Coconut filled Sweet Appam

For the coconut filling :
Fresh grated coconut - 1 coconut
Dark Jaggery / Molasses - 1 cup approximately, depending on the quality of the jaggery and sweetness desired
Water - 2 tbsp
Ghee / Clarified Butter - 1/2 tsp



Place the jaggery in a large heavy pan with 2 tbsp. water and put it on medium flame. Once the jiggery melts, add the grated coconut.



Continue to stir once in a while. Slowly the coconut gets cooked and the mixture becomes thick and bubbly. Now stir continuously till the mixture is almost dry and leaves the sides of the pani. Add the ghee and mix well.



Remove it from heat and leave it aside to cool down a little.
For Appam :
White Rice - 1 cup
Urad Dal - 1/2 cup
Water - 5 cups


Ghee for cookin the appams


Mix rice, dal and water and soak overnight or for a few hours.


Remove from the soaked water and blend the mixture in a blender with a few tbsp. of fresh water till it becomes a smooth paste.


Cover and keep the paste overnight  to ferment.


Once it is fermented, add a little water to the rice dal paste and mix well to make a thick pancake like batter.


Heat a abelskiver / paniyaram pan and add a little bit of ghee to each of the holes. Drop a tsp of batter and then put small portions of the coconut mixture. Add some batter again to cover the filling. Now cover the pan, reduce the heat slightly and cook for 5 minutes. Then turn the appams and cook on the other side till brown and crispy.


Serve hot as it is or with chilled sweet thickened milk.


Adapted from http://kichukhonn.blogspot.com/2016/01/jaggery-and-coconut-stuffed-sweet.html

Green Peas Paratha / Green Peas Flatbread

Frozen green peas - 1 lb
Green Chili - 2
Ginger - 1 inch, grated
Oil - 2 tsp
Hing / Asafoetida - a few pinches


Roasted ground cumin seeds - 2 tsp
Fennel Powder - 1 tsp
Salt





For the Paratha:
Whole wheat flour - 2 cups or an equal mix of APF and WWF
Oil - 3 tsp
Salt
Water

Oil / Ghee for cooking the parathas







Blend the peas with green chili and ginger in a blender. Remove and keep aside.




In a pan heat oil. Add hing and the green peas paste. Then add cumin powder, fennel powder, salt and cook stirring constantly till the water dries up and the mixture changes color and becomes a little dryish. Check for seasoning and adjust it. Cool the mixture.







Mix the oil and salt with the flour well and knead into a soft dough using sufficient water.



Make balls of the dough, fill them with the peas mixture and roll them like paratha. Cook in a hot skillet with a little oil.


Serve with plain yogurt and hot pickle.

Quinoa with French Lentils

Quinoa - 1/2 cup
French Lentils - 1/2 cup (cooked with 1 cup of water, drained of all liquid and kept aside)
Olive Oil - 1 tbsp.
Mustard Seeds - 1/2 tsp
Cumin Seeds - 1/2 tsp
Onion - 1/4 cup, finely chopped
Ginger - 1 inch, grated
Green Chili - 2, finely chopped
Roasted Peanuts - a handful
Roasted Cashew nuts - a handful
Lemon Juice - 1 tsp


Place the quinoa in a strainer and wash well for at least a couple of minutes. Add 1 cup of water and cook on medium heat till the water dries up and the quinoa is fluffy. The quinoa looks transparent when it is cooked. Keep aside.



Heat oil in a pan. Add mustard seeds. Then add cumin seeds, chopped onion, grated ginger, chopped green chilies. Saute till the onion turns light brown.




Add the roasted nuts, quinoa and french lentils. Adjust salt and mix everything well and cook for a few minutes more.



Add a dash of lemon juice and serve with fried / poached eggs.