Guest post by Big Apple Curry inspiration Geetha, who is my mom, and lives in Toronto.

I’ve always loved vegetables. Ever since I was a little kid growing up in South India, I loved when my mother made different types of dishes with vegetables. Later when I moved to Canada, when my kids were growing up I always made sure vegetables were on the table.

I was recently browsing recipes online and came across the idea of adding vegetables to chapati dough, and I was immediately inspired. What are chapatis? It’s one of many variations of flatbreads, also called roti, which are eaten with everything from chutneys to fresh sautéed vegetables. Like me, you’ve likely seen wraps and tortillas in the supermarket, from sun-dried tomato to spinach. I figured why not try to make traditional Indian chapatis with fresh vegetables? It’s also a great way to get kids to eat more vegetables.

I started experimenting by making them with sweet potatoes, and then with grated carrots. Not only were these chapatis heftier and more filling, they tasted much better than plain whole wheat chapatis, had a softer texture, and gave them nice orange hue. I always wanted to try it with spinach,  which is nutritious, readily available, and doesn’t require as much prep as potatoes and carrots. I made these spinach chapatis today and loved the result! Delicious, green chapatis that we enjoyed with a simple cauliflower curry. I’m now hooked on making these vegetable-filled chapatis — grated beets will be next!

Spinach Chapatis

Ingredients

• 1 cup very finely chopped spinach (I used baby spinach) preferably in the food processor
• 1 cup chapati flour (or fine whole wheat flour)
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 tsp oil
• 120 ml water, room temperature (approximately)

Directions

1. Mix the first four ingredients well in a medium-sized mixing bowl.
2. Add water, a little bit at a time, incorporating in the mixture until the dough is moderately soft. Cover and put aside on the counter for one hour (60 minutes). If you don’t have a full hour, then set aside for at least 30 minutes.
3. Take a bit of flour and lightly dust a wooden board or clean countertop.
4. Place the dough on the cutting board or counter and form a log with. Using a knife, score the dough by slicing it into equal segments (around 6 segments in total). 
5. Place a segment of dough on the counter or a wooden board and roll quickly back and forth using a rolling pin, turning as you go to create round smooth circle that is even across. Dust with flour if it is sticky.
6. Heat a cast iron or non-stick frying pan over medium heat. When it is hot, sprinkle a few drops of water to test it, you should see steam. Place the chapati on the pan and cook it for 30-40 seconds until brown spots appear, then turn it over and brush with 1/4 teaspoon of oil or ghee. Cook for another 30-40 seconds until cooked through.
7. When the chapati is done, remove it from pan, spread little butter or ghee on it, and keep it covered. Repeat for remaining pieces of dough.