Cucumber Tomato Sandwich

At every nook and corner of Mumbai you will encounter intense aromas of street food and discover new fusions of flavour and spice at the ever-popular and densely crowded "khau-gullies". It is hard to say which street food is the most popular for there are takers for every kind of food and drink available on the streets. A sandwich stall is probably the most visible street food and the speed at which the sandwich-wallahs dole them to customers is amazing! So sandwich it is with the green chutney, cucumber and tomato for the Street Food edition of Monthly Blog Patrol, hosted by Sia at Monsoon Spice from Nupur's One Hot Stove. Makes a good breakfast too!

For the green chutney:
2 cups coriander leaves
1 cup mint leaves
1/4 cup roughly chopped onion
2 green chillies or more to suit your taste
2 tbsp roasted peanuts
1 tbsp yogurt
1 tsp cumin powder
salt to taste

Place all ingredients in a food processor and blend with a little water to get a thick chutney.

For the sandwich:
Softened butter
Green chutney
Sliced cucumber
Sliced tomatoes
Sliced onions (optional)
Boiled and sliced Potato
Boiled and sliced Beetroot(optional)
Salt and pepper to taste
Cheese slices (optional)

Spread softened butter and then green chutney on two slices of bread. Then place some sliced cucumber, tomato, potato, beetroot, onion (use the veggies as per your preference), cheese and top with the other slice of bread. Serve. You may grill it - ofcourse you must! Press lightly and cut into squares and add a drop of tomato ketchup on each square. Mmmm!

Also goes to Zlamushka's Tried and Tasted event - the blog in the spotlight being One hot stove!

Amarkhand = Mango Shrikhand

Shrikhand is traditionally made from thick, hung yoghurt or chakka. The yoghurt is placed in a muslin cloth which is tied up and hung till all the whey has drained off. An easier alternate is using labneh, which is strained yoghurt having a cheeselike consistency. Labneh or yoghurt cheese is widely consumed in the Middle East and Mediterranean region as a dip with pita bread. Labneh lends itself very well to a creamy, delicious shrikhand and is not very sour like the store bought shrikhand. Amarkhand is mango flavoured shrikhand. With the mango season in full swing, it is important to balance the heat from the mangoes with cooling yoghurt - amarkhand fits the bill. Serve it with puris for breakfast or as a dessert or have it whenenver you feel like, it's yummy!

You'll need:

1 sweet, ripe mango - preferably alphonso

200 gms labneh

a pinch of cardamom powder

powdered sugar as per taste

Remove the pulp from the mango. Whisk it along with the labneh and cardamom powder till smooth and creamy. Add sugar only if required. Now fetch a spoon and dig in....aah, you're in heaven!

For a variation, you can add chooped fruits to it or saffron and nuts like almonds, pistachios or chironji.

My entry to:

Beautiful bones event at Food Blogga

WBB#22 - Mango Madness at Escapades

Think Spice think cardamom at Simple Indian Food

Aamras

Every summer, we visit a small, family-run Gujarati restaurant in Dubai, to tuck into their weekend thali. The menu is the same every week - puris, undhiyo, chhole, potato curry, gujarati kadhi, dhoklas and aamras. While we don't care too much for most of the items in the thali, the undhiyo and aamras are outstanding. Everytime we scoop off a few spoons of aamras, the cup is promptly refilled. After downing atleast five cups of aamras, and the food, the staff will still insist on "some more aamras". Any refusal on our part, and the old cook appears at the table, lovingly serving the aamras himself and gently coaxing us into relenting - "the mango season is so short, have all you can now". Now we can't refuse, can we?

I tried making aamras at home without any extra flavouring and loved it. Then I saw a recipe which mentioned adding elaichi/cardamom to it and tried that. We hated it. Elaichi takes away the true mango flavour - it is a distraction in the the taste!! Going back to the original way, this is how I made it.

