Simple Food

The simplicity of this dish takes your breath away.
This is a simple and unpretentious way to prepare chard.
The addition of rice gives it such a fantastic texture.
If you use red chard, the rice grains take on that colour. Beautiful!

Increase the quantity of rice and this becomes a meal in itself.

Red Chard-Rice Bhaaji

Ingredients
1 bunch chard, washed and chopped
1 (or more) green chillies
1 inch piece of ginger
¼ cup rice, coarsely ground (a spice grinder works best)
Phodni kit (mustard seeds, asafoetida, and turmeric)
1 tbsp oil
salt, to taste
lemon juice

Method
Make a paste of the ginger and green chillies. Set aside.
Over medium heat make the phodni (tempering): heat oil, when hot add mustard seeds, when they stop dancing, add the asafoetida and the turmeric.
Add the ginger-chilli paste and saute a bit (about 10-20 seconds).
Add the chard and give it a good stir.
Cover and cook for about 5 minutes.
Add the rice and salt and give it another good stir.
Cover and cook for another 5 minutes, or till the rice is cooked.
Add a bit water if the chard starts sticking to the pan.

Adjust the salt.
Squeeze a bit of lemon juice.
Enjoy!

Constant Craving

You know how sometimes a tune gets stuck in your head and keeping on playing. You can't get it out of your head. This is particularly vexing if it is a cheesy tune and it gets stuck in the early hours of the day.

Something similar happened last week; instead of a tune, the voices kept saying 'muthia, muthia'.

This was surprising since muthias are not something I make often. So where was this craving coming from? Weird!
Anyway since the craving wasn't for something like pound cake or some deep fried goody I gave in.

Muthias usually have a fair amount of flour, cooked rice, or both.
Since I usually don't have any leftover rice on hand, I used leftover quinoa instead. The quinoa has to be warmed and pounded (into submission) before adding it to the dough. Otherwise the quinoa grains stay apart and don't bind the greens and the rest of the ingredients together.

Here is my take on the very traditional muthias.

Chard Quinoa Muthias
Ingredients
The proportions are a mere guideline.

1 bunch chard leaves. Set aside the stems, see notes below
1 tsp grated ginger
1 (or more) green chillies
1 tsp owa (ajwain, bishop's weed), lightly roasted
½ whole wheat flour
1 cup cooked quinoa
1 tsp oil
a generous pinch baking soda
salt, to taste

Tempering
6-7 kadhilimba (curry leaves)
1 tbsp brown sesame seeds
kothimbir (coriander leaves, cilantro) for garnishing
Phodni kit (oil, mustard, turmeric, asafoetida)

Method
Wash and finely chop the greens. Set aside. Drain/ wipe much of the water.
Grind the chillies and the ginger to make a paste.
Slightly warm the quinoa and run it through the food processor/ blender to get a pulpy mass.
Mix together the greens, ginger-chilli paste, quinoa pulp, flour, owa, oil and the baking soda to make a soft dough.
Do not over mix but make sure all the ingredients are evenly mixed in.
You may need to add more flour if the greens are too moist.

Divide the mixture in 4-5 parts and form each part into a long oval.
Steam (in a pressure cooker) for about 15 minutes or till a glaze appears.
Or your could insert a tooth pick, if it comes out turn off the heat.

Cool completely before slicing.

Prepare the tempering
Heat oil, add mustard seeds. When they start crackling add the turmeric and then the asfoetida.
Add the curry leaves and then the sesame seeds. Toss them around for a bit and turn off the heat.
After about a minute add the lemon juice.
Pour the tempering over the muthias.
Devour!

Notes
This is how I used the stems: chopped them finely, added a bit of yogurt, salt, a pinch of sugar and topped with a bit of phodni (tempering) made for the muthia. Fantastic!

For more muthia variations, see this and this.

Tamale Pie: Stacked

Tamales are made usually made by steaming corn dough (masa) wrapped in corn husks. A filling is optional. More about them here.
Though I used similar ingredients, the method of preparing them is not the same (didn't steam them in corn husks). So what I made is technically not a tamale pie. But it is so good!

This is one of our new favourites. I made it for the first time a few weeks ago and I've already made it twice since then.
Instead of making individual pies, I stacked the ingredients in a pan and baked it. Much easier to make and serve. But you can get fancy-shmancy and serve individual portions like in the picture.

