Instant Handvo

One morning, my neighbour knocked at the door to borrow a little gram flour. She was making handvo and promised to bring me some when done. What she got were delicious, soft and steaming pancakes. Handvo fit perfectly in my kind of recipes - fast to cook, good to eat and healthy for the body. It's an excellent meal for a cold or rainy evening. It's also a great finger food for little ones and makes a great addition to lunch box menu.

Makes : 2-3 handvos

Ingredients:
Semolina raw - 1 cup
Gram flour - 1/4th cup
Sour curd - 1/2 cup
Bottle gourd or mixed veggies - grated, 1 cup  like carrot, cabbage, ridge gourd, spinach, methi etc.
Ginger-chilly paste - 1 tablespoon
Curry leaves - 8-10 chopped. Chopped leaves means that everyone would actually eat curry leaves which are packed with nutrition.
Coriander leaves - chopped.
Red chilly powder - a pinch
Cumin powder - 1 teaspoon
Salt - to taste
Eno - 1/2 teaspoon for each handvo. Or add a pinch of baking soda for each handvo.

For seasoning-
Sesame seeds - 2 tablespoons
Mustard seeds - 1 teaspoon
Oil - 1 teaspoon

Way to Go:
1. Mix semolina, gram flour, curd, vegetables and all the spices. The batter should be thick. You can add water if the batter is too thick.
2. Heat a griddle or a wok. I like to use an iron griddle.
3. Spread some oil on the griddle.
4. Take batter for one handvo in a separate bowl. Add eno and mix.
5. When the griddle is hot, add mustard seeds and let them splatter. Add sesame seeds.
6. Immediately, spread the batter on griddle. Pour half a teaspoon oil all around it.
7. Cover the griddle with a lid. Let the flame be medium.
8. After 2-3 minutes, check handvo. The top side would have dried up. Flip it and let the other side cook for a while.
9. When both sides are done, your handvo is ready.
10. You can make quarters and serve immediately with ketchup or green chutney.
11. Take another portion of the batter and mix eno in it only before spreading it on the griddle. This way, each handvo will turn out to be fluffy.

Mushroom Pasta

Pizza and pasta have taken tastebuds across the globe by storm. Our home is no exception. We all love to eat pizzas outside but I have gotten good at making mushroom pasta at home. Pasta cheers up little A anytime and is a good school lunch too. 

Ingredients:

For mushroom pasta:

1. Pasta - 200 gms
2. Button mushrooms - 300 gms

3. Bell Pepper - optional, 1 small, finely chopped
4. Onion - 1 medium

5. Garlic - 2 fat pods
6. Any other veggies like beans, carrots or spinach. All finely chopped.

7. Olive oil - 3 table spoons

8. Marinara sauce - 200 gms. I buy the ready, organic one. You can make your own sauce too by following the recipe given below.

9. Shredded cheese (mozarella) - 4 tablespoons

10. Fresh or dry herbs - oregano, basil

For pasta sauce (if you're making your own sauce): 

1. Ripe tomatoes - 10

2. Garlic - 1 pod, chopped finely

3. Fresh or dried Italian herbs - basil, oregano, thyme etc. 

Way to go:

How to make red pasta sauce:

1. Blanch tomatoes. Skin them when cool. Chop roughly.

2. Heat oil. When it gets warm, add chopped garlic. Add tomatoes. 

3. Let it simmer for 10-15 minutes. Add fresh or dried herbs.  

Mushroom pasta:

1. Choose pasta of your choice. I buy organic, whole wheat pasta. Boil it according to instructions on the packet, with salt and a little oil.

2. Wash mushrooms thoroughly and slice them. Chop bell peppers, garlic and other veggies finely. 

3. Heat oil in a pan. Add garlic when oil gets warm. After 30 seconds, add onions. 
4. After a couple of minutes, add mushrooms. If you like, you can add bell pepper, beans and carrots. I am a big mushroom fan and love only mushrooms in my pasta. But if I run short of mushrooms, I add other veggies too. Add some herbs at this point too.

5. When mushrooms are done, add marinara sauce and herbs and simmer for 3-4 minutes. If you can find fresh herbs, especially basil, you can taste heaven! I add a couple of teaspoons of sugar to the pasta as the sauce is generally too tart for my taste. 
6. Add boiled pasta and cheese. I like to add chilly flakes to  my plate for that extra zest.

