Gost bloger: Indija, Kankana Saxena i khandvi / Eat global: India, Kankana Saxena from Sunshine & Smile and Khandvi

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                                                                 Photo: ©Kankana Saxena


Ako pratite ovaj serijal internacionalnih gostujućih postova, vjerojatno se sjećate da smo već jednom bili u Indiji i jako nam se svidjelo pa nema razloga da se ne vratimo. S ultra zanimljivim jelom!

Vraćamo se mi još jednom u Indiju. Ovaj put tamo nas vodi Kankana Saxena. Kankana stoji iza bloga Sunshine & Smile, čije vam ime već izmami osmjeh na lice, kao i njezine fotografije i recepti. 

Kankana je porijeklom iz Indije, a trenutno sa svojim suprugom živi u Kaliforniji. Kankana kaže kako nije oduvijek voljela hranu i bila je jedna od one djece koju je trebalo nagovarati na jelo, izmišljati priče i trčati za njima sa zalogajima hrane (o, kako mi je to poznato). Ljubav prema hrani razvila se kada je mnogo putovala zbog prirode svog posla. Na tim je putovanjima upoznala zamimljive ljude i probala raznolike internacionalne kuhinje. S vremenom joj je trebala bolja organizacija svih recepata koje je prikupila i koje je isprobavala. Tako se rodio blog Sunshine & Smile, 2011. Kankana kaže kako je njezin suprug Arvid najveći kušač i kritičar njezinih jela, osmislio je izgled cijelog bloga i sam je vrstan kuhar. 

Kao što je vjerojatno nekima od vas poznato jer ste to iskusili i sami, blogiranje je Kankanu motiviralo na bolje kuhanje i razvilo ljubav prema fotografiji. Ponekad joj je teško razlučiti uživa li više u kuhanju ili fotografiranju hrane.

                                                                   Photo: ©Kankana Saxena

 
Kankanu možete pratiti na food portalu Honest Cooking, twitteru i facebooku.

Za nas se zaista potrudila i pripremila jedno izuzetno zanimljivo jelo koje će za mnoge od vas, vjerujem, biti novost. Sadrži neke sastojke koji u originalu nisu dostupni na našem tržištu, neki jesu ali malo ih je teže pronaći, poput asafoetide (praha od istoimene biljke) ili svježeg korijandera, ali njih lako zamijenite češnjakom u prahu i peršinom (upute u receptu)! Radi se o tzv. khandvi iliti indijskom finger food-u. Idealno za zabave! K tome, Kankana se trudila i isprobavala ovo jelo nekoliko puta prije nego mi je poslala fotografije i tekst, jer nije baš lagano za izradu, a željela je izvrstan rezultat. Svaka čast i malo je reći da je ovo savršeno! Uživajte:

"Htjela bih zahvaliti Tamari što me pozvala da budem dio ovog kulinarskog serijala. Kolegice smo na portalu Honest Cooking, kroz koji sam saznala za njezin blog. Ukusna hrana i lijepe fotografije iznova me vraćaju u njezin kulinarski kutak.

Velika mi je čast podijeliti jelo iz moje zemlje. S obzirom da dolazim iz Indije gdje postoji zaista raznolik izbor različite hrane, bilo mi je teško izabrati nešto posebno za ovaj post. Tada mi je na pamet palo da napravim nešto s manje začina, neku grickalicu. Odlučila sam se za najdraži finger food mog supruga - Khandvi.

Khandvi nije jednostavno za napraviti i pogodila sam ga nakon nekoliko pokušaja.  Potreban je  trud, ali na kraju sigurno nećete požaliti.

Ovo jelo dolazi iz Gujarata iz Indije i obično se radi sa kiselim jogurtom i brašnom od slanutka. Izrada smjese bio je onaj brzinski i lagani dio recepta. Štoviše, čitav proces neće vam uzeti više od 15 min. Prvi izazov s kojim sam se susrela bilo je skuhati smjesu do prave konzistencije, tako da se lako rasporedi u tankom sloju. Zatim je na red došlo zamatanje u rolice. Tanki slojevi su dosta osjetljivi i ako se žurite oni će popucati. Stoga trebate biti pažljivi i strpljivi pri rolanju. Jednom kad završite rolice, jelo je skoro gotovo i uz još malo truda spremno za serviranje.

U khandviju gotovo da i nema začina, okus mu je poprilično blag i "maslast". Dodajte mu sjemenke gorušice, malo zelenih čili papričica i listova curryja kako biste dobili robustan okus i prije posluživanja posipajte listovima korijandera.

