My Debut in Walima Cooking Club :Iraqi Cuisine- KURAT AL TAMIR and SHAKAR LAMA

Walima cooking club celebrates Middle Eastern cuisine, where every month we go by Latin alphabetical order, choosing two recipes from every Arab country, one savory and one dessert. We can cook any one of them or both. And I really wanted to join this club, because the tag itself says' For all Arabic food lovers' and I just love Arabic food :) So..here is my first challenge. Walima club is celebrating Iraqi cuisine this month.

Iraqi cuisine or Mesopotamian cuisine is Iraq's traditional cuisine developed since antiquity in Me Mesopotamia (Sumer, Akkad, Babylonia, Assyria). It is considered one of the oldest kitchens.
As Baghdad became the centre of the Abbasid Caliphate during the Islamic Golden Age, Muslims and other scholars from many parts of the world came to visit, live and study in Iraq, which gave the Iraqi cuisine new twists to its food. This is most commonly seen in the greater use of spices (e.g. Saffron) used in the Iraqi cuisine in comparison to other Arab cuisines.

Iraqi cuisine has absorbed influences from all the neighboring countries and has much in common with Levantine, Persian, and Turkish cuisines. With the Ottoman rule of Iraq, influences of Turkish cuisine also became incorporated into Iraqi recipes (and vice versa).

Furthermore, as the rest of Iraqi history, the Iraqi cuisine has been deeply influenced by its fertile land between its two rivers Euphrates and Tigris.[1] This influence is seen in Iraq's national dishes.

Now coming to this months challenge. We were given 1 savory and 2 options for sweets -Kurat al tamir ( Date sesame balls) and Shakar Lama (Cardamom cookies) by Arlette. And I tried making both the sweet dishes. Here they are :-

KURAT AL TAMIR ( Date and sesame balls)

Ingredients:
1 pound soft dates
1 cup walnuts
1 cup toasted sesame seeds
2 tablespoons tahini
½ teaspoon cardamom/cinnamon powder

Method:
Add dates, ½ cup sesame seeds, and tahini in the food processor. Pulse and add the walnuts and spices; pulse again. Take the mixture out and make small balls and roll them in toasted sesame or shredded coconuts.


SHAKAR LAMA (Cardamom cookies )

Ingredients:
3 sticks butter
3 1/4 cup all purpose flour
3/4 cup sugar
1 egg yolk (optional)
1 tsp. ground cardamom
1/2tsp. salt
1/3 cup slivered almonds

Method:

Beat the butter in a bowl for 3 minutes. Add sugar and beat the mixture until becomes light in color. Add flour, cardamom and salt gradually. Use your hand to mix the cookie dough. Take a small piece of dough the size of walnut. Shape the cookie and place and almond in the middle. Arrange on a tray with parchment paper. Bake for 20 minutes in 350 degree oven.

Strawberry cheesecake ( MY 50th POST)

Hurray !!! this is my 50th post. And I still couldn't believe it.. I never knew I would come this far ( I know 50 is not a big deal,because I know few blogs, who post 50 recipes every month
:) )Though I sarted in February , I was actually into blogging regularly only from June. I should admit that, I started my blog just to store all the recipes I cook at one place. I never knew I will be making so many good friends, from around the globe, who I can say "I know them"even if I have not met them....I would love to thanks all my friends, who joined me and who leave sweet and lovely comments, just to appreciate me. It really boosts my confidence and urges me to do more and better next time. Thanks again FRIENDS.
And here is my first ever cheesecake, which I had made 2 days ago. And I never knew, even I can make my favorite cheesecake, until I tasted it. And that too like the store bought ones :)

STRAWBERRY CHEESECAKE

Ingredients:

For the Biscuit layer:
200 gms of digestive biscuits,
2 tbsp of melted butter,
1 tbsp of Castor sugar.

For the cheese filling:
600 gms of cream cheese,
2 tbsp of Castor sugar,
1 tsp of vanilla extract
1 tbsp corn starch,
1 cup whipped cream.

