Doodhi / Lauki/ Gourd Leaves na Patra

Patra made from doodhi leaves are especially tasty and delicious. To make this variation of patra, the procedure is the same as arbi/ colocassia leaves. However, the leaves are much thinner than arbi leaves. You cannot get doodhi leaves from the supermarket. The only way to really get leaves is to grow doodhi in your backyard or garden. In New York, I only get them in summertime, so I make them and freeze so whenever I want to eat, the patra are readily available. Just reheat and enjoy. In India, you may get the leaves from a farm. The Patra  stay fresh in a freezer for about three months. You may also make patra from spinach leaves with an easy swap in recipe! Enjoy!

Preparation Time: 15 minutes

Cooking Time: 20 minutes

Servings: 4

Ingredients:

12 doodhi leaves

1 1/2 cups gram/ besan flour

1 teaspoon green chili paste

1 teaspoon red chili powder

2 teaspoons coriander powder

1 teaspoon cumin powder

1/2 teaspoon coarse black pepper

1 teaspoon coarse coriander seeds

1 teaspoon turmeric powder

2 teaspoons sesame seeds

1 tablespoon tamarind pulp

2 tablespoons jaggery, grated

Salt to taste

3 tablespoons oil

1/2 teaspoon hing/asafoetida 

1 teaspoon mustard seeds

Scraped/ shredded fresh coconut for garnish (optional) 

Fresh chopped coriander leaves for garnish (optional)

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

Directions:

1. Place a doodhi leaf with the vein side facing upwards on a clean dry surface and remove the vein using a Sharon knife. Clean the leaf on both sides using a wet mushy cloth. Repeat the procedure with all the leaves.
2. Combine all the ingredients in a bowl: besan, green chili paste, red chili powder, coriander and cumin powder, coarse black pepper and coriander seeds, turmeric powder, baking soda, grated jaggery, tamarind pulp and salt. Add sufficient water and mix into a thick paste. 
3. Apply this paste all over the back side of the leaf. Place another leaf over this with its pointed end opposite the bottom one. Apply the paste over this too.
4. Fold the sides slightly and tightly roll. Repeat the method for the rest of the leaves. Put the rolls on a perforated plate and keep in a steamer. Cover with the lid and steam until cooked.
5. Take the rolls out and let them cool completely. Slice the rolls into 1/2" thick slices and keep aside. 
6. Heat oil in a pan/ kadai and add mustard seeds. When the seeds crackle, add hing and sesame seeds. Then, add patra slices and saute for two minutes.
7. Garnish with coriander leaves and shredded coconut. I personally like patra without coconut and coriander leaves, so I didn't use them in the photos below. 
8. Patra are ready to eat!

Surati Papadi Dhokli with Spinach and Methi Muthiya

I learned this recipe when I was visiting my friend in Surat. Her sister-in-law made it for lunch and I learned the process while observing her. So, whenever I get fresh papadi in New York, I try to make this dish. It is very tasty! Especially in the winter when you get papadi and fresh green garlic to mix together. Without the green garlic it is still yummy, but with it you can't beat the taste of Muthiya Dhokli. It is a winter delight. Try this recipe and enjoy the dish especially in the winter, rainy or snowy days.

Preparation Time: 10 minutes

Cooking Time: 20 minutes

Servings: 4

Ingredients:

For methi muthiya:

1 cup besan/ gram flour 

1 cup whole wheat flour

1 cup fresh methi/fenugreek leaves, chopped

1/2 cup fresh spinach, chopped

1 teaspoon turmeric powder

1 tablespoon coriander powder

2 teaspoons red chili powder

1 tablespoon green chili paste

1 tablespoon sugar

Salt to taste

2 teaspoons oil to knead a dough

For gravy:

2 cups fresh papadi

1 teaspoon ajwain

Pinch of hing/ asafoetida 

1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder

1 teaspoon dhana-jeera powder

1 teaspoon green chili paste

1/2 teaspoon red chili powder

1/2 teaspoon soda

Salt to taste

1 1/2 tablespoons oil 

1/4 cup fresh coriander leaves, chopped, for garnish

1/2 cup fresh green garlic leaves, chopped, for garnish

6 cups water

Directions:

1. Wash and string the papadi. Keep aside.
2. To prepare the methi-muthiya, in a bowl, add all the ingredients above and mix well. Add water, as required, and knead the dough. (Similar to a paratha consistency.)
3. From the kneaded dough, roll out muthiyas shaped like cylinders. Keep aside. 
4. In a cooking pan/ kadai, heat oil, add ajwain, hing and then add soda. Add papadi. When the papadi is almost cooked, add six cups of water. Add salt, turmeric, red chili powder and dhana-jeera powder. 
5. After the water starts boiling, add all the muthiyas one-by-one and cover the pan. Then, lower the heat and let it cook on low flame for five minutes or until the muthiyas are cooked. 
6. If you need to, add water to adjust the consistency of the gravy at this stage. 
7. Turn of the stove, garnish with fresh coriander leaves and fresh chopped garlic. Serve hot.

Paneer-Potato Frankie

Frankie is a very popular street eat in Mumbai. These vegetarian wraps, stuffed with spiced potatoes and paneer, are good for brunch, lunch or dinner. It is very, "chatpata" and easy to make. There are various ways to make the wraps/ frankie - whatever stuffing you like you may make it with those ingredients. For example, potato-only stuffing, palak paneer, mixed vegetables, schezwan noodle, etc. Here, I am sharing the paneer-potato version. You may make Jain frankies using raw banana instead of potatoes. I hope you all like my recipe!

Preparation Time: 30 minutes

Cooking Time: 30 minutes

Servings: 4 (8 wraps)

Ingredients:

For filling: 

1 1/2 cups paneer (storebought), grated
3 green chilies, chopped
4 potatoes, boiled, peeled and mashed
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 1/2 teaspoons red chili powder
2 teaspoons cumin powder, roasted
1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder
2 teaspoons dry mango/ amachur powder
1/2 cup fresh coriander leaves, chopped
4 teaspoons frankie/ chaat masala 
Salt to taste
Oil for shallow frying the patties

Dough ingredients:

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour/ maida

1/2 cup wheat flour

Salt to taste

3/4 cup milk

Water as needed

Oil for wrap

Garnishing : 

2 onions

1/2 teaspoon red chili powder

1/2 teaspoon amachur/ mango powder
2 tablespoons fresh coriander leaves, chopped

1/2 teaspoon black salt

Salt to taste

Chutney: 

Green chutney, use as per your taste (check my recipe)

Sweet and sour chutney, use as per your taste  (check my recipe)

Directions:

1. In a bowl, mix both the flours, salt, milk and knead into a soft dough. You may add a little water to make the dough softer. Cover with a damp muslin cloth. Keep aside for at least 1/2 hour. Take a small ball of dough and roll out a circle (similar to roti). It should be thick, not thin. Place it on a hot skillet and roast on both sides. Prepare all the rotis similarly. You may also use store-bought wrap rotis too. 
2. In a bowl, grate the paneer. Then, add mashed potatoes, salt, lemon juice, turmeric powder, red chili powder, roasted cumin powder, mango powder, chopped green chili, fresh chopped coriander leaves, chaat masala and salt to taste, 
3. Mix well and shape the mixture into long-sized patties (see photos). Heat a little oil on a non-stick pan and cook these patties in it. Turn to cook both sides, remove and put onto a plate. 
4. Chop the onions, coriander leaves, add all the spices and mix. 
5. Heat the tawa, apply a little oil and warm the roti lightly until golden brown (see photos).
6. On the roti, spread green chutney and sweet and sour chutney. Place a patty and on top of it, add marinated onions, sprinkle some chaat masala and fold the roti.
7. Enjoy hot with green chutney and sweet and sour chutney on side as well.

Roasted Spicy Chevda

Spicy poha chevda is a crunchy and savory snack that is quick and easy to make. When I was growing up, one of my friends from school always used to bring chevda and we would all will enjoy it. My mom preferred to make fried chevda, but I liked the roasted one. I enjoy this version of chevda to this day. For this recipe, I used a thin variety of poha commonly known as nylon poha. This mix may be stored in an air-tight container for several days. This guilt-free chevda is a good option for a mid- morning or afternoon snack.

