Nana's Lemon Bread

My grandmother has the gift of hospitality. Her house is known as "the house of five desserts", a very good thing for those of us with a sweet tooth :) This is one of the treats I always associate with Nana, and even after a couple tweaks (coconut oil instead of margarine and less sugar) tastes just as good!

Nana’s Lemon Bread
(Aka Shaker Lemon Bread)

Ingredients for the bread-
1/3 c. coconut oil
1/2 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 ½ cup all purpose flour
1 ½ tsp. baking powder
¼ tsp. salt
½ cup milk – divided
Grated rind of 1 lemon
½ cup chopped pecans or walnuts optional (I don't remember eating it with nuts, will have to try it sometime!)

Ingredients for the glaze-
½ cup sugar
juice of 1 lemon

Heat oven to 350 degrees

Cream the shortening and sugar until light and fluffy.
Add eggs one at a time. Beat well after each addition. Mix together dry ingredients. Add 1/3 to egg mixture followed by 1/3 milk. Repeat twice more.
Fold in lemon rind and nuts, if used. Spoon into well greased 9x5x3 loaf pan. Bake 45 to 55 minutes or until done.

Combine glaze ingredients. Mix well. As soon as bread comes out of the oven, spoon on the glaze. Cool before removing from pan.

*This was really yummy served with tomato jam!!

Vegetarian Taco Filling

These are some seriously delicious tacos!

Lunches in our home are always rice and vegetable curry. However, our dinner menu varies. Dinner may be Indian food-with a North Indian flare of paneer and naan-or it may be Italian, Mexican, Slovakian, etc.

For our taco dinner, I wanted to make the protein filling to be something other than beans. Beans are good, but slightly boring. And definitely predictable as far as taco fillings go. 

This recipe is far from boring. Mmm, this recipe has revolutionized our taco night! We may never go back to beans again!

Ingredients for filling (enough filling for 15 tacos)

3 portobello mushroom caps

1 small red onion

1 carrot

1 cup soy granules (Nutrella is the brand we find at the Indian grocers, it's also known as TVP-textured vegetable protein)

2 Tbs taco seasoning (*I looked up a recipe online to make my own)

1 handful walnuts

1 Tbs oil

Other ingredients

taco shells

various toppings (suggestions) tomatoes, lettuce, green onions, cilantro, jalepeno peppers, shredded cheese, Greek yogurt or sour cream, salsa

Process

 Put soy granules in a bowl and cover with water. Microwave for 90 seconds and allow to soak while you prep the rest of the filling ingredients (5-10 min)

 Wash the veggies. Cut the mushrooms and onion in quarters, peel and quarter the carrot as well. Toss these veggies in the food processor, add the walnuts, and process until finely minced.

 Dump the mixture into a bowl. Drain the soy granules, rinse with cool water, and squeeze to remove excess water. (I have a fine mesh strainer that I use to do this.) Add drained soy granules to the mixture and stir to thoroughly combine. 

 Heat oil in a large skillet and add the mixture. Cook on medium heat for 7-10 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent burning.

Place taco shells in an oven safe dish, fill with 2-3 Tbs of filling and heat according to instructions on package. Top with desired toppings, 

and prepare to eat the best bean-less vegetarian taco EVER! 

Upma

This is a staple breakfast in a South Indian home. You can substitute other grains for different variety of upma.

Vermicilli
Roasted upma rava
Sooji
Cracked wheat/bulgar

made with roasted upma rava, served with coriander -green tomato chutney

The next on my list to try is quinoa.

To make 4 servings (or 3 generous servings, with a little left over...)

1 red onion, chopped
2 tomatoes, chopped
1 carrot, shredded
1 Tbs minced ginger
1 green chile, sliced down the middle, but left intact
2-3 Tbs peanuts or cashews
2 cups grain of choice
4 cups of water, more or less depending on grain used

Dry roast the peanuts or cashews and set aside. If using sooji or vermicilli, roast the grain first before adding. Just add 1Tbs of oil or ghee to the pan and toast on medium heat until color changes and you can smell the roasted aroma. Set aside.

Add 1 Tbs oil to the pan and make popu with
1/2 tsp mustard seeds
1/2 tsp urad dal
1/2 tsp jeera
1/4 tsp turmeric
1 tsp salt, more or less to taste
6-8 curry leaves
Once mustard seeds begin to sputter and dal is nicely golden, add the ginger and green chile and allow to fry for another minute. Add the onion, carrot, and tomato and fry for another 2-3 minutes until the onion is translucent. Add the peanuts or cashews.  Now add the water and bring to a boil. Once the water boils, add the grain. Stir to completely combine, lower the heat and allow to simmer until grain is cooked and water is fully absorbed. (You can add a pre-cooked grain, like bulgar or quinoa. If you do, then water will be considerably less, maybe only 1/2 cup is required to cook it to a nice consistency.)

Garnish with coriander leaves, shredded coconut, and a lemon slice. Squeeze lemon juice on prior to eating for nice tang. Eat it plain, with pickle, or with yogurt. Anyway you choose, you are guaranteed to love this healthy breakfast!

Baked Oatmeal

This is a favorite recipe from camp Seneca Hills. Toppings definitely make all the difference, but are not required. It's a hearty breakfast that can easily be made the day ahead-refrigerated and rewarmed = just as yummy!

4 cups quick oats (I've used old fashioned oats before with good results)
2/3 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup melted butter
2 tsp baking powder
2 cups milk
2 tsp cinnamon
2 cups diced apples or peaches

Mix all ingredients together. Put in a greased 9x9 pan. Bake at 350 for 35 min or until browned.

Suggested toppings:

chocolate chips (camper favorite!)
blueberries or other berry
dried cranberries or raisins
additional apple or peaches, or other chopped fruit
whipped cream
peanuts or peanut butter, walnut or other nut/nut butter

Anything else I'm missing? Try it out and let me know!

