Enjoy Indian Food

Spring Roll Dosa

noreply@blogger.com (Meera) — Thu, 16 Feb 2012 13:35:00 +0000

Dosa vendors sell some outrageous combos of dosas in Mumbai. Spring Roll dosa, anyone?:-D

Spring Roll Dosa
Ingredients
1 recipe sada dosa
1 recipe indo chinese stuffing

Sriracha sauce

Method
1. Make thin and crispy sada dosa.
2. While on the tawa/griddle, spread sriracha sauce.
3. Place indo chinese stuffing in the middle.
4. Close the dosa, cut the dosa roll into 2-3 pieces. Try to cut diagonally.
5. Serve with tomato ketchup.

Note -
1. For an extra kick, add few drops of sriracha sauce in the tomato ketchup as an accompaniment.
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Indo Chinese Stuffing

noreply@blogger.com (Meera) — Thu, 16 Feb 2012 13:31:00 +0000

We can use this versatile stuffing for many Indo-chinese delicacies.

Indo Chinese Stuffing
Ingredients
2 cups shredded cabbage
1/4 cup spring onions, minced
1/2 cup peas (optional)
1 carrot, peeled and french cut
1 bell pepper, cored, thinly sliced
1/2 cup green beans, french cut

1 tbsp tomato ketchup (optional)
A splash of soy sauce
salt to taste
Freshly ground black pepper

Tempering
1 tbsp oil
1 tsp garlic paste

method
1. Heat a wok. Add oil. Saute garlic paste on a high flame.
2. Add cabbage. Stir fry on high heat.
3. Add veggies one after the other and stir fry.
4. Add salt, soy sauce, black pepper and ketchup - if using.
5. Stir fry and make sure there is no water remaining.

Note -
1. You can add tofu cubes or paneer cubes.
2. You can add boiled noodles.
3. For a spicier version, use red chili-garlic paste instead of garlic paste in tempering.

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Potato Masala for Dosa

noreply@blogger.com (Meera) — Wed, 15 Feb 2012 13:31:00 +0000

We call this stuffing as "Masala Doshachi Bhaaji" in Marathi. As a kid, I even loved to eat this with chapati. But stuff it inside a crispy dosa and serve it with chutney and sambar for a perfect snack.

Potato Masala

Ingredients

4-5 Medium Yukon gold potatoes, boiled, peeled, cut

salt to taste

A pinch of sugar (optional)

Tempering

1 tbsp oil

1/2 tsp mustard seeds

1/2 tsp asafoetida

1/2 tsp turmeric powder

2 sprigs of curry leaves, torn

1 tsp urad daal

1/2 tsp chana daal

2-3 byadgi dry chilies, halved

1/2 cup chopped onion

Method

0. Pressure cook potatoes, peel and cut into pieces

1. Heat oil in a kadai or wok.

2. Add all the seeds,spices, chilies and leaves. As they splutter, add onion. Saute till onion is soft.

3. Add cut potatoes, salt and sugar if using.

4. Cover and let it cook till all the ingredients are mixed together.

Note -

1. I love to squeeze half of lemon after the bhaaji is cooked. You can do it if you like.

2. Addition of a pinch of sugar is optional.

3. Sometimes I substitute butternut squash for potatoes just for a variation. In that case, do not use sugar at all since squash is sweet.

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Plain Dosa

noreply@blogger.com (Meera) — Mon, 13 Feb 2012 13:18:00 +0000

I generally freeze the dosa batter in the freezer. I have to thaw it in the fridge a day before but then it comes really handy.

Sada Dosa
Plain Dosa
Ingredients
1 recipe Dosa batter

oil for frying

Suggested Accompaniments
Coconut Chutney
Sambar

Method
1. Heat a nonstick or cast iron tawa/pan/griddle
2. Dab a papertowel in oil and scrub it around the pan.
3. Add a ladleful of the batter and spread it in concentric circles outwards.
4. Drizzle oil around the dosa.
5. Cover and let it cook till it is brown from one side and cooked from inside.
6. Serve immediately with chutney and sambar

Variation
1. After the dosa is cooked, drizzle some ghee over the dosa to make Ghee Sada Dosa.

