Vegetable Upma

It was one of those days when none of us were in a mood to eat a full fledged meal. All I got when I asked what do you want for dinner was "Make something light".

My standard resort on such occasions is poha or sabudana khichdi or idli/dosa - you get the drif! Along the same lines, this time I made vegetable rava upma - a standard breakfast item at weddings and such along with the usual idli/vada/pongal!

It was only very recently that I came to know that in Tamil Nadu, this dish is actually called "khichdi"! The discovery in  itself was an amusing incident involving two of my friends - one from Madras (I still can't think of it as Chennai!), the other from Orissa and ofcourse me! When the latter fed her kids "khichdi", the former was puzzled that it looked more like dal rice with vegetables and there was no sign of rava in it! After much confusion and some arguing, we realized that while two of us called the rice and lentils cooked with vegetables "khichdi" (I think that's what most of the country calls it!) the other one was looking for vegetable rava upma!

As far as my husband and kid are concerned, when I say upma, it means vegetable rava upma. There is no way they are eating a plain upma! Also, one wants any and every vegetable, while the other is allergic to nuts and can't stand the sight of onions and capsicum in his. So, I end up making "customized" upma!

What I mean is that, I cook my vegetables (I used the frozen mix of peas, carrots, beans and corn and added diced potatoes to it) separately in the microwave but saute the onions and capsicum along with the tempering in another pan! You can prepare the tempering and cook all the vegetables directly in the saucepan that you are using to make the upma. I just find it handy and quick to do all these things separately and since its the dishwasher that cleans the dishes, I don't hesitate to use an additional pot/pan!

So, while the rava is being roasted, I boil water in the kettle, cook the veggies in the microwave and simultaneously prepare the tempering mix! Finally, I just add everything in parts, making sure to separate my son's share before adding the tempering. But by all means prepare the tempering, add in the rest of the vegetables, add water, bring it to a boil and mix in the roasted rava - all in the same vessel.

Whichever way you choose to cook it, whatever you choose to serve it with (I did not go to the trouble of making chutney or sambaar, a Lime Ginger pickle was enough to satisfy us!) - this is a simple, fulfilling yet "light" meal!

Preparation & Cooking: 20 minutes          Serves: 2-3

Ingredients:

Rava/Sooji/Cream Of Wheat - 1 cup

Green Chillies - 2, chopped fine
Ginger - a small bit, minced
Turmeric/Haldi Powder - ½ teaspoon
Mixed Vegetables - 1 cup (beans, carrots, peas, corn, potatoes)
Potato - 1 small, diced
Capsicum - 1 small, diced
Onion - 1 small, choped fine
Curry Leaves -  a few
Salt - to taste
Ghee - 1 tablespoon
Water - 3 cups
For Tempering: 
Ghee/Clarified Butter - 1 tablespoon
Mustard Seeds - 1 teaspoon 
Urad Dal/Black Gram Dal - 1 teaspoon
Jeera/Cumin Seeds -  ½ teaspoon
Chana Dal/Bengal Gram Dal -  ½ teaspoon
Cashews - 10-12, broken


Method:

1. Microwave the vegetables for 5-7 minutes, till they are cooked.
2. Bring about 3 cups of water to a boil in a kettle or another vessel - this hastens the cooking process as we don't have to wait for the bottle to boil when we add it to the rava.
3. Heat the remaining ghee for tempering, add in mustard, jeera, urad dal and chana dal. When the mustard and cumin seeds splutter and the dals turn a golden brown, add in the curry leaves and cashews. 
4. When the cashews get a reddish tinge, add the onions. When the onions turn transluscent add the green chillies, ginger and capsicum and saute for a couple of minutes, then take off the flame.
5. Roast the rava with 1 tablespoon of ghee till it turns a reddish tinge and gives off a nice aroma.
6. Now, slowly pour in the hot water, stirring constantly so it doesn't form lumps.
7. Continue to stir and cook till the rava reaches a smooth consistent texture and has absorbed most of the water.
8. Now add the turmeric, salt, mixed vegetables and the prepared tempering.
9. Mix everything well and cook for another minute.

Serve hot with chutney/sambaar or plain old pickle - yummy!

