When the three of us were divvying up recipes to cook from the cook book, the one recipe we really wanted to try was Pita Bread. We have  heard some folks say it is a breeze to make, while others say it is difficult to make. Marlena wrote the recipe beautifully and it seemed like any home cook can make this. It is kind of like Naan, you will hear folks say you need a tandoor oven. And we vehemently deny that and say we can replicate making Naan in a home kitchen. What was challenging was if we can get to make pocket pitas. Malrlena in the cook book says, there are different kind of pita breads, the soft ones like we made, the pocket versions and thick pita breads. So a big sigh of relief !

Yeast – 1, 7g rapid rise

Warm water – 1 cup, approx

All purpose flour or half & half of whole wheat & AP flour – 4 1/2 cups

Olive Oil – 2 tbsp

Salt – 2 tsp

• Dissolve the yeast in warm water ( use some from the 1 cup  we will be using)
• In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour and salt.
• Add the yeast mixture to the flour along with the oil and stir it all together until it forms a stiff dough
• Coat the dough with oil.
• Cover the dough with a moist cloth and let it rest in a warm place for at least 30 minutes.
• Knead the dough again until smooth and allow it to rest  for an hour until doubled in volume.
• Divide the dough into 10- 12 portions.
• Equally divide the dough and roll between your palms to form 10-12 round balls
• Flour the  surface and roll out each ball until you have a circle, 7-8 inches in diameter (1/2 “thick)
• Heat an iron skillet and when the skillet is hot, place one piece of the flattened dough and cook for 30-40 seconds.
• Turnover and cook on the other side for a minute.
• You will see large bubbles appear, turn it over again, when it puffs up again, use a clean towel and press the bread where bubbles form. Cook each bread for roughly  2-3 minutes.
• Wrap the pita bread in a towel, stacking one above the other until they are done and ready to serve.

Serve hot with the grilled chicken. Oh, you definitely want to check the grilled chicken out. Few ingredients, great flavor easy to prepare even in week nights.

Eileen has a delicious salad waiting for you and Mel has made some kickass Chicken Curry.

Sundays with Marlena Spieler

Mandelbrot means Mandel (almond) brot (bread). It tasted just like biscotti and the recipe is also very similar. They are both baked twice and use eggs, but no butter and is considered “parve“, which means it does not have any dairy or meat product.

Let us warn you before you read any further, these cookies by whatever name they are called are very very addictive.  The recipe makes about 2 dozen and our cookie tin was empty in a week! Dip them in  piping hot cup of tea or coffee , while you are cozily sitting close to the fireplace reading a book and you will not know how many you finished. Eileen actually dipped hers in champagne!

We almost followed the recipe completely. The recipe called for grated rind of one lemon, we used rind of one orange instead and it tasted and smelt heavenly.

All purpose flour- 3 1/4 cups

Ground almonds- 1 cup

Baking powder- 1 tsp

Salt- 1/4 tsp

Eggs- 3

Powdered Sugar- 1 1/4 cups

Orange Zest- 1 T

Almond Extract- 1 tsp

Vanilla Extract- 1 tsp

Blanched Almonds- 1 cup, roughly chopped

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• In a large bowl, stir in all the dry ingredients. ( Marlena says, sift, but we are too lazy)
• Using an electric whisk or get your 5 minute work out by whisking the sugar and eggs  until light and fluffy.
• Stir in the orange zest, both the extracts and add the flour, ground almonds little at a time.
• Finally add the chopped almonds and transfer to a floured surface and knead well.
• Divide the dough into two and form each into a long flat loaf.
• Place them on the baking sheet and bake for about 35- 40 minutes or until they turn golden brown.
• Let the loaves cool slightly.
• Cut then them into 1/2 inch diagonal slices. Be very careful when you do this, if they get crushed, the rejects are yours to eat
• Arrange the slices in a row and bake again for about 7- 8 minutes. Turn the slices over and bake for another 7-8 minutes.
• When cool, store in an air tight container. They can last for atleast tow weeks if you can resist eating them all in one go.

We shared this with our blogger friends, Marlena and her aunt Estelle Opper two weekends ago. Estelle suggested we make them a little more thicker and also suggested we sprinkle some cinnamon sugar on the top. When they came over to our house last weekend for an Indian potluck, she remembered our conversation and shared a Mandelbrot with us, so we learn how thick they should be sliced, now that is sweet!

My friends have awesome recipes to share, be sure to check Mel & Eileen’s blog.

On another note, Marlena has written quite a few cookbooks. She has one dedicated to potatoes, another to mac n’ cheese, so be sure to check her website.

I have vague memories of having thalipeeth at home. My sis would come home after visiting her friends and try new recipes that she learnt from them..ah the joy of being the youngest. Thalipeeth was one of them. While I remembered the name distinctly, I had forgetten how it tasted.

