Vegetable Rolls

I decided to make vegetable puffs but rolled the puff pastry and ended up making vegetable rolls..They tasted good and reminded those we get in bakeries in India..
Here is how I made them..

                 

Ingredients

Puff Pastry
Your choice of vegetables like potato,carrot,green peas,bell peppers etc - A total of two cups when chopped
One small sized onion finely diced
Garlic paste - 1 tbspn
Garam masala - 1 tbspn
Chilli powder - 1 teaspoon
Cumin/Jeera seeds - 1 teaspoon
Salt to taste

Directions

Thaw the puff pastry for half an hour or according to the package instructions..
Boil all the vegetables along with water..Mash them well..
In a vessel take a little oil and splutter the cumin seeds..Add the garlic and onions and saute them for a minute...
Then add the boiled vegetables,chilli powder,garam masala and salt and mix thoroughly..Cook for one more minute..allow the cooked mixture to cool thoroughly.
Dust the counter with some flour and roll out the puff pastry a little with a rolling pin..
Cut the pastry into rectangles or triangles depending on the shape of the puffs or rolls you desire to make..

         

                                  

Place the cooked vegetable mixture and close the puff pastry..
I cut the puff pastry into rectangles and rolled it from one end to form a roll..
Brush the surface of the pastry with a little butter/ghee so that it forms a nice golden - brown crust..
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees for ten minutes..
Bake the puffs for 30 minutes or untill they turn golden brown in colour..
The puffs are ready to be relished..

My first Meme..

This is the first time I am being tagged...Really excited about it..Thanks to Coco of Ambrosia..

Here are the rules for the Meme..
1. Link to your tagger and post these rules.
2. Share 5 facts about yourself.
3. Tag 5 people at the end of your post and list their names (linking to them)
4. Let them know they've been tagged by leaving a comment at their blogs.

Was thinking for a while what to write about me..Here are a few facts my foodie friends do not know about me..

I have never entered the kitchen to cook before my marriage not even to help my mother in cooking..Was really lazy those days..Started cooking Only few months after my marriage when I came here to the US..But now I have developed the passion for cooking and have started experimenting with different cuisines..

I am a very much reserved person..I do not speak much to anyone whom I meet for the first time unless they come and speak to me..I am very sensitive and cry when i get angry..

I love designing mehndhi..I have won many mehndhi competitions in college..

I have a great fear for dogs..

Have learnt playing the guitar when I was at school..

These were the things that came up quickly in my mind when i was thinking what to write about myself..Thanks again Coco..

Now i would like to tag 5 of my friends to share few facts about themselves....
Dhivya from Dhivya's Cuisine
Sagari of Indian Cooking
Uma of Essence of Andhra
Lisa from Lisa's Vegetarian kitchen
Pragyan from Cooking at Pragyan's

Good luck friends!!

Kondakadalai/Garbanzo bean Sundal

I have prepared this sundal with chickpea(bengal variety)..They are not the normal white coloured ones..They are dark brown coloured..I got this at the Indian store..Back at home we had this sundal along with curd rice..It tastes really delicious..Serves as a healthy snack too..

Here are some facts about this legume from Wikipedia..The chickpea, chick pea, garbanzo bean, Indian pea, ceci bean, bengal gram, hummus, kadale kaalu (Kannada), sanaga pappu (Telugu), chana or channa (Cicer arietinum) is an edible legume (English "pulse") of the family Fabaceae, subfamily Faboideae. The garbanzo is often used as a source of protein by vegetarians and vegans since it has one of the highest protein levels of all plants.Chickpeas are a helpful source of zinc, folate and protein.They are also very high in dietary fiber and hence a healthy source of carbohydrates for persons with insulin sensitivity or diabetes. Chickpeas are low in fat and most of this is polyunsaturated.

Did you know that India stands first in the production of chickpeas?

Ok..Here is how I prepared the sundal..It is a quick dish too..

                    


Ingredients

Black chickpea - 2 cups
Grated coconut - 1/2 cup
Mustard seeds - 1 teaspoon
Urad dhall - 1 teaspoon
Red chillies - 3 to 4 or according to your taste
Onion - 1 medium sized
Ginger - 1 inch, finely chopped
Oil for tempering
Salt to taste

Directions


Soak the chickpeas overnight or atleast 5 hours..
Pressure cook them with enough water until you get 3 whistles.
In a vessel add some oil and allow the mustard seeds and urad dhall to splutter..Then add the finely chopped ginger and onions and saute them until they turn transparent..
Add the red chillies and salt..Now add this mixture to the cooked chickpeas and mix well..Also add the grated coconut and garnish with cilantro..
Now the sundal is ready to be enjoyed...
This can be quickly prepared and taken out for picnics..Hence I am sending this off to Travel Food Festival hosted by Simple Indian food..

