Thalipeeth with Okra Raita and Aamras

Purani jeans aur guitar
Mohalle ki vo chhat
Aur mere yaar
Vo raaton ko jaagna
Subah ghar jaan
Kood ke deewar
Vo cigaretee peena
Gali mein jaake
Wo karna daanton ko
Ghadi ghadi saaf

Pahunchna college hamesha late
Vo kehna sir ka
"Get out from the class!"
Vo bahar jaake hamsha kehna
Yahan ka system
Hi hai kharaab
Vo jaake canteen mein
Table bajaake
Vo gaane gaana
Yaaron ke saath

Bas yaadein yaadein
Yaadein reh jaati hain
Kuchh chhoti chhoti
Baatein reh jaati hain
Bas yaadein…

Remember this song of Ali Haider? This song has been our college anthem;) and it always takes me down the memory lane. College canteen, mimicking our lecturers, bunking the classes, late night parties, birthday bums, ragging, internals, last minute study, lab sessions, hostel warden, hostel food, Sunday telephone calls from home, long Q in STD booths (when mobile phones were very rare and looked like TV remotes;), another long Q for Sunday special breakfasts, new year parties, tapri/dhaba food… Oh yes… How I miss my college and hostel days! Hostels, my home away from home where I made very good friends, and the memories of ragging my juniors, fighting with warden, jumping from compound walls after curfew hours, chewing bullet proof chapaties, drinking watery coffee, Friday night’s beauty session with all colored face packs, Saturday night’s eating out at Kamat’s or Sagar’s, visits to Café Coffee Day, counting the days to go home(for me from the day I returned from home;), stuffing last inch of our bags from Maggi noodles to hair pin, attacking the supply of home food from friend’s bag, reading M&B in zero watt bulb, bunking first session of the day coz of late night reading, listening to music till wee hours of morning, heating water with candle light to make Maggi noodles, birthday parties, pajama parties, Sunday laundry sessions… Yes… I can go on and on with my memories of hostel days.
When it comes to hostel days, hostel food is integral part of every hostilities memory. It is not a joke to cook and feed hundreds of hungry tummies every day; morning, noon and night. With usual bullet proof chapaties, sticky dal, watery milk, hot as hell subjis, oily curries, it was like breath of fresh air when we get invitation for home cooked meals from our localite friends. No wonder I used to feel home cooked meals are like oasis in hot desert ;) One of my friend’s mother was an excellent cook and her specialty was Marathi Cuisine. I still remember all delicious chat-pata chats, spicy Kaap (Pakoda), aromatic Bhaaji’s (Vegetable dish) with simple Koshimbir (Salads) and Poli’s she used to churn in her small kitchen and serve. There were the days when aunt would send us big stack of delicious Bhakries which we homesick souls would dip in sweet and creamy Shreekhand or Spicy Thalipeeth with Yogurt and Spicy Pickles. And how can I forget all those Puran Poli, Basundi, Gul Polies which we would gulp during Ganesha Chaturthi.
When lovely Nupur of One Hot Stove announced RCI-Maharastrian Cuisine for this month’s of RCI which is the brainchild of Lakshmi of Veggie Cuisine, I knew what I wanted to contribute. It’s been ages since I had Thalipeeth and decided to serve it with Okra Raita and Aamras.
Thalipeeth is a multi-grain mildly spiced pancake which is not only tasty but also healthy and nutritious. I remember aunty using Bhajani, flour mixture of different grains which are slightly roasted and ground. After unsuccessful hunt for bhajani, I made thalipeeth using the flours in my pantry. Adjust all the ingredients according to your taste and preference. The recipe below makes 6 thalipeeth.
If you are a lover of Maharashtrian Cuisine like me and want to try some of the best Marathi food then look no further. Our this month's hostess for RCI, Nupur of One Hot Stove has her blog dedicated to authentic A-Z Maharashtrian Cuisine and here for Nupur's recipe for Thalipeeth. Her Bombay Pav Bhaji is something which I love the most.

