4 Ingredients Small Dice Potato Roast (urulaikilangu varuval)

Potatoes are one of those accompaniments that work with pretty much any in this category of mixed rice or flavored rice. The other up side it is enjoyed by one and all. Every easy to make, no special masalas, just potatoes, salt and either chili powder or sambhar powder depending on if you have it.

Courtesy: Idahoan

The only time involved in this is peeling and cutting of the potatoes. So let's get right down to it.
I used Russet Potatoes for this (the long sturdy variety) but any kind of potato will work for this.

Finely Chopped Potato Roast
Preparation Time: 20 minutes
Cooking Time: 20 minutes
Ingredients

1. 3 Russet Potatoes
2. salt to taste
3. 1 tbsp oil
4. 2 tsp turmeric powder
5. 1/2 tbsp sambhar powder or 1/2 Red Chili Powder

Method

1. Wash and peel the potatoes. Slit the potatoes into 2 horizontally, place the flat side down and make thin slices lengthwise about 6 or so and then cut them across to make small cubes.
2. Place the cut cubes of potatoes in a bowl of water.
3. In a cast iron pan heat oil, spread the oil all over the pan.
4. When the oil is hot, drain the water and add the potatoes to the pan.
5. Saute the potatoes for 3-4 minutes so all the potatoes are well coated with the oil.
6. Sprinkle salt and cover the pan with a lid cook, lower the flame to slightly less than medium and cook for about 4-5 minutes. Open in between and mix it in so to avoid sticking to the pan.
7. Open the lid, check if the potato is cooked, make sure to not overcook it. If cooked mix the potatoes well.
8. Add turmeric and either the sambhar powder or red chiii powder and continue to cook till the potatoes are nice and roasted. Sprinkle a bit more oil or add more spices if required.

Tasty side of potates are ready to be served.

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Chocolate Chip Dream Bars

Before we start today's post take a look at this article on Kongunadu cuisine by Ranjitha that appeared in Mighty 8, the Coimbatore special anniversary edition of The Times of India, dated February 23.

When we first moved into the farm couple of years ago, we had visitors who came bearing welcome gifts. It is one of those probably quaint customs to invite new neighbors into the area. It is small town living in a predominantly farming community and we did feel welcome.

Anyway one of the welcome gifts we got was these 'Chocolate Chip Dream Bars' and they were extremely tasty. DD2 was sick at that time, DD was off at college so most of them were shamelessly devoured by me. In my defense though when DD2 tasted one she said that she was not that crazy about them. DH as usual probably ate one or two. I have confessed several times that I am the sugar addict so none of this should be surprising. Finally when I ended up baking this DD2 devoured all of them. She did not know why she did not like it the first time.



I got the recipe from the neighbor while she was still our friend. Oh! why us and her are no longer our friends? That was a silly matter to do with our dog and how petty some people really are. It is a story for another day. We learnt quite a bit with the incident though about people, about appearances and how fear of different people (code word for racism) rears its ugliness in bucolic places.

It does not matter but these Bars are terrific and very easy to make if you have grape nuts cereal or flakes. I did not find grape nut flakes in my regular grocery store. So just picked up the Grape Nuts cereal box I found. The texture of the cookies I made were probably slightly denser than the ones she brought home. I used a 8 1/2 * 8 1/2 square pan. Ideal would have been a 13 * 9 pan which meant thicker than it should have been bars.


Here is the recipe in pictures,

Take the Grape Nuts cereal and blend to a slightly coarse powder.
Whisk the eggs. Heat the butter and let it melt.
Take all the dry ingredients and add the melted butter.
Add the chopped nuts. Add in the whisked eggs and mix it in.
Transfer the mixture to a greased pan and smooth out.
Spread the chocolate chops on top and bake in a preheated 350F oven for 30 minutes.
Cool and cut into desired size bars.

These bars are delicious. I did not realize how tasty grape nuts cereal was. If you have seen the long ingredient list on cereal boxes you will be kind of surprised to see the short list on this one.

The crunch in these cereal also adds to the texture and the slightly crunchy texture of these bars. Leave out the chocolate chips or just use a third of it, these could very well be good enough for breakfast bars.

