Baked Sweet Potato Fries

Ah...Here I am, back after 7 months of hibernation from blogging with a dish which I remembered having in a place called Crane Alley (in downtown Urbana).

    

Prep Time - 15 mins

Baking Time - 20 - 30 mins

Ingredients :

Sweet potatoes - 4, medium sized , peeled

Seasoning :

Olive Oil - 1 - 2 tbsp
Garlic - 2-3 flakes, minced ( optional )
Paprika - 1/2 tsp
Black pepper - 1/2 tsp ( or as per taste )
Salt as per taste

15 mins prior to baking :

Soak the sweet potatos in water as soon as you peel them as they tend to get black when exposed to air. Cut the sweet potato into half, cut it into large slices about 3/4th inch thick . Now cut these slices into finger sized fries ( 1/2 inch thick approx ).

Pre heat the oven at 300 F / 150 C.

Procedure :

In a small bowl mix all the ingredients under the seasoning section and keep it aside.
Drain all the water and transfer the sweet potatoes to a large bowl. Pour the seasoning and toss till the sweet potatoes are covered with the seasoning evenly.

Line the baking tray with parchment paper and spread the sweet potatoes in a single layer. Bake until the sweet potatoes are tender and golden brown. ( Ten minutes into baking take out your baking tray from the oven and turn the fries ).

Serve warm with your favourite sauce!

Oven Baked Vegetables

D and me wanted to eat something healthy, also a one-meal dish that is easy to make. We thought about making baked vegetables and we came up with a recipe including our own seasonings. The result was extremely tasty and we have been making it two days in a row. The good thing is it can be custom made with your vegetables of choice and you can even add or remove items from our recommended seasoning!

Prep time - less than 5 mins
Baking time - 45 mins

Ingredients :

Vegetables:

Red Potatoes - 4 medium, cut into cubes
Cauliflower - 6-7 , medium size florest
Green bell pepper - 1 medium, cut into 1/2 inch piece
Red onion - 1 medium, cut into thick strips
Sweet corn - 1/2 cup
Tomato - 1 large, cut into big cubes

Seasoning:

Garlic - 3 medium pods, minced
Paprika - 1 tsp [ or as per taste ]
Olive oil - 2 tbsp
Basil (dried) -1 tsp [ or as per taste]
Lime juice - 1/2 tsp
Vinegar - 1/2 tsp
Pepper - 1/2 tsp [ or as per taste]
Salt as per tatse

Procedure :

Whisk together all the ingredients under the "Seasoning" section homogenously.

Wash and cut all the vegetables and keep the vegetables in a colander till all the water drains. Take a big mixing bowl and place all the vegetables in the bowl. Pour the seasoning evenly over the vegetables and mix properly with the help of a wooden spoon. [ we want the vegetables to be properly coated with the seasoning, at the same time vigorous mixing with the spoon might break the cauliflower florets ].

Pre heat the oven at 400 F. Line a baking tray with an aluminium foil and place the vegetables over the foil and bake for 45 mins [ or till the vegetables are fully cooked, I checked this by piercing with a toothpick ]. Once they are cooked, turn on the broil option in your oven for 5 mins to make your veggies crispy and brown.

Plantain Shammi kabab

This is an oil free adaptation of Sanjay Thumma's Shammi Kabab recipe done by baking instead of shallow frying. We liked its taste and specifically enjoyed the addition of pomegranates, one of our favorite fruits! 

Prep Time - 25 mins
Cooking time - 40 mins

Ingredients :

Plantain / Raw banana - 1, medium
Chana dal - 1/2 cup
Onion - half of a medium sized, finely chopped
Green chillies - 3 [ or as per taste ], finely chopped
Ginger - garlic paste - 1/2 tsp
Mint leaves - 8-9 leaves, finely chopped
Turmeric powder- 1/4 tsp
Cumin powder - 1/2 tsp
Coriander powder - 1/2 tsp
Red chilli powder - 1/2 tsp [ or as per taste ]
Cilantro - 3-4 sprigs, finely chopped
Cumin seeds - 1tsp
Oil - 1 tsp
Salt - as per taste

For the filling :

Paneer - 1/3 cup , crumbled                                                                                          
Cilantro - 2 -3 sprigs, finely chopped
Onion - 2 tbsp, finely chopped
Pomegranate - 2 -3 tbsp [ or as per taste]
Chaat masala as per taste
Red chilli powder as per taste

Procedure :

Pressure cook the chana dal and plaintain seperately .
Mash the plaintain and keep aside.

