Pav Bhaji

I was in Pune,so whenever we go outside we definitely  Eat Pav Bhaji...& now I am staying in US and keep craving for pav bhaji we get there.. .Esp my husbaund loves to eat this..so do i love to cook ..It is a spicy vegetable bhaji that you sop up with pillowy bread...I tried Bhaji topped with chopped onion, tomato, chili pwd.,Pav bhaji masala, salt all mixed together & the final touch.. squeeze lemon...and not to forget the DOLLOP of butter ! :) turned out real nice....Its a delight to see the butter melt on the bhaji, and the bhaji melt in your mouth! Absolutely Yummmy! :) I tried the Pav Bhaji recipe, last night for dinner, turned out simplyyyyy great. For the Pav, I used burger buns ( where i live in US, i cannot find 'normal pav' so i used burger buns ..), slathered with butter and toasted on the tava.....so friends here z the recipe.....

Ingredients
Pav Buns - 10-12 nos
Onions - 3 chopped
Large Tomatoes  3 nos finely chopped
kashmiri red Chilli Powder - 1 tsp
Pav Bhaji Masala - 2-3 tblsp
3-4 potatoes 
1 cup cauliflower, florets
Green Beans - 1/2 cup, chopped (optional)
1/2 cup green peas
2 medium size carrots, cut in to pieces
1 medium size capsicum, chopped
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
Ginger garlic paste - 2 tsp
Water
Salt as per taste
4 tbsp butter

For serving
2tblspbutter
1 large sized onion, chopped
 lemon wedges
1 tbsp chopped coriander leaves

Method:

 Boil the potatoes, cauliflower, beans and carrots till they are soft. Drain out the excess water.

Heat the butter in a large pan, add the onion and  sauté for 2 minutes  till they turns pink. this time add  kashmiri red chilli powder.It will bring a nice color to the bhaji. Add chopped capsicum and saute for 2-3 mins. Then, add the ginger garlic paste & and sauté for 2-3 min. Add tomatoes, salt, pav bhaji masala . 

 cook for 2 to 3 minutes in medium flame  till the oil separates from masala.
Add the green peas. Then add the boiled vegetables along with  potatoes and mash thoroughly using a potato masher, Mix well & add 1 cup of water.



let it boil &  keep string for 10-15 mins till gravy becomes thick.Then  add 1 tbsp butter to the gravy & switch off the flame. Add chopped coriander leaves and lemon juice. Mixwell.




 Slice each pav into 2 horizontally. Apply a little butter to each side . 


Heat tava and cook the pav on both sides till the pieces are lightly browned.
 Serve the hot bhaji  with  chopped onions, chopped coriander  leaves & with the hot pav and lemon wedges.



Finally found pav.. from a near by  Indian store..:)
sharing some snaps with u all....

Suji Kakara (ରଜ ପାଇଁ କାକରା ପିଠା) Raja special...

Suji Kakara with bhaja pura

KAKARA a  deep fried  traditional sweet cake from Orissa and is delicious...These kakaras  are one of my favourite ...I love them ,even now also if I go to my Moms place she will prepare this dish for me .In my school days I used to have them on shiv ratri, dashahra, raja & some other festivals too . 




Finally after a long time I gathered enough courage to prepare this dish all by myself. I called  my MOM  & asked the recipe...These were on my mind for couple of weeks and today I could not resist  , as today is  1st  day of Raja .... so  tried this for the first time and it did taste good.
So friends here is the recipe..:)

Ingredients:

Suji (rawa ) -2 cups (u can add jaggery instead of sugar, believe me the taste will be doubled)
Water 4 cups
Sugar -1 ½  cup ( u can adjust sugar according to your taste)
cardamom- 5 pcs ( make powder)
Shredded fresh coconut- half a coconut
Freshly Grounded Black pepper- 1tsp
Chenna (soft paneer) -50 gms (optional)
Refined Oil- for frying
Salt - a pinch


Method:
In a frying pan, mix properly the shredded coconut, half of Sugar, black pepper powd.  and cardamom powder and then roast it for 5-7 minutes , Dont fry the coconut too much  then add the soft panner & mix well . remove from flame and  keep them aside.




Boil about  4 cups of water (double the amount of rawa))& add sugar, a pinch of salt to it. When  sugar dissolves, Add Rawa to it. Mix  them  fast to avoid any  lumps. Stir it Keep it on the flame for 2 min. Remove from flame and keep aside.


Let the dough cools down to room temperature.
Then apply ltl oil in your palms. Kneed the dough till it becomes soft.




