All things TJ

I resolved to try to write every day this year and talked about it in this post hoping if it is for the world to read I may actually stay with it. The next day after I blogged about my resolve, I promptly broke it. It had been a long day with a Sunday morning Bikram class followed by a trip to the children’s museum. The evening ended with our first visit to Trader Joe’s, the supposed mecca of foodies. I wasn’t as impressed as I had hoped to be. Maybe it was all the hype and my own expectations or maybe I was just tired after trailing the kid and his friend in the museum all day (the kid’s best friends was spending the day with us, giving his parents some time to themselves). The kids behaved well enough for a grocery store that did not have any toys for them to gawk at but it still got quite tiring by the time we were done exploring aisle 2. Think the two of them wanting to use the bathroom at the same time or wanting to play tag in the parking lot.

 

TJ’s did try to entice me by all the chocolate covered almonds, fruits and toffees but I am proud to say I successfully refrained from buying any of the temptations. I did buy two bags of candied ginger but I consider that more medicinal and less sweet-tooth-recreational. The husband on the other hand was like a kid in a candy store. While I supervised the kiddos, he explored the alternate food world of tofu sausages, tempeh, edamame and soy protein. We came home loaded with bags of goodies including one of my new favorites, lentil-potato curls, which taste suspiciously like ganthiya, those deep fried, fat twizzler like sticks, made with besan (chickpea flour).

Chocolate orange sticks = crack!

 

It was dinner time by the time we were home and while I fed the kid his favorite, dosa and dal, he made good on some of TJ’s purchases. He made a delicious gyro with pita bread, TJ’s tzatziki sauce, some zucchini cakes (from Costco) and the tofu sausage. It was delicious and I was too hungry to take a photo. By the time I cleaned up, I was ready to hit the bed and not worry about breaking my resolution to write. I had succeeded in not eating any sweets, even though a delicious oatmeal chocolate chip cookie was handed in my palms by a TJ associate. I took a bite and handed the rest to my kid who claimed they were better than the ones we had at home. Take that Chips Ahoy!

The important thing with resolutions though is to not give up on them. So here I am, a few days later, writing my third blog post of the month and catching up on my resolution. Today, I have a simple aloo mattar rassa for you. Aloo is Hindi for potatoes, mattar (not a typo for ‘matter’) is Hindi and Marathi for green peas and rassa is gravy, usually thin and made by roasting a paste of ginger, garlic, onions and tomatoes. In our house, usually beans or legumes and sometimes vegetables are cooked in this simple gravy with little variations of the spices used.

He never finds the taste of peas to his liking (as in comparable to the “ones we get in India”). This time, we decided to try TJ’s frozen peas. He isn’t home yet and hasn’t tasted the rassa, so the jury is still out on the taste of the peas. I will let you know if these passed the muster. For me, peas are good any which way; in pohe, in sabzi, in usal or simply sautéed with some cumin and ghee. I love my peas.

I used my itty-bitty 3 liter Prestige pressure cooker to roast the ginger-garlic-onion-tomato paste, added the chopped potatoes and the frozen peas and cooked it for one whistle. Alternatively, you could roast the masala in a heavy bottom pan, add the potatoes and peas, enough water and boil till the potatoes are cooked through and peas are tender. It will taste a little different from the cooker version but it will still be delicious.

Aloo mattar, amaranth, pumpkin sabzi and a whole wheat tortilla

Coarsely grind:

3/4 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup tomatoes
3-4 garlic cloves
1 inch piece of ginger
4-5 sprigs of cilantro (optional)

Heat 1Tbs of oil in a 3ltr pressure cooker and add the following in the order listed:

1/2 tsp of fenugreek seeds (methidana)
1 tsp of turmeric

Add the coarsely ground onion-tomato paste. Sauté for a few minutes and add:

1 tsp of red chili powder
1 tsp of garam masala powder
1/2 tsp of cumin-coriander powder

Roast the masala with all the spices till the oil separates and the raw smell of onions and ginger-garlic turns into a fragrant aroma.

While the paste is cooking, chop 1 large potato into even pieces. Soak in a bowl of water for five minutes to get some of the starch out. Drain and keep aside.

At this point, check the frying onion-tomato paste. If you find the oil separating from the frying masala, add 1/2 cup of water and some salt.

Now, add the chopped potatoes and 1 cup of frozen peas. If you are lucky enough to get fresh ones, add those but don’t tell me about it. Add enough water or stock to cover the potatoes and peas and put the pressure cooker lid on. Set on medium heat and turn the gas off after one whistle.

Wait for the cooker to cool down before opening the lid. Serve with rotis or rice.

This is my entry for the theme 'Garnet' for the 52-week project

Oh, and by the way, I cooked the aloo mattar rassa in my Indian pressure cooker and it didn’t blow up in my face. If you are wondering what I am talking about, check out this post.   

A TJs Update: We went back to TJs last weekend, this time without the kid(s). It was a much better experience shopping at leisure, exploring all the wonderful goodies on display. I asked for suggestions on what to get at TJs on fb and was rewarded with some gems I would have missed otherwise. Manisha suggested the dried chili mango which is really good and my next favorite after the candied ginger.

Candied ginger and chili mango

She and some other friends also suggested the triple ginger cookies which the kid took a liking to. He has been eating 5-6 of them at a time but since they are really thin, I let him eat them in lieu of his two cookies allowance of Pepperidge Farm double chocolate cookies. I think it is a fair trade. I couldn’t find the rasmalai a cousin highly recommended. But the lentil potato curls were bought again and so was a ton of soy based food (not that we are turning vegan or anything. I tasted some roasted pork at Central Market yesterday and it was delicious). I was tempted to buy the chocolate biscotti but refrained from grabbing it. Overall, we realized that though small, TJs still had a lot of options to choose from and the ingredients and the quality of goods was overall superior to most of the name brand goods. We go back again in two weeks.