Beetroot curry

Like many vegetable curries, you can use one vegetable as the base and add one or more additional vegetables to vary the recipe. Beetroot curry is no exception. My favorite is curry made with only beetroot and mixed with 1-2 Tbs shredded coconut. But, when you only have one beetroot and are trying to make lunch for 2 people, you have to add other filler veggies :)

Today's lunch was a nice combination of beetroot and golden carrots. Although of course, once the carrots were cooked with the beetroot, no longer looked very golden!

Ingredients & Process

1 beetroot, diced
1 cup diced carrots

1/2 tsp mustard seeds
1/2 tsp bengal gram
1/2 tsp urad dal
1/2 tsp jeera (cumin seeds)
1/4 tsp turmeric
1/2-1 tsp salt (to taste)
6-8 curry leaves

Add 1Tbs oil to a pan, add popu (mustard seeds, bengal gram, urad dal, jeera, turmeric, curry leaves) and salt. Add diced vegetables and stir to combine. Add 1/2 cup water and cover with lid, simmer over low flame, about 20 minutes. Check periodically to prevent burning. If water dries up and the beetroot is still not tender, add little more water as required.

Countless other varieties can be made as well...I often add one (or more) of the following to the beetroot

-1 chopped onion
-1 cup shredded carrot
-2 Tbs grated ginger
-1/2 cup cooked bengal gram

Garnish with 1-2 Tbs cilantro and/or shredded coconut (optional, but highly recommended!)

Tomato Jam

We have gotten so many beautiful, delicious tomatoes from our garden. Brandywine. Beefsteak. Celebrity. Rutgers. We actually were afraid we were losing our crop mid-season. I really can't thank my husband enough for hand-picking off all those nasty army worms. One of his best traits is his persistence. Thanks to that, we have been enjoying juicy tomatoes all summer long. I've canned spaghetti sauce, frozen tons of tomato puree, made a huge tray of mutter paneer for our daughter's 1st birthday party (used about 12 lbs of our tomatoes for the gravy). And then this recipe.

My mom forwarded this tomato jam recipe to me, and ever since I read it, I was intrigued. I only had a couple pint jars, but was so fixated on making it, I decided to just half the recipe and see what happened.

Love is what happened.

I plan on stocking up on jelly jars and making more next year for sure. Now I have the pleasure of discovering the many ways and recipes for enjoying this tomato jam...

This is the recipe. Simple and delicious.

This is my finished product. My husband said it can pass as strawberry jam.
Yes. It's that good!

So far I have eaten it in the following ways:
1.) straight off the spoon (no shame!)
2.) tortilla wrap with cream cheese, tomato jam, and fresh basil leaves
3.) whole wheat crackers topped with tahini and tomato jam

And I am dreaming of lemon bread with tomato jam. Seems to me that would be a delightful combination.

What are other ideas for serving this jam? Please leave your suggestions in the comments, I would love more inspiration!! 

Roasted Pesto

I finally harvested another round of basil. I've already made some pesto, dried some, added to our breakfasts, lunches, and dinners...

This bunch was made into pesto, but with a different twist.

Roasted.

Well, the basil was not roasted, but the garlic and almonds were.

We're talking yum. Bursting with flavor yum.

Here's the ingredients & process.

2 cups basil, packed & overflowing
heaping 1/2 cup of almonds
16 cloves of garlic
juice of 1 lemon
1/4 cup olive oil, or more as required
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp paprika
1/8 tsp turmeric

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Put garlic cloves on a piece of aluminum foil, drizzle with oil, sprinkle with salt & pepper. Seal the foil.
In an 8x8 oven-proof baking dish, put the almonds. Lay the garlic packet inside the dish as well.
Bake for 5 minutes. Stir the almonds. Bake another 5 minutes. Stir the almonds. Turn oven off and leave pan inside for another 10-15 minutes until the almonds are nice and toasty. By this time the garlic should be nice and sizzly as well.

Add the basil, almonds, and garlic to a food processor and pulse for about 30 seconds. Add half amount of lemon juice and oil. Process for another minute or so. Add remaining juice and oil and continue to process until desired consistency is reached. Add more oil if required. Add seasonings and process to combine.

All done! Store for use now or later.

I was planning to save these for my afternoon snack, but they didn't make it.
This pesto is too good!

I like to freeze pesto and store for adding to pasta later.

What are your ideas or favorite uses for pesto? Do you have a favorite pesto recipe?

Uttapam

The idly dough has been in the refrigerator for almost a week. At this point, it would make sour, flat idly. When the dough gets like this, though, it's perfect for making uttapam!

Uttapam with a bit of ketchup for dipping

To the idly batter (approximately 2 cups remaining) add

1/2 of a red onion, chopped
1 carrot, shredded
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
5 curry leaves, minced
1 inch piece of ginger, minced
sprinkle of salt & pepper
1 green chili, minced

Heat small skillet with a tsp of oil. Add about a cup of the batter and press lightly to spread to fill pan. Cook over med-low heat until golden brown, flip to cook other side.

Carrot Cake

Carrot cake is amongst my favorite cakes. I love hearty, dense cakes--full of goodies. That's why I added nuts to this recipe. And honestly, next time I may add in some other varieties of dried fruits, like golden raisins and dried cranberries. Perhaps almonds. Yumm-o. The beautiful thing about this cake is that there is no refined sugar added. It  gets its sweetness naturally, hence its inclusion in the cookbook, Sweet & Natural.

Carrot Cake

3 large carrots
1 egg (or egg substitute) *I used 1 Tbs ground flaxseed, whisked together with 2 Tbs warm water
3/8 cup oil
1 8 oz can crushed pineapple, in juice
1 cup raisins
1/2 cup walnuts
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp allspice
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp baking powder

Scrub & grate the carrots. Measure 1 cup and set aside.
Grease an 8x8 inch square baking pan.
In a blender, combine egg, oil, pineapple & juice, raisins, and vanilla. Process until raisins are finely chopped.
Measure flour, spices, salt and baking powder into a large mixing bowl. Stir well.
Add blended mixture, grated carrots and walnuts to dry ingredients, mixing until batter is uniform.
Spread batter into an oiled pan and bake at 350 degrees for 45-50 minutes or until done.
Cool.

