A nostalgic potful...

I recently was chatting over email with fellow westchester blogger - Phyllis and was quite amazed and impressed by all the culinary greats that she has learnt cooking from. She has actually learnt Indian cooking from Madhur Jaffrey, she describes this beautifully with some recipes in this post.
Well, possibly one of my first Indian cookbooks were by this grand dame of Indian cooking Ms. Jaffrey. I could not actually find it today. I made these kidney beans - Punjabi Rajma, inspired by memory. I do know that here recipe called for two things that I did not do, the first was to add cream and the second was to simmer the beans for 3-4 hours, hey, that is why I have a pressure cooker....

Punjabi Rajma - Spicy creamy red kidney beans

Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 35-40 minutes

Ingredients

2 cups of cooked red kidney beans
2.5 cups of water
2 tablespoons oil
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 onion, finely chopped
1 tablespoon freshly grated garlic
2 teaspoons grated ginger
1 large tomato, chopped
1 teaspoon red chili powder
1 teaspoon powdered cumin
1 teaspoon garam masala powder
Salt to taste (please take care to balance this with the amount of salt that the beans have been cooked in)
1 lemon
1-2 tablespoons chopped cilantro

Method of Preparation

1. Take about 1/2 the beans and grind to a puree with about 1/2 cup water and set this aside.
2. Heat the oil and add the cumin seeds and cook till fragrant and aromatic.
3. Add in the onion and cook on medium heat stirring occasionally until the onion in soft and begining to turn golden (about 3-4 minutes).
4. Add in the ginger and garlic and cook for another 2 minutes.
5. Mix in the tomatoe and cook for 5-7 minutes.
6. Add in the whole beans, chili powder, powdered cumin the bean puree with about 1 and a 1/2 cups of water.
7. Simmer on low heat till for about 25-30 minutes till thick, creamy and smooth.
8. Squeeze in the lemon juice.
9. Remove from the heat and garnish with garam masala and cilantro prior to serving.

This recipe is being sent to MLLA no #23, being hosted by Susan at the Well Seasoned Cook.

Pui Chingri Chorchori - Malabar Spinach and vegetable medley with Shrimps

Eastern India where I grew up incorporates a variety of greens and vegetable medleys in the cooking. Actually, now that I think about it, there are several regional combinations of vegetables across India. These combinations other than providing a good way to balance out your vegetables are very economical and a great way to mix and match vegetables of the season.

This summer, my contribution to our garden project was to transport a tiny piece of my childhood to our backyard. I read in this wonderful blog, about how easy it was to grow this green.

Early in summer, when I had gotten a bunch of Malabar spinach from Jackson Heights, Queens I saved a stalk or two and kept these stalks in water.

Sure enough, it began to root and ten we placed it in our backyard and Pui or Malabar Spinach came to our backyard. The plant is a climber, therby actually needing very little room to grow.
Well, it looked so pretty, I really did not want to use it, but it is begining to get cold and the leaves are turning yellow, going through the usual rites of season change. I cooked this up as a chorchori - that as mentioned earlier is a bengali melange of vegetables. I added little shrimps to it. This is actually also a classic way of adding protein to balance out the meal.

Pui Chingri Chorchori - Malabar Spinach with mixed vegetables and shrimp

Prep Time: 5-7 minutes

Cook Time 25 minutes

Serves 4

Ingredients

2 tablespoons mustard oil

1 teaspoon panchphoron

3-4 dried red chillies

1 cup white daikon radish or red radish (cubed)

1 small potato cubed

1/3 medium cauliflower,

1 small eggplant cut into small pieces

1 inch piece ginger

1 teaspoon fennel seeds

1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds

1 teaspoon coriander seeds

2-3 cups chopped malabar spinach

1/2 cup green peas ( thawed)

1.5 teaspoon salt

1/2 quarter lbs shelled shrimp

1/2 teaspoon turmeric

1/2 teaspoon sugar

Method of Preparation

1. Heat all but 1 teaspoon of the oil and add in the panchphoron and cook till the spice crackles.

2. Add in the radish, potato, cauliflower and eggplant and mix well. Reduce the heat to low and cover the pot and cook for about 7-10 minutes

3. In the meantime, grind the ginger, fennel, cumin and coriander into a paste.

4. Remove the cover and stir well, the vegetables should be fairly soft at this point and have released some moisture.

5. Add in the spice paste, and the greens. Add the greens slowly, letting them wilt, you can add a little water if the mixture appears to dry, but you do not want this to get too wet. Add in 1 teaspoon of the salt and the peas and cover the mixture.

