Firni (rice pudding)

Not long time ago, I had invited some friends for dinner. As a result I was engrossed in deciding on a suitable menu that should be gorged down by one and all. Being a north Indian, satisfying a south Indian palate is not relatively easy as you have no idea whether they will even think of sniffing (smelling is too genteel word for that weird look) food cooked in mustard oil forget about eating. I remember a funny incident when a north Indian family had come down to Mangalore for treatment. They had a kid so did not want to stay in a hotel. After a long search, a family agreed to give them a room on rent wherein they can happily cook. Once the mom was heating mustard oil in order to add some tadka to the dal. It is important that the oil should reach a smoking point before adding the spices. As soon as the smoke filled the kitchen and  wafted around the owners’ kitchen, the landlady came running and screaming, ‘Open the window and the doors, the LPG cylinder is leaking……run, run…come out,’. Looking at the commotion the, the tenant-lady came out. She sniffed but couldn't find a trace of any LPG smell. Still perplexed, the landlady came to her and after exchanging some futile glances and Q&A, the mom sheepishly revealed that the smell was coming from the mustard oil in which she was cooking. The landlady was aghast at the fact that how on earth people can cook and eat in such awful smelling oil. So moral of the story ‘One man’s oil….I mean food can be another man’s LPG…no no I mean poison’.

So now you know why I was everything except at peace. After deciding upon the starters and the main course, my heart settled for mouthwatering and subtle sweetdish firni. The best thing about the dish is that it is hassle free and comes out to be ok even by any beginners’ in home cooking. Apart from few ingredients, the main thing that is required is patience while stirring the milk so that it doesn't burn or stick to the pan. So guys here’s the recipe…Bon Appetit.

Ingredients:

1 litre full cream milk

4 tbs jeera samba, govindbhog or any aromatic rice

¼ tsp cardamom powder

2 cups sugar

1 pinch of saffron

4 drops of kewra essence

Almonds and pistachios slivers

Method:

Soak the rice in water for about an hour. Put the milk on boil. Grind the rice along with some of the milk so that it is smooth in consistency. You can either use whole sugar or powder in a grinder along with some cardamom seeds. If not then you can add whole sugar granules and cardamom powder. Add the rice paste and stir continuously so that no lumps are formed. Cook for 20 min till the paste becomes creamy and rice is cooked through. Add the sugar, cardamom powder and cook. Add the saffron and kewra essence and mix. Remove from heat.  Pour in earthen bowls or any dish of your choice. Garnish with almonds and pista. Cool and chill and serve.

Bodi aur alu ki sabji (long beans n potato curry)

Whenever I plan to post one of my recipes I always end up thinking whether people will actually bother to look at it….will they take time to ponder over my recipes and actually cook it, not that I am not sure about them but because they are plethora of blogs catering to our taste buds and you really have to offer something different or appealing in order to grab the eyeballs. There are blogs that offer recipes with mind-boggling and exotic ingredients that I don’t or won’t buy just for the heck of it. I don’t know why but I like to settle for flavors that are earthier, more homely or more motherly to be precise when it comes to choose or try recipes. I like to stay in that cocoon of the comfort food that has something to do with my childhood or my mom or my daughter.

Blame it on the weekend blues or the fat yummy paneer roll that I had to give a miss at the bakery yesterday…….it’s true that I am feeling a little blue. It’s not very long since I started this blog and I constantly haggle my hubby for a positive feedback so that I post at least few recipes a month. I can’t function without the right amount of impetus provided by my near and ones and guess what! Few of the readers actually came forward to pass on that precious feedback just in time when I was planning to abandon my efforts. Thanks Geri and Vinaya…..from the bottom of my heart for the encouraging words.

Now coming back to the recipe, long beans that more or less looks like the cousins of the French bean is a common vegetable found in the kitchen be it north or the south. This recipe, again my mom’s, (wondering how mothers’ tend to influence us so much, always) is a simple curry cooked when the phali/bora/bodi aka long beans are in the season. We used to relish it with steaming rice, dal and a mango pickle. The subtle flavors of the curry with light spices is perfect for light dinner with especially enjoyed with chapatis and salad of your choice.

Ingredients:

2 cups long beans chopped in 1 inch pieces

2 medium potatoes cut in even chunks

2 medium onions sliced

3 medium tomatoes chopped

3 green chilies chopped

1’ inch ginger grated

10 cloves of garlic crushed

Spices:

1 tsp cumin powder

1 tsp coriander powder

½ black pepper powder

1 tsp red chili powder

½ tsp turmeric powder

½ tsp kitchen king masala (optional)

¼ tsp garam masala

For seasoning:

1 tsp whole mustard seeds

2 bay leaves

2 tbs mustard oil (can use any veg oil)

Green coriander leaves for garnishing

Method:

After you string and nip the head of the beans, cut in 2 inch pieces. Heat ½ tsp of the oil and sauté the beans on medium flame till it gets a light colour. Remove and keep aside. Now heat the remaining oil and add the mustard seeds. Let them crackle. Add the bay leaves, a pinch of grated ginger and the chopped green chillies. Let the chillies and ginger get some colour. Add the sliced onion and stir for a min. Add potatoes and mix .Lower the flame and cover for 2 min. You will notice the onions are softer now and the potatoes are half cooked. Tip in the tomatoes first, followed by remaining ginger, garlic, all the spices including salt except the garam masala. No need to mix. Cover for 4-5 min on low flame. You will notice tomatoes are soft and potatoes will be cooked. Give it a mix. Add the sautéed beans and mix. Cover for another 2-3 min. Add ½ cup water if you want thick gravy 1 cup if you want the gravy to be thin. Bring to a boil and simmer for a minute. Garnish with chopped green coriander leaves and serve with rice or chapatis.

