Granola, Versatility By The Spoonfuls

This post has been lying as a draft for about 3 weeks now. Hesitancy of where to start and what to write has taken upon me. Its been a while since I have been here; quite evident as Addie is already 7 months old. Its only the blog end that has been quiet; all other facets of our lives are anything but. Needless to say, our lives are revolving around Addie. Our house is filled with her squeaks and babbles, and most of all her generous, toothless smiles. I am enjoying every single moment of my motherhood. They say time flies faster with kids. That makes me greedy and want to savor every minute of it.

Nothing fancy is dished out from my kitchen these days. I only get little time to prepare a meal, let alone plate and photograph it. I thought I would be upset for not blogging as regularly as I would like to. Well, I even thought I couldn’t stand a messy house for a day. But this new me is quite different. My days are dedicated to our little one. The messy house can wait; and so can the piles of laundry and the sink full of dishes.

Slowly, I am learning to make time for myself. Now, I still don’t get to read a book with a hot cuppa chai; or get to take a long shower without eyeing at the baby monitor. But it’s a start. And it is here, in my virtual kitchen, that I want to begin. So bear with me while I adjust to this new life of mine. I will be back with old rigor in no time.

For now, I am going to leave you with my favourite granola recipe. It is adapted from Alton Brown’s recipe. It’s been a favourite even though I have been making this for over 3 years now. The key is to add something different each time. About a cup of variant that I have listed below (or one of your favourites), and different selections of dried fruit keeps this recipe anew. A good way to start a day and take-on the adventures that it holds.

Granola

Ingredients

Rolled oats – 4 cups

1 cup of one or more of the following variants

• Rolled triticale
• Hemp seeds
• Wheat germ
• Pumpkin seeds
• Flax seeds
• or use another cup of rolled oats

Brown sugar – 1/3 cup
Or
Sugar – ¼ cup and molasses – 2 tbsp

Sliced almonds – 2 cups (or use your favourite nut)
Maple syrup/ agave nectar/ honey – 1/3 cup
Canola oil – ¼ cup
Salt – 1 tsp
Dried fruit – 2 cups (cranberries, raisins, berries, apples, figs etc)

Clockwise from top: Dried fruits (figs, blackberries, cranberries, gojiberries), sliced almonds, rolled triticale, rolled oats

Method

Preheat oven to 300F. Mix oats, the variant, almonds, sugar and salt thoroughly in a large bowl. In another bowl mix maple syrup, oil and molasses, if using. Combine wet and dry mixtures and spread on a sheet pan. Bake for 45-50 minutes, stirring every 15 minutes. Oats and the nuts should be golden and toasted. Mix the dried fruits evenly and store in an airtight container when cooled.

Serve with warm milk or milk alternative, or with yogurt and fresh fruits.

Ven Pongal And Gosthu

The month of ‘Maargazhi’ occurs between 15 Dec-14 January, according to the Tamil Lunar calendar. Next to summer, this is the best time to be in Southern India. Why? Apart from being the coldest month, it’s the religious fervor that prevails throughout. Temple worship start as early as 4:30 in the morning. The streets are adorned with big, bright kolams(drawings made with rice flour), decorated with squash blossoms; groups of devotees rally through the streets singing hymns; Carnatic musicians treat our ears and souls with music that has lived through centuries. The air is cool, crisp and fresh.

Kolam - drawn using rice flour, adorning the entrance of our house, back at the village

I vividly remember my early morning walks to the temple, while I was a teenager. I would walk slowly taking all this in, as much as I can. Getting up early never seemed dreary, as there was enough motivation. The hymns that are sung by all of us in the temple, still seem to reverberate in my ears. My friends and I, used to giggle and sing as loud as we can. More than devotion, it was the energy that attracted me toward this practice, in that age.

And then there is the food. Obviously, why would kids go to temple at such an early hour. Pongal, a soft, smooth and luscious rice-lentil dish, specked with black pepper, cumin and cashews, and a rivulet of ghee is served at temples during this season. Once the worship is done, steaming hot pongal will be served in dried banana leaves that are molded into cups (bio-degradable, ahem). One can barely hold the screaming hot pongal, but it has to be gobbled hurriedly. Because, some one is always eying your pongal, and you may loose it, just like that.

Even though the recipe is simple with only a few ingredients, pongal served at the temples is always special. It may be the mass production, or the ghee that the cook pours with his eyes closed. There is something special about it.

In a humble effort, I make this quite often at home. Next to idly, pongal is the second most consumed breakfast in Tamil Nadu. Add a couple of crispy vadas and coconut chutney to the plate, I am sold. There are two types of pongal, the off-white savoury kind (Ven pongal, meaning white pongal), and the golden sweet kind made with Indian jaggery (Sakkarai pongal, meaning sugar pongal ).

The key to a good pongal is its texture. Smooth like butter, it should reach the stomach directly, without any effort to chew. It should neither be too thick, nor runny. The rice and dal must be cooked until very soft. I use a ratio of 1:6 for rice: water, and it always turns out perfect.

