There are a few moments in life when you are truly & completely happy. My yearly visit to hometown in Udaipur, Rajasthan is one such occasion when I wish I could stop the time and live in those moments forever. Though many old familiar houses have given way to high rise apartments now and there are very few familiar faces to greet, but every visit is worth preserving the childhood experiences and keeping them afresh.

The old house I stayed, parks I played in and the streets I walked with friends, each one makes me feel so large and important. How true is the saying that ‘The mind looks for something new but the heart longs for the old.’ And the older I grow the more I feel that the few joys of childhood are the best that life has to give.

I never miss my early morning walks in Udaipur, its enchanting and refreshing to walk alongside the lake before sunrise with just a few walkers and some noisy birds occasionally breaking the silence and serenity of the place.

Morning walks on the pavement of lake Fatehsagar in Udaipur conjures up the carefree childhood days where most of the evenings were spent with friends talking and eating street foods.

Fateh sagar lake in Udaipur, Rajasthan

This beautiful Lake Fateh sagar is behind my house in Udaipur where I go for early morning walks at 5.30 Am with my camera to accompany me. How difficult it is now to even imagine climbing the temple ‘Neemach Mata‘ on that mountain top behind the lake, which we used to run and climb in just twenty minutes, once upon a time.

Fateh sagar lake in Udaipur, Rajasthan

The joy of walking on a bright morning, smelling & breathing the fresh air…nature’s peace will flow into you as sunshine flows into trees…that concrete bench is my favorite spot to sit before sun rises and watch the world go by.

Fateh sagar lake in Udaipur, Rajasthan

One of the most favorite activities of the day is to stroll along serenely on the pavement forgetting everything…

Gumberry tree or Gunda

Plucking fresh gum berries or Gunda on the way from morning walk to make yummy Gunda or Gumberry pickle.

Kikar fruits

Favorite pastime for children is to pick fleshy wild kikar fruits during morning walks near the lake…Kikar trees are commonly found in the desserts of Rajasthan, the fruits are sweet and slightly pink in colour when ripe.

Children are exploring & loving the good old simple ways of playing outdoor. They are happily avoiding their internet games for plucking Tamarind pods, Kikar fruits outside our house, running behind goats, chasing birds and butterflies….

1. Savory Black Chickpea Snack or Chan Zor Garam

Channa Zor Garam

The moment I land in my home both mom and my brother’s wife take turns to spoil me completely with their hospitality. I am not allowed to be in the kitchen for long unless I wish to take pictures of the food they cook. Each day starts with planning for the foods I miss after marriage, from authentic Daal Baatis to exotic Gatte ki subji filled with nuts and dried fruits…they leave no stone unturned to pamper me with their love and let me indulge in my favorite food.

Here are two such recipes they cooked for me during this visit.

Chana zor garam is a street food which is normally made with packed ready-to-mix black chickpeas which are flattened and deep fried in oil. But this version which my brother’s wife made is healthy and has all homemade ingredients in it.

Ingredients;

(serve 3)

• 1 cup black chickpeas
• 1 cup water
• 1 small onion
• 1 tomato
• 1 tbsp. oil
• 1/2 tsp. cumin seeds
• 1/2 tsp. red chilly powder
• 1/2 tsp. chaat masala
• 1/2 tsp. lemon juice
• Sprigs of mint leaves
• Salt as desired

Method; Wash and soak black chickpeas or kala chana overnight. Boil the soaked chickpeas in a pressure cooker for one whistle or in a vessel for 10-15 minutes.

Peel and chop onion, cut tomatoes finely.

Drain the black chickpeas. Take a few black chickpeas and flatten slightly with a rolling pin, repeat the same with all the chickpeas.

Heat oil in a vessel, add cumin seeds and flattened chickpeas. Saute for a minute and put off the flame.

Transfer the black chickpeas in a large vessel and add all the ingredients in it, mix well.

Serve the spicy Chana Zor garam in a paper cone or in small bowls as a healthy & filling tea time snack.

2. Baked Spicy Cornmeal Buns or Paanya in Gumberry leaves

Mom makes these crumbly, spicy Baatis or Buns everytime I am in Udaipur. These are filling baked buns which are eaten normally during winter days. A very special ingredient called ‘Papad Khar‘ is used to bake these bun which is a kind of alkaline salt and gives the extra crispness to the dish. I don’t get this ingredient at my home in Chennai and I substitute the same with baking soda.

Ingredients;

(make 4 )

• 1 cup coarsely ground cornmeal
• 2 tbsp. semolina
• 2 tbsp. chickpea flour
• 2 tbsp vegetable oil
• 1/2 tsp. Ajwan
• 1/2 tsp. coarsely ground coriander seeds
• 1/2 tsp. cumin seeds
• 1/2 tsp. red chilly powder
• A pinch of Papad Khar or baking powder
• Salt as desired (1 tsp.)
• Water to knead hard dough
• Gum-berry leaves

Paanya with fresh tomato chutney is a delicacy..

Method; Take coarsely ground cornmeal flour, chickpea flour and semolina in a large bowl and rest of the ingredients except water and gum berry leaves. Pour a few teaspoons of water and knead into hard dough.

These whole flour buns are traditionally baked or cooked in earthen stoves called Chulha in Hindi which is lit with charcoal fire. You can use the conventional oven to bake the same. Preheat the oven to 230°C.

Make small balls from the dough and fold each bun in Gum berry leaves if you are using it as shown in here. If you don’t get leaves, place all the buns in a greased baking tray and bake for about 30 minutes till the buns turn golden brown in colour.

Take out the baked buns, smear butter or ghee and serve hot with mixed lentils, roasted Brinjal and potato Chokha or fresh tomato chutney. I don’t need any accompaniments with these baked buns or Paanyas, these are a delicacy and a complete dish in itself.

Notes;

1. You can bake these buns using wholewheat flour also.
2. The recipe of Paanya has Papad khar in it, which makes it crumbly and soft. But I use baking powder in my home where I don’t get the indigenous Papad khar.