Note -
1. The pan should be adequately hot vefore pouring the batter.

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Dosa Batter

noreply@blogger.com (Meera) — Sun, 12 Feb 2012 13:01:00 +0000

Sometimes, when I browse through my own blog, I get astonished that I haven't blogged some of the most ubiquitous recipes around my kitchen. Today I am sharing the recipe for dosa batter since I use it over and over to create many avatars of our wonderful Indian crepe.

Dosa Batter
Ingredients
1/2 cup white urad daal
2 cups rice
1/2 tsp methi/fenugreek seeds

Method
1. Soak all the ingredients in plenty of water for 8 hours.
2. Drain and grind to a smooth paste adding very little water as necessary for grinding.
3. Pour in a huge bowl. Cover and let it ferment for 8 hours.
4. Now the dosa batter is almost ready. Add salt and water as needed to adjust the consistency of the batter.

Note -
1. After fermenting, I generally freeze half of the batter in a freezer safe container. Whenever in future I plan to make dosas, I move the frozen batter from freezer to fridge to thaw. It takes at least 10+ hours for the batter to thaw completely. So plan accordingly.
2. In order to create the crispy dosas, you need daal to rice ratio as 1 :4 or in other words, you need to use more rice compared to daal. If you want soft dosas, reduce the amount of rice.

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Dhobi Ghat & a cake

noreply@blogger.com (Meera) — Sat, 11 Feb 2012 14:12:00 +0000

Kayani's cake

We watched Kiran Rao's Dhobi Ghat today. I absolutely loved the movie and I think everyone who loves Mumbai will love this movie. Amir Khan and the actresses who played Shai and Yasmin were fantastic. I was really impressed by Prateik. He is his mother's son after all.

This is not your usual Bollywood Masala film. But I think the director has tried to capture the pulse of the city - Mumbai's changing skyline, constant construction work, crowd, traffic, train tracks, Arabian sea, Ganapati Visarjan, cosmopolitan culture and of course Dhobi Ghat. There is a character of an old lady who is Amir Khan's neighbor. She has a stunned expression throughout the movie. A friend told me that it seems this old lady is the director's interpretation of Mumbai - a stunned city!

In the "deleted scenes" of the DVD, Kiran rao talks about the yellow cake from Kayani Bakery that Yasmin cuts for her birthday. Last time when I went back home, I - in my own eccentricity - did a blind taste test for Kayani and Merwan Mawa cakes. and the winner was - in my humble opinion anyway- Merwan's!!

Merwan's cake

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Bhenda Upkari

noreply@blogger.com (Meera) — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 09:59:00 +0000

Okra is my most favorite vegetable. Todays recipe is from the South Canara GSB kitchens.

Bhenda Upkari
Ingredients
2 cups chopped okra/ladies fingers/bhendi/bhenda, both ends cut
salt to taste

Tempering
1 1/2 tbsp coconut oil
1/2 tsp mustard seeds
1/2 tsp asafoetida
2-3 red chilies, halved
1/2 tsp urad daal

Garnish
fresh coconut

Method
1. Heat oil in preferably an iron kadai or nonstick wok.
2. Add all the ingredients for tempering.
3. As daal changes the color to reddish, add cut okra. Stir fry till it is cooked.
4. Add salt to taste and fresh coconut to garnish.
5. Serve with daali tauy and plain rice.

Note -

1. You can cover the kadai with a lid and cook the okra. However stir fry method makes okra less slimy and crisp.

Batatya Kismoor

noreply@blogger.com (Meera) — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 13:05:00 +0000

Boiled potato is always handy. There are just limitless possibilities. For serving as a salad, try making gojju or this kismoor. Simple and delicious!