In a medium sized wok, heat oil on medium heat. Once the oil is hot, add cumin seeds and let them splutter. Add finely chopped onions and stir till they turn transparent. Now add green chillies, ginger garlic paste and turmenric. Stir till the raw smell of ginger garlic goes off. Now add mint leaves, red chilli powder, cumin powder and coriander powder. Give it a good mix and then add the chana dal. Again give a good mix and add the mashed plaintain and chopped cilantro leaves. Mix properly. Turn off the heat and let it cool for a while and mash the plaintain - chana dal mix till you get a homogenous texture ( like a dough ) [ I did this with hands, you can also use a masher ] . Set aside.

Filling :

Mix all the items under " for the filling " section and keep aside.

Assembling the kabab :

Divide the chana dal -plaintain dough into golf  ball size . Smear some water on your palms and flatten each portion into a disc. Place about 1-2 tsp of paneer filling at the center of the disc, close and seal the edges and make into a patty.
[ If the dough feels very tight or cracks develop, dip your finger into water and apply on the cracks and keep working in the same way till you get a smooth surface ]

Preheat the oven at 350 F and grease a baking sheet with oil. Place the kabab on the baking sheet.

Bake for 10 mins [ or until one side turns brown on top ] and flip and bake for another 10 mins till the other side becomes brown in color.

Serve hot with your favorite chutney!

Garlic Bread

I have always tried and wanted to make restaurant style garlic bread. Even though I have made it a number of times, the results were not very satisfactory. D suggested we make it the way described below, apparently he had  tasted something quite similar during a recent trip. This one turned out very much like what we had thought of and we enjoyed it a lot. 

A crispy edge and a warm soft, buttery and cheesy centre - it is this quality of garlic bread that I have been trying to make and it became a success this time. Traditionally a garlic bread is made from French bread / Italian bread, but we prefer Vienna bread which has a crispy crust on the outside and a very soft inside, which turns out to be perfect for garlic bread! Also one of the other important things while making a garlic bread is that the oven in which you plan to bake your garlic bread needs to be really hot, so its better that you preheat your oven 15- 20 mins before you plan to bake it. 

Prep time - 10 -15 mins
Cooking time - 10 - 12 mins

Ingredients :

Vienna bread  loaf- 1 medium sized loaf ( You can also use French / Italian bread loaf )
Garlic pods - 5-6 medium sized pods, minced or very finely chopped
Butter - 1/3 cup [ or more as per taste ]
Mozzarella cheese - 1/2 cup grated [ or more as per taste ]
Dried basil leaves - 1 tsp [ or as per taste ]
Salt - as per taste

For veggie Garlic bread :

Onions - finely chooped
Tomatoes - finely chopped

Procedure :

Pre heat the oven at 400 F.

Take the Vienna bread and carefully slice it into half lengthwise.

Now cut these halves into two half pieces and slit each piece as shown in the picture below , without cutting the edges below. Melt the butter and apply generously over each piece like in the pic below. Place the bread pieces on cookie sheet.

For plain garlic bread :

Spread the mozzarella cheese over the bread  and top it off with minced garlic, salt and basil leaves.

For veggie garlic bread :

Spread a little amount of mozzarella cheese over the bread. Add the chopped tomatoes and onion and sprinkle more cheese generously. Top it off with minced garlic, salt and basil leaves.

Place the cookie tray in the oven and bake till the cheese melts and the top layer turns golden brown. This would take 10-12 mins approx.

I did not add oregano and chilli flakes while baking. You can add both the seasonings before serving. Serve hot.





Chocolate Dipped Strawberries

Plain strawberries are good, but whats' really good is strawberries dipped in chocolate! In this particular recipe, I have used the Bakers brand of semisweet and white chocolates. One of the challenges here is to get the right kindof strawberries - sweet and plump. Three tips for selecting strawberries - they should be checked for uniformity of the seeds at their base, whether they are bright red (not too much/too little though) and moldfree.