Vacations are rejuvenating, it is that time of the year when one can slow down the pace of life, live, breathe, retrospect and simply be! And I feel blessed to experience the same year after year at mom’s home in Udaipur.

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‘Our house is clean enough to be healthy, and dirty enough to be happy’. Yes, we decided to repaint the house after putting the long due project to back burner for years. The house is in total mess, but this exercise is a good lesson not to collect things which we may never use in life. There are sackful of such useless articles peeping errr..sleeping in the cupboards and overhead lofts, and I am on a disposing spree…finally.

On a positive note, painting your house is a good chance to do some spring cleaning as well. My old oven, box TV, stone age printer, bangle boxes, speakers, toasters, fluffy teddy bears, bagful of plastic kitchenware…looks like I have a real Pandora box…and believe me some of these have never seen the light of the day. Getting attached with these not so useful objects which were a part of my life some years back is inevitable, and I really feel sad to part with.

House is in total mess, everything is buried under a thick layer of dust. The good part is that children are waking up on their own, eat whatever I cook, take shower without me shouting thrice…yes, they are trying their best to make their grumpy mom cheerful again.

Keeping in mind the harmful effects of dust and paint scrapping to the food I cook in my kitchen, lunch and dinner menu is kept very simple for weekdays. And whenever I get time I sneak in a tray of brownie, cake slices or quick breads in my oven which is kept in the foyer.  I remember reading these lines somewhere that ‘If you feel really rubbish and you have a nice bit of food it makes you feel good’.

I baked these fresh fruit cake slices with Oats and finger millet or Ragi which are easy to bake, moist, chewy and healthy. Spring cleaning could be very taxing, interrupted net connection to top it all, but who cares when there is good food to accompany!

My house at present…

1. Finger Millet or Ragi Mango Squares

Ragi cake slices

Ingredients;

• 3/4 cup Finger Millet or Ragi flour
• 1/4 cup all purpose flour
• 1 cup mango pulp
• 1/4 cup oil
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 2 tbsp. yogurt or curd
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp. cardamom powder
• Salt a pinch

Method; Grease a rectangular baking tray with oil and pre heat the oven at 190 for 10 minutes.

Use a good quality mango which has less fiber and more pulp. I used 2 medium Alphonso mangoes to get a cup of pulp.

Take a large bowl and add Ragi flour, all purpose flour (maida), baking powder, salt and cardamom powder in it. Mix well with a fork.

Peel and take out the mango pulp. Blend it for a few seconds to get a fine pulp. I did not blend mine and just mashed it with hands.

Add oil, yogurt and sugar in the mango pulp and beat it with a fork for a few minutes to let the sugar dissolve.

Add the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and fold it lightly to mix it well.

Pour the batter in the greased baking tray and bake it for 25-30 minutes till done. Check the cake by inserting a dry knife, the cake is baked if it comes out clean.  Serve these Finger Millet or Ragi Mango Squares with a drizzle of honey.

2. Apple  Banana Oatmeal Squares

Ingredients;

• 1/2 cup quick cooking oats
• 1/2 cup all purpose flour
• 1 cup apple and banana puree
• 1/2 cup powdered sugar
• 1/4 cup yogurt
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 1/2 tsp. vanilla essence
• 1/2 tsp. baking powder
• Handful of chocolate chips
• Salt a pinch

Method; Grease a rectangular baking tray with oil and pre heat the oven at 190 for 10 minutes.

Grate one apple and mash a large banana to get a cup of fresh fruit puree.

Add oats, all purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt in a bowl and mix well with a fork. Crush the quick cooking oats with hands before adding to the bowl to avoid bits of oats peeping through the cake slices.

Blend fresh fruit puree, yogurt, powdered sugar to make a thick batter. Take it in a large bowl and add oil in it and mix well.

Add dry ingredients and chocolate chips into wet ingredients and whisk lightly with a fork to combine all the ingredients together.

Pour the batter in the greased baking tray and bake for 25-30 minutes.

These cake squares are moist and have dense texture unlike the normal cakes due to extra moisture from the fresh fruit puree in the recipe.

Notes;

1. The finger millet cake squares are dense, try it if you are used to the taste of finger millet which nutty but is slightly grassy and flat.
2. The apple-banana squares are also chewy in texture and are not fluffy like a sponge cake due to addition of extra fresh fruit puree in the recipe.
3. The consistency of batter and texture of the slices may vary in both the recipes because of the variety and moisture in the fruits you use.
4. These cake slices are a perfect after school snack for children. Top the slices with honey or any other fruit sauce of your choice.

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Home is where the heart is….my heart belongs to Chennai, the place where I got married and have been living since 1996. I have wholeheartedly accepted the city and have accustomed to the traditions, climatic conditions and the food here.

But even after spending a good 17 years in Chennai I feel that a part of my heart still lives in Udaipur. The place where I grew up, studied and spent the most beautiful years of my life with family and friends.

And why not, if one is the place of my birth than the other made me a complete woman! I take it as a special privilege of belonging to the two different cities at once.

A trip to hometown is on anvil and with each passing day my heart is pumping faster and faster. Of late my kitchen is attuned to cooking more of flat breads and curries with the faint hope that my rice loving children get adapted to the food in Rajasthan.

The Lentil flat bread is a regular on our breakfast table at mom’s house and is a favorite travel and picnic food. Foiled lentil breads and a few ready-to-use tomato sauce makes any journey a fun. In Rajasthan the recipe is called ‘Pithi wala parathas’ and is slightly different from the version I make at my home. In Pithi wala parathas lots of spices are added to the soaked and ground lentil mix which is then filled inside the flat bread as a stuffing and deep fried.

But the following Lentil flat bread recipe is simple and quite easy to cook without the extra work of grinding, making a filling or deep frying the parathas.

