Gobi paratha/Cauliflower stuffed flat bread

Cauliflower is one of my family's favourite vegetable .I try to include it in most of my recipes like 

1.Gobi Manchurian 

2. Potato cauliflower Masala Dosa 

3.Gobi Aloo Dum

These Gobi parathas are very yummy when served with a dollop of butter ,a pickle and a raita. I prefer to chop or grate  cauliflower finely to get these parathas perfect otherwise boiling and mashing the cauliflower can sometimes make the stuffing retain too much moisture thus making parathas would be difficult .

Preparation time :40 mins

Makes:15 parathas 

Ingredients:

For the bread:

Whole wheat flour-1 1/2  cups

Salt-to taste 

Water -for kneading 

For the stuffing:

Cauliflower-150 gms

Finely chopped onion-1 no

Jeera or cumin-1 tsp

Turmeric powder-1/2 tsp

Chilli powder-1 tsp( adjust according to your need)

Ginger garlic paste-1 tsp

Kitchen King masala or garam masala-1 tsp 

Kasuri methi or dried fenugreek leaves-1 tsp

Salt-to taste

Oil-to toast the parathas

Butter/ghee - to serve 

Procedure :

1.In a large mixing bowl add the flour and reunited salt and add required water little by little and knead in to a soft dough.Cover the bowl with a lid and keep it aside.

2.Heat a wok with a tbsp of oil and add cumin seeds.After it splutters add the chopped onion and saute well.

3.When the onions turn transparent add the salt,turmeric powder and red chilli powder,followed by ginger garlic paste.Mix everything well.

4.Put the cauliflower florets in hot boiling water with a tsp of salt and after a minute refrain them and chop or grate them finely.Add this finely chopped cauliflower to the sautéed onion.then add the kitchen king masala .

5.Simmer the flame and cover the wok with a lid and let the cauliflower cook for few minutes.Then remove the lid and add the kasuri methi and mix well.Switch off the flame .Take a small ball size dough and roll in to a small chappathi and place two spoonfuls of the cauliflower filling inside it and wrap it inside the dough .

6.Dust some flour on the wrapped filing dough and roll out in to parathas. It should be neither too thick nor too thin.If it sticks to the rolling plate dust some flour and roll it out.Heat a non-stick pan and add a tsp of oil and place the paratha on top of it.Once it gets cooked on the downside ,flip it and add another tsp of oil so that both the sides are evenly cooked golden brown.

7.Serve hot with a pickle or tomato thokku and raita .Optionally you can add a blob of butter on top of the parathas before serving.

Tips:

*Roll out parathas evenly and lightly  otherwise the filling will come out when you roll out.

*Don't avoid kasuri methi as it adds a very nice flour to the paratha and it is healthy too.

*You can also add chopped coriander leaves to the filling.

Palak Paneer Paratha(Spinach Cottage Cheese stuffed flatbread)

Paneer is my son's favorite and we have paneer on the menu at least once a week.Usually I make paneer butter masala or palak paneer.We got bored of it and I wanted to make paratha this time.I also had some spinach left in the refrigerator and got an idea why don't I make palak paneer Paratha(cottage cheese spinach stuffed flatbread) for a change.It came out very tasty and my son loved it very much .I guess this is a great way to make kids eat spinach as it is mixed with their favourite paneer or cottage cheese.It is also very high in protein,calcium and iron.All you need is a blob of butter on the hot Palak Paneer Paratha and then there is no talking only lip smacking .

Preparation time:40 Mins

Makes-12 medium parathas

Ingredients:

For the bread:

Whole wheat flour-1 1/2  cups

Salt-to taste 

Water -for kneading 

For the stuffing:

Spinach or palak leaves-1 cup tightly packed

Paneer -200 gms

Finely chopped onion-1 no

Jeera or cumin-1 tsp

Turmeric powder-1/2 tsp

Chilli powder-1 tsp( adjust according to your need)

Garam masala-1 tsp 

Chat masala-1/2 tsp(optional)

Kasuri methi or dried fenugreek leaves-1 tsp

Salt-to taste

Oil-to toast the parathas

Procedure:

1.In a large mixing bowl add the flour and reunited salt and add required water little by little and knead in to a soft dough.Cover the bowl with a lid and keep it aside.

2.Heat a wok with a tbsp of oil and add cumin seeds.After it splutters add the chopped onion and saute well.

3.When the onions turn transparent add the salt,turmeric powder and red chilli powder,followed by finely chopped spinach.(Wash and drain the spinach before chopping.)

4.Once the spinach is cooked add the grated or crumbled paneer ,garam masala,chat masala and kasuri methi.Saute well and switch off the flame.

