Baking ~ Savoury ~ Corn Bread

Corn Bread with Potato Basil Soup and Egg Salad

So after a few years and many bags of unopened (and subsequently trashed) cornmeal, I am finally posting the corn bread I made for our dinner last evening. I tried my hand at it a few times, experimenting with a few recipes. I even made cornmeal muffins which was very similar to the corn bread. I found a real simple recipe that worked well for me. I used mint and green chillies to add some flavour. This is a versatile recipe and any herbs of choice can be used. I will be making this again with a splash of vegetables like chopped onion, green onions, red & yellow peppers, corn kernels etc. I also think adding some red chilli flakes, chopped black or green olives or even different herbs like oregano, rosemary etc will give it a nice flavour.

Easy Corn Bread

(Makes 4 moderate servings)

Used this recipe from Mark Bitman, omitting the sugar and using buttermilk instead of plain milk. The crumb was very light and made for a fluffy loaf of cornbread. (I halved the recipe)

3/4 cup cornmeal (I used a medium grind, pulsed in the food processor for a minute to make it smoother)

1/2 cup whole wheat flour (I used regular chapati atta)

11/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 egg

3/4 cup buttermilk (add a teaspoon of lemon juice or vinegar to milk and let stand for 10 minutes)

2 tablespoons finely chopped mint leaves

1 green chilli, chopped fine

2 tablespoons olive oil

Preheat the oven to 350 F and prepare a metal baking tin (I used a loaf pan) by greasing it with a bit of the oil. Place the tin in the oven to heat along with the oven.

In a mixing bowl, add the cornmeal, wheat flour, baking soda and powder, salt and mint and green chillies and mix well.

In a mixing jar, add the egg and the oil to the buttermilk and whisk it till everything is mixed through. Add this to the dry ingredients and gently mix until everything is wet with a few even strokes.

Pour the batter into the heated baking tin, bake for about 20-25 minutes or till a skewer inserted comes out clean. Remove from the oven and rest for 10 minutes before taking the loaf out of the tin and slicing.

Serve with a hearty soup or bean chilli. I served it with a hearty Potato Basil Soup and Egg Salad for dinner.

Recreating Bhutan thru food – Shamu Datshi

One of my favourite posts to write was the one I did post returning from a wonderful holiday inBhutan. The beautiful landscape, colours and gorgeous people, not to mention the lovely food we ate throughout the trip was enough to inspire me. Something that is severely missing on this blog, when yesterday I realised that I’d last posted in September.

In fact, funnily I have been cooking and baking quite a bit. What with the extra hours I have on hand because of early rising due to the pooch. Somehow, never got down to making it here and am about to remedy that!

With the weather finally getting a nip and winter deciding to descend on our neck of the woods, memories of the food we ate inBhutanbecame so strong that it urged me to try and recreate it.

We enjoyed the vegetable and cheese preparations almost daily. Ema Datshi – Chillies and Cheese, Kewa Datshi – Potato and Cheese and my favourite Shamu Datshi – Mushrooms and Cheese.

It’s a simple recipe, the most time consuming aspect of this is the chopping of the mushrooms! Because the dish cooks itself in less than 10 minutes!

I found a recipe online and used that as a base, I omitted the tomatoes, because the version we had didn’t have tomatoes in it. I also used Amul processed cheese as that is the only one I had on hand. Am sure a combination of cheddar and mozzarella would be ideal. The taste was almost the same as what I recall. Pretty good for a first attempt at recreation!

Shamu Datshi (Serves 3)

Button Mushrooms – 200 grams, washed thinly sliced

Unsalted butter – 1 tablespoon

Water – ¼ cup

Cheese – 2/3 cup, grated (I used 3 cubes of Amul Processed cheese)

Spring onions – 3-4 sliced thinly

The cheese I used was  quite salty so I did not add any more salt.

Method

In a pan, place the sliced mushrooms, water, butter, and salt (if using) over high heat and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low, cover, and cook 5 minutes till the mushrooms are cooked. Stir in the grated cheese, and green onion, cover, and cook 2 minutes or until cheese melts. Pour into a serving dish and serve with rice.

That’s it! It’s a fantastic dish to serve for cheese lovers. Makes a great and easy addition to a party table. Can be eaten with nice crusty bread as well, but goes best with hot Rosematta rice.

