Potatoes in Peanut & Onion gravy (Urulai Thiratal)

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

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

Off to the recipe now

Ingredients

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

Method

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

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

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

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

Goat Cheese & Cilantro Spread (Kothamali Chutney)(East meets West)

This is a true fusion recipe which brings together the best of the west and the east - Cheese (all kinds) has pervaded the Indian cuisine for a long time now - With this recipe, I bring to you a traditional south Indian chutney made with cilantro and red chilies and other flavors (see recipe below). With adequate spicing, this chutney can easily be blended into a creamy goat cheese to make a fine spread for veggies or crusty warm bread.

Another post for Avant Garde Cookies, this is a spread which can be whipped up at short notice

Cilantro Chutney

Ingredients

4 bunches of fresh cilantro, pre-washed and stems removed

2 green chilies

2 red chilies

1 tbsp urad dal

A pinch of asafetida

¼ tsp of tamarind paste (optional)

2- 3 tsp of sesame oil

2 tbsp of water

Method
Sautee the urad, chilies, asafetida in the oil.
Add the cilantro leaves and cook for a few minutes until the water has evaporated.
Add the tamarind paste and mix it in well to the leaves.
Cool and grind, using very little water

For the Spread
1 Ounce of goat cheese
2tbsp of chutney

Method
Whisk the cheese into the chutney and keep refrigerated until use. Enjoy with raw veggies or over toasted bread or pita or as a spread for a sandwich

Homemade Nachos

In this weeks post for Avant Garde Cookies,  we are trending Mexican foods and I was running late with my post and decided to keep it simple - I had bought these awesome jalapeño infused tortillas.
I cut them up in triangles and fried them to make some really tasty and delicious tortillas -Now that you know it can be as simple as that, give it a shot the next time you buy soft tortillas. For those who prefer to make their own tortillas from scratch, you can fry them directly - but i think the pre-made ones serve this purpose well - A quick fix dish to serve with you favorite salsa -here is a recipe for a neato salsa or bean dip

Adios Amigos

Garden Veggie Burger

I was not kidding when I wrote on FB that this dish is versatile and international in its appeal - it is called by different names depending on where  - One ma's cutlet is another man's patty and one man's vadai is another's falafel and patty to one is burger to yet another and so on - it can morph into the name you choose for it since all it is a luscious, delicious vegetable preparation that can be eaten by itself or with a bun/pita. The best part is it is loaded with  quinoa flakes thus making it a highly nutritious and protein enriched all in one burger.  So you can reasonable avoid all other carbs and eat it solely.

This was an idea conceived literally 20-25 minutes before it became what it is in the pictures below - Opened the fridge door, saw a couple of zucchinis which were aging but still intact, and some fresh heads of broccoli - I knew exactly what I wanted to make and how.

Finely grate the veggies in question - take a cup of besan or chick pea flour, 2 cups of quinoa flakes and 1 tbsp of freshly homemade sambar powder of spices of your choice - the only other thing I added was garlic flakes.

NO WATER needed - The juice from the veggies is enough to mix into a thick batter
Spray your pan, make lemon sized balls of veggie mix and pat down to flatten
Broil for 15-18 minutes
or Use your Kuzhi paniyaram dish to make them like Falafels.

This is my protein rich recipe for this month's Avant Garde Cookies first post.


Ingredients:

• 3 medium sized broccoli heads finely grated
• 2 medium zucchinis finely grated with skin on
• 2+cups of Quinoa flakes
• 1 cup of besan (chickpea flour)
• (spice it the way you like best - garlic, green chili, ground black pepper or ginger)
• I used 1 tbsp of Sambar powder - (this contains cumin, coriander, dry cayenne chilies, split peas, sesame, fenugreek, turmeric and a couple of other ingredients (recipe to follow soon) 
• 1tsp garlic flakes
• a fist full of peanuts, ground (entirely optional)
• salt
• NO WATER

Method

1. Add the dry besan, sambar powder, salt and garlic flakes in a large bowl and mix them
2. Add the grated veggies and mix in with the dry flour and spices
3. Considering how much water zucchini and broccoli can let out, the mix may be a little liquidy
4. Now add 1 cup of quinoa and stir in
5. Add the second cup and check consistency after stirring in -
6. If it is still too sticky, add more flakes 
7. Spray a baking pan and make lemon-sized balls of the batter
8. place and flatten to patty style
9. Broil for about 15-18 minutes depending on your oven
10. I turned them over at about 14 minutes
11. If you have the dippy donut pan, you can spray them lightly and use that as well for making this  - will look more like falafels. 
12. Enjoy with buns, pitas or just like that.

Sabudana Khichdi - A Maharastrian staple sensation :)

This is one dish I have had several times at my sister's home in Pune and loved. I have been told that tapioca is a high calorie grain and if not done in a proper manner, this khichdi could be an oil guzzler - I have had a couple of sticky gooey efforts in the past simply because I refused to use the oil, but I'll be darned if I did not do it my way and yet make a hit of it - recently had it at someone's place who happened to be from Maharastra and I asked her and she led me to none other than Divya of Chef in You fame - I checked it out and the realized the two Key things to do to make this are
1) you must use the big sabudana for this dish and 2) you must soak in water just covering the top of the tapioca overnight or for a minimum of  5-8 hours

Garnish, spices, herbs etc are changeable and up to personal preferences. But peanuts are a must :)
It turned out spectacularly and I am happy that this ghost will rest, conquered - booyah!

