Bajji - Vegetable Fritters

Dear Foodies,

The festive season has begun for some Hindu's with the onset of Sravana masam last Wednesday. My parents are here visiting and I get to experience firsthand again the various puja's and neivedyam that I very vividly remember from when I was home. The unmistakable aroma of ghee and cardamom from the kitchen, incense from the puja room, the melodious voice of M.S. Subbalakshmi or Sudha Ragunathan playing in the background and the whole house buzzing with energy. The entrance would have been decked with a fresh muggu (rangoli) and thoranam. Fresh flowers adorn the altar and all puja samagri cleaned and ready to go. I've tried my best to recreate these from memory in the last few years but its never the same. Having mom here has brought that all back. I've slipped naturally into my post as assistant along with my Dad.

Today is Garuda panchami, a puja performed by sisters for the well-being of their brothers. It is a special pooja in our home for both my mom and me - she has four brothers and I have one. This also signifies the start of a string of auspicious days for the season - Varalaksmi vratam is on Friday, followed soon by Avani avittam (Jandhayala pandaga/Rakhi), Janmashtami, Vinayaka Chavithi, Dasara and then Diwali.

Clockwise - peppers, green tomatoes, eggplant, potatoes

For a foodie though, all these festive occasions have one other important thing at their core - neivedyam. Each puja has its own set of customary dishes that make it special. Kozhakattai for one, kesari for another or bobatlu. But no special Andhra (/Telangana ugh) meal is complete with out bajji - fritters. Usually its thinly sliced potatoes dipped in a mildly spiced besan/chickpea batter and deep fried to puffy, golden deliciousness. Using just pantry essentials, these take no more than 15 mins, with prep time taking just as long as it takes for the oil to come to temperature. So no surprise then that these were perfect snack to offer to unexpected guests.

On Saturday, we spent all morning at Suzie's farm picking fabulous summer produce. We now have close to 10 varieties of peppers, lots of sun ripened tomatoes, beets, kale, chard, eggplant and squash. With all this fresh produce in hand we had no reason to stick to traditional potato alone. Instead we made a bajji sampler plate using sliced eggplant, padron peppers, unripe green tomatoes and potatoes. Onions are also great for bajji but since this was going to be offered as neivedyam we skipped it.

Bajji - Fritters with Potatoes, Brinjal, Green Tomatoes and Peppers 

Prep time: 15 mins

Cook time: 15 mins

Ingredients:

• 1 cup - Besan/Chickpea flour
• 1/4 cup - Rice flour
• 1/2 tsp - Ghee or 1 tsp - Curd or 1 tsp - Rava/Semolina
• 1/8 tsp - Turmeric
• 1/4 tsp - Red chilli powder (adjust to taste)
• 1/8 tsp - Ajwain (whole or roasted & powdered)
• a pinch of Hing/Asafoetida
• Salt to taste (~1/2 tsp)
• Water, for batter
• Oil for deep frying

Method:

1. Prep veggies first - Scrub potatoes clean, wash all other veggies and pat dry. Peel potatoes if needed. Slice potatoes and eggplant thinly (1/8inch) by knife or using a mandoline. Cut stem end of peppers, de-seed and slice into discs. Green tomatoes sliced a little thicker than the rest.
2. Heat about 1 inch of oil in a wide pan over medium heat.
3. For the batter, combine all dry ingredients first. To make the fritters crispy add either ghee, rava or curd in the amount suggested. Add water to get the batter to a thick yet pouring consistency as shown above.
4. Once the oil is hot (starts to shimmer and a small drop of batter falls to the bottom and rises up in a few seconds) dunk a few slices in batter and move them around to coat all sides. Pick up one slice at a time, allow excess batter drop, and gently slide it into the pan of oil from the side closest to you. Add a few more slices based on size of the pan making sure not to over crowd it.
5. Using a slotted spoon, gently move the slices around 1-2 times, gradually spooning a little oil over them. Once the bottom part looks cooked (~ 1 min) flip over and cook until both sides are golden. 
6. Transfer to a tissue lined plate for a few minutes to absorb excess oil. Move them to a serving plate or dish. They are great warm or at room temperature. Though they hardly need any accompaniments, a little Maggi sauce or mango avakaya on the side is wonderful.

Once you have the batter ready, you can experiment with almost all veggies. The tart green tomatoes were really good and so was the eggplant with a slight bitterness. Peppers (mirapakakya bajji) and potatoes (aloo bajji) hardly need any help in selling out. Cauliflower, cucumber, squash, spinach are all very good candidates. Last week we even saw someone on a cookery show dip rava kesari balls in this batter to make a hybrid snack! I may never go that far and plan to stick to just veggies.

We are busy making arrangements for Varalakshmi Vratam now and I hope to write another post this week about ourpreparations. My mom's Kozhakattai recipe now has new photos from today.

