Apr 5, 2016

Ompudi | Khara Sev



Its a mommy's favorite recipe. Crispy noodle strands made with besan (chickpea flour) is a perfect tea time savory snack. In south India they are called ompudi becuase it is flavored with caraway seeds. Most popularly it is called as sev. 

Its the most common garnishing ingredient in Indian chats and they are not complete without topping of sev. 

My mom usually makes this snack in large batches. It takes very less time to prepare and cooks very fast. With proper storage it can last for up-to a month. 


Ingredients

3 cups Besan (chickpea flour)
1/2 tsp Ajwain (caraway seeds)
1 tsp Red chili powder
1/4 tsp Asafoetida (hing)
2 tsp Melted Ghee
Salt
Water
Oil for deep frying


Method


  • Blend ajwain into fine powder

  • In a large mixing bowl, mix together besan, ajwain, red chili powder, asafoetida, ghee and salt



  • Add water in small batches to the besan mixture and mix together to form a sticky dough  (*** Note -  you can use spoon to make dough for less messy)

  •  Grease the sev maker. Load the besan dough until it fills up the cylinder. And close the cylinder

  • Heat oil until it is moderately hot on medium heat 
  • Press the handle of sev maker and gently drop the noodle strands in oil in circular motion. Fry in medium heat until oil bubbles go away (*** Note -  Flip the sev only once. Flipping more than once will break the sev)

  •  Use an absorbent paper to drain excess oil
  • After sev cools down, store it in a air tight container 

Potato Leak Soup


A fulfilling recipe from French cuisine made from potatoes and leaks flavored with oregano and thyme. All these ingredients are blended together using immersion blender until they are smooth. 

Ingredients

3 stalks of Leeks, whites and light green only partially chopped
3 medium sized Yukon potatoes, peeled and diced
6 Garlic cloves, minced
1/2 tsp Oregano
1/4 tsp Thyme
1/2 tsp crushed Black pepper
1 ltr Chicken Broth
Salt
1 tsp Butter

Method

  • Melt butter in a large pot. To this, add garlic and leeks. Sautee for few seconds

 

  • Then add potato and sautee for another 2 minutes

  • Add oregano, thyme and black pepper

  • Add chicken broth and mix well. Cover the pot and cook for 10 minutes until potatoes are fork tender

  • Add salt as per taste
  • Using an immersion blender blend the soup until smooth

  • Simmer for 2 -5 minutes
  • Serve hot

Apr 2, 2016

Sabsike Soppina Akki Rotti


Sabsike Soppu ( Dill leaves), dark green stranded leafy vegetable is very rich in fiber and vitamin K.  The oils present in dill leaves such as carvone, limonene, phenolic and flavonoids boosts breast milk supply.  This leafy vegetable is classified as galactogogue foods. 

Akki Rotti is a southern Karnataka based recipe made with rice flour and a wide variety of vegetables and spices.

*** Note: By adding oil while kneading the dough, keeps it moist and can be refrigerated upto 3 days

Ingredients

3 cups Rice flour
1 large bunch of Dill leaves (with stem), finely chopped
1 Carrot, shredded
1/4 cup freshly grated coconut
1 inch piece of Ginger, finely chopped
2-3 Green Chilies, finely chopped
Salt
4 tsp Oil 
Water (@room temperature) as needed 

Method


  • In a large bowl, mix all ingredients together except for oil and water
  • Add enough water to form soft dough. 
  • Add oil and knead well. Let it rest for 30 minutes

  • Divide the dough into equal portions. Take each portions and shape it into balls
  • Place one portion of the shaped dough on a greased flat pan. Wet your palm and  pat the dough to form a pancake working from inwards and spread it evenly outwards 
  • Add few drops of oil on the edges. Cook on medium heat on both the sides until it turns golden brown

  • For the next rotti, cool the pan with running cold water and repeat the above 2 steps
  • Serve hot with coconut chutney. And some ghee is also preferred 




Mar 23, 2016

Veg Puff



Frozen puff pastry is great for home entertaining party appetizer. Its always good to keep few packages of frozen puff pastry for last minute meal plans. It can be found in dessert frozen isle in grocery stores.  

This a good recipe for learners. It is easy to make both sweet and savory appetizers, entrees and desserts. 

For veg puff, all you need is few vegetables seasoned with mild spices

Ingredients

1 box of Frozen Puff Pastry sheets
2 tsp Ghee for brushing

For filling
2 Carrots, diced
2 Onions, finely chopped
1 cup of peas
4 Cloves of garlic, minced
1/2 tsp Coriander powder
1 tsp Chili Powder
1/4 tsp Garam Masala Powder
4 tsp oil
Salt

Method


  • Heat oil on a skillet. Add onions, saute until it softens
  • Add garlic, carrots and peas. Saute for 2-3 minutes
  • Add salt, coriander powder, chili powder and garam masala powder. Cook for 8- 10 minutes
  • Thaw frozen puff pastry sheets. Unfold the sheets. Cut the sheet into 9 squares
  • Using rolling pin, roll each square of pastry sheet
  • Fill each square with 1 1/2 tsp of vegetable filling placing it on the center
  • Fold the square on opposite sides to form a triangle. Repeat above steps for remaining squares
  • Place these pastries on a sheet pan and brush each piece with ghee. 
  • Bake at 300F on a preheated oven for 15-20 minutes until it turns golden brown
  • Serve warm

Mar 13, 2016

Avocado Strawberry Salad



It's very important for breastfeeding moms to have nutritious food. Certain nutritive foods keeps both mother and baby healthy.

Avacado is rich in folic acid and monosaturated fats. Folic acid  helps in  development of central nervous system. Monosaturated fats balances cholesterol levels. 

Perfect snack for brunch. 

Ingredients

1 ripened Avacado, cubed
6 Brightly colored Strawberries, cubed
1 Cucumber, cubed 
Salt 
Pepper
1/4 tsp ChatMasala powder
Juice of 1/2 a lemon 
Few sprigs of cilantro, finely chopped 
 
Method 
Mix these ingredients together - chopped cucumbers, avocado and strawberries with pepper, salt, cilantro and chat masala.