Medu Vadai

Medu Vada or Ulandi Vadai are donoughut shaped urad dal fritters that have been a traditional favorite of south India from antiquity. With exchange of food and culture, they have now become popular all over India and is often considered a healthy breakfast item. In south India they are often served with sambar and coconut chutney. You can however serve them with just about any chutney you have at hand and enjoy at teatime with your dose of caffeine.

Lately things have been somewhat unsettling around here. The  thing is... we want to move back to India. But right now the job scenario in homeland does not look too promising. We feel that the fact that husband and I are both past our mid thirties is working to our disadvantage. While I do not mind a change of career, my husband is not quite prepared for it. So he is tensed and I have been doing all that I can to lighten the atmosphere at home. Cooking his favorite meals, indulging in little scoops of ice-cream after dinner and mostly listening him out.. Hopefully things will change for the better soon.. Till then there will be a lot of deep fried snacks coming out of my kitchen. 

I adapted the recipe from Ez Cook Book.  Chopped onions were my only addition to their recipe. You can leave them out if you like or add some greens like finely chopped spinach, kale or fenugreek leaves to the batter. The recipe is highly adaptable so feel free to customize the flavors and make your own veggie medu vadai... 

Spinach, Red Grapes and White Turmeric Smoothie

Remember I told you about the Grape Must Syrup a while ago. The syrup that the Greek bakers from Athens dip their Koulouri dough rings in before coating them with sesame seeds.. Well I did say back then that you may skip the ordeal of making the grape must syrup if you wish and replace it with honey. However. In case you baked some Koulouri and ignoring my remark made some grape must syrup, then you are in for a treat right now.  Today I have for you a super refreshing healthy detoxifying drink that will instantly set you in the mood to sing... Spinach, red grapes, and white turmeric smoothie.. 

O.. Oh.. Did I intimidate you with that last ingredient ? Oh. Please. Hear me out... White turmeric is actually good for you and you cannot really taste it in this smoothie. It is there in the background and does not bother the taste buds at all... So get over your mental reservations and give this smoothie a try. I promise.. you'll love this one.  

Tasty Tuesday #50 featuring something Savory, something Sweet and a whole bunch of Paleo recipes...

Hi  everyone !! 

 Each week, our team of 10 amazing bloggers hosts this fabulous party! We're so glad that you've stopped by to party with us!

We blog: Anyonita Nibbles | Craft Dictator | Detours in Life | Lori's Culinary Creations | Red Cottage Chronicles |Three in Three | Mini Van Dreams| A Peek Into My Paradise | I'm Not a Trophy Wife | Ma Niche

Without you, we wouldn't have a party at all. So we think you're pretty special and deserve to benefit from linking up with us each week. Here's how:

Turnip with Coconut

Though Indian dishes cooked with coconut are usually associated with South Indian cuisine, coconut is a common ingredient used in most of coastal India. We, Bengalis tend to use it a lot, specially for flavoring our lentils and cooking root vegetables like carrots and radishes. I probably had that at the back of my mind, when the other day I tossed in some grated coconut into the pan of grated turnip ... the result was a lovely side dish to go with dhal and roti.  Both husband and I liked it and husband instantly recommended it for the blog.

My husband is fond of roasted potatoes and at his suggestion I added some while preparing the dish today. The potatoes do add to the flavor and also help increase the volume of the dish. However roasting the potatoes take time. So if you are in hurry and do not mind the extra oil, pan fry the potatoes or skip them altogether, you'll still have a lovely side for your meal..

Butter and Rum Crepes # French Fridays with Dorie

This week the Doristas were assigned to cook  Butter & Rum Crepes for French Fridays with Dorie.

I have cooked and eaten crepes before. However these ones were special. The crepe batter had sugar rubbed with orange and lemon zest and a bit of rum in it, both of which added to their flavor. Following Dorie's recipe I served them with a filling of lemon curd and poured a citrusy-buttery sauce over it.. only to realize later that the crepes would have been perfect even without all that extra fat and sugar. A sprinkle of sugar was enough to pep them up.

As per the instructions, I mixed the batter the night before and made the crepes for lunch the next day. I cooked them in my usual non-stick frying pan. They did not stick and came off easily. However they were thin and delicate and it took me a couple of crepes before I could flip them with ease and confidence. Both husband and I loved our French crepes very much but considering my inexperience and inexpertise with flipping crepes, I guess we will only be making them on special occasions.

  

Visit French Fridays with Dorie to know what the other members thought about these crepes. You can find the recipe here. For more such delicious recipes order your copies of Around my French Table and join the Doristas in this tasty adventure.

