aloo ka halwa
Aloo ka halwa or potato halwa is an unusual dessert. If you are making it for the first time, you will be surprised that how good it tastes. Potato halwa is also eaten in some fasts. If you roast it really well, it will not give a potato taste but some unique taste. Try it and be ready for surprise!
Recipe of potato halwa
1 cup boiled, peeled and mashed potato
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 tsp elaichi (cardamom) powder
1/4 cup milk
4 tbsp ghee (clarified butter)
Toasted nuts like cashew nuts and raisins
1. Mash the boiled potatoes while still warm. Heat ghee in a kadhai/ wok. Add mashed potato and roast on a low heat.
2. Keep stirring the halwa as it tends to stick to the bottom. Roast for 10-15 minutes.
3. Add milk and sugar. Again keep roasting till sugar dissolves and halwa thickens to desired consistency. Turn off the heat.
4. Add elaichi powder and garnish potato halwa with toasted nuts.
Note- The more you roast the aloo ka halwa, the better it will taste. Take medium sized potatoes for this halwa.
shakarkandi ki chaat
If you don’t want to grill shakarkandi, you can just boil it till tender and prepare shakarkandi ki chaat by mixing the given ingredients to it. It’s really a mouth watering chaat and sweet potato is in season now. So, enjoy!
Recipe of shakarkandi ki chaat
1/2 kg shakarkandi (sweet potato)
1 tsp chaat masala
Black salt to taste
Lemon juice to taste
1. Wash shakarkand and pat dry. Smear some oil on shakarkandi. Pressure cook shakarkandi to 1 whistle.
2. Peel and cube shakarkandi. Line a baking tray with aluminium foil. Grease it. Place shakarkandi cubes on tray.
3. Grill them in a preheated oven till edges of shakarkandi becomes brownish.
4. Take out in a bowl and add black salt, chaat masala and lemon juice. Mix well and serve hot. You can also garnish shakarkandi chaat with coriander leaves.
Kuttu poori with curd
I made kuttu poori during ‘Navratras’ but somehow forgot to post it on the blog. You can also make kuttu pooris with kuttu atta only. Singhadi atta is optional. Singhadi atta binds well and also rich in Calcium. Also my mom says kuttu atta is hot on body so mixing singhadi flour leads to cooling down effect.
Recipe of kuttu poori
1 cup kuttu atta (buckwheat flour)
1/2 cup singhadi atta
3-4 medium sized potatoes- boiled, peeled and mashed
3 green chillies- chopped finely
Salt to taste
Oil to deep fry
1. Mix salt and green chillies to potato. In a bowl, mix kuttu and singhadi atta.
2. Mix potato mixture to kuttu and singhadi flour. Use potato to knead the flour into stiff dough. Add water only if there is a need. Let it rest for 5 minutes.
3. Take lemon sized ball from the dough and roll out on a lightly oiled surface, into a 3-4 inch round.
4. Heat oil in a kadhai/wok. To check whether the oil is hot enough, put a small portion of dough into the oil. If it sizzles and comes to surface, your oil is ready. Turn the heat to medium. Gently place the rolled poori in the oil.
4. Press the kuttu ki poori with a pauni (slotted spoon/ chhari). The poori will puff up. Turn over and fry from other side also. Drain the poori using the same slotted spoon on an absorbent paper. Similarly make rest of the kuttu ki puri from the dough. Serve hot with curds.
Aloo ki sabzi
I have earlier posted a recipe of aloo ki sabzi with gravy but it used onion and garlic in the gravy. This recipe of aloo bhaji can be a part of ‘Sattvic Ahaar’ as it is devoid of onion, garlic. It can also be made as a part of fasting food or ‘Vrat ka Khana’. This sabzi tastes absolutely delicious.
