A tasty dose of Haemoglobin and protein!

Beetroot-Dal Paratha

Parathas! The word immediately brings to my mind mouth watering memories of the many different kinds of parathas I've eaten over the years. Stuffed parathas, plain parathas, colorful veggie parathas! Nothing can beat the fulfillment of having a hot paratha with some raita/curd and pickle! :) <drool drool!>. Parathas- made with whole wheat flour and a variety of veggies are a healthy one-item-meal option. Definitely one of my favorite lunch box items back in college! Not one of your easier dishes to make though, as it involves some work from kneading the dough to rolling out the parathas.

Since parathas are made with practically all kinds of veggies on this earth (palak/mooli/onion and the list goes on..), I'm sure beetroot paratha must have been made/eaten by many of us. I do not recall having eaten this however. My hubby is not a big fan of different kinds of vegetables and its always a challenge to make him eat them- veggies being healthy is secondary, primary concern being, I love veggies and I want to eat them ;)

Beetroots are great sources of haemoglobin. So I thought of making parathas outa them. I used some masoor dal along with beetroots in this recipe, which I think made the parathas really soft and added a slightly different and pleasant fragrance and taste to the parathas. Turned out really tasty, hubby happy, me happy! :D

What you need :

2 medium sized beets

1/2 cup masoor dal

Whole wheat flour

1/4 cup finely chopped coriander/cilantro

1 tsp grated ginger

1 tsp grated garlic or use ginger garlic paste

1 tsp garam masala powder

1 tsp cumin coriander powder

2 tsp kasoori methi 

Red chilly powder 

Salt

Oil 

Method :

Wash the beets and dal and cook them together in a pressure cooker with some turmeric and about a tsp of sugar for about 3 whistles.

Once it cools down, peel the beets, check how soft they are. Accordingly, mash/grate the beets.

Add ginger, garlic, spices, cilantro, salt. Mix well.

Now add flour and knead. Add as much flour as the mixture will hold to make a pliable dough.

The dough should be on the softer side. (This dough can be stored in the fridge for 2 - 3 days)

To make parathas: Take desired quantity of dough and roll it into parathas. Roast them on a tava with some oil. Serve hot with yogurt and pickle! Enjjjoooyyyy!!! :D

P.S: Have some kind of layering/folds while rolling the parathas. For eg: triangular fold, square folds, roll and coil like a laccha paratha.

Simple Mom style kadhi.

Palak Kadhi

Winter brings with it cold weather, depressing darkness and lots of laziness! What better in such weather than the comfort of an easy and wholesome meal?! Palak kadhi was one of the popular accompaniments with rice at home when we needed a break from the heavy dal/sambar routine. I always took this dish for granted and the day it sunk into me that I'm getting married, going away and will no longer have access to mom's cooking <sad sigh> , that very day I asked mom to make Palak kadhi and decided I had to learn how to make it. :) In fact this was one of the first few dishes I made in my new home and hubb loves it! Even when I moved in for a year with my roommate, this was the first dish I made. She loved it too and makes it even now! 

 

Palak kadhi is an easy to make, healthy, light and super tasty dish. Have it with some steaming rice with papad and pickle or make a soup  like meal of it! Add plenty of palak(Spinach) for your tasty dose of iron! The best part? Its ready in about 10 minutes! 

What you need : (Serves about 2)

Palak (Spinach) chopped - About 1 cup. Put in as much as you want..More the better/healthier.

Ginger grated - about 1 tsp 

Chopped green chillies(about 1-2 tsp) or 2-3 dry red chillies - more if you like it hot!

Jeera (Cumin seeds) - 1/2 tsp

Turmeric - 1/2 tsp

Hing - a pinch

Curry leaves - 3-4 (optional)

Besan (Gram flour) - 2 tbsp

Yogurt (Curd/Dahi) - 3 to 4 tbsp 

Dhaniya Jeera Powder(Cumin coriander powder) - 1/2 tsp (optional) 

Sugar - 1 tsp

Oil - 1tsp 

Water - 2-3 cups

Salt

What you do :

Mix besan and curd with very little water.

Heat Oil in a pan. When it is hot, add jeera, hing, turmeric, ginger, chillies and curry leaves in the same order.

Add chopped spinach. Saute for some time (about 3-4 mins or till its a little tender).

Then add the besan/curd mixture. Saute for a minute.

Add water. Add less water if you want it thick/soup like. More if you want it to go with rice. 

Add salt, sugar and dhaniya-jeera powder.

Boil for about 4 mins and then simmer on low heat for a minute or two.

Serve hot hot hot! :) 

Desi Style Pizza Sauce

Here's the recipe for an Indian version of Pizza sauce/ Pasta Sauce. Use it to make spicy pizzas with the ready pizza base or even to make snacks like bread pizza. 

Ingredients:

2 cups Pasta sauce easily available in Dept stores (I use Pasta sauce as it already comes pre loaded with veggies) - You could substitute this with fresh veggies(Onion and Green peppers) and Tomato puree.

Garlic about 4-5 cloves.

1 green chilly finely chopped

Chopped onion(optional if using pasta sauce)

Red Chilly powder - as hot as u want the sauce to be.

1 tsp Coriander + Cumin powder

1 tsp garam masala powder

Lots of finely chopped cilantro(coriander) leaves (It goes very well with the sour tomato taste!)

1 tsp oil

1 tsp jeera(cumin)

Salt and Sugar as needed.

Method:

Heat oil in a pan. 

Add jeera. After it splutters add garlic and green chillies.

(If not using pasta sauce : Add the onion and green peppers, fry till golden brown, then add tomato puree.)

Pour in the pasta sauce.

Add the masala powders, adjust sugar and salt.Let it cook for about 2 mins.

Toss in the chopped cilantro leaves. Cook for about a minute.

Take off heat and cool. This sauce can be stored in the fridge for about a week.

PS: I sometimes add chole masala or pulav masala in place of garam masala for that slightly different flavor. It turns out really good! :)

Quick anytime Snack.

English Muffin Pizza

After coming to the US I've seen and tasted the most diverse kinds of bread. There are bread varieties for lunch and sandwiches, breads to go with salads and soups, bread for breakfast etc.... It basically represents different nationalities of breads coming together be it French, English or Italian.

One such interesting and popular breakfast variety are the English Muffins, having a distinct chewy texture. Get a batch in your next grocery shopping and use it for interesting snacks or eat it plain with some scrambled egg and cheese for a wholesome breakfast. :) 

I happened to have some pizza sauce (Click here for recipe) ready - (which is basically tomato puree/pasta sauce with an Indian spicy twist to it :D ) and some frozen corn leading to quick and tasty English Muffin mini Pizzas. Simple tomato ketchup should work as well.

What you need :

English Muffins

Pizza sauce

Frozen corn 

Chopped Onions, Green Peppers 

Other toppings of your choice - Mushrooms, Paneer - or anything you want to toss!!

Grated Mozzarella cheese

Method:

Toast the English Muffins in a toaster till they are slightly crisp - about 2 mins or more. (Crispy helps, because the next part in the microwave can make it soggy).

Spread the pizza sauce on the muffins. 

Add cheese and toppings.

Add some pepper if you wish.

Microwave for about 30 seconds - 1 min till the cheese melts.

Ready to gobble!!! :)