Chicken Paella with Orange

With only four more weeks to go before spring sets in, I am already feeling chirpy. As an early celebration, son and I went out for a walk this morning and returned back after an hour feeling fresh and cheery. It was so good to be out in the sun for so long.. Later, when the toddler went for his nap I cooked up this delicious citrusy chicken paella for dinner...

I adapted the recipe from the book Perfect Over Spanish a Collection of Over 100 Essential Recipe. I had cooked this paella before and had intended to write about it but then forgot until my sister asked me for a paella recipe the other day.... 

It is a gorgeous easy-to-cook one-pot-meal that can be made on a weeknight, provided you have planned it before and have an hour to spare. Else cook it up for a delicious weekend dinner and enjoy with your family and loved ones.....

Chocolate Red Wine Mousse Cake

Husband and I have never been much into Valentine's day or for that matter any other Hallmark holidays. We however like chocolate cakes and for that reason alone I decided to make a big deal of  Valentine's day this year and celebrate it with this heavenly Chocolate Red Wine Mousse Cake...

The recipe is an adaptation of Michel Rostang's Double-Chocolate Mousse Cake from Dorie Greenspan's book Around My French Table: More Than 300 Recipes from My Home to Yours. I mostly followed her recipe, just made a tiny adjustment... replaced the brewed coffee with an equal measure of red wine... and created "one of the most elegant desserts ever"... so said the husband. We relished and enjoyed the dessert over the next 3 days, each time feeling decadent and wonderful....   

This is a flourless cake and is baked in two sessions. You first make the batter, bake part of it for the crust, chill the crust, then pour the remaining batter over the baked crust and bake the whole cake again. And then you chill it all over before serving. Yes. The process involved it is somewhat lengthy and tedious. However once you have baked, chilled and tasted the goey chocolately deliciousness, and seen the delight on your partners face,  you will forget about all the tiny details and will want to make the cake again for your special someone...  

Tasty Tuesday # 49 ... comforting recipes for snowy days

 Each week, our team of 10 amazing bloggers hosts this fabulous party! We're so glad that you've stopped by to party with us!

We blog: Anyonita Nibbles | Craft Dictator | Detours in Life | Lori's Culinary Creations | Red Cottage Chronicles |Three in Three | Mini Van Dreams| A Peek Into My Paradise | I'm Not a Trophy Wife | Ma Niche

Without you, we wouldn't have a party at all. So we think you're pretty special and deserve to benefit from linking up with us each week. Here's how:

Linzer Cookies # Baking Partner's Feb '14 Challenge

Linzer Torte is an Austrian torte named after the city of its origin,  Linz in Austria. It is believed to be one of the oldest cakes in the world and is regarded as a holiday classic in several parts of Europe. In North America, it is often made like small tarts or cookies and are called the Linzer Cookies. In imitation of the lattice design that is signature of Linzer torte, the cookie versions are made by sandwiching a layer of jam between two almond flavored cookies, one of which has a peekaboo- circle, heart or flower-cutout in the center..

With Valentine's day in mind, this month Swathi of Zesty South Indian Kitchen challenged the baking partners to bake either Linzer Cookies or Heart Shaped Crunchy Seed Cookies. She had tried and tested the recipes for both the cookies from the book Chewy Gooey Crispy Crunchy Melt-in-Your-Mouth Cookies by Alice Medrich and provided us with step-wise instructions for both. The Linzer Cookies  had been in my to-do list for a long time, so I chose to bake them for Valentine's day.

They were a big hit. On returning from work, husband was happy to be greeted with a plate of bright red cookies and the toddler, who had been helping me cut the cookies, felt both happy and proud for being part of the project...

Initially we did not think much of these cookies. But the more we ate the more we wanted.. The flavors are subtle and addictive and they go very well with both tea and coffee. I made only a few for V day and froze the remaining dough.. but it seems like I'll have to unfreeze the dough soon and bake the full batch on demand...

Hélène's All White Salad # French Fridays with Dorie

This week's assignment for the Doirstas was Hélène's All White Salad.... a mushroom, celery, apple and napa cabbage salad with mayonnaise dressing and a sprinkle of sesame seeds for garnish.

It is not very often that you come across monochromatic salads, specially in white. Driven by curiosity I had tried this one soon after I got my copy of Around My French Table. I was a little wary of the yolk in the dressing and had left it out .. Our general opinion then was that it isn't so great a salad... Both husband and I had not liked the raw after taste that the mushroom left. There were leftovers which I ate the following day and guess what, I really liked it. The chilled yogurt-olive oil-dressed mushrooms tasted so good !

