Healthy Moong Dal Dahi Vada

Moong dal dahi vada

The story of the moong dal vadas. When I was back in India last year this time, my mom made some amazingly soft vadas and made buffalo milk yoghurt. If you haven had buffalo milk, it is thick more creamier and richer than cow's milk, so obviously the yoghurt will be thick and creamy. That dahi vada was the best I have ever had. Fast forward to May , I tried making the vadas at home and they turn out hard as ever. Turns out I was using the wrong type of moong dal, the yellow split moong dal without the skin is the right one to make the vadas. This time round the vadas were super soft and tasted delicious. I hate deep frying because of the fear of hot oil, so i used an appe pan to shallow fry the vadas and they turned out great. 

Ingredients:

1 cup Moong Dal

1 cup Dahi 

4-5 pepper corns

ginger grated approx 1 tsp 

To garnish:

Roasted & Coarsely crushed jeera

Pomegranate seeds

Chopped coriander

Chili powder

Recipe:

* Soak the moong dal for 3-4 hours or preferably overnight. Drain the water and in a blender / wet grinder grind the dal till it is soft and smooth. Do not use any water. Add the pepper corns , grated ginger and salt as it is grinding. I used a wet grinder to grind the daal smoothly and get a batter which will yield fluffy vadas. It should take around 15-20 mins for the daal to grind smoothly and fluff up using a wet grinder.

* Heat the appe pan and add oil to the moulds. Drop spoonfuls of the batter into the moulds.
To help the vadas cook evenly close light with a lid. Check to see if one side is done then flip the vadas.

* Once the vadas are done soak them immediately in warm water for a few minutes. They will absorb the water and swell up.

* In the meanwhile beat the dahi with a large spoon, add salt. Squeeze out as much water as you can and add the vadas to the seasoned dahi.

* Add crushed jeera, chili powder, pomegranate seeds and chopped coriander. Chili in the fridge and serve.

Lentil curry with Butternut Squash ( Butternut squash sambhar)

Fall, the season for soups and squash. I always used to associate butternut squash with something sweet, until I tried this sambhar at a friends place. Butternut squash is hard to chop, so if you can buy it already cut it saves you half the time. This sambhar is very easy to make does not require any fancy ingredients. I hope you enjoy it with some hot steaming rice and potatoes , dont forget to add a dollop of ghee .

Butternut squash sambhar 

Ingredients:

1/2 cup Toor daal (split pigeon peas)
Butternut squash chopped into cubes about 1 cup
2 Green chili's slit into half
1/2 Onion chopped finely
1-2 Tomatoes diced
1 small piece of tamarind
1 to 1/2 tsp chili powder
1 tsp sambhar powder
1 tsp mustard seeds
1 tsp urad dal
pinch of asafoetida (hing).
1 tsp Cooking Oil
few curry leaves

Cilantro to garnish .

Recipe:

Soak the toor dal and tamarind in separate bowls of  water for around 15-30 mins. This helps soften the dal and cook faster.

Cook the dal in a pressure cooker at medium flame for three whistles. Smash the dal once it is cool and keep it aside.

Use a heavy bottomed pan, keep it on a medium flame add oil, once the oil is warm, add urad dal and mustard seeds. The mustard seeds will splutter, then add asafoetida, curry leaves, green chilis and onions. Let the onions cook until they turn pink.

Add the tomatoes and butternut squash, stir and let it cook for 2-3 mins. Add the sambhar powder, turmeric and salt. The sambhar powder cook for 2-3 mins again before you add the tamarind water.

Let the whole mixture boil for a good 5 -8 mins. Once this is done add the smashed dal. If your sambhar looks very thick add some water and adjust for consistency. Let the sambhar come together by letting it boil for another 5-8 mins. The butternut squash should be nice and tender.

Garnish with chopped coriander and serve with hot rice and ghee :).

Butternut squash sambhar

A box full of happiness.

Diwali brings back memories of lighting diyas, decorating the home and fireworks. Mom used to make a lot of savories for us, as no one in my family was very fond of sweets. But being so far away from home , there is one sweet that reminds me of my childhood it is magas.

I remember my grandma always used to have a box full of magas and she would remove 1-2 pieces everyday as prasad for her pooja in the morning. I would wait for her to be done to grab those pieces. That tiny steel box filled is one of my most vivid and fondly remembered childhood memories.

My grandma makes the best magas in the world. Last year my mom was here in the US and we celebrated Diwali after a long time together. She made magas for us. I watched as she made it and this year I replicated it.

Its very simple to put together if you have all your ingredients right.

Ingredients:
1 cup ladoo besan / magas besan ( coursely ground besan)
1 cup ghee
Castor Sugar/ finely granulated sugar to your taste apporx 1 cup

Garnish
cardamom podwer
slivered almonds

Recipe:
In a heavy bottomed pan, add ghee and besan, stir together on medium heat. Keep stirring every 2-3 mins till the besan turns a golden yellow and you get a fragrant aroma. This will depend on the type of heating you are using. It took around 30-40 mins for me. Make sure to pay attention the besan can get burnt easily.

Once the besan is a golden yellow take the pan off the stove , add sugar. I added granulated sugar to the besan which gives a slight crunch to the magas. Add the cardamom powder.

Butter the sides of a pie pan or a deep dish and now pour the mix into it. Garnish with slivered almonds and leave for a few hours to cool down and set.

Magas stays good for a few months on the counter, as there is only ghee, sugar and besan in it. I hope you enjoy your Diwali and creating new memories for your family. Happy Diwali!

Roasted Veggies Deep Dish Pizza

I used to hate pizzas a few years ago, I had a bad pizza somewhere in India which gave me a feeling that every pizza was a hard rubbery dough with little to no veggies and yucky tasting cheese. Over the years I have tasted some good and great pizzas. Tried making some at home and this deep dish pizza is by far my most favorite. Its pretty simple to make this pizza but you will need a cast iron skillet  - 10 inch to make this one. I love my pizza loaded with veggies, so I made this one with zucchinis, red bell peppers, jalapeños, garlic, red onions and mushrooms.

Ingredients:

Pizza dough for 1 pizza.

Tomato Sauce - Store bought

Vegetable sliced - Zucchini, red pepper, red onions, mushrooms, jalapeños, garlic. (You could also use olives, sun-dried tomatoes, artichokes).

Grated mozzarella cheese

fresh mozzarella cheese

Olive oil

Salt for seasoning

Fresh basil

Oregano & Red chili flakes

Procedure:

1. Set your oven on broil setting. Place the sliced veggies on a pan, drizzle with olive oil and grill for 8-10 mins. Veggies can burn easily so watch out.

2. Season your skillet with olive oil, place the pizza dough in the centre and start working with both hands to form a base with high edges. Go from the centre towards the edge , so you have a thin crust but a higher edge.

3. Once veggies are roasted add sauce, veggies, shredded cheese and mix everything together. Add seasoning - salt, oregano, basil and chili flakes to this mixture. The jalapeños if hot may add enough spice to the dish so check before adding.

4. Pour the mixture into the deep dish you created with the pizza dough. Top with more cheese and also sliced fresh mozzarella.

5. Bake in the oven at 425 F for 15-20 mins until cheese has browned and melted.

6. Remove from the oven carefully, wear gloves on both hands as skillets can get very hot. Remove into a pizza pan or wooden chopping block and slice. Enjoy your pizza :).