Ragda Patties

           Who would have thought that fast food could be healthy and taste this good? Ragda Patties is now on my 'love it' list. It is easy to make, tastes good, kids love it and it's healthy. Is it even real you ask? It is. I remember eating this first years back in Wadala Mumbai, made lovingly by a Gujju neighbor. After that I didn't get to taste this or make this until recently. I have often seen recipes of Ragda patties in many blogs and my friend makes this on a regular basis. I had in my memory the glorious first time experience in Mumbai. With that in mind, I decided to go with the flow and make it to suit my family's taste. It is quite a filling dish and although it is usually served as a snack food. It makes for a great dinner too.

Ragda Patties
Ingredients:
Ragda:
White vatana/ pigeon peas dried whole yellow peas 2cups
onion     1 big
cumin-corinader powder 1 1/2 tsps
turmeric powder 1/2 tsp
chilli powder   1 tsp
salt to taste
jaggery  1/2 tsp
Oil  1 tsp

Patties:
potatoes  3 big
3 slices of whole wheat bread
salt to taste
Oil for shallow frying


Condiments:(store bought)
Tamarind-date chutney 1/2 cup
green chilli chutney    2 tbsps or per taste
garlic chutney (optional)/tomato-mint chutney as needed
fine sev for crunch  1/2 cup
Coriander leaves chopped  1/2 cup

Method:
Ragda:
1. Soak the peas / vatana at least 5-6 hours in water. Rinse and cook in a pressure cooker with water,turmeric powder and a little salt.
2. In a deep pan, heat a little oil and saute onions till translucent. Add the cooked peas, add the other ingredients for the Ragda and let cook together for 3-4 minutes. Take off heat and set aside.

Patties:
1. Dip the slices of bread in water and squeeze out the water completely.
2. Boil the potatoes along with the vatana / peas but separately. Peel and mash the potatoes.
3. Knead the potatoes and bread together, add salt as needed .
4. Make medallion size patties with this mixture.
5.Heat oil in a shallow frying pan ,shallow fry the patties on both sides till they are crisp on the outside and hold firm. Drain and  place on a paper towel to absorb excess oil.

Assembly:
Place about 3-4 patties on a plate. Ladle a big spoonful of Ragda on each patties. Add a spoon full of tamarind date chutney,green chilli chutney and  garlic chutney. Finally top it with some crunchy sev, finely chopped coriander and serve. Susvaad.

Mushroom Semiya Upma

                     'She has gone and done it', my grandma would have said. She could not have imagined her granddaughter adding mushrooms to a traditional food like upma. Imagine serving it to a madisaar maami and mama. 'Please stay and have tiffin with us, I made mushroom semiya upma'. It would be fun to see their expression. I am letting my imagination run wild, just like the mushrooms in my upma.
                 Featuring my fridge last Friday, few wild mushrooms ran amok with their accomplices the lone bell pepper and scallions. I needed to think of a last chance dish to get them out of the fridge aka prison. Early Saturday morning, I planned to grocery shop and I didn't want them to taint my fresh new comers. So, out they came and turned a new leaf- Mushroom semiya upma.

Mushroom semiya upma
 (serves 4 )

Ingredients:
Mushrooms (any and all kinds) cleaned and diced  4
scallions diced     1/2 cup
bell pepper any color diced  1/2 cup
red chilli    1
green chilli     3 or 4
Semiya /Vermicilli broken  3 cups
ginger grated        2 tsps
curry leaves              a few
coriander a handful chopped
mustard seeds 1 tsp
urad dal / ulutham paruppu         1 tsp
chana dal  / kadala paruppu      1/2 tsp
asafoetida / hing    1/4 tsp
cashews broken in half  6
salt to taste
oil  3-4 tsps

Method
1. Roast dry the vermicilli till is slightly red. Set aside.
2. In a saute pan, heat the oil and add mustard seeds. When the mustard seeds sputter, add urad dal, chana dal, red chilli and cashews.Let them turn red.
3.Now add the diced mushrooms,scallions and bell pepper. Saute till they cook half way, about 2 mins.
4.Add the green chillies, ginger, hing, salt and curry leaves.
5.Add 8 cups of water and bring to boil.
6.Add the semiya to the boiling water while stirring. Keep stirring till the water is absorbed by the semiya.
7.When there is no more water left, switch off heat and add coriander leaves

 Serve hot. Those who love mushrooms on their pizza will definitely love it on their upma. Susvaad.

365 Days of decluttering- Day 13
 I am doing so good on the decluttering project. Our computer chair has been chucked out as it was in tatters. I have donated a few of my novels to the library. I have handed down my son's outgrown coat to my friend's son. If It had been the old me, I would have procrastinated all this. I have so much stationery that needs sorting, I think I will try and do it today. I would like to get rid of the the pens that don't write. That really ticks me off and just because I am reluctant to toss anything, I hold on to these. Today I will though. I used the galvanized bucket from Target to arrange the homework supplies for my kids before. I have one more of those in blue. I am thinking I will keep my home office stuff. Still there is a lot to be done, I am not there yet.
This day by day stuff helps a lot though.