Preparation Time: 5 minutes

Cooking Time: 10 minutes

Servings: 4

Ingredients:

2 cups beaten rice (poha)

2 tablespoons peanuts

2 tablespoons roasted chana dal

2 tablespoons cashews, chopped

10 curry leaves

1 teaspoon red chili powder

4 green chilies, slit lengthwise

1/4 teaspoon turmeric powder

1/2 teaspoon mustard seeds

2 teaspoons powdered sugar

2 teaspoons oil

Pinch of hing

Salt to taste

Directions:

1. Roast the poha and peanuts on a non stick pan. Stir occasionally until the poha is crisp (approximately 4 to 5 minutes).
2. Heat oil on a nonstick pan and add mustard seeds, cashews, green chilies, curry leaves and the roasted chana dal. Mix together.
3. When the seeds start to crackle, add the asafoetida/ hing and turmeric powder. Mix well. Then, add the roasted poha and peanuts, sugar, red chili powder and salt. Mix together. 
4. Let it cool and store in an air-tight container.
5. Serve with hot tea as a snack.

Masala Roti

Masala roti is really easy to make. You may eat it with chunda pickle or yogurt. When I am not in the mood to cook a vegetable entree, I make this roti. Especially, on Sunday for brunch. With very few ingredients required to make this roti, there is not much preparation time involved. The items you'll need to make this are generally readily available within your indian masala spice tray or fridge. Try this recipe and I hope you enjoy it!

Preparation Time: 5 minutes

Cooking Time: 15 minutes

Servings: 4 (makes 12 Rotis)

Ingredients:

3 cups whole wheat flour

1/4 cup ghee, approximately, plus ghee for brushing

6 teaspoons red chili powder or to taste

6 teaspoons dhana jeera powder (cumin and coriander powder)

6 tablespoons fresh coriander leaves, chopped

3 tablespoons green chilies (adjust according to your heat level), chopped

Salt for flour dough and masala, to taste

Whole wheat flour for dusting

Directions:

1. In a bowl, add three cups flour, salt and water. Knead it into a smooth-soft dough. Rest the dough for 10 minutes. Divide the dough in 12 equal portions and roll them into balls.
2. Dust with a little dry flour and roll into roti shape. Now, in the center, add red chili powder, dhana jeera powder, 1/4 tb chopped green chili, 1/2 tb green chopped coriander leaves, salt to taste and 1 teaspoon ghee. Mix and spread it evenly on the roti. Roll it from the upper side to the bottom in a cylindrical shape. Form it into a ball again (see photo).
3. Press the ball and roll it again back into a roti. Heat the skillet, place the roti on it and cook on moderate heat for three minutes. Turn it and spread ghee over it. Then, spread ghee on the other side and shallow fry over low heat. Cook on low heat until golden brown.
4. Serve hot with chunda, yogurt or both.

Dabeli Sandwich Dhokla

Dabeli is traditionally made with bread and sold on the streets of Gujarati towns. It is a variation of vada pav made with a sweet and spicy potato mixture, which is filled into a small bun and then topped with onion, masala peanuts, pomegranate, fresh garlic chutney and sev. If you don't have pomegranate, you may also use black or green grapes cut into small pieces. Here, I have tried to recreate this a little differently than the original one. I use dhokla instead of bread. It is a combination of two famous Gujarati snacks - dhokla and dabeli. They make for perfect bites as a starter or snacks for your parties. I hope you enjoy this recipe!

