Banana fritters/ Pazham pori

Today, I'm going to confess my weakness. When we used to travel to Kerala for our vacations, the train journey was what we looked forward to. Not for anything else, but the banana fritters sold at the Shornur and Palghat stations. They are called pazham pori literally meaning banana fry. Oh boy, were they delicious!  
Hence, here I am, shamelessly admitting to eating unhygienic, Indian railway station food. I confess to still loving them, but, don't eat them at the station anymore, as I prefer homemade.

 

When I first made these fritters at home, a few years ago, I did a shabby job. (I'm sure that it is all in the game for beginners). When I dipped the sliced bananas in batter and fried them, most of the fritters had extensions, which I used to call hands, legs and fingers and they almost looked like tadpoles. But these days I do a better job and make a batter of better consistency. 

This snack is made rarely at home, since it involves deep frying. So, this treat is thoroughly enjoyed as it is an occasional one. It is a great tea-time snack and a wonderful comfort food for the  monsoons.

Ingredients: (Makes 6 fritters)

• Ripe plaintains (nendran) - 2
• All purpose flour - 3/4 cup
• Salt - a pinch
• Sugar - 1 tspn
• Turmeric powder - 1/2 tspn
• Water - 1 cup
• Oil - for deep frying.

Directions :

• Heat oil in a deep pan to a temperature of 375°F.
• In the mean time, make a batter with the flour, sugar, salt, turmeric and water. Whisk well to avoid lumps.
• Peel and slice each plantain lengthwise into 3 pieces.
• Dip each slice in batter separately and deep fry till golden.

Chicken sandwich with red pepper relish and guacamole

Let's talk sandwiches today. I wonder why I never run out of ideas to make sandwiches. Maybe because I love them so. For this one, I shallow fried a spicy chicken breast in olive oil, made a relish of red peppers and caramelized onions,made guacamole (Click here for guacamole recipe) and to top it all grated a bit of sharp cheddar cheese. After all this work I was not going to ruin it by using plain slice of bread. So, I got a good crusty white bread , which is a rare sight in my home. I always opt for healthy whole wheat bread. But, once in a blue moon, it's fine to use white bread.  Right? 

Assembling was fun and I just kept piling layers and layers on. First, I slapped on some creamy guacamole. Then the relish went right on, then the chicken and then the cheese. No butter on this one. This sandwich makes for a good lunch or dinner :). For us it was weekend brunch.

Ingredients: (serves 2)

• Good, crusty, long white loaf like ciabatta or baguette
• Red pepper - 1
• Onions- 2
• Dried oregano - 1/4 tspn
• Garlic - 2 cloves
• Olive oil - 2 tbspns
• Garlic paste - 1/4 tspn
• Chicken breast - 1 pc
• Paprika powder or Kashmiri chili powder - 1 tspn
• Garam masala - 1/4 tspn
• Guacamole - 1/2 cup (Click here for recipe)
• Sharp cheddar - to taste
• Salt - to taste

Method:

• Cut chicken breast lengthwise into 2.
• Marinate with chili powder, garam masala, garlic paste and salt for an hour.
• Shallow fry the chicken in 2 tbspns olive oil. Set chicken aside. Reserve the oil for making relish.
• Now, for the relich, slice onions and red pepper.
• Chop garlic finely.
• Saute garlic in the reserved olive oil. Add onions and peppers and saute.
• When slightly caramelized and golden, add oregano and salt.

Assembling:

• Slice the loaf horizontally. 
• On lower half, slather some guacamole.
• Add the onion-pepper relish.
• Top with chicken and finally grate some cheese on top. 
• Close sandwich and enjoy.

 

Vegetable patty/cutlets burger

There is a vast misconception among very many foreigners that all Indians are vegetarians. They are surprised to see us eat meat. I have had to answer many queries regarding this when I lived in Germany.

Anyway, even though we do have vegetarians and non-veggies,in India, we, ultimately, have the most number of vegetarian dishes than any other country in the world. I am sure, that is a fact.

I have an interesting tale that I want to share. Katrin, my German friend, had a male friend( who I will be referring to here as "HE") who accompanied her to India on a job transfer. It was a long term project of 2 years. German's are voracious pork eaters. Most of you would have heard of the famous German "WURST" and "WIENERS".

"HE" happened to stuff himself with all the pork, sausages and meat he could before he left Germany, and tom-tom-ed around that he was doing that because he was going to India. And because it was a country of vegetarians, he would not be able to eat meat for 2 long years. He doubted his survival in a country of vegetarians and was vexed at the thought of tasteless bland vegetarian food.

They landed in India and guess the surprise in store for him. Not one surprise, but two.
One, that there were meat eaters in India and secondly, "HE" was surprised at the variety of vegetarian foods available. " HE" absolutely, fell head over heels in love with India and Indian food. And here is a surprise for all of us............. "HE" returned to Germany, after his 2-year project, converted into a pure vegetarian since. " HE has learnt to play with spices and learned alot about Indian cuisine. He is as happy as ever.