Veggie Orzo Pockets

I am always breaking my head over what to pack for lunch for my little one. Doesn't matter that I try not to repeat the same thing very often, I still get the "amma, please give me something different" from him! I am sure most parents with school going kids would relate to this, or should I say most moms? Now I understand why my mom's daily bedtime lament used to be "naalaiku ennadi pack pannaradu lunchuku?" - meaning, what am I going to pack for your lunch tomorrow!

Idlis, dosas, chapathis, pooris, rice based dishes, soups, pasta , sandwiches and even maggi - you name it and I have packed it! His favorite is stuffed paraatha, because he finds it easier to hold the paraatha rolled in a foil and eat while yapping away with his friends. But there are only so many varieties of stuffing that I can prepare at 5 in the morning!

Anyways, I am always looking for ways to combine vegetables and some form of grain in an easy to handle compact form that would appeal to my fussy eater! While thinking along those lines, I hit upon this idea. Am sure its nothing unique and has been tried by someone or the other somewhere. But this is the first time I tried this, and it was a huge hit!

I always keep crescent roll dough tubes stocked up in my refrigerator as they come in very handy - specially during the weekends when we have friends over for "chai-nashta". Now I thought, why not make pizza pockets with the same. But I wanted to add something more filling to it. My son loves pasta in various shapes and sizes - so I settled on orzo as the grain. He loves marinara sauce. While I have made sauces from scratch, it is just too much to ask of me if you are expecting me to make a small amount of the sauce everytime I make pasta for my kid! Though I am not a big fan of ready to use products, there are certain instances where I make an exception - pasta sauce is one of them - to be specific, store bought bottled marinara sauce; I am not too brand specific, though my current favorite is Giada's Vegetable Marinara sauce. I added a bit of this. Now, how could I leave out the veggies - so I went ahead and added some carrots, zucchini and broccoli as well. Feel free to add any vegetable you like - infact I even thought of using radishes but dropped the idea the last minute as I felt it would be too pungent and wouldn't blend in with the rest of the flavors. Forgot to remove them before clicking the final picture though :p!! Finally comes the cheese - come on, its a baked product for my kidddo - obviously am going to add cheese - loads of it!

The end result was a surprisingly quick, delicious and filling meal that was easy to handle and well liked by my sweetie pie! After the way he asked "amma, can I have the same thing tomorrow?" - this one is a keeper!

Preparation & Cooking: 30 minutes          Serves: 3-4

Ingredients:

Mixed Vegetables (Sliced Carrots, Diced Zucchini and Broccoli Florets) - ¼  cup
Orzo - ¼  cup, cooked tender

Ready Made Marinara Pasta Sauce - 4 tablespoons
Kraft Shredded Natural Italian Five Cheese Blend - ¼  cup
(Mozarella, Provolone, Romano, Asiago and Parmesan)
Parmesan Cheese -  ¼  cup, finely grated
Fresh Cracked Pepper - to taste
Salt - to taste
Olive Oil - 1 tablespoon
Cooking Spray - to grease the baking sheet
Pillsbury Crescent Roll - 1 tube

Method:

1. Preheat  the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit (190 degrees Celsius).
2. Cook the orzo till tender. Drain and keep aside.
3. Saute the carrots and zucchini in olive oil till they soften. Then add in the broccoli, and marinara sauce. Give it a good stir.

4. Now add in the orzo, salt and pepper. Mix well.



5. Roll out the dough, keeping the rectangles intact. Smudge over the dotted edges of the triangles with your fingers so they smoothen out and don't break into triangles. Cut each rectangle into three smaller rectangles.
6. Place a small amount of the vegetable orzo on each cut piece and top it with the cheeses.

7. Wrap the pockets over and seal the edges. Place them on baking sheets and bake in the oven for about 12 minutes till the top is nicely browned

Serve hot. Or cool down completely, wrap in a foil and pack them up in the lunch box for the little ones to enjoy at school!

Sending this across to

Vardhini's Bake Fest # 16 guest hosted by  Surabhi.

Quinoa Puliodarai

I love the luxury of online shopping - my favorite site being Amazon.com! But it has certainly spoilt me to the extent that I find it extremely frustrating when I cannot simply order something with a mouse click! While going to the store, picking, touching, smelling, trying and bargaining has its own charms (come on, you have to agree with me, specially if you are an Indian like me :) ), there are times when all I want to do is log in, browse and buy - specially if there is a fast shipping option!

