Mini Croissants with Tandoori Paneer Tikka and Nigella and Poppy

Hurry up with my croissants...

I'm waiting for the flaky beginning of my day...

Butter and the aroma of baking bread..,

Saturday mornings cant get any better.

Croissants and the promise of all things Parisian and flaky and buttery and yummy and Indian.

Tandoori Paneer Tikka in my bread...

These incidently were prepared for a high tea for someone who is allergic to egg...

So here goes the easy way out.

No EGG!

Totally desi flavours...

Desi sprinkled seeds of Nigella(Yes ,Madame Nigella Lawson is named after these seeds,she admitted that on television)to make these French beauties even more Beautiful Desi Indian Soni Kudis...

OK these pics are croissants with poppy seeds...

Its all about variety!

I made them to scale,all croissants started out as 3 inch by 4 inch rectangles and then divided diagonaly...Being a math teacher really did'nt really make too much of a difference here...

Folded and resulting in at least 729 layers separated by butter...that just melted away and enriched the layers of flour...

I started with restaurant bought Tandoori Paneer Tikka,who wants to make tandoori paneer tikka when they want to make croissants?Not me!

I just wanted the croissants...

Mini  and pretty.

So this is how I started out.

I have made croissants before but they were never good enough to be talking about...

But believe me,these are!

These are,mes amis!

Totally Francaise!

And worth their butter weight in gold!

for the 

 Mini Croissants with Tandoori Paneer Tikka and Nigella and Poppy...

you need

for the Detrempe(pron: de tr-ompe)

2 1/4 tsp dry yeast

1/4 cup sugar

1 1/4 cup milk

2 cups flour plus almost 1 cup more for rolling

1 tsp salt

Filling

One plate Tandoori Paneer Tikka

Milk to wash and Nigella and poppy seeds to sprinkle.

A littel butter to polish 

for the beurre buerrage(pron: Berre -Be-rr-age )

240 gms/2 sticks /1 cup butter at room temperature(salted is better)

2 tbsp flour

Start with the buerre buerrage .Whisk the flour into the butter really well . Place the butter on the butter paper that the butter came in,shaped into a 4 inch by 4 inch square,that will be about a centimetre thick.

Place in the fridge to chill.Under no circumstance must you freeze it.

Patience pays here.

Nor the detrempe or the dough.

Warm 1/4 cup of the milk and add the yeast and set aside for a few minutes.Sift/whisk  the flour and salt together and place on your work top and make a well.

When the yeast  begins to bubble,add it to the remainder of the milk and the sugar and pour into the flour and mix in.You'll need a bench scraper here,to cleanly lift off the dough.The dough will be very sticky.But don't overwork the dough or your mind.

Place it on a plate liberally dusted with flour and make an inch deep cross on the top with a sharp pair if kitchen scissors.dust again with flour and cover and replace in the fridge.

After about half an hour bring it out on your flour dusted worktop.Lots of loose flour needed here...

using the cross as a guide make four petals and roll them out with a rolling pin.Spread the petals like little paddles.

Place the set buerre buerrage in the centre and the cover the buerre buerrage totally ,on all sides.

Like so..

Covered from all four sides?Right?

Now we are ready to go.

With the seam side down,liberally dust the counter top with flour.And roll the dough gently away from you.Keep dusting the counter top with flour.Roll out to a  reactangle about 6 by 8 inches.Maybe more or less.Depending on when your butter starts to loose shape.

September in Jalandhar is warm .What with the freak wind storms and torrential storms we are witnessing,life is difficult!

Difficult to roll indeed.

Once the dough is rolled out fold into three. Divide the dough into three longitudinally and fold one part to cover the centre and the third part to cover the middle. Wrap in film and chill again.

You'll need to repeat this at least thrice.As the dough becomes colder,you can do the roll and  fold and roll and then fold in one go. Six folds Minimum you need.
Ideally do this one day before.
Now that you are ready,divide the dough into two parts and place one on the counter top which is so liberally dusted with flour that it is almost white.(Chill the other to work with another day.Believe me,you wont want to eat all the croissants the same day.You may want to eat,but you will not want to roll.)
Chop the paneer tikka into fine dices and get your pastry cutter,sharp knives and Ruler/Scale out now.
So Now carefully roll out a rectangle that should be about 16-17 inches by 8 to 9 inches.Use the metal ruler to guide you while you trim it to a rectangle 8 inches by 15 inches.
Divide into two,so now you have 4 inch into 15 inches.The scraps you store to male simple rolls,not perfect croissants.They may not be as pretty but they will be yummier because a lot of the butter will be there.
Now 3 inch wide rectangles...you'll get 5 of them.Diagonal cuts give you 10.