So, the possibilities with vegetables are endless and here is one more item to prove that.

Ingredients:

• Boiled vegetables - 6 cups ( I've used 4 large potatoes, 3 large carrots, 15 green beans, 1-1/2 cup of peas, 1/2 cup chopped beetroot. You can use a few fresh baby spinach leaves too)
• Chopped Onions - 1/2 cup
• Chopped ginger and garlic- 4 tspns
• Chopped green chillis - to taste
• Garam masala- 2 tspns
• Coriander leaves (chopped)- 1 cup
• Turmeric - 1/8 tspn
• Salt- to taste
• Bread crumbs - 1/2 cup( plus an additional 2 cups for coating the cutlets before pan searing)
• Oil - scant 10 tbspns ( or more if shallow frying)
• Buns- as required
• Onion rings, tomato rings, fresh baby spinach leaves nad cheese slice-for assembling

Directions:

• In a pan, saute ginger, garlic and green chillis in 4 tbspns of oil over a low flame.
• Add onions and saute till translucent
• Add garam masala, turmeric, salt and saute for a couple of mins.
• Add the boiled vegetables and and mash lightly.
• Once the veggies and the spices are mixed well turn off the stove and add half a cup of bread crumbs to the mixture. Mix well and let the mixture cool.
• Once cooled, shape the veggie mixture into patties coating the patties with bread crumbs and pan sear them on a with a few drops of oil on each side. (If you prefer shallow frying the patties/cutlets you will need more oil)

Assembly:

• I like a double burger. So, this is how I assemble my burger. Cut buns into halves. Place one half on a platter, top it with a veggie patty, a ring of onion, a ring of tomato, a few leaves of fresh baby spinach, cheese, another patty and top it with the other half of the bun.
• I usually opt for whole wheat buns, but the white buns made it picture perfect :)
• Bon appetit
  

Note:
Here is another secret. Since, I hate ketchup, I use guacamole in my burgers instead. Believe me, it tastes scrumptious. Click here for a Guacamole recipe .
Luv 'n' luc'
Smitha

Ela Ada

I know I'm way late once again in making a post. I'm leaving for India this weekend and when is a better time to shop than now. Have shopped till I dropped :).
Busy with all the packing and the excitement is driving me crazy. Will be visiting my sister, in Dubai, for 2 weeks and then, off I fly to India where family, weddings and good weather wait for me. Glad to leave winter behind. Looking forward to mom's food and loads of fun.

I'll be gone for a good 3 months, but, I think, I will pop-in here, once in a while to make new posts.

Before I bid adieu , I thought I'll post one more recipe. Mouth-watering Ela ada. It's a very popular snack from Kerala. Can be served for breakfast too.

I had searched the whole of Saint Louis for banana leaves and finally found some frozen banana leaves at an asian food market. I was so excited because I have been longing to make ela adas.

For those of you who can't find banana leaves, you can substitute it with parchment paper.
Ciao!

Ingredients: (Makes 5 adas)

• Rice flour - 1-1/2 cups
• Hot water - 1-1/2 cups
• Salt - to taste
• Banana leaves or parchment paper.

Ingredients for for filling:

• Grated coconut - 1-1/2 cups
• Jaggery - 1/2 cup ( or according to taste)
• Cardamom powder - 1/4 tspn

Directions:

Clean banana leaves with a wet cloth. Then place them over low heat for about 10-20 secs to season the leaf. Set aside( If using parchment paper avoid this step)

Directions for making the rice dough:

• In a pan slightly roast rice flour.
• Then add hot water with salt and stir well.
• Take off heat. Cover and set aside to cool a while.
• When slightly cool, knead it to make a soft dough. Cover and let it rest.
  

Directions for the filling:

• In a skillet, over medium heat, melt the jaggery with a tablespoon of water.
• Strain this melted jaggery and get rid of the dirt left at the bottom.
• Return the strained jaggery to the pan and add the grated coconut. Cook for 5- 10 minutes over medium heat, stirring constantly. When the mixture starts to thicken, remove from heat and cool till it reaches room temperature.

Directions to make Ela Ada:

• Cut the banana leaves or parchment paper into small, 20 cm squares.
• Divide the rice dough into 5 equal parts
• Spread one ball of rice dough evenly on the banana leaves/parchment paper; use your hands to spread the rice dough as thin as possible leaving a 1 cm margin on all sides. ( See pic)


• Place filling on one side of the spread dough. (see pic)

Fold the leaf/parchment paper in the middle and press the sides to seal the ada well.

• Take an idly steamer and add water to it and place on medium heat.


• Place the leaves / parchment paper flat on the idly mould trays and steam in the idly steamer for 15 to 20 minutes.


• 
  

Once the adas are steamed and cooked, peel of the leaf/parchemnt paper and serve with some hot tea or coffee. Ela ada can be served hot or at room temperature
Enjoy!!!!!!!!

