A homey lentil dish

I made this very basic lentils about a week back, actally right after I returned from India. I was rather tired, I had gone into work right after I came in however the lagged exhaustion hit later, I came back in around 3 pm and went straight to bed. I was woken up a couple of hours later by two excited people jumping on my bed. It was actually wonderful to see them. It was a nice break but a really conflicted one without the little ones.

All in all, I caught up with some old friends thanks to Facebook, and also bought a lot of reading material. I am looking forward to reading some of the books, the cool weather is just right for that. I made this immensely simple lentils and was really stunned by the flavor, I did not even temper it, all it had was the goodness of toor dal (yellow split pigeon peas), tomatoes, garlic, lime and cilantro. I finished it off by melting some butter into it. It was pure and simple wonderful.

Homey Yellow Split Pigeon Peas  - Toor Dal with Tomatoes and Garlic

Prep Time: 3-4 minutes

Cook Time: 15 minutes (in a pressure cooker)

Serves 4

Ingredients

1/2 cup toor dal - (Yellow Split Pigeon Peas)

2 cups water

1 teaspoon turmeric

1 teaspoon salt

2 pods garlic

2 tomatoes, chopped

2-3 tablespoons chopped cilantro

1 lime

Freshly ground black pepper

Additional chopped cilantro

1 tablepsoon butter

Method of Preparation

1. Place the toor dal, water, salt, garlic and tomatoes and cilantro in the pressure cooker and cook under pressure for 10 minutes.

2. Cool and remove the pressure and mix the lentils well.

3. Cut the lime and squeeze in the juice, add plenty of black pepper, stir in the cilantro and butter.

4. Enjoy by itself or with plenty of steamed white rice.

An early fall weekend...

The start of September this year, could not pronounce more loudly that Fall was here. It was almost like Mother Nature had come in with a big magic wand and waved it around us, “Ok folks, it’s back to school time and my favorite season fall is here!” Aadi started kindergarten this year, stealing the thunder a little from Deepta. His first day went well he is missing his old pre-school and friends. I shall miss it too! It has been a part of my life for almost seven years, since it included the daycare for Deepta. My son is a lot like me, he needs to ease into change but once settled he does well.

It is cooler in our little backyard, but the garden is still prolific. This weekend’s catch was – green bell peppers, fresh fragrant orange carrots, little spicy habaneras and of course loads of tomatoes.  The habaneras a special gift, grown from a plant that was being discarded by the nursery. So while I am not a huge fan of super spicy peppers, these ones are special.
I had loads of fun, earlier in the week with cucumbers and realized that I can do more with them than just salads.

The kids have planted radishes in their little 2 by 2 plots and they have been growing, they have promised me radishes for thanksgiving. It is good to see the working farm grow! Actually the kids garden project was quite a production, starting with digging the hole and getting the planks assembled and then of course moving onto to the more hands-on aspect of it. Nonetheless, they had started their own version of it in various places such as the center of the lawn, so this is much better. Of course, one has to keep reminding them to water their plants!

Thanks to Rosh Hashanah, I had the benefit of a long weekend and the time to cook all this lovely bounty, not to mention being able to sleep in. Actually, one of the days we had the kids signed up for the entire day at the afterschool program which offers holiday coverage and I took off with the husband to explore a few of the wineries on the CT wine trail. I shall be telling you about our “finds” and travels shortly.

One of the things I have learnt with my household is that whenever I get organized to put together a meal I think takes a little more thought and time, they get “hungry” even before I start.

To nip these preliminary hunger pangs in the bud, I made the carrot salad and kept that available, to stave of all the hunger and snack cravings. A simple salad with some sweet and sour flavors designed to bring out the best of the crisp carrots. While this salad is lovely plain, it works well as an unusual slaw with pan fried fish or a complement to sandwiches, I have tried them with egg salad pita pockets, looks as good as it tastes.
I have also tried adding some Thai basil to the mixture to give it an interesting taste.