Potatoes with tomatoes (Bazar jaisey aloo)

The unassuming name hides a simple but delicious combination of potatoes cooked with tomatoes and ginger. A recipe similar to the north Indian aloo ka jhol (potatoes cooked in a watery gravy), this one is from Madhur Jaffery’s book, Climbing the Mango Trees, our book club pick for the month of January.
If you have ever wondered what the true definition of a ‘Foodie’ is, read Madhur Jaffrey’s Climbing the Mango Trees. A childhood memoir of growing up in a privileged, upper middle class family surrounded by uncles and aunts and numerous cousins, not to mention a retinue of servants who cooked for the extended joint family, tended trees and vegetable gardens surrounding the house and in general fetched and ran errands.

However, Jaffrey’s memoir narrates more than anecdotes of a privileged life spent eating meals that consisted of pheasants shot down by her hunt-loving family and seekh kababs from Delhi’s famous Chandani Chowk. The book also gives an insight to her lifelong love for Indian food and makes you appreciate her relentless passion for introducing and promoting the Indian cuisine to the world through her countless cookbooks and TV appearances with the likes of Juila Child and Ming Tsai.
When every sad, happy, angry or joyful memory is associated with food, a foodie of the first order is formed. And there in a nutshell is Jaffrey’s ‘Climbing the Mango Trees’.
Is it then sacrilegious to admit that till now, I had never cooked from any of her cookbooks, or to say that I found most of her recipes, especially the meat ones, a bit complex to prepare? Or was it that I was just too lazy to make boondi (which my mom made on a regular basis) from scratch when it was readily available in the store? Whatever the reason, I steered clear of Jaffrey till our book club choose ‘Climbing the Mango Trees’.

I added turmeric out of force of habit and ended up with a yellow curry instead of red!

Reading the book was like eating through a culinary feast of simple Indian greens and hearty meat curries cooked to perfection and served with phulkas, “chapati’s more refined, upper class cousin.” Some 32 odd recipes at the end of the book, from kheema samosas, to green chutney and fenugreek greens with carrots cover maybe 10% of the feast served in the book.
The recipes are to keep, especially if you are a vegetarian looking to make non-vegetarian dishes or vice-versa. I decided to stick to my mostly vegetarian meal and made Potatoes with Tomatoes (Bazar Jaisay Aloo), the go-to-meal for Jaffery family’s picnics and Sunday breakfast. The meal cooks in a jiffy if the potatoes are boiled and ready. I served them with ‘Phulka’s’ for a change instead of its ‘coarse, lower-class cousin’ and our standard bread, Chapati.

Potatoes with Tomatoes
Serves 4-6

Ingredients:
6 medium sized potatoes
3 tablespoons olive oil
Pinch of asafetida
1 ½ tsps whole cumin seeds
1/2 tsp whole fennel seeds (I used a tsp and crushed it coarse)
1/4 tsp whole fenugreek seeds
3 whole dried red chilies
3 medium tomatoes, grated on the largest hole of the grater
1 ½ tsp finely grated fresh ginger
Salt to taste

Method:
Boil the potatoes in their jackets until tender and allow them to cool. Peel.
Pour the oil into a wide, medium sized pan, and set it over medium-high heat. When it is hot, put in first the asafetida, then the cumin, and finally the fennel, fenugreek and chilies.
Two seconds later, add the grated tomatoes and ginger. Stir-fry until the tomatoes turn a deep red and the oil begins to show, turning down the heat as the cooking progresses so nothing burns. Add 1 ½ cups of water.
Now, break the potatoes by hand into pieces that are, very roughly, ½ inch cubes. They will be different shapes, but that is the charm of the dish. Add the potato cubes to the pan together with salt, then stir and bring to a boil.
Cover the pan, turn the heat to low, and cook gently for 12-15 minutes, stirring now and again.

Other members of our book club reviewed and were inspired to make:
Simran made Phirni
Curry Leaf made  Roz Ki Gobi
Sheba made Cauliflower with cheese
Janaki made Palak Gosht
Aqua made Tahiri

Indori Kanda Poha and battle of the sexes

Indori: Born and bought up in Indore, MP, India; a foodie to the core; has aloo kachori, bhutte ka keese, garadu and kanda poha in the blood; one with a laid back attitude; easy going; likes to eat namkeen and laung sev with everything.

I have been late for my own event. But if you are an Indori (ref above) like me you would know it is nothing personal. We are a laid back lot, who do nothing in a hurry and take their time getting things done. (Just read the repetitious sentence to know what I mean!).
Which is a problem if you are married to a go getter, “hate lounging in bed”, up at the crack of dawn kind of fellow. There is no clause that makes it mandatory to disclose ‘sleeping in’ preferences before couples get hitched in an arranged marriage.
As a result, the first few months of our marriage were tumultuous, with me struggling to get used to the “leave in half an hour” to mean “leave in half an hour” concept of time. Him on the other hand had to get used to my, shall we say, easy as it goes attitude, in which half an hour could mean anything between 45 minutes to an hour and a half.

On a normal weekend morning I like nothing better than to get up at a godly hour (around 9 AM), make a nice cup of ginger tea and talk about the plans for the day, which may or may not get done by the end of the day. In my world it is perfectly acceptable as long as the meal that you planned on eating turned out right. He, on the other hand will be up at 6.30 AM (an ungodly hour, according to me), paying bills, catching up on emails and exercising. For him, the taste of food is secondary to the act of consuming it.
Nine years later, I still like my weekend breakfast to be poha, Indori style, with lots of onions, fennel seeds, peas and potatoes (the only thing missing are hot jalebis from the neighborhood halwai). He, who has grown up on upma and idli sambhar for breakfast, thought adding veggies to poha was tantamount to sacrilege. “That’s not poha, that’s vegetables cooked with poha!”
But what he didn’t bargain for was the “persistent foodie” that is inherent in every Indori. We may be laidback but we know our food and eventually we will convert you. By the end of our first year, T was making better poha than I and adding the ‘vegetables’ to them with restrained relish.