6. Smear the shrimp with the remaining oil, salt and the turmeric.

7. Place in the microwave and cook for 1 minutes.

8. Stir the green and vegetables well, the spinach should be nice and soft as should the eggplant.

9. Mix in the shrimp and the sugar and serve with rice and dal.

Messing with the tested and tried!!!

Rich and creamy palak paneer - pureed spinach, with cream and chunks of Indian paneer cheese is one of the few Indian dishes that my children love. Granted, I use chillies quite sparingly but my kids love this dish. Actually, so do students!

However, with all the spinach in the garden, over the summer, I wanted to simplify this dish a little more without loosing it's appeal for the kids. I added almonds and just a hint of cream (which actually can be dispensed) with. With some quick co-ordination, I had this dish done in 20 minutes.

Actually that really is where the standard lies, I think people are now getting a little jaded with the 30 minute rule. Nah! here I jest!!!

While a lot of the food I cook, is rather quick and simple I also am not really a believer of cutting corners for the sake of reaching a "quick cook" target. One cooks as needed, and until food is done. Anyhow, this still does not change the fact that my palak paneer was pretty much done in less than 30 minutes.

Tangy Palak Paneer - Spinach with almonds and paneer cheese

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Ingredients

1/2 cup hot water

20 almonds

1 tablespoon oil

1/2 teaspoon cumin powder

1/2 teapoon coriander powder

1 small onion, finely chopped

1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger

4 cups of chopped fresh spinach

3 tomatoes, chopped

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon red chili powder (optional)

3/4 cup of diced paneer (can be substituted with tofu)

2 tablespoon fresh heavy cream (optional)

1 lime - cut into small wedges

Cilantro to garnish

Method of Preparation

1. Place the almonds in the water and set aside for about 10 minutes. This step can be skipped if you use pre-blanched almonds.

2. Heat the oil and add in the cumin and coriander powders and cook for a few seconds. Add in the ginger and onion and saute for 2-3 minutes until the onion is tranluscent.

3. Add in the spinach and tomatoes and mix well. Turn the heat to low and cover the pot and let the spinach wilt. This process takes about 5 minutes.

4. In the meantime, peel the almonds.

5. Turn off the heat, you should have the spinach wilted, with some water released from both the spinach and the tomatoes. Stir in the salt and red chili powder and let the mixture cool just a little.

6. Place the spinach and the almonds into the blender and blend for 2-3 minutes until the spinach is very smooth.

7. Place this mixture back into the pot and stir in the paneer or tofu and cook through. Stir in the cream ( if using) and mix well.

8. Squeeze in half the lime and stir and garnish with cilantro.

9. Serve with rice or bread and enjoy!

Bhindi Do Piazza

It has become an interesting game, to see what every few days brings from the little backyard. I have to tell you I am surprised to see this year, how much we have been getting from such a little lot, that to with just Anshul tending to it, since my black thumb is not much use. His enthusiasm has been a joy for me.
Anyhow my children love bhindi or okra and feel rather sad that they cannot eat the spicy variation we get in restaurants. I do cook okra every week but it is a simple sauted version not the crispy fancy indian restaurant fare. I just cannot bear the thought of adding so much oil to a vegetable.
I tried baking this today and had really good results. I will make a few tiny tweaks the next time around in that I shall try to add the eggplant later. Do-piazza reffers to "double onions" I actually added two kinds here. This is how I made this dish.

Bhindi Dopiaza - Roasted Okra with pearl and red onions

Prep Time: 7 minutes
Cook Time: 35 minutes

Serves 2-3 people

Ingredients

10 pearl onions, peeled, halved and sectioned
1 lbs okra, cut into slices tips and tops removed (note: wash the okra before cutting it)
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
1 teaspoon cumin
Olive oil sray
1 tablespoon oil
1 red onion, thinly sliced
1 tomato coarsely chopped

Method of Preparation

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
2. Place the okra on a baking dish in a single layer, add the salt, turmeric and cumin. Spray generously with cooking spray and place in the oven for 10 minutes. I added the onions with the okra and this overcrisped some of the onion, so I am suggesting adding the onion after 10 minutes and re-sprayng at this time. Cook for another 15 minutes.
3. Heat the oil and add the red onion and saute lightly and then add the tomato and cook till somewhat soft, gently stir in the onions and okra and enjoy!