OK- I cheated and made a cream cheese frosting,
so I can't say this is completely free of refine sugars.

For the frosting,

I just softened a package of neufchatel cheese, added barely 1/4 cup of powdered sugar, and maybe a 1/4-1/2 tsp of vanilla flavoring. Lightly sweet. And oh, so delicious!

Allam (Ginger) Chutney

Ginger has many health benefits. I'm sure it's most popular use is for soothing nausea and aiding digestion. That's why idly with allam chutney is a perfect start to the day. Idly are simply steamed rice and lentil cakes, so when paired with the ginger chutney, are very easily digested. Healthy and light on the stomach. Now that's a good morning!

Ingredients & Process

3 inch piece of ginger, cut into 3 pieces

1 spoon brown sugar or jaggery

1/2 tsp tamarind concentrate (can use dried tamarind soaked in measure of water listed below)

1/2 cup water

1/2 tsp salt

Popu made with

1/2 tsp mustardseeds, 1/4 tsp fenugreek seeds, 1/2 tsp urad dal, 1/2 tsp cumin seeds, 1/4 tsp turmeric,1/8 tsp asafetida, 7 curry leaves

In blender, combine ginger, jaggery, tamarind, water and salt. Puree until smooth. Will be thin, slightly watery is ok. Add the popu and puree for 30 more seconds to thoroughly blend ingredients.

*Ginger has a natural peppery flavor, but you can add additional green chili or dried red chili if your taste preferences are for more spicy chutney.

How to Sprout Chickpeas

Sprouting doesn't really need instructions- This is more for documentation purposes :)

Soak chickpeas overnight, at least. (24 hours is best)

Drain & rinse (Do this approximately every 8 hours).

By the first day you should already see small sprouts.

It's up to you how long you want the sprouts to get. I usually wait 2-3 days.

*Can use cheesecloth or other fine mesh. I use a paint strainer bag (bought it at Home Depot for less than $2), it's very convenient!

Popu (Tempering Spices)

In Indian cooking, seasoning dishes is done by tempering spices. In Telugu, we call this "popu" but  for this post I'm trying to just refer to it in general as "tempering".  The tempering can be done at the beginning of cooking, or at the end-depending on the dish you are preparing. For most of the vegetable curries we make, tempering is done at the beginning. It starts with heating oil in a pan, then adding spices & herbs, one by one, into the oil. This transfuses the flavors into the oil, nicely seasoning the vegetables throughout the cooking process.

When I first started cooking Indian food, I was very intimidated by the number of spices a single recipe required. However, I soon grew accustomed to it, and with a well stocked spice rack, I have mastered the tempering process. You should not try to multi-task as you are waiting to add the next ingredient, as the spices can easily burn, requiring you to begin again. (This I learned from experience :)...)

The combination of spices & herbs will vary depending on the recipe as well as the household. For example, typical South Indian tempering includes green chili pepper and dried red chili peppers. However, we eat less spicy food in our house due to health sensitivities, so our popu is made without these. Some families add asafetida to every dish, others don't.

This is my attempt to provide a mini tutorial, or at least a visual of the spices I commonly use for tempering.

* Not pictured: turmeric, curry leaves, and asafetida & salt.

Top to bottom on right: black mustardseeds,  split yellow peas, split yellow moong dal
Top to bottom on left: garam masala, cumin seeds, split urad dal
Center: fenugreek seeds

Typically, I start by heating about 2 Tbs light olive oil in a skillet, over high heat. I add mustard seeds and dals and wait for the mustard seeds to begin to sputter & pop. At this time I turn the heat to low and quickly add the curry leaves, cumin seeds, and turmeric. I give a quick stir to make sure all the curry leaves come in contact with the oil, and then quickly add in the vegetables for the curry.  This helps prevent burning the spices. 

It may take a couple tries to get comfortable with it, but once you master it, you will be able to make any vegetable into a delicious South Indian curry :)

Peanut Chutney

Perfect for serving with hot idly.

2Tbs raw peanuts
2 Tbs dehydrated, split dalia
1 green chili
1 tsp tamarind concentrate (or can use dried tamarind soaked in the measure of water listed below)
1/2-1 cup water


In a small skillet, toast the peanuts and the dalia until golden brown. Add to blender with the rest of the ingredients and puree until smooth & creamy. Additional water may be needed to reach desired consistency, add little by little until it's smooth.


Make popu with 1/4 tsp mustardseed, 1/2 tsp urad dal, 1/2 tsp jeera, 1/8 tsp asafetida, 6 curry leaves, and 1/4 tsp salt.

Add the popu to the blender and give one final whiz to puree and perfect the chutney.

Serves 4

Chocolate Pudding

Last night I was having a craving for caramel sauce. But since we didn't have any ice cream in the house for me to put it on, I decided to settle for something more acceptable to eat by the spoonful...butterscotch pudding! As I was making it, I remembered another recipe I wanted to try out...so I made pudding again today. And I told my husband we can eat it relatively guilt free since it has no egg, no butter, and only 1/4 of the sugar as last night's indulgence. Relatively guilt free dessert? Seconds please :)

This recipe is adapted from a Turkish rice flour & rose water pudding, courtesy of the cookbook Vegetarian Dishes from Around the World. The original flavor was not our favorite; however, I was pretty excited to realize that this would be a good base recipe to experiment with making various flavors of pudding, requiring NO eggs!

Ingredients:
1/4 cup rice flour
1 can evaporated milk
1/4 cup sugar
2 Tbs cocoa powder
1tsp vanilla extract

Process:
In a small bowl, combine the rice flour with 1/4 cup of the evaporated milk to make a paste.

Combine the rest of the milk with the sugar & cocoa powder in a small sauce pan and bring to a boil over high heat. Once mixture boils, reduce the heat to low, and add in the vanilla extract.

Take about a 1/4 cup of the boiling mixture and whisk it into the rice flour paste. Once it it smooth, pour it into the boiled mixture and increase to medium heat. Constantly whisk the pudding until it thickens. *By constantly whisking it you help prevent it from sticking to the pan & getting clumpy.

