05.07.2013 | Week 27 | Siri's Eat Outs | La Cantina, Hyderabad

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If you ask me what would be my last meal on earth? I would say this is it. That's how much I love Mexican cuisine. So, when we discovered La Cantina restaurant in the plush Novotel Hyderabad, we were ecstatic (is an understatement). The food did live up to our expectations and my personal favorite was this Tortilla Soup which I was eating after a loong loong time!. We also ordered Vegetarian Enchilada, which was ok and Spinach Cheese balls which were perfect. All in all, a nice quaint place to visit if you are in the city and if you love Mexican food as we do.

Week 27 in pictures

A visit to HortiCulture Expo 2013 + {Recipe} Arroz Verde | Green Rice

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"Come forth into the light of things, let nature be your teacher." ~ William Wordsworth 

It was gorgeous Sunday morning when we set out to go the Horticulture Expo 2013 being held here in Hyderabad. TH is totally into gardening and it gives him immense pleasure to watch the tiny seedlings grow into big living things. We have few vegetables and greens planted right now along with flowers and herbs as well.

Did you know its now scientifically proven that gardening makes one happy and cures depression. It is said that it triggers the natural production of happy chemicals which in turn keep us joyful. :-) Now, that's one more reason to start working on your very own balcony or roof top garden.

The Horticulture Expo is an initiative to bring all gardening enthusiasts under one roof. It gave us an opportunity to talk to nursery owners directly and buy the tools needed for our roof-top/balcony garden. Right from beautifully crafted bonsai to banana samplings to fresh organic food, the expo had a stall for everything. We both shopped until afternoon, chatted with the stall owners and had a fun time.

Below are few pictures I photographed (using my Iphone 4S) while we were there. 

beautiful bonsai for sale

cactus anybody?

purple delight..

these were reasonably priced and I think are perfect as food photography props. I did buy a few for my collection.

Now, let's talk about today's recipe - Arroz Verde (Green Rice) Shall we? Have you ever tried this? It a simple idea where we blend all things green into a puree and cook with rice. A classic Mexican side dish and the green ingredients used in this recipe are - green tomatoes, spinach, green chilli and cilantro. If you have tomatillos, use them instead of green tomatoes. You can also use - arugula, kale, parseley, any kind of chilli variety like poblano, jalapeno in this recipe. Its not too spicy and serves as an accompaniment with beans or any curry. 

Enjoy!

This recipe is being sent as an entry to Healthy Vegan Friday # 27

All things green - spinach, green chillies, green tomatoes and coriander

{Recipe} Arroz Verde | Green Rice

Ingredients:

1 cup long grain rice,, washed and rinsed couple of times (I used Basmati)
2 green tomatoes, roughly chopped (Use tomatillos if you have some.)
1 cups of chopped greens - I used spinach and cilantro
1 green chilli (remove seeds for a milder version)
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 medium onion, finely chopped
2 cups of water
2 tsp olive oil

Preparation:

Place the green tomatoes, green chilli, spinach and cilantro in a blender cup. Grind into a smooth paste. No need to add any water. The juice from the tomatoes is enough for pureeing. Set aside.

Heat olive oil and add garlic with chopped onion. Saute for couple of minutes. Now, add rice. Let it brown a bit until the rice turns light golden color. Now, add the green puree along with water. Season with salt. Cover and bring rice to a boil. Then reduce heat to low and cook until the liquid is completely absorbed. Don't stir while its cooking. 

Once the rice is cooked, remove from heat and set aside for 10 minutes. Fluff with a fork and Serve it as an accompaniment with almost anything. It tastes delicious as-is too!

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Chile Relleno with Home-made Tomato Sauce

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It all started with uber delicious Mysore Bonda, then we moved on to making Vegetarian Rogan Josh and last month we all munched on some crunchy Cornmeal-Orange Cookies.Yes, it is time for some free-spirit-blogging again. For the month of August, I chose the theme as - "Favourite Main Course Dish which we had in any Restaurant". We all have our favorites, don't we. those bajjias from your favorite stall which you crave in the middle of the night, the yummy dessert dish which you had in a restaurant during one of your travels that always stays with you and the taste still lingers in your mouth. I wanted my FSB pals to re-create the magic in their own kitchens.

I have my absolute favorites too. Bagels and Cream Cheese for instance. Are you one of them who associate food memories with some distinct places? I do that all the time. I had some of the best bagels in NYC and then in Washington DC. I ate them every single day, for breakfast. Whenever I think of Bagels, they remind me of the wonderful times I had and the fun people I met in these two cities.

Then, I moved to California.

That is when I fell in love with Mexican cuisine. It all started with Chipotle, then I moved on to visiting local, nameless restaurants in Mountain View which served hands down some of the best quesadillas, salsas and chile rellenos I ever had. I would always go for a full mexican platter complete with - fresh guacamole, sour cream, rice and beans. For me, Chile Relleno reminds me of Mountain View, California.

