Macaroni with Spinach sauce

Today I made a resolve to get back to blogging, if only for the sake of writing, an exercise like all others, that needs to be kept up, if I don't want to stagnate…which is pretty much what I've been doing in this department. And that calls for time-managements and less over-committing of my time to other far less useless pursuits - by this i mean my recent addiction to angry birds friends - an online game that is exciting because you are playing against somebody, but also stressful because each time your high score is beaten, you want to up it and in this way end up spending good time that is better spent writing about how I waste it :)

Oh well, like a writer's block, I have suffered from a blogger block - We grew so many veggies in our garden this past summer and I have cooked like the dickens but somehow have not felt enthused to sit and blog them or crop my pictures. Did I mention to you among other things, I have also started working at the market, selling crepes, aka masala dosas. This has been a awesome outlet for me and I get to do this with my older kiddos, an icing on the cake!

And I have been traveling to exotic Espana :) The most wonderful experience with the dance and the spanish Guitar that I have fallen in love with verily-  AND...folks of all the countries I have visited in Europe and elsewhere, including the US where I live, I have never seen cleaner public restroom anywhere but Spain. Impeccable until you read the Madrid airport of course  - Even the Spanish cannot keep up with the world's dump in their busiest airport!  I am not about to make this a travelogue but I would like to share some pictures with you all, assuming of course, that I still have an audience out there who is interested in reading what I have to write. Oh God, please be there :)

In any case, we returned home only to fall right back into parental duties of driving, cooking, baking for school events, cooking cleaning etc… not my idea of fun - the US way of life - sigh - especially because I know better lives can be gotten (in some ways) back in my home country. But that's a topic for an entirely separate lament.  What I meant to say is I've literally had no time to recover from jet lag, what with the whole house sniffling -cos t'is the season for the sniffles, being fall and all.

Another hurried dinner day before I have to run my girls to their music dance and whatever else class. Thinking on my feet and thinking simple is becoming second nature to me, in so far as daily dinners are concerned. This is not to say they are not made with love or with an element of the exotic. Like on election day when i said - ok it's going to be macaroni and…. went racing down to the basement where our old fridge houses additional supplies of milk veggies and miscellaneous. Saw a box of fresh spinach and quickly, easy as abc it struck me to me a sort of spinach pesto to go with the mundane macaroni.

So I got the garlic, the spinach, a red chili or two, and a fistful of pine nuts. But to make it more wholesome, I added a can of campbell's mushroom soup and a 1/2 cup of milk - brought it all to boil and then ground them into a fine sauce. I then threw the macaroni into it and added some grated parmesan to the plate as I served it out. A simple healthy and delicious meal. The kids enjoyed it and I had it all made in less than 20 minutes. Now this is what I call a win-win situation :)

I am going to try this out with other veggies and will keep you posted as I make them

Will be back with a a spanish recipe and some pictures soon.

Infused Olive Oils

It's been a long, tough week besides being a summer of BIG changes - one child off to college, one a junior at high school,  perhaps the only continuum, and my baby off to Kindergarten. It's happy stuff, and yet, intensely sad. As Washington Post writer, Michael Gerson, so aptly observed, the step into college of your child, is the end of his or her uncounted days with you. From here on, we stand aside and let them go headlong, to pursue their dreams and futures - all far easier said than done. The love never lessens, but the eagerness to be completely involved must be dampened, at least on our part.  It's just been a week now, so the feelings are intense.  As for my KG, that is as big a wrench as this is the first journey towards establishing herself in the world. Put like that, it seems like a pretty daunting task for a 4+yt old. But here I am, finally with my one consolation prize - writing more or getting back into the swing of things.

My garden gives me a lot of pleasure, with the fairly good yield, altho much of our plants have had to deal with an extremely intemperate summer and way too much rain to fully flourish.  But we take what we can get and are grateful for it.  The idea to make herb and spice infused olive oil came from a visit to a restaurant where they had mixed herbs into a butter and cheeses. I have, of course seen infused oils many many times in stores, But with all the fresh herbs and spices in my garden, I was eager to make my own.

It was thus I ended up with 4 different ones - Basil, garlic, habanero & lavender. But for the garlic that was store bought, the rest are fresh from my garden and the end result is really spectacular.
For instance, a tsp of the basil or lavender oil drizzled over a salad brings the experience up to a whole new level, or to add a tsp of the habanero and or garlic is enough to spice up a pasta. Use it in any way you will. It's all about your taste.  Quantities recommended for each
2 sprigs of basil or lavender in about 8 ounces of olive oil; 3 habaneros or garlic pieces thinly slivered for the same amount of oil.

