Creamy Spinach Dip

I have been in a ‘green mood’ today. Does that sound strange to you? It happens to me very often. I often find my cooking revolving around colors where I crave eating something that is yellow, green, or red. Does anybody know why it happens? I have no idea but I enjoy it It’s fun to cook based on colors.

Heathly & Vegan with a secret ingredient!

I had a gorgeous bunch of fresh spinach that I had picked from my organic store last night and I wanted to use them when they are still crisp and fresh.

Fresh Organic Spinach

In my mind I had a beautiful green Spinach Dip!

Not just any spinach dip, it had to be creamy, luscious, easy, healthy and nutritious! Too much to ask for? Not really. Everything is possible with a little bit of creativity

Thinking creamy and green – my first thought was to use Mung beans or Green gram! I knew it fits my plan perfectly.

Mung beans or Green gram!

Two very nutritious and beautiful green ingredients combined with some aromatic garlic and onion, results in this creamy dreamy dip which is totally guilt free! I served my spinach dip with homemade ‘chapati’ chips. These Chapati chips have been a great discovery for me and I now enjoy these crispy chips on a very regular basis Chapati is a Indian flat bread made out of whole wheat flour, water an salt cooked with to without oil. My chapatis are cooked dry and then brushed with a tiny bit of oil to keep them soft. These chapatis are cut into triangles and baked fro about 8 to 10 minutes at 120 degree celsius to get the perfect whole wheat chips which are great with almost any dip.

sautéed garlic, onion and spinach

Make this for your next party and your guests will keep guessing the secret ingredient in this! Mung beans have never been tastier. The best thing about this dip is the it’s filling too. A small bowl of this dip with some chapati chips was the perfect evening snack for my 3 year old daughter.

creamy, luscious, easy, healthy and nutritious!

Notes:

Sprout your mung beans to make this dip more nutritious.

This can also be made with some canned beans if you are really pressed for time.

Add some fresh green chilies if you want it hot

Add fresh basil or cilantro for more flavor

Creamy Spinach Dip (Heathly & Vegan)

Ingredients:

• 1 cup mung beans (soaked and boiled)
• 2 cups chopped spinach leaves
• 1/2 cup chopped onion
• 2-3 cloves of garlic (less or more according to your taste)
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil to drizzle

Soak the mung beans for 3-4 hours (or overnight) and boil till soft. I pressure cooked it till mushy.

Heat a tbsp of olive oil in a pan. Add the onion and the garlic and sauté till translucent. Now add the spinach and sauté till it wilts.

Wait for both the mung beans and the spinach to cool and blend it till creamy with a pinch of salt. Add enough water to get the desired creaminess and consistency.

Serve this with any chips of your choice drizzled with some olive oil.

Banana Walnut Oat Bars

I will never be tired of baking with bananas! I always have some overripe bananas which need to be used up and there are never too many banana recipes to choose from. If you are regular visitor here you will know that I already have several banana based recipes here! There is the most popular ‘Healthy Banana bread’ which is vegan, sugar free and oil free, Other than that there are Banana Apricot Muffin, Sweet n Spicy Banana Tahini Muffins, Banana Peanut Butter Muffins, Fluffy Finger Millet Banana Chocolate Cake, Banana flat bread, Sweet & Spicy Banana Fritters, Caramelized Bananas topped with Roasted Cashew Nuts, Whole Wheat Banana Carrot Muffins etc. Each one of them are unique in their own way.

But you know what! To me there are never too many banana recipes. When I asked you all if you are also Banana crazy like me, on my Facebook page, you said ‘Yes!’. You agreed that you are more than happy to have one more new way to use up overripe bananas

Once again, I had a few overripe, almost black bananas on my counter. I didn’t have too much space in my freezer so I decided to bake something with it immediately. Since I am in a complete granola bar mode right now and since I remembered seeing a lot of recipes using mashed banana in them instead of honey, I decided that I i’ll make some banana walnut granola bars.