Easy Pindi Channa ~ Vegan

Its tough to better a classic recipe. Like P’s chole that I posted ages ago. However since i cannot really stick to a recipe and dont do things by the book, i accidentally discover newer ways of doing things, or easier ways. Sometimes the experiments are a big flop and that too makes me realise that i cant better a classic…. did I say that already? ok.

I like channa in most forms, as salads, curries or as a snack. Its an easy way of increasing the protein content in a vegetarian diet. Here i tried to simplify things and turned up with this cracker of a recipe. this recipe reminded me so much of the chole served at havmor restaurant owned by the ohri’s group in hyderabad. many a beautiful memory is attached to eating chole bhature here with my bff S. Try it, its delightful. Almost restaurant style.

Easy Pindi Channa (Serves 3-4)

1 cup dried Chickpeas/ Kabuli channa, soaked for 8 hours or overnight, rinse and drained

Pressure cook with 1 litre/ 4-5 cups water, add 2 cloves, 1 black cardamom, 2 small bay leaves, 1 teaspoon of tea leaves/ 1 teabag, 1 small stick of cinnamon, pinch of hing (asafoetida), salt to taste for 12-15 whistles, or after 2 whistles, turn the heat low and cook about 20 mins. The Channa should cook soft but not be mushy.

After the pressure has released, open the cooker, strain the channa, reserve the water. Pick out the whole garam masala and discard.

In a heavy bottomed pan or kadhai, heat a teaspoon of oil, splutter 1/2 teaspoon of ajwain (carom seeds) and allow them to splutter.

turn the heat low and add 1 tablespoon of gram flour and fry till it turns golden brown. make sure you do not burn this.

Add 2 slit green chillies, 1 teaspoon grated ginger and fry for a minute. add 1 tsp each of coriander powder, cumin powder and chole masala or 1/2 teaspoon of garam masala. Add 2 teaspoons of  amchur powder or tamarind pulp extracted from a lemon sized ball of tamarind. Saute another minute.

add the boiled and drained chickpeas, 1/2 cup of the reserved water and cook on a low flame for about 5 minutes.

Check for salt and spice, adjust according to taste. Take off the heat. Serve hot garnished with grated ginger, onion slices and wedges of lime. Best eaten with hot puris or bhature. Also bread/ pav or regular chapathis.

Quick Cooking – Corn Pulao

for one of those weeknight dinners/ sunday lunches or just about any other. a pulav is my favourite when i have sudden guests or a bout of laziness. both of which strike frequently. paired with a gravy curry or a simple raita, makes for a full meal.

Corn Pulav – makes 2 servings

1 cup basmati rice, washed and soaked in 2 cups water

1 medium onion chopped/ sliced

a few curry leaves

1 split green chilli

one star anise, one teaspoon whole cumin, one clove, one green cardamom

2 cups hot water

1/2 – 1/3 cup fresh / frozen corn kernels

1 teaspoon ginger garlic paste or 1 inch ginger grated

1 tablespoon oil

salt to taste

in a thick bottomed pan ( i used a kadhai) heat 1 tablespoon of oil, splutter a teaspoon of whole cumin, when it crackles, add a few curry leaves and 1 split green chilli. add one medium chopped onion and saute till it begins to turn golden. add a teaspoon of ginger garlic paste or an inch of fresh ginger grated if you want to avoid garlic. saute for a minute. add 1/3 – 1/2 cup of corn kernels. i used frozen american sweet corn. saute for a minute. add 1 cup washed and drained basmati rice. let it fry with the other ingredients for a couple of minutes, ensure you dont stir it too vigorously else the grains will break. add 2 cups of hot water (check the rice and water ratio on the package), add salt to taste. stir and cover. cook for about 12-15 minutes with the lid on till the water has been absorbed, the rice is cooked but the grains are still separate. leave the lid on and allow the rice to rest for 10 minutes. fluff with a fork. serve hot with raita or a gravy curry such as this mushroom with peas and lotus seeds or kofta curry or fake meat and potatoes.

