Punjabi Chhole /Kaabuli Chane

My hubby is mad about them. Anytime you ask him what does he want to eat, he will say Chhole!!! No, he doesn't consider the fact that you can't make them instantly....And he is very particular about the colour of the Chhole!!!

In initial days of marriage i called up MIL and asked her the recipe of chole, she forgot to tell me one ingredient that is used for colour hence i used to produce Choles with different colour and he always used to drive me nuts saying "yeh colour kuch alag hai" :roll: Finally i called up MIL to complain about her Ladla and his fixation about the colour, it was then she enlightened me about the "secret" ingredient!!!

What is that secret ingredient you may ask...well, it is our plain,old, humble Tea water!!!!

So finally, i could make the perfectly coloured Chhole using tea water and of course they tasted great...

Once we had a friend visiting us and i made Chhole and he liked them very much, so he asked me the recipe...Before i could answer hubby chipped in by saying it's the "Tea" that makes all the difference!!! and you should add Tea to chhole to make them tasty!!! Now the friend too got all enthu at finding the secret ingredient and said he will ask his mom to put tea leaves in the Chhole!!!!

Finally i had to intervene to tell him that you don't add tea leaves but the tea water to chhole!!! Imagine, chhole with tea leaves in it!?!?!

So presenting the Chhole with a secret ingredient ;)

Chhole Puri

Ingredients:

3 Cups Chhole soaked overnight (If you want to make it for dinner than, you can soak them in the early morning :) )

3 medium sized Onions finely cut

3 medium sized tomatoes finely cut

2 teaspoon ginger garlic green chili paste

4 tablespoon oil

1 teaspoon garam masala

2 teaspoon Chhole masala

1/4 teaspoon red chili powder

1/4 teaspoon chaat masala

1/4 teaspoon Aamchur powder (Dry mango powder)

Salt to taste

2 teabags or 2 teaspoon tea leaves

Method:

1) If using tea leaves then, take water in a pan add tea leaves and boil them on high flame for 3 minutes

2) Once you see the water darkening, drain it using a Channi.

3) Add this water to chhole soaked overnight. If using tea bags then directly add bags to the chhole, add water, salt and pressure cook them till they are cooked.

Pressure cooked chhole

4) Meanwhile, in a mixer add onions and tomatoes and crush them to get a coarse paste, add a little water if needed. I use hand mixy to do this.

5) In a pan, take oil and add the onion tomato paste and green chili ginger garlic paste.

Onion Tomato paste before cooking[/caption]

6) Saute till oil separates on medium flame. May take upto 15-20 mins.

Onion Tomato paste after cooking

 7) Now, take the pressure cooked Chhole in a plate, mash them a little, and add red chili powder, garam masala, chaat masala, chhole masala and aamchur powder to the plate.

Masaala added to the pressure cooked chhole

8) Add this chhle-masala mixture to the pan (with onion tomato paste)

10) Mix everything nicely and mash chhole further. Cook on medium flame for 5 minutes or till you see oil separating.

After adding the masala wala chhole to the pan

11) Now add this mixture to the pressure cooked chhole, keep the consistency a little thinner than what you want as it will get thicker later on. Oh and don't forget to take out the tea bags if you used them :)

12) Cook on low flame covered for 20-30 minutes.

13) Garnish with finely cut onions and serve with Bhature/Puris/ Parathas/Kulcha.

I prefer to add finely cut onions and lemon juice/imli chuntey to it, but hubby prefers it with onions.

Notes:

1) No, i didn't forget to add turmeric to the list. If you want the dark colour for your chhole then don't add turmeric to it.

2) You can skip tea water, it's basically for colour.

3) If you don't have aamchur powder then you can use anaar daana powder or even more chaat masala in place of that. Aamchur powder is basically used for adding tangy taste.

4) Try adding imli chutney or tomato ketchup to chhole, my FIL showed this way of eating to me and i love my chhole this way :)

+techie ZM

Winter Special - Sarson ka Saag with Makki Roti

This is North India's favorite food during Winters. Made of Mustard greens, this saag is rich in vitamins and minerals and also calories (due to butter and ghee)..... Traditionally eaten with Makki ki roti, this saag is sure to bring food induced Nirvana to any Punjabi (except my hubby though, who is more of a gujarati than Punjabi ;))....And after Bollywood endorsing this dish big time, everybody in India is curious about it.

My in-laws won't mind having this for lunch and then for dinner and then for breakfast and if still something is left then for lunch again!!!!! Well, to their defense i must add that the dish is tasty, i too enjoy it (though not for every consecutive meal :))

Again i understand (though i am not very sure) that it is made differently in different households. I make it the way my MIL makes it, with a little time saving modification. So here is the recipe....