After the first bake

If I haven’t told you all yet, I have a ‘serious’ problem when it comes to following recipes. With a very good intention I start off with a great recipes but somewhere along the way I end up changing a little (or a lot!) here and there and end up with something that is nothing like the original recipe! So knowing myself pretty well I started without any recipe this time. What I ended up with was not a granola bar at all! Initially I decided not to blog it but then it turned out so tasty and unique that I realized it’s a great recipe to share with you all.

Going into the oven once again...

Now let me tell you all the good things about this recipe:

• It’s SO SO simple! it has just a handful of ingredients that you will surely have in your cupboard (if you don’t, please start storing them form now on ;P)
• It’s REALLY quick and easy to make.
• It has NO SUGAR (none!!)
• It has no oil, butter or any other fat (Yup!, you read that right)
• It’s easy to store, carry around and makes a perfect breakfast/snack
• My 3 year old daughter loves them!
• If it’s not good enough by itself, it tastes fabulous with some homemade peanut butter!

OK… I will stop now. Try this Banana Walnut Oat Bar recipe when you have the ‘overripe banana’ problem in your life next time

Perfect!

Notes:

If you want to make it now and don’t have overripe bananas, check out this super cool idea on ‘Clean Green Simple’

This recipe is can also be gluten free if you use GF Oats in it

Once again use rolled oats if you prefer

Replace walnuts with any other nuts of your choice

Instead of 1/2 cup water you can always use 1/4 cup oil and 1/4 cup water. I haven’t tried it but I think it’ll only make these bars better

Tastes even better with homemade peanut butter!

Ingredients:

• 3 cups quick cooking oats
• 1 1/2 cups of mashed overripe bananas
• 1/2 cup walnuts
• 1/4 cup ground flaxseed
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/2 tsp salt

Pre-heat the oven at 180 degree Celsius.

Combine mashed banana ground flaxseeds, water and salt in a big bowl, stir well. Add the oats and mix everything. Fold it into a greased (with coconut oil) shallow baking tray, spread and press well with you fingers.

Bake for 25 to 30 minutes. Let it cool for 10 minutes.

Cut it into squares, re arrange it on a cookie sheet upside down. Put it back into the oven and bake it for another 15 minutes. Turn the pieces over and bake for another 5 minutes for both the sides to be nice and brown.

Let it cool completely and store it in an air tight container for up to a week.

Spicy Focaccia with Fenugreek Leaves.

There is always some event going on in the food bloggers community. There are several I would like to participate in but all the planning and the work it requires makes it hard for me. I rarely plan what I want to blog and most of the time it depends on what I have on hand and my mood of course. But there are some events which I just can’t ignore! When I saw Shulie’s post on Breaking Bread I knew I just had to participate in it.

for #breakingbread

Bread baking is something I truly love and I really want to get better at it. So announcement of this event had me jumping in joy! Now this will hopefully give me the much needed inspiration to bake bread more often. This month it’s all about Focaccia!

Herbs and spices

Sea Salt & Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Red hot chilies for spice!

“Focaccia is a flat oven-baked Italian bread which may be topped with herbs or other ingredients. It is similar in style and texture to pizza, but not considered to be the same. Focaccia doughs consist of high-gluten flour, oil, water, salt and yeast. It is typically rolled out or pressed by hand into a thick layer of dough and then baked in a stone-bottom or hearth oven. Bakers often puncture the bread with a knife to relieve bubbling on the surface of the bread. Also common is the practice of dotting the bread. This creates multiple wells in the bread by using a finger or the handle of a utensil to poke the unbaked dough. As a way to preserve moisture in the bread, olive oil is then spread over the dough, by hand or with a pastry brush prior to rising and baking” (source)

Colourful topping of fenugreek leaves & red chilies

Though I have always enjoyed a good focaccia, for some strange reason I had never baked one. So as soon as I saw Shulie’s post I ran to the kitchen to bake one immediately. I checked my refrigerator for some interesting toppings and I found a small bag of fresh fenugreek leaves and a few spicy red chilies. I knew it would be great paired together for a focaccia.

