Bri - A special Click, A prayer!

This yellow lemon lamp has a religious significance in our household. Mom would light this lamp when she prayed for someone. The juice of the lemon would be used to make an offering to God.

Bri, there are ton of friends praying for you and I am one of them. Here is a lamp that we lit for you. We pray you get well soon!

We are sending this to Bee for Click.

A special Thank You to all our friends who generously donated.

Thanks a ton George for donating$50 gift certificate to myfolsom.com members. The lucky winner is Tanya.

Thanks Sheena! You immediately responded to us that you will help us in anyway you can, and you did!

Puran Poli

The only kind of poli I have had as a child, is the the stuffing with coconut and jaggery and was not a big fan of it, just coz it was kind of gooey. I liked the filling by itself, but not rolled as a poli.
When we moved to Belgaum, an ajji next door used to make the best poli I have ever had. She knew my love for these polis and would invite me home as she was making the polis on the tava. She would serve it on a plate with a dollop of ghee and cold milk. I still remember telling my mom that she has to learn making polis from ajji :)

Ingredients
All Purpose flour - 1.5 cups
Turmeric Powder - 1/8 tsp
Salt- 1/8 tsp
Water - to make a pliable dough
Channa Dal - 1 cup
Jaggery - 1/2 cup (powdered)
Sugar - 1/2 cup
Nutmeg- a very tiny pinch
Cardamom powder - 1/2 tsp
Oil - 2 tsp

• Make the dough by mixing flour,salt and turmeric first. Slowly add water to make a soft dough. Drizzle oil over the dough and cover with saran wrap for an hour.
• Cook the dal in a pressure cooker or in stock pot filled with water. If using a pressure cooker, takes about 4 to 5 whistles. If you are using a stock pot, bring water (about 2.5 cups)to a boil, add the dal and close it with a lid and let it simmer for about 45 minutes or until it is soft to the touch,but does not turn mushy,
• Drain the water completely and let it cool. Grind the jaggery and dal to a fine paste. please do not add any water. If you think the filling is wet, saute in a pan to remove the moisture. Mix the filling with the nutmeg and cardamom powder.
• Divide the filling to make about 14 to 15 balls. Do the same with your dough as well.
• Roll the dough to the size of your palm, and place the filling inside the dough and cover on all sides.
• Flatten and roll it, about 12 inches in diameter.
• Place an iron skillet on the stove and once hot, cook the poli on both sides, drizzle some ghee and serve.

Bee has an excellent step by step guide on how to make these cuties. When Mythreyee and I were chatting, we spoke about love for sweets and we moved on to poli. I just could not resist myself and made them the very same day. I sent her a picture of the poli on gtalk and she said I have send this as an entry to her sweet series. So Mythreyee here you go, Polis just for you!

Nupur's Pav Bhaji & Pav from scratch!

Nupur's blog is one of the first blogs I visited when I just started. This is one of the 1st recipes I have tried and many more. Nupur, you are truly an inspiration.Zlamushka has started a wonderful event called Tried and tested and dish goes to her and to Sia for Street Food MBP

Nothing else says Street food more than Pav Bhaji. Let me tell you a little secret, my dad would refuse to let us have them from the street carts. While my sisters could sneak out with friends and enjoy Pav Bhaji, I was too little to go on my own with friends.My earliest memories of Pav Bhaji is watching the guy mashing the bhaji on a huge tava( Round iron pan). The tak tak tak sound of mashing the potato was music to my ears. Now here is a secret, hope appa is not reading this :).

Amma would let us have pav bhaji for dinner when appa had to travel out of town on work. We would eagerly wait for that one dinner that we would get rarely. My sisters and mom made it at home, but nothing like standing next to a stall, enjoying the music, drool while others are eating and wait impatiently for your turn. A dollop of butter on the top with freshly chopped onions..aha I drool again!

I followed Nupur’s recipe and made no changes. I made the paav from scratch and it is real easy guys. For the recipe click here. When you think Mumbai, or what the heck, just crave street food, try making Pav Bhaji at home and you will not be disappointed.