For the Strawberry topping:
1-2 cups of fresh strawberries,
2 tbsp of sugar,
1 tbsp of corn starch.

Method:
Butter and line a 23 cm loose-bottomed tin with baking sheet.Put the biscuits in a plastic food bag and crush to crumbs using a rolling pin or powder them coarsely in a food processor. Transfer the crumbs to a bowl, then pour over the melted butter and sugar and mix well. Now put this mixture into prepared pan and press firmly down into the base to create an even layer. Refrigerate for 2 hours or until the base becomes firm and ready to use.
Meanwhile, start making the cheese filling. In a bowl, place the soft cheese, vanilla extract and sugar and beat with an electric mixer on medium speed until smooth. Now add the corn starch and beat again. Finally add the whipped cream to it and beat lightly. Now pour this cream mixture to the prepared biscuit base and bake at 350 degrees for for 40-50 mins. Cool the cheesecake at room temperature and on-mould it .
Puree 1 1/2 cup of strawberries with the sugar in a food processor and the sieve. In a pan, bring this strawberry puree to a boil, and add corn starch to it. Cook until the sauce thicken and cool completely before pouring on the cheesecake.
Just before serving , place a slice of the cheesecake on a plate, place some sliced strawberries and pour the strawberry sauce over it.

Dal Makhani

DAL MAKHANI
This month's Tried and Tasted is hosted by the very talented Yasmeen of Health Nut.And she led to a wonderful blog called A Life(Time) of cooking. Ganga has so many yummy and unique recipes. I spent hours and days browsing through them and was not able to decide what to cook for the event,because each one of her recipes looked so Yummy to me. Then, I came across this recipe for Dal Makhani ,which she says she learned it from a chef at Oberoi Hotel in Bangalore.
I had heard so much of this dish, but had never tried to cook it. So, I got hooked to this yummy recipe. And I tried to stay as true as possible to this recipe . And it turned out so Yummy and delicious. We all enjoyed it very much. Thanks Ganga for this tasty recipe and Thanks Yasmeen for leading us to this lovely blog.You can find the original recipe here.

Ingredients:
150 grams of whole urad dal (black lentils),
50 grams chana dal (gram lentils),
50 grams rajma (red kidney beans),
2 green chillies,
5-6 cloves of garlic,
10-15 grams of peeled ginger,
2-3 tbsp of oil/ ghee,
1 tsp of cumin seeds,
a pinch of asafoetida powder,
a pinch of fenugreek seeds,
100 grams of tomato paste or puree,
30 ml cream, 1/2 tsp chilli powder and
1/4 tsp garam masala.

Method:
Soak all the 3 lentils in water for 6 hours or overnight. Wash four times, changing the water each time. In a pressure cooker boil all the lentils with ginger,2-3 cloves of garlic, 2 green chilliea and some salt. And cook until all the lentils are well cooked. Now drain the excess water and mash the lentils with back of a ladle or with a wooden masher. Heat the oil /ghee in heavy bottomed pan and add the cumin seeds and fenugreek seed and and let them crackle. Add the garlic and fry till it becomes light brown. Now add the asafoetida powder and the tomato puree to this and fry for few minutes. Add to the cooked dal(lentils), mixing well. Bring the dal to the boil again, adding the chilli powder, butter and cream. And cook on a low flame for 30 minutes. Finish off by adding the garam masala. Serve Hot with chapathi or rice. Serves 4-6 people.

I am also sending this recipe to Susan's My Legumes Love affair (MLLA) 14.

