Kothimbir wadi - Cilantro leaf fritters

Eat with a cup of steaming chai - yummy!

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• 2 cups chickpea flour/besan
• 3 cups chopped coriander leaves
• 1 ½ cup water
• 1 tbsp rice flour
• 1 tsp turmeric powder
• 1 tsp cumin-coriander powder
• 8 garlic pods
• 1 inch ginger
• 8 green chillies
• Oil
• salt as per taste
• 1 tsp sugar

1. Wash the coriander leaves. Chop finely and keep aside. Make a paste out of garlic, ginger and chillies.
2. Sift the chickpea flour, salt and rice flour together
3. In a pan heat 3 TBs oil. Add cumin seeds, turmeric powder and ginger garlic chilli paste. Stir and add chopped coriander leaves. Sauté it for a minute. Add water and sugar and bring to a rolling boil. This is a good time to check for salt level. 
4. Now add chickpea flour mixture and stir continuously. Stir until mixture becomes thick.
5. Turn of the heat.
6. Grease a cookie tray. Dump the steamed dough onto the greased cookie sheet and pat it down into an even layer with a greased ziploc pag (to protect your fingers- you can use any brand!
7. Once it is cool, cut into squares.

     Heat oil in a frying pan and shallow fry the cut squares till nicely browned and crispy on the edges. 

     Serve with tamarind dipping sauce and steaming hot tea. 

Mango Souffle

A quick no-cook dessert - and not too sweet! I use store bought graham cracker crusts or shortbread crusts. Stay away from the chocolate crusts for this dessert- the mango flavour and the chocolate crumbs do not go very well together.
Make sure the cream cheese is room temperature or the souffle will get a curdled look.

1 ready made graham cracker or shortbread pie crusts.
1 tin of alphonso mango pulp (easily available in your local Indian store)
4 oz (half a package) of Philadelphia cream cheese (softened)
1 1/2 cup Cool Whip (thawed)
1 package orange jello
2/3 cup boiling water
1/4 cup cold water
1/2 tsp saffron


Dissolve the jello crystals in the boiling water. Once all the crystals are dissolved, add the col water. Keep aside.
Blend together the mango pulp and the softened cream cheese till smooth. Fold in the Cool whip.
Add the prepared jello mixture and the saffron and mix.

Pour the mixture into the pie shell and refrigerate for 5-6 hours till set.

Koshimbir - cucumber salad with yogurt

This is a very typical Maharashtrian side dish. Always a welcome addition to any meal, it cools you down and the peanuts in it add a nice crunch and texture.

1 English cucumber (seedless variety) - grated and set aside to drain
1/2 cup grated carrot
1/2 cup grated radish
2 TBS chopped coriander leaves (cilantro leaves)
2-3 green chillies chopped
1/2 tsp cumin seeds
2 tsp ghee (clarified butter)
1 tsp salt (or to taste)
1 tsp sugar
1/2 cup roasted peanuts, coarsely chopped
2 TBS lemon juice

Grate the cucumber and place in a colander to drain for at least 30 minutes. Assemble the salad just before serving it.
In a bowl, mix the grated cucumber, radish and carrots. Add the salt, sugar and coriander leaves and mix. In a small pan heat the ghee and add the cumin seeds and chopped green chillies. Saute for 2-3 minutes. Make a little well in the grated veggies and pour the tempering in. Mix in the peanuts and the lemon juice. Serve right away.

Variation:

You can use yogurt in this koshimbir instead of lime juice. If adding yogurt, do not temper with the cumin and ghee.
Mix the grated vegetables, coriander leaves, chillies, salt, sugar, crushed peanuts and 1 cup of thick yogurt. 

Chicken corn soup

I think this was the first ever 'foreign' soup I had in India...many many moons ago. But it has remained a firm favourite and the good part is- everyone at home loves it too. The announcement that we are having chicken corn soup for dinner is always greeted with enthusiasm.



1 can cream style corn
1 litre chicken stock
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp salt (this will vary depending on whether the chicken stock is salted - always check)
1 chicken breast - steamed and shredded
1/2 tsp white pepper
1 TBS rice wine vinegar
2 eggs - beaten
1 TBS cornflour
4 TBS water

to serve:
soy sauce
hot sauce
scallions finely sliced

In a large stock pot, empty the can of cream style corn and the chicken stock. Add the garlic powder, salt and pepper. Bring to a rolling boil.
Slowly add the beaten eggs to the soup, stirring constantly. Try and pour the beaten eggs in as thin a stream as possible so you get nice threads in the soup.
Mix the cornflour with the water and add that slurry to the soup and let boil for 3-4 minutes.
Add the vinegar at the end, Top with the shredded chicken.

Ladle soup into a bowl, serve with a few drops of soy sauce and a sprinkle of scallions.
Add a few drops of hot sauce if desired.

Crab cakes

Eternal favourite for sea-food lovers and so easy to make. I use Panko bread crumbs instead of regular bread crumbs. Personal choice.

1lb of crab meat
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 large egg beaten
1 TBS Dijon mustard
1 tsp hot sauce (any hot sauce will do)
1 cup Panko bread crumbs

Canola oil for frying

In a large bowl, beat the egg. Add the mayonnaise, mustard and hot sauce and blend. Add the crab meat and mix lightly. Add the bread crumbs and fold in.
Heat oil in a pan, form the crab cakes (about 3 TBS mi in each). Fry till golden on both sides on a medium flame.

Serve with lemon wedges.

Marinara Sauce

Straight up simple marinara sauce - you can always put your own spin on it. But this is a good base to build upon. And it's tasty just as it is.


1 can whole peeled tomatoes
1 large yellow onion chopped
1 TBS garlic chopped
4 TBS olive oil
1 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp dried thyme
salt
pepper
2 TBS fresh basil leaves chopped

Heat the oil and add the onion and garlic. Saute till the onions are nicely browned, almost 10 - 12 minutes. Add the dried herbs and fry for couple of minutes. Add the canned tomatoes, straight from the can, and use a potato masher to break up the tomatoes in the pan itself. this way you won't lose any juices.
Bring to a boil. Use an immersion blender to break down the sauce, you don't have to make it perfectly smooth. But don't keep it too chunky, or it will not cling to the pasta.

Finish the sauce with half cup of pasta water (water that you boiled the pasta in). Sprinkle the chopped basil leaves on top. Ladle the sauce out in a saucepan, add the pasta to it, it should be cooked a little less than al-dente. The pasta will continue to cook in the sauce and be perfectly al-dente by the time it hits the plate.

Carrot Soup

We so love our soups in winter. The stores are full of lovely squashes and root vegetables and they make lovely soups.
This carrot soup has a hint of ginger to give it a kick.


3 TBS butter
2 lbs carrots sliced
1 large yellow onion chopped
1 TBS grated or chopped fresh ginger
1 TBS ginger juice
6 cups stock
salt
pepper
1 cup heavy cream
juice of half a lemon

Melt the butter and saute the onions till translucent. Saute the carrots and ginger for 5-6 minutes. Add the stock (you can use chicken stock or vegetable stock) and bring to a boil. Cover and let simmer till the carrot is soft. Blend the vegetables with an immersion blender till smooth.
Season with salt and pepper. Add the ginger juice. ( just grate ginger and squeeze out the juice) and the heavy cream.
Finish with the lemon juice.

Serve garnished with cilantro leaves or serve with a dollop of sour cream.