What I got from this experience - Making something exotic does not require time, but it does require the right ingredients. Will be back soon with more stuff, I promise!

Love ya!

Swiss Chard & Beet Greens Kootu (stew)

What has become of me? I seem unable to get the right moment to sit and blog - Heaven knows, with the veggie garden producing hearty veggies, I have been cooking up a storm. Something to be said for the lazy hazy crazy days of summer! Kids around, chillaxing when we are not hustle around the garden or doing other "summery" things, like keeping up late and trying to sleep in late - an impossibility with my rooster husband who wakes up the sun! So much so, the layers of lethargy that has built up is so high, it needs super will power to knock it down and get down to being productive in the blog world. My interest in cooking remains alive and steady. And, my experiments continue, especially with the homegrown veggies.  And it is with pride I present to you this super food in a most delectable stew or kootu

Beet greens (which are red, lol) and the ever so colorful and beautiful swiss chard together make for an excellent combination. Couple those with coconut and spices and man, have you made yourself a healthy dish that is a perfect combination with either rice or chapatis.

Here is my simple recipe

Ingredients

• 2 cups of chopped swiss chard
• 1 cup of Beets greens chopped fine
• 1 beet chopped fine (I threw this in since I had it)
• 1bay leaf
• 1/2 tsp of black pepper
• 1 red chili to grind and 1 to saute
• 1/4 cup coconut powder/ or grated coconut
• 1/2 cup of cashew, hazelnut, & almond milk (optional) (available in TJ's)
• 1 tsp of coconut /sesame oil) for cooking and 1 for tempering
• 2 cup of water

Method

1. In a saucepan, lightly fry the coconut, chili pepper and bay leaf in a tsp of oil
2. Pour a cup of water and grind and set aside
3. To the same pan, add the greens  and stir for a couple of minutes 
4. Add 1 cup of water and allow it to cook for a few minutes 
5. At this point, add the salt and stir in
6. Now add the ground coconut mix and allow all of it to come to a boil or two.
7. Remove from flame and transfer to a serving bowl
8. Temper with a tsp of oil some mustards seeds, cumin and 1 red chili
9. Serve with couscous, rice or chapatis.

Paneer Parathas

The kids are home. It is the summer vacation - One is sick, the other volunteering and the third chilling with me! I am on FB and checking out my updates as I hear "amma, what's for dinner" queries brewing in the background. I lay my eyes on some mouth watering paneer parathas that our blogger friend Divya or ChefinYou has posted. She is a versatile chef and has many interesting tips on her page, as I did find out clicking on to her blog. I was making karela subzi anyway and I thought this would make a great combo! It does not take beyond 15 minutes for prep time (she was not kidding) and beyond 20 to make about 10 of these delightful parathas. My kids, mother-in-law and hubby loved it. Will be blogging the Karela subzi next.

For about 10 partathas

Ingredients

2 cups of chakki atta (stone ground wheat flour)

11/4 cups of warm water

1 tsp of salt

2 tsp of oil

(I used my mixer to make the dough)

For the stuffing

1 cup of cubed paneer

3 green chilies finely chopped

1tbsp of fresh cilantro

Method

I did as Divya suggested

I Soaked store bought paneer in hot water, drain after a few minutes and proceeded to crumble it 

Knead or use mixer to make the dough soft, yet firm 

Keep covered until you get the paneer crumbled, salted, and chilies and cilantro added

Make lemon sized balls of the dough

Roll out into rounds bigger than your palm, as Divya puts it

Make a smaller ball of the paneer and place in the center of the rolled out dough

Fold the dough over the paneer ball and pinch out any extra dough

Dust the rolling area with flour and roll out the paratha to the size of a tea saucer

Heat pan and add a smidgen of butter

Place the paratha on the melting butter and cook - repeat on both sides and with each

Serve hot with sides of your choice - In my case I made some incredibly tasty Bitter gourd masala subzi - heavenly!!!

