Intensely Tomato Pasta!

Well, it has been a busy few days, I had not really been feeling too good the last couple of days.

Deepta's dance classes and her upcoming performance is begining to take a life of its own - make that, take my life of its own! Between practices, dressing and calming down the younger one's esteem issue's to make it fit, it has been quite a project! I actually had quite a dinner success yesterday!

There had been this recipe that I had been mentally bookmarking. My kids love tomatoes, so I knew this one was a possibility. I did know that it would not work in its undercooked form form for the mini food critiques. I also had dry sun-dried tomatoes, and not ones packed in oil. So here is how I made the tripple tomato base, which I made a double recipe of and added cilantro, since I cannot live without it!

Tripple Tomato Base

Makes 2 cups

Ingredients

4 stem-ripened fresh tomatoes

8 tablespoons tomato paste

1 cup soaked sun-dried tomatoes

10 basil leaves

1/2 cup fresh cilantro

1 teaspoon salt

Pasta

8 oz dried rigatoni

1 tablespoon butter

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 tablespoon sugar

3/4 cup whole or 2 percent milk

Method of Preparation

1. Coarsely chop the tomatoes and place in a blender with the tomato paste and blend into a puree.

2. Add the sun-dried tomatoes with about 2-3 tablespoons of the soaking liquid and the basil and cilantro and salt and blend into a thick dense puree.

3. Cook the pasta (I used rigatonni) according to directions and set aside.

4. Heat the oil and pasta and add about 3/4 cup of the prepared paste.

5. Add in the sugar and the milk and cook for 5 minutes.

6. Mix in the pasta and cook for 1-2 minutes.

Kids loved it! Thanks Dara!

Now some weekends you get really lucky with the food!
Twitter is something I am still trying

to make sense of, anyhow I chanced on this random tweet @small bites, by none other that Liz herself. I have been making soft boiled eggs most days since she started school (last year) for breakfast, this weekend I tried the 8 minutes of cooking followed by the ice water dunking, I then had to peek inside the edd to see if it worked - sure enough perfect yolk!. I told Deepta that these were crater egg and topped it with some cheese to help her get over the shock of her broken egg.

Here's to a lovely week!

Blackbean Soup

Last year (ok about 13 mos back!) we went to Austin, TX. My husband had some work and I actually braved the heat to go and meet my dear friend Janet. She is a very special friend. Among other things, I also learnt to like Southwestern food. So a couple of months back, I call her and ask her whether she can ask her new boyfriend for a good black bean soup recipe. She calls me back in a day and tells me, well, he gave me an awfully long recipe and I have to tell you the spices sound awfully Indian. Actually, that is the problem Indian food has so cornered the spice market, all spices sound awfully Indian. I went through her list, substituted the bacon for some ghee and skipped the oregano and actually ended up with a really comforting soup!

Black Bean and Corn Soup

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 45 minute

Serves 4

Ingredients

1 tablespoon ghee

1 teaspoon crushed cumin seeds

1 onion, very finely chopped

4 cloves of garlic, minced

1.5 cups diced tomatoes

1 can of organic black beans

1 cup of frozen corn

2 cups of water

Salt to taste

1/2 teaspoon red chili pepper

2-3 tablespoons freshly chopped cilantro

To garnish

Grated cheddar cheese

Sour Cream

Extra Cilantro
Fresh Lime

Lowfat Sour Cream

Red Pepper Flakes

Method of Preparation

1. Heat the ghee and add the cumin seeds and begin to sizzle.

2. Stir in the onion and the garlic and cook for 2-3 minutes.

3. Mix in the tomatoes and black beans and cook on low heat.

4. Coarsely grind the corn in the food processor.

5. Add to the beans with 2 cups of water.

6. Stir in the remaining ingredients.

7. Cover and simmer on low heat for 30 minutes.

8. Turn of the heat and let this sit for 5 minute.

9. Laddle into bowls and add some grated cheese and a dollop of sour cream.

10. Squeeze lime juice and add cilantro and red chili pepper flakes as desired.

Enjoy on an early spring or anytime cooler day!

Greek Insprired Mashed Butternut Squash

My idea of ultimate comfort food is mashed potatoes, I try to compromise just a little by using squash. This particular variation was inspired by this lovely recipe with stunning absolutely drool worthy pictures of

Skordalia - a greek variation of mashed potatoes meets aeoli.

Well, in this recipe butternut squash meets Skordalia that in turn meets alu bhartha (indian mashed potatoes).

