Rachana's Arugula-Cottage Cheese & Pasta Salad With Honey-Mustard-Lemon Vinaigrette- Stepwise Post; Light Meal On Monday - Post 4

Hi!

I’m back with another post on Light Meal On Monday. Last Monday happened to be my birthday so there was definitely no light eating on that day, hence did not post a light meal.

About two months back we met our long time friends Rachana & Mohit after a long interval of 7yrs. It was our first social interaction at a family level after moving to Mumbai. I was in no mood to cook as I was on a cooking spree ever since we moved to this city and insisted Rachana to meet outside for a lunch so that she also gets a break from the kitchen along with me and we all could chit chat without the baggage of cooking and feeding our families.

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Three Recipes- Arugula/Roquette leaf Pesto Two Ways; Bruschetta With Arugula Pesto, Product Review- Maharaja Whiteline Flora Mixer Grinder

Hi!

After moving to Mumbai, I have explored many more exotic vegetables which were not easily available in Chennai, one of them is the Arugula or Roquette Leaves. I'm in love with this leafy vegetable which has a sharp taste and adds a punch to the food with it’s distinguishing flavour. It has a taste which is a milder combination of radish and mustard leaves put together.

With the winter setting in and loads of winter bounty to cherish, it's soups and salads for us at nights. I'm going to post  more  recipes using the Arugula, as it's a great ingredient for salads, topping for crostini and appetisers.

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Idlis in Jackfruit Leaves-Stepwise; Khotte/Khotte Kadubu; Light Meal On Monday - Post 3

Hello!  I couldn’t post anything last Monday as my head was too occupied with Chennai floods disaster and during that week I was feeling to low to cook or post anything elaborate when so many out there in Chennai had lost their homes.

I have a sentimental attachment with the city where I have spent 5 good years of my life, during two stints and have lived their till 8 months back. Many of my blogger friends spent days without power and proper food, I went sleepless during those days, feeling helpless and miserable.

All the while I prayed, that God shows mercy, the rain stops and people could get back to their normal lives. Now that things have normalised in the city, my head and heart can focus back on the blog

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Spicy Soba Noodles & Tofu Salad In Peanut Butter-Basil Dressing;Maharaja Whiteline TurboMix King Hand Blender’s Review; Light Meal On Monday- Post 1; Step Wise

Hi!

I work through the week and also make three meals a day, so when weekend comes, my only requirement is to break the monotony and eat out. And probably like me, many families relax on weekends and eat out, so it becomes important that to balance it, we eat healthy and light food on the Monday, giving due rest to our stomach, which finally keeps our digestive system healthy and improves digestion.

I have been planning to start this series of ‘Light Meal On Mondays’ for quite some time now but somehow it was just getting postponed because of the currently more important commitments at home. I know I’m pushing my boundaries but I am going to really try hard and post a recipe to a light meal once in the week, preferably on a Monday hence forth.

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Easy To Make Classic Marinara Sauce – Stepwise

Hello!

Last few days have been the most hectic days of my life. There was blog related work, food events, prepping for the festival of lights and the regular family chores. It was really very tiring especially when my body is fighting severe infection and has been put on strong dosage of antibiotics for a prolonged period, but that didn’t falter my spirit and eventually I did manage to finish most of the things on time. But in all this I could not find time to sit and write a blog post which I actually love the most.

I believe I type very slow and that’s probably the reason that I spend a lot of time finishing  a post. If you have any tips on improving the typing speed, I am all ears. Leave me a note in the comment box or just shoot me a mail at cookingoodfood@gmail.com

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Seemebadnekaayi Gojju ; Chayote Squash Curry Made In a Kannadiga Style ; Karnataka Cuisine

 

 

Hi all!!

Gojju is a very popular preparation in Karnataka. It is slightly sweet, quite sour and also quite a spicy curry which is very popular in a Kannadiga household. A variety of vegetables are used to cook this popular curry, one of the most popular being Bendekayi Gojju but I have never heard any one trying the Chayote Squash or Seemebadnekayi for making the Gojju.

I experimented with the Chayote Squash and to my surprise it tasted really good. Also, the Chayote absorbed all the flavours very well. Hubby was extremely surprised and loved the preparation. A gojju preparation, steamed rice and some curds and one is sorted. Simple wholesome meal which is far better than any five star hotel’s meal.

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Lunch Menu-1: Karnataka Thali

 

Hi!

My regular readers would know that I’m married into a Kannadiga family. Though my husband loves trying new cuisines and all the kinds of food that I experiment with, his soul lies in the home style Karnataka food. I ensure to provide him his favourite food once in a while.

It was one of such days that I cooked most of his favourite food and served it on his platter. They are very simple preparations but very high on taste and flavour and the best part is that they complement each other well and also make a wholesome meal that has all the components for a balanced diet.

