MASHED POTATOES ON KHANDVI MOUSSE

I'd like to preface this by saying "Even when I lose, I win", which I learned about myself when cooking this dish. What I originally meant to make was khandvi-ravioli (essential a potato stuffing between two circular cutouts of khandvi tossed in an accompanying sauce). However, when my khandvi batter wouldn't set to make cutouts, I decided to make it into a mousse and layer mashed potatoes on top. For this recipe, I cooked with my friends over at Boydian Bites. They're far better cooks than myself. :D

Here's what you'll need:

For the khandvi mousse:

  -1 cup of besan

  -1 cup of yogurt

  -1 cup of water

  -1 tbsp. of asafetida

  -1 tbsp. of turmeric

  -1.5 tbsp. of salt

  -2 inch knob of ginger roughly chopped

  -3 green chillies roughly chopped

For the topping:

  -1 block of shredded paneer

  -2 large potatoes

  -1 tbsp. garam masala

  -2 tbsp. of salt

  -1/2 tbsp. of coriander powder

  -1/2 tbsp. of red chilli powder

  -1/2 tbsp. of turmeric powder

  -2 tbsp. of mint-cilantro chutney*

  -2 tbsp. of olive oil

For the garnish/plating:

  -1 tbsp. of pesto sauce

  -1 tbsp. of sesame seeds

  -1 tbsp. of mustard seeds

  -4-5 green chillies, julienned

  -1.5 tbsp. of grated coconut

  -2 tbsp. of your preferred cooking oil

Preparation:

  For the topping:

    -Boil the potatoes, peel the skin and mash the potatoes in a bowl.

    -Add the shredded paneer to the bowl and mix well with the mashed potatoes.

    -Add the garam masala, coriander powder, red chilli powder, turmeric, and salt to the bowl and mix well.

    -Put olive oil in a wok and add the potato+paneer mixture. Stir this around for 4-5 minutes on medium heat.

    -Add the mint-cilantro chutney and mix in well. Stir for another 5 minutes.

    -Set the potato topping aside to cool down for ~10 minutes.

Potato+Paneer Topping

  For the khandvi mousse:

    -In a blender, add the green chillies and ginger with a little bit of water in order to blend to a paste.

    -In a bowl or large glass, whisk the yogurt and water until the yogurt is thoroughly dissolved.

    -To the ginger-chilli paste already in the blender, add the besan and yogurt-water mixture. Use the 'liquefy' setting on low (a high setting may cause it to create foam/froth on the top which is hard to boil away when cooking). Make sure there are no lumps left. Add more water if needed.

    -Transfer the mixture from the blender into a wok. Stainless steel works pretty well and make sure it's wide to make the stirring easier. Make sure that the wok's been sitting over a low flame before pouring in the mixture.

    -Add the salt, turmeric, and asafetida and stir well.

    -You will need to constantly stir this mixture and make sure to scrape off the batter that sticks to the walls of the pot.

    -Stir until you have a thick consistent batter and there is no raw taste of besan left.

  Plating:

    -Place a large spoon of the batter on the center of a small appetizer plate.

    -Place a smaller spoon of the mashed potatoes on top of the mousse.`

  For the garnish:

    -In a small fry pan, heat up the olive oil and add the mustard seeds and sesame seeds. Make sure the oil is hot enough so you can hear a crackling sound when you add the seeds.

    -Add the green chillies and stir fry the seeds with them. You may want to open a window or turn on your exhaust. ;)

    -Pour this 'tadka' of mustard seeds, sesame seeds, green chillies, and olive oil over the mashed potatoes/khandvi mousse. Divide this tadka amongst your individual plates.

    -Place a spoon of pesto on top of the mashed potatoes.

    -Sprinkle the grated coconut over the layered dish.

Notes:

  *Normally I would make mine from scratch, but I was short on time so went with store-bought.

  **I have a recipe for pesto sauce on my previous recipe post. Again, went with store-bought as I was short on time.