...and today, I have tried to recreate the same mexican flavors in my indian kitchen. It is not just food that is important here, it is also the place at which I had this dish almost every alternate day that take precedence. As I sat with my plate of Chile Relleno today, I thought about all those dinners, where I used to go all alone right from work. Alone because S used to work very late in the night and I also knew we would move back to India someday. So, those 10 months were the only time, where I could taste these goodies to the fullest. those were the days which I will always cherish and will forever be with me whenever I taste some good Mexican food. :-)

Chile Relleno with home-made Tomato Sauce

Adapted from various internet sources

Ingredients:

For Chile Relleno

3 long Peppers (preferred: Poblano Peppers, I used Anaheim variety)
1/2 cup Maida/All purpose flour
1/4 cup Cheddar Cheese, grated or sliced
1/4 cup Milk
1 Egg, beaten
1/2 tsp Baking powder
1/2 tsp Baking soda
Salt and Red pepper flakes - to taste
1 tsp Oil
Oil - for shallow frying

For Tomato Sauce:

3 tbsp Olive oil
1 Onion, finely chopped
3-4 Garlic cloves, finely minced
2 Tomatoes
1/4 cup Tomato puree
Salt and Black pepper - to taste

Preparation:

Chile Relleno -

1. Make a vertical slit to the peppers and remove the seeds and membranes. Note: for a smoky flavor, slightly char them a little and cool. or Use as-is. I tried both charred & uncharred versions and they taste equally yummy

2. In a small bowl, combine maida, milk, egg, baking powder, baking soda, salt and a tsp of oil. Spinkle some red pepper flakes over the batter and whisk well.

3. Stuff each of the peppers with the cheese.

4. Heat enough oil in a wide pan. Roll each pepper into the batter, carefully dip and fry in oil until light golden brown. Using a slotted spoon, remove them onto paper towels to drain excess oil.

Tomato Sauce -

1. Blanch tomatoes for few minutes in hot water.

2. Heat olive oil in a pan and saute onions & garlic until translucent. Mix in sliced, blanced tomatoes and cook until mushy. Add tomato puree with salt & pepper. Add about 1 cup of water to bring it to a thick saucy consistency. Cover and cook for few minutes.

Assembling -

Spoon some tomato sauce on a plate and place chile rellenos on top. Serve with cilantro-lime rice, beans and guacamole on the side to make it a complete mexican platter.

Check out what other FSB members cooked for this month's challenge -

Anu - Gobhi 65
Nags - Murugan Idli Kadai Idli
Lataji - Potato and Aubergine Gratin with Greens

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until next time,
Siri

AWED: Huevos Rancheros and a Recipe Marathon!!!

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Dhivs: You really love Eggs, don't you? (a.k.a: Are you not sick of these egg recipes? huh?)

Me: *devilish smile* No way!!..I will not rest until I make all possible egg recipes, from every cuisine..;) hehehahaha!

... and Here I am with a classic, piquant Mexican breakfast - "Huevos Rancheros": meaning 'eggs ranch-style' or 'eggs country-style' in Spanish. To me, its bean mixture spread on a tortilla topped with a fried egg..! It a simple, delectable blend of Mexican flavors which serves as a great breakfast entree.



Adapted from here

Ingredients:

1 tbsp Vegetable oil
1 medium Onion, finely chopped
2 cloves of Garlic, crushed
1 tbsp Hot sauce (Recommended: Chipotle Sauce)
1 tsp ground Cumin
1 can Tomatoes in juice, drained and chopped
1 can Red Kidney beans, rinsed and drained (Recommended: Black Beans)
Fresh Cilantro leaves, chopped
Salt to taste
1 tbsp Butter
4 large eggs
4 Wheat Tortillas, warmed (Recommended: Corn Tortillas)

P.S: Here some yummy home-made Whole Wheat Tortillas

Preparation:

1. In saucepan, heat oil on medium until hot. Add onion and garlic, and cook until beginning to brown. Stir in hot sauce and cumin; cook for 30 seconds, stirring.

2. Add tomatoes; cover and cook 3 minutes to blend flavors, stirring occasionally. Stir in beans, half of cilantro, and season with salt; heat through, about 3 minutes, stirring occasionally.

3. Meanwhile, in a nonstick skillet, melt butter on medium heat. Crack eggs, 1 at a time, and drop into skillet. Sprinkle little salt over them. Cover skillet and cook eggs 4 to 5 minutes or until whites are set and yolks thicken.

4. Place tortillas on 4 dinner plates; top each with some bean mixture and 1 fried egg. Sprinkle some dry herbs. (oregano and rosemary) for extra flavor.


This is my final entry to dear Dhivya's AWED: Mexican event.

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Now for some more fun stuff! Dhivya and me have conceptualized a Recipe Marathon this month: a non stop recipe blogging from 17th of May to 31st of May 2008. Yohooo!! I will update the post with the logo soon..:)

Some simple rules of how to participate in this Marathon with us..