Served on the plate are Aloo Gadde Hurda Uperi which is a recipe very popular in my in laws family made using finely sliced potatoes. Then there is Maatvaadi Palya which is a North Karnataka preparation made using Fresh fenugreek/Methi leaves. There’s Jeerige Kattu as the lentil preparation which goes well with both the curries.

 

Rice, which is staple food for South Indians goes well with all the three and to add more crunch their are deep fried papads to complete the Thali. A little ghee on top of the rice and this combination is so delectable. My husband loved the Thali and was beaming with joy. When I shared the pic with my BIL, he was absolutely J.

This Thali is gluten free as there are no wheat products used in any preparation. If ghee is not put on the rice, it’s a completely dairy free, vegan preparation too.

Try the combination and treat your family with Karnataka delicacies.

How To Make Red Thai Curry Paste or Namprik Gaeng Daeng At Home; Review Of Borosil Sumo Amaze

Hello all!

In my last post of Tandoori Aloo Sandwich using Borosil’s Jumbo Grill, I had mentioned that I would be reviewing two more of the Borosil products. So here’s my review on Borosil’s Sumo Amaze which is a 750W mixer grinder. The third Borosil product review would be posted very soon.

The mixer grinder has a neatly designed body made of dual colour ABS plastic.

It comes with three food grade stainless steel jars for blending (1.5L capacity), dry grinding (1.2L capacity) and a wet grinding jar (400ml capacity). The jars have a better capacity as compared to the jars of the mixer grinder I have been using.

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How To Make Sun Dried Tomatoes/ Oven Dried Tomatoes In Olive Oil

Hello!

The most important thing that got me attracted to my current abode is that it’s very well lit. There’s a lot of sunlight coming into the house. I get rising sunlight straight into my kitchen, so the kitchen and all the other rooms feel quite bright. I had shared a few pictures of my kitchen on my FB page earlier.

While I was packing in Chennai, the one thing that I would keep aspiring to do once we settle down in our new abode was sun drying some home made potato wafers and to make a batch of sun dried tomatoes using the sunlight coming in my kitchen balcony. So, once we settled down, the first thing that I did was buying a large batch of plum red tomatoes for sun drying.

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Halsinkayi Rassa ..A Heirloom Recipe For 6th Blog Anniversary | Vegan | Step Wise

Hello all!

21st May marks the anniversary day of my blog and today happens to be the 6th blog anniversary. Time does fly..looking back, there are so many memories associated with my blog..right from the day I started with my first post Maavinkaayi Chutney, to my recent last post on Vegan Galauti Kebab.

Yeah, I know that the kebab post was almost 2months back. Past two months were frantically busy during which I packed, moved into a new city and got settled. But today being a special day, I decided to post without any procrastination.

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Galauti/Galawati Kabab- Vegetarian Version | Vegan Preparation

 

Hi all!!

I love making Kebabs, which is quite evident from the number of kebabs I have posted earlier. Just to name a few here, there are two versions of vegetarian Shami kababs, one made using elephant foot yam and the other using soya. Then there are a few versions of vegetarian seekh kabab, to name a few, there’s one made using yellow lentils and then there’s another unique one made using green peas and walnut.

Recently, S got an entire raw Jackfruit from his office tree. And when we cut into it, we realised how tender and fresh the fruit was. Since, there was an entire jackfruit cut into pieces, we made many preparations using it, which I would gradually share here but I’m starting off with a kebab. I have posted a Jackfruit biryani for my 100th post and have also posted a unique Jackfruit and raw banana cutlet earlier using this wonderful, fibrous fruit which yields a meaty texture on cooking, enabling it to be used as meat replacer in vegetarian preparations.

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Heralekai Chitranna | Citron Flavoured Rice | Narthangai Saadam | Gluten Free Recipe

 

Hi all!!

As much as I want to post here regularly, I’m unable to. It’s not that I do not cook regularly but some how it’s just not happening. And with exams round the corner, my head is focussing more on the kid who still needs to mature up and show responsibility towards his scores, leaving me a worried Mom. Please do pray for him, a sincere prayer has the strength to move a mountain too.

Last month was Pongal, which is one of the biggest festivals in TamilNadu. Four days of celebrations and most of the people and workers travel back to their native to celebrate the festival with their family. Many new buses and trains are run during this period, keeping the travel rush in mind. It’s believed that 35% population travels back to their native. My maid was no different, she had told me a month in advance that she would be taking leave for 5days.

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Crispy Coriander Stem Chutney | Easy Side Dish | Step Wise

 

Hi all!!

I am extremely happy with the response I received for the first post of the year Panko Crusted Mushroom and Buttermilk Croquettes. When a recipe I liked to make is liked by others too,  It gives me an immense sense of satisfaction, makes me smile within.

