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Soybean Curry and Carom seed Flavoured Flatbread

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Hi!

As you all know one thing that prominently dominates in this blog is surely the curry and I used to post curries very regularly earlier and I believe I’m posting a curry after a long time.

As a mother it is my responsibility that the kid gets his proper quota of protein and hence I keep using different legumes so that I’m able to break the monotony. This time for a change I used soybeans to make the curry and to compliment it I made ajwain (carom seeds) paratha ( flat bread).

My husband found that these beans were a little heavy on the stomach but the kid enjoyed it thoroughly. The soybeans do take time to soak and to get cooked so one should try this curry only when one has time in hand.

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Ingredients For Soybean Curry

about 3cups of soaked and boiled soybeans

Paste 1

3medium onions

4-5garlic pods

a small piece ginger

1/2tsp cumin seeds

a small piece cinnamon

2green cardamom

Paste 2

2tomatoes roasted

Spices

2 bay leaves

1/2tsp turmeric pwd

1-1/2tsp red chilli pwd

2tsp coriander pwd

1/2tsp cumin pwd

Others

salt to taste

oil for cooking

For the Flat Bread

2 cups whole wheat flour

2tsp carom seeds

1/2tsp salt

whole wheat flour for dusting

oil for cooking

water as required

Method to make the curry

Grind together the ingredients under paste1.

Heat oil (about 3tbsp) and add bay leaves.

Once the leaves are golden in colour add the paste1 and ‘bhuno’ on a low flame till the oil separates. If required keep adding a spoon of water after short intervals.

Paste2- To roast the tomatoes insert a fork at the top of a tomato and roast it directly on the flame. Cool and peel the skin and then grind it.

After the paste1 is nicely cooked and the oil separates at the edges add the paste2.

As the tomatoes are already cooked the oil separates easily. Add the remaining spices and salt to taste.

Mix thoroughly and add the cooked soybeans. Mix and add about 2 cups of water. Bring the curry to a boil and then cover and cook on low flame for another 10-15mins.

Serve hot with the ajwain parathas.

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Method For the flatbread

Mix all the ingredients and using water knead a soft dough. Cover and leave for 15mins.

Make lemon size balls and using whole wheat flour roll a 4-5” disc. Apply a few drops of oil and spread it on the disc. Fold it into a half and apply oil again and fold again, what you get is a triangle shaped dough.

Roll this using flour into a triangle shaped flat bread.

My parathas are not very thick and have a thickness of about 3mm.

Roast the parathas on a flat pan using a little oil on either side. These parathas taste best when roasted using ghee but I preferred using oil for obvious reason…calories!!

Store covered and best served hot.

 

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Herbed Wheat Buns and Winner of ‘Only’- Fasting Food

