Rasaya muthia - ultimate comfort food

This recipe is so comforting. It is at the same time soupy, starchy and spicy. It's basically a spicy broth with dumplings. I don't know if it's truly a Gujarati or Rajasthani dish because it seems to have elements of both.

I started off by making the dough for the dumplings. I just made dough like I normally do for theplas (a spicy flatbread).

It consists of about a cup of whole wheat flour, oil, salt, red chili powder, turmeric, carom seeds and chopped greens are optional. Mix all this using water and cover dough and let rest.

The second step, just string some valor beans or papdi which you can find in any Indian shop. If you can't find these, just use green beans.

Sauté about a cup's worth of beans for 5-7 minutes in some oil, then add turmeric, red chili powder, some grated ginger, salt and about 5-6 cups water and let it come to a boil and then simmer for about 10-15 minutes.

While the soup base is boiling, make the dumplings. Break off small pieces of the dough and slide them into the rasa (soup). Let simmer for about 10-15 minutes. Stir once in awhile until the dough is cooked through.

So warming and inviting. Grab a spoon!

Vintage Indian utensils

When my sister was down visiting from Texas, we took a quick trip to a quaint little town in southern Virginia to visit my uncle and his family. It's a college town, but they are also famous for some of the state's best bed & breakfasts. I was poking around my aunts pantry and almost screamed in delight when I saw these. The first one is used to make gathiya, an Indian breakfast street food. It is made using besan (chickpea flour or gram flour). It is mixed with water, oil, baking soda, salt and Tellicherry peppercorns. The batter is then slid across by hand through the holes and dropped into hot oil. The result is slightly puffy savory delight. If I had to compare them to something, I would say they are like a savory Indian churro. Instead of serving them with hot chocolate, you would offer up some hot masala chai. The second utensil is a hand held grater that once belonged to my grandmother. My aunt told me I could take it if I wanted to. And I REALLY wanted to, but I left it with her, undeniably in good hands.

Pineapple & Habanero vodka

I hardly have time to breathe these days or so it feels. Working full time and then going to school is not fun. I don't know how people do it. That too, with kids and family! I have a new appreciation for all the single moms that raise their kids while going to school and work. It's just amazing how they are able to do that. So, as it is right now, I have hardly been cooking. Sometimes I want to, but then don't want to worry about the clean up. That's just how it's been of late. Anyways, look what I found at this Mexican place in Greensboro! The bartender said it is reserved for straight shots only. I would love to try this at home soon!

Chinese style sauteed snap peas

Here is a very quick Chinese style sauteed snap peas.  I picked up a package of these from an Asian store and all I had to do was give them a quick rinse, string them and break up the larger pieces in half.


I first blanched them for 2 minutes in boiling water and then rinsed them in cold water to preserve the springy green color.

Drain them in a colander, add a tablespoon of olive oil, add some chopped garlic, ginger, crushed red chili flakes and a slug of tamari or soy sauce and a few drops of toasted sesame oil.  Before you get ready to serve, add a splash of rice wine vinegar.   Serve this hot with rice or noodles as soon as it is prepared.  It doesn't really do well re-warmed.

strawberries in a champagne mustard viniagrette

My darling cousin, Jima, has recently started blogging at sugaRush.  I think she is mainly going to be focusing on salads and smoothies.... Yummmmmm! I am really looking forward to all her recipes!  Please do visit her.

In honor of her blog, I made this strawberry salad the other day for lunch.   No recipe, just tear up some mache and romaine in a bowl, add some nuts and crumbled feta if you like and some light dressing and you are ready to devour.

The dressing I used to top this luscious lunch is your basic viniagrette.  Just mix everything in a bottle and shake to eumulsify:

• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1-2 tbspns champagne vinegar
• 1 tbspn dijon mustard
• 1 teaspoon honey
• whatever herbs you have on hand (mint and oregano are lovely)
• salt & black pepper

Quick sprouted bean stirfry

I was at my local market browsing through the salad area and found a small package of sprouted beans - adzuki, lentil and peas.  Wow, when did they start selling these?  All that protein in a ready made pack.   I brought them home and the poor things sat and sat in the veggie bin for over a week.  Finally one night, thinking they may not survive any longer, I decided to give them a go. 