1. Cheesy Broccoli flat breads

Ingredients;

(makes 5-6)

• 1 cup wholewheat flour
• ½ cup warm water
• ½ tsp salt
• Oil to shallow fry

Filling;

• 1 cup grated Broccoli
• 1 large potato
• ½ cup grated cheese (processed/cottage)
• 2 green chillies
• Salt and crushed black pepper as desired

Broccoli and potato cheesy flat breads in making….

Method; Add flour, salt and warm water in a large vessel and knead it to make a soft chappati dough. Add a few tsps. of oil or butter to get extra softness in the chapattis.

Make 6-7 balls from the dough, dust them with dry flour and keep aside.

Boil and mash potato. Wash the Broccoli and grate it finely. Chop green chilies finely and add to the grated Broccoli.

Add salt, crushed pepper and mix all the ingredients well.

Take a ball of dough and flatten it to make a small circle. Place about 2 tablespoons of Broccoli filling in the center. Bring all the corners of the circles to close it. Make sure to seal all the edges.

For a kid friendly variation, add a tbsp. of grated cheese as shown in the picture and make the parathas.

Dust the filled Broccoli dough balls with flour and roll it into a large circle. Sprinkle dry flour during the process to avoid the flat bread getting struck on the board.

Heat a griddle and place the Broccoli flat bread on it. Drizzle a tsp. of vegetable oil and let it cook for 2-3 minutes on medium heat. Flip to the other side and repeat the process.

Serve the Cheesy Broccoli flat bread with fresh curd raita, green chutney or tomato sauce.

2. Lentil Flat Breads

Ingredients;

(make 10-12)

• 2 cups wholewheat flour
• 1 cup soaked green gram
• 1 cup warm water
• 2 tbsp. vegetable oil/butter
• 2 green chilies
• 2 tbsp. fresh coriander leaves
• 1 tsp. garam masala (optional)
• Salt as desired
• Oil to shallow fry

Method; Wash and soak split whole green gram (moong daal) for an hour. Chop green chillies finely.

Take a large bowl, add flour, chopped green chillies, soaked and drained green gram, salt, garam masala, coriander leaves, water and mix well to make a soft dough.

Make small balls from the dough and dust them with dry flour.

Roll each ball with a rolling pin into a thin circular shaped chapatti.  Heat a tawa, place the lentil flat bread on it and drizzle a ½ tsp. of oil around it. Flip to the other side and repeat the same.

3. Quick Sun dried Cherry tomato Chutney

Cheery tomatoes…ready for sun drying…

To sun dry the cherry tomatoes, wash and wipe the tomatoes and slice them into two. Place all the tomatoes in a large plate with cut side up. Sprinkle a generous amount of rock salt or table salt, Olive oil and herbs if you wish.

Keep the plate in direct sunlight for a few days till the tomatoes dry completely.

A quick sun-dried cherry tomato sauce is a yummy accompaniment to these flat breads. The recipe is quite easy to make. Grind a handful of  sun-dried cherry tomatoes, a little Olive oil, salt & pepper to taste and you get a colourful sauce ready. In the chutney above I added a roasted red bell pepper also.

Serve these hot lentil flat breads with fresh yogurt, tomato sauce or chutney. Cheesy Broccoli parathas (flat breads) and Moong daal parathas (Lentil flat breads) with sun-dried cherry tomato chutney always bring smile on the faces of my children and hubby alike.

Notes;

1. Saute the grated Broccoli in a tbsp. of oil for a few minutes before making the filling to remove the raw taste and to get e better filling which binds well.
2. Drain the green gram well before adding to the filling to avoid soggy dough.
3. You can replace the split whole green gram with any other lentil of your choice. Bengal gram, pigeon pea, massor daal (red lentil) or even soaked and mashed chickpeas make a delicious and healthy filling for this recipe.
4. Replace half of the whole wheat flour with all purpose flour (maida) for a mush softer and light flat breads or parathas.
5. You can avoid adding potato in the Broccoli flat bread if you wish, potato in the recipe helps binding the stuffing well.

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“One friend with whom you have a lot in common is better than three with whom you struggle to find things to talk about.”  ~ Mindy Kaling. I have experienced the same during many of the regular family meets with hubby’s office-mates. When everyone else would be seriously involved in discussing Cinema, TV serials, fashion world, latest gadgets to who is the best dressed man/woman, the feeling of being left alone in crowd really scares me out.

I always find myself sitting silently, smiling often, nodding at every comment and trying hard to make my presence felt and to hide my disinterest in the subjects discussed. Often wondering when the table would turn and the topics shift to food, art, photography, gardening, old songs….someday.

When I called a blogger friend Charan Saravana for dinner, who writes on current topics, life in general, movies, and has a unique writing style, I was wondering what will be the topic of interest among all of us.

But little did I know that sharing ‘Food’ bridges cultures, breaks language barriers, evokes memories, binds emotions and creates lasting friends.

And I was really surprised to know how much common ground we all share, true to this saying “Each friend represents a world in us, a world possibly not born until they arrive, and it is only by this meeting that a new world is born.” 

I normally keep the menu simple and stick to cooking Indian food for the first time diners at home. The evening started off with a homemade crush and some healthy sweet and savory Canapes.  The main course had two very popular Indian recipes, Malai Koftas and stuffed Okra with slight changes.

Here is one another version of Malai Koftas using Cottage cheese or Paneer I often make during most of the parties we arrange at a friends house.

1. Tofu Malai Koftas 

Ingredients;

For Kofta;

(serve 3)

• 1/2 cup Tofu
• 2 medium potatoes
• 1 tbsp. milk powder
• 2 tsp. cornflour
• 1 green chilly
• Coriander leaves
• Salt as desired
• Oil for deep frying

For gravy;

• 2 large onions
• 4 large tomatoes
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1 tbsp. ginger-garlic paste
• 2 tbsp cashew nuts
• 2 tbsp. melon seeds
• 2 tbsp. fresh cream
• 1/2 tsp. sugar

Spices;

• 3 cloves
• 2 green cardamoms
• 2 tsp red chilly powder
• 2 tsp. dried fenugreek leaves
• 1 tsp. Garam masala
• 1/2 tsp turmeric powder

Method; Boil and mash potatoes. Crumble Tofu into small pieces. Wash and chop green chilly and coriander leaves.

