CURRY AND SPICE: AVOCADO COCONUT CHUTNEY & CARROT SESAME CORNMEAL FLAT BREAD

I again repeat, this blog was meant to be totally Bengali in essence but then I could not keep my promise.... could not remain true to the iconic Bengali fictional or real life figures looking at whom I grew up... may be so an upset Saubhik Sengupta does not find time to meet me / us on our Kolkata visit these days. There was a time when his vibrant wife too visited me alone... She shares her birthday with my husband and T thinks she is far more accommodative than her husband. I had to mention Saubhik because such posts cause irritation in him just as in one Lalmohon Babu I know. Although I am no less a Bengali than them, I do believe in touching hearts in turns.... then there also works the influence of Liz Taylor's beauty to one Punita's glitz... I should have done away with this particular influence totally long back but could not... may be because our Pa was a fan of Sophia Loren... that my movie going experience started with him at Light House & New Empire... he was totally into Tollywood and Hollywood! Hence, bother less about what I "should"... let me handle my own odds or fight it until my end. I do not mind as long as I get to do what I wish to... cook, eat, merry and repeat, continue.

One should not waste their time trying to find justification in my actions... I myself had been unable to explore 25% of the self so far, not bothered... I flow with my wishes & time. Like, I did not even try to reason why I had to have a dosa meal and thereafter two makai paratha with chicken & avocado chutney after a 10km walk in the sun... no one wishes to be sun kissed in this clime but I do not mind... Since, I do not set targets for myself ... I enjoy the surrounding in my own speed, hate the confinement of a gym but love the cage called home. In between preparing this vegetarian platter of AVOCADO COCONUT CHUTNEY & CARROT SESAME CORN MEAL FLAT BREAD, I did manage to capture the cloudy sky and how it turned into a weeping willow within minutes from my tiny living room... If I do away with romanticism, I will feel claustrophobic and die sooner.

I see a number of Southern Indian bloggers who have prepared an avocado chutney, since I have not clicked and seen any of their recipes... I need not make any mentions... mine may be similar but their chutneys I see have more or less the same tempering. However, I used coriander leaves without which I felt I cannot have it. I had to keep chicken as a standby, else they would have eaten the flatbread / paratha all by itself. They did have the chutney but one tablespoon each. The chutney was good as I did it as per my tastebud, the problem is that by then I had seen those perfect "moirar dokaner shingara.... Felu Mittir kaat hoye jabey to ami kon char"... Oh! I cannot mince words, I cannot fake, I cannot be a people pleaser, I stand bare in front of the world... that have costed me dearly, lost readers, lost friends and I do not care... I will be following my Pa's footsteps rest of my life and hone my mother's cooking hat! I am eagerly waiting to feed her the freshest of the fruit varieties here!

Today is a hectic day for me. I have friends coming over tomorrow, today I have to attend Hariharan ji's programme... Ipsita will be taking the queen bee to the venue... only if she could manage loving her husband a little less and keep the speed limit within 80... [jha korey 120 korey dilo, blog e akhono Rukma Dakshir Ilishta otheni]... I have swimming class with the super taskmaster Joe tomorrow morning .... when do I cook? Anyway, its going to be a full course Bengali mains... Anyway, I do not like measuring cups in my kitchen... I do it for you... my readers... for this habit... my cakes go wrong often. Okay, avocado chutney done with six avocados will fetch a big bowl of it.... what to do? It is not "dhonepatar chutney or shutkir bhorta" that I will savour it for a week. Hence, some semolina idli went to the husband's lunch box with the chutney, son is having his breakfast with idli and chilli sauce, the rest of the chutney with few idli went to Debarathi & Ipsita's home. The dinner for the husband & son are left over chicken from yesterday and "dim sheddo aloo sheddo bhaat".... the son will eat double the rice today... mumma will not be there to force him with vegetables. What I must mention is that yesterday I prepared the chicken in the microwave... yes, I did enjoy the smaller leg piece... it does require a longer marination time.

