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Recipe: Charmingly Green – Raw Mango Chutney

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As you probably know by now, I have mango trees in my garden. At home, we really do take these for granted. Sometimes, there are so many fruits ripening out there that we don’t even try to stop the monkeys in the neighbourhood from coming to make a meal of them. One of the varieties that we grow, known as the parrot beak or killimooku, is best enjoyed when it is still raw. It is not unbearably tangy, which makes it just perfect for condiments like this raw mango chutney. You may also remember it from this vegan raw mango dal and other raw mango recipes I’ve shared before.

Initially, the challenge for me was always about making it a green chutney, as I like the colour. Invariably, my many trials would result in a chutney that was blackish or another shade. While the taste remains the same, the visual effect differs. Both as a photographer and as a cook, I believe the eyes eat first. I wanted that beautiful, pure green of the fruit to be captured in the dish as well. So I persevered until I hit upon the perfect method to create a green raw mango chutney.

I have made and shared another green chutney before, a coriander one. I have also made and shared a raw mango thovayal, which is a coarse chutney from Tamil cuisine. But I have never shared a raw mango chutney itself so far, and this may be because it has taken me this long to figure out how to ensure it comes out green and stays that way!

I hope this will be the case when you try it out too, as that lovely green is such a delight to look at. I am not sure what the trick is exactly – whether it is the tiny pinch of turmeric, or the ice cool water. I am sure there’s a scientific reason, something about chemistry or temperature, that I just haven’t gotten to the bottom of. I do want to assure you again that if your chutney turns out anything other than green, it should still be fine to consume!

I somehow prefer this recipe to the coriander chutney, taste-wise. I enjoy it with dhoklas and other Gujarati savouries. It is absolutely delicious as a dollop of hot rice, in lieu of a pickle, along with some ghee. I also wonder whether it would work as a pesto replacement in a toastie. Since it’s the season, I may give this experiment a shot one of these days.

My inspiration for this really comes from the region I live in and grew up in. Tamil cuisine is full of chutneys and thovayals, and I’ve not really encountered raw mango used this way in Gujarati cuisines. It is not only the flesh that is used. I have recently seen a chutney made only with the seed, from the beginning of the season when it is tender. Mango peel, as well as ridge gourd peel, are also turned into similar condiments. I may also experiment with this, perhaps by cooking the skin a bit.

Once again, despite so often taking it for granted, I am reminded of just how versatile the mango plant is. Not only are all parts of its fruit edible, but its leaves too are used in prayers, as they are considered auspicious. Those lush green trees, beautifully blossoming away in summers, bring much needed cool relief. Whatever we do, we go full circle and come back to the beauty of nature – don’t we?

Raw Mango Chutney

(Yield: 1½ cups)

2 tablespoons coconut

2 tablespoons roasted chickpeas

Salt to taste

1 cup coriander leaves (no stalks)

¼ cup mint leaves

2 pods garlic

1 cup raw mango

1 teaspoon roasted cumin powder

½ teaspoon sugar

2 green chillies

¼ cup cold water

A pinch of turmeric

 

Seasoning:

1 tablespoon sesame oil

¼ teaspoon mustard seeds

¼ teaspoon cumin seeds

A few curry leaves

 

Wash and peel the mangoes and cut them into pieces.

In a blender, add all the ingredients and blend until you have a smooth paste.

Prepare the seasoning. Heat the oil and add the mustard seeds and cumin seeds. Once the mustard seeds start to splutter, add the curry leaves. Immediately, pour the seasoning over the prepared chutney.

Your raw mango chutney is now ready to be enjoyed. If you are a fan of Indian dips like this one, I hope you’ll also explore my recipes for ginger chutney, plum chutney, wood-apple chutney and date chutney.

 

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Recipe: Happy Snacking – Coriander Hummus

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These days, we seem to be entertaining quite a bit at home. This is partly because our kids are all grown up and live in other cities. As parents, we feel proud of their achievements and love it when they visit, but we are also filling up our “empty nest” with friends and socialising as a couple. With people dropping by on a frequent basis, I try to make sure that a steady repertoire of healthy snacks, that are also good-looking and good-tasting, are easily whipped up. This beautiful pistachio-green coriander hummus hits the right spot in terms of its visual appeal, its nutrition quotient as well as its deliciousness.

Hummus originates in the Middle East and I make some whenever I prepare my versions of Lebanese dishes such as pita bread and falafels. It’s quite a favourite at home, and we are currently in an obsessed phase (do you have this habit too – of enjoying a dish so much that you just have to keep having it till you get tired of it and move on to the next big addiction?), so I’m making lots and lots of it.

The idea came to me after noticing colourful hummus varieties such as beetroot hummus, which comes out in a pretty pink. I wanted to use an Indian ingredient as a major one, and coriander seemed perfect. I had explored a curry leaf and green chilli hummus quite a while back too, which has a similar concept.

This dish contains one more surprise ingredient from our local backyards that you’re sure to love, and which you may remember from a recent recipe! If you guessed moringa, you are right. The powder is easy and quick to make, and I like to sprinkle a bit over the hummus to boost its healthiness, as well as to deepen the colour. I’ll probably try out a moringa hummus soon.

