Tutti Fruity Cake

Madhurena samaapayet

Appa used to say this to us all the time. Especially on days when there was a sweet dish of some sort on the dining table. H and I would want to attack that bowl of gulab jamuns or payasam as soon as it came to the table. We would (probably) then use that as a nice excuse to not eat enough of the other stuff on the pretext that we were full. So Appa would repeat this and it is loosely translated from Sanskrit as "sweets at the end". I don't know if this really is a saying or if he created it. He'd say "shashtratulaye sollirukku" which means it is mentioned in the shastras. The shastra here could well be "Appa Neeti", but we never questioned it.

As I complete yet another month of posting once a day, I can't help but be extremely pleased with myself. The first full month recipe marathon was great. I used it more as an avenue to clean up my overflowing drafts folder. I wasn't sure I had the time for this, but I've managed. Since the NaBloPoMo this month didn't have any particular theme, I managed to kill two birds with just one stone.

This past month, I posted so much Indian food that a very dear friend asked me if I haven't "gone retro with a vengeance". I had about a week, give or take, of non Indian food. This blog (its keeper too) has no specific leanings. Italian is a favourite, but many Konkani and Tamil dishes are "memory food" if not comfort food. Gujarati food is probably my favourite Indian cuisine. Telugu cuisine is what I'm learning so I can cook some of S' favourites. All these have been represented (not equally though) this past month. My biggest passion is baking. This month didn't see as much, but it wasn't completely ignored.

In keeping with tradition, I'd like to "end with a sweet dish". The NaBloPoMo challenge and the Recipe Marathon have been perfect for me. After the last NaBloPoMo, I got so lax that I posted barely 3 posts each in August and September. October showed some signs of this blog coming back to life. And November had it so healthy that it ran a marathon. That in itself calls for a celebration.

Here's a simple cake that I baked for my SIL's son when S was traveling to Hyderabad. I used butter in my cake after ages. (There's no reason why a 3 year old should be denied the goodness of butter!)

1 cup Flour

2 tsp Baking Powder

1/2 cup Butter

1/2 cup Sugar

2 Eggs

1/4 cup Tutti Fruity (or any chopped dry fruits)

Preheat the oven to 325F. Prepare a loaf tin or an 8-inch cake tin.

Sift the flour with the baking powder. Add the butter, sugar, and eggs. Beat well for 2-3 minutes. Blend in the tutti fruity.

Spoon this into the prepared cake tin and bake for 30-40 minutes.

Cool on a wire rack and serve with some ice cream for dessert. Or simply enjoy the cake with a glass of milk.

On the last day of the marathon, do check out what's cooking at Siri, Srivalli, Ranji, PJ, Curry Leaf, Medha, Priya, Bhawna, Raaji, Ruchii, Anu, Kamala, Roopa, Divya Kudua, Rekha, Divya M, Lakshmi, Lakshmi Venkatesh , Sripriya, Viji, Kamalika, Pavani, Karuna and Roochi.

Crumb Tossed Vegetables

We've switched to having soups for dinner. Since we have dinner quite late (given our very hectic evening schedule tha includes the gym), this is an attempt to cut down the amount of carbohydrates that we eat at night. Actually, it is an attempt to cut down on rice. Since I have about 15-30 minutes on any day to make dinner before we rush to the gym, I end up making rice. I don't have the patience to come back from the gym and start rolling chapatis. (I don't have the patience to roll chapatis even if I've rested all day and have the entire evening to just make chapatis.) I decided to make some soup and a side dish. I made Amma's famous tomato soup, some chilli soya, and this. The meal was more than just filling.

1/2 cup Broccoli florets

1/2 cup Cauliflower florets

1/2 cup Carrots, diced

2-3 tbsp Bread Crumbs

1 tbsp Olive Oil

1 tsp Chilli Flakes

1/2 tsp Parsley

1/2 tsp Basil

1/2 tsp Roasted Garlic

Salt to Taste

Place the carrots, broccoli and cauliflower in a microwave safe bowl. Sprinkle a little water over the vegetables and microwave on high for 3-4 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 400F.

In a frying pan, heat the olive oil and add the chili flakes, parsley, garlic and basil. Add the cooked vegetables and the salt. Toss well and cook for a minute or two. Add the bread crumbs and toss again. Transfer this to a lightly greased baking dish and bake for 10 minutes.

I'm sending this over to TC as she hosts this month's edition of JFI. Check out : Siri, Srivalli, Ranji, PJ, Curry Leaf, Medha, Priya, Bhawana, Raaji, Ruchii, Anu, Kamala, Roopa, Divya Kudua, Rekha, Divya M, Lakshmi, Lakshmi Venkatesh , Sripriya, Viji, Kamalika, Pavani, Karuna and Roochi.

Crispy Vegetable Casserole

There's something about one dish meals that appeals to lazy human beings like myself. They're not always simple or easy, but at least the effort doesn't need to be multiplied over several dishes. And over the years, my reliance on these one dish meals has only increased. A day has only so many hours and I'm willing to spend only so much of that time cooking meals. I made this casserole quite a while ago and it took me many many months to post it. But I am certain that I will make this often in winter when a hot meal is needed on the table as quickly as possible.

