Padavalanga / Podalangai Koottu

Padavalanga / Podalangai Koottu is one of my favourite types of koottu. I always say that koottu is the Tamil version of thoran, a staple recipe in Kerala cooked with a variety of vegetables. I make that as often as I make koottu, to balance out the Tamil-Mallu couple that we are. TH doesn't like too much coconut in his food either way, so I compromise by toning it down a bit.

What I Used (Serves 2):

Snake gourd / podalangai / padavalanga - 2 cups, cut into 1" squares
Chana dal / kadala parippu - 1/2 cup
Grated coconut - 1/2 cup
Shallots / small onions / chinna vengayam / ulli - 4 nos
Green chillies - 2 nos
Cumin seeds / jeera / jeerakam - 1 tsp
Turmeric powder - a pinch
Red chilly powder - 1/2 tsp (optional)
Salt - to taste

For tempering:

Mustard seeds - 1/4 tsp
Curry leaves - a few
Shallots - 3 nos, chopped
Oil - 2 tsp

How I Made It:

1. Cook the snake gourd and chana dal in little water until both are soft. This will take about 15-20 mins. I pressure them for 2-3 whistles to make it quicker.

2. Meanwhile, grind the coconut + shallots + green chillies + jeera withvery little water. Set aside.

3. Heat oil in a pan and temper the mustard seeds. Add curry leaves and chopped shallots and fry for a minute.

4. Add the cooked snake gourd - dal mixture to the above and mix well. Add very little water if its too dry. (I added a little too much, as is obvious from the picture!)

5. Now add the ground coconut paste and turmeric + chilly powder. Fry for another about 5 mins. Add salt.

Remove and serve hot with steamed rice and vathal kuzhambu.

Seitan with Apple Squash Chutney

This probably isn't actually a chutney, but it sounds better to say it is. I served this with some chicken-style seitan (this stuff that I blogged about before), but you could serve it with tofu, or a chickpea cutlet, perhaps.

INGREDIENTS

Makes enough to top 8 seitan cutlets

- 2 tbsp oil

- 1 leek, thinly sliced

- 1 celery stalk, diced

- 1 garlic clove, minced

- 2 cups diced butternut squash

- 2 cooking apples, peeled, cored, and finely chopped

- 1/3 cup raisins

- 1/4 cup water (plus more as needed)

- salt and pepper to taste

- 1/4 cup maple syrup

- 2 tsp cinnamon

METHOD

1. Heat oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. Saute leeks, celery, and garlic for 8-10 mins, until soft and translucent. Add squash and fry for 2 mins.

2. Add apples, raisins, water, salt and pepper, maple syrup, and cinnamon. Bring to bubling, reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 20-25 mins, until squash is cooked. Stir occasionaly, adding water, if needed. The chutney should be moist, but not runny.

3. Serve over a seitan cutlet, or a slice of tofu.

Brinjal Cooked in Green Chilly - Coconut - Shallot Paste

If you are a brinjal lover like me, then you will surely enjoy this dish. It was an impromptu one that my mom-in-law made when she was visiting and I loved it! I made it again last weekend following her precise recipe word by word.

Brinjal in a shallot-green chilly-coconut base

What I Used (serves 2):

Brinjal / eggplant - 2 cups, cubed
Shallots / small onions - about 12 to 15
Green chillies - 5 or more
Tomato - 1/2 of 1, chopped (optional)
Grated / dessicated coconut - 2 tbsp
Cumin / jeera powder - 1/2 tsp
Coriander / malli powder - 1 tsp
Jaggery - 1/2 tsp powdered
Mustard seeds - 1/4 tsp
Urad dal - 1 tsp
Oil - 1 tbsp
Salt - to taste

How I Made It:

1. Cook the brinjal in very little water until soft. Drain and set aside.

2. Grind the shallots, coconut and green chillies to a paste.

3. Heat oil in a pan and temper mustard seeds. Add the urad dal next and fry till golden brown.

4. Add the chopped tomatoes and fry for a minute until soft. Then add the cumin and coriander powders and fry for another minute.

5. Now add the ground paste and cooked brinjal. Continue to fry for 3-4 mins until the raw smells disappears.

6 Add salt and jaggery, mix well and continue to fry for another minute. Remove.

Goes well with steamed white rice and any gravy, or even rotis.

Related Posts

Quick Brinjal Curry
Ennegayi Palya
Aviyal

Bread in the Works

I took a stab at developing a multi grain bread this weekend. It's not quite right, but the basic idea is there. I soaked multi grain cereal for a few hours, then added it to a blend of white, whole wheat, rye, and kamut flour. Full recipe coming soon.

Winter Vegetable Pie

It has been a crazy past few days of home renovating, so I am sorry to say I have not been very creative in the kitchen. But now, with all the saws, screwdrivers, ladders and paintbrushes put away, it was time to create something tasty in the kitchen. With winter weather upon us, root vegetables are abundant in the grocery store, so this dish makes good use of them. The quantities are variable here--it's better to have too many veggies than not enough so add more if needed.

