Monday, October 8, 2007

Dates and Pistachio Poli Adorns This Appetizing Thali for RCI

anti clock wise: Date Pistachio Poli, onion tomato salad, sweet potato subzi, rice, fryums/papad, kala chana gravy, home made curds!
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I'm not able to participate in all the ongoing events as much as I would like to, but then Life happens............ ;)
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Anyway, I decided to make this Dates and Pistachio Poli based on Viji's Poli recipe. When she mentioned that we can try sweet recipes from her archives for the RCI-Tamil Festival I was happy to try this out with my own variations and you can see the results were sweet :)
Poli's make a wonderful festival food and there are innumerable stuffings that can be catered to one's taste!
What is your favorite stuffing, please do let me know!!!
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Dates and Pistachio Poli
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I usually make all my stuffed Indian Breads (Parathas and Poli) using whole wheat flour/atta) and I did the same here. But if you are used making it with Maida like Viji, definitely go ahead and do it for the covering.
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Covering:
2 cups whole wheat flour/Chapati atta
1 tsp oil
water to knead the dough.
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Knead a smooth and pliable dough with the ingredients, cover and keep at least an hour.
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Stuffing:
1 cup finely chopped dates
1/2 cup powdered pistachio
1/2 tsp cardamom/elaichi powder
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Mash the dates well to form a soft mass.
If your dates are not too soft, they can be cooked in the microwave for a minute to soften.
Add pista powder and cardamom powder.
Believe me, it is better to make extra mix of this, you will love to eat this as is, I know I did :)
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When ready to make the Poli, make equal size balls out of the dough and the stuffing.
Roll the dough to a puri(fried Indian bread) size and stuff with the date mix.
Seal well with the dough around it and roll to regular chapati size.
Heat a griddle and roast the poli like regular chapati, remove from the gas and smear with ghee.
Remember this is an important step to keep the poli soft and it imparts an unmistakable lovely aroma :)
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Enjoy the Poli as a part of a meal as I did or just on it's own.

Notes:
The rolling part is not that difficult, specially if you are used to making stuffed parathas.
Make sure the stuffing is not too moist.
Try to make medium sized Poli's, less chance of the stuffing oozing out that way :)
Enjoy nutritious and tasty Date and Pistachio Poli!
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This is my contribution to Viji's RCI-Tamil Festival. Thanks Viji.

61 comments:

Sig said...

What a colorful plate Richa... Is it like the Marathi puranpoli? I think I'd end up eating the whole stuffing before it ever makes into the bread... :)

Richa said...

thanks sig!
the stuffing is YUM and that is the reason i asked to make an extra helping...LOL ;) it's hard to reach the actual poli making process heh!heh!
yes it is like the marathi puranpoli, but with a diff stuffing.

Laavanya said...

Looks lovely Richa. I'm planning to make Polis too (with wheat flour) for RCI - hopefully soon. (Work has been just too busy lately). Unique filling with dates and pistachios... am sure it was very good.

Roopa (KitchenAromas) said...

Whoa! Dates, pistachio and cardamom? I am surprised you actually went all the way and made the poli :)

My fav is coconut+jaggery+cardamom filling which is very traditional to Karnataka cuisine. Not sure if it is in Maharashtra too?

bee said...

this will be a great stuffing for rolls too. rolls are easier than polis for lazy folks like us.

Tee said...

Yum! Your Thali looks very inviting! :)
Poli must be tasting amazing with dates and pistachio stuffing.
I too have to raid Viji's blog for some recipe for RCI now :)

Sharmi said...

what a beautiful plate of delicacies!! simply drooling at all of them. very attractive and colorful.

sra said...

Wow! What a thali! The only fillings I've tried are the classic jaggery-channa dal-cardamom and the coconut one. I like the first one, dislike the second.

TBC said...

Wow! what a great stuffing.I can only imagine how delicious that must have tasted.
Your thali looks lovely, Richa:-)

FH said...

