A Roasted Vegetables Dinner

All good things must come to an end. After spending three wonderful months together, and making lots of new memories, we said goodbye to my parents. I am so happy and thankful for the time my daughter got to spend with her grandparents. It's going to be difficult getting used to an empty house.

I was on the important task of eating down our overstocked fridge before mom and dad left. Monday night I took all the veggies - Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, carrots, turnip, and a leftover poblano pepper - and decided to use them up. I had originally planned to roast Brussels sprouts on Thanksgiving; it was time to do so finally. Rest of the vegetables, also roasted, went into a velvety smooth soup. The soup was made at mom's request - she kept on talking about this wonderful roasted cauliflower soup she had tried somewhere, and had been asking me to make it. The other vegetables happened to go well with it, so I tossed them in. What started as an exercise to just finish up the produce turned into a wonderful meal, perfect for the cold night we had. 

I roasted Brussels sprouts tossed in some olive oil, herbs, salt & pepper, at 400F for about 25 minutes. Sometimes simple is what you should aim for. Mom and dad, who called them mini cabbages, loved roasted Brussels sprouts, especially the crunchy outer layers.

I kept to soup low cal by using milk instead of cream for that smooth and creamy texture. The carrot and poblano helped take away the pungency of the cauliflower. Some almonds on top gave it a nice crunchy bite.This was a good filling soup. You could add potato or other winter veggies to it. This recipe is a keeper.

Roasted Cauliflower, Carrot, & Turnip Soup With Poblano

Ingredients:
1 Medium head of cauliflower
1 Medium Turnip
1 Large or 2 small carrots
1 Poblano pepper
1 small onion
3 Cloves of garlic
2 Teaspoon Italian herbs
3/4 Teaspoon cumin-coriander powder
1/2 - 1 Teaspoon red chili powder
Salt & pepper to taste
1 Quart low sodium vegetable broth
3/4 Cup whole milk (or cream if you like)
Olive oil for tossing vegetables and sauteing
Chopped cilantro, chopped chives, slivered almonds, or croutons for garnishing

• Prepare the vegetables for roasting - separate cauliflower florets, cut turnip and carrots into cubes. Toss these vegetables and whole poblano in a little bit of oil (just enough to coat), and Italian herbs. 
• Spread all the veggies on a baking sheet, and bake at 400F for 20-25 minutes, or until the cauliflower is golden and rest of the veggies fork tender. Take out and keep aside. 
• On the side, chop onion and garlic finely.Heat a couple of teaspoons of oil, and saute them until onions are translucent. 
• Add all the roasted veggies, cumin-coriander powder, red chili powder, and half the vegetable stock to the pot. Blend this until smooth and creamy. I used my Vitamix, which does a great job of making smooth soups. 
• Pour this back into the pot, add the remaining vegetable stock, or as much needed to create the consistency you like, milk, salt & pepper to taste. 
• Bring the soup to a boil and reduce to simmer. 
• Serve hot, with your favorite garnish. I added chopped cilantro, and slivered almonds for some crunch. 

Stuffed Padron Peppers...And Other Veggies :)

My colleagues and I were having a conversation about how to train kids not be picky eaters. To my mom's delight, I was a good eater from early on. But even when meals didn't include what I absolutely loved, mom enforced a simple rule - serve a very small portion on the plate and don't get off the table without finishing it. As tortuous as it may sound to some, it really can't kill you to eat a few bites of something you don't love. The good part was that my mother cooked delicious food. If we didn't like something, she made an effort to try different recipes to make it more palatable for us. And there was often that guilt trip - there are way too many kids out there who don't even get two meals a day, let alone choose what they eat. Be thankful that you get to try such variety of foods!

There was one vegetable for which I always made faces though -  bell peppers! The ubiquitous vegetable in the US, and something I've grown to love, was my enemy as a kid. The Indian bell peppers are much smaller, with thinner skin, and more robust flavor compared to what we get here. I thought they were too pungent. Mom cooked them many different ways - fire roasted bell pepper and yogurt raita, stir fry with crispy potatoes, or stuffed  potatoes or chickpea flour to mask their strong flavor. Her stuffed bell pepper preparation was my favorite.

I found beautiful Padron peppers at the Saturday farmer's market. They looked like smaller versions of Indian bell peppers with the same fragrance. Padron peppers originate from Spain and have a wonderful smoky flavor when charred. The seller at the market told me they are usually deep or shallow fried in olive oil and seasoned with sea salt. They don't have a lot of heat, so you can eat them whole. I asked her how they would taste stuffed with something, and she thought it was a great idea. I thought I would try the chickpea filling. The recipe is fairly simple. Chickpea flour is seasoned with garam masala and other spices and stuffed inside seeded peppers. The peppers are beautifully charred in oil on high heat. The slight heat and smoky flavor of the peppers is fabulous. The chickpea flour filling is slightly crunchy against the soft flesh of the peppers, and does a great job of taming some of the pungency. This dish can be served as an appetizer, or a side dish. It tastes great with roti, or rice and yogurt. If you don't find padron peppers, any low heat peppers such as small bell peppers, poblano, Anaheim would be great. I cooked the peppers on stovetop, but you could grill stuffed peppers in summer. It'll be a great side to all the cookouts.

 

Chickpea Flour Stuffed Peppers

Ingredients:
2 Dozen medium Padron peppers - destemmed and seeded
1 Cup chickpea flour
3 Tablespoons olive/vegetable oil + more for shallow frying
1/2 Cup chopped cilantro
1/2 Teaspoon mustard seeds
Pinch of asafoetida
1/2 Teaspoon turmeric powder
1 1/2 Teaspoons garam masala
1 Teaspoon red chili powder (adjust per liking)
Salt to taste

• Heat oil in a frying pan and add mustard seeds. When they splutter, add asafoetida, turmeric powder and chickpea flour.
• To this, add chopped cilantro, garam masala, red chili powder, and salt to taste. Roast chickpea flour till fragrant and 'cooked'. If it looks too dry, you can sprinkle some water (use very little - you don't want clumps). Taste and adjust the seasoning to your liking.
• Once the chickpea flour filling is done, keep aside.
• Remove the stems of peppers and take out the seeds. Fill them with chickpea flour filling.
• Coat the frying pan with some more oil and lay all the peppers on the pan. Cover and let the peppers get charred. Covering the pan will keep the steam inside and help cook the chickpea flour further.
• Turn the peppers with a tong and char them on the other side. Once the peppers are cooked through, turn off the heat.