Thalipeeth with Okra Raita and Aamras

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Thalipeeth
Prep Time: 15-20 mins
Cooking Time: 10-15 mins
Serves: 2-3

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Ingredients:
1½ cups Jowar Flour
½ cup Wheat Flour
2 tbsp Rice Flour
2 tbsp Gram Flour
1 tbsp Semolina
1 medium Onion, chopped very finely
1-2 Green Chillies, chopped finely
3-4 tbsp Coriander Leaves, finely chopped
½ tsp Jeera/Cumin Powder
½ tsp Coriander Powder
½ tsp Red Chilli Powder
¼ tsp Turmeric Powder
Salt to taste
Oil/Ghee for frying

Thalipeeth

Method:
Mix all the ingredients except oil/ghee and knead it into stiff dough using water. The dough should be of chapatti consistency. While kneading the dough, rub some oil or ghee to your palms to keep from sticking.
Keep this dough aside for 10-15 minutes covered with wet kitchen towel.
Again knead the dough and make golf ball sized balls.
Take a clean plastic sheet or banana leaf and grease its one side with some oil or ghee.
Flatten one ball in the palm of your hand and place it in the center of the sheet. Pat the ball with palm and the fingers. If the dough is too sticky, dip fingers in water to make the patting easier. Keep flattening in circular motion to make a round flat disc but make it sure that the thalipeeth has even thickness.
make one small hole in the center with finger which will help to cook the thalipeeth evenly.
Heat the griddle or non-stick tava and gently remove thalipeeth from plastic sheet and place it on tava.
Apply little oil or ghee at the edges, in the center hole and on top of the thalipeeth and cook on both the sides until it turns crisp and light brown in colour.
Serve hot thalipeeth with yogurt or raita with pickle and sweet Aamras.

Thalipeeth with Okra Raita

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Bhindi/Okra Raita
Prep Time: 10 mins
Cooking Time: 5-10 mins
Serves: 2-3

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Ingredients:
6-7 Okra/Bhindi, cut into thin slices
1 small Red Onion
2 cups Yogurt
½ tsp Green Chilli, finely chopped
A Pinch of Jeera/Cumin Powder
1 tsp Oil
Salt to Taste

Method:
Heat oil in a pan and add finely chopped onion. Sauté it till they turn translucent.
Now add okra and green chilli and sauté it in high flame till it becomes crisp and brown.
Beat the yogurt and mix sauted okra and onion and cumin powder and salt to taste and mix well.
Chill the raita for at least half an hour before serving.
If desired you can add little bit of chat masala. But I like the sweet taste of fried Okra with tanginess of yogurt.

Thalipeeth with Okra Raita

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Aamras
Prep Time: 5-10 mins
Cooking Time: -
Serves: 2-3

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Ingredients:
3 Ripe Mangoes(I used Alphanso)
1 tbsp Sugar(acc to taste)
1 cup chilled Milk
A pinch of Cardamom Powder
Ice Cubes

Method:
Peel the mangoes and take out the pulp. Discard the skin and seeds.
Blend this pulp with milk, sugar and ice cubes.
Add cardamom powder and chill it before serving and enjoy.

Thalipeeth with Aamras

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Did You Know?
The saying 'Anna he poornabrahma' aptly summarises what Maharashtrians feel about the food they cook. They consider 'anna', or food, equal to 'Brahma', or the creator of the universe. Food is God, to be worshipped. Little wonder that Maharashtrian cuisine not only fills the stomach, but also fills the soul - with content!
The cuisine of Maharashtra has its own distinctive flavors and tastes. It can be divided into two major sections–the coastal and the interior.
A major portion of Maharashtra, which lies on the coast of the Arabian Sea, is loosely called the Konkan and boasts of its own Konkani cuisine, which is a homogeneous combination of Malvani, Gaud Saraswat Brahmin, and Goan cuisines. Besides the coastal cuisine, the interior of Maharashtra—the Vidarbha area, has its own distinctive cuisine known as the Varadi cuisine.
The people are known for the aesthetic presentation of food, which adds extra allure to the feasts. For instance, in formal meals, it is a practice to sing sacred verses to dedicate the meal to God. The guests sit on floor rugs or red wooden seats and eat from silver or metal thalis and bowls placed on a raised 'chowrang', or a short decorative table. Rangolis or auspicious patterns of coloured powder are drawn around the thali or the chowrang. To avoid mixing flavours, each guest is given a bowl of saffron scented water to dip the fingers in before starting on the next course. There is a specific order of serving of savouries and sweets, curries and rice or rotis, and a person who does not know this is not considered to be well trained in the art of hospitality. Agarbattis spread fragrance everywhere and the host believes the satisfaction of his guests to be his true joy.
(Source: wiki and www.maharashtraweb.com)

