Seriously Good Potato Fries

This recipe is as essential and as basic as it gets. Somewhere a few weeks back, the husband was running fever and needed to get to the immediate care facility. Actually, this was about a week before, the cat and his Christmas day visit. Well, the problem with our house like most houses is that one of the grown ups are sick. It is not quite so easy for the other partner in crime to leave the house and take the sick grown up to the doctor. Taking the thus far well little ones to such a place is just asking for trouble.

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Slow Cooker Fish Curry

A curry has actually earned a bad reputation as being boring, but in all fairness a curry is about as boring as a sandwich or a soup, let us face it, these days we have the simple tuna fish on toast variations, or a classic and comforting BLT, to a down right impressive and stunning goat cheese panini. The curry for me too is much like a bowl of soup that ranges from light and comforting to rich and decadent. To truly bring out your curries flavors needs care and time rather than butter and cream.

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The one that did not make it - Corn and Pomegranate Salsa

Today was one of those days that you enjoy, after a day well spent and savored. Yesterday was an incredibly  busy and very successful day for the most part, the food was all complete on time, the turkey well cooked and moist (thanks to the brineing) no major disasters, just the right number guests and all in just what you would want from an evening where you spent an incredible amount of time cooking.

The highlight of the evening for me really was a surprise visit from the brother all the way from Seattle. He wanted to make it in time for the holiday meal but actually missed the flight he was planning to take partly due to the X-ray machine being tripped off by the camera.
We both spent the day today around the house, noshing on the remains of the feast. I do not know if it happens to you but quite often in the middle of a frenzy I forget things that I make and plan to serve, this corn salsa that I am about to tell you about is actually one such dish. We enjoyed it today and I think it deserves a special mention.

Corn and Pomegranate Salsa

Prep/Cook Time: 20 minutes
Serves 6

Ingredients

1 cup frozen organic corn kernels, defrosted (I use the fire roasted variety by trader Joe's)
1/2 cup pomegranate seeds
1 small red onion, peeled and diced
1/2 teaspoon red chili powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 lime
2 tablespoons of minced cilantro

Method of Preparation

1. Place the corn and the pomegranate seeds in a bowl.
2. Mix in the onion, red chili powder and the salt and toss well.
3. Cut the lime and squeeze in the juice and mix well.
4. Stir in the cilantro and serve with chips or with your choice of meal.

So tell me, do you have items on your menu that sometimes do not make it to the table?

Pre-Thanksgiving musings - a shrimp curry

It is that time of the year when most of us feel reflective, the growing season is winding down, the year is ending the days are getting smaller and yes, it is Thankgiving. Like most people who love to cook, it is my favorite holiday of the year. I also like to reflect more on the things that I can be grateful for. From simple things like the joy I feel in the kitchen to more complicated things. Something that really helps is my children's after-school program that runs holiday coverage. They are right across the road, this helps on a day like today. I was at home but diwas running around trying to get all the shopping done, but did feel a little guilty, so my compromise was to make the kids some warm lunch and drop it off. A classic that never goes out of style is the grilled cheese. How I did theirs today was with oatmeal bread and some turkey and tomato in the center.

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Fading Away..

I would love to think that we have months and months of this beautiful summer left, but even as I go through sorting out things for tomorrow, Deepta starts second grade, I can officially tell that summer is kind of on it's way out. There are apples everywhere an official logo of fall.

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Watermelon Sangria

Outside of my obsession with playing with spices, I love wine and playing with wine. I used actually be noted for my spontaneous cocktails. People loved them as much more than the food that I cooked. I have a theory on this, it is what I call the cheap wine theory, basically after a couple of glasses folks do not really complain about the edge or lack of smoothness of cheap wine. Nonetheless, I have significantly reduced dabbling with cocktails, not because I have reduced my drinking but it is sort of in line with my general hasstle free approach to cooking. Doing a creative syrup, cooling it, takes time. However, a couple of weeks back, I made this Watermelon Sangria, inspired by this recipe.

