Instant Cucumber Dhokla | Cucumber Chickpea Steamed Cakes

Cucumber Dhokla is a savory steamed chickpea flour and semolina cake with added cucumber that is perfect for breakfast or as a tea time healthy snack.

I've been missing around the blog for 2 weeks now. I've been busy cooking up an amazing spread that will soon appear here. Now that's what I would love to say. But that's not what I have been doing. Everyone at home has been under the weather and what I have been cooking has been just soup and regular dal rice. and my taste buds totally ditched me too. I could barely make out what the food tasted like. 

I can finally taste the food and I'm SOO happy about it. 

I've recently gotten obsessed with one particular fruit and one particular vegetable - the water melon and the cucumber. And today is all about the Cucumber. I've been adding cucumber to almost everything - Upma, Akki Rotti, Sambar etc. What I love about adding Cucumber to any dish is that it ends up giving it that moistness along with a very subtle flavor. That is exactly what it did to this Dhokla.

Cucumber Dhokla is my own concoction that is inspired from the traditional Dhokla. I recently had a cucumber pakoda (Seriously!!!) and it tasted good (Really!). I never would have guessed that cucumber that besan (chickpea flour or gram flour) would go so well together. So when I set out to make dhokla this time, I got a little creative, I added in a grated cucumber and a bit more. I also added in a little bit of grated carrot, a few frozen peas, and finely chopped capsicum. Although technically, I should be calling it a mix vegetable Dhokla. I prefer calling it the Cucumber Dhokla, cause that flavor it had in the end was all fresh Cucumber.

You can skip the remaining vegetables and just stick to the cucumber and it will taste just as good - I promise.

Instant Cucumber Dhokla | Cucumber Chickpea Steamed Cakes

Instant Cucumber Dhokla is a savory steamed chickpea flour and semolina cake with added cucumber that is perfect for breakfast or as a tea time healthy snack.

Recipe Type:  Breakfast
Cuisine:            Indian
Prep Time:     15 minutes
Cook time:     20 minutes
Yield:                Serves 2-3

Ingredients:

For the Cucumber Dhokla:

3/4 cup Chickpea Flour or Besan

3/4 cup Semolina or Rava

1 grated Cucumber

1 tsp of Ginger- Garlic Paste

1 crushed Green Chilli

1 grated Carrot (Optional)

1 Tbsp Green Peas (Optional)

2 Tbsp chopped Capsicum

1.5 tsp Fruit Salt or Eno

1/4 tsp Asafoetida or Hing

2 Tbsp Yogurt or Curd

1 cup Water

Salt to taste

Oil to grease the steamer

For the Tempering:

3-4 tsp Oil

1 tsp Mustard Seeds

8-10 Curry Leaves

1-2 tsp of Lemon juice

1/2 tsp of Sugar or Jaggery

For Garnish:

2 Tbsp fresh grated Coconut

2 Tbsp finely chopped Coriander leaves

Method:

Preparing the Steamer:

1. You can steam in an Idli steamer or a pressure cooker or a large deep saucepan. If using a pressure cooker, remove the whistle.
2. Pour around 2-3 cups of water in it and cover it and allow the water to come to a boil.
3. Place a small upturned  flat bottomed bowl or vessel at the bottom of the steamer.

Preparing the Dhokla:

4. Mix together all the ingredients except the water, oil and the fruit salt.
5. Add 3/4 cup of water and mix well. Add more water if required. The dough should be thick yet pourable. Almost like a cake or idli batter. The quantity of water depends on the type of rava and besan.
6. Once your steamer is ready, grease a flat vessel that will fit into your steamer with oil. 
7. Now add the fruit salt and the remaining water and mix well. The fruit salt should cause the batter to start foaming and become light.
8. Pour the batter into the greased vessel and place it in the steamer.
9. Allow it to steam for 10-15 minutes. Depending on the depth of your vessel, you may need to keep it in longer. The Cucumber Dhokla is ready when a skewer or knife comes out clean.
10. Allow it to cook and remove from the vessel. 

Preparing the Tempering:

11. Heat oil in a pan and add the mustard seeds.
12. Once the seeds splutter, add the curry leaves.
13. Remove it off the heat and add the sugar and the lemon juice.

Assembling the Cucumber Dhokla:

14. Cut into bite sized pieces.
15. Pour the tempering over the Cucumber Dhokla.
16. Garnish with the coconut and the coriander.
17. Serve warm with coriander chutney or sweet and spicy yogurt.