Ingredients:

For Sarson Ka Saag

Mustard Greens (Sarson Leaves) - 2 big bunches

Spinach - 1 bunch (you can add Bathua leaves also, though i don't add it)

2 tablespoon of makki ka aata - Corn Meal (Different then regular corn flour used in soups)

5 Big Onions - Finely cut

2 Green chilies - Finely cut

10 garlic pods (yes 10!!) - Peeled and finely cut

1 inch ginger - peeled and finely cut

1 teaspoon garam masala

4 Tablespoon Oil

Salt to taste

3 tablespoon Butter or Ghee (I use fresh homemade white butter)

For Makki Roti

1 Cup Makki Aata - Corn meal (Different then regular corn flour used in soups)

salt to taste

water to knead the dough

Method:

1) Clean the Mustard greens.

How you do it is very important. 1st you take leaves along with tender stems. After that you have 2 options, either you throw away the bigger stems or you peel them and cut finely and use it. I go for the 2nd option as that way the taste improves, but it takes a hell lot of time to peel the stems. If you are strapped for time then you can go for option 1.

2) Clean the Spinach leaves. Mix them with Mustard greens and wash properly 4-5 times or till you feel they are clean.

3) Then after adding water to the leaves, pressure cook the leaves for 4-5 whistles on low flame. My MIL cooks it covered in a pan, but it takes 2-3 hours for the sarson leaves to get cooked. so i go for pressure cooking which is faster. I personally don't think it makes any difference to the taste.

4) Let it cool down and then grind together in a coarse paste in your mixer and transfer in a pan.

5) Cook it in the pan covered for 10-15 minutes.

6) Now add the 2 tablespoon of corn flour and salt in proportion of the paste and cook again for 20 minutes while stirring in between.

7) In a pan, take oil for tadka and heat it up, add finely cut onions, finely cut green chili, finely cut ginger and finely cut garlic to it. Add salt to the proportion of onions. Saute till the onions turn translucent. Add garam masala.

8) Add this tadka to the mustard green paste and mix thoroughly. Add 2 tablespoon butter or ghee.

9) Simmer it for 5 minutes and you are ready to serve the saag. While serving add a tablespoon of ghee or butter.

10) For makki roti, knead the dough by mixing makki aata, salt and water.

11) Now rolling Makki roti is a difficult tast. To get unbroken rotis, i use a wet kitchen towel and roll small makki rotis  on the towel (my neighbour and friend V taught me this trick and it works like a charm). To take the rotis off the towel take the towel in your palm and turn it over to put roti in your other palm.

Then on the hot tawa make rotis like regular rotis. Apply ghee or butter.

And Enjoy Makki ki roti with Sarson ka Saag....

+techie ZM 

Malai Kofta Curry

I have this childhood memory of going to the Collegian restaurant with my parents and nicely place the napkin on my lap acting like a grown up and ordering my own food and enjoying our dinner together...But what i remember most from those days is the Malai Kofta...Every time we went there, i would order Malai Koftas. But sadly the restaurant closed down and i could not find that amazing taste of Malai Koftas anywhere else even at the reopened Collegian...

But then i bought this book from Neeta Mehta and in that i found the recipe of Malai Kofta (or rather i bought the book because it has the recipe of Malai kofta :) oh and BTW of Jalebi also) and i made Malai Kofta following the recipe (well almost!!!) and we found it delicious!!!! But i was not completely satisfied, so i decided to make a few changes suggested by hubby and do things the way i do for the Shaahi Paneer recipe...And Viola, i found the perfect taste!!!!

My only problem with this recipe is that i have to stop myself and my family from "tasting" the gravy and kofta before the actual meal, and believe me it's very difficult to stop!!!!

So without further ado, here is the perfect Malai Kofta Recipe....

Yummy Malai Kofta....

Ingredients:

For gravy

3 Onions peeled and cubed
3 tablespoons fresh cream
2 handfuls of cashews
1 small pinch of saffron strands soaked in warm water
1 teaspoon Garam Masala
1/4 teaspoon Red chili powder
1 big pinch of kasoori methi
1 teaspoon sugar
Salt to taste
2 tablespoon oil
1/4 cup milk

For Koftas

2 Boiled potatoes
100 gm paneer
1 brown bread (white will also do)
Salt to taste
1/2 teaspoon Garam masala
1/4 teaspoon Chili powder
Chaat Masala to taste
Oil for Frying Koftas

For Filling in Kofta

1 small onion, finely cut
5-6 Cashew finely cut
2-3 pinches of finely cut ginger
salt
2-3 pinches garam masala
15 Kishmish (raisin) (Optional)
chaat masala to taste
1 tablespoon oil

Method:

1) For making Gravy, in a mixy (and not in a hand blender, it doesn't give the required smooth texture) take onions, cream and cashew and create a smooth paste. If needed add a little milk.

