Red Grapes Rasam

How to make Red Grapes Rasam

               Do you shop in bulk? Or just have a bunch of these succulent berries on hand? May be, you are just looking for an exotic recipe, that you have never tried before. The 'Rasam' is a traditional & customary concoction in many South Indian homes, for lunch. Although, tomatoes are the commonly used fruit in this digestive broth, I decided to use the Grapes that I had, just too many of - Thanks to Costco! The juicy grapes add an exotic fruity flavor to the otherwise ordinary Rasam.

            The Grapes, impart a beautiful color & makes it sensationally sweet, (based on the color & quantity of the grapes added) which is what makes this Rasam unique. Since, there is no cooking of  lentils/pulses required in this recipe, you can prepare this in a jiffy. To give you a perception of what this would taste like, think of a Rasam prepared with a lump of jaggery. Not too sweet, just enough to balance the sourness of the tamarind other spices. So go ahead & give it shot!

Pico De Gallo/Tomato-Jalapeno Salsa

How to make Pico De Gallo/Tomato-Jalapeno Salsa

Feliz Cinco De Mayo, people!! Cinco de Mayo is a celebration that is observed in the United States as a celebration of Mexican heritage and pride on the 5th of May. I should admit, I was a little surprised & 'duh'-ed when i found that Cinco de Mayo's translation, simply means "fifth of May"! Check out this interesting video to find out more about this holiday, that's apparently celebrated more in the US than in Mexico.

The colors in the Pico de gallo, instantly remind us of a Mexican fiesta. Mexican Cuisine is probably the next best thing; for people like me, who find it hard to sustain without chillies in some form or the other. Any kind of Salsa is good - all I beg for, is some heat in it. The Pico de Gallo is probably the easiest variety to make. All you have to do is, chop up the ingredients & serve chilled. My son, who has a chronic distaste for tomatoes, loves Salsa - I wonder, if i should tell him what the main ingredient is?

Rawa Pongal

How to make Rawa Pongal

                  You've possibly tried the Rawa Upma that is commonly made at home and the popular Pongal that's typically made with rice; but have you tasted Rawa Pongal? If Indian cuisine is new to you, you can relate this dish to the popular Grits, except that this is made from wheat grits, lentils, veggies & flavored with Indian spices. This is a colorful, flavorful & tasty Pongal, can be served as such or with an accompaniment of your choice & has all the qualities to make it on the list of your family favorite. For those who haven't heard about this before - this pongal is creamy, moist & soft. Add veggies of your choice to make it healthy & nutritious.

Chocolate Brownies

How to make Chocolate Brownies

      I fell in love with the chewy chocolaty heaven on earth; the first time I ever tasted these yummies which was well into adulthood & I thought, OMG! I have been deprived of this delicacy, all my life!! :) After all, what's not to like about them? I like to think of it as a cake, without the frills; which makes it a no mess, on the go dessert. The easy to make, brownie is a cross between a cake & a cookie, in texture. But, you can have them as you like - sprinkle with powdered sugar, Take it with some milk, drizzle some chocolate sauce on top, warm it up & serve with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, you could also use it on top of this delectable, Oreo Shake. I chose to eliminate nuts in this recipe for my son & added a few white chocolate chips instead, but you could add walnuts if you like. This recipe is also great in the sense, that it does not give off an eggy smell in your brownies.

   

       While thinking about this post, I was intrigued to find out about the origin of the decadent brownie & it goes like this - A chef at Chicago's Palmer House Hotel created the confection after Bertha Palmer requested a dessert for ladies attending the Chicago 1893 World Fair; it should be, she said, smaller than a piece of cake, though still retaining cake-like characteristics and easily eaten from boxed lunches. These first brownies featured an apricot glaze and walnuts, and they are still being made at the hotel according to the original recipe. (Source: Wikipedia)

Honey Wheat Bread

How to make Honey Wheat Bread at home

      Since the time, I heard about the yoga mat chemical in fast food breads (McDonald's, Burger King, Subway, and KFC & many more); I remained, ever so slightly bothered about why the FDA permits Azodicarbonamide, while it is banned as a food additive and in food packaging in most European countries and Australia. And its use in Singapore has some pretty severe penalties. The reason being - two suspicious chemicals are formed when bread with Azodicarbonamide is baked, which is linked to respiratory problems & potentially carcinogenic.

      While we do like to have an occasional meal at fast food chains (in spite of it being high in empty calories)  & have nothing against them; the fact that we might be compromising our health, affects the decision to go back there. While reading about the additive, I learnt that this particular chemical is also used in numerous other popular brands of packaged breads. Next thing to do, was to check my regular (multigrain bread) brands for the additive & there it was listed among a ton of ingredients - decided not to buy that anymore. A week later I found that it was also on my white bread - another brand had to be kicked off my list. While your visit to the fast food chains can be controlled, the packaged breads will be consumed on a daily basis, through out the year (at least, in my home)!! At this rate, chances of any reactions from the additive are enormously higher from packaged breads than from fast foods, I would say.

        The necessary ingredients in bread are pretty basic. You need flour, water, yeast, and salt for sure. And then maybe add a little fat for dough consistency and a little sugar to get the yeast going. A little flavoring, if you like. You take a look at the commercial breads or any packaged food for that matter and the ingredient lists are freaking scary!

