Irish Soda Bread

We are going through a history where the world is witnessing a pandemic episode of Covid-19.  As the world reels in the #StayAtHome concept lots of new ideas are popping up on internet to keep oneself busy and sane. One of them being Baking YES... Baking Breads, Cakes, Muffins, Brownies, Pastries is at its peak and is being enjoyed thoroughly across the globe as we silently fight against the Virus and pray that it dies down.


Irish Soda Bread

I venture into baking once in a while. This time it was so tempting for me to just  not to ignore the call of baking a bread. But sigh!! I had to be patient as I did not have yeast in my pantry. Going to grocery stores at the drop of the hat is a big NO NO now, to add to it I kept forgetting to add that ingredient on my list of next home delivered order.

So I was left with no option but to look for something that used no Yeast. Something that was quick, simple and no fermentation recipe for my bread as I craved to make one!

And voila came across Irish Soda Bread in a 5 year old magazine which I was browsing while having my tea.
As befitting many of the best breads in the world – Irish Soda Bread is a traditional Irish speciality- it was made with only the most basic of ingredients: flour, baking soda (used as a leavening agent instead of yeast), soured milk to moisten and activate the soda, and salt.
Irish Soda bread remains an international favorite.  Before baking, a cross was cut on the top with a knife, to ward off the devil and protect the household. 
Something about it, when you mark that X just before the bread goes in the oven, makes you smile and you know it will come out right :)

You are going to love it I promise.

Made this in like 50 mins [included baking time] and it was ready to be relished with your butter/jam/marmalade.....

Here goes the recipe:

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cup +2 tbsp - all purpose flour
• 1/4 cup whole wheat flour
• 2 tbsp regular rolled oats
• 1/2 tsp baking pwd
• 3/4 tsp baking soda ( preferably fresh)
• 3/4 tsp salt
• 2 tbsp cold u salted butter cut in small cubes
• 3 tbsp honey
• 1 1/4 cup buttermilk
• 1 egg
• 2 tsp orange zest ( optional)
• 1/2 cup nuts or dried currents or cranberry
  

Preparation:

• Take all dry ingredients in 1 bowl and mix it with cold butter. Keep mixing the flour with butter till all cubes crumbles n become one with the flour ( you can flatten the butter with a spatula or use hands as you mix the butter with flour)
• Then in another bowl take egg, honey, buttermilk and whisk till everything comes together. Add nuts, zest and give a stir.
• Pour this mix into dry flour ingredients. Bring everything together with a spoon.
• On a parchment paper transfer the dough n knead it gently (sprinkle flour on top if needed) should be soft and little sticky.
• Give the dough any size you want like rectangle or round or square. Then with a knife make X sign on the loaf.
• Bake it on 350F/180C for 40-45 min ... Let it cool down before u slice and enjoy this beautiful loaf of bread.

just out of the oven the beauties :)

njoY!! happY bakinG!!

Missal Pav/Bread

Street food, it's the best way to experience a local culture by eating the everyday food that the common man eats and relishes. And it's usually always hot and fresh and has taste that hits the spot sending you to the ecstacy land, if you know what I mean :) Another important fact being it usually cost less avoiding making a hole in your wallet😀. Most of us try so hard to recreate that magic by cooking at home and fail miserably... I can imagine you nodding head with me:) We have our days, and it is a journey of trial and error to get the exact taste like that of a street vendor. 

My aunt is an expert (according to me) when it comes to making few chaat/street food dishes. This is her recipe and we love it at home. I did not have mix chiwda(farsan) for topping so just added plain sev on it. 

This particular Missal Pav is a famous Maharashtrian chaat food where it has a 2 part preparation. One is Matki(moth beans) usal (dry sabji) and other is thin spicy red gravy Kat (coconut based). Then you can garnish it with the toppings of your choice. It is accompanied with Pav or Bread. 

Dunk the pav in slurrpy kat with moth beans usal and toppings! You tend to soak the Kat using pav and finish eating very soon so they always provide you with extra kat in a katori on your plate.

It is very very yum dish!