Cherry & Peach Crumble

Dear foodies,

The summer heat hasn't come to see us this year, but the fruits haven't been as mean to us. Strawberries, blueberries, pineapples, mango, cherries, peaches & nectarines have made their way into my kitchen. Eaten as is or cooked up in jams, compotes, cakes and muffins, I tried to enjoy the bounty as much as I could. Sometime I ended up being greedy and bought more than I could eat. A few sadly made they way into the bin, but the rest became gifts to friends :)

Cherries troubled me the most by going bad really fast, theres only so many I could eat in 2 days! So this time I made a quick and incredibly good dessert called crumble. The first time I made this dessert was from Sug's blog, last year. I've made numerous variations since and have loved all of them. I called it a crisp, but its also very similar to a crumble, an English dessert made with apples or any stone fruit. The original has a butter laden topping made with all purpose flour and sugar. I changed things up based on the crisp I've been making and turned it into a much more tasty and healthier dish.

make-shift cherry pitter - oil bottle lid

Pitting cherries can be a task you would wish you could avoid. There are some fancy gadgets that you could buy to help you out, but you could find similar stuff right in your kitchen. I used the lid of an oil bottle, you could also use a sturdy straw with a wide enough opening I guess. The hole was the perfect size and it was fun pitting cherries this way :D

Cherry & Peach Crumble

Ingredients: fills a 6-inch square dish

• 3/4th cup - Sweet Cherries, pitted & halved
• 3/4th cup - Peaches, cut in chunks
• 1/2 tsp - Cornstarch (or all purpose flour)
• 1/2 Tbsp - Sugar
• 1 Tsp - Lemon juice
  

crumb topping

• 1/4th cup - Pistachios
• 1/3rd cup - Rolled oats
• 1 Tbsp - Whole wheat flour
• 11/2 Tbsp - light, Brown sugar
• 1 Tbsp - Olive oil
  
• a pinch of salt (skip this if the nuts are salted)

Method:

1. Combine the first 5 ingredients and allow to sit for 20-30mins. Pre-heat the oven to 375F.
2. For the topping, coarsely powder the pistachio's and oats. Combine it with the whole wheat flour, sugar and olive oil to get a crumbly mixture.
3. Transfer the fruits along with the juices to the baking dish, top it uniformly with the crumble topping and bake for 20-25mins or until the juices start to bubble and the topping gets a brown shade.
4. Cool a bit and serve warm with a scoop of your favorite ice cream flavor or on it own :)

Note: Almost everything in this recipe is interchangeable. You can use any stone fruit, and switch pistachios with your choice of nuts. Jaggery or white sugar could be used as a sweetener. Add some vanilla essence or lemon/orange zest to the topping for another variation or some cardamom powder perhaps ?

This is a fabulous way to enjoy seasonal fruit when you get tired of eating them on their own. Not much work involved but the results are great. I sent this bowl to my neighbor and she called back as soon as she tasted it saying she wanted the recipe immediately. All the ingredients used in the topping are good for you, so anyone watching their diet can feel good about this one dessert atleast, don't count the ice-cream on the side though ;-)

I also made small cherry cakes following Deb's recipe for raspberry buttermilk cake. It turned out fab and the neighbor who got one of the cakes had compliments waiting for me when I met her next :) I skipped the eggs in the recipe and used flax seed powder instead.

The Cherry crumble if off to Vaishali who is celebrating British cuisine in It's a Vegan World July. She was kind to accept my last minute entry :) Simran is hosting AWED this month and has chosen British cuisine, so here's some for her too :) AWED also travels around the world each month and was initiated by DK. Thank you lovely ladies. Have a great week ahead all.

Brown rice Burrito bowl

Dear Foodies,

I cannot count the number of times I had a veggie burrito bowl from Chipotle during my Masters. The place was really close to the University, the food tasty and filling, at a good cost too. You can't beat that combo when you are looking for something quick and easy to fill you up. When it was not the burrito bowl, it was the veggie taco salad from the food court. Mexican food with its use of chilli peppers, rice and beans endears the Indian palate to it immediately. The familiarity of ingredients is what draws you in initially, but soon the flavors take over, and you realize you are hooked to it. I can love the cuisine just for their liberal use of coriander/cilantro leaves :D With the salsa's and dips you savor fruits and vegetables showcased in their freshest forms, and the rice and beans can be mixed together in various combinations that will keep you coming back for more.

A few weeks back I was craving a burrito bowl but I had a bad stomachache the last few times I order it outside. I wasn't sure what was causing it and was in no mood of experimenting on myself. So I headed to the grocery store instead and bought some ripe avocados and fragrant cilantro to make it at home. I used brown rice to make it more healthier and filling.

Brown rice Burrito Bowl

Brown Rice

• Cook about 1-2 cups of Brown rice ( or white, if you so choose)

Tomato Salsa

• 1 cup - ripe Tomatoes, diced
• 1/2 cup - Red onion, diced
• 1/4 cup - Cilantro
• 1 tsp - Jalapeno, minced
• 1/4 tsp - Garlic, minced
  
• Salt and lemon juice to taste

Combine all the ingredients in a bowl. Using a spoon slightly mash the tomaotes to release their juices. Cover and set aside for about 30mins to allow the flavors to blend.

Corn & black bean salsa

• 1 cup - Corn kernels, I used thawed, frozen corn
• 1/2 Cup - Black beans, again a shortcut, rinsed beans from a can
• 1/4 cup - Red onion, diced
• 1/4 cup - Cilantro
• 1/4 tsp - roasted Cumin powder
• 1/2 tsp - Jalapeño, minced
• Salt and lemon juice to taste

Combine all the ingredients in a bowl and check for seasonings. Set aside for about 30mins to allow the flavors to blend.

Guacamole

• 1 nos - ripe Avocado (The ripe ones are more brown in color and ever so slightly yield to pressure)
• 1/4 cup - Red onions, diced
• 1/2 tsp - Jalapeño, minced
• 1/4 tsp - Garlic, minced
• 1/4 cup - Cilantro, washed and roughly chopped
• juice of one lemon
• Salt to taste

Halve the avacado, de-seed and scoop the pulp with a spoon. Dice it into rough chunks and drizzle the lemon juice all over it to avoid discoloration. Add the rest of the ingredients and mix well. I mash some of the chunks with the spoon, retaining the rest. Taste and season to get the right balance.