Ven Pongal
(serves 2)

Ingredients

Rice – ½ cup
Moong dal – ½ cup
Peppercorns – 20
Cumin seeds – 1½ tsp
Ginger – 1 tbsp, finely chopped
Curry leaves – few
Ghee(clarified butter) – 2 tbsp
Salt – ¾ tsp

Method

Pressure cook rice and moong dal with 3 cups of water for 5 whistles. Alternately, rice and dal can be cooked in a pot until soft. After the pressure in the cooker has subsided, heat ghee, and roast pepper, cumin, followed by ginger and curry leaves. Add this seasoning to the rice and dal mixture along with salt. Mix until the salt, seasoning and rice are combined thoroughly. Add hot water if the pongal is too thick. The final consistency should be like a pudding or risotto, soft and velvetty. Serve hot with gosthu, and/or chutney.

There are quite a few variations while making pongal. What you see above is the way I like. You can try these for slightly different versions.

• Make the rice : dal ratio 2:1
• Roast dal before cooking
• Add a pinch of turmeric to rice and dal before cooking
• Coarsely grind pepper and cumin seeds, instead of using 'em whole
• Use oil instead of ghee for a vegan version. But let me tell you, the pongal is never the same without ghee.

Gosthu

Gosthu can be roughly translated into ‘spiced lentil-vegetable gravy’. But so is sambar. There are only slight differences between a sambar and gosthu. The type and quantity of dal and the various vegetables used, sets the two apart. Eggplant is a must for making gosthu. Even if you don’t have other vegetables, don’t skip the eggplant. Pongal and gosthu – complementary and comforting, but always winning.

Gosthu

Ingredients
(serves 2)

Moong dal – ¼ cup
Mixed vegetables (eggplant, carrot, potato, chayote squash, peas, etc) – 2 cups, cubed
Onion or shallots – ½ cup, sliced
Tomato – 1, chopped
Tamarind – 1 tbsp
Jaggery – 1 tsp
Turmeric powder – 1 tsp
Mustard seeds – 1 tsp
Curry leaves – few
Cilantro – 2 tbsp, chopped
Oil – 1 tbsp
Salt

Spice Mixture

Coriander seeds – ½ tbsp
Chana dal – 1 tbsp
Dried red chillies – 4

Gram flour or rice flour – 1 tsp, if needed

Roast all of the above in a tsp of oil until aromatic and lightly browned. Cool and grind to a paste. Alternately you can also use 1 tbsp of sambar powder.

Method

Pressure cook moong dal until soft. This can be cooked along with rice and dal for the pongal.

In a sauce pan, heat oil, splutter mustard seeds. Add onion and tomato along with curry leaves, and sauté for about 2 minutes. To this, add tamarind paste, turmeric powder, jaggery, salt and 2 cups of water and stir until the tamarind paste is completely dissolved in the water. If you are using sambar powder, now is the time to add it. If you are making fresh spice paste, wait until later. To the tamarind mixture, add the vegetables and allow to cook through. While the vegetables are cooking, tamarind also loses its raw smell.

Finally, add the cooked dal, ground spice mixture to the vegetables and mix thoroughly. Bring it to a brisk boil and simmer for about 3 minutes. If gosthu is runny, dissolve rice flour or gram flour in ¼ cup of water, add to the gosthu, and boil for additional 2 minutes. This will thicken the gravy. Garnish with cilantro and serve hot with pongal, upma or even idli and dosa.

I share this pongal love with Susan, for My Legume Love Affair, round 2.

Corn Pancakes With Gazpacho Salsa

Starting the day on a savoury note...

Corn Pancakes
(serves 2)

Ingredients

All purpose flour or maida - ¾ cup
Cornmeal – ¾ cup
Corn kernels – from 2 ears, about 1½ cups
Low fat milk – 1 cup
Baking powder – 1 tsp
Salt – ½ tsp
Cilantro – ¼ cup, finely chopped
Olive oil

Method

Sift flour, baking powder and salt together. Add cornmeal, corn kernels and stir in milk and cilantro until just combined. Add more milk if the batter is too dry. Heat a griddle and spray with olive oil. Pour batter to make small pancakes , about 2 inches wide (or more if you like). Wait till one side gets browned, flip and cook the other side. Serve hot with salsa.

Gazpacho salsa

Ingredients

Ripe tomatoes – 2, roughly chopped
Cucumber – ½ cup, roughly chopped
Red pepper – ½ cup, roughly chopped
Red onion – ½ cup
Green chilli – 1
Garlic – 2 cloves, crushed
Balsamic vinegar – a splash
Basil – few leaves
Olive oil – 1 tbsp
Salt

Method

Take all the ingredients in a blender and blend till it resembles a chunky sauce. Check seasoning and serve with corn pancakes.

This is my entry for Pancakes on Parade, a one-off event hosted by The Well-Seasoned Cook, Susan.

My entry ‘Stand Out and Live-Strong’ has won the ‘Click Spectra’ – first place, in addition to winning the ‘Most Original’. I should say I am delighted by this win, but even more to see that this fundraiser is a success, thanks to your generous contributions.

Bri, I send you strength and endurance through my prayers. Of course, I cannot conclude without mentioning the mighty efforts by Jai and Bee at Jugalbandi, for organizing this mammoth task. I applaud you both for your thoughtfulness. Judges, thank you for selecting my entry as the winner. It made my day.

