vinayaprabhu2 - Vinaya's Culinary Delights

Pumpkin soup

Posted on February 10, 2021 by vinayaprabhu2

A warm filling soup with just a hint of pepper and garlic. My friend Bala S Ajay who shared this recipe with me added toasted walnuts as well. I skipped them as the family isn’t too fond of them in a soup or a gravy. Two bowls of this healthy soup with a piece of French toast or a croissant and you are done with dinner.

Ingredients:

250 gms Pumpkin de skinned and chopped into chunks

1 very large onion sliced roughly

3 tbsps fresh cream

2 tbsps butter

2 cloves of garlic chopped

Salt and pepper to taste.

Method:

Heat the butter in a pan and keep tossing the pumpkin till it’s nicely roasted. Alternatively you may brush it with oil and bake it in the oven. Once the pumpkin is roasted remove it from the pan and add the onion and garlic. Roast till the onions wilt and the garlic turns a rich golden yellow. Cool thoroughly. Blitz the mixture along with the cream in a mixer till it forms a puree. Tip it back into the pan and add either vegetable stock or water to thin it down. Adjust the consistency as per preference. Add salt and pepper and bring to a boil. Lower heat and simmer for a couple of minutes. Serve hot .

Serves two.

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Bell pepper and corn salsa

Posted on February 10, 2021 by vinayaprabhu2

The taste of the crunchy Bell peppers with boiled soft corn, tomatoes and a dash of lime can be wrapped up in a tortilla or a Chapati, enjoyed as a salad or can even be used as a sandwich filling along with some mayonnaise. This lovely recipe by my friend Neetha Pai is one of my favourites as it’s healthy, easy to make and absolutely delicious!

Ingredients:

1 each of green, yellow and red Bell peppers chopped fine

1 large tomato chopped fine

1 large onion chopped fine

Juice of half a lemon

Pepper and salt to taste

1 cup of boiled sweet corn

Method:

Mix all the chopped vegetables and sweet corn and season with pepper and salt. Drizzle some lime juice, mix and serve immediately.

Note: chop the vegetables just a few minutes before serving to retain the crunch. If you like your salsa a little mushy then you may chop it and season it beforehand. The salt added helps the Bell peppers and onions to release water.

Serves two.

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Dried green peas Usli/ stir fry

Posted on February 10, 2021February 10, 2021 by vinayaprabhu2

This dried green peas Usli doubles up both as a breakfast eat as well as an accompaniment to a meal. One can innovate by making it with onions or even with a Garlic seasoning, though I have today followed the recipe shared by my friend Vidya Rekha Kamath and prepared it the Sattvik way.

Ingredients:

1 cup/ 200 gms dried green peas soaked overnight

Salt

1/4 of a large coconut grated

For the tempering:

One tbsp coconut oil or oil of choice

1 tsp mustard

1 tsp cumin seeds

7 green chillies finely chopped

2 Inch piece of ginger grated

1 dry red chilly broken into two

A chickpea size of Hing/ Asafoetida powdered

2 sprigs curry leaves

Method:

Pressure cook the dried peas with salt to three quick whistles. Allow to cool and if there is any water left behind drain it. Heat oil in a pan. Drop in the mustard seeds and after they splutter add the cumin seeds. Allow them to crackle and then tip in the grated ginger, green chillies, asafoetida, dry red chilly and curry leaves. Toss and tip in the cooked peas. Mix , cover and heat on a gentle flame for a couple of minutes for the flavours to infuse. Garnish with grated coconut.

Serves four.

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Fruit Punch

Posted on February 10, 2021 by vinayaprabhu2

This one is a keeper. Strawberry, orange and Granny Smith apple come together in a Fruit punch. Tangy, sweet and fragrant. Coconut milk and honey too can be added but I havent. I thank my friend Ramesh Srinivas Shenoy for this lovely mocktail.

Ingredients:

1 Granny Smith apple

6 large strawberries

5 oranges

3 tsps sugar

Method:

Core the apple and chop it roughly. Tip it into the mixer along with the strawberries and sugar. Grind it to a smooth pulp. Refrigerate. Juice the oranges in the juicer. If you are extracting the juice manually take care to see that no pips of the orange are left behind as they can make the punch bitter. Refrigerate the orange juice too. While serving first pour the orange juice in a glass till three fourth filled. Slowly pour the strawberry and apple juice. Gently mix the juices just once. Do not stir. Garnish with a slice of strawberry, some mint leaves and ice cubes.