2) For gravy, in a kadai add oil and then add the paste, stir continuously till the oil separates. Also soak Saffron strands in warm water.

3) Then add Salt, Garam masala, chili powder and sugar, saffron strands and kasoori methi. Mix well.

Gravy for Malai Kofta

4) Add the milk and a little water and mix well. Gravy is ready...

5) Now for the Koftas, in a big plate, mash the boiled potatoes, paneer and the bread nicely together and mix well.

6) To this add salt, garam masala, chaat masala and chili powder and mix well.

7) For the filling in the koftas take a kadai and add oil and the finely onion and ginger. Saute till it turns brown. Then add the finely cut cashew, salt, garam masala and chaat masala. mix well. your filling is ready.

8) Now make balls of kofta (using the potato, paneer mixture), then using your finger make a cavity in the center and fill the prepared filling and Kishmish and seal the ball. Flatten it like a tikki.

9) I made it like Tikki by shallow frying it on the tawa. You can deep fry them, but carefully while deep frying because, the koftas are so soft, they tend to break if handled roughly. And if you are planning to deep fry then it will be advisable to keep the kofta shape round rather then the disc like tikkis.

Koftas....

 Or you can bake/grill the koftas as RM did for her kela koftas. I tried baking, and they were tasty but not very soft, so next time i grill them i will brush them with a little more oil, that should solve the problem.

10) When ready to serve, check the gravy, if it needs to be made thin then add little water to the gravy, mix well and simmer. Take it out in the serving bowl, add the koftas (carefully otherwise they may break). Mix and serve...

Goes well with the tandoori rotis, naan or parathas...Enjoy...

+techie ZM

Pizza!!!

Everybody loves pizza, but it is the ultimate junk food!!! So what do we do??!

The solution is to make homemade pizza and using the whole wheat pizza base. So i have been trying for some time to make a tasty home made pizza but while my family liked it, didn't find it great :(

Finally, i saw the recipe of pizza sauce on R's Mom's blog and tried it. And that's the one everybody at home is in love with :) This is how the pizza with it looks like...

Homemade pizza

So now this the recipe i follow to make home made pizza :)

Ingredients:

For Sauce (is enough for 4 pizzas of medium size)

3 medium sized onions (Finely cut)

5 big Tomatoes (pressure cooked/microwaved and peeled)

Green Chilli (1 finely cut or ground to paste)

5 Garlic pods (crushed or finely cut)

2-3 pinches Oregano

2-3 pinches Chili flakes

1/2 teaspoon Mixed Italian herbs (Optional)

1/2 teaspoon Pepper

1/2 cup Tomato ketchup (you can add more if you like)

1 cube grated cheese (Cheddar or any other that you like)

Salt to taste

Sugar 2 teaspoon

3 tablespoon Oil

For Topping

Tomatoes (diced, cut in rings or finely cut whatever you prefer)

Onions (diced, cut in rings or finely cut whatever you prefer)

Capsicum (diced, cut in rings or finely cut whatever you prefer)

Salt to taste

Oregano

Pepper

Mixed italian herbs

1 tablespoon Oil

Any other veggie you want to add

Grated Cheese (i used Cheddar, you can use mozzarella or any other cheese of your choice)

Pizza base (ready made or homemade)

Method:

1) Take the oil in a kadai, add finely cut onions, green chili and garlic and saute...

2) Meanwhile take the boiled and peeled tomatoes and make pulp out of it (using hand mixer or any other mixer)

3) Once the onions in the kadai turn light brown, add tomato pulp to it.

4) Let it cook till oil separates. then add salt, pepper, oregano, chili flakes, italian herbs and sugar.

5) Cook for a minute or 2. Then add tomato ketchup.

6) Add 1 cube grated cheese. let this cook for 5 mins and your Pizza sauce is ready!!!

7) In another Kadai, take the oil and add diced onions for topping, saute them for 1 min and take out (leaving oil in the kadai). they should remain crunchy. Sprinkle salt, pepper (2 pinches), oregano (to taste), mixed italian herb (to taste).

8) Repeat step 7 for all the veggie toppings you are planning.

9) Meanwhile preheat your oven to 210 degree c.

10) Take the pizza base, apply the pizza sauce generously, arrange the veggie toppings generously, sprinkle 1 cube of grated cheese (you can do less or more, your wish)..

11) Bake in the pre-heated oven at 210 degree c for 7-8 mins (but please keep an eye on your pizza while it's cooking)

And enjoy the home made healthy tasty pizza!!!

Notes:

1) You can bake the pizza on the tawa also. For that as R's mom has suggested, you should put the prepared pizza on the hot tawa (or flat pan) and cover it. let it cook till the cheese melts and the bottom of the pizza is also cooked. This way it cooks faster.

2) You can get creative and use different toppings like paneer, olive, mushroom etc (don't forget to saute them before putting on the pizza).

