Photography Tips Online: Breakfast

Showing posts with label Breakfast. Show all posts

Thursday, November 26, 2015

Aloo Paratha | Potato Flatbread

Aah !! Alas... I have been trying to sit down to do this post for a very long time.. Every time I have a little sit with my laptop, there is soo much happening around me. Either my lil bumblebee wakes up from her power nap and calls for her feed or my elder one buzzes with his issue in his cup of chocolate milk . V cannot stand the sight of chocolate granules in his cup of milk... Are your kiddo's like that? Fuzz makers .. :)) But they are a pleasure....

I have been fussy with my food habits . Ask my mom and she will tell you tales. Why then ? I am still quite particular about many things that goes in the making and in my mouth. Though I blog about food, I only post things that my friends, family or self would love to nose around it.

Paratha's are a comfort meal in my house. Lil V being picky, anything can go inside his paratha blended with potatoes and he loves it !! Slurp !! This paratha has been like a meal savier for us when lil V was little . I am extremely glad to have introduced this to him since he was little.

I remember an instance from our trip to jaipur when V was 3 years old. We were travelling from Delhi and had taken a stop over for a brunch by a highway restaurant . We ordered Aloo paratha for each one of us and a big pot of curd . Paratha is always served with pickle . In some choicest places they are also served with chole. V picked the menu and said one aloo paratha please. We asked the chef to customise it without any seasoning , chilli powder and even green garnishing. Chef brought it as we ordered and the little boy took pride in what he ordered and enjoyed his meal with a dollop of butter on it,
The green coriander leaves used to look like crocodile to V.. Can you imagine ?? lol :))

Throughout that trip , until we travelled back to Delhi , V just had Aloo Paratha in the same combination and it was customised !!!

Even now, today, if I mention I am making Aloo Paratha , V would say Yay !! My favourite !! But it just gets better for me now because the stuffing is loaded with grated carrot or mashed peas or grated cauliflower or paneer and offcourse the crocodile like coriander leaves with a tiny portion of potato and I claim it all to be Aloo Paratha .

In this post of mine today , I am sharing a classic Aloo Paratha recipe that I make usually. But as I wrote before there are a dozen of alterations that can be done to it. I like to keep the paratha simple and enjoy it with a pickle, butter,raitha and tomato ketchup.

Aloo Paratha is an essential important part of North Indian Breakfast. It is normally cooked with ghee but oil is also used. The Paratha is served with a dollop of Butter, pickle, yogurt. In many places , Aloo Paratha is served with Chole or a curry too.

There are more recipes for Paratha in my space.
Aloo Methi Paratha
Cauliflowe Paratha
Methi Thepla

Infact there was an event held a few years back in my space and that does catalogue to an array of Paratha Recipes.
Global Kadai Flatbread event - round 1
Global Kadai Flatbreak event - round 2

DIRECTIONS:

Paratha Dough:

2 Cups of Whole Wheat Flour
A little over 1 Cup of water
1/2 tsp Salt
2 Tblspn Gingelli/ Til oil
1/2 a Cup of Whole Wheat Flour often known as Aata for rolling the paratha

In a large dry mixing bowl, add the wheat flour also known as Aata and salt. Make a large deep dip in the middle of the flour and now add the water little by little.
Knead the dough for atleast 2 minutes until all the flour and water has combined. Add the oil on your palm and let it drip over the dough too. Doing this helps to remove the sticky dough off your hand ,as you knead the dough for another 5 minutes. Set it aside for atleast 30 minutes .
To make a perfect pliable dough , proportion of water to be added in flour is approximately 55% . I use Sunflower oil or Til oil based on the availability while making.
I have used an Ikea Cup for measurement. This dough yields me 10 paratha's. Make small equal portions of the dough in the size of a ping pong ball. I would portion the dough in a size that fits inside my palm. A little larger than the size of chapathi dough.

For the Stuffing:

3 Large sized Potatoes
3-4 Tblspn of Coriander leaves
3/4 Tsp of Salt . Please adjust the salt according to your taste
3/4 Tsp of Chilli powder
1/2 tsp Pepper powder
1/2 Tsp Ajwain
1/2 tsp Jeera Powder
1/2 tsp Turmeric ( Optional)

Pressure cook the potatoes and peel the skin when its hot.
Mash it with a fork or with a large masher. Add all the seaoning ingredients one by one and mix them well together.