Now, what a difference the wine makes, while Doug's sangria looks like the pale red of the watermelon, my version looks much deeper and yes, you got it right I used red wine. Actually, I skipped the agave nectar, because I used a slightly sweet red wine.

This red is very happy served chilled and hence, just perfect for Sangria. I had to through in the black salt, it is a quintissential Indian combination to add black salt to fruit juices.

So I made about 4 glasses of sangria following the following measures,

Watermelon Sangria

Cook/Prep Time: 1 hour (mostly chilling)

1.5 cups of fresh watermelon juice (about 1/2 a medium sized water melon, cut and pureed in the blender and then strained.

1.5 cups of a sweet red wine

1/2 teaspoon black salt

1.5 cups of seltzer

Method of Preparation

1. Mix in the watermelon juice, red wine and black salt.

2. Chill for at least 45 minutes to an hour.

3. Place 2-3 ice cubes in serving glasses (you do not want too much or it will dilute the watermelon flavor).

4. Add in 3/4 glass of the wine-watermelon mixture.

5. Top off with some seltzer and enjoy.

Bruised tomato mint salad in yogurt

This is a really simple inspiration from all the lovely tomatoes that we have in the house and the tons of fresh mint that is blossoming in a planter. Ok, the mint and all the summer herbs are really a big deal, because they are actually being grown by me and not the husband. I have had them from May, they are this far thriving. I have mint, oregano, rosemary, marjoram, lemon thyme and lemon verbana. I have been doing things with them as and when I can. Today it was the mint and oregano's turn. This recipe is almost like an meeting of Tzatziki and tomato raita, the flavors certainly work well together, but then again I always, say, if its fresh and local it works!

Bruised tomato mint salad in yogurt

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 7-8 minutes

Serves 4

Ingredients

4-6 small fresh tomatoes

1/2 cup fresh mint leaves

1 tablespoon fresh oregano

1 teaspoon minced garlic

1/3 cup olive or raw sesame oil (sold as gingely oil in Indian stores)

1 teaspoon red chili powder

1 cup strained or greek style lowfat yogurt

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup lightly roasted coarsely ground peanuts

Cilantro and green chilies to garnish (optional)

Method of Preparation

1. Place the tomatoes in a bowl.

2. Finely chop the mint and oregano and add all but 1 tablespoon of the chopped herbs to the tomatoes.

3. Mix in the garlic and the oil and chili powder and set aside for 10 minutes.

4. Cook lightly on a grill for 3-4 minutes, till the skin of the tomato is barely bruised.

5. Place in a mixing bowl as they are done and pour any remaining oil marinade into the bowl over the tomatoes.

6. Whip the yogurt with the salt and pour over the tomatoes.

7. Lightly mix in the peanuts and garnish with the reserved mint and the cilantro and green chilies if using.

Note: This salad can be served warm or chilled.

A peachy take on chicken..

While we are more than self-sufficient in summer with our vegetables, but we do not grown enough fruit to meet all our needs, which is just as well. This allows me the joy of being able to go the farmers markets. Well a few weeks back, I came home with these lovely beautiful and ripe peaches. We ate a lot of them and I made a nice peach crisp and I actually used them for a marinade. I though the chicken turned out really nice, deep dense and flavorful! I actually also through in some lemon tyme, which were in my opinion a nice and delicate substitute for carom seeds, I have played with thyme and oregano before as a substitute for carom or ajowain.