In a large bowl add mashed potatoes, crumbled Tofu and rest of the ingredients except oil.

Knead lightly to make a soft dough. Pinch small portions of dough and roll into small balls or Koftas. 

Heat oil and deep fry the Koftas in small batches till they turn golden brown in colour. Take out and place them on a tissue paper to remove excess oil.

You can even bake these koftas if you are concern about fat in the recipe.

Red Gravy:

Peel, chop and grind onions. Chop tomatoes roughly and grind them separately.

Heat oil add cloves, cardamom, onion paste and sauté till raw smell disappear from onion paste.

Add tomato puree, garam masala powder, red chilly powder, turmeric powder, salt, sugar and keep sauteing for 7-8 minutes.

Make the consistency of the gravy according to your liking by adding water in it.

Crush fenugreek leaves using your palm and add it in the gravy.

White gravy;

Soak cashew nuts and melon seeds (magaz) in 1/4 cup of milk for an hour and grind into fine paste with the milk.

Heat 1 tsp oil and sauté this white paste for a few seconds. Add rest of the milk and cook further for 3-4 minutes.

Add salt as desired. This gravy is to give creamy texture and exotic touch to the recipe.

To serve these Tofu Malai koftas, place the koftas in a serving dish, pour the red gravy followed by white gravy and fresh cream.

Garnish with chopped mint leaves or coriander leaves and serve with Biryani, pilaf  or Indian flat breads.

2. Stuffed Okra 

I always use dry red chilly powder to make the stuffing, but in this recipe I soaked the dry red chilies and used it along with other spices. Paste of dry red chilies give a body to the stuffing and makes it more tasty as well.

Here is another version of stuffed okra with peanut butter stuffing you might like to make.

Ingredients;

(serve 4)

• 30-40 small and tender Okra
• 2 medium onions
• 1 tbsp ginger-garlic paste
• Salt to taste
• 2-3 tbsp. vegetable oil
• 2 tbsp. water

Spices;

• 4-5 dry red chillies
• 1 tbsp coriander powder
• 1 tsp cumin seed powder
• 1/2 tsp turmeric powder

Method: Wash and wipe all the okra (ladies fingers) with a kitchen towel.

Trim the head and tail part of okra. Peel and chop the onions.

Soak red chilies in warm water for 20 minutes, drain and grind into paste with chopped onions.

Take out the red chilly paste in a bowl and add ginger-garlic paste, coriander powder, cumin powder, turmeric, salt and mix well.

Make a slit in all the okra using a knife. Fill the okra with a tsp of the above stuffing and close it lightly.

Heat oil in a large flat pan and gently place all the stuffed Okras in it. Add any leftover stuffing in the pan. Stir it lightly without the stuffing coming out from the Okra.

Close the pan with a lid and let it cook on medium heat for 6-7 minutes. Turn the Okras and cook further for 3-4 minutes.

Garnish with chopped coriander leaves and serve with hot rice or flat breads.

There is more to the dinner menu…

Yummy starters (I made a quick second batch on popular demand) and the two easy & decadent Desserts do need a separate blogpost…Food, friends and fun, pictures to come…Stay connected!

Notes;

1. Do not add Koftas in the gravy earlier, as the koftas will soak all the gravy, become soggy and crumble.
2. Replace Tofu with cottage cheese for a different version of the recipe.
3. Add boiled carrots, peas, bottle gourd, sweet potato or cauliflower along with potatoes to make koftas.
4. Replace milk powder with Khoya or condescend milk or omit it altogether.
5. For yet another delicious version of the Koftas, reduce red gravy of onion & tomatoes and add more of white cashew nut gravy.

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You can take a girl out of desserts, but you can’t take desserts out of a girl. Oh yes, I was born with a dessert spoon! According to my nanny my mom was feasting on hot Malpuas dipped in creamy Rabdi a few minutes before she went into labour pains, much to the chagrin of my stressed out doctor father.

Desserts were an important part of our everyday meal during growing  up years in Udaipur, Rajasthan. Our family was certainly not an exception in a state where a day starts and ends with a sweet, what with people queuing up in food shops before the day breaks, fishing out hot Jalebis floating in warm milk for breakfast.

Though some of the fanciful desserts such as Mousse, souffle or cheesecakes were beyond her imagination but there was always a simple spread of nutty Shrikhand, warm Kheer, Matka Kulfi, comforting carrot Halwa or a creamy Firni to brighten up our meal.

Mom fondly remembers how I used to get irked when the second serving of dessert was denied. The little rebellion in me would often announce “You wait and see mom, my kitchen will be flowing with desserts and chocolates when I grow up..and I will not share it with anyone’

How times change, I don’t fancy those sinful desserts anymore, a fresh fruit or a handful of raisins is what I crave for when sweet pangs strike.

So what if the dessert spoon I was born with is lost and the appetite for sweet has reduced, the desire to cook and serve is still alight.

Food blogger friend for lunch at home

My home was abuzz with laughter and food when a food blogger friend from UK, Rebecca of Chow and Chatter visited recently for lunch with her husband and two lovely kids. The dinning table was stir cleared of all the dishes as soon as her son hopped on the chair pretending to eat a big meal. It was real fun to watch the little bundle of joy making mess, tasting and mixing every dish on the table.

Some of the dishes on the menu were Kadai Paneer, spicy green gram daal, vegetable Biryani, flat breads, carrot Halwa and Strawberry Firni. 

1. Strawberry Firni 

Ingredients;

(serve 4)

• 2 cups whole milk
• 1 cup crushed Strawberries
• 2 tbsp. Basmati rice
• 2 tbsp. sugar
• 1 tsp. Vanilla essence

Method; Wash and soak rice in water for 3-4 hours. Drain and grind the soaked rice into coarse paste using 1-2 tsp. of milk. Clean and hull the strawberries and crush with your hands or a ladle.

