“You can't live with 'em, you can't live without 'em”

Thursday, June 7, 2007

There's somethin' irresistabullish about 'em.
We grin and bear it 'cause the nights are long.
I hope that somethin' better comes along

I love summer! Its perfect weather right now and I am spending as much time on my balcony as possible. Yep you can catch me with a book or laptop and a glass of wine lounging on the papasan. Of course Bhatji is away during the weekdays and I have nothing but time. I am looking forward to the next few weekends….I am going to have lots of people visit me and I can’t wait!
So on to the foodie segment of my blog. This past Sunday when Bhatji was home…it was raining so we decided to eat at home. My mom had bought me some ready made puris from the Indian store and so we decided to enjoy a pani puri evening :o) Pani puris have several fillings depending on the different regions of India. But since we decided last minute we sorta made our own version of Pani puri fillings. I didn’t have to make puris so that was helpful.
Fillings for the Pani puri:
1) mashed potato with salt and pepper
2) a can of garbanzo beans
3) chopped onions (well I like it with onions :o)
4) Pani – jaljeera mixed in water

Ingredients for Tamarind Chutney:
6 tbl spns of Tamarind pulp
3 tbl spns of Jaggery/sugar
½ tsp of Red chilli powder
¼ tsp of Black pepper powder
1 tsp of Roasted cumin powder
1 ½ cups of Warm water
Salt to taste
To make:
Mix the tamarind pulp with the warm water and let it sit for about 10 mins. Add sugar, red chilli powder, black pepper powder, roasted cumin powder, and salt. Cook the tamarind mixture for 5 minutes on medium heat. Cool and serve.

Ingredients for Green chutney:
½ bunch ( 8 to 9 leaves) Mint Leaves
½ bunch of cilantro
4 cups of Cold Water
3 teaspoons Black pepper powder
3 teaspoons Salt
2 teaspoons Cumin powder
1 inch piece of Fresh Ginger
1 ½ tspns of Lemon juice
To make:
Wash the mint and cilantro leaves and grind all of the above ingredients in a blender with the cold water and serve.

Well Bhatji and I gobbled down as many puris as humanly possible. MMMHMM we love chaat and if I had it my way (and chaat was healthy) I would eat pani puris every day. Well since I am able to make the chutneys by myself, I guess we will be eating chaat more often :o) until the next blog, Happy Eating!

PS (The muppets song is dedicated to Bhatji hehe)

“Cause in my head there’s a greyhound station where I send my thoughts to far off destinations”

Monday, June 4, 2007

I do believe it’s true
that there are roads left in both of our shoes
if the silence takes you
Then I hope it takes me too
so brown eyes I hold you near
cause you’re the only song I want to hear
a melody softly soaring through my atmosphere
where soul meets body

It’s raining and will continue raining this whole week. But because of the rain Bhatji and I had a much needed relaxing Sunday. In fact this whole past weekend was relaxing for the both of us. Especially since the 2 weekends before this one was absolute traveling madness. I cant believe that 2 weeks of his 10 week internship are up! Yep time is flying. Bhatji and I went to Bebo Trattoria for a good Italian dinner on Saturday, followed by the movie, Shrek the Third and it was really good :o) Well we liked it because we are 2 big kids at heart. I had originally planned to do something outdoorsy on Sunday but unfortunately when we woke up it was grey and raining. So we decided to do a big brunch at Whitlows on Wilson and then settled onto our cozy futon for an afternoon of Entourage marathon. This past Friday I picked Bhatji up from the train station and took him directly to school. I was soooo happy to see him. I really wanted to make a dish that was super yummy and would remind him of his I decided to make one of his favorite Marathi dishes: Pav Bhaji. I didn’t have any Pav so we had to make do with toasted bread. It was my first time making it and I was a little nervous because there are several steps to making it but it really wasn’t as hard as I expected. The Bhaji turned out fantastic and Bhatji chowed down like he had never before. So I am sharing the Pav Bhaji recipe with you folks :o)
Ingredients:
1 small head of cauliflower or half a head of large cauliflower cut into florets
2 Large potatoes
1 medium onion chopped
3 large tomatoes chopped
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
2 tsp chili powder
1 tbsp ginger-garlic paste
3 tbsp pav-bhaji masala (you might need more)
2 tbsp butter
2 tbsp oil
Salt to taste
To Make:
Boil the cauliflower and potatoes in a pressure cooker until they are soft. You can also throw the cauliflower in a big pot of water and boil until soft. You can throw the potatoes in a large microwavable bowl filled with water and heat for about 8-10 mins. One they are boiled and soft. In a big pot heat oil in and add the onion and cook until slightly brown. Add the ginger-garlic paste and tomatoes mix well and cook until the tomatoes are turn into a pulp. Add turmeric powder, chili powder, salt (and peas if you are using them) and sauté for a few mins. Add the boiled potatoes and cauliflower, pav-bhaji masala and make sure it all mixes well. Add about ½ cup of water and keep mixing and cook for about 8-10 mins. Then take this mixture from the pot and put into a food processor and “grind” or “mix”. Make sure that it is not a complete paste because then it will be too liquidy for the bread. I only mixed for about 30-40 secs. I could still see some solid potato and cauliflower pieces. I took this mixture and put into back into the pot. I added about 1 tsp of pav bhaji masala and ¼ cup of water. Cook on Medium heat for 15 minutes and keep mixing so the masala is blended into the veggies. Keep tasting and adjusting salt, masala until it tastes like its well balanced flavor of the masala and the tomatoes. Serve with Pav.
I didn’t have the typical burger buns so I used the regular wheat bread. I applied butter on both sides of the bread and toasted it on a pan for 2 mins on both sides. Do not use a toaster. When you toast it on the pan you can really taste the butter. I served the Bhaji on top of the bread with some raw red onions and a small dollop of butter for Bhatji; this is the typical way most Marathi folks like their Pav Bhaji. I however like my bhaji on the side with all the toppings and dip my pav into it. Needless to say Bhatji came home from his long class and gobbled down lots and lots of the bhaji. Even I was surprised at how good it turned out! Nothing compared to my mom’s but still a close second :o)


More recipes to come, maybe not a feat like the Pav bhaji since I am alone during the week but small, one pot meals that will get me through the week. So until then, Happy Eating!

