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COCKTAIL IDLI SKEWERS



    I am a hardcore Punjabi but somehow we make a lot of South Indian breakfast and snacks at my home. I recently posted the recipe of Milagai Podi, which is also known as Gunpowder masala, and I thought I should share one of the ways we eat it at home! Here's a recipe that's super simple, yet has bold and complex flavours.







    Basically, Podi or Gunpowder masala, as the name suggests is a fiery dry powder which is a blend of spices and lentils. It’s a popular southern Indian food condiment typically served as side dish with idli as a dipping condiment along with ghee or sesame oil. It's got a rich nutty and earthy flavour with a kick of spice, and the ghee adds a buttery coating on your palate.


    I love serving this as a cocktail snack or starter, as I find this recipe to be one of the quickest way to impress your guests – it's so simple but no one will guess it just by tasting it!


    To learn how to make the Gunpowder masala from scratch, click here!

    YIELDS: 15 cocktail skewers

    PREP TIME: 15 minutes

    COOKING TIME: 20 minutes



    INGREDIENTS


    For Marinade:

    • 1/4 cup Milagai podi

    • 2 tsp lemon juice

    • 1/4 tsp salt

    • 2 tbsp warm melted ghee

    For Kebabs:

    • 1 cup ready idli batter

    • 2 onions, cut in 2cm pieces

    • 3 medium bell pepper (red, yellow and green) cut into 2cm pieces

    • Oil for grilling the skewers

    Equipment needed:

    • Mini idli mould

    • Cocktail skewers



    METHOD


    1. To steam the idlis, take a large cooking pot/ steamer, or a large pressure cooker. Pour about 1 and a half cup of water, cover to let it boil.

    2. Meanwhile, brush mini idli mould with oil. Pour the batter in the mould, stack the plates in its stand and place it in the cooker. Cover and let it steam for 10 minutes on low flame.

    3. Remove stand from the steamer/ cooker, unmould the idlis with the help of a table knife. Keep aside.

    4. Thread the cocktail skewers with idlis, onions and colored bell peppers alternatively. Heat the griddle pan and brush it with little oil. Now grill the skewers on low heat, turn the sides to evenly roast. Grill until bell peppers and onions are roasted and slightly charred.

    5. While the idli skewers are grilling, prepare the marinade. Pour Milagai podi powder, salt, lemon and ghee in a small bowl and mix together. Brush the marinade over the grilled skewers and serve it with coconut or tomato chutney.



    COOK'S NOTES:


    • Pour just enough water in the steaming vessel where it’s not touching the idli mould. It should be just below the bottom tray of the mould.

    • If you do not have the podi masala already prepared, you can always make these with sambar masala powder if you have one in your pantry. To prepare milagai podi powder, follow the recipe of Milagai Podi on the website under the breakfast category.

    • To prepare idli batter at home soak 1 part urad dal and 3 parts of idli rice along with one part of poha and half a tsp of fenugreek seeds for 4-6 hours. Drain water from soaked rice and dal and reserve. In a grinder mixer, add the drained rice and dal mix, adding little reserved water from soaked rice and grind it to a smooth paste. If you find the batter thick add little more water. Cover the batter with a lid and leave it to ferment for 6-8 hours or overnight. Once fermented add little salt and it’s ready to make the idli.

    • To make this dish vegan, replace ghee with sesame oil.


    ZA'ATAR SPINACH PUFFS



      I tried this recipe sometime ago with ingredients on hand as I was craving to eat something salty and baked. These puffs are super delicious and so easy to make that you just can’t go wrong even if you are a beginner in baking. I just love these puffs so much that I always keep a batch ready in my freezer, all you need to do is just take them out from freezer, brush with some egg wash and bake it. It’s a great starter or an appetizer to serve during tea, as an evening snack or during Ramadan iftar. You can also serve it as a late weekend breakfast too.


      I made these with feta cheese but I also sometimes make it with ricotta cheese instead and then I omit adding egg in the filling as ricotta cheese is wet enough to keep the filling moist. And if you are using ricotta cheese then do add seasoning to it as feta cheese and za’atar are already salty enough and you don’t need any extra seasoning in the filling.

      YIELDS: 8-12 pieces

      PREP TIME: 10-15 minutes

      COOKING TIME: 20 minutes

      TOTAL TIME: 30-35 minutes



      INGREDIENTS

      • 200g/12 frozen spinach briquettes

      • 3 tbsp za’atar mix

      • 200g feta cheese, creamy and crumbled

      • 1 egg, lightly beaten

      • 1 tbsp milk

      • 12 frozen puff pastry squares, 4”x 4”



      METHOD

      1. Defrost and thaw spinach briquettes, put them in a strainer and squeeze out all excess water pressing down with the back of a spoon. Remove spinach in a bowl.

      2. Add, za’atar mix, feta cheese and half egg to the spinach, mix well; add milk to rest of the half egg to brush later.

      3. Thaw pastry squares but make sure they are still cold and not loose and saggy.

      4. Divide spinach mixture in 15 equal portions, place one on each pastry square; brush pastry squares with egg milk mixture about 1cm on each side; bring all 4 corners of pastry to the center and join all 4 open sides by pinching them gently with fingers to secure filling.

      5. Place the puffs on baking tray lined with parchment paper, brush the top with remaining egg milk mixture; bake in preheated oven at 210°C for 18 to 20 minutes.

      6. Serve it with sweet chilli sauce or any sauce of your choice.


      COOK'S NOTES:

      • You can also use ricotta cheese instead and you can prepare them days ahead and freeze it. If you are vegetarian or allergic to eggs, replace it with little cream in the filling and whole milk to brush the pastry.


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