The Drunken Vadai a.k.a Sambar Vadai

How many times has sambar been mentioned in this blog? One too many. And there will be more. I wouldn’t be exaggerating if I say sambar is iconic to Tamil Nadu. Sambar is as Tamilian as marinara is Italian. Breakfast, lunch or dinner, this lentil gravy somehow finds its place on the table. Starting your day with idli, dosa, pongal or upma with a side of steaming hot sambar, is enough boot to get one through mid-day. Or rice mixed with sambar, and eaten with any vegetable is a well-balanced lunch or dinner.

What is the reason for this never dying popularity? Because its simple, easy, tasty and most importantly filling. There are countless ways to prepare it and with readymade sambar powder, it can done in a snap. If you don’t like sambar, chances are, you haven’t tasted the right kind.

You have seen idli and dosa here. Let me introduce the next in line – vadai or vada. How do I explain it? Lets see, it is a savoury dumpling made out of lentils. Fluffy urad batter is minimally seasoned, fried and served with sambar or chutney.

Sambar vadai is a slight variation, where warm vadas are soaked in hot sambar. The crispy dumpling instantly absorbs the gravy like a sponge. Sambar vadai is delicate like a cloud and melts the moment it touches your mouth. Ah! Culinary nirvana.

Ulundhu Vadai (Urad Vada)
(serves 2)

Making vadai is almost straightforward. Almost, because it takes a little practice to shape it properly. The key is to add very little water while grinding. Don’t lose heart if you can’t get it right. Just drop by spoonfuls into the hot oil. Fried dough tastes great no matter how it is shaped.

Ingredients

Skinned urad dal – ¾ cup
Green chillies – 2, chopped
Curry leaves – few, torn into bits
Ginger – 1 tsp, finely chopped
Water – 2 to 3 tbsp
Salt

Plastic sheet or banana leaf for making vada
Oil for frying

Method

Soak urad dal for 1 hour. Refrigerate for 10 minutes and grind with salt to a smooth paste. Add water by tablespoons only if necessary. Add green chillies, ginger and curry leaves.

Heat oil over medium heat in a kadai or a wide vessel. Take care that the oil is at least 1-inch deep.

Take the plastic sheet (like Ziploc bag) or banana leaf and wipe with water. Take about ¼ cup of dough on the sheet. Dampen your fingers, slightly flatten the dough and put a hole in the middle. This ensures that the dough gets cooked through. Gently transfer the shaped dough to the oil and deep fry till its golden brown.

Serve warm vadai as such for snacks or soak in hot sambar for 2 minutes and then enjoy, garnished with chopped raw onions, cilantro and/or chopped tomatoes.

Ulundhu vadai, my entry to Click – Beans and Lentils, an event conceived and hosted by the Jugalbandits.

Arachu Vitta Sambar

(serves 4 when served on the side, serves 2 when served as main or when gobbled by the cup)

The recipe for sambar is almost the same as the one here, but for a few changes. Even though the quantity here serves four, make extra. Refrigerate leftovers for up to 5 days. Serve with rice, idli, dosa, upma… well, you get the idea.

Ingredients

Oil – 1 tsp
Mustard seeds – ½ tsp
Curry leaves - few
Quartered shallots or sliced red onions – ½ cup

Toor dal – ½ cup
Moong dal – 1 tbsp
Turmeric powder – 1+1 tsp
Tamarind paste – 2 tbsp
Salt

Cilantro – 2 tbsp, chopped

Spice mixture

Oil – 1 tsp
Coriander seeds – 2 tbsp
Chana dal – 1 ½ tbsp
Dried red chillies – 8
Raw rice – 1 tsp
Fenugreek seeds – ¼ tsp
Grated coconut – 2 tbsp

Red onions – 2 tbsp, chopped
Tomato – ¼ cup, chopped

Heat oil and roast coriander seeds through coconut and grind with onion and tomato to a smooth paste. Alternately, you can grind 2 tbsp of sambar powder (homemade or store-bought) with onion and tomato.

Method

Pressure cook toor dal and moong dal until soft, with 1 tsp of turmeric powder.

In a sauce pan, heat oil, splutter mustard seeds and lightly sauté shallots or red onions with curry leaves. The onions should turn just soft, but still crunchy. Remove and set aside.

In the same pot, boil tamarind paste, salt and the remaining 1 tsp of turmeric powder with 2 cups of water. When tamarind doesn’t smell raw anymore, add the cooked dal, ground spice paste and a cup of water. Simmer for 5 minutes. Remove from heat, add sautéed onions and garnish with cilantro.

For serving sambar vadais, soak warm vadais in hot sambar for 2 minutes. Serve garnished with chopped raw onions, cilantro and tomato. No place for forks here, only spoons to scoop the drunken vada.

TECHNORATI TAGS: Sambar, Vada, Vadai, Dal, Lentil, Dumpling

Eggs En Cocotte

That’s a fancy name for eggs baked in a cup or ramekin. Easy as 1,2,3, the eggs are baked with cream, salt and pepper and served with buttered toasts.