Enjoy!

---***---

Speaking of stuffed veggies, I made a set of stuffed felt veggies for my baby girl. I had seen a toy veggie basket at my friend's house; her son played with them. That set was a little more 3D than my version, which is somewhere in between 2D and 3D :D. I think it's a great toy - colorful, educational, and may encourage my daughter to eat all her veggies (or so I hope).One of my friends who has a girl just a little older than Shreya loved the idea of felt toys, and asked me to make some for her baby. I wanted to send the toys just in time for her 6-month birthday which didn't leave me time to make a new veggie set, so I gifted her the one I already had. I can always make more for my daughter. Here's my satisfied customer playing with her new toys :).

Along with veggies, my friend asked if I could make an owl as well. Owls are all the rage these days. I came up with the following pattern after going through several pics on the web. Whooo wouldn't like a pink owl?

Just hangin' out!

Until next time!

Winter Cooking

I used to sulk over the drab winter days before moving to San Diego. Now I cherish whatever cold days we get. It is the perfect time to crank up the oven and make something hearty. Here's what was on the menu Monday night - Stuffed Bell Peppers, with Maple Roasted Sweet Potatoes on the side. A combination of savory and sweet dishes. The great thing was, I baked both the dishes at once - saving some energy. What a comforting dinner that was!

Sweet potatoes usually turn into baked fries (the contradiction of that makes me laugh), or get pressure cooked with jaggery in my kitchen. I've wanted to try roasting them with maple syrup for a long time. As the sweet potatoes were baking, I decided to add a crisp apple to the dish on a whim - just because it was sitting there on the counter. It seemed like a natural pairing - apples and maple syrup taste great together, and they'd provide some crunch to soft roasted sweet potatoes. Husband, although skeptical of my creation at first, couldn't get enough of this dish. That's a victory in my opinion!

**The below recipes make 2 servings.

Maple Roasted Sweet Potatoes & Apples

Ingredients:
1 Large Sweet Potato
1 Apple (pick your favorite. I always buy Pink Lady)
1 Tablespoon olive oil
4 Tablespoons maple syrup (depending on how thick it is)
Salt to taste
Paprika to taste

• Preheat oven at 375F. 
• Peel and dice sweet potato in ~1 inch cubes.
• Mix olive oil, 2 tablespoons of maple syrup, salt, and paprika, and toss the diced sweet potatoes in them. 
• Cut the apple in similar sized cubes and toss them in the remaining maple syrup. 
• Spread the sweet potatoes on a baking sheet and bake until tender, yet not fully done. Add apples at this point, and bake until the sweet potatoes are fork tender. The apples should be slightly crispy when the dishe is ready. 

Stuffed Peppers With Brown Rice & Lentils

Ingredients:
2 Medium red bell peppers - pick plump ones.
1/2 Cup brown rice
1/2 Cup whole lentils (Masoor)
1 Large garlic clove - minced
1/4 Cup finely diced onion
1 Tomato - diced
1/4 Cup finely diced carrot
1 Spring onion diced (optional)
1 Chipotle in adobo sauce - finely chopped
1 Tablespoon oil
Salt to taste

• Preheat oven at 375F. 
• Wash and cook brown rice and lentils together. 
• Thinly cut the top off the peppers from the stem side. Remove seeds and ribs. Save the tops.  
• Heat oil in a saute pan and saute garlic and onion until onions turn translucent. 
• Add chopped tomato, carrot, spring onion, chipotle pepper, and saute until everything comes together (2-3 minutes)
• Add cooked brown rice and lentils, and salt to taste. 
• Stuff peppers with the rice mixture. Spray peppers with oil, or lightly brush some oil from the outside. This will help retain moisture. Close the pepper with the top that you chopped. 
• Keep the peppers in a baking pan and bake for 30 mins, or until the peppers are soft and slightly wrinkled. 

Serving suggestion - Once you take the bell peppers out of the oven, top them off with some grated cheese (I used mozzarella) and let it melt on hot stuffing.

Sweet And Spice, And Everything Nice

Are you one of those who love the combination of sweet and spicy? Like jam with jalapeno or chocolate with cayenne pepper? I am certainly a fan of these contrasting flavors in one dish; but if someone asked me to try Kadhi made with sweet, ripe mango pulp, I would've made a weird face. That's exactly what I did when I was introduced to this Gujarati specialty. I was visiting my friend Amishi's Grandma in India on one of our coinciding trips. Amishi and I have been very close friends through high school all the way to grad school. We've had a lot of culinary adventures together in our dorm kitchens. So I trust her when it comes to food. Nevertheless, when she told me that Aamras Kadhi (Mango puree Kadhi) was on the menu at her Grandma's place, I couldn't hide a big question mark on my face. This kadhi totally surprised me though (in a positive way) and expanded the list of everything I love sweet n spicy. I've held onto Aamras Kadhi recipe for a while. Now that Alphonso puree is available in the Indian grocery store, I decided to have a go at it.

Aamras kadhi resonates all of the wonderful flavors of besan kadhi - slight tang from yogurt, fragrance of ghee tadka and curry leaves, earthy bite of cumin, and heat from green chilies. The addition of ripe mango puree adds a whole new dimension to this already wonderful combination. Surprisingly, It doesn't get overpoweringly sweet. The savory ingredients create a perfect balance leaving pleasant layers of flavors on your tongue. If you like sweet 'n' spice, this is a must try.  Aamras kadhi makes for a very refreshing drink  - perfect for the summer days when this mighty fruit is available. It tastes great hot or cold.