INGREDIENTS

- 10" pie crust (top and bottom)

- 1 large Yukon gold potato

- 2 parsnips, peeled

- 2 turnips, peeled

- 2 carrots

- 1/2 rutabaga, peeled

- 2 tbsp oil

- 1 leek, thinly sliced

- 1 large sweet onion, halved and sliced

- 1 celery stalk, sliced

- 1 garlic clove, minced

- 2 tbsp flour

- 1 3/4 cup soy milk

- 1 1/2 tsp salt

- freshly ground pepper

- 1/2 tsp sage

- 1 tsp thyme

- 2 tbsp chicken-style broth powder

METHOD

Preheat oven to 400 degrees

1. Get a few inches of salted water boiling in a large pot. Slice potato, parsnips, turnips, carrots, and rutabaga as thinly as possible. Cook in the boiling water for 1-2 mins, until veggies are softened but still somewhat firm. Drain veggies and rinse in cold water.

2. Heat oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. Saute leek, onion, celery, and garlic for 5-7 mins, until softened. Add flour and mix well. Slowly add soy milk and bring to bubbling. Add spices and broth powder and adjust seasonings to taste.

3. Lay a few layers of veggies in the bottom of the pie crust. Top with 1/3 of the onion mixture. Repeat. Repeat again, then top with a final layer of veggies. Top with the crust. Bake for 40-45 mins, until crust is browned and sauce is bubbling. Let pie sit for 10 mins before cutting and serving.

Spicy Baby Potatoes

This recipe has been totally and completely flicked from my sister's blog. I didn't have curry leaves in the house and mine didn't come quite as delicious-looking as hers, especially the gravy, but both TH and I licked the bowl clean. The simplicity of this dish makes me wonder why I've never tried this version before.

What I Used (to serve two):

Baby potatoes /new potatoes – 15 nos
Onions - 2 medium sized ones, chopped
Garlic paste - 1 tsp (or 4 pods, minced)
Sambar powder - 2 tbsp (or 2 tsp coriander powder, 1 tsp jeera, 1/8 tsp fenugreek seeds, 2 tsp red chilli powder)
Turmeric powder - a pinch
Mustard seeds - 1/4 tsp
Urad dal - 1 tsp
Oil - 2 tbsps
Salt - to taste

How I Made It:

1. Wash the potatoes. Pressure cook for 3 whistles (or put in a heavy-bottomed pan with sufficient water and let cook on a medium fire). Cool, peel and set aside.

2. Add sambar powder, salt and turmeric to the potatoes with very little water and leave to marinate for half hour.

3. Heat oil and temper mustard seeds. Fry the urad dal next until golden brown and then add the onions and garlic. Fry well till the onions turn a dark brown (I like mine just short of burnt so that's how I made it).

4. Add the curry leaves and the potatoes. Add about 4 tbsp water and toss well.

5. Cook open for about 25 mins until the potatoes look yummy and you can't wait a single second longer to serve it already!

Serve hot with rice and curry of choice. Goes weil with coconut based gravies, like kaalan.

Oatmeal Raisin Muffins

I have a serious problem. I can't stop making muffins. Once you get the basic proportions down of wet to dry, you can ad lib to your heart's content. Muffins have now become a staple on my lunch, and they come in handy when I need an energy boost after a squash game. I am going to noodle around with the recipe in the future--I think oat flour, spelt flour, etc, would work just as well as the wheat flour.

INGREDIENTS

Makes 12 muffins

- 1/2 cup raisins
- 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 2 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp nutmeg
- 1/2 tsp nutmeg
- 1/4 tsp allspice
- 1/4 tsp cloves
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 1/4 cup oat bran

- 1 cup oatmeal (plus extra for muffin tops)

- 1 1/2 cup soy milk

- 1/3 cup canola oil

- 1 tsp vanilla extract

- 2 tsp maple extract

METHOD
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Lightly grease a muffin tin.

1. Soak raisins in hot water.
2. Whisk together flour, baking powder and soda, sugar, spices, salt, and bran in a bowl. Mix in oatmeal. In a separate bowl, whisk together soy milk, oil, and extracts until well-blended.
3. Add to dry ingredients and mix until just moist. Divide batter into muffin tins and sprinkle some oatmeal over each muffin. Bake for 18-20 mins, until a toothpick comes out clean.

Here is the view from my front porch. This is pretty much how things have looked for the past week or so. Makes you want to curl up by the fire with a cup of tea and a muffin.

Vazhakka Bajji / Fried Raw Banana Snack

I love vazhakka in any form. Be it stir-fried, as a thoran, in kaalan, even podimas or better still, as a steaming bajji dipped in tomato ketchup on a rainy day. Bliss! TH loves them too so this time his parents visited, we made vazhakka bajji. We just used 2 raw bananas and still there was more than enough for the four of us and we weren't hungry at all for dinner.


This is a great party snack for kids and adults alike. Who can resist the golden, crispy goodness of bajjis?!.