Here is how this worked

Peach, Cumin Butter and Lemon Thyme Chicken

Prep Time: 24 hours (to marindade)

Cook Time: 25-30 minutes

Ingredients

1 cup lowfat yogurt

2-3 inch piece coarsely chopped peeled ginger

2 pods garlic

3-4 green chilies

3 peaches, peeled and stones

1 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon coriander seeds

1 teapoon fennel seeds

2 teaspoons agave nectar

1 tablespoons lemon tyme leaves or 1/2 teaspoon carmon seeds

2 pounds skinless boneless chicken thighs, cut into pieces

To baste and finish

2 tablespoons ghee or butter, melted

1 tablespoon freshly ground cumin

1 teaspoon red chili flakes

1 teaspoon salt

Method of Preparation

1. Place the yogurt, ginger, garlic, chilies, peaches, salt, coriander seeds, fennel seeds, agave nectar, lemon thyme or ajowain in blender and blend for a good 5 minutes till the mixture is smooth and dense like a good smoothie.

2. Place the chicken and the marinade in a large ziplock bag and keep in the refridgerator overnight. (note on a milder day you can do this outside for about 5-6 hours)

3. Mix the butter or ghee, ground cumin, red chili pepper and salt.

4. Thread the chicken onto skewers.

5. Place on the grill, and brush well with remaining marinade and the butter spice mixture. Cook for 5-6 minutes, turn baste and repeat. By this point the chicken should be moist tender and crisped.

6. Garnish with lemon thyme and serve.

Note: If you do not want to grill, the chicken can be broiled on skewers, drizzled generously with the cumin butter topping. Also, good olive oil would work as a baster.

Spicy Shrimp Curry with Bell Peppers

This week it was fresh peppers, a nice collection of them, fresh green and bursting with their sweetly intoxicating flavor. I was amazingly spice adverse growing up, and by most Indian standards I think my touch is still gentle with the use of spices. Anyhow,  I loved the bell pepers because they have the fresh flavors of the green chili, without the heat. It has been a long time since I have found peppers with such amazing flavor, until of course we started growing them.

This recipe is simple but is high on the spice index.

Spicy Shrimp Curry with Bell Peppers

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Makes 2-3 servings

Ingredients

1/4 cup of grapeseed oil

1 small onion, very finely chopped

1 tablespoon minced ginger

1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder

1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

1/2 teaspoon red chili powder

1 teaspoon dried fenugreek leaves

2 fresh small red tomatoes, cut into eights

1 small onion, cut into eights and separated

1 large or 2 small bell peppers cut into a dice to match the onions

1 teaspoon salt

1 pound of large shrimp, shelled and deveined

Method of Preparation

1. Heat the oil and cook the chopped onion on low heat for about 6-7 minutes, until the onion is soft and begining to turn golden.

2. Add in the ginger, turmeric, black pepper, fenugreek leaves and the tomatoes and cook for another 3-4 minutes, until the tomatoes soften and release their juices but are not mushy.

3. Add in the onions, peppers and salt and stir well and cook for another 2-3 minutes.

4. Add in the shrimp and simmer for 6 minutes until the shrimp is cooked through.

I have actually been cooking up several wonderful recipes (at least that is what we think, I have been unable to keep up posting them). I do hope I remember and can post them when I have time. More a matter of remembering how I cooked them, rather than remembering to post them. Although the later happens too!

Chilled Carrot Soup

Weather and nature is often the mother of invention. I have generally shied away from cold soups, just for some unknown reason. Well, the NYT magazine last Sunday has a nice piece about a teenager who had launched her own CSA and a nice recipe for pink beet borcht. A nice and spicy departure from the classic recipe. This week, we ended up with 25-30 carrots in our yard, I had to adapt the recipe for carrots. Instinctively I felt that the sweet taste of the carrots would be a good substitute. I also made an interesting carrot salad that I shall post about. The carrot soup also ended up turning pale orange, I color that facinated by better half. I have to confess, this time of the year, I end up with so many fun recipes, I sometimes lose them because I do not have time to blog them. This soup actually would be nice and refreshing in the morning as well.

