Sabudana Wada and a Birthday...

This weekend my little munchkin turned 3 and I have spent the last 4 odd days just getting overwhelmed at how fast the past 3 yrs have passed. He turned from a tiny 6lb-15ounce ball of sweet smelling cotton candy into a 3 & 1/2 ft tall bundle of mischief in the blink of an eye! So apart from just smothering him all weekend and sucking in all his cuteness, we decided to spend the weekend enjoying his day doing stuff he loved. He crawled into our bed on Saturday morning around 10-ish with a very matter-of-fact "There you are!". After an hour of chitchat and about 4 rhymes, we got ready to start our day with his favorite breakfast - MAGGI. He can have this just about anywhere anytime! He just recently started Montessori and very adorably showed off how to twist and scoop noodles on his own using a fork. After breakfast we headed out to the city and visited the Aquarium of the Bay by Embarcadero. He loved looking at all the fish and other creatures that were on showcase and had a wonderful time running about the place. He freaked a little around some crabs/octopuses but overall had a ball. Then we stuffed ourselves in about 4 different flavors of ice cream and enjoyed some live dancing/music on pier 39. We headed into The Rainforest Cafe and ordered the three vegetarian items they had on their menu for a late lunch/early dinner. So all in all nice day out in the city, great drive and fabulous memories of fun.
On Sunday, very close family friends of ours visited us and we had tea with sabudana wada with them. Here is my version of this all time favorite snack and some pictures.

Ingredients

Main	Spices/Tadka	Generic
1 cup Sabudana	1/2 tsp Turmeric	Oil
2 large Potatoes	1 pinch Hing	Salt
1/2 cup Peanuts	1/2 cup Dhania
2 tbsp Bread Crumbs	1/2 tsp Red Chilli Powder
1 tbsp Maida	8-10 Green Chillies
	1 tbsp Grated Ginger

Method
Soak the sabudana in just enough water to immerse it for about 2-3 hrs.
Boil the Potatoes, peel the skin and leave it in the fridge for about 2 hrs. This will harden it up a little and make it easier to grate later.
Coarsely break the peanuts in a processor and roast them for just a couple minutes.
Once the sabudana has soaked in all the water, sprinkle a little water on top and microwave for about 2 minutes on medium.
In a bowl, grate the potatoes.
Add the semi-cooked sabudana, finely chopped green chillies and dhania, peanuts, bread crumbs, spices, maida, salt to taste and blend with the back of a heavy spoon until well mixed.
Make equal sized balls with it and flatten them on your palm and set aside on a plate dusted with some flour.
Heat oil in a wok and deep fry them on medium heat until nice and golden on both sides.
Serve hot with a side of chutney of choice or sweetened yogurt sprinkled with a pinch of elaichi.

Aloo Tikki Chole

Ingredients

Main	Spices	Seasoning	Generic
2 Large Potatoes	1 tsp Turmeric	Crisp Thin Sev	Oil
1/2 cup Peas	1 tsp Dhania Jeera	Tamarind Date Chutney	Salt
Bread Crumbs	1/2 tsp Chat Masala	Dhania Chutney
	1/2 tsp Aamchur	Finely Chopped Onion
		Fresh Dhania
		Fresh Lemon

Method
Refer here for Chole Recipe
Pressure cook the potatoes for 3 whistles and boil the peas for about 6-8 minutes.
Mash them together with the turmeric, salt, dhania jeera, aamchur and chat masala.
Shape them into tikkis.
Heat a skillet with 2-3 tsp of Oil.
Spread the bread crumbs on a plate and toss each tikki in it and set on the skillet to roast on medium heat.
Roast both sides until golden and crisp.
To assemble:
Set two tikkis on a plate and cover generously with Chole.
Splash a tablespoon of both chutneys and some chat masala.
Garnish with Sev, Dhania and lemon juice and serve hot.

Aamti

Ingredients

Main	Spices	Seasoning	Generic
1 cup Tur Dal	1 tsp Mustard Seeds	Fresh Dhania	Ghee
1/4 cup Peanuts	1 tsp Jeera		Salt
1/2 small Onion	2-3 slit Green Chillies
1 small Tomato	1 tsp Grated Ginger
Tamarind	1 tsp minced Garlic
	1 pinch Hing
	1 pinch Turmeric
	1 tsp Goda Masala
	1 pinch Garam Masala
	1 tsp Jaggery

Method
Pressure cook the Tur Dal and Peanuts in 4 cups of water for at least 4-5 whistles.
In a heavy bottom pan heat 1 tbsp Ghee and splutter the mustard and jeera.
Add the Green Chillies, garlic, ginger, Hing, turmeric and onions and saute until translucent.
Add the tomatoes, garam masala, goda masala, jaggery, salt and cook for a few minutes.
If using Tamarind paste, dissolve 1 tsp in one cup water.
If using fresh tamarind, take 4-5 strips of tamarind and make a concentrated extract in 1 cup water.
Add the tamarind water to the pan.
Mash the Dal with the back of a heavy spoon and pour it into the Tadka.
Bring to a boil and turn off the heat.
Garnish with fresh Dhania and serve.