If you are using earthen pots to set the Firni, wash each pot thoroughly and soak in water for 10 hours or more.

Heat a heavy bottom pan, pour 2 cups of milk in it and bring it to boil. Add the coarsely ground rice paste in hot milk and let it simmer on medium heat. Keep stirring till the milk thickens, it will take 10-12 minutes to get the right consistency which is neither too dry nor too runny.

Add sugar and take the pan off the flame and let it cool slightly.

Add Vanilla essence, crushed strawberries and mix well. Pour the thick batter into soaked earthen pots or individual bowls and cover with cling foil.

Keep a few slices of strawberries for garnishing. Refrigerate all the bows or earthen pots till Firni is set.

2. Blackberry Firni

Ingredients;

(serve 4)

• 2 cups whole milk/coconut milk
• 2 tbsp. Blackberry preserve
• 2 tbsp. honey
• 2 tbsp. Basmati rice
• 1 tbsp. crushed cashew nuts

Blackberry preserve gives a wonderful color to the Firni, tiny blackberry seeds in the preserve add extra crunch to the recipe.

Method; Wash and soak rice in water for 3-4 hours. Drain, grind the soaked rice and cashew nuts into coarse paste using 1-2 tsp. of milk.

If you are using earthen pots to set the Firni, wash each pot thoroughly and soak in water for 10 hours or more.

Heat a heavy bottom pan, pour 2 cups of milk in it and bring it to boil. Add the coarsely ground rice and cashew nut paste in hot milk and let it simmer on medium heat. Keep stirring till the milk thickens, it will take 10-12 minutes to get the right consistency which is neither too dry nor too runny.

Take the pan off the flame and let it cool slightly.

Earthen pot to set and serve Firni…

Add honey, Vanilla essence, blackberry preserve and mix well. Pour the thick batter into soaked earthen pots or individual bowls and cover with cling foil.

Refrigerate all the bows or earthen pots till Blackberry Firni is set. Garnish each Firni pot with crushed nuts or silver varak.

Scoop a little fruit preserve and add in the serving glass before pouring the Firni batter to set. Light on stomach and easy to make, Firni is such a delightful dessert to indulge in summer.

Notes;

1. Basmati rice gives a wonderful flavor to the Firni, you could replace it with any other rice in the recipe.
2. Normally Firni is set in earthen post which helps in absorbing excess liquid from the Frini and thereby making it more thicker.
3. Use any fruit jam or preserve of your choice in the blackberry Firni recipe.
4. Fruits such as Mango, Chikoo, pineapple, banana and apple make delicious Firni.
5. Replace half of milk with cream or condensed milk to get a thicker and scrumptious Firni.

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“So you are a housewife and you blog at your free time, lucky you” I am still trying to figure out what the young blogger wanted to convey when we met in a blogger meet recently. Am I lucky because I am a housewife, a blogger or because I have extra free time?

To me ‘Time’ is a luxury if you are bound with responsibilities and also have a passion to follow. I feel that only the achievers know the secrets of how to tame this elusive element of life called ‘Time’ and make the most out of both the worlds.

I was at loggerheads with time twenty years back when I stayed alone in Delhi and was neck deep into corporate world. My day would start at 6 in morning with cooking and packing my lunch box, catching a bus, digging into fat files, deadlines and coming back again to make a quick dinner before I could go to sleep. But even then a few minutes every night were dedicated to my passion for sketching and drawing, come what may.

Now that I am a stay-at-home-mom, I still juggle with ‘time’…probably more now, what with the age catching up and the ever increasing circumference of my passions to follow.

Responsibilities, passion, busy work life apart, there is always time for cooking, family & friends.

There was a simple and cozy dinner party last weekend with two families at home. For the diet conscious couples the typical party recipes with loads of cream and cashew gravies were avoided. These two dishes Kadai vegetables with Tofu and Spicy Sweet corn curries were accompanied with a light veggie pilaf, Indian flat breads and a fruity Firni.

Ingredients;

(serve 3)

• 2 cups sweet corn kernel
• 1/2 cup coconut milk
• 1 onion
• 2 tbsp. vegetable oil
• 2 green chilies
• 1 tsp. ginger-garlic paste
• 10 cashew nuts
• 1 tsp. lemon juice
• Salt as desired

Spices;

• 1 tbsp. dried fenugreek leaves
• 1 tsp. coriander powder
• 1/4 tsp. turmeric powder
• 2 cloves
• 2 cardamom pods
• 1/2 tsp. cumin seeds

Method; I used frozen sweet corn kernel and ready-to-use coconut milk in the recipe. You could use the fresh ones by scrapping the tender corncob with a knife and removing the kernel from it.

Peel and chop onion and grind it into a fine paste along with the cashew nuts ( grind 1/2 of fresh coconut if you are using the same for this recipe)

Heat a wok and add cumin seeds, cloves, cardamom pods and saute for a few seconds. Add chopped green chilies, ginger-garlic paste followed by onion-cashew nut paste, coriander powder, turmeric powder in the wok and let it cook for 5-6 minutes on medium heat.

Add coconut milk, sweet corn kernel, salt and dried fenugreek leaves (optional) and let it simmer for 3-4 minutes.

Remove from heat add lemon juice and garnish the dish with chopped coriander leaves. Serve this spicy Sweet Corn Curry with hot Indian fat breads, Naan or any rice recipes of your choice.

Notes;

You can skip coconut milk in the recipe and add tomato to get a different flavor.

Use chopped baby corn pieces or whole tender corn on cob in the recipe.

