Cabbage palya

You will need

Organic Cabbage 1 medium sized cleaned and chopped fine

Salt, jaggery to taste

For garnish

Grated coconut 3-4 tbsp

Pepper corns about 1 flat tsp

Cumin seeds about 1/2 tsp

For seasoning

1/4 tsp unrefined oil/butter/ghee

Turmeric 1/4 tsp (optional)

Urad dhal 1tsp

Mustard  1/2 tsp

Curry leaf  1 twig

Method

Take a heavy bottomed pan.

Add chopped cabbage, a little water (less than 1/4 cup), salt and jaggery.

Cook covered in low flame (stir every 5 minutes) till cabbage is transparent.

Cook without the lid till water evaporates.

Dry roast and powder pepper and cumin seeds; heat oil, add urad dhal, when dhan is evenly brown,add mustard, when mustard begins to splutter, add curry leaf (and turmeric)

Season cooked cabbage and garnish with grated coconut, pepper and cumin powder.

Simple vegetarian lunch

For lunch today I made stir fried vegetables( used carrot, peas, beans) and Ashgourd in coconut-buttermilk gravy. As usual the recipes are chilly free, tomato free and uses minimal oil(you could do without it too). We eat a lot of vegetables- a habit which was introduced to us by Amma and Appa right from when we were little. Whenever we meet acquaintances at the vegetable store, they look at all the veggies in our huge shopping bag and ask if we have a feast at home! Consuming plenty vegetables has helped us have beautiful skin, good digestion and easy evacuation. During pregnancy, I followed a one part carbohydrate, one part lentils or protein, two parts vegetable (I avoided potato, sweet potato, tapioca, cauliflower,papaya, garlic) diet, ate plenty fruit to prevent the most common problem faced during pregnancy-constipation. Below is an example of a simple but healthy meal prepared for lunch at home.

Stir fried vegetables

You will need (for about 4-5 adults)

4 medium sized carrot

15-20 beans

1 cup fresh peas

(you may use vegetables of your choice)

1/2 cup water

Salt, Jaggary to taste

Seasoning:

Oil 1/2 tsp

Split black gram 1 tsp

1/2 tsp mustard seeds

1/8 tsp turmeric powder

1 twig curry leaf

Garnish

Grated coconut 4-5 tablespoons

1/2 tsp cumin seeds

1/2 tsp peppercorns

Method

Wash and peel carrot, remove the ends and chop into small pieces.(about 1/2 cm)

Wash Beans, remove stalk, cut into small pieces (about 1/2 cm)

Heat a pan, add 1/2 tsp peppercorns and 1/2 tsp cumin seeds, dry roast and keep aside.

To the hot pan, add (1/2 tsp oil), black gram, mustard (stir if not adding oil).

When black gram browns evenly and mustard seeds begin to pop, add turmeric and then curry leaves.

Now add the chopped vegetables and peas.Saute till the veggies turn a shade darker.

Now add 1/2 a cup of water, salt and Jaggary. Mix well and cook covered in low flame till tender.

Remove lid, cook in low flame till water has evaporated completely. Now pound and powder the roasted pepper and cumin seeds and add to the cooked vegetables, mix well. Finally garnish with coconut.

Stir fried vegetables

Note: You may use this method to cook any vegetable alone or in combination.

When using vegetables in combination, chose those which have approximately the same cooking time.


Ashgourd in coconut-buttermilk gravy.


You will need (for about 4-5 adults)


Ashgourd 1/2 medium sized or full small sized.
Water 1/2 cup
One half of a coconut 
Yogurt/ buttermilk 1 cup
1tsp Putani or split garbanzo(you may use 1 tsp whole wheat flour or raw rice instead)
Salt to taste

For seasoning:
oil 1/2 tsp (optional)
Fenugreek seeds or methi 1/4 tsp
Mustard seeds 1/2 tsp
Curry leaf 1 twig


Method


Wash Ashgourd, cut in half and divide one half into 4 large pieces.

Ashgourd

With a knife remove the peel and separate seeds with fingers.

Cut the peeled, deseeded gourd into bite sized pieces.

Pressure cook with 1/2 cup water for 3 whistles, or cook covered with some more water in a vessel till transluscent and tender.

While the gourd is cooking, blend coconut with yogurt and Putani to a fine paste.

 When gourd is cooked and ready, transfer to a vessel, add salt to taste (should taste a little salty because after the gourd absorbs salt, the gravy will taste bland), coconut yogurt paste, mix well and cook in low flame.