Gujarati Dal

Ingredients

Main	Spices	Seasoning	Generic
1 cup Tur Dal	1 tsp Mustard Seeds	Fresh Dhania	Ghee
1 small Tomato	1 tsp Jeera	Lemon Juice	Salt
2-3 Cloves	2-3 slit Green Chillies	Tamarind Paste
1/4 cup Peanuts	1 tsp Grated Ginger
	1 pinch Hing
	1 pinch Turmeric
	1 pinch Red chilli powder
	1 pinch Goda Masala
	1 tbsp Jaggery

Method
Pressure cook the Tur Dal and Peanuts in 4 cups of water for at least 4-5 whistles.
In a heavy bottom pan heat 1 tbsp Ghee and splutter the mustard and jeera.
Add the Green Chillies, ginger, Hing, turmeric and saute until translucent.
Add the tomatoes, red chilli powder, goda masala, jaggery, 1/4 tsp tamarind paste, salt and cook for a few minutes.
Mash the Dal with the back of a heavy spoon and pour it into the Tadka.
Bring to a boil and turn off the heat.
Garnish with fresh Dhania and a splash of lemon juice and serve.

Garlic Chutney

Ingredients

Main
4-6 pods Garlic
5-6 Dry Red Chillies
1/4 cup Peanuts
1/2 tsp Sugar
Salt

Method
Grind all the items into a fine paste using 1/2 cup water.
Store in an airtight container in the fridge for upto 2 weeks.

Vada Pav Masala

Ingredients

Main	Spices
1/2 cup Peanuts(No Skin)	1 tbsp Sesame Seeds
6-8 cloves Garlic	1/2 tsp Dhania Seeds
2-3 pieces Dry Tamarind	6-8 Dry Red Chillies
	1 tsp Jaggery Powder
	Salt to taste

Method
Peel the garlic cloves and cut them into halves.
In a skillet, dry roast the peanuts until golden and set aside.
Now dry roast the garlic on a low-medium flame for a few minutes until the raw smell disappears.
Dry roast the Red chillies and dry tamarind pieces for a couple of minutes.
Now grind all the ingredients and spices into a coarse powder.
Store in an airtight container for upto 6 weeks.

Dhania Chutney

Ingredients

Main	Spices
3 cups Dhania	4-6 Green chillies
1 tbsp Peanuts	1 pinch Chat Masala
	1 pinch Rock Salt
	1 tbsp Lemon Juice
	Salt to taste

Method
Soak the Dhania along with the stems in cold water for 5 minutes and rinse well.
Add all the ingredients into a blender and add very little water to make a very smooth thick paste.

Sabudana Khichdi

Ingredients

Main	Spices	Generic
1 cup Sabudana	1 pinch Turmeric	Oil
1 medium Potato	1 pinch Hing	Salt
	2 tbsp Peanuts	Sugar
	1 tbsp Jeera
	4-6 Curry Leaves
	1 tbsp Lemon Juice
	Fresh Dhania

Method
Soak the sabudana for 4-5 hours in just enough water so the levels are the same.
Chop the Potato into very small cubes.
Dry roast the peanuts until golden and set aside.
In a skillet, take 2 tsp of oil and splutter the Jeera along with curry leaves until dark.
Add the hing, tumeric, potatoes and salt and saute until the potatoes are almost cooked.
Add the sabudana after draining out all the water.
Mix well and cook covered on medium flame until the sabudana becomes very translucent.
Toss it every minute or so to make sure it doesn’t get mushy.
Sprinkle 1/2 tsp of Sugar.
Garnish with fresh Dhania, Lemon juice and roasted Peanuts and serve.