Prep time - 10 mins

Ingredients :

Strawberries - 14, with stems, washed and dried
Semi sweet baking chocolate - 6 ounces [ I used Baker's brand ]

Drizzle (for garnishing and added taste) :

White chocolate baking squares - 2 ounces [ I used Baker's brand ]
Oil - 1/2 tsp

Procedure :

In a small microwaveable bowl, microwave the semi sweet chocolate while stirring at 30 sec intervals till it melts completely. Else melt the chocolates using the double boiling method [ Take a large pan and heat water till it comes to a rolling boil , turn the heat to low. In another bowl place the chocolate squares and place this bowl over the large pan with water. Keep stirring till the chocolate melts ]

Take a plate and cover it with butter paper. Dip the strawberries into the melted chocolates and place over the butter paper. [ If you dont use butter paper the chocolate might get smeared onto the plate.]



In a small microwaveable bowl melt white chocolate, stirring at intervals of 30 seconds. Once its melted add oil and mix again. Drizzle over the chocolate coated strawberries. [ You can also do vice  versa i.e coat the strawberries with white chocolate and drizzle semisweet chocolate ( mixed with oil ) over them].

Let them cool till the chocolate sets , I refrigerated the same to set the chocolate faster.

Chivda

With the blog in mind, I am always on the lookout for new recipes. Lately my good friend R has been quite generous in sharing some very nice Maharashtrian recipes.

This particular one, Chivda, is very easy to make but still is a spicy, crispy and crunchy snack with a very slight tinge of sweetness to it.

The measurement mentioned below for cashew nuts and raisins is as I had used in my recipe, but I would love to add more of nuts and raisins the next time I make them.

Prep time - 10 mins
Cooking time - 8-10 mins

Ingredients:

Thin poha – 3 cups
Oil – 2 tbsp
Mustard seeds – 1 tsp
Cumin Seeds – 1 tsp
Saunf / Fennel seeds – 1.5 tsp
Peanuts – 2 tbsp
Roasted chana dal – 2 tbsp
Cashew nuts – 2 tbsp, broken
Sesame seeds – 3 tbsp
Curry leaves – 5 – 6 leaves
Green chillies – 2, finely chopped
Dry coconut / Khopra – 9- 10 pieces, thinly sliced ( as thin as possible)
Raisins – 2 tbsp
Red chilli powder - ¾ tsp [or as per taste]
Turmeric powder – ½ tsp
Salt – 1.5tsp [ or as per taste ]
Sugar – ¾ tsp[ or as per taste]

[D is not a great fan of sweets so I was very careful about the quantity of sugar to be added].

Procedure :

Take a large pan and dry roast the poha on medium heat for 1-2 mins till the poha turns crispy. Keep stirring constantly. [The poha would turn crispy without a change in color, so take care that you don’t burn them trying to wait till it changes color]. Transfer the contents to another bowl.

In the same large pan (on medium heat) , heat oil. Once hot, add the mustard seeds and wait for them to splutter. Once they splutter add in the cumin seeds and as they sizzle add the saunf / fennel seeds and peanuts. Stir constantly on medium heat for 30- 40 seconds till the peanuts turn golden in color. Now add in the roasted chana dal , cashews and sesame seeds and again keep stirring constantly till the cashews turn golden in color. Just when you see that the cashews are turning golden in color immediately add in the dry khopra, green chillies and curry leaves and stir again. Add in the red chilli powder and turmeric powder, salt and sugar. Give it a quick stir.

[ Make sure that the heat is on medium as we don’t want to burn any of the seasonings. If not sure add each ingredient one by one (on low heat) while stirring constantly ].

Now add in the roasted poha and mix properly with all the spices and seasonings. Mix till you get an uniform yellow color on the poha . Garnish with chopped cilantro. The chivda can be stored in an air tight container for 2-3 weeks.

My friend R’s serving suggestion – Just before serving Chivda , top it with chopped onions and some more fresh cilantro.

Sundal - Navratri Special

Golu and Sundal are synonymous with each other. This year I managed to go all the way and make a different  one each day. Some were made following expert recommendations (meaning mom's) and a few were my own creations. In this post I will try to detail the recipes for these 8 tasty sundals.

I made sundal in three different ways-

Method 1 or M1: With ground masala (D's mom shared this method with me )

Method 2 or M2: With tenga- manga (coconut and raw mango)

Method 3 or M3: With regular seasoning and coconut.