Pull and stretch the dough gently ,the tip of the triangle to make it a little thinner and make a cut at the bottom.You need sharp points for the base,and  your dough will look a little like the Eiffel tower here.
A little stuffing and you are ready to roll.
Oops oven at 190C-375F and baking tray lightly greased.
Start rolling keeping the stuffing inside,towards the thin point...

Tuck the ends and the tip under the belly of the croissant.The shine on the baking tray is the tray grease. Let these babies sit for about 25 -30 minutes and you can do the next lot too...

When they have been sitting for a while,brush them with milk and sprinkle some Nigella on them-seeds people,seeds!
Pop them in the oven ,23 minutes is all they took.

Crisp on the outside,flaky and soft and yummy on the inside...
And totally desi...
Tandoori Paneer Tikka...
And Eggless!
Allergy care here.
What a wonderful hostess am I?

These were the fruits of my labour...
The pics are not all there...
New phone people.
I cant be pawing it with my flour covered hands yet!
Coffee and Croissants anyone??
In Jalandhar!
How French is that?

I'm coming back with more.I have leftovers ...my dough is still sitting in the freezer...
So Tandoori Chicken Tikkas in my croissants...
Or maybe Chocolate Croissants...
Yeah...
Drooling...
And Oh I also made Chocolate and Kiwi tarts...
And Lemon Tarts...
And Spinach and Cheese Triangles...
All eggless of course...

So Nigella and Poppy-even if they are seeds really add to the appearences!


So what are you baking today???

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Chinese Checkers and Fried rice and a first!!!

Samsung Galaxy GrandZ...

New smart phone...

Now I'm a babe with a new toy....

A first-time for me ...

Blogging from my new smart Phone...

Now I understand why every one is so hung up on them...an extension of their persona's..

Now only if my fingertips were half their size...

Add caption

Tiny fingertips and tiny veggies. I love the coming of the fall in north India. I start with my Machiavelli mindset and try and stuff my potato loving hubby and son with fresh vegetables. Starting now, we begin playing farm ville for real in the backyard. Tiny patches of herbs and veggies to pluck when my conniving mind wishes to ....
The worst bit is the chop ping...but I'm grateful for the extra pair of hands in my kitchen and my new julienne peeler that shreds carrots into slim jewel like ribbons...
All that you need for this impromptu really healthy snack is precooked rice and chopped vegetables.
And like we have been playing Chinese Checkers in the dark for 4 days as gale force winds brought down mighty trees on the main road here...
The name seemed apt!
As close to authentic Chinese as we can get n Jalandhar ,Punjab!

for the

Chinese Checkers Fried Rice and a first!!!

you need

3 cups precooked cold rice(If you make this with fresh rice,you need to cool them or they stick)
2 cups finely diced vegetables like carrots,capsicum,onion,cabbage,french beans and peas
2 tsp vegetable oil
salt to taste
black pepper,chili flakes to taste
1 tsp vinegar
1 tsp finely  chopped ginger and garlic-optional
1 tsp toasted sesame seeds-optional


Meticulous is the main word here.
You need to keep all the veggies and rice chopped and portioned out along with the spices on the work top before you attempt anything Chinese....
Heat your wok or non stick frying pan to really high and pour in the oil.
Now add in the chopped ginger and garlic-if using.
keep the flame on high and stir really quick.
Now add in the onions,carrots,beans,peas,cabbage in this order.Simple logic-if you add cabbage before you add the carrots you will have mushy cabbage and uncooked carrots...
Add in the salt and the pepper and the chili flakes and sprinkle the rice over.
Using all brute force and quick movements don't let the rice sit too long...keep lifting and sifting and mixing...
Poetry in motion.
The minute the rice is heated through,sprinkle the vinegar.
And you are done.
Another few turns and the rice is ready.
Just sprinkle the toasted sesame seeds for that extra crunch and whip up your chopsticks and you are ready to go....
The gift of good health.

The vitamins and the minerals all preserved by the quick cooking and low oil and nutritious meal.

The bowl is power packed with fibre and low spice and low oil that a normal snack would not be able to offer you...

Low in calories ,high in nutrition and good looks.
Almost like a warm salad to make you feel good!
What more do you need for a quick pick me up???


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Sunday Dum Chicken Biryani and Cold beer

Milk is for babies. When you grow up you 

have to drink beer.

Arnold Schwarzenegger 

Lazy ,lazy days of summer.

And one holiday a week to break the monotony and drudgery of work and studies in general.

There has to be some compensation.

Some compensation that needs to be low effort to prep and high output on taste and presentation.

A Sunday morning brunch that would be incomplete without a little chicken and some alcohol to help it all go down. 

Alcohol!

Not for me the martinis and the talk of blood on a Virgin Mary to help the biryani go down. What tastes best is plain and simple lager or beer. The colder the better.