What I Used:

Vazhakka / Raw bananas - 2
Besan / Kadala mavu / Chickpea flour - 2 cups
Whole jeera / jeerakam / cumin seeds - 1 tsp
Hing / Asafoetida / kaayam - 2 pinches
Red chilli powder - 1 tsp
Salt - to taste
Water - enough to make a thick batter
Oil - to deep fry

How I Made It:

1. Cut the banana midway and then slice them length-wise. The idea is to get thin (really thin!) slices of them about 4 inches long.

2. Mix the chilli, salt, hing, jeera and besan well in a bowl and make a thick batter with just enough water. Make sure the consistency is a bit thicker than pancake / dosa batter, but not too thick that it doesn't leave your hand when you raise it above the bowl.

3. Heat oil until nice and warm. Dip the banana slices in the batter and make sure its coated on all sides. Drop gently into the hot oil and wait for 2 mins before turning them over.

4. When the bajjis turn golden brown, transfer to a tissue-lined container and serve immediately with some steaming tea.

Goes well with tomato sauce / ketchup and the monsoon rains. Enjoy!

On Why I Won't be Blogging Every Day Anymore

My life has seemed impossibly busy over the past year, and recently it got even busier. Yes, that means additional responsibilities on top of teaching, writing a book, trying to get tenure, taking care of 3 kids, cooking, cleaning, putting together a cookbook, running a home bakery, and blogging on daily basis. Something has to give. In this case, the daily blogging. My plan is still to post 4 times a week or so, but I just can't keep up my current pace. There are, of course, 471 other posts for you to sift through. They're not all gems, but there are some great recipes I would like to revisit and I'm sure you will enjoy.

Paneer Peas Pulao / Paneer Matar Pilaf

Though I collect dishes-to-cook-over-weekend all through the week, come Sunday and I am too lazy to do anything much. I hate myself for that cuz I am letting all the lovely natural light go away when I could cook something new and photograph it!


Anyway, on this particular Sunday that I made the peas pulao, I was too lazy to make a side-dish with the paneer I had so I added it to the pulao! The light was just too perfect for me to pass on taking food pics. No harm done and so much time saved, right? Well, TH would have still preferred Palak Paneer to go with the peas pulao but when one's wife is lazy occasionally, one can't complain too much, right? ;)

What I Used:

Basmati rice - 1 1/2 cups
Onion - 1, chopped fine
Green peas - 1/2 cup
Paneer cubes - 1/2 cup
Green chillies - 3
Ginger garlic paste - 1.5 tbsp
Cumin / jeera / jeerakam seeds - 1 tsp
Whole black pepper - 1/2 tsp
Cloves - 4
Cardamom - 2
Cinnamon stick - a 1″ piece
Bay leaves - 1
Ghee / Clarified butter (or veg oil) - 2 tbsp
Salt to taste

How I Made It:

1. Soak the basmati rice in enough water to cover it, for 15 mins. Meanwile, grind the pepper, cloves, cardamom and cinnamon together. If you have a pestle and mortar, that will be best.

2. Heat the ghee in a pan and throw in the cumin seeds. Once they splutter, add the ground ingredients. Tear the bay leaf into 3 and add toss that in too.

3. Now add the onions, split green chillies and saute until onions turn transparent.

4. Then add the ginger garlic paste and saute well for a minute.

5. Add the peas and paneer cubes and mix well for another 2-3 mins.

6. Drain the rice completely and add to the pan. Mix thoroughly.

6. Add 2 cups water to the above and let it cook until the rice is done. Alternately, you can add equal ratio of water (1.5 cups rice : 1.5 cups water) and pressure cook for one whistle. Once the pressure leaves, open lid immediately and transfer to another bowl.

7. Garnish with coriander leaves and serve with side-dish of choice.

I was too lazy that Sunday which is why instead of using up the paneer to make a side dish, I added it to the peas pulaoa and served it with just cucumber raita and pickle ;)

Sweet Potato and Carrot Muffins

You may have noticed a that my mom posted a message a few days ago asking for a carrot or zucchini muffin recipe. Well, here you go, Mom.

INGREDIENTS

Makes 12 large muffins

- 1/2 cup raisins

- 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour

- 2 tsp baking powder

- 1/2 tsp baking soda

- 1/2 cup sugar

- 1 tsp cinnamon

- 1 tsp ginger

- 1/2 tsp nutmeg

- 1/4 tsp allspice

- 1/8 tsp ground cardamom

- 1/2 tsp salt

- 3/4 cup wheat bran

- 1/4 cup oat bran

- 1 cup cooked and mashed sweet potato

- 1/3 cup canola oil (or applesauce)

- 1 1/2 cup soy milk

- 1 1/2 cup cup finely grated carrot

METHOD

Preheat oven to 400 degrees
1. Soak raisins in hot water.

2. Whisk together flour, baking powder and soda, sugar, spices, salt, and bran in a bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk together sweet potato, oil, and soy milk until well-blended. Mix in grated carrot.

