[VeganMoFo 2016] Oven Roasted Cherry Tomatoes Recipe

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Tomato season is long gone here in California but I occasionally see a bag of small, cherry tomatoes here in the Farmer's Markets. Whenever I do, I eagerly grab a few. Most of the times, I eat them raw. I have a long commute to work so these serve as a handy, easy to carry snack to curb those 5 pm hunger pangs. But, this time around I put some extra effort to roast these beauties. I saw today's Oven Roasted Cherry Tomatoes recipe in Heidi Swanson's cookbook and instantly fell in love with its simplicity. You will be surprised on how little there is to do but by the end they are so flavorful that it is hard to stop nibbling on them. I ended munching an entire tray full of roasted tomatoes in one go and had to make an another batch to add to my favorite pasta and my weekly salad. Yumm-ee-dee-dum, I tell ya! 

[VeganMoFo 2016] Zucchini Carpaccio Recipe

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Day 4 of ongoing VeganMoFo 2016 challenge is here and today I am about share a quick, no-cook Zucchini salad recipe I saw on NYT Cooking. I am also super kicked and doing a happy dance for another reason. Do you know the last time I posted FOUR recipes in a month was way back in 2015. Yep! it is always the case that I start off the month with best of intentions, slowly loose mojo and never share more than a recipe or two. Here's hoping at least this year (unlike 2014), I will successfully finish this VeganMoFo challenge. Read more and get this refreshingly easy recipe for Zucchini Carpaccio.

Sweet Corn and Black Bean Salad Recipe

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You wouldn't believe if I told you that these days I eagerly and often hungrily click on any recipe which has the words: easy | make-ahead | freezable. Balancing work and umpteen number of things I wish to do (like zentangle, reading) AND eating healthy food is becoming increasingly challenging. I stumbled upon today's recipe during one of those Google searches where I was looking for a healthy yet easy salad. 

..after 9 years, it is time to slow down + Basic Curried Corn Chowder recipe

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Today's post: celebrating 9 years of food blogging; why it is time to slow down and be your best; a basic curried corn chowder recipe by Mark Bittman to cure those 5pm hunger pangs.

“If you’re having difficulty coming up with new ideas, then slow down. For me, slowing down has been a tremendous source of creativity. It has allowed me to open up — to know that there’s life under the earth and that I have to let it come through me in a new way. Creativity exists in the present moment. You can’t find it anywhere else.”  - Natalie Goldberg (Source)

[Holiday Memories] Classic Hawaiian Macaroni Salad Recipe

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The local-style Hawaiian Macaroni Salad is a quick and easy cold pasta salad recipe which uses lots of mayonnaise and easily customizable with favorite mix-ins. It is a staple of a typical Hawaii-style plate lunch and honestly, so simple to make that no specific instructions are needed at all. Just a few guidelines and you are good to go! Enjoy!

[Recipe Redux] Zucchini Noodles With Creamy Avocado Lime Dressing Recipe

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Fresh zucchini noodles (zoodles) tossed with lightly sautéed corn, cherry tomatoes and in an easy avocdao-cilantro-lime-chilli dressing. A fun way to incorporate more veggies and also an healthier gluten-free alternative to our traditional noodles/spaghetti pasta.

[Game of Thrones Special Recipe] Harrenhal Vegetable Stew

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"Winter is coming"..

"A Lannister always pays his debts"..

"When you play the game of thrones, you win or you die"..

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As someone who got into a reading habit pretty late (in her 20's), fantasy genre never appealed to me much. I read Harry Potter in parts and never touched The Lord of the Rings!. My natural inclination is towards fiction with either lots of drama (The Notebook) or suspense (The Thirteenth Tale). My book choices are pretty predictable and never-out-of-the-box. Then 3 years ago, I accidentally stumbled upon George R. R Martin's Game of Thrones (A Song of Ice & Fire series). It was an intimidating set of books with 1000+ pages each and very hesitatingly I started reading on my e-reader. The story of GoT, set in medieval times is filled with swords, sex, gothic creatures and characters hungry for power - always. There are too many Houses to remember and worst of all, as soon as you start liking a(ny) character, the author invariably kills it. Ugh. Anyhow, soon I found myself drawn into this fantasy world to such an extent, that it was very hard to get out. Every chapter had a cliff hanger at the end and it was impossible to resist NOT to read the next one. 