7. Serve piping hot. 

Quinoa khichdi

One fine Californian evening, I got introduced to this dish by my sister-in-law. I tell you, it was love at first bite! It somehow reminded me of those bhajans, where you retain a filmi tune and just change the lyrics. In this case, the recipe was the same, only sabudana was replaced with quinoa. I detest that practice for bhajans but absolutely loved it in a recipe. 

We all love sabudana khichdi in our family. Hence this healthier twist to it was a welcome addition to my arsenal. Quinoa is considered to be one of the superfoods. It is a fill-in-the-blank for protein requirement in vegetarian diets. I tried incorporating it in our diet in the form of rajma-quinoa but got a thumbs down. Now I am happy that little A and big D can be made to eat quinoa, minus the screwing up of noses and the accompanying drama. Another advantage of this khichdi is that it can be made instantly, as opposed to sabudana, which has to be soaked at least for 4-5 hours.

Serves - 3 

Ingredients:

Quinoa - 1 cup

Potatoes - 2 medium, boiled and crushed OR raw and diced

Peanuts - roasted and crushed OR powdered

Oil or ghee - 1.5 table spoons

Curry leaves - 6-8

Green chillies - 2 -3

Cumin seeds - 1 table spoon

Coriander leaves - a handful, washed and chopped

Salt - according to taste
Pepper - couple of pinches
Sugar - 1 teaspoon (optional)

Lemon juice - 1 table spoon

Way to Go:

1. Boil potatoes. Skin and break them by hand. If you want to use raw potatoes, peel and dice them.
2. In a pan, boil one cup of quinoa with 2 cups of water. 

3. Heat oil or ghee and add cumin seeds, curry leaves, green chillies. Add potatoes.

4. Crush peanuts. They can be crushed or powdered depending on one's preference. When potatoes are done 3/4th, add peanuts. 

5. Add boiled quinoa, salt and pepper powder. Mix well. Cover and cook for a couple of minutes on low flame. Add sugar.

6. Garnish with chopped coriander leaves. Add lime juice and mix well. Serve piping hot.

My Tips:

1. To reduce my time in kitchen, I put potatoes to boil in advance. When they are ready to be peeled, I put quinoa to boil. On another burner, I start sautéing potatoes. While they are being done, I crush peanuts, chop coriander and get lemon juice ready. By the time potatoes and peanut mix is ready, quinoa is ready to be added. 
2. You can adjust the quantities of ghee or (oil), chillies and pepper according to your taste.
3. You can add grated coconut or fresh pomegranate kernels for garnishing and added taste.

Paired with broccoli slaw salad, this is a complete meal. You can also pair this khichdi with a hearty mango lassi or aam raita (amarta) in summers and any soup in winters.

Laapsi - a traditional Rajasthani dessert

Laapsi - kadhi

Laapsi is a traditional Rajasthani dessert. It can be found on menus across jeemans (a traditional sit-down meal to celebrate an occasion). Laapsi is a triple whammy of sorts as it is easy to cook, is delicious and to top it all, is nutritious too. Kadhi is my favourite accompaniment with laapsi. I like to pit my sweet tastebuds against the savory ones and preside on the debate as I douse them alternatively with the sweetness of laapsi and tanginess of kadhi! The battle generally draws in favour of whatever the cook has done a better job with, but if both are well made, then it's a difficult but an eventual draw.

One day, when I hadn't cooked or even planned anything for dinner, I was rummaging my mind for a quick-fix. Suddenly , I remembered laapsi and went to the kitchen with a spring in my step.

Ingredients:

Broken wheat or daliya : 1 cup

Ghee : Can range from 4 tbsp to 1 tbsp. The more, the tastier!

Water : 4 cups 

Jaggery (or sugar) : A little less than 1 cup. If you lean towards less sweet, go for 3/4th cup. 

Cardamom : 6-8 pods, crushed

Almonds : Sliced, 1 tablespoon

Saffron: a pinch, dissolved in a teaspoon of milk

You can use sugar in place of jaggery but I prefer jaggery as it wins on nutrition and authenticity quotient. I had organic gud (jaggery) from my father's village, so loved it all the more. 

Way to go:

1. Pour ghee in a pressure cooker. Roast daliya on low-medium flame for about 7-10 minutes till it turns golden brown.
2. Add water and broken jaggery. Mix well. 

3.Pressure cook with 3- 4 whistles. Keep on low flame for 2 minutes. 

4.Garnish with diced almonds, cardamom and raisins.

5. Serve piping hot just like that or with hot kadhi. 

I love the dark brown colour!

Easy Starter - Masala Papad

I have always been a fan of easy and tasty dishes. My logic - why slog when you don't have to!

