MTR Podi Chutney Uttapam/ Idli Pancake-- Kids School lunch.

Hello Sweeties!!!! We make Idli Sambar so many times, that at times we have been asked if we belong to South India. The thing is Idli Sambar is one item, everyone loves, Its like Pizzas to Indians. Easily found and  most popular. 

I make dosas often with the leftover batter. But they are not ideal to be given as school lunch, so I made these for my kids school lunch and was happy to see empty boxes licked clean.

 

To make Idli batter;

2 cups rice or idli rava

1 cup Urad dal

2 tbspn Oil

Salt to taste

Soak the rice and urad dal in water for 6-8 hours. If using idli rava skip soaking the rava; soak only the dal and then grind it fine into a smooth paste, use the water from the soaking if needed. remove this in a bigger vessel, then grind the idli rava or soaked rice and remove it in the same vessel as the grinded dal. 

 

Mix the grinded dal and rava with your hand. This is because the heat of your palms will help in fermenting the batter faster. Then cover this vessel and keep it in a warm place to ferment and rise up. 

 

Take  a bigger vessel and fill the batter only half way as the batter will rise and double in size. After the rising, add the oil and the salt to the batter and mix with a spoon. 

 

The base batter for idli is ready.  The Podi Chutney Uttapams are basically pancakes from idli battter. 

You will need;

leftover or idli batter

onion chopped

cilantro chopped

 1 tspn MTR Podi Chutney also called Gun powder-- Store brought.

In a pan, greased with some oil, pour the batter with a ladle. Usually Idli batter is thick, we like thick pancakes, you can thin it with some water if you like thin pancakes. Pour the batter, then sprinkle with chopped onion, cilantro and the chutney powder, cover and let cook for 2-3 minutes, flip and cover and cook for another 2-3 minutes. The Uttapas are ready to be served.

 

 The toppings can be anything you like, onions, veggies, peas, corn, tomatoes are the regular ones, but you can feel free to mix and match according to your kids liking. 

This is what my kids ate for lunch that day. Fruits/Yogurt is sneaked in as snacks as they don't eat so much at one time. 

Net Dosa/Dhirdi/Ghavan

The name is very unique as my kids named this dosa as "Net Dosa". When my mom used to make this for us, we used to call it dhirdi or ghavan. This was a staple at my mom's home and still is my go to menu, when hunger strikes and there is not enough time to make anything elaborate. This is best when eaten hot, from pan to plate. Moms are happy as this is made from rice flour and kids are happy as they feel like eating fried crunchy junk.....the trick to getting the net is to heat the pan real hot.. and then splutter the batter on it, like we make  for rava dosa...I discovered this by mistake. I was making our good old ghavan for dinner one night and the phone rang.. I completely forgot the pan being so hot, that when I put the batter on it, it just made this net dosa. My kids were super excited and thus the name NET DOSA...if any of you know the real name, help me please..

You will need;
1 cup rice flour
salt and sugar to taste
water to mix into  a thin batter
Cilantro-Optional
oil to fry

In a bowl, mix the rice flour and water into  a very thin batter, add salt and sugar to the mixture. Heat the pan to very hot, once hot, grease it with some oil, pour the thin batter on the hot pan. Cover and cook for 2 minutes, flip and cook the other side. Once done enjoii the crunch net dosa with some chutney or ketchup or as is.

Vegetable Omlette

Am on a roll for fast and speedy meals.. whenever Mr.Ash travels for work, my mood meter in the kitchen swings between low to lowest..He always complains that I cook all nice things when he travels and he gets to eat the regular food...my kids like any type of paratha or dosa with cheese or sour cream.....I often make spinach dosa like here, or oats dosa like here, just mix around and change few things and make these pancakes..they taste divine and healthy meal can be on the dinner table in a matter of minutes

You will need;

1 cup Wheat flour -
1 cup Rice Flour
1 cup Besan
1 chopped Big onion
1 cup mixture of shredded carrots, tomato, corn, (I added small diced Pumpkin also)
1/2 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp cumin-coriander powder
1 green chili - chopped fine
1 tbsp chopped curry leaves
few coriander leaves
Salt and Sugar to taste
2 tbsp refined oil

Directions

Add all the other ingredients with wheat flour and water as needed and mix well. Mixture should be like a pancake mix, not runny but flowing. Heat Dosa Tava/Pan on low flame and grease it with oil . Spread dosa batter like a pancake..and let cook on one side, then turn over after a min and cook the other side well. cook covered if needed..