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Khara Pongal

I spent 10 hours travelling by train yesterday. 10 long HOURS.
Can you imagine starting out at 5am, travelling by train for 5 hours and then spending a few hours at your destination and then travelling 5 hours in train coming back and then charging through the horrible HORRIBLE traffic home and having to cook your own dinner???

5am is close to mid night for me. I'm so not a morning person.

I was exhausted. I was more than exhausted, I don't even have a word for it. It was late to order food or parcel something from a restaurant. I was hungry and I had to eat. At times like this, come out the simplest recipes where I don't need to do a thing and magically delicious food appears on the table.

Khara Pongal is one of those magic recipes. Pongal is a South Indian version of Khichdi. To make khara pongal, all you need to do is dump rice, moong dal, water, ginger and a few other things into the rice cooker or pressure cooker and let it do its thing. And VOILA! 15-20 mins later, food on your table. It is just as simple as that.

So I washed and soaked my rice and moong dal as soon as I walked into the house. You can skip the soaking and directly cook it together but it may take you a little more time than what I took. Soaking for at least 30 minutes is recommended.

I'd never had Pongal until I moved to Bangalore. I'd never eaten rice for breakfast either until I moved to Bangalore. Then in the office cafeteria, I had khara pongal with masala vada for the first time for breakfast and it was love at first bite. Since then, I've been making it when ever I'm short of time.

Pongal is meant to be mushy, so don't worry about overcooking it. In fact, go ahead overcook it. This is why is generally fed to little kids as it needs no chewing. If serving it to kids, do not add the peppercorns and the chilli. 

Pongal is a vegan dish, but what takes it to a totally different level is the Ghee or clarified butter tempering that's poured over it. I say, the more the ghee, the better it tastes. If you are not vegan, don't forget this step. 

Khara Pongal

Khara Pongal is a quick dish made by cooking together rice and moong dal with ginger and tempered with ghee.

Recipe Type:  Main
Cuisine:            South Indian
Prep Time:     30 minutes
Cook time:     30 minutes
Yield:                Serves 2

Ingredients:

1/2 cup Rice (uncooked)
1/2 cup Moong Dal (uncooked)
3 cups Water 1/2 tsp Black Peppercorns
3/4" Ginger
1/2 tsp of Turmeric Powder
Salt to taste
3-4 tsp Ghee
8-10 Curry Leaves
1 tsp Cumin seeds

Method:

Method:

Wash the rice and dal and keep aside for 30 minutes.
Add the washed rice and dal to a pressure cooker with the water, turmeric powder, black peppercorns, grated or sliced ginger and salt.
Pressure cook for 15 minutes or for 5-6 whistles. Pongal is meant to be mushy so don't worry about overcooking it.
Heat the ghee in a small pan and add cumin seeds to it.
Once they brown slightly, turn off the heat and add the curry leaves.
Pour this tempering over the khara pongal and mix well.
Serve hot with some raita

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Coorg Pumpkin Curry

This Coorg style pumpkin curry is made with ripe pumpkin, coconut and spices. It is a spicy curry unlike most other pumpkin curries.

I don't usually crave pumpkins, at least not like I crave chocolate. But recently after eating a small bowl of pumpkin curry in office, I wanted more. And telepathically, my mother in law gave me a huge organic homegrown pumpkin. What's better than a pumpkin? A HOMEGROWN one.

The thing I hate most about pumpkins is actually peeling them. By the time I got through peeling this huge pumpkin, my palms were sore with the knife handle rubbing against them, my arms ached with all that effort. But the slightly sweet yet hot spicy coconut-ty curry made it totally worth it.

I usually make a simple dry pumpkin curry by boiling diced pumpkins with some fresh green chillies and garnishing it with freshly grated coconut. Simple and easy. It lets the sweetness of the pumpkin shine through. But this time I did not want a very sweet pumpkin curry. I wanted a change. I had something in mind but absolutely no idea how to make it.

Coorg is this beautiful place nestled among the Western Ghats of India. A bunch of friends went there several years ago and we stayed in this humble but beautiful homestay with a wonderfully warm family. The family cooked up all the traditional Coorgi delicacies and I remember one of them was this pumpkin curry with coconut, unlike I had ever eaten before. So I searched online for this curry and as usual Google spewed off many results, so I had to mix and match recipes to find the ONE. I tried this dish until I made something closer to the one in memory. 

Coorg Pumpkin Curry

Coorg style Pumpkin curry made with ripe pumpkin, coconut and spices.

