Stuffed Eggplant

Stuffed brinjals are prepared in bunch of different ways. Here is a version I love! :)
This recipe requires some effort. Prepare the masala, stuff it in the baby brinjals and then put the dish together. So make it when you have time and I assure you, your tongue and tummy will thank you! ;)

What you need

Indian eggplans/baby brinjals - 6
Finely chopped onion - 1 small
Finley chopped cilantro - 2-3 tbsp or to suit your taste
Tamarind paste - 1tbsp (Or soak a tsp of tamarind and extract pulp)
Jaggery or sugar - 1tsp
Garam masala to taste
Red chilly powder to taste
Salt
Oil - 2tbsp

To Dry Roast:
Garlic - 4-5 cloves
Peanuts - 2 tbsp
Sesame seeds - 1tbsp
Whole red chilly(dry) -3 (Add more if you like the heat)
Coriander seeds(dhaniya) - 1 tbsp
Cumin seeds(Jeera) - 1 tsp
Dry or fresh grated coconut - 1tbsp
Curry leaves - 10 leaves or a sprig
Turmeric powder/Haldi - 1/2 tsp
Hing/Asafoetida- a pinch

Method:
1. Dry roast all the ingredients under "To dry roast" on low to medium heat until the spices are aromatic. Add the coconut towards the end once the masalas are fragrant.
2. Once the masala cools down, grind it with tamarind pulp and jaggery or sugar and little bit of water to make a thick paste.
3. Wash and stem the baby eggplants. Make a "+" shaped cut at the bottom of the eggplant. You don't want to cut it all the way or they will fall apart when you stuff them with the masala.

4. Add finely chopped onions and cilantro to the masala paste. Add salt, red chilly powder(if using) and garam masala. I sometimes use rasam powder in place of garam masala and that turns out really well too! Check and adjust seasoning.
5. Stuff this masala paste into the brinjals. There should be some extra masala left over. Keep it aside
6. Heat oil in a non stick pan. It is tastier if you add a little more oil. :)
7. Add some hing and turmeric and immediately add the baby eggplants. Coat the eggplants with oil very gently, making sure the eggplants and stuffing remains intact.
8. Cover the pan with a lid and cook on medium flame, occasionally turning the eggplants so that they cook evenly on all sides and don't burn. Do not add any water at this point.
9. When eggplants are half done or they are shriveled, add the remaining masala paste and fry for a couple of minutes. Then add some water to yield a gravy, that's not too runny.
10. Cook covered till the eggplants are cooked through.
11. Serve hot garnished with cilantro. 

Note: I also added some potatoes this time.

Serving suggestions : This dish is traditionally eaten with the Jowar bhaakri/jolad rotti. Tastes very good with roti/paratha/chapati. Or rice and ghee!

Broken wheat and barley payasam (sweet dish)

I cannot even start counting the number of sweet dishes we make back home. There are many sweets, all unique to their own region. Rosgulla makes you think of Kolkotta, Sakhar or Naarli bhaat from Maharashtra, Shavige Pheni - a classic Bangalore wedding dish and Mandige being a north karnataka wedding staple.
Apart from these there are your universal sweets like laddoos and payasams (kheer) which have their own variations in every region. One such festive sweet typical to our cooking was "Godhi kuttida paayasam" - literally translates to pounded wheat payasam. I believe the wheat is coarsely pounded and cooked with jaggery, chana dal and the usual kheer ingredients like milk, nuts, coconut, flavoring. The resulting texture is very unique with a very chewy yet juicy wheat granules. Being in the US, I would never go through the effort of getting wheat pounded and the whole procedure, given my (anti-)fondness for sweets ;) :P

But one of my experiments during a quick fix dessert/sweet dish using barley and the broken wheat tasted a lot like the original payasam. It uses jaggery which is a fresh change from the usual sugary sweets, is relatively healthy due to the addition of barley, daliya, chana dal and it comes together pretty quickly, easy to make! I personally love the chewy juicy texture and tons of nuts. Give it a try!

It is also a good breakfast option(in moderation and you could make it less sweet) because of the good grains and nuts - especially since it stores well in the fridge and can be re heated in the microwave oven easily.

This payasam tastes best when served warm.