Ingredients

(serve 3)

• 250 gms veggies
• 1 cup Tofu
• 2 onions
• 3 tomatoes
• 2 tbsp. oil
• 1 tbsp. ginger-garlic paste
• 1 tbsp. dried fenugreek leaves (optional)
• 1 tsp. lemon juice
• Salt as desired

Spices;

• 3 dry red chillies
• 1 tbsp. coriander seeds
• 1 tsp. cumin seeds
• 2 green cardamom pods
• 2 cloves
• 1 bay leaf

Method; Dry roast coriander and cumin seeds for a few minutes. Grind them coarsely with red chillies.

Wash and chop bell pepper (shimla mirch) into medium uneven pieces. Remove the tail ends from beans and cut them into 2 inch long pieces.

Slice Tofu into thin triangles or squares.

Peel and chop onion and grind it along with sliced tomatoes into coarse paste.

Heat 1 tbsp. oil in a flat pan, place all the Tofu slices in a layer and sauté it for a few minutes. Turn to other side and repeat the same.

Take out the Tofu slices carefully and place them on a plate lined with tissue paper.

Add 1 tbsp. oil in the same pan and increase the heat to max. Add chopped beans and let it cook for 2-3 minutes. Remove all the beans from the pan and add diced bell pepper pieces in it. Sauté the bell peppers for 1-2 minutes on high heat.

Take a large Kadai or wok and pour 1 tbsp. oil in it, add cardamom pods, cloves, bay leaf followed by ginger-garlic and onion-tomato paste in it. Let the spices and it cook for 5-6 minutes till the moisture from the paste is reduced to half.

Add coarsely ground coriander, red chillies and cumin powder, salt, dried fenugreek powder (Kasuri methi) and stir to mix in all the spices in the Kadai.

Add sautéed vegetables and Tofu in the kadai and gently stir in to coat the spices well.

Garnish with fresh coriander leaves and serve  Kadai Vegetables with Tofu and Spicy Sweet Corn with hot Indian flat breads or a platter of plain Basmati rice.

Notes;

1. Add Tofu slices in the last as these are very soft and might break easily.
2. Replace Cottage cheese or Paneer cubes with Tofu for a scrumptious Kadai paneer recipe.
3. The green beans used in the recipe should be very tender and soft.
4. You can avoid onion-tomato paste in the recipe to get another variation of the same recipe which will be slightly dry and makes a delicious starter or appetizer when served with toothpicks for your parties.
5. Make sure the veggies remain crisp and are not overcooked to get the crunchy bites.

PS; To those who mailed me for not keeping the food directly on the wooden plank. I respect your concern. Food shot in the similar manner is to make the pictures look more appealing. The food is neither wasted nor eaten by us after the shoot.

There are many happy onlookers waiting eagerly & patiently for my photo shoot to get over before they could snatch the food and devour…yes, my pet dog Bingo and my few winged friends in the balcony
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I don’t know to roll a perfect Sushi and I get cold feet when I bake Macaroon and probably will never be able to appreciate a glass of wine alongside my dinner plate…but still, cooking to me is a way to unwind. I am in my most happiest of moods when in kitchen, cooking for family and friends.

Did I hear ‘Old school’?  I accept it with pleasure

Are you on Facebook and do you remember how many FB groups you are a member of? The emerging trend among the bloggers (read food bloggers) to start a group on Facebook has reached its peak. I have lost the number of counts of such groups I am in, few of them by choice and mostly others by force. Though I am not a regular on FB but it becomes a pain to go through hundreds of notifications from these groups every time that I log in.

I try to mute the notifications as soon as someone adds me to xyz group on FB except a few and CBC is one such group.

I was added to this group by Charan Sarvanan a versatile blogger and a treasured friend now. Back then I ignored this group on the pretext of  just another FB group where bloggers drop in to give a shout out for their new blog posts or share the pictures of their cats.

But to my surprise, this small group has emerged as the most active, focused and close-knit family of bloggers from Chennai on Facebook. I have been to a couple of CBC meets and with every meet and interaction with the bloggers my appreciation has increased manifold for the group and its activities.

I could feel the energy and positive vibes whenever I attended the CBC meets. The dedication and responsibility with which this lovely admin & blogger Susan Deborah keeps everybody engaged is unmatched.

And with the multifaceted bloggers in the group writing on subjects as varied as politics, social causes, music, humor, technology, photography, architect, history, food, travel, philosophy to poems…I would love to see CBC to be a strong force of Indian bloggers to reckon with in the years to come.

Pic courtesy CBC

The cheerful group of bloggers I met in my very first CBC meet last year.

Pic courtesy CBC

Some food, fun and lovely bloggers….

Pic courtesy CBC

The latest CBC meet at Zha cafe with a very thoughtful agenda of ‘Book Sharing’ …of course there was food, laughter, songs, poetry and story telling too.

Goodies for the blogger friends….

Well, coming back to the boxes of goodies in the picture, these were baked a few weeks back for a bunch of young, energetic and creative friends for a group on Facebook I am part of. Here is what I baked, Cocoa Brownies & coffee cake and shared with all the CBC friends in a recent meet at Zha cafe.

Check the recipes for Coffee cake and Cocoa Brownies on my other blog.

This healthy snack of roasted fresh tender green beans was on the dinner table with a large vegetable Pizza I packed for children while returning back from the CBC meet in the evening.

Roasted Green Beans

Ingredients;

(serve 2)

• 250 gms fresh tender green beans
• 2 tbsp. toasted sesame seeds
• 2 tbsp. Olive oil/sesame oil
• 1 tsp crushed black pepper powder
• 1 tsp. lemon juice
• Salt as desired
• Water to boil beans

Method; Bring 2 cups of water to boil. Cut the tail ends of the fresh beans and snap them into two.

Add the beans in boiling water, cover with a tight lid and cook for 2 minutes. Drain the beans and put them in cold water.

Heat oil in a wok or a large shallow pan, add beans and stir fry for just 2 minutes on medium heat.

Add lemon juice, sprinkle sesame seeds (Til), salt, black pepper powder (Kali mirch) and toss the beans to coat well with all the ingredients.