Luv 'n' luc'
Smitha

Oven Baked Sweet Potato Fries or Finger Chips

Hey everyone, Hope all of you had a great weekend. First of all, my apologies for not making new posts and not catching up on many of your blog posts. I was caught up in something of high priority which kept me busy for a while. So...... Really sorry. Anyways, I'm back now.

Poor hubby dear started to feel a tingle in his throat as the july 4th weekend started. We women have a sixth sense right? So, I suspected it would become something worse than a tingle and cancelled all plans for the weekend.The photography crazy person that he is, he was adament on going to view the fireworks and he took these awesome clicks on saturday.
And Sunday, as I suspected, he came down with a throat infection, cough and fever. He is on the road to recovery now and all is well.

As he recovered , last Saturday , went to the movies. Saw Ice Age- Dawn of the Dinosaur. And in 3D. I've always been a fanatic of animated pics and I absolutely adore the Ice Age series. I mean who wouldn't? It's so much fun and shooo shweeet. Remember Monsters Inc., Ants, Lion King, Toys, Robots ..........and I can go on and on. It was so good to see Manny-the Mammoth have a family. Diego never failed to charm and Sid never failed to make me laugh. If you have not seen it as yet......you are missing something really nice.

Today's recipe is a very simple one. Sweet potato finger fries.
This is an inspiration from the recipe by Ellie krieger from foodnetwork. I have added my own touch to it by adding olive oil and cutting the sweet potatoes into very thin fingers.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 pounds sweet potatoes, peeled (2 medium potatoes)
1 tablespoon Olive oil
1/2 teaspoon salt, plus more, to taste
Directions:

• Preheat the oven to 4oo degrees F.
• Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
• Cut the potatoes lengthwise into 1/4-inch thick fingers, and toss with the oil and 1/2 teaspoon salt.
• Arrange the potatoes in a single layer on the baking sheet and bake until the "fries" are tender and crisp, about 18 minutes.
• Now reduce oven temperature to 250 degrees F and bake for another 15-20 mins.You will get nice crisp chips.
• Season with additional salt, to taste. Serve immediately.

Luv 'n' luc'
Smitha

CHIP AND DIP....ANYONE? Tomato-corn chunky salsa with tortilla chips

Who doesn't like Fridays? I, absolutely love Fridays. Fridays are the days when I usually think mmm.....mmmm.......chip and dip.Why?Because for me, Friday sundown means relaxing and laying back on soft cushions watching movies in a dim lit room with a cartload of chips and salsa at my side and a frosted glass holding lemony Margarita................. heaving a heavy sigh, the comfort of 'Finally Friday'-the gateway to the weekend.Gateway to fun and frolic.So, it's juz chill time.
So, I've selected Kung Fu Panda to watch and puffed up the pillows on the couch and laid out a throw. With all that done, I headed for the kitchen to make salsa.
Now, this recipe is my take on salsa. I have added my own touch to it. Usually, salsa does not call for cooking anything, but it maybe my fear of salmonella that has led me to never eat uncooked tomatoes. So I kind of roast them. And why not? The salsa tastes great this way and the flavors more intense. I, usually, forego dinner on Friday nights, because I have an overdose of chips and salsa. So, beware everyone, this thing is so tempting, it can get you addicted :)
The Snaps in this post are participating in the magnificient click contest.

As, I've said before, in winter I use canned tomatoes because of the unavailability of good tomatoes. But now, with spring round the corner I've used all fresh tomatoes.. This is a simple recipe which has very fresh ingredients. Enjoy!
INGREDIENTS:( serves 5-6)

• Store-bought plain tortilla chips - 1 packet( I use Tostitos)
• Fresh, ripe tomatoes- 10 ( chopped)( substitute with 2 14 oz. cans of diced tomato)
• Green chillies -2 ( or to taste)
• Onions (chopped) - 1(small)
• Garlic( chopped)- 4 large cloves
• Coriander - 2 cups( 1/2 bunch)
• Cumin powder - 4 tspns
• Sweet corn kernels - 1 can (14 oz.)
• Chilli powder - 2 tspns( or as per taste)
• Olive oil - 2 tspns.
• Lemon juice - 3 tbspns.
• Salt - to taste

Directions:

• Heat oil in a small pan and saute green chillies, onions and garlic in it for about 3 mins. Set aside.
• Drain all the liquid from the tomato-can and place the tomato pieces in large sauce pan. Add chopped fresh tomato and cook on high heat for about 8-9 mins till most of the liquid from the tomatoes evaporates.Add salt and chilli powder. Stir well and cook for another minute.
• Transfer to a blender. Add the sauteed onions, chillis and garlic.
• Add coriander leaves. Pulse it for about 5 seconds. Not more because we need a chunky salsa (Do not grind it or make it into a puree)
• Transfer to a serving bowl. Mix the cumin powder and lemon juice and stir well.
• Serve with chips.

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Luv 'n' luc
Smitha