I wanted to keep the nutrients intact as much as possible, so I decided to give them a quick stirfry.  This is what I did, it took about 15 minutes to get it on the table.  I would serve this as is, or for a more filling meal, serve it as the star course with some crusty naan, yogurt or rice.

• Heat up some olive oil in a saute pan on medium
• Do a tarka of mustard seeds, cumin seeds and asafeotida, let sizzle and pop
• Throw in some curry leaves and the package of sprouts... You can also add a tomato if you want at this point
• Add salt and spices:  turmeric powder, black pepper, cumin powder, coriander powder and some red chili powder
• Add a cup of water and stir and let cook on medium for 10 minutes
• Garnish with chopped coriander and a squeeze of lime

The results were absolutely superb!  This came out just amazing.  It was light and nutty, but at the same time kept me filled for a long time.  I will be looking for these all the time now!

10 minute pulao

Seems lately that I'm always in a rush.  Got a million things on my mind and anxious to hurry and do them all, lest I forget one.  I'm so forgetful!   So what's the easiest and most delectable thing to make in a few minutes that requires no attention or fumbling with a ton of chopping or ingredients?  

For me, this almost always involves my wondrous pressure cooker and rice. 

This amazing and easy pulao will feed 2 hungry people with some leftover for lunch the next day...
In your pressure cooker, heat some oil and:

• throw in a couple of cloves, whole black pepper and a cinnamon stick (this step is optional) 
• do a tarka (seasoning) by adding half a teaspoon of mustard and cumin seeds and a pinch of asafeotida... let the seeds pop and sizzle
• add 1 1/2 cups rice and saute for a few minutes on low-medium.  Add half a teaspoon of garam masala and saute again for 2 minutes
• add an optional diced potato and a handful of thawed peas and if you're like me - a huge chopped green chilli
• add salt and 2.5 cups of water and secure the pressure cooker lid
• let cook on medium for 2 whistles or 10 minutes

easy tofu stirfry

First off, I must apologize for my food pics as of late.  They were taken on my phone.  I was waiting to get this Sony NEX5 after Thanksgiving, but alas, it was not on sale anywhere.  *sigh* Hopefully for Christmas!!  

This was a really quick tofu and red pepper stirfry I made the other day.  It was inspired by a bunch of Indo-Chinese recipes I had been reviewing.  Of course as always, reading recipes makes me hungry so I took to the kitchen and looked around to see what I had that could somehow fit into this category.   I had some tofu sitting in the fridge for a few days that I really didn't know what to do with.  I took it out and set it on the counter and then continued to dig around the veggie bin and came across a red pepper.  I usually almost always have onions and garlic on hand so a stirfry was born.



Basically, I just pan fried the tofu and then set it aside for a minute.  In a wok, add some groundnut oil and turn the heat to high.  Add a couple of broken red dried chilies and stir around for a few seconds.  Then add a chopped onion and stir that around for a minute.  Add a couple of chopped garlic cloves, ginger and one chopped green chilli and stir that around for 20 seconds, then add a chopped red bell pepper and let it char and blacken a bit.  Add the pan fried tofu and season with salt and pepper, light soy sauce, a pinch of Chinese Five Spice and of course, my favorite - SriRacha!   Serve over noodles or steamed brown rice. 

Toads in a Hole (vegan)

So you all have heard of toads in a hole right? This is the same thing but a little Indianized and veganized. These are very quick and easy and are lovely for breakfast or brunch. If you have a cast iron griddle, you could do a big batch at one time. They are so much fun to make!

To start off, make your basic pudla batter (this is enough for about 4-6 slices of bread) : 1 cup of gram flour or chickpea flour, salt, black pepper, red chili powder, a tablespoon of lemon juice and whatever else you want to add. I used diced tomatoes, garlic, onion, cilantro and ajwain in mine. Mix all this with enough water to make a pancake batter consistency.

Then take a slice of bread and use a knife to cut out a hole in the middle or just use a cookie cutter. Place in a warmed skillet or griddle with a tablespoon of oil. Keep the heat on low. Fill the holes with the batter and don't move around until set, it should take about 3 minutes on each side.