Chilled Carrot Soup

Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Chilling Time: 3-4 hours (note this soup improves significantly in flavor the following day)
Makes 4 servings

Ingredients

2 tablespoon olive oil
1 red onion, coarsely chopped
2-3 pods of garlic, grated
1 teaspoon of freshly grated ginger
10 carrots, peeled and sliced
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon red chili powder
2 teaspoons coriander seeds
1/2 teaspoon black peppercorns
2 bay leaves
2 cups of water
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 cup of drained low fat yogurt
1-2 teaspoons chopped cilantro

Method of Preparation

1. Heat the oil and add the onion, garlic and ginger and saute for about 3-4 minutes until the mixture is soft and very fragrant. Note, I do this in the base of a small pressure cooker.
2. Add in the carrots, salt, red chili powder, coriander seeds, black pepercorns, bay leaves, vinegar and water and cook under pressure for about 7 minutes.
3. Cool and remove the lid of the cooker. Discard the bay leaves.
4. Puree the mixture in a blender with the yogurt until smooth.
5. Chill for a couple of hours or overnight.
6. Serve with the cilantro.

Slow Cooking in the oven!

What caught my attention the other day was this post, about boris. A bori is essentially a sun-dried lentil nugget that I have never really tried making at home. It is just something that I have never seen done and with the indifferent sun we have in the northeast, it has hardly been something I have ventured to do. However the recipe of doing this in the oven seemed very tempting. I did make the boris and I shall post pictures of what I did with them, the interesting thing here was that I oven roasted a whole bunch of tomatoes. I did not have much hopes of anything serious materializing from this exercise so I kept is simple and did not really take any pictures. I had a fussy husband reminding me of the carbon footfrint from my activities. I was going to make my usual fish in the oven fare,so I had a pound of wild salmon steaks that I through in the refrigerator marinating in a zip-lock bag with a paste of 1 small red onion, 2 green chillies, some fresh ginger, mint and garlic. I was heading to Queens to check out something, so I stuck in the boris and the sliced tomatoes drizzled (very lightly) with olive oil and grated ginger and some salt. I had them sitting along with the boris in the oven at 200 degrees and had this timed for 3 hours and went off for my event. Well, I was back about 4 hours later. I found some lightly browned bories and shrivelled tomatoes. I sliced and ate one half and I was in love. This is how the rest of the meal was created.

Masala Salmon with oven roasted tomatoes

Cook time: 4 hours (mostly unattented)

Ingredients

8 small tomatoes

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

1 tablespoon very finely grated fresh ginger

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon red chili powder

1 lbs salmon steaks

1 small onion

1 tablespoon grated ginger

1 cup mint leaves

2 green chillies

2 cloves garlic

Extra salt and pepper for the fish

2 tablespoons ghee

Cilantro, lime juice and black pepper to garnish

Method of preparation

1. Cut the tomatoes in half and place on a greased casserole, drizzle with the oil, ginger, salt and chili powder.

2. Place in a oven set to 200 degrees and cook for about 3 hours.

3. Mix the onion, ginger, mint, chillies and garlic into a paste and add in salt and pepper and marinate the salmon for at least 1 hour in the refrigerator with this mixture.

4. Remove the cooked tomatoes and increase the oven temperature to 400 degrees. Place the salmon in a single layer in a greased casserole. Dot each piece with half the ghee.

5. In the meantime, coaresly slice the tomatoes.

6. Cook for about 10 minutes. Turn and dot with the remaining ghee and cook for another 5 minutes. Spead with the tomatoes and add as much black pepper as you wish.

7. Turn off the heat and place the casserole back into the oven and leave in for at least 10 minutes. This allows the juices to flow and meld.

8. Remove from the oven and add in some lime juice and cilantro. I did not have mashed potatoes, but this dish would be perfect with mashed potatoes.