When you see the gravy boiling at the sides, give it a stir and turn off the heat.

 Heat a cast iron skillet, add (1/2 tsp oil) fenugreek seeds, mustard seeds.When mustard seeds pop add curry leaves. Add to the cooked mixture. Serve after 15-20 minutes.

Note:

This method may be used to cook vegetables like long beans, chow-chow, bottle gourd, snake gourd, ridge gourd, ivy gourd(Coccinia Grandis) or any other gourd.

Taste this dish before serving, adjust salt if needed.

Fenugreek gives this dish a special flavour.

People wishing to add flavour of green chillies, may add a piece of green capsicum when making coconut paste.

Use buttermilk( obtained after extracting butter) which is slightly sour for better taste.

Rice


 I used integral raw rice. Measured rice, washed well with water, drained water, added double water and pressure cooked for 3 whistles.

Organic integral raw rice

Simple, easy to digest, stomach and health friendly lunch ready to eat (with home made black pepper pickle). Please pardon the messy plating.

Note:

If using organic integral rice, consuming the water with which the rice has been washed (the second rinse if you want a cleaner drink) is recommended in ancient Ayurvedic texts probably due to its rich vitamin b-complex content. Specifically recommended to regulate excessive menstrual flow.

Steamed banana

Steamed banana is an all time favourite of everyone in the family.  Whenever I watch my husband and baby relish it, I remember many mornings at the dining table relishing steamed bananas with Appa, sisters and brother ( my mother busy serving us :)).

To make this easy, tasty, nourishing, high in fiber dish,

You will need

Ripe 'Nendra' variety of bananas.

Butter (optional)

Honey (optional)

A pressure cooker

Method

Wash the banana, peel it and place it inside a stainless steel cooker vessel.

Pressure cook till about 2 whistles.

Consume warm with butter or honey or plain.

Note: If you find organic Nendra banana, you could steam with the peel/skin and consume with the skin.
 Riper the fruit (feels soft to touch, skin has blackish spots), tastier the steamed banana.

Steamed banana helps improve strength and weight.

Is an excellent food for babies.

Mangalore Cucumber(Cucumis pubescens) salad

During my weekend visit to Amma's place on a hot summer afternoon, Amma made a new dish, Mangalore Saute( Mangalore cucumber)/ Cucumis pubescens salad. Having tasted the normal cucumber salad and only the cooked versions of this variety of cucumber, I was pleasantly surprised by the tasty, cooling fiber rich salad. The best part was, it didn't cause any mild throat irritation which normally happens when I consume raw cucumber. So here it is, easy to make Mangalore cucumber salad.

You will need

1 big sized Mangalore saute/ Cucumis pubescens

Yogurt sufficient quantity

Salt( optional)

Hing/asafoetida a pinch (optional)

Method

Wash the cucumber, cut the two ends of the cucumber. Now slit in half vertically. Remove the seeds. Check the taste. Sometimes they are bitter and using it would spoil your salad. Mangalore cucumber is slightly sour to taste. Do not peel.

Grate the cucumber, add yogurt, mix well and serve. Easy! Goes well with chapati and rice or can be consuming as is.

Note: Tastes good without salt. If needed you may add, coriander leaves or a pinch of hing for flavour.

Beans sambar (step by step) Chilli tomato free

Amma is our inspiration for cooking healthy. Here is a healthy and tasty recipe of Sambar which is one of the first recipes I learnt from Amma. It is different from the normal Sambar as the recipe does not use green chilly/red chilly and tomato which is normally a part of any Sambar.

You will need:

Beans about 250 gm or more

1 cup of toor dhal or any lentil (preferably unpolished) washed, soaked overnight and washed  before use.

Water sufficient quantity

Salt to taste

Jaggary to taste

For the masala

1 tablespoon coriander seeds

1 teaspoon cumin seeds or Jeera

3-4 fenugreek seeds

1/4 tsp peppercorns 

a pinch of hing or Asafoetida

1 teaspoon tamarind pulp

Half a coconut grated or cut into small pieces

Seasoning

Musatrd seeds 1/4 tsp

Unrefined oil 1/2 tsp (I use coconut oil)

Turmeric 2-3 pinches

Curry leaves 5-6

Method

Wash beans and cut its ends. Cut each into 2-3 pieces (or to your liking)

Pressure cook soaked and washed toor dhal with beans and water (approximately double) up to 3 whistles.