3. Add to dry ingredients and mix until just moist (over mixing makes for tough muffins). Batter will be thick. Divide batter into muffin tins and bake for 20-24 mins, until a toothpick comes out clean.

Fennel and Mushroom Lasagna

I love lasagna but I rarely have the time to make it. I have learned that, like pizza, you don't need to top it with cheese (or cheese substitutes) to make a great lasaga. I make mine nice and saucy so it does not dry out and have yet to be disappointed. The fennel is a nice flavour addition here, and the sausage and mushrooms provide great texture.

INGREDIENTS

- 9 lasagna noodles

- 2 tbsp oil

- 1 fennel bulb, trimmed, halved, and thinly sliced

- 2 cloves garlic, chopped

- 1 small red pepper, diced

- 1 small yellow pepper, diced

- 8 oz sliced cremini mushrooms

- 5 king oyster mushrooms, sliced

- 3 vegan Italian sausages, chopped

- 1 tsp oregano

- 1 tsp basil

- 1 tsp salt

- freshly ground pepper

- 1 recipe tofu ricotta

- 2 jars spaghetti sauce

ETHOD

Preheat oven to 375 degrees

1. Cook lasagna noodles as per the directions on the box.

2. While noodles are cooking, heat oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. Saute fennel for 10 mins, until softened and lightly browned. Add peppers and saute for 3 mins.

3. Add mushrooms and spices to the pan and mix well. Add a few splashes of water to the pan to help steam the mushrooms. Cook for 5-7 mins, until mushrooms are soft and liquid is reduced. Add sausage and mix well. Remove from heat and let cool.

4. Assemble the lasagna. Cover the bottom of a large baking dish with spaghetti sauce and top with three noodles. Spread half of the tofu ricotta on top of the noodles, and top that with half of the mushroom mixture. Top with more spaghetti sauce and then three more noodles. Repeat.

5. Cover the top noodles with a thick later of spaghetti sauce. Cover dish with foil and bake for 60 mins. Remove foil and bake for 30 mins, or until sauce has thickened. Let sit for 20 mins before cutting and serving.

Seitan Vindaloo

This is a great Indian dish with a nice kick to it. You can adjust the heat by adding more or less chili flakes--the way I have it written here will clean out your sinuses but was mild enough that the kids still ate it.

INGREDIENTS

- 1 large sweet onion, chopped

- 2 garlic cloves, chopped

- 1" piece of ginger, chopped

- 2 tsp cumin

- 1 tsp red chili flakes

- 1/4 tsp ground cardamom

- 1 tsp black mustard seeds

- 1/2 tsp salt

- 1/2 tsp black pepper

- 1 tbsp brown sugar

- 1/4 cup white wine vinegar

- 2 tbsp oil

- 3 cups chopped beefy seitan

- 1 1/2 cups water (plus more, if needed)

- 2 tsp coriander

- 1/2 tsp tumeric

METHOD

1. Put everything from the onions to the oil in a food processor and blend until smooth. Pour into a frying pan and heat over medium heat. Cook for 15-20 mins, until browned and reduced to a thick paste.

2. Add seitan, water, coriander, and tumeric to the pan. Bring to bubbling, reduce heat, and simmer uncovered for 20 mins, adding more water, if needed. The seitan should be tender and the sauce thick(ish) and smooth.

Maple Banana Walnut Muffins

Tonight is bakery night so just a small post about muffins (again!). We had about 25 old bananas clogging up the freezer so I thawed them out and made a whole whack of muffins. These are just a variation on my hearty apple muffins and protein power muffins. I also tried to make a banana walnut pudding cake (yes, I am a one trick dessert pony) but I need one more try to get it right.

INGREDIENTS
Makes 12 large muffins
- 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 2 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp nutmeg
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 3/4 cup wheat bran
- 1/4 cup oat bran
- 2 cups pureed banana
- 1/3 cup canola oil (or applesauce)
- 2 tbsp maple syrup
- 1 tsp vanilla extract

- 2 tsp maple extract

- 1/2 cup chopped walnuts

- 1/2 cup chocolate chips

- 1/2 cup hemp seeds (optional)

METHOD
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Lightly grease a muffin tin.

1. Whisk together flour, baking powder and soda, sugar, spices, salt, and bran in a bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk together banana, oil, extracts and syrup until well-blended. Add to dry ingredients and mix until just moist (over mixing makes for tough muffins). Fold in walnuts, chocolate chips, and hemp seeds (if using).
2. Divide batter into muffin tins and bake for 18-20 mins, until a toothpick comes out clean.

Aloo Palak - Potatoes in a Spinach Gravy

I really can't believe how fast time is flying. Its been week since my last post. I have been making mostly simple sabzis the past week since we have been apartment hunting almost every evening after work. A subzi and some steamed rice is all I have energy for after work and poking around strangers' houses.

Aloo Palak

Aloo Palak is a sure-shot winner at home since TH loves both potatoes and palak. And its generally a quick recipe for me since I chop the spinach during weekends and freeze it or sometimes buy it chopped.