I had invited friends for dinner and was in no mood to make starters after cooking main course and dessert. And then it suddenly occurred to me - masala papad! Whenever someone ordered masala papad in a restaurant, I would wince. Restaurants are made for dishes for which one has to slog. So hara bara kabab or chilli paneer it has to be for me. I got excited with the idea of masala papad and that's what I served. It was colourful, yummy and everyone liked it, especially kids.

Serves 4 - 6

Ingredients:

Base ingredient:

6 Papads - There are many varieties of papads and you can choose according to taste. I had Lijjat - Punjabi Masala which turned out to be nice and spicy for the base. 

• You can cut the papad with scissors into 4 or 6 pieces before roasting. It would be easier to pick and eat, a la a pizza slice.
• You can cut semicircles of papads and then after roasting, immediately turn them  into cones. These cones can then be filled with topping mix.
• You can use disco papad (small, bite-size papads) to begin with. They will be very easy to pick and eat.

Topping ingredients:

1. Tomato - 1

2. Onion - 1

3. Green chillies - 1

4. Coriander - 5-6 stems

5. Lemon Juice - 1 tablespoon

6. Chaat masala

7. Salt, chilli powder

Mix all the topping ingredients. Some chaat masala can be sprinkled on top afterwards too.

Way to go:

1. Microwave a papad for 40 seconds. Or you can roast it on gas. Fried papads can also be used but my mantra is easy, remember?

2. Spread the mix on papads, spinkle chopped coriander and chaat masala and serve right away!

Aloo-Gobhi UP style

When I was a kid, I had neighbours who hailed from UP. Their food was simply lip-smacking. I found out later that the secret to their food was tadka and a generous use of oil. They used different tadka for different vegetables unlike our home where Mom seasoned everything with either rai or jeera or a mix of both. When I was getting married, I sat with my neighbor and jotted down a few recipes.

This is a recipe which has won accolades whenever it has turned out to be right:) So much so, that my father-in-law, who is a staunch believer in eating only freshly cooked food, asked if this sabji was left over.

I say 'right', because there are four prerequistes to get this recipe right.

 

One, the pieces of gobhi and aloo should be big. Like really big. 

Second, the pieces should be dry.

Third, no skimping on oil. It's not for the weak-hearted, literally! 

And last but not the least, the mix of masalas, their soaking time and consistency. 

As this recipe is high on oil, I cook it quite rarely.

Ingredients:

Cauliflower - 1 medium

Potatoes - 2 medium

Ginger - 2 inches, finely chopped

Green chillies - 1 medium with medium sharpness

Coriander - Fistful, finely chopped

Masalas:

Coriander powder - 3 tablespoons

Chili powder - 1 teaspoon

Turmeric powder- 2 teaspoons

Salt - according to taste

Hing - a pinch

Jeera - 2 teaspoons

Amchoor - 1 teaspoon

Garam masala- 2 pinches

Oil - 3 tablespoons

Mix coriander, chilli, turmeric powder and salt in a cup and add enough water to make a paste. Let the masalas soak for at least 15 minutes. The masala paste should look swollen up and moist.

Way to Go:

1. Break cauliflower into big chunks. Wash them nicely one hour before you want to cook. Put to dry. This is very important for the recipe to work well. (You can run the pieces in air fryer too. It will serve 2 purposes - drying and making them tender.)

2. Cut potatoes in big chunks. Make 4 parts of a medium potato.

3. Check the soaked masala. It should not have dried out. If it's dry, add a little more water.

3. Pour oil in a pressure cooker. Add hing, jeera when the oil is hot enough. Add ginger and green chilies. Sauté for 1 minute.

4. Add the soaked up masala. Fry at a low or medium flame for 3 minutes or so.

5. Add gobhi and aloo pieces. Make sure that they are dry.

6. Mix it well, coating gobhi and aloo pieces well with masala. If at this point you feel that oil is not enough, add a little more and sauté for a couple of more minutes.

7. When everything is well coated, put the lid.

8. Set the gas on low and wait for one whistle. Immediately after one whistle, remove the cooker from heat. Remove extra pressure and open the lid. Be careful to open the lid away from you.The potatoes and gobhi would have become soft now but not mushy. 

9. Add amchoor, garam masala and loads of coriander and mix carefully a couple of times. Do not mix too much or too vigorously, otherwise the pieces will break. If the cauliflower pieces were small and if they had water, the sabzi will turn out to be mushy. Better luck with following instructions next time!