Fruit kababs

While living in US, I had subscribed to many parenting magazines after my son was born. Among them, 2 were my favorite magazines- AMERICAN BABY and PARENTS magazine. I had seen these fruit kabobs in one of those magazines, unfortunately I don't remember which one :( And I just loved the way they were arranged. It looked sooo appealing and tempting.So, wanted to try those fruit kabobs. And here I am with them :)

The fruit kabobs can be arranged in many many ways. Anything on the skewers looks appealing to the kids...Its all about making it fun for them. And yeah..we all know that no other snack can be more healthier than fruits for the kids :)

1. Apple and peaches on stick: Cut peaches and Apples and arrange them on the skewers alternatively.

2. Banana Bites: Dip chunks of bananas in yogurt first, then skewer. Roll the bananas in sprinkle. One can even lift the fiber factor by rolling the bananas in crushed granola instead of sprinkles.

3.Marshmallow Surprise: skewer strawberries and marshmallows . Put some chocolate sauce in a zip lock bag. clip off a tiny corner and drizzle designs onto marshmallows.

4.Double Melon: Marinate Cantaloupe and honeydew melon in a mixture of lime juice and brown sugar. Cut out fun shapes with cookie cutter.

I am sending this to Divya's CFK-Evening snacks event started by Sharmi of Neivedyam.

Phirni

Phirni is an Indian sweet, made of rice, milk and sugar as main ingredients. Some people soak the rice and grind it to fine paste, and some use rice flour to make it. I learned making Phirni from my in-laws. My S-I-L used to make this very often, whenever we had guests or for parties. It was her favorite dessert And even I just fell in love with this sweet. Simple yet irresistible. So, here is the recipe.

PHIRNI

Ingredients:
1 liter milk,
4-5 tbsp of Basmati rice,
1 cup sugar,
a pinch of cardamom powder,
2 tbsp of ghee/ clarified butter,
1 tbsp of slivered almonds,
1 tbsp of golden raisins,
1 tbsp of slivered cashews,
1/4 tsp of rose water/rose essence and
few strands of saffron.

Method:
Grind the rice into a coarse powder (like fine sooji/semolina). Boil the milk in a heavy bottomed pan with a pinch of cardamom powder and sugar. When it starts boiling, add the powdered rice slowly, stirring the milk with the other hand, to avoid any lumps. Keep stirring continuously for 20 - 25 minutes or until the rice is cooked and the milk has thickened. Remove it away from the heat and keep aside.
In another small pan, heat the ghee and fry the dry fruits-Almonds, cashew nuts and raisins till light brown and add to the dessert. Also add the rose essence and Saffron strands. Mix well and let it cool at room temperature. Chill it in the refrigerator for 2-3 hours. Garnish with few strands of saffron. Best served when chilled.

I am sending this to Sanghi's Fall In Love (FIL) event. I am also re posting and sending the below recipes to the same event.

Instant Rasmalai


China grass pudding

Tabbouleh/ Parsley and cracked wheat salad

TABBOULEH

Ingredients:
4 cups finely chopped parsley,
1/3 cup finely chopped fresh mint,
4 firm tomatoes- De-seeded and chopped,
4 tbsp fine burghul/bulgur,
1 small onion-finely chopped,
1/2 cup lemon juice,
1/2 cup olive oil,
1/4 tsp black pepper powder,
1 tsp salt and
Romaine lettuce for garnishing.

Method:
In a small bowl, mix the chopped onion with salt and black pepper powder and keep aside.Rinse the the burgul and drain in a fine strainer to remove excess water and transfer into a large bowl.
Add the finely chopped parsley and finely chopped mint leaves to the bowl, add tomatoes, lemon juice, seasoned onions and olive oil. Season again to taste if necessery.
Place some lettuce leaves on a serving dish/ plate and transfer the salad to this serving dish.
Serve with barbecued meat/chicken or serve on its own :)

Source: From the book 'Middle eastern cookbook' by Maria Khalife

And Hurry!!! Another award from sweet Priyaraj of EnSamiyal and Babli of Khana Masala . They have given me this Scrumptious blog award. Thanks Priya and Babli.