Fresh out of the oven...

In just a couple of hours my whole house was smelling divine. Bitter fenugreek leaves have a very sweet aroma and paired with spicy red chills and yeasted dough it was truly intoxicating. My focaccia had 2 parts whole wheat whole and 1 part all purpose flour which is my favorite proportion for a fluffy yet relatively wholesome bread. Thanks to Bangalore summer my dough rose beautifully. In just over an hour it was ready for baking. Focaccia turned out delicious. Crispy fenugreek leaves paired very well with the fiery hot red chilies. I felt like the thickeness could have been a little less but everybody enjoyed them. I served the bread for dinner and it disappeared from the table in hours.

Fluffy & soft

Thank you Shulie for #breakingbread which made this focaccia possible. Looking forward to baking a lot more with you all!

Spicy!

If you have always wanted to band bread, focaccia is what you have to start with! It’s a lot easier than many other breads but is so delicious! Get creative with your toppings and you will totally enjoy the results. Join us and bake more bread

Focaccia for dinner

Ingredients:

• 2 cups whole wheat flour
• 1 cup all purpose flour
• 1 1/2 cups of warm water
• 1 tsp active dry yeast
• 1 tsp sugar
• 1 tsp salt
• 4 table spoons of olive oil
• 1/2 cup of finely chopped fenugreek leaves
• 1/4 cup of finely chopped fresh red chilies

Heat 1/2 cup of water with 1 tsp sugar till warm. Place the yeast in a small bowl and pour the warm sugar water on it. Let it sit for 5-10 minutes till it’s frothy on top.

Combine flour and salt in a big bowl. Pour the frothy yeast water and the remaining 1 cup of warm water and mix everything to form a soft dough. Don’t knead too much. When everything is combine well and looks soft, place it in a greased (with olive oil) bowl, cover with a wet cloth and place it in a warm place for the dough to rise. It took less than an hour for mine to double. This time could vary depending on the weather.

Grease a shallow tray with olive oil and spread the dough on it with your fingers. Now sprinkle the red chili pieces and fenugreek leaves. Press it slightly with your fingers for it to stick to the dough. Cover and let the dough rest for bother 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven at 200 degree Celsius.

Poke the surface of the focassia with your fingers to form little dimples on the dough. Sprinkle the focaccia with some coarse sea salt and drizzle (generously) with olive oil. Bake for 20-30 minutes till the crust is golden.

Serve hot or at room temperature.

Mango Granola Bars

Like I have already mentioned earlier I don’t bake with fruits much. To me fruits are too good by themselves to be messed with.

Mangoes are invading the markets now. I still haven’t bought a lot of mangoes yet as I am still waiting for the best to come. I had got a bunch of them from my hometown. These are grown in my mom’s backyard, completely organic and very sweet. Few of them had started to go slightly black on the outside and were too overripe to eat by themselves. They were still sweet and juicy. My snack jar was empty once again so I thought of baking Mango Granola bars.

with seasons first Mangoes

After I baked ‘Date, orange and Chocolate granola bars’, I had decided that I wanted to try baking them with fresh fruits instead of the marmalade and date syrup. I also realized that they were just the perfect healthy snacks I wanted in my life so I will be making them more often.

So this time my granola bars got healthier! They smell heavenly with all the mangoes and taste fruity and mildly sweet. Definitely add some sugar or honey (it’ll then no longer be vegan) if you want it sweeter but this was just right for me.

This is a very simple recipe and makes a delicious healthy snack. I am already dreaming of all the sessional variations I can make out of it with different fruits.

almonds and raisins

Notes:

• Canned mango puree can also work in the place of fresh mango puree.
• Try dried mango pieces instead of raisins for a stronger mango flavor.
• Use vegetable oil if you are not a fan of the aroma of sesame oil.
• Any other nut can be used in place of almonds.
• I have used quick cooking oats as that’s the most commonly available oats here where I live. Try rolled oats instead if that’s what you prefer.