Aloo Palak is originally a Punjabi recipe, (which reminds me - what happened to RCI??) and the authentic recipe includes addition of some methi or fenugreek leaves to it. My version is very customized to my laziness so you may or may not find it to resemble something you would get in a Punjabi restaurant ;)

What I Used:

Palak / Spinach / Cheera - 2 cups, chopped
Potatoes / Aloo - 2, cubed
Onion - 1 small, chooped (I used 5-6 shallots so that works as well)
Garlic pods - 2 to 3, minced (or 1/2 tsp garlic paste. This is optional but I love the flavour so added it)
Ginger - a small piece
(Alternately, you can use 1 tsp ginger garlic paste but the taste is going to differ by a lot, downwards!)
Cumin / jeera / jeerakam powder - 2 tsp
Coriander / malli powder - 1 tsp
Red chilli powder - 1/2 tsp, or to taste (I used 3 green chillies)
Turmeric powder - a pinch
Salt - to taste
Oil - 1.5 tbsp (I used 1 tbsp ghee / clarified butter for a better flavour)

How I Made It

1. Heat oil in a pan and fry the onions till they turn soft and transparent. Add the cumin, coriander, chilli and turmeric powders and fry for another minute.

2. Mince the garlic and ginger together. Add to the above.

3. Add the potatoes and very little water. Keep covered and cook till potatoes are almost done. (A fork inserted should come out clean)

4. Now add the spinach and some salt. Mix well and cook on a low flame for 15 to 20 mins.

This goes very well with phulkas, chapatis, rice and even dosa.

I am sending this over to Mansi's Vegetarian Thanksgiving Event. 

Related Recipes

Palak Dal

Keerai Masiyal

Palak Paneer

Palak Pakoras

Chettinad Aloo

Potato Ishtoo

Sweet n' Sour n' Hot Tofu n' Noodles

I bought a pineapple a while ago and it has been sitting on the counter begging to be made into something. So, I decided to pull out the juicer and use it as the base for a sauce. I am not the biggest pineapple fan, but this dish is quite tasty and very easy to make on a busy night. I like the addition of heat to a fairly standard sweet n' sour sauce--you can always add more curry paste if you want it hotter.

INGREDIENTS

- 150g noodles

- 1 1/4 cups pineapple juice

- 2 tbsp hoisin sauce

- 2 tbsp brown sugar

- 2 tbsp white vinegar

- 1 tbsp chili garlic sauce

- 1 tsp yellow curry paste

- 1 tbsp cornstarch

- salt to taste

- 1 tbsp oil

- 1 pkg tofu, cubed

- 1 green pepper, chopped

- 4 green onions, sliced

METHOD

1. Cook noodles as per the directions. Drain and set aside.

2. Meanwhile whisk together pineapple juice, hoisin sauce, sugar, vinegar, garlic sauce and curry paste. Whisk in cornstarch.

3. Heat a wok over med-hi heat. Add oil and fry tofu cubes until golden. Add green peppers and fry for 2 mins, until softened but not soggy. Add sauce to the wok and bring to bubbling. Add cooked noodles and mix well. Add some salt, if needed. Let sauce thicken and coat the noodles. Stir in green onions and serve.

Irish Soda Bread

As promised, here is the recipe for Irish soda bread. The recipe was easily veganized from Martha Day's Complete Baking. The original recipe calls for twice the flour which makes for one huge loaf. This recipe is half the size (which is still plenty big) and I have converted the grams (which the original recipe calls for) into cups. I'm pretty sure cream of tartar is not a traditional ingredient for soda bread, but it does make for a nice texture.

INGREDIENTS

- 1 3/4 cup whole wheat flour

- 1 3/4 cup all purpose flour

- 1 tsp salt

- 1 1/2 tsp baking soda

- 2 tsp cream of tartar

- 1 tsp sugar

- 2 tbsp margarine

- 1 1/2 cups soy milk

- 1 1/2 tsp lemon juice

METHOD

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

1. Whisk flours, salt, baking soda, cream of tartar, and sugar together. Rub margarine into the flour until it resembles coarse bread crumbs. In a separate bowl, whisk soy milk and lemon juice together. Add to dry ingredients and mix together into a soft dough.

2. Turn dough onto a lightly floured surface and gently knead until smooth. Shape into a circle about 2 inches thick. Dust with extra flour and transfer to the baking sheet. Mark a cross in the top with the handle of a wooden spoon.

3. Bake for 40 mins, or until risen and firm.

Irish Stew

Following the stew theme started last night, I went for a more familiar Irish stew tonight. I was disappointed to find out that most Irish ales are not vegan (Guinness as well) because they use isinglass to filter the beer. Most lagers, though, are vegan, including Harp's. The stewing beef is Bryanna's beefy seitan, an old-school simmered seitan that is wonderfully tender.