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Thalipeeth with Okra Raita and Aamras

Nimbu Saaru/Lemon Rasam

Sometime ago I watched a really well presented documentary which highlighted the issue of child obesity in UK. Although I am very much aware of the growing issue about obesity all around the world, this documentary made me realise how obesity has become more like a social plague. We are talking about one of the biggest growing problem here. Although some people seemed to suggest the main cause for obesity is genetic, research shows that the main cause has got to do with diet and eating habit within the family rather than genetic.
We have become a fast food generation country with fast food restaurants springing up everywhere like wild mushrooms and junk food readily available. Just take a tour in our supermarket and you will be surprised to see the shelves packed with ready to eat foods which contain very high levels of sugar and unhealthy fat. Talking with one of my colleague made me realise, gone are the days of home cooked meals in many homes. Healthy and nutritious home cooked meals have been replaced by take-away food or ready to eat microwave meals. And more shocking thing was the increase in growing number of parents who chose to take their children out to eat rather preparing meals at home. No wonder it costs the NHS more than £500 million a year to tackle this issue.
While growing up our parents always made it a point that we kids spent minimum 2 hours of our day in some physical activity and burning most of the calories gained from eating. Now days, I feel sad to see kids spending more time in front of TV or computer playing video game or computer game. We can very much understand the amount of calories they will be able to burn off sitting on a couch. Amma used to cook every meal at home. Weekday meals were simple home cooked meals where Amma would add lots of greens and vegetables with little spices and very little oil. Like most of the kids, we too took it for granted and always looked forward to our once in a blue moon visit to restaurants. My Appa was not very fond of restaurant food and he prefered home cooked food to any star hotel food. I remember the times when we kids would happily eat all spicy and oily curries and he would quietly enjoy his South Indian Thali and a bowl of his favorite Tomato soup. Even today, he prefers Boiled Rice with Ganji for breakfast. No wonder he looks younger and younger as the years pass. His mantra for good health is Healthy food with regular exercise and it indeed is the best weapon to fight the problem of over-weight and obesity.
Simple Saaru/Rasam with roasted papad and pickle is something which was always served at our everyday meal with other usual Sambar and Palyas. Nimbu Saaru or Lemon Rasam is one of the first dishes I learnt from my mother. It is very comforting dish of red lentils cooked with turmeric and blended with lemon juice, finely chopped tomatoes, green chilli and ginger and finally tempered with aromatic cumin seeds and curry leaves. The simplicity of this dish makes it very special and comforting. Serve it with Chapati or with just plain Rice and Papad or just drink it as a soup and I bet you will have very satisfying look on your face.

Nimbu Saaru with Rice & Papad

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Nimbu Saaru
Prep Time: 5 mins
Cooking Time: 20-30 mins
Serves: 3-4

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Ingredients:
¾ cup Toor Dal/Masoor Dal
1 large Tomato, finely chopped
2 tbsp Onion, finely chopped
2-3 Green Chilli, slit
1 inch Ginger, crushed
3-4 tbsp Lemon Juice
Samll Jaggary Piece
2 tbsp Coriander Leaves, finely chopped
¼ tsp Turmeric Powder
Salt to taste

For Tempering:
1 tsp Jeera/Cumin Seeds
1 tsp Mustard
1 Dry Red Chilli, broken
Pinch of Hing/Asafoetida
Few Curry Leaves
1 tsp Ghee/Oil

Nimbu Saaru

Method:
Add turmeric powder, a tsp of oil and 1 and half cups of water to the toor/masoor dal and cook it in pressure cooker for 10-15 minutes until done. Cool the cooker before opening the lid.
Lightly mash the dal and transfer it into heavy bottomed vessel.
To this add chopped onion, tomato, slit green chillies, crushed ginger, jaggary, two cups of water and salt to taste.
Cook this on a medium flame for 10 minutes till it starts to boil.
Reduce the flame and add little more water if desired and cook for further 5 minutes till all the flavours blend well.
Turn off the gas and mix lemon juice to it. You can add more lemon juice based on your preference.
In a tempering pan heat ghee and add jeera, mustard, curry leaves and hing. When mustard starts to pop and splutter transfer this to the saaru and mix well.
Serve it hot garnished with coriander leaves with rice and papad or chapati.

