Bread Channa

  

Ingredients

• Bread slices - 10
• Channa(chick peas) - 1 1/2 cups
• Onion - 2 medium size
• Tomato - 2 medium size
• Chilly powder - 2 tsp or adjust
• Readymade channa masala powder(optional) - 1 tsp
• Garam masala(optional) - 1/2 tsp
• Oil - 2 tbsp
• Butter to toast the bread slices
• Salt to taste

To grind (Group II)

• Aniseeds - 1 1/2 tsp
• Khus- khus - 1 tsp
• Cloves - 2
• Cardamon - 1
• Cinnamon - small piece
• Garlic - 3
• Ginger - equal to garlic
• Coconut - 1 1/2 tbsp

To garnish (group III)

• Chopped onion
• Chopped  tomato
• Chopped coriander leaves

Method

• Soak the chickpeas overnight & cook (with salt) till it becomes soft.
• Grind the group II ingredients & keep it aside.
• Heat oil in kadai on high medium flame & fry the onions.
• Add tomatoes and fry till it becomes mashy.
• Add salt & spice powders & cook for 2 minutes.
• Also add boiled chickpeas & mix well.
• Stir in the grinded masala & add water if needed.
• Cover & cook till the raw smell leaves the gravy.
• Remove it from flame, when the gravy becomes thick.

Serving

• Toast the bread with little butter & spread some channa masala on it.
• Sprinkle group III ingredients on top of it & serve hot.

Apple turnover

Ingredients

• Pastry sheet - 1 (thawed)
• Green Apple - 1 (peeled, cored & chopped)
• Butter - 1 tbsp
• Sugar - 1/4 cup + 1 tbsp
• Lemon juice - 1/2
• Cinnamon powder - 2 pinches
• Beaten egg white for brushing the pastries

Method

• Melt butter in the pan & fry the apple till it becomes soft. (mine was little crunchy this time)
• Now add the sugar, lemon juice & cinnamon powder. Fry till it becomes slightly thick.
• Allow it to cool completely before using it for stuffing.

• Cut square shapes out of the pastry sheet (approximately 3 or 4 inches each side).

• Now place the stuffing & fold it like a triangle as show in the picture.

• Brush the egg white on top of the puff pastries.

• Now sprinkle some sugar on it.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degree Fahrenheit.
• Place the puff pastries & bake it for 20 - 30 minutes or till the top layer becomes golden brown in color.

Tips for the recipe - Do not place the stuffing when it is hot or warm. This makes the butter in the pastries to melt & become loose. Work on the pastry sheets when it is slightly chill. So that, handling becomes easy. If you feel the sheet are not comfortable to handle then put it in the fridge for few minutes. So that it becomes cool & easy for shaping.

Pav bhaji

Ingredients

• Buns - 6
• Mixed vegetable (carrot, beans, cauliflower, peas) - 3/4 cup (boiled)
• Potato - 1 medium size (boiled)
• Tomato - 2 large (chopped)
• Onion - 1 medium size (chopped)
• Aniseed (coarsely powdered) - 1 tsp
• Ginger-garlic paste - 1 1/2 tsp
• Red chilly powder - 1 tsp or to taste
• Green chillies - 2 (finely chopped)
• Lemon - 1/2
• Chopped red onions - to garnish
• Coriander leaves - handful
• Oil or butter - 1 tbsp
• Butter - 1 tbsp or adjust to taste
• Some more butter to toast the buns

Method

• Toast the buns by adding little butter.
• Heat oil or butter & fry onions on high -medium flame.
• Then add ginger-garlic paste & fry well.
• Add chillies & aniseed powder.
• Then add the tomatoes & fry till it becomes mashy.
• Now add the chilly powder & some salt.
• Add the mashed vegetables & mix well.
• Pour some water & reduce the flame to low-medium.
• Stir occasionally, till it reaches the desired consistency.
• Remove it from flame by adding the lemon juice & coriander leaves.
• Add the butter & garnish it with red onions.
• Serve hot with toasted buns.