Hint of mint salmon

Boy last night was I exhausted. I was up way way too late on Saturday, just doing this and that and the next day I had promised the kids I would take them to the zoo. Come 7:30am, I was buddled in bed - just way way to early

for me on a Sunday. I really wanted to bail out, my responsible other half reminded me how disappointed the kids would be. I finally agreed! The Bronx zoo, if you have not visited it is really a wonderful place to be. Just has an awful and overpriced cafeteria! I understand people do not go to the zoo to eat. Well, by 4pm, we were all exhausted. All except Dad took a nap in the car. I came in and whipped up a really quick dinner. I was too tired to even take proper pictures. I made salmon with a really simple horseradish and mint dressing. Did I tell you that I cannot live without my food processor? I served this on cous-cous. Which actually was on the list to make for a while, ever since Deepta heard that her Dad had some for lunch, she is convinced it is the thing to eat! She likes the name - here is my fish.
Hint of mint salmon
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Serves 3-4 (it works for our family of 2 grown-ups and 2 kids)
Ingredients
1 small red onion
1 large piece of peeled ginger
1/3 cup prepared horseradish
1/3 cup mint chutney
2 dried red chillies
Salt to taste
1 lbs sock-eye salmon
1/3 cup olive oil
Lime or lemon slices
Method of preparation
1. Process the onion, ginger, horseradish, chillies and salt into a smooth puree.
2. Apply this on the salmon and set aside for 5-7 minutes.
3. Heat the oil in a skillet. Place the salmon on a single layer and cook for about 5 minutes on each side.
4. Serve immediately, garnished with lime.
Deepta's Arabian Cous-Cous (Hey you have to learn to sell!)
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Ingredients
1 cup tri-colored couscous
1/2 tablespoon salted butter
1/3 cup orange juice
1.5 cups of water
2 tablespoons organic dried cranberries
2 tablespoons chopped pecans
Additional salt if needed.
Method of Preparation
1. Place all the ingredients in a rice cooker and stir lightly and let this cook till done.
2. In 15 minutes, you get soft fluffy couscous.
Dinner in 30 minutes!
I am sending this to Indrani and Appayan, who is hosting a really neat event spotlighting fish.

Bhindi Do Piazza

It has become an interesting game, to see what every few days brings from the little backyard. I have to tell you I am surprised to see this year, how much we have been getting from such a little lot, that to with just Anshul tending to it, since my black thumb is not much use. His enthusiasm has been a joy for me.
Anyhow my children love bhindi or okra and feel rather sad that they cannot eat the spicy variation we get in restaurants. I do cook okra every week but it is a simple sauted version not the crispy fancy indian restaurant fare. I just cannot bear the thought of adding so much oil to a vegetable.
I tried baking this today and had really good results. I will make a few tiny tweaks the next time around in that I shall try to add the eggplant later. Do-piazza reffers to "double onions" I actually added two kinds here. This is how I made this dish.

Bhindi Dopiaza - Roasted Okra with pearl and red onions

Prep Time: 7 minutes
Cook Time: 35 minutes

Serves 2-3 people

Ingredients

10 pearl onions, peeled, halved and sectioned
1 lbs okra, cut into slices tips and tops removed (note: wash the okra before cutting it)
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
1 teaspoon cumin
Olive oil sray
1 tablespoon oil
1 red onion, thinly sliced
1 tomato coarsely chopped

Method of Preparation

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
2. Place the okra on a baking dish in a single layer, add the salt, turmeric and cumin. Spray generously with cooking spray and place in the oven for 10 minutes. I added the onions with the okra and this overcrisped some of the onion, so I am suggesting adding the onion after 10 minutes and re-sprayng at this time. Cook for another 15 minutes.
3. Heat the oil and add the red onion and saute lightly and then add the tomato and cook till somewhat soft, gently stir in the onions and okra and enjoy!

Blogathon - Day Two

I was out pretty late last night, unusual for a weeknight, that too a Monday and I am just so tired today, I am glad we have this blogathon going on, because it is motivating to post this entry rather than loosing it in the shuffle. Something that happens to me so often. Well, along with the mint we went a little overboard with the pepitas (pumkin seeds) in this recipe. Let me tell you if you have not tried toasted pepitas before be prepared to be completely swept away with the rich taste. The kids have been generally excited with the new "nut" so they were rather eager to try it. The sauce for this 20 minute wonder is made my evening. Best of all the sauce was really just cleaning out the blender bowl after the chutney was made.