That is great combination to make Poli! Whole Thali looks yum Richa.

Shweta said...

That is one tempting thali! The polis look great! But to tell you the truth, I have my eye on the rase wale kale chane :p Good job! I can't figure out what to make for the next RCI, I will also go dig Viji's blog :D

Swaruchy said...

Nice thali richa.....The polis sure are yumm.....and the colored fritters in ur plate look very good...

Padma said...

Those poli's looks mouthwatering with those lovely and colorful fritters on that thali...

musical said...

Badi sohni filling e, really yummy! and i am with Sig on this, i will finish off teh filing before stuffing ;). hey, i am sure it occurred to you, i am absolutely sure: fig and pista would make a great stuffing too :-D. Once i also tried gudumba filling (mangoes cooked with jaggery) and it turned out great, but the only thing was it was tricky to handle. and for the traditional ones, i like either rava or coconut-gur fillings.

Love the thaali, fryums evoke nostalgia :) and i want the sweet potato sabzi. actually, why be selective, how about the whole platter :-D.

swapna susarla said...

WOW the thali is so tempting richa!!!the filling for the polis is very unique!!

Kribha said...

This is a beautiful spread Richa. I have eaten only the traditional polis.This date and pistachio combo in polis sounds too good. How did you think of this? Looks soooo yummy.

Bhawna said...

OMG, richa.. ur thaali is sooo yummy, wish i was ur neighbour.

Richa said...

thanks laavanya! do post ur version soon :)

thanks roopa!
love jaggery in sweets :) I've seen people make chana dal+ jaggery stuffing in maharashtra!

thanks bee! i made the rolls, chk out my Sweet Nothings post!

thanks tee! am so glad u liked it, yup the stuffing is a dish in itself ;)

thanks sharmi!
really appreciate ur kind words!

Richa said...

thanks sra!
yup, i love all stuffings involving jaggery :)

thanks tbc! do try it sometime!

thanks asha! glad u liked the thali!!

thanks shweta!
u may follow the link to kala chana recipe, lemme' know if u do :)

Richa said...

thanks sirisha!
glad u liked it!

thanks padma!
yup those fritters are such a fav with everyone :)

thanks musical! am so glad u liked it dear! thuadde lai puri thali pesh e' ;) ur idea sounds good too!
yup the stuffing goes faaaasssst!!
sweet potato from farmers mrkt were so yum, did not require masalas heh!heh!

Richa said...

thanks swapna! enjoy...

thanks kribha! do try and lemme know, hv answered ur other querry as well :)

thanks bhawna! u r most welcome anytime dear!

Anonymous said...

An out & out beautiful Thali. Dates + Pistachios stuffing...sure yummm

Pravs said...

That thali of food looks so yummy !! I can just imagine the taste of that poli..so delicious !

Viji said...

Richa, thank you so much for the entry. A healthier version too with wheat flour. Adding pistas will enhance its taste. Viji

Raks said...

This looks awesome...Very unique stuffing...Thali is very tempting..Will try out the poli soon...thanx for the idea...:))

Linda said...

OMG look at those gorgeous colored papads -- are you sure they aren't lotus roots? Richa, you've outdone yourself with that thali. I didn't even know RCI Tamil was happening -- too much happening here. Now I guess I have to get to work. I won't beat dates and pista stuffing though :)

J said...

The polis are surely high powered!! :D Love the thali!

Lissie said...

a delicious and healthy recipe, richa! very good entry!

Unknown said...

Such a wonderful platter... I just loved the idea of the dates pistachio poli!!!!
I am drooling over the pics :)

Big Boys Oven said...

looks so exciting, something I will put my finger into!

Anonymous said...

Dates and Pista - wowie, such a wonderful stuffing for Polis. this goes into my menu right away.

Shivapriya said...

Colourful spread Richa, dryfruits poli sounds yummy.

