Geetha's Kitchen

Chickpea Spread is a wonderful in so many ways - not just on regular sandwiches and wraps but as a salad and filling for a cool lettuce taco or as a dip to scoop with your favorite veggies or chips! Stuff pretty little peppers, tomatoes, lettuce cups, endive, celery, etc. for a delicious and easy snack or starter. Cook your own chickpeas or use canned; I cook a big batch so there is enough for a couple of different recipes as well as freeze a portion or two for another day as they freeze well. Notes: 1. I do the whole thing using the food processor; if you like the veggies chunkier, the carrots and celery may be finely chopped with a knife and added at the end and pulsed once or twice just to mix. 2. Homemade or purchased vegan mayo works quite well. 3. Other herbs like basil, cilantro, chives, etc may be added instead of or in addition to the parsley. INGREDIENTS: 1 Handful raw or roasted Almonds, around 1/4 cup 2 ribs Celery include leaves, coarsley chopped 1 ca...

Cooking Brussels Sprouts this way could not be simpler or any quicker! Easy and delicious as well; according to Keeshu: "tastes a lot better than I anticipated". Use small sprouts when possible - they cook very fast and are ever so tender; I cut them in half - the increased surface area aids in cooking faster as well as absorb all the seasonings better. The dals add toasty flavor as well as a nice bite without being hard on teeth - they soften while the veggies cook; they may be used in smaller quantities or omitted altogether if you wish. Dals not only add taste, but also protein, vitamins, minerals, and fiber too. I often make a double batch to have enough left over; they are great warmed or cold or on salads. Ingredients: 1 lb Brussels Sprouts 1 Tbsp Oil 1/2 tsp Brown Mustard Seeds 2 tsp Urad dal 2 tsp Chana dal 1-2 dry Red Peppers 1 pinch crushed red pepper flakes (optional) 1/2 tsp Sea Salt 1 pinch Asafetida 1 stem Fresh Curry Leaves, minced 1/2 t...

Cracked Wheat Payasam is a quick and simple but delicious dessert pudding prepared Kerala style! Other types of milks such as almond, rice, or soy may be used instead of the coconut milk. Made with a little more water, half the jaggery, and minus the spices, nuts, and raisins, it does double duty as a lovely kanji for breakfast or snack. We often had this for breakfast growing up. Regular or Irish style steel-cut oats may be used instead of the cracked wheat. Bulgar or cracked wheat is a wonderful staple to have on hand for making Tabbouleh , Upma , and Pongal as well as a simple porridge like oatmeal. I use the finely cracked (#1 grade) for porridge, upma and tabouleh; the coarsely cracked bulgar (#3) is great for pongal and pilaf. Dessert: 4 Servings Porridge: 2 Servings Ingredients: 1/4 cup finely Cracked Wheat (Bulgar) #1 grade 1 cup Coconut Milk 1/2 cup Jaggery or Brown Sugar 2 Cardamom Pods OR 1/2 tsp Dried ground Ginger (chukku) 1 tsp Coconut Oil 1 Tbsp Cashe...

White Chili is a delicious change of pace from the regular Chili! White Chili is made with white beans of course and succulent veggies and flavorful herbs and spices. It goes together very quickly especially if you have cooked beans, home-cooked or canned. If using canned beans, use 2 cans (15.5 ounces) of Cannellini beans, rinsed and drained. Hominy adds a down-home country taste. Ingredients 1 1/2 cups Great Northern beans, cooked 2  tbsp Oil 1 large White onion, chopped 3-4 ribs celery, chopped 1 large Parsnip, diced 2 medium White Carrots, diced 2 Garlic cloves, minced and mashed 2 to 4 Serrano chiles,  finely minced 3-4 tsp fresh Rosemary leaves, finely chopped  1 1/2 tsp ground Cumin 1 tsp dried Oregano  1/4 - 1/2 tsp Cayenne pepper Coarse salt & freshly ground Black Pepper 1 can (15 ounces) white hominy, rinsed and drained (optional) 2-3 fresh Tomatillos, finely diced 3 tbsp cornmeal + 1 cup ...