Tips for the recipe - If you wish to add more butter, then place a cube of butter while serving. Good quality of red chilly powder will enhance the color of the masala. You can also use little tomato paste which also gives good color to the masala.

Ven Pongal

Ingredients

• Par boiled rice - 1 cup
• Split moong dal - 1/2 cup + 1 tbsp
• Ghee - 1/4 cup
• Hing - 1/4 tsp
• Ginger - 1 tbsp
• Cumin - 1 tsp
• Pepper corns - 1 tsp
• Green chilly (optional) - 1
• Curry leaves - 2 sprigs
• Cashew - 2 tbsp

Method

• Wash & pressure cook (for 1 cup of rice add 5 cups of water) the dal & rice together (app 5 whistles).
• Heat 1 tbsp of ghee in the pan & fry the cashews till it becomes golden brown.
• Remove it from the ghee soon & add it to the cooked rice with some salt.
• Now in the same pan splutter cumin seeds, pepper corns, curry leaves, green chillies & hing one by one.
• Add more ghee if needed. Roast it for 1 minute. Now pour this mixture in the pongal & mix well.
• Add the remaining 2 tbsp of ghee & mix well.
• Serve it hot with coconut chutney.

Tips for the recipe - You can add little milk while cooking the rice, so that the pongal becomes more soft. I add salt later because I always cook venpongal & sweet pongal together. Once the rice is cooked, I take half of rice to prepare sweet pongal & then mix the salt to the remaining ven pongal while doing the seasoning. If you are making only ven pongal then you can add salt in the water & cook the rice.

Sweet pongal

Ingredients

• Par boiled rice - 1 cup
• Split moong dal - 1/2 cup 
• Ghee - 1/4 cup
• Jaggery (crushed, shredded or powdered) - 1 1/2 cup
• Cardamon powder - few pinches
• Raisin - 1-2 tbsp
• Cashew - 2 tbsp

Method

• Wash & pressure cook (for 1 cup of rice, add 5 cups of water) the dal & rice together (app 5 whistles).
• When the pressure releases, open the cooker & switch on the flame to low medium.
• Add the jaggery & keep mixing it till you dont see any jaggery pieces .
• Heat 1 tbsp of ghee in the pan.
• Fry raisins & cashews till it becomes golden brown. Pour it into the pongal.
• Add the remaining ghee & sprinkle some cardamon powder.
• Mix well & serve hot.

Tips for the recipe - You can add 1/2 cup milk while cooking the rice, so that the pongal becomes more soft. 

Shredded Chicken Masala

Ingredients
Group I

• Chicken - 1 breast split (cubed)
• Garam masala - 1 tsp
• Chicken masala - 1 tsp
• Ginger garlic paste - 2 tbsp
• Chilly powder - 1 tsp
• Turmeric powder - little
• Water - 1/2 - 3/4 liter
• Salt to taste

    
Group II

• Onion - 1 big size (chopped lengthwise)
• Tomatoes - 2 medium size
• Curry leaves - few
• Eggs - 2
• Ginger garlic paste - 1 tbsp
• Chilly powder - 1 tsp
• Coriander leaves - handful (chopped)
• Garam masala - 1/4 tsp
• Pepper - 1/4 tsp
• Salt to taste
• Oil as required

Group III (Dry masala)

• Black cardomam - 1 (crushed)
• Aniseed - 1/2 tsp
• Cloves - 6
• Cinnamon - 4 small pieces
• Anistar - 1 (broken)

Method

• Cook all the group I ingredients together in the pressure pan for 2 whistles.
• If you dont have a pressure pan, you can also cook it in the heavy bottom pan.
• Onces it is done, drain the water & allow the chicken to cool.
• Now shred the chicken with your hands carefully (do not mash it) & keep it aside.
• Heat oil in the pan & fry all the group III dry masalas.
• Then add ginger-garlic paste & fry till the oil separates.
• Add curry leaves, onions &  continue frying with some salt.
• When onion becomes light brown in color, add the tomatoes.
• Fry till the tomatoes becomes mashy.
• Add chilly powder & garam masala powder to it.
• Now add the shredded chicken & mix well.
• Break in the eggs along with coriander leaves & mix well till the eggs are cooked.
• Sprinkle some pepper powder & serve hot.