I loved the idea of using the garlic and the olive oil, just add some lime juice instead of the vinegar, added some yogurt, cilantro and lots of black pepper and salt as needed. We all loved it. The gentle tang of lime juice worked well with the sweetness of the roasted butternut squash.

Mashed Butternut Squash

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 25 minutes

Serves 4

Ingredients

1 small butternut squash

1 large potato (preferably russet)

4 cloves of garlic

1/4 cup olive oil

1/4 cup strained or greek lowfat yogurt

1 lime

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 tablespoon finely chopped cilantro

Method of Preparation

1. Roast the squash in the oven at 350 degrees for about 20 minutes.

2. Microwave the potato (covered in cling wrap) for 2-3 minutes.

3. Cool and peel the potato, cook the squash and peel and remove the flesh, discarding the seeds.

4. Grate in the garlic, add the olive oil and yogurt and mix till relatively smooth.

5. Squeeze in the lime juice and stir in the salt, pepper and cilantro.

6. The mixture should be smooth and creamy.

7. Enjoy with any food of your choice - rice, lentils, roast chicken the options are endless.

Chicken Tikka - Tandoori Spice Marinated Chicken

Ever had one of those mornings when you just did not want to get out of bed, or actually you get out of bed but then want to kind of progress about doing everything else in this super slow and lazy manner. Maybe it's the rainy weather we have been blessed with most of spring, (I am one of those few people who actually do not mind the rain, although I love the spring sunshine, too!), or maybe it's just keeping up with the early mornings that I end up with keeping tandem with my son.

Speaking of my son, his new favorite recipe is what he calls red lemon chicken - this is nothing other than the bright red tandoori chicken one finds in Indian restaurants our neck of the woods. I make this at home with my own mixture, the color is unfortunately not quite as bright as he would like however he is usually happy since I usually make chicken tikka ( boneless tandoori chicken) and he gets extra-lime that he gets to squeeze himself. While the kids does not share our late sleeping habbits, he does inherit our love for garlic and lime/lemon.

Here is how I do this,

Chicken Tikka

Serves 4-6

Prep Time - 4 hours

Cook Time - 25 minutes

Ingredients

1 cup low-fat yogurt

1 large piece (about 1 inch piece peeled)

3 cloves of garlic

2-3 green chillies

1 tomato

1 tsp dried fenugreek leaves (kasuri methi) (optional)

4 tablespoons tandoori masala (see recipe)

2 teaspoons salt

2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken thighs

Cooking oil or spray

To garnish

Sliced onions

Sumac

Lemon or Lime Wedges

Method of Preparation

1. Place the yogurt, ginger, garlic, chillies, tomato, fenugreek, tandoori masala and salt in a blender and grind into a paste.

2. Mix with the chicken and tandoori marinade prepared above and set aside for 2-3 hours to marinade (the flavors improves with longer marination).

3. Skewer the chicken onto bamboo skewers.

4. Place a grill pan on the the stove (this is what I use on weeknights, a regular grill or broiling works well as well) and spray evenly with the cooking spray.

5. Place the chicken on the pan and cook for 7-8 minutes and turn (the chicken should have golden brown spots across the chicken.

6. Cook for another 5-7 minutes.

7. Add in the sliced onions and toss for 2-3 minutes till the onions are slightly sauteed.

8. Sprinkle with sumac and serve with lemon or lime

Here is how I do it,

Tandoori Masala

Makes 3/4 cup

Ingredients

3 tablespoons coriander seeds

3 tablespoons cumin seeds

4 dried red chillies (optional)

2 tablespoons sweet paprika

1 teaspoon carom seeds

2-3 sticks cinnamon

10 cloves

10 cardamoms

Method of Preparation

1. Lightly toast the spices for 2 minutes.

2. Grind to a powder in the spice mill or coffee grinder.

3. Use as needed.

Stir fried butternut squash with spicy grilled shrimp.

Well, I should have posted about mother's day, etc, etc. For starters I actually did not cook much this weekend and also ended up with a mixed bag over the weekend.
Let me see, had a fight with my husband, mixed up a fun party invite, thought it was Sunday when it was actually Saturday day - I did have a decent dinner on Saturday, for some reason I decided to stretch my luck and go out for lunch on Sunday as well. I am recovering from my son's lunchtime performance. I shall blog about it only when I am recovered from the impact of the latter.