Make small small balls from the dough & flatten them using your palms , 



Make  a deep depression in between ( make it like a cup) using your fingers  & put  the coconut stuffing. 





Then Close it form all sides .Make the above balls into flat shape  with the help of  your palms.




Heat oil in a frying pan . When hot, drop these stuffed balls one by one 




& fry in a lower flame till they  turns golden brown from each side.









 Kakara pitha is ready and serve it hot or cool anyway u like it.




 sending this to Bon Vivant #5 - Appetizers

Award time Again

Hi friends  Agaainnnnnn .....I have a good news with you all... That is about my sweet award...
I am honored to say that I have been awarded by Sorisha - Cooking at Pragyan's
Thank you so much for selecting me  . And I accept these with the greatest honor and appreciation........

I have been inspired by a lot of fellow bloggers whom i would love to share this award  given by  Pragyan .... Pls accept this as award as a token of lov 4m me....


ANU'S HEALTHY KITCHEN
Cooking Fundas, mugdha-cookingfundas.blogspot.com
My Kitchen Flavors - Bon Appetit!
Kaarasaaram
Odisha Cuisine
Oriyarasoi - Flavours from ...
Santosh's Kitchen

• The Mad Scientist's Kitchen!!
• Tickling Palates
• US Masala
• YUMMY TUMMY
• Zesty Palette
• Taste of Pearl City
• • Prats Corner
  • Priya's Versatile Recipes

There are a few rules and criteria to be followed for this award:


Create a post with the following details
Thank the person who nominated you for this Sunshine Award and link them back
Then tell something about you
Spread the joy by nominationg you fellow bloggers and friends, it is a way of appreciation
Finally convey the bloggers about the nomination


The rules of this is:


Please accept the award and post it in your blog with the name of the person who has given you the award with his or her blog link.
Share 7 completely random pieces of information about you.
Include these set of rules.
Nominate 15 other bloggers for the award and let them know about the award by leaving a comment in their blog.


Some things about me:


I love to do paintings
Learning photography from my hubby dear & i just love it now....
Love to sing &  also to record in my mobile so that i can also hear my voice..:P
Learning to Bake Professionally for my hubby dear.
I love making long trips with my hubby dear.
Love to decorate my home
Love to do gardening...





Thank you so very much  Pragyan for the encouragement and appreciation. :)Pls accept  this as a token of love 4m me..

Baked mix Pasta

After much experimenting  finally I got this super-delicious pasta  recipe...This  Baked pasta is very easy to make and it can be made for dinner or even as an evening snacks..... I have tried this for Potluck … got lots of appreciation from my friends. thanks a lot my dear friends..:)luv u all...





So friends here is the recipe....

Ingredients


Mix pasta –500 gms  (I mixed penny pasta, tie pasta & macaroni)
Olive oil/ Butter- 2 tblsp 
Green peas  – ½ cup
Green beans(cut into small pieces)- 50 gms
Carrot – 1  cut in to bite size pieces
Capsicum- 1 small size sliced
Broccoli florets – ½ cup 
Onion(chopped) –2
Garlic minced- 1tblsp
1/4 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
Maggi masala Powder : 1 tbsp(optional)
soya, chilli, tomato & teriyaki sauce : each 1tsp( mix all sauce in a bowl).
Tomato puree- 2tblsp
1/2 cup fresh bread crumbs
1/4 cup Mozzarella cheese grated
parmesan cheese- ¼ cup grated
1 teaspoon paprika
Water to boil macroni
Salt

Preparation:


Preheat oven to 350 degrees.


In a large pot of boiling salted water, add pasta and cook according to package directions. In a colander, add peas - drain pasta in colander.

 In a large saucepan, heat  butter / olive oil over medium. 
Stir in garlic - cook until fragrant, add chopped onions, saute till light brown .


 Add vegetables to it and mix well. Cover and cook for 5 minutes. once the vegetables are cooked well. 


Add tomato puree mix it well. & sauté for 1 min..Add boiled pasta and mix well. Add black pepper , Maggi masala Powder & salt. Add the previously made sauce. Add the grated parmesan cheese Mix well & turn off the gas.






Scoop the mixture into a 2 quart baking dish coated with cooking spray. Add mozzarella cheese on the top as much u want...Sprinkle bread crumb mixture over the top . sprinkle some paprika if u want.. Place into the oven and bake until bubbly and the top is golden, about 25 to 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool slightly before serving.

sending this to Bon Vivant #5 - Appetizers
& Bake Fest #8

Corn Meal cake

I have bought some cornmeal recently  & didn’t know what to do with dat... One of my friend suggested to make a corn meal cake with dat.. I very dutifully notted down  the recipe from her and tried out . .believe me it came out very well.......Now I know what I'll do with all the cornmeal in my pantry!!