Coming to today's recipe - Harrenhal Vegetable Stew, I have to say whether you are a fan of the show or not, it will appeal to all. Just cut the veggies in season, dump everything into a stock pot and let it simmer. Store the rest in refrigerator and enjoy during those crazy weeknight dinners. (If you were me, while watching an episode of GoT). :-)

[VeganMoFo 2014 | Quick and Easy Snacks] Peanut Chaat Recipe + Two Book Giveaways: The F-Word by Mita Kapur and The Best of Lord Krishna's Cuisine by Yamuna Devi

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Today's recipe is a simple, tangy and fulfilling snack that is so versatile to add anything you fancy and forgiving enough when it comes to ingredient amounts - Peanut Chaat. Not just during monsoons, this can be enjoyed as an appetizer on a papad canape maybe? or as a healthy salad anytime and any season. And while you are at it, don't forget to leave a comment on this post to mark your participation for the TWO book giveaways (Day 2) Scroll down to the end for more details. If you haven't tried your luck already, do leave a comment in yesterday's post as well. Good Luck! Click here to access all book giveaways on a SINGLE page.

Day 2 | Two Books-A-Day Giveaways:

The F-Word by Mita Kapur

and

The Best of Lord Krishna's Cuisine by Yamuna Devi 

Simple Indian Beetroot Salad Recipe

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Learn how to make a simple Indian beetroot salad, a vegan recipe with steamed beets and lightly spiced with cumin powder and lemon juice dressing. Another easy variation is this roasted beet salad in yogurt dressing. These two salad recipes can be served as side dishes, main course-salads or just as healthy snacks.

[VeganMoFo 2013] Sprouted Moong Dal and Babycorn Salad Recipe

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I am well known in my household as the one who gets excited for tiniest things in life and let me tell you, sprouting beans is one of them. Yes, it needs time and little patience. But the joy to see tiny shoots at the end of the third day is just beyond words!

[VeganMoFo 2013] Brown Rice Ratatouille Salad Recipe

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Bonjour Septembre! 

VeganMoFo (Vegan Month of Food) is here finally. It's a challenge where hundreds of bloggers have pledged to write about and cook only Vegan recipes all month long, and I am one of them.

Noodle (Pasta) Salad with Ginger Peanut Dressing Recipe

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Lots of raw, fresh vegetables along with a smooth, creamy dressing and of course noodles is what makes this salad sumptuous and a meal in itself. This is one of the recipes I bookmarked when I was subscribed to Vegetarian Times magazine while in US. I love those stash of old magazines so much that I got them along with me back to India. Every now and then, I flip through them for inspiration on what to try out and today's recipe is a result of one such browsings!

Enjoy..

[Jar Recipes] Vegan Carrot Potato Soup Recipe + [Snacks To Munch] Roasted Pinto Beans

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“I have found out that there ain't no surer way to find out whether you like people or hate them than to travel with them.”  ~ Mark Twain, "Tom Sawyer Abroad"

..my ideal travel companions..

Chilled Cucumber Salad With Garlic

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It all started while I was reading Andrea Nguyen's interview in Monica Bhide's brilliant ebook - "In Conversation with Exceptional Women." If you crazy passionate about food and wish to know more about some of the best food writers of this generation, I highly recommend to read the book.