After a visit to the farmer’s market, I always come home with farm-fresh eggs with bright coloured yolks and freshly baked bread. So eggs and toast is our standard weekend brunch. Some days the eggs are scrambled, other days they are baked or broiled.

In this method, the eggs are gently cooked over a water bath, until the whites are set but the yolks are still runny. By the time I put away vegetables from the weekly trip, the eggs are done and breakfast is served without breaking a sweat. Easy, huh? Did I say they make a pretty presentation?

I have cooked the eggs with only half-and-half, but you can also drizzle melted butter over the eggs before sliding into the oven. Other substitutions that can be made are parmesan cheese instead of salt, and tarragon instead of chives. You can also bake the eggs with chopped tomato or sauteed mushrooms. This is my entry to Waiter, There is something in my… Breakfast, hosted by Johanna at The Passionate Cook.

Ingredients

Eggs – 4
Half-and-half or cream – 4 tbsp
Salt
Pepper
Chives
Butter for greasing

Method

Preheat oven to 350F. Grease 4 ramekins with butter and season the bottom with salt and pepper. Crack one egg per each ramekin and drizzle 1 tbsp of half-and-half or cream per ramekin. Place the ramekins in a pan and fill the pan with hot water till it reaches about half the height of the ramekins.

Bake for 15 minutes, until the whites are set and egg yolks are still wiggly. Bake for additional 2 minutes if you want the yolks to be completely set too. The eggs continue to cook a bit even after removing from the oven. Let the ramekins rest for 2 minutes and serve garnished with chopped chives and buttered toasts. This serves two.

This is my entry for this edition of CLICK – Au Naturel, created and hosted by Bee and Jai at Jugalbandi.

Edited to Add: Eggs en cocotte is my entry for WBB - Express Breakfasts, hosted by Raaga, The Singing Chef. WBB is Nandita's conception. For breakfast recipes that can be whipped up in under 15 minutes, head over to her blog for the roundup.

Breakfast To-Go, Granola Bars

Making granola at home, like Meeta says, is not only fun, but unbelievably easy. You can perfectly tailor it to suit your palette. And, best of all, its quite healthy. No funny sounding ingredients in here.

Taking this to the next level, I make granola into bars. They are handy, equally tasty and doesn’t require cold milk to go along, on a chilly morning. A perfect companion for your morning cuppa’ joe. When it comes to bars, Alton Brown’s recipe is my favorite. Its simple, satisfying, flavorsome and flexible. I have made these many times substituting original ingredients with what I had on hand; and it has turned great every single time.

Ingredients

Rolled oats – 2 cups
Raw sunflower seeds – ½ cup
Sliced or slivered almonds – 1 cup
Wheat germ or oat bran – ½ cup
Honey or agave nectar – ½ cup
Brown sugar or jaggery – ¼ cup
Butter – 1 ½ tbsp
Vanilla extract – 2 tsp
Salt – ½ tsp
Dried fruits (apricots, blue berries, goji berries, prunes, raisins, cranberries) – 1 cup

Method

Preheat oven to 350F. Grease a 9x9 glass baking dish. Mix oats, sun flower seeds, almonds, wheat germ on a baking sheet and bake for 8 minutes, mixing once in between. Meanwhile, in a pan, heat butter, brown sugar, vanilla and honey together. After the sugar has dissolved, let the mixture bubble up for a minute. Add oat mixture to jaggery and mix it all together. Transfer the mixture to the greased glass dish and press down evenly with the back of a spatula. Bake for 25 minutes. When cooled, cut into 16 squares.

This is my second entry to Mansi’s WBB – Balanced Breakfasts, an event started by Nandita of Saffron Trail.

Gajar Ka… Muffin

Baking is an exact science, they say. But that didn’t matter to me. When my baking experiments with cardamom became more than successful (I have made these turnovers countless number of times now), I wanted to bake a cardamom-flavoured quick bread. While putting this recipe together, I had no recipe in mind, but a flavour – Gajar halwa or carrot halwa. So I added a little bit of this and little bit of that and ended up with one of the most amazing creations of mine. The muffins were moist and delicious, that every bite was a treat.

To make this enjoyable for everyone, I made ‘em vegan. Flax seeds were used for eggs and Tofutti, better than cream cheese for frosting. I was quite impressed with this vegan cream cheese, it is as good as its dairy counterpart. Herbs and chives is my favorite spread for sandwiches these days.

This is my second entry to WBB – Healthy Eats. A quick reminder, the deadline for this event is 29th of this month.

Ingredients

Shredded carrots – 2 cups
All purpose flour – 1¼ cups + 1 tbsp
Crushed pineapple with juice – ½ cup
Ground flax seeds – 2 tbsp
Water – 6 tbsp
Vegetable oil – 2/3 cup
Sugar – ¾ cup
Dried currants or raisins – ¼ cup
Cashew or walnut haves – ½ cup
Vanilla extract – 1 tsp
Ground cardamom – 1 tsp
Baking soda – 1 tsp
Salt – 1 tsp

Frosting (optional)

Vegan cream cheese – ½ cup
Powdered sugar – 2 tbsp

Method

Preheat oven to 400F. Line muffin pan with liners. In a big bowl, microwave 6 tbsp of water till it boils. Vigorously whisk in ground flax seeds. Microwave for a minute, whisk again and microwave for an additional minute.

