Aloo-Rasledar

Sometimes when the normal balance of one's life gets shaken, it takes a little bit of time to get things back into sync.

This is how I have been feeling the past few weeks, the intensity of things at work have thrown the normal balance of things in my life off kilter.

Yes, I have been cooking just not had much time to blog, have not been able to take my usual evening walks which has also been making things a little out of sync for me.

I am trying to get back into things with this weekend. To do that once in a which we start with the basics, I almost feel potatoes fall into that very basic and practical category.



Here is what I did to dress up this humble tuber.



Aloo -Rasledar



Serves 6



Ingredients



1 lb new baby pototoes

1 tbsp tandoori masala

1 tsp freshly crushed pepper

1/2 cup yogurt

1.5 tsp salt

1/3 cup oil

1 tsp cumin seeds

2 tsp curry powder

4 tomatoes chopped

1 tsp grated ginger

3 green chillies finely chopped

1/2 cup cottage cheese

3-4 tbsp chopped cilantro



Method of Preparation

1. Parboil the potatoes, cool and peel.

2. Marinate the potatoes with 2 tbsp yogurt, tandoori masala and pepper and 1 tsp salt.

3. After half an hour, heat 1/2 the oil in a hard anodized pan and on low heat cook the potatoes on low heat stirring constantly till well browned.

4. Heat the remaining oil and add the cumin seeds, ginger and tomatoes. Add in the curry powder.

5. Cook for 10 minutes till the tomatoes are browned. Add 1/2 cup water and bring to a simmer.

6. When thickened, add the green chillies and pototoes with the cottage cheese.

7. Cook for 5-7 minutes. Serve garnished with the cilantro.

Ginger-Turmeric Sallops on a Mango-Corn Salsa

Saffron-Turmeric Scallops on a Mango-Corn Salsa.

Ingredients

For the Salsa

4 small ears fresh corn on the cob
1 mango
2 tbsp chopped cilantro
1/2 tsp black salt
1/2 tsp brown sugar
1 lime

For the scallops

1 lb large scallops
1/2 tsp turmeric
1/2 tsp grated ginger
1 tsp soy sauce
1/2 tsp sugar
3 tbsp oil
1 tsp cumin seeds



Method of Preparation

1. Cut the corn kernels of the cob into a bowl.
2. Peel and grate the mango onto the bowl.
3. Mix with the remaining ingredients and set aside to let the flavors blend.
4. Mix the scallops with the turmeric, ginger and sugar.
5. Heat the oil and add the cumin seeds.
6. Sear the scallops till lightly browned on both sides (this takes about 5 minutes on each side).
7. To serve, place two tsp of the salsa on the plate, top with a few scallops and serve with any side of your choice.b

Not my mother's mac and cheese

Mac and cheese is a staple in the house. The little ones love it, I usually tend to make different variations of this dish, but from the scratch. No, I do not have a favorite that my mother used to make since my mother really did not make mac and cheese.

This Friday at lunch with a couple of colleagues, someone mentioned to me about how their mother used cottage cheese for Mac and Cheese. Now, what a novel idea, cottage cheese is low in fact and can actually contribute to a nice smooth texture.

So this is what I did,

Mac and Cheese with Shallots, Ham and Asparagus

Serves 6

Ingredients

2 cups cooked elbows
2 tbsp olive oil
3-4 shallots thinly sliced
3 cloves garlic grated
2 tbsp flour
1 quart half and half
1 cup coarsely cubed ham
1/2 cup finely chopped asparagus
2 tbsp chopped chives
1.5 cups cottage cheese with pineapple
3 tbsp butter
salt to taste
1/2 cup grated swiss cheese

Method of Preparation

Heat the oil and brown the shallots and garlic.
Add in the flour and mix into the oil.
Add in the half and half and simmer till thickened.
Add in the ham, asparagus and chives and cottage cheese.
Remove from heat.
Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees.
Grease a casserole and add in the elbows and butter and salt.
Pour the cheese mixture and bake for 25 minutes.
Remove from the heat and stir in the swiss cheese and serve warm.

Apple Crisp with almond meal

Yes! Apple season is here. Today is a lovely fall day, in this neck of the woods. There is a nip in the air, beautiful sunshine and the orange is just begining to peek out from the leaves.
I do not often make dessert, simply because when I do, I ending being the person finishing it. Last week was my husband's birthday so I used this excuse for some indulgence.

I whipped up a fairly healthy apple crisp and of course served it warm with lots of vanilla ice-cream making sure the calories balanced out the healthy factor. Apples are of course a great fruit, this apple crist actually leaves the skin on, since we tend to give away a lot of the goodness with the skin.

The interesting ingredient here was almonds that are one of nature's most nutritious gifts. True they do have a decent amount of fat, but the kind loaded with omega-3 making them really good for children. Lately, I have been working with Almond meal from Trader Joe's trying to stretch the boundaries to see where I can sneak this in.

Apple Crisp with Almond Meal

Serves 6 people

Ingredients

6-8 apples cored and cut into small pieces (I used NY gala and Granny smith)
2 limes
2 tbsp honey
1/4 tsp ground cinamon
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
2 tbsp brown sugar
3 tbsp butter
1/3 cup rolled oats
1/2 cup almond meal
1/2 cup sliced blanched almonds

Method of Preparation

1. Squeeze the lime juice, over the apples and set aside.
2. Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees, grease a casserole and place the apples in this.
3. Mix in the honey, cinamon and nutmeg onto the apples.
4. Mix the sugar, butter, oats and almond meal in a separate bowl and pour over the apples.
5. Bake for 20 minutes - the kitchen should smell rather nice by now.
6. Top with the sliced almonds and cook for 10 more minutes.
7. Remove from the heat and let this sit for 10 minutes.
8. Serve hot with ice-cream or sorbet.