Seared Salmon with a creamy mint sauce

For the sauce

3 tablespoons nutty mint/cilantro chutney
3-4 tablespoons lowfat sour cream (you can your about 1/2 cup light cream if you want to be indulgent).
1/2 cup water

For the salmon

1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon oil
1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 lbs salmon, cut into 4 pieces
1 tablespoon coarsely chopped pecans
1 tablespoon pepitas

Method of Preparation

1. Blend the ingredients for the sauce and place in a microwave safe bowl. Heat for 2 minutes on high.
2. Add the butter and oil in a heavy bottomed pan and cook on low till the butter begins to brown.
3. Mix the cumin, pepper and salt together and rub onto the salmon.
4. Place the salmon in the pan in a single layer and cook until browned on both sides.
5. Remove and place the salmon in a single lay on a flat serving dish.
6. In the same cooking pan as the salmon, add the pumpkin seeds and the nuts and toast these until they darken just a little.
7. Pour the sauce over the salmon and top with the toasted nuts and serve with a salad.

The nutty mint chutney is really a cross between a salsa and what in Indian cooking is considered a fresh savory chutney. The later chutneys unlike their sweet counterparts are not cooked, they are a spicy melange of fresh herbs and some spices and some nuts (such as coconut) for enriching the base. They are great as a condiment but also useful for light marinade and sauces as used above. So here is how I made this variation.

Nutty Mint Chutney

Makes 1/2 cup

Ingredients

1/2 cup fresh cilantro leaves (you can use tender stems if you wish) (

1 cup loosely packed mint leaves

1/2 cup grape tomatoes

1/2 cup pumpkin seeds

1 teaspoon dried pomegranate seeds (note these are different from their fresh counterparts, however you can actually use 1/2 cup fresh pomegranates for a different taste)

2-3 hot serrano chillies

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon sugar

Juice of 2 limes

Method of Preparation

1. Place all the ingredients in the bowl of a blender and blend for a good 3-4 minutes until smooth and thick.

2. Place the chutney in a glass container (with a lid) and use as needed with a 3-4 days of preparation.

Nankano - When it rains!

This particular post is long overdue, sorry Nankano people. A few weeks back courtesy the foodbuzz tastemakers program, I recieved a free coupon for the vinegar. I got myself some regular rice vinegar.
The last couple of weeks, I have been trying to soak up some of the beautiful weather we have been having, looks like today broke the spell. The rain has lulled me into a state of general relaxed laziness, I am trying to get myself some reading inventory. I wanted to cook something really quick, this salmon literally gets done in a flash - actually right while I am getting the rest of the dinner ready. We liked this so much we actually had this with a simple sa

Broiled Salmon with blackberries

Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Serves 4

Ingredients

1/3 cup rice vinegar
2 tablespoons maple syrup
1 tablespoon paprika
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons oil
1 lbs sock-eye salmon fillet ( I actually used the trader joe frozen variety)
1 cup fresh blackberries

Method of Preparation
1. Mix the vinegar and maple syrup with the paprika, black pepper, cinnamon, cumin, salt and oil.
2. Cut the salmon into four pieces and rub with the marinade prepared above and set aside for 15 minutes.
3. Place on a baking pan and broil for about 7 minutes. Turn the fish, add the blackberries and broil for another 3 minutes. Note the fish should be gently browned at spots and the blackberries should barely begin to release their juices.

Green Love

The summer project this year in our household is our little edible garden. This is the first time, we have invested a little tome to pay attention to the tiny little spot that we had at the back of our little backyard. It is interesting as with anything natural even though we planted everything together we are seeing the results in batches. We have lots of spinach, I personally love spinach so my husband planted tons of it. I think I need to think before I ask in future. At least 2-3 evenings I recieve two large colanders filled with bright green spinach, washed and picked through by the man. Earlier this week

I tried something different, with the spinach. I actually cooked this in a fairly thick sauce. I first made the sauce and then folded the spinach into the base. The results were interesting. The most pronounced flavor here is the fennel.