5.Take a small ball size dough and roll in to a small chappathi and place two spoonfuls of the spinach cottage cheese filling inside it and wrap it inside the dough .

6.Dust some flour on the wrapped filing dough and roll out in to parathas.It should be neither too thick nor too thin.If it sticks to the rolling plate dust some flour and roll it out.

.Heat a non-stick pan and add a tsp of oil and place the paratha on top of it.Once it gets cooked on the downside ,flip it and add another tsp of oil so that both the sides are evenly cooked golden brown.

8.Serve hot with a pickle or tomato thokku and raita .Optionally you can add a blob of butter on top of the parathas before serving.

 Tips:

*You can add ginger garlic paste before sauteing the spinach for the filling.

* grate the paneer for a even rolling of paratha.

*Roll out parathas evenly and lightly  otherwise the filling will come out when you roll out.

*Don't avoid kasuri methi as it adds a very nice flour to the paratha and it is healthy too.

*You can also add chopped coriander leaves to the filling.

* you can substitute Palak or spinach with fresh fenugreek leaves or fresh methi leaves.

Keerai Samai Pongal using Sprouts/Little Millet and Greens Pudding using Sprouts

With the increasing awareness of millets and their health benefits, I too use them in any recipe wherever possible.I usually make pongal with thinai ( foxtail millet) or varagu(or kodo millet).But this one is a bit different and is an adapted version my favourite culinary idol mrs.Mallika Badrinath.This is very nutritious and a really satisfying meal.This pongal is very rich in iron and protein.To my surprise this Keerai Samai Pongal turned out to be delicious and we enjoyed it with a cup of hot sambar.

Preparation time:35 mins

Serves :3

Ingredients:

Samai/Little Millet-1 cup

Green gram sprouts/Sprouted Moong dal -1/4 cup

Chopped greens/Keerai(loosely packed)-1 cup

Freshly ground pepper-1 tbsp

Cumin/jeera-2 tsp

Cashews-5 to 8 no

Ghee and oil -2 tbsp

Salt-to taste 

Procedure:

1.Cook samai or little millets in an open pot with 1 and 1/2 cups of water till they are soft and mushy.

2.Heat ghee and oil in a wok and roast the cashews to golden brown and keep it aside.In the same wok with the remaining oil and ghee mixture add the sprouts and roast them till they are half done.

3.Then add the chopped greens and saute till they are cooked.add cumin seeds and pepper powder .

4.After the greens are cooked,add the cooked little millets or samai and the required salt.Mix well and garnish with roasted cashews.

5.Serve hot with sambar and coconut chutney .Optionally you can top it with a spoon of melted ghee before serving.

 Tips:

* The original recipe called for a 1/4 cup of cooked moth beans(or nari payaru) but as I couldn't get them I didn't add them.

* You can add any type of keerai like arai keerai or mulai keerai (edible amaranth) or siru keerai or palak(spinach).

Thinai Akki Roti(Quinoa or Foxtail Millet Roti/Pancakes)

Recently I went to a restaurant where they served only millets and my folks were quite unsure whether a health restaurant can satiate their taste buds.But to all our surprise all the items we ordered were too tasty and delicious( ofcourse healthy!!!).One of the items which I liked the most was this akki roti made of millet flour instead of rice flour and it was too good.From that moment I wanted to try it at home and voila the outcome was too delicious for anyone to resist.I made ennai kathrikai kuzhambhu (fried eggplants in a spicy gravy) for lunch and the same kuzhambhu was an awesome sidedish for this Thinai akki roti/Quinoa pancakes.so we all had a scrumptious dinner that day .

For Ennai Kathrikai Kuzhambhu recipe click below:

Ennai kathrikai kuzhambhu

Preparation time :30 mins

Serves:2

Ingredients :

Thinai flour/Quinoa flour -1 cup( i powdered thinai/quinoa is my mixer but you can use the store brought flour too)

Rice flour-1/4 cup

Grated carrot-1 no (big )

Finely chopped onion-1 no

Finely chopped coriander leaves-1/4 cup

Curry leaves-15

Finely chopped green chillies-3 no(change according to your need)

Asafoetida/Hing -1 tsp

Salt-to taste

Oil-to roast them on pan 

Procedure:

1.Grind thinai/quinoa to a fine powder.Skip this step if you have quinoa/thinai flour from store.

2.Heat  1 and 1/2 cups of water in a wok.add the thinai/quinoa flour and rice flour to it and mix well with a ladle.

3.Add salt,hing ,carrot,onions,curry leaves,coriander leaves and green chillies to it and mix well till all the water is absorbed and you get a pila le dough .Allow it cool .