Recipe Type:  Side
Cuisine:            Indian
Prep Time:     30 minutes
Cook time:     40 minutes
Yield:                Serves 3-4

Ingredients:

3 cups diced Pumpkin
3-4 tsp Oil
1 tsp Mustard seeds
6-8 Curry Leaves
1 Onion
2-3 Garlic cloves
2 tsp Coriander Powder
1 tsp Cumin Powder
1 tsp Turmeric Powder
1/2 cup grated Coconut or 1 cup of Coconut milk
1 tsp Tamarind pulp
3-4 dry red Chillies or 1-2 tsp of red chilli powder
1-2 tsp of Jaggery powder or Sugar
1 cup Water
Salt
Fresh Coriander leaves for garnish

Method:

Heat oil in a pan and add the mustard seeds.
Once they splutter, add the curry leaves, finely chopped onion and garlic. Fry until the onion is translucent.
Add the pumpkin.
Add the turmeric and water and cover and cook until the pumpkin is done.
If using grated coconut, grind together the coconut, tamarind, dry red chillies or chilli powder, cumin powder and the coriander powder with a little bit of water to make a fine masala paste.
Add it to the pumpkin in the pan and cook for 6-8 minutes.
If using coconut milk, then add the coconut milk along with the coriander powder, cumin powder, red chilli powder and the tamarind paste to the pumpkin and cook on low heat for 3-4 minutes.
Add salt and the jaggery powder or sugar and mix well.
Serve hot.

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Gojju Avalakki | Tamarind Beaten Rice

Some things get better with time - wine, cheese, wounds are some. I am inclined towards believing this Gojju Avalakki is one of them too. 

I made it for breakfast yesterday, and I thought it was good. But was it good enough to surpass all those Drafts I have and immediately make it to the blog? I wasn't so sure. May be it could wait a week? This was the first time I made it. I've eaten it before but never cooked it myself, so I overestimated the quantity and made enough for breakfast and more. So when I had my 5pm hunger pangs, I took it out of the fridge and microwaved it. One spoon down and I was thinking, this is good... Second spoon and I was like this IS GOOD and I have to take photos before I finish this entire bowl.

Then it was a rush to catch the last few rays of natural light and no time to think about composition or background or anything, just click click click and hope they turned out good enough. I'm happy with the clicks. 

Gojju Avalakki or Huli Avalakki is a simple and quick dish from Karnataka that is made with beaten rice or poha or avalakki and tamarind. It is flavored with Sambar or Rasam powder. 

I searched online for recipes and found so many different versions. A lot of them powdered the beaten rice and somehow that did not appeal to me. I like the texture of the beaten rice flakes, so I skipped that step. A lot of the recipes also used both rasam and sambar powders, so did I since I had both at home. You can use either one or both depending what is stocked in your house. I used store bought ready made powders. 

There were many complicated recipes, but I made my own that is extremely simple. All you need to do is squeeze out the juice of tamarind and add all spices to it. Add it to the tempering and then add washed beaten rice to it. Very simple and easy - I guarentee you.

Have I mentioned how much I love fresh coconut? I love to garnish anything and everything with coconut. I was super generous with it, I definitely used 1-2 Tbsp more that what I have in the recipe, but I listed down what any normal person without my fetish for coconut would add. I always believe the more the coconut the tastier the dish. I even used coconut oil. 

I have mentioned 2 Tbsp for peanuts too, but then you can go all NUTS over peanuts and add more. 

Gojju Avalakki | Tamarind Beaten Rice

Gojju Avalakki or Huli Avalakki is a simple and quick dish from Karnataka that is made with beaten rice or poha or avalakki and tamarind. It is flavored with Sambar or Rasam powder. 

Recipe Type:  Breakfast
Cuisine:            South Indian
Prep Time:     15 minutes
Cook time:      15 minutes
Yield:                 Serves 3


Ingredients:

3 cups of Beaten Rice or Poha or Avalakki (Use the medium or thick variety, not the paper thin one)
1/2 cup warm Water
1 big lemon sized ball of Tamarind
2 tsp of Rasam Powder
1 tsp of Sambar Powder (Replace with 1 tsp of Rasam powder if you don't have sambar powder)
1 tsp of Red Chilli Powder (Optional)
A pinch of Hing or Asafoetida
2 Tbsp of Peanuts
2 Tbsp of fresh grated Coconut
3-4 tsp of Coconut Oil or vegetable oil
1 tsp of Mustard seeds
1 sprig of Curry Leaves
1 tsp of Jaggery Powder or Sugar
2 Tbsp of finely chopped Coriander Leaves
Salt to taste

Method:

Method:

Soak the tamarind in 1/2 cup warm water and keep it aside for 10 mins.
Squeeze the tamarind pulp into the water to get tamarind juice.
Add the rasam powder, sambar powder, hing, red chilli powder, jaggery powder or sugar and 1 tsp of salt and mix well.
Wash the avalakki twice and drain the water completely and keep aside.
Heat oil in a kadhai or pan and add the mustard seeds.
Once they splutter, add the peanuts and fry until the peanuts turn slightly dark.
Add the curry leaves and the tamarind juice.
Cook on medium low heat for 2-3 minutes.
Add the avalakki and mix well. Add salt as needed.
Cook for 4-5 minutes on low heat.
Garnish with fresh grated coconut and finely chopped coriander leaves and serve.

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Double Beans Masala

Have you ever left a thing for so long that you totally forget about it and then one sudden day it suddenly pop's back into your mind and then just won't let go? Long long question there. I'm usually like that around washed clothes. I absolutely dislike folding laundry and will procrastinate it until I can.

This Double Beans Masala recipe is exactly like that "IT" for me. I made it looong back in March. I made it, I clicked photos and I noted down the recipe diligently and I left it in drafts for 2 whole months. I cooked something else, and blogged about them and somehow this Double Beans Masala just sat there sadly in the "Drafts" folder of Blogger.

Today, I finally decided it's high time I empty out my drafts. I need to get those 15 recipes out to the world.

I'm not sure if these beans are really double beans. I googled "Pink double beans" and what ended up in the image results looked exactly like what I had. So I guess it is just a variety of double beans.

This Double Beans Masala recipe is very versatile. It is basically beans cooked in a masala gravy. You can adapt it to any beans you have available - use chickpeas, pinto beans, black eyed peas, it will end up being just as delicious.

The beans are just one part of the curry, the masala gravy is the other. This is a very standard Indian masala gravy made with the basic - onion, tomato, ginger, garlic and some spices. Just puree the onions and tomatoes, fry them up and allow it to cook on low flame. Add the spices and VOILA, your masala gravy is ready. Add anything you like to it - beans, peas, paneer, tofu

The Kitchen King masala is a magic spice blend available in the market. It is my absolute FAVORITE spice blend or masala powder for the time being. I use it in anything and everything. I was never a big fan of Garam Masala and am soooo happy to have found this Kitchen King masala. I highly recommend it, but if you cannot find it, add Garam Masala, it goes just as well.

This curry taste best with any kind of bread - chapati, roti, naan or just plain old white bread. But you can have it with rice as well. Just add more water to loosen it.

Double Beans Masala

Double Beans Masala is a semi dry curry made using fresh double beans, basic Indian spices and fresh tomatoes. Vegan and Gluten free.

Recipe Type:  Side
Cuisine:         Indian
Prep Time:    15 minutes
Cook time:     45 minutes
Yield:             Serves 2

Ingredients:

1 cup of fresh Double Beans
1 Onion
1 Tomato
1-2 Garlic cloves
1/2" piece of Ginger
1/2 tsp of Turmeric Powder
1/2 tsp of Red Chilli Powder
1/2 tsp of Kitchen King Masala or Garam Masala
3 tsp of Oil
Water
Salt to taste
A handful of fresh Coriander leaves

Method:

Pressure cook the double beans with 1 cup of water and 1/2 tsp of salt until it is done. It takes only 1-2 whistles or around 5 minutes. Overcooking will make the double beans mushy.
Grind together the onion, tomato, ginger and garlic into a fine puree. Add a little water if needed.
Heat the oil in a pan and add the cumin seeds.
Once they brown, add the onion-tomato puree and fry on low heat for 8-10 minutes.
Add all the spices and double beans and mix well.
Add salt.
Add water to achieve the desired consistency.
Allow the beans to cook with the masala for 3-5 minutes on low heat.
Garnish with finely chopped coriander leaves and serve with rotis.

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Breakfast Bruschetta Duo - Tomato & Onion and Avocado & Olives

Saturday.... Finally... What is your PERFECT Saturday?? Leave me a comment...

Mine is waking up late, a hearty breakfast, a good cup of ginger tea and the morning paper. 

I got all of that today with these Breakfast Bruschetta Duo. Soooo PERFECT....

I like to keep breakfasts as simple as possible. Usually, breakfast is my simplest meal of the day. On weekdays, I snooze and snooze my alarm until I have to wake up ( Don't you just love the SNOOZE button? ) and then there is a whirlwind in the house as I rush around to get ready to go to work. I definitely don't have time for a fancy breakfast. So something quick that I can whip up is the solution. 