Hummus is truly simple to make, and the method for most varieties is more or less the same. In my family, different members have their own preferred type – curry leaf, beetroot, coriander, etc – so I am constantly whipping up some version of this dish and can assure you that it’s a basic recipe. In fact, it is quite easy to replace the coriander with other vegetables. You can see in the photographs that I’ve done a beetroot one too, using roasted beets. That one is more colourful than flavourful, but it is good for novelty in presentation. Guests love pretty snacks, remember?

Chickpeas are the core ingredient, and they are available abundantly in India so I don’t have to resort to the canned ones, although those will work just as well if they’re what you have on hand. I do the traditional method of soaking, boiling and so on – which is very familiar from so many Indian dishes. It’s funny: my cook at home, who is not well-versed in foreign cuisines, calls any kind of hummus “channa ka chutney” (“chickpea chutney”). He is not far from the truth! Several of the ingredients really do feel rather local, and are certainly used in Indian cuisines.

That said, despite its seeming Indian-ness, I was not exposed to hummus while growing up either. I discovered through my travels and culinary explorations that it’s a fantastic starter. It is healthy, tasty, simple to make and versatile in its usage as a dip. Despite the high summer temperatures at the moment, it keeps well in the fridge for at least a week.

Coriander Hummus

(Yield: 1 portion)

¼ cup chickpeas

Water (to soak and to boil)

2 tablespoons tahini

½ cup coriander leaves

Salt to taste

3 pods garlic

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 tablespoon chopped jalapeños

 

Soak the chickpeas overnight in sufficient water. Once soaked, they will have enlarged in size to almost 1 cup. Strain them.

Boil the chickpeas in fresh water in a pressure cooker with sufficient water, until tender to the touch. This will take about six whistles.

Once boiled, strain the chickpeas from the hot water. Set the water aside. This is called aquafaba. Aquafaba, boiled chickpea water, becomes an ingredient of its own with varied uses including as an egg substitute!

In a blender, add the tahini, salt, jalapeños, coriander leaves and garlic. Blend coarsely.

Next, add the boiled chickpeas. Now, add as much aquafaba as required to help blend the mixture once again until you have a creamy texture.

Spread the hummus onto a flat dish. Garnish with olive oil and any toppings of your choice. If you have za’tar, a spice combination commonly used in Middle Eastern cooking, you could sprinkle some. As I mentioned earlier, moringa powder is my preferred substitute.

Your coriander hummus is now ready to serve. Eat it with the accompaniments of your choice. It goes perfectly with chips, vegetable sticks, apple slices, pita bread, falafels and more.

As I said earlier, you can swap out the coriander for other kinds of vegetables. You can also use sprinklings of different condiments or flavours. Let your imagination go wild – this is a basic, safe dish that responds well to play. Thinking out loud, a hint of mint could also be a nice flavour contrast. Maybe I’ll try that next time. Or maybe you can, and if so I hope you’ll let me know what the results are like?

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Recipe: Melony & Lemony – Watermelon Sorbet

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I bought an ice cream maker recently, very enthusiastically. It has churned out all kinds of delicious flavours since then, like vanilla-lavender, vegan coconut-rose and even a Belgian chocolate. What I had not attempted yet was a sorbet, but it still being the peak of summer put that temptation for this light, refreshing, ice-cool dessert into my mind. Many of the recipes I researched looked pretty simple, so I decided to give it a shot. The star ingredient I decided on was the super-hydrating watermelon. There is plenty on the market at present, and a watermelon sorbet seemed just perfect for this sweltering season.

Luckily for me, in addition to the sweet and nutritious watermelon, my friend Garima gifted me a bag full of Meyer lemons too, and these found their place here too. You may remember that they featured in this lemon poppy cake. I don’t know if she was already aware that I adore Meyer lemons, but the fact that they were available here in Chennai was a happy surprise to me. I did not want to waste a single one. I prepared an utterly delicious lemon curd one day, and when the craving for a sorbet came, I realised that a dash of lemon would be ideal to enhance it too.

The recipe I am providing below has the necessary details both for those of you who have ice cream makers and for those of you who will just use moulds and freezers. The method is very straightforward and easy to follow. Feel free to play around with the flavours, replacing watermelon with another fruit, such as mango for instance. As you read earlier, I’ve been quite adventurous when it comes to ice creams and will surely experiment with different sorbet combinations too. For now, this watermelon sorbet with a little bit of Meyer lemon juice has my heart.

It reminds me so much of when I was growing up, when a parlour called Joy Ice Cream was one of the very popular spots in the city. It was also one of the few ice cream parlours that existed here for a long time. They had raspberry and mango popsicles, which sorbets call to mind. When I served this dish for the first time, it transported me right back to those days. To those years, I should say… When I was small, we would go there as a family for a treat after dinner sometimes. Later, once I entered adulthood, it continued to be a space of camaraderie too.

In fact, the first place that my husband and I went to after being introduced was to Joy Ice Cream. Not long after, as a newly-married woman, it was a place where I would go to meet my friends. We were all young, and had mostly just gotten married, and we would exchange experiences and stories about our lives and our learnings. It was a place where stories and sweetness were shared, and new friends were made. This watermelon sorbet carries all those memories for me.

