Saturday, October 25, 2008
Periamma's Mung Dal Kootu (Indian Stew With Assorted Vegetables)
Rasam Powder (South Indian Spice Mix)
Simple Sambar ( Spicy Stew of Lentils With Vegetables)
Here is a quick version made with Sambar Powder. Sambar is traditionally served over plain rice, or with any type of roti like chapati or nan (Indian flat-breads) and accompanied by dry vegetable dishes such as cauliflower upperi, any kind of thoran, or parikkai fry (bitter melon stir fry), a raita, plain yogurt, and toasted or fried papadams, etc.
A simple sambar can be made with one or more vegetables. Some favorites are shallots, moringa pods (Indian Drumsticks), onions, any type of winter or summer squash, eggplant, sweet or regular potatoes, okra, radish, etc.
4 Servings
Nutrition Information Per Serving (without vegetables): 110 Calories; 15 g Carbohydrates; 6 g Protein; 12.5 g Fiber; 3.25 g Fat. The exact nutrient values will depend on the vegetables used.
Ingredients:
1/2 cup Toor dal (or Yellow split peas)
2 cups TOTAL assorted vegetables
2 tsp Tamarind paste concentrate
1/2 tsp ground Turmeric
1 tsp coarse Salt
1 Tbsp Sambar Powder
4 Tbsp Fresh Cilantro, chopped
Thalippu/Tadka:
1 Tbsp Ghee/Oil (use the ghee for an unforgettable taste if you can)
1/2 tsp Brown Mustard Seeds
1 pinch Fenugreek Seeds (Optional)
1 whole dry Red Chili
1 pinch Asafoetida
1 sprig Fresh Curry Leaves
Method:
Cook the dal until very soft and creamy.
Prepare the veggies; cut the vegetables into large chunks or cubes.
In a 2 or 3 quart/liter sauce pan combine the vegetables, tamarind paste, turmeric, sambar powder, salt, and 2 cups of water.
Bring the vegetable mixture to a boil and simmer until tender.
Stir in the cooked dal and bring to a boil; turn off the heat.
Prepare thalippu: heat the ghee/oil and cook the mustard seeds, fenugreek, and red chili.
When the mustard seeds finish popping, remove from heat and add asafoetida and then the curry leaves carefully.
Pour the thalippu into the sambar. Stir in the chopped cilantro.
Let sit covered for about 10 minutes.
Fish out and discard the red chili and curry leaves from the sambar if you wish.
Serve hot with rice, roti, dosa, etc.
Sambar Powder (South Indian Spice Mix)
Enjoy!!
Shobhaa's Mulagu Rasam (Pepper Rasam or Soup)
When Shobhaa heard that I was suffering a bit with a congested nose, she said this rasam would surely alleviate a lot of the discomfort. But you don't have to wait to have a stuffed nose to enjoy it :). Here is her recipe -- Enjoy this rasam just like the others such as Lemon-Lime or Everyday Rasam - in mugs by itself or mixed with plain soft-cooked rice.
Mulagu Rasam is probably the precursor to Mulligatawny soup! "Mulagu" means black pepper and "thanni" means water. The simple "pepper water" has taken on a life of its own :)!
Ingredients:
1 ½ tsp Whole Black pepper (mulagu)
3 tsp Cumin seeds (jeera)
½ tsp Turmeric powder
1 ball of tamarind pulp (a small lime size) OR 1 tsp of tamarind concentrate
Salt to taste
2 tbsp chopped coriander leaves (cilantro)
Thalippu/Tadka: ½ tsp cumin seed, 1 sprig curry leaves, and 1 tbsp pure Ghee or oil.
Method:
· In a pan take the tamarind water and keep it on the stove. When water comes to boil add turmeric and let it boil for 2 minutes.
· Dry sauté (roast) cumin seeds and black pepper till cumin seeds become fragrant and turn a little brownish; cool and powder them
· Add the powdered cumin & pepper powder, and salt; let it boil for 2 minutes on low fire.