If you are planning to make it for kids , use a plain flavourable stuffing.

1 Small Potato
1/4 Tsp Salt
1/4 tsp of pepper.
A pinch of turmeric
1 Tsp grated Carrot
1 tsp of grated coriander leaves

How to make the Paratha ?

Roll out one portion of the dough into a small circle, roughly 3 " using the whole wheat flour for dusting. Using the back of a spoon , apply oil all around the spread dough. Place one ball of the potato filling mixture in the centre of the circle. Seal tightly by bring sides together so that the mixture doesnt come out.
Flatten these balls again with palm, dust with whole wheat flour and roll like any other paratha. Cook on a tava, using oil/ghee until both the sides are golden brown.Repeat the process with the rest of the dough portions.
Serve hot with Amul Butter, Yogurt ,Mixed Pickle and some Tomato Ketchup. If you like a side dish serve it with some chole too.

Notes:

My mum always used Ghee for Paratha for lubrication when she made for us. Also we used to enjoy it one by one straight from the pan ,rather than eating them from a casserole stacked.. Most of the times , we still follow the same culture here at home..

Curry under 20 Minutes | Paneer Bhurji

I do not have a new story or a new experience to share this minute when I am drafting this post of Paneer Bhurji. All that I know is , it is simple and can be done in less than 20 minutes..This sabji / curry came into existence since I had half opened packets of paneer from our weekend cooking and it had to be used in a day before it makes its way to the bin. Oh my !! Can you imagine wasting Paneer.. Not at all. Bhurji is a timeless classic. A vegetarian take to Egg Bhurji !

I whipped the ingredients up and made it for my lunch pairing them up with phulka's. You could roll them up inside a roti and enjoy it like a kati roll. The husband toasted the bread and sandwitched the filling between his slices. Fill some inside a chapathi dough and make a paratha. A countless way to serve them . Enjoy the bhurji, through my eyes.

PANEER BHURJI

Prep Time: 10 minutes | Total Time 20 Minutes | Serves 4

INGREDIENTS:

250g Indian Cottage Cheese | Paneer

85g | 1 No’s Red Onion

100g | 1 No’s Green Pepper

75g | 1 No’s Tomato

1 Tsp Grated Ginger

¼ Tsp Turmeric Powder

½ Tsp Chilli Powder

½ Tsp Garam Masala

¾ Tsp Salt ( Adjust it to your taste)

2 No’s Green Chillies ( Optional)

1 Tsp Oil

½ Tsp Cumin Seeds

1 Tsp Coriander Leaves

A squeeze of lemon juice ( Optional)

DIRECTIONS:

Chop the onions, green pepper, tomato, green chillies finely.
Crumble the paneer with your fingers. Alternatively put cubes of paneer in your blender to get them finely shredded.
Heat oil a non-stick pan, drop in cumin seeds. Once they begin to crackle, add in onions, green chillies (optional – use it if you like it spicy) and ginger. Fry them until transparent. Pop in green pepper and sauté only for a minute or so. We need to retain the crunchiness right till we gobble the bhurji. Add the chopped tomatoes along with the spices. Cook for about 2-3 minutes roughly in low flame, as you seed the tomatoes melt down.
Add Paneer and the required amount of salt to the rest of the dish. Barely cook for 1½ to 2 Minutes and turn off the flame. Garnish with coriander leaves and a dash of lemon juice.

NOTES:

I love the addition of Green Pepper to my paneer dishes and it brings an excellent crunch to it. We just need to ensure, not to overcook the green pepper and the curry overall. It will change the texture.

Creamy Oats Porridge for Babies

Oats are among the safest to introduce to your baby as a first food.It's a good idea to get your children to enjoy oats from an early age, as they play a very important role in good health throughout adulthood too.
One among the easy &quicky recipe's is Creamy Oats Porridge.

What do we need for this preparation :

A non -stick Pan or a thick bottom pan
3 tbsp Instant porridge oats
200ml milk
2 tsp sugar

Directions:

Dissolve sugar in the milk over a medium heat. Stir in the oats porridge and simmer for 5-10 minutes stirring continuously.
Add more milk if the mixture becomes too thick or stir in Baby Rice to achieve the desired smooth consistency.
Cool and serve your baby.