It is the Scrumptious Blog Award -a blog award given to sites who:

Inspire you

Encourage you

May give Fabulous information

A great read

Has Scrumptious recipes

Any other reasons you can think of that make them Scrumptious!

The rules are:

Put the logo on your blog or post.

Nominate at least 7 blogs

Let them know that they have received this Scrumptious award by commenting on their blog.

Share the love and link to this post and to the person you received your award from.
I would like to nominate this award to my following blogger friends:

Ayesha of http://ayshadileen.blogspot.com/
Shab's of http://shabscuisine.blogspot.com/
Yasmeen of http://yasmeen-healthnut.blogspot.com/
Duchess of http://roseteacottage.blogspot.com/
Priyaprashanth of http://recipes-priya.blogspot.com/
Parita of http://paritaskitchen.blogspot.com/
Simran of http://foodiezone.blogspot.com/

Kindly accept this award and pass it to your friends.

Awards

AWARDS

I have received this Butterfly award from Duchess of rose tea cottage. She has the most beautiful blog I have ever come across.Thanks a lot duchess.


And Sangi of Simply delicious and Ayesha of Life today have passed this award to me. Thanks dearies for this Fabulous blog award. It encourages me to do more and better every time.
And I have again been nominated for these 3 awards by Pinky of ESHO BOSHO AAHARE . Thanks Dear Pinky for the awards.

Beetroot and Potato sabzi (gravy)

This is a very quick and easy sabzi with just five ingredients, and tastes yummy with rotis.

BEETROOT AND POTATO SABZI

Ingredients:
3 big beetroots - peeled and cubed,
2 potatoes -peeled and cubed,
1 big onion-chopped,
1 tsp red chilli powder,
1 tbsp oil and
salt to taste

Method:
Heat the oil in a pressure cooker, add the chopped onions and fry till light brown in color. Add the chilli powder, cubed beetroot and potatoes and some salt per taste and mix well. Add 1/2 cup of water and close the lid of the pressure cooker and cook for 5-10 minutes. Open the pressure cooker and cook further till the water evaporates. Serve hot with rotis.

I am sending this over to Viki's event Side dish for chapathi . I am also sending the below gravies for the same event.

Bangalore Phaal

And Karahi chicken

Haleem

HALEEM
-Haleem is a thick Persian, Pakistani and North Indian dish. Although the dish varies from region to region, it always includes wheat , lentils and meat. (Wiki)
Traditionally Haleem is made with mutton or beef, But I always prefer chicken over mutton. So I always make it with boneless chicken. But I have tasted the traditional mutton Haleem so many times.The best Haleem I have tasted ever was at PAKWAN in Fremont, CA, USA.
And believe me Mutton haleem is more tastier than the chicken haleem, but the latter is healthier. So, here is my way of making haleem. I know its a very long procedure, but its worth it :)
Ingredients:
600 grams of boneless chicken,
1 cup of wheat/ broken wheat,
1/2 cup of chana daal/ gram lentils,
3 tbsp of barley,
1 cup of oil,
1 tbsp garlic paste,
1 big onion,
1-2 tbsp of red chilli powder,
1 tsp of garam masala,
1 tbsp of coriander powder,
a pinch of turmeric powder and
salt to taste.

For garnishing:
1/2 cup finely chopped coriander powder,
1 small piece of ginger- cut into julienne,
2-3 thinly sliced onions,
juice of 1 lemon,
2-3 chopped green chillies (optional) and
Oil for deep frying the onions.