1/2 cup Flour

2 Eggs, beaten

3/4 cup Milk

2 tsp Mustard

2 tbsp Oil

For the topping:

2 tbsp Butter

2 -3 Garlic Pods, crushed

1 Onion, cut into eighths

2 Carrots, cut into 2-3" pieces

1/2 cup Beans, cut into 2-3" pieces

1/4 cup Sweet Corn

1/4 cup Broccoli florets

1/4 cup Mushroom, sliced

2 Tomatoes, seeded and chopped

1 tsp Mustard

1 tbsp Mixed Herbs

1 tsp Chilli Flakes

Salt and Pepper to Taste

Sift the flour and salt together. Add the beaten eggs, mustard and milk and make a smooth batter. Keep aside.

Pour the oil into a baking dish and place the dish in a preheated oven at 400F for 10 minutes.

Cook the carrots, beans, and broccoli in the microwave on high for 2-3 minutes.

In the meanwhile, melt the butter in a pan and saute the onion and garlic. Add the mushroom, corn, and tomatoes along with the mustard, herbs and chilli flakes. Add the carrots, beans and broccoli and mix well.

Remove the dish from the oven and pour in the batter. Top with the vegetable mixture and place he dish back in the oven for another 30 minutes. Serve immediately.

This is like a large vegetable pancake and makes for a light dinner for two. A one dish meal is what I have today. What do my friends have? Check out: DK , Siri, Srivalli, Ranji, PJ, Curry Leaf, Medha, Priya, Bhawna, Raaji, Ruchii, Anu, Kamala, Roopa, Divya Kudua, Rekha, Divya M, Lakshmi, Lakshmi Venkatesh , Sripriya, Viji, Kamalika, DK, and Pavani to find out for yourselves.

Butter Garlic Vegetables

I love eating out. I am a food blogger and most people somehow expect that I am against "eating out". Quite the contrary. I am about the laziest person you'll ever meet and will jump at the first opportunity to not do something. Cooking included!

My favourite kind of food when I'm eating out is Continental. And at some places, they serve some lovely veggies on the side, especially with sizzlers. I think that I order those dishes just for the sides. I attempted recreating the side dish at home not as a side dish, but as one of the 3 meals that we carry to work on most days.

Browsing the intranet for food related articles, I found an article that talked about cooking vegetables. I usually cook all vegetables together in the microwave or in the pressure cooker. But I liked this method that talked about varying lengths of cooking for time for different vegetables. This way vegetables like broccoli don't get totally disintegrated. I didn't save a link to that post and it is easily over a year since I made this dish. It has been languishing in my drafts for the longest time.

8-10 Baby Potatoes, peeled

15-20 French Beans, strung

2 Carrots, peeled and cut into 2 inch strips

8-10 Broccoli florets

1 tbsp Butter

1/2 tbsp Garlic, finely chopped

2 tsp Chilli Flakes

Salt to Taste

In a large pan/vessel, take around 2 litres of water. Add the baby potatoes and bring to a boil. When the water boils, add the beans. After about 3 minutes, add the carrots. When the carrots are slightly soft (not mushy), turn off the flame and add the broccoli. Drain after 2 minutes and plunge the vegetables in ice cold water. Drain and keep aside.

In a pan, heat the butter and add the chilli flakes and garlic. After a minute, add the vegetables and salt. Toss until coated.

Intended as a side, I can eat this dish just as it is. And as always, I love the fact that it looks like a rainbow. Nothing like some healthy food for a healthy lifestyle, not to forget good exercise. Check out the blogs of these marathon runners:

1) DK
2) Siri
3) Srivalli
4) Ranji
5)PJ
6)Curry Leaf
7)Medha
8)Priya
9)Bhawna
10)Raaji
11)Ruchii
12)Anu
13)Kamala
14)Roopa
15)Divya Kudua
16)Rekha
17)Divya M
18)Lakshmi

19)Lakshmi Venkatesh

20)Sripriya

21)Viji

22)Kamalika

23) Pavani

Basil Walnut Pesto

I have experimented with several types of pesto. A few years ago, I hadn't tasted it. Now, it features quite regularly on our menu. While at one time I thought of it as a mere pasta sauce, I now use it as a salad dressing, as a spread for garlic toast, as a dip. What I love about pesto is how the flavour changes with each ingredient. This walnut pesto is a favourite with small bites of garlic bread.

1 cup Basil Leaves

1/3 cup Walnuts, toasted

4-5 pods Garlic

5 tbsp Olive Oil

Salt and Pepper to taste

Grind together all the ingredients to a coarse paste. You may pound them in a pestle if you wish. Add the olive oil a little by little to facilitate the grinding.

