Makke Di Roti Te Sarson da Saag

We Indians love the rain. Maybe because our movies have romanticized them for long. Walking hand in hand in the rain, sharing an umbrella, eating bhutta* by the roadside…gets us reminiscing of those college days? Or perhaps daydreaming of our favorite bollywood songs? Hai na?


It was such a lazy Saturday. Garam-a-garam ginger tea, marie biscuits, the fresh smell of wet soil, the downpour outside and non-stop Miu chatter inside…in short, a beautiful morning!


Anshuman’s cricket got cancelled. Aww, poor hubby! *evil grin*


…And the next thought I had was, Yay! Let’s make a good weekend lunch he’ll enjoy. :) It’s been a while since we had a hardcore Punjabi meal.


So, it was – Makke di roti te Sarson da saag! Nothing gets more “Balle balle” than this!


Sure enough, he was EXCITED to hear about the menu.


Honestly, I’m not a big fan of the makke di roti, it’s too dry for my liking. But what to do? These days, I’m a big fan of Michelle Bachmann, so I tend to be very submissive to my husband (kidding!) Jokes apart, I wanted to give it another chance. And it would just not sound right if I ate saag with regular roti or bread or rice, would it???


So here it is -


For the Saag*


Ingredients:
2 bunches of mustard leaves
1 bunch of spinach leaves
1 big red onion
1 inch cube of ginger
2 cloves of garlic
4-6 red chillies
2 green chillies
Garam masala
Jeera (Cumin seeds)
Methi seeds
Ghee/ Butter :)


Recipe:
* Wash the greens thoroughly.
* In a pressure cooker, put the greens, salt to taste, shredded ginger, garlic, green chillies and cook it all together for around 10-15 minutes.
* Spin them around in a processor for a few times.

Tip: Let the mix get at room temperature before you put it in the processor. Don’t churn it too much; I like my saag to have a little texture than smooth paste.


* Take a wok or kadhai and add ghee/ butter, based on your preference.
* Temper with jeera and methi seeds.
* Add chopped onions and sauté them till they become translucent.
* Add 2 red chillies
* Add the crushed greens.
* Let it cook for another 10-15 minutes till it all comes together.
* In a separate pan or tempering vessel, take a spoon full of ghee (I know, I know! Sorry!).
* When it’s hot, add a pinch of jeera, 2 red chillies and a pinch of garam masala, and top off the saag with this “Tadka” RIGHT BEFORE serving.


For the Makki Roti


Ingredients:
Corn Flour
A pinch of kasoori methi
Salt
Warm water


Recipe:
* Make corn flour dough using warm water and adding salt to taste and a pinch of kasoori methi.


Rolling them out is tricky!
* You’ll have to use a wax sheet or a foil/ plastic wrap as the base.
* Make a ball of dough. Use your hands to spread out the dough by pressing it instead of using a rolling pin. Make sure you spray the surface below the dough with a lot of PAM or grease. Scoop up the pressed dough using a flat spatula, or lift the entire wax sheet if using one.
* Transfer to a hot griddle pan or tawa rom the wax sheet directly. Cook both sides.


Makke Di Roti te Sarson da saag are ready! Don’t forget to top off the saag and roti with a dollop of Amul butter. Pair with a cold lassi and you’re ready to do the “burrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrraaaaaaaaaaaaa”.


Meh kya – twaade vaaste ae vi kar lita :) Not bad, eh?




*Saag = Greens
*Tadka = tempering
*Bhutta = Corn on the cob

Red Velvet cake with White chocolate peppermint frosting, topped off with Kahlua & Dark chocolate sauce!!!

I don’t bake. Maybe because my mom never baked much, I didn't really take to it. Until now. Why now? Because I keep wondering how fun it will be to bake breads and cookies and cakes for Miu baby, and to have baking parties with her and her friends :)
Aww! I’m so happy to have a girl!
Yes, that’s just how it started.