Recipe of aloo ki sabzi/ bhaji
3 medium aloo (potato) - boiled, peeled
2 tomatoes- diced
1 tsp kasoori methi (dried fenugreek leaves) - crushed between palms
Salt to taste
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
1/2 tsp coriander powder
1 cup water
1/2 tsp red chilli powder (cayenne pepper)
1 tbsp oil
1/2 tsp cumin seeds
A pinch of hing (asafoetida)
1. Break potato by your hands to get uneven pieces.
2. Heat oil in a kadhai/ wok or a pan. Add cumin seeds and when they change color, add hing.
3. Add potatoes and 1 cup water. Add salt and all the spices.
4. Add tomatoes and kasoori methi. Mix well and turn the heat to medium. Cover the lid.
5. Stir occasionally and cook till gravy thickens to desired consistency. Serve hot with poori or paratha.
sabudana thalipeeth
Sabudana thalipeeth or sago chappati is a delicious fasting food which you should not miss out on. You can also have it for a breakfast or snack item whether you are fasting or not. If you like sabudana just the way I do, you can check out other sago dishes in Fasting foods category especially sabudana khichdi which also comes from Maharashtrian cuisine.
Recipe of sabudana thalipeeth
1 cup Sabudana (sago) - soaked
2-3 green chillies- chopped
2 medium potatoes- boiled, peeled and mashed
Salt to taste
1/2 cup dry roasted and grinded peanuts
Coriander leaves (cilantro) - chopped
Ghee (clarified butter) or oil to shallow fry
Sago dough
1. Mix together all the ingredients except oil or ghee.
2. Divide the dough into tennis size balls.
3. Grease a thick plastic sheet or polythene and place the ball at its center. Pat with moistened fingers to form a thick round. Make small holes in it.
3. Heat a tava (griddle) and grease it with ghee. Gently and carefully turn the thalipeeth onto the tava and peel the plastic off.
4. Put ghee in the holes. Cover the thalipeeth with a plate or a lid and turn the heat to medium. Cook it for 1-2 minutes.
5. Remove the plate and gently turn over. Cook it for another minute or two. Cook till sabudana thalipeeth is golden brown from both sides. Serve sago rotti hot.
sabudana thalipeeth
Kuttu aloo paratha
Kuttu aur aloo ka paratha can be eaten in fasts of Ekadashi and Navratras. Kuttu paratha along with aloo ki sabzi are part of Navratra thali.
Recipe of kuttu aur aloo ka paratha
1 cup kuttu atta (buckwheat flour) and singhadi atta mixed in equal proportions
4-5 medium potatoes (boiled, peeled and mashed)
2-3 green chillies- chopped finely
Salt to taste
Oil to shallow fry
1. Mix all the above ingredients except oil in a bowl and knead into pliable dough. There is no need to add water, use potatoes to knead.
2. Take a small ball (peda) out of the dough and roll into a 4-5 inch diameter disk dusting in dry flour to prevent from sticking.
3. Heat a tava (griddle) and place this paratha on it. Roast from both sides applying oil. Similarly make other paranthas from rest of the dough. Serve hot.
Dough
Kuttu aur aloo ka paratha
Kaddu ki sabzi
Kaddu ki sabzi or sitaphal sabzi is a family favorite. The best thing is that it can also be eaten in fasts like Navratri and Ekadashi. Kaddu subzi, aloo ki sabzi and kuttu paratha or puri makes a complete Navratra thali. Oops! I forgot to mention, sabudana kheer.
Recipe of kaddu ki sabzi
1/2 kilogram kaddu (pumpkin/ sitaphal) - peeled and cubed
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
2-3 green chillies- chopped
Salt to taste
1/4 tsp garam masala powder
1/2 tsp coriander powder
1 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp amchoor (dried mango powder)
1/2 tsp methi dana (fenugreek seeds)
A pinch of hing (asafoetida)
1 tbsp oil
1. Heat oil in a pan or a karahi. Add methi dana and when it changes color, add hing. Add green chillies and sauté for 1 minute.
2. Add kaddu pieces. Add turmeric, coriander powders and salt. Mix well and add 1 tsp water. Lower heat and cook covered till kaddu turns tender.