Delicious healthy snack

 

Ingredients:

• 3 cups quick cooking oats
• 1/4 cup raisins
• 1/4 cup chopped almonds
• 2 tbsp or 1/4 cup mango jam
• 1/2 cup fresh mango puree
• 1/4 cup sesame oil
• 1/2 tsp salt

Pre-heat the oven at 150 degree Celsius.

This recipe can’t be simpler! Combine everything together in a big bowl and mix well with your hands. Transfer it to a greased shallow baking tray and  press it down well.

Bake it fro 15 to 20 minutes taking care not to burn it.

Once baked let it cool a little and cut them into bars. It’ll be a little brittle when it’s still hot but will harden as it cools down.

Store in an airtight container and enjoy for upto a week.

Vegan Lunch at Vivanta by Taj MG Road

When I heard about the Vegan lunch at ‘Graze’ by Vivanta by Taj MG Road in collaboration with FIAPO (Federation of Indian Animal Protection Organizations) I was delighted to know that something like his was happening at my own city. Bangalore doesn’t really have a special vegan restaurant/cafe that I know of and it’s definitely an area of interest for me. You all know that though I am not a practicing Vegan, I am a vegetarian and tend to lean towards vegan dishes whenever possible.

I was invited to sample their lunch and I accepted it as it definitely sounded exiting. I reached Vivanta by Taj MG Road (formerly known as Taj Residency for all Bangaloreans) at 1 pm for lunch, hungry and curious to know what they had to offer.

Vivanta by Taj MG Road

We were offered a table by the poolside. I love the old world charm of Taj. Though it’s green and relaxing it could definitely be maintained a lot better.

Poolside table

This is what the lunch spread was like,

Bread basket with a chickpea spread with olive oil and garlic. 

We were starving, so we enjoyed the fresh crusty bread with the spread. Liked the idea of keeping the chickpea chunky instead of serving it like hummus.

Bread basket

chickpea spread with olive oil and garlic

Gazpacho of musk melon infused with mint and thyme – served chilled

Loved it! It was fruity, minty, light and refreshing. Perfect for summer!

Gazpacho of musk melon infused with mint and thyme

Hearts of palm, wine steeped mushrooms, pickled baby onions and fresh greens

Light green salad but dressing was a little too tangy for my taste. With the pickled onion and wine steeped mushrooms both being quite tangy i felt like the dressing could have been a little less tangy.

Hearts of palm, wine steeped mushrooms, pickled baby onions and fresh greens

“Milanese” polenta, Provencal vegetables and an essence of red peppers

Polenta was creamy and the vegetables were fresh and cooked perfectly. Wasn’t a fan of the red pepper sauce as it was over spiced/ over seasoned. It could have been a lot more subtle to compliment the creaminess of the polenta and highlight the taste of fresh vegetables instead of overpowering it all.

“Milanese” polenta, Provencal vegetables and an essence of red peppers

Potato gnocchi, tomato compote and young asparagus with garlic, red chili and extra virgin olive oil

Liked the flavors here with fresh basil in the tomato compote and the garlic and olive oil. Asparagus was young and crisp. Gnocchi though was a tad bit chewy.

Potato gnocchi, tomato compote and young asparagus with garlic, red chili and extra virgin olive oil

Chocolate mousse in almond tart shell and coconut milk ice cream

Vegan dessert is always a subject of much curiosity. Since I have made vegan mousse, tarts and bakes myself it wasn’t a mystery to me. As expected the mousse had a tofu based so was perfectly creamy. Almond tart was crisp and flavorful. I am not a fan of sweet chocolate so for my taste i felt like it could have used a good quality bitter chocolate to make it more rich and chocolaty and less sweet. Coconut milk ice-cream was good.

Chocolate mousse in almond tart shell and coconut milk ice cream

I really appreciate their efforts over all. A vegan lunch initiative was much needed in this city. Hope this opens up new possibilities for the vegan community here.

