Loaded Veggies & Cream of Wheat Upma

This winter season has been pretty rough, since the week before Christmas we've gone through 3 ear infections and 2 colds, so when I heard the first dreaded cough last night, I knew I had to go all out to drive this infection away. I decided to make upma, which is a hot vegetable pudding usually made from semolina but a good friend once suggested I use cream of wheat instead as it has lots of good stuff like iron, calcium and its not too bad in protein content either.

Upma is very simple to make, you can use almost any vegetable you already have in your refrigerator, and with ingredients like ginger, tomatoes and turmeric its a great boost to the immune system.

Ingredients to make 4 hearty servings:

1. 1 small onion, diced
2. 1 tomato, diced
3. 1 tbsp freshly shredded ginger
4. 1/2 cup of each: corn, peas, carrots, zucchini, bell pepper ** (all larger veggies should be diced)
5. 1 tbsp turmeric
6. 1/2 tbsp salt
7. Cream of wheat

Ingredients for tempering/seasoning:

1. 1/2 tsp black mustard seeds
2. 1/2 tsp cumin seeds
3. 1/2 tsp asafoetida powder (also called "hing". Don't get turned off by its odd smell, I promise it smells a lot more pleasing after it hits the heat! Hing is great for digestion and is said to help fight the flu)
4. curry leaves (not necessary but if they are lying around in your fridge then you may as well use them as they provide a nice aroma to the dish)
5. 3 tbsp of ghee or cooking oil

(If you don't have any/some of the seasoning ingredients it's ok, you can still carry on with the recipe.)

Method:

1. Heat the ghee/oil in a pot on a high flame
2. Add the mustard seeds and let them sit until you hear the first "pop"
3. Add the cumin seeds and drop the flame to medium
4. Add the asafoetida and mix well
5. Mix in the onions, curry leaves and ginger and let the onions cook until they are golden brown. Make sure you have enough ghee/oil to coat the onions, adding a little more if necessary.

Seasoned onions, ginger and curry leaves

    6.  Add the tomatoes, cover the pot and let them cook until they are nice and soft
    7.  Add the remaining diced vegetables and enough water (2 cups) required to prepare the cream of wheat.

8.  Mix in the turmeric and salt, cover the pot and let it cook on a medium/low flame until all the vegetables cook and the flavors come together (which is about 10 minutes).
9. Bring the pot to a boil, now is a good time to check the salt content and to adjust the taste if needed. 

10. Mix in the cream of wheat as per the instructions on the box, or if you're like me, just keep adding the cream of wheat until you get the consistency you desire. 

And there you have it, your loaded cream of wheat, soothing comfort food and the veggies are soft enough that even the fussiest of toddlers wont realise what they're putting in their mouths!

** Here is a list of vegetables that can be used in upma, its really up to you what you use and what is available: corn, peas, carrots, zucchini, bell pepper, broccoli, asparagus, spinach, squash, potato.
To make this a more adult flavor, you can add green chilli's and red chilli powder to the recipe at the time when you add in the water to the veggies.

Enjoy!

Spinach Dhal

My little one is slowly transitioning into table foods and these days frowns upon simple pureed veggies and baby cereal, but give her some flavorful dhal and she's all for it. I made this recipe the other day and before adding in the spicier ingredients I took out some dhal on the side for her. Finally I am getting to the stage where I don't need to cook separate meals for different family members or put up with blander tasting food if I choose to cook just one meal. 

You will need a pressure cooker or another method to cook the lentils. This is a good recipe to try out with the old slow cooker too. If you are going to cook lentils using a saucepan and water over the stove it could take a while for the lentils to get really soft.

I am obsessed with my whistling pressure cooker, I can't function without it.

Apart from that, this recipe is pretty simple and quick. Lentils are a great source of protein and iron which is great for the whole family.

