Ladi Paav Recipe

Ladi Paav Recipe:

Active dry yeast- 2+1/4 tsp
Sugar- 2tbsp
Maida- 2 cups
Melted Butter- 3 tbsp
Salt- 1 tsp
Lukewarm water(100C-105C)- 1 Cup 

Steps:
The very first step is to activate/proof the yeast. Make sure the yeast is fresh and not expired or been kept for very long. Please throw away any yeast that has been opened but not used for over 3 months or so because the dough won't raise otherwise. I did the same mistake and wasted many batches of my effort.

Take warm water in a cup and add sugar and yeast to it and stir well and keep aside covered for 10-15 minutes. You will find that the yeast has become frothy and little bit raised on the top.

Now in a bowl take maida and add melted butter and salt and the proofed yeast water and knead well.
If your dough gets too sticky (like mine went) and unmanageable you can always add a little more flour. The dough should be sticky yet firm and soft. Knead well till 8-10 minutes. This is very important so as to activate gluten in the dough.

Grease a bowl and roll the dough in it. Keep covered with a wet cloth or kitchen towel for about 1.5- 2 hours depending on the weather outside.

After 2 hours you will find that the dough has doubled up in size. It’s time to punch it back again.

Clean your kitchen counter and sprinkle some flour over it and punch your dough again and release all the air. Bring the dough to its normal volume.

Now pinch out balls of dough as you do while making chapatis. Make round balls of the dough approximately the size of a big lemon.
Grease a baking tray or pan and dust it with some flour.

 Place the dough balls in the greased baking tray at a distance of 1 inch. Leave them covered again for 1 hour till they again rise and get connected to each other. Now it’s time for baking.

Preheat the oven at 250C for 10 minutes and bake these for around 8-10 minute or till they get a golden hue on top.

Take them out and place on a wire rack till they are cool if you want to store them. You may have them immediately too. :)

Garlic Bread Recipe

Ingredients:

2 cups Maida

50 gms butter

3 tbsp olive oil

1/2 tsp salt, 3 tsp dry yeast and 1/2 tsp sugar

2 tbsp minced garlic

herbs as required.

3/4 cup grated processed cheese

Process:

Take one cup lukewarm water, add sugar, dry yeast.  Keep it for 15 minutes.

Mix all other ingredients except cheese and olive oil.

After 15 minutes add the yeast water, make sure the dough is properly fermented for the bread to become soft.

Knead the dough for 10 minutes and keep it in a warm place for 3 hours.

After 3 hours dough should have been doubled, again knead it and give it a shape of your choice, top it with herbs and olive oil and keep it in pre heated oven at 180 degree for 20 minutes. Don't forget to check out in between. You can add cheese in-between.

Broken Wheat Instant Idlis

Ingredients:

2 cups broken wheat (dalia)

3 cups sour curds (khatta dahi)

salt to taste

1/4 cup grated carrot

1 tbsp chopped coriander (dhania)

1 tsp cumin seeds (jeera)

1 tbsp freshly grated coconut

oil for greasing and roasting

Method:

Heat little oil in a pan, add the broken wheat and saute till they turn pink in colour.

Cool, add the salt, curds and cumin seeds and blend in a mixer till smooth, using water if required.

Cover and keep aside for 30 minutes.

Grease the idli moulds using oil and place some carrots, coriander and coconut in each moulds.

Pour a spoonful of batter on top and steam in a idli steamer for 15 minutes or till cooked.

Serve hot.

Broken Wheat(Dalia) Dosa Recipe

Ingredients for Dosa Batter:

3 Cups Broken Wheat (Dalia/lapsi rava)

1 Cup Split black gram (Dhuli urad dal)

1 Cup Rice

½ tsp Fenugreek seeds (methi dana)

Salt to taste

Water as required

Oil for greasing

Method:

1 Wash and soak the rice and broken wheat in water for nearly 3 to 4 hours.

2 Wash and Soak the Urad dal and Fenugreek seeds also in water in a separate container.

3 After 4-6 hours remove water from the rice and broken wheat and grind it.

4 Grind it to semolina (small rava) like consistency with as minimum water required, in a mixer grinder.

5 Do not grind continuously as the mixer will get overloaded.

6 Remove it in a deep vessel.

7 Grind the Urad dal and fenugreek also in the mixer to a very fine paste with as minimum water required.

8 Do not grind continuously.

9 Remove it to the vessel and mix both the pastes together and cover and keep in warm place for fermentation overnight.

How do we proceed:-

1 In the morning see if the batter has doubled in size that means it has fermented well.

2 If not you can add 1 tsp of baking soda to make the Dosa’s light and fluffy (in winter season the batter doesn’t double much)

3 First check the batter consistency and then add the water if required.

4 Stir it and adjust the consistency of the dosa batter by adding water as required. If it’s already ok don’t add water.

5 Mix in the salt to taste and your batter is ready to make Dosa.

6 Keep a non stick Tawa/ griddle on the flame to become hot.

7 When it is hot enough put 2-3 drops of oil. When the oil is hot enough sprinkle little water to adjust the temperature.

8 Pour out 1 – 1 ½ ladle full of batter and spread it out from centre to outwards with the back of the ladle to make a circle. You must be quick enough.

9 Leave a little oil from the sides of the dosa. Keep on medium flame.

10 When the dosa is done and starts to leave sides remove the dosa and keep in the serving plate.

11 If you think the dosa is uncooked on the top you can flip it to cook on the other side also.

12 Serve hot with the chutney of your choice. You can also serve sambhar and potato bhaji with it.

Roti Poha

If you have leftover rotis and want to try some interesting snack then roti poha is the best option to try out with available ingredients in your kitchen.