Aamras Kadhi (Mango Puree Kadhi)

Ingredients:
3/4 Cup mango puree - I used sweetened canned puree.
2 Tablespoons yogurt
A couple of pinches asafoetida
1/4 Teaspoon turmeric powder
1 Teaspoon cumin seeds
1/4 Teaspoon fenugreek seeds - Optional
2 Small Thai chilies/ 1 serrano chili  - chopped
1 Spring curry leaves
2 Teaspoons ghee/clarified butter
Salt to taste
Water as needed

• Mix mango puree and yogurt together. 
• Heat ghee in a kadhai. Add cumin seeds and curry leaves. 
• Add asafoetida, turmeric and green chilies once the cumin seeds splutter. Saute for a few seconds until the tempering is fragrant. 
• Add the mango-yogurt mixture to this tempering and season with salt. Add water to achieve desired consistency. 
• Bring the kadhi to a boil then lower the heat to simmer for 2-3 minutes. 

The kadhi can be eaten with roti or puri. I like to drink it by itself. The perfect finish to a meal.

Making Everyday Meals Exciting

I was lucky to have grown up having my mom cook us fresh meals every day, twice a day! It was after I started running a kitchen of my own that I realized the challenges of keeping everyday meals exciting. I gotta love my mom for being able to whip up different and exciting meals to keep 6 tummies and tongues pleased all the time. We weren't picky about our food, but let's just say, we were spoiled by great cooks in the house :D. Mom left no room for complaints though. Even on the days we ate simple rice and daal, she would look at whatever was available in the pantry/fridge and come up with a quick side dish to dress up the plate. Like this, this, or  this

Today's recipe is one of my favorites that mom often made. A quick tomato bhaji - a wonderful concoction of sweet and sour, slightly spicy flavors. Although this bhaji looks somewhat like a chutney, it is to be consumed fresh. It doesn't store in the fridge. I love how it adds a little something to a simple dinner with minimal effort and readily available ingredients. The tomatoes of course give it a tangy taste, but two aromatic spices provide an element of surprise - cloves and cinnamon. While the dish is very simple to make, the flavors are complex and satisfy all the taste buds. For some variation, add curry leaves to the tempering, spice it up with a little bit of cumin-coriander powder or garam masala, add ground peanuts for body, or you can even top it off with thin sev for a bit of crunch! All of these versions taste great. 

Tomato Bhaji

Ingredients:
3 Plump tomatoes - roughly chopped
1 Shallot - thinly sliced
2 Garlic cloves - crushed and roughly chopped
1 Large serrano chili - chopped
4-5 cloves
1 Inch cinnamon stick
For tempering - 2 Teaspoons oil, 1/2 Teaspoon mustard seeds, 1/4 Teaspoon turmeric
Sugar to taste
Salt to taste
Red chili powder if needed
Cilantro for garnishing

• Heat oil in a kadhai and add mustard seeds. 
• Once the mustard seeds splutter, add turmeric, chopped garlic, shallot, chili, cloves and cinnamon. Saute for a couple of minutes. 
• Add tomatoes, sprinkle a little bit of sugar to balance the tang of tomatoes and let the bhaji cook until the tomatoes are soft. I like the bhaji well cooked. For extra heat, add some red chili powder. It'll enhance the red color as well. 
• Add salt to taste, mix well and turn off the heat. 
• Garnish with some chopped cilantro. 

Tomato bhaji tastes great with rice, roti or even bread. 

Pumpkin Bharta

While most blogs are exploding with sinful holiday goodies, I'm sharing a very healthy and simple side dish today. Why? Just because I thought the blogosphere needed some variety. Not really, it just makes me feel good about healthy eats before the holiday mania begins ;).

Bharta or Bharit, as we call in Marathi, is a typical Indian side dish made with mashed vegetables. Yes, the description is not very appetizing. But who doesn't like baingan bharta? Mom made a variety of bhartas in my house, all just as tasty and nutritious- doodhi/bottle gourd, green bell pepper, even okra. This particular recipe is a favorite of mine and is great since it uses the season's best. One of the reasons I love it so much, other than the taste, is because of the vibrant color it adds to the plate.

Pumpkin Bharta/Bhopalyache Bharit

Ingredients:
3 Cups pumpkin cubes (~2 Cups cooked & mashed pumpkin)
2 Teaspoons oil/ghee
1/2 Teaspoon mustard seeds
1/4 Teaspoon fenugreek/methi seeds
2 Pinches asafoetida
3-4 Dry red chilies - broken in half/2 Small green chilies - chopped
1 Sprig curry leaves
1 Cup yogurt
Salt to taste
Cilantro for garnishing

• Steam/pressure cook pumpkin cubes. Don't worry about peeling the skin before cooking. It comes right off after the pumpkin is cooked. Just make sure you wash it before cooking.
• Scoop out the flesh and mash it slightly with the back of the spoon or a fork. I like my bharta chunky.
• Heat oil/ghee in a kadhai (or if you have those small tadka kadhais), add mustard and fenugreek seeds. 
• Once they splutter, add asafoetida, curry leaves and red chilies. If you like green chilies instead, feel free to use them. I prefer the smokiness of red chilies. 
• Add this tempering to the mashed pumpkin and mix well. 
• Add yogurt and season with salt. 

Garnish the bharta with chopped cilantro and serve with hot roti.

Eggplant Bhajja

The latest choice of weekend activity among our friends has been gathering at someone's house and cooking together. Oh, the joy of communal cooking and sharing meals! It's so much better than going out - the food is fresh and much healthier (not to mention, cheaper!), we get to learn each other's culinary skills, cooking doesn't feel like a chore when you want to relax, and most importantly, it gives us opportunity to have conversations and spend more quality time with each other. 

 

Some interesting recipes always come out of our cooking rituals. Last night when we had gathered at our place, my friend Deepti taught me what I can claim as the yummiest eggplant dish I've had. A very unique and ridiculously easy recipe that'll make the pickiest eater love eggplants! It wasn't hard for me to fall in love since I like eggplants in any form, but my other friends who don't care for them couldn't stop eating it either. This was Deepti's grandma's recipe who had learned it from her Sindhi neighbors. Her grandma made it for them as an after-school snack. The preparation is very simple - cut aubergine eggplants in the center and make grid-like slits, sprinkle some masala on top and roast for a few minutes. Done.You just scoop out the center with a spoon and enjoy the crusty-spicy eggplant that is extremely delicate and juicy inside. Amazing how something as simple as that can turn an ordinary eggplant into a gourmet dish. 