So here’s our recipe for Indori Kanda Poha that I first posted here, sans any photos. Another Indori Kanda Poha recipe can be found here.

Ingredients:
2 cups thick poha (flattened rice)
1 cup onion, chopped 
1 small potato, chopped in thin, bite size pieces
¼ cup peas, frozen or fresh

For Tadka:
1 tsp Rai/ black mustard seeds
1 tsp Haldi/ turmeric
2-3 green chilies, sliced in small pieces
4-5 curry leaves/ kari patta
1 tsp fennel seeds/ saunf (necessary)
1/2 tsp sugar (necessary)

For Garnish:
When the list of garnish ingredients is as long as that of the main ingredients you know it is an Indori recipe. The following are optional but recomended (either one or two or all) to enjoy the Indori experience.

Cilantro
Fresh pomegranate seeds
Grated, dry or fresh coconut
Chopped onion
Lemon wedges
Grapes (you better believe it)
Namkeen/ sev/ chavana
Jeeravan powder (like a chat masala but made just for sprinkling on poha)

Method:
Wash the poha twice in water, drain and keep it aside. The poha should be wet like a sponge but not soaking in water.
Heat oil and add mustard seeds. When they start spluttering, add curry leaves and chopped green chilli, fennel seeds and onion. Let the onions sweat on medium heat till they turn pink.
Add haldi and cook till the smell of raw haldi goes away.
Add the chopped potatoes and the peas and salt them. Cover and cook till the potatoes are fully cooked.
Add the poha and mix the onion-potato-peas together. Add salt and a pinch of sugar. Cover the poha with a lid and let it steam on low for 5 minutes.
Turn the heat off and garnish with chopped coriander and the above mentioned toppings of your choice.

And after that delectable feast of Indori poha and chai, I leave you with not one but two like minded fellow Indoris. Because we like nothing better than to talk about food before, during and after a meal.

The following was found here:
I think, Indore is one of the few places in the world where u can set up a small ’’thela’ serving poha -jalebi (Poha is a local dish, jalebi is a sweet dish) and if the taste is approved by the Indoriens, be assured u can earn enough for generations to come. When it comes to food, Indori chatoras stand a class apart. Poha, jalebi, garadu, sabudani ke kichrhi, somose-kachori, patis, khaman, pani puri - u name it and u have it. U come here with a new product and if its passed by the ’chotori jubaan’ of Indorians, don’t b surprised if u become a lakhpati in no time, a crorepati too is very much on cards - it happens only in Indore :-)

Excerpt from Rajat Jain's blog Useless Ramblings:
The other side-effects include missing the delicious Indian food. Being a foodie (and hence, a "bit" overweight) that I am, I obviously miss it. Especially when you order for a Daal Tadka, and get a layer of water above some half cooked and non-spicy cereals. Or when you have to contend with "maide ki roti."
Nah, whom am I kidding? An obsessed Indoree that I am, there was no chance on earth (or in heaven. I don't like hell.) that I could forget carrying Poha—Indoree Poha—with me. Two kilograms of Poha would be enough for 2 months. Or will they? Probably depending on how well I'd control my staple diet!


The poha with all the garnishes is off to Anita's Kitchen and to Sir's Corner who is hosting JFI: Fennel this month, started by Indira.

Sabudana Khichdi 101 and a litany of rules

“I was on a high after mastering the art of making sabudana khichdi from a friend of mine.”

For the longest time I could never get the consistency of the sabudana khichdi right. I searched the net, I consulted friends and I even woke up at 5 AM to watch my sister-in-law make the khichdi. I experimented with different soaking methods over a week. An empty jar of sago later, I was no closer to making a soft khichdi then well… before the full jar.
Then one day, after eating one of the best s.khichdi at my friend R’s house, I told her I wasn’t leaving till she taught me how to cook it. She graciously took me under her wing and taught me. We soaked the sago together and I went back the next morning to learn how to make it.

These are the sago pearls of wisdom she imparted me with and now I pay them forward, once again! I did them once before here.

Pearl No 1: Wash the sabudana twice in plenty of water. Soak it overnight with ¼ inch of water on top of the sabudana. Cover the pot and forget about it till next day morning.

Pearl No 2: Use as little oil/ghee as necessary. Too much oil/ghee will make the sago pearls harder.

Pearl No 3: Once all the ingredients in the karahi are mixed, put the heat on low, cover the pot and forget about it for at least 10 min.

Ingredients:

1 cup Sabudana, soaked overnight or at least an hour
1 potato (boiled or raw), cubed

1 tbsp ghee/ oil

¾ cup roasted crushed peanuts

1–2 green chillis

1 tsp jeera (cumin)

Salt to taste

Lemon juice and cilantro to garnish

Method:

Soak the sabudana overnight. The sago pearls should have become soft and almost doubled in size.
Heat 1 tblsp oil/ghee in a karahi. Add the jeera. Once it starts to splutter, add the chopped green chillis and the potatoes.

Meanwhile, mix the sabudana and the roasted peanut powder together with salt and a pinch of sugar.

As soon as the potatoes are cooked, add the sabudana mixture, stir and mix well.

Check for salt and chili. At this point, you can add more salt or red chili powder if needed. Cover the karahi, turn the heat to low and walk away for 10-15 min.

Come back and check. The sago pearls should be soft and plump by this time. Turn off the heat, sprinkle some lemon juice, garnish with cilantro and serve hot.

Alternative cooking in the microwave:

Add the cooked potatoes and green chillis to the sago mix and pop it in the microwave. Cook on high for a minute and then covered for another 30 seconds.