{Easy Summer Recipes} Roasted Beet Salad with Yogurt Dressing

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I am a great fan of the juicy, natural sweetness that beets tend to offer. And a drizzle of a super simple yogurt dressing on the top gives a nice summery, cool twist to my favorite vegetable. Now, that's what today's recipe - Roasted Beet Salad with Yogurt Dressing is all about - as easy as simply tossing the beets in an aluminum foil to roast along with a spice marinade, cutting into wedges and serve some dressing on the side. The recipe is adapted from Modern Spice by lovely Monica Bhide. I owned this copy for quite a while and like many others on my cookbook shelf, I didn't get a chance to cook from it. Until today!

A word of caution - the photographs tend to get messier by the end as I couldn't stop myself from tasting the the gorgeous salad. I hope you wouldn't mind. Its definitely one of the quickest photo shoots I ever did for any recipe. :-) Now, You got to see how greedily I ate right? The below photograph is the proof...

Enjoy and make some today!

 Roasted Beets neatly arranged with Yogurt Dressing in the middle

{Recipe} Roasted Beet Salad with Yogurt Dressing

Serves 3-4
Source: Modern Spice by Monica Bhide

Ingredients:

For the beets -

4 medium sized beets, different colors if possible, trimmed. [I used only red beets]
1/2 tsp black pepper powder
2 tbsp olive oil (original recipe suggests vegetable oil)
1 tbsp coriander powder
few curry leaves (my addition)

For the dressing -

3/4 cup plain yogurt
1/4 teaspoon minced ginger
1/2 tsp sugar
1/8 tsp salt

Preparation:

1. Preheat oven to 220 C or 425 F. Wash the beets and pat them dry.

2. In a bowl, combine black pepper, vegetable oil, salt, coriander powder and curry leaves. Drop the beets and coat them well.

3. Place the beets in aluminium foil and wrap them tightly into individual pouches. (The original recipe suggests to wrap the beets in a large piece of foil as a single layer). Also if you are using different coloured beets, wrap each color individually. Place them in a rimmed baking sheet and bake for 45 to 50 minutes until the beets are cooked thoroughly. The beets are cooked when they can be easily pierced with a knife.

I used the remaining marinade as a dip for my bread. It does taste yum with the coriander powder and curry leaves.

4. Take out the beets from oven and allow to cool to room temperature. Remove from the foil and the skin should peel off very easily with fingers or a pairing knife. Gently scrape off any spice marinade on parts of beet. Cut them into wedges and arrange on a plate.

5. To make the dressing - Place all the ingredients listed for "dressing" above in bowl and whisk to combine. Add water if you wish to have a thinner consistency but donot add oil.

6. Spoon the dressing on the beets and Serve immediately.

Sometimes messy is so gooooooooooooood!

This is Recipe 25 added to my The 100 Recipe Challenge for Year 2013. Check out the rest of the recipes too!

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until next recipe,

Besan Papdi Katori Chat | Chickpea Flour Shells with Sprouts Filling Recipe

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I am going to share a secret with you all today.

I have never played Holi (the festival of colors) ever in my entire life (except for once when I HAD to stay back at my friend's place). Neither did TH. Yes, we do believe in its true essence which is victory of good over evil, a common theme that runs through almost every Indian festival. Holi also waves goodbye to winter (which we never had) and welcomes spring (when is that? Its already so hot!) in a rainbow of its colors...

All my childhood, I have seen my parents lock the front door and all four of us stay indoors, gorging on delicious food, playing games or spend the day watching TV. Putting up a lock outside was important to make believe the outside world we were out of station. The plan worked for quite a few years but later my friends figured out the secret. But still couldn't do anything about it as they used fear the wrath of my father.

Essentially, Holi in our household is synonymous to family time and super delicious meals. With extra time on hand and nothing else to do staying at home, my mother used to make her famous biryani, korma, mirchi bajji along with many other delicacies. This year though, I chose to make something different for Holi. An appetizer that easy to nibble while staying in the house (in my case) and playing with colors (like many of you reading this post!). Both - the katoris and the filling can be made way ahead of time and can be assembled at the very last minute. Doesn't that serve our purpose to stay away from the kitchen during festival time? Yay!

Enjoy!

