TONGUE TICKLERS......

Chane ki dal OR Bengal gram lentils sauce

sunshinemomsblog@gmail.com (Sunshinemom) — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 20:07:45 PST

I was away this weekend to attend a cousin's wedding which is the reason for my late acknowledgments to your mails. We had a blast even though I could not move around much due to the accident I had told you about last time. It was fun meeting up my parents, aunts, uncles and cousins after a long time. I also enjoyed dressing up and photographing them, especially the bride and her groom. She looked resplendent in her ghagra, coordinated jewellery and the glow of happiness that is special to a bride and he looked every inch her handsome prince in his sherwani-dhoti ensemble complemented by traditional jootis! To add to the excitement that December started with, my sister and brother-in-law are coming down with their two year old baby boy soon. This is going to be a fun month:). Before I get carried away any further here we go straight to another simple and tasty recipe that is a family favourite! I need a strong dose of protein to keep up the energy levels this month:D.

It's an Indian home so we can't help having dal almost twice a week. Blame it on the taste but I just cannot do without my daily bowlful of lentils. Isn't it good that something so tasty on the palette also builds your bones at the same time! On days I don't make dal we have rasam with a protein packed veggie. Dals can never be boring as we have a wide variety of pulses and beans in India, all thanks to our tropical climate. We use tuvar dal (pigeon peas), moong dal (mung beans), saboot moong (whole mung), masoor dal (pink or orange lentils), whole masoor and chana dal (bengal gram) on a regular basis. The basic procedure is the same for preparation for any dal but each has its unique flavour and taste.

Amongst my favourite lentils is bengal gram or chana dal for its rich, nutty flavour and bright colour. For those who are afraid of the gas it causes follow this very simple procedure my friend (a nutritionist) suggested to me. Soak the lentils for half an hour in hot water, rinse and drain the water. Do this once or twice more and then cook as usual. You will also find that it cooks faster which is great as it saves fuel, time and indirectly helps you to keep the planet working great. Add minced ginger and garlic and a pinch of asafoetida(hing) if you want to be doubly sure about your health.

Dish: Chane ki dal / Masala chana dal / Bengal gram lentil sauce
Level: Simple
Time taken: 1/2 hour including time to cook the lentils

Ingredients:
Bengal gram / chana dal - 200g
(Soaked and rinsed twice as explained above and then pressure cooked to 3 whistles without salt or turmeric)
Onions (Chopped fine) - 1/2 cup
Tomatoes (Chopped fine) - 1/2 cup
Garlic (Minced) - 4 one head garlics or 4 cloves of a garlic
Ginger - 1" minched
Green chillis - 2 minced
Salt, chilli powder and turmeric as per taste

Seasoning:
Mustard oil / Kachhi ghani - 2 tbsp.
Cumin seeds / jeera - 1 tsp.
Asafoetida / hing - 1/4 tsp. or a pinch
Curry leaves / kadi patta - 1 sprig (optinal)

Garnishing:
A wedge of lime, sticks of ginger and coriander leaves

Method:
Mash the dal slightly till it comes to a rough texture after keeping aside 1 cup. Now mix the two together.

Heat oil in a wok till smoking hot. Cool to room temperature and then heat again for preparing the tempering. Add cumin seeds followed by asafoetida and curry leaves. Add minced garlic, ginger and green chillies and saute till the garlic turns golden brown.

Now add onions and saute till pink followed by tomatoes. Add a pinch of salt and close the wok letting the tomatoes cook and sweat out their juices for about two minutes. Add turmeric and chilli powders at this this stage as desired.

Remove the lid and add the roughly mashed pulses. Mix well and adjust consistency by adding at least 2-3 cups of water. Bengal gram dal tends to thicken more than other pulses so you may get liberal with the water if you need to serve it later. Adjust salt, squeeze a dash of lime if desired, garnish and serve hot with phulkas or rice.

Try the mustard oil and notice the difference. It adds zest and flavour!

This dal is my submission to Susan's MLLA. The eighteenth edition is being hosted by dear friend Srivallli of Cooking 4 All Seasons.

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December is seeing lots of stuff going on in blogosphere:

Srivalli of Cooking 4 All Seasons has come up with an e-book titled "Flavours from South Indian Kitchen from Cooking 4 all Seasons". Congratulations, Valli and looking forward to more from you!

Many of my favourite bloggers have been nominated in various categories for the best of Indibloggers. Do check and vote. I have cast mine. It also introduced me to many wonderful bloggers of whom I had no idea!

Fresh corn and alfalfa salad

sunshinemomsblog@gmail.com (Sunshinemom) — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 19:35:20 PST

I debated whether I should post this salad. Salads are so easy to assemble that it seems too much to give it a post but the pictures scream 'Spring' and it seemed so right for those of you who are experiencing the Winter chill. Just a fistful of alfalfa sprouts give it an extra dimension adding juice and water in every bite.

There isn't much of a recipe. Shell fresh sweet corns off the cob and steam with a pinch of salt till tender. This should not take more than five to ten minutes for about 200g of corns. Remove, cool to room temperature and place in a wide mixing bowl. Add halved cherry tomatoes (about 5), tender parsley or mint leaves, a dash of fresh ground pepper (I am heavy on this one), a pinch of dry oregano and salt. Squeeze half a lime (1/2tsp.), throw in a fistful of alfalfa sprouts and give it a good toss.

Serve and watch it disappear! Thane is famous for fresh corn and we make full use of the availability. My children take this quite often for 'short break' as it is nutritious and has enough carbs to get them through to 'long break':). My daughter puts this together in the evenings too when the two of them really feel like they need something before Mum comes home to cook dinner!