Nimbu Saaru with Rice & Papad

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Did You Know?

Chaaru, in the Telugu language, means "essence," and, by extension, "juice" or "soup." In former times, it was prepared mainly with black pepper and tamarind, both ingredients native to and abundant in Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and South India in general.
Iyengars, a community living in Tamil Nadu from the 7th century CE or earlier, call it Chaathamudhu (Chaaru + Amudhu, the Tamil form of Amrita, ambrosia)[citation needed].
Sourashtras, an immigrant community living in Madurai from the 16th century CE, still refer to it as Pulichaar (Puli = Tamarind + Chaar) (Puli or Pulipu means tart (tamarind)).
The same dish in commonly known as Saaru in Kannada and Chaaru in Telugu. With hoteliers and restaurateurs expanding their joints in South India in the mid-twentieth century, it was popularised and came to be known by its Tamil name as Rasam.
Interestingly, rasam is the basis of mulligatawny soup, which is an Anglo-Indian version of the same.
(Source: wikipedia)

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Nimbu Saaru

Bhindi Fry in Yogurt

Weird, quirky, out of the world, unusual name hah? I don’t blame you… The name Bhindi Fry in Yogurt is the name we kept for our Accidental Diva. After working my ass off in office trying to figure out where I went wrong with some thousand lines code, no wonder my brain was on curfew. There was a bag of lovely tender okra which was sitting in one corner of refrigerator for more than a week and before it starts rotting I wanted to cook something out of it. I hate to waste things especially food. All I could think of cooking was simple Stuffed Bhindi. With my brain cells going haywire, I absentmindedly chopped half of Bhindi’s before it dawned upon me I am supposed to slit them for Stuffed Bhindi. And before I could do anything my better half was ready with the ground masala for stuffing the okra. The only solution which came to my rescue was my Hubby Dear who is an expert in fixing things ;) The end result was Bhindi Fry. Just when I thought all’s well which ends well, I ended up adding yogurt to Bhindi Fry where I actually wanted to add yogurt to grated Cucumber for making Raita. To our utter surprise our Accidental Diva-Bhindi Fry in Yogurt turned out absolutely fantabulous. Crispy bhindi and crunchy onion cooked with spicy masala and sweet yogurt turned out really delicious. The name may sound little quirky but taste was unbelievable. May be next time I when my brain is half dead I hope I get as lucky as this time;)
I am sending this to my gorgeous friend Trupti's Spring Fling which is all about cooking with family or friends. Here is our Accidental Diva for you sweetie;)

Bhindi Fry in Yogurt

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Bhindi Fry in Yogurt
Prep Time: 10 mins
Cooking Time: 15-20 mins
Serves: 2-3

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Ingredients:
15-20 Okra/Ladies finger/Bhindi, chopped into 1cm pieces
1 large Onion, chopped finely
1 tbsp Sambar Masala
3 tbsp Grated Coconut
½ tbsp Tamarind Paste/Dry Mango Powder
½ tsp Turmeric Powder
3-4 tbsp thick Yogurt
1 tbsp Coriander Leaves, chopped
1 tsp Jeera/Cumin Seeds
2 tbsp Oil
A Pinch of Hing/Asafetida
Few Curry Leaves
Salt to taste

Bhindi Fry in Yogurt

Method:
Grind grated coconut, sambar powder, tamarind paste, turmeric powder and salt (according to taste) into a smooth paste adding little water.
Mix this ground mixture with finely chopped onion and keep aside.
Heat oil in a pan and add jeera, curry leaves and hing.
Sauté it till jeera starts to pop and splutter.
Now add cut okra and sauté it continuously at medium-high flame for about 8-10 minutes till okra turns crisp and brown.
To this add mixed ground masala and quater cup of water and mix well.
Cook this covered in a low-medium flame for about 5 minutes, checking in between so that the masala don’t stick to the pan.
Open the lid and add little more water if required and cook for further 1-2 minutes at low flame so that the okra retains its crispiness.
Switch off the gas and add yogurt and mix well.
Serve it hot garnished with chopped coriander leaves with chapatti or rice and dal.