The reason for my starting off on this point is, recently my friend spoke about her having tried quinoa puliodarai at her aunt's place and that set off a craving for it. But the main problem was, while I had all the necessary ingredients for making a pulikaachal, I did not have any quinoa on hand. Boy did I wish I could just order some online during the day and get it by evening - just on time for dinner! But alas, that was not to be, so I had to drive down to the local grocery store to get some. I know, I know, I could have just gone ahead and made it with rice, which is probably what any sensible person would do. But moi being moi - just had to go and buy the quinoa!

That is what prompted me to make my pulikaachal in a crock-pot instead of going the traditional gas top way. So, while I ran my grocery errand, the pulikaachal was cooking away in the crock-pot and got ready just around the time I finished cooking the quinoa - perfect timing!

Now, I have used quinoa for making "curd rice" with tempering and pulao, even khichdi. But never for puliodarai. I loved it, will definitely be making it again.

The spice level on this was through the roof - well we do have a high tolerance for heat, but if you prefer your food on the milder side, feel free to reduce the amount of red chillies used. The same goes for the tamarind - but this dish is an extremely tangy one.

The pulikaachal prepared can be refrigerated and used whenever required. The ingredients mentioned below make pulikaachal to serve 6-8 people. But I added a few tablespoons of it to 1 cup of cooked quinoa which was sufficient for me and my husband and stored the rest for future use.

Preparation & Cooking: 3 hours         Serves: 6-8

Ingredients: 

Qunioa -  1 cup
Tamarind - big lemon sized
Jaggery - 1 teaspoon, powdered (optional)
Coriander Seeds/Dhania - 2 tablespoons
Fenugreek Seeds/Methi - 1 teaspoon
Asafoetida/Hing - a pinch
Red Chillies - 20-25
Peanuts - ¼ cup
Turmeric Powder/Haldi - ¼ teaspoon
Salt - to taste
Tempering:
Mustard Seeds - 1 tablespoon
Black Gram/Urad Dal - 4 tablespoons
Bengal Gram/Chana Dal - 2 tablespoons
Fenugreek Seeds/Methi - 1 teaspoon
Curry Leaves - a few
Sesame Oil - ¼ cup

Method:

1. Soak the tamarind in hot water for a few minutes. I usually microwave the water and tamarind for a minute then set aside for 5 minutes. Then prepare a thick tamarind pulpy juice by squishing the tamarind. With the said amount of tamarind, you should be able to extract 1½ to 2 cups of thick pulpy juice. Strain this and set aside.
2. Dry roast the coriander seeds, asafoetida and fenugreek seeds and grind it to a smooth powder.
3. Heat the sesame oil and all the ingredients for tempering. When the seeds crackle, add in the peanuts.
4. When the peanuts turn a golden brown, add the red chillies and fry for a couple of minutes.

5. Now, at this stage, if you want to continue cooking on the stove top, add in the remaining ingredients (except the ground powder) and cook, stirring slowly. When it starts boiling, reduce the flame and simmer till the raw tamarind smell disappears and the mixture thickens considerably into a paste like consistency. Finally add in the ground powder. Some people add in the ground powder just when mixing with the rice.
6. But on the other hand, if you are out of patience and kitchen standing time, as I was, then go ahead and take out that additional gadget that's resting somewhere in you kitchen - yes I am talking about the crock-pot!
7. Add all the ingredients (except the ground powder) to the crock - pot, set it at high for cooking, cover it with a lid and go ahead finish of your chores in the next couple of hours!

8. Oh yes, one more thing - cook the quinoa as per the package instructions. I usually rinse it thoroughly and cook it in the microwave for about 6-8 minutes in double the quantity of water, stirring once or twice in between. Then I cover and let it rest for a couple of minutes and finally fluff it up with a fork. Some people say you should soak it, but so far I have not bothered to do that.
9. Finally, mix in the ground powder, add the required quantity of pulikaachal to the quinoa and set aside for a few minutes before serving, that way the quinoa will absorb the flavors better. Usually for the amount of qinoa cooked 3-5 tablespoons should do the trick, depending on your taste buds. Add a little at a time and keep tasting till you get your desired taste.

PS: If you have left overs, don't worry, puliodarai always taste's better the next day!
Sending this across to

as well as

Venn Pongal

And its Pongal again - have come a full circle! My first ever post was a Pongal post - Chakkara Pongal. How could I not post something this Pongal? So, this time, I have opted to post the recipe for Venn Pongal. Of course I made the Chakkara Pongal as well for neivedyam.