 Once it becomes a pudding-like consistency, turn off the heat. Spoon into custard cups and refrigerate. Or eat it warm. It's tasty both ways!

Serves 2-4

**Update** I have now experimented making this pudding with a few different types of thickening agent. Rice flour, tapioca flour, and cornstarch. With rice flour, it does have a slight after taste and is best eaten warm. With tapioca flour, it gets very rubbery, I do not recommend this version. Our favorite version is made with cornstarch-more velvety texture, best when served immediately, but ok the next day as well.

Idly (Steamed Rice & Lentil Cakes)

This is a popular South Indian breakfast for a healthy start to the day. It's a day process, but that's allowing for soaking and fermentation of the dough. Start preparations a day ahead of when you want to eat idly.
In the morning, take two medium size bowls. In one, put 1 cup urad dal and 1 teaspoon fenugreek seeds. Rinse well and then cover with water and set aside. In the other bowl, put 2 cups idly rice flour (different from rice flour), cover with water and set aside. Allow to soak for at least 8 hours.

In the evening, take a large bowl. Starting with the idly flour, take handfuls and squeeze out the water to drain well. Put into the large bowl.

Drain the dal and put into a blender with 2 cups of the reserved soaking water. Puree for 3-5 minutes. It should get very smooth. If you put your finger in and then rotate between your finger and thumb, it should not feel grainy.







Add the pureed dal to the large bowl with the idly rice flour and using your hand, thoroughly combine the dough. Cover with a lid and set in the oven, leave the oven light on, and leave for over night, at least 10 hours. Longer is fine.

The next morning, take the batter out of the oven. The fermentation process with cause the batter to rise and get light and airy. Stir it well, fill the idly molds, and place in idly maker to steam for 15-20 minutes over high heat.


Serve with chutney, sambar, or just ghee and sugar for a delicious breakfast!
Makes approximately 24 idly.

Balsamic Tomatoes & Black Olives Salad

There are so many salad varieties. The beautiful thing about salads is that they are very forgiving. You can use whatever vegetables you have on hand and measurements don't have to be perfect. You literally just toss it all together in a bowl and serve it.

For this salad, I combined

grape tomatoes
black olives
cubes of mozzarella cheese
green spring onions

Then I added a glug of balsamic vingear, a splash of water, a dusting of sugar, and a couple sprinkles of salt & pepper. (See how specific these measurements are??!!)

That's it! You can serve immediately, or allow to marinate in the vinegar for a little while. I actually made a small slice on each of the tomatoes and allowed the salad to sit  for about an hour to nicely marinate in the dressing.

*I was experimenting with how to cut these fancy green onions. I think this is what works. If someone knows a better way, please share.

-cut off the bottom white bulb and the greens on top so that you are left with about 3-4 inches
-cut lengthwise down about 3/4 of the way, starting from the top greens
-turn and cut 1-2 more times, like you are making an X or *
-place in a bowl of cold water and allow to sit for 20 minutes, or until the pieces begin to curl

Tofu Stix

Ah! I have so many recipes to catch up with posting!! For starters, here's a recipe that I've been meaning to make for probably over a year. Sounds ridiculous when I actually write that. It shouldn't take that long. I should probably set some sort of goal for myself to try a new recipe every 1-2 weeks so I can at least make some progress checking these recipes off my list!

So, tofu stix.

This recipe comes from one of my favorite coaching participants. I think we worked together for at least 3 years. On the day we were scheduled to talk, she would be my first coaching call...and I would always look forward to talking with her. Hearing her enthusiasm to report the goals she had reached was truly a highlight-and such a positive way to start my work day! And even if she didn't reach her goals, she still had enthusiasm to work through what had stopped her. Although I was supposed to be the one to give her guidance, I think she provided me with just as many tips and ideas! This is one of them. So, Rose-Thank you for allowing me to be a part of your wellness journey. This recipe was a hit with my husband!!

Ingredients & Process

To make tofu rub- combine the following ingredients:

1 small onion, finely minced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 green chile, minced
*I put these 3 ingredients in my mini food procesor
2 Tbs low sodium soy sauce
2 Tbs rice vinegar
1 Tbs mustard (hot mustard, brown mustard, or yellow mustard are all fine)
3 Tbs sesame seeds
1 Tbs nutritional yeast
pinch of salt & pepper

Slice the tofu in strips and rub the marinade into the tofu. You can allow it to sit for a while to soak up the sauce, or just be generous to apply all the rub on the tofu. Place strips on a lightly greased baking sheet and bake in the oven at 350 for 30-40 minutes. I wanted these to turn a little more crispy, so I actually turned up the oven to 400 for the last 10 minutes. Be sure to check on them every 10 minutes and flip to promote even cooking/browning.

Good for snacking. We made it a meal by eating with rice.

Secret Ingredient- Easy Cheesy Sauce

Last night I started making  my new favorite cheese sauce using this recipe. However, I had some cauliflower that needed to be used up ASAP, and I figured our dinner could use a veggie boost. I have the cookbook Deceptively Delicious. I love her recipe for Mac & Cheese using butternut squash puree.I have also tasted an alfredo sauce before that had cauliflower puree. Naturally, I set off to revamp my original recipe.

I steamed the cauliflower, added some water (maybe 1/4-1/2 cup) and pureed in the blender. After I made the cheese sauce, I stirred in about 1 cup of the puree. De.Lish. My husband didn't even notice. I can't keep a secret from him, especially when it's such a deliciously healthy one...so I had him try to guess the secret ingredient. He was surprised!

Try it out and let us know how you like it. Do you prefer cauliflower or butternut squash? I want to try with butternut squash next!

How to Sprout Wheat Berries

I suppose if I'm posting recipes that use spouted wheat berries and other sprouts, I should document how one would go through this process. It's quite simple, really. And fun. You do have to plan ahead a bit since it takes a couple days for the sprouting process to complete, but other than that, it's really fool-proof.