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Hi!
In my last post I had very confidently said that I will post regularly as I was pretty confident that S will lend me his data card till we get a permanent internet connection but S had to travel in the last week so I had no internet service at home but now that I’ve got a one do castigate me if I’m not regular here as that will be only because of my laziness..
The city in which I live now is surely not a favourite of mine and ever since I’ve landed here I’m praying that we move out fast from here..so you can realise how ecstatic I’m in life right now!!!
I’ve repeatedly reiterated that baking and especially making breads is therapeutic (one can check more here) in removing depression so I decided again to bake a bread. Unlike my previous city where I would be waiting for the yeast to rise in winter and I surely found out various methods to do so (one can check out my post here to know more), in this city yeast proofing takes no time what I’ll battle making here is surely the pie and quiche..
I decided to make some buns with herbs and spice. These buns are rustic, have a hard crust but are soft inside. The wheat does make it a little dense but I rather have a little dense bread than compromising on health. The buns were surely tasty and the kid finished it fast. These are perfect for the hunger pangs as these are filling and healthy too. If you want to have lighter buns use only the APF.
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Ingredients
2 cups APF
1-1/2 cups of whole wheat flour
1tbsp active yeast
1tsp sugar/honey
4tbsp melted butter
1cup lukewarm milk
3-4tbsp finely chopped coriander
3tsp chilli flakes
1tsp salt
Method
Proofing the yeast:
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The first step is to create a sponge (the common term used by bakers). This step is important because it gives the yeast a head start…and it allows you to check to see if the yeast is in fact alive and well. Place the active yeast in a small bowl and add the sugar to the yeast, then add about 1cup of the warmed milk and mix slightly (make sure the milk is not over 40° C or you will kill the yeast).
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Place the flour into a large bowl and sprinkle the salt around the edges. Form a well in the middle, then add the sponge mixture and egg, making sure to blend in a small amount of flour with the sponge. Let the mixture sit for about 10-15 minutes in a warm location to allow the sponge to develop. You will notice bubbles forming as the fermentation process gets going, and the sponge looks like, …a sponge. You are now ready to begin mixing and kneading the dough.
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Melt the butter and add it to the remaining milk (remember…keep the milk mixture warm, but not over 40° C). Add the herbs and spice along with the salt. Mix the dough well in the bowl, then place it onto a clean work surface and begin kneading. You should knead the dough for about 10-12 minutes, or until the dough is smooth, soft and slightly moist to the touch, the dough feels elastic and kneading helps to develop the gluten.
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Place the kneaded dough in a clean bowl, lightly coat the top of the dough with oil, then cover with a clean towel and allow the dough to rise for about one hour in a warm location. The fermentation process is complete when the dough has doubled in volume. A dent will remain or fill very slowly after you press lightly into the top of the dough. If the dough springs back, fermentation is not complete. Once the fermentation process is complete, you are ready to make the buns.
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Begin by splitting the dough into two equal parts and then 4 parts and finally 4parts into 8 so that you would get 8 equal pieces.
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Make 8 balls and place them on a greased tray and let them rise again for 15-20 mins.  Meanwhile preheat the oven at 180C.
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Apply a milk wash and bake the buns for 15-20 mins or till the crust turns golden in colour.
Cool the buns and they are ready to be gobbled.
Sending this to Yeastspotting
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And finally the winner of the ‘Only’- Fasting Food event. Sadly, I had only two links to choose the winner and using the random method the number picked was comment number ten which was mine. For the first time I thought of leaving the link as I always thought that it is better that the others win, so I never participated. I can’t say that the luck favoured me this time as there were not many entries. I hope this month’s event will get a huge response as it’s the festive month.
New bloggers, whom I’ve not visited yet and will like me to peep in your blog, please leave a link to your space and I’ll surely drop in and learn more from you.
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‘Only’- Event for October and the Giveaway

Hi friends!

October is a month of festivities as we celebrate Navratri as well as Deepawali in this month.both the festivals offer us ample opportunity to cook sweets and desserts and hence the theme surely is ‘Only’- Sweets and Desserts and the event will be hosted by a very talented blogger Gayathri of Gayathri’s Cookspot, do check out her blog for event details explained here.

 

Only Sweets

The giveaway sponsored by www.tarladalal.com is Tarla Dalalji’s

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In this fast moving world we are always looking forward to cook in a short duration, and cooking desserts under 10 mins is a cookbook which surely is a way to impress our guests with exotic desserts cooked in a short duration. So what are you waiting for, try out traditional as well as new and innovative sweets/desserts and send them over to Gayathri and do not forget to leave the links here to win this cookbook.

Good luck and enjoy this month of festivities.

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I’m back with Crispy Raw Banana - Tapioca Pearls Patty for Fasting Food and the new winner for ‘Only’- Pasta, Pizza and Noodles

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Hi!
Finally I have managed to post after a long gap of two months. Though I managed to announce the events but I know how difficult it was.
The last two months made me realise that moving into a new city can be so difficult… though I must confess that this is my 4th transfer in the last 6 years but it was never so difficult earlier. Searching for a new house and school seemed like a herculean task and amidst all this chaos we all fell sick one by one and S suffered for 15days due to an antibiotic reaction.

