Paanak ( a refreshing, thirst-quencher).

Paanak is a traditional non-alcoholic beverage from my hometown. When someone mentions Paanak, it immediately brings to mind the picture of people playing with colors , squirting water-guns filled with colorful water at each other and basically drenching them. It is all in the spirit of camaraderie. Paanak is served to all the festivity revelers and the spectators standing in the hot sun. Paanak not only is refreshing and quenches the thirst, it is also rejuvenating! The jaggery in Paanak helps counteract hypoglycemia ( decreased blood sugar levels).

Holi is a festival of colors that is mainly celebrated in Northern part of India. Where I come from, which is the South Kanara region of Southern India, we have a similar festival of colors celebrated on the sixth day of Theru/Rathasaptami ( Chariot festival). The concept for both is the same!

Courtesy: Kannada Gotthilla ( facebook)

I therefore figured that this is a great recipe to share with all my North Indian friends! This is a jaggery -based drink that has the goodness of  lemon juice, ginger, cardamom and black pepper, making it also a great digestive aid for all the indulgence in rich food and desserts! It is very simple and easy to make!  Do try it. It is perfect also to sit at the beach and drink!

I am bringing these beauties to Throwback Thursday # 31 and Angie's Fiesta Friday #112!! Angie's co-hosts this week are Natalie @ Kitchen, Uncorked and Hilda @ Along The Grapevine.

Servings: makes three  5 oz glasses.

Ingredients:

Water: 2 cups
Ice cubes: 6-8 nos
Lime/lemon juice: from one small lime/lemon.
Jaggery: 3/4 cup, grated ( can be adjusted as per individual desired level of sweetness).
Ginger: 2 inch piece, grated
Freshly ground black pepper powder : 1/2 tsp
Cardamom powder: ground from  seeds from 2 pods ( around 1/4 tsp)

Method:

Add all the above ingredients to a blender . Pulse for 5-10 seconds!

Alternatively, add all the ingredients to a big pot. Mix well.

Serve chilled!

Enjoy!

Cooking made easy:

You could use ginger powder instead of grated ginger.

Ready-to-use cardamom and pepper powders and lemon juice concentrate can be used.

Sugar or honey can be used instead of jaggery.

Tip for healthy living:

Jaggery is a healthy alternative to sugar for most of our daily needs including coffee and tea.It is not processed. It is basically sugarcane juice that has been boiled and reduced. It is rich in iron.

Food for thought:

The face is the mirror of the mind, and the eyes without speaking confess the secrets of the heart. St. Jerome
Please do share your thoughts. Your opinion matters!

Vegetarian/Vegan, Low-Fat Dips & Chutneys.

SuperBowl50 is around the corner. It is a HUGE milestone to the football community. There will be several SuperBowl parties everywhere! There will be finger foods galore. With finger foods, comes the notorious dips & chutneys that are oh, so delicious!! Sometimes, the finger food itself may be healthy, but the dip is calorie-laden, artery-clogger! It takes a little more thinking and creativity to make the dips healthy and low-calorie.

I am therefore bringing to you a collective of dips & chutneys from my blog that are low-calorie,  low-fat, and are  vegan or vegetarian. Some of them are spicy but the spice level can be adjusted as per individual spice tolerance. I hope you can/will find something that works for you! Click on the individual title to view the recipe in its entirety.

Pico de gallo

Ambuli ( Green Mango) Chutney

Cilantro-Coconut Chutney/Dip

Coconut-Ginger Chutney/Dip

Cranberry Chutney

Loshne Chutney/Garlic Chutney

Ghosale Sheera Chutney ( Ridge Gourd Peel Chutney)

Peanut Chutney

Pomegranate peel and ridge-gourd peel chutney

If you have not yet found yet what you like, check this collective out!! I am sure you will find something that you will absolutely love!!

I am bringing these dips/chutneys to the parties at Throwback Thursday, Fiesta Friday and Saucy Saturday. Lily @ Little Sweet Baker and Julianna @ Foodie On Board are Angie's  co-hosts this week at Fiesta Friday.

Super Bowl Collective of Vegetarian Appetizers, Dips & Desserts

Cooking made easy:

Most chutneys, can be made ahead of time in big batches and frozen. When needed, thaw and use it. Some dips like anything with avocado or yogurt is best made a few hours prior!

Tip for healthy living:

Here are some tips to help control indulging at SuperBowl parties, especially if you are a diabetic. These were shared kindly by a very proactive and enterprising person, Ms. Geeta Kakade, who runs a diabetic support group on Facebook.