Note 1: If the soaked sago turns out sticky, it had too much water. Next time, use a little less.
Note 2: Do not be tempted to keep on checking on the sago during the soaking process. Walk away.

Note 3: Excessive handling of sago during the cooking process will make it sticky. On the other hand, if you feel the sago is a little dry, sprinkle a few drops of water or some lemon juice and cover. The steam will soften the sago.

The year errr… nine months in review

In an ideal world my last post of the year would have also been my 100^th post. But my world is anything but ideal so even though I was reaching hard for a century, I fell short by four posts.

As I write this post, there has been a second helping of snow in Texas. Technically, this is the third time it has snowed but the first time it was just for a few hours. The second time we had snow flurries the whole day and when it stopped the snow stayed on the next day. We had enough to make a snowman and have a snowball fight. Of course, we didn’t do it cause it was cozy and warm inside.

But I digress. Coming back to my eight months in review that starts in the month of April. I remember it was the beginning of spring and I felt it was a good day to start a blog. Of course, like all things I do in my life, I did not give it much thought but jumped right in.

Sabudana Khichdi

I was on a high after having mastered the art of making sabudana khichdi from a friend just days ago. I was making it every weekend and felt like sharing the secret to a non-sticky sabudana khichdi with the world. The picture was taken as an afterthought on the dining table, with my son’s toys scattered around.
A few other random recipes followed, some with pictures, some without. I was yet unaware of all the other amazing food blogs out there.  I just went exploring through the ‘Next Blog’ button. That is how I chanced on Dips’ Centaur Cooks. Through her, I found Vaishali’s wonderful, passionately vegan blog, Holy Cow, Recipes from a Vegan Kitchen.

Following few comments led to Supriya’s tasteful Red Chillis and the Holy Grail of Indie blogs, Jai and Bee’s Jugalbandi. Jugalbandi's monthly photo event was one highlight of my monthly posts as I tried to take better pictures every month. I am most proud of this one:

My aaji's teapots

Of course, RC’s Food World blog aggregator introduced me to a whole new world of blogging. One blog led to another and soon I was chasing blogs like one tries to count the stars. In the end, I had to curb my enthusiasm and detox myself of the wonderful but addictive world of blogging.

Mint Chai and a book review

By then I had also found the world of food events and there came a time when everything I posted was with the intent of entering in an event. I become obsessed with it to the point of exhaustion. You just have to look at the months of June and July. I was in full swing, with every post geared towards an event.

Batata Ros

Thankfully, I got out of that phase quickly. Now, I do enter a few events but I don’t stress myself out.

August was the result of my putting on a few pounds and logging my eating habits for the whole world to see.
By the end of that month, I was spent and two pounds lighter. I was also learning to relax with my posts and not try to force myself to write.
September was the month to brew some old memories and long forgotten recipes, not to mention two cathartic rants.

Sevainya Kheer

October saw fewer posts but by then I was no longer worried about posting something every couple of days and was taking my time with each post.

I had discovered Sra’s witty blog When my soup came alive and Manisha’s Indian Food Rocks the previous month. It was Diwali time by then and a total of my seven posts had either Diwali recipes or an entry for Sra’s unique The Write Taste event. Rock on Sra!

I would have completed the 100 post mark in mid December if I had been more active in November (only 4 posts!). But I was busy with going back to school (College for non USA reader), my final papers and presentation.

Moong dal dosas

I even missed my monthly book club review, This Book Makes Me Cook, that I had been religiously doing every month since July. It is a wonderful group of bloggers, headed by Simran of Bombay Foodie, who choose and review a book at the end of each month. We also try to create a recipe based on the book. If you would like to join our book club, drop a line to Simran or any of the other members and we will welcome you with open arms.

Gingered tomato soup

December started with only 10 posts to go and a steely resolve to hit the century.  Of course, the gods of fate conspired with a fun filled family holiday spent visiting children’s science and history museum and planning for my son’s fourth birthday.

So here I am, at the end of December, with four more posts to go but no more days left in the month.

It was still worth it though, making friends over the blog and meeting them on FB. Finding out about networked blogs (Thank you Vaishali) and trying to take better pictures of the food.

I will be remiss if I don’t mention a very witty blogger and now a good friend, Ann of Split Pear Personality. I met her through the book club (correct me if I am wrong Ann) a few months ago. If any one can make a recipe read funny it is Ann. Check out her left over Shepherd's Pie or the Counterfeit Appams.
Last but not the least, a special mention goes to Sangeeta of Banaras ka khanna, who despite personal adversity cooks delicious, regional foods from her kitchen in Delhi and puts it on her blog for the world to benefit from. You are a hero Sangeeta. Keep on blogging and smiling.

This brings us to the end of my post which is being shipped off hurriedly to Srivalli’s Best of the Year, just before the deadline ends.
Hopefully, the next two weeks will see me hit the century post.
Here's wishing everyone a very happy and prosperous 2010.

Growing pains and stuffing Anaheim peppers

As an angst ridden (read dramatic) teenager in the late 80s, I had a volatile relationship with my mother. I was in the “know it all” phase and sensitive to any remark or objection from my mother. The arrogance of youth and the inherent need to rebel would bring the worst out of me at the slightest provocation. I would take it as a personal attack on my right as an enlightened youth. I picked up quarrels with my mom at the drop of a hat and went without talking to her for days on end or giving her the cold shoulder.

As I saw it, it was my right to rebel. If she suggested I wear bright colors I would fill my wardrobe with grey and beige. Looking back on those days, I shudder to think the kind of hell I must have unleashed on my mom – demanding freedom but not wanting the responsibilities that came with it. I had yet to learn to embrace humility that is so essential to earn respect.

