Batata Saung (Potato Saung)

A very traditional recipe of ours.  A must do in our Chitrapur Saraswat household.  A yum, tangy and spicy preparation of potatoes.  This dish is usually paired with a lentil preparation.  So here goes the way of doing it.

INGREDIENTS:

Potatoes	5-6
Onions	2 big chopped a bit fine
Tamarind	Size of a lemon
Chilli powder	1 tsp
Salt	1 tsp or as per preference
Oil	1 tbsp

METHOD:

1.       Boil potatoes in a cooker until soft.  Once cool remove skin and cut them into cube size pieces.

2.       Chop onions into a little fine pieces.  Soak the tamarind in a little hot water so as to get the pulp off the tamarind.

3.       In a kadai, add oil and let it heat up.  Add the onions and sauté them till they turn soft and translucent.  You could add a little salt with the onions as they help them break down easily.

4.       Once the onions are soft, add the tamarind water.  Mix well.  Add the chilli powder, salt and mix well again.  (remember you have added salt when the onions were sautéing so add carefully).  Bring this to a boil.

5.       Add the cut potatoes and mix.  Bring this to a boil again.

6.       Serve hot with chappatis or rice and dal(lentil preparation).  Enjoy.

NOTES:

1.       You could use any oil but preparing this in coconut oil, gives a wonderful taste to this dish.

2.       Add salt and chilli powder according to your preference. I have added a tsp of chilli powder and a little less than a tsp of salt.

3.       Making this dish early helps the potatoes soak up in the gravy and renders a more flavourful dish.

Date and Walnut Cake

Finally, yup finally I baked a cake.  Since I wasn't able to put up festive goodies for Ganesh chaturthi and Diwali I wanted to put up quite a few Christmas goodies and with Christmas drawing to a close I wanted to bake a yummy fruit cake or a plum cake.  The only problem being I hadn't prepped up for the cakes.  Then I thought I could still keep the "Christmas cake" fever going by baking a cake which is as yummy as fruit or plum cake.  So while I wondered what I should bake, this one crossed my mind. 

We have taken a sudden liking for dates nowadays.  Not that we didn't like it earlier, but never really got to including it in our daily diet.  Also there are so many other desserts & cakes, I have in mind to be made & baked.  Just that I need to do it well and with a whole lotta time on hand.  Due to time constraint and travelling, desserts and cakes have taken a back seat.  Making a promise to myself, I have decided to make or bake something sweet more often.  So you all will get to see a whole lot of desserts and cakes coming your way.  A nice tea-time cake or just something sweet to pack for your kiddos lunch box.  Kids or adults a cake you will love.  A cake that can be made in a jiffy.  A cake packed with the goodness of dates and walnuts.  Both of which are good for health.  Though I have added milkmaid. I have compensated here and there.  I had this recipe in my hand written cook book, so tweaking the recipe that I had written, I made it like this.  Hmm, if I keep yapping, when will I get you all to note down the recipe.  So this is how I made this yum and delicious cake.

INGREDIENTS:

Dates	15 pieces
Milk	1/2 cup minus 1 tbsp
Curds	1/2 cup
Oil	1/2 cup  minus 1 tbsp
Milkmaid	200 gms
Sooji/ rawa/semolina	1/2 cup
All purpose flour	1/2 cup
Walnuts	2 tbsp
Salt	A pinch
Baking powder	1 tsp
Baking soda	1/4 tsp

METHOD:

1.       Chop the dates and keep aside.  Heat the milk and add the chopped dates and keep aside to cool for 10 minutes.

2.       While the dates and milk cool. Sieve the flour with baking powder and baking soda and keep aside.

3.       Pre-heat the oven at 190⁰ C

4.       Blend the dates and milk to a puree with a blender.  If you do have a few chunks of dates it's absolutely alright. 

5.       Add in the oil and blend again.  Once the oil blends well with the date and milk mixture add in the curds and milkmaid.  Blend well again.

6.       Transfer this mixture to a bowl.  Add the flour and semolina to the wet mixture and fold in gently. 

7.       Pour the batter in a well greased loaf tin.

8.       Bake the cake at 190⁰ C for 25 minutes or till the skewer comes out clean when inserted.

9.       Cool the cake on a wire rack and cut them as desired.

10.   Enjoy the cake at tea-time with a warm cup of tea or coffee, (if you are a coffee lover).

 NOTES:

1.       You could use a full cup of all purpose flour too.

2.       I am already in process of making another version of this lovely goodness, which I will be putting up soon.

Hey guys, HAPPY HOLIDAYS and do keep the love flowing and don’t forget to leave a comment if you like the cake.  And believe me you will love the cake, so do try it..