The food itself was nothing extraordinary. It definitely could have been a lot better. According to me it lacked creativity, imagination and that little extra effort to make everything special. I strongly felt like if this was an introduction to Vegan food for a non-vegan, it wasn’t up to the mark. I would have been more exited with recipes which made me feel like food can be fabulously flavorful, healthy and interesting without having meat or dairy in it, which sadly didn’t come across.

A closer look

Another area which needed some attention was definitely the service. We had to wait for quite a while for each course even though we were the only table to be served the vegan lunch spread. It was not at all baby/kid friendly. While I understand that the menu is not designed for children, the restaurant staff didn’t take any effort to serve something to my daughter (3 year old) even through they knew I was bringing her along. She finally had to fill herself up with breadsticks and fruit juice (which we had to ask for).

If you live in Bangalore and happen to be Vegan or Vegan food enthusiast, head over to Vivanta by Taj MG Road this weekend (May 5th) for this Vegan lunch. Please share your experience with me as I would be curious to know what you think of it. Each session can accommodate only 15 people.

So for Reservations and more information please call (080) 6660 4444.

Spicy Sour Bimbli Chutney

As a child I had a very strong liking for anything sour, tangy or tart. I could eat Green Mangoes, Gooseberries, Tamarind, Starfruits, and many other very tangy fruits without blinking an eye. One such fruit which was loved and relished with a pinch of salt on the side was ‘Bimbli’ or ‘Bimpuli’.

Almost every house in Coastal Karnataka has a Bimbli tree in it’s backyard. My grand mothers place had one and now my mom’s place has one.

Bimbli fruits on the tree

Averrhoa bilimbi, commonly known as bilimbi, bimbli, belimbing, blimbling, biling or bimbiri is a sour, tangy, juicy fruit which makes a regular appearance in the Coastal Karnataka cuisine if available. It’s shaped like a small cucumber and tastes almost like a star fruit. It is crisp when green and slightly soft and juicy when ripe.

Bimbli chutney with fenugreek seeds and curry leaves

These beautiful Bimbli trees with an almost florescent colored leaves, looking lush and green, bear fruits through out the year. With one of these trees you almost don’t have to buy tamarind or any souring agent for your curries. It is added to dal/lentils, coconut based curries, chutneys, pickles and used in many other ways in the kitchen. In addition to the sourness it’s used for, it has a very unique flavor which  gives the curries a special taste which is very different from tamarind.

Freshly plucked Bimbli fruits

This time while I was at my mom’s place, after eating Bimbli to my hearts content, I decided to make some Gojju or Chutney out of it. Bimbli works really well in chutneys of all kinds. It’s tangy flesh gets soft when cooked and makes a delicious chutney which is great paired with almost anything from crackers, breads to rice.

being chopped for the chutney

Traditionally tangy fruits like these are always cooked with a little bit to Jaggery to result in a sweet and sour flavor but I decided to just highlight the sour acidic taste of Bimbli with a nice sharp heat of green chilies.

Crunchy, sour and juicy

It’s quick to make, looks beautiful and tastes even better! If you happen to be living int he coastal karantaka and have a Bimbli tree in your backyard, make sure you try this chutney.

Cross-section of the fruit

Notes:

This chutney is quite watery as i served it with rice. Reduce the water to half a cup if you want a thicker chutney

Skip asafetida if you are not fond of it but i highly recommend it.

Chutney can be stored for up tot a week if refrigerated in an airtight container.

Reduce the number of chilies for a milder chutney

Although there is no substitution for Bimbli, I am sure you can use the same recipe to make a mango chutney. Replace sliced bimbli with finely grated raw green mango.

great paired with almost anything from crackers, breads to rice

Here are some other recipes using Bimbli:

Sia’s ‘Bimbli and Horsegram Saaru’

Nimi’s Bimbli Pickle 

Here’s a Black and White photo of Bimbli fruit on the tree that I am sending to Susan’s Black & White Wednesday . Happy to be finally participating in this weekly event after a long break!

Black and White Bimbli

Ingredients:

• 2 cups of bimbli cut into then slices.
• 1 tbsp coconut oil
• 1/2 tsp black mustard sees
• 1/2 tsp fenugreek seeds
• 4-5 green chilies
• 2-3 springs of curry leaves
• 1/4 tsp turmeric
• salt
• 1/2 tsp asafotida (optional)

Heat oil in a pan. add the mustard seeds. when it starts to splutter add the fenugreek seeds. Fry till fragrant (taking care not to burn) and add the chopped green chilies and curry leaves. now add the sliced bimbli and mix everything well. Add a cup of water and let it come to a boil. Add the turmeric and salt. mix well and let it simmer for 5 minutes. If using asafetida add it to the chutney now and turn of f the heat.

Wild mango clear soup, South Indian Way...

India’s favorite summer fruit Mangoes are here! We have hundreds of varieties of mangoes and each one them are delicious in their own way. In Bangalore I can get my hands on pretty much any variety of mango from all over India. But there are some wild varieties which never hit the market.

Small green wild mangoes

This is how tiny they are!

From my parent’s place here in Puttur, we visited our family farm yesterday. I enjoyed some of my most favorites fruits while I was there. One of them are these tiny little wild mangoes. They are very different from the mangoes you see in the market. These grow wild in the small hills around the farm and are fibrous and juicy. Some are sweet while most are very sour with a hint of sweetness. they have a very strong and district flavor compared to the other more popular mangoes.

These sour, juicy, fibrous mangoes are perfect for this soup

Every year in summer holidays we used to go hiking in the surrounding hills collecting wild mangoes. Most of the time we just picked the ones which were fallen on the ground. These fruits are fully ripe and ready to eat. I remember coming back with big baskets full of these fruits. Though we all had as many mangoes as we can, we always had enough left to make fresh juice, fruit leather, whole dried fruit and lots of different curries.

Lite sweet and sour

Golden and fragrant

One of those much loved mango recipes was this simple ‘Saaru’. This Mango Saaru is almost like a clear soup. Though one can eat this with rice, we all prefer to just drink it along with our meal. It’s light, sweet from jaggery, beautiful golden and fragrant and slightly sour from the wild mangoes and has a simple tempering of black mustard seeds and curry leaves. The trick is to balance the sweet and sour flavors together just right. It’s never made too salty or spicy as we drink it plain. After enjoying a bunch of wild mangoes if I still happen to have extra I always make this saaru. It’s just perfect for summer!

perfect for summer!

Notes:

• Many of you might not have access to wild mangoes. You can make it with any mango which is fibrous and juicy (not fleshy) with a slight sour taste to it. It will never taste like the real deal but it’s still a very flavorful and unique appetizer or a soup for a dinner party!
• Replace jaggery with palm sugar or brown sugar.
• Make the saaru a little thicker if you want to serve it with rice and keep it watery if you are serving it like soup.
• If you don’t have access to curry leaves, use garlic instead for a different taste.

Ingredients:

• 4-5 small wild mangoes
• 3 cups of water
• a small piece (size of a lime or more) of jaggery
• 1/4 tsp red chili powder
• salt
• 1/2 tsp coconut oil
• 1/2 tsp black mustard seeds
• 2 springs of fresh curry leaves

Clean the wild mangoes well. Cut the tip of the fruit. peel them with your bare hands and place the skin and the fruit in a little pot with 2-3 cups of water. squeeze the juice out of the skin of the mango and discard the skin. Now squeeze each one of the pit or stone into the water and leave the pit in it.

Place this pot of mango juice and the pit on the stove. Add salt, jaggery, a pinch of chili powder and bring it to a boil. Taste it and adjust the sweetness according to your choice. Let it simmer for 5 minutes. Turn off the heat.

For the tempering, heat a little bit of coconut oil in a small pan. Add the mustard seeds. When it starts to splutter, add the curry leaves and turn off the that. Add this to the mango saaru/soup. Serve hot as a soup or as an accompaniment with rice.

