Chhole Masala

                     Chhole Masala is a protein packed curry from the northern region of India. The beans are cooked in a tangy curry with onions and garlic. There are many variations and methods to make this curry. Here is the recipe on how I like it. So do try and leave a comment on how you like it.

Ingredients:

• 2 cups dry Garbanzo Beans (Chhole or Chickpeas)
• 1/2 cup finely chopped Onions
• 2 finely chopped Tomatoes
• 2 tsp Red chili-garlic paste
• 2 tsp Turmeric powder
• 4 tsp Red Chili powder
• 2 tsp Coriander-Cumin powder
• 2 tsp Chhole Masala (I used Everest Chhole masala)
• 1 tsp Amchur powder (Dry Mango powder)
• 2 tsp Cumin seeds
• 3-4 Cloves
• 1 Cinnamon stick
• 2 dry Red Chilies
• Cilantro to garnish
• A pinch of Asafoetida
• Salt to taste

Instructions:

• Wash and soak the beans for 6-8 hours or overnight in cold water.
• Cook the beans in the pressure cooker. It should take 3-4 whistles or around 10-12 minutes. If you don't have a pressure cooker, you can cook in open pan. It will take around 40-45 minutes or cook until the beans are soft to bite.
• Now heat some oil in a pan. Add asafoetida and cumin seeds along with cloves and cinnamon.

• Once the seeds start to crackle and the spices are fragrant, add the onions.

• Saute the onions till they are translucent and then add the tomatoes.

• Add all the spices (salt, chili powder, turmeric powder, coriander cumin powder, chhole masala and amchur powder) and mix it well.

• Add a cup of water and mix. Now add the cooked beans and mix well.

• Add another 2 cups of water, and cover with a lid and let it simmer for 10 minutes or till the gravy thickens. I like to crush some of the beans with back of the spoon to thicken the gravy.
• Garnish with cilantro and serve hot with Puris, Roti, Naan or rice. 

Thandai Panna Cotta with Saffron Jelly

                      This is my favorite time of the year. The festivities start with the Indian festival of lights - Diwali. Thanksgiving follows next with festive food and crazy overnight shopping. And finally, the holiday season ends with Christmas and we welcome the new year with a bang. So its 2 months of awesome time with family and friends over food and fun.

                      With so much happening around this time, I am always looking for some quick to make dishes. As a big fan of fusion foods, I decided to marry two of my favorite cuisines to create a fun dessert. So here it is, the classic Italian dessert Panna Cotta with the Indian flavor of Thandai, served with Saffron flavored jelly.

                       Thandai is a classic Indian flavor. The paste is made with almonds, pistachio, fennel seeds, black pepper, saffron, cardamom etc. Being a vegetarian, I have used Agar Agar instead of Gelatin. Agar Agar flakes are widely available in grocery stores as well as online sites like Amazon.

So here is my fusion dessert, Thandai Panna Cotta with Saffron Jelly.

Ingredients:

Panna Cotta:

• 1 cup Heavy cream
• 1/2 cup Half and half
• 1 tsp Agar Agar powder
• Sugar - I used about 4 Tbsp. Can adjust as desired
• 2 Tbsp Thandai powder

Saffron Jelly:

• 2 cups Water
• 1 tsp Agar Agar powder
• Sugar - I used about 2 Tbsp. Can adjust as desired
• 3 tsp Rose water or 1 tsp rose essence
• 7-8 Strands of Saffron

Instructions:

For the Panna Cotta:

• Dissolve agar agar in 2 tbsp water and keep it aside

• Mix cream, half & half, Thandai masala and sugar in a non stick pan.
• Heat on medium-high heat and bring it to simmer. After that add the agar agar mixture and bring it to boil. Make sure to stir it continuously. 

• Once it comes to boil, take it off the heat and strain it. 

• Put in the serving glass and let it cool. Once it is room temperature, let it set in refrigerator for 2 hours or until set properly.

For the jelly:

• Dissolve agar agar in 2 tbsp water and keep it aside 
• Mix water, rose water, sugar and saffron in a pan.
• Heat on medium-high heat and bring it to simmer. After that add the agar agar mixture and bring it to boil. Make sure to stir it continuously.

• Once it comes to boil, take it off the heat.
• Take the serving glass from the refrigerator and pour this jelly water carefully over the already-set Panna Cotta.
• Let it cool until it reaches room temperature. Then keep it in the refrigerator to let it set for 3-4 hours or overnight.