Special days like Superbowl Sunday generate excitement, anticipation and looking ahead. This is just an example but there are lots for special days in each of our lives surrounding them. When they revolve around food and get togethers here's what I do to protect myself as a diabetic....

1. I might decide to throw caution to the wind and eat whatever I want to at the get together (esp. if I've had a very 'good' week with diet/exercise and test results.)
'Whatever I want to/feel like' still involves moderation so it doesn't result in high sugars followed by a sleepless night followed by a day when I can't do much else except rest and get everything back to normal.
2. I do the above sometimes, but nowadays I'd rather err on the side of caution. I make sure there are things to eat that are good for me and first eat them.
As far as possible I skip the carbs.
3. When it comes to my favorite course...dessert...I taste all the other stuff practicing portion control. My idea of portion control is like this...a one mm thick slice of a pie, one inch long...I did this at Thanksgiving and tasted about nine desserts this way and still didn't exceed my 'portion size'...it worked so well and I had normal test results the next day, so I will continue doing this. It satisfies my dinosaur sweet tooth and mentally I don't feel like a food martyr even though people look at my plate in great surprise and then pity!
3. If anyone asks/comments I tell them about diabetes and the way high and low sugars impact my life and assure them I'm happy/have become used to, the choices I make and don't even want to eat large portions any more. Whether they believe me or not is their concern, not mine.

I hope you will protect yourself by planning ahead to face your next food challenge.

Food for thought:

If we did all things we are capable of, we would literally astound ourselves. Thomas A. Edison

Please do share your thoughts. Your opinion matters!

Khotto Ani Mudo ;Festival Special; Navratri day 3.

Khotto & Mudo are two very traditional Mangalorean Konkani dishes that are prepared on auspicious/special events be it religious festivals or weddings, engagement parties and even during death anniversaries. Khotto is basically idlis ( rice-lentil cakes) that are made in moulds/cups made out of jackfruit leaves while Mudo is idli made in a cylindrical mould made out of some leaves that grow in the wild. It is believed that these are basically leaves of a plant that bears these flowers called "Bingaru".

Mudo is usually available during rainy season or the festival season in South Canara region. I cannot speak about elsewhere. If you are aware of other places that use these, please do share with us. Khotto, however is available all through the year as jackfruit leaves are available all year round. Most people have jackfruit trees in their backyards or somewhere close to them, so it is easily accessible to them. The problem however is that not everyone knows how to put the four jackfruit leaves together to make the Khotto cup/mould. I recently was in India on vacation and had a chance to videotape my mother making Khotto out of the leaves. I am going to share that video with you as soon as I have had a chance to edit it.

The batter used in both Khotto and Mudo is the basic idli batter except that during festivals, the rice in the idli batter is replaced with sooji or  varai / samo. You can find the recipe for the same here. Just replace the rice with samo. The difference however is in flavor in each of these due to the leaves that are used. Each one imparts a distinctive flavor and smell to the idli which can only be understood by someone who has eaten them. It is truly a specialty. When I went home this time, I refused to eat mere idlis. I ate all the mudos and khottos that I could. Khottos and mudos take longer to cook due to the volume and density of each one of them depending on the size. Mudos take even longer than khottos to cook.

Servings: 6

Ingredients:

For the mould ( Khotto):
Jackfruit leaves: 24 medium leaves
Thin wooden skewers: 50 in number

For the mould ( Mudo): get readymade ones.

For the batter:
Urad dal: 1/2 cup
Cream of wheat( sooji):  1 cup
Water: 1 to 1 1/2 cups to grind urad dal
Salt to taste ( approximately 3/4 tsp)

Method:

For the mould ( Khotto): See the pictorial below:

For the batter:

Soak Urad dal for at least 3-4 hours.

Wash sooji/cream of wheat  thoroughly . Take it in a heat-proof bowl. Boil 5 cups water in the idli steamer/ pressure cooker, with the steamer plate in it. Place the bowl with the cream of wheat in it . Close the steamer/ pressure cooker and cook it for 10 mins on medium flame. Turn off the flame. Take the bowl out and let it cool down to room temperature.

Blend urad dal in a blender/ grinder , adding water little at a time until it rises to 3 times the volume you started with. Make sure you give the motor of the blender some rest in between. The consistency of the ground urad dal should be fluffy  and light ,not runny.