 This is a great cake to have with tea/ coffee. when baked the outside of the cake becomes a slight bit crunchy as well. This is a nice textural change from the other super moist delicate cakes I usually make.  you can decrease the amount of sugar if you want to. My friends I hope you will like this cake,.....so friends here is the recipe..

Ingredients:


1-1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup yellow cornmeal
2 cups milk
2 large eggs
1 Granulated sugar
2 tablespoons Unsalted butter, melted
1 tablespoon Baking powder
1/4tsp salt


INSTRUCTIONS


Preheat oven to 350° F.
grease an 8" round or square baking pan. 
In a large bowl add milk, eggs,  sugar & butter. Beat well in manual beater or electric mixer  until thoroughly mixed.
 In a separate bowl  mix corn meal , flour , salt & baking powder.
 Gently incorporate the dry ingredients into the bowl with the wet ingredients, until just moist.
Pour the cake batter into the prepared cake pan ..Add some sliced almonds or walnuts on top and bake it in the oven for about 35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in comes out clean. Cool the cake for a good 15 minutes before slicing. 

sending this to Bon Vivant #5 - Appetizers

& Bake Fest #8, Favorite Recipes: Cake recipes

Thin Crust Pizza (Tofu, corn, capcicum & Onion topping)

This was delicious and easy! Some of you might be wondering what the benefits of home made pizzas are..when you can order pizza online. These are d main benefits in my opinion ... Making pizza is fun! Home made pizzas are healthy, You can make any pizza with any toppings according to your taste. 


I made this and LOVED it. I used less  mozzarella, bcz don’t like too much cheese in pizza. The base I made was thin crust,  that's what my husband and I like. Crust was crispy, pizza was simple and amazingly good! I've been trying for a while to perfect my homemade pizza and I think now I've done it! This pizza will make an amazing treat to make for a party and everyone is sure to love you! The process is very simple...


OK, now lets get started. 

Ingredients
For Pizza Base:


1 Cup Whole Wheat Flour
1 Cup All Purpose Flour (Maida)
1 Packet Active Dry Yeast
3/4 cup warm water
1 teaspoon olive oil
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt


TOPPINGS:
1 cup cut tofu pieces
½ cup sweet corn
½ cup sliced capcicum
1 onion sliced lengthwise
1 1/2 cups shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese
Feel free to add any veg or fruits u like to eat :) 


Pizza sauce


1 can (410 gm) of Pureed tomato
1tsp finely chopped garlic
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 tsp Red Chili flakes
1 tsp Dried Oregano
½ tsp crushed black pepper
1 tsp Sugar
Salt to taste


Method:

 Method for Pizza Base:


In a small bowl, take  warm water and add sugar and yeast. Stir well and let it rest for 10 mins. It will be doubled in amount.



In a  bowl, combine flour and salt. Mix it. Add yeast mixture and knead it, add the olive oil. Add the warm water slowly. Knead till it forms into dough. 
Cover with damp cloth and place it in warm place for 1 hour. It will be doubled in volume. Punch the dough with your knuckles and let it rise for another 1/2 hour. Overall, the dough should become smooth to role and elastic.





Pizza sauce


While dough is rising, make the sauce. Heat oilve oil in a pan, add crushed garlic and sauté for few minutes. Add pureed tomato and salt. Cook it for 10-12 mins on low heat. Season with black pepper powder, red chili flakes, dried oregano, and sugar. Stir well. Cook for 5 mins more. Remove from the heat.


Method for Making Pizza:


Preheat oven at 200° C / 400 F and place your oven rack in lowest position in the oven. Prepare your pizza baking trays with oil. Take your pizza dough and divide into 2 equal balls.
 roughly roll out our pizza dough on counter and transfer into pizza baking tray and push from the centre of the disc, press the dough out to form a circle with a diameter of about 30cm .


You can decorate your pizza as per choice. Assemble pizza. Spread sauce evenly onto crust
, Brush the edge with a bit of olive oil.. Spread with the tomato mixture over crust. 




Top with tofu, corn, green bell pepper, onion or whatever veg. U want  & then  cheeses. Drizzle with remaining olive oil.







 Bake in the pre heated oven  for 12- 15 minutes or until crust is golden and cheese is melted.

sending this to Bake Fest #8