 Besan Papdi Katori Chat

{Recipe} How to make Besan Papdi Katoris

These shells stay fresh and crunchy when stored in an air tight container for weeks. One can serve almost anything as filling in this recipe. Add little salt to the filling first and taste along with one of the besan katoris. Adjust accordingly. 

Makes around 25 katoris

Ingredients:

1.5 cups besan (finely ground chickpea flour)
1 cup rice flour
2 cups chopped greens (I used spinach and cilantro)
1 tsp ginger garlic paste
1/2 tsp turmeric
1 tsp oil
1 tbsp chilli powder
salt - to taste
water
Oil (if deep frying the shells)

simple ingredients - besan, rice flour, greens, ginger garlic paste, salt, turmeric and chilli powder

...this is the trick to cute little shells. Don't forget to lightly oil the muffin cups..

Preparation:

1. In a large bowl, add chickpea flour, rice flour, greens, ginger garlic paste, turmeric, oil, salt and chilli powder. Mix all the ingredients without adding any water first. Then add water little by little and knead into a soft dough. Cover and keep aside.

2. Take a small ball of the dough and shape into shells using muffin cups. I used silicone molds so it was easy to just peel away the shell. One can use a standard non-stick muffin pan too, just be careful while removing the shell out. Repeat the process with rest of the dough. I made a batch of 6 shells at a time, let them rest for about 10 mins (so that they don't break while peeling) and they easily came out of the mold.

Since its festive season and wouldn't mind those extra calories, I chose to deep fry the katoris. If you wish to, you can bake the muffin molds (brush a little oil over them) as-is in a preheated oven (180 C) for about 10-15 mins, until cooked.

3. Heat oil in a kadai. Drop 3 to 4 shells at a time, reduce flame and fry until light golden brown. Don't fry for too long as they tend to gain more color once out and drained for a while. Store these in an air tight container.

..deep fried and ready to filled..

{Recipe} Mixed Sprouts Salad (Filling)

Not just as a filling, this dish also serves as a healthy side dish for rotis or as a quick salad.

..Don't they look super healthy. I love to eat them raw..

Ingredients:

2 cups mixed sprouts (I used green beans and brown chickpeas)
1 medium onion, chopped
1 tomato, chopped
salt - to taste
1/2 tsp chilli powder
1 tsp cumin seeds
1/2 tsp oil
juice of half a lemon

Preparation:

Heat oil in a kadai and add cumin seeds. Once they start to splutter add chopped onion. Saute until translucent and add tomatoes. Cook for few mins, then mix in the sprouts and season with salt and chilli powder. Don't cook for long. The heat from onion-tomato mixture will cook the sprouts. Turn off the heat and add lemon juice. Mix well. Cool.

...as a filling, salad, side dish.. this dish is versatile to be served as anything...

Assemble: When ready to serve, top each of the besan katoris with sprouts filling + some fresh cilantro and serve them on a platter.

...Served! Holi hai!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

This is Recipe 21 added to my 2013 Recipe Archive. Check out the rest of the recipes too!

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Make a difference to lives of those girls who have no family of their own to celebrate Holi except for each other. Would you spare to donate a few rupees (or dollars) so that their school fees are paid for and they can aspire for brighter future? Please press the "Give Now" button and share about Vaidehi Ashram (More information  Click here) with your friends and family. Thanks in advance.

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until next recipe,

{Healthy Salads} Black-Eyed Pea and Stewed Tomato Salad Recipe

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"According to the Spanish proverb, four persons are wanted to make a good salad: a spendthrift for oil, a miser for vinegar, a counsellor for salt and a madman to stir it all up." John Gerard

Salads are great meals. They are quick, easy to assemble with almost anything that's readily available in the refrigerator and magical as well, especially when fresh vegetables are at their peak during the season.

But, unfortunately - "A lot of people get into what you'd call a salad rut, making the same salad over and over, or using one type of dressing for every type of leaf" says Chris Mayhew, director of marketing at Dole. (Source). I think that's partially true when we attempt to make a salad in its true definition - a green, veggies, protein and a dressing. Its fun to think out of the box and mix & match sometimes.