I make BreakFEAST only on weekends. But after an extremely hectic week, I really did not fancy any more hard work on Saturday!!! So today was the day to keep it simple yet hearty and TASTY.

I woke up at 9 and bam! it's 9.30 and I was plonked on the bean bag in front of the TV watching the latest season of MasterChef and eating my oh-so-easy-yet-delicious Breakfast Bruschetta Duo. Don't they look AMAZING?? 

I love love LOVE colorful food. Makes me wanna eat it immediately. I had to control my urge, until I could finish taking photos. The idea of Breakfast Bruschetta Duo is inspired from the Goddess of TV cooking - Nigella. I did not follow her exact recipe though, I changed the topping to my liking.

I could have these Bruschetta for lunch, snacks, tea and dinner... I could pretty much have them all day long. I cannot get enough of them. So FRESH and so EASY. All I had to do was find the freshest sourdough bread in the supermarket yesterday. And today morning, all I did was chop chop chop as Raj made ginger tea for us. And then just toast the bread, top with the chopped veggies, sprinkle salt and pepper... a drizzle of some extra virgin Olive Oil and we're DONE.

I don't know anything that could be easier than that and look that GOOD. Do you?

I used a sourdough loaf. I've made these before using Baguette. They taste just as good with regular bread. Use what you have and it'll still taste just as delicious. 

The first Bruschetta is topped with chopped fresh tomato, red onion and coriander, while the second one is topped with sliced avocado, green olives and fresh mint leaves. I also made a third kind - the Tomato and Avocado one. But they were eaten before I could get a single photo. You see, it started out as may be 3 bruschettas per person. Then Raj saw them and I saw them and both were tempted, so we were like let's just make it even so we both get 2 of both. By the time we were done with 3, we wanted MORE.... So he was on toasting bread duty, while I went to chopping. And we had a third variety. 

That's the best thing about these Breakfast Bruschettas, you can mix and match the toppings. Put what you love. Someday, when I have all the time in the world, I'm gonna make my other favorite bruschetta - the caramelized onion and mushroom one... yummmm.... Until then, back to the simple life.

Breakfast Bruschetta Duo - Tomato & Onion and Avocado & Olives

A duo of bruschettas perfect for breakfast - one topped with tomato and onion and the other with avocado and olives. 

Recipe Type:  Breakfast
Cuisine:         International
Prep Time:    20 minutes
Cook time:     5 minutes
Yield:             8 Bruschettas

Ingredients:

1 Sourdough loaf or Baguette
1 large Tomato
1 red Onion
A handful of fresh Coriander leaves
1/2 Avocado
8-10 green Olives
A handful of fresh Mint leaves
2 Tbsp of extra virgin Olive Oil
Salt
Freshly cracked Pepper
Lime

Method:

Slice the bread into thick slices.
Toast them on a griddle or tava for 3-4 mins. Remove onto a plate.
In the meanwhile, finely chop the tomato, red onion and coriander leaves and mix well.
Slice the avocado and the green olives.
Top half the slices with the tomato mix and half with the avocado and olives one. Add Mint to the avocado and olive bruschetta.
Sprinkle salt and pepper.
Drizzle the olive oil. Squeeze lime on the bruschetta.
Serve immediately.

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Rajma Chawal or Red Kidney Beans Masala with Rice

Rajma Chawal is red kidney beans cooked in a masala made from onion, tomato and some spices served over a bed of white rice.

Haaapy Wednesday....

I'm not entirely sure about my feelings for Wednesday, the optimist in me says the week is half done and the cynic in me says there are still TWO days left to go... Either way, it calls for a treat, don't you think so?

I've had a hectic time going on. It was pretty much work work work until Sunday where I worked for a full day on the blog.Yes, an ENTIRE day. Raj just did his stuff and I did mine. Sis cooked up lunch and we just ate Masala Puri - a local street food for dinner. I redesigned a lot of stuff around on the blog on Sunday. Tried different templates, but finally decided HTML isn't my cup of tea. Too much effort, so reverted back to my old template and just updated the layout. The awesomely beautiful weather totally helped the non-working-yet-working Sunday I had. Such heavy lashing rains and melodious songs on YouTube. Have I mentioned, I absolutely LOVE rains.