If only you could taste this through the screen - don't be fooled by the color.

Eggplant Bhajja

Ingredients:

4 Aubergine eggplants

1 1/2 Teaspoons cumin-coriander powder

1 1/2 Teaspoons garam masala/goda masala

3/4-1 Teaspoon red chili powder (depending on how spicy you want it)

Salt to taste

Oil as needed. 

• Cut eggplants in the center lengthwise. Make vertical and horizontal grid-like slits as shown in the picture below. This way, the spice mix you sprinkle will get all the way through. 
• Combine the spices and salt and sprinkle over the eggplants and in between the slits. You can adjust the level of spices according to your liking. My friend uses garam masala for this recipe but I prefer goda masala for the slight sweetness coconut adds. 
• Microwave the eggplants keeping face up for 2-3 minutes. This speeds up the cooking process. The eggplants should feel soft to touch. The cooking time may vary depending on the eggplants size. 
• Heat a pan on medium-high, drizzle a little bit of oil (very little - you are not shallow frying them) and keep the eggplants face down (the side of spices touching the pan). Cover the pan and let the eggplants roast for 2-3 minutes. Once they are slightly charred on that side, turn them, cover and cook for a couple of minutes more. 

Serve while hot. It can be eaten as an appetizer or just a side dish. Just take a spoon and dig in!

Chana With A South Indian Twist

We always associate Chana/Chickpeas with the North Indian style preparation of chhole/chana masala. Chhole can be quite luxurious and sinful - especially served with fried bhature. Not that I don't love chhole, but it's a dish for rare occasions in my house. The other day, I tasted chana prepared in a very different manner using the South Indian essentials - curry leaves and coconut! This dish was served at the temple as prasad on one of the Navratri days. Being offered as naivedyam it had to be satvik and devoid of onoin-garlic. Give me anything infused with aromatic curry leaves and I'm instantly in love. The change of taste and the use of minimal ingredients were quite welcoming. Hubs and I couldn't stop praising the preparation. I wish I could thank and ask for the recipe to whoever brought the prasad. But it was a no brainer given the few and distinct ingredients. I wasted no time in recreating the dish in my kitchen. For the lack of a better title, I'll call this Jhatpat Chana for the ease of making it compared to Chhole! 

Jhatpat Chana

Ingredients:
1 1/2 Cups soaked Chana (chickpeas)
1-2 Teaspoons Ghee
2 Green chilies - chopped
1/2 Teaspoon cumin seeds
1/4 Teaspoon mustard seeds
Couple of pinches asafoetida
2 Springs curry leaves
1 Tablespoon grated coconut
1 Teaspoon tamarind  pulp/1 Tablespoon grated green mango
Salt to taste
Water as needed

• Heat ghee in a kadhai, add cumin and mustard seeds and let them splutter.
• Add asafoetida, green chilies and curry leaves. Fry for 30-40 secs.
• Add chickpeas. Make sure the chickpeas are soaked for at least 5-6 hours for easy cooking. You can use the canned pre-soaked ones also.
• Sprinkle grated coconut, tamarind pulp/green mango and mix well. Put a lid on and let the chickpeas cook, adding minimal water and stirring occasionally. The chickpeas should cook thoroughly without getting mushy so there's a bite to them. 

Serve as a side dish with roti/rice or enjoy as a snack!

Look, I Made A Snowman!

Only 12 days to go till Christmas, and I'm sure everyone's got their hands full baking and cooking and planning big meals for the holiday parties. The season's eatings started on my side with the food bloggers holiday party over the weekend. Oh, the goodies everyone made! The new enthusiastic baker in me wanted to make something sweet for the party at first. But looking at the number of bloggers who signed up for desserts, I turned to a savory dish I knew would please the crowds. Peruvian Causitas - mashed yellow potatoes seasoned with lime juice and Peruvian chile - make a great appetizer for any party. Shape them like snowmen, and you have the cutest looking appetizer that can be the center piece of your serving table! My dear Peruvian friend and neighbor in Utah made these snowmen two years back for Christmas and I just couldn't get over how adorable they were. I mean, look at them!!!

Hello, everyone!

Causas or causitas are a popular dish from Peru. It's a simple recipe with very few ingredients but packed with lots of flavor. The causitas I made were simply mashed potatoes/pureed. The more elaborate preparation contains filling of various sorts, such as avocado, shrimp, crab etc., to go in between two layers of mashed potatoes. Causitas makes for a great finger food. Shaped like little snowmen, they are just perfect for a holiday party claiming the center spot on the table. There are no exact measurements to make the potatoes, but make sure the punch from lime juice is prominent. That makes it delightfully light for a potato dish. And as my friend would say, add lots of lime juice to any Peruvian dish and it tastes good!

Snowmen Causitas - Peruvian Mashed Potato Appetizer

Ingredients:
Medium Yellow/Yukon Gold potatoes - about 1 per person (I used 10)
Limes - I needed 3 large limes for my potatoes
Peruvian Aji Amarillo chile paste - If you can't find it easily, use any mild yellow/orange chile
Salt & Pepper to taste
2-3 Tablespoons vegetable oil.

• Boil potatoes, peel and mash. When the potatoes cool down enough to touch, get your best tool out - your hands - and take out any lumps. Add oil little by little while mixing by hand so the potatoes are not too sticky. 
• Add juice from one lime at a time, and taste to make sure there's enough lime flavor. Don't let the mashed potatoes get too thin else you won't be able to shape them. 
• Add a little bit of chile paste - this is just for slight flavor and color. The dish is not supposed to be spicy. I couldn't get to a Peruvian store so I used 1 regular yellow chile ground to paste. 
• Season with salt & fresh cracked pepper. Taste, and as my friend put it, choose your lime-chile-pepper-salt happy place!! That sums it up =)
• To make the snowmen, roll the mashed potatoes into small balls in two sizes, one smaller than the other. Stack the small ones on top of big ones and poke a toothpick through them. For the eyes and nose, you can use a variety of things. I chopped olives finely for eyes and red bell pepper for nose. You can also use carrots. Decorate the snowmen however you want. 

