Traditional burnt pancake made with bottle gourd (ଲାଉ ପୋଡ ପିଠା) 

Bottle gourd is one of the healthiest vegetables, full of water and minerals, that keeps your heart healthy and treats a number of ailments. It is a common vegetable in allI Indian kitchens.  Here we share a sweet dish 'Lau poda pitha', a traditional  burnt pankake made up of bottle gourd and rice. This is a special festival dish made in the state of Odisha during a festival celebrating the first monsoon rain. The festival is call 'Raja'  and is celebrated  for three days in the month of June. 

http://conscioushealth.net/10-health-benefits-of-bottle-gourd-or-lauki-conscious-health-nahid-ameen/

Ingredients:

You need  1cup of rice flour,  I cup of bottle gourd (cut into small pieces and boiled), half a  cup jaggery or sugar, bay leaf,  grated coconut and small pieces of coconut,  cashew ( fried), half an inch of ginger (cut into small pieces,  few coarsely ground cardamom and black pepper. 

Preparation:

In a pan add water, bay leaf, cardamom powder and the bottle gourd. cook for a bit and  then  add the rice flour, jaggery and cashew. Cook until it becomes a thick paste.Add the coconuts, ginger and a  pinch of salt. Take it off the pan. Grease a tray with ghee, put the thick cooked dough and bake for about 400 mins in the oven.

Lau Poda pitha and  Chunchi patra pitha

Cut into pieces and serve. Great as a breakfast item on a festive day...

Aubergine in spiced yoghurt (Dahi baigana): A traditional Odia dish

Spiced yoghurt (raita) is a very common side dish in Indian meals and there are several variety available. I share a common yoghurt dish from Odisha, easy to make, healthy and tasty addition to your main meal. 

You need:

Aubergine/ Eggplant (split into chunks), yoghurt, mustard seeds, 1/4th of an onion, chopped, green chilli (split into half), curry leaves( for tempering), 2 cloves of garlic, salt  and grounded black paper to taste

An ethnic twist to your aubergine/eggplant tonight !!!

Quick steps:

1.Cut the aubergine into circular pieces (not too thick) and shallow fry on a pan with a little oil brushed onto it. take out when cooked.

**(Optional: for healthy, ethnic cooking add pinch of turmeric and salt to it before frying)

2.  Add half a teaspoon of oil to a small pan, put mustard seeds, green chilli, onion (curry leaf optional), let them splutter.

3. Add this mixture to the yoghurt, along with the fried aubergine, pinch of salt and paper. Crush the garlic and add to the mixture(optional). 

That's it .... done !!!

ଆମ୍ବଡା (ସାଲମା) ଖଟା  (Ambda: Hog plum or Spondias)

I find it amazing to find on the internet when I see so many indigenous fruits of India being discovered in South America…. Maybe because the western world stumbled on South America first before exploring India!!!

Also, every Indian preparation is called as a curry…. Although this tangy, sweet curried preparation n might be called as ‘Ambda curry’, I insist on labelling this as ‘Ambda khatta’ as we call it in Odisha. 

Ambda

Aambda is a very common fruit found in all parts of India, including Odisha, where it is also known as Saalma (especially in the northern region).  Rich in Vitamin C and B1, Amada is also a huge source of Antioxidants.  When ripe, this is loved as a sour fruit, or used as pickles or sweet preparation that goes as a side dish.

 Make it quick:

Wash the fruit. If raw then cut them into four pieces, if ripe, just make few slits (It’s hard to cut through the core). In a pan, put a little oil, add half a tea spoon of mustard seeds, few fresh curry leaves and let it splutter. Add crushed ginger, green or red chillies. Now add the fruit and water and let it boil about 5 mins.  Add a handful of jaggery and grated coconut and simmer for another few minutes.

Ambda khatta is ready to be savoured with rice and other side dishes. This is a great alternative to Oou khatta for Odia festival foods.

 Chhunka Chakuli

This delicious flat rice based pancake traditionally made in the state of Odisha, India, is a  treat to the taste buds. You can decide when to have it.  Mostly a breakfast item , this can surely be at the dinner table equally.  This could be a vegan alternative to traditional pancakes in the western countries, but may be not that instant to prepare

• Ingredients: 

• Black gram (skinless) -100 gm,  Rice -200gm,  pinch of salt and, Oil to grease

• Steps:

• Soak the skinless black gram dal and rice in water for two hours, then grind to make a fine paste. Add salt and water to make a batter. Whip well and keep it for an hour. (Optional: splutter a teaspoon of mustard in a bit of oil and pour into the batter, add some chopped ginger and mix well)

• Heat the pan on a medium flame, spread a little oil , take the batter in a tablespoon and spread it on the pan. decorate with  tomato, spinach or ( traditionally with flower petals of butternut squash, Malabar spinach). 
• Turn the pancake upside down after a minute.   
• Serve  with a  traditional  Bengal gram preparation with butternut sqaush and patato  (Buta daali dalma) and chutney. 

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Odia delicacy for Makara Sankranti 

Makar Chaula is offered during the worshipping of the Sun God, during Makar Sankranti that marks the solar event of shifting of the sun towards the ring of cancer from the ring of capricon (makar kranti). This is also a sign of thanks giving post completion of harvesting.

You need:

White raw rice (newly harvested), soaked and crushed, Fruits cut in to small pieces (banana, apple, pomegranate), freshly grated coconut, Skinned and small pieces of sugarcane and Jicama(Kesara aloo/ sakara aloo), Indian cottage cheese (Chhena), grated ginger, jaggery, Roasted sesame seeds, milk

Preparation:

In a mixing bowl, add all the ingredients and mix well.  Add the coarsely crushed rice, sesame seeds and milk. Tasty Makar Chaula is ready to be served.

Enjoy this as a  nutritious variation of fruit salad.