Nakon ovakvih kulinarskih izazova uvijek osjećam zadovoljstvo, a trud se isplati kad vidim zadovoljni smješak na suprugovom licu dok isprobava jelo.

Napomena: Nakon malo istraživanja o izradi ovog jela, došla sam do zaključka da smjesu možete kuhati na štednjaku ili u mikrovalnoj. Isprobala sam oboje i mikrovalna je, naravno, jednostavnija i brža varijanta.

Iz ovog recepta dobit ćete 28 komada khandvija dužine oko 2.5 cm."

                                                                  Photo: ©Kankana Saxena

Sastojci

• 125 g brašna od slanutka
• 240 ml kiselog jogurta (nešto poput kiselog mlijeka kod nas, iako može i običan jogurt ili kiselo vrhnje)
• 480 ml vode
• 1 žličica asafoetide* (umjesto toga upotrijebite češnjak ili luk u prahu)
• 2 žličice čilija u prahu
• 1 žličica kurkume
• 2.5 cm svježeg đumbira, naribanog
• sol

Još je potrebno

• 1 žličica sjemenki gorušice
• 2 zelene čili papričice
• 1 1/2 žlica ulja
• sjekani listovi korijandera (ili peršina)

*asafoetida je začin koji raste uglavnom u Indiji i Iranu. To je biljka koja se u prahu koristi kao začin. Kažu da je okus sličan češnjaku i luku pa ju zamijenite jednakom količinom češnjaka ili luka u prahu (granulicama).
1. Pripremite drvene daske za sjeckane ili staklene pladnjeve na koje ćete rasprostrijeti smjesu. Ja sam upotrijebila 2 drvene daske i pleh za kolače. Namastite ih lagano uljem. Zatim kuhinjskim papirom lagano prijeđite po daskama kako ne bi bile previše nauljene. Sve si spravice pripremite unaprijed, jer se smjesa mora brzo razvući dok je vruća.
2. Napravite smjesu: U zdjeli pomiješajte kiseli jogurt i vodu. Dodajte asafoetidu, čili u prahu, kurkumu, naribani đumbir i promiješajte. U to prosijte slanutkovo brašno i pjenjačom dobro izmješajte. Umiješajte sol, opet pjenjačom kako biste uklonili sve grudice. Stavite smjesu (nemojte poklapati zdjelu) u mikrovalnu i kuhajte 4 min na visokoj temperaturi. Tada izvadite, dobro izmješajte pjenjačom i vratite u mikrovalnu na još 3 min. Ponovo izvadite i izmješajte pjenjačom. Sada bi gustoća trebala biti dobra.
3. Gustu smjesu sada brzo razmažite po daskama, što tanje možete. Ostavite da odmori 2-3 min. Koristeći nož,  režite prugice 2.5 cm dužine i pažljivo ih rolajte u roladice. Svaku roladicu stavite na tanjur za posluživanje. 
4. Ugrijte ulje kojemu dodate sjemenke gorušice i sjeckane zelene čili papričice. Nakon nekoliko sekundi počet će otpuštati svoje arome.  Tada uklonite s vatre i polijte po roladicama. Pri posluživanju posipajte sjeckanim korijanderom.

                                                                Photo: ©Kankana Saxena

                                              Khandvi - A healthy finger food from India

We're well into Eat Global guest posts and we've been to India once, but there's no reason we shouldn't return, right? I'm a big fan of Indian food. I always make simpler versions of Indian dishes with less spices (partly because many of them aren't available on our market). We are bringing you an interesting appetizer, I'm sure most of my fellow Croatian food bloggers never made this dish at home, and many of you haven't heard of it. I know I haven't :) That's why I'm so excited to bring you this guest post written by lovely Kankana Saxena!
Kankana Saxena is the writer, cook and photographer behind beautiful food blog called Sunshine & Smile. She comes from India and currently lives in California with her husband Arvind. Kankana says she didn't use to be a foodie, she was one of those kids who had to be talked into eating. But a few years back, when she was traveling a lot for work, she discovered the magical world of different cuisines and dishes, ate at a lot of different places and met a colorful array of people. This experience made her cook more and she became a real foodie.
Sunshine & Smile was created in 2011. Kankana's recipe collection and suggestions needed a better organization. So came this blog. Her husband gave a beautiful look to the blog and is her support in everything she does, as well as the greatest recipe taster and food critic. He's also a great cook! Kankana hopes to convince him to share some of his dishes with us. Arvind, please do! Fingers crossed :)
Kankana's meals are mostly on the healthy side, with a bit of indulgence every now and then. Blogging has developed a passion for food photography in Kankana, as I'm sure it did in many of us food bloggers. Sometimes the line between which we enjoy more is thin: cooking or photographing food. Kankana thinks a bit of both and I agree.
Kankana's recipes are a beautiful array of dishes, comforting and at the same time elegant, some more exotic than the others, bursting with flavors I am eager to experience. I recommend you take time to explore her blog, you will enjoy it. You can also follow her via food site Honest Cooking , facebook and twitter.
For her guest post here on Bite My Cake she made such an interesting dish. She really made an effort to make this and I am so thankful for that. I know you will enjoy it and you're eager to find out what it is all about, so let's move on to the recipe and Kankana's post!

