Apple Crumble

Apple crumble is one of the old time favorite pies.  It originated in England during the Second World War due to the strict rations of foods.  During those hard times ingredients were not enough to come up with a traditional apple pie.  So what the people back then did was to create a crumble, since there were not much ingredients required. The only thing needed were sugar, butter and a little flour. Someone has rightly said necessity is the mother of invention.   During the hard times, the creativeness of the English people paved the way for apple crumble to become one of the popular desserts for times to come  In the fall or autumn when apples are in plenty, apple crumble became a favorite dish.  It is a very simple dish to make and that is one of the reasons of its popularity.

Ingredients:

3 Big Apples cored and sliced, ½ cup white sugar, 1 ½  tsp white flour, ½ tsp cinnamon powder,  ¼ cup water.

For Crumbs:

½ cup cooking oats, ½ cup corn flakes, ½ cup white flour, ½  cup brown sugar, 1/8 tsp baking powder, 1/8 tsp baking soda, ¼ cup melted butter or canola oil

Method:

Preheat oven to 350 degree F or 180 degree C.

Place the sliced apples in a  medium size pie dish.

Mix the white sugar, 1 ½  tsp flour, cinnamon powder and sprinkle over apples. 

Pour ¼ cup water evenly over this.

Combine the oats, corn flakes(crush these a little with your hand), ½ cup white flour, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda and melted butter or canola oil.

Crumble evenly over the apples.

Bake for 45 minutes or slightly golden in color.

Mexican Bean Salad

Beans are a healthy food that  play an important role in Mexican cuisine. Beans are naturally rich in soluble fiber, iron and dietary protein. Regularly consuming beans can lower bad LDL cholesterol and reduce overall heart disease risk, according to the U.S. Beans Council.  Healthy beans common in Mexican cooking include black beans, pinto beans, garbanzo beans and kidney beans.

Beans are loaded with nutrients like Vitamin B, Calcium and Potassium that our bodies need.  For example Vitamin B is necessary for healthy brain and nerve cells, for normal functioning of the skin, nerves and the digestive system.  Similarly Calcium is needed for strong bones and teeth and it helps us keep our body more alkaline rather than acidic.  Potassium helps reduce the risk of high blood pressure and stroke.

I have used black beans, soya beans, corn and black eyed beans that day as they were readily available in my kitchen pantry.  Generally I use kidney beans, chick peas, corn, green beans and navy beans for the Mexican salad.  So it depends on your choice and availability of things.  Most important thing is to use different variety of beans to add to the nutritional value and the taste.

Ingredients:

2 cups black beans, boiled and drained, 2cups kidney beans, boiled and drained, 2 cups green beans chopped, boiled and drained,  1 green bell pepper(chopped), 1 red bell pepper(chopped), 1 ½ cup corn kernels boiled and drained,  1 medium red onion chopped finely,  ½ cup olive oil,  ¼ cup red wine vinegar, 2 tbsp fresh lemon juice, 2 tbsp white sugar(powdered), 1 tbsp salt, 1 clove crushed garlic, ¼ cup cleaned and chopped fresh cilantro, ½ tbsp ground cumin, ½ tbsp ground black pepper,  1 dash of hot pepper sauce, ¼ tsp red chili powder.

Method:

In a large bowl, combine beans, bell peppers, corn, and red onion.  In a small bowl, whisk together olive oil, red wine vinegar, lemon juice, sugar, salt, garlic, cilantro, cumin, and black pepper. Season to taste with hot sauce or chili powder.  Pour this olive oil dressing over the vegetables and mix well. Keep in the refrigerator before serving.  Serve cold.

Lentil Pilaf

This is an age old recipe.  In medieval times this was called mujadarra, means a dish of the poor.  This used to be a favorite dish of misers yet everyone served it.  In medieval times when this dish was served in the Middle East, host often commented:” Excuse the food of the poor.”  To this the unanimous reply was :”Keep your food of kings and give us megadarra  (or mujadarra) everyday!”

The proportion of this lentil and rice pilaf varies with every family.  I used it equal amount of rice and lentil while many use two parts of lentil and one part of rice.