Sautéed Bell pepper & Onions

• 1 cup - Red onion, sliced
• 3/4 cup - Green bell pepper, sliced length-wise
• Salt to taste
• 1/2 + 1/2 Tbsp - Olive oil

Use a skillet wide enough to hold the onions and peppers in the single layer. On medium heat, drizzle some olive oil and when hot, layer the onions and cook for 3-4 mins, toss and repeat until they start to brown and char around the edges. Salt them and set aside on a plate. Add the bell peppers next and saute until they soften and get a slight char as well. Salt and set aside.

Assembly
Once all the trimmings are done, grab a bowl and you are all set to create the burrito bowl. Add the rice first, top it with warm fajitas and the salsa's. You could also add some chopped lettuce and if you are not sticking to a vegan menu, add a dollop of sour cream. Sit back and enjoy your very Mexican delight.

Do I even need to say if I liked making and eating this dish!! It has just a Tbsp of oil used for sautéing the peppers, no cheese or sour cream and a whole grain in the form of brown rice. The rest are just an assortment of veggies, get started on your bowl soon :)

And if you have some of the salsa left and don't feel like eating a burrito bowl the next day, you do the most obvious thing, make bhel puri! :D Yes, the most perfect chaat. Heat about a tsp of oil in a pan, add some chilli powder, turmeric (for the gorgeous color) and some asafoetida. Toss in the puffed rice/murmura and roast for a few minutes to make them crisp. Combine together a spoon of pudina chutney & Maggi hot n sweet ketchup. Toss in the corn & bean salsa, tomato salsa, diced cucumber and the chutney along with the puffed rice. Garnish it with some aloo bhujia and enjoy a perfect bowl of bhel ready in minutes :) It has all the flavors you use in a traditional bhel, but in a slightly different package.

Off this goes to dear Vaishali, who is hosting 'Its a Vegan world: Mexican' this month. You can already find quite a few delicious Mexican creations springing up in the blogs. If you haven't joined the party yet, you have until the end of this month. I'll be your host next, so be sure to drop by next week :-)

Black eyed peas shorva

Dear foodies,

I have been drawn towards black eyed peas (alasandhalu/karaamani) offlate. Every time I open my pantry or pass by the canned food aisle in the grocery store it beckons me towards it. I've bought 3 cans of it in the past month. They have a very earthy, subtle flavor that endears them to me more than the regular chickpeas or kidney beans. They can take upon complex spices, like in the dish, or shine in a simple sundal preparation. I have been trying out different gravy combination's with them lately and think I hit the spot with this one. The flavor combo is exactly what I was looking for in all my past attempts. Sometimes you just have a weird image in your mind about how you want the dish to taste and feel, but its vague. Its not a recipe idea but just a teaser image, you know what I mean right ? Okay...I'll stop before you think I am crazy and head straight to the recipe. This dish so good and hearty that you would want to eat bowlfuls of it just by itself. The recipe might look long and daunting, but it uses ingredients most your pantries stock and isn't too tough to put together either...

Black eyed peas in spicy gravy/kurma

Ingredients:

Soak
• 2 Tbsp - dessicated Coconut
• 1 Tbsp - white Poppy seeds/khus khus
• 1 Tbsp - broken Cashew pieces
  
• 1/2 cup - Water
  

Dry Roast
• 1/2 tsp - Fennel seeds/saunf
• 1 tsp - Cumin seeds/jeera
• 1 Tbsp - Coriander seeds/dhania
• 1 inch piece - Cinnamon stick
• 4 nos - Cloves/laung
• 1 Tbsp - Sesame seeds/til/nuvvulu
• 1 nos - dry Red chilli

Saute
• 1 nos - big Garlic clove
• 1/2 cup - red Onions, cubed

Saute
• 1 Tbsp - Olive oil, divided
  
• 2 nos - Garlic cloves, lightly crushed
• 1/2 cup - red Onion, finely chopped
• 1 nos - medium size vine ripe tomato, finely chopped
  
• 1 tsp - Turmeric powder
• 1 tsp - Red chilli powder
• 1 tsp - Tamarind extract
  
• 1/3 cup - Water
• 1 can - Black eyed peas, washed & drained
• 1/4 tsp - Sugar
• Salt to taste

Method:

1. Warm 1/2 cup of water in the microwave and soak the first three ingredients for 15-20mins.
2. In a wok/skillet dry roast the next set of ingredients except the sesame seeds, on medium heat. When the spices are fragrant, add the sesame seeds and lower the heat. Keep a lid handy to trap the popping sesame seeds. Transfer to a plate and cool.
3. Add 1/2 Tbsp of olive oil to the pan and toast a lightly crushed clove of garlic. When it starts to brown add the cubed onions and saute until translucent. Add these to the 1st set of ingredients soaking in water. When cooled, grind them together with the whole spices into a smooth paste.
4. Add the rest of the oil to the skillet and saute the finely chopped onions and lightly crushed garlic cloves. When the onions turn translucent and begin to brown add the tomatoes and cook until they soften and loose shape, 4-5mins. Add the turmeric and red chilli powders too. (The turmeric adds a lovely, rich color)
5. Next carefully add the masala paste, tamarind extract and a little salt. If the paste is too thick it will begin to bubble violently in the pan so add 1/3 cup water. Cover with a lid and cook for about 8-10 mins on medium-low heat until the rawness is cooked out and oil starts to slightly separate. Stir at regular intervals as the masala tends to settle to the bottom and burn.
6. Wash and drain the canned beans and add it to the gravy (along with extra water if needed). Check for salt and a bit more if needed, the beans will soak up a little as they cook. Simmer for 8-10 more mins, stir in 1/4 tsp of sugar to balance out the flavors and check for seasonings.
7. Garnish with chopped coriander leaves, lemon wedges (slivered ginger might be good too) and serve hot with rice/roti/bread.