To the ‘flax eggs’, add oil, sugar, vanilla and cardamom and beat until creamy. In a separate bowl, mix all purpose flour, baking soda and salt. Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients along with crushed pineapple. Toss carrots, raisins/currants and cashew/walnut in the remaining tbsp of flour. Add this to the batter. Mix until combined.

Scoop batter onto muffin cups and bake for 20 minutes at 400F. Reduce the oven temperature to 350F and continue to bake for another 25 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack and serve warm. This recipe yields 11 standard size muffins.

If desired, prepare frosting by creaming cream cheese and powdered sugar together. When cupcakes are cool, frost them.

Deeba, The Passionate Baker and Maya at Konkan World have awarded me with ‘Nice Matters Award’. “Nice Matters Award is for those bloggers who are nice people; good blog friends and those who inspire good feelings and inspiration. Also for those who are a positive influence on our blogging world.” This means a lot coming from my fellow bloggers. I want to express my appreciation for passing this award to me. Thank you Deeba and Maya.

Pillows Of Heaven

If you have come here looking for gnocchi, you would be disappointed. But I have something even better, the Indian pillows of heaven - the ubiquitous Idly.

If you ever step inside a Tamilian’s house, idly and sambar is sure to be on the breakfast menu. Idly is as ancient as the Tamil culture itself. The reason is quite simple. Its tasty and light on the stomach. If you are feeling under the weather, the physicians in South India would suggest idly and rasam. Idly is easily digestible and like the Amish Friendship Starter, it relies on natural fermentation.

The task of making the batter right may seem daunting. But with a little practice and patience, it is very achievable. Once you have the right formula for the batter, then breakfast or dinner is a cinch. I am giving some pointers that I find useful when making idly.

• Always grind urad dal first. Also refrigerate urad dal before grinding. Both of these steps assure fluffier urad batter. If you forget to refrigerate the dal, then grind using ice cold water.
• If you have issues fermenting batter in your house, try keeping the batter in an enclosed area, like microwave or oven, before going to bed. If you still have issues with batter rising and fermenting, warm the oven lightly at the lowest setting possible for half an hour. Then keep the batter and close the door. Check after 5 hours to see how much it has risen. Repeat warming the oven once again if necessary.
• While trying to make the batter for the first time, try watching it during the day. Because once you keep it inside the oven and go to bed, it may rise and spill inside your oven. And you will end up cleaning the oven first thing in the morning.
• Each sack of rice and dal is different. Hence adjust the rice:dal ratio accordingly for fluffy idlies all the time.
• If the batter is tight or if urad dal is not enough, idlies turn out hard. If the batter is watery or if there is excess urad dal, the idlies fall flat.
• I use Ultra wet grinder for making idly/dosa batter. You can also use Indian mixers like Sumeet or Preeti, although you have to do it in small batches. If you don't have either one of these, then try your blender. Western food processors are, sadly, not fit for the job.
  

Ingredients

Par boiled rice – 4 cups
Urad dal – 1 cup
Salt – about 3 tsp

Method

Soak rice and urad dal separately for at least 4 hours to overnight. 20 minutes before grinding, refrigerate urad dal. When ready, grind urad dal first in a wet grinder. Grind until the mixture is smooth and fluffy. Transfer to a big vessel and return the grinder to the base and grind rice in two batches. The rice should be ground fine and the mixture should not be watery. Add this to the urad dal batter along with salt. Mix thoroughly with your hands till everything is homogeneous. The consistency should be like pancake batter. Make sure the batter has room to double. Cover and set aside in a warm place for 8 to 10 hours depending upon the weather. When doubled, refrigerate the batter. The same batter can also be used for making dosa.

For making idlies, idly plates as shown below are used. They are perfectly designed for efficiently steaming large quantities of idlies. They are available in sets of 3, 4 or 6 plates. Though they are primarily used for steaming idly, I also use them for steaming paruppu usili mixture and dumplings.

Lightly oil the plates with sesame oil. Fill batter 3/4th full, giving room to rise while steaming. Stack plates one on top of the other. Take a pressure cooker with some water for steaming, about 2 inches. The water level inside the pressure cooker should not touch the bottom idly plate. Transfer the whole stack of idly plates filled with batter into the cooker. Cover cooker with the lid, but don’t use the weight that comes with the cooker. Put the cooker over medium-high heat. Once you see steam coming through the lid, set the timer for 13 minutes. After 13 minutes, switch off the flame and let the cooker rest for 5 minutes. Take the plates with cooked idlies out, and let it cool down for 10 minutes. Beware of the escaping steam. Remove idlies from the plates and serve hot with chutney and/or sambar.

Sambar

Sambar is served as a condiment with light meals like idly, dosa, adai or upma. It is also served as a main dish and is eaten with rice. Onion sambar, which is my favourite, suits both. Since the spices are ground fresh, it is called ‘Arachu vitta sambar’.