Carrot and Ginger Salad

Prep Time: 30 minutes (15 minutes to let the flavors settle)

Serves 4

Ingredients

7-8 medium sized carrots, tops removed
1 teaspoon, freshly grated ginger
1 teaspoon chat masala
½ teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon honey
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/3 cup sliced almonds (could be pistachios)
1 tablespoon finely chopped cilantro

Method of preparation

1. Peel the carrots and grate and place in a mixing bowl.
2. Mix in the ginger, chat masala and salt.
3. In a separate small glass bowl add in the honey (I place this in the microwave for about 20-30 seconds to let it liquefy, since it coats the vegetables more easily this way).
4. Add the vinegar and black pepper to the honey and pour the dressing over the carrots and toss well.
5. Stir in the cilantro.
6. Let the salad sit in room temperature for about 15 minutes to let the flavors settle and add in the almonds, (note, I would have preferred pistachios, for the contrasting color, but my son is allergic to them, hence the almonds). This salad works well up to 1-2 hours outside on a cool day, if you plan on serving it later, just place in the refrigerator where it stays up to a day.
7.Enjoy the lovely medley of colors and tastes.
Well, now that I managed to find something to entertain the husband, when he complained about being hungry, I went on to cooking the rest of the meal. This is what I enjoy, chopping and savoring the fresh fragrances while food cooks and turns into nourishment.

The lamb chops needed to be braised slowly before I broiled them, so I started this process in a slow cooker and did a bunch of other things for a couple of hours. I love the slow cooker for Indian meals that way it takes longer but does not really need any hands on attention. I was then ready to get back to the cooking, the lamb got finished off and then the lentils and saffron rice. I do have to tell you, (ok, so I am making excuses for the bad pictures), simple food like this, looks plain but the tastes are well worth the effort!

Braised and lightly crisped spicy lamb chops

The lamb chops are slow cooked in a robustly spiced sauce, which is then dried off and lightly crisped in the broiler. This preparation would work well with baby back ribs as well.

Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 31/2 hours (mostly in the slow cooker)

Serves 4 people

Ingredients

4 tomatoes
4 pods of garlic
1 medium sized (1.5 inches) piece of peeled ginger
1 small habanera pepper (can be substituted with 5 green serrano chilies)
2-3 dried red chilies
1.5 tablespoons whole coriander seeds
1 tablespoon whole cumin seeds
3-4 pods cardamom
10-12 cloves
1 large stick cinnamon
1/3 cup red wine vinegar
1 tablespoon sugar
1.5 teaspoons salt
3 pounds of lamb rib chops
1-2 tablespoons of oil

To garnish

Cilantro and sliced red onions

Method of Preparation

1. Cut the tomatoes into half, place in a blender with the garlic, ginger, pepper, red chilies, coriander seeds, cumin seeds, cardamom, cloves and cinnamon.
2. Add in the vinegar, sugar and salt and grind for about 5-6 minutes until well blended.
3. Place the lamb in the prepared cooking sauce and cook in a slow cooker on high for about 3 hours.
4. By this time, the lamb should be fair soft and the sauce should be rather thin.
5. Place the lamb and the sauce in a skillet and cook for another 10 minutes on high to allow the sauce to cook down till is fairly dry and coats the lamb. The now thick sauce shall be rather unevenly clinging to the meat.
6. Place the lamb chops in a single layer on a baking tray and drizzle with the oil and broil for about 5 minutes on low, till very lightly crisped.
7. Serve garnished with cilantro and red onions.

Yellow Moong lentils in a tomato green bell pepper base (Sookhe Dal)

The lentils were prepared slightly differently in that I actually cooked the moong lentils separately until they were cooked through but still separate and dry and folded the lentils into to the separate sauce base, much like a pilaf, using lentils instead of rice. The worked well with this meal, but would also be nice with toasted pita triangles on their own as a simple light lunch.


Prep Time: 5-7 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Serves 4 people

Ingredients

1 cup of yellow moong lentils
½ teaspoon turmeric
1 teaspoon salt
1.5 cups water
2-3 tablespoons oil
1 large green bell pepper cut into a dice
1 small red onion, cut into a dice
1 large tomato, cut into a dice
½ teaspoon red chili pepper
1 teaspoon freshly grated ginger
Chopped cilantro to garnish

Method of Preparation

1. Place the lentils in a cooking pot with the turmeric, salt and water and bring the water to a simmer. Cover and cook for about 15 minutes on low heat, until the lentils are cooked through but still separate. It is important not to overcook the grains. This should take about 15-20 minutes
2. While the lentils are cooking heat the oil and add the bell peppers and the onions and sauté for 5 minutes, add in the tomato and ginger and cook stirring gently until the tomato is soft and breaks down into a soft pulpy sauce.
3. Stir in the lentils gently into the mixtures and add 1/3 cup water and cook till the water cooks down.
4. Add in the cilantro and serve with the rice.

I combined all of this nicely with some saffron rice. This is my comfort food, my festive food and in general food that I cannot live without. A simple rice variation like this is something that can also be thrown together in the rice cooker. The rice cooker can be quite useful for baseline simple rice dishes and it keeps the rice warm while the rest of meal is being brought to the table, however I would also just as easily put this together in the usual way.

