Whole-grain Quinoa Adai/Crepe

Are you someone like me who hoards whole grains and other healthy ingredients in your pantry? I often get grains like steel cut oats, wheat bran, wheat berries and quinoa with an enthusiasm to cook healthy wholesome meals. But after using the ingredients in a recipe or two, the bag lies somewhere behind in my pantry, begging to be looked upon again! When I saw this adai recipe, I knew I can use up all those lurking ingredients in my pantry to make up a wholesome adai.

This adai is wholly made of wholesome ingredients and would make a great addition to a diet. It is very filling and can be had for breakfast, lunch or dinner.

Ingredients
Recipe Source: Veg Inspirations

Brown Rice - 1/2 cup
Pearl Barley - 1/2 cup
Steel Cut Oats - 1/2 cup (can be replaced by rolled oats)
Quinoa - 1/2 cup
Urad dal(whole black gram dal) - 1/3 cup
Toor dal (split pigeon peas) - 1/3 cup
Mung Dal (Green gram dal) - 1/3 cup

Green chillies - 4
Dry red chillies - 4
Asafoetida/Hing - 1 pinch
Sesame oil / Any vegetable oil - to cook the adai
Salt to taste

Instructions

1. Soak the first seven ingredients in enough water for about 3 to 4 hours. Then drain the water.
2. Grind together the soaked grains with the green chillies, red chillies, asafoetida and salt in a mixie/blender into a smooth batter adding a little water if required. The batter should be in a consistency similar to the regular dosa batter.
3. In a tawa or griddle, pour a ladle full of the batter in the center and slowly spread the batter in circles.
4. Drizzle some oil around the adai and allow it to cook for about 2 minutes until it gets golden brown in color.
5. Flip with the help of a spatula and cook on the other side as well.
6. Serve warm with a chutney or podi of your choice.

Quinoa Salad

This salad is made using Quinoa. I have always been skeptical to try new ingredients. However, reading about the health benefits of quinoa, I wanted to include it in our meals, and this is what I made. I picked up a pack of quinoa from Trader Joes and it has been lying around for a while. I knew I had a to make a salad with it for the blogging marathon. This salad was delicious and so easy to put together.

I have used ingredients I had in my pantry. They can be substituted easily since this is a fool-proof recipe.

Ingredients (makes 1 serving)
Quinoa - 1/2 cup
Cherry tomaotes
Walnuts
Slivered Almonds
Dried cranberries or cherries or raisins
Fresh parsley for garnish

For the dressing
Olive oil - 2 spoons
Lemon juice - 1 spoon
Salt to taste

Directions
Cook the quinoa with two times water or according to package directions.

This is the general procedure to cook quinoa - Combine the required quantity of quinoa with two times water in a saucepan and bring it to a boil. Simmer, cover and cook for about 8 to 10 minutes until all the water has been absorbed. Fluff with a fork and allow it to cool.

Meanwhile prepare a dressing with the lemon juice, olive oil and salt by whisking them together.

Drizzle the dressing over the cooked quinoa and mix until well combined.

In a salad plate, transfer the quinoa and top with the dried fruits, nuts and fresh herbs of your choice.

Check out the bloggers doing the Blogging Marathon, along with me..
30 Minutes Meals:Priya Mahadavan, Pavani,
Seven Days of Salad: lla
For Ongoing 7 Events: Priya Suresh, Suma Gandlur,Harini,
Kids Friendly: Vatsala, Jay,Kamalika
Seven Days of Rice: Veena,PriyaVaasu,Padma Rekha

Oats and Wheat Bran Instant Idly

This is the healthiest idlies can get. This idly needs no fermentation and can be made instantly. I made this by modifying the recipes here and here. The normal idly is made healthier by the addition of oats, what bran and flax seeds. The recipe can be modified according to the ingredients available. The best part is that the mix can be prepared and stored in the fridge and can be made into idlies just by making the batter with the addition of yogurt. The idlies turned out really soft and nutty.