Now of course, Joy Ice Cream doesn’t exist, and dozens of brands and flavours are available at the click of a button on many apps. A frozen treat is always a delight, but making one myself makes me feel connected to those simpler times. There’s just something special about this watermelon sorbet, as I hope you’ll see…

Watermelon Sorbet

(Yield: 6 popsicles)

 

1 litre watermelon juice

250 grams sugar

2 tablespoons lemon juice

A tiny pinch of salt

 

In a clean pan, add the sugar, salt and ¼ of the watermelon juice. Place on a medium flame and stir until the sugar dissolves.

Remove from the stove and add the remaining watermelon juice. Stir well, then pop the mixture in the freezer until chilled, but not frozen.

If you have a machine: take the mixture out of the freezer, put it in the ice cream maker and follow the machine’s instructions. If you do not have a machine: pour the chilled mixture directly into the popsicle moulds and leave the tray to set in the freezer.

To serve, rinse the popsicle moulds for a few seconds under tap water and they will release easily. It goes without saying that this sorbet needs to be served immediately after it has set.

I’ve shared many desserts on this blog over the last five and a half years, but this is the very first time that a sorbet has made an appearance, so it’s quite exciting for me. I hope you’ll enjoy this melony, lemony and most lovely dessert, and that it brings back to you happy memories and helps you make more of them too!

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Recipe: Slices Of Perfect Deliciousness – Pesto Parmesan Toastie

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Many of you know that I’m a fan of sourdough, and have been practicing and perfecting the techniques for this slightly tricky but rewarding form of bread-making for years now. As with everything else, the more you attempt it, the better you get at it. I bake sourdough loaves a few times every week, and I’ve seen this for myself. The more you use your hands on the dough, the more deeply you understand its nuances through touch. Feel is a very important part of sourdough making. But the best part comes later, of course: taste. This beautiful pesto Parmesan toastie is one of the many ways that we enjoy a beautiful sourdough loaf at home, and I’m delighted to share my pesto recipe with you today.

Basil, the core ingredient of pesto, is very easily available in many Indian cities, including here in Chennai. I doubt very much that it is Italian basil, and I think that it is likely to either be grown in the hilly regions or else is imported from nearby countries like Thailand. Either way, I have found that basil leaves are easily accessible all year round. So I always have a jar of pesto sitting in my fridge, alongside my tomato purée (which also works well on toast and in so many other dishes too).

Pesto is a sauce that originated in Italy, and its name comes from the Italian word for crushing or pounding, “pestare”. I guess that I honour the traditional method of preparation, because I have observed that I much prefer the South Indian mortar and pestle to the electric blender when I make it. The hand-crushed way results in a coarser and more flavourful paste, which is how it is meant to be. Pesto is versatile, and is often eaten as a pasta sauce. I make it with either walnuts or pine nuts, whichever I have available.

You may recall from other posts that I like making all my masalas powders at home, drying the ingredients in the sun and sending them off to a small local mill to grind them. This has been one of the benefits of the intense heat this year. I’m presently making amchur (raw mango) powder, and I’m also making sun-dried tomatoes – which I use in this toastie.

What this means is that with the sourdough bread, pesto spread and sun-dried tomatoes all being made at home, this pesto Parmesan toastie is almost entirely made from scratch. I don’t have the skills to make Parmesan cheese, unfortunately, but I would if I could!

A good, flavourful Parmesan (both in the pesto and as a garnishing) makes all the difference in this dish. I recently read an article about how the market is flooded with fake Parmesan cheese, with a shocking global turnover rate of billions! This means that finding and choosing a good, authentic Parmesan can be a bit of a challenge. In case you don’t have access to this fabulous cheese variety, you can still make up for it with a good pesto and a good bread. For the pesto, bear in mind that a high quality olive oil is one of the key ingredients to invest in. When it comes to the garnish, you can be flexible. For instance, if you don’t have sun-dried tomatoes, some other vegetable or topping of your choice will work well too.

To return to the sourdough itself briefly, I tend to generally bake it for dinners or for Sunday brunches as it’s a great accompaniment to our family weekend favourite, shakshouka. This summer, with temperatures simply soaring, I tend to take the dough with me whenever I sit in an AC room. This is to protect it, as temperature plays an important role in the fermentation. That’s how committed I am to my sourdough practice! This is why there’s always a lot of it at home, and since pesto is also a sauce that I also often have plenty of, they are a perfect pairing. As exotic as it may seem, pesto is surprisingly easy to make, as you’ll see in the recipe below.

 

Pesto Parmesan Toastie

(Yield: A small jar of pesto; two half-toasties)

 

Pesto

2 cups fresh, clean basil leaves

3 garlic pods

¼ cup olive oil

Salt to taste

2-3 tablespoons pine nuts (or walnuts)

A pinch of pepper

½ cup Parmesan cheese (grated)

 

Toastie

2 slices sourdough bread

2 tablespoons pesto

3-5 sun-dried tomatoes

Butter for the bread

4-5 slivers of Parmesan cheese

 

This recipe focuses on how to prepare the pesto. In a blender, add the pine nuts and garlic. Pulse until coarsely mixed. Add the Parmesan and repeat. As I said above, you can use a mortar and pestle instead if you prefer the same.