Serves four

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Rice and vegetable roastie

Posted on February 10, 2021February 10, 2021 by vinayaprabhu2

This rice and vegetable roastie gives you all that you need to kickstart the day. Diabetics may replace the rice with oats and skip the potato. Just powder the oats first before making the roastie. The original recipe by my friend Madhangi Vaidyanathan calls for rice to be soaked. I have used rice powder instead. You can add vegetables of your choice. Just dice them fine so that they get cooked but retain their crunch.

Ingredients:

1 cup/ 250 gms rice flour

1 carrot either chopped fine or grated

1 large tomato chopped fine

1/2 a capsicum chopped fine

1 large boiled potato grated

2 Inch piece of ginger

7 green chillies

Salt

1/2 tsp Eno fruit salt

5 tbsps finely chopped coriander leaves

2 tbsps finely chopped curry leaves

Method:

Tip the grated boiled potato, chopped vegetables,coriander leaves and rice flour into a bowl. Grind the green chillies and ginger to a fine paste. Drop it into the rice- vegetable mixture. Add finely chopped coriander, curry leaves and salt. Mix with enough water to get a batter of pouring consistency. Allow to rest for ten minutes. Add the Eno fruit salt and pour a tsp of water on it to activate it. Whisk and pour a ladleful of batter on a hot skillet. Drizzle with oil. Cover the roastie and allow it to roast well on the underside to a nice golden brown. Flip and roast the other side as well. Serve hot with a Chutney of your choice. Recipe link to the Chutney is given below.

https://vinayasculinarydelights.com/roasted-bengal-gram-dal-and-coriander-leaves-chutney-recipe/

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Ambat Varan/ tangy Dal

Posted on February 9, 2021 by vinayaprabhu2

Ambat Varan is a traditional Maharashtrian preparation which is served over rice. Fragrant with the copious amount of garlic with which it is seasoned, this spicy, tangy and sweet Varan will tickle the taste buds and leave you asking for more. Renuka Pradhan generously shared her recipe with me.

Ingredients:

1 cup/ 200 gms of Toovar dal/ Split pigeon peas pressure cooked and mashed well.

2 tbsps Tamarind paste

2 tbsps jaggery syrup

1 tbsp Kashmiri Lal chilly powder

1/4 tsp Turmeric

Salt

3 tbsps finely chopped coriander leaves

For the tempering:

2 tbsps Ghee/ clarified butter

15 cloves of garlic crushed gently

A pinch of Hing/ asafoetida

1/2 tsp mustard

Method:

Pour the mashed dal into a container. Add the tamarind paste, jaggery, salt chilly , turmeric powders and a glass of water. Mix and bring to a boil. Allow it to keep simmering. In the meantime heat the Ghee in a pan. Drop in the mustard seeds and the garlic. Roast the garlic to a nice golden brown. Drop in the Hing, toss and pour the seasoning into the boiling Varan. Garnish with coriander leaves and serve hot over rice with a dollop of Ghee.

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Orange peel Gojju/ dip

Posted on February 9, 2021February 9, 2021 by vinayaprabhu2

A lovely tangy Gojju aka Dip to enjoy either with your meals, on bread or even with Chapati. This recipe by my friend Aruna Panangapalli uses the peel of oranges to make this tangy , sweet and spicy Gojju.

Ingredients:

1 cup orange peel from about two oranges

5 tbsps jaggery syrup

2 tbsps Tamarind paste

1 tbsp dry roasted sesame seeds

Salt

1 tsp Kashmiri chilly powder

For the tempering:

1 tbsp oil

1 tsp mustard seeds

A large pinch of Hing/ asafoetida

1 sprig of curry leaves

1/4 tsp Turmeric powder

Method:

Powder the roasted sesame seeds coarsely. Keep aside. Scrape the insides of the peel ( the white portion) as it may make the Gojju slightly bitter. Cut the peel into tiny bits. Heat oil in a pan. Add the mustard seeds and after they splutter add the Hing and curry leaves. Toss and immediately add the orange peel, salt and turmeric powder. Saute for a minute and pour in one glass of water. Bring to a boil and simmer till the peels are cooked. Add the tamarind paste, jaggery syrup and roasted sesame seed powder. Keep boiling till the Gojju thickens to dropping consistency. Switch off, cool and bottle.

