Prawns pitta fajita

Sorry for the confusing name. I did mean to make prawn fajitas but since I had some pittas which I wanted to use up, I decided to use pitta instead of wraps.  :)

With an aim to use up things in the fridge and reduce food waste, I used the ingredients which I already had. I've used feta cheese but you can use grated cheddar. Also instead of yoghurt you can use sour cream.  

Ingredients

For the pitta fajitas

200 gms raw prawns,  shelled and cleaned

About 1 pepper, de-seeded and cut into strips (I used 1/4 of a red, yellow and green pepper each)

1 tbsp oil

1/2 tsp garlic granules

1 tsp chilli powder (or as per taste)

1/2 cup yoghurt

1/2 a cup of feta cheese

4 pittas

Guacamole made from 2 avocados (Recipe here )

For the Salsa

1/2 a small onion, finely chopped

1 tomato, chopped

1 green chilli, finely chopped

1 tsp lemon juice

Salt and pepper

Coriander, finely chopped

Method

Prepare the salsa - In a bowl, add the tomatoes, onion, green chilli, lemon juice, coriander and mix well. Season with salt and pepper and keep aside.

Prepare the Guacamole

Cook the prawns and peppers - Heat a grill pan on high heat. Add the oil and then the peppers and cook them for 2-3 minutes. Add the prawns and toss. Add the chilli powder and garlic granules and mix well. Cook further for 3-4 minutes or until cooked. Season with salt.

Heat the pittas in a toaster or on a skillet.

Assemble everything on a platter.  Make a pocket in the pitta and stuff it as you like!

Guacamole

Making guacamole is really simple and tastes much much better than store bought. Guacamole is great as a side , in salad bowls, in wraps or sandwiches or as a dip with chips or toasted pitta bread. One thing to note about avocado is that it eventually goes black. Although making it in advance won't affect its taste too much, it will lose the green colour. So it is best to prepare the ingredients in advance but to cut the avocado and mix it with the rest of the ingredients just before serving.

   

Ingredients

2 Avocados 

2 tsp finely chopped onion 

1/2 a tomato, chopped 

1 tsp lemon juice 

A few springs of coriander, finely chopped 

A pinch of paprika or chilli powder 

Freshly ground pepper 

Salt 

Method 

Halve and stone the avocado. Roughly chop it up and add to a bowl. 

Add the finely chopped onions, tomatoes, lemon juice, coriander and the paprika / chilli powder. Season with salt and pepper and toss everything together.

Lunch at Tanner and Co with the baby

Last weekend we went for a family lunch to Tanner and Co. with my mom and the little one. A really nice experience - good food, friendly staff  and most important, the little one seemed to have enjoyed herself too.

We went to the restaurant at about 12.30 so it was busy but not super busy.  There was no waiting and we were attended to immediately. We were settled at our tables with the menu cards and the little one was given some pencils and drawing paper which kept her occupied through lunch! 

We ordered fishcakes with avocado mayonnaise and tomato salsa, cauliflower cheeseburger with pickled red cabbage and chips, buttermilk chicken and waffle with maple syrup and slaw, and a side order of potato and spinach hash. We also ordered some lemonade for us and mac and cheese for the little one. 

The fishcakes which I ordered were really good.  I absolutely loved the presentation. The portion size was perfect for me and I savoured every bite, yum!

The cauliflower burger was a good vegetarian option for mom but probably a bit too big for her though. She enjoyed it but couldn't finish it all. 

The buttermilk chicken and waffle was okay not great so was a bit disappointing. 

The little one liked the mac and cheese and also nibbled on the potato and spinach hash. She seemed to have really like her meal. 

The service was quite slow though - the food took quite long to arrive and so did our bill. 
Overall a good experience. What we really liked was the ambiance and the friendly staff. Will definitely visit again. 

My restaurant rating 4/5  

Rasatle pohe (Flattened rice in coconut milk)

This post is for my Dad. This is my experiment with one of his favourite breakfast dishes which in Marathi is called Rasatle Pohe (translated as flattened rice in sauce) - Pohe is flattened rice and ras is a sauce. This particular sauce is made of coconut milk which is spiced with a tamarind and chilli paste. 

Traditionally this is made with fresh coconut milk, which is squeezed out of grated coconut. Tamarind is soaked in water and then made into a paste. The tamarind paste is then blended with jaggery (a type of unrefined cane sugar), roasted chillies and peppercorns to form a chutney. Part of this chutney is then added to the coconut milk. When serving, the spiced coconut milk is mixed with the soaked flattened rice. You can add more chutney if you wish, depending on how spicy you like it. 
For convenience I've used store bought coconut milk. I had fresh tamarind so have used it but you could use tamarind pulp instead.

Ingredients

1 cup pohe (flattened rice)
1 400 ml can of coconut milk
20 gms of tamarind (about 1/4 cup tamarind pulp if using store bought)
1/2 tsp cumin
1/4 cup jaggery, grated
15 peppercorns
4-5 dry red chillies
Salt to taste

Method

Wash the pohe and soak them in water. 

In another bowl, wash and soak the tamarind in a little bit of water. 

Heat a saucepan on low heat. Add the peppercorns, cumin and dry red chilli and dry roast for a couple of minutes.  

Squeeze the tamarind to form a pulp.

Blend the roasted spices, the tamarind pulp and jaggery to form a paste. Add salt to taste. The chutney is ready.

Keep half of this chutney mixture aside. Blend the rest with the coconut milk (I prefer to use a blender but you could just mix it with a spoon).

Drain the pohe and remove excess water by lightly squeezing them using your palms.

While serving, mix the pohe with the spiced coconut milk. I always add some extra chutney to mine :)