Saffron Cardamom Rice

Cook Time: 20 minutes
Serves 4 people

Ingredients

1.5 cup of basmati rice
3 cups of water
1 teaspoon saffron strands
1 teaspoon salt
3-4 cardamoms
1 tablespoon butter

Method of Preparation

1. Place the rice and water in a cooking pot or the rice cooker.
2. Add in the saffron, salt and cardamoms and bring the water to a simmer.

3. Cover and cook for about 10 minutes.

Next week, I shall be in India! Hopefully time permitting I shall try to sneak in a post about food, sights and sounds of India. When I back I shall be cooking the butternut squash growing nicely on its little tree.

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.

Homey Satisfying Lentil Stew

So, there are so many variations and definations of good food, one could fill pages with the concepts.

Good food in my world changes and varies with my mood. It is fancy when I have more time and am cooking for several people, good food has a touch of fancy.

Most days however, good food for me is simple, nutritious and comforting. I always think that I am blessed in that I can get a lot of comfort from an everyday chore, something that I have do anyway - cook and feed my family..

Last night, was a friday after a long week, luckily for me I had some interesting fancy rice in the refridgerator, so I need something else to go with it, so here came this stew - yellow moong dal, brocolli, potatoes with a nice spiced drizzle of cumin and lemon.

Homey Satisfying Lentil Stew

Cook Time: 25 minutes

Serves 4 people

Ingredients

3/4 cup yellow split moong lentils

3 cups water

2 thinly sliced coins of ginger (taking a ginger root and slicing two pieces)

1/2 teaspoon turmeric

1 teaspoon garlic salt

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 small potato, peeled and chopped

1 cup of brocolli florrets

1 tomato, chopped

1 -2 green chilies slit

1 teaspoon ghee

1 tablespoon olive or grapeseed oil

1 teaspoon cumin seeds

1 lemon sliced

1-2 teaspoons chopped cilantro

Method of Preparation

1. Heat a cooking pan and dry roast the lentils for about 2-3 minutes.

2. Add the water, ginger, turmeric, salt, potato, brocolli and green chili and simmer for 20-25 minutes, until the lentils are soft, almost mushy and thick.

3. Heat the ghee and the olive and grapeseed oil in a pan and add in the cumin seeds and cook till the cumin browns nicely and smells smoky and toasty.

4. Pour over the lentils and mix in lightly.

5. Remove the seeds, and squeeze in the lemon juice into the lentils.

6. Garnish with the cilantro and serve with rice or bread.

Rustic Lentil Parathas

My friend Priti has this dream of wanting to host a rustic Indian party - dishes that are authentic, simple and true to the unblemished earthy soul of Indian cooking.

Lentils parathas from Punjab is one such. Rustic Indian cooking in several ways, caters to the use of leftovers and uses very basic culinary techniques. The use of leftovers speaks to general lack of refridgeration is a rather warm country.

This morning for breakfast I used leftover lentils to make these parathas. The recipe is my creation, since I do not really have an original one. It is comforting and simple. A wholesome meal and we could not held generously slathering on the butter. I actually used 2 cups of leftover lentils of different types.

Dal Parathas - Lentil wholewheat spicy flatbreads

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 35 minutes

Makes 10 medium breads

Ingredients

2 cups of leftover cooked dal

1 teaspoon red chili powder

1 teaspoon salt

2 cups wholewheat flour (atta)

1/2 teaspoon carom seeds

1 tomato, finely chopped

1/2 onion, very finely chopped

3-4 tablespoons finely chopped cilantro

Sesame seeds for toping

Butter or ghee for serving

Method of Preparation.

1. Place the lentils in a food process and blend to a puree.

2. Place in a bowl and stir in the red chili powder, salt and add the whole wheat flour.

3. Add the carom seeds, tomato, onion and cilantro and mix with your hands to form a moist pliable dough.

4. Roll into small 4 inch circles.

5. Press with some sesame seeds

6. Heat a gridle pan and place the bread on the pan, the non-sesame side and cook for 1-2 minutes.

7. Turn and cook for 1-2 minutes on the other side, and then add a little cooking oil, and cook lightly till crisp and brown, turn and repeat.

8. Remove from fire.

9. Serve hot drizzled with additional butter and mango chutney if desired.

Note: The lentils that I used were fairly most and well seasoned. To get the well seasoned effect, the spices need to adjusted according to the lentils being used.

White lentils with beetgreens

When you work with beets, you also get plenty of beet greens. And when life gives you beet greens - make lentils. I have to confess, for some strange reason over the past several weeks I have been finding several unusual uses for lentils. It just is not something I would think of using in a Pasta sauce. Don't get me wrong, lentils fuel the engine of this house. It is one of the sure work foods with my kids and actually for that matter the "man and his family". Lentils for an Indian child is much like the rice and beans in a spanish household. I tried them this time with white lentils (urad dal).

Beetgreens while having a mild taste do have a stunningly pretty appearance. I loved pulling these out of the soil, cleaning them and enjoying the colors while I worked with them. Lentils are always a comforting dish for me to cook, I love the quite simplicity of the end product.

Urad Dal with Beetgreens and Garlic

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 25 minutes

Serves 4-6

Ingredients

3/4 cup white lentils (urad dal)

2 tomatoes (coarsely chopped)

2 cups of chopped beet greens

2 cups of water

1/2 teaspoon turmeric

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon ghee (clarified butter)

1 teaspoon cumin seeds

1 tablespoon finely diced garlic

2 dried red chillies

1 lime

Method of Preparation

1. Place the lentils in a pressure cooker and turn on the heat. Lightly dry roast the lentils till they are very lightly browned.

2. Add the tomatoes, beet greens, water, turmeric and salt and cook under pressure for about 15 minutes.

3. Cool and remove the pressure.

4. Heat the ghee and the oil and add the cumin and the garlic and cook till the garlic is lightly browned. Add in the red chillies and cook for about 10 more seconds.

5. Pour this seasoned oil over the lentils and mix lightly. Squeeze in the lime juice and enjoy.

I am sending this entry to two events, the monthly my legume love affair hosted by the well seasoned cook and the chard challenge at daily musings.

Dal and Cauliflower Bhartha - Summer 2009!

What makes Summer 2009 different, I honestly am not sure and yet it is different. Possibly because I have actually learnt to appreciate little things through my children's eyes - I do hope that I do not ever lose that perspective.

Small things make a big difference in their worlds, they are also content most days! For example, the highlight of Aadi's world today was to see me use a new pair of cat clippers on Benji! Anshul has been happy with the garden project, I am so happy to finally have more tomatoes than I can use, even if this is transient it is not a mean feat in our household, we are practically addicted to tomatoes!

Well, I have also learnt to love blueberries! For some reason, I restricted my summer berry love to just raspberries and strawberries, thus far!

The other night, I made this very simple bhartha, where I actually substituted cauliflower for potatoes. I was curious to see how this would turn out and in the process realized how important mustard oil is too me. No, I do not use it everyday or for every meal, but I guess when I need it it is an essential. I do not really even have pictures to post of this

A bharta is a puree, usually of eggplant or potatoes. This particular variety is the bengali variety, which does include lentils and usually is made with starchy vegetables like sweet potatoes, pumpkin, taro and of course potatoes. I made this with red lentils (masuur dal) and cauliflower and loved it!

Kofi and mushur daler bhorta - Dal and Cauliflower Puree

Serves 2-3

Ingredients

2/3 cup of red lentils

1 small potato, peeled and cut into quarters

1/2 a head of medium cauliflower

1 clove of garlic

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon turmeric

1 tomato, quartered

1-2 tablespoons mustard oil

1/2 red onion, very finely diced

2 green chillies, finely chopped

2 tablespoon chopped cilantro

Method of Preparation

1. Place the lentils, potato, cauliflower, garlic, salt, turmeric and tomato in a pressure cooker. Add 1/3 cup of water.

2. Bring the pressure cooker to full pressure and cook for 3 minutes. Cool naturally and remove the pressure.

3. What you should see is a well steamed caulflower with spices clinging to it, a wilted tomato and soft flaky lentils that are fairly dry.

4. With a firm hand and a wooden spoon, mix the vegetables and lentils into a smooth puree.

5. Mix in the other ingredients and enjoy as a side dish or even a dip or spread.

A plug for my local Indian Grocer

When you own a fairly large ethnic grocery store about 15 miles the closest comparable store, you pretty much have a monopoly market. This often results in poor quality, higher prices and a lack of creativity. This really is not the case with Bhavik Grocery located in Elmford, NY on Rte 119. The store moved to its current location last year - a much larger, spacious location. I have to confess that he might have done some adjustments in pricing to account for the enhanced rent, but overall you will love shopping in the more roomier space. This past weekend I went with my daughter to replenish my supplies, I bought her mango ice cream and got myself some of the spice tea while shopping. His store offers a good selection of spices as well as an interesting selection such as green bananas, green mangoes, ethnic squashes and a huge assortment of chutneys, flours and spices. On most days, along with the staff you will find family members vigilantly making sure that your needs are met - usually the owner Mr. Sanchala or his wife or even his charming father.