 Venn Pongal literally translates to "White Pongal"!

Before I got married, I used to not like eating pongal. Infact at weddings I never understood the fascination with idli, upma, pongal and vadai for breakfast! Both, my sister and I, would drag our feet when called for the wedding breakfast feast - the only think we liked eating on that menu was the vadai!

Another memory associated with pongal is the bets that my parents would have on Sunday nights - appa, amma, sis and me would play some card game or carrom or some other board game like ludo or snakes and ladders. One parent and one sibling teamed against the other pair. We were young enough not to care about anything other than who won and who lost, my parents on the other hand had the same running bet. If my mom won, she got to pick what we had for dinner, but if dad won, it would either be pongal or khichdi for dinner - that's how much he loved both these dishes while the rest of us had them on our least favored list!

All these years later, post marriage and one kid, I have gained an appreciation for this dish though! It is a quick, one pot meal that has rescued me on many a weekends when I am in absolutely no mood to cook. The fact that hubby loves it is an added benefit! What I team it with depends on my level of laziness and how much time I have spent yapping on the phone with my parents and sis! When I have time on hand and don't mind a few additional minutes in the kitchen, I will serve it with a quick tomato gothsu (using canned diced tomatoes ofcourse ;) ), at other times I'll prepare a quick coconut or almond chutney (as was the case today), while on the laziest of days, we'll make do with some pickle!

What ever be the choice of accompaniment, this simple dish is one of my "go to" dishes on most weekends. I just take out a small portion and temper it without the pepper and cashews for my little one - pepper because he can't take the heat, and cashews because he is allergic to nuts.

Preparation & Cooking: 30 minutes          Serves: 2-3

Ingredients:
Moong Dal (Green Gram Dal) - ¾ cup
Rice - 2 cups
Water - 6 cups
Milk - 1 cup
Salt - to taste
For Tempering:
Ghee - 3-4 tablespoons
Cashews - 10-15, broken
Ginger -  1 teaspoon, minced
Cumin Seeds (Jeera) - 4 teaspoons
Peppercorns - 10-15
Curry Leaves - a few

Method:

1. Roast the moong dal for a few seconds till it gives off a nice aroma, don't let it brown.

2. Wash the rice and add it to the dal. Add in the rice, salt, water and milk and pressure cook it till it turns soft and mushy.

3. In the mean time, grind the cumins seeds and pepper corns into a coarse mixture or crush them using a mortar and pestle.
4. Prepare the tempering by heating the ghee and adding the cashews. When the cashews turn a golden brown, add in the ginger, curry leaves and the ground cumin and pepper mixture, give it a stir and take off the flame.

5. Once the pressure cooker has let off steam, open it and add in the tempering and mix well.



Steaming hot Venn Pongal is ready to be served.

Sending this across to

hosted by Sara's Kitchen.

Kuzhi Paniyaram

In my house, any day of the week you open the refrigerator, there will always be some idli-dosa batter in there. I just find it convenient to keep some batter handy, be it for packing lunch for my husband or kid, or for making weekend dinners after spending the whole day out.

But sometimes, very little batter is left over and it tends to get sour after a week or so. Then, I use that leftover sour batter to make kuzhi paniyarams (or uppu appams). This is a quick and easy snack that my son loves and so do I!

Sometimes I make it with onions, sometimes I make it just plain. If the batter hasn't soured but I still want to make paniyarams, then I add a tablespoon of sour cream to it and that does the trick as far as getting the sour taste is concerned.

I love making this as an after school snack for my kid, though sometimes I just add some steamed carrots and peas to it as well, just to sneak in some veggies! You could also add freshly chopped cilantro (coriander leaves). I was out of cilantro, so did not add any.

I make these in an appa kaarai which is a special vessel with molds used for frying appams. If you don't have an appa kaarai, simply drop spoonfuls in a vessel with hot oil for deep frying.

Preparation:15 minutes to soak Chana Dal                Cooking: 10 minutes             Serves: 3-4

Ingredients:
Left over Idli/Dosa Batter - 1 cup
Rava/Sooji - 2 tablespoons
Chana Dal/Bengal Gram Dal - 2 tablespoons (soaked in water for 15 minutes)
Green Chilli - 2 (ground into a paste)
Ginger - 1 teaspoon, minced fine
Onions - 1 small, chopped
Salt - to taste
Oil - for frying the kuzhi paniyarams

Method:

• Mix all the ingredients mentioned above, except the oil.