Enjoii when its still hot.. from pan to plate should be JUST fine....

Love Ash.

Popeye Pancake

By Now you must have guessed that I don't like to spend  a lot of time in my kitchen when there are multiple things happening around me, my kiddos making a Lego car wash, Mr. Ash taking pictures of their creations, we all get involved in the imaginary world of pretend play washing and caring for our cars..till HUNGER Strikes and Ms.Ash realizes that she had forgotten all about dinner...

This Popeye Pancake is a dosa/pancake is made from spinach and corn..Spinach Dosa is just so plain and BORING..and who needs boring food after a fun game of pretend Lego carwash..Rite!!!
And also partly because if you do not make things interesting, food looses its charm..This is one lesson I learnt from the juice vendor outside my Law School..he made all sorts of juices..For eg;
mara-mari=orange and mosambi juice
anarkali= orange,mosambi and beetroot..like so...

Hence this name, it's all about marketing nowadays. if you want your kids to eat home food without whining, change the name. I plan on making many more interesting food stuff in future.. like maybe a Lego sandwich(Cakewich) and a Wonder Pet Snack( Celery sticks). I tell you kids will eat anything if they see their favourite characters eating it on TV.

You will need;

1 cup Wheat flour -
1 cup pureed Spinach--Blanche spinach leaves in boiling water and grind into paste
1 chopped Big onion
1 cup mixture of corn and peas,
1/2 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp cumin-coriander powder
1 green chili - chopped fine
1 tbsp chopped curry leaves
Salt and Sugar to taste
2 tbsp refined oil

Directions

Add all the other ingredients with wheat flour and water as needed and mix well. Mixture should be like a pancake mix, not runny but flowing. Heat Dosa Tava/Pan on low flame and grease it with oil . Spread dosa batter like a pancake..and let cook on one side, then turn over after a min and cook the other side well. cook covered if needed..

Enjoii when its still hot.. from pan to plate should be JUST fine....

Love Ash.







Oat Dosa

This has been in my mind for many many days....we love love love Dosa's....they are fast to make and eat and with minimum ingredients, you can have an awesome satisfying meal...they are a essential BLD meals..You can have these dosas with sambar or chutney or ketchup or sour cream or yogurt or just plain..you will not be disappointed...I had got a box of quick cooking oats from a wholesale club shop.. I had never ever had oats that needed to be cooked..I always brought the flavouredd oat the microwave kind with chunks of dried fruit..but the EAT HEALTHY BUG got wise  and I got the box, which obviously was not at all tasty so no one dared touch it...does it happen with you all or its just me...see a coupon grab a box....Coupons KILL my thinking process.. I would not have got the box had I been shopping in the regular grocery store, but wholesale Club and coupon have a power over my mind.. I go in to get 2 things and my bill is over $100...still don't know if I NEED or simply WANT all of those things I BUY...so now on, any of you see me at the club shop, remind me I said that!!

I often need to be reminded of what I really want and need....

I made this Dosa with the oats and wheat flour.  Sunday morning brunch in my home will see us eating and trying to finish that big box of UNWANTED AND NOT NEEDED Oats

You will need;

1 cup Wheat flour -

1 cup Oats - powdered fine

1 chopped Big onion

1 cup mixture of shredded carrots, tomato, corn, (I added small diced Pumpkin also)

1/2 tsp chili powder

1 green chili - chopped fine

1 tbsp chopped curry leaves

few coriander leaves

Salt and Sugar to taste

2 tbsp refined oil

Directions

Add all the other ingredients with wheat flour and water as needed and mix well. Mixture should be like a pancake mix, not runny but flowing. Heat Dosa Tava/Pan on low flame and grease it with oil . Spread dosa batter like a pancake..and let cook on one side, then turn over after a min and cook the other side well. cook covered if needed..

Enjoii when its still hot.. from pan to plate should be JUST fine....

Love Ash.