Tofu Tikka

Ingredients 

1 box firm tofu
1/2 bunch of coriander leaves
1 green chilli
1 inch piece of ginger
1 tsp of garam masala
1/2 cup yogurt
salt to taste
2 tbsp oil

Steps to follow

1. Completely drain and cut the tofu in cubes.
2. Blend together coriander, green chillies and ginger with very little water.
3. In a large mixing bowl add the above ground paste, yogurt, garam masala and salt and mix it to a smooth consistency.
4. Gently fold in the tofu and let it marinate for at least a couple of hours.
5. Heat oil in a pan and add the marinated tofu. Keeping the flame high helps absorb all the water and gives the tofu a crispy coating.
6. Tofu Tikka is ready! Enjoy!!

Pohe

Ingredients

2 cups Pohe (flat rice flakes)
3 medium potatoes chopped in small cubes
1/2 cup peas
1/4 cup roasted peanuts
2 finely chopped green chillies
6-7 curry leaves
1 tsp mustard seeds
1 tsp cumin seeds
pinch of asafetida/hing
oil for shallow frying
1 tsp turmeric
salt to taste

Steps to follow

1. Heat 5-6 tablespoons of oil in a large skillet, once heated add mustard, cumin, hing, green chillies, curry leaves and the chopped potatoes in that order. Stir and cook it covered on a medium flame for about 8 mins  or till the potatoes are tender.
2. While this is cooking rinse the pohe in water a couple of times and set aside.
3. Now add the turmeric, peas and peanuts in the skillet and cook for 5 mins.
4. Finally add the pohe and salt. Mix well and cook for another 5 mins on a low flame
5. Squeeze some lemon juice on the pohe and serve hot!

Idli

Ingredients

4 cups idli rice or parboiled rice
1 cup urad gota (whole urad without the skin)
1 tbsp methi seeds
salt to taste

Steps to follow

1. Soak the rice separately and urad dal and the methi seeds together for about 6hrs.
2. Grind the urad dal and methi seeds with minimal water (about half a cup) until it is fluffy and keep it aside.
3. Now grind the rice coarsely with minimal water (about half a cup).
4. Mix the rice and urad dal paste and set this aside preferably in a warm place like an oven for at least 10-12 hours. The batter will rise by this point.
5. Grease the idli mould and put the batter in it.
6. Place the mould in a pressure cooker with a cup full of water in it. Remove the weight and steam for about 10-12 mins.
7. Scoop out with a spoon dipped in water for each idli and Lo! steaming hot idlis are ready.
8. Idlis are best served with sambhar, coconut chutney and molaga podi (spicy idli powder).

Batata wada

Ingredients

For the filling 
5-6 medium boiled and roughly mashed potatoes
2 tsp oil
1 tsp mustard seeds
pinch of hing (asafoetida)
3 chopped green chillies
few curry leaves
2 tbsp ginger-garlic paste
1 tsp turmeric
1 tsp red chillies
salt to taste

For the batter

1 cup besan (gram flour)
1/4 cup sooji/rawa (semolina)
2 tbs hot oil
1 tsp turmeric
salt to taste
pinch of baking soda
water
Oil for deep frying

Steps to follow

1. Start by heating oil in a pan to deep fry the wadas.
2. In another pan heat two tspn of oil and to this add hing, mustard seeds, ginger-garlic paste, green chillies, curry leaves, turmeric and red chillies. Now add the mashed potatoes and salt to taste. Set aside.
3. In a bowl mix the besan, sooji, salt, baking soda and turmeric. Add water and make a thick paste out of it.
4.  Make round flattened balls of the potatoes, dip them in the besan batter and carefully put it in the frying pan. Turn it after a 2-3  minutes or fry till both the sides are golden brown.
5. Serve hot with tomato sauce or green chutney.

Sabudana Wada

Sabudana wada is one of those snacks you can savor anytime. Sabudana is an ingredient mostly used on days of fasting, but it is such an awesome dish, that you will notice people in Maharashtra making it all the time.

Ingredients

1 cup sabudana soaked overnight
4 boiled and mashed potatoes
1/2 a cup of roasted and crushed  peanuts
1 finely chopped green chilli
1 tsp cumin seeds
salt to taste
oil for deep frying

Steps to follow

1. Mix all the above mentioned ingredients except oil and make a soft dough without adding any water.
2. Now rub a little bit of oil on your palms and make flattened balls out of the dough.
3. Deep fry the flattened balls till golden brown in color.
4. Voila! The wadas are ready. Serve steaming hot with either chutney, ketchup or my all time favorite condiment yogurt.
5. Enjoy!!!

Grilled Veggie Sandwich

Ingredients

1 loaf sour dough bread (I use the wheat variety available in Whole Foods)
1 avacado
1 green apple
1 big tomato
1/2 cucumber
1 beet root
Mozarella cheese

Steps to follow:

1. Slice all the veggies and sprinle them with salt and black pepper and chat masala or any masala of your choice.
2. Spread green chutney on one side of the bread and cheese on the other side.
3. Place the chutney slice on top of the cheese slice with chutney side facing down.
4. Place on a heated grill with a little bit of butter and toast till both the sides are well browned.
5. Now open the sandwich as shown in the picture above and place the sliced veggies inside. Voila! Your grilled cheese sandwich is ready.
6. Serve with ketchup and chips. 

Ragda Patties

 

Ingredients

For Ragda

2 cups of dried peas soaked overnight (minimum 4-6 hrs)
2 large finely chopped onions
4 large tomatoes
1 tbsp ginger paste
5-6 curry leaves
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp mustard seeds
2 cloves
1/2 inch cinnamon stick
1 tbsp red chilli powder
1 tbsp coriander powder
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
2 tbsp oil

For Patties

4 medium boiled and mashed potatoes
2 slices of bread or 1 cup bread crumbs
salt to taste
pinch of turmeric
1 tsp garam masala
2 tbsp oil

For Garnishing

chopped onions
green chutney
date chutney

Steps to follow:

For Ragda

1. Pressure cook peas for about 2-3 whistles
2. Heat oil in a pan and add cumin, mustard, ginger paste, curry leaves, cinnamon, cloves and stir fry for a minute.
3. Add chopped onions and fry till they are golden brown in color.
4. Add the tomatoes, red chilli powder, turmeric and coriander powder.
5. Let this cook for atleast 15 minutes or until the mixture starts leaving oil, stirring occasionally.
6. Turn off the flame, cool for 5 minutes and puree in a blender.
7. In the same pan, add the pureed mixture, pressure cooked peas and salt to taste. Let it boil for 5-8 minutes. The Ragda is ready.

For Patties

1. Soak bread slices in water and drain the water completely.
2. Crumble the bread and mix it with the rest of the ingredients for the patties.
3. Take a handful of the mixture and shape it in a flatten ball.
4. Heat a griddle and shallow fry the pattis on each side till it becomes golden brown.

To Serve:

In a bowl, put 3 patties, top it with Ragda and garnish with raw onions, green chutney and date chutney.

You can use store bought chutneys which are readily available in the market or follow the links to make them at home.