Richa said...

thanks sandeepa!

thanks pravs, do try!

thanks viji, glad u liked it!

thanks raks kitchen, let me know if u try!

Richa said...

thanks linda! you made my day by your sweet comments, means a lot to me! they do look like lotus roots heh!heh! i'm sure u will come up with something exotic. enjoy.....

thanks jyothsna for ur sweet words!

thanks lissie! enjoy.....

thanks cinnamon!

thanks big boys oven!

thanks lakshmi! yup, it is one yummy filling.

thanks shivpriya!

Finla said...

What a colour full plate.
I can't remember the last time i had such a clourful papad.
You can invite me any time to your place :-)

TheCooker said...

Dates & pista...so decadent!
The entire thali looks fab.
Seeing fryums after a long time.

USHA said...

Hi Richa,

Wonderful recipes....amazing varieties..hey i liked that the colourful papad....
Poli with dates and pistachio is new to me..but sounds healthy...Gr8...Thanks for sharing.

Richa said...

thanks hc! glad u enjoyed the thali! would love to make it for you anytime sweetie! come on over...

thanks tc! ekday fryums vagareh sagley padartha miltat, all except shrewsbury ;)

thanks usha!
do try it sometime..
enjoy....

Suganya said...

Now I know what you mean by great minds ;). You are so darn creative, Richa. I appreciate yr enthusiasm in understanding other cuisines :)

Kalva said...

Reminds me of PURAN POLI my made when she was here. Hmm appetizing!!Thanks for stopping by

Meg Wolff said...

This site is beautiful and interesting.

Daily Meals said...

Hi Richa,
First time here...nice blog...lovely polis with dates and pistachios...
Vijaya:)

Anonymous said...

I now feel hungry Richa ! Tata was a lovely platter there :-)

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Anonymous said...

Lovely feast richa. And those poli sound so healthy and tasty. Whole wheat flour, dates(fruit), pistachios(nuts), it is a great treat.

Richa said...

thanks suganya ;)

thanks kalva! it is like puranpoli.

thanks meg! glad u liked my blog :)

thanks dailymeals!

thanks mona! go ahead savor the thali....:)

thanks hima! yup, it sure is fulfilling :)

Mansi said...

God Richa! a poli ke vedmi khava to mare aavu j padshe yaar!! I'll leave everything else for it:) nice thali

musical said...

You've been tagged, sweetie :).

Anonymous said...

You also started creating those mouth watering thalis?? thats great Richa. I loved the colorful thali :D. Will you invite me to your home for a lunch/dinner??

Roopa said...

wow what a feast you have there! delicious :)

DEEPA said...

excellent plating ...and wonderful dishes ....supber one richa ....will try it soon ....

DK said...

luks fab! Bet it tasted good...i make it too with more nuts added in...:
)

Priyanka said...

Gulachya poli sarkhi vatte. Jevnacha taat ekdum mast distaya. Fryums baghun india chya lagna chi athvan ali. pushkal varsha zale khaun:)

Padma said...

Hey Richa, you have got an award, check my blog for details, :) padma

Dori said...

Pistachio's are so tasty...your Poli looks and sounds very good!

Menu Today said...

Hi,

Healthy looking poli. Thanks for sharing.

Rachna said...

truely colorful thali... i am really seeing polis with different fillings all over the blogosphere... i really thot its only chana daal and jaggery... i wud love the plain coconut jaggery filling...

SeeC said...

What a great idea...WOW Dates and pistachios in Poli...just love the way you did.

Meera said...

Wow! Dates and pista poli!! Never heard of that, but sounds so interesting. A must try for me!

ggg said...

hi
i recently came accross your blog and like your blog. i have also started a foodblog recently.keep up your good work and i wish u a very success.

cheers
swetha

Sowmya said...

Oh My goodness ! That recipe is greatttttt...Dates and Pista? I am already drooling Richa... Its a good get-together dish..Great going !