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Dosa is a gluten free crepe that is very popular in the south of India. It is such a comfort food and each individual has an opinion as to...

Grilled Cheese Dosai

Dosa is a gluten free crepe that is very popular in the south of India. It is such a comfort food and each individual has an opinion as to how they like their dosai's cooked. Crisp dosai is what I enjoy, while I know a lot of people who like it soft like a crepe. Being particular about the texture of dosai is one thing, what gets stuffed inside a dosai is another thing altogether. The common stuffing's are cauliflower, potato, onion, tomato etc, but my daughter loves hers with cheese. She calls it the "grilled cheese dosai" and enjoys it with ketchup. Claims that is the best combination and I am always happy to make what she enjoys. Fusion cooking is what I call it. It just struck me that, the grilled cheese dosai can be served as bite size appetizers on a cold winter day and it would taste awesome.


Gadgets:

Iron Griddle
Spatula
Measuring cups and spoons
Plate

Ingredients:

Dosai Batter - 2 ladles 
Cheese - 3 tbsp
Ketchup 
Oil / Ghee - 2 tbsp
Heavy Pan


Preparation:

1. Make 8 inch soft dosai's on the iron griddle. Cook on both sides, remove and place them in a plate.

2. Sprinkle 3 tbsp of cheese on half of the dosai, fold the dosai to resemble half a circle

3. Set the iron griddle on low. Place the cheese filled dosai back on the griddle and put a heavy pan on top. Toast it well on both sides, until it gets crunchy and golden brown and the cheese starts to melt and ooze.

4. Remove from heat, cut them into mini triangles and serve it hot with ketchup.

Note: If you want to serve this for a party, make the triangles and place in the oven heated to 220 degrees F, so that they stay warm.


9 Comments:

A few days ago I made adai using Organic Tru Roots Sprouted beans. Without the addition of rice the adai turned out soft. It was deliciou...

Sprouted Bean Crepes / Sprouted Bean Adai

A few days ago I made adai using Organic Tru Roots Sprouted beans. Without the addition of rice the adai turned out soft. It was delicious and tasted like a regular adai. Apart from using the sprouted beans in salads, another option is to make adai with them.



Gadgets:


Iron Griddle
Spatula
Bowl
Measuring Cups
Blender/ Mixer

Ingredients:

Organic Dry Sprouted Beans - 1 cup
Long Grain Rice - 1 cup
Ginger - 1 1/2 inches
Cilantro - 1/2 a bunch
Turmeric Powder - 1/4 tsp
Salt
Dry Red Chillies - 2
Asafoetida Powder - 1/4 tsp
Curry Leaves - a few
Oil -Enough to cook the adai/ crepe                                                         Hot Water - Enough to soak

                                                      Preparation:

1. Wash the sprouted beans and long grain rice and soak in hot water for 30 minutes.

2. Add the soaked ingredients into a blender along with red chillies, ginger, cilantro, turmeric and asafetida powder, salt and curry leaves.


3. Blend them well into a coarse batter.

4. Heat the iron griddle, make crepes/adai cook on both sides and serve it with some butter, cilantro chutney or coconut chutney or ketchup and enjoy them hot off the griddle.

9 Comments:

For over months, I have been thinking of making the macadamia nut fudge/ katli, but never got around to making it. The macadamia nuts we...

Macadamia Nut Katli/Fudge


For over months, I have been thinking of making the macadamia nut fudge/ katli, but never got around to making it. The macadamia nuts were a gift from Hawaii, and we had a cup and a half of the nuts left for me to prepare the katli. After doing a lot of research on how katili's are made, I finally decided to go with the no cook recipe version that is commonly used in making cashew katli. This recipe can be  prepared in less than 10 minutes. I was so happy with how it tasted and the texture was spot on, soft moist and chewy. Macadamia is a nut that has a high fat content. So, I decided to cut them into 3/4 inch cubes and enjoy them guilt free.


