Meen puttu

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Preparation Time : 20 minutes

Cooking Time : 12-15 minutes

Serving : 3-4 members

Description

Fish puttu or Meen puttu as known to the world . This is an authentic dish very own to the chettiar community of Tamil Nadu .there is another Meen puttu from Kerala , where they make rice flour puttu with fish filling along with grated coconut and steam . I used to get confused a lot about these two same named dishes .  The culinary secrets from the home kitchens of various communities from across the country really thrills me . I have heard a lot about this tamil nadu meen puttu dish but never tried it out thinking it might smell fishy as we have to shred the fish . I did take note of this recipe from madhur Jeffrey’s flavours of India programme from the telly . On a shopping sphere to chennai for my daughters engagement , landed up in viruthunagar restaurant in T. Nagar for lunch .every one ordered what ever they wanted . My girls father – in – law ordered Meen puttu . Me being obsessed with food ,  have a habit of tasting  every dish on the table . Gave it a try and it was an absolute winner . From then on Meen puttu has become a staple at home . This recipe is the authentic one but at times I do swap peeled , grated raw green mangoes instead of lime juice  , which tastes equally good . Never ever under estimate any thing until and unless you have given it a try .

Ingredients

Ingredients
Quantity
Fish bones and skin removed1/4 kg ( shark , tuna or sheer fish )
Salt to taste
Turmeric powder1/4 teaspoon
Waterenough to boil the fish

Method

  1. Cook cleaned fish with the above mentioned ingredients .
  2. Sherd the fish and set aside .

Other ingredients

ingredients
Quantity
Coconut oil 5 tablespoon
Cinnamon1 inch piece
Fennel seeds1-4 teaspoon
Small onion1 1/2 cup crushed
Ginger 1/4 inch piece grated
Garlic 4 flakes crushed
Green chillies 8 or more crushed ( I use 12 as I like my food really hot )
Curry leaves few
Coconut grated 1/ 2 cup
Lime juice1/2 lime or more to taste
Coriander leaves few chopped
Salt to taste

To proceed

  1. Heat oil in a kadai . Add cinnamon , fennel seeds and curry leaves . Once they crackle add small onions , green chillies , ginger and garlic .
  2. Sauté to brown .Add the shredded fish adding salt to taste . Lower the flame and sauté for 8 minutes covered , until all the flavours are infused together .
  3. Top with the grated coconut , lime juice and stir well .Taste and adjust . Garnish with chopped coriander leaves . Serve hot as a side dish .

Cornflakes crusted fish fry

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Preparation Time : 15 minutes + half an hour marination time

Cooking Time : 5-6 minutes for each batch deep fried

Serving : 3-4 members

Description

Corn flakes fish. A recipe icame across in food satellite tv channai where chef harpel singn demonstrated this recipe. This dish makes a welcome change from the usual fish fries . This recipe is for keeps . I make another similar dish with cornflakes and chicken (recipe already posted in the name of cornflakes chicken ) a few days after I took note of this recipe , I took part in a cooking competition where we had to cook dishes made out of fish. This was one among the four dishes l cooked for the competition . It was great fun at the competition , I felt like a collage girl (not been to collage though :-))) ) this picture wad also taken at the competition . One suggestion , in case you want to save this fish fry for the next day , I recon not to use curd as the curd tends to give a very old curd small to the fish . A fool proof dish to make kids eat fish saying its chicken . Best served as a lazy sunday brunch in front of the telly with a choice of dips .   Seduce yourself and all others with this impressive , captive appetiser .