INGREDIENTS

- 2 tbsp oil

- 1 large sweet onion, halved and sliced

- 2 cloves garlic, minced

- 3 cups cubed beefy seitan

- 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar

- 3 tbsp soy sauce

- 1 cup lager

- 1 cup red wine

- 2 cups chopped carrots

- 1.5 lbs cubed potatoes

- 2 tsp coriander

- 2 tsp thyme

- 1 tsp sage

- salt and pepper to taste

- water

- 3 tbsp flour

- 1/2 cup soy milk

METHOD

1. Heat oil in a large pot over medium heat. Saute onions and garlic for 5-7 mins, until soft and translucent. Add seitan and fry for 2 mins. Add vinegar and soy sauce and cook until liquid has been reduced.

2. Add lager and wine to the pot and cook for 10 mins, uncovered, until liquid reduces a bit and no longer smells so boozy.

3. Add carrots, potatoes, spices, and enough water to almost cover everything. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Bring to bubbling, cover, and simmer for at least 30 mins, until veggies are soft.

4. Mix flour into soy milk and add to pot. Bring to bubbling to thicken. Adjust seasonings to taste. Serve with Irish soda bread to mop up the sauce (recipe tomorrow).

Ethiopian Stew

This isn't any particular Ethiopian dish, but rather is a stew inspired by Ethiopian flavours. I was craving something hearty and this really hit the spot.

INGREDIENTS

- 1/2 cup yellow split peas

- 3 cups of water

- 4 tbsp oil

- 1/2 tsp tumeric

- 1/4 tsp ground cardamom

- 1 tsp cinnamon

- 1/2 tsp cloves

- 1/4 tsp nutmeg

- 1 large onion, halved and sliced

- 2 cloves of garlic, chopped

- 1" piece of ginger, minced

- 2 cups chopped seitan (or 1 can of chickpeas), optional

- 1 lb cubed potatoes

- 1 large carrot, chopped

- 1 tbsp berbere (or more)

- 1 28 oz can chopped tomatoes, with juices

- 2 cups chopped green beans

- 1 cup red lentils

- water

- salt and pepper to taste

- 1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley

- 1 six oz can tomato paste

METHOD

1. Rinse split peas and place in a pot with the 3 cups of water. Bring to boiling, cover, and simmer until soft. Drain off excess water.

2. While peas are cooking, heat oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add spices and fry for 1 min. Add onions, garlic, and ginger, and fry for 5-7 mins, until onions are soft. The spices may stick to the bottom of the pot, so periodically add a splash of water to the pan to deglaze.

3. Add seitan (if using), potatoes, carrots, and berbere. Fry for 2 mins. Add tomatoes, beans, lentils, and cooked split peas, and mix well. Add enough water to the pot to cover the veggies by about 1/2 inch. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

4. Bring to bubbling, reduce heat, cover, and simmer for at least 30 mins. Stir periodically to keep lentils and veggies from sticking.

5. Stir in parsley and tomato paste and cook for 5 mins.

Baked Tofu

I was in the mood for some home-style cooking today (vegan home-style, of course). Usually that means baking something in the oven, or making a huge pot of something mushy. The former won out tonight and I went with baked tofu, baked sweet potatoes, assorted veggies, and rutabaga. I was never a big fan of rutabaga as a kid (and my sons are carrying on the tradition), but now I love it mashed with some margarine and maple syrup.

INGREDIENTS

- 1 pkg extra firm tofu, cut into 6-8 thick slices

- 1/2 cup soy milk
- 1/2 tsp lemon juice

- few dashes of hot sauce
- 1 cup panko bread crumbs

- 1/4 cup vegan chick'n broth powder

- 2 tbsp flour

- 1 tsp poultry seasoning

- 1 tsp paprika

- 1 tsp salt

- freshly ground pepper

METHOD

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

1. Whisk together soy milk, lemon juice, and hot sauce in a bowl. Set aside to thicken.

2. Mix bread crumbs, broth powder, flour, and seasonings in another bowl.

3. The trick to breading in keeping one hand wet and the other dry. Dip a tofu slice in the soy milk mixture and drop into the bread crumbs. Shake the bowl (i.e. to toss the tofu in the bread crumbs) with your other hand. Use that hand to remove the tofu and place it on the baking sheet.

4. Repeat with remaining tofu. Then re-dip the breaded slices and toss them again in the bread crumbs. Add more liquid, if needed.

5. Bake 12 mins per side, until crisp and golden. Serve with the sauce of your choice.

King Oyster Mushroom Curry

I am using curry in the most generic sense here because I am not sure what else to call the dish. Its origins are a fish dish in an Indian cookbook I have. There really isn't a vegan substitute for fish, but I thought I would try king oyster mushrooms for something different. In the end, I was a little disappointed with the mushrooms because they were rather tough. Chickpeas or tofu would work just as well with this sauce.