 

Ingredients:

1 cup black-brown lentil, 1 cup rice, salt to taste, cumin seeds 1 tsp, 2 onions, oil for frying onions

Method:

Wash and soak lentil for half an hour. 

Cook lentil in a big pan, add five cups of water, salt and cumin seeds.

It will take at least an hour for lentil to turn tender and cooked.

Now put the lentil through a colander but place this colander on another pan to save the water of the lentil in which it was cooked.

Wash rice well.  Cook rice in the left over water of the lentil.  If rice is one cup add two cups of lentil water.  Salt and cumin aroma of cooked lentil will come in this rice as well.

Cut the onions julienne and fry them in a very hot oil until they are dark brown and sweet, almost caramelized.

Once rice is cooked, take out the cooked rice a bowl, add a tbsp of cooked lentil and mix with the rice, now spread the rest of the lentil as a top layer on the rice.

Now garnish this lentil and rice pilaf with caramelized fried onion.

This dish can be served hot with plain yogurt.

Note : if you want to add color to the dish you may fry red and yellow peppers and garnish along with onions.

Kashmiri Kahwa

Kashmir is known to be a paradise on earth and  it's a popular tourist spot in the North of India. The valley is painted is varied colors by our creator.  Snow capped mountains of Sonmarg to beautiful Chandanwadi and Bettab valley near Pahalgam to gondola ride in Gulmarg, Kashmir is a pristine beauty.  Its flowering meadows to its sparkling  rivers everything is near perfect in Kashmir. 

Last week I took my dream vacation in Kashmir with a group of 25 ladies.  No matter where we went, we tried the traditional green tea called Kahwa and pretty much got hooked to it. 

When for the first time I had the Kahwa at the houseboat in Dal Lake I asked the guy who served, why there were no spices or almonds added to it. His answer surprised me as he said:”Only Kashmiri Pundits add those spices and almonds.”  I saw this as a cultural difference between not just two kinds of Kahwas but also in the culture of this beautiful valley.

Kahwa is a traditional green tea consumed here.  Making Kahwa is an art in itself which one can experiment with by adding the amount of spices.  For example saffron kahwa has a golden hue while cinnamon kahwa is little brown in color.  Here is the recipe for a  Kahwa.

Ingredients:

2 cups water,  ¾ tsp sugar,  1 small piece of cinnamon, 2 green cardamoms, 4 almonds cut into half,  3or 4 strands of saffron,  ½ tsp kahwa leaves.

Method:

Boil water in a pan, add cinnamon, 2 almonds and green cardamom.

Close the lid to contain the aroma.  Boil for 2 or 3 minutes.

Rub kahwa leaves between your palms and add to the boiling water.

Lower the flame to medium and let it boil for 2 more minutes.  Add saffron and turn off the flame.  Let the lid remain closed.

In the meanwhile crush two almonds and put them in a cup or glass.

After one minute pour tea or kahwa in this cup.

Enjoy the aroma and the taste of kahwa.

Minestrone Soup

Minestrone literally means big soup.  It is a thick soup of Italian origin made with seasonal vegetables by adding pasta or some other carbohydrate to make it more substantial. Common ingredients include beans, zucchini, onions, squash, celery, carrots, tomatoes and stock. There is no specific recipe for this soup as it varies from family to family. But one thing is common it is always made with seasonal vegetables.  It can be vegetarian as well as non vegetarian. In case of non-vegetarian soup, chicken broth is added while vegetable broth is used for vegetarian minestrone.  However, in Roman times the base of minestrone used to be bean broth.  Minestrone is one of the cornerstones of Italian cuisine and is almost as common as pasta or pizza.

As I was traveling North America for last two months, I discovered everyone in my family was a good cook.  In fact everyone made some or other dish with finesse and the result was very satisfying.  The Minestrone soup was made excellent by my sister in law.  She did not mind me sharing this recipe with the world.