Ingredients

Ingredients
Quantity
Bone less fish 1/4 kg cut into thin board slices
Chilli powder 1/2 teaspoon full
Turmeric powder 1/4 teaspoon
Curd 1 tablespoon
Salt to taste
Curry leaves 5 chopped
Mustard seeds1/4 teaspoon
Green chillies 1 big chopped into tiny bits
Oil 1 teaspoon + to deep fry
Cornflakes3 heaped cups
Corn flour1 1/2 tablespoon
Maida1 1/2 tablespoon

Method

  1. Heat 1 teaspoon of oil . add mustard seeds , green chillies and curry leaves . once they splutter . cool . Marinate cleaned fish in curd ,
  2. chilli powder , salt , turmeric powder and the spluttered ingredients . Toss well and set aside for half an hour . Make a batter with cornflour , maida and salt to taste of thick consistency like bajji batter .
  3. Dip each slice of marinated fish in this batter and press towards the cornflakes placed on tray . Do the same turning the fish over . Follow and do the same to all the remaining fish pieces .
  4. ( I follow till this point and refrigerate the cornflakes coated fish pieces and fry when ever required ) heat oil to deep fry . Lower the flame to medium heat and deep fry 6 pieces at a time for one minute on each side of the fish To golden brown . Make sure not to burn the cornflakes .
  5. Drain and serve hot with any dip of your choice . I love it with garlic mayonnaise . incase you want to fry the fish next day , substitute curd with lime juice

Deconstructed egg pudding

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Preparation Time :  20 minutes

Cooking Time : 15 minutes + 3 hours to set the pudding in the freezer

Serving : 6-8 members

Description

I always am awe struck with the term deconstructing a dish as you have to be a genius to do so . As I know I have nothing to do with being a genius nor these high end dishes will not be appreciated in the table at home . I never attempt to do such stuff in my kitchen  . But watching chef Heston Blumenthal in the telly having so much fun with his deconstructed version of food . I shock myself and made up my mind to do some thing in a small way at least . Well being inspired is important but getting to practise the inspiration is the way to do things and better your self isn’t it . Having such thoughts in mind still didn’t get the nervousness out of me . The guilt in me with the comfort zone that I created for myself was the obstacle to be broken here. I just put aside this guilt in me , cheating myself . Whiling my time away watching the telly as usual , I get to see chef Rachel Allen do an easy dessert with peaches that looked fantastic and was so very much like an egg in appearance . I hastily transcribed the recipe from the show on the telly to my stained hand written recipe note  book. Gave this pudding a try when my daughter and son – in – law were home on a holiday . Every one were like ” why are you serving eggs after dinner ” ? I just smiled and asked them to taste . The first mouth full , every one had raised eye brows and loved it to bits . They sure did like the trick played on them about the deconstructing part . So my quest on taking a hand in my kitchen playing with food like chef Heston Blumenthal was done through chef Rachel Allen’s simple recipe . The inspiration drawn from one chef and accomplished through another chef . Wired but done any ways .

Ingredients

Ingredients
Quantity
Butter1/4 teaspoon to grease
Cream2 cups
Tinned peaches 1 tin ( 500 gm )
Water1 cup
Vanilla essencefew drops
Vegetarian gelatine 6 tablespoons
Sugar to taste

Other things needed

Individual pudding bowls – few
Cling film

Method

  1. Grease all the individual pudding bowls with oil spray or butter . Line each greased pudding bowl with cling film pressing towards the bowl and leaving 1/2 inch of the cling film above the pudding bowl ( this helps to remove the cling film easily before serving the pudding ) .
  2. strain the tinned peaches . Reserve the syrup from the tinned peaches . place 1/2 whole pitted tinned peach cut side facing up in the bottom of the cling film lined pudding bowl .
  3. Add one cup of water and sugar to taste to the peach syrup . Bring to boil and dissolve the sugar . Microwave 3 tablespoons of vegetarian gelatine with 2 tablespoons of the sugar syrup for 30 seconds to dissolve and watery .
  4. Cool a little and add to the peach sugar syrup and mix well . Pour over the peach in the pudding bowl just enough to cover the peach .
  5. Place in the freezer for one hour to set . Mix cream , sugar to taste and vanilla essence together and heat in low flame to dissolve the sugar .
  6. Do not boil . Microwave 3 tablespoons of vegetarian gelatine with 2 tablespoons of water for 30 seconds to dissolve and watery . Cool a bit and add to the cream mixture .
  7. Pour this cream mixture over the set peach jelly in each individual pudding bowl to 1/2 inch thick . Place in the freezer to set for another 2 hours .
  8. Once set re – place in the refrigerator until to be served . Just before serving , invert the pudding over a plate , remove the pudding bowl . Peel off the cling film and serve chilled .