Bhindi Fry in Yogurt

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Did You Know?
Okra is native to tropical areas of Africa, and was cultivated in Egypt in the 12th century.
Okra is a species of the Hibiscus genus (Hibiscus esculentus) and a member of the mallow family (Malvaceae).
Lady's Fingers is another name for okra. This name only dates back to the early 20th century, and originally applied to a small variety of okra.
Okra, when it's cut, releases a sticky substance that has thickening properties. This substance is useful in soups and stews.
(Source: www.foodreference.com)

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Bhindi Fry in Yogurt

Peas-Cauliflower Palya

“Cauliflower is nothing but cabbage with a college education.”
-Mark Twain

The whole weekend it was raining cats and dogs when actually it is “supposed” to be Spring, almost beginning of Summer here in UK!!! As usual, the weekend was cloudy, windy and gloomy. We ended up staying at home, cuddled under blankets and watched movies one after another. After our usual junk food eating sessions in Friday, we craved for something homely and comforting. When it comes to comfort food, nothing can compete with simple Tomato Rasam Rice and Palya. Apart from usual palya which is nothing but a stir fried vegetables tempered with urad dal, chilli and mustard Amma used to make special Peas-Cauliflower Palya. This is a special dish because each floret is cooked in a tangy tomato puree and sweet coconut cream which gives it a unique flavor. Loaded with antioxidants, fiber and crunch, cauliflower has been my favorite vegetables for as long as I can remember. For a kid who used to run miles away when it came to eating vegetables, it was a small relief for my Amma and she used to cook Cauliflower in different ways so that my love affair with cauliflower was retained;) So whenever my hubby and I crave for something different from usual stir fries we prepare this dish.

Peas-Cauliflower Palya

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Peas-Cauliflower Palya
Prep Time: 10 mins
Cooking Time: 20-25 mins
Serves: 4-5

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Ingredients:
1 medium Cauliflower
1 cup Green Peas, cooked/frozen
2 Tomatoes
1-1½ tbsp Rasam Powder
1 cup Grated Coconut
½ tsp Turmeric Powder
½-1 tbsp Jaggery
1-2 Green Chillies, slit
1 tbsp Coriander Leaves, chopped
Salt to taste
For Seasoning:
1 tbsp Oil
½ tbsp Urad Dal
½ tbsp Mustard
1-2 Dry Red Chillies
Few Curry Leaves
¼ tsp Hing

Peas-Cauliflower Palya

Method:
Clean and cut cauliflower into medium florets and keep them aside.
Grind tomatoes, coconut and rasam powder into smooth paste without adding water and keep it aside.
Heat oil in a pan and add urad dal, mustard, dry red chillies, hing and curry leaves and sauté them.
When mustard starts spluttering, add cauliflower, green peas, slit green chilli, salt, jaggery, turmeric powder and 1 cup water. Cover and cook for 5-7 minutes.
Add ground masala and mix well and cook cauliflower for another 5-10 minutes until done. Adjust the spiciness according to taste by adding more rasam powder or chilli powder.
Garnish with chopped coriander leaves before serving hot with chapatti or rice.