Peanut and Tomato Chutney

I dont know how or why, but I have unwittingly eliminated fresh coconut from my pantry for the last few months. We stopped adding it to the araichavittu sambhar and the assorted poriyals. but what i miss most is to dip my idli or dosa into some nice tangy spicy chutney. there is only so much of kaaram podi / milagai podi i can eat. So a few days ago, taking advantage of the extra tomatoes at home, I made this chutney. Its delicious and worth the effort of roasting all the ingredients before grinding.

Peanut and Tomato Chutney (makes 5 generous servings)

1/2 cup peanuts, roasted without oil till the colour changes

1 cup chopped tomatoes ( i used the local variety)

3 green chillies, slit

2 tablespoon curry leaves

2 tablespoons coriander leaves

1 medium onion, roughly chopped

1/2 teaspoon cumin (whole)

a few grains of whole fenugreek seeds

a small marble of tamarind

salt to taste

1/2 cup water

2 teaspoons oil ( i used gingely oil)

for the tadka

a few curry leaves

1/2 teaspoon whole mustard seeds

1-2 dried red chillies

1/2 teaspoon urad / black gram dal

in a pan, dry roast the peanuts and set aside. heat one teaspoon of oil, add the whole cumin seeds and fenugreek seeds and fry a few seconds.  add the onions and green chillies and fry till the onions are beginning to change colour. add the tomatoes and fry till they begin to shrink. set it aside and cool it completely.

In the jar of the blender, add the peanuts, cooked onion and tomato, tamarind, curry leaves, coriander leaves, water, salt. Pulse till you get a smooth paste. remove to a serving bowl. in a small pan, heat the remaining teaspoon of oil. fry the urad/ black gram dal till it is pale golden, add the dried red chillies and wait for a few seconds till they begin to change colour. add the mustard seeds and allow them to splutter, finally add the curry leaves and turn off the heat. Pour this over the ground chutney. Mix and serve with idli or dosa. This can be stored in the fridge for upto 3 days.

Mushrooms with Peas and Lotus Seeds

In the throes of summer, I was quite fed up with all the salads and wanted to bite into some winter style Jeera rice and comforting gravy curry. All I had on hand were a bag of fresh mushrooms and some frozen peas. I also recenlty reorganised and cleaned out my pantry cupboard and found a bag of unused puffed lotus seeds, called makhana. I have eaten it in curries in vegetarian buffets here in hyderabad, but most preparations are made with cream and rather heavy. this was a quick preparation that took under 30 mins for both the rice and the curry and needed to be lite since its so damn hot here these days.

Mushrooms with Peas and Lotus Seeds

200 gms button mushrooms, cleaned and halved or quartered depending on their size

1/2 cup frozen / fresh peas

1 medium onion chopped

2 small tomatoes chopped

1/2 teaspoon ginger garlic paste / or a small piece of ginger and 2 pods garlic chopped/ smashed

1/2 teaspoon jeera / cumin powder

1 teaspoon coriander / dhania powder

1 teaspoon red chilli powder

a pinch of turmeric powder

salt to taste

1/4 cup of milk

1 teaspoon oil

1/2 teaspoon whole cumin seeds

a few sprigs of fresh coriander leaves

1/2 cup of puffed lotus seeds

heat the oil in a pan and splutter the whole cumin. add the chopped onions and fry till they change colour. add the ginger garlic and fry for a minute. Add the tomatoes and the red chilli powder, cumin powder, coriander powder and turmeric. cook for a few minutes till the tomatoes begin to shrink and are half cooked. Add the mushrooms and cover and cook on a low flame for 5 minutes. uncover, add the salt and the frozen / fresh peas and the puffed lotus seeds and cover & cook for another few minutes. open the lid, check for doneness and salt and chilli. adjust if needed. pour in the milk and stir everything around. bring to a gentle boil. turn off and serve hot with jeera rice or plain rice or rotis.

Simple Jeera Rice

this is very different from the Jeera Rice posted here 

I used unpolished basmati from the farm of a friend. and this rice is a little sticky cos it isnt polished too much. it also has the most amazing fragrance and flavour. All it needs is a little kick from the whole cumin and a little ghee. Overpowering the rice with a lot of whole spices, will be sacrilege. This is the kind of jeera rice that goes well with kadhi or rajma or this simple mushroom curry.

in a pressure cooker, heat one tablespoon of ghee. Splutter a teaspoon of whole cumin seeds, add 1 cup of washed, soaked and drained basmati rice, 2 cups of water, salt to taste. Cook under pressure for 2 whistles. wait for the pressure to release, fluff with a fork and serve hot.

