Comfort Recipes
By Pooja Sangani March 31, 2020 7 Comments

Comfort Foods are those that evoke feelings of nostalgia among people of a certain culture.

In recent years, comfort foods have seen a surge on restaurant menus. Comfort foods of different Indian communities feature on menus of iconic restaurants from Mumbai’s Bombay Canteen to Ahmedabad’s Dhoom Dhaam, often tweaked for the contemporary market.

The three recipes below describe the methods I use to make popular dishes of western India, like a microwave cooked khandvi.

Recipe_1

#Palak Chilla

Nutrition aspects: High in Protein and Low in Calories.

Preparation Time: 10 minutes

Yield: Serves 2 persons

Chillas are thin and round pancakes that are popular in many parts of India, including Gujarat. The Palak Chilla made with spinach and chickpea flour makes a good healthy and filling breakfast, high in protein and greens, low in fat. It is diabetic-friendly. My family enjoys this with chutneys, pickles and tomato sauce as the accompaniments. I use a quick and simple recipe to make the chilla for my breakfast, lunch or dinner,

Ingredients:

1 cup chopped spinach

2 big tablespoons of besan (chickpea flour)

1 big tablespoon of wheat flour

1/2 tablespoon ginger garlic paste

1/2 teaspoon red chili powder

1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder

Salt to taste

Add required water (the consistency of the batter should be like that of wadas or cakes not watery)

Sesame seeds – optional

Method:

Shift all the above-mentioned ingredients to a bowl

Mix all the ingredients in the bowl to make a well-blended batter without lumps

Heat a lightly oiled non-stick tawa (griddle).

Scoop a ladleful of the batter onto the tawa and shape it into a roundish flat cake (chilla)

Sprinkle some sesame seeds on the chilla and press them with a spatula on the surface

Cover the chilla for a while

Cook both sides for about two minutes each or till brown

Transfer to a serving plate

How to Serve – Plate it with accompaniments like dips and pickles on the side

Recipe 2- Khandvi

Khandvi is one of the famous farsans (steamed snacks) of Gujarat. The khandvi is like a roll of ribbon pasta made using a chickpea batter. If you follow the instructions in this khandvi recipe, you can make this farsan in just five minute using a microwave!

A guilt-free protein-rich snack perfect for starters, it may be a bit tricky to make initially but surely not difficult.

Preparation and cooking time: 10 to 15 minutes

Nutrition aspects: Protein and sodium

Ingredients:

▪️Besan (chickpea flour) 1 cup

▪️Curd 1 cup mixed with 1 cup water

▪️Ginger and green chili paste 1 teaspoon

▪️Turmeric 1/2 teaspoon

▪️ A pinch of asafoetida

▪️Salt to taste

Tempering:

▪️Oil 2 tablespoons

▪️Mustard seeds 1 tablespoon

▪️Sesame seeds (white til) ½ tablespoon

▪️ Asafoetida (hing) – a pinch

▪️Curry leaves 4 to 5 (kadi patta)

Garnishing

Coriander

Shredded Coconut

Shift all ingredients in microwave safe bowl.

Whisk the ingredients to make a batter free from any lumps.

Keep on high power for 4 minutes in microwave.

Whisk at 2 minutes intervals.

Spread mixture on the greased back side of thali or on smooth kitchen surface.

Cool it for a while.

Once cool, cut the khandvi length wise equally into strips.

Roll the strips carefully so they do not break

For tempering the khandvi, heat oil and then add mustard seeds, sesame seeds, curry leaves and a pinch of hing.

Pour the heated oil on each of the rolls.

How to serve – Garnish with coriander and shredded coconut before serving

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Recipe 3-Homemade Kalakand

Kalakand is a solidified milk sweet enriched with fresh cottage cheese (paneer) and nuts/dry fruits. Alwar is well-known for its kalakand. This is a five-minute recipe for kalakand made using just five ingredients in a microwave.

Cooking time: 10 minutes

Nutrition aspects: Protein and calcium

Kalakand is traditionally made with milk – alum is added to curdle the milk and give the milk cake the desired grainy texture. Some sweet makers use paneer(cottage cheese) , Khoya(milk solids) or milk powder, sugar and fresh cream to make the kalakand. In this recipe, I have described a quick and easy process of making kalakand.

Ingredients

1 cup thinly grated paneer

8 tablespoon milk powder

1 teaspoon cornflour

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup fresh cream (ghar ki malai)

For the garnishing

1/2 teaspoon cardamom (elaichi) powder.

2 tablespoon of nuts (almond and pistachio).

Method

Shift all the ingredients into a shallow glass microwave safe container. Mix them well. Microwave the batter on high power for 5 minutes

Spread the batter on a flat dish. Using the back of a spoon make the surface even. Tap the dish twice to remove any air bubbles from the milk cake

Garnish with cardamom powder and sliced or chopped nuts( almond and pistachio), spread evenly over the surface

Keep the milk cake to cool

Cut into equal-sized pieces

Refrigerate for at least an hour

Serve – Cold

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About Author

Pooja Sangani

An MA with English literature, Pooja Sangani also has a diploma in software programming. She has attended courses in bakery and fashion design. She works with A-Plus computer services as a Data Analyst and writes a food column in Midday (Gujarati edition), Mumbai. Because of physical challenges, Pooja works from home.