It is my favourite tea time snack. Its very filling and tempting. While drafting this recipe I was pondering what is the difference between pakora, vada,bonda and kofta, I searched on the net and came across some definition which I would like to share with everyone.

PAKORA-A piece of vegetable deep fried in a batter flavoured with spices.

VADA-A vada (also vadai, wada, vade), pronounced 'vah-daa' or 'vah-die', is a savoury snack from South India, shaped like a doughnut and made from lentils.

Bonda is a typical South Indian snack. Bonda comes in two major varieties: Sweet and Spicy. Keralites prefer the sweet one and follow a completely different recipe than the majority of Indians. The spicy version is called as Batada vada in Maharashtra.

Koftas consist of balls of minced or ground meat, mixed with spices and onions. The vegetarian varieties like lauki kofta, shahi aloo kofta, and malai kofta are popular in India.

This is also my entry to Hot and Spicy Pakora Contest

INGREDIENTS

for batter-

• 2 cup besan (gram flour)
• 1/2 tea spoon ajwain (seeds of carom plant)
• 1/2 tea spoon chilly powder
• 1/2 tea spoon turmeric powder
• 1/4 tea spoon baking soda
• salt to taste
• water as needed

others-

• 
  
6 slices of bread

METHOD
For Pakora Batter:

• Mix all the ingredients and make a thick paste.Keep aside.

For Potato Masala(Stuffing):

• Mash the potato.
• Heat 1 table spoon oil in the pan. Add cumin seeds.
• Add ginger, garlic and green chilles.
• Add spices.
• Add mash potato, mix well. Fry for 2 minutes and keep aside.

For pakora:

• Heat the oil in deep pan.
• Spread potato masala on first bread slice,corinader chutney on second and ketchup on third.

• Now put the bread slices one upon other in such a way that bread slice with potato masala comes in the center.

• Repeat the procedure for remaining three bread.
• Dip the layered breads in batter.

• Fry the battered dip bread slices in the oil.

• Serve hot with chutney of your choice or without chutney as it already has chutney inside it.

This is an excellent dip for all varieties of pakoras.

Ingredients

• 2 cups chopped coriander with stem
• 2 green chillies
• 1 clove of garlic
• 1/2 inch ginger
• 1/2 tea spoon cumin seeds
• 2 tablespoon lemon juice
• salt to taste.

Method

Alu Palak is my husband's favourite dish. He can eat it any time with roti or rice. He likes it in nice green color.

INGREDIENTS

• 1 lb spinach
• 2 potatoes
• 1 onion chopped
• 2 green chilles long,if small take 4
• tea spoon minced ginger
• tea spoon minced garlic
• tea spoons lemon juice
• 1 tea spoon maida(all purpose flour)
• /2 tea spoon cumin seeds
• /4 tea spoon turmeric powder
• /2 tea spoon red chilly powder
• /2 tea spoon garam masala
• table spoon oil for tampering and frying
• salt to taste

METHOD

• Boil 3 cups water in a pan. Add washed spinach in boiling water. Take out spinach after 2 minutes in a colander,now pour some cold water on it.
• Make a coarse paste of spinach and green chillies in a mixer.
• Half boil the potatoes. If you are boiling in the pressure cooker, take 3 whistle. Peel the potatoes and cut into big pieces.
• Take 2 table spoon oil in pan, heat it and fry the potatoes from both the side. Keep aside the fried potatoes.

• Heat 2 tablespoon oil in the pan. Add cumin seeds, ginger,garlic and onion.Saute it.(those who like tomato taste with palak at this point they can add 1 chopped tomato and fry for 2 min)
• Add spices.
• Add spinach paste.boil it for 2 minutes.Make paste of maida with one tablespoon of cold water and add into the spinach. Boil more for 2 minutes.
• Add potatoes, mix well.

• Add lemon juice.
• Serve hot with roti, naan ,parathas or rice.