Keema kofta stuffed snake guard gravy

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Preparation Time : 35 minutes

Cooking Time : 20-25 minutes

Serving : 8 members

Description

Kheema kofta stuffed snake guard . The first prize winning dish in sauté, fry n bakes second  anniversary recipe swap event . This dish was brought by Hamidha shabeer all the way from tirupur to Coimbatore for the event . What do I start with the creator of the dish or the dish ??? Well first the creator then the dish I guess . Hamidha shabeer is a far relative of mine whom I meet at family gatherings and all we do is exchange a hello and and a smile . It’s sauté , fry n bake that has let me get to know her more as a person and what a good mother and cook she is . This recipe is an ancestral  recipe of her family that has been passed down from her grand mother to her mother and from her mother to her now . The gravy was  creamy , subtle and flavoured perfectly with oil floating on top ( that’s a good sign to a perfectly cooked curry ) . The koftas were moist , melt in the mouth and packed with flavours infusing the aroma of the curry into it as well . The art of blending individual spices and flavours has been done in a light and wholesome way . In total a heavenly marriage that hits you at the right spot . A fusion of basic with the exotic . I just wish I had taken a better picture that day . My instincts did tell me that this is the winning dish . I was lucky enough to relish the left overs of this gravy for dinner as well . I feel   Privileged   to give you all an opportunity to learn and try this ancient recipe that has been handed down from one generation to the next , hoping this cherished family recipe will continue to be enjoyed by future generation .

Ingredients for the koftas

Ingredients
Quantity
Mutton keema1/2 kg
Shallots8
Ginger 1/2 inch piece
Garlic pods6
Green chillies 6
Coriander leaves3 tablespoons
Roasted Bengal gram dhal 3 tablespoons
Coconut grated 2 tablespoons
Turmeric powder1/2 teaspoon
Salt to taste
Cardamom , cloves , cinnamon2 each
Snake guard( thin , long variety ) 1

Method for koftas

  1. Grind all the above ingredients together except for the snack guard in a blender without adding water .
  2. Scrape the skin of the snake guard and cut into 2 inch cylinders .
  3. Deseed them . Stuff the ground keema into each snake guard cylinder and pack tightly and Set aside .

Ingredients for gravy

Ingredients
Quantity
Big onions 2 chopped finely
Cardamom , clove , cinnamon2 each
Ginger garlic paste2 teaspoon
Red chilli powder1 teaspoon
Coriander powder 2 teaspoon
Turmeric powder1/2 teaspoon
Tomatoes3
Oil 2 tablespoons

Ingredients To grind

Ingredients
Quantity
Coconut 4 tablespoons
Cashew nuts6
Fennel seeds 1/2 teaspoon
Poppy seeds 1/4 teaspoon

Method for gravy

  1. Heat oil in a board vessel adding the whole spices letting them to splutter . Add onions and fry to translucent .
  2. Top with ginger garlic paste and fry until raw smell vanishes . Add red chilli powder , turmeric powder , tomatoes and sauté until oil separates .
  3. Add one cup of water and boil to take away the raw smell . Add ground coconut masala paste and boil to thicken until desired consistency .
  4. (Semi loose will be fine as we have to boil the keema stuffed snake guard in it ) slowly drop the keema stuffed snack guards into the boiling gravy and cook until the keema is tender .
  5. Garnish with chopped coriander greens . Serve hot with ghee rice ,pulaos , rotis , parata’s of your choice .

