Simple Blueberry Muffins

Muffins are so commonplace these days that I don't think about them much. Some days, depending on my mood and ingredients, I whip up a quick batch for breakfast or for an afternoon snack. Each time, I vary the proportions and ingredients a bit, just to see how it turns out. Sometimes they turn out surprisingly yummy and at other times they get eaten anyway...

These simple blueberry muffins are a favorite with the kids. It is light, not too sugary, and quite tasty, especially when fresh from the oven. The quantity here makes about 12 standard size muffins.

Ingredients
2 cups all purpose flour
½ to 3/4 cup brown sugar
1 Tbsp baking powder
½ tsp each of cinnamon and vanilla (or more if preferred)
2 eggs
½ cup canola oil
½ cup thick plain non-fat yogurt (I like Nancy's™ for this)
½ cup fresh or frozen blueberries

Preparation

1. Pre-heat oven to 400°F
2. Combine the dry ingredients: sift the flour, baking powder, cinnamon and ½ cup brown sugar together in a bowl and make a well (reserve the rest of the brown sugar for topping)
3. Stir in the wet ingredients: add in the eggs, oil, vanilla, and yogurt and stir with a wire whisk till just mixed, do not over-mix; fold in the blueberries
4. Grease a muffin pan or use paper baking cases, drop the batter in - to about 2/3rds full - in each baking case/mold; sprinkle remaining brown sugar on top for a crispy sweet skin
5. Bake in a 400°F oven for about 15-20 minutes, till a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean
6. Cool on a wire rack for a few minutes and enjoy warm

Home-made Pasta with vegetarian"meatball" sauce

Dry packaged pasta of all shapes and varieties is fairly inexpensive and readily available and I use them a lot. However, ever since we received a simple pasta maker as a present last year, we have started making home-made pasta on and off. I admit, it is a labor of love, something I reserve for a lazy Sunday afternoon when we are winding down the weekend, preparing for another hectic week ahead.

Now that my daughter is a willing sous chef (at times), we've made this a sort of once a month weekend ritual - to make home-made pasta. I get the dough ready right after lunch and let it rest in the fridge. After tea/snack time, we make the fresh pasta, with my daughter turning the handle as I pass the sheet through the slot to get it thinner and thinner and then finally pass it through the fine angel-hair slot and allow the strands to dry for 10-15 minutes and cook it for a short 2-6 minutes (depending on the size/shape of the pasta) and enjoy it for dinner with a sauce or two.



Pasta dough is usually made with fine durum wheat, semolina flour. However spelt flour and a combination of all-purpose and semolina flours seem to work well. Pasta dough can be made with eggs or without. I prefer the dough without the eggs.

Home-made Pasta Dough, without eggs
½ cup fine durum semolina flour
3/4 cup all purpose flour
2 Tbsp Olive oil
1 tsp salt
3/4 to 1 cup water, as needed

Knead the dough well, adding a little water at a time to keep the dough dry but still comes together to roll into a ball. Knead some more till cut surface shows pores. Cover in a plastic wrap and leave in the fridge for an hour or so.

Then, follow the instructions for using the pasta-maker and shape the pasta as desired; allow to dry and cook briefly till al dente.


Broccoli Cream Sauce


Ingredients
2 cups broccoli florets, steamed
1 small boiled potato, if handy (optional)
½ cup cream or half-and-half
¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese
¼ cup grated Mozzarella cheese
¼ cup grated Colby Jack cheese
finely minced garlic
ground or dried oregano to taste
ground or dried sage to taste or any other favorite herbs
salt and ground black pepper to taste

Preparation
Heat the cream in a sauce pan with the garlic; mush part of the steamed broccoli and the potato if using, add it to the saucepan; when close to boil, stir in the cheeses, adjust spices to taste; off heat toss in the remaining steamed broccoli florets.


Vegetarian "Meatball" Sauce


Ingredients
1½ to 2 cups TVP (Textured Vegetable Protein)
1 to 3 slices of favorite bread, as needed
1½ to 2 cups boiling water, as needed
¼ to ½ cup all purpose flour
1 Tbsp finely minced garlic
salt, paprika, chili powder to taste
oil for deep frying
1 can diced tomatoes, or favorite canned pasta sauce to be used as-is

Preparation

1. Place the TVP in a heat-safe bowl, add hot water - first just enough to immerse it, and when it is all absorbed and TVP still feels dry and hard, add a bit more - just enough to soften the TVP without making it watery; cover and let it stand for a few minutes till TVP still holds shape but is no longer hard
2. Heat the ready-made pasta sauce or the diced tomatoes in a sauce pan, on medium low, with the garlic and spices
3. Squeeze out the water from TVP, knead in one bread slice and ¼ cup all purpose flour first; if the dough is still wet and hard to form into balls keep adding more bread slices and a little of the flour at a time till the dough is just right to shape into small balls for deep frying
4. Deep fry in oil, drain and add to the boiling pasta sauce, allow to simmer together for a few minutes; turn off heat, garnish with fresh herbs if handy

Rhubarb Strawberry Cobbler

Arrival of the fresh leaves on the reddish stalks signals Spring for me. Being the first of the backyard perennial that I harvest for cooking, rhubarb has a special place in the backyard and in my heart. Not that I relish it raw... too tart for my sensitive teeth, but, it is nice to know that I can make the usual scones and cobblers and chutneys with them, or freeze them for making Rhubarb-Strawberry jam when the strawberries arrive in a couple of months.

Enjoy it warm as-is, or with a scoop of home-made frozen yogurt or ice cream.




Ingredients
for the cobbler topping:
1 cup unbleached all purpose flour
¼ cup Smart Balance™ Omega Light Butter
¼ cup brown sugar
2- 4 Tbsp half-and-half or heavy cream, as needed
1 Tbsp baking powder

fruit mix:
2 cups chunky chopped rhubarb
2 cups quartered strawberries
¼ cup sugar or brown sugar or agave nectar
1 Tbsp flour

Preparation

1. Pre-heat the oven to 350°F
2. Fruit Bottom: Combine the fruit mix and keep handy
3. Cobbler Topping: Sift the flour and baking powder together, add the brown sugar and mix well; rub the butter into the flour mixture till crumbly; add some cream, a little at a time and work it in till it comes together to form a soft dough
4. Grease a bar cake or muffin mold pan; drop some fruit mix at the bottom; add a dollop of the cobbler topping dough; Alternately, use a round or rectangular cake pan instead, adjust cooking time according to the size of the pan
5. Bake in the 350°F oven for about 20-25 minutes till the topping is done

Easy Potatoes au Gratin

This classic French dish is certainly to be enjoyed in its traditional form, with delicious cheese sauce, baked for a good hour and a half. But, since I like to take short-cuts without sacrificing the taste (much), this has become a nice weeknight meal, especially on cold nights.

Basically, the short-cut I take is in making the sauce and the cooking time: I use canned creamy soup, grated cheese, and cook for about 35-45 minutes till done. As I make this with the kids in mind, I add some mixed vegetables and leave out the onions. So, while not quite authentic, this potatoes-and-cheese dish seems to be well-loved at home.

Ingredients
4-5 medium potatoes, peeled and sliced in rounds
1 can cream of celery or cream of potato soup
1 stick of celery diced finely (optional)
½ cup frozen mixed vegetables (optional)
1 clove of garlic, put through a garlic press, or grated finely
1 cup freshly grated Colby Jack cheese
½ cup water, as needed
salt and ground black pepper to taste
spring onion, chives for garnish (optional)

Preparation

1. Pre-heat the oven to 400°F
2. Grease a casserole/baking dish with vegetable spray and arrange the sliced potatoes in overlapping layers; toss in the frozen vegetables and celery, if using
3. Sauce: Empty the can of soup into sauce pan, add about half a can of water to keep the soup fairly thick, and heat it, stirring well, till it boils; adjust flavors to taste
4. Pour the hot thick soup over the potatoes in the baking dish, top with grated Colby Jack cheese, cover with aluminum foil and bake for about 30 minutes till bubbly and potatoes are done (if potatoes are not sliced thin enough, increase baking time accordingly)
5. Uncover the foil and bake another 10 minutes or so till cheese is bubbly and slightly brown
6. Garnish as desired and serve warm

Vegetable Manchurian

Indian-Chinese food came into my life several years ago, in India, with the most popular Gobi Manchurian, which is Cauliflower fritters in a sweet-sour-hot-ish sauce.

While "Manchurian" seems misleading, the dish happens to combine the basic Chinese sweet-and-sour sauce with some Indian spices to present an incredibly delectable meal. The staple meats of Chinese cuisine like pork and beef are not as all-encompassing in India, so, vegetables seem like a great alternative, and the sauce works great with any kind of vegetable fritters.

And fusion cuisine being my signature, this dish is one of the quick-and-easy weeknight meals we relish. This not much different from the Gobi Manchurian or Chicken Manchurian recipe. I just happened to have a smallish bit of red/purple cabbage, a couple of potatoes and a zucchini that needed to be used up and wanted to do something creative with them in combination. That's how this dish came about. Any favorite combination of vegetables would work fine, I'm sure.

Grate the raw potatoes, finely shred the cabbage and zucchini, toss them with some flour and water to bind, deep fry and drain the fritters, then toss them in with the sauce. As always, I vary the sauce proportions to taste depending on my mood. Here, I used approximately the Gobi Manchurian sauce, but instead of condensed tomato soup/sauce and sweet chili sauce, I used organic tomato ketchup.

Ingredients
2 medium potatoes, finely grated
1 cup finely shredded red cabbage
1 medium zucchini, finely grated

Seasoned flour coating:
½ cup corn starch
½ cup rice flour
1 tsp salt
2 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tsp cumin powder
2 tsp coriander powder

canola oil or other preferred oil for frying

for the sauce:
1 Tbsp sesame oil or peanut oil
2 Tbsp ginger, finely grated
4-6 cloves of garlic, finely minced
4-6 green chilies, chopped finely
1 medium onion sliced thin
1 small red bell pepper, chopped
1 small green bell pepper, chopped
¼ cup light soy sauce
½ cup tomato ketchup
2-3 Tbsp plain white vinegar
2-3 Tbsp red chili powder (or cayenne pepper powder)
1 cup water

Garnish: spring onions, or chives, cilantro

Preparation

1. Sauce: heat the oil in a saucepan, throw in the ginger and garlic, sauté a bit, then add the rest of the ingredients and allow to simmer on medium low heat; taste and adjust flavors; if preferred, add a handful of red cabbage to the sauce; use corn starch to thicken the sauce if needed
2. Squeeze out extra water from the grated vegetables, add the seasoned flour coating plus water, a little at a time, to form a sort of powdery batter that can be formed into small balls about an inch or so in diameter, without falling apart
3. Deep fry, drain on paper towel to remove excess oil
4. Toss the fritters with the sauce, allow to simmer for about 5 minutes, and allow to sit and develop for 10 minutes or so before serving
5. Garnish with fresh chives or spring onions, even cilantro, and serve warm with hot jasmine rice

Quick Vegetable Idlees

Before the kids arrived, I used to dutifully soak and grind and have batter fermenting for either Idlee, Dosai, or Adai, pretty much back-to-back. Just a habit I picked up from my mom. The batter keeps well in the fridge and is handy for quick breakfast or snack.

But, over the last couple of years, I have started relying on quick alternatives that are still healthy, but may not have the traditional process and taste. And, one such short-cut is quick idlees made with urad dal flour, rice idlee rava with suitable rising agents.

Years ago, I didn't think twice about the endothermic reactions my mom taught me (being my Chemistry teacher) but now that I use it a lot to create the rise in idlees, I just smile quietly and thank my mom. The endothermic reaction of Baking Soda (Sodium Bicarbonate) with Citric acid* in water creates the required rise in the form of Carbon Dioxide that is released.

Grated carrots, beets, ginger, even corn kernels, cilantro, onions can be mixed in with the idlee batter to add a boost. Sometimes, I throw in a handful of quick cooking rolled oats to the batter (adjusting water to get the right consistency).

In winters, for the yeast rise (rather than citric acid+baking soda reaction), I allow the batter to ferment for an hour or so in warm place (usually by the heating vent).

The batter consistency determines the quality of idlees - too thick a batter results in hard, dense idlees while soupy batter results in mushy goop. The quantity of water given here has worked well for me, but, feel free to experiment.

If idlee steamer is not handy, can use muffin mold pan. Steaming apparatus can be a pressure cooker minus the weight, or a large pot of boiling water with lid.

Ingredients
¼ cup urad dal flour
¼ cup all purpose flour
½ cup rice idlee rava
½ tsp citric acid
½ tsp baking soda
1¼ cup water†
½ tsp salt (or less, if preferred)

Grated vegetables (optional)
† Add one cup first and then add the rest as needed after the 10-minute wait, to get the right consistency

Preparation

1. Combine the ingredients, stir well and allow to sit for 10 minutes
2. If preferred divide the batter it into two parts, or make two batches separately as above. Stir in grated carrots, beets, ginger into one batch and corn kernels, ginger, onions, cilantro for the other. Or use any favorite vegetables, or none at all
3. Steam in the traditional idlee cooker for about 10 minutes or till done. The quantity given here makes about 8 standard size idlees(about2½ inch diameter)
4. Serve with favorite chutneys. My favorites for idlees are spice tomato-chili chutney and milder coconut-cilantro chutney, besides the staple Idlee Molaga Podi ( a home-made spice powder), of course [recipe to come] :)

An alternate recipe, using yeast:
½ tsp rapid rise yeast
1¼ cup warm water
¼ tsp sugar
¼ cup urad dal flour
3/4 cup rice idlee rava
½ tsp salt

Bloom the yeast in sugar+water till frothy (about 5 minutes). Then mix in the rest of the ingredients and allow to sit in a warm place for 1 or 2 hours before steaming.

*Some people are sensitive to citric acid as-is, but not to the end product of the citric acid+baking soda+water reaction.