Apple - Almond Salad

We visited the Grand Canyon last weekend.. It was an amazing experience to visit one of the natural wonders of the world. We had a memorable smooth water float trip over the river Colorado running through the canyon. It was great to see the layers of rocks forming the canyon. Overall, it was a memorable trip which will remain in our memories forever.

After the amazing weekend, I felt too lazy to cook an elaborate meal. Also, after eating out a lot, I felt I needed a something very simple. I had not done the week's shopping, so had no vegetables in hand. i just whipped up this simple salad which was filling and light. The salad has a sweet and sour taste. it is filled with the goodness of apples and almonds. The ingredients can be varied according to ones taste.

Ingredients

Apple - 1

Slivered almonds/Sliced almonds - 2 tablespoons

Lettuce

Cabbage

Vinegar - 1 teaspoon

Olive oil - 1 teaspoon

Salt and pepper

Directions

Chop the apples into small cubes. Shredd the lettuce and cabbage.

Combine together the apples, cabbage, lettuce, almonds. Cover and refridgerate until chilled.

Prepare the simple yet delicious dressing with the olive oil, vinegar, salt and pepper.

Toss the dressing along with the chilled salad.

Enjoy!

Sending this to Think Spice..Think pepper event being hosted in my blog and brainchild of Sunita.

And also to Go Nuts-Almonds hosted at Tasty Treats

Idly podi

This is a very different version of idly podi which my grandmother prepares. A nice aroma wafts the house when she prepares this. It has a different taste due to the addition of curry leaves in it. It goes well with idlies and dosas. 

Ingredients

Urad dhall - 1 cup

Chickpeas/ kadalai paruppu - 1/2 cup

Curry leaves - 3 sprigs

Red chillies - 4

Dhania seeds - 2 tablespoons

Asafoetida - 1/4 teaspoon

Salt 

Directions

Dry roast all the ingredients listed and powder them in a mixer-grinder.

Store in an airtight container.

Mix with oil or ghee and serve with idlies and dosais.

Sending this to Colors of taste - Podis event hosted at kadumanga.

Oven-baked Rosti

Rosti is a traditional Swiss potato dish that can be served as a crispy side dish or even as a snack. It was originally a common breakfast eaten by farmers in the canton of Bern, but today is eaten all over Switzerland and also in many restaurants in the Western World. Many Swiss people consider rösti a national dish. Today, rather than considering it a complete breakfast, it is more commonly served to accompany other dishes. (Wikipedia)

I made a healthier version of this Rosti. They are normally pan-fried after mixing the potatoes with oil. I adopted the recipe from Dhivya's blog after making a few changes. Instead of using the muffin pan the rostis can also be baked using a normal baking sheet. The rosti tasted good by itself and can also be had with ketchup.

Ingredients

Potatoes - 4 to 5 large ones

Onion - 1 small sized

Butter - 3 tablespoons

Cheese (optional) - 3 spoon shredded

Salt to taste

Freshly ground pepper

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400 F.

Boil the potatoes along with the skin for about 8 to 10 minutes. Allow the potatoes to cool.

Peel the skin and grate the potatoes along with the onions. Mix in the butter, cheese, salt and freshly ground pepper. The pepper enhances the taste of the rosti. At this  point other ingredients like cheese, olive oil, chilli powder etc. can be added to suit your taste buds.

Take a greased muffin pan. Spoon in the potato mixture evenly.

Bake for about 30 to 40 minutes until they turn golden brown.

Serve warm! It is that simple!

These Oven-baked rosti's make their way to the following events.

Think Spice.. Think Pepper being hosted in my blog Dil Se.. and initially started by Sunita.

CFK - Potato hosted by Deepa and started by Sharmi

MBP:Snacks and Savouries hosted by Ashwini and started by The Spice Cafe.

MBP:Kids Food hosted by Trupti and started by the Spice Cafe.

Recipes for the rest of Us:Picnic Eats hosted by Trupti and started by Ramki.