Ingredients:

Leftover Roti: 6 pieces

Onion: 2 small pieces

Tomato: 4 small pieces

Green Chili : 2 pieces

Vegetable or Olive oil : 1 tablespoon

Roasted Peanuts: 10-12 pieces crushed

Coriander Leaves

Curry Leaves

Spices: Salt, Red Chili Powder,  Turmeric powder, Mustard Seeds

Recipe:

1. Crush the roti in grinder. It should not be too fine or too thick.
2. Take a deep pan and add oil to it. Once the oil becomes hot, add mustard seeds and curry leaves to it.
3. Add chopped onion and saute them till they turn light brown. Now add chopped tomatoes and green chili in it. Saute them for 5-10 minutes on medium flame.
4. Add salt, red chili powder and turmeric and mix the masala. Once it is cooked, add the crushed roti pieces  in the pan.Mix the roti thoroughly in the pan.
5. Now add crushed peanuts and mix the roti poha.  Garnish the poha with coriander leaves and zero sev.
6. Garma Garam Roti Poha is ready to eat with a hot cup of chai.

Kaju-Pista Rolls

Ingredients:

For Cashew Roll:
Cashew - 100 grams
Sugar - 3/4 cup
Water - 1/2 cup
Saffron - few strands
Cardamom Powder - 1 tsp
Ghee - 2 tblspn

For Pista Roll:
Pistachios / Pista - 50 grams
Sugar - 1/2 cup
Water - 1/4 cup

Cardamom Powder - 1 tsp
Green Food Colouring - a pinch
Ghee - 1 tblspn
Pan Masala – 2 tblspn (Optional)

For Decorating:
Saffron - few strands
Edible silver leaf / Chandi Varak (optional) 

Method:

1. Grind Cashewnuts to fine powder in a mixer and keep aside.

2. Now take sugar and water in a non stick kadai. Mix well so the sugar is dissolved. Now bring the sugar to a boil and let it boil for 5 to 8 mins. At this stage the sugar syrup must have reached 1 string consistency. (ie) when you dip the spoon in the syrup and take it out, the last drop falling from the spoon will form a string like thing.

 

3. At this stage add in the cashew paste. Mix well continuously. The cashew will get thick and leave the sides of the pan. Once it starts to get together, add in cardamom powder, saffron and mix well. Add in the ghee and stir well so it starts to foam up and leave the sides of the pan. At this stage, transfer the mixture to a ghee greased plate. Leave to cool.

 

4. Now make the pista dough. Grind pista and pan-masala (optional) in a mixer to a smooth paste.
Now take sugar and water in a non stick kadai. Mix well so the sugar is dissolved. Now bring the sugar to a boil and let it boil for 5 to 8 mins. At this stage the sugar syrup must have reached 1 string consistency (ie) when you dip the spoon in the syrup and take it out, the last drop falling from the spoon will form a string like thing.

5. At this stage add in the pista paste. Mix well continously. The pista will get thick and leave the sides of the pan. Once it starts to get together, add in cardamom powder and green colour. Add in the ghee and stir well so it starts to foam up and leave the sides of the pan. At this stage, transfer the mixture to a ghee greased plate. Leave to cool.

 

6. Now both the dough must be warm. Knead them for 5 mins or so till it forms into smooth dough. 

7. Divide both the dough into equal portions. I made 6 huge rolls out of them, but you could make tiny rolls too. In such a case you can divide them into as many equal portions as you like.

8. Now take the cashew roll and roll them into a rectangle in a foil. Once you have rolled them, shape the pista dough into a log and place them over the cashew rectangle. Start rolling them and pinch the edges. Smooth the roll and cut them into equal portions.

 

9. Store them in a air tight container.

 

Masala Dal Vada

Ingredients:

1 cup Bengal Gram/Split Chickpeas/Chana Dal
2-4 Dry Red Chillies (Adjust as per taste)
1 tsp Jeera/Cumin Seeds
2-3 springs Curry Leaves
¼ tsp Hing/Asafoetida
Salt to taste
Oil for Deep Frying

Method:

1. Wash chana dal or split Bengal grams 2-3 times to remove impurities and soak it in 3 cups of water for 2-4 hours.
2. Drain all the water from soaked lentil and keep it aside until needed.
3. Break the dried red chillies into 2-3 pieces and place them in the bottom of a mixer grinder jar or food processor along with curry leaves. Next add the chana dal, cumin seeds, hing and salt to taste and press the pulse button few ties to get a rough paste without adding any water. Don’t worry if there are few whole lentils left as they will add crunch to the vadas.
4. Remove from the mixer grinder into a mixing bowl and mix them well. You should easily be able to shape them into small balls without crumbling.
5. Heat oil for deep frying in a pan or kadai on medium flame. While the oil is getting heated, shape the vadas for deep frying.
6. Pinch small lime sized balls and roll them into round balls. Flatten it gently by pressing them in between palms or fingers to make about 2-2½ inch round discs.
7. Drop these discs into hot oil and fry them in batches of 4-6 on medium flame until they turn golden brown in colour, about 2-3 mins.
8. Remove from the oil with slotted spoon and place them in a plate lined with kitchen towel to remove excess oil.
9. Serve these delicious Masala Dal Vada hot or at room temperature on their own with hot cup of coffee or tea. You can also serve them with any chutney, tomato ketchup or sauce of your choice and enjoy!