Maa-er Narkel Diye Cholar Dal ( Split Bengal gram with Coconut )

Maa's cholar dal has been one of my favorite dishes for as long as I can remember. 

My husband joined the club soon after we got married.  

But no matter how hard I tried, it wasn't easy to replicate the taste of her dal  until she shared her special tips with me  last summer . Ever since I have been flaunting her recipe at every gathering I can and thought it would be the most appropriate dish to begin the New year with....

Vegetable "Makhanwala" (made light)

It was almost after a decade that I cooked Vegetable "Makhanwala" the other day... and even before we started dinner I knew that this version was a keeper.....

Eggplant Caviar

For the Doristas the final countdown has begun. Just four recipes  to go before they complete their journey through "Around My French Table". I had joined the group late and owing to grid-shift and unavailability of the ingredients in this part of the world, left the group early. Nevertheless I hope to catch-up with the others in the years to come and cook my way through all of Dorie's books as and when I find the ingredients and the time...

This week I did a bit of catching up. I tried Dorie's version of Eggplant Caviar....

Koncha Kodoli Boda (Plantain Cakes Odiya style)

In Odiya, plantains are called Koncha Kodoli, which literally means raw banana. Probably they are so called because of the semblance in their shape and color. Whatever it be, this vegetable is widely grown in Odisha and plantain cakes or Koncha Kodoli Bodas are quite popular with the people here.

Spanish Eggplant & Bell Pepper (Dip)

I spotted  this Eggplant and Bell Pepper dip from  Tapas collection of 100 essential recipes, almost as soon as I bought the book from a local library sale, about an year back. I cooked it and  ever since have been recommending this recipe to my sister, my sister-in-law and who-so-ever visits us and expresses his or her unfamiliarity with eggplant recipes. The thing is, this so-to-say "Spanish eggplant dip" is really easy to prepare and tastes great both as a spread on toasts as well as with rice and dal. Though a Spanish dish, it pairs perfectly with our Indian meals and over the past year has become one of my go-to recipes.

Owing to the citrus flavoring, and seasoning of  paprika and cilantro, this "dip" tastes very similar to Baigan Bharta. But as I mentioned, it is much easier to prepare and gets done much faster.

The original recipe calls for processing the cooked eggplant and bell pepper in the food processor along with the other ingredients. I however have never felt the need for it. So far, I have always roasted the eggplant and bell pepper and then cooked the dip in the skillet. Non-processing it, leaves the "dip"  chunky, which lends it a charm of its own.

Carrot Chili Pepper Quinoa Salad

I love exploring cuisines and I love to cook from books. So when the hosts of Food of the World decided to travel to Mexico, I picked up a couple of avocados, a pineapple and some jalapeño peppers from the grocery store,  a copy of The "I Do Not Know How To Cook" Book Mexican from the library, then flipped through the pages of the book to find a match for the ingredients in hand. 

Vegetable Croquettes

I wouldn't really call my toddler a fussy eater..but there are times when hot dog and pizzas are the only things he opens his mouth to... such phases though short-lived get me worried and that is when I consult my most trusted recipe book First Meals by Annabel Karmel. I had bought the book at the local library sale and till date consider it as my best buy from the library. It has a wonderful collection of quick and easy kid-friendly meals and at the end of a clean plate, courtesy First Meals,  I always wonder why had I not thought of the recipe earlier. 

Anyway, these vegetable croquettes were born during one such fussy phase of my little toddlers life. The original recipe had carrots, sweet corn and broccoli, which I traded for spinach and greens peas The result was delicious. Both daddy and son approved of it and recently even the toddlers aunt certified it as a simple and tasty snack.

Indian Chickpea Curry

Punjabi Chole Masale is a curried Chickpea Side dish that is very popular in North India and Pakistan. Served with Bature, a fried Indian bread, a carrot pickle and a salad of onions, lemon and coriander it is a dish that North Indians often enjoy for brunch. As a student, I have enjoyed many a meals of Chole-Bature in Delhi and in Allahabad and after moving a to US created my own version of Chole using staples from the kitchen. Though a close cousin of Punjabi Chole Masale, this Chickpea Curry recipe isn't very authentic or traditional. It is however delicious and serves as a wonderful side with both rice and roti. So give it a try and I guarantee that you will come back to it again....

Zucchini Shoes and a casserole with left overs

The Zucchini Shoes recipe has been lying in my drafts for a very long time. I had baked it soon after Easter. the funny thing about this dish it that though we were not very excited about the zucchini shoes themselves, we loved the casserole that i made with the left over  chickpea filling and sauce. and since I had not taken any pictures of the casserole i deferred posting the recipe all together. anyway, last week there was some boiled chickpeas left over from another dish so i decided to bake "the casserole" again. and this time i clicked a few images before we gorged in.

you might wonder why the urgency of posting the recipe of the zucchini shoes if we did not love it. thats because i didn't know what to call my casserole and its easier to tell you the story this way. 

now the recipe of the zucchini shoes as adapted from Aphrodite Polemis's cookbook From a Traditional Greek Kitchen....

Greek for Meatless Monday : Moussaka with Radish Salad

Last Monday I cooked Moussaka and Radish Salad for dinner.  Though we love Mediterranean food, we haven't ventured much into the vegetarian terrain. Usually whenever we eat out we order dishes loaded with chicken or lamb and enjoy it to bits. however cooking Greek for Meatless Mondays has been quite a revelation.  Mediterranean Veg dishes can be as delicious as the others.  (if not better). and the Greeks really know to play with their sauces and spices. I  think I am falling in love with Mediterranean food all over again....

Ok. Sorry. I got a little carried away. So, as popularly known and described by Lynn Livanos Athan, "Moussaka is a casserole made by layering eggplant with spiced meat filling then topping it off with a creamy bechamel sauce that is baked to golden perfection." I however spotted a vegetarian version of Moussaka in the book From a Traditional  Greek Kitchen : Vegetarian Cuisine and tried that out with some minor adaptations inspired by the Andy Harris's Zucchini Moussaka from Modern Greek. For the Radish Salad, I was faithful to the Aphrodite Polemis's recipe of Repanakia me Yaourti Salata .