Kothamalli podi straight from my Mother's Kitchen

I am a big fan of Coriander. I feel that the flavour of any dish is enhanced to many folds by garnishing with coriander.  I get carried away whenever I see  the fresh green bunch and love to stock it.  Normally, end up making chutneys and thokku but this time I wanted to make Podi, the procedure I tried my best to recall from my mom's kitchen :):)  

Ingredients:

Coriander - 2 big bunches
Urad dal - 4 - 5 tbsp
Red chillies (whole) - 6-8
Asafoetida - slightly less than 1/4 tsp
Tamarind -  small marble size
Salt
Oil - 1 tbsp

Method:

Wash the coriander well and remove only the leaves and allow to dry for few hours. Slender stems can also be included which would blend well while grinding.  There should not be any moisture in those leaves.  In a pan, add oil, add urad dal,red chillies,tamarind and Asafoetida and keep roasting till the urad dal turns reddish.  Keep aside.

In the mixer, first dry grind the urad dal mix and salt till it is coarsely done.  Then, add the coriander leaves and keep grinding.

Ensure that the coriander leaves are washed well and dried completely. Even little moisture would convert the Podi to Chutney:):)

As depicted in the pics, I had it with crispy Dosa. It goes well with Idlis and even curd rice.  Enjoy!!!!!!!!!!!

“Part of the secret of success in life is to eat what you like and let the food fight it out inside.” -Mark Twain

Tasty and yummy vegetable puffs- A perfect and complete snack

Here is a lip smacking snack loved by everybody.  Its crunchy outside and the smooth masala veggies inside, a perfect and complete fulfilling snack.  In my childhood, we used to go to the nearby "Varghese Bakery' to have one of these and this treat was reserved for special occasions.  Hot puffs removed from the baker's small oven smeared with some tomato sauce used to heavenly. 

Last week, when my daughter called me to tell that she just finished making puffs at home, my initial reaction was 'Ahhhhhhhh". I always thought it to be laborious and once she explained to me, I totally agreed with her and  it was easy breezy to prepare veggie puff.
You can subsitute your own choice of filling, enjoy the treat :):) 

Vegetable Puff recipe:

Ingredients:

Puff pastry sheets: 12 nos (small squares)

Mixed vegetables (finely chopped): Potato, carrots, beans, peas, lima beans, bell peppers

Onion: 1 large

Green chillies: 2nos (depending on the spice)

Cumin seeds: 1tsp

Red chilli powder: 1 tsp

Turmeric: 1/2 tsp

Cilantro/corriander leaves

Curry leaves: a sprig

Oil: 2 tsp

Salt to taste

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees along with a pizza stone.
2. Pour some oil into a pan, add the cumin seeds and let it splutter
3. Add the curry leaves and onion to this. Fry the onion until it is translucent (cooked).
4. Add the red chillies and turmeric.
5. Add the mixed vegetables and salt.  Cover this and cook the vegetables for a few minutes until it has a slight crunch to it.  Note that, when you bake the puff, the vegetables will cook some more.  Do not overcook the vegetables.  Let it sit for sometime to cool.  Add the chopped cilantro. 
6. I thawed the puff pastry sheet for 1 hr. Apply some all purpose flour and roll out thesheetsthe sheets. Use some all purpose flour if the puff pastry is very sticky. This will also ensure your puff pastry does not stick to the pizza stone. (My first one got stuck to the pizza stone- lesson learnt :-)) 
7. Place vegetables on one half of the puff pastry sheet.
8. Roll over the other half.
9. Make sure to leave ½ cm on the sides. Use a fork and seal the edges.

 

10.  A lot of people brush the puff pastry with egg to get a golden brown gloss. I do not like the flavor   of egg on my puff pastry sheets and hence I used some milk (to be very honest it added only a slightly more crunch to my already crunchy puff pastry :-))

11.  Place the puff pastry on the pre-heated pizza stone and into the oven. Bake for 20-25 minutes. 

12.  My first puff was slightly brown as I had exceeded the time and was worried I would burn it. But, let the puff pastry bake in oven until you see a golden brown cover. This will ensure the puff pastry is cooked through and stay crunchy for a longer time.

13.   Enjoy with some Maggie ketchup (I used hot and sweet- yum!)

      'Life is too short and I'm Italian. I'd much rather eat pasta and drink wine than be a size 'O' -Sophia Bush

Mahashivarathri

On this auspicious occasion of Mahashivarathri, may God grant all your wishes and keep you and your family healthy and happy in the coming years.

Things we learn from language-Got this as a fwd,loved it-hence for you all to enjoy :):)

Words and language, more than anything, are forms of giving meaning to things. Most of what we know and understand is there because of language, because of the way it is spoken or written. That is why, as we learn more languages, we understand more and more about the world. Most of all, without language, would we still have a sense of humor?

Enjoy!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!