Nasuha Blog

Hello readers. As promised, I am here with yet another Holi special recipe. Dahi vade is a must make for the festival of Holi. There was a time when I used to struggle with this dish and always had a hard center in my vadas. It was then that this recipe came to my rescue and although now I can make vada's with a soft and pillowy center, I wanted to share this recipe with all my readers. I use bread slice to make the center of the vadas and then coat them with the regular vada batter to get a more authentic taste. Trust me, no body till date have made out that vadas are made up of bread and you get a soft center every time. Sometimes I do not use the batter at all and just make vadas with bread. In that way their is no need of frying and the vadas are healthy yet delicious. Try the recipe this Holi. You will definitely love it. Here it is.


All you need is

For the vada

Bread slices - 20
Dhuli urad dal \ Split skinned black gram - 1 cup
Dhuli moong dal \ Split skinned green gram - 1\4 cup
Ginger - 1 inch piece
Green chili - 1\Salt - 1 tsp
Baking soda - 1\2 tsp
Water - 1\2 cup
Salt - 1 tsp
Heeng \ asafoetida - 1\4 tsp
Oil for frying

For the stuffing of vada

Grated dry coconut - 2 tbsp
Broekn cashew nuts - 2 tbsp
Raisins - 2 tbsp
Pistachios - 1 tbsp ( chopped )

For soaking the vada

Water - 5 cups
Curd - 1 cup
Sugar - 2 tsp
Salt - 1 tsp
Heeng \ Asafoetida - 1\4 tsp

For the topping

Fresh curd - 2 cups ( chilled )
Black salt - 1\2 tsp
Sugar - 2 tsp
Tamarind chutney - 1\2 cup ( recipe is here )
Roasted cumin powder - 1\2 tsp
Red chili powder - 1\2 tsp
Fresh coriander - 2 tsp ( chopped )
Pomegranate seeds - 2 tsp



Method of preparation

Wash and soak urad dal and moong dal in enough water for 6-8 hours.
Drain nicely.
Add soaked dal, ginger, green chili, baking soda, water, salt and heeng in the jar of a blender and blend together to make a coarse paste.
Take out the paste in a bowl and whisk it with a spoon or your hand till it is light and fluffy.
It will take 5-6 minutes.
Cut the corners of the bread slices.
Mix the ingredients of the filling in a bowl.
Keep a bread slice on your palm and slightly wet it with water from both the sides.
Keep a small amount of filling in the center and bring back the ends and make a round.
Slightly press the round.
Repeat the process with all the bread slices.
Heat oil in a pan.
Dip the bread vadas in the dal batter.
Slightly wet your palms and take out the vada on your palm.
Shape it with your fingers and drop it in hot oil.
Simmer the heat.
Fry all the vadas till golden brown on medium heat.
Remove the vadas on a plate lined with kitchen towel.

For soaking the vada

Mix all the ingredients for soaking the vadas in a big bowl.
Once all the vadas are fried and you are ready to serve, just soak them in this mixture for 5 minutes.
Do not over soak as the bread inside will become soggy.

For serving the vada

Take out the vada from the soaking mixture.
Gently press it between your palms.
Arrange them on a serving plate.
Whisk curd with black salt and sugar.
Pour the curd over the vadas.
Pour the tamarind chutney on top.
Sprinkle roasted cumin powder and red chili powder.
Garnish with fresh coriander and pomegranate seeds.
Serve chilled.

Note.

You can also make bread ke dahi Vade by not using the dal at all.
In that case, just cut the corners of bread and fill the filling in the same manner.
Arrange the filled bread on the serving tray and do the topping in the same way.
No need to soak the vadas.
These dahi vade also taste great and are healthy also as no frying is required.

Holi is one of my favorite festival. Apart from getting drenched with colored water and putting gulal on everyone, I love the food that we get to eat. When we were kids, my mom used to make different types of snacks for the festival.There were a few which she made throughout the year, but a lot of them were this festival specific. Gujiya, gajar ki kanji, aloo ke chips, aloo ke papad and papdi were only made once a year on this festival. After I got married, my mom always send me my share every year, so I never tried my hands on these things and never cared to learn the recipe. But last year, I tried them with my mothers guidance on phone and got them perfect. I always thought, making gujiya is a tedious and difficult process, but after making these, I can bet any novice cook can try them and get a good result. I posted  this recipe on my other blog Whiskaffair last year, but sharing it here too. Go ahead and give this recipe a try. Here it is.



All you need is

For the dough

All purpose flour\ maida- 4 cups
Ghee\ clarified butter- 1 cup ( melted )

For the filling

Khoya- 200 gm
Grated dry coconut- 2 cups
Chironji-1\2 cup
Raisins-1\2 cup ( chopped )
Caster sugar\ bura-200 gm
Cardamom powder-2 tsp

For sealant

All purpose flour\ maida-2 tbsp
Water- 2 tbsp

Ghee for frying



Method of preparation

For the dough

Mix melted ghee with all purpose flour and rub with your palms.
Knead a soft dough using water.
Cover and keep aside.

For the filling

Break the khoya into small pieces and fry till pinkish in color.
Let it cool and then add grated coconut, chironji, raisins, caster sugar and cardamom powder.
Mix well.

For sealant

Mix all purpose flour and water in a bowl.

To make gujhiya

Knead the dough for a minute.
Divide it into 40 pieces.
Roll  each piece into a 4 inch disc.
Keep the rolled disc in a plate covered with damp cloth.
While rolling the dough, keep the remaining dough covered.
Keep the rolled disc in the gujhiya mold and fill it with 1 and 1\2 tsp of filling.
Apply the sealant on the borders and press the mold.
Remove the extra dough from around.
Remove the gujhiya from the mold and store in a plate covered with damp cloth.
Make all the gujhiyas in the same way.
Heat ghee in a heavy bottom pan.
Deep fry the gujhiyas on medium flame till lightly browned.
Let the gujhiyas cool before storing them in a airtight container.
Finish within a week.

Kalakand is a very traditional Indian sweet and is loved by many. I have given a twist to Kalakand by adding custard apple to it. It came out delicious. Give it a try. Here is the recipe.


All you need is

Milk - 2 liter
Lemon juice - 2 tsp
Sugar - 1\2 cup ( powdered )
Cardamaom powder - 1 tsp
Custard apple pulp - 1 cup
Ghee - 1\2 tsp
Pistachios - 5-6 ( slivered )
Almonds - 5-6  ( slivered )
Silver foil ( optional )

Method of preparation

Divide the milk in two pan.
Heat one pan till the milk has reduced to half.
Bring the milk in the other pan to a boil.
When the milk comes to a boil, simmer the heat.
Add lemon juice to the milk.
The milk will curdle.
Switch off the gas and drain the milk in a cotton cloth.
Bring the sides of the cloth together and drain all the whey from the paneer.
Run the cloth under fresh water to remove any trace of lemon from it.
Add this paneer in the other pan when the milk has reduced to half.
Cook till the mixture starts to leave the sides of the pan.
Add sugar and cook for another 2-3 minutes.
Add cardamom powder and custard apple and mix well.
Grease a plate with ghee.
Pour the mixture in the greased plate and spread evenly.
Garnish with pistachio slivers and silver foil.
Let the kalakand set.
When set, cut into small pieces.
It can be stored in an airtight container for 2-3 days in refrigerator.