Mozzarella cheese balls with spinach and gold fish layer

I  love early  breakfast but I also love lazy Sunday morning and good breakfast on weekend. It's difficult to put all the three in same bucket but some breakfast ideas just work wonders. The mozzarella cheese balls can be prepared a night before and all we need to do in the morning is fry.

It can be a great starter in dinner table  or snack in a  tea party when made in a smaller ball. The crisp outer layer and gooey cheesy inner layer is an absolute delight for any cheese lover. 

When I have any non cheese lover in the company, I  simply make a small batch with potatoes mixed in the filling and that works well.

The traditional cheese balls calls for corn flour and bread crumbs but in this recipe I have used gold fish crumbs simply because I got a  huge pack from sams when my 4 year old insisted. Later, he refused to eat the pouches with cheddar cheese gold fish because it made his fingers dirty. Getting the goldfish crumbs is not rocket science. All we need for this is something solid to crush the fishes while they are in the unopened pouch. I have used zip locks for making crumbs of cookies and crackers and it works wonders.

The spinach brings in an added color and nutrition to the mozzarella balls. When mixed with gold fish crumbs and fried. It  turns into a crispy goodness. 

The mozzarella cheese is mixed with chopped veggies and parsley. The veggies can vary based on the choice of cook and guests. I have used pepper, baby corn and mushroom in this mozzarella balls. There are variety of options that could be used here like tofu, broccoli, corn or peas. The quantity of vegetables is very less so that the cheese balls don't lose the gooey texture and still have some veggies for color and added flavor.

The cheese mixture is handrolled and kept aside. The spinach and gold fish dough is rolled on top of the cheese mixture. The balls can be prepared a night before and refrigerated. While frying, the heat us set to medium and balls are fried till they are golden brown and crisp. It should be served hot till the cheese is soft and gooey.

Recipe 

Ingredients 

For cheese filling 

Mozzarella cheese - 2 cups 

Banana pepper - 1 

Mushroom -1

Baby corn -1

Parsley - 2 tbsp 

Salt - 1/2 tsp 

For spinach dough 

Spinach ( ground to paste) - 1 cup 

Goldfish - 4 pack of 26g

Oil for frying 

Preparation 

Chop baby corn, pepper and mushroom and mix it in the mozzarella cheese. Add salt and parsley and knead the mixture to give it a soft texture. 

Make goldfish crumbs by crushing the goldfish inside the pouch using something heavy. Mix crumbs ground spinach and make a stiff dough.Salt is not needed because goldfish has enough salt in it. 

Make balls of the cheese mixture. I wanted big balls for breakfast so I  just divided the mixture in 8 parts and made balls. If used In snack platter, make at least 12 balls.

Divide spinach dough into the same number of parts as cheese balls.Take spinach dough in hand and flatten it. Place mozzarella cheese balls on top and cover the balls with spinach dough. Repeat for all balls. 

Fry all the balls till they are golden brown and crisp.

Serve with chutney or choice of sauce

Saffron rice balls

Ingredients 

Cooked rice - 1 cup

Sugar - 8 tbsp

Cardamom - 2 (peel and ground)

Cinnamon - 1 pinch 

Almond extract - 1 tsp 

Rice flour -1/2 cup 

All purpose flour - 1/2 cup 

Baking soda - 1 tsp 

Salt- pinch

Coconut - 1 cup 

Warm milk -1/2 cup 

Saffron - 4 strands 

Method 

Add saffron to milk and keep aside 

Mix flour, baking powder and salt and keep aside 

In a medium bowl, mix rice,sugar,Cardamom and cinnamon

Fold in flour mixture 

Add saffron milk in batches and make dough

Do not let the dough stand.

Make small balls of dough and roll it in the coconut 

Fry the balls and serve hot with vanilla ice-cream 

Pani puri

Ingredients:

Pani (Spicy Water):

• 1/2 cup mint
• 1/2 cup coriander leaves
• 2 to 4 green chilies (adjust to taste)
• 3 tablespoons tamarind paste (Imli)
•  black salt to taste 
• 1/4 teaspoon ginger powder
• 1/8 teaspoon asafetida (Hing)
• 1 tsp cumin seed powder
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• water as needed
• 
  
• Puris:
• 1/4 cup All Purpose flour (Maida or Plain Flour)
• 3/4 cup fine Sooji (Semolina Flour)
• 1/2 cup water (as needed)

Method:

1. Pani (Spicy Water):
2. Blend everything except the water together to make a fine paste. While blending, add water as needed to blend.
3. Strain the mixture and add water
4. Refrigerate for 2 hours

Puris:

1. Mix the flour, oil and sooji. Add water as needed to make firm dough. Cover the dough with a damp cloth for about ten minutes.
2. Divide the dough into about 60 small balls. Keep them under a damp cloth.
3. Start rolling each ball to about a 2-inch diameter circle. Place over a damp towel and cover with another damp towel. Do this for all 60 puris. 
4. Heat the oil on medium high heat and fry the purIs. 
5. Fry all the puris. They should be crisp and puff like a ball.

