KANCHAKOLAR CUTLET IN OVEN

Ahh! The weekend did go well but was not a relaxed one. We love "lyad-ing" on a Sunday! The husband is travelling, I did a lot of cooking on Saturday, the son went for his "torowal khela" on a Sunday morning, it was Cristine's day off. I started the day yesterday on a positive note having chia with yogurt because Cristine reminded me that its time to visit the doctor. The sugar level got very stubborn just for my inability to bid a good bye to junk food. I had a relaxed morning, did a 7km walk, came back and took a shower, did my "dainandin pujoarcha" and was waiting for the son. He came back home around 2:15 pm hungry and worried. Ok, mumma promised him that she would get his glasses fixed but he never found it necessary to listen to her request of learning a musical instrument... "ugrapantha ta komto ektu".... After a lunch with our style of a mutton curry, I was not in a position to walk to the Mall  opposite our home. It was not necessary because the son has other pairs....... but then he had to hurry and this is a soft hearted mumma... The glasses were fixed for free but this lady spent near 100 $ shopping. It was not necessary but you know such small pleasures keep you going. There were more pleasures in the evening, baking a cake and frying "halenchar bora".... watercress fritters. What got the devil out of me around 8:45pm yesterday was discovering to what extent is Cristine callous in her cleaning services. Look at how I had to re-clean my microwave oven. Once back home, she got severe  scolding from me but helped me chopping the leaves, washing the utensils which she is not supposed to do on a Sunday.... she is a wonderful human being!

Clean your microwave oven with a mixture of baking soda, lemon juice and water. I cannot tolerate a single piece of dust particle at any corner of my home, the reason why I deployed a helper.... Unless I take over the rein it seems no one can make me happy. Back in Kolkata, my helps used to  mop our home two times a day, how beautiful it feels when in the evening all your rooms smell dettol and you do the "sandhya arati with dhoop dhuno".... I am indeed a grandmother's daughter.... she is presently at our Barrackpore home .... my mother says that at her 90"s she is still so particular about rules, rituals "etho-kata".... I cannot think of an oven or a refrigerator not made squeaky clean on a regular basis. I am just scared of doing it all alone, else I would have shown what my definition of cleanliness is. Anyway, I baked a "depression cake" too but I am not happy with the taste, fault is not of the recipe source but I think I used a bit more of baking soda than required.... we may not be eating it. The semolina idli is however wonderful as much as an idli in a microwave can be.

Yesterday night, my temper came down to normal when I had those watercress fritters. That watercress is our "halencha" was told by a blogger friend.... and I am so thankful to her. I so wished to share on blog today the "halenchar shukta" I prepared last Saturday, may be next week. "lau shaak chaira smoothie dhoroner public amina, idir modhya bhab bhalobasha ase ami jani, hokoldir jonyo nahoy ami kaskola diya kisu koira di".... I think few bloggers have this KANCHAKOLAR CUTLET IN OVEN on their blog, may be the deep fried version. Earlier this month, I tried this vegetarian, Bengali styled snacker in my own way. I wished to use less oil, so in the last step instead of deep frying, I baked them. On that day too, the husband was travelling, so I had it with salad while the son either got some porota or pulao alongside .... cannot remember.

I repeat again, how I wished to share a heirloom Bengali recipe today, specially after seeing "lauer doga to bilati dhonepata" around... I am acquainted with such food eversince I was 5-6. Then, not all grand children would have a similar tastebud as mine, neither all mothers are like our's. Commitment is a very precious word in my dictionary, I self impose it on myself in certain cases. However, I do not expect commitments in return.... An evil sleeps inside... I either own what I love, if that seems absurd, unnatural I would prefer to distance myself! I discovered the evil in me in the recent past and was surprised to see so much of negativity in me. I never do work myself up to achieve anything! For such an attitude, I have failed in different stages of life....... Like, I will not order lau shaak online to satisfy my soul, will wait for my July visit to Kolkata to have "lau shaak diye charaponar jhol".... the mother used to do it in summer... The vegetarian, evening snacker KANCHAKOLAR CUTLET IN OVEN has been described with a pretty good number of steps, so it should not be a problem replicating it in your kitchen!

If you want the recipe links of few more fritters on this blog, here they are.... MUSHUR DAL ER BORA , PEYAZ NOODLES PAKODA, CHOLAR DAL ER BORA

INGREDIENTS :

RAW BANANA : 2STANDARD SIZED
POTATO : 1BIG
CHOPPED GREEN CHILLI : 1TBSP
CHOPPED FRESH CORIANDER : 3-4TBSP
CUMIN SEED : 1/2TSP + 1TSP
CORIANDER SEED : 1TSP
CAROM SEED : 1/2TSP
FENNEL SEED : 1/2TSP
FENUGREEK SEED : 1TSP
DRY RED CHILLI : 2-3
TURMERIC POWDER : 1TSP
SEMOLINA : 1/2SMALL TEA CUP
CHAAT MASALA : 1TSP
REFINED FLOUR : 1/4SMALL TEA CUP
RAISIN : 10-12
SALT : AS REQUIRED
OIL : 3-4TBSP

PROCEDURE :

Dry roast the coriander + fennel + fenugreek + carom + 1tsp cumin seeds + dry red chillies for a minute or two. Let them cool, grind them to a coarse powder. Keep aside.