His store offers a good selection of spices as well as an interesting selection such as green bananas, green mangoes, ethnic squashes and a huge assortment of chutneys, flours and spices.

I collected most of the things that I needed, I was out of red chillies, curry leaves, lentils and tamarind. I then wanted my daughter to experiment so I asked her to pick something different. She thought some and then decided to get a pretty young green bottle gourd.

I brought that home and cooked this with lentils in a thick puree. I add in some raisins for good measure. We all liked it include her brother - Mr fussy!

If you do not have the bottle gourd (lau) available, you can substitute it with young zucchini.

Lau Makha - Thick and creamy lentil and bottle gourd puree

Serves 6

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Ingredients

1 small and tender bottle gourd (about 3/4 lbs)

1 cup yellow moong lentils

1 tomato finely chopped

1 teaspoon turmeric

1 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon ghee

1/2 teaspoon nigella seeds (kalonji or kalo jira)

1 teaspoon grated ginger

2 dried red chillies

1 tablespoon raisins

Method of Preparation

1. Peel and grate the bottle gourd.

2. Place the bottle gourd with the lentils and tomatoes in a pressure cooker.

3. Mix in the turmeric and salt and cook for 10 minutes.

4. Cool and remove the lid, you should have a smooth thick lentil puree.

5. Heat the ghee and add the nigella seeds and wait till the seeds sizzle.

6. Add in the ginger and the red chillies and saute for 1-2 minutes.

7. Mix in the lentils and raisins and enjoy!

Dal with Colllard Greens

I love lentils and greens. Spinach of course tends to be tested and tried, but I am always trying new greens. The lastest in my tested variety of additions in collard greens. The light bitterness of collards remind me of methi, they tend to be a little more textures. I pretty much tried to cook this the same way as this recipe, except for the difference in dal, greens, ok a bunch of things. This is a really lusciously lovely creamy creation!

Masuur Dal with Collard Greens

Serves 4

Ingredients

3/4 cup red masuur dal
1 cup chopped collard greends
1/2 cup corn
1 cup buttermilk
1 tsp salt
2 slit green chillies
1 tsp turmeric
1 cup water

For the tempering

1 tbsp ghee
1/8 tsp asafetida
1 tbsp grated ginger
1/2 tsp mustard seeds
1/2 tsp cumin seeds
8-10 curry leaves
2 tbsp chopped cilantro
Extra lime for squeezing

Method of Preparation

1. Place all the ingredients for the dal in a pressure cooker and cook for 10-15 minutes.
2. Cool and throughly beat the mixture into a smooth creamy consistency, the corn will not dissolve and remains to add a little texture.
3. Heat the ghee and add the hing, ginger, mustard seeds, cumin seeds and cook till the mustard seeds start crackling.
4. Add the curry leaves and stir into the dal with the cilantro.
5. Squeeze the lime juice and enjoy with brown or white rice.

Bhaja Moonger Dal - Roasted Moong Dal with Corn and Spinach

In my house, getting the kids to eat healthy is a lesser challenge than being able to find something that works for everyone. Since the focus had always been substance over form, the kids pretty much eat most things, but have a very low spice tollerance. Simple dishes like this dal however are good options for both the little ones and the grown-ups too. Cooked in a jiffy in a pressure cooker, this dal is later tempered with panch phoron and then for us, tempered again with crushed red pepper. Served with plain rice either brown or white, this makes a lovely soothing meal on a busy cold day.

I have added some ground corn to this, the corn can be added whole but I felt that processing this in a food process with tomatoes and cilantro helped it blend better into the very smooth buttery texture of the dal.

Bhaja Moonger Dal - Roasted Moong Dal with Corn and Spinach

Serve 4-6 people

Ingredients

1/2 cup moong dal
1/2 cup fresh or frozen corn kernels
1 tomato
1 piece (about 1/2 inch) peeled ginger
3/4 cup frozen or fresh chopped spinach
1/2 tsp turmeric
1 tsp salt
1 tsp ghee
1/2 tsp panch phoron
1 lime
2 -3 tbsp chopped cilantro
Optional tempering
1/2 tsp oil
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper

Method of Preparation

1. Roast the lentils in the base of a pressure cooker. This is done by placing the lentils on the dry pressure cooker and cooking them until lightly browned and fragrant.

2. In the meantime, place the corn, tomato and ginger in a food processor until almost a paste.

3 Place the corn, in the pot with the lentils, add 2 cups water, spinach, salt and turmeric and cook under pressure for 7 minutes.