Batatya Kismoor

Potato salad

2 medium potatoes, boiled, peeled lightly mashed

1/4 cup finely chopped red/purple onion

2 green chilies, finely chopped

salt to taste

2 tbsp lemon juice, freshly squeezed

Tempering

1 tbsp coconut oil

1/2 tsp mustard seeds

1/4 tsp asafoetida/hing

1 red chili, halved

2 sprigs curry leaves, torn

Method

1. Mix all the ingredients except tempering.

2. Heat coconut oil in a small saucepan. Add the tempering ingredients.

3. Drizzle the sizzling oil over the salad. Mix well.

4. Serve as an accompaniment with daaLi tauy, rice and any upkari.

Note -

1. You can chop the potatoes if you like. The recipes says to mash it "lightly". So do not make a mush. You should be able to see the pieces of potatoes.

2. For the authentic flavor, coconut oil is a must.

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Kolhapuri Doodh Cold-drink

noreply@blogger.com (Meera) — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 13:22:00 +0000

I tasted this unique sounding milkshake at my friend's place. As always, she beamed with pride explaining that it's a special drink from "her" Kolhapur. ;-) Well, I know that feeling, I think I do the same when I talk of "my" Mumbai!;-) Of course, I was ready with my tiny recipe diary that I carry in my purse wherever I go!

Kolhapuri Doodh Cold-Drink
Milk shake from Kolhapur
Ingredients
2 cups milk (whole milk preferred for richer taste)
2 tbsp sugar
1 tbsp custard powder (preferably vanilla flavored

1 cup vanilla ice cream

Method
1. Mix 1/4 cup cold milk with custard powder. Set aside.
2. Bring remaining milk and sugar to boil. Switch the gas to low, add custard powder paste.
3. Keep stirring till it is thick.
4. Refrigerate till cold.
5. Right before serving, blend with vanilla ice cream and serve.

Notes -
1. You can add more milk if the mixture is too thick after blending.
2. For richer taste, use whole milk. But I used skim milk as custard powder makes it thick anyway.

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Anasazi Beans Curry

noreply@blogger.com (Meera) — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 10:00:00 +0000

I love to browse through the Whole Foods Beans, Legumes and Grains bins. The best thing about it is that I can scoop out just a small quantity to give a try rather than buying a huge pack of unknown stuff and be stuck with it for the eternity. Anyway, during one such adventurous browsing, I came across these Anasazi beans. They looked so pretty. Without knowing their characteristics, I decided to give it a shot. Later, I came to know that these are the ancient beans which were cultivated thousands of years ago in the southwestern US (Utah, New Mexico, Arizona, Colorado) by Anasazi Indians.

I used these beans to make Punjabi style curry using ginger-garlic paste, tomatoes, onions and garam masala. They tasted more or less like Rajma. However after getting cooked, that beautiful pattern on the beans disappeared.

More information about Anasazi beans -

http://recipes.wikia.com/wiki/Anasazi_bean

Anasazi Beans Curry

Ingredients

1 cup dry Anasazi beans, soaked for 8 hours, drained

salt to taste

1 tsp paprika

2 tsp coriander-cumin powder

1 tsp garam masala

Grind to paste

1/2 cup cilantro

2-3 green chilies

3-4 cloves garlic

1" ginger

Tempering

1 tbsp oil

1/2 tsp turmeric powder

1 cup chopped onion

1/2 cup chopped tomatoes

Garnish

1 tbsp chopped cilantro

Method

1. Heat oil in a pressure pan.

2. Add turmeric powder and onions. Saute till onion is soft. Add green masala paste. Saute for 5 minutes.

3. Add tomatoes. Saute again for 5 minutes.

4. Now, add chili powder, garam masala, coriander-cumin powder and drained beans. Stir for 2 minutes.

5. Add 2 cups water. Pressure cook for 3-4 whistles.

6. Let the pressure drop of its own. Open the lid. Add salt and let it simmer.

7. Adjust the consistency by adding more water or letting water evaporate for thickish curry.

8. Garnish with chopped cilantro.

9. Serve with plain rice and a lemon wedge.

Note -

1. Soak the beans for at least 8 hours so they are rehydrated before adding to the curry.

Ancient Anasazi Beans

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Dahi Bundi/Boondi ka Raita

noreply@blogger.com (Meera) — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 13:02:00 +0000

This is one of the simplest raitas around. I like to keep some boondi crunchy in this raita.