During that ‘difficult’ phase my mother would try to teach me basics of cooking, since I was of that “age” (how she found the patience or the desire for it, is beyond me). Initially I rebelled because I didn’t want to be one of those girls who excelled at cooking from an early age and settled down to a life of domesticity. In my day dreams, I had a higher purpose in life; I wanted to do something worthy of leaving an impact on future generations. If only that girl could peek into the future… Today the most impact I can hope is to have on my progeny, who is as rebellious, if not more, as me.

Ever since I became a mom, I have a renewed appreciation and admiration for all that my mom did for us three siblings. Between juggling a full time job and bringing up three kids she would try to find innovative ways to make us, especially me, eat a variety of vegetables. Stuffing Anaheim peppers with potatoes was one of her more successful recipes and she would make it as often as time would permit. Stuffing the peppers was my job and I saw it as her way of gently easing me into the drudgery of cooking.

Sulking, I would sit on the kitchen floor, stuffing the peppers and muttering under my breath. Secretly, I enjoyed the process of neatly cutting a slit along one of the edges, deseeding the peppers and then stuffing them with the prepared potatoes. There was a rhythm to the production and I didn’t want to acknowledge it but I loved the food prep. I suspect my mom knew it too.

Last few years have been a blur of establishing a married life, starting a family, house hunting, acquiring stuff and raising a kid. My mom and I are best friends and rarely argue over trivial issues.

Now I am trying to ease my son into eating veggies other than potatoes. I take him grocery shopping at Sprouts FM and it is a lot of fun to see him point out all the veggies and fruits. The fact that he helps me pick them does not in any way hamper his resolution to not try them.

When I saw the peppers in the store I thought of my mom wondering that first time, many years ago, what she could do to make me eat it. I could envision the sizzle of the peppers roasting in the kadhai and the sweet peppery smell of the charring skin signaling dinner time. I wondered if my son would try them and decided not to push my luck.
Traditionally in the north the peppers are stuffed with kneaded chickpea flour but potatoes are sometimes stuffed as an alternative. The peppers were spotted and cooked shortly after Manisha announced her IFC: Memories event. I knew I had the perfect memory (admission of guilt?) to ship off to her along with the basket of mangoes (Dare I add a smiley Manisha?).
This is also one of the many apologies, long overdue, to my mom for my brattish behavior.

Ingredients:
4 – 5 anaheim peppers
1/2 tbsp of olive oil

For the stuffing:
4 – 5 potatoes, boiled and mashed
1 tsp turmeric
1 tsp fennel seeds
1/2 tbsp red chili powder
Salt to taste

Method:
In a kadhai or wok heat ½ tbsp of oil, turn the heat to low and add turmeric, fennel seeds and red chili powder. You want the raw taste of turmeric to turn fragrant before adding the mashed potatoes. Add salt and combine. If the potatoes are tinged yellow all over, you know the salt and chili have been incorporated.
Cut each pepper in three pieces and slice lengthwise. Deseed the end pieces and keep aside.
Let the potato sabzi cool down a little before stuffing the peppers.

Heat a non stick skillet or pan with a wide flat bottom. Add ½ tbsp of oil and swirl it around to coat before adding the stuffed peppers. You don’t want the peppers to overlap and steam. The goal here is to char the skins all over or as much as you can. So do it in two or three batches.

Cook the peppers in a single layer on medium heat, turning them around every few minutes as the skins start charring. I like to crisp the potato sabzi which is sticking out the slit end because that is the best part and I save it up to eat last.

Once all the peppers are charred and cooked, transfer to a serving dish and serve with toor dal and rotis.

My son stuck to his resolve and did not try it. Come to think of it I should have spiked it with his khichdi. That’s what my mom would have done.

The stuffed peppers also go to IVW: Indian currently hosted by Erbe in Cucina and the brainchild of Vaishali of Holy Cow.

Watching Weight: Day Nine and a tag

Eating as usual
I have been eating a little piece of dark chocolate nowadays when snack attack or a sugar craving hits me. It is not as bad as you think. Half a bar is about 250 cal but cal from fat is about 140. It takes me about five days to eat it. At about 30 cal a piece I think it is ok. Here's the food log:
Breakfast: A cup of tea, a hardboiled egg and a glass of 1% milk.
Lunch: A toasted potato sandwich with a bowl of yogurt. A piece of dark chocolate and some toasted, unsalted pistachios.
Afternoon: A cup of tea
Dinner: Matki beans usal with two rotis and a few slices of cucumber.
Dessert: A nectarine.

Exercise: Brisk 30 minutes walking and 10 minutes of stretching at home.

When I used to work at Indian Express, Screen, every year we would have the Screen Awards Show, which was similar to Filmfare awards. We used to talk to the judges and meet the nominees and interview the winners. It was a fun month although hectic month. This month has been similar, what with writing my food log posts everyday and award distribution in the blogosphere, except I am on the receiving end this time. As if in appreciation of my food logging efforts, PJ of Seduce Your Tast Buds passed on the following awards to me. Thank you PJ.

Here are the tags to accept the awards:
1. What is your current obsession? Losing a few lbs, my blog and finishing off The Golden Compass trilogy.
2. What are you wearing today? A tank top and shorts. Its hot here!
3. What’s for dinner today? Matki beans usual with rotis.
4. What’s the last thing you bought? A toy fire truck for my son and some glass containers for storing leftover food.
5. What are you watching right now? Cailou on PBS. I am not actually watching it but it is playing in front of me.