Finally, Garnish with Pistachios and serve cold.

Schezwan Sauce

               Today I am back to blogging after a really long time and posting a really simple, but a versatile sauce recipe. Schezwan Sauce is widely used in Indo-Chinese cuisine, it has a very unique flavor and can enhance any dish. It is a blend of  mainly red chilies, garlic and ginger. It is a simple sauce with minimal ingredients and very easy to make.
             
               There are a variety of red chilies available in the market, you can choose to use any of them depending on your preference, and how spicy you want it to be. My personal preference is a combination of some fresh peppers and some dried chilies. This sauce can be used for making noodles, manchurian, fried rice or as a simple stir fry sauce too for Asian dishes.

Here is my version for this simple, yet delicious Schezwan sauce recipe.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup red chili paste
• 12-15 finely chopped garlic cloves
• 1/4 cup finely chopped Onions
• 2 tbsp finely chopped ginger
• 2 tsp white Vinegar 
• 1 tsp Soy sauce
• 1 tsp Sugar
• 1 tsp Black pepper
• Salt to taste
• 2 tbsp Oil

Instructions:

•  For the red Chili paste, I used a combination of fresh red jalapenos, dry red Kashmiri chilies, and dry Thai chilies.
• Soak the chilies in hot water for 30 minutes. Then drain the chilies, de-seed them and grind them to a smooth paste. Add little water, if needed, while grinding. Keep the paste aside.

• Heat the oil in the pan.
• Add the garlic and ginger. Saute them until the raw smell of the garlic goes away. 

• Make sure the garlic is not brown.

• Now add the onions. Saute the onions until they are translucent.

• Then add the chili paste. Saute the paste for 3-4 minutes or until the oil separates from the side.

• Now add the soy sauce, vinegar, salt, black pepper, sugar and 1/2 cup water and mix it well.

• Let it cook for another 5-6 minutes, until the sauce thickens.

• Once it is cooled, store it an air-tight container. The sauce will stay good for about 3 weeks in the refrigerator.

• If you want to store it for a longer time, you can also freeze the sauce
• I generally keep a small container in refrigerator for daily use and freeze the rest 

Artichoke Risotto

                Risotto is a rice dish from northern Italy, which is traditionally cooked in a broth to a creamy consistency. This is the most common style of cooking rice in Italy. The rice variety generally used are the short grain white rice, which can absorb liquids and release starch, hence making nice creamy risottos. The primary variety used is Arborio rice which is high in starch and makes good risottos.
               Risotto can be made in various ways, with different vegetables, wines, broths, cheeses etc. Here is one variation, Artichoke Risotto.

Ingredients;

• 1 cup Arborio rice
• 3 cups Vegetable broth
• 1 cup Artichoke hearts
• 1/4 cup Sun-dried tomatoes
• 1/2 cup finely chopped Onions
• 2 tbsp Pine nuts
• 2 Garlic cloves sliced
• 1 tsp lime zest
• 2 tsp Olive oil
• Salt to taste
• 1 tsp black pepper
• Dried Parsley (optional)

Instructions:

• Take a medium pan, roast the pine nuts for 3-4 minutes on medium heat and keep it aside.
• Heat some olive oil in the same pan. Add the garlic and stir it till it golden brown.

• Now add the onions and salt. Cook the onions till they are translucent.

• Then add the Arborio rice and stir it properly. Make sure all the rice kernels are coated with oil.

• Cook the rice for 2-3 minutes.
• In the meantime, heat the vegetable broth in another pan on medium heat.
• Once the rice is sizzling, start adding the vegetable broth, one cup at a time.
• After the first cup of broth is absorbed, add the next cup.
• Be sure to stir frequently between additions.
• Continue adding the broth in this way, until the rice fully cooked. It should take around 18-20 minutes.

• The risotto should be loose. If it is too dry, you can add a bit more broth.
• Once the risotto is almost done, stir in the pine nuts, artichoke hearts and sundried tomatoes.

• Finally, add the lime zest and black pepper and give a stir lightly.

• Garnish with little parsley and serve hot.

Rasiya Muthiya

                 Rasiya Muthiya is a traditional Gujrati recipe. The Muthiyas are basically rice dumplings and Rasiya means with gravy. So Rasiya Muthiya can be literally translated to rice dumplings with gravy. They gravy here is usually yogurt based and typically spicy.