INGREDIENTS

- 4 king oyster mushrooms, thickly sliced

- 1/4 cup lemon juice

- 1/2 tsp tumeric

- 1/2 tsp salt

- 3 tbsp oil

- 1 tbsp sugar

- 1 large sweet onion, halved and sliced

- 1" piece of ginger, minced

- 2 garlic cloves, minced

- 1 tsp coriander

- 1 tsp chili powder

- 1/2 tsp tumeric

- salt to taste

- 3 medium tomatoes, finely chopped

- 1/2 to 3/4 cup veggie broth, or water

- 1/4 cup chopped cilantro

METHOD

1. Mix tumeric, salt, and lemon juice together. Toss mushrooms in mixture and set aside for a few mins to let the liquid soak into the mushrooms.

2. Heat oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. Fry mushrooms for about 5 mins, until they begin to soften. Remove from pan.

3. There should still be oil left in the pan. Make sure there is still about 2 tbsp. Add sugar to the pan and stir until sugar caramelizes. Add onions, ginger and garlic and fry until a nice golden brown (about 8-10 mins).

4. Add spices and mix well. Add tomatoes and cook until they reduce into a paste. Add enough water to get the consistency you are looking for, and season to taste. Stir in cilantro and add mushroom back to the pan. Cook until mushrooms are done. Serve over rice.

Semolina Bread

I was all wrapped up following the election last night, so sorry about the lack of a post. I am able to vote in Ohio, and as an American historian I was extremely interested in the outcome. Plus, whatever happens in the U.S. has an impact on us here in Canada. I was also reminded that while we Canadians often pride ourselves in our diversity and in thinking we are more liberal-minded than our neighbours to the South, we have yet to elect a person of colour as Prime Minister. We have had only one female PM (for four months, when Brian Mulroney quit), but she was soon defeated in the 1993 election. Our latest election was almost entirely a slate of white guys.

I am busy with the bakery tonight, so just a small post about a failed bread recipe. I thought I would experiment with a semolina yeast bread to go with some pumpkin soup. The end result was nice and soft but far too dry, I thought. The crust sucked all the moisture from your mouth, and the next day the loaf was pretty hard. I shan't be making it again.

Back tomorrow with another great Indian recipe.

Thakkali Chutney / Tomato Chutney

This is one dish that has many many memories associated with it. My grandma used to make it quite often since me and my bro love it. And we call it 'thakkali oorindi' where the word 'oorindi' comes from saying 'noorindi' very often. 'Noorindi' in "our" telugu means ground (past tenst of grind!). Ok this explanation is getting way too confusing so I will fill you in on why I call the word "our" telugu and where in India I am actually from. 'Cuz that's a long (long) story.


My sis took the recipe from amma last summer and I took the picture. Because of that, I get to post it first, I guess. Thanks sis, for sending the recipe over email 'cuz god knows I wouldn't have been able to remember it otherwise. Don't get put off by the roast-remove steps in the directions of the recipe, really. Its worth it!

What I Used:

Ripe red tomatoes, slightly sour - 500gm, diced
Big onions-3, chopped
Garlic - 2 cloves
Coriander seeds - 1 tbsp
Grated coconut - 1 tbsp (optional)
Red chillies - about 12, depending on taste
Mustard seed - 1/8 tsp
Hing/Asafoetida/Kaayam -1/4 tsp
Curry leaves - a few
Oil (preferably gingelly/sesame) - 3 tbsp + 2 tsp + 2 tsp
Salt - to taste

How I Made It:

1. There are four ingredients that need to be fried separately and kept aside. So follow this order.

- In a broad frying pan and 2 tsp oil and the coriander seeds. Fry for 30 seconds and remove.

- Red chillies - roast for a minute - remove.

- Coconut - roast for a minute - remove.

- Now add another 2 tsp oil and fry the onions till golden brown and soft. Remove.

- Finally add the tomatoes and saute them for about 10 minutes on a medium fire, until they are half cooked.

2. Transfer all the roasted ingredients in a blender and add the garlic raw. Blend till smooth, adding not more than half a cup water. The mixture should be thick than watery.

3. Add the 3tbsp oil into the same pan, temper mustard seeds and add curry leaves and hing. Transfer the blended mixture into the pan, add salt and stir occasionally until the oil separates and you left with a thick, red chutney that smells mouthwatering.

This tomato-onion-garlic chutney has a good shelf life and goes well with rice, dosa, idly etc. I have posted a similar yet simpler tomato chutney here before. You can try it in case you are pressed for time.

I am sending this family favourite to Suganya for her Vegan Ventures Round 2.

Seitan Madras

When Vegan Mom and I were married over a decade ago, we quickly fell into a fairly mundane weekly routine of meat-based dishes. We then decided to try a vegetarian diet to force ourselves to explore new cuisines, methods, and ideas. It was then that we discovered Indian food, and it remains my favourite cuisine.