Ingredients (yields around 16-18 idlies)
Old fashioned oats - 2 cups
Sooji/Semolina/Rava - 1 cup
Oat bran / Wheat bran - 1/2 cup
Flax seeds - 2 teaspoons (optional)
Plain yogurt - 3 cups
Oil - 1 teaspoon
Mustard seeds - 1 teaspoon
Urad dal - 1 teaspoon
Channa dal - 1 teaspoon
Curry leaves - 1 sprig
Cashews - 5-6 broken into small pieces
Ginger - 1/2 inch finely chopped
Green chillies - 1 finely chopped
Baking soda - 1 teaspoon
Coriander leaves - 2 spoons finely chopped
Salt to taste

Note: Always keep the oats:sooji ratio 2:1. The oat bran or wheat bran is optional. You could replace it with sooji if you do not have them. The flax seeds can also be replaced with flax seed meal and can also be skipped.
Directions
In a saucepan, dry roast the old fashioned oats on medium heat for about 4 to 5 minutes until it gets nicely toasted and turns slightly brown in color. Take care it does not burn by stirring it.

Remove the oats to a plate and allow it to cool down. Powder it into a coarse mixture by pulsing it a few times in a blender/mixer. Do not make it into a fine powder. It needs to be in the same texture as the sooji.

In the same saucepan, add the oil and do the tempering with the cashews, mustard seeds, urad dal, channa dal, ginger, green chillies and curry leaves.

Add the sooji/semolina and roast it for about 2 to 3 minutes on low heat until it gets toasted. Take care it doesnt burn. Add the flax seeds,salt and wheat/oats bran and toast it for a minute.
At this point the prepared mixture can be combined with the powdered oats and stored in an airtight container once cooled. This mixture can be stored in the refrigerator for about 2 weeks and can be made into idlies later.
To make the idlies:
Add the baking soda and the yogurt to the required amount of the mixture and make a thick batter. Pour into greased idli molds and steam for about 8 minutes.
Leave it in the molds for a minute and remove with a spoon.

Serve warm with any chutney or idly-podi.

Since I made use of oats and wheat bran which sat in my pantry for days I am sending this to BB4: What's lurking in the kitchen hosted by Nupur.

Bulgur Khichdi

I am always looking for recipes with whole grains. This is a simple, quick and easy breakfast recipe made with bulgur/dahlia. I usually make a simple upma with bulgur, but this time I decided to make a khichdi using some lentils. Next time I am planning to try the recipe by adding some vegetables. This gets done in less than 15 minutes and tastes great on its own or along with some chutney.
Ingredients (Makes 2 servings)
Bulgur/Dahlia/Broken wheat - 1 cup
Split yellow gram (Yellow moong dal) - 1/2 cup (soaked in water for atleast 5-10 minutes)
Oil - 1 teaspoon
Mustard - 1/2 teaspoon
Urad dal - 1/2 teaspoon
Curry leaves - few
Asafoetida - 1 pinch
Green chilly - 1 slit lengthwise
Ginger-garlic paste - 1/4 teaspoon
Onion - 1/4 cup chopped
Green peas - 1/4 cup

Directions
In a saucepan, heat the oil and do the tempering with mustard seeds, urad dal, curry leaves and asafoeida. Add the ginger-garlic paste ad green chillies and fry for a minute. Add the chopped onions and saute till translucent.

Add the soaked yellow moong dal and the green peas and saute for a minute. Add 2 cups of water and bring it to a boil. Add the bulgur and cover and cook for 2 minutes on a medium flame.

Remove from heat, mix well and serve warm. Garnish with coriander leaves.

Serve with chutney..

Sending this to Twenty-20 event..

Green Monster for Breakfast

I know this title sounds like something fishy! Yes, it is called Green Monster in the blogosphere!
It is another great breakfast I discovered recently. This is a slight variation of the spinach- banana smoothie which most of you guessed correctly. I made this with swiss chard which I recently grabbed from the farmers market. It was my first trip to the farmers market near our new home and I was thrilled to see all the fresh vegetables and fruits fresh straight out of the farms. I did all the vegetable and fruit shopping for the week and above all they are all organic without all those pesticides and wax!!

The swiss chard can be replaced by any kind of spinach or greens.. I guarantee you will never get the weird raw spinach taste. It is masked well by the sweetness of the fruit you add. It has all the goodness of fruits and veggies and I added some cereal to it and it made a great breakfast.

In the mix:
Swiss chard - 1 cup packed
Banana - 1
Milk - 1 cup
Peanut Butter - 1 tablespoon
Any cereal - 1/2 cup (Oats, wheat bran, oat bran, corn flakes, wheat flakes or any regular cereal)
I used Bob's Red Mill 7 grain cereal
Flax seeds - 1 teaspoon (optional)

Wash the spinach/greens thoroughly to remove all the sand particles. Chop roughly. Add all the ingredients to the blender and blend for 30 seconds to 1 minute in order to get a smooth smoothie. If you want more sweetness add a teaspoon of honey to keep it all natural!

Keep the ratio of spianch:banana 1:1 in order to balance the taste of the smoothie.

Makes a great nutritious and power-packed smoothie!!
Sending this to Healing Foods:Spinach started by Siri and being hosted by me,
JFI: Breakfast started by Indira and hosted this month at Veggie Platter and also to Serve me some Juices, Shakes, Smoothies

You have a left to send in your entries for the following events:
Tried and Tasted
Healing Foods
Sunday Snacks -Healthy Snacks

Wheat berry Kidney bean Soup

After posting my sprouted wheat berry salad, I received a lot of questions as to what wheatberry is and where was it available. Since this is the first time I have been using using wheatberries in my diet, I would suggest visiting dear Dhivya's blog. She has loads of information about how to store, sprout and cook wheatberries and several other whole grains. I would say her blog is a one stop shop for all whole grain goodies! She even has umpteen number of whole grain recipes.

Okay! Here is a soup recipe made with wheatberries. I adopted the idea of this recipe from here, making a few changes here and there. I sprouted the wheatberries and then added it t0 my soup and salad. I would say, it is absolutely delicious and there is no compromise for the taste as well as the nutrition. It is filling and makes a whole meal when had with a slice of your favorite bread. We had this for a weeknight dinner along with some garlic bread. So here comes the recipe! The photos do not do any justice to the recipe. So pardon my photos here..


Ingredients

Wheatberries - 1/2 cup soaked overnight and sprouted
Onion - 1 large sized chopped
Kidney beans / Rajma - 1/2 cup
Potato - 1 medium sized
Garlic - 1 tablespoon chopped
Bay leaf - 1
Celery - 1 cup chopped
Tomato Salsa - 2 tablespoons
Fresh Basil leaves - 4 to 5 leaves
Oil/Butter - 1 teaspoon
Salt and Pepper

Directions
Soak the wheatberries overnight and sprout them until you see small sprouts coming out.
Wash the rajma and potato. Peel the potatoes. In a pressure cooker, boil together the potato, kidney beans and wheatberry sprouts together until about 3 whistles. Reserve the cooking liquid.
Meanwhile in a pan, heat some oil and saute the garlic and onions until translucent. Add the celery and bay leaf and soft for one more minute. Mash the pressure cooked potato roughly.
Then add the pressure cooked wheatberries, kidney beans and potato and saute for a minute. Add the cooking liquid and some water/vegetable broth.
Stir in the salsa. You could replace this with tomato paste instead.
Add the fresh basil leaves, salt and pepper.
Cover and allow it to simmer for about 15 minutes.
Sprinkle some cheese and serve with some fresh homemade bread!


Lately I have been quite busy with my graduate classes, and have very little time to cook. So am looking forward to more of cook ahead recipes and frozen recipes. Please do feel free to give your suggestions on such quick cooking and cook-ahead meals! I made a huge batch of this soup and froze it. It freezes well and retains the same taste when thawed and microwaved.

This soup recipe is off to JFI:Rajma being hosted here at Dil Se.. this month and initially started by Indira
Also sending my Rajma Kurma for the event.
Sending this to Healthy Inspirations Event - Soups

Ragi Kozhukattai

Knowing the health benefits of the whole grain ragi, I try to tweak in ragi once in a while in our weekly menu. You can check here for more uses of ragi flour. I make ragi puttu or ragi kozhukattai for snacks in the evening. It can be made with sugar or can be made more healthy when made with jaggery.



Ingredients
Ragi flour - 1 cup
Rice flour - 1/4 cup
Sugar/Jaggery - 1/4 cup
Coconut shredded - 1/2 cup
Cardamom powder - 1/2 teaspoon

Directions
Roast the rice flour and ragi flour together for about two minutes. Then add the sugar, shredded coconut and cardamom powder and mix well. Add a little water or milk and knead to form a a thick dough. Take some dough about the size of a lemon and clamp it in between your fingers so that the dough stays in shape.
Steam it in a rice cooker or idli cooker for about 12-15 minutes.
Serve warm!
If using jaggery, boil the jaggery in a little water to form a syrup. Strain the liquid and add it to the flours and mix.
Consume immediately, if you have leftovers, steam it again because it tends to harden after a day.

Also do check out my other recipes with ragi:
Ragi puttu/Finger millet cakes
Ragi koozh
Ragi malt with jaggery

Also am very proud that my omapodi/sev recipe has been chosen among the top 9 in the FoodBuzz community today! Do check it out!
Sending this to Cook for Yourself event and
Food For 7 stages of life:Kids initially started by Radhika .

Whole Wheat Banana Bread

Hi All,
Am back after a small unannounced break! My inlaws were here for sometime and I was a little busy. We traveled a lot and ate out and very little cooking at home. Still relaxing to get back to normal. And my fall semester starts tomorrow and hoping to get back to the routine soon. And will also get back to blog-hopping as usual! Though we had loads of delicious food, I did not have the chance to click all of them. So here is one of my recipes from my draft.

Banana bread is one of our favorites. I make it often and we have it for breakfast and also along with tea in the evening. I wanted to make a healthier version and so I planned to go eggless by adding flax seeds and replacing the white flour with whole wheat flour. It came out a little denser than the white flour one but it tasted equally good and was guilt-free. So am looking forward to bake more of these healthier versions of bread.


Ingredients

Whole wheat flour - 2 cups
Milk - 1/2 cup
Buttermilk - 1/2 cup
Butter - 1/2 cup melted
Bananas - 2 large riped ones
Vanilla essence - 1 teaspoon (optional)
Flax seed powder - 1/4 cup
Baking powder - 1 teaspoon
Baking soda - 1 teaspoon
Almonds / walnuts / pecans - 1 handful (can be replaced with any nuts)
Chocolate chips - 1/2 cup (optional)


Directions

Preheat oven to 350F.
Peel and mash the ripe bananas well.
In a large mixing bowl, mix together the flour, flax seeds, baking soda and baking powder. In another bowl, mix together all the liquid ingredients. Slowly add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix slowly until well incorporated. Finally add the mashed banana and combine everything together. Stir in the nuts and chocolate chips if using.
Grease and flour a loaf pan or cake pan . Add the prepared mixture slowly to the pan.
Transfer to the center rack of the oven and bake for about 35 to 40 minutes. Insert a toothpick or fork and check if it is done. Allow to cool for about 10 minutes and transfer to a wire rack.
Once cooled completely slice it up.
Serve with butter!

WHOLEGRAINS

• Bulgur Khichdi
• Bulgur Upma
• Granola Breakfast Bars
• Green Monster
• Lowfat Eggless Banana Oatmeal Muffins
• Oatmeal - A Peek into my breakfast
• Oatmeal Wheat Bread  
• Oats and Wheat bran idly
• Oats Upma
• Ragi Koozh/Finger Millet Porridge
• Ragi Kozhukattai
• Ragi malt with Jaggery
• Ragi puttu / Finger Millet Cakes
• Sprouted Wheatberry bean Salad
• Wheatberry Kidney bean Soup
• Wholewheat Banana Bread
• Wholewheat Pancakes without Eggs 

Oats Upma

Upma is a common breakfast in South Indian cuisine especially during busy mornings. This Upma is made with oats and I tried this as a variation to the normal rava and vermicelli upma. It is a healthier option since it includes oats and a load of vegetables. It is mildly blended with spices and makes a one pot meal.
Ingredients
Old Fashioned oats - 1 cup
Onion - 1 small sized
Green chillies - 2
Mixed vegetables - 2 cups
Ginger - 1/2 inch
Sambar powder - 1 teaspoon(optional)
Oil - 1 spoon
Water - 1 3/4 cups
Mustard seeds - 1 tteaspoon
Urad dhal - 1 teaspoon
Channa dhal - 1 teaspoon
Curry leaves - 1 sprig
Salt to taste
Directions
Chop the onions and vegetables. I used a mixture of carrots, corn and peas. Mice the ginger.
To a kadai, add the oil and do the seasoning with the mustard seeds, urad dhal, channa dhal, curry leaves. Then add the onion and saute till translucent. Add the ginger and slit green chillies and fry for a few seconds. Add the mixed vegetables and saute for about 2 to 3 minutes.
Add the water and bring it to a boil. Add the sambar powder and oats and stir well. Also add salt to taste. Cover and cook for about for about 10 minutes until the oats is cooked through and absorbs all the water. it should not turn very mushy. it tastes best if it still remains chewy.