6. What do you think about the person who tagged you? I don’t know PJ much but I like her blog and love her events and roundup page.
7. If you could have a fully furnished house, totally furnished, anywhere in the world, where would you want it? I would probably like a travelling house that I could take to different countries for a couple of years. Of course Tushar and my son have to be there with me.
8. What are your must have pieces for summer? Shorts, tank tops, my suunglasses and my razor. Can’t have stubby legs sticking out of the shorts!
9. If you could go anywhere in the world for the next hour where would it be? Back home to Indore cause it is my mom’s B’day today.
10. Which language do you want to learn? Spanish and Konkani.
11. Who do you want to meet right now? My sister in Pune, India.
12. What is your favorite color? Black cause it hides all the bulges and is slimming.
13. What is your favorite piece of clothing in your closet? My yellow wedding saree that I don’t get to wear often.
14. What is yor favorite magazine? Parents and Babytalk magazine.

15. What is your dream job? A food and travel writer. I’ll settle for an editor at a publishing house.
16. If you had a $100 what would you spend it on? My husband and kid.
17. What inspires you? Books, nature, wanderings of my daydreaming mind, my 3 year old and my 39 year old hubby.
18. Three styling tips that work for you? Comfortable clothing, no body odor and no makeup except lipstick once in a while.
19. Coffee or tea? Unquestionably, TEA.
20. What do you do when you feel depressed? Read, take a walk, have a talk with Tushar.
21. What is meaning of your name? I think it means victory – Jay(a).
22. Which other blogs do you love visiting? It is like asking which child do you love more.
23. Favorite Dessert? My mom’s whole wheat sheera and any chocolate dessert.
24. What do you consider unethical in blogging? Plagiarism, rude comments, anonymous rude comments, insistence on following a blog to enter an event.
Here’s my question?
25. What makes a blog stand apart from other blogs? Or what is it that makes you follow a blog?
I have to tag 10 bloggers for this award and since I have already tagged some of my favorite ones and others already have these I would like to pass on the tags to all the wonderful people who have been following me for the past few months. If you haven’t already got these awards, please feel free to carry these over to your wonderful blogs. I would love to know you more trough these questions.

Watching Weight: Day Six

As you can see today was leftovers day.
Breakfast: Cereal, same as the day before.
Lunch: A bowl of rice with toor dal and chori gravy. A bowl of yogurt with a teaspoon of sugar.
Snack in between: 1/4 cup mix of roasted walnuts and almonds. A Newman’s Own mini chocolate chip cookie (40 cal).
Dinner: Two rotis with left over chori curry. A couple of pieces of watermelon.
Exercise: No exercise for today.

Watching Weight: Day Seven
Pav Bhaji with Broccoli

A clarification for the contents of the daily food log today: For lunch I ate my three year old’s left over PB&J sandwich because I can’t bear to throw away good food.
I had guests coming over for dinner and I had deep fried some store bought frozen samosas. I was not planning to eat more than a couple but our guests were later than the usual desi late time (it’s a long story, set for a rant post) and I was so hungry by the time one half of the couple arrived I ate quite a few of those. For dessert I had ice cream which at 110 calories wasn’t too bad but since I had resolved in my first post not to eat ice cream I was feeling a little conscious but happy. I figure it is ok to indulge once in a while otherwise you end up binging on it eventually.
Breakfast: One egg omelette over a piece of toasted artisan garlic Gilroy bread with a slice of pepper jack cheese melted on top.
Lunch: A bowl of leftover chori curry and a piece of whole wheat bread with peanut butter and strawberry jam. Half a cup of yogurt with a teaspoon of sugar.
Dinner: 8-10 deep fried petite samosas and a slice of toasted bun with 1 cup of pavbhaji.
Dessert: 1/4 cup of Starbucks Mocha Frappuccino Ice Cream (110 cal).
Exercise: 30 minutes of brisk walk around the neighborhood (yes, I was in my flip flops again).

Honest Pav Bhaji with Broccoli (Vegetarien Sloppy Joe)

I’d never heard of sloppy joe till I came to US eight years ago. I have never made it but as far as I know SJ is made by cooking a lot of loose meat and then eaten by stuffing it between two pieces of bun or bread slices. To me that sounds like Pav Bhaji which is nothing more than a lot veggies cooked together (Bhaji) in a sloppy mess and eaten with buns (pav).
Like all Indian recipes, there are lots of variations to making Pav Bhaji. However, potatoes, green bell pepper and cauliflower are a few of the must have ingredients. The amount and kind of spices used, the ratio of different veggies used and the consistency of the bhaji all vary according to the cook’s discretion. So when I started making it with left over broccoli instead of cauliflower, I felt I was breaking a cardinal rule of PavBhaji. But the end result was just as delicious as the original.
Note: In the past I have tried various combinations of store bought pav bhaji masala and other spices. I find sticking to any one brand of PavBhaji masala gives the best results. I used Honest brand which is a local, Ahmadabad pav bhaji joint of the same name and they sell the masala in their restaurants.

Ingredients:
1 big onion, chopped fine
2 tomatoes, chopped fine
1/4 cup canned crushed tomatoes
2 tbsp ginger garlic paste
4 tsp Pav Bhaji masala (vary according to taste)
1/2 tsp red chili powder
Vegetables:
3 potatoes, boiled and mashed
1 green bell pepper, chopped in small cubes
1 -2 cups of broccoli, chopped fine
1/2 cup of frozen or fresh peas
Cilantro and chopped onion for garnish

Method:

Heat a tablespoon of oil in a flat pan and sauté the onions for about a minute. Add the ginger garlic paste and a tablespoon of pav bhaji masala. Roast for a minute till the raw smell of spices turns fragrant. Add the broccoli and bell pepper and cook for a few minutes before adding chopped tomatoes and some more masala. Cover and cook till the tomatoes soften and give off their juices, maybe 5—7 minutes.
Add the mashed potatoes and remaining masala powder. Stir to mix all the veggies together. Add the pea and the crushed tomatoes. Adjust salt and add some water. Cover and cook on low for about 15 minutes before mashing the veggies with the back of a ladle or a potato masher. Turn off the heat and transfer to a serving dish.
Garnish with chopped cilantro and finely chopped onion and serve with toasted pav or bun.
To make this richer and creamier, add a tablespoon of butter (preferably Amul). I being on calorie watch skipped it.