Spinach in a fennel tomato sauce

Serves 4

Ingredients

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 teaspoon fennel seeds

3/4 teaspoon cumin seeds

1 small red onion, cut into a coarse dice

1 teaspoon freshly grated ginger

2 cloves of garlic, grated

1 large tomato cut into a dice
1 large stick cinnamon

2 green serrano chillies, finely chopped

1 teaspoon salt

3 cups of washed fresh spinach leaves

Method of Preparation

1. Heat the oil and add in the fennel and cumin seeds and wait for them to sizzle.

2. Into this mixture add in the red onion, ginger, garlic and mix well. Cook on low heat for about 5 minutes until the onions are soft and just begining to turn golden.

3. Add in the tomato, cinnamon and the chillies and salt and cook this mixture for 15 minutes, stirring frequently. At this point, you sould have a fairly smooth gravy, with the onions soft and melted into the sauce.

4. Fold in the spinach leaves and cook for another 3-4 minutes, until the spinach is just cooked through.

This dish is as homey and comforting as the no frills picture. It tastes pretty good even at room temperature.

Stir fried butternut squash with spicy grilled shrimp.

Well, I should have posted about mother's day, etc, etc. For starters I actually did not cook much this weekend and also ended up with a mixed bag over the weekend.
Let me see, had a fight with my husband, mixed up a fun party invite, thought it was Sunday when it was actually Saturday day - I did have a decent dinner on Saturday, for some reason I decided to stretch my luck and go out for lunch on Sunday as well. I am recovering from my son's lunchtime performance. I shall blog about it only when I am recovered from the impact of the latter.

Anyhow, this recipe uses my favorite spice panch phoron, the classic bengali 5-spice mixture. This is a comforting spice blend for me, I have grown up listening to its musical splutter when thrown into hot oil and then taste its wonderful balanced 'all in one" taste. Anyhow, I have used this in a weeknight dinner with butternut squash and shrimp,

Stir fried butternut squash with spicy grilled shrimp

Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Serves 3-4 people

Ingredients

1/2 lbs large peeled and deveined shrimp
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
1/2 teaspoon red chili powder
2 teaspoon salt
Cooking spray
1 tablespoon olive or mustard oil
1/2 teaspoon panch phoron (bengali 5-spice nigella, cumin, mustard, fenugreek and fennel seeds)
1-2 whole dried red chilies
1 teaspoon finely chopped ginger
1 shallot, finely chopped
2 cups peeled cubed butternut squash or pumpkin
1/2 frozen peas
1 tablespoon chopped cilantro
Lots of freshly ground black pepper

Method of Preparation

1. Coat the shrimp with the turmeric, chili powder and half the salt.
2. Spread the shrimp on a baking tray, spray with cooking spray and begin to broil on low.
3. In the meantime, heat the oil in a cooking pot and add the whole red chilies and the 5-spice mixture.
4. When the mixture begins crackling, add in the ginger and shallots and stir for 1-2 minutes and add in squash with the remaining salt and begin cooking on low.
5. Turn the shrimp after 5-minutes and cook on the other side for 2-3 minutes and turn off the oven. The shrimp should be golden orange with light brown spots at places.
6. Cover and cook the squash till almost done (about 5 minutes).
7. Remove the cover and stir in shrimp and peas and cook on medium high heat until the peas are done and the squash is begining to brown at spots.
8. Stir in cilantro and black pepper.

This dish is best enjoyed with rice and dal.

Explaining Motherhood and Children!

A childless man observed to me today, "Gosh, children must be so exhausting!!!!", I was a taken aback by this observation, because LOL, hell yes, they are exhasuting but, can I imagine or even want to think of a life without them, no...