Kollu or Muthirai Puzhukku is a delicious thick stew that we often had with kanji (simple rice porridge) on restricted fasting days and looked forward to having it! I love Muthirai Puzhukku with oats Kanji (porridge) as well for a healthy and sustaining breakfast or for that matter any time at all! Note: Save excess cooking broth from the kollu for making awesome  Kollu Rasam - a delicious treat that we adore and is often recommended to help one get over colds and coughs! Kollu is not usually  Sprout ed for making this puzhukku; but you may if you wish. 4 Servings INGREDIENTS: Puzhukku: 1 cup dry Horse Gram 2 dry Red Chiles, broken into two 1 stem fresh Curry Leaves, finely sliced 1 Tbsp Coconut Oil Salt to taste 1 Green unripe Banana/Plantain (Optional) Masala: 1 tsp Cumin Seeds 1/4 - 1/2 cup Coconut, fresh or frozen (Or 2-3 Tbsp Dried) 1-2 dried Red Chiles METHOD: Soak  & cook the Horse gram: Pick over, wash, an...

Lovely, luscious, yet a light soup, Summery Corn Chowder has a lemon grass scented broth enriched with a touch of coconut milk! This is perfect for late summer or early autumn when there is an abundance of tender sweet corn and succulent red bell peppers. Sunny yellow corn, bright red bell pepper, and green herbs makes the chowder beautiful to behold. Notes: It is very easy to make  Vegetable Stock  or broth. When prepping veggies and herbs, reserve all the clean scraps, keep them in a bag or container until you have enough. They can also be kept frozen adding more as you prep until you have a good amount. Any extra broth also may be frozen for longer storage. If you fresh corn is not an option, use 14 - 16 oz frozen corn kernels. The lemongrass broth can be prepared without the corncobs; rest of the recipe is still the same. Serves 4 INGREDIENTS: 3 ears fresh corn 1 quart Vegetable Stock  or Water 1/4 tsp Turmeric 1 stalk fresh Lemongrass, crushed...

I like to make homemade masalas so as to have them as fresh as possible as well as the proportions of spices best suited for our personal taste; also, some of the masalas have undesirable ingredients like food colors, flavor enhancers, and preservatives. The amount of ingredients may be adjusted to your preference.  Use this masala in any of the recipes that call for Tandoori Masala. Note: Smoked paprika gives a nice smoky aroma to your dishes; if it is not available, no worries, the masala still is fabulous. Add a tablespoon or two of Kasoori Methi (dried fenugreek leaves) for incomparable taste; crush into a fine powder in the palm of your hands before addiding to marinade or at the end of cooking to finish the dish! Ingredients: ½ cup dried Kashmiri chillies, break into 2-3 pieces ¼ cup whole Coriander seeds 1 tbsp whole Cumin seeds ½ tbsp whole Black Pepper ½ tbsp whole Cloves ½ tbsp whole green Cardamom pods 1 black Cardamom 1 tsp whole Fenugreek se...

These bright red theplas or spicy flat breads (rotis) are as beautiful as they are delicious! Theplas are traditionally served with Kichdi (a rice and lentil risotto quite popular all over India), a vegetable curry with potatoes, a raitas or fresh plain yogurt , papadams, and pickles; they make a very filling and nutritious meal. But they can be served as part of a simpler meal with pickles, sliced veggies and plain yogurt. We love theplas with Hot Lemon or Mango pickles and a cup of Chai as a simple meal or snack. Although fresh Methi (Fenugreek) Theplas are the most popular, they may be made with other herbs and veggies too; but the veggie ones are not as long lasting. Refrigerate any extras and freeze for longer storage. Although the Indian whole wheat flour ground specifically for making flat breads (known as atta) is the best for making thepla as well as other types of roti, any whole wheat flour may be used. Makes 12 Theplas Ingredients: 2 tsp Oil ...