You'll need:

2 ripe mangoes - I used the Alphonso variety

a tbsp milk

a little water

sugar, if needed

Soak the mangoes in water for 2 hours - this takes the heat out of the mangoes. Then peel the mangoes and chop of the pulp. Reserve the seeds in the water - this is said to retain the flavour. Blend the pulp with milk till smooth. Check for sweetness and add sugar if needed. Add a little water (in which the seeds were retained) to make it a little thin and blend again. Serve chilled with puris or palak puris.

The original way of making aamras is by squishing the soaked mango with fingers and extracting the pulp. Blending it does not make a difference to the taste and is less time consuming.

Aamras goes to Arundhati at Escapades who is hosting WBB#22 - May Mango Madness.

Dalwali Roti/Dal Parathas

Attending weddings and all the ceremonies that accompany them are a whole lot of fun - the family gatherings, dance and music, dressing up in finery, the gossip and merry-making and most importantly, the lavish variety of cuisines that Indian weddings offer. Gorging on the rich, feasty spread day after day for almost two weeks, my tastebuds died and my senses could no longer take in the sight or smell of typical wedding food! All my hungry stomach craved for was some warm dal and rice. Back home in Dubai, I promptly made, what else, dal-chawal for the dil!!

I often end up with left-over dal which are converted into dal parathas or dalwali rotis, which are easy to make and perfect for a filling breakfast. I used leftover toovar dal which tastes the best in the roti/paratha but moong/masoor dals will also work fine. If the dal is too watery, heat it to evaporate the liquid as much as you can, allow it to cool and keep it in the fridge to thicken, before using it for the rotis.

Depending on the consistency of the dal, add atta/whole wheat flour to it, sufficient to make it into a dough. To give the rotis a crunch, add 1 minced onion, 2 minced green chillies and a handful of finely chopped coriander leaves even if the dal already has these ingredients. Add salt if necessary and knead into a dough in the same way as for rotis. Divide the dough into small balls. Roll out a ball into a circle and apply some ghee. Bring the edges together and twist into a ball again. Roll out the stuffed ball into a roti and roast evenly on both sides on a skillet till orange spots appear. Apply ghee on the roti and roast again till it is slightly crisp on the outside but soft inside. Serve hot with a dollop of butter, yoghurt and pickle.

What you do with left over dal? Let me know through your comments.

Puri Bhaji for a tea party

( With blogger behaving badly, I was refused access to my own blog! These posts-in-waiting have been delayed. )

When Anita invited us to make puri-bhaji for her tea party, puri-bhaji it was for the weekend breakfast! Being puri lovers, it takes all morning of rolling out puris before I can sit to enjoy some. Puris are always served hot, straight off the smoking oil. Yet I was beaming from ear-to-ear thinking of the beautiful puffed up puris and my favourite potato bhaji to accompany it. And the husband dropped the bomb. "No, not puris today. I want something light." "Are you alright?" I asked, all my ballooned dreams crashing. What was wrong with this puri lover I wondered? "I'm not exercising enough", he said. The puri-less weekend passed by and the husband left on a week long trip. On such occasions, I'd generally stick to a one-pot meal, but puris have the ability to melt my will power.

For the puris, I took 2 cups of flour and kneaded it into a stiff dough adding a little water at a time. Rest it for 5 minutes and roll out puris and fry in hot oil.

For potato podimas/ potato bhaji, boil 5 big potatoes, peel and mash them. Heat oil in a pan, add a tsp of mustard/jeera and let it splutter. Add a chopped onion, 2 chopped green chillies and fry till translucent. Add a chopped tomato and fry for a minute. Add water, salt, red chilli powder, turmeric powder and a spoon of pav bhaji masala and let the tomatoes turn soft. Add the mashed potato and allow it to cook for a few minutes. Garnish with coriander leaves.

Poha – As homely as it gets…

Amchi Mumbai on a sunny Saturday noon.

During my vacation in Mumbai, we decided to go to Flora Fountain to buy books off the street. Aah, that's the beauty of Mumbai streets, you'll find just about anything there! After a long bus ride to Churchgate, we walked to Flora Fountain where there were rows and rows of book sellers. The thrill of finding books at one-fifth the original price and still bargaining with the vendor is unimaginable here!