Today's recipe - Black-Eyed Pea and Stewed Tomato Salad is a little unconventional when it comes to how its made. You don't need always a heavy blue cheese or ranch dressing to bind everything together. Some tomato juice from the stewed tomatoes is heated up with olive oil, paprika, salt and pepper which makes up the dressing. Its just d-e-l-i-c-i-o-u-s. Black eyed peas (or any type of beans) are used for that protein kick. Best of all, its completely vegan and kid friendly. :-)

Enjoy and make some today!

peeled, stewed  canned cherry tomatoes.

boiled black eyed peas

the dressing - olive oil, tomato juice, salt and paprika

{Recipe}  Black-Eyed Pea and Stewed Tomato Salad 

Adapted from Vegetarian Times
Serves 2

Ingredients:

1 cup dried black-eyed peas (or use drained and rinsed canned peas)
1 small onion, finely diced
1 small carrot, peeled and finely diced
1 small bell pepper, finely diced
1 green onion, both white and green parts thinly sliced
4-5 stewed tomatoes along with their juice. (I used cherry tomatoes)
2 tbsp olive oil
1/4 tsp paprika (or chilli powder)
salt & black pepper - to taste
chopped cilantro/coriander leaves - for garnishing

Preparation:

How to prepare dried beans: Soak 1 cup of dried black peas for 6 to 8 hours in filtered water. Pressure cook with enough water on HIGH heat for 9-12 minutes. Let the pressure be released naturally and there you have peas ready for use. I normally cook atleast 5-6 cups and freeze them. When required, all you have to do is thaw them a bit.

In a bowl, combine black-eyed peas, onion, carrots, bell pepper, and green onions and keep aside.

Drain the can of stewed tomatoes. Coarsely chop tomatoes and add to black-eyed-pea mixture. 

In a small saucepan, warm olive oil, few tbsp of tomato juice and paprika. Bring it to a boil, turn off and pour over black-eyed-pea mixture. Stir to coat. Season with salt and pepper, if desired. Garnish with coriander leaves. Serve immediately or refrigerate. It tastes good as a cold salad too. 

Note: My canned tomatoes were quite acidic so I skipped adding any vinegar (as per original recipe) or lemon juice. Optionally you can add one of them as well.

Sending this as an entry to Lisa's My Legume Love Affair # 56 who has taken the hosting baton from Susan from this month onwards. Also to The Wellness Weekend and Healthy Vegan Fridays.

..salad is ready..who wants to eat some!...

This is Recipe 13 added to my 2013 Recipe Archive. Check out the rest of the recipes too!

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until next recipe,

Tomato and Carrot (No Cream) Soup + Amazon & Olive Garden Gift Card Giveaways

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Brrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!

That's exactly how the weather is here in Hyderabad right now. Temperatures are dropping rapidly day after day, a clear indication that the winter has already arrived and its here to stay for few more months to come! It is always the case with me that when cold settles in, I need to make some thick, hot soup to warm up myself, from deep within - perfect to brighten up rather a dull, morose winter's day. Today's recipe of Tomato & Carrot Soup is one such hale and hearty dish. Its filled with goodness of vegetables & herbs with tingling ginger note at the background and a light sprinkling of red chilli flakes at the very end, for some heat.

I highly recommend to make this soup, wrap up warm and with a book in hand enjoy with a buttery, crusty bread to keep the chill out.

..and to know more about and participate in the give-way(s), feel free to scroll down to the end of this post for more details. 

Enjoy!

{Recipe} (No Cream) Tomato and Carrot Soup 

Ingredients:

2 cups of chopped tomatoes
1 cup of chopped carrots
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 garlic clove, peeled, minced
4 cups of water
1 tsp olive oil
3-4 pieces of roughly chopped ginger
1/4 cup coriander leaves
1/2 cup milk
salt - to taste
1/2 tsp or more black pepper
few pieces of bread & butter
red chilli flakes + beaten yogurt for topping

Preparation:

1) Boil 4 cups of water. Add chopped carrots, coriander leaves and ginger. Cover and let it simmer for 15-20 mins. Discard 2 pieces of ginger from the stock.