And then back to the work work work grind from Monday. So it is finally mid week and I deserved my treat I believe. Something delicious, yet quick to make. When I'm stressed out, I always make rice. On other days, I'm not usually a big fan of rice. I stick to rotis (wholewheat flatbread). But I think it is that starchy comfort I seek in rice when I'm all drained out. And what goes well with Rice - RAJMA...   Rajma Chawal in simple English words is Beans and Rice. Beans and Rice, now that's a world famous combo.

I highly recommend using Basmati rice here. The long grains and the fragrance of Basmati makes any simple dish also seem special. But I was out of Basmati. So I had to make do with regular short grain rice. But I highly highly recommend Basmati. Did I mention that already?

Have you ever fried onions and garlic in oil? Or at least been around when someone else was frying it? Doesn't it just smell AMAZING? That aroma always makes me hungry, even after I've just had a big meal. Well, this Rajma Chawal is a treat for the nose too with the frying-of-onion-and-garlic. It is the perfect appetite builder. So I am not responsible for munching on those banana chips while cooking, it was the onions.

I've pretty much used the same recipe in the past to make black bean soup. Just replace the red kidney beans with the black ones and you are done. So if you want to skip the rice, although I suggest you try this famous marriage of flavors, you can have the Rajma just as a regular spiced soup with some crusty bread to mop it up.

Rajma Chawal or Red Kidney Beans Masala with Rice

Red kidney beans cooked in a masala made from onion, tomato and some spices served over a bed of white rice.

Recipe Type:  Main
Cuisine:         North Indian
Prep Time:    20 minutes
Cook time:     45 minutes
Yield:             Serves 2

Ingredients:

Rajma:

2 cups cooked Red Kidney Beans or Rajma (see note if using dried beans)

2 Tomatoes

1 large Onion

1-2 cloves Garlic

1/2" piece of Ginger

2 tsp Cumin Powder or Jeera powder

1 tsp of Coriander Powder or Dhania Powder

1/2 tsp of Garam Masala

1 tsp of Cumin seeds or Jeera

1 tsp Sugar or Jaggery powder

1 tbsp of Kasuri Methi (Optional)

4 tsp of Oil

Salt to taste

Water

A handful of coriander leaves for garnish

Chawal:

1 cup of Rice (preferably Basmati)

2 cups of Water

Method:

Chawal:

Wash the rice twice with sufficient water.
In a deep pan, bring 2 cups of water to boil.
Once it comes to a rolling boil, add the washed rice and cover and cook until the rice is done.
Drain out any excess water.
Alternatively, pressure cook the rice for around 2-3 whistles or 8-10 minutes after the pressure builds up to cut the rice cooking time into half.

Rajma:

Heat the oil in a pan and add the cumin seeds.
Grind together the onion, ginger and garlic and add to the pan.
Fry the onion paste until it turns slightly brown or for about 3-4 minutes.
Grind the tomato into a puree.
Add the tomato puree to the pan and mix well. Fry for 2-3 minutes.
Now add all the spice powders and 1 cup water and allow it to simmer on low heat for 4-5 minutes. If you used dried beans and cooked it yourself, then instead of plain water, you can use the water in which the beans were cooked in.
Add the cooked beans, salt and sugar or jaggery and cook for another 2-3 minutes.
Add the kasuri methi and mix well. 
Garnish with fresh coriander leaves and serve with rice.

Note

If using dried red kidney beans or rajma like me, then soak 1 cup of dried beans for 8-10 hours.

Drain out the water.

In a pressure cooker or a deep pan, add the soaked beans and add enough water to cover the beans and a little more. 

Add salt and cover and cook until the beans are done but not mushy.

I cooked in the pressure cooker, so after the first whistle, I lowered the heat and allowed it to cook for 15 minutes.

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Maavina Hannu Seekarne or Aamras

The best thing about summer??? MANGOES. My sweet dreams are made of eating a ripe juicy mango dripping juice all over my hands. I never saw any other reason for the month of May to appear on the Calendar. I mean, May is the HOTTEST month of the year. In school, it marked the end of one month of summer vacations. The only saving grace for the month of May was the mangoes it brought with it.

Every Indian household I know uses mangoes to make either their favorite milkshake, or lassi, or dessert or pickle. There are so many dishes that you can make with Mangoes - both raw and ripe. I've made a few in the past:

Mavinkayee Chitranna or Mango Rice - Flavored rice made with grated raw mangoes and leftover rice.

Hagalkai Mavinkayee Gojju or Bittergourd & Raw Mango Curry - Bitter sweet sour and spicy curry made with bitter gourd and raw mangoes

Sweet and Sour Mango Curry or Saasav or Pashingiri - Mango curry made with ripe mangoes and fresh coconut famous along the Konkan coast of India.