Gadgets:

Blender / Mixer
Measuring Cups and Spoons
Plates
Bowls
Cutting Board
Rolling Pin
Knife
Microwave


Ingredients:

Roasted Macadamia Nuts - 1/2 cup
Milk Powder - 1/2 cup
Powdered Sugar - 1/2  cup plus 1 tbsp
Hot Water - 1 to 2 tbsp
Saffron - a generous pinch
Cardamon - 4 pods powdered


Preparation:


1. Blend the macadamia nuts and milk powder in the blender. If you just blend macadamia nuts, it starts to get very oily, so the milk powder helps to keep it dry.

2.  Microwave the powdered sugar for a minute to get it warm.  Make sure to remove the lumps in the sugar. Add the nut mixture to the sugar, using your fingers make sure to mix well so that they are well combined.

3. Finely crush the saffron and add to the mixture along with the cardamon powder and mix well.

4. Add 1 tbsp of boiling water to it and try to make a dough. If you feel the need for another tbsp add 1 tsp at a time, until it comes together into a firm dough. ( 1 tbsp = 3 tsp)

5. Sprinkle a tbsp of powdered sugar on the cutting board. Place the macadamia nut dough on it and flatten it.

6. Roll the dough so that you make a thick layer of 3/4th inch. Cut into 3/4th inch cubes. Store and enjoy.






17 Comments:

At Trader Joe's you get two types of lavash bread, the regular one made with white flour and the other one with whole wheat. I had a f...

Baked Lavash Crackers In Chaat Flavor

At Trader Joe's you get two types of lavash bread, the regular one made with white flour and the other one with whole wheat. I had a few left over lavash bread from making the wrap, so I decided to make lavash chips with an Indian chaat flavor to it. Not only is it  super easy to make, but it gets done in 10 to 12 minutes and is the perfect low calorie snack, appetizer anytime. Baked lavash bread can be served with  spreads like hummus, baba ghanoush, sour cream dip, tomato chutney or guacamole. But, I liked the idea of using the sweet and spicy chutney on the lavash bread. Apart from using them as crackers, the baked lavash is a great alternative to deep fried papadi. Topped with some boiled potato, garbanzo beans, onions, more chutney and yogurt it would make a perfect base for papadi chaat. So next time you have a big party or like to have a snack watching a football game, this one can come handy



Gadgets:

Cutting Board
Measuring Cups and Spoons
Knife
Lined Baking Tray

Ingredients:

Lavash Bread - 3
Sweet Chutney - a few Tbsps ( 2 -3 )
Spicy Chutney - a few Tbsps ( 2-3)
Fresh Crushed Pepper 
Chilli Powder - a dash
Chaat Masala - a pinch or two



Preparation:

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Mix sweet and spicy chutney and spread it over the lavash bread. Sprinkle the pepper, chilli  and chaat power.

2. Cut it lengthwise into strips and cut each strip into half. Place them on a lined ( either aluminum or parchment paper) baking tray. 

3. Bake for 6-8 minutes ( depending on the oven type). They must come out crispy. Serve with hummus, sour cream dip or any other kind that you enjoy. 





13 Comments:

If you happen to eat a full course meal in south India, you never start your meal without rice, paruppu (lentil) and ghee on your plate / ...

Paruppu Sadham / Lentils With Rice

If you happen to eat a full course meal in south India, you never start your meal without rice, paruppu (lentil) and ghee on your plate / banana leaf. It is one of my favorite parts of the meal because it reminds of my childhood. Every baby grows up eating this everyday. Why? Because, it is a complete meal in itself served with some veggies on the side. Lentils bring in the protein, rice has the carbs, ghee has the fat and the veggies on the side adds the fiber to the meal. This is a vegetarian's comforting and nourishing food. This also happens to be what my family enjoys the most. I absolutely have to keep some paruppu or lentils on the side for them to enjoy it before they go on to the rest of the meal. So I decided to share this on my blog. Here is the recipe if you are just going to make paruppu sadham for 2 people.


