Purple cabbage salad

Purple cabbage salad

This salad is a great way to highlight the beautiful color of purple cabbage. I took 1/2 head of a small purple cabbage and thinly shredded it. Then I steamed it for just 5 minutes in the pressure cooker with the whistle off. I am not a fan of raw cabbage, hence steam it. Then I added other veggies like cucumbers, tomatoes, onions/green onions, colored peppers. I tempered the salad with cumin seeds and hing in ghee. Topped it all off with crushed roasted peanuts, chopped cilantro, salt, pinch of sugar and black pepper powder.

Tastes great by itself.

Sprouts Chaat

This is a healthier version of regular bhel, a popular Indian street food. A friend had made it a few months back for a dance practice for our kids. It was appreciated by young and old alike. Her version had chana, I decided to add other sprouts too. So here's how I made this Sprouts Chaat, no specific quantities here, just a handful of this & that:

Sprouted mung, Sprouted matki
Boiled black chana
Canned chickpeas - drained and rinsed
Other veggies - boiled potatoes, onions and tomatoes - all chopped
Chutneys - Mint Chutney and Dates/Tamarind Chutney (home made or store bought)
Roasted kurmure (puffed rice)
Shev
Puris or crushed chips (I have used crushed tortilla chips)
Chopped cilantro
Pinch of chaat masala

Prep the basic mix by combining the sprouts, chana, chickpeas, potatoes, onions, tomatoes and the chutneys. Mix lightly, check and adjust chutneys.
Just before serving, add the roasted kurmure, shev, crushed puris/chips, cilantro and chaat masala. Again mix lightly and serve.

This was our dinner last night.

I had some leftover mix of sprouts and veggies, which I used in today's chaat salad for lunch.

Tomato Chi Koshimbir

Tomato chi koshimbir is a family favorite, it features on every festive get-together menu of the Sahasrabudhes. I have to admit, it had slipped my mind until my dad reminded me recently. In the picture above, I have used juicy, flavorful Campari tomatoes from Costco.

Here's how I make it:

2 to 3 cups chopped tomatoes
1 tsp salt or to taste
2 tsp sugar
2 tbsp grated fresh coconut
2 to 3 tbsp roughly chopped roasted peanuts
Chopped cilantro for garnish
Tempering - 1 tbsp ghee, 1 tsp cumin seeds, 2 green chiles chopped

The method is really super simple. Mix all ingredients from tomatoes to peanuts. Make the tempering by heating the ghee and roasting the chiles and cumin in it till fragrant. Add to the tomato mixture. Garnish with chopped cilantro.

Serve at room temperature. It goes well with varan-bhaath, masale bhaath, rotis and puris.

Chopped onions can also be added, but since this is usually made for festive occasions like Ganesh Chaturthi, we avoid adding onions.

Tender Methi - Mung Dal Salad

This recipe is from Tarla Dalal's magazine. Since it called for tender methi, I planted a handful of methi seeds in a plastic tray on my patio and in about 8 days, harvested the tender saplings which were just enough for this refreshing salad.

Here's how I made the salad -

1/3 cup mung dal - soaked in water for 1/2 hour and cooked in boiled, salted water for 10-12 mins. till cooked but still firm.
Handful of tender methi shoots - leaves and stalks
1 small Persian cucumber
1 green chilli pepper - chopped
Salt, sugar to taste
1/4 tsp lemon juice

Just mix all the ingredients together and enjoy this salad at room temperature.

The tender, fresh methi had only the mildest of bitter tinge, which was perfectly set-off by the mung dal and cool cucumbers.

This was the first time I made this salad, next time I may try adding chopped onions and tomatoes also.

This Tender Methi - Mung Dal Salad goes to the Fenugreek Event at What's Cooking.
This event was started by PJ of Seduce Your Tastebuds.

Also contributing my all time favorite Methi Subji - Methi with Gram Flour (Methi chi Peeth Perleli Bhaji) to the above event.

I'm sending this Tender Methi and the salad I made with it to the Fresh From ur Garden event at Taste Buds.

Beetroot koshimbir

Beetroot koshimbir is my all time favorite kind of koshimbir. When I was working in Mumbai, this koshimbir would be in my lunch dabba every single day...I never tired of it. All my friends there would tease me about, but I kept bringing it every day.

