HESARU KAALU- MOONG SPROUT

Sprouted moong is a very common item in our kitchens as an ingredient to make salads, as you know.  Since it is such a healthy food item, I was just  wondering how to make a more interesting salad out of it.  Most important for me was that the raw smell of the sprout should go. So I tried this method and it so happened that the consistency of the sprouted moong also changed for better! So, try this. I am sure you will love it!

Ingredients:

Sprouted moong                                     1 cup

Salt                                                         1 teaspoon                              

Roasted peanuts                                    1 tablespoon (crushed)

Grated carrot(optional)                           1 tablespoon

Grated coconut                                       1 tablespoon

Lemon juice            

                             

For seasoning:

Oil                                                           1 teaspoon

Mustard seeds                                        1/2 teaspoon

Ingu/hing/asafoetida)                              1 pinch

Green chily                                             1 (finely cut)

Coriander leaves                                    1 tablespoon (chopped)

Procedure:

Heat oil in a  kaDai. Add mustard seeds. When they sputter add cut chilies, hing and chopped coriander leaves. Join in the sprouted moong and salt, and immediately turn off the flame. (By doing so, the moong stays crisp and this is what gives that special consistency for the dish). Stir well. Keep the kaDai closed for a few minutes. When cool add grated carrot, coconut, crushed peanuts and lemon juice and mix well. The dish is ready to serve!

By just doing this, the raw smell of the moong disappears and you can consume four times the usual quantity that you consume  This can even be more of a `between meal' very healthy snack than just a salad. Usually in mixed vegetable salads, the the proportion of sprouted moong is about one fifth  the quantity of vegetables. Here you may or may not use vegetables- choice is left to you!

A rare combination of nutrition and good taste :)

Try now!

PUMPKIN BREAD

This is the recipe I got from the land lady of the chalet amidst red wood trees, where we stayed during our Yosemite National Park trip. To welcome us to her holiday home, Ms.Debby had brought for us this hot,  freshly baked bread with an  appetizing aroma . The bread tasted just wonderful. I requested her for the recipe and it is really nice of her to share it with me. I baked it. It came out really great! You must try this. Cake recipes  usually have maida/flour as the main ingredient, but now a days I use it whole wheat flour. Cakes turn out quite well

You need:

Maida/whole wheat flour                                                 1 ½ cups

Sugar                                                                               1 ¼ cups

Egg                                                                                  1

Butter                                                                              ¼ cup

Cold milk                                                                         ½ cup

Baking soda                                                                     1 teaspoon

Baking powder                                                                 ¼ teaspoon

Pumpkin puree                                                                 ¾ cup

Salt                                                                                   ¼ teaspoon

Ginger grated/powder                                                      ½ teaspoon           

Clove ground                                                                   ½ teaspoon

Cinnamon ground                                                           1 teaspoon

Chopped nuts, preferably walnuts                                   ½ cup                      

Procedure:                   

To make pumpkin puree:

Take thin slices of pumpkin (sihi kumbaLakai) and microwave for 2 or 4 minutes till it is half cooked. Blend coarsely in a mixer.  If you need 3/4 cups of puree, you need to take about 1 1/2 cups of sliced pumpkin. Cooked pumpkin looks like this.

For the rest of the recipe:

Sieve together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, ginger powder, clove powder powder and cinnamon powder. (If you take grated ginger, beat together with egg, butter etc.).


Now, beat the butter and sugar, preferably with an electric hand mixer. Add egg and beat well. Now add cold milk and pumpkin puree and blend very well. Blend in chopped nuts.

Pre heat the oven for about  5 minutes.

Add the sieved flour mixture to the egg mixture and blend them together. Pour the mixture into a 8" loaf pan and bake for 45 minutes at 180 degree Celsius.  Test whether the baking is complete by inserting a knitting needle or a knife in the middle of the bread. If the batter sticks to the needle, it means that the baking is not complete. Bake again for 5 or 6 minutes more. When done, cool to room temperature before cutting.

Now, ENJOY!!!!

DHOKLA

As you know, this is a Gujarathi dish. If I am right, the original recipe is one in which mixture of dals is used. That requires a little planning and also time. (Plan to post it some time later)! But this is a very quick method and the ingredients except Eno's fruit salt are always available at home. But you can always keep a stock of  a few 5gm. sachets of fruit salt at home.  Fruit salt comes in different flavours, but take care to buy the `regular'  one which  suitable for this. It is available in all medical shops and for those who live outside India,  it is available in Indian Stores. It is important to check the expiry date.

A very tasty, protein filled, non greasy, healthy and any time snack! If you come to know about the arrival of your guests three to four hours in advance, you can make and keep this ready!

So, here are the

Ingredients:

KaDale hiTTu or besan                                          3/4 cup
Chiroti rava                                                            1/4 cup
Sour curds                                                              About 3/4 to 1 cup
Thick tamarind paste                                             1/2 spoon (to be used if the curds is not sour)
Ginger                                                                    1 teaspon (finely grated)
Green chillies                                                         1 or 2 (finely cut)
Turmeric                                                                 1 pinch
Sugar                                                                      1 teaspoon
Eno's fruit salt                                                        5gm (1 sachet)
Salt                                                                         1 level teaspoon

For garnishing:

Oil                                                                           1-2 teaspoons
Mustard                                                                   1 teaspoon
Grated coconut                                                        2-3 table spoons
Coriander leaves                                                      2-3 table spoons (finely chopped)
Ingu/hing/asafoetida                                                2-3 pinches teaspoon    



Procedure:

Mix besan, chiroti rava, salt, turmeric, salt, ginger, green chilies and sugar together. Add curds and mix well till you get a consistency of idli batter. Remember to add tamarind paste if  curds is not sour. Leave it for about three hours. (If you are short of time, you can leave it just for 1 1/2 to two hours).

 Grease a 4"-6"  flat aluminium/steel pan.

Heat water in a pressure cooker on a high flame.  Keep a steel ring or a narrow container to give a bit height to place the pan. Wait till water starts boiling.

Now, the next step is to be done a bit quickly. Cut open the fruit salt sachet and quickly sprinkle over the above mixture.  You can see bubbles of gas (carbon di oxide) coming out. Now stir the contents well very quickly with a spatula and pour it into the greased pan.  It is good to finish the whole process within one minute. Now place the pan in the pressure cooker, close the lid and wait till steam starts coming out uniformly. Then steam it for about 10 minutes on a medium flame. Turn off the flame.

Allow the contents to cool for about half an hour. Take a knife around the Dhokla to make sure that the sides of the Dhokla is not sticking to the wall of the pan. Now reverse the pan on a plate and pat its base.  Transfer it the plate. 

Now your  Dhokla is ready!

Garnishing:

Heat oil and add mustard seeds. When the seeds  sputter, add ingu.  Spread this uniformly on the Dhokla.

Spread grated coconut and chopped coriander.

The Dhokla is ready to serve. Tastes great when hot.

This is usually served with tamarind chutney and or coconut chutney. But if you have enough of salt and chillies, I dont find the need of these.