Maple Walnut Muesli with Strawberries

Walking through a farmer's market on one fine sunday morning introduced me to this Swiss breakfast cereal-muesli. I devoured that small little cup that morning. I figured it has oats, yogurt and fruits and exclaimed "Honey, I can make this at home" to my husband.

Coming home, the research started. Then I came to know that muesli does not just have oats, these are oats not cooked but soaked. Love it! Breakfast I don't have to cook. And, you can make this is large quantities, store it in your refrigerator and have it another time (those crazy - I am late- weekday mornings!).

I have made muesli a number of times but it wasn't quite hitting the right spot. It tasted great but something was missing. Then reading the muesli recipe on "Back to Basics" cookbook by Ina Garten gave me the idea of adding Granola to it. Right, it was missing the crunch. Without the granola it's too mushy mushy!

Coming to the flavor of muesli, it's very common to use strawberry flavored yogurt. That's great but there's nothing like fresh berries. Wouldn't you agree? I also added nuts for more bite into this recipe. Thinking of which nut to add, I thought of walnuts and my favorite flavor to go with that is maple. Hence, the maple walnut muesli. On a side note-I love maple walnut ice-cream!

You need:

¼ cup instant oats (I used Quaker 1-minute oats)

¼ cup granola (I used Quaker granola with raisins)

2 tablespoon chopped walnuts

1½ tablespoon pure maple syrup

pinch of salt

¼ cup hot water (I used the hottest water from my tap)

4-6 large strawberries, hulled and chopped/quartered

1½ teaspoon sugar

7oz plain greek yogurt (I used one 7 oz container of Chobani plain greek yogurt)

½ teaspoon vanilla extract (optional)

Method:

Soak the oats, granola, walnuts in the hot water with maple syrup and pinch of salt for 15 mins. While the oats are soaking, prepare the strawberries, add the sugar to them and allow to macerate. Mix the vanilla with the yogurt. Separate the oats in two parts, top with yogurt and berries and serve!

Spicy latkes with creamy yogurt dip

Or should I call these aloo tikkis (potato patties) with a twist?

Latkes can be very simple recipies with few ingredients while aloo tikkis (potato patties) can call for many ingredients. Picking the best from both gives spicy latkes complemented with creamy cilantro and lime yogurt dip.

Potato patties or aloo tikkis as commonly known among indians are made with boiled potato. Latkes are made with grated potato. Grated potato give a nice texture which I like. So, along with grated potato, I added onion and carrot. This part is like a latke but adding some spices to it brings in the tikki taste.

Grating a potato, an onion and a carrot may sound like a lot of work but it isn't. Use the big holes side of your box grater. It will not take much time. You can choose to finely chop your onion instead of grating it. 

The most important thing is to drain all vegetable juice. The mix will not be soupy! Also, add salt at the end to prevent the juices from running again.

Bake or fry? I have fried them as you can see here. But, if you want to opt for less oil version, you can definitely bake them. Mix 1 and half tablespoon of softened butter to your mixture and bake. They will turn out equally yummy!

These latkes get crispy on the outside with soft creamy inside with a hint of spice. I decided to pair these fried spicy goodness with creamy cilantro and lime dip. This dip helps to cool your tongue and to never stop consuming these. Doesn't these look totally to die for?

Ingredients:

For Latkes:

1 large russet potato

1 medium onion

1 small carrot

1 jumbo egg/ 2 eggs

1 tbsp fresh ginger paste

2 tsp cumin powder

1tsp coriander powder

2 green chilies [Modify according to your tolerance of heat]

⅓ cup chopped cilantro

Juice of ½ lime

1 cup bread crumbs [Bread crumbs will soak any excess water. You can substitute with flour if you don't have crumbs]

Salt for seasoning

For dip:

3 tbsp plain greek yogurt

1 tsp of lime juice

⅓ cup chopped cilantro

½ tsp roasted cumin powder [Dry roast some cumin seeds on a pan on medium heat. When the aroma of roasted cumin fills your nose, take them off the heat. Be careful not to burn them- keep tossing them around on the pan. Once they are cool, add it to your grinder and make a powder. I usually roast at least 3-4 tbsp of whole cumin seeds and store my powder for later use.]

a pinch of salt

Method:

For latkes:

Grate potato, onion and carrot in a bowl lined with a kitchen towel. Wring out juices as much as you can.

Transfer it to a bowl. Add all other ingredients except salt and mix well. 

Start heating a shallow pan with vegetable/canola oil on medium heat.

When the oil is hot, add salt to the mixture.

Add about half to 1 tbsp of the mixture and flatten with your spoon. Do not crowd your latkes or they will not get crispy outside.

When it has browned on one side (approx 4-5min), turn and fry the other side.

The latkes will be nice golden brown in color. Put them on a double paper towel lined plate to drain excess oil. Serve hot with yogurt dip.

For yogurt dip:

Mix all the ingredients in a small bowl. Add water to bring it to the consistency you like.