Store in an airtight container. You could use this in many ways. As a pasta sauce or salad dressing. Check out little bites of toast at my namesake's blog. While you're at it, do check out the blogs of other marathon runners as well: DK , Siri, Srivalli, Ranji, PJ, Curry Leaf, Medha, Priya, Bhawna, Raaji, Ruchii, Kamala, Roopa, Divya Kudua, Rekha, Divya M, Lakshmi, Lakshmi Venkatesh , Sripriya, Viji, Kamalika, DK, and Pavani

Broccoli Corn Bake

Laks and I were chatting a long long time ago about casseroles and I realized I hadn't made a casserole in ages. Somewhere during that conversation I remembered the Broccoli, Corn and Mushroom Bake I had at Red E or Stop at Sams (a diner that, sadly, doesn't exist anymore). When I have no bread at home to go with the bake, I tend to add pasta and make it a meal. So while I was talking to her, I decided what our dinner would be. It had to be a casserole. There weren't any mushrooms at home (there almost never are in summer!) so I went ahead with broccoli and corn.

1 cup Spirali Pasta, cooked according to the instructions on the pack

1/2 cup Broccoli florets, steamed

1/4 cup Sweet Corn, steamed

1 tbsp Butter/Olive Oil
1 tbsp Flour
1 cup Milk
1/2 tsp Parsley
1/2 tsp Basil
1 tsp Chilli flakes
1/2 tsp Garlic Paste
Salt and Pepper to Taste
1 slice Low Fat Cheese (optional)

1 tsp Butter to grease the baking dish

3 tbsp Bread Crumbs

Heat the butter in a saucepan. Add the garlic paste, parsley, basil and chilli flakes and fry for another minute. Add the flour and fry without browning the flour. Add the milk and bring the mixture to a boil while stirring continuously. If adding cheese, add it at this point and stir the sauce well. As the sauce thickens, add the salt and pepper. Stir in the broccoli, corn and pasta.

Grease a baking dish with the teaspoon of butter. Pour in the white sauce-pasta mixture. Sprinkle the breadcrumbs over the mixture and bake in a hot oven (400F) for 10 minutes. Serve hot.

As I go continental this week, see what my friends are doing: DK , Siri, Srivalli, Ranji, PJ, Curry Leaf, Medha, Priya, Bhawna, Raaji, Ruchii, Anu, Kamala, Roopa, Divya Kudua, Rekha, Divya M, Lakshmi, Lakshmi Venkatesh , Sripriya, Viji, Kamalika, DK, and Pavani.

Knol Khol (Kohlrabi) Thuvayal

One of the benefits of being an adult is that one gets to do what one wants. I apply this logic to my eating habits. So, while my upbringing made me eat all vegetables without as much as twitching my nose, there are vegetables that I promptly forgot about when I set up my "own" kitchen almost 10 years ago. This year, it seems like I am trying out new vegetables with a vengeance. I also discovered thuvayals sometime this year. More like rediscovered really. And I also figured that the easiest way for me to "like" a vegetable that I didn't see eye to eye with for the past 3 decades is to make a thuvayal (or thogayal) with it.

Kohlrabi has started making its appearance in markets here. Knol khol in Tamil and Gaanth Gobi in Hindi, I had no reason to ever like this vegetable. I think I had this aversion to all vegetables that look like this: Tinda and Chayote Squash being part of the same family for this purpose. I bought 3 of these last week because they were so fresh and they were really calling out to me. Amma suggested that I make it like this. But I wasn't sure if I was ready to come really face to face with this vegetable yet. A standard karumadhu does nothing to mask the taste of any vegetable that features in it. She also suggested putting into a kurma. I had not the patience to chop that many vegetables. She then went on to ask me why I bought them if I didn't want to eat them at all. (How could I explain to her that I was just keeping my resolve? I've never resolved to do much, and on the rare occasions that I have, I've not kept the resolve for long.) Anyway, I ended up making this thuvayal.

1 cup Kohlrabi, peeled and diced
2 tsp Oil
3-4 Red Chillies
2 tsp Urad Dal
1/2 tbsp Tamarind paste
Salt to taste

For the tempering:
1 tsp Oil
1/2 tsp Mustard Seeds
1/2 tsp Urad Dal
1/4 tsp Asafoetida
7-8 Curry Leaves

Heat one teaspoon of oil in a pan and add the diced vegetable. Saute for a couple of minutes and cover and cook for 5-7 minutes. Keep aside.

In a small pan, heat the other teaspoon of oil and add the urad dal. When it turns slightly brown, add the red chillies and fry for a minute. Grind this along with the tamarind paste, salt, and sauteed vegetable.

In a frying ladle, heat the oil for the tempering. Add the urad dal and mustard. When the mustard splutters, add the asafoetida and curry leaves. Add this to the ground paste.

As we come near the finish line, see what my fellow marathoners are up to: Siri, Srivalli, Ranji, PJ, Curry Leaf, Medha, Priya, Bhawna, Raaji, Ruchii, Anu, Kamala, Roopa, Divya Kudua, Rekha, Divya M, Lakshmi, Lakshmi Venkatesh , Sripriya, Viji, Kamalika, Pavani, Karuna and Roochi.