Let us check out the recipe:

Ingredients:

For Matki Usal

2 cups boiled sprouted matki (moth beans)

2 tbsp oil

1 tsp mustard seeds

1/4th tsp asafoetida (hing)

1/2 tsp turmeric (haldi)

1/2 tsp chilli powder

1 tsp goda masala ( or garam masala)

salt to taste

For Kat (wet gravy)

<A>

8 peppercorns

6 cloves

1 tsp jeera

1 tsp coriander seeds

4-5 dry red chillies

1/2 tsp turmeric (haldi)

1/4 inch cinnamon stick

1/2 tsp sesame seeds

1/th tsp fennel seeds

1/4th cup grated coconut

2 tsp oil

<B>

4 big garlic pods

1/2 inch ginger

1 onion chopped

2 tomatoes chopped

2 tbsp oil

<C>

1 tsp chilli powder

1 tsp goda masala ( or garam masala)

salt as per taste

For Toppings:

1 onion finely chopped

1 cup cilantro chopped

1 cup sev (or mix dry farsan)

2 lemon cut in wedges

Preparation:

Mataki Usal:

• In a pan heat some oil, add mustard seeds, after it splutters add all the ingredients under Mataki usal except matki (moth beans) and saute quickly. 
• Now add the cooked* sprouted matki, salt and mix everything together. Cook for about 5 minutes and switch off the gas. 
• Keep aside.

Kat (wet curry):

• In a frying pan, heat oil and ingredients under <A> except coconut. 
• Saute lightly till it starts leaving aroma for about a minute or 2. Add this to a blender. 
• Now in the same pan, roast coconut and add it to the blender as well. Make a paste and keep aside.
• In a cooking utensil, heat oil and add other ingredients under bullet <B> in the order of ginger, garlic, onions saute till brown and add tomatoes. 
• Fry everything till it becomes one mushy mixture. Switch off the gas as oil starts leaving from the sides. 
• Let this mixture cool. Add to the blender and make a paste.
• In the same pan, add some oil, add <B> paste and bring to a quick boil. Add coconut paste <A> and cook for about 10 minutes. 
• Now you can adjust the taste by adding more chilli powder and goda masala under bullet <C>. Adjust salt too. 
• Add 3-4 cups of more water and bring to a boil. 
• Simmer the Kat on low flame till you see oil floating on top! 
• Now this is how you serve, take a soup bowl, add 3-4 tbsp mataki usal, then pour the kat generously over it, add chopped onions, squeeze lemon juice, add chiwda or sev on top and dunk your pav/bread in it and savor all the goodness! 
• You can see in my plate I have kat more as I like it that way :)

njoY!! happY cookinG!!

notes*: How to cook sprouted matki (moth beans)-Soak 1 & 1/2 cups of moth beans in 5 cups of water overnight or for 6 hours. Drain all the water and keep in a warm spot for another 6 hours or so for it to generate sprouts. You can also tie it in a muslin cloth and leave overnight. Boil it in 3-4 cups of water for about 25 minutes or till done.

Health Benefits:

Moth Bean seeds are a good source of proteins and other essential minerals and vitamins.
It can make an excellent protein supplement to Vegetarian diet. Maximum benefits can be reaped when it is soaked and sprouted. The coconut base thin spicy curry has all the masala ingredients that provides adequate minerals and nutrients to our body. If we use the oil sparingly (if you are making this dish often) it will prove to be a more healthier dish.

Pav Bhaji (Street food of Mumbai)

Getting back to blogging after a short break, feels so good to be back in my comfort zone :)
It was Monday, Presidents day a long weekend in USA. Had a busy rest of the weekend having too much fun! Thought of lazying around while cleaning up the house and at sharp 11:08am had a craving to eat pav bhaji after my eyes wandered on the potato bag in the pantry :) Got lucky as I had all the ingredients in the fridge except pav (Indian bread). After begging for 5 minutes to my Pati-dev who thinks weekends are his right to be a couch potato, sent him off to the store to get the pav while I geared myself to make some YUMM-O street food.

This dish is a big hit at my house and relished amongst my friends. I got this recipe from a Juhu beach vendor in Mumbai on Youtube some years back. Can't go wrong, right? I have customized the recipe just a little bit as per my convenience. I was actually surprised to see couple of ingredients that went into it like kasoori methi and hing. Well, it only adds more great flavors to say the least.

Another huge USP of this dish, can add as many variety of vegetables you want and kids will not even know :) because potatoes overpowers the rest of the clan :)- So yes, Moms can go YAY!!

