Dried Fruit & Nut Treats

3 Kinds of Treats

Having to watch my sugar intake puts me on the lookout for sugar-free or no-sugar-added dessert options. These simple energy bites are ideal for snacking any time of day and will be enjoyed by both young and old members of the family.

Treats

They come together with just 4 ingredients and the most complicated part in making them is pulsing the ingredients in a food processor. The best part is that they don't need to be refrigerated or frozen and can be stored at room temperature in an airtight container.

Here's how simple the process is. 

1. Choose 2 dried fruits, 1 roasted nut and 1 item in which to roll the treats.
2. Pulse your fruit and nut choices in a food processor or Ninja chopper until the dough forms a big ball.
3. Make walnut-sized balls and roll around to cover in the 4th ingredient.
4. Place in pretty cupcake wrappers, store in an airtight container at room temperature and they're ready for a tiffin box or a grab-and-go snack.

Stuffed Crepes

Stuffed Crepes

These stuffed crepes are also called Moghlai Parathas in India. 

Scrambled Eggs

To enrich this snack, ground meat could be cooked along with the scrambled eggs and crepes made larger to accommodate the bulkier filling.

Crepes

The inspiration video I followed had a simple recipe for making crepes, but do modify the amount of liquid to make a fairly runny batter so that the batter can spread to a desirable size.

Crispy Gyoza Crepe

Crispy Crust

Had this for lunch today, following recipe for 'Gyoza with Wings' by Namiko Cheng of 'Just One Cookbook'. Her recipes are all well-written with clear instructions that produce excellent results. 

Flipped Right-Side Up

I used rice and tapioca starch for the batter and ready made chicken-vegetable dumplings. I was disheartened that the crust was not forming, but just had to be patient to get perfect results. Then it looked like the crust would not peel away from the frying pan, but with a little coaxing, that too worked out fine. I used a small (6-inch) cast iron frying pan which retains heat forever, so using a saucer to flip the crepe was tricky. I plan to get myself a pair of silicone gloves for the next time this is on the menu.

Took a Bite to Taste

A delicious way to serve dumplings, the base of which are crispy and crunchy. 

Bhel - Chickpeas and Potatoes Salad

Bhel

Chickpeas and diced, boiled potatoes tossed with tomatoes, onions, green chillies, cilantro and bhel puri masala made a refreshing salad for lunch. The bhel puri masala kit, which I keep on hand,  is available in Indian markets. I've served this as an appetizer with mini pita pockets for friends at dinner.  

Oyster Crackers Snack

Years ago, while I was still a working woman, a co-worker brought in this snack for a potluck. It's so crunchy, delicious, and easy to assemble that I wonder why I don't make it more often.

It needs just 5 ingredients and 20 minutes to bake.

Deem Ruti or Anda Pau or Egg Sandwiches

Deem Ruti 

Making breakfast for a crowd can be daunting. Over the holidays we had a full house which was a lot of fun. Even though I was well-prepared to make several breakfasts, lunches and dinners, the weather did not cooperate. Temperatures were frigid and windows were iced in place and we hate the smell of stale food in the house, so we ate out a lot - a whole lot!

The Stuffing Inside

King's Hawaiian Rolls are fluffy, portion-sized with a slight sweetness that we all love, but reserve for the holidays. These bite-sized sandwiches are sold as snacks by street vendors in all the metropolitan cities in India. We love our omelettes with minced onions and tomatoes and green chilies which makes a delightful filling for the sandwiches. I went a step further and added slices of provolone cheese and sliced chicken to the mix.

Topped and Fried

Once the bottoms of the buns are smothered with the eggs, cheese and chicken, the buns are covered with the top halves and fried in butter. The little snack-sized buns are then segmented and served with ketchup or a variety of chutneys like tamarind or mint chutney, or sweet chili sauce.

Ghoogni or Channa Masala - Curried Chickpeas

Ghoogni

Ghoogni served with light and puffy luchis are a favorite snack among Bengali households. A mild hint of sour taste from tamarind pulp in a thick onion and tomato gravy makes it perfect for an accompaniment to luchis. I generally have it with tortillas because they are readily available and less work than making luchis. 

Soaking dried chickpeas overnight can be substituted with a can of already cooked chickpeas or garbanzo beans in the Western hemisphere. I find that russet potatoes are a good addition. Remember that Bengalis love their potatoes and we add them to any and everything!

Veggie Pizza

Veggie Pizza

Our quilt guild has a luncheon twice a year in December and June. Usually members are expected to contribute their favourite dish as part of a potluck. Wow! What a spread there was to pick from. 