Rava Idli

            I realized late in life that I was a foodie.I found out my love for cooking and enjoying food is special and not everyone is so passionate about it as I am.Most often, I have to cook certain dishes a certain way or make all the side dishes that go together.I would look forward to a meal like some people look forward to a vacation.I am motivated when my husband says he can't wait to come home and eat what I had cooked for the day.My biggest triumph is my eldest son, I converted him from a picky eater to a kid who guesses what I made by the smells wafting from the kitchen.For a change, he says 'Amma, I can't wait to taste this'.
           During the snow storm, I was busy in the kitchen cooking up three different meals a day to keep occupied and also to enjoy being together at home with my family.Weekends are usually memorable because of the food and fun.I decided to make Rava Idlis for breakfast, something very easy to make but different from the regular breakfast of cereal and milk.After a little bit of snow shoveling, we all had hot steamy Idlis with coconut chutney and gunpowder.


Rava Idli makes 16 idlis

Ingredients:

Rava / Sooji / Semolina  2 cups
sour curd                        1 cup
(if the curd is not sour then add generous pinch of cooking soda to the batter )
mustard seeds                 1 tsp
urad dal                         3/4 tsp
chana dal/ kadala paruppu 1/2 tsp
cashews broken in half  16 at least
coriander leaves chopped a handful
green chillies(chopped)                   4
ginger finely chopped or grated 1 tbsp
ghee                          1 tbsp
oil                              2 tsps
salt to taste
adding grated veggies optional

Method:
1.Heat ghee in a saute pan, roast cashews, set aside and roast the rava till golden in color.Set aside.
2.Heat oil for tempering, add mustard seeds.After the mustard sputters, add the dals.Let the dals become golden brown.Add the green chillies and ginger
3.Switch off heat.Add the rava,curd and the tempered ingredients,salt and coriander leaves.
4.Only add enough water to bring the consistency to semi solid or that of thick but flowing pancake batter.
5.Let it rest for 10 minutes, as the rava absorbs the liquid and you may need to adjust the consistency with water.
6.Lightly smear the idli plates with oil,place one roasted cashew and pour the batter.One ladleful to just fill the well of the plate.
7.Steam in a idli cooker or pressure cooker without weights for 10 minutes of steady steam.
8.Take the idlies after they are steam subsides with a sharp edged spoon.The idlies should come out smoothly.
              Serve these idlis steamy hot with chutney of your choice or with spicy gunpowder(the edible one of course made with roasted,powdered dals,sesame seeds,red chillies and salt) or  this peanut-flax powder.I make my gunpowder at home with flaxseed instead of sesame seeds and the taste is the same,but it is heart healthy.Just store the powder in an airtight dark container in a dry place as it oxidizes easily. Susvaad.
               Day 3 Decluttered freezer.Used the frozen veggie patties to make lunch and threw out popsicles (left over,expired) and such.Also, tackled over the fridge clutter and outside the fridge clutter (too many magnets).Done.      

Pidi Kozhakattai and puli mulagai

             I fondly remember my grandma and my mom making these kozhakattai's in the kitchen for tiffin ( afternoon meal that Southindians enjoy).I remember the days coming home from school or college and varieties of tiffin were waiting for us(my brother and my sis).We did not like upma back then and used to complain loudly if it was on the menu of the day.The same upma made into Pidi kozhakatti was mouth-watering.It is a time consuming task to make this for a large family that ours was but it was made with love by our paati and amma.
         Our family is a stickler in food combinations, only certain things go together.We don't adjust about condiments or side dishes, it is a matter of our neela naaku (long tongue phrase used for being choosy while being gourmet).If pidi kozhakattai is made then puli molagai and vellam go together and nothing else will be accepted.
        For a family of four Pidi Kozhakattai is made easily, but out of habit I make more to share with friends and neighbours.

Pidi Kozhakattai ( recipe for 4)


Raw rice two cups
Tuvar dal 3tbsps
Mustard seeds 1/2 tsp
Urad dal 1 tsp
Grated coconut 3-4 tbsps
Bengal gram dal 1/2 tsp
Red chillies small round 4-5
Green chillies chopped fine 3
Asafoetida a generous pinch
Curry leaves 6-7
salt to taste

Method
1. Grind the rice and tuvar dal in the mixer to make fine rava or coarse grind.
2.Bring to boil a little above 1 cup water in a deep saute pan. Add coconut flakes and salt.Just enough salt to taste little less salty than sea water.
3.In a separate pan, heat about 1 tbsp oil and sputter mustards seeds add the rest of the ingredients . saute and add when tempered to the boiling water.
4.While stirring add the rava slowly until combined well.Keep stirring while on heat for another 2 minutes ,set aside the upma.
5.When cool enough to handle but not cold ,take palm full of upma and make a fist shaped ball of upma, pressing into palm mould( this is what is called pidi).Finish shaping all the upma into kozhakattai.
6.In a steamer usually a pressure cooker/idli cooker ,Steam the pidi kozhakattai's for 10 minutes of steady steam.
7. Serve them warm as they tend to harden when cold. Usually 4-5 per person with puli mulagai.
Here is an excellent recipe of Puli mulagai from Tasty Palettes. She has the exact recipe that I remember from paati.
I couldn't have written it better.
Don't forget the vellam (jaggery) to complete the plate.I know it is missing from the picture but I forgot in the my eagerness to get a picture.By the time I remembered, it was time to eat and we did eat with vellam.
Susvaad.