Alu Pitta Parantha Fusion

I have often said this: In the past I have shyed away from making Indian food too often. I am not exactly sure why. Maybe it has to do with the lack of availability of all the ingredients here in Weimar (Germany). Or it could be due to the fact that it all sounds too complicated in the recipe books that I decide to stick with something I am more familiar with. It's not like I never cook Indian, just not that often. Whatever it was I have started to get over the hesitations thanks to a few blog buddies I have made across the net. These are mostly Indians also living in different countries. Reading their blogs and communicating with them has inspired me to keep trying. Well I was craving for Alu Paranthas. The best way I can describe these is, a bread made with different types of stuffing. Alu is hindi for potato. What I did not want to do was go through the dough making. I remembered Meena over at Hooked on Heat was having a special theme running this month - "Fusion" which I wanted to take part in. I decided to improvise and kill two birds with one stone - satisfy my hot desire for alu paranthas and fuse it with something else. Thus my Alu Pitta Parantha Fusion was born.

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Ingredients:

The spice is right
I guess you can use a wide array of spices here depending on what suits your taste-buds.

I used:
1/4 teaspoon garam masala
1/2 teaspoon cumin powder
1/2 ajwain (carom) seeds
1/2 teaspoon paprika powder (if you are not cooking for children then you can substitute this with chili powder)
1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder
Parsely - chopped (this should be substituted with cilantro/coriander)

The filling
3 potatoes - cooked and mashed (I put the potatoes in a bowl with some water and "nuked" it in the microwave for 5-8 minutes)
1 red onion - finely chopped
2 cloves garlic - mashed
small piece of ginger - finely chopped

Oil
Pitta bread


Method:

Mix all the spices, onions, garlic, ginger and a small shot of oil into the mashed potatoes. Incorporate well.

Heat some oil in a large frying pan.

Cut open the pitta bread and spread a generous helping of the stuffing. Close and press down gently. Fry this for a few minutes on both sides on a low heat, until filling is warmed through and the bread is golden.

Serve this with refreshing plain yoghurt and a few spicy Indian pickles.

Verdict: The verdict is from me today as I made this for lunch. I'll be making a batch of fresh ones tonight for my men and will add their comments later.
For me - amazingly good. I can still taste the aromatic combination of the ingredients on my tongue. The fragrance took me back to my parents kitchen in Dubai. Without the dough making this is so easy that I think I'll be having these pitta paranthas more often!!
What I do want to mention at this point is a thank you to my new found blogger buddies (some of whom are listed on my sidebar) who have encouraged me to be creative. Yes, creativity is also possible with Indian food! Thanks folks!