1. Soaking: Measure out amount of wheat berries you want to sprout, put in bowl, and cover with water. Allow to soak over night, 8-12 hours.
(Note: when sprouted, with be slightly more than double the amount you originally measured)

2. Drain & Rinse: Pretty straight forward here. Pour into strainer to drain all water, rinse with clean water, put drained wheat berries back into the bowl--no water.

3. Sprouting: Place the bowl on the counter/table and let it sit, 8-12 hours.

4. Rinse: After 8-12 hours have passed, rinse again, drain and put back in bowl. You may even see some small sprouts at this time!! Already! (Isn't this fun??)

5. Sprouting: Place the bowl on the counter/table and let it sit again, another 8-12 hours. (This will be over night if you started the soaking process at night)

6.  Rinse: After 8-12 hours have passed, rinse again, drain and put back in bowl. By now, you will have lots of sprouts!

  I usually like to eat them at this time, but you can of course continue to allow them to sprout. If you wait for a week, you will get some wheat grass.









So for example, when I soak over night, Sunday, the sprouted wheat berries are ready Tuesday morning & can be cooked for Tuesday's lunch or dinner. Or, you can store in the fridge for another 1-2 days to use later (Note: Sprouting will continue in the fridge, but will be slower.)

Wheat grass! I have to perfect this process. Mine got moldy. Ew.

Cooked with brown rice

Quick buttercream frosting

I am a volunteer for a local hospice. I made cupcakes yesterday for a patient's birthday and needed a quick frosting recipe to decorate them. This is easy, whips up quickly and ices perfectly! Feel free to adjust to your likes/needs. *You can customize the flavoring of course and even add a little more for stronger flavor...add more cream for thinner frosting...or more sugar to make it more stiff.

 Ingredients & Process 
1cup unsalted butter, softened
3 cups powdered sugar
1Tbs whipping cream (I'm sure substituting milk would be fine)
1/4 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp almond flavoring

 In a mixing bowl, combine butter and sugar. Beat with electric mixer on low speed for 1 minute and then continue on medium speed for another 3 minutes. Add the cream and flavorings and beat for another minute. If you want to add color, stir a little in now. Otherwise, this should do it! It will be a stiff frosting, good for decorating.

Frosting made enough to ice 1 dozen regular size cupcakes, 2 dozen mini cupcakes, plus some remaining  

Sprouted Wheat Berries Rice

Spring has sprung, sprouts are sprouting. My husband's green thumb has transformed our kitchen table into a greenhouse for all the germinating seeds to be planted in our garden. It's very rewarding and exciting to grow your own garden, to see this small seed come to life and produce so much produce. (Ah, the English language is so entertaining, isn't it? Couldn't resist the use of a homonym!)

I think one of the reasons I've been enjoying the process of sprouting legumes & grains is because you see a mini science experiment happening right on your kitchen counter. I also love how nature is a living metaphor for our lives. It's just a good reminder how intricate and amazing life is-how so much potential lies dormant in a tiny seed until the time is right for it to grow-how that small life gives life to others. Am I living out my life's potential? How else can I give life to that/those around me?

As you ponder that, here's a recipe to whip up for a quick, nourishing meal.

Sprouted Wheat Berries Rice
1 1/2 cups sprouted wheat berries
1 cup brown rice
*Put in rice cooker, add 5 cups of water and cook


1 large potato, diced in small pieces
2 large carrots, diced in small pieces
handful green beans, diced in small pieces


Seasonings-
2Tbs oil
1/2 tsp cumin seeds
1/4 tsp turmeric
1/2 tsp salt, more to taste
1 clove
1 inch piece of cinnamon stick
1 cardamom pod


3 cloves garlic, minced
1 inch ginger piece, minced
1/2 large onion, chopped
1/2 cup cilantro, chopped
1/3 cup mint leaves, minced


In large pan, heat oil and seasonings. Allow to saute over med-low heat for about 5 minutes. Add the veggies and a couple tablespoons of water, cover with lid and allow to steam about 10-15 minutes or until veggies are tender.

Once wheat berries & rice are cooked, dump into a large bowl and stir in the veggies to evenly combine. Adjust salt, spice, etc if desired.

Will serve about 4 as main course.

Soaked/Sprouted Chickpea Waffles

I'm suddenly intrigued by soaking and sprouting grains & legumes. I know this is a common practice in India, but here in the US we've gotten away from this process. I'm still in the learning stages, but am striving to make this a regular part of the way we prepare food. More or less, soaking and sprouting beans begins the germination process and helps to make the nutrients more bio-available...more readily absorbed in our bodies...more easily digested. This is very important for the health of our bodies, especially for vegetarians who rely on the essential amino acids, proteins, B vitamins, iron, calcium, etc, present in these power foods.

Here is another waffle recipe, that I will definitely make again. Delightfully crispy on the outside, fluffy and light inside, filling yet not too heavy. Recipe makes 3 nice sized waffles.

Ingredients & Process

1 cup soaked, sprouted chickpeas
1 2/3 cups water
1 Tbs honey
2 tsp oil
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/3 cups oats

Blend everything, except the oats in a blender for 90 seconds. Add the oats and blend for another 60 seconds. Once nice and smoothly blended, plug in the waffle iron and allow to preheat to medium setting. *The batter will thicken to the right consistency as the waffle iron heats.

Add 3/4-1 cup of batter to the greased waffle iron.

Close it and allow it to cook for 8-10 minutes.

*Important note-No peeking allowed-if you open the waffle iron before the waffle is finished cooking, it will split apart and stick to the waffle iron.

Healthy Alfredo Sauce

I have my mother to thank for my love of good, wholesome, healthy food. I have to give her a lot of credit for being creative in the kitchen...preparing home cooked meals for us during my entire life...modeling healthy eating habits...introducing us to new foods...various cuisines...and ways to make good foods healthfully.

I LOVE fettuccine alfredo. This is my mom's version of a healthier, lower fat version. Still as creamy and satisfying.