Pour the blended urad dal in a big bowl/ container.

Now mix the steamed and cooled sooji ( cream of wheat) with the  urad dal , cover and let it sit overnight to ferment. If living in cold region, you can keep it in the cold oven/ microwave overnight.

Next  morning add  salt to the batter and mix well.

Ensure that the batter has fermented well. You can know this when the batter has risen a little in the container. The consistency of the batter should be slightly thicker than the usual idli batter.

Putting it together :

Boil 500 ml of water in the idli steamer or pressure cooker with the steamer plate in.Fill the khotto/ mudo with batter until 2/3 full and steam in the idli steamer / pressure cooker ( without using the weight) on medium- high flame for 30 minutes or until a skewer comes out clean when inserted. Mudo may need another extra 10-15 minutes before they are done. Turn off the heat and let it cool down in the steamer for another 10 minutes before taking them out of the mold.

Once completely cooled, you should be able to gently shake the mould and bring the steamed Khotto out in its entirety without breaking it and re-use the mould for another round of steaming. However, if you are apprehensive of breaking the Khotto, you can peel the mould and remove the Khotto out. In this case, you will no longer be able to re-use the mould.

Serve the khotto/mudo hot with sambar/ chutney or both.

Cooking made easy:

Usually for auspicious occasions, rice is not used for making Khotto/ Mudo. Instead sooji or varai ( samo) is used. For daily purposes, you could use idli rava ( rice rava) or soak and grind rice to make batter, as explained here.

Tip for healthy living:

Idli/ Khotto when served with coriander chutney or Sambhar becomes a complete meal with the essential portions of protein ( urad dal and tur dal), sooji/ rice rava( carbohydrates) and the vegetables in the Sambhar  or the greens in chutney providing essential minerals and vitamins.

Food for thought:

What you do today can improve all your tomorrows. Ralph Marston

Poori ( Puffed fried whole wheat Indian bread); Meatless Monday

Poori is a very common bread made in India. It is basically small chapatis/ rotis that have been fried and are usually puffy. The upside is that this is very tasty, I myself am very fond of it but I rarely make it as it is not very healthy. Why isn't it healthy? Because it is deep-fried in oil. So then why am I including this here??? Because once in a while indulging is not such a bad thing to do and it is really super-easy to make. The easy to make part caught your attention right? When I first started making chapatis and pooris, I always found making pooris easier than making chapatis. I always had a problem making perfectly round chapatis. Pooris are more forgiving.
Also there are many people out there who don't know how to make pooris!

Servings: 2-4

Ingredients: to make 6-8 small- medium sized pooris

Whole Wheat flour: 1 cup
Cooking oil: 1  tbsp
Salt: 1/4 tsp
Sugar: 1/2 tsp
Lukewarm water: 1/2 cup ( you may not require all of it).

Method:

In a bowl mix together the flour, oil, salt and sugar. Make a well in the center. Add water little bit at a time and make a nice, soft dough.

Knead well and make a ball. Apply oil to the outside of the ball. Cover with a damp cloth/ paper towel and keep aside for 30 min- 1 hour.

Pinch little portion of the dough to make small lemon sized balls.

Now roll out the balls to make small pooris.

Heat oil in a wok/ kadai on medium flame. When the oil is hot enough, drop the poori in it and with the back of a slotted spoon gently press it down into the oil.

This will help the poori puff up. When the poori puffs up and floats to the surface of the oil, flip it and let it cook for few seconds on the other side.

Now remove it from the oil and drain it on paper towels.

Serve hot with potato bhaji/ Chole/ or any side dish of your choice!

Enjoy!

Cooking made easy:

When rolling  out the dough, make sure that it is even and that you don't roll it out too thin. It shouldn't be too thick either. If it is too thin, it will not puff up and if it is too thick, the inside will not be cooked.

Tip for healthy living:

Whenever you find the urge to eat something unhealthy, for example: fried food like poori/ fried fish/ fried chicken etc. , pair it with healthy foods. For example: poori with some mixed vegetable dish, fried fish/ chicken with some healthy salad or vegetable stir-fry . This way you will have a balance in your diet and you will not be totally compromising your diet. Also, eat only one serving of the unhealthy stuff. This way you would have satisfied your craving without jeopardizing your health.