An event, backyard cooking and more...

Anshul's summer project is begining to bear fruit - more vegetables to be precise, but we are really proliferated with lovely green spinach, red beets and yet new big tomatoes. I am a little tired tonight to post the garden pictures, but promise to do this over the weekend!

This particular recipe is the begining of what I shall be calling backyard cooking, recipes inspired by what I can find in my backyard - in this instance the tomato and the cilantro are from the backyard. The rest of the recipe just came together.


Butternut Squash and Zucchini Curry

The recipe has lots of lemony notes that are a perfect contrast to the sweet butternut squash used here. I have also added crumbled paneer (I made this a couple of days back) for some richness and body. The recipe is gently tempered with mustard seeds, that makes a lovely nutty contrast to the onions and garlic scapes that are used to form the base of this rather simple homestyle dish.

Serves 4

Ingredients

2 tablespoons mustard or extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 teaspoon mustard seeds
1/2 teaspoon nigella seeds
1 medium sized red onion, peeled and cut into a dice
1/2 cup finely chopped garlic scapes
1 large tomato, cut into a dice
1 zuchini, cut into a large dice (basically the size here is in between a cube and a dice)
2 cups, diced butternut squash (this can be pumpkin)
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
1 teaspoon red chili powder (optional)
3/4 cup crumbled paneer
1 lime or lemon, halved and seeded
3/4 cup chopped cilantro


Method of Preparation

1. Heat the oil and add the mustard and nigella seeds and cook for about 30 seconds until the mustard seeds begin to pop.
2. Add in the onion and garlic scapes and saute on low heat for 3-4 minutes until the onion is wilted and transluscent.
3. Add in the tomato and cook for another 3-4 minutes until soft.
4. Stir in the zuchini and butternut squash with the salt, turmeric and chili powder (if using this) and the paneer, mix well, cover and cook for 7 minutes till the vegetables are soft.
5. Squeeze in the lemon or lime juice and the cilantro. Remove from heat and serve.

If you like this kind of cooking, please check in through next week. The Westchester bloggers are doing a blogathon to promote the local farmers markets. You can see the blogs in the, "In the neighbourhood section of my blog. If you are a food blogger in Westchester, please join the Westchester Food Bloggers group on Facebook to join the fun!

Explaining Motherhood and Children!

A childless man observed to me today, "Gosh, children must be so exhausting!!!!", I was a taken aback by this observation, because LOL, hell yes, they are exhasuting but, can I imagine or even want to think of a life without them, no...

How can I explain to a man like him, how rejuvenating my son's welcome smile is when I walk back home after a long day at work, how lovely it is to hear my daughter squeal in delight when I make her favorite and simple scrambled eggs with cheese, how lovely it is to see her dance her first steps!! Yes, the little princess has started Indian Dance lessons. I tear up every year when the daycare celebrates their annual anniversary, it is just so amazing to remember the days when I first dropped Deepta and Aadi off, so yes, children are exhausting but what a lonely, selfish and empty existence one would have without them.

Here is to a simple earthy recipe for Earth Day!

Mustard seasoned zucchini

Serves 2

Ingredients

1 tablespoon mustard oil

1/2 teaspoon mustard seeds

1 onion, thinly sliced

1 tomato, chopped

1/2 teaspoon turmeric

1 teaspoon sea salt

2 zucchinis, sliced

Method of Preparation

1. Heat the oil and add the mustard seeds and wait till they crackle.

2. Add in the onion and tomato and saute for 1-2 minutes.

3. Mix in all the remaining ingredients and cook for about 4 minutes, till the zucchini is soft and cooked through.

4. Enjoy as a flavorful side.

Asparagus Risotto

I think one of the greatest joys of enjoying food and being in the kitchen is that you can do something comforting and interesting even when things are mundane. To me sometime quitely fussing with a different but practical recipe helps cheer me up, generally feel pleased.