INGREDIENTS

- 3 cups cubed seitan (or 1 pkg of tofu, cubed, or one can of chickpeas)

- 1 six oz can tomato paste

- 1/4 tsp ground fenugreek

- 1/2 tsp ground fennel

- 1" piece ginger, minced

- 2 cloves garlic, minced

- 3 tsp coriander

- 2 tsp chili powder

- 1/2 tsp tumeric

- 1/4 cup lemon juice

- 1 1/2 tsp salt

- 2 cups water

- 2 tbsp oil

- 2 onions, halved and sliced

- 4 curry leaves

- 1/4 cup chopped cilantro

METHOD

1. Mix together tomato paste, spices (including garlic and ginger), lemon juice, salt, and water.

2. Heat oil over medium heat in a large frying pan and fry onions and curry leaves until deep golden brown (about 15 mins). Add seitain (or tofu, or chickpeas) and fry for 3-4 mins.

3. Add tomato-spice mixture to the pan and bring to bubbling. Add cilantro, reduce heat, and simmer, uncovered, until sauce is thickened (15-20 mins).

Kaalan - The Kerala Specialty

Its been a while since I posted any Kerala recipes in here so I fished this out from my drafts. I make this quite often since this is one dish with coconut that TH doesn't mind too much. Not that I refrain from any other coconut-heavy Kerala dish 'cuz of his slight dislike :)

Kaalan is a staple in any Kerala Sadya. The usual kaalan recipe has both elephant yam (chena) and raw bananas (pachakkai). I add only yam since that's more readily available here. Also, its important that the curd is slightly sour, otherwise the curry will taste a bit 'flat'. Adding a bit of tamarind might take care of this, I haven't tried that though.

Kaalan

What I Used:

Curd - 1.5 cups lightly beaten to remove lumps, best if slightly sour
Elephant yam (chena) - 1/2 cup, cubed
Coconut - 1/2 cup
Pepper powder - 1/2 tsp
Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp
Green chillies - 2 to 3
Fenugreek seeds (uluva) - 1/4 tsp
Dried red chillies - 2
Oil - 1 tbsp
Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp
Curry leaves - a few

How I Made It:

1. Heat 1 cup water with the yam pieces and cook till almost done. (A fork inserted should come out easily. Make sure that the pieces are not mushy, just cooked). Meanwhile, grind coconut with green chillies well, with very little water.

2. Add salt, pepper powder and turmeric powder to the pan.

3. Lower the fire to minimum and add the beaten curd along with the ground coconut. After about five minutes, removed from fire and set aside.

4. Heat oil in a pan and temper mustard seeds. Lightly fry the fenugreek seeds (take care not to burn it!) with the curry leaves and the red chillies. Add this to the above curry and mix well.

This curry goes well with steamed rice and (a) Kaya Mezhukkupuratti, (b) Okra fry with Peanuts, (c) Kovvaka Mezhukkupuratti, 

Perfect Fresh Whole Wheat Pasta

With a little experimentation I came up with a much better fresh whole pasta than my first attempt.

INGREDIENTS

- 1 cup semolina flour

- 1 cup all purpose whole wheat flour

- 2 tbsp vital wheat gluten flour

- 1/2 tsp salt

- 3 tbsp ground flax seed

- 7-8 tbsp water

METHOD

1. Whisk together flours and salt. Whisk flax into 7 tbsp of the water until it begins to thicken.

2. Make a well in the middle of the flour and pour the flax mixture into it. Mix wet into the dry and bring together into a dough. Add more water, if needed. The dough will be tough but you should be able to knead it without any pieces falling off.

3. Wrap in a slightly damp towel and let sit for 20 mins. Roll and cut with a pasta machine.

UPDATE:
I made this recipe again, and this time I sifted the whole wheat flour, then ground the leftover bran and germ in my coffee grinder (which I use to grind flax seeds, etc.) and added it to the dough. It worked very well and made for a smoother dough.

Seitan over Maple Squash and Sweet Potato

Have you ever looked in the fridge and wondered what in the world you were going to make for dinner? Especially on the day before shopping day? Sometimes the results can be surprising. This dish was wonderful and was perfect for a cool Canadian autumn day.

INGREDIENTS

Serves 4

- 4 large pieces chicken-style seitan, or tofu

- 1/4 cup flour

- 2 tsp poultry spice

- 1/4 cup margarine

- 1 onion, halved and sliced

- 1 celery stalk, sliced

- 1/2 butternut squash, diced

- 2 medium sweet potato, thinly sliced

- 1 1/4 cups vegetable or chicken-style broth

- 1/3 cup maple syrup

- 1 tsp ground thyme, or to taste

- salt and pepper to taste

METHOD

1. Heat margarine in a frying pan over med-hi heat. Mix flour and poultry spice together and dredge seitan or tofu in the flour mixture. Fry for 3-4 mins per side, until golden. Remove from pan.

2. Reduce heat to medium and add onions and celery to the pan, and add a little more margarine if needed. Saute for 5-7 mins, until soft and translucent. Add squash and potatoes to pan and cook until both begin to colour deepens.

3. Add broth, maple syrup and thyme to the pan. Season with salt and pepper. Bring to bubbling. Place seitan on top of potatoes. Reduce heat and let simmer for 20 mins, basting seitan with the liquid, until potatoes and squash are cooked. Add more liquid if needed.

4. Serve seitan over a bed of potatoes.