Aloo Paratha

For about 6-7 parathas

Ingredients:For the stuffing

1. Potatoes - 4 medium sized 
2. Green chilies - 2 (chop into tiny pieces)
3. Red chili powder - 1 tsp
4. Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
5. Cumin seeds - 1/2 tsp
6. Garam masala - 1/2  tsp
7.  Salt - to taste
8. Fresh coriander leaves - handful (chop finely)

For the dough

1. Atta (whole wheat flour) - 6-7 scoops with a ladle
2. Water
3. Oil - 1 table spoon
4. Salt - to taste

Method:

To prepare the dough

1. Take the atta in a large mixing bowl. 
2. Add salt and oil.
3. Use required amount of water to knead into soft dough

To prepare the stuffing

1. Pressure cook the potatoes for 3 whistles, peal the skin and mash it in a pan.
2. Add the rest of the ingredients and mix well.
3. Make lemon sized balls from this mixture.

To prepare the parathas

1. Take some dough on your hand and make it into a round ball.
2. Roll the dough into a small round shape.
3. Keep the stuffing in the middle of the dough and seal it.
4. Roll this out into a bigger round shape.
5. Cook the paratha on a hot tawa. Spread some oil on top of the paratha and flip it. 
6. Cook till you see spots of golden brown on the paratha.
7. Repeat the process for all the dough.
8. Serve hot with mint/coriander and/or any raita or pickle.

Tomato Basil Soup

I took this recipe from Sanjeev Kapoor and made some changes to it.

Ingredients:

1. Tomatoes - about 10-12 medium size, quartered (I used about 5 big greenhouse tomatoes).
2. Onion - 1 medium sized (cut lengthwise)
3. Carrot - 1 (cut into roundels)
4. Garlic - 2 cloves (cut into small pieces)
5. Coriander stalk - a handful
6. Basil leaves - 5-6
7. Butter - 1 tablespoon, oil - 1 tsp
8. Salt to taste
9. Freshly ground pepper

Method:

1. In a pan, heat butter and oil. Add onions, garlic and saute until transparent.
2. Add the tomatoes, carrots, coriander stalks along with 4 basil leaves. Saute for a minute and add 2 cups of water.
3. Cover the pan and cook for about 5-8 minutes. Switch off the flame and filter the water. Reserve it for later.
4. When the mixture cools, grind it in batches and pass it through a sieve and collect the puree in a pan.
5. Repeat the process for rest of the mixture. 
6. Adjust consistency by adding the required amount of the reserved liquid.
7. Add salt  and freshly ground pepper and heat the soup till it comes to a boil.
8. Garnish with chopped basil leaves.
9.  Serve hot with croutons.

Note:

1. Add some fresh cream if you want your soup a little richer.

Pesarattu

Ingredients:

1. Yellow moong dal - 2 cups (can also use green whole moong)
2. Raw rice - a fist full
3. Ginger - 2 inch piece
4. Green chilies - 2-3 
5. Coriander leaves - 1/2 a bunch
6. Salt to taste
7. Yogurt - 1/2 cup (optional)

Method:

1. Soak the moong dal and rice together for about 2-3 hours. (If using green moong soak for about 7-8 hours)
2. Grind the dal and rice along with the other ingredients (except oil and yogurt)
3. Bring it to dosa consistency by adding water and yogurt (if using).
4. Make the pesarattu on a tawa just like a dosa.
5. Serve hot with mint or coriander chutney!

Aloo Bhajji

Ingredients:

1.            Potatoes – 5 medium size

2.            Onions – 1 (cut into small pieces)

3.            Tomatoes – 2 medium size (cut into small pieces)

4.            Peas -  1 small cup (I used frozen peas)

5.            Green chilies – 2 (cut in small pieces)

6.            Ginger – 1 inch piece (shredded)

7.            Turmeric powder – 1 tsp

8.            Red chili  powder – 2 tsp

9.            Garam masala – ½ tsp

10.        Cumin seeds – 1 tsp

11.        Oil

12.        Salt to taste

13.        Lime juice (2 tsp, optional)

14.        Coriander leaves for garnish

Method:

1.            Pressure cook the potatoes for 3 whistles.  Remove the skin and cut in big pieces.

2.            In a pan, heat oil and add the cumin seeds.

3.            When they start to sizzle, add ginger and green chilies and sauté for a minute.

4.            Add the onions and sauté till they become transparent. Add some salt to the onions to cook faster.

5.            Add the tomatoes and cook till they become mushy and soft. Add little water to avoid sticking to the pan. Add the frozen peas and mix well.