         Now, will I stop buying breads altogether & make my own bread, hereafter? Very unlikely! Will I read the ingredient list, before i buy any packaged bread - of course, Duh...! Although more than 500 grocery store food items have this foaming agent, you can easily get commercial breads without the additive. Even if you are not the kind of person, who fusses over what you eat, remember to check the ingredient list of all packaged foods. It's always better to go with products that have a short list with mostly natural ingredients. It's best to err on the side of caution, when it comes to health; but hey, that's just me! Eat, Thrive & Stay Healthy!!

Pineapple Mensakai (Sweet & Spicy Pineapple Curry)

How to make Pineapple Mensakai

          You know how, sometimes a song gets inextricably stuck in your head & refuses to go away, whether you like it or not? Yeah, I have that too - the Stuck Song Syndrome!! If you are a foodie, you should be able to relate to something similar - If I fall in love with a new or exotic dish; the flavors & that memory gets tattooed on my grey matter & rises out of my long term memory, every time I see a relevant ingredient even if it's eons later. Today's post, is about one such memory/side dish called Pineapple Mensakai. You could also add a small amount of boiled bitter gourd into this dish, it will probably go unnoticed (good, if you have any bitter gourd haters at home)

       The Mensakai is similar to the Pachadi (in Tamil), from the popular Udupi Cuisine (Mangalore, Karnataka). When I first sampled, this exquisite side dish at a friend's house warming ceremony, the foodie in me was so curious to know it's name & the recipe. I ended up walking out, extremely disappointed, since all I could figure out at that time, was that it was made with Pineapples - was sweet, tangy, spicy & oh so.... mouth watering!

Milk Poori's / Fried Indian Puffy Bread

How to make Milk Poori's/Fried Indian Puffy Bread

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                Poori's are a must have, on Sunday mornings in many homes especially, coz' the kids love it. My better half can eat Puri's morning, noon & night; although he's a substantially big kid, now. Since he went on & on about, how I rarely make these high calorie, fried flat breads for him - I decided to give in this time & serve the Puri's he was longing for. Most of us are familiar with the regular Puri's, so I decided to make these Milk Puri's where the dough is made with cold milk, instead of water. A sneaky way to include milk into the kids meal if they do not like to drink it. Mr.S decided to stay by the frying pan to make sure, I didn't change my mind about making these & helped with the frying part of the process, giving his special touch of browning them a little more than required & adding a few age spots on them. Hopefully, your Puri's will come out in a beautiful golden color, unless you have an over enthusiastic helper in your kitchen, as well :o) 

              Goes great with Vegetable Kurma, Potato Masala if you want to go for South Indian side, Pindi Chole (make it into a semi-gravy), Makki Chi Bhaji or Lobia Rassedar. An excellent way to serve up left over Puri's (for dessert) is to tear them up into bite sized pieces & drop them into warm milk mixed with a little sugar. Now guess who demonstrated, this manner of gobbling up more Puri's ;o)

Vegetable Kurma

How to make Vegetable Kurma

      The Vegetable Kurma or Korma can be a versatile accompaniment, that can go from breakfast to lunch & lunch to dinner, depending on what it is served with. Some even, prefer the Kurma over the popular Potato Masala as well, due to the aromatic flavors going on in this, lip-smacking Kurma. Although there are various versions of veggie Kurma, this beats the rest of them because of the variety of vegetables that goes into it; which makes it all the more colorful & healthy. We gobbled our Milk Puris with this delectable Kurma. You can play around with whatever vegetables you have at hand & also use frozen or canned ones to cut down on your cooking time.

A Tribute to my Father

In loving memory of my Dad

              Where do I begin? How do I start? No matter how hard i try, there are not enough words I can say to describe just how important my father was to me. Today, would be my first birthday, without my dad. My father was my hero, whom i looked up to. He was my encyclopedia. As a li'l girl - I believed, there wasn't a subject in the world, that he wasn't aware of. I was in awe, at his mental math skills, but dreaded the time he would tutor math for me. More than anything, there was an unconditional love for him; he always had a special place in my heart - not for anything he had done, but for just being my dad! I truly can't remember a time when i was mad at him, such was his fathering. 

Quick & Easy Dahi Puri

How to make Quick & Easy Dahi Puri

         I don't know if there is anyone, who can resist the popular Indian street food called 'Chaat'. Even if you are not a fan of one variety, there are so many more to choose from & you are sure to be hooked onto one of these mouth-watering delicacies. The Dahi Puri is one of the cooler Chaats - meaning they are not as fiery as some of the other Chaat varieties, thus making it an apt snack for kids & adults. Here's a practically No-Cook recipe, so you can enjoy your favorite Chaat without breaking a sweat!

If you live far away from home (India), I can vouch from personal experience that when something triggers your memory of the 'Chaat', you crave for these piquant snacks more than you normally would, just 'cos they are inaccessible. Although some restaurants have Chaat on their menu, it just doesn't taste as good as the ones made by the street-food vendors back home ;-) The different varieties of Chat include - Sev Puri, Pani Puri, Bhel Puri, Masala Puri, Papdi Chaat, Raj kachori, Samosa Channa, just to name a few. Sending this recipe from 'The Hindu' over to Srivalli's CCChallenge #5 week 2.