I'd come across a recipe on the Internet and thank heavens I experimented with it at home well before the day of the potluck. The base was made with Pillsbury Crescent Rolls, the spread from cream cheese combined with sour cream and ranch dressing mix with a topping of cucumber, grated carrots and slivered rainbow peppers. I found it to be too salty, so decided to tone things down by replacing the sour cream and ranch dressing mix with a tub of vanilla yogurt. This tasted so much better! You can substitute any flavour of yogurt or use plain yogurt flavoured as you please.

Top the 'pizza' with vegetables or protein of your choice. This is the ideal thing to take to a potluck because it can be made in a disposable baking pan, refrigerated until ready to be served and served cold or at room temperature.

Jhal Moori - Kolkata Street Food

Kolkata Jhal Moori

Jhal Moori is a snack that is most commonly found on the streets of Calcutta or Kolkata as it is now known. It consists of a mishmash of crispy puffed rice or muri and sev (thin, skinny strands of fried besan/chickpea flour), boiled and diced potatoes and a few other ingredients. 

I guess what makes this a Bengali snack is that it's dressed with mustard oil. There are similar street food in other parts of India that are called Bhel or Bhel Puri.

Diced potatoes give a nice texture to this snack. A can of diced new potatoes lends a helping hand in saving time from boiling, peeling and dicing a russet potato.

Tamarind Chutney imparts a sweet and sour taste to Jhal Moori. Or you can make your own by mixing tamarind paste, chili powder, brown sugar and salt.

Sev

There are no substitutes for Sev which is a popular Indian snack that look like crunchy noodles. Sev, made from chickpea flour paste and seasoned with salt, turmeric and cayenne pepper, are deep fried in vegetable oil. Sev can be purchased at Indian markets. 

Moori or Puffed Rice

Moori can also be purchased at Indian markets. 

Bread & Yellow Alu (Potato) Croquettes

Potato Croquettes

In what now seems to be a distant and past life, I was fortunate to be mentored by a gourmet cook who taught me a lot of what I know today about feeding my family. Mum was a huge influence throughout my life but when I left home, the coaching continued as I grew up and had a family of my own.

Yellow Alu

The basis for this appetizer is the leftover Yellow Alu I made yesterday.  Replacing the potatoes with spiced ground lamb creates a delicious non-vegetarian croquette. I like to use Japanese panko crumbs to roll these in because they remain crisp and absorb little to no oil. 

Buttermilk Hidden Valley Ranch Oyster Crackers

Years ago, while I was still a working woman, a co-worker brought in this snack for a potluck. It's so crunchy, delicious, and easy to assemble that I wonder why it's taken so long to resurface.

Ingredients

1 (0.4 oz. pkg.) Buttermilk Hidden Valley Ranch Salad Dressing & Seasoning Mix
¼ cup vegetable oil
1 tsp. dried dill
¼ tsp. garlic powder
1 (12 oz.) pkg. oyster crackers

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 250°F.
2. In a small bowl, stir oil, dressing mix, dill and garlic powder until mixed through.
3. Pour crackers in a large pan and pour prepared oil over crackers..
4. Toss crackers until well coated with oil.
5. Arrange crackers on an ungreased cookie sheet in a single layer.
6. Bake at  250°F for 15 to 20 minutes or until crackers are golden brown.
7. Store in an airtight container after cooling to room temperature.

Tortilla Omelette Stuffed with Vegetables - Anda Paratha

Bengali Dimer Paratha

For a quick and nutritious lunch, reach for an egg, a tortilla and a cast iron skillet. Kati rolls as they are called in Kolkata, formerly Calcutta, India are a favourite 'grab-and-go' sandwich cooked on demand in small food stalls on the street. These egg rolls are generally filled with mutton, beef or chicken.

I had only me to please today, so I decided to make a kati roll stuffed with minced onions, tomatoes, green chillies and cilantro. We have several sizes of cast iron skillets in our kitchen and there's one in particular which we use for making omelettes and it was the perfect size to accommodate a flour tortilla.

Here's how I made it.

Cheese Toast Triangles

Cheese Toast

Cut in Triangles

It was 3:00 p.m. in the afternoon and hunger pangs were gnawing and fighting for attention. I raided the fridge and came up with these quick, satisfying & delicious bites in a matter of 10 minutes! Instead of the pita pocket halves, regular bread slices would work just as well. Cut each slice of bread in half square triangles after toasting.

Burmese Fried Peanuts - Myay Bae Kyaw

Myay Bae Kyaw
(Pronunciation: MmmYay Bare Jaw)

Here is a vegan/vegetarian snack that is very quick & easy to prepare and is always a hit with guests. We’re fortunate that deep fried onions & garlic are available at the local Oriental grocery store. I also used already roasted, unsalted peanuts, white sesame seeds & chili flakes so it took me just a couple of minutes to toss everything together in a bowl and serve.