Aam Panna or Sweet and Spicy Raw Mango Cooler - A sweet and spicy beverage made using raw mangoes

Mango Cheesecake - Cheesecake made using fresh mangoes, paneer and agar agar.

Raw Mango Gojju - South Indian raw mango curry and coconut curry

Corn and Raw Mango Salsa - A Simple Salsa made with boiled sweet corn and raw mango.

Don't you just want to grab that bowl of luscious Seekarne and eat it right now?

Maavina hannu Seekane or Aamras is probably the easiest delicacy you can make with Mangoes. All you need are ripe fresh JUICY mangoes. India is the birthplace of Mango and every state has it's own favorite. Alphonso, Kesar, Dasheri, Badami, Mankurad (Being a Goan, I had to list this one), Raspuri etc.There are so many more varieties, I don't even know all the names. 

Maavinahannu Seekarne or Aamras was my Mom's favorite Mango dish, she made it every summer, without fail. I made this today as a dedication to her. 

Maavinahannu Seekarne can be made in two ways, either by finely chopping the mangoes, like my mom made it or squeezing the mango to get a fine puree, the way my grandmother made it. The only difference in the 2 methods, is the way the mango pulp is treated - chopped or pureed. It is typically flavored with cardamom and almost always has a little milk added to it.

Traditionally, the Maharastrians eat their aamras with deep fried puris and here in Karnataka, it is eaten with chapati - the pan fried wholewheat flatbread. But you can eat it just like that as a dessert. Seekarne tastes best chilled for an hour or two in the fridge. But you can eat it at room temperature as well.

Maavina Hannu Seekarne or Aamras

Maavina Hannu Seekarne or Aamras is a simple traditional dessert made with mango pulp and milk and flavored with cardamom.

Recipe Type:  Dessert/ Drink
Cuisine:         Indian
Prep Time:     15 minutes
Yield:             2-3 bowls

Ingredients:

2 ripe Mangoes
1/2 cup of Milk
1 tsp Cardamom Powder
1-2 tsp Jaggery Powder or Sugar

Method:

Peel the mangoes and chop the mango cheeks finely. Alternatively, instead of chopping it, you can just puree the mango.
Add cardamom powder and milk. Mix well.
Taste and check if you want it sweeter, then add jaggery or sugar.

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Mint Lime Cooler | Pudina Lime Juice

The evening just became PERFECT. I'm sitting in my balcony and gazing at the stars. The moon is peeking from behind the clouds. There is that din of daily traffic that comforts me that I'm not alone. The radio is playing those melodious songs from old black and white movies. AND. I am sipping on my new summer drink - Mint Lime Cooler as I much on some spicy roasted nuts.

This first paragraph on twinkling stars, I wrote yesterday, but then it was late and all I wanted to do was crash into the bed and go to sleep. And something happened overnight. The weather changed. I mean it is weather and it is supposed to change. But I have rarely seen such a drastic change. It was summer yesterday, perfect for my Mint Lime Cooler and today, I'm sitting in the exact same place, but Brrrr...., I'd rather have a cup of steaming hot ginger tea than anything that is "COOL".

It rained in the evening and how the mercury dropped!!! My stars, have hidden behind those orange clouds that are lighting up the sky and the Moon, I'm not even sure if it has risen today.

I know that this cool weather may not last long. For all I know, it's gonna be bright and sunny and hot tomorrow and I'm gonna want to reach out to my Mint Lime Cooler.

For all of you not as fortunate to have a cool weather wave going on, let me list down why this is the best and most economical drink to lift up your hot summer days:

Mint - It is a natural stimulant. Mint charges your batteries and gets your brain functioning. It helps lift your spirits when you are sluggish or anxious or depressed. And guess what? Mint also helps you lose fat.

Lemon - I'm not sure this blog post is enough to list down all the good things about the Lemon. It is rich in Vitamin C and sooo many other nutrients. It apparently helps prevent digestive ailments, diabetes and what not. In short, it is a wonder fruit.

Basil Seeds / Sabza - These seeds are very similar to chia seeds. They fluff up when soaked in any liquid. They form a major part of Falooda - another summer drink. They are known to reduce cholesterol and I've heard they help cool down the body.

Mint Lime Cooler | Pudina Lime Juice

Mint Lime Cooler is a chilled beverage made by blending lime juice and mint together.