Chicken stuffed pleated doughnuts

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Preparation Time : 45 minutes

Cooking Time : 20 minutes

Serving : 6 – 8 members

Description

Chicken stuffed pleated doughnuts . A picture tutorial that I came across in the world wide net that caught my attention immediately as this snack looked so innovative and new with an inspiring idea . Saved the image and googled the water marked name in the saved picture for the recipe . Got the recipe , saved it and gave a try one fine day following the recipe religiously . I had too many obstacles to cross with the original recipe on my first try so my second try tweaked the recipe of the dough , stuffing and method a little  to my comfort zone but with stealing the idea of this innovative snack  as before in an elegant way . The previous had a bread texture as the recipe demanded for yeast in the dough but my version has no yeast so it tastes more like a pie crust pastry . This tweak gave a whole new dimension to the snack that was worth the try and totally justified the effort put in . I enjoy playing around with recipes and ingredients . Served it , surprisingly was an instant hit   and a family favourite now . While on the table , there was an argument going on about naming this dish from chicken vada to pleated vada to chicken stuffed doughnuts . I just jumbled up all the names suggested together to get this name finally .  This did remind me about choosing names for my children when they were new born :-)) . I was just particular about one thing was my kids should have their names starting with the alphabet “A” . No particular reason but it just happened that way . A few months back I did receive a picture from my friend Sindhu Krishna that was about an interview in a Malayalam magazine on her elder daughter  aahana  ( who is a Malayalam movie star ) with some thing written in Malayalam . Me not knowing what was written was dead curious and later found out that. It was about our trio friends ( Sindhu , sulu and myself ) making a promise as kids in boarding school that we name each of our eldest child with the alphabet “A” . Sindhus eldest daughter is aahana , sulus eldest son is abid and my eldest one Anisha  :-)) . Well I don’t remember this incident or promise but it did happen that way :-)) . The liberty of naming is a joy for sure .

Ingredients for the cover

Ingredients
Quantity
Flour / maida 250 grams
Saltto taste
Oil 1/2 cup
Waterenough to get a smooth dough

Method

  1. Combine flour and salt together . Add oil and mix well .
  2. Sprinkle water little by little and knead to get a smooth dough and Set aside.

Ingredients for chicken filling

Ingredients
Quantity
Boneless chicken 1/4 kg
Ginger garlic paste 1/4 teaspoon each
Saltto taste
Turmeric powder1/4 teaspoon
Onions5 big chopped
Green chillies 4 chopped
Mixed vegetables - carrots , beans , cabbage , green peas chopped and boiled in water with salt 1 cup
Mint leaves few
Coriander leaves one hand chopped
Pepper powder to taste
Oil 2 tablespoons

Method for chicken filling

  1. Pressure cook cleaned chicken , salt , turmeric powder , ginger garlic paste and little water for one whistle .
  2. Bring to boil and Reduce the water . Cool completely and shred the chicken to treads ( I run it in the food processor for a second ) .
    Heat oil in a non stick board pan . Add onions and fry to translucent .
  3. Add green chilies , boiled chopped mixed vegetables , shredded chicken , mint leaves , coriander leaves , salt and pepper to taste .
    Mix well and lower the flame and keep stirring for 3 minutes letting all the flavours infuse together .
  4. Remove from heat , cool and set aside .

How to proceed

  1. Roll lemon sized balls out of the dough. Roll each dough ball into slightly thick discs .
  2. place the cooled chicken stuffing about one tablespoon full over each rolled disc to a ring pattern in the middle leaving a small circle empty in the centre of each disc . ( refer to picture tutorial ) .
  3. Take the edge part of the disc and bring it towards the empty centre and press firmly making sure it’s stuck to the centre.
  4. Do the same through out the edge of the disc to get a pleated effect doughnut . Insert your last tiny finger from underneath of the empty centre to make a round hole to get a doughnut shape .
  5. Do the same with all the round discs and chicken stuffing . Now carefully deep fry the chicken pleated droughts in batches in medium hot oil to a golden brown colour . Drain and serve hot with tomato ketchup .