Foccacia

Today am back with a baking recipe.  I know I haven't been regular with my baking recipes.  Also, pl do forgive me for the long gaps that come in between posts.  There are so many other commitments that I have to attend to, this has taken a back seat and I don’t like it one bit..  It's not that I haven't been cooking, but it's just that I haven't been able to go with the whole process of clicking and writing out a post.  So like I said, today is a recipe for bread lovers.  This is how my recipe for this yummylicious bread goes.

INGREDIENTS:

Flour	210 gms
Fresh rosemary	2-3 sprigs
Yeast	10 gms
Lukewarm water	150 ml
Salt	1 tsp
Olive oil	50 ml
Freshly ground pepper	1/8 tsp
Onion	1 small (thinly sliced)
Capsicum	Half (thinly sliced)

METHOD:

1.       In a small bowl, soak the yeast in about 50 ml of lukewarm water.  Keep it covered for 5-10 minutes.  Let it froth up.

2.       Take the rosemary off the stalks and put 2/3 of it on the chopping board and chop them fine.  Reserving the remaining for the topping.

3.       Put the flour onto the work surface, mix salt and incorporate well with the flour.  Make a well in the centre of the flour and add the chopped rosemary, dissolved yeast, 30 ml of olive oil, freshly ground pepper and remaining lukewarm water.

4.       With your finger-tips, work through the ingredients until all them are completely mixed.

5.       Gradually drawing the flour mixture with a scrapper, knead the flour to form a smooth dough. (it must be soft and spongy).

6.       Roll the dough in a rectangular shape and place it in a baking tray.

7.       Rest the dough in a warm place to rise, to almost double in size.  Approximately 45 minutes to an hour.

8.       Once risen, make little impressions with help of your fore-finger.  (will update with the picture soon)

9.       In a small wok, put in the remaining olive oil, let it heat up, to it add the remaining rosemary and switch off the flame when it emits out a nice aroma.  (do this on low flame)

10.   Once the oil cools a bit, pour it over the risen bread.  Pour them into the impressions made by your finger.  Place the thinly sliced onion and capsicum over the risen bread.

11.   Pre-heat the oven at 200⁰ C for 5-7 mins.

12.   Place the tray in the oven and bake it @200⁰ C for 20-25 minutes or until done.  You will get a light golden top. 

13.   Serve this as an appetizer and or supper.  I love serving this with soup.

NOTES:

1.       You could use dried rosemary if you can't lay your hands on the fresh ones.

2.       I have used dry instant yeast.  You could use fresh yeast too.

3.       Baking time may vary from oven to oven so do keep a watch after 20 minutes.  Mine took 20 minutes.

4.       Putting onion and capsicum is entirely your choice.

  

 

 

Carrot Koshimber (carrot salad)

This is a simple yet flavoursome salad.  A side-dish which could go well with rice or chapattis and not to mention healthy too.  A recipe which can be made with ease and just a few ingredients.  So here goes. 

INGREDIENTS:

Carrots	2
Groundnuts	1/4 cup
Salt	1/2  tsp
Coriander leaves	A little chopped
Coconut oil	1/2 tsp
Mustard seeds	1/2 tsp
Asafoetida	1/4 tsp
Curry leaves	5-6 leaves
Green chillies	1 finely chopped
Turmeric powder	1/4 tsp
Lime juice	1 tbsp

METHOD:
1.       Wash and peel the carrots.  Trim the edges and grate them.  Keep aside.
2.       Roast the groundnuts and remove skin.  Blitz them to a semi ground powder.
3.       Add them to the grated carrots.  Add salt.

4.       In a pan add oil.  Once it is hot add in the mustard seeds.  After they splutter add in the asafoetida, curry leaves, green chillies and turmeric powder.

5.       Add the tempering to the carrots and groundnuts.
6.       Add lime juice and garnish with coriander leaves.

NOTES:

1.       Please add salt when you are just about to serve the salad.  If not, after adding salt the carrots will leave water.

2.       As a variation, instead of groundnuts you could add onions.  Rest being the same.
Pic as shown in the thali. 

Kholombo (Sambhar)

Back with the continuation of the lunch menu that I had put up.  Without further talk from me, here goes the recipe for how I made the sambhar powder mix and the sambhar.

INGREDIENTS: (for the masala)

Coriander seeds	2 tbsp	Mustard seeds	1/2 tsp
Red chillies	6 nos	Cumin seeds	1 tsp
Black gram dal	1 tsp	Curry leaves	1 sprig
Bengal gram dal	1 tsp	Turmeric powder	1/2 tsp
Pepper	1/2 tsp	Asafoetida	1/2 tsp
Fenugreek seeds	1/2 tsp	Oil	1 tsp

METHOD:
1.       In a pan, take a tsp of oil.  Fry all the ingredients except turmeric powder and asafoetida) separately to a light brown colour.  Do this on low flame carefully so as not to burn the spices
2.       Once cooled, grind the spices to a fine powder.