Amaranth Leaves Palya/Stir Fry

I am right now reading ‘The Omnivore’s dilemma‘ by Michael Pollan before which I was reading ‘In defense of food’ by the same writer. I have loved both of these books immensely so far and all I can say is that I will never look at food in the same way again! Something about Michael Pollan’s writing is so convincing. If you haven’t read his works before and if you are a foodie,  go get yourself a copy today.

Alaru soughting out the greens

After reading these books I am seeing everything around me in a new light. Eating local never felt more relevant than this before. I have always been thankful for the kind of food I was raised with and the kind of produce I have access to but now I realize how lucky I am to be able to eat the way I do.

Isn't that a beautiful color?

Though I mostly eat locally grown fruits and vegetables in Bangalore things are very different here at my parent’s place. Most of the vegetables and fruits we eat comes from our family farm. My mom told me that they haven’t bought any vegetables (other than onions and garlic) from the market from past 2 months!  They are completely self sustainable that way! Isn’t it amazing that you know where each one of the vegetables on your plate comes from? You are assured it’s grown in your own farm, and is completely organic? I feel so much more connected to my food when I am here. What we eat totally depends on the season so naturally because we eat what we grow.

Greens ready to be chopped in the traditional device on which you sit down and cut vegetables with the knife attached to it.

That's my Mom using it...

We are right now growing a lot of Amaranth leaves which means they are on our menu very regularly.  There was a big bag full of fresh red and green amaranth leaves and my mom decided to make a ‘Palya’, a simple south Indian stir-fry with basic tempering for lunch. I just could’t resist taking some pictures to share with you all.

Colourful Amaranth leaves ready to hit the pan

There is no recipe in this post as I didn’t want to repeat whats already here on my blog. It is simply stir fried with a basic tadka or tempering on coconut oil, black gram, red or green chili and black mustard seeds. It’s then toped with some freshly grated coconut.You can see my basic everyday Palya recipe here.  Amaranth leaves are extremely nutritious and delicious, my one more favorite way to eat them in summer is also in a ‘Hashi’. Check out the recipe here.

Today I have only sharing some photos from my mom’s kitchen. This is how we cook and eat…

Stuffed Bell Peppers (Vegan)

I know a lot of people stay away from their ovens in summer but I have been baking quite a bit. I baked a lot of breads because it’s so hot that i know the dough is going to rise rapidly for sure. I don’t have to keep the dough resting for hours together. I made pizzas since I can make the base pretty easily and topped with tons of fresh veggies and very little/no cheese it’s a great summer meal. Cold pizza also tastes really good! I also like baking vegetables as it’s so easy and simple. Season your veggies, toss them in the oven and sit back to read a book, dinner will be ready by itself in 30 minutes!

Green bell peppers

These bell peppers can be one of those really simple, easy, healthy and satisfying summer meals. If you have add deep-fried bell pepper fritters with a chickpea batter coating (a favorite snack in India) before, these taste a lot similar. They have similar seasoning but inside being coated with a chickpea batter, here they are stuffed with it. And of course it’s a lot healthier.

Chickpea flour

Creamy batter with cilantro

It takes just a  few minutes of prepping and some 30 minutes of baking. The chickpea filling can be both creamy or fluffy deepening on how much you cook them. I cooked mine completely so it was fluffy. I have used very indian seasoning with a pinch of asafetida, turmeric and cilantro for the chickpea batter but you can use any seasoning of your choice. A tiny bit of oregano, salt and pepper with a drizzle of olive oil can also be really delicious. Another great way to make them more versatile is by adding grated or finely chopped veggies into the chickpea batter. Onions, tomatoes, zucchini, cabbage, spinach?? get creative and you will have several variations of this dish.

Batter poured only half way through

Simple summer meal!

Serve this hot or in room temperature along with a simple salad for a comforting summer meal.

Ingredients:

• 3 small green bell peppers
• 1 cup chickpea flour
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 -1tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp asafotida
• 1/4 tsp turmeric
• a few springs of cilantro
• 2-3 tbsp coconut oil

Combine chickpea flour, salt,turmeric, baking soda, asafetida and cilantro in a bowl. Add enough water to make a smooth batter of pancake batters consistency.