+techie ZM

Whole wheat Pizza Base from scratch | Whole Wheat Kulcha from scratch | Pizza Base from scratch

This is a recipe from from Tarla Dalal website. The pizza with this base was a hit. Check the recipe of Pizza here.

And the pizza base tasted like Kulcha (when I searched for the recipe for Kulcha, it was almost similar, hence the taste was similar too)!!! We even tried it with Chhole.

Though the recipe says it makes 2, I actually had 5 pizza bases in my hands. Probably I made them small, but they were enough...

Whole wheat Pizza Base | Kulcha

Whole wheat Pizza Base | Kulcha

 So here is the recipe:

Ingredients:

Whole Wheat flour - 2 cups (If you really have to replace this with all purpose flour, but then it doesn't remain healthy)

Yeast - 1 teaspoon

Sugar - 1 teaspoon

Olive oil - 1 tablespoon (other oil will also do)

Salt - 1 teaspoon

Method:

1) Take half cup warm water and dissolve sugar and yeast into it. wait till it gets frothy (4-5 mins). If it doesn't get frothy then the yeast is not active, use another packet of yeast.

2) In a mixing bowl (or paraat/kathrot) take whole wheat flour (or all purpose flour if using), add salt, mix well. Using the yeast, sugar water knead the dough. Add extra water (warm) as needed. the dough should be a little sticky.

3) Now grease your hands using olive oil and knead the dough till it is elastic. Slap it to check if it is elastic enough!!!

4) Cover the bowl with a wet kitchen cloth or cling wrap and keep it aside till it doubles in size (30-40 mins)

5) Once it doubles in size, punch the dough in the center to remove any extra air.

6) Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 150 degree C.

7) Take a greased baking tray, on that make pizza base (the recipe says roll, but i used my hands to flatten it) from this dough.

8) Prick the base using a fork (If you don't prick, it will puff up like Pita bread/Fulka roti)

10) Bake in the preheated oven at 150 degree C for 7 mins..

And your tasty pizza base/kulcha is ready!!! Make pizza or eat with any gravy based dish...

Notes:

1) First time i made it i used All purpose flour/Maida, but next time i made it using whole wheat flour. 

The pizza was delicious but as kulcha it was not great. So if you are planning to make kulcha from the leftover dough then use maida.

2) You can make Kulcha directly on the tawa the way you make paratha (but using little oil).

Whole wheat Pizza Base | Kulcha

Whole wheat pizza base/ kulcha (On tawa)

+techie ZM

Jalebi!!!

Jalebi is a dish that is loved across India!!! So, when i saw Jalebi's recipe in a newspaper long back, i thought it's so easy...Why doesn't anyone make it at home?!? Well, i tried it and came to know "Why"....

Though it's very quick to make, it's not as easy as it looks. So 1st time i tried it (4 years ago), in place of Jalebi, i got Boondi!!!! It tasted good but the shape was all messed up. So i gave up on Jalebi....

Recently again i came across it's recipe in a Neeta Mehta book that i have and thought of trying it again. And this time i could manage to make something in between Jalebi and Boondi, still shape was not perfect. But the taste was of authentic Jalebi!!!! Yipee......

I realized that here, consistency is the Key. The batter should not be too watery at the same time it should not be too thick.

Once you figure out the consistency, making Jalebi is Cakewalk!!! The consistency should be thicker than Dosa (It should be of dropping/ribbon  consistency)

And next time i made it, i could manage decent shape as well!!! Here is the pic!!!

Jalebi.....

As i said, the recipe is  from a Neeta Mehta cookbook, this will make a lot of Jalebis, if you are making for 2 people then please use half the quantity.

Ingredients:

For Jalebi:
Maida - 1 Cup
Besan - 1 Tablespoon
Soda - 1/4 teaspoon
Oil - 1/2 Tablespoon
Thick Curd - 1/2 Cup
Warm Water - 3/4 Cup (Based on the Maida you are using, the amount of water needed may vary)
Oil for Frying

For Sugar Syrup:
Sugar - 1+1/4 Cup
Water - 3/4 Cup
Saffron strands - 2 pinches (though the recipe said to use Orange-red colour, i used saffron)

Method:
1) In a mixing bowl, take Maida, Besan and Soda.

2) Add thick curd & oil. (I have realized that if you use 1/2 days old curd just out from the fridge then it gives better results).

3) Now comes the consistency part, so very carefully, add warm water to the mixing bowl.

4) Beat everything together and till you get the batter of dropping consistency (thicker than dosa batter)

5) Cover it and leave aside for 30-40 minutes (Don't skip this, it is important).

6) Heat oil in a kadai.

