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Clockwise from nearest,
- Mutton Biryani
- Masala Green Beans and Navy Beans Stir Fry
- Sweet Potato and Pumpkin Curry
- Carrot Kheer
- White Rice
- Cucumber - Onion Raita
- Cranberry Relish
For the Joy of Cooking and Pleasure of Gardening - Indian Recipes made easy. [Mobile Version - Use Drop down for Search]
Cranberry Relish - Spicy IngredientsMethod
- 1 cup of fresh cranberries
- 1/4 cup of chopped onion or shallots
- 6 green chilies
- 1/2 tbsp jaggery or any sugar
- 1 tsp of red chili powder
- seasonings: mustard seeds and curry leaves
- 1 tsp of oil
- salt to taste
Cranberry Relish - Sweet
- In a sauce pan heat the oil and add the mustard seeds and curry leaves.
- Add in the green chilies and onions and saute till the onions are slightly brown.
- Add in the cranberries with the heat set to below medium high.
- Add in the chili powder and salt and cook smashing the cranberries with the back of the spoon.
- When all the cranberries are softened (take about 10 minutes) add the jaggery and turn off the heat in another 5 minutes.
Method
- 1 Cup fresh cranberries
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1 tbsp orange juice
- 1 inch piece of cinnamon stick
- a pinch of nutmeg
- In a saucepan add the cranberries, sugar,cinnamon stick and 1 cup of water and let it come to a boil
- The cranberries should start popping, add in the orange juice and cook for 8-10 minutes till the water has evaporated and all the cranberries have popped and the mixture is smooth.
Butternut Squash and Sweet Potato Curry IngredientsMethod
- 1/2 butternut squash about 2 cups diced
- 2 Sweet potatoes (use the orange or white) diced
- 1/4 cup of diced onions
- 2 tbsp curry powder any brand - I used homemade Kuzhambu thool
- 1/2 tsp of red chili powder - optional as per heat requirement
- 2 tbsp of fresh coconut grated or 1/2 cup thick coconut milk
- salt to taste
- seasonings: mustard seeds, cumin seeds and curry leaves
- 1 tsp oil
- 1 tsp turmeric powder
Serve with chapathis or rice.
- Heat oil in a wide mouthed pan and add the seasoning. When the mustard starts to pop add the onions and saute till they are soft.
- Add the cubed squash and sweet potato and the curry powder, turmeric powder and mix well. Add about 1 cup of water and let it cook till the squash is almost cooked. Takes about 8-10 minutes. Do not overcook. Add salt.
- If using fresh coconut make a paste and add it to curry. Let boil for another 5-6 minutes.
Snow Peas and Zucchini Salad with Pineapple IngredientsFor the dressing Whisk together
- Pineapple chunks about 1/2 cup (substitute with fruit of choice)
- Snow Peas about a cup (substitute with green beans)
- 1 Zucchini sliced into rounds
- Pickled banana pepper 6-8 round chopped fine
- 2 tsp olive oil
- 1 tsp pepper powder + salt
- 1/2 tbsp dressing - I used Chipotle Raspberry dressing or make your own (see below)
Method
- 1 tsp honey
- 1 tsp chili sauce or any hot sauce
- 1/2 tsp strawberry or raspberry jam or any jam
- 1 tsp lemon juice
- Par boil the snow peas in boiling water for 3-4 minutes, drain and set aside
- Roast the zucchini with a sprinkle of pepper powder and salt till tender (has to have some crunch still)
- In a sauce pan heat the olive oil and add the pineapple chunks, let it caramelize for 2-3 minutes.
- Add in the snow peas, pickled peppers and the dressing and toss together.
- Toss in the zucchini and gently mix it in so it does not break.
- Let sit for about 10 minutes before serving.
Masala Green Beans(stir fried) with Navy Beans IngredientsFor the Masala Powder
- 1/2 lb of green beans or about 2 cups chopped. chopped into thin rounds
- 1/2 cup of chopped onions (I used shallots)
- 2 cups of navy beans soaked overnight
- seasonings: mustard seeds, cumin seeds, pinch of asfoetida and curry leaves
- 1 tsp turmeric powder
- 8 red chilies broken in half and seeds removed
- 1 -2 tbsp of fresh or frozen coconut
- 1 tsp of oil
- salt to taste
Roast the above and powder Method
- 1 tbsp split urad dal
- 1 tsp of black pepper
- 1/2 tsp cumin seeds
- 1 red chili
Great as a side with rice and paruppu (cooked lentils) or with chapathis. Note: 1. Green Beans can be cooked in the kadai just after the onions have been sauteed. I like to precook the beans separately as they tend to retain their crunch better this way.
- Cook the navy beans till they are fully cooked but not mushy
- In a sauce pan add a tbsp of water and cook the green beans with a tiny bit of turmeric powder. They should be just about cooked. (see note)
- Heat a wide mouthed pan (kadai) and heat a tsp of oil and when hot add the seasonings.
- Add the red chilies and onions and cook till the onions are soft. Add salt.
- Add in the green beans and mix it in the onion mixture.
- Add in the drained navy beans and let them cook for about 5-6 minutes. They don't have to cook too long because the beans are already cooked.