This is a great make-ahead dish. Make the mashed potatoes ahead of time and just shape them when you are ready to entertain. Get your kids to help you with making the snowmen and decorating them. Boy, are they gonna have fun with it! The snowmen taste just as good as they look.

Happy Holiday Cooking, everyone! :)

The snowmen sitting pretty with other dishes

Coconut Creamed Corn - From Jenny of Vintage Sugarcube

Hello everyone! I'm back from a wonderful vacation to India. Just as I recover from all the Diwali festivities, I can smell Thanksgiving in the air here. While I've taken a long break from cooking, I'll share a lip-smacking good creamed corn recipe by my blogger friend Jenny of Vintage Sugarcube.

The monthly meet-ups of San Diego Food Bloggers has given me the opportunity to meet some amazing bloggers and try their scrumptious dishes. Jenny and I met at the Bake Sale that initiated the food bloggers meetings and I've been an admirer of her blog since. As the name suggests, her blog is very vintage with some  delicious dessert recipes. Each of her recipes is woven through a funny story accompanied by fabulous pictures, like this or this. The effort she puts into each post is evident and her witty personality shines through them all. Check out her 'About Me' page for her published recipes.

Jenny brought this creamed corn dish to the bloggers meet a couple of months back, and everyone was raving about it. Not only does she know her desserts, she can cook. It was the best creamed corn I had ever had. Of course I helped myself to a few handsome spoonfuls of it. The secret ingredient? Coconut milk! Creamed corn is already yummy, but coconut milk takes it to a whole new level. The fresh corn and lime zest made it a perfect summer dish then. But I don't see why you wouldn't skip baked corn this Thanksgiving and make this utterly delicious creamy, fragrant, melt in the mouth corn dish instead. I asked Jenny to share the recipe on her blog, but she only posts dessert recipes. I immediately offered to do a guest post (a recipe this good needs to be shared with the world). Jenny was extremely kind to make the creamed corn again - twice, to get it perfect - and share the pictures and recipe with me. I was supposed to post it before leaving for India, but work schedule did not permit. Better late than never though, and just in time for the holidays.

Thanks, Jenny, for sharing this wonderful recipe with me and my readers.

Coconut Creamed Corn

By Jenny (www.vintagesugarcube.com)

Serves 6

Found and adapted via www.shutterbean.com  / Ad Hoc at Home Cookbook

• 6 ears corn, shucked
• 1 lime
• 3 tablespoons butter
• ½ cup heavy cream (no cheating, gotta buy the heavy cream)
• ½ cup coconut milk (please don’t buy the light/lite)
• Few shakes or more of cayenne (I haven’t a clue how spicy you like it!)
• ½ tsp salt

Cut corn off cobs and set aside.  I place a couple large pieces of wax paper under the cutting board to catch any flying kernels.  

Zest lime and set zest aside.

Melt butter in stock pan or medium skillet.  Microwave whole zested lime to soften it up a bit (30-45 seconds).  

Add corn and juice from lime to sizzling butter and sauté for 5 minutes.  

Then add cream and coconut milk, cayenne and salt.  Cook until creamy (approx 15-20 minutes) over low-medium heat.   

Stir in lime zest prior to serving.  

Quick Corn Usal

Today, I'm going to leave you with a quick and easy recipe for a great snack. That's it. No blabber. And I will more than make-up for the void of stories very soon, I promise.

Usal is a generic name for spicy curried or sauteed beans or sprouts. Corn comes under the grain category, but I guess this dish is called Usal because of the other common ingredients used in the preparation. It's a popular Maharashtrian dish prepared especially in early winter when corn is bountiful. The cooking process enhances the sweetness of corn, and is wonderfully balanced by the touch of spiciness. A dish of warm savory corn usal is very comforting on balmy fall evenings.

Corn Usal/Kanasachi Usal

2 Large sweet corn cobs/ 1 packet frozen corn
1/2 Small onion - finely chopped
1 Serrano chili
2-3 Garlic cloves
1/2 Inch fresh ginger
1 Tablespoon grated coconut
1/3 Teaspoon mustard seeds
1/4 Teaspoon turmeric
A pinch of asafoetida
Salt to taste
Chopped cilantro for garnishing
Lemon juice

• Husk and clean the corn. Hold the stem in your hand, rest the other end on the cutting board and cut off the kernels with a sharp knife. Or, just open a bag of thawed frozen corn :D.  
• Run your knife through the kernels to give them a rough chop. The starchy juice that comes out helps it cook well, bring the dish together and give it that wonderful caramelization. You can also give the kernels a quick pulse in the food processor. 
• Grind chili, garlic and ginger to a paste.
• Heat a couple of teaspoons of oil in a wok/kadhai. Add mustard seeds and let them splutter. Then add asafoetida, turmeric, onion and chili-ginger-garlic paste and saute for a a couple of minutes.
• Add corn, grated coconut and salt and mix everything well. If the corn is dry, you can add a splash of water. 
• Cover and cook, checking and stirring occasionally, on medium heat. 
• The dish is done when the corn is cooked completely, most of the water content will evaporate(8-10 minutes). Don't worry if the corn gets slightly brown and caramelized. This is the tastiest part of the dish! 
• Garnish with lots of chopped cilantro, some lemon juice and more grated coconut if you like. 

Sweet Heat

It's 1:04am on a weekday and here I find myself squinting at the glaringly bright screen in a pitch dark room, writing up a quick post. Work and other social obligations (mostly self inflicted) have taken over my life recently and there's no relaxation in the foreseeable future. On days like these, it's good to have something stored in the fridge to fix up a quick meal. It's even better if it's the most important meal of the day - breakfast!

Look at that gorgeous color - isn't it pretty??

When you are lucky, you'll make yourself a hearty breakfast of eggs and toast, maybe some potatoes, fruits or cereal-milk. But when breakfast means grabbing a slice of bread and skillfully managing to eat and not drop any crumbs while driving to work, I like to have some yummy jam on hand. A delicious jam transforms a simple slice of bread to a wonderful sandwich we all wanted for breakfast as kids. My mom usually made us healthy breakfast from scratch every day, but bread and jam or a roll of jam smeared poli/roti(Indian bread) was a welcomed change. 