Ingredients:

1 big onion, 1 big carrot, 1 stick of celery,  12 green beans, 1 whole zucchini, 3 tomatoes, 2 cloves of garlic, ½ bell pepper(optional), ¼ cup chopped parsley, ¼ cup pasta or barley,  1 bullion cube, 2 cups of vegetable stock, ½  tsp of pickling spices, ¼ tsp red pepper flakes,  1 tbsp olive oil

Method:

Heat oil in a big pan, put pickling spices, red pepper flakes and add chopped onion, chopped celery, carrots and crushed garlic.

Sauté these vegetables but make sure they do not turn brown.

Add green beans, one cube of bullion and vegetable stock.

If you want to add barley do it now but if you want to add pasta make sure that you boil the pasta and keep it aside.  Add pasta at the end so that it tastes better.

Let it simmer for a five-seven minutes and then add zucchini and bell pepper towards the end so that they do not turn mushy. Now give it a boil and then reduce heat and let it simmer for 10-15 minutes.

Add chopped parsley and let it simmer for a couple of  minutes more.

Enjoy your soup with Italian bread dipped into extra virgin olive oil.

(Note: Pickling spice consists of bay leaf, black pepper, coriander seeds, fenugreek and dill seeds).

Kitty's Lamb and Chicken Burgers

For last two months I have been traveling.  My cousin, Kitty, who lives in North America is a very good cook.  Most of the time in our family they have been making red meat burgers but here my cousin told me her secret recipe of lamb and chicken burgers with right touch of spices.  Although I am a vegetarian, I could not resist watching her make these burgers, which turned out to be very yummy as per all the connoisseurs  of burgers present in her house. Here I would like to share Kitty’s secret recipe with all of you.

 Ingredients:

Lamb minced 1 lb., chicken minced 1 lb., 1 big onion, 9 cloves of garlic, 1 cup green coriander washed, and chopped, 1 tsp cumin, 2 tsp coriander seeds,1 medium size green chilly,  ½  bell pepper, 1 tbsp olive oil, salt to taste.

 Method:

Chop onion, green chilly and bell pepper finely.  Crush garlic. Ground cumin and coriander seeds.  Mix all these ingredients with minced lamb and chicken and mix very well. Add olive oil and salt.  Now make burger size patties.  Grill them on medium heat for 5 or 6 minutes.  If they are overcooked they will turn dry.  It makes  9 to10 patties.

You can eat these patties either in a burger bun with mayo, mustard and ketchup etc.  If you want to eat these as kababs you can enjoy them with green chutney.

Steamed Snack of Oats

Ever since I have discovered the health benefits of Oatmeal, I am obsessed with this grain.  I tried to look or invent recipes using the oats.  Here I have made this snack which you can have either for breakfast or with your cup of evening tea or coffee.  Since oats and semolina is used for steaming this tasty snack, it is quite filling as the soluble fiber in the oatmeal absorbs a considerable amount of water which slows down the digestive process. That is the reason I ate this for my supper and I didn’t feel any hunger pangs till next day breakfast.

Ingredients:

1 cup oat meal, ½ cup rava(semolina), 1 cup yogurt(plain), ½ cup water,  ½ tsp turmeric powder, 1 tsp salt, 1/ 2 tsp sugar, 2 tsp lemon juice, 1 ½ tsp eno fruit salt,  1 cup green chutney.

 Method:

Grease a 7 inches round flat and keep it aside.

Roast rolled oats in a pan, when they cool off ground them in a mixer.

Roast semolina and let it cool off.

Now put oats and semolina in a pan, add yogurt, water, salt, sugar, turmeric, lemon juice and mix well to make a smooth batter. Add fruit salt and immediately pour half the mixture into the greased mould. Spread a layer of green chutney on this and pour the other half of the mixture on this.

In case you are not too crazy about green chutney made of coriander and mint leaves, you may sauté some vegetables like grated carrots, finely chopped green pepper (bell pepper) or any other vegetable of your choice and fill it in the middle instead of green chutney.

In a big pan pour one cup of water, place a small bowl filled with water in the middle of it and place on the medium heat flame.  Now place the dish with batter on the small bowl and cover the big pan. Let steam cook the batter for 17 minutes. Turn off the flame and cool off the yummy snack.  Cut into small rectangles. Take these out and place them in a plate.

Enjoy with ketchup if you like.

Note: See Green Chutney recipe in Papri Chat blog.