· Remove from fire keep it covered.
· Prepare the tadka: Heat the ghee/oil in a small pan with the cumin seeds; when they pop remove from heat and add the curry leaves carefully.
· Add the tadka and the coriander leaves (cilantro) to the rasam and let it sit covered for a few minutes.
· Mulagu rasam is ready!
Relish the rasam with chutta papadams (roasted papadams).
Thursday, October 23, 2008
Everyday Rasam (Spicy Lentil Tomato Soup)
Enjoy!!
Apple-Ginger Coffee Cake With Streusel Topping
Use any kind of baking/cooking apple such a Granny Smith, Pippin, Golden Delicious, or McIntosh.
24 pieces
Nutrition Information: Each piece (1/24th of the recipe) contains: 125 Calories; 17.9 g Carbohydrates; 2.6 g Protein; 12.2 g Fat; 2 g Dietary Fiber
Ingredients:
2 cups Whole Wheat Flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp Salt
1/2 cup Brown Sugar
1/4 cup oil
2 Tbsp ground Flax Seeds + 6 Tbsp water
1 tsp Vanilla
1 cup plain Yogurt
2 medium apples
2 Tbsp finely grated Fresh Ginger (Optional)
1/2 Lemon
1 tsp Cinnamon
1/8 tsp freshly grated Nutmeg
Streusel Topping:
1/4 cup Whole Wheat Flour
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 tsp Cinnamon
1/2 cup dry Oatmeal
2 Tbsp Butter
1/2 cup walnuts, chopped
Method:
Preheat oven to 350 F.
Oil or coat with oil spray a 9" x 13" baking pan. Sprinkle lightly with flour to coat evenly and shake off the excess flour.
Wash, peel and remove the cores from the apples. Chop coarsely. Combine the apples, ginger, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Squeeze the lemon over the apple mixture and mix well.
Stir together the flour, baking powder, soda, and salt in a mixing bowl.
Beat together the ground flax seeds, water, sugar and oil together in a large bowl until fluffy; mix in the vanilla.
Stir in about half the flour mixture along with half the yogurt into the creamed sugar.
Stir in the rest of the flour mixture and yogurt.
Fold in the apples and spread evenly into the prepared baking pan.
Make topping: Combine the flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, and oatmeal. Cut the butter into this flour mixture with a pastry blender or two knives until coarse crumbs (about the size of tiny peas) form. Stir in the nuts.
Spread the topping over the batter evenly.
Bake for 40 to 50 minutes or until done.
Serve warm or at room temperature.
Saturday, October 18, 2008
Red, White, And Green Pasta With Pine Nuts (Pasta With Broccoli, Cauliflower, Cherry Tomatoes)
Saturday, October 11, 2008
Broccoli Chowder (Creamy Broccoli Soup With Potatoes And Corn)
8 Servings
Ingredients:
2 lbs Broccoli
1/2 lb Potatoes (any type), diced
2 medium green or golden Zucchini, or other mild summer squash, finely diced
1 lb Corn Kernels, fresh or frozen
2 T Unsalted Butter or oil
1 Onion, diced
3 ribs Celery (including leaves), finely sliced
4 sprigs Fresh Thyme
Sea Salt to taste
1/2 tsp Turmeric
1/4 tsp Cayenne (Optional)
3 c water
2 c milk
3 Tbsp Unbleached flour dissolved in 1/2 cup water
1 Tbsp Cumin Seeds
1/2 tsp Whole Black Pepper
1/2 cup Fresh Parsley, finely chopped
1/2 cup Cilantro, finely chopped
2 Tbsp Fresh or Sour Cream (Optional), to serve
Paprika, to serve
Method:
Separate the florets from the stems of the broccoli. Peel and chop the stems. Cut the florets into bite size pieces. Keep them separate.
Place the onions, a pinch of salt, and the thyme sprigs in a large stainless steel pot with the butter and cook until onions are translucent.
Add celery and stir cook for about 2 or 3 minutes.
