Dal Puri

(makes 4 puris enough for 2)
(prep time 30 mins + 2 hours soaking time)
For the puris

All purpose flour 2 cups
Whole wheat flour 1 cup
Warm water
Salt 1/2 tsp
In a large mixing bowl. Sieve the flours and the salt together.
Gradually add warm water and work it into a dough.
Knead well.
The dough should be soft and flexible similar to a chapati dough. (Infact if you used whole wheat flour instead of the all purpose flour this would be the dough for chapati.)
Leave aside for at least 20 mins.

For the filling

Chana dal 1 cup (soaked for at least 2 hours)
(Called split chickpea. You can get this easily in any indian store or in the international isle of a grocery store)
Cayenne pepper 1 tsp
Garlic powder 1/2 tsp
Mustard seeds 1/2 tsp
Cilantro/coriander powder 1 tsp
Roasted cumin powder 1/2 tsp
Nigella seeds 1/2 tsp
Turmeric powder 1/2 tsp
Curry leaf (chopped) 1 1/2 tsp
(also called kari patta, tez patta)
Oil 1 Tbs
Water
Salt
(since this is the stuffing, keep it a little on the salty side)

Ok...
So the trick here is to cook the lentils and keep it very dry.
I started with adding the lentils into a pan and I poured enough water to cover the bottom of the pan. About 1/4 cup.
Add all the spices but keep the curry leaves for last.
Cover the pan and simmer over med low heat.
I kept checking in between and if the water was gone I added a little more.
This took about 30 mins to cook.
I added the curry leaves in the last 5 mins.
Mash the mixture with a fork.
Also in the last 5 mins, I took the cover off the pan, added a little oil and made sure all the water was gone.
I have attached a pic to give you an idea about how dry the dal should be. Hope that helps :-)
Make sure this mixture is cool enough to handle before you start the assembly procedure.

Final show down

We will prepare the dough balls like parathas ( I will post this soon).
I perfer this way. You can do it yours :-)
Divide your dough into equal parts.
Round them into balls close to 2 inches in diameter.
Keep your rolling pin and board dusted with flour.
Roll out a ball of dough really thin, rub a little butter all over its surface.
Roll it up into a long log.
Now roll the log onto itself and round it off in your hands.
Phew!
Almost done :-)
This part is actually fun!
Now for the stuffing.
Roll out a prepared ball of dough to about a 4 inch diameter.
Schmear a dab of salted butter in the center.
Now, take 2 Tbs of the stuffing and squeeze them in your hands to make a ball.
Put this in the center of the dough and bring the sides of the dough up and seal at the top!
Flatten it a little with your hand... and then roll out one final time.
It should be about 6 inches in diameter.
Fry it in frying pan with a little bit of butter or ghee!
:-)
There!
We had this with tamarind chutney and alu choley! Yumee!

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Fajita

(Serves 2)
(Prep time: 30 mins + 6 hrs marinating time)

Meat preparation

Skirt or flank steak 1 lbs

Lime juice 2 limes

Garlic (crushed) 2-3 cloves

Cumin 1 tsp

Red Chili flakes 2/3 tsp

Pepper 1/4 tsp

Tequila 6 oz (optional) - I used 3 Tbs of apple cider vinegar

Cilantro 1/4 bunch

Salt

Blend all the ingredients in a blender and then pour over the steak. Cover with saran wrap or seal in a ziploc bag. Let this sit overnight in the fridge.

Before cooking the steak bring it to room temperature.

Pour off the marinade. Pat dry with a kitchen towel.

Turn the broiler on to high and cook each side for 8 mins for a medium steak.

This can get too smoky and might set off the fire alarm.

Another way is to heat about 2 Tbs oil in a large oven proof skillet.

Cook the steak for 4 mins each side.

Finish in a 375 pre-heated oven for 8 min for a medium steak.

Loosely wrap the steak with aluminum foil and let it stand for about 10 min to seal in the juices.

Cut very thinly along the grain of the steak!

I served this white cheddar potatoes, bell peppers and a sliced fresh hass avocado!