Recently, Vaishali of Holy Cow posted the recipe not only for Bombay Pav Bhaji but also for the pav* (buns) that traditionally are eaten with them. Vaishali's experience of Pav Bhaji stalls and the other eating joints of Bombay are so close to mine, I can relive them through her post.

*I did try making the pavs but must have messed something up in my measurements because though mine tasted delicious they came out crusty on top.

Weight Watching: Day Four

Click here for Day Three

I was never much for reading calorie information on labels but it is a well known fact that writing down the calorie intake also helps reduce calorie intake. So from now on i'll try to write down as much information as I can about the total calories I am consuming. Or at least do a calorie watch like this:
1 tbsp of tomato ketchup = 60 cal

Breakfast: 1/4 cup of raisin bran (50 cal) and 1/2 cup (50 cal) of cheerios with a cup of 1% milk(100 cal). Total cal: 210 cal.
Lunch: Grilled potato sandwich (300 cal) with half a cucumber cup up in slices. Just a small dollop of ketchup. Couple of pieces of watermelon for dessert.
Tea: One cup of tea with two small pieces of cranberry artisan bread smeared with peanut butter. (approx 50 cal)
Dinner: Two rotis with left over potato broccoli sabzi and a bowl of yogurt with a teaspoon of sugar. (approx 350 - 400 cal)
Exercise: 20 minute brisk walk around the neighborhood (about 150 cal burnt).
Total Calorie Consumed: 960 - 150 = 810 cal.

Grilled Potato Sandwich

I was going to eat the left overs from previous night for lunch. But making this sandwich for my 3 year old made me realize how long the potato sabzi had been in the fridge (6 days) and if I didn’t use it up, I would have to throw it in a day or two. This is same sabzi I use for stuffing Aloo Paranthas.
I used two slices of sourdough bread and two slices of pepperjack cheese. It also tastes good with green chutney either spread on the slice or as a side or both.
With the crusts cut off the bread slices are about 100 cal each. The two slices of pepperjack cheese are about 80 cal and the potato sabzi about 20 cal. I figured a 300 cal lunch was pretty healthy. Not to mention the fiber provided by the cucumber slices. Normally, I would have eaten the sandwich with store bought potato chips. Additional calories not consumed – 140 calories.

Ingredients:
2 slices of sourdough or any white bread
2 tablespoon of potato sabzi
2 slices of pepperjack cheese or cheese of your choice
Olive oil to drizzle

Method:
Plug in the sandwich grill. Spread the potato sabzi evenly on one bread slice. Add the cheese slices on top. Cover with the other bread slice. Drizzle with a little bit of olive oil. Put it OO side down on the grill and drizzle some more on the top side. Close the grill and cook till the sandwich is crispy and golden. Serve with ketchup or for a healthier version with green chutney.

The sandwich is so easy to make, especially if you have the sabzi ready and in my family this is eaten not only for lunch but also for breakfast, brunch and dinner, depending on what the mood strikes. For this reason the sandwich is going to EC's WYF:Breakfast. This sandwich also goes to Cooking for Kids: Evening Snacks event started by Sharmi of Neiyedyam and hosted this month by Diyva of Dil Se.

This also goes to Priy'a Sunday Snacks:Snacks with Bread event.

Weight Watching: Day Three

Click here for Day Two

I usually eat two rotis for lunch and dinner but today I had enough dough left over from the night before to make only one. Also, I have started brushing my teeth once I have finished a meal. It helps me not crave snacks between meals besides keeping my breath minty fresh.

Breakfast: One cup of tea, a hardboiled egg and a cup of cereal (1/4 cup raisin bran and 3/4 cup cheerios with one cup of 1 % milk).
Lunch: One roti with left over batata ros (potatoes in onion tomato gravy), half a cup of homemade yogurt with a teaspoon of sugar. A few pieces of watermelon for dessert craving.
Evening Tea: 1 cup of tea with 2 tsps of sugar.
Dinner: Two rotis with toor dal and broccoli, potato sabzi. Half a cup of yogurt with a teaspoon of sugar.
Exercise: 20 min brisk walk around the neighborhood, again in flip flops.
Dessert: A nectarine before flossing and brushing teeth.

Potato broccoli sabzi (stir fry)
Serves : 2 as a side dish and 4 as a main dish.
This is a very simple Indian style of making stir fry in which, unlike the Chinese stir fry, the vegetable are cooked tender. You can interchange cauliflower and broccoli; add peas and any other left over vegetables in the fridge. I had an orange bell pepper and some button mushrooms left over. The spices are not many and when I cook a couple of different veggies together, I like to add the salt and masala powder in increments to each veggie as it goes in the pan. This way all the veggies get spiced up equally.
Ingredients:
2 potatoes, diced into small cubes
1 bell pepper, cut into long stripes
1-2 cups of broccoli, chopped into bite size pieces
4-5 button mushrooms, chopped

For tadka:
1/2tsp mustard seeds
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp turmeric powder
1 tsp red chilli powder
1 tsp sabzi masala/ garam masala (I used Everest sabzi masala)

Method:
Heat 1 tbsp oil in a deep karahi or wok and add the mustard seeds. As they start to sputter, add the cumin seeds and turmeric powder. Roast on medium heat for a minute before adding the potatoes. Add a little bit of chili powder, sabzi masala and salt. Cover and cook for a few minutes, before adding the broccoli. Once again season with chili powder, sabzi masala and salt. Cover and cook for a few more minutes before adding the bell pepper and the mushrooms. Finish off the seasoning and cook till all the veggies are cooked through.
Garnish with cinlantro and serve with toor daal (lentil soup) and rotis.