Add water, turmeric, rest of the salt, cayenne, corn kernels, broccoli stems, and potatoes.
Bring to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer for 20 minutes.
Stir the broccoli florets, diced zucchini, flour-water slurry, and the milk into the soup and allow it to come to a boil. Add boiling water if the soup is too thick.
Reduce the heat and simmer for 10 minutes.
Dry roast the black pepper and the cumin seeds until fragrant; grind using a mortar and pestle or in a spice grinder.
Turn off the heat and add the herbs and the ground spices to the soup. Mix well.
Let the soup rest for about 10 minutes.
Serve hot topped with a little cream lightly dusted with paprika.
Note: The vegetables may be roasted if desired just as in corn chowder. Instead of zucchini, other mild squashes or gourds like the Indian tori or lauki (Opo squash), chayote squash, etc may be used.
Malai Kofta (Vegetables Balls in Roasted Tomato-Pepper Sauce)
The kofta are quite delicious on their own as a snack or appetizer too with a little Green chutney and/or Date-Tamarind chutney.
8-12 Servings
Sauce:
4 large ripe Tomatoes
2 large Red Bell Pepper
1 large Red Onion
salt and freshly ground pepper
1 tsp oil
1 tsp Cumin seeds
1 Tbsp fresh Ginger
1/2 tsp ground Turmeric
1 Tbsp ground Coriander seeds
1/4 tsp ground Dry Red Chilies (Cayenne)
1 tsp Salt
1 Tbsp Sambar Powder
1/4 cup Fresh Cilantro, chopped for garnish
Wash and dry all the veggies. Remove the stem end and halve the tomatoes; cut the peppers in half and remove seeds and membranes; peel and cut the onions into chunks. Place them in a single layer in an oiled baking pan and sprinkle lightly with salt and freshly ground pepper. Bake at 400 degrees F for 35 to 40 minutes or until the vegetables are lightly browned. Cool, then remove the skins from peppers and tomatoes.
Puree the roasted vegetables with the ginger.
Heat the oil in a Dutch Oven (4 or 5 quart pot) and lightly brown the cumin seeds. Turn heat down and add the rest of the spices. Stir well.
Add the tomato-pepper puree and the vegetable juice saved from the kofta veggies. Mix well.
Add about 1 cup of water to thin the sauce and simmer covered for 15 minutes stirring occasionally. The sauce will thicken when you add the koftas - the koftas absorb a lot of the moisture.
The kofta and the sauce can be made ahead, cooled and frozen. When you are ready to serve, let the kofta defrost while the sauce is heating and proceed as directed in the "assembly".
Kofta (Vegetable Balls):
1 small Opo Squash or 5 medium zucchini
1 medium Carrot
1 Tbsp fresh Ginger, grated
1/2 Block (about 7-8 oz) Firm Tofu OR Paneer cheese, grated (Optional)
11/2 to 2 cups Gram flour (Besan)
1 tsp Salt
1 Tbsp Sambar Powder
1 pinch Asafoetida
Oil to Deep Fry
Grate the vegetables into a large bowl, sprinkle with 1/2 tsp salt and set aside for 10 minutes. Gently squeeze out the vegetables (save the juices for the sauce).
Mix the vegetables with the ginger, tofu/cheese,1 tsp salt, spices and enough of the gram flour to form a soft dough.
Heat oil in a suitable pan to deep fry.
Form the veggie mixture into small balls about the size of a walnut (about 1" in diameter) and carefully slip into the hot oil.
Put in only a few balls into the oil at a time to avoid crowding.
Gently turn the kofta to brown evenly on all sides.
Remove the koftas with a slotted spoon when they are a rich deep golden brown and drain on absorbent paper towels.
Assembly:
Gently put the kofta into the simmering sauce and turn them to coat. Turn off heat and let them marinate for at least 15 to 20 minutes.
Check to see if the koftas are soft and have absorbed some of the sauce.
Sprinkle the cilantro and serve hot with your favorite rice dishes or Indian breads with any kind of raita and/or plain yogurt.