Pav Bhaji was invented as a midnight dish by street food vendors, made with all the leftover vegetables from the day, mashed up together, with loads of added spice, and butter. Bhaji is the Marathi word for a vegetable dish, and pav probably comes from the Portuguese word for bread.

All I can say is try it and see if you like it.

Ingredients:

For the Bhaji:

• 2 big potatoes boiled, peeled and mashed lightly
• 4-5 ripe tomatoes chopped ( if not sour enough, add extra tbsp of tomato paste)
• 1 capsicum chopped
• 10 flowerets of cauliflower (roughly chopped)
• 1 small carrot chopped (optional)
• 1/2 cup peas boiled
• 1 1/2 tsp ginger garlic paste
• 1 tsp Kashmiri chili pwd (to give more color than spiciness)
• 2 tbsp butter
• 1/4th tsp turmeric pwd
• 1- 2 tbsp pav bhaji masala (everest or mtr)
• handful chopped cilantro leaves
• 1 tbsp fenugreek leaves
• pinch asafetida 
• 2 tbsp of oil
• food color orange 1 pinch ( if you want that gorgeous color :))

To Fry the Pav:

• Butter
• Cilantro leaves
• Prepared Pav Bhaji

Garnish Ingredients:

• Chopped onion
• Sev
• Lemon pieces
• Dallop of butter on it

6 Pav (store bought for now)
Minimum 2 Pav each person to relish all that goodness of buttery bhaji :)

Preparation:

• In a non stick pan, heat oil, add capsicum, cauliflower, (carrots if using it) and quickly saute it for 2 to 3 minutes. 
• Add ginger garlic paste and let it cook for little bit more till the raw smell goes away. Add asafetida, kasoori methi and cook for a minute.
• Now add chopped tomatoes and saute it for couple of minutes. You can add 1 tbsp butter now and let it cook till you see some oil coming out from the corners. Stir in between.
• Add masalas - turmeric pwd, chilli pwd and pav bhaji masala, salt mix everything together quickly. 
• Add boiled potatoes and with a masher, start mashing everything together. Add water little by little till you get the consistency of thickness/thinness you want. It is always semi thick. Potatoes basically absorb water. 
• Taste it and see if it needs adjustment, if your tomatoes are not sour enough, add lemon juice.
• Add food color if you want.
• Let it cook on sim flame for about 7-8 minutes. Keep stirring in between and add water as you like. Add another tbsp of butter :)
• Garnish it with Cilantro and switch off the gas.

How to fry the Pav just before serving:

• Cut the Pav in the centre and semi open it.
• On a frying pan, add butter, as it sizzles add bhaji, cilantro and place the pav face down and cook for few sec. Drizzle some butter or oil on top and serve hot.

How to Serve Pav Bhaji:
Serve good amount of bhaji in a compartmented plate, chopped onion, cilantro and lemon slices on one end, you can add onions, sev and butter on top of the hot bhaji, and masala fresh pav on the other side.

Trust me, eating is much easier than writing how to serve Pav Bhaji :):) (joke)

If you are street food junkie, you may also like
Missal Pav,  Baked Potatoes Wedges,  Mumbai's special Masala Sandwich

njoY!! happY cookinG!!

Health Benefits:

Due to the increased interest in foods that are low-carb or low-glycemic index, the potato has unjustly earned a bad reputation. Potatoes consumed in simple roasted, grilled, boiled, steamed manner with little or no oil/butter is very healthy and nutritious for health.
It is loaded with calcium, phosphorus, zinc, magnesium, iron that helps in having strong bones.
It has vitamin B6 which supports heart health.
Choline is a very important and versatile nutrient in potatoes that helps with sleep, muscle movement, learning and memory.