The moment the aroma of the masala paste hit my nose I knew I had it right this time. With the excuse of checking for seasonings I ate quite a few spoonfuls right from the wok. Ya wok, I bought a new one this week and have been cooking with it everyday even if the dish does not 'need' it :D. In one of my previous trails I added a little too much of fennel seeds and cinnamon, and that gave the whole dish a bitter background. Not appealing at all and masking it was tough too. I tried adding yogurt to mellow out the taste but that didn't work out so well. So this time I was very cautious and the result was a yummy dish.

This is a dish that is fit to be on the menu of a good restaurant. Its rich and creamy, spicy and not 'spicy hot'. Though it has 3 cloves of garlic on the whole, it does not taste too garlicky'. Two of those are only lightly crushed and add a mild flavor to the gravy. This dish has as much gravy as there are beans in it. It uses just a Tbsp of oil, but I wouldn't call it low fat cos of the first three ingredients, but you can surely indulge once in a while, right?

I had this with pita bread since I was lazy to make fresh rotis. I made 1/2 cup of rice y'day just so I could enjoy that combo too. It tasted even better the next day since the spices had a little longer to get to know each other. This is definitely on the list of my fav dishes now and I can't wait to take it to a potluck to show it off. How do you cook black eyed peas? I've heard they make good fritters/vada, need to bring out the appam pan for that to use up the third can :D

Winter oatmeal, made festive!

Dear foodies,

Now that I am back again, lets start form the top! All of you must already know that breakfast is your *most important* meal of the day, and unfortunately for me, the meal I dislike the most. After so many years, I am still not used to eating something that early in the day :( It was a little easier when I was at home with my mom cooking, cos her breakfast spreads were delicious. Idli's, dosa's, upma, chapati, bread and many more. But here its cereals most days, and it does not help that they are on the sweeter side. I hate waking up early too, so making something else in the morning is totally out of the question. So boringgg cereal it is, interspersed with apples/bread toast/cereal bars on a few days.

This worked well for the summer, but to have something cold during the freezing winter mornings is painful! So I switched to oatmeal, and not the instant kind that comes in sachets, it is old fashioned rolled oats, good gal naa :D The few times I cooked oatmeal in the past, it was on the stove top, but I chose to use the microwave in the morning to avoid having dishes to wash. The first few days, I used milk to cook the oats and that ended up with a very messy microwave from the milk spilling over. It took me a couple of days to make the switch to water, my brain needs some time to warm up in the mornings you see :D To increase the interestingness of the oatmeal I use honey(plain, orange blossom) or maple syrup as a sweetner, and usually stock dried fruits (blackberries, cherries or goji berries) and nuts (walnuts, almonds, pistacios), that I add to it based on my mood that morning.

This new strategy has been working for me the last few weeks. But with Thanksgiving fever in full throttle in this part of the world, even my oatmeal is not spared. Here is an interesting twist to make it special....

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup - old fashioned rolled oats
• 3/4 -1 cup - Apple cider
• 1/4 cup - milk/soy milk
• 1-2 Tbsp - honey/maple syrup
• 1 Tbsp - dried fruit/berries/nuts

Method:

1. Add the oats and apple cider to a microwave safe bowl and cook for 2 1/2 mins. The oats must be completely soaked in the cider, so add as needed.
2. The oats should now be a little mushy since they break open while cooked. Add the milk, your choice of sweetener and stir it in.
   
3. Top with dry fruits and enjoy! If its too hot for you, then step outside onto the patio and place the bowl on the closest mound of snow and watch it sink into the melting snow ;)

The apple cider gives the oatmeal an exquisite flavor! I've become a fan of warm apple cider recently, it has even replaced my cup of tea in the evenings. I did not know it could be warmed and my first can of apple cider did not move that quickly. A recent trip I made included an overnight stay in the Marriott and their breakfast table had a huge pot of apple cider slowly warming up, one sip and I was hooked.

Oatmeal is a really good breakfast option as they have complex carbs with fiber, protein, iron and minerals in them. When eaten regularly they help lower your cholesterol by removing LDL. It also helps reduce your risk for diabetes, high blood pressure and also is your friend for weight loss. But apart from all this, I think the most important fact is they are quick and delicious and keep you feeling full for a long time!

So whats your spin on oatmeal? And your favorite weekday breakfast? Please fill up this space with your ideas as I really really need them!

Chutneys, and more chutneys

Dear foodies,

Chutneys are one of my most favorite condiments in a meal and also one of the things I rarely seem to make! They can be spicy, tangy, nutty and just the perfect accompaniment to a multitude of dishes. From adorning your breakfast plates, to being part of a rice meal, chutneys are a delight to have enhancing the entire experience and sometimes spicing up an otherwise bland dish as well (idli or rice for instance). There is always a chutney/pachadi/thogayal served as part of a festive full course meal and it has its spot reserved on the banana leaf. They are also the answer to that lone vegetable sitting on your counter which will no be enough for a curry, but as a chutney, its just right.

