Classic Home Made Guacamole

Hello everyone, in case you are wondering, why I have not been posting new recipes, visiting and commenting on your blogs..... i am extremely busy with an assignment and not able to devote time for blogging. Hopefully things should be back to normal sometime next month....

Today I am sharing a very easy way to make guacamole. The advantage of making it homemade is that you get to control the ingredients and taste according to your family needs.

Ingredients: 3 Haas Avocados, 1/2 onion - chopped, 1 tomato seeded and chopped (optional), 3 jalapenos seeded, 1 garlic clove, 1 Lime juiced, salt to taste.

Procedure: Cut the avocados and remove the seed. scoop the flesh out with a spoon. Pour lime juice over it to prevent it from oxidizing. Mash it finely with a fork (alternately you could puree it in a food processor along with garlic and jalapeno). Keep aside. Grind together the jalapeno and garlic. Add this to the avocado along with chopped onion and tomato (i have not added tomato today). Add salt and mix thoroughly.

Serve with tortilla chips of your choice. Here, I served them with multi-grain tortilla chips.

Quick and Easy Vegetarian Enchiladas

I am sharing this very simple and easy Vegetarian Enchilada recipe today. It is my favorite go to recipe whenever I need to put something on the table really quick. I have taken the help of a lot of ready made pantry items to cut down on the prep time. 

Ingredients: Multi-grain Tortillas - 6 nos, Bush's Black bean fiesta - one 21 oz can, vegetarian re-fried black beans - 1 can, shredded cheese - Kraft Mexican style four cheese 1 8 oz pack, chopped garlic 1 tsp, chopped jalapeno - 3, chopped green onions - 2 tsp.

Enchilada sauce: I simply pureed the leftover chunky tomato salsa - mild (24 oz) I had along with 2 seeded jalapenos. This recipe need about 2 cups of sauce so adjust accordingly.

Filling: Heat a saucepan and add 1 tsp crushed garlic and 3 tsp chopped jalapeno (adjust according to taste). Saute for 2 mins and then and add Bush's black bean fiesta and refried black beans and cook for 8-10 mins. At the end of the process the filling should be thick and not watery.

Assembly: Put some sauce at the bottom of a glass or any baking pan. Then take a tortilla and spread some sauce on it and then spoon about 3 tbsp filling in it and roll. Put it in the baking pan. Continue the process with all the other tortillas. Pour the remaining sauce over the enchiladas. 

Baking: Preheat oven at 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Bake for 18-20 mins. Then put shredded cheese and chopped green onion (optional) on the tortillas and bake for 2-3 mins. Serve with guacamole or sour cream and as side of Mexican rice! Enjoy........

Tip: This recipe is really versatile and you could add shredded chicken or any other meat if you want in the filling and make it non-vegetarian.

Patwadi or Patodi Rassa

Today I am sharing a very different recipe with you. It is a typical Maharashtrian Rassa ot Curry and not many people know it. The name of the dish is Patwadi or Patodi Rassa Bhaji. The procedure involves making the Patwadis or Patodis (Gram flour or Besan vadis) and then adding them to the curry. The concept is kind of similar to Gatte ki subzi, a specialty from Rajasthan, but the taste is totally different as the procedure and masalas are different.

Procedure to make Patwadis: 

Mix together 1/2 cup besan, 1 tsp red chilly powder, 1 tsp clove powder, 1 tsp poppy seeds, 2 tbsp fresh shredded coconut, 1 tbsp yoghurt, 1 tsp coriander powder, 1 tsp ajwain, 2 tsp oil, salt to taste and 1 cup water. Put the mixture in a thick bottom pan, and cook for 4-5 mins stirring continuously so that there are no lumps. Then cover and cook for 4 -5 mins more on medium low heat. Take care to keep stirring so that the mixture does not stick to the bottom. When the besan/gramflour is fully cooked and kind of thick, transfer it to a greased plate, spread it around the plate and let it cool. Cut it into small squares or diamonds. At this point the patwadis can be eaten as is or put in a curry.

Procedure for making Curry or Rassa:
Take a pan and put 1 tbsp oil and fry 1 &1/2 cup chopped onion (till they are golden brown), then add 1 cup chopped tomatoes, 1 tsp poppy seeds, 1 tsp coriander seeds, 1 tsp sesame seeds, 1/4 tsp cloves, 1 inch ginger, 4-5 garlic cloves, 2 chopped green chillies, salt to taste and 2 tsp maharashtrian goda masala or garam masala and fry for 5 mins. Grind everything to a smooth paste.

Final Assembly:

Take another pan and  put 1 tbsp oil. Add 1 tsp mustard seeds and  when they crackle, add 1/4 tsp asofoetida, 1 tsp turmeric powder, 1 tsp red chilly powder and some curry leaves. Add the paste and bring it to a boil. Then add the patwadi or patodi pieces and cook for 4-5 mins. Garnish with cilantro and serve with Roti or Poli.

Note: The traditional curry has a lot of oil floating on top, but being health conscious, I have added only as much oil as necessary. You can adjust the amount of oil as per your preference.

Almond Coconut Barfi (Badam Naral Vadi)

To all the friends and readers of this blog - Wishing you and your loved ones a very Happy Diwali . Have a safe one!!

Wow can't believe Diwali is already here!!! Its such a joyous time of the year. Friends and families getting together, feasting and enjoying...... just love it.