Oh, those little pieces are the rounds bits from making the holes. I had a little bit of batter left over so I dipped them in the batter like French toast and put them on the griddle to cook up as well. Enjoy!

easy & healthy palak paneer

you know through the years, i've met so many people who always ask me about indian food. they might not have known a whole lot about the diversity of foods indians prepare but they all seemed to know what palak paneer is. what is it about this creamed spinach that makes everyone turn to mush? i don't know anyone who doesn't love this. it's truly food for the soul.

I am also posting this for my brother who called me one day out of the blue to ask me how to make my palak paneer. i think the fact that i made it for him once under 20 minutes might have had something to do with it.

because i don't normally measure, it's really taking a toll on me to write up recipes constantly using measures, but since he's relatively new at making this, i'm gonna go ahead and give him the recipe rather than my 'dump this then this' version.

you'll find that my recipe is easy, healthy, fast and pretty damn tasty. you won't miss any of the butter, cream or ghee that is used in the restaurant version. oh and hey, the best thing is you have everything at home for this. i promise you. well, you might have to make a run for the paneer.

Easy & healthy palak paneer
serves: 3-4
prep time: 20 min

vip's:

• 1 bag of baby spinach
• paneer, about 16-20 pieces
• 1 chopped onion
• 2 tomatoes cut into large chunks
• green jalapenos or chillies chopped, to taste, i used 3 jalapenos because we like spicy
• 2 garlic cloves chopped
• 1/2 cup water
• 4 cloves
• 1 cinnamon stick
• red chilli powder, to taste
• 1/2 tspn turmeric
• 1 tspn garam masala
• salt to taste
• 2-3 tbspn oil

the play:

• heat a pan and add water, spinach, tomatoes and jalapenos
• once it comes to a boil, simmer for 10 min while you work on the next steps
• in another pan, heat oil and add cloves, cinnamon stick, onions and garlic saute for 5 min
• add the chilli powder, turmeric, salt and garam masala
• puree the spinach mixture using a handblender and add it to the other pan with the onions
• cover and let simmer for 5 minutes

Notes: if you want it slightly creamy and you're not vegan, go ahead and add a few tablespoons of lowfat yogurt. if you're not watching caloric intake then go for it and add 1/3 cup of cream in the last step.

Listening to: another suggestion from my friend A... 'Eggplant' by Michael Franks from the album, Art of Tea (1976). thanks A! loved this and why wouldn't i? the album title and song title are sooooo groovy!

whole wheat veggie wrap

saturday mornings are meant to be savored slowly, lazily and of course hungrily. this weekend, i made a quick stirfry using red potatoes and a yellow pepper i had in the fridge. they came together in a whole wheat wrap. the kick to the dish comes from the jalapeno and cilantro.

whole wheat veggie wrap

serves: 4
prep time: 10 min
cook time: 15 min

vip’s:

• 4 whole wheat tortillas
• 4 red potatoes, washed & chopped into cubes
• 1 yellow bell pepper, washed & chopped
• ½ onion, diced
• 2 jalapenos, washed & chopped – use per your personal preference
• few sprigs of cilantro, washed & chopped
• juice of half lemon
• pinch of mustard seeds & cumin seeds
• tspn cumin & coriander powders
• salt

the play:

• heat a wide sauté pan and add 2 tbspn olive oil, add mustard & cumin seeds; let pop
• add potatoes, bell pepper, onion & salt, stir & cover for 10-13 min on low heat until potatoes are cooked thru. The last 5 min, add the jalapenos.
• add cilantro & lemon juice, stir and let cook 2 more minutes

to serve:
in a flat pan, add a drizzle of olive oil and cook the tortilla on both sides till lightly brown, add the potato mixture and roll like a wrap, serve warm.

Listening to: the soulful groove of India Arie; "ready for love" from, Acoustic Soul (2001)

Sauteed cauliflower with red bell peppers

Feels like fall is slowly arriving. This is how I know...





My neighbor has huge pine trees whose branches overlook my yard. I usually welcome the extra shade in the summer. In the winter, it's another story. I want to go over and chop the trees down. The needles fall all over the cars, the driveway, the roof. They completely blanket the entire pond so when the fish try to eat their food, they get pine needles instead. I had to grab my handy long wooden branch and wrangle pine needles from one of my fish's mouth. Ahhhhhh! Somebody loan me an axe!