What you need:
Broken wheat/Daliya - 1/2 cup
Barley - 1/4th cup
Chana Dal/Bengal gram - a little less than 1/4th cup

Ghee - about 3 tbsp. Adjust as per your taste/health. more = tastier :P
Jaggery - about 3/4th cup. Grated or cut into chunks. Alter per your taste. I like a low to moderate sweet dish.
Saffron strands
Cardamom powder/Elaichi powder
Chopped Nuts - Cashews+almonds. You could add raisins and other nuts too.

Milk

Method:
1) Wash the dal, barley and wheat till water runs clear. Drain.
2) Heat 1 tbsp ghee in a pan. Add the nuts. Fry till they are golden. Then add the drained dal, barley and wheat. Roast on medium flame till lightly golden and a mild aroma wafts out.
3) Pressure cook the nuts and roasted wheat mixture with roughly equal quantity of water and milk. The quantity of liquid is about 2-3 cups. Cook for 4-5 whistles.
4) Once pressure releases, start making the jaggery mixture. Heat remaining ghee in a non stick pan.
5) Add jaggery and keep stirring on medium low flame till jaggery melts. Add saffron. Alternatively you could add saffron soaked in warm milk. But I found that adding it to the hot jaggery brings out the flavor well.
6) Add in the cooked wheat mixture and enough milk to get a runny consistency. It will thicken a bit. Add more milk if you'd like it more runny/liquid-y.
7) Add some elaichi powder/other spice as per your taste. Keep cooking it on a medium flame till it boils and is homogenous.
8) Check taste and add more jaggery or milk as per your preference.

Note: I usually like the nuts in my dessert to be on the softer side and full of flavor. That's the reason I add nuts in the very beginning. Alternatively, if you prefer crunchy nuts you could keep the fried nuts aside and add it in the very end.

Spinach and beans rice

I love one pot meals! Nothing beats the convenience of having a nutritious easy meal ready while you are rushing through your morning routine with a jumping/screaming/crying/clinging toddler. :)
A simple rice and beans dish with tons of spinach, minimally spiced and yet super flavorful -- served with a sprinkling of grated cheese is what we had for lunch today. The black beans add protein and flavor, chopped spinach adds flavor and nutrition. All this with the basic simple flavoring of ginger+garlic+green chillies which can never go wrong. I made this dish(rather it turned out :P ) a little porridgy - not your pilaf kinda rice with separate grains. It tasted awesome with some molten cheese on top.
Cooked it all in a pressure cooker and the dish came together in about 30 mins -- including the cooking time and time to release pressure(when you don't need to be around!)

What you need:
1/2 cup black beans - soak them overnight.

1 + 1/4 th cup rice

1/2 large red onion finely chopped

1 tomato finely chopped

3 cups chopped spinach

1 tsp jeera / cumin seeds

1 tbsp oil

salt to taste

2 tsp paste of ginger garlic and green chilies - I had this paste ready and used it.you could substitute it with finely chopped garlic ginger and green chillies per your taste.
Grated cheese to serve

Method:

1) Heat oil in a pressure cooker. Add jeera and wait for it to crackle.

2) Add the ginger garlic green chillies and saute it for 30 seconds. Add the finely chopped onion. Fry for a couple of minutes till its golden. Add the tomatoes and salt.

3) Add the soaked beans,washed rice. Add about 4-5 cups water. 

4) Pressure cook for 2 -3 whistles.

5) Serve hot with grated cheese. Mix the cheese with the hot meal and let it melt into gooey goodness. :D

Easy peasy Beetroot rice

Blessed are the morning people! Folks who can wake up early and bright, who can kick start the day and get things done. For the rest of us, who have to peel themselves out of bed reluctantly - long past the desired/decided/resolved wake up time, (ME!) some shortcuts like this beetroot rice are a life saver. You can have this nutritional and tasty meal ready for your lunch box with as little effort as washing rice and switching on the rice cooker in the morning. Of course, some prep work the previous night - just chop veggies and you can snooze that alarm for an extra 15 mins in the morning. :D
I served it with some protein like boiled egg and some curd for a complete meal. Simple, healthy, delicious!

What you need:
1 cup cubed beets (about 2 medium beets)
1/2 cup cubed green capsicum
1/2 small tomato cubed
1 1/2 cup uncooked rice
1 tsp oil
Salt to taste
Red chilly powder to taste - optional
2 tsp or more Masala powder of choice - I used Vangi bhat powder. You could use Pulav masala/ garam masala/ sambar powder or any spice blend of choice. Adjust the amount based on the masala.
Lime juice to taste
Boiled egg whites or other protein to go with it.