2) Meanwhile, heat olive oil in a pan and add garlic & onions. Saute for 3-4 mins until light golden brown. Add tomatoes. Cook until mushy on low-medium heat for 15-20 mins. Add boiled carrots along with stock, coriander leaves and ginger. Season with salt & pepper. Mix well and Let it cool a bit.

3) Blend everything into a smooth soup-like consistency. Add milk and bring the soup to a simmer again and water or stock if desired.

4) Melt a bit of butter in a pan. Place few pieces of bread and cook until golden brown.

5) Top with few red chilli flakes + beaten yogurt and serve soup with toasted bread on the side.

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2012 Holiday Giveaways

It is Holiday Season and best time to spread some happy cheer all around. Its time to give-away something special to my lovely readers who support me all along the way. Two lucky winners (**not applicable for Indian readers. Check this Canon Powershot Camera giveaway and enter there) will be chosen for an opportunity win these two exciting give-aways:

1) A chance to win a $25 Amazon gift card 

2) A chance to win a $25 Olive Garden gift card.

Here is what you need to do to win either of these give-aways

1. Leave a comment on this post. As simple as that.

To increase your chances in the random drawing, do one or more of the following and leave a comment once you did so. 

2. Follow Cooking With Siri on Facebook and/or Follow me on Twitter. - @sirime

3. Subscribe to Cooking With Siri feed.

4. Tweet about this giveaway. Feel free to use the below text - 

{Holiday #Giveaway} #Enter for a chance to #win $25 @Amazon and @Olivegarden #giftcards at @sirime's blog. Details - http://tinyurl.com/giftcardsgiveaway 

If you are already liked me on facebook, following on twitter or subscribed to RSS feed, just leave a comment letting me know and you are entered in the giveaway automatically! You don't have to be a blogger to win these give-way(s). 

Last date for participation is November 30th 2012 midnight IST and two winners randomly chosen will be announced on December 1st 2012. 

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Today is Day 20 of my NaBloPoMo challenge. Check out all of the posts previously published here.

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until tomorrow,

Navadhanya Sundal (9 Bean Salad) | Navratri Vrat | Dussehra Fasting Recipe

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Time flies. literally.

It feels like just yesterday I posted my step by step Sabudana Khichdi recipe with an intention to master it and proudly share with you all. (I had quite a few disasters with this dish before). Well, that's happened for last Dussehra. This year, things have changed quite a bit on personal front - am a new city, living with in laws and enjoying the pleasures of having parents two lanes away. :-)

With just 10 days away for Dussehra festival (its on October 16th 2012), am sure you all are gearing up to be in a festive mood, like me.. Like last year, am planning to post some of the very popular recipes especially made during this festive season in coming few days.

Here is a quintessential Sundal recipe. - Navadhanya Sundal, which is super easy to make and super healthy to eat otherwise. Enjoy!

Check out previously posted Dussehra Recipes:

Sweet Corn Sundal 
Sabudana/Sago/Tapioca Khichdi
Jeera Aloo 
Sojjappalu | Kesari Stuffed Poori | Sojja Poorilu (Step by Step Recipe)
2-minute Pineapple Dessert
Dates and Sesame Poornam Boorelu
Nagori Poori with Paneer Korma 
Mixed Vegetable Korma
Dussehra Sambaralu: Aloo Pulao, Palak-Methi Paneer, Carrot Halwa

Recipe for Navadhanya Sundal (9 Bean Salad)

Ingredients:

2 cups in total i.e few tbsp each of any 9 kinds of beans (legumes) I used:

red kidney beans (rajma)
raw peanuts
dried chickpeas
black eyed peas
dried green peas
whole green moong dal
whole black urad dal (sabut urad)
pinto beans
dried field beans (lilva)

1/2 cup fresh coconut, grated
few curry leaves
2 green chillies, slit in the middle
2 tsp of oil
2 tsp mustard seeds
salt - to taste
1/2 lemon juice

Preparation:

1. Wash, rinse and then Soak all the beans together in a bowl overnight.

2. Drain water and place them in a pressure cooker. Add water until beans are immersed and cook them until slightly soft (not too mushy) for 2-3 whistles.

