Eggless Raisin Bread

I was getting extremely bored yesterday afternoon and decided to bake something. That is when I came across this recipe in a fellow blogger’s site. The original recipe called for dates...which I did not have at home. I remembered the raisins in my pantry and felt that they would be the right substitute. Another change was the addition of nutmeg, which I love. I also had to make do with baking powder alone as I did not have baking soda...the final result was really delicious; so here goes. 

Ingredients

Wheat flour - 1 cup

Baking powder – 1tsp

Salt – ¼ tsp

Raisins – ¼ cup

Honey – ¼ cup

Milk – ¾ cup

Oil - 3 tbsps (I used olive oil)

Nutmeg – a pinch

Method

In a bowl, mix all the wet ingredients (milk, honey and oil). In a different bowl, mix the dry ingredients (nutmeg, flour, baking powder and salt). Preheat the oven to 350⁰F and grease the baking pan with oil/butter. Add the wet ingredients to the dry and mix well. Fold in the raisins and you will a sticky batter. Don’t worry, that’s how it should be.  

Pour into the greased pan and bake for about 30 minutes. Mine was ready in 25 minutes, so please keep an eye on it. If a toothpick or knife comes out clean, then your bread is done. Bon Appétit.

Source - http://sobha-goodfood.blogspot.com/2011/06/dates-bread-eggless-and-sugarless.html

Toor Dal (split pigeon peas) and Green Tomato Gravy

This recipe goes out to everybody who is on the look out for quick, easy and healthy side dishes to go with rice and rotis. My mother-in-law very regularly watches cooking shows on an Indian television channel and religiously takes down recipes which she finds interesting. This is one of them. 

Ingredients (Serves 3)

Toor dal – ½ cup

Garlic – 3-4 cloves

Green chillies (sliced/chopped) – 2-3

Green tomatoes (diced) – 2-3

Tamarind water – 1-2 tbsps

Turmeric powder – ½ tsp

Chilli powder – ½ tsp

Salt to taste

Oil for seasoning – 1 tbsp

For Seasoning

Red chillies – 2-3

Mustard seeds – 1 tsp

Garlic – 1-2 cloves (optional)

Method 

Take the tamarind in a small bowl, add hot water and keep aside. After around 15 minutes, squeeze out the tamarind completely, strain the water and keep it ready for use. Place the dal, tomatoes, garlic, green chillies and tamarind water in a pressure cooker. Add more water to immerse the ingredients completely. Add turmeric, chilli powder and salt and cook until the dal completely mashed. (The number of whistles will vary with the cooker and the dal - mine required 5 whistles to get to the right consistency). 

Once the pressure has released, open the cooker and mash the mixture well.

Take oil in a small pan and once it is hot, add mustard seeds. As they splutter, add the red chillies and garlic (if using) and sauté for a few seconds. I left out the garlic in the seasoning because I did not want the garlic to overpower the other flavours. 

Add the seasoning to the dal mixture and serve hot with rice or rotis. Bon Appétit!

The Good-Old Tomato Soup Made Healthy

Tomato soup has always been my favourite among soups. The tomato soup that you get in the restaurants is usually  rich and creamy and every time I had a bowl, I would enjoy it thoroughly but be guilty about it later.

Once when I was reading something on the internet, I saw a recipe for tomato soup with no cream or butter. When I read on, I realised that the recipe used carrots to thicken the soup and had no unhealthy ingredients at all.

I decided to try it and the result was really yummy. From then on, this soup has become a regular dish in my kitchen’s menu.

Ingredients (Serves 2)

6-8  - Medium sized tomatoes (whole)

1-2 - Carrots (finely chopped)

1 - Onion (finely chopped)

2-3 Cloves - Garlic

1 - Celery stalk
Oil for sauteing

Spices

1 tsp - Basil

1 tsp - Sugar (optional)

2 tsp - Salt  (to taste)

2 tsp - Ground black pepper  (to taste)

Method

Boil water in a big pot. Add the tomatoes, celery and carrots to the boiling water and let it cook for about 10-15 minutes. Drain the water and let the vegetables cool. Save the vegetable stalk for later use. In a pan, add a drop of oil and sauté the onions and garlic nicely. When the vegetables have cooled a bit, grind in a blender. Add the sauteéd onions and garlic and grind the mixture to make a smooth paste.

Pour the paste into a big pot. Add basil, sugar, salt and ground pepper to it. Mix well. Add a little vegetable stalk and mix well. Boil the soup nicely. Keep adding the vegetable water to bring required consistency. Serve the hot tomato soup with your choice of bread or croutons.

Strawberry Jam/Preserves

Two weeks ago, I bought a box of strawberries from Costco (whole sale store) and ever since have been feasting on the luscious berries. Once I reached my strawberry saturation, I decided to make jam/preserves out of it. I am not quite sure if I can call it preserves..as I have not added any preservatives. Anyway, here is what I did. 

Ingredients 

1 1/2 cups - Chopped strawberries

3-4 tbsps - Sugar

1/4 cup - Water

Method

Add water to the chopped strawberries and let it cook. Once the berries are completely cooked, add sugar and stir. Leave it on low heat and stir occasionally. Keep going until all the water is gone and you are left with a nice thick, spreadable paste.

You can of course add more sugar if you prefer your jam very sweet. I prefer mine slightly tart, hence the 4 spoons. Also, if you want smoother jam, mash the berries while they are cooking in the water. Alternatively, you could also blend the berries before cooking. If you chose that route, you may not need water for cooking.

Substitute strawberries with berries of your choice and if you are adventurous, you could make a mixed berry jam. Bon Appétit!

Cous Cous (Indian Style) (Serves 2)

A few years ago, when I was planning a trip to India, I asked my mom if she wanted anything specific from here. And she mentioned a dish that one of her friends used to bring to work. She did not remember the name and all she could give was a description of how it looked. I had heard of Cous Cous then, but had no idea what it was and how it was cooked. I did a little looking around and found this mysterious new food item in the nearby supermarket.

According to Wikipedia, ‘Couscous is a North African and Sicilian dish of semolina traditionally served with a meat or vegetable stew spooned over it.’ The best thing I like about it is its quick cooking time.

We Indians are experts in giving foreign foods a Desi (Indian) touch. The result…is given below.

Ingredients 

3/4^th cup - Cous Cous

2-3 tbsps - Capsicum (finely chopped)

2-3 tbsps - Carrot (Shredded)

5  - Cherry tomatoes (chopped into thin circles)

1 tbsp - Oil 

1 tsp - Mustard seeds

3-4 - Mint leaves

3/4^th cup - Water

Coriander leaves for garnishing

Lemon juice to taste

Salt to taste
 

Method
Take equal amounts of cous cous and water. Place the cous cous in a wide mouthed vessel. Boil the water, add salt and pour onto the cous cous. Cover and let it sit for ten minutes. By the end of the ten minutes, the cous cous would have doubled in quantity. With a fork, fluff the cous cous to create a nice soft texture. These instructions are usually given on the cous cous packet.

In a small pan, add a little bit of oil and once it is warm, add mustard seeds and wait till they sputter. Add the cut vegetables and mint leaves. You can leave the mint leaves for garnish if you prefer the raw taste and smell of mint. Saute for 2-3 minutes and add to the cous cous and mix well. Add lemon juice and mix. Garnish with coriander leaves and serve warm. 

As all other recipes, this one too is open to improvisations. Feel free to substitute vegetables that you like and play around with the ingredients. Bon Appétit!