Toor Dhal

Ingredients:

1. 1 cup of uncooked Toor Dhal ( Split, plain yellow pigeon peas), thoroughly washed
2. 3 cups of chopped spinach (Either fresh or frozen)
3. 1 onion finely chopped
4. 1/3 cup tamarind paste (You can use ready made paste or make your own by using dry tamarind the size of a small lime, soak it in warm water for a minute and then squeeze the pulp)

I use dried tamarind; add 1/4 cup water, heat in microwave for 30 seconds, let it stand till it cools down, then squeeze away!!

After straining the pulp, i'm left with tamarind paste which I add to the dhal 

1. 4 cloves of garlic
2. 1 tbsp sambar powder
3. 1 tbsp wheat flower or rice flower
4. red chilli powder - as per taste
5. salt - as per taste
6. 1 tbsp turmeric
7. 1 green chilli finely chopped (leave this out if you want to make this for your baby/toddler)

Ingredients for tempering/seasoning:

1. 1/2 tsp black mustard seeds
2. 1/2 tsp cumin seeds
3. 1/4 tsp fenugreek (methi) seeds
4. 1/2 tsp asafoetida powder (also called "hing". Don't get turned off by its odd smell, I promise it smells a lot more pleasing after it hits the heat! Hing is great for digestion and is said to help fight the flu)
5. curry leaves (not necessary but if they are lying around in your fridge then you may as well use them as they provide a nice aroma to the dish)
6. 4 tbsp of cooking oil

Method:

1. Cook the lentils in a pressure cooker for 3 whistles, using a 1:2 ratio, so cook 1 cup of lentils in 2 cups of water. This ratio can be used to cook lentils on a stove-top or slow cooker as well.
2. Heat the oil in a pot on a high flame
3. Add the mustard seeds and let them sit until you hear the first "pop"
4. Add the cumin seeds and fenugreek seeds and drop the flame to medium
5. Add the asafoetida and mix well
6. Mix in the green chilli, onions, curry leaves and garlic and let the onions cook until they are golden brown. Make sure you have enough oil to coat the onions, adding a little more if necessary.                                                                                                                              side note: If your seasoning and onions are sticking to the bottom of the pot, you need to stir it more        often, drop the heat and possibly add more oil. The key to good tasting Indian food is tempering the seeds correctly without it burning.
7. Mix in the spinach, cooked dhal and 1/2 cup water, cover the pot and cook for 5 minutes on a medium flame.
8. If you want to separate some non spicy dhal then add only the turmeric and salt at this stage, bring the pot to a boil, uncovered, once a nice thick consistency is reached, you can take out a portion of the dhal. Otherwise, you may also add the sambar powder and red chilli powder.
9. pour in the tamarind pulp according to your taste preference. Tamarind will add a sour taste to the dhal which South Indians love.
10. Mix the dhal and let it boil, uncovered for about 8 minutes.
11. Add wheat/rice flour, this acts as a thickening agent and prevents the spinach 'separating' from the dhal.
12. Continue to cook until your dhal reaches a nice, thick consistency. 

 

There you have it, Indian dhal demystified. This recipe is pretty much the base for all the dhal's out there. Feel free to experiment with different veggies, I sometimes throw in some broccoli or zucchini to the mix.

Enjoy with steamed rice or quinoa!

 

Delicious Paneer Butter Masala

Paneer Butter Masala is one of our family favorites. It tastes so good plus it's simple and quick to make. I made this dish in under 30 minutes. Paneer is essentially Indian cottage cheese, high in protein and since it is not made using rennet it's completely vegetarian. You can find all the ingredients for this recipe at your local Indian grocery store. So here goes:


Ingredients:

1. 2 tbsp cooking oil + oil for frying paneer cubes
2. 1 tsp ginger paste
3. 1 tsp garlic paste
4. 3 tomatoes pureed
5. 1/2 cup of water
6. 12 cashews ground into a fine powder
7. 1 tsp cayenne powder (red chilli powder) 
8. 1 tsp corriander powder
9. 1 tsp cumin powder
10. 1 tsp garam masala powder
11. 300 grams of paneer
12. Salt to taste

Method:

1. Heat 2 tsp of cooking oil in a pan
2. Add the ginger and garlic paste and let it cook for about 20 seconds
3. Add the pureed tomatoes and water. Cover the pan and cook for 5 minutes on a medium flame.
4. Add to the pan, the powdered cashews, chilli powder, corriander, cumin, garam masala powder and salt to taste. Mix and cover the gravy, cook on simmer for about 10 minutes while you prepare the paneer. Once the oil begins to separate from the gravy, it means that the tomatoes have been cooked well and you are ready to add the paneer pieces.