7) The book says that using a piping bag make circles (from outside to inside) in the hot oil.
Initially i used my Sev no sancho (Sev maker, Kitchen Press or whatever it is called) to drop jalebis..It gave me okay results.
Later i put the batter in an old hanky and made a hole in the center (to get a potli like thing) and it gave me correct shape.
Next time i am going to try the empty milk packet, where after washing the drying the milk packet, i will fill it with batter and will make a hole at the bottom to drop the jalebis in the oil. (Idea from Hubby's aunt)
Edited to add photo: These one's are made using empty milk packet and they came out perfect, so i am going to stick to them for Jalebi making :)

Jalebis (dropped using empty milk packet)

8) Fry the Jalebis in the oil till they are the heavenly golden coloured, like a jalebi should be :) take out on tissue paper.

9) Meanwhile make Sugar syrup. For that Mix water, sugar and saffron strands in a kadai and heat. we have to get the syrup of single string. For that after the 1st boil, keep the flame low and keep stirring for 5-7 minutes.

10) Let the syrup cool for a minute and then dip Jalebis in the syrup (Don't dip all of them together, do in the batch of 3-4 Jalebis at a time) and serve hot!!!
You can garnish it with saffron strands soaked in warm water, or serve with Rabdi or cream!!! We had it even with Vanilla ice cream :)

Notes:
1) Dip the Jalebis in the syrup only when you are ready to eat them.
2) Make the syrup only when you are ready to eat Jalebis as the syrup will become thick after some time (though you can heat it up again on low flame, but still it is good to make fresh syrup).

+techie ZM

Shahi Paneer with a (tomato) twist | Quick Paneer Curry | Curry in a hurry | Restaurant style Shahi Paneer

I learnt this one from my friend and neighbour P. And it was an immediate hit. Zini too loved it. And it is so easy and fast to make, i make it now to impress my guests ;)

Shahi Paneer.....

So let's get to the business...

Ingredients:

2 Big Tomatoes

Handfull of Kaju

2 Tablespoon Fresh (or otherwise ;)) cream

1 Medium sized onion

1 small capsicum

1 Teaspoon Ginger Garlic paste

Salt to taste

1/2 teaspoon Garam Masala

1/4 teaspoon Black pepper powder

1 pinch turmeric

4 Tablespoon oil.

100 Gm paneer

1/2 cup warm water

2 pinches of Kasoori Methi

Dhania patta and a green chilli for garnishing

Method:

1) In a mixer, make a smooth paste of kaju, Taomatoes and fresh cream. (Don't add water)

2) Cut the Onions and Capsicum in square shape.

Onions and Capsicum

 3) Take oil in a kadai and saute the capsicum and onion in it. Ensure that they remain crunchy.

 Onions and capsicum Done

4) Once they are done, take out in a plate or bowl or anything. (leaving the oil behind).

5) Now, in the same kadai, add the ginger garlic paste. and saute it.

6) Add the paste of tomato, kaju and cream to the kadai.

7) Keep stirring the paste, till you see the oil separate (it is actually the ghee, that comes out of the cream :) )

8) Now, add the salt, garam masala, turmeric, kasoori methi and black pepper powder and mix well.

Oil seperated, Masala Added

9) Add half cup of warm water to the kadai and mix well.

10) Cut the paneer pieces in a triangular shape and add to the kadai.

After adding Paneer and water

11) Cook on a medium flame for 5 mins.

12) Add the sauted Capsicum and onion to the curry and it is ready!!!

Take out in a bowl and garnish with finely cut dhania patta and a slit green chilli.

Before Garnishing, almost done[/caption]

Serve it with tandoori roti, naan or parathas...

+techie ZM

Instant Khaman (Dhokla) | Nylon Khaman | Khaman Dhokla recipe

My hubby is mad about them and everybody outside Gujarat knows these Khaman as Dhokla and love them. My colleagues at Hyderbad too were no exception and requested me to make them, so i learnt how to make this instant variety of Khaman also known as Nylon Khaman.

Before that i had never made them, as nobody at my home is particularly fond of them, we all love our fermented Dhokla (The one with rice and daal) and vaati daal na khaman.

So i called up my mom and asked for the recipe, after few trials, i could make the perfect (the kind you find in the Ahmedabad shops) Khaman (ok, say dhokla if you have to). And now they are regular feature at our home :)

Here is how i make it.

Instant Khaman Dhokla

Ingrediants:

For Khaman

1.5 Cup Besan (Bengal gram flour)

5 teaspoon Sugar 

1/2 teaspoon Citric Acid (Limbu na ful - available everywhere in India -in case you are not able to find it then use lemon or sour curd)

Salt to taste

1/4 teaspoon Soda

2 pinches of Turmeric

For Tadka

2 Tablespoon oil

1 teaspoon Rai (Mustard seeds)

1 teaspoon Til (Sesame Seeds)

Hing (2 pinches)

Lemon juice of 1 small lemon

Sugar powder (3 teaspoon)

1 cup water (Yes, you read it right, water!!!)