Dah Bundi/Boondi Raita

Ingredients

1/2 cup + 1/4 cup plain salted/khari boondi

1 cup plain yogurt, whisked

salt to taste

1/2 tsp sugar (optional)

Garnish

a generous pinch of chili powder

Agenerous pinch of chaat masala

A generous pinch of dried mint leaves (optional)

Method

1. Whisk yogurt, salt and sugar - if using.

2. Add 1/2 cup boondi & set aside.

3. Just before serving, mix the raita. Add a splash of water if it is too thick.

4. Stir in the remaining 1/4 cup boondi and all the garnish

Note -

1. Do not make this raita too much in advance.

2. You save 1/4 cup boondi at end to add some crunch.

Sarangyache Kalvan - Pomfret Curry

noreply@blogger.com (Meera) — Sun, 05 Feb 2012 12:58:00 +0000

I have eaten this curry many times at my friend's place. So decided to make it since it's lot simpler than the usual coconut based curry as there is no grinding involved (since you get readymade coconut milk these days!). This is a CKP style curry. I find one major difference in CKP style cooking and that is marinating fish with green chutney whether it's used for frying or for making curries. It does make a difference.

Sarangyache Kalwan

Pomfret Curry

Ingredients

1 medium pomfret, cut into around 7-8 pieces

1/2 tsp turmeric powder

salt to taste

1 tsp chili powder

1 cup coconut milk

Grind to a smooth paste

1/2 cup cilantro

3-4 green chilies (more or less per taste)

1/2" ginger, peeled & chopped

3-4 cloves garlic, peeled

1/2 tsp tamarind paste

Tempering

2 tsp oil

3-4 cloves garlic, peeled & smashed

1 small onion, finely minced about 1/4 cup

Method

1. Clean, Rinse and pat dry pomfret pieces. Marinate with salt, turmeric powder, chili powder and green masala paste. Cover and set aside.

2. Heat oil in a wide saucepan so pomfret pieces can be kept in a single layer.

3. Add garlic and onion. Saute for 5 minutes. Let onion be browned.

4. Place marinated pomfret pieces along with marinade.

5. Add coconut milk and bring to boil.

6. Add more salt as needed. Simmer for 5 minutes.

7. Switch off the gas. Serve with plain rice.

Note -

1. This curry should not be too spicy.

2. I used reduced fat coconut milk (Whole foods brand)

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Paati cha ane phudino walo cha - Gujarati Herbal Tea

noreply@blogger.com (Meera) — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 09:30:00 +0000

We call lemongrass "Gavti chaha" in Marathi and "Paati cha" in Gujarati. Unlike Thai cuisine where they use the lemongrass roots, we use the green leaves.

My mom's gavti chaha recipe is simple. Just add lemongrass greens in the boiling tea and it's ready. During winter mom always adds gavti chaha and ginger in her daily tea. Talking of winter, it seems it's really quite cold in Mumbai this winter - I mean compared to the usual Mumbai winter!!

My MIL's paati cha recipe is little different. She adds fresh mint leaves and peepar (a fresh herb) along with lemongrass greens. It definitely gives a distinctly different flavor. I have not seen peepar here but add lemon grass with mint in your daily tea and notice the refreshingly different taste.

I was mulling if I should share a recipe? I mean everyone knows tea recipe. But then thought of sharing anyways!

Paati cha ane Phudino walo cha
Ingredients
1 1/2 cup water
1/2 cup milk
few stalks of lemon grass (green part)
1 stalk of mint
peepar/peepri mool (optional)

sugar per taste
1 1/2 tsp Wagh Bakri Chai (or any other brand of your choice!)