The best Indian Beer around-Kingfisher.

Vijay Mallaya really knows his brew.He may not know how to run a business, or keep the hot air hostesses and luxury aircraft in the air,but he sure knows his hops and his malt.

A perfect accompaniment to spicy,herby and racy chicken biryani. Also called a pilaf by many a Brit cooks,they seem to have a particular aversion to washing and soaking rice.

We the Indians,love to wash off all the good stuff off our basmati, soak it in water and then throw away all the nutrients that leech into the water and then throw away the water in which we cook our rice.

No wonder that rice is nothing but empty calories.

All the nutrients are washed down the drain,no wonder the creatures of the drain are all well fed and fat.

The roaches and rats and various critters who are just bursting with good health.

So lets make them healthier and continue to throw the cooking water of rice out.

This biryani is a Saturday night prep and just layer the partially cooked and marinated chicken and monitor the clock type biryani.
Totally Sunday chilling out stuff.
Totally chilling out with a bottle of beer biryani.
Chillax!

for the

Sunday Dum Chicken Biryani and Cold beer...

you need

Many many bottles of chilled beer
1 chicken cut into 12 pieces-approx 800 gms
1 cup chopped green coriander and mint leaves and a sprig or two of mint leaves for the rice
5-6(or more) slit green chillies
3 medium tomatoes thinly sliced
1 cup sliced red onions fried and drained (made from 4 medium onions thinly sliced)
4 tbsp clarified butter/desi ghee/any vegetable oil
1 1/2 cups yogurt
4 tsp ginger garlic paste
1 tsp whole spices-peppercorns,green cardamom,cinnamon,cloves and a wee bit of mace
Extra 1/2 tsp green cardamom
a handful Bay leaves
2 cups long grain fragrant basmati rice
1/2 cup warm milk
pinch saffron
2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
2 tsp each cumin,coriander and red chili powder
3-4 tsp ghee or butter for the biryani
Atta Dough to seal the pan.


OK. the ingredient list looks very long,but you can manage all.
Start on a Saturday night,before you touch the cocktail mixer...
Wash the chicken and stab it a couple of times to ensure that the marinade seeps through all the cells of the flesh.
Chop the greens and slit the chillies.You can add more or less chillies.They hardly add to spice the factor,just add to the flavour.

The sliced tomatoes and the ghee/oil in a large steel bowl.If you don't have a big steel bowl,use a glass bowl,not Tupperware or any other plastic or porcelain.Porcelain absorbs all the smells and flavours,so it may take the chicken and give you some ancient unpalatable flavour...
SO ,in the interest of a wonderful biryani,Avoid.

Add half the sliced onions(I deep fried 4 sliced onions till  they were crisp in vegetable oil and drained them on kitchen paper),and the chicken and the powdered spices,the ginger garlic paste,and the extra cardamom and the yogurt and the salt.

Massage it all together so as to break some of the tomato slices and cover with cling film and pop in the fridge till next morning.That is all the work you need to do!
Make sure you wash your hands well with soap and water ,else you'll blame me for your stinky hands.

The whole spices and the sprig of mint.

Pretty as a picture .My potted bay leaf plant,which I harvest ever so often.

Wash and soak the rice at least half an hour before you begin.remember to pop in a few bottles of beer into the fridge to chill now.
In a large container full of water and a tsp of salt and the whole spices and mint and boil, when the water comes to a rolling boil add The drained rice a.d let the rice cook till al dente.
It must have a bite and should not be done,else the biryani will not fluff up.
Drain and spread on a platter to cool.

That is a big casserole dish,that goes on my induction cooker.Any pan with a heavy bottom will do.Connotations!
Spread liberally with 1 tsp ghee or butter and layer the bay leaves.They protect the chicken from burning,in case you forget to turn the heat on low on time.

The rice cooling.I take out the pepper corns and cloves.They get stuck in cavities and gaps ...ruining the experience.

Warm the milk and add the saffron.

Layer the chicken,so as to cover the entire base.

Once the chicken covers the base,pour over all the marinade liquid.

Half the rice over the marinade.Cover with a handful of the remaining  sliced onions.

Top up with the remaining rice,the remaining onions and the butter.I had some more mint,so...

Pour over the milk infused with saffron.
Pop the lid on and seal the lid with Atta dough.My lid has a hole in the lid to let out the excess steam and tantalise us with the aromas...
On now,open your beer bottle...

Full flame 12 minutes lower the flame to Medium Flame for 15 minutes and place the biryani on a flat sauce pan over a low flame for almost 30 minutes and then turn off the flame and let it rest for at least an hour.
Open up when you are ready to eat...

Served with yogurt or a mint chutney or a simple salad of chopped onions,tomatoes and lemon juice or just as it is...

With the beer...