Palak Raita

I have no idea how I learnt this dish. Or where. Or who from. But I have been making this regularly ever since I figured that spinach could be used this way. I made this yesterday and S said I hadn't made this since we got married. I will be making this more often through this winter when spinach is available in plenty.

1 bunch Spinach, cleaned

1 cup Curd, beaten lightly

1/4 tsp Ginger paste (optional)

1/4 tsp Cumin Powder

Salt to taste

For the tempering:

1 tsp Oil

1/4 tsp Mustard Seeds

1/4 tsp Asafoetida

2 Red Chillies, broken

Place the cleaned spinach in a microwave safe bowl and cook for 4-5 minutes. Cool and chop roughly.

Add this to the beaten curd along with the salt, ginger (if using) and cumin powder.

In a frying ladle, heat the oil. Add the mustard seeds and asafoetida. When the mustard splutters, add the red chillies. After a minute turn off the flame and pour the tempering over the spinach-curd mixture.

With a little over a week of the marathon left, check out these blogs: Siri, Srivalli, Ranji, PJ, Curry Leaf, Medha, Priya, Bhawna, Raaji, Ruchii, Anu, Kamala, Roopa, Divya Kudua, Rekha, Divya M, Lakshmi, Lakshmi Venkatesh , Sripriya, Viji, Kamalika, Pavani, Karuna and Roochi.

Thengai Sevai

As a child, I was not in the habit of eating "tiffin" after school. Amma never bothered making any after school snacks for us as we were barely interested in food. All we wanted to do was dump our bags at home and go out to play until our respective curfew times. Also, instant sevai was not popular three decades ago, if it did exist then, that is. Amma would make sevai from scratch on weekends and we looked forward to those days. (And we took turns "twisting the press".) This is one of my favourite snacks and I love taking it in my lunchbox every now and then. Not as much effort as back then, you see!

2 cups Concorde Instant Rice Sevai

1/4 cup Coconut, scraped
Salt to taste

For the tempering:
1 tsp Oil
1/4 tsp Mustard seeds
1/4 tsp Asafoetida
7-8 Curry Leaves
1/4 tsp Urad Dal
3 Red Chillies

1 tbsp Cashews (optional)

Prepare the rice sevai as per instructions on the pack and keep aside.

Heat the oil in a kadhai. Add the urad dal. When the urad dal begins to change colour, add the mustard and asafoetida. When the mustard splutters, add the curry leaves, red chillies and cashews (if using). Add the coconut and fry for a couple of minutes. Turn off the flame.

Add this to the prepared sevai along with the salt. Mix well taking care not to mash the sevai. This is good as a snack for 4 people.

Check out : Siri, Srivalli, Ranji, PJ, Curry Leaf, Medha, Priya, Bhawana, Raaji, Ruchii, Anu, Kamala, Roopa, Divya Kudua, Rekha, Divya M, Lakshmi, Lakshmi Venkatesh , Sripriya, Viji, Kamalika, Pavani, Karuna and Roochi.

Capsicum Paruppu Usli

About 2 months ago, I had not attemped to make paruppu usli. I always thought it was one of those labour intensive dishes. And I had eaten just three types of paruppu usli: Beans, Cluster Beans and Vazhaippoo (Banana Flower). Last year, when I posted Stuffed Capsicum on this blog, my other namesake had this to say in her comments:

"my mom makes a variation of this where she stuffs the capsicum with capsicum paruppu usli and then sprinkles rava on top and bakes it. The rava gives the crunchy layer and the capsicum is fabulous!"

I knew that I would try this out sometime. I love paruppu usli and I love capsicum. So what's not to love about a dish that has both? I don't think Arundathi has blogged about it yet, and so I asked her for the recipe, and modified it a little. This was part of the Dasara spread at my place that included avial, puliyodarai, tayir vadai, sundal, and semia payasam.

1/2 cup Toor Dal, soaked for 2 hours

1/2 cup Capsicum, chopped

2-3 Red Chillies

1/2 tsp Turmeric Powder

1/4 tsp Asafoetida

Salt to taste

1/4 tsp Mustard Seeds

7-8 Curry Leaves

2 tsp Oil

Grind the soaked dal and the red chillies to a coarse paste and mix it with the turmeric powder, asafoetida and salt. Steam this mixture in a cooker for 10 minutes. Crumble when cool.

Heat the oil in a kadhai. Add the mustard seeds. When they crackle, add the curry leaves and the capsicum. Fry for 4-5 minutes. Add the steamed dal mixture.

Cover and cook for another 5 minutes over a low flame. I served this with a multitude of dishes and it was good for 4. On a normal day, it would probably be enough as a side dish for 2 people.

I'm sending this to dear Sug for the second edition of Vegan Ventures.

You could follow Arundathi's mother's method as well. The next time we have a party at home, I'm quite sure I will. In the meanwhile, here's some food for thought: Siri, Srivalli, Ranji, PJ, Curry Leaf, Medha, Priya, Bhawna, Raaji, Ruchii, Anu, Kamala, Roopa, Divya Kudua, Rekha, Divya M, Lakshmi, Lakshmi Venkatesh , Sripriya, Viji, Kamalika, Pavani, Karuna and Roochi.