10. Relish with hot chapatis or parathas and bless me!

I've gotten quite a few compliments on this recipe - that too, from UP wallahs, no less! 

Tips:

1. You can wash and leave the gobhi overnight to dry. 

2. Sometimes, the masala is found stuck at the bottom of the cooker. To avoid this, in step 4, fry the masala in a small pan. Add oil in cooker and sauté the potato and cauliflower pieces for a couple of minutes. Then add the masala from top and coat all pieces well. 

Gajar-mooli-gobhi ka achar

Memories!

How food invokes those lovely childhood memories when Mom used to make seasonal delicacies.

Excuse me, but I am about to switch to a poetic mode. Those of you who want to go to the recipe, please skip the following para. Others stay on, at your own peril!

पता चलता था कि सर्दियाँ आ गई हैं - 

जब गाजर, गोभी, मूली का अचार डलता था

और मेथी के लड्डुओं से घर महकता था

काँजी हमारे बग़ल में धूप सेकती थी 

और मूली के पत्तों की सब्ज़ी कड़ाही में शोर करती थी

आँवले और हल्दी के अचार से थाली सजती थी

पिंडखजूर के गरम दूध से शुभ रात्रि होती थी

तिल के लड्डू सितौलिए की गेंद सा मज़ा देते थे

और गनेरियों से हम सबके दाँतों का इम्तिहान लेते थे

गाजर के हलवे को हिलाने में सब तत्पर रहते थे

अखरोटों को दरवाज़े के बीच रख तोड़ते थे

और काजू किश्मिश से जेबें भर लेते थे

पास के खेत में जाकर कभी मटर चुराते थे 

और कभी तमीज़ से ख़रीद भी लाते थे

आटे के हलवे और पापड़ का गरमागरम नाश्ता होता था

मेथी, मूली, बथुए के पराँठों पर ज़ोर रहता था 

कभी गजक, कभी रेवड़ी का लुत्फ़ उठाते थे

और बादाम, केसर के दूध में गोते लगाते थे

जब धूप में बैठकर मूँगफली और सिंघाड़े खाते थे

तब सर्दीली हवाओं से भी जूझ जाते थे! 

Pata chalta tha ki sardiya aa gayi hain:
Jab gajar, gobhi, mooli ka achar dalta tha, 
Aur methi ke laddoo se ghar mahakta tha

Kanji hamare bagal me dhoop sekti thi

aur mooli ke patto ki sabzi kadahi me shor karti thi

Amle aur haldi ke achar se thaali sajti thi

Pindkhajoor ke garam doodh se shubh ratri hoti thi

Til ke laddoo sitoliye ki gend sa maza dete the

Aur ganeriyo se ek doosre ke daanto ka imtihaan lete the

Gajar ke halwe ko hilane me sab tatpar rahte the

Akhrot ko darwaje ke beech rakh todte the

Aur kaju, kishmish se jebe bhar lete the

Paas ke khet me jaakar kabhi matar churate the

Aur kabhi tameez se khareed bhi laate the

Aate ke halwe aur papad ka garmagaram nashta hota tha

Aur methi, mooli,  bathue ke paratho pe zor rahta tha

Kabhi gajak, kabhi rewadi ka lutf uthate the

Aur kesar, elaichi ke doodh me gote lagate the

Jab dhoop me baith kar moongfali aur singhade khate the

Tab sardili hawao se bhi joojh jaate the!

This achar was made in winters. Fresh, simple and healthy, it would add a zing to every meal. The spicy mustard was a perfect ammunition against the ambush of winter chill. Come to think of it, this achaar can be easily named as a carrot, radish salad with mustard and lemon dressing. Sounds fancy, eh?

Here we go:

Ingredients:

Carrots: 3

Radish: 1

Cauliflower: half

Rai / Mustard: 1.5 tablespoons

Saunf/ Fennel seeds: 1 tablespoon

Salt: to taste

Lemon juice: 2 mid-sized lemons

Way to go:

1. Scrape radish and carrots. Separate out cauliflower florets. Wash all vegetables well and let them dry thoroughly, say 4-5 hours.
2. Squeeze lemon juice  Grind rai.
4. Take a clean, dry glass jar. Add all the ingredients and shake them in the jar. Put the jar in sunlight for 2-3 days. It will become soft and soak in all the flavours by then. (It's a different matter that by the 3rd day you might not have much to put in the sun! We used to be very impatient and eat it everyday, whatever the level of readiness.)
5. Finish the achaar within a week or 10 days. Never take it out with a wet or moist spoon.