HAPPY WOMEN'S DAY!!

 

Mixed Vegetable Kurma

I am occupied with my college work and I find hardly anytime to blog. I do not want to give up and will try to update my blog once in a while. This is a simple recipe for a mixed vegetable kurma flavored with exotic spices. It is versatile and tastes great with any side, be it flavored rice, chapathis, pooris and even idlies and dosas. I served this with green peas pulao. The recipe can be tweaked using any vegetable in hand.  Amma makes this curry for sure during weekends with either pooris or chapathis.

Ingredients
French Beans - about 10
Carrot-1
Potato-1
Peas- ½ cup
Onions -1 medium sized
Tomato-1 medium sized
Ginger garlic paste - 1tablespoon
Cinnamon - 1stick
Cloves - 4
Star anise -2
Garam masala powder - ½ teaspoon
Turmeric powder - ¼ tsp
Salt to taste
To grind into paste

Green chillies - 5 (or more if you need it to be spicier)
Coriander/dhania seeds - 1 teaspoon
Jeera/cumin seeds - 1 teaspoon
Saunf or Aniseed - 1 teaspoon
Cashews - 6 (or 2 teaspoons of poppy seeds soaked in 1 tablespoon of water)
Coconut - 3 tablespoons
Coriander leaves - 1 tablespoon

Directions
Chop the vegetables, onions and tomatoes. Heat some oil in a pressure cooker. Add all the spices, the cinnamon, cloves and star anise. Grind all the ingredients listed in a mixer-grinder to get a coarse paste. Add the chopped onions, saute for some time and then add the ginger garlic paste. After a minute, add the tomatoes. Saute till the tomatoes get soft and add all the chopped vegetables. Add salt, garam masala and turmeric powder. Then add the ground masala and saute for some time . Add a glass of water. Close the pressure cooker and cook until one whistle. Then simmer for about 5 minutes. Garnish with coriander leaves. Serve hot with a dish of your choice.

Sending this to WYF:Cuisine hosted by EC, since this is an authenitic South Indian dish and it brings back sweet memories!
Also, do check out the Think Spice.. Think Pepper event being hosted in my blog!

Think Spice..Think Pepper..

Do you know which is the third most added ingredient to recipes? Yes it is 'The King of Spices - Pepper' with water and salt leading the race. Do you believe that it was once so valuable that it was used as currency? 

Looking back to the history of peppercorns...

Peppercorns are the seed berries of the Piper nigrum (piper being Latin for plant, and nigrum meaning black) vine, originating on the Malabar coast of India. Peppercorns are not only the oldest used spice, but also the most widely-used. Today, pepper, known as the King of Spices and the Master Spice, still accounts for one-fourth of the world's spice trade.

Some medicinal and household uses of pepper include...

Although always prized as a flavor-enhancing spice, the peppercorn first gained fame for medicinal purposes as a digestive stimulant and expectorant. Its hot and pungent flavor causes the membranes inside the nose and throat to exude a lubricating secretion, helpful to those in respiratory distress as an aid to cough up offending phlegm and mucus. Pepper was also used in an external ointment to relieve skin afflictions and hives. Black pepper is also an effective deterrant to insects. A solution of one-half teaspoon freshly ground pepper to one quart of warm water sprayed on plants can be toxic to ants, potato bugs, silverfish, and even roaches and moths. A sprinkling of ground pepper will also deter insect paths in non-garden areas.

Tips for storage of Pepper..

Store whole peppercorns in a sealed container in a cool, dry place up to one year. Ground pepper begins to lose flavor after about four months, so if you do not use a lot of pepper, avoid those huge cans. Brined peppercorns need to be refrigerated after opening and used within a month. 
Water-packed peppercorns have the shortest shelf life after opening they should refrigerated and used within one week.

(courtesy:Wikipedia, About.com)

Did you know that peppercorns come in black, white, green, red and pink in color? For more info read this..

You must be wondering why I am raving about this Master Spice Pepper.