Quick Breakfasts – Millet Upma

Remember this foxtail millet pulav? I tried upma and it was so good. apparently foxtail millet is used as grain for birds. as it is very cheap, it is eaten by farm labourers in india who cannot afford to buy rice. the reason foxtail millet or korralu is gaining prominence as a health food is its high nutritive value. the cooked grains taste very similar to broken rice and can be an easy substitute. if you are tired of the rava and wheat rava or semia upmas, here’s a new one to try.

Millet Upma (serves 2)

2/3 cup foxtail millet, washed and soaked in water for 10 minutes

1 tablespoon oil

1 teaspoon whole mustard seeds

1 teaspoon urad / black gram dal

1 teaspoon bengal gram/ channa dal

a few curry leaves

a few sprigs of fresh coriander leaves

salt to taste

21/2 cups hot water

2 green chillies, slit

in a wok or kadai, heat the oil. Add the bengal gram and urad/ black gram dals and fry for a minute till it changes colour, add the mustard seeds and allow them to pop. add the slit green chillies and the curry leaves. add the hot water and salt and bring it to a boil. when the water is bubbling, drain the soaking foxtail millet and add it to the water, stirring continuously so that there are no lumps. add the salt, check and adjust. Cover and cook on a low flame for about 10-12 minutes. check in between to ensure there is enough water to keep the millet moist. when the water has been absorbed, the millet should be cooked soft but still firm. remove the lid, stir in the coriander leaves. Serve hot with a chutney or pickle.

here are some more links to using foxtail millet as a rice substitute

mahanandi’s korra annam

hema’s kitchen’s korra parvannam

cooking4allseasons korra annam with fenugreek leaf dal

Beat the Heat Series ~ Summer Salad with Quail Eggs

I got a few boxes of quail eggs at the supermarket a few weeks ago. I had never tasted these eggs before, but they are slowly becoming popular in the cities now and are so damn cute that I’d buy them even if I didn’t want to eat them.

I’ve had them simply fried, with a dash of salt and pepper. It took about 6 of the quail eggs to make up the quantity of one regular chicken egg.

This time I boiled them and used them in a salad, for added protein. The salad is similar to the ones that regularly feature on this blog. Cucumbers, tomatoes and a little cooked pasta. I added some wedges of pan roasted potatoes to bulk it up and add a bit of a crunch. This was an easy weeknight fix for us. Light, healthy and filling. If you don’t have quail eggs, substitute it with chopped regular hard boiled eggs.

Summer salad with quail eggs (makes 3 generous portions)

6 hard boiled, shelled and halved quail eggs (replace with one regular chicken egg)

2 cups of peeld and chopped cucumber

2 cups chopped ripe tomatoes (replace with cherry tomatoes)

2 tablespoons of fresh coriander leaves

1 cup cooked pasta (I used penne)

1 cup potato wedges

1 teaspoon olive oil

Salt and pepper to taste

For the dressing

3 tablespoons tomato sauce / ketchup

1 teaspoon green chilli sauce

½ teaspoonTabascosauce

Pinch of sugar

3 tablespoons thick yogurt / curd

2 tablepoons milk

Whisk together all the ingredients for the dressing and set aside.

Reserve the boiled eggs, toss together all the ingredients for the salad. Pour the dressing over it and mix well. Chill for atleast 30 minutes covered before serving. Before serving, plate into individual serving bowl. Garnish with 2-3 halves of the egg. Crackle some pepper on top and serve.

Pav Bhaji

Its been a rainy weekend in our part of the world….I was craving some hot spicy comforting and fuss free food (yes, i like my food uncomplicated that way…and am usually quite sure of what i want) before we headed out for a movie… A quick dash to the spanking new neighborhood grocery store to check if the had the Pav bread ensured, my mind was made up and the bhaji was simmering away before i had a chance to change my mind!

I’ve made pav bhaji many times, and used this recipe when i first wrote about it here. Obviously I have made changes to the process to suit my convenience. This is my version of making it. Its super easy and is a never fail recipe. I think the key to making good bhaji is to get the right masala. I’ve used Everest Pav Bhaji Masala and i swear by it. I have tried others, I’ve also tried substituting it with a mix of homemade masalas. Nothing seems to match the store bought everest brand masala made bhaji. So when someone else has done all the hard work to make the right mix, why bother messing with it!