Then, add the basil leaves and pulse once again, careful to keep the mixture coarsely blended. A smooth blend is not preferable for pesto.

Slowly drizzle in the olive oil, while occasionally using a rubber spatula to scrape down the sides of the mixer jar.

Finally, add the salt and pepper before storing the pesto in the fridge. Use a clean glass jar, and top it up with a little bit of olive oil. You can prepare it a day ahead of when you need to use it. It will still be fresh.

To assemble the toasties, take two slices of sourdough bread and apply butter to one side of one of them. Generously slather one side of the other slice with pesto, creating a nice, thick layer. Top this up with sun-dried tomatoes and Parmesan cheese, as desired.

Close the sandwich by bringing the two slices together. Butter the top and toast it on a pan until the bread turns golden. Cut into halves and serve. I like to have this as an early dinner, and I find that I don’t get hungry again for the rest of the night. It’s also great as an any-time snack.

Dishes like these are easy to assemble and are great ways to enjoy a slice of good artisanal bread, or to elevate any regular bread that you may have. I hope this pesto Parmesan toastie will delight you! If you enjoyed this recipe, you may also want to try out my cheesy, spicy, garlicky sourdough toast.

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Recipe: Still Nuts For Coconuts – Coconut Cupcakes

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There is an abundance – maybe even an overdose! – of coconuts in my garden, as I have shared many times before. There are so many recipes on this blog that attest to this. From coconut oil (which I’ve made this year too, making use of the intense summer sun) to coconut pudding to coconut stew to coconut podi to rose-coconut kheer… and the list goes on. As much as we love the ingredient at home, we sometimes have so much of it that we don’t know what to do with it. Coconut milk is especially crucial to utilise soon, as it can go bad quickly. The need to use up a big, fresh batch, especially given the effort of straining it, was what gave me the idea for today’s post: coconut cupcakes.

But really, far from just being a way to make sure that an ingredient doesn’t spoil, these cupcakes are quite a treat in and of themselves. A note for my vegan readers: while yummy coconut milk is used in lieu of dairy, this is not an eggless recipe. For you, I recommend that you check out my vegan lavender cake recipe. If you’ve had some practice with baking, you should be able to put the two recipes together and tweak as needed so that you can prepare this coconut cupcake the vegan way.

If you are a first-time baker, I would suggest that you familiarise yourself with this recipe for citrus bundt cake first, which has an introductory guide for beginners. Assuming that you have the basics in place, here are a few more simple tips as general reminders.

Firstly, a pretty simple one: prepare the trays and line them while the oven is preheating to save time later.

Now, for some serious techniques and tricks… I’ve heard many people complain that the cupcake liner opens up during the baking process. I bake pretty much daily, especially for re:store orders, so I have confidence that mine won’t. Perhaps that confidence aka positive thinking goes a long way, but I feel that way in the first place because I’ve mastered the secret: too much butter or fat is what causes the liner to open up. Be careful about following quantities in a recipe to a tee, and this won’t happen.

As for that dome that forms on top of cupcakes sometimes, this can be avoided if you fill only 2⁄3 of the liner with batter.

To go back to the subject of ingredients: ensure that they are all at room temperature when you start, so that they bake evenly.

Even though you only ice a cupcake after it has completely cooled, I’ve found that it makes sense to prepare the icing while the trays are in the oven. The secret to smooth, silky icing relies on two things: you must sift the icing sugar first (do this for cocoa powder too, for other baked goods that have it). and you must beat the butter until it’s fluffy. These two factors – sifting and beating properly – make all the difference in the final texture of the icing.

Before we move on to the recipe and method for these coconut cupcakes, I want to invite you to check out and follow my Instagram, if you haven’t already. I’ve recently started sharing reels, in order to keep up with the latest trends on the platform. I have even attended a class to learn how to do this. While I’m confident with photography and the camera, the process for videos is very different. I hope you like the reels I’ve been sharing, including one of this recipe. Please give me your suggestions on how to make them better, and as always, do drop me a comment if you enjoyed this recipe or any other. I love hearing from you!

Coconut Cupcakes

(Yield: One dozen)

 

Cupcake

175 grams flour

120 grams unsalted butter (room temperature)

1 teaspoon baking powder

¼ teaspoon salt

2 eggs

½ teaspoon vanilla extract

190 grams granulated sugar

120 ml coconut milk

½ cup shredded coconut

 

Butter Frosting

4-5 cups icing sugar (sifted)

1 cup unsalted butter

A pinch of salt

Fresh cream (as required)

¼ teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 160°. Line a cupcake pan with liners. Set aside.

Sift the dry ingredients (the salt, flour and baking powder) and set aside.

In a mixing bowl, add the butter and beat it until it is light and fluffy. Then, add the sugar and beat again. Scrape down the sides of the bowl, making sure the mixture has been well beaten for about 3 minutes.

Add the eggs one at a time, beating between each addition.