Method
1. Place water and herbs in a saucepan. Add sugar now or later.
2. Bring to boil. Add tea powder.
3. Simmer for few minutes.
4. Switch off the gas. Cover to steep for 5 minutes. Pass through the strainer. Discard the herbs.
5. Add boiled/warm milk and sugar to taste.

Note -
1. If you like, you can add milk after water is boiled and simmer it together.
2. This recipe makes 2 cups tea.

Kobi nu Loatwalu Shaak

noreply@blogger.com (Meera) — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 11:43:00 +0000

My MIL introduced me to Gujarati style vegetables cooked with flour. In my Marathi family, we cook such vegetables with besan - chickpea flour. My Gujarati family uses "vada nu loat" instead of besan. So each method produces its own unique taste. This vada nu loat is somewhat similar to Maharashtrian ThalipeeTh BhajNi.

Kobij nu Loatwalu shaak
Cabbage with flour
Ingredients
1 small cabbage, finely shredded
Salt to taste
1/2 tsp chili powder
1 cup vada nu loat

Tempering
2 tbsp oil
1/2 tsp mustard seeds
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
1/4 tsp asafoetida

Garnish
2 tbsp cilantro/coriander leaves, chopped

Method
1. Heat oil in a nonstick kadai or a wok. Add mustard seeds, asafoetida and turmeric powder.
2. As the seeds splutter, add cabbage. Saute for 5 minutes.
3. Stir fry till cooked. Add more oil if needed.
4. After getting cooked, add salt, chili powder.
5. Now sprinkle vada nu loat flour, a spoonful at a time, while stirring the cabbage mixture.
6. Keep sauteing till the shaak is dry. Add more oil if needed.
7. Garnish cilantro.

Note
1. This shaak requires more oil than usual. I like not to use oil and hence my shaak gets very dry. I like to serve it with plain yogurt instead of exceeding oil intake.

Valor Shakkariya nu Shaak

noreply@blogger.com (Meera) — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 13:39:00 +0000

I thought of sharing this Gujarati shaak because the combination of valor(vaal papdi/ghevda) and shakkariyu (sweet potato/ratale) sounded very unique. Ajmo or owa is a mandatory ingredient for this recipe.

Vaalor-Shakkariya nu shaak

Ingredients

2 cups vaalor, strings removed, split and torn into 2" pieces

1 smallish sweet potato, peeled and cut, approx 2 cups pieces

1/2 cup Gujarati moong daal vadi or chora daal vadi (optional)

salt to taste

1 tsp ginger-green chili paste

1 tsp coriander-cumin seed powder/dhaana jiru

1 tsp chili powder

3/4 cup water

Tempering

1 tbsp oil

1/2 tsp ajmo/owa/ajwain/ajowan

1/2 tsp mustard seeds

1/4 tsp asafoetida

1/2 tsp turmeric powder

Method

1. Rinse the vegetables. String vaalor, remove both ends, split and tear into 2" pieces. Set aside.

2. Peel sweet potatoes, cut into small pieces. Soak in water till ready to use.

3. Heat oil in a saucepan. Add the ingredients for tempering.

4. As they splutter, add vadies - if using. Fry for 1 minute.

5. Now add veggies, chili ginger paste, coriander cumin powder, chili powder. Saute for 2 minutes.

6. Add water. Bring to boil.

7. Switch the gas to low. Cover with a lid. Let it cook. Check from time to time to make sure water is not evaporated and veggies are not sticking to the bottom of the pan. Add more water if needed.

8. When vegetables are cooked, add salt to taste.

9. Add more water if you want gravy or let the water evaporate if you want a dry shaak.

10. Serve with rotla and athanu(pickle)

Note -

1. If desired, first fry vadies in oil, set aside and then add them to the simmering gravy. I skipped this step to avoid extra oil.

2. Sugar or jaggery is not needed since sweet potato is sweet enough. If you still desire more sweetness, you can always add some sugar/jaggery to taste.