Peas-Cauliflower Palya

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Did You Know?
Natural chemicals found in soya beans and vegetables such as broccoli, cabbage and cauliflower boost the body's ability to repair damaged DNA and prevent cells turning cancerous.
High in fibre, more nutritious raw, especially high in Vitamin C, also rich in potassium and a source of protein, phosphorus and calcium.
Food writer Mark Bittman quoted a Cornell University study, stating that 100 grams of cauliflower had 55 mg of vitamin C after boiling, 70 after steaming, and 82 after being cooked in the microwave oven.
To retain the flavor of cauliflower and minimize nutrient loss, cook it rapidly by boiling or steaming. Overcooking cauliflower diminishes the nutrients significantly.
(Source: www.guardian.co.uk and www.health.learninginfo.org)

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Peas-Cauliflower Palya

Jackfruit Idli with Mango Chuteny

Jackfruit… There is something about jackfruit which fascinates me all the time. The huge spiky hard exterior which contains sweet golden yellow sheaths has always been one of my favorite fruits. I remember the days when my sister, brother and myself would always find some reason to stay away from volunteering to pare and seed the jackfruit. Once the sticky glue was removed and the golden flesh is separated, we kids would happily go and sit cross legged on the floor next to the big cane basket which would be filled with sweet jackfruits and happily eat one after the other. Amma would sit there peeling sheaths of fruit and tell us her childhood memories where she with her sisters and brothers and some dozens of cousins would gather and have fun while peeling jackfruit from its sticky sheaths and burn the jackfruit seeds in open fire. Although I am lucky to have many cousins, it is no where close to what my parents have. I can very well imagine the fun my parents had while growing up with their siblings and cousins in a large joint family.

My amma makes many dishes using both raw and ripe jackfruits. Apart from Kodhel(coconut based sambar from Mangalore), Majjige Huli(buttermilk based) and Playa(stir fried vegetables) the raw jackfruit is used in preparing pakodas and also they were preserved in salt water to make Rotti, Playa and Sambar and also a crunchy munchy called Undla Kalu. the ripe jackfruit is used to make Kottige(steam cooked rice cake using banana leaves), Payasa, Berati (Jackfruit Jam) and Papads. The seeds of the jackfruits were used in Palya and Laddu.

First when I heard about this months Jhiva ingredient I wanted to make traditional, authentic Mangalorean dish called Kottige/Kadubu which is very similar to Genasale, steam cooked rice cake with coconut and jaggery. I couldn’t find any banana leaves here and was not feeling very adventurous to use aluminum foil in place of them. So ended up making Jackfruit Idli. I used same ingredients used to make Jackfruit Kottige and steam cooked them in Idli stand. Served these sweet idilies with sour and spicy Raw Mango Chutney. Here is my entry for this month’s JFI-Jackfruit which is hosted by daring and darling couple Jai and Bee of Jugalbandi fame. I am contributing the recipe of Mango chuteny for this month's AFAM-Mango which is hosted by lovely Deepa of Recipes 'n More. Thank you Ashakka for reminding me:)

Jackfruit Idli with Mango Chuteny

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Jackfruit/Halasina Hannu Idli
Prep Time: 15-20 mins (excluding soaking time)
Cooking Time: 20-25 mins
Serves: 4-5

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Ingredients:
2 cups Rice
2 cups Jackfruit, cut into small pieces
½ cup grated Coconut
½-¾ cup Jaggery (Acc to taste)
¼ tsp Cardamom Powder (Optional)
¼ tsp Cooking Soda
½ tsp Salt

Jackfruit Idli with Mango Chuteny

Method:

Soak rice in water for 1-2 hours or overnight.
Grind the rice with freshly grated coconut, salt, cooking soda and jaggery to smooth paste. The paste should be of dosa batter consistency.
To this add chopped jackfruit and cardamom powder and mix well.
Now either you can steam cook using banana leaves or using Idli stand. If you are using banana leaves follow the steps showed for Genasale.
If you are using idli stand, grease the idli plate with oil/ghee and pour a ladle full of batter and steam cook them in pressure cooker for 10-15 minutes.
Let it cool for few minutes before serving the idlis with spicy mango chutney and ghee.

A closer look at Jackfruit Idli

Best side dish for these Jackfruit Idli is spicy and tangy Raw Mango Chutney. It's a marriage made in heaven. Here is the recipe for making Mango Chuteny.

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Mango Chutney
Prep Time: 5-10 mins
Cooking Time: -
Serves: 3-4

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Ingredients:
1 small Raw Mango
1 tsp Mustard Seeds, lightly roasted
2-3 Green Chillies
½ inch Ginger
1 cup Grated Coconut
Salt to taste

Mango Chuteny

Method:
Peel the mango discarding its pit and cut it into chunks.
Combine all the ingredients and grind it to smooth paste.
You can add more chillies if you prefer very spicy chutney to go with sweet Jackfruit Idli.