Gadgets:

Pressure Cooker
Bowl
Measuring cups and spoons
Rice Cooker

Ingredients:

Thoor Dal - 1/4 cup
Water to cook thoor dal - 1/2 cup
Turmeric Powder - a pinch
Rice - 1/2 cup
Water to cook rice - 3 ( or depends on the instructions)
Ghee - 2 tsp
Salt


Preparation:

1. Clean the rice with water 3 times. Add the required amount of water as per the instructions. Pour some water into the rice cooker. Place the bowl of rice and water cover and cook until its done.

2. Pressure cook the lentils with water and turmeric powder.

3. When rice and lentils are cooked, mix both rice, ghee, lentils and salt and mix well, when hot and serve it hot with veggies.

14 Comments:

Of all the sundal's/salad's out there this one happens to be one of my favorite. I make them with and without onions  depending on...

Peanut Salad/ Sundal/ Kadala Sundal

Of all the sundal's/salad's out there this one happens to be one of my favorite. I make them with and without onions  depending on the occasion. During navarathri celebrations, I make them to offer it to people who come for the kolu. But, if I am serving it for a party to go with cocktail, I make it extra spicy with onions. The peanut sundal cannot be made in an instant. Some prep work is required before the peanuts are cooked and made into sundal. Soaking time for sundal can go anytime between overnight to a minimum of 5 hours. My sister who is a pro at cooking tells me that the texture of the soaked peanuts matter. If you do not soak it long enough, they may appear to be well cooked initially but when made into a sundal, it might not taste cooked. So please soak it well before cooking the peanuts. On taking her advice, I soaked long enough and made this simple sundal for a snack.


Gadgets:

Bowls
Pressure Cooker
Measuring Cups and Spoons
Frying pan
Spatula
Cutting Board
Knife

Ingredients:

Raw Peanuts - 1 cup
Onion- 1 small finely cubed
Green Chillies - 2
Curry Leaves - a few
Cilantro - a few strands finely minced
Ginger- 1 inch cut into cubes
Coconut - 1/4 cup
Salt
Asafoetida Powder - 1/8 tsp
Mustard Seeds - 1 tsp
Turmeric Powder - 1/4 tsp
Oil - 1 tsp
Water - Enough to soak the peanuts and cook the peanuts


Preparation:

1. Soak the peanuts in sufficient water over night or at least 12 hours.

2. Pressure cook the peanuts with some salt on high to a whistle and then reduce it to low and allow it to cook to 3 whistle. Allow for the pressure to release and then open the pressure cooker and drain the water.

3. Heat a frying pan with oil. Add asafoetida, mustard seeds and allow for it to pop. Add onions, green chilies, ginger and curry leaves. Cook until onions are well done. Add coconut and give it a stir. Add turmeric powder and blend it in.

4. Add peanuts and mix well. Add some salt if needed. Garnish with cilantro and serve it hot as cocktail peanuts or as a snack.

Note: If you are trying to prepare the onion free version, omit onions in the 3rd step and follow the above recipe.


7 Comments:

Every time I think of parsley I always hum " parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme". Isn't Scarborough fair an awesome song? Any...

Parsley Basil Sun Dried Tomato Pesto For Pasta

Every time I think of parsley I always hum " parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme". Isn't Scarborough fair an awesome song? Anyway, this evening for dinner I made pasta. What does one make, when they accidentally pick bunches of parsley and add them to their basket instead of cilantro? Make Pesto of course! This parsley based pesto is a variation from the regular all basil pesto. I learnt that  it was better to use a food processor to make pesto than a blender because it creates a coarse texture.


Gadgets:

Food Processor
Cutting Board
Knife

Ingredients:

Parsley Leaves - 2 bunches 
Basil - 1 hand full
Garlic - 1 pod
Sun Dried Tomatoes Drained ( without oil) - 6
Salt
Olive Oil - 1/2 cup
Walnuts - 2 fist full
Black Pepper 
Cooked Bow Tie Pasta - 3 cups


Preparation:

1. Clean, dry and toss in the leaves, garlic, sun dried tomatoes, pepper, walnut, salt in the food processor.

2. Give it a couple of buzzes and add the oil a little at a time and allow it to all come together in a coarse mixture. 

3. Add a few tbsps of the pesto to the pasta, drizzle some oil and mix well and serve it hot. 



11 Comments: