Mustard Greens with Tempeh

Paruppusili is one of my all-time favorites, especially the way my mom makes it. This recipe is inspired by the paruppusilis I like to make - the protein comes from tempeh instead of lentils and with greens it forms a perfect pair in this easy-to-make side dish.

Collard greens, Kale, Swiss Chard or even Spinach can be used instead of mustard greens. And, instead of tempeh, can use the paruppusili recipe using lentils. I like this recipe as it has a bit of an Asian flavor, quite delicious and nutritious.

Ingredients
1 large bunch mustard greens
1 packet tempeh, crumbled coarsely
1-2 garlic cloves crushed
1 medium onion diced finely
1 tsp turmeric powder (optional)
soy sauce
sambal oelek
mirin or agave nectar or brown sugar to taste
1 Tbsp peanut oil or sesame oil or canola oil

Preparation

1. Chop and clean the mustard greens and steam till done; drain well squeezing out any excess water, keep handy
2. Heat the oil in a pan and saut&#233 the onions and garlic with the turmeric powder till translucent
3. Add the crumbled tempeh, some soy sauce and toss it around over medium high heat, allowing it to brown a bit

Then, add the cooked, drained and squeezed dried mustard greens and sauté till it gets slightly crisp and brown

Stir in sambal oelek or hot sauce and some mirin or brown sugar to balance the flavors, add more soy sauce if preferred (Greens cook down to almost a fourth of their volume so add most of the flavoring towards the end so as not to let them overpower the dish)

Serve warm with roti or sticky jasmine rice, or enjoy it as-is

Moorish Eggplant Pilaf

This recipe is loosely based on the Eggplant Pilaf recipe in Moorish by Greg and Lucy Malouf, and my usual baby eggplant curry recipe.

It is not very different from the vegetable pilaf/pulao or chicken biriyani recipe in that this is a one-pot dish.

Now, it is no secret that I love eggplant and look for ways to make it often. This recipe just combines ideas from the slit-and-stuffed curry with baby indian eggplant and vangi bath, borrowing the spices and flavoring elements from Moorish by Greg and Lucy Malouf.

Some pearl onions, fresh mint leaves, fennel leaves, and spring onions from the home garden got thrown in as well, making this a quick and easy meal.

Ingredients
6-8 baby indian eggplant, slit and stuffed as in this recipe
1 medium red or yellow onion sliced thinly
3-5 pearl onions (optional)
2-4 cloves of garlic, crushed
¼ cup packed fresh mint leaves
¼ cup loosely packed chopped fresh parsley
4-6 cups water or vegetable stock
1½ cups basmati rice or long grain rice
1 14oz canned diced tomatoes
2-4 Tbsp canola oil or olive oil
salt to taste
optional spices: 1 Tbsp sumac, 1 Tbsp cumin powder, 2 Tbsp hot chili powder

Preparation

1. Slit and stuff the baby eggplant as in baby eggplant curry or stuffed baby eggplant, varying the spiced masala filling to suit your taste
2. Heat oil in a pan, sauté the onions and garlic, add the tomatoes and a sprinkling of salt and spices, stir well, then add the mint and parsley in a single layer
3. Add the rice and stir it to coat well
4. Nestle the slit-and-stuffed little eggplant into the pot in a nice arrangement, add the water/stock, cover and allow to cook over medium lowtill eggplant and rice is cooked through till all the water is absorbed, turn off heat
5. Remove the lid, cover with a tea towel and put the lid back on to allow it to steam for about 10 minutes
6. Garnish with nuts and dry fruits if preferred, or with some fresh parsley or cilantro
7. Divide it into wedges so each serving gets one eggplant, and serve warm with plain yogurt on the side

Vegetable Bread Tart

I had about half a loaf of good whole grain bread that needed to be used up and was tired of the usual bread upma, or sandwich or making croutons and this tart seemed like a good idea.

The filling can be anything like for spring rolls (cabbage, carrots, spring onions) or samosa (potatoes, peas, carrots). However, I had some leftover mixed vegetables I had steamed for the kids - corn kernels, green beans, peas and carrots - so, I used that instead. Spinach or other greens would be a good filling too. Or, can use any mince meat or even TVP if preferred, for the filling.

We usually have Neufchatel, Jarlsberg, Parmesan, Mozzarella and Colby-Jack cheese handy at home, so, I use a combination of whatever I am in the mood for while cooking.

Ingredients
2-3 cups steamed vegetables
½ cup Neufchatel cheese
salt and spices to taste
6-8 bread slices
freshly grated Parmesan , or Jarlsberg cheese if handy

rolling pin
cooking spray

Preparation

1. Heat the oven to 400°F
2. Prepare the filling: combine the vegetables, Neufchatel cheese and spices, adjust to taste, keep handy
3. Flatten the bread slice, one at a time, with the rolling pin and use a jar lid or cookie ring or something round to cut circles out of the flattened bread, save the edges of the slice after cutting
4. Combine some of the cut away edges of the bread and some grated cheese in a blender or food processor and pulse a few times to break it down a bit, keep handy
5. Spray some cooking spray into muffin pan, place the flattened bread circles carefully into each mold and push down gently, allowing the edges to form a nice flower-like lip
6. Add the filling, and cover with the bread+cheese mixture that was pulsed down coarsely
7. Spray some cooking oil on top and bake in the 400°F oven for about 12-18 minutes, checking to make sure it doesn't char and burn
8. Remove from oven, serve warm with dips or chutneys or simply enjoy it as-is

Bite-sized Tofu Wraps and Garden Mesclun Greens

We've just been eating a lot of salads with the greens from the garden for the last week or so... with quick and easy home-made vinaigrettes and dressings.

A simple salad: mesclun greens, broccoli, cauliflower, sun-dried tomatoes, kalamata olives, artichoke hearts and some crumbled feta.

Citrus Vinaigrette:
1 Tbsp frozen orange juice
4 Tbsp olive oil
½ tsp Tabasco™ sauce (or any hot sauce)
½ tsp grated ginger
1 tsp agave nectar or honey
1 tsp cracked black pepper
1 Tbsp Citrus vinegar
salt to taste

Bite-sized Tofu wraps: Pan-fried tofu, wrapped in greens, with some cheese, and I like to seal it with some refried beans or cream cheese or peanut butter so it holds better.

Earth gives... yet again.

Spring finally arrived a while back, a bit later than last year. And we've been working on the backyard garden. Nothing spectacular, just the usual annuals and perennials we use the most.

Rhubarb came first, heralding spring as unmistakably as always. I made the usual chutney, scone and even rhubarb sambar. My favorite herb, that almost grows wild like weed with very little maintenance, is Mint. I incorporate it in most curries these days, some of it makes chutneys once a week or so.

Chives are back. Strawberry patch is slowly blooming. Raspberry and grapevine seem alive again.

We planted some peas as always to enrich the soil by rotation. Tomatoes are planted and caged, have to see if they survive...

Onions and potatoes are getting larger. Some mesclun greens are almost ready to start harvesting.

Soon, it will be berry season in Oregon and we probably will pick some this year.

Roti Jala with Vegetable Korma

Roti Jala is a delicious Malaysian food I got introduced to way back during my grad school days when I was living in the International House. A delightful group of young Malaysian students had started school and were keen on educating us about their food and culture. And, they were good enough to teach me the few words I know in Bahasa Melayu -viz., Selamat datang (Welcome) and Apa khabar? (How are you?) - which stuck in my head due to its similarities with Urdu which happens to be one of my favorite poetic languages (solely based on very old Hindi movie lyrics, of course).

Coffee Hour Fridays were the times I look back on fondly when I think of making Thai or Malaysian or Indonesian foods, when International students enthusiastically prepared snacks and beverages that showcased their culinary tradition.

Well, moving on...

I have made Roti Jala on and off over the last decade or so, improvising by using whatever is handy for spreading the batter as I don't have the mold (essentially a cup with a hole).

I have found that consistency of batter is all that matters, just like for crêpes, and some good way to pour them in a lacy pattern on to the pan for cooking.

I have come to like the simple old mustard or ketchup dispenser. I cut the tip off a bit to make the hole slightly bigger so the batter pours out evenly.

It is great to make it as thin as crepes, but, my skills being somewhat limited, I end up ripping them when I flip, so, my Roti Jalas are somewhat thick :)

Roti Jala is sometimes referred to as Lacy Pancakes, which describes it perfectly. It can be a light teatime snack, or a sumptuous brunch depending on the sides it is served with. And, much like Injeras or Dosai, it can be served rolled up or folded, along with an array of curries and dips.

Ingredients
1½ cup all purpose flour
1 cup light coconut milk
½ cup water (more as needed to get right consistency)
1 egg
½ teaspoon salt

Preparation

1. Beat the egg and combine the rest of the ingredients, whip to a smooth runny batter
2. Pour into the roti jala mould or a mustard dispenser and swirl it around as you squeeze over the pan
3. Cook like pancakes, flipping to cook both sides as needed
4. Serve with favorite curries or Korma or chutneys

Easy Spinach & Cheese Casserole

This is a simple spinach casserole recipe, but, any other vegetable can be used to make a delicious sizzling hot casserole for a mid-week dinner, especially on cold, soggy Spring evenings.

I prefer frozen cut spinach as it is par cooked and I simple have to get it ready by microwaving for a few minutes. Zucchini, summer squash, eggplant, even simple carrots+potatoes+peas make good casserole. Adjust the cheese combination to suit your tastes. I like to go light on the cheese, just enough to bind it all together. Top with some of the reserved cheese and broil towards the end to give a crisp topping.

Ingredients
½ cup Egg Whites*
4 cups cooked chopped spinach, drained well
1 small onion sliced thinly
1-2 cloves of garlic minced finely
½ cup colby jack or aged cheddar, shredded†
½ cup part-skim mozzarella, shredded†
¼ cup crumbled feta
salt to taste

*I use All Whites® liquid egg whites that is fat free and cholesterol free
†I like local Tillamook cheese blocks that I can grate as needed; already shredded packaged cheese usually have additives "to provide non-agglomerating properties" as they label on the package which makes me shudder a bit, even if the additives are food-grade and potentially nutritive :) Besides, it is cheaper to get a huge hunk of cheese than buy small quantities packaged for quick serving...

All right, enough with my discourse... here's the simple recipe.

Preparation

1. Heat the oven to 450°F
2. Combine the ingredients in a casserole dish, stir well, cover with a foil and bake for about 20 minutes, checking often to see if the cheese is bubbling enough for your tastes and if the egg is cooked through
3. If preferred, top with ready-made french fried onions, or pan-fried onions, and broil for a few minutes at the end, just like for green bean casserole
4. Serve warm with ciabatta-olive bread or enjoy it on its own

Moo-less Dark Chocolate Pie

Now, technically, I'd like to call it Silken Soy Dark Chocolate with Agave Nectar and Splenda™ Filling on a Chocolate Wafer Crust. And that says it all, there is the recipe!

I've started loving silken soy tofu nowadays and find ways to use it more in my dishes. I used to buy it before, let it sit in the fridge for weeks, and dump it in the compost when it went past its prime, untasted, mostly for want of inspiration...

A web search will produce quite a good set of results for 'moo-less chocolate pie' and this recipe is an adaptation of one of the classic moo-less chocolate pie recipes I found (and didn't bookmark).

I am partial to dark chocolate. Milk chocolate is too sweet and cloying for my tastes. And D likes dark chocolate a lot too (72% or higher). So, this is a slight variation of the original moo-less chocolate pie recipe - a version I like to think is slightly "healthier" so I can eat that large slice without feeling terribly guilty :)

I went easy on the sugar and used dark unsweetened chocolate (bittersweet) along with some dark lightly sweetened chocolate (72%) for this recipe, some Splenda™ and some agave nectar.

Ingredients
1 block silken tofu
4 Tbsp Kahlúa or Toussaint or other coffee liquer (optional)
4 Tbsp Splenda™
4 Tbsp light brown sugar
6 Tbsp Agave nectar
1 cup bittersweet chocolate
1½ cups sweetened dark chocolate
1 prepared chocolate wafer crust (or Graham cracker crust if preferred)

Preparation

1. Melt the chocolate in a double-boiler - simply boil water in a large pot and put the chocolate in a smaller pot that fits inside this larger pot and stir till it melts, adding 1-2 Tbsp of water as needed, not too much though
2. Add the liqueur and the rest of the ingredients (not the crust) and blend/whip on medium speed till very smooth
3. Pour into the crust and refrigerate for about 4 hours till firm enough for your tastes; I leave it in the freezer for an hour before serving so it is easier to slice and serve

Spinach Artichoke Dip

This spinach artichoke dip is another of our quick fixes for snacks on weekend afternoons and since it is such a simple recipe I guess I didn't get around to posting it so far... and, it is versatile enough to be adjusted to taste - add as much or as little cheese, more chilies if needed. And, most of the ingredients are out of a box - simply blend together, bake in the oven for a bit and serve sizzling hot.

I like to have it with rustic* tortilla chips or pita chips. But, any ready-made tortilla chips would be fine too...
*rustic, in my case, simply means I tore up some slightly old (high-fiber, low-carb) tortillas or pita pockets, sprayed them with some cooking spray and toasted them in the toaster oven till crisp :)

Ingredients
½ block silken tofu
1 cup chopped frozen spinach, cooked per package and drained
3-4 pickled jalapeno rings
½ cup artichoke hearts
½ cup grated mozzarella and colby jack cheese
salt to taste
chopped spring onions and cilantro for garnish (optional)

Preparation
Simply blend all but the cheese, stir the cheese in (reserve some for topping), bake in a 400°F oven for about 8-10 minutes till cheese bubbles. Stir well before serving.

Piping hot dip from the oven on a cold wet afternoon with freshly crisped tortilla or pita chips, and some cardamom chai... mmmm... simple pleasures...

Ajvar Hot Eggplant & Red Pepper Relish

We've been having some of our staples lately - idlee, dosai, roti, rasam, pizza and such... so, no exciting new recipes to try out and share here.

This ajvar relish is one of our staples as well, as a dip, as a side, as a base for other dishes...

Ajvar is a Balkhan roasted eggplant and sweet red pepper relish, sometimes referred to as vegetarian caviar. ZerGut Ajvar is a popular East European product found in ethnic food stores here. However the store-bought ones somehow seem to be a little too sweet and have this aged smell that feels a bit unappetizing for me sometimes. Trader Joe's™ brand so far is my favorite for ready-made ajvar. However, since it is easy enough to make at home and I can adjust it a bit to my taste, I make a batch on and off and store it in the fridge, and use it to flavor other dishes.

Ingredients
1-2 eggplant
3-4 sweet red peppers
4-6 dry red chilies
1-2 garlic cloves
¼ cup lemon juice
2-3 Tbsp olive oil
salt to taste

Preparation

1. Roast the sliced eggplant and red peppers over open flame (I use my gas stove for this step), or in a 475°F oven (broil a bit to char the skin, if preferred); put in a paper bag, cover and allow to sweat a bit; remove charred skin if desired - I like to leave it on for the smoky flavor
2. When cool enough to handle, coarsely chop up, combine with the garlic and dry red chilies, blend to a chunky relish (or smooth if using it as a spread)
3. Add lemon juice and olive oil to taste; adjust salt
4. Allow to cool completely and store in an air tight jar in the fridge for up to 2 weeks
5. If canning it, cook over medium-low heat and can when hot

Enjoy Ajvar in many ways:

• mix with some cream cheese to make a delicious sandwich spread
• mix it with some yogurt and sumac to make a mouth-watering sauce for wraps or pita pockets
• add enough olive oil and a bit of lemon juice or red wine vinegar for acidity to make a wonderful salad dressing
• use it as-is on toasted olive-ciabatta bread or rosemary-potato bread or any favorite baguette slices
• use it to flavor curries and stews as in the Chickpea stew below

Chickpea Stew flavored with Ajvar

Ingredients
1 cup cooked chickpeas
1 cup cooked black beans
1 cup cooked diced beets (optional)
1 cup diced onion
1 cup diced tomatoes
1 cup ajvar (or more to taste)
1 Tbsp agave nectar or brown sugar (optional)
garnish: cilantro, spring onions
salt to taste

Preparation

1. sauté the onion and combine the rest of the ingredients and simmer together with enough water or broth to preferred stew consistency
2. garnish and serve warm