I had come across an Asparagus Risotto in an edition of the Gourmet magaizne a while back and scoffed at the thought of barley measuring up to sinfully rich, meltingly soft arborio rice. This is what is interesting about this risotto, it actually is pretty creamy without an inordinate amount of grease. The barley retains a bit if chewiness but still lends some creaminess to the dish. I have modified the recipe quite a bit for spicing but left the original concept of using up the asparagus intact. Sorry, I have not saved the clipping so I cannot really link or mention the recipe more specifically. This recipe is laced with garlic and lots of star anise and complements most Indian and or new world cuisines. I have fussied my recipe format becoz, I think this helps in cutting and pasting for class notes.

Asparagus Risotto with Barley

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 45 minutes

Serves 6

Ingredients

1 lbs. fresh asparagus

6 cups water

2 tsp salt

3 cloves of garlic
1 onion

3 tbsp olive oil

2 star anise

1-2 bay leaves

1 teaspoon red pepper

1.5 cups pearl barley

1/3 cup sliced carrots (optional)

3 tablespoons parmasan cheese

1 tsp chopped cilantro

2 -3 tablespoons fresh lime juice (about 1/2 a lime)

Method of Preparation

1. Chop the asparagus separating the tips and soft stems from the rest. Cut and set these pieces aside.
2. Trim of the really hard edges and coarsely chop the rest of the asparagus.
3. In a large pan place the water and the salt to boil and add the regular stems (in step 2) and boil for 8 minutes. Strain these stems with a slotted spoon into a food processor and add the tender tips and stems and cook for 2 minutes. Remove into a colander and place under running cold water. Reserve the water that the asparagus was cooked in.
4. Process the asparagus in the blender, grate the garlic and chop the onion finely.
5. Heat the oil and add the star anise, bay leaves, grated garlic and onion and saute for 1-2 minutes. Stir in the red pepper and the pearl barley and mix in for 1 minute.
6. Add in the water and bring to a boil, reduce the heat and cook on low for 40 minutes. The texture needs to be that of a stew, add extra water if needed. Once the barley reaches this consistency, stir in the pureed asparagus and carrots (if using) and cook for 2-3 minutes.
7. Mix in the asparagus tips and tender stems with the cheese and cook for 1-2 minutes.
8. Turn off the heat and stir in the cilantro and the lime juice and enjoy!

Zucchini and Eggplant Bharit - From the turmeric trail

I made this nice variation in baigan bhartha from a book that I end up reading a lot for the prose almost more than the recipes. This is not because the recipes are not good, just find the authors narration catchy. The book is such an interesting read in that the authors memories do focus on some dark aspects of his childhood but with an exceedingly light touch - sort of like adding chillies to a rich makhani sauce, it does infuse the bite, gently with a very subtle impact.

Well ever so often I go back and forth with cookbooks in my collection and passed through the mentioned book. I loved the idea of the classic pureered eggplant with some crunch from peanuts. Well I varied this a little partly to use up a zucchini in the fride and partly to add certain spices I thought worked well with the recipe. So this is how I did it.

Zuchini and Eggplant Bharit - Zuchini with Pureed eggplants and crushed peanuts

Serves 6

Ingredients

1 medium sized eggplant

1 zuchini

2-3 tbsp oil

3/4 tsp mustard seeds

1/2 tsp cumin

1 medium onion diced

1/2 tsp turmeric

1 tomato, cut into a dice

1/3 cup, roasted coarsely ground peanuts

2 green chillies, minced

8-20 curry leaves

1/2 tsp garam masala

1 tbsp chopped cilantro

Method of Preparation

1. Roast the eggplant on a grill or open gas flame till the outer skin is completely charred and the eggplant is cooked through. The process takes about 10-12 minutes. Cool and peel the skin off.

2. Grate the zucchini with the skin on and set aside.

3. Heat the oil and add the mustard seeds and cumin and wait till the mustard begins to pop.

4. Stir the onion, turmeric and tomato and cook for 1-2 minutes.

5. Mix in the roasted eggplant and zucchini and cook for 5-7 minutes, stirring well to mix and soften the eggplant.

6. Mix in all the remaining ingredients and cook for 3-4 minutes. Enjoy!

5-Spice Cauliflower

Another weeknight wonder, this dish needs a little time to bring out its flavors and cook through but another close to nature homestyle dish.
Tastes great with any kind of Indian bread, nice parathas would hit the spot but it also tastes good with rice and dal.

