Cholar Dal (Bengali Chana Pulse)

Cholar Dal (Bengali Chana Pulse)

There is little to be said about this Classic Bengali Pulse. Bengalis  cook this  for all special occasions be it the Pujas, weddings, rice eating ceremony, gathering of friends and family or just for a special Bengali meal. You can team it up with all purpose flour pooris which Bengalis call 'luchi' or hot steaming rice and julienne potato which is deep fried .

The bottom line is that, this is a classic dish. Now its mostly the same recipe followed everywhere with a few variations. Here is one that I know of passed down by my Mimi (aunt) whose mother had passed it down a long time ago.

Serves 4 to 5

1 cup Chana pulse 'cholar dal'
1 tbsp clarified butter 'ghee'
2 green cardamom
1 tsp finely chopped ginger
2 to 3 dried red chili
Half a cup diced fresh coconut
A handful of raisins
Salt as per taste
Pinch of turmeric
Sugar as per taste (Now, traditionally  this pulse is supposed to be a bit on the sweeter side so I would personally use 1 tbsp to 1.5 tbsp sugar but you can adjust as per your taste)
4 cups of water
1 large bay leaf

Soak the pulse for 1 hour and then pressure cook it on low flame till 1 whistle to 2 whistles and let the steam go out on its own. It should have cooked by that time.

Now heat the ghee and add the ginger and saute and then add the cardamom , bay leaf and red chilies and keep sauteing and then add the coconut and raisins and finally the pulse. If it seems too thick add 1 cup of water and bring to a boil and add salt, turmeric and sugar and simmer for 10 minutes. It should be of a medium thickness and the pulse must retain their shape. Its traditionally supposed to be a thick pulse but not as thick as the North Indian Mah ki Dal aka Dal makhani

Leek and Cheese Quiche

Leek and Cheese Quiche

When I have friends over I usually feel that I am not serving enough food. So when I called over Pritha (who has this lovely blog 'Guilt-Free ' )  for some Brioche au Chocolat  and Cafe Frappe I was at a complete loss as to the savoury items which must be served for a tea party.

It was mostly because I was too lazy to visit New Market (one of the biggest market in Calcutta which stocks up a lot of ingredients) and due to the encephalitis scare we are all avoiding Porky items. That is a big drawback for me because when you have ham and cheese and a bit of bacon anyone can make a fabulous dish but with no porky items I was a bit confused. What added to that confusion was the absence of my internet but I had Camembert at home and having made quiche and tarts before I decided that I would just take a shot and create a recipe .

Once you make tarts and quiche shells you get an idea about the ingredients ratio etc and so its not too problematic to make a tart shell. I knew exactly what I wanted. I wanted a flaky crust with a cheese filling.

So here goes the recipe :-

For the shell

150gm flour
100gm chilled butter
1 egg yolk
Pinch of salt

For the filling :-

125gm Camembert cheese
50gm butter
1 to 1.5 tbsp flour
250ml to 300ml whole milk
Pinch of nutmeg powder
Salt as per taste
Half a finely  chopped leek

Start by cutting the butter in little cubes and using your hands to quickly mix it with the flour. When it feels gritty add the yolk and salt and quickly form a dough and refrigerate for 2 hours. When rolling it out do it over a clean floured work surface and gently place it on the buttered tart pan. Do not worry if it breaks a little just press the broken bits to the tart pan to form a smooth shell, it will come out as a single shell once you bake it.

Preheat oven to 200C and bake the tart shell for 25 minutes to 35 minutes.

Saute the leek in butter and when softened keep it aside. In the meanwhile make your bechamel base by melting the butter and adding the flour and creating a roux by stirring continuously and taking care not to burn it and slowly add the milk bit by bit and the nutmeg and salt while whisking and let it come to a slow boil and simmer for 2 minutes to create a smooth sauce whisking throughout the process.

Once the tart shell is baked let it cool down for 15 minutes and add the bechamel sauce and top with the sauteed leek and sliced cheese and add on top and bake for 15 minutes to 20 minutes.

Note : This is an extremely heavy dish mostly suitable for cold weather