Top Row:         White peas (M2), Kidney beans(M3), Peanuts(M2)

Middle Row:     Chana dal(M3), Lima beans(M1), Moong dal(M3)

Bottom Row:   Black eyed peas(M3), Chick peas(M3)

Inactive prep time - 8-9 hours
Active prep and cooking time - 5-10 mins

Note 1-

            All the pulses except moong dal,  chana dal and peanuts need to be pre-soaked in water for 8-9 hours. If you miss this step, you can also soak them for 4-5 hours in hot water.

           Also I cooked all my pulses except peanuts and chickpeas in microwave, as they might turn mushy sometimes when we pressure cook. By microwaving I had more control and I often checked and saw that they don't turn mushy.

Ingredients-

Pulse of your choice

Oil - 1-2 tsp
Salt as per taste
Turmeric - 1/4 tsp

For Sundal with ground masala(M1):

Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp

Udat dal - 1/2 tsp

Curry leaves - 4-5

Green chilli - 1, chopped (optional)

Asafoetida - 1/8 tsp

To grind  :

Ginger - 1 inch piece

Chana dal - 1 tbsp

Coriander seeds - 1 tbsp

Red chilli - 2 or as per taste

Coconut - 1 tbsp

For tenga-manga sundal ( coconut and raw mango )(M2):

Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp

Udat dal - 1/2 tsp
Curry leaves - 4-5
Asafoetida - 1/8 tsp
Raw mango - 1 tbsp, grated

To grind:

Coconut - 1 -2 tbsp, grated

Green chilies - 2 or as per taste

For regular sundal(M3):

Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp

Udat dal - 1/2 tsp
Curry leaves - 4-5
Red chillies - 2 or as per taste, broken into 2-3 pieces
Asafoetida - 1/8 tsp
Coconut - 1 tbsp, grated

Procedure :

Pressure cook or microwave and cook your pulses with salt and turmeric. Drain and keep aside.
 
For Sundal with ground masala

In a small pan roast ( on medium heat ) all the items under the "to grind" section until golden brown. Cool and grind into a coarse powder and keep aside.

In a medium sized pan heat oil ( on medium heat ). Once hot add in the mustard seeds and wait till they splutter, then add udal dal and asafoetida till udal dat becomes slight golden in color. Add curry leaves and green chillies ( if using ) and give a quick stir. At this stage turn the heat to low and add in the pulses and the ground masala. Mix slowly and properly.

Serve hot.

For tenga mangai sundal ( coconut and raw mango )

In a food processor blend coconut and green chillies to a fine paste and keep aside.

In a medium sized pan heat oil ( on medium heat ). Once hot add in the mustard seeds and wait till they splutter, then add udal dal and asafoetida till udal dat becomes slight golden in color. Add curry leaves  and  give a quick stir. At this stage turn the heat from medium to low and add in the pulses, ground chilli and coconut and mix slowly and properly. Sprinkle the grated raw mango and mix again.

Serve hot.

For regular sundal :

In a medium sized pan heat oil ( on medium heat ). Once hot add in the mustard seeds and wait till they splutter, then add udal dal and asafoetida till udal dat becomes slight golden in color. Add curry leave, red chillies and give a quick stir. At this stage turn the heat from medium to low and add in the pulses and coconut. Mix slowly and mix properly.

Serve hot.
 
Note 2-
             You can also use other pulses like soy beans, pigeon peas , split green gram and even green peas. You can choose from any of the three methods and make your sundal.

Keerai Vadai

Soaking time - 2 to 3 hours
Prep time - 10 mins
Cooking time - 20 - 25 mins

Ingredients :

Chana Dal - 1 cup
Udat dal - 1/2 cup
Spinach ( or any green ) - 2 cups, finely chopped
Dried red chillis - 3 to 4
Black pepper - 1 tsp
Saunf / sombu / fennel seeds - 1 tsp
Onion - 1 medium, finely chopped [ I didn't use onions this time ]
Salt - as per taste
Oil - for deep frying

Procedure :

Wash and soak chana dal and Udat dal for 2-3 hours.

Grind the soaked dals along with pepper, red chillis and salt coarsely.

Add the chopped spinach, fennel seeds and onion ( if using ) to the ground dal and mix properly.

In a large wok , heat oil on medium.Make a small lemon sized ball from the dough and press between your palms gently and deep fry in the oil on medium heat till golden brown on both the sides.