Add the dry ingredients and the wet ingredients one by one alternately, mixing only until combined.

Finally, add the shredded coconut to the batter, and use a spatula to bring all the ingredients together.

Using a scoop, divide the batter into the liners. Bake for 15 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

Allow to cool in the pan for 5 minutes and then remove gently onto a wire rack.

To prepare the butter icing, beat the butter and the salt well with an electric blender. Add half the icing sugar and beat again, then add the remainder. When using the electric blender, ensure the sugar doesn’t fly out of the bowl.

Add the cream, in your preferred quantity, and ensure that the butter cream is at a consistency that is thick enough to pipe.

Pipe the icing onto the cupcakes, and garnish as you’d like before serving. Then, all the work of baking and icing done, there is nought to do but to enjoy watching these delicious coconut cupcakes disappear – which they do quite quickly in my home, and most likely in yours too – and make sure that you grab one for yourself before they do!

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Recipe: An Eggs-cellent Fusion Dish – Moringa Leaves Omelette

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Moringa leaves are considered a superfood by many. For us in South India, the moringa plant literally grows in our own backyards and we take it for granted. In fact, the English word comes from the Tamil word for the plant – “murunga”. As you may know, my family are Gujaratis who have been settled in Tamil Nadu for generations, so it was very much a staple ingredient in my growing years. It was just convenient for my mother to go to the back garden, pluck some moringa leaves, chop them up, cook them and throw them into our theplas if there were no methi (fenugreek) leaves on hand. Moringa leaves are versatile that way, and lately I’ve been taking my mother’s Gujarati-Tamil fusion to another level with a Continental-Tamil fusion: moringa leaves omelette.

Unlike other green leaves, moringa cannot be eaten raw and takes some time to cook. Also, the stalks are not usually consumed, as they can cause indigestion. Funnily enough, I have noted that the stalks can be safely used in soups. The vegetable of the tree, which is commonly known as drumstick, is certainly edible of course.

If you don’t have access to fresh moringa leaves in your part of the world, you can easily replace this ingredient with kale or another type of leafy green, or with moringa powder. I make moringa powder at home, since the method is quite easy during the summers. I pluck the leaves, pat them to clean them, and leave them out in the sun. The heat at this time of year is so intense that the leaves dry up in just a few hours. I then dry-blend them to create the powder. I usually prepare about six months’ worth of stock, to reach for when I don’t have fresh moringa leaves or the time to go out and pluck them for a dish.

 

The eggs I use in this recipe come from our hens – happy, bullying free range hens that produce organic eggs. I use the whole egg, and I don’t believe in removing the yolk, which is full of nutritious goodness, including protein. While I’m on that thought, I should also say that I don’t believe in using skim milk. Skim milk is processed milk; I would much rather drink natural milk with all the fat in it and retain all the nutrients we are supposed to get.

I realise that vegetarians or vegans may be wondering if there’s any chance of salvaging this recipe for them, and this is what I suggest: besan chilla is often known as vegetarian omelette, and you can make it with moringa leaves. Moong dal is also a good substitute.

The idea for this recipe came because I had eaten eggs with spinach and feta cheese at many places, and one day I thought – why not moringa? Why not indeed, given that I routinely throw those leaves into dals, rotis and theplas just like my mother used to. It’s a very simple and very satisfying recipe, I hope you’ll try it out.

Moringa Leaves Omelette

(Yield: 1 omelette)

2 eggs

½ cup finely cut moringa leaves

Salt to taste

A pinch of pepper

¼ cup feta cheese

1 tablespoon butter

 

Heat a pan and add the butter. Once it sizzles, add the moringa leaves. Allow to cook for a few minutes.

In a bowl, crack the eggs and beat them well. Now, add the sautéed moringa to the eggs and beat again.

Heat the pan again and pour the egg mixture into the pan. Allow to cook on a medium flame and then flip until both sides of your omelette are well done.

Serve with any garnish or accompaniment of your choice.

As you can see, this is a very easy recipe with minimal ingredients – moringa leaves, eggs, seasoning and some cheese (which is optional). If you’d like to boost both the protein and fusion quotients of this dish, you could even sprinkle some paneer on top. It will make the omelette more filling overall, as well.

Omelettes go well with any main meal, so I’d love to know what time of day you wind up eating this one! Let me know in the comments if you enjoy it.

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Recipe: Staying Fresh In The Summer – Sprouted Salad

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Summers in India are usually a time when many people prefer to eat lighter meals, but a heatwave like we are experiencing now makes this all the more important. You may find yourself automatically desiring light meals when the climate is hot, and there’s a science to this. Heavy food affects the metabolism, taking longer to digest, and this process increases the heat in the body. The lighter the meal, the lower the amount of internal heat generated during the digestion process. For some, a light meal may be some cooling yogurt and rice, or may even constitute simply of a tall and refreshing glass of buttermilk. As a lover of salads, I find that they are ideal for this season, and can pack many nutrients into a simple (and yes, light) dish. This sprouted salad, using homegrown sprouts and an assortment of fresh veggies, is one I’ve been making very often, and I’m glad to share it with you too.

