Cabbage Salad with Cranberries

Yes, a healthy salad can be tasty. A little imagination can go a long way in sprucing up the not so favorite, but immensely nutritious Cabbage. Fresh cabbage adds a unique crunch to salads while adding fiber and a bunch of essential nutrients like vitamin K,C and A along with plenty of manganese, vitamin B6 and manganese. This recipe us inspired by my grandfather's original contribution to the family dinner table.

To make this salad, you will need:

1/2 a cabbage: finely shredded

1/2 cup dried cranberries

1/2 cup raisins

1 apple: chopped into bite size pieces

1/2 cup of peanut powder: roasted peanuts ground to a powder using a standard food processor

Salt, pepper and jaggery to taste: you can use golden brown sugar as a fantastic substitute for jaggery

1/4 cup freshly squeezed lime juice: you can add more than this if you like your salad tangy.

In a large mixing bowl combine the cabbage, cranberries and raisins.

Then, add the diced apple, salt, pepper, lemon juice and jaggery. Mix thoroughly.

Finally, add the peanut powder, mix, and let the salad sit to marinate in the lemon juice for about 30 minutes before serving.

ENJOY!

Leeks with an Indian Twist!

For someone who has grown up in Mumbai, the act of buying vegetables and other produce in a closed-door, artificial environment is well, not exactly fun. I want to feel the vegetables, look for any marks on the cauliflowers, smell the herbs and above all, be able to chat with the vendor or, if one is lucky, the farmer who actually grew the produce. When I moved to California, after several years in Scotland, I was introduced to the Farmer's Market on UCLA's busy campus. I was hooked. Cooking Indian cuisine with fresh produce feels right and the process of cleaning, pealing and chopping the vegetables makes it a very personal experience. While I had tasted leeks in an entrée in Edinburgh, the dish was distinctly not Indian but what I soon came to realize, the very popular 'Baked Leeks with Potatoes'. The mild taste of the leeks stayed with me and I was thrilled to see some fresh ones in the local farmer's market a couple of months ago. I decided to try them in an Indian curry (a.k.a. sabzi in 'Hindi'). I contemplated what spices would go with my ingredients of choice: the leeks of course, potatoes and peas. I came up with a recipe that tingled my taste buds just right. Pair up the curry with fresh 'Phulkas' and some dal and you have a healthy meal that will satisfy a hungry stomach like nothing else! So here is the recipe for the sabzi. Enjoy!

Leek and potato sabzi:

Three leeks - Washed, cleaned and sliced.Five medium-sized Potatoes - Washed, peeled and chopped into 1/2'' pieces.
Green peas - 1 cup, boiled and part cooked (the peas will start wrinkling at this point).
Grated fresh ginger - 1/2 teaspoon.
Grated fresh garlic - 1/2 teaspoon.Cumin seeds - 1 teaspoon
Turmeric - 1/2 teaspoon.
Everest sabzi masala - 1/2 teaspoon (get this in any Indian grocery store).
Jagger or golden brown sugar - 1/2 teaspoon.Salt to taste and some water.

In a saucepan, take 2 tablespoons of canola oil and heat the oil on medium heat. Add the cumin seeds to the oil when it is hot. At this point when added, the seeds will brown and sputter. Traditionally, this step of adding whole spices to hot oil while cooking is often referred to as 'tadka' in Hindi, or 'phodni' in Marathi, the language I speak in Mumbai and is local to the state of Maharashtra. Once the seeds start to crackle, add the sliced leeks and saute them until they turn translucent, with the flame on medium to low heat. Now is the time to add the ginger paste, garlic paste and turmeric to the sauce pan. At once, you will get an earthy aroma with the leeks getting coated with a nice orange hue. Saute some more, say for about 1 minute and add the chopped potatoes. Saute for another two minutes and the part boiled peas. Stir all the ingredients thoroughly. Now, add some water to the sauce pan, I would say about a 1/4 cup and cover with a lid. Let the potatoes cook until just right. We do not want to lose the vegetable shapes to a liquid mush. Hence it is necessary to use as little water as possible. Once a fork can easily insert into the potato pieces, remove the lid, and turn the heat to a low setting. Add the sabzi masala, salt and sugar. Stir well and serve piping hot with the Phulkas.