Anyhow, this recipe uses my favorite spice panch phoron, the classic bengali 5-spice mixture. This is a comforting spice blend for me, I have grown up listening to its musical splutter when thrown into hot oil and then taste its wonderful balanced 'all in one" taste. Anyhow, I have used this in a weeknight dinner with butternut squash and shrimp,

Stir fried butternut squash with spicy grilled shrimp

Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Serves 3-4 people

Ingredients

1/2 lbs large peeled and deveined shrimp
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
1/2 teaspoon red chili powder
2 teaspoon salt
Cooking spray
1 tablespoon olive or mustard oil
1/2 teaspoon panch phoron (bengali 5-spice nigella, cumin, mustard, fenugreek and fennel seeds)
1-2 whole dried red chilies
1 teaspoon finely chopped ginger
1 shallot, finely chopped
2 cups peeled cubed butternut squash or pumpkin
1/2 frozen peas
1 tablespoon chopped cilantro
Lots of freshly ground black pepper

Method of Preparation

1. Coat the shrimp with the turmeric, chili powder and half the salt.
2. Spread the shrimp on a baking tray, spray with cooking spray and begin to broil on low.
3. In the meantime, heat the oil in a cooking pot and add the whole red chilies and the 5-spice mixture.
4. When the mixture begins crackling, add in the ginger and shallots and stir for 1-2 minutes and add in squash with the remaining salt and begin cooking on low.
5. Turn the shrimp after 5-minutes and cook on the other side for 2-3 minutes and turn off the oven. The shrimp should be golden orange with light brown spots at places.
6. Cover and cook the squash till almost done (about 5 minutes).
7. Remove the cover and stir in shrimp and peas and cook on medium high heat until the peas are done and the squash is begining to brown at spots.
8. Stir in cilantro and black pepper.

This dish is best enjoyed with rice and dal.

A plug for my local Indian Grocer

When you own a fairly large ethnic grocery store about 15 miles the closest comparable store, you pretty much have a monopoly market. This often results in poor quality, higher prices and a lack of creativity. This really is not the case with Bhavik Grocery located in Elmford, NY on Rte 119. The store moved to its current location last year - a much larger, spacious location. I have to confess that he might have done some adjustments in pricing to account for the enhanced rent, but overall you will love shopping in the more roomier space. This past weekend I went with my daughter to replenish my supplies, I bought her mango ice cream and got myself some of the spice tea while shopping. His store offers a good selection of spices as well as an interesting selection such as green bananas, green mangoes, ethnic squashes and a huge assortment of chutneys, flours and spices. On most days, along with the staff you will find family members vigilantly making sure that your needs are met - usually the owner Mr. Sanchala or his wife or even his charming father.

His store offers a good selection of spices as well as an interesting selection such as green bananas, green mangoes, ethnic squashes and a huge assortment of chutneys, flours and spices.

I collected most of the things that I needed, I was out of red chillies, curry leaves, lentils and tamarind. I then wanted my daughter to experiment so I asked her to pick something different. She thought some and then decided to get a pretty young green bottle gourd.

I brought that home and cooked this with lentils in a thick puree. I add in some raisins for good measure. We all liked it include her brother - Mr fussy!

If you do not have the bottle gourd (lau) available, you can substitute it with young zucchini.

Lau Makha - Thick and creamy lentil and bottle gourd puree

Serves 6

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Ingredients

1 small and tender bottle gourd (about 3/4 lbs)

1 cup yellow moong lentils

1 tomato finely chopped

1 teaspoon turmeric

1 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon ghee

1/2 teaspoon nigella seeds (kalonji or kalo jira)

1 teaspoon grated ginger

2 dried red chillies

1 tablespoon raisins

Method of Preparation

1. Peel and grate the bottle gourd.

2. Place the bottle gourd with the lentils and tomatoes in a pressure cooker.

3. Mix in the turmeric and salt and cook for 10 minutes.

4. Cool and remove the lid, you should have a smooth thick lentil puree.

5. Heat the ghee and add the nigella seeds and wait till the seeds sizzle.

6. Add in the ginger and the red chillies and saute for 1-2 minutes.

7. Mix in the lentils and raisins and enjoy!

Announcing with a catch Up! - Tomato - CKF

It is all of May 2nd. I cannot believe how quickly time flies.

Looks like Cooking for Kids makes a stop here. The event was started by Sharmi at Neivedyam, but she lets us all take turns hosting the event.

The rules are simple, cook something healthy and kid friendly using the ingredient of the month. This month the ingredient is tomato. Post the recipe, send me the permalink and a photo (optional) to Rinkub@aol.com. Please linkback to this post and let us see what we collect!

If you do not have a blog, just let me know and I can post the recipe for you.

All right, this event is visiting Cooking in Westchester for the month of May - so from May 1st - May 31st. Thanks Trupti and Sharmista for checking!