Bajre Ki Cheela

Hello friends, Diwali kept me quite busy before, during and even after the festival and with the result, blogging took a back seat. All said and done, we had a wonderful time. I hope you all had a nice Diwali too.

After all the sweets and savoury items that we devoured, I thought its time to eat healthy stuff and one such item that I came across is the Bajre Ki Cheela. I had jotted down this recipe from a TV cookery show. It seemed easy and healthy so tried it for the evening snack. I am glad to say it turned out quite well. And according to my opinion, it tastes best with a dollop of white home-made butter.

Bajra also known as Pearl millet is loaded with nutrients and has enormous health benefits.

Ingredients:

Bajra flour	1 cup
Salt	As per taste
Coconut gratings	1 tbsp
Green chilies (chopped)	1
Coriander leaves (chopped)	1 tbsp
Curds	3 Tbsps
Oil	For shallow frying

Method:

1. In a bowl add bajra flour, salt, coconut gratings, green chilies and chopped coriander leaves.
2. Mix well
3. Finally add curds and blend in to form a thick batter.
4. Take a ladle full of the prepared batter and spread it thickly on a heated skillet/ non-stick pan like a dosa - frying on either sides with a little oil on the edges of the dosa.
5. Remove and serve hot.

Preparation time : 10 mins

Cooking time : 3-4mins for each cheela

Makes : 5-6 cheelas depending upon the size

Note:

• The batter does not spread thinly so do not even try it. Once the pan/skillet is heated, keep the flame low.
• Make small dosas the size of Rawa (semolina) Bhakri or a pancake.
• If your skillet or griddle is large, you can easily make three or four at a time.
• For more info on Bajra or Pearl millet health benefits, see here :http://recipeclout.india-server.com/pearl-millet.html

Tofu Sandwich Spread

Off late I have started using Tofu instead of Paneer for the simple reason – its a healthier option. Sometime back I had watched Sanjeev Kapoor prepare this Tofu recipe on his cookery show which I had hurriedly scribbled in my dairy for later use.

The day finally arrived for me to prepare this Sandwich spread. I had some left over Tofu (after preparing Tofu Bhurji on the previous day) so thought I will try his recipe. But soon realized that I do not have the two ingredients mentioned in it namely; sun-dried tomatoes and pickled onions. So I substituted these items with tomato sauce and ginger and proceeded with his recipe.

I am happy to say that it turned out really good. It so happened that the next day, I had some close relatives who dropped by and since they are foodies, I asked them to sample it and give their opinion. I was pleased to see that they too enjoyed it.

You too can try your own version of this healthy and tasty spread instead of using the fat laden butter for sandwiches !

Ingredients:

Tofu	100 gms
Hung Yoghurt	1/2 cup
Green chilies	1-2
Tomato sauce	4 tsps
Ginger (chopped)	1 inch piece
Salt	As per taste

Method:

1. Drain the block of tofu and cut them into quarters. Squeeze out any moisture by pressing it with your hand and then place it in a blender.
2. Add all the other ingredients (mentioned above) to it and blend it to a fine paste. The paste will resemble Thousand Island dressing.
3. Remove it into a bowl and your Tofu Sandwich Spread is ready.
4. Apply this spread instead of butter on the bread slices and have a healthy breakfast.
   
   

 

 

 

 

Preparation time: 15 mins

No cooking required

Note:

I used whole wheat bread and made sandwiches with sliced tomatoes, cucumber and capsicum and sprinkled freshly ground pepper on top.