Irani samosa

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Preparation Time : 20 minutes

Cooking Time : 8 minutes

Serving : 5 – 6 members

Description

Irani samosa . A dish which lalitha Varatharajan had got along with her self for the recipe swap get together for the first anniversary of sauté , fry n bake celebration . A vegetarian delight , so simple to make and high in taste . I had to allow plenty of stomach room for experimentation that day and just had a bite of each dish to taste but could not stop with a bite on these Irani samosas … Ended up gobbling one . At times savoury treats are a refreshing alternative to sweet ones.the samosas got the sweetness of the poha , the crunchiness of the onions and a subtle citrus tang from the lime juice . This dish won the second prize in the recipe swap event .more than it being remembered for its taste … And second prize .. it sure will be remembered for the enthusiasm and high sprits  lalitha had that day . We ladies just freaked out and were our true own selves that day . Well .. Lalitha and myself are gym mates , that’s where I got to meet her first . Now we are very close friends for another main reason being , her elder two sons are studying in good shepherd international school , Ooty were I did my schooling :-)) . She did get me a glass pie dish as a surprise gift for crossing the 2000 likes in  sauté , fry n bake and our bonding is getting stronger and stronger day by day :-))

 Ingredients Name

Ingredients
Quantity
spring roll sheetsas need
onlions chopped1 cup
pressed rice or poha1 cup
chat masala1/2 ( half teaspoon)
chilli powder1/2 teaspoon
coriander leaves1 banch chopped
cumin powder1/2 teaspoon
lemon juice1 teaspoon
green chilly3 number chopped
oilto deep fry
saltas need

Method

  1. Take a bowl add chopped onions and the same quantity of poha along with chilli powder,cumin powder,chat masala,coriander leaves,green chilly and mix well.
  2. In a small bowl add 1tsp of Maida mix with some water and make a paste, keep a side.
  3. Now take one springroll sheet and make a cone,put onion and poha mixture inside this cone,
  4. Apply littlebit Maida mixture and paste it.In a pan add oil to deep fryFirst half fry the samosas,and remove , then after 5 minutes fry again till golden colour.
  5. Fry it in medium flame not hot oil. Do not fry in hot oil.

Note

  1. We add same amount of poha equal to onions .This helps to absorb the moister in the chopped onions .This is very famous in HYDERABAD.

 

Masala potatoes stuffed mirchi wada bajji

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Preparation Time : 30 minutes

Cooking Time : 10 minutes

Serving : 5- 6 members

Description

Masala potatoes stuffed mirchi wada bajji . One afternoon , woke up from a deep sleep hearing a loud thunder and was surprised to see it was raining .seeing the rains didn’t have the heart to go to bed again . After a long , cruel summer you just cant wait to welcome the monsoons . Admiring the first showers  of that season , my tongue craved for some milagai / mirchhi bajji ,potato bonda and ulunthu wada which are a match made in monsoon heaven .  But my laziness was not letting me get into the kitchen . Finally just pushed the lazy bugger out of me and walked straight into the kitchen . Started of prepping  for all the mentioned snakes but my pantry didn’t have chick pea flour , could not sent some one to buy it because it was raining heavily . Having no other option ( as i wanted to eat these feel good favourites with the magic of rain) I just made up my mind to stuff the mirchi’s with the potato filling and dip them with the ulunthu wada batter . I had my doubts if the batter would stick to the glossy mirchi skin so I steamed the potato stuffed mirchi’s for 5 minutes and then dipped in the ulunthu wada batter and deep fried them .As these treats were getting deep fried in hot oil , the rains were slowing down and I was like uff  , my laziness took away so much time … Or else I should have enjoyed these fried treats seeing the rains .   The mirchi wada bajji were perfect in shape , colour , crispness and taste . The beauty of these classics is that they never fail to please and tweaking the tired and true is exciting too .  Took it out to my foyer , sitting on the floor with these hot treats and a cup of hot masala ginger tea , admiring the wet floor and the plants in my garden all washed and fresh after the showers with the smell of mud  sinking into me but incomplete with out the rains .after a few bites of these wickedly cleaver treat that hits the right spot  and gulps of tea … It started raining again … A very happy me as whats more reassuring than these comfort fare ,  fried treats and a hot cup of masala chai when it’s  pouring .