Stuffed Bhindi

Ingredients

Main	Spices/Tadka	Generic
1 lb Tender Bhindi	1 tsp Jeera	Oil
	3-4 Curry Leaves	Salt
	2 tsp Peanuts
	2 tsp Chana Dal
	2 tsp Dhania Seeds
	7-8 Dry Red Chillies
	1 pinch Turmeric
	1 pinch Hing
	Fresh Dhania

Method
For the Stuffing:
Roast the peanuts, chana dal, red chillies, dhania seeds until light brown and raw smell disappears.
Grind this mixture into a fine powder.Add the salt, turmeric and hing to this powder.
Wash and pat dry the Bhindi and slit one side.
Remove seeds to make room for the stuffing. Fill the stuffing.
In a thick bottom pan, add 3-4 tbsp of oil and let the mustard seeds splutter and then add curry leaves.
Place the stuffed Bhindi one by one in the pan and sprinkle some oil on the top.
Cover and cook on medium flame for about 10 minutes until tender. Then toss them in the pan without breaking.
Cook all the sides of the Bhindi by tossing them until skin is well cooked and starts to wrinkle and skrink.
Transfer to a serving dish and top with the masala oil left in the pan.
Season with Dhania leaves and serve.
Notes:
This can also be served in the gravy used for Bhagare Baingan.

Stuffed Baingan

Ingredients

Main	Spices/Tadka	Generic
1 lb Baby Eggplant	2 tbsp Peanuts	Oil
	2 tbsp Chana Dal	Salt
	2 tbsp Dhania Seeds
	7-8 Whole Red Chillies
	1 tbsp Tamarind Paste
	1 pinch Turmeric
	1 pinch Hing
	1 tsp Mustard Seeds
	3-4 Curry Leaves
	Fresh Dhania

Method
For the Stuffing:
Roast the peanuts, chana dal, red chillies, dhania seeds until light brown and raw smell disappears.
Grind this mixture into a fine powder.Add the salt, turmeric and Hing to this powder.
Wash and pat dry the eggplant and slit from the top in a "+" sign.
Fill each eggplants's center and slit sides with the masala powder and set aside for 10 minutes.
In a thick bottom pan, add 3-4 tbsp of oil and let the mustard seeds splutter and then add curry leaves.
Add the tamarind paste and let it sizzle for half a minute.
Place the stuffed eggplants one by one in the pan upright and sprinkle some oil on the top.
Cover and cook on medium flame for about 10 minutes until tender. Then toss them in the pan without breaking, preferably with chimti or tongs.
Cook the sides of the eggplant by tossing them until skin is well cooked and starts to wrinkle and skrink.
Transfer to a serving dish and top with the masala oil left in the pan.
Season with Dhania leaves and serve.

Notes:
The stuffing masala can also be substitued with Kari Podi if you have it ready on hand. For the recipe look in Masalas

Bhagare Baingan

Ingredients

Main	Spices/Tadka	Tadka	Generic
1 lb Baby Eggplant	2 tbsp Peanuts	1 tsp Mustard Seeds	Ghee
1 large Onion	2 tbsp Chana Dal	3-4 Curry Leaves	Oil
1 large Tomato	2 tsp Dhania Seeds	Fresh Dhania	Salt
1 cup Cashew Nuts	7-8 Whole Red Chillies		Sugar
	1 tbsp Tamarind Paste
	1 tsp Turmeric
	1 pinch Hing
	1 tbsp Grated Ginger
	1 tsp Kitchen King
	1 tsp Dhania Jeera
	1 tbsp Fresh Cream
	2-3 Whole Anise

Method
For the Stuffing:
Roast the peanuts, chana dal, red chillies, dhania seeds until light brown and raw smell disappears.
Grind this mixture into a fine powder.Add the salt, turmeric and Hing to this powder.
For the Gravy:
Roast the chashew nuts in the oven at 350 degrees for 10 minutes until golden brown.
Heat oil in a pan and add medium chopped onions, ginger and the anise.
Sprinkle some sugar and let it caramelize on a low flame for 5-7 mintes until brown and aromatic.
Add the medium chopped tomatoes and continue to cook until its forms a pulp in the pan.
Blend this mixture in a food processor along with the cashews to make a fine nutty gravy.
Transfer this gravy back to the pan and add 1 tsp ghee, turmeric, salt and kitchen king masala.
Cover the pan and simmer for 10 minutes until the ghee separates.
For the Eggplant:
Wash and pat dry the eggplant and slit from the top in a "+" sign.
Fill each eggplants's center and slit sides with the masala powder and set aside for 10 minutes.
In a thick bottom pan, add 3-4 tbsp of oil and let the mustard seeds splutter and then add curry leaves.
Add the tamarind paste and let it sizzle for half a minute.
Place the stuffed eggplants one by one in the pan upright and sprinkle some oil on the top.
Cover and cook on medium flame for about 10 minutes until tender. Then toss them in the pan without breaking.
Cook the sides of the eggplant by tossing them until skin is well cooked and starts to wrinkle and skrink.
Putting it all together:
Transfer the sizzling eggplants to a serving dish and top with the masala oil left in the pan.
Add the gravy on top of the eggplants and coat all the sides well.
Season with Dhania leaves and fresh cream and serve.