Parangikkai Thuvayal (Pumpkin Chutney)

As the summer vegetables start making way for the winter produce, I get the feeling that, this year, I may miss my new friends when I can't find them shouting out to me in the supermarket or our local markets. I've experimented a lot this summer and tried out dishes that a year ago I would have considered alien.

While planning a weekend lunch, I decided to make pumpkin sambar and remembered that I had fresh ash gourd as well. So I made ash gourd sambar instead and used my bag of frozen pumpkin to make this thuvayal. I was a little worried that it might taste a tad sweet, but this thuvayal surprised both of us.

1 cup Pumpkin, cubed
4 Red Chillies
1 tsp Mustard
3 tsp Urad Dal
1/4 tsp Asafoetida
3 tsp Oil
1 tbsp Tamarind Paste
Salt to taste

For the tempering:

1 tsp Oil

1/4 tsp Mustard Seeds

1/4 tsp Asafoetida

7-8 Curry Leaves

Place the pumpkin pieces in a microwave safe bowl. Add 2 tbsp of water and cook on high for 2 minutes. Squeeze out the water when cool.

Heat the oil and fry the red chillies, mustard, asafoetida and urad dal for a couple of minutes. Grind the chillies along with the tamarind paste and salt. Add the pumpkin pieces and grind again. Finally, add the fried mustard and urad dal and grind lightly.

In a frying ladle, heat the oil and add the mustard and asafoetida. Add the curry leaves after the mustard has spluttered. Add this to the ground mixture.

I'm sending this to dear Sug for the second edition of Vegan Ventures.


Check out these blogs too: Siri, Srivalli, Ranji, PJ, Curry Leaf, Medha, Priya, Bhawna, Raaji, Ruchii, Anu, Kamala, Roopa, Divya Kudua, Rekha, Divya M, Lakshmi, Lakshmi Venkatesh , Sripriya, Viji, Kamalika, Pavani, Karuna and Roochi.

Bread Upma

Weekend mornings. Don't we live for them? I think I most definitely do. I don't like waking up and having to think about what to make for breakfast. To emerge victorious here, we used to step out of home for a leisurely breakfast at our favourite south indian restaurant, Naivedyam. Of late, we've gotten bored of that routine. So, on most days, it is a fruit shake followed by a full fledged meal.

On one weekend morning, we were up fairly early. We had 5 slices of bread left over from the week and a couple of potato buns from my baking escapade. Since we weren't in the mood for eggs on toast, I decided to make this spicy upma.

6-8 slices Bread, torn to small bits

1 Onion, choped finely

1 tsp Oil

¼ tsp Cumin Seeds

¼ tsp Mustard Seeds

¼ tsp Asafoetida

7-8 Curry Leaves

¼ tsp Turmeric Powder

1 tsp Chilli Powder

1 Green Chilli, slit

Salt to taste

Heat the oil in a kadhai and add the mustard, cumin and the asafoetida. When the mustard splutters, add the green chilli and the onion. Add the curry leaves and fry for a couple of minutes. Add the chilli powder, turmeric powder and the salt. Add the bread and mix well. Sprinkle some water over the bread. Cover and cook for 5-7 minutes. Enjoy your breakfast with a cup of coffee or tea.

Check out what my friends are up to: DK , Siri, Srivalli, Ranji, PJ, Curry Leaf, Medha, Priya, Bhawna, Raaji, Ruchii, Anu, Kamala, Roopa, Divya Kudua, Rekha, Divya M, Lakshmi, Lakshmi Venkatesh, Sripriya, Viji, Kamalika, DK, and Pavani.

Mullangi Sambar (Radish Sambar)

Winter's here. At least it feels that way in the morning, late evening, and night. When I first moved to Gurgaon 9 years ago, I was rather surprised to see people selling radish smeared with salt and masalas on the roadside. Wary as I was of roadside raw food, I mustered the courage to bite into a juicy radish. I must admit, that I'm hooked. The freshest, crunchiest and juiciest radishes make their way into the markets about now. And biting into one is a great thing to do when the scorching sun sends you signals telling you that he still rules during the day, no matter what the scene might be when he goes to bed.

I don't know of too many dishes that involve radish. Amma makes the loveliest mooli ki rotis. And amchis use it in a dish called sukke. A regular at our place growing up was radish sambar. I couldn't stand the smell of radish in sambar. I would try every trick in the trade. Try and get only the dal part of the sambar over my rice, conveniently leaving out the radish pieces. Or take the smallest portion of rice, about a tablespoon or so, for sambar and then rush to the rasam rice course like there was a race of some kind.

I suppose I have finally grown up. I made radish sambar at home. But I made it in the one way that I not only tolerate sambar, but actually enjoy it. And when the colder days come, my nirvana is simply: A plateful of steaming hot rice, a spoonful of ghee, ladlefuls of this sambar over it, appalams and potato roast on the side.