Alfredo Sauce


Ingredients
1 cup plain yogurt
1 cup cottage cheese
(Probably obvious, but I feel I should note to use skim/lower fat versions for the healthiest finished product)
1 garlic clove
1/4 cup parmesan cheese
salt & pepper to taste

Combine ingredients in a blender and process until smooth. If necessary add a small amount of skim milk or water to produce the desired consistency. Pour into a microwave safe bowl and microwave for 1 min (plus or minus) to heat prior to serving.

Easy Cheesy Sauce

I typically use my mom's low-fat version of alfredo sauce (will still have to remember to post it sometime since it is a favorite), but I didn't have ricotta or cottage cheese last week. So, that prompted a recipe search to make a cheese sauce with ingredients I had in the fridge. I found one which was not only simple to make, but also was a huge hit with all the family-especially my 4 year old nephew!!

Ingredients & Process
(serves 4)
2 Tbs flour
2Tbs butter
1 cup milk
1 cup shredded cheese (so far I've used mozzarella and sharp cheddar, both were yummy)
1 tsp vinegar (I read that adding an acidic medium helps prevent the cheese from being stringy)
1/4 tsp garlic powder
dash of salt & pepper to taste

In small saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter and then add the flour. Cook the roux for 1-2 minutes, stirring constantly to prevent burning. This nicely cooks the flour to prevent the raw taste.

first  step-preparing the roux

Add 1/2 the milk, stir to combine, and then add the other 1/2 of the milk. Stir gently as this cooks and begins to thicken. Right when you see the first bubble or two, but before it fully starts to boil, turn off the heat and add the cheese a couple tablespoons at a time.

I tilted the pan to try showing how the milk thickened

Stir and allow it to melt before adding more cheese. Add the vinegar and seasonings. Stir. Taste test if you want (who wouldn't!). Serve & enjoy!!!

Mmm, the cheese sauce is ready!

Ragi (Millet) Waffles

So my best friend from college is going to be in town briefly this weekend, and is going to come over for brunch. I'm always excited to decide on a menu for my company, but a twist is thrown in to come up with vegetarian, gluten-free options. I could easily go the traditional Southern Indian breakfast of idli, dosa, or uttapam. However, I want to serve something more Americanized, especially since this provides a good excuse to try new recipes!! After searching online for ideas, I finally came across this gluten-free & VEGAN waffle recipe guide. If someone experimented with the same recipe over 24 times, testing various flours, then it must be a recipe I can trust. I was so excited to try it out, that I just made two batches this afternoon as a trial run before this weekend. I adjusted ingredients slightly according to what I had on hand, and of course, using gluten-free flours found in a typical Indian pantry.

First batch was made with ragi flour (millet flour) and my second batch was with besan flour (chickpea flour)

The ragi waffles will be the recipe I make for our brunch. They are a better match for maple syrup. The besan waffles aren't bad, it's just that they are more suitable as a savory waffle as opposed to sweet. I've never eaten savory waffles before, so am not exactly sure what that would look like...right now I'm thinking I'd try it with some melted cheese on top. Who knows, maybe even a curry. If we go with sweet, next time I would probably double the sugar and add some cardamom. I will have to continue to experiment, but for now...here's the recipe.

Ragi Waffles ~makes 2 large waffles or 3-4 smaller ones
Ingredients-
1 1/4 cups ragi flour (or use other gluten-free flour of your choice)
1/2 cup tapioca flour (tapioca starch)
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
2 Tbs sugar

1/4 cup canola oil
1/2 cup + 2 Tbs water

Process-
Heat waffle iron.

Whisk together the dry ingredients. Add the oil and water to the dry ingredients and stir to combine. (May need to add a little more water, 1-2 Tbs at a time to reach desired consistency.)

 

-I didnt think to take pics  of the process until batch 2, so this is how the besan flour batter looks 

Grease the waffle iron, and put 1/2 cup of batter (more or less, depending on how big you want your waffles to be) onto the waffle iron. Use spoon or spatula to help spread it out to cover the waffle iron.

Close the waffle iron and allow to cook for about 3 minutes, or until desired done-ness is reached.

**For more gluten-free waffle ideas and tips from the gluten-free waffle/pancake baking pro, make sure to visit the link I included above! Have fun :)

Stoplight Salad

One of my favorite cookbooks is called Simply in Season. It's not 100% vegetarian, but it is vegetarian friendly. Plus, the recipes are categorized according to produce that's in season during spring, summer, fall & winter. (thus the title). This is by far our favorite quinoa recipe, which I have to admit we make year round even though it's best made with fresh summer produce!!

Stoplight Salad with Quinoa, yield 6-8 cups
*We use as a main dish, sprinkled with shredded cheddar cheese, slightly warmed to melt the cheese. It's good served cold as well.

Ingredients & Process

In large bowl, combine the following ingredients:

2 cups cooked quinoa
2 cups tomatoes, chopped
2 cups corn
1 medium green pepper, diced
1 medium red pepper, diced
1/2 cup red onion OR scallions, diced
1/4 cup cilantro

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 cups cooked black beans

Pour 3 Tbs balsamic vinegar over the salad and gently toss to combine. Add salt & pepper to taste. Garnish with shredded cheese.

Notes:
The name of this salad comes from the colors of the veggies used-red, yellow. and green!
I cook the quinoa in the rice cooker. It cooks perfectly, without boiling over or burning, which is usually the case when I cook it on the stove top.

Pineapple Pastry Cake (Eggless)

Husband raves about Pineapple Pastry Cake from India. He had been waiting for me to make it for several months, and I finally found a recipe to adapt in my attempt to make something I have never tasted before in my life. The initial result was definitely a success, but I made a few mental notes to adjust on subsequent attempts. I made this cake two months in a row because it was so delicious. Oh, and we had a couple occasions worth celebrating with cake :) I am always glad for an excuse to indulge!

slice of pineapple and whipped cream heaven

Pineapple Pastry Cake
*Notes*
-If making in 9x13 pan, will probably need to make two recipes of cake.
-Line the pan with parchment paper to make a sling to easily remove and transfer the cake from the pan.
-Original recipe which I used as my inspiration was from this blog. Many thanks!