4. Cook throughly and mix well.

5. Heat the ghee and add the panch phoron and cook till this crackles and pour over the dal.

6. Mix well, squeeze the lime juice and stir in the cilantro.

7. If using the optional tempering, roast the crushed red pepper in the oil and pour over the dal.

Dals are a perfect way to mix an assortment of vegetables into our diet. This particular entry being sent to Sharmi, for her cooking for kids event.

Lentil and Potato Salad, er chaat!

Once upon a time, I would have never thought of pairing these two unusual creatures and once upon a time I would have missed out a good very satifying gastromical experience!

In general, I have actually been watching more TV than I have in a while. Well, I cannot resist this great American soap opera that we call elections. There is the economic crisis, the first so-called African american candidate, and of course the "hockey mom" who is perfectly comfortable raising her little baby, through some remote control, since she seems to be anywhere but with the baby. Well, down to more earthy issues, here is a lentil and potato salad a la indiene - Alu-Massur Chaat

Serves 4-6

Ingredients

2 russet potatoes

1 cup cooked brown lentils (sabut masur)

1 medium onion finely chopped

1 tsp grated ginger

1 tbsp chaat masala

freshly ground black pepper

1/2 tsp sugar

1 cup sour cream

2-3 tbsp chopped cilantro

1 lime

Method of Preparation

1. Cook and peel the potatoes, coarsely chop into medium-sized pieces.

2. Mix in all the remaining ingredients except the lime and chill for 2 hours.

3. Squeeze the lime over the salad and eat with any think else that is interesting.

2. Place in a mixing bowl and add the lentils and onions.

Dal Makhani and Dahi Methi Bhindi

I had blogged earlier about the bhindi recipe, but nothing like simple good creamy dal Makhani. I recently made this to teach Aeisha how to make this.

She is an interesting person who has made her way to my culinary studio. She is a second generation American-Pakistani who ideally would love someone to teach her Pakistani cooking but will settle for Indian, as long as the spices are not too different. As I tell her, the spices are almost the same but their use is sometime not the same across the different parts of the sub-continent or even the country we call India. Anyhow, good food is a universal thing.

Dal Makhani - Creamy Urad Dal and Red Kidney Beans

Serves 6

Ingredients

1/2 cup whole urad dal (mapte beans)
2 tsp salt
2 tbsp oil
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 onion finely chopped
1 tsp finely grated ginger
2 tomatoes finely chopped
1 can red kidney beans
1 tbsp garam masala
1 tsp red chili powder
1/3 cup cream
2 tbsp finely chopped cilantro

Method of Preparation
1. Pressure cook the dal with 2 cups water and salt for 15 minutes.
2. Heat the oil and add the cumin followed by the onion and ginger after a few seconds.
3. Add the tomatoes and cook for 5 minutes.
4. Add the dal and drained kidney beans, chili powder and simmer for 30 minutes.
5 . Stir in the remaining ingredients and serve with rice or roti.

Mixed Bean Chilli

I have to tell you, like most mother who juggle the 800 (ok that is an exageration!) but the multiple things that one has to fit in just gets crazier when one has to complete the list with -
800) Cook interesting, flavorful, food that works for both Mommy and Daddy and for the little tykes.

Well, the adapted version of Chilli that I make works pretty well for this and with some really inspired toppings and garnishes makes pretty interesting party food.

To make the process interesting, I use the beans in my pantry, that are a combination of all kinds of Indian beans and lentils - here I have whole dried peas, green chickpeas, black-eyed beans, black beans and small red beans. This time round, I decided to do something that I do not usually do - get some fresh oregano to liven this up!

Mixed Bean Chilli

Makes 10 servings

Ingredients

1 cups of dried mixed beans as described above
2 tbsp salt
3 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp cumin seeds
2 onions coarsely, chopped
6-8 cloves garlic
1 tbsp freshly grated ginger
3/4 cup ground chicken or turkey
3 cups canned or freshly chopped tomatoes
1 green chilli
1 cup chopped cilantro
2 tbsp oregano leaves

For Garnishing

Chopped Scallions
Chopped Green chilies
Chopped Cilantro
Lime Wedges
Tortilla Chips
Grated or Crumbled Cheese
Sour Cream


Method of Preparation

1. Soak the beans overnight and then cook under pressure for 25 minutes with 1 tsp salt. (The beans should be partially cooked.)
2. Drain and set aside.
3. Heat the oil and add the ginger, garlic and onion and cook for 15 minutes.
4. Add the ground meat and cook for 10 minutes.
5. Add the beans and remaining ingredients with 3 cups water, bring to a boil and simmer for 3 hours.
6. Serve over rice or with cornbread and garnish with the scallions, green chillies and cilantro.
7. Place a few tortilla chips and 1 tsp cheese.
8. Microwave for 40 seconds till the cheese is melted add 1 tsp sour cream and enjoy.

