After getting back from my long vacation down under, I started working on moving my blog to a new dedicated site.
I started blogging with the intention to just dabble in it, but I love it so much I decided to commit to it some more.
So please, come join me over at The Perfect Zest , and lets continue our conversation!
Friday, March 14, 2014
Friday, November 22, 2013
Gajar Halwa Pie
Move over pumpkin, carrots are here. When a brain wave hits, it hits hard. Yesterday when I saw an image of a pie on TV, a light bulb went on. How about I use the classic Indian dessert Gajar Halwa (Gajar = carrots and I’m not sure what the halwa equivalent is, pudding would be wrong. Halwa is a dessert in which the subject (carrots, semolina, wheat flour) is cooked in clarified butter (ghee), milk and sugar. Semantics aside, I knew I had to try this.
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| only pumpkin used in this, is the one you see in the picture! |
Thursday, November 14, 2013
Kale Kadhi | Kale Yogurt Soup
Last Saturday I gathered a bunch of my good friends to celebrate Diwali at a dinner party I throw every year. This celebration makes up for all the lost times back home. But I think we are past Diwali now, and onto Thanksgiving , a birthday and the excitement of Christmas coming up after.
For me, Christmas = warm sunny Sydney this year. I really cannot wait to get away from the New York area! For those who have started suffering this weather with me, I'm sorry that I won't be "enjoying" it for four weeks. But I remind myself, I will be back in the peak of winter.
Serve the kadhi by itself, or the Indian way with freshly made fragrant basmati rice. Comfort food at its best.
For me, Christmas = warm sunny Sydney this year. I really cannot wait to get away from the New York area! For those who have started suffering this weather with me, I'm sorry that I won't be "enjoying" it for four weeks. But I remind myself, I will be back in the peak of winter.
To cope with this early onset of cold and even a sprinkling of snow, I've been making warm and spicy foods.And huddling indoors and swearing to never ever ever leave the house until the trees start budding again.
For someone who has been dissing kale all season, I find myself eating my words alongside this yummy sweet and warm Kadhi - which is a traditional Indian yogurt soup. I have a bag full of kale that I need to work my way through and I figured the wilted kale in this kadhi might be a good way to avoid the bitter crispiness of kale which I don't enjoy much. In this form, you really can't distinguish it from any other greens like spinach or fenugreek. You could easily sub either of them for kale. The ginger in this soup gives it the warmth that's much needed in this cold season. Besides adding flavor, I'm sure its also delivering all the goodness its so well known for.
Serve the kadhi by itself, or the Indian way with freshly made fragrant basmati rice. Comfort food at its best.
| RECIPE | ||||||||||
| Prep Time : | 10 mins | Serves: | 2-3 people | |||||||
| Cooking Time: | 45 mins-1 hour | |||||||||
| INGREDIENTS | ||||||||||
| > | 2 cups plain yogurt | |||||||||
| > | 2 tbsp besan (chickpea flour) | |||||||||
| > | 1.5" ginger (peeled and minced) | |||||||||
| > | 2 green chillies (minced) | |||||||||
| > | 1 tbsp sugar | |||||||||
| > | 1/2 cup Kale (chopped thinly) | |||||||||
| > | For Tempering | |||||||||
| > | 2 tbsp Ghee/Clarified Butter or Canola Oil | |||||||||
| > | Cumin Seeds | |||||||||
| > | Mustard Seeds | |||||||||
| > | ping of hing (asfoetida) | |||||||||
| > | 2 cloves | |||||||||
| > | 2 dry red chillies | |||||||||
| INSTRUCTIONS | ||||||||||
| * | In a pan, add ginger, green chillies, besan, sugar and yogurt and whisk together nicely | |||||||||
| * | Once well mixed,add 2.5 cups of water and place it on low-medium flame | |||||||||
| * | let the kadhi come to a boil and reduce for about 20-25 mins, until the raw taste of besan is lost | |||||||||
| At the 10 min or so point, add the chopped kale and let it cook with the kadhi | ||||||||||
| * | If the kadhi thickens while reducing, feel free to add more water. You want to end up with a fairly runny consistency and there is no limit on how much water you add to make it happen. | |||||||||
| * | At the end, in a separate pan, add oil. Once hot,add mustard seeds, cumin, hing and red chillies (in that order after the previous one sizzles in the hot oil) | |||||||||
| * | While still hot, add the tempering to the kadhi and simmer for 2-3 mins | |||||||||
| * | Serve hot by itself or on basmati rice. | |||||||||
| * | Kadhi reheats easily in the microwave. Note, always to heat the kadhi before eating. Cold kadhi is just wrong! | |||||||||
Monday, November 4, 2013
Karanji | Sweet Coconut Empanadas
I am so excited its Diwali, it is by far my most favorite of Indian festivals. I think it has to do with the extended celebrations of five days and the focus it has on various family relationships. There is a day assigned to celebrating your spouse, a day for your brother, a new years day and a day to celebrate, worship and welcome Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth. That pretty much covers all the important relationships, don't you think?
Diwali does represent the triump of good over evil , and that central theme of this holiday fills us all with hope that if we continue to be good human beings, at the end of the day, we will come out winners in life!
So, I wish you all a very Happy Diwali and a Happy New Year with your families, if you celebrate it.I was eager to post this today, but I need more time to pull the recipe together. I will come back and update this post with the recipe in a day or so!
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