This entry goes out to Myriam of Once Upon a Tart, which is just the blog to visit if you you have a sweet tooth.

So,

Dal and Zucchini Koftas

This recipe is a variation of the lau or bottle gourd koftas that my mother-in-law makes. It is

a classic illustration of pure unudulterated simple Indian vegetarian cooking. She usually cooks without garlic and onion, over time I have learnt the subtle uses of asafetida which is often used in such recipes in lieu of the onion.

In this recipe, I use moong flour and grated zucchini for the koftas, the ginger tomato gravy is very true to the original recipe. A perfect dish for the somewhat cooler weather.

Dal and Zucchini Koftas

Serves 6-8

Ingredients

For the koftas

4 zuchinis grated

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp turmeric

1.5 cups moong flour

1 tsp chilli powder

1 tsp cumin-coriander powder

1 tsp salt

1/3 cup chopped cilantro leaves

2-3 green chillies minced

Oil for frying

For the gravy

2 tbsp oil

2 tsp grated ginger

1 tsp cumin-coriander powder

1/2 tsp turmeric

1/8 tsp asafetida

Salt to taste

6 tomatoes blanced and chopped finely

1/2 cup yogurt

1 tsp garam masala

1/2 cup finely chopped coriander leaves

Method of Preparation

1. Put the grated zucchini in a colander with the salt and turmeric and let this drain for half an hour. Do not squeeze the remaining water from this.

2. Mix with the moong dal flour and remaining indredients to form a thick batter like paste.

3. Heat the oil and drop tsps of the batter to make dumpling like koftas. Note: I usually get enough for two batches I separate and save half in the freezer for later use.

4. Heat the 2-3 tbsp oil and add the ginger and cook for 1 minutes.

5. Add the turmeric, chilli powder, cumin-coriander powder and asafetida and cook for a few seconds.

6. When aromatic, add the tomatoes and salt cook for 5-7 minutes till begining to turn brown.

7. Add the yogurt and 1/2 cup water and cook slowly till the liquid is absorbed and the oil begins to show (this takes a good 20 minutes.

8. Add half a cup of water, when the gravy begins to simmer add the koftas and cook for 3-4 minutes.

9. Garnish with the garam masala and cilantro and serve.

Basil and tomatoes - Fare thee well - Summer 07

There is a distinct nip in the air, heralding the arrival of fall, this weekend we have had crisp, cool sunny weather. Going to the store however I found these really beautiful baby roma tomatoes. I was thrilled to see them! Of course, nothing better to pair them with other than basil. Made a simple pasta, that was something that the kids loved and made everyone else happy. So here we are,

Farfalle with green peppers and roma tomatoes.

Serves 4-6

Ingredients

1 cup dried farfalle
3 tbsp extra virgin olive
1 green bell pepper thinly sliced
1/2 cup homemade or prepared pasta sauce
1.5 lbs baby roma tomatoes, halved
1/3 coarsely torn basil leaves
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Method of Preparation

1. Cook the farfalle according to the directions on the package and drain.
2. Heat the oil and add the pepper and saute for 5-7 minutes.
3. Add the pasta sauce and the tomatoes and cook for 3-4 minutes.
4. Add the pasta and basil and toss.
5. Mix in the basil leaves and the salt and pepper and serve hot.

This week's WHB is being hosted by Katerina at "Daily Unadventures in Cooking!". Her blog features wonderful, practical everyday food and is hardly "unadventureous". This post is for her.

Shrikhand and Chicken for Jane

Photo Source - Wiki

Asking me to make Indian food, is nothing out of the way. It happens all the time, I am more than happy to indulge. Jane is my new boss's wife, who has never visited India but loves India in a deep, to the roots wonderful kind of way. She senses the deep simplicity of India, unfortunately, however there are so many layers and versions to India. I understand and feel the warmth she percieves from India, but, have to temper this my telling her the India that features on the business week covers every week, well close enough is different.

Well, we asked them to join us at our house a couple of weekends back and among other things, I made an interestingly simple coconut chicken recipe and mango Shrikhand. The Shrikhand, was made from fresh mangoes, something that you can get pretty good ones this time of the year at our local Indian store.

By the way, one of the good things about making curry on a weeknight dinner, is that this can actually be made ahead of time, and the flavors actually improve.

Chicken Curry with Coconut and Curry Leaves

Serves 4-6

Ingredients

1/3 cup oil
A few cloves, cardamom, cinnamon
1 tsp turmeric
2-3 green chillies
1 onion finely chopped
1 tbsp fresh ginger, finely grated
1 whole chicken, skinned and cut into small pieces
2 tsp salt
1 tbsp freshly ground pepper
1 tbsp cumin-coriander powder
1 can coconut milk
1 sprig of curry leaves
2 tbsp finely chopped cilantro

Method of Preparation

1. Heat the oil and add the whole spices, onion and ginger.

2. Saute this briefly and add the chicken, salt, pepper, cumin-coriander.

3. Cook on high heat, stirring frequently, until the chicken is well browned and the oil begins to surface.

4. Add the coconut milk, curry leaves and 1 cup water and simmer for 20 minutes.

5. Garnish with cilantro and serve with rice.

Now, for an exceedingly simple, delicate dessert from Gujarat.

Shrikhand

Serves 6

Ingredients

1 carton whole milk yogurt

3-4 fresh mangoes

1/3 cup powdered almonds

1/2 cup powdered sugar

1 tsp crushed cardamoms

Method of Preparation

1. Hang the yougurt for 6-8 hours to drain the water, this should be a nice solid cheese-like mass.

2. In the meantime, peel and puree the mangoes.

3. Mix with all the ingredients and chill and serve.