Baked Nipattu

I chanced upon this recipe on this blog, "Red Chillies" (http://redchillies.us/2009/03/02/savory-onion-cookies-baked-nippattu/) and have been making and enjoying it with my family ever since!

 Nippattu (Crackers) as it is called is a popular indian snack, very common in Bangalore bakeries is traditionally a fried snack.  But the baked version not only makes it healthy but also very tasty and addictive. 

I added some chopped cashews and peanuts to give them them a nutty crunch and that kicked up a notch!

Here's the recipe!

Ingredients

Plain white flour -  2 cups
Sesame seeds  -   1 tbs

Sugar                    - 2 tsp 

Salt                       - 1 tsp

Yoghurt                 - 1 tbs 

Roasted peanuts -1/4 cup

Roasted cashews-1/4 cup 
Oil                        -1/3 cup

 Butter (melted)  - 4Tbsp 

 Baking soda       -  1 tsp
Onion (finely chopped) - 1 big

Fresh coriander leaves - 1/2 cup 
Geen chillies (finely chopped) - 2  

Method: 

1. Mix together all the dry ingredients except the baking soda in a bowl.

2. Add the baking soda to the 1tbs yoghurt to make it whiz before mixing it in the flour mixture. 

3. Sprinkle the chopped onions, green chillies and cilantro with some salt, mix well with the knife and  chop them all together to release their juices then add to the flour mixture

4.  Pour in the oil and the flour mixture starts to come together. Add the melted butter when it forms into a ball. If you feel it is too dry then add just a little more thick yoghurt. Do not add water as we want a stiff consistency like samosa dough.

5. Knead well to make a stiff dough for 2-4 mins. Cover with a damp cloth and leave aside for 30mins.

6. Roll them out into flat discs or rounds or roll flat and cut into desired shapes using cookie cutters. But roll them out thin as we want them crispy.

7. After arranging them on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper, prick them all with a fork. 

8. Bake in preheated oven at 325 degrees farenheit for 25 - 30 mins till golden and crispy. Do not over bake. 

9. When they cool down, serve them with tea as a snack. You could prepare lots of them in batches and store them in an air tight container. Enjoy!

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Summer Drinking

I know, I'm supposed to be on vacation, but I wanted to post links for a couple of spectacularly refreshing summer drinks. Not only is the timing perfect for either of these beautiful beverages,  but I was getting really tired of looking at that hairy, photoshop'd beach guy. To see the full post, and get the ingredients, click on the title, and away you go. Enjoy, and see you next week! 

Watermelon Agua Fresca

 

Homemade Strawberry Soda

 

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Chef John is on Vacation!

Just wanted to let everyone know that I’ll be on vacation this week. We’ll continue to publish comments and questions while I’m gone, but I won’t be around to answer them. So yes, it will be very similar to when I’m not on vacation.

I can’t say for sure where I’m going, or what I’ll be doing, but I’m posting this beach picture to show one place I won’t be headed. I didn’t have any photos of me at the beach, but this one is very close to what you’d see (although, the giant cross would actually be a clock).

By the way, I have nothing against the beach, or walking around barely dressed, but the “Hey, who called a cab?” jokes get a little old. Hope you have a great week, and as always, enjoy!

- Photo courtesy of Flikr user Mr TGT. 

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Next Up: Roast Pork with Blueberry Sauce

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This is Only a Test

While I was testing a crispy, Korean-fried chicken breast for a future blog post, the real test here was producing a video in 1080p HD. As I mentioned in an earlier post, we will be transitioning to this new format over the next few months, and to accomplish that, I have to learn Adobe Premiere Pro CS6.

I’ve been using an old, and relatively simple version of iMovie all these years, and so staring at all these new buttons and dials is a little intimidating. I’m hoping most of them don’t actually do anything, and are only there to fill out the interface, but we shall see. In the meantime, thank you for putting up with this test, and as always, enjoy!

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Next Up: Coney Dogs

This gorgeous photo comes courtesy of drpavloff. 

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Happy 4th of July!

I wanted to wish you all a happy and healthy Fourth of July! I was going to experiment with another 1080p HD upload today, but then I remembered it was a National holiday, and that I don’t need to work today. Still getting used to that kind of thing. 

Anyway, the point is I hope you can join me in not doing any work today…unless you consider grilling and drinking beer work. Have a great long weekend, and as always, enjoy!

By the way, if you're still needing to figure out a fast and very patriotic dessert to bring to that party later, please check out the no-bake, flag cheesecake pictured above!
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Grilled Marsala Marinated Skirt Steak – Thank You, Chicken Parm!

It’s not often that my recipe inspirations cross species, but this juicy and delicious, Marsala-marinated skirt steak is one such case. 

I was in Santa Monica a few years ago, where I ordered a chicken parmesan that featured a garlic, rosemary, and Marsala-spiked sauce; and I loved the subtle sweetness the wine added to the tomato.

For whatever reason, I thought of those flavors while brainstorming a quick skirt steak marinade, and this is what happened. Skirt steak is always great on the grill, and doesn't needs much help, but I loved how this came out. I can only wonder how much better it would have been if I’d actually let it marinate.

The plan was to prep this in the morning, and grill it for dinner after at least eight hours in the marinade. But, due to hunger-related circumstances beyond my control, it ended up being an early lunch. Even though it only soaked for a short time, it was still very nice, but hopefully you'll exercise a little more self-control. I hope you give this a try soon. Enjoy!

Ingredients for 4 portions:

1 1/2 pound skirt steak

2/3 cup Marsala wine

1/4 cup ketchup

1 tsp dried rosemary, or 1 tbsp fresh

1 tsp freshly ground black pepper

2 tsp kosher salt

6 cloves garlic, minced

- Marinate for 8 hours to overnight, and grill over high heat (brush grates with oil first, and wipe off excess marinade)

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