Flora Fountain :
Commissioned by the Agri-Horticultural Society of Western India in the 1860's, the fountain was built in honour of the then Governor of Bombay, Sir Bartle Frere. The design was prepared by R Norman Shaw, and the fountain was sculpted in imported Portland stone by James Forsythe. The fountain cost Rs 47,000, a princely sum in those days. The statue flanking the top of the fountain is of Flora, the Roman Goddess of Abundance; and hence the name. On the lower tier are four statues on the four corners, depicting ladies in four different attires. Water spouts at different levels along with miniature collection pools and lion-headed gargoyles complete the fountain. True to its name, the sculpture also depicts an abundance of floral motifs. For more read here.

Flora Fountain and BSE in the background.

BSE: Bombay Stock Exchange Limited, now synonymous with Dalal Street, is the oldest stock exchange in Asia. It is the first stock exchange in the country to obtain permanent recognition in 1956 from the Government of India under the Securities Contracts (Regulation) Act, 1956.The Exchange's pivotal and pre-eminent role in the development of the Indian capital market is widely recognized and its index, SENSEX, is tracked worldwide. For more read here.

BSNL: Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd. formed in October, 2000, is World's 7th largest Telecommunications Company providing comprehensive range of telecom services in India. Within a span of five years it has become one of the largest public sector unit in India. For more read here.

MCMG: The Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai was formed in the year 1873 as Mumbai's civic body. Through the multifarious civic and recreational services that it provides, the MCGM has always been committed to improve the quality of life in Mumbai.

VT/CST: Modeled on the lines of the St Pancras Station in London, Victoria Terminus is undoubtedly the Raj's piece de resistance, complete with carved stone friezes, stained glass windows and flying buttresses. It is Gothic architecture at its best, an awesome edifice that most citizens view with deep pride. At the top of the central dome stands the triumphant figure of Progress. The station was christened to commemorate Victoria Jubilee Day in 1887 when India's first steam engine puffed out to neighboring Thane, about 45 kms away. Today it has been rechristened Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus after the Maratha warrior. And the old steam engines have been replaced by electric ones. But to the 2.5 million commuters who push past its massive portals everyday, this is still VT, the pulse of a throbbing city.

One more look :

And after this long walk from Churchgate to CST, it was time for some ghane ka ras or sugarcane juice!!

Fond memories of Mumbai evoke thoughts of typical Mumbai food. So here's a recipe for poha, a simple yet versatile dish that one can whip up in minutes. It makes a quick and light breakfast on weekdays, healthy and wholesome with different combos of veggies and nuts thrown in. Each one has their own version of making this.

You need:
2 cups poha/beaten rice/avil
1 onion chopped
4-5 green chillies chopped (you may reduce the spice)
1 small potato boiled and chopped
a handful of boiled green peas
2 tbsp grated carrots
2 tbsp red/yellow bell pepper
a handful of peanuts and chana dalia
a sprig of curry leaves
1 tsp cumin seeds/jeera
salt, red chilli powder and turmeric powder to taste
1 tbsp coriander leaves chopped
juice of 1 lime

Put the poha in a colander and wash under running water. This way, the poha remains moist and soft and does not become soggy. Heat a tbsp oil/ghee in a deep pan. Throw in the cumin seeds and let it splutter. You may use mustard seeds instead if you prefer. Throw in the peanuts and chana dalia and let it turn red. I sometimes add cashewnuts and raisins for variety. Now add the onions and curry leaves and fry till the onions are translucent. Add the potato/peas/bell peppers/carrots/ any other combo of veggies you prefer and fry lightly. You may add a tomato if you like a tangy taste. Add the poha/beaten rice, salt, chilli powder (optional) and turmeric and mix well. Take off the flame, add a spoon of ghee on it if you like. Squeeze some lime juice over it and garnish with coriander leaves.