Sneak peak of next post

Enjoy and thanks Divya :)

I will leave you also with this wonderful declaration made by my little one

Jalapeño -Paneer in Orange Juice

There are few Indians and non Indians who dislike Paneer - Not only is it a favorite cheese, but is also versatile in its ability to soak in any and all flavors that it's infused with. Of course, I would like to try something different with it. So I decide I will marinade in deliciously sweet and sour tangerine juice - I proceed to make fresh juice, dice up some onions, tomatoes, some paneer, and fresh jalapeños. Using a small amount of oil (olive or mazola) I stir fry the tomatoes, onions and jalapeños. I drizzle a tad bit of oil on the paneer and take a table spoon of bread crumbs in a plate and roll the oiled paneer in it, just to keep it from crumbling (ironic to use crumbs to prevent crumbling lol)  Anyhow, I add the paneer to the  stir fry along with salt. Then when everything is browning, I add the orange juice and allow the sizzling to happen. The bread crumbs facilitates the soaking of the juice.
Garnish with cilantro and fresh cut jalapeños  - Voila and Ta-dah!  This takes all of 15 minutes to make, cutting veggies included. Enjoy the tantalizing flavors of this dish - they dance on your tongue long after you're done eating - And that is a promise :)

Your ingredients

Orange Juice

Brussel Sprouts and Peanut Stir Fry

Sometimes, we can underestimate the quantity a certain vegetable can shrink to when steamed/cooked - Such shrinkage happened with the Brussel Sprouts that made the other day - Not enough to feed 2 adults and two perpetually hungry teens - So I did the next best thing - got creative and decided to boil some peanuts and bung it in. Could've well created the best combo ever with the baby cabbages. Enjoy this simple and simply delicious curry by itlsef or with some rasam or even chapatis.

Ingredients

• Brussel Sprouts
• 1 cup of  raw peanuts boiled
• 1 tsp of sesame seeds
• 2 red chilies
• 2tsp of olive/sesame oil
• cheese optional

Method

1. Dice into 4 and steam brussel sprouts for about 10 minutes
2. Boil peanuts simultaneously
3. In a frying pan, add the oil and splutter the sesame and red chilies
4. Add the sprouts and the peanuts along with some salt
5. Sprinkle a tsp of water and keep closed and cook for a couple of minutes
6. Serve as is or as side
7. As an Entree this could be served with freshly grated Cheddar  (extra Sharp) and /or Mozzarella melted or plain

Enjoy the goodness of this curry with the greatest relish

Marmalade with Tangerines - The best evah!

Gotta have the spoon shot!

What does one do when you have a child in Orchestra in school. They sell stuff to sponsor trips and they make money of their parents primarily - This is how I got suckered into getting 2 BIG crates of oranges and tangerines all the way from Florida. They tasted like nectar, that's for sure and truth to tell, it did not take much arm twisting for me to agree to buy grapefruits, navel oranges, tangerines and oh-so fresh strawberries. I made strawberry coulis, and jam and I ventured for the first time to make some marmalade. The oranges - I want to say about 12-14 yielded 3 16 ounce jars, two of which vanished before i could say Jack Robinson (an old expression of my dad - which I still use often if only to keep him in my thoughts on a daily basis.

So easy to make and so delicious you've got to try this and feel the rush and the power of making your very own, homemade, marmalade -

Ingredients

• 12-14 good sized tangerines, pitted (see how to below)
• 1 cup of White Sugar
• 1cup of sugar in the raw
• 3/4 -1  cup of orange blossom honey
• A pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
• 1tsp orange essence

Method

1. Wash tangerines thoroughly and dab dry with paper towel or kitchen towel
2. Soak in the honey for about 30 minutes
3. Peel them in such a way that you get some big pieces that can then later be cut
4. Cut the orange sideways to reveal the wheel. For pitting it, I took a blunt knife and simply ferreted out the seeds
5. Chop the tangerines slices roughly. 
6. Strain the juice and keep separate
7. In a large 5 or 6 quart pot, add the sugars and the juice and allow it to thin 
8. Once it gets a syrupy consistency, add the tangerine pieces and honey and the rinds
9. Allow this to simmer for about 20-40 minutes or until you see the jam thickening to the preferred consistency. This would be the time to grate the nutmeg into the pot and stir
10. 
    
11. Cool and store in Jars. (you can see how to sterilize the jars here)

The best orange peeler by tupperware, almost as old as my hubby! 

Combos that are da bomb with this delicious marmalade are - yogurt (Mama Mia) hot toast, english muffins (Mama Mia) Hot butter and marmalade over croissants (Mama Mia) and over crumpets -

For the well-adjusted Indian, this is a super combo with dosais and better yet with adais!
Enjoy until the next recipe!