• Heat the oil in an appa kaarai and pour tablespoon of batter into each of the molds/holes.

Let it cook till the lower side turns brown, then turn it over.

• Cook this side also until done, then remove them from the oil and drain them out on absorbent paper or paper towels.

Serve hot with tomato ketchup or chutney.

Achaari Paneer Wrap

I love gadgets. Gadget Gal - that's me! Be it a knitting/crochet needle, a food processor or just a simple zester/grater - my tools of trade are my priced possessions and I am always on the look out for anything interesting. Unfortunately I live in a rented apartment with a small kitchen where two people standing the kitchen cannot help but bump into each other at every turn! So DH keeps threatening to throw things out of the house and keeps a tight rein on my purchasing tendencies. But I still get away with a few things here and there.

Last week, a visit to Target resulted in the purchase of a stove top barbecue grill thingy! I couldn't wait to get home and try it. I absolutely love it! So, this weekend, I made some achaari paneer wraps using this handy tool. Not having a deck to barbecue and grill things, I usually use the oven broiler to make paneer tikka and such things. But the burnt roasted flavor from a grill cannot be replicated in the broiler, its just not the same.

This barbecue roaster is perfect - just cut add whatever needs to be roasted into this grill kind of thing with a handle and place it on the stove top flame! Absolutely delicious! It was just the perfect brunch for a lazy weekend and a filling meal just before a road trip!

Marinating Time: 30 minutes            Preparation & Cooking: 15 minutes           Serves:2 

Ingredients:
Whole Wheat Chapathis - 4
Capsicum - 1 medium, diced into chunky pieces
Onion - 1 Small, diced into big pieces
Paneer - 1 cup, cubed
Achaar Masala - 2-3 heaped tablespoons
Greek Yogurt - 1 cup
Chat Masala -  1 teaspoon
Lemon Juice - 1 tablespoon
Roasted Pepper Hummus - 4-5 teaspoons
Mint-Coriander Chutney (Green Chutney)- 4-5 teaspoons

Salt - to taste (use very little as the ready made achaar masala and chaat masala have salt in them)

Method:

• Mix the Achaar Masala and Greek Yogurt and make a smooth marinade.
• Add in the vegetables and paneer pieces and let this marinate for 30 minutes.

• Roast the vegetables and paneer on the flame, turning them over so they cook on all sides, till they turn a brown color and give off a nice aroma. This should take about 10 minutes.

• Now add the chaat masala and lemon juice to the roasted paneer and vegetable mix.

• Take a pre-warmed chapathi. Spread a couple of teaspoons of green chutney and hummus onto the chapathis, then add the roasted vegetable and panner mix.

• Fold the chapathi to form a wrap, using a toothpick to secure it, if required. Repeat for the other chapathis

Serve wrapped in an aluminum foil with any chutney or ketchup on the side. Or enjoy it as it is...

Handy Tips:

• If you prefer to use the broiler, feel free to do so. Just insert the veggies onto skewers and place them in the broiler for 6-8 minutes and then turn them over and leave them in for another 5 minutes or so.
• I made the wraps using home made chapathis with whole wheat flour. But feel free to replace them with frozen chapathis or even tortillas.
• I used ready made achaar masala. Instead, you could just roast 2 tablespoons fenugreek (methi) seeds and grind them coarsely along with ½ teaspoon mustard seeds and 2 teaspoons fennel (saunf) seeds. Finally add in ½ teaspoon turmeric (haldi) powder and a pinch of asafoetida (hing).
• I have used Greek Yogurt for the marinade because it has a tangy taste that I love. You could use regular plain  yogurt instead.

Khichdi Pattice in Pita Pockets

Another weekend has rolled by. This was a mixed bag weekend with a couple of meals eaten out and one heavy home cooked lunch with friends. And yes, one typical weekend brunch!