- Sprinkle the masala powder and mix it in and cook for 3-4 minutes more.
- Add the coconut mix it in and turn of the heat.
Curry flavored Roasted Pumpkin Seeds Cleaning the seeds Once the seeds are out of the pumpkin, run them under water in a colander and remove the pumpkin strings and pulp. Once clean spread them on a kitchen towel and let dry. IngredientsMethod
- 1 cup of cleaned and dried pumpkin seeds
- 1/2 - 3/4 tsp of sambhar powder or any curry powder
- salt to taste
- a sprinkle of oil or cooking spray
Note: 1. If you are not using an oven use a skillet to toast the seeds. No oil is required, add the seeds when the skillet is hot and roast till the seeds start to turn color.
- Preheat the oven to 400F. In the meantime mix together all of the ingredients so the oil and spices are coated on the seeds.
- Prepare a baking sheets lined with aluminum foil. Spray with cooking spray.
- Spread the seeds on the sheet so they are in single layer.
- Bake for 10-12 minutes or till they start to acquire a slightly brown and toasted look. Let cool before transferring to a container.
Pumpkin Kofta Curry Ingredients for kofta (makes about 30) (We will use about 15 koftas for the curry)Method
- 3 cups of pumpkin pulp>
- 2 potatoes cooked and mashed about 1 cup
- 1 tbsp grated ginger
- 1 tbsp of finely chopped coriander leaves
- 1/2 tbsp of red chili powder
- 2 tbsp besan (see note)
- 1/4 cup panko bread crumbs
- 1/4 cup of corn meal
- 2 tsp of salt
- 1/4 cup of oil for shallow frying
For the Curry Ingredients
- In a mixing bowl add together all the ingredients and bring them together so they can hold together when made into small round balls.
- Make balls with a diameter of about 1 1/2 inches.
- Heat about 2 tbsp of oil in a saute pan and when the oil is hot place as many kofta balls as can fit with a bit of room to move around.
- Let them cook till they turn brown on one side about 3-4 minutes, flip and let cook on the other side another 3-4 minutes. Remove and drain on power towels. Save the oil for using in the curry.
Method
- 1 cup of roughly chopped red onions about 3/4 of a medium sized red onion
- 5 garlic cloves cut in half
- 2 inch piece of garlic peeled and chopped roughly
- 1 1/2 roma tomatoes chopped roughly about 3/4 cup
- 1/2 tbsp of red chili powder (or as per taste)
- 2 tsp of turmeric powder
- 1 tsp of cumin powder
- 2 tsp of curry masala powder (any curry powder will do)
- 1/4 cup of yogurt(made with 1% milk) whisked (for a vegan version skip this and add a 1/4 cup of thick coconut milk)
- 1 tbsp of cashews soaked in about a tbsp of water, for nut free use same quantity of poppy seeds
- salt to taste
- 2 tsp of oil
- 1 tbsp of chopped coriander leaves
- 1/4 tsp of cumin seeds
- 1 tbsp of finely chopped onions
Note: 1. Use about 3/4th cup of besan instead of panko bread crumbs and corn meal. 2. While adding yogurt if the heat is on high the yogurt will break. So bring the heat to low and then add the yogurt.
- Heat a bit of oil in a saute pan and saute the onions, garlic and ginger and when the onion starts to turn brown add the tomatoes and when they turn soft. Turn off the heat, allow to cool and blend to a smooth paste.
- Heat a wide mouthed pan and add about 2 tsp of oil. When hot add the cumin seeds followed by the onions and saute till they start to turn brown.
- Add all the masala powders other than the curry powder and mix it into the onions.
- Now add the blended masala with about 1/2 cup of water and let it cook on medium low heat.
- Blend the cashews and add it in. Let it cook for about 5 minutes.
- Bring the heat all the way to low and add the whisked yogurt and mix it in. (see note). Add salt. The consistency of the gravy depends on how watery or thick you want. When the yogurt if fully mixed in raise the heat back to medium low and let cook for about 5-8 minutes.
- Add the chopped coriander leaves and the curry powder and cook for a couple of minutes more.
- Gently put the koftas inside the gravy. I used about 15 koftas. Let it cook for another 5-6 minutes. Turn off the heat and let sit for another 15 minutes before serving.
Great with rice or any Indian bread.
Pumpkin Recipes Ingredients: Make 30 pancakesMethod
- 4 cups of roasted pumpkin pulp
- 4 1/2 cups of White whole wheat flour
- 2 eggs
- 2 tsp of baking soda
- 2 tsp of sugar
- a pinch of salt
- 2 cups of milk (I added 1% milk) + enough water to make the batter
Whisk the eggs and milk and set aside. Mix together the dry ingredients and the pumpkin pulp and add the milk / egg mixture and keep mixing. If the batter is too thick add water to bring it to pourable consistency. Let it sit for about 20-30 minutes.
Serve with just a bit of fresh butter on top.- Heat a griddle and when hot spray with oil and add a laddle of pancake batter. Let cook on one side till you start to see bubbles to appear on top. Flip cook on the other side.
Note: Pancakes lend themselves to be frozen and reheated pretty well. Flash freeze the excess pancakes.