Tips for the recipe - Do not over fry the eggs. you can also soak the chicken pieces in the group I masala water for 30 minutes before cooking it. So that the chicken is soft & juicy.

Thin crust Pizza

               There are three main steps to make good pizza. First one is the base/crust, second is pizza sause & the third is toppings. It is better if you have pizza pan,but you can still make good pizza by using baking tray. This recipe gives you one 12" pizza. I have divided the dough & made one 8" pizza & one 4 " pizza.

Base crust

• Maida/All purpose flour  - 1 cup
• Active yeast - 1 tsp
• Warm water - 1/4 cup + 1 tbsp
• Olive oil - 2 tsp
• Salt to taste

Pizza sause

• Tomato - 2 medium size
• Garlic (or garlic powder) - 2 finely chopped
• Tomato sause - 2 tbsp
• Olive oil - 1 tsp
• Mortadella cheese - 1 tsp
• Pepper - 1/4 tsp
• Basil - 1/4 tsp
• Oregano - 1/4 tsp
• Salt - a pinch

Toppings

• Capsicum - 1/2 cup
• Onion - 1/2 medium size (thinly chopped)
• Tomato - 1/2 medium size 
• Jalapenos - 1
• Olives - few 
• Mushroom -1/4 cup (thinly chopped)
• Pineapple - 1/2 cup (cubed)
• Mortadella cheese (grated) - 1/2 cup
• Olive oil - 1 tbsp

Method
For the sause

• Make a puree out of the tomatoes.
• Heat oil in the pan on medium flame & add the garlic & fry for few seconds.
• Now add the tomato puree & mix well for few minutes or until there is no raw smell.
• Now add all the other ingredients for the sause except cheese.
• When it starts becoming thick, add the cheese & switch off the flame.

For the crust

• Add the yeast in quater cup of warm water & allow it to sit for few minutes until you see the foam on top of the water.

• Now add this to the flour & mix well by sprinkling some salt in your mixing bowl. Also add 1tsp of olive oil.
• If the dough is very thick add 1 tbsp of water.
• Finally pour the remaining 1tsp of olive oil on top of the dough to shape a ball.

• Cover the bowl & keep it in a warm place until the dough doubles (approximately 1 hour).

• Now punch the dough & cover it again & rest it in a warm place,so that it raises again (this time approximately 20 - 30 minutes).
• Now nicely grease the 12 inch pan with olive oil & place the dough in it.

• Slowly spread the dough like a thin layer using your fingers.

For the topping

• Spread some pizza sause on the flattened dough.
• Arrange the vegetables one by one as shown.

• Finally sprinkle some cheese.

• Drizzle some olive oil on the edges of the crust & also some on the top.
• Bake it at 425 degree F for 20-25 minutes or till it becomes golden brown in color.
• Remove it from the pan carefully once it is done.
• Run your pizza cutter or knife to make pieces & serve hot.

Tips for the recipe - I didn't use olives & mushrooms cause i didn't have any at that time.You can also choose your own topping combos. Adding oil to the edges of the crust will give nice crispy crust.

I made small broccoli pizza & here is the topping recipe.

• Mortadella cheese (grated) - 1/4 cup
• Broccoli - 1/2 cup
• Jalapenos - 1 or 2 to taste
• Onions - 1/2 small size (thinly chopped)
• Garlic powder - to taste
• Olive oil - 1 1/2 tsp

Method - Spread some pizza sause on the flattened dough. Arrange the vegetables (broccoli, Jalapenos & onions). Sprinkle some cheese followed by the garlic powder. Drizzle some olive oil on the edges of the crust & also some on the top. Bake it at 425 degree F for 20-25 minutes or till it becomes golden brown in color.