I am at a loss over here though, since I only see cauliflowers, capsicum, cabbage, carrots, broccoli, beans at the stores and these are not typical chutney'able veggies, not in my mind. Ripe tomatoes are a favorite, but it takes a lot of time for it to cook down to a chutney. So you are forced to get creative and innovative with the veggies you find here - Like this one that uses the light green portions of a watermelon,

Ingredients:

• 3 cups - roughly cubed light green portion of watermelon, with the hard green exterior and red pulp carefully separated
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

• 1 tsp - Mustard seeds
• 1 tsp - Cumin seeds
• 1 Tbsp - Chana dal
• 1 Tbsp - Urad dal
• 3 nos - Dried red chillies
• 2 nos - Green chilies
• 1 Tbsp - Oil
• a pinch of asafoetida
• Salt to taste
Peanuts, Tamarind, coriander leaves (optional)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Method:

1. Heat oil in a cast iron pan, pop the mustard and cumin seeds, add the dals next and roast. As they start turning orange add the chillies and toast. Remove from heat when the dals turn a deep orange, add asafoetida and empty them to a plate, allowing them to cool.
2. To the same pan add the cubed melon skin and roast for 5-7 mins until it looses part of its moisture and starts to brown a little. Turn off the heat and cool to room temperature.
3. Pulse all the ingredients together in the blender, the melon peel will still have some water left in it so decide as you go on the amount of water needed to get the consistency you desire in the chutney. I prefer it slightly on the coarser side.
   

Check my remixed version here!

The ingredients listed between the two lines can be considered a standard set and just by substituting the melon peel for a another veggie you can create a new chutney.

Roast diced red bell peppers instead, until they char a little, skip the green chillies and add a couple of pieces of tamarind to make a mildly spicy, sweet and tangy chutney that will impress your taste-buds.

Using red tomatoes for a chutney is usual, but saute some chopped raw green tomatoes, add a few roasted peanuts, coriander leaves and you have yet another tantalizing chutney. Add some cubed onions while sauteing the tomatoes for a variation.

Chow chow or banglore vankaya, ridge gourd ( and its peels), roasted eggplant are other sought after chutney vegetables that come to my mind. Here are other chutneys I've made. Help me add to this list, how do you make your chutney ? Any veggies that you give an interesting spin too ?

Food for memories - Idli & Peanut chutney

Dear foodies,

While I was browsing through blog posts today, I landed on ISG's post where she linked to a video on Southern India and its food. The video is very well taken and the scenes immediately made me miss home deeply :( The kolams/muggu, the busy streets, family and neighbors dropping by and the food, aah, the food! And just like ISG sought to make a comfort meal to repair her mood, I did the same for myself. It was also 1' in the afternoon and I had just a cup of coffee in the morning! ~ the video zooms into the Shoba Narayan's father making filter coffee and I cannot tell how much I missed my mom's coffee watching that!

The video spends a good amount of time showing steaming idlis served with delicious coconut chutney and that was exactly what I wanted. I did not have any idli batter ( or insurance, as Shoba states in the video) and reached for the next best thing, Anita's instant gratification. I have made these idli's countless times since she posted the recipe. It has always been a hit and rescues me from my weekend comfort breakfast cravings. To go along with it I made some peanut chutney, the kind that has everything that I could throw into the blender, everything that I like, I know this rule does not apply to all dishes, but it worked here :) Oddly, peanut chutney, an Andhra specialty, was not something that I grew up with, it was only after I came here for my MS that I learnt it from my room mates. Now I make it all the time instead of the coconut chutney I have been used to, grated coconut is something that's not always stocked in my kitchen and this peanut chutney is just too good to pass up.

Ingredients:

• 1/3 cup - Peanuts
• 2 tsp - Dalia/putnalu
• 2 tsp - Sesame seeds/nuvvulu
• 1 tsp - Coriander seeds/dhania
• 2 nos - Green chillies ; 1 red chilli
• 2 Tbsp - grated Coconut
• 1 Tbsp - chopped, Cilantro/coriander leaves
• 2-3 pieces of tamarind or 1 tsp - Tamarind extract
• Salt to taste
• ~ 1/4 cup - Water

Method:

1. Place a saute pan on medium heat along with the peanuts and dry roast them until they turn a light golden color. Roast them slowly on medium heat so they cook evenly. Toss occasionally to avoid burning them.
2. Empty them onto a plate and allow to cool. You can remove the outer skins if you want by slightly rubbing the peanuts between your palms and blowing the skins off them. I rarely do this, cos its messy, and to me it does not make any difference. Roast the dalia next and as they start to change color, add the sesame seeds as these take very little time to toast. Once these are toasted move them to the plate as well.
   
3. Next add a few drops of oil to the pan and roast the coriander seeds, fresh tamarind and chillies. Allow all the ingredients to cool for a while.
4. Blend them together adding water slowly to get the desired consistency. Also add the coconut and coriander leaves while blending. I usually stop when the chutney is still a little coarse. You can either top it with a tadka or serve it as is with idli/dosa/kuzhi paniyaram/pesarattu/upma/undrallu.
   

