Celery Soup

Celery. Its an excellent source of Vitamin C , folic acid, potassium, vitamins and fibre,  but most important , everyone loves the tangy fresh taste of celery. Here is a quick and easy way to serve celery.

A bunch of celery ,  use only the leaves and the top stem which is still delicate. Finely chop the leaves and stalks. 1 onion finely chopped, 5-6 garlic cloves finely chopped, 1 tblsp flour , 1/4 cup milk , 1 tblsp oilve oil, salt and pepper to taste.

Heat oil, saute the onion till light brown and translucent, saute garlic. Add in the celery , cover and cook. Cool and blend in a mixer and return to the pan. Blend the flour with the milk , add 1 cup of water.  lower the flame and add the flour, milk and water . Stir continuously till it thickens. Season with salt and pepper.

Serve with grilled cheese sandwiches or with a hearty  pasta salad.

Fish Cutlets - Mackarel

Mackarel is a part of the oily fish family. A rich source of Omega 3 oil. Often looked down by the new fish eaters, Mackarel or Bangda as it is popularly known is actually amongst the most nutritious fishes. Its my personal favourite and a mackarel curry with unpolished rice is a meal a goans dreams are made of :) .
Here is a fancy starter that is nutritious, filling and a change from the usual fish tikkas. This cutlet or kabab is made with Mackarel , but one can use any other fish with lesser bones or with fillets of white fish. However this is by far tastier. Here goes

4 whole Mackarel ( Bangda) , steamed, de boned and flaked. 1 large onion chopped  and sauted till light brown, 1 green chilli finely chopped, a few sprigs of coriander  finely chopped, 1 tsp ginger garlic paste,  2 slices of bread , soaked , squeezed and crumbled, 1/4 tsp each of  red chilli powder and  garam masala . 1/2 a lime , salt to taste.1 egg white

Mix together the fish flakes, sauteed onions, chillies, coriander,ginger garlic paste ,  salt, spices, and lemon juice. Mix in the bread crumble and egg white. Mix well , but lightly with a fork. Divide the mixture into small balls and flatten lightly. Grease a non stick pan and place the cutlets/ kababs on it. Fry on each side till golden or dark brown.
Serve with a mint or coriander chutney .

You can make a meal out of it by serving it with fried potato wedges , salad and garlic bread.

Khotte

There was no dearth of exotic foods in our kitchen. Having a large internationally integrated family meant there was always something new and unusual from someones kitchen that found its way to our dining table. Dads closest friends were konkanis. Khotte or idlis steamed in triangular moulds made from jack fruit leaves and twigs were not only exotic but delicious. Just looking at those huge steamed leafy moulds made my dad go weak in the knees. Accompanied by a spicy runny corriander and coconut chutney it was a meal fit for a king. On special occasions it was served with a spicy coconut based fish curry. A treat for the eyes, a feast for the palate and nirvana for the soul.

The khotte are basically made with regular idli batter. Once can use the normal store bought batter as well to make the khotte. For the procedure to make the jack fruit moulds, here is a fantastic site where it has been explained with pictures.

http://www.aayisrecipes.com/2006/10/25/idlis-in-jackfruit-leaveshittukhottekhotte-kadubu/

Chirote

Every now and then one remembers a forgotten flavour of our childhood. Something sweet , a unique flavour or a texture that got us all excited. One of the things i often remember is chirote. A flaky fried snack liberally sprinkled with powdered sugar, eaten while it was still warm. Aaaaah those crispy , flaky, sweet bites of heaven. Thankfully its easy to recreate the crispy flaky wheels in no time and I am able to walk down that nostalgic lane as often as I like.
Sharing the simple procedure . Try it and let me know what you think.

1 cup maida, 8 tblsp pure desi ghee , 1/4 cup warm milk, 2 tblsp rice flour, powdered sugar to sprinkle on the chirote as per taste.

melt about 4 tblsp of the ghee. Mix well into the flour . Knead the flour into a soft dough using the warm milk.Cover and set aside for about half an hour. Divide the flour into 6 equal parts. Roll out each of these parts into a thin flat pancake. Whisk together the remaining ghee and the rice flour till you get a creamy paste. Now place a pancake down on a floured surface and spead 1/5 of the creamy rice flour - ghee paste over it. Sprinkle with some dry flour over it , then place another pancake over it and repeat the flour paste layering and dry flour sprinkling till the last pancake is placed on top. Now starting from the side closest to you , roll the entire pile into a tight roll . Do this lightly so that the layers are not pressed hard into each other. Cut into about 16-20 discs. Lightly roll each disk and fry in medium hot oil. Take care to maintain the creamy colour of the chirote. Drain on absorbent paper and quickly sprinkle them with powdered sugar before they cool down.

These keep well for a week . Mine dont :( . They are over within the hour.