Ingredients:

1/4 kg Radish, chopped into 2" sticks
2/3 cup Toor Dal

For the masala:

1/2 tsp Oil
1 tbsp Urad Dal
1 tsp Asafoetida
3 Red Chillies
1 tbsp Coriander Seeds
2 tbsp Chana Dal
1 tsp Fenugreek Seeds
1 tbsp Cumin Seeds
1/2 tbsp Peppercorns

2 tbsp Scraped Coconut

For the tempering:
1 tsp Oil
1/4 tsp Mustard Seeds
1/4 tsp Asafoetida
7-8 Curry Leaves
1/4 tsp Fenugreek Seeds
1 Green Chilli, slit
1 Red Chilli
4 tbsp Tamarind Paste
Salt to Taste

Cook the dal and radish in a pressure cooker with enough water.

Heat the 1/2 tsp oil in a small kadhai. Add all the ingredients for the masala except the coconut. Roast for 4-5 minutes on a low flame. Add the coconut and fry for another minute. Grind to a fine paste.

Heat oil in a vessel. Add the mustard seeds and asafoetida. When the mustard splutters, add the curry leaves, fenugreek seeds, red and green chillies and fry for a minute. Add the masala and fry for a couple of minutes more. Add the tamarind paste and salt and bring the mixture to a boil. Add the cooked dal and radish and simmer for 5-10 minutes.

While I get ready to eat my meal, why don't you check out the blogs of my fellow marathon runners: Siri, Srivalli, Ranji, PJ, Curry Leaf, Medha, Priya, Bhawna, Raaji, Ruchii, Anu, Kamala, Roopa, Divya Kudua, Rekha, Divya M, Lakshmi, Lakshmi Venkatesh , Sripriya, Viji, Kamalika, DK, and Pavani.

Vendakkai Mor Kuzhambu

A little over a year ago, I had no idea what to do with lady's finger except for pachadi and sambar. This summer, I added to my repertoire and can confidently say that I know at least 6-8 ways of cooking this vegetable. And by know, I really mean know.

A couple of weeks ago, we had a bagful of lady's finger in the fridge. A friend, who works with a fresh produce company, brought us another bagful. I'd never seen fresher lady's fingers than the ones she brought us. We enjoyed the vegetable in more ways than one.

Here's what I made on Deepavali. Pandigai saapadu complete with mor kuzhambu. The method of preparation varies a wee bit from normal mor kuzhambu as the lady's finger needs to be cooked in tamarind water.

200g Lady's Finger, chopped into 2" pieces

1 tbsp Tamarind Paste

1-2 tbsp Toor Dal, soaked
1/4 cup Coconut, shredded
1 cup Curds, beaten
1 tsp Urad Dal
1 tsp Fenugreek Seeds
2-3 Green Chillies
1 tsp Oil
1/4 tsp Turmeric
Salt to taste


For the Tempering:
1 tsp Cooking Oil
1 tsp Mustard Seeds
½ tsp Asafoetida (Hing)

7-8 Curry Leaves

Cook the lady's finger pieces with the tamarind water and a little salt. Drain the water when the vegetable is cooked.

Fry the urad dal, fenugreek seeds, and green chillies in the oil. Grind this with the coconut, turmeric and soaked toor dal. Add this paste to the curds and bring the mixture to a boil over a low flame after adding the lady's finger and salt. In a frying ladle, heat the oil and add the mustard and asafoetida. Add the curry leaves after the mustard has spluttered. Add this to the boiling mixture and serve.

We had this with some rice, yelai paruppu, rasam, and potato curry. Find out what my co-runners have been eating: Siri, Srivalli, Ranji, PJ, Curry Leaf, Medha, Priya, Bhawna, Raaji, Ruchii, Anu, Kamala, Roopa, Divya Kudua, Rekha, Divya M, Lakshmi, Lakshmi Venkatesh , Sripriya, Viji, Kamalika, DK, and Pavani.

Chenaikizhangu Menthi Kuzhambu

I've cooked more traditional (read: food that is traditional where my parents are from) Indian food in the last 3 months than I have in all the time I've been cooking. I've surprised myself as much as I've surprised S. I didn't think I'd make paruppu usli, kootu, avial, puliyodarai, rasam, thuvayal, ghasshi, ambat, and bendi as often as I actually did. I think I feel exactly the way I did when I discovered baking 22 years ago. There was this excitement of trying out new cakes and different frostings. I think what I loved most was people's comments.

Oh, A made this?

She's just in class 6, and she baked this cake?

You mean you helped your mother bake this, right? No? You made it entirely by yourself?

I lived for that praise at age 10. I can't say that much of it has changed now. But baking doesn't get me as many oohs and aahs any more. People comment when I tell them a cake went flat or something like that. I suppose they expect me turn out decent cakes by now. If 22 years can't do it for you, then probably nothing will. But the deal is I've barely cooked any traditional food over the years. I made sambar, rasam, dali saar and some vegetables. But that was that. My biggest inspiration to make south indian food has been S. He orders a thali almost everytime we visit a south indian restaurant and I figured I could start making a small spread for weekend meals even if weekdays/nights don't allow me such luxury. And the cherry on the cake is the contented look on S's face when we're done eating.