On Friday, one of my friends came over and I made some khichdi for her baby. Since I was making it for the little one, I added no spices to it other than turmeric powder. So, all I did was pressure cook some moong dal with some basmati rice, turmeric powder, salt and a cup of finely chopped vegetables (I used beans, carrots, potato, tomato & spinach). Finally, I heated a tablespoon of ghee and added it as tempering. It was pretty yummy despite being such a simple preparation, but it was bland for an adult. So, I did not know what to do with the left over. I suppose I could have had it with loads of pickle on the side, but I tried out something more interesting with it, and it turned out real good - in fact "bloggable" good!

I had some pita pockets and some roasted pepper hummus at home. That's what gave me the idea of using the left over khichdi to make patties! Just added some potato flakes for a good binding, some soya granules for the texture and some spices to remove the blandness - a quick fix recipe to replace falafels in the pita pockets!

For the fresh vegetables, I used left overs from a packet  of classic iceberg lettuce salad mix and just added some sliced olives, cherry tomatoes, bell peppers and onions - wish I had some cucumbers though - I was out of them and in no mood to run down to the grocers just for that on a lazy Saturday morning!

Preparation & Cooking:20 minutes                                     Serves:8

Ingredients:
Pita Pockets - 8
Classic Iceberg Salad Mix - 1 cup
Onion - ½ of a small one, sliced
Cherry Tomatoes - ¼ cup, sliced into halves
Bell Pepper - ½ of a small one, sliced
Black Olives - ¼ cup, sliced into halves
Apple Cider Vinegar - 2 tablespoons
Olive Oil - 3-4 tablespoons
Freshly Cracked Pepper - to taste
Salt - to taste
Roasted Pepper Hummus - 4-5 heaped teaspoons
Left Over Khichdi - 1 cup, approximately
Instant Mashed Potato Flakes - ¼ cup
Soya Granules- 2 heaped tablespoons (I used Nutrela)
Corianer/Dhania Powder - 2 teaspoons
Cumin/Jeera Powder - 1 teaspoon
Dried Mango/Amchur Powder - ½ teaspoon
Red Chilli Powder - ¼ teaspoon
Water - 3-4 tablespoons
Oil/Cooking Spray - to shallow fry the patties

Method:

• Warm the khichdi in the microwave for about a minute.

• Now add the soy granules and instant mashed potato flakes along with the water and a little salt to taste and microwave for a couple of minutes.

• Add in the coriander powder, cumin powder, amchur powder and red chilli powder and mix well to form a firm mixture for the patties.

• Divided the mixture into 8 portions, pat them into patties and shallow fry them in a pan on a medium flame after spreading a little oil or spraying some cooking spray on it.

• After 2-3 minutes, turn them over and cook for another couple of minutes till the patties are crisp and brown on both sides.

•  While the patties are cooking, get started on the veggies. Empty the salad mix into a bowl and add the sliced olives, onions, cherry tomatoes and bell pepper to it.

• In another bowl, take the apple cider vinegar, pepper and salt  and gradually add olive oil while whisking it to make a dressing.

•  Add this dressing to the vegetables and mix well.

• Now take the pita pockets and warm them slightly on the stove top or in a microwave. If using the microwave, wrap the pita pockets in damp paper towels and then proceed.

• Next, spread a heaped teaspoon of the roasted pepper hummus on each of them.

• Now place a patty in each of the pita pockets along the a couple of tablespoons of the vegetables.

Serve them with a side of fries and tomato ketchup for a perfect weekend brunch...

Cheesy Potato Crescent Rolls

Whoever came up with the idea of instant mashed potatoes is a genius! And to think I had never used it until recently, in fact, as recently as hurricane Irene! That is when my husband's cousin introduced me to this wonderful thing :) While stocking up on the emergencies, it seemed like a good idea to get a couple of boxes of potato flakes - we were hunting for non-perishable food. Since the hurricane passed by without too much damage where we live, I was left with a whole box of potato flakes and no idea what to do with them! But once I started using them, I came up with all sorts of recipes to put them in! Last night's post - Vegetable Puffs - was one such recipe.

Today's post is an even bigger hit with whoever has tasted it - except of course hubby dearest, who, believe it or not, hates cheese! I know, I think he is an alien too!

Anyways, to come back to the main topic, today's recipe is cheesy potato rolls. These are blissfully quick and easy to make. The perfect snack when kiddo comes home from school. Also a quick fix for sudden guests and impromptu play dates. I have also made a sweet version of these rolls, but that is for another day and another post...