Grains of rice are indeed pretty...
Pretty intense,soaked with the flavour of the chicken.
The only work done was watching the clock.

Come on,admit it...
It seems to be an easy way to spread your Sunday....
Just boil some water,drain some rice and pick out the whole spices you don't want getting stuck in your teeth and just watch the clock.the reward my friends,is an awesome Hyderabadi style chicken biryani that is flavourful and juicy and yummy.You generally need a gravy to go with a biryani,this one is moist and soft and supple as though it is bursting with flavour in every bite.
Totally worth a Sunday brunch!


Try  it this week end...
And your Sunday will never be the same.
PS this serves 4 healthy adults,with a good appetite for beer and chicken.


So what are you baking today???

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Ragi Bread-Low GI once more with Pistachios ,Garlic and Olive oil

“Good bread is the most fundamentally satisfying of all foods;

 and good bread with fresh butter, the greatest of feasts.” 

– James Beard

And then if there is garlic and olive oil in the bread and and horror of horrors..pistachio nuts...

Nuts?

Nuts!

Yes,nuts!

In bread.

So thank God for all ye faithful...

Who have returned and reread my posts...

I am not dead and decapitated like those zombies of the scary movies...

I am just a teacher prepping for the end of term exams.The baking and the dough making and the olive oil and garlic and ground sugar are all the sanity I seem to have. My hands are much stained with red. Red of the pen with corrections after the murder of the written word.Red after the paper cuts and staple pin wounds...

Yes baby...

Education is a difficult job.

So you need nuts.

The nuts and the nuttiest idea of making a bread that had ragi flour and garlic...

Sort of like  a pre made garlic bread already dipped in extra virgin olive oil.

Super!

The aroma was awesome and the bread stayed fresh for two days.

That is how long it lasted.

There was no need for any butter or any sandwich spread or any more olive oil to dunk it into.

Just some great gossip and some spicy chit chat and lots of laughter...

That was Dunkin Donuts...

The paper...New to Jalandhar, but missing in action was the yummy coffee that is needed to dunk the donuts into...The donuts were small and nothing that yours truly could not make in her own kitchen-so could you. they were egg less and cakey...not very donut like and were filled with cheap chocolate and synthetic fruit flavours and sugars.

But the Heaven Can wait Burger was worth its name-in Gold!

My favourite donuts are the ones that are available at the Oberoi Patisserie -Sugar and Spice in Khan Market in Delhi.

I also tried the stuff at Choko la in Pacific Mall,Delhi...The chocolate certainly did not taste cheap.

So the nuts and the Ragi bread.

This bread is Low GI too.Tastier than the Bajra Ragi Low GI bread.

Rich in all essential anti oxidants and calcium and fibre and what ever it needs to qualify as HEALTHY!

The pictures of the making process were ruined thanks to the water on my phone...

The new one is underway-just as soon as I make up my mind!

for the 

Ragi Bread-Low GI once more with Pistachios,Garlic and Olive oil...

you need

2 cups plain flour

3/4 cup whole wheat flour 

3/4 cup ragi flour

2 tsp yeast

3-4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

100 gms shelled pistachios/walnuts or whatever is available when you start the dough

3-4 tbsp smashed/pounded/minced garlic

1 1/2 tsp or a little more salt

1 teeny weeny tsp sugar -to feed the yeast

warm water to knead

Start with 50 mils of warm water and add in the yeast with the sugar.

Mix about 200 mils with 2 tbsp of olive oil and add in the three flours and the 1 1/2 tsp of salt.

Knead till the dough is elastic and smooth.

Cover and set aside till it almost doubles.

In the mean while chop/don't chop the pistachios,they will get toasted in the bread and will slice so beautifully you will cry with happiness.

To the remaining oil( and more if you so wish) add the garlic.

Roll up your sleeves and punch the dough. cut it into two equal halves and then lightly pat out each half into a flat oblong.

Place half the garlic and half the pistachios on the oblong and fold over three times.Pat out and fold over at least 3-4 more times,much easier than kneading them in.

Now shape the dough into two oblongs and place over a parchment sheet .

Cover and set aside to double.

Preheat the oven now to 200C/390F,once the beeper goes off,lower the temp to 190C/375F and pop in the loaves for about 35-40 minutes.

You'll know they are done when the aromas of the garlic and the toasting pistachios and the Olive oil and the baking bread start floating out of your kitchen.

Out and brush with a little more Extra Virgin Olive oil and slice or break off and enjoy.

The bread tastes awesome fresh and keeps well.

Toasts well too,only the slices pistachios fell off and burnt to cinders in my toaster.

Worth the effort and totally worth the calories-good calories.

Great for breakfast and instant energy for over burdened school teachers like me....


I'll be back with more...
Till then think of...
Sunflower bread...

So what are you baking today???

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