The base of this pie is polenta. Make your own or buy it pre-made. Either is fine. Making polenta is easy, just ask her.
The polenta is topped with a bean & green mixture and some sharp cheddar. A few minutes in the oven is all that is needed. Top with fresh salsa and dinner is served!

It is with the bean & green layer that you can get really creative. Literally anything goes.
So far I've used a combination of black beans, cannelini beans, leeks, and mustard greens. But a garbanzo bean, spring onion, and kale combination won't be too far behind.

Tamale Pie
(Inspired by a recipe in the Moosewood Restaurant New Classics.)
Enough for four quasi hungry people.
Use the quantities given below just as a guideline.

Prepare the polenta
You will need about 12 polenta slices.
Cook both sides of each slice, till it is slightly crispy.
Set aside.

Prepare the (simple) salsa
Mix together 2 cups cherry tomatoes (halved), 4-5 stalks of cilantro (chopped),
½ cup chopped onions, salt and pepper to taste.

Prepare the beans and greens
You will need:
2 cups cooked beans
4 cups cooking greens
1 cup leeks, chopped
8-10 stalk cilantro, chopped
1 tsp dry oregano
1 tsp cumin
1 tbsp oil
salt, to taste.

Heat the oil and add the cumin & oregano.
Add the leeks and cook till they soften (4-5 minutes).
Add the beans. With the back of a spoon mash most of the beans, leaving some intact.
Add the greens and mix well.
Cook for about 10 minutes.

Assemble the pie
Preheat the oven to 350F.
Lightly grease a 13x9 baking pan. Arrange the polenta in a single layer.
Spread the bean & green mixture over the polenta.
Top with a couple of cups of shredded cheese (sharp cheddar is recommended).
Bake for about 10-15 minutes.

Before serving top with salsa and chopped cilantro.
Enjoy!

Sending this pie to DK's A.W.E.D: Mexican Food event.

Agretti Parathas

The CSA season is in full swing. Every week the bag brings us just-harvested, lovingly grown, organic vegetables. A recent bag contained, amongst other things, bok choy, cilantro, broccoli, baby carrots, kale and agretti. While reading the newsletter that accompanies the produce, I mentally made plans for each item; but at the last one I hit a major speedbreaker.

Each year we get introduced to a couple of new vegetables/ cooking greens. Last year it was lamb's quarters. This year it is agretti. More about agretti here.

When presented with a new cooking green, I usually try them for the first time in a daal or in parathas. Both don't need a recipe per se which make them ideal for experimentation. If the green is not welcomed in the daal or paratha avatar, it is unlikely we'd like them prepared any other way. But so far we haven't met a cooking green we didn't like.

This time I made agretti parathas. Here is a picture of the parathas and a spring (bunch?) of agretti.

We were quite happy with the results. The inherent sourness came through quite well.
The only herb/ spice I used was chopped garlic and some mirchi powder. Next time I can load up on the spices as this is quite a sturdy green. Owa (ajwain, carom) with agretti already sounds good.

Ingredients
2 cups whole wheat flour (atta)
1 cup chopped agretti
1 tbsp finely chopped garlic
1 tsp mirchi powder
4-5 stalks of cilantro, chopped
1 tbsp oil
salt to taste

Method
Heat the oil over medium high heat, add garlic. Don't let it brown.
Add the mirchi powder, salt, and agretti.
Cook for about 5 minutes.
Add the cilantro.
Let cool slightly before adding the flour.
Add water as need to make a soft dough. Let the dough rest for about 30 minutes.
Divide the dough into about 20 pieces.
Roll each piece into parathas of even thickness.
Use a little oil and cook both sides of the parathas on a heated pan.
Enjoy with yogurt!

These parathas go to Srivalli's Roti Mela.

X = Lamb's Quarters

Lamb's quarters a.k.a goosefoot, pigweed, and fat hen. So many names and each one more glamorous and appetising than the previous one. As if this wasn't enough, this edible weed thrives on muck.
But since I was on the look out for something unusual, something I hadn't used before for Nupur's A-Z event, I wasn't going to let anything get in the way of trying this green.
More on this weed here and here.