1. Post a recipe everyday from 17th to 31st of May 2008.

2. Mention the word: Recipe Marathon in your post.

3. We will let you know who all are into this Marathon by 17th... All you have to do is link their sites with your day's posts , so that we all know what our fellow buddies blogged about that particular day!. ( or u can simply copy the links from our posts ;) makes ur life easier )

4. I will put your recipe link into the Dining Hall forum under the specific category it fits in..

The idea behind this Recipe Marathon, is 100% pure fun. and Hope you all will have loads of masti with us in this marathon! Looking forward for your participation. :D

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From today , I plan to have an add-on for each of my posts. These are some yummy recipes that have been tested by YOU and tried & thoroughly enjoyed by ME

Your Recipe Through My Lens: Ashwini's Gobi Ka Kheema.


Enjoi!!

- Siri

Mexican Fiesta: Bocadillos (Potato Fritters) with Casera Sauce

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This recipe is from 'Culinary Mexico: Authentic Recipes and Traditions' by Daniel Hoyer, discovered during one of my *peek-a-boo* sessions at Barnes and Nobles this weekend. I instantly fell in love with this dish and since A.W.E.D: Mexican is on, I had a nice pretext to try this and satiate my craving for some deep-frying-goodies..:))



Author's Note:

Served throughout Oaxaca and in Mexico City, Bocadillos are Oaxaca's answer to the latke. More commonly made with onions and eggs and served with hot salsa, this recipe, as served at the Oaxaca restaurant 'La Fonda de Santo Domingo is more of a dessert or sweet snack that uses cheese as a binder. Bocadillos make a great dessert, a snack with Cafe de Olla, Mexican Chocolate Caliente, or even as a breakfast or brunch item with eggs.


Savory Bocadillos (Potato Fritters)
I made the savory version added with some green chillies and chopped onion & cilantro..:D

Here is the original recipe as per the book:

Ingredients:

3 large potatoes, boiled with skin on
1/2 cup Panela/Ricotta or Monterey Jack Cheese. (I used Ricotta.)
1 tbsp all-purpose flour
Salt - to taste
1/2 cup flour for dredging
Vegetable Oil for frying
1/2 cup powdered sugar (optional- if serving as a dessert)

Preparation:

1. Peel the potatoes while still warm, then mash them with the cheese, flour and salt.

2. Shape the mixture into small, round or oval patties.

3. Dredge in the flour, removing any excess.

4. Heat enough vegetable oil in a skillet and fry these patties until golden on both sides.

5. Drain well and Serve immediately.

Note: If served as a dessert, dust some powdered sugar over the warm bocadillos. Maple syrup, fruit syrup (or) honey would go well too.

Casera Sauce:

There are many variations of the authentic Casera Sauce..I chose the simplest of all..:D


Adapted from here.

Ingredients:

2 large ripe tomatoes - chopped
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
2 jalapeno peppers - seed removed, finely chopped
1/4 cup finely chopped cilantro
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 salt & freshly ground black pepper

Preparation:

Mix all the ingredients in a shallow bowl and let it set for sometime.


Enjoi!

[UPDATED 8/12/2010] - I am sending this as an entry to Alka's LYRO:Potato event. 


Siri

Frijoles Meneados (Mashed Pinto beans topped with cheese)

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'Tacos' are popular mexican snacks and 'Frijoles Meneados' is considered an ideal side dish for them. It has a dip like consistency, ideal for scooping out with tacos..:D It tastes divine and exceptionally tasty when served warm. Now that Dhivya chose in a Mexican fiesta for her AWED event, Frijole dip is a must make from me..:D Hope you all like it as much as I did!

Frijoles spread out on a plate, ready for serving!

Ingredients:

1 can Pinto beans
1/2 cup Fat-Free shredded Cheddar Cheese (one can use normal cheese too!)
1 tsp chopped Garlic
Salt and Black Pepper
2 tbsp chopped Onion
2 tbsp Butter
1 tsp chopped Green Chillies

Note: If using normal dry beans, then Soak pinto beans overnight in 1 quart of water. Place beans into a large saucepan, and add water to cover. Bring to a boil, then simmer over medium-low heat until beans are tender, about 1 to 2 hours.

Preparation:

1. Mash the pinto beans with a potato masher or with hand (as I did!)

2. Heat butter in a skillet, add in garlic, chopped onion and green chillies. Saute until golden brown. Add the mashed beans and cook for couple of minutes.

3. Season with salt and pepper.

4. Preheat oven for 375 deg. Spread the bean mixture in a baking dish and sprinkle some cheddar cheese over it.

5. Bake for 10-15minutes, until cheese melts..Serve hot!






Off this goes to Dhivya's A.W.E.D event with a Mexican theme..:)

Reminder for Open Sesame - Did u select your BOX yet..?

Enjoi!!

-Siri