Mumma is not the kind who would wish to leave the unwell son at home and attend a concert. Hence, he gets 6 dollars to get his lunch from outside... I know what it is.... a Mac meal! Weekly once I do allow. How much of upset Lalmohon Babu gets, my family enjoy the variety of breads I prepare including this AVOCADO COCONUT CHUTNEY & CARROT SESAME CORN MEAL FLAT BREAD. They are the kinds who can sustain anywhere in the world, I am not... I want an "aloo sheddo bhaat" after 5 days while on a tour. I have to finish off the post and do some arrangements for tomorrow.... my guests should not feel unattended! For the avocado coconut chutney, I used fresh coriander, green chillies, coconut, lemon juice everything to suit an Indian taste bud. The cornmeal bread did steal my heart.... I kept watching my friends having it.... got a packet for the first time. Liked combining the shredded carrot, coriander, roasted sesame seeds. What happened was that after a standing time of one hour... the dough got softer... that made me use my palms to shape the mini flat breads. I was finding it difficult to roll them... be careful while adding the water. I was working with cornmeal for the first time and felt this can go up in the blog... have some trust and go ahead! Do not stop by here for photography, it is always like "Cristine kalo jamata aar shada orna ta dey to, then click, click, click!"

INGREDIENTS : [FOR THE AVOCADO COCONUT CHUTNEY]

RIPE AVOCADO : 6 [CUT 1/2, SCOOPED, WASHED]
SHREDDED COCONUT : 1SMALL TEA CUP
FRESH CORIANDER : 2SPRIG [DISCARD ROOT, CHOP, WASH]
GREEN CHILLI : 4 [WASHED]
LEMON JUICE : 5-6TBSP
CURRY LEAF : 10-15 [WASHED, WIPED]
MUSTARD SEED : 1/2TSP
CHANA DAL : 1/4TSP
URAD DAL : 1/4TSP
OIL : 1TBSP
SALT : AS REQUIRED
CHAAT MASALA : 1TSP

INGREDIENTS : [FOR THE CARROT SESAME CORNMEAL BREAD]

CORN MEAL / MAIZE FLOUR / MAKAI ATTA : 11/2 COFFEE MUG
REFINED FLOUR : 1/2 COFFEE MUG
SHREDDED CARROT : 1SMALL TEA CUP [WASHED]
CHOPPED CORIANDER : 4TBSP [WASHED]
ROASTED WHITE SESAME SEED : 2-3TBSP
SALT : AS REQUIRED
OIL : 2TBSP + 1TSP PER PARATHA

Let us prepare the Avocado Coconut Chutney at first.

Take the avocado flesh, shredded coconut, green chillies, fresh coriander and salt in a blender. I had to add a medium tea cup of water to get a smooth paste. My blender is not a supreme woman but a rebel like my men.

Now blend at hight for a minute, pause and repeat. It should be done in 3 minutes.

We will add the chaat masala and lemon juice now & mix well.

We will transfer the entire amount onto a bowl. Heat oil in a wok, add the curry leaves, give a stir and take out before they burn.

We will add the mustard seeds, let them splutter. Add the two variety of dal and stir till light brown.

We will garnish the Avocado Coconut Chutney with it.

Now, the Carrot Sesame Corn Meal Bread!

Take the corn meal, refined flour, salt, shredded carrot, roasted sesame, 2tbsp oil in a bowl. I added the chopped coriander later after the dough was ready .... may be so it got softer than required.

Add very little water and knead to a smooth dough. It will take 6-7 minutes.

Cover it for not more than 1/2 an hour. I did not calculate the time... kept it covered for an hour. It can be another reason for a softer than required dough.

At this stage I added some chopped coriander. I tore off smaller portions and smoothened between my palms.

Now, they required a lot of dusting to be rolled with a rolling pin, else it was getting difficult to give a shape. I even browsed some bati and litti recipes, but no, they need prior preparations and I wanted cornmeal 'tawa' breads.

So, "yeh jo meri haath hai, laga diye kaam pe".... I used my palms to shape the parathas.