Ps. On a note on my favorite bevarage-red wine. I have recently noticed a fun trend amongst CA wine to have funny, homey labeling almost in an attempt to make wine more everyday. Well, I made the chilli for a Friday Night crowd and served it with a wine from the Doghouse Wines. Do not know much about the wine, the "Checkers Cab" in question was a fun down to earth wine that did appropriate justice to this dish.

Punida-Lemon Rasam and a meme

Well without the camera I have lost a little blogging momentum. This week I did make something interesting. That and then I was tagged by Sharmi, for a meme. So I figured, let me just write without having to worry about the uploading, downloading getting the picture just right...

What I made earlier in the week was Rasam, and, on a whim I added some dried mint leaves to it. The results were pretty amazing. The delicately tart and spicy broth tingled on the tongue and was balanced perfectly by the gentle freshness of the mint leaves.

Now for my random throughts,

1. Living in the East Coast I love Fall. I thing I live 10 months of the year to experice the burst of colors and crisp clean air. I am probably one of the few people who feel happy when summer is leaving.

2. My children want to make me be a better person everyday. That among many other ways is how they have enriched my life. I want to eat better, do better deeds on a daily basis. So, I thank you Aadi and Deepta for helping me strive everyday.

3. Only when you have your own children do you really understand how much your parents did for you. Especially the early years, they mean so much, needs so much and they still continue to give every day of our lives.

4. My one regret is that I am so far away from my parents. I wish I could be closer and do more for them.

5. I love cooking, it helps me feel happy on both good days and bad. Especially on bad days, the calming experience of chopping, mixing and putting everything together makes a big difference in my spirits when I am done.

6. As a mother, it is very difficult to find time for oneself. However, simple things like even doing groceries peacefully (yes, this is what I do every Saturday morning, while my husband feeds the kids breakfast can make a difference).

7. I think overall, I have been lucky with my share in life.

Well, thanks Sharmi for making me thing. I must be so self-obsessed since all my random thoughts are about myself.

Mixed beans in a creamy gujarati style gravy

Well, here I was browsing through Trupti's,
beautiful blog, when I came across her recipe for Makai Chevdo, sweet corn simmered in milk and spices. I usually have more corn than I know what to do with but not last weekend. So, I started looking for what I could substitute, I found green peas, baby lima bean, and white kidney beans. So I figured since I like them all why stop at one of these ingredients. I did add a tomato and some sugar since I figured none of the above had the sweetness that corn had. My kids loved the idea so I also have since made a tofu-corn variation. Try the recipe as is or my variation, this is simple nutritious comfort food at its best.

Mixed Beans in a creamy gujarati style gravy

Serves 4

Ingredients

2 tbsp oil
1/2 tsp cumin seeds
1/2 tsp mustard seeds
1/8 tsp asafetida
1/2 cup mixed dry baby lima and white kidney beans ( I cook these in a crockpot till soft)
1 cup frozen peas
2 green chillies finely chopped
1 tsp salt
1.5 tsp brown sugar
1 cup milk
1 cup water
2 limes

To garnish

Cilantro leaves

Method of Preparation

1. Heat the oil, add the mustard and cumin seeds and cook till they crackle.
2. Add the asafedtida followed by the beans and peas and cook for 5 minutes.
3. Mix in the chillies, salt, and sugar with the milk and water and simmer for 15 minutes.
4. Squeeze the lime over the beans and garnish with cilantro and enjoy.

Thinking Winter

I have to tell you this season is one of those mixed blessing seasons, I do not like to deal with ice, although we have been lucky thus far in New York, around February the bare trees start bothering me, but, I do like drinking good hot tea especially in winter, love soups, love all warm flavors, and along with my tea I like snacking. I was thinking of these amazing snacklets that someone I worked with called Nivedita had once made for a potluck. She has currently formed an organization called RagaChitra, where she teaches children BharatNatyam and Indian classical music.
Anyhow, I googled for Masala Vada and eventually landed on Lakshmi's blog and found this recipe for Pappu Chekkalu.


I at once decided to try it, made some very tiny tweaks, some for convieniece and some for fun and now since I am sending these with Anshul for a snack tomorrow, I also have a happy man at home. This is the recipe as I did it. I actually tried half the recipe from Lakshmi's blog and used the moong dal that she had suggested, but I used the whole variety since that was all I had.