Soak the raisins in hot water for 1/2 an hour, discard the water thereafter.

Peel, wash, cut half and pressure cook the potato and raw bananas at the lowest heat up to 1 whistle adding 2 coffee mugs of water. Let the lid open by itself. Strain the water.

Be good, do not eat the boiled stuffs with "shorsher tel, kancha lanka, noon, bhaat.".... You are doing "katlet" today, you are not like me who yet does not know the right use of fork & spoons ... "hai rey cemri"...

So, mash the boiled vegetables with some salt and the turmeric.

We have the washed and chopped green chillies & coriander, the ground spices right on the kitchen counter.

Heat the oil and temper it with the cumin seeds. Before they turn black, add the green chillies and give a quick stir.

Add the boiled and mashed vegetables and fold in well.

After you have stirred continuously for 3-4 minutes, you will add 1tbsp of the ground spices or a little more.

Fold in very well and keep stirring at low heat for 3-4 minutes. Add the washed and chopped coriander leaves now.

Mix very well, stir & keep mashing for 3-4 minutes. Add the soaked raisins now.

Fold in well, stir for 2-3 minutes and take down. Let it cool.

Do all the cooking at low heat.

Take the semolina and chaat masala on a bowl and mix well.

Dilute the refined flour with some water.

Tear out tennis ball sized portions and smoothen in between your palms, give your desired cutlet shapes.

Roll it onto the semolina mixtures, dip in the diluted refined flour and repeat.

To avoid deep frying them, I baked them. Preheat the oven at 180*C for 10 minutes. Place the low stool inside if you are using the convection mode of a microwave like me.

Bake at 180*C for 15-18 minutes or depending on your machine, they differ!

Enjoy with chutneys, sauces, salad of your choice and do not forget to tell me how they turned.... they cannot go wrong!

CINNAMON FLAVOURED PAV BREAD & BHAJA MOSHOLAI ALOO MUSHROOM

I was miraculously spared yesterday from earning those adjectives..... "ten thousand blistering barnacles" to "baboons" which I thought was inevitable after adding that amount of "bhaja mosholar guro" to the veggie dish and that number of "chilli padi" to the chutney. To ease my tension, I even tried one number to another in my broken voice... from "Julie aaaaa I labh you" to "Roop tera mastana".... these two songs our mother did not allow me to hum freely, hence they are my favourites. Someone not only spared me but told the "pav" bread tasted good, I think Captain Haddock has a thing for Bianca at the back of his mind. I do not mind it so long he eats the food I cook with love. I am anyway tired of people expressing their doubt on whether I serve him what I cook  at all or all of them pass through my food pipe! His mother too tried to at times but she knows that I have fed him more and more varieties than she did. Oh yes! I do not bother to safeguard the respect of those who pose a threat to mine. Since she is the primary reason why I get to live a good life, I will always take care of her which is called duty and not love. For the man or any, a mother, is a mother is a mother, is a mother! I need not interfere in that!

No, I will not start with that "saas-bahu" saga, I stopped watching television just to avoid those boring soaps with utter lies.... all of a sudden after marriage the daughter-in-law starts loving her "sasural" more than her roots, the maa-in-law loving the "bahu" more than her son and the ladies of the house cutting "gobi & baingan" all day long. Had I have owned that big a kitchen, I would have bought an air fryer, an oven besides my microwave, a hand blender, this & that. That cannot be as ours is a rented 1100 sq.ft. area where you suffer from breathlessness at times. In such a scenario, I do what is required, plant some greens around... they freshen the air and keep me happy. Happier do I feel to cook, Cristine is the major reason who contributes to my energy level while cooking, she helps me immensely in this area. Yesterday, after we came back from the wet market around 12  noon, I thought of baking "pav" initially.... then prepared the dough for it following a  couple of recipes but was unhappy with the shape of the balls.... I am miserable even in simple artistry! I preferred preparing a "pav" bread. If "pav" means 1/4 of a bread, may I call it so?

At night I served it with roasted herbed chicken legs, the spicy aloo-mushroom, tomato-chilli padi chutney. I obviously had to have my share of the brown rice while enjoyed me baked bread with Planta spread on it and tea this morning.

The combined platter of CINNAMON FLAVOURED PAV BREAD & BHAJA MOSHOLAI ALOO MUSHROOM was indeed loved by the family. The husband's all time love is "double dimer omelette aar butter toast".... He is still at home today, getting ready to drive to the neighbouring country... so Cristine is preparing his favourite food that includes my home baked bread.

Looking at that omelette, I wished for a single egg one, but I know I will have indigestion until I eat some rice at night.... rice two times a day will turn me into a barrel from a football.