Pav Bhaji (To serve 4)

1 onion, chopped fine

2 – 3 medium tomatoes chopped

1/2 cup carrots, peeled and chopped

2-3 medium potatoes, peeled and cubed

2 cups cauliflower florets

1 medium green capsicum

1/2 – 1 cup green peas

1/2 cup shredded cabbage

1 teaspoon oil

3 heaped teaspoons Everest Pav Bhaji Masala

1 heaped teaspoon red chilli powder

1 teaspoon ginger garlic paste

salt to taste

for the garnish:

finely chopped onion

Fresh coriander leaves, washed and finely chopped

lemon wedges

to serve:

8-10 pieces of pav roti or small buns

a pat of butter

In a pressure cooker, heat the oil and add the ginger garlic paste and saute till it is just beginning to stick to the pan. Add the chopped onions vegetables, red chilli powder and 1/2 cup of water. Close the lid of the pressure cooker and allow it to cook for 3-4 whistles. Once the steam has released, open the cooker and place the pan with the cooked vegetables back on a medium heat/ flame. heat through and simmer till it reaches a nice thick consistency and the water is not runny. With a potato masher or the back of a heavy ladle, mash down the cooked vegetables, add the pav bhaji masala, salt to taste and simmer for about 5 minutes till everything is well melded. adjust the seasonings if needed. it should be a nice balance of spicy, salty and tangy, nothing overpowering.

Slit the pav bread horizontally, On a hot griddle add a teaspoon of butter, place the cut side down into the butter and toast till golden and crispy, turn over and toast for a few seconds.

To serve, place the bhaji in a small bowl, garnish with finely chopped onion and coriander. place the golden toasted pav to the side. Serve hot with a wedge of lime.

If you have leftover bhaji, try my pav bhaji grilled sandwiches!

Healthier Route to a Sugar Craving – Eggless Peanut Butter Banana Oatmeal Muffins

Yes that’s a mouthful and no I couldn’t help it. I was craving sugar and I knew that i had to be sensible about it. So I looked into Cyberspace and found this recipe which i tweaked a bit. I forgot to add the egg and realised I’d inadvertently made it eggless! I sold it to K telling him to think of it as a great way to eat Oats porridge! He loved it and i did too and this is my first attempt at baking with Oats. I’ve been reading and bookmarking so many recipes, but it took one hell of a sugar craving and a really rainy beautiful afternoon for me to make these. These muffins have a moist crumb and do not reek of healthy ingredients if you know what i mean. They do have a nutty taste from the peanut butter tho. I’m trying a new workout routine and am sore all over, so dont have the will to type out a story (there isnt one actually). So here you go with the recipe!

Eggless Peanut Butter Banana Oatmeal Muffins (Makes 6 regular muffins)

1/2 cup flour (i used whole wheat, but you could sub with Maida / All purpose flour)

3/4 cup oats (i used quick cooking)

a pinch of baking soda

1/3 teaspoon baking powder

a pinch of salt

1 T vegetable oil

4 tablespoons brown sugar + 2 tablespoons for topping

i mashed banana (about 2/3 of a cup)

3-4 tablespoons creamy peanut butter

2 tablespoons unsweetened natural yogurt

1/2 cup milk

1/2 cup water

Preheat Oven to 375 F, line a muffin pan with paper liners

In a blender blend thoroughly the oats, flour, baking powder, baking soda and the salt. Remove into a bowl.

Reserve 2 Tablespoons of brown sugar. In the same blender jar, add the remaining ingredients and whisk till well blended and looks like a smoothie.

Make a well in the middle of the flours and add the wet ingredients. With a light hand and a wooden spoon, mix till just incorporated. Do not overmix. The batter should be like a drop cookie batter, moist but not runny.

Drop with spoons into the paper muffin liners filling till 2/3 full. Sprinkle the reserved brown sugar on top. Bake for 22-25 min or till a skewer comes out clean. Cool on a rack for 10 minutes. These are beat eaten warm. These muffins can be refrigerated for a week. lightly warm before serving.