The broccoli potato sabzi goes to Viki's Side Dish with Chapati event.

Weight Watching: Day Two

Click here for Day One

Batata Ros (Potatoes in onion tomato gravy)
I have to mention that as I start on my weight loss regimen, I have increased my water intake from 8 glasses to 10-12 glasses a day. Also, I do not drink any kind of soda or store bought juice.
Breakfast: One cup of tea and a hardboiled egg.
Lunch: Two rotis with left over methi dal and palak paneer (cottage cheese in spinach gravy). A fresh fig for dessert.
Evening Tea: One cup of tea with a slice of artisan cranberry raisin bread smeared with 1/2tbsp of peanut butter.
Dinner: Two rotis with batata ros and a glass of lassi.
Exercise: Brisk 15 minute walk around the neighborhood, in my flip flops, since I still can't wear my sneakers.

Batata Ros (Potatoes in onion tomato gravy)

Serves: 2 - 3

This is a favorite of Tushar’s because, well, his "mom makes the best batata ros in the world.” (Ros in Konkani means gravy). He called up his mom and wrote down the recipe. It was fairly easy to make. Tushar ate it with some “maida poli” which is nothing but basic crepes made from flour, eggs and milk. Since they don’t fit with my diet plan, I stuck to rotis.

Ingredients:
1 small onion, chopped fine
1 large tomato, chopped
2 medium potatoes, cut into small cubes/tiangles/ rectangles

For Tadka:
4-5 curry leaves
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp turmeric powder
1 tsp red chilli powder
1 tsp coriander-cumin powder
Salt to taste

Method:
Heat 1/2tbsp oil in a pan and add the tadka ingredients, except salt, one by one in the order listed. As the roasting spices begin to give off their aromas, add the onions. Sauté till transparent and add the potatoes. Cover and cook for ten minutes before adding the chopped tomatoes. Cook for another five minutes.
Add salt and water to cover the potatoes. Close the lid and cook till the tomatoes are mushy and the potatoes are done.

Treading Deep Waters

The month of June has been exciting and exhausting. As I get more involved with my blog and explore the wonderful world of food blogging, I am getting deeper and deeper into entering various events hosted by gracious blog hosts. It is exciting to find out about an event whose theme excites and inspires you to create new recipes and improve the ones in your repertoire. Blogs like Meena’s Hooked on Heat make me realize how far I still have to go towards building a great blog. It has inspired me to pay more attention to the little details in writing my recipes and try to take better food pictures.

It is exciting to see my post getting accepted in an event and appear on the host blog (so far just one – My entry to the CLICKS event). But it is also exhausting to keep track of different themes, deadlines and photo specifications. I have also realized that it takes more time to write, photograph, upload and link a recipe than it does to make the food, eat it and load the dishwasher.
So, for my second entry for Tried and Tested: Hooked on Heat event hosted by Kits Chow , I picked the Sauted spinach with potatoes recipe which is not only easy to cook and delicious to taste but is also nutritious and takes very little time to make or to write. Also, I had some leftover baby spinach in the fridge begging to cook it with potatoes.

Aloo Palak (Potato Spinach) stir fry



Ingredients:

6 cups of spinach, washed and chopped roughly
2 medium potatoes, sliced thin
1 small onion, diced fine
3-4 garlic cloves, chopped or mashed fine
1 tsp turmeric
1 tsp mustard seeds
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp coriander powder (dhania powder)
1 tsp red chili powder
Salt to taste

Method:

Heat 2 tbsp oil and add mustard seeds. As they start to crackle, add cumin seeds, turmeric, onions and garlic. Sauté on medium heat till onions turn translucent and garlic starts giving off its aroma.
Slide in the potatoes and cook covered till almost tender. Add salt and spinach and cook till the potatoes are done and the spinach is wilted.
Serve warm with rotis and dal.

Going (a)round memory lane

They say everything comes back full circle and it has never been so clear to me since the birth of my son three and a half years ago. He has the exact sleep pattern as mine, the same picky eating habits of my childhood and the same obsessive and stubborn nature. My son did not let go of his beloved baby bottle till he turned three and just like me he got hooked on Aloo Paranthas at the age of two. His picky eating habit doesn’t give me a lot of options to feed him. So, once a week, I boil some potatoes and keep the sabzi ready to make his favorite aloo parantha at a moment’s notice.


Potato (Aloo) Parantha

This recipe goes to my darling son and to Tried and Tested: Hooked on Heat event guest hosted by Kits Chow. My recipe is very similar to Meena’s (of HoH ) Potato Parantha recipe, except I use fennel seeds and ginger-garlic paste instead of cilantro, green chilies and onions. I am also sending this to BSI:Potatos hosted by Chez What? .

Ingredients:

2 cups wheat flour
5-6 potatoes, boiled and mashed
1 tbsp ginger garlic paste (optional)
1 tsp carom seeds (ajwain)
1 tsp turmeric
1 tsp fennel seeds
1 tsp chili powder
Salt to taste

Sprinkle the wheat flour with carom seeds, add a tsp of oil and with some water knead into soft dough. Divide dough into golf sized balls and keep aside.
Mix salt and chili powder in the mashed potatoes.
Heat a tbsp of oil in the karahi and add turmeric and fennel seeds. As they start to crackle, add the ginger garlic paste. Let it cook for a few minutes. Add the mashed potatoes and mix well. Cook for a few minutes and turn off the heat.
Roll out each dough ball into a small circle and place 1 tbsp of potato mix in the centre. Bring up the edges and press together to form a ball. Make sure the edges are sealed tight.
Flatten the ball with your hands, dredge it in some dry flour and roll out to desired thickness. In the world of paranthas THICK = SOFT and THIN = CRISP.On a hot gridle or tava, fry the rolled out paranthas with oil or ghee or both. Serve hot with pickle and a heaping bowl of yogurt.