Ingredients

Toor dal – ¼ cup, pressure cooked till soft with turmeric
Tamarind paste – 2 tbsp
Turmeric powder – ¼ tsp
Onion – 1, sliced
Mustard seeds – ½ tsp
Curry leaves – few
Cilantro
Salt
Oil – 1 tsp

Spice mixture

Coriander seeds – 1 ½ tbsp
Chana dal – 2 tbsp
Red chillies – 4
Fenugreek seeds – ¼ tsp
Grated coconut – ¼ cup
Oil – 1 tsp
Onion – 2 tbsp, chopped (optional)

Roast all of the above, except onion, in a tsp of oil. Grind along with onion to a smooth paste.

Method

In a vessel, boil a cup of water with tamarind, turmeric and salt, until the raw smell disappears. Add the ground spice mixture and cooked dal and mix well. Bring it to a boil over medium heat and boil for 5 minutes. In a pan, heat oil and splutter mustard seeds. Sauté sliced onions and curry leaves for a minute. The onions should still retain their crunch. Add this to the sambar along with cilantro. Mix thoroughly and serve with idly.

One of the major complaints about idly is it’s a lot of carbs. Portion control is my answer. I have these mini idly plates which make, well, mini idlies. The whole plate of mini idly holds batter equal to that two idlies. This along with a bowl of lentil and spice laden sambar, gives me a feel that I am eating a lot. Plus, its so cute.

These little pillows of heaven along with sambar is my entry to Weekend Breakfast Blogging - Healthy Eats. Tasty, filling and enough carbs and protein to get me through the day.

Cornmeal Crusted Tomato Tarts

So I bought these new tartlet pans. Who can resist tarts after seeing Tartelette’s eye-popping creations. I couldn’t wait to create a fabulous tart. But all the recipes for the tart dough called for at least one stick of butter. As if there isn’t enough indulgence already (all in the name of holiday baking), I searched for a low-fat, more-sensible recipe. I landed on Ellie Krieger’s page. I like her recipes from her show Healthy Appetite. Instead of substituting full fat cream cheese with a low-fat one, she talks about portion control and other sensible ways of eating right. I have tried many of her recipes and am happy with every one of ‘em.

I used her recipe for making the crust, but made the filling with what I had on hand. The original recipe looks equally good, which I plan to try out some day. As said in the reviews, the crust is a bit dry and crumbly. With more butter, it may be one of those melt-in-your-mouth tarts. But, hey, am happy with the recipe as-is. Also, I have used marinated mushrooms from the olive bar, which already had garlic and red peppers. You may want to add these separately if you are using fresh mushrooms. I have used sun-dried tomato pesto, you can use any pesto you have on hand.

This is my first time baking tarts, and the lesson I learnt is, the filling shrinks a little bit after being baked. So its better to slightly overfill them. This recipe makes four 4-inch tartlets that serves two.

Ingredients

Crust

Cornmeal – 2/3 cup
Whole wheat pastry flour – 1/3 cup
Butter – 2 tbsp
Vegetable oil – 2 tbsp
Salt – ¼ tsp
Water – 2 to 3 tbsp

Filling

Red onion – 1, small, sliced
Tomato – 2, firm and medium sized, thinly sliced
Marinated mushrooms with roasted red pepper and garlic – 1 cup
Mozzarella and/or Boursin cheese – ½ cup
Pesto – 4 tbsp
Basil – few leaves, shredded
Parmesan – 1 tbsp

Method

Pulse the first five ingredients in the food processor until the dough form pea sized lumps. Gradually add one tbsp of water at a time and pulse until everything comes together. The dough for the crust can also be done by hand. Transfer the dough onto a working surface and knead for 10 seconds. Divide the dough into four equal parts and press each portion onto a 4 inch tart pan. Transfer the tartlet pans onto a baking sheet, prick a few holes on the crust with a fork and bake for 10 minutes at 350F oven. Rotate the baking sheet and bake for additional 5 minutes. Remove and set aside.

Meanwhile, prepare the filling by sautéing red onions until brown. Sear any other thinly sliced vegetables, if using, on both sides, seasoned with salt and pepper. Slice the marinated mushrooms along with roasted red pepper and garlic. Shred mozzarella cheese.

Assemble the tart by brushing a tbsp of pesto at the bottom. Spread caramelized onions, mushrooms, garlic, red peppers, and other vegetables if any, one above the other. Sprinkle shredded mozzarella and/or Boursin. Place tomato slices on the top. Season with salt and pepper and bake at 350F for 20 minutes.

Take the tarts out and let it cool for 5 minutes. The edges pull away from the pan as they cool. Remove ‘em from the mold, grate parmesan over the tarts and garnish with basil. Serve warm with a side salad or flavoured yogurt.

These mini tarts are on their way to The Mini Pie Revolution hosted by Karyn and Ann at The Mini Pie Revolution Headquarters. Ann, Thank you for graciously accepting my tartlets.

Starting The Day Right

You all know how I whine over eating the blah oatmeal for breakfast. But, over time, to my surprise, I happen to appreciate it. With mercury falling day-by-day, I am not up for cold cereal either. There is no denial that oatmeal is, by far, one of the healthiest breakfast you can have. “What cannot be cured must be endured”, says my dad. So, instead of whining, I decided to dress it up, making breakfast a treat, than a chore.