At the start of this year, I shared the method for growing sprouts at home. You can use any legume of your choice, including fenugreek, beans and more. I love my green mung sprouts, as you may recall from that post, along with brown chana sprouts. Brown chana, also known as black chickpea, is believed to be high in iron due to its colour. As a darker legume, it’s usually eaten in the winters (as it’s heavier on the digestion than the lighter looking ones). Nature has a wonderful logic to it, which we can attune our appetites to, so as to make the most of seasonal produce. For me, I have found that the health quotient of brown chana makes it appropriate even for summer consumption, and it has made its way into this dish. It is rich not only in iron but also in protein, vitamins, calcium, phytochemicals and magnesium, and has benefits for the heart and brain functions and regularising cholesterol and blood sugar.

I’ve had my share of carb binges, partying, exotic meals in exotic destinations and culinary indulgences of all sorts. As I’ve said before, moderation is key. For me, eating right is a conscious choice, especially as I get older, and I’ve found that one of the key elements to this is ensuring that I get adequate protein in every meal. From experience, I can tell you that there is no scarcity of choice for vegetarians. This sprouted salad is an excellent example. Adding sautéed pieces of tofu or paneer will also increase the protein component of the dish.

Now, there may be something familiar about this recipe to long-term friends of re:store. That’s because re:store was one of the first entrepreneurships in Chennai to open up salad subscriptions. Back when I started the company in 2015, salads were a major component of the menu, though I’ve since honed my focus on baked goods. This one was among the bestselling items, and if you’ve eaten it before and had a craving for it anytime since, here you go – this is the recipe I used then and still do, shared with love.

That also reminds me: that was around the time when complimentary food stopped being served on many flights, so I began to pack a small container of this sprouted salad as my mid-air snack on many occasions. I still do this, in fact. This healthy salad is my preferred travel companion for short flights. It ensures that I’m feeling nourished and energised by a protein boost when I land and head into my appointments at my destination. It has the same effect on tired minds and bodies in need of rejuvenation in the summer heat.

Sprouted Salad

(Serves 2)

 

Fresh Ingredients

2-3 tablespoons spring onions

¼ cup capsicum

¼ cup raw mango (grated)

a handful of cherry tomatoes

½ cup steamed sprouts

1 tablespoon jalapenos (finely chopped)

a handful of coriander leaves (finely chopped)

¼ cup cucumber

 

Dressing ingredients

Salt to taste

1 pinch pepper

1 teaspoon honey or maple syrup

Juice of ½ a lemon

1 teaspoon pomegranate balsamic (optional)

 

Pumpkin seeds

Chopped almonds

 

In a bowl, add all the fresh ingredients. Keep refrigerated until ready to serve.

Just before serving, add all the ingredients for the dressing and mix well.

When ready to serve, assemble all the ingredients, including the seeds and nuts, the dressing and the fresh ingredients. Mix well and gently. That’s all there is to it. Enjoy this delicious, nutritious salad and let it bring its refreshing qualities to your heat-busting methods.

You may have noticed the use of raw mango in this dish. I know some of you may be wondering whether my long-standing tradition of sharing ripe mango recipes and desserts, since the fruit is in season, will continue this year. However, given the heatwave, I thought I’d do something different and focus on replenishing and energy-boosting recipes. Don’t forget to drink lots of water, and you can always keep hydration interesting with a hearty lassi. On the subject of mangoes and indulgences, the recipe archive is right here for you to explore!

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Recipe: Something Sweet In My Luggage – Banana Chocolate Loaf

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I shared a banana bread recipe with you a few years ago, which I hope you enjoyed. I encourage you to try it out too, if you have not already. I more recently began experimenting with a chocolate-banana combination, and this new version of deliciousness is what I’d like to share with you today. This banana chocolate loaf is not just an upgrade, but an entirely new recipe. As I’ve shared before, especially in this post, baking is a science, so please do go through the ingredients and method step by step when you prepare it, even if you are familiar with my earlier banana bread.

My first trial for this recipe didn’t include chocolate at all. The thought process behind it was that as I am not a fan of raw bananas, but appreciate the fruit’s amazing nutritional qualities, baking it into another cake was a fun way to incorporate it into my diet. After all, Indian meals often end with a banana, eaten for its digestive benefits, so why not end with a banana cake?

Keeping the health quotient in mind, as I have introduced chocolate into this cake, I have been mindful about its sugar quotient. I have chosen to use dark chocolate pellets, which are less sweet. I have also used brown sugar in a reduced quantity since the flavour of the banana already imparts the dish with natural sweetness. You may wish to substitute the same with jaggery powder, if you prefer. You will notice that this one also has a special ingredient, something that gives it a different zing from the earlier banana cake recipe.

I absolutely must have something to munch on along with my tea or coffee in the late afternoons, and this banana chocolate cake or my date cake (a favourite among re:store clients too) are what I find myself reaching out for often lately.

In fact, one of the best things about this banana chocolate loaf is that it packs and travels very well, which means I’ve gotten my fix of it even when I’ve not been at home. Recently, I made a trip with a dear childhood friend, and this treat was our companion for the first few days. Even though we were seeing each other after a long time, we picked up where we left off with ease. That’s how it usually is with childhood friends, isn’t it? You just catch up, and the happy memories from decades ago flood back afresh, and renew the bond quickly. The same thing happens with food, too. That’s why it is said that food is emotional: it helps one express and relive one’s memories, attachments and experiences.

