It is that time off the year ,when almost every household in India observes a 15 day Vegetarian meal only food practice . Yes,it is Pitru Paksha ,also known as Mahalaya Paksha .
These fifteen days starting from Poornima /Pournami (Full Moon Day) to Amavasya / Amavasai (New Moon day) people abstain from eating non veg , alcohol and also most people avoid the usage of Onion,garlic as part of their cooking.
Pithru Paksh / Shraadh Paksh is one fortnight where we pay obeisance to the departed souls ..it is believed that during this period ,our ancestors visit our homes to bless us and partake the food offered to them as part of the ritual.
If you ever thought, that cooking without Onion and Garlic will not make a tasty meal,then you are mistaken my dear friends.
Here,I have a curated a simple Thaali with lipsmacking delicacies made totally without Onion and Garlic. Click the links below to get a detailed recipe of every item on the Thaali . You can include Fulkas or Puris if you want it to be a little more elaborate.
Paneer Tomato grilled sandwiches are a perfect choice for packing in kids' lunch box or even for adults when you want to carry something filling at the same time not messy to eat on the desk .
You can also serve this as an after school snack or even makes for a perfect light dinner when paired with some warm Italian style Tomato soup . (Recipe source - Priya Iyer's blog)
Paneer takes care of the protein quotient for the day and the tomatoes keep the sandwiches moist and don't let it get too dry and stuffy. Adding some mozzarella chees gives a nice gooey and melt in mouth texture.
I love to work with different fillings that go into the sandwich and this is yet another successful attempt as my family loved the flavor and the crisp grilled bread.
For the spice, I have used only red chilli powder and 1 small green chilli chopped. Some boiled corn was added for the crunch and tomatoes used were firm and deseeded to prevent the sandwiches from getting soggy .
Some sandwich varieties from my blog that you must definitely try
Preparation Time - 10 mins Grilling Time - 3 to 4 mins per sandwich Complexity - simple Makes 3 sandwiches
Ingredients
6 slices of bread 100 gms paneer 2 medium firm tomatoes 3/4th cup boiled sweet corn 1 tsp Chilli powder /chilli flakes Salt as needed Fresh corriander chopped 1 green chilli Grated mozzarella cheese as needed Butter to apply on bread
Method
Firstly grate the paneer, crush 3 tbsp of corn kernels with green chilli in a blender and de seed the tomatoes and dice into small cubes.
In a mixing bowl mix the Tomatoes, crushed corn , paneer, boiled corn ,chilli powder ,salt, chopped corriander and mix it all well . Let it rest for 5 to 10mins . Our filling is ready .
Donot let the filling sit for extra time because the tomatoes will release water when mixed with salt and the filling will become soggy .we don't want that
Heat the grilling pan, apply butter on one side of the bread , place some filling on it ,spread grated mozzarella cheese as per your wish ..close using the other slice of bread .
Apply some butter to the grilling pan and grill the sandwich on both sides until crisp and golden brown .
Cut the sandwich into wedges and enjoy .
If packing for lunch, then place foil paper in the inside of the lunch box ,place the cut sandwiches once they have cooled down .this will prevent the sandwiches from getting soggy .
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