                                      

Egg Plant/Brinjal Curry

I have an aversion to eggplants..So I use them only in preparing sambhars..My husband suggested this recipe and I tried it yesterday..It tasted really good..We had it with chapathis and it tastes good with pulao and ghee rice too..

                      

Grind the following Ingredients

 1 medium sized onion
 3 pods of garlic
 Cilantro and curry leaves a few sprigs
 1 tomato medium sized
 3 green chillies
 Turmeric powder, a pinch
 Chilly powder 1 teaspoon
 Cinnamon, cloves and cardamom

Preparation 
 
Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in pressure cooker and fry a big sized sliced onion..Then, add around 8 to 10 cut small brinjals or 3 large eggplants..
After frying for 2 minutes, add the ground paste and fry for a minute.
Now add 1 tablespoon coriander powder and 1/2 teaspoon Jeera/Cumin seeds powder and salt, keep frying for a minute.
Take care to add a tablespoon of water if it gets sticky when frying the above.
Now, close the cooker and leave the cooker to give one whistle.

In the end after opening the cooker, add a tablespoon of beaten curd and add some chopped coriander leaves.

The dish is ready to serve....Enjoy !

This goes off to Vegetable Of the Week - Brinjal hosted by Pooja..

Corn-Peas Cheese Pulao

This is my new invention..trying out a rice on my own..It turned out really well..Here is how I prepared it..

                  

Ingredients

Basmati rice - 2 cups
Peas - 1 cup
Corn - 1/2 cup
Cumin/Jeera seeds - 1 teaspoon
Onion(medium sized) - 1
Green chilli - 2
Cinnamon - 1 teaspoon
Bay leaf -1
Cardamom - 2
Cloves - 2
Ginger Garlic paste - 1 tablespoon
Ghee -3 tablespoons
Cashews - 4
Grated cheese - 1/2 cup
Mint,coriander leaves for garnishing

Directions

Wash the rice and soak it in water for 20 minutes to half an hour..
In a pressure cooker add ghee and roast the cashews..then add all the spices(cumin seeds,cinnamon,bay leaf,cardamom,cloves,mint leaves) and saute for two minutes till all the flavor comes out..Add the sliced onions and fry till they become translucent..Also add the ginger-garlic paste and green chillies..After they get cooked add the green peas and corn..Then add the soaked rice and mix them together..Add salt to taste..Add 4 cups water and  cook until 3 whistles..After the pressure releases add the grated cheese and garnish with coriander leaves..If you do not like to add cheese add half cup of ghee..
This rice can be served with any kind of raita..

This entry goes to Meeta's Monthly Mingle - One Dish Dinners

And also to Srivalli's Rice Mela

Ribbon murukku

This is a good tea time snack and can be munched on any time..It does not need much earlier preparation..It was prepared by my mom and packed while I went to hostel..Here is how I made it..

                            

Ingredients

Rice flour - 2 cups
Besan/Gram flour - 1 cup
Chilli powder - 2 teaspoons
Butter - 3 spoons
Salt to taste
Oil for frying

Directions

Mix the rice flour,gram flour,chilli powder,salt and butter with a little water,one spoon at a time..Mix them thoroughly until you get a flexible lump of dough..It should not be too watery or too dry..

                                       
                                              
Using the murukku press squeeze the mixture directly into piping hot oil..After two minutes,flip it on to the other side..Once they turn golden brown remove them from the oil and drain them on paper towels..
They are ready to munch on..

                                      

Bulgur Upma

Bulgur or Daliya is a cereal made from several different wheat species..It is more nutritious than rice..It serves as a quick breakfast..The preparation is almost similar to the Rava Upma but it tastes a little different..



Ingredients

Bulgur - 1 cup
Onion - 1/2 finely diced
Carrot - 1
Green peas - 1/4 cup
Corn (optional) - 1/4 cup
Cashews
Ginger - 1/2 inch finely chopped
Butter or ghee - 2 tbspns
Mustard and Urad dhall for tempering
Salt to taste

Directions

Melt the butter in a saucepan and roast the cashews..Then splutter the mustard seeds and urad dhall.Then add the onions and ginger and saute them..Once they become translucent add the vegetables and salt..You can add any veggies you like..Once they get half cooked,add two cups water and bring to a boil..Then add the bulgur and cook for 2 to 3 minutes or until the water evaporates..garnish with cilantro..
Serve with pickles or chutney of your choice..

this goes off to Weekend Herb Blogging hosted this week by Kochtopf...
and also to Suganya s Weekend Breakfast Blogging(WBB) - Healthy Eats