I baked and carried this beautiful banana chocolate loaf with me on that holiday with my childhood friend. We travelled everywhere by train and by road, and enjoyed bites of this cake in the English countryside whenever we stopped to take in the scenery. Our afternoon tea in charming little villages had the requisite freshly-made traditional scones and clotted cream, of course, and I hope to master the recipe for that sometime. But my banana chocolate loaf was also present, loving parcelled and equally lovingly shared, and to me it was just as delicious as our authentic holiday treats.

Banana Chocolate Loaf

(Yield: 9 inch loaf)

 

175 grams maida

20 grams cocoa powder (unsweetened)

¼ teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon cinnamon

1 cup brown sugar

2 eggs

120 grams butter

1¼ cups very ripe bananas (mashed)

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1⁄3 cup yoghurt and cream (mixed)

½ cup chocolate chips

¼ cup broken walnuts (for garnishing)

Preheat the oven at 160°-170° and grease and dust a 9-inch loaf pan.

In a bowl, sift the dry ingredients well. Set aside.

In another bowl, beat the butter and sugar well, scraping down sides and making sure they’re all mixed well. Now, add the eggs one by one and continue beating. Next, add the mashed bananas and vanilla extract and beat slightly.

Now, add the cream and yoghurt mixture and beat again. Next, add the dry ingredients as well as some of the walnuts and all the chocolate chips. Fold over lightly.

Pour the batter into the loaf tin and sprinkle the remaining walnuts on top.

Bake for about 30-40 minutes or until a skewer inserted comes out clean.

Rest the loaf in the tin for 10-15 minutes. Then, upturn and remove from the tin. Allow to cool.

Your banana chocolate loaf is now ready to be sliced and served. I do hope you’ll enjoy this recipe, and that you’ll make some special memories with it just like my friend and I did on our travels recently. Whenever I share cake recipes, it’s so that more people can enjoy the pleasure of baking, and I encourage you to try them out for yourself. But if you would rather have me whisk a cake up for you, I’m always happy to do so too. Just drop me a line!

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Recipe: Fighting Carbs, The Fun Way – Vegan Fig & Chia Smoothie Bowl

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My ongoing sad saga is that I am trying to avoid carbs. I say “saga” because you’d have heard me repeat this time and time again on this blog over the last few months, as I sincerely share recipes that help me stick to my dietary plan. Truth be told, I probably say that I’m off carbs more often than I am actually off carbs, but to give myself due credit, I am constantly trying. The fruits of those efforts are recipes like this one, which indeed contains literal fruits! In addition to helping me in my anti-carb struggle, this vegan fig and chia smoothie bowl is also a great dish on my journey towards increased veganism. But the best part? Despite all these healthy-sounding proclamations, it’s simply delicious.

I have a mental block when it comes to smoothies: when I drink them, they don’t feel as filling as when I put them into a bowl. It’s a visual trick, convincing myself that this is indeed the full meal that it is. It also looks beautiful once you garnish it in a bowl setting. Whenever I prepare this for myself, some family member of mine inevitably walks by and says, “Hey, what’s that? It looks so good.” This reiterates the fact that presentation is key. We always eat with our eyes first.

The chia in this smoothie also makes it look and taste like a pudding, which dials down the feeling that one is consuming it only for its nutritional benefits. In addition to being a superfood, chia is a thickening agent, which is what provides that pudding feeling. Of course, this ingredient is also doing double duty as a superfood, being chock-full of antioxidants, omega-3 fatty acids, calcium fibre, magnesium, iron, Vitamin A and other very good things. One more advantage to it is that it has no flavour of its own, so it enhances the texture of whatever you put it into.

I tend to eat this fig chia smoothie bowl for dinner on days when I have had a very heavy lunch. Naturally, it will make an equally good breakfast. The versatility of this dish is fun to explore. This extends to the ingredients as well. Try your own variations with different flavours and garnishings, using the milk and chia base.

Vegan Fig & Chia Smoothie Bowl

(Serves 2-3)

 

5 dry figs

2 cups almond milk

A pinch of cinnamon powder

1 tablespoon chia seeds

Ice cubes (optional)

Soak the figs in enough water so that they are fully covered. Allow to soak for 2-4 hours.

In a blender, add the soaked figs, almond milk and chia seeds and blend until smooth and frothy.

Add the cinnamon powder and blend again lightly.

Pour into bowls, or into tall glasses, and add ice if you prefer. Top with any garnishings of your choice. Serve chilled.

As mentioned earlier, you can scoop this up as I do, with a spoon from a bowl, or you can drink it from a tall glass. You can also replace almond milk with dairy. It all depends on your dietary needs or preferences, as well as whether you enjoy experiencing this dish as a smoothie or as a smoothie bowl.

