Nutty Rajgira (Amaranth flour) Cookies - Fasting Snack

Hello foodies,

Happy Navratri to all.

Today I am sharing delicious fasting snack – Nutty Rajgira (Amaranth flour) Cookies. I made these cookies with Rajgira flour and mixed nuts. If you bored with typical fasting snacks, try this yummy recipe for this Navratri.

Yield – 14-15 cookies

Ingredients:-

Unsalted butter – ½ cup
Rajgira (Amaranth flour) – 1 ½ cup+ 1 tbsp
Sugar – ¾ cup+ 1 tbsp
Chopped mixed nuts – ½ cup (I used pistachios, almonds, raisins and cashews)
Lemon juice – 1 tbsp
Cardamom powder – a pinch
Baking soda – a pinch
Black salt – a pinch

Directions:-

1) In a mixing bowl add chopped nuts, lemon juice, 1tbsp sugar and 1 tbsp rajgira flour. Mix well and set aside.
2) Sift rajgira flour, baking soda and black salt together and set aside.
3) Now in another mixing bowl whisk butter and sugar together.
4) Add cardamom powder and again mix well.
5) Add rajgira flour, soda and salt mixture and again mix well.
6) Add chopped nuts mixture and knead soft cookie dough.
7) Divide the dough in two parts and make cylinder shape roll.
8) Refrigerate this dough for at least 3 hours.
9) Preheat the oven 350 degree F.
10) Take out the cookie dough rolls from fridge and cut the half inch round cookies from each roll.
11) Arrange the cookies in baking tray line with aluminum foil.
12) Pop these cookies in the oven for about 12 mins or until golden brown in color.
13) Take out the cookies from oven and let it cool down for 10 mins.
14) Serve with tea/coffee/ warm milk.

Litti – Chokha

Hello Foodies,

Today I am sharing Litti Chokha, most popular and delicious dish from Bihar. Litti- Chokha is basically wheat flour bati stuffed with Sattu and served with Potato-eggplant Chokha and tomato Chokha.  Sattu is flour consisting roasted gram flour and grounded spices. Chokha is made with roasted and mashed vegetables.

  I used store bought sattu for making Litti. Spices used in making litti include carom seeds, pickle masala, garlic etc. Enjoy this mouthwatering dish.

Recipe will serve 2

Ingredients: - For litti dough

Wheat flour – 2 cup
Carom seeds - ½ tsp
Oil – 2 tbsp
Baking powder – a pinch
Water – 1 cup
Clarified butter/ Ghee – dipping the littis
Salt as per taste

For filling:-

Sattu – 1 cup
Finely chopped onion – 1/2 cup
Chopped cilantro leaves – ¼ cup
Finely chopped green chili – 2-3
Mustard oil/olive oil– 2 tbsp
Pickle masala – 2 tbsp( I used mango and tomato pickle masala)
Finely chopped ginger – 1 tsp
Carom seeds – ½ tsp
Onion seeds -  ½ tsp
Lemon juice – 1 tsp
Salt as per taste

For Potato – Eggplant Chokha:-

Potato – 3
Tomatoes - 4
Eggplant – 3 (small size)
Garlic clove – 4 -5
Green chili – 2
Chopped cilantro leaves – 1/4 cup
Mustard oil /olive oil – 2 tbsp
Lemon juice – 1 tsp
Salt as per taste

For Tomato Chokha :-

Tomatoes – 4 (big size)
Green chili – 2
Mustard oil / olive oil – 1 tsp
Cilantro leaves - 3 tbsp
Lemon juice – ½ tsp
Salt as per taste

Directions: - For Litti

1) Preheat the oven on Broil at 375 degree F.
2) In a mixing bowl combine all above mentioned ingredients for litti dough and knead soft dough. Cover the dough with wet kitchen towel and set aside.
3) In another mixing bowl add all above mentioned ingredients for filling. Mix it well.
4) Now divide the dough in equal part and make golf size balls out of it.
5) Take one ball on your palm and flatten it with the help of fingers.
6) Now take 1 tbsp filling and stuffed it in flatten dough. Seal the edges and make ball shape again.
7) Repeat the above step with rest of dough balls.
8) Now broil the litti in the oven for about 35- 40 min or until golden brown in color.
9) Take out the litti from oven and dipped in melted ghee.
10)Serve hot with Chokha.

For  Potato-Eggplant Chokha and Tomato Chokha:-

1) Preheat the oven on 350 degree F.
2) Using sharp knife make few slits on potatoes, eggplants and tomatoes. Add tomatoes for Tomato Chokha also.
3) Insert garlic cloves in the slits of eggplant. By doing this we will get nice aroma and flavor of garlic.
4) In baking pan add potatoes, eggplants, tomatoes and bake it for about 40- 45 mins.
5) Once done take out the pan from oven and peel the skin of all baked vegetables.
6) Add the baked vegetables in a large mixing bowl and mash it with the help of masher.
7) Now add all above mentioned rest of the ingredients and mix well.
8) For tomato chokha add baked tomatoes in mixing bowl and mash it with help of masher.
9) Add rest of the ingredients and mix well.
10) Serve both the chokha with hot littis.