Pre-heat the oven at 150 degree Celsius.

Cut the bell peppers into half, scoop the seeds out. Pour the chickpea batter into them and place them on a baking tray. Don’t fill them up fully as they will fluff up and overflow while baking.

Drizzle them with some coconut oil and bake them for 25 to 30 minutes, till the chickpea batter inside is cooked and is fluffed up.

Sprinkle some chopped cilantro leaves and serve them with a simple salad.

Date, Orange & Chocolate Granola Squares

I have said this before (you will know if you are a regular here) and I  am saying this once again, I am not a fan of oatmeal. I like oats in baking though (I have many recipes with oats in my blog). I started substituting a little bit of flour with quick cooking oats while baking and most of the time the results are great. I have also made oats based breakfast bakes which are a good way to include oats in your diet.

Vegan, Nut Free & Low Sugar

When it comes to oats, one recipe not to forget has to be ‘Granola Bars’. I had tried several local Granola Bar brands and hated the taste. They are overloaded with sugar, preservatives, artificial flavors and taste very synthetic. I did not enjoy them at all. But I had seen really delicious looking Granola Bar recipes in several food blogs I follow. I liked the idea of being able to control the amount of sugar and ingredients in my granola bars but for some reason never really made it.

Last week when I wanted to use up a bag of oatmeal I decided to try my hand on some granola bars. When I made the First batch, I went with a no bake recipe which had butter, honey, peanut butter and lots of chocolate. They turned out super good but they were more like candy bars everybody loved them anyway…

Made with Date Syrup and Orange Marmalade for a fruity taste

This time I decided to make less sweet, vegan granola bars considering how fast we all finished dozens of them in just a few days. I also felt like they would be much better as ‘squares’ instead of ‘bars’ to control portion size (sometimes I just eat two of these though!). I replaced honey and sugar with a combination of date syrup and orange marmalade, replaced butter with coconut oil, and skipped peanut butter altogether. I used flax seeds instead of nuts for some nutritional boost and for dry fruits I used raisins. I couldn’t resist throwing in some chocolate chips though these bars will taste great even without any chocolate, you know my love for chocolate don’t you I have used quick cooking oats here as that’s the only easily available oats for me but feel free to use rolled oats instead.

Also has flax seeds, raisins, coconut oil and a little bit of chocolate...

How did they turn out? Great! My daughter has been asking for these ‘cookies’ everyday and I have been enjoying them as my mid morning snack. They are crisp and slightly chewy inside. With healthier ingredients from the store-bought granola bars there are relatively guilt-free! Though there is no refined white sugar at all in the recipe, I feel like they could have been less sweeter.  I want to try using fresh fruit puree instead of the marmalade next time to cut down on sugar a little more though.

Healthier Granola Squares for a great snack

These are really easy to make with simple ingredients and are so much better than those sugar laden store bought bars. Try baking here once and you will never buy one again! I am hooked on to granola bars for sure! You will definitely see more and more variations of these bars here.

Ingredients:

• 3 cups quick cooking oats
• 1/4 cup raisins
• 1/4 cup dark chocolate chips
• 1/4 cup flax seeds
• 1/4 cup orange marmalade
• 1/4 cup date syrup
• 1/4 cup coconut oil
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon

Combine all the dry ingredients well in a bowl.

Pre-heat the oven at 150 degree Celsius.

Combine all the wet ingredients in a small pan and slowly bring it a boil stirring continuously. Pour the hot liquid over the dry ingredients and mix everything well.

Fold the sticky moist mixture into a greased shallow tin and press everything well to make it flat. You can use your hands here to make sure it’s pressed well.

Bake it for 15 to 20 minutes. Keep checking on it to make sure it’s not burnt.

Once baked let it cool a little more and cut them into squares or bars. It’ll be a little brittle when it’s still hot but will harden as it cools down.

Store in an airtight container and enjoy for unto a week.