Ingredients & Process
Ingredients for Simple Eggless Vanilla Cake

Plus
1 can of pineapple pieces (reserve the juice)
1 jar of maraschino cherries (a dozen or so cherries for decorating)
1 quart heavy whipping cream (this is more than enough for decorating and for leftovers to add into coffee, or eat by the spoonful)
pineapple essence
powdered sugar

1. Follow the Simple Eggless Vanilla Cake recipe and substitute pineapple essence in place of the vanilla extract. Bake the cake in a 9x13 pan (or whatever size you have on hand) or divide between 2 baking sheets.
*If you have two pans of the same size, you can pour half of the batter into each pan to make the layers. Otherwise, you will bake one cake, wait for it to cool, and slice it in half so that you will have a two layer cake.

2. Allow cake to cool. Slice if necessary to have two layers. Use a spoon or pastry brush to apply the reserved pineapple juice onto the cake. Allow to sit for a couple hours at least, optimally over night in the fridge. (This is an important step so that the cake gets nice and soft. Like, it will practically melt in your mouth!)

3. Make whipped cream by whipping the cream with 1 tsp of pineapple essence, 1/2 tsp vanilla extract, and 1 cup powdered sugar (adjust to suite your taste preferences). Using a hand mixer makes whipped cream without much effort.

4. To assemble the cake: On one layer of cake, spread 1/2 the whipped cream mixture and 1/2 of the pineapple pieces. Very carefully, place the second layer of cake on the top and apply the remaining whipped cream. Spread evenly. Use the pineapple pieces and maraschino cherries to decorate the top of the cake.

Top layer of the cake is still in the parchment paper sling. This helps to more easily place on top of the bottom layer.

Refrigerate until serving.

Coconut Carrot Curry

This is one of the simplest lunchtime curries that I make, on just about a weekly basis. Any member of my family will probably be puzzled by this since I am known for not eating cooked carrots. My tastes magically changed when I first tasted this curry. I suppose nearly anything paired with coconut can become palatable. That's the only thing I can attribute to this miraculous change!!

Ingredients & process

5-6 carrots, peeled and cut into bite-sized rounds

2-3 Tbs shredded coconut (fresh is best, but frozen or dried is fine too)

1Tbs oil & seasonings for popu (tempering)

In medium size pan, add 1 Tbs oil and heat over medium heat.
Add these spices in the order listed:
1/4 tsp black mustardseeds
1/4 tsp split channa dal
1/4tsp split yellow pesara dal
1/4 tsp split urad dal

*Note, if you would like this to be spicy, you can add a dried red chili pepper and/or fresh green chili during this step.

Once mustardseeds begin to pop & sputter, turn heat to low & add:
6 curry leaves
1/2 tsp cumin seeds
1/4 tsp turmeric
1/2 tsp salt

(Popu can burn quickly if the heat is too high, so try to add veggies quickly to help prevent the seasonings from frying too much.)

Add the carrots, cover with lid and allow to steam over medium-low heat for 10 minutes. Add the coconut & stir to combine. Cover & steam another 5 minutes or so until desired tenderness of carrots is reached. Stir occasionally. You can add a Tbs or two of water, if needed, to help prevent the carrots from burning and sticking to the pan. 

Serve with rice.

Okara Bread

Last week we had our first attempt at making our own soy milk. It was quite a success, with a very high yield of soy milk, I'd say about 3gallons, for less than the price of a single 1/2 gallon from the grocery store! And it's ORGANIC! We will definitely make it again. In our YouTube video viewing, we learned not only how to make soy milk at home, but about its delightful byproduct-Okara. I of course tried a few recipes using this high protein, high fiber soy pulp and of the recipes I tried the bread (thanks to vegweb.com) was the best.

Straining the soy milk to separate the okara

Ingredients
2 cups all purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
2 tsp baking powder
1tsp salt
1 cup soy milk (lukewarm)
1 cup cooked okara
3 Tbs oil
1 Tbs molasses
1 scant Tbs yeast

Directions

Mix flour, baking powder and salt together in a large bowl. In a separate bowl, combine the soy milk, okara, oil, molasses and yeast. Let it sit for 5-10 min to allow the yeast to grow & ferment.

Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients, and combine to make a sticky dough. Cover the bowl with a dry towel and let it rise for 30-45 min or until doubled in size. Add a few spoons of flour and knead to form a firm loaf. Place in a greased bread pan and make a few slits on top with a knife to let steam escape while it bakes. Bake at 350 for about 30 min, until golden brown.

Freshly sliced okara bread

Simple Eggless Cake + flavor variations

Nana's chocolate snack cake recipe has been my go-to recipe for several years when it was time to whip up a treat for special occasions. I've been on a quest for a while to find the perfect eggless white cake recipe. I've tried a couple that were acceptable, but they all included an ingredient I don't normally keep on hand. So I decided to try the never-fail chocolate cake recipe minus the cocoa-and landed upon the best eggless vanilla cake yet! Super moist. Not too dense. It makes the perfect cake for pineapple pastry cake, too. Recipe for that will be posted soon!

Chocolate Snack Cake
1 1/2 c all purpose flour
3/4 c sugar
1/3 c cocoa
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 c water
1/2 c canola oil
2 Tbs white vinegar
2 tsp vanilla extract

Combine first 5 ingredients. In separate bowl, combine remaining ingredients. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients & stir to combine. Pour into greased 8 inch square pan and bake at 375 degrees for 25-30 minutes. *Optional-- Once out of oven, sprinkle 1 c chocolate chips and when chips looks melted, spread with a knife.

For vanilla cake
Instead of 1/3 cup cocoa, add additional 1/3 cup flour.

For orange cake
Instead of 1/3 cup cocoa, add additional 1/3 cup flour
Instead of 2 tsp vanilla extract, add 1/2 tsp vanilla extract and 1 1/2 tsp orange extract
Add 1/4 tsp orange zest (or more for taste preference)
Optional: for more intense orange flavor, as well as to help make cake more moist
-Use the juice from one orange mixed with 2-3 Tbs water to drizzle over the cake after it is baked

Garlic Red Pepper Curry

This cooks up in less than 30 minutes, so if I sleep in a little and want to make something super easy (like this morning, thanks Friday) this is what I make.

