Gohona / Nakshi Bori

They are dried dumplings / wadi made in the design formed with Urid dal / split black gram  batter. Gohona or  Goyna means jewellery in Bengali. 

Purba Medinipur in West Bengal is very famous for making these bori. In 1930 one of the student from Shantiniketan presented the gohona bori to Rabindranath Tagore, he was so impressed by the art that he wrote a letter seeking permission to preserve the photographs of Gohona Bori at the Art Building of Shantiniketan. 

Source - Google 

This boris are made and send as a part of a trousseau during wedding, but now these boris are dying art and are available during handicraft exhibitions / fair or in govt. emporium.

  The state is trying its best to keep this art alive by training ladies from the villages. 

These are made during winter.  The urid dal is crushed and broken down, thereafter soaked and washed well with water. The skin is removed and then the dal is made into paste on a sil - bata and beaten / whisked very well with hand. Now a days the ready split  dal is soaked and grinder is used to make a paste and with the help of a beater, the batter is whisked. 

The batter is then added into a piece of cloth with nozzle, now piping bags are used. Various designs are created on a bed of poppy seeds. It’s dried under the sun. It’s fried and eaten with dal and rice or enjoy it by itself.

Ingredients
1 cup Urid dal soaked
Salt to taste
Poppy seeds to sprinkle on the plate

Method

Wash and soak the dal for 6 hours. Drain all water from the dal. Blend all the ingredients except poppy seeds in a mixie without any water. Make a very  fine paste. Take this paste in a big bowl. Start beating the batter vigorously. It should become very fluffy and when a drop of batter  placed on water it should float. Now to make designs pour the batter in a piping bag with writing nozzle. The designs should not be very thin as the sun will make them thinner and brittle. Take a steel plate. Sprinkle poppyseeds to cover the surface completely. Now comes the fun part, play with your creativity. Use toothpick to stop the batter coming out from the piping bag.
Once done dry them in sun for 3-4 hours and let them sit on the plate overnight. Next day if still moist again dry for 1-2 hours. Once dried keep them stored in airtight container. Fry them and serve it with dal and rice or have it just like

Rosh Bora

Rosh Bora
The festival of Makar Shankranti is also known as Pithey Parbon in Bengal. There are many types of Pithey made in Bengal. Another type of sweet made during Shankranti is Rosh Bora.
Ingredients
2 cups of whole white urad dal
1 tbsp fennel seeds
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp grated ginger
Oil for frying
Notun gur or date jaggery according to the sweetness of the syrup wanted

Method
Soak the dal for an hour. Drain the water and grind into a fine paste. Mix in fennel seeds, salt and grated ginger with the paste. The consistency of the mixture should be thick. Whisk the batter in one direction till light and fluffy. Heat oil in a wok and when oil gets heated up then drop a tablespoon of the batter and fry till golden brown in color. Fry in batches. Once the boras are ready. Keep them on a absorbing paper to drain off the excess oil. While frying the boras, get the Gur syrup ready. Heat 2 cups water with 2 cups grated Notun gur. When the gur completely dissolves and forms 1 string consistency then switch of the flame. Soak the boras in the syrup for an hour. Boras will turn super moist after absorbing the syrup.

Pane di Patate

Pane di patate Bread is made with mashed potato has a soft crust and moist center. In this recipe, the dough is coated in butter and baked in a ring mold.

Pane di Patate

Special equipment:
Ring mold or 10inch round
cake pan, with 250m ramekin

Ingredients:
250g potatoes, peeled
and cut into 2–3 pieces
2 1⁄2 tsp dried yeast
9 tbsp unsalted butter,
plus extra for greasing
1 large bunch of chives, snipped
2 tbsp sugar
2 tsp salt
21⁄4 cups bread flour,
plus extra for dusting

