Murukku

Murukku

I tried murukku by myself for the first time.....It turned out good.
here goes the recipe which I learnt from my mom...We used to make murukku at our place for Diwali, Vinayakar Chathurthi, Krishna Jayanthi and even during winter holidays... you can murukkus in various shapes and sizes with the murukku maker now available in India.

Ingredients: (to make 25 - 30 medium sized Murukkus)

Rice flour - 4 cups
urad dhal flour - 1 cup (also known as black gram flour)
salt to taste
asafoetida pdr - 10 pinches
unsalted butter or ghee - 2 tea spoons
jeera - 1 table spoon
Til or sesame seeds (Black or white) - 1 table spoon
red chilly pdr - as per taste (optional)
water in room temp to knead the dough
and
vegetable oil - for deep frying

very important is the murukku maker ;-)

Method

rice flour and urad dhal flour always should be in 4:1 ratio. Mix all the dry ingredients (rice flour, urad flour, salt, chilly powder and asafoetida) in a big bowl, preferably a salad bowl, mix well. Now add the butter which is in room temp and mix well. Its time to add all the other ingredients and water and make it into a tight dough. Stuff required amount of dough into the murukku maker and squeeze into desired shape and size. I used the murukku maker with 1 hole and made it to a perfect round shape. I like it this way as its easy for storage and does help saving space inside the containers.
I also added some pinches of red chilly powder to the dough, however its optional. heat the oil and drop in the murukku one by one and cook in medium flame till light brown.
remove from the pan and drain on a paper towel. do not store in the airtight container immediately. Wait till murukku is in room temperature and also do not make too much dough at once and keep it for a long time. knead the dough fresh as and when needed.

Enjoy !!

Vegetable puffs

Indians go crazy for this snack. I remember "akshaya bakery" in my neighborhood, from which we use to get these puffs frequently.I was so surprised myself that I could make it at home. People living abroad have easy access to conventional ovens and puff pastry sheets. SO why dont u give it a try?

You Will Need,

To make 8 puffs,

Puff Pastry sheets - 2 [ Pepperidge farm or timos brand]
Potatoes - 2
Green peas - a handful
Onion - 1 [finely chopped]
green chilly - 1
Tomato puree - 1 tsp
Jeera powder - 1 tsp
Garam masala - 1 tsp
Turmeric powder - 1 pinch
Chilly Powder - 1 tsp
mint leaves - few [optional]
coriander leaves - to garnish [finely chopped]
Salt to taste
oil - 2 tsp

Method:
Pressue cook,peel and mash the potatoes.Heat oil in a kadai and saute the onion,green chilly, Peas, Tomato puree. when it turns golden brown,add all the powders and salt. Mix well and now add the mashed potatoes. Sprinkle a little water and add the mint leaves if u use any. garnish with coriander and turn off the flame. The stuffing for the puff is ready now.
Thaw the puff pastry [availabe in supermarket freezers]. Do not too thaw much.
cut the puff pastry with a pizza cutter or sharp knife into 4 equal squares. Place a teaspoon of the stuffing in the square and press the edges firmly. Preheat oven to 150 degrees for 15 minutes.Place all the puffs on the baking sheet with enough space in between and bake for 20 mts at 100 degrees. [differs according to the oven].Just peep into the oven to make sure its not burnt.The puff is ready when the layers start to separate and when golden brown. Serve hot with sweet thai chilly , tomato or pudhina sauce.