Multi Grained Methi Thepla

Thepla is nothing but a flatbread made from fresh fenugreek leaves, whole-wheat flour and gram flour. It’s a Gujarati snack, which can be munched anytime of the day starting from breakfast to dinner. Today I have tried to make a healthy version of thepla by kneading the dough with multigrain flour.

Ingredients:

A small bunch of fresh Methi / Fenugreek leaves

1 ½ cup of multi grain flour (It can be substituted with wheat flour) **Extra flour for dusting while rolling the theplas

1/3 cup Besan

1 tbspn Red chilli powder

1 tspn Turmeric powder

½ tspn Ginger garlic

1 or 2 Green chillies paste (U can always add green chillies as per your taste buds)

1 pinch Hing / asafoetida

1 tspn Corriander powder

1 tspn Jeera / Cumin powder

Salt as per tatse

Water required for kneading

Oil/ Butter/ Ghee for roasting theplas ( As required. Can be omitted too)

Method:

1.    Wash the Methi leaves nicely in water and chop finely.

2.    Take a kneading bowl add the chopped methi leaves and add all the spices and herbs.

3.    Add all the flour to the leaves. Sprinkle salt as per the taste and knead the dough with the help of water to soft smooth dough.

4.    Cover the dough and let it rest for 10 – 15 mins.

5.    Make even size balls of the dough

6.    Take one dough ball and press it in between the palms to flatten it a bit and coat it nicely with wheat flour.

7.    Place it on a roti making board and roll with the help of rolling pin into round shape. (If possible ;-) )

8.    Heat the tawa/ griddle. Place the rolled out thepla on the tawa.

9.    When bubbles start to appears underneath the surface of thepla, flip it over and apply oil/butter/ ghee as per your choice and cook for few seconds.

10.  Flip it again and apply ghee and let it cook for few mins. Keep pressing the thepla lightly with the help of spatula till nice golden brown spots appear on both the sides of the thepla.

11.   Transfer it to the plate and continue the process with the rest of the dough balls.

12.   Serve them hot with yoghurt or any pickle of your choice.

13.   It tastes good with tomato chutney.

NOTE:

• You will need max half or less, cup of water to knead dough.

• We can also use curd instead of water for kneading the dough. It will make the dough nice and soft.

• This theplas can be made with various leafy vegetables.

• They are can also be served best while travelling or in kids tiffin box who don’t like to eat the leafy vegetables.

Patholi

Patholi

The festive month of Shravan is here with lot of food varieties, as we get those things only during the monsoon season. Likewise in this season we can find lot of fresh turmeric leaves growing easily or available in the market. In Goa Patholis are especially made on the Nag Panchami day by the Hindu community.

Patholi is a traditional Goan / Manglorean dish which is prepared with rice flour and stuffed with coconut jaggery mixture and steamed in turmeric leaves. The main ingredient here is the “ Turmeric leaves” which gives the special flavorful aroma.  They are also prepared and offered as Naivedya to Ganapati bappa.

Here we don’t find the turmeric leaves, so had asked my MIL to send the turmeric leaves. These pathlois can also be made in banana leaf but the special aroma of turmeric leaf will be missing.  The patholis prepared in turmeric leaf are awesome to taste and the heavenly aroma of it will just leave you totally indescribable.

 

Turmeric Leaves

Ingredients:

3 -4 Fresh Turmeric leaves

1cup rice flour

1 cup water or as needed

Salt

For Stuffing:

1 cup freshly scrapped coconut

½ cup grated jaggery (adjust the sweetness as per the ones sweet tooth)

5 Green cardamoms powdered

Few raisins and broken pieces of cashewnuts

1 tblspn Khuskhus (optional)

Method:

   1.    In a bowl add rice flour, salt as per the taste and mix it with water to make thin sticky dough and keep it aside.

   2.    In another bowl take freshly scrapped coconut, jaggery, cardamom powder, raisins and broken pieces of cashewnuts. Mix it well.

   3.    Wash and pat dry the turmeric leaves.  If the leaves are large enough like the ones which I have cut them in half so that they can be easily placed in the steamer too. Take the dough and the stuffing handy with little water in a small bowl.

   4.    Take a turmeric leaf with vein side facing down. Spread the rice dough on the leaf using little water to spread easily.

   5.    Add the stuffing mixture on one side of the leaf and fold the leaf. Patting it on all the sides of the leaf to seal the edges.  Repeat the procedure with the remaining leaves.

   6.    Place them in the steamer and cook them for 20 minutes. By now your kitchen would be full of heavenly aroma of turmeric leaves. “Be careful even neighbours might come to check in J”

   7.    Serve them warm as it is or with little ghee on it.

###A very special note: Turmeric leaf is used as aromatic wrapper, it is not meant to be eaten J

NOTE:

•      Banana leaf can be used as a substitute for turmeric leafs but that special aroma and taste of turmeric will be missing.
•   Sugar can also be used instead of Jaggery.
•      Khuskhus, raisins and broken pieces of cashewnuts are fully optional.
•      Depending upon the size of the leaf  you can cut them half or if small leaves can be used whole.