2 green chillies, cut in small pieces (Optional - i don't use it as my hubby is not fond of it)

Dhania patta for garnishing

Method:

1)Take Besan, Salt, Sugar, Turmeric powder, Citric Acid and soda in a mixing bowl and mix well.

2) Add water to it to make thicker than dosa/pancake batter. (Don't mix too vigorously and don't use the beater at all, i did it once and my Khaman didn't rise at all)

3) Because of combination of soda and citric acid, you will see that your batter becomes frothy.

4) Now, keep it aside for 10 mins.

5) Meanwhile take a big pateela (deep pan), take water in it, put a stand inside(or a bowl on which you will be putting your khaman plate) put it on a medium flame. Cover it using a lid (Wrap the lid in a cloth to avoid soggy khaman).

Big Pateela/Pan before putting khaman plate - you can see the circular stand in center to keep the plate on it

After covering with a lid wrapped in a cloth

6) grease a thali (deep plate), or dabba (or anything in which you plan to pour the batter for making khaman - But should be deep enough so that khaman can rise properly)

7) After the water heats, pour your khaman batter in the thali and put the thali inside the Big Pateela, on the stand (Or Katori, whaterver you chose).

8) Cover with the lid.

9) Steam the Khaman for 20 mins (or till the knife inserted in it comes out clean).

10) Once steamed take the plate out and let it cool. Once cooled, cut into square or diamond shape.

11) For Tadka, Mix water, lemon juice and sugar in a bowl.

12) Then in a kadai, take oil, add mustard seeds.

13) Once they crackle, add Til, let them crackle then Add hing and turn the flame off. if using green chilies then, add the cut green chilli pieces carefully.

14) Now using a ladle, very carefully and slowly add the prepared mixture of water, sugar and lime juice to the kadai. (Very very carefully)

15) Mix the Tadka properly and pour it on the cut Khaman.

Garnish with Dhania patta and dive in :)

you can have it with green chutney or as it is...

Now, what if you don't have the big pateela and other taam-zaam for making the khaman?!?! Don't loose heart, you can use your Idli stand instead.
And recently i was telling my neighbour P how to make it and told her that Khaman needs to be steamed, so she came up with this brilliant idea of steaming it in Rice cooker, so if you have a rice cooker you can steam khaman in that!!! In place of big pateela, you use rice cooker, everything else remains exactly same!!!but don't forget to cover the lead with a cloth).

once the Khaman shaped as Idli gets steamed and cooled, take them out in plate, or bowl and cut into squares.

Then proceed with the Tadka and pour it over these khamans and enjoy!!!!!!

+techie ZM

Masala Oats

Recently i went to buy a water bottle for Zini, and i saw packs of homestyle masala oats by quakers. (Yeah i can go out to buy something and come back with something else ;) ) i thought of giving it a try and oh i loved it. So from now onwards, move over maggie as the masala oats are my new comfort food :)

But then one day i ran out of the masala oats packs, but i had simple white oats at home, so i thought of making my version of masala oats, and they too turned out yummy :) so now i am regularly making this :)

Ready to Eat - You can garnish with Dhania patta if you want to :)

How do i make it??? See for yourself..

Ingredients:

1 Big onion (Finely cut or cut in long slices -  i prefer finely cut)

1 small tomato (Finely cut)

1 small Carrot (Optional- Finely cut)

4 pods of Garlic - crushed or grated

1/2 teaspoon green chilli and ginger paste (i had it, you can finely cut the green chillies and ginger)

Salt to taste

1/2 teaspoon sugar (Optional - i like both the version, with and without sugar)

1/4 teaspoon Black Pepper

Red Chilli powder (Optional)

1/2 teaspoon Dhania powder

1/4 teaspoon Turmeric

2 Cups water

1/2 cups oats

1/2 teaspoon oil

Method:

1) In a kadai, add the oil, onion, carrot, garlic, ginger and chilli paste.

2) Saute till the onions brown, then add tomatos.

3) Add Pepper, Chilli powder, Turmeric, Dhania powder and Salt. Keep stirring for 1 minute.

4) Add water, and then add Oats.

5) Now let the oats cook (Takes around 4-5 minutes).

6) Add sugar, if you want to...

And Dig in :)

Note: You can skip some masala or add some, you can experiment with it. And the measurements that i gave are as per my taste palate, you can change the amount of masala and other ingredients as per your liking and enjoy :)

+techie ZM

Paalak Paneer Puris | Paalak Parathas | Flatbread using leftover Spinach Cottage Cheese Curry

My mom used to make Paalak Parathas and i loved them. My MIL suggested Paalak-Paneer Puris as my hubby loves them. So i made them and Zini too liked them. I have mixed the gujarati & punjabi versions of puris.I have tried this on friends, all of them loved these puris.