Yes I am hosting this month's edition of Think Spice initially started by dear Sunita.

Here are some guidelines..

Post any dish featuring pepper as the main spice. Pepper can be used in any form (finely powdered, freshly ground or whole) and any variety of pepper can be used. Both vegetarian and non-vegetarian posts are welcome. Multiple entries and old entries are accepted unless you add a link to this page. Uses and other Information about pepper can also be included in the post.

Post it on your blog anytime between March 1st and March 31st and please link back to this announcement and also to Sunita's Think Spice post.Feel free to use the logo.

Email me your entry with your name, picture of any size, recipe name and permalink to the recipe to divyablogs(at)gmail(dot)com . if you do not own a blog, send me your name, recipe, and picture. I will include it in the roundup. 

Now get your peppergrinders ready and start cooking!!

Lemon rasam and a Thank You note!

You must all be wondering where I disappeared for ages! It took me sometime to come back to normal after our visit to India. I had the chance to learn many new dishes from my mom and my mother-in-law during my trip. Hopefully I will be trying them all soon and posting them here. The weather in California has been cold during the past week which is quite abnormal during this time of the year.. This lemon rasam is perfect for such a weather and it is quite simple and easy to make..It is an ultimate comfort food and can be whipped up in minutes.

Ingredients

Cooked Toor Dhall - 1/2 cup
Tomato - 1 finely chopped
Green chillies - 2
Ginger - 1 inch
Lemon juice - from 1 medium sized lemon
Salt or to taste
Few sprigs of coriander leaves

For the tempering

Mustard seeds - 1 teaspoon
Cumin seeds - 1 teaspoon
Pepper powder - 1/2 teaspoon
Curry leaves - 1 sprig
Ghee - 1 teaspoon

Directions

Chop tomatoes finely, also chop green chillies and ginger.

In a heavy bottomed pan, on medium heat, add 2 cups of water, chopped tomatoes, green chillies and ginger. Allow it to boil for about 5 minutes or till the tomatoes turn tender. Add turmeric, pepper powder and salt. Add coriander leaves. Finally add the cooked dhall and let it simmer for about 3 minutes.

Turn off the heat and add the lemon juice and mix well. Take care not to add the lemon juice while the rasam is still on heat. This makes the rasam turn bitter.

In a small pan do the tempering with ghee, mustard seeds and cumin seeds. Add the tempering to the rasam and stir well.

Serve hot with rice and curry of your choice.

This rasam is a simple dish to make on lazy nights for dinner. Hence I am sending this to Recipes for the rest of us - Dinner hosted at dear Siri's Place and started by Ramki

And coming to the thank you note, I know it is too late to thank my dear friend Siri for sending me this valuable gift for winning MBP:Cheese. It was a pleasant surprise to get the gift when i received all my mails after our return from India. It was an amazing book - "The Well Decorated Cake' by Toba Garrett. Thanks a lot Siri and thanks again to all my dear blogger friends who voted for me!

Egg Bhurji

This is a simple recipe to make and relish with ease. It uses the most simple ingredients. It is versatile and can be had by itself, or as a side with rice and curry, or as a wrap with chapathis or tortillas or even as a sandwich with bread. i make this when I run out of time or vegetables.


Ingredients (Serves 2)

Eggs - 2
Onion - 1
Tomato - 1
Turmeric - 1/2 teaspoon
Red Chilli Powder - 1/4 Teaspoon
Coriander Powder - 1 teaspoon
Fresh Coriander leaves- Chopped 2 Tablespoons
Oil - 1 Tablespoon
Salt and pepper to taste
Butter - 1 tablespoon

Directions

Chop the onions and tomatoes finely. Heat a non-stick pan on medium heat and add the oil. Add the chopped onion followed by chopped tomatoes and saute until it turns translucent. Add in the red chilli powder, turmeric powder and mix well.
Break the Eggs and pour into the pan directly. Stir briskly. Add the coriander leaves butter and mix well. Remove from heat and serve warm.