4.Once it has cooled down take a small size dough and apply oil on a plastic sheet/plantain leaf and place the ball on it and press it to get a roti.

5.Transfer this roti to a heated tawa and apply around it to roast it and after few mins turn it and allow it to cook on the other side as well.Apply oil after turning the roti as well.

6.Serve hot with Ennai Kathrikai Kuzhambhu or tomato onion chutney.

 Tips:

* As I grinded thinai to get flour I got a coarse powder but if you buy ready made thinai /quinoa flour then the texture will be more smooth.

*You can also add shredded cabbage or capsicum to this recipe while adding carrots.

* You can try the same recipe with other millet flours also.

Ghee Ven Pongal

With navarathri on the run,I wanted to post a recipe that could be made as an offering to the deities.So I asked mom and she told me that ven pongal is one among the offerings and I decided to go ahead with it as it is also very easy.Though ven pongal recipe is quite very easy not all ven pongals are tasty...so I would like to share a few things which I learnt from my mom and on my own experience that will help you make a delicious pongal which will make everyone happy.

Preparation time:30 mins

Serves:3

Ingredients:

Raw rice-1 cup

Moong dal-1/2 cup

Salt-to taste

Ghee-4 tbsp

Oil-1 tbsp

To temper:

Peppercorns-1 tbsp

Jeera-1 tbsp

Very finely chopped ginger -2 tsp

Curry leaves- few

Cashews-10 nos

Procedure:

1.Pressure cook raw rice and dal with 4 cups of water till they are mushy.

2.Add the required amount of salt to this rice and dal mixture.

3.In a pan add the ghee and oil and heat it.add the tempering ingredients and roast them till the cashews turn golden brown and the curry leaves are crispy.

4.Switch off the flame and add these tempered ingredients to the rice dal  mixture.

5.Garnish with few curry leaves and serve hot with coconut chutney and sambar.

Ghee Pongal

Tips:

* Do not omit ginger and curry leaves as they add a nice flavour.

*Add pepper and jeera only during tempering and not along with rice and dal mixture.

*Keep some hot water ready before serving and if the pongal becomes hard ,you can add little hot water to it so that it  comes to the correct consistency.But do not add cold water as it will destroy all the flavours.

*You can add a tsp of ghee on top of the pongal in the plate just before serving for a nice ghee rich flavour.

Potato Cauliflower Masala Dosa

Masala Dosas always top our menu for either breakfast or dinner and leave us a feeling of had a grand and filling meal.This potato cauliflower masala dosa is yet another variety which is very tasty and delicious and very simple to make.It tastes good with coconut chutney or tomato/onion chutney but we like to eat it even without any sidedish as the masala itself makes it up for all.

Preparation time :20 mins

Serves:3

Ingredients:

Cauliflower florets-from 1 small cauliflower

Boiled potato -3 no s

Small onions(chopped)-10 nos(if you don't have small onions you can use big onion)

Chopped tomato-1 big no

Chilli powder-1 tsp

Turmeric powder-1 tsp

Salt-to taste

Jeera-1 tsp

Oil-2 tbsp

Fresh coriander leaves-few for garnish

To be grinded to a fine paste:

Garlic-5 to 6 cloves

Ginger-1 inch

Cinnamon stick-1/2 inch

Cloves-1

Cardamom-1

Bay leaf-1

Poppy seeds-1 tsp

Cashew nuts-3 to 4

Coconut-2 tbsp

Fennel seeds-1 tsp

Procedure:

1.Soak the cauliflower florets in hot water with a pinch of salt and turmeric powder.

2.Grind the above said ingredients to a fine paste .

3.Heat oil in pan and add jeera.After it splutters ,add onions and sauté well.

4.After the onions turn transparent add tomatoes,turmeric powder,chilli powder and salt and mix well till the tomato gets cooked well. 

5.Now add the ground paste and roast well till the raw smell goes off.

6.Add the cauliflower florets and add a cup of water and cook till the cauliflower florets are soft.Now add the boiled and mashed potatoes.cook till the mixture thickens and there is no water in the gravy.

7.After all the water has been absorbed and the mixtures becomes thick switch off the flame and add chopped coriander leaves.

8.Make dosas as usual and place a ladle of this delicious masala in the middle of the dosa and fold the dosa and serve the potato cauliflower masala dosa hot with coconut chutney or tomato onion chutney.

Tips:
*You can also add peas to this masala.
*I used multi grain flour to make the dosas and hence the color of the dosa is a bit different.
*You can add a blob of butter on top of the dosa before serving.