INGREDIENTS: (for the sambhar) 

Red gram dal/lentil	1/2 cup
Sambhar/kholombo powder	2 tsp full
Onion	1 thinly sliced
Tomato	1 cut into cubes
Carrot	1 cut into cubes
Brinjal	1 cut into cubes
Tamarind	Size of a lemon
Salt	1 tsp
Ghee	1 tsp
Mustard seeds	1/ tsp
Asafoetida	1/4 tsp
Curry leaves	6-7 nos

METHOD:
1.       Cook the dal in a pressure cooker till soft. 
2.       Cut the veggies and put them in a vessel, pour water so as to cover the veggies.  Cook them on medium flame till soft.
3.       Once the veggies are soft add the tamarind pulp.  (soak the tamarind in hot water and squeeze out to remove the pulp)
4.       After a boil add the freshly made sambhar/kholombo powder and stir well.  Bring it to a boil.
5.       Mash the cooked dal and add it to the cooked veggies.  Add salt and adjust according to your preference.  Boil well.
6.       For tempering add ghee in a pan and once hot add the mustard seeds.  Once they splutter and the asafoetida and curry leaves and pour it over the kholombo.  Cover immediately.
7.       Serve hot with rice.  Enjoy.

NOTES:
1.       While frying the ingredients, oil should be added only once.
2.       You could add any veggies of your choice.
3.       If you have excess powder remaining you could store it in an airtight container. 
4.       You could increase the amount of chillies or pepper according to your taste.

Potato Sukke

This is a wonderful potato preparation from our Saraswat menu.  Mildly spiced with a bit of tanginess and loads of flavour.  A must try.  We make a lot of combination meals like these.  We pair up certain vegetable gravies with lentil or coconut gravy preparations.  We also make this sukke as a combination, with a lentil preparation for rice called ambat.  Here, today I have served it with kholombo (sambhar variety).  Kholombo is a lentil preparation of red lentil (dal) a few vegetables of your chioce and fresh homemade masala (lightly roasted & ground spices).  The detailed post coming up tomorrow.  So getting to the recipe of sukke.  We call it batata sukke.  In our language (Konkani), we call potatoes "batata".  The recipe is as follows.

INGREDIENTS:

Potatoes	1/2 kg
Salt	1 tsp or as per preference
Coconut Oil	1 1/2  tsp
Black gram dal (urad dal)	1 tsp
Coriander seeds (Dhaniya seeds)	1 tsp
Fenugreek seeds (methi seeds)	1/4 tsp
Coconut gratings	1/2 cup
Red chillies	5-6
Tamarind	A small ball
Turmeric powder	1/4 tsp
Coconut oil*	1/2 tsp
Mustard seeds*	1/2 tsp
Curry leaves*	6-7 leaves

* to temper

METHOD:

1.       Wash the potatoes well.  Cook them in a pressure cooker for 4-5 whistles.  Alternately you could cook/boil them in a vessel.  If cooking in a vessel, peel the potatoes and cut them into cubes (about an inch in size). Pour sufficient water in the pan and add salt, add the potatoes and cook until soft.

2.       Heat a pan and add oil. On low flame, fry/roast all the ingredients separately (black gram dal, coriander seeds and fenugreek seeds, red chillies) to a reddish brown colour.  (Be careful not to burn them as the dish will turn bitter).

3.       Once done with step two, grind together coconut, tamarind, turmeric and the fried/roasted spices to a fine paste adding a little water (say about 1/4 cup). Add more if the paste is too thick.

4.       If you have boiled the potatoes in a cooker, remove, peel and cut them into 1 inch cubes. Pour the paste/masala in a pan. Add potatoes and mix well. Adjust salt.  (add water if the masala is too thick).  This preparation should be a semi gravy consistency. 

5.       Give it a tempering of mustard seeds and curry leaves. Serve hot.
6.       Enjoy it as a side dish with rice or chappati (Indian flat bread)

NOTES:

1.       Fenugreek seeds may turn the dish bitter, so be careful not to use more than mentioned.
2.       If potatoes are boiled in a vessel remember you have added salt, so adjust accordingly.
3.       You could use any oil, but using coconut oil gives the dish a wonderful flavour.
4.       Adjust the spiciness according to your taste and the spiciness of the chiilies.
5.       Tamarind could be replaced with tamarind paste, if using paste, 1/2 tsp should work just fine.