Remember I stocked up on a whole lot of strawberries at the Carlsbad farmer's market? Well, don't think I forgot all about them after. I did make a yummy jam out of them the way we liked it as kids, with a grown-up twist! The jam has all that goodness from sweet strawberries, but it surprises you with a hint of heat from jalapeno at the end. I love the combination of sweet & heat which makes this jam perfect for grown-ups. This was prepared upon hubby's request and he's been eating it by the spoonfuls. The jam has definitely turned 'good' mornings to 'better' :).



Sorry about the picture quality here. Just when I thought I was making some progress in taking good pictures, I have to post these less than impressive ones. I'll blame it on the recent madness!

Strawberry-Jalapeno Jam

Ingredients
1 1/2 Cups crushed strawberries
2-2 1/2 Cups white sugar
1 Jalapeno

• Crush fresh strawberries. I just tossed them in the food processor and gave a quick pulse. Leave them slightly chunky. 
• Combine sugar and crushed strawberries on medium heat for about 15 minutes. Strawberries give out a lot of water so the cooking time is a bit longer than other berries. 
• Add 1 finely chopped jalapeno (without the seeds and vein) and cook on medium-high heat for another 20 minutes or until you achieve the desired consistency. Keep stirring occasionally. 

Foodilicious: Good Eats

Foodilicious: Good Eats: "It's so easy to eat healthy; I wonder why we succumb to the greasy, fatty, buttery, unhealthy foods (okay, don't answer that :P). I made a v..."

Mid-Week Grilling

Of the myriad 'food-related' activities we both enjoy, going to the farmer's market remains a top favorite. It turns an otherwise mundane grocery shopping activity(for him - I could spend hours at the grocery store) into a desirable outing. So getting a reminder call from hubby about this week's farmer's market only put a smile on my face.

Here's a simple recipe from this week's produce basket - perfect for an easy hump day dinner.

(I fiddled with hubby's camera in a miserable attempt at getting artsy with my pictures - lesson learned, leave the job to him!)

Grilled Asparagus with Roasted Garlic-Yogurt Dipping Sauce

Ingredients:

1 Bunch asparagus

3 Cloves garlic

3 Tablespoons yogurt

Chipotle and habanero chili flakes

Salt & Pepper

Olive Oil

Grilled Asparagus:

• Toss whole asparagus in some OO and sprinkle salt & pepper for seasoning.
• Grill the asparagus until you they get charred black spots.  

*Tip* Put the asparagus on a skewer sparsely when grilling. It makes it easier to turn them all at once.

Dipping Sauce:

• Coat 3 garlic cloves (or you can use a whole garlic head) in OO and roast until soft and slightly brown. You can grill the garlic over an aluminum foil or roast in the oven.
• Peel and grate the garlic, add yogurt, chili flakes per your liking and some salt. Mix well. 

While I was grilling the asparagus, hubby practiced his culinary skills making a delicious omlette with onions, tomatoes, avocado and spices.

The weekend is in sight now...have a good one!

Kakadicha Kayras

My favorite Persian grocery store here carries vegetables the way we used to get them in India. Not hormone injected gigantic, beautiful looking, bright colored watery flesh. I'm talking about vegetables that are small and flavorful - the way they would grow in the wild (not that I've seen them in the wild, but I assume that's how nature intended it be). I picked up a couple of Indian cucumbers the other day and I HAD to make my favorite Kayras! Slurp!

Kayras is a typical Maharashtrian side dish that lies somewhere in between chutney and koshimbir (salad with seasoning). It is made especially for festival feasts and poojas. The memories of eating kayras are somewhat mixed with the fragrance of jasmine, karpur, agarbatti and masale-bhaat! The preparation typically needs cucumber or raw guava (the latter is lightly cooked and definitely ranks over cucumber in my list). The ingredients are simple, but my memory failed me in remembering the method. I've called my mom impatiently very early in the morning to get recipes, but waking her up at 2am just didn't seem like a good idea! After searching online without much luck, I found this recipe that came very close to my mom's recipe. I called her up the first chance I got and verified the recipe - check!

 Kakadicha Kayras/Cucumber Chutney (?)
Ingredients:
2 Cucumbers
1 Tablespoon tamarind concentrate
1 Cube jaggery or 1 teaspoon brown sugar
1.5-2 Tablespoons ground peanut - lightly roasted and ground
1/3 Teaspoon cumin powder
Salt

For seasoning:
1 Tablespoon oil
1 Green chili
4-5 Curry leaves (optional)
1/3 Teaspoon mustard seeds
1/2 Teaspoon cumin seeds
1/4 Teaspoon turmeric powder
1/4 Teaspoon asafoetida - more than what we usually use

Chopped cilantro

• Chop cucumber into small pieces.
• Add some water to the tamarind concentrate to thin it out. Add jaggery/brown sugar (I like using jaggery more than white sugar for its earthy flavor), coarsely ground peanuts, salt to taste and toss in the chopped cucumber. Let it sit for 5-10 minutes.
• Heat oil in a small kadhai/pan and add mustard seeds, cumin seeds, chopped green chili, asafoetida and turmeric powder in that order. Let the mustard seeds and cumin seeds splutter a bit before adding the rest. Don't let the spices burn. You can also add a few curry leaves, but I left them out this time.
• Add this seasoning over the cucumber soaking in the tamarind mixture. The smell and the sound when oil hits watery cucumber - simply amazing!!
• Cilantro is ubiquitous in Indian cuisine - so garnish with some chopped cilantro.  

Serve on the side with roti, rice or have it with dosa, idli or even bread.

Slightly sweet, tangy, 'khamang' from the seasoning (I have no translation for this word - please try this dish to know what I'm talking about) - I think this is the kind of food I'm going to crave when I'm pregnant! Well, let's not talk about that right now...

Hello Sunshine!