Lamb's quarters can be eaten raw, but the taste and rough texture just did not appeal to me.
They had to be cooked. I could've taken the easy way out and used them to make daal. Nah, too boring and predictable.
Since I am in a major bread making phase, it didn't take me long to figure out how I'd use the lamb's quarters: whole wheat buns stuffed with seasoned lamb's quarters!
On a whim I used pav bhaaji masala instead of garam masala. So glad I did that. The pav bhaaji masala worked really well here.
The buns were delicious, just delicious!
I like the idea of making such stuffed buns, the possibilities are endless.

Ingredients
whole wheat bread dough, divided into 12 pieces
4 cups lamb's quarters, finely chopped
1 carrot, shredded (optional. I used this only for the colour contrast.)
1 cup cilantro, chopped
2 tbps pav bhaaji masala
1 tbsp oil
salt and lemon juice, to taste

Method
Make the filling:
Heat the oil, first add the pav bhaaji masala and then the lamb's quarters.
Cook for about 10 minutes.
Add the salt, lemon juice, carrots, and cilantro and mix well. Turn off the heat.
After the mixture cools slightly, taste it and adjust the salt and lemon accordingly.

Make the buns:
Preheat the oven to 350F.
Roll each piece of dough into a roughly circular shape, the size of your palm.
Put about 2 tbsp of the filling on the dough and fold the edges to cover the dough and press slightly.
Place the bun, fold side down in a 13x9 pan.
Prepare the rest of the buns in the same manner.
Cover the buns with a moist kitchen towel. Let them rest for 10-15 minutes.
Brush the buns with a bit of melted butter.
Bake the buns on a pizza stone or in the pan, about 15 minutes.
Enjoy!


This is my entry for Nupur's A-Z of Indian Vegetables food blog event.

Parathas for Breakfast

Parathas for breakfast? Who has the time or the inclination for the work involved (cleaning and chopping the veggies, kneading the dough, rolling the parathas etc. etc) especially on a weekend morning? Certainly not me!
Though I had heard that parathas can be rolled ahead of time and cooked/ fried just before serving them, I hadn't tried making them this way.
So, yesterday I made the parathas and stored them between layers of wax paper.
Today morning, we had ta-da parathas for breakfast.

'Thap' that is the sound of me slapping my forehead...why did I not try this earlier?
They were good, so good.

I used spigarello (an Italian cooking green related to broccoli and sometimes also called broccoli raab), but any any other cooking green, such as chard, kale, spinach, dandelion greens, or methi will work just as well.
Sprigarello is a sturdy green which can handle quite a bit of seasoning; which explains the quantity of ajwain I used.
A milder green like spinach will need a much lesser quantity.
Garlic can be added as well; especially when if you don't plan to have the parathas for breakfast.
Next time I'd like to make the parathas using toasted cumin and fennel seeds.

Here is how I made the parathas...
Ingredients
4 cups cooking greens, packed
1 handful cilantro, chopped
1 tbsp owa (ajwain)
1 tbsp sesame seeds
2 tsp turmeric
2 tsp (or more) mirchi powder or 1 jalapeno, finely chopped
2 tsp amchur (optional)
1 tsp sugar
salt, to taste
4 tbsp oil + extra for cooking the parathas
2 cups whole wheat flour

Method
Heat oil in a large kadhai (wok) , add ajwain, sesame, mirchi, turmeric, and salt.
Cook for about a minute.
Add the sugar and mix well.
Add the cooking greens and the cilantro.
Cook till the greens wilt and then turn off the heat.
After the greens have cooled slightly add the flour and mix well.
Adjust the salt and heat levels keeping in mind that we have yet to add the flour.
Add water as needed to make a soft dough. Use more flour if needed.
Let it rest for 10-15 minutes.
Divide the dough into about 20 pieces.
Roll the parathas and store them in a box, adding a piece of wax paper between parathas like this:

Store the parathas in the fridge.
When ready to make the parathas, heat a pan, add a touch of oil and cook both sides of the parathas till small brown dots/ spots appear.
Serve immediately.
Enjoy with dahi (yogurt), pickle; or both!

I'm sending these parathas to Trupti who is hosting WBB#12. The theme this month is Spice It Up.