NOTE

• Those who like creamy taste, in the end before adding lemon juice they can add fresh thick cream. I would suggest you to make alu palak without cream and palak paner with cream.

Food Event:
This is my entry for the -

Curry Mela event being hosted by  Srivalli of Cooking For All Season.

 WYF:Colour In Food event being hosted by EC of Simple Indian Food.

This recipe is known as muthia in Gujrat and in Rajasthan it is known as Aal Ke Gatte. Bottle Gourd is known as Aal in Rajasthan. My husband named it rajasthani manchurian. whats there in the name as long as it is yummy.

Ingredients:

For Dough

• 2 cup grated bottle guard
• 4 tablespoons whole wheat flour (gehun ka atta)
• 2 tablespoons Bengal gram flour (besan)
• 2 tablespoons semolina (rawa)
• 1/3 teaspoon garam masala
• 1/2 teaspoon chilly powder
• 1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds (jeera)
• 1/4 teaspoon soda-bi-carbonate
• 3 tablespoons oil
• 1 teaspoon chopped garlic
• 1 teaspoon ginger chopped
• 2 tablespoons chopped coriander
• 2 green chilly fine chopped
• salt to taste

others-

• 1/2 teaspoon mustard seeds
• 1/4 teaspoon turmeric powder
• 1/2 teaspoon chilly powder
• 1 teaspoon chopped ginger
• 1 tablespoon chopped garlic
• 1 onion chopped
• 1 small capsicum chopped /2 big green chilly
• 1 tomato chopped
• coriander for garnishing
• ghee or oil for tempering
• salt to taste

METHOD

• Squeeze the water out from bottle guard.
• Mix all the ingredients to make a dough.
• Apply little oil to hand and make cylindrical rolls.

• Take some water in the pan, bring it to boiling point and immerse these rolls(gatte) in boiling water and boil for 10 minutes or steam them.

• Cut the rolls into small pieces & keep aside.
• Take little ghee or oil in the pan and heat it; add mustard seeds, When they start to crackle add ginger,garlic,onion .Fry it till it gets slight brown.
• Add capsicum fry it for 2 min ,add tomato,fry one min add the small pieces of rolls. mix them well.
• Garnish with coriander and serve hot.

NOTE-
To check whether the rolls are properly boiled or steamed, cut the roll if you see net like formation it is ready.

this is my entry to pooja's VoW-bottle gourd

Rajasthan Food is an experience to be cherished....

Rajasthan is a desert region. The use of milk, curd and buttermilk instead of the water in the gravy is the distinguished feature of Rajasthani cuisine. Due to the less cultivation of leafy green vegetables, lentils, and legumes, Gram flour,bajra ,corn and dried lentils, beans like ker and sangri are the major ingredients here.

The famous Rajasthani food is dal, bati and churma ( dal is lentils; bati is baked wheat ball; and churma is powdered sweetened cereal) and gatte ki sabji. Besides, each region is distinguished by its popular sweet like Mawa Kachori from Jodhpur, Malpuas from Pushkar, Rasagullas from Bikaner, Ghevar from Jaipur, Sohan Halwa from Ajmer, Mawa from Alwar and tilpapadi from Beawar etc. etc.

It is always a pleasure to present a recipe from your native place. The food which you relish the most. Will come up soon with more Rajasthani dishes.

Gatte Ki Sabji

(serves 2)

For Gatte

• 1 cup Besan (gram flour)
• 1/4 cup water or as required
• 1/2 tea spoon chilly powder
• 1/2 tea spoon salt
• 1/4 tea spoon turmeric powder
• 1/2 tea spoon ajwin (oregano)
• 1 tea spoon ginger garlic paste
• 1 table spoon oil

OTHERS:

• 3 cup water
• 1/2 cup curd
• 2 tea spoon Dhaniya powder
• 1 tea spoon red chilly powder
• 1/4 turmeric powder
• salt as per taste
• 1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds
• 1 small onion chopped
• 2 tea spoon ginger garlic paste
• 1 green chilly chopped
• 1 stem curry leaves
• cilantro/coriander for garnishing
• 2 table spoon oil

• For gatte,mix all the ingredients and make a stiff dough.
• Make cylindrical rolls of the dough as shown in picture.
  boil the water in pan. Put the rolls in the boiling water for 8-10 min.