But we always have to find reasons to indulge in sweetness, don’t we? So there it was…Pinkaa’s bday! I decided to bake a different cake. The definition of “different” in my head means “not chocolate”! :) If it were up to me, I would paint the world in chocolate. Dark chocolate, to be precise.


Not quite sure what to make and how to go about it, I asked a colleague and a friend. As avid bakers, both of them shared the same thought – why reinvent the wheel? You can use a cake mix from the store and STILL make it a little fancy, a little gourmet! ;)


Both their recipes were extremely fascinating. So I decided to mix them up!
Here’s what I did.


Ingredients:


For the Red velvet cake 1 package of any red velvet cake mix
1 package vanilla instant pudding mix
1 cup sour cream (fat free)
½ cup water
½ cup vegetable oil
3 eggs
½ cup miniature chocolate chips


For the white chocolate peppermint frosting 4 ounces of white chocolate
4 ounces of cream cheese (reduced fat or fat free)
4 tbsp butter
1 tbsp of peppermint extract


For the liqueur sauce
½ cup miniature dark chocolate chips
Kahlua Liqueur


The recipe:
* Mix all ingredients from the red velvet cake together.


You’ll need to microwave the chocolate chips in the microwave, 15-20 seconds at a time, and stirring them each time.


* Bake the cake per the instructions on the box.
I used two small round pans so I could layer the cake


* Insert a toothpick in the center and see if it comes out clean to check if the cake is done.
* When the cake is done, let it cool off.
You can also stick the cake in the fridge for a little bit. This way, the frosting will stick better. * Mix all the ingredients of the frosting together.
* Give it a spin in the mixer so it becomes fluffy and creamier.
* Stick it in the fridge so it gets nice and cold.
* Liberally apply the frosting between the cakes and on top of it.
* Melt the dark chocolate chips in the microwave.
* Add Kahlua liqueur or any other liqueur of your choice.

Serve a slice of the cold cake topped with a warm drizzle of dark chocolate and kahlua.
This one turned out realllllllllllly yumm!
I’m all kicked now. I can’t wait to bake another one.

Sabudana (Tapioca) Khichdi

It’s not predictable or boring; it has just become tradition nowJ.

Ever since I first learnt that P likes “sabudana khichdi”, her birthday breakfast has always been this. And today is no different.

It’s an easy to make, light breakfast choice. And for me, it’s quite a comfort food.

Here’s how I made it.

Ingredients:

Tapioca i.e. Sabudana (2 cups)

Green chillies (4-5)

Curry leaves

Cumin seeds (Jeera)

Salt (to taste)

Sugar (a pinch)

Boiled potatoes (1 big or 2 small)

Lemon (1/2)

Ingredients for Garnishing:

Peanuts

Coriander

Recipe:

• Soak the sabudana in water for around an hour.
• Drain the water out but not completely. A little moisture is great.
• Add salt, sugar and leave it out overnight.
• In a pan, take 3-4 tbsp of oil or ghee if it’s a special occasion like today J
• Temper the cumin seeds and the curry leaves.
• Add vertically slit green chillies.
• Add cut up boiled potatoes.

Tip* - I boil the potatoes ahead of time and stick them in the fridge. They are easy to work with and don’t crumble.

• Add additional salt.
• Let is sauté for about a min or two.
• Add sabudana and let it cook for about 10 minutes.
• You may need to sprinkle little water if it looks too dry.
• If you can do without adding water, that’s best. Water can make it sticky and lumpy.
• Squeeze in the lime.

For the garnishing:

• Add chopped up coriander.
• Add roasted, crushed peanuts.

Roast peanuts. Remove peel and crush. You can do this ahead of time as well. I usually have a jar of roasted crushed peanuts at home, and it makes for some good salad garnishing.

This is the last birthday for Miss Taneja being just that….Miss Taneja.

A very very very Happy birthday, Pinkaa!!! J We wish you the very best for an amazing year to come.

Who knows what your hubby will have in store for you next year. Or maybe he’ll read this blog and follow my recipe then? J

Pairing – a hot cup of ginger tea!