Besan Chilla (Eggless Vegetable Omlette) for a chilly night!

Hey Everyone!

I don't know about other cities but here in Pune the weather has been really cold especially in the night time. I haven't seen sun in days and feels like winter already :( I hope the sun comes out soon! Anyways in such dull and damp weather I really get lazy for cooking and often make something which is quick and easy and can be made under 15 mins flat!

Dudhi Na Muthiya A Gujarati Delicacy (Steamed Bottlegourd Dumplings)

Hey Everyone!

I know I have been away for a very long time and to be honest I had been planning to start posting again regularly for almost 6 months now but for some or the other reason it just kept on delaying. Still I won't make promises that I will post every single day but yes I will definitely try to post atleast once a week :)

Being a total gujju I absolutely love the simple ethnic dishes from gujarati cuisine. Lots of these dishes bring back happy memories of childhood days and hence are quite close to my heart. One such dish would be Dudhi Na Muthiya aka Steamed Bottlegourd Dumplings! Muthiya (Steamed Dumplings) are very famous in gujarati cuisine and are made with a lot of different vegetables, some common would be Bottlegourd and Fenugreek leaves! Muthiya's are usually eaten as a snack along with homemade chutney or even sprinkled with some fresh coriander and sev! 

 Today I'll be sharing with you all recipe for Bottlegourd dumplings which are steamed and hence quite healthy!...so lets get cracking :)

Ingredients:-

-> 250gm bottlegourd grated

-> 1.5 to 2 cups of whole wheat flour (atta)

-> 1/4 cup of chickpea flour (besan)

-> 1 tsp red chili powder

-> 1 tsp turmeric powder

-> 1 tsp coriander powder

-> 2 tbsp curd

-> 2 tbsp oil

-> Salt to taste

-> 2 tbsp sugar

-> 1/2 lime juice

For seasoning:-

-> 1 tbsp oil

-> 1 tsp mustard seeds

-> 1 tsp cumin seeds

-> 1 tsp sesame seeds

-> 1 generous pinch of asafoetida (hing)

-> 1 green chili finely chopped

-> 8 to 10 curry leaves

Procedure:-

• In a clean bowl mix together grated bottlegourd, curd, oil, salt, sugar, red chili powder, coriander powder, turmeric powder and lime juice. 
• Once the sugar as melted add in whole wheat flour and besan and make soft dough without adding any extra water since bottlegourd itself is has huge water content
• Oil your hands and take small balls of the dough, shape them into logs
• Steam the logs in a steamer for 20 to 30 mins, until they are cooked
• Turn off the gas and let the steamed bottlegourd logs cool down completely
• Once they are cooled cut them into small pieces as desired.
• Heat the oil in a pan for seasoning, once its hot add in green chilies, cumin seeds, asafoetida, mustard seeds, sesame seeds and curry leaves.
• Once the seeds start to crackle add in the muthiyas.
• Cook them for 5 to 7 mins until they turn light golden brown
• Muthiyas are ready to serve! Serve them hot with coriander chutney or sprinkle some fresh coriander and sev on top

I hope the recipe was helpful, if you make dudhi muthiyas do share how they turned out for you :)

Until next time take care and stay healthy!

Love,

Palak Kadhi (Spinach cooked in yogurt gravy)

Dear all,

I am back with another of my favorite dishes but this time with a healthy twist!

Kadhi has been my favorite since childhood. The satisfaction of having sizzling hot kadhi with khichdi with papad and some spicy pickle is simply out of this world! Its a must to make kadhi atleast once a week in my house. The sour flavor of curd with gramflour and spices really perks up the mood. I love to sip it just as it is like a soup and satisfaction which I get is seriously beyond words. Its my comfort food!

It hardly takes 10 mins to prepare kadhi so whenever I am in hurry this is always on my mind. There are various versions of Gujarati Kadhi but I prepare it in my mom style. For me she is the best cook and no matter what I cannot get the same flavors as her hand. Love you mom!

I am not overly fond of green leafy vegetables and hence always on a look out of new ways to incorporate them in my diet. What better way then add these to my favorite kadhi! I have cooked Palak Dal and really liked it so I was fairly confident kadhi and palak would go well and boy they did! This is a whole meal in itself and I love to have it as a soup! Its healthy and delicious and hardly takes any time to prepare. so lets get started with the recipe

Palak Kadhi
Ingredients:-
1 cup curd (yogurt) preferably sour
2 cups of water
2 cups of spinach leaves cleaned and finely chopped
2 tbsp gram flour (besan)
2 green chilies slit in half
Salt to taste
1 tbsp jaggery
2 tbsp finely chopped fresh coriander leaves


For Tempering:-
2 tbsp ghee or clarified butter
1 tsp jeera (which I forgot to add :( )
a generous pinch of asafoetida (hing)
1 cinnamon stick
2 cloves
1 dry red chili

Procedure:-

• Beat besan, water and curd together well until there are no lumps, add in salt and beat once again and keep it aside
• In a pan heat ghee, add in jeera, cinnamon, cloves, red chili and hing.
• Now add in finely chopped spinach leaves, cover and cook for 4 to 5 mins.
• Once spinach is cooked, add in curd and besan mixture, green chilies and jaggery
• Cook in slow gas for 4 to 5 mins until it comes to a boil.
• Turn off the gas , sprinkle some fresh coriander leaves as garnish and serve hot with khichdi

Hope you all liked the recipe and do give it a try and let me know if you have any questions or doubts.
Until next time take care and stay healthy!