5-Spice Cauliflower

Serves 4

Ingredients

2-3 tbsp mustard oil
1/2 tsp nigella seeds (kalonji)
2 tsp grated ginger
1/2 tsp turmeric
2-3 whole green chillies, slit
A pinch of asafetida (hing)
1 head of cauliflower, cut into florretts
1.5 tsp salt

Method of Preparation
1. Heat the oil and add the nigella seeds and ginger.
2. After a few seconds, wait for the seeds to sizzle.
3. Add the turmeric, green chillli, asafetida and the cauliflower and salt.
4. Cook on medium heat, stirring frequently till the cauliflower is well browned in spots.
5. Cover and cook on low heat for 10 minutes till the cauliflower is soft. Serve immediately!

Gobi Moomphali - Cauliflower with peanuts

There are few things that work better for a quick weeknight dish than a classic simple dry vegetable dish infused with the basic goodness of a few staple spices. The peanuts in the recipe are an inspiration to get my daughter to eat.

So here you have it, Gobi Moomphali

Serves 4-6

Ingredients

2 tbsp oil

1/2 tsp mustard seeds

1/2 tsp cumin seeds

1/8 tsp asafetida

2-3 dried red chillies

1/2 tsp turmeric

1 cauliflower cut into floretts

1 tsp salt

1/2 cut peanuts roasted

Method of preparation

1. Heat the oil, and add the mustard and cumin seeds, when they crackle add in the asafetida, chillies turmeric and cauliflower.

2. Cook on medium heat turning frequently till the cauliflower begins to brown lightly.

3. Add the salt and peanuts and cover for 10 minutes and cook on low.

4. Check seasonings and serve.

S is for Simla MIrch

OK, so this has been a crazy week and the time for this entry is a little past. Well, I had thought of the letter "S" when I initially developed this recipe.

I had some excess potatoes, and, was wondering how on earth could I boost/add some nutrition into into it. Then my eyes wandered onto these colorful bell peppers.

Well thus developed a dish that was rather flavorful, and, absolutely perfect with the luchis (white flour puffed bread) that I fried yesterday. What is amazing is that this recipe is so plain and does, not really photograph well but the aromas were amazing. In fact, this convinced me no matter how hard we try, some aspects of good food need to be savored though eating and absorbing the aromas, the camera does not quite do the needed justice.

Shimla Methi Alu

Serves 6-8

Ingredients

6 russet potatoes

4 tbsp oil

1/2 tsp turmeric

1 tbsp mustard seed

1 tbsp cumin seeds

1/2 tsp asafetida

a few crushed red chillies

a few curry leaves

1 tbsp dried fenugreek leaves (Kasuri methi)

1 cup multicolored chopped peppers

salt to tast

cilantro to garnish

Method of Preparation

1. Peel and quarter the potatoes and set aside.

2. Heat the oil and add the turmeric and mustard seeds and cumin.

3. When they begin to crackle add the red chillies and curry leaves with the potatoes.

4. Cover and cook on low heat for 10 minutes till fairly soft.

5. Add all the remaining ingredients except the cilantro and cook for another 10 minutes.

6. Stir in the cilantro and check seasoning and serve hot.

7. Best enjoyed with something like puris.

O is for Okra - Bhindi Masala

Ever had to catch a train that left the station. I once had to do this during my commuting days to the city. It took me at least 3-4 tries to get caught up.
I have been getting that feeling as I have been following the A-Z of Indian Vegetables on Nupur's blog. Well, tonight might just be the night when I can make it. I made this Bhindi or Okra dish, in a very classic north Indian style. Just did not fry the bhindi though.
Bhindi Masala
Serves 4
Ingredients
1 lb young fresh okra
1/2 tsp turmeric
1 tsp salt
1 lime
1/3 cup oil
1 tsp whole cumin seeds
1 onion finely chopped
4 cloves of garlic minced
3 tomatoes finely chopped
1.5 tsp cumin-coriander powder
1/2 tsp red chilli powder
1 tsp dried kasuri methi
For the garnish
1/2 cup chopped grape tomatoes
2 scallions coarsely chopped
2 tbsp chopped cilantro
2 green chillies minced
Method of Preparation
1. Cut the tops of the Okra and cut lengthwise into 3-4 strips. Smear with turmeric and a little salt.
2. Broil the bhindi on low till crisp and lightly browned. Sprinkle with lime juice and set aside.
3. Heat the oil and add the cumin seeds, followed by the onions and garlic and cook till the onions start turning golden.
4. Add the chopped tomatoes with the remaining spices and cook on low heat for about 15 minutes stirring well, till the mixture is well brown and the oil begins to show.
5. Gently, fold in the bindi and the garnish ingredients and cook for 2-3 minutes.
I will warn you, this dish cries out for parathas , which I did not make, so we made do with toasted multi-grain bread.
2. Drizzle with oil and