I have tried making parathas out of the same dough, they too taste good.

Recently on Lifesong's post i suggested Palak-Paneer Puris, so putting up the recipe here.

So if you want to pump up greens in your meals then give these puris/parathas a try :)

Paalak Paneer Paratha | Spinach and cottage cheese Flatbreads

 Ingredients:

Wheat flour (Depends on how much Palak-Paneer curry you have)

Oil

Salt to taste

Red Chili powder to taste

Turmeric powder

Dhania- Powder (coriander seeds powder)

Hing (Asofoetida)

Ajwain (Carom seeds)

Left-over paalak paneer (or aalu-paalak) curry

Method:

1)      Take wheat flour in a mixing bowl. Take flour in proportion to the palak-paneer subzi.

2)      Add Oil and mix well. AFter that try holding the flour in your feast, there should be some bonding in the flour.

3)      Now add salt, red chilli powder, turmeric, Dhania-Jeera Powder, hing and ajwain.

4)      Mix well.

5)      Now use Paalak-paneer sabzi to knead dough.

6)      Make it tight enough so that you can roll puris without applying flour to that.

7)      In case it has become a little softer than apply oil on belan and chakla and the dough balls to roll the puris.

8)      Fry them in hot enough oil.

9)      Take them out on tissue paper, as these puris tend to soak a lot of oil.

If you don’t want to eat fried stuff then, you can make parathas/bhakhris out of the same dough.

Tip: Crush Ajwain with your hands before adding to the dough for better aroma.

Palak Paneer Puris | Spinach and Cottage Cheese Indian Puffed bread

+techie ZM

Palak Paneer/ Aalu Palak

Paalak (Spinach) is not very popular otherwise, but transform it into this mouth water dish and suddenly the same old, boring paalak turns very attractive.... The best thing about this healthy curry is that it is a powerhouse of iron, vitamins and protein (if using paneer (cottage cheese) or tofu). And it is extremely flexible, lending itself to vegan version by accommodating tofu in place of paneer (cottage cheese) or paleo version by allowing use of potato in place of paneer.

This is my MIL's version of this curry with little time saving modifications from me. If you want to check out other authentic Indian & Punjabi recipes, check out the recipe Index. Enjoy....

Palak paneer / spinach curry with cottage cheese

Palak paneer / spinach curry with cottage cheese

Ingrediants:

Onions – 2 medium sized

Tomatoes – 2 big

Green chilly - 1

Ginger

Garlic

Palak (Spinach) – 250 gms

Paneer (Cottage Cheese)– 100 gms (For vegan version use tofu, for paleo version use boiled potatoes cut into pieces)

Red chilly powder

Salt

Garam masala/ curry powder

Method:

1) Blanch Palak by putting it in boiling water. Once cooled make paste of palak in mixer (i keep it coarse, you can make fine paste if you like). Don’t throw away the water, use it to make paste.

2) Make paste of Onions, tomatoes, green chilly, garlic and ginger in mixer. Add water if needed. I keep this paste also coarse, you can also make fine paste.

3) Heat oil in a pan, and sauté the onion, tomato, chilly, ginger, garlic paste in it, till the oil separates.

4) Once oil separates, add salt, a little red chilly powder and garam masala. (remember that we already have green chillies to make it spicy, if you don't want it too spicy then you can avoid red chilly completely)

5) add the palak paste to it, cook it for a minute.

6) Now add Paneer/Aalu

            you can either deep fry them

           Or you can shallow fry them on a greased tava.

           Or you can put them as it is by cutting into pieces (This is what i do, it's healthier & less time
           consuming :))

7) Mix well, add water if needed.

8) Cook for 10 mins, or till the extra water evaporates.

You can serve the curry with Fulkas, Tandoori Rotis, Parathas or Rice, use leftover curry to make Palak Paneer Puris :)

Palak paneer / spinach curry with cottage cheese

Palak Paneer[/caption]

+techie ZM

Black forest cake

My friend and neighbour P made this on her daughter T’s birthday. I loved it. So she let me assist her next time she made it and I learnt it :). Later i made it on P's birthday to surprise her and hubby so loved it that i had to bake another one for him....

Personally I like it better then outside cakes…..

Black Forest Cake

Ingridients:

Basic chocolate cake

Cherries – deseeded and cut in small pieces (when fresh Cherries are not available you can use tinned cherries or cherry jam or skip this)

Whipped cream (we used Rich’s whip topping)

Sugar syrup

Method:

1)  Bake the basic Chocolate cake. Here is the recipe.

2)  Then cut it in 2 horizontal layers, you will need a big sharp knife for this otherwise it may break. If you don't want to cut the cake then you can bake 2-3 thin cakes separately and then assemble it.