For instance, I’ve used a pinch of cinnamon powder as I find that refreshing; you may wish to eliminate this and replace it with another refreshing ingredient such as chopped apples. While I’ve used dried figs in the smoothie blend, I’ve used fresh ones to decorate the bowl. You can use either, based on seasonal availability. I’ve also added pomegranates in the garnishing for some colour. Nuts will boost nutrition as well as add more texture and flavour.

This fig and chia smoothie bowl is naturally slightly sweet due to the fruits it contains, so it does not need additional sweetening. However, if you’d like to increase that taste, I would recommend going with honey, maple syrup or jaggery rather than refined sugar. There are wonderful ways to indulge one’s sweet tooth without having to use unhealthy ingredients.

Another showcase of its versatility is that this fig and chia smoothie bowl could indeed work as a dessert replacement. Although if that’s what you’re looking for, let me suggest some summer-friendly chia-based recipes, such as this chia-vetiver coconut pudding or this strawberry smoothie.

What will you have it as: breakfast, lunch, dinner or in lieu of dessert? Try it out and let me know!

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Recipe: Prasan’s Favourite – Paneer Makhani

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Paneer makhani is a staple in North Indian cuisine, and is loved by people across the country, but not many know that it is a far cry from the original preparation that it is based on. From my understanding, the authentic Mughlai dish did not use tomatoes, which were not available or at least not widely cultivated in India till the last couple of centuries. Tomatoes are a major part of the recipe as it is widely made today. Another element is that the cooks who invented the dish did not use fat such as oil, butter or ghee. Instead, they splashed yoghurt, which would release natural fat. This is what the meats and the gravies of the Mughlai kitchen would be cooked in. Having a sense of the evolution of paneer makhani – a curry using paneer, or Indian cottage cheese – has made me quite happy to share the version that is made in my own kitchen.

While my version caters to my family’s likes and dislikes, it is really focused on one member in particular. Everyone who knows us knows how much my son Prasan loves his paneer makhani. If I talk about this love in detail, he will be furious with me for putting it out in public, so I’ll try not to divulge too much. Suffice to say: he has adored it since childhood. When he visits our relatives, like my aunt or my sister, they usually ring me up and ask me exactly how to make it in the way he prefers. They know that he will only be satisfied with their meal if there’s a serving of his favourite dish. If they’re unable to prepare it that day, they organise for it to be at the table anyway. So this recipe is for them also – next time, they can just find it right here on this blog, as can you.

When we get together as an extended family, a good paneer makhani is a mainstay at most meals. I’ve noticed this to be true at all sorts of gatherings and feasts across communities in India as well. It is also a dish that pleases people of all ages. Children seem to appreciate it as much as the elderly. Whether it was one of my kids when they were little or my mother-in-law as a senior citizen today, I’m never surprised to see anyone at all reach out for another helping.

Paneer Makhani

(Yield: Approximately 2 servings)

 

50 grams onion

180 grams tomato (roughly chopped)

2 cardamom pods

½ teaspoon cumin

2 cloves

1 piece cinnamon stick

1 bay leaf

1 teaspoon garlic-ginger paste

4-5 pieces broken cashewnut

1 tablespoon oil (to sauté)

 

1 teaspoon Kashmiri chilli powder

Salt to taste

½ teaspoon turmeric

¼ teaspoon dhaniya-jeera (coriander-cumin) powder

 

1 tablespoon ghee

½ teaspoon sugar

¼ teaspoon garam masala

100 grams paneer

½ teaspoon kasoori methi (dried fenugreek leaves)

Add the oil to a kadai. Allow to heat, then add the cumin seeds. Immediately after, add the onions, cloves, cinnamon, cardamom, cashew nuts, garlic-ginger paste and the bay leaf. Sauté for about 1 minute. Then, add the roughly chopped tomatoes.

Now, add the salt, turmeric, chilli powder and dhaniya-jeera powder. Stir, cover and allow to cook until the tomatoes are tender.

Allow to cool and blend well. Strain and set aside.

Heat a kadai, and add the ghee. Once it has melted, add the blended purée that had been set aside. If required, add a little water to make the gravy in the consistency you prefer. Other options are to add butter or 2 tablespoons of fresh cream. I have added neither. I sometimes do, but rarely, as Prasan and the rest of us prefer it with less of the same. If you choose to, remember to add the milk or cream finally, else it will split.

Now, add the sugar and allow the gravy to cook well. Finally, add the paneer pieces. I occasionally sneak in some green peas, but my kids don’t like them in this dish. But they do go well with paneer in general, so you may want to try them out. Garnish with a sprinkle of kasoori methi. The gravy can be used as a base for other dishes, such as chicken or vegetable curries, and I’d love to know how you decide to use it.

Serve with flatbread, such as naan or rotis, or rice. Now that I have the hang of sourdough naan, that’s what I tend to serve my Prasan-style paneer makhani with.

There you have it: one of the top dishes at my dining table, made with love every single time. On that note… I’ve mentioned my son quite a number of times in this post, which means I may just have to head to the kitchen and whip up a fresh bowl of paneer makhani. You see, it’s become a bit of a running joke that whenever he is annoyed or upset, a little bit of his beloved gravy will calm him down! Having said this, I’d better get to making it right away, I suspect!

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