Method:
Place the potatoes in a saucepan with plenty of cold water. Bring to a boil and simmer until tender. Drain, reserving 1 cup of the cooking liquid. Mash with a potato masher. Let cool.
In a small bowl, sprinkle the yeast over 1⁄4 cup lukewarm water. Leave for 5 minutes until dissolved, stirring once. Melt half the butter in a saucepan. Put the reserved liquid, mashed potato, dissolved yeast, and melted butter into a large bowl. Add the chives, sugar, and salt, and mix together with your hand.
Stir in half the flour and mix well with your hand. Add the remaining flour, 1⁄2 cup at a time, mixing well after each addition, until the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl. It should be soft and slightly sticky. Turn the dough onto a floured work surface. Knead for 5–7 minutes, until very smooth and elastic.
Grease a large, clean bowl. Put the dough in the bowl and flip it so the surface is lightly buttered. Cover with a damp kitchen towel and let the dough rise in a warm place for 1–1 1⁄2 hours, until doubled in size.
Grease the ring mold or cake pan. If using a pan, grease the outside of the ramekin and place it upside down in the center. Melt the remaining butter. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and knock back. Cover and let rest for 5 minutes. Flour your hands and pinch off walnut-sized pieces of dough, making about 30 pieces. Roll each piece of dough into a smooth ball.
Put a few balls into the dish of melted butter and turn them with a spoon until coated. Transfer the balls of dough to the prepared mold or pan. Repeat with the remaining dough. Cover with a dry kitchen towel and let the loaf rise in a warm place for 40 minutes, until the mold or pan is full.
Preheat the oven to 190 degrees. Bake the bread for 40–45 minutes, until it is golden brown and starts to shrink away from the mold. Let it cool slightly on a wire rack, then carefully unmold. With your fingers, pull the bread apart while still warm.

GOAN PRAWNS OKRA CURRY

One of my favourite vegetable is Okra and so is Goan food. So today's gravy for lunch with hot steaming rice..

GOAN PRAWNS OKRA CURRY

INGREDIENTS:

300 gms Cleaned Prawns
200 gms Okra/Bhindi chopped
1 tbsp Oil
1 Onions chopped
6 Curry Leaves
1 Green Chilli
1/2 tsp  Coriander Seeds
1/2 tsp mustard seeds
1/2 tsp garam masala powder
1 tbsp Chopped Coriander Leaves

To Grind
1/2 Cup Grated Coconut
1 Tomato chopped
1 tsp Grated Ginger
4 Garlic cloves
1/2 tsp Mustard Seeds
1 tsp Cumin Seeds
1 tsp coriander seeds
6  Dry Red Chilies
1 tbsp Vinegar
1/2 tsp tamarind paste

To Marinate the prawns
1/2 tsp Turmeric Powder
1/2 tsp  Salt

METHOD:

Grind all the ingredients for grinding into a paste. Marinate the prawns.
In a wok heat oil and add coriander seeds, mustard seeds, onion, green chilli, curry leaves and saute until onion becomes soft. Add garam masala powder mix well and saute for another minute. Once masala gets cooked well, add grounded paste and cook until oil starts to seperate. Add salt and mix well. Add prawns and stir cook for 2 minutes, add water and bring it to good boil.Add okra pieces and boil for 2 minutes. Simmer until okra and prawns have cooked well. Garnish with coriander leaves. Serve hot with rice.

Home made Bori and Borir Tarkari

Home made Bori and Borir Tarkari
Ingredients
1 cup Urid Dal washed and soaked
1/2 tsp grated ginger
1  green chilli
1/2 tsp fennel seeds
1/2 cup Petha /chachikomro / Ash gourd water squeezed out
Salt to taste
Method
Grind all the above ingredients in a grinder. Avoid adding water ... Only if required then add very little water... Beat the mixture very well with your hand. To test add a drop of the batter in a bowl of water, if then batter flots in water then it is done. Take a bowl of water. Dip your hands in water and put the Bori on a sheet of plastic or cloth. Let it dry in the sun for 2 days. Once done store the Boris in a air tight container.

Borir Tarkari
Ingredients
10 to 12 Borirs
1 big potato cut into thick strip
1 tomato cut in to thick strip
2 green chillies
2 tbsp mustard oil
1/2 tsp kalonji
1/2 tsp ginger grated
2 tbsp mustard paste
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
Salt to taste
Method
Fry the boris and keep it aside. Take the remaining oil and add Kalonji and green chillies. Add the potato and tomato strips. Sauté it. Add mustard paste, ginger grated, turmeric powder and  salt. Stir it well. Add a cup of water. Cook the vegetables covered for 5 minutes. Add the boris and cook till the vegetables are tender and done. Serve it hot with rice.