Carrot and Carrot Greens

Have been so busy lately. Will be having a party for the kids, that can be quite a chore. The invites, getting gifts for the other kids, of course the food etc. That and switching jobs can keep a girl more than gainfully occupied.

Anyhow, I got this bunch of carrots with these beautiful greens. I have used beet greens before but never actually tried carrot greens, so I gave it a shot. Threw it together with some whole wheat spagetti, sun-dried tomatoes in oils, edamame bean, corn and grated carrots.

Essentially, I heated a 1 tbsp olive oil, sizzled some garlic and cumin seeds and then cooked the vegetables for about 10 minutes on low with a cover and then added the pasta, sun-dried tomatoes and a little salt and pepper. Added the chopped greens right at the end, the result was a pretty quick and tasty weeknight supper, fairly healthy too for that matter.

I spent a little time looking up carrot greens and realized that it is no novelty to be eating these greens anyhow I was glad that I had discovered a use for these wonderful leaves and I think they will feature anytime I get them in our regular cooking. Will sent this off to Sher at What did you eat? who is hosting WHB.

A tymely touch of novelty

This dish is somewhere between Indian and middle-eastern. I cannot help wondering whether that actually makes it a moghlai dish. I know it is nothing like the food that we know as moghlai, but think about it. The mughals in India were of Persian (middle-eastern) decent and then they came to India and adopted some knowledge of the spices and this became known as Moghlai cuisine - no make that the amazingly popular defination of Indian food moghlai food.

Ok, so you say, not quite...

I will concede, this is a great dish anyway.

Citrus - Thyme Chicken

Serves 4-6

Ingredients

3 oranges

1 lime or lemon

1 tbsp curry powder

1 tsp sumac

1.5 tsp dried thyme

1/2 inch piece fresh ginger

2-3 cloves garlic

2 green chillies

1 tsp salt

10 chicken drumsticks, skinned

For the garnish

1 fresh orange

Extra thyme or cilantro

Method of Preparation

1. Squeeze the orange and lime juice into a blender.

2. Add all the remaining ingredients except the chicken into the blender and grind to a puree.

3. Marinate the chicken in this mixture for 2-4 hours.

4. Pre-heat the oven to 400 F. Arrange the chicken on a baking dish and bake for 25 minutes.

5. In the meantime, slice the orange for the garnish.

6. Remove the chicken from the oven, turn, and place each slice on the oven and return to the oven.

7. Remove and garnish with the remaining fresh herbs (thyme and cilantro).

Serve with a salad and decide whether this just might qualify as moghlai.

And this entry goes, to up a the host of this week's weekend herb blogging. Yes, I am wrapping this up ahead of mother's day but might be cooking a special brunch entry for a mom I know (not my mom, I wish she was close enough) but just another person who has shared this journey

that we call motherhood.

Basil - Pat's Marinara Sauce

I work with Pat who originally
hails from Abruzzi in Italy.
Well, rather, that is where her parents are from. Making marinara sauce is a big deal for them. It is a summertime activity starting with the growing of the tomatoes. She has been extolling the wonders of this sauce for a very long time.
For someone like me, who is used to 20 ingredients in a basic dish, it was dificult to comprehend the beauty and richness of slow cooked tomatoes until I tried it. I have made some tweaks to the recipe since I do not always have tons of fresh tomatoes available, but, I think this marinara is still pretty good. This shall teach me to scoff at the simple beauty of tomatoes and garlic.