Sweet Potato and Hazelnut Soup

Mama Mia - Looking for a gourmet soup to put together for a wonderful evening together with friends, here is a fabulous soup - The hazelnuts gives this soup a creamy and delicious finish and for sweet potato lovers like me, this was a match made in heaven. 

Ingredients

• 5-6 medium sized sweet potatoes washed and steamed
• 1/2 medium red onion chopped
• 2 cups of water
• 1/2 cup hazle nuts
• 2-3 green chilies (optional)
• 1tbsp chopped cilantro
• 1tbsp olive oil

Method

1. Heat the oil in a pan
2. Add the green chilies and the onions and sautee until onions are golden
3. Mash the sweet potatoes and add to the pan
4. In a pan, roast the hazelnuts for a minute, no more
5. Add to the curry and stir in
6. Add salt and cilantro and stir like a dry curry for a couple of minutes
7. Now add the water and cook until the water boils
8. Remove fro  flame
9. Cool a bit and grind

I stuck a tortilla for the picture, but actually served it with delicious olive bread (a house favorite) from Trader Joe's

Enjoy

Garnish with cilantro and olive oil or as desired

Cheers, Until next time - this will go to Avant Garde Cookies soup de mois!

Deviled Eggs for Easter

Here we go again - One more Avant Garde recipe for the cookies  and this one is a simple yet delicious picnic, breakfast or anytime snack idea ..... if you like eggs - Deviled eggs are taking boiled eggs to the next level of yum with some Mayonnaise, at the risk of be redundant - egg on egg - iykwim!
Add some pepper to it and voila - a perfect pop-into-your-mouth hors d'oeuvre! The idea presented itself when my little one came back home with some painted boiled eggs she made at school.

Method

1. Boil the eggs hard
2. Cut in two halves
3. smear with Mayo
4. Top with freshly ground pepper 

Eat

Happy Happy Easter to all and safe Spring Break

Will be back with some jams soon

Potatoes in Peanut & Onion gravy (Urulai Thiratal)

Let me start by saying this is was a runaway hit with my family. We are blog hopping for Avant Garde Cookies and I was delighted that my first hop in this category was to my blogger bestie, Priya Sreeram's  blog, Bon Appetite - First thing that struck me as i keep flipping web pages is - How did I miss this? My sweet friend is so -- because she is a dessert junkie! She has cakes, and brownies, and all kinds of delicious bakes and scattered in between are her savory/spicy dishes... I loved browsing and rereading some of her wonderfully written posts.

I had made a peanut and onion chutney not too long ago which was a super hit too and I thought, hmm, the potato monsters I have in my son, hubby and daughters would love this.  But for adding a few of my favorite tastes, I stayed pretty true to my soul sister's recipe and we enjoyed this to the last lick with chappatis- Thanks PS for enriching my repertoire with this fab dish. And to really confess, I am not big on potatoes at ll - clearly prefer sweet potatoes to the regular kinds and even I loved it

Off to the recipe now

Ingredients

• 8-10 medium sized red potatoes
• 1/2 can of diced tomatoes (or 1 big beef tomato)
• 1 huge red onion (or 2 medium sized ones)
• 1/2 cup of roasted peanuts (without husk)
• 4-5 of your spicy-est red chilies
• A pinch of turmeric
• A pinch of asafetida
• 2 tsp of olive or other oil
• Curry leaves, mustard seeds for tempering

Method

1. Boil Potatoes in pressure cooker or steamer
2. Peel, cube and keep.
3. In a kadai or deep pan,(nonstick to save on oil) add oil and heat
4. Throw in the asafetida, red chilies and sauté
5. Roughly chop the onions, and peanuts since they are to ground anyway
6. Let it tenderize
7. Add the tomatoes
8. Cook until the water is evaporated
9. Cool, grind and set aside

1. In the pan now add 1 tsp of oil and temper the mustards and the curry leaves. 
2. Add the cubed potatoes and some turmeric (optional)
3. Add some salt and cook for a few minutes until the potatoes absorb the salt - I also used 1tsp of rasam powder (you can use curry powder)  and cook for a minute longer
4. Now add the onion and peanut paste and let it simmer along with the potatoes

Transfer into a serving dish and go hung-ho at it with chapatis/naan/pooris or even rice

Enjoy this recipe until the next time I am coming back with some Jams and Tangerine Marmalade - so stay tuned!