Recipe Type:  Beverage / Drink
Cuisine:         International
Yield:             2 tall glasses

Ingredients:

1 cup loosely packed fresh Mint leaves
2 Lemons
5-6 tsp Jaggery powder or Sugar
1/2 tsp of Black Salt
2 tsp of Chia or Basil seeds (sabza)
3 cups of Water

Method:

Blend together everything except the Chia or Basil seeds until the mint is combined well.
Add the chia or basil seeds and refrigerate for a few hours.
This allows the basil seeds to fluff up.
Serve chilled.

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Beetroot and Cauliflower Burgers with Eggless Mayo

BURGER or PIZZA? Definitely, burgers for me. When I've had a hard day and my stomach craves some comforting fast food, it is always the burger I turn to. Every single time (I've had hundreds), I decide to go on a diet, I always grab that one last burger. I always assume it's my last for a loonnng time. You can't punish a  girl for being positive. But my weakness for food usually overtakes my willpower to lose weight and I'm quicker at a burger joint than I'd prefer to be.

This time tough, I'm not on a diet and neither at a burger joint. I'm in my house, standing in my kitchen, making my own HEALTHY burger. Usually, a veggie burger has to have Potato, correct? WRONG!!! Not this one. This is 100% potato free. It is full of beets, cauliflower and beans. It's a nice way to trick someone into having their veggie fix for the day. 

I've always loved beets. As a kid I was obsessed with the color Pink. I had to have that pink dress, that pink ribbon, that pink compass box, that pink pencil. Show me something in pink and orange, and I would always pick the pink one. May be it was my obsession with the color pink that made me love beets or may be it was the sweetness of the beets. I've always had a massive sweet tooth. But beets remained my friend for life. Look how pretty pink these burgers look....

I added the cauliflower, just to add some bite to the burgers. The beans are a must though. You can replace the kidney beans with chickpeas, black eyed peas or any beans capable of becoming mushy. The beans act as a binding agent in the burger in the absence of potato or eggs. 

Most of the beet burger recipes I've browsed in the past, ask for roasted beets and that is a lot of effort. So I made the LAZY version of the beet burger. Just some grated beets, grated cauliflower, some cooked beans - mash mash mash. Add spices. Mix mix mix. Then shape and fry in a pan. EASY, right? It definitely is!! To get firm burgers, us

I paired the burgers with homemade eggless Mayo. Very simple to make and tastes just like the store bought one. Some tips for the Eggless Mayo:

• The mustard makes all the difference. If you don't have mustard powder, just crush a few mustard seeds and add that.
• If the Mayo ends up having lumps, do not worry, just strain it using a strainer once it cools to remove the lumps.
• If the Mayo ends up becoming one hard lump, blend it in the mixer or blender with a little milk to loosen it up.
• Allow the Mayo to cook, before adding the vinegar to prevent the milk in it from curdling.
• To make it Vegan, use any vegan milk like soy or almond.

Beetroot and Cauliflower Burgers with Eggless Mayo

Spiced beetroot, cauliflower and beans patty combined with some eggless mayo to make a Veggie Burger

Recipe Type:  Snacks
Cuisine:          International
Prep Time:     15 minutes
Cook time:     20 minutes
Yield:              4

Ingredients:

Beetroot and Cauliflower Patties:

1 cup Red Kidney Beans (cooked)
1 cup grated Cauliflower
2 cups grated Beetroot
2 Tbsp finely chopped Coriander leaves
1 tsp of Garlic Powder
1 tsp of Garam Masala
1 tsp of Red Chilli Powder
1/2 sp of Turmeric Powder
Salt to taste
3-4 Tbsp Oil to fry

Eggless Mayo:

1 cup Milk
2 Tbsp Plain flour or Maida
1 tsp white Vinegar
1/2 tsp Mustard Powder or Mustard Seeds
1/4 tsp of powdered Sugar
Salt to taste

To assemble:

4 burger buns
Beetroot and Cauliflower Patties
Eggless Mayo

Method:

Beetroot and Cauliflower Patties:

Mash the beans well.
Add all the other ingredients to it except the oil and mix well.
Shape into patties.
Heat oil in a pan and place the patties.
Cook the first side on medium flame for 3-4 minutes. Flip and cook for another 5-6 minutes.

Eggless Mayo:

Mix the flour in 1/2 cup of milk.
Heat the remaining milk in a pan and when it starts to boil, add the milk and flour mixture and whisk well so that there are no lumps.
Keep stirring or whisking until the mayo thickens and reaches the consistency you want.
Remove from heat and allow to cool.
Add the remaining ingredients and mix well.

To assemble:

Toast the burger buns,
Spread the mayo on the buns.
Place the hot patties and serve.

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