Fabulous Meatball Sliders With Avocado Berry Salad

Day7: This is sort of a spin-off from my previous posts. Combined 2 recipes to make one brand spanking new dish. We at home truly enjoyed these bite-site sliders to the fullest with the avocado-berry salad on the side.

Here is a round-up of all the fermented foods I made this week-

• Day1: Steamed Rice Cakes "Idli" With Red Chutney(Spicy Onion Chutney) & Green Chutney (Refreshing Mint Cilantro Chutney)
• Day2: Eggless "Yeast-Raised" Pancakes With Plum-Strawberry Compote
• Day3: Buttery "Parker House Rolls"
• Day4: Healthy Oven-baked "Fried Idli" With Julienned Veggies
• Day5: Whole-Wheat Sesame Buns With Spinach-SweetPotato-Cabbage-Peas Stuffing
• Day6: Pita Bread(With Pockets) & Falafel, Guacamole Stuffing

#7 in my LustList: Antique Style Fine Jewellery: When it comes to Jewellery Less is NOT more.
1.Long Pearl and Ruby Necklace worn by the gorgeous Actress Deepika Padukone.

2. Kundan Style Choker Necklace worn by actress Sonam Kapoor.

Now onto the recipe-
Ingredients:

• 8 Homemade Slider Buns
• 8 Meatballs of choice from here, here or here
• 1/4 Cup Shredded Cheddar cheese

For the Avocado-Berry Salad:

• 2 Cups Mixed Greens
• 1/4 Cup Chopped Strawberry
• 1/4 Cup Chopped Avocado
• 1-1/2 Tbsp Olive Oil
• 1-1/2 Tbsp Lemon Juice
• A few grinds of Black Pepper
• Salt as needed

Procedure:

• Make the Slider buns

• Make the meatballs.

• Sprinkle about 1/2 Tbsp of shredded cheddar cheese on top of each meatballs. 

• Make the salad: Whisk Oil, lemon juice, ground pepper and salt in a wide bowl

• Wash the greens and remove the excess water by using a salad spinner. Throw the greens, chopped berries and avocado and toss gently.

• Set the salad aside.

• Microwave the meatballs for a minute or until the cheese melts slightly.

• Place the meatballs in between the cut slider buns. Insert toothpicks. Move to plate and eat it with the salad and orange juice.

• Now take a bite out of these fabulous meatball slider. Oh, Yum!

Vegetarian Option: Beet Sliders

Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing BM#15  
Enjoy!

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Pita Pockets Stuffed With Falafel and Guacamole

Day6:  I have been itching to make my own Pita bread (with pockets). I didn't want do it by myself. So when my friend and her family visited, I tried to give this recipe a go. Somehow I feel that my friend's presence has a calming effect on my nerves, especially when I am trying something new.The last time she was here we made Eggless Chocolate Cupcake With Butter-cream frosting.Some pitas refused to rise, it could be because I didn't roll them right. Overall, I was happy with the results. Not excessively so but for the first try, it didn't disappoint.   Base recipe from The Fresh Loaf.

#6 on my Lust List: Exquisite Indian Sarees/Saris (Price range: $ - $$$$$$)

Simple or Extravagant, Embroidered or Embellished, Plain or Printed, Silk or Cotton, Sarees are stunning. With their timeless quality and infinite appeal they are in the Top 10 list of what I want. Check out the Costliest Silk Saree picture I posted ages ago. Just don't ask me how many silk worms were killed to make it. I don't know!

Now onto the recipe-
Ingredients:

• Chopped Lettuce Leaves

For the Pita:

• 3 Cups Unbleached All-Purpose Flour 
• 1-1/2 Tsp Salt
• 2 Tbsp Honey
• 2-1/2 Tsp Active Dry Yeast
• 1-1/4 to 1-1/2 Cups Warm Water
• 2-3 Tbsp Olive Oil or Butter

For the Pan-Fried Falafel:

• 1 Can Chick-peas, cleaned and drained
• a handful of Cilantro
• 1 Small Red Onion
• 2-3 Garlic Cloves
• 1 Tbsp Coriander Powder
• 1/4 Tsp Turmeric Powder
• 1 Tsp Chili Powder, optional
• a few grinds of Black Pepper
• 2-3 Tbsp All-purpose flour (or) Crumb of 1 Whole Wheat bread
• Salt as needed

For the Guacamole:

• 1 Recipe Guacamole, I omitted smashing the avocado

Procedure:

• In a bowl/Kitchenaid bowl, add the yeast, 2 Tbsp Flour and 2 Tbsp Honey.

• Pour 1-1/4 Cups Warm Water and stir. Let it sit undisturbed in a warm spot for 15 minutes.

• The yeast activates and makes the mixture frothy.

• Attack a paddle hook to the mixer and mix the remaining flour, salt, oil and the remaining 1/4 Cup of warm water if needed.

• Kneading the dough can be done by hands for 10 minutes. If kneading the dough by mixer, do it at low speed. Place the dough in a wide shallow bowl lightly coated with oil, spray the top of the dough with little oil, cover with a damp kitchen towel and let the dough rest for about 90 minutes. 