How can I explain to a man like him, how rejuvenating my son's welcome smile is when I walk back home after a long day at work, how lovely it is to hear my daughter squeal in delight when I make her favorite and simple scrambled eggs with cheese, how lovely it is to see her dance her first steps!! Yes, the little princess has started Indian Dance lessons. I tear up every year when the daycare celebrates their annual anniversary, it is just so amazing to remember the days when I first dropped Deepta and Aadi off, so yes, children are exhausting but what a lonely, selfish and empty existence one would have without them.

Here is to a simple earthy recipe for Earth Day!

Mustard seasoned zucchini

Serves 2

Ingredients

1 tablespoon mustard oil

1/2 teaspoon mustard seeds

1 onion, thinly sliced

1 tomato, chopped

1/2 teaspoon turmeric

1 teaspoon sea salt

2 zucchinis, sliced

Method of Preparation

1. Heat the oil and add the mustard seeds and wait till they crackle.

2. Add in the onion and tomato and saute for 1-2 minutes.

3. Mix in all the remaining ingredients and cook for about 4 minutes, till the zucchini is soft and cooked through.

4. Enjoy as a flavorful side.

S is for Simla MIrch

OK, so this has been a crazy week and the time for this entry is a little past. Well, I had thought of the letter "S" when I initially developed this recipe.

I had some excess potatoes, and, was wondering how on earth could I boost/add some nutrition into into it. Then my eyes wandered onto these colorful bell peppers.

Well thus developed a dish that was rather flavorful, and, absolutely perfect with the luchis (white flour puffed bread) that I fried yesterday. What is amazing is that this recipe is so plain and does, not really photograph well but the aromas were amazing. In fact, this convinced me no matter how hard we try, some aspects of good food need to be savored though eating and absorbing the aromas, the camera does not quite do the needed justice.

Shimla Methi Alu

Serves 6-8

Ingredients

6 russet potatoes

4 tbsp oil

1/2 tsp turmeric

1 tbsp mustard seed

1 tbsp cumin seeds

1/2 tsp asafetida

a few crushed red chillies

a few curry leaves

1 tbsp dried fenugreek leaves (Kasuri methi)

1 cup multicolored chopped peppers

salt to tast

cilantro to garnish

Method of Preparation

1. Peel and quarter the potatoes and set aside.

2. Heat the oil and add the turmeric and mustard seeds and cumin.

3. When they begin to crackle add the red chillies and curry leaves with the potatoes.

4. Cover and cook on low heat for 10 minutes till fairly soft.

5. Add all the remaining ingredients except the cilantro and cook for another 10 minutes.

6. Stir in the cilantro and check seasoning and serve hot.

7. Best enjoyed with something like puris.

Pea and Mixed Vegetable Pulao - picking out the peas

My children love peas, and adding them to a rice dish makes the food

go much quicker. The deal, is that each spoonful should have at least one pea and it is a great source of excitement if they get more. Well, this is a very typical combination, I love the flavor that the bay leaves add to the rice.

Pea and Mixed vegetable Pulao

Serves 4

Ingredients

2 teaspoons oil (I use a non-stick pot or you will need more oil)

1 onion chopped finely

A few cloves

2 - 3 dried bay leaves crumbled

1.5 tsp salt

1/2 tsp chili powder

1/2 tsp turmeric

1 cup fresh peas

1 cup chopped cauliflower

1/2 chopped potato

1 parsnip peeled and chopped

11/4 cup basmati rice soaked for at least half an hour (I do this while I am preparing the remaining items)

1 tomato quatered

2 cups of water

2 tsp butter (optional)

Method of preparation

1. Heat the oil and saute the onion till turning brown.

2. Add in the seasonings and the chopped vegetables and stir for 5 minutes.

3. Mix in the rice and stir till turning light brown

4. Mix in the water and add the tomato (I like to leave this in chunks).

5. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat and cook on low for 18 minutes.

5. Leave covered for 5 minutes.

6. Stir lightly and add in the butter if using.