Serve hot with yoghurt and pickle!
My other upma recipes:
Vermicelli upma
Bulgur Upma
Tamarind upma

Ragi Malt with jaggery

Finger-millet or ragi is widely grown in arid areas of Asia and Africa. Finger millet can be ground and cooked into cakes, puddings or porridge. It is a storehouse of protein, calcium and fiber. Ragi flour is made into flatbreads, including thick, leavened dosa and thinner, unleavened roti. Ragi grain is malted and the grains are ground. This ground flour is consumed mixed with milk, boiled water or yoghurt.

Inspired by her and her, I tried a different recipe of Ragi Malt. I used jaggery instead of sugar. This drink can be had as an alternative to coffee and tea and also for breakfast. It keeps you full and is nutritious too. This jaggery flavored nutritious ragi malt can be had either hot or cold.
Ingredients
Ragi/ Finger millet flour - 2 tablespoons
Milk - 1/2 cup
Water - 1/2 cup
Jaggery (powdered)- 2 teaspoons
Cardamom powder - 1 pinch (optional)
Directions
To the ragi flour, add little cold water and mix to form a smooth paste without any lumps.
In a vessel, bring the milk and water to boil. Add the ragi paste slowly to the boiling milk. Keep stirring with a spoon in order to prevent lump formation.
Add the jaggery powder and cardamom powder. Cook on low flame for about two minutes. The mixture thickens. Remove fro heat and serve hot or cold!
Jaggery can also be replaced with sugar. It can also be prepared with milk alone instead of adding water to get a thick drink.
Also check out a similar Ragi recipes.
Ragi porridge with buttermilk
Ragi Puttu/Finger millet cakes
Sending this ragi malt to 15 minute cooking hosted by Mahimaa and to Gramathu Kaimanam hosted by Shama.
Sending this to JFI:Ragi hosted by Madhuram and started by Indira.

Oatmeal Wheat Bread

This is a homemade healthy everyday bread. It is a basic recipe I found after researching and making changes to suit my own. It came out very well, soft and airy. I wanted to bake a bread as it was long since I baked one at home. I wanted to try something which I had never baked earlier. This recipe is a keeper. No doubt, it is healthy with the wheat flour and oatmeal.

Ingredients
Old-Fashioned oats - 1 cup
Whole Wheat flour - 2 cups
Bread flour/unbleached all-purpose flour - 1 cup
Buttermilk - 3/4 cup
Water - 1/4 cup
Butter - 3 tablespoons
Sugar - 3 tablespoons
Active Dry Yeast - 3 teaspoons
Oats - 2 teaspoons for topping
Directions

Take about 1/4 cup of lukewarm water and add the sugar and yeast and stir till they dissolve. The water should be lukewarm for the yeast to work best. It should not be too hot as it might kill the yeast! Set it aside until it gets frothy.
Cook the oats with water until creamy. It should be in a thick consistency and not soupy. Cool the mixture. To the oats mixture, add the buttermilk, butter, bread flour and whole wheat flour. Finally add the frothy yeast-sugar mixture.
Knead well to get an elastic dough. The dough should be smooth. Grease the surface with oil and place in a bowl covered with a towel. Allow the dough to rise for about one hour till doubled.
Punch down the dough and knead it slightly. Take care not to knead too much as it releases all the air in the pockets. Shape the dough into a loaf and transfer it to a greased loaf pan.
Make two or three slits on the top of the loaf for the air to escape. Brush with a little milk and sprinkle the oats on top.
Bake in a preheated oven at 375 degree F for about 40 minutes until a skewer inserted comes out clean.
Allow it to cool a bit and remove carefully from the loaf pan and cool in a wire rack.
Serve with warm butter!

