Geetha's Kitchen

Our mothers, grandmas and aunts were very frugal but extremely creative to provide the family with delectable food while keeping wastage to a minimum. Kunukku was one such invention to incorporate leftover batter to make fabulous snacks similar to pakodas. If the batter is too thin, a little whole wheat flour (1 or 2 Tbsp at a time) may be stirred in; it should be as thick as pancake batter. A half cup of vegetables like finely chopped onions, cabbage or spinach may be added to the batter. Kunukkus are so delicious that one is known to prepare them on occasion from fresh batter also! Ingredients: 2 cups of Leftover Adai Batter 1 pinch of Salt 1 sprig curry leaves, leaves finely sliced into a chiffonade (fine ribbons) 2 thin slices of ginger, finely chopped 1 hot green chili, seeds removed and chopped fine Oil for deep frying Method: Mix the batter with salt, chili, curry leaves and ginger. Heat the oil until very hot but not smoking; a tiny dri...

Mor Kuzhambu or Kootan is a South Indian classic stew of mild flavored vegetables in a yogurt sauce flavored with coconut and cumin seeds. It is another one of our family favorites from my childhood days. The 'zh' is only an approximation of a letter found only in the languages Tamil or Malayalam which is often substituted by 'l' as in Kolambu. To me the closest approximation for 'zh' sounds like the 'r' in mercy. Ripe or unripe plantain (a type of banana), Winter Melon (Elavan), Taro root - Arbi in Hindi -(Colocasia esculenta) or Chenai (a true yam), ripe or unripe Mangoes, Okra, Chayote squash, Cucumbers, Opo squash, etc are the traditional favorites for making Mor Kuzhambu. Potatoes, eggplants, zucchini, etc also can be used to make this kuzhambu. Choose your favorite vegetables. Note: The uncooked rice in the ground masala of coconut and spices is very important when cooking with yogurt as it provides the starch to keep the yogurt fr...

If you have yogurt sitting around with no place to go, make Mor Kootu/Curry, a classic South Indian dish. It is a thick stew traditionally made with spinach, heart of banana (vazhai thandu), or cucumbers and is named the particular vegetable mor kootu - for example, if it is made with spinach, it is spinach mor kootu. Other good choices of vegetables are: green cabbage, any type of summer squash like zucchini, (or gourds like tori and lauki) cauliflower and green beans. Try a single veggie or a combination or even none; as you wish. Frozen grated coconut is available in Indian or Mexican markets. I had one each of golden and green zucchini, and a one lonely Persian cucumber - all combined to make today's Mor Kootu/Curry; delicious! Ingredients: 1 each green and golden zucchini (or use 2 of one kind) 1 medium cucumber, peeled 1/2 tsp Turmeric 1 cup fresh or frozen grated coconut 2 Serrano or Jalapeno Chilies 1 Tbsp Whole Cumin Seeds 1 tsp uncooked r...

A lovely pasta salad with a bounty of colorful vegetables to celebrate Earth Day! Use your own favorite combination of vegetables - here is one of mine. Great for lunch bags too :)! A fabulous variation is to use Pesto (homemade or store-bought) with a little more  olive oil to dilute it and use this to dress the salad instead of other dressing. 8 main dish servings; Each serving as prepared below contains: 320 Calories; 13 g Protein; 8.5 g Fat; 12.8 g Fiber; and 46 g Carbohydrates. Ingredients: 1 lb Multi grain Pasta, any short type like penne or rotelle Salt to taste 1 large clove Garlic, chopped 3 Tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil 1 Orange or Red Bell Pepper (Capsicum) 1 Yellow Crookneck Squash 1 Zucchini 1 Leek OR 2 Green Onions OR 1 small Red Onion 1 small bulb Fresh Fennel or 2 ribs Tender Celery 10 Kalamata Olives (or any type) 2 cups Broccoli florets 4 to 6 Baby Artichokes 3 Ripe Tomatoes 1/4 cup Fresh Italian Parsley 1/4 cup Fresh Basil Leaves 2 tsp ...

Here is a much celebrated Italian rice dish; I have added a little Indian influence of Ghee and sambar powder :)! It is similar to the Indian Kichdi or Bisi Bele Rice in idea as well as texture. Enjoy! I generally do not use any broth; the vegetables and the herbs provide ample flavor. If you like to use broth instead of water, you certainly can make home-made vegetable broth with all the trimmings from the vegetables and simmer them gently in fresh water to cover with a clove of garlic or two, a coarsely chopped tomato, an onion and a potato each, a sprig of each of the herbs mentioned below, and a little salt. When cool, strain and discard all the vegetable pieces and use the broth as you wish. If there is extra broth, it can be frozen for later use in soups or other recipes. Note : I always make a little extra because it tastes so good the next day. Serve with crisp fried or roasted papadams, a fresh green salad and/or  raita . The yogurt in the raita, the lenti...

Pulav is simply Indian fried rice with vegetables (without the frying). Amma used to make it almost daily with fresh vegetables for the little ones. One can use a 12 oz. package of frozen mixed vegetables when in a hurry. All one needs is raita (vegetable salad with yogurt) or vegetable salaad to complete the meal. Basmati Rice with its long and fragrant grains is the perfect rice for making pulavs. We love the flavor of roasted whole peppercorns; they lose their heat and become mellow when cooked in ghee. But if whole peppercorns look intimidating, by all means use them freshly ground. Ingredients: 1 cup Basmati, Jasmine, or your favorite rice 1 tsp Salt or to taste 1 small Onion, finely chopped 1 lb of assorted vegetables, see below 1 pinch of Turmeric 2 to 4 Tbsp Ghee or Unsalted Butter 1 pinch Whole Cumin Seeds 1/2 tsp whole Black Pepper or Freshly ground Black Pepper (Optional) 4 Tbsp Fresh Cilantro, chopped (Optional) Method: Prepare fresh vegetables in medium bite si...