Here's how I make it:

1 beetroot bulb - wash well, peel and grate

1 tbsp coarsely crushed peanuts

1/2 tsp salt or to taste

pinch of sugar

1 tsp lemon juice

cilantro for garnish

For tempering - 1 tsp oil, 1/2 tsp cumin seeds, pinch of asafotida, 1 serrano pepper finely chopped

Mix all the ingredients together. Heat the oil for tempering, then add the cumin seeds, asafotida and chopped peppers. Fry 2 mins. Pour into the beetroot mix.

Makes a healthy accompaniment to roti/subji (poli/bhaji).

This Beetroot Koshimbir goes to the Healing Foods - Beets event at Mharo Rajasthan's Recipes.

This event by started by Siri.

Chickpea Salad

These kinds of salads rule my lunch box these days. They are a snap to put together in the mornings and the flavors are well blended by lunch time. The original recipe, from Vegetarian Times, was for Tacos stuffed with this salad, but I just omit the tacos.

Here's how I put it together:

1 can of chickpeas - drained, rinsed and microwaved for 2 mins

1 cup of salsa per your choice

1 avocado - sliced

1 tsp lemon juice

Salt & pepper to taste

Other seasonings as desired like Mrs. Dash, hot sauce etc.

Toss all these together. Carry the lettuce separately. Just before eating, toss the lettuce with the salad.

This Chickpea Salad goes to the Show Me Your Lunchbox Event at Divya's Dil Se.

Beans Salad

I have been on a quest to find interesting salad recipes these days. One such recipe was lying right under by nose, in a book called Simply Delicious Vegetarian by Carla Bardi, but I hadn't noticed it until today. I had it for lunch and loved it so much that I had to immediately post it.

Here's how I made it, with a few modifications from the original recipe:

1/2 can cannelini beans - rinsed and drained

1/2 can kidney beans - rinsed and drained

1/2 red bell pepper - thinly sliced

1/4 red onion - thinly sliced

1 tbsp Mrs. Dash's Garlic and Herb seasoning

1 tsp extra virgin olive oil

1 tbsp lemon juice

Freshly ground black pepper

2 - 3 large handfuls of Spring Mix containing red & green varieties of lettuce, chard, arugula etc.

Toss all the ingredients, except the Spring Mix, in a large bowl. Cover and let it rest for 15 - 30 mins. Serve on a bed of the Spring Mix. I did not add or feel the need to add any additional salt to this.

This Beans Salad goes to My Legume Love Affair being hosted at Monsoon Spice. This event is the brain child of Susan - The Well Seasoned Cook.

Green Beans Salad

I few weeks back on our trip to the local Trader Joe's store, Green Beans Salad samples were being passed out. My daughter loved it so much, she couldn't stop at one. Given that she loved such a healthy, easy dish so much, I simply had to make it at home. I have since made it several times and even given it to her in her lunch box. It turned out especially well when I got a pack of absolutely tender green beans at Costco recently.

Here's how I make it:

Handful of green beans - chopped about 1.5 inch long

Olive oil

Salt & pepper to taste - TJ sample had lemon pepper, but I have not yet tried it with this. Instead, I use Mrs. Dash Garlic & Herb seasoning. Any of ur favorite seasoning should work.

Chopped nuts like almonds/walnuts for garnish

Steam the green beans for about 5 mins till slightly tender but still with a bite. Toss with olive oil, salt, seasonings. Garnish with nuts - this was my touch to the salad.

I have not given specific amounts above - you can just eyeball it depending on your preference. Generally, I have made this pretty bland since that's how my daughter likes it. I have myself also been trying to scale down my salt intake and this dish made me realize how with minimal seasonings, the freshness of the vegetable can really stand out.

This Green Beans Salad goes to the Kids Delight event at Spice Your Life.

I am updating this post 9/30 with 2 pictures by my daughter that are on our fridge door.

Shri Ganesh

Balakrishna

Corn salad and appetizer

Corn Salad

This corn salad is simple and versatile. It can be had as a light meal or a part of a meal. It also works as a filling/topping for a toast.Or my favorite, in Tostito scoops. I have even given it to my daughter in her lunch box a few times and she has polished it off! Here's how I make the salad:

1 cup frozen corn - thaw in microwave for 1 min.

1/2 cup canned black beans-drained and rinsed

1/4 cup chopped onion- I use the sweet Walla-Walla onions we get here. Any type works, but if you want to reduce the sharpness, drain it under cold tap water.I read this trick on Nupur's One Hot Stove blog.