3. Adjust chili ginger paste and red chili powder according to the desired heat/spice level.

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Vaalor

noreply@blogger.com (Meera) — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 13:23:00 +0000

Vaalor

There are innumerable types of string beans in India. The above vegetable is called "Vaalor" in Gujarati. We also call it a type of "Ghevda" or "Val papdi" in Marathi.

You have to remove both ends and remove the strings. Split the vegetable in halves and tear into 2" pieces. You use both the beans and the green pods.

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Ragi Nankatai

noreply@blogger.com (Meera) — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 11:16:00 +0000

When we were in India, Gudiya enjoyed Britannia's Ragi biscuits. I couldn't find them at our local Indian stores here. When I was chatting with my MIL, she suggested Ragi Nankatais. I decided to add cinnamon powder and cocoa powder to disguise them as chocolate cookies.

Ragi Nankatais
Ragi Flour Cookies
Ingredients
Beat together
1/4 cup Shortening (I used Sprectum brand)
1/3 cup sugar
2 tbsp yogurt

Mix together
1 cup ragi/nachni flour
1 tsp cinnamon powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
A pinch of salt
1 tbsp cocoa powder

Method
1. Beat shortening, sugar and yogurt together.
2. Add dry mixture carefully
3. Beat to make a dough consistency.
4. Preheat oven to 350 F
5. Make uniform balls. Pat them to make small discs
6. Bake in the oven for 16 - 18 minutes.

Note -
1. Since these cookies do not have all purpose flour or wheat flour, they have a distinct Ragi flavor. It may be an acquired taste.
2. The above proportion gave me about 2 dozen small nankatais.

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Chora daal ni Vadi

noreply@blogger.com (Meera) — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 13:25:00 +0000

My MIL narrated a funny story while sharing this family recipe of chora daal ni vadi. When she was a new bride, the whole family decided to go to the ancestral home in the village. My MIL and her MIL decided to make these vadies since it was summer time. They had made such vadies many times before on the terrace of their Mumbai apartment. So making the vadies was not a big deal. They made the vadies on a big scale and spread them in the backyard and went about to do the other chores. After an hour or so my MIL peeped out of the window and was shocked to see the two cows devouring all the vadies. By the time she reached there, all the vadies were gone!! So the moral of the story is - keep an eye on these irresistible vadies as they are drying. Other animals may find them equally irresistible!!;-)

Chora ni Daal ni Vadi
Ingredients
1 big cucumber, grated, squeeze out water as much as possible
1 cup chora daal, soak for 2-3 hours, drained and ground coarsely
salt to taste
1/2 tsp asafoetida
1 tsp green chili-ginger paste
1 tsp garlic paste

Method
1. Soak chora daal for 2-3 hours. Drain and grind coarsely with asafoetida, chili-ginger paste, garlic and salt.
2. Do not use water for grinding.
3. Stir in grated cucumber. Squeeze out as much water as possible.
4. Spread a cloth in the backyard or a terrace or a deck, making sure that it's a very sunny day. [and cows are not around!!!!!;-)
5. Drop half a spoonful of batter. Let it dry completely till it's crisp. You may have to keep it in sunshine for at least 3 days. Take it in during nights.
6. After it is completely dry with no drop of moisture, store in an airtight container and use as needed

Note -
1. I have not yet ventured into making these vadies. We make something similar called "SaanDge" in Maharashtra using kohLa or ash gourd. The recipe is different. I will share it soon.

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Guvar Bataka nu Shaak

noreply@blogger.com (Meera) — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 12:47:00 +0000

A simple stir fry from my mother-in-law's kitchen.