3)  Take the Whipped cream and whip it till it is fluffy enough, it should not drip when you hold your beater up. (We used Rich’s Whip topping, it had sugar in it. If you are using any other brand then you may want to check if extra sugar needs to be added)

4)  De-seed and cut cherries in small pieces.

5)  Now, cover a big enough plate with Aluminium foil and put the 1st layer of the cake on it.

6)  Sprinkle sugar syrup on that. To make the sugar syrup, you should mix sugar with same amount of water (by volume), P added brandy to this, but it is optional.

7)  After that apply the whipped cream on the 1st layer. Apply generously, more the cream, more the taste :)

8)  On top of this sprinkle the cut cherries evenly. If using jam then spread the jam on this layer. If not using cherries in any form then skip this step.

9)  Put another layer of cake and repeat the procedure, i.e. sugar syrup, whipped cream and cherries.

10) Once all layers of the cake are done, apply cream on the sides of the cake as well, to give to proper shape after applying cream you can use flat spatula or another Aluminium foil. You can decorate it with grated chocolate, chocolate wafers, cherries, chocolate sauce or anything you think will suit it.

 Refrigerate for half an hour. And Enjoy...

+techie ZM

Choco lava cake

This Recipe is from Various sources on internet.

You can know more about my adventure with it here.

1)      Make the batter of normal chocolate cake.

2)      Keep it a little liquidy by adding a little extra milk (and sugar for that milk). Mix well.

3)      Pre-heat the oven to 180 degree C.

4)      Now grease ramekins, or use butter paper cups.

5)      Pour the batter in the ramekins/cups.

6)      Based on the size of your ramekins/cups you will have to set the timer for baking. For the medium sized butter paper cup, bake it for 6 minutes. For a bigger ramekins you may need baking upto 10 mins.

7)      Once cooked, run a knife on the sides and take the cake out carefully in the serving plate without breaking it. If using the butter paper cup then no need to take out the cake, serve as it is.

By the way, i used normal steel katoris (of medium size) for baking this cake as i didn't have ramekins. For this, i kept timer on 5 mins. But keep in mind that based on the size of your baking bowl/ cup/ ramekin the size may differ. Please perform the test mentioned below before cooking the cake further or taking it out.

Edited to add: I am happy to report that using the ramekins, i was able to take out the cake without breaking it :) I am using Aluminium ramekins...

Here, you have to be very cautious because extra cooking may mean that there won’t be liquid in the center. There is a test to check the state. See that the top is cooked and is a springy, when you put the knife inside, it should be coated with the chocolaty liquid.

So basic idea is to cook sides, top and bottom and let the center be liquidy.

You can serve this with Vanilla ice-cream for the hot and cool effect in summers and as it is in winter to warm your guests up :)

Leaving you with one more pic:

+techie ZM

Ice-Cream cake or Cake Ice-cream?!?!

I am not able to decide the name of this dessert, but both these names suit it completely because it has both - the ice-cream and the chocolate cake...

It's not the regular ice-cream cake, where you have ice-cream frosting or even the one where you get a piece of cake with a scoop of ice-cream!!! It's a little tweaked recipe and gives you Popsicle like dessert...

Why i made it? because i was supposed to get guest and i was planning to make choco lava cake for dessert, but they got delayed, so from the same batter i baked regular chocolate cake and mixed it with ice-cream for a quick dessert next day!!!!

And let me tell you it tastes yummazing :) See for yourself...

Ice Cream Cake...

Now, don't you want to make it??!!! So Please take the recipe and make it before winter starts full blown....

Ingredients:

Vanilla Ice cream (in semi-solid state)

Chocolate cake

Cup-Cake moulds (Or Kulfi moulds will also do)

Chocolate syrup (Optional - For decoration)

Whipped cream (Optional - For decoration)

Popsicle sticks (Optional)

Method:

1) Brake your cake into crumbs.

2) In a bowl, mix ice-cream and cake crumbs thoroughly (preferably using your hands).

3) Fill in the cup-cake moulds (if you wish you can insert small dessert spoons or popsicle sticks in it, but it is completely optional).

4) Before serving freeze for 30 minutes (or till the cake sets - remember, we don't want a hard rock cake).

5) Take out and let it sit out for 5 minutes. If it became too hard in freezer then let it sit out till it gets softer.

6) I served it with chocolate sauce and whipped cream!!!! It tastes great just like that also...Take your pick and ENJOY!!!!!!

Notes:

1) You can go crazy with the combination. So in place of chocolate cake you can use vanilla cake or fruit cake. Similarly experiment with different ice-creams, (Vanilla, strawberry, butterscotch...)

2) You can add nuts/raisin/chocolate chips/Chocolate shavings (or anything else that comes to your mind) to the mixture!!!!

+techie ZM