1/4 cup chopped tomatoes

1/4 cup chopped cucumber

1/4 cup shredded carrots

1 serrano pepper - deseeded & de-ribbed if you prefer less heat

1/2 tsp salt or to taste

1/2 tsp lemon juice

Mix all the above together. That's it. Salad is ready.

Now comes the fun part. To turn this salad into an appetizer/starter/snack,simply fill it in Tostito scoops, sprinkle with some chaat masala & top with sev. These go off in no time folks. Its a quick and easy item to put together when you have unexpected company...you can add/subtract any of the veggies depending on whats on hand. Oh and before I forget...I got this idea from Saffron Hut. This blog, though no longer active, will always hold a special place in my heart. Its the first one I visited and discovered this amazing world of food blogs. Every post on it is a gem.

Corn Tostitos Appetizer

This Corn Salad and the Corn Tostitos Appetizer are off the EC's WYF - Soups/Salads/Starters event at Simple Indian Food.

Past event contributions

As I have mentioned earlier, in my non-blogger days I had participated in a few food blog events. I am posting all those contributions here in order to keep a track of them.


Bell Pepper Quesadilla & soup - Contributed to VoW-JFI -Bell Peppers event at Pooja's My Creative Ideas

Quesadilla, as you may know, is a part of the Mexican cuisine wherein veggies, cheese, meats etc. are stuffed between tortillas. The restaurant version is loaded with cheese, especially for a vegetarian like myself, this dish does not provide a balanced meal. Hence I started making it at home with more healthy options. Now we like the home-made version better and rarely have it in the restaurant. It is pretty easy to put together, hence a popular weeknight dinner in my home. I make several different types of fillings, for this event, it was the mixed bell peppers one. The accompanying soup is just an extension of this dish. Here's how I made it:

1 medium onion - chopped
1 each - green, red, yellow and orange bell pepper - chopped
1 15 oz. can of black beans - drained & rinsed
2 heaped tsp. cumin-coriander pwd.
Salt
2 tsp. oil

Heat the oil. Saute the onion till pink. Add the bell peppers. Saute 5-7 mins. Add the black beans, cumin-coriander pwd and salt. Mix well. Cook 2-3 mins. more. I like the smoky aroma that the mixture exudes at this point.

For making the quesadillas -

5 tortillas ( I used Mission brand Multi Grain tortillas)
Tabasco hot sauce
Shredded cheese ( I used Kraft Mexican style four cheese blend)

Fill half of each tortilla with 2-3 heaped tbsps of the mix. Drizzle few drops of Tabasco hot sauce per taste. Top with shredded cheese per taste. Fold each tortilla over into half. Roast on a skillet with 1-2 drops of oil until brown spots appear on both sides. I myself like it a bit charred, so I dry roast it on medium-high. Then cool it for a few seconds, cut into 2 or 4 wedges and serve.

I almost always make this accompanying easy soup with the quesadillas. Take about 3 to 4 tbsps. of the above mix. Add 3 to 4 tbsps of any store-brand salsa and about 2 to 3 cups of vegetable broth or water. Mix and simmer until heated thru. To serve, pour in a bowl & top with few crushed tortilla chips.

Tricolor salad - Contributed to Theme of the Week - Saffron, White & Green event at Pooja's My Creative Ideas

For the Independence Day 2008 event, I sent her a tri-color salad. The basic idea was from a recipe I had copied down a while back. I think it is from a cookbook by Nita Mehta, but I'm not 100% sure of that. Anyway, I did change it based on what I had on hand.

Its a pretty simple dish. Here's how I made it.

2 medium carrots - grated fine
1 c. macaroni - boiled with a little salt
2 tbsp. rajma - I used the canned variety
1 small green bell pepper - chopped fine
few sprigs of cilantro
1 green pepper - deseeded & chopped fine
3 cups plain yogurt
1 tsp chaat masala
Salt, sugar & Pepper to taste

Tie the yogurt in a fine muslin cloth & hang it to drip for 2 hrs. (The whey can be collected in a bowl & used for kneading roti dough.) To this creamy yogurt, add the chaat masala, salt, sugar & pepper to taste. Divide into 3 equal portions. Mix the grated carrots into one portion, boiled macaroni into the second and the chopped peppers & cilantro into the third.