In a small cast iron skillet, dry roast (low flame) the spices for masala. Add in the following order- pepper, fenugreek, cumin, coriander. Stir gently till the sweet aroma of toasted spices hits your nose. Now add a drop or two of coconut oil and a pinch of hing or asafoetida. Turn off the flame, stir well.

 Blend coconut, roasted spices, tamarind with a little water till you obtain a fine paste.

Take the cooked lentil and beans from the cooker, transfer into a bigger vessel add salt and jaggary to taste and bring to a boil. Turn down the flame and add the spice-coconut masala, mix well and  adjust taste

.It is time to turn off the flame when you see the Sambar begin to boil at the sides ( this is exactly what Amma showed me when I watched her cook). 

For seasoning heat oil in the skillet, add mustard seeds. when they pop, add curry leaf, turmeric powder, mix well.

 Add to the Sambar, stir well and serve hot with rice, chapati or bread.

Vegetable Kurma

This recipe is an all time favourite in the family. Though the recipe uses a blend of spices it is not pungent.

You will need,

1 cup fresh peas

1 cup minced carrot

1 cup chopped beans

1 large potato cut into cubes

Salt and jaggary to taste

For the masala

One half of a coconut,  grated or made to pieces.

3 cardamom

4 clove buds

A piece of black stone flower( pather ke phool/ kallu hoovu)

One arm of star anise (seed removed)

1’’x1/4’’ piece of cinnamon

2 Marathi moggu

Pepper corns about 10

½ tsp  Shah jeera or jeera( cumin)

3-4 Almonds/5-6 cashew

1-2 tablespoon Hurigadale/Putani/ roasted split (black)garbanzo.

Seasoning

Unrefined oil 1tsp

½ tsp jeera or cumin seeds

¼ tsp turmeric powder

1-2 large finely chopped/minced onion

1 red capsicum finely chopped/minced

½ finely chopped/minced green capsicum

Small bunch of finely chopped/minced cilantro

Method

Cook the vegetables with a little water (about ½ a cup) in a cooker (3 whistles) or cook the vegetables in an open pan with water.

Blend together all items of masala with salt, jaggery and a little water till a fine paste and keep aside.

Heat a pan, add 1tsp oil, cumin seeds.

When cumin splutters, add turmeric, mix well and add the minced vegetables for seasoning.

Saute till all water has evaporated.

Add the steamed/boiled vegetables, the masala paste, more water if needed and boil till thick.

Tasty Vegetable Kurma is ready to be eaten with chapati, bread, flat bread or rice.

Note: You may use any combination of vegetables.

PumPeaCum Pocket Paratha

Last week was fun due to a visit from my sister and nephews. Sister’s visit helped me add on a new method of making stuffed Aloo Paratha. She called it ‘pocket paratha’. This week I made a new stuffing and used her technique to cover them.

To try out this healthy but yummy recipe you will need,

(  I seldom measure the ingredients that go into my recipe but will try my best to give you an approximate ideaJ)

For the stuffing (makes about 8 Paratha)

1 medium sized green capsicum

½ tsp cumin seeds or jeera

Half a cup fresh peas

3 inch piece of pumpkin

About 4 peppercorns

Salt and jaggery to taste

1 tablespoon oil/butter/ghee(optional)

For the dough

Whole wheat flour

Water (usually 1/3 quantity of wheat flour)

Pinch of salt(optional)

Method

Mix water, (salt), wheat flour and knead well. Add water if needed. When dough does not stick to your fingers/counter/vessel you know the dough is of the right consistency. Let rest for 15 minutes.

Mince capsicum, pumpkin and fresh peas.

Heat a heavy bottomed pan. Add ¼ tsp oil/ghee/butter. Now add cumin seeds.When the seeds change colour add the minced veggies and stir under low flame. Add salt, Jaggery and  powdered pepper and cook covered till water evaporates leaving a paste. Let cool and form tiny equal sized balls.

Divide the dough and shape them into equal sized balls.

 Roll the ball, dust with a little wheat flour if necessary.

Place the stuffing at the center and flatten the stuffing.

 Fold the sides over the stuffing .....

.                              .....and gently roll into required size.

 Cook both sides on a cast iron skillet/tawa till nice and brown.

Add a dot of butter/oil/ghee (optional) and serve.

Note: If you feel the stuffing is too soft and have trouble rolling the Paratha, heat stuffing with 1/2 tsp whole wheat flour and cool.

After a side is done, flip side and press down gently for the paratha to puff up forming a ‘pocket’.