Oil has separated from the gravy, which means the tomatoes are fully cooked

5.       Cut the paneer into small cubes and fry them until they turn golden brown. After draining the excess oil, add the fried cubes to the gravy. 

    6.  Let the curry cook for 5 more minutes or until the gravy is a nice thick consistency.
         

There you go, you're fresh paneer butter masala without the restaurant price! 

This dish tastes great with Naan, rice or any other Indian flat bread. If you would like to make a milder version of this recipe, reduce the amount of chilli powder and garam masala.

Chana Masala

Chana Masala Curry is a staple in our house, we make it every week since it's so healthy. Chana or chickpeas are high in protein which is why this dish is so important for a predominantly vegetarian diet, it's good for diabetics too.

This recipe was originally posted by Krissi of Skelekitty fame and you can find the original post by clicking on this link: Krissi's Chana Masala Recipe on Modern Rosies, we used large white chickpeas to make this curry. These days, it's not unusual for me to be standing outside my home and smell the delicious aroma of chana masala coming from my neighbour's kitchen as I secretly (and feverishly) pray that my dear friend may pass on some of her dinner to me so I can rest easy for the night!!

Thanks Krissi for letting me post this recipe here!

"Chole" ("Chana Masala")

• Chickpeas
  3 Cups canned for those of us short on time and patience OR 1½ Cups, dry, for the hard-core cooks among us
• 3-6 cloves garlic
• ginger root (fresh) approximately equal to amount of garlic
• 1 green Thai chili optional
• 1 tsp cumin seeds, whole
• ½ tsp fennel seeds, whole
• asafoetida powder optional
• chana masala spice powder
• 1 tsp coriander powder
• 1 tsp cumin powder
• ½ tsp tumeric optional
• up to ½ tsp chili powder (omit if using Thai chili)
• 1 tsp salt (adjust to taste)
• 1 med onion, diced
• 3 large Roma tomatoes, chopped roughly

If using canned chickpeas, rinse them WELL and discard all the liquid.

If using dried chickpeas, soak them overnight in plenty of water, then cook on the stovetop or in a pressure cooker with a pinch of salt until cooked all the way through, but not mushy.*  You’ll get about 3 cups cooked.  Drain and reserve a cup of the liquid.
* Bindavi's cooking instructions are for "three whistles" on her Mom's whistling pressure cooker, which are often seen in Indian kitchens and at estate sales, but thanks to the magic of the interwebs, U.S. customers can easily acquire them too.

Image by Sara Ataie

Mash garlic and ginger into paste using a mortar and pestle.

In a pot or large saucepan:

Warm cumin seeds in a few tbsp of oil, when they sizzle, add fennel seeds.

Add garlic/ginger paste, asafoetida powder and onion.  Sautee onion until translucent and slightly brown on edges.

Add chopped tomatoes, 1 C water (or water reserved from cooking chick peas), salt, chana masala spice, coriander powder, cumin powderand tumeric.  If using chile powder, sprinkle overtop to taste.

Stir together, then add chick peas and combine all ingredients well.

Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for approximately 30 minutes.  This is the best time to adjust your spices.

Our pot of chole, bubbling away!  Mmmmmm!

Serve over rice or with naan.  You can also garnish with anything you like including cilantro, yogurt,  fresh tomatoes, chives or whatever strikes your fancy.  Bindavi seems to prefer naan from one of our local restaurants and yogurt (and I'm inclined to agree with her!).

NOTE: By the way, you can also make this recipe using Kidney Beans instead of chick peas - if you do, it's called "Rajma."

Enjoy!