Being vegan or not, I love soy milk with my cereal or oatmeal. It lends a sweet flavour without the cholesterol. But if soy milk is not your thing, you can use regular milk. I perk it up by adding a dry fruit and a nut and/or seed. Dried berries, raisins would work too. Try unsalted, roasted pepitas, for something different. Since I decided to make one of my favourite combinations today, which is dates and pistachios, I am sending this to Chandrika’s AFAM – Dates.

Ingredients

Quick cooking oats – 6 tbsp
Water – 1 cup
Soymilk – ½ cup
Flax seeds – 1 tbsp
Dates – 10, pitted and chopped fine
Pistachios – ¼ cup, finely chopped

Method

Bring water to a boil. Add oats and cook until soft, about 3 minutes. Add flax seeds, switch off the flame and add soymilk. Garnish with dates and pistachios and serve warm.

Amish Pancakes

I love pancakes! Who doesn’t? They are easy and versatile. Served with a seasonal fruit, they are one of my favourite brunch ideas. I make ‘em in bulk and freeze ahead, to devour on those mornings when I crave for a warm breakfast.

The Amish starter was a perfect base to fluffy and tasty pancakes. The holes in the pancake speak for itself. I enjoyed every bite of it that I am happy to share this as the final installment of 1-in-3 Amish Friendship Starter. I developed this recipe according my preference. Feel free to alter to suit your taste. A handful of flax seeds or chopped walnuts will be a nice addition.

Ingredients

Starter – 1 cup
Flour – 2 cups
Baking powder – ¼ tsp
Baking soda – 1 tsp
Salt – ¼ tsp
Eggs – 2
Milk – 1 cup

Method

Mix all of the above just until combined, without over mixing. Heat a pan or griddle and pour ¼ cup at a time. Brown both sides and serve with your favourite condiments.

Amish pancakes served with orange sauce.

Omelet Sandwich

Eggs are a staple in my kitchen. When I am not in the mood for an elaborate meal, but want something quick, tasty and nutritious, I turn to eggs. Be it breakfast, lunch or dinner there are a hundred ways to prepare them. For the carbohydrate part of meal, I usually make potatoes or bread. But today, I made a sandwich along with some vegetables making it a wholesome meal.

Bread + spread + filling = A wholesome sandwich. For this sandwich, use a crusty bread or focaccia for added flavour. Mayonnaise is jazzed up with fresh herbs for a spread. You can use goat cheese with herbs or cream cheese with sun-dried tomato pesto. Similarly, flavour the filling, i.e., eggs, with your choice of fresh/dried herbs. Add grated cheese like Parmesan or Romano for another layer of flavour. In short, this is more than a method than a recipe. Play with it until you find the combination that fits you.

Ingredients

Any crusty bread like Ciabatta or Vienna – 1 loaf
Mayonnaise – ¼ cup
Blend of fresh herbs (basil, chives, cilantro) – 2 tbsp, finely chopped
Egg – 3
Milk – 2 tbsp
Herbes de Provence – 1 tsp
Onion – 1, cut into thin long slices
Garlic – 2 cloves, minced
Fresh spinach leaves – 1 cup, coarsely chopped
Red bell pepper – 1, cut into thin rounds
Red pepper flakes – 1 tsp
Oil – 2 tbsp
Salt
Pepper

Method

Preheat oven to 300F. Cut bread horizontally. Mix mayonnaise and fresh herbs and apply to both halves of the bread.

Heat 1 tbsp of oil in a skillet. Sauté onion and garlic until they become soft, about 5 minutes. Set aside.

Heat the rest of the oil in the same skillet and prepare omelet by whisking eggs, milk, Herbes de Provence, salt and red pepper flakes. Remove and slide the omelet over the bottom half of the bread.

Layer sautéed onion, spinach, bell pepper, in that order. Season the vegetables with salt and pepper. Top with the upper bread half.

Wrap the whole sandwich in aluminum foil, place it in a baking sheet and bake for 15 minutes, until the bread has heated through. Slice and serve hot.

This is my entry for Weekend Breakfast Blogging – Omelet, hosted by Kanchana. Nandita is the brain behind this event.

Arisi Upma – Cream of Rice Upma

Growing up, I was not hot for arisi upma. But, like so many other foods, I now appreciate the humbleness and simplicity of this dish. Back in the days, this upma is prepared in a bronze pot (vengala paanai). The slightly burnt upma stuck to the bottom of the pot is to die for. Fast forward to present, this is made in a kadai, pressure cooker or rice cooker. I find the rice cooker version easy. Switch on the cooker and dinner is ready in 20 mintues.

Back in India, my mom would visit the flour mill once a month, give the operator at the mill a bag of rice and make a batch of rice flour and another batch of rice rava. But here, in the city where I live, there is no flour mill that I know of. But when I set off to make some rice rava, most of it becomes flour. Despaired, I gave up making rice rava upma.

But this time when I visited India, I observed my MIL soaking her rice before grinding. The soaked rice is not only easy to work with, but also yields uniform rava instead of turning into flour. Now, am back into action :).