We are still settling into our new home and the younger one in his new school but we do miss our old city and friends a lot. I am going to miss the winter which is going to arrive soon in my old city. I just love sleeping inside the comforter and the lazy mornings. No matter how much I hated the fog in the past, I’m going to miss it now.
Today as I type and edit the post I was hesitant initially and was wondering whether I have forgotten the basics of blogging but surely I have not…  I definitely have to see whether my blogger friends still remember me and find time to drop by and say a hello to me and obviously read my recipe too!!!
With the onset of Navaratri the fasting days have begun giving me ample opportunity to try and innovate fasting food. So wait, watch and read my innovations in the next few days.
To start with, today I’m posting a very tasty and crispy patty made with tapioca pearls (sabudana) and raw bananas. The preparation is quick to make and what I can promise is that you can not resist eating just one. The Pattie is very tasty and the spicy green peanut chutney compliments it well. On other days it can make a good snack and a perfect starter too…
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Ingredients For Patty
3 large raw bananas boiled
2 medium potatoes boiled
1tsp cumin pwd.
1/2 cup mini tapioca pearls soaked
4-5tbsp roasted peanut pounded
5 green chillies finely chopped
1tsp sugar
3-4tsp bhagar flour/ sama rice flour
3-4tsp finely chopped cilantro
water as required
sendha namak/ fasting salt
oil/ ghee for frying
Method
Boil and peel plantain and potatoes and grate them. Mix all the ingredients and add sendha namak (salt used during fasting).
The bhagar or sama rice flour adds a great texture and increases the crispiness of the patty.
If you find the dough very dry add a little water. The dough should be moist enough to be moulded into a flat patty.
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Take lemon size balls, flatten them properly and smoothen the edges.
Deep fry the patty in vegetable oil or ghee on a medium flame.
Remove on kitchen towel to absorb excess oil. Serve hot with spicy peanut chutney.
For Spicy Green Peanut Chutney
1/2 cup sour curds
3-4tbsp roasted peanut
a sprig of coriander
salt to taste
Grind all the ingredients together to a smooth paste.
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Sending this to my event ‘Only’- Fasting food guest hosted by Sonia.
Also reposting Sabuna vada and Batatyacha Kees for the same.
And now the WINNER OF ‘ONLY’- PASTA, PIZZA & NOODLES, I had to pick another winner as Suvidha did not contact me and the new winner is entry no. 11, Vardhini. Congrats dear, please mail me your address in India within two days to cookingoodfood@gmail.com.


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Winner Of August’s ‘ Only’- Pizza,Pasta and Noodles Giveaway

Hi All!

I am extremely sorry for the delay in announcing the winner for August month’s giveaway. I was held up due to various family reasons so please bear with me.

The winner will get two cookbooks on Noodles and Pasta by the famous cookery book author Tarla Dalal. I have used random method to pick up the winner. Out of the 24 comments left the winner is entry no. 6 which is by Suvidha. A. Congrats Suvidha, I hope that you will enjoy cooking from the books. Please mail me your address in India and your phone no. to cookingoodfood@gmail.com so that I could organise the books for you. You have two days to do so else I will have to pick up another winner.

Friends, hopefully I will start blogging soon and catch up on your posts. Till then happy cooking!!!



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‘Only’ Event of September and Giveaways

Hi Friends!
I know, I know that I’ve been missing from the blogging world and I assure you that in a few days I will be back with a bang. Moving into a new city has become far more challenging than I reckoned but things finally are turning out as I had thought. The kid, after a month’s long wait got admission in a good school and  we have been able to locate a decent house for ourselves and now I’m looking forward to arrange the house….anyways, my saga is going to continue in the next post too but for now let’s look at this month’s theme…
As September is a month of festivities and in October we will celebrate Navaratri, I thought it was an apt time to treat ourselves with the fasting food. This month’s event is hosted by Sonia of Dinner Recipe’s From Sonia’s Kitchen. The details of the event can be checked at her space later today.

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The winner of the event gets two books sponsored by www.tarladalal.com namely, Faraal Foods and Cooking Under 10 Mins.
To win the giveaway, after sending the entry to Sonia, leave your links here. The winner will be chosen by me by a random method. You need to be a follower of my blog and a fan on my facebook fan page to participate in the giveaway.
Click on the cover image to sample content from the book
Click on the cover image to sample content from the book
Looking forward to see many innovative and interesting faraal recipes. Good luck!!!
I’m taking this opportunity to repost two of my favourite pasta preparations for my event  to be sent to Jayasri who is guest hosting  ‘Only’ Pasta, Noodles and Pizza.
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Winner of July’s ‘Only’ Event’s Giveaway

Hi all!

Thanks for making ‘Only’- Baked a huge success the details of which Harini will share shortly after she posts the round up.

Based on the links left in the event announcement page and a  reconfirmation from Harini, there were 14 participants who qualified for the giveaway. I picked up the winner through random method.

 

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The number picked is 23 which is the link and comment of Nivedita. Congrats Nivi, you get the cookbook by TarlaDalal. Kindly mail me your address and phone number to cookingoodfood@gmail.com, so that I can get the book delivered to you. You have got two days else I will have to pick another winner.



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