Food for thought:

Knowledge is power. Francis Bacon

Kuvale Sasam ( Ash Gourd/Wintermelon cooked in mustard flavored coconut sauce)

Kuvale ( Ash Gourd or Winter Melon) is one of my favorite vegetables. It is not only delicious, it is good for the body. It soothes the digestive system. Apart from Kuvale puli koddel, another common and popular dish made by konkani GSBs with this vegetable  is kuvale sasam. It is a very simple and humble dish made by adding cooked ash gourd pieces to a sauce made by grinding together coconut, red chillies, tamarind and a few mustard seeds. The sauce should not be spicy.It is absolutely delicious. You can also eat it like a stew.

Servings: 4

Ingredients:

Ash gourd/Wintermelon/ kuvale: 1 lb slice.
Water: 1/2 cup + 1/2 cup for grinding.
Freshly grated coconut: 1 cup
Dried red chillies: 3 medium sized ones.
Tamarind: marble sized if dry; 1/8 tsp if using the pulp.
Mustard seeds: 1/2 tsp+ 1/2 tsp
Curry leaves : 1 sprig
Coconut oil: 1 tsp

Method:

Cut the ash gourd/Wintermelon/kuvale into medium sized pieces.  Add the pieces to a pot, add 1/2 cup water, 1/2 tsp salt and let it cook until tender ( usually takes around 10-15 mins).

In a blender/food processor/mixie, grind together freshly grated coconut, tamarind, dried red chillies to a fine paste. When the paste is almost done, add 1/2 tsp mustard seeds and pulse twice.

Add the ground paste to the cooked ash gourd/Wintermelon/kuvale. Mix well and bring it to a boil. Turn off the flame.

Tempering:

In a small frying pan, heat 1 tsp coconut oil. Add mustard seeds. When the seeds splutter, add curry leaves. Turn off the flame. Add this to the above pot.

Serve hot with rice/roti.

Enjoy!

Cooking made easy:

Whenever you cook vegetables that have a high water content, make sure that you do not add too much water. Just add enough water so as to help the cooking process. Otherwise, the additional water given off by the vegetable will make your sauce too thin, watery and tasteless.

In case you do end up with a lot of water after cooking the Wintermelon , remove some of the liquid and keep aside before adding the ground paste. You can always add the reserved liquid to the pot depending on the preferred consistency of the sauce.

Tip for healthy living:

If you have a upset tummy, trying mixing a pinch of salt and hing ( asofoetida) into a cup of buttermilk and drinking it. This helps settle the tummy. ( This is not for people who are lactose intolerant)!

Food for thought:

The creation of a thousand forests is in one acorn. Ralph Waldo Emerson

Purple Cabbage Slaw with Chia seed dressing; Meatless Monday.

I am always on the lookout for including healthier food items into the everyday food for my family and me. I also try to make salads more interesting. Chia seeds is something I eat daily as part of my oatmeal. Recently on Dr. Oz I came across cabbage slaw using chia seed dressing. I tweaked the recipe a little and made purple cabbage slaw to go with my fish tacos! What a delicious meal I had. Everyone at home was happy! You can find the original recipe here. I am bringing this to Super Simple Tuesdays at Hun whats for dinner?

Servings: 4

Ingredients:

Shredded Purple cabbage: 2 cups
Shredded Carrot: 1/4 cup
Onion: 1 small, sliced lengthwise

For the dressing:

Chia seeds: 1 tsp
Honey: 1 tsp
Rice Vinegar:2 tsp
Lemon juice: 2 tsp
Olive oil: 2 tbsp
Garlic: 1 small clove, minced
Salt: to taste
Black pepper: 1/4 tsp

Method:

In a bowl take the shredded cabbage, carrot and the sliced onions. Keep aside.

In a small glass bottle take all the ingredients listed under " dressing". Keep aside for 30 minutes for the chia seeds to absorb the fluid. Shake the bottle well.

Add the dressing to the above bowl as per taste. I use a lot if it.Toss well.

Serve chilled as a side with chicken/ fish/ rice or with tacos!

Cooking made easy:

You could double the dressing ingredients and make a big batch and keep it in the fridge to be used as needed. It should last for at least 2 weeks in the refrigerator.

Tip for healthy living:

Chia seeds are a superfood that is extremely good for our health. They are rich in healthy omega-3 fatty acids, carbohydrates, protein, calcium, antioxidants and dietary fiber. Chia seeds therefore have heart-healthy, anti-inflammatory benefit. It not only helps with satiety, also helps keep the bowel regular.They are also easily digestible.

Food for thought:

Friendship is one mind in two bodies. Mencius