Keeping that in mind, this time, I chopped all the vegetables, dressed them with a mixture of half of the yogurt and olive oil, seasoned them and chilled the dressed salad overnight before adding the mayonnaise and serving. The result was fabulous. Though slightly speckled, the chilled salad tasted fantastic and we really enjoyed it.

Visit French Fridays with Dorie to know what the other members thought about this salad. You can find a version of the recipe here . For Dorie's original recipe and more such delicious ones order your copies of Around my French Table and join the Doristas in this tasty adventure.

Chocochip Cherry 'n Coke Muffins

Does it ever happen to you that you see a recipe, pin it and then cannot get it out of your head until you have tried it. It happens to me all the time... specially when I see something as awesome as a hand-written muffin recipe from a different era .. Something with ICE_CREAM and a promise of goodness in it. Something like these muffins from Four Mars.. One Venus that scream and beg to be baked right away... So I tweaked Jen's grandmother's Quick Blueberry muffin recipe a bit to make these Chocochip Cherry n' Coke muffins for breakfast on Sunday...

I had read about coke doing wonders to the texture of cakes before and on Sunday experienced it first hand. Even with their share of whole wheat flour, these muffins turned out so soft and fluffy. They were wonderful. Little boy enjoyed them too and declared that he likes cherry muffins.

The texture became a little dense the next day... but even then they tasted good. In fact I thought like most whole wheat cakes, they tasted better the following day. I had glazed half of the batch with a coke-cocoa glaze and my husband liked the glazed ones, little boy and  and I however preferred ours unglazed ones. We were happy with the chocolate-cherry combo and did not care much for the added sugar.....

Puneri Aloo (Potatoes with Peanuts n' Curry Leaves)

Earlier this year, while working on the recipe archive of the blog I realized that I haven't shared too many Indian recipes. Weird. Because I am an Indian. Grew up eating Indian food all my life. Love my spices and enjoy their aroma and flavors in all that I cook. Yet when it came to blogging I shared so little of my food and culture. So I decided to share at least one Indian recipe each week..

Keeping with the spirit I chose to share Puneri Aloo with you today. It is a traditional potato preparation flavored with curry leaves and peanuts. The name suggests that the dish is from the city of Pune in Maharashtra. Must be so. But I haven't  had this dish in Pune.  I have only tasted the version that came in "The Samsung Book of Indian Microwave Cooking by Tarla Dalal," the book that I often referred to in my early days in kitchen.

You see, I began to cook on a regular basis only after marriage. My mother believed that anyone who appreciates good food will eventually learn to cook. So she neither encouraged me to experiment in her kitchen nor assist her as a sous-chef. Later when I went to college, the hostel canteen took care of all our meals. In India, hostel accommodations always come with food, meaning there is always a canteen associated with every hostel, and the multi-tasking "bhaiyas" there take care of all the kitchen ordeals.. shopping, cooking, serving and washing... You only have to appear in the canteen in time and eat your meals. Being part of the system, which we all took for granted,  I never learnt to cook until I was forced to. As a result my initial kitchen-days were quite a ride. Back then,  rolling a "round" roti used to be a big accomplishment and a compliment from husband on my cooking a big achievement. The latter came in easily with this dish.. Thus it remained one of our favorites for a long time and then became part of a happy memory...

Tasty Tuesday #48 Hearty Meal Edition

Hi  everyone !! 

 Each week, our team of 10 amazing bloggers hosts this fabulous party! We're so glad that you've stopped by to party with us!

We blog: Anyonita Nibbles | Craft Dictator | Detours in Life | Lori's Culinary Creations | Red Cottage Chronicles |Three in Three | Mini Van Dreams| A Peek Into My Paradise | I'm Not a Trophy Wife | Ma Niche

Without you, we wouldn't have a party at all. So we think you're pretty special and deserve to benefit from linking up with us each week. Here's how:

Mushroom Risotto

What are your plans for Valentine's Day ? Dining out ? Staying in ? As for us.. we haven't decided yet. We may or may not go out for dinner. But if we stay at home, then I'll probably make some Dressy Pasta Risotto and Chicken Piccata or this awesome Mushroom Risotto followed by a decadent chocolate cake.

The recipe is from Audrey's. I modified it a little and added an extra step to the recipe just because I find it easier to cook risotto with semi-cooked Arborio rice. You may skip it if you are a pro at cooking risotto... However if Arborio is a new grain for you, the extra step might prove useful. Either way... don't wait too long, slice the mushrooms, grab your jar of Arborio rice and get ready to cook a creamy delicious romantic dinner for two....