I tend to cook dishes that I like as much as the ones that he likes. And so different types of menthi kuzhambu feature every now and then. I love eating rice with paruppu podi if I have some menthi kuzhambu on the side. Traditionally served with rice, yelai paruppu and beans karumadhu or paruppu usli, this makes you want to lick your fingers at the end of the meal.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup Yam, cut into 2" sticks

1 tbsp Vathal (Sundaikkai or Manathakkali - optional)

1-2 Red Chillies

1 tsp Fenugreek Seeds

1 tsp Mustard Seeds

1/2 tsp Asafoetida

1 tbsp Toor Dal

2 tbsp Tamarind Paste

1 tsp Oil

7-8 Curry Leaves

1 tbsp Sambar Powder

Salt to taste

Pressure cook the yam pieces.

Heat oil in a vessel and add the mustard seeds, fenugreek seeds, toor dal, vathal and asafoetida. When the mustard splutters, add the curry leaves and the chillies. Add the cooked yam and fry for a minute. Add the sambar powder and fry for another minute. Add the tamarind paste, salt and a cup and a half of water. Bring to a boil.

Let me sit down and enjoy my meal while you see how my co-runners are faring: DK , Siri, Srivalli, Ranji, PJ, Curry Leaf, Medha, Priya, Bhawna, Raaji, Ruchii, Anu, Kamala, Roopa, Divya Kudua, Rekha, Divya M, Lakshmi, Lakshmi Venkatesh , Sripriya, Viji, Kamalika, DK, and Pavani.

Rangoon Na Vaal

I'm always on the lookout for super simple side dishes that I can pack into our lunch boxes. We usually carry chapatis with us and I find myself running out of ideas for sides just about all the time. These months are some of the busiest ever that I have in a year. I am not very fond of take aways at dinner time and I have all the bad luck one can have when it comes to ordering a lunch dabba at work. I mean how do you explain bhindi-aloo and chane ki dal when I order and mixed vegetable/shahi paneer and dal makhni when I don't.

So I'd much rather carry curd rice than risk eating some oily, mushy bhindi-aloo. (How on earth can you pair potatoes with lady's finger?) Late one night, I was flipping through Tarla Dalal's Dals. This book is a part of her mini series and I bought it years ago hoping to add to my otherwise miniscule dal range. (Would you believe that until 5 years ago, I made sambar or dali saar with dal. Dal always meant Toor Dal. And that was really that!) This seemed like a fairly simple recipe and I decided to try it out the next day. I made some changes to her recipe as I was half asleep when I made this and didn't refer to the recipe too much once I noted the ingredients. It turned out absolutely great and I am thrilled to have one more recipe for my beloved creamy broad beans/field beans.

1 cup Hyacinth Beans

1/4 tsp Carom Seeds

1/4 tsp Asafoetida

1 tsp Chilli Powder

1/2 tsp Turmeric Powder

4 cloves Garlic, crushed

2-3 Cloves

Salt to taste

Coriander Leaves for garnish

Soak the hyacinth beans in water overnight. Pressure cook the beans with enough water for 4-5 whistles.

In a pressure pan, heat the oil and add the carom seeds. Add the asafoetida, cloves and the crushed garlic. Add the salt, turmeric powder and chilli powder. Add the cooked beans along with the water in which they were cooked. Pressure cook for 2-3 whistles. Mash a few of the beans with the back of a spoon. Add the coriander leaves and serve hot.

I'm sending this to dear Sug for the second edition of Vegan Ventures.

Quick, simple, healthy, not to mention lipsmackingly tasty. Could you ask for anything more? But just in case you do, here's more food for thought: Siri, Srivalli, Ranji, PJ, Curry Leaf, Medha, Priya, Bhawna, Raaji, Ruchii, Anu, Kamala, Roopa, Divya Kudua, Rekha, Divya M, Lakshmi, Lakshmi Venkatesh , Sripriya, Viji, Kamalika, DK, and Pavani.

Bottle Gourd Curry in Milk

It takes all sorts to make the world, doesn't it? The Botany graduate that I am, hidden inside the HR professional, I know that the rule applies as easily to vegetables as it does to humans. I meet many people everyday. Some of them are extremely docile, some are loud, some bubbly, some shy. Then there are those who quietly go about their day, finishing their tasks with no noise, no hullaballoo. They blend easily in any evironment, don't stand out at all, and can even be quite invisible. Quite like the bottle gourd.

Everyone, well almost everyone, I know hates this vegetable. According to me, hate is a very strong word and people use it without really knowing what it means. So, I think they really dislike this vegetable while thinking that they hate it. S and I are rather indifferent to this vegetable. What that means is that when it is in season, we buy it every week. We just don't miss it in the months that it is not available.

This is a side dish that is made at S's place and I made it with the recipe from S's sister.