Method:
Soak the wheat, lentils and barley for 1- 1 1/2 hours. Heat 1/2 cup of oil in a heavy bottomed vessel. Add the garlic paste and fry for 1 minute. Now add the chicken pieces and all the dry spices -chilli powder, turmeric powder, coriander powder and garam masala and fry for few minutes. Now add the soaked grains and lentils to the chicken and mix well again. Add 6-7 glass glasses of water and cook on medium heat for 1-2 hours or until the lentils, grains and the chicken is cooked. Meanwhile deep fry the onions for garnishing on low flame until, light brown and crisp.Keep aside.
When its cooked, pass the curry through a sieve with small holes, separate the chicken pieces and shred them finely, blend the grains and lentils in a food processor very coarsely. Make sure not to make it to fine paste.
Now mix together the drained liquid, blended grains and shredded meat and bring to boil. Cook over low heat and cover the pan with a lid, and cook for 20 mins, stirring frequently.
Now fry 1 onion in the remaining 1/2 cup of oil, until light brown and add to the haleem and cook on low flame for another 10 minutes.
Garnish with lemon juice, ginger, chopped coriander leaves, and the fried onions. Serve hot as a side dish or main course.

Fattoush / Mixed vegetable salad

FATTOUSH
Fattoush is a Middle eastern salad made from mixed garden veggies fried / toasted pieces of pita bread. And this recipe is adapted from MIDDLE EASTERN COOKBOOK by Maria Khalife.

Ingredients:
2 small cucumbers-peeled and diced,
4 sliced radishes ,
2 medium tomatoes,
1/2 romaine lettuce,
4 spring onions-cut into small pieces,
1/2 cup chopped parsley,
3 tbsp chopped mint,
1 pitta bread,
1/2 chopped green pepper,
1 clove of garlic,
1/2 tsp salt,
1/3 cup lemon juice and
1/2 cup olive oil.

Method:
Usually the pitta bread is deep fried till brown and crisp, but as I wanted it to be on the healthier side, I toasted the pitta bread in the oven until brown and crispy. Break this toasted pitta bread into small pieces and keep aside. Shred the lettuce into small pieces. In a big bowl, mix in the cucumbers, lettuce, tomatoes, radishes, spring onion, pepper, parsley and mint.
Make the dressing by crushing the garlic in a small bowl with the salt. Stir in the lemon juice and olive oil. Drizzle this dressing over the salad just beforee serving oil and also add the toasted pitta bread and toss well. Serve.

Tips:Usually sumac is also added to fattoush. But I had to skip it because I didn't have it :(

English Trifle

This was the first time I tried my hands on Trifle, though I have eaten it soo many times. I had never imagined making one at home...But I liked it more than the store brought ones ;)

ENGLISH TRIFLE

Ingredients:
Pound cake/ trifle sponge,
2-3 tbsp strawberry jam,
16 oz whipped cream,
400 g of fresh strawberries,
1 tsp sugar,
1 cup water and
1/2 tsp vanilla extract.

For Custard:
1 1/2 cup sugar,
1/4 cup sugar,
2 tbsp cornstarch,
2 egg yolks and
1 tsp vanilla extract.

Method:
For the custard,in a bowl incorporate the sugar, cornstarch and beaten egg yolks with some milk to make a smooth paste without lumps. In a saucepan bring the remaining milk to boil, remove the milk away from heat and add the above paste to it very slowly, incorporating it with the milk. Return the saucepan and cook over very low heat until the mixture thickens, add vanilla extract. Keep aside to cool until ready to use.
Cut some strawberries into halves and add 2-3 tbsp of sugar to it and refrigerate for 30 minutes until ready to use.
Traditionally sherry is sprinkled on the trifle sponge to make it moist. But..as I don't use it, I made a syrup by mixing 1 tsp of sugar and 1/2 tsp vanilla extract with 1 cup of water.Mix well till sugar dissolves and keep aside.
Cut the trifle sponge /pound cake into slices and place them on the base of a glass bowl. Now sprinkle some vanilla syrup on them and spread the strawberry jam on the slices. Now arrange and with the refrigerated strawberries .Pour custard on these strawberries and finally spread a layer of whipped cream. Garnish with whipped cream and some fresh strawberries.

The trifle can also be arranged in single serving bowls like in the picture on the right side :)






This is my entry for Simran's AWED- Britain started by DK of Chef In You.