For the usual regular chutney, skip the coconut, dalia and coriander leaves. For a coconut chutney,take the peanuts/sesame seeds/dhania/red chillies/tamarind off the list and simply use more grated coconut and dalia instead. I just used this chutney as a base sauce for a pizza and topped it with sauteed mushrooms and caramelized onions, sounds crazy I agree, but it was surely yummy :)

Meanwhile make the rava idli's. While roasting the rava keep stirring it as it burns very fast on the hot pan, been there done that! :D I added some cornmeal to the batter this time and also added some grated carrots to the idli molds before ladling the batter. Peas and corn are other additions I have tried.
While the idli's are getting cooked you might already be slightly hungry, so make a crispy polenta-peanut chutney sandwich and kill time taking photos :D

Other chutneys that I have blogged about are here, two more coming up.

Enjoy your weekend!

Cauliflower stir fry

Dear foodies,

Though NaBloWriMo is successfully out of the way I still feel a slight urge to blog every night, the routine got stuck, but only part of my brain was going through that hangover though, the other half was really tired and lazy to do anything :) I have been peacefully going around blogs and trying to catch up on the recipes posted by all of you. I don't comment much because quite often I arrive really late at the entries and then just skip the comment form and get to the next post. Cauliflower was one veggie I saw in multiple blogs and it made me realize that it has been ages since I cooked with it. The last I remember was a roasted cauliflower soup that I made earlier this year when the cold weather was still sticking around , may be it was an overdose of this yummy kheema I was making then. Oh no, there was this pav-bhaji in between.

I went straight from work to the store a few days back, and brought home a tiny cauliflower and set out to make a simple curry/bhaji that my mom often made, its simple and flavorful. Here's how you do it...

Ingredients:

• 1 tiny cauliflower ~25-30 florets
-- Start off with bigger florets so you have decently sized ones after you are done stirring and cooking them :)

• 1 nos - medium sized, Tomato, diced
• 1/4 cup - sliced Onions
• 6-7 slivers of sliced ginger
  
• 1/2 tsp - Cumin seeds/ jeera
• 1/2 tsp - Turmeric powder
• 1 tsp - red Chili powder
• 1 tsp - Garam masala
• 2 tsp - lime juice (optional)
• Salt to taste
• Coriander leaves for garnish

Method:

1. Heat oil in a wide, non-stick pan and splutter cumin seeds. Add the turmeric and 1/4 tsp of chilli powder to the oil, this gives the curry a nice red color. Next add the sliced onions immediately and saute until they turn a light brown color, add the ginger.
2. The chopped tomatoes go in next and cook until they soften and loose shape. Mix in the rest of the red chilli powder and garam masala and saute till the spices loose their raw smell ~5mins
3. Meanwhile wash and soak the cauliflower florets in water with some vinegar added to it (helps kill any insects/worms in them, salting the water is another way, as Anita mentioned in the comments.). Drain and place them on a plate and microwave for 3mins.
4. Once the onion-tomato mix is fully cooked, add about 1-2Tbsp of water and the florets. Mix to coat them evenly with the spices, add salt, cover and cook on medium heat for 10-15mins, stirring in between to avoid charring.Keep the stirring to a minimum to keep the florets intact, toss the pan carefully instead.
   
5. Once they turn tender, uncover and cook on high heat for 2-3mins to evaporate any left over water. Garnish with coriander leaves and lime juice (if tomatoes aren't tangy enough) and serve with warm chapthi's or rice.

I love the simple spices in this curry and its the cauliflower that shines through against the tanginess from the tomatoes (or lime juice). When I was at the store I also picked up some whole wheat pita bread to use instead of chapathi's, I was so not in a mood to make some that night. I used them as a filling in my pita pockets making it fun to eat too. You can surely pair it with a simple pulao or plain rice. I went back to the store y'day to get another cauliflower because the curry got over well before my tastebuds could be satisfied :)

Simple food - Tadka dal

Dear foodies,

Here is a simple dal recipe, its another quickie for you to be armed with when you have no veggies on hand. My mother made this one day to go with chapathi's. Pair this with a chutney or a simple steamed veggie dish if you can and it turns into a proper meal spread.

Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup - Moong dal/pesarapappu
• 1/2 tsp - Turmeric
• 1/2 cup - chopped onions
• 1/2 tsp - Mustard seeds
• 1/2 tsp - Cumins seeds
• 2 - Green chillies
• 1/2 tsp - red Chilli powder
• 1/4 tsp - Dhania powder (optional)
• 1 Tbsp - lime juice
• 1 tsp - Oil
• Salt to taste

Method:

1. Wash and cook the moong dal along with the turmeric and 1 1/2 - 2 cups of water in a pressure cooker or on the stove top (use more water if needed).
2. When the dal is nearly done, heat a pan with oil, splutter the mustard and cumin seeds, add the onions and green chillies.,suate until the onions soften and turn translucent.
3. Add the red chilli powder ( and dhania powder) and saute for a couple more minutes before turning off the heat.
4. Salt the dal and top it off with the tadka and lime juice (adjust to taste) and serve alongside soft, warm phulka's or rice.

This is a very basic recipe and delicious for the very same reason. The creaminess of the dal stands out and the simple tadka enhances the flavors with the lime juice perks up the whole dish.

Banana - Blueberry muffins

Dear foodies,

Every now and then I feel like having a nice rich piece of cake inspite of being a person with out a pronounced sweet tooth. In India all the local bakeries would conveniently sell pastries that were just right for such cravings. You did not have to buy full cakes and deal with the trouble of finishing them. If you had a small impromptu party you could buy as many flavors as there were friends and everyone is happy. The flavors were great too, my favorites are the black forest and pineapple pastries. Over here, I find the cakes laden with butter and calories, and the ones in the chain stores use ingredients that increase the product's shelf life, reducing yours! So when I get the cravings I experiment at home and make small portions that are easy to handle. The maple cake was one such experiment and the other time is was these decadent chocolate cupcakes.