1 1/2 cups Bottle Gourd, peeled and diced

1 tbsp Oil

1/4 tsp Urad Dal

1/4 tsp Chana Dal

1/4 tsp Mustard Seeds

1/4 tsp Cumin Seeds

1/4 tsp Asafoetida

2 Green Chillies, slit

1/4 tsp Turmeric Powder

2 tsp Roasted Sesame Seed Powder

7-8 Curry Leaves

1/3 cup Milk

Salt to taste

Heat the oil in a vessel. Add the urad dal and chana dal. When the urad dal turns golden, add the mutard seeds, cumin seeds and asafoetida. When the mustard splutters, add the curry leaves and green chillies. Add the bottle gourd pieces and salt and cook for a few minutes. Add the milk and cover and cook over a low flame until the bottle gourd pieces are cooked. Add the sesame seed powder and mix well. Cook for a couple of minutes and take it off the flame

I had never eaten this before, nor had I eaten any dish made this way. I quite enjoyed the flavours of this unusual dish. Day to day food for so many people, completely unique to me. I wonder what my fellow marathoners, Siri, Srivalli, Ranji, PJ, Curry Leaf, Medha, Priya, Bhawna, Raaji, Ruchii, Anu, Kamala, Roopa, Divya Kudua, Rekha, Divya M, Lakshmi, Lakshmi Venkatesh , Sripriya, Viji, Kamalika, DK, and Pavani think!

Dosakaya Pachadi

I am on a spree. There's a lot of Indian cooking happening in my kitchen these days. There's also a lot of new vegetables landing on our plates. Gurgaon has changed more in the last 2 years than it had in the 5 years I had been away. It is probably the ever changing population that's driving this change. When I first moved here, there was one main South Stores and one really small Balaji Stores. That's where you went to get your supply of Sona Masuri rice or Til Oil or sambar onions. I didn't find vegetables like drumsticks or raw bananas until or unless I visited INA or the market in the Bengali part of Delhi, Chittaranjan Park. Now, I seem to be able to find things like Pasalai Keerai, Snake Gourd, Drumsticks and Broad Beans in my local market. And they sit right next to the mushroom, broccoli and coloured capsicum. Welcome to my glocality!

During one of my visits, I found Dosakaya or the Yellow Cucumber. I have no idea what this is called in any other language as such. I think it is Magge in konkani and the first dish that comes to mind is the famous Ambat. I made a Telugu pachadi instead. As with all thuvayals/pachadis, we enjoyed this with some steaming hot rice.

1 medium Yellow Cucumber, peeled and diced

1 tbsp Tamarind Paste

2-3 tsp Oil

Salt to taste

1 1/2 tsp Urad Dal

1 tsp Mustard Seeds

2-3 Red Chillies

1-2 Green Chillies

7-8 Curry Leaves

3-4 tbsp Coriander Leaves

1/4 tsp Asafoetida

For the tempering:

1 tsp Oil

1/4 tsp Mustard Seeds

1/4 tsp Asafoetida

Heat the oil in a kadhai and add the urad dal. When it turns golden, add the mustard and turn off the flame. Add the asafoetida, red chillies, green chillies, curry leaves, and coriander leaves. Grind this with the tamarind paste, salt and a handful of the yelow cucumber.

In a vessel, take the remaining chopped vegetable and add the ground paste. In a frying ladle, heat the oil for the tempering. Add the mustard and asafoetida. When the mustard splutters, pour this over the vegetable-paste mixture. Your pachadi is ready.

I'm sending this to dear Sug for the second edition of Vegan Ventures.

I'm trying out vegetables for the first time. What are you all up to? Siri, Srivalli, Ranji, PJ, Curry Leaf, Medha, Priya, Bhawna, Raaji, Ruchii, Anu, Kamala, Roopa, Divya Kudua, Rekha, Divya M, Lakshmi, Lakshmi Venkatesh , Sripriya, Viji, Kamalika, DK, and Pavani.

Dahi Bhindi

This is one more way that I learnt to cook lady's finger this summer. In addition to using up the lady's finger, it also helps use up any extra curd you might have. I'm fairly certain this would taste great with rice or rice and dal, but we had them for lunch with chapatis.

1/2 kg Lady's Finger, chopped into 2" pieces

2-3 Green Chillies, slit

1 tsp Ginger Paste

1/4 tsp Pepper

1 1/2 cups Curd, beaten

1 tbsp Gram Flour (Besan), dry roasted

2 tsp Oil

2 Red Chillies

1 tsp Cumin Seeds

2 tsp Coriander Powder

1/4 tsp Turmeric Powder

Salt to taste

Heat the oil in a kadhai. Add the cumin seeds, red chillies, green chillies, coriander powder, turmeric powder, gram flour and salt. Add the lady's finger and cook for 8-10 minutes. Add the ginger paste along with the pepper. Add the curd, cover and cook over a low flame until the lady's finger is cooked.

Do check out the blogs of my co-runners in the recipe marathon! Siri, Srivalli, Ranji, PJ, Curry Leaf, Medha, Priya, Bhawna, Raaji, Ruchii, Anu, Kamala, Roopa, Divya Kudua, Rekha, Divya M, Lakshmi, Lakshmi Venkatesh , Sripriya, Viji, Kamalika, DK, and Pavani.