Idlis with a Twist

Idlis are a popular Indian breakfast dish made with a combination of black gram and rice.
They are more popular with south Indian community and frequent at the breakfast tables. They are easy to make and nutritious with a good combination of proteins and starch.Usually served with Sambar -A lentil preparation and/or coconut chutney , they delight both kids and adults alike.
Sometimes, the usual idli gets monotonous. This is when I decided to add some variety which added to the taste as well the nutrition.
Regular Idli batter
1 cup Black gram dal (urad Dal)-Soaked for 6 hours
2 cups thick parboiled rice Soaked for 6 hours
  Grind Black gram dal to a smooth paste. Grind Rice coarsely Mix the two paste and keep the consistency thick.Add salt and ferment overnight. Alternatively mix readily available Idli rava to urad dal paste.

Masala Idlis:- Gring 1/2 cup grated coconut, 3-4 dry red chillies, a small lump of tamarind and roasted coriander seeds-1/2 tsp to a a smooth paste. Mix this paste in the idli batter just before steaming. Serve with Sambar









Ragi Idlis: Soak 1/2 cup ragi along with urad dal and proceed as mentioned.












Methi idlis: To the regular idli batter add finely chopped methi leaves, ginger-green chilly paste and steam.

Brinjal rolls

This is a unique recipe made from brinjals. One can choose any variety but take that the slices of brinjals should be big enough to be rolled. This dish can even be served as a starter or a side dish. I came across this kind of dish while seeing a cooking reality show and somehow forgot the ingredients. I devised one on my own and it turned out fairly good. This is  a good recipe to surprise unexpected guests.
Here I chose the long variety of Brinjals but this works equally well on eggplants too.

The brinjals arranged on the pan with the chutney spread on top.

The brinjal rolls ready

Ingredients
Brinjals sliced longitudinally and kept immersed in water-4-5
Turmeric powder, chilli powder, salt-each 1/2 tsp to marinate
oil to cook








For the chutney
Coriander leaves- a handful
pudina leaves(mint) - 5-6 sprigs
green chillies- 2
garlic - 7-8
Til -3 tbspoons
coriander seeds-1 tblspoon
cumin -1 tsp
saunf - 1/2 tsp
salt -to taste
juice of 1 lemon
jaggery or gur - 1 tspoon
Dry roast coriander seeds, cumin and saunf  and combine other ingredients to grind into a chutney.

Method
Marinate the brinjal with salt, turmeric powder, chilli powder.
On a non-stick flat pan , put a little oil and spread the slices. Spread the chutney and let it cook for some time. As soon as the brinjal slices are soft roll the slices and arrange on the serving plate. Serve immediately.

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