                 If you have leftover rice, then this simple and quick dish is one of the best to use them. You can add green chilies, ginger or cilantro to it as well. But since I made it for a Jain festival, where green vegetables are avoided, I didn't use any of it.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup boiled Rice
• 3 tbsp Whole wheat flour
• 2 tbsp Chickpea flour (Besan)
• 2 tsp Turmeric powder
• 4 tsp Red Chili powder
• 2 tbsp Yogurt
• Salt to taste
• 2 tsp Oil
• A pinch of Asafoetida
• 1 tsp Cumin Seeds
• 2 cup Buttermilk (yogurt+water mix)
• 1 cup water

Instructions:

For the Muthiyas:

• Take a big mixing bowl, add the rice, turmeric powder, chili powder and salt and mix it well

• Now add the whole wheat flour and the chickpea flour and mix well.

• Then add the yogurt and make it in a dough. Make sure you don't add any water to the dough.
• If the dough is too hard, add more yogurt, whereas if the dough is too tough, add some more wheat flour and chickpea flour.

• Make small oval shape muthiyas and keep them aside

For the Gravy:

• Heat some oil in a pan. Add the Asafoetida and cumin seeds.
• Once the seeds start to crackle, add about 1/2 a cup water to it.

• When the water starts to simmer a little, add a couple of muthiyas to it and stir it lightly
• After that add the buttermilk and the remaining water and mix it well.
• Now add the salt, turmeric powder and red chili powder and mix it well.
• Once this mixture starts boiling, add the muthiyas one by one.

• Now let it cook on medium heat till the muthiyas are soft and cooked, about 10-12 minutes.
• If the gravy is less or it dries up, add a little water. Once the muthiyas are cooked, take it off the heat.
• Serve it hot and enjoy.

Cauliflower soup

      
              I am finally back to my blog after a long time. It has been a crazy summer. I took 2 big vacations this summer, first to see my family in India and then an awesome 10 days vacation in Peru. I will post about Peru some other time.
              Today, I am bringing a simple, yet healthy tasty soup recipe. It is a very simple recipe with minimal ingredients. So lets make some Cauliflower soup.

Ingredients:

• 1 medium chopped Cauliflower
• 1/2 cup chopped Onions 
• 1/2 cup chopped Green Bell Peppers
• 1 tbsp chopped Parsley
• 1 tsp Cumin Seeds
• 1/2 tsp black pepper powder
• 2 tsp Thyme leaves
• 2-3 minced Garlic cloves
• 2 tbsp Olive Oil
• Salt to taste

Instructions: 

• Heat the olive oil in a pan. Add the cumin seeds. 
• Once the cumin seeds start to crackle, add the garlic and stir it till it golden brown
• Now add the onions and cook them till they are translucent.
• Then add the bell peppers and mix them well
• Now add the cauliflower florets and about 4-5 cups of water. 
• Then add parsley, thyme, salt and pepper and mix it well

• Let it cook until cauliflower is tender, about 15-20 minutes.
• Now, transfer the mixture to a blender and puree it. Take care while handling the hot mixture.
• Return the puree to the pan and let it simmer for another 2-3 minutes

• Garnish with some parsley and serve hot

Vegan Iron Chef 2015

        

                  Last week, I participated in SF Vegan Iron Chef 2015 held in San Francisco by Karine Brighten events. The experience was amazing, and I learned a lot out of it. The theme this year was handheld foods and the competition was between home chefs and professional chefs. I reached the final round after winning the first round against pro Chef Maria. 

                In the first round, we were suppose to make Tacos. So, I decided to do my favorite, a fusion Taco. Both Indian and Mexican cuisines are so varied and rich in flavors. And the spices used in both cuisines are similar to each other. So I can say fusion of these cuisines is like a heaven for a spice enthusiast like myself. 

                 For the final round, we had 20 minutes to make the fresh raw spring rolls using Jicama, Hodo Soy Yuba noodles and Mango. That was a nerve wracking and stressful round, especially because I had never used many of the ingredients nor made raw spring rolls. Although, I must say it was a great experience and was happy I could come up with fresh and flavorful spring rolls.  The spring rolls made by my competitor, chef Kevin, were stunning. Unfortunately I didn't get to try them, but they looked amazing.

Here are some of the pics from the event. Pictures by Colleen Holland, cofounder of VegNews, who was also one of the judges for the event.

 

I will post the recipes for the tacos as well as the spring rolls soon.

Mocha Shortbread Cookies

                Happy Valentines day, everyone! As mentioned before, my husband is very fond of sweets and desserts. We are also big fans of coffee and love trying coffee from different places and all kinds of coffee beans and roast. So for this occasion, I thought to combine the top two favorites and made some chocolate coffee aka Mocha shortbread cookies. Hope you all enjoy and a sweet day!