Guvar - Bataka nu shaak

Cluster beans with potatoes

Ingredients

2 cups cluster beans, torn into 2" pieces

1 medium potato, peeled & chopped

salt to taste

1 tsp dhana-jiru/coriander-cumin powder

1 tsp grated jaggery

Tempering

1 tbsp oil

1/2 tsp mustard seeds

1/4 tsp ajmo/owa/ajwain

1/2 tsp turmeric powder

1/4 tsp asafoetida

2 tsp ginger-green chili paste

Suggested Accompaniment
Thepla or Rotla or Rotli

Method

1. Steam cluster beans and potatoes in a pressure cooker. Add water as needed. Set aside to cool down.

2. Heat oil in a pan. Add all the tempering ingredients.

3. As they sizzle, add cooked & cooled beans and potatoes, and remaining ingredients. Add cooking water as well.

4. Simmer till all the water is evaporated.

5. Serve with rotli or thepla.

Note -

1. Traditionally, very tender, small cluster beans are chosen carefully for recipe. They are kept whole by just removing both ends. We do not get tender cluster beans here. So I tear them into 2" pieces.

2. Instead of potatoes, vadis can be added. If you want to add the vadies, steam just cluster beans. Saute vadis in the kadai.
3. If you like, you can garnish with a spoonful of scraped, fresh coconut.

Morayyo

noreply@blogger.com (Meera) — Sun, 29 Jan 2012 17:03:00 +0000

This recipe falls under Indian fasting food category. What we call "vari" or "bhagar" in Marathi, the same is known as "samo" or "morayyo" in Gujarati. It also goes by the name "Vrat ka chawal" in Hindi. My mom makes delicious varichi khichdi or varicha bhaat and my mom-in-law makes this delicious morayyo on the fasting days.

Morayyo
Steamed
Ingredients
1 cup samo/vari/nhagar/morayyo/vrat ka chawal, rinsed
2 cups buttermilk, thin consistency
1 medium potato, raw, peeled & grated
1/4 cup daaNyache koot/unsalted, roasted peanuts powder (optional)
rock salt/sindhav/saindhav to taste
1 tsp green chili-ginger paste/vatela aadu marcha

1 tbsp chokhu ghee/sajook toop/clarified butter

Method
1. Boil buttermilk in a saucepan.
2. Add chili ginger paste, rock salt.
3. As it starts boiling, switch the gas to low.
4. Add all the remaining ingredients except ghee. Stir gently.
5. Cover and cook on a low flame for 20-25 minutes or till it is cooked.
6. Once cooked, drizzle clarified butter.
7. Serve hot.

Note -
1. The original recipe does not required peanut powder.
2. Gujaratis use a special salt called rock salt or sindhav for the fasting food. Common salt is not used for "vrat ka khaana".
3. Use more buttermilk if you prefer porridge like consistency.

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Bread Pakoda

noreply@blogger.com (Meera) — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 15:02:00 +0000

When you say "Bread Pakoda", you don't really think of it as a "light" food. I have tried to modify the original recipe by using Pam cooking spray instead of deep frying it.

I first had bread pakoda at SEEPZ canteen. They served it with their delicious chutney. I made it myself after my marriage and was shocked to see how much oil was gulped down by that bread while frying. So I never made it ever again. But then just the other day, I thought of shallow frying it.

Bread Pakoda
Ingredients

For Stuffing
2 medium potatoes, boiled, peeled, mashed
1/4 cup green peas, boiled (optional)
1 tbsp ginger-garlic paste
1 tbsp chopped cilantro
1 green chili, minced (optional)
1 tsp lemon juice

4 sandwich thins

For batter
1/2 cup besan/chickpea flour
salt to taste
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
1/4 tsp asafoetida
1/4 tsp paprika
A pinch of baking soda
water as needed to make batter

Pam Cooking Spray

Method
1. Mix mashed potatoes with remaining ingredients to make stuffing. Set aside.
2. Make a thick batter with besan and remaining ingredients. Set aside.
3. Heat tawa/pan.
4. Open each sandwich thin. Stuff potato mixture. Close and dip in the batter so it is fully covered with besan.
5. Using cooking spray, shallow fry all the thins.
6. Preheat oven to 350 F
7. Transfer cooked pakodas onto a baking tray. Bake for about 10 minutes flipping once.
8. Enjoy with tomato ketchup.

Note
1. You could have used leftover potato bhaaji or fry ginger-garlic paste and then add mashed potatoes.
2. I baked it after shallow frying so the besan batter is fully cooked. Since I am not deep frying it, this step is necessary.