Chocolate Chip Dream Bars
Preparation Time: 15 minutes
Baking Time: 25 minutes
Ingredients

1. 1 cup White Whole Wheat Flour
2. 1 1/2 Cups of Grape Nuts Cereal / Grape Nuts Flakes
3. 1/2 tsp baking powder
4. 3/4 cup melted butter (I used salted)
5. 1/2 tsp salt (if using unsalted butter)
6. 1 tsp vanilla
7. 1 cup raw sugar
8. 1 cup chopped nuts (I used roasted Pecans)
9. 1 cup chocolate chips - I used milk chocolate chips

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 350F.
2. If using grape nut flakes, crush them with your hands, if using grape nuts cereal and use a blender to get a coarse powder.
3. In a sauce pan melt the butter and set it aside to cool a little bit.
4. Whisk the eggs and keep them ready.
5. In a mixing bowl add the whole wheat flour, raw sugar, baking salt,powdered Grape Nuts cereal and whisk them together.
6. Add the vanilla and melted butter and mix it into the flour.
7. Add the chopped nuts and mix, add the whisked eggs and mix them all together to form a texture like wet sand.
8. Transfer mix to a greased 13 x 9 pan(I used a 8 1/2 x 8 1/2 pan)and spread the chocolate chips on top.
9. Bake in a preheated oven for 30 - 35 minutes. Cool and cut into desired sized shapes.

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The Week That Was!

With so many electronics at our disposal, it is very hard not to watch something or the other. Believe me or not I am the TV junkie. I am not sure if I listen to it all the time or not but I find it comfortable that it is in the background especially when I am cooking or folding laundry.

With DD off in college there is not much conversation going on in the house. DD2 does not think we are cool enough to have a conversation with :( I mean compared to a lot of teens her age, she is pretty easy going. But one thing we all have in common is watching shows on TV. So far we have successfully watched all 7 seasons of The Closer. Winter time it gives us something to do.

Now we are onto a new series.

Online Streaming
The Killing

The Killing, a series that was telecast on AMC and is now on Amazon Prime. The show is based off of a Danish TV Series. European TV series compared to their American counterparts are dark, less violent but more psychological and intense. This one is about a female detective trying to find out who killed a teenage girl and the back stories of the victims as well as the detective themselves.


This Giant Beast That is the Global Economy

This is a series that everybody should watch. Host Kal Penn does a good job of keeping the series entertaining even if it is dealing with things like money laundering, how to off shore tax havens operate etc., If you have watched Big Short you know the director Adam McKay and this one has the same quirky and entertaining way of saying a story.

FIRE
Read this article in the Business Insider about what this lady did for her early retirement.

A woman who retired early at 38 says 4 strategies can help anyone save big without pinching pennies.

There is nothing that can beat being financially independent in your mid thirties but retiring, well you don't have to retire instead have the security at the back of your mind to have the freedom to do whatever you want instead of being a wage slave.

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How to clean burnt stainless steel pans (burned and charred food and all)

I had cooked in non stick pans for the longest time just so that it is easy to clean afterwards. I didn't have to fight with my stainless steel pans after I have finished sauteing, roasting or even making pancakes. After the first batch of pancakes are done and however careful you are with the flame the oil tends to burn and stick to the pan and by the end of 6-7 batches there is a layer of either brown or black stuff at the bottom of the pan. The same thing happens if you use a stainless pan to saute like a stir fry or need to roast something for longer. Even if you control the heat and watch and saute constantly stuff still sticks and gets burned.

Scrubbing this out is a chore in itself and not something anyone wants to do. I found this quick and easy way of cleaning and I am no longer worried about using elbow grease to clean the pan. Now I do the cleaning by spending a few minutes right after the cooking which makes it easier and quicker.

After you have used the pan for cooking, keep the burner on and add about 1/2 - 1 cup of water and a tsp of baking soda or just heat the water. Let the water come to a boil.
Turn off the heat and pour the water out. Use caution and use a kitchen towel since the pan would be still hot. Use a scrub or steel wool or coconut fibers like it is done in India and gently scrub out the burnt and darkened spots on the pan. It will come off easily.
Rinse out the dirt and the pan is good as new.

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Coriander Curry Leaves Flavored Rice - Kothamalli Karuvepillai Sadam

I got a big bag of curry leaves from my cousin visiting from Florida. When you have a lot of curry leaves,remove the leaves from the stems, wash and dry them completely. Once dry pack them in ziplock bags and freeze. Stays good for a long time.

