Palak Banana Paratha- Spinach Banana Flatbread

 

 Hello Sweetpeas!!! How was your first day of school!!! Yes, Summer is OVER and now back to the routine, school, lunches and homework. Yeah!! Happy days for Moms. Most moms will not admit but secretly agree that they cannot wait for school to start. How to keep the kids busy and occupied in summer vacation is a regular challenge we all face. Start of the school also means, what to pack for lunch everyday for 5 days. Kids want variety and moms want nutritious meals, achieving anything closer to both is a nightmare. I admire all moms who plan their kids lunch menu's and shop accordingly. They are able to hit the bulls eye and the kids actually bring home empty lunch boxes.
I try and give kids a different meal everyday so that they do not get bored. Busy mornings or daddy traveling calls for a quick cheese or egg sandwich. I am not a supermom who can make hot lunch and get both kids and myself dressed and breakfast fed before 8.30 AM. Such mornings call for sandwich lunch for all the 3 of us. PB & J is not popular with folks in Ashland so is Nutella. (And you thought I had it all easy.) Anywho, Today's lunch was tried and tested before just coz of I added a ripe banana to the spinach. Yes, you heard it right, I added a ripe banana to the spinach and flour and rolled the parathas. The hint of banana tastes amazing. I had seen this in some cookery show while browsing through you tube. It was on some Marathi TV channel. Luck by chance I had 2 very ripe bananas mushed by my munchkin while they were not so ripe. He simply likes to hold the banana specially so when we are driving on a road trip. He at times dozes off with the banana in hand. We get the mushed banana only when we reach home peel intact but mushed in places where he held them. I cannot throw food away. It just is in my upbringing that food is not to be wasted. so I conspire new ways of using up such food that is not quite edible in its form. We went camping and on our return I gave each kid a banana to eat, to kind of cut the I am hungry, I am bored song. Munchkin never ate his and so did donut. Since they are brothers some traits are very similar in them and I had not one but 2 mushed bananas from that trip. I tried this recipe once before and it turned  a success, so it has made to our school lunch menu. I am happy to who ever thought of this recipe and it is very tasty and soft and these parathas stay well at room temperature.

To make the Parathas;

2 cup Whole Wheat Flour

1 cup palak chopped

1 Very ripe Banana

Salt to taste ( I used Sindhav Salt known for its medicinal uses. )

1 tsp Red chili/cayenne powder

1 tsp Turmeric/ Haldi

1/2 tsp cumin powder

1/2 tsp coriander powder

1 tsp Garam masala

2 tbspn oil to knead the dough

 

Water as needed to make the dough soft. The banana will bind the dough so this will require little water. use your judgement. The water should only be used at last and only if needed.

In a wide bowl, take the chopped palak, mushed banana  and the dry powders and add salt, add oil and mix well, now start adding the flour and start mixing in the flour. Add teaspoon by tea spoon water till you have a soft pliable dough. Do not add water initially, as the banana  will help in binding the flour. Once  the dough is soft enough, cover  and let rest for 15-20 mins.

After the dough is rested, roll out the parathas like you would make roti's( make small balls  of the dough and roll out thin rounds tortillas dusting flour if the tortillas stick to the surface). Heat a griddle or tawa on medium heat and cook the partahas on one side. Flip the parathas and spray oil and cook the other side. Repeat on side one and cook both sides. Serve hot with some ketchup. or green chutney or any curry of your choice.