3. Add sugar, amchoor and garam masala powder and mix well. Cook on low heat for 2 minutes. Cook till all the water evaporates.
Sabudana kheer
Sabudana kheer or sabudana payasam is mainly eaten in fasts including those of Ekadashi and Navratras. It takes a short time to cook after soaking and tastes absolutely divine.
Recipe of sabudana kheer (payasam)
3/4 cup sabudana (sago)
1 liter milk
1/2 cup sugar
3-4 strands saffron (optional)
A big pinch elaichi (green cardamom) powder
Nuts like almonds, raisins and cashew nuts
1. Soak sabudana for 2 hours in just enough water so that sago is submerged.
2. Soak saffron in a little milk. Soak almonds.
3. Heat milk in a pan and let it bring to boil. Add sago and lower heat. Cook stirring continuously as sabudana has a tendency to stick to the bottom of the pan. When the sabudana turns transparent, that means it is cooked.
4. Add sugar and cook stirring for 2-3 minutes. Cook till you get the desired consistency of the kheer. Turn off the heat.
5. Add saffron, elaichi powder, slivered almonds, raisins and broken cashew nuts. Serve hot or cold as per your liking.
Kuttu aur lauki ki tikki
This is mainly a fasting food which can be eaten in the fasts of Ekadashi and Navratras. Well, at least that’s what my mom does. You can also deep fry these tikkis. You can also take boiled, peeled and mashed potatoes to knead the dough in place of lauki. If you are taking potatoes, then also there is no need to add water to knead. Only kuttu atta can also be taken in place of kuttu and singhadi mixed.
Recipe of kuttu lauki tikki
1 medium lauki (ghiya/ bottle gourd/ doodhi) - grated
Kuttu atta (buckwheat flour/ kottu) and singhadi atta- mixed in equal proportion
3-4 green chillies- chopped finely
Salt to taste
Oil to shallow fry
1. Take a bowl and place grated lauki and green chillies. Add mixed kuttu and singhadi atta and salt to it. Add enough atta (flour) so as to knead it into pliable dough. There is no need to add any water to knead the dough.
2. Take balls out of the dough. Flatten them between your palms to give them thin round shape i.e. tikkis. Make them as thick or thin as you are able to do and as you want. Just remember, the thicker they are the most uncooked they will remain at the centre when you cook them.
3. Heat a non- stick tawa (griddle) and smear it with oil with the help of a spatula.
4. Place these tikkis on the tawa and turn the heat to medium. Cook them till underside is cooked. Turn over and cook from the other side also pressing in between with the spatula. Cook brushing with oil. Cook till both sides are cooked and turn reddish brown. Serve hot.
Sabudana khichadi
Sabudana khichdi is a popular Maharashtrian breakfast. Sago is mainly a fasting food in India and eaten in fasts like Ekadashi. If you are buying sago, buy medium sized pearls for this recipe. After soaking sabudana, it really takes no time to cook sabudana khichdi.
Recipe of Sabudana khichdi
2 cups sabudana (sago)
1/4 cup peanuts
1/2 tsp mustard seeds (kali sarson)
7-8 curry leaves
3 chopped green chillies
1 tablespoon ghee (clarified butter) or oil
1 tsp lime juice
salt to taste
1. Wash sabudana in a colander or a strainer (chhalni) and soak for 3-4 hours in 1/4 cup of water.
2. Roast the peanuts and grind them coarsely.
3. Mix ground peanuts with sabudana.
4. Heat ghee in a pan and add mustard seeds. When they crackle, add curry leaves and green chillies. After a few seconds add sabudana mixture. Add salt.
5. Cook on medium heat for about 5 minutes stirring all the time. Do not cover the pan otherwise you will get thick lumps. Each pearl of sago should be separate.
6. Add lime juice and chopped coriander leaves. Serve hot.
I sometimes add potatoes to this dish as a variation. I cut them into small cubes, put them in after the seasoning and cook them till tender and when all water dries up, i add sabudana mixture.
Sabudana khichdi