This is how I have adaped it. BTW, here is a nice post on making marinara in India

Marinara Sauce

Makes 4 cups

Ingredients

1/3 cup olive oil

1o cloves of garlic minced

1 onion finely chopped

1 large can tomato puree

1 can tomato paste
20 tomatoes blanched and quartered

1 bottle(750 ml) deep red wine (I use about 3/4)

1/2 cup coarsely chopped basil

Method of Preparation

1. Heat the oil and add the garlic and onions and cook till turning golden.

2. All the tomatoes and bring to a simmer.

3. Cook on low heat for 2 hours stirring occasionally, using small amounts of the wine to thin the sauce.

4. During the last five minutes add the basil.

This sauce is great on simple pasta but can be a wonderful base for anything you can think of. I sometimes break 3-4 eggs over a small casserole of sauce and bake in the oven for 20 minutes and serve topped with black pepper.

The key ingredient here is basil. This is a herb that I love with tomatoes and in pesto. I make a lighter version of pesto, I shall post someday. I have recently learnt to appreciate its subtle sweet taste and use it in rice dishes and of couse Thai dishes.

WHB is being hosted by Anna at morsels and musings. From what I gather she is recently married. Congratulations!

Chettinaad Chicken

This recipe with its generous doses of black pepper is certainly one for the spice lovers. In the good old days my husband loved spicy food, ever since our little ones have taken over my cooking regime there is not that much space left for fiery spices. Anyhow, I cooked this today and hope writing this up will in some very small measure help the little ones who do not have enough to eat.

Chettinaad Chicken

Serves 4

Ingredients

1 small cornish hen skinned and cut into pieces (1.5 lbs)

1 tsp turmeric

2 tsp salt

1 lime

6 pods garlic minced

2.5 tbsp whole blackpeppercorns

3 tbsp oil

2 onions chopped

1 tbsp ginger grated

4-6 green cardamoms

3-4 cloves

1 tbsp cumin-coriander powder

3/4 tsp red chilli powder

2 tomatoes chopped

10 curry leaves

2 tsp chopped cilantro

Method of preparation

1. Marinate the chicken in the salt, lime juice, turmeric and garlic.

2. Coarsely crush all but 1tsp of the peppercorns and add to the mixture.

3. Heat the oil and add the onions and ginger and cook for 7-10 minutes.

4. Add in the chicken with cardamoms, cloves, cumin-coriander and chilli powder.

5. Mix well and cook for 10 minutes, stirring frequently.

6. Add in the tomatoes and curry leaves and cook till the tomatoes are soft.

7. Add one cup water and simmer for 20 minutes. The chicken should be soft and the mixture fairly dry.

If you want more gravy you can add upto one more cup water.

8. Remove from heat, garnish with cilantro and serve.

Stuffed Mini-Pepper Dolmas

Dolmas in Indian cooking also orginate from Bengali cooking in eastern India. Traditionally a green vegetable called potol is lightly fried and stuffed with fish or paneer and cooked in a seasoned sauce. This is a firm and nice sized vegetable. I have replicated this dish using mini bell peppers that are more readily available in the local markets, this add more color to the dish and the baked version is actually lighter and easier to prepare.

Capsicum Dolma – Paneer Stuffed Mini Peppers in an onion cardamom sauce

Serves 6 people

Ingredients

1 tbsp ghee
1 tsp black cumin seeds
1 onion finely chopped
1 inch piece of ginger grated
1 cup freshly prepared paneer crumbled
2.5 tsp salt
1 tsp cumin coriander powder
½ tsp garam masala powder
20 mini peppers (try using a mixed color combination)
3 tbsp oil
1 onion ground
1 tsp ginger paste
4 green cardamoms
4 cloves
1 small stick cinnamon
2 bay leaves
2 green chillies minced
1 cup yogurt
1 tsp sugar
2 tbsp chopped cilantro

Method of Preparation

Heat the ghee and sizzle the black cumin seeds.
Cook the onions and ginger till the onions are soft and begin to brown.
Add in the paneer with half the salt, cumin powder and garam masala.
Cook for 10 minutes till the mixture is dry and appears well mixed.
Gently cut the tops of the peppers and remove any ribs from the insides.
Stuff the hollows with the paneer mixture and arrange on a greased baking dish.
Pre-heat the oven to 350F.
Heat the oil and cook the onion and ginger paste till browned. Add in the whole spices.
Add the yogurt in small batches cook till the oil reappears.
Mix in the salt and ½ cup water and cook till thick.
Pour on top of the peppers.
Cover and bake for 25 minutes.