Sorry...not you, the real sunshine..the sun - shine sunshine...like, OMG it's finally summer sunshine! What a gorgeous day to wake up to and what better way to spend it than at the swimming pool and later basking in the sun at the beach. I 'played' in water this morning and later bathed in sunshine at the gorgeous La Jolla shore while hubby and friends went kayaking (don't tell anyone, but I'm scared of water..ok, I'll go hide my face now). Guess what? Kayaking doesn't seem all that scary after all. I've conjured up every ounce of courage in me to give it a shot before the big trip to Alaska! This is going to be an adventurous summer for me, if you can call it that. Oh well, I just can't get enough of this season - especially when my weekends start with throwing a BBQ party on Friday evening. Ah..so relaxing, so refreshing, so...Summer!

Reading a book at the beach - a perfect way to spend an afternoon!

We had to show off the new grill to our friends. Chilled drinks, yummy food, some buzzed people - that's what I'm talking about! There was a mix of omnivores and herbivores in the group. I prepared a few vegetarian dishes and hubby (how eagerly he was waiting for this!) prepared chicken and shrimp for the superior kind <rolling my eyes>. After a couple of glasses of wine and a bottle of beer, I kinda lost track of taking pictures of the cooking in process. I took some pictures of 'the before' while marinating and getting stuff ready though.

Our friends showed up soon after work battered by the usual hectic week. Of course they were in the mood to just sit around, chat and crack jokes from Family Guy and South Park. I was scurrying about ensuring there was one course after the other to accompany the sudden bursts of laughter and animated 'Did you know...exclamation, exclamation, exclamation'. For the starters, I made sweet potato fries (third time in two weeks) and grilled Gorgonzola-pear flatbread. I made my friends guinea pigs for my experiment of the latter who willingly tasted it - gobbled it would be more appropriate. You know how I love recreating my favorite dishes from restaurants, this was one of them. I had gorgonzola-pear flatbread at this amazing tapas place in Seattle (I forget the name). The combination of this cheese and pear is pretty classic, but toss in some caramelized onions and honey in the mix and you have something divine tasting. I remembered the flatbread having caramelized onions and the honey was my addition. This is a semi-grilled dish. Here's how I made it:

Before going on the grill - trust me, the after looked much more appetizing

A closer look

Gorgonzola-Pear Flatbread

Ingredients:
3 Tortilla breads - or use regular flat breads
Gorgonzola cheese
1 Pear - ripe
1 Medium onion
Honey - as needed
Paprika - as needed
1 Teaspoon sugar
Olive Oil - as needed
Butter - as needed
Salt to taste

• I used this as a guide to caramelize onions. Chop onions thinly into half moons. Heat a saute pan and cover the bottom barely with oil. Add chopped onions, saute for a couple of minutes, then sprinkle some salt and sugar. Slowly cook the onions until soft and sweet and caramelized on low heat (about 10-15 minutes).
• Cut the pear in thin slices. Cook the sliced pear in saute pan as well in just a little bit of butter on each side (about 7-8 minutes all together). You can run these two processes in parallel. 
• To assemble, spread some honey on flatbread with a knife or a brush, add the pear then onion and top it with gorgonzola crumbles. Sprinkle just a little bit of paprika on the top. You don't want to kill the sweetness of the pear and honey, but just a nice pop of flavor. 
• Grill the flatbread for 2-3 minutes until the cheese melts and the bread gets crusty. You can do this in the oven as well. Cut into small pieces and serve this unbelievably delicious finger food in your favorite plate. 

After a couple of rieslings and zins, we were ready to move on to the next course. I made a berry refreshing salad as the second course - another one of those 'Oh this is so good, I must try it' restaurant items. I had a strawberry salad with strawberry vinaigrette at Souplantation a couple of days back. Nothing says 'Summer' like a salad this good.

Berry Good Salad

Ingredients:
1 Box strawberries (the standard box with ~15-20 berries depending on the size)
Spring mix greens
Macadamia nuts - I got these at the farmer's market so added some. Use any of your favorite nuts.
2 Tablespoons balsamic vinegar
2-3 Tablespoons olive oil
1 Teaspoon sugar
Salt & Pepper to taste

• Puree 8-10 strawberries, balsamic vinegar, sugar, salt & pepper. Be a little conservative with the BV while pureeing and add later if needed. 
• Take this puree out in a bowl and whisk in olive oil slowly. Adjust the amount of BV & OO as needed and per your liking. You should end up with a vinaigrette slightly thicker than Italian. 
• Toss in spring mix greens, fresh sliced strawberries, some crushed macadamia nuts and drizzle a generous amount of the vinaigrette. Tastes much better cold so chill the vinaigrette for a little while before serving. This salad is like a burst of flavors in one bite! Can you believe my friends actually helped themselves to extra servings of the salad when there was this whole fare for the main course?

For the real grilling part, I made the usual Panner-Bell Pepper-Onion thing. I've grilled paneer so many times now that I just add whatever suits my mood at the time. This time it was just a yogurt, red chili, cumin-coriander powder, chaat masala, salt marinade.Don't forget to splash some lemon juice after you grill it though. That last touch does it!

Grilling Cheese with Salt-Pepper-Lemon Pepper

I tried something new this time. I found this grilling cheese at the grocery store which looked and tasted very similar to Paneer, just a bit chewier. I wasn't really sure what I was gonna do with it. When in doubt, add salt & pepper! I just added lots of fresh cracked pepper, some salt and lemon pepper (this is my hubby's go-to seasoning) and grilled it. Quite tasty I must say.

Hubby took over the 'man kitchen' after I was done with the puny vegetarian grilling. He made Indian style grilled chicken in yogurt-ginger&garlic-red chili-garam masala marinade that soaked up flavors overnight and his signature shrimp. He marinated shrimp in a bright green paste of cilantro-mint and some other spices overnight as well. Friends raved about his preparations till the minute they drove out of the parking lot. I totally validated their sentiment by tasting some of both (shhh...). Oh c'mon! I had to be a good wife! I'm not converted though...it's okay.

Wanna feel like a kid again? How about a Popsicle!

To round up the meal, a very refreshing, all natural, homemade watermelon pops. Just fresh watermelon juice and nothing else! Mmmm..