Roasting; Pre heat oven to 230°C, line a baking tray with parchment paper or just coat the tray with vegetable oil.

In a large bowl toss all the ingredients together.Arrange the beans evenly on the grease baking tray ad roast for 15-20 minutes. Transfer the roasted beans in a serving bowl, drizzle the lemon juice and serve.

Notes;

1. The beans should be very tender and fresh for this recipe, as the cooking time is very less. If the green beans you use are hard then it will not cook properly and will be chewy and not crunchy after cooking.
2. You can add chilly flakes, garlic or even dried herbs of your choice for this recipe.
3. To store the beans for future use, freeze the beans immediately after dipping in the cold water, packed in a zip lock bag.
4. Roasted and crushed peanuts is a good variation in the recipe.

I am not good at writing but could just about manage to scribble a few lines about the food I cook & photograph for this blog.  I am more comfortable with an empty canvas, a paint brush and colors to express my thoughts.

But this group has certainly made me realize the mighty powers of pen and to think about writing beyond ‘food’.
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World is celebrating International Women’s day today. Hmm…Is a single day enough to celebrate womanhood? May be, who cares…

With the prevalence of domestic violence, sexual harassment, dowry deaths and many other forms of repression against women, I doubt if we really need even that one day to celebrate our so called ‘freedom’.

A lot has been written & talked about gender issues, and I know that the messages may not reach to even a fraction of those who are involved in such heinous crimes. The root cause of such acts could be many, to me lack of education and sensitivity towards women are the two most important factors.

Why can’t some people stop looking at the world from under the belt, there is more to life….Huh.

To me it may not be feasible to fight for these social stigmas and oppression against women at the macro level but I am doing my bit at micro level by enforcing right values in my teen aged son.

And one of the lessons is to appreciate and respect the women in his life, mother, sister, grand-mom  aunts, female friends… I hope that he grows into a mature individual tomorrow who is also sensitive towards prevailing gender issues.

Coming to the post and a recipe, its just a co-incidence that I am writing about women in my life on this day….

For the blessings bestowed on me…some countable, seen and told and some uncountable, unseen and untold…one life is not enough to acknowledge all the women in my life.

Two of the beautiful women who made a significant difference in my life are my mom and my mother-in-law.

Listing out the blessings here will belittle their deeds but there are a few I could not resist to share.

Mom

Of all the values in life the most important that my mom gave me is the ‘strong sense of self’ and to firmly ‘believe in yourself’. Seventy plus, staying alone and still going strong, she  manages all household works by herself, goes out to pay her bills, buy medicines, vegetables and engage herself in gardening and knitting during her free time. Apart from my encyclopedia of authentic recipes she is also a picture of positive self-image I get my inner strength from.

With MIL and FIL..decked up in traditional attire to seek blessings from our family God near a village.

After the initial resistance to inter state marriage we now gel together like ice in water. Yes, she is my mother-in-law, who patiently taught me the Tam Brahm ways of living, traditions, rituas and cooking over time and gently took me under her wings.

I feel a sense of pride in writing it openly that we have been together for the last 17 years and there has been not a single moment of misunderstanding or unwanted arguments between both of us. Sounds unreal even to my ears

If she gives me space to do things I love, I give her the liberty & right to question me at any time.

Here is one of the recipes she taught me when I first visited my MIL – Peppercorn-cumin Soup or Milagu-Jeragam Rasam as called in Tamil.

Peppercorn-cumin Soup Aka  Milagu-Jeragam Rasam

Ingredients;

• 2 tbsp. split pigeon peas or Toor dal
• 1 large tomato
• Lemon size ball of tamarind
• 1 tsp. lemon juice
• Salt as desired
• A pinch of asafoetida powder
• Coriander or curry leaves to garnish

Spices

• 2 tsp. cumin seeds
• 2 tsp. black peppercorns
• 1 tsp. coriander seeds
• 1/4 tsp. turmeric powder
• 1/2 tsp. mustard seeds
• 2 tsp. oil

Method; Wash and finely chop tomato. Dry roast cumin seeds (jeera), black peppercorns (kali mirch) and coriander for 5-6 minutes on medium heat. Make sure that the seeds do not get over roasted. You can make a large batch of the same powder and store in an airtight container for future use.

Wash and cook pigeon peas with turmeric in a pressure cooker till done. Cool the cooker and mash the lentil with a ladle.

Soak tamarind in a cup of warm water for 10 minutes and extract juice. Discard the pulp and add 3 more cups pf plain water in it.

Add chopped tomatoes and asafoetida powder (hing) in the tamarind extract and bring it to boil and let it cook for 15 minutes.

Pour boiled and mashed lentil mixture in it and add salt, cumin-black peppercorn-coriander powder and let it simmer for just about 2-3 minutes.

Heat oil in a small wok and crackle mustard seeds for tempering.

Take off the lentil soup or Rasam from the flame and add the tempering, 1 tsp. lemon juice and garnish with coriander leaves or curry leaves.

Serve the Rasam or warm peppercorn lentil soup with plain rice or as an appetizer.

Notes;

1. Add 3-4 cloves of garlic while boiling the water for making the soup.
2. You can avoid adding lentils or boiled pigeon peas in the recipe and still get a warm and refreshing soup.

Though a little late but am glad that I came out of the veil of a daughter, a wife and a mother to appreciate in broader perspective, the most precious gift of God – womanhood!

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‘It’s the simple things in life that are the most extraordinary.’ Paulo Coelho.  Life is harder when you complicate the simple things and my cooking follows suit to a greater extent. Most of the days I prefer dishes which need less time to cook, have fewer ingredients and still retain the freshness & nutrient quotient intact. These simple recipes are a perfect antidote for those busy days when you are hard pressed for time and need something healthy and filling which can be thrown in just minutes.

This warm Chickpea and Veggie Salad falls in the same category. I defer to call this recipe just a simple salad, with Olive oil, mixed veggies, bread croutons, herbs, spices and protein packed chickpeas, this recipe makes a complete meal in itself. I could happily start and end my breakfast, lunch and dinner with a bowl of this chickpea and veggie salad.

