Methi Matar Malai

For the first time in my life, I had this dish in one of the Indian restaurants in Thailand a couple of months back. My husband and I always prefer Indian food wherever we travel. Fortunately we found an Indian restaurant near the hotel where we stayed. Initially we were a bit skeptical about that restaurant because we both were the only customers for them :-) for that night I believe. We ordered my all time favorite paneer butter masala, nans and rice. The manager suggested that methi matar malai was their speciality. So we ordered that as well. When the food came, we started to dig in. I loved both paneer butter masala and methi matar malai. It was way too good! I have not had such delicious food even in India. Apparently the chefs who cook there(in Thailand hotel) are from Taj Hotel(India). Food was a little expensive though. But it was worth every penny!

I was happy when Sujatha posted her Methi Malai Matar recipe. I made it today and totally loved it. I can't stop thinking about our trip to Thailand and the restaurant where we had this methi malai matar. It goes very well with nans/rotis. It is rich, creamy and delicious! Give it a try girls, you will go ga- ga over it :) I made a few additions to her recipe.

Sending this to Mansi's Vegetarian Thanksgiving-Recipe Carnival Event.
My version:

Ingredients:
Onion chopped-1 cup
Ginger chopped-1/2 tsp
Garlic chopped-1 pod
Jeera-1/2 tsp
Salt
Frozen Peas-3/4 cup
Methi leaves-1 cup
Kasuri methi crushed(optional)-a few strands
Green chilli-1
Oil-1 tbsp
Curd-1 tbsp
Half and Half(cream/malai)-1/2 cup or less depending on the consistency you want

Spice powders(quantity can be adjusted according to your taste buds):
Garam masala-1/2 tsp
Kitchen king masala(my gravies are never complete without this wonderful powder)-1/2 tsp
Chilli powder-1/4 tsp
Turmeric powder-1/4 tsp
Coriander powder-1/2 tsp

Method:
Heat oil. Tamper jeera. Fry onions, ginger, garlic, green chilli till onions turn golden brown. Sprinkle salt. Add fresh methi leaves. Fry for a couple of minutes till it shrinks. Add frozen peas, spice powders, curd and fry for a minute. Add Half and half. Bring the mixture to a boil. Add little water to desired consistency. Simmer for 2-3 mintues. Garnish with kasuri methi. Serve with nans or roti.

vote

Have you voted yet? We stood in line this morning - only took about 30 minutes. I actually sort of loved the wait. It's a perfect opportunity to look around and see the faces in your community. Everyone standing with incredibly purposeful, proud, focused expressions. Despite the walkable, friendly neighborhood that we love - the crowd surprised me, in a really good way.

I also want to point out the fact that I am 28 years old and this will be the first election I've voted in where my choice for President will likely win. Realizing this unfortunate tidbit, I began to wonder just how many people are in these shoes. Is my math right? Not a single (devoted) donkey out there who is less than 29 has voted a President into office?

At the risk of nurturing the notion of division in our country - I'm really glad it looks like there will be change.

Parsley Buns

I think I was just not able to post my baking result on time recently. It's too much to do for the baking, cleaning, photo shooting and so on. Well, this parsley buns was made on last week for my friends. I've tasted one and it's absolutely delicious!

Recipe from 孟老师的100道面包

(A) 150g bread flour/50g plain flour/15g caster sugar/1/4 tsp salt/1/2 tsp yeast/130g fresh milk

(B) 15g unsalted butter

(C) 30g unsalted butter(soften at room temperature)/10g sugar powder/1/2 tsp salt/1 tsp fresh milk/1tsp dried parsley

How I made it:

1. Mix ingredients (A) at low speed using a dough hook mixer, then turn to medium speed until it become a smooth dough.
2. Add in the unsalted butter and knead with low speed until the butter combine with the dough. Turn to medium speed for the kneading process until it become a smooth and elastic dough.
3. Place the dough into a lightly grease bowl and cover with cling wrap to proof for 80 minutes.
4. While waiting for the dough, mix the ingredients (C) until it become a smooth paste. Put the parsley paste into a piping bag.
5. Divide the dough into 6 portions and round them into small balls. Let them rest for 10 minutes.
6. Roll each dough into a sausage shape and proof for 30 minutes.
7. Cut a line on the middle of each dough and continue proofing for another 10 minutes.
8. Egg wash the doughs and squeeze some parsley paste at the center. Bake at 180'C preheated oven for 18 minutes until golden brown.