Ingredients & Process (makes 1 generous serving)

1 red pepper (capsicum), chopped

1/2 red onion, chopped

1 clove garlic, minced

Heat 1 Tbs oil in skillet on medium heat. Add garlic and onion. Saute for 2 minutes. Add red pepper pieces with a sprinkle of salt (1/4tsp). Cover with lid and allow to steam for about 10 minutes to reach desired tenderness, stir occasionally. Serve with rice.

*You can add popu if you like, or a 1/2 tsp minced ginger in addition for additional flavor & zing. 

P.S. My kitchen routine in the morning begins with setting rice in the rice cooker. Then I begin the process of cutting veggies and making the curry. By the time the curry is ready, so is the rice!

Fajitas

Ingredients & Process (makes 3 fajitas)
3 flour tortillas
shredded cheddar cheese, 1/2 cup (more or less depending on your cheese preferences)

Filling
1 clove garlic, minced
1 red onion, sliced (1/2 inch long strips) *set aside Tbs for salsa
1 green pepper, sliced  (1/2 inch long strips)
seitan (1/2 recipe is sufficient), sliced in thin strips

1 Tbs oil
1/2 tsp veggie broth powder, or salt
1/4 tsp vaamu (ajwain/carom seeds)
sprinkle of paprika and/or black pepper

Heat oil in medium pan, add veggies and spices, cover with lid and allow to steam on med-low for 5-10 minutes. Add seitan, give it a stir, and steam another 5 minutes.

Meanwhile prepare salsa
1 tomato, chopped
1Tbs chopped onion (saved from filling ingredients)
5 sprigs of cilantro, chopped

Mix together in small bowl. You can add salt & pepper, or season however you like. I add a drizzle of Taco sauce and Chipotle sauce.

Assemble-
Place tortilla on plate and sprinkle cheese. Warm in microwave for 30 seconds. Add heaping serving spoon of filling to tortilla and top with salsa. Fold sides in, then fold bottom up and roll to make a burrito.

Making Vegetable Curry: 101

At first I was really intimidated to start cooking Indian food. It didn't take long though to realize what a misconception that was. Sure, there are some complex dishes one can make, but day to day cooking is quick, easy, and might I add...delicious! Oh, and fun.

I tell people the most difficult part about Indian cuisine is the spices & keeping everything on hand. The good part is, a little goes a long way. Once you buy it, you'll have it in stock for a while.

I used to be the type of cook who followed the recipe to the T, measuring and timing everything perfectly. When I started to learn from my husband and mother-in-law, I was somewhat overwhelmed because they didn't use recipes. They just chopped, tossed, and whizzed through preparations while I was trying to jot down approximate measurements. I was amazed at the skill they possessed  and how many recipes they had memorized! Now, I find myself doing the same thing. It's freeing, in a way, to be able to cook like that. And to get creative while preparing meals. Currently though, I'm a little intimidated by what I've gotten myself into with documenting these recipes. I will do my best to document thoroughly for those of you who are methodical recipe followers.

We eat pretty simply in our household, so maybe that's why I can master these veggie curries. The beauty in cooking this way is that once you get the general process down pat, you just vary the veggies and create new recipes with whatever produce you have on hand. To get started, here's a recipe I made for today's lunch: Parsnip Carrot Curry (Quantity is based on serving 2 people)

Ingredients & Process
1/2 red onion, chopped
3 parsnips, chopped
2 carrots, chopped

Seasonings (in Telugu we call this popu)

In medium size pan, add 1 Tbs oil and heat over medium heat.
Add these spices in the order listed:
1/4 tsp black mustardseeds
1/4 tsp split channa dal
1/4tsp split yellow pesara dal
1/4 tsp split urad dal

Once mustardseeds begin to pop & sputter, turn heat to low & add:
6 curry leaves
1/2 tsp cumin seeds
1/4 tsp turmeric
1/2 tsp salt
(Popu can burn quickly if the heat is too high, so try to add veggies quickly to help prevent the seasonings from frying too much.)

Add chopped veggies, a 1/4 cup water and cover to steam and cook veggies, about 10-15 min on med-low heat. Stir occasionally, adjust heat as necessary or add more water to prevent burning. Serve with rice.

So, in about 30 minutes you have a healthy, home-cooked meal!

*I will try to post more info to clarify ingredients. I mix languages when referring to these spices...some English, some Hindi, some Telugu :) Part of the reason why I'm feeling hesitant to post these recipes...I may be the only one who understands what I mean. Me and Google, of course. Google knows everything.

 

Peanut Butter Balls

This simple no bake cookie, from the cookbook Sweet & Natural, was an instant hit with everyone who tasted it. 


1 c raisins, chopped fine (I used food processor)
1 c natural peanut butter
5-6 Tbs dry milk powder

Combine all ingredients in a bowl. Use your hand to mix. You should be able to knead the mixture without it sticking to your hand. You may need to add a little more dry milk powder to get to this point. Form into walnut size balls, place on tray and refrigerate to help them firm up.
That's it! Eat & enjoy! 

*The recipe also suggested using oatmeal instead of milk powder as a variation. Next time I would be curious to try using chunky peanut for more crunch...or almond butter...or cashew butter...


Update: 5/11/2012: 
Today I wanted to make these cookies but was out of peanut butter. I had bought peanuts to make peanut butter, but instead decided to try a short cut. I threw it all in the food processor-1 c peanuts (dry roasted, unsalted) and 1 c raisins. It didn't get as smooth, but I had wanted to try with crunchy pb anyways...so this gave a great texture. I also rolled a couple in cocoa powder for a chocolate fix. So good! You can probably add a tablespoon or two of cocoa powder to the mix if you want an entire batch of chocolate peanut butter balls. I remembered to take a picture, too :) before my husband and I eat them all!