The wonderful world of blogging refreshed my memory and I decided to make this at home and when it was a huge success, I decided to teach this in my class well. I looked at a few recipes and made my own. My inspiration came from Nupur’s thalipeeth

Chickpea/Garbanzo flour- 1/2 cup
Rice flour- 1/2 cup
Whole-wheat flour – 1/2 cup
Semolina- 2 T
English Cucumber – 1 (grated)
Spinach- 1/4 cup (finely chopped)
Cumin seeds – 1 tsp
Coriander powder – 1 tsp
Red onion – 2 T (finely chopped)
Serrano green chilliy – 1 (finely minced)
Cilantro – 2 T (finely chopped)
salt to taste
vegetable oil for cooking

Method:

• Mix all the ingredients together in a large bowl to make a soft pliable dough, adding water only if necessary ( The water content in the cucmber should be more than sufficient).
• The dough will be sticky. I tried patting them on a plastic sheet and transferring to the griddle. But found the traditional far more convenient.
• Take a golf ball sized ball of dough and start patting it to a round disc on the griddle.
• Have a toothpick next to the griddle and immediately make three to four holes on the thalipeeth.
• Drizzle with oil into the holes and around and cook for a minute and then turn and cook.
• Cook until they are golden brown on both sides.

Everyone in my class, made their own thalipeeth and had it with thick yogurt. I might add grated carrots to it next time.

Ingredients
All Purpose flour – 1.5 cups
Turmeric Powder – 1/8 tsp
Salt- 1/8 tsp
Water – to make a pliable dough
Channa Dal – 1 cup
Jaggery – 1/2 cup (powdered)
Sugar – 1/2 cup
Nutmeg- a very tiny pinch
Cardamom powder – 1/2 tsp
Oil – 2 tsp

• Make the dough by mixing flour,salt and turmeric first. Slowly add water to make a soft dough. Drizzle oil over the dough and cover with saran wrap for an hour.
• Cook the dal in a pressure cooker or in stock pot filled with water. If using a pressure cooker, takes about 4 to 5 whistles. If you are using a stock pot, bring water (about 2.5 cups)to a boil, add the dal and close it with a lid and let it simmer for about 45 minutes or until it is soft to the touch,but does not turn mushy,
• Drain the water completely and let it cool. Grind the jaggery and dal to a fine paste. please do not add any water. If you think the filling is wet, saute in a pan to remove the moisture. Mix the filling with the nutmeg and cardamom powder.
• Divide the filling to make about 14 to 15 balls. Do the same with your dough as well.
• Roll the dough to the size of your palm, and place the filling inside the dough and cover on all sides.
• Flatten and roll it, about 12 inches in diameter.
• Place an iron skillet on the stove and once hot, cook the poli on both sides, drizzle some ghee and serve.

Bee has an excellent step by step guide on how to make these cuties. When Mythreyee and I were chatting, we spoke about love for sweets and we moved on to poli. I just could not resist myself and made them the very same day. I sent her a picture of the poli on gtalk and she said I have send this as an entry to her sweet series. So Mythreyee here you go, Polis just for you!

What I enjoyed most was when I heard from the students that they have tried out a lot of the
recipes I taught, which means our Indian cooking is spreading it’s wings and a few told me that they have decided to dish up some of the Indian dishes for Thanksgiving! That thrilled me to bits and got me all misty eyed.

Some of them tell me their spouses dont like Indian food and after they cook some of the recipes we cooked in class, they send me an email that,”We have another convert”, and that makes my day, that someone who did not like Indian food has begun to like it.

We made about 80 pooris…no no..just 12 students did not clean up 80 pooris, a few folks from the cooking school, R & I also had our share of the dinner. The menu was absolute comfort food

Poori

Spinach Poori

Channa Masala

Onion Relish

Shrikand

Just see all the hands involved in making the pooris and remember it was their first time rolling them . The class was a blast!

Yeah I have been infected by the baking fairy. Needs no recipe since this is all over the blog world . R & I enjoyed the bread. This is one bread that does not need a “baker”. It is fun and tastes great.

The only thing I would do different next time, is add a pod of garlic and a tbsp of rosemary!

I walked down memory lane when I saw pu siva’s coconut bun. As a child, my mom got them from Iyengar bakery..I liked spicy food even then. Buns that were made with green chillies,curry leaves and cilantro. I used pusiva’s recipe, but made a few changes not because of my imagination mind you, just because of the lack of ingredients. But yes, the plan was kaara buns and kaara buns it was. R & I were extremely happy with the results.

http://pusiva.blogspot.com/2006/08/weekend-baking-session-24.html

The recipe needed two cups of AP flour, I used 1.5 cups of AP and 1/2 cup of cake flour. I did not have butter, so used ghee instead. Reduce the amount of sugar if you plan to make it savory. chopped green chillies (4) and a tbsp of chopped curry leaves and cilantro made this buns just the way I remembered having them.

Hope you try her recipe and enjoy it as much as we did. Thank you…..

In a pan with a little bit of oil saute the spinach and then pour in the egg white, and there you have it scrambled eggs with spinach. Have it along with toast and some fruits for a kind of balanced breakfast