Soul Food

We, humans, are constantly aspiring to create something new, something unique - be it technology or something as basic as our food. After frenzied efforts of creating new dishes in my kitchen over the past week, I just wanted to slip into my comfort zone and make what's tried and tested and passed down for generations. The food I grew up eating every day, food that defines a part of who I am. The regional cuisine of the western state of Maharashtra. Much can be said about the cusine and cultural aspects but I'm afraid I'll end up with an essay. Here is not completely comprehensive yet a decent read on the cuisine of the region I belong to. The vastness of the state and its distinguishing location between the South and North India, make it difficult to categorize the cuisine. They also contribute to influences from both sides of the country. Yet, two aspects that strike me the most and make me love the food are simplicity and balance. Don't get me wrong...I can name atleast a 100 dishes off the top of my head that only the experienced cooks can make. But everyday meals are made with sparing use of spices and are well thought out with inclusion of all the nutritional components. It's all about nourishing your soul just as much as the body.

I'm going to share a few of my favorite recipes that mom made frequently. My hubby and I enjoyed these simple dishes over the last couple of days.

The first recipe is an appetizer I love love love! I guess I made my point! Every so often when the large eggplant wasn't used for making Bharit/Bharta, my mom made Vangyache Kaap (Eggplant chips). It's made fairly commonly in Maharashtrian homes as a teat-time snack or a dinner appetizer. We had coined a new name for it as kids - Vangyache Fish (Eggplant fish) for its resemblance to Konkani fish fry. Fear not, it doesn't taste anything like fish. Funnily, it doesn't taste much eggplant-y either, as if it was made to convert non-eggplant lovers.

Toss anything in a li'l bit of flour and cook in oil - it's bound to taste good!

Powder and pretty 'em up

My oil-deprived eggplant wafers/chips

Vangyache Kaap/Eggplant Chips

Ingredients:
1 Large eggplant
~3/4 Cup rice flour
1 Teaspoon red chili powder
1/2 Teaspoon cumin-coriander powder
Couple of pinches turmeric powder
A pinch asafoetida
Salt to taste
Oil for cooking

• Cut the eggplant into thin slices and keep them in cold water. This will prevent browning as well as help the flour coating stick to the eggplants. 
• Mix rice flour and the spices to create the coating. Adjust spices if needed. 
• Drain the eggplant slices and dredge them in the flour-spice mix. 
• Heat a shallow frying pan and add a little bit of oil. Helps to shake the pan so the oil spreads. Cook the eggplant slices on each side for a couple of minutes until they brown. Add oil if/as needed. Don't OD as the eggplants soak up oil and become soggy. You want to keep them crispy. 
• Once cooked, keep them in a plate with a paper towel to soak up any extra oil. Enjoy!

Next up is one of my most favorite vegetables ever (yeah, I say that about 90% of them..but this one is really a favorite) - Bhendi/Okra. The most common/known way of making okra is similar to one of my earlier posts. However, the community I belong to has a different method that involves tamarind and jaggery. We are very big on the use of tamarind and jaggery which tone down the spices (that are already in little quantity). This recipe is a specialty of my grandma and no matter how tasty my mom makes it, my dad just won't approve of it. Guess what...my grandma's not making a 24 hr journey to feed me. So my dad can dislike anyone else's attempt all he wants but I have to make it for myself. My husband absolutely loves okra but refused to eat any preparation of it without onions and garlic. One taste of this new dish and he's raving about it!

Bhendi/Okra curried with tamarin-jaggery

Bhendichi Chincha-Gulachi Bhaaji/Okra with Tamarind-Jaggery

Ingredients:
1 1/2 Cup fresh cut okra
1 Teaspoon tamarind concentrate/pulp
1 sq inch cube of jaggery - you can substitute it with a teaspoon of brown sugar
1/4 Teaspoon mustard
1/4 Teaspoon turmeric powder
1 Pinch asafoetida
1/2 Teaspoon red chili powder
1/3 Teaspoon cumin-coriander powder
1 Teaspoon oil
Salt to taste
Water as needed

• Heat oil in a cooking pan, add mustard seeds and let them splutter. 
• Add turmeric powder, asafoetida and okra to the pan and saute for a 2-3 minutes on medium-high heat. 
• Add the rest of the ingredients, mix well. Add some water barely covering the okra and cook on medium heat until the okra is soft and cooked.
• Eat with some roti and yogurt on the side. 

The last recipe I'm going to post serves as a vegetable to accompany roti and can also replace amati/daal to eat with rice. Tasty spinach curry that is usually made for a quick dinner (even a quick dinner constitutes of atleast 3 items). Spinach shrinks up quite a bit once cooked so this recipe is good to bulk it up - useful especially when my mom had to feed a family of 6. This light, non-spicy dish is great for dinner when you shouldn't be eating anything too heavy. The curry is also made with alu/taro leaves.

Spinach Curry

Palakachi Takatali Bhaji/Spinach in Buttermilk Curry

Ingredients:
1 Bunch spinach
1 Serrano pepper/Thai green chili
1/2 Cup thick buttermilk/ 2-3 Tablespoons yogurt
1 Tablespoon besan/chickpea flour
1/2 Teaspoon cumin seeds
7-8 Curry leaves
A handful peanuts (or more if you are like me)
Turmeric powder
Asafoetida
1 Teaspoon oil
Salt to taste

• Chop fresh spinach and one green chili and pressure cook (1 whistle). If you are cooking in an open pot, just cook for a few minutes until the spinach softens. 
• On the side, whisk some yogurt and water and add besan to it. Make sure the besan is completely dissolved. 
• Heat oil in a pot, add cumin seeds, curry leaves, turmeric powder, asafoetida (you probably know the deal with seasoning now) and add the cooked spinach to it. 
• Toss in a handful of peanuts. This is another common ingredient in Maharashtrian cooking. Peanuts, whole or ground, are used in many of the traditional dishes. I personally am a sucker for them so I always add a little more! They plump up and become soft after cooking - yum.
• Add the buttermilk/besan mix. Add some water if needed and let it boil for a few minutes. The spinach is already cooked so you just want to boil until it all comes together. 

Have the bhaji with some roti or rice or by itself. It will taste good no matter what. So so good!

There are numerous regional recipes on my 'must have's list. This is a good start. I will post more in the future. For now, I must get back into the 'experimental' mode and prepare for tomorrow's BBQ party :)