Method:
1. Mix the cut beet, bell peppers and tomato in the rice cooker container. Add the masala powder, oil, salt, red chilly powder. Mix it well. I kept this ready the previous night.
2. Wash the rice 2-3 times till water runs clear. Add the washed rice to the veggie/spice mixture.
3. Add about 3 cups of water. The quantity of water depends on the rice you use.
4. Check seasoning and switch on the rice cooker. Wait for the rice cooker to do its job! :D
5. Towards the end, when rice is almost cooked, add in the lime juice and mix well. Serve hot with some protein like boiled egg.

Alu Raita

I wrote and hit delete on several lines trying to best describe this raita! Simple, flavorful, delicious, versatile! Just like its main ingredient, potato, you can eat this raita with anything to add a special touch to your meal. It is one of my preferred accompaniments for Bisi bele bhaat, paratha, thepla, pulav, you name it. Let's get straight to the recipe. Try it to believe how tasty it is! :)

What you need :
Equal amounts of -- 
Boiled potato - cut into small cubes or mashed into chunks
Finely chopped onion
Finely chopped tomato

Plain yogurt/curds
Finely chopped cilantro/dhaniya patta
Salt to taste
sugar - a pinch (Optional)

Tempering:
Oil
Mustard seeds
Cumin seeds
Whole red chilly or Green chilly slit
Hing

Method:
1. Make tadka with ingredients under "tempering". Fry till the chilly (green or red) is slightly fried- about a minute.
2.  Mix the potato, onion, cilantro and tomato with salt and a pinch of sugar if desired. Add desired amount of beaten curd. Add a few spoons of water if your curd is very thick to get raita like consistency.
3. Finally mix in the tadka and serve!! :)

Gobi Paratha (Cauliflower stuffed flatbread)

Stuffed Parathas = YUM!
Gobi paratha is one of my all time favorites. My mom made the yummiest parathas and gobi was undoubtedly one of my faves. My lunch box would have a large stack of stuffed parathas as I'd need enough to share with all my friends(who were equally in awe of the yummy parathas!)

I know there are several different ways of making gobi paratha. Some stuff in raw cauliflower, some pan fry it and so on. My mom would use the microwave to pre cook the cauliflower, and so do I. I find that this method saves a lot of time and the stuffing comes out dry and perfect to easily stuff and make the parathas. The key to easy paratha making is to have a stuffing that is dry and sans moisture. Moisture would cause the stuffing to leak out/parathas to break.

Gobi paratha fresh on the griddle

Note: The thing with parathas is I can never go by a set quantity of ingredients. Just mix some amount of basic ingredient (vegetables, cauliflower in this case) adjust seasonings as per taste. Ended up making more stuffing, great! Reuse it to make grilled sandwiches with cheese. :) Less stuffing = plain chapatis. :) So, there are estimates specified in the ingredient list.
Other stuffed paratha ideas : Broccoli tofu stuffed paratha

What you need:
Cauliflower(I used one small head)
Ginger(About 1/2 an inch)
Green chilles - 4-5
Finely chopped cilantro - 3 tbsp or more. I love to add lots of fresh cilantro.

Seasonings used:
Red chilly powder - adjust as per taste
Coriander cumin powder (Dhaniya jeera powder) - 1 to 2 tsp
Dry mango powder(Amchur powder) - 1/2 tsp
Salt
Kasoori methi - 1 tsp

Dough:
Whole wheat flour
Water
Oil

Method:
1. Make a soft dough by mixing flour and water. Almost double the amount of water to flour. You could add other ingredients to the flour like salt, oil, seasoning. But I just used flour and water.

2. Knead the dough well. Apply about a teaspoon of oil to the dough and keep it covered for about 15-30 mins. Knead again and your dough is ready.

To make stuffing:

Cauliflower stuffing ready!