Stuffing ingredients

ingredients
Quantity
boiled , peeled and mashed potatoes 2 cups
fresh coriander leaves2 tablespoons chopped
onion 1 chopped
salt to taste
grated ginger 1/4 teaspoon
Chilli powder1 teaspoon
Turmeric powder1/4 teaspoon
Lime juice a squeeze

To prepare the Stuffing

  1. Pressure cook the potatoes, till soft. Peel the skin & mash the potatoes finely in a bowl.
  2. Add fresh coriander leaves, red chilly powder , turmeric powder , grated ginger , salt and lime juice .
  3. Mix it well & keep aside.Spicy stuffing is ready..!

Ingredients for Wada batter

Ingredients
Quantity
Urad Dal / Ulunthu paruppu1 cup
Rice flour1 tablespoon
Saltto taste

Method for vadais

  1. Wash and soak urad dal for 1.5 hours. Strain the water.
  2. Grind urad dal to a smooth paste in a grinder by sprinkling water little by little. It took 15 minutes to grind 1 cup of urad dal.
  3. Use very very little water. Grind it till urad dal turns soft and fluffy.
  4. Add salt and rice flour to the urad dal mixture and mix well to a  thick bajji batter consistency and keep aside .

Other ingredients

ingredients
Quantity
Mirchi /bajji milagai5 to 6
Oilto deep fry

How to proceed

  1. Wash and dry the green mirchi / bajji milagai. Take a mirchi , make a slit lengthwise in the middle, keeping the ends intact.
  2. Scoop out the seeds with a knife or spoon leaving the insides clean for the stuffing.Now stuff the mirchi ‘s with the potato mixture.
  3. Fill in the gap of each mirchi with the potato stuffing and keep them on a greased steaming plate and steam for 5 minutes for the mirchi skin to soften . ( I used my idli steamer ) cool completely .
  4. Heat oil to deep fry . Dip the stuffed mirchi’s one by one into the wada batter coating them well on all sides and drop them gently into hot oil.
  5. Deep fry until golden, turning constantly.Deep fry 2-3 wadas at a time.
  6. Drain and remove them on absorbent paper. Serve hot with coconut green chilly chutney or tomato sauce and a cup of hot masala ginger tea .

Cater pillar roll

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Preparation Time : 1 hour + 20 minutes

Cooking Time : 18-20 minutes

Serving : 6 members

Description

Carter pillar roll . I have noticed that most  of my recent posts usually start off with ramblings about my family, memories, events and sometimes even about nutritional values of certain  ingredients. But today I am going to deviate a tad from the beaten path and instead I am just going to focus on the story of how i got to bake this stuffed bread and over came my fear about breads and baking .  The first time ever I got to see and taste these sort of stuffed rolls were in Coimbatore as a kid in J. M ENGLISH BAKERY . Those days it was the happening place in and around Coimbatore . Whenever I saw  these cater pillar rolls on the display counter , juicy and warm , I got this hunger pang attack my tummy simply and start rumbling non stop . I used to wonder how they got the filling inside and the striped effect over the roll . Never ever in my dreams did I think I would end up baking these myself !!! With such a drool-worthy presentation, this dish is apt for any special occasion . Sounds delicious already right? – slurp! I know – lets continue…was dead nervous about baking bread .. But to my surprise the bread was moist , soft , light and better than any bread I have tasted till date and helped me over come my fear of baking breads and gain more confidence .    Now a’int that something delectable and mouth-watering? …So why wait – get cooking!!! Good luck peeps :-))
Oops , sorry to have bugged you all once again with my memories ….

Ingredients For the filling

Ingredients
Quantity
Minced lamb / chicken ¼ kg
medium sized onion2 chopped
Chilly powder 1 teaspoon
Pepper powder1/4 teaspoon
Cumin powder1/4 teaspoon
Turmeric powder1/4 teaspoon
Ginger and garlic paste1/ 4 teaspoon each
Coriander leaveschopped few
Salt to taste

 Method for filling

  1. In a pressure cooker put the minced meat and the rest of the spices .let it cook up to two whistles . heat oil ,
  2. Sauté the chopped onions to translucent . Add the cooked minced meat and cook to dry .
  3. Taste and adjust seasoning . Garnish with coriander leaves . Cool completely and set aside .