Preparation Time: 30 minutes

Cooking Time: 30 minutes

Servings: 4 (as a meal) 

Ingredients: 

For Dhokla:

2 cups rava/ sooji/ cream of wheat

1 1/2 cup yogurt

2 teaspoons soda/ fruit soda

2 cups of water (approximately)

Salt to taste

  

For Dabeli Masala:

4 boiled potatoes (two cups mashed potatoes)

1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds

2 1/2 tablespoons Dabeli masala (store-bought)

2 tablespoons oil

2 tablespoons sweet and sour chutney (recipe)

2 tablespoons green coriander leaves, chopped

Salt to taste

For Garnishing:

1/2 cup green coriander chutney (recipe) 

1/4 cup garlic chutney (recipe)

1/2 cup finally chopped onions

1/2 cup pomegranate seeds/ anar Dana

1/2 cup nylon sev/ thin sev

1/2 cup masala peanuts

1/2 cup fresh coriander leaves, chopped

1/4 cup fresh coconut, grated

Directions:

1. First, boil the potatoes. At the same time, we may prepare the sooji batter. In a bowl, add two cups of rava, 1 1/2 cup yogurt, salt and 2 cups of water. Mix well and keep aside for 10 minutes. After, add a little more water for the right consistency to make dhokla. Add fruit soda and when the bubbles form, mix gently.
2. Pour the batter immediately into a 5" diameter greased four thali (I have a dhokla stand in which you may make four thalis at once). Shake the thali clockwise to spread the batter in an even layer.
3. Steam in steamer for 10 minutes. Then, remove and let it cool for three minutes. Remove the whole dhoklas from the thali without cutting into pieces. Repeat the procedure so altogether you will have eight round pieces of dhokla .
4. Next, heat oil on a pan and add cumin seeds. When they start to crackle, add dabeli masala and cook on medium flame for one minute. While stirring continuously, add the mashed potatoes, salt, sweet and sour chutney and a little water. Mix well and cook for another two to three minutes. Add fresh coriander leaves, mix and keep aside.
5. Place the mixture into a bowl and add 1/4 cup chopped onion, 1/4 cup pomegranate seeds, 1/4 cup masala peanuts, 1/4 nylon sev, 1/4 cup chopped coriander leaves and 1/2 portion of grated coconut. Mix everything with the potato mixture. Save the rest for the garnishing. 
6. Take one piece of whole dhokla on a plate and spread the dabeli mixture on the dhokla. Put another layer of dhokla on a top. Then, again spread the mixture on the dhokla. Garnish with masala peanuts, onion, pomegranate seeds, chopped green coriander leaves, sev and fresh grated coconut. Next, on top, garnish with sweet and sour chutney, garlic chutney and green coriander chutney.
7. Repeat the same procedure with other dhoklas and dabeli mixtures. You will have four big dabelis.
8. Cut into pieces and serve immediately.

Gol Papadi/ Sukhadi/ Gur Papadi

Gol papadi is a traditional sweet recipe made especially during winter months. The combination of gol/ jaggery and wheat flour makes for a yummy sweet treat to snack on. This sweet is also known as sukhadi or gur papadi. It only requires a few ingredients yet is still flavorful and tasty. It is very quick and easy to make and the more ghee you use, the softer consistency you will get. I learned this recipe from my mom and today I am sharing this recipe with you all.

Preparation Time: 5 minutes

Cooking Time: 15 minutes 

Ingredients:

1 cup whole wheat flour

1/4 cup finely chopped almond (optional) 

1/2 cup ghee

1 tablespoon milk

1/2 cup gol/ jaggery (finely cut or shredded)

1 teaspoon melted ghee (to grease plate/ thali)

Directions: 

1. On low flame, melt ghee in a heavy-bottomed pan. Add flour, stair continuously and saute until it turns light brown in color and a sweet aroma is present.
2. Remove the pan from the stove and add 1 tablespoon of milk. Stir and then add the jaggery and chopped almonds. Stir for an additional three to four minutes until the gol melts and ghee separates.
3. Immediately pour the mixture into a greased plate (thali). Spread and press evenly with the base of small bowl/ varka. 
4. While still warm, mark deep cuts of square or diamond shapes into the mixture. Cool for an hour.
5. Once set, remove the pieces with a steel spatula. Store in an airtight container.

Note: By adding a little milk, the sukhadi will be very soft and tastier too. The texture will be like the famous Mahudi version - Tirth's Sukhdi.