Aloo Paratha (Potato Stuffed Flat Bread)

No one needs an introduction to Aloo Parathas :) Most staple food of Northern India and now this globally famous flatbread is here to stay. According to me, it is one of the most kid-friendly Indian food. Comes in handy while travelling, road trips, picnics etc. (no not in movie theatres lol ) A no-nonsense, no mess parathas that can be enjoyed independently or with side dishes, can be had for breakfast or as meals. It is an all-rounder super star :)

Any beginners interested in making parathas, must begin with potatoes (aloo), then graduate to all other vegetables, that is my 2 cents :) Aloo mixture stuffing is made in 1000 (thats exageration :)) different ways, I like to keep it simple and yum! When you add little dab of ghee/butter on it while frying or while eating, that is when you will be tasting an authentic paratha (hehe! no I am not kidding). My mantra is, eat little(portion control) eat well and eat it the right way :)

So let us take a look at the recipe:

Ingredients:
To make the stuffing:

• 2 medium potatoes boiled
• 1 tsp cumin seeds (jeera)
• 1 tsp carraway seeds (ajwain, carom seeds)
• 1/2 tsp cumin seeds powder (jeera pwd)
• 2-3 green chillies finely chopped
• 1 tsp amchur (mango powder)
• salt as per taste
• 1/2 cup chopped cilantro
• handful chopped mint (optional)
• 1/2 tsp chilly powder (optional)

To make the Paratha dough

• 2 cups whole wheat flour
• about 1 cup water
• pinch salt
• 2 tsp oil

Preparation:

• Make a dough by adding salt, oil to the flour and water little by little, keep kneading and make a soft dough. Keep aside for 15 minutes.
• Make stuffing by mixing all the ingredients under stuffing. Take small portion to make balls and keep aside. Please keep in mind that the potatoes shouldn't be soggy. If your stuffing gets soggy, it gets hard to roll out paratha (add spoonful of breadcrumbs as a quick fix)
• Now take a small portion of the dough make a ball and roll out a 3-inch diameter disc, place the potato stuffing ball in the center and bring all the edges of the disc together and seal it. Dust it nicely with flour and start rolling out again with a light hand. One trick that I learnt is, take a fork and make few marks on the stuffed ball of dough, it lets out the air and rolls out into a paratha smoothly. 
• Parathas can be made with varying thickness. I like it both ways, thinner and thicker. When you make thicker parathas, see to it that you press the edges and fry them well.
• Heat a frying tava/pan, place the paratha on it, drizzle some ghee/oil over it and let it fry for a couple of minutes on med-high flame. Flip and add more ghee/oil and let it fry till done. Properly made parathas puff up nicely while frying. 
• Remove and serve hot with boondi raita or curds and pickle.

njoY!! happY cookinG!!

Health Benefits:

The humble potato is vastly underrated in terms of nutritional benefits. Due to the increased interest in foods that are low-carb or low-glycemic index, the potato has unjustly earned a bad reputation. Potatoes consumed in simple roasted, grilled, boiled, steamed manner with little or no oil/butter is very healthy and nutritious for health. It is loaded with calcium, phosphorus, zinc, magnesium, iron that helps in having strong bones. It has vitamin B6 which supports heart health. Choline is a very important and versatile nutrient in potatoes that helps with sleep, muscle movement, learning and memory. So let's not ditch this humble vegetable :)

Mooli Paratha (Radish/Daikon Paratha)

I consider mooli paratha as one of the tastiest and healthiest parathas. It was a struggle to get it right initially but after some practice I am a pro at it now :) I will try to make it easy for you as well. Mooli/Radish is a unique root vegetable that has a pungent-ness to its taste. I have already added a radish leaves pachadi/salad to my blog, which is a healthy side dish. Here while making parathas, the grated white radish root part is used. I think stuffing veggies in parathas is a smart and sneaky way to get veggies that we don't like in our system :) Our ancestors were smart :)
Let's get to the recipe:

MOOLI PARATHA WITH YOGURT AND MANGO PICKLE

Ingredients:
To make Stuffing:

• 1 & 1/2 cup Mooli (Radish) grated
• 1 tsp Cumin seeds (jeera)
• 2 tbsp cilantro chopped
• 1 tsp mango powder (amchur)
• 2 green chillies chopped (safe option for kids, use 1 tsp red chilly pwd)
• 1/4th tsp carrom seeds (ajwain)
• salt to taste
• pinch asafoetida (hing)

To make Paratha Dough:

• 2 cups whole wheat flour
• salt as per taste
• 2 tsp oil

Preparation:

• Grate the mooli (radish) and squeeze out all the water and reserve it to make a dough.
• Mix all the other ingredients under stuffing and make a mooli stuffing mixture.*
• In a mixing bowl, add wheat flour, salt, oil and mix it with your fingers. Now add the water reserved from mooli little by little and make a soft dough. Keep aside for 15 minutes.
• To make paratha, make lemon size balls from dough and roll out into disc (about 3-4 inches). 
• Place about 2 to 3 tsp mooli stuffing into the centre of the disc. Now pick up edges from all sides and bring it to centre to seal the ball. Press slightly and then gently roll out a paratha. Dust the paratha with wheat flour while rolling out.
• Heat a tava/flat frying pan, transfer the rolled out paratha. Now apply some oil and cook on med-high flame from both the sides by gently pressing with a spatula till it is golden and crisp. 
• After a couple of minutes, the paratha color changes to nice brown shade.
• Serve hot with yogurt, pickles or chutney.

njoY!! happY cookinG!!

Notes:*If the mooli mixture has more moisture content, your parathas may break while you roll. See to it that you squeeze out all the moisture. Many recipes also call for cooking the mooli first, I personally prefer to use raw grated mooli stuffing. You can also add chopped mooli leaves into the mixture instead of cilantro.

Nutrition Fact: Mooli/Radish is helpful in the prevention of cancer as well as fighting against cancer. It is high in antioxidants and fibre. Helps to fight constipation. They are diuretic in nature helping to improve the health of kidney by flushing out toxins through urine regularly. It is high in potassium and low in sodium and therefore, helps in regulating blood pressure. Studies show that it is helpful in asthma too.

Bread Pudding

This dish brings back to me the memory of my neighbor sharing her piece of bread pudding dessert whenever she made some. When you have few people coming over for a get-together this will make an apt decadent dessert. Simple to make and yummy to taste, your guests will leave satisfied and praising your baking skills, guaranteed :)

So let's take a look at the recipe:
Ingredients:

• 9-10 slices of regular white bread (can use wheat bread)
• 3 tbsp melted butter
• 1 1/2 cup sugar (i used half white, half brown)
• 2 1/2 cup 2% milk
• 5 eggs (room temperature)
• 1 1/2 tsp vanilla essence
• 1 tsp cinnamon powder
• pinch of nutmeg powder
• 1/2 cup raisins

Preparation:

• In a baking tray, add roughly torn bread slices.
• Drizzle melted butter evenly over the top.
• In a separate bowl, whisk together milk, eggs, vanilla essence, cinnamon, and nutmeg.
• Pour this mixture over the bread in the tray.
• Add raisins on the top evenly. Keep aside for 10 minutes, as the mixture soaks in the bread.
• Now bake on 350F(180C) for 50 minutes. Many a times it depends on the oven too, so keep a close look on the dish after that. It should be springy when you touch it, or continue baking for 5-10 minutes more. 
• Serve whichever way you want, square pieces or like a wedge. You can also serve it with a scoop of ice-cream or any chocolate sauce. Personally I like it just the way it is :)

njoY!! happY cookinG!!

Mumbai's Special Masala Sandwich

If you ever visit Mumbai, the heart of India and go out on the streets under the hot sun (or otherwise) you cannot miss this street food that you will need after an exhausting shopping spree :) It literally makes you walk to the stall/store and order for one sandwich :) I say an apt healthy snack in between your tiring, exhausting shopping sprees 😜

Now you can make it at home within minutes with all the staple food that you have in your pantry ready.
So here goes the recipe: (to make 1 masala sandwich)

Ingredients:

• 2 slices of bread (big size preferably)
• 2 tsp room temperature butter (salty or unsalted)
• 1 tbsp shredded cheese (optional)
• 1 single sheet(slice) of any cheese
• 6 slices of cucumber
• 2-3 slices of big tomato
• few sliced red onion rings
• few julienned bell pepper(capsicum) slice
• 1-2 tsp mint/cilantro chutney
• 1tsp chat masala
• salt and pepper as per taste
  
  
  

Preparation:

• Keep 2 slices of bread beside each other.
• Apply butter on both sides of the bread slice.
• Start layering one side of the bread with cheese slice, cucumbers, tomato, onion ring, bell pepper.
• Sprinkle chat and add the shredded cheese
• Apply mint/cilantro chutney generously on the other slice of the bread and cover it over the layered slice of bread.
• You are almost there, now grill this sandwich on a griddle(on med flame) or panini press, for few minutes till the cheese starts to melt. 
• Serve with tomato ketchup and some fun drink.

njoY!! happY cookinG!!