Pappu Chekkalu - Mixed grain crisps

Makes 10

Ingredients

1/2 cup whole moong dal soaked in 1 cup water
1.5 tsp garlic paste
1 cup rice flour
1/4 cup besan
1 tbsp sesame seeds
1.5 tsp ajwain
1 tsp dried methi
1.5 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ginger powder
1 red cherry pepper
1.5 cups oil for frying


Method of Preparation


1. Grind the dal with the garlic and mix in the remaining ingredients except the pepper. I did this in the food processor.
2. Thinly slice the cherry pepper, (yes, I discovered these in the market for the first time, they are really too spicy for me, but I am using them in tiny doses wherever I can). Mix into the dough.
3. Shape these into small balls and flatten between parchment paper, as shown above. I think this is a really neat tip, I would not have thought of it.
4. Heat the oil and fry in medium heat till golden brown.

Sweet and Spicy Apple Buttnernut Rasam

This soup like many other creations in my kitchen started as a dish for my little ones, however after tasting this, I felt the flavors had potential to do more that provide good nutrition, they could grow up. A little bit of this and that produced an interesting rasam.

A traditional rasam is plentiful in tomatoes and a fairly thin soup. My variation is thicker than the typical broth but still thin enough to pass muster.

Sweet and Spicy Apple Butternut Rasam

Makes 6 servings

Ingredients

2 granny smith apples

2 cups of butternut squash peeled and cubed

4 tomatoes finely chopped

1/2 cup brocolli slaw (optional)

3 tbsp toor dal (pigeon peas)

2 tsp salt

2 cups vegetable broth

1.5 tbsp rasam masala

1 tbsp ghee

1.5 tsp cumin seeds

1/2 tsp mustard seeds

1/3 cup yogurt

1/4 cup cream

4 tbsp chopped cilantro

2 limes juiced

Method of Preparation

1. Peel the apples and cut into chunks.

2.Place with squash, brocolli slaw, dal, tomatoes, broth, salt and rasam masala, into a pressure cooker and cook for 10 minutes and cool for 5 minutes. Alternately, simmer for 45 minutes on a a low flame till all the ingredients are very soft and pureed.

3. Beat the mixture till smooth with a wisk and add 2 cups of water and check for the salt.

4. Heat the ghee and add the cumin and mustard seed. When the seeds start to crackle add this to the lentil mixture and bring to a boil.

5. Let this simmer for 5 minutes.

6. Remove from the heat.

7. Beat the yogurt and cream together till very smooth and gently stir into the soup.

8. Top with the cilantro and lime juice.

9. Serve in individual bowls either over rice and alone.

Khaman Dhokla - Indian Chickpea Bread

Khaman Dhokla

Like rossagollas, this dish has taken me some time to master, this recipe from a Divya Mehta worked for me.

Khaman Dhokala
Ingredients: 1 cup channa dal 1 tbs. chili ginger paste Salt to taste 1/4 teaspoon turmeric powder 1/2 cup yogurt 2 tsp. sugar Apinch of asafetida 1/2 tsp. baking soda 3 tbs. oil At the time to prepare Dhokala 3 tbs. lemon juice or 3 tsp. citric acid
To temper -- 2 tablespoons oil 1 teaspoon mustard seeds, 1 teaspoon sesame seeds, coriander leaves and coconut to garnish

Method:
Soak the dal for five hours. Grind it to paste with the yogurt.
Mix with salt, chilli-ginger paste, turmeric and sugar.
Beat mixture with hands to make it light and fluffy. Then cover with a tight lid and keep aside in a warm place for about five hours to ferment.
Now combine oil, lemon juice or citric acid in a small vessel. Add half-tsp. baking soda. It will bubble.
Stir with a spoon and pour it in the fermented batter. Mix well.
Take a vessel, big enough to hold an a deep plate.
Put about four cups of water in it and a metal ring in the center to put the plate on. Cover with a tight lid and boil water. Meanwhile grease the plate with oil and pour the batter in. Put it inside on the ring. Cover and steam for 15 to 20 minutes. The batter will rise and make spongy dhoklas. Remove carefully from inside and allow to cool for 10 minutes. Cut into square pieces and transfer to a serving plate. Prepare tempering by heating oil and mustard seeds until seeds pop up. Add sesame seeds and Switch off gas. Pour over dhoklas evenly. Sprinkle coriander leaves. Serve khaman dhoklas hot or cold with green coriander chutney.