Ingredients

Ingredients
Quantity
All-purpose flour2 cups
Warm milk3/4 cup
Instant yeast1 teaspoon
Baking powdera pinch
Sugar1/2 teaspoon
Salt1 teaspoon
Egg1 - lightly beaten and divided in half
Melted butter1 tablespoon
Oil2 tablespoon
Milk powder1 tablespoon

Instructions

  1. Sieve the flour, then add milk powder, baking powder, sugar, yeast and salt.  Then add the oil, butter and half the egg (reserve the other half for brushing the bread later) and mix together.  Now add the milk gradually whilst kneading.
  2. You might not need it all, so add it sparingly until your dough is nice and soft.  If more milk is needed to get a soft dough consistency, warm a little more and use.  Knead for a good 8-10 minutes.  The more you knead the softer the bread results will be.
  3. Touch a bit of oil with your fingertips and apply all over the ball of dough. Cover in a bowl and set aside for 40 mins to an hour for it to double in size.
  4.  Divide the dough into 5 sections. Start rolling each one into an oval/rectangular shape, about quarter inch or less thickness.
  5. Brush with butter, then cut strips about a third of the way into the oval on one of the longer sides of the rolled out dough.
  6. Add your filling on the opposite side of where the strips have been cut. Fold the dough over the filling to enclose it, then roll gently all the way to the end.
  7. The strips will cover the top of the bun and give a pretty finish. Try and pinch the ends of the strips under the dough so they do not unfurl or open up during baking.
  8. Place on a greased tray and repeat with the rest of the balls of dough. Cover with a light kitchen towel and allow the buns to rest for about 30 minutes to allow them to expand again slightly.
  9. When ready to bake, preheat the oven at 180 C. Brush the remaining half egg over the bread and sprinkle sesame seeds. Bake for about 18-20 minutes or until the buns are done and golden.
  10. Remove and brush them with some butter, keep them covered with a kitchen towel to retain their softness until time for serving.

Notes

  1. The filling can be made with veggies , cheese , paneer , fish , prawn or anything to your taste .
    Sweet fillings can also be used for the sweet version .
  2. Store the cater pillar roll in the refrigerator in an air tight container and steam – microwave before serving for a minute . Best served and had on the day made and can be stored for the next day not more than that .
  3. This is the best ever bread recipe I have come across and I follow it for any recipe that demands to bake bread … So peeps don’t forget to book mark the bread recipe .

3 Coloured stacked up sandwich

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Preparation Time : 20 minutes

Cooking Time : 2 minutes

Serving: one person

Description

3 colour stacked up sandwich . My maternal uncle shanu ( who is younger to me , I know it sounds wired but that’s the fact ) had come home for a days visit . He had to leave early morning by seven o clock the next day . Not wanting him to leave with out having his breakfast . Got in to the kitchen and went ahead with the regular idli , dosa , kuli Paniyaram schedule . But wanting to impress him with something new That would leave a mark in his memory . Having very little time , had to come up with a quick and easy recipe . Went strait to my refrigerator and just gazed at the available ingredients inside . Took out a few that would work together and made up my mind to make a sandwich but a bite size one as I had only four slices of bread and one egg  in hand . Prepared all the wanted ingredients and just stacked them up together to get an awesome , vibrant , colourful looking sandwich packed with so much character and taste . The marinated three coloured peppers and the green pesto add complexity and made  it all the more flavourful . The sandwich was ready in a flash and is apt for on the run meals , work lunch and  for kids to school that makes a welcome change from the usual . my uncle was all praises about the sandwich and my quest of a new dish with limited amount of time and things available in my pantry made my day .