Veggies

Green bell pepper (sliced) 1 med

Red bell pepper (sliced) 1 med

Red onions (sliced) 1/2 med

Green onions 2-3 stalks

Thyme 1/4 tsp

Pepper

Salt

Olive oil

I cut the bell peppers into strips fairly equal in size. And steamed them over salted water for about 5 mins.

Heat some olive oil in a frying pan and cook the onions until they are tender.

Add the thyme.

Add the green onions.

Season lightly with salt and pepper.

Add the bell peppers.

Give everything a good toss.

Cook for a min or two.

Ready!

White cheddar potatoes with chives

Red potatoes 2-3 med
Butter (unsalted) 2 Tbs
Milk 1/4 cup
Aged white cheddar cheese (shredded) 1/2 cup
Chives (chopped fine) 2-3 Tbs
Pepper 1/4 tsp
Salt

Boil the potatoes in salted water.
Pour off the water when done and put the potatoes back in the same hot pot so any left over water drops dry off completely.
I like to keep the skins of potatoes on. Put all the ingredients in and smash with a potato masher! You can make these as chunky or as smooth as you want.

:-)

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Egg Salad croissant

(single serving)
(prep time 20 mins)
Very basic no frills egg salad

Hard boiled eggs (cooled) 2
Butter 1 Tbs
Salt
Pepper
And a very very small pinch of cayenne pepper

Put everything in a mixing bowl.
Mash it up with a back of a fork.
Speard it inside a lightly warmed croissant.
Good morning!

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Gajjar halva with khoya

Easy.

Takes forever to make.

Totally worth it.... sometimes :-)

(Serves 6-8)

(Prep time: 8-9 hrs)

You will start with about 20 oz of coarsely shredded or matchstick carrots. If you used very finely shredded carrots your halva will be very mushy and will stick to the pot a lot. A gallon of whole milk. 2 cups of sugar, 4-6 pods of cardamom (whole) and I throw in a stick of cinnamon for extra yumminess. All in the biggest pot you have over med high heat. Keep stirring after every 15 mins or so specially when the milk is half gone. Don't be hasty and turn the heat up. The milk will burn and ruin the whole thing. Patience is the name of the game!

I have posted pictures of the halva in different stages. It took me around 8 hrs from start to finish!

When the halva was done I took out the cinnamon and the cardamom. Then I added a stick of unsalted butter (8 Tbs) and stirred it for 10-15 mins. Lastly, I turned the heat off and added 1 cup of khoya and mixed it all well. Some people also like to add chopped nuts and raisins at this point.

finito.... phew!!!

This dessert is best when eaten warm.

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Butter Chicken

(serves 3-4)
(prep time 45 mins)
Ingredients

Boneless, skinless chicken thighs (cut into 1" squares) 1/2 lbs
Red Onions (sliced) 1 med
Tomatoes (diced) 2 med
Green chilies (chopped) 1 Tbs
Garlic (crushed) 2 tsp
Yogurt 1/2 cup
Fresh lime juice 1/2 med lime
Turmeric powder 2/3 tsp
Kashmiri mirch (crushed) 1 tsp
(Kashmiri mirch is a whole dried red chili. Use any red chili flakes or cayenne pepper instead)
Black cumin 2/3 tsp
Mustard seeds 2/3 tsp
Fenugreek seed powder 1/3 tsp
Salt
Oil enough to cover the bottom of your pan
Butter (unsalted) 3Tbs

Method

Firstly, sear the chicken meat in hot oil for a min or until it has a golden brown crust. Put the chicken aside, it will later cook completely in the gravy.
Now fry the onions until golden brown.
Add the garlic and the chilies stir for a few seconds and finally add the tomatoes.
Give everything a good stir. Lower heat to med high.
Cover and simmer for 3-4 minutes or until the tomatoes break down to a mush.
Blend this mixture in a blender with yogurt. Keep aside.
Now we are going to toast the spices.
Heat about a Tbs of oil. Put the mustard seeds in and wait till they crackle. Add the rest of the spices (no salt) and stir for about 10 seconds. .
You can now season with salt and add the yogurt mixture and the chicken.
Give it a good stir.
Cover the pan and cook on med low heat for about 20 mins or until the chicken is done.
Turn off the heat.
Add lime juice and the butter.
Let the heat of the pan melt the butter.
Stir.
And you are done :-)

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