“Se baila así, se goza más, Se baila así, se goza más”

Thursday, May 31, 2007

Oye de aquí para allá
Eee...de allá para acá
Es que se puede vacilar
Es que mi swing es tropical

Last night I felt like eating home made food. I have been eating out a lot lately due to all the traveling. I mean I love eating out, especially food that I am unable to prepare at home or consumes too much time, but last night I wanted something that my mom would make…simple and easy but super delicious. When I was growing up in Mysore, my mom would obviously prepare a lot of Konkani food that was influenced by Karnataka (Kannadiga) cuisine. Tomato rice was one such meal. Now I know a lot of you grew up on Tomato rice…but in Karnataka this was a staple. I remember during lunches my classmates would often bring tomato rice and dhai rice (mosaru anna) with pickle on the side. I was too lazy to go grocery shopping so I rummaged through my fridge last night to see what I could prepare with the groceries and left over I had at home. I had some left over cooked rice, 3 juicy tomatoes, ½ a red pepper, onions and green chilies. I found a recipe for Tomato rice from my mom and combined it with Meena’s recipe for mixed beans and tomato rice. Instead of making the rice with mixed beans, I decided to just use kidney beans (rajma) which is high in protein and iron. So here is the recipe for Tomato rice with beans:

Ingredients:
2 cups cooked rice
1 can of kidney beans
1 medium onion sliced thinly
1 large tomato chopped
½ red bell pepper chopped
3 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
¼ tsp turmeric powder
½ tsp red chili powder
½ tsp mustard seeds
¼ tsp garam masala
1 sprig of curry leaves
2 tbsp cooking oil
Salt, to taste
2 green chilies, finely chopped

To Make:
Heat oil in a deep pan and add curry leaves and mustard seeds. Once they start to splutter, add garlic and sliced onions. When lightly browned add green chilies and tomatoes and cook till tomatoes soften. Add turmeric, garam masala, chili powder and mixed beans, red bell pepper and mix well. Cook for 5 mins with the lid on. Mix in cooked rice and make sure the beans and spices blend in well with the rice and cook for about 3 mins on medium heat. Add salt per taste and mix well. Serve hot with lemon pickle.



This meal took me back to my younger days in Mysore. I love the fact that this is a one pot meal that’s healthy and tasty. Until the next yummy recipe, happy eating and blogging :o)

PS (Every time I see the new Ipod commercial with this song (blog radio) I wanna get up and dance!)

“You'll always be a part of me and I'm a part of you indefinitely”

Wednesday, May 30, 2007

Boy don't you know you can't escape me
Darlin cause you'll always be my baby
And we'll linger on
Time cant erase a feeling this strong
No way you're never gonna shake me
Darlin cause you'll always be my baby

Sigh. Cali was soooo much fun and Ms. Masalas wedding was absolutely breathtaking! This was my first ever outdoor Indian wedding and the diamond bar hills provided the perfect backdrop to the beautiful occasion. Ms.Pai and my dance turned out well and most importantly the bride was happy :o) Bhatji had an extremely rough time attending 8 hours of class and then flying 6 hours to LA and then driving an her hour to get to our hotel by 2 AM but I was happy that he was able to make it. He got to meet more of my konk friends and family. In the end a good time was had by all.

Start rant-> I am alone again. I miss Bhatji very much and I realize how I hate being alone for long periods of time. The only positive is that he will be home every weekend :o) I also think its hitting me that I do not get to spend time with a set group of friends. It feels like work…. calling people and setting something up. It’s weird for me to feel this way. I have always been a very social person…I love to talk and meet new people but lately (especially since I got hitched) it feels like it consumes too much of my energy. I try to be friendly and go out of my way to do nice things or to set up get-togethers but I feel like people don’t reciprocate or take advantage of my time and niceness. For once I want to meet people that are not out to make friends in quantity but in quality. My friends and Bhatji’s friends are not only fun to be around but put in efforts to come down and see us and plan things just like we would include them in ours; Too bad that none of them live locally. I would love to have some local friends who I can call to go catch a movie with or to go shopping with. Maybe I have been watching too much “Friends” to think a group like that actually exist post college life. I know I can meet people, that’s not my problem…I would like to know how to find the ones that share similar interests with me. I have been giving way too much time to the non receptive folks so maybe I just need to get out there and make efforts with newer people and see where it takes me. Currently I feel like I am in high school all over again. Which lunch table do I belong to? <-End rant.

On a non rant topic….I know I haven’t cooked in ages, it’s all this traveling I have been doing lately. Also since I am alone at home now I do not have the same motivation I did when I have to go home to feed Bhatji. However, I should really make simple meals for just myself. The weather is amazing and I plan to eat out on my balcony more often so I will be back with more recipes to share. Speaking of which, I am having my lil Sumi stay over for an authentic Mallu meal and some QT :o)