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Aloo Vurtha/ mashed spicy potatoes

Posted on February 9, 2021February 9, 2021 by vinayaprabhu2

Every region in India has their own version of mashed potatoes. Here is the recipe to a Bengali version called Aloo vurtha which my friend Savitha Umesh shared with me. As usual I love recipes that are simple, easy to make but at the same time delicious. This one if leftover can be used as a filling for Parathas or bread.

Ingredients:

3 potatoes pressure cooked ,peeled and mashed

1 large onion

15 cloves of garlic

5 Byadgi chillies

1 tsp oil to roast the garlic and chillies

Salt

A large pinch of turmeric

2 tsps oil to roast the onions

2 tbsps finely chopped coriander leaves

Method:

Heat the oil in a pan. Drop in the garlic and roast to a nice golden brown. Remove and roast the Byadgi chillies in the remaining oil. Grind them to a coarse powder. Heat two tsps oil in a pan and drop in the onions and turmeric powder. Roast till translucent. Allow to cool. Add the powdered garlic and chilly powder, mashed potato and salt to it. Mix well and garnish with coriander leaves.

Note: I added a tsp of lemon juice for added flavour.

Serves three.

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Okra Curd Pacchadi

Posted on February 9, 2021 by vinayaprabhu2

One needs no accompaniment to rice other than maybe a Papad or pickle when you serve it with this Okra Curd Pacchadi. I simply love this recipe shared by my friend Geetha Navaneeth as it can not only be prepared quickly, but is a quick fix solution when having guests.

Ingredients:

15 Okra/ Lady’s finger chopped into half inch bits

1 cup / 200 ml curds/ yoghurt

A pinch of turmeric

Salt

A quarter of a coconut grated

2 green chillies

1tsp Cumin seeds

1 tsp oil to saute the Okra

For the tempering:

1 tsp coconut oil or oil of choice

1/2 tsp mustard seeds

1/2 tsp Urad dal/ split black gram

A large pinch of Hing/ asafoetida

1 dry red chilly broken into two

1 sprig curry leaves

Method:

Heat oil in a pan . Tip in the chopped okra, turmeric and salt and roast on a gentle flame till it turns crisp. Keep aside. Grind the coconut, green chillies and cumin seeds to a fine paste. Add it to the okra along with the curds. Mix well. Heat oil in a pan. Drop in the mustard and after it splutters add the Urad dal. After the urad dal turns a golden brown add the red chilly bits, asafoetida and curry leaves. Toss. Drop the seasoning to the okra Curd Pacchadi. Mix and check for salt. Do be careful as salt has been added while roasting the okra.

Serves two.

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Rava Bhakri with onions.

Posted on February 9, 2021February 9, 2021 by vinayaprabhu2

This is the third variety of Rava Bhakri being posted in this website. It is as easy to make as the other two and is ready in no time. This recipe was shared by my dear friend Jyothi Chikramane. Fragrant with chopped onions and coriander leaves, it can be served with fresh home made butter or with a Chutney. The family prefers it with butter so I hardly ever make a chutney.

Ingredients:

1 cup / 200 gms Rava/ semolina

1/4 of a coconut grated

7 green chillies

1 inch piece of ginger

1 large onion chopped fine

4 tbsps finely chopped coriander leaves

Salt

1/2 cup curds

Oil to roast the Bhakri

Method:

Tip the green chillies, coconut and ginger into the mixer. Grind to a coarse paste adding a little water. Pour it into a bowl. Add the curds, finely chopped onions and coriander leaves, salt and rava. Mix well . Now, adding a little water at a time make a batter which can be patted on to the tava/ skillet. Keep aside for about ten minutes. Adjust the consistency by adding a little water if you find the mixture too dry. Heat a tava. Take a little batter and pat it onto the hot tava. Drizzle with oil. Roast to a golden brown. Flip and roast on the other side too. Serve hot with either butter or chutney.

This proportion makes 10 Bhakris.

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