Today, I am sharing with you a quick and easy barfi recipe. Its another of the must have sweets on a Maharashtrian Diwali Platter. I made this in a microwave, but it can be made on stove top too.

Ingredients: 1 &1/2 cup fresh shredded coconut, 1/2 cup almond powder, 1 cup milk powder dissolved in milk (about a cup), 1 can condensed milk (big), 1/2 cup ghee, 1 tsp crushed cardamoms, 1 tsp saffron strands. I have just used condensed milk for sweetening. If you want more sweetness, you can add a couple of tablespoons of sugar.

Procedure: Put ghee in a heavy bottom pan and when it melts add all the ingredients except crushed cardamom and saffron. Stir till the mixture on medium heat till it starts to leave the sides - about 30-40 mins and then add cardamom and saffron. Grease a plate/tray and set the mixture in it. Cool and cut and store is refrigerator for extended shelf life.

Alternatively you can microwave it in a microwave safe bowl. Stir after every 3 mins and take care it does not run over. When the mixture is little thick, add the crushed cardamoms and Saffron and follow the above steps to cool and cut.

Sharing my Homemade Maharashtrian Diwali Faral Taat: Barfi, Modak, Karanji, Ladoo, Shankarpali, Chivda, Kadbole, Chakli and Shev. I have made Upma which is in the center....... On the first day of Diwali (Narka Chaturdashi) we eat this for breakfast in the morning!

Have a great festival everyone!!! Take care.

Healthy Bread Dosa

There is some happy news in the blogosphere.....one of our blogger friends Nithya of 4thsensecooking  is getting married this November. So her blogging friends decided to host a virtual bridal shower for her - by cooking dishes from her own blog. She is a very talented photographer, so do check out her blog for some awesome clicks. I am making Bread Dosa recipe from her blog today. Its really simple to make and yet very tasty. I added some yoghurt and rava/semolina to give it a little interesting taste and texture. 

Ingredients: Whole Wheat Bread - 4-5 slices, 3/4th cup all purpose flour, 1/4th cup semolina/rava, 1 tbsp yoghurt, 1 tsp red chilli powder, salt to taste. 

Method: Break the bread into pieces and soak them in a cup of water for 2-3 mins. Then grind all above the ingredients in the mixer along with the bread. The consistency should be that of a dosa batter. Heat a pan and put a few drops of oil on it. Then pour a ladle full of batter and cook for about 4-5 mins on each side. Serve with Chutney or Ketchup.

Hope you like the recipe Nithya. Wishing you a very happy married life.........

Karanji with Coconut Filling (Sweet Indian Empanadas)

Today I am sharing a very simple and easy method of making Karanji which is like a sweet empanada. It is made with a delicious sweet coconut filling. This sweet is also traditionally made for Diwali Faral (feast) in Maharashtra. This is yet another one of our family favorites.

Ingredients:

For the cover: take 1.5 cups wheat flour or maida/all purpose flour (your choice), 1/2 cup fine rava/sooji/cream of wheat, 2 tsp hot oil, pinch of salt.

For the filling: 2 cups shredded coconut, 1&1/2 cups sugar (adjust according to sweetness of sugar), 2 tsp rice flour, 1 tsp crushed cardamom, 1/4 tsp saffron (optional) or few drops of rose essence (optional).

Method:

Add a pinch of salt to the flour and then pour hot oil (2 tsp) over it and knead the dough with water and keep it under wet cloth for 1 hr. You have to keep kneading it after every 20 mins to make it soft.

In a thick bottom pan, mix the shredded coconut and sugar and cook it till the coconut is soft. Then add the rice flour to it and cook for 3-4 mins. Turn off the heat and add the crushed cardamom and saffron or rose essence. Let it cool.

Then make lemon size balls of the dough and roll out little discs. Put about 3 tsp filling and fold it over to make a cresent shape and cut off the edges with a karanji cutter (pinwheel cutter) or you can seal them with maida paste (add some water to maida or all purpose flour and make semi thick paste), if you want.

Deep fry them in hot oil. Cool and refrigerate for extended shelf life. Personally I like to add rose essence to the filling. It gives it a very distinct and interesting flavor.

Sweet Shankarpali/Shankarpale (Sweet Diamond Cuts)

This is in continuation of my Diwali Sweets posts since the festival is fast approaching. Today I am sharing the recipe of Sweet Shankarpali/Shankarpale. They are shaped like diamonds and can be either sweet or savory.  Today I am sharing the sweet version.

Ingredients: 1 cup all purpose flour/wheat flour (depending on your preference) - all purpose gives more crispy results but wheat flour is more healthy, so its your choice :), 1/4 cup ghee (melted), 1/2 - 3/4 th cup sugar (adjust according to sweetness of sugar), a pinch of salt, and oil to fry.

Method: Add sugar and a pinch of salt to the flour and pour 1/4th cup hot melted ghee over it. Knead it into dough using water or milk as needed (Milk makes them more crispy). Keep it under a wet towel. Keep kneading it every 1/2 hour. After 2 hours, make balls out of the dough and roll them with a rolling pin. Take a pinwheel cutter and cut diamond shapes out of the rolled dough. Fry them in hot oil till they are light brown. Cool and store them in airtight container.

I am sending this to South Indian Home's - Dish it out - with Wheat and Jaggery originally started by Vardhini and also sending it to Kirthi's Kitchen Festival Potluck.