• The dough doubles in size. 

• Meanwhile, make the Falafel: Roughly process the cilantro, onion, chickpeas. Add the all-purpose flour, grated garlic, cumin powder, turmeric powder, salt and grinds of black pepper.

• The mixture should be thick and should hold together when clumped together.

• Make small patties and lightly fry them in till they are browned.

• Gently move them to a plate and let them cool.

• Now deflate the dough that has doubled  and divide the dough into 8 even-sized balls. Let the balls rest for 20 minutes. Using a rolling pin roll the dough into 7" discs. The discs should be 1/4" thick. Keep them under a damp kitchen towel.

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Stick a pizza stone into the oven before preheating. This is to prevent the stone from cracking due to sudden temperature change. Once the oven is hot, place 2-3 pitas on the pizza stone and let it cook for about 5-7 minutes tops. Make sure the thickness is even or some Pitas may not rise. 

• Remove the Pitas from the stone and repeat with the remaining uncooked ones. 

• Make the Guacamole.

• Halve the pita bread and stuff them with 2-3 Falafel, a few lettuce leaves and about 2 Tbsp of Guacamole.

Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing BM#15 
Enjoy!

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Whole Wheat Sesame Buns With Spinach-SweetPotato-Cabbage-Peas Stuffing

Day5: Today's recipe is something I am somewhat comfortable with because my foray into yeast recipes began with a Stuffed bun. I made these last week to pack mine and my son's lunch box.The best thing I like about stuffed rolls are that they are so not messy! Bun inspiration comes from USMasala.

#5 On the Lust List: Ivanka Trump's Diamond and Seed Pearl Earrings-
Now onto the recipe (For detailed pictures check out this similar post, Palya Buns)-
Ingredients:

For the Whole Wheat Buns(Makes 12-15):

• 1-1/2 Cups "Atta" Flour (Wheat Flour made from "Durum" Wheat)
• 1/2 Cup Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
• 1-1/4 Cup Reduced Fat Milk (2% Milk)
• 1-1/4 Tbsp Rapid Rise Yeast (Red Star)
• 1-1/2 Tbsp Granulated Sugar
• 1/4 Cup Canola Oil
• 4 Tbsp Water, at room temperature
• 2 Tbsp White Sesame seeds, toasted

For the Filling:

• 2 Cups Sweet Potato, cooked and smashed
• 3-4 Cups Spinach, packed, roughly chopped
• 1/3 Cup String Beans, finely chopped
• 1/3 Cup Cabbage, finely chopped
• 1/3 Cup Red Onion, finely chopped
• 1/4 Cup Frozen or Fresh Green Peas
• 1 Tbsp Fennel Seeds, roughly ground in a Mortar and Pestle
• 1 Tsp Cumin Seeds
• 1 Tbsp Garam Masala
• 1 Tbsp Chili Powder or as needed
• 1-1/2 Tbsp Cumin Powder
• 4-6 Tbsp Olive Oil
• Salt as needed

For the Egg-Wash (Or) Milk-Wash, to encourage browning:

• 1 Egg White + 2 Tbsp Milk, for Egg-Wash
• 3 Tbsp Milk,for Milk-Wash

Procedure:

• Warm the milk lightly. Mix the milk, sugar and yeast in a small bowl and set aside for 10-15minutes until frothy.

• Sift the flour together. Fit the paddle hook to the mixer, mix the flour,yeast mixture, oil and water.

• Once combined, either use the dough hook and knead  or transfer it to a wide bowl and knead until the dough is soft by greasing the palm with little oil. Spray oil on top of dough, cover it wet kitchen towel and let it sit in a warm spot for about an hour or so until the dough is almost doubled.

• Meanwhile make the filling.Clean the spinach in several changes of water, completely drain and set aside.

• In a wide pan, add fennel seeds, cumin seeds and onions. Fry till the onions are translucent. Add the finely cut beans and cabbage. Fry for 5- 7 minutes.

• Roughly chop the spinach. Add the spinach and saute it for a minute or two till it wilts.

• Add the powders and salt.

• Add the roughly mashed sweet potato. Top it with peas. Mix to incorporate. Don't over-mix. We don't want a smooth paste for a filling. Switch off the stove and let it cool.

• Make golf-size balls of the stuffing mixture. Make about 12-15. There might be leftovers which can be used as sandwich stuffing too.

• Gently deflate the dough and knead for a minute. Divide the dough into 12-15 even sized balls. Using a rolling pin, flatten the dough into 5" disc. Place the stuffing in the center and pull the edges together to seal the filling completely. Place the balls on a greased aluminum lined baking sheet, tucked side under. Brush the tops with egg-wash or milk-wash and sprinkle some toasted sesame seeds on top.Let it rise for 40-45 minutes. 

• Bake at 400 degrees F for 15-17 minutes in the middle rack.

• Serve alone or with some hot sauce.

Similar Recipe: Palya Buns-

Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing BM#15 

Enjoy! 

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