Green peas and Edamame parathas

I was in the mood for parathas..and not the regular potato kind..dont get me wrong...I love those..but I just felt like something different..and my fridge was noticeably low on veggies which I could think of..no mooli, no palak..hmm...what now..how about those green peas in the frozen compartment..and why not add some edamame to it..just for fun..Im sure it cant go wrong..

So take 1 cup of green peas and 1 cup of edamame and thaw them..Run them in a chopper for couple of minutes..I kept them coarsely chopped...

Heat a tbsp of oil and add minced green-chilli and ginger (abt a tbsp) along with 1 tbsp of besan and stir well. Add the peas mixture and some garam masala and salt to taste. I crumbled some blasamic vinaigriatte marineted-tofu slices in it and cook till the raw feel is gone. Form small balls and fill in the paratha dough and roll out the parathas. Cook on tawa with some olive oil.

I served this with some fusion green-onion/potato bhaji and raita.

The peas/edamame taste was distinct and nice and satisfied me for packing in a bunch of nutrients !

Another sweet and simple Vaishnav recipe

As I mentioned before, the recipes from the book 'The art of Indian Vegetarian cooking' by Yamuna Devi are very simple but delicious preparations. Being an American she has also incorporated use of many vegetables found here in very unusual combinations ..One such I found was Green Beans and Water-chestnuts and it is so simple but tasty combo that Ive already made it twice and permanently added the water-chestnuts cans in my grocery list..

Ingredients:

2.5 cups green beans cut 1 inch long

1 can water chestnuts cubed

1 tbsp cooking oil

1/2 tsp mustard seeds

1/2 tsp cumin seeds

1 tsp red chilli powder

1 tsp coriander powder

salt to taste

Prep:

Add some water and steam the cut green beans for about 10 mins in microwave. Heat the oil and add mustard and cumin seeds till they splatter. Add the beans and remaining spices and stir on high heat for 5 mins. Add the water chestnuts and mix well for 5 mins. Turn off the heat. Serve with hot chapati or accompaniment to dal-rice.

ENJOY!!

Restaurant style Malai Kofta

Since it was festival ( Dashehra ) time last week, we came up with a special lunch menu:

Hara bhara kebab

Malai kofta

Ajwaini parathas

Fruit custard

Sounds scrumptious..doesn't it ?

My cousin made the delicious Hara bhara kebabs and I'm wondering how I've missed them till now..they seem to be everywhere on the blogging world and definitely go in my list too...future safekeeping :)

For my part, I thought I will use the Gulab Jamun packet that's in my pantry for a while now..to make the kofta..(not an original idea, I had read it around and thought it was a nice concept and would turn out well) and try my hand at Malai kofta aka Rich Dumplings in cream gravy..

Kofta:

1 packet gulab jamun mix

a pinch of salt

water as required

Filling:

1 potato - boiled,peeled nd mashed

1/2 tsp red chilli powder

1/2 tsp garam masala/chat masala

1 tbsp cashew nuts small pieces

pinch of turmeric

salt as per taste

Mix the Gulab Jamun mix with salt and add water to form a firm but pliable dough. Keep aside covered for 5 mins.

Mix all the filling ingredients together. Form small balls (gulab jamun size) and add small filling inside each. Cover with the dough so it wont fly out in frying.

Fry the balls till golden brown and keep aside.

Gravy:

1 large onion ,chopped coarsely

1 medium tomato ,chopped coarsely

5-6 cashew nuts ,chopped coarsely

1 bay leaf

8 whole black peppercorns

3 cloves

2 dried red chillies

1/2 tsp cumin

1/2 tsp cut ginger

1/2 potato ,mashed

1/2 cup cream or milk

Heat some oil and add all the dry spices and stir. Add cashew nuts and stir for another 30 seconds and add onion. Cook till golden , then add ginger and tomatoes. Let cook till the tomatoes soften. Let it cool and grind into a paste. Heat another tbsp of oil and add the mashed potatoes. Stir around for a minute and add the paste and cream/milk. Add salt to taste and bring to boil. While serving , arrange the koftas in the serving bowl and pour the gravy over it.

I don't mean to brag, but this turned out to very well and got a lot of compliments , one being 'ekdum restaurant style' !!

P.S : Excuse the poor photo, and definitely do not judge the recipe per the photo..try it once! (Awaiting a better photo)

Palak thepla or Indian Spinach flatbread

I love these greens filled sweet-sour n spicy rotis...they provide a good change on the plain old wheat roti and add some punch of nutrition along.. they taste delicious with a dollop of butter or plain old yogurt or any kind of pickle or relishes (chunda , katki etc) 

In the busy planning of various curries, veggies, rice and some assorted bakings I often overlook the myriad taste and flavors that our indian rotis offer...stuffed, layered, spicy, sweet - naan , kulcha, paratha.. low-fat, so-fat you could cry :)

These particular rotis are from Gujurati cuisine with sweet and sour and spicy all combined to form a delightful flavor..they last very well too (if you dont eat them all hot off the girdle) and I can vow that I have never seen a Gujju uncle/aunty travelling without those theplas ;)

So without much ado :

1 cup wheat flour

2 tbsp besan/chickpea flour

1 cup cut palak/methi

2 tsp cooking oil

a pinch of aseofetida

a pinch or turmeric

1/2 tsp of red chilli

1/4 tsp of crushed cumin

1 tbsp sesame seeds (optional)

2 tbsp fine jaggery + 2 tbsp lime juice (microwave for 20 seconds if you can)

salt to taste

Mix all these ingredients and add water to form a firm but malleable dough. Dab with oil and keep for 10-15 mins. Form into small ball ,sprinkle some dry flour and roll out like roti . Lay on hot tawa/girdle. 

Turn once and apply some oil on the surface. Turn and pat with a flat wooden spatula. 

Apply oil (just spread back of an oil covered spoon) and turn and pat the other side. 

Take off the tawa when spots appear. 

These make about 8 theplas which are way too few to satiate my appetite and have some left overs..but I was short of time and thus reined in my hands..

Neway...Enjoy !