6.            To this add turmeric and red chili powder and salt and mix well.

7.            Add the potatoes and mash with the ladle. Mix well and add about 1 cup of water. Cover and cook for about 5-8 mins and give it a stir in between.

8.            Add the garam masala and mix well.

9.            Switch off the flame and add the lemon juice (if using)

10.        Garnish with coriander leaves.

11.        Goes really well with pooris! 

Kara Kozhambu

Ingredients:

1. Pearl onions - 10-15  
2. Tomato - 1 big (cut into small pieces)
3. Brinjal - 2-3 (cut lengthwise) (optional; can also use other vegetables like okra, drumstick)
4. Garlic - 2 cloves (cut lengthwise)
5. Tamarind  -  lemon sized (add about 2 cups of hot water to this and extract the juice)
6. Sesame oil
7. Sambar powder - 1/2 tsp
8. For grinding: Coriander seeds - 3tsp, Fenugreek seeds - 1/2 tsp, Red Chilies - 5-6 (change according your spice tolerance), Fennel seeds - 1 tsp, Urad dal - 2 tsp
9. For tadka: Mustard seeds, curry leaves, asafoetida

Method:

1. In a kadai, heat 1-2 table spoons of sesame oil. Add some curry leaves, pearl onions and garlic cloves.
2. Saute till the onions starts to brown a bit.
3. Meanwhile in a small pan, heat 1 tsp of oil and add the for grinding ingredients and saute till the dal turns golden brown. Cool and grind it along with 3-4 pearl onions and little garlic (from the previous step) into a smooth paste.
4. To the rest of onions in the kadai, add the tomatoes and saute till the tomatoes turn soft and mushy. Add salt to taste.
5. If adding vegetables: Saute it in oil in a separate pan and add sambar powder and add this to the onion tomato mixture.
6. Mix in the tamarind juice and let this come to a boil.
7. Add the ground paste and mix well. Adjust the consistency by adding water if required and boil for about 10 mins in medium flame.
8. Make the tadka in sesame oil with mustard seeds, asafoetida and curry leaves and add it to the kozhambu.
9. Serve hot with rice and paapads! 

Potato in tomato-yogurt gravy

Ingredients:

1. Potatoes - 6-7 medium sized potatoes.
2. Onion - 1/2 a big onion (cut in small pieces)
3. Tomatoes - 4 medium sized (cut into small pieces)
4. Green chilies - 2 (slit them)
5. Ginger - 1 inch piece (shredded)
6. Red chili powder - 1 tsp (add more if you want it more spicy)
7. Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
8. Garam masala - 1 tsp (I used MDH garam masala)
9. Cumin seeds - 1 tsp 
10. Ajwain - 1/2 tsp
11. Yogurt - 1 cup
12. Salt to taste
13. Oil - 2 table spoons
14. Lemon juice - 2 tsp (optional)
15. Coriander for garnish

Method:

1. Pressure cook the potatoes for 2-3 whistles. Remove the skin and cut them into cubes.
2. In a pan, heat oil and add cumin seeds and ajwain.
3. When it starts to sizzle, add ginger and green chilies and saute for a few seconds.
4. Add the onions and saute till they become transparent. Add little salt for the onions to make it cook faster.
5. Now add the tomatoes and let it cook till they become soft and mushy. Add little water if you think its starting to stick to the pan.
6. Add red chili, turmeric powder and garam masala. Let this mixture boil . Add more water for a gravy consistency.
7. Add salt. 
8. Now add the potatoes and mix well. Cover the pan and let it boil for about 5-7 mins.
9. Turn off the flame and add the yogurt. Mix well and garnish with corriander and lemon juice.
10. Serve hot with chapatis.

Venn Pongal

Ingredients:

1. Rice - 1 cup
2. Moong dal - ½ cup
3. Cashews - how much ever you like! 
4. Ghee - 3-4 table spoons
5. Peppercorns - about  1 teaspoon or you can also use freshly ground pepper
6. Cumin seeds - 1 teaspoon
7. Salt - to taste
8. Curry leaves - one string
9. Asafoetida 
10. Ginger - a small piece (shredded)

Method:

1. Take a vessel that will fit in your pressure cooker.
2. Add rice, moong dal and wash it about 3-4 times.
3. To this add salt, peppercorns (or ground pepper), cumin seeds, ginger, asafoetida and half the curry leaves and 1 tsp of ghee.
4. Add 3 and 1/2 cups of water and pressure cook for 4 whistles.
5. In a pan, heat 1 table spoon of ghee, fry the cashews till they turn light brown and add the curry leaves and saute for a min.
6. Now add the cooked rice and remaining ghee and mix for a few minutes in low-medium flame.
7. Serve hot with chutney , sambar or pickle!