Jackfruit Idli with Mango Chuteny

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Did You Know?
The jackfruit is believed indigenous to the rain forests of the Western Ghats of India.
Male and female flowers are borne in separate flower-heads.
Jackfruit is the largest tree-borne fruit in the world, reaching 80 pounds in weight and up to 36 inches long and 20 inches in diameter.
There may be 100 or up to 500 seeds in a single fruit, which are viable for no more than three or four days.
There are two main varieties. In one, the fruits have small, fibrous, soft, mushy, but very sweet carpels with a texture somewhat akin to a raw oysters. The other variety is crisp and almost crunchy though not quite as sweet. This form is the more important commercially and is more palatable to western tastes.
(Source:www.crfg.org)

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Jackfruit Idli with Mango Chuteny

See the picture here which I got from Kamat’s Potpouri where the members of joint family are seen cleaning the jackfruit.

Red Pepper/Capsicum Soup

Have you heard of a famous quote which goes like “It’s difficult to predict three W’s in life: Wine, Weather and Woman”. I am not sure about first W because I can’t handle any drinks which have above 0.1% of alcohol. I don’t agree with third W because I am one among them. As for the second W is concerned I don’t have any issue because it is something which changes faster than my mood swings especially where I live;)
Last couple of days we were blessed with bright and clear sky which really cheered me despite the fact that I had badly sprained my ankle during our weekend trekking. Just when I started enjoying the warmth and ice cream, the weather changed as if some witch has spread her black magic. I was duped into thinking that the dark and gloomy days are over. I needed something really good to cheer myself and I was not ready to surrender myself to the temptation of munching my favorite Pringles. To distract my mind and eyes I opened a cook book which I had recently acquired from thrift store and voila, I couldn’t take my eyes off from one particular picture. Red Pepper Soup was the exact thing I wanted for brightening up the gloomy day and gloomy mood. All the magic ingredients were there to make bright, hot, spicy and tasty yummylicious pot of soup.

Red Pepper Soup

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Roasted Red Pepper Soup
Prep Time: 20-30 mins
Cooking Time: 20-30 mins
Serves: 3-4

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Ingredients:
4 medium Red Peppers/Capsicums
4 medium Tomatoes
1 medium Red Onion Sliced
½ tsp Dried mixed Herbs
2 cloves Garlic, crushed
1 tsp Curry Paste
½ tsp Red Chilli Paste
4 cups Vegetable Stock/Water
1 tsp Sweet Chilli Sauce
1-2 tbsp Olive Oil
Salt and Pepper for Taste

Red Pepper Soup

Method:
Cut the red peppers into quarter. Remove the seeds and grill or roast them in an oven until its skin blackens and blisters.
Cool the peppers slightly before peeling its skin.
In a mean while, mark a small cross on top of each tomato and place them in a bowl of boiling water for about 3-4 minutes.
Drain, cool and peel the skin of tomatoes. Cut these tomatoes in half and gently scoop out the seeds using a small spoon.
Heat oil in a pan and add crushed garlic and sliced onions and sauté it on low flame for 1-2 minutes.
To this add dried herbs, curry paste, chilli paste, chopped tomatoes, red pepper and vegetable broth and mix well.
Bring to boil, reduce the heat and simmer for another 5-6 minutes.
Remove the pan from heat and allow it to cool.
Place the soup in small batches in a food processor and process it to make a smooth puree.
Return this puree to a pan and add sweet chilli sauce and salt and pepper to taste.
Reheat the soup before serving with bread croutons.

Red Pepper Soup

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Did You Know?
Red peppers are one of the few foods that contain lycopene, a carotenoid whose consumption has been inversely correlated with prostate cancer and cancers of the cervix, bladder and pancreas.

In general, all peppers are a good source of vitamin A and C; the red ones are bursting with these two antioxidants. Antioxidants are a group of nutrients that neutralize free radicals in the body fluids reducing the risk of disease.

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Red Pepper Soup