Koulouri / Greek Politiko Simiti

Koulouri is a sesame crusted bread ring from Greece. It is a street food sold by the vendors in Athens. Apparently it is a common snack for both Greeks and Turks and is believed to have been brought to Greece by Greek refugees from Asia Minor and Constantinople(Istanbul). In Turkey they go by the name of Simit or Susam kebabi meaning Sesame kebab. Though a derivative of the Turk Simit, the Politiko Simiti is quite distict from it. It is braided and given a generous coating of petimezi(Greek grape must syrup or grape molasses) before being rolled in sesame seeds and baked. The braiding lends a bagel-type texture to the Koulouri and the grape molasses gives it a mild sweetness, thereby making it a popular breakfast bread or teatime snack for the Greeks. 

Last month Priya Suresh of Priya's Versatile Recipes challenged the members of Gayathri's Baking Eggless Group to bake an eggless version of these braided bread rings. The original recipe uses only one large egg, which wasn't much of a challenge to deal with. I simply replaced it with ¼ cup Greek yogurt. The real challenge however was to make the grape must syrup. Most recipes called for petimezi called for grape juice and wood ash. Now we do not have a fireplace or barbeque grill and I did not know where to get the wood ash from.. so after some considerations I decided to simply simmer the grape juice and make a syrup. I am not sure if the thickened grape syrup tasted anything like petimezi, but it was really good... Having said that I must add that though the grape syrup was great by itself, one could barely taste it in the bun. So unless you are in the mood for it, do not sweat it out. Simply substitute the syrup with an equal measure of honey and you are good to go.... 

But... in case you want to make the grape syrup my way here is how you can do it. For 2 cups of grape syrup, blend  5 cups of red grapes, strain the juice into a large saucepan. Over medium heat, bring the juice to a boil, skim off the foam that rises on top and simmer over medium low heat for the next 1½ to 2 hours, until the juice thickens and acquires the consistency of honey. This syrup can be used as a dipping syrup for the bread or served as a sauce with savory snacks. It also tastes good when served over Greek Yogurt or Frozen yogurt. 

Dilled Gravlax with Mustard Sauce # French Fridays with Dorie

This week the Doristas were assigned to cook Boeuf a la Ficelle or Beef on a string. We do not eat beef so initially I had decided to adapt the recipe to make Poulet a la Ficelle. In the past I have adapted beef recipes from the book to cook chicken, but this one was different. Other than beef,  this dish required veal and oxtail. Now how was I suppose to substitute those. Add more chicken ? No. That did not feel quite right. So I decided to skip the assigned recipe altogether and review one which the Doristas have already tried.....namely Dilled Gravlax with Mustard Sauce.

Most Doristas prepared Dilled Garvlax in the last week of December and I in the subsequent week. The recipe was fairly easy but required time. I hadn't read the instructions until Thursday and did not have enough time to prepare it by the next day. I am however glad that I tried it for it was delicious !

For those who haven't heard of it before, gravlax is nothing but cured salmon. To prepare it one simply has to make the curing mixture, coat a slice of salmon with it, wrap the fish in a  plastic wrap, weight it evenly with something heavy and refrigerate for 48-72 hours. Once cured, the fish needs to be rinsed off the curing mixture, patted dry and thinly sliced. The slices are then served with mustard sauce and bread or toasts with a garnish of dill. 

No one around me, family or friends, eat raw fish, weather cured or not.. so I had to eat the whole slab myself. I enjoyed it very much. However I wish I could share my joy with someone. Everything about it was so perfect. The sauce, the seasoning... everything. I had it over the next two days and every time I took a bite I said to myself... God ! they do not know what they are missing :) 

Visit French Fridays with Dorie to know what the other members thought about the gravlax and this week's assigned recipe Boeuf a la Ficelle.

You can find the recipe of here . For Dorie's original recipe and more purchase your copy of Around My French Table and join the Doristas in their venture. 

Palak Pakoda (Spinach Fritters) guest post by husband

It does not snow in India,  it rains... and in some states the rainy season is simply crazy. It just does not stop. It keeping pouring for days together until one fine day the sky clears and the sun decides to show up again. Indians are used to it . Unless the rains came down just when they put their heaviest bedspreads out to dry or their locality got flooded away by the continuous showers, they are cool with it. In fact they enjoy it and take it all with a plate of pakoda and a cup of chai....... Pakoda , chai and a good chat with the girlfriends is just about everything that an Indian lass needs to perk her up on lousy, lazy rainy day. 

Here, sitting in our New York apartment, I often get nostalgic for such days.. Here, an impromptu chat session with your girlfriends is unthinkable. Everyone and everything is so formal. Even to visit a friend, you have to make plans atleast a day in advance. A gloomy snowy day is not an excuse good enough to knock at the neighbors door and say hello.. 