Preparation & Cooking: 15 minutes             Makes: 8

Ingredients:

Pillsbury Crescent Rolls - 1 tube (I used the original one, you could use any kind)
Instant Mashed Potato Flakes - 4 tablespoons
Peas - 2 tablespoons (I used frozen peas)
Mrs.Dash's Table Blend - 1 teaspoon
Basil Leaves - 2 teaspoons, chopped (optional)
Cream Cheese - 1 tablespoon
Butter - 1 teaspoon
Milk - 1 tablespoon
Sour Cream - 1 teaspoon
Mint-Coriander Chutney - 4 tablespoons
Salt - to taste
Cooking Spray/Oil - for greasing the baking sheet

Method:

• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit (190.5 degrees Celsius). Grease a baking sheet or cover it with some aluminum foil.
• Microwave the mashed potato flakes, peas, Mrs.Dash's Table Blend, salt, butter and milk for 2 minutes.

• Take it out and mix it well, adding the cream cheese, sour cream and chopped basil leaves.

• Roll out the crescent roll wedges and apply some mint-coriander chutney on each of them.

• Place a small amount of the potato filling on each of the dough wedges.

Roll them up and place them on the prepared baking sheets.

• Bake in the oven for about 10 minutes. 

• Once they turn golden brown, take them out of the oven.

Quick and yummy potato rolls are ready to be served.

Handy Tip:

If you don't have Mrs.Dash's Table Blend, you could use any mix of dried spices like pepper, oregano, thyme, rosemary, basil, parsley etc.

You could skip the mint-coriander chutney while making for kids if spice is not tolerated.

Veggie Burger

Most Fridays I try to make something different from the usual rice or roti based menu. This Friday I made Veggie Burgers & Dahi Vada for dinner. I had a fresh batch of mint-coriander chutney that I made that morning. I also had bought these goldfish bread that I was sure my son would love. So, the decision for veggie burgers was a fairly natural one to make. Since the burgers were pretty simple to make and I used the food processor to slice up the vegetables, dinner was an easy thing to put together. It was filling, yet left us feeling light!

Preparation: 30 minutes         Serves: 2

Ingredient:

Sandwich Bun/Bread - 2
Butter - 2 teaspoons
Mint Coriander Chutney - 4 tablespoons
Onion - 1, sliced thin
Tomato - 1, sliced thin
Cucumber - 1, sliced thin
Capsicum - 1, sliced thin
Chaat Masala - 2 tablespoons
Tomato Ketchup

For the patties:
Potatoes - 2, diced

Carrots - ¼ cup, diced

Peas - 2 tablespoons

Beans - ¼ cup, chopped

Coriander (Dhania) Powder - 2 teaspoons

Cumin (Jeera) Powder - 2 teaspoons

Amchur (Dry Mango) Powder - 1 teaspoon

Red Chilli Powder - ½ teaspoon

Nutrella Soy Granules - ¼ cup

Salt - to taste

Oil/Cooking Spray - for shallow frying the patties

Method:

• Marinade the sliced onion, tomato, cucumber and capsicum with the chaat masala.

  

For the Patties:

• Pressure cook all the vegetables for the patties with a little salt till the turn mushy. Let it cool.

• Once they are cool enough to touch, add all the spices and salt along with the soy chunks and mix them together till they form a cohesive mix.

• In a pan, put a little oil/cooking spray, take the vegetable mix, pat them into flat patties and shallow fry them.

• When they get nice and brown on one side, flip them over and cook them on the other side.

• Now, take the bread/bun slices, apply a little butter on each side and toast the outer sides lightly.
• Apply chutney on both sides and lay out a patty on one side. Put the sliced veggies and some ketchup on top. Place the other bread/bun on top.

Serve with some more tomato ketchup.

For my kiddo, I skipped the chutney as it was too spicy and placed a cheese slice on top of the patty. I used the Pepperidge Farm goldfish bread instead of the regular ones I used for us.

Handy Tip: You could use freshly chopped green chillies and coriander (cilantro) in the patty mix. I did not because the chutney was spicy enough, and I did not need any more cilantro.

If the veggie mix feels a little wet, add some dry potato flakes or all purpose flour to absorb the moisture.

If you like, you could also use some lettuce in the bun.

Sending this across to Let's Make Sandwiches event hosted by  Nayna of simply.food
and
Show Me Your HITS-Series#3~Soy Recipes event hosted at Prabha's Cooking.