Masala Trail Mix

Summer time is synonymous with hiking and camping for us. We have not begun to camp or hike yet, but will soon start. I would like give it a kick start with Hari Nayak's Masala Trail Mix. I have tried this recipe twice and have loved it.

I own a copy of his cookbook and I must say, I love it( I swear he did not pay me to say this:))It is a cookbook for a person who is not used to Indian cooking.While some of the techniques are very common is most cuisines, he gently introduces spices to a novice in Indian cooking. For example, everyone is familiar with trail mix, now introduce masala to it. That is neat, I simply love the concept, especially since I give cooking classes. This was in our menu for our last week's class and it was a hit!

Here is the recipe. I substituted garam masala for Chaat masala.

Cumin seeds – 2 tsp ( dry roasted & coarsely Ground)
Garam Masala – 2 tsp
Chilli powder – 1 ½ tsp
Salt – 1 tsp
Oil – 3/4 cup
Almonds – 1 cup
Cashew nuts – 1 cup
Pistachios – 1 cup
Peanuts – 1 cup
Hazel nuts- ½ cup
Macadamia nuts – ½ cup
Raisins- ½ cup
Dried Mint – 1 tsp

•Mix together the ground cumin powder, garam masala, chilli powder and salt.
•Heat oil in a pan. When the oil is hot, fry the nuts until they turn golden. This takes about 2 minutes.
•Drain the oil with a slotted spoon and transfer to a bowl ( do not drain in paper towel)
•Fry the raisins for a few seconds and add it to the nuts
•Quickly mix the spice mix to the nuts and toss so that the nuts are coated well.
•Add the dried mint and toss.
•Store in a air tight container after it cools completely.

On another note, If you ever come to Folsom,CA, do not forget to pay a visit to GoodFellas
This is an awesome family owned Italian restaurant. George, the owner was kind enough to donate $50 gift certificate to one lucky winner of Folsom, who donates $25.

On a day you are frustrated about what the world has come to, think of this wonderful event, where people from around the world have come together.

Kufli Made Easy

A slice of heaven in my mouth, an elegant dance of flavors, that is how I feel with every spoonful of kulfi.You can tell now, what it does to me :)

As a child, I would beg my parents for the road side Kulfi only to be vehemently refused. So I decided try this at home and here is my version, it is real easy. I post this recipe just in time for the hot summer days when kids want something cold, so here you go...

Whole Milk - 5 cups
Condensed Milk - 1 can
Heavy Cream - 1 cup
Saffron - a small pinch
Cardamom - 3 pods, powdered finely
Pistachios - 1 tbsp (finely chopped)
Almond - 1 tbsp (finely chopped)
Rose water - 1/4 cup

• Heat whole milk in a pan and let it simmer until it reduces to approximately three cups.


• Add saffron and cardamom when the milk simmers.


• Switch off the stove and let the milk cool down completely.


• Stir in the rest of the ingredients and let it chill in the fridge for a little while and then use your ice cream maker.


• OR you can pour the content in a stainless steel dish,cover and freeze overnight.

If you try this recipe at home, let me know how you like it.

The Power of Blogging

"If a friend is in trouble, don't annoy him by asking if there is anything you can do. Think up something appropriate and do it." ~Edgar Watson Howe

Jai& Bee did it!

We are delighted by the stupendous response of people from different walks of life from across the world joining hands to help Bri. Most of us have not even met her. But we know what a warm person she is, through her blog and that is more than enough.

Thank you for your overwhelming generosity in response to the CLICK for Bri fundraiser. We are truly grateful for your help. 51% down. 49% to go. Please help us keep up the momentum.

On June 5, 2008, Garrett will be talking about the CLICK for Bri event on CBS 13/CW31, Sacramento at the 12:00 noon news program. Be sure to check in for an easy and delicious summer cupcake recipe.

Whole Foods has agreed to donate the ingredients and use of its premises for a cooking class by me to two lucky folks. I have done a few TV demos before. You can see one at ‘Good Day Sacramento’ HERE.

Ann of Sacatomato has also put up as a prize a copy of her cookbook. You can bid for my cooking class or a host of other cool prizes HERE.