It is raining badly with strong wind, a perfect weather to sing my favourite numbers  but a gripping fear has occupied my mind. The son goes to school alone these days instead of the school bus following his brother like friend Spandan.... what if it rains in the afternoon.... when the school gives over there is total chaos at the gate.... until the husband reaches and messages me, I cannot be at peace. The condition I suffer from will never leave me but I will sustain everything that comes my way... to get that strength I chant "Naam Myoho Renge Kyo".... This religion is not so strict as Hinduism... I see them offering noodles, meat, fish, fruits to the Buddha.

I have started recording what I hum with the help of a friend.... however poor my voice is, I am enjoying documenting few numbers in a forum with practically no views. I do not mind, I am not a Shreya Ghosal who does a 6 hours of "rewaz" everyday I heard. If ever I can train myself decently, I will share the information of the space with my readers and friends. So, that has occupied a precious part of my time. If only I could home deliver food to few Indian Homes here who hate cooking! I have to watch movie, listen to music & poems, sing, read.... I cannot turn myself into a machine.... the reason why I left taking reading, speech & drama classes in a school here, what a bore and waste of my time that was. The Day I will perfect the "poori" for "phuchka".... I will write about my first school at work, my experience as a teacher there in Barasat.... of the 5 beautiful years there.... "gondhoraj lebu deoa tetul jol" at Haritola More was the best. I have to get the pooris crisper. Till then enjoy this poor baker's vegetarian, dinner platter CINNAMON FLAVOURED PAV BREAD & BHAJA MOSHOLAI ALOO MUSHROOM .... which is just perfect on an all vegetarian day. I wish to share the recipe of the tomato-chilli chutney in a separate post some time later.

Recipe Sources for the Pav Bread :

tarladalal.com
anybodycanbake.com
mygingergarlickitchen.com [Anupama used to be a friend, use to love her excellent photography & innovative ideas besides few others'.... lost contact.... I got more self centric and keep to myself most of the time]

INGREDIENTS FOR THE PAV BREAD :

REFINED FLOUR : 2 COFFEE MUG
MILK POWDER : 1/2 COFFEE MUG
DRY BAKER'S YEAST : 8-9 GM
BAKING POWDER : 1 TBSP
CINNAMON POWDER : 11/2 TSP
SALT : 1/2 TSP
SUGAR : 1 TBSP
MILK : 1/2 SMALL TEA CUP + 2 TBSP
BUTTER :3 TBSP + 2 TSP [MELTED]


INGREDIENTS FOR THE SPICY POTATO MUSHROOM :

POTATO : 300 GM [I USED A SMALLER VARIETY]
BUTTON MUSHROOM : 8-10
CUMIN SEED : 1 TSP
CORIANDER SEED : 11/2 TSP
DRY RED CHILLI : 4
TURMERIC POWDER : 1/2TSP
BLACK PEPPER POWDER : 1/2 TSP
CHOPPED FRESH CORIANDER : 2TBSP
LEMON JUICE : 1TBSP
GINGER PASTE : 2 TSP
OIL : 2-3TBSP


PROCEDURE : 

Let us proceed with the recipe of  Pav Bread first. 

Warm 1/2 small tea cup of milk and dissolve 1tbsp sugar in it. Add the yeast and stir well. Keep aside for 3-4 minutes till it rises to double.

Now, take the refined flour, milk powder, salt, baking powder, cinnamon powder in a wide mouthed bowl. Mix well & then add the well risen yeast.

Fold in well. Add warm water little by little  and prepare a smooth dough. This will take 7-8 minutes.

Add 3 tbsp of melted butter, knead well for another 4-5 minutes.

Did I make the dough overly sticky? Let's see how it goes! Cover it and keep inside the microwave or at any warm corner.

Within 45 minutes it will rise to double. I kept it for an hour!

Remove the cover, dust the kitchen top with some refined flour and place the dough on it.

Knead well again for 4-5 minutes. Make balls & arrange on a cake tin! I fail to give them a smooth finish! Brush oil on their top, cover with a moist towel & keep inside the microwave!The balls would rise considerably!

I preheated my mini toaster oven to 180*C. I baked the Pav bread at 180*C for 20 minutes. 

Once done we will brush it with the remaining melted butter!

Let us do the vegetarian side of Potato & Mushroom.

I dry roasted the cumin + coriander + dry red chillies for a minute, let them cool down.

Once cool, I dry grounded them to a coarse powder, that will take some 1-2 minutes at intervals.

I washed the potatoes, pricked each of them with a fork. I took them on a plate and microwaved at high for 4 minutes.

Once cold, I halved them.

I washed and halved the mushrooms. I marinated both the potatoes and mushrooms with freshly ground black peppers and some salt.

I heated the oil in a wok, tempered with 1/4tsp of cumin seeds. 

Then I added the ginger paste, little salt and the turmeric to it and stirred for 2 minutes. I added 2 tsp of the ground spiced and stirred for 1/2 a minute.

I added the marinated potatoes and mushrooms and folded in well. I cooked covered just for 3-4 minutes.

I removed the cover and added the lemon juice and the chopped coriander. I stirred for 1/2 a minute.

We are done. I served the bread with the Bengali style potato and mushroom dish, roasted chicken, a tomato-chilli chutney whose recipe I wish to share later.