Ingredients

Ingredients
Quantity
White Bread slices4 large (cut into bite size cubes )
Cheese slice2 cut into bite size cubes equal to the bread cubes ( optional )
Salt to taste
Omeletmade with one beaten egg and cut into even bite size cubes like the bread
Capsicumgreen
yellow and red1 each cut into even size cubes equal to the bread bite size cubes
Vinegar1/4 teaspoons
Sugar 1/4 teaspoon
Mayonnaise 2 tablespoons
Tomato sauce2 tablespoons
Olives or cherriesto garnish
Tooth pickto serve

Ingredients for the green pesto

Ingredients
Quantity
olive oil2 tablespoons
garlic 2 flakes
fresh basil leaves ( tulsi leaves ) 5
Coriander leaves 1/4 cup
Parmesan cheese2 tablespoon
Green chillies2 or to taste
pine nuts1 tablespoons
butter1 tablespoon
Salt and pepperto taste

Method

  1. To make the pesto , Grind all the ingredients together in a food processor to a chunky texture and set aside .
  2. Marinate the red , yellow and green capsicums / pepper cubes  in vinegar, sugar and salt to taste   and Set aside .
  3. Mix mayonnaise and tomato sauce together and set aside .

To assemble the sandwich

  1. Toast bread slices in butter to a golden brown colour  . Spread the green pesto on one side of a toasted bread cube .
  2. Place a piece of omelet cube , top with cheese slice  cube , place green capsicum cube over and  place another  slice of toasted bread with tomato mayonnaise applied side facing towards the green capsicum.
  3. Top with pesto on the other side of the bread cube , place with yellow pepper cube , omelet cube and  cheese slice cube .
  4. Then place a bread slice applied with tomato mayonnaise applied side facing down towards the yellow capsicum , apply green pesto over , top with omelet cube , cheese slice cube and do the same by repeating the layer with red capsicum slice .
  5. Making sure bread is the final layer . Insert a tooth pick and top the tooth pick with whole olive or cherrie and serve .

Notes

  1. You can use mint chutney mixed with mayonnaise instead of green pesto sauce .
  2. Vegetarians avoid the omelet and you get the veggie version .

Threaded paneer rolls

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Preparation Time : 30 minutes

Cooking Time : 25 minutes

Serving : 6 members

Description

Threaded paneer rolls . A recipe I came across in cooking and more monthly magazine run by tarla Dalal . The picture of these indo – Chinese  threaded paneer rolls were on the cover of the magazine and the second I saw it , wanted to try it strait away but not having flat noodles in my pantry nor was it available at my place . Had to wait until I got hold of flat noodles . Finally gave it a shot and it was crispy and crunchy , perfect to be had with a relish on a wet , cold rainy day . This complex blend of two different culinary traditions create pomp and drama on your table . Perk it up with assorted sauces served along . These sort of home made appetiser preparations presented beautifully are perfect finger food any time of the day or night . All you have to do is stock these in your refrigerator and fry them when ever needed and up lift your mood ….

Ingredients

Ingredients
Quantity
Crumbled paneer 1 1/2 cups
Boiled , peeled and mashed potatoes1/2 cup
Grated garlic2 teaspoons
Chilli powder 1 teaspoon
Tomato ketchup 1 tablespoon
Corn flour1 teaspoon
Salt to taste
Boiled flat noodles 1/2 cup
Oil to deep fry

Method

  1. Combine the paneer , chilli powder , potatoes , garlic , tomato ketchup , corn flour and salt in a bowl and mix well .
  2. Divide the mixture into 16 equal portions and shape each portion into a 37 mm (1 1/2 ” ) long cylindrical roll .
  3. Wrap some flat noodles around each roll . Heat oil in a wok to deep fry .
  4. Deep fry few at a time , till they turn golden brown in colour from all the sides .
  5. Drain on adsorbent paper . Serve hot with schezuan sauce .

Notes

  1. Dip the cylindrical rolls into a thick batter made with equal amounts of corn flour , maida , salt to taste and little water .
  2. Then wrap the boiled flat noodles so they stick to the rolls easily . I did it this way as it was extremely difficult to just roll as mentioned in the original recipe .
  3. I made the cylindrical roll with left over chicken cutlet mixture and it tasted perfect .
  4. Ensure that the flat noodles are boiled along their whole length , so they can be wrapped around the paneer mix easily .
  5. Swap paneer for crumbled tofu to make the rolls a little more Chinese in taste and style