Lentil Dal with Baby Grape Tomatoes

Brown lentils make a great base for satisfying and nutritious dals. I always sprout the lentils before using them. It takes about 24 - 48 hours. I never store the sprouted lentils for more than a few hours before using them. Grape tomatoes add a unique flavor to this dal. I always make this dal when the tomatoes are in season and available in plenty at the local farmer's market!

Ingredients:

Brown lentils: 1 cup, soaked overnight in 1 cup of water and then sprouted to the point where you just see the seed germinate.
Red onion: 1 small, chopped.
Grape tomatoes: 1/2 cup, washed and halved.
Cilantro: fresh, chopped, 2 tablespoons.
Asafoetida: A pinch
Cumin seeds: 1 teaspoon.
Turmeric: 1 teaspoon.
Garlic: fresh, grated, 1 teaspoon.
Red chili powder: 1/2 teaspoon.
Cumin powder: 1 teaspoon.
Coriander powder: 1 teaspoon.
Salt to taste.
Jaggery or Brown sugar: 1/2 teaspoon. (I buy it from the local Trader Joe's)
Pressure cook the lentils the day before if you are hard pressed for time on the day you plan to cook the dal.

In a saucepan, heat 1 tablespoon of canola oil and add the cumin seeds. We want them to brown but not sputter. Then add a pinch of Asafoetida and stir. Add the chopped onions and saute them until they turn pink and translucent. Add the garlic and saute for a minute. Then, add the turmeric and saute for about half a minute or so. At this point add the halved tomatoes and saute until the tomatoes sweat and begin to soften. Now add the cooked lentils and mix the ingredients thoroughly. Bring the lentils to a boil by adding about 1/2 a cup of water. Add the cumin powder, coriander powder, chili powder, salt and sugar and mix well. Cook on low heat for another five minutes. Serve with the chopped cilantro either as decoration or mixed into the dal as shown in the picture below.

Beetroot Salad/Raita

When one thinks of Beets, a deep crimson color immediately flashes in our mind. This root vegetable is full of essential nutrients that our body needs. I like to eat it after it is boiled, sliced with a dash of salt as a side or as a raita. Here is a simple recipe for a raita that I often make to accompany dal and rice.

You will need:

2-3 beets: I buy the organic ones sold in the local farmers market.
Yogurt and some chopped cilantro.
Cumin powder
Salt to taste
Brown sugar to taste.

Pressure cook the beets. Remove the skin and grate in a large bowl.

To this, add:
Yogurt (as per taste, the picture below should be able to guide you), chopped cilantro (about a tablespoon), a teaspoon of cumin powder, salt to taste and a teaspoon of brown sugar.


Mix thoroughly and serve as a side dish.


ENJOY!

Split Pigeon Peas Dal or Toor Dal

Split pigeon peas, also knows as "toor" in India are a staple source of protein in a daily meal. Here is a simple recipe using green chillies and tomatoes for a quick and nutritious dal.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup of toor dal, soaked for about half an hour and then pressure cooked.
Six small tomatoes chopped into smaller pieces.
1/2 teaspoon of cumin seeds and mustard seeds each.
A pinch of Asafoetida.
1 teaspoon of turmeric.
2 green chillies chopped into smaller pieces - For a less spicy dal, use only 1 green chilli.
1 teaspoon Goda masala - this is a unique blend of spices used in the cuisine of Maharashtra (India)


Take about 1 tablespoon of canola oil in a deep saucepan. Add the cumin and mustard seeds once the oil is hot (the range setting should never be higher than medium) so that they crackle once they hit the oil. Then, add the turmeric, asafoetida and green chilli pieces. Saute the spices for about half a minute. Then, add the chopped tomatoes and let them sweat.


Now add the cooked toor dal and 1/2 a cup of water to the saucepan. Bring the mixture to a boil. After boiling the dal for about 2 minutes, set the range to a low setting and add 1 teaspoon of the Goda masala. Allow to simmer for about 5 minutes. Serve hot with Rice.

ENJOY!