Strawberry and watermelon cooler

STRAWBERRY AND WATERMELON COOLER

Ingredients:
1 cup watermelon (only the red part),
1 cup of strawberry,
1 tsp of sugar and
few ice cubes.

Method:
Put all the above ingredients in a blender and blend till smooth. Serve chilled.

I would like to take these opportunity to thanks my friends Padma of Padma's recipe and Ganga of My favourite foods who have passed me these lovely awards and tagged me :) Thanks guys . I am really honoured and happy too ;-)



and

and


Now the answers to those questions...

1.what is your current obsession?
Blogging and applying Henna.

2. What are you wearing today?
Salwar kameez

3. What’s for dinner?
Biryani and raita.

4. What’s the last thing you bought?
Handbag

5. What are you listening to right now?
Nothing really.

6. What do you think about the person who tagged you?
They both are sweet and talented friends and they have lovely blogs with wonderful recipe :)

7. If you could have a house totally paid for, fully furnished anywhere in the world, where would you like it to be?
In India.

8. What are your must-have pieces for summer?
Cotton clothes and a bottle of cold water.

9. If you could go anywhere in the world for the next hour, where would you go?
On an Europe tour.

10. Which language do you want to learn?
Spanish and french.

11. Who do you want to meet right now?
My parents..It been almost 2 years :(

12. What is your favorite colour?
Baby pink.

13. What is your favourite piece of clothing in your own closet?
My wedding dress

14. What is your dream job?
hmmmm.....nothing.

15. What’s your favourite magazine?
Food magazines.

16. If you had $100 now, what would you spend it on?
Shopping....... shopping and........only shopping.

17. What do you consider a fashion faux pas?
Too much makeup and very tight fitting clothes.

18. Who are your style icons?
None.

19. Describe your personal style?
Simple and natural.

21. What are your favourite movies?
I don't like watching movies.

22. Give us three styling tips that always work for you:
Be natural as much as possible, dress according to comfort and try to use matching handbag/purse and sandals :)

23. Coffee or tea?
Neither coffee nor tea.

24. What do you do when you are feeling low or terribly depressed?
I just try to think of all the good thing GOD has given me and thank him for that. And just seeing the cute and innocent smile at my son's face cheers me up.

25. What is the meaning of your name?
Victorious, successful , and winner

26. Which other blogs you love visiting?
All food blog.

27. Favorite Dessert/Sweet?
Rasmalai.

28. Favorite Season?
Fall.

29.Which is your dream destination?
Switzerland.

30. Who inspired you to start a blog?
My Hubby.

My question: Which is your favorite international cuisine ?

The rules are:
Respond and rework – answer the questions on your own blog, replace one question that you dislike with a question of your own invention, and add one more question of your own. Then tag eight or ten other people.

I want to pass these awards and tags to these people. Please accept these awards .

Shaista Tabrez of Mixcalculations
Katy of Food for hungry soul,
Rebecca of chow and chatter,
Sangi of simply delicious,
Shabs Shab's cuisine,
Shanti of Shanti krishnakumar's cookbook
Urmi of khana masala,
Pooja of My experience of cooking,
Paritha of Paritha's world and
Carrie of cooking with Carrie.

Club Sandwich ?

Yesterday morning, I was not able to decide what to serve for breakfast. And so....I started searching my refrigerator for some left overs and I found so many things hiding there. There was some hummus, green chutney, half a cucumber, and many other things.... But I was still not able to decide what to make with all these leftovers. Then suddenly club sandwich is what I decided to make.
Club sandwich is a sandwich with 2 layers of fillings between 3 slices of bread(wiki). Actually club sandwich is made with Turkey, But as I didn't have Turkey, I used Chicken Salami slices. So here is what I found in my fridge(Ingredients ) :

Some Hummus(2-3 tbsp),
2-3 tbsp green chutney,
6 slices of bread,
Chicken salami-thinly sliced,
2 cheese slices,
some shredded lettuce,
half cucumber- thinly sliced,
1 tomato-thinly sliced,
pepper powder and
salt to taste.