It’s winter time and the greens are abundantly available here but the variety I used to get in Delhi was huge and that I do miss here. I’m happy to see big and green bunches of fresh coriander in the market and I happily buy and use them in my cooking. I separate the leaves, stems and roots and use all of them.

The maximum flavour is there in stems and roots. Roots, I wash them thoroughly and add in my curries and lentils while they boil so that the roots release flavour. Later, I remove and discard the roots. The stems I use in my dry curries or in tempering. The green leaves gets used in making chutneys and as garnishes.

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Recipe Of Heeng Vaale Kaale Chane Ki Chaat | Asafoetida Flavoured Black Chickpeas Chaat | Step Wise

Hi All!

Today I’m sharing a recipe that’s a family favourite. I’ve been cooking the Kala Chana/ Black Chickpeas for ages now in several ways and whenever I made them, there  was never a hard and fast set procedure that I would follow. Whatever ingredient, spice fancied that day or came into my mind was added and the Chana cooked.

A few years back, on one such occasion I made the Chana a bit differently. I had taken the extra precaution to over cook the Chana so that it was cooked more softer and almost on the verge of getting mushy and then again I cooked it like the other times, whatever came into my head I just added and made the Chana. To my surprise and delight it turned out finger licking tasty. Every one in the family loved it to the core and DH decided to call it ‘Heeng Vala Chana’. He also demanded that I should make them  again the same way, very soon.

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Sweetened Boondi | गोड़ बूंदी/ मीठी बूंदी | Diwali Snacks | Diwali Treats | Step Wise

Hi all!!

I am posting after a long time and with the Diwali approaching in a few days I’m all set to post recipes for the same. To start off I’m posting the colourful sweetened boondi. The coloured boondi not only looks attractive but tastes good too. My younger one who is quite finicky about eating sweets, loved it to the core.

These are easy to serve  and are welcomed by children, so you can call them a ‘kid’s delight’ too. Moreover, these can be used as garnishes on sweets. Also, can be served with rabadi and make a wholesome dessert.

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Gojju Podi | Spice Mix/Masala From Karnataka Cuisine

 

Hi all!!

Sharing another important spice mix used in Karnataka cuisine. This podi/spice mix/masala is used to make a traditional preparation called Gojju which is spicy-sweet-sour curry made using a select few vegetables and fruits. The most commonly used veggies and fruits are Okra, bittergourd, pineapple, mango, onion, tomato etc.

The freshly ground masala adds a better flavour to the gojju which tastes best with steamed rice.

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Kid’s Lunch Box Ideas| Thin Red Beaten Rice/Poha With Veggies | Step Wise | Vegan

 

Hi!

I had taken an opinion poll on Facebook fan page, on what all of you would like to read next on the blog and I got an overwhelming response and most of them asked for a healthy kid’s lunch box recipe, it goes to show that the prime concern for all mothers is how to feed healthy food to their children.

As a mother of a teenager, I thrive to feed veggies to my son in every possible way. I find his lunch box most crucial as it’s the meal he has at school in the afternoon. I have to keep coming up with ideas which sound interesting to him and he can proudly share with his friends. As I’ve mentioned earlier that his friends look out for his lunch box and a boring lunch box is not what he would like to show to his friends. I can’t give him junk food or a deep fried items regularly too, which he would most happily eat to increase my discomfort.

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Red Bell Pepper-Tomato-Basil Sauce | Sauce Recipe | Multipurpose Sauce | Vegan

 

Hi all!!

Today I’m sharing one multipurpose sauce which is so easy to make. It is uncomplicated and yet so yielding. The sauce is so versatile that it can be used as a spread, dipping sauce, or pizza/pasta sauce. The kid liked it so much that he kept licking it out of the bowl.

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Virgin Peach-Plum-Chilli Mojito For Sparkling Himalayan Mocktail Contest | Mocktail | Summer Drink

 

Hi!

It’s monsoon time in most part of the country but here in my city it is always sultry and hot, so I do not need an occasion or season to make myself a glass of chilled juice or mocktail. The stone fruits have almost disappeared from the market and I was left with just three peaches and a few plums so decided to use them to make a cool drink. I love the peach schnappes and in peak summer the peach schnappes with loads of ice in it is more than welcomed. Unfortunately we do not get that in my city and I’m looking forward to visit Pondycherry to pick one bottle.

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Purple Cabbage & Kidney Beans Salad in French Dressing | Salad Recipe

 

Hi all!!

Given a choice, I prefer to have a light meal for dinner and a bowl of salad or soup is what I will always look forward to. Since I make them at night, I rarely get a chance to click them and post here. Realising that many of you would like to see more of such recipes, I decided to make small batch in the morning and click the pictures. So, henceforth I would consciously try to post more of such recipes here.

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