On such dreary days when I loathe the relocation, my husband sometimes helps me get out of the blues by putting on my favorite music while he fries some pakodas to go with the chai.. They do not clear the sky or set me singing.. but they definitely help me get back to my life here with husband and our son in our little apartment in New York.

Spinach Pakoda

---

Recipe by Nishi (my husband)

Prep time: 15 minutes                                                                  Cook time: 15 minutes
Total time: 30 minutes                                                                  Yield: serves 4

Ingredients

• 1 chopped onion
• 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• ½ tsp cumin seeds
• ½ tsp dhana-jeera powder
• ¾ cup chickpea flour
• salt to taste
• ⅔ cup water
• 2 green chillies finely chopped(optional)
• 2 packed cups green spinach
• vegetable oil for deep frying
• garlic salt

Cooking Directions

1. Mix the first five ingredients to make a smooth batter.
2. Add the spinach and chopped chillies to the batter, mix well and keep aside till you are ready to fry.
3. When ready to fry, pour oil in a frying pan so that it is 1½ deep. Heat the oil to 325 ° F and drop handfuls of the batter-spinach mixture into the oil.
4. Fry the spinach fritters until the batter looks golden brown, about 4-5 minutes, turning once or twice in between.
5. Remove from the hot oil and transfer the fritters into a plate spread with paper towels.
6. Once the excess oil has completely drained away sprinkle some garlic salt on top and serve with tea.

I shall be sharing these fritters in all these food parties.

Chocolate Financer

Its 5th Feb... World Nutella Day.. and I had a real goey-Nutella-y recipe in mind. So dreamily I went to the kitchen yesterday... thinking of all the goey deliciousness that was waiting for and Oh My... what do I see.. that jar of Nutella has been almost spooned clean.  I was almost in tears... It might have taken me a few minutes to get over that initial frustration ... and then I thought of making these Financier. Not Nutella Financier exactly but DELICIOUS none the less.

This recipe is from Around the French Table. One of Paris's most admired chocolatiers, Jean Paul Hévin gave this recipe to Dorie Greenspan. I did not change a thing about it. However a teaspoon of orange zest might have been a good idea so I added that in the recipe. Orange zest or otherwise these Chocolate Financiers are what perfection tastes to chocolate lovers. So bake some right away and indulge.... 

Tasty Tuesday #47 ~ The Chocolate Edition

Hi  everyone !! 

 Each week, our team of 10 amazing bloggers hosts this fabulous party! We're so glad that you've stopped by to party with us!

We blog: Anyonita Nibbles | Craft Dictator | Detours in Life | Lori's Culinary Creations | Red Cottage Chronicles |Three in Three | Mini Van Dreams| A Peek Into My Paradise | I'm Not a Trophy Wife | Ma Niche

Without you, we wouldn't have a party at all. So we think you're pretty special and deserve to benefit from linking up with us each week. Here's how:

Paris-Brest # French Fridays with Dorie

This Friday the Doristas were assigned to bake Paris-Brest, a big wheel of puff  pastry filled with vanilla pastry cream and caramelized blanched almonds...  With my terrible piping skills and inability to follow specific instructions, I ended up with a rustic looking dessert which barely resembled a wheel.. It was however delicious. 

Paris-Brest... what an unusual name for a dessert.. no ? Apparently this pastry was created in 1891 in honor of the Paris-Brest-Paris cycle race that began that year. It consisted of a big circle of pâte à choux filled with crème pâtissere that was meant to resemble a bicycle wheel. Because of its every-giving high calorific value, this pastry soon became popular among the riders and is now found in pastry shops all over France. 

Since I was baking just for the two of us, I halved the recipe. I have baked/whipped  half recipe of both pâte à choux and crème pâtissere before and wasn't very worried about it. My only concern was that I did not have a piping tip that was big enough. I thought piping out a few extra rings would help and so, did that only to end up with a pastry that looked more like a crown or something such rather than a wheel. Also, in all the hubbub I forgot to sprinkle the almonds on the dough before baking.  Later I tried to make up for it with a garnish of caramelized almonds. I am nottly affected by this adjustment... whatever it be the dessert was divine, specially the crème pâtissere with the hint of praline and my husband simply couldn't let it be until nothing but the crumbs were left ....

Visit French Fridays with Dorie to know what the other members thought about the dessert.

You can find a version of the recipe here . For Dorie's original recipe and more such delicious ones order your copies of Around the French Table from Amazon or from The Book Depository and join us as we cook our way through the book.  

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