Ingredients

Raw rice – 1 cup
Toor dal – 1 fistful
Coconut – 1/3 cup, grated
Mustard seeds – ½ tsp
Urad dal – 1 tsp
Chana dal – 1 tsp
Pepper – ½ tsp
Cumin seeds – 1 tsp
Red chillies – 4 to 6
Curry leaves - few
Salt
Oil – 1 tbsp

Method

Wash rice and dal together thrice and drain the water completely. Leave it for 20-30 minutes. Take this mixture in a food processor/mixie and pulse for 2 or 3 times. The rice should be coarsely ground, but not as fine as rava (semolina). This will yield about 1¼ cups of rice rava which serves two.

Transfer the ground rice to a rice cooker. In a seasoning pan, heat oil, splutter mustard seeds. Add chana dal, urad dal, red chillies, pepper, cumin seeds and curry leaves, in that order. When dal becomes brown, add this seasoning mixture to rice. Also add coconut, salt and 2½ cups of water. Mix well and turn the rice cooker switch on. When done, fluff the rice, let rest for 5 minutes and serve with a drizzle of coconut oil, if desired.

IMHO, arisi upma is best had with sambar, followed by gothsu. I make sure there is left-over sambar whenever I make this upma for dinner. Today, I served it with onion sambar and coconut+coriander leaves chutney.

Recently, I came across idli rava in Indian stores. Though I have never tried it, I believe it may work well in this recipe. I like making my own rice rava, so that I can control how big I want it to be. Also, toor dal in the above recipe is optional, if you want a totally white upma.

Here are some guidelines for using water in various upma. Of course, the ratio depends on the hardness of the water you use.

Rice rava upma – 1 cup of rice rava : 2 cups of water
Rava/Sooji upma – 1 cup of rava : 1½ cups of water
Vermicelli upma – 1 cup of vermicelli : 1 cup of water

This might be a humble dish, but it is one of those recipes that makes best use of rice, in my opinion. So this is my entry for JFI-Rice, hosted by Sharmi of Neivedhyam. JFI is an event conceived by Indira of Mahanandi.

Quinoa Upma

Upma – A savior for those women who have no idea what to cook for dinner. Sometimes with onion and veges, while sometimes with just some seasonings, upma can pretty much be prepared with what we have in our pantry. But one thing that stops me from having upma as often as I would like are the carbs . Rice, vermicelli, beaten rice, tapioca – lots of carbs, but lots of taste.

Quinoa, generally, considered to be a grain is actually the seed of a plant. They are an excellent source of complete protein – all 8 amino acids, which is essential for a vegetarian diet. Though it has received its long-deserved attention only recently , they can be substituted for almost any other grains in modern recipes. When cooked, they form a tail (which is the external germ of the seed), giving it an interesting look. More about quinoa – here.

When I first came across quinoa, I used them in tabbouleh, salads, etc, as mentioned in the box. Noticing its firmer texture, I took a chance and made upma. I also tried cooking it in a pressure cooker than on stove-top. Not only was it protein-rich, it was fan-tas-tic. Its light, delicate taste was just enough to make it at least once a week. This upma rocks, you can have it any day.

Ingredients

Quinoa – 1 cup
Onion – 1
Carrot – 2, shredded
Mustard seeds – ¼ tsp
Chana dal – ½ tsp
Urad dal – ½ tsp
Curry leaves – few
Red or Green chillies – 4
Salt

Method

Pressure cook quinoa with 1 ¼ cups of water for 2 whistles. After the pressure in the cooker has subsided, fluff the quinoa with a fork. Now, that’s optional if you are in a hurry.

In a kadai or skillet, take a tsp of oil, splutter mustard seeds. Add chana dal, urad dal, curry leaves, chillies and sauté till dal turns golden brown. Add onion, carrot and salt and cook the vegetables for 3 minutes. Onions should still retain their crunch. Add quinoa, mix and adjust the seasoning. Serve with a pickle.

This my Q entry for Nupur’s A-Z of Indian Vegetables.

Banana Muffins

Banana muffins are my favourite fruit-based muffins. So when I craved for muffins at tea time today, and saw bananas which were ripe with black spots and a please-don’t-waste-me look, it was time to bake my favourite muffin. The recipe is quite simple, yet the muffins are crunchy on the top, soft and moist inside, just the way I like them.

Ingredients

All Purpose Flour – 1 cup
Sugar – scant ½ cup
Baking powder – ½ tsp
Salt – 1 pinch
Oil- ¼ cup
Low-fat milk – ¼ cup
Egg – 1
Banana – 1, medium sized, mashed
Walnuts – ¼ cup, toasted slightly

Method

Preheat the oven to 400F. Line a muffin pan with liners.

Measure flour, baking powder, salt and mix well. In a separate bowl, beat milk, oil and egg. Mix sugar into the dry ingredients. Now add the milk mixture into the dry mixture and mix till all the ingredients are combined. Fold in banana and walnuts.

Fill the muffin pan equally and bake for 20-25 mins until golden brown.

Go ahead. Try them.

Simple muffins for a lazy afternoon.

Yield - 6 muffins