Besan ke parathe (Indian bread with wheat n gram flour)

It happens to me sometimes that I just don feel like making or eating a meal. Well! that just impossible in any normal Indian home because a meal is a meal and a meal is really a meal. Huh! I mean who said that.....Actually who has set these rules....us or our ancestors. Cant we just crave for something out of nothing. 
Now friends please don't think I forgot to eat and that's why I m hallucinating....I m not. I do feel like settling for a plain paratha with just loads of pickle and still feel the satisfaction of a king. Is it really possible? 

The besan ka paratha is one of the parathas which saves me from any painstaking pre-preparation and makes my mouth water while m still making them. The myth buster recipe calls for minimal effort and I love the taste of it with anything. Be it curd, pickle or even just plain.......its worth it. Some people might find it a bit too plain or dry but I feel sorry for them good for myself ......Now come on how many recipes are there which require minimal effort and still be tasty and mind it healthy too. Look on guys.....happy cookin ....But dont abandon my blog if you dont like it.... he he he (my sheepish grin).

Ingredients:

2 cups wheat flour
1cup besan (gram flour)
3 tbs soyabean flour (optional)
2 medium onions chopped finely
3-4 green chillies finely chopped
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
1 tsp ajwain (carom seeds)
1 tsp kalonji (nigella seeds)
2 tbs oil
salt to taste

Method:
You can change the ratio of the gram flour and the wheat flour according to your taste. More the gramflour more crispy is the paratha. I like the taste of this besan/gram flour based paratha as the besan gives different texture and taste to it. I do make paratha using other flours also but I ll discuss some other day. Take a big bowl and add the flours. Add the salt, ajwain seeds (good for digestion), kalonji seeds, chopped onion, turmeric powder, chillies and the 2 tbs oil. Rub with your fingers till it resembles breadcrumbs. Now knead a stiff dough using little water at a time. It will become little messy towards the end but dont worry. Just add few drops of oil and smoothen the dough. Keep aside for 10 min. Roll into round chapatis and fry on low to medium flame on a tawa with least oil possible. Cook on both sides till crispy. The low heat might take time to cook but the results are crispier that the usual parathas. So worth all the efforts. Serve with pickles, curd or just roll and go the Nigella way....I mean roll and take a big bite and chew your way to gluttony glory.

Baigan Bahar (eggplant with carrot and radish)

My instincts says that after seeing the name of the dish, all the non-veg brigade or those who hate the sight of an eggplant, will wear a smirk for sure. Well! I can’t blame them. The eggplant has not been able to earn a very decent reputation among the veggies and is often thought to be meant for the boring grown-ups. I know kids have only one vowel related to eggplant and that is ewwww! But …..yes there’s always a but….things can change and so can your likes and dislikes. 

This dish is prepared especially during the months around Durga Puja and the Chath Puja when we were not allowed to eat or cook with onion and garlic. Simple and without any overpowering spices it is made in such a ways that you can hardly deduce the presence of an eggplant. I tricked my daughter into eating it and she at least agreed to try it (not to forget her-what-the-hell-is-this expression) Though she managed to pick almost all the green coriander leaves I put in her serving…..But still I wore my best smile till the end….almost till the end (God ! how much time these kids take to eat when we are running short of patience).

Ingredients:

Baigan(eggplant):500grms (4 medium ones)

2 medium sized carrots (cut in sticks)

2 medium potatoes (cut in sticks or fingerchips)

2 radish(cut in sticks)

5 medium tomatoes chopped

1 inch ginger grated

3 green chillies slit

1 tsp turmeric powder

1/2 tsp sugar

½ tsp garam masala

Salt to taste

½ cup green coriander leaves chopped

For tempering:

1tsp cumin seeds

2 bayleaves

2tbs mustard oil

Method: Make sure while cutting all the veggies like eggplant, potato, radish and carrot in  same shape. I go for the simple fingerchips style as it makes cooking easier. As we do not add water to the dish it is important that they are of same size so that they cook evenly. As for the tomatoes they should be ripe and just roughly chop them the way you like.

Now heat the oil in a kadai. I use mustard oil as I love the flavor of it. You can use other veg oil if you want. Now add the cumin seeds and let it splutter. Now add bayleaf. Wait till the aroma comes. Now, it’s time to lower the heat and add the grated ginger and the slit green chillies together and cover the pan immediately to avoid the splutter. You have let the green chillies take a nice colour. It’s time to add the eggplant first. Mix and cover for 5min on low heat. Add the potatoes, carrots and radish now and mix. Cover for 5min on low heat. Now add first the tomatoes, salt, sugar and turmeric powder but do not mix. Just cover for 5 more min. When you lift the cover after 5min, you will notice the tomatoes have become tender and the salt and turmeric have taken in the moisture. Mix well slowly and cover for last time for 5min. By this time the eggplant will be all mush mushy so please do not worry. This is what we want. All the veggies should come together but take care not mix too much. When still on heat add the garam masala and green coriander leaves and mix. It gives a nice aroma to the whole dish. Serve with rotis or parathas.

Tips: I insist on choosing tender eggplants with minimum seeds otherwise they won’t cook properly. You can even add other seasonal veggies like the cauliflower. The radish is very unusual in this dish but trust me it’s yummy once everything comes together as a dish. The cooking has to be done on low flame once you add the veggies as there is no water being added to the dish so ladies! Have patience and your fruits of labour will be a sweet…

 I mean .. a yummy  one.