First Holiday Bake - Vegan Light Fruit Cake

sunshinemomsblog@gmail.com (Sunshinemom) — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 08:10:08 PST

Vegan Light Fruit Christmas Cake - Recipe by Harini P

Today my sister turns a year older (I am not giving away her age here lest I am beaten up the next time we meet!). I wish I could share this cake with her but then I can't, so better still - I am just having another piece in her name! Some things will never change. Here's a recap through the years.

We are three of us. My sister P, is older than I am. It always showed in her responsible acts and me being the younger one showed up too:). I remember when I was 9 and she 11. Our school was a good 8kms. from home and we used to travel by the school bus. Once it rained heavily and the school closed in two hours. We missed the bus for some reason. She and I had to walk all the way home. When we reached the gate my mother got a shock because P was carrying two bags and trudging home whereas I was skipping along behind with two empty water bottles - isn't that some deal? Now, don't you take her to be all goody-goody. The very next scene I take you to will tell you what I mean. We had long hair reaching upto our knees and these were worn in two tight plaits. When we got into a fight it was pretty nasty. I remember twirling around the room, the two of us holding the other's plait and pulling it along. We gave our parents quite a remarkable training in parenting and were rightly awarded the title 'mongoose and snake' by a few aunts who thought their children were better brought up (but we knew they were like us too - only more discreet!). Growing up into fine(?) young ladies was another experience altogether. She decided our heroes and I would faithfully follow suite fighting over the same idol (and they never even knew we existed!). She had to endure my painful nagging when her friends showed up and I never gave up being the sweet sister when they were around. We hated sharing our rooms and cupboards until she stayed back for her studies while we moved on. We never speak of it but I think she knew that the empty spaces she created were never filled. With my younger sister it was a different relationship as she is a whole generation behind me and we grew closer only as she came up to high school which was much later. Now the age gap is bridged with all of us beyond 30! We meet up every year and have a great time. We bring books brought over the year and exchange them when we meet. We sing together like we used to sing when we were kids (me doing the male vocals, she the female and the younger one joining in the 'chorus'). There is something about sisters that cannot be replicated in any other relationship. We hardly have time to remember the good things as the naughty stuff is still going on, and when we meet we are still the 'powerpuff girls'. Our daughters gang up together and try titling us 'the three little (big) pigs', but the wolves on the prowl just shut them up:).

Have a big bite of this cake and don't you forget to sing the 'happy birthday song' for my sister!

The cake is not the soft and porous kind served on birthdays nor does it have cream but I would rather have a firm teacake any day than a creamy one. It is full of flavours - of cinnamon, apple and guava. The dry fruits mulled in apple juice give a great taste in every bite. It makes a good option for vegan Christmas cakes especially if you are in favour of healthy, vegan desserts. This time I used coconut oil instead of vegan butter and all purpose flour instead of my preferred combination of whole wheat pastry flour, APF and corn flour.

Dish: Vegan Light Fruit Cake
Source: Recipe developed by Harini P
Yield: Makes 16 squares (nearly 2 inches each)

Ingredients:

For the marinated fruit:
Packaged apple juice (I used Real) - 1/2 cup
2 tbsps each of kismis, black raisins, chopped almonds, chopped pistachios, chopped walnuts and chopped apricots.
1 stick cinnamon and 1 petal of star anise.
In a bowl mix the above together and place in the refrigerator for two to five days before making the cake. This will allow the flavours to be drawn into the juice and the fruit. You may add fruits of your choice. These were readily available with me.

For the cake:
Ingredients:
All purpose flour - 2 cups
Baking powder - 2tsps.
Salt - 1/8tsp.
Coconut oil - 3/4 cup
Pulp removed from two large, ripe guavas after deseeding
Sugar - 3/4 cup (More if you have a sweet tooth)
Soy milk - 1/2 cup (1/4 cup extra if needed)

Method:

Prepare a square 8" tin. I used non-stick but greased and floured all the same!

Pre-heat oven to 180 deg. Cel. or 350 deg. F.

De-seed the ripe guavas before removing the pulp and place in a mixer/blender alongwith coconut oil and sugar else the seeds will prove irritating. Blend till smooth. It should now yield about 400g of mixture. Set aside.

Stir the baking powder into the flour and add salt. Place all three in a big container. Close and give it a good shake to aerate the flour and mix them uniformly. I read this in some blog long back and it always works. Transfer into a large mixing bowl.

Add the fruits and residual juice if any into the flour and stir till evenly distributed and well coated. Now add the guava butter and stir well. Add the soy milk and stir further till you get a thick batter. It will be sticky, not flowing.

Pour into the prepared tin and smoothen adding a tbsp. of extra soymilk, with your fingers. The surface will not be very smooth as the dough isn't of pourable consistency.

Bake in the center of the oven for about 35 to 40minutes till the top is golden brown. It may crack on the surface a little which is fine.

Cool for about 10 minutes before removing as it is crumbly while still hot and will firm as it cools. Serve with a drizzle of maple syrup or a dusting of fine sugar. Best eaten a day later as the flavours draw out well.

I used guava only because my husband brought many of these and they were ripening at a very fast pace. The guava flavor really smells nice and it is the first time I have had a dessert with them! Soft, fleshy pears should make a good alternative, I guess.

The cake will not rise too much. The finished cake itself is just over an inch high, but it is moist thanks to all the juice in it! A drizzle of maple syrup renders it even better.

Happy Birthday, P!