This is my entry to JFI:Wheat
What's Cooking:Homemade Bread
Yeastspotting
Whole Grain (Eggless) Baking Event - Oats

Bread Mania
and EFM:Oats

Ragi Puttu / Finger Millet Cakes

Ragi (red millet) has many health benefits. It is widely used as red millet flour. Having known the health benefits of ragi, i wanted to make a quick and healthy snack. I tumbled upon a ragi puttu recipe in some website. I tweaked it a bit to suit our palate and created this recipe. It was filling and there was no compromise on the taste part as well.

My other puttu recipe: Sweet Puttu
Ingredients
Ragi (Red Milet) flour - 1 1/2 cups
Rice flour - 1/2 cup
Sugar / Jaggery - 1/2 cup
Cardamom powder - 1 teaspoon
Grated Coconut - 1/2 cup
Salt to taste
Directions
Dry roast the rice flour for about two minutes. once it turns fragrant, mix it together with the ragi flour, coconut, salt, jaggery/sugar, cardamom powder and mix well.
Sprinkle some water and rub in with fingers so that it forms a crumbly texture.
To check if the right amount of water is added, just take a some mixture in your hand and clasp it within the palm.If the mixture holds together then it is in the right consistency.If it is still powdery and falls off, sprinkle little more water.

Now shape the mixture using any mould.I used a small bowl.Take the mixture in whatever mould you have and just press it with your hand,so that the particles are held tightly.Invert the bowl and tap it slightly.The mixture comes out easily.With care, transfer the shaped puttu to the steamer.
Steam cook for about 8 to 10 minutes.
Serve warm!

Sending this to JFI:Ragi hosted by Madhuram and started by Indira.

Ragi Koozh / Finger Millet Porridge

Ragi koozh or porridge is a drink made from finger millet flour..Millet (ragi) has many nutritional benefits..This is a popular drink in South India..It cools the body and a glass of this keeps you full for about 8 hours..I found a packet of finger millet flour in an Indian store and was immediately reminded of my grandma making this koozh often..I did not like it much as a child as it never tasted too good..However, my mom used to make a sweet version, which we loved..

Here comes the recipe for both versions..
Ingredients (Serves 2)
Finger Millet flour - 1 cup
Water - 1 1/2 cups
Salt to taste
Yoghurt/ Buttermilk - 1/2 cup
Directions
Add water to the ragi flour and mix it with your fingers so that there are no lumps..Allow it to sit for a while for atleast an hour.This helps in the fermentation process.Fermentation helps in increasing its nutritional benefits several folds..It can also be left overnight..
In a saucepan, cook the ragi water mixture on medium-low heat for about 15 minutes until almost all the water evaporates and the ragi is well cooked. Keep stirring continuously without allowing lumps to form. It must have the consistency of a thick batter..
Switch off the heat and allow it to cool completely..
Mix in a pinch of salt and buttermilk and serve cool..Can be had by itself or with a pearl onion or curry of your choice..

The sweet version..After cooking the ragi, add milk and sugar or milk and jaggery..We loved this version..
Since this is a healthy and diet conscious food, this is my entry for Diet Foods being hosted in my blog..
Final date for sending in the entries:Oct 26th
Also sending this to FIC:Brown hosted at Tongueticklers

And also to Low and slow cooking hosted at The constables Larder

And also to Eat Healthy:Fight Diabetes

Sending this to JFI:Ragi hosted by Madhuram and started by Indira.

Bulgur Upma

Bulgur or Daliya is a cereal made from several different wheat species..It is more nutritious than rice..It serves as a quick breakfast..The preparation is almost similar to the Rava Upma but it tastes a little different..



Ingredients

Bulgur - 1 cup
Onion - 1/2 finely diced
Carrot - 1
Green peas - 1/4 cup
Corn (optional) - 1/4 cup
Cashews
Ginger - 1/2 inch finely chopped
Butter or ghee - 2 tbspns
Mustard and Urad dhall for tempering
Salt to taste

Directions

Melt the butter in a saucepan and roast the cashews..Then splutter the mustard seeds and urad dhall.Then add the onions and ginger and saute them..Once they become translucent add the vegetables and salt..You can add any veggies you like..Once they get half cooked,add two cups water and bring to a boil..Then add the bulgur and cook for 2 to 3 minutes or until the water evaporates..garnish with cilantro..
Serve with pickles or chutney of your choice..

this goes off to Weekend Herb Blogging hosted this week by Kochtopf...
and also to Suganya s Weekend Breakfast Blogging(WBB) - Healthy Eats