Serving size -4-5
Ingredients

• 1.5 cups Sabudana (tapioca) soaked overnight in water barely covering the pearls
• 1/2 cup crushed peanuts
• 1 med. onion
• 1/2 cup grated coconut
• 3 spicy green chilies
• 1 tsp grated ginger
• curry leaves
• 1tsp of olive/sunflower/corn oil

For tempering

• 1/2 tsp cumin
• 1/2 tsp urad dal
• a pinch of asafetida

For garnish

• Finely chopped cilantro

Method

1. Loosen the soaked tapioca pearls to separate
2. In a pan, sautee the urad cumin and asafetida followed up with the onions, ginger and green chilies
3. When they are getting caramelized, add the sabudana and stir in -you will notice them getting translucent from being solid white
4. Add salt at this point and mix well 
5. Follow up with the crushed peanuts
6. In a small pan, lightly dry roast the grated coconut to get rid of the rawness
7. Add finally to the Khichdi and mix well
8. Remove from flame 
9. Garnish with cilantro
10. Serve HOT

NOTE Common additions to this khichdi are finely cubed and roasted potatoes. You can be as creative as you want with your veggie additions. I plan to be the next time around

Enjoy folks until the next time, signing off with love.

Banana & Coconut Pradhaman/ Payasam

I am not usually a fruit in a payasam sort of person - I love me milk with sugar and cardamom, at times with freshly cooked rice. But the challenge for Avant Garde Cookies for the hush-hush week that Roshni laid on me was using fruits or whatever to make a pradhaman. Thanks for the push, Roshni - We actually loved it and it was almost a meal to have a cup of that, as a replacement for breakfast.

A very simple and quick to put together recipe.

Ingredients

• 4 ripe bananas
• 1 can condensed milk
• 1 can evaporated milk
• 1 cup of sweetened coconut (grated)
• 1tsp of cardamom
• 7-8 crushed cashews
• 1tsp of coconut oil
• 1tsp of butter

Method

1. Empty condensed milk and the evaporated milk in a sauce pan and whisk together. 
2. Pour into a mixer along with the bananas and blend until smooth
3. Pour back into the saucepan and start heating
4. In a separate pan, lightly brown the coconut and cashews with 1 tsp of butter
5. Add to the boiling mix 
6. Allow it to cook with the pradhaman for about 2-3 minutes
7. Add 1 tsp of coconut oil before serving 

Enjoy :)

Garden Fresh Salsa

When you have a garden that gives you the freshest ingredients to make the finest salsa, I say, heck why not make the most of it! :) The garden truly is on its way out with the chill of Autumn setting in. Nevertheless that chilies are putting out their last produce for the season as are the tomatoes. The cilantro is still going strong although not for much longer, perhaps and the bell peppers are finally making an appearance. So whatchya waiting for? That's right! Get that salsa made already, will you?!
Chop up some onions and garlic and squeeze some fresh lime juice into the above ingredients and a smidgeon of salt and voila - And what is the secret ingredient? Habanero peppers of course :)
A quarter goes a looooooooong way so be judicious in your use of this dynamite pepper

Ingredients

• 2- 3 medium sized tomaotes
• 1 small onion
• 1/2 cup of fresh cilantro
• 1/2 habanero
• 1/2 bell pepper
• 2cloves of fresh garlic
• 1-2 tsp of lime/lemon juice
• salt

Method

1. Chop all ingredients finely if you do not have a mixer that can make the salsa for you
2. Otherwise, chop roughly and put in your vitamix or magic bullet and let it go until it is blended but retains some texture
3. Refrigerate immediately if you are not using right away

NOTE: this tastes best fresh or made half an hour before use - keep refrigerated for best taste.

Enjoy amigos!

Nutella Cookies

My first post for Avant Garde Cookies this month was a challenge - to make a dish with 5 ingredients or less - now as an Indian, you will know we use a lot of ingredients to make our food and I was turning a few recipes in my mind, including the raita I posted last ... But as luck would have it, my yoga teacher posted this cookie recipe with 4 ingredients and I was jumping with joy - Yes!!!!!! There is my post for the event :) A recipe from My Tasty Kitchen

Simple and delicious Nutella Cookies -Makes about 22- 8 minutes to prepare and 8 minutes to bake and voila!

Ingredients

• 1 cup nutella
• 1cup all purpose flour
• 1/2cup of sugar
• 1egg

Method

1. Heat oven to 350 F
2. blend all 4 ingredients together 
3. Make 1 inch balls 
4. Flatten with the base of a cup
5. Bake for 8 minutes

Goes to Avant Garde Cookies -Check out the other AGC thoughout this week 
Anusha, Jayanthi, Kavitha, Radhika, Veena, Priya S, Roshni