                                                                 Photo: ©Kankana Saxena

"I would like to thank Tamara for inviting me to be a part of this culinary series. We are fellow contributors for  Honest Cooking and that's how I found her blog. The delicious food she shares and the gorgeous photographs she clicks, makes me come back to her space again and again.

It's a great honor to share with her a dish from my country. Coming from India where there are such different varieties of food available, it was tough for me to pick something specific for the series. Then I thought of making something which has less spice and can be enjoyed as a snack bite. So, I chose to make my husband's favorite finger food – Khandvi.

Making Khandvi was not easy and it took multiple attempts to get it right. It's definitely not one of the easiest snacks to prepare. It needs a lot of time and attention but at the end, you will certainly not regret the effort.

This finger food snack bite comes from the state of Gujarat in India and it's made with sour yogurt and chickpea flour.

Getting the batter ready was the quick and easy part. In fact, the whole process should not take more than 15 mins. The first tricky part was to cook it to the right consistency, so that it was easy to spread evenly into a thin layer.

Then comes the second tricky part - making the rolls. The thin layers are very delicate and if you hurry, it will break apart. You need to be really careful and patient while rolling the layers.

Once the rolls are ready, the job is almost done! Now, all you need is some tampering and it's ready to be served.

                                                                                    Photo: ©Kankana Saxena

  

There is hardly any spice in this dish, which gives it a very mild taste, and it is buttery at every bite! Tamper it with mustard seeds, some green chilies and curry leaves to add that robust flavor and finish it off with chopped fresh cilantro as garnish.

There is always a certain sense of pleasure that I get out of such challenges and it's always worth the effort after I see a smile on my husband's face as he enjoys the dish."

Note: After doing some study on how to make Khandvi, I realized that you could either cook the batter on the stovetop or in the microwave. I tried both and clearly the microwave version is much easier method - it takes less effort and it's much simpler.

This makes 28 khandvis, each of about 1 inch long.

Ingredients : 

1 cup chickpea flour/besan

1 cup sour yogurt

2 cups water

1 teaspoon asafoetida/hing

1/2 teaspoon chili powder

1 teaspoon turmeric powder

1 inch ginger, grated

salt

 for tampering  

1 teaspoon mustard seeds

2 green chilies, finely chopped

1-1/2 tablespoon oil

freshly chopped cilantro for garnish

Directions:

Arrange some steel plates/glass chopping boards or cookie sheets to spread the batter. You can also spread the batter on the counter top. I used back side of a cookie sheet and two wooden chopping boards.

Brush the back of the cookie sheet and the wooden boards very lightly with some oil. Then, rub it using a kitchen paper towel to make sure it's not too oily.

Keeping the spreading utensils ready is very important as you have to spread the batter immediately while it's hot. Once the utensils are ready, start with the batter.

Add water and sour yogurt in a microwave proof bowl and mix it properly.

Then, add asafoetida, chili powder, turmeric powder, grated ginger and give it a mix.

Sift the chickpea flour to the bowl and whisk until it's mixed properly.

Add salt and mix it one last time to make sure that there are no lumps.

Put it in the microwave without the lid and let it cook for 4 minutes in high heat.

Take it out and whisk it properly. Put it back in the microwave for 3 more minutes.

Take it out and whisk it once again. At this point, the consistency should be thick enough.

Spread the thick batter quickly on the back of the cookie sheets or chopping boards. Spread it as thinly as you can.

Let it rest for 2 to 3 minutes.

Using a knife, cut 1 inch long strips and very gently roll the strips. Place each roll in the serving plate.

For tampering, heat oil in a small skillet and add mustard seeds, curry leaves and chopped green chilies.

In about few seconds, it will start to splatter and release the flavor.

Stop the heat and spread it evenly on the rolled Khandvi.

Garnish it with chopped cilantro and serve immediately.

                                                                                       Photo: ©Kankana Saxena