A similar version of this warm Chickpea salad called Sundal is quite popular in South India, garnished with desiccated coconut it is served as a healthy snack.  There is one another recipe using chickpeas here which has become a hot favorite in my family. I keep changing and experimenting with garnish and the herbs according to my taste.

1. Dill & Lemon Chickpea Salad 

Ingredients;

• 2 cups boiled chickpeas
• 2 tbsp chopped Dill leaves
• 2 green chilly
• 1 tbsp. Olive oil
• Juice of 1 lemon
• Salt as desired

Spices

• 1/2 tsp black pepper powder
• 1/2 tsp roasted cumin seed powder
• A pinch of sugar

Method;  Soak Chickpeas (Kabuli channa) overnight or for 6-7 hours in warm water. Drain the liquid and boil the chickpeas till thy are tender and crunchy but not mushy. If you are using a pressure cooker, three whistles should be enough to cook it perfectly.

Wash and shred Dill leaves.

Heat oil in a pan add chopped green chilly, boiled chickpeas and saute for 3-4 minutes.

Take off heat, add rest of the spices, lemon juice and shredded Dill leaves and serve as an accompaniment with rice or bread.

2.  Lemony Chickpea and veggie Salad

Ingredients;

• 2 cups boiled chickpeas
• 1 small onion
• 2 tomatoes
• 1 boiled potato
• 2 cloves garlic
• 2 tbsp chopped Dill leaves
• 2 green chilly
• 1 tbsp. Olive oil
• Juice of 1 lemon
• Salt as desired
• Handful of bread croutons (optional)

Spices

• 1/2 tsp chili flakes
• 1/2 tsp black pepper powder
• 1/2 tsp roasted cumin seed powder
• A pinch of sugar

Method; Soak Chickpeas overnight or for 6-7 hours in warm water. Drain the liquid and boil the chickpeas till thy are tender and crunchy but not mushy. If you are using a pressure cooker, three whistles should be enough to cook it perfectly.

Peel onion & garlic and chop finely. Boil potato and dice into cubes. Chop tomatoes and the green chilly. Wash and shred Dill leaves.

Make bread croutons by baking cubes of breads in an oven or by shallow frying in oil.

Heat oil in a pan add chopped garlic, green chilly, onion and cook for a few minutes on medium heat. Add boiled chickpeas and saute for 3-4 minutes.

Toss in the chopped tomatoes, Dill leaves, and rest of the spices. Add bread croutons just before serving the chickpea salad.

Serve the warm Lemony Chickpea salad as an accompaniment to Biryani, Brown rice, or with any bread or your choice.

Notes;

1. The recipe could be adapted with herbs of your choice. Cilantro (coriander eaves), Parsley and even baby Spinach goes well with the recipe.
2. You could avoid garlic in the recipe and add cumin powder for extra flavor.
3. Dill is called Suva in Hindi, it has an acquired taste which many may not appreciate, you could switch to herb of your choice.
4. Veggies and the bread croutons added in the 2^nd recipe makes it a complete meal in itself.
5. Do not avoid Olive oil in the recipe for best results, you could use sesame oil which also gives good flavor.

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‘ If you truly love Nature, you will find beauty everywhere‘. ~ Van Gogh.  Early morning walk with my hubby is one activity I eagerly look forward to each day. Its a wonderful time I see some of the miracles of nature unfold as we walk along the narrow lanes and parks nearby.

The dim sky, the fresh morning air, quietness and the gentle pace of life is so enchanting.  The thumping of joggers zipping across, symphony of chirping birds, cling-cling of the milkman and the newspaper boys on cycle break the silence of nearly empty roads.

I have started appreciating these simple and small beauties of nature more and more after my new found love for photography. During one such walks I picked a few colorful leaves dressed in morning dew.

I had the ingredients for Broccoli patties ready in refrigerator for breakfast and made the patties. I quickly took one of the leaves I brought from my morning walk, washed it thoroughly, placed a few patties and clicked.

No fancy props here…doesn’t it look good?

Ingredients;

(make 12 patties)

• 1 cup grated Broccoli
• 1 boiled potato
• 2 fresh bread slices
• 2 tbsp. crushed groundnuts
• 1 small onion
• 1 green chilly
•  1/2 tsp. Black pepper powder
• Salt as desired
• Oil to shallow fry

Method; Pluck small florets from the broccoli wash and wipe with a kitchen napkin. Grate each floret with a grater. Boil and mash the potato.

Remove the crust from the bread slices and crumble them coarsely by hand.

Peel and chop onion very finely and dice the green chilly. Use roasted groundnuts for better taste and texture.

Take a large bowl and add grated broccoli, mashed potatoes and rest of the ingredients except oil. Mix to bring all the ingredients into together to make a soft dough.

Pinch a small portion from the dough and roll into a ball, flatten it slightly and repeat the same to make all the patties.

Heat a griddle and place a few Patties on it, drizzle a little oil around each patty and let it cook for 5-6 minutes on medium heat. Flip the patties and do the same to the other side also till they become golden brown and crisp from outside.

Serve these healthy snacks of Broccoli Patties with tea or as a perfect party appetizer. Serve these with green coriander or mint chutney, tomato sauce or yogurt raita.

These spicy patties is a wonderful way to include the powerhouse of nutrients - Broccoli to your diet. Adding crushed groundnuts to the recipe is my mom’s idea and I like the crunch-crunch in every bite it gives.

Notes;

1. Add grated cheese inside the patties for a kid friendly version.
2. Replace sweet potatoes with potatoes.
3. Use cauliflower, grated carrots, cabbage or beet to make these patties.
4. You could coat the patties in dried bread crumbs and shallow fry or even deep fry them in oil.
5. Avoid groundnuts if you have nut allergy.
6. Use these Broccoli patties to make burgers.

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