Arrange the three layers in order to resemble our tiranga. Dig a hole in the center of the macaroni layer & fill with rajma beans for the chakra.

Soy Pulav - Contributed to JFI - Soya event at Sia's Monsoon Spice

1 cup basmati rice - washed & drained
1 small onion - chopped
1 cup soy granules - soaked in warm salted water for 10 mins., then drained
1 cup frozen peas & carrots
1 small tomato - chopped
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp ginger - garlic paste
2 tbsp yogurt
2 tsp cumin-coriander pwd
1 tsp red chilli pwd.
1 tsp garam masala pwd.
Few mint leaves & springs of cilantro
1 tbsp oil
2 tsp salt

Heat the oil. Add cumin seeds. When they sizzle, add the onion. Saute for 2-3 mins on medium high. Then add the ginger - garlic paste. Again saute a bit, add tomatoes & the frozen peas & carrots. Mix the masala powders, chopped mint & cilantro in the yogurt and add to the veggies. Give it a stir. Then add the rice and soy granules. Add about 2 cups water & salt. Bring to a quick boil on high, then reduce to medium low. Cover with a tight lid & cook for about 15 mins until rice is done.

Methi rice & Curd rice - Contributed to Rice Varieties Event at EC's Simple Indian Food

Methi Rice (Menthesoppu Anna learnt from my maternal aunt) -

1 cup rice - I used basmati and cooked it in the pressure cooker. Then cooled it by spreading on a plate.
2 bunches methi - The methi bunches I found in the Indian store that day were pretty small, hence I used 2. Wash and chop these.
For tempering - 2 tsp oil, mustard seeds, cumin seeds, hing, turmeric, udad dal.
1 tblsp. jaggery
1/2 tsp tamarind paste
1 tsp dhana - jira pwd.
2 tsp sambar pwd. (home - made or store - bought)
Salt

Heat the oil. Add mustard seeds. When they splutter, add cumin seeds, then hing, turmeric, udad dal.Fry for a min. Add the chopped methi leaves. Add about 1/2 c. water, jaggery, tamarind paste, dhana - jira pwd., sambar pwd. and salt. Cover and cook for 10 mins. Then add to the rice, mix well. Let this sit for 1/2 hr so the rice absorbs the flavors.

Curd rice (Also my maternal aunt's speciality) -

1 cup rice - I used basmati and cooked it in the pressure cooker. Then cooled it by spreading on a plate.
Heat 2 tsp oil. Add mustard seeds. When they splutter, add cumin seeds, then 2 broken dry red chillies, 4-5 curry leaves, 1/2 tsp ginger paste, 1 tsp udad dal. Fry for a min. Pour this on the rice. Add the yogurt, salt and sugar to taste. I also added some buttermilk to thin it out a bit. Add some fresh shredded coconut. Mix and refigerate until ready to enjoy. This is a lifesaver on a hot day.

Dal Palak Roti and Tofu Roti - Contributed to Roti Mela at Cooking 4 All Seasons

Dal Palak Roti

Tofu Roti

Dal Palak Roti -

This combines the goodness of lentils and spinach to make the everyday roti more flavorful. I made the dough using 1 cup whole wheat flour, 1/2 cup pressure-cooked moong & tur dals, 1/2 cup palak puree, salt, 1 tsp dhana-jira pwd, 1/4 tsp red chilli pwd, 1/4 tsp amchoor pwd. Spices can ofcourse be adjusted to taste. No/very little water is needed to form the dough. Then I rolled out the rotis and roasted on the skillet with a drop of oil on each side. This made 7 rotis. I served this with chanya-chi-amti (brown chana curry).

Tofu Roti -

I got this idea from a friend who, during her pregnancy, would add tofu while kneading her roti dough. For this roti I used 2 cups whole wheat flour, 1 12oz. packet firm tofu (drained), 4 tbsps kasuri methi, salt, sugar, dhana-jira pwd, red chilli pwd. Made a soft pliable dough (again - no/very less water in required). Rolled out and roasted the rotis with a drop of oil on each side. This was served with red chard & potato subji and cucumber-onion-tomato raita.

