

5. Place a portion of the stuffing inside and gently seal the top edge, again using a little water. Now using a fork, carefully make impressions on the sealed top edge or simply fold in using your hands as we do for Gujjiyas.

6. Heat oil for frying on medium heat. Prepare the rest of the samosas and keep them ready for frying. Depending on the size of the vessel, drop in one to three samosas and fry on medium heat till golden brown. Take care not to fry on high heat else the outer crust will be done even before the heat gets to the filling. Remove and drain excess oil.(If you can get hold of Rice bran or Extra light Olive oil for frying, even better!)

Serve hot with desired accompaniments.

Chinese Style Stuffed Dosa

Tired of the normal dosas, I decided to experiment with some different stuffing. With some cabbage and carrots in the fridge, the first thought was Chinese!! A dash of this and a sprinkle of that...not a bad idea.... What can one not do when you have the right sauces at home :)


                                            CHINESE STYLE STUFFED WHEAT DOSA

Ingredients :

For Dosa :

Wheat flour - 2 cups
Soya flour - 2 tbsps
Rice flour - 1/2 cup
Maida - 1/4 cup
Curd - 1/2 cup (whisked)
Water as required
Salt to taste

For Stuffing :

Shredded Cabbage - 1 cup
Grated Carrot - 1/2 cup
Chopped Capsicum - 1/4 cup
Grated Paneer - 1/2 cup
Schezwan Sauce - 2 tbsps
Red Chili Sauce - 1 tsp
Soya Sauce - 1 tsp
Salt to taste
Oil - 2 tsps

Method : 

1. Mix together the flours and salt to taste, gradually add the whisked curds and stir well leaving no lumps. Add enough water to make a thin dosa batter. Leave aside for 5 minutes.

2. For the stuffing, heat oil in a pan. Add the cabbage and sauté for 2 minutes. Add the carrot and sauté for 2 more minutes. Do not cook too much, we need the vegetables 1/4th crunchy.

3. Now add the capsicum. Add the Schezwan sauce and Red chili sauce and mix well.

4. Tip in the paneer and mix again. Add the soya sauce and salt to taste. Be careful with salt as the sauces would have some salt in them already. Sauté for just 1 minute more and remove.

5. Heat a dosa tawa and grease with a little oil. If the dosa batter is a bit thick add little more water. Pour a ladle-ful batter on to the tawa and spread evenly. Cook with a little oil till cooked and golden brown on both sides.
Note : Always make a small tester dosa first to make sure it comes out OK. If too sticky or if it tears, add a little rice flour.

6. Place the stuffing on one end of the dosa and roll carefully. Serve hot with spicy ketchup.

Karthigai Special - Appam (Sweet)

Sweet Appams or Appe are quick and easy to prepare and a popular dish for festivals like Navratri and Karthigai Deepam. Here's a jhatpat recipe to try...

SWEET APPAM

Ingredients

Wheat flour - 1 cup

Rice flour - 1/2 cup

Jaggery - 1 cup

Ripe banana - 1 (mashed)

Elaichi powder - 1 tsp

Method

1. Sift together wheat and rice flours. 

2. Dissolve jaggery in plain water, approximately 1 cup, no need to heat. Once it is completely dissolved, strain through a semi-fine sieve so as to remove impurities.

3. Add this to the flours along with the mashed banana. Mix well leaving no lumps. Add sufficient water (only if needed) to make a thick batter of dripping consistency. Add cardamom powder and mix again.

4. Heat oil in a appam pan or a small kadhai. Drop small ladle-fuls of the batter into the appam cups or the kadhai. Fry on a medium flame till golden brown on both sides.

5. Serve warm or store for later.