When I've had banana's sitting on the counter getting close to the blackening stage I have them with some milk and sugar, or as a smoothie, sometimes even a banana bread if I have the time. A few months back I saw this recipe for vegan blueberry muffins. It was the berry season and I also had some fresh blueberries at home.

I followed the method given in the recipe, but cut down the amount of oil and added some ground flax seeds instead. (Microwave 1 tsp of flax seeds in 1 1/2 tbsp of water in spurts of 30secs, beating it vigorously in between to get a thick viscous mixture, cool and add to batter). I used lesser sugar too since the banana's I had were sweet enough by themselves and the blueberries too were tart and juicy. You can see that my muffins are not as crumbly as the ones in the original recipe, may be due to the flax seeds giving it a good support structure. I halved the recipe and got 6 muffins out of it. These muffins were not as sturdy as regular store bought one's and yielded under your touch, but they were super delicious, and were gone in a couple of hours.

I made these when my parents were here and they loved it since it tasted a lot like banana appam (pazham pori). It is essentially the same ingredients in a different package, banana's, flour, sugar and oil, but this one is baked and has fewer calories. So the next time you have banana's to use up, you know what to do ! 5 more days to go, yay!

Potlakaya Kootu - snake gourd with toor dal

Dear foodies,

Last weekend I went to the Indian store and got home some fresh veggies, but I was so lazy to do the prep work on a weeknight and took the easier route. I had a frozen pack of snake gourd or potlakaya that I was saving to share with you a special recipe that my roomie used to make. But I realized if I kept saving it for that one day when I finally make the dish, the pack would have outlived its shelf life! So out came the pack and along with it a portion of cooked toor dal. This one is really a lifesaver, everytime I use the pressure cooker to make dal, I make extra of it and freeze it in single serving amounts in a ziploc bag. So the next 3-4 times I can just thaw the dal and have dal, sambar or rasam ready in half the time and have no cooker to clean either. I made a kootu with these two ingredients, one cos I did not want the usual tomato dal and two, I was out of tomatoes :)

This is most definitely not the authentic kootu recipe, my mom would have to give me that. As far as I remember she use's moong dal for kootu, no onions and the spices in it would be crushed cumin and pepper seeds along with coconut and yogurt cured chilies/ mor molaga/uppu mirapakaya. Here is my version, which is still delicious and very close to the original in taste.

Ingredients:

• 11/2 cup - Toor dal, cooked (with a pinch on turmeric and a few methi seeds)
  
• 1 cup - diced, Snake gourd (potlakaya)
• 1 tsp - black peppercorns
• 1 tsp - Cumin seeds/jeera
• 2 Tbsp - grated coconut (I used frozen)
  
• 1/2 tsp - mustard seeds
• 1/4 cup - sliced Onions
• 2 tsp - Oil
• 2-3 nos - salted chillies/mor milagai, fried
• Salt to taste
• Coriander leaves/cilantro for garnish

Method:

1. If you need to cook the dal, then get that going in the cooker, else place the frozen dal by the stove to thaw. Heat a pan with the oil and splutter the mustard seeds, add the onions and let them soften, about 3-4mins on medium heat. Microwave the snake gourd in the meanwhile and then add it to the pan.
2. Saute for a minute and add 1/2 cup of water, salt, cover and cook for 5-6mins. Using a mortar and pestle crush the peppercorns and jeera together while the gourd softens up.
3. Add the dal with another 1/2 cup of water, coconut, crushed powders and simmer for an additional 10-12 mins. During the last 2 mins, add the crushed, fried chillies and check for seasonings.
4. Garnish with cilantro and serve warm with rice/chapatis or bread.

The coconut and pepper/jeera combo are the highlight in this dal. They combine so well with dal giving a smooth, subtle flavor that is very comforting. And the chillies add all the oomph it needs. The onions are here only because I had chopped them even before figuring out what I was going to cook, so skip them if you please ;) Instead of snake gourd you could use broad beans, potatoes, peas, carrots, cabbage, ridge gourd, and well let me know if I missed any :)

Its been 20 days already, phew!! 20 posts in 20 days!! Can you believe that, the calender on the left sidebar has me stumped, I've never seen it so pink before :) So go ahead and cheer me on, please! :P

Tempeh - barbecue style

Dear foodies,

Remember the post when I told you I had bought a slab of tempeh and sent it into long-term storage ? Ya, that was still there until a few weeks back. I was then having a tough patch with my cooking, nothing I made came out the way it was supposed to and I had a tough time swallowing the food I made. I filled most my days with soup from Panera bread and simple bread sandwiches (luckily the bread came out well) that did not lead to any complications. The other step I took was to follow a recipe to the T and not use my brain, it worked most times and this was one of them.

It was a lazy Saturday afternoon and I was feeling hungry with nothing at home. I had borrowed another Moosewood's book after the previous success and so started flipping thru thier sandwich section to see if anything interested me and if I had everything needed to make it. The first recipe I saw was for a tempeh sandwich and it sounded really good. This was my first time tasting and cooking tempeh and I am glad it worked out well. A first attempt failure usually puts me off things for a long long time. The ingredients list is the same as that in the book, but the quantities are not.