Method:
Lightly toast the bread slices. spread a layer of hummus on the first slice and place some shredded lettuce, cucumber slices and a cheese slice, sprinkle with some salt and pepper. Now place another toasted slice of bread on top and spread some green chutney, and place the sliced Salami and thinly sliced tomato and sprinkle again with a very little amount of salt and pepper powder to taste. Now place the last slice on the top and cut into quarters. A toothpick or a cocktail stick can be used to hold all the slices together. Serve as it is or with some Salad and chips.

This goes to Divya Vikram's event ''show me your sandwich''.

Hummus bi tahini / Chickpeas and tahini dip

HUMMUS BI TAHINI

Ingredients :
420 grams of canned cooked peas,
1 clove of garlic,
180 ml ( 3/4 cup) water,
1/2 cup lemon juice,
4 tbsp of tahini,
1/2 tsp paprika/chilli powder,
2 tbsp olive oil,
parsley sprigs and
pinch of salt.

Method:
In a blender or food processor blend the chickpeas (reserving 1 tbsp of chickpeas for garnish) with garlic and 1/4 cup water to a smooth paste.
Dissolve the tahini in the remaining water, add lemon juice and blend this with the chickpeas paste. The mixture should be thick and smooth. season with some salt. Pour this mixture into a serving dish and garnish with the reserved chickpeas, finely chopped parsley, chilli powder, and olive oil. Serve with barbecued chicken or with pita bread.

Little hearts / Palmiers

LITTLE HEARTS

Ingredients :

1 Puff pastry sheets and
1/4 cup fine sugar.

Method:
Thaw the puff pastry sheets. unfold the sheet and sprinkle some sugar on it and start rolling one side till you reach the middle of the sheet. Now fold (roll) the other side till the middle and bring one side on top of the other,like a book. Keep in the refrigerator for 15-20 minutes.
Now cut them into 1 inch pieces and dip both the sides in some sugar and place them on a cookie sheet and bake in a pre-heated oven at 220 C/ 425 F for 8 -10 minutes or until they get light brown in color.

Source : This recipe is adapted from Cham's Spice club. She has made the perfect little hearts I have ever seen. Actually she has made savory ones. But I opted to make these sweet ones for my 2 year old son, who calls it ''sugar cookies '' :)

Alu Paratha / Unleavened bread stuffed with potatoes

ALU PARATHA
-yields 6 parathas

Ingredients:
2 cups wheat flour,
3 potatoes-boiled, peeled and mashed,
1 onion-finely chopped,
1 green chilli-finely chopped,
2 tbsp cilantro-finely chopped,
1 tsp cumin powder,
1/2 tsp red chilli powder,
1/2 tsp amchur/ dry mango powder(optional),
a pinch of black pepper powder,
2-3 tbsp of oil and
salt to taste.

Method:
In a bowl, take the wheat flour, add some salt and around 3/4 - 1 cup of water to make a soft dough. Cover with a damp cloth and keep aside for atleast 30 minutes. After around 30 minutes make medium sized balls of the dough and keep aside.
To the mashed potatoes, add chopped onions, cilantro/ coriander leaves, finely chopped green chillies, chilli powder, cumin powder, pepper powder, amchur powder and salt to taste. Mix well and make small golf size balls with the mixture.
On a floured surface, roll ball of dough into a round 5 inches in diameter. and keep 1 of the potato filling on the center and bring all edges together on the top and pinch the edges together to seal it tightly. This prevents the filling from coming out. Now roll the stuffed ball gently into a round of 7-8 inches in diameter.
Heat the tava/griddle on medium heat and cook the parathas on them, applying butter/ oil on both the sides. Cook both the sides till light brown in color . Cook remaining rounds in the same way and serve hot with yogurt / Indian pickle/ chutney .

This goes to Suchitra's WYF- Breakfast event.