I have been wanting to make this kothamalli karuvepillai sadam (Coriander Curry Leaves Rice) ever since. I also had an excess of coriander leaves and the rice finally came to be. It is flavorful and tasty and I don't know what I was waiting for. Thanks to seeing this on the Facebook feedArchana's kitchen which gave me the much needed push. The recipe I used is slightly different.


Curry Leaves are rich in iron. Nutritional anemia is a health crisis in India and a lot of India women are at a risk for anemia. It is especially important for vegetarians to include a wide variety of iron rich green leafy vegetables, millets, pulses, legumes, dry fruits etc in their diet. Since curry leaves are readily available and they are used for seasoning instead of using the whole leaf, cut them into smaller pieces so it is consumed instead of being removed and thrown out.

Source: Improving bio availability of iron in Indian diets through food food-based approaches for the control of iron deficiency anaemia - FAO

This flavored rice is extremely easy to make. If you already have cooked rice making this rice is even quicker. I added peanuts for some extra protein and also for the taste, if you want to skip that add a handful of channa dal instead.

Here is the recipe in pictures,

Wash and soak the rice. Cook in the Instant Pot for 8 minutes.
Wash and soak the rice. Cook in the Instant Pot for 8 minutes.
Roast the red chilies followed by the curry leaves.
Roast the coriander leaves and the coconut for a few minutes. Add in the peanuts.
Add the roasted curry leaves, coriander leaves to the coriander seeds. Blend to coarse paste without adding water.
In a wide mouthed pan add oil and add the seasonings. Add the onions and saute till translucent. Add the blended paste and saute for a couple of minutes.
Add in the rice and mix into the paste well taking care not to break the rice.

Coriander Curry Leaves Flavored Rice - Kothamalli Karuvepillai sadam
Preparation Time: 15 minutes
Cooking Time: 25 minutes
Ingredients

1. 1 cup of Kalijeera Rice (use Basmati, Ponni or any rice you prefer)
2. 1 cup of packed fresh coriander leaves
3. 1/2 cup of fresh or frozen curry leaves
4. 1/2 cup of roasted peanuts - split into 1/4 cups
5. 1 tbsp channa dal/bengal gram/kadalai paruppu (optional)
6. 2 tsp of split urad dal
7. 1 tsp coriander seeds
8. 1/2 tsp of peppercorns
9. 3-4 dried red chilies
10. 1/4 tsp cumin seeds
11. 2 tbsp grated fresh coconut
12. salt to taste
13. 1 tsp oil + 2 tsp of sesame oil
14. 1/4 cup of chopped red onions
15. seasonings: mustard seeds, curry leaves

Method

1. Wash and soak the kalijeera rice for about 30 minutes or so preferably. Cook the rice either in an Instant Pot (8 minutes) or Pressure cooker for one whistle or stove top,adding in a tsp of salt and 2 tsp of sesame oil.
2. Let the pressure subside naturally and fluff up the rice and set aside. *
3. While the rice is cooking you can get the rest of the masala paste ready. In a wide mouthed pan dry roast the urad dal, coriander seeds and pepper corns, altogether is fine but only till the urad dal starts to turn slightly brown. Transfer to the blender. Add in the dried chilies and roast for a minute or so.
4. Add in the curry leaves and roast for a minute or so till it starts to change color followed by the coriander leaves and saute for couple more minutes.
5. Add in the grated coconut and and saute for 2-3 minutes or till starts to brown. Add in half the peanuts and turn off the heat and add the roasted curry leaves and coriander leaves mixture to the blender.
6. Blend the sauteed mixture to a slightly coarse paste without adding water and set aside.
7. In a wide mouthed pan, add oil, if using channa dal roast that first till golden brown and then add the mustard seeds and when it pops add the onion and saute till the onions become translucent. Add in the peanuts and saute for a minute more.
8. Add in the blended paste and saute for a couple of minutes.
9. Add in the fluffed up rice and mix it into the paste gently so as not to break the grains of rice.
   Turn off the heat.
10. Note: While fluffing up the rice use cutting motion to break the rice, this prevents the grains from being broken.

Serve with some chips or like we did some roasted potatoes.

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