Since it did feel like fall in any case, I talked myself into craving something warm and toasty. I had half a cauliflower and a gorgeous red bell pepper. I think the combination of these two vegetables is just perfect. They're both mild and take in all flavors readily.

The main thing to keep in mind about this dish is that you don't want to overcook the cauliflower. It's turns to mush and the texture will be blah.

Serves 2-3
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 15 min

Here's what to do:

• heat up 2 tbspn oil in a wide saute pan
• add panch phoron or: 1/2 tspn each of the following seeds: mustard, cumin, fenugreek, nigella and fennel
• add chopped cauliflower, red bell pepper and salt
• stir and cover for 5-7 minutes
• add few slit green chilis and a tbspn each of garam masala and cumin powder
• cover and cook until cauliflower is cooked through about 5 more minutes
• squeeze lime and garnish with cilantro before serving

Notes: serve with roti or naan, rice and dal and find it in your hearts to forgive the Corelle :)

Olde Crone's soaps

I emailed Amy of Olde Crone's Bewitching Bath Soaps awhile back to find out some more about her products and mentioned that i found out about her through Manisha's wonderful blog. I was intrigued because of the goat milk chai soap that Manisha had mentioned. I am constantly on the lookout for new natural and organic products, so when I was researching her product line, I found most things to be VEGAN! Truly, this lady rocks you all.

Sometimes it can be difficult in the U.S. to be able to purchase products directly from the artisan, whereas in India, you will find them all over the streets peddling their goods. And unlike shopping at retailers like Walmart and even Bath & Body, where the name of the game is shelf life, isn't it refreshing to find someone who has taken the time to make these wonderful handmade artisan soaps without chemicals? I've just ordered 4 types of soaps, citrus herb lip balm and lavender lemon lotion. Most of the soaps I saw run for $5. A small price to pay to be a goddess don't you think?

Spicy fingerling potatoes

Since our president insists on this time change thingy, I cannot seem to get my sleep and waking up patterns going smoothly. To top it off, me and A have had sore throats and coughing fits. You know those nites when you keep tossing and turning because you can't breathe from one side and then have to turn to the other? Ya, one of those. Then my phone was off by an hour. So by the time I got to sleep it was time to wake up. I was dressed and ready for work at 6am. WTF? Should I go in early? ya right.

Needless to say, I had an extra hour on my hands. I figured I might as well put it to use by cleaning up a bit and getting dinner semi-prepared. I soaked some brown basmati rice and washed about a pound of fingerlings. I also washed about 7-10 thai chili peppers, peeled 2 cloves of garlic and got out a knob of ginger and crushed these in my mortar with some sea salt and a sprig of curry leaf.

When I get home I will only have the actual cooking left to do since almost all the prep work is done. Just quarter the fingerlings and saute them in a bit of oil and then cover for about 10 min, stirring in between. Then add the crushed mixture and 1/2 - 1 cup of water. Keep covered and stir once in awhile until the potatoes are cooked thru. Squeeze in half a lime. Before you start on your potatoes though, put your rice on to cook so it will be done around the same time. Oh ya, I probably should have told you that first - my bad.

Serve with a tomato & onion salad. And write to your congressman/woman and tell them how you really feel about time change. after all, if you're not with me, you must be against me :)

For you folks spoiled by the written word,

Serves 2-3
Prep time: 10min
Cook time: 20 min

The VIP's:

• 1 lb fingerling potatoes
• 7-10 thai chilies
• 2-3 cloves garlic
• knob of ginger
• sprig of curry leaf - optional
• sea salt
• half lime/lemon
• 2 tbspn oil

The play:

1. wash and quarter the potatoes
2. saute in oil and cover, while you pound in a mortar: chilis, garlic, ginger, salt, curry leaf
3. after 10 min, add this crushed mixture and 1/2 - 1 cup of water to the potatoes
4. cover and stir once in awhile for another 10 min or until potatoes cooked thru.
5. check seasoning and squeeze lime over potatoes

NOTES:

• sweet potatoes would be a good substitute for those of us trying to steer away from bad carbs.
• garnish with cilantro if you have it on hand
• serve with roti, naan or rice
• for a more pronounced indian flavor - after the oil is heated, add the following and allow to pop: mustard seeds, cumin seeds, fennel seeds and fenugreek seeds and cook on.