Ingredients:

• 2 cup All purpose flour (Maida)
• 3/4 cup softened Butter (Can be replaced with Vegan Butter)
• 1/2 cup confectioners or powdered Sugar
• 1 tsp Vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup mini Chocolate Chips
• 2 Espresso shots or 2 tbsp Instant Coffee powder

Instructions:

• Mix the melted butter and sugar in a large bowl. You can replace the powdered sugar with granulated sugar or brown sugar depending on one's preference.
• Now add the Vanilla extract and beat at medium speed till it is creamy. If you don't have a beater, stir it thoroughly 
• Now add the chocolate chips and coffee and stir it thoroughly.
• Now add the flour slowly and continue mixing it on a low speed
• Mix it till the mixture leaves the sides of the bowl and forms a smooth soft dough
• Now divide the mixture in 3 parts, and flatten each part a bit.
• Cover with a plastic wrap and refrigerate it for couple of hours
• Meanwhile, preheat the oven at 350^o F.
• Now, roll out the dough a little more, and cut out the desired cookie shapes. I used the heart shape cutter for the occasion.
• Arrange them on a cookie sheet and bake for 7-9 minutes or till they turn golden brown.
• Remove from oven and then cool on the wire racks.
• Once they are completely cooled, store them in an air-tight container. Enjoy!!

Cabbage Kofta Curry

        What do you do when you have lots of cabbage in the refrigerator and don't want to eat the regular simple curry? I had this situation recently, and I also had some frozen garlic naan. So I decided to use everything and try something new. So here it is, Cabbage Koftas(dumplings) in a rich creamy gravy.
        Malai Kofta is a popular dish in the mughlai cuisine. Typically, the koftas or the dumplings are made from potato and Paneer and served with a rich tomato gravy. But this is a variation, the koftas are made from cabbage. They are delicious and slightly spicier than the traditional ones.
         One more variation is, the traditional gravy has lot of cream for the richness. But the recipe here is vegan, made from cashews and whole spices.

       Hope you all like this variation of the traditional Kofta curry.

Ingredients:

• 2 cups shredded Cabbage
• 1 cup Gram Flour (Besan)
• 2 tbsp Green Chili paste
• 2 tbsp Ginger-Garlic paste
• 1 tsp Garam Masala
• 1 finely chopped Onion
• 2 finely chopped Tomatoes
• 2 Garlic cloves
• 1 Cinnamon Stick
• 2-3 Cloves
• 1/2 cup raw Cashews
• 1 tsp Turmeric powder
• 1 tbsp Chili powder
• 1 tbsp Coriander-Cumin powder
• 1 tsp Cumin Seeds
• 1/2 tsp dry Fenugreek leaves (Kasturi Methi)
• Chopped Cilantro for garnish
• A pinch of Asafoetida
• A pinch of Baking Soda
• Salt to taste
• Oil

Instructions:

For the Koftas:

• Take a big mixing bowl, add the cabbage, baking soda and salt and mix well.
• Add the chili paste, ginger-garlic paste and garam masala and mix well.
• Now, add the gram flour, 1 spoon at a time and mix well to make a dough.
• The dough has to be a little harder than the normal medium consistency. If the dough is too hard, add some water. And if the dough is too soft, add some more flour.
• Now, drop a spoonful of mixture in a heated oil and deep fry till they are golden brown. We can also make discs and shallow fry them with little or no oil.
• Drain on absorbent paper and keep it aside.

• Now heat some oil in a pan. Add asafoetida and cumin seeds along with cloves and cinnamon.
• Once the seeds start to crackle and the spices are fragrant, add the onions and garlic. 
• Saute onions till they are translucent.
• Now add the tomatoes and cashews and mix it well.
• Saute them for 3-4 minutes, till all the raw smell of cashews is gone.
• Take it off the heat and let it cool for some time.
• Now, grind this mixture into a smooth paste. Add some water if needed.
• Then add some oil in the same pan and add the paste.

• Add all the spices (salt, chili powder, turmeric powder and coriander cumin powder) and fenugreek leaves and mix it well.
• Also add a cup or two of water and mix. Simmer the gravy till it thickens and reaches medium consistency.

• Add the koftas only at the time of serving, else they may become soggy.
• Garnish with some cilantro and serve with any kind of Naan, Roti, paratha or rice