Variation : Stir in some Apple juice or other fruity flavors for Flavour enhancement.

This post goes to FIL with Milk ongoing event conducted by Sanghi of Sanghi's Food Delight

Regularly eating oats...

**Lowers the risk of developing Type 2 diabetes
**Helps guard against cancer
**Reduces the symptoms of asthma
**Lowers cholesterol and aids in the prevention of heart disease
**Boosts the body's immune system

Types of oats

When oats are harvested, they have a tough, inedible hull which has to be removed before cooking. Once the hull is removed, you are left with the delightfully named oat groats.

Oat groats take a LONG time to cook (around 50 mins) and need to be cooked in more water than 'regular' oats (three parts water to one part groats). They have a lovely chewy texture... but probably a little too much texture for your baby to enjoy! When the groats are cut into 2 or 3 pieces, they are known as steel cut oats.
Steel cut oats come in various thicknesses and generally have a hearty texture. They take longer to cook than 'regular' oats - around 30 mins - but generally require less water in preparation than oat groats (only 2 parts water to 1 part steel cut oats). Sometimes, oat groats are steamed then passed through rollers, giving you rolled oats or old fashioned oats.
Rolled oats vary in size and thickness and are sometimes flaked before rolling. Regular rolled oats take around 15 mins to cook, whereas thinner flakes or 'Quick Oats' may cook in as little as five. Rolled oats generally require 1 part oats to 2 parts water in preparation (although instructions are usually provided on the packaging).
Instant oats are cut fine and rolled extremely thinly. They simply require the addition of boiling water - but, although still a whole grain product, tend to be less nutritious because they have usually had sugar, salt or other flavourings added to them.

Whenever you buy any oat products for your baby, you need to make sure that the only ingredients listed on the label are oats, or rolled oats.

Onion Uttappam - Onion Lentil Pancake | South indian Breakfast

When I was walking down to school, I was thinking what could be my first post after a break... Rackling my head hard, my lil miss sunshine smiled at me ..And I knew it got to be one of her favourites.. Onion Uthappam. Miss S doesnt like plain dosa's with sugar...as opposed to her elder brother !! And this is my favourite too .. A teeny bit of heat to this classic southindian dish !
A clear difference between a dosa to an uthappam is that the latter is thicker and the first is prefered thin and crisp .Again its entirely a personal choice.
Uthappams can have toppings of your choice.. Onion Uthappam , Tomato Onion Uthappam , kids friendly can be cheese uthappam , mixed veg uthappam . They are served with Coconut Chutney , Tomato Chutney & Sambar . But I just like it with Ketchup :) and Coconut Chutney.
One can have an uthappam for breakfast, brunch or after an evening tea.. We had it for breakfast today ..

INGREDIENTS:

Dosa Batter	2 cups
Red onions	1 Nos finely chopped
Green Chilli	1 Nos finely chopped
Coriander leaves	2-3 Tbsp finely chopped
Salt	optional
Oil/ ghee	2 tsp per uttappam

DIRECTION:

Finely Chop the onions ,green chillies and coriander leaves. Season your chopped onions with salt..This is purely optional.
Heat your non stick tava or hot iron griddle. Spoon in a laddleful of dosa batter and spread it lightly. Sprinkle in chopped onions ,green chillies and the cilantro. Add a few drops of oil around the uttappam and cook it in a medium flame.
After a minute or so , flip the uttappam and let it cook for another a 1.5- 2 minutes until the topping gets slightly crisp.
At this stage you can remove the pancake and serve it with tiffin sambar , coconut chutney & tomato chutney. As I enjoy it with tomato ketchup... I dunked my uttappam in ketchup .

NOTES :

You can buy dosa batter from an indian grocery store or can make it at home. I do not have the receipe posted , but hoping to post one soon.
There are alternative ways of making uttappam.

1.Mix in your topping with the batter and then scoop it on to your tava. Flip on either side cooking for 2 minutes and serve.
2. After scooping in the batter on to the tava and sprinkling in your toppings followed by adding oil. .you can cover the uttappam with a plate or a dome shaped lid and allow it to cook.

I believe this pancake as an excellent alternative to plain dosa's for kids. You can avoid green chillies and use ghee for lubrication .

For making this pancake, I do not wait for the last batch of idly/dosa batter or so.. I just make it whenever we like and its still yummy.

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