Coconut - ricotta burfi - Contributed to AFAM - Coconut at Tasty Palettes

1.5 cups dry shredded coconut
Part skim ricotta cheese - 15 oz. tub
1.5 cups milk - mava powder
1.75 cups sugar
1/4 tsp cardamom powder

Cook the ricotta cheese in a large non-stick frying pan on medium heat for about 8 mins., stirring frequently to avoid burning/sticking. At this point it loses most of its moisture and becomes like khoya (mava). Add the milk - mava powder. Mix well and cook another 5 mins. Add the sugar, mix well. The mixture will become liquidy again. Cook another 10 mins., stirring often. Add the coconut, mix and cook another 5 mins. Mixture will be quite thick at this time. Pour on to a greased thali. Pat down with a spatula. Let it cool completely. Then cut into desired shapes. Enjoy right away like I did or refrigerate!

Scrambled Tofu & Couscous Upma with Edamame beans - Contributed to Express Breakfasts Event at The Singing Chef

Scrambled Tofu

Couscous Upma with Edamame beans

Scrambled tofu -

Heat 2 tsps olive oil, add 1 tsp jeera seeds, then 1 small chopped onion and 1 chopped green chilli. Fry this for a few mins. In the meanwhile, drain 1 14 oz. packet of firm tofu and roughly chop it. Add this to the onions, increas the heat to high and saute the tofu for about 5 - 7 mins till all the water that the tofu leaves dries up.Then add turmeric, salt and pepper to taste. Garnish with chopped cilantro.

Couscous upma with edamame beans -

Soak 1 cup dry couscous in warm salted water for 5 mins. In the meanwhile, heat 2 tsp oil in a non-stick fry pan, temper with mustard seeds, cumin seeds and hing. Then add 1 small chopped onion, 2 dry red chillies (broken), handful of broken cashew pieces. Next go in about 2 cups of frozen edamame beans (soy beans) and few tblsps of water. Cover and cook this for about 5 mins. Then mix in the soaked couscous, salt, sugar and lemon juice. Garnish with fresh shredded coconut and chopped coriander.

Chilli Paneer Sandwich - Contributed to the Sandwich Event at Food-n-More

The basic idea for this sandwich is from a cookbook by Nita Mehta. I had noted down this recipe from my friend a while back, can't recall the name of the book. It is called Chilli Paneer Footlong in that book.

For my sandwich, I did make quite a few modifications (for the ingredients I had on hand). Here's how I made it.

4 slices of 12-grain bread (store brand)
Butter
Shredded mozarella cheese
1 spring onion - chopped

For the tomato spread -
1 large clove of garlic - chopped
2 tomatoes - chopped
1 tbsp regular ketchup
1 tbsp Maggi Hot & Sweet Ketchup
1/2 tsp ova/ajwain
1/4 tsp Degi mirchi pwd
1 tbsp olive oil
Salt, pepper

For the chilli paneer -
1 cup paneer cubes (Store-bought paneer, cut into small cubes)
1/2 tbsp soy sauce
1/2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
1/2 tsp Degi mirchi pwd
Salt, pepper

I marinated the paneer cubes in the above mix for about 1/2 hr, then shallow fried them in 2 tbsp olive oil.

Prepped the tomato spread by heating oil, adding garlic, frying till light brown, then adding all the other ingredients and cooking few mins.

To prep the sandwich, I butterred the slice lightly & grilled in on my grilling pan, then laid on some of the tomato spread, topped with the paneer, shredded cheese & finally garnished with some spring onion slices. I left it open-faced & served a simple salad of greens, cucumber & shredded carrots on the side.

BTW, I relaced the tomato spread with pizza sauce for my 4-yr old daughter, who loves paneer, but has not yet gotten used to the heat in our food. She loved her mini pizza!

Chaat salad

Made this yesterday as part of a friend's babyshower potluck lunch.

3 cups sprouted & boiled mung beans
1 can garbanzo beans - drained
1 English cucumber - diced
2 tomatoes - chopped
1/2 can baby beets - chopped
1/2 medium onion - chopped
About 1 cup shredded carrots
3 green chillies
Handful of roasted, lightly salted peanuts
1 tsp salt or to taste
1/2 tsp sugar
1 tsp chaat masala
Cilantro for garnishing

I boiled the sprouted mung beans in the pressure cooker for 1 whistle, then turned the heat off & left the cooker to cool.
The chillies can be deseeded for lesser heat.
Mix all the ingredients. Chill for 1 hr.
You can add boiled cubed potatoes too and avoid/change proportion of any of the veggies/beans. No hard & fast rules, but does turn out yummy any way & is healthy to boot!