Sunday morning O'briens

I have this little (my sister would even go so far as to say, nasty) habit of waking up EARLY on the weekends. Usually between 6-7am I wake up, do my weekend ritual of opening all the curtains and blinds and letting the sun pour in while I go around dusting and sweeping and whatnot. This is when I am full of energy, the sunshine in the house renews me, letting me borrow it's life and vitality. And trust me when I say I take advantage of this rare time. If things don't get cleaned, swept, mopped or dusted in the mornings, then they never will until the next weekend. And for some reason, I don't like to clean or do any housework when it's dark out, I know that may sound silly to some of you out there, but I just can't. This may be partly my mom's fault because we had this weekend thing of waking up on Saturdays and cleaning the entire house before we were allowed to go out. Actually, before we even asked to go out or for her to drive us to a movie or over to a friend's, we knew the house had better be cleaned. I can appreciate that sort of thing now, thanks Mum!

However, after last nite's bridal shower/party, I was pooped. There was no cleaning to be done nor blinds to be opened. I didn't have any strength. It's like those certain times when you've been up all nite and your stomach is queasy and nauseous because you've been doing stuff you probably shouldn't have. Think Anthony Bourdain type of nite! Well, I don't think he can ever be outdone, but we sure try.

I guess all the cleaning gets to me because I am usually starving afterwards. I needed to make something quick and easy and in one pan.

O'briens:
Serves 4
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 15 min

VIP's:

• 15-20 fingerling potatoes - washed and quartered
• 1/2 red onion - chopped in large chunks
• 1/2 bell pepper - washed and chopped in large pieces
• 2-3 jalapenos - washed and chopped in large pieces
• 2 tablespoons oil
• salt and pepper to taste

The play:

1. in a wide saute pan, heat oil, add chopped potatoes and salt, cover
2. after a few minutes add the onion, bell pepper and jalapenos, cover
3. stir every so often for the next 10-15 min until the potatoes are done
4. after the potatoes are cooked, add freshly ground black pepper and serve

Notes: if you want something even more filling and carb-laden or to feed a hungry crowd, turn these into breakfast tacos. Warm up some tortillas, fill them with O'briens and refried beans, and then top off with some spicy salsa.

simple crisp okra

It's my baby brother's 28th birthday next week. Well, he's not exactly a baby anymore, but since he is younger, i bestowed that right upon myself. His favorite dish since childhood has always been okra. Ask him anyday what he wants, and he's likely to reply okra. He likes it sliced in thin rounds and sauteed till crispy with minimal spices to let the earthy flavor of the okra come through.
Goes great with some lavaash or naan with some raita on the side. I will stress that after washing the okra, to make sure that the okra is completely dry otherwise you will be privy to the infamous slime.

This is a simple humble dish that is a really quick cook.

Serves 3-4
prep time: 15 min
cook time: 20 min

The VIP's:

• 1 lb okra washed and dried thoroughly & chopped into small rounds
• 2-3 tbspn oil
• 1 tspn mustard seeds
• 1 tbspn chili pepper powder
• 1 tbspn cumin powder
• 1 tbspn coriander powder
• 1/2 tspn turmeric powder (optional)
• 1/2 lemon
• salt
• 1 tbspn chopped cilantro
  
  
  The play:
  
  1. heat oil in nonstick pan on medium heat and add mustard seeds
  2. when the mustard seeds finish popping after a minute or two, add the okra & salt to taste
  3. stir the okra to mix and saute for couple of minutes
  4. cover and turn heat to low, stir occasionally for next 15 minutes and keep covered in between
  6. mix in all the spices and cover for another 2-3 minutes
  7. remove lid and turn the heat on high, and let any moisture evaporate. The okra should turn crispy in a couple of minutes.
  8. turn off heat and squeeze half the lemon over the okra and stir in the cilantro.
  
  Notes:
  The spices are really to taste in this dish so adjust the heat level as desired. We like things really spicy so I usually add another couple tbspns of chili powder.
  
  You can also throw in some sliced shallots and garlic after the mustard seeds pop for more flavor.