• Meanwhile in the curd add dhaniya,chilly,turmeric powder and salt.Beat it and keep aside.

• Cut the rolls into small pieces. Keep the water aside.

• For tempering. Heat the oil in a pan .Add cumin seeds, curry leaves, ginger garlic paste and green chilly.
• Add onions,saute it.
• Add curd.Cook for 4-5 min or till the curd leaves the oil.
• Add gatte pieces and water.bring a boil and simmer the gas and cook for 5 more min.
• Garnish it with cilantro.

Note:
In place of curd you can use 2 small size chopped tomatoes.
For garnishing you can use fresh or dried mint leaves too.

Drawing and Painting are my hobbies. I like to try out my hand on various paintings.This was my first glass painting. I got this design pattern along with my glass painting color kit. For outlines, I used a liquid black colored lead. Nice news is, nowadays the lead comes in silver, gold and transparent hues. I will try to use one of these hues in one of my next paintings.

This is a glass painting done on 2mm thick glass sheet,  inspired by a water color based painting in a magazine. What I like most in this painting is how the bold colors blend into each other like music coming out from different instruments.

Bored with routine dal chawal menu!! Try this to refresh your taste buds.

Ingredients:

• 1 lb Asian stir fry vegetables          
• 1 can coconut milk
• 1 cup water
• 1 onion chopped
• 1 tea spoon garlic minced
• 1 tea spoon ginger minced
• 2 tablespoon Thai red curry powder
• salt as per taste
• 2 tablespoon oil
• Basil(Tulsi) leaves for garnishing.

Note:

In place of stir fry vegetables , you can use assorted 1 lb vegetables of your choice (capsicum, carrot, onion, broccoli, mushroom, snow pea, water chestnut & potato)

Method:

• Heat the oil in the pan.
• Add ginger, garlic and onion.Fry for 2 min.Add the vegetables.Fry it for 2-3 minutes.Keep it tender.
• Add red curry paste.
  Add coconut milk and one cup water
• Bring to boil and simmer for 3-4 min.Cook it till you get the desired thick consistency.
• Garnish it with basil leaves.
• Serve hot with steamed rice.

Poha is a very well known snack from the Western part of India. Here I present a variation of it with bread. Read ahead for your taste buds !!

The following recipe serves 1.

Ingredients :

• 4 bread slices of any variety
• 1 potato medium size
• 1 onion medium size
• 1 tomato medium size
• 1 green chilly
• 1 tea spoon minced garlic
• 1/2 tea spoon minced ginger

For tempering :

• 2 table spoon oil
• 1/4 tea spoon mustard seeds
• 1/4 tea spoon turmeric
• 1/4 tea spoon red chilly powder(optional)
• salt as per taste(keep in mind there is already salt in the bread)
• coriander/cilantro for garnishing
• Bhujia / Sev for garnishing.

Method

1. Cut bread into small square pieces.
2. Cut potato,tomato,onion,green chilly into small pieces.
3. Heat oil in the pan,add mustard seeds.
4. Add onion,potato, green chilly,ginger and garlic saute it for for 2-3 min.
5. Add spices and tomato stir it for minute.
6. Add bread pieces,mix it with vegetables for a minute.
7. Take it in serving dish and garnish with cilantro and bhujia.

NOTE
U can make Upma wth the same recipe. For upma in the end add 1/2 cup water,mix it well,put the lid of pan and cook more for 2 min.

Go ahead and feast to a tasty snack !!

As I step into the world of blogging, I would like to take this opportunity and wish that whoever stumbles upon my blog leaves with a happy thought or a recipe in their minds. . . .

Manisha