Ingredients:

• 1/3 pack of thawed Tempeh, cubed ( ~15, 1" cubes)
• 1/2 nos - red bell pepper, sliced
I used a couple of cherry peppers
• 1/4 cup - Onions, sliced
• a clove of garlic, chopped
• 2 tsp - Oil
  
• 1/2 tsp - coriander powder
• 1/4 tsp - fennel seeds/saunf powder
  
• 1-2 tsp - Tabasco sauce, adjust to taste
  

• 1 Tbsp - Tamari/soy sauce
• 1 1/2 Tbsp - Tomato ketchup
• 1 Tbsp - brown sugar/molasses
• 1/4 cup -water

Method:

1. Heat the oil in a pan and saute the onions and garlic for a few minutes. Next add the peppers and cook for a few more minutes until they soften.
2. Add the cubed tempeh and saute on medium heat until it browns around the edges (add more oil if needed). Meanwhile, mix together the sauce ingredients (last 4 listed separately) and adjust the quantities to suit your taste. Ground the coriander & fennel seeds if you don't have them in the powdered form.
   
3. Sprinkle the spice powders over the tempeh and stir to coat well, pour the sauce in next and simmer for 5-7 mins until the sauce thickens. Add the tabasco sauce and check for seasonings.
4. Serve with crisp lettuce as a stuffing in pita pockets or on bread as a sandwich.

This was quick to make and super tasty I tell you. I did not have any form of lettuce but did not miss it that much since the tempeh was delicious with the crusty, toasted bread. I absolutely loved the sauce too, I usually don't like barbeque flavored snacks due to the smokiness I think, but this one was just right for me. The tempeh did not taste as funky as it looked :D It had a soft texture which you could may be equate to a dense and chunky paneer piece ?! This was a whole grain tempeh, and was spotted with flax seeds here n there. It could be because of the sauce but I did not get any strong flavors from the tempeh itself.

I liked the sandwich so much that I immediately used up the rest of the package of tempeh and made a slightly thinner sauce a.k.a munchurian style using cubed onions and green peppers and this time made delicious hors d'œuvre's on toothpicks, lip-smackingly good, especially when you are enjoying a book and can conveniently pop a few of these into your mouth as you flip through the pages. Do try this recipe when you get a chance.

Stir fried veggies & brown rice

Dear foodies,

Weeknights are usually for quick meals. I don't indulge in anything that involves a lot of prep time or needs constant attention. More often I cook so I can take a boxed lunch and look for dishes that are easy to carry. I like dishes that are all-in-one where I don't have to carry multiple boxes to work, and this fried rice fits the bill perfectly. This summer I indulged in the bounty fresh snow peas in the market. They are good to go with hardly any cooking, and a perfect snack or a salad with a few extra flavorings added to it. One of my favorite ways of eating them was in this burger, the other way is to blanch them in salted water for just a few minutes and then saute them in some oil with chopped garlic. This was my dinner for quite a few nights the past months and a very good one at that.

I still do find snow peas in the stores but they are not as tender as they used to be and have a tough string around them that needs to be removed. I find that a little cumbersome when I am dealing with a whole bag of these, but the fresh taste of the beans makes it worth all the time spent. I end up eating most of the beans once they are done blanching and the rest goes into the saute. This time I added some fresh crunchy carrots to the mix, few more of my favorite flavors and came up with a lunch I was waiting to have..

Ingredients:

• 2 handfuls - snow peas
• 2-3 medium carrots
• 1 cup - Arugula or baby bok choy
• 1 Tbsp - Tamari/soy sauce, adjusted to taste
• 1 Tbsp - sesame seeds
• 1/2 tsp - garlic, coarsely chopped
• 1/2 tsp - Red chili flakes
• 1 tsp - Oil
• Salt to taste
  

• 2 cups - brown rice, cooked
  
• 1/2 Tbsp - tamari/soy sauce
• 1/2 -1 tsp - freshly ground black pepper

Method:

1. Wash and de-string the beans if required. Boil some water in a saucepan and salt it. Add the snow peas and blanch for no more than 5 mins. They must still be crunchy and a bright green when you take them out. I usually drop them into cold water or place them under the running tap water at this point so they stop cooking.
2. Wash & peel the carrots, cut them first into 2 inch pieces and then slice them thin, length wise. Similarly cut the snow peas about the same size as the carrots, roughly into thirds.
   
3. Heat a pan with the oil and add the garlic and red chili flakes while the oil is still cold. As the oil heats up it will absorb their flavors. On medium-high heat, toss in the sesame seeds and carrots, saute for 3-4 mins , next add the snow peas, arugula and tamari ( or soy sauce). Saute on high heat for a few more minutes until the veggies are well coated with the flavorings and the arugula wilts down.
4. Transfer this to a bowl and add the brown rice to the pan. Add some more soy sauce and black pepper to taste, mix well. Cook for 1-2 mins, turn off the heat, add the veggies, stir and let it rest for a few minutes before serving.

This was really good fried rice. I ate quite a bit of it right from the pan under the excuse of tasting and checking for seasonings. The veggies are still crunchy and the sesame seeds just make it better. Garlic and red chilli flakes give it the kick but don't overpower the dish with spices. The brown rice is a perfect pair for these veggies with its nutty texture making it a component of the dish and not just a filler base. For me black pepper in fried rice reminds me of Indo-chinese fried rice and I absolutely love its flavor. All in all it was a wonderful meal and I was looking forward to lunch all morning :)


Looks like this will be perfect for Srivalli, the mela queen's Rice Mela, perfect timing I say. I wish I had even a tiny share of the enthusiasm she has for holding events!