Egg Tomato Bake

Ingredients


Eggs (hard boiled and peeled)- 2
Tomato (peeled and sliced)- 2
All purpose flour - 2 tbsp
Milk - 1 cup
Onion(peeled ad sliced) - 1
bread crumbs - 1 cup
Cheese (grated)- 1/2 cup
oil-1 tbsp
salt
pepper
sugar - 1/2 tsp

Preparation

Cut egg in half and remove egg yolk.
slice egg white and keep aside
Mash yolk and keep aside
heat oil in a pan
fry onion for 5 minutes.Remove from oil and keep aside
Add flour to the pan and stir  for 5 minutes
Cool the flour for some time
Add milk to the pan stirring slowly without forming knots
Add onion to the mixture
Add salt pepper and sugar

Mix well and heat for some time
Mix egg yolk, bread crumbs and cheese
Take a greased baking pan
spread egg on it

spread the onion mixture over egg

Spread sliced tomatoes over the onion mixture

Spread the bread crumb mixture at the end

Bake for 30 minutes
serve hot with ketchup

Dhokla

Ingredients:
Batter for Dhokla

Chickpea flour - 2 cups
Curd/Yogurt- 1 cup
baking powder- 1/2 tsp
Sugar- 2 tsp
Salt- to taste
Red Chilli Powder - 1/2 tsp
Ginger paste- 1tsp

Tampering 
Oil- 2 tsp
Cumin seeds- 1 tsp
Mustard seeds- 1 tsp
Curry leaves- 7
Red chilli- 2
Asafetedia - pinch

GARNISH
Sugar - 2 tsp
Lemon/Lime juice- 2 tbsp
Chopped Coriander leaves - 1/4 cup

Preparation

Mix Chick pea flour and curd and keep aside for two hours

Prepare the steamer by keeping an inverted pot inside a large pressure cooker and pour water inside. heat water till the mixture is prepared.Grease another pot (check if the pot can go inside the pressure cooker)

Add sugar, ginger, salt, chili and mix
Mix Baking soda to the mixture
When the baking soda is mixed, the mixture will start bubbling. empty the batter in a greased pot
Pressure cook for 15 minutes
remove from flame and let the cooker release the pressure for 5 minutes
Dhokla will be soft and puffed up after opening the cooker

Heat the oi for tampering and add the other ingredients
When the mustard start spluttering, remove from flame and spread over dhokla

Mix sugar and lemon juice and spread on dhokla
Sprinkle coriander leaves

Cut dhokla in bite size pieces and serve with Chutney

Chane ki daal ke farey

Ingredients:
dough:
wheat flour - 2 cups
Water for dough

Filling
chana daal- 1 cup
Chilli - 2
amchur powder - 1/2 tsp
cumin powder - 1/2 tsp
pepper - 1/4 tsp
Garlic - optional
Ginger - 1 in
Asafoetida - 1/2 tsp
salt to taste

Frying
Oil
Curry leaves- 7
red chilli - 2
mustard seed- 1 tsp
Onion (chopped) - 1/2  (optional)
garlic (chopped0- 5 (optional)

Preparation
Grind the filling to paste and keep aside

Take some dough and roll it in round flat chapatti

Put some filling in the chapati. spread it only at one side

Fold the chapatti to cover the filling to make farey

Repeat for the rest of the dough
boil some water in a pan
put fareys in boiling water

Remove after 10 minutes

Cut Fareys in small pieces

In a pan, heat some oil for frying
Add red chilli, curry leaves and mustard seeds
when its splutters, add onion (optional) and garlic(optional)
wait for the onion to turn golden brown
add cut farey to the pan

Fry till the farey is crisp at some sides

Serve with green chutney/ ketchup/red chutney 

Stuffed Mushrooms

Ingredients:
Whole button Mushroom - 6
Corn- 1/8 cup
Peas- 1/8 cup
grated carrot
finely chopped onion- 1/8 cup
creen chilli(finely chopped)- 2
Bread crumbs - 1/8 cup
Cheddar Chease - 1/8 cup
Milk- 2 tsp
salt to taste

Method
Preheat Oven at 350

clean mushrooms with damp cloth and keep aside

Fry onion and green chilli in a pan
Add carrots, peas and corn
fry till done
add salt and pepper to the vegitables

Carve out the stem and scales from mushroom
chop into small pieces
Mix bread crumb, cheese and milk

Add the vegetables to the mixture

Fill the mixture in the Mushroom heads

Repeat for all six mushrooms and bake for 20 minutes

Remove from Oven when done and serve as snack or appetizer