1. Pulse the cauliflower florets with ginger and green chillies in a food processor. I use my Ninja food processor and it takes me less than a minute ;) Alternatively, you could grate the cauliflower and mix in green chilly+ginger paste.
2. Add the seasonings to cauliflower mince and mix well. Reserve the cilantro for the end.
3. Microwave this mixture for 6-8 minutes, mixing well once every 2 minutes.
4. The stuffing is done when : There is no raw smell and the mixture is dry. If you squeeze a pinch between your fingers it should not release any water. Slight moisture is ok.

To make stuffed parathas:
1. Take a small ball of the dough, roll it out a bit. Place stuffing into the dough, seal the edges and roll it out gently without applying much pressure.
I could not take step by step pictures, wikihow has some good pics on the procedure here
 2. Roast on a hot griddle with a few drops of oil or ghee.

Paratha rolled out and ready to be cooked

Serve hot with some curd or pickle! :)

Veggie "meatballs" and spaghetti with tomato cilantro sauce

Being a vegetarian, I'm always fascinated by the vast variety of interesting sounding meat dishes! Spaghetti and Meatballs, Chicken wings, Shepherd's pie, hot dogs etc. Thanks to the new vegan and vegetarian awareness, a lot of these dishes have been recreated with vegetarian options and I get to experience the different flavors while I stick to my no meat policy. :)
Thanks to the veggie protein options, I now know what buffalo chicken wings and shepherd's pie tastes like with veggie options. :)

One such attempt of mine was to create veggie meatballs and spaghetti at home. It came out pretty tasty but the meatballs were not firm enough and they were falling apart. The second trial was much better and here is the recipe. I have tried to make it nutritious and incorporate different veggies and added some protein.

I also made my own pasta sauce and made it with tons of cilantro(add any herb of your choice).

Veggie meatballs

Veggie meatballs ready!

What you need : (I ended up with 15 meatballs)

Veggies for meatballs

Baby bella mushrooms - 8-10 (I really like their flavor, but you could use a mix of different mushrooms or any other mushrooms)
Onion 1/4th medium
Summer Squash - 1/2
Green bell peppers - 1/2 from a medium sized
Spinach - a handful

Quick cooking oatmeal ground up : 1 cup
green chillies - cos I'm an Indian who stuffs green chillies even into an Italian classic :P (optional)
Garlic - 2 cloves
Salt to taste.
Herbs/seasoning of choice : i used some dried parsley. Other options : basil/Italian seasoning/oregano
Extra firm tofu (drained and crumbled) - about 1/2 a cup.(Optional)
Note:I used tofu to add some protein. It is going to make the meatballs soft, and u might need extra oat flour/corn flour/bread crumbs for binding depending on how much water your tofu retains. I drained the tofu till it was fairly dry and 1 cup of ground oatmeal was good enough for binding.


Method :

1. Chop all the veggies into chunks.
2. Heat 1 tsp oil in a pan. Add the garlic and wait till it browns. Add the onion and fry for 2 mins. 
3. Add green chillies, if using.
4. Add the mushrooms, squash and peppers. Cook for 5-8 mins till the veggies cook.
5. Then add in the spinach and cook for 2 mins. Let the veggie mixture dry up.
6. We want the veggie mixture to be as dry as possible. Once it cools, pulse it through a food processor.
7. Mix well : powdered oats, crumbled tofu and veggie mixture with salt, seasoning. Check taste.
8. Make balls as shown. Try to pack them tightly.
9. Refrigerate the meatballs for a couple of hours or more. This helps them firm up and for the flavors to blend in well. 
10. Next you could either pan fry them with a tsp of oil till they are brown/crisped or cook it in the oven. I pan fried them on medium to low heat and move them gently around the pan.

    

    Stir fried veggies in the food processor

    

    Ground oatmeal,veggie mixture, crumbled tofu

Spaghetti with Meatballs

What you need:

Veggie meatballs

Pasta sauce/marinara sauce of choice - I used this

Spaghetti noodles/angel hair pasta- boiled as per packet instructions

Grated Cheese - I used fat free mozzarella cheese
Olive oil 1-2 tsp
Garlic - optional

Method:
1. Heat oil in a large pan. Add garlic and fry till its fragrant.
2. Add the pasta sauce and spaghetti and toss well to coat the noodles.
3. Add the veggie meatballs and sprinkle cheese on top.
4. Cook covered till cheese melts.
Serve hot.

Alternatively, you could assemble the pasta, sauce and meatballs together in an oven proof dish, add cheese and then bake it till cheese melts.