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Vegetable Curry with Pesto

noreply@blogger.com (Meera) — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 01:15:00 +0000

I have blogged about several green curries already. One common ingredient in all these green curries is coconut. I was thinking about ways to reduce coconut and use some omega 3s. I suddenly thought about the pesto that I had frozen.

Vegetable Curry with Pesto
Ingredients
1/2 cauliflower, cut into florets
A handful of crowder peas (frozen)
A handful of yellow corn (frozen)
1/2 packet stew vegetables (frozen - potatoes, celery, carrots and pearl onions)
1/2 packet leafy greens (frozen - collard greens, kale, mustard greens)
6-7 grape tomatoes, halved
6-7 red radishes, quartered

1/2 cup Arugula Pesto

1/2 tsp turmeric powder
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp dhansaak masala or garam masala

Method
1. In a deep saucepan, add all the vegetables with turmeric powder and 1/2 cup water.
2. Cover and let it cook - without letting it too mushy. Add water if needed
3. Once the veggies are cooked, add paprika, dhansak or garam masala and pre-made pesto.
4. Add water to obtain the desired consistency. Add salt. Bring to boil.
5. Simmer for 5-7 minutes.
6. Serve over a warm mound of rice.

Note -
1. You can use any veggies of your choice. I tend to go overboard and add tons of veggies.
2. In this experiment, I didn't add any oil.

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Arugula Pesto

noreply@blogger.com (Meera) — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 01:05:00 +0000

The only goal of this pesto was to finish off that arugula without getting wilted in the fridge. But once the pesto was ready, I used it not only for the ubiquitous pasta but also for making vegetable curry and daal!!:-D

Arugula Pesto
Ingredients
4 cups arugula leaves
1 cup walnut halves
4-5 garlic cloves
salt to taste
black pepper
1 lemon, freshly squeezed

Method
1. Roast walnut halves on medium heat. Let it cool down.
2. Grind with the remaining ingredients.
3. Refrigerate till ready to use.

Note -
1. I pour this pesto in small containers and freeze till ready to use.

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Rainbow Sandwiches

noreply@blogger.com (Meera) — Sat, 21 Jan 2012 17:07:00 +0000

This is just a variation of my veggie wraps. I use flaxseeds bead from Whole Foods or Ezkiel bread from Food for life for making these sandwiches. I toast the bread lightly before stuffing them. These sandwiches make a good lunch item.

Rainbow Sandwiches

Ingredients

4 slices of Flaxseed bread or Ezkiel bread, toasted lightly

curry hummus (homemade or store bought)

veggies to stuff

cucumber, thinly sliced

red, yellow, orange bell peppers, cut into rings

spinach leaves

Pickled turnip, thinly sliced

Method

1. Toast the bread slices.

2. Spread hummus.

3. Stuff the veggies.

4. Cut into halves

5. Use toothpicks to hold.

Note -

1. I generally make hummus at home to avoid oil that is added to the store bought hummus.

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Split Pea Idli

noreply@blogger.com (Meera) — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 19:33:00 +0000

Split pea idli served with a spoonful of agave necar

I have changed the ratio of daal and rice here. I also used green split daal + urad daal combo.

Split Pea Idli
Ingredients
3/4 cup green split pea daal
1 1/4 cup urad daal
1 cup brown rice
1/2 tsp methi/fenugreek seeds

salt to taste

1/2 tsp baking soda (optional, only needed if the batter doesn't ferment due to cold weather)

Suggested Accompaniment
Sambar
Chutney
or
Agave Nectar (Gudiya's fav combo)

Method
1. Soak daals, rice and methi seeds overnight.
2. Grind to a smooth paste adding salt. Do not add too much water.
3. Cover and let it ferment for 8 hours.
4. Steam idlies in the idli containers.
5. Serve hot idlies with sambar

Note
1. If the batter is not fermented, just before making idlies, you can add baking soda.

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