3. Drain and keep the cooked beans aside.

4. Heat oil in a kadai and add mustard seeds with green chillies and curry leaves. Once they start to splutter, add the beans. Mix everything. After 4-5 minutes, season with salt. Turn off the heat and add lemon juice.

5. Transfer in a serving bowl and top with grated fresh coconut. Simple and Delicious!

until next time,

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Moong Dal ka Shorba | Yellow Mung Dal Soup with Garlic Basil Croutons

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“Good soup is one of the prime ingredients of good living.  For soup can do more to lift the spirits and stimulate the appetite than any other one dish.” ~ Louis P. De Gouy, ‘The Soup Book’ (1949)

Moong Dal ka Shorba (Yellow Mung Dal Soup), drizzled with olive oil & topped with garlic-basil croutons

Growing up, my mother never considered "soup" as a real meal, never did she make some at home. And ironically every time we are out for dinner, we always ordered  "tomato soup" as our first course. I never tasted any other kind. 

Moong Dal ka Shorba (Yellow Mung Dal Soup) topped with puffed bajra & red chilli flakes

..things have changed a lot since then. Now, for me personally soup is a beautiful thing, especially during rainy & winter seasons. I make it a meal-in-itself by adding bread on the side or just some papads would do too. 

Certain ingredients like lentils give soup a body and a silky texture which appeals to me the most. There is no need to add any kind of dairy products like cream or milk and by replacing the little butter used in the recipe with (olive) oil, this is a lovely vegan alternative when paired with a sandwich.

The croutons are a great way to make use of day-old left over bread lurking around in the kitchen. I have used dried basil for my croutons, but any kind of herb like rosemary, thyme, sage - fresh or dried will totally work. Enjoy!

Moong Dal Shorba (Yellow Mung Dal Soup)

Adapted from NDTV Cooks

Ingredients:

1/2 cup split moong dal
1/4 cup chopped onion
1 tsp chopped ginger
1 tsp cumin seeds/jeera
2 tbsp lemon juice
1 tsp butter
1 green chilli, chopped
coriander leaves, chopped
1/8 tsp turmeric powder (haldi)
salt to taste

Preparation:

1. Mix moong dal, onion, ginger, green chilies, turmeric powder, salt and 5 cups of water. Pressure cook for about 5-6 whistles. the dal has to be soft and mushy. Remove scum from the top, if there is any.

2. Blend the dal mixture and strain. Keep aside.

3. Heat butter in a pan, add cumin seeds. Sauté till seeds splutter. Add pureed dal and bring it to a boil. Adjust consistency by adding water if desired.

4. Turn off the heat and add lemon juice and coriander leaves. Drizzle some olive oil and/or top with croutons. Serve.

Oven baked Garlic-Basil Croutons

Ingredients:

4 slices of bread, cut into cubes (preferably day-old)
4 tbsp cup olive oil
2 cloves minced garlic (or 1 tsp garlic powder)
1/2 tsp cracked pepper
1 tsp dried basil, crushed between palms

Preparation:

1. Preheat oven for 350 F or 180 C.

2. In a mixing bowl stir olive oil, garlic, cracked pepper and dried basil. Toss bread cubes so that the olive oil mixture is evenly coated.

3. Spread the bread slices evenly in one layer on a greased baking sheet. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until crisp & dry. Keep an eye on them to prevent burning.

“To feel safe and warm on a cold wet night, all you really need is soup.” ~ Laurie Colwin

Have a great week ahead and until next time,

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